Chardon church of Christ

Buried Treasure

Buried Treasure
Matthew 13:44

Several decades ago, there was something called the "Iron Curtain." It was an imaginary border between the Communist Soviet Union and the rest of the "Free World." It was an iron curtain in the respect that those on the Soviet side had extreme difficulty passing from their region into the Free World. Communism was a vicious and powerful force in the lives controlled by it.

Back in 1955, a farmer in Romania (behind the Iron Curtain) had a problem. Communism had become so demanding that his personal Tractor would soon be taken away from him. What was he to do? Well, he took it apart, packed it in tar-coated cardboard, and buried it in his backyard.

Thirty-five years later (in 1990), the laws changed and he dug it up and put it back together again.

People have been burying their treasures for centuries. Now, granted, burying a tractor in your backyard is a bit unusual, but if something is precious to you… you do what you gotta do!

Back in Bible times, lots of people buried precious things in their backyards. Palestine was a land bridge between Egypt and the great empires of the north and the armies of those nations would often sweep through Israel - rampaging, robbing and pillaging everything in their path.

And, of course common thieves could be a problem too. And because there were no banks - people would bury their treasures in the ground, in walls, in tree trunks, or wherever they could.
Finding those buried treasures again… well… that could be difficult.

There was the occasional earthquake. And sometimes the owners would have to leave home in a hurry and never come back. Or the owners might be captured by invading armies, or die suddenly for any number of reasons. As a result, family treasures could be buried and forgotten for centuries.

A missionary in Palestine told of a few workmen who were digging up a garden, and these workmen found several copper pots of gold which they stole and hid someplace else. But they just couldn’t keep their mouths shut and the governor of the city caught them. Two of the pots containing 8000 pure gold coins were recovered.
That missionary said he’d seen hundreds of persons - all over the country - spending their last penny looking for buried treasure.

So (as you can imagine), many of those in Jesus’ crowd either knew of someone who’d found buried treasure, or maybe THEY had.
That (of course) brings us to our text today.

Matt. 13:44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Since he buys the field now the treasure belongs to him (otherwise it would have been stealing).
A TREASURE? When you think of treasure, you think jewels, or precious stones… you think money. And what’s interesting is that Jesus talked a lot about money and possessions.

It has been said that 15% percent of everything Jesus said related to money and possessions. He spoke about money and possessions more than heaven and hell combined.

It is also noted that nearly half of Jesus’ parables 16 out of 38 dealt with money. Now… that’s a lot. Why would Jesus put such an emphasis on money and possessions?
Well, there’s a couple reasons I can think of. The first is that we need money. We need money to pay bills and supply for your family. That’s kind of obvious. But “there’s also a fundamental connection between our spiritual lives and how we think about and handle money.”

Just as an illustration, all you need to do is look back at John the Baptist’s ministry in Luke 3:10-11 tells us . 10 So the people asked him, saying, “What shall we do then?”
11 He answered and said to them, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.”
John’s answer to the crowds (about what they could do to please God) was that everyone should share their food and clothing with the poor, because the spiritual thing was to use their possessions to help people.

We continue reading in Luke 3:12-13.
12 Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”
13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than what is appointed for you.”
In other words: Don’t take money that doesn’t belong to you even if you can get away with it. The spiritual thing in business is not to cheat folks.

Then the Soldiers also asked him in verse 14, 14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?”  So he said to them, “Do not [a]intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.”
The spiritual thing to do at the job is not to complain about how much you’re paid, or to steal from people who trust you.

You see, each of these commands (John the Baptist gave) had to do with how people handled possessions and money.  And here’s the point: How you handle your money and your possessions, and how you treat people with your money is a barometer of how close you are to God and how much you trust HIM.

So now here Jesus in telling a parable about a man who found treasure in a field. WHAT TREASURE?
What’s in the treasure chest?
Well, we KNOW that it has to be pretty valuable because the man was willing to sell everything he had to buy the field so that he could take possession of what had been hidden there.

Let me repeat… the man “goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
So, what IS this treasure?
Well, Jesus tells us there are basically two kinds of treasure that people would be willing to give everything they have to attain.

The first is – treasures on earth.
Matthew 6:19 “Do not store up for yourselves TREASURES ON EARTH, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.”
This is the stuff in your bank account, your IRA, your Money Market accounts, etc.
Now, we need to be clear that there’s nothing wrong with having money in the bank.

Lots of bible characters were rich and God did not condemn for that! And… if you’re going to be responsible you should put money in savings to take care of emergencies.
But the question is NOT do you have money?
The question is – does the money have you?
Is the money that you have your “TREASURE?”
Jesus tells the parable of a rich man in Luke 12:16-20:
16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

You see, the problem with that rich man was – his money was his treasure. He had stored up EARTHLY TREASURE and his first thought was about his possessions and what they could buy him. His possessions made it so that he had ample goods for many years to eat, drink and be merry, and he could give no thought to tomorrow.

But you know what he really didn’t give any thought to? He gave no thought at all to God. Jesus ended that parable with these words we find in verse 21:
“So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

You see, that rich man’s money had him… but God didn’t.

So Jesus talked about EARTHLY TREASURE and then He compared that earthly treasure with HEAVENLY TREASURE.

Matthew 6:20 “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

What does that mean?
How can I store up my treasure in heaven?
It means that I should bank my treasure in heaven.
I should give my money to God. My money should belong to God. All of “my” money should be His!

When someone asks to be baptized, a longtime minister of the church of Christ says that he goes through the basics:
Do they believe?
Have they repented.
Are they ready to confess Jesus as the Son of God.

When he gets to the “Confess” part he pulls out his wallet and explains that, in the days of Jesus, when you called someone your Lord, that person owned you.
You were the slave, he was the master.
Everything you owned was his.

 

Then he opens his wallet and says that “when he became a Christian, whatever money he had in his wallet, In his savings accounts and in his sock drawer belonged to God.

The minister continues explaining that everything he has including his car, his house and the shirt on his back belongs to God.

He strongly emphasizes the following points:
I own NOTHING. It all belongs to God.
Thus, when I spend money… whose money am I spending?
God’s, right?
That’s what it means to turn your life over to God.

It means turning all your money and possessions over to Him.
He doesn’t really need our money or possessions, but whenever we use them, we are using something that belongs to God.”

There was a meme on FB a few weeks ago.
IT SHOWS 2 DOORS.

The Blue Door has this statement beside it:
“You go back in time and fix all your mistakes.”

And the Red Door simply says:
$10 million in cash.

Choose a door to open.

It’s a mental exercise… and so I played the game.
I chose the RED door = $10 million!

But now, what would I do with $10 million?

Well… I’m probably going to have to pay taxes on it (that’s gonna whittle it down a bit).
Then I’m gonna give God His 10%... of the $10 million.
That’s $1 million to the church, and they can use that for evangelism, mission support, and more help for the poor in the community.

Then I’m going to pay off some bills and maybe get a newer car… and I’d give some to my daughters and grandkids.
Oh, and of course I would need to buy my mom stuff that would be compatible for a 93 year old. 😊

That’s still going to leave me a pretty hefty nest-egg.
What am I going to do with that money?
BUT, WAIT … Remember… this is God’s money.
So, what do you think I should do?

Well, use your imagination! (I’m not gonna to fill in gaps for you).
But now REMEMBER, that $10 million is ONLY IMAGINARY –
it doesn’t exist!

But think about this cute little poem I read years ago:

 

“It’s not what you’d do with a million
if a million were your lot.
It’s what you are doing at present
with the dollar and a quarter you’ve got.”

How are YOU using God’s money you’ve got in your wallet,
your bank account, your IRA… etc.?

What about your example AND influence!
Matthew 5:13-16
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
But wait… what was the treasure the man found in the field?
Well, Jesus actually tells us:
“The KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up.
Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” Matthew 13:44

The Kingdom of Heaven?
What’s the Kingdom of Heaven?
Well… the Kingdom of heaven is salvation;
it’s the promise of forgiveness;
it’s the promise of eternity in heaven itself.
And heaven is just on “the other side.”
What would you give to get to the other side
TO GET TO HEAVEN?

I’ve read that,
if you were sitting in your car at the toll booth of the Golden Gate Bridge,
and there were motorists lining up behind you,
but you didn’t have any money to pay the toll.

Well, if you wish, you can pay with an object (other than cash)
as long as the value of that object exceeds the price of the toll.
And drivers have left all kinds of items:
motor oil,
a frying pan,
a set of silverware,
cassettes and CDs.
One elderly gentleman left his dentures…
and then returned the next day to redeem them.

Another driver left a diamond wristwatch valued at more than $5000…
and never returned to claim it.

What would you give to get to the other side?

What’s interesting is that Jesus tells us the PRICE to get to the other side.
He tells us about a treasure buried in field,
and the only way to get that treasure…
is to buy that field.

And the only way to but that field is to sell everything that you have.
It will cost you everything to get into heaven.

But what do you have that God would want?
He owns the cattle on a thousand hills…
so He doesn’t need your money.

In fact, He owns the all the hills and the valleys… so He doesn’t need your possessions.
So what do you have that he’d want?
What He wants is YOU!
He wants ALL of you.
Why?
Because you are so precious to Him that He gave His only begotten Son…
JOHN 3:16 16 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.

I found it interesting last night that after Glenville High School won their 1st Football State Championship head coach Ted Ginn Sr. ended his post-game interview with this quote:
“If God isn’t in it
Then you can’t win it!

INVITATION

 

 

Sermon Contributor: Jeff Strite

Give Me That Old Time Religion

Give Me That Old Time Religion
Jeremiah 6:16

INTRO: Good morning church.

Working on our Face Book page I noticed our page is listed as a “Religious Organization”. Then I recalled a song I’m sure many of you have heard over the years; “Give me that old time religion.” No worries, I'm not going to sing it, but I did think it might be interesting to take a look at “Old Time Religion”. I suspect most of us understand that the expression relates to religion as it was practiced in times past.

Did you know that a religion may be old, yet not old enough? Is the religion practiced say 100 years ago, “old time religion”? In some ways of course it is. We rarely ever hear of tent meetings anymore or see Bible scenes painted on bed sheets. They used to do it that way, but is that what we mean?

That's probably maybe 100-200 years or so ago, but not old enough. A religion can also be too old. Remember Nebuchadnezzar's image? If that's your idea of “old time religion”, you've gone too far back. You've passed the most important thing, and that's the cross of Christ.

I. God made this statement in Jeremiah 6:16 – “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls. But they said, `We will not walk in it”. In this text, the ancient ways were the ways of faith, devotion, and honor of the One True God of Israel, as revealed and certified unto the people in the Pentateuch. In our own times the "good way" is the way of the Gospel of Christ.

A. Some religions are too old to be New Testament Christianity. We also want to think about what the Lord has taught us. Each one of us should be vitally concerned about the “old time religion” that pleases God. That's the one we're talking about today.
B. I know that some people are turned off by the word old. They don't like it. We don't even like to think of ourselves as old. We think newer is better and want things that are new and improved. Today, no less than in the times of Jeremiah, people are vainly searching for "something new" in religion. "Give us anything except the way our fathers did it!" is their motto. In that we are like the Athenian idolaters who had no better thing to do than to listen to or to tell some new thing. Acts 17:21. “For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.” We see their counterparts today.
C. Others are turned off by the very word religion. They think religion is something evil, perhaps because some have practiced false religion and done evil in the name of that false religion.

1. The word religion is a neutral word and by itself it's neither good nor bad. It depends on the religion that you're talking about.
2. James talks about pure religion. In James 1:26 he writes, “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless.” Some religion is vain, but not all of it is. James 1:27 – “Pure religion (not vain, but pure) and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.”
3. Religion is human beings’ relation to that which they regard as holy, sacred, absolute, spiritual, divine, or worthy of especial reverence. It's the thing that you're most devoted to. For example to some, money is a religion.

D. We should understand that the “old time religion” that pleases God is a matter of divine tradition and not human tradition, and it's clearly outlined in God's Word. When we say “give me that old time religion”, we're talking about the “old time religion” that originated in the mind of God. That's what we will look at this morning. Paul informs us that this religion is such that man could not have discovered it on his own, through his own physical senses.

II. It had to be revealed. In First Corinthians 2:9 “But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.''” These words are usually thought of as suggesting heaven and the glories of the future world; but Paul did not hesitate to apply them to what God has already done for His children.

A. He's talking about the revelation that was hidden but was then made known unto man. Let’s go on to verses 10-13, “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. These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things (concepts) with spiritual words.”[para] It's that revelation that came from God that's being spoken of in those passages. Man could not have known that with his own senses. It had to be revealed.
B. God's ways and thoughts are higher than man's ways and thoughts, even as the heaven is higher than the earth. When we consider that, the Bible says we marvel at God's infinite wisdom and knowledge that has been revealed to man for it is so much higher than ours.

1. Consider that God planned man's redemption when man was still in sin and unlovable by everyone but God, and in rebellion to God. Then we are amazed at God's amazing grace and His amazing mercy toward man.
2. We see that described in the Book of Romans 5:8-9 where the apostle Paul says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.”
3. And John 3:16, which says “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son”. Yes, “give me that old time religion” that originated in the mind and the heart of God. Also give me that “old time religion” that centers in Jesus. He is the central part of the gospel.

C. We learned from Romans 1:1-5 that the gospel originated with God and it centers on Jesus Christ. There we're told that Jesus was born in the lineage of David, and He was declared to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead.

1. In addition to these facts we are informed that the apostles were commissioned to proclaim that message, the good news, to all nations for the obedience of the faith. There's faith and obedience used together. This is the “old time religion” that should interest us. That's the one we want to advocate all of our days.
2. As we consider further, we want to ask for the “old time religion” that was revealed by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit, as we just read, searches all things, yeah, the deep things of God, and that He revealed to the apostles and prophets so we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
3. Some religions stress God the Father, other religions may stress Jesus the Son. Still others put more of their emphasis around the Holy Spirit. We want that “old time religion” from God's word that has all three of them in it. For all three are involved in our salvation and we dare not neglect any of them.

D. Also we want that “old time religion” which is found in the New Testament. The gospel is God's power to save and we're going to be judged by it. Nobody was ever saved without hearing the gospel, even if they testify that they were. Romans 1:16 – “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.” Then in Romans 2:16 – “in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.” The gospel is what saves us, but we're also going to be judged by it. The Bible describes it as a two edged sword, doesn’t it? (Hebrews 4:12) It ought to behoove each one of us to seriously say, give me that “old time religion” that's found in the New Testament.

III. Give me that old time faith. That faith is something we need to consider as well. I’m thinking of the Hymn Faith of Our Fathers. We have learned that the word “faith” is used in different ways. It may be your belief in something or it may be that body of truth. We are to contend for the faith. That means we contend for the word of God.

A. The Bible tells us “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17. We need to return to that old time faith that comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Notice it comes by hearing and not by feeling. A lot of people get that backwards. Peter said “… "Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe.” Acts 15:7.
B. How was faith established in the New Testament? Jesus said, “go and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be condemned.” Hearing is of course implied there. Go preach the gospel and here's the response you're supposed to give. A person hears the gospel and they respond to what they hear… it is taught.

