Participants: Pr. John Lomacang
Series Code: ASHF
Program Code: ASHF000146A
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00:19 Hello friends, and welcome to another Wednesday night
00:22 Bible Study here at the 3ABN Worship Center. 00:24 Welcome to A Shaper Focus. 00:26 We welcome you with a hearty Amen. 00:27 Can we say Amen tonight? Amen! 00:29 And we have gathered with our Bibles, our pens, our lessons, 00:33 and our friends, and we're going to walk together 00:35 through the Word of God. 00:37 In just a minute I'll tell you how to get a copy of the lesson. 00:39 But if you're joining us from wherever in the world, 00:42 I want to say a special hello tonight to Lorraine. 00:45 Lorraine Like is at home recovering from surgery, 00:48 and that kind of time stamps our program, 00:50 but that's okay, there are so many more. But just welcome. 00:53 We know that if she could be here she will be. 00:55 But tonight get your Bibles together. 00:59 We're going to ask for the Lord to be in our midst, 01:01 and bless us as we study His Word. 01:03 So before we go into all the specifics 01:05 of our program tonight, and our theme song, 01:07 let's begin with a word of prayer. 01:09 Loving Father in heaven, we thank You so much for the 01:14 goodness that we receive from our 01:18 relationship with You, Father. 01:20 We thank You for the beauty of Your Word, for the living Word, 01:24 to become the written Word. 01:26 And as it enters our minds and hearts, we pray that we could 01:29 find strength to live in harmony with it. 01:32 And so tonight, as we continue our topic, 01:34 The Christian Obligation, we do pray that you'll speak to those 01:38 who are watching this program, and that Your Spirit will have 01:42 His way in our lives. 01:44 We ask in Jesus' name, Amen. 01:48 Now to get a copy of the lesson... 01:50 Each of you has a copy of the lesson. 01:52 But for those of you that are watching the program, 01:54 go to this website to download a copy. It is 02:00 Download lesson 35, The Truth About the Christian Obligation. 02:05 At that same website you can find the prior lessons, 02:08 you can find, also, the videos that are there from the very 02:12 first day up until the present. 02:14 I think there's more than a hundred videos. 02:16 And if you want to find out how to coordinate the two, 02:18 go to the video first, and any video at the very beginning 02:22 will tell you what lesson that refers to. 02:24 Then you can download the lesson, and have a wonderful 02:26 study in your home, or even for that matter, in your church. 02:30 Now tonight we're going to sing our theme song together. 02:32 Our theme song is, Victory In Jesus. 02:35 Let's sing that theme song together. 02:37 You can join us if you'd like to. 02:47 I heard an old, old story how the Savior came from glory. 02:54 How He gave His life on Calvary, to save a wretch like me. 03:01 I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood's atoning, 03:09 then I repented of my sin, and won the victory. 03:17 Oh victory in Jesus, my Savior forever, 03:24 He sought me, and bought me with His redeeming blood. 03:32 He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him. 03:39 He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood. 03:47 I heard about a mansion He has built for me in glory, 03:54 and I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea, 04:02 about the angels singing, and the old redemption story, 04:09 and some sweet day I'll sing up there the song of victory. 04:16 Key change. Oh victory in Jesus, my Savior forever, 04:24 He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood. 04:32 He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him. 04:40 He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood. 04:57 Amen! Let us repeat the topic tonight. 05:02 And it's on the screen. 05:08 Let me lay some foundation. 05:09 You know, when you think of obligation, paying a credit 05:13 card is an obligation. 05:14 Monthly paying your rent, or your mortgage is an obligation. 05:19 And when you think of obligation, you think of things 05:22 that are sometimes not delightful. 05:25 I have to go to work: an obligation. 05:28 I've got to take care of somebody's 05:31 children for the weekend: an obligation. 05:33 I've got to clean up my garage: an obligation. 05:38 You often think of things that are 05:39 obligations as not delightful. 05:41 But the reason why I use the word Christian is because 05:45 the Christian's obligation is based on love for God. 05:48 And there was an article that I read. 05:50 I actually perused through it. 05:51 It wasn't a very long article, and it had the title, 05:54 Are You Loving God Out of Obligation? 