(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

Amen. All right, we're there in Revelation chapter number two, and we are continuing this morning our series on the seven churches of Revelation. And if you remember, the last three weeks that we were in this series, we of course, the last couple of weeks, excuse me, we dealt with the first church, the church in Ephesus, and then the last time we were together, we dealt with the church in Smyrna, and tonight, or this morning, excuse me, it's been a long week, so excuse me, this morning, we are dealing with the third church, the church of Pergamos, and I'll go ahead and just kind of give you the breakdown or the outline. I'd love for you to take notes as we go through this, and on the back of your course a week, there's a place for you to write down some notes. But I've been giving you this breakdown because these messages that Jesus gave, these are messages that Jesus gave to seven literal churches in Asia, and they have similar, there's a few changes, but they have similar breakdowns. They all begin with an introduction. They will usually have a commendation where Jesus is giving them something he likes about them, praising them, encouraging them. Then there's sometimes a condemnation where he's giving them something negative, telling them something he doesn't like that they're doing. In this one, there's a correction where he's teaching them how to correct and how to make it better, and then there's always a conclusion. So these letters, they all have these similar formats. Some of them don't have a commendation, some of them don't have a condemnation, but they all basically follow an introduction, a commendation, a condemnation, a correction, and a conclusion. And today we're going to look at the church in Pergamos starting there in verse number 12. And I've been telling you this this whole time as we've been going through this, and it's that these sermons may feel a little different than what we normally do on a Sunday morning. This might feel more like a Wednesday night Bible study because of the fact that we're taking these few verses and we're just breaking them down, phrase by phrase, word by word, just going through them and making application and learning from it. So just know that as we go through it. But notice there in verse number 12, the Bible says this, And to the angel of the church in Pergamos, and this is of course the introduction to the message to the church in Pergamos. This is Jesus speaking. He says, right, and he's speaking to John. These things saith he, now he's referring to himself, which hath the sharp sword with two edges. So Jesus to the church in Pergamos introduces himself as the one that hath the sharp sword with two edges. Now in the book of Revelation, there is a theme, and really throughout the Bible, but I'd like you to notice, this theme of Jesus and the Word of God and Jesus specifically in the book of Revelation as having this sword with two edges that proceeds out of his mouth. You're there in Revelation 2. Keep your finger there. That's our text for this morning, of course. Flip back with me to Revelation chapter 1, if you would, and look at verse number 16. Revelation 1, 16. Now of course in Revelation 1, we get the description from John when he first sees Jesus and his glorified body. He goes through and describes him, and these descriptions correlate with the introduction to the seven churches. There's usually something about that description that's highlighted in the introduction. Notice Revelation 1 and verse 16. This is John speaking about Jesus. The Bible says, And he, talking about Jesus, had in his right hand seven stars, and we've already talked about that in different sermons, and then he says this, and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. So notice that in Revelation 2, we're told that he's the one that hath the sharp sword with two edges, and then in Revelation 1, 16, we're told that out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword. And like I said, this is a theme that we see in the book of Revelation. Go to Revelation chapter 19, if you would. Revelation chapter 19, towards the end of the book there. Now in Revelation 19, we have the Lord Jesus Christ ascending down to fight the battle of Armageddon. This is a prophetic book dealing with these prophecies, but I want you to notice how Jesus is described in Revelation 19 and verse number 11. The Bible says this, And I saw heaven open, and behold, a white horse. This is Jesus descending down on a white horse to do the battle of Armageddon. And behold, a white horse, and he, that's Jesus, that sat upon him was called Faithful and True. Notice throughout the Bible that those characteristics are attributed to the Lord Jesus Christ. He's faithful and true. Notice, And in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns, and he had a name written that no man knew but he himself. I want you to remember that. We're going to come back to that later in the sermon there, Revelation 19, verse 12. Notice verse 13, And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood. Notice what the Bible says, And his name is called the Word of God. His name is called the Word of God. And in the Bible, we have this concept of the Word of God proceeding out of the mouth of God. We'll see that here. We already saw it in Revelation 1.16. Notice it here in Revelation 19. Look at verse 14, And the armies which were in heaven followed him. This is us. This is prophetic. This is us. Those that are raptured, we're going to come back with him upon white horses clothed in fine linen, white and clean. Notice verse 15, And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron. And he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of the Almighty God. Skip down to verse number 21, same chapter. Notice what he says. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse. Which sword proceedeth out of his mouth? And all the fowls were filled with their flesh. So notice in Revelation we have this theme that Jesus is the one that has the sword with two edges. But then the Bible tells us that the sword proceeds out of his mouth because the sword here is a reference to the Word of God. Now you say, well why is it that the Word of God proceeds out of the mouth of God? And I want you to understand this is a very important doctrine that we need to make sure we defend and that we do not let go. And it is this, that Jesus is the Word of God. The Bible teaches that he is the Word of God. Notice again there in verse 13. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God. Now go with me to the book of John if you would. Of course we're going to be back in Revelation chapter 2 throughout the sermon. But go to John chapter 1 if you would. In the New Testament you have Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. John chapter 1. The Word proceeds out of the mouth of Jesus because Jesus is the Word. Jesus is the Word of God. This is a doctrine that is going by the wayside today but it is a doctrine that we must defend. John chapter 1. Look at verse 1. Notice what the Bible says. In the beginning. Now if you're familiar with scripture this should already remind you of a very famous passage that you may have read in the past. Genesis 1-1. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Right? So this is referring us back to the beginning when God created the mankind, the universe, everything. Notice what the Bible says. In the beginning was the Word. In the beginning was the Word. Then the Bible says this. And the Word was with God. So notice. In the beginning, before anything was created, was the Word. And then the Word was with God. Now when you say that the Word was with God, what that's telling you is that the Word is separate from God. But then the Bible says this. And the Word was God. And you say, well wait a minute. Isn't that a contradiction? Is the Word with God or is the Word, or is it true that the Word was God? Well both are true because of the fact that this is actually teaching the doctrine of the Trinity. And the point is this. That Jesus is the Word. Jesus is with God. And this is, I believe, a reference to God the Father. And then Jesus is God because he's the second member of the Trinity. Notice verse 2. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him. Now who's the him they're referring to? It's referring to the Word, to Jesus, right? All things were made by him and without him was not anything made that was made in him. And who? In Jesus was life and the life was the light of all men. Didn't Jesus say, I am the way, the truth, and the light? Notice verse 15. And the light shined in the darkness and the darkness comprehended it not. Notice verse 14. Skip down to verse 14 just for sake of time. Notice what the Bible says. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the Father. Now according to John 3.16, just a couple of chapters after this, the most famous verse in the Bible, who is the only begotten of the Father? It's the Lord Jesus Christ. And here we're told that the Word was made flesh. And you may not understand this and look, I don't necessarily understand it. There's lots of things in the Bible we don't understand. We just believe it by faith. But the Bible teaches that Jesus is the Word of God and that the Word was made flesh. And we're talking about the words of God. I mean when we're holding up this Bible, we're saying, hey, Jesus is the Word of God. Now please don't misunderstand me because people take this to ridiculous extremes. We're not talking about the pages. We're not talking about the ink. We're not talking about the leather cover or the binding. We're not saying this physical book is Jesus. But what we are saying is this. These words that you read in this book, these words are Jesus. And the Bible says that he is the Word of God. The Bible says that the Word was made flesh. Now there are false teachers out there in heretics, specifically those who teach the oneness doctrine, who like to teach this idea. They'll say, well, Jesus was the Word in eternity past and then he became the Son of God. And I'm not preaching about that this morning, but let me just go ahead and say this. The Bible teaches, we saw there in John chapter 1, that he was the Word before he came down to this earth. But guess what? In Revelation, we read that he's still the Word when he's coming down because look, he's always been the Word and he's always been the Son. The Bible teaches all throughout the Old Testament, we can look at several verses, referring to the fact that God has a Son and that is, of course, a reference to Jesus. So here's what you need to understand. It's an important doctrine that Jesus is the Word. Now you may not understand practically why that's an important doctrine. And what I want to do is I'm just going to put a real quick plug in for tonight's sermon. But tonight, we are continuing our series on doctrine. We've been going through a systematic study of major doctrines in the Bible. And tonight, just by chance, which is not by chance because the Holy Spirit orchestrates this whole thing, but I can tell you I'm not smart enough to orchestrate it. But by chance, we happen to be in a sermon called The Doctrine of the King James Bible. And here at Verity Baptist Church, we believe the King James Bible is the inspired, preserved, inerrant, infallible Word of God. And if you say, well, I don't understand that, well, it has to do with the fact that Jesus is the Word. And I just encourage you to come back tonight and we're going to break that down and we'll go through it in more detail. But I just want to point out to you that in Revelation, we're told that it is he who holdeth. He's the one that's holding the sword with the sharp two-edged sword. And then the Bible tells us that the sword proceeds out of his mouth. And then the Bible tells us that he is the Word. The Bible tells us that the Word was made flesh. Why does the Word proceed out of his mouth? Because of the fact that he is the Word. And we'll talk about that more tonight and I'd encourage you to show up to that. But let me just say this. Not only is there a theme in the Bible that Jesus is the Word, but there's a theme in the Bible that the Word of God is a two-edged sword. Let's just look at some verses on that real quickly. You're there in the book of John. Go to the book of Ephesians, if you would. You've got Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 6. Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 17, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians. Now in Ephesians 6 we have this famous passage of the armor of God. Put on the whole armor of God so you can withstand against the wiles of the devil. Part of that armor in verse 17, we're told, notice what it says, and take the helmet of salvation, and then notice this, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. So I want you to notice that the Bible tells us that the Word of God, the Bible, is the sword of the Spirit. This is all connected. He's the one that has the two-edged sword. He is the Word of God. You don't have to turn there. I'll just quote this for you. Hebrews 4.12, the Bible says, For the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even through the dividing ascender of soul and spirit and of the joints of marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And here's the truth. You say, when we engage in spiritual warfare, because this is what the passage is about. We're going to get to it here in a minute. When we engage in spiritual battle, how do we do that? Look, we do it through the Word of God, because it's the Bible that has the more powerful than a two-edged sword. It is the most powerful two-edged sword, and it can pierce even to the dividing ascender of soul and spirit is what the Bible says. So we see in this introduction that Jesus is connected to the Word because Jesus is the Word. Go back to Revelation chapter 2. Do me a favor, keep your finger there in Ephesians. We're going to come right back to it. We're going to come right back to Ephesians, so keep your finger there, and go back to Revelation chapter 2. That's the introduction to the message. What is it? That there's a connection between the Word and Jesus. The Word proceeds from Jesus because the Word is Jesus, and the Word is a two-edged sword. This is what the Bible tells us. Then I want you to notice the commendation, the commendation in this passage. This is what they're doing right, and what Jesus is happy with them. Notice Revelation 2 and verse 13. I know thy works. This is Jesus speaking to the church at Pergamos. I know thy works, and where thou dwellest. And then he says this, even where Satan's seat is. Even where Satan's seat is. Now, I want you to understand something. That word seat there, the underlying Greek word that the King James translators translated as seat, and I believe the King James Bible is perfect. I just talked about that. I'm going to preach a whole something about that tonight, so I'm not doubting the Word of God here. The translation is correct, the word seat, but I want you to understand that that same Greek word is translated by the same King James translators in our King James Bible in other parts of Scripture. That word seat is translated as the word throne, and it's a proper translation. It's a good translation. There's nothing wrong with it, but I want you to understand that the word seat there, when it says Satan's seat, a synonym that you could use is talking about Satan's throne. What the Bible is talking about in this passage is that Satan is actually a ruler with a throne on this earth, and that's what Jesus is telling them. He says, I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is. He said, I know where Satan's throne is, and where his control is on