In this sermon, the speaker reflects on the beauty and unity of the body of Christ, emphasizing the importance of love and unity within the local church. He also highlights the devil's goal of destroying this unity and harmony if allowed. The speaker then delves into the nature of good and evil, contrasting the characteristics of God with those of Satan. He emphasizes that good builds up, encourages, and is unselfish, while evil tears down, criticizes, and is selfish. The speaker encourages the listeners to embrace the pruning process and difficulties in life, relying on the grace of God, just as Moses did when facing the Red Sea.

Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold. You are welcome to make copies for your friends and neighbors. If you would like additional messages, please go to our website for a complete listing at www.charityministries.org. If you would like a catalog of other sermons, please call 1-800-227-7902 or write to Charity Ministries, 400 West Main Street, Suite 1, AFPA, 17522. These messages are offered to all without charge by the free will offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry. Several Wednesday evenings ago, we had a study on the Church and I was so blessed by that. I saw a little glimpse of the beauty of the body of Christ, the Church, and how she is to work together in love and in unity within that body there, especially so in a local body, I believe. I began to meditate on that and then began to realize how that the devil, one of his goals is to destroy that blessed unity and harmony in the local body. He does that if we allow him. I'd like to share this morning about, maybe we could call this title, The Nature of Good and The Nature of Evil. I'd like to lift up these two in a very clear picture so we can get a good look at them and see if God will speak to our hearts and maybe teach us something. I don't know. I pray that God would somehow use this message to glorify his name. Somehow that we could get a good look at who God is and maybe also get a good look at how the devil works in our midst. The Nature of Good and The Nature of Evil. Or we could also say The Nature of God and The Nature of Satan. Or that of the spirit and of the flesh. I think we understand that. We understand that the one builds up while the other one tears down. We also understand that the one encourages while the other one accuses or criticizes. The one is totally unselfish while the other one is selfish. The one lives for others. The other one lives for self. The one is a giver. The other one is a taker. The one is God's will. The other one is my will. Two very distinctly different natures. The nature of God. The nature of evil. Let's turn to Genesis chapter 1. I would like to look at the creation. Oh that God would receive the glory that is due unto his name. Consider with me the creation. Before the fall and how beautiful everything must have been in the Garden of Eden. I want to speak specifically today or at least include in this message the fruit that comes from something that God has created. Whether it be trees or birds or grasses or animals or fish or humans. That whenever things are working in proper order and in unity and harmony and there's health and there's vitality then fruit comes from that. Beautiful fruit comes from healthy living created beings or created creation. Chapter 1 of Genesis. Let's look at verse 11. And God said let the earth bring forth grass. The herb yielding seed. Thanks for that children's lesson brother. We'll be talking about some seed today. The fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind. Whose seed is in itself upon the earth. And it was so. God is creating heaven and earth here and he's speaking forth these words. He's laying a foundation for the whole time the earth shall stand. Fruit when it comes forth has within itself seed. Amen. And the earth brought forth grass. An herb yielding seed after his kind. The tree yielding fruit. Whose seed was in itself after his kind. And God saw that it was good. He made heaven and earth and he made the lights and he made all those things there. But we're specifically looking at the fruit of the land. Or fruit which is an expression of a healthy vibrant living organism. Whether it's a tree or a plant or a bush or an animal or a bird or a fish or a human. Whenever these things are working together. Whenever this living plant or this living organism is healthy. Then it naturally produces fruit. Six days God created the heavens and the earth. He also made man. Look at verse 24. Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind. Cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after his kind. And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth after his kind. And cattle after their kind. And everything that creepeth upon the earth after his kind. And God saw that it was good. Then he made man in his own image. And gave him dominion over the fowl and the fish and the cattle. Everything that creepeth upon the earth. In his own image created he the man. And God blessed him in verse 28. And said be fruitful multiply replenish the earth and subdue it. And have dominion over fish and fowl and every living thing upon the earth. Verse 29. God said behold I have given you every herb bearing seed which is upon the face of all the earth. And every tree in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed to you it shall be for meat or for food. God created all the trees and bushes and grasses I believe. And he created them to bring forth fruit. So that the animals the birds and mankind could eat of them. And God gave these greens may I say grasses and the fruit of all these. Yes we say trees and bushes and grasses have life in them. But there is not the life the kind of an animal. And God created the heavens and the earth in a perfect harmony and unity with each other. And everything in God's creation was created to flow together. In a very beautiful beautiful way. It was perfect. I meditate on the fact that everything was perfect. And it could only be so when God who is perfect created it. James says every good gift and every perfect gift is come down from the father of life. Down from above from the father of life with whom is no valueless neither shadow of turning. Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from the father. Because the father is perfect. What he created was perfect also. What a great God. It was his design that the trees and the grasses and the bushes would bring forth fruit to feed the animals and the birds and humans. Not sure about the fish and all that but yes there was also life in the ocean. So all of these type of things were made to feed all of the animals and the birds and humans. And he gave it to them for food and to every beast of the earth. Verse 30. And to every fowl of the air and to everything that creepeth upon the earth wherein there is life. I have given every green herb for meat. And it was so. There was no death. There was no turmoil. There was no strife. All was in harmony and unity and beauty flowing together. And all the fruit of the trees man could freely take and eat. The animals, the birds could freely come and eat of every fruit that was there. Except of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And Adam told the man. You may eat of every tree of the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat. And when man did eat of that tree his eyes were opened and he saw that he was naked. Did he become naked then? His eyes were opened to evil. Before that his eyes were not opened to evil. He didn't see the evil. I don't know if he didn't see the good. I'm not sure about that. But we have this beautiful example of the harmony and the blessing of how everything in that creation was working. We can see. Today yet we have beautiful little pictures. I thought of how the trees pollinate. How do the trees reproduce? Many of the trees they burst forth in the spring with a little tiny flower. And trees and bushes are not necessarily male and female like the animals and so forth. Although some of them are similar to that. But trees generally bring forth flowers. And God has ordained that bees and insects fly from one tree to the other. And by that they pollinate those trees. And by that somehow they bring forth that which is needed for pollination and that which is needed for fruit. Somehow God made all that to work into a beautiful flowing harmony in the Garden of Eden. Did you ever take a... Go out in the garden in the summertime when the sweet corn is pollinating and growing. Did you ever take back carefully the husk of a corn ear while it's pollinating? When an ear of corn shoots up out of there, the hair, we call the hair, comes up out of there. There is one hair for every kernel of corn in that cob. And there's the tassels that are up on top of the stalk. Those tassels fall down. They fall down on those silky hairs. And by that there is germination taken down to each one of those kernels via a hair. How many knew that? Check it out. It's beautiful. It's the beautiful harmony and blessing that God created, made the creation. He made all those things. If we would just take time to stop and look at some of those very simple things, we would have to explain God is good. Consider the human body. An amazing creation. Amazing creation. Animals, amazing animals. Consider your kidneys, liver, lungs, your nerve system, your blood, your heart, immune system, your reproduction system. Consider that. Everything in that healthy body just perfectly flows together in a healthy body. God made all those things and he saw that they were good. In the Garden of Eden there was no destruction. There was no death, no pain, no hate or guile, no fear, no turmoil. All of creation's purpose was to bring forth fruit, which glorifies God. Fruit is what glorifies God. Beautiful, luscious fruit glorifies God. John 15, 8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit. Fruit brings glory to God. And fruit can be produced when there is a healthy, vibrant, living body. Amazingly, I've never tried this. It would be a good homeschool thing. But I've been told you can put, take a jar, a gallon jar or something like that, a glass jar. You can put in that jar a mouse and a living plant. And you can put the lid on and both will survive. Why? You put the plant in by itself and put the lid on, the plant will die. You put the mouse into a jar by itself and put the lid on, it will die for lack of oxygen. God has created the universe. God has created the heavens and the earth in a beautiful, flowing, harmonious way together. You see, the mouse needs oxygen, which the plant produces. And the plant uses carbon dioxide, which the mouse produces by breathing air. And they can live some time together in a jar. Try it. Awesome. God has designed harmony, unity and blessing. And when those things are, when God's creation is healthy, it will bring forth fruit. There is no other question about it. Amen? Fruit, that is good. Fruit, that is good. There was also Satan, who was there in the Garden of Eden. In Ezekiel 28, we can read of the king of Tyrus. I believe the type or picture of Satan. Speaking of him, he says, Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the days that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. Satan was cast out of heaven, and he has come down upon the earth as a usurper and a liar and a deceiver. He came to the woman and said to her, Canst thou eat of all the trees of the garden? Yeah. Can you eat of all the trees of the garden, except one? The tree of knowledge, good and evil. Which she