Chardon church of Christ

You Are the Man

2 Samuel 12: 1 – 14

In 2013, a 19 year old Austrian skier named Teresa Stadlober became the 1st Austrian skier to take the gold and silver medals in the Junior Skiathlon (in the Czech Republic).Ever since that time she’d been training for the Olympics, and in 2018 (at the age of 25) she was at the Olympic Winter games in South Korea.

As the race was being run… it was obvious Stadlober was a shoe-in for 2nd place and the silver medal. But … with less than a 1/3 of the race yet to complete, she mysteriously veered right on a downhill slope, while the rest of the skiers went left. By the time she realized her mistake and had corrected her course she had fallen from 2nd place to ultimately finish 9th in the race. Her hopes… for an Olympic medal… vanished in a moment.

Commenting on what had happened, she said: "I don't know. I really don't know. I took the wrong way, and I did this twice. The 2nd time I wasn't sure anymore. I had a blackout. I don't know why I took the wrong way." Her trainer said he believed that she’d simply taken her eyes off the track for a moment… and she lost her focus.

Now, there’s a couple things I want you to notice about that story. She made a bad decision, and it cost her something that was valuable to her. She took her eyes off the path for just a moment and she lost the race.

Please turn with me to 2 Samuel 12:1-14 (NIV)

1 The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, 3 but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

4 “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”
5 David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! 6 He must pay for that lamb four times over because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9 Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’

11 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household, I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes, I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. 12 You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’”

13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. 14 But because by doing this, you have shown utter contempt for the Lord, the son born to you will die.”

This passage recounts the moment when Nathan, the prophet, uses a parable to confront David about his sin of committing adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite, and then arranging for Uriah's death in battle to cover up the affair. Through this story, Nathan brings David to recognize and confess his sin before God. Although David is forgiven, the passage also speaks of the consequences of his actions, which include strife and trouble within his own family.

David became a hero when he was just a young man when he faced off against a giant named Goliath, and he took that giant down (snap fingers) just like that. And from that day on he was destined for greatness. Ultimately he became a powerful warrior; a great leader; a man of God; The King of Israel!

(PAUSE) But then… he took his eyes off the path and he looked where he shouldn’t have been looking.

In II Samuel 11:1 we’re told that “In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle…” David didn’t. David stayed home. He’d seen Bathsheba taking a bath next door and fell into LUST over her. He invited her over for a little personal time, and before you know it she’s pregnant with David’s child. Worse yet she’s the wife of one of David’s closest friends - a man named Uriah the Hittite.

David tried all kinds of things to make it look like Uriah was the father of the child, but nothing worked. So finally, David realized that the best way to bury his sin… was to bury Uriah, and he arranged to have him killed on the battle field. Then he took Bathsheba for his bride… and he was home free with no one the wiser.

But God was wiser. God knew. And God sent the prophet Nathan to confront David about his sin. Nathan told David a parable about a rich man who stole a poor neighbor’s lamb to feed some important guests who’d come to his home. The more David heard of the injustice of the story the angrier he became. And “he said to Nathan, ‘As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’

Nathan said to David, ‘YOU ARE THE MAN! Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if that had been too little, I would have given you much more! Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’” II Samuel 12:5-10

And suddenly, David’s family fell apart - and it was NOT a G rated story. David’s firstborn son (Amnon) raped HIS half-sister Tamar (PAUSE) and David did nothing to punish Amnon. Then, 2 years later, Tamar’s full-blooded brother Absalom had Amnon assassinated. (PAUSE) And again… David basically did nothing. As time went by, Absalom so hated his father that he staged a revolt to try to take away the throne from David… and Absalom died in battle.

David’s family became a mess because David took his eyes off the path. And he lost the race. His sin so confused him that he made other bad choices with his family.

SO WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM DAVID’S STORY?

1st – sins have consequences. Especially if you try to cover those sins up. I heard some TV commentators talking about a politician who got caught lying about a crime he’d committed. And they said: “It wasn’t the crime… it was the coverup that got him.” People MIGHT have forgiven that politician if he’d just admitted his fault and asked for forgiveness. But instead he tried to pretend it never happened, and he lied and tried to cover up his sins. Didn’t work! So he lost the respect of the voters … and his office.

You see, that’s what David did. He sinned and then he covered it up. It was bad enough that David committed adultery but he tried covering up that sin with murder. And the worst part was he thought he could get away with it. That made his punishment worse than it would have been, because the sin was bad enough… the coverup was worse.

David talked about that in Psalm 32:1-5 “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘"I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.”

David thought he’d gotten away with his sin. He thought no one would know. He thought God didn’t care… but GOD DID CARE! God said: "Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house.... Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you." II Samuel 12:10-11

David was foolish. He’d forgotten that we serve a merciful God… but we also serve a just God. And we’ve got to be careful not to take God’s mercy lightly.

Now that brings us to the next issue – if we don’t face our past sins properly our sins can rob us of our ability to protect our children. In the illustration of the Austrian skier, did you notice she said she made two mistakes? “I took the wrong way, and I did this twice. The second time I wasn't sure anymore.”

David made the mistake of committing adultery and murder. Then THOSE SINS clouded his judgment and, from that day on, he 2nd guessed all of his decisions. When Amnon raped his half-sister DAVID DID NOTHING! When Absalom put out a contract on Amnon DAVID DID NOTHING!

And why did David DO NOTHING? Why didn’t he punish his boys? Well, I think he figured: “I know they’ve sinned but I’ve done worse. So how can I justify punishing them.” He felt he lost his moral authority… and so he didn’t feel he had the right to discipline his boys like he should have.

He tried to make a joke out of it, but what he was saying was: He’d lost any moral standing to confront and correct his child. He realized that his immoral behavior had undermined his authority as a parent.

But Proverbs 19:18 tells us “Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to his death.” A parent who doesn’t discipline their child… is setting them up for destruction. God Says: Do not be a willing party to their death!

Romans 3:23 says “We’ve all sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Not one of us has the moral authority - the SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS to do or say anything. We are NOT righteous … But Jesus is.

Paul said exactly the same thing in I Timothy: 1:15-16 “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.”

Paul wrote nearly ½ of our New Testament, and yet, he said: I’ve been the worst of all sinners. I don’t speak from the moral high ground because I am not righteous. Only Jesus is righteous… so I’m going to tell you what Jesus says. That’s why I repeatedly drive home the fact that YOU have sinned and fall short, and I have sinned and fall short. We only look to Jesus for His righteousness and His wisdom for ourselves and our families.

My last point is this: God forgave David. "David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD." And Nathan said to David, "The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die." 2 Samuel 12:13

Now if David had repented earlier (before he’d killed Uriah) he could have spared himself a lot of grief - but at least he repented.

And he didn’t do his repentance JUST in front of Nathan. David PUBLICLY repented in a Psalm in the Bible. Psalm 51 starts out with these words: A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me." Psalm 51:1-4

You see, David realized something that the modern world too often rejects: in order to please God… we’ve got to be willing to repent of our sins. We’ve got to be willing to confess we’ve done wrong stuff.

John the Baptist told people: "REPENT, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Matthew 3:2

The Apostles preached: “REPENT therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you…” Acts 3:19-20

And (of course) Acts 2:38 is very clear that repentance was necessary to become a Christian: “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sin and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Today’s lesson is a powerful reminder of the consequences of sin and the importance of repentance and seeking forgiveness from God. It highlights how even great leaders like David can fall into temptation, but when they acknowledge their wrongdoing and turn back to God, there is the opportunity for redemption and forgiveness.

CLOSE: An old Juvenile Detention Center was repurposed – and was remodeled to be the new Police department. But before it was a Detention Center, the building had been a school, and just above the doorway the school had a motto: “These doors are open to all who wish to learn.”

I was always amused that the Detention Center kept those words above the door, because the youth who were incarcerated had been placed there to teach them to change their lives – to repent. “These doors are open to all who wish to learn.”
In the same way: we need to learn that we have sinned and that we need to repent. WE are not righteous… but God is. And we have come to our God with the desire TO LEARN what righteousness and mercy mean to Him. God’s doors are open to all who wish to learn from Him. Our God is a just God, but He is also a MERCIFUL God and His doors are always open to those wish to learn… and be forgiven.
Someone once said: “You can’t repent too soon, for you don’t know how soon it may be too late.”
INVITATION

Unbelief

Mark 6:1-6

INTRO: Good morning church. In past lessons we have taken a look at faith, the faith of others in scripture and our own faith. The New Testament words for faith are the noun pistos and the verb pisteuo. Which we said were used to denote: a. trust; b. trustworthiness, c. what is believed, the contents of belief; d. assurance, a ground for belief. e. a pledge of fidelity.

We also said that the aspect of faith has to do with persuasion, affirmation, and conviction of something that is true. That is the aspect of believing. There's also the content of what is believed. In Hebrews 11:6 we read, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”[NKJV] This verse illustrates the assent, or agreement, or belief aspect of faith in that there are certain facts that we must believe, things that we must accept based on the testimony that's given in the Scriptures.

Then in Hebrews 3:18-19 – “And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” Here it implies that unbelief was the same as disobedience.

Please turn in your Bibles to Mark 6 and our text today is found in Mark 6:1-6. “1. Then He (speaking of Jesus) went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. 2. And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, "Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! 3. "Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?'' And they were offended at Him. 4. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.'' 5. Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6. And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.”

In our study on faith we found the Bible contains many passages that teach us what we need to know about belief. On the other hand, the Bible also has much to say about unbelief. This morning we're going to concentrate a bit on passages that teach us what we need to know about unbelief.

I. Unbelief in Those Who Believe - We first need to point out that those who believe in God can be guilty of unbelief. That sounds like a contradiction, doesn't it? As we examine the Scriptures, we see they teach very clearly that those who believe in God can actually be guilty of unbelief. I'm afraid sometimes we jump to the conclusion that unbelief is only shown by someone who says, I don't believe in God. That is unbelief, I assure you of that, but unbelief goes much further than that because unbelief can actually be demonstrated by someone who believes in God. Let me illustrate to you what I'm talking about.

A. No doubt we're very familiar with Moses. In my judgment, Moses was a great man and a great leader of God's people. In Deuteronomy 34:10-12 it says, “10. But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, 11. in all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land, 12. and by all that mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.” He was a great leader of God's people. Did Moses believe in God? He certainly did! If anyone ever believed in God, it was Moses.
B. However, in the Old Testament Book of Numbers, we find that there was an occasion when God said that Moses did not believe him. In Numbers 20:2 we read, “Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron.” The children of Israel needed water. This was not the first time that this problem arose. It had arisen earlier, and God took care of it. Once again, we find the children of Israel murmuring against Moses and against God because they needed water.

1. Let's look at Numbers 20:7-8. This is what God told Moses to do about this situation. “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.''”
2. Those instructions are easy to understand. Moses was told by God to take the rod, and then speak to the rock and water would be supplied. I’m sure you’re very familiar with Moses actions. Let's continue reading starting at verse nine, Numbers 20:9f, “So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him. 10. And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock; and he said to them, "Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?'' 11. Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.”

a. I will point out what Moses did that was wrong, but you will never hear me criticize Moses for doing what he did. Why? Because I would not have lasted as long as Moses did. My boiling point is too low.
b. I think about all the things that man put up with out of the Israelites as he was leading them from Egypt to the Promised Land. Moses, we're hungry, Moses, we're thirsty, Moses this, Moses that. They murmured and complained continually. God always provided the things that they needed.
c. I would say that Moses was a patient man but his patience ran out. From the statement that he made, it appears that he was upset, and rather than do exactly what God told him to do, he struck the rock.
d. As an aside, it might be a good lesson for us to remember that if you're in difficult circumstances, don't have anything in your hands that you can do damage with.

3. Anyway, let's notice what God said in verse twelve. Numbers 20:12, “Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel… ” What did God accuse Moses of? God accused Moses of unbelief. Did Moses believe in God like no one else except our Lord? Yes, he believed in God. The Bible says he knew God face to face, yet there was a time when God said that Moses did not believe in him.
4. There were serious consequences. Let's continue in the last part of the verse, “therefore you shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them”. Moses was able to see the land of Canaan, but his life ended before he could go into the Promised Land.

C. I believe Moses illustrates to us very clearly that those who believe in God can still be guilty of unbelief. I know that sounds like a contradiction, but we've just seen that Moses, who believed in God with all of his heart, was actually guilty of unbelief. Later, we will read a number of verses in Hebrews that show we, that Christians, God's people today, can become guilty of unbelief. As we think about the seriousness of unbelief, we need to point out that the Lord's work was hindered by unbelief.

II. Hindered by Unbelief – Back in our text Mark 6:1-6.

A. Keeping in mind that Jesus was raised in Nazareth, which was a city in the area known as Galilee. He was born in Bethlehem, but raised in Nazareth, and that was considered to be his hometown.
B. Here in Mark 6 we read about an occasion when Jesus visited Nazareth.

1. Verse one says that he and his disciples traveled to his own country.
2. Look at the reaction of the people when Jesus taught in the synagogue. They were astonished. "Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! "Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?'' And (notice this), they were offended at Him." I would have thought these were people who should have known Jesus the best, He was in His hometown. Yet, that was the response when Jesus taught in the synagogue.
3. According to verses five and six, while Jesus was there He only healed a few sick people.

a. I love to study from the Gospel accounts and read about the occasions when Jesus healed people. They came to Him from all over with various diseases and Jesus healed them everyone. But while he was in his hometown, he only healed a few sick people.
b. Notice also that the Bible says Jesus marveled because of their what? Their unbelief.
c. Jesus left Nazareth. He went to other areas where He taught. In Nazareth that unbelief was very serious. It hindered the Lord's work in his hometown.

C. The good news is the Lord will bless those who have faith. When Jesus went to other areas, there were people who received Him. People observed His miracles and they were convinced that He's the Son of God, and they were blessed abundantly. In His hometown, people were filled with unbelief.

III. The Disciples’ Unbelief – Let’s look at another example. We find the disciples’ power was limited by unbelief.

A. Look now at Matthew 10:1. “And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.” The Lord gave the twelve miraculous powers, and then He sent these apostles out on a mission as we read in verse 5. This particular mission is referred to as the “limited commission” because Jesus said, don't go to the Gentiles, don't go to the Samaritans, but only go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

1. From Mark 6:12-13 we learn that, “… they went out and preached that people should repent. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.”
2. Next in verse 30, “Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.” It would have been wonderful to be there and observe the disciples speaking about the great things that they were able to accomplish. That would have been a very happy occasion.

B. Let's turn to Matthew 17. In this chapter we read about an occasion when the apostles were not able to heal someone. We will start at verse 14 where we find that a man asked Jesus to heal his son. The reason why he asked the Lord to heal his son was because the apostles could not. Remember Jesus gave them miraculous powers.

1. Matthew 17:14-16 – “14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.””[ESV] It says they could not heal him.
2. Continuing, Matthew 17:17-18 – “ Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.'' And Jesus rebuked the demon, and he came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.”[NKJV] Why is it that the apostles were not able to cast out this spirit?
3. We find in verse 19 that they discreetly waited until they were alone with Jesus, and then they asked that very question. They wanted to know why they were unable to take care of this man's problem themselves. Look at the Lord's response in verse 20. “So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief;…”

a. I ask you, did the disciples believe in God? Oh, yes, they did. Did they believe in Jesus? They certainly did, yet the Lord said they were guilty of unbelief. That unbelief hindered their power to do what Jesus told them to do.
b. Jesus goes on in verse 21, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” The disciples had some faith, or else they would not have tried to cast it out. The fact was that they had previously cast out demons. I wonder if perhaps they did not go beyond trying to do it themselves and their unbelief was a failure to go to God in prayer and in humility, and ask for help?