1. What happened when people gladly received the Word? The Bible says, they were baptized, both men and women. Acts 2:41.
2. What happens when people don't gladly receive the word? They argue against baptism. They think of all the reasons why you don't need to be baptized, never mind that the people who gladly received the word were baptized. There’s a big difference in attitude there.
3. In Acts 8:35 the Bible says concerning Philip and the eunuch – “Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.” He opened his mouth, so there was speaking, and there was hearing. We've got to hear the Gospel.
4. In the cases of Lydia and the Philippian jailer and others, faith came as a result of preaching. We read that in Romans 10:14 where the apostle Paul, a preacher of righteousness, said, “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?” There had to be preaching, and there had to be a hearing.

C. If faith were a subjective thing, something that just comes from within by our own experiences, then there could be no unity of the faith, because everybody sees things differently, when apart from the Bible. Paul said, there is one faith, Ephesians 4:5.
D. The only way we can know Jesus is by knowledge of the Bible. Jesus said “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.”

IV. Not only the old time faith, but give me that old time obedience as well. When old time faith is established in the minds of people today, it ought to produce that same old time obedience that it did in the first century. We saw this is our study in Hebrews chapter 11. The Hebrew writer explained it referencing Old Testament examples. By faith, Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. He did it by faith. He heard what God said.

A. You can't do anything by faith without hearing, because faith comes by hearing. God had said something. We're not told what it was, but God had said something, or else Abel could not have offered it by faith. There's a necessary inference that we have to draw there that God spoke and Abel offered by faith, and Cain did not. One obeyed whatever it was that God said, the other one didn't.

1. By faith Noah, warned by God of things not yet seen was moved with fear, and prepared an ark. Again notice, he did something by faith once he heard what God said.
2. By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac. Hebrews 11:17. He did it by faith because God told him what to do. James 2:21 “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?” All acts of conversion that are given in detail, each one of them, climaxed with the act of obedience, produced by faith, which came by hearing.
3. Numerous times we're told to be baptized to be saved, but not by baptism alone. Baptism is the culminating act that is preceded by genuine faith, and real repentance, and a godly confession, and then followed by the obedience of baptism to the Lord's command.
4. Not once in all of those cases where baptism is connected to remission of sins and salvation, not once did anybody ever argue that baptism is not essential to salvation—not once. We do not see anywhere in the Bible where anybody argued that it wasn't essential. There was a difference in attitude of people then and of people now toward the Word.

B. Failure to obey reflects a lack of faith. It's a lack of faith when people argue that obedience is unnecessary. Their problem is not really with baptism is it? It's with faith and their lack of it. They simply don't believe what the Lord said. They don't trust Him.

1. As we try to talk to people about God’s Word we find people that argue there's nothing to do, and they ridicule the idea of what we need to do. Yet the Bible says, “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” Revelation 22:14.
2. It is always sad when we see people balk today. We don't see that so much in biblical times when people heard the gospel. Sad because we know “… in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Second Thessalonians 1:8.

V. Give me that old time righteousness. It doesn't end with obedience to the plan of salvation. We need to emphasize the righteousness that God reveals. “The conclusion of the whole matter is to fear God and keep His commandments.” Solomon said it plainly and it is still true.

A. That's taught in the New Testament as well. Ephesians 4 tells us of the new man in verse 24, “… that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness. Therefore, putting away lying, each one speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.”

1. Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy meditate on these things.”
2. Righteousness is involved. First Thessalonians 5:22 – “abstain from every form of evil”

B. It makes a difference how we live. There is one book in the Bible that is primarily telling us how to become Christians, and that's the Book of Acts. There are 21 books after that telling us how to live as Christians. It makes a difference how you live after you become a Christian. Otherwise we have just gone through the motions. We need to obey the gospel in view of living a certain way after our obedience. If nothing changes after our conversion, was it really conversion?
C. The popular attitude today seems to be, give me that Showtime religion. There are a lot of people that want that, and there are churches willing to offer it. Various churches are dismantling their pulpits and replacing them with a stage. New churches are starting up that way too. It's happening all over.

1. Today it's about performance and entertainment with religious flavoring thrown in. I suppose the religious flavoring is to salve the conscience or perhaps to give an operational advantage. Newspapers in many places contain advertisements, telling what is going on in some churches. There's a certain musical group that is going to be performing at a certain church here in town. They're not shy about using the word performance. It is a performance. It's entertainment. It ought to embarrass them, but they've lost their ability to blush.
2. I recently came across something called “101 ideas for better worship services”. I will only relate a few of these.

1. Schedule some unusual instrument for the special item--a harmonica, saw, musical bottles, etc. Have the performer tell how he or she happened to learn that instrument.
2. Have an entire family provide the musical item.
3. Try an "illustrated song." An artist can do a chalk drawing or sketch while the song is sung. Or slides can be shown on a screen.
4. Have a group of singers lead a rousing praise service, providing an item or two themselves.
5. Introduce the service with a brass fanfare. It really captures the attention.

D. Will they ever wake up? That’s not what it is all about. Will they ever see where their congregation is going? A lot of people have blinders on, they don't see it, and they'll go wherever it goes. The element of traditional worship and edification in song simply doesn't have a very high entertainment value today.

1. Ponder this, what is the church, the bride of Christ, here for? The church is not here to entertain… but to redeem. While worshippers may indirectly receive enjoyment from traditional worship, these services are largely designed to teach worshippers Bible truths through edification, training and offering homage unto God. I fear we have today a Showtime Religion.
2. Jesus said, “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.''” What does that imply? It implies that there are false worshippers. You wouldn't talk about true worshippers if there wasn't such a thing as false worship.
3. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must… not may, not can, but must… worship Him in spirit and in truth.

VI. Today we see mega churches, and there are quite a few of them across the country. How so? Look at how the Willow Creek Community Church got as big as they did—to 23,000 attendees in the 80’s and 90’s giving a blueprint for how to do a mega church. Prior to the founding of the church, Bill Hybels and his associates spent months surveying the neighborhoods around South Barrington, Ill, discovering what people liked and didn’t like about church, music, worship styles, and traditional religion. The result of their survey was a guide for what Willow Creek was going to look like. The plan worked, bringing in thousands of new attendees each week.

A. That's the formula for success, if you're thinking about worldly success. What the Lord wants was not a priority in those surveys. They did not believe they needed Bible authority for anything.
B. When folks want Showtime Religion, they're worshiping themselves and doing what pleases them. Along with that is the cry for what we sometimes call “feel good religion” featuring all sorts of activities trying to draw people in.

1. God only gave us one thing to draw people in, and that is Jesus. He said, “and if I be lifted up will draw all men unto myself”. He was talking about His death and about His manner of death. He was lifted up on the cross. That's the only thing the Lord gave us. Some people only see ugliness when they see the cross. When we sing the hymn The Old Rugged Cross, we see the beauty.
2. Because of that, we proclaim it still today. We're fighting a battle and the next generation is going to have a battle to fight as well. It's already underway. Whether we hold to the old paths, whether we teach the “old time religion” that's sought in the Bible, or whether we follow these new ideas that are unscriptural.

C. Why is the achievement of fun and good feelings a primary goal of modern worshippers? I suggest that one reason is we have not been taught what it really means to worship God. Secondly, I suspect, is that a lot of people today are addicted to entertainment.

1. Entertainment produces emotional stimulation. It's not fully our fault. I'm not saying it is. We just happen to have been born and reared in a society that is over stimulated through constant exposure to entertainment. American TV is devoted entirely to supplying its audience with entertainment. In many cases, it doesn't appeal to the intellect, but it's aimed largely at emotional stimulation. America is not alone in this of course.
2. Boredom with traditional worship becomes a spiritual problem, one that is formed by the modern worshipers’ passionate quest for entertainment. If we're going to give people what they want, we've got to turn worship into entertainment, and the work of the church then becomes entertainment. We end up worshiping ourselves.
3. Instead of viewing worship primarily as an occasion to give honor and glory and praise to God, the modern worshiper tends to view worship largely as an occasion to get something for them selves. It is difficult to get anyone to attend a meeting if the only attraction there is God. One can only conclude then, that God's professed children are bored with Him, for they must be wooed to an assembly with a piece of candy in the form of religious movies, games and refreshments.

D. Preachers point to attendance and say, but we're winning them. Winning them to what? To true discipleship? To cross carrying? To self denial? To separation from the world? To holy living? To nobility of character, to loving one another? To a love for God, to total commitment to Christ? Of course, the answer to all of these is no.

1. Modern churches are constructed like theaters. Instead of a pulpit, the focus is on a stage. They are hiring full time media specialists, programming consultants, stage directors, drama coaches, special effects experts and choreographers.
2. I suppose the next title to appear will be Ministry of Programming.

E. And we're confronted today by the health and wealth Gospel, sometimes called the Prosperity Gospel. It's what we see on Primetime. Some people's attitude is, give me that “prime time religion”. This is a gospel which promises to its adherence, health and wealth, and is another gospel than that which was preached by Christ and the apostle. They preach today what they call Christianity, which promises the sick that they will be miraculously healed and the poor that they will be miraculously made rich. They promise that Christians will be the envy of the world because of the riches of God's temporal blessings on His children.

1. Where do they get that message? Certainly not from the Bible. The implication is that accepting their gospel will bring no suffering, no persecution.
2. In contrast, Jesus promised adversity to His saints. He said, “"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. "But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. "And you will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. "Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. "And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.”
3. Christ promised daily blessings, but He didn't promise material wealth or perfect health. He said, seek ye first the kingdom of God and these things shall be added unto you. He will take care of us. He will give us enough.

VII. Churches should rethink adopting this contemporary plan that we hear about today because;

A. Number one, it reinforces the modern worshippers’ man-centered, self-serving view of worship. True worship is in its very essence God centered and not man centered.

1. It means that worship must primarily be to God about God and for God, and even when teaching and admonishing one another, it is bringing glory to God in its purpose.
2. This will happen only when a person looks beyond their own personal taste and interest and focuses on God and His holiness and His power and wisdom. Unfortunately, as long as churches continue to emphasize a personal payoff, then they'll be unable to worship God.
3. A lot of churches have abandoned doctrine. They want to keep it light—nothing controversial from the world’s point of view. They want everybody to go home happy… We want people to go home happy too, but going home happy because they're following the Lord, not because they followed a plan that originated in the mind of man.

B. Number two, the contemporary plan tends to diminish the sense of awe and reverence that should be present in an encounter with God. Those who choose to come into His presence must do so with reverence and awe and godly fear. We must not enter the presence of God casually. We conduct ourselves as those who are fit for the gospel. The worship itself is our holy ground.
C. Satan made the argument that man has to be bribed to worship. Job proved him wrong. The contemporary plan generally reflects a lack of confidence in the power of the gospel. If a church believes, the contemporary plan is the only way, the church has clearly lost confidence in the power of the gospel itself. That belief is not simply unbiblical; it is anti biblical.

 

CONCLUSION:
We need to continue to preach that same message that was given to us. I hope you'll go back to the Bible for the plan of salvation and look and see what people did when that first gospel sermon was preached on the day Pentecost, when they said, men and brethren, what shall we do?

Peter didn't say, there's nothing to do. He told them something to do; to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins in the name of Jesus Christ and they would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Those who gladly received his word did so.
______________________________________________________________________________

I hope you'll be among those people who gladly received the word, and you'll become a New Testament Christian like they did. Then you can truly say you have that “old time religion” that we need and find in the Bible.

If you're subject to our Lord's invitation today, will you please come as we stand and sing the song that's been selected for your encouragement?

# ???
Reference Sermon by: Richard Blackford

The Room Of Death

THE ROOM OF DEATH
Hebrews 2:14 – 15

In the early 1900s there was a famous psychiatrist by the name of Dr. Carl Jung. He developed an intriguing test that psychiatrists/Psychologists will sometimes use to help their patients deal with a specific fear everyone seems to have.
They tell their patients to imagine being in a white room, filled with white furniture. The walls are white, your clothes are white… EVERYTHING is WHITE.
Then (after a few moments) the patient is asked to describe how they feel about being in that room. What emotions did they experience being in that totally white room?
And therapists found that many of their patients would speak of feelings of anxiety, fear… even terror. Then the psychologist explains that the white room represented death. And how the patient felt about that room revealed what they thought about dying.

There have been numerous studies over the years asking what people fear, and one of the most prominent fears that folks have IS this fear of DEATH.
One Philosopher said “No man dares to face death … without fear.”
Sigmund Freud said: “Finally there is the painful riddle of death, for which no remedy at all has yet been found, nor probably will ever be!”

An ancient Chinese philosopher explained it this way: “The birth of a man is the birth of his sorrow. The longer he lives, the more his anxiety to avoid unavoidable death. What bitterness! He lives for what is always out of reach!
His thirst for survival in the future makes him incapable of living in the present.”

Our text today tells us that Jesus came to help us to deal with that fear. Hebrews 2:14-15 tell us 14 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Or as another version states
14 Since then the children are sharers in [a]flesh and blood, he also himself in like manner partook of the same; that through death he [b]might bring to nought him that [c]had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 and [d]might deliver all them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
Jesus came to free us from that bondage. To free us from the fear of death.
Now, that doesn’t mean that people haven’t tried coping with that fear without Jesus. Many people have tried to deal with their fear of death… by simply ignoring it. There’s some old sayings concerning death:
 “Every man knows that he must die, but no one believes it.”

 “Death leaves a heartache that no one can heal, Love leaves a memory that no one can steal.”
 “Do not resent growing old, many are denied the privilege.”
 “Live your own life for you will die your own death.
 “In the path of righteousness is life, and in its pathway, there is no death.” —Proverbs 12:28
 “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” —Romans 14:8
 “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” —Psalm 73:26
. And there’s lots of folks who tend to ignore any discussion of death. They don’t want to talk about it!

Another approach to deal with the fear of death is to try to POSTPONE death itself. Believe it or not, there was a fad that was very popular about 8 years ago in the Silicon Valley of California. It seems that many of the rich people from Silicon Valley were buying the bags of blood plasma to inject in their veins. And not just any old blood plasma… this blood came from young people (ages 18 to 25).
Now why would these very wealthy individuals do that? Well, these were aging businessmen – very RICH BUT older businessmen.
The theory was that the blood of these young people would extend their lives, and so they could live longer as long as they could afford to buy new plasma every once in a while.
According to one of companies selling this product:
The cost for this “young” blood plasma was $8000 per bag.

A Fox commentator named Greg Gutfeld commented on this fad saying: “I have a theory… these ultra-rich billionaires in Silicon Valley got rich really young. So, they’re in their 30s and they’re billionaires… But the one thing they don’t have is immortality.
They have everything else. And it’s on their brain, and they’re like “ I’m a billionaire!” ‘I don’t want to lose all this, and one day I’m going to die.
They hoped to buy eternal life… and avoid death.

Now there’s another approach that sounds a little more reasonable. There’s a clinical therapist from Canada who speaking about the fear of death said this:
“I think the only way you can combat the fear of death is to live fully...” In other words… he believes you can beat the FEAR (not death itself … but the fear) of death by living a productive and fruitful life that you can be proud of.
Now, he’s not the first guy to come up with that. There’s been a lot of people who have lived determined lives who were motivated to beat death in the same way by trying to do things that would live on long after they’d died. But they all seem to come up a little empty. No matter how many good things they may do, it’s still hard to deal with the fear of dying.

