This sermon emphasizes the importance of surrendering to God and the need for protection against spiritual attacks. It warns against distractions and diversions that can lead to a fall, urging listeners to dedicate themselves fully to God and His Word. The speaker highlights the dangers of moral and doctrinal shipwrecks, urging vigilance and a return to sound doctrine and spiritual grounding.

Can we bow for a moment of prayer, please? Father, have mercy on all of us. Come, let there be a hedge of protection around us. That Satan was aware, as he spoke of Job, that God had a hedge of protection around him. And so, that hedge that Satan couldn't penetrate, couldn't touch Job, because of God's protection. We ask for that tonight. The angels of God, the swords drawn to do battle against Satan and his hosts. One third of the stars of heaven were swept by his tail upon the earth. Now, these angels, fallen angels, are desperate demons. We ask for protection from them. And our enemy, Satan. By the risen, resurrected power of Christ, the Holy Spirit brooding upon us, guarding over us, come now, Lord, and bless and keep us safe in the hollow of Thine hand. For we are gathered here in love for Christ, and because of Christ, in Thy name. So wash me afresh in the blood of Jesus the Christ. Anoint and fill me and ansonize in Thy mercy with the Holy Spirit. And take Thy word and this message relating to it, expounding it, and break it open to our hearts in a way that will be of eternal value, and not just one fleeting moment in a meeting. In Jesus Christ's holy name. Amen. You all know this passage, a very well-known passage in God's Word that I'm going to expound on tonight. 1 Corinthians 9, verse 25. Every man, and every man, every man that striveth for the mastery, every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate, is temperate in all things. Every man that striveth for the mastery that aims and pursues to become their best, to be able to win a race, to reach peak level physically, mentally, the best they can become before they run the race and as they run the race. Every man that striveth, that aims to be able to win, to be their best, to reach peak level in every aspect of their life, physically, mentally, is temperate in all things, is ruthlessly disciplined, ruthlessly disciplined in every aspect of his life. In every aspect of his life. Now, they do it, that is athletes, physical athletes, they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, a wreath, if they win, an earthly crown. But we, we, an incorruptible, that is a spiritual, eternal reward, an eternal crown. I, therefore, so run. I, therefore, so run in a spiritual race now, spiritually. I, therefore, so run, not as uncertainty, not as uncertainty. I have no doubt as to what is required of me because of what God has given me in this book to tell me. I have no doubt as to what is required of me in every aspect of my life to win this race, to run this race. I, therefore, so run in a spiritual race now, not as uncertainty. I know what is required of me, I have no doubt. So fight I, so fight I, not as one that beateth the air. I know what I'm fighting for. I know what I'm fighting against and what I'm fighting to obtain. So fight I, not as one that beateth the air, but, but I keep under my body. That is speaking of his spiritual life now, not his physical. I keep under my body and bring it into subjection. I keep under my body and bring it into subjection, lest that, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, when I have preached to others, I myself should be accost away. I keep under my body and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be accost away. Brethren, I have to guard my spiritual life ruthlessly. I have to guard my spiritual life ruthlessly, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, especially if I have preached or faithfully witnessed to others, I myself should become accost away. Literally meaning cast away. Terrifying words. My credibility, my credibility cast away, tragically forfeited and lost. My testimony cast away, thrown away. My ministry disqualified. A tragic, tragic portion of warning we have in God's Word. Beloved, one of the most tragic, one of the most tragic and unnerving onslaughts and attacks against evangelical Christianity today, worldwide, is that how many preachers and prominent Christians, by that I mean evangelical soul winners, how many preachers and prominent Christians everywhere have fallen and been exposed in shameful sin. Prominent evangelicals across the world are giving the unsaved, the ungodly, legitimate cause, legitimate reason to despise and reject and discredit the gospel. When David, when David tragically fell into sin, Nathan the prophet rebuked him in 2 Samuel 12 verse 14, because by this deed, David, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. Ecclesiastes 10 verse 1, Ecclesiastes 10 verse 1 warns us, dead flies, dead flies cause the ointment, the perfume of the apocryphe to send forth a stinking savour. So doth a little folly, that's all the devil wants from you, that's all he's waiting for, a little folly. So doth a little folly, him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour. On our highways and our national roads today, wherever there's a high rate of fatal accidents that have occurred, you will find a fearful and sober warning reading danger, high alert zone, high alert zone, beware, high casualty and fatal accident occurrence. Now, beloved, when one is confronted with such a grave warning, only a very foolish man, a very foolish woman, would not immediately slow down and become careful and concentrate to avoid becoming the next casualty. But, beloved, beloved, we are living, it seems, in an unprecedented dangerous age where many well-loved preachers, prominent Christians, respected Christians, have fallen into and are being mercilessly exposed in shameful compromise and sin. Christ warned us all, Christ warned us all that in these last days, and you have to have your head buried in the sand so deep it's unbelievable, if you don't know that's right now. Christ warned us all that in these last days, because iniquity shall abound. That's a strange word in the Greek. You find it is used now when you try to explain an avalanche. It gains momentum. Have you ever seen an avalanche in a film, in some documentary? It doesn't just roll down, it gains momentum. There's nothing in its way, nothing that tries to stop it, nothing that tries to avoid could be, it's just gaining momentum to such a degree there's nothing left. Now God says, in the last days there will be an escalation of all things that have always been there. You'll find in eschatology in every