All The Counsel of God

Text: Prov 4:23

• Intro:
  • To be a good person, once we are saved, we must have a good heart.  Prov 4:23 says, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” 
  • We don’t come naturally equipped with a good heart, though. 
  • We must realize there is evil in our heart and we must keep it in subjection [Mk 7:21-23]. 
  • We must be careful with following our heart because it is deceitful and desperately wicked [Jer 17:9-10].
• Instead of trusting our heart, we should let the word of God discern the thoughts and intents of our heart [Heb 4:12] and believe what the Bible tells us when it discloses something in us that must change. 
  • We must protect our heart from other evil influences. 
  • We are to put things into our heart that are beneficial. 
  • Like the psalmist said, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word… Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee,” [Psa 119:9,11]. 
  • For the word to root down in our heart and produce good fruit, we must have an honest and good heart [Lk 8:15].
• A good heart is a:
• Loving heart – Deut 6:4-5 –
  • Love God with all your heart. We love so many things that compete with our love for God. 
  • Some love sports, some love recreation, some love money, and so forth. 
  • To have a good heart, you must love God with all your heart.
• Godly heart – Acts 13:22 –
  • David was a man after God’s own heart. 
  • David had a heart for God and God’s words. 
  • Nothing works better to make your heart godly than the word of God read, taught, preached, believed and studied.
• Clean heart – Psa 51:10 –
  • David said, “Create in me a clean heart. O God.” 
  • David wasn’t a perfect man and he really messed up with Bathsheba. 
  • So, he repented and cried out to God to create in him a clean heart. 
  • And God did.  You may have really messed up in your life.  Ask God to clean your heart, as well.
• Pure Heart – 1 Tim 1:5 –
  • Paul told Timothy, “the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart…” 
  • You don’t want to vacillate each week between a clean heart and a dirty heart, always cleaning up by confessing your sins and then returning to the pig sty for more of the same sin. 
  • You want God to not only clean your heart when you sin, but you want him to purify it so that you can stop this foolishness. 
  • We understand that we will never be sinless and perfect until we are glorified. 
  • But we can certainly be pure.
• Wise heart – Exodus 31:6 –
  • Those who helped Bezaleel build the tabernacle and its contents were “wise hearted.” 
  • God has put something inside each of us that he wants to use for his glory. 
  • It is his wisdom.  God has used my banking experience to help other churches with financial decisions.
• Willing heart – Exodus 35:5, 21-22 –
  • Those who gave for the tabernacle and its contents were “willing hearted.” 
  • God wants us to be willing to do whatever he wants with our lives and our assets.
• Conclusion:
  • Now that’s a good heart. 
  • That’s the heart that the Holy Spirit wants to develop in you. 
  • He uses the word of God to do it.
  • And so, you must receive the word of God with a believing heart [unlike Lk 8:12, Lk 24:25] and let it work in your heart to make it good.

