Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Proverbs 19, 24. Proverbs 19, verse 24.
Proverbs 19, 24. A slothful man hideth his hand
in his bosom. and will not so much as bring
it to his mouth again." Today, I want us to consider
the attitude, characteristic, the thoughts of a natural man. Now this is the natural man here. A slothful man. Lazy. Lazy. A slacker is what that word means. Slothful. Now he may not be too
lazy when it comes to the things of this world. I know a lot of
people that don't make any claim to believe the gospel of God's
free grace. And they're not lazy. They're
not lazy people. I mean, they're industrious people. But, as always the case, these scriptures
are not talking about this world. They're talking about life from
here on. Eternity. All of the scriptures
set forth the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. If I've just got
my Bible up top, you may say something like this, mine says
up top moral virtues and their contrary vices. If this, I've
said before, we've been going through the book of Proverbs
verse by verse, and if all we see is just some good common
sense advice, Just something we can live for today. We missed
it? I've entitled this message, Too
Lazy to Eat. Too Lazy to Eat. Now, let me read you the literal
of that verse right there. Here's what it says. A lazy one
puts his hand into a dish. Now, you see where it says, a
basin, I'm sorry, a bosom. A slothful man hideth his hand
in his bosom. The word, look it up, this is
what it means, a dish. A dish, a bowl, like food is
what it's talking about. This is it. Here's the literal.
A lazy one puts his hand in a dish and he will not return it to
his mouth, a lazy man, a slothful man. Now, I want you to just
think with me for just a second. If you saw, if we actually observed
somebody and they were so lazy that they would not put their
hand into a plate of food and bring the food to their mouth
because of laziness. Now, if his arms are broken,
okay, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. But if it's because
of laziness, he's so lazy, he won't put his hand in a bowl
of food and lift it to his mouth. This is what you'd say. I have
never in my life ever witnessed such Foolish indolence, laziness. But let me ask you this. Is that
not the way of the spiritual sluggard? A slothful man born
in Adam. Lazy, lazy, lazy. Now the only
way I know this, the only way I can make a statement saying
that a slothful, lazy, Lazy man. Hides his hand into a dish, and
he's so lazy, spiritually, that he won't bring it to his mouth.
He won't eat. The only way I know that is that
the Word of God says it's that way. I could never come up with
a thought like that. How would I ever think of that?
But here's, according to the scriptures, man born in Adam
is spiritually lazy and will not eat a bread that sustains
his soul. He won't do it. Now let me tell
you what he will do. Here again, I'm going to prove
this. Let me tell you what he will do. According to the scriptures,
he will eat of that bread that will satisfy the dead soul. Now
let me tell you what I'm talking about so nobody has to wonder,
what in the world is he talking about? It's the hearing of the
gospel. The hearing of the gospel. A
spiritual sluggard will not put his hand into the dish, the food
of the bread of heaven, and lift it up and eat it. He won't do
it. Let me tell you what he will do. I want you to hold your place.
Turn back to Proverbs 4, 14. I'm going to show you what he
will do. Proverbs 4, verse 14 to 17. Now here's what he will
do, and I can attest to this, I've told you, I came up under
false religion, eating the bread of false religion. Now, knew
nothing of the gospel, never heard, never heard the gospel
till I was grown. I was grown, married, had kids,
never heard the gospel before. But listen what a man will eat.
Now he will put his hand into this bowl and eat this. Proverbs
4.14. Enter not into the path of the
wicked, nor go into the way of evil men. Now let me tell you
what that's saying. So here again, so you can all
understand with me. They're talking about listening
to a false gospel. And I'm going to show you. Now
listen to what they're saying and see if I'm not right. Enter
not into the path, into the way, into the walk of the wicked.
or go into the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn
from it, and pass away. For they sleep not except they
have done mischief, and their sleep is taken away unless they
cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence." Now, if the hearing of the gospel
and the believing of the gospel is the eating of the bread of
heaven himself, What would the opposite of that be? Eating the
bread of wickedness. Hearing a false gospel. So, I know this, that the slothful
man, the sluggard, the spiritual sluggard, he will eat the bread
that will satisfy a dead soul. Tell a man what he wants to hear.
Tell him that he's got some little good in him and that everybody,
you know, has got faith and all you've got to do is exercise
it and the Lord has got a special plan for your life. Tell him all of that. And he'll
just eat that up. I'll eat that. That's what the spiritual sluggard
said, the lazy man. He'll eat the bread of man-honoring
religion. He'll eat that. Listen to this.
