The title of our sermon this morning is, Don't Play the Fool, Don't Play the Fool. Our text is 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verses 16 through 21. As we come again to consider this second canonical letter to the church at Corinth from the Apostle Paul, in chapter 11, Paul is giving us an introduction to what many have called his fool's speech, a fool's speech. This speech begins in earnest in verse 22. It's a speech where the Apostle Paul embarks on a fool's errand. Paul is about to answer the fool's in Corinth according to their own folly, and Paul is about to do something that he's very reluctant to do. He's about to boast in his own ministry. He's about to, in essence, boast about the work of the Lord that he's done through the Apostle Paul. Makes Paul very uncomfortable. Paul is obviously extremely reluctant to do this. He has indirectly expressed reluctance to it throughout this letter, the extent of this letter as we've been working verse by verse through 2 Corinthians. And even now, he's taken most of chapter 10 and the first 21 verses of chapter 11 to get around to doing it. So why does Paul stoop to this level? Why does Paul here submit himself to this shameful course of action, you could say, and boast? Well, Paul is motivated by a deep concern for these beloved believers, his beloved brothers and sisters in Corinth. Paul is deeply concerned. The Corinthian church, a group of people, believers that Paul loves very much, this church has been infiltrated by false teachers, infiltrated by fools, and influenced by their deception. These worldly wise men have swept into Corinth, touting their own credentials, glorying in their own greatness, glorying in their own skill, boasting in their own abilities, name dropping, boasting in their credentials, teaching their own deceptive doctrines, and they are leading away disciples in Corinth after themselves, leading away disciples away from the Apostle Paul, away from the Gospel, away from the Lord of God, and after their own destructive heresies. They're leading them away from the Lord Jesus Christ. And so Paul, understandably now, is on the offensive, Paul's on the offensive. In chapter 10 verse 7, he explains that the Corinthians are judging according to the flesh. They're judging according to outward appearance. They're being enamored with the self-appointed, so-called apostles of Christ, which are ministers of Satan. The Corinthians are judging according to externals. They're judging according to outward appearance. They're not judging according to righteousness. They're not judging with a righteous judgment. Paul says in chapter 10 verse 17, listen, it's not those who commend themselves who are approved, but those whom the Lord commends, and the Lord certainly hadn't commended these upstarts in Corinth. He hadn't commended these false teachers. He hadn't sent them running, and yet they run.  It's foolish boasting. This worldly boasting is having an influence in Corinth, so much so that Paul is deeply concerned. It's a concern that he clearly expresses in chapter 11 verse 3. Paul says, but I fear, let somehow as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. You're being led away. Don't you see? You're being deceived. Don't you see? You're being led away from the simplicity that is in Christ, the simplicity of the gospel. Verse 4, for if he who comes preaching, preaches another Jesus who we've not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you've not received, or if you hear, if you listen to a different gospel which you've not accepted, you foolish Corinthians, they well put up with it. So what's the plan here then? What's the plan? Well in part, Paul is going to boast as well. Paul is going to have to boast as well, certainly not like they do. Not boasting in their flesh, not boasting according to outward appearance. You'll notice that Paul's boasting as we work through the chapter is entirely different. But nonetheless, Paul is going to stoop, he's going to play the game. These Paul's teachers in Corinth are playing and he's going to resort to boasting. And Paul has several reasons for doing this. One of the reasons, one of those is given to us all the way back in chapter 5 verse 12. Look at chapter 5 verse 12. One of the reasons that Paul is going to resort to boasting and he spends all of these chapters working his way toward doing that, is given to us in verse 12. Paul says, because we do not commend ourselves again to you, but we're going to boast. I'm going to take this course of action to give you an opportunity to boast on our behalf. In other words, Corinthians, I want to give you ammo so that you know how to answer the false accusations of these false teachers, that you may, verse 12, have an answer for those who boast in appearance and not in heart. If we're beside ourselves, it is for God. If we're of sound mind, Corinthians, it is for you, because the love of Christ compels us. Paul compelled by the love of Christ, Paul compelled by his love for these people is going to embark on this foolish mission, so-called, and boast. Another reason that he gives us, another reason for this course of action, is given to us in chapter 11 verse 12, Paul's desire in chapter 11 verse 12 is to cut off any opportunity for these false teachers in Corinth and he aims to do so in part by boasting himself. In other words, Proverbs chapter 26, you answer a fool according to his folly so that he doesn't remain wise in his own eyes, right? Paul is going to cut off the opportunity that these false teachers in Corinth presume to have among the people and he's going to do so in part by answering the fool according to his folly. Verse 12, what I do, Paul says, I will also continue to do that I may cut off the opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are and the things of which they boast. There's another reason that Paul gives for this course of action. It's found in chapter 12 verse 11 and that is the foolishness of the Corinthians themselves. Verse 11, I have become a fool in boasting, why? Because you have compelled me. I ought to have been commended by you for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles though I am nothing, but Paul has become a fool in boasting because the Corinthians themselves have compelled Paul to this course of action. Paul thinks to himself, it's going to take this. It's going to take me doing this to try to open their eyes. It's going to take me embarking on this course of action to try to help them see it is shameful. It appears as though the false teachers aren't the only fools in Corinth. The Corinthians have been terribly foolish themselves. According to outward appearance, being persuaded, allowing themselves to be persuaded by this wicked and worldly boasting, many have failed in their responsibility to Paul to uphold the gospel that Paul is preaching. They have failed in their responsibility to the church to deal with wicked false teachers, to deal with sin in their midst. They have failed in their responsibility to the Lord Jesus Christ to uphold the gospel as a pillar in ground of truth. And now they have forced Paul's hand and Paul has to do something that he considers foolish. Many in the church at Corinth are themselves foolish and that's why they've been so easily duped by fools. They found themselves influenced by deception because they themselves have been acting foolishly. I think with me for a moment, think with me back to a time when you had to do something that made you feel foolish. You were self-conscious about it, you didn't want to do it, right, but you're compelled to do it. For some of you that may have been in your childhood, for some of us it may have been like yesterday, right, where you're compelled to do something foolish. I remember as a kid I had this pair of jeans. It was back in the day when bell bottoms were inside. These were bell bottoms, I loved them, and I wore them several times a week to school until I wore a hole in the knee, and I didn't want to give up my jeans, and so I asked my mom to fix my jeans, and my mom fixed my jeans by putting on my jeans on the hole a bunny rabbit patch, and for a middle school boy like that, do we have any other patch? I love the jeans so much, I wore the jeans with the bunny rabbit patch on them to my shame. I felt foolish, right, it was worth it, I love those jeans. Think about something that made you feel foolish, something you were compelled to do, something that made you feel entirely out of sorts. You didn't feel like you're self-doing it, you felt foolish doing it, why? Because it was something you didn't normally do. It was something that was out of the ordinary, something that was out of your comfort zone, it was something that wasn't consistent with your personality, it's not consistent with your character, it's not consistent with your nature, it's not consistent with who you are. It's not consistent with who you are, and so you feel foolish. That's how Paul feels about boasting of himself. This endeavor of boasting, boasting is so distasteful to the apostle Paul that he feels foolish doing it. It's not consistent with his character, it's not consistent with his nature. It goes against the grain of everything that Paul understands and knows to resort to this. Paul knows the Lord never boasted. This is not the example of the Lord Jesus Christ, is it? The heart and mind of the Lord's bond slave is averse to boasting of himself. We boast only in the Lord, right? Only in the Lord. And we see it in Paul's reluctance here, don't we? His averseness, the distaste of this is written all over the page, isn't it? It's like reading the account of David, drooling on his beard and acting like a madman to escape the king of gas.   It's inconsistent. What was entirely inconsistent in the life and practice and character of Paul was entirely consistent on the part of the false teachers and many in the church at Corinth. And there you have your difference, right? There's the difference. What was inconsistent for Paul was essentially of the character and nature of the false teachers in Corinth and shamefully among many of the Corinthians themselves. It was consistent with their character. You and I have to remember, we live in a world where we are surrounded by fools, presuming themselves to be wise what? They became fools, futile in their thinking, darkened in their minds. We are surrounded by foolishness.  