In all thy ways acknowlege him

Proverbs 3:5-7

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.

Pray:

If you don’t know by now. This is one of my favorite bible verses. I have heard people singing this verse. And what a wonderful song it is.

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths….

In all thy ways acknowledge him.

In all they ways acknowledge him.

In all they ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths….

We are living in what is referred to as the information age. If you want to know the best way to get a blood stain from a white t-shirt. You can simply go to google or youtube and ask. And you will get all kinds of advice. Everything from cold water to shout to bleach.

There is no lack of information in the modern world. There is also no lack of misinformation in the modern world. The word of God told us that this would happen. In the book of Daniel 12:4, we read:

Daniel 12:4

4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

What God is telling us is this: Knowledge will be so increased that people will be confused about what is true and what is not true.

In the book of Ephesians Paul warned us about this Paul reports to us in Ephesians 4:14

14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

What Paul is telling us is simple. Know the word of God. Stick to the word of God. To know the word of God so well that you cannot be tossed to and fro by every single false teacher that comes your way.

In other words, Paul is simply saying this:

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths….

Recently it has been stated that by teaching that the line of Jesus was pure and by acknowledging the biblical teaching of tares or the seed of the serpent as true bible doctrines. That I am somehow endorsing white supremacism or Nazi teachings. So, let me put this slander to rest. And that is all it is, slander and nothing more.

We have already covered how the line of Jesus is pure. And it makes no difference to me if the Nazis or white supremacists taught such things. I happen to know that black preachers teach these things as well. One example would be Farrakhan. Not that I agree with him or the Nazi’s in the manner in which they teach it.

You see people who don’t ground themselves in the word of God are easily manipulated by the accuser. If I were to say to you that many white supremacists and many black supremacists and many jewish supremacists are Christians. Would you then conclude that you must reject Jesus Christ? Of course not.

You have enough sense to know that there are a lot of bad people out there who pervert the word of God. The worst thing you can do is to throw the baby out with the bath water.

Today there is a great deal of debate online and in churches about who the Hebrews of the Old Testament were. Some say that they were black, others say that they were jews and others say that they were white.

I say it doesn’t matter. Because the word of God doesn’t teach racial supremacy or any type of chosen garbage. Here is what the word of God teaches:

Galatians 3: 26

26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

In other words. In the new covenant anyone who believes is counted as the seed of Abraham. So, if the Nazi’s or White Supermacists or black supremacists or Jewish Supremacists say that only their race is chosen. Or only their race can be saved. Or that God loves them more than anyone else. They are lying. It really is that simple. And it doesn’t make you a Nazi or anything of the sort to teach the truth in the word of God. This is how the devil works. He associates the truth with a lie.

2 Thessalonians 2:11-12

11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

The devil will give you just enough truth to manipulate you into a strong delusion. We do not determine what the word of God says by how someone else misinterprets it. Our job is to find the truth. And when you live in a world that is dependent on the internet for information then lies will find their ways into the church.

In John 8:44 Jesus said these words:

44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Satan uses lies mixed with truth to deceive Gods people. And I will say this over and over until we understand it. We fight those lies the same way Jesus did. We acknowledge God in EVERYTHING.

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths.

Matthew 4

4 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

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.

5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

The biggest reason that lies and misinformation have taken over our churches today is simple. We do not know God or his word the way that we should.

We are supposed to be so transformed by the word of God that every single thought we have is processed through the bible. We should be utterly incapable of making a single decision without first going to the word of God. And I am sorry to say that we have failed in this regard.

If we completely depend on God through his word, then we are under God’s care.

Matthew 6:26

26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

Listen. The sparrow doesn’t have to worry about his next meal. Because God provides. And God provides for us as well. We simply need to learn how to get in sync with the word of God.

You see, the sin nature separates us from understanding the proper way to live. Sin separates us from God. And when we are separated from God, we do not hear his voice. And because of that sin we cannot make good decisions.

What God is telling us is simple. Acknowledge me and I will take care of you. Well, you might ask. To what extent should I acknowledge God in my life? The answer. IN ALL THY WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE HIM!!!

Now do not mistake this for the prosperity gospel. That teaching is garbage. God promises to provide for us. Not to make us rich. But if you want to live your best life. You MUST get so engrossed in the word of God that all of your friends start calling you a bible thumper.

Every time I ask this guy a question, he quotes the bible. I’m just going to stop asking. Right? Folks it is a compliment to be called a bible thumper.

In a day and age where people are taught nothing but lies. There is one truth we can always depend on. The word of God.

When you get to the point in your Christian walk. Where every thought you have leads you to a bible verse. Then you have found true happiness. Because now you are depending completely on God.

Jesus taught us this by example. The devil came along and did his best to throw Jesus off. But Jesus could not be fooled. Because not only did he know the word of God. He was the word of God.

Listen to the words of John:

John 1

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 The same was in the beginning with God.

3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Jesus not only quoted the word of God. He was the living breathing word.

And that is what it means to truly grow as a Christian. It means to learn to live your life by the word of God. It means to say to the world. I am going to depend on God to the point that I hear no other voice.

And growth is simply this: Trying it out for yourself. Every single time you make a decision by acknowledging God first. God will demonstrate to you the truth of his word. And as you do so day by day. Your faith in God grows. And all that is summed up in that simple verse in Proverbs:

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths.