Lord, Lord, have not we prophesied in thy name? I'm a preacher. I have preachers. I have people
call me and they'll call and they start off their conversation
giving me their title, Chuck, it's about that long, you know,
and it just makes me sick. That's what I want to do, you
know, but I'll stand there and try to, for the sake of the name
of this church, I'll try to be Honestly, try to be, but I'm
telling you, they will eat the bread of man-honoring religion. We prophesied in thy name. In
thy name, we've cast out devils. In thy name, we've done many
wonderful works. They'll eat the bread of the
praise of men and of outward morality. God, I'm glad I'm not like other
men are. I fast. I tithe. I'm not like that publican right
there. They'll eat that bread. They love to stand on the corners
and have men come by and say, Rabbi, Rabbi! That's true, isn't
it? I know it is. But he will not
lift his hand by faith to eat of Christ. You know why? He's spiritually dead. And in that spiritual death,
it's evidenced by he's not hungry for the bread of heaven. Don't
tell me about God who's sovereign. Don't tell me that. Don't tell
me that God does as he will in the army of heaven and among
the inhabitants. Don't tell me that the Lord died just for his
elect, even though God said it. Don't tell me that. A man will
eat men's praises, His own glory, but He doesn't care for His soul.
He's going to take hold of the Holy Scriptures. How many people
are standing in pulpits today using this same Bible, just like
this one? They've got the Bible in their
hand. Same Bible that we're looking at this morning. That precious
vessel of God's grace and mercy that sets forth truly the food
of heaven, the bread of heaven, the spiritual manna himself,
the Lord Jesus Christ. And they'll say, I believe this
book from cover to cover. No, you don't. Not unless you
believe the gospel of God's free grace, you don't. No, you don't. No, you don't. Some might say,
well, that's just your opinion. No, I'm telling you, I'm quoting
the Apostle Paul. Galatians 1.7, if we are an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel than that which we've
preached unto you, let him be accursed. Now I can tell you
this, I wouldn't want to make a statement that bold unless
God said it first. Then I'll repeat it, and repeat
it assuredly. I'm telling you, a man that cares
for his soul will hear what God has to say. Men may doubt, but
I'll tell you this, They may want to put it off, they're lazy,
they're lazy. Let me show you the absolute
scriptural evidence of laziness. Acts 2. Turn with me. Acts 2.24. Acts 2.24. I've gone
over this scripture right here time and time and time again
since I started looking at this. A few days ago, and I'm convinced,
I'm convinced this is the message of the hour right now, but I'm
telling you, I want to be as plain as I possibly can. A man,
a woman, that hears the gospel of God's grace, and says, you
know what? I don't think that's for me right
now, to be honest with you. The scripture reveals him to
be a slothful man. Lazy. Look at Acts 2, 24-25. Scripture sets forth whenever
the apostle Paul... I said Acts 2, I meant Acts 24.
Turn it over, I'll just give you a second. Acts 24. I turned
to 2 myself, listening to myself. Acts 24, verse 24-25. Here was Paul, the apostle, preaching
before Felix. Acts 24, 24, and after certain
days when Felix came with his wife, Drusilla, which was a Jewess,
he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ.
That's what we're preaching this morning. Faith that's in Christ
Jesus alone. And as he reasoned of righteousness,
God's righteousness, temperance, judgment to come, Felix trembled.
And answered, Go thy way for this time, and when I have a
convenient season, I'll call for thee. I'll be honest with
you, Paul, right now. I hear what you're saying, but
I just don't have time. I just don't have time. Here's
the problem with that. Men will hear that message, the
message of God's sovereign grace. They just, they don't have any,
they don't have a desire for it. They have no heart for it. Let me ask you this. You that know the Lord, do you
not and can you not admit before you knew the Lord? Now I can
truthfully say, I can relate to this. Did you ever find before
the Lord called you out of darkness? That there was a time when the
hearing of the gospel then, you tolerated it. That's what you
did, you tolerated it. I've got to be here, I've got
to go, but I'm telling you, this basically is a drudgery to me. It's a drudgery that I can just
endure for just a little while. You that know the Lord, was there
not a time in your life when your heart had a dead, slothful
attitude? Just lazy, lazy. I can take it
or leave it. Now that's the truth. Was there
ever a time in your life when the secret closet of prayer,
when you pray, go into your closet and shut the door and pray to
your Father in Heaven. Was there ever a time in your
life when that secret closet was just not as important as
something else? I just, right now to be honest
with you, I just don't have time. I just don't have time. Oh, I
don't mind praying whenever I get a chance. Was there ever a time
when you found yourself not burning within when the preacher Proclaim
the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ in the holy scriptures and God
was pleased by his spirit to open up the word to you and you
heard was there ever a time when you just was just, again, just
had too much stuff to do. And here's the problem. Never
realizing the consequences of such action. I want you to turn
with me to Matthew 24. Matthew 24, 36. Matthew 24, 36. I know we're turning a lot. That's
okay. Let's see what God has to say.