passage there's an escalation. There's always been diseases, there's always been wars, there's always rooms, but there's suddenly an escalation of diseases, an escalation of natural disasters. There's never before that will overwhelm the world. Everywhere, an escalation of all these things. There's always been these things, diseases. There will be an escalation of diseases that will shock and put fear, men's hearts will fail them for fear of things that will come on the earth. But there will also be an escalation of moral decadence. That's how we know. It's just, how will we know when thou wilt return? That's the question. There'll be an escalation of things that always were there. But I think the most fearful is an escalation because iniquity, moral decadence, moral depravity shall abound, escalate, till nothing can stop it. No government, no censorship, no restrictions. It just wipes out any restrictions. And 10-year-olds are depraved and destroyed morally. You can't stop it. The media, everything. Because iniquity shall abound. The love of many shall wax cold. Fearful words. Terrifying words. Now that word, many, is the most terrifying word of all. The masses, the Greek, will come to... The meaning of that Greek word is primarily the most. In its context, under the banner of Christianity worldwide, the masses, the most, who gather under the banner of Christianity worldwide. The love of the masses of the most. In its context, the people professing Christianity worldwide. That word, many, is again and again used. Because many false prophets shall arise and shall deceive many. The most people who preach under the banner of Christianity in the name of Christ walking into the pulpit of the Bible are false prophets. Many false prophets. The masses, the most. They come to a place where they're heaped to themselves. Teachers having itching ears. But they will not receive the love of the truth. Don't give us the truth. Don't make us feel uncomfortable. Don't touch sin. But give us preachers, teachers, who can excite us sensually. You know, they look like Hollywood, they carry on, they dress like Hollywood. And they give us anything of entertainment. But they won't give us this book. Become a famine of the word of God. Not of bread, not of water, but a desperate longing for those who want God's word to find anywhere that they're preaching. It's all just entertainment, all just a cry of soulmanship, but nothing of God's word. Oh, the most. How many? Oh, Jesus said, many. The same word. The same Greek word. Shall say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? Literally, in its context, in the light of all scriptures, but in the immediate context, preached, preached in thy name. Have we not preached in thy name? Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not preached in thy name? In thy name have cast out devils. In thy name done many wonderful works, miracles. You know what's astounding here? Jesus didn't say, no, that couldn't happen in my name. He didn't, he didn't argue. I wonder what percentage of the people who cast out devils in the name of Christ today are going to hell. Or did Christ not mean this? This is a mistake on Christ's behalf. Many! The most, the masses, who stand in the pulpits will be false prophets who will cry in desperate fear and shock and say, did we not, prophet, did we not preach in thy name? In thy name cast out devils. In thy name have done many wonderful works. Well, I profess unto them, I never knew you. I never knew you! Depart from me. Depart from me. Ye that work iniquity, you that never ever came to a place of repentance from the sin in your life, the known sin that this book condemns. Fearful words. I wonder how many across the entire world under the banner of Christianity would say those words to Christ one day when he returns. Oh, be careful. The love of many will wax cold. Why? Because iniquity shall abound. There'll be an escalation of depravity. Mainly because of lack of preaching against it. Hebrews 12, verse 15. Hebrews 12, verse 15. Looking diligently, lest any man fall. Looking diligently, lest any man fall from the grace of God. Verse 16. Lest there be any fornicator. That is, a man falling into immoral evil. Or profane person. As Esau. That's staggering. Who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know that afterward, afterward when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected. For he found no place of repentance. What does that mean? Of undoing. Of reversing the consequences of what he so foolishly had done. Though he sought it carefully with tears. Beloved, one weak moment is all the devil needs. One wrong choice and everything you have gained of trust, of privilege, from everyone who knows you, beginning with your children, could be lost and forfeited forever. Never to be regained. I need to read that again. One weak moment. One wrong choice. And everything you have gained, Esau, everything that's meaningful, everything you've gained of trust, preacher, of privilege, from everyone who knows you, could be lost and forfeited forever. Never to be regained again. Christian, Christian, think not that your forgiven sins will have no earthly consequences. I want to repeat that. Christian, think not that your forgiven sins, oh, God will forgive. There's still mercy. That's amazing. Beyond comprehension of God's mercy. But that doesn't mean you don't lose forever and forfeit and become cast away. A reject from the pulpit. A reject that people will not trust you again. Your children will never look at you with trust again. Your wife will never look at you with trust again. You stand with the Bible. No one wants to trust you. No one wants to listen. Ever again in your life, you forfeit the privileges. And what is a greater privilege than to serve God? Think not that your forgiven sins will have no earthly consequences. The preaching policeman, Derek Melton, of Prior Community Church in Oklahoma, cried, what a man of God he is. If you want to be shocked, go into the website under his name. And daily he puts these astonishing statements to try and work shock and wake us up. Think not that your forgiven sins, he said, will have no earthly consequences, he saw. Numbers 32 verse 23 warns us all, be sure your sin will find you out. What does that mean in its context? Be sure your sin will find you out or it will affect your lives tragically and adversely. Be sure of that. Beloved, a Christian is in danger zone spiritually. He is in danger zone spiritually when like Esau, he faces temptation and casts aside, literally casts aside, he disregards any thought of the consequences. He only regards the moment of sinful pleasure. Now I want to repeat that. A Christian