Jesus came to save us and to teach us how to live. And we are to live by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Proverbs 12:15

15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.

Only a fool thinks that he knows more than the word of God.

Like I said last week. There are people in this world who want a God who thinks the way they think. And they would twist the bible to match what they think instead of just accepting it the way it is.

When they want to commit adultery. They will say. Well David committed adultery so it must ok. That is not the point of that story, and we know it. But that is how the carnal mind works.

Now when I come here to teach the word of God on Sunday morning, it doesn’t matter whether there are 5 people or 500. My job is to acknowledge God and let him decide who needs to be here to listen to the message.

God builds the church we are supposed to acknowledge him and do the work.

We make all of our plans about tomorrow. We NEVER plan to fail. In our plans for the future everything is just peachy. We never plan for out mother in law to come and stay for a week. That isn’t part of our plans is it? But it happens. Just as when we make our plans for growing the church. We only think about good things happening. We don’t think about church splits. We don’t think about disgruntled members. We don’t plan on those things. But they happen anyway.

We have decided that tomorrow is going to be perfect. Then tomorrow gets here and it is anything but perfect. And we become disillusioned. Why? Because we are not realistic are we? People become unhappy because things didn’t turn out the way they planned them. Why?

Because in all of our wonderful plans. We have forgotten to acknowledge God.

And guess what? God wants you to grow as a Christian. And believe it or not. Sometimes God will use hard times to build character in his people.

Let me ask you this? Do you think it was easy for Noah? Do you think it was easy for Abraham? Do you think it was easy for Isaac and Jacob? Do you think it was easy for Peter or Paul or even Jesus?

So, what makes you think it is going to be sunshine and rainbows for YOU?

Listen to Psalm 10:2

2 The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices that they have imagined.

3 For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth.

4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

5 His ways are always grievous; thy judgments are far above out of his sight: as for all his enemies, he puffeth at them.

6 He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved: for I shall never be in adversity.

7 His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud: under his tongue is mischief and vanity.

Listen only a fool goes through life not expecting hard times to come. THEY WILL COME. Only a fool plans his life not expecting adversity. We know the adversary goes about seeking whom he may devour. So why do we make plans expecting everything to go perfect? When we know that is not what the word of God teaches us? If you are serving God, you better expect some shots from the devil. We have got to acknowledge God to get through those tough times. And listen to me. We have got to as a church purpose within our hearts to make the word of God the only authority in our homes. The only authority in our society and the only authority in our church. We must learn to depend on God or God will teach us to do just that the hard way.

John 13:15-17

15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.

16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.

17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

We have no right to expect a life of ease. We have no right to expect that everything in church will always go perfect. Listen:

Jesus was betrayed. Jesus was beaten. Jesus was mocked. Jesus was tortured. Jesus was crucified and Jesus was ultimately killed. Only to raise again on the third day triumphant over death, sin, and the grave.

If you are expecting your Christian walk to go better than that. You are only deceiving yourself.

You ask well I get it brother Tim. But what can I do about it?

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths……

Listen again to the words of Jesus Christ in Matthew 5:10

10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

Now you might be thinking. Well Lord, it doesn’t feel like such a blessing to be called a Nazi and a racist by a church member who didn’t understand what I was teaching.

No doubt none of the apostles felt blessed as they were being beaten to death for the sake of the gospel. But it is a blessing. It is a blessing because it indicates that you are living for God. If you weren’t the devil would have no interest in you.

You know. It is easy for us to look back at the last year and count Gods blessings. We can say wow last mothers day we had around 30 people. What a blessing. We can say. Wow. The church hasn’t had a single kid in over 4 years. But we had almost 10 kids for our VBS. Wow. We can say what a blessing it was to have roughly 40 people come to our fall festival. Wow. We can say what a blessing it was to have 30 plus here for our Christmas day service. Wow. But what about what happened two weeks ago. What about having an angry disgruntled member hollering and screaming and making false accusations. Do you see that as a blessing? Why not? Didn’t Jesus say that it was a blessing to be persecuted? Sure he did. Didn’t Jesus say it was a blessing when men say all manner of evil against you? Yes he did.

But we don’t see that as a blessing do we? You know why? Because we have failed to acknowledge him in EVERYTHING.

Jesus tells us to rejoice. REJOICE. Because the prophets were persecuted. Rejoice because your Savior was persecuted. Rejoice because it means that you are being the light of the world and Satan is trying to snuff out your light.

So, don’t let Satan stop you from proclaiming the truth.

Rejoice, rejoice O Christian.

He’s in the world today. I know that He is living, Whatever men may say. I see His hand of mercy; I hear His voice of cheer; And just the time I need Him He’s always near.

Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, Lift up your voice and sing Eternal hallelujahs To Jesus Christ the King! The Hope of all who seek Him, The Help of all who find, None other is so loving, So good and kind.

Listen. What I’m simply saying this morning is this:

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths.

You don’t have to go through this wicked world without the guidance of your heavenly Father. He gave us this book. To lead us through the tough times. And we should know that times are going to be tough. We should know that building a church will NOT go smoothly. We should know that there will be resistance to doing God’s work because the bible tells us just that.

So, in all thy ways acknowledge him. Can you say that this morning? That you acknowledge God in EVERY single part of your life?

Pray: