Rough Draft Of A Sermon For Thursday....

[Jermyn Davidson]

I am supposed to speak this coming Thursday night at our Jail Ministry's preaching point at the Orange County Work Release Center.

It takes up 6 MS WORD pages so I will post a page per post.

Confusing huh? You'll see what I mean.




I hope this is not a mistake.

I have poured over this and will do so repeatedly, with prayer and fasting, until its delivery. So this is serious.

This is not a thread to joke and poke holes without solutions... Biblical solutions.


Thanks everyone.

[Jermyn Davidson]

Conflicting Loyalties 10 April 2010

Establishing or re-establishing your loyalties in life can place you in a very challenging position.

Don't confuse the concept of priorities with loyalties. While they may are related, they are not the same. Loyalties determine who and what is important to you while your priorities determine the level of importance that each person, place or thing has in your life. Yes, as fleshly human beings, we do have more than one loyalty and if we want our lives to be simplified, our loyalties can not contradict each other in substance. So yes, we are loyal to our God and Savior and yes we are loyal to our spouses. Yes we are loyal to our friends, our church, and our sports teams—well not if you are a Tampa Bay Bucs fan.

By the way, if you are, I want to ask you one question. Why?

However, in our humanity some of us strive to live lives where we develop and nurture contradicting loyalties. Maybe it's better said with the phrase "conflicting loyalties". Conflicting loyalties. You can't love God and love money. Am I being Biblical? 1 Timothy 6:10 states, "For the love of money is the root of all evil...." Many good-hearted people find themselves in snared in the sin of covetousness, trying to, "keep up with the Jones's." They have to have what they see and they have to have it now-- right now. Some folks don't even have to see it to mentally dwell on it. You can hear about Apple's next gadget and let your mind plan over and over how you're going to get to Best Buy tomorrow, this weekend, when I get off work, when I get out of this place, when I get the money. Ah yes, when I get the money.

The love of money can make you do some crazy things, make crazy decisions. The love of money can make you hurt other people. It can make you hurt yourself! The love of money can ruin your life and if money is a loyalty in your life you had better be careful. For most Christians in America today, money is on the list of one of our loyalties. It’s ok to be honest here.

You see, money cannot be a priority without it first being a loyalty. If you would think about it, money plays a part in many of our internal decision making processes. Despite how pious or how saved we'd like to paint ourselves to be, the Lord knows that money is a need, a necessity. However, just because it is a valid need, money does not have to become something that we love. There is a balance that true Christians are supposed to have when it comes to living in this physical world. No one in here is physically dead yet, so you will need money. If you’re like me, you could probably use a little extra flow right now!

[Jermyn Davidson]

The Bible does not condemn the need for money. The Bible condemns the love of money as the root of all evil.

I am not here in front of you to speak about the love of money specifically as much as I’d like for us to think about about contradicting loyalties, conflicting loyalties, every day life, decisions that are made and how those decisions are made.
Nothing in our lives can ever become a priority without it first being a loyalty.
The human experience is fraught with various loyalties. Responsibilities here and commitments there and promises to this person, appointments at this time, and your child is ill or maybe even you are ill but you have to go to work too—see there goes money again—life is burdened with various loyalties that must be prioritized daily. Life is even tougher when you have conflicting loyalties. Some folks have a spouse at home and another lover over here. Both require your time, your energy, and your affections. Some folks have worked two or even three jobs at the same time and it is very difficult to give your best effort to both places of employment at all times. It’s not impossible, but it’s very tough. One conflicting loyalty that can be very tough on a person involves something deeply personal. Systems of Belief, your morals, your ideas of right, wrong and your own integrity—these are all connected and, under the right conditions, can hide in the fog of life’s problems, temptations and negative circumstances.
Have you ever been in a place in life where you found yourself between conflicting loyalties?
Do you think you have a set of morals, a moral code that you live by? Sometimes life has a way of testing you. I’m not talking about testing merely testing your priorities. I’m not talking about when you are in a position and you have to decide what is most important, what is least important. I’m talking about when you are all alone and you feel like your source of strength, peace and hope is gone. Then the thought enters your head to curse God and die. Or maybe that type of thought won’t present itself to you in that form. Maybe you will hear it like, “God doesn’t care. God doesn’t love me look at what He’s doing to me! Look at what He allowed to happen to me! Look at this hopeless situation—I’m cursed if I do and cursed if I don’t. God why are you letting this happen! Answer me God—don’t you hear me talking to You!? Conflicting loyalties! You know the Word of God says one thing but what’s right in front of you, what’s causing the pressure and the struggle right now is screaming COMPROMISE! GIVE UP! IT’S NO USE!
Who will you be loyal to?
Joshua 24:15 is appropriate here: “…choose you this day whom ye will serve….”
“Choose you this day whom ye will serve!”
Reactive, proactive, inactive it’s your life, it’s your choice. Now what are you going to do?