05:56 And if you're loving God out of obligation, sometimes you can 06:00 think, well, do I have to go to church? 06:03 Do I have to wear that? 06:05 Do I have to give up that? 06:08 Do I have to stop doing that? 06:10 And we often get into these obligations. and it sounds like 06:14 And it sounds like the Christian life becomes a burden, 06:17 and it becomes difficult, and it becomes hard, 06:21 and it's no longer a delight. 06:23 But serving the Lord is a delight. 06:25 Can you say amen to that? 06:27 It's a delight. It's a pleasure. 06:28 So let's look at a couple of Scriptures in the Bible 06:30 that shows you that serving God is not a sour obligation, 06:37 but it falls under this category. 06:40 Go with me to Psalm, Psalm 116. 06:43 Many Psalms, but let's look at the 116th Psalm, 06:47 and let's look at verse 12 together. 06:50 When you think about this verse, you would think of it in a 06:54 context of somebody whose son... 06:56 I heard this story many years ago, and many 07:00 evangelists use the story. 07:01 They talked about a son who used to dive, and they would 07:07 dive for, you know, lobsters, and oysters, 07:11 and things of that nature. 07:13 And the story is told of a young man. 07:15 He dived, and he went beyond the normal depth. 07:20 And on his way up, he had come up so quickly he got the bends, 07:25 and as a result he lost his life. 07:27 But he got an oyster, and in this oyster was a huge pearl. 07:34 And his father put the oyster pearl on display. 07:37 And people offered him so many different sums of money for this 07:40 oyster, and he said, No, no, I cannot. 07:43 My son lost his life for that oyster. 07:47 And then the connection was more than a task his son had done, 07:54 but the value of the son's life, and the benefit that came to him 07:58 as a result of his son losing his life. 08:00 So when you think about the Christian obligation, 08:02 I like the way that David the Psalmist writes it 08:04 here in Psalm 116:12. 08:08 Let's look at that together. 08:09 Look at how he asks the question. 08:11 What shall I render to the Lord for all His what? 08:17 benefits towards me? 08:19 Now when you think of... 08:22 Let's go ahead and go back into the realm of paying our bills, 08:27 and the credit card, and all of that. 08:29 Now if you think of, Well, what's the benefit? 08:32 A lot of credit card companies nowadays are saying, 08:35 Well, if you pay your credit card on time, 08:37 you get a certain percentage back. 08:39 They call those incentives, or benefits. 08:41 And some companies say, Well, I remember there's a water 08:45 company out here, Corinth Water District. 08:46 They said, Well, if you pay your water bill six months in a row 08:50 on time, you get your deposit back. 08:53 That's a motivating benefit. 08:54 Okay, I sure do want my benefits. 08:57 So if I follow the obligations, there's a benefit toward that. 09:02 Well, you know, in the Christian life the benefit is God has done 09:06 so much for us already, has He not? that when you think of 09:11 the things that the Lord asks us to do, all you've got to do is 09:14 list, Well, what has God done for me? 09:16 And then you come to the conclusion, Wow! 09:20 Let's go to 1 John 4:19. 09:23 Let's look at the context of this text. 09:24 The context, I believe, and matter of fact, if I told you 09:33 the term, but I'll just read it myself. 09:35 In this same Psalm 116, if you look at the verse 1, David said, 09:41 I love the Lord because He has heard my voice, 09:44 and my supplications. 09:46 Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call 09:50 upon Him as long as I live. 09:54 So he said, I love the Lord, because He heard me 09:56 when I called on Him. 09:57 So, therefore, if the Lord heard you when you called on Him, 10:01 should we hear Him when He calls on us? 10:04 The answer is, Yes. 10:06 Let's look at the context of that; that kind of relationship. 10:09 What did I say? 1 John 4:19? 10:12 Look at this. It's very short. 10:14 Let's read this together. 10:16 We love Him because He what? first loved us. 10:22 When you think about that, a lot of times people will say, 10:26 Why should I love you? 10:28 Now we don't say to our husband, or our wife... 10:31 I don't say to my wife, You love me because I first loved you. 10:34 You know, that's a competition in that respect. 10:38 The context of this is long before we were even born, 10:43 God's love was extended to humanity. 