Rewarded By God

Q: What does the Bible say about the importance of God's Word?

The Bible emphasizes that God's Word is essential for spiritual life and guidance. According to Proverbs 13:13-14, the importance of God's Word is highlighted as it serves as a foundation of life for believers. In John 5:39, Jesus instructs us to search the Scriptures because they testify of Him. The Scriptures reveal the nature and character of God, and through them, we grasp eternal truths that guide our lives. Believers are called to love God's Word and consider it pure, as noted in Psalm 119:140. This deep love illustrates a believer's commitment to seeking God's will and understanding His purposes.

Q: How do we know the doctrine of total depravity is true?

The doctrine of total depravity is affirmed by Scripture, explaining humanity's complete inability to seek God without divine intervention. Total depravity asserts that, due to the fall, every aspect of humanity is affected by sin. Romans 3:10-12 clearly states, 'There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.' This shows that apart from God's grace, we are unable to pursue or even recognize our need for Him. The Scriptures consistently illustrate that human efforts to attain righteousness are futile without the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the need for divine grace is crucial for salvation, emphasizing how lost humanity is without God's intervention.

Q: Why is believing in Jesus Christ important for Christians?

Belief in Jesus Christ is central to the Christian faith as it leads to eternal life and fulfillment of God's commandments. Believing in Jesus Christ is paramount as it is the commandment given in 1 John 3:23. This verse states, 'and this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ.' Through faith in Christ, believers receive reconciliation with God and assurance of salvation. This belief fosters a relationship with the living God and spurs believers to love one another, fulfilling Jesus' teaching. As Christians embody this commandment, they demonstrate their transformation and are assured of the rewards of following God's will, underscoring the significance of faith in their daily lives.

Q: What does it mean to respect God's commandments?

Respecting God's commandments involves recognizing their authority and allowing them to guide one's actions and thoughts. Respecting God's commandments means treating them with utmost importance and allowing them to direct our paths. Proverbs 13:13-14 contrasts those who despise God's Word with those who fear and respect it, indicating that the latter will be rewarded. This reverence leads to a life characterized by obedience and trust in God. It involves actively seeking His will and applying His teachings in everyday situations. By honoring His commandments, believers cultivate a deeper relationship with God and experience His blessings in their lives.

Q: What encouragement does Scripture provide for struggling Christians?

Scripture encourages struggling Christians by affirming God's grace and the presence of a new nature within them. Scripture provides profound encouragement for those who struggle in their faith, emphasizing that believers possess a new nature through regeneration, which does not sin (1 John 3:9). This new nature, as explained in Romans 7:24-25, brings recognition of one’s struggles and the hope of deliverance through Jesus Christ. Believers can confront their struggles with the assurance that God’s grace empowers them to pursue righteousness. The acknowledgment of sin and the longing for righteousness reflect the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives, ultimately leading them toward spiritual growth and reliance on God's mercy.