C. Perhaps it would help us to keep in mind that we walk by faith and not by sight, as the Apostle Paul wrote in 2nd Corinthians 5:7. We've pointed out that it's possible to believe in God and yet be guilty of unbelief. We've shown that unbelief hindered the Lord's power to heal people and to do great works. We've just pointed out that the disciples power was limited by their unbelief.

IV. Serious Warnings About Unbelief - Let's turn our attention to some warnings that are given to us concerning unbelief. Let’s start with 2nd Corinthians chapter 6.

A. I’m going to begin at 2nd Corinthians 6:14, “14. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15. And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.'' 17. Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.'' 18. "I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.''” This is a strong warning. We're warned to guard against the influence of unbelievers.

1. The Bible also teaches us that we're to not to extend fellowship to members of the body of Christ who are guilty of open sin. Does that mean that we can't have any association with sinful people? To avoid any association with sinful people, we would have to leave this world. In our everyday dealings with people we're going to come in contact with those who are unbelievers. We have to be mindful of the influence of unbelievers because their unbelief can rub off on us. We have to be very careful.
2. Perhaps that will help us to appreciate the admonition to assemble with other children of God on a regular basis, because that's a positive influence which we always need.

B. I mentioned before that there's quite a bit said in the book of Hebrews about unbelief. Let's turn our attention to several verses in Hebrews while remembering the purpose for which this letter was written. It was written to Christians in the first century who were undergoing some type of hardship, probably some type of persecution. This letter was written for the purpose of encouraging them to remain faithful unto the Lord and never give up.

1. Hebrews 3:12, “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;” It's possible for one who has become a Christian to develop a heart of unbelief that leads to a departure from God. That's very serious, isn't it?
2. The Hebrew writer gives us an illustration in verses 17-19. Hebrews 3:17-19 – “17. Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? 18. And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? 19. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” This is referring to the children of Israel who left Egypt and who murmured against God.

a. God caused the nation of Israel to wander in the wilderness for a period of 40 years until that older generation passed away. When the time was right, the younger generation finally went into the Promised Land.
b. God was grieved with that entire generation of people. Thankfully, Joshua and Caleb showed that we don't have to go along with the crowd. We can stand out and be different.
c. What was it that kept that whole generation of Israelites out of the land of Canaan? It was unbelief.

3. In Hebrews 4:11 we read, “ Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience.” Unbelief kept a generation of Israelites out of the Promised Land. What we need to be concerned about is that unbelief can keep us out of heaven! We have to guard against it.

C. What's going to happen to unbelievers? Turn if you would to the book of Revelation 21:8, “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” That passage really gets our attention. Unbelief is very serious. Unbelievers will lose their souls. John tells us this in words that are plain and to the point.

V. Good News About Unbelief – Turn back with me now to Mark 9 this time. Let’s consider further the request made by the man who brought his son to Jesus to be healed. I think this illustrates also the importance of looking at all that the Bible says on any given subject. We read earlier from the Gospel of Matthew where this man came to Jesus with his problem. He asked the Lord to cure his son because His disciples could not. We also found out the disciples wanted to know why they could not.

A. In Mark 9:22 the man said, “And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Here the man is pleading for Jesus to help his son. Verse 23, “Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.'' I want us to take note of the next verse. “Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!''”

1. The good news is that unbelief can be overcome. Yes, it's possible for one who believes in God to be guilty of unbelief. Now, this man's example shows us that unbelief can be overcome. He recognized the fact that he had unbelief in his life and he asked the Lord to help him.
2. Would it have served any purpose for him to deny that he had unbelief in his life? No. Would it have helped him to go to some other source for help? No, he demonstrated great wisdom. He acknowledged the fact that there was unbelief in his life and he asked the Lord to help him, and his son was healed.

B. Next I’m going to read a few verses from 1st Timothy. The apostle Paul was the writer, and this is the first letter we have from him to Timothy the Evangelist. In 1st Timothy 1:12f – “12. And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, 13. although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 14. And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 15. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. 16. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. 17. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” Paul is thanking the Lord, he is expressing his gratitude and glorifying God.

1. When Saul was persecuting the Church, did he believe in God? Yes, he was a Pharisee. He had been brought up at the feet of Gamaliel. He had reached great heights in the Jewish religion. He believed in God.
2. However he said he was guilty of unbelief. He was doing his best to try to eliminate the Christian religion. Consequently, he says he was guilty of unbelief.
3. What happened? He had an experience that taught him differently and he overcame his unbelief.
4. Then after his encounter on the road to Damascus, he was visited by a man named Ananias, who told him to arise and be baptized and wash away his sins calling on the name of the Lord, Acts 22:16. In Acts 9:18 it says he got up and he was baptized.
5. If there ever was a changed man, it was Saul of Tarsus, later known as Paul the Apostle. While unbelief is a very serious matter, the good news is it can be overcome.

CONCLUSION:
The man whose Son was afflicted shows us that if we'll come to the right source, acknowledge our unbelief and ask the Lord to help us, it can be overcome. Paul, reflecting on his earlier life, said that he did some things in unbelief, but the Lord forgave him when he obeyed the Gospel of Christ. Here then are some principles revealed to us in the Bible concerning unbelief. I thought it might be good for us to consider the other side of the issue since we have covered belief in the past.

I think it's interesting when Jesus gave the great commission, He dealt with belief and unbelief. In Mark 16:16, after Jesus told the apostles to preach the Gospel to every creature, He said, “he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved”. There's belief.

Then He said, “he that believeth not, shall be condemned”, there's the unbelief. Belief leads to everlasting life. Unbelief leads to destruction. In John 8:24 Jesus said, “if you believe not that I am he, you shall die in your sins”. We need to consider the evidence that we find in scripture and be convinced that Jesus is the Son of God. Believe that with all of our hearts. Confess that before men, repent of our sins, and then be baptized in order to receive the remission of sins. The Lord will bless us with forgiveness, and He'll add us to His church, which is His body.
Perhaps there is someone in the assembly today with the need to be buried with Christ in baptism. If anyone has this need or desires the prayers of faithful Christians on their behalf, we encourage them to come forward while we stand and sing.

 

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Reference Sermon by: Raymond Sieg

Hearing God’s Word Properly

Hearing God’s Word Properly
Romans 10:11-17

INTRO: Good morning church. For our text this morning let's turn to Romans 10:11-17. Whenever I sing or hear that song, Break Thou the Bread of Life, I imagine what it must have been like to be on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and listen to Jesus speak the word of God. What a blessing that would have been.

We can't go back in time to be in that location and enjoy that blessing, but we can turn to the Scriptures and we can read the word of God for ourselves. What a blessing that is! We need to appreciate that.

We need to have the desire to want to hear the word of God at all times and to hear the word of God properly. In our text, we read, “11. For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.'' 12. For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13. For "whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.'' 14. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 15. And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!'' 16. But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our report?'' 17. So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

In verses 14 and 15, a series of questions is asked. We learn from those questions that preaching, teaching God's word is very important. That has to do with the overall theme of the Book of Romans.

In Romans 1:16 Paul said, “16. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17. For in it (i.e. the gospel) the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith.''” The importance of the gospel or the word of God is expressed in these verses.

God's word must be taught for people to believe and then call on the name of the Lord so that they can be saved. Gospel preaching is so important that people just simply cannot be saved without it.

We notice that something else is emphasized in these verses. Not only is preaching God's Word emphasized, we learn from verse 17 that hearing God's word is also important. By hearing the Word of God, we're able to develop faith.

We understand from Hebrews 11:6 that we must develop faith to please God. It says, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” As a result of hearing the Word of God, we're able to develop faith which as we know is belief and trust, and then we're able to please God.

I. Hearing God’s Word - We've just read how important it is to hear the Word of God, but we must hear the Word of God properly. I suggest that perhaps there are various ways of hearing, and we are concerned about hearing God's Word in the right way.

A. Let’s begin by showing that there are different ways of hearing Scripture. Jesus presented this lesson in one of His parables. Let's turn to Luke 8, and consider Luke's account of the parable of the sower which we are all familiar with.

1. Here Jesus is showing four ways of hearing the Word of God. Let's begin with the parable, and then we'll look at the explanation. Start at Luke 8:5f. “5. "A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it. 6. "Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture. 7. "And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. 8. "But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.'' When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!''” A sower, or a farmer, went out to sow his seed, and as he did so, the seed fell upon different types of ground.

a. There's the wayside ground, it's hard and crusty. The seed cannot penetrate it. Since it cannot penetrate, the seed doesn't have a chance. It can't germinate and produce a plant. What happens? The birds see it and they eat it.
b. Then there's the rocky ground. Think of this as a thin layer of soil that's on some rocks. A seed here can germinate and bring forth a plant in that small amount of soil, but as the plant grows, it can't develop a healthy root structure. There's very little moisture. Consequently, in the heat of the day, the little plant doesn't have a chance. It just withers away.
c. There's the ground that's infested with thorns. There's enough soil there for the seed to bring forth a plant. Unfortunately, there are also thorns or weeds if you prefer, and they grow up with it. The consequence is that the little plant is smothered by all the thorns. It doesn't have a chance.
d. Then there's the good ground. The good ground receives the seed. The seed produces a plant. The plant matures and it produces fruit. That's what the sower wants. The sower wants to reap a great harvest. That's why he sows the seed in the first place.

2. In Jesus’ day, and even now in some places, the seed is sown by broadcasting it over the ground. This method of planting involved scattering the seed by hand over a relatively large area. As the seed is broadcast, it does fall upon various types of soil. Imagine the people in the Lord's audience listening to this parable. Anyone who knew anything about agriculture back in that day would have been very familiar with what the Lord was talking about. Perhaps they could even identify with going out and sowing the seed themselves, or maybe they had a relative who did that and had the same experiences.
3. When Jesus finished that part of the parable, He indicated that there was a profound spiritual lesson to learn. He said. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Jesus said I'm teaching you a very important lesson. I want you to hear it well.

B. What is the lesson that the Lord wants us to take from this parable? We're very fortunate in that the Lord explained this.

1. As we look at the Lord's explanation, first we notice that the seed is identified for us and we don’t have to figure that out. “11. "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.” The seed is identified for us very clearly. Jesus, in explaining the parable, is showing four ways of hearing the word of God.
2. Jesus is talking about someone who goes forth to teach the Word of God. As the teacher or preacher is engaged in the work of presenting God's Word, they need to understand that there are four ways in which people will hear. Keep in mind that when I’m talking about a preacher or teacher I am talking about all of us as we engage with others to teach them the gospel. It may be teaching one or teaching many. Jesus is showing how the word of God, the seed, is received.

a. Let's see what Jesus was talking about when He talked about the wayside soil. Luke 8:12 – “Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.” Here's an individual who hears the Word of God but it doesn't take root in their life. They can't be saved. They enjoyed the blessing of hearing scripture from you, but there was no desire to learn. As the soil is hard, so is that person’s heart. Consequently, they lose it.
b. In Luke 8:13 Jesus continued explaining His parable. “But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.” The shallow soil, overlaying rock, produced quick but impermanent results. This stands for the easily converted, the easily lost. Jesus is talking about someone who hears… the person hears with joy and obeys the word of God. Unfortunately, they do not develop a healthy root structure and when put to the test, they fall away. That type of hearer cannot produce any fruit.
c. Luke 8:14 – “And the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.” The hearer in this category is blessed in that they hear the word of God and receive it into their life. Unfortunately, other things in their life take over and what happens? They do not bear any fruit.
d. Then in Luke 8:15 – “But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” This good ground is the way that we need to be—striving to hear God's Word—with an honest and good heart. When we hear it, we keep it and then bring forth fruit with patience.

C. Jesus taught very clearly these four ways of hearing the Word of God, and since there are several wrong ways in which God's Word can be heard, we need to listen very carefully to the warning that Jesus gave in Luke 8:18. “Therefore take heed how you hear.”

II. Hear God’s Word Properly - From this, we see it's not enough to just hear, we need to strive to hear properly. If we do not hear properly, we cannot develop any faith. If we do not develop faith, then we cannot please God. Since we're interested in pleasing God, we want to know how to hear God's Word properly so it can lead to the development of our faith, which leads to a production of fruit and that pleases the Lord.

A. Let's look now at some scriptures which teach us how to hear God's Word in the right way. For one thing, we must hear with understanding.

1. Let's look at Matthew 15:10. Here Jesus was teaching a multitude of people. “Then He called the multitude and said to them, "Hear and understand:”
2. What were Jesus’ opening words on this occasion? He said, hear and understand. Understanding is very important. While that may seem obvious to us I ask, is it always easy to understand Scripture the first time you read it? Not always.

a. Have you ever had that experience? Jesus said, hear and understand. Can you hear one time and understand everything perfectly? I know I don’t. But if we hear with the proper desire and hear over and over again, finally we begin to understand. To hear properly, we must hear with understanding.
b. A person may read Scripture and become frustrated because they don't understand the whole Bible at one time. There's a lot of information recorded in God’s word, and we have to be patient. We also have to practice some perseverance. You can't just hear something one time and grasp the entirety of it. As obvious as this should be we often find in the religious world that people latch on to one thing and fail to study the whole and gain full understanding.
c. Study often involves repetition and also a willingness to look elsewhere in scripture for help in understanding what you are currently studying. It has been said every time you study a passage, you'll learn something new. That is if you had the desire to learn.

3. Jesus said, hear and understand. By the way, I had always thought if I said something one time, people ought to get it. That ought to be sufficient. I learned that even in explaining something to aerospace engineers’ repetition is required. Go back and study the Lord's teaching and see how many times He repeated something that He'd taught earlier. Consider also how many times a concept is repeated by inspiration in God’s word.

a. Why is that? Because we as humans sometimes have a hard time grasping something we've only heard once. As you teach or preach don't expect people to grasp something the first time you say it, because Jesus repeated some of the same lessons over and over.
b. I suspect we or someone we know has bought something and when it comes to setting it up they don’t even read the directions. I've seen people read directions and throw them away and say, I can't understand that. That's silly, isn't it?
c. What's worse is taking this grand old book, trying to do just a casual reading and say, I can't understand, then close it up, never to read it again. That's sad. We must hear and understand.

4. By the way, the same parable that we read a few moments ago is recorded in Matthew, chapter 13. Let's look at verse Matthew 13:19. “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.” You see how it helps us to study the same statements found in the various Gospel accounts. We're able to learn additional details as Jesus was explaining the wayside hearer. Here it says that he “does not understand”. To hear properly, we must hear with understanding.
5. Along those lines, Ephesians 3:4 says, “by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ”. That verse shows us that we can read and we can understand the word of God. The Bible even acknowledges the fact that some things are somewhat challenging for us.

a. The apostle Peter in 2nd Peter 3:15-16 says, “… our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand,”
b. While some scripture might be challenging, that's not saying that it’s impossible to understand. If we study and rightly divide the word of truth, we can understand the will of God. To hear with understanding, we must hear with the right attitude and we must have a desire to understand.

6. Let's look at Psalm 119:18. “Open my eyes, that I may see Wondrous things from Your law.” That's a wonderful request to make. Whenever we hear and study God's holy Word, ask the Lord to help us open our eyes so that we can see the things that He wants us to see.

a. What about a person who doesn't approach Scripture with that attitude? This might be a rather crude illustration, but it would be like me having glasses, which allow me to see, and then refusing to wear them. Does that make any sense? No, it doesn't. What's a whole lot worse is not having the proper desire to know God's will.
b. Having glasses to aid my vision and then not wearing them is one thing, but looking at Scripture or hearing Scripture without a burning desire to know the will of God and then put it into practice, that's what's sad. Psalm 119:18 is a wonderful prayer, a wonderful request for us to make whenever we study Scripture. That request I believe, like Solomon’s request for wisdom, pleases God. A person, who will approach Scripture with an optimistic, positive disposition, will be able to understand.

