Fill Your Tank

FOUNDATIONS – SERMON 5

FILL YOUR TANK

INTRODUCTION:

WHEN KIMBERLEY AND I FIRST GOT MARRIED, WE DIDN’T HAVE MUCH MONEY.

I LIKE TO SAY THAT WE DIDN’T HAVE TWO NICKELS TO RUB TOGETHER.

OUR SON, BOOMER, WAS BORN WITHIN THE FIRST YEAR OF OUR MARRIAGE AND I GOTTA TELL YA, WE WERE JUST TRYING TO FIGURE THIS MARRIAGE AND PARENTING THING OUT.

AND WHEN I SAY THAT WE DIDN’T HAVE MUCH MONEY, I MEAN WE DIDN’T HAVE MUCH MONEY, TO THE POINT THAT THERE WERE THOSE TIMES WHEN I WOULD PULL UP TO THE GAS PUMP AND GET THREE DOLLARS WORTH OF GAS.

IF I WASN’T GOING VERY FAR, THREE DOLLARS WORTH OF GAS MIGHT GET ME TO MY DESTINATION, BUT SOMETIMES, I WOULD TRY TO STRETCH THAT THREE DOLLARS JUST A LITTLE FARTHER, AND MORE THAN ONCE, I RAN OUT OF GAS.

WHAT I LEARNED IN THOSE MOMENTS WAS THAT IF I WANTED TO GET FARTHER DOWN THE ROAD, I WAS GOING TO NEED A LOT MORE FUEL.

IT DIDN’T MATTER WHAT KIND OF CAR I WAS DRIVING, IF I WANTED TO TRAVEL FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD, THAT VEHICLE NEEDED FUEL.

AND SOME OF THE VEHICLES I HAVE OWNED OVER THE YEARS HAVE LOOKED BETTER AND WERE MORE MECHANICALLY SOUND THAN OTHERS, BUT NO MATTER HOW SHINY AND PERFECT THAT VEHICLE MAY HAVE LOOKED, WITHOUT FUEL TO PROPEL IT, IT WASN’T GOING ANYWHERE.

NOW I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE THINKING…THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO GET DOWN THE ROAD, AND YOU WOULD BE RIGHT TO THINK THAT, BUT IF CHOSE ANY OTHER METHOD OF GETTING DOWN THE ROAD, I WAS GOING TO HAVE TO SACRIFICE SOMETHING ELSE.

FOR EXAMPLE, I COULD WALK, AND THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT, BUT IF I AM TO WALK DOWN THE ROAD, I AM GOING TO SACRIFICE TIME, AND PHYSICAL ENERGY. I’M GOING TO MOVE MORE SLOWLY, AND IT WILL BE MUCH MORE LABORIOUS.

I COULD GET MY CAR TOWED, BUT THEN I WOULD BE BOUND TO PAY THE TOW TRUCK, AND IF I COULD ONLY AFFORD THREE DOLLARS WORTH OF GAS IN MY OUT OF GAS CAR, THE CHANCES OF ME BEING ABLE TO SACRIFICE MY HARD-EARNED MONEY FOR A TOW TRUCK TO MOVE ME DOWN THE ROAD A LITTLE WAYS DOESN’T SEEM VERY LIKELY.

I COULD HITCH A RIDE WITH A FRIEND, BUT IF I DO THAT, THEN I AM BOUND BY THE DIRECTION THAT FRIEND WANTS TO GO AND THE DETOURS THAT FRIEND WANTS TO TAKE. AND THE LIKLIHOOD OF MY FRIENDS WANTING TO END UP AT THE SAME DESTINATION I WANT TO END UP AT IS LOW.

MY POINT IS THIS: IF YOU WANT TO GET TO WHERE GOD WANTS YOU TO GO, YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUELED WITH WHAT GOD WANTS YOU TO BE FUELED WITH.

TOO MANY PEOPLE TODAY ARE SLOW-WALKING THEIR FAITH, WHEN THE BIBLE TELLS US THAT WE ARE TO LIVE AS IF WE’RE RUNNING A RACE.

OTHERS ARE LETTING THE CULTURE TOW THEM ALONG, UNAWARE THAT THE CULTURE WILL ONLY TAKE YOU SO FAR, AND THAT THE PRICE YOU PAY TO FOLLOW CULTURE IS A VERY HIGH PRICE.

