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Spirit-Filled Manhood (Luke 2:25-35)
17 Plays3 months ago
Sunday Message recorded 25 August 2024
by Pastor Victor Morrison
First Baptist Church -- Columbus TX
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Luke's Gospel
00:00:06
Speaker
but I would like to invite you to turn with me to Luke 2, verses 25 to 35. Luke 2, we'll start with verse 25 and go down through verse 35. You know, if you recall, when we were in chapter one and we read those first four verses, in verse four of Luke chapter one, we learned that this man, Luke,
00:00:28
Speaker
is the instrument that the Holy Spirit is using to write the gospel. But he's writing it for another man named Theophilus. So it's like man to man. And what he says is, Theophilus, I want you to be certain concerning the things that we have taught you.
Finding Certainty in Scriptures
00:00:46
Speaker
I think that 2024 is a ah day of uncertainty, but I think it's unnecessary because if we'll get in the Word, I think we will have certainty. We will understand what God expects of us. One area that I think is definitely uncertain these days is biblical manhood and womanhood.
00:01:07
Speaker
And so I want to encourage you to look with me in the scriptures today about biblical manhood, because I think when you see the character named Simeon, you're going to understand, hey, this guy was some kind of a haus spiritually.
00:01:24
Speaker
You know, there were four men in the Bible named Simeon. Genesis 29.33 says that the second son of Jacob, his name was Simeon. He later had a tribe named after him, the tribe of Simeon. But then in Luke 3.30, when it's giving the lineage of Jesus, there's a man way down about midway and his name was Simeon. We don't really know that much about it.
00:01:49
Speaker
There was another man named Simeon who was a teacher in the church at Antioch, Acts 13.1 would be that reference. But Luke introduces introduces us to this spiritual giant who met Joseph and Mary and baby Jesus in the temple as recorded in these verses that we're about to look at, Luke 2 verses 25 to 35.
Simeon's Biblical Manhood
00:02:13
Speaker
Do you know Luke's first words when he introduces this guy is, now there was a man. And I got to think about, he's saying, now there was a man. So I'm just thinking in terms of masculinity. You know, I think that God wants his his life to be recorded in scripture so that we can remember how he lived, what he did, what he had to say. It's all preserved for us right here in God's word.
00:02:43
Speaker
It's a reminder for each one of us that are men, that heaven keeps a record. You know, God's not missing anything that's taking place in our lives. And so we have to remember, okay, I'm going to face it. So who can help you to have something that'll be presentable to the Lord someday out there in eternity? I think that's why the Holy Spirit comes to live within the life of every man, every woman who turns from sin in repentance and places their faith and trust in the finished work of Christ. But if you look in just chapter one, you'll see that John the Baptist, the angel told ah Elizabeth, you know, or Zacharias, he said, John the Baptist will be filled with the Holy Spirit.
00:03:27
Speaker
Whenever Mary was told that she was going to give birth to Jesus, the angel told her, you're going to be overshadowed by the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth was filled with the Spirit according to Luke 141. And then later Zacharias, her husband, he was filled with the Spirit in Luke 167.
00:03:48
Speaker
But for some reason, whenever Luke was trying to describe this man Simeon, you know what he did?
Simeon and the Holy Spirit
00:03:54
Speaker
Three times he says a reference to the Holy Spirit. In Luke 2.25, he was living by the Spirit of God. In Luke 2.26, he was listening to the Spirit of God. And in Luke 2.27, he was led by the Spirit of God. So I really want us to look at this. As a matter of fact, whenever it begins, you're going to see that word now. That word now, actually some translations say behold. It's an interjection. And basically what it means is see or look
00:04:28
Speaker
One translator said, named J. Philip Arthur, he said, look at this. Isn't it amazing?
Simeon's Prophecy over Jesus
00:04:36
Speaker
Would you stand as we look at this amazing example of manhood as is recorded here in God's Word in Luke chapter 2 verse 25 to 35. Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.
00:04:52
Speaker
And this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the constellation of Israel. And the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law,
00:05:20
Speaker
He took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, Lord, now you're letting your servant depart in peace according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation, that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel. And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign that is opposed and a sword will pierce through your own soul also so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.
