Learning and Following What the Bible Says: full transcript and answers

▶ 0:00 Last weekend we took the weekend off and I went to uh we were up in Big Bear looking around and hanging out up there for a few hours. And we went into the store and I saw this. Plaque and it had a little sign a little sign and it said a Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who [unclear]. And that really, that really hit home with me and I realized later who said it it was Charles Spurgeon an old Baptist preacher from the 19th century from England but if you think about that for a minute that really does hit home because you see sometimes you go to these churches and you see these people that have been following God for a long time they’ll whip that Bible out and it’ll look like it’s been through the war pages will be falling apart it’ll the binding will be all broken down in fact I remember seeing someone the other day that where I work a customer came in and they’re Christians and they gave me this little paperback Bible that someone had given them and we get to talking about Jesus every now and then here and there and uh the guy pulled out his Bible and it was just almost destroyed the pages were all worn and he had it marked all over the place he had notes here notes there and his wife said I bought him a new one but he always comes back to this old one and I said well I know why is because

▶ 1:30 he has it all marked up you know how long it would take to mark up that new. One but the reason why the person isn’t falling apart is because everybody that has read their Bible and read it a lot knows that it is a storehouse of treasure is that can I get an amen on that it is a storehouse of treasure even even if you just read you and I know everybody’s heard this even if you just read Proverbs a proverb a day you can read one a month on the. Average and my favorite proverb is. This be quick to listen and slow to speak now I don’t always have the ability to follow that but I will say that that is very good advice because sometimes you hear people talking and then they jump right in there before they’re finish talking and you interrupt them but wait a minute and you didn’t let them make their point.

▶ 2:31 And if you just read those Proverbs and apply them to your life you’ll see that they in general they work because it’s good advice is it not and the Bible’s like that and what’s really interesting is we can learn from other people’s mistakes we can look and see what other people have did how they have fallen and and the areas that they failed in and we can learn from what they had failed to do and how many know that it’s easier to learn from what someone else has failed than it is to learn the hard way and have to go through it yourself isn’t it easier to realize that you can turn things around without having to do it the hard way but some of us are stubborn I was like that in my younger years I had to learn the hard way but I will say this when you do you never forget.

▶ 3:27 It I want to take you the in the book of John in chapter 11 this morning we want to talk about something here for a few. Minutes most of you know what we’re talking about here already it’s about. Lazarus what’s interesting about Jesus is when you get to the point where you think that you can’t go on or you think that the absolute worst has happened and there couldn’t possibly be a way out he he delivers you. Again and you realize when you followed him for a long time that virtually nothing is impossible for our God now it starts out in verse one it says a man named Lazarus was sick he was from Bethany a village of Mary and her sister Martha this Mary whose brother Lazarus now lay sick was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her head.

▶ 4:31 So her sisters sent word to Jesus Lord the one you love is sick now for a second here I want to point out something about this they knew Jesus he was a a friend of theirs and their brother is now sick and it’s unto death he’s going to die so they say I want you guys to go get Jesus and I want you to bring him back here because I know when without a doubt he can heal our brother so you’ve got to get going and you’ve got to go find him and get him back here before Lazarus. Dies when he heard this Jesus said this sickness will not end in death no it is for God’s glory so that God’s son may be glorified through it verse 5 says Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick he stayed where he was two more days now remember the sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick and when you read it there was a sense of urgency you got to get there and you got to get Jesus and you got to get him back here because Lazarus is sick and they had an enormous amount of faith to the point that there was they beli without a doubt that he could have healed.

▶ 5:58 Them. When he got word to him he waited two more. Days then he said to his disciples let us go back to Judea but Rabbi they said a short while ago Jews tried to stone you and yet you’re going back there Jesus answered are not yet are there not 12 hours of daylight a man who walks by day will not stumble for he sees by this world’s light it is when he walks by night that he stumbles for he has no light after he said this he went on to tell them our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep but I’m going to go there to wake him up now of course we know the story Lazarus actually. Died now you can imagine what the sisters might be going through at this time having sent word to Jesus with this urgency get him back here because we got to get him to wake we got to get him to heal Lazarus so you can imagine how they felt when Jesus didn’t make it back in.

