Matthew chapter number five. It’s a delight to see you here and certainly it’s just a blessing to see each one of you. I know some of you I have been in ministry with.

I know we got a group from Michigan. We were there just a few weeks ago and that particular group, I think we can all say we were just thrilled. We had about 45 teenagers come to know Jesus Christ and it was an exciting week

and several of these young people were a very major part of inviting young people and even winning them to the Lord. So, those of you from Sheridan, certainly a blessing to have you since we just were in ministry together.

And certainly, it’s exciting to see young people have a heart for God. And I hope many of you this week, if you haven’t come with a heart for God, keep your heart open, let God work.

If you do have a heart for God, God has something for you to learn, something for you to touch your life. I appreciate what Alex said.

And many times, God has to bring us from those aspects of self-dependence that are killing us to a point where we really look to the Lord to really do what only He can do. Now, keep your eyes open, your hearts open, your ears open, and let God speak to your heart.

Now, young people, this is called the Thee Generation Youth Summit. And I will tell you, I say this, and I’m not grandstanding. I’m not trying to make just phenomenal statements.

But I believe based on theology, based on what the Bible says, that the contents of this room are enough to touch the world. Because we’re not talking about you, we’re talking about God.

And each one of you will have a ripple effect. And each one of you has the potential to touch thousands, maybe tens of thousands, in some cases, maybe even millions of lives if you’ll just get a hold of total surrender, total

dependence. Simple truths, but yet profound. So as we preach this week, we’re actually preaching a progression.

You might say, did you preachers sit down and figure out what you’re going to preach? No. What we did was, we all said, Lord, what do you want us to preach?

And I’m convinced that He is going to lead us and there will be a progression of truth. And I’m certainly excited about it. We’re going to begin here with a simple message, do you know who you are?

Do you know who you are? No, I’m not wondering if you’re schizophrenic, though some of you might lean that way. But anyway, so I’m speaking obviously facetiously here.

But really, do you know who you are? The Bible tells us often who we are, but we don’t believe it. And we live really thinking we’re somebody we’re really not.

That’s what the devil does. He does not want you to believe or to understand what you are in Christ. He wants you to focus on what you think you are without Christ.

So let’s look at Matthew 5. This is a message that can be preached so many different angles, but I’m just going to preach a simple angle here this morning.

If you look at verse number 13, it says, Ye are the salt of the earth. Look at verse number 14.

Ye are the light of the world. Now, I want you to understand something. He didn’t say you have the potential to be the salt of the earth,

and he didn’t say you have the potential to be the light of the world. He’s simply saying you are. Now that means if you’re saved and on your way to heaven, I am telling you dogmatically,

based on the words of Jesus Christ, you are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. It’s not a decision you need to make.

It’s not a situation where you need to try hard to be the light of the world. You are. And you are the salt of the earth.

You say, Preacher, I don’t feel very salty, and I certainly don’t feel like I’m very good at the light of the world. Okay.

Well, we’re going to show you in a moment what the problem is, and I hope it will be a help to you. Because what I’m trying to do is not to get you to be light and not to get you to be salt,

Okay, because you already are. My burden this morning is that you realize what you are in Christ and recognize that you can make decisions that diminish or hide what you are in Jesus Christ.

So let’s look at this simple message, do you know what you are? Okay, let’s look first of all, ye are the salt of the earth. Okay, let’s think for a moment.

If that’s what you are, what does that mean? What does that look like? How does that manifest itself in your life?

Now, let me just simply say that you’re salt of the earth, not in and of yourself. You’re a salt of the earth because Jesus is in you. You are in Jesus.

And the Lord Jesus is the salt of the earth. And he, my friend, is the one that makes you the salt of the earth and enables you to be able to do that.

So what does that look like? Okay. First of all, salt creates thirst.

Salt creates thirst. I don’t know if you’ve ever done this, gone to a Mongolian grill or a Chinese restaurant that just used quite a bit of salt.

ate a big meal, woke up about three in the morning dying of thirst. Ever happened to you? There’s times I wake up in the middle of the night dying of thirst saying,

what happened? What happened? Am I becoming a diabetic?

What happened? And, oh, yeah, yeah, I ate a bunch of salt. Okay, so you understand that if it’s a hot day and you go out and get a big bag of chips,

you’re also going to get some liquid. Why? Because you know that salt creates and salt intensifies thirst.

In the Northern African theater of war in World War II, There was a group of British soldiers that ran out, excuse me, German soldiers, that ran out of their most precious commodity.

And it was not ammunition, it was water. Now, if you know anything about northern Africa, it is not lush jungle, it is arid desert. These soldiers knew that if they did not get water and get it soon,

they would not perish of enemy bullets, they would perish of thirst. So they began to move with great alacrity toward Alexandria, Egypt, for there they knew they could resupply their water.

