Joyce Meyer - You Can't Play in the Mud and Not Get Dirty - Part 2

Temptation comes to everybody. But you can cut it off right at the head. I want you to think about what goes on inside of you. That's really the main message I wanna get across to you tonight is start paying attention to what goes on in you because that's what God is the most concerned about. "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God". What does that mean, "You'll see God"? I think it means you'll hear more clearly from him. You'll have more discernment. You'll enjoy more of his presence. The Bible says that God loves a quiet, gentle, good heart. He talks about not worrying so much about your hairdo and your jewelry and all this outward stuff but paying more attention to what goes on inside.

What would happen if you worked on your inside as long as you worked on your outside? I have a feeling that we would behave a lot different than what we do. Matthew 23 is a great chapter in the Bible. I mean, Jesus just took the pharisees apart. They were hypocrites. They told other people what to do, but they didn't do it themselves. Starts out in verse 25, chapter 23:25: "Woe to you, scribes and pharisees", for a long time, I didn't know what woe was, but I finally looked it up, tried to study it a little bit, and it's just like really the worst kind of misery you can have.

"Woe to you, scribes and pharisees, pretenders (and hypocrites)! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but within you're full of extortion (prey, spoil, plunder) and grasping self-indulgence. You blind pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and of the plate, so that the outside may be clean also". You know, the Bible says to "Be transformed by the entire renewal of your mind". And transformation takes place from the inside out. The world wants us to conform to its image of what is acceptable, but God wants to transform us and actually change our heart. And when our heart is changed then everything on the outside becomes what it should be.

"Woe to you, scribes and pharisees, pretenders (and hypocrites)"! I love this, "For you are like tombs that have been whitewashed, which look beautiful on the outside, but inside you're full of dead men's bones". Whew! In the Amplified it says "You are whitewashed on the outside, but full of dead men's bones". "To other people, you seem to be just and upright, but inside you're full of pretense and lawlessness and iniquity". I just read a statement that I really like. I was doing some study on integrity, and I was studying different definitions on integrity because that's something the world is really lacking today.

You know, part of integrity is keeping your word. And so many people, today, don't do what they say they're gonna do. You know, every time I make a dentist appointment, I get four reminders to show up. Every time I make a doctor's appointment, I get four reminders to show up. Why do they have to remind people so much? Because so many people just don't show up and don't bother to call because we just don't have a lot of integrity anymore. Why? Because nobody has set the standard for us, but we need to set a good standard for the next generation. They're already in enough trouble and we don't need to help 'em get in more trouble.

When you tell somebody you're gonna call 'em, call 'em. When you make an appointment, show up and if you can't show up, then call, at least have the decency to call and tell people that you can't come. And so, I was doing this study on integrity and it said spiritual integrity is the ability to take a really hard, honest look at yourself. And I wonder how many of us are really able to do that, to be really brutally, it said to be brutally self-honest with yourself, about yourself.

Ephesians 4:22-24, "Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] Which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion", so he's saying, "Put off the old man". Let's just keep it simple, "Put off the old man". And in verse 24, it says, "And put on the new man". But 23 is the bridge to get us from 22 to 24. It says, "And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude]". Look at me when I tell you this. Even after all the years I've studied it, I still don't think that we really comprehend how important two things are, our thoughts and our words.

The Bible says, "The power of life and death is in the tongue". And you know what? If I really believe that, I'm apparently still lacking some Revelation on it because I still say things that I'd be better off not to say. I know none of you do that, but I still have a little tiny issue sometimes. My gift is in my mouth, but it can also be my greatest problem. We have to keep renewing our mind. The Bible says, "Bring every thought into the obedience of Jesus Christ". Every thought.

Now, you'll need to hear another message like this in another month, and another one in another month, and another one in another month. But at least this one will help you for a few days, or maybe even a week or two. How many of you needed to hear a good word about your mind tonight? 1 Timothy 6:9 and 10, "But those who crave to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish (useless, Godless) and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction and miserable perishing". Can I just encourage you to learn to be content? You say, "Well, if you had my life, there's no way you could be content".

Well, you know, Paul said "I've learned how to be content," and I think what he learned was it doesn't do any good not to be because being discontent does not get you what you want. The only thing that gets you more is being thankful for what you have. I remember one time I was praying for something and the Lord spoke to my heart and he said, "Why should I give you any more? You're already complaining about what you got". Learn how to be content. And the Amplified Bible says that content means "Satisfied to the point where you're not disturbed or disquieted no matter what state you're in".

