Phil Beach Jr. emphasizes the significance of God's grace in understanding our struggles with sin and the human tendency to rely on willpower instead of Jesus' power. He explores Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25, highlighting that what seems right to us can lead to destruction, and stresses the importance of recognizing our need for transformation through Christ. The sermon illustrates the process of renewal and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in believers' lives, encouraging a focus on grace rather than self-reliance. Ultimately, Beach Jr. reassures that through grace, we can experience true freedom and transformation in Christ.

I want to magnify God's grace tonight, is that alright? Because as we delve into this subject, you're going to discover there's no hope apart from it. Okay? So, before we begin this Bible study, and God knows that I cannot teach anything, no matter how well I know it, how prepared I feel, unless there is a stirring, so I'm not going to say we're going to continue this. Although this is a study that we could take for six months, a year, and we cannot exhaust this study. All I can say is tonight, God has placed it upon our hearts, and there seems to be a liberty to share it. God willing, this Sunday we may continue it. Although we may come in this Sunday, and God can do something completely different, and guess what? It's perfectly okay with me. Because I've learned that Jesus is the pilot, and He doesn't need anyone to sit at the helm and control things. See, because He knows best, doesn't He? So, praise the Lord. Let's just pray, because my Lord, my heart is so thankful tonight, because of God's grace. I love the word grace. Everybody say grace. Grace. Alright, it's not you. Take your eyes off yourself. Take your eyes off the devil. Take your eyes off the struggle of sin. Grace. Take your eyes off willpower. Beloved, you know that a lot of Christians have made willpower their Redeemer. And they worship their willpower. And they say, if only I... You know, it's like they're calling on the name of their God. Willpower. Beloved, it's not willpower, it's Jesus' power. You see? Jesus' power. And that's what we're going to discover tonight. It's Jesus' power. What's the answer? More of Jesus. Let's pray. Father, thank You for Your lovely word. Thank You for the lovely Holy Spirit. Thank You for the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Thank You for the redemption that You have provided for us. Thank You for taking us and placing us into the kingdom of God, out of the kingdom of darkness, giving to us Your Holy Spirit, and enabling us by grace to come to You, and wooing us by Your great holy love that You shed abroad into our hearts. Lord, help us tonight to focus all of our attention on the completeness of Jesus Christ and our position in Him, and show us that the source of power to do all things is Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. Lord, we ask that Your Holy Spirit would be faithful tonight, as He always is, to magnify one person, that is Jesus, the blessed Son of God. Amen and amen. I have provided tonight a piece of paper, and I want everyone here to have one. And I'm encouraging you to take this piece of paper and to place it on a place that you go to often. Maybe your refrigerator. And you can have two in a family. We have plenty of them. We've got plenty of them made. You can have one too. Okay? And we'll just pass them down here. This is probably easier. And this is going to be the study that we're going to be looking into tonight. Pass one down to Michael. And okay. Yes, you need one more. Okay. You want one too? Alright. Now, like I said, as you begin to look at this piece of paper, you're going to begin to discover that apart from grace, we are most miserable, aren't we? Apart from grace. What I would like to do is first of all, I'd like to bring your attention to a few Scriptures tonight that we can look into. They're found in the book of Proverbs. Okay? We're going to look into some Proverbs tonight. And what we're going to do while you're turning to Proverbs 14 is we're going to briefly describe to you what we hope to accomplish tonight in this teaching. What we hope to accomplish tonight in this teaching. First of all, to show the root cause of sin. Okay? Secondly, to show the cause of our actions or our behavior. Next, we're going to show the process of transformation and renewal that the believer is undergoing on a daily basis. And then lastly, we're going to show the results and effects of that ongoing transformation, that ongoing renewal that's occurring in the believer, and how it literally affects our very behavior and our very actions. Now, this is right down where we live. And what we hope to accomplish tonight is first of all, this is in no way exhaustive. This little diagram falls so short of the entirety of this subject. However, it will serve as a reminder in order to get you to think properly, and hopefully it will bring you to the Word more often. First of all, I would like to bring your attention to Proverbs 14. Proverbs 14, and I'd like to read verse number 12. Verse number 12. Proverbs 14, verse number 