Admonition Podcast

Again, want to welcome you to our worship this day.

We're grateful for your presence and encourage you, if you will, to open your Bible.

We're going to begin in Zephaniah.

Zephaniah, one of the Old Testament prophets.

It's going to prophesy to Israel.

And in Zephaniah chapter 2, he's going to call upon Israel to gather yourselves together.

He is going to tell the people to pay attention, to observe and to listen to the things
that he is about to say.

He says, gather yourselves together.

Yes, gather together, O undesirable nation.

If you've ever had somebody encourage a bunch of people to gather around and then insult
them, that's what Zephaniah just did.

In my mind, I kind of picture the drill sergeants with the young recruits or the Navy
SEALs going through as is pictured Hell Week.

they get torn down every way they can get torn down verbally by their instructors during
the process of that time.

Zephaniah is going to say to Israel, gather yourselves together.

Yes, gather together, O undesirable nation, before the decree is issued or the day passes
like chaff, before the Lord's fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of the Lord's

anger comes upon you.

Zephaniah draws Israel's attention and he focuses their attention and he gathers them
together and says, hey, you need to listen up.

because God's anger is about to be poured out on you.

and you need to hear something before it happens.

Verse three, we read, seek the Lord.

As Zev and I addresses the people that claim to belong to God, that claim to be the
descendants of Abraham, that claim to be the people in a covenant relationship with God,

though they do not live like it, he calls upon those people to wake up, listen up, gather
up and seek

the LORD.

He says, seek the LORD all you meek of the earth who have upheld his justice.

Seek righteousness, seek humility.

It may be that you will be hidden in the day of the LORD's anger.

As Zephaniah calls the people together and he broaches this conversation with them, he
lets them know that by and large

They're going to be judged!

But just like as you gather a large group of people who appear to be of the same
background, appear to be of the same persuasion, appear to be of the same nature, appear

to be of the same walk of life, there are a few scattered around that aren't.

And so he gathers the people not because of the people at large, but because he needs to
talk to the ones who are scattered among them.

who are living differently than they are.

who are going to seek the Lord, who are living in humility, who are going to stand before
God in meekness and obedience.

And Zephaniah says, if you do this, it may be.

It could be the outcome of that you will be hidden in the days of the Lord's wrath.

From this discussion, I want us to consider...

who our God will reward.

To the nation of Israel as addressed by Zephaniah, God is going to give to that nation
judgment.

He is going to bring upon them His fierce anger.

But to those scattered amongst them who live a life of meekness, who live a life of
humility, who live and seek the Lord, God says, you will have my

refuge

and my reward.

So let us consider who our God will reward.

As we already see here, number one, God rewards the meek and not the proud.

As you consider Isaiah, Isaiah chapter 11, Isaiah will write as another prophet to Israel
as he looks forward to the things that are going to occur later on in Israel's history.

as he continues to look forward to the days of the Messiah as well.

We read in Isaiah chapter 11 and beginning in verse three, his delight is in the fear of
the Lord, and he shall not judge by sight, by the sight of his eyes, nor decide by the

hearing of his ears.

But with righteousness he shall judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek of the
earth.

He shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips he
shall slay the wicked.

Righteousness shall be the belt of his loins and faithfulness the belt of his waist.

As Isaiah looks forward to the rod of Jesse pointing to the Messiah, as he looks forward
to the Messiah, the King of the kingdom of God,

the King of kings and Lord of lords.

He says concerning that one who will reign that he will judge with the poor and he will
decide with equity for the meek of the earth.

As Isaiah looks forward to Christ, as he looks forward to the Messiah, he says in the very
nature of how he judges and how he acts that he will decide on behalf of those who stand

in meekness before God.

It is therefore no strange wonder that as Jesus opens the Beatitudes, as He speaks in that
Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew chapter 5 through Matthew chapter 7, that He says,

blessed are the me.

Now, some might ask, great Aaron, but you keep using this word and I don't know what meek
means.

Does it mean weak?

