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Please turn to Matthew 13. The title of my sermon tonight is “The L Word”. There was a television show that aired on Showtime called “The L Word” (2004-2009), a show that glorified sexual sins. This sermon is not about that. But God put this on my heart, and we’re going to travel through a lot of Scripture tonight as we discover together what “The L Word” is. And no, I’m not talking about LOVE – though that will factor in to what the “L Word” I’m talking about is.

Why Are So Many Young People Leaving the Church?
Because They Received The Gospel With Joy.

I saw a young lady the other day “deconstructing” her faith on Youtube. This is a new and popular thing to do among so called “young ex-Christians”, some Christian music artists who’ve made millions singing about Jesus. This young lady was saying “I thought I was a Christian. I made myself a Christian, but now I’ve changed my mind.”. She said:

“I got saved (mocking voice on saved) when in a very vulnerable position. I was struggling with alcohol, drugs, you know. That’s how I got in. When I came to the faith, I was like, the prime Christian. I was the Christian on fire. My whole congregation, I lit a flame up under their —es. They loved to see me coming. I can’t tell you how many times I went up in front of the Church, because you had to do that if you were found out in sin. … I would show up on my pastor’s porch and tell him I had sex with somebody. Then I would stand in front of the congregation, and confess my sin.”

The girl was never saved. Her testimony was all about I. In one short statement about her faith, she never spoke about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, but about I. This young lady was never born again. She was a repeat fornicator. How can I say with assurance that she was never saved? Because Jesus spoke of such people.

Mechanics of Salvation: Jesus explained the mechanics of salvation in His parable of the Sower, also called the Parable of the Soils. It’s found in three Gospels:

Matthew 13:3-23
Mark 4:1-20
Luke 8:4-15

In this parable Jesus talks about the Sower sowing the seed of the Gospel. As the Sower sowed, some seed fell on the packed down path (Matthew 13:4). Other seed fell on rocky ground (Matthew 13:5-6). Yet other seed fell among thorns (Matthew 13:7). But the seed that fell on good soil, it PRODUCED fruit (Matthew 13:8).

Jesus was careful to explain the parable to His disciples, but NOT TO THE CROWD. Only those who were in a COVENANT RELATIONSHIP with Him heard the explanation. Why? Why did Jesus speak in parables? I’ve heard preachers mistakenly say “to make it easier to understand”. But Jesus explained this:

Matthew 13:10-13 (ESV) Then the disciples came and said to him, “WHY DO YOU SPEAK TO THEM IN PARABLES?” 11 And He answered them, “TO YOU (those in Covenant Relationship with Him) IT HAS BEEN GIVEN TO KNOW THE SECRETS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, BUT TO THEM (those NOT in Covenant Relationship with Jesus) IT HAS NOT BEEN GIVEN. 12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 13 THIS IS WHY IS SPEAK TO THEM IN PARABLES, because SEEING THEY DO NOT SEE, AND HEARING THEY DO NOT HEAR, NOR DO THEY UNDERSTAND.

Who was to know “THE SECRETS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN”? It wasn’t the masses. It was the Children of the Kingdom. It was those who heard the call of Jesus and, without hesitation, followed Him. Fishermen, prostitutes, sinners of all types. They heard Jesus’ call, and came to Him.

The “THE SECRETS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN” belong to those who are born again. And YOU CANNOT BE BORN AGAIN WITHOUT REPENTANCE.

Jesus preached Matthew 4:17 REPENT for the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is at hand.

Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. REPENT. Follow the King. There is no Kingdom without a King. Jesus is King. You must be in a Covenant Relationship with God in order to be saved. You cannot enter a Covenant Relationship without REPENTANCE, without bowing the knee to the King of Heaven.

Our Lord Jesus went on to explain the parable to those who were in Covenant Relationship with Him. Not to the crowd, but to those imperfect people who REPENTED and committed their lives to Him.

1. The seed sowed on the path is about those who do not understand the Gospel. They hear it, and Satan snatches it away. (Matthew 13:19).

2. The seed seed sowed on rocky or untilled soil is a picture of this young woman. Jesus said:

Matthew 13:20-21 (ESV) As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who HEARS THE WORD AND IMMEDIATELY RECEIVES IT WITH JOY, 21 yet he has NO ROOT IN HIMSELF but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, IMMEDIATELY HE FALLS AWAY.