[Jermyn Davidson]

Should you choose to become or remain loyal to: our God and Savior Jesus Christ, or the present storm or to your flesh, or to someone else, then there will be decisions that you will have to make which will establish your priorities. Who or what you choose to be loyal to establishes your priorities--what’s important and what’s not so important--and your behaviors, your actions will follow. I’m reminded of a New Testament scripture, Luke 12:34 that simply states, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” I am talking about conflicting loyalties.
Are you familiar with the New Testament account of the husband-and-wife team, Annanias and Sapphira? In the New Testament book of Acts the 5th chapter, the sad account is told of couple did not simply have a problem of out of balance priorities. They had a loyalty problem. It was a heart problem that manifested itself in their actions which ultimately lead to their demise. Who can guess what was at the root of their disease? I will argue the love of money, but read their account and determine the root of their problem for your self. Annanias, husband in this relationship, decided that he was going to sell a piece of property that he owned and give the proceeds to his church. Nice thing to do, great decision! What a good man! Tell me if, now humor me for a second, is there anyone in here that has heard of the saying, “the devil is in the details”? “The devil is in the details!” It’s not a scripture, but there is a lot of truth to that statement. Just ask Bernie Madoff or Milli Vannilli (if either one of them is still alive). So Annanias, that generous man Annanias, sold the property for one price, laid a different amount, a lesser amount, at the Apostles’ feet and stated or implied that the lesser amount is what he sold his property for.
Do you realize how easy it is to lie? You don’t have to just say a false statement. Deception implied is just as much a lie as a false statement. Deception implied is just as much a lie as a false statement!
So Annanias’ actions seemed honest enough, but God, through the Holy Ghost, revealed to Peter Annanias’ dishonesty and Peter asked Annanias, “Why hath satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?” Paraphrasing, Peter continued to remind him that the land was his, the proceeds from the sale was his, everything was in his hands and hears the clincher; and I quote: “… thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.”
Immediately, Annanias died.
Annanias did not make the decision that he made out of the loyalty in his heart to God. His decision to lie was not out of loyalty to God! You can’t make a decision that blatantly goes against the principles of Christianity, the Word of God, and at the same time be loyal to Jesus Christ, Our God and Savior! No, no no!
Maybe Annanias had a love of money and an out-of-whack need for respect and admiration from other people as he laid what most folks thought was ALL the money from the property that he just sold. His own property! All the money! He was bold and proud with his deception. He fooled everyone, but he did not fool God! God told Peter. Peter confronted him in front on the spot and Annanias died. Ultimately, it was his loyalty to himself, not his loyalty to God that did him in.

[Jermyn Davidson]

