It's wonderful to be here with all of you today.
We have a wonderful crowd for which we are thankful and if you
do consider yourself a visitor, please know that you are our
honored guest. And we welcome you back every
time that we have an occasion and an opportunity to meet and
assemble what a great day, it's the Lord's day.
I've enjoyed so much, so far worshiping with you and I am
honored now to be your speaker This morning for a little while
we continue our series on the greatest sermon ever preached,
it is the great Sermon on the Mount and in particular we're
talking about the part of The Sermon on the Mount called the
Beatitudes that we began last time which covers the first 12
verses of The Gospel according to Matthew and I got to tell you
in these passages the Lord gives us the ground rules and he gives
us the qualities and the characteristics to have true
blessedness. And true happiness.
Now, I'm just going to say this, if you really want to truly be
blessed in your life and you really want to be happy in your
life and fulfilled. Please listen to the words of
Jesus today. I know the world says this a
lot. How you doing?
And they say I'm blessed and it's great.
It's a nice thing to say. I want to talk about really what
it means to truly be blessed and truly be happy.
It's found in the first 12 verses of The Gospel.
According to Matthew last time, we covered verses 3 and 4.
I'm not going to re-preach these verses.
I'm going to be very brief in summary, but I have to summarize
them quickly because they all flow together.
They all work together. So let's begin in Matthew
chapter 5, verses 3 and 4. Jesus began by saying blessed
are the poor in spirit. Spirit.
Now, I got to tell you about poor in spirit, it literally
means to be destitute. It means, utter poverty, but the
Lord is very quick to say, what kind of poverty is talking about
because he's not talking about being poor physically or
monetarily. He's talking about being poor in
spirit. Meaning this and it's a good
thing, it's not a bad thing. It's a wonderful thing, it
doesn't matter what the world thinks, it's a great thing.
When you are poor in spirit, what you're saying is in your
heart, in your mind, you've made the determined resolve.
I am nothing without God. I can't do it without God.
I need Jesus Christ. I'm a sinner all by myself.
I'm in perfect. And I need the Lord, that's a
great thing because you know what's going to happen.
If you understand that I am poor in spirit, you're going to
recognize I need help and you're going to get the help from the
only one that can help and that's God Almighty and his son
Jesus Christ. So, a person first, if they
really want to be blessed, if they really want to
truth-finding, find true happiness.
They need to be poor in spirit. Recognizing, I am destitute.
I am nothing without God. I will say this, this eliminates
the kind of person that says this, please get this.
I'm a good person. I don't need religion.
I don't need to be a Christian because I'm a good guy.
I'm a good person. I'm a good woman, I do good
things for people. I don't need to obey with the
word of God, says they're obey the Lord because I'm a good
person. That is not somebody.
That is poured spirit. That is somebody that thinks
they're good enough on their own and guess what?
Nobody is, what does Jesus say? Jesus says blessed are the poor
in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
So if you want to go to heaven number, You got to be poor in
spirit, but then there's more and at least to the next one.
Then Jesus says, blessed are those that mourn.
What's that mean? The word morning?
They're in the context here, means morning, over your sin.
So I recognize I'm nothing without God, I have seen in my
life, then I'm going to mourn over my sin.
Those are personal infractions against God himself, and
everybody sins. You know what's beautiful about
this? Please get this.
This is wonderful. God wants you to be guilty and
mourn over your sin. So you do something about it,
but God does not want you to live in a state of Perpetual
guilt. Guilt is fine.
Perpetual guilt is not blessed. Are they?
That mourn so they do something about it.
What does God say? You do about it.
You obey the gospel. You come to Jesus.
You are baptized for the remission of your sins, you're
washed in the blood of the Lamb. Your sins are forgiven and guess
what you are now comforted. Why, you know, you've been
forgiven That's number one, that's how you first be
comforted obey. The gospel.
Number two, there's a maintenance process.
I love this because the Lord knows, we're going to make
mistakes that we're going to send.