this earth. Now, if you kept your place there in Ephesians 6, go back to the book of Ephesians if you would, and go to Ephesians chapter 2 and look at verse 2. Let me show you from the Bible that Satan is the ruler of this world, and he is in control of this world, and he's the ruler and he's in control because God allows him to, obviously. The heavens do rule, God is the one who's in charge, but at this time the Bible teaches that Satan runs the world. Ephesians 2, look at verse 2. Wherein in times past, he's talking to people that are saved, but he's talking to them about when they were not saved. He says, wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, he said, you were on this world's agenda, you were walking in the way that this world walks, and you said, well, who sets the agenda for the world? Look, when you turn on that television and you begin to watch the television, the programming that's set on there, who set that agenda when you're listening to all of the ideas and the philosophies of this world, whatever it is, whether it's marriage, whether it's financially, whether it's child rearing, whether it's just personally, when you're listening to the world's agenda, who sets that agenda according to the Bible? Because you say, oh, well, NBC sets that agenda. Fox News sets that agenda. Donald Trump sets that agenda. You know, just whoever, the celebrities, they set that agenda. Look, all those people are used to promote that agenda, but who sets the agenda? Notice verse 2, wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world. He said, the world has set a course for you. They've set a path for you. They've set an agenda for you that they want you to walk in. Notice, but that course is set according to the prince of the power of the air. See, it is the prince of the power of the air that sets the course of this world. And unbelievers are just walking in that course. Now, they're not children of the devil. Some of them are, you know, but by and large, they're not reprobates. They're just unsaved people. They're children of disobedience. They're children of wrath. And they're just walking in the course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air. The spirit, notice, that now worketh in the children of disobedience. So the Bible teaches, and this is referring to Satan, he is the prince of the power of the air. He is in control of this world, and he sets the course. Let me prove it to you even further. Go to 2 Corinthians chapter number 4. Are there any Ephesians? Just go backwards past the book of Galatians into the book of 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians chapter number 4. Look at verse number 4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, and look at verse number 4. 2 Corinthians 4, 4, notice what the Bible says. In whom the God, now you see that word God there? Notice how our King James translators translated it a lower case G God. Whenever you see God, the God of the Bible, Jehovah God in the Bible, it's an upper case G. This is a lower case G because it's a false God. And this is, of course, referring to the devil. In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. So notice, the Bible teaches clearly that there is a lower case G God of this world, the prince of the power of the air, Satan, who is ruling and controlling. And in Revelation 2, we're told that he has a throne, and Jesus tells him that he sees where Satan's seat is. Now, just to give you further proof of this, and you don't have to turn there, go back to Revelation chapter 2. I'll read to you from Matthew chapter 4. This is a well-known passage, of course, referring to the temptation of Christ. But let me show you what the Bible says in Matthew chapter 4 and verse 8. You go to Revelation 2, Matthew chapter 4 and verse 8, the Bible says this. Again, the devil taketh him, talking about Jesus, up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and saith unto them all these things. This is Satan speaking to Jesus. He just showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and then he says, all these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. So, there we see in the temptations of Christ that Satan offers the kingdoms of the world to Jesus. Now look, he's not bluffing. The reason he offers the kingdoms of the world is because he's in control of the kingdoms of the world. Now here's the thing. Jesus will actually one day be in control of the kingdoms of the world. He's got the millennial reign of Christ. But what Satan is tempting Jesus to do is he's tempting him to bypass the process that God has laid out, because before Jesus can receive the kingdoms of the world, you know, here in Matthew 4, he still has to be crucified. He still has to suffer his passion. He still has to be buried. His soul has to go down to hell. He has to be resurrected. And Satan's temptation here is he's trying to get him to bypass that. He said, hey, I'll just give it to you now if you worship me. And of course, Jesus said, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. But I want you to notice that right now, Satan is in control of the earth. And what that means is that he controls the governments. He controls the leaders. Look, we're about to go into a political season in our nation here. We're going to have a presidential election later on this year. And I'm actually working on and planning on doing a politics series. I don't know what I'm going to call it, politics and religion or whatever. We're going to spend a few weeks learning about what the Bible actually teaches about these things. But look, before you start getting all super excited about whoever, you know, Bernie Sanders or Donald Trump, realize they're all controlled by the devil. Every political leader, every government leader, every nation, the United States of America, Israel, England, Canada, whatever nation, they're all controlled by Satan. Because he is the king. He is the puppet master. He is the one that is controlling the world. And he has a throne. Go back to Revelation 2. Look at verse 13. I know thy works. And I want you to notice what Jesus says to this church. Because I want to show that the devil is in control of this earth. He's in control of this world. That's because God allows him to. The heavens do rule. God allows him to for this time to control the earth. But he is in control of the entire earth. But yet, Jesus tells this church there are certain physical locations that actually serve as the headquarters of Satan. Revelation 2. Look at verse 13. Notice what he says. I know thy works. Now he's talking to the church in Pergamos. He says, and where thou dwellest, where do they dwell? Even where Satan's seed is. He said, I know that you dwell where Satan has a throne. I know that you dwell where Satan has a city that he controls. He says, I know thy works and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seed is. And thou holdest fast my name and has not denied my faith. Even in those days when Antipas was my faithful martyr who was laying among you. And then notice again what he says. Where Satan dwellest. He says, where thou dwellest? And then he says, where Satan dwellest. And here's what he's telling the church in Pergamos. He's telling them, I know that you live in a location, a physical city, a location on this earth that is actually the seat of Satan. Where Satan's seat is. Where Satan's throne is. A place where Satan controls. Look, did you know that there are places on this earth that, look, he controls all of it, but there are cities in this earth, locations in this earth that are just kind of a headquarters for Satan? You say, oh, give me an example. How about where we spent the entire day soul winning yesterday? San Francisco, California. We had 166 soul winners and only 15 saved. Look, it's not only 15 saved. Wow, we had 15 saved? Where Satan dwelleth? Where Satan's seat is? A headquarters of