10:45 I mean, what's the text we all know? 10:47 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. 10:52 He loved us in that in that while we were yet sinners 10:55 Christ did what? died for us. 10:56 So He... All these benefits were in place, and He says, 11:00 If you simply do what I ask, all these benefits are yours. 11:06 So we're looking at it in that context today. 11:08 Because really, when you think about it, Christianity only 11:13 works when you are in love with Jesus. 11:17 Let me say that again: Christianity can only work 11:20 if you're in love with Jesus. 11:22 If you're not in love, it's an obligation. 11:26 Do I have to go to church on the Sabbath? 11:29 Can I go on the day I choose? 11:31 You know, do I have to give up pork? It tastes so good! 11:37 I mean, we go on these... 11:38 It's all about us in many cases. 11:40 But this lesson is really focusing us on, it's about God, 11:45 it's not about us. Amen. 11:47 So let's dive into that tonight about the obligations. 11:50 Because at the heart of the obligation is something today 11:53 that has been minimized in the Christian world, 11:55 and that is God's law. 11:57 You know why? We think of law... 11:59 Let's go put some foundation there. 12:02 The law is... And we think of the laws of the land as 12:07 obligations, because we don't know the 12:10 guys who wrote the laws. 12:12 We really could care less about the guys who wrote the laws, 12:14 or the committees that wrote the laws. 12:16 We find out ways to violate the laws for our own benefit. 12:19 But when you think about God, you don't really want to do that 12:23 because you love Him. 12:26 And the motivation to be in harmony with His will is really 12:30 because of a love relationship. 12:32 So let's look at something that makes a very significant impact 12:35 on how we respond to our obligation, which is out 12:38 of love for the Lord. 12:40 Let's go to question No. 8. 12:42 Let's look at that together. 12:54 The Apostle Paul, very, very interesting Bible personality. 13:01 When we think of character, we often think of a 13:04 guy playing a role, but Paul was doing 13:06 anything but playing a role. 13:08 He was a person just like us, in a different time, 13:11 and a different place, and God called him for 13:13 a particular purpose. 13:15 Romans 7:12 is where we go to find our answer. 13:18 What does the Apostle Paul, how does the Apostle Paul, 13:21 or in what way does he speak about God's law? 13:24 Let's look at this together. 13:25 Therefore the law is what? holy, and the command is what? 13:31 holy and what else? just, and what else? good. 13:35 Look at all the beauties of that: holy, just, good. 13:41 What if you had a puppy that was good, even if you had a puppy 13:49 that was bad... Let me put this terrible picture in your mind. 13:53 Are you ready for it? 13:54 Here this cute, six week old, white little poodle, 13:59 who's covered in fluffy hair... 14:02 Oh, just pick him up now and cuddle him, if you have one. 14:07 And he wets on the carpet. 14:11 Do you take him by his collar and just kick him out the house? 14:15 Get out of here! Don't you ever do that again! 14:18 Did you feel that? It's like, if you're not a puppy lover, 14:23 you might not really care. 14:25 But I like puppies. 14:27 I like pets. And there are some of you who might be in my camp. 14:33 If you don't like pets, well, I can't expect too 14:35 much pathos from you. 14:37 But anyone that is good, and just, and holy, you really 14:46 wouldn't find reason to get rid of anyone like that, would you? 14:49 Now you know why the law is holy, and just, and good? 14:52 Who can tell me? Because God is what? 14:57 holy, and just, and good. 15:00 It is the transcript of His character. 15:03 So it's not something hanging out there by itself like a speed 15:06 limit on a metal pole, but it really comes 15:10 from the heart of God. 15:11 It is the parameter of a beautifully 15:13 developing relationship. 15:15 So when you have that kind of connection with God... 15:17 Let's put the answer down. 15:18 In what way does the Apostle Paul speak about God's law? 15:21 Put those three words down. 15:22 It is holy, it is what else? just, and what else? it is good. 15:27 Wow! Nothing wrong with a good thing! 15:30 And why would anybody want to get rid of a good thing? 15:34 But today in the Christian world, for some reason, 15:37 Christians are taught, in some churches, that God's law has 15:41 been nailed to the cross. 15:42 It's been done away with. 15:43 It's no longer our obligation. 