Listen, we cannot be fools ourselves. We cannot be fools. We have the word of a living God. We have, if you're in Christ, you have the mind of Christ. We are partakers in that sense of the divine nature. We cannot conduct ourselves foolishly. We cannot act foolishly. We cannot make foolish decisions. We cannot portray ourselves foolishly. We can't do foolish things.   Let us be fools for Christ, right? Listen, if Christ is not raised from the dead, then we are of all men. We are the most to be pitied. Why?  Bring all my hope in this. Listen, brother. Listen, sister.  This is not foolishness, amen. We cannot be fools ourselves. We cannot conduct ourselves in foolishness.  So Paul, then, from this text, exhorts us today and he exhorts the Corinthians. And I want you to draw two points from our text this morning. I want you to see the fool's pride and I want you to see the fool's peril, the fool's pride and the fool's peril. Let's look at our text together beginning in verse 16. Paul says, I say again, let no one think me a fool if otherwise at least receive me as a fool that I also may boast a little. At first, in verse 16, he wants the Corinthians to understand what he's doing and he wants the Corinthians to give him a fair hearing. Hear me out, Paul saying.  Now, this is the second time that Paul has appealed to the Corinthians for this understanding, right? It's the second time that Paul has appealed to the Corinthians for them to give him a hearing, for them to lend him their ear, so to speak. He did this first back in verse 1. Oh, that you would bear with me in a little folly. Indeed, Paul says, please with them, bear with me. Hear me, Paul is saying, bear with me in some foolishness. But listen, verse 16, don't think of me as a fool.  Now it's taken Paul 15 verses to get from verse 1 back around to this appeal, the second appeal in verse 16, and it's the point that shows how reluctant Paul is to actually do it. Paul's reluctant to do this, and he wants the Corinthians to think rightly about it as he enters into this argument, as he enters into this boasting. He says, I'm about to engage in some foolish boasting, but please don't consider me just another link in the chain, the chain, chain, chain of fools, right? This is the only time you'll ever hear a quote from Aretha Franklin in a sermon. I hope. Paul says, I'm doing it to make a point, right? I'm boasting to make a point. This is not my general MO, not like it is for these false apostles, this is not how I generally operate, and you Corinthians, you should know that. However, verse 16, if you think I'm a fool, at least receive me as a fool that I also may boast a little. The little word also is pretty key, right? If you consider me a fool for stooping to this level, if you think I'm a fool for boasting like one, at least hear me out, at least receive me as you have other fools in the chain, do you see? The little word also is key, that I also may boast, that I may boast too, just like others have boasted. It's a passing reference to the false teachers who have been boasting, right? It's a passing reference to the fact that the Corinthians have gladly received them. The Corinthians have been lending them an ear. The Corinthians haven't dealt with them, they've been hearing them out. Paul says, if you think me a fool, at least hear me out, just like you would one of them, give me a hearing too. If you've been listening to them, the least you could do is listen to me. Paul told them in 1 Corinthians chapter 9 that he had become all things to all men that he might by all means save some. Remember that? Well here, Paul is stooping to the level of a fool to win fools. He wants to persuade those in Corinth who are being influenced. So Paul goes back then to considering the fact that he is about to play the fool here. And he takes one step toward that in verse 16. And already with one step, he feels compelled to offer more explanation. That's what we get in verse 17. More explanation. Listen. I'm about to boast. I'm about to enter in this foolishness of boasting. Before I do remember verse 17, what I speak, I speak not according to the Lord, but as it were foolishly in this confidence of boasting. Paul's not comfortable with this. I think that's obvious, isn't it? It doesn't sit well. This is not in Paul's nature. It's inconsistent with his character. Boasting is obviously easy for false teachers. That's true in our days, isn't it? Boasting easy for false teachers. That's all they do. They're windbags who boast of their own importance, boast of their own heresies. Easy for false teachers, but it's proving very difficult for the apostle Paul. So he qualifies about what he's about to say. He offers a disclaimer. This is not what the Lord would say. This is not what the Lord would do.  I'm speaking foolishly, Paul says. Now, Paul, his motivation for doing this is to be careful. Not to offload or attribute any of the shame that Paul feels for doing this and transfer any of that to the Lord himself, right? Paul feels some shame over having to resort to this course of action, and he wants to be very careful that that's not something he attributes to the Lord. It's certainly foolishness, all boasting associated with the flesh, all boasting is foolishness. What characterizes, what drives this boasting in verse 17? The word there, confidence, in this confidence of boasting. The word confidence in verse 17 refers to the assurance with which someone speaks. If someone speaks with assurance, someone is very assured of themselves. We say they speak with confidence, right? They speak with confidence. They speak in such a way that communicates an unwavering belief in what they're saying. They're firm about it. They believe what they're saying. They believe what they're saying. They have a firm belief, and so they speak with confidence. Now, it's here that we see the fool's pride. It's here that we see the fool's pride. This isn't produced by the spirit on the part of the fool. This isn't produced by the spirit in the heart, mind, and conduct of a false teacher. This is produced by the flesh. Here's where we see the fool's pride. Paul describes it in verse 18, seeing that many, here it is, boast according to the flesh, I also will boast. It's here, again, in verse 18, that we begin to see the stark contrast between Paul and the boasting of these false teachers in Corinth. This confident boasting of the false teachers in Corinth is according to the flesh. In other words, all of their confidence is in the flesh. Their unwavering assurance is in the flesh. It's pride. It's pride. This is not what the spirit produces. This is what the flesh produces. This is the kind of boasting that is produced in the flesh. It feels good to the flesh. It gratifies the flesh. It pleases the flesh. It indulges our fleshly impulses, our fleshly desires, makes us feel good. It's focused on the flesh. It's centered on the flesh. Outward appearance, externals, right? Those who are of the flesh love it. This is what they love to boast in. They love this boasting. Now, of the many places that this phrase, according to the flesh, of the many places that it's used in the New Testament, most often has two references. One, it refers to natural birth or natural ethnic or physical relationships, right, born according to the flesh. In Romans 9, Paul refers to his kinsmen according to the flesh, ethnic Jews, right? But secondly, in the New Testament, it refers to that which is corrupt by nature in sinful man, that which is fleshly, that which is carnal, sarks, right? That which is worldly as opposed to that which is spiritual. That's the boasting of these sinful men in Corinth. It's worldly. It's fleshly. It's carnal. It's according to outward appearance. It is according to the flesh. Now, one of the best passages of the Scripture to see that distinction, to see that contrast is in Romans chapter 8. We're going to be in Romans chapter 8. That which is according to the flesh set apart or distinguished from, that which is spiritual or according to the spirit. We see this in Romans chapter 8. In their boasting, they're going to be distinguished from one another. One will be carnal fleshly according to the flesh. We'll see Paul's boast in something else entirely. In Romans chapter 8, verse 1, Paul says here, There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk, here it is, according to the flesh, but according to the spirit. Listen, there are two types of people in this world. There are those who walk according to the flesh. They walk according to the dictates of their own heart. They walk according to the dictates of their own sinful nature. They walk according to the dictates of their own mind. They do not walk according to the spirit. There's another type of person in this world who walks according to the spirit. Why? Because that one has been caused to be born again by God's spirit, and God hasn't dwelt them with his spirit, and they yielded to the spirit, walk according to the spirit. Their minds being renewed by the word of God, their desires being renewed by the word of God, their impulses, their nature being renewed by the spirit of God. They walk according to the spirit. Listen, verse two, the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. It makes one free from walking according to the flesh. For what the law could not do in that it was weak to the flesh, God did by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh on account of sin. He condemned sin in the flesh. You know that, verse four, the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the spirit. When you walk according to the spirit, you fulfill the righteous requirement of the law. Do you see, verse four, for those who live according to the flesh, they set their minds on the things of the flesh. What will please the flesh? What will gratify the flesh? What can I do to indulge my flesh? Those things which are carnal, worldly wisdom, worldliness, they set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit, verse five, they set their minds on the things of the spirit. They're gazed, it's fixed upon eternal and unseen things in the heavens. Why? Because this life is a vapor and our inheritance is in heaven with Christ. They walk according to the spirit. Four, verse six, to be carnaly minded. Listen, to be entrenched in a mindset that is fleshly, to be carnaly minded is death. Let no one deceive you. Carnal mindedness is death. That's why the carnal Christian is such a damning heresy. To be carnaly minded is death, Paul says, but to be spiritually minded, to have your mind renewed, to have your heart and nature renewed, to be spiritually minded by the spirit of God is life and peace. As verse seven, the carnal mind is enmity against God. God is opposed to the carnal mind, for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be, so then those who are in the flesh, those who walk according to the flesh cannot please God. But look at the contrast in verse nine. You are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if indeed the spirit of God dwells in you. Those whom the spirit of God indwells, walk according to the spirit. If anyone does not have the spirit of Christ, he is not his. Verse ten, and if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is life because of righteousness.  