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Living For Jesus

Posted on January 27, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:23 In all labor there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.

The Blessing Of Work, The Cursing Of Talk

There is a blessing that comes with doing. God created us to work. Even in Eden, though it was “very good” (Genesis 1:31), and perfect according to God’s standards, God gave us work. God told Adam and Eve:

Genesis 1:28 … Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion …

And specifically:

Genesis 2:15 … the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

Ken Mathews notes in the New American Commentary on Genesis:

“{Pagan} accounts of human creation typically show how human beings were created for the purpose of work, but there human beings work to supply food for the selfish, lazy gods. Divine travail over their incessant labors is relieved by the creation of a human workforce. In contrast the biblical account portrays God as Provider for man’s needs, a part of which is the honorable, meaningful labor of tilling the soil. Life without work would not be worthy of human beings.” (pg 209)

God works, so we should work. When questioned as to why He healed people on the Sabbath, Jesus said:

John 5:17 (NKJV) … My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.

God works, and we are made in His image, so we should work.

When Jesus wanted to prove that He was the Messiah, He pointed to His works. Jesus said:

John 5:36 (NKJV) … I have a greater witness … for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.

How do we KNOW that Jesus is the one and only Messiah? Because He did the works of the Messiah – His works proved His worth. We cannot judge the heart of any person, not even Jesus. But we can see in the WORKS that He is the Messiah. Jesus said:

John 10:37-38 (NKJV) If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38 but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.

Jesus Christ was not the Messiah because He worked, but He was the Messiah because His works were those of the Messiah. Jesus was the Messiah because He is God incarnate. His works proved that. Christians are not Christians because they work, we are Christians because God the Holy Spirit has made us so. But others know we are Christians because our works glorify the God Who saved us.

Jesus often alluded to His works as proof of His Messiahship. He said in

John 14:11 (KJV) Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

If it looks like a duck, and walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it is a DUCK. We know that Abraham was a believer in Christ because of his works. The Scripture says:

James 2:21-26 (ESV) Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Had Jesus come to this earth declaring Himself to be Messiah, but never did the work of Messiah, He would have been no different from the other purported messiahs that roamed the earth at the same time. Mohamed proclaimed himself to be Messiah. Joseph Smith declared himself to be Messiah. Jim Jones declared himself to be Messiah. Yet only Jesus did the work of the Messiah.

Christians, like Christ, are commanded to work for the glory of God (if you are a Christian). The Bible says:

Colossians 3:23-24 (ESV) Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

The Christian “SERVES” or WORKS FOR the Lord Jesus Christ. When we as believers work, we do not work “to be people pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord” (Colossians 3:22). When we work, we work so as to glorify God (1 Corinthians 10:31; Matthew 5:16). God says:

Psalm 50:23 (ESV) The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies Me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!

Those who are saved, WORK AS IF THEY ARE SAVED. Then there are others who just talk about being saved, but never live for Jesus.

Proverbs 14:23 (KJV) … the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.

Word Study: The word translated “PENURY” is the Hebrew maḥsôr (pro. Makh-sore’), which means poverty or want. There are many people who talk a good Christian life, but when they die they will end up in eternal poverty. As the old saying goes, “talk is cheap”. You say you are saved by Grace, through faith in Christ. What proof do you show of this salvation? Those who are saved live by the two Great Commandments:

Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV) … Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

The salvation of the soul that does not bring a changed heart will show outwardly by selfish works. Jesus illustrated this in:

Matthew 25:31-46 (NKJV) When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ 41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ 44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

We May Be Hated, But We Must Stand True To God’s Word

Proverbs 14:24-25 The crown of the wise is their riches: but the foolishness of fools is folly. 25 A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies.

Word Study: The “WISE” (Hebrew ḥāḵām) person is the one who heeds and obeys the Word of God. These people have riches, perhaps not on this earth, but in glory. Jesus said:

Matthew 6:19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

The wise person, the believer who loves the Lord, will one day receive a crown of glory that will not fade away (1 Peter 5:4). The fool who rejects the Word of God, mocking the Master, will only have the crown of eternal folly. Their foolishness will multiply on the earth, and be eternal when they leave this life for the next.

A true witness delivereth souls

Christians are called to be “TRUE WITNESSES”. We only “DELIVER SOULS” when we affirm what God has said, regardless of our own desire.

Christians are to speak the Word that God has given us, without addition or subtraction. The Bible places a high value on truth. The Ninth Commandment states:

Exodus 20:16 (ESV) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor

God wants us to speak TRUTH, His TRUTH, to everyone.

Illustrate: When I pass by a Church and see on a sign that its Pastor is a woman, my first thought is “Is this endorsed by the Scripture?” Personally I don’t care what others do, BUT I do care what God has said. Always ask yourself, “What does God’s Word say”? Let’s look at the Book, not at the Church sign nor what the ACLU or some liberal denomination states. What does the BIBLE say?

1 Timothy 3:1-2 (KJV) This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife …

Titus 1:5-7 … (KJV) For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee: 6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife,

The Pastor in the Scripture is given several different titles:

Pastor or Shepherd (Ephesians 4:11)
Bishop (1 Timothy 3:1-2)
Overseer (1 Peter 5:1-2; Acts 20:17, 28)
Elder (Titus 1:5-7; Acts 20:17, 28)

The New Testament does NOT record any women serving as Apostles, Evangelists or Overseers/ Bishops/ Pastors.

When the Apostle spoke of the order of Creation, he writes:

1 Timothy 2:12-13 … I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve.

The arguments for women being ordained into Pastoral roles are all based on human reasoning, not Biblical counsel. When women are assigned roles as Pastors though the Scripture itself does not support it, then this opens the door to other teachings that are based on human traditions and philosophies. In every instance where people depart from Scripture to put their own twist on things, they ignore The Golden Rule of {Biblical} Interpretation:

“When the plain sense of scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at it’s primary, ordinary, usual meaning unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in light of related passages and axiomatic and fundamental truths, indicate clearly otherwise.” (Dr. David L. Cooper, founder Biblical Research Society)

It is God, not man, Who qualifies the Pastor, as it is God Who gives the Biblical offices. “He {God} gave some Apostles, and some Prophets, and some Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers, for the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, for the upbuilding of the body of Christ {the church}, till we all come in the UNITY OF THE FAITH”. (Ephesians 4:11-13). When Israel got away from God, the Lord commanded them to REPENT and return to Him. He said to His people:

Jeremiah 3:14-15 (KJV) Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: 15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

God establishes the office of Pastor – not us. When we begin to set our own rules, we walk down a dangerous pathway. The Christian is to be “not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Though it may see reasonable by the standards of humanism, God establishes what is right or wrong – not us. We are to be careful to follow His Word faithfully. The true Pastor will adhere to the qualifications of the office, and to the Word of God above all else.

Proverbs 14:25 A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies.

No one is blessed when we depart from the Word of God. Those in ungodly lifestyles are not blessed by the deceitful witness. Those who are enabled to do ungodly things are not blessed by the deceitful witness. Beloved, the strength of living is found in the fear of the Lord.

The Fear Of The Lord

Proverbs 14:26-27 (KJV) In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and His children shall have a place of refuge. 27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.

Knowing that you are living the life your Creator designed you for builds confidence. When you live to honor the One Who saved you, you know that He will honor your life, and protect you as you go forward. A good picture of this is found in the New Testament ministry of Paul and Silas. Thrown in prison for sharing the Gospel, we are told that:

Acts 16:23-27 (NKJV) when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. 24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. 25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself.

Having been beaten by their accusers, Paul and Silas were put in stocks, a miserable way to be, and placed in the deepest part of the prison. Yet as they were held they focused on prayer and praising God. When God caused the doors to open, and the chains to fall off of the prisoners, neither Paul nor Silas nor any of the prisoners tried to escape.

They were worshiping the Lord!

When the Philippian Jailer started to kill himself, Paul cried out, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all still here”. Seeking Paul and Silas out, the Jailer simply asked:

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (vs 30)

The fear of the Lord caused Paul, Silas, and the other prisoners to keep their eyes on the Lord, and not on their condition. They found refuge in God. The fear of the Lord keeps us from making bad decisions. It is:

Proverbs 14:27 … a fountain of LIFE, to DEPART from the SNARES of death …

The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Sin is a trap, a snare, an outward behavior that reflect the inward status of the heart. Nothing good comes from following sin. We cannot make peace with sin, and not make war with God.The Matthew Henry Commentary notes:

“The fear of the Lord is here put for all gracious principles, producing gracious practices. 1. Where this reigns it produces a holy security and serenity of mind. There is in it a strong confidence; it enables a man still to hold fast both his purity and his peace, whatever happens, and gives him boldness before God and the world. … 2. It entails a blessing upon posterity. The children of those that by faith make God their confidence shall be encouraged by the promise that God will be a God to believers and to their seed to flee to him as their refuge, and they shall find shelter in him. … 3. It is an over-flowing ever-flowing spring of comfort and joy; it is a fountain of life …

I have noticed that people will slow down on the highway when they see a police car. We fear a ticket. Fire warms us, and gives us light. But fire can burn your home down. We fear fire. I and my family loved visiting Yellowstone may years ago, and often camped out there. We were warned to stay away from the wild buffalo that wandered through the park, and to avoid leaving food out lest the bears be attracted to our camp site. We fear buffalo and bears. We stayed on the marked pathways, because we were warned there was hot springs that people could fall into, being boiled to death. We feared the hot springs. We love electricity, for it enables our appliances to wash our dishes, our clothes, to cook our food. But I never work on light switches or outlets without turning off the power, for I fear electrocution.

We fear lots of things that we love, and rightly so. Should we not fear the God Who made us, and saved us? Absolutely! We should fear offending Him more than anything else we fear. God can not only take your life, but He can make your life miserable if you are flippant with Him.

It is a fool who has no fear of God!

May God the Holy Spirit guide you in applying His Word to your life.

Posted in General, Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged Bible, Bible is true, Faith, Fear of God, fear of the Lord, Following Christ, God, God Is Faithful, honor God, human tradition, Jesus, pleasing man, salvation | Leave a comment

What Tree Are You?

Posted on January 18, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:18 The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.

The Simple Will Not Repent & Turn To God

Word Study: Those who are “SIMPLE” {Hebrew pᵊṯî} or “open-minded, worldly” turn away from the Word of God and instead choose the traditions and foolishness of man. The word “FOLLY” is the Hebrew ‘iûeleṯ (pro. iv-veh’-leth) which means “foolishness, that which is devoid of God’s blessing”.

**The simple chase after anything that leads them away from God, rather than to the Source of Life.**

Illustrate: The simple believe Darwinian Evolutionary Theory to be true, teaching that humans are just another form of animal. They teach their children that you can be a “furry”, an animal, if you want to be, and put litter pans in human toilets. They teach that life in the womb is disposable, then wonder why life in society is so cheaply held. They allow their children to play video games where murder is glorified, then wonder why their child grows up to murder. They give their children rewards for nothing, and the child grows up expecting to be supported in their lives whether they work or not. Their government awards welfare checks to able bodied citizens, and then wonder why these people keep expecting more.

Illustrate: Actions always have consequences – and sometimes those actions lead to unintended consequences. For instance, the wildfires that are destroying Los Angeles that have killed 16, and destroyed $135 Billion dollars in property to date. The liberal Mayor Karen Bass cut the Fire Department budget by $18 million dollars. Reservoirs were not filled with water, because the ruling class mismanaged resources. Fires themselves are out of control because environmentalists have resistedprovenforestation control, keeping dry tender removed via controlled burns. Rather than hire the most qualified to fight fires, the LA Fire Chief made it a priority to hire along Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion guidelines.

The simple, ignoring the counsel of God’s Word, ignoring common sense, ignoring the counsel of the wise, through their actions cause horric consequences.

the PRUDENT {Hebrew ʿārûm} are CROWNED with knowledge

The “PRUDENT” or Wise Believer heeds the Word of God from cover to cover. We not only read but we DO as God says. When we do so, God CROWNS our lives with blessing. Children of the King follow the King. My commentary notes:

“Contrary to the claims of ignorant skeptics, the Bible does not promote “blind faith.” This is one of many statements in Scripture warning against being naive or credulous (Proverbs 14:12, 15; Matthew 10:16; 1 John 4:1). The term translated “simple” here is from the root pathiy, meaning someone too easily convinced or unreasonably trusting. The book of Proverbs denounces this flaw many times when encouraging the reader to follow true wisdom (Proverbs 1:4, 22; 7:7; 8:5; 22:3).”

The Christian has a reasoned, clear faith. We follow what God has directed in His Word. We understand that DEI practices are non-Biblical, and nonsensical. All people are to be treated as Christ has directed, regardless of outward color:

Matthew 22:39 (ESV) … You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Romans 13:9-10 (ESV) For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

When God is placed FIRST (Matthew 22:38), then other humans are treated not as animals or furniture. Every person is the creation of God, and on that level is to be respected. We do not condone sinful fruit, but we love others enough to share Christ with them. We live our lives in glory to God so we can share the Gospel with the simple. We cannot save anyone – that is God’s work. But we work alongside God by sharing His love through the Gospel.

