1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:01,600 This morning about the Word of God. 2 00:00:01,600 --> 00:00:03,600 That'll be a help to us this morning if we let it. 3 00:00:04,520 --> 00:00:07,880 I want to preach to you about the power of God's Word, the 4 00:00:07,880 --> 00:00:11,440 power of God's Word. Let's pray and we'll get into a 5 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:13,480 little bit more of the message. Father, again, we thank you so 6 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:15,520 much for your goodness. May this message be a help to 7 00:00:15,520 --> 00:00:16,720 us. God, may you help us to 8 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:18,720 understand the value of Your Word. 9 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:22,640 God, may you help us to allow it to change our lives. 10 00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:25,560 Thank you again for all you do for us in Jesus name, Amen. 11 00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:27,960 Turn over to Hebrews chapter 4. The first thing that I want you 12 00:00:27,960 --> 00:00:30,120 to see about God's word, and we're going to come back to 13 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:31,640 Psalm 1:30. If you haven't already turned 14 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:33,560 away from there, keep a finger in it because we're coming back 15 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,360 quite a few times. But the first thing I want you 16 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:39,800 to understand about God's Word is that God's Word convicts in 17 00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:42,720 Psalm 130. This is a Psalm of degrees, a 18 00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:46,240 Psalm that was written for the ascent to the temple as they 19 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:50,040 made their way to the temple. Psalm 120 all the way through 20 00:00:50,040 --> 00:00:54,760 Psalm 134 were psalms that they sang on their way up to the 21 00:00:54,760 --> 00:00:56,800 temple. In Psalm 130 was one of those. 22 00:00:56,800 --> 00:01:01,440 But the psalmist reveals in this Psalm where his hope was found. 23 00:01:01,760 --> 00:01:04,319 His hope was not found in changing circumstances. 24 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:09,240 His hope was not found in in anything other than the word of 25 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:12,000 God. He says, I wait for the Lord, my 26 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,200 soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope? 27 00:01:15,200 --> 00:01:18,360 He has nowhere to stand except on the word of God. 28 00:01:19,000 --> 00:01:22,920 God's word is not a suggestion. A lot of people can, a lot of 29 00:01:22,920 --> 00:01:25,920 people take God's word as a suggestion, or they want to pick 30 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:28,440 and choose the things that they want to believe out of God's 31 00:01:28,440 --> 00:01:30,840 word. It's a force that works in the 32 00:01:30,840 --> 00:01:32,400 soul. It's powerful. 33 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:35,040 God's word is not passive or neutral. 34 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:39,440 It's active and it's powerful. And before God's word can help 35 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:42,480 us, it must reveal to us exactly who we really are. 36 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,680 Hebrews chapter 4 and verse #12 The Bible says for the word of 37 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:48,080 God. It's quick and powerful and 38 00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:52,120 sharper than any 2 edged sword, piercing even to the dividing 39 00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:54,960 asunder of soul and spirit and of the joints and Morrow and 40 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:56,840 get. This is a discerner of the 41 00:01:56,840 --> 00:01:59,160 thoughts and the intents of the heart. 42 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:03,440 The Word of God doesn't just expose who you are the the the 43 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:07,280 the you that everybody sees. The Word of God exposes even the 44 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:10,000 deepest, darkest thoughts of your heart. 45 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:13,600 Thank God for the convicting power of His Word. 46 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:18,120 Conviction is God lovingly showing us what we need to 47 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:20,440 change so that we can be blessed by Him. 48 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:22,680 What a wonderful thing conviction is. 49 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:26,320 God says, I want to bless you, but you have to do it my way. 50 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:29,920 Well, God, how do I know your way? 51 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:32,840 Well, read my word. And as you read my word, I'm 52 00:02:32,840 --> 00:02:35,400 going to show you the things that you need to change so that 53 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,280 you can be blessed by me. What a wonderful thing that is. 54 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:41,200 And, and, and we've been trained in a lot of places to not like 55 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:43,880 conviction. I don't want the hard preaching. 