The woman heard the Gospel and immediately received it WITH JOY. She didn’t repent of her sins, and grieve that her sins had been a barrier between her and the Lord Jesus. There was NO REPENTANCE. You cannot be saved with JOY. The first step in salvation is REPENTANCE.

This young woman is like so many who come to Jesus so He will FIX something in her life. BUT SHE NEVER ENTERS INTO A COVENANT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. Look how she treated sin. When she “slept with someone” – what the Bible condemns as FORNICATION when it is not in the Covenant of Marriage (1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:13; 6:18; 7:2; 10:8; 2 Corinthians 12:21). Did she confess her sin to God? No, she confessed her sin TO THE CHURCH. The Church does not forgive sins – only God (Isaiah 43:25; Micah 7:18). Sin is rebellion against God (Daniel 9:9). You go to God with your sins (1 John 1:8-10).

3. The seed sown among thorns is the Gospel preached to the comfortable and rich (Matthew 13:22). They will not hear, because they will not bow the knee. They want salvation without surrender. The free gift is only offered to those who REPENT and RUN to Jesus.

4. But the Gospel sowed on GOOD SOIL, Jesus said:

Matthew 13:23 (ESV) As for what was SOWN ON GOOD SOIL, this is the one who HEARS THE WORD and UNDERSTANDS IT. He indeed BEARS FRUIT and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.

What is the “GOOD SOIL”? Every gardener or farmer knows that GOOD SOIL is BROKEN SOIL. It’s been STIRRED UP by a plow or a hoe. What it used to gladly grow, it cannot grow, because it has REPENTED of the WEEDS AND THORNS of SIN. It has turn to Jesus, and called upon Him for salvation. The GOOD SOIL produces fruit that blesses the Sower, blesses our God. The GOOD SOIL makes crops that give credit to the Lord Jesus.

It Is Not Belief Alone That Saves You
Inviting “Jesus Into Your Heart” Is Not Scriptural.

Jesus said “the one who HEARS THE WORD and UNDERSTANDS IT” (Matthew 13:23) is saved. Only those who are born again “HEAR THE WORD”. Jesus told the Pharisees, that religious crowd who, like this young lady “was outwardly on fire” (but not for Jesus):

John 8:42-44 (ESV) Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, YOU WOULD LOVE ME, for I CAME FROM GOD and I am here. I CAME NOT OF MY OWN ACCORD, BUT HE SENT ME. 43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because YOU CANNOT HEAR MY WORD. 44 YOU ARE OF YOUR FATHER, THE DEVIL and your will is to do your father’s desires.

I’ve heard people make the statement, “I believe in Jesus”. Well, that’s fine. But the Bible makes it clear that belief in God alone DOES NOT SAVE. We are told in:

James 2:17-22 (NKJV) Thus also FAITH BY ITSELF, if IT DOES NOT HAVE WORKS, is DEAD. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 YOU BELIEVE THERE IS ONE GOD. YOU DO WELL. EVEN THE DEMONS BELIEVE – AND TREMBLE! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD? 21 Was not ABRAHAM OUR FATHER WAS JUSTIFIED BY WORKS when HE OFFERED ISAAC HIS SON ON THE ALTAR? 22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and BY WORKS FAITH WAS MADE PERFECT?

What Is The “L” Word? Salvation is by FAITH in God. But what is this thing called FAITH? Before you were saved, you followed your own path, and were LOYAL only to yourself. I told you at the beginning that this sermon was called “The L Word”. Yep. I’m talking about LOYALTY. Before you were saved, you were LOYAL to yourself, to your comfort, to your desires. But the day you were saved, God brought you face to face with the emptiness of your life. On that day, you REPENTED of your loyalties, and turned your loyalty over to Jesus. You began to follow Him.

I know some of you are going to say, “But I was told that salvation is a FREE GIFT from God, one that I cannot earn nor deserve”. Yes, that’s true. But before you receive that free gift, you need to understand it can ONLY BE RECEIVED AFTER REPENTANCE. You must turn your broken life over to God. This is the same thing we do – in a limited way – in the secular world.

If I have to go to court, I turn my life over to a Lawyer.
If I have a sickness, I turn my life over to a Doctor.

Now certainly, I have to pay for what the Doctor or Lawyer does. But I trust my life – in that instance – to the professional man. But what do we do about the barrier of sin between ourselves and God? Who do we call for that? We call out to Jesus. We surrender ourselves to Jesus. We REPENT, and enter into a LOYAL Covenant Relationship with Him.

This Covenant Relationship binds us to Jesus in a very intimate way. In the parable of the Vine Jesus said:

John 15:5-6 (NKJV) I am the Vine, you [are] the branches. He who ABIDES IN ME, and I IN HIM, BEARS MUCH FRUIT; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw [them] into the fire, and they are burned.

Those who are saved have REPENTED. To them, JESUS IS LORD, not us. We live in loyalty to Him Who saved us. We ABIDE IN JESUS and HE ABIDES IN US through the Holy Spirit. And what happens as a result of this?

You bear MUCH FRUIT.

There is much of what Jesus did replicated in your life. You live for Jesus. You are LOYAL to Jesus. That LOYALTY to Jesus exceeds any other loyalty on the earth.

Now James previously used Abraham as an example – so let’s go look at that example.

James 2:21 Was not ABRAHAM OUR FATHER WAS JUSTIFIED BY WORKS when HE OFFERED ISAAC HIS SON ON THE ALTAR?

What actually happened when God told Abraham to offer his only son Isaac on an altar at Mount Moriah, the Mountain of God (Genesis 22)? Just before this event, God told Abraham:

Genesis 21:12 (NKJV) in Isaac your seed shall be called.

God and Abraham were in a Covenant Relationship. Jesus came to Abraham and told him many years before:

Genesis 12:1-4 (NKJV) Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 4 So ABRAM DEPARTED AS THE LORD HAD SPOKEN TO HIM, and Lot went with him. And Abram [was] seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

God offered Abraham a Covenant Relationship. God said, “If you’ll go where I tell you, and do what I tell you, you’ll not only have a child, but through you the whole world will be blessed”. There were times when Abraham doubted God. But Beloved,

Nearly every great believer in the Bible doubted God at one time or another. And yet, those believers REMAINED LOYAL to God.

As humans we doubt. As humans, we fail. When Abraham went through Egypt (Genesis 12:10-20) he feared for his life, and doubted God. He said “Sarah is my sister” not trusting in the power of God to protect him. He did the same thing later when he traveled through Gerar (Genesis 20:1-18). Both times God stayed faithful to protect Abraham, but Abraham doubted. But Abraham stayed loyal to following the Lord.

As time passed, and Abraham had no child, he again doubted God. In Genesis 15:2-3 Abraham suggested that Eliezer of Damascus, his faithful servant, be his heir. God said, “No, but one who comes from your own body will be your heir” (Genesis 15:4). Later when Abraham went in to Hagar (an act of doubt in God) and got her pregnant, he told the Lord “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!” (Genesis 17:18). God told Abraham:

Genesis 17:19 No, Sarah YOUR WIFE SHALL BEAR YOU A SON, and you shall CALL HIS NAME ISAAC; I will establish My covenant with him for AN EVERLASTING COVENANT…”

God said “No, the Covenant that you and I have made MUST run through Isaac”. Though Abraham doubted this at times, he remained loyal to God. So after YEARS have passed, God tells Abraham:

Genesis 21:12 (NKJV) in Isaac YOUR SEED shall be called.

So when we come to Genesis 22 and God says, “Take your son, YOUR ONLY SON ISAAC, whom you love, to the land of Moriah, and OFFER HIM THERE as a BURNT OFFERING” (Genesis 22:2), this Abraham has been in a Covenant Relationship with God for many, many years. I have heard people say, “There is NO WAY I could do that”. Probably not. Many who say that have NEVER been in a Covenant Relationship with God, and others are YOUNG CHRISTIANS WHO ARE GROWING in their Covenant Relationship. God saved you to be in a Covenant Relationship with Him, not just on Sunday, but every single moment of every single day. This only comes with seasoning. With time. With trials as you go through them, looking unto Jesus.

When Abraham got to Mount Moriah with his servants and with Isaac, he told the men:

Genesis 22:5 (NKJV) And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; THE LAD AND I WILL GO YONDER AND WORSHIP, and WE WILL COME BACK TO YOU.”

Abraham went with the full intention of sacrificing Isaac on the altar of God on Moriah. And yet he told the men “WE WILL COME BACK TO YOU”. If Isaac was offered as a BURNT OFFERING, there was no way that he was coming back. But Abraham knew this. God is faithful. We know the story. Tied down to the altar, Abraham went to kill his son – and God intervened. God told Abraham:

Genesis 22:12 (NKJV) Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for NOW I KNOW THAT YOU FEAR GOD, since YOU HAVE NOT WITHHELD YOUR SON, your only son, FROM ME

Fear Of God Is To Trust in The Faithfulness Of God,
To Do What He Says

Abraham knew that God is faithful to His people. Abraham knew that he had to obey God. That’s what “fear of God” is – the willingness to obey God whether you understand or not. God does not ask us to understand His commands. He just says, “Follow Me. Do what I say. We are in a Covenant Relationship. I am loyal to YOU, and YOU need to be LOYAL TO ME”.

Abraham knew what God had promised. He knew that even if he had sacrificed and burned Isaac, God would have resurrected the ashes. Why? Because “God is faithful”.

1 Corinthians 1:9 (NKJV) GOD IS FAITHFUL, by Whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

God called you to salvation. We know this because you REPENTED and SURRENDERED to Jesus. You became

God’s POSSESSION (Ephesians 1:13-14; 1 Peter 2:9; Titus 2:14; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
God’s PEOPLE (John 1:12-13; Romans 8:14-16; 1 John 3:1)
God’s PURIFIED PRIESTS (1 Peter 2:9; Titus 2:14)
God’s PILGRIMS (1 Peter 2:11)
God’s PRAISE Bearers (1 Peter 2:9)
God’s PATRIOTS of Heaven (Philippians 3:20)
God’s PLANTINGS (Jeremiah 17:7; 1 Corinthians 3:6-7)
God’s PEACEMAKERS (Matthew 5:9)
God’s PROMISE KEEPERS (2 Corinthians 1:20)
God’s PARTNERS (2 Corinthians 6:1)

Fearing God means to faithfully DO WHAT GOD SAYS, regardless as to whether you understand it or not. That’s what Abraham the “Father of Faith” did.

Word Study Law Of First Usage: Let’s go back to “faithfulness”. What does it mean to be “faithful”? Bible scholars talk about “The Law of First Usage”. What this teaches is that “When a word or phrase occurs for the first time in Scripture, it sets the tone for how that word or phrase should be understood everywhere else”. The word “faithful” is found the first time in a battle that Israel fought with Amalek in Rephidim. Israel had just doubted God in Rephidim. When they pitched in Rephidim, the Bible says “there was no water for the people to drink” (Exodus 17:1). The people had no fear of the Lord. Though He saved them from Egypt, they had not been spiritually saved. Any time they were tested, Israel, like every lost soul, murmured and complained against God’s leaders and against God. God told Israel – now watch this:

Exodus 17:5-6 (KJV) And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and THY ROD, wherewith THOU SMOTEST THE RIVER, take in thine hand, and go. 6 Behold, I WILL STAND BEFORE THEE UPON THE ROCK in Horeb; and thou shalt SMITE THE ROCK, and THERE SHALL WATER COME OUT OF IT, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

This is a picture of Jesus, Who is the Giver of “Living water” (John 4:7-14; 7:37-39). He was beaten for our sins. He was bruised for our iniquities. What God asked Moses to do was graphically display the Gospel of salvation to these unbelieving people. “The LORD is my ROCK, my DELIVERER” (Psalm 18:2). “God ONLY is my ROCK and my SALVATION” (Psalm 62:2).

God gave Israel water at Rephidim. Now God will give Israel victory over Amalek at Rephidim – IF one thing is done.

As Israel went out to battle the Amalekites the next day, God put it on his heart to stand on the Rock, and lift up that Rod of God, the same Rod that struck the Rock to bring forth water. The Bible tells us that as Moses held the Rod of God above his head:

Exodus 17:11-12 (KJV) And it came to pass, when MOSES HELD UP HIS HAND, that Israel prevailed: and WHEN HE LET DOWN HIS HAND, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses’ hands [were] heavy; and they took a stone, and put [it] under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and HIS HANDS WERE STEADY {ĕmûnâ} until the going down of the sun.

Word Study: The word translated “STEADY” is the Hebrew ĕmûnâ, which means “FAITHFUL”. This is the first use of the word “FAITHFUL” in the Bible. Moses was FAITHFUL to do what God said do. This same word is used in:

Psalm 36:5 (KJV) Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and thy FAITHFULNESS (ĕmûnâ) reacheth unto the clouds.

Psalm 89:1-2 (KJV) I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy FAITHFULNESS (ĕmûnâ) to all generations. 2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy FAITHFULNESS (ĕmûnâ) shalt thou establish in the very heavens.

Psalm 119:75 (KJV) I know, O LORD, that thy judgments [are] right, and [that] thou in FAITHFULNESS (ĕmûnâ) hast afflicted me.

Moses didn’t debate with God when He told him to raise the staff. Moses raised his staff, but his arms got tired. So Aaron and Hur helped Moses hold up the staff – which is faithfulness, doing what God said do.

Biblical faith is not a feeling. It is a Covenant Commitment. Biblical faith is Moses doing what God said when God said it – even when it makes no sense to us. This is “Fear of the Lord”,
to trust Him no matter what.

Pastor Nate Sala said it very clearly:

“Faith in Scripture is not primarily about mental certitude. It’s about LOYALTY in relationship {with God}. Faith is a steady devotion of loyalty and trust in the context of relationship. A person is faithful in marriage because they are loyal to their spouse. The opposite of faith is not doubt. It’s disloyalty. It’s disobedience. You can be uncertain – and yet still faithful to God.”

Our God is faithful. I’ve already shown you that. God is reliable. God is consistent. God does what He says He will do. We are called to do the same. God is devoted to His children (Deuteronomy 32:4). We are told in:

Jeremiah 5:3 (LSB) O Yahweh, DO NOT YOUR EYES LOOK FOR FAITHFULNESS? You have struck them, But they did not weaken; You have consumed them, [But] THEY REFUSED TO RECEIVE DISCIPLINE. They have made their faces stronger than rock; THEY HAVE REFUSED TO REPENT.

Repentance means to follow God, to do as God says regardless as to what I think. It pleases God when we are FAITHFUL to Him, when we DO that which He says. Our Lord Jesus said, “If you LOVE ME, KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS” (John 14:15). What God says is not a suggestion, but a commandment. Those who have fear of the Lord are AFRAID to not do what God says, because we know God is faithful. What He says, he will do. Jesus said, “If you KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS, YOU WILL ABIDE IN MY LOVE, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in his love” (John 15:10). Again, what God says is NOT a suggestion. It is a directive.

Throughout the Psalms, King David expressed doubts and questions with God. I want to end with this.

Psalm 13:1-4 (LSB) A Psalm of David. How long, O Yahweh? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? 2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, [Having] sorrow in my heart all the day? How long will my enemy be exalted over me? 3 Look [and] answer me, O Yahweh my God; Give light to my eyes, lest I sleep the [sleep of] death, 4 Lest my enemy says, “I have overcome him,” [And] my adversaries rejoice that I am shaken.

David is struggling with doubt and fear. It seems like God is far away from him, far from his life. This may have been written when Saul was chasing him, trying to kill him. David had fear, despair, and doubt. And David didn’t hide this from God. He knows that God knows them that are His (2 Timothy 2:19), so he shares his heart with God. But notice what comes next:

Psalm 13:5-6 (LSB) But I HAVE TRUSTED IN YOUR LOVINGKINDNESS; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. 6 I WILL SING TO YAHWEH, Because He has dealt bountifully with me.

When in doubt, trust in God. How did David get to this level of trust? Even when he did not understand, even when he doubted, he did what God said do.

God is the Covenant Keeping God. We don’t know why we go through a lot of the things that we go through – but God has a purpose for it. Trust in God’s love for you. If you have not, REPENT and COMMIT your life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Do what He has said do. Even when it makes no sense to us, do it anyway. Why? Because God loves us, and will be faithful in the Covenant Relationship He calls us to. We need to be faithful to Him, too.

To FEAR the Lord is to understand God is God – and we are not. So we obey Him. We live faithfully with Him each day, confessing sin to Him when we fail. Take your doubts to God – but trust God and do as He says. That is the Way of the Master. May the Holy Spirit touch your hearts with His Word!