12. There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Now, we've read that Scripture many times. I'd like to give you another reference to that Scripture in the book of Proverbs which is found in the 16th chapter. Proverbs chapter 16, verse number 25. There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Now, I don't want to jump ahead of myself, but we need to consider something very important. Two words, not two words, two phrases. We're going to take them right from these Scriptures right here. There is a way, but the end is death. Now, like I said, I don't want to jump ahead of myself, but we're going to get into it in a very short time, the process of renewal. Part of the process of renewal that occurs in the Christian is right thinking. In other words, thinking in accord to the Word of God. Now, we learn two things by these two Scriptures that we just read. They're very important lessons. And much of our stumbling and failure as Christians come from not learning these two things. First of all, we learn that there is a way that seems right. That's the first fact. There is a way that seems right to you that will probably be very close to your heart and to your thoughts at any given situation. Any given situation. There is a way that seemeth right unto you and unto me. You can just hypothetically imagine any given situation. And given a few moments, there will be a way that will seem right in your own eyes as to how to respond to that situation. How to cope with that situation. So, let's establish this first fact. And let us ask God to write this down in our hearts, in our minds, so that we become aware of it. There is a way that seemeth right. There is a way that seems right to all men at any time, in any given situation. But now the latter part of this Scripture is what we fail to remember. And this is why many times we find ourselves reaping things that we may not have had to reap if we had concentrated more fully on this Scripture. There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death or the ways of destruction. So, we see on one end here that there's a way that seems right, but yet this way that seems right produces the end result, produces destruction, death, and misery. So, what we want to do tonight is we want to use this Scripture as the basis for our diagram that we passed out tonight. Now, by the way, I have another diagram that I'm going to pass out, but this diagram describes rather than the dilemma of the way that seems right... By the way, this diagram can be titled Proverbs 14, verse 12 and Proverbs 16, verse 25. In case you didn't catch it, this diagram describes the way that seems right, but the end is destruction and misery. Now, I want to reduce this down to everyday life. I don't want this to just be a theory in your mind. I want you to see the reality of this diagram, which in fact is describing, it is bringing in picture form, practically, right down where we live. And you know, Jesus always deals down where we live. He never deals in ivory palaces. He brings it right down to where we're at. This diagram here is bringing right down to where we live the reality of the Scriptures in Proverbs chapter 14 and Proverbs chapter 16. So, consequently, before we even get into this diagram, we want you to see that there is a way, there is a tendency, there is an inclination within the heart of man. It is a way that appears to be right. It seems to be right. It seems to be the thing to do. But the end thereof is destruction and misery. One of the effects of sin that no one can escape, and it's a very, very mysterious effect. And sin, though it can be defined and though it can be understood, because we can't dis-ignore what the Bible says about sin, sin is described, sin is taught about in the Bible, but yet there's a mystery about sin. The mystery. There's a mystery about God. The mystery of God. But there's also a mystery about iniquity. There's a mystery about it. But one of the things we know about sin is sin has so affected the human will that the human will is inclined by disposition, by natural disposition, to do what is in direct opposition. Now, here's why. The reason why the human will is inclined to do what is in direct opposition to the will of God because it is in, by nature, direct opposition to the will of God. The Bible says that every seed brings forth after its own kind. Every seed brings forth after its own kind. Apple seeds produce apples. Tomato seeds produce tomatoes. And the very root of the human heart produces corruption. It produces sin. And that is the inclination of the human heart. Now, as we look at this illustration here, we see that the root cause... I'm going to try and illustrate this on the blackboard here so that we can sort of listen and watch at the same time because then we can remember more effectively. But I'd like to just draw a human heart here and we're just going to try and draw this illustration here. We're going to have the root coming up here and, well, I didn't make the openings, but that's alright. We'll have a couple branches coming out here like this. Now, you'll notice on the illustration that we only put three specific fruits of a wrong heart before God. The three