Calvary Road Baptist Church

“YOU ARE WRONG”

 

This morning’s message is devoted to your understanding of wrong, that there is such a thing as wrong, what wrong is, and where you figure with respect to doing wrong or being wrong. I begin by reading to you from Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, (New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1996), page 2112, from the listed definitions of the word wrong. The word wrong can be used in a variety of parts of speech, but the main thrust is when it is used as an adjective to refer to what is not morally right or just; sinful; wicked; immoral, not in accordance with established standard, not suitable or appropriate, or contrary to truth, fact, etc. Of course, regardless of the accepted use of the word wrong in society according to any dictionary, what is truly significant is the concept of wrong according to a correct understanding of God’s Word.

The word wrong (or wronged) appears in twenty-six verses in our English Bible, translating a variety of Hebrew words in the Old Testament, with eleven of those verses in the New Testament being the noun or verb form of a single root word, adikeo, referring to unjust or damaging conduct.[1] Closely related to this idea of wrong is the concept of repenting. To repent translates the Greek word metanoeo, meaning to change one’s mind.[2] Is not the implication recognized to be changing your mind about something because you are wrong? Allow me to quickly read portions of a number of New Testament verses, so we can agree on the underlying feature of this idea of repentance:

 

Matthew 4.17:  “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Mark 6.12:   “And they went out, and preached that men should repent.”

Luke 13.3:  “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Luke 13.5:  “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Acts 2.38:    “Then Peter said unto them, Repent. . . .”

Acts 3.19:    “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.”

Acts 8.22:    “Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.”

Acts 17.30: “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.”

Acts 26.20: “But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.”

 

Who would deny that the sinner’s need for repentance and the cries of John the Baptist, the directives of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the preaching of the apostles for sinners to repent, is directly related to the fact that sinners are wrong? Wrong about what? My assertion is wrong about everything.

Let this, then, be the introduction to this morning’s message from God’s Word about the idea of wrong, a concept that seems almost lost to this postmodern generation that abhors the notion of moral absolutes, and seems committed to the idea that what each individual wants to do, enjoys doing, and has chosen to do, is by definition right, and the only wrong that exists is the idea of anyone judging their decisions or conduct to be wrong.

That, of course, is one reason why I will never click “like” on Facebook for anyone’s status who is not where he or she should be, doing what he or she should be doing. Why do I not click “like”? Because I will not knowingly endorse someone who is doing wrong. Back to the message.

Understand that this is stuff your mom and dad should have taught you growing up.

 

First, THERE IS SUCH A THING AS WRONG

 

My insistence on the reality of wrong is based upon my philosophical starting point, the Word of God. I admit to you that sometime prior to the late night of March 31, 1974, I began to operate on the assumption that the Bible is true. I cannot prove that it is true, yet I have searched high and low for forty years and have found no one who has proven to me that it is false. Many claim that it is an unreliable guide, including beloved family members and longtime friends. However, they refuse to discuss the matter with me, merely insisting without supporting evidence that they are right and I am wrong. Interesting, is it not, that those who are adamant that the Bible is untrustworthy are also adamant that there no such absolute as the integrity of God’s Word? Since the Bible is not to be trusted with one’s soul and then one’s life (they claim by their refusal to do so themselves), how is it that they are so insistent that there is no such thing as wrong, except for the wrongness of those who like me insist there is wrong?

Please understand that I used to believe like they believe. I used to embrace the notion that wrong was only in the mind of the person who disagreed with me. However, I discovered that I was wrong, and that just as 4 + 4 does not equal 7 or even 9, and the person who indicates on a test that 4 + 4 is anything other than 8 is wrong, so too there is wrong with respect to things not mathematical. How do I know? I looked it up in the Bible, where I observed this to be wrong, that to be wrong, him to be wrong, as well as her being wrong.

In Genesis alone I could see that Eve was wrong, Adam was wrong, the serpent was wrong, Cain was wrong, Lamech was wrong, the human race was wrong, Noah was wrong, Abraham was wrong, Isaac was wrong, Ishmael was wrong, Jacob was wrong, Esau was wrong, Rebekah was wrong, Leah and Rachel were wrong. Wrong exists, and to deny the existence of wrong is . . . wrong. Who would argue with that, except someone who is . . . wrong?

 

Next, THERE IS SUCH A THING AS WRONG BECAUSE THERE IS SUCH A THING AS RIGHT

 

Oh, I know physicists claim there are infinitesimally small particles that are supposed to be mono polar magnets, but I seriously doubt their claims. It is like a map that has a West side but no East side, a planet that has a North pole but is without a South pole, or the concept of up that is absent any down. There is a wrong because there is a right, with wrong being any deviation from the right. If there is such a thing as wrong because there is such a thing as right, what is the origin of right? Is there an origin of right? Does right have a beginning? No, it does not. Right is what God is and God has always been. If God has always been, and since He is right there has always been right, what can be said about wrong? Wrong did have a beginning.

