The sermon, based on Mark 9:38-42, addresses the issue of pride and cancel culture within the church. The speaker emphasizes that Jesus teaches not to hinder those who perform miracles in His name, as anyone not against them is for them. The speaker recounts a personal experience with a man who accused him of being an antichrist over a disagreement about head coverings, illustrating the dangers of pride and division over non-essential matters. The sermon warns against an argumentative and envious spirit, urging believers to focus on the gospel and unity rather than minor theological differences. The speaker calls for humility, repentance, and the recognition that all believers are part of the same spiritual family, despite differing traditions or practices. The sermon concludes with a reminder to appreciate and collaborate with faithful Christians, even if they disagree on secondary issues, and to avoid the destructive nature of evangelical cancel culture.

Mark chapter 9 beginning in verse 38. Hear now the words of the Lord. John said to him, Jesus, Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us. But Jesus said, Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in my name and be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For he who is not against us is for us.

For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because of your name as followers of Christ, truly I say to you, He will not lose His reward. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe to stumble, it would be better for him if with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he had been cast into the sea. May God bless the reading of His Word. Amen. Let's try that again.

We're going to keep trying it again until we get it right. May God bless the reading of His Word. Amen. Amen. Let's try that again.

We're going to keep trying it again until we get it right. May God bless the reading of His Word. Amen. Because that's a prayer, isn't it, saints? That's a prayer.

We need God to work. We can labor and labor and labor, but if God's not in the laboring, we labor in vain. So we need Him to bless this time. Let us pray. Father, please do so.

We have just asked that You would bless the reading of Your Word. Do this, Lord, for Your name's sake. For the sake of this church, we want to go away from here not at all proud in ourselves, but boasting only in Christ. We would leave this morning humble people full of excitement and passion for the glory of our Savior. Oh, that you would do this.

Please, in Jesus' name, amen. All right, we can have a seat. Not too long ago, I had a lengthy email exchange with a man who professed to know Christ. He was professing to know Christ, but he had emailed me with a concern about our church's lack of cloth head coverings. And so for our women.

And so I told him, through many emails, that we as elders would be perfectly fine. In fact, we'd be overjoyed if a woman in our congregation wore a head covering made of cloth in our assembly so long as it was a symbol of submission to their husbands, to their husband, and not a means of self-righteousness. We just simply conveyed we're happy for women to do that. We'd be overjoyed with that kind of spirit in the hearts of our women, but that cloth coverings were not a requirement in our body. And after many emails with this particular man, that was not enough.

The tradition of head coverings was in fact such a big deal to this particular man that after a while through email exchanges this man told me through email that I was a child of the devil and that I may in fact be an antichrist. Now, that's the only time in my life I have ever been called an antichrist and the only time also to be called the child of the devil And I was not called that because I denied that Jesus was the Christ. It was not for denying that Jesus came in the flesh, truly man and truly God. It was not for that reason that I was labeled an Antichrist or a child of the devil. It was not because I denied the need for Jesus Christ to stand in the place of sinners, to make sinners right with God.

I was not told that I may be an antichrist because I denied some primary fundamental tenet of the faith. Now in this man's eyes, I was labeled those things because I simply believe there to be some liberty on the issue of head coverings. Now was that man right to say those things to your pastor? Was that man right to cancel me or any other evangelical pastor in light of those issues? Was that man right to cancel me to say that I had abandoned the faith and was an apostate because I disagreed with him on the tertiary matter of head coverings.

The answer should be an overwhelming no in your head. It should be. Why? Why is the answer no? You need to know why the answer is no.

And the answer is because God who took on flesh says so right here in Mark chapter 9. Jesus says right here in Mark chapter 9 to these disciples who did just that, what that man had been doing to me, canceling out faithful men working towards the same goal. Standing in orthodoxy. We're not the enemies. And yet here in this passage this morning, You have the disciples doing the same thing to a friend of God.

Canceling him out because he's not a part of their group. Not a part of their tradition. Not a part of their clique. And Jesus says to them, it's a really simple passage, isn't it? Don't do that.

Don't do that. Doing that is actually the height of pride. And in the height of pride, you'll find yourself sinking to the bottom of the ocean. And I know I think it's really easy to think of that illustration, which was true, that I just shared at the beginning of this sermon and think, well, that was just silly of that man. It's easy to think that.

