If you wish to follow along i'm is still in galatians chapter 4 The last time I spoke out Read verse 21, but I want to read you 21 and 22. We're still kind of parked in the same spot. We're kind of I won't say we're idling right now. I mean i'm trying to rev up the engine, but we're kind of setting steel right now Galatians 4.21, Paul is saying to these, our brothers and sisters in Christ who were believers in that region of Galatia, he says, tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? Now remember what we've talked about, the word law.

For it is written. Okay, you see that now? I'll just stop right there. I will read some of the later words Paul gives here, Lord willing, here in a moment. But he says, for it is written, most of professed Christianity thinks of rebellion toward God in terms of unclean and vile immoralities, sexual perversions, and the like. They are. Now, if you thought I was gonna say anything different from that, you thought I was gonna give you a little leeway, they are.

They are. But how many people who profess to be Christians in our day, how many truly think that a moral, Bible-reading, believer in Jesus, and Paul's already given us a good message on what it is to put that in quotes, believer in Jesus. How many today truly think that a moral, Bible reading, praying, believer in Jesus. How many people think of a person like that as a rebel? Rarely anybody does, do they? Even my own mind has trouble wrapping around that, that that may be possible. But I say that they are. And we are. This must include us. And we are. if and when we do not hear what is written.

If I am trained to be moral and there's nothing wrong with morality. If I'm reading my Bible and there's nothing wrong with Bible reading. If I am praying to God the Father, even in the name of Jesus, and there's nothing wrong with that. If I am believing in Jesus, and there's nothing wrong with that. But if I am doing those things, seeking favor from God in any of them, they are rebellion. This religious world that calls itself Christian refuses, it's not just they can't, they refuse to say that could possibly be true.

My title for this morning is this, and I make it personal. I don't mean to preach this as preaching down to you because I'm in the same boat you are. My question is this, for me, and I ask you, may it be that God help us in this small group this morning to ask ourselves this question, do I hear what is written? Okay? Do I hear what is written? Again, tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? For it is written. Do you see it? For it is written.

Now, I got six things to give you, and I'll probably spend most of my time on the sixth one. So I'll go through the first five fairly quick, and some of these passages I will turn to, and you can turn along if you wish to try to follow along, but if not, just listen. Listen to what God's given me for today. The first five things, number one, remember, hear what is written. Do I hear what is written? Do you hear what is written? First of all, according to God himself.

And recorded by a Psalmist in Psalm 138 and verse two, I'm not gonna turn back to it. You can mark that down or get the tape something later and re-listen to it. Psalm 138 verse two, God has magnified his word above his own name, right? God's magnified his word above his own name. Now, I know my mind then says, all right, that means in the beginning, God said, let there be. Well, that is true, but that is recorded in this book. It is God's word. And I will make a few points as I go along. And I'm certainly not preaching down what Paul said. That's not what I mean. The phrase that God used for Paul, it is finished.

It's a glorious statement that was uttered from the very lips of Christ while he hung on that accursed tree in our stead. But all of this is equally his word. And I cannot, I thought about that. Psalm 138 too, he's magnified. God said, I've magnified my word above my own name. I don't know how to even express that to you. But this scripture, this book is God's word.

Number two, according to Peter in 2 Peter 1.19, I'm not going to go and read it. The scripture is more sure, that's his word, okay? The scripture is more sure than supernatural phenomena.

He said, Peter basically, I'm gonna summarize it. Peter said, we were in the white mount, that holy mount. And what is it, Peter, James, and John? Am I right about that, Jack? I think it's Peter, James, and John. He gave them the privilege of going up with him and seeing him transfigured in front of him. And he sat there and spoke with Moses and Elijah. But Peter said, we were there, but we have a more sure word of prophecy. How many? Christians today rely more on this written, I'm talking about patented quotes, Christians, people who profess to be Christians. Maybe they are, maybe they're not. I'm not trying to call that into question right now.

How many of them see this word right here that we all could have in front of us, see it as more vital than some supernatural phenomenon that happens to us? Almost every TV you watch that has to do with Christianity or religion or some kind of conversion is about a conversion experience rather than about this word and what God used from this word to convert somebody to Christ. Paul gave us testimony this morning already, and of course that wasn't in my notes, but of how God used what? The word, okay? The word.

You want to kind of start off a bad conversation with someone when they tell you you're a Christian, tell them, tell me your conversion experience and see how it goes. If they don't talk about hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ being preached and God beginning to conquer their soul, they're lost. I don't care what kind of super, supernatural, phenomenal experience they had, okay? I don't care how bad they were and how much more moral they are now, and Bible reading they are now. If it wasn't the preaching of Jesus Christ, they're not gospel converted.

