Personal Convictions

00:01 The year was 1924. A Scottish athlete had returned to Scotland. He was a hero. He had recognized or he had represented Scotland well. And those who had been critical of him at one point began to even praise him for his principled stand. 00:22 In 1925, one year later, he spent a year traveling throughout Great Britain on an evangelistic campaign. 00:31 And in 1925, he then departed for China, spending the rest of his life in missionary service before dying on the foreign field in 1945 of a brain tumor at the age of 43. Say, who are we talking about? 00:48 Well, you may be more familiar with his athletic prowess than of his spiritual endeavors afterwards. Eric Little took his starting spot in the finals for the 400-meter run in the Paris Olympics. The starting pistol fired, 01:08 and he took off from the outside lane. He lasted about 47.6 seconds later. He had set a new world record in the 400 meter. He was an outstanding athlete. But what makes him more outstanding was his conviction, his convictions, and his commitment to live by his convictions. 01:29 He, like Daniel of old, purposed in his heart that he would not disappoint or defile the Lord and His will and His word and His Sabbath, in his case. See, what he had found out when he got to the Olympics was that his 100-meter race, which was his primary expertise, 01:50 where he was the best at, was the qualifying heats were scheduled for a Sunday. Some people said, well, if you don't participate, you're being disloyal to your country and unpatriotic. Many thought that his inflexible stand was just unreasonable. 02:10 There were those who said, well, you could go to church on Sunday morning because your qualifying heats aren't until Sunday afternoon. But his conviction was that he was called by God to obey the Sabbath day, the Lord's day, and give one day in seven for worship of God and to abstain from his worldly occupation on that day. 02:32 And so he began to be praised then when he broke that world record and set a new standard for the 400-meter run in the 1924 Olympics. Well, we can praise Eric Little, and we do. In fact, he's been recognized in the movie, an Oscar award-winning movie, Chariots of Fire, maybe some. 02:54 With the testimony that goes and accompanies Eric Little. So we're talking this morning again about convictions. And several weeks ago, we began this message from Acts chapter 7. 03:06 And we went through on some of the things that are biblical convictions, what the scripture specifically says, and how that we could draw from Acts chapter 7 in the account of the stoning of Stephen and Stephen's powerful message in Acts 7 and the convictions that he had based on the word of God. 03:26 And so we looked at those biblical convictions. The next section of that message was to look at some of the more personal convictions that we may have based on the word of God. And we looked at some things that was called the State of the Church Address. And this is part 3. 03:46 This will be the final part of this message on convictions. And this morning, we want to look at more of the subject of personal convictions because there may be somewhat of a difference between biblical convictions and personal convictions. Personal convictions would be the types of things that we ourselves, personally, individually. 04:06 Our own heart that may not be specifically instructed in scripture, but there are biblical principles involved. There's a biblical worldview involved. And so when you take and extrapolate that worldview and those principles in scripture into present-day. Personal convictions. Now, 04:26 I think the scripture does talk about personal convictions. Philippians chapter 3, verse 15 and 16 says, "Therefore, let us, as many as are mature, have this mind." He was talking about the mind of running the race, of running the race and pressing on toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 04:45 And he said there's some different ways and outlooks on what that looks like at times. But he said, "If you're mature, you should think about it this way. And if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule. 05:05 Let us be of the same mind." Romans chapter 14, verse 5 says, "Let each one be fully convinced in his own mind." And of course, Daniel, we read this morning a purpose in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies nor with the wine which he drank. 05:26 So I want to give you four things this morning before we look at a few more specific things that relate to our church life, four things that are important in developing personal convictions, things that I think you could take away and be well on your way to forming personal convictions. Now, again, when we're talking about personal convictions, 05:46 we're talking about things that proceed from a biblical worldview and from the principles of scripture where there may not be a thus saith the Lord specific for that scripture or for that personal conviction. 06:00 But there is plenty of biblical evidence and even wisdom involved in that decision and that conviction. So first thing that needs to be present in developing biblical convictions is there must be a clear understanding of separation from the world, 06:22 separation from the world. What does it mean? What does it look like? And how does it play itself out in my life in the 21st century North America? 