Episode Transcript
Good morning.
It's no longer 10 o'clock, so we better get moving here.
Thank you for joining us in the auditorium and by way of the internet for our continuing study in the book of Job.
And we're going to be in chapter 5 and verse 4 this morning.
Job chapter 5 and verse 4.
And I would like to go ahead and just read, since we've been in verse 3 and verse 4 for several weeks, I want to read verses 1 through 4 again, just to remind you of our context.
Where Eliphaz, Job's friend, sitting with him in the pile of ashes, and with Job having Boils from head to toe and having suffered the loss of his children, all but four of his servants, his cattle, quite devi a lot of devastation.
And so Eliphaz says in response to Job's words in the prior chapters: Call now, if there be any that will answer thee, and to which of the saints wilt thou turn?
For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.
I have seen the foolish taking root, but suddenly I cursed his habitation.
His children are far from safety, and they are crushed in the gate, neither is there any to deliver them.
And so that's where we are this morning in verse 4.
And last week we learned That the foolish man, the children of the foolish man, are far from safety and are therefore crushed in the gate. and they're destroyed in any kind of judgment they faced.
And we looked at a few different types of judgment.
The gate about which we studied was an earthly gate.
One at which people gathered, and we looked at some passages that show the different reasons people gathered at the gate.
People passed through the gate to get in and out of a city.
There were civil and criminal cases that were judged in the gate.
And today we're going to begin by looking at another gate.
And this is a gate that will also crush the children of the foolish man.
If you're taking notes, write down Matthew chapter 7, verses 13 through 14.
Matthew 7 verses 13 through 14 where Jesus said and this is in the Sermon on the Mount Chapters 5, 6, and 7 in Matthew are the Sermon on the Mount.
So he's talking to his disciples.
He said, Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate.
And broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat, because straight is the gate And narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
So in that passage Jesus spoke of two gates.
One that leads to life and one that leads to destruction.
And to get to those gates, there was a particular way or a road somebody took.
And one was a broad way.
That was the popular way.
That's the way most people go.
And the other was the narrow way.
So the narrow way leads to the narrow gate.
That word straight, S-T-R-A-I-T in English means narrow.
It doesn't necessarily mean straight, S-T-R-A-I-G-H-T.
A straight gate in that respect could be very wide, but in the Bible, that word means narrow.
And we learned that the word destruction in our text back in Job meant to break into pieces.
So, in the Matthew passage, in the Sermon on the Mount, That destruction of which Jesus speaks is even more severe.
It's not just a physical, earthly crushing to pieces.
That word destruction in the Greek language means perdition, damnation, perishing.
So at that gate, that gate of destruction where the lost sinner arrives In this passage that Jesus is giving us here, at that gate, the sinner.
Would hope to be simply crushed physically and then just vanish.
Now that's what the atheist believes happens.
Is you just they don't believe in these gates at all, but they believe you come to the end of the road, you die, and that's it.
Your ashes or your body go to the earth, and there is nothing after that.
And that's a you know, that actually takes faith to believe something like that.
And that's a terrible thing to come to, is to come to a place where You say, well, there's nothing after this.
And especially if somebody's had a really hard life, if they've had a miserable life, maybe they've been poor.
Maybe they've been A disease, they've lost all their loved ones, they got fired from their job, whatever it might be, and then they die, and there's no hope for them afterward.
That's an awful place to be.
But that's Where the lost center arrives is that gate that leads to destruction.
Now remember Those unbelievers who were on that way, who arrive at that gate, particularly the religious ones, believed that they were on a path that led to life.
Now you ask the average religious person, do you think you're going to go to heaven when you die?
Well, I think so.
Well, I mean, I've never killed anybody.
Well, that's a great start.
Most people have never killed anybody.
There's a limited number of people who've done that.
And so they'll believe that they're on their right way.
They believe it right now.
But to their dismay and then to their horror.
When they arrive at the gate they thought would be the gate that leads to life, that's the wide gate, that's the broad way, and it leads to destruction.
They're at the wrong gate for life.
They're at the gate that crushes, not the gate that gives life.
And right here, I'm going to address a heresy.
It's an error that many people repeat, and one that I believe originated with the Catholic Church.
Now this is a quote from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
In their words, It says, it is disputed whether the image of the keys, talking about the keys of the kingdom, and that of binding and loosing are different metaphors meaning the same thing.