No.

It means strength under control.

Moses in the Old Testament was described as the meekest man in all the earth.

And yet Moses was no weak individual.

Moses dealt with leading a nation of a million plus people through a wilderness for 40
years, starting at age 80.

He was no weak person.

when he arrived at death's door, when he arrived at the point at which God says, you're
not going to cross over, you're not going to go into the land, the text tells us in the

book of Deuteronomy that Moses' strength was not diminished at all.

And yet...

Moses is described as meek.

Moses was one who had strength under control, deferred to the control of God.

You see, there are individuals who have strength under control.

They have their own strength and they have it under their own control.

God says that's not going to work.

It has to be turned over to my control.

God wants those who will seek the Lord.

They desire His purposes be brought forth.

They desire that His work be done.

When you turn back to Matthew chapter 5...

Jesus.

will admonish the people over and over and over again to be like their God.

If we start in verse 3 of chapter 5, we read, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of
God.

You go down to verse 43 and Jesus says, you have heard that it was said, you shall love
your neighbor and hate your enemy.

But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate
you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be the sons

of your father in heaven.

Jesus is not calling upon people to exert self-control in their lives.

Jesus is calling upon people to exert God's control over their lives.

Paul O'Riite and Philippians.

As he writes to this church that interacted with him so often, that supported him, that
gave aid to him, he will write to them in chapter 1 and in verse 19, he says, for I know

that this will turn out for my deliverance, though your prayer or through your prayer and
supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed.

but with all boldness as always so now also Christ will be magnified in my body whether by
life or by death." Paul would insist that his life had been handed over to Christ to do

the will of Christ.

That wasn't something that Paul just thought might be a good idea.

He was simply following the example of Christ.

As Jesus knelt in that garden and prayed to the Father, as the uh betrayal was about to
happen, as the trials were about to commence, as the crucifixion was nigh, Jesus prayed,

not my will, but thine.

Be done.

God will reward the meat.

but not the one who usurps God's authority.

God also will reward, as we saw back in Zephaniah chapter 2, those who live with humility.

God rewards the humble and not the proud.

In James chapter 4,

James will write to the Christians beginning in verse 6, God resists the proud.

James doesn't leave any arguments.

He doesn't leave any negotiations.

doesn't leave any hedging.

He doesn't leave any margin.

He says, God resists the proud,

but gives grace to the humble.

He goes on to say, therefore submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee you.

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.

Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Lament and mourn and weep.

Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he will lift you up.

Who does the Lord reward?

The humble, not the proud.

Many times in our daily lives as we observe the world going on around us, as we observe
the actions of people around us, we see the proud being successful.

We see the proud boasting.

We see the proud doing well.

We see the proud being those who are recognized, those who are elevated, those who are
exalted, those who are praised.

and yet we often fail to consider.

What does the LORD see?

The Lord sees someone He opposes.

The Lord sees someone that He is in distinct opposition against.

The Lord sees someone that He is actively resisting because of their choices.

And throughout all of these passages, Zephaniah has told us, Jesus has told us, Paul has
told us, James now tells us.

Get close to God.

Zephaniah said, Seek the LORD.

Jesus said, be like the Lord.

James now says, draw near to the Lord.

when you read those words.

Imagine if you would a small child.

And they know that in the vicinity, in the closeness to their parent, as the small child
latches on to the leg of the parent...

They know they have safety.

They do not imagine themselves to be equal with the parent, not in those moments.

They do not imagine themselves to be authoritative over the parent.

They do not imagine themselves to be those who can direct their own path.

As a matter of fact, wherever that leg goes, they are going to go.

They have exhibited the perspective of seek the Lord, draw near to the Lord, hold on to
God.

in first samuel chapter seventeen

David will be sent by his father.

to go to where the army is of Israel because his brothers are in the army.

And he will go with supplies to where the army is located as they are encamped across the
valley from the Philistines.

So David, as the young man that he is, will bring the supplies that his father has sent
him with.