56 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:46,400 Help me. Don't, don't, don't hurt me. 57 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:48,400 I'm not here to be hurt by God's word. 58 00:02:48,400 --> 00:02:50,960 I'm here to be helped by it. You can't be helped by it if 59 00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:56,040 you're not hurt, right? What if, what if every time you 60 00:02:56,040 --> 00:02:58,160 cut yourself, you didn't feel any pain? 61 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:02,400 Do you think you'd fix it? No. 62 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:04,520 Most people are like, yeah, it'll be fine in a couple weeks 63 00:03:04,520 --> 00:03:07,800 as they bleed out, right? It hurts. 64 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:11,200 And because it hurts, you go do something about it, right? 65 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:13,440 You can fix it if you know that there's a problem. 66 00:03:13,640 --> 00:03:16,040 And that's what God's Word does. God's word brings that 67 00:03:16,040 --> 00:03:19,280 conviction so that you know there's a problem, so you can go 68 00:03:19,280 --> 00:03:21,520 fix it. And then when you do fix it, God 69 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:23,920 blesses you for it. What a wonderful thing 70 00:03:23,920 --> 00:03:25,960 conviction is. We ought to long for the 71 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:28,960 conviction from the word of God and, and from the preaching of 72 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:32,080 God's Word. There've been times, especially 73 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:34,760 early on in our marriage, when my wife and I've been to an 74 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:37,160 event or something afterwards I go and I look in the mirror and 75 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,800 I said, why didn't you tell me I had something in my nose? 76 00:03:40,880 --> 00:03:42,680 I've been walking around like this all night. 77 00:03:43,160 --> 00:03:45,000 Well, I just, I didn't want to hurt your feelings. 78 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:46,360 Now she's not, she don't care about it. 79 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:49,720 Now she'll hurt my feelings because she knows that I want 80 00:03:49,720 --> 00:03:52,440 her to, right? Because I would rather be 81 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:55,440 embarrassed for just a minute or two by saying, oh man, I didn't 82 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:57,520 realize I had that in my nose. Then walking around and let 83 00:03:57,520 --> 00:03:59,360 everybody seeing it and me walking around thinking I'm 84 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:03,600 perfectly fine, right? Or whatever it happens to be, 85 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:06,600 embarrass me. I was embarrassed all night 86 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:09,120 anyway, and I didn't even know I was embarrassing myself. 87 00:04:09,640 --> 00:04:11,760 I'd rather you embarrass me so I can fix it. 88 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:15,040 But if I don't have a little conviction, if I don't have a 89 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:17,800 little criticism, how can I fix the things that need to be 90 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:19,600 fixed? That's what the conviction does, 91 00:04:20,160 --> 00:04:22,120 right? A mirror doesn't wash your face 92 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:23,840 for you. It shows you that your face is 93 00:04:23,840 --> 00:04:26,800 dirty. And God's Word does the exact 94 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:28,880 same thing for us when we open the Bible. 95 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,080 It reveals our attitudes, it reveals our sins. 96 00:04:32,080 --> 00:04:36,840 It even reveals our motives to show us, hey, this is something 97 00:04:36,840 --> 00:04:40,000 that you need to change. It's dirty, fix it. 98 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:43,400 Now you have a choice after that's revealed to you, whether 99 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:46,520 you're going to do something about it or not, right? 100 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:50,000 I can look at my face in the mirror and see a big dirt smudge 101 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:53,400 on the side of my face. I don't have to do anything 102 00:04:53,400 --> 00:04:55,360 about it. I can decide, you know what? 103 00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:57,960 I'm just going to leave the dirt smudge there, right? 104 00:04:57,960 --> 00:05:01,320 I could. I'd be foolish to leave it there 105 00:05:01,440 --> 00:05:05,000 because the mirror just revealed exactly what was wrong. 106 00:05:05,680 --> 00:05:08,520 But the mirror can't fix it. I have to make the decision to 107 00:05:08,520 --> 00:05:10,920 fix that. I have to make the decision to 108 00:05:10,920 --> 00:05:14,200 wash it clean. Conviction is not condemnation, 109 00:05:14,200 --> 00:05:17,240 it's illumination. And when God's Word convicts, it 110 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:20,520 shines lights into the dark places so that we can correct or 111 00:05:20,520 --> 00:05:24,280 walk before God. By the way, conviction demands 112 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:26,160 action. If it's going to do anything for 113 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:29,800 us, it's going to do any good. Conviction alone is not enough. 