Righteousness Is Superior To Evil

Proverbs 14:19 The EVIL bow before the good; and the WICKED at the gates of the righteous.

Though it seems in this world as if those who are evil are enthroned over those who love the Lord, from God’s perspective the evil will eventually fall down before His Children. Jesus promised His followers:

2 Timothy 2:11-12 (ESV) If we have died with {Christ}, we will also live with Him; 12 if we endure, we will also REIGN WITH JESUS

In time, evil will be defeated. When God created the world His first command was “Let there be light”, and there was light (Genesis 1:3). God will not work in the darkness, but demands LIGHT. He conquers darkness by light.

1 John 1:5 This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and in him is no darkness at all

God is on a mission to eradicate darkness.
He has chosen us to partner with Him.

There will come a time when every believer in Christ will reign on this earth with Him. During Christ’s Millennial Kingdom, His Thousand Year reign on this earth, the Bible says:

Revelation 20:4-6 (ESV) Then I saw THRONES {notice this is PLURAL}, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

Those who “were not conformed to this world, but were transformed by the renewing of their minds” (Romans 12:1-2) will reign on this earth with Jesus, as Satan and his angels are bound in the bottomless pit. Those who are in the first resurrection, the believer in Christ, will “inherit the earth” (Psalm 37:11; Matthew 5:5).

When you give your life to Jesus Christ, you come to the winning side. Philippians 2:10 tells us that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”. This will happen in time. This must happen.

I remember several years ago a young woman who mocked our church, one whom I had tried to reach with Christ (along with her effeminate husband). She was the head of her household, and her husband the wife. Visiting our church, she hopped from church to church, having no use for the Word of God. About 6 months after leaving our Church she sought me out on a Monday morning, begging food from our pantry. Her husband had been up on a ladder doing something she wanted done, and the ladder slipped. Her husband fell, broke his back, and was badly laid up. Though there were other churches in town, she came to THIS CHURCH looking for help. She saw Christ in our midst. This woman who mocked and abandoned Christ and His way now came to me begging food. Of course, I fed her and her husband.

We are to “love our enemies” (Matthew 5:44), “blessing them that curse you, doing good to those who hate you, and praying for those who despitefully use you”. This is what Children of God do. I encouraged the foolish woman to come back as needed, but never saw her again as she – red faced – put several bags of groceries in her car. The wicked may – in this life – come to “the gates of the righteous”. Look at the testimony of the Scripture:

Imprisoned Joseph had all Egypt – and his brothers –
eventually bow before him and beg food.

Deceived Jacob in time gained most of Laban’s flock.

Captured Daniel was sought out by the King
as a wise man, and became the Chief Magi.

Mocked and disregarded David came from the flock to the Palace,
and his family bowed before him.

We as believers know that eventually we will triumph, because evil must lose. Let us continue trusting the Lord and keep doing good to the glory of God!

What Is The Fruit Of Your Life?

Proverbs 14:20-21 The poor is hated even of his own neighbor: but the rich hath many friends. 21 He that despiseth his neighbor sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.

People are often friendly, pretending to be friends to those who have money. This is not how God would have us to be, but an observation as to what happens among those who are lost or simple. Those who are rich have rich friends, not poor friends. They think themselves above those who are outside of their economic bracket. Yet the rich rarely find salvation in Christ. The Bible tells us that:

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (ESV) For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.

Though not all the rich are lost (praise God), many are because their god is money and power. The poor have no such gods to rely on, so they often turn to Jesus. The Bible says:

James 2:5 (ESV) Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

There were a few rich people who helped support Jesus’ earthly ministry – but very few. We know of:

Joseph of Arimathea, who gave a Tomb to Jesus
Nicodemus, a rich Rabbi
Joanna, the wife of Pilate’s steward
Susanna, a wealthy woman

The Bible does not say there were NONE chosen to salvation, but it says “NOT MANY”. The vast number who followed after Christ were impoverished, either physically or economically.

Many who are rich are not noble or virtuous, but have achieved their riches through deception and lying. Not all, but many. There are many rich who live in luxury, but treat people as if they were furniture or objects to be used. Jesus reminds us in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) how cruelly the rich can be toward the poor. And yet, how gracious God is.

Those who love money more than life will one day “lift up their eyes in hell” with the rich man, whereas those who struggled through this life while loving the Lord will be comforted in glory. Money is fleeting, but life is eternal – in Christ. My commentary notes:

“No matter how dear are the friends, or how many there are of them, that reject you, God will never desert you, no matter how poor (Psalm 73:25-26; Hebrews 13:5-6). He set His love on you when you were his hateful enemy, and He will not remove His love for the minor turns of life’s events (Romans 5:6-11). He became poor to make you rich (II Corinthians 8:9).”

The Good (Converted) Tree Bears Good Fruit

Proverbs 14:22 Do they not err that DEVISE {ḥāraš} evil? but mercy and truth shall be to them that DEVISE {ḥāraš} good.

Word Study: This present life we live is a battlefield. All around us are temptations to do the wrong, to join in with the worldly, to compromise with sin. Satan whispers to us, “Just do it. If it feels good, do it.” But if you are a Child of the King, you are called to “DEVISE GOOD”. The word “DEVISE” is the Hebrew ḥāraš, [pro. Khaw-rash’] which means “to cut, plough, engrave, plot, to scratch” in the Qal {simple verb stem}construction, but in the Hiphil {verbal stem that is causative action} & Hithpael {verbal pattern that shows reflexive action} the word means “to be silent or keep quiet”. Put this into English: Those who sneak around, plotting and planning evil are hurting themselves and others. However, those who quietly do good, seeking to serve the Lord shall find mercy from God and the truth that Christ wants us to have.

The converted or “Good” Tree quietly bears fruit to the glory of God. The unconverted or “Bad” tree quietly conspires to bring evil and dark fruit to the glory of man.

A Christian is not a Christian because of good works, but because of GRACE. But once saved, God recreates the soul of that person. The tree is made good – CONVERTED or BORN AGAIN. As our Lord Jesus said,

Matthew 7:17 … every GOOD TREE bringeth forth GOOD FRUIT; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth EVIL FRUIT

If you profess to be a Christian, then what fruit is your life producing to prove or endorse your faith? What fruit are you producing DAILY that glorifies God? How many people have you been Jesus to? How much good have you done in the name of Christ? Or do you just sit about talking about doing good, but never doing.

Those who are saved DEVISE GOOD. Those who are possessors of eternal life through Christ patiently DO GOOD. The Bible says:

Romans 2:7-8 (KJV)To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath

If the fruit of your life is evil, you need only expect hell and damnation from God in the next life. Those who have been “born again”, changed by God from corrupt trees to good trees, will produce good fruit.

Good fruit blesses others, brings glory to God,
and is proof of a saved life.

The Scripture says in Galatians 6:9 (ESV) … let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

And again in 2 Thessalonians 3:13 (ESV) … do not grow weary in doing good.

An apple tree will struggle to bear apples, even in years when the rain was not as plentiful, and the sun not as hot. Why? Because it is in the nature of the apple tree to bear apples, not frogs or poison ivy or chiggers. The apple tree knows that to reproduce, it must bear fruit. Even so, the Christian MUST BEAR FRUIT.

Why are so many Churches dying in America today? We cannot blame the unbeliever for not coming. The unbeliever is not an apple tree. Their fruit is evil, poisonous. They may come to Church periodically to give the appearance of good, but it is not Church life that proves the tree, but life life. Are you bearing apples? Or are you bearing evil fruit, or worse, no fruit at all. Evil fruit goes with the world, with the darkness, but not with the Lord. Evil fruit glorifies man and mankind, while ignoring the glory of the Creator.

Beloved, we are to bear fruit unto the glory of God. We may suffer in doing so, for good fruit is hated by the darkness. We are to remember the words of Scripture:

1 Peter 3:13-17 (ESV) Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.

Children of the King DO GOOD. Churches that die, die because they are filled with bad trees pretending to be good trees. Churches that do not DO GOOD do not deserve to continue.

Serve the Lord.

May God the Holy Spirit touch your souls, drawing you to hear and heed His Word. Amen.

Posted in Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged bad tree, Christ, Following Christ, fruitfulness, good tree, gospel, love, salvation, tree | Leave a comment

A Matter Of Identity

Posted on January 11, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.

Our Identity Must Be In Our Maker

The person who often laughs is not always happy. A good case in point is Actor and Comedian Robin Williams. Robin often had severe depression. Earlier in his life he was addicted to alcohol and drugs, but he stopped cold turkey. After 20 years he re-entered depression, and turned back to his addictions before he killed himself in 2014. He was only 63 years old. Williams was a comic genius as well as a brilliant dramatic actor. Off stage he was quiet and reserved. But onstage he came alive. His suicide by hanging was a surprise to the world.

Sadly, many people find their identity in anything but the right thing.

People chase after identity in power, fame, in their God given abilities (God gave Robin his extraordinary talent), in skin color, in a variety of lesser things. To seek your identity in anything outside of the Creator is to follow a perilous path. When God made man and woman, the Bible says:

Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them

Though man was made “from the dust of the ground” (Genesis 2:7) and woman was made “from the rib taken from man” (Genesis 2:22), both man and woman were made in God’s image, “In HIS LIKENESS” (Genesis 1:26). This likeness of God is in every person, male or female, whether they are children of God or children of Adam. Though we may delude ourselves (as atheists and agnostics do), we all resemble God in certain ways:

Morally We Are In His Image: We have a sense of what is right and wrong, though we may warp this sense by hardening our conscience or our heart. We harden our hearts by:

Turning from God’s Direction: Hebrews 3:12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an EVIL, UNBELIEVING HEART, LEADING YOU TO FALL AWAY FROM THE LIVING GOD.

Professing believers who repeatedly ignore the Word and Command of the Creator for the word of man will be absorbed into the darkness. The Pharisees, knowing the Law of God, arranged that false witnesses speak against Jesus at His trial. They did so not out of ignorance, but out of pride and selfishness. They “did not obey or incline their ear to God, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts” (Jeremiah 7:24). People today twist the moral code of the Scripture by ignoring what God has said is right and wrong, and by trusting in the created rather than the Creator. God says:

Jeremiah 17:5 (ESV) Cursed is the man who trusts in man and MAKES FLESH HIS STRENGTH, WHOSE HEART TURNS AWAY FROM THE LORD …

Spiritually: Every person knows that there is a God – however, only the Bible believing Christian worships the right God. The Bible says:

1 Corinthians 8:5-6 (KJV) For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) 6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of Whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom are all things, and We by him.

Every person has a god – whether it is themselves, another person, an idol made of stone, steel, or wood, a profession or an ideology. When the Apostle Paul preached in the midst of Mars’ Hill (aka. Areopagus) in Athens, Greece, he told these pagans:

Acts 17:22-25 (ESV) … Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.

Everyone seeks for God our Creator. Not finding God, we do as Israel did in the wilderness. When Moses was gone 40 days up Mount Sinai, in fear the people created their own god to lead them, a golden calf (Deuteronomy 9:13-21). Turning from the Bible, the Word of God, we all seek after God. The Psalmist said:

Psalm 10:4 (KJV) The WICKED, through the PRIDE of his countenance, WILL NOT SEEK AFTER GOD: God is not in all his thoughts …

We are created by God to know there is a God. But in pride we reject Him, for to know Him is to serve Him and not sin.

Ontological: Like God, we are living beings. Though created, we have personality, and the ability to create. We have been given a freedom of will to respond to or ignore God. We are not animals. We were made in God’s image to rule the planet as His stewards. We have creative ability as God does. Though we can create nothing from nothing, we are manufacturers and makers. Animals re-purpose items crudely to use, but we create technology and tools. We share the nature of God.

Those Who Find The Maker, Find Joy

When we depart from God, we will never find true joy, which is what God wants us to have. Joy, unlike happiness, is not temporal nor based upon your current situation. Joy comes from being complete, fulfilled in your creation. At the announcement of Christ’s birth the Angel told the shepherds:

Luke 2:10 … Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

When the Magi saw the Bethlehem Star, the Bible says:

Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

To know Jesus is to know Joy, great Joy. We are not guaranteed happiness, which is temporal, but JOY is found when we find God. When the child John the Baptist heard the voice of Mary, pregnant with the Christ, the Bible says “the baby leapt for JOY” (Luke 1:44). Jesus said:

John 15:11 (KJV) These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

Telling His disciples that He had to go to the Cross for us, Jesus said:

John 16:22-24 (NKJV) you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you. 23 “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. 24 Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

In the Book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon tells us the futility of living your life apart from the Lord. He had riches, fame, women, popularity … but he found no satisfaction nor significance in any of it. Solomon tells us in the end:

Ecclesiastes 12:13 (ESV) The end of the matter; all has been heard. FEAR God and KEEP his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

You will always be incomplete, always be unfulfilled and joyless, until you return to the Lord Who made you.