And as he arrives at the place where the army is encamped, he will hear the declaration
made by Goliath by the Philistines across the valley.

Send out one of your men.

We will do battle.

And the winner takes all.

Send out your best.

Send out the warrior that holds allegiance to your God.

I will.

David is astonished.

because no one from Israel is going out to meet Goliath.

You notice there in 1 Samuel chapter 17 as David is observing this, he is going to be
admonished by his older brother concerning the things that he is doing and verse 29 David

said, what have I done now?

Is there not cause?

as David is wondering who is going to go out on behalf of God and defend against this
blasphemer.

David wants to know from his own brother, is there not a cause?

If you go down in the text to verse 40.

David will have said, I'll go.

And so Saul's going to offer David his armor.

And David says, I've not proved these things.

I've not tested them.

They're not mine.

Verse 40, then he took his staff in his hand and he chose for himself five smooth stones
from the brook and put them in the shepherd's bag in a pouch, which he had, and his sling

was in his hand and he drew near to the Philistine.

So the Philistine came and began drawing near to David.

And the man who bore the shield went before him.

And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him, for he was only a
youth, ruddy and good looking.

So the Philistine said to David, Am I a dog that you come to me with sticks?

And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of
the air and the beasts of the field.

Then David said to the Philistine, You come to me with a sword, with a spear and with a
javelin.

But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom
you have defied.

This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head
from you.

And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the
air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in

Israel.

Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save."

with sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you into our hands."
So it was when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David that David

hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone, and he slung it and struck the
Philistine in his forehead so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his

face to the earth.

So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone and struck the Philistine
and killed him, but there was no sword in the hand of David.

As David went down into the valley to confront the Philistine, David did not say, I can
accomplish this.

as the Philistine, as Goliath boasted and claimed he would take David's carcass and feed
it to the birds, he said, oh no.

but the Lord is going to deliver you into my hands.

David was humble.

David did not lift himself up.

David said,

I don't know who you got on your side, but I know who I've got on mine.

And you're not winning.

in Micah chapter 6 and verse 8.

Micah asked the question of Israel, what does the Lord require of you?

but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

God will reward the meek and not the usurper.

God will reward the humble and not the proud.

But then consider as well that Paul tells us that God will reward the obedient and not the
great.

Paul as he is nearing the end of his life.

We'll write to Timothy, this young preacher who had spent so much time traveling with
Paul, who had observed Paul's age.

I imagine for Timothy, the impressiveness of Paul in physical presence had diminished
somewhat from what he had met during that second missionary journey.

You say, Aaron, why would you think that Paul had diminished?

Well, go read 2 Corinthians and read the list of things Paul's physical body had gone
through.

And you'll see why I say he's probably diminished somewhat physically.

When you've been shipwrecked,

When you've been beaten, when you've been stoned, you're going to carry around in your
body, as Paul said he did, evidence of the things you had endured for the cause of Christ.

And for everyone who's ever spent a whole bunch of years pursuing athletics, and then they
get older, and you realize you're paying for all of those years where you thought you were

just getting stronger and stronger, and now you're paying for it over and over again.

Paul, most likely in his physical presence, had diminished as he sat in a Roman prison.

But as he writes to Timothy, he says, I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus
Christ, will judge the living and the dead and is appearing in his kingdom, preach the

word.

Be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and
teaching.

Paul tells Timothy, you keep speaking God's word.

You do it day in and day out.

season in and season out whenever they want to hear it and whenever they don't.

As a matter of fact, he says, for the time will come when they will not endure sound
doctrine.

But according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap to
themselves teachers and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside

to fables.

But you be watchful in all things.

Endure afflictions.

Do the work of an evangelist fulfill your ministry?

He says, for I am already being poured out as a drink offering in the time of my departure
is at hand.

I have fought the good fight.

I have finished the race.

I have kept the faith.

Finally there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord the righteous
judge will give to me on that day and not to me only.

but to all those who love his appearing.

Paul will admonish Timothy, you keep preaching the truth.