15:45 The only thing we have to do is love everybody. 15:48 Is do what? Let's go to that. 15:51 Let's try that out. 15:52 Go with me, before we go to the next question. 15:54 Go with me to Romans, to the book of Romans. 15:56 Okay. And I'm going to go to Romans 13. 16:00 Let's go to Romans 13. 16:02 Ha! This is beautiful, this is beautiful. 16:07 You're going to see the context that the Bible puts love in. 16:13 Romans 13, and I want to start with verse 8. 16:17 Romans 13:8. Notice what it says. 16:21 Owe no one anything except to do what? love one another. 16:27 For he who loves another has done; fulfilled the law. 16:34 Now notice that. If you love someone else, the Bible says 16:38 you've fulfilled the law. 16:39 Now does fulfill mean get rid of? 16:42 What does it mean to be in harmony with it. 16:46 It means it is brought to fruition in your life. 16:49 It comes to completion in your life. 16:51 But now, just in case a person doesn't understand what that 16:54 means, notice how the Lord classically refers to two 16:59 commandments to make sure that you 17:01 understand what He's saying. 17:02 Look at verse 9. For the commandment, you shall not 17:05 commit what? adultery, verse 9. 17:07 You shall not murder. 17:10 He goes to another one. 17:11 You shall not steal. 17:12 Another one: You shall not bear false witness. 17:15 Another one: You shall not covet. 17:18 He's referring to the ten commandments. 17:19 And He says, And if there is any other commandment, 17:23 are all summed up in the saying namely together, You shall... 17:30 Come on, talk to me. 17:31 You shall what? love your neighbor as yourself. 17:35 Notice the... Notice what He says. 17:37 He makes that clear. 17:38 And then He says in verse 10, Love does no harm to a neighbor. 17:44 Therefore love is the what? fulfillment of the law. 17:48 So when you look at that, He says, Yes! 17:50 Now if somebody says, Your obligation is not to kill me. 17:59 You wouldn't have to tell me that if I love you, right? 18:03 Don't shoot me! You wouldn't have to tell 18:05 me that if I love you. 18:06 Don't steal from... Don't commit adultery. 18:09 Don't lie on me. Don't bear false... 18:11 You wouldn't have to tell me that if I have a love 18:14 relationship with you. 18:15 But if I don't, then those things are in danger, 18:18 because where there is no relationship, 18:20 there is no obligation. You get that? 18:23 Where there is a relationship there's an obligation. 18:27 Don't put the word obligation as a, You've got to do this! 18:31 But love fulfilled the obligation out of 18:37 love for one another. 18:39 Love over here, love over here, and the bridge is 18:43 built in all the ways. and that's why the Bible says, 18:45 And that's why the Bible says, Love the Lord your God, 18:48 with how much of your heart? all your heart, 18:50 all of your soul, all of your mind. 18:53 This is the first and the greatest commandment. 18:55 Love your neighbor as yourself. 18:57 So when you do these things you find that the love is the 19:00 whole circumference; it's the foundation, it's the roof, 19:03 it's the content, it's the middle. 19:04 Love makes all the difference in the world. 19:07 Let's go to the next one, No. 9. 19:09 This is interesting. 19:11 1 Kings 18:18. Let's first use the question. 19:15 Here's the question: What impact does disobedience to the 19:19 commandments reveal? 19:25 1 Kings 18:18. Okay, great! 19:32 And this is an amazing story because you'll find such 19:36 beautiful stories in 1st and 2nd Kings. 19:38 These are Elijah and Elisha books, and I'm sure you've read 19:44 this story before, but let's go ahead and look at it together. 19:47 Wow! Ha ha, what impact. 19:51 Okay, here it is. I'm going to read it. 19:53 It's on the screen. 20:10 Now what's the impact? 20:11 What is the impact? 20:15 What impact does it have? 20:23 Turning away from the Lord. 20:24 The impact, if you look at this, forsaken the 20:27 commandments of God. 20:29 The impact is on the house, on the house, the entire house. 20:34 The impact is on the entire family. 20:37 I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's house. 20:42 The impact is on entire family. 20:45 When you look at the commandments of God in the 20:47 Old Testament; in Deuteronomy the Lord said, I want you to 20:52 bind these as frontlets between your eyes, on the doorposts 20:56 of your house, that it may be well with you and 20:58 your children forever. 21:00 He says, If you live by this, there will be no difficulty 21:03 in your father's house. 