
Sermon of The Week:
From The Mountains of Colorado Pastor Dan Parton

How to Forsake Sin
Proverbs 28:13
February 6, 2019
Introduction: In last week’s Bible study, we learned the importance of keeping a short sin account. Solomon taught his son to confess sin quickly and not hold on to it, because concealed sin leads to open failure. In that message, we defined five words:
- “Covereth” means “to conceal.” This comes from a word which means “a tapestry.” A tapestry not only covered something up, but also was used as a decoration.
- “Prosper” means “to accomplish successfully; to go through.”
- “Confesseth” means “to own up to, to agree with, to say the same word.”
- “Forsaketh” means “to leave in a destitute condition without any further care.” It is the opposite of holding fast.
- “Mercy” means “to love tenderly, to have compassion or pity upon anyone, to have a helpful concern.”
White-washing sin insures absolute failure. However, if God’s people will own-up to their sin and agree with God about it and let go of it, they will find God’s compassion and help.
In order for a person to be forgiven of sin, he must confess that sin to the Lord. He has to own up to what he has done and agree with God about it, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) However, confession alone does not bring victory over any particular sin; it only brings forgiveness.
In order to find victory over sin, there must also be a forsaking of that sin. Remember that forsake means “to leave in a destitute condition without any further care; it is the opposite of holding fast.” Rather than leaving their sin in a destitute condition, they hold fast to it. God makes it very clear that those, who hold fast to their sin, will not prosper, and this is the reason many Christians never finish victoriously when it comes to their personal sins.
In that same message, we saw whether or not we truly confessed our sin or white-washed it. Solomon taught that we must also forsake that sin. With what kind of white-wash have you covered your sin? Have you become a politically correct Christian? I asked these questions:
- Do you call “sin” sin, or do you say you made a mistake?
- Do you call it mixed nakedness or mixed swimming?
- Do you call it drunkenness or a disease?
- Do you call it moral decadence or being righteously challenged?
- Do you call it cursing or French or German or Irish?
- Do you call it pornography or “boys will be boys”?
- Do you call it an addiction or simply a bad habit?
- Do you call it gluttony or a healthy appetite?
- Do you call it immodesty, or do you call it shorts and miniskirts?
- Do you call it indecency or the latest fad?
- Do you call it uncontrolled anger, or do you blame it on the color of your hair?
- Do you call it lying, or do you say you’re stretching the truth?
- Do you call it robbing God, or do you say your tithe is meeting other personal family needs?
- Do you call it cheating on your taxes or keeping what is rightfully yours?
In this study, I would like to begin where I left off. I made the following statement, “It would be like confessing the sin of drunkenness, and keeping the refrigerator full of alcohol. It would be like confessing the sin of pornography, while visiting pornographic web sites, reading pornographic material, or watching pornographic programs. It would be like confessing ungodly music as sin, while keeping your collection of ungodly records, tapes, and CD’s.”
Just how can we leave our sin in a destitute condition? In Physics, the second law of thermodynamics teaches us that anything left to itself will decay. This law can apply to the forsaking of sin. We must take sin off of life support in order to truly forsake it.
Let me give one Biblical example before I offer any practical application. In 1 Samuel 19, we find the story of David fleeing from his avowed enemy, King Saul. David had married Saul’s daughter Michal. When Saul had promised to kill David, and Michal knew that he was on his way over to their house to take his life, she did what she could to protect her husband from her father’s jealous anger. In that story, we find that she used an image to fool Saul into thinking David was sick in bed, “And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick. And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him. And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goats’ hair for his bolster.” (1 Samuel 19:14-16) This image was a “teraphim,” a life-size good luck idol. This kind of teraphim was consulted daily for advice and wisdom. (Sounds a great deal like the modern-day horoscope.)
* What stands out in this story is that David had an idol in his home. Why would David have an idol in his home? He was called a man after God’s own heart. There are many Christians today who keep their own kind of teraphim around just in case.
Here are some practical applications for forsaking sin:
1. Clean up the inside.
- This is confession, and confession brings forgiveness for sin.
2. Clean up the outside.
- This is forsaking, and forsaking brings victory over sin.
- If you have a problem with pornography, give up the magazines like Penthouse, Playboy, Playgirl, Cosmopolitan, and Hustler; stay away from the magazine racks; unplug CineMax, Showtime, HBO, and any other pornographic input. Don’t give place to pornography!
- If you have a problem with ungodly music, get rid of all the ungodly music in your home, and reprogram your stereo and car radio. Give up Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) as well, and clean out your CD, tape, and record case. Don’t give place to ungodly music!
- If you have problems with internet filth, stay out of chat rooms or just get off the internet altogether. Avoid any contact whatsoever with anything resembling filth. The internet offers a unique opportunity for weak-minded, weak-willed people to consume upon the lust of their flesh. Don’t give place to internet filth!
- If you have a problem with gossip, stop reading the gossip columns and magazines such as the National Enquirer and Globe. Quit watching gossip programs on TV like Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, the View, and such. Don’t answer questions such as, “Guess what I heard about so-and-so?” Don’t give place to gossip!
- If you have a problem with criticism, stay away from critical people, stop reading critical material, and don’t be a part of anyone’s criticism. I would rather be the subject of someone’s criticism than be a participant in it. Don’t give place to criticism!
- If you have a problem with language, stop watching TV programs that use curse words, or reading articles containing inappropriate language. Don’t give place to inappropriate language!
- If you have a problem with tobacco, stay away from the tobacco shop at the mall, no matter how good it smells. Don’t give place to tobacco!
- If you have a problem with a lascivious mind, stay away from that which feeds a smutty mind, i.e., ungodly music and other sensual forms of entertainment such as inappropriate videos and DVD’s and the movie theater. Stay completely away from those smutty romance novels! Don’t give place to lasciviousness!
Conclusion: You cannot have victory over a particular sin until you take it off of life support. Life support can keep a person, who really ought to be dead, alive for an indefinite period of time. This can be very costly to those who decide not to pull the plug.
* Life support is good for those who have a chance but costly and wasteful for the families of those who don’t.
Sin shouldn’t have a chance; and if you keep it on life support, it will cost you more than you can imagine. You need to pull the plug on sin. In so doing, you will find a willingness from the Lord to give you victory.
Ephesians 4:22-32 addresses this very issue, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”
If you intend to fully forsake your sin, you must not give it a place!
Five Truths to Remember About God
1 Samuel 30:1-6
February 3, 2019
Introduction: David had entered into one of the darkest hours of his life. He had many of these dark hours. Just because we know the Lord doesn’t mean that there will be no dark days. Every now and then, defeat comes into the lives of, even the best of Christians. So it was with David here in 1 Samuel 30.
David and his men had returned to Ziklag. There, they found that the Amalekites had smitten Ziklag and had burned up the city, taken all of their wives and children captive, and had left the city desolate. This caused a great grief to all of the people, “Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.” (1 Samuel 30:4) Can you imagine how they must have felt!
Because of this tragedy, the people turned against David for a short time and even spoke of stoning him to death. Then, we come to the last phrase in verse 6 which says, “…but David encouragedhimself in the LORD his God.” The plain truth is, hard times can drain us of all of the strength we have!
When seeming defeat does come into your life, what should you try to remember about the Lord? After all, David did encourage himself in the Lord. I want to share with you five remembrances of the Lord that will help you to make it in your dark times.
1. God can do anything.
- “Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” (Genesis 18:14)
- “Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:” (Jeremiah 32:17)
- “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)
* This ought to be enough to encourage any Christian facing defeat.
* “Preacher, is there anything that God cannot do?” Yes! God cannot fail!
* Surely, the God Who spoke the universe into existence is much bigger and much more powerful than our problems. I believe that…do you?
2. God loves you.
- “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
- “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.” (1 John 4:16)
- “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
* There is no deeper truth found in the pages of Holy Writ!
3. God promises to protect and provide for His own.
- Read Psalm 91.
- Read Psalm 121.
- Remember, the Lord is thy keeper!
4. God cannot and will not lie.
- “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;” (Titus 1:2)
- “That by two immutable (not able to be changed) things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:” (Hebrews 6:18)
* You have never personally known God to lie to you or anyone else!
* You have never known God to go back on any of His promises.
* If God has ever broken a promise, then God is a liar…and He is not!
* You have never found Him to be wrong, but in looking back, you have found yourself to be inaccurate. Psalm 119:128 states, “Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things TO BE RIGHT; and I hate every false way.”
5. God never changes.
- “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19)
- “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.” (1 Samuel 15:29)
- “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13:8)
Conclusion: We must remember these five truths about God if we are going to get through those times of defeat! But, if we know these things to be true, why do we stay defeated? There are three reasons:
- Ignorance; we do not know or fully understand these five truths about God.
- Weakness; we forget these five truths about God.
- Unbelief; we do not believe these five truths about God.
When the times of defeat come to us, may we all remember these five truths so that we can make it safely through the trial. I would much rather get to Heaven having trusted all the way than to have doubted all the time!
How to Confess Sin
Proverbs 28:13
February 3, 2019
Introduction: In this portion of Scripture, Solomon teaches his son Rehoboam the importance of keeping a short sin account. Many Christians today have a sin account with a very large outstanding balance. Certainly, as the king of Israel, Rehoboam would need to insure God’s blessing upon his life and work. Solomon wanted to make sure that he understood that God’s blessing is conditional. Notice these words with me:
- “Covereth” means “to conceal.” This comes from a word which means “a tapestry.” A tapestry not only covered something up, but also was used as a decoration.
- “Prosper” means “to accomplish successfully; to go through.”
- “Confesseth” means “to own up to, to agree with, to say the same word.”
- “Forsaketh” means “to leave in a destitute condition without any further care.” It is the opposite of holding fast.
- “Mercy” means “to love tenderly, to have compassion or pity upon anyone, to have a helpful concern.”
Solomon teaches his son that to whitewash his sin would insure absolute failure. However, if Rehoboam would own-up to his sin and agree with God about it and let go of it, he would find God’s compassion and help.
When people hide sin, that is, when they attempt to cover it up, it will cause certain side effects in their lives. Psalm 32:1-4 tell us what David went through when he tried to white-wash his sin with Bathsheba, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.”
- Weariness (verse 3)
- Chastening (verse 4)
A person cannot conceal his sin forever. Years ago when I lived in Minnesota, we had a fairly large backyard. In the corner of that yard, there grew a rhubarb plant. It was huge! I tried mowing it down, chopping it up, pulling it out, and everything else I could think of. No matter what I did, it always grew back. No, I do not like rhubarb! I finally figured out that in order to get rid of the plant, I needed to dig out its root system. When I did that, it never grew back. We also had dandelions. They would grow until I dug out their roots.
* So it is with sin. You can decorate it and cover it any way you choose, but until you deal with it, it will always be there to haunt you.
In order for a person to be forgiven of sin, he must confess that sin to the Lord. He has to own up to what he has done and agree with God about it, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) However, confession alone does not bring victory over any particular sin; it only brings forgiveness.
In order to find victory over sin, there must also be a forsaking of that sin. Remember that “forsake” means “to leave in a destitute condition without any further care.” Many people enjoy sinning much more than they enjoy victory over sin. Rather than leaving their sin in a destitute condition, they hold fast to it.
God makes it very clear that those, who hold fast to their sin, will not prosper. It would be like confessing the sin of drunkenness, and keeping the refrigerator full of alcohol. It would be like confessing the sin of pornography, while visiting pornographic web sites, reading pornographic material, or watching pornographic programs. It would be like confessing ungodly music as sin, while keeping your collection of ungodly records, tapes, and CD’s.
Again, Psalm 32 gives us some insight as to how to care for sin. Verse 5 states, “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.”
- “Acknowledge” means “to know, to make known.”
* Psalm 51:3-4, “For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”
* 2 Samuel 12:13 says, “And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.”
- “Confess” means “to own up to, to agree with, to say the same word.”
* Proverbs 28:13 says, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”
* 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Solomon then says that we must also forsake that sin. With what kind of tapestry have you decorated your sin? Have you become a politically correct Christian?
- Do you call “sin” sin, or do you say you made a mistake?
- Do you call it mixed nakedness or mixed swimming?
- Do you call it drunkenness or a disease?
- Do you call it moral decadence or being righteously challenged?
- Do you call it cursing or French or German or Irish?
- Do you call it pornography or “boys will be boys”?
- Do you call it an addiction or simply a bad habit?
- Do you call it gluttony or a healthy appetite?
- Do you call it immodesty, or do you call it shorts and miniskirts?
- Do you call it indecency or the latest fad?
- Do you call it uncontrolled anger, or do you blame it on the color of your hair?
- Do you call it lying, or do you say you’re stretching the truth?
- Do you call it robbing God, or do you say your tithe is meeting other personal family needs?
- Do you call it cheating on your taxes or keeping what is rightfully yours?
Conclusion: What kind of tapestry is laid over the top of your sin? We should remember these important lessons:
- Spraying perfume over body odor does not take care of the body odor.
- Putting clean clothing on a dirty body does not care for the filth.
And confessing sin without forsaking sin brings no victory. In other words, if you’re going to prosper, you have to not only own up to your sin, you must also decide to forsake it.
But how do you forsake sin? Does the Word of God give us this answer or leave us destitute of the answer? That is the topic of the next “How To” message next week. Don’t miss it!
Turn Us
Psalm 85:1-13
January 27, 2019
Introduction: Psalm 85 is much like John Newton’s “Amazing Grace” in that it is a sweet reminder of the grace of God in the hard times of life.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me Home.
The Apostle Paul wrote of the same amazing grace in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”
In verses 1-3, the Psalmist reminds them of what the Lord had done for them. He said:
- “Thou hast been favourable unto thy land.”