06:36 Hebrews chapter 5, verse 14 says, "Solid food is for the mature who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good and evil." And so this is a discipline. When I give you these four things this morning, it is a discipline on how to discern good from evil, 06:56 clean from unclean, good and bad, or maybe good and better or better and best, and wise versus foolish. And so we think about Ezekiel. Morning, well, because we have a mandate as leaders in God's family and leaders in God's church to teach my people, 07:17 he said to the priests in the Old Testament, "Thou shalt teach my people the difference between the holy and the profane and cause them to discern between the clean and the unclean." So when we're talking about personal convictions that are based on a biblical worldview and biblical principles, 07:35 we're talking about having our hearts discerning and practice and skilled in discerning how to live for God in these present days in which we live. So there must be a clear understanding of separation. 07:51 Now, we don't like to hear much about separation in this day and age when we have been so conditioned to compromise with the world. But there is a separation. We are part of a different kingdom. We march to a different drummer, as it were. We play in a different band. 08:10 We are employed by a different leader. And we are marching under the leadership and the military captain of the Lord's host. And we are of a different kingdom. There are things that are holy and things that are unholy. There are things that are clean and that are unclean. 08:32 And if we're not settled on that, we will not develop biblical or personal convictions because we'll think that, well, there's just really nothing there. So many that the church can what I call baptizing the culture, where we can take the cultural things and we just bring them into the church, and then we baptize them in the name of Jesus, and then they're good to go. 08:53 Now, will you use those for the kingdom of God? Well, that may be okay with some things, but not everything. And if we're going to take that approach, we're going to find out some things that we let into the church that are not healthy, biblical, or godly, or wise. Such things as what used to be, 09:12 in fact, not that long ago, we had temperance societies. And those temperance societies were to help people overcome the demon drink of alcohol and to take a position against the use of alcohol in the church. And this was back in the first part of the 20th century, the 1900s. 09:33 And it was a major movement that brought about prohibition. And you can say what you will about that. It was not all that successful because of government trying to replace personal conviction and personal biblical conviction. And so today, 09:52 we have people actively proclaiming that Christians can drink. Just go ahead and drink, drink socially, drink moderation. And of course, we've discussed that here as a church before. And so we say, well, just bring it all in. And we have lost the distinction between the holy and the profane. 10:11 We're not even sure at what point a person slips over the line between being not drunk versus drunk. And so we live with some ambiguity there if you bring that into the Christian's life. There's too many unanswered questions. And. 10:28 Just the bikers did and the people out there in the world that were kind of in the shadows, living in the shadows. I mean, you'd expect it if you went to a prison, but not if you went to a church. Today, we have Christian tattoos. Where did that come from? How did that get in? 10:45 How did that get justified to be a legitimate Christian endeavor? What about music? I've been thinking about this 40 years ago when I was a young person. We had seminars on music. You maybe heard me say this before. 11:04 We had seminars on music, on good music, bad music, music that a Christian should listen to and you shouldn't listen to, and why. There were reasons put forth. And even when we started with Gospel Echoes 34 years ago, there were some people that pulled us aside. 11:24 Gospel Echoes music is just kind of on the edge there, Todd. You're slipping over the edge. At least there was a consciousness of a line there somewhere. But today, that consciousness, and as I perceive it, is almost gone. Convictions on music. 11:44 And what about language? 11:47 Language, the profanity, what we would maybe even today think of mild profanity today. What is mild profanity versus what it used to. 11:59 Have gotten used to profanity in the lifestyle of the American citizen, and it has come into the church. I love our young people at EBI. I love EBI. But I was surprised. I was shocked. 12:17 I was taken aback when I heard some of the language that students use. Well, we would have never I mean, it wasn't necessarily bad. It was just crass. Thinking, well, we've come a ways from where we were on language. 12:37 And so how do we develop a biblical conviction on language? Cremation is another one. We've had people say, well, that was a pagan practice. But now, we'll baptize it and bring it into the church and go ahead and be cremated. And it's just the body anyway, and it's going to all turn to dust anyway. And well, anyway, that's a whole nother subject. 12:57 How do you develop personal convictions on those things? Well, there must be a clear understanding that there is right and wrong, good and bad, profane and holy, clean and unclean. And we may at times disagree. Be sure that there is a line. Amen. Secondly, well, let me just say this about that yet. 13:19 Our goal is not to see how close to the world we can get and still be saved. That. Can we walk with Jesus? How close can we come to Him? 13:30 How much can we adore Him and bring Him into our lifestyle and our dos and our don'ts and our issues and our beliefs and our practices and take our eyes off of if this is a salvation issue and put it on, is this a lordship issue? And sometimes people get bogged down with this. 13:51 Well, is it a salvation issue or that's not a salvation issue? Brothers and sisters, all of it is lordship issues. And so we have to go there and recognize and start from that point. The second thing, there must be a biblical worldview, committed to living out biblical principles. First one, there's clear separation. 