So they began to move toward Alexandria because the Germans had control of Alexandria at that time. And they, of course, need to get the water and get it soon. Well, as they began to travel across the desert, one thing, they tried to move quickly with speed at night

because the desert would cool and they wouldn’t sweat. So that’s when they would really move as quickly as they could. And so they were moving across the desert and they literally began to dehydrate.

Now, I don’t know, most of you young people have no clue what this is, to literally be able to stick your finger in your mouth and there’s no saliva. It comes back as dry as when you put it in.

That began what happened. They began literally to dehydrate, so there’s no saliva anymore. They can’t spit if somebody put a gun to their head.

They’re literally dying of thirst, literally, in the very sense. So these German soldiers began to suffer. If you know anything about dehydration, terrible way to die,

and a lot of suffering that goes with it, and these German soldiers began to do that. Well, in that condition, somewhere along their trip, their journey, they came across a big, huge pipeline that the British had built

to transfer fresh water from one place to another. Well, those German soldiers were, like, delighted. They got their machine guns out, and they peppered that pipeline full of bullet holes,

and every bullet hole became a water fountain. Water just began to spring out of that pipeline. Well, the Germans crazed with thirst, ran after the water.

They began to pour it down their throats, but the damage was done before they realized it was not fresh water. It was Mediterranean seawater or salt water. You see, the Brits had just built it, and they wanted to test it for leaks,

but they didn’t want to use fresh water because it’s so precious in the desert. So they decided to use Mediterranean seawater. There’s plenty of that.

And at that very moment of testing is when the Germans began to drink that water. And they began to ingest that seawater. Now, most of you are in the middle part of the country, so you probably don’t know this.

If you ingest salt water, seawater, it intensifies your thirst seven times. Seven times. So now the German soldiers realized, because the damage had been done before they stopped drinking,

the German soldiers realized, we’re going to die. We’re going to die. Well, they began now suffering unbelievable.

They spent a night in unbelievable suffering, unutterable suffering. They woke up in the morning, or not woke up, but the day began to dawn as they were crossing the desert,

trying to get to Alexandria with little hope they were going to make it now, when they ran across a small group of British soldiers. The Brits had certainly were completely outmanned.

They did not have near the ammunition, the machinery, the machine guns. They were completely outnumbered. and a skirmish began in the desert.

And just when it seemed certain to the British that the Germans were going to pound through the meager British lines to the amazement of the Brits,

German soldiers began running out of their ranks with their hands held high. But they did not wait for the formalities of surrender. Oh, no.

They ran into the ranks of the British, grabbing canteens off the necks and hips of British soldiers and pouring the precious water down the throat.

Don’t miss this. They were willing to surrender anything and everything. You know why?

Because of salt. Salt had done its job. You say, well, preacher, what do you mean you’re the salt of the earth?

Now don’t miss this young person. This is phenomenal. If you’re saved on your way to heaven, you have Jesus inside of you.

And I am telling you, friends, when you live a life of dependence upon Him and surrender to Him, do you know what happens? You don’t even realize it, but you make other people thirsty for what God can do in a totally surrendered life.

I remember years ago, a young man, I think he’s in Australia now, but a young man I ran across, he was 16 years old, his mother told me the story. He said one day he

was on the high school basketball team and the Christian school. One day another young man on that basketball team took out a piece of paper and wrote him a letter and said, Dear David,

I want to know God like you know God. You know what he was doing? I’m telling you what he was doing.

He was doing his job being salt. You know why? Because that’s what he was.

You see, Jesus Christ, my friend, makes people thirsty for him. And when you will surrender to him, depend upon him,

He makes other people thirsty for what God can do in a totally surrendered and a totally dependent life. Oh, my friend, do you see it? God says you’re salt.

You’re the salt of the earth. I remember years ago a young lady down in Spartanburg, South Carolina. I’ll never forget the testimony.

She got up and she said this. You know, she said about three weeks ago, she said, I got hungry for God like I have never gotten hungry for God. And she said, here we are in this week.

she said, this week God showed me things that were blocking my relationship with God. And she’d gotten right with God largely about worldly music.

And I remember the testimony because it was so remarkable that three weeks before God had prepared her heart, she was hungering for God. Well, I

remember about six months later, I was with the youth pastor at a conference somewhere. I said, hey, how’s it going?

He said, do you remember that girl? And I said, and he gave me enough details.

I remembered her. He said, that girl is single-handedly changing our Christian school. He said, everybody knows that she’s different, and everybody has realized she’s not going back to the

way she was. She has changed. She is making people thirsty for God.

She so exudes the joy of the Lord and the contentment that only he can bring. She is single-handedly impacting our Christian school.

You know what, young person? She was simply doing what she was. She’s salt.