said, We shall die if we touch it. The serpent said, You will not die. God does know that in the day that you eat thereof, then your eyes will be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, it was pleasant to the eyes. And the tree desired to make one wise. She took of the fruit thereof and did eat, and gave also to her husband, and he also did eat. The eyes of them were both opened. They saw that they were naked. Satan came as a usurper and as a liar to the woman. Fruit was the issue. Fruit was used. The fruit of the tree. Fruit, the tree of knowledge, good and evil. I don't know if it was actual apples or what it was. Right here we have disunity presenting itself. Right here is where disunity for the first time presented itself and took root and took hold in the heart of mankind. The woman usurped her husband and encouraged him to eat of the fruit. He obeyed her and he ate of the fruit also. Satan hates unity among God's people. Satan hates unity among God's creation. Why? Because unity and harmony glorifies God. Unity and harmony working together is what brings forth fruit. If you have a healthy plant, it will bring forth fruit. If you have an unhealthy plant, it probably won't bring forth much fruit. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, so death passed upon all men, for that all have sin. Not only was death passed upon mankind, but the earth was cursed for man's sake. The issue was fruit. Adam and Eve had free access to all the trees except that one. They could go and freely pick any kind of fruit they chose except the one. It was there for the taking. Fruit is that which is given. We often talk about how much our gardens yield, how much a field yields. We don't talk about how much I took from that field. You see, when something is given, then it can't be stolen, right? If something is given, it can't be taken. And fruit was freely given to man. And all man knew do was just receive it to himself. The animals likewise. However, God cursed the earth for the man's sake. And he said, Freely pick the fruit of all the trees or of the bushes or of the gardens or whatever it may be. Now the earth was cursed for Adam's sake, and thorns and thistles came up and began to choke out the good seed. The nature of evil is to choke out the good. Amen? That's exactly what it is. The nature of thorns and thistles is to choke out the good seed. Why? So that the good seed does not bear fruit. That's the nature of evil. Yes, fruit is still possible, but it takes labour. It takes work. You will still be able to have fruit trees, you'll still be able to raise these things, but you now have to work for that which had been freely given to you before. That is the curse. Weeds tend to choke out good seed. Evil chokes out the good, if it at all can. This is the nature of Satan. Consider our bodies after the fall. Our bodies began to disintegrate. Death, diseases, all those things would come upon mankind because of man's sin. And now there is evil against man. Evil against our body. The evil tries to bring to death our body. The evil tries to bring to death that which we plant in the field. And there's bugs now that eat the fruit. And there's birds that come and destroy the fruit. And I was thinking of that wee little aphid that attacks so much of our garden fruits, and especially the alfalfa fields. A little, very, very little tiny bug. Green, the same colour as the alfalfa. And all it does is it sticks its needle into the stalk of the alfalfa to drink of the fruit of that stalk. And by doing that, it injects some of its own poison and the stalk doesn't bring forth much fruit. And if you have too much of those bugs, they'll just stunt your alfalfa growth. And that's the same way. Adam now has to work to produce fruit. That's what he has to do. It seems like Satan has taken advantage of the fall of man and has, may I say, stood defiantly against God ever since, claiming that God was unable to manage His creation. But the showdown came through Jesus Christ. God sent Jesus Christ into the world. And as we heard this morning in this beautiful song, Jesus gave His life on the cross. God had other plans. And through this, God has a desire to prove to Satan that He is still able to create unity and blessing on the face of the earth today. And He does it through what? Does He do it through the animals? Does He do it through the birds? You see, the birds and animals, at the fall of man, they began. There was death. I don't know for sure when the animals started eating each other or the birds, but mankind, God told Noah after he came out of the ark, God blessed Noah and gave him the animals for food. Before that, it was grass. And I don't know if the animals all ate each other before that or not. I used to think they did, but I can't prove it with God's Word. But the example we have of the nature of evil to choke out the life is so clearly pictured in the first two children that were born, Adam and Eve. Eve, Adam knew his wife. She brought forth a son, Cain and Abel. And now there was sin in the world and there was this evil nature in mankind. And what happened? Cain choked out the life of Abel. That's the evil nature. That's the nature of evil, is to choke out the life of others. That's the nature of evil, is to choke out life from others. It thinks of itself. It wants to preserve its own life. But the nature of God is that which produces fruit, which can be freely given to others. Whereas the nature of Satan is to choke out life so there is no fruit. Such a picture in Cain and Abel. The picture of the evil there. But Jesus Christ came, the Son of God. He gave His life on the cross, as we heard this morning. He was a perfect picture of harmony and unity. He was the Son of God. He was perfect. There was no sin in Him. And He laid down His life on the cross and He said, On the cross, no man taketh it from Me. Speaking of His life. John chapter 10. Let's look at that scripture. John 10, 17 and 18. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. Fruit is given for others. Fruit is grown for others. Fruit is a product of a healthy, vibrant plant or life. And it brings forth fruit for others. That's one of the keys here. Jesus, He said, I lay down my life that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. Jesus said, no one's going to take My life. It might look like they'll take it, but they cannot take My life, because I have laid it down of My own choice, and therefore I have given My life for them, and they cannot take it from Me. That's what He's saying. In a sense, what I see is that when we are living in the nature and the reality of Christ, when we are partakers of the nature of Christ, we are to bring forth fruit which glorifies God. And what is the fruit for? Is it for Myself? Is it for others? Fruit is for others. Freely ye have received, freely give, Jesus said when He sent out His disciples. Am I a giver or am I a taker? Jesus was a giver. He was not a taker. Are you a giver or are you a taker? Romans 8.32 It says, He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Of course, the earth, creation, the birds, the animals, the trees, they are still under bondage according to Romans 8. Let's look at verse 20. For the creation was made subject to vanity, not winningly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope. Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. I don't understand all of it, but it does seem very clear that all of creation basically fell with the sin of man. The animal kingdom, the bird kingdom, the fish and the trees and so forth. It seems like the whole earth fell because of the sin of mankind. And the earth is still groaning together, waiting for the deliverance and for the manifestation of the children of God, waiting for the glorious liberty. The earth is waiting to receive liberty, to be set free from the bondage of sin. It seems like we sometimes get so used to living this way that we don't even have a real desire to be free of the bondage of sin. But if we could get a clear picture of the glory and the beauty of what God has created, what God wants us to have, we should be longing after that kind of thing. But I know that we are looking at it spiritually. We won't look at the church yet, too. What is God's design for the church? We believe that God has created, that the church was born on Pentecost Day and all those who are believers and are born again of God, they are the children of God, they are a part of the body of Christ. And how should they function? How should this body function? Revelations 22, 17 says, Whosoever will, let him take freely of the water of life. Oh, I like that verse. You see, when we look down past this earth and we look into heaven, we again see the beauty, the harmony, the unity, the blessing. Everything there is working together like God has originally planned, that the earth should be. But heaven is that beautiful picture of harmony and blessing and unity. And there is the tree of life. And there you can go and take of the water freely. And you can eat of the tree of life freely there again. What do we have here? What about what God wants us to do? Yes, fruit is still possible. But it takes labor, it takes work. God still wants to manifest His glory in the earth. Jesus Christ was perfect, is perfect, always was and will be. He was a demonstration of the perfection of beauty. There is a verse in the psalm I found this morning. Psalms 50, verse 2. Out of Zion the perfection of beauty has shined. Out of Zion the perfection of beauty, God has shined. Jesus Christ came, the perfection of beauty, the light of God. God still wants to manifest His glory on the earth. He rose Jesus from the dead. He gave gifts to men. He has enabled all that believe on Him to enter into His righteousness and His holiness. Now we have a local congregation. I also recognize the universal body of Christ. Everyone who is born of God is a part of the body of Christ. Whether they be black or white or yellow or brown. Or whether they live in India or China or America. They are a part of the universal body of Christ. I was thinking about this would be a wonderful Christian body, a wonderful Christian experience if every child of God who is born again would be walking in the fullness of God, in the beauty of God, in all that God desires. If we would not need, how should I say, but it is because of deception that we are unable to fully trust everyone who says Lord, Lord. Or those who say they are Christians. We have Jesus' words to us about those who say those things. Beware, He says, of false prophets. There is going to be in the body of Christ, there is those who say they are Christians. But beware of them. But wouldn't it be a beautiful thing if everyone that would be a born again child of God would be in harmony and unity one with another. Wouldn't that be a wonderful thing? But deception, the deceiver is still around. Deception is still here. Therefore we must be careful. There are some who say and they do not. They say they are but they do not the will of God. Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing. Inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit. But a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit. Neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Very clear warnings from the words of our Lord. Be careful. Not everyone out there is bringing forth good fruit. Not all those who say Lord, Lord are really good fruit. We must be careful. There are varying degrees of deception. And therefore we cannot just freely accept all. Like John chapter 4, 1 John 4 says, Beloved, believe not every spirit but try the spirits. Satan is desiring to destroy unity in the body of Christ. And he is doing a good job, isn't he? Worldwide and sometimes locally in our own bodies. But a healthy body will bring forth fruit. A healthy body will bring forth fruit. A healthy body will reproduce. A healthy plant will reproduce itself. The fruit has the seed in it. The fruit of healthy plants has the seed in it. You can take the seed. You can eat the fruit. You can plant the seed. And more plants spring up. And more fruit comes forth. That's the nature of fruit. Fruit is an amazing thing. Fruit is the evidence of life. Evidence of health. Evidence of reproduction. And fruit is what glorifies God. Fruit, if it is given, if it is yielded, not taken. Fruit is produced for others. The grapevine, just think of it. The grapevine freely produces the grapes. It doesn't choose who will come by and take it. It doesn't choose. It doesn't withhold its grapes from the black person or the yellow person or the red person. It doesn't withhold its grapes even from the sinner. It freely gives its fruit to whosoever comes by and just plucks it and receives it. It's free. And the fruit of our lives should be like that. The fruit of my life, I should not try to keep the fruit of my life from some and try to give it to others. If it's true fruit, if I produce true fruit, whosoever will may come. If the local church, if God blesses that local church, she will automatically bring forth some kind of fruit for God and God will be glorified by the church. And when there's fruit, there's reproduction. Amen? When there's fruit, there's reproduction. Let's look at John chapter 15. John 15, reading. I am the true vine, my father's husbandman, Jesus is speaking. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. And every branch that beareth fruit, every branch that beareth fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. More fruit. The purging is always a difficult time. The purging is a painful time. But God has a plan. Praise God. He does it with a purpose. He wants to bring forth more fruit. Have you been going through a hard time? Have you been discouraged? Have you had difficulties? Lift up your head. Look at this verse. Maybe you've been bringing forth fruit. God has been giving you work to do. You've been used. God has been using you. God has blessed you. Blessed your home, your family, your ministry, whatever it may be. Every branch, every branch that beareth fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. This is the time of year that it's purging time. Did you know that? It's time to get your clippers out and clip the grapevines. It's time to go cut them back. Cut those branches back. Why? So it bears forth more fruit. If you don't cut the branches, if you don't clip them back, you won't have as much fruit. Ye are the branches. Oh, but I don't like the pruning. I don't like the cutting. I don't like to let go. Every branch that beareth fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. God really wants a lot of fruit. He doesn't want just a little bit. Am I willing to let God purge my life? Am I willing to go through difficult times? Or when the master comes with his pruning knife, do I say, Please Lord, don't cut there. Please Lord, don't cut there. But the master knows what he's doing. He just takes that knife. He just cuts it right off. Because he wants more fruit. More fruit. You're designed to bear fruit. You're designed to bring him glory and honor through the fruit of your life. Now ye are clean. He gives us some hope when he's done cutting there. He cuts it off. Throws it away. All that's left is just a little stub maybe. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me. Abide in me. Stay right with me. And I in you. Don't leave. Don't give up. Stick with me. Abide in me. And I in you. As a branch cannot bear fruit of itself, don't go off on your own. Don't leave the vine. Except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me. Just the same with that branch. If you cut the branch off totally, it will die. Abide in me, he says. I am the vine. Ye are the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him. What a beautiful promise. The same. Bring it forth. Much fruit. Much fruit. For without me ye can do nothing. Do you want much fruit? Sometimes we pray prayers and say, Lord, make me fruitful. But when he comes with that pruning knife to lop off those unnecessary branches, we cower away. We don't want to receive the knife. We don't want to allow him to prune us back. We have other plans. But he's the master. Let him prune because you then bring forth much fruit. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch and is withered. And men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned. But, verse 7, if ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will. It shall be done unto you. Verse 8 Herein is my Father glorified that ye bear much fruit. So shall ye be my disciples. Mmm. That's good fruit. I have some grapes here. Big, luscious, sweet grapes. And they are good. They're good. Someone pruned the branches. The master came and he lopped off those branches and cut them back. And this is the result of it. Fruit, whosoever will, may come and take freely of the water of life. I would that all of our fruit, that the fruit of all of our lives is freely offered to God. Lord, it's for you. It's whoever you want it for. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. That's the fruit of the Spirit of God working in our lives. That's the fruit of the Spirit of God. And that's what we're supposed to be manifesting. That's what we're supposed to be showing to the world. Love. We're supposed to have joy. Someone asked me last week, called me on the phone and asked me, Do you have joy? I didn't have a clear answer. I was not running over with joy. Shame on me. Brothers and sisters, I would that you would bear forth fruit. I would that you would bear much fruit so that God will be glorified. That's what glorifies God. When God created the heavens and the earth, and when God created every green herb, every green tree, with the fruit thereon and the seed within it, God had in mind that we could take it, reach out and eat of that fruit. There's many hungry people in the world today. Spiritually hungry people. Do we have fruit for them? I'm so glad. We have some fruit. We have a little bit of fruit. I believe God wants to purge us so that we would bear forth much more fruit for His glory. Shall we kneel for prayer? Our Father in Heaven, thank You for such wonderful fruit. Truly it glorifies Your name. Truly it glorifies You. As we look at the Garden of Eden, the beauty, the harmony, the blessing, the freely taking of the fruit, we know that You ordained it that way, but because of the sin of man, the ground was cursed. The nature of evil, the nature of Satan has come down upon the earth and even into our own hearts. The animals, they take from each other. They steal from each other. The birds, they take and they steal. And yes, mankind, they take. They're takers. They destroy. They steal. They hate one another. But, O Father, You've given gifts to Your own body. You've raised up those who have believed on You through Jesus Christ. You want them to have the divine nature. You have put the divine nature inside of them. Father, we know it's forbidden that any of them should hate or destroy or envy one another. But that each one would be a giver, not a taker. That we would be able to bless all those around us. Be able to give. Give our lives. Give of our fruit. Yeah, even when there's others to come and try to choke it out of us, Father, may we willingly just be giving fruit that You'll be glorified. O Father, glorify Your name. Magnify Your name in our midst. We love You. Thank You, Father, for the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You for the power within us to please You through Jesus Christ. We love You, Father. In His name we pray. Amen. I think of that scripture that says, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. I just had to think. I heard someone recently mention that there's three ways that we can take the cross. We can either reject it or we can drudgingly carry it or we can embrace it. And may we be those who embrace the cross, because out of death comes life. And out of trials and pruning, like Emmanuel was sharing, is where life is produced. I think of how it says in James also, it says, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations, into many diverse temptations. Count it all joy, my brothers and sisters. You know, when you fall into those trials and temptations that you just think, you know, how can this be of the Lord? How can this be the Lord allowing this? But it says, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, but let patience have her perfect work. My brother and sister, let patience have her perfect work. Let that pruning knife have its perfect work in your heart and life. And it says, furthermore, but let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect or mature and entire, wanting nothing. So let the pruning knife continue to do its work, embrace the cross, embrace that pruning knife. Go through those difficulties instead of trying to skirt around them. Just look to the grace of God, like Moses did when he encountered the Red Sea. Just look to the Lord. He knew that God would make a way. Amen. Thank you, Brother Emanuel. The fruit of the Christian life. Alright. Is there anyone that would have a word to share this morning? Can we get the mics, Robert, and get your hand up if you have a word to share concerning the first message or the second one here? Does anyone have a testimony or a word of other down here? I think the brother here has it. Brother John has it here, Robert. Any others? Get your hands up. Go ahead, Jason. I confess after hearing those messages that I have a long ways to go. I have a great need in my life for, just for a deeper understanding of what these brothers shared. You know, the first brother's message, it just struck me hard. You know, how I am just so quick to cast judgment in my heart and withdraw myself. The Lord just brought to realization through Emanuel's message that I'm not a very fruit-bearing branch. I desire fruit. I do. I seem to withdraw so much so many times. And it's just come to my realization that it's, again, many times it's come to my realization that afresh and anew today that it's me. That it's me that's not bearing right fruit. Because fruit is meant for others. Fruit is produced for others. And it's given that others might feast at the table of the Lord. Intercessory prayer is just that. It's for others. It's interceding and breaking in there on behalf of others that are struggling. And I don't have that gift. I lack. I have need in my life. And some areas I just don't know how to break through. You know, those areas where I tend to go back and draw back into criticalness. I was over at a brother's house the other day and I was sharing my heart. I realized and I had to call the brother and just confess criticalness rising up in my heart again. I went back to the Lord and just cried out and said, God, I want to be made whole. Brother Emanuel shared that God prunes those whom He has received. And I just pray for the pruning hand of God. I pray that God would purge this branch that it might bring forth more fruit. I really appreciate the labors of the brothers in the Word of God. It's an area where I've been lacking. Just digging into the Word of God and proving myself faithful to the Word of God and God. Just laboring in the