When God initially began to perform His creative acts, I am persuaded He first created the angelic host, who were witnesses of His creation of this physical universe and all that herein is.[3] He then created a pristine and morally undefiled universe in six literal days.[4] As I understand the scriptures, it was sometime after the creation of Adam and Eve that Lucifer sinned against God and enticed one-third of the angelic host to follow him in his rebellion.[5] Lucifer, usually referred to in God’s Word following his sin against God as Satan, the Devil, is the first author of wrong, and he became the author of wrong when he deviated from the right, the cheerful compliance with God’s will for his life. Then, when he made use of the serpent to tempt Eve in the Garden of Eden, he introduced wrong to the human race, when she succumbed to his deceit and ate the forbidden fruit, and then gave to Adam and he did eat.[6]

Thus, wrong is a derivative, a deviation, a decay, a deterioration, a departure from that which is right.

 

Third, THERE IS SUCH A THING AS WRONG BECAUSE THERE IS SUCH A BEING AS GOD

 

There is wrong because there was first right, and the denial by some people of the existence of wrong is also implicitly a denial by those same people that there is right. Ultimately, of course, to deny that wrong is wrong eventually leads one to deny the existence of God. How is this so? Recognize that it all stands or falls together. If there is no wrong, then there is no right. Wrong is a deviation from the right, a departure from the right. If there is no wrong, then there is either no deviation from right or no right to deviate from. Are we as a race so morally pure that we are agreed about none of us ever having done wrong? Hardly. Thus, we do not question that we have deviated, so some among us challenge the notion that there is right to deviate from. However, it is also true that if there is no right to deviate from, there can be no God. But there is wrong. Those who insist there is no wrong are themselves the strongest at asserting how wrong it is to disagree with them. While denying there is wrong, they aggressively insist that anyone who disagrees with them is wrong. Incredible.

Why would they so blatantly oppose reality, by insisting the opposite of what they know to be true? Why work so hard pretending there is no such thing as wrong, when it is obvious there is wrong, and therefore there is also right? It is because (and this is really why wicked sinners want to deny the existence of wrong and their culpability in wrongdoing), if there is wrong, then there is right, and that absolutely demands the existence of God. Why do those who deny wrong want to deny God? Because they like doing wrong, they like the pleasure and excitement of wrong, they prefer the rebellion against authority of wrong, yet they do not want the aroused conscience of guilt for doing wrong, or the fear of certain consequences for wrongdoing at the hand of God. So, pretend He is not real. Or, pretend He is not important. Or even, pretend He is not terrible in majesty.

 

Fourth, IT IS WRONG TO BE WRONG

 

Reasonable people admit there is such a thing as wrong. Reasonable people also recognize that the existence of wrong demands the existence of right. And, of course, the existence of wrong shows the existence of God, since wrong is essentially and ultimately contrary to His goodness and His will. I speak of God’s goodness and God’s will because God is sovereign, meaning He has the absolute right and prerogative of seeing His will fulfilled, and also because God is good, as the Savior described Him in Mark 10.18, with the Greek word for good, agathos, referring to that which is useful and beneficial.[7]

To be wrong, then, violates God’s will, in that it seeks to contradict His sovereignty. To be wrong also betrays God’s goodness, by challenging the usefulness of complying with His will or the benefit of complying with His will. You can see how wrong it is, then, to depart from God’s will and God’s goodness by engaging in wrongdoing of any kind. To do wrong, which is to say to oppose God in any way or to depart from His will for any reason, is tantamount to setting yourself up as god, demonstrating that you think you have the right, the authority, the wisdom, and the prerogative to act like you are God’s equal.

You see how wrong it is, then, to be wrong. It is so insulting to God. When Satan tempted Eve by saying “ye shall be as gods” (notice that he was actually after Adam as well as Eve), he was enticing her with the temptation to be wrong, to be autonomous, to depart from God’s will for her life, with the suggestion that she would be her own god. My friend, that is wrong. It is wrong to be wrong. There are consequences to being wrong, but that is another sermon.

 

Fifth, IT IS WRONG TO BE SILENT ABOUT WRONG

 

It is clearly wrong to be wrong, wrong to do wrong. However, it is not so clear to some that it is also wrong to observe wrong being committed without speaking against it, without decrying it, without opposing it, without showing yourself to be on the side of right in opposition to wrong. Some people actually believe neutrality is possible. Others believe neutrality is preferable. Moms and dads should teach their children that such thinking and such acting is wrong. Yet still others are of the opinion that speaking against wrong is itself wrong unless there is nothing wrong in or about the one who would speak against wrong. They will say such things as, “Judge not lest ye be judged,” or “People in glass houses should not through stones.”