114 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,600 There's probably been many times when you sat in a message and 115 00:05:32,600 --> 00:05:35,000 you've been convicted about something and you went home and 116 00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:39,440 you didn't change it. You thought, man, I need to 117 00:05:39,440 --> 00:05:42,080 change that, man, I need to do something about that. 118 00:05:42,720 --> 00:05:45,280 But conviction doesn't do you any good if you don't make the 119 00:05:45,280 --> 00:05:49,000 changes. That conviction shows you the 120 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:51,440 same way, that there's no point in having a mirror if all you're 121 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:53,440 going to do is look at it and see how bad you are and walk 122 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:55,600 away, right? You look into the mirror so you 123 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:57,880 can say, wow, I didn't realize how bad I look. 124 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:01,520 Let me fix that, right? Don't expect your kids to 125 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:04,600 respond to any of your teaching or to any of the preaching if 126 00:06:04,600 --> 00:06:09,520 you don't do it yourself. When you hear the plain 127 00:06:09,680 --> 00:06:12,520 preaching and the teaching of God's Word and you choose to 128 00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:15,600 ignore it, not only are you hindering your own life, but 129 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:18,040 you're hindering your kids life. You know they hear the same 130 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:22,000 preaching you do, believe it or not, when they're sitting in the 131 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:27,120 sermon and they hear the same sermon you're hearing and God 132 00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:32,040 convicts them because get this, if your children are saved, they 133 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:35,280 have the same Holy Spirit living inside them that you do. 134 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:38,720 Well, I'm an adult, they're a kid. 135 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:43,080 It's the same Holy Spirit and the same Holy Spirit that can 136 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:47,880 convict you can convict them. And they sit in a message and 137 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,480 God convicts them and they go home and they think I need to do 138 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:53,960 something about this. I need to change this. 139 00:06:55,400 --> 00:06:59,000 And mom and dad say, not a big deal. 140 00:07:00,360 --> 00:07:01,840 Guess what you just taught them to do. 141 00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:05,360 You just taught them that the conviction of Holy Spirit is not 142 00:07:05,360 --> 00:07:09,200 a big deal in their life either. And not only that, you thwarted 143 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:12,040 the work of the Holy Spirit in your own kids lives because you 144 00:07:12,680 --> 00:07:14,320 didn't want to respond to the conviction. 145 00:07:15,440 --> 00:07:18,840 Well, that's a serious thing. You ought to take conviction 146 00:07:18,840 --> 00:07:21,880 seriously, and you ought to be thankful for conviction. 147 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:25,640 But you have to let the conviction translate into doing 148 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:27,840 something that needs to change in your life. 149 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:30,720 They go home and they see you ignore it. 150 00:07:30,720 --> 00:07:34,560 You're teaching them exactly how to respond to the conviction of 151 00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:36,440 God's Word. And don't be surprised when one 152 00:07:36,440 --> 00:07:38,880 day they reject all of it, because that's exactly what you 153 00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:41,040 did, and that's exactly what you're teaching them how to do. 154 00:07:42,440 --> 00:07:45,240 They hear it. They know what you're supposed 155 00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:46,960 to do. They know what they're supposed 156 00:07:46,960 --> 00:07:52,880 to do. What you do has a lot to do with 157 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:55,640 what they do. And not only does it affect you, 158 00:07:56,240 --> 00:07:57,760 it affects them at the same time. 159 00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:03,400 The psalmist waited on the Lord because God's Word exposed what 160 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,280 needed to change. Thank God that his word 161 00:08:06,280 --> 00:08:08,480 convicts, but turn back over to Psalm 130. 162 00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:19,040 God's word convicts, but #2 God's word condemns verse #2 163 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:24,080 Lord, hear my voice. Let thine ears be attentive to 164 00:08:24,080 --> 00:08:26,480 the voice of my supplications. Get this verse three. 