So, to be content doesn't mean you never want change. It doesn't mean that you don't have situations in your life that need to change that you want to change, but it means to trust God enough that you can still be happy today where you're at. Don't waste your whole life thinking "I'll be happy when" or "I'll be happy if" because you miss all those days and we have to learn to be happy now. I mean, I had a really awful year, last year, in the natural. But interestingly enough, I was happy and took it all pretty good. You probably heard the story, but I had a very minor back surgery, ended up getting a blood clot at the surgery site. It damaged the nerves in my right leg.

I couldn't pick my leg up that far off the bed. I just had no, zero, strength in my leg at all. It just wouldn't work. So, I had to go in a rehab facility for two weeks. And from the very beginning, I said, "God, please help me do this right". I didn't wanna be complaining. I didn't wanna be grouchy. I didn't wanna get confused and "Why me, God? I don't understand why this happened". I just wanted to be consistently me like I would be if everything was goin' good. And I would encourage you the next time you have a problem, pray right away, "God, help me do this right". Thank you. "Help me do this right".

Now, after two weeks, I got to come home on a walker and got a little bit ahead of myself thinking I was a little, well, actually, the truth is I was answering my cell phone, which was on my walker. And I turned the wrong way, didn't have enough strength in this leg, fell and broke this leg. So, now, I had two legs that wouldn't work. Anyway, I was in a wheelchair for two and a half months and you have not lived until neither leg works and you're in a wheelchair and you have to use a sliding board to get on the toilet. I learned how to slide on and off of everything. Anyway, that kind of got fixed, but I was still having back problems from the nerves in this leg.

And so, I had to have a nerve ablation, which meant they had to burn the end of the nerves. So, my back still hurts, but my brain doesn't know it. So that's good. Then I got up in the middle of the night in January to go to the bathroom and I don't know what I did, but I passed out, fainted and fell backward on a marble floor and broke a vertebrae in the middle of my back. Oh, yeah, I've had fun. And you know what I was doing during part of that time, I was writing a book called, "Is the devil real"? Oh, listen, I'm smart. I've been around a while. I knew when I decided to write that book that the enemy would try to come after me. But let me tell you somethin', if you can keep your joy, he really doesn't want your stuff, he wants your joy.

So just this past week, I had been getting an implant, a tooth implant. If you know what that is, they put a screw up in the bone and then it takes, you have to wait three months for it to all adhere before they can put the tooth on it. And I didn't think a toothless preacher would be too good, so I had to do it. And after three months of waiting, the dentist said, "I'm sorry to tell you that the implant didn't take: you don't have enough bone". So, now, I've gotta go get cow bone grafted into my mouth. I hope I don't "Moo" when I open my mouth. I'm trying to get across to you that I have a real life just like you do.

Come on? I mean, stuff happens to everybody. Life just happens to us and the devil wants us to crab and complain and be unhappy, go to church on Sunday and sing, "I surrender all," and then act like everybody else the rest of the week. He wants you to have a bumper sticker on your car that says, "Jesus loves me," and a cross around your neck, take your Bible to work and then act like an idiot every time you have a problem. Amen? Pennie, my administrative assistant, coming here yesterday, she goes to the airport, she goes to the parking place to park her car, and she puts the car in park so she can reach out the window and get her ticket. And when she got the ticket, her car wouldn't go in drive, it wouldn't go in reverse, wouldn't do anything.

So, she's stuck there getting this big, long line of traffic behind her, and you know how people act about that. And so, then you tried to get out of your car?

Pennie: Yes.

Joyce Meyer: She tried to get out of her car and none of her doors would work. So, she's stuck in the car and the lady, I guess, givin' the tickets sayin', "You can't park there! You can't park there"! And she's tryin' to say, "I can't move! I can't move"! And finally, somebody got the door open and when she managed to open and close all the doors, then her car started working again. Now, that's crazy. You know, what was the devil trying to do? He was trying to get her all upset before she got here.

Come on, the enemy, if he can make you mad any time, he'll do it when you're on your way to hear the word. Crazy stuff happens to us. But like I said, the devil's not after your stuff, he wants your joy because "The joy of the Lord is your... Strength"! So, one of my daughters, I have two daughters and two sons. One of my daughters, my youngest daughter, who's not real young, she's 54, she called me the other morning and said, "How's everything going with your tooth"? And I just started laughing. I just laughed and laughed and she said, "What's so funny"? And I said, "It didn't work". She said, "And you're laughing"? I said, "Yeah, Psalm 2 says that God sits in the heavens and he laughs at his enemies. And I've just decided I am just gonna laugh".