And I’m telling you, you’re saved on your way to heaven, you have the person within you who can make people thirsty for what God can do in a life that is surrendered to Him and dependent upon Him.

I’m telling you, friend, you’re the salt of the earth. And one of the things that salt does is it always makes people thirsty.

Okay, there’s something else that salt does. There’s a whole message I could preach on it, but salt does something else.

Salt stays or holds back corruption. Now, most of you know this. How

soccer team. Okay, some of you know what I’m talking about here, but some of you get the illustration.

Years ago, when I was in high school, I played. And of course, we’d have at the end of the summer a bunch of practices trying to get ready for the season.

And let’s imagine, you know, you’re in a soccer game, and maybe you’re playing on defense or a fullback, and the ball just gets by you, and a wing just kind of runs around you, got about a full step on you.

And he’s got a breakaway to the goal. Now, if you’re a fullback, you know what I’m talking about.

You’re chasing after him. You realize the only way you’re going to stop him is what’s called a slide tackle, and you

certainly want to do it before the penalty box, because you blow it there, you’re going to get a penalty kick. And so you realize you’re going to have to do that slide tackle, you’re going to have

to do it quickly, which means you’ve got to get the ball first. So if you trip him, you get the ball first, it’s not a penalty.

And so you lay down that slide, and you peel the ball right off his feet, just a beautiful slide tackle. But you get up, and you realize that you have a big, huge

strawberry on your thigh. Now, I don’t know why we call them strawberries, because they look more a sausage pizza to me, especially if there’s some ground, you know, the dirt and rocks that get

ground in the thing. And you got this wound here. But you know, you’re tough.

You keep playing. You know how it is.

You’re a guy. You keep playing. That’s no big deal.

No, that’s just a battle wound. And you keep playing, and you begin to sweat, and that sweat rolls down into that strawberry, and you tell me, what does it do?

It stings. You know what that is? That’s salt.

That’s salt doing its job. Salt cleaning the wound.

My dad said when he was growing up, he would live just a few from Biscayne Bay, which is salt water, it’s the Atlantic Ocean. And he said every

time he had a cold, now we don’t have the benefit of this here in Wisconsin, but every time he had a cold, he would simply go down to Biscayne Bay, he’d jump in, you could do that almost every day in Miami, Florida, he would jump into

Biscayne Bay, he’d do a flip under the water, the salt water, do a flip, and he said when he came up he was healed. He said that salt water come in your nasal

cavities and it would clean them out. Now you had stuff all over your face, but we’ll leave that alone for the moment, but nonetheless you were healed.

That’s mom ever given you a little bottle of such saline solution? You get sick and squirt, squirt, squirt,

squirt. Okay, that’s salt. That’s salt holding back or staying corruption.

Now, don’t miss this game. You know what you are? If you’re saved on your way to heaven, Jesus lives in you.

And I’m going to tell you something about Jesus. You may not know this, but you need to know it.

He hates sin and he hates the world. Now, what I mean by the world is the world system that hates God.

It’s an anti-God, anti-biblical philosophy. We’re not talking about people.

We’re talking about thinking, wrong thinking. And I will tell you, Jesus wants nothing to do with sin and wants nothing to do with wrong

thinking, worldly thinking. And I will tell you, friend, He lives inside of you. And I’m telling

you, a young person who is simply living in the reality of who He is in Christ is a young person who will hold back sin by His very presence. So I got a question for you.

In your youth group or your church or whatever, if kids aren’t talking right and you walk in the room, do they stop or they just look at you and keep going.

Because if they look at you and keep going, I am telling you, friend, in a moment you’re going to see there’s a problem with who you are. Because if you’re

understanding who you are in Christ, you will always speak up for Jesus and be a mouthpiece for the Lord Jesus when you’re in a situation like that. I’m not talking about being not tactful.

I’m not talking about being unkind. I’m talking about graciously but firmly saying what needs to be said because Jesus wants you to.

You’re the salt of the earth. That’s who you are. This shouldn’t be something odd.

This is who you are. Okay, with understanding that, so you say, okay, preacher, yeah, you’re preaching to about 300 people in this room,

but I don’t think many people live that way. So why? If that’s who we are, why are we so gutless and spineless?

When somebody tells a dirty joke instead of walking away or saying something, which is really what ought to be said, saying something needs to be said, we’ll smile or laugh just to be accepted.

I’m talking to young people who know what I’m talking about. You do that. Somebody’s talking about a movie, no Christian has any business looking,

looking at, listening to? You sit there and just listen to the whole thing, and will your silence condone the action instead of speaking up and saying what the Lord Jesus wants you to say?

So it’s clear that’s who we are, but why don’t we act that way? If that’s who we are, why don’t we act like who we are?