May I point out that it is not hypocrisy to speak against wrong without being yourself perfect? I know this to be true because the Lord Jesus Christ directed us to address wrong, as did the Apostle Paul, all the while knowing that none of us is perfect.[8] No one stands against wrong because he is perfectly right, but because he has been told by His Savior and by the Word of God to speak against wrong done to him or wrong that he observes. Is it hypocrisy to comply with someone’s directive? No, it is not. Is it hypocrisy to do what you are told to do? No, it is not. Neither is it hypocritical to speak out against wrong. It is right to speak against wrong, even if you are not perfect.

Who thinks you have no business cleaning the kitchen until you have first taken a shower? Who opposes doing laundry when he is sweaty from yard work because he is convinced no one who is not clean has any right to wash clothes? What kind of fool thinks he has no business reporting a bank robbery in progress because he once took a candy bar without paying for it?

Edmund Burke was absolutely correct when he wrote, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”[9] May I paraphrase? Wrong prevails when no one speaks against it. Speaking against wrong does not require that you be in every way right. It is your responsibility as a mother or a father, and even as a citizen and as a Christian.

 

Finally, YOU ARE WRONG, HAVE ALWAYS BEEN WRONG, AND CAN ONLY BE WRONG, SO LONG AS YOU ARE NOT A CHRISTIAN

 

Understand that when one becomes a Christian he has admitted he is wrong, First John 1.9. When one is a Christian he is admitting he is wrong, also First John 1.9. The child of God lives in a world of people who are all wrong, but they refuse to admit they are wrong, refuse to acknowledged their wrongdoing, while the believer in Jesus Christ relies completely on the Savior to be right for him.

There are two words in the New Testament that convey the idea of sinfulness, with one word meaning to transgress or overstep a boundary and the other word having to do with the failure to measure to a standard. Hamartano, Romans 3.23, “All have sinned,” is the common word for committing a wrong.[10] Paraptoma, Ephesians 1.7, “the forgiveness of sins,” referring to violations of moral standards.[11] What I have been speaking to you about this morning, wrong, encompasses both of those concepts. You were conceived wrong. You were born wrong. You grew up wrong. It is likely that the decisions you have made throughout your life have been rather obviously wrong. And if your parents claim to be Christians, it is appropriate that a significant portion of their parenting involve telling you, showing you, and teaching you how wrong you are most of the time.

If your parents do not spend a great deal of time showing you that you are wrong (in a tender and loving way, it should go without saying, and not by browbeating you), you will grow up thinking there is no such thing as wrong, believing no one has a right to tell you at any point that you are wrong, and that you are your own god who has the right to decide for yourself what you will and will not do, with no consequences for being wrong awaiting you at the hand of God. However you were raised, do you not grasp the significance of your wrong? Because you are wrong and cannot be right, Jesus Christ left heaven’s glory, was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died a sacrificial death, rose from the dead, and is presently enthroned in glory. Insist that you are not wrong and you are claiming (in a round about way) that the suffering and dying of Jesus Christ on the cross was meaningless and that you have no need of Him.

Wrong. You are wrong, my unsaved friend. You were born wrong, you have lived wrong, and you will die wrong, unless you by admitting you are wrong come to faith in Jesus Christ to be right on your behalf. For more than forty years I have enjoyed the blessedness and privileges of being right, though I am only right by virtue of my faith in Christ. I sincerely desire that same blessedness and those same privileges for you.

 

You were wrong for missing church, and someone needs to tell you that you were wrong. You were wrong for dressing immodestly and flaunting your body, and someone needs to tell you that you were wrong. You were wrong for consuming beverage alcohol and by other means getting high, and someone needs to tell you that you were wrong. It is tragic if you have been raised by parents so negligent that you did not hear them constantly correcting you, constantly teaching you, constantly reminding you, and constantly rebuking you for wrongdoing. It breaks my heart to hear of parents so foolish as to expend effort to boost the self-esteem of their children, even when the child is wrong.

It is wrong to have a high self-esteem, since Job, Isaiah, and the Apostle Paul saw the wisdom of a low self-esteem after their encounters with God.[12] I feel so very sorry for children whose parents are more concerned about not making their kids angry with them than preparing them for a gospel encounter by underscoring to them the sobering truth that they are not right with God, as their actions so frequently reveal.

I grieve for you if your parents did not teach you right and wrong, at least to some degree. I grieve for you if you were not taught, shown, exampled, rebuked, yes and spanked when it was needed, so that you would grow up to know in some way that you are wrong, perhaps making you more open to the good news than you otherwise would be that Jesus Christ can make it right for you with God. However, what is past is past. You are on your own now. At some point, you will either accept the Bible as true and hopefully respond to its grand message, or you refuse the Bible and seal your fate forever. I urge you to do your own thinking, and to evaluate the reality and the nature of God and His Word, so that you will seriously consider the claims made about Jesus Christ, and so that you will respond to them by trusting Him.