And Paul said, God chose to save us through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto he called you by what? Just one thing, by our gospel. Number three. Our soul's well-being depends upon the word. I will read this one. Hebrews chapter one. Or I'm sorry, Hebrews chapter two. And I'll read this one. Now listen to what Hebrews says. Hebrews two, two verses one through four.

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed. Do you see it? More earnest heed to the things which we have. What? Heard, heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, I'll paraphrase, if God dealt with us immediately every time we did something wrong. How shall we escape? Do you see that? How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation which at the first began to be what? Spoken by the Lord. Yes, he, as Paul said, simply saved people, delivered people. But then he said something to manifest by word that he'd done that. You get it? How shall we escape if we neglect the greatest salvation?

Which at first began to be spoken by the Lord and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him. God also bearing them witness both with signs and wonders and with different miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost according to his own will. God proved these men are my sent messengers. They were preaching his words. Remember, God has magnified his word above his own name. The scripture is more sure than supernatural phenomena. Our soul's well-being depends upon the word, but here's number four. Jesus Christ himself is the word enfleshed.

I'm not trying to, let me just go on without going there. You cannot separate, I know I have tried to do it before, I'll go that far. You cannot separate the living God manifest in the flesh word from this, because it is his word that he magnified above his own name. It just, it can't be done.

And I, because, and I in time past have argued with people about this because I thought they were on the wrong track on something and I thought my argument would win them over. You know what it did? It just caused more argument. That's all it did, just caused more argument. He's the word. The word was with God and the word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. By him were all things made that were made. And the word was made flesh.

But think about it, Jesus Christ himself, still number four, Jesus Christ himself is the word enfleshed, and even he relied upon the written word, even at his weakest human moment, after going 40 days and 40 nights without food, and tempted by the top demon himself, Satan, Three, with three great temptations. And how did Christ respond in all three of them? It is written. You see it? It is written. I know I don't grasp that like I should. I'm sitting here looking at you, hoping you do, but I know you don't.

Because if we did every waking moment that we had, that we were not forced by providence and responsibility in this world, we would have this book in front of us and maybe on your phone. You don't have to have a Bible with pages and leather, but we would be engaged in what? Reading this book. Think of it, God himself, who is the word, who gave the word, used what when tempted by the devil?

The word, the word. Sound like it's pretty important, doesn't it? The things I've given you so far, sounds like it's pretty important to me. Now, I'm just a very undereducated old hillbilly, but I think I understand that at least academically, academically. Here's number five.

Men distort, here's the problem, men and distort. Men distort and lie about what is written though. And Peter says it, 2 Peter 3, verses 15 and 16, he said, some people rest, they fight with and twist the scriptures even to their own destruction. Think of how many voices are out there about the word. as I mentioned before, before I started this message, I mean, there are people who get their ideas about what this Bible says by watching the History Channel. Don't they? Or they'll watch The Ten Commandments with Charlton Heston, and I have to tell you, I liked the movie, I mean, especially when I, I liked the movie, but they think that The Ten Commandments is really telling you what the Bible says. You know, the movie Noah with Russell Crowe.

I went and watched it and I was entertained by it, but it's mostly a lie. It's not based upon, loosely based upon the word. and give that loose a real bunch of O's in the middle, loosely based upon the word. Men will lie about the Bible, and you know what? I know there are some who lie because they just hate God and they want to twist up his word. There are people who love that kind of debate, but they don't hear what is written. They think they understand, but they don't. They don't. Remember, men distort and lie about what is written.

And I've, there's times when I've had people, even where I work at, come to me and say, but what about this, and what about, and there's so many questions because there's so many voices out there. It's hard to explain, isn't it? And they come up with this one question, and it's, you know, it may be, it's a valid question to them, even if it don't seem valid, Jack, to me, it's a valid question to them, and I'm thinking, this is stupid. But you can't start your first conversation with everybody telling them, you got a stupid question, because it's valid to them.

But you know, you know they've been listening to all of these other voices, and you cannot come back. Because when you tell them the truth, they say, oh, and then you see they're right back to where they were before. Because even the written word, when you quote them the Bible, doesn't matter. They don't want what is written, they want some experience, something they can feel, something they can lay their emotions into. And I'm not putting down emotion, but God help us, don't live off your emotions, they will ruin you.