Word and I have need there. My attention has truly been drawn away from the living Word, Jesus Christ. Oh, how quick we deceive ourselves into believing lies and I don't want to believe a lie. The thing is that I don't want to be used of the devil to tear down. I want to be used of God to build up. That's my calling in life. You know, I was reading in Ephesians that if I have been given a ministry you know it's to unify. It says here in Ephesians 4 and 13 it says, till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That should be my vision. To see my brothers prosper. To see my brothers grow in unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man. And that's my heart's cry. That I would be that man that would pray and intercede and be that fruit that others can pluck of and be edified and be built up and be encouraged and blessed by my life instead of looking at me and being discouraged because they can't quite understand my life. I want to be a fruit bearing branch this morning. Amen. Can we apply that message that Brother Daniel had today and this week and pray for our brother. We've heard him quite frequently mention his need of prayer in the area of criticalness. Let's remember him in prayer this week. God would meet that need of his heart in life. Set him free of that. Brother Ben. I praise the Lord today for both messages. I received courage and my faith was strengthened today. Praise the Lord for that. Just reading this verse in John 15 verse 7 just something stood out to me today. It says, If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you. It's a verse we all like. It's a verse I've read many times and I know but in today's message it stood out to me that this verse is given in the midst of purging. In the midst of God purging us, I think is when this promise becomes real. If in the midst of those trials and purging times if we abide in him and do not allow ourselves to be drawn away from him, I think this is when this promise becomes real. And I praise the Lord for the message today. Amen. Thank you Ben. Thank you brother. Jeff. Any others? Get your hands up. Sisters. I just want to give a testimony of Thanksgiving this morning. About a month ago, the beginning of this month, I was making my way through the Old Testament. I tried to read about five chapters when I'm able to and it so happened that I was in the book of Proverbs and two verses really arrested my attention and I just want to kind of build my testimony of Thanksgiving around these two verses. The first is in Proverbs 27-23 that says Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks. And we have as a family been praying for quite some time. We've been on a pilgrimage beseeching God for a kingdom job, a kingdom home, a place where my family could flourish, where the children could grow and where we could also flourish in that quality time spent together. A job and a home that would accommodate that. Little did I know as I was reading this in my quiet time that the prayers of my wife and I of the past three and a half years were being answered. God with a sense of humor applied this verse to me. Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks. I recently was hired on as a chicken man and I have 90,000 chickens now under my supervision. That's a different take on a flock. But with that came a farm house and I just want to thank the body here at Charity for helping us to move and settle in and for bearing us up in your prayers as I have shared with some of you. Our desire and it has been a blessing. It's been a challenge and a great responsibility. But it's been a blessing and we were so blessed after settling in last night realizing we're really here. We looked back and thought of everybody who helped and it was amazing to see the teamwork and the care and the different gifts in the body coming out. We had moved a couple of times. Actually I've moved all my life as a little boy into a young man. About every two years my family moved. But when we moved the last two times once from Arizona and once from Texas we had to hire professional movers. Pretty rough bunch they were. Some things were missing in the first move and in the second move things were just kind of stuffed in there. I looked around at brothers and sisters who I fellowship with and just caring loving friends in Christ and it was such a blessing. We were just amazed at how everything flowed. And that ties into the second verse I want to share here. Proverbs 24 verse 27 says, prepare thy work without and make it fit for thyself in the field and afterwards build thine house. When we learned about this home I agreed to the man who's overseeing this chicken farm that I would go to work for him and commute. We wouldn't move in right away because I really felt the Lord was telling me to get to understand this new line of work. Leave the house aside and in the past we'd buy a home and move in and I'd spend the first week at Home Depot gathering home improvements and just pour myself into that home. I was looking back at a journal. It was actually seven years ago this month that we were moving into our second home in Arizona and that's what my journal was full of. I did this improvement today and I'm going to tackle this one tomorrow and I threw my back out doing that improvement. Just the drive and the flesh that was involved. God really spoke to me. I want you to put all that aside and concentrate on the work that you have. Be a faithful servant to this man. He's not a believer. He's a Muslim. His wife wears the full Muslim garb and I've just spent time walking with this man, getting to know him a little bit and trying to be a faithful steward is something I've not experienced before. But you know what allowed me to do that? It was the support of the Brotherhood. Knowing that there was