In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of bringing souls to King Jesus as the only thing of eternal value. The scripture passage discussed is 1 Samuel 16:20-21, where David is sent by his father to bring a gift to Saul. David is then honored by becoming Saul's armor bearer, standing with him in times of danger. However, as the sermon progresses, it is revealed that Saul's initial love for David eventually turns into jealousy and resentment. The speaker draws parallels between Saul and certain elements within the church, highlighting the importance of staying faithful to God's ways and not doing things our own way.

1 Samuel chapter 16. And we are going to read from verse 20. We are going to read two verses, 20 and 21. And I really want to home in on verse 21 this morning. And the title of this message is Abominable Apostasy. Let's read from verse 20 of 1 Samuel 16. And Jesse took an ass laden with bread and a bottle of wine and a kid and sent them by David his son unto Saul. It was custom in those days that you would bring a present or a gift to the king. And we see a gift of bread and wine and a kid being sent to Saul by David's father Jesse. That, my challenge even this morning to us would be this, what would we bring to Jesus? When we meet the king on that day, what will we bring to him? What will we have in our hands? And I know, and you know this morning that anything from this world has no eternal value. The only thing, friends, truly that has any eternal value are souls. And that is what we must bring to King Jesus. It has to be souls. And God has called us to touch lives, to reach out to broken lives, those bound in darkness. And we must bring souls to King Jesus. In verse 21 it says, And David came to Saul and stood before him, and he loved him greatly, and he became his armor bearer. David stood before Saul, and Saul loved him greatly, the scripture says. John Wesley says, So there was something good in Saul still. He had not lost all, though he had lost the kingdom. There was still something good in the life of Saul. But friends, that great love would eventually diminish, and jealousy, resentment, bitterness, and anger, etc., would be exerted towards his replacement, would be exerted towards God's choice, God's man, a man after God's own heart. At this particular time, we see that David is loved, and he is bestowed a great honor as Saul's armor bearer. Now friends, an armor bearer was one who not only bore the king's armor, but was one who stood with the king in time of danger. He stood with the king in time of danger. He was a help unto the king, an adjutant. And when I look at this scripture this morning, friends, this is what I see. I see parallels between Saul and David and the church. That's what I see in the scripture. That's what I believe that God is showing me. And I want to look at Saul this morning, how Saul represents certain elements in the church. I believe Saul represents the apostate church, or the backslidden church, and David represents others, a remnant. And we will look at that hopefully next week, but I want to look at Saul and the comparisons or the parallels between Saul, certain elements within the church. You see, Saul was once great. He was once great. He was sent by God to Samuel and anointed to be captain over God's people Israel. He was sent by God. That's the preceding chapter says, sent by God. And we can read also that he wrought a great victory over the Ammonites. God was with him. Then we begin to see a spiritual declension in his life. He sends first at Gilgal and begins to do things his way. He started out right. He started out well, but then something happened and he began to do it his way. And he did not observe priestly protocol. Then Saul sins again by spurring Agag, the king of the Amalekites, and the best of the sheep, and the oxen, and the fatlings, and the lambs. Then in chapter 16 we read, the Spirit of God leaves him. But yet according to Wesley, there is a flicker of good. Yet according to Wesley, that love, that great love that he had for David. But then friends, a little later on, we read that that flicker of good, that flicker of love towards David, will be wholly extinguished. And Saul, I believe, friends, speaks of certain elements within the church. They started out well. We could look back through church history and we can see that they started out well. We can see, friends, that these men started out well and they blazed a trail for God in Europe. But something went wrong and they began to do things their way. And like Saul, they did not observe what God had placed before them. They did not observe how God had ordained this or the other, and they did it their way. And nothing has changed today, friends. Humanistic ideas and liberal theology begins to filter through, begins to soil and to contaminate the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. The true way of doing things becomes distorted and a new strain emerges. This new way is a different way or an alternative way. A man's grubby hands begin to construct diabolical doctrines, doctrines of devils and heresies of hell, sermons of Satan and books of Belial. In fact, in 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 