A famous philosopher (Jean-Paul Sartre) once said that Death “removes all meaning from life.”
For men like him, death is the end of everything.
It’s like walking into a dungeon and throwing away the key.
It’s like being trapped in a room from which there’s NO escape. And when men like that face the prospect of entering the grave they know they’re not EVER going to get out of there alive.
A mother was taking her 2 young boys to a funeral, and she tried to prepare them for what they’d experience when they got there. She talked to them for a long time about funerals and death and things like that. But later on - when they got to the gravesite - it was obvious that she hadn’t explained things as well as she’d thought.
Her 4 year old leaned over said, “Mom?” “Yes,” she whispered. He paused and then asked “What’s in the box?”
In the book “Children’s Letters to God”, a little boy named Mike wrote, “Dear God. What happens when you die? Nobody will talk to me about it. I don’t want to do it. I just want to know.”
WHAT’S IN THE BOX?
You see, death can be scary, especially for those outside of Christ, because death is the great unknown, and it frightens people.

A minister tells this story of an event that he remembers from his childhood. He states that
“When I was 5 years old, my grandfather died. He was my favorite person in the whole world, and I was his favorite as well. But at 5 years old I didn't understand death. I just knew he was gone and he wasn't coming back. In those days, funerals were different than they are today. For example, the viewing was held in Grandpa’s house. And family and friends would come to the house and pass by his casket in the living room, and then… they’d gather in the kitchen for refreshments. Then later, when we gathered at the cemetery, the grave wasn't covered like it is these days. You could come right up to the grave itself and look right down into the place where the casket was to be lowered. At 5 years old I knew that was where my grandfather’s body was going to be buried. My mother said I spent a great deal of time looking down into that hole. At one point, I looked up at her and I asked a question that only a 5 yr. old would think to ask: “How is grandpa ever going to get out of there?” I didn't understand. I’d never seen anyone die before and it puzzled me.
But as a child, my folks had always taken me to church, and though I didn't know HOW I knew, I knew that grave wasn't gonna hold him. And although I knew that I just couldn't figure out how God would get grandpa out of the grave with all that dirt on top of him.How could I be SURE that grandpa was going to get out of the grave?
And, more than that, how can WE (as Christians” believe so strongly in the idea of being resurrected from the dead?”
Well to answer that question about being resurrected from the dead, we first know that it is promised in the Bible. In the Old Testament (for example) there are several verses that tell us NOT to fear death.
In the book of Job 19:25-27: “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!”
In Hosea 13:14 God promised His people: "I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction! …."
And the 23rd Psalm has these comforting words: “Yea though I walk through the valley of the SHADOW OF DEATH, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” Psalm 23:4

ILLUS: Years ago, I’d be driving my kids down the road and as we approached a bridge they would hold their breath. I asked them why they were doing that, and they said that holding their breath would keep them from dying as they went under the bridge. Now I thought that was “cute” at the time but then… I read about a 19-year-old man who fainted while holding his breath (for the very same reason). He had been driving through a tunnel northwest of Portland, Oregon when he fainted and his car drifted across the center line crashing into a Ford Explorer. Then his car then bounced off the tunnel walls and collided with a pickup. He ended up being cited for reckless driving, 4th-degree assault and 3 counts of reckless endangerment.
WHY? Why had he gotten in that accident? Well, because he believed in a silly superstition.
He was so afraid of the DARKNESS of the tunnel that he felt holding his breath would make him safer! He feared the SHADOW of death!

But we don’t have to be afraid of that shadow because God has promised us that the grave cannot hold us. So, the Old Testament is filled with the belief in a resurrection,
Then, in the New Testament, Jesus adds to these promises. In John 5:24 Jesus said: "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”
In John 6:40 He said; “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."
And, of course, one of the most famous quotes in Scripture is found in John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Now, the question is this: Why would OUR hope of resurrection be tied to believing in Jesus?
And the answer is: we can believe WE will rise from the grave because Jesus DID IT FIRST.
As Revelation 1:5 says: Jesus Christ… (is) the firstborn from the dead…” Now, granted, there had been others raised by the dead in Scripture, but each and every one of them died again. But when Jesus rose from the dead… He never went back. He was the first one who ever CONQUERED death.
Paul said it this way in I Corinthians 15:14-20
“If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is pointless, and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished (they’re not coming back - they have perished – there is no resurrection for them… or for us).
If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But IN FACT Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
THE POINT IS THIS: We don’t have to be afraid. Death has no real power over us. Jesus rose from the dead as the FIRST BORN from the dead… the FIRSTFRUITS of those who’ve fallen asleep.
Romans 6 tells us that when we WERE baptized into Christ “We were buried … with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” Romans 6:4
So, when we’re baptized, God promises us that the grave WON’T hold us. WE WILL RISE FROM THE DEAD!

Conclusion: At the beginning of the sermon, I told you about the “White Room” test that psychiatrists will still sometimes use this test to gauge the fear their patients have of death. When I was at Purdue University, one of my friends tried it on me. He said he’d just learned something in Psych class and wanted to get my opinion of what he’d learned. So, he told all about the white room – the walls, the pictures, the furniture, etc. it was ALL white. He asked me to imagine myself in that room for a few minutes. THEN he asked “what kind of emotions do you feel about being in that room a period of time?”
Now, I’d never heard of this test before, and I had no idea what he was getting at, but I asked him the first thing that came into my mind: “IS THERE A DOOR?” “Yes,” he says… “and it’s white too!” And I responded, “Well, I want to know what’s on the other side of that door.”
You see, for the Christian, death is not a prison from which there is no escape, and the grave is not a box that can never be opened. A poet named Calvin Miller put it this way: “Our graves are merely doorways cut in sod.”
We don’t have to fear death, because Jesus has conquered death.
I Corinthians 15:55-58 tells us
“O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”
There is a story told of a young girl who had to go home each night at dark, and she always walked thru a cemetery because it was the shortest route.
Someone asked her why she wasn’t afraid to pass thru the graveyard, and she responded
“Oh I’m not afraid! My home is just on the other side.”
INVITATION

 

 

Sermon Contributor: Jeff Strite

Learning About The Church From Ephesians

Learning About The Church
Ephesians 1:1-2

INTRO: Good morning church.
In my last few lessons we looked at God’s Grace, our Faith, Works and God’s Law. In this lesson I would like to take a look at us as a group, Christians as the body of Christ and learn a little about that.

For our text please turn with me to the book of Ephesians and let’s read Ephesians 1:1-2 – “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus and faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

When we study the New Testament, we can't help but notice that many passages found there have to do with the church in Ephesus. For example, in Acts chapters 18 and 19, Luke tells us about the establishment of the church in that city. The Apostle Paul wrote one of his letters to that particular congregation and we just read the first two verses of it.

Reading the Bible references to the early churches, the way they worshiped, and what the apostles and Christ had to say about them, is a good way to keep in mind how we, as the body of Christ, are to live. Restoration is a continuing process not a one-and-done activity.

There are indeed quite a number of passages in the New Testament that in various ways have to do with the church in the city of Ephesus. All the way to Revelation 2:1-7 where the Lord sent a message to the same congregation. “1. "To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, `These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:
2. "I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;
3. "and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary.
4. "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
5. "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent.
6. "But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
7. "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.'' '”

In our lesson today, what I would like us to do is examine some information revealed in the Book of Ephesians that has to do with the church.

That is the theme of our lesson, learning about the church from Ephesians. Of course there are many other passages in the Bible that have to do with the church. We can't cover them all in one lesson, but we do want to cover some fundamental principles that are revealed primarily, in the Book of Ephesians.

Let's begin with the identity of the church.

I. From Ephesians, we learn about the church's identity.

A. Since we have already opened our Bibles to Ephesians 1, let's read verses 22 and 23. Here Paul is telling about the power that God demonstrated through Christ. He wrote: “And He put all things under His feet (that is the feet of our Lord), and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Make no mistake about it; the church is the Lord's body.

1. This is not the only verse in the Bible that reveals that very important information. Paul, being an inspired apostle, didn't teach one thing to one group of people, and then something contrary to a different group of people. When he revealed information concerning the church, he always taught the same thing.
2. We just saw what he wrote to the church in Ephesus. What about what he wrote to the church in Colossae on this topic? We find that in Colossians 1:18 – “And He (speaking of Christ) is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.” The church is the Lord's body. It's important for us to understand that because we will find passages that have to do with the body. We need to understand that this information relates to the church.

B. How many bodies are there? Let's look at Ephesians 4:4-6 – “4. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5. one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6. one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”. There are seven very important subjects listed that are unique. They are unique in the sense that there's only one of each. First on the list, there is one body. That's not what man indicates though, is it?

1. The same inspired writer went on to say that there's one Lord… there's one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all. If we can understand that there's one Lord, understand that there's one God, certainly we can understand that there is one body.
2. Let's just use a little bit of old fashioned common sense. Since the church is the Lord's body, and it is, and there is one body then how many churches are there? There's only one.
3. I believe even a child can understand that. It just seems to me if a child can understand the concept of “one” then certainly adult people should be able to as well. Paul says that the church is the Lord's body. He said very clearly there is one body. With common sense and we can conclude that from the Lord's perspective, not man's perspective, but from the Lord's perspective, there is one church.
4. I want to point out something else concerning the church. In a prior lesson we read in Galatians 3:28, where Paul writes “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Now let's look at Ephesians 2 for a moment and consider how God has made it possible for both Jews and Gentiles to be reconciled to God in His body. Starting in Ephesians 2:11 – “11. Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands 12. that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been made near by the blood of Christ. 14. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of division between us, 15. having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,”.
5. Here Paul is referring to Jews and Gentiles. The Law of Moses had kept those two groups separated for centuries. Christ, when He died on the cross, fulfilled the law, and took it out of the way. Colossians 2:14 says “… He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” He fulfilled it. He took it out of the way, and then His new covenant went into effect, which is far greater than the old.

C. Let's continue now in Ephesians 2:16 – “and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.” The Lord made it possible for Jews and Gentiles to be reconciled to God in His body. That's one of the distinct features of the Lord's body. All people, regardless of ethnic background, are reconciled to God AND to one another in the body, which is the church.

II. From Ephesians, we learn about the church's relationship with Christ. We've already read from Ephesians 1:22 that Christ is the head over all things to the church.

A. When the Bible says all things, that's exactly what it means. First, Christ is the “head” (kephalé) of the church, which means He is the ultimate authority over the church. It is His will and His word that governs the life of the church. Christ is the head of the church, AND He has preeminence. Preeminence is “the fact of surpassing all others; superiority”. If Christ has preeminence, and He does, that means He is first, in everything. First in importance, first in honor, first in exaltation. It is not enough that Jesus have prominence in our lives. He must have preeminence in our lives. Jesus cannot simply be on our top-ten list. He must be everything.
B. In addition to being the head of the church, Christ is the savior of the body. Look at Ephesians 5:23 which says “For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.” We know that He's the head of the church, and we know that He's the savior of the body.
C. Now Ephesians 5:25 – “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, ” He loves the church and He loved it so much that He gave himself for it. That's the greatest love that anyone could possibly have. Jesus, near the end of His ministry, said “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.” This is recorded in John 15:13 Jesus loved the church so much that He gave Himself for it.

1. As we study about the church's relationship with Christ, we learn that Christ is the head over all things to the church. We understand that He's the Savior of the body, and we understand that He loved the church so much that He gave Himself for it.
2. Let's tie in a couple of other verses—Acts 20:28 where Paul was speaking to the elders of the church in Ephesus. He met them in Miletus, though they served as elders of the Ephesian Church. This is what he said to them; “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.” See how much Christ loves the church? He purchased it with His own blood.

D. To further illustrate the Lord's relationship with the church, let's look at Ephesians 5:29 – “For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.” Christ cherishes and nourishes the church. These verses help us understand what the Lord wants us to know about the church's relationship with Him. Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of the body. He loved the church so much that He purchased it with His own blood, and He nourishes and cherishes the church.

III. From Ephesians, we learn about the church's responsibilities to Christ.

A. Let's talk about the church's responsibilities and we will start with what's written in Ephesians 3:21. This is actually the end of a prayer that Paul offered and it's a beautiful prayer. Notice how he concluded it. “to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”

1. As we think about the church's responsibilities to Christ, notice that God is glorified in the church. The Bible teaches that we're to do everything to the glory of God. We need to think about that. God is to be glorified in the church, and that's a very important responsibility.
2. As we seek to glorify God in the church, we remain subject unto Christ. This also is a very important responsibility. The church is subject to Christ. Ephesians 5:24 – “Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.” People get very uncomfortable when you start talking about preeminence and subjection.

B. The Bible teaches that the church is to be in subjection to Christ. How do we accomplish that? That's a good question, and the Bible tells us in Colossians 3:17 – “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Everything that we do and say is to be said or done in the name of Christ, that is, by His authority.

1. How do we know what Christ authorizes us to say and do? Also a good question, Colossians 3:16 says “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom…” See how these New Testament letters go together and complement one another? Sometimes people want to tell us that they contradict each other, but nothing could be further from the truth.
2. Ephesians makes it very clear that the church is to be subject unto Christ. Again, how do we accomplish that? By doing what the Lord wants us to do and saying the things that the Lord wants us to say. How do we know what He wants us to say and do? By letting His Word dwell in us richly with all wisdom.

C. That brings us to another responsibility that's mentioned in Ephesians 5:27 - “that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.” The church is to be holy and without blemish. Rather an important responsibility, isn’t it?

1. And that responsibility is given to each member. Each member is to be holy and without blemish. When the members accomplish this important responsibility, then the church is being holy and without blemish.
2. After all we are the church. When we're baptized into Christ, we're added to the Lord's Church Acts 2:47. At that point we take on some very important responsibilities.

IV. From Ephesians, we learn the church makes known the “manifold wisdom of God”.

A. Let's look at another thing that's addressed in Ephesians Chapter 3. I’m going to read Ephesians 3:1-12 – “1. For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles 2. if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, 3. how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I wrote before in a few words, 4. by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5. 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: 6. that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, 7. of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. 8. To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9. and to make all people see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10. to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11. according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12. in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him.”

B. From verse 10 we learn that the church makes known the manifold wisdom of God. The adjective we translate as “manifold” means “much variegated, marked with a great variety of colors”. Often we understand these verses to mean that the church is responsible for making known the manifold wisdom of God. Indeed we, the church, do have that responsibility, but there is something else I’d like to consider.

1. Perhaps these verses teach us that when men observe God's plan for the church being carried out, they see His manifold wisdom being demonstrated in a powerful way.
2. When people see the church and observe it and examine it, they see something very special. They see God's manifold wisdom at work. That wisdom has been in God's mind for a long time. The church is a demonstration of God's manifold wisdom.

C. In Ephesians chapter 2, Paul tells us that the Gospel makes it possible for men to be at peace with God. He also showed how the Gospel makes it possible for men to be at peace with other men. Having dealt with that issue rather thoroughly, Paul went on to talk in chapter three about how for a long time that was a mystery, something that was hidden.

1. In God's due time, God revealed that information to certain inspired people, the holy apostles and prophets. They in turn wrote these things down. We can read those things and we can gain an understanding of God.
2. When someone outside the church observes us, what are they seeing demonstrated? The wisdom of God in all it’s glory.
3. We know about man's wisdom and what it does. Often we see that it leads to division, misunderstanding and disagreement even in the body, the church.
4. God's plan is right. God's plan can be understood and God's plan can be followed. When men submit to God's will and follow His plan, God's manifold wisdom that He purposed a long time ago is being demonstrated. I would say that to the Lord, and to His father, the church is very important, wouldn't you?

CONCLUSION:
In looking at the Book of Ephesians we've learned something about the identity of the church, about the church's relationship with Christ and about the church's responsibilities to Christ. We saw that the church makes known the manifold wisdom of God.