Well, that’s a really good question, but the Bible answers that because you need to see this because this is extremely important. Look at that verse again,

verse 13, you’re the salt of the earth, but if the salt hath lost his savor. So how do you lose your savor?

What does that mean? Well, actually, it’s real simple because there’s a little verb in there that really gives us the answer how you lose your savor.

It’s really, really simple. It’s a verb and it comes from a noun. The noun is often translated in the Bible, fool.

It’s spelled this way in the Greek language, M-O-R-O-S, moros. We get an English word from it, moros.

Can you guess which English word it is? Dropkick the S, put on an N, you’ve got it.

Moron. You say, preacher, I know I’m sitting next to one.

Okay, okay. Now don’t point any fingers. Okay.

But the point I’m making, friends, that’s where we actually get the word moron from. We get it from the word

moros, which is translated fool. So what does the verb mean? And the verb means this, to play the

part of a fool. Do you know how you lose your effectiveness at who you really are? Play the

part of a fool. That’s what God says. You are salt, but you can water it down by playing the

part of a fool. And I will tell you, young person, if you’re saved on your way to heaven, you’re not a fool, but you can sure act like one.

You can act like what you’re not. Now, the Bible tells us a couple of things, gives us a clue. How about Proverbs 1, 7?

It says, fools despise wisdom and instruction. You know something about a fool?

A fool hates rules. Did Unlikely when somebody gives them instruction, a fool despises it.

In fact, the Bible says a foolish son despises his father’s instruction, and a foolish man despises his mother. So the Bible very clearly indicates that when you come to school,

or you come to youth group or church, and you’re not going to believe what my dad told me to do. I’m not trying to be unkind, but I’m telling you,

you’re playing the part of a fool, and you’re losing the effectiveness of who you are. You complain about the rules like, man, it’s this rule,

is stupid. Listen, how many go to Christian school? Can I see your hands, please?

You go to Christian school. Okay, how many of you are homeschooled?

Can I see your hands, please? And how many are public schools?

Okay, doesn’t matter what school you’re in, doesn’t matter if you’re homeschooled, public school, Christian school, you got rules. Did you know that?

You complain about them, you’re playing the part of a fool, and you’re losing your effectiveness assault. It’s who you are.

So anytime, yeah, that stinks. Yeah, I can’t believe that they told me what to do.

I can’t believe, yeah, whatever, whatever. Okay.

So understand, friends, that you can play the part of a fool by having an incorrect response to instruction, particularly parental instruction. You roll your eyes at your parents,

you’re playing the part of a fool. You challenge your parents, you’re playing the part of a fool. I’m talking to young people in this room who ought to be impacting the world because Jesus

lives in you and He impacts. But the problem is you just got too busy playing the part of a fool, being what you’re really not.

It’s not who you are. So understand the very first thing that God is you’re the salt of the earth, but you can sure mess it up by playing the part of a fool.

Now let me tell you something else fools do. The Bible says fools make a mock at sin, Proverbs 14, 9. Fools laugh at things that are sinful.

You know what a person learned this? I’ve already mentioned this. God hates sin.

He hates sin. We know He hates sin. And He hates wrong thinking, worldly thinking, unbiblical thinking.

Hates it. Absolutely hates it. There’s no use for it at all.

And I will tell you, friends, don’t miss this. You know what a fool does? A fool laughs at things God hates.

Listen, you laugh at a dirty joke, God says you’re playing the part of a fool. You laugh when some kid in the youth group or some kid is being sarcastic about leadership. Maybe it’s even a little bit funny, but you laugh, you’re playing the part of a fool

when somebody’s mocking the teacher or mocking their parents or mocking the youth leader or the pastor. You’re playing the part of a fool when you go along with that stuff. And I’m telling you, some of you out here have literally lost your effectiveness of salt

because you smile and laugh at things you have no business smiling and laughing at. So God helps us understand the problem here. In fact, you might be, oh, that’s a preacher, what’s the big deal?

I think it’s a huge deal. Maybe this illustration will help. Years ago, I was in my 20s, and I went to hear a man preach who is now with the Lord.

He’s been with the Lord several years. A guy by the name of Bob Kelly. They nicknamed the Machine Gun Kelly because when he preached, man, I’m telling you,

it was like listening to a machine gun. It was great preaching. Well, anyway, Bob Kelly told a story at this camp I went to in my 20s.

I’ve never forgotten it. He said that when he was in high school, he described himself, this is not my description, this is his description. He described himself as this, a roughneck, hellbound football player from the other side of the tracks.

That’s his own description. We grew up unsaved, and he was playing for the Chattanooga High School football team, and he was pretty good. Their football team twice went to the Tennessee State Championship and won.

Went down to Jacksonville, Florida to play a Robert E. Lee High School in a regional football championship. It was one of those years, he said, it was a night or two before the ball game.