Text: Phil 4:8

• Intro:
  • After you are saved, you must develop good thoughts. 
  • Even if you are careful about what you are doing, or at least what other people see you doing, and you are yielded to the Holy Spirit so that he can conform you to the image of Jesus Christ, you must be careful with your thoughts.
  • Christians who don’t have good thoughts are hampered in their growth. 
  • Good thoughts are essential to a good life because they mold you. 
  • What you think about is what you become.  
  • According to Phil 4:8, good thoughts are:
• True –
  • Well then, meditation on the word of God is going to yield true thoughts because the word of God is true [Psa 119:160; John 17:17]. 
  • The words of God are certain [Prov 22:21]. 
  • True thoughts are certain, they are in accordance with fact. 
  • So here are some problems we face. 
  • First, finding facts and being certain today can be very difficult since most “news” is speculative and narrative [Deut 17:4]. 
  • Second, our thoughts are based on expectations and not facts [2 Kings 5:11, for example]. 
  • Third, our thoughts are ours and not the Lord’s [Isa 55:8-9]. 
  • Thus, Job’s friends’ thoughts about him were wrong [Job 32:3]. 
  • Job’s thoughts about his own righteousness were wrong [Job 32:1-2; Job 35:2]. 
  • And all their thoughts about God were wrong [Job 38:2]. 
  • God had to straighten out their thinking. 
  • They knew what was true after God was through with them. 
  • If you want to be a true person, then you must have true thoughts.
• Honest –
  • Thoughts are honest when they are what they seem. 
  • The Pharisees were not honest. 
  • They thought they were better than Jesus. 
  • The fact is that they were covering evil thoughts with their outward appearance [Mk 7:21].  
  • Since Solomon said, “As he thinketh in his heart so is he,” [Prov 23:7], their wickedness became apparent when they killed Jesus. 
  • Likewise, you are a hypocrite if you think you are better than you are. 
  • People who think they are better than they are don’t usually get saved because they don’t think they need Jesus. 
  • A hypocrite thinks he is what he is portraying to others. 
  • He is not that. 
  • His trouble is that his thoughts aren’t honest.
• Many problems in relationships develop from thoughts that are not honest. 
  • Embellished, exaggerated and emotionally charged thoughts are rarely honest. 
  • People rarely have honest thoughts about themselves. 
  • They tend to blame others rather than take responsibility for their actions. 
  • They generally criticize in others things with which they are having trouble themselves. 
  • These tendencies stem from dishonest thoughts. 
  • Be honest. 
  • To be an honest person, you must have honest thoughts.
• Just –
  • Just thoughts are thoughts that can pass judgment with God. 
  •  Like Prov 12:5 says, “The thoughts of the righteous are right.” 
  • For a lost man to think that he is right with God is not just. 
  • Solomon said, “Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin,” [Prov 20:9]? 
  • No one.  Only God can cleanse the sinner from sin. 
  • No man is justified by the law [Gal 2:16].
• In our country today, where men call evil good and good evil, people have lots of trouble with just thoughts. 
  • They don’t understand judgment and equity. 
  • Merely because a thing is legal doesn’t mean it is just. 
  • Merely because “everyone else is doing it” doesn’t mean it’s just. 
  • Merely because you thought it or did it doesn’t make it just.  
  • Merely because you read an article about it or saw a blog on the internet about it doesn’t mean it’s just. 
  • Just thoughts are thoughts in which, weighed against all the evidence that can be presented, you judge the way God judges. 
  • To be a just person, you must have just thoughts.
• Pure –
  • The words of God are pure [Psa 119:140]. 
  • Pure thoughts derive from saturating your heart, mind and spirit with the words of God. 
  •  Pure thoughts are preserved when you immediately cut off wicked thoughts. 
  • Pure thoughts are tough to maintain in a society where there are so many defiling influences. 
  • So, cut off everything that stimulates impure thoughts and fortify your mind and heart with everything that cultivates pure thoughts. 
  • According to Titus 1:15, “Unto the pure all things are pure…” 
  • As your thoughts clean up, so will your life.  
  • Pure thoughts will make you a pure person.
• Lovely –
  • Lovely thoughts are thoughts having those qualities that inspire love, affection or admiration. 
  • People spend so little time thinking about God, Jesus Christ and heaven. 
  • They are consumed with temporal thoughts and worries. 
  • But Paul said, “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth,” [Col 3:2]. 
  • Lovely thoughts about God and the Lord Jesus should fill your mind and heart throughout the day. 
  •  Lovely thoughts about your loved ones should come to mind frequently. 
  • Those thoughts will inspire love, affection and admiration for those things and people that you should love. 
  •  Lovely thoughts will make you a lovely person.
• Of Good Report –
  • A good report is equivalent to a good reputation. 
  • So, think about things that are of good report.
  • “He that covereth a transgression seeketh love,” [Prov 17:9]. 
  • You can always dig up dirt on people, particularly these days, with social media and the internet [Prov 26:23-28]. 
  • And you can consume your mind with thoughts of their imperfections, sins and failings. 
  • Or you can think on those things in their lives that are of good report. 
  • We’re not suggesting that you condone sin in their lives or that you overlook things that would be harmful to others in your church. 
  • But you don’t have to nitpick their faults. 
  • Think on the qualities in their lives that God uses, not on those flaws which God must endure. 
  • Thoughts of good report will help you have a good report.
• Conclusion:
  • Psa 139:23-24 ask God to try you and know your thoughts. 
  • And when your thoughts don’t line up with one of these six qualities, then change your thoughts to good thoughts. 
  • When you do, you will find the virtue and praise about which Paul wrote.