Keep in mind what Jesus said in Matthew 16:18 – “I will build My church,” and the Lord built His church just as He said that He would. To be the Lord's church today, we must follow His plan. And we learn about the Lord's plan for His church by carefully studying passages in the Bible that relate to it.

So why do we want to do this and why do it more then once? We probably all know the answer. Certainly we are all familiar with how things can change over time. Everything in our lives needs maintenance and at times, if we are going to keep something, it may need to be restored. Restoration is bringing something back to its original condition. We probably have some idea what's involved in restoring a car, or perhaps what's involved in restoring a house and so forth.

In like manner we need to be concerned about restoring the church when needed. It can get to point of needing maintenance of course, but it might need some serious maintenance because in some cases, men have broken the church. There is wear and tear on the body and I’m not talking about the building. Things slip, changes sneak in, the world is constantly applying pressure to what we do, say, and even accept. We need to look at ourselves and do some examination on a regular basis. If something is amiss we need to go to the operator’s manual, the trouble shooting guide. It's probably right there in your hand.

It teaches us all about the various parts of the church that we need to know. If it's not revealed in the Bible, then frankly, we don't need to know it. God has given us all things that pertain to life and Godliness, if He wants us to know it, it will be in the book.

What do we do when our reality is not matching up to scripture? That which is defective or damaged needs to be eliminated. That which is right needs to be restored, just like those putting new parts in a worn out device. When we do that the church goes back as God wants it to be.

We have just read about some of the fundamentals of the church and there are many, many more revealed in the Bible. All together, they make that wonderful institution. We need to study these fundamental principles on a regular basis and do some examination at times. We might call them preventative maintenance checks. We also are responsible for helping others to see these same things, because there's a lot of confusion today about the nature of the church.

There's no reason for that confusion. We know who's responsible for it. Men are responsible, because God is not the author of confusion. If we will just follow His word, we will know what He wants us to know about the church. We comply with those instructions, and we have the satisfaction of knowing that we're the Lord's Church. That's a great blessing.

Never listen to anyone who would mock the principle of restoring the Lord's Church. If you examine God's people over the centuries, you can't help but see that there's been a constant need for restoration. God revealed His law to the Jewish people through Moses, and as long as they kept it, God blessed His people abundantly. But then they'd start to wander away from God, and even get involved in worshiping idols. Then God would punish His people and that would bring them to their senses. They would repent, and He would bless them once again. That has happened many times in the history of God's people, hasn’t it?

Those principles are valid. As long as we are following the Lord's will, we are pleasing to Him. God help us to be busy at doing that.

One more thing I want to mention. We are the beloved recipients of God’s mercy to be sure; but we are also humble servants, unworthy to be called by His name, sinners saved by grace. That is why, in the wisdom of God, there is nothing that we can ever bring to offer Him for our salvation (Ephesians 2:8–9).

With that in mind, the preeminence of Christ challenges us who call ourselves “Christians” with uncomfortable implications. Do we want to be called a Christian? Or do we want to be a Christian. Do we want to be thought of as yielded to God’s will? Or do we want to yield to God’s will? Do we want it to appear that what matters most to us is Christ? Or do we want Christ to matter most? Are we satisfied with the veneer of Christ-likeness because it is good enough for others, or do we want to be like Christ? Do we want to do and say the kinds of things we would say and do if we were seeking to honor Christ above all others, or do we want to honor Christ above all others? We should pray that the tension in those annoying questions settles down upon our soul, ministering to us and encouraging us toward the true exaltation of the Son as supreme, for that is the position that He alone occupies.
______________________________________________________________________________

We learn 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.

If anybody needs to respond, either to dedicate themselves to Christ, be buried with Him in baptism, and become a part of the work He has for us; or if you need to ask for prayers on your behalf, won’t you come forward as we stand and sing our Invitational song.

# ???
Reference Sermon by: Raymond Sieg

What Is The Purpose Of My Life?

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF MY LIFE?
TEXT: Nehemiah 1:1-10, 6:1-2; Ecclesiastes 3:11

It was 1940, & a time of great crisis in Europe. The German armies had already conquered most of Eastern Europe. And now the blitzkrieg was sweeping across Western Europe toward England. In less than a week, Netherlands, Luxembourg, & Belgium had fallen, & France was next. Adolph Hitler was boasting that within 2 months he would march at the head of his victorious army into London, itself. With that, Neville Chamberlain, who was Prime Minister of England and had been completely fooled by Hitler, resigned in disgrace.

Winston Churchill, who had long been warning the English people about Hitler, was asked to be the next Prime Minister. From then on it was obvious that the outcome of the war & the future of Europe would largely depend upon Churchill’s leadership.

If I were Churchill, I would have felt the terrible pressure of leadership at that moment. But Churchill wrote: "As I went to bed at about 3 A.M., I was conscious of a profound sense of relief. At last, I had the authority to give directions … I felt as if I were walking with Destiny, & that all my past life had been but a preparation for this hour & for this trial..."

What caused Churchill to possess such confidence? He was taking over an unprepared country against the greatest military machine that had ever been created up to that time.
How could he possibly say, "I was conscious of a profound sense of relief"? Evidently, he had an overwhelming sense of "purpose" for his life. Churchill was just one person, but through the efforts of that one person, strategically placed & courageously leading, the spirit of England turned from despair to hope. Gradually the war was won, not only saving England, but some would claim, saving democracy as a form of government in the world.

This morning I'd like to talk about living our lives with a sense of purpose. You & I were put on this earth with gifts, talents, & relationships that are waiting to fulfill God's purpose. Like Churchill, in God's plan, we each have a destiny to fulfill. I know you're probably thinking, "I'm no Churchill." And you're right.

But you are you. And I believe God has a purpose for your life too. There's one individual in Scripture who may illustrate this better than anyone else. His name was Nehemiah. In 586 B.C., the Babylonians invaded the country of Judah & totally destroyed Jerusalem, tearing down its houses & walls, & even the glorious temple that Solomon had built.

And they carried off thousands of Jews as captives to Babylon. But within 70 years, the Babylonians themselves had been conquered by the Persians, & any of the Jews who wanted to do so were allowed to return home. The returnees started to rebuild Jerusalem & the temple, but the task was so overwhelming that they soon gave up in discouragement, & the city remained in ruins. For nearly 100 years conditions continued to deteriorate in Jerusalem.
Sacrifices were no longer being offered, & many Jews were beginning to adopt the lifestyle & culture of the pagan people surrounding them.

But one man, back in Persia, was about to discover & live out God's purpose for his life. His name was Nehemiah.
And from his example I believe we can find a way to answer an important question in our own lives.

And that question is: "What is the purpose of my life?" To answer that, the story of Nehemiah suggests 3 actions that we need to take.

THE 1ST ACTION we need to take is to CULTIVATE A CONCERN. A life of purpose begins with a real concern that God has given you.

Churchill spent years learning & preparing & strategizing. Why? Because God had given him a concern about the safety of his people & his nation. Purpose always begins with a God-given concern.

Listen to Nehemiah 1:1-4: "In late autumn of the 20th year of King Artaxerxes' reign, I was at the fortress of Susa. Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. "I asked them about the Jews who had survived the captivity & about how things were going in Jerusalem. They said to me, 'Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. 'They are in great trouble & disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, & the gates have been burned.' When I heard this, I sat down & wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, & prayed to the God of heaven."

Nehemiah's concern over Jerusalem consumed him. He couldn't get it out of his mind. He continued faithfully with his duties, but inside, his heart was broken as he mourned & fasted & prayed about the plight of Jerusalem.

God's purpose for you will always begin as a God-given concern. I'm not talking about a temporary concern. I'm talking about something that sticks with you.

Someone once stated that: "You will hear or see something that gets your attention. A thought related to the future will generate an emotion. Something will bother you about the way things are, or the way things are headed. Unlike many passing concerns, these will stick with you.

You will find yourself thinking about them in your free time. You may lose sleep over them. You won't be able to let them go because they won't let you go.” Maybe God is already in the process of developing concerns in the hearts of some of you here this morning. If so, let me make a few observations about those concerns.

First of all, realize that not everyone will share your concern. Did you notice that nobody else seemed to be concerned about the wall? For years, the walls of Jerusalem had been broken down. But no one else seemed to be crying about the broken-down walls. Nehemiah's concern was Nehemiah's alone. But what about us today? It's possible God has given you a concern, but you haven't cultivated it because nobody else seems to share that concern. Stop waiting for others! God has given you that concern for a reason. It's up to you to begin to cultivate & pray about that concern.

Secondly, realize that not everyone who has a concern will do anything about it. Remember, when the people first returned to Jerusalem they had tried to rebuild the walls. But they gave up, & 100 years went by.

During those 100 years do you think that anybody else was concerned about rebuilding the walls? Yes, there must have been some. But they didn't do anything about it. Talking & doing are two different things. You see, not everyone who has a concern will do something about it.

Thirdly, realize that God often gives a concern before He provides a solution. Some of you may have God-given concerns, but you haven't done anything about them. Why not? Because you haven't seen yourself being used by God as a part of the solution.

Nehemiah was a cup-bearer to the king. He was responsible for ensuring the safety of the king's food & drink. Yes, he had become very concerned about the need to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. But he wasn't in a position of authority to do anything about it.

You see, I believe that sometimes God will give us a deep concern, yet it won't be immediately obvious that we can do anything about it. But don't abandon it. Cultivate that concern. Pray about it. Bring it before God.

Somebody has said, "There are many things in life that will catch your eye, but only a few will catch your heart. Pursue those."

The second action is this: "Focus on the eternal."
Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, "He has set eternity in the hearts of men." And a life that's seeking God's purpose focuses on making an eternal contribution.

There's a big difference between good ideas & God ideas. God ideas always center on the eternal. What made Nehemiah's concern a God idea?

Nehemiah 1:8-10 tells us. Keep in mind that we're over-hearing Nehemiah's prayer to God. Nehemiah prayed: "Please remember what you told your servant Moses: 'If you sin, I will scatter you among the nations. But if you return to me & obey my commands, “even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth, I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored. We are your servants, the people you rescued by your great power & might.

“O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success now as I go to ask the king for a great favor. Put it into his heart to be kind to me."

Why was Nehemiah concerned about the broken-down walls? God had promised that if His people would return to Him, then He would bring them back from exile & bless them in their own land.

Nehemiah's concern wasn't really about a wall. His concern was about God's people taking their rightful place in God's plan. There's only one thing that will last into eternity.

Your career won't. Your reputation won't. Your bank account won't. Only one thing will last into eternity: people.
Our job is to use our money, time, & abilities to influence people eternally. Nothing else matters.

How do you develop a life of purpose?
Three actions.
1 Cultivate a concern.
2 Focus on the eternal.
And there's one more action you will need to take:

#3, "Concentrate your energy."
I'm going to fast-forward a little in Nehemiah's story. Nehemiah overcame years of discouragement & opposition, & when we pick up the story in Neh. 6, the wall is almost complete. They were only days away from completing the project. But Nehemiah's enemies were stirring up trouble.
Nehemiah 6:1-2 says: "When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, & the rest of our enemies found out that I had finished rebuilding the wall & that no gaps remained – though we had not yet hung the doors in the gates – Sanballat & Geshem sent me a message asking me to meet them at one of the villages in the plain of Ono."

Sanballat & company invited Nehemiah to a meeting. Their plan was to get him off the project, Get him away from his supporters, & kill him.

But listen to Nehemiah’s response in Neh. 6:3. It's a verse that everyone ought to underline or highlight in their Bible. His response was this, "I am doing a great work & I cannot come down".

That is a powerful verse. Nehemiah knew that to accomplish his purpose, he would have to watch out for the greatest enemy of purpose. He would have to deal with distractions.

Things have a way of popping up to distract us from the main things God has called us to do. Many of these distractions aren't even bad things. But If we're going to accomplish God's purpose, we have to learn how to say “no” to some good things.

We need to live with this verse etched on our mind: "I am doing a great work & I cannot come down." I wrestle with this as much as anyone. I have the joy of living out my purpose. And yet I'm amazed by how easy it is to get distracted. Some distractions are good. And yet I have to remind myself often of Nehemiah’s thought, "I'm doing a great work & I cannot come down."

You & I were put on this earth for a purpose. God has given us unique contributions to make, & never underestimate the power of just one person.

Centuries ago a woman almost did. She thought things were too far gone. And she certainly didn't think there was anything she could do. It was only a matter of time before all Jews were to be killed. Her name was Esther. She was the Jewish wife of a Persian king, the man who had been tricked into making an irreversible, disastrous decision.

All Jews were to be exterminated. But could the tide be turned by … just ONE person? WITH GOD … of course, the answer is yes.

Esther's adoptive father, Mordecai, realizing that she, alone,
held the key to her husband's heart, appealed to her conscience.

(Esther 4:14) "For if you remain silent at this time . . . you & your father's house will perish…" She listened to his plea. What got her attention was his final line, "And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"

That did it. She broke long-standing protocol, went into the king's throne room … & rescued the Jews from a holocaust.
One woman – only one voice – saved an entire nation.

Of course, none of us will probably ever be a Churchill,
a Nehemiah or a Esther. And probably many of you are sitting there wondering what purpose God might have for your life. May I suggest one?

Since the only earthly thing that will last for eternity is people, then the greatest purpose you & I can have is to seek to influence someone to become a Christian and to remain FAITHFUL to Jesus throughout of lives.

Who do you know that you love & who may love you, who is not a Christian? Someone in your family? Maybe a close friend? How about making them your purpose in life? Don’t just think that is a lost cause, make them your God-inspired purpose!

Cultivate your concern for them, focus on the fact that the result will be eternal, & then concentrate your energy on reaching that loved one for Jesus. You might be amazed at the help God will give you!

A poet wrote, "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do."

Having done that, please put aside all excuses & ask yourself, "What should I be doing?" Yes, you can make a difference. The question is, will you? If you don't do your part, who will?

INVITATION

God’s Grace is Sufficient

God's Grace is Sufficient
Second Corinthians 12:7-12

INTRO: Good morning. We covered in recent lessons - God’s Grace, our faith, works and God’s Law. We said that God's Grace represents everything He did to make salvation available for mankind. Today I would like to examine some more aspects of God’s grace.

Please turn in your bibles to 2 Corinthians the 12th chapter and I will read beginning in verse 7 through verse 12. 2 Corinthians 12:7-12 - “7. And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 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. 10. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 11. I have become a fool in boasting; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing. 12. Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds.”

Not long ago while reading this very familiar passage in which the apostle Paul refers to his “thorn in the flesh”, I came to v. 9. I could not get beyond the Lord’s response to Paul’s prayer ... “My grace is sufficient for you.” I wondered to myself could I be comfortable, could I be content, as content as Paul, with that assurance from God? “My grace is sufficient for you.” I wonder, too, just how many times, though knowing those words, might I have responded this way, “Yes Lord, but...” Can I be as accepting, can I be as positive, and can I be as comfortable with that assurance as was the apostle Paul? This morning I’d like to give you some of my thoughts as I reflected on these words “My grace is sufficient for you”. ... with the hope that I am not only able to help you, but also myself.