- “Thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.”
- “Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people.
- “Thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.”
- “Thou hast taken away all thy wrath.”
- “Thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.”
Realizing what the Lord had done for them in times past, they now ask the Lord to answer four specific pleas.
1. Turn us. - Psalm 85:4
“Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.”
- In making this plea, they openly admit that their eyes have been turned in the wrong direction.
- Psalm 80:3 states, “Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.”
- They feared returning to the old life. In verse 8, we read, “I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.”
- This was a two-fold plea:
* Turn us away from sin, i.e., anything that displeases the Lord, both inward sin and outward sin; both sins of commission and sins of omission.
* Turn us back to God, i.e., the Word of God, service, obedience, worship, prayer, praise, witnessing, faithfulness, etc.
- God’s people ought to fear a return to the old life! Do you?
2. Revive us. - Psalm 85:6
“Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?”
- God’s people need times of personal revival and renewal!
- Sin desensitizes us to the point that our hearts become dead to spiritual things. It happens ever so slowly, but it does happen.
- For example, the Word of God says in 2 Peter 1:5-10, “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.”
- Hovie Lister penned the song “How Long Has it Been?”
How long has it been, since you talked to the Lord,
And told Him your heart’s hidden secrets?
How long since you prayed,
How long since you stayed,
On your knees ’til the light shone through?
How long has it been since your mind felt at ease,
How long since your heart knew no burden?
Can you call Him your friend,
How long has it been,
Since you knew that He cared for you?
How long has it been since you knelt by your bed,
And prayed to the Lord up in Heaven?
How long since you knew,
That He’d answer you,
And would keep you the long night through?
How long has it been since you woke with the dawn,
And felt that the day’s worth the living?
Can you call Him your friend,
How long has it been,
Since you knew that He cared for you?
- By the way, how long HAS it been?
3. Speak to us. - Psalm 85:8
“I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.”
- Quite literally, they wanted God to promise them peace.
- There is no peace to those who choose folly over faith, who choose foolishness over faithfulness! Isaiah wrote, “There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.” (Isaiah 48:22)
* Isaiah 26:3 is the key to peace, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
* Philippians 4:6-7 are the steps to peace, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
4. Look at us. - Psalm 85:11-13
“Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase. Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.”
- This is an interesting promise. In order to get God to look on them with blessings, a condition had to be met.
* Truth must spring out of the earth. This was a faithful and constant goodness, fidelity, integrity, justness, and true sincerity. In order for the Lord to cause His face to shine on His servants, this truth must be springing up, that is, on the grow. Are you growing in this way?
Conclusion: These four pleas are pertinent today as well. Here we are at the beginning of 2019, and we ought to make these our pleas for the remainder:
- Turn us.
- Revive us.
- Speak to us.
- Look at us.
God has been good to you in the past. Let Him have His way with thee for the rest of this year as well!
Thanks for Being There
I Kings 17:1-9
January 27, 2019
Introduction: Over the years of being in the ministry, I have heard the phrase, “Thanks for just being there!” I have said to many people and have had it said to me many times. It has been said to and about my family. I have heard people say it to and about each other. I have asked myself, “Where is “there”? Is “there” here, or where? Having given this question some serious thought, I believe that I have come up with where “there” is.
1. “There” is where everyone is. - 1 Corinthians 10:13
“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
- We all have a situation in life that is unique to us. I do not know that there are any unique problems any where on the face of the earth, but every situation is unique to those in that particular situation.
2. “There” is unavoidable.
- No one plans to go where “there” is.
- If we could have planned last year, I doubt seriously if we would have added all of the hard times.
- “There” is unavoidable because God has a plan for our lives.
- “There” is unavoidable because we tend to wander from God.
3. Someone needs to be “there” for those who end up “there.”
- Since every body ends up “there,” “there” needs to be someone “there” for them when they get “there.”
- Be “there” for the lost. You’re the bridge that God may use to keep someone out of the fires of eternal Hell.
* Ben Conrad was “there” for me on February 16, 1964.
* A pastor was “there” for Robin on August 4, 1974.
* We have been “there” for our four children.
- Jonathan - November 20, 1986.
- Cindy - April 4, 1989.
- David - January 14, 1990.
- Jack - April 24, 1994.
- Be “there” for the backslider. You ought to be someone to return to.
* The prodigal son had his father.
* Teens in our youth groups over the years have had us.
- Be “there” for the hurting. You’re someone to lean on.
* Your own family.
* Your friends.
* Your home should be a haven for the hurting.
- I remember years ago when a teenager in our youth group was killed while riding his bike. We were on vacation and had gone as far as Hyles-Anderson College. We had stopped to visit our kids who were students there. When the news came to us, we decided to drive back home to Minnesota the next day. Shortly after we arrived, I went to the home of the young man who had been killed. When I stepped into the house, his older brother said, “See, I told you he’d be here!” I’m glad I was “there” for that sweet family.
Conclusion: Perhaps the single most important thing about being “there” is being available. Dr. Bob Jones, Sr., used to say, “Your most important ability is dependability.” Perhaps it is best said about being “there” that “Your most important ability is availability!” If you are dependable but not “there,” you cannot be of help to those who are “there.” Just where is “there”?
- At the end of the rope.
- At the bottom of the cliff.
- At the end of the line.
- At the point of despair.
- At the brink of disaster.
- “There” is just about any place.
If you will let me say this, don’t expect people to be “there” for you. You determine to be “there” for others whether or not they are ever “there” for you.
Where is your “there”? Are you “there”? Do you know someone who is “there”?
More on Mountains and Mole Hills
Song of Solomon 2:15
January 23, 2019
Introduction: In the Bible study last Wednesday evening, I told you about when my parents would say to me, “Son, don’t make a mountain out of a mole hill.” They didn’t want me to imagine something bigger than it was. I learned early on that not everything that goes wrong in life is a crisis. They taught me a number of important little lessons in life that have meant a great deal to me.
Last Wednesday, I focused in on that “mountain and mole hill” statement. There are many little things in life, when left unattended, that turn into mountains. I said a mole hill is easier to conquer than a mountain. There is a phrase found in Song of Solomon 2:15 spoken by the Shulamite girl, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.” The reference here is concerning how little things left unattended turn into big things. The little foxes would enter into the vineyard at the most vulnerable place. They would enter by going under the wall or through a hole in the wall. Once they got inside the vineyard, they found that the grapes were too high for them to eat, so they would nibble away at the vine closest to the ground. They also found that if they could weaken the vine, the tender grapes would fall at their feet.
The Shulamite asked her brother to “take us the foxes, the little foxes…” This meant she wanted someone to catch the little foxes before they could do any damage. The foxes were small, but they could cause a great deal of injury to the vineyard if they were allowed to run in and near it. It is from this story I began to apply the importance of caring for little things before they become big things. In other words, let’s not allow mole hills to become mountains. This morning I mentioned several little foxes we need to catch:
1. Catch the little fox of laziness. - Proverbs 6:10-11
“Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.”
- Dr. R. G. Lee said, “Work hard. Laziness is like leprosy in life.” R.G. Lee was right.
- Notice that Solomon tells his son here that only a little slumber and a little folding of the hands to sleep brings poverty.
- What little thing keeps nagging away at you to get it done? Remember, it only takes a little laziness to spoil the vine.
2. Catch the little fox of folly. - Ecclesiastes 10:1
“Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.”
- It takes a long time to build a good reputation but only a moment to ruin one.
- Folly’s fruit can outlast many years of hard work.
- It just doesn’t take much to ruin a good reputation. Sometimes, all it takes is:
* A little too much joking around.
* A little carelessness.
* A little gossip.
* A little criticism.
- Before you know it, whatever good reputation you enjoyed, is gone.
3. Catch the little fox of little faith. - Matthew 6:30
“Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?”
- God is displeased with our “little faith.”
- It is impossible to please God without faith.
- The Lord does not want us to have a little faith; neither does He want us to have no faith at all. He simply wants us to believe Him, and this is what pleases Him.
- Little faith is a little fox, and if it goes unchecked, you’ll spend all of your life doubting God.
4. Catch the little fox of little love. - Luke 7:47
“Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.”
- Self-righteous people find little need to be forgiven. These same self-righteous individuals find it very difficult to love much.
- The little fox of little love will pay bad rewards if you go on loving only a little.
- God does not want us to love Him only a little, rather He wants us to love Him a great deal, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” (Matthew 22:37)
- This is a little fox that can do great damage.
* What happens if we only love God a little? We break His command to us to love Him with all our hearts.
* What happens if we only love children a little? We break their hearts.
* What happens if we only love each other a little? We break our relationships.
* What happens if we only love the lost a little? We break their hope for Heaven.
* What happens if we only love backsliders a little? We break their hope for restoration.
Today, I want to give you two more foxes you need to catch before they spoil your Christian life.
1. Catch the little fox of a little leaven. - 1 Corinthians 5:6
“Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?”
- The context here is that of allowing sin in the church without taking care of it.
- Leaven is always a picture of sin. In the Bible, it never pictures anything good.
- Notice just how much leaven it takes to leaven an entire lump of dough. Only a little.
- It simply does not take a whole lot of leaven to leaven an entire lump of dough, neither does it take a whole lot of the world to corrupt a good Christian. If it only takes a little of the worldly leaven to make a good Christian worldly, that means it doesn’t take much at all!
- The three leavens mentioned in the Bible are:
* The leaven of the Pharisees - hypocrisy!
* The leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees - false doctrine!
* The leaven of Herod - worldliness!
- It only takes a little hypocrisy to make you hypocritical.
- It only takes a little false doctrine to make your doctrine bad.
- It only takes a little worldliness to make you a worldly Christian.
- The little fox of a little leaven can have far-reaching effects. Remember, it only takes a little.
2. Catch the little fox called a little member. - James 3:5-6
“Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.”
- One of the greatest powers God has given us is the power of talking.
* How you talk, reveals what you are!
- In the book of James, the tongue is compared to a bridle, a bit, and a rudder. All of these are little things, but they are all used to control and guide things that are much larger. Your tongue can be used to give direction to others, both good and bad.
- In this passage, James compares the tongue to a fire that is set on fire of Hell. This is strong language for such a little member of our bodies!
- Lying, criticism, backbiting, and all kinds of evil speaking are destructive. The tongue may be little, but as songwriter Kurt Kaiser put it in his song “Pass It On,” “it only takes a spark to get a fire going…”
- You cannot tame your little tongue, but God can, if you allow Him to. The Bible says that we should:
* Remove destructive language, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice.” (Ephesians 4:29-31)
* Add edifying language, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers…And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:29, 32)
- The little fox called the little member can destroy a life or build one.
Conclusion: Big foxes cannot get under the wall of the vineyard, neither can they go through the holes in the wall. The little ones are the ones that do the most damage. No one here will fall to any great sin…first. They will first fall to the little sins, those little foxes. The big ones will follow naturally.
What little area have you left unattended? The Shulamite admonished her brothers, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines…” (Song of Solomon 2:15) Take, that is, catch, the little foxes that will spoil the vine. Little foxes take away the part that makes you grow as a Christian. I should mention here that the little word “spoil” means “to bend or twist, to lay waste.” Little foxes will nibble away at your Christian life until you bend, until you twist, until you are laid waste! Set out today, to catch them and keep them from the tender grapes of your Christian life!
Disobeying God’s Word
Hebrews 12:14-29
January 20, 2019
Introduction: Now, let’s take a look at the last parenthetical warning for believers found in the book of Hebrews. Like the others, it is about the Hebrew Christian’s relationship to the Word of God. Here is a short review of the first four warnings:
1. Drifting from the Word of God through neglect; Hebrews 2:1-4, “Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him.” (Hebrews 2:1-3)
2. Doubting the Word of God through the hardness of the heart; Hebrews 3:7-4:13, “While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:15-19)
3. Dullness to the Word of God through laziness; Hebrews 5:11-6:20, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, if God permit.” (Hebrews 6:1-3)
4. Despising the Word of God through willful sin; Hebrews 10:26-39, “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:26-27)
The final warning is found in Hebrews 12:14-29:
5. Disobeying the Word of God through refusing to hear; Hebrews 12:14-29, “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.” (Hebrews 12:25)
- The illustration that is used is the story of God’s speaking to the nation of Israel out of the mountain. Those people pleaded with God not to speak to them anymore; they did not want to hear His voice, “…which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more.” (Hebrews 12:19)
- Why would God’s children refuse to listen to God’s voice? The reason is simple, there is a price to be paid in order to listen to the Word of God, “For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touched the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart.” (Hebrews 12:20)
Those people who rejected God’s Word were judged by Him. Much more then, with all the additional truth that we have that was not available to Israel, we shall be judged if we refuse to heed the Word of God, “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.” (Hebrews 12:25)
Our attitude toward the Word of God should be one of delight, “But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psalm 1:2), but it should also be one of seriousness.
- When God spoke to the people from the mountain, Moses said, “…I exceedingly fear and quake.” (Hebrews 12:21)
- We should have this type of holy fear for the Word of God, “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.” (Hebrews 12:28)
- Why is fear necessary? Because “…our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29)
He will judge believers’ sin, not with condemnation, but with chastisement; but chastisement is a very serious thing!
Conclusion: These warnings apply to believers and relate to God’s chastening here on earth and loss of reward at the judgment seat of Christ. They in no way deal with losing your salvation, giving it away, handing it back, or anything like these things. The warnings have nothing to do with whether or not a person is truly saved.
Hebrews is a very strong warning to Christians about their relationship to the Word of God. It is true, what you do with the Bible determines what God does with you!
