Promises of a Text Driven Life #2

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Bible, Effect of Reading

The story has been told of a South Sea Islander who proudly displayed his Bible to a G.I. during World War II. “We’ve outgrown that sort of thing,” the soldier said. The native smiled back, “It’s a good thing we haven’t. If it weren’t for this book, you’d have been a meal by now!”59

Sometimes we need to devour the Word of God to keep from Devouring the people of God don’t we.

Karen’s mother was startled to find her five-year-old going through a new Bible storybook and circling the word God wherever it appeared on the page. Stifling her first reaction to reprimand the child for defacing a book, she quietly asked, “Why are you doing that?” Karen’s matter-of-fact answer was: “So that I will know where to find God when I want him.”

[1] Michael P. Green. (2000). 1500 illustrations for biblical preaching (p. 29). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

Sometimes its necessary for us to devour the Word of God, so that we won’t devour the people of God isn’t it, not literally of course.

[1] Michael P. Green. (2000). 1500 illustrations for biblical preaching (p. 29). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

Karen’s mother was startled to find her five-year-old going through a new Bible storybook and circling the word God wherever it appeared on the page. Stifling her first reaction to reprimand the child for defacing a book, she quietly asked, “Why are you doing that?” Karen’s matter-of-fact answer was: “So that I will know where to find God when I want him.”

Sometimes its necessary to search the pages of scripture so that we can find God when we need Him.

When reading the Bible we see the transcendence of God - The heavens cannot contain themselves in declaring the glory of their Creator.

Yet, thanks be to God, the magnificent One has revealed himself as the merciful One - The Bible cannot contain itself in declaring the grace of our Savior.

Please join me, take your tablet, phone or physical Bible and make your way to , and let’s read from this song of praise by King David about God’s Word.

Honor Him and Stand as we read about Him.

Psalm 19:8–14 NKJV

8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping them there is great reward. 12 Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. 13 Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.

Psalm 19:8-

Howard G. Hendricks wrote a book on the art and science of reading the Bible, titled “Living by the Book.” He goes into much greater detail about the how, or some beneficial processes in reading. I highly recommend you finding/purchasing a copy to aid you as we continue our challenge of reading through the Bible together in 2018.

In his book, he gives some reasons why people do not read the Bible:

The story has been told of a South Sea Islander who proudly displayed his Bible to a G.I. during World War II. “We’ve outgrown that sort of thing,” the soldier said. The native smiled back, “It’s a good thing we haven’t. If it weren’t for this book, you’d have been a meal by now!”59

Michael P. Green. (2000). 1500 illustrations for biblical preaching (p. 29). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

2. Some think there is a secret technique

3. Some think only pastors and theologians know the technique (or they might think that’s what they pay the preacher for)

4. Priorities are upside down or twisted around (I’ll read if I get around to it or have time)

I have learned over time, after 17 years of parenting and 18 years of being a kid before parenthood, that guilt is a horrible motivator.

So my goal is never to guilt you into reading your bible more. I mean which would you rather go see: the grandma who makes you feel guilty about not coming more often; or the grandma who gives you moon pies, cokes, dumplings and peach cobbler whenever you do visit. (I miss my grandma).

God wants you to see all the goodness of His Word. He wants you to be satisfied and fed when you leave. He wants you anxious for the next visit because of how sweet and precious the last one was to you.

Transitional Sentence(s) and Keyword: Like I mentioned, Hendricks in his book on Bible Study gives a more in depth discussion on the various ways of How to read. This sermon and the others in the series are an aerial view of why or the benefits we receive when we read the Bible. God wants His promises found in His Word to be your motivation for living a text-driven life.

The next promise we find this psalm revealing to us is:

One or more versions of the Bible, translate the word “pure” in v.8 as “radiant” - This is another parallelism the author makes to the sun mentioned in the first six verses. The commands of God are so crystal clear that they bring light into the darkest places of the human heart.

Ronald Reagan was right when he said, “ Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.”

That is because when the Bible is rightly understood there is nothing in it that would lead a person into sin. The less we sin the less problems are created.

But, there in also lies one of the reasons so many are antagonistic at worst and lackadaisical at best towards the Bible. One or more versions of the Bible, translate the word “pure” in v.8 as “radiant” - This is another parallelism the author makes to the sun mentioned in the first six verses. The commands of God are so crystal clear that they bring light into the darkest places of the human heart.

I went with Silas on his 3rd grade field trip to the Florida Caverns in Marianna Fl. I remember the guide taking us into the deepest cavern, he had us gather in the center and then he pulled the switch on the one light hanging there. Pitch black, cannot see my hand in front of my face, then he pulled the switch again, and instantly I could see to walk around

To the one who has been saved by grace and become believer and follower of Christ God’s word says in

2 Corinthians 4:6 NKJV

6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians

Colossians 1:13–14 CSB

13 He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. 14 In him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

God’s word eliminates the Darkness, and it is through us He intends to do it.

Colossians 1:13-

- If you are a Christ follower you are the light of the World, a city set on a hill, not intended to be hidden. It is by the book - Us in the Word and the Word getting into Us - that our light shines brighter. The more we are in it the brighter we shine

It is not enough just to be saved and given a little light. God is found in all of his Word. The word “command” in v.8 - refers to the Law/Word as a Whole.

That is why Paul prays for the Ephesian Christians

Ephesians 1:17–18 CSB

17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints,

Ephesians 1:17-

The work of the Spirit is divinely linked with the work of the Word. Enlightening is God opening your mind to see clearly what he intends for you to do with your heart and your hands.