In any case, the promise of the keys is given to Peter alone.
They further say in Matthew 18:18, all disciples are given the power of binding and loosing.
But the context of that verse suggests that the power of excommunication alone is intended.
That the keys are those to the kingdom of heaven, and that Peter's exercise of authority in the church on earth will be confirmed in heaven.
Show an intimate connection between, but not an identification of, the church and the kingdom of heaven.
Now, that's a lot of highbrow language right there, isn't it?
Everybody got lost in the first sentence.
That's fine.
And there are all kinds of doctrinal problems with that section that I read you.
But the one I want to address here Because we're talking about a gate, is the Catholic bishop's position about Peter being the lone disciple to whom the keys of the kingdom were given.
Now, having a key suggests that you have to open something, doesn't it?
Like a gate or a door.
But first, I want to read you the passage that the Catholic bishops were referring to in their statement.
They didn't specifically name it, but they were talking about it.
And that was Matthew 16, verses 18 through 20.
Not Matthew 18, 18, they mention that one too, but Matthew 16, verses 18 through 20.
And this is where they get the Catholics get the heresy that Peter was the first pope.
Jesus said to Peter, this is him talking to Peter, and I say also unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
And whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Listen to this.
Then charged he his disciples, as plural, that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.
And that was for that limited time period.
Nowhere in that passage did we read where Jesus took Peter aside and gave him a special authority that he did not give the other disciples.
And that's the assumption that the Catholic Church makes.
It doesn't say he gave the keys of the kingdom only to Peter.
Jesus was simply addressing.
Peter's proclamation there in verse 16, where Peter said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And so it's the reason it's clear to me that Jesus is not speaking only to Peter, but to all the disciples who were there, is that Phrase, he charged his disciples.
He had disciples, plural, in front of him.
But from the Catholic bishop's interpretation of Matthew 16, verses 18 through 20, and then Matthew 18, 18.
They carry on this belief that Peter was the first Pope.
And from that heresy, And this is what I'm getting to here.
From that heresy, many people have this belief that Peter is going to meet them at the gates of heaven.
Decide whether or not they can enter into heaven.
Now, how many of you have heard that before at some point in your life?
Man, look at those hands.
And this is in a Baptist church.
And maybe some of you on the internet have heard that.
Before two.
Maybe somebody jokingly says, Well, I'm about to go to the Pearlie Gates and meet Peter.
No, you're not.
You're not going to meet Peter at the Pearlie Gates.
And it's very important that we have a biblical understanding of the gates Jesus was referring to in Matthew 7, which I read a few moments ago.
If you think about what Jesus said in that passage, he was teaching about two gates, not just one.
And Jesus very frequently taught through object lessons.
The fig tree.
He used that as an object lesson.
And he taught through metaphors that help us understand these deep spiritual truths.
He taught those because We wouldn't be able to understand them if he didn't teach us that way.
He used agricultural examples.
He used master-servant relationship examples, construction examples, and several others.
Now, here is the image many people have of heaven's gate.
They imagine that when they die, they're going to stand in this long line of departed souls.
Kind of like when Raising Kane's chicken opened up, there's people around the block.
And they imagine that they're going to wait on their turn to see Peter.
Who they believe will decide whether they get to get in the gates of heaven or not.
And the assumption there of those people would be that there are both saved and lost people there.
They just don't know which one they are.
They're just in the line hoping to get in that gate.
And at that gate, they suppose they will meet with St.
Peter.
And that they'll have to make some kind of case as to why he should let them enter into the gate.
Now, that thought alone is blasphemous.
When the thief on the cross believed on Jesus, he believed the truth about Jesus.
And because he believed the truth about Jesus, Jesus said to him, This day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
Jesus did not say, Well, friend, I appreciate you saying that, but you realize you're going to have to check with Peter to see if he'll open that gate because I gave him the only key that I have to the kingdom.
Now, the Catholics and many other religions would have trouble with this thief on the cross.
Lots of religions have trouble with the thief on the cross.
Because they either preach works for salvation, and that thief had none to give.
His last act was to just bleed out on the cross.
He couldn't go down and do anything.
He also couldn't go down and get baptized in water.
He believed the record that God gave of his son.
Jesus said, This day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
And those people who believe in baptismal regeneration, which means you've got to go underwater to be saved, and then you might have to go under again and go under again.