You and Your Church
Psalm 84:1-12
January 20, 2019
Introduction: Such a beautiful Psalm is Psalm 84! The psalmist loved going to the temple to worship. There were only three times a year they were able to go to the temple and worship, so the trip was a special one for everyone.
The author was envious of the sparrows and swallows who were able to make their nests in the eves of the temple. They got to be there all year long and never had to leave.
* I remember being that way as a teen. Once I got to church, I never really wanted to leave. I always wanted to be the last one to leave...Now, it seems like I never leave!
What a joy it was for these believers to be able to actually go to the temple and there worship! It did not get old, nor did it become old hat. It was always fresh and new; it was always a joyous time. The women folk were never really required to go, but many of them made the journey to the temple. Why? Because they wanted to be with their families? Because they wanted to travel? No, mainly because they desired to worship God at the temple.
There is an amazing thought found in verse 10, “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.” He was simply saying that he would prefer being the doorkeeper in the house of God than to stay in the dwelling places of those who were lawbreakers.
Rather be a doorkeeper? Rather be a servant? Yes, he had rather be a servant than have the prosperity the wicked know! He did not desire to lead or have a big name. He did not desire to be the top dog and have many people following him. He just desired to serve in the house of God. I say, God give us more doorkeepers who just desire to be servants!
How could this man say such a thing? After all, there is no future in just serving…is there? What would bring him to the place to where he could have that desire?
1. It was someplace special. - Psalm 84:1
“How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!”
- “How amiable!” What he was saying was, “how beloved, how pleasant, how beautiful, how special!”
- He only got to go there three times a year, so the trip was always special.
* It was the place where atonement was made for sin.
* It was the place where God’s people gathered.
* It was the place where they got to sing the songs of Zion.
* It was the place where they worshipped God.
* It was the place where everything seemed to come together.
- I missed so much when I was out of church for a few years. I wonder just what kind of Christian I could have been had I stayed faithful for those few early teen-age years.
- He wanted to raise his family at the House of God just like the little birds did. This is very important.
2. It was a place where he desired to be. - Psalm 84:2-3
“My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God. Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.”
- He desired to be there, for it was the place where God met with His people.
- It sounds like a good idea to be where God is.
* Mary of Bethany desired to be where Jesus was.
* Peter desired to build three temples on the mount of transfiguration.
* Thousands desired to be where Jesus was. It just sounds like a great idea to me!
- One never knows what he has in the blessing of God until he no longer has it.
* Samson wist not that the power of the Holy Spirit had left him.
* Eli knew what it was to lose God’s blessing.
* The church in Laodicea had church and all that went with it, but Jesus stood outside the door and knocked in order to be invited in.
- The Psalmist just wanted to be in the presence of God.
3. It was the place of God’s blessing. - Psalm 84:4-7
“Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools. They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
- This is one of the many beatitudes of the Bible. It means “Oh, the great happiness of…”
- He saw that those, who were at the temple, were happy people. Burdened, yes, but still greatly happy. The temple was a happy place!
- Happy day! Happy day!
When Jesus washed my sins away!
He taught me how to watch and pray
And live rejoicing everyday!
Happy day! Happy day!
When Jesus washed my sins away!
- Days are filled with sorrow and care,
Hearts are lonely and drear.
Burdens are lifted at Calvary.
Jesus is very near.
- We are happy people, praise the Lord…
- There is a song in my heart today,
Something I never had.
Jesus has taken my sins away,
Oh! say but I’m glad!
Oh! say but I’m glad, I’m glad!
Oh! say but I’m glad!
Jesus has come and my cup’s overrun;
Oh! say but I’m glad!
Wonderful, marvelous love He brings
Into a heart that’s sad.
Through darkest tunnels the soul just sings,
Oh! Say but I’m glad.
- This old world has no blessings, but God’s house has plenty of them to go around!
4. It was the place to serve. - Psalm 84:10
“For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
- He didn’t want to be a big shot. He just wanted to be the servant!
- He didn’t want to have a big name. He just wanted to be a servant!
- He didn’t want to have the praise of men. He just wanted to be a servant!
- He didn’t want to get a reward. He just wanted to be a servant!
- He didn’t want to get any recognition. He just wanted to be a servant!
- He didn’t want to have all the fanfare. He just wanted to be a servant!
- Great preacher of years gone by, Robert Sheffey, was asked, “Who are you?” He quietly replied, “I’m just the servant of the Lord.” And he was just that.
- To be a servant is to be among the Bible greats: Jesus, Mary, Martha, John Mark, Peter, James, John, Paul, David, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Phebe, Barnabas, Ruth, Esther, Dr. Luke, and many others were simply the servants of the Lord.
- One of the great sins in our churches today is that of not serving the Lord within that local church. It’s like the story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done,
And Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.
Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did.
Somebody got angry about this,
Because it was Everybody’s job.
Everybody thought Anybody could do it,
But Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it.
It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody
When Nobody did what Anybody could have done!
- It is a great sin of which the people of God need to repent!
- It would please the Lord if people were willing to be doorkeepers in His house!
Conclusion: Enough of this lethargic, self-centered, lazy generation of Christianity. We tend to sit, soak, and sour in the sweet assurance of our blessed salvation, while we sit back and do nothing for the cause of Christ!
The Psalmist said that he had rather be just a doorkeeper in God’s house than live in sin. What more can you do to serve the Lord? There’s work to be done. Let’s get to it while there is still time to serve the Lord. Work for the night is coming when man’s work is done!
Psalm 122:1 says, “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.” This was the happiest time for the Jew. He really wanted to go to the House of God. We are not quite like that. We try to find reasons not to go:
- Too tired
- Too busy
- Too sick (when you’re not)
- Too many other things to do - TV, ball games, school work, etc.
How is your attitude about going to church? If you can “take it or leave it,” you will eventually leave it. Many have and you’re not above it. Take measures now to make sure that you stay in church.
How to Make a Mountain Out of a Mole Hill
Song of Solomon 2:15
January 16, 2019
Introduction: When I was a kid, my parents would say to me, “Son, don’t make a mountain out of a mole hill.” My mom probably said it more than my dad, but it was always said in the same context. They didn’t want me to imagine something bigger than it was. I learned early on that not everything that goes wrong in life is a crisis. They taught me a number of important little lessons in life that have meant a great deal to me. Another one was, “Don’t let that money burn a hole in your pocket.” It’s just a little statement, but it has made me frugal, sometimes to a fault.
I would like to zero in, though, on that mountain and molehill statement. There are many little things in life, when left unattended, turn into mountains. A molehill is easier to conquer than a mountain. There is a phrase found in Song of Solomon 2:15 spoken by the Shulamite girl, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.” The reference here is concerning how little things left unattended turn into big things. The little foxes would enter into the vineyard at the most vulnerable place. They would enter by going under the wall or through a hole in the wall. Once they got inside the vineyard, they found that the grapes were too high for them to eat, so they would nibble away at the vine closest to the ground. They also found that if they could weaken the vine, the tender grapes would fall at their feet.
The Shulamite asked her brother to “take us the foxes, the little foxes…” This meant she wanted someone to catch the little foxes before they could do any damage. The foxes were small, but they could cause a great deal of injury to the vineyard if they were allowed to run in and near it. It is from this story I want to apply the importance of caring for little things before they become big things. In other words, let’s not allow molehills to become mountains.
1. Catch the little fox of laziness. - Proverbs 6:10-11
“Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.”
- Dr. R.G. Lee said, “Work hard. Laziness is like leprosy in life.” R. G. Lee was right.
- Notice that Solomon tells his son here that only a little slumber and a little folding of the hands to sleep brings poverty.
- When my mom first had her stroke in 1988, I remember visiting with my dad at the kitchen table. When we finished eating our snack, my dad suggested that we put our dishes in the dishwasher right away. He then said to me that if you don’t care for dirty dishes right away, they really begin to stack up on you! We both looked at each other and then laughed. Apparently he had found out the hard way that letting things go never fixes anything.
- What little thing keeps nagging away at you to get it done? Remember, it only takes a little laziness to spoil the vine.
2. Catch the little fox of folly. - Ecclesiastes 10:1
“Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.”
- It takes a long time to build a good reputation but only a moment to ruin one.
- Notice how this verse teaches that a man with a good reputation can have it ruined by a little too much folly.
- Folly’s fruit can outlast many years of hard work.
- It just doesn’t take much to ruin a good reputation. Sometimes, all it takes is:
* A little too much joking around.
* A little carelessness.
* A little gossip.
* A little criticism.
- Before you know it, whatever good reputation you enjoyed, is gone.
3. Catch the little fox of little faith. - Matthew 6:30
“Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?”
- God is displeased with our “little faith.”
- It is impossible to please God without faith, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
- The Lord does not want us to have a little faith; neither does He want us to have no faith at all. He simply wants us to believe Him, and this is what pleases Him.
- Little faith is a little fox, and if it goes unchecked, you’ll spend all of your life doubting God.
4. Catch the little fox of little love. - Luke 7:47
“Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.”
- It is possible for a Christian to love only a little. Jesus made it plain that one, who was forgiven least, loves only a little. This is not to say that you have to be involved in gross and overt sins in order to be forgiven much and love much. It speaks more of gratitude for forgiveness.
- Self-righteous people find little need to be forgiven. These same self-righteous individuals find it very difficult to love much.
- The little fox of little love will pay bad rewards if you go on loving only a little.
- When a person only has little love, it becomes easy for that person to leave that love. Revelation 2:4 says, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.”
- God does not want us to love Him only a little, rather He wants us to love Him a great deal, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” (Matthew 22:37)
- The truth is, Christians can love very little, but this is not right, no matter how many Christians love only a little.
- The Bible never teaches that we can lose our love, but It does teach that we can leave our first love. It also teaches that we can love only a little.
- This is a little fox that can do great damage.
* What happens if we only love God a little? We break His command to us to love Him with all our hearts.
* What happens if we only love children a little? We break their hearts.
* What happens if we only love each other a little? We break our relationships.
* What happens if we only love the lost a little? We break their hope for Heaven.
* What happens if we only love backsliders a little? We break their hope for restoration.
Conclusion: Big foxes cannot get under the wall of the vineyard. Neither can they go through the holes in the wall. The little ones are the ones that do the most damage. No one here will fall to any great sin…first. They will first fall to the little sins, those little foxes. The big ones will follow naturally.
What little area have you left unattended? The Shulamite admonished her brothers, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines…” (Song of Solomon 2:15) Take, that is, catch the little foxes that will spoil the vine. Little foxes take away the part that makes you grow as a Christian. Set out today to catch them and keep them from the tender grapes of your Christian life!
The Sin of Immaturity
Hebrews 6:1
January 6, 2019
Introduction: This chapter begins with an invitation, “…let us go on unto perfection…” (Hebrews 6:1) This invitation highlights the theme of Hebrews, making progress in the Christian life. We need to examine this invitation.
1. Let us…
- This phrase is only one among many reasons we know this warning was not written to the lost; “us” included the author, the Apostle Paul.
- This, as has been stated, is an invitation, an encouragement to all Christians to go on to maturity, (Perfection, of course, is used here, as throughout the book of Hebrews, to mean “completion” or“maturity.”)
- Many Christians feel that due to their past experiences, their habits, their lack of character-training during childhood, or the depths of sin to which they have plunged, it is impossible for them to ever enjoy the victorious Christian life.
- Holiness and maturity, they think, is for some Christians; it is not for all, and it is definitely not for them. If these discouraged and defeated Christians are right, why has God given us such an invitation?
* To frustrate us?
* To discourage us?
* To depress us?
- Or did God extend this invitation to give us hope, excitement, and a desire for holy, victorious living?
- This invitation is meant to encourage, “You can do it! Come on, let’s get started. You can be a complete Christian.” This invitation should be taken personally by every Christian. The journey to Spiritual Canaan is not so difficult that only a chosen few can make it. You can make it too!
2. Go on unto perfection…
- This is not an exhortation to “sinless perfection,” the doctrine that teaches the annihilation of the old nature making it impossible for the believer to sin again. It is an invitation to victorious Christian living and should be understood only in that context.
- We only need to page through our Bibles to discover the Scriptural concept of perfection. A brief look at three Old Testament examples of “perfect” men will prove that “sinless perfection” is not what God had in mind. These men were certainly not sinlessly perfect!
* The first example is Noah, “…Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.” (Genesis 6:9) Noah was called a perfect man, yet he ended up drunk. He was certainly not sinlessly perfect!
* The next example is David. In a song of praise because God had delivered him, David wrote, “God is my strength and power; and he maketh my way perfect.” (2 Samuel 22:33) David was a perfect man, yet he committed adultery with Bathsheba and had Uriah killed. He was certainly not sinlessly perfect!
* The third example is Job. God said this about Job, “…that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.” (Job 1:1) When Satan came to the Lord to accuse God’s children, God said, “Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man. one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” (Job 1:8) Job was a perfect man, yet he grew proud over his faithfulness to God. He was certainly not sinlessly perfect!
- These three men were considered perfect, yet they were sinners. The Biblical concept of perfection does not involve an eradication of the sin nature. The Bible teaches that the perfect man is the Christ-like man, “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13) This verse is talking about spiritual maturity; the perfect Christian is the Christ-like Christian.
* The sin of immaturity. - God has commanded us to be perfect, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) To refuse to grow to maturity is sin; it is the sin of disobeying God’s direct command. To be a baby at birth is normal; to remain a baby through life is tragic. Perhaps, you have seen somebody who is an adult physically but who has remained a child mentally and emotionally. This is always tragic. But more tragic than this is the Christian who remains a spiritual baby. Don’t remain a child; grow to maturity!