14:12 Secondly, there's a biblical worldview, living out biblical principles, things that proceed from the scriptures, biblical convictions, personal convictions. Now, there's a lot of illustrations on this. I could use the example of in my own life, why I wear a beard. 14:34 That may be a problem for some. In fact, we have some people on the east side of Goshen, west side of Goshen that would say, you dares not have a beard. And we have people on the east side of Goshen that says, you must have a beard. So what is it? 14:48 Beard. 14:56 Amen. 15:00 Well, I would say that that's a personal conviction. 15:06 And so why do I have a beard? Well, one thing, I've kind of always wanted a beard. 15:14 But more than that, it's because of biblical principles, the biblical principle of gender distinction that God put a difference between men and women, male and female. Now, you don't have to have a beard. I'm not promoting you having a beard. 15:33 I'm just saying explaining how this looks in a personal conviction. And so we take the biblical principle of gender distinction, and we apply this. 15:42 How can we as men present ourselves as men in a world that is crazily confused, but downright rebellious about gender distinction in God's creation? Same with women wearing pants and slacks. 16:01 This is deeply rooted in the principle of creation order, creation order. Now, there are some pants that are in the women's section that no right-minded man would be caught dead in. They are distinctively women. But where do you draw the line? 16:22 And what is the principle? The principle, men and women ought to look different, and I think from a distance. And you say, well, if you can't tell the difference between a man and a woman, then you got a problem. Brothers and sisters, I've been in this world for about 62 years, almost 63. And there are some people I cannot tell. 16:42 Amen. 16:45 I mean, you don't want to stare, but it's a problem. So what is a personal conviction based on? It's based on the deeply rooted biblical principles of creation order. 17:01 Number three, the third thing that's necessary for personal convictions is counsel from others. I borrow this from an article that I found that he was talking about building personal convictions. 17:15 And he says how important it is that we effectively speak because we need to be speaking and talking about these things so that we can help refine our convictions and help others understand our convictions and help others to grow in their convictions. He makes a statement by a fellow by the name of Joseph Jobert, 17:35 I've never heard of the man, but better to debate a question without settling it than it is to settle a question without debating it. I had to take a step back and scratch my head on that one a little bit. 17:50 Is it better, or he said it is, it is better to 17:58 declare or debate a question without settling it. We don't like that, but that's probably better than settling a question without debating it. And then he went on to say, and I thought this was actually pretty good, that dialogue and debating are good things, especially for the church. All that we hold dear to us as Christians, 18:19 from our Bibles to our doctrine, was at one time called into question. Bold men and women had to stand against false claims and properly defend the historic faith. So if it's worth believing, it's worth defending. It's threatening. It's a lot easier, 18:39 especially in child rearing, which is that's the way it is because I said so. But try that out with your children when they're 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, or even 8, some discussion as to build. We don't always see clearly. And so parents need children, or children need parents, and vice versa. 19:00 We need conversation about where we draw the line, not just an echo chamber where I only hear coming back of those that agree. And there's times when we discuss something that I think, no, no, no, no, that's not right. And then I stop and think about it. And I think a little later on, well, that does have a point. 19:19 And as you mull those things over and you communicate with those things as a brotherhood in the body of Christ, we can sharpen our skills, sharpen our skills, and then learn how to communicate our convictions to those who hold differing views. Number four, a commitment to walk in the light. 19:41 We must have a commitment to walk in the light. We've had a clear separation, biblical worldview and biblical principles, counsel from others, and a commitment to walk in the light that we have. For James 4:17 says to him that knows to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin. And so we have some things that we have light, 20:02 that we have been given light. We've been given teaching. We've been given understanding that maybe our brothers and sisters in other denominations maybe haven't had that same teaching, don't have that insight, don't have that understanding. And so we say, well, we'll let them answer. 20:23 But we are responsible to live to the light that we have. And so if we've had light and turn away from the light, we're in trouble. We're in trouble. We're in danger of having that light, that eye which was light, turn into darkness and how great that darkness becomes. 