Let's take our Bibles and turn
once again to the book of Proverbs chapter 13. Proverbs chapter
13. You know, we speak much of God's
Word. And when we speak of God's Word, I think about how precious that
is. I mean, what a miracle of God's
grace that we're here at this point. And this is what we want
to know. What does God have to say? That's the only thing that matters. Nothing else. I think about that
scripture. I've gone to prepare a place
for you. If I've gone to prepare a place
for you, I'll come back and I'll receive you myself. Every once
in a while, I just think to be there with Him. And then I think about that scripture
that says, I have not seen the ear, have not heard, neither
have entered into the heart of man. That which God has prepared
for those who love Him. We've got a good hope, don't
we? When we speak of God's Word,
there cannot be any separation between the written Word and
the essential Word Himself. Speaking of the written Word,
our Lord testified, we just read a moment ago, John 5.39, search
the scriptures. For in them you think you have
eternal life. and they are they which testify
of me." When we look in these scriptures, if we see not the
glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, God's prophet, God's spokesman,
God's word, if we see Him not, then we have not seen the message
of the scriptures. Luke 24, 27, the beginning of
Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the
Scriptures the things concerning himself. So when we talk about
God's Word, you can't separate the written Word, the essential
Word. In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us, tabernacled, and we beheld His glory, the
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth." So when it's concerning God's Word, it's like when John,
the apostle just of the Isle of the speaking of Him who has
said it Himself, the faithful and true One, the One who is
clothed with a vesture dipped in blood. Revelation 19.13 says
His name is called the Word of God. So we're here this morning,
and this is what we want to hear. Holy Spirit teach me of the Word
Himself. Cause me to hear. Cause me to
hear Him who is the very expression of the thoughts, the topic, the
reasoning, the motive, the cause, the intent, the will, the purpose
of the Triune God. Tell me, Holy Spirit, as you
bring back to my memory those things that He said. The Word
Himself. The final Word. The Word who
is the Alpha and the Omega. The One who spells out deity. When He speaks, I'm telling you,
I think to myself, as we were reading through the most few
verses of the Gospel of John, when the Lord Himself was speaking,
my mind just brought to say, Lord, help me hear. Help me to
hear. Lord, teach me. I don't want to read these words. They're just words. kind of give a mental assent,
oh yeah, that's good, that's good. I know they're good, but
Lord you're going to have to show me. You're going to have
to teach me. I know this, looking at these
words right here, knowing that he said, they are they that testify
of me. Knowing that He Himself has said
all that God Almighty is going to say. Lord, declare to me. Help me. God's people love God's
Word. They do. They love it. Listen
to this. Psalm 119, 140, Thy Word is very pure. That means tried. Tried. I tell you this, God Almighty
says it's pure. God Almighty has proven it. And
God's people, by the grace of God, the Spirit has borne witness
to their spirit. And it's tried by them. God's
faithful. God's faith. Thy word is very
pure, therefore thy servant loveth thee. Just to be able to come together,
assemble ourselves together, and just for a few minutes, to
be able to just sit, just listen. That's what I want to do. I want
to hear. I want to hear what God has to
say. God's people love it, and I'll tell you this, they long
after walking after His Word. Thy Word is a lamp to my feet,
a light to my path. It's time that you got to make
a decision. What's the basis of what we want
to do? What does God have to say about it? What does Almighty
God have to say? about me, my walk. The Lord Jesus Christ tempted
by Satan. Satan says, command these stones
be made red. The Lord himself said he's written.
Boy, what a witness there. What did the Lord Jesus Christ
do when he was tempted of the devil? This is what he said he's
written. Oh, how needful I am. Search
these scriptures. Ask. See, it's written, man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God. Man shall not live by anything
that would take glory away from God Almighty. You seek first
His kingdom. All these things are going to
be added. Put other things ahead. Knowledge of these scriptures
doesn't come by natural reasoning, I'll tell you that. God Almighty
must bless these scriptures to our hearts. And I would give
all of us a word of advice. Read his word. Start your day
with his word. End your day with his word. Ask
him, Lord, if you read it, and you just ask him, Lord, you wrote
this. Lord, you wrote this. You said
I have not because I ask not. Lord, teach me. I know that the
Lord will teach people, or teach them through preachers, or teach
them by the Spirit of God, speaking to their hearts and revealing
to them God's Word. God's Word is revealed by the
Holy Spirit blessing the Word to our hearts. But there's a divine warning
concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 13, "...whoso despiseth
the Word shall be destroyed." Whoso counts as insignificant,
that counting of the Word of God as
not being priority. Now, I'll admit, and you will
too, oh, I'll tell you what. how I grieve over my failings. When that new man, there's a
new man and old man in every believer, two natures. Scripture bears that out. There's
two natures. And you've got a new man and
old man. Now before there's a new nature, there's one nature, there's
an old man. And that's what we are. That's
what we are. That's us. That's really us. That's us. Paul said, O wretched
man that I am. But there's a new man. And the
scriptures set forth that that new man, that which is born of
God, sinneth not. Is that not so? That which is
born of God, sinneth not. Because his seed remaineth. It
can't seed. It can't seed. But let me tell you what this
new man will do. This new man that the Scripture
says, and I, whenever I look at myself, you know what I see?
I see the old man. That's what I see. That's what
I see. But I have God's Word that there's
a new man that does not sin. And I say, Lord, as you say,
It's subtle. It's subtle. Now, Lord, here's
what that new man is going to do. The Lord helped me to realize
this. That new man will own up, and
he'll say, O wretched man that I am. He owns up. That new man,
that new man that does not sin, what he is by nature. It's not
me! It's me! It's me! O wretched
man that I am!" That new man believed God. And the only way he knows anything
about God's mercy to him is God told him. And he struggles, he
struggles with himself and owns up to his failings You talk about prayer, you talk
about struggles. I just tell you how I do. People think that a preacher
never struggles. Oh, contrary. No, they do. They do. Honest, with Paul the Apostle,
honest, old wretched man that I am. And that do mean it. It truly
desires to seek after God. Call upon Him. Ask Him. Seek
after Him. That new man will admit, I see
the wavelengths of my old man and it grieves me. And I'm just,
I'm bound to Him. I just can't get away from Him.
Who shall deliver me from the body of this dead? One of these
deads, Carl. He will. He put away the guilt. The Lord Jesus Christ made sin,
put away the guilt of what I am by nature as being born in Adam.
God gave me a new nature. Taught me what I am now. I agree with Him. I agree with
Him. By the grace of God, I agree
with Him. And I struggle through this life, bound to the presence
of sin. that I see with the presence
of Sam. I long to be separated from him. Thanks be unto God,
one day, we're going to be changed. In a moment, twinkly or not,
we're going to be changed. That old man's not going to be
there anymore. We're going to be like him. Now
that's, that's, oh that's like Amazing thought, but I'm based
on God's Word. Is that not what God said? Are
we going to be changed or not? Yeah? Yeah, we're going to be
changed. We're going to see Matthew as
he is, be like him. Whoso despises the Word shall
be destroyed. What hope? is there for one who
regards as worthless and distasteful the apple of God's eye? What
hope is there for one that would despise the Word, the written
Word, the essential Word, that you cannot separate? To despise the Christ of this
planet as He is revealed. Whom has the honor of the Lord
revealed? To despise His Word, to reject
it, to count it as offensive and distasteful, to look upon
it with scorn and said, I don't believe that. One day you will. One day you'll
bow. Everybody's going to bow. Man
is totally depraved unless God Almighty does something for him
that he cannot do for himself. Man's hatred of the Lord Jesus
Christ will assure his eternal separation and judgment from
God. So it says, "...whoso despiseth
the word shall be destroyed, but he that feareth the commandment
shall be rewarded. He who respects fears. And I notice something about
here. He that feareth the commandment, the commandment, shall be rewarded. Oh, if there's any hope for me,
Lord, what is that commandment? Oh, how gracious the Lord God
Almighty is. teaching us by His Word. You
want to say, if you've got a question, what does God have to say about
it? Here it is, 1 John 3.23, and this is His commandment,
that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another as He gave us commandment. Believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ. This is His commandment. He that respects the commandment, believe on His Son. Apart from
anything else, you say, oh, have I seen myself
struggling with believing as I ought? or to love one another as he
gave me commandment, or I've caught myself saying things like
those that I love truly and I disrespectful. Yeah, and that old man will continue
to do it too. But there's a new man there that
doesn't. There's a new man there that believes God. There's a
new man there that loves the brethren, that sinneth not. You say, I had such a hard time
seeing that new man. I know you do, because of the
presence of sin and that old man that wars against the new
man in your mind. But thanks be unto God, I'm not
basing what I know on what I can feel. My hope is in His Word. This is what He said. This is
His commandment to believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another as He gave us commandment. Aren't you glad