* The source of maturity. - A Christian can only grow in grace by depending on God, for He is the Christian’s source of maturity, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever.” (Hebrews 13:20-21) “…the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever…” (1 Peter 5:10-11) These verses teach us several lessons about God as the Christian’s source of spiritual maturity:
- God makes the believer mature through Jesus Christ. Notice these phrases, “Through Jesus Christ” (Hebrews 13:21), and “by Christ Jesus” (1 Peter 5:10). The only way a man can be saved is through Christ, and the only way a man can become a spiritual Christian is through Christ. He is “the way.”
- Not only do we become spiritual through Christ, but we become spiritual because of grace, “The God of all grace.” (1 Peter 5:10) No one deserves the blessing of spiritual victory in his life; no one can boast because of the spiritual victories he has won. Since our battles are won by the grace of God, the glory for the victories belongs to Christ.
- God makes us “perfect” that we might bring glory to Him, “To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever…” (1 Peter 5:11); “…to whom be glory for ever and ever…” (Hebrews 13:21)
- Spiritual maturity is measured in terms of doing the will of God, “…in every good work to do his will…” (Hebrews 13:21)
Conclusion: Were you aware that not growing in Christ as you ought is sin? Sin should be confessed and forsaken, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13)
How Precious!
Psalm 40:5,17; 139:17-18
January 6, 2019
Introduction: One of the most beautiful of all the flowers in the bouquet of God’s Word is found in Psalm 40:5,17. The very God of Heaven, this Creator of the universe, He who made the heavens and the earth and hold it all in place perfectly, this God Who gave the mighty oak hi strength and each delicate flower its color, He Who painted the sky and walks on the wings of the wind, this One Who made man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life, this almighty God thinks about me!
Yes, it is true! As poor and needy as I am, God thinks about me. This is both amazing and unbelievable!
We continually think about those whom we love. God is that way, too, and the Bible says we were created in His image. Surely, this must mean that God really and truly loves me, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
I am so glad that my Father in Heaven
Tells of His love in the Book He has given.
Wonderful things in the Bible I see,
This is the dearest that Jesus loves me.
I am so glad that Jesus loves me,
Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me,
I am so glad that Jesus loves me,
Jesus loves even me.
There is a man in the Bible who is called a man after God’s own heart. His name is David, the sweet psalmist of Israel. It is interesting to note that David was much like God in his heart. On whom did David think? With whom did David associate himself?
- Psalm 147:2-3, “The LORD doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.”
- 1 Samuel 22:1-2, “David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.”
* The outcasts.
* The broken in heart.
* The distressed.
* The poor.
* The discontented.
All of us can relate to these people in one way or another. Since David was like God in his heart, it is fair to say that these people are those whom God things about as well!
Today, I want to address these people, the ones whom God thinks about all the time.
1. The outcasts.
- These are those who just don’t seem to fit in anywhere. Some call them misfits.
- Luke 14:21-22 name a few, “So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.”
* The poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind, the street people of that day if you please.
- God thinks about the outcasts for even His Son was himself an outcast, “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” (John 1:10-12)
- Isaiah 53:3 records that He was despised and rejected of men. Jesus was an outcast.
- This is why Jesus understands the way of the outcast!
2. The broken in heart.
- These are those among us today whose hearts are broken. The burdens of life have you down, way down!
- Parents have broken hearts today over sons and daughters that are far away from God.
- Children have broken hearts today over their parents’ coldness to the things of God.
- Families have broken hearts today over lost loved ones.
- Some have broken hearts today over none of these things but for their own spiritual and emotional condition.
* Do you hear Jesus saying, “You are in My thoughts, in My heart”?
- The Word of God says, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
- God understands the broken in heart, for His Son Jesus died of a broken heart. Psalm 69:19-21 state, “Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee. Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.”
- Jesus, the Man of Sorrows, thinks about the broken in heart!
3. The distressed.
- These are they who must endure suffering and pain, those who agonize over difficulties that are out of their control.
- This might include physical, emotional, and spiritual suffering.
* Today, some lie in hospitals dying of cancer, some walk with walkers because of a crippling disease, others sit alone paralyzed because of an debilitating accident. All one has to do is read through our prayer list on Wednesday evenings to see that the needs of the distressed are more than can be numbered.
- Why would God think about those in distress? Because Jesus was also distressed. He suffered and agonized more than any other man.
* He saved others, Himself He cannot save.
* He suffered our Hell for us on the cross of Calvary.
* He sweat great drops of blood as He prayed and agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane.
- Why? Because He loves us, that’s why!
- Jesus thinks about the distressed because he Himself was distressed!
4. The poor.
- Most will be able to relate to this perhaps more than all the others.
- There seems to be a special place in the heart of the Saviour for the truly poor and needy. He blesses those who remember the poor and curses those who neglect them.
- Those with no money, by default, have to depend on God to supply their needs.
- When Peter had no money to pay their taxes, he went to Jesus Who, by way of no small miracle, provided for the taxes.
- God thinks about the poor, for Jesus was made poor, “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)
- Jesus thinks about the poor, for he Himself was poor!
5. The discontented.
- These are those among us who desire a miracle, to see a change for the good, but don’t see it…yet!
- You have prayed and waited on God for the longest time, yet there seems to be no answer…yet!
- Wait, I say, on the Lord! Pray without ceasing! Endure hardness! Trust in the Lord with all thine heart! Be not weary in well-doing! David encouraged himself in the Lord, and so can you! The answer may be just around the bend!
- In this way, Jesus also knew and understood discontent.
* In the garden, He prayed, “…O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” (Matthew 26:39)
* Over Jerusalem, He wept, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem…how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matthew 23:37)
- Yes, Jesus understands the discontented, for Jesus was discontented!
Conclusion: “How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!”
Upon what are your thoughts today?
* The outcasts?
* The broken in heart?
* The distressed?
* The poor?
* The discontented?
These are those upon whom the Lord centers His thoughts. Aren’t you glad he thinks about you? I sure am! But I must also think on what He thinks about. This will make me a better Christian and one who is more like the Lord.
2018 Sermons
Lamentations - Study 5
Lamentations 4 (read 1-2)
December 26, 2018
Introduction: We now enter into a study of Jeremiah’s fourth lamentation. Here, the mighty prophet clarifies Jerusalem’s desperate situation and details the causes and events of the city’s destruction. Finally, Jeremiah gives a strong warning to Edom.
This chapter, like chapters 1-2, is an acrostic. You will notice in your Bibles that each verse begins successively with each letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
1. Jerusalem’s current judgment.
- The consequences of Jerusalem’s destruction.
* God’s chastisement of His people affected everyone without exception. This is the consequence of sin. When Jerusalem was destroyed, it affected:
- The children, “How is the gold become dim! how is the most fine gold changed! the stones of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of every street. The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter! Even the sea monsters draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones: the daughter of my people is become cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness. The tongue of the sucking child cleaveth to the roof of his mouth for thirst: the young children ask bread, and no man breaketh it unto them.”(Lamentations 4:1-4)
- The mothers, “The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.” (Lamentations 4:10)
- The rich people, “They that did feed delicately are desolate in the streets: they that were brought up in scarlet embrace dunghills. For the punishment of the iniquity of the daughter of my people is greater than the punishment of the sin of Sodom, that was overthrown as in a moment, and no hands stayed on her.” (Lamentations 4:5,6)
- The princes, “Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than rubies, their polishing was of sapphire: Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick. They that be slain with the sword are better than they that be slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for want of the fruits of the field.” (Lamentations 4:7-9)
- The causes of Jerusalem’s destruction.
* The sins of the prophets and priests, “The LORD hath accomplished his fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof. The kings of the earth, and all the inhabitants of the world, would not have believed that the adversary and the enemy should have entered into the gates of Jerusalem. For the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests, that have shed the blood of the just in the midst of her, They have wandered as blind men in the streets, they have polluted themselves with blood, so that men could not touch their garments. They cried unto them, Depart ye; it is unclean; depart, depart, touch not: when they fled away and wandered, they said among the heathen, They shall no more sojourn there. The anger of the LORD hath divided them; he will no more regard them: they respected not the persons of the priests, they favoured not the elders.” (Lamentations 4:11-16)
* The strength of the enemy, “As for us, our eyes as yet failed for our vain help: in our watching we have watched for a nation that could not save us. They hunt our steps, that we cannot go in our streets: our end is near, our days are fulfilled; for our end is come. Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness. The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the LORD, was taken in their pits, of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the heathen.” (Lamentations 4:17-20)
* They trusted in the strength of man instead of God. This kind of trust always ends up in a bad way. The Psalmist wrote, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.” (Psalm 118:8-9)
2. Edom’s coming judgment. - Lamentations 4:21-22
“Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom, that dwellest in the land of Uz; the cup also shall pass through unto thee: thou shalt be drunken, and shalt make thyself naked. The punishment of thine iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; he will no more carry thee away into captivity: he will visit thine iniquity, O daughter of Edom; he will discover thy sins.”
- Said in a rather solemn way, verse 21 states, “Go ahead, laugh now while you can, because later, you won’t be able to.”
Conclusion: When you backslide, more damage is done than what you can imagine. When a person backslides, he believes it causes no harm except to himself. What are the affects of backsliding? There are a number of characteristics of the backslider found in Jeremiah’s writings. Notice Jeremiah’s warnings to God’s people in the book of Jeremiah concerning backsliding:
1. Your backsliding will be noticed by others. Jeremiah 3:6 says, “…Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done?”
2. Your backsliding will influence others to backslide. Jeremiah 3:8 says, “…her [Israel’s] treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.”
3. Backsliding is always judged. Jeremiah 2:19 says, “Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee…”
4. Backsliders always justify what they’ve done. Jeremiah 3:11, “…backsliding Israel hath justified herself…”
5. Backsliding always increases. Jeremiah 5:6 says, “…their backslidings are increased.”
6. Backsliding is perpetual. Jeremiah 8:5 says, “Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.”
When Peter backslid, he took others with him including John, the disciple whom Jesus loved. When judgment comes upon sin, it affects many, as we have seen in this study. Innocent children were affected, as well as, their mothers. Jeremiah suffered through the judgment.
When Abraham went to Egypt out of God’s will, it affected his entire family. When Lot chose the well-watered plain of Sodom, it affected the family he did not yet have.
If you choose to backslide, before you do, think of everyone who may be affected by your bad choice. It may cost you more than you are willing to pay.
If God Permit
Hebrews 6:1-8
December 30, 2018
Introduction: The invitation, “…let us go on unto perfection…” in Hebrews 6:1, is an invitation and encouragement to all Christians to go on to maturity. It is meant to encourage us and should be taken personally by every born-again believer. This week, we will continue our examination of this invitation; but first, a short review:
1. Let us - Hebrews 6:1
- “Perfection,” of course, is used here, as throughout the book of Hebrews, to mean “completion” or “maturity.”
2. Go on unto perfection - Hebrews 6:1
- This is not an exhortation to “sinless perfection.” It is an invitation to victorious Christian living and should be understood only in that context.
3. Not laying again the foundation. - Hebrews 6:1
- The writer here is speaking of addition, not substitution. He is saying that there are things that should be added to the foundation.
4. Go on. - Hebrews 6:1
- These two words come from one of the most exciting words in the book of Hebrews, “phero.” This Greek word means “upheld or borne.” (Hebrews 1:3; 2 Peter 1:21)
- Hebrews 6:1 is teaching us that the same power in operation at the writing of the Scriptures is available for our trip to Canaan. God’s part in our spiritual victory is comparable to His part in giving the Bible to man or in holding the world together.
* Question: What does all this mean?
- Answer: No man can become a complete Christian on his own any more than he could uphold the universe or write Scripture on his own. To say, therefore, that you are unable to cross the Jordan is meaningless. It is not human effort, but divine power, that takes God’s people to Canaan.
* Question: Why would God prevent a Christian from growing to maturity? (Hebrews 6:1-3)
- Answer: Because of sin! Hebrews 6:4-8 speak of a sin that will keep Christians out of spiritual Canaan.
- The words “fall away,” found in verse 6, mean “to deviate from the right path, turn aside, to wander.” It is in reference to the basic illustration used in Hebrews of the Israelites turning away from Canaan.
* Question: Is the warning of Hebrews 6:1-8 for believers or unbelievers?
- Answer: Obviously, I believe it is a warning to Christians. Notice five Bible facts about the people to whom this warning was given.
1. They were enlightened. - Hebrews 6:4
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened…”
- It is impossible to use this word to describe an unsaved man, because the Bible says the unsaved man’s mind is darkened. This is the reason for Paul’s exhortation in Ephesians 4:17-18, “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart.”
- An understanding of spiritual truth, which is what “enlightened” means, can only be possessed by the believer. Paul prays for an increase of such an understanding for the Ephesians, “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.” (Ephesians 1:18)
- The unbeliever’s mind is darkened; the believer’s mind is enlightened.
2. They tasted the Heavenly gift. - Hebrews 6:4
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift…”
- What is the Heavenly gift to man?
* In John 4, Jesus offered this gift to the woman at the well. In Acts 8:20, Peter said that God’s gift could not be bought with money.
- The gift of Heaven can be summed up in this way:
* God gave His Son. (John 3:16)
* God’s Son gave His life. (Romans 5:6-8)
* Therefore, we can have the gift of salvation. (Romans 5:15-21; Ephesians 2:8-9)
- Obviously, if the Hebrew Christians tasted the Heavenly gift, they had been born again.
3. They were partakers of the Holy Ghost. - Hebrews 6:4
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost.”
- The word “partaker” is used several times in Hebrews. It is used twice in Hebrews 2:14, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” In this verse, the phrase “part of” is the same word as “partakers.”
- This verse is saying that Jesus actually became flesh and blood. Just as Jesus actually partook of flesh and blood, the Hebrew Christians actually partook of the Holy Ghost. One is just as real as the other.
- The Bible teaches that the unsaved have not the Spirit of God, but Christians do. The leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives is an evidence of salvation, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” (Romans 8:14)
- Notice these words, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” (Romans 8:9)
* To partake of the Holy Spirit is to be born again, “And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” (Romans 8:10) One who has received the Spirit of God has also received eternal life!
4. They tasted the good Word of God. - Hebrews 6:5
“And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come.”
- In this passage, as throughout the Bible, the physical is used to illustrate the spiritual. What food is to the natural body, the Bible is to the soul.
- Many times, the Bible refers to the tasting or eating of the Word of God. For example:
* Jeremiah 15:16, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.”
* Ezekiel 2:8, “But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.”
* Revelation 10:9-11, “And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.”
- To taste the Word of God means “to receive it into your life.” This will involve reading the Word, or listening to the Word taught. The people to whom the book of Hebrews was written had been receiving the Word of God into their lives. This leads us to an important Biblical principle, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
- Since these people had received the Word of God, something the unsaved man cannot do, these were born-again believers.
5. And…of the powers of the world to come. - Hebrews 6:5
“And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come.”
- The word “world” is a reference to the time when Christ reigns on earth. This verse is suggesting a tremendous truth: the victorious Christian experiences the power of the millennium today. The one who is approaching victory has begun to “taste” of the power that will be his after he surrenders his all to God.
- The Old Testament provides us with a beautiful illustration of this experience:
* When the spies returned from Canaan, they brought with them the fruit of the land, “And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs…And they told him, and said. We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.” (Numbers 13:23, 27) The Israelites were able to see, handle, and taste the fruit of Canaan before they actually crossed the Jordan River.
- Christians are able to taste the power of a surrendered life before they make that total surrender; they see souls saved, have prayers answered, and begin to understand the teachings of the Word of God.
- God is seeking to motivate them to make the surrender that will permit them to have the “fruit of Canaan” as their continual diet.
Conclusion: Therefore, we conclude that this warning is written to born-again believers NOT the lost. So the warning is this, “Let us go on unto perfection…and this will we do, if God permit. For it is impossible…to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame…if they shall fall away.”
This is the “if God permit” in a nutshell. Sin will keep the Christian from going on to perfection.
So, You Want God’s Blessing in 2019
Psalm 1
December 30, 2018
Introduction: Let’s face it, 2018 was a mixed bag for most of us. We grew in some areas, and we failed in others.
I want 2019 to be a year of great blessing. I truly want God’s sweet blessing upon me, my family, and the entire Timberline Baptist Church family. It is my sincere belief that God has placed some formulas for blessing throughout the Word of God. After all, He does not want us to utterly fail, so He has provided the how-to’s of blessing.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at Psalm 1 all over again. Just like Corn Flakes, let’s taste ‘em again for the very first time!
1. Walk not in the counsel of the ungodly. - Psalm 1:1
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly…”
- Ungodly counsel has many sources including:
* Literature
* TV, commercials, advertisements
* Cartoons, child programming
* Music, lyrics and the music itself.
2. Stand not in the path of sinners. - Psalm 1:1
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners…”
- “Way” speaks of a path or a direction.
- This “way” is described in Proverbs 6:12-15, “A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.”
* “Froward” speaks of perversity and being drawn toward it. Sin has a certain allurement. (The root of this word is “lure,” as in a fish lure, etc.) The more it sparkles and wiggles, the more alluring and attractive it appears.
- Gambling
- Casinos
- Bars and cocktail lounges
- Pornography
* If you are drawn toward these things, stay away from them! This path will destroy you!
* By the way, you do not necessarily have to run with this crowd to do evil; it’s your direction that’s important!
3. Stay away from the seat of the scornful. - Psalm 1:1
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”
- One who walks with the ungodly and stands in the same path of sinners, will undoubtedly sit in the seat of the scornful becoming critical of those who do neither!
- Interestingly, the Word of God tells us how to deal with scorners, “Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.” (Proverbs 22:10)
4. Delight in the Word of God. - Psalm 1:2
“But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”
- He delights in the Bible, not dreads! Job said, “…I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.” (Job 23:12)
* Jeremiah 15:16, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.”
* Joshua 1:8, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”
- “Meditate” literally means “to ruminate,” to “think deeply about something over and over again.”
5. Be a doer. - Psalm 1:3
“And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”
- Dr. R.G. Lee said, “Work hard. Laziness is like leprosy in life.”
* James 1:22-27, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
* James 2:17, 18, “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.”
- Decide to be a volunteer for Jesus and serve, serve, serve!
Conclusion: O, to be blessed of God in the new year! O, to desire to follow these five steps to blessing:
- No ungodly counsel.
- No running with the wrong crowd.
- No critical spirit.
- Delight in God’s Word.
- Be a doer of the work of God.
Lamentations - Study 4
Lamentations 3:22-23
December 19, 2018
Introduction: In our last time together, we learned of the afflictions of both the Prophet Jeremiah and the city of Jerusalem. As we continue in Jeremiah’s third lamentation, we will look at three more A’s.
- First, the afflictions.
- Next, the agony.
- After that, the assurance.
- Finally, the admonition.
Having painstakingly listed all his afflictions from the Lord, the people, and their enemies, we now hear how all of this affected Jeremiah.
1. The agony.
- Personal conflict and trials affect us deeply. We may try to hide this as much as we can, but we cannot deny that we are affected.
* He was scared and felt snared. He was desolate and felt destroyed, “Fear and a snare is come upon us, desolation and destruction.” (Lamentations 3:47)
* He cried with great compassion, “Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people. Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth not, without any intermission.”(Lamentations 3:48,49)
* Here, Jeremiah is so much like the Lord Jesus, “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it.” (Luke 19:41) Often, Jeremiah pictures the Lord Jesus.
* What he saw moved him to brokenness, “Till the LORD look down, and behold from heaven. Mine eye affecteth mine heart because of all the daughters of my city.” (Lamentations 3:50,51)
- A great lesson to be learned here, especially from verses 50-51, is what you see and understand affects you deeply. Therefore, you must be careful what you see and what you come to understand. The eye does affect the heart. In other words, what you see truly affects YOU personally. This is borne out in Acts 4:20, “For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”
2. The assurance.
- Lamentations 3:21-24, “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.”
- Lamentations 3:31-33, “For the Lord will not cast off for ever: But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.”
* Despite Jeremiah’s groaning, he is still able to find hope in the Lord.
* Even though Jeremiah and God’s people were under the chastening hand of God, Jeremiah recognized God’s mercy in all of it. Mercy is when God does not give us what we truly deserve. Thus, Jeremiah says, “It is of the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed…”
3. The admonition.
- Jeremiah lends a three-fold advice to the people of God:
* Wait patiently, “The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.” (Lamentations 3:25,26)
* Accept your discipline, “It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. He sitteth alone and keepeth silence, because he hath borne it upon him. He putteth his mouth in the dust; if so be there may be hope. He giveth his cheek to him that smiteth him: he is filled full with reproach…To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth, To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High, To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord approveth not. Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good? Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?” (Lamentations 3:27-30; 34-39)
* Repent of your sin, “Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD. Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens. We have transgressed and have rebelled: thou hast not pardoned.” (Lamentations 3:40-42)
Conclusion: Trials and tribulations make us better or bitter; the choice is always ours. Did you know that surrender and rebellion are opposites?
James wrote, “But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:4) The word “let” means “to allow or to surrender.” The deaf have a sign for the word “surrender” which is to raise both hands with palms open so as to indicate that one’s hands have been removed from the situation. It also means “I give up.” It means that I now surrender all and that I’m taking my hands off the situation and not fighting any more.
Take your hands off and surrender to what God is doing. What trial are you facing? Have you surrendered completely to the will of God and taken your hands off of your current trial or tribulation? If indeed surrender is the opposite of rebellion, then you need to surrender and stop rebelling today.
God Is So Good!
Psalm 100
December 23, 2018
Introduction: Truly, God is so good! Notice again the words of verse 5, “For the LORD is good…” Oh, yes He is very good! I want all of us to understand that the Lord is good in all His ways. As has been said in so many ways by so many Christians, “God is good…all the time!” However, most of us need a constant reminder simply because tend to forget that God is so good.
Oh, we’ve had our share of difficult times. Our hearts have been broken more times than not. But we can still say that God is so good! How is this possible?
1. God’s past speaks for itself. - Philippians 4:19
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
- Jeff Easter penned some well-thought-out lyrics:
As the world looks upon me, as I struggle along.
They say I have nothing, but they are so wrong.
In my heart I’m rejoicing, how I wish they could see.
Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me.
There’s a roof up above me,
I’ve a good place to sleep.
There’s food on my table,
And shoes on my feet.
You gave me your love Lord
And a fine family.
Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me.
Now I know I’m not wealthy, and these clothes , they’re not new.
I don’t have much money, but Lord I have you.
And to me that’s all that matters, though the world cannot see.
Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me.
- So undeserving, yet He saved me on February 16, 1964! That’s 55 years this coming February!
- He has also faithfully allowed me to have difficult times as well, but thats okay!
* Notice the Psalmist’s affliction, “Thou hast dealt well with thy servant, O LORD, according unto thy word. Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed thy commandments. Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word. Thou art good, and doest good; teach me thy statutes. The proud have forged a lie against me: but I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart. Their heart is as fat as grease; but I delight in thy law. It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes. The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver. JOD. Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments. They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word. I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.” (Psalm 119:65-75)
* Notice Paul’s thorn in the flesh, “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
* Notice Paul and Silas praising God in jail, “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.” (Acts 16:25-34)
* Notice how God can use our pain, “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-6)
2. God’s present speaks for itself. - 2 Corinthians 1:20
“For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”
- I honestly can say, after knowing the Lord for almost 55 years, that He has never let me down! It’s as Phil Johnson wrote:
He didn’t bring us this far to leave us.
He didn’t teach us to swim to let us drown.
He didn’t build His home in us to move away.
He didn’t lift us up to let us down!
- Hard times? Of course, but He has always been there for me, praise the Lord!
3. God’s future will be no different.
- “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (Hebrews 13:5)
- “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13:8)
* Truly, the future is as bright as the promises of God!
Conclusion: God really is so good, and I truly have nothing to complain about. Have you known this goodness, or are you too caught up in your present affliction to see His hand of goodness? “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22, 23)
Let’s Learn from Their Mistakes
Psalm 78:1-8
December 23, 2018
Introduction: Psalm 78 is a Maschil of Asaph. This means that the purpose for this Psalm was to give instruction to the people of God. “Maschil” simply means “prudent and wise.”
- “Prudent” means “to have discretion and balance in judgement.”
- “Wise” means “to discern biblically between right and wrong, between good, better, and best.”
In other words, Psalm 78 was given so that God’s people might learn from mistakes made in the past. They are given the facts that they might form a wise judgement and not repeat the past. As was said by George Santayana, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Notice the wording in verse 2, “I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old.” In other words, there is more to this Psalm than what meets the eye. The lessons, from which we are to learn, are listed in the remainder of the Psalm.
1. Our nature is to turn back. - Psalm 78:9, 41, 57
“The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle…Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel…But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.”
- Our nature is to refuse, “They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law.” (Psalm 78:10)
- Our nature is to question, “And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust. Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?” (Psalm 78:18, 19)
- Our nature is to disbelieve, “Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation.” (Psalm 78:22)
- Our nature is to be selfish, “He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea: And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations. So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire; They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths, The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.” (Psalm 78:27-31)
* When lust prays, wrath may answer!
- Our nature is to lie, “Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.” (Psalm 78:36)
- Our nature is to limit God, “Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.” (Psalm 78:41)
- Our nature is to disobey, “Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies.” (Psalm 78:56)
- Our nature is to become idolatrous, “For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.” (Psalm 78:58)
* No matter what God does, God’s people find a way to go against Him and take full advantage of His mercy!
2. God’s justice brings judgment. - Psalm 78:21, 31, 59
“Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel…The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel…When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel.”
- His justice demands that sin be punished.
3. God’s mercy restores the sinner. - Psalm 78:38-39, 52, 72
“But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath. For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again…But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock…So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.”
- The purpose for God’s chastisement is to produce righteousness! Hebrews 12:5-11 tell us, “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”
Conclusion: Yes, this great and powerful God not only judges sin, but also love the sinner and has great compassion on him.
Can we learn the wisdom so as not to repeat the mistakes of God’s people as recorded in Psalm 78? Remember, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Lamentations - Study 3
Lamentations 3
December 12, 2018
Introduction: This study brings us to Jeremiah’s third lamentation. Chapter 3 contains 22 verses, each verse having three lines, each line beginning with the same letter, and so on through the end of the Hebrew alphabet.
Because of its length, we’ll spend some extra time here over the next couple of weeks. Jeremiah recalls his personal sufferings but expresses his hope in the Lord.
1. The afflictions of Jeremiah.
- Afflictions from the Lord.
* The Lord brings him into the depths of darkness, “He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against me is he turned; he turneth his hand against me all the day.”(Lamentations 3:2,3)
* The Lord makes him old and breaks his bones, “My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones.” (Lamentations 3:4) In a literal sense, this whole ordeal had weakened Jeremiah and had taken away his strength.
* The Lord walls him in a dark place and chains him down, “He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail. He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old. He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he hath made my chain heavy.” (Lamentations 3:5-7)
* The Lord ignores his prayers, “Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.” (Lamentations 3:8)
* The Lord blocks his path, “He hath inclosed my ways with hewn stone, he hath made my paths crooked.” (Lamentations 3:9)
* The Lord attacks him like a bear, “He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places. He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate.”(Lamentations 3:10,11)
* The Lord pierces his heart with arrows, “He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow. He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins.” (Lamentations 3:12,13)
* The Lord makes him the object of ridicule, “I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day.” (Lamentations 3:14)
* The Lord fills him with bitterness, “He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood.” (Lamentations 3:15)
* The Lord takes away his peace and prosperity, “He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes. And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity. And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD: Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.” (Lamentations 3:16-20)
- Afflictions from the people.
* Lamentations 3:52-66, “Mine enemies chased me sore, like a bird, without cause. They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and cast a stone upon me. Waters flowed over mine head; then I said, I am cut off. I called upon thy name, O LORD, out of the low dungeon. Thou hast heard my voice: hide not thine ear at my breathing, at my cry. Thou drewest near in the day that I called upon thee: thou saidst, Fear not. O Lord, thou hast pleaded the causes of my soul; thou hast redeemed my life. O LORD, thou hast seen my wrong: judge thou my cause. Thou hast seen all their vengeance and all their imaginations against me. Thou hast heard their reproach, O LORD, and all their imaginations against me; The lips of those that rose up against me, and their device against me all the day. Behold their sitting down, and their rising up; I am their musick. Render unto them a recompence, O LORD, according to the work of their hands. Give them sorrow of heart, thy curse unto them. Persecute and destroy them in anger from under the heavens of the LORD.”
- Jeremiah was mistreated and imprisoned by his own people for preaching against their sins.
- Jeremiah calls upon the Lord to pay them back.
2. The afflictions of Jerusalem.
- Afflictions from the Lord. Jeremiah is saddened that the Lord has treated them in the following ways:
* He has chased them down and slaughtered them without mercy, “Thou hast covered with anger, and persecuted us: thou hast slain, thou hast not pitied.” (Lamentations 3:43)
* He refuses to hear their prayers, “Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud, that our prayer should not pass through.” (Lamentations 3:44)
* He has discarded them like garbage, “Thou hast made us as the offscouring and refuse in the midst of the people.” (Lamentations 3:45)
- Afflictions from their enemies, “All our enemies have opened their mouths against us.” (Lamentations 3:46)
* They speak out against Jerusalem.
Conclusion: Jeremiah said in Lamentations 3:1, “I am the man…” Here, Jeremiah represents the nation of Israel and speaks in the name of the whole nation. In this instant, Jeremiah is a type of Christ who took upon himself our sins and bore the iniquity of many.
Jesus is represented throughout the Bible in many places, especially in the Old Testament prophetical writings. I’m not entirely sure that Jeremiah knew he was representing Jesus, but he was. There are three Psalms in particular that show us this correlation between Jeremiah and Jesus.
- Psalm 22:1 is the beginning of a Psalm concerning the suffering of the Saviour, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?”
- Psalm 69:8-9 is only a small portion of a prophecy concerning Jesus as He suffered for our sins, “I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children. For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.”
- Psalm 88:6-7 speak of Christ’s rejection, “Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps. Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.”
In this way, Jeremiah was like the Lord. Godliness should be a part of our lives where we act as God would act toward those in need. Let’s remember to be compassionate toward those who need compassion, to weep with those who weep, and to mourn with those who mourn.
When You’re In Over Your Head
Psalm 77:1-10
December 16, 2018
Introduction: David’s song leader, Asaph, complains about God’s people’s situation. He says in verse 3, “I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.” Literally, he felt as though he was in over his head.
The Bible used the word “overwhelm” nine times. Four different Hebrew words are used for this one word “overwhelm” Each one illustrates how the people of God can find themselves in over their heads.
1. When they are taken advantage of. - Job 6:27
“Yea, ye overwhelm the fatherless, and ye dig a pit for your friend.”
- Here, “overwhelm” means “to be overtaken, overthrown; to fall or fail because of someone stronger.”
- In Minnesota, my good friend and father of one of the teens in my youth group, worked for IBM. He wanted out of a very lucrative position because he felt as though he was just a computer chip to be used and discarded.
- There are those who see people only as resources to be used and taken advantage of.
- What do you do when you are overwhelmed in this way?
2. When they are taken with fear. - Psalm 55:5
“Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me.”
- Here, “overwhelm” means “to be covered; to be surrounded.”
- Notice also Psalm 78:53, “And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.”
- With every new political administration and governmental change, there come a certain amount of uncertainty and fear.
* Politics
* Practices
* Positions
* Philosophies
- Not just that, but then there are the health issues that plague us all:
* Cancers
* Infectious diseases
* The AIDS virus
* Even chemical weapons like those we hear about in the news.
- Financial problems plague many.
- What do you do when you are overwhelmed in this way?
3. When you are taken away with problems. - Psalm 124:4
“Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul.”
- Here, “overwhelm” means “to drown; to be washed away by a rush of deep water.”
- Notice Psalm 42:7, “Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.”
- Job would be the best example here. In just a short time:
* He lost his wealth.
* He lost his health.
* He lost his children.
* He lost the loyalty of his wife.
* He lost the faithfulness of his friends.
- We hear of tragedies similar to this all the time:
* A terrible accident.
* The death of a husband of wife.
* The deaths of the children.
* The loss of an entire family.
- What do you do when you are overwhelmed in this way?
4. When you are taken in darkness. - Psalm 61:2
“From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”
- Here, “overwhelm” means “to be hidden; to be left in the dark; to be in over your head.” In other words, there’s no light at the end of a very long and dark tunnel.
- Notice also these passages of Scripture that exemplify this truth:
* Psalm 77:3, “I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.”
* Psalm 102:1 Title, “A Prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the LORD.”
* Psalm 142:3, “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.”
* Psalm 143:4, “Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.”
- In the dark, we must have someone who knows the way. Psalm 136:16 says, “To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever.”
* My Lord knows the way through the wilderness. All I have to do is follow!
- What do you do when you are overwhelmed in this way?
- When you’re in over your head, USE YOUR HEAD!
* Verse 3, “I remembered God…”
* Verse 5, “I considered the days of old…”
* Verse 6, “I call to remembrance…I commune…”
* Verse 10, “I will remember…”
* Verse 11, “I will remember…”
* Verse 12, “I will meditate…”
- When we find ourselves overwhelmed, we all-too-often forget the Lord and all He has done in the past! But, if we will just THINK, we’ll soon realize that God has never failed us, not ever!
- In 1962, John W. Peterson penned I Just Keep Trusting My Lord.
I just keep trusting my Lord, as I walk along,
I just keep trusting my Lord, and He gives a song;
Tho the storm clouds darken the sky,
O’er the heav’nly trail,
I just keep trusting my Lord,
He will never fail!
He's a faithful friend, such a faithful friend;
I can count on Him to the very end.
Tho the storm clouds darken the sky,
O’er the heav’nly trail,
I just keep trusting my Lord,
He will never fail!
Conclusion: Are you overwhelmed and find it hard to see the way ahead? Look back in order to see that God has been faithful!
Dullness to God’s Word - Part 2
Hebrews 6:1-20
December 16, 2018
Introduction: Let’s review a bit from our last time together. Hebrews contains five parenthetical warnings written to believers about the dangers of not growing in the Lord as they ought. The first two warnings are these:
1. Drifting from the Word of God through neglect.
2. Doubting the Word of God through unbelief.
The third parenthetical warning given to the Hebrew believers is found in Hebrews 5:11-6:20, dullness to the Word of God through laziness. The admonition here is that they would decide to grow up in Christ.
The Hebrew Christians are warned about a dangerous spiritual attitude; they found the spiritual truths of the Word of God dull, “Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.” (Hebrews 5:11)
The problem, of course, was not the Bible but the condition of their hearts. They were lazy when it came to spiritual things, “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Hebrews 6:12) Anyone who neglects to study the Word of God will find It to be a dull and difficult Book.
This parenthetical warning can be divided into two sections:
- Hebrews 5:11-14 describe the spiritual condition of the people to whom the book of Hebrews was written.
- Hebrews 6:1-20 are a warning that judgment will come if they fail to grow in grace.
Hebrews 5:11-14 describe these Hebrew spiritual babies, “For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.” (Hebrews 5:13) They were immature and needed to grow up. This passage answers two important questions: what are the marks of a mature Christian, and what are the needs of an immature Christian?
So, what are the marks of a mature Christian? This passage gives the characteristics of a immature Christian; and by way of contrast, we can see the marks of a mature Christian. So, let’s review the characteristics of an immature Christian:
1. The mature Christian finds the Bible exciting, while the immature Christian finds It dull, “…ye are dull of hearing.” (Hebrews 5:11)
2. The mature Christian involves himself with teaching others; the immature Christian needs to be taught by others, “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again…” (Hebrews 5:12)
3. The mature Christian is skillful in handling the Word of God, but the immature Christian is not, “For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness; for he is a babe.” (Hebrews 5:13)
4. The mature Christian has a growing understanding of even the difficult parts of the Bible, but a immature Christian finds the Bible to be an impossible Book, “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age…” (Hebrews 5:14)
5. The mature Christian exercises his spiritual senses; the immature Christian is lazy, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised…” (Hebrews 5:14)
6. The mature Christian works at understanding the Bible, while the immature Christian does not, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised…” (Hebrews 5:14)
7. The mature Christian has discernment; the immature Christian does not, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:14)
As a Christian, you ought to be growing and maturing each and every day of your life. If you are not going forward, you are going backward; no one stands still as a Christian.
As promised, we will answer the second question: what are the needs of an immature Christian as found in Hebrews 5:11-6:20? This will help all of us but especially those who have a real desire to grow in the Lord.
What are the needs of an immature Christian?
1. Immature Christians need a teacher. - Hebrews 5:12
“For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again…”
- An immature Christian cannot make it on his own; he needs a teacher to explain the Word of God to him.
2. Immature Christians need teaching.
- Not only do they need to be exhorted to live right, but they also need to be taught the doctrines of the Bible. They not only need to know how to behave, they also need to know what to believe.
- It is very important that we realize that what we believe determines how we behave. Belief always influences behavior. Our doctrine will always influence our practice.
- The mature Christian should involve himself in teaching those who are less mature.
3. Immature Christians need the “milk of the Word.”
- The “milk of the Word” is also called “the first principles” and “the doctrine of Christ” in Hebrews 6:1.
- These are the basic doctrines relating to the cross and Christ’s death for us.
* The “milk of the Word” would include the virgin birth, the deity of Christ, the blood atonement, inspiration and preservation of Scripture, and many other rudimentary doctrines.
* The “meat of the Word” refers to the Priesthood of Christ. This is obvious from the context. The writer of Hebrews says to the people, “I would like to talk to you about the priesthood of Melchisedec. Instead I must give you the milk of the Word, because you are not ready for the meat!” So, the immature Christian needs the “milk of the Word.”
- No one can grow who ignores the Word of God, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” (1 Peter 2:2)
4. Immature Christians need to exercise their spiritual senses.
- Hebrews 5:14 says, “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” We exercise our spiritual senses when we take the commandments and the principles of the Word of God and apply them to our daily living.
* For instance, teens are often concerned about which musical group they should listen to. When a Christian takes the principles of God’s Word and applies them to that music which is available, deciding which is good and which is bad, he is exercising his spiritual senses.
- Immature Christians need this exercise in order to grow.
5. Immature Christians need rules by which to live.
- Since an immature Christian cannot decide what is right and wrong and since he has little or no discernment between good and evil, he must be told what he can and cannot do.
- He needs fences, boundaries within which to live!
- This is the reason that youth groups need rules, and the reason Christian schools must have rules.
* Some of the young people will live far above the rules; and, if there were no rules, they would still live righteous lives. The reason is, they are mature, and the rules never affect them.
* Other students find it difficult to keep the rules; they even question their validity. These are the immature Christians; they are unable to see what is wrong with things that are evil, and so must have rules to tell them right from wrong until they develop a spiritual discernment themselves.
- This is the reason the Apostle Peter wrote, “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5-8)
* Notice the first thing you are to add to your faith is virtue, i.e, rules and standards by which to live. Knowledge follows virtue; this is the “why” for virtue, i.e. the rules and standards.
Conclusion: These are the needs for immature Christians as listed in Hebrews 5-6. Knowing these also reveals areas where even mature Christians need to grow!
Joseph and His Mother Knew Not of It
Luke 2:41-46; Psalm 106:21
December 9, 2018
Introduction: When we liven in Rosemount, Minnesota, I was the assistant pastor at the First Baptist Church. One of those years, we had one of the best Vacation Bible Times in the history of the church. We averaged 1,543 per day with nearly 300 souls saved!
Each day, we ran busses to Minneapolis for our day-time VBT for the inner-city children. On one of those days, the driver of the Minneapolis route accidentally left one of the bus workers in Minneapolis. I really don’t believe he left her there on purpose, BUT she wasn’t missed until the bus reached the church back in Rosemount.
More often than not, we do the same thing with Jesus. We get caught up in the activities of each day and soon forget about His. We do not even notice that we have left Him out until the next day…or even later!
How is it that we leave Him out?
1. We do not think on Him. - Psalm 48:9
“We have thought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple.”
- Look at Psalm 104:34, “My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD”
- We do not think about:
* His mighty works.
* His abundant blessings.
* His tender mercies.
* His lovingkindness.
* His forgiveness.
* His love.
* His salvation.
* His Word.
- God says of the wicked man, “The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.” (Psalms 10:4)
- Proverbs 23:7 states, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…”
* A life without the thought of God, is a godless life!
2. We do not talk to Him. - 1 Thessalonians 5:17
“Pray without ceasing.”
- Luke 18:1, “Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.”
- Luke 21:36, “Watch ye therefore, and pray always.”