different fruits. We left some open. And that's so that you can fill in the specific things that you're wrestling with and dealing with, possibly. Maybe if you don't want to write them down so everybody sees them, you can fill them in mentally. Now, remember, we're trying to help you by the word of God, understand yourself a little bit better. There's so much about understanding yourself in the world today. Modern psychology, wanting us to understand ourselves. Well, did you know, beloved, that God wants us to understand ourselves? He wants us to understand. But He wants us to understand ourselves in light of the source of truth that tells us about ourselves. Listen, there is no authority to understand the model of man, that's you and I, the state of man, and how man can be changed and be delivered from what he is and become what God wants him to be. There's no authority. I don't care how many letters a man has after his name that denotes all of his degrees and his many years of learning. It doesn't matter. There is one authority to determine the problem with you and I, and that is the Bible. The Bible describes perfectly why we do what we do. So, consequently, this is the source of trouble that we're experiencing. But I've left some of these things open here so that you can fill them in. Now, we're going to fill this in as self. And we're going to put on the side here like we have here in our illustration, pride, self-love, self-importance, and then over here, we're going to have determined to have your way. Now, the fundamental root problem, now listen carefully, the fundamental root problem within all people, sinners, is that sin has separated us from God. The Bible says that we've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. In Romans 5, we can turn to it. Romans 5, we don't want to spend too much time on these, but we do want to point them out. In Romans 5, Paul delves into the wonderful truth about sin that has plagued the human heart. Romans 5, verse number 12, Whereas by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. So the fundamental problem within the human heart is sin. Remember that. The problem is not bad circumstances. The problem is not unfortunate things that happened to us. The problem is not where we were born. The problem is not who our parents were, or how nice they were to us, or how unkind they were to us. Now, we don't want to dissent on the fact that these things possibly could have affected us in some way. But the fact is, the fundamental problem within you and I is sin. Sin. Sin has separated us from God. Sin is traced back to Adam and Eve. God told Adam and Eve, You may do this, but you may not do this. And that was to take of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Now, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents, I'm not suggesting that it wasn't literal. I'm not here to argue whether it was literal or not. I personally believe it was, because I have no reason to believe otherwise. But what it represents is this. Man was created by God and was intended by God to remain subject to God. Man was not created to be a sovereign, arbitrary being making choices about good and evil, right and wrong, independent of referring to God. He wasn't created to do that. God didn't want to create a human and then say, go ahead, do what you like. No, God created Adam and Eve for the specific purpose of wanting Adam and Eve to draw their very life, their very love, their very being from God Himself. So the original sin that Adam and Eve created that was passed upon the entire human race, corrupted the entire human race in one moment, it corrupted it, is the sin of looking at what God said not to do and rather than simply believing God and saying, God, Your way is my way. Satan came, enticed, deceived, lied against God and mankind decided, Adam decided, Eve decided that they were going to act independent of the will of God. They were going to give themselves a liberty and a right that God didn't give them. There's the fundamental expression of sin. When Adam and Eve took the fruit, what they were doing is, I, me, I, I am going to become my own judge to determine what right, what wrong, what good, what bad is. I am going to use my wisdom, my judgment, because is that not what Eve did? The fruit looked good, it could make someone wise. She was deriving conclusions and looking into an area that God said not to and she was trying to decide for herself what was best. This is the fundamental problem of sin which was passed upon every single human being and it is this inner bentness, this inner corruption that makes us want to stand independent of God's counsel out of subjection from His Word and try and decide for ourselves what is best for us. Now God says that such a state does three things. Number one, it completely distorts your perspective on life, yourself, and God. Sin distorts. Number two, sin separates. God says that not only does sin distort, but God separates. It separates you from God and alienates you from His life and from His presence and from knowing Him and fellowshipping with Him. And number three, it incurs upon the human race eternal damnation and eternal judgment. So, such