But if by the spirit, you put the death, the deed to the body, you will live. As many as are led by the spirit of God, these are the sons of God. And Paul goes on and on. This contrast right between flesh and spirit is the very contrast that is causing so much discomfort for Paul in his boasting. He doesn't want to be associated with that at all, doesn't want to be associated with that in the minds of the Corinthians, doesn't want himself to be perceived as being associated with that at all. Hear me in this foolish boasting for a moment, but don't associate me with walking according to the flesh. Paul's boasting isn't sinful. Paul's boasting is not sinful, but he doesn't want to appear to be fleshly. Where pride comes from. Pride pours out of our flesh. It flows out of the heart of a man and defiles him. Lord Jesus Christ said in Mark chapter 7 verse 20, listen. He said, what comes out of a man, that's what defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, precede evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness and evil eye, blaspheming and with this list of atrocities, pride and foolishness. All these evil things come from within, out of the heart of man and defile a man. Listen, we must cast off foolish pride wherever you find it. Poor contempt on it, as Paul does. Wherever you find it, cut it off. There are many reasons why we should be diligent and vigilant in doing that. Right? Many reasons. Let me give you just a couple. The first is this, it's because God hates it. God hates it. Why would anyone in their right mind want to be known by, characterized by, something that God hates?  Proverbs chapter 6 verse 16, there are six things which the Lord hates.  Proverbs chapter 8 verse 13, the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. And what is the evil listed there? Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverted mouth.  James says that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Why would anyone want to be characterized or known by something that God Almighty is opposed to? Who would want to be opposed by the living God? Who but the fool would continue on a course that is opposed by God? His way is doomed. His way is doomed. He will fall. There's a right, there's a way which seems right to a man. But that way, which seems right to a man, is the way to destruction. The way to death is the way which leads to death. God Almighty opposes the proud. He stands against the proud. He regards the lowly. He regards the humble. He stands against the proud, the foolish, the arrogant. He stands against the haughty. He gives grace to the humble. Do you need grace? Then cast off your pride. Cast off foolishness. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Do you see yourself as needy, as desperately needy because we are? Do you, at a guttural level, feel sense that apart from him you can do nothing? That apart from him you can do nothing to please him? Those who are well have no need of a physician. Those who are well don't go to the doctor.  Humility, humility is right and true to the degree that you are humble. In other words, humility is the right understanding.  Humility, a humble understanding, an apprehension of our condition, our true condition before him, is an apprehension of things as they really are. It's an apprehension of truth as it really is. And everything that you need and everything that you have comes from him taken by what you read in the Old Testament. The rain comes and it's not just, oh, it's raining today. No, God sent the rain. It's sunny outside, God gave us a sunny day. The harvest yields a protest, God blessed us with a harvest. The harvest doesn't yield a protest, God didn't bless us with a harvest. Humility is a right apprehension of things as they really are. We are destitute apart from him. We are desperately needy. And he is the one who provides all that we need. Everything that we have comes from him. Everything that you're going to have comes from his hand. So why do you fret and why do you worry and why do you scurry about as if it's entirely up to you? It's not. Be faithful, brother. Be faithful, sister. Be faithfuled and go to the Lord. The Lord is the one who provides all that we need. Now, the Corinthians have been suffering under the consequences of their own foolish pride for quite a while at this point as we get to 2 Corinthians chapter 11. We see a picture of that back in 1 Corinthians. Turn back to 1 Corinthians chapter 4. 1 Corinthians chapter 4. This foolish pride, this self-willed, self-reliant confidence isn't new to those at Corinth. We find it addressed here in 1 Corinthians chapter 4 beginning in verse 6. Now listen, as we get into this text, the Corinthians are making fleshly, carnal, prideful, foolish judgments about those men who are serving in the church.  They're making judgments, just like they are in 2 Corinthians chapter 10. Like in 1 Corinthians chapter 4, they're making judgments according to the outward appearance. They're making judgments according to externals. I like his preaching. I don't like his preaching. I relate to him. He's got a great personality. Yeah, I don't like him so much. Foolishness, foolishness in their pride. Can you see how that's divisive? And that's what they're doing. They're creating factions in the church. I'm of Apollos. I'm of Paul. I'm of Christ. They're being divisive. They're causing factions in the church. Paul tells them in verse 1, listen, this is the way that you evaluate a man of God. Faithfulness, faithfulness of the word of God, faithfulness in his ministry, faithfulness. Paul says, listen, it's a very small thing that I should be judged by you. Then he says this in verse 6. Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself an Apollos for your sakes that you may learn in us not to think beyond what is written so that none of you may be puffed up or haughty or arrogant or prideful on behalf of one against the other. Your prideful foolishness in Corinth is creating factions and divisions.  Then he asks them in verse 7, who makes you differ from another? Who makes you different from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, then why in the world do you boast as if you had not received it? Fish boasting, let me ask you. What good thing do we possess that isn't a gift from God? What good thing? If it's a gift, then why would you and I be puffed up about it? It's a gift from God. What right do you and I have to boast in those things? You boast puffed up as if it's your doing. That's what boasting, prideful boasting is.  And in that the Corinthians making themselves out to be somehow better than their brother. Foolish pride is little more than self-confidence rather than confidence in God. Foolish pride is self-reliance. Don't boast. You've got to remember that that which has been graciously given can just as easily be taken away. Don't boast. Pride, if you think about it in that sense, pride is lying about God. This is mine. I have the power within my own hands, within my own ability to make wealth. All this I've done by the sweat of my own back. It's lying about God. It's lying about others. It's lying about yourself. It's not things as they really are. You are desperately needy. Poor, miserable, blind, naked. Do you see? Blinds. It blinds us to the truth. Blinds us to things as they really are. Paul says to them in verse eight, he says, you're already full. You are already rich. This is sarcasm. You've reigned as kings without us. They're prideful, right? And indeed I could wish you did reign that we also might reign with you. But look at the contrast between their foolish and prideful boast and then Paul's boast, beginning in verse nine, for I think that God has displayed us the apostles last. Here's Paul's boast. We are as men condemned to death. We have been made a spectacle to the world, both the angels and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake. But you are wise in Christ, professing to be wise. They were fools. We are weak, but you are strong. You are distinguished and we are dishonored. Do you see the contrast? To the present hour, we both hunger and thirst. We are poorly clothed, beaten and homeless. And we labor, working with our own hands, being reviled, we bless, being persecuted, we endure, being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the off-scouring of all things until now. Well, Paul, that's some boasting. I don't know that Paul understands how to do it. Maybe he's just... Somebody needs to come along and say, no, no, no, no, no, Paul. That's not how you're supposed to boast. Now that's Paul's boasting. What a contrast, right? What a contrast. Paul is about to make the very same contrast again in 2 Corinthians 11, the same contrast. The Corinthians, the Corinthians are still facing the same sin in 2 Corinthians, again making worldly, prideful, foolish judgments, but now, watch this, not about men in their own church, but now about false teachers, false teachers. There's a downward spiral, do you see? There is a downward progression, and it is dangerous, it is deadly. Repent of your pride, repent of your foolishness, or it will continue to spread like 11, and it will devour you. The fool's pride inevitably leads to the fool's peril. The fool's pride leads to the fool's peril. Back in 2 Corinthians, chapter 11, look at verse 19, where has their foolish pride gotten them? Again that Paul wrote 1 Corinthians, until now that Paul has penned 2 Corinthians, where has their foolish pride gotten them?  See the same adjudication, the same description, the same problem. How have these false teachers gained such influence among you? Because you consider yourselves to be wise. Your foolish pride has led you to this point, to the point where they are acting as though they are ashamed, not of the false teachers, but acting as though they are ashamed of the apostle Paul. They are too wise to be under this poor, impoverished, laboring, crying, pleading so-called apostle, servant of God. What's the result of their foolish pride? They are being assaulted, and they are being led away in the error of these false teachers. They are being led away by these deceivers. Verse 20, because you put up with it, if one brings you into bondage, if one devours you, if one takes from you, if one exalts himself, if one strikes you on the face, they've been swept away in foolishness themselves because they have not repented of their foolishness. In their own pride they presume themselves to be wise, and so they are taken away as fools. Self-confident, self-reliance. Where does self-reliance and where does self-confidence, where does pride and foolishness lead? It leads to bondage. It leads to deception. It leads to gladly putting up with the fools. It's a downward spiral, isn't it? It spreads like leaven. It continues. It gladly put up with it when someone has Cata Dulao brought them into bondage, enslaved them. They've gladly put up with these false teachers who have come in, these false apostles who are treating the Corinthians as their slaves to serve them. They're not there to serve the Corinthians, they're there so that the Corinthians can serve them. Because through their heresy they have brought them into bondage. They've enslaved them to serve themselves. That should be absurdly obvious in our day, but it's amazing how the gullible, those who are foolish, follow fools in their folly, isn't it? We'd like to pass the plate a fourth time today because I really need a leader jet. Why do I need a leader jet? Because I've got to do ministry.  It's so ridiculous. Listen, there are a lot of examples that hit a lot closer to home than those. It is absurd foolishness. They've gladly put up with it as these false teachers have exploited them. Exploited them. If someone devours you, that's what the word means. It speaks of or it's a reference to these false teachers exploiting the Corinthians for personal gain. They offer their money. They're out for their money. They want the Corinthians to support them, to pay them. It speaks of consuming their financial resources, devouring their financial resources. These false apostles are parasites and they're living at the Corinthians expense. You see, they've gladly put up with it as someone has literally taken. If one takes Lombano, the word denotes bringing someone under your sway by craftiness, by deceit. Not just under their power, not just under their power, not just under their influence, but taking them in, you see, by ensnaring them. They have been ensnared by these false teachers. They've gladly put up with it as someone has exalted himself. Here speaking of specifically exalting themselves over the Corinthians as more important. Never mind biblical teaching that we should esteem one another more highly than ourselves. These false teachers are esteeming themselves as more highly than them. And the Corinthians are awed by it. Even to the point verse 20, they've gladly put up with someone striking them on the face. I believe that's a metaphor for insulting them, insulting them, insults. My how far they have come. Maybe you have, as I have, known someone who has professed Christ for a very long time, many years, many years. And because of pride, because of foolishness, because of self-reliance, because of self-confidence, you don't see them grow. You don't see them make progress. You don't see them really bearing fruit. What you see is someone who claims to be set apart to Christ and yet in reality is set apart to worthlessness, set apart to futility. Why? Because of pride, because of self-reliance, because of self-confidence, self-indulgence, repent of foolishness, repent of pride, poor contempt on that which rises up in your flesh that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We have mighty weapons that are strong in him for pulling down strongholds, right? The difficulty that Paul is having now in Corinth is the difficulty of correcting them for their foolishness, correcting them for their pride. It's gotten to the point now in 2 Corinthians, Paul is dealing with the very same issue again, and he's having to resort now to boasting in order to correct them, and Paul's having difficulty. Proverbs 12 verse 15, the way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but he who heeds counsel is what? Is wise. In other words, when you are overcome or overrun with pride, confidence, self-reliance, then you are wise in your own eyes. You're wise in your own eyes.  We need wise counsel. The one who heeds counsel is wise. Can you be corrected? Are you intreatable? When someone comes to you, are you intreatable? Will you respond? Sometimes, right? The very first response from our own flesh is a prideful one. It's a fleshly one. That's why it's the response out of our flesh. Often, that comes percolating to the top before we can have a reasonable biblical spirit-fueled response. Before contempt on that thing and be intreatable. Can you be corrected? Are you teachable?  Are you critical? Do you have a critical spirit or do you have a teachable spirit? Are you lifted up in pride? I could do that so much better. Yeah, you probably could. Are you learning anything? Are you teachable? Someone comes to you. Sometimes it's going to be many that come to you and say, listen, I don't think you're making a wise decision. Do you listen to them? They don't understand. Nobody really understands me. Paul is having trouble difficulty correcting the Corinthians. He wants their eyes to be opened to see things as they really are and they're not getting it so far. Paul is now about to resort to this, what he deems to be, this foolish comparison, this bit of folly in order for them to see it. Why would Paul go to these lengths? Why does Paul do it? Love. Paul is motivated by love. It's by love. Look at verse 21. I want you to see that in verse 21. Paul says, to our shame, I say that we were too weak for that. Paul takes the shame upon himself. He takes this shame in order to open their eyes. He's been humbling himself all along the way, right, all along the way. Paul has been humbling himself. We just got done looking at that at the beginning of chapter 11 and that Paul doesn't even accept support from them. Paul says, listen, I robbed other churches so that I wouldn't be burdensome to you. Paul has humbled himself and humbled himself and humbled himself, and here he is, he's humbling himself again to our shame. I say that we were too weak for that. What is the character? What is the nature of Paul's boast, the fool's speech of verse 22? Are they Hebrew? So am I. Are they Israelite? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I. Are they ministers of Christ?  I am more. How? How is your labor for Christ distinguished or characterized by? Labor's more abundant, stripes too many to count, prisons more frequently, in deaths often from Jews five times. I received 40 stripes minus one, scourged five times, three times beaten with rods, stoned three times, shipwrecked a night and a day. I've been in the deep journeys often, perils of waters, perils of robbers, perils of my own countrymen, perils of the Gentiles, perils of the city, perils of the wilderness, all kinds of perils, perils in the seas, perils among false brethren, in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst and fastings often, cold, naked. And besides all that, what comes upon me constantly is my deep concern for the churches. Who is weak and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble and I do not burn with indignation? If I must boast, Paul says, and I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity, the things which could involve my weakness, Paul's boast is of an entirely different character. Do you see? And it's out of love. Why would anyone endure such hardship? Listen, if it's not love, if it's not for the Lord Jesus Christ, then we should all go home, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die. We are all men, most to be pitied. We are fools. What would motivate such love? What would motivate such endurance? What would motivate such perseverance? The Lord Jesus Christ, the forgiveness that we have in him, our eternal destiny, souls are at stake and Paul humbles himself in love. The prideful fool being puffed up with pride will, as Paul says, fall into the same condemnation as the devil.  If you continue on that course and when you die, which could be this afternoon, in the next hour, in the next day, the next week, the next month, the next year, if you continue along that course, you will incur, suffer, be bound for the same condemnation as the devil. The prideful fool being puffed up with pride will fall into the same condemnation as the devil. You can see the downward spiral in Corinth, can't you? Turn around.  Humble yourself. The fool's pride inevitably leads to the fool's peril. All praise, honor, and glory to the one who gives much grace to the humble, amen. Let's pray. As we go before the Lord in prayer, pray silently, ask the Lord to reveal to you, by a spirit through His word, in any prideful way in you, Lord, how have I played the fool, how have I been foolish, please Lord, humble me, help me, Lord, to see in the repent of my pride. And when you are done praying, you are dismissed. Let's pray together.