is in danger zone spiritually. He's in it when he, like Esau, faces temptation and he literally casts aside, disregards any thought of the consequences. The consequences don't matter, whatever is lost. Only regarding the moment of sinful pleasure. Later on he weeps for the rest of his life, ages with everybody else near him that loves him. Don't doubt it. He is in high alert zone where a high occurrence of fatal accidents happen in our privileged Christian world. And he has most surely, beyond doubt, thrown aside every meaningful spiritual exercise and discipline to maintain a vital relationship with God. He has most surely, there's no doubt, he's thrown aside of his life every meaningful spiritual exercise to maintain his relationship with God. Be careful. Be warned. No matter who you are, sin lieth at the door. You think God said those words to Cain? There's not a word in this book, in its context, in the light of the rest of the scriptures, that isn't vital or it wouldn't be in this book. For you are understanding the heart of God. For you and me to survive. There's nothing that we don't need from the first thing he said to Adam and Eve, the first thing he says to Cain. O Cain, sin lieth at the door. You need to look at your own heart as to whether what you give to God is wrong. It isn't what God wants. Sin lieth at the door. Therefore, be sober. Be vigilant. Because your adversary, your enemy, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, shaking, whom he may devour. God isn't playing the fool here, sir. This isn't some empty words that cannot happen. Not in God's words, sir. Be sober. Be vigilant. Because your adversary, the devil, your enemy, as a roaring lion, God says, walketh about, shaking, whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5 verse 8 Neither give place to the devil, God warns us, in Ephesians 4 verse 27, neither give place to the devil. What does that mean? Don't foolishly invite the devil to destroy you, Christian. Don't invite him to destroy you. Don't give him opportunity to destroy you. Oh, let me warn you, brother, sister, don't play the fool with a lion. Don't you dare play the fool with a lion. When I was a boy, we had the days of the circus. I don't know if they have such things these days. Those days, the population of a town or a city in South Africa would just go, row lines upon lines around the blocks and blocks to get into some show of the circus when they came to town. Right in the heart of our city there was a special place that was worth so much money, but they kept that open for the circus annually coming to our town. And we all went. I doubt that anybody missed. Those of you that are my age, you might still remember what a circus is. Anyway, there was the Boswell Wilkie Circus. There was a big advert that used to draw the crowds perhaps more than anything else. Yes, there was Tiki the Clown, and there was the actor, you know, swinging and whirling through there. But the one thing that really drew the crowds was a man called Carl Fisher. He was a lion tamer. Now this lion tamer had a big advert in the newspapers attached to the circus that was coming to town. And on top of the circus a big painting on some canvas, massive canvas pluck. And there he was, the big advert was that this lion tamer would take the lion's mouth and pull it open, those ferocious teeth, and open and pull it and stick his entire head into the lion's mouth. Now, that was not very wise. I wouldn't say anyone has any wisdom to do that. But this man obviously had tamed this thing and trusted it that it would never harm him. He was like a little baby to him. Now it's a big ferocious lion, but I went to see that with my family. A little boy standing, and he shoves his head into the lion's mouth in a fwoosh, and everybody screams. Oh, what incredible courage. What an incredible man. Well, the next show after I sat there, thank God it wasn't that show. The next performance of the entire circus, that whole crowd of children in their hundreds and hundreds and families in this massive tent, holding hundreds and hundreds, they all witnessed one of the saddest moments of the circus's history in the world. It simply closed its massive jaws. I can't tell you the details across the newspaper. As it ripped that man to such an incredible, before they could stop that lion or get to him, all the cages surrounding to keep us protected from the animals while it's performing. Before they could stop, there was nothing virtually left of that man that hadn't been ripped apart. You don't play the fool with a lion. You do not play the fool with a lion. Now, beloved, I thank God I wasn't there to witness that, because you imagine that remaining in the minds of children for the rest. I mean, there was, children had to be psychologically treated, and we witnessed what they saw. People, people, would never forget such a horrific thing. That was a terrifying thing to have witnessed. But it's more fearful to me today to witness the roaring lion that God warns us of, destroying preachers, world-famous preachers, well-loved, esteemed, revered Christians, prominent Christians, soul winners, leaders across the entire world. It's more fearful to see the lion that God warns us. Don't give place. Don't invite him to kill you. Don't invite him to destroy you. It's literally God's warning. Neither give place to the devil. Don't give him an opportunity. That is more fearful to me. Here's a newspaper in another language in our home, Afrikaans, one of our main newspapers, 11th of May this year, 2014. And here's a picture of this man who had these lions that he, the crowds would come to his big game reserve that he had privately, many of them do for all the American tours. And here he was, Kitty, he called him. Come, Kitty, to a lion. These lions were running. And in front of all these people after years of Kitty just rubbing against him, they ripped him to pieces. A terrifying thing. A terrifying thing. Oh, how many preachers that I have known and knelt with and wept with for souls foolishly and tragically gave place to the devil. Believing they would get away with it. Losing fear of Satan and what God warned us he would do. I have a list here. I hope no one ever reads it. I hope with all my heart. Men, I, and people across the world have loved and revered who really were anointed of God. Don't doubt that. Not one of them didn't make mistakes, but then show me a preacher including Wesley, Whitfield, and Spurgeon that didn't say, I made a mistake. That doesn't disqualify you if you're big enough to say that. But men who made another mistake, not doctrinally in one verse for a while, but of giving place to the devil, giving him the opportunity, inviting him. I can name upon name upon name upon name destroy it, cast away, forfeited their privilege as a preacher to the day they die. Their respect, their honor, their credibility, their testimony cast away. But what was, what was the tragic cause of so many prominent Christians and preachers in these days falling in such a tragic way that has brought such shame on Christianity across the world, and caused millions to stumble in a way unprecedented in our history? As a church, what was the tragic cause of so many prominent Christians and preachers and leaders falling into such shameful sins? This year I was on a tour in Africa, in a certain section of Africa, and to take me from all these towns, we came to the foot of very high spot in Africa's geographical situation, and we had to go through a gorge, very much like your Grand Canyon, only nothing could compare with the Grand Canyon anywhere in the world. But the same idea, this river, as we had to go up this pass through the whole gorge, up where the river had ground, down and down and down over the years, there's high cliffs, high, the most magnificent formation of rocks on both sides of this river and this torrent at times, had just washed away and down, down, down, this gorge, we had to travel up through this valley, this amazing gorge, canyon, to get to a very high place where I was to preach the next day in one of the Dutch Reformed churches. Well, they had viewpoints, we stopped, climbed up the rocks to see great waterfalls, beautiful situation where you just can't believe the beauty, it's incomprehensible. Your breath is taken away. Oh, what happened, what that river did. But in one of the viewpoints where we stopped the car, I noticed a tree. Now this tree, I noticed for one reason, it was the largest tree that I had seen in the whole going through this canyon. And here at this viewpoint there was this magnificent tree. The others were there, but it had obviously stood long before the others, grown and somehow it had grown to such stature, thrived. It's higher than all the trees and magnificent. But then I looked carefully as I went closer and there was a sad, tragic thing about that tree. You see, most of its roots were once in the ground were now hovering over nothing. The river washed away the soil. All the firm soil and earth that these roots were steeped in was washed away. Obviously in times of rain floods and torrents. And here it was, a few roots keeping it standing. But it was going to fall, there was no doubt. And this would be one terrible crash because it was the largest. It would affect an enormous amount of the vegetation. This tree was about to fall. Just being held by a few roots that were still in the earth, sunk into the earth, into the soil. But here the most roots were hovering over a void of nothing. The river just washed away all the soil. The most roots were hovering over a void of nothingness. Empty air. It was quite terrifying to realize what was about to happen to this beautiful tree that stood, that grew longer than all the other trees, that reached such heights and such beauty. It was about to fall. There was no doubt of that. No doubt of that in my heart. Here was a tree whose roots were no longer safely sunk into good soil. No longer rooted and grounded into the soil, firm, keeping it safe. Now in our country, the most beautiful city is Cape Town. That's where Jenny and I live. We live at the foot of one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful, mountain in the world. Millions of people annually flock from all over the world, the tourist class. Millions. That's our greatest income of the whole state, what you call a state. We call a province, a western province. The tip of Africa. Here's a boot. That's the shape of Africa. And here's the toe. The two oceans, Atlantic and the Indian, meet and you can see from that mountain the two oceans, the color. It's an amazing view. Now most tourists who've been there from across the world, tourist class, have voted it the most beautiful city in the entire world because of our mountains and our seas, the ruggedness, the Cape of Storms, the Cape of Good Hope, historically. We live there. A beautiful situation. There's a park. It's the oldest park in the southern Africa that's man-made. And this park runs adjacent to our parliament buildings which has been reviewed as among the most beautiful buildings in the entire world, archaeology, the architecture. And so along this long road of all our government's buildings, the most beautiful structures, is this park called the Company Gardens. Now Jenny and I often go there. I go there to be quiet, to pray. It's not too far, a little walk from our home and there's these amazing, something like the Central Park in New York, not quite as big though. But oh the beauty and the trees that for hundreds of years from the early settlers that brought trees and vegetation, trees that have thrived there for hundreds of years. There's such a variety from all over the world that were planted hundreds of years ago by the early settlers that came, the early European settlers that came to Africa. Well, the one tree that stood higher than the rest, it just drew me. I looked through all these trees and suddenly I saw, whoa. So I walked across there, loving trees and the beauty that God created of this world, as I do, and I looked at the plaque. There was a beautiful plaque attached to the tree, telling all the information of what it is and the roots. That struck me. It wasn't like another tree that roots just went into the earth, you know. This tree, its roots were about so high, so wide. You had to climb over them and these roots just went right over there, past other trees' roots, past other trees' trunk. There's these roots going, oh, everywhere. There's roots. You're just walking a path between the roots. High roots, wide. They just spread over the ground and sunk their roots deep deep into the soil, everywhere, just going, spreading. Now that was interesting to me. And so I read the plaque and I wrote a few details down about this tree. It is called the Fictus Elastica. Morrocoya Fictus Elastica. You'll pretend I know what I'm saying. But anyway, that's what it is written, literally. It is in the Benzen group of figs. It can also be referred to in parts of the world as a rubber tree, a species of the fig genus. But it's native to northeast India and southern Indonesia. It's native to northeast India and southern Indonesia. And I read these words. In parts of India, the people guide those roots of that tree over dangerous chasms and voids, precipices, cliffs. They literally can guide the roots to cross over these dangerous voids. And they eventually form a living bridge. They have living bridges because the people guided them over the dangerous chasms, the voids, the cliffs, the peaks to the other side. They eventually formed living bridges. Now how does the devil wash away the soil that are the means through which our spiritual roots seep strength and feed from? How does the devil wash away the soil that are the means through which we survive? Our roots seep deeply to feed from, to grow, to be solidly firm, grounded, rooted and grounded in Christ. I believe he sends a river. He sends a river, beloved, of legitimate yet meaningless things. Non-essential, time-consuming, that divert the soul from spending meaningful, unhurried time with God and above everything with the meditation of his word. I believe he sends into our lives legitimate things, thrilling things. Boy, if you want to be thrilled, watch what's coming as you pay for something on the internet, some new thing. They're advertising what's coming next year. You can't wait for next year before you even started. Everything is just time-consuming. Oh, it might be thrilling, but it's time-consuming. Tell God it isn't. Tell God it genuinely hasn't become a danger to you, a diversion. I'm talking about not only that but anything. He sends a river of legitimate, meaningless, non-essential, time-consuming things that divert the soul from spending meaningful, unhurried time with God's word, the meditation of God's word, and wears out the soul until he has no strength emotionally and mentally to give any time to God's word. He's so busy drowning himself with meaningless, time-consuming things but legitimate, not necessarily sin. Oh, child of God, may I just stop here for a moment. May I just stop here for a moment to ask every one of you, urgently, has the devil washed away most of the spiritual soil that you once sunk your roots into daily? I want to repeat it. Answer God. Answer your conscience. Has the devil washed away most of the rich, spiritual soil that you once sunk your roots into daily, spiritually, with meaningless activity? And you let him. Don't tell me you didn't know you were doing it. If the word of God is first, God is first. That's the only way you know God is first. If it's second to anything, God is second. If it's tenth in line, God is tenth in line. Don't dare say it isn't. Christian, you urgently need to carefully take those roots. You urgently need to carefully take those roots that are hovering tragically over nothing, over a void of meaningless activities. You need to redirect them, to lead them, to redirect, no matter what it costs you, no matter what you have to throw out of your life, no matter how much it costs you in life. It'll cost you more if you lose your tender walk with God and privilege and fall. You need to redirect those roots that are hovering over meaningless activities and emptiness. And you need to sink them back into the soil, into the rich spiritual soil of God's word. Firstly and foremost, sink them back into God's word once again. Beloved, from the day you're saved to the day you die, excluding not one day in your life, no matter what the consequences, no matter what the circumstances, your greatest duty in life is to meditate the word of God wherever you can. And if it isn't, you are a total backslider. Don't blame your work. Don't blame anything. If it keeps you from God, don't even blame the ministry. Don't blame the work of God. If the work of God keeps you from God himself, the work of God is your biggest sin. And every other sin will be the result of that. Don't play the fool with the privilege of your name being not destroyed. Don't play the fool. Beloved, firstly you need to sink back into God's word desperately, your roots. In Psalm 1, and I thank God it is Psalm 1, why is it Psalm 1? Because you've got to be doers of the word, not hearers only deceiving yourself. You live Psalm 1. You apply your life before you dare to read Psalm 2, or you are playing the fool with God. Why is Psalm 119 the longest passage in the entire Bible, beloved, there's a reason. Every verse tells you the essential necessity of why you need to be soaking yourself in the word of God, treasuring it above any gold, anything you could attain in life, financially, any achievement in life, anything. If it is first, God is first, and you're safe. Every verse relates to this. In every aspect of Christianity, that's why it's the longest. But the first Psalm, you've got to live because before you jump to Psalm 2 and Psalm 3 and start taking promises, no, there's a condition for God's promises. You've got to live it. That's why Psalm 1, blessed is the man who doesn't give time to the things that grip the world. Verse 2, but his delight, his delight, all-consuming delight, the Hebrew says, not one of his delights, the other delights fade into significance. They have no drawing power because the more you read God's word, the more you want it. The more time you give to God's word earnestly with all your heart, the less time you find for anything that is not essential for your survival. Oh, his delight is in the law of the Lord. Now, that's what they had when this was written. Now, we have the entire Bible. His delight is in the word of God, in his law, in the word of God. Doth he meditate? That cancels out hurrying. Now, you only cancel out hurrying with God's word when God's word's first and say's first. There's nothing to hurry to. There's nothing Hollywood has that could divert you. It just becomes waste, vanity, worthless. There's nothing Hollywood, all its technologies, can do to put in that box or anything in this world that can draw you away from what excites you a billion times more than any person being excited under what Hollywood can give you today, no matter what it is. I believe that with all my heart, I'm going to find another man more excited every day in this entire world than I am with this book. Enthralled, weeping, trembling, worshiping. Oh, his delight, this makes him blessed, is in the law of the Lord. In his law, doth he meditate day and night. Not all day. Of course, you have responsibility with other things. But let me shock you. You give God first place with this book. In the time your wife needs, you won't neglect. Your children will treasure the memory of you if you give God's word. They'll curse the memory of you if you neglect that and give them all day. You'll be a failure. Your workplace, you achieve, you'll be more diligent, more conscientious, more worth than anybody else. If you don't neglect this book, you'll find you don't steal. You won't even steal a phone call from the company you're in. It's something of the sensitivity that this book gives you. That the Holy Ghost works in you to the degree you have the mind of Christ, to the degree you soak yourself in this book. For it gives us the mind of Christ, sir. Oh, in his law, doth he meditate day and night. Not all day. Whenever he finds time, there's a choice. He doesn't hesitate to choose this. And not to be drowned in all the devils giving us to drown ourselves and not find time or strength. He doesn't waste his time with worthless distractions, endless diversions, redeeming the time. Ephesians 5 verse 1. God assures us then, God assures us, blessed be he, shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in a season. His relief shall not wither. Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. That spiritually is not speaking about financially or materially. That's trash, and that's of the devil, that doctrine. It's speaking about you will grow where others will fall. You will be saved. You'll bring forth what's expected of a Christian in all circumstances, where God and man expected you to bring forth fruit, to see the fruit of God, the Holy Ghost, to see the fruit of this book working in your life. There are God promises that that will happen to you if you put this book first. In your list of what the devil will give you should be first. Run away, no matter what it costs. Is it worth losing a tender walk with God for the rest of your life? The things you embrace as vital for your survival and happiness that have kept you from this book, and now your roots are hovering over nothing spiritually of any worth. Oh, beloved, steer your roots over the chasms, the tragic void that your spiritual life now dangerously hovers over. Steer back to the fertile, rich spiritual soil. Ephesians 3, 7, that ye being rooted and grounded. That's staggering. Colossians 2, verse 7, rooted, built up in Him, literally established in the faith as ye have been taught. You have to be stable. And this is the way, beloved. There's no other way. David cried in Psalm 119, verse 37, turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity. Now, we may think that's sin, moral temptations. No. The literal meaning, the closure, turn away my eyes from beholding vanity. I'm looking at worthless things, literally, things that are worthless to me. Verse 47, for I will delight myself in thy commandments. Sorry it wasn't David, it was Ezra that wrote Psalm 119. Firstly, you need to lead your roots, to steer every root, to lead ruthlessly back, to soak in God's Word as the greatest discipline of your life. Secondly, into good literature that opens up God's Word, that we have an access to. Now, beloved, I believe that the great majority of Christian books today are dangerous. Forgive me. I see a shallowness of diversions that I don't even know what they're speaking about. At times I just say, God forgive me that I'm even bothering to look at the, I even look at the cover and ask God forgiveness to even touch it. The cover is so defiling, degrading of Christianity. Forgive me. And what doesn't grip my heart and break me, and reach me, and throw me. In the first few pages I throw it. I don't put it up there to say I've got another book. I throw it out so nobody wastes their time that might get out of my children. But beloved, there are books that we would be illiterate not taking that God's given us. Beginning with Pilgrim's Progress. I mean you're illiterate. Sorry, a bit rough language, but you are totally illiterate. If you haven't read and devoured Pilgrim's Progress, that gift God gave to us, the second most printed book in the history of the world, the first is the Bible, the second most read and printed book in the entire world's history is Pilgrim's Progress. Why do you think God did that? Because it's 90% scriptures, literal, all in an amazing way given to that man to somehow work in a practical outworking of Christianity. In daily life, whatever we face, it's the Word of God put into practice in a life, in all circumstances, to show us from the unconverted man coming under the conviction right to the day he dies and as he goes through, everything is his scriptures. And because he honors his Word above all things, God honored that book above all other books about the Bible. We need to soak ourselves in that book. We need to take what is really genuinely. And I tell you, when I got saved, I didn't dare read a book unless I went to every God-fearing man that I knew, the godliest of the godliest and woman, and asked their advice what I should read. Biographies, they said, one after the other, preachers, it'll keep the flame going because you'll find that the men don't read the biographies of the new people. Most of them will die in shame. Read the biographies and there are hundreds of men that moved the whole world to God, moved millions, moved nations to God, and who died climbing with their testimony intact, their integrity, their name. There's the John Wesleys. There's George Whitefield. Here you are, Wesleyan, Arminius, Calvinist. Doesn't matter to me. They're both men of God. No hallelujahs anyway. Let's get back to my corner. Oh, beloved, go to the biographies of the great men that shook this world and there's unending. The big thick books are too heavy, the Charles Finney's, Andrew Murray's, Hudson Taylor's, go on, oh, some little doctrinal differences, but don't worry, they moved millions to God. And the wonderful thing about the biographies is you find they say the mistakes, the failures, the weaknesses, the fears, and you realize men who moved the world to God are like me, like you, and how they overcame these things and what their priorities were, became to survive and to thrive and to rise up above the others in the world to bring this world to God. Oh, it's a wonderful thing, biographies, but always ask, always ask, the godliest of the godliest of the godliest people you know in your heart you can find for advice and for warning to not play the fool with books that could divert you to rubbish in the god's second best. Be careful, because a lot of books today are dangerous and will have you diverted to things that aren't the priorities in God's words and are mostly contrivance of the devil. And I have no doubt of that because at the end of those people's lives, permanently. Oh, you need to get back to godly books and not bury yourself. But be careful, never neglect the Bible for books. When you know the Holy Spirit witnesses with your spirit that you haven't neglected the book, that you will walk with God and the witness of the Spirit is in your heart as a result of the time you've spent soaking yourself in the book and then get up and walk with God through the day, not leaving him behind in the time, but this book does that. You walk through the day like