He said, all the football players ended up in one motel room. And he said, there were no cheerleaders, no girls. There were no coaches, no chaperones, no adults, just football players.

He said, it wasn’t long, but he said, before the dirty jokes began to fly. He said, one dirty joke after another came out of the lips of those football players. He said, here I was, hell bound and lost.

He said, but on that football team were two young men whose fathers were gospel preachers. He said, as they went along, he said, not only did they laugh, he said, I thought to myself, I wonder what the preacher’s kids are going to do.

He said, not only did they laugh, he said, pretty soon they were telling their dirty joke or two of their own. He said, that night, he said, I left that motel room. He said, I said, if that’s Christianity, I don’t want any of it.

And he said, I walked straight out of the room, headed straight to hell. You know why? Because two young men who were playing the part of a fool who ought to have been doing what they really were,

and that is being salt, because that’s who they were. Fortunately for Bob Kelly, in his public high school, there was one young lady doing her job being salt. Being who she really was.

A young lady by the name of Leanne, Leanne Roberson, actually, to be exact. Her father happened to pastor the Highland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Leanne, he said, would dress like a Christian.

He said, unmistakably, this is a public school, but you could tell she was, don’t miss this, different. She said she would put a Bible on top of her books every day. she acted like a Christian

and he said one day Leanne Robertson came to roughneck hell bound football player Bob Kelly and said Bob would you come to church with me tonight

Bob Kelly said I knew she was the real deal I knew it he said I went they said on the second row

of the Highland Park Baptist Church that night and a man by the name of Lester Roloff got up to preach and he said that night the conviction

of the Holy Spirit began to work in Bob Kelly’s heart it was not long after that he came to know the Lord Jesus Christ I’m going to tell you why

because of one young lady who was being who she really was, and that is salt. Bob Kelly won literally tens of thousands, and probably even

more than that, of people to Jesus Christ, because of one young lady your age, who was doing what she was. She wasn’t playing the part of a fool like some of you are doing.

Number one, God says you’re salt. Number two, the second thing God says, this is who you are, young person.

He says, ye are the light of the world. A city that’s set on a hill cannot be hid.

Now, twice I’ve been to the very place Jesus preached this message, and there’s a little, it’s kind of hills that surround the Sea of Galilee, and this is on the northern shore.

There’s a little town up there, and the guide says this was there in Jesus’ day, and just a little town built out of rock, and just like they built everything over there.

And evidently, it wouldn’t surprise me, Jesus was preaching, ye are the light of the world. A city that’s set on a hill cannot be hid, pointing up to that little

city. And it’s pretty, pretty sure that’s what he did. Okay, so what does that mean?

You’re the light of the world. Now, young person, I’ll tell ya why you’re the light of the world.

Because inside of you is the lightof the world. Jesus said, I am the light of the world.

And if you’re saved, you’re in union with Him. Which means everything He is, you are.

You’re in union with the light ofthe world. Which means God says, that’s who you are.

Now thank the Lord. I thank the Lord for young people who are being what they are, the light of the world.

Telling people what Jesus can people about the great good news. I’m telling you, friend, what a wonderful joy it is.

And even this tour, it’s been wonderful to see young people lead people to Jesus. There are young people in this

room I work with that this tour led people to Jesus. And I will tell you what a thrill that is, because that’s what God wants us to do.

We’re the light of the world. So we are. Over the years, I haven’t seen a lot, but I have seen some young people.

And every time I see it, It’s just wonderful. I remember years ago in Murfreesboro, Tennessee,

there was a young man named David, David Hayes to be exact. That was his name. And David came to me.

He was a junior in high school, 16 years old. He came to me and he said, Brother Van Gelderen. He said, I worked down at this fast food joint.

He said, I’m a student here at the Christian school. He said, I don’t know anybody other than the Christian school students. But he said, I began working down here at this burger joint.

And he said, there are a bunch of unsafe kids I work with. He said, I’m trying to give them the gospel. They’ve laughed.

They’ve made fun of me. But he said, I have gotten them to agree to come to the war on Sunday night. He said, I think I got about six of my co-workers.

I’ve worked it out with the boss. We all got it worked out. He said, six of them are coming Sunday night.

Would you pray? I’ll never forget this. David was small for a 16-year-old.

He looked more like a 13-year-old. I mean, he just was a small kid. And he brought six co-workers who were hulking beasts.

I’m telling you the honest truth. They were all, they were all. It wasn’t just, we’re not talking weight.

We’re talking, they were cut. I mean, they were a muscular guy. They were just kind of stair-step down, big, huge guys.

I’ll kind of put it this way. These guys were made for the war, and the war was made for these guys. I mean, it was a perfect wedding.

Perfect, perfect. I mean, they came on Sunday night, and I was spoke tackle night, and first we played basketball, and it was perfect war conditions.

You cannot get better war conditions than that. You say, what are perfect war conditions? 75 degrees and raining lightly.

Not too hard. It’s got to rain, so it takes about an hour for you to be soaked in the skin. Okay, that’s perfect conditions, no wind.

Perfect conditions, and that’s what it was, perfect conditions. So we got out there, played, and I mean, the first day we played, and the basketball, and their hair is everywhere, and about knee down, they’re just got grass and

mud all over, and they’re grinning from ear to ear. Then it came time for Spoke Tackle, America’s Roughest Race.

Those guys played that game. I’ll never forget when they came in, they had mud on their face, grass on their face.

They were completely covered, and they were coming and beaming from ear to ear. They came in that night.

I’ll never forget just a simple gospel message, gave an invitation, all six of them responded. And I’ll never forget David and the

hallway. One by one, those boys would come out. He’d wrap his arms around his neck, tears streaming

down his face. They’d give him a big hug. I thought it was going to kill him.

They were all bigger than he was. Wonderful story, isn’t it?

Well, it doesn’t end there. Three years later, I was in a large Christian camp in the southeast, and a young man comes up to me.

He said, Brother Van Gelden, you remember me? I’m David, David Hayes.

I said, David, I do remember you. He said, do you remember those the guys that got saved at the war?

I said, I sure do, David. He said, I want you to know that four of them have gone on for God.

And he said, two of them are in Bible college studying for the ministry. The only person can I simply say,

you know what David was doing? He was doing what he is. He’s the light of the world.

Now notice, if you would, please, there’s a problem here. And the problem comes in,

not that we are, we are the light of the world. You can’t change that. But look at verse 15.

Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. In other words, God is saying, you wouldn’t do this in the regular realm.

Why do we do it in the spiritual realm? How many of you have ever done this? I kind of doubt it.

But, you know, you couldn’t sleep, so you get up, grab yourself a book, and you turn on the lampshade, and then you take a big, huge cover, and you cover the lampshade up.

You say, preacher, why would I do that? Ever go into the restroom, no windows? You turn on the light, grab a big, thick towel, and you put it over the light.

You say, well, preacher, why would you turn on a light and cover it? That’s what God’s asking everybody in this room who’s saved. Why would you know the greatest news you could ever know,

know that Jesus Christ is the solution for every problem there is, that He can wash your sins away, keep you out of hell, He can enable you to do His will,

He can give you joy, peace, fulfillment, and satisfaction, He can give you a calling to do something that will be eternal in its value. Why would you know all that and not tell anybody?

Well, the Bible simply says there’s only one solution. The Bible doesn’t say you put out your light. The Bible says you cover it.

You’re still light. You just cover it up. It makes no sense in the physical realm,

so why do we do it in the spiritual realm? Well, I’m going to tell you why. There are several bushels.

One’s the bushel of fear. I’m really not going to deal with that one, because as this week goes on, that one’s kind of a no-brainer.

If Jesus can enable you to do it, the fear thing can be dropped, kicked out of your life. But here’s the bigger one.

It’s the bigger one. We’re going to deal with this all day today. It’s the bushel of apathy.

You know where apathy comes from? The Bible tells us. Matthew 24, 12.

And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. God gives us a principle, and I’m going to tell you what the principle is. The more iniquity abounds in your life, the more your love for God,

things eternal, and love for souls gets colder and colder and colder. I remember years ago, observing a young man who seemed to have a fire for God, then all of a sudden it just went cold.

I mean, cold and in the opposite direction. And I remember I was talking with somebody, and I said, I can tell you right now, I can guarantee you,

I can absolutely guarantee you that that kid is not just in sin, he is in abounding sin. And you know what?

When it came out, I was right. You say, preacher, you must be prophetic. No, I believe the Bible.

because God tells me that if you go cold, your problem is you’ve got not just iniquity, you have abounding iniquity in your life.

Listen, I’m talking to some of you, and I’m not trying to be unkind. I’m trying to help you. The truth is you’re saved on your way to heaven,

but your next-door neighbor could die tonight and go to hell, and it wouldn’t bother you five seconds. And I’m going to tell you why, because of the garbage you’re looking at.

Some of you are looking at garbage you have no business looking at. Some of you treat your parents like trash. I’m talking to some of you got abounding iniquity in your life.

You’re jamming out on junk behind your parents’ back. You absolutely got all kinds of sin running in your life. And I’m telling you, you keep your sin, you mark this.

Your love for Jesus is going to get colder and colder and colder. And the biggest bush people put over the lamp, I’m telling you, is the bushel of apathy. So understand it, friends, that God says you’re the light of the world.

That will never change because Jesus isn’t leaving you. But you can sure put a bushel over the light. What a tragedy.

This week, my friend, especially in these first few sessions, our burden is for you to deal with some of the foolishness, deal with some of the sin, so you get that stuff out of your life. So once again, friend, you’re not playing the part of the fool, and you’re not putting the bushel of abounding iniquity over the light.

You say, okay, preacher, I think I get that. But I will tell you, friend, really for me right now, my burden is more for diagnostic. For you sit here, yeah, that’s why I don’t.

Listen, if you can go, if it’s been weeks, maybe even months, since you have ever been a mouthpiece for Jesus Christ, I can guarantee you, you’ve got a problem.

You’ve got a bushel over your life, because you are the light of the world. And if you’re not telling people about Jesus, you’ve got a bushel over the lamp. It’s the only other option.

I’m not out here saying, hey, teenagers, you need to be the light of the world. No, I’m not preaching that, because you are. The problem is not that you’re not the light of the world.

That’s what you will always be if you’re saved. The problem is you’ve got a bushel over it. I’m talking to some of you, you know what I’m talking about.

You don’t even want to speak up for Jesus. I’m just telling you, you’ve got a sin problem and it’s killing you. It’s absolutely killing you.

Your attitude toward your parents or your attitude toward authority or your attitude toward some sinful issue in your life is just killing you. Because you are the light of the world.

Say, okay, preacher, I get that. I remember years ago, I had a young man travel to my team, and I’m telling you, he wrote a story that was stunning.

I give this this morning with his permission. But a young man, I remember on a Monday night, he would stand and give the testimony that when he was in eighth grade, he got saved.

He went to a Christian school. He got saved in eighth grade in his Christian school. He was from a home, a Christian home.

I don’t know that it was the strongest at that time. He got saved, and for a while, he really, he was what he was. I mean God began to work in his life.

He was excited, but he graduated from that Christian school and they had no high school small school in Kansas had no high school So he just like everybody else had to go down the street and enroll

The public school this is before homeschooling really was an option So he went down to the public school became a freshman in high school down there and his freshman year He met up with a young man by the name of Jason Scott

And Jason and Aaron became fast friends all fast friends They were very good friends and and as they went along in their freshman year, they became inseparable.

By the next summer, everywhere you’d see Jason, you’d see Aaron. Everywhere you’d see Aaron, you’d see Jason.

Just inseparable. Well, into their sophomore year, something happened that hurt their friendship.

They were still good friends, but not the fast friends they were. And Jason got into the drug culture.

And Aaron, although he was not right with God by this time, his freshman year, by the time he got into his freshman year, he had gotten away from the Lord.

But by the time his sophomore year, Jason got on the drugs. Aaron said, man, I’m not going there.

He was Christian, but he not right with the Lord, but he knew he wouldn’t go in there. So their friendship was hurt a little bit.

Jason got on the drug culture. Aaron did. Well, it was a year later in their junior year,

still good friends, not the fast friends they were, but still very good friends. It was a junior year. It was homecoming football night, and Aaron played on the football team.

He was in the defensive backfield. He’s either a cornerback or a safety.

He’s a short guy, but just very power-packed, just a dynamic personality. He was in the backfield, and they played the

football game. And during the football game, evidently the offense was on the field. And

Aaron said he was looking up in the stands and looking for his friend Jason. Small Kansas town. Everybody comes to homecoming football night, he’s thinking.

He looks up in the stands, and he can’t find Jason. He thinks, how strange, he’s not here.

Well, he went home. And when he went home, he robbed the refrigerator and sat down in front of the television, turned it on,

and he was watching the television when all of a sudden there was a knock at the door. He opened the door and when he did, in front of him, the porch was completely packed with friends and acquaintances.

They looked like they’d come from a funeral. Not a one of them smiling. Not a one of them talking.

He invites them into the entryway of his home. The guys come into the entryway of his home. Nobody’s saying anything.

Aaron, what’s going on? Finally, the spokesman, evidently elected the spokesman, looked at Aaron and simply said these words.

Aaron, Jason Scott is dead. Aaron said at first, he said, I didn’t believe it. He said, I thought they were joking.

But he said, when they began to tell me the story, I knew they were telling me the truth. That night, Jason was with Mark Miller.

Mark Miller was, he was high, I think on marijuana, and Jason was a drunk. They were driving in a pickup truck down one of those Kansas roads,

and they thought it would be really cool to turn the lights off and see how fast they could go. Well, if you know anything about Kansas, some of you are from there,

pretty much they have roads that will go for miles and miles and miles, straight like a drag strip. In between every square mile there’s roads, either dirt or paved.

This is evidently a paved road. And it just goes with the rise and fall of the landscape. Well, they were on one of those roads,

and unfortunately their inebriated state and their high state, they turned off the lights and they began to speed down that road as fast as they could. No lights.

Coming from the perpendicular direction was a Ford Bronco, a husband and wife, and there was a little baby in the backseat. They came to a stop sign.