Text: 1 Pet 2:11-17

• Intro:
  • In 1 Pet 2:11-17, Peter instructs us as Christians on how to conduct ourselves. 
  • Now that we are saved, we are “strangers and pilgrims,” [1 Pet 2:11] in the earth. 
  • We are “the people of God,” [1 Pet 2:10] citizens of “an holy nation,” [1 Pet 2:9]. 
  • Therefore, we are “not of the world,” [Jn 17:16]. 
  • Yet we still live in the world. 
  • So, we must know how God expects us to live among those who are not his people.  
  • As Christians, we are to:
• Abstain from fleshly lusts – 1 Pet 2:11 –
  • In the world, we all have fleshly lusts [1 Jn 2:16]. 
  • They “war against” our soul. 
  • They lust against and are contrary to the Spirit [Gal 5:17]. 
  • Therefore, we are to abstain from them.  That is, we must choose not to do whatever the flesh wants. 
  • Don’t make “provision for the flesh,” [Rom 13:14].
• Have our conversation honest – 1 Pet 2:12 –
  • Our conversation is our conduct, our behavior. 
  • We are to “walk honestly,” [Rom 13:13]. 
  • That is, our conduct ought to be marked by integrity. 
  • We should adhere to a code of godly values. 
  • Of course, because the world is opposed to God, they don’t adhere to our values, at all. 
  • To them, we are “as evildoers,” when we don’t go along with their sin. 
  • Like Solomon said in Prov 29:27, we are an abomination to them. 
  • The world hates Christians [Jn 15:19]. 
  • Nevertheless, in the “day of visitation,” [Acts 15:14], when some receive the gospel and believe, they will glorify God for the good works that they behold in us. 
  • Consider Paul’s great change in attitude toward Christians after he got saved.
• Submit to every ordinance of man – 1 Pet 2:13-14 –
  • Though we are saved, we are not above the laws of men. 
  • We are to be “subject unto the higher powers,” [Rom 13:1], as Peter said, “for the Lord’s sake.” 
  • In other words, when you obey the ordinances of man, you are obeying God.  
  • The only exception to this is when the law of man is directly opposed to the clear command of God, as in Acts 5:28-29.
  • Concerning the ordinances of man, “the king (is) supreme.” 
  • He sends “governors” to punish “the evildoers,” and to praise “them that do well.” 
  • See Rom 13:1-4.
• With well doing put to silence foolish men – 1 Pet 2:15 –
  • “well doing” is the will of God.  It is not uncommon for men, who are ignorant of God, to bring accusations against Christians. 
  • Yet, when you do well, they have no legitimate accusation to bring against you [1 Pet 3:16-17]. 
  • And, thus, they are silenced. 
  • They brought false accusations against Christ [Matt 26:60-62]. 
  • They brought false witnesses against Stephen [Acts 6:10-15]. 
  • They brought false accusations against Paul [Acts 24:10-13]. 
  • The “well doing” of Jesus, Stephen and Paul has testified to this day; their false accusers have been silenced for nearly 2,000 years.
• Not use our liberty for a cloke of maliciousness – 1 Pet 2:16 –
  • As Christians we have liberty [Gal 5:1]. 
  • Like Paul said, “all things are lawful for me…” [1 Cor 6:12, 1 Cor. 10:23]. 
  • Nevertheless, we are not to use our liberty as “a cloke of maliciousness.” 
  • That is, we are not to use our liberty to justify doing something that is sinful or unlawful. 
  • We are “the servants of God.” 
  • Today, there are Christians who are mixed up in sin and justify themselves because of their liberty.
• Honour all men – 1 Pet 2:17 –
  • The trouble with people is that they want to “receive honour one of another,” [Jn 5:41-44]. 
  • Peter’s exhortation, Like Paul’s in Rom 13:7, is that we are to honour all men. 
  • Christians are to “each esteem other better than themselves,” [Phil 2:3].
• Love the brotherhood – 1 Pet 2:17 –
  • This follows directly from the Lord’s command to his disciples to “love one another; as I have loved you,” [Jn 13:34]. 
  • It is important for us to remember what John said in 1 Jn 4:20, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”
• Fear God – 1 Pet 2:17 –
  • This is perhaps the shortest sentence in the Bible.
  • Yet it is undoubtedly the most profound. 
  • The fear of God is seriously lacking among professing Christians today. 
  • Paul and Peter definitely understood the duty to fear God [Ecc 12:13]. 
  • Paul knew the terror of the Lord [2 Cor 5:11] and admonished us to “work out (our) own salvation with fear and trembling,” [Phil 2:12-13].
• Honour the king – 1 Pet 2:17 –
  • The king reigning at the time Peter wrote this was Nero. 
  • Nero was very ruthless and very immoral. 
  • And he was responsible for Peter’s death. 
  • Nevertheless, Peter wrote, “Honour the king.” 
  • The reason is that we are to honor the office, because of its authority, regardless of the occupant.
• Conclusion:
  • These are very clear instructions on our conduct. 
  •  Examine your own life to see whether you are living according to these demands. 
  • If not, make the corrections and get in line with God’s word.  