B. Let's look at Acts 17:11. This verse is very familiar to us. “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”[ESV] To hear God's Word properly, we need to hear with eagerness, but also with discernment.

1. Those people enjoyed the blessing of hearing an inspired apostle preach. Did they just accept blindly what Paul said? No. They received Paul's message with readiness of mind, that is, with eagerness. While they were eager to hear, they also exercised discernment. What did they do? They searched the Scriptures daily to determine whether the things they were hearing were right.
2. Someone once asked me if it would bother me if someone checked out what I'm preaching. It would be wonderful if they did. On occasion, I have even tried to select sermons that might stir up the desire to check it out. That's what we're supposed to do.
3. We shouldn’t accept any teaching blindly because if we do we might be following a blind teacher, and you know what happens when the blind follow the blind. Both will fall into the ditch. We have to hear with eagerness, and with discernment to make sure that what we're hearing is the truth.

C. Another point I would like to bring up is that to hear God's word properly we need to do so with a meek or humble spirit.

1. Let's look at James 1:21 which we have just studied in class. “herefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”   “Receive with meekness” is a very important point when it comes to hearing the word of God.

a. People sometimes approach the Scripture with their preconceived ideas of what is involved in pleasing God. That's the wrong way to approach Scripture. We are to let God tell us how to please Him. That's hearing with meekness or humility.
b. Why is it so important that we do that? It is because that word is able to save our souls. Our salvation is at stake. It's imperative that we hear properly, which involves hearing with a meek or humble spirit.

2. As we endeavor to hear with meekness, there's something that must be avoided. We must avoid hardening the heart. Look at Hebrews 3:7-8. “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial in the wilderness,”. We need to learn from the mistakes made by the children of Israel. When they heard, oftentimes they hardened their hearts and provoked God.

a. Look at verse Hebrews 3:15. “… Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
b. Now Hebrews 4:7. “again He designates a certain day, saying in David, "Today,'' after such a long time, as it has been said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.''” To avoid hardening our hearts we must receive God’s word with meekness or humility.

D. Finally, as we hear, we must obey. Let's continue at James 1:22f. “22. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24. for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” James is a great illustrator. Not only did he teach clearly in a straightforward fashion, but he illustrated the lessons he was teaching.

1. What about a person who hears, but doesn't obey? He's like a person who looks in a mirror, sees something out of place, and doesn't do anything about it. He just goes on his way. When we see ourselves in the mirror if something is out of place, our hair, tie, whatever, we correct it. This person sees in the word of God something that is out of place in their life and they do nothing.
2. That's the illustration that James is using to show how important it is that we hear with meekness the implanted word because it's able to save our souls. As we hear, we need to do what the Bible says, that is, to put it into practice.
3. James said again in James 1:25 that a person who looks into the perfect law of liberty continues in it. That's the kind of hearer that we need to strive to be.

CONCLUSION:
In today’s lesson, we have looked at some principles that relate to hearing God's Word properly.
We must hear with understanding.
We must hear with eagerness, but also with discernment.
We must hear with a meek or humble spirit.
As we hear, we must obey.

As we study and hear God's Word, let us understand it and allow it to bring forth fruit in our lives. That puts me in mind of Galatians 5:22-23 where Paul talks about the fruit of the Spirit. We should each take time in our studies to investigate those nine characteristics that make up the fruit of the Spirit. When you do so, remember these principles we talked about today. God help us to think about these things and always hear His Word in the right way.

Let's go back to that scene that we imagined earlier. Being on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, along with a multitude of people, Jesus is there, and He speaks the word of life.
What a blessing that would have been to be present and to hear the Savior teaching.

The ones who were truly blessed were the ones who heard correctly and put it into practice. Thank God we have His Holy Word to study today.

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We learn from the New Testament how to be saved. We need to hear the word; believe in Jesus; repent of our sins; confess our belief that Jesus is the Son of God; and be baptized for the remission of our sins… If we follow these steps, the Lord adds us to His church.

Perhaps there is someone in the assembly today with the need to be buried with Christ in baptism. If anyone has this need or desires the prayers of faithful Christians on their behalf, we encourage them to come forward while we stand and sing.

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Reference Sermon by: Raymond Sieg

Appendix:
“Critical scholarship has more trouble with Jesus’ words giving His reason for speaking in parables, "that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand," than with anything else in this passage. Some are simply incredulous that Jesus would have used a device specifically to blind and harden some of His hearers; but such was undoubtedly the case. The explanation is in Matthew, where that sacred author quoted at length from Isaiah 6:9,10, thus explaining the use of parables as God’s means of bringing about the hardening of Israel, the parables, of course, not being the cause of the hardening, but the occasion of it.

The real reason of the blindness and unbelief of Israel lay in the fact that they had "closed their eyes" to the truth.
Furthermore, what is said of the parables here is true of the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was so designed that stubborn, willful, and self-deluded, hardened hearers of it will actually be destroyed by the holy Gospel itself. Paul said:

We are indeed the incense offered by Christ to God, both for those who are on the way to salvation, and for those who are on the way to perdition: to the latter it is a deadly fume that kills, to the former a vital fragrance that brings to life (2 Corinthians 2:16).

There can be no wonder then that Jesus cried with a loud voice and said: "Take heed how ye hear!"

The dual quality of the parables: (1) enlightening them of right spirit, and (2) blinding and hardening the ones who were evil, must therefore be understood as pertaining to the entire Gospel itself. The same sunshine melts butter and hardens putty; and the same glorious Gospel saves some and destroys others; but the difference lies, not in the Gospel, but is found inherently within men themselves. It is what a man IS that determines, more than anything else, what he gets out of the Gospel.”

From Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible

Saved By What?

2nd Timothy 1:8-9

INTRO: Good morning church.
I'd like for us to begin by imagining the following. Imagine you're on a ship in the ocean and a severe storm comes up. You're out on deck. You're trying to get to safety, but a strong gust of wind, a very strong gust of wind blows you off into the water.
A man on board sees you and throws you a life preserver. You grab it and swim back to the ship and climb to safety.

From this story ponder the question, what were you saved by? What were you saved by? Was it the ship? Of course, if the ship wasn't there you wouldn't have any place to climb back to. Were you saved by the man who threw the life preserver? If the man hadn't been there, you would not have been thrown the life preserver. Were you saved by the life preserver? If the man didn't have a life preserver to throw you, you wouldn't have one. Were you saved by the water? If the water wasn't there, then you couldn't have been floating or swimming. What if maybe you saved yourself? After all you had to grab the life preserver and you had to swim. Which of those five things were you saved by? Of course, the truth is you were saved by all of them. If you take any one of those away, you would be lost.

The Bible tells us that a person is saved by many, many things. What does that tell us? What are we to make of that? Jesus said that we're to be governed by “every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4. Anything which God declares is necessary for salvation in one passage, must be implied, and be included in all other passages that speak about salvation. That's our theme this morning. We are going to look at all the different things the Bible says we are saved by when it speaks of our salvation. By the end of the lesson we'll see that whenever it says we're saved by this, all the things that we are saved by are included. This is something the religious world doesn't often follow or understand.

I. Saved by God – Obviously, the Bible says we're saved by God in 2nd Timothy chapter one. We're going to be reading many passages this morning. Again, this lesson is going to be looking at what God's word says we are saved by.

A. Read with me 2nd Timothy 1:8-9. “Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me as prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the Gospel according to the power of God who has saved us and called us with a holy calling. Not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.” We are saved by God, the Godhead…the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. We can't take God out of the picture and say that we're saved by anything else. We are saved by God.
B. Jesus - On top of that, Matthew 1:21 reveals to us specifically that one of the members of the Godhead, Jesus Christ, saves us. Verse 21, in talking about the birth of Christ, says “and she will, (referring to Mary), bring forth a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” There's one of the members of the Godhead that scripture says we are saved by. We're saved by Jesus.
C. Holy Spirit - Also the Bible says we're saved by the Holy Spirit. It's the Holy Spirit that gives us life. In John 3:5 Jesus is talking to Nicodemus. “Jesus answered most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” Later on in John 6:63 Jesus reveals this, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh provides no benefit; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and are life.” Both in John three and John six, we are told that spiritual life comes from the Holy Spirit, another member of the Godhead.
D. When we put all of that together, we see that we are saved by God. We're saved by Christ. We're saved by the Holy Spirit. That all means the same thing.
E. It's legitimate and it's perfectly scriptural when we tell somebody or when we're talking to someone, if they ask, “how are you saved” to say;

1. I'm saved by God. That is a biblical answer to say that you're saved by God.
2. I’m saved by Christ.
3. I’m saved by the Holy Spirit.
4. That's exactly true. You are.

II. Saved by the Blood of Christ - The Bible says we're also saved by the blood of Christ. In Romans 5:9, Paul tells us this about how the blood of Christ saves us. “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.”

A. Justified - We're justified by His blood which saves us. We shall be saved. We'll be pronounced justified. We'll be pronounced not guilty. We'll be pronounced innocent. How? By the blood of Christ.

1. Paul here described the blood of Christ as the instrument of man’s justification, but not in any unconditional sense. It will always be necessary for people to approach God in obedience.
2. It's perfectly scriptural and truthful to say when we're asked “what are you saved by” to say, I'm saved by the blood of Christ. Anybody that's saved is saved by the blood of Christ.

B. Redeemed - Further in 1st Peter 1:18-19, still referring to the blood of Christ, Peter says, “knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
You were redeemed. You were bought with a price. That price is the blood of Christ, which is said to be precious. This scripture also says “not… from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers”. Here is the secret of most of the errors on earth. The errors of false religions, and even the errors in the true, are often what people have received from their fathers.
C. Purchased - Paul, talking to the elders, said in Acts 20:28 – “Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”
D. What do we know now? The Bible says that we're saved by God. The Bible also says we're saved by the blood of Christ. Which is it?

1. Are we saved by God or are we saved by the blood of Christ? Going back to our story about the life preserver, we're saved by both. You take either one of those away and we can't be saved. Both of those are critical in understanding how one is saved.
2. We're saved by God, the Godhead, which consists of Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, and we're saved by the blood of Christ. That's scriptural. It’s truthful to say we're saved by the blood of Christ.

III. Saved by the Gospel - The Bible says we're saved by the Gospel.

A. In Romans 1:16, at the beginning of Paul’s letter to the church in Rome, Paul reveals something else about salvation. He says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”
B. It's the power of God to salvation. This is emphasized in 1st Corinthians 1:18, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” The message of the cross, the Gospel, is the power of God.
C. In James 1:21 James says, “Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”
D. It is truthful and scriptural to reply to the question “by what are you saved?” with the answer “I was saved by the Gospel”.

1. I'm saved by God, the Godhead. I'm saved by the blood of Christ. I'm saved by the Gospel. I'm saved by all three. Can I take any of those out and still be saved?
2. Up to this point many people might agree with you. Perhaps from this point on in the lesson, they won't.

IV. Saved by Grace, Faith, and Works - The Bible also says we are saved by grace, faith, and works. That will raise some eyebrows among people, but yet that's exactly what the Bible says. Let’s look.

A. Grace - Romans 3:23-24 – “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” We are saved through His Grace.

1. It's perfectly scriptural and truthful and right to respond to the question, what are you saved by, with the reply I am saved by God’s grace. It's not any more right to say you're saved by grace as opposed to saying you're saved by God, you're saved by the blood, or you're saved by the Gospel. None of those are more important or more truthful than the others in answering that question. Yes, we are saved by grace, and the Bible makes that clear.
2. In Luke's account chapter 17 verses 5-10 Jesus is talking about faith and duty. In response to the apostles saying to the Lord in verse 5 “Increase our faith,” Jesus gives a parable which is a lesson designed to teach humility, obedience, and a sense of lacking any merit in the sight of God. Luke 17:10, Jesus says about duty, “So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’” In other words, this teaching was to show that no man can merit salvation. To put it as William J Russell expressed it in his book: "This rebukes the self-satisfied Christian who thinks that in obeying God they have done something especially meritorious."  Man can never repay God's daily blessings, much less those bestowed by grace. We didn't deserve it, we are saved by grace.

B. Faith – That's a proper response, but it is also proper to say that we're saved by faith. Romans 5:1 – “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,”

1. The Bible says; we're justified by His blood, we're justified by grace, and we’re justified by faith. Which is it? Does the Bible contradict itself? Which of those three do I pick out?
2. We don't pick out any of them. When scripture says that we are saved or justified by one thing, everything else that the Bible says we're justified and saved by, is included. Yes, we are justified, saved by faith. Just like when Paul says in Ephesians 2:8 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”

C. Works - It's perfectly right and straightforward and truthful and scriptural to say that you're saved by faith, but I'm also saved by works. That'll raise an eyebrow, but it's scriptural to make that response if someone says how are you saved? I was saved by works.

1. Boy, that'll get people going, just say you're saved by works. The Bible says I am. Can't I say what the Bible says? Surely I can repeat what the Bible says I'm saved by.
2. We are currently studying the book of James in Sunday morning Bible study. James writes in chapter two, and this is just as inspired as any of those other places that we've read, James 2:14 – “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?” Wait, I thought we were saved by faith. Didn’t we just read that?
3. Let's read on in verse 17. “Thus also faith by itself, (there is a key phrase), faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” It's dead. By itself, faith can not save. Just like being out in the middle of the ocean where I couldn't save myself, the life preserver didn't save me by itself. The man on the ship didn't save me by himself.

D. That's the point of this lesson. When we see all of these passages, and there are many, and we could have read and read, we will continue to find more of what the Bible says we're saved by.
E. In James 2:24 – “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” The same phrase that we've seen before, justified by His blood, justified by grace, justified by faith, justified by works, these are all the same phrase. What right do I have to say I can pick one of those four and say that's what's going to save me. No one has that right. I am saved by His blood. I'm saved by grace. I'm saved by faith. And I'm saved by works. All of those are legitimate answers to the question what are we saved by.

V. Saved by Belief, Repentance, Confession, and Baptism - Let's go on. I'm also saved by belief. I'm saved by repentance. I'm saved by confession. I'm saved by baptism. Let’s consider each of these. I’ll start with belief.

A. Belief - I am saved by Belief because John 3:16 says I am. We know that by heart, but let's read it anyway. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

1. The person that believes in Him is going to be saved. We believe that. It's legitimate and right and truthful and scriptural to answer the question, what are you saved by? By saying that I'm saved by believing in Jesus Christ, that's true, it is a Biblical fact.
2. In Acts 16:31 we find these words, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” If you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you're going to be saved. That's the absolute truth, but it's not any truer than to say that you're saved by grace or you're saved by works, or you're saved by God, or you're saved by Christ, or you're saved by the blood. When the Bible says you're saved by something, it includes all of those things the Bible says you're saved by.

B. Repentance - The Bible says, I'm saved by repentance. Remember Jesus' words in Luke 13:3 – “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” The great truth uttered here, and repeated in the same words two verses later, was to remove the false security of His hearers, then and now. I'm saved by repentance. I must repent.

1. Have you ever heard anybody answer the question, “what are you saved by”, by saying repentance? Probably not, but that's the truth. It is the truth you must repent.
2. In Acts 17:30 – “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,” It is a command. Acts 3:19 – “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out,” Repent and turn to God. Yes, repentance is essential, but so is confession.