Okay, here we go, number six. Remember, hear was put in the form of a question, but I'm putting it in the form of a declaration. Here's number six, hear, hear what is written. This is vital in two main ways. These are words of our Lord Jesus Christ. I will give them to you, but I will not read them.

Christ warns us, that what we hear is vital, Matthew, Mark 4.24, I'm sorry.

He warns us that what we hear is vital, Mark 4.24. And he warns us that how we hear is vital, Luke 8, verse 18. Now turn to Hebrews chapter 13. We're gonna look at what we hear. And Christ said, he said, be careful how you hear. or what you hear, and then he said, be careful how you hear. Now turn to Hebrews chapter 13. Just a couple verses and a few comments here. In other words, what we hear is vital for this reason.

There is heresy, there's error. There's distorting the scriptures, twisting them, resting them to your own destruction, or there is the truth. The truth. And the problem is in our unregenerate state or our unconverted state or our unsaved state, however you want to put that, we really don't know the difference.

And that's why when you try to answer people's questions, it's kind of like water off a duck's back, as we say. It might affect them for a moment, maybe for a few days, but Jack, they go right back to where they were wondering about the answers to their questions. What we hear is vital. Now think about it. Hebrews 13 and verse 7. Remember them which have the rule over you.

Now I'll ask you, is that any less vital, any less authoritative than what Paul said God used to convert him? It is finished. Is it any less inspired? Is it any less, thus saith the Lord? Is it any less? Is it any less that when Jesus Christ himself said, let there be light, and all of a sudden, light was? This is just as authoritative as that word, right?

Remember them which have the rule over you, not because of them, I don't care if you dislike them, I don't care if you got a problem with some of their manners or some of their ways. God has put certain men to rule over his people. Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith follow considering the end of their way of life.

The end of it, not if you look at them every moment of every day, you're gonna say, why am I listening to him? But if he's speaking this, you best pay heed and listen when he is speaking this, okay? Problem is, with a lot of even God sent men, they don't tell you the difference between their opinions about something and thus saith the Lord. I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things, and I may, Jack, on occasion, express them here from this pulpit, but I try to emphasize this is my opinion. But if I'm giving you thus saith the Lord, you are, listen, you are under command to heed it. Listen, listen. which has spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith follow considering the end of their conversation.

Why? Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever. Take that in context. A true God sent man's message will never change because his message is Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ never changes. Do you see that? His message about who Jesus Christ is won't change with the flow of the society in which he lives. He may have a lot of different opinions about certain things that may change with the ebb and flow of society, right? but not about Jesus Christ.

You see the context of it? Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines, for it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace, not with meats. And the context here, of course, is those old sacrifices, of which many sacrifices, the one who offered them partook of a part of it. They actually partook of a part of it, which is a message in and of itself. and not with meats which have not profited them that have been occupied therein. We have an altar whereof they have no right which serve the tabernacle." And that takes us right back to where we was in our context in Galatians chapter four, when Paul puts it this way in verse 30 of chapter four, nevertheless, what sayeth the scripture?

Am I hearing it now? Cast out the bond woman and her son. Do you see it? not see them as second-class citizens, they're not a citizen of this promise at all, okay? Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman, so then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free. That sounds pretty important, doesn't it? Pretty important.

That's what we hear is vital. But also, turning now to James, and I think I mentioned this last time, so I won't spend a lot of time there, but James chapter two, and I think I'm telling you wrong on that. I'm sorry, James chapter one. It's also vital, our Lord said, as to how we hear. What we hear is vital. Remember, heresy versus truth. And somebody said, why didn't God just make it plain? He did in this word. We're just so dull of hearing. And apart from regeneration and gospel conversion, we don't understand it at all. We might think we do. We might even have doctrine in this one, two, three, four, but we still don't get it. But how we hear is vital.

Our Lord said that. And this is clearly what James is talking about in James chapter one, when he says, of his own will, verse 18, begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath. For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Wherefore, now here it is, here's how we hear. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness and receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your soul. This here is about proper attitude. That's what it is. Now I'm not, Again, I'm not gonna say I'm not pointing the finger at you, because I am, but I'm also pointing the finger at me.

How often is it that when we get up in the morning, especially on that day in which we have agreed to gather together as the people of God, and my first thoughts begin to be, after I realize, okay, I need to wake up now, I need to shave, brush my teeth, whatever it is, I'm about to go hear the word.

I'm about to go hear what is written. How much time do I spend thinking about that from the time I get up until the time I walk in here and one of us preachers calls this meeting to order? How much time do I really spend thinking about that? Or am I thinking about and talking about everything else but about what I'm about to hear this morning?