Prayers for Spirit-filled Leadership
00:06:11
Speaker
Let's ask the Lord to speak to us from this passage.
00:06:14
Speaker
Oh God, I really have a burden for the young boys. I have a burden for the teenage guys. I have a burden, Lord, for men, no matter what age, that you would help them to stay focused on who you say that we are as men. Help us to lead our families as well. Help us to pay attention to the way we're living.
00:06:35
Speaker
I pray that you would use this example of Simeon to inspire, to motivate us, to live for Jesus with everything we have. And so God, you speak, but I also thank you for every young girl, for every man that's in this, for every woman that is in this room. Thank you for them. Their faith is precious and valuable and important. There may be some things that you will speak to them through this passage.
00:07:00
Speaker
But Lord, you speak as I get out of the way and just let your word speak. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Thank you, you may be seated.
00:07:11
Speaker
What does spirit filled manhood look like? When somebody is saying to God, you guide me, you be in control of my life. Well, I observed six characteristics of Simeon that the Holy Spirit will produce in any man, anywhere who surrenders his life to the control and the empowerment of God's spirit. I pray that to you.
00:07:34
Speaker
Let's look at the first one. I believe that a man that is spirit filled or spirit controlled, his life will be aligned with the standards of the Lord. His life will be aligned with the standards of the Lord. I believe it's speaking about his character, speaking about his conduct, it's speaking about his consistency. What would we say about your life if we were to examine it?
00:07:58
Speaker
What would we say about mine? Keep in mind that Simeon, he was not a priest. Simeon was not a prophet. He was not a scribe. You know what Simeon was? He was just an ordinary man.
00:08:11
Speaker
just an ordinary man. So I want to share with you three things about these standards and his alignment. I think first, he was working in alignment with the truths of God. I don't know what his career path had been, but all I know is this. When it describes his manhood, it says that he was a man that was righteous. You know what that word is referring to?
00:08:36
Speaker
It's not saying it was perfect. You know, whenever it calls someone righteous in the scriptures besides Jesus Christ, it's saying that this man was by grace through faith, made right with the father. Just like Abraham in Genesis 15, six, that God saw his faith and it was accounted to him as righteousness. That's repeated in Galatians three, six through eight.
00:09:02
Speaker
See, he was declared righteous even though he wasn't perfect and righteous. But I believe that when you see these words that he was a righteous man, I believe it's referring not to the declaration of righteousness,
Living with Righteousness and Reverence
00:09:16
Speaker
but to the expression of that righteousness in his life. Since he was a man of God, I believe it made a difference in the way he treated other people. It made a difference in the way he lived his life, a life of integrity, his character, and so forth.
00:09:33
Speaker
The same is said of Joseph. um You know, it says in Matthew 119 that Joseph was a righteous man. What are we doing in our relationships with other people? But then it says that he's also not only a man that was righteous, he was a man that was devout, a man that was devout.
00:09:53
Speaker
That word devout refers to one's reverence toward God. It refers to someone who is careful the way they live, not reckless in the way they live. They're careful because they know one day they'll be accountable to God. It's also referring to something that's internal, an internal attitude. The word for devout in the Greek is a combination of two different terms.
00:10:19
Speaker
One is well and the other one is take hold. So he takes hold of his faith with caution. He said, I want to live well because I'm going to stand before God one day and give account for the way that I've lived this life. But it also says that he was not only working in alignment with the truths of God and walking in alignment before the throne of God, I believe he was also waiting in alignment with the timing of God.
00:10:49
Speaker
You know, it says that this man was waiting. Are you waiting on something? Are you waiting for God to do something? You know, I think that word waiting there refers to persistent expectation, to the patient anticipation. You see, these people were waiting on the Messiah. They had been waiting for over 400 years.
00:11:11
Speaker
G. Campbell Morgan, he was a Bible scholar from long ago, he says that this man Simeon, he was living by a vertical vision, not by a horizontal vision. When he wanted to know how should I live my life, he didn't look at what everybody else was doing. He said, God, what do you want me to do? I want to honor you. I want to please you. I want to live like you want me to live.