C. Confession – In 1st John 4:2-3 the Bible says. “By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God”

1. Are you saved by confession? The Bible says if you confess Jesus Christ you are of God, so it's perfectly right to say that you're saved by confession.
2. Of course, Romans 10:9-10 says the same thing, “… if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.”

D. Baptism – The Bible also says you're saved by baptism. If you want to start an argument with some folks, all you have to do is answer the question “what are you saved by?” by saying “by Baptism”. Saved by baptism is just as scriptural and just as truthful, and just as right to answer that question as is grace, faith, works, blood, God, and so on. It's just as true.

1. To answer that question Peter writes in 1st Peter 3:20f – “who formerly were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. There is also an antitype which now saves us, namely baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,”
2. Wait a minute. Baptism saves me? It saves you just as much as any of the other things we've talked about. Saved by the Godhead, saved by Jesus, saved by the Holy Spirit, saved by the blood, saved by the Gospel the word of God, saved by grace, saved by faith, saved by works, saved by belief, saved by repentance, saved by confession, saved by baptism.

CONCLUSION:
The question is who has the right to say in all of those things that one thing is the only thing that saves us? Yet, that's what the religious world does. It picks one of those things or maybe two of those things and says, that's what saves me. It seems to me that it is pretty arrogant to take all of those things the Bible talks about and say, I'm going to believe it's just these one or two things.

Going back again to our original analogy, you can't take any of those things away, the ship, the man, the life preserver, or yourself, and be saved. In similar manner, you cannot take any of those things we have read and say that some of those aren't necessary. It is the height of arrogance to say that.

When the Bible says that we're saved by God that means we're saved by grace, faith, works, belief, confession, baptism, His blood, and the gospel.

When it says we're saved by His blood, that means we're saved by God and grace and faith and works and the Bible, all of those things are included. The Bible teaches all of those things are the source of our salvation.

We simply cannot take any of those things out of the statement, the equation, and still be saved. That is not our prerogative. God saves me. He certainly does. Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. He surely did. I have to get spiritual life from the Holy Spirit. I sure do, as does anybody else.

The list goes on and we simply cannot take a single thing away and still expect to enter through those gates into heaven.

Scripture says we are to abide by “every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4. Not just some of them. Not just this one or that one, but all the words that proceed from the mouth of God. The Bible says we're saved by all of those things.

This morning we have taken a look at some of the things that the Scriptures tell us are involved in our salvation. In a past issue of House to House, Heart to Heart was an article that listed 27 things from scripture we are saved by. (July 22, 2016) I suggest to you that as we grow as a Christian we note the various things in scripture to which salvation is ascribed. The question is not, which one of these will save us; all combined ensure us of salvation.

Hopefully, we have all thought deeply about salvation, and as Christians, we continue to grow in our understanding of God’s word.

INVITATION:

If there's anyone here in the assembly that is in need of responding to the gospel, in need of prayers, whatever your needs are we stand ready to assist you and we encourage you to come forward as Mark leads us in the invitation song. Please stand.

#480 Have You Counted The Cost?

Reference sermon by: Bobby Stafford

Appendix from July 22, 2016 of House to House, Heart to Heart:
1. Christ’s words (John 6:63).
2. The Holy Spirit (John 16:8; Titus 3:5).
3. Faith (Romans 10:10).
4. Repentance (Luke 13:3; 2 Peter 3:9).
5. Baptism (Mark 16:16; 1 Peter 3:21; Titus 3:5).
6. God (John 3:16; Titus 2:11).
7. Christ’s works (John 20:30–31).
8. Calling on His name (Acts 2:21).
9. Christ’s name (Acts 4:12).
10. Christ’s resurrection (Romans 4:25).
11. Christ’s death (Romans 5:6).
12. Hope (Romans 8:24).
13. Confession of faith (Romans 10:10).
14. Hearing (Romans 10:15–17).
15. Preaching (1 Corinthians 1:18).
16. Fire (1 Corinthians 3:15).
17. The gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1–2).
18. Love (Galatians 5:6).
19. Grace (Ephesians 2:8).
20. Ourselves (Philippians 2:12).
21. The love of the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:10).
22. Christ (1 Timothy 1:15).
23. Heeding and continuing in the doctrine (1 Timothy 4:16).
24. God’s mercy (Titus 3:5).
25. Obedience (Hebrews 5:9).
26. Christ’s blood (Hebrews 9:14).
27. Works of faith (James 2:24).

The Women With Weak Eyes

Genesis 29:16-31

A lady was walking down the street on her way to work & saw a parrot in a pet store. She went in to admire the bird, and suddenly the parrot spoke to her, “Hey lady. You’re ugly.” Well, the woman was deeply offended, and she stormed out of the store. But on her way home, she thought she’d been a bit rash, and so she stopped into the store again. But the same parrot saw her and said, “Hey lady, you are REALLY ugly.” She could hardly speak and rushed out of the store to go home.

But the next day she stormed back into the store and the parrot once again said, “Hey lady, you are SO ugly.” She was so furious that she went to the owner and threatened to sue the store. The owner was apologetic… and he promised the bird wouldn’t say it again.

A week later she went to the store again and the parrot spoke again: “Hey, lady!” She paused and glared at the bird: “Yes?” And the bird said… “You know.”

We’ve all heard the saying – “Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.” AND IT IS! Different cultures have different ways of seeing beauty.

For example: In many western cultures (like the U.S.) TANNED SKIN is seen as a sign of great beauty. To achieve this… women and men will use tanning beds, tanning enhancers, fake tans, and bronzers.

But, in many Asian countries - LIGHTER SKIN is more desirable. Pale skin is seen as a sign of beauty, youth and wealth. To achieve this, many women will apply sunscreen religiously, use skin lightening creams, and wear large sun hats, or special visors

THEN THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO TAKE BEAUTY ONE STEP FURTHER.

In Japan, women will go to orthodontists to have extensive work done on their teeth to make their teeth look more crooked and uneven. This is considered attractive… because it is supposed to make the women appear more approachable.
In South Korea, the current rage is to undergo plastic surgery to make one’s face appear more heart shaped. The procedure involves breaking the jaw bone into 3 parts, removing the middle part, and fusing the other two together to create a pointed chin.

Beauty is literally in the EYE of the beholder. But in the days of Jacob and Rachel and Leah, beauty was quite literally… in the eyes. We’re told in Genesis 29:17 that “Leah’s EYES were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance.”

None of the commentaries I read could explain what it meant that Leah’s eyes were “weak” but most agreed it WASN’T considered a trait of beauty by the people of that day. As one person noted, her eyes made Leah unnoticed, unwanted & unloved… and unmarried.

You see, Jacob didn’t want to marry Leah… and apparently no one else did either. One person said that - Leah was one of Laban’s big problems. If she didn’t get married HE would have take care of her forever, and he didn’t want to do that.

It would cost him to keep her… and she was NOT an asset. She remained unwanted and unmarried by everyone. But then Jacob showed up and Laban decided to kill 2 birds with one stone – He could get richer (because of Jacob’s free labor) and, (if he worked it right) he could get rid of Leah in the bargain.

It wasn’t right or fair to Jacob… and it was not right or fair to Leah.

Imagine being unwanted and unloved. Even your father thinks you are a burden. And now Leah’s competing for the love of her husband… with her sister, and she’s NEVER going to win that competition. IT’S JUST NOT RIGHT!

But then… then… God steps in. Genesis 29:31 tells us “When the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb…” and she had four sons.

REUBEN was her 1st: Reuben means “behold, a son”. And she thinks “Surely my husband will love me now” (Genesis 29:32) But he doesn’t!

Soon after, she has a 2nd son – SIMEON meaning “One who hears” thinking “Because the Lord heard that I was not loved he gave me this one too.” (Genesis 29:33)

As if two sons were not enough, she has 3rd boy–LEVI which means “attached.” And she thinks now at least “my husband will become attached to me, because I have born him three sons.” (Genesis 29:34)

And then she has her 4th son – JUDAH – which means “Praise”… and she simply says “I will praise the Lord.” (Genesis 39:35)

What I find interesting about these 4 boys… is that they represent the conflict inside of Leah. The 1st & 3rd sons (Reuben and Levi) reflected her burning desire for her husband, but the 2nd the 4th sons (Simeon and Judah) she doesn’t mention her husband. These boy’s names talk about her faith in God.

Simeon meant “ONE WHO HEARS” (God HEARD her), and

Judah meant “PRAISE” and she declared “I will praise the Lord. You see… Leah was a woman of faith. Even in her unhappiness and despair she had her EYES on God. AND GOD REWARDED HER. He didn’t just reward her with sons… He rewarded her a heritage. Her boys became pivotal in God’s plan for Israel, especially the 3rd and 4th born of her sons.

Levi became the father of tribe of Levi … that’s where Moses & Aaron came from. And the tribe of Levi became the priests who took care of Tabernacle/Temple. The priests of Levi were pivotal to Israel’s worship of God.

Then there was JUDAH – his tribe gave Israel – men like David, Solomon and Hezekiah, and lots of other great Kings of the nation of Israel. (PAUSE) and of course – JUDAH was the tribe from which Jesus was born.

I remember the 1st time I realized what God did for Leah with those boys, and I thought to myself - God used an unwanted and unlovely girl to give Israel it’s most important sons. Leah was given sons, and the tribes of those sons gave Israel its greatest leaders… and ultimately, OUR greatest SAVIOR… Jesus!

But let’s go back to how ugly Leah was. She was unnoticed, unwanted and unloved, AND UNMARRIED… until Jacob came along. And even HE didn’t really want her. How do you handle that kind of rejection? Well Leah did the right thing.

She turned to God. She looked to God to HEAR her, and she looked to God to GIVE HIM PRAISE. And it was turning to God that changed her life.

ILLUS: A counselor once told a story of being asked for help by a man whose son had just admitted to a mental hospital. Upon visiting the hospital the counselor learned that the boy was expected to be there for several weeks just for observation to discover his problem, and it had cost the family several thousand dollars.

When this counselor spoke with this young man he found that the boy was withdrawn and depressed. In their conversation, the counselor asked the young man a very strange question: “If you had the power to change anything about your appearance, would you do it?” And the boy replied “You bet I would. I’d change my face.”
“Your face,” the counselor asked in surprise, “what’s wrong with your face?” - “It’s ugly.”

“It’s ugly? Who told you were ugly?” The boy replied that earlier that year, when he was at school a couple of younger boys came up to him and told him “you’re ugly.” And the young man believed it!

Once he’d discovered that, the counselor led him through a teaching from Scripture on why he should accept what he couldn’t change about himself, and within a week, the boy was changed… and on his way home.

What did that counselor teach that young man? Well, 1st he taught that there’s A Balance of Truth:

YOU and I are… damaged goods. Romans 3:23 “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” including you and me. BUT Psalm 139:14 explains that YOU are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” In fact, the Bible teaches that YOU are made in the image of God.

2nd - God has FORMED us for His purposes: In Psalm 139:16 the Psalmist says “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were FORMED for me, when as yet there was none of them.” And in Isaiah 45:9 it says: “Does the clay say to him who FORMS it, ‘What are you making?’” Everything about you has been FORMED by God, and it’s been formed to give you a purpose and function. Your looks, your physique, your mannerisms - there’s is not a single thing about you that God cannot know about and use for good.

3rd God’s not finished with you yet. Ephesians 2:10 says “We are His workmanship…" He’s still working on us. In Philippians 1:6 says (God) "who BEGAN A GOOD WORK in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” God never quits working on you

4th - God has an inward ideal of who you should be like – and that ideal is Jesus. Thus, God forms you and shapes you until you begin to reflect Jesus in your life. Thus, what you & I are on the outside isn’t nearly as important to God as what we are inside.

5th - If necessary God will sacrifice outward beauty to develop inward character. In 2 Corinthians 12:9 Paul prayed 3 times for God to remove a thorn of the flesh from him. But God replied: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore (Paul said) I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

6th - There are certain things about you … that are unchangeable in your life. Your face, your body, your height, your sex - and He can use them to make you special and valuable.
So then, the counselor then led the young man in a prayer of acceptance that changed his life:

• 1. God I want to thank you for my unchangeable traits;
• 2. I especially want to thank you for ... (the traits I’ve not been thankful for);
• 3. God put me back up on your easel and develop in me the inward qualities you desire.

The point is this – when you give yourself to God - it isn’t your physical shortcomings or your disabilities that determines who you are. It’s how much God is allowed to control your life.

ILLUS: Richard Turner once did “card tricks” in front of the magicians known as Penn and Teller.

Turner would do things like cut and shuffle a deck of cards with one hand; Shuffle the deck 6 or 7 times… and then spread the cards out so that all the Spades/Diamonds/Clubs and Hearts were in order (Ace through King).

He was so quick & clever with the cards that Penn & Teller admitted that they (as professional magicians) were unable to determine how he did what he did.

But what was more amazing about Richard Turner was… he was “weak of eyes”. He’d been blind since the age of 9.

RICHARD TURNER commented: “I don’t call myself blind… because I see things in ways other people can’t see. My thumbs and my fingers can feel things that other hands can’t. I now have 10 eyeballs (his fingers).” And then he said: “We all have obstacles. All of us!

You know what I consider the worst disability of all? Procrastination and laziness. Give me blindness over that any day of the week.”
Oh, and did I mention that Mr. TURNER is also has a blackbelt in Karate? He said hadn’t missed a workout in 45 years. Richard Turner refused to let what he CAN’T do, get in the way of what he CAN.

But has he done this without God? No.

When he was a teenager he got into drugs and other bad decisions, and he says that what turned him around was a magician who became his mentor... and guided him into becoming a Christian.

He was asked: "Richard why do you think you’re here?" He replied: "I don’t think I’m here by accident. I think I’m here by design. I think there’s a creator behind the scenes.

Just like I don’t think the Statue of Liberty created itself, I think there was an engineer behind the creation of that symbol of freedom. And since I’m not here by accident then I’m here by design and it took me a lot of years to get to the point … where my purpose in life is to encourage others and inspire others while in the process blowing their minds."

CLOSE: And that brings us back to Leah. Leah depended upon God to look upon her struggles and help change her life.
She had obstacles no other woman like her could have overcome. But God gave her her children… and it was the children He gave her that brought honor to her name.
God’s grace was sufficient in her life because His power was made perfect in her weakness.
2 Corinthians 12:9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Overall, this verse encourages believers to trust in God's grace and find strength in Him, even in times of weakness or difficulty.

Wisdom Is the Principle Thing

Wisdom Is the Principle Thing

Proverbs 4:7

 

INTRO:  Good morning church.  

A familiar story from the Old Testament is the story of Solomon asking God for great wisdom.  In 1^st Kings 4:29, we read “And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.”   Then in verse 32, it says of Solomon, “He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five.”  Solomon used the form of maxims or proverbs as a special form of instruction to impart that wisdom. 

 

Solomon tells us the purpose of this in Proverbs 1:1-7 “1.  The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:  2.  To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding,  3.  to receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity;  4.  to give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion   5.  A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel,  6.  to understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles.  7.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”  Solomon says this is written to impart wisdom to those who are willing to receive it. 

 

As you examine the Book of Proverbs, you can't help but notice that it has much to say about wisdom, so much so that it has often been referred to as the Book of Wisdom.   It's interesting to take a concordance, look up the word “wisdom” and see the various passages where it is used.  What then is “wisdom”?  One commentator said, “Wisdom is the ability to use knowledge aright.”  The Cambridge Dictionary defines wisdom as “the ability to use your knowledge and experience to make good decisions and judgments”.