165 00:08:27,240 --> 00:08:31,480 If thou Lord, should his mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall 166 00:08:31,480 --> 00:08:36,760 stand, but there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be 167 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:39,320 feared. See God's. 168 00:08:39,640 --> 00:08:42,919 God's word brings conviction to our hearts, but it also declares 169 00:08:42,919 --> 00:08:48,040 guilt where sin exists. The Bible is very clear that all 170 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:53,680 of humanity stands guilty and accountable before a holy God. 171 00:08:54,720 --> 00:09:00,800 Turn over to Romans chapter 3, John chapter 3, which is the 172 00:09:00,800 --> 00:09:05,200 verse that we get John 316, the passage that we get John 316 out 173 00:09:05,200 --> 00:09:07,600 of verse 20. The Bible says this, For 174 00:09:07,600 --> 00:09:10,360 everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the 175 00:09:10,360 --> 00:09:13,080 light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 176 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:15,960 The light shines in those things, and it exposes who we 177 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:19,080 are. It condemns us, Romans chapter 178 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:22,640 3, from which we get verse 23. For all have sinned and come 179 00:09:22,640 --> 00:09:24,600 short of the glory of God. We're familiar with that verse, 180 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:27,600 but if you back up a couple and look at verse #19 it says this. 181 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:31,480 Now we know that what things so ever the law saith, it saith to 182 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:34,800 them who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and 183 00:09:34,840 --> 00:09:38,960 all the world may become guilty before God. 184 00:09:39,520 --> 00:09:44,480 God's Word condemns sin, not to destroy us, but to strip away 185 00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:49,160 every excuse that we have. Until we see ourselves as guilty 186 00:09:49,160 --> 00:09:52,680 before God, we'll never see the need to seek God's grace. 187 00:09:53,360 --> 00:09:56,560 That's why God's Word condemns us, because we need to 188 00:09:56,560 --> 00:09:59,960 understand that we are condemned sinners before God. 189 00:10:00,640 --> 00:10:03,880 Psalm 130 begins with a cry of desperation. 190 00:10:03,880 --> 00:10:07,960 Out of the depths he says, I have cried unto thee, O Lord, 191 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:12,640 because the Word of God has had made it clear to him that he was 192 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:15,920 sinful and had made his sin undeniable. 193 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:19,520 Without the Word of God to condemn us, we would never see 194 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:22,880 the need for a Savior. And then we would die in our 195 00:10:22,880 --> 00:10:25,880 sins, and we would spend an eternity paying for those sins. 196 00:10:26,160 --> 00:10:29,160 No be thankful that God's Word condemns us because that 197 00:10:29,160 --> 00:10:33,080 condemnation helps us understand that we are sinners and that we 198 00:10:33,080 --> 00:10:36,360 need a Savior. And because we can come to that 199 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:40,320 conclusion, we can accept the gift of Jesus Christ as that 200 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:42,720 Savior. We can see our sins forgiven. 201 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:45,640 We can see our sins put under the blood of Jesus Christ, and 202 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:48,000 we can spend an eternity in heaven with him someday. 203 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:50,920 I'm thankful that God's Word condemns me. 204 00:10:51,680 --> 00:10:54,520 It hurts, but I'm thankful that it does. 205 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:58,120 The old Puritan Thomas Watson said until sin be bitter, Christ 206 00:10:58,120 --> 00:11:02,080 will not be sweet. Thank God for the condemnation 207 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:04,600 His Word brings, because it gives me a chance at redemption. 208 00:11:05,920 --> 00:11:08,440 So we ought to thank God that His word convicts, that His Word 209 00:11:08,440 --> 00:11:11,640 condemns. But #3 God's word converts. 210 00:11:11,640 --> 00:11:17,480 Verse #5 of Psalm 130. I wait for the Lord, my soul 211 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:21,360 doth wait, and in His word do I hope. 212 00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:24,920 See, condemnation is not the final word for those who know 213 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:28,440 and those who respond to that condemnation. 214 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:32,760 The final word is conversion. The same word of God that shows 215 00:11:32,760 --> 00:11:35,280 us our sin also shows us our Savior. 216 00:11:35,440 --> 00:11:40,040 Psalm 19 verse 7 says the law of the Lord is perfect, converting 217 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:42,360 the soul. The testimony of the Lord is 218 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:46,320 sure making wise the simple Romans 10/17 So then faith 219 00:11:46,320 --> 00:11:49,080 cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. 220 00:11:49,080 --> 00:11:52,240 God's word does not just inform, it transforms. 