Or the people who believe you've got to do a certain number of works, and then maybe you'll make it, and maybe you won't.
They have a lot of trouble with the thief on the cross.
They do.
And they say, well, how could a sinful man like that be spared from hell and granted immediate entry into paradise with Jesus?
The Catholics had put him in purgatory for a while.
Which there's no such thing.
And that's another false doctrine that that church created, by the way.
Friend, the keys to the kingdom.
Are found in the truth of God's Word, specifically the gospel.
The key to going to heaven And being in the presence of the Lord is not found in Peter's hand, but in your faith in the gospel.
So when Jesus gave the keys of the kingdom to the disciples, he was entrusting them with the gospel.
That's the key.
He would die.
He would be buried.
He'd be raised again.
He'd be seen by over 500 men.
And then go to his father's right hand.
He preached the gospel of the kingdom of God while he was on earth.
And by it, those who believed were saved.
He left the keys of the kingdom, the truth of God's word, with his disciples, and they preached it.
And by it, those who believed were saved.
The apostles preached it.
And the church has preached it.
And the true church is still preaching it.
And guess what?
By it, mankind is saved, those who will believe it.
We have the keys of the kingdom.
Did you know that?
We don't need the blessing of the Pope to forgive our sins.
He can't do it in the first place.
We don't need to stand in line or think we're going to stand in line waiting on our appointment with Peter when we die.
We have the blood of the Savior, the Lamb of God, the same one who said, This day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
And that is your promise as well.
And when our bodies are resurrected, they're going to be changed, and we're going to be caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
And if we are in him, the Bible says, therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.
If we are in him, How would we ever have to wait at some gate hoping that a saved sinner like Peter would let us in?
So the gate that will crush the children of the fool is not the one that leads to life.
And it's far worse than the gate of an earthly city where criminals are tried and convicted or where lawsuits are decided.
Now I'll read you another passage about a gate.
Jesus said in Luke 13 verses 24 through 27 Luke 13, 24 through 27.
Now Jesus was speaking to the people, and he said, Strive to enter in at the straight gate.
For many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in and shall not be able.
When once the master of the house has risen up and has shut to the door, And ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us.
And he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are.
Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets.
But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are.
Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.
Now, here you have a little bit different thing being taught.
Jesus isn't teaching about two gates here.
So don't get confused there.
I'll explain it just a little bit.
The workers of iniquity in that passage.
Are the same as the children of the foolish in our text.
In fact, that's who they are: they're the children of the foolish.
And in the gate where they think they might find safety, also called a door.
He uses the word door there as well.
They're going to be crushed.
They're going to be turned away.
And to be turned away from the life gate is to perish, isn't it?
And that's why Jesus came to die for sinners.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.
That is the person who's at the life gate and who is granted entrance not because of Peter, but because of the blood of Jesus Christ upon whom they believed.
And in the gate where these children of the fools, where the unbelievers think they're going to find safety, they're going to be turned away.
Now, what could be more crushing than for Jesus to tell a fool, Depart from me, I never knew you.
There's nothing, there are no words that could ever be said that are worse than that for you to hear.
How terrible is it to think that you're safe, but that you're actually far from safety?
But the foolish in this world, especially the religious ones, think they find safety because they went to church.
Or tried to live right, or never kill anyone, or depended on other works or other things they didn't do in the flesh.
And in none of these will the sinner find safety, and he will be crushed in the gate if that's what he's depending on.
So, to avoid confusing this.
Passage here in Luke that speaks of a gate or a door with the one in Matthew that spoke of two gates in two ways.
I'm of the opinion that the Luke passage I just read you deals with people who have realized too late. the gate which they should strive to enter in.
They realize it too late.
Oh, I went to the wrong gate.
Well, let me go over here to this one.
That's the image that I believe is taught here.
And it's too late.
That would be a picture of the man in hell, the rich man who died and went to hell and lifted up his eyes in torment.
And what was one of the things that he all of a sudden believed?
He all of a sudden believed that the gospel was true.
It was too late for him.
Because he said, Go and tell my brothers so they don't come to this awful place.
And Abram, in this vision, said, They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them.
Just like you had Moses and the prophets, and you should have listened to, but you didn't.
But now, all of a sudden, it's interesting to you, the gospel.
