FOLLOWING GOD’S WORD

Written by: Peter Denby

Hebrews 10:19-25 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

I. Brothers and sisters we have been saved by Jesus;

II. We have a new and better way, the way of purity;

III. We need to draw near to Jesus AND to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ;

IV. We need to have our hearts cleansed from evil in all ways 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.;

V. We need to be baptized in the pure water that only Jesus can offer;

VI. We need to hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering;

VII. We need to provoke one another to love and good works;

VIII. We need to commit to assemble with the saints every time they meet;

IX. We need to exhorting one another;

X. We need to do so much the more, as ye see the day of our Lord and the day of His coming approaching.

We have a new and better way, the way of purity. That is to say that we have repented and turned away from our sinful ways. We need to continue that process by having our hearts cleansed from evil in all ways 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We need to hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering. How are we to do that?

I. We need to commit to reading and studying God’s Word;

II. We need to commit to assemble with the saints every time they meet;

III. We need to commit to putting God’s Word into our minds and our hearts;

IV. We need to commit to allowing God’s Word to control our actions;

V. We need to commit to teaching God’s Word to other [Spiritual Procreation];

VI. We need to commit to being faithful unto death Revelation 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

Tell me - What methods of helping does AA use?

I. They have support groups - Christian’s support group is the assembling of the saints together [church meetings, Bible study, Camp, etc.];

II. They have support persons, a sponsor - The Bible teaches that older, or more mature, Christians need to teach the younger, or less mature, Christians.

I am not saying that AA has it right. I am merely pointing out that the world is using a program that God has taught from the beginning of time.

God also taught the process of handing down a trade to younger people - apprenticeship. Unfortunately many places have forgotten the value of our older people. If we would allow them to train us, we would be better off. Remember as good as computers, and other devices are, they have helped us to be an non personally social society. How does this relate to the message?

I. Many people today will tell you Bible stories as they remember them:

II. Adam and Eve ate what fruit? Genesis 2:15-17 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

III. Jonah was swallowed by what? Jonah 1:17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. This has become a whale of a tale!

IV. The root of all evil is what? 1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

My only point here is that we as a younger generation have been modernizing God’s Word with an inaccurate version. The first two are simple and may just be semantics and not that important. However when we say money is the root of all evil we alienate people who MAY not love money but who have worked hard to get what they have.

When we see jokes about Bible events [What kind of car are we to drive? Acts 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.] we need to remember that they are just that jokes.

Many people have made the Word of God say what they want. If we are not properly trained in the use of God’s Word then we may well find that we are learning “another message”.

Galatians 1:6-9 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

1 John 1:1-7 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

I. Another message will:

A. Make you accursed;

B. Separated from God and His Message;

C. Make you one who is a false teacher and thus a liar;

Anyone who really loves God will want to please Him. Thus they will do everything to follow his commandments. John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

Should we just follow His Commandments?

It depends on your definition of commandments.

II. There are the ten commandments;

Exodus 20:1-17 And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

3. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

5. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

6. Thou shalt not kill.

7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8. Thou shalt not steal.

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

III. There are the New Testament commandments;

Matthew 22:34-40 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

C. Is that all? I am of the belief that the words written in God’s Word form commandments.

i. When Matthew tells us: Matthew 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.  Is he not issuing a command from God?

ii. When Peter tells us: Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Is he not issuing a command from God?

These are but two of the places where we can see God has given us information on how we are to live our Christian lives. Whether it is called a commandment or is just information, IT IS FROM GOD THE ALMIGHTY.

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

If the Lord is not willing that any should perish, how can we as Christians not follow the words of  Matthew and Luke when they tell us to go and teach all nations. We need to make sure that we bring others to Heaven with us.

Thank you for listening today.