9 Feb 2025
Acts • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
Entrance
Entrance
We stand as the Word of God is brought into the Church - Be seated directly after.
Welcome
Welcome
If you are new please fill in the visitors book on the table at the entrance to the church. Introduce yourself to the Elders and each other.
Chorus
Chorus
What a friend we have in Jesus
Chorus
Chorus
Take me in
Confession of sin
For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
so that sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
you who are God my Savior,
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 Open my lips, Lord,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise.
18 May it please you to prosper Zion,
to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
in burnt offerings offered whole;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Cathy
Cathy
will now read the Old Testament reading to us from the NIV pew bible.
She begins with “Hear the Word of God as it is written in Hebrews 4“
1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
“So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’ ”
And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.” 5 And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.”
6 Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience, 7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted:
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.
12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
She ends with: “This is the word of God”.
Congregation: “Thanks be to God”.
Lydia
Lydia
will now read the New Testament reading to us from the NIV pew bible.
She begins with “Hear the Word of God as it is written in Matthew 6:5-15”
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“ ‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
She ends with: “This is the word of God”.
Congregation: “Thanks be to God”.
The Lord’s Prayer
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
begotten from the Father before all ages,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made;
of the same essence as the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,
and was made human.
He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered and was buried.
The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again with glory
to judge the living and the dead.
His kingdom will never end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life.
He proceeds from the Father and the Son,
and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.
He spoke through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.
We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,
and to life in the world to come. Amen.
Hymn
Oh Lord my God, How I in awesome wonder
DISCIPLINED BIBLE STUDY
THE HOW AND WHY OF EFFECTIVE BIBLE STUDY
"From childhood you have known the holy Scriptures which are able to make you wise
unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is
inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
for training in righteousness that the man of God may be Adequate, thoroughly
equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:15-17).
“The Bible that is falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn't." In these
words, Vance Havner speaks clearly to us about his conviction that a proper,
regular study of the Bible is immensely profitable and practical. According to
Havner, people who fall apart do so because they don't regularly and
consistently study their Bibles.
C. H. Spurgeon affirmed his conviction about the incredible resource for living that
is found in God's Word when he said, "If when I get to heaven the Lord
shall say to me, 'Spurgeon, I want you to preach for all eternity.' I would
reply, 'Lord, give me a Bible, that is all I need." Spurgeon believed that
he had all he needed for preaching in the Bible because he was convinced that
in the Scriptures we have all we need for successful living.
In chapter five of his book How to Get the Most from God's Word, John MacArthur
emphasizes the importance and relevance of the Bible for our daily lives in
this way. He writes:
How important is the Bible to me? There are
several ways to answer the question. The Bible? It's just another book.
It has somewise sayings here and there mixed with a lot of genealogies,
myths and crazy visions."
A second group says something like this:
"Of course I know the Bible is important-at least my pastor thinks
so.
He's always quoting it and waving it in the air.
But I don't read it much. I can't understand it too well."
There is still a third group, however, who would align themselves with Sir Walter Scott,
a famed British novelist and poet, who was also a committed Christian. On his
deathbed Scott is reported to have said to his secretary,
"Bring me the Book."
His secretary thought of the thousands of books in Scott's library and
inquired, “Dr. Scott, which book?"
"The Book," replied Scott.
"The Bible— the only book for a dying man.
John
MacArthur then comments:
“And the committed Christian would have to add that the Bible
is not just the only book for a dying man,
but it's the only book for a living man,
because it is the Word of God.”
It's evident from these statements that each of these me thinks highly of the practicality
and profitability of Scripture for everyday living. Their statements reveal
that they believe the Bible really does contain all the information we need for
life and godliness. Well, were they right? Does the Bible, as Spurgeon
declared, contain all the information that we need for time and eternity? Can,
as Havner stated, a regular consistent, careful, applicatory study of God's
Word keep u from falling apart? Is the Bible, as MacArthur wrote, really the
most important book for dying and living men? Are Spurgeon, Havner, and
MacArthur overstating the case?
According to the apostle Paul, these men were absolutely right in their convictions about
the comprehensive usefulness of Scripture. According to Paul, in the text
quoted at the beginning of this chapter (and the rest of the writers of
Scripture would have agreed with him), they were not overstating the case.