Enoch walked with God, so no less. And then when you find other time, and it will be there when God's first, then take up good books that are there for our well-being and our survival. And then, good sermons. You may say there's no churches, very few churches left anywhere where you don't get broken down, beginning with the rubbish music they give. No sermon could mean anything because you're so destroyed and broken down by what you were saved from in the nightclubs is worse than the church that breaks godly people down. They just don't know how, and how do you preach the gravity of this book after such music? And you can get up and dance to it in the atmosphere. Oh, no. Oh, beloved, we need to go and realize that even if you can't find, as God's word warns us what happened in the last days, a famine of the word of God, men will cross oceans, lands to try and find, seeking something of truth being preached. That's happening, that's right now, but even if you can't find, go there. Go to the best you can. Get something out of a hymn that God can feed you, something out of the scriptures that are read, but seek God in that and be an example and pray for the man preaching, pray for those around you. Be an example in everything, beginning with your dress code, beginning with your conduct, every statement you can make just here and there that can influence, that can stagger people. Go, yes, but you can get good sermons, the greatest sermons in the world's history. No, the greatest sermons of our generation. On the internet today, now I know the internet can deprave you, I know there's dangers, but you're safe if you soak yourself in the word of God. Let me tell you, you hate the evil and love the good to the degree you're soaked in the word of God. Don't stop. Try it. You're safe. So go onto the websites such as Sermon Index, Sermon Audio, and many others, but mainly those. And listen, you can listen to A.W. Tozer's sermons. He's dead and gone. You can listen to Reese Howells, one of the greatest preachers in the world's history. Leonard Ravenhill, the most courageous preacher. Maybe Duncan Campbell, I don't know, but these people's sermons. David Wilkerson, these men were men who were valiant for the truth, who gave no place to compromise no matter what it cost them as yet. Every one of them had to pay the price. Tremendous persecution, undermining, and onslaught. But they died climbing. These men's sermons are, they're even moody you can listen to. You can listen to William Booth, the beginning, even maybe a little tape that was there, but you can listen. And you need to ask each other to be safe what websites to go to, what to look, what names to look under. And you can be, you can get food, come from your church, yes, but you have to go to or the godliest group you can find for fellowship and food. And get on to the websites, carefully, prayerfully, asking God's protection, but getting protection from the godliest. And know what sermons there are that will build you up before the devil attempts to wash away the remaining soil. Before the devil attempts to wash away the remaining soil that your spiritual roots are still somehow keeping you from a total fall, the few roots left that have kept you from a total fall and collapse that will devastate everything near you that knows you to be a Christian. I beg you to guide those roots now ruthlessly, throw out all the things in your life that is not of God, that God doesn't want in your life, that is not essential for you. Discipline yourself to redeem the time, all the time you have, the little time you have left to plant yourselves back into the roots that God has given you, sir. You have to. Today, as never before, we look in shock and sorrow and shame at great men who were once used mightily by God, who have shamefully fallen. Brother, sister, we dare not look at them judgmentally. We dare not look at them judgmentally. But, as God's merciful warnings to all of us, for you may be next, preacher, take care here today. There may be only two defining moments in your God-given ministry. Firstly, the call. Secondly, the fall. No doubt, it may be that this message will be to you a beam from a lighthouse that suddenly will shake you to realize what's about to happen, to turn this beam suddenly in the lighthouse that will make you turn in time to avoid shipwreck of your life in ministry. But you must not hesitate. You dare not hesitate. Another day, another moment, there must be a turning point if you're in this danger. Brother, sister, you must make that moment now the radical turning of a vessel that's leading to crash on the rocks and be shipwrecked. Your greatest need is to rededicate your life. I don't believe you're going to drift back into these things. I'm one of those preachers that believe you must make a dedication. You must make a turning point that's so dedicated and then these things you'll get the strength to. Once God has heard your confession, you're asking for the cleansing of the things that have turned you away from the vital, there has to be a ruthless turning point, an absolute surrender, Andrew Murray says. I love that. A full surrender. It may be that you once truly experienced a spiritual life. It may be that you once truly have experienced a spiritual life. By that I mean a spirit-controlled life. Be careful of the word spirit food. It can lead you to manifestations and to seek anything but what God says it is. All it means is to be controlled. He's in you, but he's not controlling you. Look at your life and tell God he is. It may be you once truly experienced a spiritual life, but through all the diversions you allowed Satan to make you take, you're not fully surrendered anymore. You're totally taken off the altar. It may be that you never came to a place of dying to self at all. In Romans 12, verse 1, Paul cries out to Christians, I beseech you, literally I beg you, now Paul begged, I'll beg, I'll beg you, scripturally, I'm begging you, brethren, by the mercies of God let me present your bodies a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reason, which is, listen, he doesn't want a whole dead carcass of an animal. The whole animal had to be onto the altar. He wants the whole of your life, everything on the altar, but living, not dead. A living sacrifice you have to dedicate that God can't do for you. What you dedicate he consecrates, that you can't do. And so Paul begs you and begs me and I beg you through the words of Paul that you do this, that you may prove what is that perfect and acceptable will of God. And don't throw it aside before it's proved what God, you have to come to a place of putting your all back on the altar and seeking God to fill