In this sermon, the preacher focuses on Romans 13 and the responsibility of believers to live holy lives. The sermon begins by emphasizing the urgency of the times and the nearness of salvation. The preacher then discusses the importance of submitting to governmental authority, highlighting the biblical principle of obeying rulers for conscience sake. The sermon concludes by highlighting the three main truths in Romans 13: our subjection to governmental authority, the need for love and conscience in our actions, and the recognition of the evil in the world.

Turning again to Romans, and we're at chapter thirteen this evening, the thirteenth chapter of this mighty letter of Paul to the saints at Rome, and I don't know if you have noticed that this is the shortest chapter of the entire letter to the Romans. This is the shortest one, just fourteen verses this evening, but what tremendous truths are here. This short chapter divides itself into three parts, and I tell you, Paul places before us this evening three tremendous truths. I think you have the letter to the Romans in your mind's eye, I trust you have, I've been trying to get it there, so that when you put the light out at night and you can't sleep, in the dark you can go over Romans. Can you do it? You remember the first and second and part of the third tells us all about the sinful creation around us. Paul was claiming every word to bring home, that the whole world lies in the lap of the evil one. And he brought the whole world in guilt, say, before God, and then cried, All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And we wrote over that, the condemnation of sinners. Do you remember we started in the middle of the third chapter and went right through chapter four and chapter five? And Paul was teaching us the great doctrine of justification, that these poor condemned sinners could be justified by faith and by grace and by the blood of the cross. And we learned the great doctrine of justification by faith without the deeds of the law at all. And then when we came to chapter six and seven and eight, Paul was teaching the saints that those who were justified by faith and brought out of that condemned place, God expected them to live as saints. And we began the great teaching of the sanctification of saints. God expects saved men to live holy life. And then you remember there was a parenthetical portion in there, nine and ten and eleven, the chapters, and Paul just took a breather here to explain to all in summary God's almost mysterious dealings with Israel. And you've got the chapter. Then when we started chapter 12 and now 13 and then 14, 15, 16, you know these are expectations to the sons and servants and soldiers of God. And that's where we are this evening. We're at this great chapter where Paul is bringing expectations to the sons and to the soldiers of God. Now this is a wonderful chapter because it brings three tremendous truths to us. In the first seven verses of this chapter tonight, we're looking at our subjection to governmental authority. And I can tell you that this is something that we all need to get a grasp of. Something I feel that the saints don't really pay attention to. But it's a weighty truth. It's a tremendous one. And when we have looked at our subjection to governmental authority, we shall find in verses eight, nine, and ten, our obligation to practical Christianity. My, what a lovely little bitters in the middle of this chapter this evening. And then Paul tries to give us a vision of a responsibility that's ours because the dispensation we're in has ended. And I've called it our vision of dispensational responsibility. And there are the tremendous truths of the chapter. Now let's really get down to it. We're at chapter 13, and we're at verse one. And Paul is writing to the saints, remember, in the first chapter, called the Beloved of God. And here's what he says in verse one. Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. And of course, when he stresses, let every soul, you can see that it's an individual matter. It's something that every saint must pay attention to. This is not just for elders and deacons. This is for every soul, for every saint. And Paul is stressing that. It's very wonderful that he used the word soul here, because it's a really psychological truth that he's bringing. And we'll get into the depth of it. He says, let every soul be subject. That's a tremendous word, isn't it? And that word subject, or be subject, just teaches us our duty to the state we're living in, to the nation, to the government of the nation. You know, mind whether they're laborer or conservative or liberal. At this present psychological moment, they are the government of this country. We are taught just now in God's Word that every saint is to be subject. That teaches us our duty to the nation. We're subjects of the Queen this evening. And I would like to think that I'm a loyal subject of the Queen, and God saved the Queen. We must ever recognize. In case there would be anything in your mind about this phrase, let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. Some might be wondering, I wonder, is this the government? Well, Paul makes no mistake about it when he comes to the third verse. I'll go back to the other phrases in a moment. He says in verse three, for rulers are not a terror to good works but to the evil. You see, we're thinking about these higher powers who are ruling in the nation for the moral good of the nation. At least, that's exactly what government should be. They would never be ruling to bring in evil, hather. And so we're talking about the rulers of the nation. When you come into the subject of rulers in the Bible, you're into a tremendous subject. For God is teaching us, and will teach us tonight, I've talked very clearly, that we're to be subject to the rulers of the nation. Because you remember when I was preaching to you last week, you remember this. Hebrews chapter 13. Let's have a look at it again. Hebrews 13. I'll be saying this to the saints. Verse 7. Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith follow, considering the end of the conversation, Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever. You see, there are not only rulers in the nation, but there are rulers in the church. And you remember what he said in 1 Thessalonians, to know them which have the rule over you. Because you know there are some saints, and they're not subject to anything. They haven't got any rulers. They want to run things their own way. Never recognize that God has given gifts to the church. Men with long experience would love to lead the flock. The sheep would love to lead the shepherd sometime, but it won't work. You've just got to be subject in the church too. There are rulers, you know. To know them which have the rule over you, whose faith follow, considering the end of the conversation, Jesus Christ, who have preached unto you the word of God. Such fables we bring, you know. We blow up balloons in the back room. It's really God's truth we're preaching. So you see this is another realm. This is the church realm. Now have a look at this. This is very thrilling to me. This is 1 Timothy, and it's the third chapter. 1 Timothy chapter 3. And here we have some of the qualifications for bishops and deacons in the church. Of course, bishops, the word is just the same as the word overseer or elder. It's the same word. Now here's what it says about a bishop. Verse 2. A bishop then must be blameless. It's a good job it didn't say faultlesses, isn't it? Because there's not one of us faultless, you know. But we do our best, and when you do your best you're blameless. Don't please everybody, you know, when you do your best. Not at all. We're not here to please everybody. We're here to please the Lord. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, good behavior, given to hospitality, up to teach is a very important bit, not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre, but patient, not a brawler, not covetous. Now here's the bit that I'm after. One that rules well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity. But if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God? Because you can see the differentiation he's making here. He's making a difference between his own house and the church of God. Of course, a man needs to rule his own house. Ladies, whether you like it or not, in the realm of the home, which is the matrimonial realm, the husband is the head of the house, and he would need to rule it. Isn't it what we've seen just now? We've seen different realms. We've seen the governmental realm, and there are rulers, and then there is the realm of the church, and there are rulers there, and we need to be subject to the rulers. And then in the home, there are rulers there, and you need to be subject to them. You know, this is a tremendous thing. You see, down through the years of history, sometimes the state, which is the governmental realm, it has stepped out of its realm, and it has tried to rule the church. We have no notion of letting the state rule the church. That's communism. Of course, in a certain part of history, it turned around the other way, and the church tried to rule the state, and that's rulerism. They're not trying to rule the state, and we're not going to rule the state. We've got a realm of our own, and we will neither let the state nor the church rule the home. I can't come down and tell you what thing to bring to bed at, you know. It'd throw me out, wouldn't it? And what colour of pyjamas you have to wear. Oh, it wouldn't allow me to do that. Now, what sort of cornflakes should you eat for your breakfast? No, these are different realms. You've got to see it. These are different realms. And when somebody in the governmental realm steps out of their realm, and tries to boss in the other realm, we've got to get the venoms correct. And if we do, it will save a tremendous lot of trouble, you know. But there's one thing that we want to keep in our minds, and it's this. And let's have a look at Ephesians, and at the last chapter, Ephesians chapter 6. And reading from verse 10, just to get the proper connection. Ephesians 6 verse 10. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wilds of the devil. For we rest not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world. There's another verse, isn't it? It's a diabolical one. You know, all around us tonight, and very close to the picture just now, there are wicked spirits, and they don't like you when you're bringing light to this world. Because they're the rulers of the darkness of this world. And if you start to invade their domain, then they're in for trouble. But we've got the dynamite that scares them, the word of God. It's light, you know. My, they detest this light. See, when Jesus was down here, he was the light of the world, so the powers of darkness put him on the cross and tried to block him out. And this book is all right onto our feet, and they get modernists to tear the pages out of it. There's a man who keeps as if he's bringing light, and he's in the forefront of the battle all the time. You know, the devil can always get somebody to box the person of the church, can't he? And if we need to get his realms in our mind, there is the realm of the government, governmental realm. There's that matrimonial realm where the home and the children are under the ruler. Then there is the church realm where God has placed elders, that they might rule well. There's this diabolical realm where these wicked spirits who are called the rulers of the darkness of this world, where they dwell. But there's something else that we've got here, and let's go back to the book of Daniel for a moment. We're at Daniel chapter 5 just now. You remember we went through this some time ago, maybe you've forgotten this verse. I'll refresh your memory just now. This is Daniel chapter 5, and Daniel is speaking to Belshazzar. You remember chapter 5, it's the writing on the wall, and then they brought Daniel in, and he's talking to the king, and here's what he said in verse 