Hi guys, welcome back to this video today. I want to cover some time management tips for nursing school If you are like the majority of students time management can be very very hard to learn in nursing school It can be something a lot of people struggle with so I want to give you guys a couple little pointers to help you out But before we get started you guys need to know that this video is sponsored by pick Monic pick Monic is Hands down an amazing resource for nursing school and to prepare you for the NCLEX They have an app. They have a website. They just came out with their nursing cheat sheets book And they help you prepare for the NCLEX and nursing school by creating unforgettable Nursing stories with funny characters to help you retain and learn information If you're like me you can remember information a lot better if it comes in like a creative funny story or Matter but like if something is just boring and dull and black and white like it just it doesn't stick So they make information and learning fun by creating these funny nursing stories For example, if you're learning about strokes They will tell you a story using meaningful unforgettable characters that help that information stick in your head So make sure you check out pick Monic I will leave them linked down below You can get two weeks free if you use my link and so many of you guys use them So so many of you guys use them and love them because I get messages all the time About how you did well on your NCLEX because of pick Monic how you aced your exam because of pick Monic So they are a great resource to use in addition to what you're already learning in nursing school because that's all that's on there It's stuff. You're already learning in nursing school. So make sure you check them out But now let's talk about some time management tips Okay, so little backstory. I have always been a very like pro-activated Pro-activated I was gonna say motivated and proactive proactive and motivated person in nursing school like I Was just super type A about making sure things were done So I feel like I'm like the time management guru to give you guys information on what I did that helped me To hopefully help you so some things I did is at the beginning of this semester I literally got all of my classes like the syllabus syllabi I don't I don't know what you say when it's plural But I got the whole semester's worth of when tests were gonna be due when assignments were gonna be due And all of that and I literally would write everything down in my planner So that's my number one tip is get a planner whether it's on your phone Whether it's something you think something you physically write but write down every single assignment every single clinical time every single Test date so that way you don't forget anything you literally can't because it's written down in black and white The last thing you want to do is forget an assignment because you just Literally just didn't know about it So this eliminates that it helps you manage your time because you will not forget When things are going to be due so write everything down my next time saving tip is to use a resource like pick Monic to help You study for your nursing school content and for the NCLEX because pick Monic literally does everything for you guys You don't have to think about creating exam content and clicks questions They already have everything on there for you. So you don't even have to be creative and think of it yourself So use a resource like pick Monic to help you study because it will save you time in the long run not having to come up with like Okay, I made all these NCLEX questions or I've had to make all these flashcards Like it's literally going to do all of that for you. So make sure you check out pick Monic again I have them linked in my description box below My next time management tip is make sure you are setting a side time for studying or working on projects or whatever it is So literally like just like you'd write down your assignments that are due in your planner write down, okay from three to five today I plan on working on my Written assignment and then tomorrow. I'm gonna have a chunk of time between five and seven and I'm gonna work on my PowerPoint so that way you have already set aside that time to help motivate you to Do what you need to do The next thing is like really utilize your time in between classes to get things done every single moment I was a nursing school. I was trying to get stuff done. So that way when I got home I didn't have as much stuff So like if I had my first class and I had a two-hour break in between classes I would just work on assignments or I would work on studying So that's two hours of my time that I already like had to be at school that I got stuff done versus just hanging out Not doing anything and then getting home and having to do all of this work So use your little breaks even if it's 15 minutes 30 minutes You can get so much done to take another thing off of your plate My next tip is to make checklist so that way you can stay motivated to get stuff done I Live off of checklist even today. I make checklist Basically almost every day to try and get things accomplished and now it's not so much nursing school related But my checklists are like, I got to get laundry done. I need to go to the grocery store I need to record this video and then I check it off as I go and it helps stay motivated when you can physically see something getting checked off But do this for a nursing school. So if you're like, okay, I'm going to study for an hour. Write that down I'm going to work on my paper today. Write that down I have clinicals from this time to this time write that down. It just makes you feel satisfied and Motivated when you're like actually seeing yourself check things off and it gets it out of your brain So that way you're not just like running through all of these things that you constantly have to do And then you kind of get jumbled and you can't remember them if it's physically written down on paper or on your phone you can see it and Check it off as you go. My next time management tip is to Set timers when you are studying or when you're working on something so that way you can really stay motivated in that short time So instead of like allotting a six hour time block for you to study Be like, okay I'm going to study for 30 minutes and I'm going to set a timer and I'm going to put my phone to the side So I'm not getting distracted and I'm going to really study for those 30 minutes in a meaningful way And then I'm going to give myself a 15 minute break and I'm going to come back and study for 30 more minutes And set timers for that so that way you're held accountable And you can make the most of your time because if you set aside like a six hour time block like realistically You're going to be on instagram or you're going to be on tiktok.  This is kind of a creative tip, but it's to Keep reviewing old information that you're learning in nursing school And you're probably like, how is this a time management tip? But hear me out if you can come back to information that you've already learned in nursing school It's going to save you time in the long run because you're not going to have to like Get to the end where you're trying to study for a final and be like, oh my gosh I haven't studied any of this information for the last four months If you can continuously study little bits as you go of things that you've already learned for previous exams Then you're going to set yourself up for better success for the final But you're also going to save time because you are not like trying to cram everything in last minute So um, it may seem tedious. It may seem like, oh my gosh, I already learned this information Why am I having to go back and like revisit it? Well, that's because you're gonna forget it if you don't Like study it and you just let it go for four months You're going to struggle a little bit more and it's going to take up more time to study in the end One you could have just done like a little 10 minutes here and there all throughout your semester the last thing I want to leave you guys with is Nursing school is meant to be busy It's you're meant to juggle a lot of things all at once and nursing school is meant to be Challenging and make you feel like you just have so many things on your plate And that's because when you become a nurse You're going to utilize these time management skills that you've been practicing in nursing school But now for patient care and patient management and some people don't necessarily see that It's not just about like, yes, nursing school is overwhelming and it's challenging And you're doing all these things but that's preparing you for when you are juggling a patient That's about to code a patient that needs intubated a patient that needs an IV a patient I need labs drawn meds past like you're going to be trying to prioritize and do all of these different things all at once And nursing school is slowly trying to prepare you to manage your time And that's why they put a lot of things on your plate.  Um If you liked it give this video a thumbs up Make sure you check out pic monarch and the description box below and I will see you my next video. Bye


Hi, I'm Kristen Pease, the Spring 2022 recipient of the Ken Hacock Award for exceptional professional promise. I am truly grateful to Dr. Bowman, Dr. Harlan, and the entire Student Awards and Scholarships Committee, along with the iSchool Director, Dr. Chow, the School of Information Faculty, in particular the professors who have guided me these past 18 months, and my fellow MLIS students. I've classed my class, learning from professors, and collaborating with classmates. My LIS interest sharpened and career horizons broadened. I applied to San Jose State University iSchool with a vague notion of becoming a public librarian, but will graduate focused on landing an academic librarianship position. My librarianship goals have grown from a generic idea of connecting people with books to a specific passion for bibliographic instruction. From wanting to do something positive in my city, Los Angeles, to being able to define that positive something with phrases like open education resources, equitable information access, and transformative agreements. I'm looking forward to launching my professional librarianship journey from the foundation the SJSU iSchool has helped to build. Thank you.


Thank you for being here. This is incredible as one of the co-founders of SoCAP. It's just an incredible thing to see. Rosalie said maybe 1,900 people here this week. But I am really, really happy to be here today because we're talking about something that's really deeply embedded in me in the way I think, in the way that we think at Halloran. And I often point to a man who I view as the prophet of this movement, the person that had it figured out to such detail in big swatches of what was necessary, a man named Buck Mr. Fuller. And he really dedicated his life. He called his life himself guinea pig bee, bee for bucky. And he dedicated his life. He thought that if he acted who he was, to be who he was, just like a flower is a flower in nature, that he would get all the resources that he needed to be successful. And as part of that process, he questioned himself as to what really, what was the role of humans in this. He thought that there was a natural coordinate system that he called synergy. And he thought, after much reflection, that human beings are essentially information gatherers and problem solvers. And since the beginning of time, since the beginning of man, that there have been these isolated experiments around the world about how to survive, how to increase their own well-being. And that only when we started to build these more sophisticated transportation networks and now incredible communication networks that we started to be able to compare these solution sets or these experiments that were happening around the world. And it's this kind of lens that I think is crucial to understanding how to solve problems, that we have to look at things as ecosystems. So at Hallearn, we have found a great partner now in Lemelson in thinking about ecosystems and networks that support these ecosystems. And what we believe is that in our short lifetime, in six years of Hallearn philanthropies, that we think that we've gotten smarter faster by thinking this way, that none of us is as smart as all of us, that we've been able to build much more rapidly dependable networks of trust that allow us to act with more confidence, even in very risky situations. And that it has enhanced our ability to identify opportunities with high catalytic value, what I'm calling cascading cycles of impact. And I think that what we're trying to do is play a role with others in sort of weaving these ecosystems, observing these ecosystems and how the interaction of this really it's this connective tissue of networks that are supporting them. Things like the TEDx platform that creates this incredible archive of knowledge that is shared globally from a very local place. The hub network, where you have now over 40 physical locations around the world that are doing these isolated experiments but with others, collaboration. And I think that part of, I think what all of this is leading up to is a social innovation movement. That it's not just business and finance and entrepreneurship, but it's anybody, it's connecting anybody in the world that's identifying their own passion, their own abilities for the common good to try to improve our lives. So that's the perspective that we're taking at Halloran in Oaxaca at a very local level in Mexico, in Brazil, in Colombia, and now in India and a little bit in Africa. And it reminds me of before Kevin and the rest of us started SoCAP, we did a project aimed in Mali around malaria. And what we learned very quickly is there were 50 organizations working on malaria. And they were all taking a very top-down approach and not really getting to co-create a solution with locals. And I'm reminded of another story of an African village, a group of organizations that were really trying to solve the AIDS issue in a very local area, in a local village region in Africa. And they thought we should build a school or an institute here. And the locals kept saying, build a soccer field. And they said, well, why would we build a soccer field? And they continued to develop the institute, which had very little impact. And then they finally came to the conclusion that they needed to talk to the locals. And they said, build a soccer field. And they built the soccer field. And what the soccer field did is that it allowed them a natural context and a very, very natural place for young people to learn about AIDS and what they could do to prevent it, which made much more sense to the people that were affected. And this is the second part of the hypothesis that I think the thesis that both Abby and I share is how do you co-create these kinds of solutions together? How do you start from a grassroots level? As outsiders, as insiders, where you're really trying to help, but how do you do it? And I want to bring up Abby to talk about how through a really human-centered design and the development of a very supportive local ecosystem, the co-development of a very local ecosystem, that it makes all the difference in the world. Abby.