So first, John chapter 1 says, if you confess your sins he's
faithful. And just to forgive you of your
sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness, even the
contamination of that sin is gone when you confess that sin
to God with repentance in your heart, great stuff, your
comforted. But number three, there's even
more. There's even more.
What about the things that we habitually struggle with
everyday? What about the weaknesses that
we keep falling back to? A lot of the times of the things
that we struggle with, we struggle with things habitually
over and over. We all have that Bible says in
James 5:16 confess your faults, one to another and pray one for
another that you may be healed the effective fervent prayer of
a righteous man avails much therefore all we got to do when
we have those struggles as confess those to each other,
pray for each other, have accountability with each other,
and guess what? Again, we're going to be
comforted because we're going to be forgiven.
That is the context of the passage.
It is mourning over your sin, but secondarily in a secondary
sense. What about the things that we
all might mourn over in life, like the injustices that are
going on in the world? What about those things?
What about the things that were troubled with and that we worry
about every day? What about that?
The child of God, with a proper relationship with God?
With the proper mindset, is going to be comforted, how in a
secondary sense, comforted knowing that God is totally in
control. Great stuff.
Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of
Heaven. Blessed are they that mourn for
they will be comforted? Now, verse number five, he says
this, he said, blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the
earth. The characteristics that Jesus
describes here. Stems from mental dispositions.
It is a mental disposition, meaning to things.
Please get this. In meanings, it means, it comes
from conviction. And it comes from choice.
Now, I got to tell you. Somebody might say, well, wait a
minute Meek, that's just not me. That's just not my deal.
That's not my personality doesn't matter.
It is a mental disposition that comes from conviction and comes
from choice. You got to make the choice just
like, you got to make the choice.
I'm poor in spirit. I'm mourning over my sin.
Now, you got to make the choice to be meek.
People don't like this word because they misunderstand it.
What is the word? I mean, first of all I will tell
you this meekness does not mean weakness at all.
Make this as defined as this it denotes one who is gentle humble
consider it mild unassuming and courteous according to mr.
Fowler. And I got to tell you, these are
qualities that everybody likes. I don't know about you, but I
want to be friends with people like that.
Nobody likes the guy that is arrogant and conceited and looks
down upon everybody else and thinks they're better than
everybody else. Nobody likes that people want to
be friends with this guy. Now the one that was the very
epitome of all these things in masterful detail was none other
than Jesus Christ himself and everything that Jesus was
allowed to do in able to do came from his mental disposition of
being meek. I know this, this Greek word is
not readily used in the English language, because people think
it's a sign of weakness because they misunderstand it.
And they think that if I am meek, I am unable to take care
of myself. And that's not true.
I like what one scholar said, he said, scriptural, meekness is
not weakness. It is the fruit of power.
It is the inner temperament that results from having the proper
relationship with God. Notice how they work together.
I'm poor in spirit, I mourn over my sin.
I have a proper relationship with God, guess what?
Now, I can be this guy right here because of that
relationship. I can do that.
All right, this disposition allows the believer to face
difficulty and even persecution that get this without worrying
about your own personal rights. Have you ever heard somebody say
I'm not giving in. I know my rights.
We're always worried about our own rights.
Like in justices that may come our way.
I know my rights, the phrase in the world that says you got to
take care of number one, nobody's going to take care of
you. So you got to take care of
number one. All of these things are worldly
attitudes. They're not spiritual
dispositions of the mind that God wants you to have.
So if I have this disposition here, it is a sign of strength
because number one, I don't have to worry about myself.
I don't have to worry about my rights.
And by the way, if you want to talk about strength, think about
Jesus. You think about Jesus?
When he stood before, Pilate and pilate says, don't you
understand what I can do to you? Don't you understand that?
I have the power to crucify you. I have the power to set you free
if I want to. And Jesus said, you wouldn't
have that Authority. Except my father, gave it to
you. And then he then in his defense,
you know, he said in his defense, Nothing.
Like a lamb dumb before his Shearer he opened not his mouth.
He said nothing week, no Meek unassuming.
He didn't worry about his rights.