Never realizing The consequences of leaving this world with that
attitude. Now, the Lord's given us a heart
this morning and we say this, I know this, I'm so thankful
that God didn't leave me in that state, but when I was in that
state, I just didn't care. I just didn't care. Matthew 24,
36. But of the day and hour knoweth
no man. No, not the angel in heaven, but the Father only.
But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the
Son of Man be. For as in the days that were
before the flood, they were eating, drinking, Marrying, given in
marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and
knew not until the flood came and took them all away. So shall
also the coming of the Son of Man be." Today, as I've said
before, today might be the day of the Lord's coming for me. I've watched believers take their
last breath and thankful that they were a believer. I've watched
them die. And I'm thinking, do you know,
15 minutes ago, I'd never thought
I'd have seen that. They were doing fine. I just
didn't know. Here's a slothful man hideth
his hand in his bosom in a dish, and will not so much as bring
it to his mouth again. Spiritual laziness is evidenced
by an indifference to God's Word. Spiritual laziness. It's just
indifferent. I just don't have time. I pray
God, have mercy on us. Leave us in that state. That's
like the wayside hearer. You know, the sower went to sow.
You know, but somebody might say, yeah, but I'm not a wayside
hearer, because I'm still here. Yeah, but let me ask you this. Can we not all say, Lord, keep
me? Lord, but for your grace, I'm
going to be found to be a stony ground here, a thorny ground
here. They went out from us, which
evidenced that they were here at one time, or in a place where
the Gospels preached. They went out from us, but they
were not of us. For had they been of us, surely
they would have remained. I'm telling you, God's people's
got some confidence, but I'm telling you this, they're not
cocky. They're not presumptuous. They're not so, you know, bent. There ain't no way in the world
that you'd ever find me doing anything, walking away. You know
what? But for the grace of God, but
for the grace of God, I would have been gone. And I know just
enough about my old man in me, there's an old man in me that
just continually tells me, let's go, let's just go, let's leave,
you know. I want you to turn with me to
Luke 9, Luke chapter 9, Luke 9, 57. A man that's not a spiritual
sluggard. He's concerned about a few things. I'm going to just show you three
things very quickly and I'll be done. Luke 9, 57-62. Listen to the words of our Lord.
It came to pass, Luke 9, 57. It came to pass that as they
went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow
thee whithersoever thou goest. Count on me. And the Lord said
unto him, Foxes have holes, birds of the air have nests, but the
Son of Man hath not where to lay his head. And he said unto
another, he turned to somebody else. The Lord did. He said, Follow me. But he said,
Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. And Jesus said
unto him, Let the dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach
the kingdom of God. And another also said, Lord,
I'll follow Thee, but let me first go bid them farewell, which
are at my home, at my house. And Jesus said unto him, No man,
having put his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for
the kingdom of God. You know, can I just sum up those
scriptures right quick? Count the cost. Count the cost. I'm going to follow the Lord.
The Lord said, count the cost. I'm going to give you three things
concerning this thing of not being a spiritual, slothful person. Of not. Let me tell you what
one. There's three things. The life
of a believer. I'm going to tell you this from
Scripture. And I'm telling you I know this
is so. Listen to what God has to say.
The life of a believer. One who is not a spiritual sloth is one that the Spirit of God
has given a new heart, that heart that commits all to Him. This is what I mean. I have entrusted my soul to the
Lord Jesus Christ. Again, so you'll understand what
I mean when I say that. It's so easy to listen to somebody
say something and just kind of put it in your mind what you
think they're saying. This is what I'm saying. Having absolutely
nothing to add, I've committed all to Him. Not my walking down the aisle.
I did that, I'm going to tell you something, I think I did
that at least twice. Baptized, I think, three times. The reason I kept doing it, because
I just couldn't remember if I was really sincere. I told you that
the other day. I just couldn't remember. Here's what it is. I have nothing to add. I did
not add my faith. By faith, I believe that salvation
is by the grace of God. Here's my hope. I have committed
all to Him. Listen to Job. Though He slay
me, Yet, will I trust in Him? If He kills me, but I will maintain
my own ways before Him, I'm going to trust the Lord. 2 Timothy
1-2, I know whom I have believed. I'm persuaded that He's able
to keep that which I've committed unto Him against that day. When Stephen was being stoned
by the Jews, what did he say? Calling upon God, he said, Lord
Jesus, receive my spirit. How am I going to get to where
you are? Lord, if you don't receive my spirit, I don't have any hope. This is a spiritual man. This is a man that's alive, who's
not lazy. He's committed. He trusts nothing
in himself. Secondly, The believer's life
is one of diligence, and listen, as to the evidence of his salvation. 2 Peter 1.10, Wherefore the rather,
brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure. Give diligence. A believer in
the Lord Jesus Christ is not gonna take his salvation lightly. But according to the scriptures,
he's prompt, and he's earnest, and he's continually making effort
concerning His eternal state according to the Scriptures,
not looking to Himself and thinking, well, I've done this, this, this,
and this. I'm telling you, I know better than that. But what does
God have to say? Listen. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians
9.26. 1 Corinthians 9.26. Listen to
what the Apostle Paul says. 1 Corinthians 9.26. This is the Apostle Paul. He said, I therefore so run,
not as uncertainly, so fight I, not as one that beateth the
air. He said, I'm not shadow boxing. I'm not going through
the motion. I'm not going through these,
you know, I'm not just, well, I'm going to show up for church.