Let me tell you, the gospel is going to be very interesting to people who go to hell.
They're going to be quite interested in it because they're going to realize that was the way of salvation.
And I said, no.
I didn't go down that way or to that gate.
I went the way that everybody else goes, the way that the world goes, and that was the death gate.
So, in the Luke 13 passage, I believe the people have just realized too late which gate they should have gone into.
They had taken the way.
If you want to tie that passage with the one from Matthew that had the two gates and the two ways, the people in the Luke 13 passage had taken the way that leads to destruction.
And upon learning of their punishment, they thought, well, maybe we can still get in through the straight gate.
It's already been closed.
The door has been shut.
But in the Luke passage, the believers had all entered in and the gate was closed behind them.
It's not like heaven was too full, so Jesus closed the door and said, Well, the fire marshal might come by.
We can't have any more than this in here.
No.
Because Jesus will not lose even one of his sheep, not one.
Romans chapter 9, verses 27 through 28.
Romans 9, 27 through 28, Esaias, which is the rendering of Isaiah, the prophet Isaiah, Esaias also crieth concerning Israel.
Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved.
For he will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness.
Now, there's that, that gates, that door's closed.
Cut it short in righteousness, because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth.
So when God cuts the work short, it won't be because he ran out of time, it won't be because heaven was too full.
It will be based upon his righteousness.
It won't be based upon the heaven's gate cult who said, Well, It's going to happen here, or the one in Garland back in the 90s, that fellow said, Well, on March the 30th of that year, the world's going to end, and Jesus is going to come.
And none of that happened.
It'll be based upon God's righteousness.
What did Jesus say about the time when that'll happen?
He said, nobody knows, just my Father.
My Father which is in heaven.
So I think the Matthew chapter 7 passage deals with those who took the wrong way and did not go to the life gate, and the Luke passage deals with the lakecomers, the ones who think, well, I'll go to the life gate now that I'm in the lake of fire.
Maybe God will let me go to the life gate.
A foolish notion at that.
And I'm not dogmatic on that being the case.
Full explanation of that passage there, but I believe it's at least reasonable to consider that.
And just to button up something that may not be clear here: the Greek word for gate.
Also, it has the idea of access to any place.
So let's broaden our minds a little bit here.
If you think about a wall or a border that surrounds a city, I got one better.
Since we're all East Texans here, how about a fence that goes around a pasture?
A five-strand barbed wire fence pulled tight between cedar posts?
Corner post every so often.
Now, if you wanted to, you could access that pasture by that fence.
And I know all you men are spiritual.
You've never done this.
You've never stuck your foot on one barbed wire and pushed the other one up and got up under it.
You wouldn't dare do that to a man's fence.
You'd probably want to go to the gate, wouldn't you?
But you could access that pasture through that barbed wire fence.
You could access a city through the wall.
But you'd have to bust it down or climb over it to get there.
You'd have to make a hole in it in order to access it.
So, in that respect, the The word gate has to do with access.
It has to do with the borders that surround a particular area.
So it's not always just the entrance place that we would think of when we think of the word gate.
In fact, I remember our pastor teaching on the gates of hell that I actually read that to you a moment ago in Matthew 16.
And this was during a verse-by-verse study in Matthew many years ago.
I think it was 10, 12 years ago.
And then we learned that the gates of hell were the borders of hell.
And you could try to access the the city by going through or over a wall.
And if you took the path that led you to the wall of the city, then you'd most likely be unable to enter the city unless you did something to the wall.
A tower guard might tell you, you've come the wrong way.
This is not how you get in.
You've got to go over there.
Then I reckon we could spend some more time here.
I'm certainly tempted to, but let's move on.
Job chapter 5, verse 4, 2, the final phrase of that verse, speaking of the children of the foolish man who are crushed in the gate, far from safety, it says, look back in your text, neither is there any to deliver them.
Now, if being crushed in the gate and being far from safety is not bad enough.
Imagine that there is no deliverer.
You know, if you were out in the woods, let's say you were on the bank of the Red River and You stepped into some quicksand and it started swallowing you up real slowly.
Would you just stand there and go, Well, I guess I'm about to drown in quicksand.
Oh, you'd be clawing and scratching and trying to get out, and at some point, what would you do?
You'd be calling for help.
You'd be screaming at the top of your lungs for somebody to help you.