In fact, his behavior displayed his complete lack of loyalty to Jesus Christ. If Jesus Christ had a place of loyalty in his heart, it would have been displayed in his actions because when you are loyal to Jesus Christ, He will be your number one priority.
His wife was lacked loyalty to Jesus Christ as well. The Bible tells that she knew of Annanias’ deception, agreed to it, and participated in it herself by placing what the Bible says was, “… a certain part…” at the apostles’ feet. Only her actions were not driven out of loyalty to herself.
You know, loyalty to yourself is not necessarily a bad thing. God gives most of us common sense. When we exercise that common sense, it is out of loyalty to oneself. Eating right, exercising, going to college or trade school—even more so, repenting of or turning away from your sins, obeying the Bible in baptism, seeking the infilling of the Holy Ghost as demonstrated in the Bible, seeking be used of God in the gifts of the Spirit as demonstrated in the Bible—if you have any sense of loyalty to yourself, to your destiny and your eternal future you will pursue all these things! What does the Bible say in Acts the 2nd chapted and the 40th verse? “… Save yourselves from this untoward generation.” In order to seek a relationship with God, you have to have a sense of loyalty for yourself and your well-being. Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” When Jesus said this, he was not just refering to your food and clothes, because in the Old Testament, in the 37th division of Psalms, the Bible plainly states, “Delight thyself also in the Lord: and He shall give thhe the desires of thine heart.” John writes in 3 John, chapter 1 verse 2, near the back of the New Testament, “Beloved (wait I want to elaborate on something right here—Aren’t you glad that Jesus loves all people? Aren’t you glad that Jesus Christ loves ALL people and that ALL people can have the opportunity to repent, to turn away from their sins and to be changed by the POWER of the Holy Ghost. Jesus Christ loves you, and you, and you and you, and me He loves ALL of us and He calls ALL of us, even tonight, to a place of repentance! He calls all of us to a place of relationship with Him, a place of true fellowship with Him! I’m not talking about going to church on Christmas and Easter! I’m talking about an everyday relationship with Jesus Christ! A RELATIONSHIP BASED ON HIS WORD and not on what you thought you heard from some TV evangelist or what you think you remember from your days in Sunday School and Children’s Church! I’m not even talking about the relationship that your Grandmother, your Uncle, your Mother had with Jesus Christ! I’m talking to you right now, about you, right where you are, and your Bible-based relationship with Christ or your honest LACK of a Bible-based relationship with Jesus Christ! GOD LOVES YOU AND HE THINKS YOU’RE SPECIAL ENOUGH TO HEAR IT AGAIN—JESUS CHRIST LOVES YOU! It is HIS WILL that you turn away from your sins! It is HIS WILL that you obey the Bible in baptism, in the NAME of Jesus Christ! JESUS CHRIST LOVES YOU AND IT IS HIS WILL THAT HE COMES INTO YOUR HEART! OH how HE LOVES YOU and IT IS HIS WILL THAT YOU ARE FILLED WITH HIS PRECIOUS HOLY SPIRIT—POURED OUT ON YOU, just like on the Day of Pentecost! I’m talking rushing mighty wind and tongues of fire—JUST LIKE IN THE BIBLE! THIS IS HIS WILL FOR ALL OF HIS BELIEVERS! OH HOW JESUS LOVES YOU AND IF YOU HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED THE INFILLING OF THE HOLY GHOST, GOD PROMIED IT TO YOU! I SAID GOD PROMISED IT TO YOU! “XXXX” I want you to stand up and read Acts 2:39 slowly and boldly:
That’s right. WE ARE HIS BELOVED AND IT IS HIS WILL THAT WE ARE ALL FILLED WITH THE HOLY GHOST AND BOLDNESS! OH HOW HE LOVES YOU AND ME!!

[Jermyn Davidson]