OTHERS ARE PIGGY-BACKING ON THE FAITH OF OTHERS, HOPING THAT OTHERS WILL SHOULDER THE LOAD, DO ALL THE HEAVY-LIFTING OF FAITH, AND HOPING THAT GOD WILL BE OK WITH THEM BEING UNAWARE OF GOD’S WILL FOR THEIR LIVES, UNWILLING TO STEP OUT IN FAITH (WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GOD’S PEOPLE TAKING LEAPS OF FAITH?), AND UNABLE TO MUSTER UP ENOUGH HORSEPOWER TO TRAVEL DOWN THE PATH GOD HAS LAID OUT FOR THEM.

WHAT WE NEED IS A RETURN TO THE FUEL THAT HAS FUELED THE PEOPLE OF GOD FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

WE NEED TO RETURN TO THE WORD OF GOD.

HOW AMAZING IS THE BIBLE?!?

IT IS A BOOK OF:

66 BOOKS

1189 CHAPTERS.

WRITTEN BY 40 AUTHORS OVER A PERIOD OF 1500 YEARS.

CONTAINING 7 MAJOR GENRES:

- 1. NARRATIVE

- 2. POETRY

- 3. WISDOM

- 4. PROPHECY

- 5. GOSPELS

- 6. EPISTLES

- 7. APOCALYPSE

IT IS FILLED WITH TIMELESS TRUTH, RELEVANT TO EVERY CULTURE.

DR. TONY EVANS SAYS THIS ABOUT THE BIBLE: “THE BIBLE IS NOT INFORMATION ABOUT GOD, IT IS THE VOICE OF GOD IN PRINT!”

IF WE ARE TO BE PROPERLY FUELED FOR THE CONTINUOUS SHIFTING OF CULTURE, AND THE CALL THAT GOD HAS PLACED UPON HIS CHURCH, WE HAVE GOT TO GET AWAY FROM THE “THREE DOLLARS WORTH” MENTALITY WHEN IT COMES TO READING, UNDERSTANDING, AND APPLYING THE WORD OF GOD TO OUR LIVES.

WE HAVE GOT TO START FILLING OUR TANKS WITH THE ONLY FUEL SUFFICIENT TO TAKE US WHERE GOD WANTS US TO BE.

WE MUST ONCE AGAIN BECOME PEOPLE OF THE BOOK!

AND WE CAN, AND FOR JUST A FEW MINUTES, I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU WHY WE CAN AND MUST RETURN TO LIVING BY THE TEACHINGS OF SCRIPTURE.

1. IT IS DIVINELY INSPIRED.

a. –17.16 ALL SCRIPTURE IS BREATHED OUT BY GOD AND PROFITABLE FOR TEACHING, FOR REPROOF, FOR CORRECTION, AND FOR TRAINING IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, 17 THAT THE MAN OF GOD MAY BE COMPLETE, EQUIPPED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK.

b. BF&M – “THE HOLY BIBLE WAS WRITTEN BY MEN DIVINELY INSPIRED AND IS GOD'S REVELATION OF HIMSELF TO MAN. IT IS A PERFECT TREASURE OF DIVINE INSTRUCTION. IT HAS GOD FOR ITS AUTHOR…”

c. INSPIRATION – WE HAVE MISAPPLIED AND REDEFINED THE WORD INSPIRED OR INSPIRATION THESE DAYS.

i. WE OFTEN WILL REFER TO SOMETHING AS AN “INSPIRED PERFORMANCE” OR AND INSPIRING PORTRAIT.

ii. BUT THE WORD THAT IS USED IN THE BIBLE TO DESCRIBE ITS OWN DELIVERY IS A WORD THAT I THINK THE ESV GETS RIGHT HERE.