221 00:11:52,520 --> 00:11:55,520 And when we place our hope in God's word, our hearts are 222 00:11:55,520 --> 00:11:58,680 changed and we can be made new. That's why the psalmist says in 223 00:11:58,960 --> 00:12:03,680 thy word do I hope. Thank God for the conversion his 224 00:12:03,680 --> 00:12:05,760 word brings. But I want you to see this 225 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:07,920 number 4. Not only should we thank God 226 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:10,520 that his word convicts and condemns and converts, but God's 227 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:14,720 word also comforts. Verse 6 of Psalm 130 says, My 228 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:18,240 soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the 229 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:20,960 morning. I say more than they that watch 230 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:24,400 for the morning. I know you've heard this before. 231 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:27,040 You've made might have even been in that situation before where 232 00:12:27,280 --> 00:12:31,520 you're sitting in a hospital room and the doctor says I think 233 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:34,560 he can make it. I think you'll be all right as 234 00:12:34,560 --> 00:12:36,080 long as he can make it through the night. 235 00:12:36,600 --> 00:12:38,760 If he makes it through the night, he's got a good chance of 236 00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:43,200 pulling through. Can you imagine how somebody, a 237 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:45,840 loved one that is sitting by the bed of somebody who was trying 238 00:12:45,840 --> 00:12:48,160 to make it through the night, is just waiting for the morning to 239 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:51,360 come? Oh, I'm just, I'm just watching 240 00:12:51,360 --> 00:12:53,680 for the first rays of light. Is he still breathing? 241 00:12:53,680 --> 00:12:56,160 Is his heart still pumping? Because the doctor said if he 242 00:12:56,160 --> 00:12:58,960 could make it through the night, he's got a good chance of 243 00:12:58,960 --> 00:13:05,040 survival in God's Word. Do I hope I, I, my soul waited 244 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:07,880 for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning. 245 00:13:09,360 --> 00:13:13,280 See, after the conviction, the condemnation, the conversion, 246 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:15,960 God's Word becomes a source of deep comfort. 247 00:13:16,800 --> 00:13:21,520 Turn over to Romans 15. See the same God who exposes sin 248 00:13:21,520 --> 00:13:26,360 also promises mercy. Romans chapter 15. 249 00:13:27,880 --> 00:13:30,800 What we have to understand is that our hope is not in how we 250 00:13:30,800 --> 00:13:34,000 feel. It's found in what God has 251 00:13:34,000 --> 00:13:37,640 promised. And I've said this many times in 252 00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:40,240 conversations, but the same is true when it comes to our 253 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:42,320 salvation. We're not always going to feel 254 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:47,080 saved, but I have the promise that God's going to do what He 255 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:50,960 said He was going to do if I did what he told me to do, if I come 256 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:53,920 to him in repentance and faith, He will do what He said He was 257 00:13:53,920 --> 00:13:55,920 going to do. There are going to be days when 258 00:13:55,920 --> 00:14:00,080 I don't feel saved, but I don't have to feel anyway. 259 00:14:00,160 --> 00:14:03,560 I just have to trust that God's going to do what He said He was 260 00:14:03,560 --> 00:14:05,520 going to do. Romans chapter 15 and verse 4 261 00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:09,080 says for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written 262 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:12,640 for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of 263 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:18,280 the Scriptures might have hope. What a wonderful thing that is. 264 00:14:18,760 --> 00:14:22,160 God's Word gives us the assurance that not not only is 265 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:24,760 mercy available, but forgiveness is real. 266 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:29,600 God's word lifts us out of the depths and it anchors us in his 267 00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:31,800 grace. If you think about a, a sailor 268 00:14:31,800 --> 00:14:36,480 that's on a on the on the water and there's a big storm. 269 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:39,600 And so they dropped the huge anchor on that boat and it goes 270 00:14:39,600 --> 00:14:43,280 down and it hits the bottom. It doesn't make the storm calmer 271 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:47,440 because he dropped the anchor. Storm doesn't lessen because the 272 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:51,240 anchor is there, but it gives that ship a firm hold in the 273 00:14:51,240 --> 00:14:55,080 middle of the storm that that's the firm hold that the word of 274 00:14:55,080 --> 00:14:57,720 God gives us the unchanging truth. 