Fill Your Cup With God

Proverbs 14:14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.

When you turn away from God, you get what you ask for. It’s like the old saying, “What goes around comes around”. If you reject God, you “SHALL BE FILLED WITH YOUR OWN WAYS”. God does not leave His children alone. He has promised,

Hebrews 13:5 … I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

And again, Psalm 9:9-10 (ESV) The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. 10 And those who know Your name put their trust in You, for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.

God does not abandon His children. However, if you backslide and turn from the Lord, you will find yourself walking alone. God will not walk in darkness. The Scripture says,

1 John 1:7 … (KJV) if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), though a child of the Father, walked away from his home and his Father. “Give me my portion of my estate”, he demanded, and the Father gave him as he asked. Going into a far away land this foolish child “FILLED WITH HIS OWN WAYS” began to suffer for all the bad decisions and bad company he made. In time, the Prodigal found himself eating out of the trough with the pigs he fed.

Beloved, if you walk away from God, you will find yourself very lonely, FULL OF YOURSELF until you repent and return.

God will not walk in darkness. God will not eat out of the pig trough with you. When that foolish person repented, going home to his Father saying:

Luke 15:21 (NKJV) … ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.

It was only then that the Father embraced him, and killing the fatted calf fed him. If you are miserable, dear one, it is because you have miserably abandoned your Father. You have walked away from your vows, and held up your God to open ridicule as you imitated the world. My commentary notes:

“As the book of Proverbs often notes, ignoring God increases risks in earthly life (Proverbs 13:21) and guarantees death in eternity (Proverbs 10:29; 11:4). Galatians 6:7–9 tells us: ‘Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.’ Isaiah 3:9 addresses the backsliders in Judah and pronounces woe to them, asserting: ‘they have brought evil on themselves.’”

Proverbs 14:14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.

Those who abandon God find burdens, but those who seek after God find blessings.

The only person that can find joy for the Christian is the Christian himself. We lift up others by our works. We are humble before God and others. But we live our lives for the Lord. The Bible says:

Galatians 6:4-10 (ESV) … But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. 5 For each will have to bear his own load. 6 Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. 7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

A Christian is called to the work of the ministry. Jesus said, “My Father works, so I work” (John 5:17). We, as followers of Christ, work. It has been my experience that the most miserable Christians are those who sit around waiting to be waited upon. If you are a Christian, you are called to work. To “DO GOOD TO EVERYONE”. Not THINK Good, but DO Good. You are called to sow the seed of the Gospel, and to labor so that the seed can be sown. It is a scriptural principle that “whatever one sows, that will he also reap”.

Sow nothing, expect nothing.
Sow self, expect self.
Sow goodness, expect goodness.
Sow wickedness, expect wickedness.

What you do, or don’t do, matters. Find something that glorifies your Creator, and do it for His glory. Matthew Henry wrote:

“As sinners never think they have sin enough till it brings them to hell, so saints never think they have grace enough till it brings them to heaven.”

Simple Vs Prudent

Proverbs 14:15 The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.

Word Study: The “SIMPLE” is the Hebrew pᵊṯî (pronounced peth-ee) which means “those who are naive or foolish, open minded without qualification, silly”. If people would listen to God’s Word, we are promised “the Law of the Lord is PERFECT and CONVERTS the soul: God’s Word is certain, making WISE the SIMPLE (pᵊṯî) (Psalm 19:7). Those who are simple or silly choose to ignore what God has said in favor of what man projects. Instead of believing we are created by a loving and all powerful God, the simple or silly believe that we evolved from goo, from fish, and from apes. The simple believe in a “Big Bang”, but will not acknowledge the One Who made it so. They can see no limit to space, but believe the infinite evolved from the finite. The simple ask foolish questions, like “What is a woman?”. Then they ask us to believe that a man can become pregnant, or compete fairly in women’s sports.

The simple fool follows whatever trend is popular among humanity at the time, but

but the prudent man looketh well to his going

Word Study: The “PRUDENT” (Hebrew ʿārûm, pronounced aw-room) does not follow the crowd, but follows the Word of God. These people are like the Berean Christians that Paul and Silas met with. When told that something was Biblical or godly, the Bible says:

Acts 17:11 (ESV) Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

The Berean Christian did not just accept what was said, but searched the Scriptures to see if the Bible supported the preaching. This is what the Apostle told us:

2 Corinthians 13:5 (NKJV) Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.

People are often quoting “Bible verses” that are not in the Bible. Things like:

God helps those who help themselves
(Quran Surah Ar-Ra’d 13:11, not the Bible)

God works in mysterious ways (see Isaiah 55:8-9)

Cleanliness is next to godliness
(Quran 2:222, but not in Bible)

God never gives us more than we can handle
(see 1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Corinthians 1:8)

God will give me everything I want
(Philippians 4:19; Matthew 6:31-32)

Money is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10)

We believe every word of the Bible by faith, and receive God’s Word as the truth. But as believers we always test what we hear. Had Adam tested what the serpent said before eating, the world would not have fallen, and we would not be immersed in sin. Consider carefully before stepping out on a “truth” that someone shares with you. Ask yourself, “Where is this in the Bible?” Remember, God’s Word …

Psalm 119:105 … is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Proverbs 14:16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.

A wise or prudent person doesn’t act on instinct, but carefully examines each situation he confronts through the lens of God’s Holy Word. The devil loves to attack us at our point of weakness. The fool “RAGETH”, that is, they charge forward without thought into sin. They have no regard for consequences. They do not ask, “That loose man or woman, do they have AIDs or HIV? Who else have they been with?”. They go to bars and drink beverages offered by strangers. They walk down dark alleys, never considering that evil hides its damnation in the darkness.

Just as “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10), we should have a holy fear of sin (1 Timothy 5:20).

When weak and hungry, Satan came to Jesus to tempt Him in the wilderness. Jesus did not rely on His own power, but with each temptation responded “It is written” (see Matthew 4). Just as we fear snakes, spiders, scorpions, tigers, lions, skunks, and other things that can harm, we should fear dabbling in sin.

Proverbs 14:17 He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated.

Word Study: The words translated “SOON ANGRY” is the Hebrew Ketsar appayim, which means “to have short nostrils”. When a person gets angry their nose contracts, and is drawn toward the eyes. Those who are easily angered always “DEAL FOOLISHLY”. They make errors in judgment, errors in business dealings. Those who are easily angered make foolish statements that, when they are called on it, they reject all discussion like a rabid dog. They are not self aware. They have no self control.

The “MAN OF WICKED DEVICES”, on the other hand, is hated because he cannot be trusted. They twist situations to their strategic advantage. God promises to eventually judge these people. We are told:

2 Peter 2:9-15 (ESV) the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority. Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones, 11 whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. 12 But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction, 13 suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, while they feast with you. 14 They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! 15 Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray.

The sign that someone is out of balance is that they have a quick or explosive temper. They make up lies to cover up their deficiency and their misery. Do not hang out with these people, but share the Gospel of Christ with them.

People need the Lord.

Posted in General, Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged Christian Identity, Following Christ, identity, salvation | Leave a comment

Choose Carefully Your Way

Posted on January 3, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:8 The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit.

Believers Follow His Way

Every commentary I looked at had, in my opinion, a poor understanding of this particular proverb. Let’s break this down into its two parts and go a little deeper:

The WISDOM of the prudent is to understand his way

Word Study: As we have learned before, there is a difference between KNOWLEDGE and WISDOM. The first, KNOWLEDGE, is based on raw data or facts. The Scribes and Pharisees had knowledge of the Law. They were legal experts, trying to follow the 613 commandments of the Mosaic Law, as well as the thousands of Rabbinical Pronouncements (Mishnah & Gemara) as to what these Laws actually meant. Jesus chastised the Scribes and Pharisees. Like many religious people, they had the raw data (KNOWLEDGE), but lacked the WISDOM to apply that knowledge.

WISDOM or the ability to properly apply learned data comes not from man, but from God.

Proverbs 2:6 (ESV) For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding;

James 1:5 (ESV) If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

Psalm 119:98 (ESV) Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me.

Word Study: The “PRUDENT” (Hebrew ʿārûm) is the one who is wise, shrewd, or sensible. This is a reference to the believer in Christ who heeds the Word of God. The “PRUDENT” asks God for wisdom so that we can “UNDERSTAND” not “his way”, as in the prudent person’s way. We ask God for wisdom so that we can understand “His way”, God’s Way.

When we follow our path, our desires, we are not prudent but foolish. When mankind walked away from God, and forsook His way, the Bible says:

Genesis 6:12 (KJV) God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.

It was then that God decided to destroy the earth by flood. Not because man was following his way, but because mankind had forsaken righteousness and was therefore forsaking His – God’s way. God blesses us when we follow His way, for God’s way is always right.

Psalm 18:30 (KJV) As for God, his way is perfect: the Word of the LORD is tried: He is a buckler to all those that trust in him.

When we humble ourselves before the Lord and seek His way, He promises us:

Psalm 25:9 (KJV) The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.

When the Word of God “became flesh and dwelt among us”, God clearly revealed to us the way we were to go. Jesus is called,

John 14:6 … THE WAY, the Truth, and the Life …

However, the lost walk a different way.

Proverbs 14:8 … but the folly of fools is deceit.

The “Fool” or godless person (Psalm 14:1; 53:1) rejects the Word and Wisdom of God. They cheat themselves out of the blessings that they could receive from God, if they would but repent. They deceive others and themselves. Jesus warned His children:

Matthew 10:16 (ESV) Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Walk carefully among the lost of this world. They will attempt to deceive you, as they have been deceived. The wages of sin will ALWAYS be DEATH (Romans 6:23). The road to death and destruction is wide. The road to glory is narrow.

Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV) Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Fools Play With Death

Proverbs 14:9 Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favor.

Again we are contrasting the lost (FOOLS) with the saved (the RIGHTEOUS). The foolish and godless person mocks and minimizes the dangers of sin. As one commentary notes:

“Sin is the transgression of the law; doing what God forbids, or omitting to do what He commands.”

Illustrate: Some mock sin because of sensual appetite. They wish to indulge their desires, so they minimize what they do. On one episode of the television show Frasier the father Martin was having an affair with a supposed Churched Christian. When she expressed discomfort at what they were doing, his reply was “We’re both adults – what’s the harm?” The harm is that fornication and other forms of sexual sin – physical intimate gratification outside of marriage – is considered sinful and destructive. In the United States there are more than 20 million cases of sexually transmitted diseases every year – many of them deadly or life altering.

Proverbs 1:7 (ESV) The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

The fool does not want to hear the truth. I often see them rolling their eyes when I preach, or whispering to one another justification for their foolishness. Their “consciences are seared” (1 Timothy 4:2), and they have hardened their hearts to the truths of God’s Word. However, we are told that …

among the righteous there is favor

Those who are saved are open to the will and the Word of God. When the Christ follower steps out of the Spirit and into sin, they do not mock it, but repent of it. The Bible says:

Psalm 51:17 (ESV) The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

God “knows that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14), that though we who are saved by Grace are saved, that we do at times err. But when we err, we do not mock nor make light of our sin. We REPENT. In the Theology of Work we read:

“Knowing our weakness and dustiness, God is tender and compassionate. God’s love for us means that he does not abandon us in our limitations and sins. Rather, he looks upon us like a father with his own children. And, indeed, the Father loves us so much that he sent his only Son to bear our sin and open us up to the way of wholeness. … So, even as we acknowledge our limitations, our frailty, and our sin, we celebrate the fact that God understands who we are, and that He has come in Christ to do what we could never do on our own.”

God wants us to serve Him lovingly, but does not expect our perfection. We are “His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works” (Ephesians 2:10). The Bible tells us that – saved by Grace – we have the favor of God. We are told to:

Philippians 2:12-13 … work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

It is inconceivable that a genuine Christian would make light of sin. We know what sin cost our Jesus. We know what our sin caused Christ to go through.

We Cannot Judge The Heart Of A Person

Proverbs 14:10 The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.

We cannot judge the heart of another. As believers, we are to judge the fruit of a life, the works that a person does. Jesus justified this type of judging. He said:

Matthew 7:15-20 (NKJV) Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

We know if a “fruit” or a work of the life is right or wrong based upon the scale of God’s Word. God decrees right and wrong. If an action departs from God’s Word, then it is wrong.

We can judge the fruit of a life, but cannot judge anyone’s heart. As a pastor I have had to preach funeral for people who were faithful to the Church and apparently faithful to the Lord in their profession. Such people are easy to preach a funeral for, because the fruit or expressed work of their lives looked like “good fruit” from a “good tree”. But then there have been other funerals I have had to preach for people who did not exhibit “good fruit” in their lives, but were selfish, petty, mean spirited, argumentative, judgmental, and generally just a mess to be around. Some of these people, however, became afflicted, and went through what can be called a “deathbed confession”.