But beloved, this kind of behavior can easily manifest itself in our church if we let it. Pride can seep in, unknown to us, silently winding itself around hearts, constricting, and it kills churches. It kills spiritual growth. It insulates to a point of constriction and death and it destroys faithfulness. It robs God of His glory in the church that all the differences in Christ are negated.

And so if anyone in this room finds themselves eager to engage in some kind of holy cancel culture of regenerate people who differ with you on non-foundational issues, then today you need to hear directly from God in His Word, stop that. That's what Jesus tells these disciples to do, stop it. So if you've been watching the news at all, anybody watch the news? Oh, people don't want to raise their hand. I don't know, no way.

If you've been paying it, if you have your eyes open and your ears not stopped up, you know what's going on in our culture. And you are sick of the world embracing cancel culture. You're sick of the world taking down statues of historical figures that don't measure up against the current cultural demands. You're sick of it, you should be. If you're not sick of it now, then you're gonna be canceled tomorrow You're sick of books not being published because they don't fit the right narrative you're sick of How in cancel culture you can't say anything controversial without being blasted as a result.

That's cancel culture. You don't agree with me all the way, You're the enemy. Silence you. Put you down. We despise it in the culture.

We should. And yet, we sometimes put up with this evil in the church. It can seep into the church. And so God says to us church, we must stop canceling out men and women who are being faithful. I'm not talking about false teachers.

We should call them out. I'm not talking about Benny Hins. Not talking about, what's that other guy's name? Joel Osteen, that's exactly what I was thinking about. I said, Joel?

It's not Joel. Joel Osteen. I'm talking about faithful orthodox believers that differ with us in practice. Differ with us on theological issues. Jesus says, stop doing that.

Stop doing that. Instead, get humble. You need to remember what Jesus had just told us a few chapters back. By the measure that we use as a congregation, by the measure that you use, by the standard you place on others, that measure will also apply to you. So listen to Jesus this morning, and humble yourself, and if need be, repent.

Repent. I join you in that repentance. Pride is a very nasty enemy. It wraps itself around each of us and we need God Almighty to Come in and cut it out of us to sever the root called pride. Amen?

So may that be the posture of your heart during this sermon. God search me, know me, and if you reveal sin to me, please cause me to put it to death. Kill it! We need to see our sin, we need to see our pride. So that's where we need to begin this morning because that's where Jesus begins in our passage, Him showing us, Him showing the disciples and us our pride for what it is.

We see the disciples' pride. How did they perceive themselves? Well, they perceived themselves to be pretty great, didn't they, in the verses prior? As we saw last week, they had been arguing about what? Being great.

And, in fact, they had been arguing before that as well. You remember? You'll recall that Peter, James, and John, they come down from the mountain after the transfiguration and the rest of the disciples at the foot of the mountain, they're arguing with the scribes. And then right after we get done with the arguing with the scribes, they start arguing with each other about who's the greatest. And then this morning we read they're arguing with another man because he's not part of their group and he's casting out demons.

Arguing, arguing, arguing. Arguing, arguing, arguing. Arguing. One of the tell-tale symptoms of someone following in these disciples' footsteps, rather than the footsteps of Jesus, is that they are always arguing. Always.

A major characteristic of pride is the tendency to always argue. Are you always arguing? Do you always need to turn everything into a debate? Do you always need to bring others down so that you can lift yourself up? Must everyone always be like you and if they're not you will argue till they are or till they're quiet.

Unless they fit into your theologically more righteous group or category do you wish to argue. Is your tradition, your theological position, is your denomination, the only standard, and all those outside of your camp need to just shut up and listen. Are you that proud? That though brothers and sisters that are working towards the same goal, which is the glory of Christ, but because they aren't the same flavor of Christian that you are, that you insist that their ministry needs to stop. So you argue them to silence even though they're your brother or your sister.

And please don't take what I'm saying and make it evil. I'm not saying that all arguments wrong. Well, you know what I'm doing right now. I'm setting forth an argument Not all arguing is wrong we must argue without the art without arguments, you know, what wouldn't have happened the Protestant Reformation We wouldn't be sitting here right now without arguments. Praise God for right, righteous argumentation.