He was concerned about what God wanted, and folks, I'm going to
tell you something, that's what the child of God must be.
I'll take it a step further. Let's go back.
Let's go back to the ones that may have heard Jesus.
Uttering, such words or Jesus submitting himself to pilate and
the sentence to die on the cross.
It must have flew in the face of every one of those Jewish people
who were all about personal rights, even to the extent of
exerting, their personal rights over Rome, even to the point of
shedding blood, if that was necessary.
And yet, Jesus know, He was meek.
He gave in. Folks, listen, the kingdom of
Jesus is not characterized by external force.
It is characterized by Inner Strength.
Now, the final part of this beatitude brings much
controversy, Jesus says, blessed are the meek for they shall
inherit the earth. This phrase right here is very
much misunderstood a whole lot of things are said about this
and brings a lot of controversy. Let me talk to you.
First of all, what it doesn't mean.
This is what it does. Not mean.
Number one, the Lord is not teaching that his kingdom will
be an Earthly one that he will rule on Earth for a thousand
years. It also does not support the
premillennial Doctrine or the paradise Earth doctrine of the
Watchtower Society, doesn't support.
That Jesus is never going to set foot on this Earth ever again.
I'm so thankful When Jesus ascended to the father.
Remember in Acts chapter 1 and they said, Ed, what do you look
it up in that way? You look it up for the same
Jesus who you saw going? The clouds will so come in like
manner. As you see him go in the clouds,
he's coming back in the clouds. What does the Bible say?
What does Paul say is going to happen in the end those that are
saved are going to meet him in the air and ever be with the
Lord forever. He's not coming back to this
earth. He's not coming back to Reign
for a thousand years. Not going to happen.
So inheriting, the Earth has nothing to do at all with this
Earth. It Also has nothing to do with
this phrase Paradise Earth or the doctrine of the Watchtower
society, which teaches that Jesus.
When he comes back, we'll refurbish the Earth that we
currently now live on. No.
In fact, you know, the phrase that Peter talks about new
heavens and new earth that were new means uninhabited.
It means this. We're going to get somewhere.
We're going to get to go somewhere that's uninhabited by
us. More on that in just a moment
where that is. So it's not this Earth at all.
Number two. What else is it not inheriting?
The Earth does not refer to material Prosperity.
All right, first of all, there is nothing in the world wrong
with material Prosperity, maybe you have some, I don't know.
There's nothing wrong with it. If you have been blessed
monetarily, good for you. Praise God for that because
every good and perfect gift is from above.
So, if you've been blessed, that's wonderful.
But I know, faithful Christians that are faithful Christians,
wonderfully faithful Christians, and they struggle monetarily,
they struggled, desperately monetarily I also know that
Prosper some that do I know people in the world that are
terrible people but man, they Prosper, financially Good people
in the world that are really struggling.
Okay, what's my point? My point is though, Prosperity
monetarily is not wrong. It's not necessarily promise to
someone who decides to live a faithful life.
It's not a promise for that. What does God promised God
promises that our needs are taken care of but not prosperity
to Believers if you're just follow him.
So what else does the Lord? Not mean, what's he talking
about here? What?
Some people believe that Jesus And inheriting the Earth means
to enjoy it fully. And here's the reason to
substantiate that theory. God created the Earth for his
people to enjoy. Is that true?
Yes. Yes.
I don't know about you. I enjoy life.
I do. I've had challenges like you
have, I've had struggles like you have, I've had some hard
stuff like you have. But I can honestly say I've had
a good life. And I enjoy it.
I enjoy the world. We live in.
I just have it in perspective because I know it's not the end
but I enjoy it. So to substantiate the idea that
inheriting, the Earth means you fully enjoy, because God
prepared the Earth for his people to enjoy.
And for his glory, is that fact, true?
That fact is true. All right, let's go further
though. Other people holding the fact
that inheriting the Earth means this, that the righteous will
triumph over the wicked in the day of judgment.
Is that true? Yes, that's true.
How do I know that parable of the tares, remember the tears in
the wheat grow together, and in the end, the tears are bound up
in their cast into the furnace. And then what does it say?