Were they saved? I cannot tell. I cannot judge the heart. Neither can you.

When the Prophet Job went through terrible affliction, his “friends” came to him and accused him of all sorts of evil. C.H. Spurgeon stated:

“We may not judge our brethren as though we understood them, and were competent to give a verdict upon them. Do not sit down, like Job’s friends, and condemn the innocent.”

The heart knows its own bitterness. Only I may know my heart. When God sent the Prophet Samuel to anoint a new King over Israel, Samuel thought it would be one of Jesse’s stronger sons. God told Samuel:

1 Samuel 16:7 (ESV) … Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.

Only God can see our hearts. Only God knows the heart – and the person whose heart it is knows it. 1 Corinthians 2:11 says, “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?”

Again, we can judge the works that we can see as righteous or unrighteous, but not the heart. In the early Church the bulk of the Church was Jewish, with a Jewish background. As Gentiles began to enter the Church, they brought with them their own customs that were not necessarily sinful. So the Lord directed the Church:

Romans 14:2-4 (NKJV) … one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. 3 Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. 4 Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.

Proverbs 14:10 The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.

Just as no one but you can know your own heart, no one but you can know the joy of your salvation. To know that joy, you must not be a stranger to it. You must call upon the Lord yourself. No one can be saved for you. But once saved, you will share in the sevenfold joy of salvation:

The JOY of pardoned sin.
The JOY of freedom from sin’s enslavement.
The JOY of unity and reconciliation with God your Father.
The JOY of accepted service.
The JOY of heard and answered prayer.
The JOY of peace even in the midst of storm.
The JOY of daily, hourly, minute by minute communion with God.

Eventually That Which Is Darkness Shall Die

Proverbs 14:11-12 The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish. 12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Word Study: In verse 11 there is a contrast between a “HOUSE” and a “TABERNACLE”. The “HOUSE” is the Hebrew bayiṯ (pronounced bah’-yith) which refers to a “home, household, dwelling habitation or shelter that is permanent”. The “TABERNACLE” is the Hebrew ōhel is a less temporary shelter like a tent.

The wicked or godless people build permanent structures meant to last, houses, monuments. But these permanent structures will not stand, for they “shall be overthrown”. A house built on evil is very weak. A life built on that which God has decreed is wrong will become dissipated. I saw a picture of Ellen Degeneres the other day with her “wife” Portia de Rossi. Two sadder people I have never seen. When Ellen first aired on television, she was a beautiful person. Now she looks worn out, and worn down. God has said:

Ezekiel 18:4 (ESV) … the soul who sins SHALL DIE

Romans 6:23 (ESV) … the wages of sin is DEATH

Proverbs 14:12 (ESV) There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is THE WAY TO DEATH

Ezekiel 18:20 (ESV) The soul who sins SHALL DIE

God will use a broken person who repents and turns to Him. But God will eventually either destroy, or allow the wicked to be destroyed, for evil and darkness cannot stand in permanence. Over the last four years when people began to push DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion), transgenderism on children, Drag Queen Story Hour at the Library, LGBTQ+ policies and celebratory months, same sex marriages, willful murder of children in the womb, far left or far right agendas I knew that the house of cards would collapse. Why? Because anything divorced from God and His Word and Truth will die.

Beloved, it doesn’t matter if it is a country, a community, or a Church – the house of the wicked WILL NOT STAND. God will not let it.

but the TABERNACLE (Tent) of the UPRIGHT shall FLOURISH

Word Study: The word “FLOURISH” is the Hebrew pāraḥ (pronounced paw-rakh’), which means “to blossom, to spring forth, to bud or send out shoots”. The righteous, though their home might be temporary, will produce abundant fruit because they follow the Lord. Jesus emphasized this in His parable:

John 15:1-7 (ESV) I am the true vine, and My Father is the vine dresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

The Christ follower must remember not to “drive your tent stakes too deeply”. This world is not our permanent home. We are headed toward God, toward Heaven. Jesus tells those who are His children by faith,

Matthew 6:19-21 (ESV) Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

King David wrote “I was envious of the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psalm 73:3). He spoke truly, How often have we, have I, looked at the riches that the godless have, and thought what good I could do with those millions. Nancy Pelosi has robbed near half a billion dollars from American citizens during her political career. The Obamas have three of four multi-million dollar mansions they have purchased by making merchandise of the poor. The wicked women of The View make millions mocking sin and minimizing the God of the Bible. “They say, ‘How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?’” (Psalm 73:11). David said,

Psalm 73:16-17 (ESV) But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, 17 until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

God has allowed the wicked to prosper for but a time. In time,

King Ahab will die a bloody death.
Queen Jezebel will be eaten by dogs.
Judas Iscariot will hang himself.
Samson will be blinded, and kill many Philistines.
King Herod Agrippa will be eaten by skin worms.
King Jehoram will die of a bowel disease.
Absalom, pretty Prince Absalom, will be hung by his hair.
General Sisera will fall asleep,
and have a tent peg driven in his head.
Fat King Eglon will be stabbed by a hidden dagger.
And the rich man will burn in hell,
while Lazarus is comforted.

There is a judgment day coming, and God will make right all that is wrong. Those who mocked God will stand before a Great White Throne (Revelation 20:11-15) and try and run away. In the end, every thing of permanence that the wicked sought to establish shall be torn down. The righteous shall flourish, though we have but tents. The house of the wicked shall not last.

I hope you’re on the right side.

Posted in Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged Faith, Following Christ, God Is Faithful, love, salvation | Leave a comment

Dead To The Law And Married To Christ

Posted on January 1, 2025 by bibleteacherorg

Romans 7:1-4 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? 2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. 4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

This Chapter Addresses The Legalists

In Romans Chapter 7 the Lord through the Apostle Paul begins to explain to the Pharisees and Scribes among us why the Law of God does not change us. We know that this is the case because he says:

(for I speak to them that know the law,)

Word Study: The word translated “KNOW” is the Greek ginōskō, which means “to perceive, understand, have been intimately aware of”. The word is often used in the New Testament for the intimate relationship between married men and women, as in “Joseph did not KNOW (ginōskō) Mary until she brought forth her firstborn Son … Jesus” (Matthew 1:25). The Pharisees and Scribes knew the Law of Moses. They were intimately acquainted with it, as was the Apostle Paul. Before Paul was Paul, he was Saul, a Pharisee of the Pharisees (Acts 23:6; Philippians 3:5). Saul the Pharisee knew the Law intimately. And yet, the Law does not change a person.

Saul knew the Law, and helped murder Christians. Paul treasured life. No Law ever changes us. Whether the Law of God or the Law of Man, the Law is an external decree that people may choose to follow.

We think that – by passing more and more laws – we can cure the problems of society. The United States alone has more than 30,000 statutes, with Congress enacting from 200-600 statutes every two years. There are Federal Laws and State Laws and Local Laws. Laws do not correct the human condition.

Illustrate: On December 23^rd, 2024, I read:

“MAGDEBURG, Germany, Dec 22 (Reuters) – A man suspected of ploughing {sic} a car through crowds at a German Christmas market in an attack that killed five people and injured scores(over 200)faces multiple charges of murder and attempted murder, police said on Sunday. Friday evening’s attack in the central city of Magdeburg shocked the country and stirred up tensions over the charged issue of immigration. The suspect, who was in custody, is a 50-year-old psychiatrist from Saudi Arabia with a history of anti-Islamic rhetoric who has lived in Germany for almost two decades. The motive for the attack remained unclear.”

Of the five killed, one was a nine year old child. There were 200 people injured by the attack. I noticed after this horrific event no one called for the banning of automobiles, or psychiatric testing of those who want to drive automobiles before they are allowed to buy an automobile. This is what usually happens when there is a school shooting, like the Wisconsin 15 year old girl who shot and killed a teacher and a fellow student at the Abundant Life Christian School on December 16^th of this year. The shooter brought two guns to school. This young murderer shot herself at the school and died at a Madison hospital.

Laws regulate the action of sin if we adhere to them, but Laws do not remove the desire to sin. We need to die to our old self. This is what God offers us through Jesus Christ.

The Old Covenant Addressed, But Did Not
Change The Old Man With Us

Under the Old Covenant, God gave the Law of Moses and told us “live by it”. Why? To prove to us that we could not live by it. Israel violated the Law of God before it was ever even presented, creating an idol to lead them rather than trust in God. To explain to those intimately acquainted with the Law, the Scribes and Pharisees, the Apostle quotes to them from the Law of Moses:

Romans 7:1-3 … the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? 2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.

Under the Mosaic Law the WOMAN could not give a bill of divorce to her husband; only a husband could initiate a divorce. Though many in our modern society will squirm at this and say it is misogyny, this was the plain sense of the Old Covenant Law.

**Under the Old Covenant a man could end the marriage, but the woman was bound to her husband forever if he did not initiate the divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1-4).**

The man was not supposed to initiate divorce proceedings unless “the man found uncleanness in her”, that is, unless she was sexually promiscuous or guilty of adultery. Knowing the Law, the Pharisees and Scribes did not adhere to the letter of the Law, but twisted the word “UNCLEANNESS” so that they could divorce their wives if they became old, or infirm because of disease. The Law did not make for good marriage, because the human heart is evil.

How could a woman divorce her husband? Under the Law, “the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth”. There was no provision for divorce for the woman, even if misused or abused. The man is to love his wife, and care for her – but sin in the heart caused man to twist the Law. In an abusive relationship, how could a woman be separated from her husband under the Law?

Only if he died.

if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband

If the woman left her husband, and went to another man, she was guilty of adultery, a crime punishable by death. But if her husband died, she was free to marry another – to be in an intimate (ginōskō) state with that man.

A Parenthetical Clarification On Divorce

Though I do not want to be off subject, I do want to point out that what the Scribes and Pharisees did with the Law and Divorce is not in accordance with God’s will. God did not design man and woman to be easily divorced, or to take marriage lightly. God said:

Malachi 2:16 (NKJV) For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce

Our Lord Jesus said “whoever divorces his wife, EXCEPT FOR SEXUAL IMMORALITY, makes her the victim of adultery” (Matthew 5:31). And again, the Apostle says in 1 Corinthians 7:10-11, “A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife”

God is not for divorce. Let’s be clear on this. God is not for abuse of women. This is what unregenerate man did when he twisted the clear teaching of the Law. Now let’s return to Paul’s illustration.

Returning To Paul’s Illustration

Paul is using this Law from the Old Covenant to describe the difference between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Like the woman under the Old Covenant, we are all bound to the Law until we die. But once we die, we are free to wed another. Who kills us?

God does.
At Salvation, God causes our “new birth”.
At salvation, the old man dies.
The Old Covenant dies.
And God weds us to Jesus Christ as LORD and SAVIOR.

Romans 7:4 (KJV) Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Like the Old Covenant woman, we are “become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead”. The Apostle is not speaking semantics here, but realities. When Jesus Christ died on the Cross, He satisfied the Law of God. He fulfilled the Law. Jesus said:

Matthew 5:17-18 (NKJV) Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

When Jesus Christ came to this earth, He fulfilled all 613 of the Old Covenant commands.

Jesus taught the untwisted truth of the Old Covenant Law, showing the Law’s significance and value. Then Jesus, an innocent and holy Person, went to a criminal’s Cross to pay for our sins against the Law of God. Believing on and receiving Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, we have “become dead to the law by the body of Christ”. Not by our efforts, but by God’s efforts. Not by our strengths, but by God’s strengths.

Word Study: The phrase “become dead” is the Greek thanatoō, which means “put to death, killed”. When the Christ follower calls on the name of Jesus, God kills the old woman that you used to be, so you can be wed to another.

that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God

The Scribe and Pharisee under the Law did not bring forth fruit unto God, but were constantly searching for loopholes and twisting the Word of Truth so that they could sin without regret. Those under the Old Covenant were given exterior laws, but the interior HEART was never changed. Under the New Covenant the heart is changed, just as God promised it would be. God foretold this in:

Jeremiah 31:31-33 (NKJV) Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Under the Old Covenant, everything was exterior. Under the New Covenant, everything is INTERIOR, in the heart. GOD PUTS THE LAW IN OUR MINDS, and WRITES IT ON OUR HEARTS.

**The Christ follower must be bringing forth fruit unto God – or else you might not be saved!**

Application: The intent of salvation is that you as Christians BRING FORTH FRUIT UNTO GOD. Let me ask you – are you bringing forth fruit? Is your fruit unto God? Or is it like the Pharisee fruit, where they just wanted to be seen of men? How are you shining in the world today? What are you DOING for Jesus? Sitting in the pew and being fed and waited on is NOT fruit unto God. Fruit is to be eaten and enjoyed. Is God blessed by YOUR lives?