perversity, a headquarters of filth, a headquarters of drugs. Look, San Francisco is a place where we can look at and say where Satan dwelleth, where Satan's seat is. And it's not just San Francisco. I mean, how about Los Angeles, California? How about Las Vegas, Nevada? Sin City. You don't think that's where Satan dwelleth? How about New York City, New York? How about Washington, D.C.? How about Jerusalem? How about, you know, Tel Aviv, whatever? There's all sorts of places throughout this world where Satan dwelleth. And Jesus is looking at this church and he's saying, I know thy works and where thou dwelleth, where Satan's seat is. He said, I know you are dwelling in a place. I know you are ministering in a place. I know you are working in a place. I know you are in a place where it's not just where Satan dwelleth the whole earth. He says it's a headquarters for Satan. And, you know, Pastor Anderson was talking about this on Friday night, and those two sermons on Friday night were awesome sermons. Those are great sermons. I appreciated Pastor Anderson saying this, though, because he was talking about how, like, you know, California, people have just given up on California. Ah, California is so terrible and blah, blah. You know, and here's the thing. Why do people say that? Because, look, this really is a state where Satan dwelleth. I mean, the state of California is a place where the battle is raging against the devil. We are on the front lines. We're in the heat of the battle. You say, oh, does that discourage you? Well, think about this. I was talking about this last night with my wife and my kids. My kids, you know, they read a lot. We can't keep up enough books in the house. My wife buys and buys these used books and they just read them. I like to read about battles and wars, and they read about the Civil War and the Revolutionary War and World War II and World War I. Now, I was telling them, you know, just name for me just the fiercest battles of every war, because doesn't every war have kind of a, you know, just some main, fierce, well-known battles? I mean, think about World War II, D-Day, right, the invasion of Normandy. I mean, think about Stalingrad, right? Think about the Civil War, Gettysburg. Think about the Revolutionary War, Bunker Hill, Yorktown. Think about, you know, Napoleon's Wars, Waterloo. Aren't these well-known wars? But you say, why are they well-known? Because that's where the heat of the battle was. Because that's where it was the most fierce. That's where it was the most, where those battles really turned the tide in those areas. And look, I don't know about you, and you may be different, and there's nothing wrong with it. All I'm saying is this. If I would have been alive during World War II and I would have got drafted into World War II, look, if I'm going to go and be shipped off and be on the other part of the world and fight the battle, you know, I would have wanted to be at D-Day. I mean, I don't want to just be the veteran that says I was in World War II. I want to be the veteran that says I was in World War II on D-Day. I mean, if two old men walk up to you, and we should respect both of them, obviously, but one of them says, hey, I was in World War II. Oh, where were you? Well, you know, I was doing logistics in England. And another one said, I was in World War II. Oh, where were you? I was a paratrooper, you know, flying in, you know, jumping out of a plane into D-Day. I mean, which one are you going to be more interested in talking to? You know, I think it's interesting to me because people are often, you know, I travel the country, and people are often just talking crap about California to me, which is interesting because it's like, you know, this is where I live, right? And these guys walk up to me, and they're like, I'm new IFP. I want to fight the sodomites and the LGBTQ, and I want to fight these battles, and I want to do this, and I'm going to start a church. And I'm like, man, praise the Lord. Great. Where do you want to fight the battle? Alabama. I mean, I talk to these guys, I want to fight the sodomites, and I want to fight the battles, and I want to fight the devil. I want to be just like you and just like Pastor. I'm like, great. Where do you want to do it? Mississippi. I mean, they're like, I want to live in a place where it's virtually, I'm just never going to run into a sodomite ever in my life. And it's like, look, that's fine. If you want to do logistics in England while some guys are fighting on Normandy, on the beaches of Normandy, go for it. But you know what I want to do? I want to get to heaven and have some stories to tell and say, hey, we were on the front lines. We were where Satan dwelleth. We were fighting and taking the battle to him. I mean, think about this. I have a goal. I'm 34 years old. I'm a young man. By the grace of God, if God allows me to live a long life and this ministry continues and all that, I have a goal of planting churches up and down the state. Our church is 10 years old. We've already planted five churches. Most of them have been on the West Coast, and I'd like to do as many of them on the West Coast and in California. But think about this. What if I gave my life? I was talking to Brother Jared about this when we were president. What if I gave my life? What if Brother Jared gave his life to go start churches and we started 50 churches in the Bible Belt? I mean, 50 new IFP, just like Verity in the Bible Belt. People probably wouldn't even notice. I mean, it would make a difference there locally, and I'm not minimizing that at all. But it probably wouldn't. People would just be like, oh, it's just one more fanatical conservative Baptist church. What if we started 50 new IFP churches up and down the state of California? I mean, the history books couldn't ignore. They wouldn't even be able to ignore. Now, they would mock us and they would lie about us. They would say we were a cult and we're a hate group and we're this and that, but they couldn't ignore the fact that we were in the heat of the battle. We brought it to them. They said, why didn't you go and send 166 soldiers into San Francisco? Don't you know it's not going to be receptive? Don't you know those people hate you? Don't you know that's where all the fags and where all the drugs and where all the dung? Don't you know that? It's like, hey, that's where Satan's well is. I think Jesus said, I will build my church and the gates of hell should not prevail against him. Now, people, they read that and they think, oh, the devil is not going to be able to attack us. No, last I checked, gates don't charge. Gates of hell means we're charging. Not we're on the defensive. We're on the offensive. We're taking it to him. And look, at very Baptist people say, oh, California, that's not for me. When people tell me California is not for me, I think to myself, you know, maybe you're right because we need some strong men and strong women if they're going to fight where Satan dwelleth. And Jesus is looking at this church and he's saying, look, I know thy works and where thou dwellest even where Satan's seat is. And notice, as a result, there was a lot of persecution. And thou holdest fast my name and has not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr who was slain among you where Satan dwelleth. Look, they suffered persecution. Why? Because they were working, because they were ministering, because they were striving where Satan dwelleth. And, you know, we had a big protest here back in 2016, and that protest among churches of our strife has made this church, you know, famous and people love it and they're like, oh, that's great. You know, guys say, one day I want to preach like that and have a thousand homos protesting. Well, here's the thing, a thousand homos probably aren't going to protest you in Texas. They're probably not going to, a thousand homos aren't going to protest you in the deep