I love this phrase. I love this phrase.
That Jesus says he said, and then the righteous will shine
forth. So will the righteous triumph
over the wicked? Yeah.
Yes. And while those two things seem
to have some kind of Merit, they missed the main idea and they
miss the context. So, in understanding what the
Lord means here about inheriting the Earth, we have to interpret
it in light of the interpretation of Old Testament
history. It's very important to do that.
Why? Because Jesus was also standing
there talking to a Jewish audience on that day and they
would have understood what he was saying.
It would have made sense when you use phrases like inherit the
earth. Hold that thought.
Let's look at these two words inherit the Earth.
First. The word, Earth.
The word Earth. Literally means land.
Okay, so whatever the Lord is talking about the word Earth,
their means land the word, inherit refers to one who
receives their allotted portion of that land.
Now, what's the illusion? The illusion, or diluting to the
time when God promises people? What the promised land?
The promised land of Canaan, it was a literal specific place.
It was the promised land. And by the way, To the promised
land of Canaan. The literal Canaan was a picture
of something. Greater That we're going to get
some day. What he was saying is this, as
the children of Israel were promised, ancient Israel was
promised a promised land. So to the child of God, that
faithful to Jesus Christ. All the days of his life will
have their allotted portion of that Promised Land.
What is that? It's heaven.
In that great. You want to go to heaven?
You got to be meek. You got to be meek.
The Christians are Pilgrim in this world.
Making his way toward that promised inheritance me give you
some Bible for that in First Peter chapter 2 and verse 11.
Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims abstain from
fleshly lusts, which war against the soul a Sojourner.
By the way, is a traveler, a pilgrim?
Is somebody that makes a brief stay?
Okay, that's all we are. We are Travelers in the world,
making a brief. Stay in the world waiting for
the promised inheritance or are allotted portion of the The
promised land and that's Heaven, okay?
Again, you got to be me, all right, so let me ask you this,
you might be wondering, okay? So what's the benefit?
What is the Practical benefit in my life of being meek?
And number two, why do we need to have it?
Two things. Why do we got to have it and
what's the Practical benefit of it?
Here it is. Meekness is the key to gaining
this inheritance because it stems from an inner quality that
allows man to endure life's hardships patiently.
I don't know about you, that's good stuff because I'm going to
tell you something. Life is hard, it's difficult
things are difficult in life, don't you want to have some kind
of a quality or something innate in you?
That gives you the strength to persevere and make it to the
end. And not let go and give up. if
you knew how important the inheritance was, You do
understand the importance of, not letting go and not giving
up. Meekness is the quality of
gaining that it gives you the inner strength.
And by the way, this doesn't sound like weakness to me.
This sounds like, courage to me. It sounds like strength to me.
This is the quality that's going to give me the strength and the
courage to make it to the end and endure the hardships of Life
patiently, no matter what. Let's go back to Moses and talk
about their Promised Land. Many that lived under Moses and
many, that followed Moses did not manifest the spirit of
meekness. They didn't have that quality at
all. You know what?
That happen to happen to them, they died in the wilderness
falling short of the Promised Land.
I want to fall short. Christian's can fall short,
though. They can fall short of their
rest. If they don't patiently and
meekly and or let me give you some Bible for that.
And by the way anybody that would say that a person cannot
lose their salvation. Please look at this passage is
very sobering. Hebrews 4 and 1.
Therefore, since a promise remains of entering his rest,
This Promise remains to everybody that still living Let
us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.
Let's not be short. Let's hang in there.
Let's not give up. So Meek is not weak.
It's the ultimate demonstration of strength and now we come to
verse 6. They're building on one another.
I got to do something in order to remain faithful.
I got to do something in order to stay the course.
Here, it is. Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Now, I got to tell you this. We talked a whole lot about
living a righteous life, don't we?
How many times have we heard sermons on Godly living?
Faithful living living the Christian Life.
Righteous Deeds all the things that we must do, obedient life
and all that. And all that's true.
