Make God's Word the Foundation of Your Life

Introduction

There is a little chorus that I was reminded of this morning in an email.

You might know it.

It goes like this.

The Lord knows the way through the wilderness

All I have to do is follow

The Lord knows the way through the wilderness

All I have to do is follow

Strength for today is mine all the way and all I need for tomorrow

The Lord knows the way through the wilderness

All I have to do is follow

I am here this morning to tell you that life is a wilderness. All around us is wilderness. There is the wilderness of self, society, and Satan. Living into today’s world is like living a great big jungle filled with nothing but lies and great temptations. I am 53. I have, over the course of my life lived on two different continents and raised five boys. The one thing that I have learned more than anything is that this world will promise everything and give you nothing. In fact, it will only steal what it can from you and laugh at you in the process. However, I have also learned that if you will allow the Lord to lead you, He will. In fact, He desires to lead you. He knows better than any of us how to navigate the times we live in. His strength is the only strength we need to rely on.

As I was thinking about what to say to all of you young men this morning, the Lord kept bringing back to this one principle. Make God and His Word the foundation of your life.

Over in Proverbs, King Solomon, the wisest man to ever live (wisdom that came from God), was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write the following words to us.

Proverbs 2 KJV 1900

1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, And hide my commandments with thee; 2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, And apply thine heart to understanding; 3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, And liftest up thy voice for understanding; 4 If thou seekest her as silver, And searchest for her as for hid treasures; 5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, And find the knowledge of God. 6 For the Lord giveth wisdom: Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. 7 He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. 8 He keepeth the paths of judgment, And preserveth the way of his saints. 9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, And equity; yea, every good path. 10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, And knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; 11 Discretion shall preserve thee, Understanding shall keep thee: 12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, From the man that speaketh froward things; 13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, To walk in the ways of darkness; 14 Who rejoice to do evil, And delight in the frowardness of the wicked; 15 Whose ways are crooked, And they froward in their paths: 16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, Even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; 17 Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, And forgetteth the covenant of her God. 18 For her house inclineth unto death, And her paths unto the dead. 19 None that go unto her return again, Neither take they hold of the paths of life. 20 That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, And keep the paths of the righteous. 21 For the upright shall dwell in the land, And the perfect shall remain in it. 22 But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, And the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.

The entire essence of that chapter is this. Pursue wisdom. However, we must pursue God’s wisdom and not the wisdom of this world. By the way, where do we find God’s wisdom today? It is contained within the pages of your Bible. God’s Word is all the wisdom we need in guiding us through the wilderness of this world. It is our roadmap, our gps, and our compass. Without it you will “leave the paths of righteousness” and “walk in the ways of darkness.”

God’s Word is Permanent and Eternal

Isaiah 40:8 KJV 1900

8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: But the word of our God shall stand for ever.

God’s Word is for Our Training and Equipping

2 Timothy 3:16–17 KJV 1900

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

God’s Word is THE ONLY TRUTH in this World

John 17:17 KJV 1900

17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Psalm 119:151 KJV 1900

151 Thou art near, O Lord; And all thy commandments are truth.

Psalm 119:160 KJV 1900

160 Thy word is true from the beginning: And every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.

God’s Word is a POWERFUL, SPIRITUAL WEAPON

Jeremiah 23:29 KJV 1900

29 Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?

Hebrews 4:12 KJV 1900

12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Ephesians 6:11–17 KJV 1900

11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

God’s Word is a SPIRITUAL CLEANSER

Psalm 119:9 KJV 1900

9 BETH. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word.

John 15:3 KJV 1900

3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Ephesians 5:26 KJV 1900

26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

God’s Word is SPIRITUAL FOOD

Deuteronomy 8:3 KJV 1900

3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.

Matthew 4:4 KJV 1900

4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

God’s Word is a SPIRITUAL LIGHT in a world of Spiritual Darkness

Psalm 119:105 KJV 1900

105 NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, And a light unto my path.

I can fully guarantee that if you will make God’s Word the foundation of your life it will help you overcome all of life’s problems. However, there is one little caveat.

God’s Word is only effective in a person’s life when they have fully accepted Christ as Savior.

The unsaved person cannot know or understand the Word of God.

You must first...

Acknowledge your sin

Romans 3:10–12 KJV 1900

10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Romans 3:23 KJV 1900

23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 5:12 KJV 1900

12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Admit the fact that Christ died for you.

John 3:16 KJV 1900

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Romans 5:8 KJV 1900

8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 6:23 KJV 1900

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Accept Christ into your life by believing and confessing

Romans 10:9–10 KJV 1900

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13 KJV 1900

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

1 John 5:11–12 KJV 1900

11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.