1 to 3, it says this, But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privilege shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with fined words make merchandise of you, whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. For those in here this morning that did not make the meeting on Wednesday night, I want to share a few things. God moved, I believe, on Wednesday night in our little meeting in my house, just amongst a few of us. And during that meeting, I believe that God gave me a vision or a picture. And he showed me, as it were, a science lab, and a particular scientist or buffoon in this lab working away, all the equipment there. And what he was doing, he was trying to deconstruct the building blocks of life. And he had his test tube, and he was adding this or the other, removing that, to try and deconstruct the building blocks of life. And I believe in many ways today, friends, even in the world, that's what they are literally doing, trying to deconstruct the building blocks of life. But it will not happen. All their ideas are totally futile. It will not happen, because Jesus says, I am the resurrection and the life. I am the resurrection and the life. That's what Jesus says. He alone holds the building blocks of life. That's what the Word of God says. And all that they do is utterly futile. But I believe God was also saying that there are elements within the church, and they're taking this message, they're taking the glorious gospel of Christ, and they're trying to deconstruct it, and they're trying to add different elements to it. And the test tube, as it were, is their hearts, friends, their hearts, and one idea after another will give it a shake, will give it a twist to make it a little fizzier or palatable. And I went on to talk about particular emerging church leaders, one particular leader fasting for Ramadan, and another particular emerging church leader sharing stage with an openly gay bishop at a so-called Christian conference. Oh God, what has become, what has become of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ? What has become of it when one emerging church leader, when one man who professes to be a leader in the body of Christ is sharing a stage with a man that wears a collar, a man that has a crook, and a man that stands for homosexuality? What's going on? What is going on? I looked at that particular website, Greenbelt, and it says this on their home page, Greenbelt is an independent Christian charity working to express love, creativity, and justice in the arts and contemporary culture in the light of the Christian gospel. Friends, I have nothing against expressing love. In fact, friends, our God is a God of love, and Jesus was moved with compassion, and that is something that should drive our hearts this morning. But friends, when you delve a little bit into this website, you find some things out. It says that it's independent. It's an independent Christian charity. Of course, it's independent of Christ. That's what I believe this morning. Independent of Christ. When you begin to look under the surface and see what's there, they propagate another contemporary gospel, and it's not Christlike on their principles, and their doctrine, and what they're suggesting and stating. It's not Christian, and it goes on to say you'll never really get it until you come along. You'll never get it until you come along. What literary genius wrote that? Of course I get it. I do get it this morning, friends. I do get it, and it shouldn't be called Greenbelt. I believe it should be called Black Noose, because I feel it's a noose around the people that are attending they're squeezing their life out of them, and it's the brain leading the blind, and I don't know why. It goes on to say, and if you come along, it says then you'll be hooked, and it finishes with promise. You'll be hooked. Hooked on what? What will you be hooked on? What spirit will you be hooked on? Hooked on fun? Hooked on comedy? Yes, comedy is part of this Christian conference. Comedy is part of the lineup. One particular comedian who has a great reputation, he's done all the particular comedy clubs, and he's done the pubs. I don't even know if this man's saved or not, but he's done the pubs. Well friends, I want to tell you this morning, I got born again on my knees drunk, and I've never went into a pub to do a comedy act. I'll go into the pub, and I'll preach the gospel. That's the only reason that I will go into a pub, friends. Come out from among them, and be ye separate, sayeth the Lord. I don't know what's going on. Was there comedy at our meeting on Wednesday night when the living God moved, and there was tears. There was tears in that meeting because of sinners. Sinners in this estate. Sinners that are walking the road that leads to destruction. Was there comedy then? No, there was no comedy, friends. Listen to me. Yes, there's a time to laugh, but there's a time to weep, and I believe that God's people need to weep. We need to weep. Was there comedy in India as Hindu extremists butchered our brethren? Was there comedy there? Was there comedy in Mexico when 57 evangelical Christians were expelled from their home because they would