south. You know why a thousand? I mean, the news, the news count, they reported a thousand to fifteen hundred sodomites and perverts and whatever were standing outside our church, but you know why? Because we're ministering, we're Satan dwelleth, that's why. Because we're on the front lines, because we're in Gettysburg, because we're in the chores of Normandy, because we are in the heat of the battle. And it always just encourages me whenever I read about this church, because Jesus, he doesn't just look over that, he says, look, you know what I like about you? You are standing strong. You are holding, he says, you are holding on. He says, thou holdest fast my name and has not denied my faith, even in those days, even through the persecution where Antipas was my faithful martyr. And was slain among you. He says, you're doing that where Satan dwelleth. And he says, I'm proud of you for that. You know, buried in the Baptist Church, you ought to be encouraged by that. Was California falling apart? Yes. We're glad to be here to just be taking it to them. We're glad to be here to just be fighting where Satan dwelleth. So we see this commendation, but then we see this condemnation. And there are some things about this church that Jesus doesn't like. Notice Revelation 2, verse 14. He says, but I have a few things against thee. So he says, there are some things about you I really like. I really like the fact that you're just taking it to Satan, you're where Satan dwelleth, where Satan's seat is, you're holding fast your name, you're not denying my faith. He said, but there's a couple things that I don't like about you. He says, but I have a few things against thee. He says, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam. He says, you have in your church, you've allowed in your church those who hold the doctrine of Balaam. Now what is this referring to? Well, let's go back to the book of Numbers in the Old Testament. Numbers, chapter 24. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. Numbers, chapter 24. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers. Numbers 24. And there are, in the Bible, and I don't have time to preach about Balaam. Balaam's a big old story. We could do a series on the life of Balaam, and maybe we will. He's a bad guy, by the way. He's a villain in the Bible. But there are two themes that Balaam is really known for in the Bible, and I want to point them out to you. The first one is this, that he sold worldliness to the people of God. He brought worldliness into the congregation of God. Numbers 24, look at verse 10. And Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam. Now, I'm not going to take the time to go through it. Balak asked Balaam, offered him money to come and curse the people of God. There's a big old ordeal there with a donkey, and he spoke, and all that. Eventually, Balaam makes his way, but he's not able to curse the people of God three different times. He's not able to. God does not allow him to. That's where we're jumping into the story, verse 10. And Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam. And he smote his hands together, and Balak said unto Balaam, I call thee to curse mine enemies, and behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times. So Balaam ended up blessing them instead of cursing them, because God would not allow him. Look at verse 14. And now, behold, I, this is Balaam speaking, go unto my people. Because the children of Israel were his people. And notice, because he's not able to curse them, so he says, Balak, let me tell you what I'm going to do. I go unto my people. Come, therefore, and I will, notice this word, advertise thee, what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days. He says, let me advertise to the people of God what the people of the world can do for them. Notice Numbers 25 and verse 1. What did this result in? What resulted in worldliness coming into the congregation, and Israel abode and shit them, and the people began to commit whoredoms with the daughters of Moab. And if you go back, you go continue and read, you know that God sends a plague, and thousands of people die as a result of this. Keep your place right there in Numbers. Go back to Revelation 2, look at verse 14. But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam. Well, what is the doctrine of Balaam? Who taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication? What is it that Balaam taught Balak to do? He taught Balak to bring worldliness into the congregation, a sinful life, a sinful lifestyle, where they're eating things sacrificed unto idols, they're committing fornications, they're committing whoredoms, and God's wrath came down upon his children. And you know, today, there are the Balaams out there. You know, you may have thought it was a Christian bookstore, it's actually a Balaamite bookstore. You know what most Christian bookstores today are doing? They're selling worldliness to God's people. They're saying, oh, let me take the hip-hop rap music of this world, and we'll just add the name of Jesus in the mix, and then we'll sell that to you. And they're advertising. I mean, it's interesting that Balaam actually used the word, let me advertise what those people will do for you. They're advertising worldliness. Look, today, most Christian churches out there walk into the average Christian church, just the average community church down the street. And you know what you're going to walk into? It's going to look like a rock concert. It's going to feel like a casino. It's going to feel worldly. Why? Because today, the doctrine of Balaam is alive and well out there, where we're bringing worldliness into the church. People come into this church and they're like, oh, it's so different. It's so old-fashioned. It's like, why is it old-fashioned? Because we have the lights on? I thought modern lights, I thought that was a modern invention. Because we have the lights on, that's why it seems so old-fashioned. No, you know what, men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. But today, we've got the Balaamite preachers out there, the Billy Balaam Graham, who's bringing in worldliness, bringing in the world's music, bringing in the world's methods, bringing in the world's agenda, and they're trying to push worldliness. And look, this church had allowed this doctrine to come into their church, and it was causing many of their people to become worldly. He said, I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam. Well, what are those that hold the doctrine of Balaam doing? They taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel to eat things sacrificed unto idols and commit for a occasion. Now, you're there in the book of Revelation. Keep your place in numbers. We have a lot to cover, so I'll try to move quickly. But go to the book of Jude, if you would. Right before the book of Revelation, you have Jude. There are two major things that Balaam is known for in the Bible. One is for advertising worldliness and bringing worldliness into the congregation. And look, because of Balaam, the children of Israel began to fornicate. And look, there are churches all over this country where people are just living in open fornication, and no preacher is standing up and preaching against it, because they're all a bunch of Balaams who just want to make money. And that's the next thing that Balaam is known for. He's known for not only bringing in worldliness, he sold worldliness to the people of God, but he also made merchandise to the people of God. Notice in the Bible, Balaam is emphasized that he makes money off of God's people. Look at Jude in verse number 11. Woe unto them, for they have God in the way of Cain. And then notice these words, and ran greedily. Now the word greed there is talking about covetousness. Ran greedily after the error of Balaam for a reward. And if you need an illustration of this, just watch a TV preacher. If you need an illustration of this, just watch. Look, there are preachers out there who are in ministry because they're selling stuff, they're selling merchandise, they're running greedily after the error of Balaam. Now look, is there anything wrong with taking an offering? Of course not. I mean, I think it's funny when people say, Oh, you guys are taking a vision offering. What's wrong with you? It's like you obviously haven't read the Bible. I mean, Moses took a special offering, Solomon took a special offering, David took a special offering, Ezra, Nehemiah, I mean, Paul took special offerings. Look, obviously giving and tithing and offerings, those are all scripture of conscience, but selling is not something that should be done in church. Go to 2 Peter chapter 2. Look at verse 15. 