275 00:14:58,120 --> 00:15:01,640 By the way, a lot of times God allows the waves to make us 276 00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:08,000 uncomfortable, to point us to the fact that he's trying to 277 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:11,640 drive us to himself. In fact, Charles Spurgeon said, 278 00:15:11,640 --> 00:15:15,760 I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock 279 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:19,000 of Ages. Or isn't that a great way to say 280 00:15:19,000 --> 00:15:20,840 it? Thank God for the comfort that 281 00:15:20,840 --> 00:15:22,480 His Word brings. But I want you to see this 282 00:15:22,480 --> 00:15:25,680 lastly and turn over to Jeremiah chapter 20. 283 00:15:27,320 --> 00:15:30,600 Not only does God work, can God's word convicted, His word 284 00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:34,800 condemns, His word converts, His word comforts, but lastly, God's 285 00:15:34,800 --> 00:15:39,200 word compels. The word of God does not leave 286 00:15:39,200 --> 00:15:41,200 us unchanged. It drives us. 287 00:15:41,200 --> 00:15:46,400 It moves us to action and those who have experienced and 288 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:50,640 encountered God through his word cannot remain silent or still. 289 00:15:50,800 --> 00:15:54,520 And I'm not talking about some experience that that you saw the 290 00:15:54,520 --> 00:15:57,320 bright light and now all of a sudden my, my existence is 291 00:15:57,320 --> 00:16:00,000 totally different. Or I had some wild dream and God 292 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,520 told me in the dream that I was going to do this and whatever 293 00:16:02,520 --> 00:16:03,920 else. I'm not talking about that kind 294 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:05,720 of experience. I'm saying when you have really 295 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:11,840 seen who God is through the pages of His Word, you 296 00:16:11,840 --> 00:16:14,760 understand that you cannot just sit there and be silent. 297 00:16:15,440 --> 00:16:18,640 Demands action of us. Jeremiah chapter 20 and verse 9. 298 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:21,840 Then I said, I will not make mention of Him, nor speak 299 00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:27,000 anymore in His name, but His word was in mine heart as a 300 00:16:27,000 --> 00:16:32,880 burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with 301 00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:34,920 forbearing, and I could not stay. 302 00:16:36,520 --> 00:16:39,240 The Word of God compels us to live differently. 303 00:16:39,360 --> 00:16:43,000 Second Corinthians chapter 5 and verse #14 says For the love of 304 00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:48,600 Christ constraineth us. He loves me and that makes me 305 00:16:48,600 --> 00:16:52,960 want to serve Him. I have His Word and it's like a 306 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:56,480 fire in my bones, and I can't just sit there and let it burn. 307 00:16:56,760 --> 00:16:59,280 Not only does it compel us to live differently, but God's Word 308 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:03,400 compels us to speak boldly and to wait faithfully on the Lord. 309 00:17:03,400 --> 00:17:07,200 The psalmist learned to wait not passively, but expectantly 310 00:17:07,319 --> 00:17:10,119 because our hope is not rooted in what the world or 311 00:17:10,119 --> 00:17:13,400 circumstances tell us to do. It's in what God's Word has 312 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:15,560 said. If you think about a fire that's 313 00:17:15,560 --> 00:17:18,040 trapped in a room, it's going to destroy the house. 314 00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:23,079 God's Word burns within us until it's released through our 315 00:17:23,079 --> 00:17:25,200 obedience, through our testimony, through our 316 00:17:25,280 --> 00:17:27,240 faithfulness, and in a whole lot of other ways. 317 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:30,360 We are compelled to live for the Lord because of what God's Word 318 00:17:30,360 --> 00:17:34,680 does for us. If you get anything from the 319 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:36,520 message this morning, I want you to get this. 320 00:17:38,040 --> 00:17:40,120 We need to take God's Word seriously. 321 00:17:42,160 --> 00:17:45,080 We need to read it. We need to study it. 322 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:49,400 We need to memorize it. We need to cherish it. 323 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:56,160 God's Word is our life. This is everything that God 324 00:17:56,160 --> 00:18:00,320 wants us to do. If you were going to take a test 325 00:18:00,320 --> 00:18:06,640 that was going to determine your career, do you think you'd study 326 00:18:06,640 --> 00:18:10,160 the book? You think you'd want to know 327 00:18:10,160 --> 00:18:12,080 what was in it? Do you think you'd want to try 328 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:14,120 to figure out what was going to be on the test so you could do 329 00:18:14,120 --> 00:18:17,000 the best you could with it? Of course you would. 330 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:21,760 We're all going to stand before God someday, and we're going to 331 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,800 give an account for how we lived our lives. 