We spend a lot of time talking about righteousness but we don't
spend a whole lot of time. Talking about hungering and
thirsting for it. I'm going to say this.
Maybe that's the problem. Because if we're having a
problem with righteousness, maybe the problem is, we're not
hungering and thirsting for it. I know this.
I don't know about you, but I know in my life.
If I want something really bad. I'm going to do whatever it
takes to get it. I don't know if that's good or
not. I'm just telling you, that's the
truth from me. If I want to buy something.
I'll do whatever I can or whatever.
I need to to have the means to get it because I want it.
If I want to achieve a goal and it means a lot to me.
I'm going to do whatever it takes to get it.
Because I want to. there's a phrase that my coaches used to
tell me and my teammates as they coached our football teams
you're going to want to How many times have you heard the phrase?
This team just wanted it more than the other team.
They weren't even as good, but they wanted it more.
I'm going to tell you something, wanting it is everything because
if you want it you'll do what it takes to get it.
And it begins with hungering and thirsting for it.
It's got to mean something. An intense desire.
We understand about physical nourishment, but spiritual
nourishment, is more important than physical nourishment.
It has to be part of the Christian Life.
We have to have an insatiable desire for righteousness, and
how do you get it? Somebody might say, well, how
you get it? Oh, I'd like to have that.
How do you get? Here's how you get it.
You can't get it without this. Righteousness is obtained by
seeking God's ways and walking in his commands.
That's it. You can't have God's
righteousness without that is it important?
It's absolutely important. Matthew 6:33.
But seek first, the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and
all these things shall be added unto you.
In this beatitude with the Lord is saying, is blessed are those
who are poor in spirit meaning? I've rented myself.
I've got this huge void, right? I'm poor in spirit destitute in
spirit, but Jesus says, those that are blessed.
Are those that All that void with God's righteousness.
Are you kind of at least at least getting the picture?
That all of this is not weakness at all.
It's about strength. But it's about where you get the
strength. It's not you it's God.
It's his strength. It's not my personal
righteousness. The Bible says, there's none
righteous. No, not one.
But when I fill the void of being poor in spirit with God's
righteousness, guess what? Good stuff.
It's a lifelong spiritual Quest. And when you grow spiritually,
please get this. You have to also grow in your
appetite for it. We talked about spiritual growth
while your appetite has to grow to very familiar passage.
I'm gonna get back to this passage later, but I want to put
it on a screen. First, Peter 2:2 as newborn
babes desire, the pure milk of the word that you may grow,
thereby? We understand the passage goes
back to infancy and all of that and the milk of the word.
Okay, I'm just going to say this at some point in time Christian.
You got to need the meat. You got to do two things with
the meek. You got a number one, crave it.
And you got a number to be able to handle it and eat it and
digest it. I'm talking about the meat of
the word of God, of the word of God.
So, in order for me to grow, my Hunger has to grow, too.
It has to grow to righteousness requires responsibility.
It's not a, it's not given to us without our obedience.
In fact, John says this. Notice, when John says in first
John, chapter 3 and verse seven little children, let no one
deceive you. He, who practices righteousness
is righteous. Righteousness, is righteous,
just as he is righteous. Now share something with you
really quickly very quickly. When I was a football player, I
hated practice, I really did. And maybe it was because our
coaches back were old school and they treated us like dogs.
They ran us to death, and they didn't give us any water because
they thought if they gave you any water, it was a sign of
weakness. We know that's wrong.
We know that doesn't exist today.
We know hydrations, everything we get it, but I was coached old
school and I got to tell you, I hated practice, it was hard,
love game day, hated practice. Practice though is always hard.
So if you want righteousness, Jesus said you got a hunger and
thirst after it. But oh there's more you have to
even practice it. And that's hard, you know, why
it's practice. And sometimes it goes against
our being, sometimes it goes against our nature.
That's what John says. Let's notice, what, what did
Paul say to Timothy? Not only do you have to practice
it, you have to do something else.