21:04 But the impact here, write that down, what impact does the 21:07 disobedience to the commandments reveal? the entire family. 21:11 The entire family structure falls apart. 21:14 You and your father's house. 21:15 What has happened? You have forsaken the 21:18 commandments of the Lord. 21:20 You see, the trouble that was coming to Elijah. 21:24 He was considered the one that was causing trouble, 21:28 but he was obedient. 21:31 Never consider obedience as a factor of trouble. 21:34 It might get you in trouble by other people, but I have a 21:37 saying that goes this way: I'd rather be persecuted by man 21:41 than prosecuted by God. 21:43 I'd rather be persecuted by man than prosecuted by God for 21:48 not doing what's right. Amen? 21:51 Let's got to the next one, No. 10. 21:59 Have you ever been caught by a speed trap? 22:02 Anybody in here? Come on! 22:03 Can I get an Amen if you have? 22:07 Okay, I'll say, Amen, since we're all not 22:10 one to confess today. 22:12 I was driving down the freeway the other day and my radar 22:18 detector went: laser, laser. 22:22 And do you know what that means? 22:23 That means there's somebody in a tree somewhere pointing a 22:28 laser straight at your car. 22:29 I remember going 57 once, and when I heard that go off, 22:34 I saw the highway patrolman on the overpass on the far left, 22:43 in the other side of the lane, hiding behind a pole, 22:46 and all I saw was just a part of his body, and his laser detector 22:52 aiming down their freeway, and the thing is going: 22:54 laser, laser, and I'm thinking, Man, no matter what you do, 23:00 you can't evade the speed traps. 23:04 Now follow me carefully, this is, this is, 23:07 I'm going somewhere with this. 23:09 Except you have a radar detector. 23:13 Now, is there any good for the radar detector? 23:17 It lets you know when you are in trouble. 23:21 Come on, am I telling the truth? 23:22 It lets you know that you are about, you're about to get 23:27 in trouble if you don't adjust what you're doing right now. 23:30 Now I don't know if you've ever heard it this way. 23:34 Maybe you might want to send me an e-mail and correct my 23:36 application, but the Holy Spirit is a radar detector; 23:40 lets you know when you're about to get in trouble. 23:44 And he says, Remember, remember, don't go there! 23:50 Slow it down; you're about to cross the line, 23:54 and you're going to get stopped. 23:56 The Holy Spirit is bringing that conviction. 23:58 And you know when you hear the, when you hear the thing 24:00 goes off, laser! When you hear, beep, beep, beep! 24:02 You... Does it do something to you? 24:04 Oh, it brings a feeling that you shouldn't have, 24:08 because you know you're almost to get in trouble. 24:10 Now I don't want you to raise your hand, but I'm sure that if 24:12 you're watching the program you may... 24:13 My head elder in California once, at a few churches back, 24:17 he had not had a, he had never had a ticket in his whole life. 24:23 And he was driving over one of the overpasses in California, 24:27 coming down the back way to go to Antioch, California, 24:31 and not Brother Hutchinson, because he was one of my head 24:34 Elders in California. 24:35 And he came over the overpass, and there was a Highway 24:41 Patrolman; pulled him over, and he said, You were speeding. 24:44 He said, Officer, officer, I've never had a 24:50 speeding ticket in my life! 24:52 Please don't give me a speeding ticket! 24:57 The officer said, Well, I see it a different way. 25:01 It's my privilege to be the first one to give you a 25:05 speeding ticket, so let's not make this too painful. 25:08 And when he came to church on Sabbath he went like this: 25:10 I got my first speeding ticket! 25:13 After driving all... And he was like 67 at the time. 25:18 I never had... I said, It's not that bad. 25:20 He said, Oh, I almost had a perfect record! 25:24 The Lord sometimes catches us. 25:26 And he said, So we see it differently. 25:28 He said, Please don't mess up my record. 25:30 The highway patrolman said, It's my privilege to be the 25:33 first one to give... And, you know what I'm talking about! 25:37 Okay. But anyway, so why is it impossible to obey the 25:40 commandments of God? 25:42 Let's look at this together. 25:43 Hebrews 10:16. Why is it impossible? 25:46 Look at what the Lord did. 25:48 Hebrews 10:16. There are things you... You know the thing... 25:52 The reason why this lesson is so important to me is because 25:55 to try to get away from what you can't get 25:59 away from is insanity. 26:01 To try to get away from what you can't get 26:05 away from is insanity. 