Argument is essential in the kingdom. What I'm talking about is this kind of arguing in the text. A heart that constantly argues. We haven't had a section yet in the past three sermons where the disciples haven't been arguing. That's constant arguing.

I'm talking here about a heart that never submits, a heart that never has a spirit of reconciliation behind it. A heart that never desires harmony despite differences. A heart that constantly engages in contention with others and condemns those who just don't quite check all the same boxes as you do. That's a heart full of pride. And that's the kind of argument these disciples are having with this man.

The disciples argue about who's the greatest. Jesus says to them in our passage last week to be great in the kingdom, is to receive children. What's He saying there in our passage last week? For those of you that weren't here, this is a good time to review. Jesus is saying to them, I welcomed you when you were poor and helpless.

I saved you from your sin when you came to me in weakness like a child. And so when you welcome others in the same spiritual condition, in the same neediness as you are when you welcome them as I welcomed you, Jesus says, you welcome me. When you identify with the least and the Lowest, Jesus is saying, you get my gospel. You get it. Jesus, what did He do?

He gave Himself in humiliation over to a cross. And what did God the Father do for your Savior? He raised Him up and exalted Him above all names. And so if you are to be a part of Jesus' kingdom, You must follow Jesus. You must come to Him as weak and needy and humble, and He too will raise you up.

And when you truly come to Jesus, weak and needy, poor and wounded, sick and sore, it changes everything about the way you look at others who are weak, poor, needy, sick and sore. It changes everything about the way you look at others who are weak, poor, needy, sick and sore. It changes everything about the way you look at your fellow debtors to grace. You begin to look at others who are different than you. They could be different in many ways, and yet you're hoping in the same Savior.

And instead of zeroing in on always on the minute differences, you realize as you look at these men, you look at these women in different theological traditions, you begin to say, if you get the gospel of Jesus Christ, you begin to say that, you know, you're so much like me. I'm a debtor to grace, same as you. We differ theologically, but not on this, that we desperately need Jesus Christ. I don't differ with you on that. And that completely changes the way you view yourself next to those who differ from you in tradition or practice.

And so I think that John, the Apostle John in our passage this morning, I think he's starting to get this. You notice that he doesn't bring up this man and what he did to this man until after Jesus starts to mention receiving others like children. And so John, perhaps, perhaps convicted, Perhaps his conscience has been stirred up. He comes to Jesus. He tells Jesus in verse 38, well there was a man Jesus who wasn't like us.

He was casting out demons. But He wasn't part of our group. He wasn't like we are. And so we told him to stop. You know, he isn't part of our group.

He doesn't read the same books as we do. He isn't going to the same conferences as we do. He doesn't look like we do. He isn't part of our theological tradition. He isn't part of our denomination.

But he was casting out demons, Jesus. He was doing the work that you had given us to do. And so we told him to stop. We stood against him. What do you think's going on there?

Well, I think perhaps some envy is going on there. Some jealousy. And that's another characteristic of pride. Envy. First, an argumentative spirit that wants to exalt oneself and belittle others and now envy.

And if you're confused why would I say envy? Well answer this question. What had the disciples been tasked with Jesus to do in Mark chapter 6? What had they been given the task to do in Mark chapter 6? Cast out demons in the name of Jesus.

What had the disciples failed to do here in Mark chapter 9? They had failed to cast out demons in the name of Jesus. And now here is a man who is not failing. Here is a man who is not failing where the disciples have failed. And so what do they say to this man?

No, they don't what they say to this man. Well done Help me. No They say if we can't do it Neither can you and so they prevented him the text tells us in that text I think the new Americans a little light on that word love the new America, but I think it's a little light there. Verse 38 there could be translated, they forbid this man to cast out demons. Forcibly forbid this man to obey the call of Jesus Christ.

And what's really important to note brothers and sisters Is that this man is casting out demons. It says in this text it tells us directly he's casting out demons in whose name Jesus's name Notice what John says we saw someone casting out demons in your name and Jesus why does that detail matter? Why does that detail matter? Well, I just want you to think about that. I want to pause for a moment.

I want you to think why that might matter. Why couldn't the disciples cast out the demon in the verse prior. In the verses prior, how come they couldn't cast out the demon? Jesus tells them it's because of your unbelief. You have no faith in Christ.