You gotta pursue it, but you o. Man of, oh, man of God, flee
these things and pursue righteousness godliness, Faith,
love, patience and gentleness. So if you want to be righteous,
you got a hunger and thirst. Thirst after it, you got to
practice it according to John, and you have to pursue it
according to Paul. It's a little harder than you
think. Because it requires what.
Effort on all of our part. Furthermore, Paul reminds the
Romans that salvation is obtained by obedience to the
faith that is found in the gospel.
I'm gonna give you some Bible here now.
Romans chapter 1 and verse 5 through him, we have received
Grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all
nations for his name. What is the foundation of what
is the standard? We drop down to verses 16 and
17. For I am not ashamed of the
gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation for
everyone. He believes for the Jew first,
and also, for the Greek, for in it, the righteousness of God is
revealed. In the word, folks, in the
gospel. The righteousness of God is
revealed from Faith to Faith. As it is written, the just shall
live by faith. Jesus says this, if you do this,
if you hunger and thirst for righteousness, you're going to
be filled. I got to tell you.
In 56 years of life. I have found people.
Many, many, many people. Who are grasping seeking and
diligently looking for something.
Because there's a void in their life.
And they just don't know what they're looking for.
I'ma tell you what the answer is, when there's a void It is
God's righteousness. And when you hunger and thirst
for it, I love this. You're going to be filled.
You are going to be filled. It is the promise of complete
satisfaction. It is what you're looking for.
Godly desires, satisfied, spiritual bellies satisfied.
And this word filled here is a very interesting word.
It is a very strong word. It is a graphic word and in, its
Origins and literally was used to the fattening of animals in a
stall. Okay, in a good way you're gonna
get fat and a good way. Spiritually.
You will be filled. You're gonna be satisfied in
similar fashion. You're never going to go hungry.
You're never going to go lacking, because all hunger is
satisfied with the word of God. Just a little side point here.
Please from a spiritual standpoint, and a spiritual
perspective. Okay, I have to make a couple of
observations here, please. It's okay to have questions.
And it's okay to have doubts. Only if the source of the answer
for those questions and the satisfaction of those doubts is
found in that Source right there in the word.
Then no problem. Because everybody's going to
have human feelings of doubt and questions.
Okay, I get it. No problem.
If the source for the answers is the word of God.
Number two thing I have to say. Please do not waste time.
Pondering the off. Cask theological question that
has no answer and that is the question.
Why don't do that? Number three.
I got to say at some point in time, in your life.
Your faith is just going to have to kick in.
You're going to have to believe it and accept it by faith was
faith. Faith is the substance of things
hoped for the evidence of Things Not Seen.
I can't see it. So what faith?
And I realize this is a growth process.
I do I do understand that I get it.
So how do you going to erase the questions?
How you going to race, the doubt, how you going to do it?
Here's how you're going to do it when the word of God is the
answer. It will answer your questions
and strengthen your faith. And when your faith is
strengthened, the doubts will go away.
But it all stems from the word of God that great source.
Hungering and thirsting for righteousness, please goes
hand-in-hand with the word of God.
Let's go back to that passage first.
Let's go back to 1st Peter, 2 and verse 2.
Again, please as newborn babes, what does that mean?
Newborn babes, it, actually, from Thayer means new or recent,
or earliest infancy? We understand this from earliest
infancy. A baby croc craves nourishment.
They do I get that. We all get that, they crave
nourishment. It begins as a babe in Christ,
craving the spiritual nourishment of the word of God,
but I have to say, it doesn't stop there.
I want to ask you a question answer.
This question to yourself. Are you hungry and thirsty for
righteousness? That you may be filled.
Are you feeding on the word of God?
Do you still have the insatiable?
Desire for the spiritual nourishment?
You once got from the word of God when you obey the gospel.
Are you still hungry? Or are you good?
I'm good. because if you're good, you stopped growing. and
if you stop growing, you begin to die.
Can't do it. Let's not do that.
Why is it? That the word of God is
all-sufficient. That we know that the Bible says
that it is. But why is the word of God?
All sufficient for all of these answers.