332 00:18:26,080 --> 00:18:28,960 Don't you think we should be in the manual that tells us exactly 333 00:18:28,960 --> 00:18:32,840 how we should live it so that we can stand before God in the best 334 00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:36,400 way possible? Not going to happen if you don't 335 00:18:36,400 --> 00:18:38,960 read it. Not going to happen if you don't 336 00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:40,480 study it. Not going to happen if you don't 337 00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:42,880 memorize it. You need to get rid of the 338 00:18:42,880 --> 00:18:44,640 excuses for a while. We can't read it. 339 00:18:46,120 --> 00:18:47,480 You need to get a Bible reading plan. 340 00:18:47,480 --> 00:18:49,760 My family we're using, we're reading the Bible 341 00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:51,960 chronologically through this year and we actually started all 342 00:18:51,960 --> 00:18:54,200 the way back in August. We're about halfway through now, 343 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:59,000 but we use a thing called Bible reading plan generator, very 344 00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:02,280 original Bible reading plan generator. 345 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:04,800 But you can generate a Bible reading plan that would give you 346 00:19:04,960 --> 00:19:06,600 any way that you want to read the Bible. 347 00:19:07,240 --> 00:19:09,920 We're reading it chronologically halfway through the book of 348 00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:11,400 Genesis. We jumped out and read through 349 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:13,240 Job. That's, that was chronological 350 00:19:13,240 --> 00:19:15,840 order, but you can read it through in a year. 351 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:18,360 You can read it through in 13 months, You can read it through 352 00:19:18,360 --> 00:19:20,160 in 18 months, you can read it through in two years. 353 00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:22,680 You can read a Old Testament in the morning, New Testament in 354 00:19:22,680 --> 00:19:24,440 the evening. We're, we're doing, but the 355 00:19:24,440 --> 00:19:26,880 Bible chronologically and a Psalm every day. 356 00:19:27,360 --> 00:19:30,000 You can do the Bible however you want to with a Psalm or a 357 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:31,520 proverb or anything. There's no excuse. 358 00:19:31,520 --> 00:19:34,480 We have so much technology available to us to help us do 359 00:19:34,480 --> 00:19:37,480 it. In fact, if you I don't like 360 00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:39,800 doing it this way, but if you have a hard time reading through 361 00:19:39,800 --> 00:19:43,080 it, push play on the button and it'll read it to you. 362 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:46,960 We have no excuse not to be reading God's Word. 363 00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:50,800 There's so many ways that we can set up a Bible reading plan, but 364 00:19:50,800 --> 00:19:54,800 we just need to do it. By the way, I've said this 365 00:19:54,880 --> 00:20:01,440 recently, but if you don't have time to read your Bible, you're 366 00:20:01,440 --> 00:20:04,720 too busy and you have your priorities in the wrong place 367 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:09,840 because I can promise you that God did not ordain the things 368 00:20:09,840 --> 00:20:12,360 that are keeping you so busy that you can't read His Word. 369 00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:17,680 Something that you're doing in your life is not God's will for 370 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:19,440 you if you can't find time to read it. 371 00:20:21,720 --> 00:20:24,160 We need to get rid of the excuses for why we can't study 372 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:25,520 it. We have so many resources in our 373 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:27,000 bookstore that will help you with that. 374 00:20:27,480 --> 00:20:29,480 We need to get rid of the excuses for why we can't 375 00:20:29,480 --> 00:20:31,400 memorize it. I'll be honest with you, it gets 376 00:20:31,400 --> 00:20:33,520 a little discouraging sometimes to see everybody standing up, 377 00:20:33,520 --> 00:20:35,240 walking around talking on Wednesday nights instead of 378 00:20:35,240 --> 00:20:36,800 working on memorizing their Bible verses. 379 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:40,400 Put a lot of work and a lot of effort into making it possible 380 00:20:40,400 --> 00:20:44,880 for us to memorize God's Word. Well, I'm, I'm getting older and 381 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:47,440 it's hard for me to memorize. Yeah, I get it. 382 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:50,240 I'm not smart. I never could memorize well in 383 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:51,080 school. I get it. 384 00:20:51,560 --> 00:20:54,040 But God has commanded us to memorize His Word and to hide 385 00:20:54,040 --> 00:20:57,880 His words in our heart. Don't you think that He'll help 386 00:20:57,880 --> 00:21:00,560 you with something as important as memorizing His Word if He's 387 00:21:00,560 --> 00:21:05,160 commanded you to do it? We don't have any good excuses. 388 00:21:05,160 --> 00:21:08,000 We have excuses, but we don't have any good excuses for why we 389 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:13,120 don't memorize God's Word. We need to take it seriously. 390 00:21:14,400 --> 00:21:18,120 How do you, how do you meditate on God's Word? 391 00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:22,000 Unless you're walking around with a Bible in your hand all 392 00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:25,040 day, every day reading it, you're not meditating on it. 393 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:29,680 Hey, you, you work on the verses you're memorizing. 