Text: Prov 16:20

• Intro:
  • In this study, we’re going to talk about four results of trusting God.  
  • When you trust in the Lord:
• You’ll be happy –
  • Prov 16:20, whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he. 
  • You’re happy first from getting saved. 
  • Psa 144:15 says, happy is that people whose God is the Lord. 
  • And then you’ll be happy from trusting God each day for direction (Prov 3:5-6), for correction (Job 5:17), for wisdom (Prov 3:13), and even for suffering (1 Pet 3:14). 
  • This is the first of the results of trusting God.
• You’ll be fat –
  • Prov 28:25, he that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be made fat. 
  • You’ll be fat and happy. 
  • Fat is an expression of sufficiency. 
  • Psa 37:3 says, Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. 
  •  In Isa 58:11, after fasting properly, the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.  
• In the coming months and years, we may experience times of hunger and thirst like Paul did, 2 Cor 11:27. 
  • Nevertheless, spiritually we will be fat. 
  • Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled, Matt 5:6. 
  • When you believe on Jesus, the bread of life, you never hunger and thirst, John 6:35. 
  • When you believe on Jesus, you drink living water and you never thirst, John 4:14. 
  • Instead, “out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water”, John  7:38. 
• You’ll be safe –
  • Prov 29:25, whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe. 
  •  Psa 115:11 …trust in the Lord, he is their help and their shield. 
  • These times in which we live are getting worse. 
  • How vital it is for us to know that we can trust the Lord to keep us safe.
• For instance, our prayer for the servants of God who have remained in Ukraine is that the Lord will keep them safe despite the bombings and attacks.
  • May they be assured of safety like David in Psa 3:5-7 and Psa 4:8.
• You’ll be blessed –
  • Jer 17:7, Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.  
  • Contrast the man in Jer 17:5. 
  • Cursed is the man that trutsteth in man. 
  • It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man, Psa 118:8, or than to put confidence in princes, Psa 118:9. 
  • Men will let you down, betray you, hurt you, disappoint you, frustrate you, and many times this happens just because they are trying to protect themselves.
• In Jer 17:8, on the other hand, for the man that trusts in the Lord, his leaf is green in heat, and he’s not careful in drought. 
  • We covered this under “fat”, above. 
  • The verse goes on to say, “neither shall cease from yielding fruit”. 
  • Men who trust the Lord are fruitful in difficult seasons. 
  • They continue to bear the fruit of Spirit, the fruit of the word, and the fruit of souls led to the Lord Jesus Christ through their testimony and witness.
• Conclusion:
  • These are four results of trusting God that we pray will encourage you to trust him or trust him more than you already do.

Text: Lev 24:10-16

• Intro:
  • While the laws of man have certainly changed over time, God’s attitude toward sins that are now legal has not changed. We are going to study deadly sins today just as a reminder of what God thinks about sins that are not only legal but now commonplace. 
  • We are studying these deadly sins so that when you consider committing one or more of them, you won’t make your decision solely based upon its societal acceptance or its legality.
• You need to take God’s view into consideration because ultimately you will face him at a judgment.
  • You will give account of your sin before him. 
  • Thus, you may decide, after hearing God’s side, not to commit the sin. 
  •  And though you often see that the Lord provides forgiveness in the New Testament, his forgiveness and forbearance are the result of what Jesus did at Calvary and not the result of his changed attitude.
  • See Rev 21:8; 1 Cor  6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21.
• Some of the deadly sins are these:
• Blasphemy – Lev 24:10-16 –
  • Blaspheming the name of the Lord was a capital crime with immediate execution in the Old Testament.  
  • Taking the name of the Lord in vain is commonplace in Hollywood, among soldiers, in sports, in business, in comedy, in literature and so forth.  
  • Though Paul caused Christians to blaspheme before he was saved and the Lord spared him, he never once committed this sin or caused others to do so after he was saved.  
  • So, quit cussing!
• Adultery – Lev 20:10 –
  • Adultery was a capital crime with immediate execution in the Old Testament.  
  • Though the Lord forgave the woman taken in adultery in Jn 8, he told her to go and sin no more.  
  • The young man fornicating with his father’s wife in 1 Cor 5 was removed from the congregation.  
  • He was not forgiven and received in again until he repented and quit this sin.  
  • So, do not even think about committing this sin.
  •  But if you already have, then thank God that you were spared and then cut it out!!
• Homosexuality – Lev 20:13; Rom 1:26-28, 32; and bestiality Lev 20:15-16 –
  • These were capital crimes in the Old Testament.  
  • Romans 1 is clear in the New Testament that those who commit such sins are worthy of death.  \
  • Again, forgiveness for this sin is available in the New Testament [1 Cor 6:9-11], but the Lord does not approve of or condone this sin.  
  • If you are involved in it, stop it; if you aren’t involved in it, then don’t get started!!
• Pre-marital sex – Deut 22:13-21 –
  • In this case, the man marries a woman whom he believes to be a virgin.
  • After they are married, he realizes that she was not a virgin.  
  • When the evidence is presented to the men of her city she is stoned.  
  • Of course, in the New Testament there is forgiveness for this sin.  
  • But that is because of Christ’s propitiation.  
  • The Lord neither condones nor approves of this sin.
  •  Many commit it today thinking that it is either okay with God or that since he is going to forgive them they’ll just commit it anyway.
  •  Don’t do this and if you already have, stop!!
• Drunkenness and Gluttony – Deut 21:18-21 –
  • This fellow’s trouble was mixed with stubbornness and rebellion.  
  • He didn’t live past his teen years.  
  • 1 Cor 6:9-11 shows us that many in Corinth were forgiven and cleansed from this sin.  
  • But they quit and that’s the key.  
  • If you are stubborn, yield.  
  • If you are rebellious, obey.  
  • If you are drinking, stop.  
  • If you are a glutton, learn to control your appetite!!
• Witchcraft – Ex 22:18; Lev 20:27 –
  • Witches in the Old Testament were to be stoned.  
  • The Lord and the disciples cast these devils out of people in the New Testament.  
  • Someone in the New Testament who recognized the involvement of evil spirits in another person’s life would be foolish to think that God was fine with them being demon possessed.
• Conclusion:
  • There are people and even professing Christians involved with these sins today and just because they haven’t fallen over dead doesn’t mean that God has changed his mind about their sin.  
  • If anything, his forbearance is a testimony to the power of the shed blood of Jesus and the Lord’s willingness to extend mercy to them. 
  • Repent of your sin.  
  • And if you haven’t gotten into one of these things, don’t!!

• Intro:
  • We’re going to study the topic of deception.  
  • There are five things that can deceive you and you must defend yourself from each of these.
• Riches will deceive you – Mk 4:19.  
  • Our country’s problem is not an economic problem.  
  • Rather, it’s a righteousness problem.  
  • Righteousness exalteth a nation.  
  • Your problem is not an economic problem.  
  • It’s a righteousness problem.
  • “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto thee”.  
  • In Laodicea, riches have deceived the church and the word is well nigh choked out.
  • Defense:
    • Labor not to be rich.  
    • The love of money is the root of all evil.  
    • Trust not in uncertain riches.  Live by godliness with contentment.
• Sin will deceive you – Heb 3:13, Rom 7:11.  “
  • Be not deceived God is not mocked, whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap”.  
  • You cannot sin without paying the cost.  
  • You can’t just try it like one Lay’s potato chip.  
  • And you can’t even sit around and just think about it without a bad consequence.
  • Your defense.
    • Acknowledge what God calls sin and avoid it, refuse it, and run from it.  
    • Be quick to confess it and forsake it.
• The devil will deceive you – Rev 12:9, 2 Cor 11:13-14.  
  • He is the master deceiver.  
  • In Revelation he deceives the whole world and he deceives nations, Rev 20:3, 8.  
  • He is the author of religions, of evolution, of many scientific theories, of mythology, and even of modern translations.  
  • He’s involved in commerce, in governments [the authority has come from the Lord but the devil has usurped the kingdoms], in many churches, in most communication, and in the world.  
  • He is the god of this world.
  • He is a liar.  
  • Defense.
    • The best way to protect yourself from his deceit is to know the truth and believe it.
• Men will deceive you– Matt 24:4, Eph 5:6, 2 Thess 2:3.
  • If you want to find out the truth about any man, go to the Bible and check him out.
• I checked out my old religion and I found out two things.  
  • One, it was man-made deception.  
  • My old religion used the Bible to reinforce its doctrines but it was not Biblical.  
  • The truth had been twisted.  
  • Two, it had a supernatural “hold” on people, though it was being propagated by men.  
  • Religious men are deceiving and being deceived.  
  • That’s true of all the religions of the world.  
  • The devil is behind them and men are out front pushing them.
  • Your defense.
    • Read and believe what the Bible has to say about your religion and its doctrines.
• You will deceive yourself – 1 John 1:8, Jas 1:22, Gal 6:3.  
  • Jeremiah 17:9 – The heart is deceitful above all things.  
  • You can easily be deceived about your motives, your judgment, and your will versus God’s.
• To avoid deception,
  • You have to step back and see what you’re doing the way that God sees it.  
  • The thing you may be deceived about has to fit the Bible not just one or two verses in the Bible.  
  • You must be willing to receive reproof and rebuke, be willing to admit that you are wrong, and be willing to humble yourself.

Text: 2 Peter 2:18-21

• Intro:
  • How Christians fall.  How is it that a good Christian can go along, seemingly doing fine, and then one day you find him backslidden and almost unrecoverable for any beneficial fellowship with or work for the Lord?  
  • Well, for some the answer is a follows:
• They get tripped up by a false teacher – 2 Pet 2:1, 2 Pet 1:18-21 –
  • They had “clean escaped from them who live in error” and they had “escaped the pollutions of the world.” 
  • Then some teacher comes along in a college classroom or in a pulpit or in a Christian book and with “great swelling words of vanity” promises him “liberty,” by alluring “through the lust of the flesh.” 
  • The poor fellow doesn’t realize that the professor is the servant “of corruption” and before he knows it he is “overcome” and “brought in bondage.” 
  • At that point he is worse off than before knowing the way of righteousness.
• They get tripped up by the devil – 2 Tim 2:22-26 –
  • They don’t flee youthful lusts and, as a result, they unknowingly “oppose themselves.” 
  • They quit acknowledging the truth and soon they are in “the snare of the devil” and they “are taken captive by him at his will.” 
  • That snare may lay there for months or even years before the devil pulls it. 
  • But when he does, they will not be able to “recover themselves” unless the Lord gives “them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth.”
• They get tripped up by the Lord – Rom 1:21-32 –
  • They quit glorifying God and they become ungrateful. 
  • Like evolutionists they begin to worship and serve “the creature more than the Creator.” 
  • Through this process, God gives them “up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts,” then God gives them “up unto vile affections,” and then God gives “them over to a reprobate mind.” 
  • You see, in this case, it’s not the false teacher or the devil that trips them up over their lusts, it is the Lord. 
  • They don’t like to “retain God in their knowledge” and so God gives them up.
• Conclusion:
  • This is how Christians fall. 
  • The thing to do is to walk in the Spirit so you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh [Gal 5:16-17]. 
  • There is a war going on between the flesh and the Spirit and if you don’t let the Spirit have the upper hand by walking in Him, then you are set up for either a false teacher, the devil or the Lord to trip you up.