God’s commands provide us with a code of moral and ethical purity our attitude and our actions. It promises:

V.9 - speaks of a moral reverence developed by God’s Word in the one who reads it. The more it is read, studied and the more one becomes enlightened by it and God’s Spirit, then the deeper one’s reverence for God as Holy goes.

Habakkuk 1:13 CSB

13 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil, and you cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do you tolerate those who are treacherous? Why are you silent while one who is wicked swallows up one who is more righteous than himself?

This reverence becomes the attitude of your hearts developed by God that leads you to seek a right relationship with the source of the fear (God) and to live righteously with Him

Hab.

God expected His people, based on His character, to be morally pure and stable.

A little boy walked down the beach, and as he did, he spied a matronly woman sitting under a beach umbrella on the sand. He walked up to her and asked, “Are you a Christian?”

“Yes.”

“Do you read your Bible every day?”

She nodded her head, “Yes.”

“Do you pray often?” the boy asked next, and again she answered, “Yes.”

With that he asked his final question, “Will you hold my quarter while I go swimming?”1438[1]

[1] Michael P. Green. (2000). 1500 illustrations for biblical preaching (p. 389). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

When you take time to take God’s Word seriously you begin to take your walk with Him seriously. It conveys this idea of a wall around you hemming you in and protecting you from making bad choices. You become trustworthy. “Fear of the Lord” causes you to avoid those behaviors that you know are displeasing to Him, and it leads you to attitudes and actions that you know honor Him.

“This book will either keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this book.”

The Bible provides a stability for believers the World envies but ignores and refuses to read the Bible to find it. When your world is in shambles you have a firm foundation they do not have. It is so because it is “enduring” or ‘stands permanently’

1 Peter 1:24–25 CSB

24 For All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like a flower of the grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord endures forever. And this word is the gospel that was proclaimed to you.

1 Peter 1:24-25

The mirror reveals that our time is limited, yet God’s Word is timeless just as He is. Fear of the Lord here eliminates any fear of the Lord there.

It is only from Scripture that we learn how. From scripture we have the gospel that leads us to Rejoicing in Jesus our Savior and the gospel we must use in Reaching the World to make disciples to do the same.

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 CSB

3 For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

See the Bible was for us but never about us. The Bible is about a just God who is merciful and gracious. The Bible is about how we can find in Him what we cannot find in ourselves, seen in this last promise.

The “judgments” of God are his verdicts, his penalties, his consequences against sin fulfilled in Jesus.

All throughout the Old Testament, God promised that sin would be judged. The OT sacrifices were a system of appeasement of those verdicts, yet they did not fulfill or satisfy permanently the wrath of God.

There is a story of two friends who grew up together, one becoming a judge and one becoming a beggar. One day the beggar found himself standing in front of his old friend for stealing a few loaves of bread.

The judge knew that he old friend was guilty because he still had the bread sticking out of his pockets. The judge was obligated to render justice , so he fined him 20 dollars or 20 days in jail time. The beggar confessed of his wrongdoing and his broken state of inability to pay the minor fine.

The judge rendered the verdict, then he stood up, took off his robe, stepped down from his bench on high, open his wallet and gave his old friend he had missed the 20 dollars to pay the fine.

All throughout OT God promised the coming Messiah who would take off his robe of royalty, step down out of heaven, take on our flesh, and offer himself as the only sinless sacrifice capable of satisfying His own verdict against our sin.

Ronald Reagan was right when he said, “ Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.” - His name is Jesus

We see an awful lot of unpunished sin and unrepentant sinners, a lot of unrighteousness and injustices.

“True” in v.9 - can also be translated as “certainty” and “trustworthiness”

God’s Word presents True Justice in Jesus

God’s Word promises True Justice in Jesus

For the one who refuses to accept the gift of salvation offered by Jesus the Bible promises justice will be served. We can be certain that everyone will give an account at the last day, regardless if they are held accountable here or not.

If you have been wronged God will make it right. We learn from God’s Word to think rightly about justice. The world seems unjust but not God.

God is not politically biased. God is not emotionally swayed. God is not intellectually manipulated. His judgments are fair, precise, consistent and timely.

Conclusion: In her book Parenting with Scripture, Kara Durbin wrote, “When I was little, I wanted a Bible just like my mom’s, and I was thrilled when I received one as a present. As I grew up, I underlined verses as I memorized them and marked ones that spoke to me about a particular topic. I loved being able to flip through, finding familiar passages with my notations in that big book. It made God’s Word feel like home to me.”

You come to Sunday School and hear teaching about the Word. You come to Worship Service and hear preaching of the Word. But, to truly experience the transforming power and joyous promises of the Bible, you have to walk across your living room or sit down in your den; you have to go to your kitchen table or go into your bedroom find your Bible, open it up and make yourself at home in God’s Word

Church - This is what I am calling Our 3 Peaks of Purpose: PRBC is a group of disciples Rejoicing in Jesus our Savior, becoming Rooted in the Word of God, and Reaching the World to make disciples who do the same.

Make yourself at home in God’s Word

Not of it will be possible unless without the Bible.

Not of it will be possible without the Bible.

Promises of a Text Driven Life #2

Promises of a Text Driven Life

God’s Word is Spiritually Illuminating

God’s Word is Morally Stabilizing

God’s Word is Judicially Fulfilling