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Alright, well just keep your Bible open there in 1 Peter chapter 2, I want you to look at verse number 13. 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse number 13 it says, Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king as supreme. The title for the sermon this morning is, Submit yourselves to every ordinance. Submit yourselves to every ordinance. Now this is going to be a very unpopular sermon, alright, especially in this day and age. Especially in this day and age of this epidemic and you know, you're either one of two people, you either expect your pastor to preach the Bible and preach the truth, okay, or you want to have your ears tickled, alright, and you want to have your ears tickled and say, well surely why doesn't pastor Kevin line up with what I believe and what I believe we should be doing during this epidemic? You know, the government's got their fingers into him, that's why. The government's telling him what to preach. Listen, I didn't plan to preach, I was going to go through 1 Peter, we're up to chapter 2, what do we see? We need to submit ourselves to some ordinances of the government. What does it say there? To every ordinance of men, okay. So, and what? For the Lord's sake, the Lord wants us to do this, not pastor Kevin, alright, it's what the Lord wants, so I'm telling you from the very beginning, this is going to be an unpopular sermon, but let's remember what chapter 1 was all about. When we looked at 1 Peter chapter 1, it was a doctrinal, heavy chapter on salvation, alright. So Peter was just explaining how we were born again, we were begotten of God, and we were born of incorruptible, not of corruptible, that we have an internal inheritance in heaven, right. But then once we get to that doctrine on salvation in chapter 1, we start off here in number 2, and it says here in chapter 2 verse number 1, it says, Wherefore, laying aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisies and envies and all evil speakings. So what it's saying here is, now that you are saved, now that you are saved, the next thing you need to do is get rid of the sin in your lives. And of course the false teacher, the false prophet, the false gospel will tell you, no you've got to get rid of those sins first in order to get saved. They'll say you've got to turn from your sins, you've got to repent of your sins to be saved. No, chapter 1 was salvation, it was about believing the truth, it was about the end of your faith which is the salvation of your souls. Now that you are saved, we need to submit ourselves to the word of God, we need to make sure that we get rid of these sins of our lives. What are some that are listed here, number 1, it says all malice. Malice in Spanish, if you were to say someone is malo, you're saying that person is a wicked person, that person is an evil person. And so malice basically means get rid of the evil in your life. And then it says here and all guile, that's being deceptive, that's being cunning, taking advantage of other people. And then the next one was hypocrisy, what's hypocrisy? That's saying something but not doing it yourself. Or judging somebody for what they're doing, but you're doing it yourself, that's being a hypocrite. And then it says envies, that's being resentful about other people for the possessions they have, the skills they have, the abilities they have. Envy, you need to get rid of envy. And then evil speaking, so obviously speaking, railing against other people, gossiping about other people. These are things that once you are saved, God's expecting you to get that stuff out of your life. And you say for what purpose, what is this point? Look at verse number 2. As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby, if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. And so what's the reality once you are saved? Chapter 1, where do we find ourselves after salvation? You're a babe in Christ. You start as a little baby, it doesn't matter how old you were when you got saved, you start as a spiritual babe in Christ. And what boggles my mind is when someone is newly saved and all of a sudden they think they know more than a pastor, they think they know more than a Christian that's been serving the Lord for 10, 20, 30 years. But no, the Bible tells us no, you're a babe. And the problem with babes, especially someone that's been saved later in life, they're going to think that they're so full of wisdom, puffed up with knowledge, they're going to try to get into the meat of the word of God immediately, they're going to immediately start, not Genesis, they're not going to work their way through the Bible, they're going to start with Revelation. And they're going to be telling you how to see all this stuff that's going on in this world, it's all tied into the end times because of this and because of that. And they're trying to absorb all this meat and they're talking out of foolishness. And sometimes I see Christians, it's like they've got their heads in the clouds and they're talking about some random thing which isn't based on the Bible. It's based on some conspiracy theory, it's based on some other books that are not part of the Bible, the book of Enoch or some other nonsensical books, they base their beliefs on these things and it just shows me that they're babes in Christ. Because the Bible tells us here that the newborn baby desires the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby. And Brevin, you know when you're saved, you start as a baby, what you need to do is grow. As soon as a baby is born, that's the years of their life when they grow the most. But what is it that a baby needs? It needs mother's milk, doesn't it? I mean you don't just start feeding a newborn baby Coca Cola or chocolate milk, let's give him chocolate milk, let's give him pig milk, he's got milk right? Yeah but it's got a lot of others, not crap right? It's got other things that's going to stunt your baby's growth. It's not good for them, all that sugar, all that stuff, the baby needs mother's milk which is full of nutrients, alright? It's made so that baby can grow, the baby can develop, the baby can build an immunity against diseases and the things that are in this world, the baby needs mother's milk. And how long is that baby on mother's milk? A week? I mean if you were just drinking milk for a week, just milk, you'd get sick of milk by the end of a week, right? So the newborn baby wants milk the next week, and the next month, and the month after that, a year in, the baby still wants milk, alright? The baby still needs milk because it's growing. And brethren, if you're a newly saved person, let me tell you this very clearly, in order for you to grow as a Christian, stop thinking about some wild conspiracy theories, just get your head into the word of God, get into a Bible preaching church, listen to good preaching and just start to develop the fundamental truths, alright? Fundamental truths. You know, where does the Bible teach about eternal security? You know, where does the Bible teach that Jesus is God? Where does the Bible teach about the Trinity? Alright? Start building these things. Where does the Bible say that I need to go to church? Where does the Bible say that I need to read his word? Where does it say that I have to pray? And when I pray, what do I have to pray for? How do I have to pray? Hey, start with the sincere milk of the word of God. That's going to be, it's going to do you good in your spiritual growth. Otherwise, you're going to get into the big meat of the word of God, you're going to struggle through that first of all, and you're not going to grow the way you should, okay? You're not going to grow. So it's so important that we grow in the word of God, and part of that growth, like we said in chapter one, is getting rid of that sin, okay? Getting rid of that sin. Now, you know, I personally, I was saved at four years old. You know, my mother gave me the gospel at four. But you know what? I did not grow until I was like 20, something like that. I mean, I might have grown a little bit, okay? But by the time I was like 20 years old, I was still a toddler, you know, in the spiritual realm, okay? I was still a toddler. Why? Because I went to crummy churches. That's why. I was listening to crummy preaching. I was bored to tears of the preaching I would hear behind the pulpit. It just seemed like, is that the same sermon from last week? Is that the same sermon from last month? Has he already gone through his 10 sermons and he's just repeating it again? It's just about the grace of God and the love of God again. Can we learn something else, please? You know? That's part of it, right? But also, just not picking up my Bible. Not picking up as much as I should have and reading it. Here's the problem. I didn't have a King James Bible in my hands. You know, I went to a Christian school that was NIV only. You could only take an NIV to that school. No wonder I didn't grow. No wonder I couldn't memorize those verses. It's not the word of God. It didn't resonate with the spirit that was in me. You know, it wasn't until I was 20, you know, got Christina saved, we got into an IFB church, and all of a sudden, I was like, what is going on? I'm growing so much, growing in wisdom. And I can apply this stuff. This is real life stuff. Wow! I thought life was something else and church was something else. Totally separate. No, actually, church, the things that I learned in church, I can apply in my real life. And it works! And you start to grow because you desire the sincere milk of the word of God. Alright? So, you know, it's so important that you have a King James Bible in your hand. So important that you listen to good preaching and just start to desire the sincere milk. Listen, the baby needs someone else to feed it for a while. Okay? That's why you need to find yourself in a good church. So you can be fed by other people. The role of a pastor is to feed the flock of God. Alright? The role of any preacher that comes behind the pulpit to preach the Bible is to feed the word of God. Alright? Sometimes I don't mind sitting there and being fed by somebody else. Okay? That's an important part too. But in verse number 3 it says, If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. And so that is how we taste. By the word of God, by the growing, hey, we've tasted that the Lord is gracious. You're going to learn about God's grace through His word. Alright? Now look at verse number 4. It says, To whom come in, as unto a living stone, that's referring to Jesus, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious. Okay? So when it says that disallowed indeed of men, it says that Jesus Christ came as a living stone. The reason it says stone is, we're going to look shortly, that God is building a spiritual house. Okay? And so Jesus is part of that house. He's the living stone. But then it says it was disallowed indeed of men. So when He came to His own, His own received Him not. Okay? They rejected Him. The majority of the Jews were unsaved. Christ rejected them. They rejected Him. And listen, even today, we say the Jews rejected Him. Yeah. But even Australians reject Him. Okay? Every people of every nation rejects Jesus Christ. It is very few that believe on Him. It is very few that place their faith and trust on His death, their resurrection, plus nothing, minus nothing. Okay? And so we see that some, in fact the majority, are people that are going to reject Jesus Christ. But look at verse number five. It says, ye also, that's speaking about us, as lively stones. Wow. So Jesus is a lively stone. And the Bible's now telling us that we're lively stones. Why is that? Because we've been made alive in Christ. We've been saved. Right? He's given us new life. So we're lively stones are built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Alright brethren, does God care about this building? Well I would say He does. Okay? Because He gave it to us. He does care about it. But is that what He's come for? Is that the lively stone? Is this building alive? Are these bricks and the stones that make up this building, are they alive? Is the concrete alive? Is the wood alive that made this building? No. You know, God's more interested in the lively house, the spiritual house that He's building. That's you. It doesn't matter where we meet. Last time we met at Little Mountain Common, right? Down at the park because we didn't have access to the building. Was that any less church? No, it was just as much church. Okay? And God's interest was in our gathering because He's interested in the spiritual house that's being built. Okay? But that spiritual house is built with two different types of stones. You as the lively stone and it has to include Jesus Christ. Okay? As the lively stone as well. And so as He's building us up, the referral here is referring to spiritual sacrifices. So obviously the temple in the Old Testament was the house of God and they would offer up sacrifices as you know. Well then what is our job as a church? What is our job as a people of God? You know, if He's building us up spiritually, then it's our job to offer up sacrifices. Right? I mean just spending a couple of hours in church every week is you sacrificing something for God. You could have used that hour somewhere else. Right? You just giving faithfully to the work of God is you sacrificing. You coming and singing hymns and praises with your mouth is offering sacrifices to God. That's what God wants from us. Right? As newborn babes. But then to build us up, to make us a strong spiritual house. And you know, when I thought about this verse, you know what came to mind? When John the Baptist was baptising thousands of people. Remember how some of the Jews came up to him? And I'll just read it to you. It says in Matthew 3 verse 9, these are the words of John the Baptist. And think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to our father, for I say unto you that God is able of these stones, now speaking of literal stones on the ground, of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. You know what he's saying? He says look, you think you're all that? You think you're right with God because you're physically children of Abraham? Well don't think so highly of yourself because God can take these dead stones and make children for himself. And then when I was reading here our first Peter chapter 2 I realised hey, that's actually like an illustration of what really happened. Because before we were saved, we were dead stones. We were dead spiritually. Okay? We were not physical descendants of Abraham. I mean I can't give you a DNA test that points me all the way to Abraham. Neither can you. But God has given us life. He's made us lively stones. He's made us our children. And so I can't help but imagine that's what John the Baptist was referring to when he said those words. Yes, you know, saying look, you're less than these dead stones. But also, hey, those dead stones are made alive picturing our salvation, picturing that we were saved. Look at verse number 6. And so we see this chief cornerstone. What is that chief cornerstone? What we saw about in verse number 4, that living stone. That is Jesus Christ. Okay? Elect. He was chosen of God. This is why we're elect. Because if we're in Christ, who is elect, that makes us elect. And then it says here, What do we have to do to be saved, brethren? Believe on Jesus Christ. If you believe on Jesus Christ, you're a living stone. God wants to build you up. He wants you to grow from a babe into a strong spiritual house. Okay? But it says there that shall not be confounded. So if you believe on Jesus, you will not be confounded. Now that word confounded, we don't really use that today. It's a bit of an older word. But a very similar word is confused. Okay? Confused. But in light of this scripture, it's kind of like, you know, if you're confused, you're kind of unsettled. Right? You don't have something as solid to stand on. Right? When you're confused. That's kind of the meaning of here. It's more like you're unsettled. Alright? So kind of think about it that way. He that believes on him shall not be unsettled. If you want to think about it that way. Okay? And so what this is saying is that once you're saved, you can have the assurance that you're saved. You can have the assurance that you're going to heaven. You should have no further confusion. Once you really understand the gospel, once you truly understand that it's all on Jesus Christ and none of you, then you can truly, you know, not be confounded. You can truly say be established and be that spiritual house that's being built up strongly by the Lord. Okay? But if you think salvation somehow is about your performance, then you're always going to be confounded. You're always going to be unsettled because you're going to be confused. What are you basing your salvation on? Okay? And so salvation in Christ allows us to be established. Alright? And of course the establishment is on that chief cornerstone that we saw there in verse number 6. Okay? The chief cornerstone being the most important stone. You know, the stone by which all of the stones are placed in order to build that. It's like the very beginning of the building of that building. Okay? The first stone you place has to be important because then everything else will be built in line of that stone. Okay? Look at verse number 7. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious. But unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed or rejected, the same is made the head of the corner. Now what I want you to notice there in verse number 7, it says which believe he is precious. Okay? Now the cornerstone is a precious stone. It's important. Like I said, it's an important part of the building process. But I ask you brethren, is Jesus Christ precious to you? Is he precious to you? In fact, that's the theme, one of the themes in this chapter. Look at verse number 6 again. It says, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect precious. Alright? Now look at verse number 4, the end of verse number 4. And precious. Okay? Precious. Precious. Precious. What is Peter saying to us? That Jesus is precious. Okay? If you believe in him, he's precious. Now listen, normally, when something you get given is free, you don't really care much for it. Okay? Because you didn't work for it, you didn't labor for it. Normally if you work hard for something, you save up and you buy that thing, you want to look after it. Alright? When you buy, you know, maybe you get a new smartphone or something, right? It's quite costly. I don't know about you, I say to my kids all the time, you guys are not allowed to touch this phone. A week later, I'm letting them play with it. But you know, at the very beginning, it's kind of precious to me because I worked so hard for it. And sometimes when people are given gifts, they don't care for it. But here's what's amazing about Jesus. He is a free gift, right? We didn't have to work for salvation, but while he is free, he's precious. Okay? He's precious to us because of the eternal security that we can have through Christ. And so, he's precious to us, but to those that reject him, to those that don't believe in him, they disallow him. They don't care, they reject him. They don't realize how precious Jesus Christ truly is. Alright? So they reject that stone. Alright? The unbelieving world, they want to build their life without Jesus Christ. They don't get the chief cornerstone in which to build their life on. They reject it. But when they reject it, they put it aside. We get to verse number 8. It says, And a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. To us, it's precious. To us, it's foundational. We're building on Jesus Christ. It's part of our life. But to those that don't believe in him, they lay it aside and then they kind of forget about it and they walk past and they stumble on that stone. Right? It's a rock of offense. They get offended by the preaching of God's word. They get offended by Jesus Christ. What? You're saying I'm not good enough? Yeah, you're not good enough. Jesus is the only one that can be good. You know, he's the only perfect sacrifice for you. And so, it's quite amazing. Even if they try to reject it, that stone's still going to be there and they're going to fall over it. They're going to stumble over that, right? Even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient, whereunto also they were appointed. Alright? So that's the, you know, what it's saying here is that if you do not believe in Christ, that person has been appointed to stumble at the stone. Okay? You can't ignore Jesus. Nobody in this world can ignore Jesus. You either believe on him and he's important to you, he's foundational to you. Or you reject him and you're going to stumble at Jesus Christ for the rest of your life. Okay? I hope to the point where you stumble and then you get up and you realize I need this stone in my life. I hope that's the point. Okay? But Jesus Christ is not just for us. It's also for the unbeliever to stumble by. Look at verse number nine. Verse number nine. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood and holy nation, a peculiar people that ye should show forth the praises of him who have called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. In which time past were not a people but are now the people of God which had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. And so who is Peter writing to? He's writing to the Gentiles. He's writing to the New Testament church. People that are not the Old Testament Israelites or not Christ rejecting Jews. He's writing to those that were not a people of God in the past. And he's called us these many things. Now I'm going to get you to turn. Keep your finger there. I want you to turn to Matthew 21. Keep your finger there. Turn to Matthew 21. While you're turning to Matthew 21, I'm going to read to you from Exodus 19. Verse three. Exodus 19 and verse number three. And I said to you brethren, I've said this to you before. I can't remember the last time I preached on this. That we make up a holy nation. Now I am a citizen of Australia. In fact I'm a citizen of Chile as well. And this is the world which I live in. Christ did not come to remove us out of this world. God wants us, Jesus wants us to live in society so we can be salt and light to the world. So we can win souls to him. Alright. I'm not interested in building some hippie compound in the middle of nowhere just so I can be around believers all the time. Okay. That's not what Jesus has called us to do. He's not called us to be some cult somewhere. He wants us to function in society. Okay. But at the same time, we are not of this nation. I'm not going to die for Australia. I'm not going to die for Chile. I will die for the nation upstairs. I will die for that spiritual nation. Okay. That holy nation. Now in Exodus 19 verse three, we know that the Old Testament Israel, you guys are in Matthew, you stay in Matthew 21. But we know that the Old Testament Israelites, you know, were the nation of God. They were the people of God in the Old Testament. Alright. Under the Old Covenant, under the New Covenant, we're the people of God. We're that holy nation. Alright. And in Exodus 19 verse three, it says, And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel, Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and now I bear you on eagle's wings, and brought you unto myself. So it says, Look, I've delivered you out of Egypt. Verse number five, Now therefore, if you obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure. What are we called in 1 Peter chapter two? A peculiar people. What were the Old Testament saints? A peculiar treasure. And then it says here, Unto me above all people, for all the earth is mine. And then in verse number six, it says, And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests. That's what it says to the Old Testament saints. What do you call us? A royal priesthood. A kingdom of priests. It's the same thing as a royal priesthood, right? Being royal means we're part of the kingdom of God. You know, we're part of that royal family. And then it says, And holy nation to the Israelites. Hey, that's what it calls us. And holy nation. You say, Wow, does Jesus have two nations? Well, let's keep going. It says, These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. And so look, Old Testament Israelites had a great blessing, had a great opportunity to do great works for God. Okay? And people say, Well, still, you know, the Jews today, in Middle East, they're still the people of God. They're still the holy nation of God, they say. Well, are there two holy nations? Is there one in the Middle East today and the one here that's spiritual? Is that what it says? Well, you're in Matthew 21 verse 42. Matthew 21 verse 42. This isn't complicated. This shouldn't be controversial. It is controversial, but it shouldn't be controversial. Because Jesus Christ is very clear in his teaching, you know, when we look at these two nations with the same characteristics, with the same things that God said about them, are they two different nations? Matthew 21 verse 42. It says, Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures the stone which the builders rejected? Hey, that's what we're reading about in 1 Peter chapter 2, right? The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner. That's the cornerstone. This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. So when Peter writes 1 Peter, he's not creating some new teaching. He's taking the teaching that Jesus Christ taught. Remember, he was one of his disciples. He was there with Christ every day. He heard this teaching, and now he's teaching this to the New Testament churches. What did Jesus Christ teach? He says look, to the unbelieving Jews, you've rejected that cornerstone, you've rejected Christ, and because of that, the kingdom of God was taken away from them and given to a nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof. Say what is that nation? You! Us! The spiritual nation of God! The Gentiles and the Jews that believe in Christ today, make up that holy nation today. The old covenant is done. The old covenant is gone. It's been replaced by the new covenant. How do you enter the new covenant? By believing in Jesus Christ. By setting him as your chief cornerstone. So what do we learn here about Jesus? He says look at verse 44 again. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken. So it's that stumbling stone. People that reject Christ will continue to stumble at that stone. But what 1 Peter did not mention was what Jesus Christ said afterwards. It says here, but on whomsoever it shall fall. So instead of someone stumbling on the stone, if the stone falls on them, it will grind him to powder. So this is the end result of somebody that does not believe in Christ. They can continue stumbling, continue stumbling on the stone, continue stumbling on the stone, but at some point that stone will turn around and crush them to powder. That's the great white throne judgement of God. Once he casts the unbelieving world into the lake of fire, they're done. They're grounded to powder. That same stone that they rejected, that same stone that was not precious to them, that same stone that they were offended by is the same stone that will destroy them. So back to 1 Peter 2, verse 11. So this whole chapter is just building on itself. It just keeps building on itself. So we learnt that we're the holy nation. We're a spiritual people of God. Then verse number 11 says, So we saw an example of flesh lust in verse number 1. We get rid of the malice and the evil speaking, those kinds of things. They say, look, just overcome the sins. Get past the sins. Work on overcoming those sins. But what I love about this is that it calls us strangers and pilgrims. I do have citizenship in Australia and Chile. But you know what? Spiritually speaking, I'm a stranger to this nation. I'm a pilgrim. I'm a sojourner. So are you. We're just passing through. New Life Baptist Church is not a political party on this earth. We're not here to, I don't know, I don't know what your political views are. I'm not going to run for mayor. I'm not going to run for premier for Queensland. I'm not going to run as the Prime Minister of Australia. That's not our job. I'm a stranger. You know, it's against the law. You know, for nations to appoint a leader, like a Prime Minister or something, that is not a citizen. It's against the law. If you've been born, I think, yeah, because I have dual citizenship, I can't even get into politics. You have to have single citizenship in Australia. I don't care. I'm a stranger. I care about Australians. I care about the souls of men. But really, brethren, you know what? This world is getting worse. It's waxing worse and worse. Oh, can you believe what's happening on the news? Oh, Victoria, you've got to wear a mask now. I don't care. I'm a stranger. I'm passing through. I'm not going to get worked up about that. That's not my nation. That's not what I've been called to do. I'm actually an ambassador of Jesus Christ. I'm an ambassador of heaven. That's my job. Actually, I'm in politics. I'm an ambassador, winning the souls of men to the Lord God. But listen, brethren, what you need to understand, in verse 11, I'm saying from flesh to lust, which war against the soul. Don't forget, people get so distracted by trying to war against the mandates that have been passed down in this land. God's reminding us there's a war in our bodies. There's a war in our flesh that wants to hurt our soul. You know, the war between the flesh and the spirit, the new man and the old man, don't forget the war that's inside of you. Verse number 12, having your conversation or your lifestyle, your behaviour, having your conversation honest among the Gentiles. Now, look, he's writing to Gentiles, alright, but he's reminding the Gentiles, but you're strangers. So the other Gentiles that are not in the spiritual house of God, have your conversation honest amongst them. Hey, treat your fellow neighbour well, you know, have a good reputation. Just because he's unsafe doesn't mean, you know, that you should treat him badly or something or you should take advantage of that person, alright. That whereas they speak against you as evildoers, that ye may, sorry, that they may by your good works, which they shall behold glorify God in the day of visitation. And then it says submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king as supreme. Listen, brethren, I don't like that verse. I don't like that verse. I know some of you don't like that verse, but it's in the Bible. That means you've got to like it, okay. Don't get offended. Don't be like the unbelieving world that gets offended that stumbles on the stone, okay. Listen, don't get offended when God says to you, submit to every ordinance of man. Don't get offended by that. Just say, look, yeah, of course, because I'm not of this world. I'm passing through. God wants me to have a good report amongst the Gentiles, a good conversation, an honest report amongst the Gentiles. Why? Because if we don't, they're going to speak against you as evildoers. That's what the Bible told us there in verse number 12, alright, whether it be to the king supreme, okay. Listen, I don't like our monarchy. I mean, it's, who's that guy that's pulled out recently? Is it Harry? Prince Harry or something like that? That's all over the news now. He's pulled out of the world. I don't care, brethren. I don't care. I don't care about all that, okay. But if there are laws that are being passed down by the government, you know what, I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it. I'm only not going to do it when it's against the law that's coming from my holy nation, when it's coming from God. If they're telling me you can't preach Christ, if they're telling me you can't, you know, you can't practice your religion, then I'm not going to obey the government. If they're telling me to do something sinful and wicked, I'm not going to do it, alright. But I'm going to decide what battles to fight. I'm not going to die for a mask. If masks become mandatory, I'm not going to fight that and go to prison over it. Now you can if you want, but I'm not, okay. In fact, God taught us in Leviticus that if you have a disease, something like leprosy, you know, you need to put a cough over your mouth. I mean, the mask, God told us to wear masks in the case of viruses and things like that. I don't understand why Christians are so against this stuff. Now I hate it. I think it's overboard. I do, okay. I think it's crazy, in fact. Like I said, when I read that verse, and let's say it becomes mandatory here, I'm not going to like it, but I'm going to look at that verse and go, oh God, that's what it says, and I'm going to do it. And I'm not sitting by putting it on, so I'm just going to do it. I know some of you disagree with me probably, but that's what the Bible says, alright. What does it say there? It says, what I love about verse 13, submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake. For the Lord's sake. It's not about your sake. Okay, it's the Lord's sake. The Lord says submit. Okay, and as we go through this chapter, you'll understand why we need to submit. Verse 14, you know, it says, king as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. You know the government is also called to praise you if you do well, right? It's not just for the punishment of evildoers, but if you do well, if you submit to the ordinances they pass down, they can praise you for it. Oh, they're wicked, they're anti-God, yes they are. Okay, but they're fulfilling a role that God has given them. God has appointed that government. Scott Morrison, God's appointed him there. The politicians, those that pass laws, they're appointed by God. Okay, and God's going to judge them in his right time, for the good they've done and for the bad they've done, the wicked they've done. And as a Christian, we're to obey. We're to do what they ask us to do, right? Now listen brethren, I'm an anti-vaxxer. I don't know if vaccinations will ever be mandatory, I don't know. But I'm an anti-vaxxer, okay? But listen, I'm not a soldier of the anti-vaxx movement. Okay? I'm a homeschooler. I don't believe in public schools and private schools. I'm a homeschooler, 100%. But I'm not a soldier for the homeschooling movement. I'm not fighting for that movement, alright? I believe 9-11 was an inside job. I believe there's a wicked government behind the scenes orchestrating a lot of false flag events, you know? But I'm not going to die for a revolution. I'm not trying to change this world, brethren, in that sense. Alright? I'm an Australian and I love Australia. I do love Australia, okay? I don't love the wickedness of this nation. There's a lot of freedom here. We can practice our religion. It's a beautiful country. You know, you've got a lot of opportunities here. You know, if you're unsuccessful in Australia, I don't know what to say to you. Man, you'd be unsuccessful anywhere you go, basically. You know, I'm an Australian, but I'm not going to die. I'm not going to fight for the Australian Constitution. I'm not going to. That's not God's covenant with me. My covenant with God is a new covenant that was shed by the blood of Jesus Christ. The old covenant had shed enough blood. If you remember some of the sacrifices that were made and the blood was taken from those sacrifices, it was sprinkled on the people, the Old Testament saints, the Old Testament Israel, and they entered into that covenant by the shedding of blood. And we've entered into the new covenant with the shedding of blood of Jesus Christ. I don't know what blood was shed for the Australian covenant. It certainly wasn't a blood that God took and put on top of me. That's not my job, brethren. I don't care about that. I'm thankful for it. I'm thankful for the freedoms it gives us. But you know what? If our government starts to trample all over that Constitution, I'm not of this world. I'm not going to fight for that, okay? What I am, though, is a believer of Jesus Christ. That's what I am. You know, what I am is a Bible-believing Christian. And when I look at Jesus Christ when he walked this earth 2,000 years ago, you know what? There was a foreign power, okay, that had taken power, you know, Roman Empire, that had taken power across the world over Judea, and I don't see Jesus fighting the government. Was it a corrupt government? Of course they were. Pilate put an innocent man to death, Jesus Christ, okay? Yes, it was corrupt. Yes, they were paying taxes to the Roman Empire. You know, to the point where Jesus says, look, you know, to Peter, go and fish and take that coin and pay the taxes. Don't offend them. Should we pay taxes? That's a different topic. You know, Bible says we really shouldn't. But you know what? If we have to pay taxes, I'm going to do it, because I know that God can supernaturally make a coin appear in a fish's mouth and I'll pay it. He's going to provide to pay for it. It's not going to come out of my pocket. God's going to provide it somehow. We're a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, and holy nation. I'm a peculiar person. I hope you're a peculiar person. We're different from this world, and we're soldiers of the Lord's army. Right? A soldier of the Lord's army. The Bible tells me in 2 Timothy 2, 3, thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. And then it says in verse number 4, no man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who have chosen him to be a soldier. Brethren, what are you going to be fighting for? What are you going to entangle yourself with? What battles are you fighting? Are you fighting for God? That's why he saved you. So you can be a soldier in his army. Fight the spiritual battles. Get people saved. Preach the gospel. Learn the Bible. Live for him. Serve him. Offer sacrifices for God. That's our job. This world is going to wax worse and worse, and we already know that. And listen, as this world waxes worse and worse, I'm not going to try to make it better. I'm not going to try to change the laws of the land. What I'm going to do is preach what God's word says and pray that some of these politicians will get a brain in their head and say we better go back to the Bible. Let's find a preacher that's going to tell us what the Bible says and let's make laws in the land that are compatible with the Bible. But listen, I'm not going to run for Prime Minister. This isn't a political party. Sorry to upset you. And listen, if you run, I'm not going to vote for you. I'm not interested in that battle. You can go for it. Go for it if you want. But I'm not going to vote for you. You're not going to get far anyway, trying to bring in God's laws into this land. But listen, we're of a different nation, and we need to understand that. Now the other extreme, yeah, okay, we're of another nation, and like I said, the other extreme is let's just go find a compound. Let's just sell everything that we have. Let's go buy an island in the middle of nowhere. We can just live all together. Our kids can marry each other, and we're just this cult. We don't reach anyone with the word of God. We're just us, because we're not of this world. No, Jesus wants us here. Jesus wants us to be a soul and a light to this world, a peculiar people. The Christian life is not meant to be that easy. In fact, the hard work really was done by Jesus. He'll give you the ability to get through this life. This world's going to wax worse and worse. We shouldn't get upset. Should we get upset about it? I don't know. But we should expect that it's getting worse. Bob was very clear about this. I don't know why Christians get so frustrated and spend their time on YouTube and, oh, this isn't right, and that. I get it. But at the end of the day, what do most Christians do when they find some truth and they realize there's weakness in the government? They go to Facebook and post something. That's not going to change the world. This doesn't do anything posting it on Facebook. Man, I've got my Facebook feed and, oh, the masks, oh, the virus, oh, you know, all this stuff that people are passionate about. It's good, but no one cares. It's on Facebook. It's digital. No one cares. It's gone. Tomorrow, there's another list of news items to read through. I'm going to live for Christ. That's what matters for eternity. Remember, chapter one was the inheritance incorruptible in heaven. That's what we need to be fighting for. Jesus Christ, fighting for Him, being a soldier of the Lord. Look at verse number 15. For so is the will of God. What is God's will for me? To obey the government. Oh, I can't believe you just said that. For so is the will of God that with well-doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. Right? Who's telling you not to obey the government? They're foolish men. And listen, when you don't obey, when you create a bad record for yourself, other foolish men can say, oh, look at those Christians. We knew they were like that. Oh, yeah. Look, they're not following what the government's saying. Now, listen, I don't care about that if I'm doing something that God's asked me to do and they don't like it. That's fine. Okay? But if the government's asked me to do something and it's not a sin, I'm just going to follow it. Let's look at verse number 16. You say, well, that sounds like we're under bondage, Pastor Kevin. You know, under bondage of a wicked government. No, no, no. Verse number 16, as free. You're free. You know, because, again, you're not of this nation. You're a free citizen of the citizenship in heaven that you've got. Okay? You're a free citizen there. Okay? We're free. Okay? And not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. Alright? Actually, you know what? I want you to turn there. Keep your finger there. Go to Matthew 17, verse 24. I know I already spoke about the story of the coin in the fisher's mouth, but I want you to understand this. Let's go there. Matthew 17, verse 24. Matthew 17, verse 24. Matthew 17, verse 24. The Bible reads, and when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money, that's the tax collector, okay, came to Peter and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? Hey, they were trying to find a reason to go against Jesus. Trying to find a reason to give him a bad report. Doesn't Jesus pay taxes? You know? Verse number 25, he saith yes. So I guess Peter's feeling under pressure. Yeah, yeah, he'll pay, you know? And when he was coming to the house, Jesus prevented him, or kind of like, corrected him in a sense, right? Saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? Of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? Of their own children, or of strangers? Peter saith unto him, Of strangers, Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. What did we see in 1 Peter 2? That we are free. As children of God, we are free. Okay? We are free. So say, I knew it, Jesus. He wouldn't pay his taxes, because we're free. Good one, Jesus. Yeah! This teaching that Pastor Kevin's teaching now is completely wrong. Well, let's keep going. Verse number 27. So was Jesus concerned about not offending them? Yeah, he was. He goes, go and do a little bit of work. Go fish one fish. The first fish that you do, you know, you get paid for your work, I suppose. There's that coin, give it to the government. Listen, what this teaching me, brethren, is that God will provide. God will provide, okay? The government lifts the taxes higher and higher and higher, they start to rip you off, they start to say, I'm not going to fight about it! You know, like I said, I'm expecting some fish to turn up with a coin in its mouth. Jesus is going to provide for it, okay? Because I'm not going to spend my time, you know, getting entangled with the affairs of this world, not paying my taxes, potentially going to prison, essentially going to prison, like Kent Hovind did, okay? Go to prison potentially, offend them, no, I'm just going to, God's going to provide, I'm going to pay the taxes, and I'm going to keep living free, and do the work that God has given me on this earth to do. And I'm not trying to hide from my responsibilities as a citizen of this nation. So look, we're free, but God wants us to operate in this world, and He'll provide the means to do so, okay? Look at verse number 17, back to 1 Peter, chapter 2, verse number 17. Honour all men. Oh no, just believers, not all men. Love the brotherhood. How do we honour the brotherhood? That's the brethren, brothers, sisters, and the Lord. Love them, okay? If we want to honour one another, we're commanded to love one another, okay? Then it says, fear God, okay? Honour the king. Oh, what? Yeah, love the brotherhood, yeah, yeah, fear