26:06 Look at Hebrews 10:16. Here it is. 26:24 So can you get away from God's law? 26:28 Can you run faster than your mind? 26:30 Can you run faster than your heart? No! 26:34 You know what happens when you try to? guilt. 26:37 You know what happens when you try to violate the law 26:41 of your mind? guilt. 26:43 Go to Romans. Look at this. 26:45 Write that down. What makes the commandments of God 26:48 impossible to evade? 26:49 They're in our minds and in our hearts. 26:52 If you can run faster than your heart and your mind, 26:54 then you're an exception to the rule. 26:56 But let me show you what happened to a person that 26:58 cannot run faster than his mind. 27:01 Romans 7. Let's look what happens. 27:04 Let's look at the experience of a man who could 27:07 not outrun his mind. Alright? 27:10 Here, look at what happens. 27:12 Romans 7, and let's start with verse 14. 27:21 Ah, well, that's a long way, but let's go to verse 22. 27:28 I don't want to take too much time. 27:30 Verse 22, he says in verse 22, Paul says, For I delight in the 27:35 what? law of God according to the inward... I delight, 27:40 according to that, but, verse 23, I see another law in my 27:45 members warring against the law of my what? my mind, 27:50 and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, 27:53 which is in my members. 27:55 And then he confesses, verse 24, Oh, wretched man that I am, 27:59 who will deliver me from the body of this death? 28:02 or from this body of death? 28:04 He says, I love God's law! 28:07 But in my mind there's something else going on. 28:13 There's another war going on against the law of my mind, 28:18 the law that's in my mind. 28:20 We saw how it got there. 28:21 God put it in his mind. 28:23 But Paul had sinful character traits, like we all do, fighting 28:30 against what God put in his mind. 28:33 And you know what? the Lord does that so that we could 28:35 remember that there's no place we can run, 28:37 that we can outrun God's law. 28:39 So what is the answer? 28:41 What makes the commandments of God impossible to evade? 28:43 They are where? in our hearts, and in our minds. 28:46 Stay in Romans. We're going to to go to the very next question, 28:48 Question 11. They're in our hearts, and they are 28:52 surely in our minds. 29:07 We're going to go to Romans 8, and we're going to look 29:11 at verse 3 and 4. Romans 8:3, 4. 29:16 Now, it's wonderful that we just looked at Romans 7, 29:20 because in Romans 7 Paul is at this impossible impasse, 29:24 and he's saying, I'm wretched. 29:25 I'm miserable. Who is going to deliver me? 29:29 And then Romans 8 begins with this wonderful declaration, 29:32 with this wonderful declaration, There is therefore now no 29:38 condemnation, Romans 8:1, to those who are in Christ Jesus, 29:42 who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to 29:45 the what? the Spirit. 29:46 So how you walk determines the kind of emotional state 29:51 you're going to be in; the kind of Spiritual state you're 29:54 going to be in; how you walk. 29:55 You can decide, as the Bible says, there are two 29:57 roads: life and blessings to the right, 30:00 death and cursing's to the left. 30:02 If you walk on a road of death and cursing's 30:04 you're going to be wretched, but if you walk on the road of 30:07 life and blessings, you're going to find joy. 30:09 No condemnation at all. 30:11 You have to make this decision. 30:13 Every morning you wake up you have to decide, how are you 30:15 going to walk today? 30:16 That's the Christian obligation. 30:18 How am I going to walk today? 30:20 The Bible says that we are to walk as Jesus walked. 30:23 So often we think of the Christian life as 30:26 our weekend activity. 30:27 That's the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. 30:31 The doctrine of the Nicolaitans in Revelation, the Bible says, 30:34 the Lord says, I hate the doctrine of the Nicolaitans. 30:37 Do you know what they meant? 30:38 They believed that they, they believed that their secular life 30:41 and their spiritual life was separate. 30:43 And no matter what they did, the two will 30:46 never impact each other. 30:48 So they lived sensuality on one side, and they tried 30:51 Spirituality on the other. 30:52 And the Lord said, I hate the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, 30:55 because both are blended together. Amen somebody? 30:58 You can't evade the two. 30:59 You can't say, Okay, Monday through Friday, 31:02 Monday, Sunday through Friday, road left, Saturday road right. 