20:45 Not every Christian has the same teaching, background, and insights. And we should not be critical of those who have never heard or were never taught. But for those of us who have heard and have walked away from the truth, we need to beware. The last message, we talked about convictions, 21:05 sanctity of life, sexuality, divorce and remarriage, media, headship, and the headship veiling. I said that we did fairly well on the assessments of unity, fairly well. 21:23 But there were a couple areas where we need to work on. 21:30 Number six on the assessment of unity says this: the personal appearance of the true Christian believer must present a clear witness to biblical teachings of separation from the world's influence in such matters as modest apparel, gender distinction, simplicity, and avoiding sensuality. 21:51 I think so far, so good. Any apparel that draws attention to the body, tight, fitting clothing, shorts, etc., and then we start getting gray in people's minds, has a tendency to cause impure thoughts and therefore must be avoided. 22:10 And I would be the first one to agree. And I think most of the overseers would as well that number six is very, very poorly worded. It's very poorly worded. 22:22 It's trying to ask too many questions without specifying what the answer that you're giving relates to. And so we give that. That's a given. 22:40 What would trouble me a bit is that same question was asked five years ago. And it was one percentage. My notes are a little unclear here. And this time, it was 10% less, 10% lower. So what does that mean? 23:00 What does that mean? And we really don't know for sure unless people explain. And I think one of the big things was the statement on shorts. We've been around this mountain at Living Water. 23:12 But one of the primary arguments that has been used in the past about men wearing shorts and women too in this day and age, one of the arguments has been, well, it's a modesty issue. Well, I think with some shorts, it is a modesty issue. 23:35 And I've been noticing that the shorts for guys are back up to mid-thigh, mid-thigh already or higher. And so that's a modesty issue. It's also an issue of respect. 23:49 When I'm sitting in my house or in a public setting and I have to look up the leg of some guy who has short shorts on that aren't quite tight, and I have to see his hairy leg, that just does not impress me. But it's a matter of respect. 24:08 But even more than that, it's a matter of headship and leadership. The overseers came up with a statement, a number of statements. It's called the present-day concern. Enough to our congregation. We're looking at maybe ways of doing that as an alliance. 24:26 But here's what the overseers have said about shorts. And I don't know that you could actually disagree with this. Jesus and the scriptures call us to a simple, modest, unadorned lifestyle, separate from the world and its fads, fashions, and ornamentation. So far, so good. 24:48 Our personal appearance should present a clear witness to biblical teachings in such matters as modesty. That's good. Gender distinction. That's good. Simplicity. That's good. Jesus' followers will avoid immodest and form-revealing clothing. I think that's good. 25:07 Seeking to find their value in the pursuit of godliness and the ageless beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit by wearing simple, economic, and modest clothing. 25:19 Now, the second paragraph goes like this: as a witness against increasing nakedness in our culture, to reinforce the principle of headship and modesty in our homes, and to respect the conscience of others, we strongly encourage men, strongly encourage men to wear full-length pants for all public life. 25:41 Why was that again? As a witness against the increasing principle of headship and modesty in our homes, and to respect the conscience of others. Then it goes on to say exceptions may include the privacy of the home or water-related activities. 26:00 Churches should have practical applications reflecting these principles. Now, how does this become a headship issue? While shorts can be a modesty issue, they are not only a modesty issue. They are a headship issue, a leadership issue. Our sisters, men, and I had a sister at EBI ask me this question this winter. 26:22 Our sisters bear the load in presenting a biblical separation in appearance, sufficiently covering the body, wearing dresses and skirts, gender distinction, and the veiling. I mean, you go out, I go out with my wife out in the public, and it's obvious. It's obvious. 26:43 And there's an obvious reason for that. It has to do with our faith. While men can pretty much blend in with a crowd and look basically like the culture around us. Now, my question is this: can we men give up nothing? Can we not also draw a line between us and the world? 27:04 Can we not also experience some discomfort in the summertime for the sake of Christ? And not that shorts is actually going to make a difference for the sake of Christ. That's kind of strong, Brother Todd. 27:22 But it is in the sense that when it comes to personal convictions that are based on biblical principles and wisdom and a Christian biblical worldview, it does come down to that for the sake of Christ. 27:38 I think about my wife wearing skirts in the wintertime. That's kind of uncomfortable. Well, but I want my comfort in the summertime. I want my comfort, Todd. I don't want to be hot in the summertime. It's okay for my wife to be cold in the wintertime, 27:58 but not me hot in the summertime. So it becomes a leadership issue. If I'm not willing to experience some discomfort, how can we expect to give quality spiritual guidance to our families? 