2 Peter chapter 2 and verse 15. You're there in Jude, just flip back, third second of 1 John, 2 Peter. 2 Peter 2.15. Notice what the Bible says. Which have forsaken the right way and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam, the son of Bozar. What's the way of Balaam? Notice, who love the wages of unrighteousness. Who love the wages of unrighteousness. Go to John chapter 2. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. John chapter 2. Jesus shows up at the temple during his ministry, and in the temple they are selling, they've got shops set up, because people have to do sacrifices, they're selling the sacrifices, and people are making money, John 2.16. Notice what the Bible says. And said unto them that soul doves, take these things hence, this is Jesus speaking, take these things hence, make not my Father's house and house of merchandise. If you read the passages, the two times he did it, he's throwing tables, he's throwing money on the ground, I mean he made a whip and he's whipping people, this is something that Jesus is upset about. So you know, at Verity Baptist Church we take the stand that we should not make the house of God a house of merchandise. That means two things. The first thing is this, that we as preachers should not be using church to make money. And even if you say, oh, I go to a church and they've got a bookstore but it's not worldly. Well they shouldn't have a bookstore at all. Because look, in church, this is how it works. You receive the tithes and offerings that God's people give to God through their local church, and then the church uses that money to fund all the events, that's why at Verity Baptist Church we give everything away. I mean, there's documentaries back there, take them. You want them, take them. You need more, let us know, we'll get you more. You know, everything we do we give away. All the events we give away. We had this Married Couples We Are Banquet a few weeks ago, I brought this up to you guys already, but we had this banquet with this nice Italian meal provided and games and gifts and everything, and it didn't cost a thing. I remember my wife and I, before we were in the ministry, we went to a church that had a Married Couples We Are Banquet. We had to pay $15 to go to the banquet, and for dinner they served us a six-inch sub from Subway. And it was like the daily sub, the one they got for $3.99. I'm like, I paid $15 to get a $4 sub. You know, what are they doing? They're making merchandise of us. They're putting out events just to make money. That's why you have the Christian schools, that's why you have the Bible colleges, that's why you have the bookstores. So look, preachers shouldn't use the church to make money, but you know what, people shouldn't use the church to make money either. And you know, at our church, I love business owners. At our church, I don't know why, but the Lord has just blessed us with a high amount of business owners. Our church has, last time I counted, I think we have somewhere between 10 and 12 business owners at our church. And here's the thing, I talked to a pastor who has a church similar size, about 200 people, and at their church they had three business owners. And when I talk to pastors all the time, sometimes I'll ask them, how many business owners do you have in your church? And they're like, three, two, one. Like, slow numbers. Our church has high numbers of business owners. I'm not sure why. You know, maybe we attract business owners, I don't know. I know I'm always encouraging guys to start businesses or whatever. So look, I'm all for business owners. I love business owners. I think you guys, look, you young people, the best thing you can do in your life is start a business if you can, you know. And obviously there's other great jobs out there, and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with not being a business owner. But you know, we love business owners. And I want to encourage business owners, I want to help business owners. I'm constantly, when guys are starting business, trying to tell them, you know, people to talk to and books to read and things like that. All that's great. But you know, at church you need to be careful that you're not just coming to church just to promote your business. You know, and here's the thing, I don't have a problem with people doing business within church, and lots of our church people do business within church. I think it's great. You should do that. But you shouldn't just be coming to church, you know. A lot of these, like, multi-level marketing places, you know, they'll teach people. You ladies start selling Mary Kay and they're like, oh, start going to church. Sometimes people just start going to church just to promote their business. Well, look, that's not of God. So we need to be careful that we as preachers aren't using church to make merchandise, to sell merchandise. But also the people need to be careful that they're not, look, and you've got a business and you're doing business with other church people. There's nothing wrong with that. That's great. Praise the Lord. I'm happy for you and I want that. But don't, you shouldn't be going around, you know, before the service, you know, soliciting business. That's something that Jesus got so mad about that he threw people out of church. So we see the doctrine of Balaam. Go back to Revelation 2. There's two doctrines that he mentions to this church of Pergamos. One is the doctrine of Balaam. What's Balaam known for? He's known for bringing worldliness into the church and he's known for making merchandise of the people of God. He's known for bringing worldliness into the congregation of God and making merchandise of the congregation of God. But then there's another doctrine that is brought into the church. Notice Revelation 2.15. He says, so has thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. Which thing I hate. So he's got two doctrines that this church has in it that he's not happy about. The doctrine of Balaam and then he says you also have the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. Now the Nicolaitans were already mentioned to another church and I didn't mention it there because I wanted to mention it now. Go back to Revelation 2 and verse 6 if you would and let me talk to you about the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. Let me tell you something about the Nicolaitans, okay? We don't know anything about the Nicolaitans. The Nicolaitans are brought up twice in our Bible and it's Revelation 2.15, Revelation 2.6. The Greek word is not used anywhere else and people will tell you, you can Google stuff and people will tell you all things about the Nicolaitans. Nobody knows anything about the Nicolaitans. We don't know what he's talking about. Obviously they knew what he was talking about when he was talking about the Nicolaitans and he was not happy about it. In Revelation 2.15 he's not happy with the church in Pergamos because so has thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. In Revelation 2.6 he's happy with the church at Ephesus because in Revelation 2.6, but this thou hast