impact, such ramifications in the Scriptures. Do you remember what we read at the beginning? There is a way that seemeth right. Oh, how Satan found that way and decided that he was going to find a sense of identity apart from being submitted to God. That's what blew it for him. There was a way that appeared to be right in his eyes. And then what did he do? He came and lurked in the garden and he sowed, he planted that corruptible thought. Paul said in Eve's mind, the Satan seduced Eve. He challenged God's word. He challenged God's authority. He made Eve question whether or not God really had their best interest at mind. He was corrupt when iniquity was found in Him. And he went, and listen, listen to what he did, because this is what the world is doing today. He sowed, he planted a mode of thinking into Eve's mind. What was the mode of thinking? Hey, I'm not as dependent upon God as I thought. Maybe I can handle this on my own. Oh, how he wanted, you know what the Bible says, the Bible doesn't say it, but it's a common saying, that misery loves company. Huh? The devil must have been so miserable, he longed for company. So, here it is, here it is. In the beginning, the enemy came and sowed the seed of sin into Adam and Eve's mind. And remember what the seed of sin is. The seed of sin is seeing apart from God an ability that God never gave us. Seeing apart from God a sense of ability to know what right and wrong is, good and evil. So, Satan sowed a way of thinking which Adam and Eve took to their heart. It produced sin. This sin passed upon the whole human race and immediately created an entire human race that was going to be born, listen to this, they were born perverted and distorted in vision, separated from God in sin, and subject to eternal separation and damnation. There's the state of the human race. That's the New Testament gospel. Beloved, don't ever lose this perspective. Wherever you turn, even in Christian circles, the devil is trying to water down this basic concept of sin and self and self-importance, self-love and pride, and determined to have your way based on observing and drawing your own conclusions about something that God has already told us about. See, God already said don't touch. But it's desirable. See, there you are, right there. You're outguessing God. You're suggesting that God doesn't know best. There's the practical expression of sin right in the heart, the root problem. So we're born distorted, separated, and subject to eternal damnation. Now this, this is a more fuller understanding of those scriptures that I read. There's a way that seems right to a man. Now what's that way? The way is observing and considering what God has forbidden and on the basis of your own judgment, apart from and ignoring what God says, based on your own judgment, convincing yourself that it's okay. That's the fundamental root sin that has plagued humanity from the very beginning in the Garden of Eden. And that's why God drove the man out of the garden and forbid him from partaking of the tree of life in such a state. So, okay now. Let's just continue here. Now here's the problem. Here's the problem. Okay? Such a state of heart, such a state of mind is producing anger. Now here's why. Here's what anger is if we reduce it down right to the root cause. Anger results from the inability or the dissatisfaction of not being able to have what you want. See, the problem with Adam and Eve and the problem with us is this. Self-will cannot produce anything but anger. Even if we get what we want, we're not really getting what we need. See, the only thing the human heart needs is God. And the human heart can never be satisfied apart from God Himself. So, the immediate expression of anger is the result of being crossed. We want, we cannot have, we get but it doesn't fulfill and we are most miserable. So, this is something that results and permeates our entire being as sinners. And then it results in all these different fruits. Complaining, depression and so on and so forth. Now, here's the good news. The Bible says that such is the state of the human heart, such is the state of humanity, but hey, John 3.16, for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. So, we find that in spite of this incredible depravity, in spite of this incredible fall, we find in Romans chapter 5, verse number 6, for when we were yet without strength. Now, the word without strength is a word that means powerless. In such a state of sin, we are utterly powerless. We are powerless in regard to redeeming ourself or in helping ourself. We are powerless. Now, this is the state of the human heart apart from grace. Right here it is. Utterly powerless. Now, watch this. For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet peradventure for a good man some would dare to die. But God commanded His love toward us in that we were yet sinners. Christ died for us. Much more than being now justified by His blood. Now, the word justified there is a wonderful word. Being justified means that we, though we are in a state of utter depravity before God as a sinner, yet the moment redeeming grace penetrates our hearts and we call upon the Lord and ask for forgiveness and we find salvation