I. THE GRACE OF GOD – (TITUS 2:11-14). In the book of Titus, in chapter 2, the apostle writes in an interesting way of the grace of God. Go with me there now and let’s read starting in verse 11, “11. For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12. teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13. looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14. who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” There are affirmations about the grace of God here. For example, the grace of God … brings salvation

A. God’s grace brings salvation

1. We find this also in the familiar verse in (Ephesians 2:8) – “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”
2. The grace of God is what brings salvation. We saw in previous lessons that neither the works of the Law of Moses nor works of merit which you and I might engage in can bring to us that salvation. It is only through the grace of God that salvation comes.

B. The second affirmation in the text in Titus is that - God’s grace has been manifest to humanity (it has “appeared”). If you turn to the gospel of Luke, chapter 2 let’s begin in verse 21 and set the scene Luke 2:21-22 - “And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb. 22. Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord''”. This is where Joseph and Mary bring Jesus to the temple to do what is required by the law.

1. Next look down to verse 25 and we will begin to read about a man whose name was Simeon. I want to particularly notice what Simeon says about salvation and what his eyes have seen.
2. Luke 2:25-32 – “25. And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27. So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28. he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 29. "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word;” now listen to these words – “for my eyes have seen Your salvation 31. which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32. a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.''” The salvation of God has been manifest and it has appeared in the form of Jesus Christ.
3. God’s grace appeared in the form of Jesus, His Son – In John chapter 1, verse 14 (John 1:14) we read “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.” We beheld Him.

C. God’s grace is instructive. Third in the affirmation in Titus 2 is that the grace of God is instructive, the grace of God has appeared teaching. In the 20th chapter of the book of Acts, at verse 24, listen to this. –

1. (Acts 20:24) – “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” There it is. God has a message for us!
2. There is a message from God - that message is the gospel - that message is a provision of God’s grace. That message is a gift from Him, His grace extended to humanity. Going back to those words from 2nd Corinthians chapter 12, “My grace is sufficient for you.” There are four things I would like to address about this.

II. THE GRACE OF GOD IS SUFFICIENT...

A. The first is that God’s grace is sufficient to provide our salvation

1. The salvation that is provided by God’s grace is all the salvation there is going to be. It is complete; it is perfect, it is sufficient.
2. Any thought of salvation other than that which God’s grace provides is insufficient, ineffective, it is useless.
3. In the 2nd chapter of the book of Hebrews at verse 9 there is this (Hebrews 2:9) – “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.” Jesus’ atoning death is not just for one segment of society, or for one race of people. The grace of God, extended toward humanity, offered the atoning death of Jesus, “for every man”. That is the sufficiency of the salvation God’s grace has provided.
4. We, you and I, need to be very comfortable, with the simplicity of the salvation which God offers. 

B. God’s grace is sufficient to provide for our direction

1. The life we have on this earth presents us with so many choices, challenges, and dilemmas.
2. I know that we so often try to meet these things, answer these choices and challenges and dilemmas, with our own knowledge and our own wisdom. All too often the results of these attempts are not satisfying to our needs.
3. I ask you to look at the 20th chapter of the book of Acts again, and I will read from verse 31. (Acts 20:31-34) – “31. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears. 32. And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33. I have coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel. 34. Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me.” Looking at verse 32 again “… I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up… ”
4. God’s grace is sufficient to provide direction for our lives. God’s grace has provided the up building word - and it is sufficient, all we need, it is perfect. We remember from a very familiar passage (2 Timothy 3:16-17) – “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.”
5. God’s grace is sufficient to provide all of the information we need for our lives. So when we come to the perplexing problems of our lives, we go to the word of God, to the word of His grace, for answers, for direction, for instruction.

C. God’s grace is sufficient to provide for our hope

1. The reality is that life is not easy. I mean there are times when we can just roll along but the reality is that life can be very harsh. There are so many people, perhaps even among us here this morning who lack hope for the present or for the future. That said—let’s go back to Titus for just a minute.
2. To chapter 2 and I want you to look there and note verse 13 while I read starting in verse 11. Titus 2:11-13 - “11. For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12. teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13. looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,”
3. We recognize that life isn’t easy; life can be very hard for so many of us. Maybe not all the time but there are times when it is most difficult. At those times we find ourselves wondering “what next?” Looking at verse 13 I realize the ultimate hope we have, even if life has been hard, exasperating, is that the Lord is going to come again and receive us to Himself and we will live eternally in heaven, and there won’t be any problems there.
4. I recognize also that we have hope in prayer. Lets read in 1st John chapter 5 verses 14 and 15. (1 John 5:14-15) “14. Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him...” We have hope in prayer.
5. And then in Psalms 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.” There is our hope. God is with us. We are not abandoned or left alone. God’s grace is sufficient to provide us with hope because He is always with us! I may at times feel like that God is distant, but I have to realize that it is not God who is moving. If God feels distant, I am the one who has moved. He is a very present help… I love those words in the King James, a very present help in trouble.

D. God’s grace is sufficient to provide us with comfort

1. Not the “creature comforts”, that is not the comfort I’m speaking of - but comfort in times of anxiety, distress.
2. In Philippians 4:7 remember that verse 6 talks about prayer and we will read that in a bit, but at verse 7: “and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” – The peace of God, how wonderful it is to be at peace with God and how much we need that in our lives.
3. Peace in this world is certainly a difficult thing. When my day starts I take a moment to catch up on the news on the computer or the radio and the first news of the day is about conflict and turmoil. There was the St Louis school shooter, the homecoming week party shooting in North Carolina, two dead in a shooting in Hamilton Ohio on Tuesday, and the constant death tolls and reports of suffering in the Ukraine and Africa. Then I’m treated to the discouraging news of world leaders in Iran, Russia or North Korea. Not a very comforting picture is it? I sigh and see that this day starts out like so many others in a less then comforting way.
4. These are realities aren’t they? But when I talk about the comfort God’s grace offers, I’m talking about the peace of God which passes all understanding.
5. There is a wonderful passage I would like us to look at now: 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” God is called the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, but I want you to particularly look at v. 4. Here I read something I am not sure we emphasize as much as it should be. Note that we are comforted by—God so that we may be able to comfort other people who themselves are in trouble. We understand that Gods comfort may come to us through those who themselves have experienced the comfort of God!
6. Yes, we have the comfort of the scriptures (Romans 15:4) “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”.

a. Yes, and by prayer (Philippians 4:6) “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;”
b. - but the comfort we can receive from faithful, devoted, mature Christian people is so “here, and now”. How wonderful this is that God provides us comfort through the comforting arm and the encouraging word of a brother or sister who has him or herself also been comforted. God’s grace in this way provides with “real time” comfort and encouragement.

III. BUT DO WE WANT MORE THAN THIS?

A. We are so rooted in this world and in this life

1. We are so caught up in things that are urgent and necessary.
2. Our eyes and our lives are so connected to the temporal – the demanding things.
3. We have bills to pay, doctors’ appointments, children to “taxi”, jobs to work - care to give to sick children, spouses, aging parents.
4. These are our realities - and they just will not wait. It is no wonder life can be so overwhelming, even all consuming.

B. The world can tend to become so very consuming in importance

1. The answers we want are; who’ll pay the bills. Who will relieve the pains. Who will taxi the children, etc. Who is going to do that?
2. To suggest to one who is overwhelmed by life’s realities that God’s grace is sufficient for them may not seem terribly satisfying.
3. “We need real answers to today’s problems ... now!”
4. So too, did the apostle Paul when he prayed, “remove this thorn from me”.

C. I know that there must be a reordering of the way we think.

1. That was, in effect, what the Lord told Paul when He answered Paul’s prayer. Paul wanted to be rid of the hurt, of the constant aggravation, whatever it was. God said “my grace is sufficient for thee”. You see the apostle Paul had to begin to think in a different way.
2. Yes, we have our problems in life you and I. Life has its realities - but if we have a deep and abiding relationship with our Lord God, in keeping with His word, I submit to you that that can change our perspective about our realities and our problems. The problems may not go away but we may be able to see them in a different way, perhaps in a different scale, that permits us to deal with them so much more constructively, and in a way that God would have us to deal with them.
3. Contentment in God’s grace takes the edge off of so many dilemmas.

IV. GOD’s GRACE IS MUCH MORE – Not long ago I read the following:

A. Yet, we suffer from a grace too small. We think grace is pleasant to receive. We think it’s ours to give, as if we could ladle raindrops from Niagara Falls.
B. But Grace isn’t safe: it’ll wreck your world. Grace assaults and grace subverts. Grace grabbed one man and knocked him to the ground. It rendered him blind and healed him three days later. Grace put him in danger time and time again: shipwrecked three times or more, beaten with rods and sticks, stoned and left for dead. Grace used him like a ragdoll, overthrew an empire and saved us all—even him, the foremost of sinners.

1. Grace assaults us in so many ways. We seldom see it coming, and after it’s gone we rarely know what, exactly, just happened. Grace whispers and sometimes yells. Grace asks, and it’s the one telling us how it’s going to be. It binds the strongman.
2. Grace is a strong man’s game. Its God’s game. He invented it and plays it full out. Good luck against Him. Grace huddles with the opponent, calls the play and then runs the ball right up the middle. The enemy knows it’s coming, but Grace executes the play—just try to stop it.

C. There’s only one way to deal with Grace. Surrender.

1. Grace is birthed in a stable and though it is homeless, it welcomes all who hear it and do the will of its Father. Grace pulls back the veil between heaven and earth; it turns the night sky into the glory of God. Grace is where shepherds gather and humble young parents play host to perfect strangers.
2. Grace wanders; it does not build a house. Grace searches for welcome. Grace calls at every door, but never trespasses. He stands at the door and knocks, ready to bring a feast inside. Vagabond grace is the beggar bearing treasure. We welcome the wretch into our home; he reaches into his threadbare bag and pulls out gifts more precious than gold. His satchel holds love, joy and peace. He bestows patience and kindness. He fills the room with the fragrance of goodness, and leaves behind a map to the faithfulness, and gentleness and self-control.
3. Grace is the subtle hand of God before our very eyes. Grace gives thanks for a humble meal, and thousands sit and eat. Grace never condemns, yet somehow commands us to go and sin no more. Grace walks the pavement and it turns to gold.
4. Grace supplies our deepest need. We want a deliverer; God sends grace. We want to see power and the glory; God sends grace and truth. We want a king; God sends a Servant. Grace rules the world without title or rank. Grace has legions at his command, and never once calls for their aid.
5. Grace is never a tyrant—but forever a king.

CONCLUSION: So maybe I just need to have those words etched in mind as a response to things which confront me each day - “my grace is sufficient for thee”.
I mentioned awhile ago that the grace of God brought salvation and that it is instructive. The grace of God having brought salvation in the form of Jesus Christ and His atoning death then instructs us in the way in which we receive the benefits of salvation. It instructs us through the written word that we must believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God, repent of our sins, that we must confess our faith in Jesus Christ and then be buried with Christ in baptism. If we do this then we are restored to life in God’s view. Raised to walk, as Romans 6 says, in newness of life. It is in the book folks, it is in the book God has provided by His grace to instruct us.
If there are any here this morning that have not been baptized into Jesus Christ you are withholding from your life the blessing of God’s grace. As we sing this beautiful invitation song, I would urge you to come to the front and say I want to be baptized. That same grace that instructs concerning baptism, how one receives that salvation, also teaches Christian people how to live soberly, righteously and Godly in this present world. If we do not - we are quenching the grace of God. I would say to you my Christian friends that if that applies to you, you should repent of your sins and pray for forgiveness. The grace of God has brought salvation. The only question this morning is where you are 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.
Song #644—Trust And Obey

Taken from sermon by Cecil A. Hutson, 06 August 2006, quote from Ray Hollenbach

Faith Grace and Law Part 2

Faith, Grace and Law Part 2
Romans 2:5-13

INTRO: Good morning. Previously we have examined the role of God's grace and our faith. Then we looked at God's law for us.

We saw that God's grace is His role in the redemption plan of mankind and includes everything that He did to accomplish our salvation. We saw there has to be a response from man for God's grace to be of any value. If no response was required, then everybody that ever lived would be saved automatically just by being alive.

The required response to God's gracious offer of salvation scripture says is faith. As a comprehensive biblical term, this word “Faith” represents everything that man does in response to what God has done for us in His gracious offer. Grace is God reaching down from heaven to mankind with an offer and a means of salvation. Faith is man reaching up to God in the hope of that salvation.

Next we talked about works. A work is defined as a mental or physical action which is intended to produce a result. Grace is the work of God. Faith is the work of man. God's grace and man's faith work together for a result. Both grace and faith are indispensable to the salvation process and both of them are works.

Thus, we rightfully conclude that if works were not necessary as many people in the religious world believe and teach, then salvation would be possible without any response from man whatsoever. Yet, Jesus teaches in Matthew 7:21 that only those who do the will of God can enter the kingdom of heaven.

We also saw that works cannot save us by circumventing God's grace or our faith. Works cannot save us by going around Jesus Christ to get us to heaven. Works cannot save us by compelling God to offer His grace. God's grace is a gift, freely offered, completely exclusive of anything that we could ever do. Works cannot save us by earning, paying for, or meriting salvation in any way. If works could save us, then we wouldn't need God's grace.

Faith is defined in the word of God as a work in First Thessalonians 1:3 and Second Thessalonians 1:11. We read those several times. Even though there are some ways in which works cannot save us, they are our response to God's grace and they are absolutely necessary if we want to be granted eternal life with God in heaven. Works are a necessary component of our faith.

We saw from scripture in the last lesson that there were two major law systems spoken of in the New Testament. There is the Old Law, which was the Law of Moses which has been done away with. The Law of Moses was the Old covenant Law.

Christians today live under the New Covenant or the New Testament. The New Testament contains law as well. The New Covenant law of God replaced the Old Covenant, Law of Moses. Law is defined as rule of behavior, and new covenant law shows us the way God wants us to live. It is how God wants us to behave as His children. If we did not have God's law, we would not know what our response to God's grace should be. Without God's law, we would not know how He wants us to live.

Today’s lesson picks up where we left off and the first question I want to look at is; Why did God give us His law?

God's law, God's commandments, are rules of behavior. These are how God wants us to behave. When we see a reference to a commandment in the New Testament, unless it is a reference to Old Testament law of course, we regard it as God's rule of behavior or simply God's law. God's New Testament commandments are law. Any reference in the New Testament to something God wants us to do or how He wants us to behave is His law. Whether it's from Jesus Christ or from the apostles, it's all inspired and it all comes from God.

God's law communicates His will to us. As Christians, we are regarded as the children of God. Speaking to Christians Galatians 3:26 reads – “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” God is our spiritual father. In Second Thessalonians 1:2, we read, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Like any loving parent, God gives His children instructions because He loves them. Without instructions, we, as God's children, would not know what He expects of us.

The word of God teaches us in John 5:28-29 that – “… the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” It would be a cruel father indeed who would condemn his children without telling them what they needed to do in order to avoid the damnation and receive the resurrection of life.

As earthly parents we teach our children how to behave because we love them and we don't want to see them get hurt. Our spiritual father in heaven gave us His law for the exact same reason.

If you turn with me to First John 5:2-3 we'll read there what John says about the love of God and His commandments. John writes by inspiration, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.”

God gave us His law because He loves us for the same reason that we give our earthly children our commandments, our rules, our law, because we love them. We want them to do well. We do not want them to come to harm.

In Second John verses 5-6, John writes that “… now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another. This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.”[NKJV] I want us to note verse six again, “This is love, that we walk according to His commandments.”

God gave us His law because He loves us. Then, what does God's law do? How does it benefit us?