You know why? Because God has got the victory and "All things work together for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose". You'll get a victory a lot quicker laughing than you will being depressed and sour. Amen? Does anybody have anything in their life that they could laugh about right now? You know, the Bible says that, "The love of money is the root of all evil". Money's not evil. Money can do a lot of good for a lot of people. But if you love money too much, you're going to do things to get it that won't be good.

For example, people push themselves beyond acceptable limits just to make more money. And then they end up falling into many sins such as ignoring God, ignoring family, compromising integrity to make more money. And sometimes people get so tired and so worn out that they get into substance abuse so they can feel decent enough to keep doing what they're doing. So, you spend the first 50 years of your life being all stressed out and sick from stress so you can make enough money to enjoy the last 50 years. But when you get there, you're too tired to enjoy it. And you don't have anybody to enjoy it with because you never took time to build any relationships. Don't love money. Love God and use money to help people. Amen?

You can't play in the mud and not get dirty. How 'bout unforgiveness? Could we talk about that for just a few minutes before we finish here tonight? Wonder how many people in here are mad at somebody, right now? And you know why you keep your anger? Because you feel that you're justified. "Well, you don't know what they did to me". Well, I know what they did to Jesus and I know what he said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do". And nobody could have been treated more unjustly than he was. Or Stephen when he was being stoned. And I'll tell you, holding unforgiveness in your heart is definitely playing around in the mud. It's like taking poison, hoping your enemy will die.

Well, what does God want us to do? Something that sounds completely insane. He wants us to love our enemies. He wants us to pray for them to be happy. You say, "Well, I don't want 'em to be happy". Well, you can tell God that, "I don't want 'em to be happy, but I'm gonna pray for you to make 'em happy anyway because that's what you tell me to do". See, when we get around to doing what God tells us to do, whether we feel like it or not, whether it seems fair or not, that's when life starts to get good.

Okay, I wrote this down. God kinda gave me this and it's something I'd like you to try to remember. Little sins that we allow will become bigger sins that we cannot control. Little sins that we allow will become bigger sins that we cannot control. And you're really in bad trouble when you start having things that control you instead of you controlling them. Now, I just wanna say a few words about your mouth and then I'll let you go home and recover from this. How many of you are still glad you came tonight. You know, we might say there's two types of sin. There's involuntary sin and voluntary sin. And involuntary sin is when you just, you're doing something you don't even realize it's wrong or you're doing it in ignorance.

Paul said that, "Even though I formerly blasphemed and persecuted and was shamefully and outrageously insulting to Jesus, nevertheless, I obtained mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief". So, you know, I could be doing something wrong that I don't even know is wrong until I learn more and God convicts me that it's wrong. But as soon as I know that it's wrong, if I keep doing it, now I'm committing a voluntary sin and that's when we start having real problems. When we know that what we're doing is wrong, but we do it anyway. Let me just encourage you tonight, if there's anything in your life that God has been dealing with you about that you've been putting off and putting off and putting off, don't put it off any longer. He could come tonight. He could come tomorrow. It may not be something that would cause you to lose your salvation. You don't buy your salvation. You believe in Jesus and he saves you by his grace. But we need to do what's right just because we love Jesus.

Just because we love him. He said, "If you love me, you will obey me". He didn't say, "If you obey me, I will love you". He already loves us. God can never love you any more than he does at this moment no matter how much better you behave. But if we love him, we're gonna want to do what's right. And so, as soon as you become aware of a sin in your life, that's when you need to let it go. Procrastination is a liar because it says, "Well, I'm gonna do it". Well when? "Well, I'm gonna do it". When it's easier? When it costs less? No. Procrastination is a thief because it says you're going to do what's right, but good intentions are not obedience. Obedience is obedience.

So, let's be wise about our thoughts, and let's be wise about our words, and let's be wise about our deeds. But remember that it all starts, who are you inside? Not, who are you when you dress it up and take it to church? But who are you inside? Who are you when somebody offends you? Who are you when you start to gossip and all of a sudden the Holy Spirit says, "No"? Are you willing to stop and maybe even say to the person you're talking to, "You know what? I shouldn't be talking about this. I'm sorry I brought it up". Let's really be excellent for God because of what he's done for us through Christ. Not just mediocre and kinda halfway in and halfway out, but let's go all the way with God. Get fully committed to him.