You have no faith in me, Jesus says. That's why Jesus says to them after they ask him, hey, well how come we couldn't cast out this demon in the middle of chapter 9? And Jesus replies, if you would have prayed, it would have demonstrated your dependence, your neediness, your trust, your belief on my strength, not your own. Just like a child cries out for help for someone outside of himself, for strength, Jesus told these disciples, I would have helped you had you cried out to me in prayer, believing on me like a child. And yet the disciples in Mark chapter 9, two Sundays ago we talked about this, The disciples looked within themselves and knocked to Jesus.

And yet here is this stranger, this man, who is casting out demons in whose name. In the name of Jesus. Here is a man who is evidencing belief. Who is evidencing trust and faith. A man who is depending on Jesus in prayer.

That's why He is doing the very thing that the disciples could not do. He was depending on the name of Christ. And beloved, that is the cure for pride. That is the cure for your pride. The cure for an argumentative spirit, the cure for envious pride, is to remember the Gospel, to depend on Jesus, to keep the gospel in mind.

As one brother puts it, these disciples thought that they had been admitted to the elite graduate school with the ultimate headmaster named Jesus. Who did this outsider think he was? But the disciples didn't see that they were actually the little ones Jesus was dying for. That anyone in His kingdom was only there by unmerited love and forgiveness. One didn't get into the kingdom by pedigree, credential, and belonging to the right club or tradition, but by grace, depending on the strength and might and ability of another." End quote.

Oh, I've read this passage so many times and I've thought out loud, oh, that the disciples would have seen that the only reason that they belong to Jesus's company of heroes there, the only reason they belonged as disciples had nothing to do with themselves. Most of them were out fishing and they were called by the sovereign grace of God to follow the Savior. No merit of their own. They could have looked at this man if they had realized that they were part of Jesus' group because of His grace alone. They could have looked at this man.

And rather than count Him an enemy, They could have counted him a fellow soldier, a friend of Christ. And they could have served together and fought together in the name of Jesus against Satan, all by the grace of God. Instead, these disciples in their pride, they prevent this man from casting out demons. They make this man into an enemy. And just think about that.

This man who was serving in the same work against the same enemy as Jesus and his disciples, these disciples turned this man into an enemy. And that happens so much in our day to day brothers and sisters. And I'm not talking about you all, I'm talking about I hear all the time from friends of mine, I constantly hear something like this. I hear all the time people canceling teacher after teacher out because of some disagreement they have with him. And it makes me so sad because I talk to my friends, I talk to fellow pastors, I talk to other men in evangelicalism, and I just wonder, when are they going to cancel me out?

I mean, there's just no possible way that I can possibly please everybody and satisfy everybody's theological hobby horse. I'm just one guy. I can only have one position. I'm just trying to be faithful right but I just I hear these things and I it just breaks my heart because I go, man, what's that guy saying to others about me because I'm not like him? So all the time, well-meaning and dear people are telling me to watch out for guys like John McCarthy right because of his Lordship salvation stuff and his eschatology don't read it or you better watch out for John Piper right You don't read him because he's got some charismatic leanings.

Throw out his books. Watch out for a guy named Doug Wilson. He's got some wonky views on politics and Christianity in the political sphere. Get rid of R.C. Sproul.

Man, have you seen his views on baptism? Get rid of him. So by the time that's all done, I look at my library downstairs and I got nobody. I got nobody. You don't want that.

You don't want your pastor all by himself talking to his wall. I know the Holy Spirit's real. But that's a height of pride when you only listen to yourself. And so all these men that will say these things that will cancel out individual theologians, I don't know that they realize that the measure they use will be measured against them. So I want to talk to the fathers in this room, because this is a good application for us fathers.

Fathers are we teaching our children to do the same to us? Fathers if you are canceling faithful men, Gospel saturated, Jesus adoring, Bible believing men who long to obey Christ, if you're canceling them out because you disagree with them on tradition, or sort of orthodox vein of theology, if that's what you do to men striving with all their heart to be faithful, if that's what you do to faithful men, will your children not also follow suit? By the measure you use it will be measured against you. There will come a day when your children will disagree with you. It has to happen.