- Ephesians 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer.”
- We find ourselves too busy talking to, and perhaps about others than we are to talk to Jesus.
* Messenger
* Snapchat
3. We do not listen to Him. - Acts 28:27
“For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
- As it was with Mary and Joseph, they were not listening for Jesus’ voice.
- We cannot obey His voice if we do not hear His voice. His voice is heard clearly through:
* The reading and meditating on the Word of God.
* The preaching and teaching of the Word of God.
So, how do we keep from forgetting about Jesus?
1. Make Jesus your priority every day.
- Do not allow any activity to interfere with your personal time with the Lord.
- Schedule a “quite time,” or you’ll not have one.
- Get ups earlier or go to be later if you must, but arrange your schedule to make and keep Jesus first.
2. Make time to only think of Him.
- Psalm 48:9, “We have thought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple.”
- You will love the one you think about the most.
3. Don’t participate where Jesus is not allowed.
- If you can’t include Jesus, don’t get involved.
Conclusion: Have you forgotten about Jesus? Would it be said of you as it was of Mary and Joseph, “They knew not of it,” or of Israel, “They forgat God their Saviour”?
Lamentations - Study 2
Lamentations 2:1
December 5, 2018
Introduction: In our first study, Jeremiah described Jerusalem’s great sins and the great suffering that resulted from them. Jeremiah’s heart is truly broken over the sins of God’s people. Too bad God’s people were not remorseful and repentant over their own sins, for all of this judgment could have been avoided had they been.
The book of Jeremiah, shows us that God’s people were told they were going to go through a time of judgment because of their sins. Had they repented, the judgment would have been stopped before it ever started, but they would not repent. In fact, they could not understand why God was so upset with them.
They had been deceived by their own sin. What used to be darkness to them now appeared as light. What used to be sin to them now seemed to be righteousness. The Apostle Paul wrote in Hebrews 3:13, “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” The Gospel did not harden these people. The Word of God did not harden these people. Sin hardened these people into what they became. They were hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Such was the case with God’s people in Jeremiah’s day. They had become so accustomed to their sinful lifestyles that they could no longer see that it was wrong.
During chastening, God’s people could be blessed if only they would choose to do rightly. Chastening is simply an opportunity to learn how to be blessed by God. Sadly, many Christians quit when chastening comes, asking the same question those in Jeremiah asked, “…Wherefore hath the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? or what is our iniquity? or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?” (Jeremiah 16:10)
Now, the city is laid waste, the people have been taken captive, and Jeremiah pleads with God. In this study of Jeremiah’s second lamentation, Jeremiah describes the Lord’s wrath against Jerusalem and his own anger over the city’s desperate condition.
1. Jerusalem’s crisis.
- The nation’s agony, “The Lord hath swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and hath not pitied: he hath thrown down in his wrath the strong holds of the daughter of Judah; he hath brought them down to the ground: he hath polluted the kingdom and the princes thereof. He hath cut off in his fierce anger all the horn of Israel: he hath drawn back his right hand from before the enemy, and he burned against Jacob like a flaming fire, which devoureth round about. He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire. The Lord was as an enemy: he hath swallowed up Israel, he hath swallowed up all her palaces: he hath destroyed his strong holds, and hath increased in the daughter of Judah mourning and lamentation.” (Lamentations 2:2-5) The Lord’s anger consumes the land like a raging fire.
- The city’s agony, “(1) How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel, and remembered not his footstool in the day of his anger!…(8-9a) The LORD hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: he hath stretched out a line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: therefore he made the rampart and the wall to lament; they languished together. Her gates are sunk into the ground…(13) What thing shall I take to witness for thee? what thing shall I liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? what shall I equal to thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion? for thy breach is great like the sea: who can heal thee?…(15-17) All that pass by clap their hands at thee; they hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, Is this the city that men call The perfection of beauty, The joy of the whole earth? All thine enemies have opened their mouth against thee: they hiss and gnash the teeth: they say, We have swallowed her up: certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it. The LORD hath done that which he had devised; he hath fulfilled his word that he had commanded in the days of old: he hath thrown down, and hath not pitied: and he hath caused thine enemy to rejoice over thee, he hath set up the horn of thine adversaries.” (Lamentations 2:1, 8-9a, 13, 15-17) The Lord humiliates the “too-proud-to-repent” city of Jerusalem by:
* Knocking down her walls.
* Sinking her gates.
* Wounding her deeply.
* Her enemies scoffing and jeering her.
- The temple’s agony, “And he hath violently taken away his tabernacle, as if it were of a garden: he hath destroyed his places of the assembly: the LORD hath caused the solemn feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion, and hath despised in the indignation of his anger the king and the priest. The Lord hath cast off his altar, he hath abhorred his sanctuary, he hath given up into the hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces; they have made a noise in the house of the LORD, as in the day of a solemn feast.” (Lamentations 2:6-7) The tabernacle has now been broken down as though it were a simple garden shelter. All the festivals are no longer observed.
- The people’s agony:
* Their displacement, “…her king and her princes are among the Gentiles:…” (Lamentations 2:9b) The king and the princes are now in exile.
* Their darkness, “…the law is no more; her prophets also find no vision from the LORD…Thy prophets have seen vain and foolish things for thee: and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to turn away thy captivity; but have seen for thee false burdens and causes of banishment.” (Lamentations 2:9c, 14) The law of God is no longer observed, and the prophets no longer receive visions from the Lord.
* Their despair, “The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground, and keep silence: they have cast up dust upon their heads; they have girded themselves with sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground.” (Lamentations 2:10) The leaders sit on the ground in silence. Note that they have “girded themselves with sackcloth.” This was the outward symbol of mourning.
* Their deaths, “Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city. They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine? when they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers’ bosom.”(Lamentations 2:11-12) The little children are dying in the streets.
- The people’s anguish, “Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease. Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street.” (Lamentations 2:18,19) Jeremiah admonishes the people of the city to cry out and pray for deliverance. He encouraged them to turn to the God they had rejected for nearly 500 years.
2. Jerusalem’s cry. - Lamentations 2:20-22
“Behold, O LORD, and consider to whom thou hast done this. Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord? The young and the old lie on the ground in the streets: my virgins and my young men are fallen by the sword; thou hast slain them in the day of thine anger; thou hast killed, and not pitied. Thou hast called as in a solemn day my terrors round about, so that in the day of the LORD’S anger none escaped nor remained: those that I have swaddled and brought up hath mine enemy consumed.”
- In utter despair and anguish, Jerusalem calls out to the Lord, “Behold, O LORD, and consider to whom thou hast done this…” (Lamentations 2:20a)
- Two questions are asked in this prayer:
* “Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long?” (10½ inches)
* “Shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord?”
- Suddenly, the people are consumed and concerned with the reputation of the Lord. It is amazing how when judgment comes, God is put on trial for the things He’s done. Such was the case here.
Conclusion: The people could have repented, but they did not. Everything that came to them could have been avoided had they done rightly.
When you’re in this position, don’t shake your finger in God’s face for the judgment that has come because of your sin. Sit back, and take it, and realize it’s your fault, not His.
Dullness to God’s Word
Hebrews 5:11-14
December 9, 2018
Introduction: The third parenthetical warning given to the Hebrew believers is found in Hebrews 5:11-6:20. The admonition here is that they would decide to grow up in Christ.
The Hebrew Christians are warned about a dangerous spiritual attitude; they found the spiritual truths of the Word of God dull, “Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.” (Hebrews 5:11)
The problem, of course, was not the Bible but the condition of their hearts. They were lazy when it came to spiritual things, “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Hebrews 6:12) Anyone who neglects to study the Word of God will find it to be a dull and difficult Book.
This parenthetical warning can be divided into two sections:
- Hebrews 5:11-14 describe the spiritual condition of the people to which the book of Hebrews was written.
- Hebrews 6:1-20 is a warning that judgement will come if they fail to grow in grace.
Hebrews 5:11-14 describe these Hebrew spiritual babies, “For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.” (Hebrews 5:13) They were immature and needed to grow up. This passage answers two important questions:
- What are the marks of a mature Christian?
- What are the needs of a baby Christian?
So, what are the marks of a mature Christian? This passage gives the characteristics of a baby Christian; and by way of contrast, we can see the marks of a mature Christian.
1. The mature Christian finds the Bible exciting, while the immature Christian finds it dull, “…ye are dull of hearing.” (Hebrews 5:11)
- If you find the Bible to be a dull and boring Book, you are simply identifying your spiritual condition.
- As you grow in grace, you will fall more and more in love with the Word of God.
- Christians who are spiritually mature find a joy and thrill in meditating upon the truths of the Scriptures.
- A preacher can almost judge the spiritual condition of his people by watching their reactions to the teaching of the Word of God: mature Christians will be excited, and baby Christians will be bored.
- Perhaps, you are asking, “What if the preacher is boring?” The answer to that question is simply this: the Bible never speaks of dull preaching; the Bible only speaks of dull hearing.
- If you sit in a service and listen to the teaching of the Word of God and find it dull, the problem most likely is with you and not with The one who is delivering God’s message.
- Bob Jones used to say, “Perhaps, the problem is with you.” This statement would certainly apply here.
2. The mature Christian involves himself with teaching others; the immature Christian needs to be taught by others, “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again…” (Hebrews 5:12)
- The mature Christian not only studies the Word of God, but also shares what he learns with others.
- One who is growing in grace will seek out ways to share the truths he is learning. He may share the truths with a friend, or teach a Sunday School class, or preach a sermon; but he will find some way to communicate what he is learning.
3. The mature Christian is skillful in handling the Word of God, but the immature Christian is not, “For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness; for he is a babe.” (Hebrews 5:13)
- Christians can develop a skill at studying, interpreting, and teaching the Bible. This is one of the marks of maturity.
4. The mature Christian has a growing understanding of even the difficult parts of the Bible, but a immature Christian finds the Bible to be an impossible Book, “But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age…” (Hebrews 5:14)
- The more you study the Bible, the easier it is to understand.
* Think of the Bible as so many pieces of a puzzle. While the first pieces are difficult to place, the last few almost fall into place on their own. So it is with the Bible; the more you know, the easier it is to understand the rest.
- The principle is this: how well I understand the Bible reveals how much I’ve grown in grace.
5. The mature Christian exercises his spiritual senses; the immature Christian is lazy, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised…” (Hebrews 5:14)
- The mature Christian takes the teachings of the Word of God and applies them to his life, determining what he should and should not do and what is right and wrong.
- Baby Christians are unable to apply the teaching of the Word of God to their lives; they need a teacher to do this for them.
6. The mature Christian works at understanding the Bible, while the immature Christian does not, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised…” (Hebrews 5:14)
- Exercise is never easy; if it were, it wouldn’t be exercise. The mature Christian is willing to put forth the effort to understand the Word of God. He does not find it easy, but he is successful at understanding what God is saying to man.
- No one becomes a good Christian by accident, and no one understands the Bible without putting forth effort. It is hard work, but it is certainly worth it.
7. The mature Christian has discernment; the immature Christian does not, “…those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:14)
- It is not necessary to tell a mature Christian what is wrong with rock music, or what is wrong with going to the movies, or what is wrong with immodest dress, or what is wrong with even drinking alcohol or looking at pornography.
- A mature Christian has the spiritual discernment to determine both those things which are good and those things which are evil.
- He can take the Word of God, Its commandments and Its principles, and apply them to his life. The immature Christian is not able to do this and must be told specifics about what activities are right and which are wrong.
Conclusion: As a Christian, you ought to be growing and maturing each and every day of your life. If you are not going forward, you are going backward; no one stands still as a Christian.
In our next time together, we will take a look at the needs of an immature Christian as found in Hebrews 6:1-20. This will help all of us but especially those who have a real desire to grow in the Lord.
Lamentations - Study 1
Lamentations 1:1-7
November 28, 2018
Introduction: Lamentations consists of five Elegies or Lamentations on the destruction of Jerusalem. The great historian Josephus believed Lamentations was written upon the death of King Josiah basing his entire opinion on 2 Chronicles 35:25, “And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.” I believe Josephus was wrong in that the entire book was written about Jerusalem.
The book of Lamentations is still read on the Fast of the ninth day of the fifth month (called “Ab,” which corresponds with our August). On that day, the Jews commemorate the five great calamities, which befell Israel:
1. The return of the 12 spies and the decree of the 40 years’ wanderings because of the rebellion of God’s people.
2. The destruction of the first Temple by Nebuchadnezzar.
3. The destruction of the second Temple by the Romans under Titus.
4. The taking of Bether by the Romans under Hadrian when 580,000 people were slain.
5. The plowing of Zion like a field in fulfillment of Jeremiah 26:18 and Micah 3:12.
* “Micah the Morasthite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Zion shall be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.” (Jeremiah 26:18)
* “Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest.” (Micah 3:12)
The five Elegies or Lamentations are arranged quite remarkably.
- The first two (chapters 1-2) are made up of 22 long verses of three lines each. Each verse begins with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
- The third (chapter 3) consists of 66 verses (3 X 22), each triad of verses begins with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The first three lines begin with the letter Aleph, the next three with Beth, and so on through the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
- The fourth (chapter 4) is arranged in 22 long verses of two lines each, also arranged acrostically.
- The fifth (chapter 5) is a prayer. The only connection with the alphabet that it has is the number of verses in the chapter corresponds with the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet, 22.
It will be interesting to note here that, in the Septuagint (the copy of Scripture Jesus quoted most often), the following words are used to preface the book of Lamentations, “It came to pass that after Israel was taken captive and Jerusalem was made desolate, Jeremiah sat weeping and lamented with this lamentation over Jerusalem and said…” At this point, chapter one begins.