that you're not looking at what you're able to accomplish? Because
we would be utter failures. Lord, I don't see myself loving
the brethren as I ought I understand that. But in Christ, God Almighty
says, by that new nature, it does not sin. God said you do. You do. I think back when I, that passage
of scripture when Moses killed that Egyptian. Remember that?
He feared, he feared what was going to happen. He fled. We're
going to deal with this, Lord willing, in the book of Hebrews
11. We'll get there. By the grace of God, we'll get
there. Scripture says, He did it in pure favor. He did it by faith. By faith. Associated Himself with God's
people by faith. By the object of His favor. By
the grace of God Almighty. Oh, thanks be unto God that we're
not what we see ourselves to be. We'll own up to it. Oh, we'll own up to it. I know
what I see in myself. And my old man, I know what I
see. I read in that scripture, and this is his commandment,
that we should believe on the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another, as he gave us a commandment. And I thought
to myself, well, that's a high order. I'm so thankful that He didn't
leave it up to me to accomplish it. It is God that works within
you, both the will and do of His promise. Salvation is by
the grace of God, not what you're able to do. By God's power, by
God's grace, by God's mercy, O he that feareth the commandment,
all of the on the name His Son. By God's mercy, power, He who
is our absolute Savior, holy, perfect, the one that the Father
said, this is my beloved Son, you might well please He in whom no sin was found of
his own, holy, harmless, spotless Lamb of God, died, being made
sin, took what I am as being born in Adam, my old man, the
guilt of my old man, made what I am, put away. redeemed his home by the shedding
of his own blood under the judgment and justice of God's law, died
as the sinner's substitute, elects the church's substitute, and
the Holy Spirit, in regenerating grace, teaches God's people that
truth. They haven't been born from above. They respect God's commandment.
He that feared it, he that respected the commandment shall be rewarded. Blessed of God. Verse 14, the law of the
wise is a fountain of life to depart from the snares of death.
The instruction, the law of those made wise in Christ to depart from the snares of
death. The Lord makes known His word,
His commandment to His people. It is the Lord we beseech you,
Paul says, in Christ's name. I'm standing here as an ambassador
of Christ. These are the Lord's words. That's
why when men look at And they despised him, rebuked
him. You have to understand something
now. Those preachers didn't come up with that. This is thus saith the Lord.
The burden of the word of God came to this prophet, that prophet.
Paul said, we're ambassadors. I'm just, I'm telling you what
God has to say. life, to depart from the snares
of death. Think about what God Almighty
has taught us in His Word. We come and we look at these
scriptures right here and we say, Lord, You said that You
would speak. My sheep hear my voice. Lord,
speak to me through Your Word. Lord, I pray or that you've raised up. You
said, I'll give you pastors after my heart. Lord, speak to me. It's your Word, through your
pastor, taught by your Spirit. Lord, help me. Oh, the snares
that we're kept from. Think about what the Lord has
taught us today. What we've gleaned today from
His Word. The law of the wise, the gospel,
one verse of scripture in closing, 2 Timothy 2, verses 22 to 26. 2 Timothy 2. Flee also youthful lusts, and
follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that
call on the Lord out of a pure heart. The foolish and unlearned
questions of old. knowing that they do gender strikes,
and the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto
all men, apt to teach patience in meekness, instructing those
that oppose themselves. If God, for redemption, will
give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, at their judgment,
the acknowledging of the truth. and that they may recover themselves
out of the snares of the devil who are taken captive by his
will, by him at his will. Oh, the blessings of Almighty
God teaching us his word, revealing to us what he's done for us. Whenever our heart, whenever
our conscience condemns us, I don't I don't see myself longing after Him as I ought.
I don't see myself seeking Him as I should. Oh, the mercy of
God that He's shown you already that you would admit that. May
the Lord bless these words to our heart for Christ's sake.

Rewarded By God

What does the Bible say about the importance of God's Word?

How do we know the doctrine of total depravity is true?

Why is believing in Jesus Christ important for Christians?

What does it mean to respect God's commandments?

What encouragement does Scripture provide for struggling Christians?

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Rewarded By God

What does the Bible say about the importance of God's Word?

How do we know the doctrine of total depravity is true?

Why is believing in Jesus Christ important for Christians?

What does it mean to respect God's commandments?

What encouragement does Scripture provide for struggling Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Marvin Stalnaker

Comments

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