They will disagree with you on some theological practice, some doctrine. And though you remain firmly, both of you remain firmly in orthodoxy, firmly loving Christ, firmly holding tightly to the Scriptures, Because of your example, because of the way you've discipled your children in evangelical cancel culture, they'll be forced to cancel you out. That despite your faithfulness as a father, they'll no longer be able to esteem you in the way that they should, for they've been taught that esteeming those who disagree with them is no good. Oh, Don't do that. Don't do that.

Be careful, brothers and sisters. Now of course, of course, I just mentioned four names of theologians. They are all just Men. Right? They are all just men and they're men at best.

But you know what? They are some of the best of men. I want you to hear this from your pastor. I love, love John MacArthur. I love John Piper.

You know what? I have disagreements with both of those men on a lot of things. Lots of things. And I absolutely love them. I love them.

I mean, you know where I would be without the faithful ministry of John MacArthur, John Piper, and R.C. Sproul. There's one place I definitely wouldn't be, right here in this pulpit. I wouldn't be here. I am so thankful to those men.

And you know what? I know I talked about him last Sunday, but why not talk about him twice. I love my earthly father. Oh I adore my earthly father whose name happens to be Charlie Brown And He truly is the greatest man I know. I am not, I am saying the truth there.

And I will always say that about my father. And yet, there are a number of things I don't agree with my dad at all. And I love him. Oh, you know, it's so good for us when I meet with him and we might have a disagreement or we're not seeing eye to eye on something theologically. I am so sharpened.

And so is he. If you ever ask me about my dad, do you know what I don't ever say to you when you say, who's your dad or what's your dad like? I will never ever say, Well, we do disagree on this and we do disagree on this. I never ever start the conversation that way. You know that if you've asked about my father.

You know what I say to you when you ask about my dad? I say I love my father. I don't have to give any qualification for that. All I need to tell you is that He's great and I love Him so. And so rather than cancel faithful men, rather than silence those who differ with us within orthodoxy, Rather than call them enemies, it would just do us well to recognize Jesus has something to say about the way I view and the way I work alongside faithful men who are working for the same Savior, depending upon the same name, and trusting in the same crucified and risen God-man that I am.

Jesus says to them, though you might disagree on some other things, do not hinder one another. This man casting out demons, disciples, he's doing the work in my name. That's verse 39. Don't hinder him. Stop forbidding him.

Same Greek word as in verse 38. We forbid him. Verse 39. Stop forbidding him. That's a command.

It's a command. And commands by the Savior are meant to be obeyed. John is talking to Jesus here. Jesus is talking here about those who are trusting in the name of Jesus. Those who are trusting in His finished work, in His strength, in His power, in His righteousness for a right standing with God.

People like this man in our passage are trusting in the name of Jesus and they don't look like you. They don't look like these disciples. They don't check all the same boxes. They Do some things. People outside of your traditions and on my tradition, they do some things that are really weird, don't they?

You know what? You're weird too. In fact, I've had some of you over for dinner. You're really weird. And I know you go home and say, whoa, a pastor is really weird too.

Brothers and sisters, if you're hoping in Jesus Christ, and they are hoping in Jesus Christ, you know what you're both? You're both really weird to the world, aren't you? And that means you have so, so, so much in common together than with anyone else outside the church. Anyone else. You are brothers and sisters in the Lord.

You're not enemies. You're not enemies. You know, you've got plenty of enemies surrounding you Christian right now. No, you don't watch the news, but if you did, they're all over the place. Even in Mayberry, also known as Earlham, you've got enemies.

But these fellow Christians who don't align all the way with you on tertiary matters, but they align on all the wondrous things that make you different than the world as Christians, They don't need to be on that list of enemies. It's plenty long. You want them in your foxhole. You want them in your bunker. You want to know some of the most fun and encouraging and faithful evangelists I've ever evangelized with, those that I love to evangelize with more than anyone else, are minions.

I love them. I love them. They're my boys. They put so many self-proclaimed Calvinists to shame. You know, they're out there to win souls.

They're out there to win souls. They're fighting in the trenches with me, fighting the darkness. And I completely disagree with them where faith comes from and the sovereignty of God on salvation. But you know what we do? We fight together.