I'm going to bring my Bible, because that looks good. He said, but I keep under my
body and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means, when
I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. Paul, what are you saying? Are you saying that you believe
that you are an unbeliever or that you could lose your salvation?
No. No. He said, I'm not saying that
at all. I know whom I have believed. I'm persuaded. But I'm going
to tell you something. Man, left to himself, persuades
himself. But a believer is persuaded of
God and he's going to continually be taking this word and making
his calling and election sure. What am I going to do? Let me
ask you this. Listen to these questions. Making
our calling and election sure. Am I a helpless sinner? As I said a few minutes ago,
having no confidence in my flesh. Now, if you're sitting here resting
in your profession or in your baptism or in your whatever,
if you're resting in something, I'm not talking to you. I'm talking
to a helpless sinner that's here by the grace of God. Christ Jesus
came to this world to save sinners. Secondly, is my salvation by
the grace of God or is it by my works? These all kind of just
flow from one to the other. I know by the deeds of the law
shall no man be justified. And thirdly, have I been called
out of the darkness of tradition and ceremony and self-righteousness
and the love of sin into the light of the knowledge of Christ?
Let me sum up all three of these things. Does the Lord Jesus Christ
get all the honor and all the glory and all the praise for
my salvation? Paul said, I'm not shadow boxing
here. I'm putting all, as Brother Scott said, I'm putting all my
eggs in one basket. Salvation is by the grace of
God. And then lastly, the believer who desires to be found faithful
to Christ is one that is not a spiritual sloth. He desires
to be found faithful. The Lord said, my sheep hear
my voice, I know them, and they follow me. They follow me. The Lord's people, who are they? There's those that are kept by
the power of God through faith, ready to be revealed in the last
time. They follow the one that they
love. They cast themselves upon the
one that they love and they believe the one who alone is all of their
hope. And they follow Him with a concern
for the consistency of their walk. Listen to this scripture. Paul was talking to Timothy.
Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of
God which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. Here's what he
said. Timothy, fan the flame. Fan the flame. Stir up is what
he said. Fan the flame of the gift of
God. What had God given him? What
gift? He gave him the gift of faith. It's the gift of God. The gift
of salvation. He said, stir that up. How do
I do that? Don't tell me to do something,
Marvin. Don't tell me how to do it. According to God's word.
Listen. Stir the flame. Make much of
hearing the gospel. Somebody say, well, I can't do
anything. I heard brother Henry say this. He said, you can hear
the gospel. You can come see it. You can
listen. Secondly, you can search the scriptures, find out if these
things are so. And thirdly, you can seek the
Lord in prayer and ask. He said, you have not because
you ask not. And fourthly, you can be found
praying for and fellowshipping with God's people. Yeah, yes
you can. And you're not going to find
any confidence, not a believer. You're not going to find any
confidence in what you've done. But I'll tell you this, there's
an evidence. Paul said, I'm not shadow boxing.
Paul told Timothy, he said, Timothy, stir up. Stir up the gift of
God. Hear the gospel. Hear the gospel
of God's grace. Seek the Lord in prayer. Read
His Word. Be with God's people. Pray for
them. Paul said, I cease not to pray for you. Samuel said,
God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in not praying
for you. A slothful man hideth his hand
in his bosom and will not so much as bring it to his mouth
again. But the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is one who
has been made hungry. hungry for the bread himself,
thirsty for Christ, the fountain of living waters. The Lord said
in closing, I am the living bread which came down from heaven.
If any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever. And the
bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for
the life of the world. What do you mean, Margaret? I
mean Jew, Gentile, bond-free, male, female, who? Well, according
to the Lord Jesus Christ's Word, He said, all that the Father
giveth me, not just Jews only, the world. Not everyone in particular. The Lord said, I don't pray for
all them. I pray not for the world. I pray for those who have
given me out of the world. But I can tell you this, everyone
that the Father has given the Son, They're going to eat. They're going to come. He's going
to save them. Oh, taste, the psalmist said
in Psalm 34 8, and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the
man that trusts in Him and not in me and not in you. Lord, bless
these words to our heart for Christ's sake. Amen.