18. O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father the kingdom and majesty and glory and honor. It was God that gave it to him, you know. And for the majesty that he gave him, all people, nations, and languages trembled and prayed before him. Whom he would, he swore, and whom he would, he kept alive. Whom he would, he set up. Whom he would, he put down. But when his heart was lifted up and his mind hardened in pride, he was deposed from his kingdom, and they took his glory from him, and he was driven from the count of men. And his heart was made like the beast's, and his dwelling was with the wild oxen. They fed him with broth like oxen, and his body was left with the Jew of heaven, till he knew that the most high God ruled. This old gobbler, lonely smaller, had to learn something. He had to learn that God was ruling. Not in the kingdom of Great Britain either, but in the kingdom of man. You know, we need to get this in our souls. You know, when the old devil rebelled away back yonder at the time when he really sent, and he said, I'll be like the most high, and he became the God of this world, and took over everything down here. In fact, once he came to our Lord Jesus and said, let me show you all the kingdoms of this world, and he did it in a moment. He said, all these will I give thee if thou fall down and worship me. The Lord didn't argue with him. You see, he had rebelled against God, and he had the throne, and he felt that he was the boss of the whole world. Well, let me say this on God's behalf, that the lonely devil, she named him, took everything over. God is still on the throne. Yes, and he will remember his own. The trials may press us, and burdens distress us. He never will leave us alone. Let's get it over to you. God is still on the throne. Oh, I know he allows a lot of things to happen, doesn't he? Of course he does. Allows a tremendous lot of things to happen, but he's still on the throne tonight. Praise his name. Oh, you know, friends, he ordains the government, and that's what he's trying to teach us tonight. Let's get back to this till we get this thing sorted out. We're at Romans 13. Now, here's what Paul is saying, that let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, for there is no power but of God. You see, God is over all. The powers that be are ordained of God. And this is something we need to get into a lot. We have to submit to this. If the labor government got in and took the situation over, whether you'll believe this or not, God allowed it. Some people, you know, they would hold on to their little flair of electioneering-ism. God says you're to be subject to the powers that be. He's ordained. Not saying that the doctors haven't an argument, you know, to put before the government. But Christian doctors shouldn't talk about going on strike. That's not subjection, is it? You see, the Christian doctor is taught from the word of God, not from their union at quarters. This is a tremendous one. A doctor came to me today to talk to me about this. And I said, you came on the right day, because I'm going through this. Sit down and I'll tell you. Uh, you're to be subject onto the powers that be. Now, that's when the government depicts in it all their own. Let me take you back to the Acts of the Apostles for a moment. We'll get up Acts chapter 4 just now. Acts chapter 5 it is. Acts 5, verse 17, just to get this connection properly. Then the high priest rose up and all they that were with him, which is the sect of the Sadducees, and were filled with indignation, and laid their hands on the apostles, put them in the common prison. But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors and brought them forth and said, go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of his life. That was a big saying for the angel, wasn't it? And of course they just did as they were told. Then they arrested them again. Look at verse 26. Then went they kept him with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people lest they should have been stoned. And when they had brought them they set them before the council. Now that's the old Jewish Sanhedrin, and that was the most venerable and authoritative court in all the country at that time. And the high priest, remember he was somebody in Israel, asked them, saying, did not we strictly command you that you should not teach in this name? The Lord ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter, good old Peter, and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than men. You know the government was going out of its realm now, and the government gets out of its realm and begins to tell us what we'll do in the church and what we'll do with the gospel. We'll tell them we ought to obey God rather than men. You know there's a throne above them all. It's the same in the family. Sometimes a young girl comes to me about 18 and she says, Mr. Mullen, I want to be baptized. I know I should be baptized. I love the Lord. My father wouldn't let me. What am I to do? You're to obey God, dear. Your father's outside his realm now. Go home and tell him I told you that. My, the father's going to rule over the spiritual. Say the things, is he? He's going to tear God's truth up, isn't he? He's outside his realm. Apostles, he has no right to do that. When they sit outside their realm, tell them to mind their own business. And that goes for the state, and that goes for the home, and that goes for the church. Some people would love to bring domestic affairs into the church. It's none of our business if you and him fight. It's not the business of the church. My, some of them would run to their mother every time he looks wrong. And they would run to the pastor, and they'd have the whole world upset. My dear friend, there are villains in this world that we must recognize. The governmental ones. And when they keep inside God, they'll be all right. And there is a matrimonial one. They must be obedient when they're not entering into the spiritual affairs of the soul in question. And so you see, this is a tremendous thing, isn't it? Now, let's get back to, you see, the next verse. Verse one again. Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, for there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Now, listen to this a little bit. Whosoever therefore resists the power, resisteth the ordinance of God. And they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For the liars are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have the praise of praise of the same. For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid. For he dareth not the sword in vain. Isn't that a tremendous phrase? And we want to get the hold of it. These powers that be, which are ordained of God, who are the ministers of God, they're bearing on the words in the Greek as, he wereth not the sword in vain. For he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath. Did you see that? To execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. So that God uh, allows these different governments to take over these different nations. He allows, if he's on the throne, and he allows it. And he also allows them to bring judgment. And you know, the moment we come to judgment and punishment, well, the biggest question of this hour is capital punishment. What should they be doing about capital punishment? Supposing they go away with capital punishment, what do we do? We're just subjects. Of course, if you were going into the rights and wrongs of it, I should take you back to let you see what God says. Of course, they sometimes don't care about what God says. We're to the subject, nevertheless, whether the government is good, bad, or indifferent, so long as they're inside their own realm and don't enter into spiritual things. If they make 30 miles an hour walking through the town, we ought to keep it. Not saying I always do, but there you are. Nevertheless, we'll get to that in a moment. Now, I want you to get the hold of this. Let's have a look at capital punishment for a moment. Let's go back to Genesis chapter 4. Genesis 4, verse 1, And Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bared Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the moth. And she bared again, and she again bared his brother Abel. And Abel was the keeper of sheep, but Cain was the tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the first springs of the flock, and of the flock thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering. But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect, and Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. The Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth, and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? If thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. Cain thought with Abel his brother, and it came to pass when they were in the field that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and slew him. First murder. The Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not. Am I my brother's keeper? God said, What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. Now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened thy mouth to receive thy brother's blood from my hand. When thou tearest the ground, it shall not henceforth be lumpy. Ye have sensed a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth, and from my face shall I behead. And I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth, and it shall come to pass that everyone that findeth me shall slay me. And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. That was the first murderer, wasn't it? And you know there's a tremendous lot based on what happened here. Some of the fellows are very quick to say, you know, God didn't put him on a scalpel and put a rope around his neck. No, God didn't do any such thing, that's true. And God doesn't explain to us why he didn't do it either. Doesn't tell us any reason. There are no reasons, did he? But if we want to base our arguments on what God says, I'll pick you up then. If you're prepared to base your argument there, it will suit me very well. Because I'll take you through the book of Genesis, and we're at chapter 9 now. And the flood has come, and Noah and his sons are just coming out of the ark here. And here's what God said in chapter 9 verse 1, and God blessed Noah and his sons and said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth. Sometimes, you know, people talk about sex and matrimonial affairs. Well, God said, Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth. That's what he said. And the seed of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moves upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea, into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you, even as the green herb have I given you all things. But flesh, with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall you not eat? And surely your blood of your life will I require, at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of every man, hand of man, at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. What's this we get? Whoso sheddeth man's blood by man, shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God, ne'er demand. You know, that's what God said there, isn't it? Now, a thousand years after that, one thousand years after, God is giving Israel the law. This was in the dispensation of human government here. And he's saying, whoso sheddeth man's blood by man, shall his blood be shed. That was the law for the human government area. But a thousand years after that, God's given the law to Moses. Look at number thirty-five. Book of Numbers, thirty-five. And this is God's law, isn't it? Verse twenty-nine. So these things shall be put as statute of judgment unto you throughout your generations, in all your dwellings. This is God's statute of judgment. Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses. But one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die. My God was very particular. Who won't just take one man's word against another? There will have to be witnesses. You know, we need to keep to this in everything. We need to have witnesses for all things. Some people come to me, you know, and chat to me about somebody else. I said, did you see him? No. Do you know anybody who did? No. Then I went home. Just as blunt as that. Only blather. Like the stalker row in the church, the men up in the bar. You put them in the dock, they'd have to stand the gumming. A discarrying, slanderous story. Watch this. Verse thirty-one. Moreover, ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer which is guilty of death. But he shall be surely put to death. Ye shall take no satisfaction for him that is fled to the city of refuge, that he should come again to dwell in the land until the death of the priest. So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are. For blood is the finest of lands, and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it. My God, they're very strong in this, isn't they? You know, you can't cleanse the land from the blood, only by the blood of him that shed it. And ye shall take no satisfaction for this murderer. He's got to give up his life. That's the law of God. If you want to base your arguments, that's God's law. And I tell you, when they get away with it, it's going to be trouble. Of course, they try to bring statistics up. I'll tell you some statistics. At the present moment, there are 200,000 man-killers free in the United States. 200,000 who have committed murder, and they're freedom-less. The land is flooded. My, if you let 200,000 man-killers loose, you're not doing any good, you know. 52,000 more than all the police in the United States put together. Yes. Friends, would you God that the government would recognize the higher realm, and listen to God for a moment or two? Which is what they need. For the old books never lie. And if God has given directions to cleanse the blood of the Lamb by the blood of the man that carried it, then that's God's way, and that's the best way. And then there's the point. Let's get on with it. We're back at Romans 13, and he's talking about these rulers, and the sword they bear, and the wrath that they're able to execute. And then he sums it up saying, verse 5, wherefore ye must needs be subject not only for wrath, but for conscience sake. Now, this is a tremendous word for each one of us, so I'll bring it home to us like this. It comes home to me, because I'm the offender. You know, we're not to keep up 30 miles an hour through the town, in case we get caught. That would be the wrath type. Yes, the bobbies come on you and get you, and bring you up, but you're to keep it 30 miles an hour, not for the sake of wrath, but for conscience sake. That just came home to me today. It's home to me. Not to obey the law. We're not to be subject, in case we get caught. We're to be subject because we've got a conscience, a conscience. My Paul was a great preacher. Watch this. He says, verse 6, for this cause pay ye tribute also. They're God's ministers, he says again, attempting continually onto this very thing. Render therefore to all the Jews tribute, for whom tribute, custom, for whom custom, fear, to whom fear, honor, to whom honor. You know, if they ask for a certain tax, if you wait, then it's got to be given. It's got to be paid. If you must pay custom on something, then you've got to pay. My dear friends, what wonderful teaching is here for us. And as the church of Jesus Christ, all of us, every soul here, became subject in this manner. My, even the law of the land. This is tremendous teaching. Somebody said to me the other day, if you were in the free state, standing in the crowd, and the president of the free state come past and the soldier's song was being sung, which is the national anthem, he said, would you take your hat off? Of course I would. I'd be in there long, wouldn't I? Wouldn't I be subject to the powers that be? My, there's something you're so warned, you'd never get your hat off you. And they put it around another way, said, if you were in the United States, and the president came past, and they played the Stars and Stripes, would you take your hat off? Of course you would. There's no bother then. It's your own blood that's your trouble. We're subject to the words of God into us. There's nobody giving in for potpourri or anything like that. We're only being subject unto the powers that be, no matter what lands we're in. Isn't this Bible land in the free state? If you were living in the Congo, would you apply there? The same book and it's the same truth. My, we would need to learn to be subject, that's all. Nobody giving in to potpourri or anything like that or any notion of it. So that's a tremendous truth, isn't it? It's the subjection to governmental authority. And then we come to the lovely part, and this is what I'd call the obligation, or our obligation, to practical Christianity. They say, oh, no man anything. It's very often I've just felt it like that, as if there was a full stop there, but there is no full stop there. Indeed there is not. Sin is not trying to talk about owing or not owing. Not that at all. Here's what it's saying, and I'll read it in the original. Oh, no man anything except love. That's what it says in the original. Oh, no man anything but to love one another. You know, the only debt that God allows you to be in up to the neck is love. The only debt that God allows you to be in. My, we don't need to base, oh, no man anything to get people to pay their debts. If you're not paying what you righteously owe, you're unrighteous. You're into the subjective unrighteousness. You're the non-righteous. You're not paying your debt. We're not talking like that here. We're saying, oh, no man anything but love. Oh, that we could see this. You know, I remember hearing a story of a little fellow who walked from one side of the city right through the streets on a Sunday to the other side of the city, almost eight miles every Sunday, to go to a tiny little Sunday school on the other side of the city. And somebody stopped him one day and said to him, why did you go all that way on a Sunday afternoon right across the city to the Sunday school? He said, you know what? They loved our fellow over there. They just loved him. Oh, that we could get this into our hearts tonight. You know, what God wants is for him not anything else. And the second thing is to love one another. That's practical Christianity. That's the only way that we're allowed to be in and we're never out of it. You see, he goes on to prove this. For he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, what's the commandment? Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness. Thou shalt not covet. And if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. You know, if you really love your neighbour, you don't covet anything with him. And if you really love him, you'll not tell him. And if you really love him, you'll not steal anything out of the yard. And if you really love, you'll not blemish anyone's character. Why, this wonderful thing called love. This is practical Christianity. Watch what he says here. Verse 10. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. And I'll put it on your notes, our only best is love, our only beauty is love. And the only diploma that's worth having is love. Being able to love. Love the Saviour. Love the saints, whether they're righteous or not. Love, pure love, surely. Now we come to the last wonderful truth in this very wonderful chapter. And I've called it the vision, or our vision, of dispensational responsibility. Verse 11. Paul says, and that knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. You know, that's what I call one of Paul's spiritual calculations. Then I want you to get this. You know, Paul's talking about a certain point in time. And he's saying, knowing this point of time, knowing the time, knowing that our salvation is nearer tonight than when we believed, that we must qualify this for the younger ones. You know, the day that I got wonderfully saved, thirty years ago, when I turned to the Lord Jesus and placed my trust in Him, and called on the name of the Lord, and came to Him, and believed that He wouldn't cast me out, that day I was saved. Remember the Philippian Jailer said, what must I do to be saved? False is belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, and no hope of salvation. Do you remember what we read in Romans 10? Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. I was saved that day. My soul was saved that day. Of course, you know, the Lord has been saving me every day ever since. I was not only saved, but I'm being saved. Oh, I get temptation, and there are pitfalls and snares, and the devil comes around, and the old flesh is still here, and the world's still calm, and I need to be saved every day. I was not only saved, and I'm being saved, but, you know, I have yet to be saved. This body's not to be saved. You know, the Lord's coming back. Some of you talk about coven, school, foundation. Oh, you're too soon. You're too soon. Your body's not saved. My, this body needs to be saved. And, you know, when Paul talks about this body being changed, he says, we look for the Savior who shall change this vile body like unto his glorious body. And this is the path that he's meaning here. Now is our time. You see, he believed the Lord was coming again, coming to change this vile body. My, that was the calculation of the apostle. And he says, knowing the time, oh, he knew it was nearer than he believed. Oh, James McKendrick used to say, the coming of the Lord was never as near as now. Is that right? Never was as near as now. I'm on quite safe ground saying that. That was Paul's spiritual calculation. Now, watch this. In verse 12 he says, the night is far spent, the day is at hand. You know, no one can even say this, that the early saints certainly lived in the expectation of Christ's coming. The certainty of the event was all he was told. The uncertainty of the event they knew nothing at all about. They didn't. But they were certain of the event. My, he knew the night of this old world was nearly spent, and the day of Christ's return is at hand. That was spiritual expectation, spiritual calculation, spiritual expectation. And then he says, let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light, let us walk on the streets in the day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in cambering and vauntedness, not in strife and envy. You know, this is a spiritual exercise. You know, as he calculates, as this calculation comes, the salvation is nearer than when I believed. Then this expectation comes, the night is far spent, the day is at hand, then this expectation comes, let like men who wait. And then he ended this wonderful chapter like this, but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, make not provision for the fresh to fulfill the lusts thereof. You know what he's back to when he started in chapter 12? He's back to spiritual transformation, being transformed, and the word of God figures. He wants the beauty of the Lord to pertain our actions. You know, only as we bow to the word of God, only as we allow the Spirit of God to fill and flood our souls, will that love which he talks about be flowing forth from our lives. And only as we bow to the book and are filled by Spirit, will the beauty of Jesus be seen in us. Don't you think that you can reflect the beauty of the Lord when you tread on his Word? No, you can't. You've got to be subject to the book. And if you are subject to the book, you will be filled with the Spirit and healing. There will not only be a flood tide of love for the fruit of the Spirit is love, but the world will see. Let's just be still for a moment or two, in the stillness. I want all the Christians to pray, just a wee prayer, just put it up. Ask the Lord just to bless you, to take care of you, to make you more and more and more and more like our Lord Jesus Christ, that the world may see something of the beauty of the Lord Jesus in each one of us. Lord Jesus, help us to obey thy word, at all costs. Help us to love one another at all times. Help us to accept thy coming at all moments. And may the beauty of Jesus be seen in us. Amen.