not participate in Roman Catholic festivals? Was there comedy then for them people? Absolutely not. Yes, there's a time to laugh, but there's a time, friends, to weep, and I believe, friends, they need to be weeping. Every conference there needs to be weeping. There needs to be weeping, friends, in England. There needs to be weeping in Northern Ireland. There needs to be weeping in Dublin. Friends, in the cities of the UK, there has to be weeping. There has to be. Then there's some silly so-called Christian magazine on the comedy section, and I quote, we all got a favorable or a favorite bit of the Bible, but what's your least favorite? Ship of Fools, the online magazine of Christian unrest, has had a quest to find the worst verse of the Good Book, the worst verse of the Good Book. We exclusively unveil the result at Greenbelt with panel discussion and other Bible-related fun. The worst verse of the Good Book. Was Tyndale strangled and burned at the stake so that someone might choose the worst verse of the Good Book? Is that why that man gave his life? Because someone could find the worst verse of the Good Book and sit around a panel and discuss it and have some Bible-related fun. Was the blood of the martyrs shed on English soil that they could do that? Absolutely not. It's horrific. It's horrendous, friends. That word worst translated means most corrupt, bad, evil. That's what the word means. What are they saying? What are they doing? This is a precious book. Oh, friends, many have given their lives that we might have the very Word of God in our hands this morning. I don't know what's going on. I really don't know. 1 Timothy 3.16 says, All Scripture is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. Profitable means yielding advantages, returns or results. God's Word shall not return void. Every part of this book, from Genesis to Revelation, every chapter, every verse, it's good. Jesus says, My words are spirit and they are life. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but God's words shall never pass away. Oh, it's good. It's the Good Book. It's the Good Book, and it always will be the Good Book. There's no worse verses than this, no bad verses. Oh, hallelujah for the Good Book. Hallelujah for the Word of God, friends, this morning that set us free. For we were not born again with corruptible seed, but the incorruptible Word of God that lives and abides forever. Oh, hallelujah, hallelujah. Last day, Gene Robinson, the gay bishop of New Hampshire, is doing a talk. They do talks these days. They don't preach. They do talks. Now, listen to me. Jesus talked. I know he talked. I know Jesus sat down with the twelve and down with people, and he talked to them, but listen to me. Jesus preached, because when he went into the temple and overturned them tables, friend, that man preached. That son of God preached. God made flesh. He was preaching. He was preaching. He wasn't talking. He was preaching. There's a time to talk, but there's a time to preach, and there are people in this country and people in the UK, and they need to rise up, and they need to preach, and they need to hurl, and they need to declare the very words of God and what God is saying. Hallelujah, and not just talk. You know what his talk is? Let me tell you what his talk is. His talk is homosexuality, what the Bible says, and why it matters. I know what the Bible says. It's an abomination before God. That's what the Bible says, that the effeminate or abusers of themselves with mankind shall not inherit the kingdom of God. That's what the Bible says. Be you not unequally yoked together with unbelievers, for what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness, and what communion has light with darkness, and what concord has Christ with Belial, or what part has he that believes with an infidel? One is fasting for Ramadan, another is sharing tap billing with a gay bishop. Friends, sometimes people's intentions might be good, but their good intentions can cause a catastrophe, and I, friends, I believe God spoke to me on Friday when I sat before the Lord, and he gave me an illustration to confirm what he is saying, and just what I have said a second ago. There was one particular entrepreneur, quite an influential man, quite a wealthy man, who had a great yacht or boat, and he was on vacation in the Caribbean, and he had his family on board the boat, not only his family, but lots of friends and their children as well. So, there's a lot of people on board this boat, and a lot of vulnerable people. This influential wealthy person, he is the captain. He is the one that steers the ship. All of a sudden, while on the bridge, he notices something out of the corner of his eye, and it's a man bobbing up and down in the distance. So, he changes direction of the boat, and he makes his way towards the man. The closer he gets, he immediately sees that the man is wearing an orange jumpsuit with a number written across the shoulder. On seeing that, he should have automatically thought to himself, there is possible danger, but he ignores that. And what he does is, as he reaches this man bobbing up and down, he throws him a lifeline, and then lowers a ladder. This man in the orange