 

I like the book of Proverbs with its nuggets of wisdom and practical advice.   It provides insight and in it, God reveals truths about our conduct in life.  For this lesson I am going to ask you to read with me Proverbs 4:7 – “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.”

 

There are two statements here in the first part of the verse that I want to consider.  The first is “wisdom is the principal thing”, and the second is “get wisdom”.

 

1. Wisdom is the principal thing - What does it mean when Solomon said that wisdom is the principal thing?  
2. It is another way of saying that wisdom is a matter of great importance.  It deserves our careful attention.
3. In addition to stating that wisdom is the principal thing, Solomon also explained in a number of passages why wisdom is so important.
4. For one thing, wisdom is of great value.
5. In Proverbs 8:11 - “for wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it”  When describing the value of something, scripture sometimes compares it to rubies.  Do you remember the description of a virtuous wife? “Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies.”   Solomon says “Wisdom is better than rubies”.   Then he goes on to say, “… and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it”
6. In Proverbs 16:16 is another verse that touches on the value of wisdom. “How much better it is to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”  This passage teaches us that wisdom is better than gold and silver.  We consider rubies, gold, and silver to be very valuable, and they are… yet wisdom is much more valuable than any of these.
7. As Solomon explained further why wisdom is the principal thing, he showed that there are blessings associated with wisdom.
8. In Proverbs 3:13-14 he touches on the state of those who find wisdom. “Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; for her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold.”   A man is happy when he finds wisdom.   He has reason to be happy because he's found something of great value.
9. Look at Proverbs 2:10-11 – “When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you; Understanding will keep you,” We find that those who attain wisdom will be preserved and they will be kept. There are blessings associated with wisdom.
10. Proverbs 19:8 says, “  He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will find good.” The Bible shows that there are blessings associated with wisdom and the last verse shows that those who get wisdom love their own souls.   That thought should help us to further appreciate what Solomon said concerning the value of wisdom.  I think we can understand why Solomon said wisdom is the principal thing.

 

1. Get Wisdom - Once we have that understanding, I believe we can better appreciate why Proverbs 4:7 also says “get wisdom”. We've established wisdom is the principal thing, and talked about its value and the blessings associated with it.  That being the case, we need to do what Solomon says, and get wisdom.
2. What does “get wisdom” mean?   It is another way of saying that God's people are to do what is necessary to attain wisdom.   You can't just sit idly by and expect to receive wisdom.  Unlike the gift that God gave Solomon, it requires effort on our part.
3. How do we do that?   How do we attain wisdom?  Over and over again, Solomon showed in the Book of Proverbs how we are to put forth the effort to attain wisdom.
4. Look at Proverbs 4:5.   “Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.” Notice from this verse that wisdom is to be gotten and not forgotten.  That's what the passage is teaching us.   Wisdom is to be gotten and it is not to be forgotten.
5. Let's also look at Proverbs 23:23.  “Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction and understanding.”  We see in this verse that in addition to wisdom… truth, instruction, and understanding are also mentioned.  Wisdom is one of those things that is to be bought and it's not to be sold.  
6. That implies there is a price to pay, doesn’t it?  The Bible says we're to pay that price, but then we're not to let go of what we have attained.
7. I must admit that over the years I have bought things on impulse.  Perhaps some of you have as well.  Then, years later we have taken that same item and sold it at a yard sale for almost nothing.  As I got older, when it comes to material matters, I tried to think ahead and say to myself; in a few years, am I going to sell this at a yard sale or maybe just give it away?
8. When it comes to wisdom, we're to pay the price for it, but then we're not to sell it.  We have to attain it and we have to retain it.   That's very important when it comes to wisdom.
9. In attaining wisdom, we must go to the right source for it.  The Bible teaches us that the Lord is the right source of wisdom.  Proverbs 2:6 – “For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding;” Who is the proper source for the wisdom that we are to attain and retain?  Solomon tells us the Lord is the proper source.  Solomon was not the only Bible writer to mention that.

III.    More About Wisdom – In the New Testament, James, the Lord's brother, also mentioned the same thing.  We have started our study on James in Bible class.

6. Let's look at James 1:5-6.  “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.” James is referring to spiritual wisdom, the kind of wisdom that we need when we face trials - when our faith is put to the test.
7. There's a general principle to learn from that particular passage, and that is that God is the source of wisdom.   When we ask Him for wisdom in faith, which is part of attaining wisdom, we have the assurance that God will listen and not reproach us for asking.
8. When we ask God for wisdom, if we ask Him in faith, and we're fulfilling our responsibilities to attain wisdom, God will certainly give it to us, and He will do so liberally.
9. When the Bible says that we're to get wisdom, we need to understand that the Lord is the right source for it.
10. Since we're in the Book of James, let's consider what the Lord's brother had to say about wisdom in chapter three of his book.  James 3:13-18 – “13.  Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom.  14.  But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth.  15.  This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.  16.  For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing will be there.  17.  But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.  18.  Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” [NKJV]              I would like to spend the remainder of our lesson considering what James wrote on the subject of wisdom in these verses.   I believe these verses in the Book of James will help us to do what Solomon teaches us about wisdom.
11. Solomon teaches us that wisdom is the principal thing.  It's a matter of great importance.  He admonishes us to get wisdom.  Therefore we need to strive to learn what the Bible has to say about wisdom.  We can learn some valuable information from these verses that were written by James.
12. According to James 3:13-14 our actions demonstrate the kind of wisdom that we possess.
13. To illustrate this matter further consider what Jesus said in Matthew 7:20 – “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
14. Our Lord was talking about false teachers and He indicated that false teachers can be detected by the fruit that they bear.
15. In a similar way, we show by our actions the kind of wisdom that we possess.  We need to understand that there are various kinds of wisdom.  We need to be concerned about getting the right kind of wisdom.
16. And since our actions demonstrate the kind of wisdom that we possess, we should consider very carefully what James wrote on the subject in these verses.
17. Verse 13 describes a child of God who is wise, and they are endued with knowledge.   What do we know about their conduct or their manner of life?     It will be in harmony with God's will, and their works will demonstrate the kind of wisdom that they possess.
18. James went on in verse 14 to show that a person might have a heart that's filled with envy and self-seeking.
19. If a person has that type of heart, they should not boast, because they are jealous and filled with strife.   And that is no reason to be arrogant.
20. Furthermore, in their boasting, and their arrogance, they lie against the truth by pretending to be a follower of Christ.
21. To help us better understand what James is teaching; let us consider the example set by the Lord's disciples.  Certainly, if you have any question about the Lord's patience, study His ministry and especially His dealings with His disciples.  Jesus saw great potential in the men that He selected, but they had much to learn and Jesus devoted a lot of time to teaching them.  He was quite patient with them.
22. The Bible teaches us in several passages that they were constantly concerned about who was the greatest.   Look at Luke 9:46 – “Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.” Jesus dealt with that situation by placing a child in the midst of the disciples.  He showed that we have to be converted and become as little children in order to enter the kingdom.
23. According to Matthew's account, they were concerned about who would be the greatest in the kingdom.  Jesus responded by teaching them what they had to do to enter the kingdom.  They had to be converted and become innocent like little children. 
24. You would think that grown, mature men would have gotten the lesson that Jesus was teaching.  No, it came up on at least two other occasions.
25. Let's look at the last occasion which we find in Luke 22:24.   Jesus ate the Passover meal with His disciples.  He was about to be arrested shortly after this.  It was on this occasion He gave instructions for eating His supper so that His followers would always remember His sacrifice.
26. What were the disciples concerned about though?  Luke 22:24 – “But there was also rivalry among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.”

iii.    How does Jesus respond this time?  Luke doesn't tell us, but John does.  In John 13, we learn that the Lord arose from supper, removed His outer garment, put a towel around Himself, took a basin and some water, and washed the disciples’ feet.  That was one powerful object lesson that the Lord taught on that occasion.  I think the disciples finally got it because we don't read about them arguing over that matter anymore.

1. Jesus humbled himself to the point that He performed the role of a servant by washing the apostles’ feet.  I paraphrase here, He said, I'm your master and I've stooped to the level of washing your feet.  I've served you.  You ought to serve one another rather than be concerned about who's the greatest in the kingdom.
2. What was the real problem that was experienced by the apostles?  We know what the symptom was.  They were concerned about who is the greatest.  What was the real problem behind that symptom?  They possessed the wrong kind of wisdom.  You see, the right kind of wisdom doesn't behave like that, but the wrong kind does.
3. James tells us that our actions demonstrate the kind of wisdom that we possess.  If a person has a heart filled with strife and envy, you know something about their wisdom.  It's not the kind that comes from God.  Remember, God is the source of wisdom, the right source for the right kind of wisdom.
4. There is another type of wisdom that we need to avoid.  The disciples were caught up in having hearts filled with this wrong kind of wisdom and it showed by their jealousy and their strife.
5. The disciples show us though, that we can change with the Lord's help.  They finally listened to the Lord's teaching and they changed their ways.
6. The problem with the disciples was that for a while they possessed an earthly kind of wisdom.  James goes on to describe that kind of wisdom in James 3:15-16.
7. Here he is referring to the kind of wisdom that's already been mentioned in verse 14, the kind that was demonstrated by the disciples.  Verse 15, “This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.”   Does this kind of wisdom come from God?  No, James says it does not come from above…rather it's earthly or worldly.  It's sensual and it's devilish.
8. What does it produce?  It produces confusion and every evil work.   We need to understand this because we are constantly exposed to the wrong kind of wisdom.  As we listen to reports on TV, we're going to hear confusion, strife, envy, and jealousy.  What are those symptoms?  They're symptoms of the wrong kind of wisdom.
9. I'm afraid that we're exposed to so much of it that if we're not careful, it can rub off on us, and we can't afford to let that happen.  We have to fight against it.
10. We are responsible for getting the right kind of wisdom, paying the price to attain it, and not losing it.  By doing that, we'll have a good influence on others.  We hear so much hatred and so much vile speech today it’s just amazing.  Those are symptoms of wisdom that James says are earthly, sensual, and devilish.  We must guard against that kind of influence.
11. James described the wrong kind of wisdom, which we are to avoid, and then he went on to describe the right kind of wisdom.   
12. This is the one that he's already mentioned in verse 13.  Now he continues in James 3:17-18 – “ But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.  Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” James says this wisdom is from above, in other words, God is its source.
13. James describes this wisdom in beautiful words; the wisdom from above is pure, peaceable, gentle, and easily entreated.  It's full of mercy and good fruits.  It is without partiality and it is without hypocrisy.
14. What do we know about that kind of wisdom?   James says it produces the fruit of righteousness.  
15. What is produced by the wrong kind of wisdom?   Strife, jealousy, and all types of evil.

 

CONCLUSION:

Solomon said, “Wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wisdom”.  To do that, we have to go to the right source.   We also have to understand that there are different kinds of wisdom.   If we go to God according to His will, He will bless us with the right kind of wisdom, and we will demonstrate that through our actions.

 

The question that we need to ask ourselves is what kind of wisdom am I endeavoring to attain?   If we attain the right kind of wisdom, the Lord will bless us.  In return, we will please Him.

 

We have to give this matter much consideration, very careful consideration, because of the influences that we're constantly exposed to.

 

The Book of James has sometimes been referred to as the Book of Proverbs of the New Testament.  It's a wonderful book.

 

When you read the Book of Proverbs and the writings of James, you find that James just goes right along with some of the things that Solomon dealt with.   Why did Solomon and James write on the same things?   I would suggest to you it's because the same Spirit who inspired Solomon to write his Proverbs also inspired James to write his letter.  The Bible does not contradict itself, the Bible complements itself. 

 

When I study the New Testament, I tend to look at the principles that are revealed and see how they are illustrated in the Old Testament.  The Old Testament is a gold mine of illustrations that will help us to understand the New Testament.

 

When it comes to wisdom, I find I tend to reverse the order, see what Solomon first said about wisdom, and then see how James illustrates what he's taught us.

 

God, in His infinite wisdom, knew what we needed a long time ago when He gave us His Word, the Scriptures.   How thankful we need to be that when we study the Bible, we're learning from the mind of God.

 

I hope this lesson will encourage us to do what we have to do to attain wisdom, and then to do what we have to do to retain it, to buy it, and never sell it.

 

If you need the prayers of the church or if you need to come forward this morning to be baptized, we will welcome you, receive you, and help you in whatever your needs may be.   We invite you to come and make your needs known while we stand and sing.

 

 

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Reference Sermon by - Raymond Sieg

Studying the Bible

2 Timothy 2:15

 INTRO:  Good morning church.  Today’s subject is one that we need to remind ourselves of from time to time.  We have talked about this in the past, and it's something that needs to be brought up occasionally, and that is the subject of the Bible, why we need to study it, and even how to study the Bible.

This is not an easy topic to address, at least in a very short time.  We could probably devote an entire quarter of Bible class to learning how to properly study the Bible.  We can’t condense that into today’s lesson.   What we will look at today is going to be the very basics.   You might say an introduction to studying the Bible.

People have a wide range of views on the study of God’s word.   Some wonder why we do it.  Others wonder why we spend so much time at it or conversely so little time.   Are we looking closely enough, or too closely?   Perhaps you have heard some of these things or discussions on Bible versions, the use of reference material, commentaries, dictionaries, language references, and the like.   