He loves us and he wishes that we prosper and be in health, even as our soul prospers. That’s what 3 John, the 3rd chapter and the first verse says. In light of His love for us, will you choose to be loyal to Jesus Christ? In light of His love for us, will you decide to to be loyal to Jesus Christ, in accordance with His Word—not according to your feelings or your religion, but according to His Word, His Will His Way?
Sapphira, Annanias’ wife chose to be loyal to her husband, when she knew he was doing wrong. She did not try to dissuade him. She did not try to warn him. No! She agreed to participate in her husband’s lack of loyalty to Jesus Christ! Yes, she lied and she died too! She lied and she died too and she wasn’t even being loyal to herself! In her loyalty to her husband’s love, she rejected the opportunity—yes even the Biblical command for loyalty to GOD and to His Word!
The very first Commandment of the Ten Commandments, located in Exodus 20:2-3 reads, “I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”
You are here because in a relatively short amount of time, you will be released from jail. That’s a blessing, is it not? Freedom is a blessing.
Just like in the Bible when God allowed the Jews to be enslaved for period of time, God has allowed you to be incarcerated for this period of time. Regardless of the reasons and of the circumstances, before you were born, God ordained for man to free will and He knew that YOU would be here listening to this guy who has issues too. We are on the same level here.
All men are equal at the foot of the Cross of Jesus Christ.
We are here. God knew this night would come and He knows who listened to my sermon, who tuned it out, who will tune it out as soon as they get out of here. You see He loves you so much that He gives you free will so that you be loyal to whoever you want to be loyal to—knowing full well who will reject Him and who will seek after Him with their life.
Jesus knew who His betrayer was before Judas betrayed Him. He still let Judas betray Him.
Should you choose to be loyal to yourself, to others, to situations and temptations—should you choose to be loyal to any of these at the expense of your loyalty towards Christ, then Jesus Christ will never be a priority to you.
Life is hectic. There are many variables, many things that are not in your control. However, there are somethings that are. You can choose to make a place of loyalty to Jesus Christ in your heart. You can, YOU MUST CHOOSE. No one can make that choice for you, but you can choose to repent, to turn away from your sins. Hey, let me tell you, I know you already know this. There is power in the Name of JESUS! I said there is POWER in the Name of JESUS! POWER! HOLY GHOST POWER and it’s in the NAME that the Bible says is above every other Name, the Name of Jesus.

[Jermyn Davidson]

When you choose to be loyal to Jesus Christ, He must become your number one priority! His Word must be the filter through which you see the world and make your decisions. Our actions, behavior, yes our lifestyle should conform to one that is congruent with the actions and teachings of Jesus Christ and His Apostles.
We are all going to pray a prayer of repentance, using your own words. I want you to speak out to God as if you could see Him standing in front of you because He is. It’s just sometimes we can’t see Him—but that doesn’t mean He isn’t there. He wants you to talk to Him, tell Him what’s really on your mind and on your heart. Honestly tell Him if you think you are going to be loyal to Him or not. Tell Him, verbally speak out if you know that once you get out of here, it will be difficult for you to be loyal to Him.
Then tell Him, again that you repent of today’s sins, faults and failures. Talk to Him because He wants to hear you. He sees and knows your heart, but He wants to hear your heart, not some false religious stuff. Talk to Him like He’s your Father. If He isn’t, He sure wants to be.
Jesus Christ loves you.
Continue to pray, I will pray too.
Now let me tell you, when you get out of here, at your nearest opportunity, if you have repented of your sins, you need to get baptized. Ask the preacher that baptizes you to baptize you, literally calling the Name of Jesus over you—just like it was done in the Bible. He may look puzzled, he may not. For some, it may seem like an odd request, but if you have been pricked in your hearts by God, through the words you have heard tonight, please do what I say. Water baptism invoking the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ is Biblical and was the practice of the earliest Christians.
Remember, water baptism using the Name of Jesus Christ, is a command for you, the new believer in Jesus Christ, to obey. It’s a command and not an option.
We’re going to pray one more time. This will be an individual prayer. It will be a personal prayer with you and I or with you and my partner here. This will be a special prayer for all those who have not received the Gift of the Holy Ghost. This will be a special prayer for all those who have not experienced the manifested infilling of the Holy Spirit. In the Bible, we read that those, who experienced God in this manner, spoke in tongues in praise and worship to God, under the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit. How does the Bible demonstrate this happening? You will literally speak in a language that may sound like jibberish to you, but it will be a divine language—given to you by the Almighty God Himself.
Who here has not experienced God in this way, but wants to tonight? We will pray with you tonight.
Let us know who you are. If you want to leave, feel free to leave. If you want us to pray individually with you for the infilling of the Holy Spirit, or for any other need, we will pray with you, in the powerful Name of Jesus Christ.

[Jermyn Davidson]

That the end.

I know it's alot.


God bless you.

Good Night.