▶ 7:12 Time verse 12 says the disciples replied Lord if he sleeps he’ll get better but Jesus was speaking of his death but his disciples thought he talked about or meant natural sleep so then he told them plainly Lazarus is dead and for your sake I’m glad I wasn’t there why would he say that because if he would have been there he would have probably healed him and you’re thinking wait a minute why wouldn’t he want to heal. Him but he says I’m glad for your sake that I wasn’t. There so you may believe well believe what so at this point they don’t fully understand what’s going on either first he says well Lazarus is asleep and then he says look guys you don’t get it he’s.

▶ 8:06 Dead but I’m glad I wasn’t there that’s talking about the time he was sick for your. Sake so that you may believe well everybody in this story seems like believed that Jesus was able without a doubt to heal Lazarus who was. Sick because Jesus said already made a name for himself by opening deaf ears opening blind. Eyes making the lame walk and totally just bewildering the people when they saw this could you imagine for a minute could you imagine knowing someone that’s blind knowing without a doubt they’re blind they can’t see and this guy comes along and opens their eyes could you imagine what that would be like to see something like. That so these people knew that Jesus could do these things but there’s something about death being.

▶ 9:08 Final it’s like well he’s gone so it’s too late so anyway in verse 17 it says on his arrival Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for 4 days okay he’s been dead for 4 days Bethany was less than 2 miles from Jerusalem and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother when Martha heard that Jesus was coming she went out to meet him but Mary stayed at home Lord Martha said to Jesus if you had been here my brother Lazarus would not have died but I know that even now God will give you whatever you.

▶ 9:52 Ask so Jesus said to her your brother will rise. Again and Martha said I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day so she believed that in the resurrection her brother would would rise again she believed that also but Jesus went on in verse 25 to say I am the resurrection and the life he who believes in me will live even though he dies and whoever lives and believes in me will never die do you believe this yes Lord she told him I believe that you are the Christ the son of God who has come into the world after she said this she went back and called her sister Mary aside the teacher is here she said and asking for you when Mary heard this she got up quickly went to him now Jesus had not yet entered the village but was still at the place where Martha had met him when the Jews who had been with Mary in the house comforting her noticed how quickly she got up and went out they followed her supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there when Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him she fell at his feet and you can guess what she said Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died when Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled where have you laid him he asked come and see Lord they replied Jesus wept

▶ 11:24 the Jews said see how he loved him but some of them said could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying everybody in unison believed that if he would have just got there before Lazarus would have died he could have healed him but what did he tell his disciples he said I am glad I wasn’t there for your sake in other words I wasn’t there and he died because obviously he’s got something else in. Mind verse 38 says Jesus once more deeply moved came to the tomb in the cave where a stone laid across the entrance take away the stone he said but Lord said Martha the sister of the dead man by this time there is a bad odor for for he has been dead for four days now I want you to think about something else here real quick when you when someone dies decomposition starts so he’s been decomposing for 4 days along with everything else so not only does Jesus have to raise him up he’s got to put him back.

▶ 12:44 Together 4 days of decomp is probably I I don’t know how fast they advance but 4 days a lot can. Happen so then Jesus said verse 40 did I not tell you that if you you believe you would see the glory of God so they took away the stone then Jesus looked up and said father I thank you that you have heard me I knew that you have always heard me but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here that they may believe you sent me referring to what he’s about ready to. Do when he had said this he called in a loud voice Lazarus come out the dead man came out his hands and feet ran with strips of linen and a cloth around his face Jesus said to them take off his grave clothes and let him go.