1. IT’S A WORD THAT MEANS “GOD-BREATHED.”

d. THERE IS NO OTHER TEXT LIKE THE BIBLE.

i. THE KORAN IS NOT GOD-BREATHED.

ii. THE BOOK OF MORMON IS NOT GOD-BREATHED.

iii. THE HINDU VEDAS ARE NOT GOD-BREATHED.

iv. THE BUDDHIST DHARMA IS NOT GOD-BREATHED.

v. ONLY THE BIBLE IS GOD-BREATHED, AND BECAUSE OF THIS TRUTH, IT IS THE ONLY SOURCE FOR CHRISTIAN LIFE AND PRACTICE.

e. BUT WE NEED TO BE FUELED BY SCRIPTURE NOT ONLY BECAUSE IT IS INSPIRED, BUT ALSO BECAUSE…

2. IT IS VALUABLE AND RELIABLE.

a. – 16 FOR WE DID NOT FOLLOW CLEVERLY DEVISED MYTHS WHEN WE MADE KNOWN TO YOU THE POWER AND COMING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, BUT WE WERE EYEWITNESSES OF HIS MAJESTY. 17 FOR WHEN HE RECEIVED HONOR AND GLORY FROM GOD THE FATHER, AND THE VOICE WAS BORNE TO HIM BY THE MAJESTIC GLORY, “THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, WITH WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED,” 18 WE OURSELVES HEARD THIS VERY VOICE BORNE FROM HEAVEN, FOR WE WERE WITH HIM ON THE HOLY MOUNTAIN. 19 AND WE HAVE THE PROPHETIC WORD MORE FULLY CONFIRMED, TO WHICH YOU WILL DO WELL TO PAY ATTENTION AS TO A LAMP SHINING IN A DARK PLACE, UNTIL THE DAY DAWNS AND THE MORNING STAR RISES IN YOUR HEARTS, 20 KNOWING THIS FIRST OF ALL, THAT NO PROPHECY OF SCRIPTURE COMES FROM SOMEONE’S OWN INTERPRETATION. 21 FOR NO PROPHECY WAS EVER PRODUCED BY THE WILL OF MAN, BUT MEN SPOKE FROM GOD AS THEY WERE CARRIED ALONG BY THE HOLY SPIRIT.

b. BF&M – “…SALVATION FOR ITS END, AND TRUTH, WITHOUT ANY MIXTURE OF ERROR, FOR ITS MATTER. THEREFORE, ALL SCRIPTURE IS TOTALLY TRUE AND TRUSTWORTHY.”

c. SOME PEOPLE EXPRESS DISTRUST OF CERTAIN TRANSLATIONS OF THE BIBLE, AND RIGHTLY SO.

d. BUT IT IS IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT NONE OF THE ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS OF SCRIPTURE EXIST.

i. NONE

e. AND SO WHAT HAS BEEN TRANSLATED FOR US INTO THE BIBLE WE HAVE IN PRINT OR ON ELECTRONIC MEDIA…ALL THESE HAVE BEEN TRANSLATED FROM COPIES OF THE ORIGINALS.

i. AND IN THE MAJOR, MOST POPULAR TRANSLATIONS OUT THERE TODAY, THERE ARE VERY FEW CONCEPTUAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM.

ii. IF YOU READ THE KING JAMES VERSION, OR THE CHRISTIAN STANDARD BIBLE, OR THE ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION, OR THE NEW AMERICAN STANDARD VERSION, OR THE NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION…

1. MOST OF THE CONCEPTS ARE IN ALIGNMENT.

2. NONE IS MORE SACRED THAN THE OTHER, EXCEPT IN THE MINDS OF SOME PEOPLE.

3. BUT DIFFERENT PEOPLE PREFER DIFFERENT TRANSLATIONS OF THE SCRIPTURE, AND THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT.

iii. WHERE IT GOES WRONG FOR US IS WHEN WE CHOOSE NOT TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH WHATEVER TRANSLATION WE DO OWN.

1. WHEN WE DON’T READ THE BIBLE, AND ALLOW IT TO SPEAK TO US.

iv. REMEMBER WHAT PAUL WROTE TO HIS YOUNG FRIEND TIMOTHY ABOUT THE SCRIPTURES IN OUR TEXT FOR TODAY…

f. – 14 BUT AS FOR YOU, CONTINUE IN WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED AND HAVE FIRMLY BELIEVED, KNOWING FROM WHOM YOU LEARNED IT 15 AND HOW FROM CHILDHOOD YOU HAVE BEEN ACQUAINTED WITH THE SACRED WRITINGS, WHICH ARE ABLE TO MAKE YOU WISE FOR SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS. 16 ALL SCRIPTURE IS BREATHED OUT BY GOD AND PROFITABLE FOR TEACHING, FOR REPROOF, FOR CORRECTION, AND FOR TRAINING IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, 17 THAT THE MAN OF GOD MAY BE COMPLETE, EQUIPPED FOR EVERY GOOD WORK.