31:08 Ha ha! You can't do it! 31:11 In the river or on the banks. 31:13 You can't do it. You're going to get caught on one of those roads 31:15 at the wrong time, and you don't want to go down that path. 31:18 So let's look at what happens now. 31:20 How do we... Through what method are we able to live in 31:23 harmony with God's law? 31:24 Romans 8:3. Let's start there. 31:26 Let's start there. And, by the way, 31:29 I'll explain after we read it. It says, 31:39 That means the law wasn't weak, but the flesh was weak. 31:41 The law couldn't really do much because humanity was weak. 31:44 Notice what the Lord did. 32:10 This is a beautiful passage. 32:12 First of all it says, You put a perfect law in an imperfect 32:17 body, what are you going to get? wretchedness. 32:20 You put a perfect, holy, just law in a wretched, sinful flesh; 32:26 what are you going to get? wretchedness, misery. 32:32 But the Lord sent His Son, in the likeness of the same flesh, 32:37 and He condemned sin through the same flesh, so that now that 32:44 we walk in the Spirit, the flesh won't have dominance, 32:48 and create the same conflict that it once did when it was 32:52 out of harmony with God's law. 32:54 Jesus came in the same human flesh, faced sin the way we 33:00 would have to face it. 33:02 He was victorious over it, and then by the indwelling Spirit, 33:07 who now abides in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, 33:11 but according to the Spirit. 33:13 That simple word walk makes all... It empowers. 33:19 When you decide where you're going to walk, when you decide 33:23 where you're going to walk, the Spirit now is 33:25 in complete control. 33:27 And, by the way,... Let's go to Philippians. 33:32 Let me show you that it's not just when you decide. 33:35 Philippians, because you know, you can make this a human thing. 33:40 I want to show you it's not just when you decide, 33:43 but when you put the Lord in complete control. 33:46 It's not when you decide. 33:48 Now here we are. Oh, okay. 33:54 Okay, here we are. Hum, it's not just when you decide, 34:01 but when you allow Jesus to come in. 34:03 Let's look at this, alright? 34:05 Philippians 2:13, Philippians 2:13. 34:12 Now Philippians 2, there are two elements there, 34:15 two verses in there that really pulls this whole thing together, 34:18 that empowers you to live in harmony with the 34:20 Christian obligation. 34:21 Philippians 2:13. Notice what it says. 34:25 For it is God who works where? in you, both to will, 34:33 and then what else? to do of His good pleasure. 34:37 That's huge! It is not us who wills, but who does the willing? 34:42 God, when the Lord comes in. 34:45 And how does He do it? 34:46 This is powerful because what I want to show you here, 34:49 is first of all, let's put the pieces together. 34:51 Hebrews 10:16, God put the law in our heart, 34:55 and where else? in our what? mind. 34:57 And Paul says, I delight, according to the law of God, 35:01 the law of God, but there's another law warring against 35:05 the law that is in my mind. 35:08 Now notice what happens. 35:09 When the Lord comes in and changes us, what happens? 35:14 Look at verse 5. Look at verse 5. 35:17 What's the first word in verse 5? 35:20 Philippians 2:5. What's the first word together? 35:25 One more time! let. 35:28 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. 35:35 And now, now wait a minute! 35:38 Let? Do you let the sun shine every day? 35:41 Who lets the sun shine? 35:42 Who decides whether the sun's going to shine or not? 35:45 Do you let your blood flow? 35:47 Who decides whether your bloods going to flow or not? 35:49 Do you let your nose breathe? 35:51 Come on let's go! Do you let your eyes bat? 35:55 Can you think your eyes into stop? 35:57 Let's try it. It's not going to work. 36:00 But God puts in place certain cadences that will happen 36:05 if you just what? let them. 36:07 When the Spirit of God comes into your life it is not, 36:11 Oh, do I have to let God lead today? 36:14 Because your mind has been so transformed that the mind 36:18 of Christ is in you. 36:19 It is no longer a battle. You simply let. 36:22 What's another letter in the Bible that we have? 36:24 Let your light so what? shine. 36:27 Do you have to stoke a fire to get it to shine? 36:33 Do you have to really shake the candle for its wick to shine? 36:36 No, you just ignite it. 36:38 When the Spirit of God comes into our lives, 36:40 these things that we look at as obligations, are no longer 36:43 fights any longer, because the mind has been transformed 36:47 by the indwelling Christ. 