God, yeah. Yeah, honour the king, what? Yeah, that's what the whole chapter's about, okay? You know what? Our prime minister deserves respect. He's not scomo, okay? He's the prime minister. Honour the king. I know he's not a king, I understand, but look, He's got a position in the government, okay? He's been ordained by God. The government's an institution that God wants in this earth. Yes, even the Roman Empire in the days of Christ was a government ordained by the... Yes, even they came in and abused their power, abused their authority. They stretched their empire beyond, you know, what they should have. Yeah, they took over other nations, they took over other governments. You know, today I was shared a video by a brother, which, and I already know this information, but, you know, basically saying, you know, the government that we, you know, the government of Australia, that's not the true government that was set up, you know? It's not a constitutional government. If you guys have studied into this, you probably know what I'm talking about, right? And there are two governments, and this new government that we're under, you know, we didn't elect them, we didn't put them in place, you know? In fact, they're registered by, they're registered to the American government. And so the taxes that we pay our government goes to America. It's like, wow, amazing! Yeah, that's what Jesus lived in. All the taxes went to Rome, to a foreign nation. There's nothing new under the sun. Did Jesus care about that? Was Jesus worried about that? No, he was worried about doing the works of God. Doesn't matter what government. Doesn't matter how wicked the world was. Jesus was on a mission to do his work. And Brevin, it doesn't matter how wicked our government becomes, it doesn't matter if China comes and takes over Australia, okay, and own all the land, I'm not for that, okay? I'm not, look, if some foreign nation comes, hopefully it's Chile, because I'm a citizen of Chile, but look, if some other nation comes, right, and takes over Australia, I'm not gonna go to fight for it. I don't care how wicked that government is. I don't care if the Chinese come and they migrate half the population into Australia, then there's Chinese to get saved. Praise God! And we do the works of God. That's the nation that I live for. That's the fight that I'm fighting for. The souls of men. So I'm not worried about all these little things, Brevin. I'm not saying that I like, I'm not saying I'm all for it. That I like it all. Yeah, this is wonderful. Put a mask on your face. I'm just saying I'm not gonna be bothered by it. I'm not gonna be bogged down by this stuff. It's frustrating. It's a waste of time. It's a waste of time you're entangling yourself with things that are stopping you from serving God. You know, from loving, from just being happy in life. I can't believe how many Christians, you know, and listen, I've been a bit frustrated over all these restrictions. I have been, okay? But then I look at other believers and they're really downcast about it, really depressed. We're gonna fight these things! What in the world? Is that really what we've been called to do? I don't remember that. I don't remember us ever preaching this in the past, that we need to fight these things. That's not my call. Now listen, brethren, if you're really passionate about some of these things and you want to fight the cause, I'm not saying don't do it. If that's really important to you, go ahead. I'm not gonna stop you. All I'm saying is I'm not gonna support you. I'm not gonna stop you, but I'm not gonna support you. You know? Go for it. You know, if you land yourself in prison or something, I'll pray for you because I should. Right? Because you're under bondage. But I'm just gonna be like, why did he waste his time? Now he can't preach the gospel to do what to do anymore. Verse number 18. Verse number 18. Servants, be subject to your masters, we've all feared. What's the context? The government. Right? That's the context. We haven't moved away from that. Servants, be subject to your masters, we've all feared. Not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward. And you know what? Our government right now is very froward. Okay? It's froward. So what are we meant to do? Be subject to your masters, we've all feared. That's what they're saying there. Say, no, no, Pastor Kevin, you don't get it. The government is not the master. They're the public servants. They're our servants. Right? When the police pulls me over and he issues me a fine, I'm gonna tell that police officer, hey, I pay my taxes. In fact, you work for me. I'm your master. Amen. No, the Bible tells us the government is our master. Okay? That's what it says. Unpopular servant, but that's what it says. They're our master. Now listen, government, governing authorities are both masters and servants. Okay? They are the public servant. They are there to serve us. They are there to serve this nation. But you know what you get? One of the advantages of being a servant? Many times being a servant allows you to be a master. Fathers, you go to work. You go every day to work, five days a week, maybe six, maybe more. All right? You go and you serve. Why are you going to work? To serve. Your family. To feed your children. To put a house over the head of your wife. You've become a servant to your family. But you know what that makes you? The master as well. The head of the house. And listen, a pastor. I'm a minister of God. I'm a servant. I'm serving you. That's my job to be a servant. But one of the benefits of being a servant as a pastor is I also have the authority. I'm the master in this church with Christ as the head of the church. Listen, many times in the Bible these things go hand in hand. In Matthew 20-26 it says, But it shall not be so among you, but whosoever shall be great among you, let him be your minister. Let him be your servant. And whosoever shall be chief among you, let him be your servant. Even as the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many. Jesus Christ came as a servant. And that makes him the king. That gives him authority as well. You know, if you're in the workplace and you really want a position of authority, you want to have a promotion, you want to get that pay rise and go up the ladder and have a team under you, you know what you first have to become? A servant. Okay? And if you serve well under authority, then you're going to have those opportunities come to you. So you become the master. Okay? You might say to me, Pastor Kevin, if we submit to the government, they are going to abuse their power, and they have abused their power. Surely then we can start a revolution. Surely then we can start taking up arms, you know, and form a militia, New Life Baptist Church militia. Alright? And fight, I don't know what our mayor is here, I don't know. You know, and fight the council off or something, and we establish our own council here. Surely then, look at verse number 19. 1 Peter chapter 2, verse 19. For this is thank worthy. Because you know, it is a concern, right? It is a concern that if we submit to the government, that they're going to be abusive, they're going to take advantage, you know, we're going to be treated poorly potentially if we don't stand up for our rights. For this is thank worthy. If a man for conscience toward God, okay, so our conscience toward God ought to be that we're obeying the authorities that we have, endure grief, suffering wrongfully. So God understands this can happen, that we can suffer wrongfully, that we can endure grief by being submissive to the government. Verse number 20. For what glory is it if, when you be buffeted for your faults, you shall take it patiently. But if, when you do well and suffer for it, you take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. What if the government takes advantage of us? It's acceptable with God. What if we suffer wrongfully? It's acceptable with God. Okay, what is acceptable? That when you do well and suffer for it, you take it patiently. Listen, when the government is making our life difficult, God says take it patiently. And this is acceptable with me. Okay, why? Because God is the head of that government. God will judge them in due time. He'll put on his garments of vengeance like I taught you guys in due time and take care of it for us. Look at verse number 21 and this is the bit that, you know, why does God expect from us? It sounds like, Pastor Kevin, it sounds like you're just making us shooting ducks here. You know, just lining us up to be totally destroyed by some power, right? Because then it brings us to remembrance, what God did for us in verse number 21. For even here unto were ye called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow his steps. Did Christ suffer wrongfully? Yeah. Did the government in his day abuse their power? Yeah. Were they just toward Jesus? No, they killed, they murdered an innocent man. They tortured an innocent man. But Jesus did that for us. We love that. We love it that Jesus offered himself a sacrifice for us. We love it, but we don't love letting ourselves be that sacrifice, which is acceptable to God. So this is how we can put up with it. This is how we can be patient. This is how we can just say, well Lord, I'm just going to obey the government because even Jesus Christ allowed himself to be taken advantage of. Even Jesus Christ allowed himself to be put into the hands of a wicked government and be killed. If Jesus can do that, and he's established the steps, those are the steps, the example that we should follow. Alright, so if we're trying to fight, start a revolution, guess what? You're not following the steps of Christ. You're not following his example. That's why I'm not going to support you. Alright, I want to support those that want to follow Christ. Verse number 22, who did no sin. Jesus was innocent, right? Neither was God found in his mouth, who when he was reviled, reviled not again, when he suffered he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously. Jesus says, look, I'm suffering, I'm going to be put to death, I'm going to be crucified, but I'm going to commit myself to him that's the father that judgeth righteously. Brethren, if you're being taken advantage of by this government, you just commit yourself to the father and he'll judge righteously. He'll take care of it in his time, in his way. Alright? Look, Jesus did not retaliate, you know, and I don't want to see you guys retaliating against the government unless they're forcing you to sin. Then I can understand, you know, because you've been submissive to the higher power there, right? Verse number 24, who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree. So listen, not only was Jesus the victim of a corrupt government, but you, your sins were put on Jesus. Is that just? You love it. I love it. I love it that Jesus was my sacrifice, and yet I'm the cause of his death as well. My sins were put on him, on his own body on the tree, that we being dead to sins should live unto righteousness by whose stripes we were healed. For ye were a sheep going astray, but are now returned unto the shepherd and bishop of your souls. You say, well, you know, this chapter, I can't do it, pastor Kevin. I can't just be submissive to the government, you know, because I know how wicked they are. Listen, there's a great promise, there's a great hope right at the end there, that we were like sheep going astray, but Jesus is our shepherd, he's our bishop. The bishop is an overseer. Jesus watches what's going on. He will lead us, a shepherd will lead his sheep, he leads us, but he also watches for us. Okay, he also watches for us. So listen, if you're being abused, taken advantage of by this government, by the wicked hands, suffer for it. Just in well doing, be patient. Jesus did much more for you. You know, all of your sins were put on Jesus. He's not asking you to do anything remotely similar to that. Okay? And understand that he's watching you. He's your shepherd. He's your bishop. He will guide you to help you being able to be submissive toward the government authorities. And so the title for the sermon this morning was, submit yourselves to every ordinance. Unpopular, I know. And listen, if there are loopholes, I don't think it's wrong to jump through loopholes. I mean, that's what everybody pretty much does. I understand that. But listen, you know, let me just be honest now as your pastor. You know, while we're going through this epidemic and the restrictions and stuff like that, I'm like asking everybody, can you guys give me some advice? Because I can't keep up with all the media updates. I can't necessarily keep up with everything. I've got a church out in Sydney as well. Things going on in New South Wales. And I'm like, guys, can you help me? Can you let me know? What are we allowed to do as a church? Because I want to be able to follow the guidelines as best as possible. And many of the responses are just smart aleck responses. Oh, but you know, maybe if we call the church a restaurant, you know, we can have people in the church and, hey, we're feeding people the word of God, amen? We're a restaurant. That doesn't help us. That's stupid. Okay? That's not being submissive to the authorities. You know, church is serious business. And we're living in some serious times. Some very wicked days. There's a lot going on in this world. It's half the stuff I don't even want to know about it because it just breaks my heart. Okay? But listen, we have a commandment issued by God in 1 Peter 2. You know, submit yourselves to every ordinance. Remind yourself that the government, as much as you don't like them, they have been put there by God. God is watching. Jesus has suffered more for you than what you'll suffer in the hands of this government. Okay? And guess what? It's acceptable by God. It's what God wants for our lives. Okay? And listen, I personally believe that if we're just submissive to these things, we just obey what God says, that He will see us through. He will find a way to make our life easier. I reckon those that are going to be fighting against the government, those that are going to be standing up for their rights and standing up for the Constitution and the Magna Carta and this false government that's been put in place, their lives are going to be difficult. They're the ones that are going to be rounded up and face, you know, challenges and difficulties and they're not going to be able to serve God. You know? And God's going to allow them to go through that. Because like, okay, if you want to entangle yourself with the affairs of your life, of this life, then entangle yourself with the affairs of this life. But if you want to be my soldier, if you want to be my ambassador, if you want to be a representative of that holy nation, then God will allow us to be used in a very productive way no matter how wicked this world gets. Alright brethren, so anyway, let's pray.