And what if you knew there's nobody around?
There's nobody who can help me.
That'd be a terrible feeling, wouldn't it?
And that's the case of the one who is crushed in the gate.
There is none to deliver him.
And not only do these children of the fools who are crushed in the gate think they were in a place of safety.
But they also thought they would have a deliverer once they found out they were far from safety.
Now, for a citizen of a country The place of safety is the law.
It's in the law.
If you obey the law, then you should be safe from the punishment.
Inflicted by the ministers of justice, the judicial system.
And whenever your sibling or maybe a fellow student Was being punished for misbehavior.
Did you ever say to yourself, Boy, I'm glad that wasn't me?
I'm glad I didn't do that.
I sure have.
Back before timeouts, by the way.
Your place of safety Was in obeying your parents' rules or the rules of the school.
I never was afraid of getting in trouble if I was obeying the rules.
Now ideally, a criminal should have no place of safety when he's broken the law.
In fact, that's the way our legal system Was designed.
If you take the Ten Commandments, there's not a place of safety for a criminal who breaks the law.
And if you take even down to the Texas Penal Code.
Which has the law.
It doesn't have all the laws.
There are different codes.
There's the health and safety code, business code, commerce code.
The the water safety code there's all kinds of codes, but then they all have laws in them.
But the law itself Isn't designed to provide safety for the criminal.
It's designed to exclude the offender of all hope.
In fact, the Code of Criminal Procedure says that.
That is designed to exclude the offender from all hope.
Of getting by with whatever it was he did.
That's the inference there.
So let me get down to where the rubber meets the road when it comes to our criminal justice system.
I've been working in the criminal justice business for over 38 years.
I've been a street cop, an investigator.
Private practitioner who dealt with all manner of criminals.
And I have a lot of experience in the investigative side, the defense side, the prosecution side.
The courts, the probation, parole, and just about every other facet of the judicial system you could imagine.
And I'm going to deal with one crime that's pretty near and dear to my heart.
It's a terrible thing that happens, and it's the case of driving while intoxicated.
Because chances are, every one of us in here has been affected by that in some way or another.
Maybe you've just had your mailbox run over on a Saturday night and thought, who did that?
That was probably a drum.
And our law says that the first offense of DWI carries a maximum penalty of 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.
Now I have never in 38 years seen anyone get anywhere close to 180 days in jail for their first DWI.
And that's because our state laws have been softened by other laws that allow courts to grant probation to most offenders, in fact.
So the offender gets to avoid a jail sentence, avoid having a conviction on his record because he's put on probation.
Now, that offender should have found no safety in the law.
He should have found no safety in the judicial system that is supposed to prosecute and adjudicate.
That offense.
But in our example, here he's on probation and he's got a list of rules he's supposed to follow in order to remain a free man.
He's got to pay certain fees.
He can't drink alcohol or use drugs.
He's not supposed to commit any other crimes.
Imagine having to say that to somebody who's got arrested.
Now, don't do anything else illegal, but all that's in there.
And in my experience, most DWI probationers violate their probation by drinking alcohol, the very thing that got them into trouble in the first place.
And you might think, aha, well, then the judge puts them in jail for 180 days.
No, he doesn't.
No, they get a slap on the wrist with some little wimpy sanction.
And they continue with their probation.
Now, do you know what would happen if that offender was sentenced to 180 days in jail for his first offense?
He would be less likely to do it again.
You might think, boy, that's severe.
That's not nearly as severe as that offender running head on into a tree and killing himself or killing a family of four.
Punishment has a deterrent effect.
It doesn't provide safety from the law.
And from punishment, there should be none to deliver the offender.
And you might say, well, shouldn't we reserve the maximum sentence, 180 days, for the repeat offender rather than the first timer?
Again, I say nope because the law, if it is followed, already takes care of that problem If you get convicted a second time for a DWI in this state, you can go to jail for up to a year.
Now, that's double the first one.
You can pay up to a $4,000 fine.
Guess what is supposed to happen for the third conviction?
Penitentiary, prison, up to ten years, ten thousand dollar fine.
You see how that works?
I promise you, in a well-secured jail, those DWI offenders will not be drinking alcohol.
That's one thing that'll happen.
They will dry out, and I mean they'll dry out for a long time.
And that's the only time you can get their attention, by the way.