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Welcome back to Tennis Talk, my name's Cam Williams and it's unofficial, but it will be official in a couple of weeks We have a new world number one, Igor Sviyontek with her win today in Miami She officially becomes the world number one after the Miami Open of course replacing Ash Bhati at the top who retired during the week Let's go over listen to the reaction of becoming world number one as we watch their live Golovitch serves out wide of the back end Sviyontek, Foyna Golovitch in the back end Sviyontek Golovitch for the slice forehand that goes into the back end of Igor who hits a winner Igor six love bagel bagel bagel to finish world number one Igor Sviyontek We can now say that I feel almost officially world number one Igor Sviyontek and that was a world number one performance I mean she played like the best player on the planet because right now she is if this week if last week didn't prove it This week does right so there you have it a lot of excitement and look Igor is the best player on the planet right now She's proved that over the last few weeks if not for the entire season only second to Bhati So it makes it fitting that she's gonna be world number one in replacing Bhati at the top of the tree and look Sviyontek You know she only has to win one match She had a pretty easy having to beat one player Whereas Vadosa who is the other person in line to become world number one She had to win Miami and also rely on Sviyontek losing in her first round match Which of course she didn't do or a second round match Which she didn't do let me know down in the comments below How long can Igor stay on top because I have a feeling the world number one ranking is gonna change hands a fair bit We have a lot a lot of players at the top of the game that are very close together Vadosa being one of them. Sakurai is not too far away from from Sviyontek as well Krijakova hasn't played for a few months shit for a few weeks Will she maybe take number one spot at some point or somebody else let me know down in the comments below


What happens when you dwell in the presence of God 24-7? And that is possible. First of all, what do I mean by dwelling in the presence of God? After all, God is omnipresent. He's everywhere at all times. What I mean by dwelling in the presence of God is living with an awareness of his nearness. It's not as though God comes and goes or abandons us when we make mistakes and draws closer as we do better in life. No, the Holy Spirit faithfully abides with us. The question is, are we living a lifestyle of surrender to the influence of the Holy Spirit? And as you begin to live in that surrender, you begin to receive of his presence. And many things begin to transpire in your life. I'm gonna share a few of those with you right now. But first, I want you to comment right now. I just want his presence. Make that a bold and public declaration. We're unashamed of loving his presence. Write that in the comment section now whether you're watching live or on replay. I just want your presence. I just want his presence. However you wanna phrase it, just let it be known that your desire is the presence of God. Number one, divine guidance. He'll point the way and bring clarity. Here's what the scripture says in Exodus chapter 13, verses 21 and 22. The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night. And the Lord did not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire from its place in front of the people. Now here the scripture is describing the supernatural way in which God led the children of Israel as they moved about. In the daytime, there was a pillar of cloud. In the evening, in the night, there was a pillar of fire. God's guidance was there 24 seven. Now God is guiding us 24 seven. He's speaking to you right now whether you recognize it or not. He's guiding you. He's pointing the way. The question is, are you listening?  Or is your life so fast paced that there's no room for a moment's pause to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit? You can trust him even when you don't know where you're going as long as you recognize his voice. Sometimes trust is the answer. We want the steps laid out before us. Lord, show me everything from step one all the way to the final step and then I'll begin to walk this path in trust of your goodness. Well, no, often the Lord will tell us take step one and I'll show you step two. And then when you take step two, then maybe I'll show you step three, but I want you to trust me in the process. You see, the children of Israel were guided supernaturally. They were not guided by a map or man's reasoning. They were not guided by human effort or human skill. It was God's supernatural guidance upon their lives that allowed them to know where to go. And this guidance, though it doesn't take the form of a literal pillar of cloud or a literal pillar of fire, this guidance is for you today. Why? Because you live in the presence of God 24-7. The Holy Spirit dwells in you. He can't get any closer than dwelling within you. So this is not about begging God to come closer to us or begging God to be near to us. It's about recognizing that he already is near, that he already dwells within us. And this guidance comes with purpose. Maybe you're living in confusion or maybe you're living an aimless life. You don't quite know where you should go. You don't quite know what you should do. And you're wondering about your future, maybe even worrying about your future. Maybe you're worried that you won't fulfill God's purpose or you won't fulfill God's call. Well, this is where you have to begin to take steps of faith, trusting not in the picture that's painted for you, but in the character of God. You can trust God's character. And because you can trust God's character, you don't need the full story in order to begin on the first chapter. You can begin to walk now by faith. God's will is progressively revealed to the obedient. Please remember that. God's will is progressively revealed to the obedient. Again, we often want the full picture. Why? Because when we have the full picture, we get this sense of control. And now we trust in our own ability to bring about the steps that we see that need to be taken, rather than just trusting that God will go before us. Confusion cannot remain when God guides you. I mentioned just a few moments ago that sometimes trust is the answer. And we don't like that. We want the answer to be the specifics about God's will, the specifics about the next chapter in life, the specifics about the season in which we find ourselves. But often the answer is to just trust God. Often that is the only response that we can give because there are times in life where trials come, tragedy strikes and confusion may abound in those moments. But so long as you keep your eyes on Jesus, so long as you lend your ear to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, every step of the way God will guide you.  They walk in perfect peace knowing that their security is found in the nature of God. Their security is found in God's very character. And they can trust the genius mind that is God's mind and they know that God has it all worked out and that he's even factored in their mistakes. He's even factored in their flaws, though of course we should strive for holiness, though of course we ought to live holy, we also must recognize that God has factored in our humanity when it comes to his will.  Now I love the way the scripture words it here because look at verse 21, he guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud and he provided them light at night with a pillar of fire. You see during the day they could see more clearly. During the day they could see the landscape. They had a better idea of where they were. But in the night seasons, that's when things were probably a little more confusing.  But even in the night seasons, the presence of God burned bright for them to see. Even in the darkness, a light would shine. My friend, no matter the seasons of your life, whether you're up or down, whether you're in a season of abundance or a season of challenge, a season of happiness and joy or a season of tragedy where you're praying that that joy within you holds fast and steady.  And yes, God guides you even in the night seasons. Even in the confusion and the chaos, there's a fire by night. Even in the tragedies, in the pain, there's a fire by night. Even when you feel like you've wasted too much time, you don't know where to go from here. There's a fire by night. Write that in the comment section now. There's a fire by night. That's the presence of the Holy Spirit. He doesn't just dwell with us in the seasons of light, in the seasons of day. He dwells with us. He abides and guides, corrects, reveals the path forward, even in the night seasons. Number two, divine protection. So number one was divine guidance. Number two, divine protection. He'll scatter your enemies. Now, we as believers are, of course, to turn the other cheek. And that, of course, Jesus is saying, we should love our enemies. We should pray for those who persecute us. But there are some who come against us in the demonic realm. These are demonic beings that attack. And there are people who God will correct. See, as believers, we're called to bless everyone. We're not called to curse anyone. So even those who attack us in the natural realm, yes, we understand we wrestle not against flesh and blood. We understand that we fight against demonic powers. Yes, we understand that demonic powers sometimes attack the believer. But I'm talking now about enemies that are of the natural realm.  Maybe a professor or a teacher who takes issue with your faith. Maybe a family member who is jealous of what God has given to you.  These people come against us. Now we understand spiritually speaking, they are not the enemy, but they still often come against us. People come against us. That's just a fact. And God's correction against them isn't just punishment for them coming against his children. In fact, in many instances, God's punishment can be a form of grace and compassion because God's punishment often comes with correction. And so even when our enemies are correct, think about this, we are so favored by God that even when they come against us, God favors them with his correction. Now these are mysteries of the spirit and some of you might be listening to this going, I don't quite understand what you're saying this. So let me just put it this way and then I'll move on to the primary point I'm making. When enemies come against us, I'm talking about natural enemies now. Even God's punishment, what we would perceive as judgment against them, ultimately can draw them closer to him. So we are so favored, we are so blessed, we are so loved by God that even those who come against us in some way or another receive God's compassion and mercy. And that's what we should pray. Having noted that very important point, let's read Psalm 68 verses one through three, take into consideration here, this is an Old Testament concept and we filter all Old Testament concepts through New Testament truths. Psalm 68, one through three, rise up O God and scatter your enemies.  Let them be glad in God's presence, let them be filled with joy. So to balance this point, yes, we acknowledge that when people come against God's children, God arises and he responds, vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord, God does correct our enemies. He even punishes our enemies. But this doesn't necessarily mean that's what we should wish for. We should pray that even in God's correction there's grace. We should pray that even when God brings judgment that ultimately that judgment is a refining fire that draws them to salvation. Taking these balances into consideration, we must remember this, that God will protect you, that God will turn the attacks of your enemies into favorable outcomes. The people who persecute you for your faith, God is gonna turn that situation around in your favor. Now, it may not always be what our flesh wants. See, our flesh sees one perspective and our spirit sees another. So when I say God's gonna turn it out into your favor, sometimes the flesh is, yeah, that person's gonna get fired or that teacher's gonna lose their job or that family member is gonna have calamity come on them, but that's not what we wish for. I believe God's gonna turn that into your favorable outcome in that they'll be saved. In that even though they may be persecuting you now that God will convict them or that he'll build your character through those attacks, those are also favorable outcomes. Again, the flesh wants just revenge and everything to go the way we want it, but the spirit understands that God is protecting us, God is refining us, God is working things for our good, even when we don't understand the good that he's working. See, when we quote scriptures like, God works everything out for the good of those who love him, right? We quote scriptures like that and sometimes we interpret those scriptures or we perceive them through the flesh.  We kind of picture this ideal situation that begins to develop and that's not exactly what that particular verse means. What's actually being described here is the fact that no matter what comes against us, God is doing something in us and so therefore sometimes we don't understand the good that God is working, but in either case we have to remember that no matter what is happening, we have God's protection and we can trust him. It comes back to trust again. We can trust that he is protecting us and that whatever is going on around us, he's in control. And so when God arises, he scatters your enemies, not just demonic forces, but God can use the attacks of your natural attackers for your benefit. Whether or not you see that benefit, that's gonna be up to whether or not you can perceive the situation in the spirit or not. So there's divine protection. He works things for our good. He scatters our enemies. There's something about someone who carries the presence of God. People think twice before they come against them. The divine character that's been developed in them speaks volumes and protects their reputation. God's hand protects them against physical attacks. God's favor protects them against calamity outside of his will. God protects his children, so that's number two. So number one is divine guidance. Number two is divine protection. Number three, I love this one, divine companionship. So number one, divine guidance. He'll point the way and bring clarity. Number two, divine protection. He'll scatter your enemies. I want you to say this in the comments section where I now say, Lord bless my enemies. And in that way, he protects you. Number three, divine companionship. He'll be with you when nothing else brings comfort. He gives you rest. Watch this now. Exodus chapter 33, I'm gonna read verse 14. The Lord replied, I will personally go with you, Moses. And I will give you rest. Everything will be fine for you. Now, we understand that Moses was complained against. Moses had trouble. Not everything worked out exactly as Moses probably wanted it to work out. But even in all of that, he had the companionship of God. Oh my goodness. I feel such a strong anointing as I'm talking about this. Think about Job. You know, Job suffered so severely. And he was pointed out by God precisely because he was such a faithful servant. Have you considered my servant, Job? Satan brought calamity. Satan came to steal, kill, destroy. But he could only go so far because there was a hedge of protection about him. Now, Job wants one thing, a conversation with God.  He just wanted a conversation with God. Lord, just explain to me what happened here. He just wants to talk to him. And then in the scripture we see that the moment that Job catches a glimpse of the glory of God, he hides his face and he goes on to say something to the effect of, nevermind, I don't even worry about answering my questions. He wasn't even interested in an answer once he saw God for who he was. Now that calamity, that suffering, this is something we don't wanna hear. We don't wanna hear this in the church anymore. We don't wanna hear this in today's culture. There is a certain kind of joy that can only be found in suffering.  What I'm saying is suffering is a part of life. And if you're not careful, please hear me now. If you're not careful, you're going to miss some wonderful fellowship with God because you did not perceive the opportunity in the season of suffering. In seasons of suffering, your worship is priceless. In seasons of suffering, your motives are purified. In seasons of suffering, your focus becomes clear. In seasons of suffering, you can sense the nearness of God more so than almost any other season. Now this is not to say that God is only with us when we suffer. I'm saying that there's something about a trial. There's something about a difficult season that causes us to perceive and appreciate the presence of God in ways that we otherwise would not. And so even in those difficult seasons, we have that divine companionship. Oh, it's a treasure far above anything else you could possess here on earth. It's a treasure far above anything else that you could possess here on earth. There is no number you can put on it in terms of monetary value. There is no material thing you can trade. There is no connection you can have with the human being that can compare. Nothing can compare to that divine fellowship that you have with God. And in those seasons of suffering, in those seasons of pain, that appreciation for, that awareness of is amplified. And you can sense this nearness that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings. Often, we become most like Jesus when we suffer. Now again, let me balance this by reminding you, I'm not saying that the Christian life is all about suffering. I'm saying that the Christian life makes it so that suffering becomes an opportunity instead of wasted time. And it is in our suffering that we know this divine companionship. You walk with God 24-7. That means surrender to that influence of his presence. Of course, he's everywhere at all times, but you surrender to the influence of that presence. And when you come to these seasons where you are broken, his grace fills in that brokenness. When you feel like your 1,000 pieces shattered on the floor, his companionship is that glue that holds you together. And now you're not held together by self-reliance. You're not held together because of the blessings that abound around you.  You're held together by something that is eternally more reliable. And that is the presence of the Holy Spirit. And I've seen that people who go through these seasons of crushing carry this weight of glory on them that could not be found in seasons of blessings. No, not every season will be one of suffering, but don't you dare waste that season of suffering. Don't waste that season of suffering with complaint. Don't waste that season of suffering with cynicism and the negative outlook on life. I can't tell you how many times I've received messages from Christians who say, everything's going wrong right now in my life. All of these bad things are happening. I'm suffering. And then they say something like, where is God? What is he doing? Why is he ignoring me? Not realizing that God never promised that everything would be perfect, but that in those seasons of suffering, the Lord is near to the brokenhearted. And there's this beautiful nearness, this sweetness to his presence that you begin to know and you see another facet of God that you've never known before. So we can waste those seasons by feeling sorry for ourselves and saying, God is ignoring me. And then prolong those seasons by allowing a negative outlook on life to develop, a cynicism in our heart to calcify, or we can enjoy that divine companionship and enjoy rest on every side. And everything will be fine for us. Not because things are going perfect on the outside, but because we have his presence dwelling with us. That's number three, divine companionship. When nothing else brings comfort, his presence gives you rest. And finally, number four, divine favor. We'll read, let's read verse 14 again, and then onward. The Lord replied, I will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give you rest. Everything will be fine for you. Verse 15, then Moses said, if you don't personally go with us, don't make us leave this place. Watch this now, verse 16, this is so powerful. This is Moses' conversation with God. And this is what Moses says. How will anyone know that you look favorably on me, on me and on your people, if you don't go with us? Wow. For your presence among us sets us, your people, and me apart from all the other people on the earth. That's what makes us different. I like to tell people, there's not something special about me.  There's not something special about me. There's someone special about me. When you begin to live in the awareness of his presence, under the influence of his divine guidance, and you walk in obedience and surrender to his will, you begin to see the favor of God at work in your life. See, you already have that favor. As a born again believer, you're being guided. You're being protected. You have that companionship. You have that favor. But your obedience or disobedience will determine whether or not you walk in the reality of that. And in the awareness of that, we don't make use often of what God has given to us. As an example, you have what you have in your bank account.  But the amount that's in the account is still yours. You still have the same value in the account. It's still under your name, but until you get that debit card back, you're not gonna be able to spend what's in there. In the same way, God has already given you guidance. God's already given you protection. God's already given you the companionship that is his presence. He's already given you favor. Now, whether or not you make use of that is determined by how you live. God doesn't take those things away. He doesn't remove his presence from a born again believer. But whether or not you walk in the reality, in the influence, in the manifestation of those truths, all comes down to whether or not you surrender to the Holy Spirit. And surrender to the Holy Spirit is not some mystical idea where I live in some hypnotic state where I'm humming songs of worship and I'm talking real lazily. That's not what I'm talking about. Surrender to the Holy Spirit isn't strange or even mystical. Surrender to the Holy Spirit is simply obeying him. Obeying what God's word says. And then you walk in all of these things. You see these things come about as a reality demonstrated in your life. So I'm talking about number four, which is divine favor. He'll distinguish you. You stand out. There's something on you that is transforming. That is transformative even to others who come around you. To where now you're not looking for an atmosphere. You become one. You're not looking for an encounter with God. You're living in one. My friend, I don't want a visitation from God. I want to become his habitation. Not a visitation, habitation. And that is yours. And that habitation, that glory that rests on you, causes you so to speak to shine for others to see. And people recognize that there's something different about you. There's a grace you carry. Why? Not just because of what people sense around you, but because of the joy that's overflowing from you. The love and the peace that they sense around you. You know there are some people when you get around them, they just bring peace. I'll never forget growing up as a little boy when I would visit my grandparents house. Now of course, my parents carried the presence of God on them. My siblings carried the presence of God on them. But you know sometimes you don't recognize an atmosphere because you're in it so often. And so you kind of acclimate, if you will, to the spiritual temperature. But there were times I would go to my grandparents house.  