I. God's law restricts bad behavior. In Galatians 5:19-21 we read “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, 20. idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21. envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”[NKJV]

A. In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 – “9. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10. nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”
B. Bad behavior causes harm to others and to ourselves. All of the bad things listed in these two scriptures are things that can bring physical harm upon us or on others. God's law does not permit us to engage in behavior that is harmful.

1. Imagine, if you will, what society would be like if it obeyed just these two scriptures. There would be no sexually transmitted diseases associated with the sexual sins listed above because there would be no sex outside of a marriage bond.
2. There would be no practitioners of fraudulent, untruthful, deceitful things, nobody who was envious of others, no murderers, no drunkards, and no thieves. There would be no haters. There would be no extortionists. It goes on and on. It would be a society of complete peace and harmony.
3. God's law restricts those behaviors and promotes peace and order within society. He gave us His law because He loves us, and His love is clearly seen through His law.

II. God's law provides equality. Galatians 3:28, where Paul writes “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

A. Romans 2:6-11 reads “6. who "will render to each one according to his deeds'': 7. eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8. but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9. tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; 10. but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11. For there is no partiality with God.”

1. In a society living faithfully under God's law, there would be no need for civil rights movements. There would be no bigots. There would be no race baiters or racial crimes. There would be no women's rights violations or human rights violations that we read of in the news. Everyone would be equal and everyone would live in peace.
2. Under God's law, there is going to be equality in judgment. Those who do bad things are going to be punished with no regard to race, color, creed, class, or however much money they may have in the bank. We cannot buy justice and equality from God under His law. Under God's law, we have them.

III. God's law provides unity. In Ephesians 4:1-6, Paul wrote “1. I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to have a walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2. with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,

A. Now verse 3. endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5. one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6. one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”
B. Just drive through almost any town in the United States and you will see any number of denominations. Each one has its own set of beliefs.

1. Jesus only established one body, and there is only one law. If everybody on earth obeyed that law, then there would be only one church. All Christians worldwide would be united under one head, and that's Jesus Christ. There would be no religious confusion.
2. There would be no need to hunt for a church that taught the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, because all Christians everywhere would be united in truth. God's law provides unity.

IV. God's law also provides order.

A. In our assemblies, God commands order. First Corinthians 14:33: “For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.” In this chapter Paul was dealing with things that were being done during their assemblies which caused confusion and disorder.
B. On down in this context at Verse 40 it says “Let all things be done decently and in order.”  This is the rule for organizing and conducting public worship services of the church. The first announcement of it came in a situation where it was drastically needed. Perhaps in some places there has been an over-formalization and over-zealous enforcement of it, but the failure to enforce it at all causes the same confusion seen in Corinth.
C. In our Christian lives, God's law requires order. In Hebrews 6:12 we read “that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

V. God's law provides for the protection of others. Second Corinthians 12:20 – “For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults:” He doesn't want the envying, the backbiting, the whispering and all of the things that are associated with those.

A. God's law restricts disruptive and harmful behavior toward one another, even to our enemies. Matthew 5:44 – “But I say to you, (this is Jesus speaking) love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,”
B. Protection for one another…God's law provides that. Galatians 5:15 – “But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!” Then going on down in the same chapter to verse 25 – “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”

1. In Ephesians 4:2-3 we read – “with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
2. Colossians 3:13-14 reads “bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection”
3. We are to look out for one another. Christianity is a “one another” religion. For those of you with concordances, I invite you to look up the phrase “one another” in the New Testament and see how many times it comes up. You may be surprised. In the KJV the Greek phrase ἀλλήλων, allḗlōn, al-lay'-lone is translated “one another” 76 times.

C. God's law provides for the protection, the care, and the benevolent oversight that we have for one another.

VI. God's law will be used in judgment. James 2:12-13 we looked at this last week. “So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

A. In John 12:48 as well, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, (that's Jesus speaking) has that which judges him, the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.”
B. In Romans 12:19-21, looking back at the law which provides protection even for our enemies, we read, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,'' says the Lord. "Therefore if your enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.'' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” God’s Law tells us to return good for evil and deploy good actions against the evil actions of our enemy for God's Law will be used in judgment.

VII. God's Law also includes what we must do to be saved.

A. Second Timothy 3:16-17 reads “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.” God's law includes everything that we need for instruction in righteousness, for doctrine that we can be truly furnished, thoroughly furnished, all the way unto all good works. It's all there in His law. It's complete.
B. Looking back to what we read earlier in First John 5:2-3, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” John makes it clear that God's love for us is evident through His law.

CONCLUSION:
God’s Law demonstrates His love for us by restricting bad behavior, by promoting unity, by promoting order, by protecting others, by punishing those who have harmed us, and by giving us the complete instructions for living an acceptable life and inheriting an eternal home in heaven.

God's Law was given to us entirely for our benefit. As has been said before, imagine what a society would be like if everyone in it lived in accordance to all of God's law. It would be a very different from what we see today.

If everyone lived according to God's law, all of the bad things we see in our society would vanish. We'd be living in a harmonious, loving, unified society where nobody would have to fear thieves, rapists or murderers. There would be no hate crimes, no abortions, and no sexually transmitted diseases. There would be no wars, no religious differences, and no broken homes with children being raised by single parents. There would be no moral corruption, no need for locks or alarms or police protection.

If everybody lived in accordance with God's law, than all of the self-inflicted scourges of humanity would instantly disappear. This physical life that we're living right now would take on a whole new look. Yes, there's law in the new covenant, and every single element of it is for the well being of mankind.

Those who live by these rules are doing what they can to promote goodness and righteousness wherever they are. They are the lights shining in the darkness.
Those who do not live in accordance with God's laws are the bringers of darkness. Through their actions, they contribute to the problems we see in society today worldwide. Those who live outside the law of God are not part of the solution. They are part of the problem.

In the end, when all of this life has ended and we stand before God in judgment, the life we lived in accordance to the rules God graciously gave us, will determine where we spend our eternity.

Mankind is sinful and lost. By grace we are saved through faith. Grace is God's role and represents everything He did in providing mankind with a hope for salvation. Faith is man's role and represents everything done in response to God's grace. God's law is where we find the instructions for how we are to respond to God's grace in faith. By grace we are saved through faith, as evidenced by works, guided by God’s Law.

Romans 2:5-13 we looked at some of this at the beginning of the lesson. We're going to look at it again and expanded it a bit. While we do so let's think about judgment, deeds, works and law.

Paul writes “5. But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6. who "will render to each one according to his deeds'':
Paul continues at verse “7. eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8. but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath, 9. tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; 10. but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11. For there is no partiality with God.”

In verse “12. For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law”
And lastly verse “13. for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;”

That is the conclusion of our look at faith, grace, works and law. It is my hope that we learn from this and take what we've heard in these four lessons, meditate on God’s word and make the right applications to our lives.
____________________________________________________________________________________

We learn 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.

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.
# ???

Taken from a sermon by: David Hersey

Faith Grace and Law - Part 1

Faith, Grace and Law
Hebrews 8:8-13

INTRO: Good morning. In my last few lessons we examined the role of God's grace, our faith, and works in our salvation. We said that God's grace is His role in the redemption plan and includes everything He did to accomplish our salvation. Obviously there must be a response from man in order for God's grace to work. If everything God did to save man required no response then everybody who ever lived would be saved regardless of how they lived. Jesus makes it clear that this is not the case in, Matthew 22:14 – “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

The required response to God's gracious offer of salvation is summed up in God's word as "Faith". “Faith”, as a comprehensive Biblical term, includes everything man does in response to God's grace. Grace is God reaching down from Heaven to mankind with an offer and a means of salvation. Faith is man reaching upwards to God in realization of His doomed state, and in the hope of God's grace. Grace is God reaching down to man. Faith is man reaching up to God.

Any response whatsoever from mankind is a work. A work is defined as a mental or physical action which intended to produce a result. God's grace and man's faith works together to produce a result. Both grace and faith are works. Grace is the work of God. Faith is the work of man. Human works, though necessary, do not negate the need for God's grace or our faith. Both grace and faith are indispensable to the salvation process and both of them are works. Thus we rightfully conclude that if works were not necessary, then salvation would be possible without any response from man whatsoever. Jesus makes it crystal clear in Matthew 7:21 that this is not the case.

We also saw that works cannot save us by circumventing God's grace or our faith. Works cannot save us by repaying God for what His grace cost Him. Works cannot save us by compelling God to offer His grace. God's grace is a gift, freely offered, completely exclusive of man's works. Works cannot save us by earning, paying for, or deserving salvation in any way. If works could save us, we wouldn't need God's grace. In these ways, works cannot save us, but faith is a work (1 Thessalonians 1:3, 2 Thessalonians 1:11), so even though works cannot save, they are still necessary.

What I want to look at today is God Law. Where does God's law fit in all of this? This is an important question because there are those who claim Christ as savior, and make the claim that there is no law under the new covenant. I have heard it said among some that the old covenant is 'law and no grace' and the new covenant is 'grace and no law'. The purpose of this lesson is to make an examination of God's law and how it fits in with God's Grace and our Faith.

What is law? Law is a rule or a set of rules, enforceable, regulating the behavior of those over which it has authority. The short definition is a rule of conduct.

I. Is there law under the new covenant?

A. There are two laws spoken of in the New Testament. The most common one directly mentioned as law, is in reference to the Law of Moses. In Acts 13:39, Paul made a reference to the Law of Moses that is of particular relevance to this lesson. Paul said, “and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses”.

1. Paul made a reference here to the Law of Moses and in doing so he made a very important observation. The Law of Moses cannot justify anyone. The word “justify”, means to 'make just' or to declare one to be innocent. The Hebrew writer further explains this in Hebrews 10:4, where he wrote, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.”
2. The animal sacrifices under the Law of Moses were incapable of taking away the sins of the people. All they did was accomplish the rolling forward of sins. The animal sacrifices were only capable of appeasing God's wrath for a period of time.
3. The Hebrew writer tells us when this time was in Hebrews 9:15, where we read, “And for this reason He [Jesus Christ] is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”
4. Under the Law of Moses, the sins of the people were only atoned for until the death of Christ on the cross at which time His blood then provided the total and complete forgiveness of their sins.

B. In first century times, there was a lot of confusion and resistance from some Jews who just would not let go of the Law of Moses. A large portion of the New Testament is devoted to explaining the difference between the old and new covenant. It is vital to our understanding of God's law that we know the difference. Much religious error today comes from the inability of some to distinguish between the Law of Moses and the law of God under the new covenant.

1. For example, let's look at a particular verse which is contrasting the two laws we find in scripture and from there, we will make some observations and then build on this study of whether or not there is New Testament law.

a. Galatians 2:16 – “knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.”
b. In the book of Galatians, Paul was dealing with Judaizers who had crept into the churches and were convincing them that they should follow after the Law of Moses. Paul's singular purpose for writing the letter to the Galatians was to correct this false teaching brought in by those who refused to let go of the Law of Moses and were bringing Christians back under the old law.

2. Let’s examine the text of Galatians 2:16 and for a moment, let's look at it from the perspective that Paul is speaking of all the law of God and not just the Law of Moses. When Paul's statement in Galatians 2:16 is taken from its proper context, it can be, and is, used to set forth the belief that there is no law under the new covenant.

a. Those who want to go to heaven but don't want to commit their lives to serving God acceptably, convince themselves that they are safe from God's condemnation based on the misguided belief that the inabilities and inadequacies of the Law of Moses apply to all of the Law of God in general.
b. This belief allows them to live any way they want because they believe that the new covenant releases us from the Law of Moses and releases us today from obligations to a new covenant law.

II. Let's deal with this issue first. Is there law under the new covenant?

A. To answer this question, let's look at two key verses. The first is Romans 3:23 where Paul wrote, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” There is no one today, who is accountable before God, who has not sinned. All have sinned and fallen short.
B. In 1 John 3:4, we learn that "Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness." If then, there is no law at all under the new covenant and sin is a transgression of law, then how is it that all have sinned? What law was transgressed? For there to be a transgression of law, there must be a law to transgress. We cannot break a law where there is none. If there's no law against speeding then we can't break the speed limit. It is not possible to transgress a law that does not exist. Indeed, in Romans 4:15, Paul wrote, “… for where there is no law there is no transgression.”
C. Yes, there is law under the new covenant. So what is it called, and how do we know which law is being discussed when we see “law” referenced in scripture?

III. In referencing the new covenant law, Paul mentions this in Romans 8:2 – “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Paul is contrasting two laws found in each covenant here. We have the law of the Spirit of life contrasted with the law of sin and death. We already know that the Law of Moses was incapable of the justification of anyone.

A. The Law of Moses was not a law, which when kept, could permanently free anyone from sin and condemnation. It is obvious that the law of sin and death is a reference to old covenant law.
B. The law of the Spirit of life is a reference to a law, which when kept, frees us from the old covenant law of sin and death. If there is no law under the new covenant, then it is not possible to be made free from the old covenant law. Yes, there is NT law, and in Romans 8:2 Paul called it the "the law of the Spirit of life".
C. While writing his inspired letter to the Galatian Christians, Paul wrote in Galatians 6:2 – “Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” This reference to a law cannot be about the Law of Moses. God gave the Law of Moses to Moses on Mount Sinai centuries before Jesus Christ walked the earth. This was near the end of a letter that Paul wrote which was dedicated to the abolishment of the Law of Moses and how it does no good to keep it.

1. He makes mention of a law we are supposed to keep, and he called it the “law of Christ”. We are not required to keep the Law of Moses, but we are required to fulfill the law of Christ.
2. If there were no law under the new covenant, then there would be no law of Christ to fulfill. So far we have 2 references to new covenant law. Paul has called it the "law of the spirit of life" and the "law of Christ".

D. In James 2:8 we see another reference to new covenant law, “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself,'' you do well;”. James called this a “royal law”. That cannot be a reference to the Law of Moses because Moses was never a king. So then who is the king that James is talking about here?

1. Paul answers that question in 1 Timothy 6:14-15 – “that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing, which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords,”. Jesus is our king under the new covenant so the royal law can be nothing other than the law of Christ.
2. If there is no new covenant law, then what are the standards by which Jesus rules us? A king who reigns over a people must do so with rules of behavior. We simply call these rules, law.
3. Paul called it the "law of the spirit of life" and the "law of Christ" and James called it the "royal law". James isn't finished yet. He also made a reference to new covenant law a few verses later in James 1:25 – “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.”.

E. What is this liberty that James is speaking of here? Those who believe and teach that there isn’t any law under the new covenant, will tell you that this law of liberty is really freedom to live our lives, free of any of the rules of conduct required by God as found in scripture.

1. Is this true? We can put that to the test by reading carefully what the verse says, “… is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” If the law of liberty freed anyone from keeping God's law, then no one would have to be a “doer of the work” in order to be blessed.
2. Yes, there is law in the new covenant and James says we must be a doer of the work of this law of liberty. The law of liberty liberates us from the sins which the Law of Moses could not accomplish. The law of liberty does not liberate us from the need to obey God.

So far we have the:
1) "law of the spirit of life", which Paul said would free us from the law of sin and death.
2) "law of Christ", which Paul commanded Christians to Fulfill.
3) "royal law", which James commanded Christians to Fulfill. The result of this fulfillment is love for their neighbors.
4) "and the "law of liberty", which James commanded Christians to continue in and to do the work.

 

IV. In Paul's first letter to the Corinthians we see one of the most informative verses regarding the laws found in each covenant. 1 Corinthians 9:20-21- “and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law;”[NKJV]

A. Here is a parenthetical statement which Paul used to insure there was no misunderstanding. Paul says, "being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ".[KJV] However Paul adapted his conduct, it never involved disobeying the word of the Lord, or violating his allegiance to the law of Christ.
B. Paul was still living under law, and here he was discussing various ways in which he engaged in his evangelistic efforts to both Jews and Gentiles. “Paul accommodated himself to the prejudices and preferences of men so far as he could without sacrificing truth and righteousness, in order to win them to Christ ... He did this, not that he might be personally popular with any man, but that by doing so he might throw no obstacle in the way of their giving the gospel a fair hearing.” [David Lipscomb]

1. To those Gentiles who did not live under the Law of Moses, Paul says he made it obvious that he was not living under that law. Then Paul made an important statement regarding the law under the new covenant. He said "being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ", in other words, "I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law".
2. Paul declared to Christians that he and every single person on earth, both Jew and Gentile were not living without law. The law he was living under was the "law to Christ". Of the laws Paul spoke of in this context, the law to Christ is the one he is living under.

C. Concerning the law of God, Paul wrote in Romans 8:7 – “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.”

1. A carnal mind is a sinful mind. In this context Paul was discussing the differences between those who live with and without sinful minds. This mind is subordinated to Satan instead of God and was called "the carnal mind" by Paul here. Such a mind no longer has any regard or concern for eternal things and is occupied completely with this earthly life of flesh.
2. He says those who live with carnal minds are not living in obedience to the law of God. If there were no law under the new covenant, then it would not be possible to live outside the law of God. There is law under the new covenant and in this verse Paul called it the law of God.

So far we have the:
1) "law of the spirit of life", which Paul said would free us from the law of sin and death.
2) "law of Christ", which Paul commanded Christians to Fulfill.
3) "royal law", which James commanded Christians to Fulfill. The result of this fulfillment is love for their neighbors.
4) "law of liberty", which James commanded Christians to continue in and to do the work.
5) "law to God" Which Paul says he is not living without.
6) "law to Christ", which Paul says he is living under.
7) "law of God", which Paul says carnal minded people are not living in obedience to.

V. In our study of Hebrews we learn a very important fact about the new covenant and law.

A. Hebrews 8:8-13 – “8. Because finding fault with them, He says: "Behold, the days are coming,'' says the Lord, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah 9. "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them,'' says the Lord. 10. "For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel: After those days,'' says the Lord, "I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 11. "None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, `Know the Lord,' for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. 12. "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.'' 13. In that He says, "A new covenant,'' He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”

1. There are a number of points that we can take from this context, relative to our lesson. There was going to be a new covenant. We know this new covenant is the New Testament under which all Christians live. But notice carefully, that God says that this new covenant is going to have its laws written on our hearts and in our minds.
2. This new covenant has laws. Being written on our hearts and minds tells us that Christians are going to follow this law from the heart out of love for God. Christians are going to follow the laws of the new covenant from their own free will, because they love God and want to obey Him. The new covenant which replaced the old covenant came with laws.

B. Finally, going back to James we see yet another reference to the law of liberty, James 2:9-12 – “9. but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10. For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. 11. For He who said, "Do not commit adultery,'' also said, "Do not murder.'' Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty.”

1. James is very obviously not speaking about the Law of Moses here. The scriptures make it crystal clear that the Law of Moses contained in the old covenant has been replaced by the new covenant whose laws govern us today. There are some important points we can take from these scriptures.
2. It is a transgression of God's law under the new covenant to show favoritism. In Verse 10, James writes, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all."
3. James lumps the entire new covenant law into one system. There is only one lawgiver, and only one law.
4. There are no transgressions of new covenant law that are more or less grievous to God. Any one transgression of any element of the law of Christ is a breach of the whole law because it breaks fellowship with the object of our faith, God.

a. James is reiterating something Jesus said in Matthew 5:19 – “Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” ,
b. There is no such thing as a white lie or small sin. Any transgression of the law of Christ is a trespass of the whole law. Verse 11 is given as an example.

C. Another very important point we need to take from this context is found in verse 12, “So speak and so do, as those who will be judged by the law of liberty." The law of liberty James spoke of is going to be used to judge us in the end. In John 12:48 Jesus tells us that we will be judged by the things He spoke, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.”

Let's go back over what we have so far...
1) "law of the spirit of life", which Paul said would free us from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)
2) "law of Christ", which Paul commanded Christians to Fulfill. (Galatians 6:2)
3) "royal law", which James commanded Christians to Fulfill. The result of this fulfillment is love for their neighbors. (James 2:8)
4) "law of liberty", which James commanded Christians to continue in and to do the work of that law. Our liberty is the freedom from sin, not a pass from obedience to God's law. (James 1:25)
5) "law to God" Which Paul says he is not living without.
6) "law to Christ", which Paul says he is living under. (1 Corinthians 9:21)
7) "law of God", which Paul says evil minded people are not subject to but should be. (Romans 8:7)
8) The "New Covenant" will replace the old covenant and its laws will be imprinted on our hearts (Hebrews 8:8-13)
9) The "law of liberty" is transgressed by any violation of God's will. (James 2:9-11)
10) The "law of liberty" is going to be used to judge us. (James 2:12)

VI. The word of God teaches that there is most certainly law under the new covenant. And this law can be broken, which means we need to obey the new covenant law faithfully, because in the end, we are going to be judged by new covenant law.  In order for there to be any judgment, there must be a standard or a set of rules by which we are judged. Yes, there is law under the new covenant and we must live by that law if we are to have any hope whatsoever of an eternal home in heaven with God.

CONCLUSION:
In our previous lessons on Faith, Grace and works, we established the need for all of these things to work together in order to provide man with a means and method of salvation. If grace was all that were required then everybody on earth would be saved regardless of how they lived or how they believed. It's by grace we are saved through faith so we know that it can't be grace alone. We also cannot be saved by faith alone because without grace all the faith in the world would be useless to us. Works are a necessary component of faith; therefore we cannot be saved by works alone either. It takes all three of these things, grace, faith and obedience working together.

Add to these three things God's law under the new covenant. God's grace provided us with a means and a hope of salvation. It's not grace alone because man has to make a response to what God has offered. Everything man does in his response can be summed up as faith.  Works are everything we do by faith. God does not owe us anything for them. Works cannot save us by going around the blood of Jesus Christ. Finally, the new covenant law is what we have to obey in order to live faithfully under the rule of Jesus Christ our king. Grace gave us hope. Faith is our response. Law is what directs how we are to live. If we did not have God's law, we would not know what our response to God's grace should be. Without God's law, we would not know how He wants us to live.
____________________________________________________________________________________

We learn 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.

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.

# ???

Taken from a sermon by: David Hersey

The Value of Bible Study

I Peter 1:23-2:3

After a few of the usual Sunday evening hymns, the church's minister once again slowly stood up, walked over to the pulpit, and gave a very brief introduction of his childhood friend. With that, an elderly man stepped up to the pulpit to speak.

"A father, his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific Coast," he began, "when a fast approaching storm blocked any attempt to get back to shore. The waves were so high, that even though the father was an experienced sailor, he could not keep the boat upright, and the three were swept into the ocean."

The old man hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking somewhat interested in his story.

He continued, "Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life....to which boy he would throw the other end of the line. He only had seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian, and he also knew that his son's friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. As the father yelled out, 'I love you, son!' he threw the line to his son's friend.

By the time he pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beyond the raging swells into the black of night. His body was never recovered."

By this time, the two teenagers were sitting straighter in the pew, waiting for the next words to come out of the old man's mouth.
"The father," he continued, "knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus, and he could not bear the thought of his son's friend stepping into an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son. How great is the love of God that He should do the same for us."
With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair as silence filled the room. Within minutes after the service ended, the two teenagers were at the old man's side.
"That was a nice story," politely started one of the boys, "but I don't think it was very realistic for a father to give up his son's life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian."

"Well, you've got a point there," the old man replied, glancing down at his worn Bible. A big smile broadened his narrow face, and he once again looked up at the boys and said, "It sure isn't very realistic, is it?

But I'm standing here today to tell you that THAT story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His Son for me. You see....I was his son's friend."

God expects His people to study His Word.
Babies in third world countries that are starving actually begin to lose their appetites due to malnourishment. A lack of appetite indicates a serious illness. A lot of times when relief workers will go over to these places and bring food to those that are starving and malnourished they have to force the people because they have lost their appetites.

There are many Christians that are seriously spiritually malnourished, and they have lost their appetites for the Word of God. The Bible is our source of spiritual nourishment.

We cannot expect to grow and stay strong in our faith apart from a regular diet of the Word of God. We as a church obviously cannot force-feed you, but we want to inspire a desire within you to desire and crave the word of God.

The Word of God was written for a purpose, and it wasn’t just because God thought it would be a neat thing to do, he wrote it so His people could know him better and know what He expects.
Text: I Peter 1:23-2:3
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.
2 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

I. Study God’s Word Together
We have Sunday Morning Bible studies aimed at trying to equip us with the knowledge and the tools necessary to stand strong in our faith.

While it is important that you study God’s Word on your own, and you can understand many aspects of God’s Word on your own, there is something special when a group of people meet together for the study of God’s Word.   I would like to encourage each member of Chardon to try their best to be a part of our Bible Study. I believe you will find that you are blessed because of it and you will also be a blessing to others.

There are several reasons that I feel that it is important to study God’s Word together...
A. Teachers Can Often Reveal New Information.   As you read through the Bible some concepts you can catch and understand on your own, the Bible wasn’t intended to be incredibly complex and hard to understand.

But sometimes you may need the help and understanding of someone who might have a deeper understanding of the scriptures.
Ephesians 4:11-12
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

There are some people that God has gifted with the ability to get great insight out of a passage.
Also, though you may have read a passage or story countless times we can always learn and grow from people.

The Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8 has been in Jerusalem worshipping, and he probably had heard some things about Jesus, and he was reading from Isaiah 53 about the suffering servant. He could not understand that particular Scripture on his own, he needed some help.

Phillip explained to him that the passage was talking about Jesus. There are times we can learn simple truth all over again or something that is taught may give us new insight into a particular passage.

The basic stuff is important and can nourish us spiritually; it doesn’t have to be a deep and new teaching for us to grow from it. Sometimes we simply need to be reminded of great Bible truths that we may be familiar with.

Some people feel that they have no need for the basic stuff, or they feel once they have read the Bible some they have read it enough.

Imagine if one day you came home and you had been working all day long, and you were starving. You asked what was for dinner, and you heard you were having the same meal you had 2 weeks ago. It is highly unlikely you would refuse that meal because you had it before. You still enjoy the basic foods that you eat.   How many times have you eaten pancakes, steak, bacon & eggs?

B. Others Can Benefit From Our experiences
Maybe you are a new Christian and think that you cannot bring much to a study,
but your questions and insight helps others to see God’s word more clearly and drives people to study.

I have learned that every person has some great insight,
every person has a different background, and different experiences that they can bring to the table.

When we meet and study, a class is better when we all share our insight.   Your insight may not seem like much to you, but what you say and share can greatly benefit and encourage others who are present.

We all are at different points in our lives; we are at different points in our Christian walks.
Some people have not been Christians long; some have been for a long while.

We have different experiences which makes us who we are.
We have all been through different trials and different roads.
Our experiences pooled together in a study can help a whole group grow and learn something they otherwise wouldn’t have learned.

I want to encourage you if you don’t regularly attend a group study here at Chardon, please consider doing so because others of us can grow, benefit, and be blessed by your insight and experiences even if it may not seem like much to you.

C. It Makes You Accountable For...
i. Having Godly Attitude
Hopefully all of us want to be the best people that we can possibly be. Hopefully we all want to please God in everything that we do. When we examine ourselves we see clearly that we fall short. We always need to be in the process of checking ourselves, and we should value the times when it is revealed to us that we are doing something wrong.

When we meet together and Study God’s Word in community sometimes our shortcomings are revealed to us. God’s Word reveals things about our attitudes that may need to change. The Spirit works through the Word and other people sometimes to help us see right from wrong.

Do you remember how David benefited from the accountability he received from other people? David’s sin with Bathsheba was not pleasing to God. The prophet Nathan came to David and confronted him about his ungodly action and that confrontation lead to repentance. It was hard for David to accept the fact that he had messed up, but in the end it leads him to a closer relationship with God.

We do not like learning that we are wrong about something. We may even get angry or frustrated, but in the end when we learn our faults it can lead to positive changes. Studying God’s Word together holds us accountable for having a godly attitude.

Your attendance at church is important because it is an opportunity to worship God, it is also important because it is an opportunity for you to learn from the Word of God. Sometimes being at church and coming to Bible studies is inconvenient and difficult. It may be tough for you because you have a busy schedule, because you have a lot going on, but I think studying God’s Word together with a group of people is a blessing to our faith.

I believe God expects His people to study His Word.
Coming to Bible study is not a burden that we have, but it is an opportunity.
The early Christians were always eager to meet together and study together. Studying God’s Word together holds us accountable to being faithful in attendance and faithful in our daily Bible study times.

iii. Sound Doctrine
Studying God’s Word can also help us to be held accountable for our doctrine. Despite what many say, it really does matter what we believe, and there are many false teachers who would like to deceive you.
2 Peter 2: 1-3
2 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.

There is a reason Paul told Timothy to watch his life and doctrine closely. Perhaps you could be listening to a preacher and hear them say something of how Proverbs says that if you are generous you will surely prosper.
You may fall into believing that, but if you are part of a group that studies God’s Word someone may remind you that it may be talking about spiritual prosperity.

If you have a group of people ... most likely there are people that understand different concepts and have retained different knowledge.
When you pool knowledge together it may be easier for each of us to learn and understand what God wants us to know about him and our salvation.
Ultimately what it comes down to is the Word of God is our measure of right and wrong and our measure of what Truth is.
If we do not search the Scriptures regularly and together we are subject to fall into a false teaching.

 

Acts 17:11

11 These were more [a]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.
Being part of a group study holds us accountable to what we believe.

D. Develops Strong Relationships
You read in the book of Acts about groups of people who were incredibly close and had deep strong relationships. There is a reason for that...

Acts 2:42
42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

We can do things together all day long, but studying God’s Word builds strong relationships faster than anything you can do. Another reason why you should study together is because of the bonds and the relationships that are formed through those studies.
I have seen in small group studies how barriers can be broken, and relationships can be formed as people study God’s Word together.

II. Study God’s Word Privately
If you attend one hour of worship a week, I think you can grow and learn some Bible, but I think that you are missing out on something great. We cannot get enough spiritual nourishment by hearing one sermon a week.

A USA Today Poll reported that 11% of American read the Bible every day. The Barna research group reports that among those claiming to be Christians only 18% read the Bible every day and 23% admit that they never read the Bible.

1 Timothy 4:7-8
7 But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. 8 For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.

As we mature in Christ our appetites may change, we start to desire solid food instead of milk. That is what it means to grow in our faith. We need realize there is more to our faith than just being saved; there is a lifestyle that glorifies God and brings joy to us.

Bible Study never grows old and no matter how long we have been Christians... God’s Word is still relevant because God’s Word discusses many things we need.
It discusses building relationships, preparing for the second coming, handling our finances, how we are to live and how we can know God.

2 Timothy 2:15

15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

People after hurricanes read and reread their insurance policies to see if they are covered and to see what help they can get. They want to know if their homes were covered if the things inside their homes were covered, if their hotel stays were covered. They do that to make sure that they do not fail to claim something that the insurance would pay, they don’t want to miss out on something

How much more vital is the word of God though? It is through the Word of God that we see and can claim promises that God offers us, it is in the Word of God that we read what God expects of us, yet so many people are living their lives based on how they feel God is and will be at judgment.
Sadly, many of those thoughts are based on preconceived ideas rather than the Truth of the Word of God.
Perhaps occasionally we need to ask ourselves some painful questions like: if your growth in Christ were measured by your amount of Bible intake where would you stand?

If you come to the conclusion that you have neglected the Word of God, then you need to determine what you are going to do to fix the problem? I think it begins by making intentional steps to read the Word.

I can make this promise to you...
if you read God’s Word regularly for an extended period of time with an open mind and heart it will change your life for the better.

Always remember though, that there is no one that is above the need to be in the Word of God.
God invited us to come and know Him better, and he has revealed himself in his Word, let us make the most of that opportunity so that we do not miss out on something that he has to offer. That is why God expects members of His Church to read the Word.

Joshua 1:6-8
6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.
7 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Faith and Works

Faith and Works
James 2:14

INTRO:
This lesson that we're going to have today is related to the lesson that we had on God's grace and our faith. The reason that I want to expand our look in scripture, is that there are some objections to the idea of faith being an active faith. One of the main arguments brought to bear against it, is that we're not saved by works.

In my last lesson, we saw that grace, as a comprehensive Biblical term, represented everything that God did in providing salvation to mankind.

We see that “The wages of sin is death…” in Romans 6:23, which means separation from God. Sin is a violation of God’s law and causes mankind to lose fellowship with Him. God is holy and just, and He cannot overlook our sins. There has to be a punishment for sin, and that punishment is eternal separation from fellowship with God. The only way that man can regain that fellowship is if he pays the just penalty for that sin.

It doesn't matter what that sin is. The penalty is the same. We have all lost our fellowship with God and that cannot be restored unless we pay the penalty in full.

Thankfully for us, God is rich in grace and mercy and does not want to see us suffer for all eternity. He wants people to have a chance to regain that fellowship. He provides a plan where a person can have the hope of being reconciled.

We said that God was under no obligation to do this. There's nothing mankind can do to earn it or pay for it, and we don't in any way deserve it. Nothing man did compelled or can compel God to do this.

This means of reconciliation came at a great personal expense for God, namely the life of His Son as a substitutionary death penalty for us. God could have washed His hands of mankind and walked away to leave us to our fate forever. He would have been perfectly within His right to do that very thing.

He didn't owe us anything. We got into this predicament all by ourselves. God is absolutely blameless in all that we have done and God has no obligations toward mankind in this affair beyond what He has obligated Himself for.

Because God loves us so much, He graciously came up with a plan by which man could be reconciled to Him and escape this death penalty of sin. Grace can be illustrated as God reaching down from heaven toward doomed mankind with an offer of salvation. His motivation for doing this is entirely out of His love for us. That is grace.

Faith, as we learned in my last lesson, is a comprehensive Biblical term representing man's response to God's gracious offer. We respond to God's grace by and through faith. Grace alone cannot save us, because if it did, then everybody living would automatically have their tickets punched for the ride to heaven, no matter how they lived. We have to respond to God's gracious offer in order to receive it. The response we must give is represented in the Bible as faith. Ephesians 2:8 reads “For by grace you have been saved through faith…” .

Neither grace nor faith is mutually exclusive, meaning one does not rule out or cancel the other. Our salvation is not by grace only because we must have faith. Salvation cannot be by faith only because we must have grace. Salvation is made available by grace through faith.

Two roles, two actions, two responses working together. God responded to our situation with grace. We respond to God's offer through faith. In order for either one of these to be of any benefit to us, we have to have both.

When we read Ephesians 2:9, we see another point that Paul makes in that same context, “not of works, lest anyone should boast.” How do works operate in our faith response?

This is a very important question that needs to be answered because there are a vast number of people who believe and teach that faith is really faith only and that no works are necessary. They support this teaching by saying that works don't save us, and within the proper context, they are absolutely right. Works do not save us.

The remainder of this lesson is going to examine the role of faith and how it relates to work.

I. First of all, we need to define what a work is. A work is any mental or physical act that is intended to produce a result. The act of making a decision is work. Even the mental exercise of believing something is work, you've done something. Believing something requires the intake of information upon which a decision is made. That is an act which is intended to produce a result. It is therefore a work in and of itself.

A. The Bible even defines faith as a work in First Thessalonians 1:3, where Paul writes “remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father,”

1. Again in Second Thessalonians 1:11, Paul wrote, “Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power,” Faith is a work. And for those who believe and teach that biblical faith means faith only, i.e. that we are saved by faith without works, this becomes a problem.
2. If we are not saved by works, then we cannot be saved by faith, which is defined as a work in Scripture. Then how do we solve this? How can we be saved through faith, which is a work, but not be saved by works?
3. The simple answer to this is that the Word of God does teach us that we're not saved by works, but it never, ever, says that we can be saved without them.
4. Some people have the understanding that we are not saved by works, therefore we are saved without them. That understanding is an assumption that is totally foreign to what the Word of God actually teaches us about faith and works. Our understanding of faith and works must come from a comprehensive view of all that has been written about them.
5. Jesus declared in Matthew 7:21 that only the obedient would inherit eternal life. One cannot be obedient to Jesus without engaging in a work.

B. Not all works are the same, and not all of them have the same application in regard to our salvation, the same function. There is more than one kind of “works” and there is more than one way they are relevant to our salvation. One must ask, in what way do works save me and in what way do they not save me?

1. One. The gift of God's grace, which is everything He did in order to secure a means and hope of salvation for a person, cannot be bypassed by any work. God's grace cannot be taken away from, or diminished by any human work. God's grace cannot be earned, it cannot be paid for. It cannot be deserved or merited by anything that we could possibly do. In that way, our works cannot save us. Our works cannot save us by going around or bypassing God's grace.
2. Two. God was under no obligation to provide man a means of salvation. He would have been perfectly within His rights to just allow us to spend an eternity in Hell. Yet, God’s entire plan of redemption for mankind was all set in place before time began.

a. In speaking of Christ, Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:20- “He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.”
b. Paul wrote in Romans 5:8 – “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” No human work can add to or take away from that commitment. In that way, we are not saved by our works. Our works cannot save us by going around God's plan of salvation.

3. Three. Jesus gave His life for us. Galatians 2:20 – “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” He died the death we deserve. 1 John 2:2 – “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”[NIV] No human work can make that sacrifice unnecessary. In that way we are not saved by our works. Our works cannot save us by going around the blood of Christ.
4. Four. Jesus said in John 14:6 – “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus is the mediator. No human work can bypass Christ and get us to the Father. In that way we are not saved by our works.
5. Five. We were dead in our sins before we came to Christ (Colossians 2:13). He purchased us with His own blood, (Acts 20:28). We were purchased with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20, and 7:23). He is the guarantee of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14).

a. We were dead, and now we are alive. The cost was Jesus blood. We belong to God. He is rightfully entitled to everything we do.
b. Every work we engage in rightfully belongs to Him. Our works are not solely ours to decide what we're going to do with them. There's nothing we can do that will buy us back from God. We have nothing to offer that does not already belong to Him. In that way, our works cannot save us.

II. In the last lesson, we looked at the term “faith” as it was used in many applications in the word of God. We're going to go back through some of those. You're going to remember some of them, and we're going to make some observations as it relates to the subject of works.

A. Let's keep in mind as we go through this list that faith is defined as a “work” in the Word of God.

1. Remember in 1 Thessalonians 1:3 faith is a work. We're going to read that one again. “remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father,”
2. Then again, 2 Thessalonians 1:11 – “Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power,” The inspired Apostle Paul defined faith as a work.

B. The work of faith is our shield. Ephesians 6:16 – “above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one”

1. Using our faith as a shield is a work of faith. We cannot use our faith as a shield and quench the darts of the wicked without doing something—engaging in a work. Using our faith as a shield requires a decision to do so, and the act of doing it.
2. God does not owe us anything when we do this. We don't deserve God's grace, nor can we merit our salvation by making our faith a shield. We have not bypassed Jesus with this work of faith. We have not added to or taken away from God's grace with this action in any way, shape or form.

C. The work of faith is both a sacrifice and a service. Philippians 2:17 – “Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.” Sacrifices are things we give up. Service is something we do for one another and for those outside Christ. We cannot engage in a faith that sacrifices and serves without doing something. A faith without sacrifice and service would be a faith that is missing these works.
D. James wrote in James 2:14 - “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?” That was a rhetorical question which had the implied answer of no…it cannot.

1. It is not possible for faith alone to be a sacrifice and a service. It is not possible for faith to be a sacrifice and a service without works. The work of faith therefore, includes the work of sacrifice and service.
2. That being said, this work of faith is not a merit of salvation. It doesn't pay for it. It cannot add anything to what God has done for us. It cannot save us apart from the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. In these ways, our work of faith through sacrifice and service cannot save us.

E. The work of faith is a walk. 2 Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith, not by sight”.

1. Ephesians 2:10 – “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
2. Colossians 2:6 reads “As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,”
3. The work of faith includes a walk. A walk is a way of life. It's the way our life is lived. It is not possible to walk a way of life without engaging in a work. Our work of faith must include our walk, our way of life. This work of faith is not meritorious. It cannot get us into heaven apart from Jesus Christ, nor can it make His sacrifice for us unnecessary. These are ways in which our walk of faith cannot save us. However this does not mean that our walk of faith is not necessary.
4. James wrote in James 2:17 – “Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James says that faith without works is alone and dead. James made it clear in verse 14 that a claim of faith without works does not profit us, save us.

F. The work of faith is a trial. James 1:7 – “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” [KJV]

1. A trial is a test of faith, patience or stamina through subjection to suffering or temptation. We cannot endure the trial of faith without doing something. James wrote in 2:18 – “But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works.'' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”[NKJV] . We show our faith to others when we endure the trials of our faith and overcome suffering and temptation.
2. The trial of our faith cannot pay for our salvation. The trial of our faith cannot get us into a home in heaven apart from God's grace. We don't deserve God's grace when we work the trial of our faith. These are ways in which our work of faith cannot save us. It does not mean that our trial of faith is not necessary.

G. The work of faith is a fight. First Timothy 6:12 – “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” Fighting requires defensive and offensive actions. We have to defend the truth and carry God's word to the lost. One cannot engage in a fight without doing something. Fighting the good fight of faith requires action.

1. James wrote in 2:19-20 – “thou believest that there is one God. Thou doest well. The devils also believe and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?”[KJV] James declared that a faith with no works is a dead faith. A dead faith cannot produce a living soul.
2. Fighting the good fight of faith is a work. Does this work of faith merit God's salvation? No. Will this work of faith make Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for our sins unnecessary? No. Will it make it unnecessary for Christ to die for our sins? No way. These are ways in which our fight of faith cannot save us.

H. Biblical Faith is a Shield, faith is a sacrifice, a service, a walk, a trial, a fight, and therefore faith must be a work. Yet, works cannot earn or merit of salvation. But we can't be saved without them, for Jesus declared in Matthew 7:21 – “Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” Since we cannot get into the kingdom of heaven without doing His will, then we know we can't get there without works.

III. Works cannot compel God to offer man a means of reconciliation, but we cannot be reconciled without them.

A. Paul wrote in Titus 3:5 – “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,” God implemented the plan of redemption all on His own, without any help or motivation from us. Works cannot place us in a position where we can boast of our salvation. We can never do enough. We can never be good enough that we can be boastful.

1. Ephesians 2:8-9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Notice that grace is the gift of God. That's everything that God did for us. It is a gift of God; it is not because of our works, not because anything we did, so we can not boast.
2. Works cannot replace Jesus on the cross, but we can’t be saved without them. Works cannot bypass Jesus to gain access the Father but we can’t access Him without them.

B. 1 Corinthians 6:20 – “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.” The price that was paid for us has nothing whatsoever to do with our works. Works cannot repay that debt, and we certainly cannot be saved without them.
C. We cannot be saved without the faith response. Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 1:8-9 – “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His 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,”.

1. God's grace was given to us through Christ Jesus. That decision was made before time began. Nothing we can possibly do can change that, add to it or take away from it. That does not mean that works, i.e. obedience to God is not necessary.
2. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 – “and to give you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,”
3. We cannot obey the gospel without working. It is just not possible. Those who fail to obey will be punished forever. Faith without obedience leads to destruction. Faith without works is dead.
4. Again in James 2:20-22 – “ But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?”

IV. We have looked at a lot of things that works cannot do. What can they do? Let's look at some things that the word of God says that works can do.

A. The work of obeying Jesus will make us wise. Matthew 7:24 – “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:”

1. On the other hand failing to obey Jesus makes us foolish. In that same context, starting in verse 26 – “Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:”
2. You all know how this ends, the house on a solid foundation withstood the storms but the house on sand, did not.

B. Works of obedience to God demonstrate our love for Him.

1. John 14:23-24 – “Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.”
2. Works of disobedience to God demonstrate that we do not love God: “He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.”

C. Those who work the works of righteousness are accepted by God. Acts 10:35 – “But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.”
D. Works of obedience makes us servants of righteousness. Romans 6:16 – “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?”

1. Works of righteousness make us righteous. 1 John 3:7 – “Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.”
2. Failure to work these works of righteousness results in our not being of God. 1 John 3:10—same context. “In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.”
3. If we fail to work obedience to God's commands and claim that we know him, we are liars. 1 John 2:4 – “He who says, "I know Him,'' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
4. Those who do work obedience to God's commandments are in God, and also have God perfected within them. First John 2:5 – “But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.” It's our works of obedience, keeping the Word, which perfects the love of God within us. By this same thing is how we know that we are in Him.
5. Those who work obedience have purified their souls. First Peter 1:22 – “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,”
6. Works of obedience will help us seek for glory and honor and immortality. In speaking of God, Paul writes in Romans 2:6-7 – “who "will render to each one according to his deeds'': eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality;”.

E. Those are some of the things that works will achieve.

CONCLUSION:
Those who do good will be resurrected to eternal life, while those who do evil will be resurrected to condemnation. Obedience to Jesus Christ results in Him being the author of our eternal salvation. The Hebrew writer, speaking of Jesus, writes in Hebrews 5:9 – “And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,”.

Scripture shows us over and over again; “Good works results in good things. Bad works results in bad things”. But one thing we must never forget is that no matter what good that we may do in life, our works neither promotes or compels God to offer us salvation. Neither can they pay for it. They cannot earn it. No matter what good we may do, we don't deserve it. We can't work our way to heaven without Christ.
We can't work enough to get around the need for His death on the cross, the shedding of His blood. Those are the things that works can never do, and we must always keep that in mind. We can never work enough to gain an eternal inheritance in heaven apart from God's grace and our faith.

On the other side of the coin, we also can't get to heaven without works. If we want to be saved, we're going to have to work for something we can never earn, never pay for, never merit, never deserve and never get… apart from God's grace.

Jesus said in John 6:27 – “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” He said to labor. You can't labor without working.
______________________________________________________________________________

We learn 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.

If anybody needs to respond, either to dedicate themselves to Christ, be buried with Him in baptism, and become a part of the work He has for us; or if you need to ask for prayers on your behalf, won’t you come forward as we stand and sing our Invitational song.

# ???
Reference Sermon by: David Hersey