1. I’ll start with a question; why should we study the Bible or more personally, why should I study the Bible? The first and probably the foremost reason why we need to study the Bible is because of what it is. It is the word of God, our Father and we need to approach it as the word of God.
   1. Because of what it is – the word of God. In 2nd Timothy 3:16 Paul wrote, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” [NKJV]
      1. That word we have translated as “given by inspiration of God” literally means “God breathed”.
      2. Paul is saying that ALL scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for us. Therefore we need to view scripture, the Bible, as God’s word.  
      3. With that in mind, look with me at 1st Thessalonians 2:13 – “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.”  Paul commended the brethren at Thessalonica because they welcomed it not as some man's opinion, but as the Word of God.   That's the first reason why we need to study the Bible.
   2. To help us better appreciate God and our salvation. Another reason to consider as we deal with “why study the Bible”, is that it helps us better appreciate who God is, and gives us a better appreciation of our salvation.
      1. How can we know that we are saved? How can we appreciate what was done to make salvation possible?   How can we better know God and understand what He has done for us and continues to do for us?   The answers to those things are through the study of His Word.
      2. Romans 1:16f says, – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith.''”
      3. In 1st Corinthians 2:10f – One of the problems in Corinth was related to the pretentious, empty philosophy of the Greeks, who so highly regarded the eloquent speeches of orators. In the first part of this chapter, Paul gave his reasons for not following those popular methods in the preaching of the Word. 
      4. Paul explains how we know about God, and what He reveals to us. There is a discussion about the wisdom of men and the wisdom of God and the mysteries of God’s plan. Then Paul makes this point, “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.  For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”
      5. In other words, what Paul is saying is the reason we can explain to you about God, is because the Holy Spirit, who is part of the Godhead, revealed it to us. When we look at the Bible as the Word of God, it is in this word that we learn about who God is.   We can better appreciate our salvation as a result.
   3. Because it gives us the answers to the questions people sometimes ask – A third reason that we would give consideration to “why study the Bible”, is because it gives us answers to the questions that people frequently ask.
      1. There are questions about life. Who am I?   Why am I here?  What is my purpose?  Where am I headed?  These are big philosophical questions that people ask and the Bible is a book that gives us the answers.
      2. In Genesis 1:1, we learn God created the heavens and the earth. Then a little later in verse 26f, we learn mankind was created in the image of God.   That's why mankind has dominion over the rest of creation and why we are to gain knowledge of it.
      3. Solomon concludes in Ecclesiastes 12:13 - “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”  Our purpose is to fear God and keep His commandments—which we find in His word.
   4. Because we are told to by Him – Another reason is mentioned in 2^nd Timothy 2:15 where Paul says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Paul tells Timothy, and it applies to us, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God”.
      1. Paul is telling Timothy he needs to be accurately handling or rightly dividing the word of truth. The Greeks used the word for "expound soundly."
      2. This is not just saying, as some try to make it, know the difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. It's talking about how one accurately handles the word of God.  You cannot do that if you're not willing to take time to study His Word.   
      3. In 1^st Peter 2:2 Peter says, “as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,” We are to desire the pure milk of the Word so we may grow.
      4. Then in 2^nd Peter 3:18, “but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever.” Peter concludes that letter by reminding us we are to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That's what we are expected to do.
      5. If you recall the Hebrew writer rebuked those brethren who had not studied the way that they should. He makes the point in Hebrews 5:12-14 – “12.  For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13.  For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe.    But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use, have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”  We need to reach a point where we can digest the meat of the Word, which means becoming mature enough that you've gone beyond the basics.  
      6. The only way to go beyond the basics in the Word of God is to study your Bible. We need to study it because we're told to.
   5. To learn how to live so that we can be pleasing to Him – In addition to that, we study the Bible to learn how to live so that we can please God. The way that we please Him is by doing what He tells us to do.
      1. Back to 2^nd Timothy 3:16-17. Paul said, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine…” Another word for doctrine is just the simple, straightforward word, “teaching”. 
      2. Then he says, “… for reproof…”. Today we focus on the idea of this word meaning criticism or blame.   What it means is “a proof, that by which a thing is proved or tested”.  It is checking something by comparing it to a standard and identifying if what is being tested complies, or is in error.  If what is being tested is in error then it needs to be corrected. 
      3. If you have an error in your life, you need to become aware of that error so that you can make a “…correction…”. How do we correct what has been identified as wrong?  How do we correct that for which we have been reproved?
      4. “…for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete…”  Here “The man of God” is not merely Timothy. "Man" is generic and means "human being."  Everyone who walks in the way of God is made complete and completely furnished unto every good work—by the Holy Scriptures.
      5. How do you live your life righteously so that you can have a hope of heaven when this life is over? The answer is by studying the word of God and making applications in your life.
   6. To help us defend the faith – The final reason that I want to consider this morning is; we need to study the Bible to help us defend our faith.
      1. In 1^st Peter 3:15, it says, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;” Peter says you need to be ready to give a defense for your hope.
      2. In Jude 3 “Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”  They had received the word of God and they needed to be able to defend it.
      3. How do we defend the word of God? We cannot defend God's word if we do not know what God's Word says.  We have an example of that over in Acts chapter 17.
      4. In Acts 17:2f, we find Paul in Thessalonica where there was a synagogue of the Jews and it says, “Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” As we read on we find some of them were persuaded and some were not. 
      5. The point is, he reasoned from the Scriptures. Paul was able to take the word of God and show them how Jesus fulfilled the Scriptures.   He reasoned with them.
      6. If we want to defend the faith, we need to study the Word of God. Those are some reasons why we need to study the Bible, and I am sure many more could be added to these.  
   7. Attitude - Let’s move on and I want to look at a second question. What attitudes do I need to study the Bible?   I have a coffee cup at home with the slogan on it “Your attitude, almost always determines your altitude in life.”  I suggest to you, a proper attitude is the first step in studying the Bible.  If the right attitude is not there, you're not going to be able to proceed with the things that you need to do so that you are rightly dividing or handling accurately the Word of truth.   Let's look at some attitudes that we need as we study the Bible.
      1. Understand the purpose of Bible study - The first one is—we need to know the purpose of Bible study.
         1. As we just outlined, the purpose of Bible study is to know God's will. We need to go to the Bible with the intention of getting out of the Bible what God intends for us to get out of it.
         2. In Acts 17:11 after Paul leaves Thessalonica, he goes to Berea and begins to teach them. It says in verse eleven “These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.”  In other words, Paul taught and they readily listened but they didn't just take his word for it.  They opened the scriptures to see if what Paul is saying is the truth.
         3. I am reminded here of what we saw in Hebrews 5:12-14.  The Hebrew writer tells them, “…by this time you ought to be teachers…”  That was a problem.  He was concerned and he rebuked them.  He said that they needed to again be taught the first principles of the oracles of God, the word of God.
         4. Then in Hebrews 6:1, he encourages them to go on beyond those first principles. “Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,”  That's what our goal needs to be, to get out of God's Word what He intends.
         5. Some people, as they approach God's Word, do so with wrong motives, and they already have preconceived ideas. They approach God's Word with a prejudice that they have no intention of changing.   Often they approach the Bible simply to prove what they already believe.   They've made up their mind this is what I want to believe and I'm going to find a way for God's Word to say what I want it to say, even if it's not what it means.  
         6. Some read the Bible just out of curiosity. They might see it as one of the great classical works, and put it in their list of philosophies’.
         7. Others read through the Bible to find tidbits of trivia, the shortest verse, longest verse, middle verse, or maybe just to find some interesting sayings here and there. That's not good enough, folks.
         8. Then some go to the Bible with negative intent. They're looking for something they might call a mistake or inconsistency.   They want to reject the Bible as the Word of God.   Yes, they may read it, but they're looking for reasons to criticize what the Bible says.   If you look hard enough and you're willing to twist Scripture enough, you're going to be able to find plenty of things that you think are inconsistencies and mistakes.
         9. In short, I want to study the Word of God to be pleasing to God and to glean from the text the intended meaning.
      2. With reverence – Another attitude that I need is reverence. By that I mean we are to respect God and show God the honor that He deserves. When it comes to God's Word, we need to understand that the Bible is the word of God and be respectful of that.   Treat it as such.  It's not a novel.  It's not just a book of history.  It's not, as I mentioned a few moments ago, one of the great literary books of philosophy.   It is God's revelation to us.
         1. Paul was commending Timothy in 2^nd Timothy 3:15 where he said, “from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” I notice how he calls them the Holy Scriptures.   They are treated with the greatest respect.
         2. I remind you again of 1^st Thessalonians 2:13 where Paul said, “I commend you because you welcomed it not as the word of men, but you welcomed it as it is the Word of God.” They showed it proper respect.
         3. I'm reminded also of something recorded in Nehemiah which was written after the children of Judah were permitted to return to Jerusalem. After 70 years of captivity by Babylon they were able to return, rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, and then they begin to restore worship to God.  Nehemiah 8 records the great gathering together of all the people where they were going to read the law. Verse 5 says, “Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.”   When they stood that was a sign of reverence.
         4. The Word of God was about to be read, and they weren't going to take this lightly. Out of respect, they stood for the reading of the law, and they remained standing as the Law was read for several hours on that particular occasion.   When I study the Word of God, I need to approach His Word with reverence.
         5. I strongly suspect, many people today have little or no reverence for the Word of God and they show it in many ways. You can see it in the way that they water down its message, where they take the message of God and they say “It doesn't mean what it says”. “It doesn't apply to us today.”  Or they outright ignore the parts of it that they do not like.
      3. A belief that you can understand it – Now here is another attitude that I need to have as I study the Word of God. I need to approach it believing that I can understand it.
         1. Paul told the Ephesians in Ephesians 5:17 – “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” In Ephesians 3:3-4, Paul explains “how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I wrote before in a few words, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets:”  Paul is saying, I'm writing these things down so that you will understand.  I need that attitude as I study. We can understand His Word.
         2. Many have been convinced otherwise. They've been convinced that we cannot understand the word of God today.   They might look at the religious division around us and say that that's proof that we can understand what it says.   They have been told, again by skeptics and critics, “The Word of God has been corrupted”. “We don't have the true word of God anymore”. “It's been compromised, and you can't depend on it”.
         3. When people hear those things they think, why study the Word of God? I'm not going to be able to understand if it is the Word of God.   There was even a point in time when the scriptures were kept from the common man.
         4. Folks, I don't believe it. I do believe that there are places that are challenging in the Bible.   But I consider that one of the good things about the Bible when I think about it.  The Bible is something that you don't just read once.  You read it more than once and you study it.  Every time you read it, you're going to learn more and more as your understanding grows.   That's the way that the Bible was designed.
         5. Yes, there are parts of the Bible that are very challenging and difficult to understand.  Peter in 2^nd Peter 3:15-16 is speaking of Paul and says, “… our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which those who are untaught and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.”    Peter says that there are things that are hard to understand.  He does not say that they're impossible to understand.
         6. When it comes to the matter of salvation, and when it comes to the way you live your life as a Christian, it is simple and easily understood. You can understand what you need to do to be saved and you can understand that you need to please God with an obedient life.   The fundamentals of the faith and Christian living are clearly revealed (not necessarily easy to apply, but understandable).
         7. There will be times we need help. Keep in mind though that people are ALWAYS fallible, and their direction is only useful if it is true to God’s word.  I'm not saying that the guidance of the experienced is not helpful and indeed it is needed at times.   Times where the best thing you can do is seek someone more mature in the faith and ask them “What does this mean?”   If they have studied the way that they're supposed to, they ought to be able to give you an understanding.   
         8. I'm reminded of Timothy. His job was to preach the Gospel, which means he was to share it with others.   Paul tells Timothy in 1^st Timothy 4:16 – “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.”  
         9. In Ephesians 4:11f, where Paul talks about various leaders in the Lord's body. “… He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,”  People in a position of teaching, folks.   Paul continues  for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,  13.  till we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;  14.  that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness by which they lie in wait to deceive,  15.  but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head, Christ   16.  from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”   Paul is saying that God has given us leaders to build us up in His Word.
         10. Why? So we're not deceived by false teachers, we're not tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine. We become united and we grow the way that God wants us to grow.
         11. Remember though, people are fallible. In 1^st John 4:1 – “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God… ”  What is the saying these days?  Trust but verify, make sure that it is true.  Compare it with God’s Word.  Approach the Word of God, believing that you can understand it.
      4. With an open mind and love for truth – We also need to approach the Word of God with an open mind and with love for the truth. If we read Matthew 13:11-15 we will find that Jesus taught in parables because some people had closed minds.  They refused to hear the truth or even consider whether or not Jesus was their promised Messiah.  As long as their minds were closed, they were never going to receive the Word of God.
         1. We need to be like David in Psalm 119:97, where he said, “Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” Like the Bereans, who received the Word with readiness and searched the scriptures daily to verify the truth.  Like Cornelius, who, concluding his explanation, said in Acts 10:33 “So I sent to you immediately, and you have done well to come. Now therefore, we are all present before God, to hear all the things commanded you by God”  
         2. It is the love of truth that should keep us studying and keep us from being deceived. 2^nd Thessalonians 2:10-12 talks about strong delusions being sent “.. did not receive the love of the truth, And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,”  They did not love the Word of God enough to study it so that they wouldn't be deceived.
      5. With a desire to learn – People do not study as they should because they do not have the desire to learn. This can be for many reasons, but any of those reasons is detrimental to one’s faith. As Christians, we are seeking first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33) which means we want to know what God expects.
         1. Matthew 5:6 speaks of hungering and thirsting after righteousness.
         2. 2^nd Timothy 2:15 tells us, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God…”
         3. When we realize that we are dealing with what will judge us on the last day, we ought to put forth every possible effort to learn as much as we can. John 12:48 notes “… the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.”
         4. Consider also 1 Peter 2:2 – “… desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,”
      6. A desire to obey what it says – The last one I’ll mention is a desire to obey. All the knowledge is inadequate if we do not intend to obey it.  God’s word is not just a book of suggestions.  It is a way of life and that is continually emphasized.
         1. Matthew 28:18-20 – Jesus tells them that disciples are to be taught “… all things that I have commanded you”
         2. Luke 6:46 – “… why do you call Me `Lord, Lord,' and do not do the things which I say?”
         3. James 1:22-25 emphasizes this point clearly. We are to be doers of the word and not hearers only.

 

CONCLUSION:

We have looked at why we should study the Bible and some reasons were;

Because of what it is – the Word of God.

To help us better appreciate God and our salvation.

Because it gives us the answers to the questions people often ask.

Because we are told to by Him.

To learn how to live so that we can be pleasing to Him,

To help us defend the faith.

Next, we considered how important our attitude toward God’s Word was in learning from it.   We took a look at some of the attitudes that will help us study effectively.   The first was we need to understand the purpose of Bible study.  We need to approach it with reverence, a belief we can understand it, with an open mind and a love of the truth.   We also need a desire to learn and just as importantly a desire to obey and please our Heavenly Father.   Worshiping God and not studying His word is like participating in Blindfolded Archery: You don’t know what you’re missing.  

We understand from the New Testament how to be saved. We need to hear the word; believe in Jesus; repent of our sins; we must confess our belief that Jesus is the Son of God; and be baptized for the remission of our sins… If we follow these steps, the Lord adds us to His church.  Then we are to live our lives in faithful obedience, well pleasing to God.

 

Perhaps there is someone in the assembly today with the need to be buried with Christ in baptism.  If you have never done these things, we urge you to do so today.  If anyone has this need or desires the prayers of faithful Christians on their behalf, we encourage them to come forward while we stand and sing. 

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Taken from a sermon by Thomas Thornhill Jr

 

 

Using Birds to Build Trust

Text 1 Kings 16:30 – 17:15

Imagine you're standing on the edge of a deep, dark gorge, peering down into its mysterious depths. You can feel the cold air swirling around you, and the sound of eerie echoes fills your ears. Now, imagine someone handing you a fragile, rickety wooden bridge, assuring you that it will safely carry you across to the other side. But as you examine the bridge, you notice the rotting wood, the missing planks, and the creaking structure. It's as if it's barely holding itself together.
You hesitate, your heart pounding with doubt. The bridge sways unpromisingly, threatening to give way at any moment. Your intuition screams at you, warning you of the potential danger. It's a leap of faith to trust this flimsy bridge, knowing that one wrong step could send you plummeting into the unknown darkness below.
In that moment, not trusting in something is like gripping tightly onto the solid ground behind you, unwilling to take that perilous journey. It's acknowledging the uncertainties, the flaws, and the potential consequences, and deciding that it's wiser to rely on your own judgment rather than putting your faith in something so precarious.

Trust.
It’s a valuable commodity.
People rarely GIVE trust... usually it’s something that’s earned.
But without having trust in someone - or something – it’s hard to do anything in this life
• People put their trust in a wide range of things, depending on their beliefs, values, and experiences. Here are some common things people tend to trust:
• Financial Systems: People trust banks, financial institutions, and economic systems to safely handle their money, investments, and transactions.
• Personal Beliefs and Values: Individuals often trust in their own beliefs, values, and intuition to make decisions and navigate their lives.
• We trust that our cars will start. Have you ever gotten in your car, put the key in the ignition... and then not have it start? How did it make you feel? It should have started! It had started hundreds of times before... but now it didn’t. You TRUSTED it to be able to start when you needed it.
• We trust that our grocery stores will have food. They may not have the specific brand of cereal or coffee you want, but you TRUST they will have milk, and meat, and bread.
• When we have trouble around the house, we trust that the police and firemen will be available to protect us.
• And we trust that our friends will BE THERE for us. That our church family will lift us up in prayer and be there in our moments of joy and sadness.
Trust is woven into the very fabric of our lives.
Without trust, we can hardly function.
So, the question is: what do you trust... and why?

The story we’re looking at today is a story about trust... and the lack of it.
And it begins in 1 Kings 16: 30-33
30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. 31 And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32 He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.