a ministry here that has been started up in the last year a charity designed to help families move and clean and I was just able to rest knowing I have friends. This is not going to wipe my wife and I out. I can actually do what the scripture says here and make the fields fit and then afterwards build the house. It was just a blessing. It's been a process but it's been God's word God's blessing through the process that just made it such a joy. On behalf of my family my wife and my children, thank you all for your prayers over the last three and a half years. We do feel we have an answer to prayer and thank you for your practical ministry to our family. We're very blessed. We're very thankful. Jeff you were plucking the fruit yesterday. From fellow believers. Amen. God bless all you faithful brothers and sisters who helped out. I think of the scripture in Proverbs that says the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life. Anyone else? Up here. Sister. I just want to praise God for bringing us safely back from Mexico. Thank you all for praying for us in the time my stuff got stolen, the passport and everything. God just taught us how to trust Him in each detail in getting that back. I just want to praise Him. Also the church in Mexico just wanted us to thank Brother Danny for the book in Spanish. It's been a good tool for them. Thank you. Welcome back Sister Faith and Angela. Good to see us back. Brother Daniel thank you for your family up here this morning sharing in song and testimony. That was a real blessing. It just adds to the service. Up front here, Robert. Any others? Can we get our hands up quickly if you have something you want to share? Praise the Lord. I was blessed and challenged this morning. Brother Daniel, thank you for sharing that word. I just spoke to my family about that scripture in Job this week. We talked about that very fact. Could Job have prayed for his friends if he would have had unforgiveness or bitterness in their heart? It was such a blessing to hear the Lord bring that again to our hearts this morning. Then Brother Emmanuel, I thought of these words of the man that is a righteous man out of Psalm 1. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly. And then verse 2. His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law does he meditate day and night. And then he says these words. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth fruit in his season. His leaf shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. So praise God this morning. The seed of the kind of fruit, it's within itself, and the tree will bear the fruit according to the nature of the seed. And so we don't have to try to bring forth good fruit. If it's a good tree, it will bring forth good fruit. Our job is to abide in the vine, and to meditate on the Lord, and then we'll be like that tree that bringeth forth his fruit in his season. So thank you, Brother Emanuel, for sharing the word of the Lord with us today. And God bless the congregation as we abide in the vine. Amen. Man, I think of that scripture, Aaron. It says the foundation of the Lord standeth sure having this seal. The Lord knoweth them that are his. Let every name that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. You know, it's in knowing the Lord that it goes on to say how that we are purged. A great house is purged from those things that dishonor. And made a vessel meet for the master's use, and prepared us every good work. Brother Dwight? What a privilege to have brothers call back to us who are ahead of us. And point out the way for us and encourage us to keep on. That's the way it was for me this morning. You know, about 12 years ago, God kept bringing something to me again and again and perplexed me. He said, you're called for the healing of others. And I didn't know how to apply that to my life at that time. But I've had opportunity since that time. And this morning Brother Daniel's message completed that in a way I don't understand yet. But it really impacted me. I get that from 2 Peter, where Peter is exhorting servants. And he says for what credit is it if when you're beaten for your faults, you take it patiently. But when you do good and suffer for it, if you take it patiently, this is commendable to God. Amen. Then the next phrase is staggering. It says for to this you were called to suffer wrongfully. In other words, to forget. For to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow His steps. You know, often we're in partly in the wrong, and that's where a lot of the pain and resentment comes from. And not so with Christ who committed no sin nor is guile found in his mouth, who when he is reviled, did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten but committed himself to him who judges righteously. Who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness by whose stripes you were healed. As Brother Daniel said, we can't redemptively suffer for the penalty of other sins. But we can forgive as Christ did. We can suffer for their healing because forgiveness means we're taking on their wrong. We're accepting that. And in doing that, we are entering deeply into Christ's sufferings. That's how we know Him. Paul said that I may know Him in the fellowship of His sufferings. So no longer are we just taking it, trying to put up with it. There's meaning in this. We're suffering for the healing of others. And I was convicted about this this morning. I had names come to my mind. You know, I used to and we, let me say it this way, I'm sorry. You know, Isaiah 53 is about Jesus. But it's about us too if we're going to be like Him. And knowing that rejection and all that. By whose stripes you were healed. We're called to suffer for the healing of others. Amen, Dwight. Leaving us an example that you should follow His steps.