00:11:35
Speaker
So when it says that the Holy Spirit was upon him, it meant that the Holy Spirit was giving him strength and power. For what? So that he would be in alignment with God's word. There was, yes, an external alignment the way he treated others. There was an internal alignment knowing in his faith, in his heart of hearts, he knew someday I will give account to God. But there was also this vertical alignment saying, you know what? Everything that God wants to do in my life is not going to happen today.
00:12:06
Speaker
So I will wait, I will wait for what God wants to do in my life. He's worth waiting on. Let's go to the second thing that we can observe about Simeon. I believe that a Spirit-filled man will also be anointed with the Spirit of the Lord.
00:12:23
Speaker
You know, it's one thing whenever you're driving your vehicle, I took my vehicle over to Katie this weekend on Saturday, actually yesterday, and had to get some repair work done. It wasn't it wasn't the same thing as what I'm about to describe, but there's been a time in my life when my vehicle got out of alignment. And you know what it would do? It would pull to the right.
00:12:43
Speaker
It pulled the right. And if I just let the steering wheel go, it would go over there all by itself. Sometimes I almost felt like I was fighting with the wheel. So what they said I needed was they said, you need an alignment. You need to get your front end aligned.
00:12:58
Speaker
And so in order to get the front end aligned, I don't know how to do it. Maybe some of you men in this room, you know how to align a vehicle in the front. That's great. But you need skill and knowledge. You need tools sometimes to realign something that's out of alignment.
00:13:15
Speaker
I believe that's why the Holy Spirit, he could almost be compared to like a life mechanic that's going to help you and help me whenever we're out of alignment. Look to him. You know, John 16 verses seven through 11 tells us that when we got saved, the one that convinced us we had a need in our life was the Holy Spirit. It says that he does this thing called convict.
00:13:39
Speaker
convict of sin, of righteousness, and judgment. In other words, it was through him that I realized my car, my life, is going off track. I've got to have somebody help me to realign my life. If that's you today, let me tell you something. The Holy Spirit can do that if you'll just open your heart and listen to Him, to what He's saying.
00:14:05
Speaker
I believe that that's like the diagnostic side of what the Holy Spirit does, but He does so much more once we heed His voice, once we turn in repentance and place our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross Then he comes to live within us, and you know what he does?
Guidance through the Holy Spirit
00:14:23
Speaker
He repairs. He starts that repair work. If you were to look in John 16 verses 12 through 15, you'd be amazed at what the Holy Spirit does. You know, he said, Jesus told his disciples, I've got so much more I need to tell you guys, but you're not yet ready for it.
00:14:40
Speaker
And I'm so glad that God just doesn't give us a dump load of truth. he He waits until we are hungry for it. Are you hungry to be the man that God wants you to be? I believe that God will take us in accordance with that hunger. But if you read that, you'll see exactly what he does.
00:14:59
Speaker
You know, 1 John 2, 24 clarifies the guidance of the Holy Spirit will always be in alignment with the scriptures. I remember one time a lady came to my house in Canada. We were in a setting not quite like Aaron and Alyssa, but we were in ah an area about 850 miles above the US border in a place called Fairview, Alberta. But I remember a lady comes and tells Jody and I, I feel like God's called us to missions.
00:15:26
Speaker
We were so excited. I said, what does your husband think about that? Because I'd been visiting her husband hoping I could win into Christ. And she said, he's a loser. She said, he doesn't want to go. I'm going to go to India and be a missionary and leave him behind. So I thought, wait a minute, that doesn't sound like God. And so I began to open the scriptures and try to tell her what God would say.
00:15:49
Speaker
about that kind of behavior of saying, yeah, I'm gonna go be a missionary and leave him behind. What about being a part of seeing him come to know Christ, you know? But anyway, it wasn't too much longer that I found ah found out that she ran away with the ambulance driver and left town. So I was thinking, well, that doesn't sound much like missions to me.
00:16:08
Speaker
But anyway, if someone tells you that they're listening to the Holy Spirit, and it goes counter to what God's Word says, they're not listening to the Holy Spirit. We've got to stay in line with what God's Word said, and that's when the Holy Spirit comes to live within us, so that we can stay in alignment with Him.