Fight together against the darkness with smiles on our faces and tears in our eyes together. Why? Because we both belong to Jesus. And we got bigger fish to fry in the midst of the battle than the doctrines of grace when it comes to winning souls. And don't get me wrong now, when we're having lunch, when we're on our way back home, those Armenians and I, man, we talk all the time about our different positions, about the way we understand different passages in the Bible.

And we work to persuade one another, don't we? We don't pretend like there's no differences. We work to sharpen each other, but never to silence one another. You will not catch my Armenian friends in Rolla, Missouri trying to cancel me out and me trying to cancel them out saying, you know, well, hey, you know, I won't say this to you Armenian friends, but to all my people in my camp. Don't you go talk to them.

They're no good. No. Again, I want them in my foxhole 365 days of the year. And if I could have 366, I'd take it. I can't on leap year.

So instead of canceling men, instead of canceling faithful men who disagree with you, I urge you, I exhort you, you should thank God for their faithfulness even though you are outside of their theological tradition. We should work to encourage those who differ from us. We should walk alongside them. We should work to sharpen them. We should pray for them.

We should pray for them. How often have you prayed for those you disagree with? That's a good indication if you're arguing for the sake of arguing or you're arguing because you love them. Do you pray for them? Pray for them, walk alongside them, sharpen them, and then go do holy battle with them, with them, against the darkness.

If you get the gospel of Jesus Christ, you'll stand with those who also get the gospel, regardless of the way that they might practice baptism, regardless of the way they might view the doctrines of grace, regardless of the way that they differ with you on cultural engagement. If you treasure the Gospel, you'll stand with others who treasure the Gospel, regardless of their take on eschatology. In short, you'll welcome those who differ with you as fellow pilgrims, as fellow children of God. And that's exactly what Jesus says. There's only two points in this sermon, lest you thought there was like more than that.

Don't worry. Christ's corrective. That's exactly what Jesus says to us. You are to welcome these men that disagree, these differences, though they be important, you are to welcome these men who are faithful as children of God. Christ offers a corrective, it's humility.

We see this in verses 39 and 40. Here is the corrective to the disciples' pride of envy and their contentious spirit of argumentation. Verse 39, but Jesus said, Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in my name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of me, for he who is not against us is for us." Now we really, honestly, I don't think need much commentary on these two verses. Jesus tells his disciples, stop hindering this man, Stop treating him like what he's doing is wrong. No one who is performing a miracle in my name, Jesus says.

No one who is believing in me in a way that dwarfs your belief, disciples. No way should they be treated and expected to be an enemy. Think about what he's telling the other disciples. Disciples if you're not an enemy of me and you're an unbelief, and this man is believing, If you're not an enemy, how much more is he a friend? He's definitely not the enemy.

Unless this man was working against the gospel, Unless this man, unless his work was to distort and confuse the Gospel of Jesus Christ, unless this man was working to lead people away from Jesus Christ, crucified, risen and reigning, unless this man was moving people into idolatry, you should count this man as a co-laborer if he's not doing those things. Don't make him stumble, Jesus says. Don't make him stumble. My name is being lifted up. My work is being accomplished in my name.

And so Jesus is, really Paul is kind of quoting Jesus in Philippians 1. You remember Philippians 1, right? All these people are preaching Christ and it's not Paul. What does Paul say? Stop it!

No, he says Christ is being preached. Sweet! He's being preached accurately and rightly. The work of the Lord is being done. What does Paul say?

I rejoice. I rejoice. Moses says the same thing in Numbers chapter 11. If you'll read that tonight, it'd be a really good homework assignment. Moses in Numbers chapter 11.

Joshua is concerned with men that are prophesying inside the camp. I don't think they're supposed to be doing that. They're not authorized. Joshua tries to stop them. And what does Moses say to Joshua?

Just like Jesus talking to these disciples, he says, Oh, that all of God's people would do such a thing. Oh, that all of God's people would do such a thing. Oh, that all of God's people would be at my work like these men. Such is the same with these disciples. Jesus communicating to them, oh, that you would be like this man.

Rather than forbidding, these disciples should be rejoicing. And friend, I need you to hear me. Perhaps you should be rejoicing more often too. It might make you more fun to be around. If there wasn't always something negative for you to say about someone else and their ministry, but rather what would come out of your mouth is, oh, I'm burdened for this man.