"The Bible," writes Paul, “is able to make us adequate and thoroughly
equip us for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:17). To be made
adequate, according to Webster's New World Dictionary, means to be equal to a
requirement or occasion, to be sufficient or suitable. So, Paul is telling us
that through the Bible we can be made ready for and equal to any occasion,
situation, or requirement. Now that's a powerful statement about the value of
Scripture.
But that's not all Paul says to emphasize the practical usefulness of Scripture. He's not
finished yet. In addition to making us adequate, he adds that the Scriptures
can equip us for good works. And not just for some good works, but every good
work. Put your mind in gear and think of any good work you can in your family,
church, or society, and Paul would say that the Scriptures can equip you
mentally, emotionally and behaviourally to do them. And more than that, he
would want us to know that the Scriptures don't merely have the ability to
equip us partially. No, Paul writes, they have the ability to equip us
thoroughly for every good work. What a resource we have in God's Word!
When people read what Paul says about the comprehensive usefulness of God's Word, they
might be inclined to ask several questions (I've heard all of these questions
being asked by many people who are told about Paul's statement).
2. WHY WE HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE BIBLE:
1) WHO ITS AUTHOR IS.
One question people ask is: "I hear what you're saying about the comprehensive value of
Scripture. Why is the Bible able to do what you have stated it can do? Why do
you have such confidence in its practicality?"
Numerous texts of Scripture indicate that we ought to be excited about the Bible because
of the identity of its Author "All Scripture is inspired by God" (2
Timothy 3:16). There is no other book in the entire world that has an
author like this book. This book was given by inspiration of God.
It means when we come to it, we get inspired. We get challenged. That is true, but that
is not what the text is saying.
Actually, the Greek word which is found here in 2 Timothy 3:16, translated
"inspired by God," is a Greek word "theopneustos,"
which is a combination of two Greek words, "theos" and
"pneustos." The Greek word "theos"
means God, and the Greek word "pneustos" means breath.
Really what the text is saying is that all Scripture is God-breathed! What does
that mean? Well it means that Scripture has its origin in God. To say the
Scriptures are God-breathed is the strongest possible way God could put it to indicate
that what we have in this book is not simply the opinion of a man. What we have
in this book is the very truth of Almighty God. It is inerrant, without error,
infallible, all truth, altogether true and righteous, forever settled,
absolutely trustworthy. good books cannot compare with the Bible.
3. WHY SO MANY CHRISTIANS ARE POORLY EQUIPPED:
1) FAILURE TO TAKE THE MEDICINE
When confronted with the concept of the comprehensive value of Scripture for all of
life, another question people ask is. "If, as you say, the Scriptures can
prepare us to handle circumstance or occasion and thoroughly equip us for every
good work, why is it that so many of Christians do not seem to be very
prepared or thoroughly equipped?"
One answer to this question is that many Christians not thoroughly equipped because they
are not reading or studying or even hearing the Scriptures on a regular basis.
Disease and medicine illustration
The same is true with the Scriptures. They prepare us for every circumstance and occasion
and thoroughly equip us only when we use them. A Bible sitting on a shelf in a
person's home or even carried with him wherever he goes does a person no good
until he reads it and studies it regularly. Most professing Christians have
Bibles. Many of them have several Bibles, and sometimes they have several
versions of Bibles. Truth is, these same professing Christians who claim to
believe the Bible to be the Word of God these same people who would agree that
the Bible is to be our standard in matters of faith and practice seldom, if
ever, seriously read or study the Scriptures. These same professing Christians
are sometimes people who do not attend church where the Word of God is
faithfully exposited and preached. They attend churches where they are
entertained. but not edified, where the spiritual diet is not sound exegesis or
solid theology, but cotton candy stuffed with a little flavouring of Scripture
Or if they do attend a church where the Bible is exposited and preached, they
are very sporadic in their attendance and thus they are not being consistently
exposed to Biblical truth.
Truth is, many professing Christians and churches are very
flippant when it comes to their approach to the Scriptures. Whose fault is it
that professing Christians are often not very well prepared and thoroughly
equipped for every good work?