Text: Matt 10:39

• Intro:
  • When Jesus sent his twelve disciples out to preach and to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, and cast out devils, Matt 10:7-8, he also gave them warnings and instructions for their ministry. 
  • In Matt 10:39, after telling them that they must love him more than their own family, take up their cross and follow him, Matt 10:37-38, he told them that “he that loseth his life, for my sake shall find it.” 
  • This is a doctrine in the Bible that we must learn and follow.
• You lose your life to find it – Matt 10:39 –
  • In Jer 38:17-23, Jeremiah told Zedekiah, the king, that the only way he could spare his life and keep Jerusalem from being burned with fire was to go willingly into captivity in Babylon.  He had to lose his life to save it. 
  • Zedekiah refused. 
  • Therefore, all his sons were slain before him, his eyes were put out, he was carried to Babylon, and then the city was burned, Jer 39:5-8. 
  • He tried to save his life and lost it.  
• In Luke 17:24-33, right before the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, Jews will have to flee their houses and fields without turning back to get anything they own, or else they will lose their lives. 
  • They will find their lives by losing them.  In 1910, a boy was born in Germany, into a prosperous Jewish family. 
  • He was one of four siblings.  In 1930, his sister immigrated to Palestine. 
  • Germany was very developed and Palestine was very undeveloped. 
  • However, in 1933, he also immigrated to Palestine, due to his concerns about Hitler’s anti-semitic views. 
  • By 1939, it was becoming evident to the world that Jews were being exterminated. 
  • That same year, he received a letter from one of his German friends who was now in the Gestapo. Included with the letter was a two-week pass to come to Berlin and rescue his family from their planned extermination. 
  • He pled with his family to leave with him and save their lives. 
  • They didn’t want to leave their homes and possessions, so they didn’t go with him. 
  • They were all murdered. 
  • If they had lost their lives, they would have preserved them.
• In Gal 2:20, we are to be crucified with Christ to live. 
  • Jesus had to die to bring forth much fruit, John 12:24. 
  • And we must die to live.  Paul said, “I die daily,” 1 Cor 15:31. 
  • The reason Christians don’t live the abundant life that Jesus promised in John 10:10 is that they aren’t willing to part with the life they have now. 
  • If you want to find this abundant life, you have to lose your life. 
  • In Mk 10:28-30, Jesus told Peter that men receive a hundredfold of whatever they lose for Jesus’ sake and the gospel’s.  
• You lose your wealth to find it – Heb 11:26 –
  • Moses esteemed “the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward.” 
  • He knew there was a reward for leaving everything he had in Pharaoh’s palace. 
  • In Mk 10:21, Jesus told the rich young ruler that if he would sell all he had and give it to the poor, he would have treasure in heaven. 
  • Jesus guaranteed him that if he would lose his wealth he would find it. 
  • Prov 19:17 says, “He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” 
  • Prov 13:7 says, “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.” 
  • The greatest investment you can make is to give to the Lord. 
  • There is absolutely no safe haven for money on earth. 
  • One way or the other, you’ll lose it all unless you give it to the Lord.
• You lose your pleasure to find it – Heb 11:25 –
  • Moses left the seasonal pleasures of sin to find real pleasure in the presence of the Lord. 
  • Psa 16:11 says, “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” 
  • Moses was in the presence of the Lord. 
  • They conversed “face to face, as a man speaketh unto  his friend,” Ex 33:11.  
  • In Ex 33:18-23, God’s glory passed by Moses and he saw it. 
  • In Zech 4:14, Moses is one of the two anointed ones, “that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
  • And in Mk 10:35-40, Moses will be sitting beside Jesus Christ in his glory, enjoying “pleasures for evermore,” Ps 16:11. 
  • In Lk 6:20-26, we see the contrast between those who get their pleasure from the world now and those who wait to receive their reward later. 
  • One will rejoice and the other will mourn. 
  • Notice that the ones who lose their pleasure now are also the ones who begin to “leap for joy,” now. 
  • The pleasure begins now and the reward comes later.
• Conclusion:
  • These three examples are so contrary to how the world seeks life, wealth and pleasure, that worldly Christians will never believe what the Bible says about how to have life, wealth and pleasure. 
  • You’re as unbelieving as the Jewish family in Berlin. 
  • And you are just as wrong as they were. 

In this life, the losers are the winners.

TEXT: Job 23:1-10

• Intro:
  • Job was suffering greatly and he was looking for an audience with God so he could get some answers as to why he was suffering so.
  • For quite some time, God was silent.
  • We learn from his experience that there are times when you want God to answer you and he seems not to hear your plea.
  • So, today we are going to study waiting out the silence of God. 
  • What are we supposed to do when God is silent?
  • Waiting out the silence of God takes:
• Perseverance – Job –
  • Job was going through a test –
  • He was a pawn in a spiritual war between God and the devil –
  • The battle wasn’t totally without benefit for Job because he was self-righteous
  • The Lord allowed Job to be tested until he repented of his righteousness and humbled himself –
  • Then the Lord blessed him abundantly and gave him twice as much as he started with when the trial began –
  • Job had to persevere through his trial –
  •  Likewise, there are times when the spiritual struggles in your life are for your benefit –
  • The Lord isn’t going to answer you in times like these because he is molding you into something better than what you were [Rom 9:20-21] –
  • You need to persevere through the trial until God establishes you in what he wants you to be [1 Pet 5:10] –
  • It’s like trying to make a battle toughened soldier out of a 20 year old boy –
  • There’s no explaining to do; he just has to go through it.
• Perception – Joseph –
  • Joseph suffered a great deal during his 13 years in prison –
  • He was wrongly imprisoned based on a false accusation –
  • He was sold into slavery because of envy – and yet he had to endure all of that until such time as he was released and promoted to be the second ruler in the country –
  • Joseph didn’t need God to reassure him during his trial –
  • God had already “spoken” on the matter –
  • Joseph had seen the visions of God regarding his brothers bowing down to him and knew that they would come to pass –
  • In our case, God often isn’t going to give you any perspective on your trouble other than what he has already written in his words –
  • Rather than cry out in anguish to God for an answer you need to study the scriptures and see what he has already said –
  • Then believe what he has said and live by those words –
  • Joseph did [Gen 50:20].
• Patience – Daniel –
  • In Daniel chapter 10, Daniel receives an answer from the Lord after three weeks of limited fasting –
  • The whole time he is waiting for the Lord to answer his prayer, he is clueless as to the delay –
  • When the angel comes to reveal to him his vision, he then understands that the delay involved a spiritual battle between the angel and the “prince of Persia’ [one of the heavenly hosts opposed to the Lord] –
  • There was nothing Daniel could do during this delay but wait –
  • Patience is required when you know you need an answer but there is an unexplained delay –
  • Perhaps the Lord is waiting for just the right time and anything before that would simply be too soon for you to know –
  • After all, he is God and we are just humans and he really doesn’t owe us an explanation –
  • Learn to trust him even in his silence.
• Penitence – Saul –
  • In 1 Samuel 28, Saul decided to enquire of a woman who had a familiar spirit because the Lord would not answer him [v.6] –
  • The Lord refused to answer him because he had sinned against the Lord –
  • What he needed to do was repent –
  • Instead, he tried to circumvent the Lord and get the answer another way –
  • Saul was rebellious, stubborn, disobedient and possessed with an evil spirit –
  • When you get into that kind of shape you are not going to get much from the Lord in prayer, in Bible reading or in church –
  • You are going to have to repent of the sin or sins that are separating you from the Lord.
• Conclusion:
  • Concerning waiting out the silence of God there may be other things to consider but these four are certainly some of the most common things you will face –
  • At times you need to persevere like Job and endure the suffering –
  • At other times you need to perceive like Joseph and find the answers the Lord has already written in his words –
  • Still there are times when you need patience like Daniel to wait till god replies for whatever reason –
  • And then you may need penitence like Saul before the Lord will break the silence –
  • Hopefully, you will find the Lord’s answers in his words –
  • They are certainly the most reliable counsel you will receive.