And I bet you there are people in here who've tried to deal with people who are alcoholics, tried to witness to them, and you just can't tell them anything.
It just goes in one air and out the other, but they will dry up in that jail.
The very law that is supposed to punish the offenders has provided a place of safety for them.
And the judges and the juries who deliver them to punish or deliver them from punishment are Delivering them to the safety of the law when there should be no safety in the law.
It's just insanity.
Now, for a Christian, the place of safety is Jesus.
In your own flesh, in your own unbelief, you are neither safe in Jesus nor safe from his judgment.
You're far from safety no matter what the popular preachers tell you.
Read your Bible.
Let God's word. .
Tell you how to be in safety.
And you know what?
In Jesus, you don't ever have to holler and scream for Jesus.
You don't have to make a big show and a big to-do and wave your hands around and beg Jesus to save you, as some people think that you have to do.
He's there.
All you have to do is believe the record God gave of His Son.
And then you'll never be far from safety.
As the children of the foolish are.
The gate will be a place of comfort.
That straight gate and that narrow way that leads to life, that'll be a place of comfort for you.
But if not, because you already have admission, you've believed the one who is the keeper of the gate.
But if not, you'll have none to deliver you.
And speaking of those who are crushed in the gate and without the deliverer, look at verse 5 now, back in our text in Job chapter 5.
Speaking of them, it says, whose harvest the hungry eateth up.
Yes, the children of the foolish man have a harvest.
If you study the appearances of the word harvest in the Old Testament, you'll see that it's normally associated with the gathering Of fruit, grain, vegetables, whatever it may be.
And it was specifically of the fruit the children of Israel gathered.
And by this process, the Lord taught the children of Israel a whole lot about how they were to live and worship.
And in our text in Job, this harvest was one the children of the foolish had at the time he was crushed in the gate and had no deliverer.
You may remember back in verse 3 of this chapter, where we learn that the habitation of the foolish Springs from the root or the foundation of the foolish.
So he builds his house upon sinking sand.
That's what the foolish man did.
And the relationship between the foundation and the building is similar to the relationship between the planting and the harvest here in our text.
Listen to Galatians 6, verses 7 through 8.
Galatians 6, verses 7 through 8.
Be not deceived.
God is not mocked.
For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption, but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting.
The harvest of the children of the foolish is the result of foolish planting.
And let's use an example here that We might understand.
You have two men who make a lot of money.
One is an accountant, and the other is a heroin dealer.
Now the accountant applied himself to his studies and obtained a college degree, most likely, in a legal honorable profession.
He's worth every dollar he charges his clients.
And if he's a good accountant, he'll have a good living and he'll be respected by others.
His harvest is the result of wise planting.
The drug dealer, on the other hand, Gained his wealth by taking advantage, not helping, but taking advantage of the vulnerable, the weak, the desperate, the people who are looking to change the way they feel.
They don't like the way they feel.
And although he's hurting them, he's breaking laws and he's enriching himself in return for no good deed, the drug dealer also has a harvest.
Enter the drug enforcement agency.
They determined that all the harvest of this drug dealer was gained illegally.
So they arrest him, they seize his assets, and deliver him to the federal courts for judgment.
And in the courtroom, that drug dealer is convicted.
He's crushed in the gate.
He's far from safety as he's sentenced to federal prison.
And this is one of the reasons state, county, and local law enforcement officers lack for a criminal case to go federal.
Because the federal courts are a lot closer to truth in sentencing than state courts.
They're not perfect, but they're a lot closer.
So the drug dealer is not only crushed in the gate, but his harvest is taken from him.
And that is what we call asset forfeiture.
The court does not allow the drug dealer to keep his harvest because it's the fruit of one who has sown corruption.
The court's not interested in the harvest of the accountant because he's an honest and wise man, and his harvest was not the result of foolish planning.
And in our text, the harvest of the children of the foolish man, it said, will be left to the hungry to eat up.
And we'll continue with that passage when we meet again, Lord willing, next Sunday.
Father, thank you for every person who tuned in, all those who were here this morning in the auditorium, for those who may listen later.
We pray you'd bless their word.
Or bless your word to their hearts that they would understand, meditate upon it, believe it, and Father, apply it in their own Christian walk.
That you may receive all the honor and glory for the things that we do in Jesus' name.
Amen.