The deficiency is not with the Bible; the deficiency is with
people in their failure to use the Scriptures.
2) IMPROPER USE OF SCRIPTURE
A second reason why many Christians are not experiencing the
wonderful reality of
2 Timothy 3:17 relates to their failure to use the Scriptures properly.
It's possible to regularly read and study the Scriptures and still fall short
of reaping the benefits described by Paul in this verse. In his second epistle,
Peter tells us that it is possible to study the Bible and do so to our own
destruction (2 Peter 3:16). In other words, Peter is talking about
people who do read and study God's Word and then wrest, torture, and pervert
the Scriptures. Obviously, these people were regularly reading Scripture they
could not be wresting, torturing or perverting God's Word if they were not
reading it and, at least, had some acquaintance with the words found in
it.
Well, how were they wresting the Scriptures? Probably in several ways. For one thing,
it's possible to torture the Scriptures by making them say and mean what God
never intended them to say or mean. It is also possible to torture the
Bible by emphasizing certain truths to the neglect of other truths. As
you examine earlier portions of 2 Peter, it seems evident that there
were some who were so emphasizing the doctrine of Divine Sovereignty, easy
believism, and an incorrect understanding of salvation by grace that they were
neglecting the doctrine of human responsibility, the importance
of personal effort, the necessity of perseverance,
and the importance of developing and increasing Christian character
qualities in the lives of Christians
(See 2 Peter 1:2- 11).
3) LOW REGARD FOR SCRIPTURE
A third answer to the question, "If, as you say, the Scriptures can prepare us to
handle any circumstance occasion and thoroughly equip us for every good work,
why is it that so many Christians do not seem to be very prepared or thoroughly
equipped?" is related to or an extension of what we have just noted in
answer two. However, this answer is so important that I want to give it special
attention all by itself. The third main reason why 2 Timothy 3:17 is not
more of a reality in the lives of many Christians is that they do not regard
and use the Scriptures in the way that 2 Timothy 3:16 says it should be
regarded and used. They may, on occasion, read Scripture, even study the
Scriptures, even hear the Scriptures being taught, but they do not enter into
a consideration of the Bible with the
focus of 2 Timothy 3:16.
4. FOUR THINGS YOU MUST DO TO REALLY BENEFIT FROM SCRIPTURE:
1) BE TEACHABLE
To really benefit from Scripture, you must come to the Bible with the realization that it
"is profitable for teaching." You must come with willingness and a
desire to be taught. You must come as a student, with the attitude of a
learner. Now, that presumes we do not know much. It presumes that we are
ignorant. And indeed we are! Scripture says that our foolish minds are
darkened (Ephesians 4:17). We think we are so smart. We think we are so
wise. But in reality, we are very stupid. We need to come to this Book to find
out what is true. Do you realize that you do not know ultimate truth by
discovery? Nobody discovers ultimate truth. You know truth by revelation. If
you know ultimate truth, it is because God has been pleased to reveal it to you
and He has revealed it in the Word (1 Corinthians 2:1-14).
2) WELCOME REPROOF
To really benefit from Scripture in the 2 Timothy 3:17 way, you must come to the
Bible with the realization that it "is profitable for reproof." The
word "reprove" and the concept of "reproving" does not rank
at the top of what people want done to them or want to do to others. On a hit
list of profitable things, the word and concept of reproof probably would not
even appear. Truth is, most of us do not like to be reproved. We just do not
think of reproving as something that is beneficial or profitable. When I was a
child I never liked to be reproved by my dad. I would just as soon escape that
benefit. I did not want it and did not like it when Dad did it to me. There are
many of us as adults who still think and act like children when it comes to
reproof. We just do not like to be told that what we are doing is wrong. We
would much rather have somebody tell us what is right about us and how
wonderful and how neat we are than have somebody come up to us, like Nathan did
with David, and stick their long, scrawny finger under our nose and say,
"You are the man! What you have done is wrong. You need to acknowledge
your sin and change." But God knows that even though we do not like
reproof, it is good for us. So He gave us this Book and uses it to reprove
us because He knows that being rightly reproved is good for us.