28:12 Our sons need to be taught by example to lead and support their sisters in the home and in the church and their. We also are willing to stand with them, being willing to bear the marks of a disciple and thereby, in essence, bear the reproach of the cross along with them. 28:33 More could be said, but I'll leave it at that. So it is a leadership and headship issue, not just a modesty issue. 28:43 So when we think about that and form biblical personal convictions about clothing, it's a part of the believer's practical application of our walk. Where would you draw the line if you did not draw it where we've drawn it? 29:05 The second area of concern, and this we've lost 7% in five years, and that is the issue of decorative jewelry and makeup and the wedding band. Let me again appeal to this poorly worded question. 29:26 I'll be the first to admit it's a poorly worded question. But it goes like this: all decorative jewelry, the wedding band, and any makeup that alters the natural appearance should not be part of our practice. 29:40 I think one of the things that trips people up on that is the makeup that alters personal natural appearance. What is that? Does that mean I can't put braces on my teeth? Does that mean I can't put cover on my blemishes? 29:57 Does that mean I can't 30:01 restore the... No, it doesn't mean that at all. When we talk about the natural appearance, it means to put the body in a situation where it appears as it would be without mutations and imperfections. And so to cover blemishes and stuff like that, that's different than coloring fingernails red. 30:24 You're not born with red fingernails. That's unnatural. Or toenails, pink toenails. It's unnatural. And so that's what that's about. It's not to say that you can't get braces, you can't get glasses, you can't get hearing aids, you can't get, if there's a deformity, 30:43 a birthmark or something, that you can't have it removed. 30:46 Those types of things, you're restoring the body to a more pristine condition without its mutations, genetic mutations and such. 30:58 But that's very different than paint and all that. So that was part of the issue. But then the other part was probably more concerning to me, and that was... Had sympathy or even preference for the wedding band. 31:20 The wedding band is a test of membership at Living Water. It is also a test of membership in VMA. Why? Why? Number one, it's because it is against scripture when one considers it to be jewelry. 31:36 Well, what about a wooden band or a silicone band? Well, that takes us to the next reason why it is a test of membership. And that is that it is basically at the heart a pagan practice that's been baptized by the church, brought into the church. 31:57 And 32:00 back in the 1950s, J.C. Wenger's book, Separated Unto God, said he makes this statement: "If jewelry ever makes its way into the Mennonite church, it will be through the wedding ring and the engagement ring." We know what happened. The wedding ring won, the veiling lost. There is a pattern. 32:21 There is a pattern in that scenario. So it is a pagan practice. One of the reasons it's worn on the fourth finger was because the pagans believed that there was a vein that runs from the fourth finger right all the way up to the heart. I can't prove that. I'm not an anatomist. 32:41 But that's paganism. On that. It rarely stays a simple band, but soon needs an engagement ring. And what's an engagement ring without a diamond on it? And so you see how this progresses. And I've seen it. I've watched it in our own community. I've watched it across the church. 33:01 And it breaks down the conviction toward other jewelry, decorative jewelry. 33:11 I understand the attraction of a simple wedding band as a simple statement of commitment and marriage. I understand that. I don't agree with it, but I understand it. 33:32 But I do not understand drilling holes in one's ear and hanging hardware. I'm not trying to be cute. I don't understand that. 33:45 But it's where it goes. You say, well, that's the slippery slope. Slippery slope. It's a slippery slope. And when you're going down, you're going to go all the way down or you're going to fall in the meantime. 33:58 The symbolism of eternal, enduring love breaks down with alternate material. What about the band, silicone, wood? 34:08 Well, one of the things that is the symbolism of a wedding band is that it was made out of durable material to symbolize that this is a durable relationship. It's unending. It's not going to rot. It's not going to decay. It's not going to fall apart. 34:29 But with wood, a wood band, well, that rots. So that's not a very good symbol. A silicone band, well, that's pliable. You can kind of make that anything, any shape you want to. And it's cheap. I'm sure it's much cheaper. But what does that say about the quality of the marriage relationship if it's a symbol? 34:50 It also adds nothing to the marriage. You see, our word is our bond, not a material around a finger or worn around our neck or anything. 35:03 Word, when I said, "I do, I take you, I will, and I do it with joy," that is my bond before God and before her. 35:17 It is not in any way elected by the absence or the presence of another symbol. It is my word. It is my bond. It is our greatest witness. 35:30 The biblical symbol of the headship veil is usually discarded in place of this unbiblical symbol. 