In chapter one, Jeremiah describes Jerusalem’s great sins and the suffering that resulted from it.
1. Her sins. - Lamentations 1:8-9
“Jerusalem hath grievously sinned; therefore she is removed: all that honoured her despise her, because they have seen her nakedness: yea, she sigheth, and turneth backward. Her filthiness is in her skirts; she remembereth not her last end; therefore she came down wonderfully: she had no comforter. O LORD, behold my affliction: for the enemy hath magnified himself.”
- Jerusalem truly has sinned a great sin and defiled herself with the immorality committed with Asherah.
* Jeremiah 2:20, “For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot.”
* Jeremiah 3:6, “The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.”
2. Her suffering.
- Jerusalem sits alone like a grief-stricken widow, “How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!…The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.” (Lamentations 1:1, 4)
- She weeps throughout the night with no one to comfort her, “She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they are become her enemies.” (Lamentations 1:2)
- Judah has been taken into exile, “Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits…Her adversaries are the chief, her enemies prosper; for the LORD hath afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions: her children are gone into captivity before the enemy.” (Lamentations 1:3, 5)
- Note the phrase in verse 3, “…between the straits.” It means that Judah was like a hunted animal driven where there is no escape. Though translated in different words, this phrase appears in only three places.
* Psalm 116:3, “The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.”
* Psalm 118:5, “I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place.”
* Lamentations 1:3, “Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits.”
- Her former beauty and majesty are gone, “And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is departed: her princes are become like harts that find no pasture, and they are gone without strength before the pursuer.” (Lamentations 1:6) This verse also bears out the fact that Judah was trapped like a hunted animal and could find no escape.
- The enemy laughs as she falls, “Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old, when her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her: the adversaries saw her, and did mock at her sabbaths.” (Lamentations 1:7)
* Note here that the enemy specifically mocked her sabbaths or “sabbath-keepings.” This is ironic in that God’s people had neglected their sabbath for nearly 500 years.
- She was looted and violated by her enemies, “The adversary hath spread out his hand upon all her pleasant things: for she hath seen that the heathen entered into her sanctuary, whom thou didst command that they should not enter into thy congregation.” (Lamentations 1:10)
- Her people are starving, “All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their pleasant things for meat to relieve the soul: see, O LORD, and consider; for I am become vile.” (Lamentations 1:11)
3. Her speech.
- The punishment: she is treated with contempt, “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger. From above hath he sent fire into my bones, and it prevaileth against them: he hath spread a net for my feet, he hath turned me back: he hath made me desolate and faint all the day. The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are wreathed, and come up upon my neck: he hath made my strength to fall, the Lord hath delivered me into their hands, from whom I am not able to rise up. The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me: he hath called an assembly against me to crush my young men: the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a winepress.” (Lamentations 1:12-15)
- The pain: she weeps uncontrollably over her people’s condition, “For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed. Zion spreadeth forth her hands, and there is none to comfort her: the LORD hath commanded concerning Jacob, that his adversaries should be round about him: Jerusalem is as a menstruous woman among them. The LORD is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity. I called for my lovers, but they deceived me: my priests and mine elders gave up the ghost in the city, while they sought their meat to relieve their souls. Behold, O LORD; for I am in distress: my bowels are troubled; mine heart is turned within me; for I have grievously rebelled: abroad the sword bereaveth, at home there is as death. They have heard that I sigh: there is none to comfort me: all mine enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that thou hast done it: thou wilt bring the day that thou hast called, and they shall be like unto me.” (Lamentations 1:16-21)
- The prayer: she prays for God to do justly and punish the enemy just as He punished His own people, “Let all their wickedness come before thee; and do unto them, as thou hast done unto me for all my transgressions: for my sighs are many, and my heart is faint.” (Lamentations 1:22)
Conclusion: When I think of the book of Lamentations, I picture Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, looking over the city just as Jesus looked over Jerusalem. I see his great compassion, and I hear his sobs of grief.
This should teach us a great lesson concerning the destruction of those who sin against God. This book bears out the meaning of Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death [a destroyed life]…” The mighty prophet did not rejoice in their fall, rather he wept at their condition, their rebellion, and, finally, their judgment. Jeremiah was a straight-shooter and never changed his message, no matter what the enemy did to him. This did not mean he was unkind, nor did it mean he was vindictive. I’m sure every time Jeremiah preached, there was a tear in his eye for the people he loved with all of his heart.
Doubting God’s Word
Hebrews 3:7-19
December 2, 2018
Introduction: We are learning of the five parenthetical warnings found in the book of Hebrews. We must keep in mind that no book in the Bible is addressed to the unsaved. The books of the Bible are always addressed to the people of God, those who are born again. Therefore, the warnings found in Hebrews are not warnings to the lost but warnings to the saved.
Heresy has come from teaching that the five warnings in Hebrews are parenthetical warnings written to the lost. Two false doctrines in particular have come from Hebrews being taught out of context:
- That you can lose your salvation.
- That you can sin away your day of grace.
These warnings are to the saved and give a strong message to the backslider.
This brings us to the second of the five parenthetical warnings found in the book of Hebrews. The first one was drifting from the Word of God through neglect in Hebrews 2:1-4. The next warning is:
2. Doubting the Word of God. - Hebrews 3:7-19
- Unbelief is sin and has serious consequences, “So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:19)
- The writer is referring here to God’s refusing to allow the Hebrews to enter Canaan because of their unbelief. Because of their lack of faith in God, the Jews chose not to enter Canaan and lost the opportunity forever.
- If indeed faith comes through the hearing of the Word of God, and you drift from It through neglect, then you will begin to have less faith as time goes on.
- Thus, Hebrews 3:7-19 is a warning against the sin of unbelief, “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” (Hebrews 3:12)
- Because of unbelief, they could not enter into rest. What is this rest spoken of here?
* Hebrews 3:11, 18, “So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest…And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?”
* “Rest” refers to Canaan, the Promised Land.
* “Canaan” refers to the Spirit-filled life of surrender, not Heaven. There were battles in Canaan but none in Heaven!
This warning contains several lessons:
1. Unbelief is not a matter of weakness; it is a matter of wickedness. Christians often excuse their lack of faith by saying, “My faith is weak.” There is no Scriptural basis for such a statement. The Bible does talk about believers who are “weak in the faith.”
- “Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.” (Romans 14:1) “Weak” does not mean “unbelief,” but “unlearned” as with new believers.
- Hebrews 3:12 calls it, “…an evil heart of unbelief…”
2. Unbelief will prevent you from entering Canaan, “So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:19) Faith is essential to becoming a mature Christian, “But without faith it is impossible to please him…” (Hebrews 11:6)
- Just as faith was necessary to cross the Red Sea, so faith was necessary to cross the Jordan River. Crossing the Red Sea pictures salvation; crossing the Jordan River pictures our surrender to God. It takes faith for both.
- Some people believe that you are saved by faith but become victorious through works. This is not so. When the Jews left Egypt, it was necessary for the Red Sea to part in order for them to cross. When they entered Canaan, it was necessary for the Jordan River to part in order for them to cross. The same miracle was necessary both times; in both cases, the Israelites had to exercise faith. The Jews could no more get into Canaan by human effort than they could have left Egypt through human effort.
3. Unbelief is caused by a hardened heart, “Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness)…While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.” (Hebrews 3:7-8, 15)
- The Israelites failed to trust God because their hearts were hardened. Unbelief was not a goal for which they had worked and planned; it was the consequence of allowing their hearts to become hardened.
4. A Christian’s heart is hardened by sin, “…exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13) Every day we allow unconfessed sin to stay in our lives, our hearts grows hardened. This is why the word “daily” is used in verse 13. We must give daily attention to dealing with sin in our lives.
- We cannot allow our hearts to grow hardened; and, as a result, fail to trust God. If there is unconfessed sin in your life, deal with it “today.” If you wait until tomorrow, your heart will be hardened.
- But why would Christians allow their hearts to grow hardened? Consider this next lesson:
5. Christians allow their hearts to be hardened because sin is deceitful, “…exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13) No Christian sets out to harden his heart; but he is deceived by sin, and a hard heart is the consequence. Sin is deceitful in this way: the more you commit a particular sin, the less sinful it seems to you.
- If there was a sin in your life that would have broken your heart a year ago but does not cause you grief today, your heart has hardened.
- Because sin is deceitful, Christians can actually be backsliding while they think they are progressing in the Christian life.
- The longer you remain in sin, the more spiritual you think you are.
- Because sin is deceitful, it is very dangerous. I must not allow “today” to pass without confessing my sins; tomorrow I may not think confession is necessary!
Conclusion: One of the great dangers in our Christian life is getting accustomed to our own sin. It is sad that we find it easy to see sin in the lives of others but difficult to see sin that is in our own lives, “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” (Matthew 7:3)
The truth is that it is impossible for us to help others to victory until we have first dealt with the sin in our own lives, “Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:4-5)
So, we find that the Christian who grows accustomed to his sin not only loses God’s blessing, but loses his usefulness to help others. It is tragic that men think they are right with God when they are really condoning sin in their lives! “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.” (Proverbs 21:2) Don’t grow used to your own sin!
I must not allow today to pass without confessing my sins, because tomorrow I may not think it is necessary.
Here are two ways to help keep your heart soft:
1. Read your Bible daily, “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13)
2. Confess your sin daily, “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Hebrews 3:13)
The progression gets worse with each downward step. I drift from the Word of God by neglecting It. If I drift, I begin to doubt. I doubt because of unbelief which is caused by sin because sin is deceitful!
The Very Heart of the Bible
Psalm 118:1-9
December 2, 2018
Introduction: What do I mean by “the very heart of the Bible”? The Word of God refers to the heart of something as “the apple of the eye” and is only mentioned only five times:
- Deuteronomy 32:10, “He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.”
- Psalm 17:8, “Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings.”
- Proverbs 7:2, “Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye.”
- Lamentations 2:18, “Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease.”
- Zechariah 2:8, “For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.”
This common phrase is often used to identify an object of one’s special favor or affection. The apple of the eye, of course, is not a fruit, but the pupil of the eye, so essential for sight that it becomes a peculiarly apt symbol for a prized possession. In each case, however, it speaks of something highly valuable to the owner. To be the apple of God’s eye, we must be the center-most focus of His eye. Along those same lines, we know that the central theme of God’s Word is Jesus. But what is the apple of the Bible’s eye, the center-most focus of His Word, the very heart of the Bible?
Psalm 118:8-9 are said to be the center-most verses in the Bible and contain the center-most focus of the 66 books of the Bible, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.”
It is also said that the two center-most words in the Bible are the seventh and eighth words of Psalm 118:8, “the LORD.” All these statistics are up for grabs as there are many opinions surrounding them. Nevertheless, it makes an interesting study!
Please note that “LORD” is all capital letters in your Bible in these verses. It is the Hebrew word “Jehovah,” God’s personal name describing His power to save.
- “Jehovah” is the Old Testament descriptive of Jesus.
- What DOES this verse tell us we are to do with Jesus? TRUST HIM!
What can the central theme of the center-most verse in the Bible teach us?
1. It tells of the only two religions in the world.
- Do, works and confidence in man; and done, faith, trusting in the Lord plus and minus nothing.
- How to get to Heaven is only taught two ways:
* It is either dependent on what YOU do.
* Or it is dependent on what Jesus has done.
- It can’t be both! Romans 11:6 makes it even clearer, “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.”
- Jesus made it abundantly clear in John 14:6 that there is only one way to Heaven when He clearly said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
- Psalm 118:8-9 say it all, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man [any man including yourself]. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.”
2. What you believe about Jesus determines many things.
- It determines what and how you believe about the rest of the Bible. This is very important!
* Either Jesus is the Son of God, or He is not.
* Either Jesus is King of kings, or He is not.
* Either Jesus is Lord of lords, or He is not.
* Either Jesus is the propitiation for sin, or He is not.
* Either Jesus is the Saviour, or He is not.
- You can be totally wrong about many subjects in the Word of God and still be saved and get to Heaven.
- If you are wrong about Jesus, you miss Heaven altogether!
* It is not your Bible knowledge.
* It is not your spiritual experience.
* It is not your church membership.
* It is not your church name.
* It is not your good works.
* It is not your baptism.
* It is not your communion.
* It is not your good feeling.
* It is not your anything.
- In order to get to Heaven, you cannot trust in the Lord plus or minus anything. It is Jesus, or nothing at all!
- I have grown to love Acts 4:12 so much over the years, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
3. Everything in Psalm 118:8-9 points to Jesus!
- Trust in the Lord! Proverbs 3:5-6 say, “Trust in the LORD with ALL thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In ALL thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
- Religious groups today point to everything BUT Jesus:
* The Holy Ghost and the gifts of the Spirit. Here’s a thought, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak…” (John 16:13)
* Healing.
* The church.
* Baptism.
* Numerology.
* Bible codes and hidden messages.
* Prophecy and prosperity.
* The Virgin Mary.
* Saints and sacraments.
- All these things should point to Jesus, but not be a substitute for Him!
Conclusion: What is the very heart of the Bible, that is, the center-most focus of His Word?
Psalm 118:8-9 are said to be the center-most verses in the Bible and contain the center-most focus of the 66 books of the Bible, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.”
What are you trusting right now? Are you trusting in Jesus alone to save you and take you to Heaven when you die, or is your confidence in man?
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- In regard to the Tribulation, Mark 13:3-27. Jesus describes the events that will happen during the first and final halves of the Tribulation Period yet to come.
- Their mission is found here in Mark 11:2-7.
- The crowd proclaims his praises by shouting, “Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: Blessed be the kingdom of our father David, that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.”