00:16:28
Speaker
I think a third thing I noticed about Simeon since he was waiting, he was so attentive to the schedule of the Lord. I think a third quality of a Spirit-controlled man, he's going to be listening. He's going to be paying attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Do you know what the word, the name, Simeon means?
00:16:51
Speaker
I couldn't believe when I read it, it means to listen. It means to hear. How about that? Simeon's name actually means to hear. But when I read verse 26, I thought, well, there it is right there. It says, and it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit. Do you know that this book right here, the Bible, man, this right here is the revelation of the Holy Spirit.
00:17:14
Speaker
All that we need to know, it's all right there. Are we paying attention to what God has said to us in his word, what he has written? So I think first, if you're going to follow in Simeon's footsteps, you need to be attentive attentive to biblical revelation. That's why the Bible says in 2 Timothy 3 16 and 17 that it's God breathed. God inspired the scriptures. But if you were to read 2 Peter 1 20 and 21, it says the scriptures are not up to any one person's interpretation.
00:17:50
Speaker
that God laid on men's hearts exactly what He wanted us to know, and those things were written here. But as we're studying the scriptures, when you go to Sunday school after this, maybe even during this message right now, or maybe when you're having your own personal devotions, or maybe you're in a car, or maybe you're at the gym, and you're listening to a biblical podcast by message,
00:18:14
Speaker
You know, at any moment, the Holy Spirit may take the Word of God and he may make a personal application of the Word of God. And that's what I notice next. Look with me and once again at verse 26. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that, here comes the personal application, he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Wow.
00:18:41
Speaker
Isn't that amazing? You know, I think that the Lord's made other promises and we need to say, Lord, I'm going to stand on that. It's in your word. You've revealed this and now you're applying this to my life. This is the way you want me to live. You see, Simeon didn't know God's exact time schedule, but he knew and he trusted the promises of God.
00:19:04
Speaker
Let's go to the fourth thing. I think that a Spirit-filled man is also available.
Availability and Surrender to God
00:19:09
Speaker
They're available for service to the Lord. You know, Galatians 5, 16 through 26 is such a clear description of a Spirit-filled man, Spirit-filled woman for that exactly that matter. But Galatians 5, 16 to 26 says four different things about the Holy Spirit.
00:19:28
Speaker
It says, are you walking by the Holy Spirit? Are you being led by the Holy Spirit? Are you living by the Holy Spirit? Are you keeping in step in the Holy Spirit?
00:19:41
Speaker
You know what I think? The longer I'm alive, some of you say, yeah, we can tell how long you've been alive. You've got gray hair. That's right. I haven't always had gray hair, but I saw Aaron Lister. I thought, my hair used to look a little bit like that, you know? But anyway, the longer I live, I'm going to give you something from my heart.
00:19:59
Speaker
God's looking not for your ability. God's looking for your availability. God's looking for you to just simply say, Lord, I'm surrendered. I'm not gonna tell you what I want to do. I'm not gonna tell you how to do things. I'm just gonna surrender to you, God, and ask that you would work your will out in my life. If we will walk open before God like that, the opportunities that God will give us, they're unlimited.
00:20:29
Speaker
But until we will have an open heart, then the door will remain shut and God will say, I will wait until you surrender your heart, your life to me. That's what I mean by availability. When I was looking at this passage here, I thought, look at that.
00:20:48
Speaker
If I accept the responsibility of being open in my life to the Lord and surrender to Him, His response will be giving me opportunities to speak for Him or to serve Him, to do something for Him, to make my life count for Him. So I want you to, if you're if you're a note taker, then why don't you put like like a crossroads? Do a crossroads in your notes.
00:21:12
Speaker
And on the one side of the crossroads, put the arrow going toward the center, going toward the center. And what you have on that left side going toward the center is there you have a servant led to the temple by the Holy Spirit. Isn't that what it says? That Simeon came in the spirit into the temple.
00:21:32
Speaker
So he's doing what the Spirit of God wants him to do. And what the Spirit of God said was, I want you there in my house. So that's where he was. Now on the other side, on the right side of that crossroads, drawing another era going in inside. So you got both eras headed toward one another as though they were going to collide. You've got parents. You've got young parents with their first child.