that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans which I also hate. So notice, church at Ephesus, he's happy because they hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans. Church at Pergamos, he's upset because they've allowed in the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. Now, we don't know anything about the Nicolaitans. Maybe smarter people than I can figure it out. I don't know. I'm not going to tell you something I don't know. I will tell you this. Here's what we can learn from these verses though. Even though we don't know anything about the Nicolaitans, it's interesting that two things are mentioned. The doctrine of the Nicolaitans, Revelation 2.15, and the deeds of the Nicolaitans, Revelation 2.6. And here's what I want to point out to you. Your doctrine will influence your deeds. You understand that? What you believe will influence what you do. Now we don't know what the Nicolaitans doctrine was about, but let me just use a modern example. If our church were to allow Calvinist doctrine to come into this church, we're against Calvinism. We're against all five points of Calvinism. And if we were to allow Calvinism to come into this church, then what's the big deal with the doctrine of Calvinism? Well, the big deal is that it'll bring the deeds of Calvinism, or I should say it'll bring the not-theeds of Calvinism, because you know what Calvinism, whenever it creeps into the church, you know what it always kills? It kills soul-willing. Because why would you go take the gospel to someone if you believe that God chooses who goes to heaven and hell? And I'm just bringing that as an example to tell you, look, doctrine influences deeds. He says, so has thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. He says, but this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans. That's why a series like what we're doing on Sunday nights, we're just going through the major systematic study of the major doctrine. You say, why is that important? Because what you believe will influence what you do. What you believe about the King James Bible, come back tonight, will influence how you treat the King James Bible, whether you read the King James Bible, whether you obey the King James Bible, whether you love the King James Bible. If you just think, ah, it's a book like any other book, they're all messed up, they all have a mistake. No, they don't. Your doctrine will influence your deeds. Why don't you notice, Revelation 2 16, we'll move on to the next section in this letter. Now we've got the correction. We talked about the condemnation and we talked about the commendation. Notice the correction that Jesus makes to the church. Verse 16, he says, repent. And then he says these words. I love it. He says, or else. I love that Jesus just said, or else. Ah, you know, Jesus all love. Man, he seems kind of pissed off right here. Repent, or else. I will come unto thee quickly. Notice what he says. And fight against them with the sword of my mouth. Fight against them with the sword of my mouth. You know what's interesting? The church of Pergamos, at this moment, found itself at odds with Jesus Christ and with God. In fact, Jesus says, you need to fix this or I'm going to fight against you. He says, I appreciate that you're fighting with Satan the Dweller, but this is an issue that I can't ignore. And he said, I'm about to pick a fight with you. Repent, or else. I will come unto thee quickly and we'll fight against them with the sword of thy mouth. Now what is that? You say, what is that about? Well, this is a concept taught in scripture. Let me show it to you. Go to James chapter 4. James chapter 4. And if you're just going backwards, you want to go past 2 and 1 Peter. I'm not sure if you were in 2 Peter, or if I had you go to 2 Peter, I can't remember. But go to James, right before Hebrews. James chapter 4. Because what do we know about the church in Pergamos? Jesus was not happy about the fact that they allowed two doctrines into the church. What were they? The doctrine of Balaam and the doctrine of Nicolaitis. We don't know what the doctrine of Nicolaitis was, but Jesus doesn't like it. We know the doctrine of Balaam is bringing in worldliness into the church. Well, that's actually the reason. See, this worldly church found itself at odds with Jesus. He says, I will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. You say, why is that? Here's why. And please know this. Worldliness puts you at odds with God. James 4, look at verse 4. Notice what the Bible says. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? The word enmity means to be put at odds with, to become an enemy of. He says, don't you know that friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. The Bible says, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. He says, all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of the life. He said, it's not of the father, it's of the world. And here's what Jesus is telling the church in Pergamos. He says, look, you're either on my side or you're not. If you're going to be worldly, then I'm going to fight against you. You say, well, why is that, Jesus? Because don't you know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Because don't you know that he that will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God? And look, if you want to put God, I mean, I don't know about you, but I don't want to fight against God. I don't want God fighting me. I don't want to fall into the hands. It's a fearful thing, the Bible says, to fall into the hands of God in that way. And look, you say, what's a quick way, biblically, to get God against you? Allow worldliness into your life. Become a friend of the world, and God says, now we're at odds. Now we're going to have a problem. Now we're going to have a beef. He says, or else. He said, you need to fix this or else or I will fight against thee with the sword of thy mouth. Go back to Revelation 2. Revelation 2. Let's look at the conclusion. We saw the introduction, what was it? That Jesus holds the sword. It proceeds out of his mouth. He holds the word of God because he is the word of God. And we saw the commendation that Satan is the ruler and in control of this world. And Satan has these certain headquarters, and it happens to be where this church of Pergamos dwelleth, where Satan dwelleth, where Satan's seed is. And Jesus was commendating them for being faithful, for not denying his name in that area. Then we saw the condemnation, which was the doctrine of Balaam and the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. Notice the conclusion. Revelation 2 and verse 17. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. He says, to him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna. Now, you talk to people, and lots of people tell you different things about what this means, and I don't think anybody knows for sure dogmatically, but I'll give you my thoughts on this. He says, look, he that overcometh, and that's talking about saved people, of course. He says, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna. Now, in the Bible, and go with me, if you would, to the book of Deuteronomy, we're almost done. Deuteronomy chapter number 8. If you kept your place in Numbers, right after Numbers you have Deuteronomy. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Right after Numbers you have Deuteronomy. Throughout the Bible, the word, the manna is a picture of the word of God. And I'll give you just one clear example of that, Deuteronomy 8 and verse 3. And he humbled thee, Deuteronomy 8 and verse 3, and suffered thee to hunger, Deuteronomy 8, 3, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know that he might make thee know. Now look, in the wilderness, God physically rained manna down from heaven and fed them. Why? To make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. So he said, look, God fed you with manna to make you know that you're not just going to live by bread alone, you're going to live by the word of God. And Jesus quoted this in the New Testament. We'll see that tonight, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. It's a reference to the word of God. By the way, it's a reference to Jesus, who is the word of God, because Jesus said, I am the bread of life. And he's the bread that came down from heaven. All of this is picturing Jesus and the word of God. But practically speaking, they were supposed to go out every day and get enough manna to eat for that day. Remember, if they had left over, it would rot. Say why? Because God wanted them to go out every day. And look, God wants you every day to open up this manna that he's given you. I read nine chapters a day in the month of January. I'm not going to read for the rest of the year. It's going to rot. Jesus said, give us this day our daily bread. You need physically daily bread every day. Spiritually, you need daily bread every day. God wants you to be in the Bible. But here he says, hey, I'm going to give you hidden manna. Now, we know manna is a picture of the Bible, so what is this referring to? Well, you're there in Deuteronomy 8. Go to Deuteronomy 29. Look at verse 29. Deuteronomy chapter 29 and verse 29. Deuteronomy 29 and verse 29. Notice what the Bible says. The secret things belong unto the Lord our God. But those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever. Now, what is he talking about? Notice. That we may do all the words of this law. He's talking about the Bible. What's he saying? Here's what he's saying. There are some things in the Bible that nobody knows, that you don't know, none of us know. He said the secret things belong unto the Lord our God. And you know, some people get really tripped up about, I don't understand, you know. What about this passage? What about that passage? Some things we learn and we grow. Some things I believe we're never going to know. We're just never going to know because the Bible says the secret things belong unto the Lord our God. You know what we should worry about? Those things which are revealed. They belong unto us and to our children forever that we may do all the words of this law. Before you start worrying about all the secret things you don't know, why don't you worry about the things you do know and start doing those? But you know what I believe we're going to do in heaven for all of eternity? The Bible talks about the fact that we're going to be the church in heaven, the assembly in heaven, the congregation in heaven. You know what I believe we're going to be doing in heaven? We're going to be doing the same thing we're doing right now. We're just going to be having church. You know, we're going to be working for the Lord and serving the Lord. I think that we're going to spend eternity and Jesus is just going to open up this manna and he's just going to... Let me show you something you guys never figured out. Let me answer this question for you. Remember that? You know the thing about the hair and the angels? Let me tell you what that means. You know this passage where nobody knows what it is? You know, he says, he that overcomes the world, he that overcomes the world, he that overcomes the world, he that overcomes... Will I give to eat of the hidden manna? I think you said what are we going to do in heaven? We're going to spend all of eternity learning the Word of God. So why don't you get ready for heaven and spend the rest of your life learning the Word of God. And then we're going to get to heaven. He's going to choose the hidden manna. The things that we couldn't understand, the things that didn't make sense. He's going to explain them to us. He's going to show them to us. He's going to open our eyes and our understanding. He says, to him that overcometh, will I give to eat of the hidden manna? And then he says this, in verse 17... And I will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth, saving he that receiveth it." You know, I believe in heaven we're going to spend all eternity learning new things from the Bible, getting to eat of that hidden manna. But I also believe that in heaven we're going to spend all of eternity living in our new identity. When you got saved, you became a new creature. But the Bible says old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. And in the Bible, you find this theme. When people came to God, God would often change their name as a picture of a new identity. Remember Abram? He changed his name to Abraham, which means that he would be the father of nations. Sarai, he changed their name to Sarah. Jacob, which was a name known as a deceiver, he changed the name Israel. Saul, which was known for threatening the church and bringing havoc on the church, his name was changed to Paul. In the Bible, you have this idea where names are changed to show you that there's been a change in identity here. Well, guess what? In heaven, all of our names are going to change. And I will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth, saving he that receiveth it. And what's interesting is this. Even Jesus, Revelation 19, verse 12. Remember I told you we'd come back to this at the end? So here we are. We're done. Revelation 19, verse 12. Remember Jesus coming down? His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. And he had a name written that no man knew but he himself. We'll spend eternity learning new things from the Bible, the hidden manna, and we'll spend eternity living out our new identities. I'm going to give you a new name. Your name on this earth might be not the greatest. You might have had a bad upbringing, or you might have had a bad reputation, and all those things. Look, obviously forgetting those things which are behind, you can begin to look. When you got saved, God gave you a new identity. Now in heaven, you will live in that. Because on earth, we want to live in guilt and shame. The devil wants to just whisper in our ear and tell us who we were and what we've done and use that against us. But look, when you got saved, God created a new creature. You can live in that new identity. In heaven, you'll live in that new identity. But you know what? You can begin to live in that new identity today. You can be into what? Look, stop thinking about what you used to be and start thinking about what God wants to do in you and through you. He wants to do a work in you. He wants to bring out. He wants you to work out your own salvation. That's not talking about work, salvation. That's talking about the fact that you're saved. Let's get it out. Let's work it out. I asked the musicians if we could sing the chorus of the week at the end this morning, because we're singing this song. There's a new name written down in glory. And it's taken from this passage. I was once a sinner, but I came pardoned to receive from my Lord. This was freely given, and I found that he always kept his word. There's a new name written down in glory. And it's mine, a new identity in Christ. And we can live in that identity. And we'll live in it in all of eternity, but you can begin to walk in it now. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word. Thank you for the Bible. And Lord, we ask that you would just bless what we've heard today, Lord, help us to be challenged where we need to be challenged, Lord, and help us to just apply these things in our lives. And Lord, help us to just be encouraged, Lord. I know sometimes people can get discouraged. Oh, things are so hard and things are difficult. And we live in a place where it's unreceptive and people don't want to hear it, Lord. Thank you that you would encourage this church in Pergamos, that they were just standing strong, we're saved and dwelled. Lord, help us to be that church, that's standing strong in this state, in this city. Lord, help us to be faithful to you, to not deny your name. In the matchless name of Christ.