It's a normal looking home. There's pictures of their grandchildren, flowers. There's some tea sets that my grandma has. But when you go into that house, there's just this peace. This beautiful joy. And I remember feeling that even as a little boy, when I would go to their house, there was just this peace. In times where I was dealing with things as a teenager. And you know as teenagers, there are things that they deal with that are very dark and it can be a confusing time often for teenagers. And I remember just going to the mental turmoil, the emotional turmoil. There's all sorts of different elements that affect you as a teen. And I remember just walking into my grandma's house, my grandpa's house and just peace, peace. And what is that? That's the fragrance, the aroma of his presence. You know you carry that. But maybe you're not allowing that to come through because you're covering that aroma with complaint. You're covering that aroma with cynicism. You're covering that aroma with unforgiveness. You're covering that aroma with compromise. And you're not allowing that sweet fragrance of the Spirit of God on your life to permeate the atmosphere around you because of the way you're living and thinking and talking. And instead of being peace giving, there's something abrasive about your presence. Instead of there being this tranquility, there's a tension around you. Instead of people feeling compassion coming from you, they feel this angst or even this rejection that comes from you. I don't want any of that. I just want the presence. And that presence brings favor. What is the favor of God? Hear me now.  That's favor.  I mean, the scripture says very clearly. He gives all things to us for our enjoyment. Okay, we understand that. But consider this, consider this. Well, I believe that God blesses his children financially. There's no, no one can convince me otherwise. It's in the scripture. Yes, God blesses his children financially. And yes, God favors some financially. But let me ask you this. What about that family in, let's say, some part of the world where it's illegal to believe the gospel? And because of their faith, they have to kind of live in certain conditions that people from other parts of the world wouldn't consider favorable. Are they not favored by God too? Are they not blessed? Of course they are. So then how then do we define the favor of God? The favor of God is that abiding presence. You can't replace that.  What does it profit a man to gain the whole world yet lose his own soul? Here's for example. Give someone all the money they could ever need. A big house, nice cars, fancy clothes, the best meals they can eat. Influence fame, you name it. Everything the world has to offer. How well do you think they can enjoy that if they're tormented inside? I remember Steve Moctezuma, my brother here said something to me one time when I think it was during the winter season and there was something going around and so I caught it. I had a headache, I was body aches the whole thing. And I remember saying to him, it's hard to enjoy anything because of the body aches. He says, well, that's health. He says, once you lose that, it's very difficult. And spiritually speaking, I think it goes even further than that. You take away joy and peace. You take away love. You take away those things that stabilizes within. What good is anything? My friend, that's why people who are very famous and wealthy are still miserable in many instances. Why? Because they may have the exterior taken care of but they don't have what true favor is. What is true favor? True favor is that sweet presence of God on your life. Because if you have that, it doesn't matter. You can sleep in a five-star hotel or a motel with bedbugs and it doesn't matter because you have the favor of God. You can drive the fanciest car or something that's barely making it. But if you have the favor of God, it doesn't matter. Now I'm not saying again that if you are financially fruitful that this is something that you shouldn't be. No, of course, people should be financially fruitful. It helps to expand the kingdom. But I'm trying to help you shift the perspective by using material things as a way of example. We have to come back to the place where we recognize that the favor of God is His presence, period. Well, what does Moses say? If you don't personally go with us, it's like you got to come with us. Don't make us leave this place. How will anyone know that you look favorably on me, on me and on your people if you don't go with us? For your presence among us sets your people and me apart from all other people on the earth. I want to be like Moses. I want to be like Moses. I want to truly and sincerely pray such things as Lord, I don't want it if you're not in it. If you're not in it, I don't want it. If you don't go there, I don't want to go there. Again, coming back to the reality that the presence of God abides with us 24-7, I'm talking about living in the influence of that presence, living surrendered to that influence. I don't want to do anything. I don't want to go anywhere. I don't want to know anyone that causes me to live outside of the influence of the presence of the Holy Spirit. I don't want it. I won't go. There are opportunities that come to this ministry, more like distractions disguised as opportunities. And I'll say, I don't want it, Lord, not if you're not in it. There are doors that open up to us all the time. We get invitations from around the world. I don't want it, Lord, if you're not in it. I'm not saying that God's not with everyone or those people. I'm saying that for me, it's not God's will sometimes. I don't want it, Lord, if you're not in it. I remember one time in Southern California we were looking to raise finances for a studio that we wanted to purchase. And I wanted that building so bad, I became emotionally wrapped up in it. And so this is what I said to the Lord. I said, Lord, you know me. I'm gonna make this happen. I know how to do these things to make it happen. I said, so Lord, you have to stop me if this isn't your will. I'm very persistent. Once I have a goal, I will not back down until that goal is accomplished. And I said, Lord, you know this about me. It's a strength and it's also a challenge in many instances. So I said, Lord, if this isn't you, you have to slam that door in my face. Slam it in my face. Don't let me in. Because I'm so emotionally wrapped up in this, I can't figure out whether it's you or me that's pushing me. So I need your help with this. Not that the Holy Spirit pushes, but you get what I'm saying. I couldn't discern that particular instance. I couldn't discern his voice because I was so emotionally involved in wanting that particular building. So I said, Lord, you have to slam the door in my face if it's not you. And that's exactly what he did. It turns out that, well, I'll put it to you this way. We were planning on paying for the building and using, you know, of course the building and all of the wonderful things we do with it, but we were planning to pay the monthly cost of that building through in-person gatherings on a weekly basis. Check this out. That was the strategy. That was the, if you will, the natural strategy, the business strategy. The model that we were gonna use to make it work was we would do weekly meetings and the people would support it and then we would use those resources to keep that property so we can use it for the kingdom of God. Well, that was the strategy, but we didn't know that we were just two months away from a global shutdown. And I can't say exactly what it was because then YouTube or Facebook might censor this or cause the video to lose views, but you know what happened next. It was 2020. And so had we gone into that building, it would have caused us to suffer financially for years to come because we would not have recovered because we would not have been able to do in-person meetings. Nobody would have come. Even if we did it, most people would not show up during that time. God slammed the door in my face and it was his favor. And that's what we desire. We desire his favor that we might be distinguished from the rest. Number one, divine guidance. He'll point the way and bring clarity. Two, divine protection. He'll scatter your enemies. Three, divine companionship. He'll be with you. Four, divine favor. He'll distinguish you. Now, Father, I pray that you would help your people to live under the influence of your Holy Spirit's presence. Help us, Holy Spirit, to recognize your voice. Give us the grace to obey you, to trust you, and to live in the awareness of your presence. Precious Holy Spirit, remind us moment by moment of your nearness. Remind us moment by moment of your love, your companionship. Teach us to acknowledge and to appreciate the beauty of your presence in every moment of every day. We want 24 seven fellowships. I want you to say that out loud. Say, Lord, I want 24 seven fellowship. We thank you for it. In Jesus' mighty name we pray. I want you to say it because you believe it. Say amen. If you enjoyed this teaching, you think others need to hear it, please make sure to leave a like on the video. It actually does help the teaching to spread further all around the world. 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How to build Samurai Carpenter-inspired Saw Stallions, a.k.a. Saw Horses on Steroids Ta-da! My new Saw Stallions! When Saw Horses are this nice, you call them Saw Stallions! Hola, woodworkers! Paul Carlson here, small workshop guy. Welcome to the Monterey Bay. I put in a lot of hard work on these Saw Horses to try to make them heirloom quality and to have the look in the field match that of my Samurai Carpenter workbench.  Not only that, they're very educational and skill-building. They stack together very nicely. I kind of fold into each other so they don't take too much foot space. They're very heavy and sturdy. They're made out of red oak. I don't buy red oak of this width, so obviously I've laminated two or three pieces of red oak together. I've shaped these red oak again on the legs, white birch, or excuse me, white maple.  The legs are going into the feet with a blind mortise and tenon.  This piece here involves a through mortise and tenon, and then those have been tapered the holes and then split with a saw and then pound in the black walnut wedges. I did learn quite a few things here. This was the main thing I was nervous about on my samurai carpenter workbench, and so that's why I built these saw horses is to get some experience and some practice. I learned some things, so I'm now comfortable attacking the workbench. I have the top designed so that if it gets all beat up and torn up, I can actually just remove the top and replace it with a new one because this is a tenon going up into a mortise and then it's screwed. These are based on the original design that are some free plans on the samurai carpenter website, but I would recommend you join his online school and get plans to the latest version plus many, many other things. Small workshop guy signing off.