you, that is to take complete control. As you're all on the altar of God, the old hymn says. Wonderful, wonderful hymn. Before going further, I just need to take one moment to address the family of the loved ones and the loved ones and those that have been staggered through such falls of people like your father or your preacher that led you to God. That's everywhere. Don't let this be your undoing. Let this be the reason you cast yourself so upon God's grace. Give yourself as never before to the things you've heard in the sermon that you will not experience what those who led you to Christ or your father or your mother or leading Christians that brought you to heights that you would never have reached through their ministry and now they've fallen to shame. Don't let this be your undoing. Let this be the reason you seek God as never before. Even if you've been wounded by the failures of others, don't give the devil the privilege of seeing you being destroyed through that. And you don't have to be. You could rise up to heights you've never known before in your life through this. You don't have to let this be the means of your becoming negative and self-destructive and hopeless and with unbelief. Don't do that to yourself. Of course, you can make shipwreck morally, as I've spoken of. Secondly, just very briefly, you can make shipwreck as a preacher as when I preached to others, I myself became a preacher. Doctrinally, there's a great danger here to all of us because I'm preaching to every Christian. I hope you know that. When I preach to the leaders, this could happen to you equally. Doctrinally, hold fast the form of sound words as I've learned of me, Timothy, through Timothy 1.13, Titus 1.19, holding fast sound doctrine as you've been taught. You may be able to hold sound doctrine and exhort and convince others with it. Study to show yourself approved under God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed and you will be ashamed if you don't. Rightly divide in the word of truth, Titus 2.7, in doctrine showing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that he that is in the contrary part will have no evil thing to say to you. 1 Timothy 1.6, from which some having swerved but turned aside to vain jangling, idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they show nor what they affirm. And if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, turn from it. Protect yourself from it. 1 Timothy 1.19, some have made soup there. There may that they, those by them mightest war a good war for holding the faith and good conscience which some having put away concerning the faith have made shipwreck. These warnings concerning the doctrinal shipwreck being cast away not because of morally and destroyed through the moral failures but lest by any means after that I preach to others I myself should be cast away doctrinally. Or we need to be very, very careful here. Henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro carried about with every wind of doctrine by the slight of men cunning craftiness whereby they lie and wait to deceive you. Ephesians 4.14. Oh, I could go through lists now of people who once rarely were a fire for God who've fallen and are now dangerous to society, dangerous to the church, their sects. Oh, it is fearful. It is fearful. I touched it last night. Men I once wept with were now dangerous to Christianity. Everyone that comes near them. How did that happen? Oh, Jenny's daddy is a farmer and a preacher more loved across South Africa than most preachers in our history as a nation. He didn't go to theological seminar. He learned the Bibles outworking on a tractor plowing the land. This godly man that people with degrees from theological institutes across Southern Africa flocked to hear this old farmer who's never been one day in a theological seminar. But God taught him so much that he went through the school of God like Job and came out like Job. And all he sings Job sinned not with his mouth nor charged God foolishly. He passed the exam. Though he slay me I trust him. I've seen him crying that when he lost everything. My father. Now he once lost everything Those farmers lose everything. Bankrupt. That's farming. They once had trees. Orchids planted. Oranges. Nuts. All these fruits that were exported everywhere. Wonderful. He really did wonderfully with his son. The valleys and the valleys of all these orchids. Now one day some man arrived there that gave them a poison that could protect the tree. And so he talked him into using this poison. And so they into the sand into the soil with all this that would protect from all sorts of things that could destroy the tree. You know really something wonderfully new that the farming scientists have developed now. So of course they did it. And these the poison was wrong. It went inside the tree and rotted from the inside. Nobody knew these trees were rotten. Being rotted inwardly. Suddenly they began to fall. Valleys and valleys. They were ruined. As far as they were destroyed. It took a lifetime. It was gone through the poison. It was urged on you. It sounded exciting. It sounded right. Beloved doctrinally you've got to be as guarding yourself that after you've preached to others you yourself should be cast away. Thrown aside. Rejected. Disqualified. Looked upon as a dangerous sect. A dangerous heretic. And how many are there that I've known that once preached truth that once really walked... I don't know how this is comprehensible but it's happened and I'm warning I don't care about touching doctrines. I'm not caring about doctrinal differences. I'm warning you from my heart for your well-being. I'm not here to defend doctrines. I'm here to protect the soul. Anything God gives me be careful. Lord we would be faithful Lord we would follow you and would enter each morning devoted and true at the end of life's journey on that glorious day as we look into your eyes we want to hear you say well done my good and faithful servant enter into my kingdom you have fought the fight you have kept the faith according to my word well done my good and faithful servant great is your reward you have been faithful now your race is run well done my servant well done for I was hungry and you fed me thirsty and you gave me drink you served others in my name you spread my gospel without shame and you were light in the darkness you were strength to the weary you were my messengers to spread my gospel of love well done my good and faithful servant enter into my kingdom you have fought the fight you have kept the faith according to my word well done my good and faithful servant great is your reward you have been faithful now your race is run well done my servant well done