Why is it, why is it the only thing that we need spiritually
speaking? It's because of the word desire
and because of the word pure, let's notice what they are.
The word Desire, by the way, is an emphatic in this sentence.
Meaning, this it's kind of like a baby that comes into the
world, whether it's nursing, whether it's with a bottle,
whether it's whatever they need, nourishment, they have a desire
to have it babies. Come into this world hungry.
So she's a child of God. You come in the world's hungry.
So you have that desire that burning deep desire.
Got it. All right.
What about pure in the new King James says pure and the old King
James it says sincere. You know what that word means?
The word pure in English language from the Greek word.
Literally means this words, these two words here without
wax. It means this without flaw.
Let me tell you what the without wax part means.
If a carpenter, and you may remember this from years ago,
but a carpenter that goes and does beautiful work or sculptor
that did beautiful work. That was considered Pure or
without flaw. It was said that his work was
without wax. Why?
Because guess what, when he messed up and he made a mistake,
you know what they would do, they would take wax and they
would fit the imperfection with wax.
Therefore, it was now acceptable.
Guess what? It wasn't pure.
It wasn't without wax, it did have a flaw.
What's the word of God? Oh, it's without wax.
It is without a flaw. Hey, we got painters in this
audience. A painter's putty and paint make
a carpenter. What he ain't been saying that
for years because there's no such thing as perfect work.
Perfect craftsmanship. There's always flaws, right?
That's why they use wax for the imperfections, but the word of
God is trustworthy. You don't have to worry about
it. It has no flaw you know what
Peter's doing here. He's giving us a lesson on how
to be hungry to hunger for the right stuff.
Now, please let me notice with you the dangers of filling your
minds with the wrong stuff. When you fill your minds with
the wrong stuff and destroys your appetite for the good
stuff. What's the good stuff?
We already said, who. What?
That was. When you fill your mind with the
bad stuff. Me give an example of this.
Luke chapter 15, don't turn in your Bibles there.
I'm going to be very brief couple, little tiny points and
one observation, please, couple facts in Luke chapter 15.
The Story Of The Prodigal K, he goes to his father, he gets his
inheritance. He goes out into the far
country, he wasted all he spends it all he's starving.
Now, where is he now? He is in the pigpen slopping,
the Hogs A degrading job for a Jewish boy because pigs were
unclean in the Old Testament. Say you got this guy a Jewish
boy, in this pig, pen starving to death and the Bible says
what? He was so hungry, he would have
eaten the husks that the pigs ate, but nobody gave it to him.
We already know all that part. Here's my point.
Here's my observation. Even if he was given the husks
to eat. It would not have satisfied him
at all. You know why?
Husks, destroy the appetite. And pervert the taste.
And that's what happens when you fill your mind with garbage from
a spiritual perspective, when you fill your mind from a
spiritual perspective, on other things, in the word of God, or
instead of the word of God, it destroys the appetite and
perverts The Taste side point here.
I'm not saying you can never read another book besides the
Bible, my library is filled with books.
Religious books, all kinds of books.
It's not my point. But please understand when you
read a book it was written by a man.
No matter how scholarly he might have been he still a man.
Okay, the Bible is infallible, it's perfect is pure, it is
without wax, it is without flaw. Man's books are with flaw,
perhaps. So we have to be careful.
What I'm saying. Is this when you fill your mind
with philosophical, meanderings and spiritual things from the
world standpoint, that violate the word of God, don't do that.
And when you start to Crave that which contradicts the word of
God, you know what you're doing, you're destroying your appetite
and your perverting, The Taste for the word of God.
We don't want to do that. There's what Paul said after he
instructed Timothy, by the way to charge those that teach no
other Doctrine. He said this in first Timothy 1
and verse 4. He said this nor give heed to
fables and endless genealogies. I'm not going into this.
We studied this first Timothy chapter 1, not long ago in our
Sunday, afternoons. I'm not going into that but I
will say this, I'll sum it up like this.
Paul is saying avoid the things that give rise to speculations
that cause disputes or as the King James says questions.