The husband looked both ways. He didn’t see anything. Their lights were off.

He evidently didn’t hear anything because he began to cross the road. And when he began to cross that road, that speeding pickup truck hit the Ford Bronco, and when it hit the Ford Bronco, it was going so fast that it turned the Ford Bronco into ramp.

It launched the pickup truck up into the air. The pickup truck turned upside down. came down on its hood.

Jason’s head was shoved under the dashboard. He was instantly killed. Aaron went to the viewing.

He said later, I couldn’t believe it. The casket was open. He said, as I walked by the casket, he said, man, he said, I can hardly recognize my friend.

His face had been misshapen in the accident. But he said there was something he didn’t recognize.

Neatly folded in a diamond across Aaron’s chest, or excuse me, Jason’s chest, was Jason’s ACDC t-shirt. And Aaron remembered the countless times he and Jason would go into each other’s bedrooms and they put on the record. And they’d scream at the top of their lungs, I’m on my highway to hell.

And now Jason was there. And Aaron not one time ever told him Jesus could save him. Although Aaron is a pastor now in his home state,

has been right with God for years, he lives with the constant reminder that his best friend is in hell. And he never one time told him.

You know why? Because he had a bushel over his leg. Could I ask every head bowed, please, and every eye closed?

heads are bound and eyes are closed we’re not going to have an invitation this morning but let me just simply say when we’re finished here if God’s touching your heart you certainly plenty of staff around here your team captains

co-captains we’ll do anything we can to link up with someone who can open a Bible and help you let me just simply ask these couple questions before we finish how many of you young people would say, you know, preacher, I know that right now as I’m sitting in this room, my only hope of

heaven is Jesus and what He did on the cross. And I know that if I died, I’d go to heaven because there was a day as a hell-bound sinner, I trusted Jesus.

Would you just lift your hand high? Would you do that?

Lift it high and put it right back down. Does anybody here say, you know, preacher, I couldn’t raise my hand.

I don’t know for sure if I’d die to go to heaven. After hearing that illustration, I don’t want to die lost like that Jason did.

I don’t want to do that. Would you pray for me?

I won’t embarrass you, won’t point you out. But if you’re not sure Jesus has washed your sins and saved you.

If you lift your hand, we’ll pray for you. Won’t embarrass you, won’t point you out, but we will pray for you.

Anyone like that, just lift your hand high. Say, I’m not sure. Yes, I see

a couple of hands. Thank you. You may put those down.

Anybody else? Anybody else? Anybody else?

In a moment, I’ll pray for you guys. And by the way, in a moment, we’ll give you an opportunity to get it settled, because that’s one invitation I don’t mind giving here.

Now, how many of you would simply say this? Preacher, I just raised my hand that I’m saved and going to heaven.

And I have to admit this morning, as the preaching went on, that God illumined my heart to something I don’t think I understood before. I don’t need to be light.

That’s what I am. I don’t need to try to be like the salt of the earth, because that’s what I already am.

And God has impressed this truth upon me of, do you know who you are? I said, I see that I didn’t understand. I was trying to be what I already was.

Would you just lift your hand if God’s done that in your heart? Okay, thank you very much. You can put your hands down.

Now, how many would say, you know, preacher, I’ve got to admit it. My problem is I’ve either been playing the part of a fool or putting a bushel over life, or both of them.

They kind of go together. And I realize that although I know who I am, I’ve not been living like who I am

because I’ve been playing the part of a fool, or that bushel of apathy, that abounding iniquity has got me. Heads are about and eyes are closed.

Anybody say, preacher, God’s dealing with me, and I want to deal with that. Just lift your hand high and do it at all.

That’s wonderful. You can put your hands down. Now, I’m going to only give one invitation.

I said I wasn’t going to give an invitation because I’m not going to for you believers. But if you’re here and you’d like to get saved right now, you say, Preacher, I’d like to know I’m going to heaven.

I know my sins are washed away. I want to get settled right now. No one’s looking.

Okay, I’m going to invite you right now. Well, no one’s looking just in a moment to stand on your feet and head to the back. We’ll have someone open a Bible and show you how Jesus can wash your sins away and save you.

So if you’re here and concerned about that, not sure if you died, you go to heaven, concerned about where you spend eternity, I’m going to invite you right now just to stand on your feet and head to the back if you’d like to talk to somebody.

So if you’re here and want to get saved right now, just head to the back. No one’s looking.

Just head to the back. Anyone at all. I just want to invite you on that just for a moment.

Okay, I’m going to close in prayer. You’re certainly welcome while I’m closing to slip out. Now, Lord, we thank you for what you’re doing.

We know you’re working in our midst and continue to work in these young people’s hearts. We’ll thank you in Jesus’ name.

Amen. Amen.