suit climbs the ladder, comes on board the ship. The captain of the ship thinks to himself, I have done a good thing. I've thrown a lifeline to that man, and I've rescued him. I've done a good thing. But you see, unbeknown to the entrepreneur, unbeknown to the captain, this guy in the orange suit had just jumped overboard from another ship. In fact, he's a prisoner, and he was being escorted by two policemen. And friends, he butchered those policemen. In some way, he was able to escape, and he killed or he murdered those two policemen. And as he was leaving his cell, those that were on duty, those that were on watch tried to catch him. But you see, this guy in the orange suit was too slippery, and he jumped overboard, even despite those who were on duty and those who were watching. They did their utmost to chase and to catch. And so therefore, he jumps overboard, and he's bobbing up and down, and this great entrepreneur, this great person of influence, he comes along, and without checking, without phoning through the radio or contacting other vessels around that area through the radio and checking where he came from, he immediately brings him on board. And because he brings this person on board, ignores the orange suit, ignores the number across the top of his shoulder, he potentially is putting all the lives, all those that are vulnerable on board his ship at risk. He potentially is taking or causing that man to run amok through that ship and to slaughter everyone. He had good intentions, but friends, he did the wrong thing. Let me tell you this morning, church, you cannot cross into evil to bring forth good. God will never step into evil so that good may be brought forth. It will never happen. It will never happen, and that's what some are doing today. They're crossing the line so that some good might be brought forth. You see, when we think of Saul's second sin, we see in the Scripture, I believe, self-glory and greed, self-glory and greed. And friends, oh how, oh how the church puffs out its chest as it seeks to keep its trophy of Agag. Many in the body today have got trophies of Agag, and they display the trophies for everybody to see, and they take their trophies, and they engrave their trophies with their own name. It's their name that's written over it. It's not Christ's name, but it's their name. Their name is written over the trophy. Look what I have done. Look what I have built, and Christ does not receive the glory. Puffed up. Saul was puffed up. He had a trophy. Recognition on the podium with grand applause do some seek. Like Deuteriphus, they loved to have the preeminence amongst the people. Oh, how he withstood the one whom Jesus loved. He withstood him, John. He withstood him. Why? Because he desired to have the preeminence amongst the people, and there are those today that desire to have the preeminence amongst the people. The applause from the people, the glory. They desire it. It's theirs. It's their trophy. Did John the Baptist love to have the preeminence amongst the people? For he said, he must increase, but I must decrease. It must be Christ. It must be Christ. Did Paul love to have the preeminence amongst the people when he said, I wish that I was accursed from God, that some of my brother might be saved? Oh, friends, did he desire the preeminence? No. Oh, he wished that he would be accursed from God, separated from God in eternal flames, that those might be saved. A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package, someone has said. In 2 Peter 2.3, the Lord's servant says, shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you? That word feigned can mean to invent fictitiously or deceptively as a story or an excuse. Friends, there's a lot of fiction out there. In fact, that speaks to me of a lot of Christian literature that are in the shops, fictitious stories, deceptive stories, fairy tales, so that they might make merchandise of God's people. In fact, friends, when we look at that word merchandise in the Greek, when we look at what it means, how it's translated, you know how it's translated? The word trafficking, the word trafficking or trading. I want to tell you this very morning that God is not pleased how men are trafficking and trading his people. That's what they're doing. You see, human trafficking is not just taking place in Eastern Europe. Human trafficking and trading has taken place in God's church. That's what's going on. They're making merchandise of God's people. They're trading and they're trafficking and like kids that swap their baseball cards or their soccer cards. That's what they're doing. They're trading that one and trafficking that one and it's an abomination before God. That's what it is, an abomination before God. Oh, the Christ would come and turn the tables in the temple once again. The Christ would come and turn the tables once again. Friends, as they line their pockets with gold, God will line their souls with hellfire, and that's the promise in this word. For judgment must first begin in the house of the Lord. It must first begin in the house of God. It must first begin in the church. I want to tell you something. There are career criminals around the world, and these career