Rather than godliness rather than edification.
In other words, avoid the things that act attack and corrupt and
assault, biblical truth, that's all I'm saying.
Avoid those things first, Timothy 6, and verse 20, there's
more, oh Timothy guard. What was committed to your
trust. Avoiding profane and idle
babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called
knowledge. All right what is an idol
babbling? It literally is translated
something out. Outside the sacred Temple.
We don't need that. Chuck it out.
What else? What's contradictions of what is
falsely called knowledge? What's that?
It is opposing arguments the antithesis of what is falsely
called knowledge. Don't need it.
Avoid the garbage that comes in
the name of religion philosophy. And remember that hungering and
thirsting for righteousness will always be connected to the word
and don't let your mind. Be corrupted in conclusion today
and I'm wrapping it up. Here we go.
I want to summarize the first four Beatitudes as they fit
together very fast, very briefly.
He begins by saying blessed are the poor in spirit.
In other words, I am destitute without God.
I need God, great stuff. I need God.
And Jesus Christ. What's it going to cause me to
do? It's going to cause me to mourn
over my sin with repentance and godly sorrow me.
I'm gonna do something about it. I obey the gospel on washed in
the blood of Jesus. I'm baptized for the remission
of my sins. Guess what?
I'm comforted now, I'm not living in a state of Perpetual
morning. I'm comforted because why,
because I'm forgiven then he said Said I'm going to have the
spiritual disposition that I need to have.
I'm going to have meekness and meekness is going to give me the
right mindset. It's going to give me the
courage and the strength to persevere, no matter what.
And I'm going to inherit my allotted portion in heaven, One
Day by doing that. And then I got a hunger and
thirst for righteousness. Found it on the word of God, and
I'm going to be filled satisfied.
In every way I'm done. I'ma tell you what.
I'm not. But Jesus is.
The greatest. And this sermon is the greatest
sermon ever preached. And we've only just begun.
We never close a time when we assemble without extending an
invitation. Here's the invitation.
Jesus says come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden
and I will give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn of me
for. I am meek and lowly at heart and
you shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
You want to come to Jesus? Here's how you do it.
You got to hear the word of God, Romans 10:17.
So then faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.
You've done that today. Upon hearing the word of God.
Do you got a choice to make? You got to believe with all your
heart, Hebrews 11 and 6, but without faith, it's impossible
to please him for. He who comes to God, must
believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those who
diligently seek him. What else?
I gotta change my life, I gotta change.
My ways. How do you do that?
You got to repent of your sins acts 17 and 30.
Truly these times of ignorance, God overlooked.
But now commands all men everywhere to repent, that's a
great thing change. For the good.
Never let it be that we get to the point.
We don't think we can change. We better be changing our whole
life if it's for the good. Then what be willing to make the
greatest confession, you'll ever make the greatest words, it'll
ever come out of your mouth confess.
Jesus Christ as the Son of God acts. 8:37 then fear Philip said
if you believe with all your heart you made and he answered
and said I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God upon
taking these steps. You are now a fit candidate to
find the point of Salvation. It's at baptism, here it is.
Be baptized for the remission of your sins.
Mark 16:16. Jesus said he who believes and
is Baptized will be saved, but he who does not believe will be
condemned. Are you saved?
If you're not, you can do that today.
We'd love to assist you in that maybe our Maybe you've taken
these steps, maybe there are things in your life that just
aren't right then. Fine.
How about that other process? We talked about to be, comforted
confess him before, God confess your sins.
He's faithful. And just to forgive us, our sins
and cleanse us, from all unrighteousness, that's
confession with repentance. So if you will confess those
sins with repentance in your heart, God will forgive you and
God will restore. When we pray.
We thank you for listening to our podcast, put on by the
Church of Christ at 22:15 plans. Road in Bakersfield, if you
would like any additional information, or you would like
to receive a free Bible correspondence, course by mail.
Please email us at info at her Church of Christ
Bakersfield.com. Our service times are on Sundays
at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.
Please make plans to join us. We would love for you to be our
honored guest.