Hmm? And I gotta confess, first thing I did when I walked in here and I heard, oh my, and I seen the water running down the walls and through the lights, my mind was not on what is written, Jack. It was what was happening, hmm? You see what we hear is vital, how we hear is vital.

As Henry Mahan once said, and I'll use this as my own illustration, and somebody says, well, I just didn't get nothing out of that preacher. It was because she got too many holes in your bucket. It ain't the preacher's fault. He's just a man, a fallen creature like you are, that may have had a bad day with his family before he got there that morning. Problem is we got too many holes in our bucket.

We're thinking about everything else. That's all we can talk about and think about is everything else, but what we're about to engage in. Gather together. Okay, this is important. To gather together to hear the word, what is written, preached upon. And how often, easily, not just often, easily our minds are turned by everything else. You see, the message we are hearing will either lead us to Christ if Christ alone is the message, or it will lead us to destruction when anything else is added to that message.

We could have spent 30 minutes this morning discussing what and how we need to engage in this problem back here in these two rooms. Now, couldn't we? And that in and of itself would have been a valid thing, but we didn't gather here this morning to discuss that, did we?

We gathered here this morning to hear what is written. What is written. Now think about this. Here is one thing. I'm gonna give you something, and I'm pretty sure everyone here this morning will understand what I'm getting at. And I'm pretty sure that those who were not able to be here this morning or somewhere else, if they were here, they would get this. But I know this message may go out in other venues and people say, I have no idea what he's talking about.

But hear what is written. Now, I'm gonna paraphrase. I'm not just gonna quote it, but I will give you what is written. Hear, I'm saying hear what is written. There is old covenant. Now go back to Galatians four. I'm not left the text, I'm still with the text. There is old covenant, there is new covenant. Okay? Paul talks about what?

Which things, verse 24, which things are an allegory for these are the what? Two covenants. Now you can get you a Schofield reference Bible and he'll give you all kinds of other covenants. Here's the two main covenants, okay? Here's it. There's an old covenant, there's a new covenant.

Most people, even if they've heard of that phrase, have no idea what it means. And how do I know that? Because they'll hear of Jesus Christ and then mix believing in Jesus Christ with their law works. They're trying to take the two covenants and mix them together.

This book expresses two covenants. God help me to see the difference between these two. because it is vital to my spiritual well-being. There is old covenant, there is new covenant. In other words, there is first covenant, that's the law, there is second covenant, that is grace. Although the second covenant existed even in manifestation far before the first covenant was. The second covenant was spoken of by God in the garden right after Adam and Eve had fallen when the seed of the woman was promised. The law wasn't given until, the first covenant wasn't given until years and years and years later.

Do you see what I'm saying? There's first covenant. That's the old covenant. There's new covenant. That's the second covenant. The new covenant or the second covenant is called in Hebrews, better, better, B-E-T-T-E-R, better covenant. Not in the sense that the first one was okay, but not quite good enough. The first covenant says this, do, do, do, or don't do, don't do. and we always do what we're not supposed to, and we don't do what we are supposed to.

That is, at least this flesh does, always. Even if we don't carry it out out here, we think about wanting to do it in here. We never really do things out here. I'm sure there are some flash in the pan moments. We do things we weren't, most of the time we sit and think about what we want to do, don't we?

No, the first covenant is what? Do or don't do. The second covenant, which is called the better covenant, and remember, Christ is the mediator of the better covenant. He ordained that covenant in his blood, by his substitution, by his representation, mainly on the tree. He did it throughout all of his life, but it was culminated, Paul, on the tree. So again, there's first covenant, there's second covenant. That is new covenant, or the second covenant is better covenant. And this new covenant is this, it's not don't do or do. This second covenant is summed up this way, done. Done.

And I will read you the verse, just listen to it. Don't be trying to just listen to what, hear what is written. For as by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. They had no choice in the matter. That's right. I know I paraphrased that in there, but that's exactly the truth of scripture. We were made sinners because of one man's disobedience. We had no say in the matter. It's just the way it is. I don't believe that. Then you don't believe God. You don't believe what's written. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

You see it. That's old covenant, new covenant. You see it. Even that law or rule, that God gave to Adam and Eve, don't eat this fruit, okay, was still what? Law. And they couldn't keep it in a upright body. How much less we keep God's holy law that issued forth from Sinai with hundreds and hundreds of commands when we are now nothing but fallen flesh.