I'm burdened for this woman. Would you pray with me? Oh! I want to talk to you. Our passage ends this morning with verses 41 and 42 with a reward and a curse.

A reward for those in humility who serve others and a curse for those carrying on in pride who make the least stumble. Verse 41. For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because of your name as followers of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe to stumble, it would be better for him if with a heavy millstone hung around his neck he had been cast into the sea." Who do you think Jesus is talking about when He says these little ones who believe? He has the man in mind.

This passage is bookended by references to little children. Verse 37 has it. Want to say that right? Verse 37 has it And verse 42 has it. And in between there is this man.

The disciples are making this man stumble. That's a bad thing. It's so bad that that's the curse that will accompany those who make men like that stumble. You see verse 42, it's really heavy. Pun intended.

Now Jesus wasn't teaching. Some people will misinterpret verse 41. Some people teach that, you know, Jesus was teaching that giving out water results in earning salvation, that is not at all what that text is teaching. Salvation is only found in resting and trusting in Jesus and His finished work on the cross, Right? Okay.

Jesus was simply telling these men, I am pleased when one of you is served a small drink of water when you're thirsty. And when you disciples look at that person who served you a glass of water in my name do you forbid them from giving you a cup of water because they're giving you a cup of water because of me you get the logic are you if you were to take me I'll say it again I'm getting some blank looks If someone comes up to you disciples and they say, because of Jesus I'm giving you this drink because you're thirsty. Are you going to look at that person and say, I forbid you to do it? No! You're going to look at them and say, thank you!

This is wonderful! How much more then a greater work is exorcism than giving a glass of water? Jesus is saying if you won't forbid someone from giving you a cup to drink in My name so that you can quench your thirst. If you won't forbid that, why are you going around forbidding this man who is also doing wonders in My name? Helping in far better ways than just meeting your thirst.

You're being illogical. You're being proud. That's what pride does. Don't forbid this man. If a work is done grounded and rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Do not forbid it.

R.C. Sproul, he sums this up well, quoting the Presbyterian here, practicing what I'm preaching. R.C. Sproul says this. You need to listen.

When I was in graduate school, I was exposed to the great thinkers of traditions different than my own. I was exposed to great Lutheran theologians, great Anglican theologians and others. As I read their works, I began to see that they concentrated on certain things that were basically ignored in my own tradition. I discovered that there was much to learn from the Lutherans. There were things that I could learn from Episcopalians.

And of course, I could not deny that there were very important differences among us, but we have to distinguish between matters that are important and matters that are of the essence of the Christian faith. Sproul went on to say, At St. Andrew's, the church where I minister, we have frequent membership classes. These classes usually include some people coming from Baptist traditions, and their big question is, well, why do you baptize babies here? It's a good question.

Manifestally, the Presbyterian tradition and the Baptist tradition cannot both be right. Either God is pleased with the baptism of infants, or He's not pleased. One tradition has it right, or one has it wrong. An issue like that is important, because both sides obviously want to please God. But they differ on what does please Him.

However, I do not believe that this issue is of the essence of Christianity. We can come down on different sides of this issue and both be redeemed. Both be in the kingdom of God. Both be justified and adopted into the family of God. Both be having different practices because we are having faith that the Scriptures are being followed.

Sadly, Sproul writes, I know people who will not tolerate any deviation from their theology. If someone differs at any one point, whether it's over baptism or art or eschatology or predestination, even continuationism versus cessationism, political engagement, a myriad of other issues, that person must not be truly saved. Sproul says, well, that's not just foolishness, it's sinfulness. To assume that all differences divide us ultimately is nonsense. And he finishes here, at the other end of the spectrum are those people who say, well, no difference is essential.

That it does not matter what we believe as long as we are all sincere. Well this attitude denies that there is any kind of thing like ultimate truth, which is dangerous in the extreme to deny. The New Testament calls us to recognize the difference between essential issues and non-essential issues. Jesus had to teach His disciples this truth and help them see that this exorcist was not sinning by not following the disciples. Simply put, we need discernment.

That's good. And I had lunch with a young man not too long ago, he came to faith under the teaching of John MacArthur. He was converted under that man's ministry. Wonderful thing. And God used MacArthur in mighty ways in that man's life.

Subsequently, after his conversion, he actually embraced the doctrines of grace because of MacArthur's faithful teaching for years. And then not too long ago, this is a good friend of mine, He became convinced of paedobaptism. And so he became a Presbyterian. He is no longer a Baptist like MacArthur is a Baptist. And so just months after having coffee with him and discussing the gratefulness in his life for MacArthur, just months later, about six months, maybe closer to a year, I met with him again for lunch, and this young man who is now a Presbyterian, he began to trash John MacArthur.

The very man whom God had used in this young man's life to bring him to salvation, to mold and shape him, to even get him to be into a position theologically where he could even understand things like paedobaptism. It was John MacArthur. And he took John MacArthur and he says, he's not the same as me. He trashed him. He canceled him out.

You know, he wouldn't even probably be... I know God is sovereign, but he might not even be a Christian apart from John MacArthur. And the moment that you just use somebody up and you just toss them? What folly. What folly.

Don't do that, brothers and sisters. Don't be like that. My friend doesn't need to agree with everything that John MacArthur writes and says, but that man owes John MacArthur his life. I know it's by the grace of God, but through the ministry of that preacher that he disagrees with, that man was converted. And so let us recognize, brothers and sisters, we have no business being proud like that.

We have no business being proud like that. You will be canceled out if you do that yourself. And I've seen it so often, more often than I wish, Men in the church, women in the church, they get proud and it kind of seeps in unknown for a while, wraps itself around their hearts, and they become the arbiter of truth. No one else is as good as them, is as righteous as them, because They're not the same. And so they kind of create a cocoon themselves and say, I'm outside of everyone's criticism.

And they begin to abandon all the commands of God. They say, well, I don't need elders, because clearly my elders are inferior. I don't need a church, because they have no criticism to offer me. And they end up outside the church. And when you're outside the church, Jesus argues, Paul argues, that you're probably not even a believer.

You see the danger of pride? Evangelical cancel culture is not something that we can just kind of say, well, you know, okay. It's a big deal. And so I want to encourage us to be honest, Real, have life on life relationships that exalt Christ. And you know when you do that?

When you have life on life relationships, when you're in your homes together, when you're talking after service, you know what's going to come up? Differences. Don't shy away from such things. It's the miracle of the church that despite our differences, we are together in Christ. Isn't that wonderful?

The miracle of the church. Miracle of the church. And so as We take the Lord's table each week that we have it, and we thank Christ together. We need to remember that it's not just an individual thing that we're doing. I wish we were doing communion today.

It's not just an individual thing we're doing when we're doing communion. What are we doing? We're celebrating the miracle that despite there being barbarians, Scythians, slaves, freed men, circumcised, non-circumcised, Gentile, Jew, man, woman, that In Christ they are one. There is in the place of two, one new man. We are celebrating that at the table.

We are remembering that at the table. We are participating in that at the table. That's glorious! So don't come away from this sermon thinking, well, can't argue. Stop.

Don't do that. You can. I've been doing it for an hour. I'm simply saying argue with love in your heart, with compassion for these brothers and sisters that don't have the same position that you do, and do ministry with them. Tears in your eyes, smiles on your face, saying, man, I want you in my flock.

So, 365. And so I just want to have a moment here. If you agree, this is the end, if you agree that Jesus Christ is the rock and foundation of this church. That Jesus Christ is the author of your salvation. And that Jesus Christ is the Lord and Savior of your life.

And you cling tightly to His word. Would you say amen? Amen. There you see, these are not your enemies. Let's pray.

Our Father in heaven, out of an abundance of words, may this your word remain, cause us to be a people that are not so full of pride that we end up being drowned in the sea of despair and dismay and ultimately destruction. We don't want to be a part of proud, arrogant, cancel culture. We want to be a people that stand firmly upon your truth. We want to be a people that are humbled by the truth, not proud of ourselves, Give us hearts that walk out of this place with lofty thoughts of God and humble thoughts of ourselves and gratefulness in our hearts for the fellow soldiers that we get to stand alongside within this body whom Christ died for. Oh, how beautiful it is to belong to your church.

Make us more and more united for Christ's sake. Amen. Thank you.