00:21:58
Speaker
who are simply obeying the scriptures going to the temple, going in the temple. So you've got a servant being led by the spirit, you've got a young family that's trying to do what God wants them to do, and they're just about to intersect at the crossroads. What happens whenever you and I walk in the Holy Spirit?
00:22:18
Speaker
Well, that's where the other cross bars come in there from the vertical direction. From the top, why don't you write this? The servant's praise to the Lord goes up and show the arrow going up. It's because when Simeon sees the one he's been waiting on, the Holy Spirit had showed him all those verses that were in the Old Testament about the Messiah coming. This is him right here.
00:22:44
Speaker
And Simeon can't believe it. He's an older man by now and he's just like, thank you, God. It says he blessed God. So we can write the servants praise to the Lord goes up.
00:22:58
Speaker
The best place you'll ever be is in the center of God's will. When you're in the center of God's will, you're gonna be praising the Lord for his goodness to you. But now on the other one, put the arrow going down, okay? on the On the bottom half of that vertical ah post, the Lord's peace to his servant comes down. Because what did he say?
00:23:22
Speaker
He said, now Lord, I can depart in peace. I can depart in peace. You know, if there's one thing I can tell you about our sister, Chaney Gregory, she was ready. She was ready to meet Jesus. She had the peace that surpasses all comprehension. That was the verse that I read to her a couple of days ago when she was in the hospital. She was so ready to go and be with Jesus. Are you ready to go and be with Jesus? You know, when you're in the center of God's will, when you've done what he wants you to do, there's a peace about that.
00:23:56
Speaker
And you just say, you know what? I can depart in peace. I know that I have the peace of the Lord here. So are you available for whatever God wants to do in your life? Let me go to the fifth characteristic of the Spirit-filled man. I believe verses 30 and 31, 32, 33, they speak of the Spirit-filled man as someone who's anticipating souls, souls for for the Lord.
00:24:23
Speaker
You know, Simeon, he's not gonna be able to see when Jesus died on the cross unless he lived to be a really old man. We're never told any more about him other than this passage right here. Perhaps he was called to glory before Jesus even went to the cross. See, at this time, Jesus is still a baby. So just think of how much time is going to go past based on what he's saying here. For my eyes have seen your salvation.
00:24:50
Speaker
You know, that reminds me of something we should anticipate. We should say, Lord, you know what? You've opened my eyes and I can see your salvation. I don't have to be afraid of death. It's just like a doorway. You're just going to go through a doorway. One day you'll be on this side. The next day you'll be on that side in glory. It's nothing to fear. It's nothing to be afraid of. But God has to open up your eyes and then you say, I can see it. Simeon says, my eyes have seen your salvation. But then in verse 31, he brings up something else that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples. You know what he also knew? He knew that God had provided and prepared a substitute, a substitute for our sins. How are we ever going to get into God's family? How are we ever going to get into heaven? All of us have broken all of sin and fall short of the glory of God.
00:25:47
Speaker
I believe that Simeon, somehow by the Holy Spirit, he knew this little baby, he's the Messiah. He's going to make a way because he is going to be the substitute for all of us. And notice the third thing that I believe he anticipated was someday out there in the future, souls. Souls are going to find out that they're welcome to salvation in Christ. What does it say?
00:26:12
Speaker
prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel. Man, when you're at that time, if you said Gentile and you said Jew, you covered the whole world. So basically, there's nobody that you can think of that has been outlawed from the cross, that has been rejected from salvation in Christ. No one that you can even think of. The Lord welcomes all, but he welcomes them under his terms, repentance and faith in Christ alone.
00:26:47
Speaker
But also notice how it says in verse 33, his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. They were so surprised. Men, I just thought to myself, you know, they never counted on them all that Simeon unloaded, all that he said that Jesus was going to be able to accomplish in his life, being this light for the peoples and so forth.
00:27:14
Speaker
As a matter of fact, Chuck Swindoll says in verses 29 and 30 that really, he says, that's a celebration of the fulfillment of God's promise to Simeon personally. But he goes on beyond just a personal thing. In verses 31 to 32, he says he's also celebrating the provision of a savior for the world generally.