Being rightly reproved is a major step in becoming adequate and thoroughly equipped
for every good work. I have personally experienced it in my own life when
people have used the Word to reprove me. I have also observed the benefit of
reproof in the lives of others
3) ACCEPT CORRECTION
To really benefit from Scripture in the 2 Timothy 3:17 way, you must also come to
the Bible with the realization that it "is profitable...for
correction...." Isn't that great? The Bible doesn't just knock us down.
The Bible is not like those thieves described by Jesus in Luke 10:30. In this
passage, our Lord Jesus Christ tells us of what happened to a certain man when
he was walking along the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. As he travelled along,
some thieves who were hiding behind some boulders accosted him. They jumped out
from behind those boulders, knocked him down, beat him, stripped him, took his
money and then left him lying there on the ground bleeding and dying. They did
not care. They wanted to hurt and wound him and then leave him on the ground to
die.
The Bible is not like that. Yes, a proper usage of the of our sin, but it does not just
strip us. Yes, when rightly Scripture will strip us of our pride, of our
self-righteousness, used, it will wound us through its reproofs, but it does
not merely wound us. Yes, when rightly used it will knock us down, but it won't
merely knock us down. This same Book that God uses to reprove us will also pick
us up, put us on our feet, dust us off, head us in the right direction, and
tell us how
4) START TRAINING
To really benefit from Scripture in the 2 Timothy 3:17 way, you must also come to
the Bible with the realization that it "is profitable... for training in
righteousness."
"You can't teach an old dog new tricks." "That is just the way I am."
"I was born that way." "That is the way my parents were.” “I'm
just like my mother, or I'm just like my dad." These are statements people
often make when they are confronted with the need for change. I have heard all
of these statements, again and again. I have heard these statements from people
who were challenged to change and become better husbands. I have heard these
statements from women who were challenged to be better wives. I have heard
these statements from parents who were challenged to be more godly parents, or
children who were challenged to be mor godly children. I have heard these
statements from people who were challenged to be more sensitive, more
considerate and more loving. I have heard them from people who were challenged
to be more industrious, more organized, more zealous, more disciplined. I have
heard them from people who were challenged to be more appreciative, more
expressive, more positive, and less critical. I have heard the from people who
were challenged to use their anger proper or to control their appetite or their
lusts. I have heard the from people who were challenged to be more truthful or
more cheerful.
5. SUGGESTIONS FOR GETTING THE MAXIMUM BENEFIT FROM THIS
CHAPTER:
Now, what about you? Will you believe the truth of 2 Timothy 3:16 and use your
Bible for the purposes and in the way taught by this passage? If you will and
do, you will experience the benefit of 2 Timothy 3:17.
1. Reread this chapter, and as you do use a highlighter pen to highlight the most
important statements that are made in this chapter.
2. Write out your answer to the following questions:
1) What reasons do Christians have for believing that the Bible is the most reliable
book in the entire world?
2) What reasons do Christians have for believing that the Bible is the most helpful
book in the entire world?
3) Why are many professing Christians so ill-equipped to handle the inevitable
challenges and problems of life?
4) Why do you think many professing Christians spend so little time studying
Scripture?
5) How did people torture or wrest the Scriptures in the time of the early
church?
6) How do people today torture or wrest the Scriptures? What have you observed in this
regard? How have you twisted or misused the Scripture?
7) What important rules must we keep in mind if we are to accurately handle God's
Word?
8) What has God been teaching you from His Word in recent days?
9) In what areas has God been using His Word to reprove you in recent days or in
the past?
10) In what areas has God been using His Word to correct you in recent days or in
the past?
11) In what areas has God been using His Word to train you in righteousness in
recent days?
12) In what areas do you need to become more adequate and more thoroughly equipped for
good works?
13) In the light of the material presented in this chapter, what changes do you need
to make in your life in terms of the way you personally study or listen to
God's Word?
Notices
John Oberholzer
Collection
Praise God from whom all blessing flow
Prayer
Hymn
Benediction
The Lord bless thee and keep thee,
The Lord make his face to shine upon thee,
Andbe gracious unto thee,
The Lord lift up His countenance upon thee,
And give thee peace
Amen
Doxology
Now unto Him