▶ 13:39 Wow so it’s obvious by delaying and letting Lazarus die it’s obvious he had something else in mind when they saw that someone that had been dead for 4 days came out of that tomb alive you could only imagine how much their faith grew when they saw that even death couldn’t lay hold of a person even death has been conquered through our savior Jesus so now when he says when he says you will rise again he proved it by raising people from the dead so these. People their faith grew.

▶ 14:35 Enormously because they thought it was the end of something when God had something else in mind al. Together we don’t always know what he’s going to do tomorrow we don’t know what exists tomorrow he does and sometimes we can look at situations that we are in at this present time and we might think there’s no hope or there’s no way. Out but yet time and time again you can ask anybody that’s followed Jesus for decades time and time again when you think there’s no other way he provides. One and death is something that people think that they look at as being final.

▶ 15:29 But for those that follow Jesus death isn’t the end it’s the beginning Mary and Martha had put all their faith in this man. Jesus and he had done something to increase their faith even when she. Thought by letting him die it wasn’t God’s will to heal him she still said whatever you ask God I know he’ll do. So I want to go over to Matthew chapter 7 for a. Moment getting back to that getting back to. That that Bible. Again we can find answers to just about everything in this life in this. Book and it’s very important to know and understand God God’s word but even more so it’s it’s very important to apply his word to our.

▶ 16:39 Lives Jesus himself. Said that the road was. Narrow in Matthew 7:21 Jesus said this everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock the rain rain came down the streams rose and the winds blew and beat against that house yet it did not fall because it had a foundation on the rock but everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand the rain came down the streams rose and the winds blew and beat against the house and it fell with a great crash so just like those Proverbs we talked about earlier you know Proverbs is just good advice.

▶ 17:29 A soft answer turns away wrath as one of the Proverbs says is that always true no if not always sometimes you can answer softly and there’ll still be wrath but as a general rule it does so the point is is if we can apply this word to our lives we’ll see how it does work and like that old saying when a b when you see a Bible that’s falling apart it usually belongs to someone who isn’t the reason why is they’ve spent a long time in this book and they’ve heeded the words of Jesus and they applied these words to their life and by applying these words to their life it makes them able to cope through this life and to endure this life and not only that but be a light to others around you that Jesus had delivered you he can deliver them also so the question is is just like he raised the dead man Lazarus is he going to be able to raise us up in the last day yes he can and he proved could by raising someone from the dead and then he says here in Matthew 7 if you hear these words of mine and you put them into practice you’ll be like a man that built his house on the rock and everybody knows that rock is much more strong stronger than.

▶ 18:46 Sand sand isn’t a sure foundation is it so it’s obeying Jesus that keeps us on this narrow road and there’s so many things that can come along in our life that’ll lead us in the wrong direction and take us off that narrow path so if we stray away from keeping these words in our heart then we’ll fall for just about anything that comes along I got to tell you something before I came to God about I don’t know 27 28 years ago before I came to God I actually went to a fortune teller this was when I was probably 21 22 years I was younger that younger than my son I went to a fortune teller cuz I was a young kid I was all messed up didn’t know anything about life I was young ignorant naive whatever you want to call it and I went to this fortune teller and she told me things about my life and I’m just like what how could she know these.

▶ 19:47 Things and after she dazzled me with all this then she told me about my. Future 100% of everything that woman told me about my future was. Wrong but before all this took place before all this took place I remember thinking to myself because she dazzled me because she knew things that I knew she couldn’t possibly understand she she could know I was dazzled by this I thought I actually thought at the time that wow she must really be of. God well when I when I found Jesus and I began to learn his word I realized that that wasn’t. So the point is is I I didn’t have anything to guide me except the people around me which were just as naive and stupid as I was they didn’t know any better I didn’t know any better so I took advice from dumb people and I applied advice I got from dumb people to my life and I found out the results were just as dumb as the advice I.

▶ 20:56 Got and until I came to Jesus and I started reading his word then I thought wait a minute you know and I started you know you hear these little sayings through life and and you find wow that came from the Bible I didn’t know that they actually took that from the Bible like man can’t live by bread alone well gee I remember reading that the first time in the Bible wow that’s where that came from the Bible radically changed my. Thinking and I began to see things in here and I began to apply those things to my life and I found out unlike the stupid advice I got from these people around me when I was younger I followed this book and did what it said and you know what I found out it.

▶ 21:40 Works it works it doesn’t mean that your life’s perfect it doesn’t mean that you never fall down it doesn’t mean that you never fall short but it does mean that you have a savior that’ll lead you and guide you if you just put your trust in him even though you don’t always understand what you might be going through you can understand this he is in control and I remember talking to people here and there about how things are going in America about how people are continuously turning away from God they’re turning away from the Bible they’re turning away from church and if you really want to start a fight you just mention the name of Jesus and you’ll start one but this book when you apply it to your life it. Works and I learned that when I first started getting an understanding of what the Bible says I like wow but anyway back to what I was talking about I forgot what I was going to say that’s why I had to move on to something else I’m getting old I’m forgetful when you look at how bad things might be getting in the country I remember telling people we talk about these things like other church people and I tell them this I see even though things are the way they are I know who’s really in charge and that’s.

▶ 22:59 Jesus and you know in America things might be going in one direction but do you know in other parts of the world the gospel is exploding how many of you know that when all this started out and you read in the Old Testament God dealt with one nation of people it’s like the entire world were. Heathens and then God chose one man named Abraham and called him and his offspring God revealed himself to him and his offspring and dealt with this one nation and they had the responsibility of being a light to all those around.

▶ 23:38 Them you guys familiar with that. And they went through an enormous amount of trials troubles turmoil some of it they brought on themselves some of it they didn’t but God picked one nation out of the world to be a light to others around them the problem is they failed to do what God wanted them to do now today it doesn’t depend on one nation it’s a global thing if the United States and England and Australia and any other nation [unclear] turn their back on God there are still somebody somewhere in this world that will follow him and serve him and spread that gospel and you know what I hear that missionaries are actually coming to America now back in Deuteronomy 7 when he was dealing with Israel they were just getting ready they they spent 40 years dwelling in the wilderness and they spent 40 years because of.

▶ 24:44 Disobedience they were delivered out of Egypt and when you go through and read the story of Exodus and you see the miraculous things that God did to bring his people out of this land and out of this bondage and you see what he did to the nation of Egypt it’s just mindboggling but the final outcome was they were. Delivered and in the book of numbers there’s a story where Moses said I want you to take 12 people one from each tribe and I want you to go in and I want you to spy out the land and come back and give us a report so 12 people one from each tribe of Israel went into the land and they spied it out and they come back and they said man let me tell you it truly is a land that flows with milk and honey it wow they got they carried these they carried these cluster of grapes back and it was so big it had to be carried on the shoulders of two people.

▶ 25:39 Huge and they come back and they told about the crops and all this other things said man it’s awesome this land that God wants to give us is just amazing however the people that live there are giants we look like grasshoppers in their sight now this is the people that cross a a a sea on dry ground that saw 10 plagues come on a nation yet they weren’t harmed they saw deliverance. Come in a miraculous way and these same people said we can’t do this because there’s no way we could fight against these people over there they’ll murder us and then when Joshua [unclear] said look let’s go because God’s going to deliver this land into our hands uh-uh they wanted to stone Joshua because he wanted to. Go and they had forgotten about all the things that God had done previously they didn’t learn from the things that God had taught them.

▶ 26:42 Earlier so the outcome was they had to wait until everyone 20 years old and upward. Died he said those kids that you’re worried about them taking away from you are going to go into this land that I promised but but they’re not going to be able to go until the last one of you have dropped dead in this. Desert so because of their disobedience and by the way you think how you thinking why in the world would God be so mean to these people because he delivered them out of a bondage and he called them to the foot of that mountain and you know what they said do you know what they said whatever God says to do will do so they obligated themselves to follow this God and said they would obey.

▶ 27:34 Him and they went back on their. Word and guess what they paid dearly for it they knew the word they knew what God wanted without a doubt yet they disobeyed him and suffered for. It and in Deuteronomy chapter 7 the 40 years has now been passed and the generation next to them is getting ready to go into the promised land and Moses tells them when the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and dries up before you many nations the Hittites Girgashites Amorites Canaanites Perizzites and [unclear] and when the Lord has delivered you over and you have defeated them you must destroy them totally make no treaty with them and show them no mercy do not intermarry with them do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods now once again you got a generation told to do.

▶ 28:41 Something when you get over there this is what I want you to do and this is what I don’t want you to do okay break down their altars smash their sacred stones cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols in the fire down in verse 16 he told them again not to serve their gods because it would be a snare to. Them it’s going to cause you to fall it’s going to bring you. Destruction well guess what the same thing happens today if we don’t follow the advice Jesus gave what did we just read a few minutes ago he that hears these words of mine and puts them into practice I’ll liken him to a man who built his house on the what rock because he gave heed to my words because my words will bring you life but if you disobey my words the only result will be what.

▶ 29:37 Death now you got to it’s the same thing that they went through back there it’s a picture of what we see. Today this was that land that God had promised to give them when they carried the big clusters of grapes across when they said man that food over there what and he also told him when you go over there you’re going to live in houses you didn’t build you’re going to eat from vines that you didn’t plant you’re going to be living off what somebody else. Labored so after they finish wandering in the wilderness for 40 years now it was time to go in and take possession of this land in the book of Joshua it talks about entering the land and conquering it and when Joshua Joshua was the successor to Moses when he went into the land when Israel came when these people heard that Israel’s coming they trembled with fear because God was with them how many of you know that God if he wanted to he could raise up a small nation that everybody think is in would think is insignificant he could take a small nation and take that nation and conquer a superpower if that’s what he wanted to do so do you think America is immune from God’s judgment.

▶ 30:49 No if America continues to turn its back on God history is going to repeat itself I believe eventually if we don’t repent as a nation so during the book of Joshua they went continuously taking land after land after land and by the way if any of you think it’s horrible for God to do such a thing to just come in and pick on these poor people and throw them out the Bible talks about the people that lived in that land for hundreds of years he said even Abraham was told that he was waiting for sin to reach its fullness did you know that the people that lived there that Israel drove out God God drove them out because of their wickedness yall know that and what did he tell Israel he said if you guys do the same thing guess what I’m going to drive you. Out so it’s all about it’s two things really it’s knowing his word and applying it to your life and doing it.

▶ 31:49 So during all through the book of Joshua we see conquering going on he’s evicting these wicked people from the land. But the problem is Joshua didn’t live long enough to evict all of them and not only that there’s a scripture I didn’t look up where it is but it talks about the people weren’t numerous enough if they drove all the people out the land would be too much of a wilderness and the wild animals would come in and and and be a problem so the couple of reasons why he didn’t he wasn’t able to drive them all out so all the days of Joshua they followed God and they were obedient to him and did what God wanted them to do because they had a leader that was righteous and follow God and they followed his example but then Joshua died at the age of 110 and we come to the story of judges and in chapter 2:8 it says this Joshua the son of nun the servant of the Lord died at the age of 110 they buried him in the land of his inheritance at [unclear] in the hill country of [unclear] or Ephraim north of [unclear] after that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers another generation grew up in other words words the entire generation that came through the book of Joshua and occupied the land was now dead these were the people that knew war how to fight and how to go in and take possession of the land as God had ordered them to do but now their offspring had grown up another generation it goes on to say who

▶ 33:19 knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for. Israel then the Israelites notice they didn’t know the. Lord then the Israelites in verse 11 did evil in the in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals they forsook the Lord God of their fathers who had brought them out of Egypt they followed and worshiped various gods of the people around them they provoked the Lord to. Anger today we have the same kind of problems going on we might have we have people that either don’t know the Lord or they profess him and still don’t know him why because a lot of people don’t read their bibles they don’t know how to get to know. Jesus a large percentage of professing Christians don’t even go to.