00:27:37
Speaker
You know, God's doing so much that's going beyond your life. So are you even concerned about the souls? If you're like me, sometimes I get so distracted. Sometimes I get material goals I'm working toward or financial goals, perhaps even physical goals. It may not look like it, but I do try to go to the gym every now and then.
00:27:59
Speaker
Sometimes we have recreational dreams, we have political dreams, we have social dreams, we have all kind of educational or occupational dreams. But do you ever?
00:28:13
Speaker
As a man, think about souls. Think about the kingdom. Think about the glory of Jesus Christ. This world is lost, and we've got to work together to see them come to know Christ. And so I just wanted to say, Simeon, he was anticipating that. He knew it wasn't all going to happen in his lifetime, but he wanted to be a part of it, even at this early stage. Well, let me close with one final characteristic.
00:28:42
Speaker
I think he was so realistic, this man Simeon. He wasn't just talking about some fairy land type thing, no? He knew that sacrifice was coming down the road. He could tell, you know what? It's not going to be pretty.
00:28:58
Speaker
You know, a godly man can speak the truth even when it's not popular. A godly man can speak the truth even when it hurts, when it stings. He speaks the truth with love always, but he can speak the truth whenever it needs to be spoken. There's a Bible commentator named David Guzik. All of his commentaries are online. If you ever are looking for a conservative biblical commentator, I recommend David Guzik. It's called the Blue Letter Bible.
00:29:28
Speaker
But what he says here, this word sign, because Simeon turns not to Joseph. You would think you would speak to Joseph, right? But we don't know what happened to Joseph. But by the time the cross is there, Joseph is no more. As a matter of fact, after that time that we looked at when Joseph and Mary looked for Jesus and he was lost, he was 12 years of age, after that,
00:29:51
Speaker
There's no more mention of Joseph in terms of him doing something. So most Bible scholars say Joseph had already died by the time Jesus died on the cross. So the only one in that crowd that Simeon could speak to that day was not Joseph. Of course not Jesus. He's just an infant. He addresses Mary the mother. And here's what he says.
00:30:16
Speaker
He says, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign that is opposed, for a sign that is opposed. That's where David Guzik says, you know what that word sign was? It was whenever the soldiers would practice you know shooting the bow and arrow and they would make like a ah target. It means a target. And so basically what he's saying is,
00:30:47
Speaker
Mary, your son will have a target on his back. And Judas would be the first to hit that target, but then others would go against that target. But what he says is basically, you know what, he's going to be a sign that will be resisted. So why are we surprised if people don't listen to us? This has been going on for a long time. Our message will be welcomed by many, but it will not be welcomed by all.
00:31:15
Speaker
But the other thing I noticed is he says, you know, someday Mary, what you're gonna see is gonna be like a sword that's gonna pierce your soul.
Jesus' Future and Mary's Sorrow
00:31:25
Speaker
If you've ever watched a son or a daughter die, then I think you know how how painful, how hurtful that could be.
00:31:33
Speaker
But what he says is, it's not just a little dagger. No, this is a large, broad, double-edged sword. New Testament authors refer to swords 36 times. 29 of those times, it's the Makira. It's always in the hand of a man. It's like Peter pulls out a Makira. The mob had Makiras on their waist whenever they came to get him. Herod slayed James with a Makira.
00:32:03
Speaker
In the book of Revelation in the world, they've always got a Makira, but this is not a Makira. The Greek word there is a rhomphaea. It's used only seven times. And every time it's like in the hand of God, because this time in verse 35, when he says a sword will pierce through your own soul also, God's plan for Jesus and for your family It's gonna be hard, it's gonna be a hard thing. But I wanna say that also when Jesus comes back in Revelation 19, verses 15 and 21, you know what he has in his hand? He has a sword, and it's this same word, the rhomphaea. It's only used seven times, it's only used here in Luke, and then the rest of the times are in Revelation, six times over there. Have you ever heard of a tiny animal called a tardigrade?