Text: Psa 2:1-3

• Intro:
  • Psalm 2 begins with the question, Why do the heathen rage? 
  • The answer is found in the first three verses of the chapter and then the next two verses show you God’s response to their rage. 
  • We are going to study the first three verses.
• This passage deals with the international opposition to God and the Lord Jesus Christ but spiritual application can be made to individuals, as well. 
• So, we will deal with the truths in this passage that pertain to both nations and individuals, alike.
• Why do the heathen rage?  The heathen rage because of their:

• Lack of the knowledge of God – Psa 2:1 – “heathen” –
  • No fear, no knowledge Prov 1:7; Rom 3:18 –
  • Paul blasphemed God in ignorance 1 Tim 1:13 –
  • The men who crucified Jesus didn’t know him 1 Cor 2:7-8 –
  • They may even profess that they know him when they don’t Titus 1:16 –
  • The only way they are going to know him is through believing the Bible.
• Vain imagination – Ps 2:1 – “imagine a vain thing” –
  • Vain imaginations darken the heart Rom 1:21 –
  • Their imaginations are vain because they are alienated from the life of God Eph 4:17-18 –
  • Their thoughts are contrary to the sound wisdom of God’s words.
• Ungodly associations – Ps 2:2 – “the kings of the earth set themselves” –
• They take counsel together but all the counselors are against God –
• This is a very simple truth –
• The nations who are against the God of the Bible will try to overthrow God and God’s people Dan 7:25; Dan 8:23-25.
• Foolish counsel – Ps 2:2 – “the rulers take counsel together” –
  • A companion of fools shall be destroyed Prov 13:20 –
  • There are those who walk in the counsel of the ungodly Ps 1:1 –
  • Because this counsel is contrary to the counsel of God it will not stand Prov 21:30 –
  • God’s counsel is found in a true belief of God’s words.
• Misunderstanding of liberty – Ps 2:3 – “bands… cords” –
  • Read and digest these verses Jas 1:25; John 8:32; Gal 5:1; 2 Cor 3:12 –
  • You don’t have liberty apart from God and apart from his laws which have been fulfilled in Jesus Christ Rom 10:4.
• Rebellion against God’s laws – Ps 2:3 – “break… cast away” –
  • They try to break the bands and cast away the cords –
  • They see the liberty of God as constraining; we know it to be liberating –
  • Thus they ensnare themselves in their own deception and rebellion against God 2 Pet 2:18-19 –
  • They aggressively oppose God and God’s people to the point of attempting to annihilate them.
• Conclusion:
  • The heathen rage because they are clueless about God, God’s word and God’s liberty –

All of this clears up in Jesus Christ and in the Bible if they will humble themselves and believe what God said.