3. IT IS THE STANDARD FOR HUMAN CONDUCT.

a. – 12 FOR THE WORD OF GOD IS LIVING AND ACTIVE, SHARPER THAN ANY TWO-EDGED SWORD, PIERCING TO THE DIVISION OF SOUL AND OF SPIRIT, OF JOINTS AND OF MARROW, AND DISCERNING THE THOUGHTS AND INTENTIONS OF THE HEART.

b. BF&M – “IT REVEALS THE PRINCIPLES BY WHICH GOD JUDGES US, AND THEREFORE IS, AND WILL REMAIN TO THE END OF THE WORLD, THE TRUE CENTER OF CHRISTIAN UNION, AND THE SUPREME STANDARD BY WHICH ALL HUMAN CONDUCT, CREEDS, AND RELIGIOUS OPINIONS SHOULD BE TRIED.”

c. THERE IS SOMETHING VERY UNIQUE ABOUT THE WORD OF GOD, IN THAT IT TRULY HAS THE ABILITY TO AFFECT THE THOUGHTS AND THE CONDUCT OF ITS READER.

d. THERE IS NO MENTION OF THE NEED TO TEST FEELINGS IN SCRIPTURE.

i. AS A MATTER OF FACT, FEELINGS, OFTEN REFERRED TO AS THE CONSCIENCE OF MAN, ARE SAID IN SCRIPTURE TO BE SEARED.

ii. MEANING THAT THEY CANNOT BE TRUSTED.

iii. WE OFTEN HEAR PEOPLE SAY “YOU JUST NEED TO TRUST YOUR GUT,” WHEN WHAT NEEDS TO BE SAID IS, “YOU NEED TO TRUST THE WORD OF GOD.”

e. THE TRUTHS CONTAINED WITHIN ITS PAGES ARE NOT UP FOR DEBATE.

i. WE DO NOT HAVE THE LIBERTY TO PICK AND CHOOSE WHICH PORTIONS OF SCRIPTURE WE WILL ADHERE TO AND WHICH PORTIONS OF SCRIPTURE WE WILL REJECT.

ii. WHEN THE BIBLE SAYS “DO THIS,” WE SIMPLY ARE TO “DO THIS.”

4. ITS CENTRAL CHARACTER IS JESUS.

a. – 12 THEREFORE, SINCE WE ARE SURROUNDED BY SO GREAT A CLOUD OF WITNESSES, LET US ALSO LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT, AND SIN WHICH CLINGS SO CLOSELY, AND LET US RUN WITH ENDURANCE THE RACE THAT IS SET BEFORE US, 2 LOOKING TO JESUS, THE FOUNDER AND PERFECTER OF OUR FAITH, WHO FOR THE JOY THAT WAS SET BEFORE HIM ENDURED THE CROSS, DESPISING THE SHAME, AND IS SEATED AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE THRONE OF GOD.

b. BF&M – “ALL SCRIPTURE IS A TESTIMONY TO CHRIST, WHO IS HIMSELF THE FOCUS OF DIVINE REVELATION.”

CONCLUSION:

THE REALITY IS THAT THERE ARE ONLY TWO SPIRITUAL FUEL SOURCES AVAILABLE.

ONE WILL PROPEL YOU DOWN GOD’S PATH, AND THE OTHER DOWN SATAN’S PATH.

GOD’S PATH IS OFTEN DIFFICULT, BUT THOSE WHO ARE PEOPLE OF THE BOOK KNOW THAT WE ARE NEVER PROMISED AN EASY JOURNEY, BUT WE ARE PROMISED THAT WE HAVE A COMPANION WHO WILL NEVER LEAVE US, EVEN IN THE MOST DIFFICULT OF SITUATIONS, AND GOD’S PATH LEADS TO BLESSING.

SATAN’S PATH CAN BE EASIER, BUT IT LEADS TO DESTRUCTION.

YOU GET TO DECIDE WHAT WILL PROVIDE THE FUEL FOR YOUR LIFE.

I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO DECIDE TODAY TO FILL YOUR TANK WITH THE DIVINELY INSPIRED, NEVER-FAILING, CHRIST-PROMOTING WORD OF THE LIVING GOD.