▶ 34:15 Church they’re like I was if you stop and think about it for a minute if you don’t read your Bible and you don’t go to church sometimes going to church ain’t enough you still got to read your Bible but people today are in the same position I was before I came to God because I didn’t know the Bible and because I didn’t know the Bible guess what I fell for every stupid thing that came along and guess what you’ve got people today if they don’t read their Bible and they don’t understand and they don’t go to a church that preaches the scripture guess what they’re going to be where I was they’re going to be believing every stupid thing that comes along you read some dumb story on the internet wow there really are more roads to heaven than just one this guy said so though and like they say you can believe everything you read on the internet right so there all roads lead to heaven well no they don’t but you’re going to believe that if you don’t know the.

▶ 35:09 Bible and remember Jesus said he that hears these words of mine and puts them into practice come on you guys know that verse another interesting verse that Jesus said he said if anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother his wife and children his brothers and sisters yes even his own life he cannot be my disciples you know he said a lot of things that got him in the hot seat didn’t. He now in Jesus day I want you to picture this for a minute if you will in Jesus day a lot of Jews came to him okay but they came to him at the risk of losing their families you might have had a guy from a Jewish family and he follows this guy Jesus and he’s wow this this is interesting his teachings are and finally he says you know I got to follow this man cuz what he’s saying is true and and they end up becoming a follower of Jesus and he says dad I got to go follow this guy Jesus and the dad says you know what if you follow Jesus you can forget that I’m your.

▶ 36:06 Father and by the way your brother feels the same way and your sisters all 12 of them or and your. Mother if you stick with Jesus you can forget about your family because we’re not going to want anything to do with you we’re Jews and we think this guy’s crazy and if you follow him you’re not our kid anymore so then he got then you got a choice to make do I follow this man Jesus or do I forsake Jesus and go back to my. Family but Jesus said I mean he didn’t say literally hate your father it’s love your father less than Jesus are you willing to give up even your own family to follow. Christ Jesus said if you don’t you can’t be my. Disciple you can’t even let family stand in the way and then he goes on he says and any one of you who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple in the days of Rome when someone was crucified they were forced to carry their own cross it was a sign of submission and you can imagine if somebody was rebellious enough to say you know what I ain’t carrying my cross those Roman soldiers would have eaten that up oh you don’t want to submit huh we’ll make you wish you had have carried it.

▶ 37:28 So they had to carry it to their own. Death so carrying your own cross is a way of saying that you’re willing to lay your life down for him if necessary so two things Jesus taught here well three things we got so far you hear what he says and you put those words into practice and then he goes on to say you have to follow him even if it means forsaking your family and then he goes on to say you have to follow him even if it means laying down your life now we don’t probably have these problems in America but you could imagine somewhere in the world this may still exist today you might follow Jesus at the risk of your life or at the risk of losing your family but if he means that much to you and he should then you’re willing to give up everything whatever it takes to make him your Lord and by the way making him your Lord means that you submit to him and everything that you own becomes his why does it mean that because he’s your Lord and a Lord is an owner he owns you does not the Bible say we were bought with a price verse 28 in uh Luke I think it was he says suppose one of you wants to build a tower will he first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it so considering one may have to give up his.

▶ 38:45 Family and possibly his life to follow Jesus one might count that cost first well am I willing to do this to follow Christ does he mean that much to me if he really is who he said he was he. Should because he has the words of eternal life in John chapter 6 he preached the message that nobody could understand could you imagine there’s pastors that have thousands of people in their congregation and could you I’ve always looked at this verse and I thought man could you imagine somebody getting up there and saying this to 8,000 people and then coming back next Sunday and there ain’t nobody. There that’s gutsy I don’t think them would do it but Jesus preached the message they couldn’t understand 5,000 people were there that day and listen to this man say these things when he was done it said they left him and never followed him again and he turned to the 12 that were with him and said will you also go away and they said where are we going to go you have the words of eternal life these 12 that he spoke to had given up everything to follow follow him Jesus still or Peter still owned his boat in his house but he made his boat a pulpit for Jesus to preach.