00:33:02
Speaker
a tardigrade, I've never heard of it. It's ah like nicknamed water bears. They can withstand pressure from the deepest parts of the ocean. They can they can actually withstand pressure that's so great, it's 6,000 times what the atmosphere is. They've sent them in space and it doesn't do anything to these guys. You're thinking, what? These guys can survive over 200 degrees Fahrenheit Or, if you wanna go the other direction, they find them at the bottom, the lowest parts of the ocean. They can survive at minus 450 degrees Fahrenheit. They can be without air, they can be without water, they can be without food. You can boil them and bake them and deep freeze them, you can crush them, you can dehydrate them. I don't know what God has placed in these little water bears. There's tardigrades, but whatever it is,
00:33:58
Speaker
On the inside, there is no amount of pressure that they can be under on the outside that's going to make them cave in. I thought to myself, well, you know, I think that's what a man should be like. It's like, he's not going to be driven by what's on the outside. Man's going to be driven by what's on the inside. The Holy Spirit of God is within him. That's why I think it's so important what simon Another guy, not Simeon, but Simon of Cyrene, he was kind of a man's man as well. You know, whenever they were crucifying Jesus and they were walking him to the place where he was going to be crucified, they enforced this guy named Simon of Cyrene. They said, you need to carry the cross of Jesus. You know what?
00:34:47
Speaker
One of his sons, his son's names are up there, Mark 1521, Alexander Rufus. One of his sons is mentioned in Romans 16 and Rufus' mother is actually mentioned in Romans 1613. And so a lot of Bible scholars say, you know what he did?
00:35:05
Speaker
He never stopped carrying the cross. He never stopped following Jesus. What will it take for you to stop following Jesus? Well, you say today, you know what? I wanna be like a water bear. I wanna be like so filled with the Holy Spirit on the inside that no matter what this world throws at me, they won't, they will not make me back up. They can take my life, but they cannot take my faith from me.
Legacy of a Spirit-filled Life
00:35:33
Speaker
You know Simeon was quite a guy. If your life is aligned with the standards of the Lord, you're headed in the right direction. If your life is filled and controlled with the Holy Spirit of the Lord, you're headed in the right direction. If you're paying attention to God's schedule and timing,
00:35:50
Speaker
You're headed in the right direction. Are you available for the Lord? Whatever he wants to do in and through your life, you're headed in the right direction. Do you long to win souls and make disciples for the Lord? You're headed in the right direction. Are you willing to sacrifice for the Lord no matter what it might cost you? You're headed in the right direction. Simeon was a spirit-filled man. What kind of man do you want people to say that you are?
00:36:19
Speaker
What is it that would define it? In that movie, that's the character that's the the main theme that runs through that movie. When a man asks a young man, five years from now, what do you want people to say about you when they see you coming? What do you want people to say about you? What do you want your kids to say about you?
00:36:42
Speaker
Simon of Cyrene Rufus said, you know what, my dad, he kept following the Lord Jesus Christ. He carried the cross. Will you surrender to the Lord and continue to carry the cross? Let's stand together. We're actually going to sing a song called, I surrender all.
00:37:00
Speaker
You may get personal. You may need to meet with the Lord there in the pew. You may want to come and pray at the front, whatever you want to do. But you say, I surrender all God. I'm all i'm completely yours, Lord. Help me be a good example. Help me be the leader you want me to be in my household. So let's pray together. Lord, thank you so much.
00:37:21
Speaker
In this room, there are a lot of godly men. There's a whole lot of godly men. I thank you that a lot of them are headed in the right direction, and I see it. I've seen it for 17 years. They just keep on following you. Thank you so much. Lord, encourage them, strengthen them. I know these are difficult times. There are other young boys. There's some teenage guys.
00:37:47
Speaker
And I see tremendous potential in them. I believe that early on, way earlier than me, they're saying, I want to follow Jesus. I don't want to back up. I don't want any pressure to stop me. I want to be filled with God's spirit. I want God to give me the inner strength.
00:38:03
Speaker
so that I don't back down no matter what this world throws at me. So you bless our time and help us just to make sure that we're connected to you. That's the main thing. If we're open to you, if we're surrendered to you, we'll be ready. So Lord, help each man to be honest with you during this time. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:38:29
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church, located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.