394 00:21:30,480 --> 00:21:32,600 You say those verses that you've memorized in your head. 395 00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:35,280 God brings those things to your mind, right? 396 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:37,440 It's important. And we need to take God's Word 397 00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:41,200 seriously. What a blessing it is that we 398 00:21:41,200 --> 00:21:45,920 have God's Word. It convicts us, it condemns us, 399 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:49,560 it converts us, comforts our hearts, it compels us to live 400 00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:52,360 for the Lord. Are you waiting on God and 401 00:21:52,360 --> 00:21:55,280 hoping in His Word? That's the question for you this 402 00:21:55,280 --> 00:21:59,040 morning. What are you doing to hold the 403 00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:02,360 Word of God in high esteem in your life? 404 00:22:04,280 --> 00:22:08,240 If somebody were to see you for 24 hours a day for one week, 405 00:22:10,440 --> 00:22:13,280 what would they say your priority on God's word is? 406 00:22:14,360 --> 00:22:16,800 Would they say that you hold God's word in high esteem, or 407 00:22:16,800 --> 00:22:21,840 would they say he has a Bible? Because that's the way most 408 00:22:21,840 --> 00:22:24,400 people treat it. Oh, they'll carry the church. 409 00:22:24,400 --> 00:22:26,320 I saw you all holding the Bibles up this morning. 410 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:28,880 Everybody's got them. It's great. 411 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:33,400 Doesn't do any good if all it is is a prop. 412 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:37,280 Most people use God's Word as a prop. 413 00:22:42,520 --> 00:22:44,760 Where is the priority on God's word in your life? 414 00:22:45,480 --> 00:22:49,760 Or is it not a priority at all? Because if it's not, that needs 415 00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:52,880 to change. This is everything. 416 00:22:53,720 --> 00:23:00,320 This is how God speaks to you. This is everything. 417 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:04,440 Do you treat it that way or do you need to make some changes? 418 00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:06,920 That's the question for us this morning. 419 00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:13,040 The power of God's Word, if you let it, it will change your life 420 00:23:13,840 --> 00:23:17,480 and you'll be able to stand before God and say, I searched 421 00:23:17,480 --> 00:23:20,280 it. I did everything that I knew how 422 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:24,880 to do. Those who don't will have to 423 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:29,000 stand before God and say, I wish I'd given you more. 424 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:35,440 I wish I'd given you more. All the things that we think are 425 00:23:35,440 --> 00:23:39,920 important right now, the time that we spend at work, the 426 00:23:39,920 --> 00:23:42,440 things that we're doing to try to accomplish things in our 427 00:23:42,440 --> 00:23:49,000 life, all of those are going to seem so petty and so silly and 428 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:54,400 so foolish when we stand before God and say, I did that instead 429 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:57,520 of reading your word. I did that instead of studying 430 00:23:57,520 --> 00:24:01,040 your word. I did that instead of memorizing 431 00:24:01,040 --> 00:24:03,680 your word. I thought those things were 432 00:24:03,680 --> 00:24:08,760 important. You're going to realize they're 433 00:24:08,760 --> 00:24:14,480 not, but this is. Where's your priority this 434 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:16,240 morning? Let's pray. 435 00:24:16,240 --> 00:24:18,200 Father, again, we thank you so much for your goodness to us, 436 00:24:18,200 --> 00:24:20,200 and we do thank you for the opportunity that we've had to be 437 00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:23,280 here. Thank you again that we have 438 00:24:23,280 --> 00:24:25,960 Your word. What a precious, precious thing 439 00:24:25,960 --> 00:24:29,480 that is. May you help us to love it. 440 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:32,840 May You help us to love it to the point that we'll actually 441 00:24:32,840 --> 00:24:35,920 let it change us. May you help us to love it to 442 00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:38,720 the point that we've wanted more than anything in our lives. 443 00:24:39,040 --> 00:24:44,680 I've esteemed the words of Thy mouth more than my necessary 444 00:24:44,680 --> 00:24:47,880 food. Boy, if we could just say that. 445 00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:52,920 If we could just say that the Bible would be important to us 446 00:24:53,760 --> 00:24:56,680 and it would change us. And our relationship with you 447 00:24:56,680 --> 00:24:58,920 would be right. And our relationship with others 448 00:24:58,920 --> 00:25:01,760 would be right, and our desire to witness for You would be 449 00:25:01,760 --> 00:25:04,080 right. Everything would be right if for 450 00:25:04,080 --> 00:25:05,880 the relationship to your word is right. 451 00:25:06,880 --> 00:25:10,200 Now You help us this morning. Thank you for all you do for us. 452 00:25:10,200 --> 00:25:11,600 In Jesus name, Amen.