When Lost We Brought Forth Sin,
Which Bears Fruit Unto Death.
Now We Bring Forth Fruit UNTO LIFE.

Romans 7:5-6 (KJV) For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. 6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.

When we were “IN THE FLESH”, children of this world, we brought forth “FRUIT UNTO DEATH”. But now, being freed from the EXTERNAL Old Covenant, God has written His Law on our hearts. Now we seek to bring for “FRUIT UNTO GOD”, serving Him in “NEWNESS OF SPIRIT”. We who are Christ followers do what we do because we are wed to Him. We love Jesus.

What is the “fruit” the Christian brings forth? It is TWOFOLD. Jesus said:

Matthew 22:37-40 (ESV) … You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.

And the Apostle tells us in another place:

Romans 13:8-10 (ESV) Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

The heart of the Old Covenant was that God was to be loved above all else, and you were to love others as you love yourself. Only psychotic people hate themselves. We know what it means to love ourselves.

The Old Man loves self before God, self before others, self above all else. The New Man, created by God the Holy Spirit, LOVES God first, and others the way that YOU want to be loved.

Can We Blame The Law For Our Obstinacy?

Romans 7:7-10 (KJV) What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. 8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. 9 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.

God never intended the Law of Moses to be salvific, to “have the power to redeem or save”. The Law of God is diagnostic, much like a human thermometer is.

We may think that we have a fever, but don’t know for sure until we “check our temperature”. The Law “checks our spiritual temperature”. The Law points out what is sin, and what is righteous. But, as I said before, people could twist the Law to make it say what it did not say in order to sin by a hardened conscience. The Apostle writes:

sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence

Word Study: That word “concupiscence” is the Greek epithymia, which means “lusts, desires, cravings for that which is forbidden”. The Law pointed out what God considered sinful, the thing that should be avoided. But once we saw what was sinful, sin within us made us lust for the thing that we were supposed to avoid. It was not that the Law of God was flawed. It is that WE ARE FLAWED. When confronted by the Law, “when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died”. We were, of our own accord, unable to save ourselves.

Romans 7:11-12 (KJV) For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. 12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.

Some would point to the Law of Divorce in Deuteronomy 24:1-4 and say “It is unfair that only the man can give the bill of divorcement”. But “the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good”. There is nothing wrong with the Law. If the man does as should do, and “loves his wife as Christ loved the Church, and gave himself for it” (Ephesians 5:25) then the wife would have no cause to give a bill of divorcement. If the man did as God decreed through Adam, according to Jesus:

Mark 10:6-8 (ESV) … ‘God made them male and female.’ 7 ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.

It is not the Law, the Old Covenant that is to blame. The Law is HOLY, and the Commandment of God HOLY, and JUST, and GOOD. We are defiled. What the Law described as sin in the Old Testament is still sin today. Nothing is changed. Murder was wrong in the Old Covenant – Murder is wrong today. Adultery and fornication were wrong under the Old Covenant. Adultery and fornication are wrong today. Theft, homosexuality, effeminacy … I could go on. These things are defined as wrong by God’s Holy Law, and they are wrong today.

Just as the Scribes and Pharisees twisted and contorted the Law to suit their sinful, hardened consciences, we do the same today.

Romans 7:13-17 (KJV) Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

God’s Law is spiritual, but we are born into this world carnal. “the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin”. The Law makes us understand what is wrong in God’s eyes, and for that reason we should study the Old Covenant Law. But knowing something is wrong and stopping it is another matter.

We all need the Lord.
We all need to surrender to Jesus.
We need to let God kill us,
And wed us to Jesus,
So that then we can truly live!

Are you in Jesus, or are you a Pharisee living by the Old Covenant as a Christian in the modern Church? Living by the Law will not bless you. You cannot be perfect, nor keep the Law perfectly. Those who see the “keep the Law” in order to be saved will ultimately be damned. The Bible is very clear:

Galatians 2:16 (ESV) …. a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

Abraham was not justified by the works of the Law. Abraham believed God, and He counted it to him as righteousness. David was not justified by the works of the Law. He believed in the Lord. Solomon, Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Esther, Salome, John the Baptist, every person who has ever been saved have been saved by faith in the LORD Jesus Christ. They have cast themselves on Him, and counted on God to change them – and He has. How about you? Are you saved? Have you received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, surrendering your life to Him? Are you now producing fruit unto God, glorifying Him Who saved you. Are you wed to Christ? Oh, how I pray you are.

Posted in Romans, Sermons Preached | Tagged Following Christ, fruit of Christian, fruit of salvation, God Is Faithful, Jesus Christ, Law Of God, love, salvation | Leave a comment

And It Came To Pass: A Christmas Sermon

Posted on December 23, 2024 by bibleteacherorg

Luke 2:1-5 (KJV) And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

I Love Those Words, “It Came To Pass”

“it came to pass”. The greatest event in human history begins with these four words, “it came to pass”. That phrase “it came to pass” is in the Bible (the King James Version) 2,204 times in 457 verses of the Holy Scriptures.

“it came to pass” is found in front of the most horrific things in the Bible. Mankind, created in the image of God, has the ability to design and make fantastic things. We have creative power, and free will to do with it as we will. God gave us dominion over the planet, granting to us what He did not give the angels nor the animals. In a perfect environment we were given all things, and forbidden the one thing that could hurt us.

And Adam chose the hurtful thing.

Sin entered the world when Adam did the forbidden. Sin chained us, enslaved us. We had no idea how bad sin was until “it came to pass”.

“IT CAME TO PASS”. Cain and Abel brought an offering to God. Both sons had been taught what God decreed was acceptable.

Hebrews 9:22 … without shedding of blood is no remission {of sin}..

The Blood of the Lamb must be shed. Both Cain and Abel knew this. In fact, as the elder child, Cain would be taught this truth first.

Genesis 4:3-4 (AP) “IT CAME TO PASS” that Cain brought of the FRUIT OF THE GROUND an offering {for sin}… and Abel brought of the FIRSTLINGS OF HIS FLOCK {of lambs}..

God will only REMIT sin, forgive sin, when the BLOOD OF THE LAMB is shed. Cain refused to shed the Blood, rather choosing his human good works. Like so many today, he thought that he could do good and please God apart from the Blood of the Lamb. God refused Cain’s offering. Without Blood is NO REMISSION of sin!

So Cain killed Abel. Rather than spill the Blood of the Lamb, he spilled his brother’s blood. Abel’s blood cried out to God, and Cain was marked by sin forever.

“IT CAME TO PASS”. This was just the beginning. God called man to salvation from sin. We have creative ability. We have free will. But we are bound to sin unless God intervenes. Though some sought God, most turned away to darkness and selfishness. The few who were righteous compromised their faith. Though light and darkness cannot mix, and though God warned against mixture,

Genesis 6:1-2 “IT CAME TO PASS that men multiplied on the face of the earth … and the sons of God took the daughters of men as wives”.

The only way light can blend with darkness is by compromise, by lowering itself. As righteous sons of God, children saved by the Blood of the Lamb, became intimate with the lost … Cain killed Abel all over again. Wickedness increased in the earth.

But Noah found Grace in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 6:8). God offered Grace to the world. For 120 years Noah built an Ark, and preached the Grace of God and the Blood of the Lamb.

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the Blood of Jesus!

You stand before God clean and pure, but only if you have “washed your robes and made them WHITE IN THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB” (Revelation 7:14). Noah found Grace. As he built the Ark, he told the world about Grace. But in the end, only eight souls were saved by water (1 Peter 3:20). those who believed on Him and submitted to His Word.

“IT CAME TO PASS”. God reached out to a broken man named Abram, and renamed him Abraham. Abraham believed the Word of God, and trusted in the Blood of the Lamb. The Bible says:

Genesis 15:6 (KJV) {Abraham} believed in the LORD; and {the LORD} counted it to him for righteousness.

That’s how a person has always been saved, brought into the Kingdom of God. You must believe in God’s Word. You must trust the Blood of the Lamb. You must not doubt the promises that our Lord has given us.

Through Abraham God promised a Messiah would come one day Who would change everything. But it would take years. God would have to raise up Jacob and plant the nation of Israel in Egypt. God would have to raise up Moses to lead Israel from Egypt.

The Blood of the Lamb has never lost it’s power!

How would Israel be released from Egypt? Only by the Blood of the Lamb. God told Israel to kill the Lamb, and to put its Blood on the doorway where faith lived. God told Israel:

Exodus 12:5-7 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

The Lamb would be without blemish, symbolizing sinlessness. The Lamb would live with the family that killed it. The Lamb, once killed, would have its Blood placed on the home where the believer lived. And they shall eat the Lamb. It shall become a part of their lives, of their life force.

Where there was no Blood, God was going to avenge.

As God promised,

Exodus 12:29 “IT CAME TO PASS” that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive

Where God did not see the Blood of the Lamb, judgment fell. But where the Blood was – where the innocent Lamb died – punishment passed by. The family was saved, freed from Egypt.

“IT CAME TO PASS”. We need God. We need to be saved from our sins. We are self destructive, headed toward oblivion. We need the Lamb. We need to surrender to the Will of God.

Our Goodness Is Not Good Enough To Cover Our Sins

We need the Blood of the Lamb. We thought that we could reach God with our good works, but God proved that is not possible. The Bible says that Israel stood at the base of Mount Sinai, the Mountain of God:

Exodus 19:16 … it came to pass … that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.

The Bible says “The FEAR OF THE LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (Job 28:28; Psalm 111:10). Our God is awesome. We do not approach Him as if He is a man like us. He is pure, holy, righteous, despising sin.

Psalm 5:5 (ESV) The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers.

Psalm 11:5 (ESV) The Lord tests the righteous, but His soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.

The Holy God of Scripture cannot tolerate sin. We need a Savior. We need the Lord. But we think we can be “just good enough” to get by with God, but that isn’t true. We need to be changed. God gave us the Law through Moses, who wrote:

Deuteronomy 9:11 it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights, that the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant.

Did Israel keep the Law? No. Why? Because sin is ingrained in us. From the womb, to the grave, we need God to intervene.

Romans 8:3-5 (ESV) God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

We could not save ourselves, so God reached out to save us. God did a NEW THING, just as He promised in the prophecies.

Isaiah 43:19, 21 (KJV) Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. 21 This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.

Christmas Was The Target Of “It Came To Pass”

We could not get better on our own. We need the Blood of the Lamb. Go back to our starting place:

Luke 2:1 … it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

A tyrant decrees a census. An unknown man named Joseph and an obscure virgin named Mary are forced to travel to Bethlehem. Is the trip useless, cruel, and unnecessary. No. For God stoops LOW to save us. God reaches out to save Himself a people. He could have destroyed the earth, but He loved us so much that He stooped low. Look how low He stooped! Mary and Joseph are headed toward Bethlehem. A woman, nine months pregnant with the Son of God, suffering, hurting, heads toward Bethlehem.

The Crain Law Group writing in Nashville Christian Family (December 2024) wrote:

“…in 2 AD, there was no court challenge available to a ‘decree’ from Augustus Caesar. There were no religious exemptions. There were no medical accommodations due to pregnancy. There were no constitutional arguments. When Caesar said to go register for the census – you went. The penalty for non-compliance was not losing your job; it was death. Caesar Augustus’ mandate declaring the entire Empire must register at designated locations was centered less on taxation and more on identification. Concerning the word “taxed” in verse 1 of Luke’s account, W.E. Vine in An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, explains that it is translated from the Greek word apographo, meaning ‘to write out, enroll, inscribe in register’.”

Both Mary and Joseph had to go to Bethlehem, the “City of David”, because both were descendants of King David. Mary couldn’t stay behind, or she would have been killed. Roman soldiers had often murdered pregnant women and children at the behest of the Empire. Mary had to go. Period.

**Mary and Joseph were chosen by God to bring forth His Son onto this earth specifically because they were descendants of David. The Blood of the Lamb was coming.**

The Messiah was prophesied to come from David’s lineage (2 Samuel 7:13). Mary and Joseph were descendants of David.

The Messiah was prophesied to be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Mary and Joseph were forced to go to Bethlehem by the census, but God is in control.

God prophesied in Isaiah 9:2, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined”. That was Caesar’s Empire. Everyone lingered under the shadow of death and destruction. Caesar appointed a murderer named Herod to oversee Jerusalem and Israel. Herod had the full support of Caesar – even unto mass genocide of the Jews – to eliminate anyone who would diminish his glory.

God is in control. He could have stopped Caesar, but did not. God could have made sure that Mary did not travel pregnant. God knows the end from the beginning. Had Mary been blessed by the Holy Spirit 9 months earlier, she would be traveling with a child to Bethlehem. God could have done anything He wanted to do. He could have provided a nice room for His Son to enter the world in. God could have provided mid-wives.

Luke 2:6-7 (KJV) And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

God the Father sent His Eternal Son to this earth. The Blood of the Lamb is now with us. Why was there “no room for them in the inn”? The order of Caesar caused a mass movement of people, all seeking a place to be during the census. But God is in control. The Bible says:

Proverbs 16:9 (ESV) The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

God could have made room for the baby Jesus. He could have made sure Mary had her baby in a more sanitary place. But the Bible says:

2 Corinthians 8:9 (ESV) … you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

The Creator of the universe was incarnated, became flesh, through His own creation. God, rich beyond our wildest imagination, Ruler of the Eons, became a helpless Baby, a Lamb without spot or blemish.

A little Lamb belongs in a manger.

Here is Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). He came to reach the lowest, and the least. There was no admission to see Jesus, no admission fee to a manger. Anyone can walk in, if they will. The world has no time for Mary or Joseph, nor for the little Jesus. This again is a fulfillment of prophecy. The Bible said that when the Messiah came,

Isaiah 53:2-6 (ESV) He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as One from whom men hide their faces – He was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

Who Would Be Interested In Seeing A Lamb, But Shepherds?

Luke 2:8-11 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

Christmas is “good tidings of great joy”. Though “IT CAME TO PASS” that we brought sin into the world, God had a plan. His plan was to reach beyond our sin, beyond our imagination, and to send His Son to this earth for us. For Who? We are told,

good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people

All are sinners, and Christ came for all. He came for whosoever will. Some WHOSOEVERS choose to follow their own path. Jesus said,

Mark 8:35 … whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.

Others prefer to choose popularity and oneness with the world, rather than boldly standing with the shepherds. Jesus said:

Mark 8:38 Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Yet others are too INTELLECTUAL, too educated to receive Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God. Jesus said:

Mark 10:15 … Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

God came to His creation as a little Child. We must receive Him as a little child. The Angel told the Shepherds:

unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord

That little Baby in the Manger, the Lamb of God, is A SAVIOR. He is the only Means by which we can be saved. He is THE LORD. When the Shepherds heard this, they did what any sane person would do. They dropped everything and went to the Lamb:

Luke 2:15-17 … the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.

They left their sheep, and went to the Lamb. They went “with haste”. They didn’t hesitate, for hearing that God was with us, they put aside all else. Nothing is more important than surrendering to Jesus, to embracing the Lamb. And after they saw the Lamb of God, they didn’t head back to their sheep right away. No,

when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child

They told others about Jesus. They were

Luke 2:20 … glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

Closing Plea

“IT CAME TO PASS”. If you live your life without Jesus, one day you will regret it. A young 16 year old girl killed a student and a teacher at a Christian School in Wisconsin before killing herself. The world blames guns. The problem is not guns. In January of this year, 2024 a man stabbed seven people, killing four. In April 2024 a person killed six people with a knife before police shot and killed him.

Cain didn’t use a gun to kill Abel – and probably not a knife. What kills? Sin. The Bible tells us that,

Romans 6:23 … the wages of sin is DEATH

You need Jesus. It is only Jesus that will “SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS” (Matthew 1:21). Is Jesus your Lord and Savior? If not, today would be a great day to receive the gift of Christmas, the little Lamb of God, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Do so without delay, I beg you.

Amen.

Posted in Christmas, General, Sermons Preached | Tagged Christmas, Christmas Sermons, Christmas Story, Following Christ, salvation | Leave a comment

Faithful Witnesses Speak God’s Truth

Posted on December 20, 2024 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:3 In the mouth of the foolish is a ROD of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

Your Tongue Will Bless Or Whip You

God calls His children to be faithful witnesses. A faithful witness speaks the truth of God’s Word in love.

Word Study: Here God speaks of the tongue of the prideful being a ROD. What does He mean? In the ancient world the “ROD” was used for both self defense as well as punishment. In the 23^rd Psalm David wrote:

Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Word Study: The Shepherd carried a “STAFF” (Hebrew mašʿēnâ) with a crook in its end by which he could pull errant sheep out of the mud, out of ditches and briers. He also carried the “ROD” (Hebrew šēḇeṭ, pronounced shay’-bet) to strike at poisonous snakes and other creatures that might harm the sheep.

Word Study: The same word used for the “ROD” of fighting or punishment is also used for the “SCEPTER” that the King held in his hand.

Genesis 49:10 The SCEPTER (šēḇeṭ) shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

The King of a nation has within his authority to punish the evil doer and the miscreant. The Messiah, Jesus Christ, was prophesied as the “Star out of Jacob, and a SCEPTER (šēḇeṭ) shall rise out of Israel” (Numbers 24:17). God sometimes referred to groups of people as “RODS” (šēḇeṭ), or “tribes”. God used Israel as if the nation was a “ROD” to move into Canaan, to chase out the idolaters, and to spread the Light of The Lord. When God spoke the Davidic Covenant to King David He said of the Kings of Israel:

2 Samuel 7:14 I will be his {the King’s} father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod (šēḇeṭ) of men, and with the stripes of the children of men:

Proverbs 14:3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod (šēḇeṭ) of pride

The ROD was used to attack, to punish, to inflict harm or death. The Prideful have in their mouths A ROD. They use that ROD to hurt others, to slander, to belittle. In time, that which they arrogantly speak apart from the Word of God will come back to them, and punish them. A person who carelessly and pridefully speaks will eventually face the consequence of their arrogance. The stepbrother of Christ wrote:

James 3:5-6 (ESV) … the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.

Matthew Henry wrote in his commentary:

“The proud man with his tongue lays about him and deals blows at pleasure, but it will in the end be a rod to himself; the proud man shall come under an ignominious correction by the words of his own mouth, not cut as a soldier, but caned as a servant; and herein he will be beaten with his own rod.”

In contrast, God tells us that the Child of God, motivated and instructed by Scripture, are preserved by their tongues:

Proverbs 14:3 … but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

The Wise person monitors their tongue, and speaks to truth in love. The Christ Follower loves the Word of God, and lives by His Word. When attacked by the prideful the Wise do as Jesus did – they control their tongues. When Jesus was slandered:

1 Peter 2:23 (KJV) {Jesus}, when He was reviled, REVILED NOT AGAIN; when He suffered, HE THREATENED NOT; but committed Himself to Him {our Heavenly Father} that judgeth righteously

Attacks do not surprise the Children of God. We expect them. Jesus told us that they were coming. The Puritan Preacher Jonathan Edwards wrote in his book, Charity and Its Fruits:

“Men that have their spirits heated and enraged and rising in bitter resentment when they are injured act as if they thought some strange thing had happened to them. Whereas they are very foolish in so thinking for it is no strange thing at all but only what was to be expected in a world like this. They therefore do not act wisely that allow their spirits to be ruffled by the injuries they suffer”.

Pastor R.C. Sproul of Ligonier Ministries wrote that we are to bear all things with joy, patience, love and gentleness. He writes:

“This kind of response is required of all of us because the Christian life is about the imitation of Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). We are being molded into His image, so we are to strive to live as He lived. Our Lord was slandered and falsely accused of all kinds of offenses, but He opened not His mouth in protest (Isaiah 53:7). Like a lamb, He accepted these vitriolic attacks, and, in the very moment of His passion, He prayed for the forgiveness of those who were attacking Him (Luke 23:34). This is how we are called to react to our enemies (1 Peter 4:13). Therefore, every false accusation, every slander, every ill word spoken about me is an opportunity for me to grow in my sanctification.”

There Is No Blessing Without A Little Mess

I love this parable, because it speaks so loudly to our age:

Proverbs 14:4 (KJV) Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

In America today we are drifting toward SOCIALISM and away from CAPITALISM. Socialism attempts to give everyone an equal share, regardless as to their personal input into the process. Socialism says “give everyone healthcare, everyone a guaranteed paycheck, everyone “equity”. This is contrary to the CAPITALIST doctrine of the Scripture,

2 Thessalonians 3:10 (NKJV) … If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.

Many humans want our blessings to come to us wrapped up, pretty, and full of joy and happiness. But we know that, in life, for progress to come, there must be inconvenience and some suffering. There must be work. There must be suffering.

Illustrate: We have had several in our congregation who had hip surgery because they broke a hip. To replace the hip, the skin must be cut. The old must be taken out, and the new installed. The flesh must be sewed up, and healing must take place. There is suffering in the aftermath of surgery, and more suffering when you go through rehabilitation. You may not want to get up and walk. It may be easier to lay about, and watch television all day – to hide out from your responsibilities. But there’s an old saying:

No pain, no gain!

If you want a crop, and want to enjoy a harvest of corn, you must plow the field, and weed the rows. You cannot procrastinate or put off the hard so that you can coast. Many a person has coasted their way to the grave.

Proverbs14:4 (KJV) Where no oxen are, the crib is clean…

You never need to worry about cleaning up or “mucking out” the stalls if you have no oxen. In the ancient world, oxen were used to both till the ground as well as grind the corn. If you have no oxen, you need not plant nor gather hay for the creatures. You do not need to carry water to them, or take them down to the river. Without oxen you do not need to inspect them for parasites, nor clean up their excrement. The stall is nice and neat …

…. but you have no blessing for your table,
nor money in your bank account.

If you lay about in your chair, day after day, complaining about what you do not have, hiding from the pain, you’ll never get any blessing. Get up and go – or else they will throw dirt on you!

Control your tongue. Stop murmuring, whining, and complaining. A negative attitude blames others and tends to procrastination. Get up, and seek an oxen and a blessing. Once you get the oxen, tend to it. Work the field. Some inherit oxen, but shy from doing what is necessary to keep the oxen healthy and alive. In time the stall is empty, and clean – but so is your table and your belly empty and clean.

Proverbs 14:4 … but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

Yes, it is inconvenient to do the hard work of tending to the oxen. But the ox has something you do not have – strength to pull that plow, power to grind that meal or pull that stump. You say, “But we don’t use oxen today”. No, we use tractors, and cars, and trucks. Vehicles require maintenance. You have to put gas in them, even if its cold and rainy outside. You have to change their oil, and pay a mechanic to tune them up, and fix them when they are not what they should be. You have to pay taxes on your vehicles, buy tags. You need insurance. You have to wash them, clean them out, maintain them.

A lazy person has nothing. What about the lazy Church? A lazy Church will lose all it has in time. You have to get up, work, and do the difficult so that the greater can be achieved. The Enduring Word Commentary notes:

“This is an important principle when it comes to church life and Christian community. There are some who, out of good intentions, are obsessed with making sure there is never any kind of “mess” to address among believers. Each and every expression of spiritual life must be hyper-regulated and suspiciously watched with the expectation of grave error. Not only is this an offense against Christian liberty, but it also creates an environment where, spiritually speaking, there is little increase – because no one will tolerate any mess in the trough”.

Growth requires discomfort, moving out of your comfort zone in following the Lord Jesus. We cannot hire it done. We must be willing to do the labor.

Faithful Witnesses Speak The Truth In Love

Proverbs 14:5 (KJV) A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.

Jesus called His disciples – those who are saved by faith in Him – to be “My witnesses”:

Acts 1:8 (ESV) … you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be MY WITNESSES in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth

What type of “WITNESS” are we to be? We are to be “FAITHFUL WITNESSES”. The Bible uses the phrase “FAITHFUL WITNESS” not just here in Proverbs, but in other Scriptures to describe that state. We are told in:

Psalm 89:37 (ESV) Like the moon it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies.

Go Deep: God refers to the “MOON” as “A FAITHFUL WITNESS” in the skies. The Moon does not have its own light, but reflects the light of the sun (S-U-N) back to the earth. The Christ follower as a faithful witness does not possess his own light. We reflect the light of the Son (S-O-N), the Son of God, to the world around us. We cling to the Word of God as God presented it. We do not add to, nor take away, ever conscious of the Biblical warning:

Revelation 22:7, 18-19 (ESV) And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book. …. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

The “FAITHFUL WITNESS” cherishes and hears the Word of God. We receive that Word, and present it as it is given without twisting or turning it. It is God’s Word. Our God is a Faithful Witness:

Jeremiah 42:5 (KJV) … The LORD be a TRUE AND FAITHFUL WITNESS between us …

His Word is Truth (John 17:17). When our Lord Jesus came to this earth, He told His disciples:

John 14:10 (KJV) … the words that I speak unto you I SPEAK NOT OF MYSELF: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, HE DOETH THE WORKS.