Ahab was a wicked king.
But he NOT JUST a wicked king... he was a wicked man
1 Kings 21:25 says “There was never a man like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the LORD, urged on by Jezebel his wife.”
So Ahab was a wicked King and a wicked man.

But what made him so wicked?
Well, he TRUSTED in the wrong things.
King Ahab, who reigned over the northern kingdom of Israel from approximately 874 to 853 BC is often described as one of the most wicked kings in the biblical narrative. Several factors contributed to Ahab's reputation for evil:

1. Ahab's marriage to Jezebel, had a significant impact on his reign. Jezebel was a devoted worshipper of Baal and actively promoted Baal worship in Israel, leading to the introduction of idolatry and the persecution of prophets of the God of Israel. Ahab allowed and supported Jezebel's religious practices, which went against the faith of the Israelites.
2. Under Ahab's rule, the worship of the God of Israel was actively suppressed, and the worship of Baal was encouraged. This idolatrous worship led to the corruption of religious practices and the erosion of moral values among the people.
3. Ahab and Jezebel orchestrated the systematic persecution and killing of the prophets of the God of Israel. Elijah, one of the prominent prophets of Israel, was particularly targeted by Ahab and Jezebel.
4. Despite receiving multiple warnings and prophecies from God through various prophets, Ahab stubbornly persisted in his evil ways. He showed no repentance or willingness to change his behavior, even after witnessing the disastrous consequences of his actions.

Ahab trusted the wrong things... and he trusted the wrong people
And most tragically of all - he didn’t trust God.
So God decided it was time to teach Ahab a lesson in trust.
God wants Ahab to trust Him.
So He sends Elijah with this basic message:
“Trust me on this… I’m going to make life VERY uncomfortable for you.
Until Elijah comes to you again, there will be neither rain nor dew on the land.”

ILLUS: Every year, our farmers watch anxiously to see how much rain will fall on crops.
If there’s too much, the crops drown.
If there’s too little, some of those crops dry up and die.
BUT if there’s no rain at all... ALL the crops will die.

The book of James, in James 5:17 tells us that “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.”
Three and a half years without rain is a long time.
Three ½ years of drought is enough to turn a paradise into a wasteland.
And three ½ years of dryness can make men and kings desperate enough to do anything to change the weather... even kill a prophet.
So, God sent Elijah on an extended vacation.
And that (of course) is where we meet the ravens of this story.

God has Elijah hide near the brook Kerith down by the Jordan River and that’s where he lives for the next couple of years.
And while he was hiding there:1Kings 17:6 tells us
“The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.”

Now this is odd for several reasons:
1st Ravens don’t generally like being around humans... they avoid us if at all possible.
2ndly Ravens were unclean birds. God’s people were not allowed to eat them, nor offer them in sacrifice.
3rd The food of ravens has usually been dead for a while. They eat road kill. They were scavengers. They’re kind of like vultures. Who would want to share their food?
4th Even if we wanted to share their food, Ravens would never share. They don’t even share their food with their babies.

ILLUS: Once a young raven is able to fly – it’s kicked out of the nest and left to fend for itself. No matter how much the young raven cries its parents will not bring it food, it is on its own. Apparently that’s an uncommonly cruel trait not shared by many other birds.
So here God has Elijah being fed by unclean, disgusting, anti-social, and notoriously cruel birds.

WHY?
Why would God use Ravens to supply Elijah with food when there are so many other simple and satisfying ways of getting the job done?

 

There are several reasons why people end up not trusting God or His word.
1. Sometimes, people refuse to trust God’s Word, because they Lack evidence: Some individuals may require empirical evidence or tangible proof before they can trust in something or someone. Since God's existence cannot be scientifically proven, they may find it difficult to place their trust in a higher power.

2. Other times people refuse to trust God and His Word because (like King Ahab) they’ve listened to the wrong people. They’ve spent time with skeptics and scoffers who have made them ashamed of their faith and doubt their God.

3. Other times people refuse to trust God’s Word because they’ve been hurt. God didn’t help them like they wanted Him to when they needed it, and because of that incident(s) they turn their back on God.

4. Still other people refuse to trust God’s Word because they’re into sin. They’ve done things they shouldn’t do and because God’s Word condemns their particular behavior or lifestyle they try to disarm God. They try to blunt his right to judge them. Because IF God’s Word is wrong on something they can ignore it as being unreliable in all things.

The problem with these approaches to God’s Word is that it puts us in danger.
If you can’t trust God... you have to trust something.

SOMETHING has to step in where God has been thrown out.
That’s what happened to King Ahab.
He didn’t trust the God of Israel.
So he turned in trust to other gods... and suffered for it.

ILLUS: G.K. Chesterton once said
“It is often supposed that when people stop believing in God, they believe in nothing.
Alas, it is worse than that.
When they stop believing in God, they believe in anything.”

Without God… the only standard of TRUST - of right and wrong - is what appeals to you. And that’s a shifting standard. It all depends on what I want, what I like, what I accept, what pleases me.

But scripture says: “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”
My standards are all warped.
My morality is riddled with impurity.
And if I base what I TRUST on that warpedness and impurity, then I’m going to embrace whatever gods allow me to do what I want to do.

Its insanity.
When I stop trusting in the God of Scripture... I’ll believe in anything
And eventually that will lead me to destruction.

But now, by contrast, if I trust in the God of Scripture I’m no longer led by MY OWN righteousness and holiness.
Instead… I’m trusting a God who is so holy and so righteous that my tendency will be to build my life around Him (rather than Him around me).

I’ll use His standards of right and wrong – not mine.
I’ll build on His morality in my life – not mine.
I’ll build on His expectations for me... not mine.
AND I know if I trust in Him in these matters... I will be blest.
But first I have to decide whether I trust Him or not.
And that leads me to my final point

Why would God use ravens to minister to Elijah?
He could have done it more pleasantly and much easier some other way.
Why use the ravens?
God asked him to go approach a poor widow in Zarephath to house and feed him. But the widow had no food to share. What little food she had – she was preparing for a final meal for her son and herself... and then they were going to die.
And Elijah had to ask her to share the final meal with him.
Why didn’t God send Elijah to somebody who at least had some food???
Why?
For the same reason God sent the ravens to feed him in the desert: To show Elijah His power.

Elijah said to her, "Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son.

For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.’"
She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family.”

Now, you can’t convince me that God’s sole purpose in having the widow feed Elijah was simply so that he could have something to eat!
So, what other reason could God have?
TRUST

God wanted to strengthen Elijah’s trust in Him.

God got Elijah into situations where he had no choice but to trust Him.
Because when this drought was over, God was sending Elijah back to confront Ahab.

And when Elijah went back, he had to be able to know that he could trust God.

This whole time in exile was designed by God so He could train Elijah in trust.
He showed Elijah that He could order the very ravens to feed him
He showed Elijah that He was able to enable a destitute widow to meet his needs.
Over and over again, God trained Elijah in trust.

God knows that trust is something that’s earned.
And He knows the power of trust in our lives.
That’s why He lays such an emphasis on our counting our blessings. Repeatedly throughout Scripture God tells us be thankful, to rejoice to focus on what He has done in our lives. This is more than just a “religious activity” – it’s a training ground in trust.

If Elijah had not been trained in trust, he wouldn’t have been ready when the time of testing came. In the same way – if we don’t train ourselves in trusting God, we will not have the strength to stand in the time of testing.

CLOSE: The question for you this morning is this: Who do you trust?
One man made this observation:
• “Trust in yourself and you are doomed to disappointment
• Trust in money and you may have it taken from you;
• But trust in God, and you are never to be confounded in time or eternity.”

Hebrews tells us
“Without faith it is impossible to please God...”
That kind of faith is more than just “believing God exists?”
It’s a faith that has learned to trust God because of what He’s done for us.
Hebrews 11:6 “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists AND that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
INVITATION

Contributor : Jeff Strite

The Spirit of Antichrist

1st John 2:18-23

INTRO: Good morning church. I’m going to deviate from the lesson I had planned because something came up that reminded me of a lesson several years back and I realized this would be a good time to look at the topic again. Incidentally, it us gives an entry point to what I am going to speak on eventually.

I was reading 1st John and came across this portion which started me thinking. Turn with me to 1st John 2:18-23 – “18. Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. 19. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. 20. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. 21. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 22. Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 23. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”[NKJV]

This point in John’s letter has caused difficulty for many religious people in the world and they have become confused about John’s meaning.

What I want to look at today is what John calls, “The antichrist.” We might want to note that John is the only writer of the New Testament who uses the term "antichrist", and he uses the term 5 times.

I – The Antichrist
A lot of the reason there is confusion about the subject of “the antichrist” is because people refuse to use the best commentary on the Bible there is, and that’s the Bible itself. I’m sure if people let the Bible speak for itself they would have no trouble in understanding John’s meaning of the term antichrist. Let’s look at the text again a bit more carefully.
1. Who is John writing to? - John starts this section of his letter with one of his favorite phrases, he says “Little children” or in some translations “Dear children”. He uses the term ‘children’ many times through his 3 letters and in 1st John he uses the term “Little children” 9 times. John is writing this letter to the Christians of that time as a loving father would write to his children.
2. John is warning Christians, his “little children”. He is warning them about a problem that was very real in his day. 1st John 2:18 “Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.” Note that John uses the term “antichrist ‘twice here, singular and plural.
3. He uses the term again in 1st John 2:22 where he says, “Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.”[ESV]
4. He uses it again in 1st John 4:2-3 where he says, “By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. And every spirit that does not confess Jesus, is not from God, this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.”
5. John uses the term “antichrist” in 2nd John 7 when he says, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.”

We are living in a society where many people believe that the term “antichrist” is used to refer to an individual. In other words, they believe “The antichrist”, ‘singular’, will appear in the end times.

Some believe that an actual person will arise in the religious-political arena and lead many people astray just before Christ comes again. This view is held by pre-millenialist and many amillennialists.

To understand what John means, let us ask ourselves some questions. Who are the
antichrists? And how do we guard ourselves against them?

II - How do you spot the spirit of the antichrist?
Unlike popular public belief, the answer is not a mystery but quite simple. And it is simply because John tells us the answer. John says in 1st John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.”

You see in John’s day, not sometime in the future, but in John’s day, “The antichrists” not the “antichrist” but “many antichrists”, were individuals who had at some time associated themselves with the apostles and other Christians.

But then these people had left, gone out on their own, and were no longer in fellowship with the apostles. That’s why John says, “They went out from us, and they didn’t really belong to us, because if they did they wouldn’t have gone.” From this verse, it is plain that the "antichrists" were Christians who had defected from the truth, and their departure indicates their hostility to the truth.

In other words, these people were Christians, had faith, and then at some point, they lost their faith. Why? I suspect because they didn’t respect the apostolic teaching.
John tells us that, in 1st John 4:3-6 “3… every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. 4. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. 6. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”

If you want to relate that today, you easily can because many "antichrists" behave the same way. Many people start out acting like they respect apostolic authority and seek to be with Christians but eventually, their true nature comes out and they do not want to be with those who respect apostolic authority very long.

For example: How many people do you know who do not have the Bible as their sole authority for their beliefs? Many religious groups who won’t even read the Bible. Many religious groups hold on to the teaching of men, and men have the final say, not the Bible. Some say the Bible was for back then, we don’t need it anymore. What they are doing is refusing to accept the apostle’s doctrine.

What did Jesus say about accepting the apostle's teaching? He said in John 13:20 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me." Those who reject the apostles reject Christ himself, and in effect have the spirit of the antichrist.

John tells us another characteristic of the antichrists. 1st John 2:22-23 “Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”

In John’s day, some people denied that Jesus is the Christ. There was a big problem with Gnosticism in that day. A Gnostic is a person who says, “A divine God couldn’t possibly come in the flesh because the flesh is too sinful.”

People in John’s day and even today allege that Jesus and Christ are two different persons. They believe that Christ merely appeared to have flesh, but in reality, didn’t. Others believe that the Christ descended upon Jesus at His baptism and departed at the time of His suffering. It is that denial that Jesus Christ came in the flesh that John identifies as the spirit of the antichrist.

1st John 4:3 “and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.”

Another way to spot the spirit of the antichrist is that they deny the Father and the Son. Again in 1st John 2:22b-23, “He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.
Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”

You see by denying that Jesus is the Christ, they were denying the Son. Do you recall in John’s gospel, John 1:1-2 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” And then in John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

In other words, because of their denial, they are refusing to believe that Jesus came from the Father. By denying the Son they were also denying the Father. Again it comes back to John 13:20 I’ll paraphrase: “I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me."

If you want to spot the spirit of the antichrist today, it would be quite simple: 1. Anyone who denies that Jesus was the Messiah. 2. Anyone who denies the nature of Jesus, that He was fully God and fully man. 3. Anyone who denies apostolic authority, i.e. the Bible and its teachings about the nature of Jesus Christ. These have the spirit of the antichrist.

Based upon the evidence I have shown you so far is the antichrist a character soon to be revealed on the stage of world events? … Let’s look at some of the views of Dispensationalists, which is currently the most popular form of pre-millennialism because they have much to say about “the Antichrist.” They would have us believe that the Antichrist is a man, now living, who will soon rise to the position of a worldwide dictator.

In his book, “The Late Great Planet Earth” Hal Lindsey declares that the Antichrist will come to power just before the return of Christ, which, he asserts, will occur during this generation. Folks, this view finds absolutely no support in the Bible.

The term antikristos is found 5 times in 4 New Testament passages, all of which are found in John’s epistles, which we’ve already looked at. It’s significant that Lindsey, though devoting a whole chapter to the “Antichrist,” never once alludes to these verses. Why? The reason for this is obvious; the biblical information on this topic is not in harmony with his fanciful theory.

Over the years countless people and groups have attempted to identify the antichrist. Go home and simply type in the word “antichrist” on the internet if you have it. I got over 3 million hits in a Google search. You will be immersed with suggestions such as the Roman Emperor Nero, Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussein, and the Pope. These are but a few of the candidates put forth. In most cases, “the antichrist” is supposed to be connected with the end of the world, the number 666, and various other signs of the times. ”

I keep going over this because we need to be aware of the view these people are coming from. We need to be aware, point out the antichrist spirit, and teach others to recognize it.

John wrote in 1st John 2:18 and I paraphrase; “Little children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.” He says in verse 22, “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist--he denies the Father and the Son.”

John specifically tells us that many antichrists had already come into the world. If his readers were looking for a single, solitary figure distinguished as the sole antichrist, John took that notion away by saying to them that many antichrists had come. If John was talking about a mysterious antichrist who is some sinister personage that would appear in the late 21st century why would he say this? Why would he say in 1st John 4:3 again I paraphrase, “But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”

John says the spirit of the antichrist is already here, in John’s day. Any good Biblical scholar will see quite clearly that when John makes references to “antichrist” he is using that term to suggest a spirit of unbelief that can be manifested in a variety of ways, both in the past and present.

Folks, in 1st John 2:18, I would suggest you underline the term “antichrist,” and in your margin write the following, “A general disposition of unbelief; not a specific person.” John defined an antichrist as any person or group who denies the Father and the Son.

We have seen quite clearly that any person or group, which does not recognize that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has come in the flesh, is a person or a group that has been seized by the spirit of antichrist. When you think about the religious world around us today, many would fall into the category of possessing the spirit of the antichrist.

III - How do we as Christians, guard against the spirit of the "antichrists?"
The way we guard ourselves against the spirit of the antichrists is by going to the people who have already experienced it. We guard ourselves in the same way John told his readers to guard themselves, and the way John tells them is by reminding them of their "anointing."

John says in 1st John 2:20-21 “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.” He is not talking to people who don’t know the truth but to those who do. He also tells them in 1st John 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.”

John says that this "anointing” is from the Holy One in 1st John 2:20. It was this anointing that enabled them to know "about all things." It also enabled them so that they "didn’t need anyone to teach them," according to 1st John 2:27. It may be that John is talking about the "gifts of the Spirit" which in New Testament times served to provide both Revelation and Confirmation of the truth for the early church. These gifts of the Spirit were given by the laying on of the apostle’s hands. The early church in this case could then identify the "antichrists" without John's help. Despite having this "anointing", they still needed to be encouraged to continue in what they had learned.

Today the earnest of the Holy Spirit is given to all believers in Christ following their repentance and baptism into Christ. It is clear from the last clause where the neuter pronoun and past tense are used that John is referring to the written records of the gospel. It was that which they had been taught; and it was that which was abiding in them, there being no difference whatever in the word of God dwelling in Christians and the Holy Spirit dwelling in them.

John in 1st John 2:24-25 says, “Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that He has promised us eternal life.” Just because they had "gifts of the Spirit," this did not keep them from sinning or being misled. Think of Simon the sorcerer. The same applies to Christians today. John reminds them of that fact in 1st John 2:26 paraphrasing: “I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.”

It was only by paying attention to that which they had heard from the beginning that they would be able to continue to “abide in the Son and in the Father”, and receive the promise of eternal life!

We as Christians today don't have the "anointing" like John's readers did although some religious groups do claim this. If that were the case though, then we wouldn’t need the Scriptures, according to what we have read in 1st John 2:20+27, only the self-deceived would make such a claim.

Folks, we have something just as good! We have the Word of God, which is the "sword of the Spirit." Remember Ephesians 6:17 “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;” In Jude 3 we read “ Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.” That is what we have. We have "the faith once delivered to the saints."

In other words, we have something which we use as the standard by which we can know the truth. It is because of that truth we find in the Bible, we can avoid being misled by subjective feelings that can be mistaken for some sort of prompting of the Spirit.

Within the Scriptures, we have all we need to enable us to know God's will. 2nd Timothy 3:16-17 “16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17. That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”

But just like John's readers, we need to be encouraged to continue in what we have learned from the Spirit-given Word. Just because we have the Word of God does not ensure that we will not be misled by others.

That’s why unless we study and apply the Word, we are open to deceptions by modern-day "antichrists"! As John urged his readers almost 2000 years ago, so we must today, take the same advice he gave in 1st John 4:1. paraphrasing: “Test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

CONCLUSION:
Let me finish by saying this, "antichrists" are a very real problem for us today. While there may not be many professing Christians who deny Jesus is the Christ, or that He came in the flesh, there are many who reject the authority of the apostles by how they disregard the Scriptures!

It is hard in our time and culture to realize how pervasive the spirit of the antichrist is and even harder to vocalize, even to ourselves, where we see it. Tolerance is not always a virtue and tolerance not guided by God’s word is an enemy. It can help blind us and the spirit of the antichrist is not always that easy to see. We are reminded of that in 2nd Corinthians 11:13-15 with these words: 13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

The solution then, remains the same for us. 1st John 2:24 “See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.” No matter how wonderful the work done by a person or group, how much seeming good and kindness… if they exhibit what John warns us about then they have the spirit of the antichrist. In this spirit, Christians have no part or fellowship.

People who make all sorts of claims and theories about the antichrist are missing the point of John’s words. They need to remember what John said was the significance of these antichrists—“by which we know it is the last hour." John knew that in God's purpose, Jesus could return at any time! The fact that it has been 2000 years since John penned these words does not detract from their truthfulness. Loved ones we are living, in "the last hour", and Christ may come in judgment at any time! John’s point was not only to be aware of the spirit of the antichrist—but to be ready for Christ’s return.

Are you ready for His coming? Let me leave you with Peter’s words in 2nd Peter 3:8-9 which says: “But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

If you’re not a Christian this morning then let me encourage you to talk to someone about what it means to be ready for Christ’s return. We know from scripture that we must hear the word, believe in Christ, confess our faith in Jesus, repent of our sins, and then be baptized.
For those of the household of faith if you have gone astray I would encourage you to repent of your sins and pray for forgiveness. The grace of God has brought salvation. The question now is where are you relative to that salvation? Whatever your needs we will do what we can to assist you and we encourage you to come while we stand and sing.

Taken from a sermon by Mike Glover

What Am I Looking For - Everything or Nothing

Mark 10:17-31

Have you ever left home and had a funny feeling you have forgotten something? You don’t know what it was, but you just had this nagging feeling. A man said every time his family drove off for a vacation, his mom would say, “Honey, we’ve got to go back home, I think I left the iron turned on. I don’t want the house to burn down.”
His dad would turn around and they would go back and check and the iron would be turned off. This continued for several trips. Finally on one trip, when she told her husband to turn around and go check, he didn’t say a word. He pulled the car over to the shoulder, got out and opened the trunk and handed her the iron.

Our passage today introduces us to a young man searching for something. He’s often called the Rich Young Ruler. Matthew tells us he was a young man;
Luke describes him as a ruler, or what we would call an aristocrat. And Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell us he was rich. He was a man who had two things, EVERYTHING AND NOTHING.
He was wealthy and successful, but he turned away from Jesus with nothing. He was searching for something more in life.
Millions of people are searching for something they really can’t even put their finger on what it is they’re searching for.
In 1987 Bono and the Irish rock group U2 recorded a song about this universal search. Bono sang: “I have run; I have crawled; I have scaled these city walls; Only to be with you. But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.”
He even ends the song referring to Jesus. “You broke the bonds; And you loosed the chains; Carried the cross of my shame; Oh my shame, you know I believe it. But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.”

Two thousand years ago, there was a young, wealthy, successful leader who came to Jesus looking for something.
Mark 10:17-31. As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”
“Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.” Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”
Peter said to him, “We have left everything to follow you!” “I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions)
and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

We don’t know this young man’s name, but since we’re going to be talking about him, let’s give him the name Richie. Richie did so many things right.
He came at the right time.
He was young.
He came to the right person, Jesus.
He came with the right energy—he was running.
He came with the right attitude, he knelt before Jesus.
He came with the right question: How can I have eternal life?

What a contrast! Richie came running, smiling, full of hope, but he walked away full of sorrow, dragging his feet with his only hope in his wealth. As we examine this amazing encounter, let’s look at five observations and five life lessons.

1. A STRANGE CONVERSATION: “Keep the commandments!”
So, what’s wrong with this picture? Why would Jesus tell someone to keep the commandments to find eternal life?
Every Jew knew the Ten Commandments by heart. They knew them as well as any of us could count from one to ten.
The Ten Commandments were divided into two sections, or two tables. The first four commandments have to do with a relationship with God.
We should have no other Gods,
we shouldn’t make and worship idols,
we should never take God’s name in vain,
and we should remember the Sabbath Day.

The second table contained six commandments about how we relate to one another. This is the table that Jesus quoted.
But he intentionally omitted one of the Ten Commandments.
You might not have caught it, because you may not have them all memorized. What if I said I am going to count to ten and I say, “One, two, four, five, six...?”
You’re going to say, “Hey, you skipped the number three.”
Jesus left out one; did anyone catch which one He omitted?
Let’s go through them. He didn’t give them in order, but let’s check them off. He said, “Do not murder.” Check.
“Don’t commit adultery.” Check. “Don’t steal.” Check.
“Don’t bear false witness or defraud” Check.
“Honor your Father and your Mother.” Check.
So, Which one did Jesus leave off intentionally? “Do not covet.”

That means a desire to have more and more stuff. Jesus knew this was Richie’s problem.
Richie smiled and said, “I have kept all these since I was a boy!” Jesus said, “There’s one thing you lack.” You see, this Richie already had a “god” in his life. His god was gold and his creed was greed. And there is only room for one God on the throne of your life.

LIFE LESSON: Jesus will probe your heart to expose any competing gods
Jesus wanted to point out that Richie had a problem with greed and covetousness, but He didn’t just come out and say it. He kept probing until Richie saw the problem himself.

Many of us have probably heard of someone who went to the doctor not knowing they had an appendicitis. They complained of hurting all over their torso. The doctor had them lie down and then started probing. When the doctor gently touched the area of the appendix, I am sure they almost flew off the table.
That’s what Jesus does for us. He keeps probing to show us where we have other gods in our lives.
The Holy Spirit is working on you right now, gently probing.
What is that thing, or that person, or that activity that has become more important to you than the true and living God?

2. SHOCKING ADVICE: “Sell all you have and give it to the poor, and follow me”
Jesus said there was only one thing Richie was lacking. This one verse has caused more confusion and dismay that perhaps any verse in the Bible.
Multitudes read it and thought, “I want to obey God. So, should I go and sell everything I have, give it to the poor, and follow Jesus?”

Here’s the short answer. You don’t need to sell all your riches unless your riches have become the god of your life. Richie is the only person to whom Jesus ever spoke those words.
Nicodemus was wealthy. Joseph of Arimathea was wealthy, but Jesus never told them to sell all their possessions because Jesus knew their possessions didn’t possess them.

LIFE LESSON: Jesus provides a personal solution to remove any competing gods
Jesus looked into Richie’s heart and saw that money was his god. And Richie wanted more and more; that’s what it means to covet. So, Jesus was simply giving Richie a solution to get rid of that false God.

And notice Jesus said, “You aren’t losing your treasure, by giving it to the poor, you are laying up treasures in heaven. You’re just t ransferring your wealth.”

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus warned there is only room for one God in our lives. He said in Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
Jesus designs a different solution for each person. In Luke 10 a lawyer came to Jesus asking the same thing, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus didn’t say, “Sell all you have and give to the poor,” because He knew this man’s problem was pride.

Jesus asked him what the greatest commandments were. The lawyer said, “Love the Lord your God with all your being and love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus said, “That’s correct.” The lawyer was looking for a loophole. He said, “But who is my neighbor?”
He wanted Jesus to say, “All your Jewish brothers and sisters.”
But instead Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan, a half-breed. Jesus saw this man’s god was pride, so he said, “Love your neighbor, even your Gentile neighbors.”

In John 4 Jesus was talking to a Samaritan woman at a well. She asked for some living water.
Jesus didn’t say, “Go sell all you have and give to the poor.”
He didn’t say, “Love your neighbor.”
That was her problem, she was loving too many of her neighbors!

He said, “Go call your husband.” She said, “Well, I don’t have a husband.” Jesus said, “That is correct. You’ve had five husbands and the one you’re living with now isn’t your husband.”
Jesus was pointing out that she already had a god in her life, the unhealthy desire for acceptance by a man.

If you have a competing god ruling your life, Jesus will give you a unique word to replace that god with the true and Living God.

3. THE PERSONAL CHOICE: “The young rich ruler went away sad, because he had great wealth”
Mark is the only one who gives us the tiny detail that Jesus looked at the young man and loved him. We know that God loves the world. We know that Jesus loves everyone.
But don’t forget that Jesus loves individuals. He looks at you and loves you. He looks at me and loves me. Jesus really did want Richie to make the right choice.

There’s a painting by the German artist Heinrich Hoffman. In this frozen scene, Hoffman captured the divine drama of the moment. The Rich Young Ruler is seen wearing his fancy clothes and hat. Jesus is inviting him to give his money to the poor people in the background and then to follow Him. The Rich Young Ruler looks down as he ponders the most important decision he would ever make.
Give away all his money and follow Jesus? But he has so much! And in that moment he sadly shakes his head and says, “No.
The price is too high.” And he walked away.

Not all stories end, “and they lived happily ever after.” He was a man with only two things: EVERYTHING & NOTHING.

LIFE LESSON: Jesus offers eternal life, but He won’t force you to follow Him
Someone wrote, “The saddest words of tongue or pen, are these four words, ‘What might have been.’”
God is omnipotent. He is all-powerful. But there is one area of the universe where He has voluntarily restricted His omnipotence; it’s in the area of your will. God won’t FORCE you to accept his gift of eternal life.

4. THE CAMEL JOKE: “A camel could squeeze through a needle’s eye easier than a rich person could get into heaven”
Have you heard the one about the camel? Stop me if you’ve heard it. Jesus employed overemphasis and humor to teach a powerful point.
Jewish humor was based upon impossible, ridiculous images. Jesus used the largest animal in Israel, a camel, and the smallest manmade opening and talked about the impossibility
of trying to get a camel through that.
Jesus was partial to camel jokes.
In Matthew 23 He used a pun to describe the Pharisees. He said, “You guys strain out a gnat and swallow a camel.”

It’s like the cross-eyed schoolteacher who got fired because she couldn’t keep her pupils straight.

So what was the point of the camel joke? Jesus was pointing out that it is extremely difficult for wealthy people to enter God’s kingdom… and one of the biggest reasons is because people with wealth tend to trust their own wealth MORE than they trust God.

The point Jesus is making is that it is impossible for anyone to gain salvation through his or her own merit. Richie trusted his wealth. What are you trusting today? Is there a competing God in your life?

We all must come to Jesus the same way. Bill Gates needs to come to Jesus the same way a dirty homeless man would come to Jesus. He would have to acknowledge his complete and utter need and come as a guilty sinner and receive the gift of life from Jesus.
It doesn’t matter who you are. You can be a rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief; doctor, lawyer, Native American tribal leader. There’s only one way—and that’s Jesus. That leads us to our final observation:

5. THE GOOD NEWS: “All things are possible with God”
The disciples were under the impression that rich people were blessed by God, so after they heard the camel joke they turned to Jesus in amazement. They asked, “Who then can be saved?” Jesus answered with a profound truth: With men it is impossible [salvation]; but all things are possible with God.”
God specializes in miracles. When Moses had the RED SEA in front of him and an army chasing him, he faced an impossible situation, but God specializes in the impossible—and He made a twelve-lane expressway in the middle of the SEA.

When little David faced a nine-foot monster with only a slingshot, victory was impossible by human standards. But the God of the impossible directed the stone to strike Goliath right between the eyes, then David used Goliath’s own sword to decapitate his fallen foe. He showed everyone who witnessed this event that he was someone who knew how to get a-head!

When Gabriel visited a teen girl named Mary he announced she would give birth to a son who would be the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Mary said, “How can this be, since I’m a virgin?”
Gabriel said Luke 1:37, “Nothing is impossible for God.”
It’s impossible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, but it’s a miracle when God takes a person through the door of salvation.

LIFE LESSON: Eternal life can’t be earned or bought; it’s a gift from God
Richie walked away singing that U2 chorus, “But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for.”
Have we found what we are looking for in our current life?

The Bible says in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life IN Christ Jesus our Lord.”

CONCLUSION
Someone was once asked “Have you ever asked God for forgiveness?”
That individual relied, “I’m not sure I have. I just go on and try do a better job the next time.
If I do something wrong, I just try to make it right. I don’t bring God into the picture.”

It’s not about bringing God into the picture; He is the picture.
He’s the artist of the picture that is life and the universe. And there is only one way you can approach God and that is with humility and the admission that you are lost without His forgiveness.

Hypothetically, there are three ways to get to heaven.
Notice I said, “Hypothetically.”
Number 1, you can die before you reach the age of accountability.

Two, you can live a perfect life: Never once commit a sin of thought, attitude, or action. Anybody qualify?

Or Third, you can fall on your knees and ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and to make you a new person through baptism.

Richie had so much, but he ended up with nothing but the god of wealth in his life.

Many may think they have everything they want or need. But if they don’t have Jesus, they don’t have anything.
Jesus is looking at us today and is extending His love to each and everyone of us.

He looks into our heart and says, “Get rid of all those idols, and follow me. I can give you a life that is really worth living.” Will you trust Him?