▶ 40:07 On they gave up everything to follow this man Christ doing exactly what Jesus said to do and when he preached a message that was too hard for the people to understand the 12 said where are we going to go it wasn’t too hard for them because they knew him the other people were just there because they wanted fish and bread they just wanted to eat from his table they didn’t want what he really had to offer James 1:22 says do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves do what it says anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and after looking at himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like but the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continues to do this not forgetting what he has heard but doing it he will be blessed in what he does because he applies this word to his life it’s not enough to simply hear what Jesus said you got to do what Jesus.

▶ 41:10 Said it’s extremely important to know if you don’t know the word of God you’re going to fall for anything but if you don’t do the word of God you’re going to be guilty of not obeying. It the first thing you have to do is is this what I want to do and once you establish that then you go from. There Proverbs says in Proverbs 1:7 it says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge what does it mean to fear the Lord I’m going to borrow a quick example of what I heard somebody else say I drive on the freeway every day and I I have no fear whatsoever of driving on the freeway. Okay but if I get on the freeway and go on the wrong side and drive against the traffic I’m petrified. If I go north in the southbound lane I’m. Scared and it’s the same way with the Lord if I’m going the direction he wants me to to go I don’t need to be afraid but if I go in the wrong direction I need to be petrified because I know the result of what could happen by going the wrong.

▶ 42:22 Direction Romans 6:16 says do not or don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves you are slaves to the one to whom you obey whether you are slaves to sin which leads to death or to obedience which leads to righteousness so something is going to have mastery over us it’s either going to be sin or it’s going to be God as followers of Jesus we’re not perfect we all fall short and sin the difference is as followers we don’t have to be slaves to the sin. Some don’t want to follow Jesus because they think they’ll lose their. Freedom but the freedom that they think they’re actually giving up is.

▶ 43:12 Bondage and becoming a servant of Jesus actually sets us free join with others Philippians 3 says join with others in following my example brothers and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you for as I often told you before and now say again even with tears many live as enemies of the cross of Christ how many of you know that exists today Jesus has many enemies why does Jesus have so many enemies because he told the truth you guys ever heard that old saying if you lie to them they’ll love you haven’t heard it okay so anyway people will believe the lies but when you tell them the truth it stirs up a lot of dissension because people don’t want to hear the. Truth verse 19 their destiny is destruction their God is their stomach and their glory is in their shame their mind is on earthly things but our citizenship is in heaven and we eagerly await a savior from there the Lord Jesus Christ who by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control will transform our lowly bodies so that we will be like his glorious body in the resurrection remember even Mary and Martha believed that we just talked about or read about it a few minutes ago so Moses told the people that God would raise up another prophet and that they and that the people should hear him this was ultimately fulfilled in.

▶ 44:41 Jesus Moses taught the people what God had given him Jesus taught what my what his father taught him to say he said everything I told you is from my father the apostles taught what Jesus taught them. And today we believe and teach what the apostles taught which comes from what Jesus taught which comes from what his father. Taught so we can follow Paul’s example because Paul followed Christ’s example in 1 Corinthians chap 11 he says follow me or imitate me depending on what translation you have imitate or follow me as I follow Christ so it’s okay to follow them as long as they’re going in the right direction cuz you’re going with the flow of traffic but if they don’t follow Christ you don’t follow them that makes sense so in closing we have to decide who we want to serve sin or Jesus and it doesn’t take very long to see that applying the scriptures to our lives actually. Works and a great deal of wisdom can be gained by learning and following what the Bible. Says.