Jesus did not come to this earth, making up a new Word from God. He spoke the Words that the Father gave Him (John 12:49-50). Jesus is called “THE FAITHFUL WITNESS”:

Revelation 1:5 (KJV) … Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness …

You will be tested: What do you do if someone comes up to you and asks belligerently, “Do you really think that anyone who doesn’t believe the way you believe is going to hell?” The faithful witness explains, just as Jesus did, that “the words I speak do not come from my opinion. I believe the Bible. I believe in Jesus. And I believe what Jesus said:

John 14:6 (KJV) Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

When I speak to people like this, I am not trying to win an argument. I am not trying to not hurt their feelings, nor do I want to hurt their feelings. I do not take their attack personally, but cling to the Scripture knowing that:

Proverbs 14:3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

The false witness does not respect life, nor the person that they are talking to. If we believe the Bible is true, and believe that there is a hell and a lake of fire for those who reject Jesus as Lord and Savior, then we must speak this truth in love. We want to “preserve them”. We want to lead people from eternal damnation and toward genuine faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 14:5 (KJV) A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.

Be Biblically Based: Another objection (and there are many by the world) to Christianity is “I am as good as any Christian”. The faithful witness will respond, “You’re absolutely right. The Bible tells us that, without Christ, all of mankind is corrupt and filthy in God’s eyes”. The Psalmist said:

Psalm 14:3 … there is NONE WHO DOES GOOD, no, not one …

Our best good is not good enough. This is why Jesus said, “There is NONE GOOD BUT GOD” (Matthew 19:17; Mark 10:18). Human good falls short of the glory of God. We all need to receive Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior. I have had people say, “How do you explain the atrocities that the Church committed over the years, like the Great Crusades or turning a blind eye to the extermination of the Jews in Nazi Germany”? My response is that the Church during those times was a false witness who uttered lies.

The State organized Church with its Catholic State Endorsed Bishops, Arch Bishops and Popes departed from the Word of God and Jesus Christ in order to satisfy self pride and the flesh.

The Protestant Church of England, in order to justify the King’s selfish divorces, became a false witness. Many Churches today are false witnesses because of wolves in sheep clothing leading the flock.

Some preachers today tell people that you can be saved by Jesus, and yet live like a child of hell. They are false witnesses who speak lies. When you receive Jesus Christ, you receive Him as He is: both Savior and LORD. Jesus came to save us from SIN (Matthew 1:21).

God has always had a remnant who have cherished His Word and stood by it. When the Prophet Elijah, discouraged by the incessant attacks of Jezebel against his ministry, ran away from Mount Carmel to die in the wilderness – God told him:

1 Kings 19:18 (KJV) Yet I have left Me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

Beloved, God has a remnant that are faithful witnesses to Him. You do not stand alone. Do not compromise the Word of God in order to drift in the cesspool of Satan’s world. Stay true to God’s Word. Read it, study it, and hide in it.

Stand Firm In The Gospel Truth, Even If It Costs Friends and Family

Proverbs 14:6-7 A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth. 7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.

You cannot please the scorner. They will not hear the truth of God’s Word. Speak the Word of God in love, prayerfully, in hope that all who hear will come to the Lord and be saved. The Scorner, the mocker will never find wisdom, for they will not seek it where it can be found.

Wisdom is found in God’s Word. Wisdom is found through the revelation of God’s Holy Spirit.

Jesus told us:

Matthew 7:7 (ESV) Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you

Ask Who? If you ask the world, you will not find the truth, for the world clings to whatever feels good at the time. God withholds nothing from those who will come to Him in faith. The Bible says:

Psalm 84:11 (KJV) For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

God loves to give Grace. He loves to save souls. He loves to bless His children. God is not a Heavenly Miser, a spiritual Ebeneezer Scrooge. He wants to bless us. But we must come surrendered to Him. We must receive what He gives us in His Word. And that’s not popular in our world today.

Speak the truth in love. But if they will not receive it, we are told:

Proverbs 14:7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.

Jesus told us in Luke 9:5 (KJV) … whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them.

I’ve heard preachers say that they weep over the lost. I’m sorry, but I don’t. I speak the truth as clear and as poignantly simple to the Scripture as possible. I pray over the lost. But no, I don’t weep. Maybe that’s wrong. But it’s your choice. If you choose hell over Heaven, even after I plainly tell you the Way to Heaven is surrendered faith in Christ Jesus, then that’s your choice. I hate that you chose that way – its not on me, but on you.

If you are a Christian, be a faithful witness. Pilate sought to wash the Blood of Christ from his hands (Matthew 27:24) rather than standing on what he knew was true. In time, Pilate lost his governorship, and Rome its empire, because the judge who should have known better sarcastically compromised truth (“What is truth?”, John 18:38).

Our nation will fall if we do not raise up the standard of truth, if we as Christians do not speak God’s Word without flinching. I close with these warning words:

Isaiah 59:13-15 (ESV) … transgressing, and denying the Lord, and turning back from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words. 14 Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands far away; for truth has stumbled in the public squares, and uprightness cannot enter. 15 Truth is lacking, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice …

May God touch your hearts with His Word.

Posted in Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged be the Light, Live For Jesus, no compromise, stand don't squat, Stand Strong, Word of God | Leave a comment

Foolish vs Wise

Posted on December 18, 2024 by bibleteacherorg

Proverbs 14:1 (KJV) Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.

Near And Far Application Of Scripture

Why did Solomon start out this chapter with the “wise woman” versus the “FOOLISH”. Though Proverbs was written by God through Solomon to give the child of God guidance, it was also written by the father Solomon to his son:

Proverbs 1:8 (KJV) My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

As with most Scripture, the Book of Proverbs has a near application as well as a far application. In the near application, Solomon – who had 700 wives and three hundred concubines (1 Kings 11:3) – wanted his son to avoid the errors he made in his life. Though with this many wives and concubines (1000), we are certain that Solomon had many children, but only one son mentioned in the Scripture – Rehoboam. Rehoboam would assume the Throne of David on Solomon’s death, and Solomon knew that if he married the wrong woman, he would suffer the consequences. The Bible says of Solomon:

1 Kings 11:1-2, 4 (ESV) Now King Solomon loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the people of Israel, “You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. … 4 For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.

Solomon married outside of the faith of our Lord Jesus. When a man marries a woman who does not love the Lord Jesus, in time that woman will draw the man away from God. The

wise woman buildeth her house

She cherishes the Lord. She teaches her children about the Lord, and encourages her husband to cling to the articles of faith that the Father has given us.

The Wise Woman builds her house by encouraging, supporting, and helping her husband to be the best Christ follower he can be. God often speaks to men through their wives. The Bible tells us that before Pilate unjustly condemned Jesus to a criminal’s death on the Cross that his wife reached out to him:

Matthew 27:19 (ESV) … while {Pilate} was sitting on the judgment seat {judging Jesus}, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much because of him today in a dream.”

Pilate ignored his wife, and submitted to the “chief priests and elders of the Sanhedrin” (Matthew 27:20) to release the murderer Barabbas and crucify the innocent Jesus (Matthew 27:23). What happened to the House of Pilate? Appointed as the sixth governor or procurator of Judea by Sejanus, a favorite of the Roman Emperor Tiberius, Pilate promoted Emperor Worship throughout Jerusalem. He was on a fast track to political power in Rome. Yet after crucifying Jesus, his mentor Sejanus was murdered. There was an uprising against Rome in Samaria, and Pilate had it suppressed, killing many. According to Roman-Jewish Historian Flavius Josephus:

“the Samaritan senate sent an embassy to {previous Roman Emperor} Vitellius, a man that had been consul {the highest elected official in the Roman Republic, Head of State}, and who was now president of Syria, and accused Pilate of the murder of those that were killed … Vitellius sent Marcellus, a friend of his, to take care of the affairs of Judea, and ordered Pilate to go to Rome, to answer before the emperor to the accusation of the Jews.”

Church Historian Eusebius Pamphilius of Caesarea (he was Greek Syro-Palestinian) reported:

“It is worthy of note that Pilate himself, who was governor in the time of our Savior, is reported to have fallen into such misfortunes under Caius, whose times we are recording, that he was forced to become his own murderer and executioner; and thus divine vengeance, as it seems, was not long in overtaking him. This is stated by those Greek historians who have recorded the Olympiads…”

Had Pilate listened to the wisdom of his wife, he may well have avoided this fate. He didn’t listen to her, and in time suffered the consequences of divine justice.

the foolish {woman} plucketh it down with her hands

King Solomon heeded the bad advise of his 700 wives and 300 concubines. He bound his life together with the lost and undone. The Bible tells us:

2 Corinthians 6:14-16 (NKJV) Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God.

Choose wisely the wife you will spend your life with.

Your Walk Proves Your Talk: Walk In God’s Light

Proverbs 14:2 (KJV) He that WALKETH IN HIS UPRIGHTNESS feareth the Lord: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth Him.

When the Bible describes the life of the believer and the life of the unbeliever, it always speaks to the “WALK”. The Christian WALKS in the light with God, but the non-Christian WALKS with the darkness. The Psalmist said:

Psalm 56:13 (KJV) For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?

The Bible tells us that “God is LIGHT, and in Him is NO DARKNESS AT ALL” (1 John 1:5). If you are walking WITH God, you must be walking in the Light, not in the darkness. “Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance” (Psalm 89:15).

Just as we walk one step at a time, stepping out in faith, the Christian walks one step at a time, one day at a time, following Jesus.

The unbeliever has no use for God, unless as a parachute or a spare tire or even an ambulance. Their thoughts are not with God, but with SELF, with what they want and believer. The Apostle Paul described the Christian “Walk” in:

Romans 14:6-9 (NKJV) He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Three Spheres Of The Christian Walk

The Christian is defined in this life as he or she walks. We follow three Scriptural directives as we “walk” daily with the Lord:

1. We walk according to God’s Word, the Scripture.

Truth is not just IN us, but we WALK IN THE TRUTH. The Apostle rejoiced when he heard the report of the Church:

3 John 3 (NKJV) … I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth.

God promises us success in our endeavors if we walk in God’s Truth, in His Word (John 17:17). King David told his son Solomon before he went to glory:

1 Kings 2:2-4 (ESV) I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’

Herod ended up on the Throne of David because Israel failed to walk in obedience to the Word of God. God’s Word is not difficult to understand, but very clear. God will not walk with us when we depart from His Word. Again the Apostle said:

1 John 1:6 (KJV) If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

2. We walk according to God’s Holy Spirit, while following Scripture.

The Apostle tells us in:

Galatians 5:16-18 (ESV) But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

The Holy Spirit of God will never lead you in a pathway that the Scripture has not already shined on.

The early Church, though heavily persecuted, walked according to God’s Word and His Spirit. We who “walk not according to the FLESH, but according to the SPIRIT” (Romans 8:4, ESV) will find growth, just as the early Church did:

Acts 9:31 (ESV) … the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

3. We also walk BY FAITH, not by sight.

Just as when you step out to travel, you have no guarantee that the ground will hold you, you nonetheless step out by faith. The unbeliever places faith in one of the gods of this world, be it money, fame, or power. But we who believe in Jesus:

2 Corinthians 5:7 … we walk by faith, not by sight.

Proverbs 14:2 (KJV) He that walketh in His uprightness feareth the Lord: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth Him.

Those who are “perverse in his ways” show that they despise God rather than glorify Him. Jesus said:

John 14:15 (ESV) If you love Me, you will keep my commandments.

And again, John 14:21 (ESV) Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.

Those who say they love Jesus but hate what He has said prove their lostness by the fruit of their lives. “The good tree will bear good fruit, the corrupt tree corrupt fruit” (Luke 6:43-44). If you are saved, you will love to obey Jesus. If not, you will follow PERVERSE WAYS. By the fruit of your life you prove that you despise God.

The Christian is encouraged to “look carefully how you walk, not as unwise or foolish, but as wise believers. Make the best use of your life, for evil is all around you. Do not be foolish, but understand the will of the Lord” (Ephesians 5:15-17, AP).

As Christians we do not walk as unbelievers do, but as believers do. We

“walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4)
“walk in a manner worthy of your calling”
(Ephesians 4:1)
“walk properly, as in the daytime” (Romans 13:13)
“walk in good works, as God created us to do”
(Ephesians 2:10)

May God guide us as His Church and as His Children to walk in the light, ever pleasing to Him. Amen!

Posted in Proverbs, Sermons Preached | Tagged Christ follower, doctrine of walking, flesh, Following Christ, foolish, Holy Spirit, lost walk, salvation, walking with God, walking with Jesus, wise | 3 Comments

Wonderful Article

Posted on December 9, 2024 by bibleteacherorg

Giving Thanks with Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Posted in General | 1 Comment

Take Out The Trash, Son

Posted on December 8, 2024 by bibleteacherorg

Romans 6:9-12 (KJV) Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

Review With Purpose

The last few weeks we have studied three doctrines that are extremely important to understand, if you will understand the Gospel. We looked at the Doctrine of Imputation, which teaches that Jesus died for our sins on Calvary, and rose again from the grave for our justification. When we receive Jesus as both Lord and Savior His righteousness is imputed to us, and our sins are laid on His finished work. Because of Imputation the Father looks at us as His sons and daughters.

We are saved by faith in Christ, not by works. We are saved because of Imputation.