Go answer that one for me. You see, if people, if God, I don't, I'm not saying they have to understand the phrases, the doctrines, but if they don't, when God opens your eyes, as Paul talked about this morning, when God opens your ears, when God opens your heart to see that you by nature are under the old covenant, and it condemns you, then you've got no reprieve under it.

Then all of a sudden, this Christ, the mediator of this better covenant dawns on you. He took care of that. Listen, I've got to read you this one, Hebrews 10. Now, turn to this one. I want you to, if you're following along, please turn to this one. Hebrews chapter 10, we're getting right back to our text. I'm winding down. Hebrews 10, find my spot, just one verse. And you go back and look at the context, make sure I'm not hoodooing you, make sure I'm not resting the scripture.

We're talking about old covenant, new covenant, right? First covenant, second covenant. A covenant based upon our obedience, and we always fail, or a covenant based upon Christ's obedience, he always did. Now listen to what it says. This is Christ speaking. Then said I, lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first. Now look this up. It's the first what? Covenant. That he may establish the second. Notice the language. It's not, now he did fulfill that first one. But here it says he also did what with it? What does it say? He taketh away.

Do you read that? Do you hear what is written? It's not about mine and your keeping the law because it deals with our flesh and in the flesh shall no, in our flesh no, in us no flesh shall be justified. In our doings, no flesh. Look at it. He taketh away the first that he may do what? Establish the second. by the which will we are set apart through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Do you see that? So which covenant do you desire? You want the first one? Knock yourself out. Knock yourself out, right? But here's what I read, here's what is written. Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law?

For it is written that Abraham had two sons, the one by bondmaid, the other by free woman. but he who was of the bond woman was born after the flesh, but he of the free woman was by promise, which things are an allegory, for these are the two covenants, the one from the Mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar, that's what she represented, this Agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, so there is no doubt as to what he's talking about, the Ten Commandments even. and answereth to Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children. That place over there is not the Holy Land, it's a place of bondage. Thus saith the Lord. But look, but Jerusalem, which is above, is free, which is the mother of us all, for it is written, do you see it?

Rejoice thou barren that bearest not, break forth and cry thou that trevellest not, for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath a husband. They're gonna be in the majority. Now, who's the desolate one? Agar, okay? She got many more children, but God ain't trying to save the most. He's saving whom he will to give his own self glory and honor. And somebody said, I don't like that. Then you don't believe God. Many more children than she which hath a husband.

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the spirit, even so it is now. And you remember the account. Isaac was just a wee little fella, and they were weaning him from the breast of his mother.

Ishmael was about, I think it says he's about 12, 13, 14, somewhere along that. Don't hold me to that. He was right there along that edge. You know what he did when they were weaning little Isaac? Now this boy had been with Abraham for 12, 13, 14 years. There's one preacher shed probably hunted with Abraham and tended sheep with Abraham and Abraham made him little slingshots and stuff to shoot at animals for 14 years. He starts mocking that little old baby boy over there.

Huh? Ridicule him. Nevertheless, verse 30, what sayeth the scripture? Cast out, do you see it? Strong language, ain't it? Cast out the bondwoman and her son. For the son of the bondwoman shall not, shall not, oh, that sounds Pretty vital, don't it? Pretty kind of conclusive, kind of like that's the end of the road, ain't it?

Shall not be heir with the son of the free woman, so then brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free. Stand fast, therefore. in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. These Galatians' problem wasn't they turned back to drinking and smoking dope and womanizing or running around with a bunch of other men. That wasn't their problem. They were trying to be moral before God's law and think that it would give them something extra from God.

Paul says no. It's either Christ or you got nothing. It's either Christ only or you got nothing. It's either Christ and his work only or all you have is to be cast out by God. As a matter of fact, Sarah represented grace. Grace is what says cast out the bottom woman and her son. Now if that ain't particular grace, Jack, I don't know what is. See, most people think of grace as an emotion from God, and he wants to save everybody. No, grace is this, I will save this one, and this one, and this one, and this one, but I'm gonna leave that one right where they are, and I'm gonna leave that one right where they are, and they will be cast out.

Now, have I told you anything different than what is written? Not at all. Do I hear what is written? Do I hear what is written? So be it. Heavenly Father, our most gracious Lord and Savior, now we're so encumbered with things that, and we, Lord, give us that grace that is needed, that enablement that's needed to fulfill our responsibilities in this world, but oh, God, help us to put them in the right perspective. God help us to view them as they truly are, way, way at the bottom of the list. In Christ's name, amen.