Mom? Are you wrong? Dad? Are you wrong? Wrong for never (or almost never) showing to your children their wrongness before God. Wrong for allowing them to grow up thinking all with them was right when the reality is that all with them is wrong. Perhaps, even if you are a Christian, you might want to reflect a bit and consider telling your child, “I was wrong for not convincingly showing you that you are wrong. Will you please forgive me?” Children should be raised in an atmosphere of love and tenderness, protection and prayer. However, no one can read God’s Word without realizing that children are wrong, born wrong, and grow up wrong. “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child.” What great grace and wisdom parents must acquire from God to raise children to feel loved, valued, cherished, liked, and at the same time for them to be taught that they are wrong, completely wrong, helplessly wrong, hopelessly wrong, and in need of a Savior.

I am so glad God gives Christians the grace to be humble, that we might admit we are wrong, that we might reclaim our children.

 

wrong

Ge 16:5       And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between me and thee.

Ex 2:13        And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow?

De 19:16     If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;

Jg 11:27      Wherefore I have not sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me: the LORD the Judge be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.

1Ch 12:17  And David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, mine heart shall be knit unto you: but if ye be come to betray me to mine enemies, seeing there is no wrong in mine hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it.

1Ch 16:21  He suffered no man to do them wrong: yea, he reproved kings for their sakes,

Es 1:16        And Memucan answered before the king and the princes, Vashti the queen hath not done wrong to the king only, but also to all the princes, and to all the people that are in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus.

Job 19:7      Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry aloud, but there is no judgment.

Ps 105:14   He suffered no man to do them wrong: yea, he reproved kings for their sakes;

Jer 22:3       Thus saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.

Jer 22:13     Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;

La 3:59        O LORD, thou hast seen my wrong: judge thou my cause.

Hab 1:4       Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.

Mt 20:13      But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?

Ac 7:24        And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:

Ac 7:26        And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?

Ac 7:27        But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

Ac 18:14     And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you:

Ac 25:10     Then said Paul, I stand at Caesar's judgment seat, where I ought to be judged: to the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest.

1Co 6:7       Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?

1Co 6:8       Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.

2Co 7:12     Wherefore, though I wrote unto you, I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered wrong, but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear unto you.

2Co 12:13   For what is it wherein ye were inferior to other churches, except it be that I myself was not burdensome to you? forgive me this wrong.

Col 3:25      But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.

 

 

wronged

 

2Co 7:2       Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man.

Phm 18       If he hath wronged thee, or oweth thee ought, put that on mine account;

 

 

repent

 

Ex 13:17     And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt:

Ex 32:12     Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

Nu 23:19     God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

De 32:36     For the LORD shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left.

1Sa 15:29   And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

1Ki 8:47      Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;

Job 42:6      Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.

Ps 90:13     Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.

Ps 110:4     The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.

Ps 135:14   For the LORD will judge his people, and he will repent himself concerning his servants.

Jer 4:28       For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

Jer 18:8       If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.

Jer 18:10     If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.

Jer 26:3       If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.

Jer 26:13     Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the LORD your God; and the LORD will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you.

Jer 42:10     If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.

Eze 14:6     Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

Eze 18:30   Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.

Eze 24:14   I the LORD have spoken it: it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord GOD.

Joe 2:14      Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?

Jon 3:9        Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

Mt 3:2          And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mt 4:17        From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mr 1:15        And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

Mr 6:12        And they went out, and preached that men should repent.

Lu 13:3        I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

Lu 13:5        I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

Lu 16:30     And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

Lu 17:3        Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.

Lu 17:4        And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.

Ac 2:38        Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Ac 3:19        Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Ac 8:22        Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

Ac 17:30     And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

Ac 26:20     But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

2Co 7:8       For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season.

Heb 7:21     (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:)

Re 2:5         Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Re 2:16       Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

Re 2:21       And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.

Re 2:22       Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.

Re 3:3         Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

Re 3:19       As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.



[1] Bauer, Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, (Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), page 20.

[2] Ibid., page 640.

[3] The angelic host described in Job 38.1-7 as “morning stars” and “sons of God” in this poetic passage describing God’s creation of the physical universe.

[4] As evidence by God’s appraisal of His creation being “very good,” Genesis 1.31.

[5] Isaiah 14.12-15; Ezekiel 28.11-18; Revelation 12.3-4

[6] Genesis 3.1-6; 1 Timothy 2.14

[7] Bauer, pages 3-4.

[8] Matthew 18.15; Galatians 6.1

[9] http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/edmundburk377528.html#c0K7zs4imGL0bhdp.99

[10] Bauer, pages 49-50.

[11] Ibid., page 770.

[12] Job 42.6; Isaiah 6.5; Romans 7.18

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Pastor@CalvaryRoadBaptist.Church