Because of Imputation, God gives us the Holy Spirit. We spoke of His work in our lives as we studied the Doctrine of Baptisms. We learned that water Baptism is an outward symbolic ordinance that the believer willingly submits to after salvation. Water Baptism symbolizes what the Holy Spirit does to the believer, causing the old man to die, and the new creature to be born. The Holy Spirit causes us to be born again, made alive spiritually. The Holy Spirit baptizes us in Christ Jesus. We are united with Christ in His death and in His resurrection. We are raised to walk in newness of life.

We also studied the Doctrine of Original Sin. In this we learned that Adam, created perfect and without sin by God, willingly and willfully disobeyed the Word of God, bringing spiritual death on all his progeny. The first Adam failed in his stewardship, so God sent a second Adam, Jesus Christ, to redeem us from all sin. Here is the point:

The “Christian” Walks With Christ Daily

IF Adam sinned, and brought the world under the slavery of sin, and IF God sent His Son as the Second Adam to pay the penalty for sin for whosoever believes on Him, and IF God the Holy Spirit works in the life of the believer to free us from sin ….

… then sin is no longer the Christ follower’s master.
Jesus is our Master.
Sin and Satan has no real hold on the believer.
We are freed from sin to serve the Living God!

Paul goes back to the Cross to explain this. He says:

Romans 6:9 (KJV) … Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

Jesus very literally died on the Cross. He conquered death. Some liberals have advanced the argument that Jesus just swooned, and pretended to die, and that His disciples covered this up. If this is true then there is NO Gospel. The Gospel is that:

1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (ESV) … Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures

Jesus died a horrible death to free us from death and sin.

Crucifixion was considered “the most cruel & hideous of tortures” (Cicero). Author Dr Alexander Metherell wrote, “The pain was absolutely unbearable. In fact, it was literally beyond words to describe it; they had to invent a new word: “excruciating”. Literally excruciating means ‘out of the Cross’”.

Before Jesus was removed from the Cross for burial a Roman guard, well versed in crucifixion, ensured that Christ was dead. The Bible says:

John 19:34 (ESV) … one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water.

This was a clear forensic sign that our Lord had passed into glory. Jesus’ body was embalmed by washing and wrapping Him in myrrh and aloe – about 75 pounds in weight (John 19:39, ESV). He was then sealed into a tomb for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40). Jesus died to sin. He died for your sin and mine. Our sins were paid for in full. The Bible says:

Acts 2:24 (ESV) God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

Jesus died for our sins, and will never die again. His death was sufficient to pay for our sins. God raised Christ from the grave, showing that His work was sufficient. We read:

Romans 6:10 (KJV) For in that He died, he died unto sin once: but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.

Jesus DIED ONCE TO SIN. Now HE LIVES UNTO GOD. Some say, “Jesus died so that we can freely sin”. This is a lie from the pit of hell.

His death was sufficient to pay the penalty for our sins. Being resurrected by God, Jesus now “LIVES UNTO GOD”. The Bible tells us that:

Mark 16:19 (KJV) {Jesus} was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.

Why does Jesus sit on the “RIGHT HAND OF GOD”? We are told:

Romans 8:34 … It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

And again,

Hebrews 10:12 … after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

Now the Bible ties what Jesus did into our salvation with the word “LIKEWISE”

Romans 6:11 LIKEWISE {in the same manner} reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD we are freed from the mastery of sin. God the Holy Spirit lives in us. We are not what we were, but are children of the “Dayspring from on High” (Luke 1:78). We who are saved are not what we were. We are to walk in victory because of Jesus.

The Christ Follower Has Power Over Sin

Romans 6:12-14 (KJV) Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 BEITHER YIELD ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Christians are called to live in the light with God. We are not the servants of sin, but are sons and daughters of God. We are not to yield our body parts to sin, but to Christ’s control. We may desire to sin, but sin is not our master. We have ultimate authority over sin through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The new convert to Christ will find sin easy, for he will – like the toddler – often stumble as he takes his first steps. But as the convert studies the Word of God, and practices the Christian disciplines of prayer, fasting, and Biblical meditation, the stumbles will be less and less.

The mature believer, instead of running to SIN, runs toward the SAVIOR. We rest in Christ.

John 7:37-39 (ESV) … “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive …

Jesus did not die on the Cross for our sins so that we can continue to wallow in sin. Jesus died on the Cross so that the Holy Spirit could enter our lives and give us control over sin. We are called to choose to “yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God”

Let’s put this simply. If you are a Christian, you don’t belong to Satan nor to this world. You belong to God, to Light, to Jesus. Do that which Christ has called you to do. “sin shall not have dominion over you”. Grace has dominion over you. You are freed from sin.

But I Just Can’t Help Myself. Hogwash!
Christian, Take The Trash Out

If you are a Christian, yes, you can. We are told:

Romans 6:16-18 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17 But God be thanked, that ye WERE the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

If someone comes to me and says,

I’m a Christian Homosexual, or
I’m a Christian Adulterer, or
I’m a Christian Murderer, or
I’m a Christian Gossip, or
I’m a Christian Racist, or
I’m a Christian Whiner & Complainer ….

I could go on and on. When they say this, my immediate appeal is the Scripture we are studying now. If you routinely surrender your members – your body parts – to sin, then you are servants of sin. And as we are told in verse 16 and elsewhere, “SIN is UNTO DEATH”. Sin leads to death, to darkness, to destruction. But if you are a Christ follower, you are “MADE FREE FROM SIN TO BECOME SERVANTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS”. You want to serve God, not the flesh. You choose Who you will walk with.

Choose wisely.
Sin kills.
Darkness causing Stumbling.
The Spirit of Christ gives LIGHT.

Galatians 5:16-26 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Is it a struggle at times? Absolutely. Anything worth doing in this life is a struggle. When we were lost in our sins, we “walked according to the ways of this world, following the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). But NOW we FOLLOW JESUS. We do not chase the darkness – we chase it away! We know that sin must not remain in our lives.

Illustrate: I remember years ago when I lived in Georgia, I needed to take the trash out – but I put it off. It was hot outside, and warm inside. I went to bed that night, and woke up the next morning. When I went in the kitchen I found tiny little critters crawling out of the garbage, and all over my kitchen. YUK! I took the trash outside, dumped it, and washed the can out. Then I went back in the house and with paper towels carefully gathered all the little critters and got them out of my home.

The Christian must daily do a negative thing and a positive thing. Daily we “take the trash out”. We eradicate sin from our lives. We toss it as unsuitable for a child of God. But we also encourage ourselves to do those things which glorify Christ and our Father. We are obedient children, doing the good for God’s glory.

Romans 6:19-20 … for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

God calls His Children to be as He is. He said:

1 Peter 1:14-16 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” …

We are not “holy” to retain our salvation, nor to gain our salvation. We are “holy” because we know that the do otherwise is to open the door to death and suffering. We are as Adam was. We are free to choose. Knowing this, we freely choose righteousness and Godly living over the way of darkness. That way leads only to death!

Romans 6:21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

There is no good “FRUIT” that comes from walking in the darkness of sin. Sin always leads unto death, sickness, and disease. God has opened the door to a better way.

Romans 6:22 (KJV) But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

Christians do not normally walk in darkness. We walk with Christ in the Light of God. We love His Word, His Commandment, His Law. We choose to do the good, and walk with Jesus.

Closing Plea

Romans 6:23 (KJV) For the wages of sin is death; BUT the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The final sentence of this chapter is divided by a “BUT”. On the left side of the “BUT” is sin and dearth, darkness and pain. On the right side of the “BUT” is the gift of God, eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Those who love the Lord and submit to the Lord have the wonderful gift of salvation. It is a gift, but in order to receive it you must put down death and darkness. You must turn away from all other lords and gods, and turn fully to Jesus. You must move from the left side of the “BUT”, and run into Christ’s arms.

I pray you will. With. Delay. Today. Amen.

Posted in General, Romans, Sermons Preached | Tagged baptism of Spirit, born again, changed life, Faith, Following Christ, fruit of salvation, fruit of sin, God Is Faithful, Holiness, love, salvation | Leave a comment

The Blessing Of Work, The Cursing Of Talk

We May Be Hated, But We Must Stand True To God’s Word

The Fear Of The Lord

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The Simple Will Not Repent & Turn To God

The simple chase after anything that leads them away from God, rather than to the Source of Life.

Righteousness Is Superior To Evil

God is on a mission to eradicate darkness. He has chosen us to partner with Him.

What Is The Fruit Of Your Life?

The Good (Converted) Tree Bears Good Fruit

The converted or “Good” Tree quietly bears fruit to the glory of God. The unconverted or “Bad” tree quietly conspires to bring evil and dark fruit to the glory of man.

Good fruit blesses others, brings glory to God, and is proof of a saved life.

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Our Identity Must Be In Our Maker

Those Who Find The Maker, Find Joy

Fill Your Cup With God

Beloved, if you walk away from God, you will find yourself very lonely, FULL OF YOURSELF until you repent and return.

Those who abandon God find burdens, but those who seek after God find blessings.

Simple Vs Prudent

Just as “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10), we should have a holy fear of sin (1 Timothy 5:20).

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Believers Follow His Way

Fools Play With Death

We Cannot Judge The Heart Of A Person

We know if a “fruit” or a work of the life is right or wrong based upon the scale of God’s Word. God decrees right and wrong. If an action departs from God’s Word, then it is wrong.

Eventually That Which Is Darkness Shall Die

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This Chapter Addresses The Legalists

The Old Covenant Addressed, But Did Not Change The Old Man With Us

Under the Old Covenant a man could end the marriage, but the woman was bound to her husband forever if he did not initiate the divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1-4).

A Parenthetical Clarification On Divorce

Returning To Paul’s Illustration

When Jesus Christ came to this earth, He fulfilled all 613 of the Old Covenant commands.

The Christ follower must be bringing forth fruit unto God – or else you might not be saved!

When Lost We Brought Forth Sin,Which Bears Fruit Unto Death. Now We Bring Forth Fruit UNTO LIFE.

Can We Blame The Law For Our Obstinacy?

God never intended the Law of Moses to be salvific, to “have the power to redeem or save”. The Law of God is diagnostic, much like a human thermometer is.

Just as the Scribes and Pharisees twisted and contorted the Law to suit their sinful, hardened consciences, we do the same today.

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I Love Those Words, “It Came To Pass”

So Cain killed Abel. Rather than spill the Blood of the Lamb, he spilled his brother’s blood. Abel’s blood cried out to God, and Cain was marked by sin forever.

Our Goodness Is Not Good Enough To Cover Our Sins

Christmas Was The Target Of “It Came To Pass”

Mary and Joseph were chosen by God to bring forth His Son onto this earth specifically because they were descendants of David. The Blood of the Lamb was coming.

Who Would Be Interested In Seeing A Lamb, But Shepherds?

Closing Plea

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Your Tongue Will Bless Or Whip You

There Is No Blessing Without A Little Mess

Faithful Witnesses Speak The Truth In Love

Stand Firm In The Gospel Truth, Even If It Costs Friends and Family

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Near And Far Application Of Scripture

She cherishes the Lord. She teaches her children about the Lord, and encourages her husband to cling to the articles of faith that the Father has given us.

Your Walk Proves Your Talk: Walk In God’s Light

Just as we walk one step at a time, stepping out in faith, the Christian walks one step at a time, one day at a time, following Jesus.

Three Spheres Of The Christian Walk

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Review With Purpose

We are saved by faith in Christ, not by works. We are saved because of Imputation.

The “Christian” Walks With Christ Daily

Jesus died a horrible death to free us from death and sin.

Jesus DIED ONCE TO SIN. Now HE LIVES UNTO GOD. Some say, “Jesus died so that we can freely sin”. This is a lie from the pit of hell.

The Christ Follower Has Power Over Sin

The mature believer, instead of running to SIN, runs toward the SAVIOR. We rest in Christ.

But I Just Can’t Help Myself. Hogwash!Christian, Take The Trash Out

Closing Plea

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David Buffaloe

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Today The Day of Salvation

**The simple chase after anything that leads them away from God, rather than to the Source of Life.**

God is on a mission to eradicate darkness.
He has chosen us to partner with Him.

Good fruit blesses others, brings glory to God,
and is proof of a saved life.

The Old Covenant Addressed, But Did Not
Change The Old Man With Us

**Under the Old Covenant a man could end the marriage, but the woman was bound to her husband forever if he did not initiate the divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1-4).**

**The Christ follower must be bringing forth fruit unto God – or else you might not be saved!**

When Lost We Brought Forth Sin,
Which Bears Fruit Unto Death.
Now We Bring Forth Fruit UNTO LIFE.

**Mary and Joseph were chosen by God to bring forth His Son onto this earth specifically because they were descendants of David. The Blood of the Lamb was coming.**

But I Just Can’t Help Myself. Hogwash!
Christian, Take The Trash Out