35:39 And I will just say this yet, that the integrity of our witness is the greatest witness that there is. The integrity of our witness, that we are known as a people of the word and of our word. 35:58 And our lifestyle and our interaction with members of the opposite sex is of holy, pure countenance, 36:09 intention, and propriety. 36:16 And so that is why, in addition to the fact that it's jewelry, why it is a test of membership. Now, I'll be quick to add. I didn't see anybody or I didn't feel anybody in the Assessments of Unity were clamoring that Living Water should allow the wedding band. I did not. That was not part. 36:36 But there was a lot of people who expressed appreciation for the band and would if they could. And so that did. We're talking about it. Where are we in other areas that we have not spoken to? 36:52 Non-resistance, music, Lord's Day observance, professional sports. Good questions. One more that I'll just bring up this morning, and this is not something that the overseers have addressed or that we've even addressed as a church, although it is in our covenant. 37:14 About gambling. Wow. You talk about a social phenomenon that has taken on, has come in by force. That is it. I did a little study, Compliments of ChatGPT. You can do the same thing if you haven't. 37:34 Indiana ranks seventh in gambling, seventh most prominent state in gambling, tenth in sports betting. Politically conservative. It's way up to the top in the vice of gambling. 37:56 And by the way, not too many years ago, everyone recognized it as a vice. This is another area where the church has baptized the culture. They'd come on. Between the holy and the profane, the clean and the unclean. Games of chance, the lottery, 38:17 sports betting, lottery cards, casinos were all considered a vice because they're games of chance. In fact, I have even told, I even heard recently that there is a wager out there, there's a bet out there on when Jesus Christ will return. 38:40 Now, talk about sacrilegious. That would be an example of it. You can bet on anything today, I've been told. You can bet on anything, athletics, sports. You can bet whether or not Trump, when Trump will bomb Iran. And well, it's chance because you don't know. 39:01 It's different than an investment. This is what many people don't think about. Well, isn't farming gambling? Isn't the stock market gambling? Well, there may be certain aspects of risk. But generally, it is based on research. 39:18 It is based on 39:24 where companies have succeeded and failed. And so yes, some stock investing can be gambling. But the real behind it, like the value of a company, it's more of research and not so much of chance. 39:43 But we have to draw a line somewhere. Where do you draw it? The roll of the dice, the pull of a handle, the luck of the draw, the pick of a number. And what we probably don't understand is that most of the time these things are rigged. And the house never loses. 40:02 That's the goal in casinos. That's the bottom line. The house never loses. The person's house loses with addictive behavior and people that cannot control, impulse gambling, gambling disorders, illegal gambling, and legal gambling. 40:24 It's that Americans spend 170 billion plus on gambling every year. And that, I think, is legal gambling. The gambling industry, get this, of the 170 billion plus, the gambling industry makes 65 to 70 billion. It's a stewardship issue. 40:46 It's a greed, covetousness issue. It feeds a culture of laziness. Rather than going out and working an honest day's work for an honest day's pay, we want our endeavors to make a quick buck as fast and as painlessly as possible. 41:05 So wherever gambling is present, you can be sure organized crime and corruption is not far behind. It exploits the poor who can least afford it, stealing from their children and families. I've told you about a friend of mine years ago who said, when he was asked to buy a lottery ticket, he said, 41:24 "Ma'am, I have something for you." He said, "He who gambles and loses is a fool. And he who gambles and wins is a thief." And so I shared that with my class at EBI. I said, "Well, who are they robbing from?" Because if they're participating in it willingly and others are participating in it willingly, how is that thieving? 41:44 Thieving, thievery. It's the people that are not participating that are getting robbed, the who don't have enough medical care, and the creditors that are knocking at the door because of gambling disorders. 42:04 Now, not everybody has a gambling disorder. Not everybody is an alcoholic that drinks. But why would you want to go there and put your life or someone else's in jeopardy? So having said all that, I'm sure that there will be those that disagree with something that I said today. I've been speaking for 45 minutes. I would expect you to disagree with something. 42:25 But maybe you could agree with this. Where do you draw the line? And is it a movable line or an immovable line? Let's pray. Lord, we shared some things this morning that I'd rather not have shared. 42:43 I would have rather just not had to go there today. 42:49 But you laid it on my heart and be a faithful pastor, priest of the Lord's church, pastor, where you said to the Old Testament priest, "Teach my people the difference between the holy and the profane and how to discern between the clean and the unclean." That's what we're trying to do here this morning. We pray, 43:08 Lord, that you will bless this endeavor as we try to heighten awareness of what it means to have biblical convictions and personal convictions that are not lines drawn in the sand, but are lines etched in the rock. 43:28 In Christ's name we pray. Amen. God bless you good.