through Jesus Christ, at that moment, God declares us just and innocent and free. Listen now. Free from the eternal consequences of our sins. Now, what are the eternal consequences of our sins? Death, hell, and separation from God. Now, listen. God, once we're a Christian, doesn't always free us from the temporal consequences of our sins, does He? No, He doesn't always do that. I mean, if you were saved as an alcoholic and your kidneys were bad, God always doesn't heal your kidneys the moment He saves your soul. You see? But the wonderful, wonderful fact that God has freed us from the consequences of our sins is the main theme of redemption. We are free from the consequences of our sin. Now, that's where we make the transition. And that's where we want to pass out this paper. And this paper here now illustrates... Oh, that's alright Norm, thank you. This paper now illustrates what God has done, is doing, and will continue to do in our life as believers. Now, this is where we touch on the theme of God's wonderful, marvelous redemption that does something to us. Listen, first of all, it saves us from the damnation of sin. Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. There is no condemnation. The effects of sin are not condemning us eternally any longer. We've been saved. We've been delivered. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. Verse number 2. For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, listen to this, has made me free. Loosed me from. Another version puts it, exempted me from. Exempted me from. I've been exempted from the consequences of sin, which is what? Death and hell. Glory to God. I'm free as a Christian now. Now, this also in Colossians, we read that this wonderful redemption has lifted us out of the kingdom of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of God's dear son, the Lord Jesus Christ. So, God not only cancels and exempts us from the consequences of our sin, but he lifts us and places us into the kingdom of God, makes us part of the church and gives us his Holy Spirit. Listen, he immediately transforms us and puts new life inside of us. Ephesians chapter 2. You who were dead in sins and trespasses, that is, you who had nothing but sin and were under the control and dictates of it. You. He hath quickened. Ephesians chapter 2. And you hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins. So, you see what God has done in the redemption? He canceled. He quickened. He's given us his Holy Spirit. He's washed us by his blood. And we were immediately transformed and made new creatures. We know the Scripture. 2 Corinthians what? 5.17. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. All things pass away. Behold, all things have become new. But not only has God done this to us, and right now at this very moment we are quickened. We are children of God. We are saved. We are redeemed. We are forgiven. We are cleansed. We are justified. We have received the life of Christ. We have the Holy Spirit. Not only has God done these things in a moment's time, but also he is in the process. Now, listen. He is in the process of renewing and transforming us so that what has been wrought in us, the moment we believed, can be wrought through us in our character and in our disposition and in our actions. So what God has done, he is doing and shall continue to do until the day of redemption. That's what Paul meant when he said, he who hath begun this good work in you, he who has come and shined grace into your life and gave you a new heart, made you a new creature, delivered you out of the devil's dominion, brought you into the church, has sealed you under the day of redemption, the Scripture says, he who has begun this good work shall perform it. God is committed to perform this wonderful work. You say, well, what is this work that God is committed to perform? The work that God is permitted to perform. Or to perform, is to transform and renew what you are so that the very life of Christ may become the life that you are yielding to so that it is expressing itself through you and in you. That the life of Christ Himself might be expressed in you and through you. And this is where the illustration comes in on the second sheet. Whereas first we had self, now we've got Jesus reigning in our heart, reigning in our minds, reigning in our soul. And Jesus is producing meekness and humility and causing the love of God to be shed abroad in our hearts by His Holy Spirit. And this is affecting our will, our mind. And on a daily basis, we are learning more and more to submit ourselves, to yield ourselves to Christ. And then as we yield ourselves to Christ, He Himself then, listen, He Himself produces His character in and through us, which is love and peace and patience and kindness and so on and so forth. But you have to remember this is a process. And this is the process that each one of us is involved in right now. Now, let's look at a few more Scriptures. Let's go to Ephesians chapter 4. Ephesians chapter 4. Ephesians chapter 4. Beginning in verse number 17. This I say therefore, Now I remind you that Paul is talking to Christians now. This I say therefore and testify in the Lord that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind. Now listen, beloved. Talking about the mind now. Talking about the mind. What is the vanity of the mind? Right here is the vanity of the mind. Determined to have your way. See, that's sin. That's the vanity of the mind. Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart, who being past feeling have given themselves over to lasciviousness, to work all uncleanliness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ, if so be that ye have heard Him and have been taught by Him as the truth is in Jesus. That ye put off concerning the former conversation, the old man which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts. Now listen here. And be renewed in the spirit of your mind. And that ye put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Also, Ephesians or Colossians chapter 3 verse 10. Now remember, now we're talking to Christians. See, Christians are different than sinners. We're not in the kingdom of darkness. We're not on our way to hell. We have the Holy Spirit. But as Christians redeemed, God has a work to do in us. And here's what the work is. It's the renewal process. Colossians chapter 3 verse 10. Let's begin in verse number 5. Mortify therefore, put to death your members which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanliness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness which is idolatry. Now see, God's talking to Christians now. See? For which things sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience, in the which ye also walked sometime when ye lived in them. But now ye also put off all these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication. So now as Christians, beloved, we are experiencing on a daily basis the transformation. Now here's the transformation. Very quickly. The transformation is the power of God's Word and the power of God's Holy Spirit. Listen closely. The power of God's Word and the power of the Holy Spirit transforming our thinking and our mind so that, listen, rather than drawing from the resources of sin and self that lurks within our flesh, we draw from and find our identity in Christ Himself who lives in us and dwells in us by faith. Now this is a process because what it is is when you bring it right down to where we live, it's a process of breaking our will from its allegiance to our flesh so that our will is in agreement with the Spirit that lives in us. See? Theoretically it's great. Praise God, I'm saved. Jesus lives in me. I'm dead and now I'm alive in Him. Amen? I won't take one thing from that. But practically, practically, down where we live, it's the constant renewing of the mind, the constant work of the Holy Spirit searching us, exposing the things that lurk within through circumstances and various different trials that come our way in order to erupt and affect and disrupt that part in us that's yet determined to do what we want in order to win it by love. God wants to win us by love. He wants to woo us by grace. He wants to loose us from that allegiance that we have to the desires of the flesh so that everything in us can say, Lord, Thy will be done. Thy will be done. See? We want to be broken fully from this determination to have our way. We want to be broken from that spell that was cast upon Eve where we want to act independently from God in every area of our life. This is what it is for the will to be liberated. Christian maturity is realized when the will of man is liberated from being in allegiance to the corrupt desires of the old man and is in agreement with and is pursuing after the Lord Jesus Christ. And that can only be done through a work of God's grace. That's why we get back to the beginning. It's only by grace. It is the grace of God that comes into the human heart. It is the grace of God that exposes the allegiance that we have to something that is corrupt. Something that God says should be reckoned as dead. To the old man's dead it's corrupt completely and the desires thereof. But God knows that lurking within us we still have secret allegiances to the old man. There's areas in our life where we're bent to do what? What seems right in our own eyes. But thank God that God's canceled us from the consequences of that. Because if He didn't we'd all be on our way to hell. Because in every one of us there's still something in us that yet is committed to the old man. That's sin. So if the consequences of sin wasn't canceled we would all be going to hell. But what's the faithful ministry of the Holy Spirit right now? To search us. To know us. To expose us. And to free us. So that everything we are, listen to this, is broken from, or like the song Carrie had us sing, free from the canceled... What's it say there? That's it. That's it. He breaks the power of canceled sin. Sin has been canceled. Listen, before we were children of God we had no power. We were absolutely powerless. We were forever bound to fulfilling corrupt flesh's desire. But now we're free. He has broke it. And the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to daily give us the opportunity to be free more and more from any area where we are committed to the old man in experience. So that that area of our life can be yielded to God and that is the work of sanctification. That's how God forms Christ in us through that process. Yes. Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you said Phil. So this is the process of transformation. This is what it means to be, Paul said, be not conformed to this world but be renewed in the spirit of your mind. Why? Why did Paul say be renewed in your mind? Because he said, listen, you're not like a Gentile anymore. Your mind doesn't have to, your will, what you are, you do not have to be a slave anymore to the corruptness of your nature. So Paul says be renewed, be transfigured, be transformed. How do we get transformed? Very easily. The word of God and the Holy Spirit work in us. God exposes, God makes known to us things and then what we do is we, what does the scripture say? Submit yourself to God. Resist the devil. And say, oh Lord, look at this corrupt heart of mine. Lord, I'm committed to being a jerk. Lord, you showed me through this circumstance, I'm committed, my will is set on doing what's wrong. But God, grace. Thank you for grace. Lord, take your grace. It's not willpower, I'm not going to do wrong. No, it's not willpower, it's grace. It's Jesus. So, Lord, I confess my sin. Thank you, Lord. I didn't even know this lurked in me. But you did. Thank you, Lord. I take responsibility for my sin. Don't blame it. Lord, I have a right to be like this because this person and that... No, forget it. That's the devil's lie. You'll never be free when you blame. Take responsibility. Oh, Lord, thank you for showing me. Oh, your word is true. Search me, oh God, and know my heart. See if there be any wicked way in me. You admit and take responsibility for your sin. Number two, you thank God that you're a child of God. And that sin is not producing in you the consequences of damnation. I'm saved from damnation. All right, that's hope. Number three, you acknowledge what God's word says. This is to be reckoned as dead. I died in Christ. That means everything that has to do with my old man was crucified with Christ. So, Lord, this thing shouldn't have a stronghold. It's been canceled. Sin has been canceled. And then number four, you pray, Lord, give me grace. Change me. Change me. Loose this allegiance that I feel have to the corrupt desire of sin that lurks within me. Loose me from it. And then as God responds, as you respond to grace and God responds to your call, you'll find the power of redeeming grace to come in there. And here's what the power of redeeming grace is. Love. The love of God will come and stir your heart and guess what will happen? God, through His love, will give you the power to what? The grace of God has appeared unto all men, teaching us to what? Deny. The NIV says, teaching us to say what? No way, Jose. See? The grace of God comes and says, What enables a sinner to say no to sin? It doesn't make sense. How can I say no to sin? I'm a sinner. The grace of God comes and teaches me to say no. What does that mean? My mind says, no, I'm not going to serve this sin in me. Rather, I'm going to yield myself to Christ's life. There's a part in me that is yet bent on doing what the old man wants, but yet I have been partakers of the new nature. I've got God in me. So rather than being faithfully joined to the corrupt desire, I, by the grace of God, am going to draw from Christ in that area. And when that occurs, the power of canceled sin is broken in your life in that area and in its place grows more of the character of Christ. So He indeed becomes all of our righteousness. He declares us innocent, He makes us righteous, and then He becomes in us the tree of righteousness that springs forth. What part do we play? Absolutely none. All we do, all we are is, we are recipients to the grace of God. That's it. We are recipients to the grace of God. He saves us, He sees us in powerlessness, He saves us, He translates us, and then He searches us and He pours out His heart, He pours out His love into us and wins us and we yield to God. The very act of yielding to God presupposes that His grace came and gave us the power to do it. So even yielding to God is something that we do only because God's love comes and shows us why it's better to choose Him rather than death. So that when we finally say, Oh Lord, I don't want sin, you're not finding that power not to choose sin in yourself, you're finding it because God lavished upon you a better way. See? So it becomes a sweet redemption that God works in the humble, in the contrite, and the meek. Well, I don't want to go on. It's already nine o'clock. Please forgive me if I kept you too late. But, this is only the beginning like I said. We can delve in, listen, the liberation of the human will from the allegiance to the corrupt old man is an intriguing subject and that's what God's committed to do. And what you're going through right now, what you're going through right now in your life, if you're a child of God, God is only wanting to do one thing, liberate you from what has already been canceled in Christ so that you can indeed become a servant of Christ not only in word but indeed also. Now, if that's not the best salvation around, the only salvation around, I don't know what is.