You preach the truth when they are not living right and need to be rebuked.

You preach the truth when they're not acting right and they need to be exhorted.

You preach the truth.

when they're slowing down in their obedience to God and they need to be admonished.

You preach the truth when they turn their back on God and don't want to hear it anymore.

But then you obey the truth and you fight the good fight and you finish the course no
matter who else does.

because my Lord rewards the obedient.

My Lord rewards those who love His appearing.

Matthew chapter 7.

Jesus will point out, not everyone that says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of
heaven, but those who do the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Our God will reward the obedient, not the great.

Your stature, your grandeur, your glory, your riches, your prominence, your dwelling place
do not matter when it comes to the reward of God.

Your obedience does.

But fourthly and finally, turn to Revelation chapter 13.

I know for those who are in my Sunday morning Bible class on the book of Revelation, I'm
getting ahead.

That's OK.

We'll get there.

Revelation, Chapter 13.

John will make clear to us in chapter 13 and chapter 14 that God will reward the faithful.

not the success.

God will reward the faithful.

In Revelation chapter 13, then I stood on the sand of the sea and I saw a beast rising up
out of the sea having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his

head a blasphemous name.

You don't have to understand all the pictures, just know this.

The very name of the creature was in stark opposition to God.

The very presence of the creature was in stark opposition to God.

And notice, now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a
bear, his mouth was like the mouth of a lion, the dragon gave him his power, his throne,

his great authority, and I saw one of his heads as it had been mortally wounded, and his
deadly wound was healed, and all the world marveled and followed the beast.

So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast, they worshiped the beast
saying, who is like the beast?

Who is able to make war with him?

And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority
to continue for 42 months.

Then he opened his mouth and blasphemy against God to blaspheme his name, his tabernacle,
and those who dwell in heaven.

It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority was
given him over every tribe and tongue and nation.

All who dwell on the earth will worship him whose names have not been written in the book
of life of the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

If anyone has an ear, let him hear.

The picture John writes is of Satan handing off his power to this great world power and
this world power blasphemes against God.

And he causes people to worship Satan instead of God.

And he causes people to do that which is in opposition to God.

And then he begins to torment and to persecute and to kill the people of God and he
overcomes them.

and the people of God could not be considered in terms of the beast successful.

For they're defeated, they're killed, they're persecuted, they're destroyed, and the whole
world praises the one who's killing the people of God until you go to chapter 14.

In chapter 14, beginning in verse 9, then the third angel followed them, saying with a
loud voice, If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on their

forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God,
which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation.

He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in
the presence of the lamb.

and the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever, they have no rest day or night
who worship the beast in his image and who receive the mark of his name.

Here is the patience of the saints.

Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me,

And the thing that comes forth from the throne of God that is spoken by the angel, that he
tells John, you need to write this down.

He tells John.

Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.

Yes, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works followed.

The whole world.

in the days of the first century church.

Had gone after the world power that looked to be so great,

so powerful.

The solution to all their problems, prosperity, joy, all the things that they wanted they
could get from the beast.

And God says...

and when you die.

Let me tell you where you'll end,

but to the Christians who that world power was killing, throwing into the midst of the
lions and having them torn apart for sport.

God says, and when you die, let me tell you where you'll

because God rewards the faithful, not the successful.

as you consider your Lord, as you consider the God of heaven who exists.

Who will our God reward?

The meat.

humble, the obedient and the faithful.

So the question for us is, are we?

Are we meek?

Are we humble?

Are we obedient?

Are we faithful?

Because if we're not,

Scripture is quite clear that there is a reward for the enemy of God.

And it's not a crown.

It is judgment.

If you have need of the invitation, maybe you say, Aaron, I'm not sure whose side I'm on.

I'm not sure how I would know.

I know whose side I want to be on, but I don't know.

How can I know?

Well, the scripture can tell you how you

So if you'd like to study more about it, we'd love you to ask your questions.

But if you have a need of the invitation of Christ right now, why not come as we stand and
as we sing.