criminals are hardened men, hard men, but when they hear, friends, that they will appear in front of one particular judge, a judge that has a fierce reputation of dishing out heavy sentences, they tremble. They tremble even though they're hard, even though they have tattoos, even though they are psychopaths. They tremble because they know that this judge will give them a heavy sentence, a severe sentence, and friends, I believe that God is going to dish out heavy sentences on those that will appear before him. They will have nowhere to hide, and they will be dished out, meted out, heavy sentences by the judge of the living and the judge of the dead. It's coming. It's coming. It's coming. It's coming. Friends, it's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God, a fearful thing, a fearful thing. In closing, I want to talk about just for a moment what the Lord Jesus said to the church of Philadelphia. He says, I will keep you from the hour of temptation. I will keep you. Why? Why will he keep them from the hour of temptation? Here's the crux of it. This is what I believe personally this morning, because Jesus says to them, because you have kept my word and not denied my name. That's it. You have kept my word. You have kept my word. You have kept my teaching. You have kept my gospel. You have kept my gospel. Paul kept Jesus's gospel. We will keep Jesus's gospel. We will preach the glorious gospel of Christ. We will not preach another gospel. We will not preach a prosperity gospel. We will not preach a perverse gospel. We will preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for the gospel of Christ alone is the power of God unto salvation. Oh, that God would ignite and raise gospel preachers, gospel preachers, gospel preachers in this place, gospel preachers in this church, gospel preachers in this estate. Oh, friends, friends, hallelujah, those that have not denied his name, have not denied his name. Friends, how can we deny his name? Was his presence not sweet to us this morning? Was his presence not sweet in this church service this morning? How can we deny the name of Jesus? Wonderful Jesus. He's our savior this morning, isn't he? Isn't he lovely? Isn't he wonderful? Oh, Jesus, we thank you for coming. We thank you, Lord, for taking us from darkness unto light. We thank you, God, for taking us from death unto life. Sweet Jesus, blessed be the name of the Lord. Oh, God, almighty God, Lord, we pray for authentic Christianity. I pray this morning for authentic Christianity, for that which is genuine and that which is real, friends. We don't need no copycat in this place this morning. We don't need no counterfeit in this place this morning, friends. Oh, we embrace the reality of Christ. Oh, the trueness and the genuineness of the Lord Jesus and his word. Oh, friends, it's the cross before us and the world behind us. We will not cross over into darkness, friends, but we will embrace the Lord and embrace the plan of God, and we will be changed from glory to glory, and we will keep our hands to the plow. Oh, hallelujah. Hallelujah to Jesus this morning. Hallelujah. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Friends, I will finish with the words of dear John Bradford. Dear John Bradford, that godly man, that godly soul who penned or said the very words, and I will finish with this. There but by the grace of God go I, and friends, there but by the grace of God go we this morning, and Jesus, we thank you, Lord, for your grace. We thank God for his grace and his unmerited favor towards us, and my God, we pray that indeed the Lord as we draw near to you that you would draw near to us, oh God, and we pray, Lord, that there would be a cry in our hearts and a weep, oh God, in our souls. Oh God, move amongst your people. Oh God, won't you come and move us this morning and revive us once again that we might rejoice in thee. Oh God, we need you, Lord. We need, oh God, yourself and your presence. Lord, we need to be holy. We need to be good, oh God. Hallelujah. Oh, praise be to his name. Praise be to his name. Oh God, praise be to his name. Friends, Saul, I believe, speaks of the apostate church and its abominations, and we see it clearly today for Saul is still alive and still well. His spirit is there, but brothers, we will say next week and we will look at David and what David speaks of his life, a holy remnant of the living God. They're there. Father, we thank you for your voice. We thank you, God, that you speak to us, and my Father, I pray that every word that has been spoken this morning will be sealed to our hearts. God, in your word, there is life. Keep us, Lord. I pray, my Father, that indeed, that God, our hearts and eyes will be contrite, that we would walk humbly before the Lord, for you are near to those of a contrite spirit, and we pray, my God, that Lord, indeed, that as we remain humble, that according to the gospel of Luke, that the Lord will exalt those who are humble. And so, God, we pray that indeed, Lord, that you would continue to challenge, that you would continue to speak and continue to direct, for Lord, you are the head of the church. And in the precious and beautiful and perfect and holy name of Jesus, we ask this. Amen.