36:49 The Spirit is there to power us, and then we realize God is the 36:54 One who wills it, and then He does it. 36:59 But you need another text. 37:01 I can see it on your faces. 37:03 You need another text. 37:04 Go to Galatians 2:20 now, Galatians, let's see this. 37:08 I've got to make sure that you guys are clear. 37:11 Galatians, Galatians... See, the reason why this passage, 37:16 this chapter is so important... I'm giving you extra stuff 37:19 that's no in the lesson. 37:20 We'll go to the ones that are here. 37:22 But the reason I'm giving you this is because the Christian 37:25 life is often seen as things we do, and things we don't do; 37:29 places we go, and places we don't go. 37:31 It's so work oriented. 37:34 Things we eat and things we don't eat. 37:36 Songs we sing and songs we don't sing. 37:38 It's such a do and don't environment. 37:40 But what you have to keep in mind is have you ever gone to a 37:44 funeral, and the person who had been laid to 37:49 rest follows you home? 37:51 Think about that. Have they ever? No. 37:57 It's never, ever happened. 37:59 But now have you read in the Bible where people have been 38:04 resurrected? Yes or no? 38:06 Did Jesus ever resurrect somebody? 38:09 Who did the resurrecting? Jesus did. 38:12 Do they come forth in their own power, or in His power? 38:16 Okay. I just want to get you to think that way. 38:19 Because now when you decide to become a Christian, 38:22 something happens that we often overlook. 38:26 We think of church membership rather than thinking of entering 38:30 the Christian life as we just died. 38:32 You've got to die to enter the Christian life. 38:35 And if you die, have you seen a dead person do anything 38:38 before, Pastor Dinzey? No! 38:40 Have you, Terry? Have you seen dead... 38:42 Anybody seen a dead person do anything? 38:45 No they... Dead people can't do anything. 38:47 Now let's look at this now. 38:49 If you really died to who you were, let's look and see who's 38:52 in charge of your life. 38:54 Galatians 2:20. Look at this. 38:55 Look at this. Romans 6 backs it up. 38:59 Galatians 2:20. I have been crucified with... 39:04 together... Christ. 39:05 It is no longer I who what? live, 39:10 but Christ lives where? in me. 39:13 So now if He's living in you, now you can see it is God who 39:17 works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. 39:20 He's living in you. You're dead. 39:22 Janeck died when he got baptized; 39:24 came forth in a newness of life, Romans 6. 39:26 But Christ lives in me. 39:28 And now get this: this is the road now. 39:31 This is where the road comes in. 39:33 And the life which I what? now live in the what? flesh, 39:38 I live by faith in the Son of God who did what? loved me, 39:45 and gave Himself for me. 39:48 So now He loved you. 39:49 And then we go back to 1 John 4:17, 39:51 We love Him because He first loved us. 39:54 See, that's all based on a love relationship. 39:56 When you love the Lord, it's no longer obligations. 39:59 Somebody... When people ask me, What do I have to give up 40:01 to become a member of your church? 40:03 You know what I used to say to them? 40:04 You need to die. Huh? 40:08 You've got to give up your life! 40:10 What do I have to do to become a member? 40:14 You have to die! We want your whole life! 40:17 I am not joining that church! Not me! 40:22 Now think about it, that's what the Lord is saying. 40:24 To make it to the kingdom, if anyone will deny himself, 40:28 let him take up his what? cross. 40:31 It's the cross of denial, nailing yourself to the cross. 40:35 How often did Paul say he had to die? how often? 40:38 Every day! Do you notice that? 40:40 What happens on the days that you choose not to die? 40:43 Oh wretched man that I am! Right? 40:47 See, this is not just about obligation. 40:49 I want you to get the whole idea here that the Christian life 40:51 is not this humdrum list of do's and don'ts: 40:55 28 fundamentals in this denomination; 40:57 72 in that denomination; how many times I pray every day; 41:01 how many times I do the Torah. 41:03 Oh, when Jesus is not in it, and when you're still alive, 41:06 it's an obligation. 41:07 But when you die, God is the One working in you to 41:10 accomplish His will. Amen. 41:12 So the righteous requirements that we just read about here 41:15 in question No. 11, Through what method are we able to live in 41:21 harmony with God's law? through what method? 41:24 Walking according to the Spirit. 41:32 That's the answer. Walking how? according to the Spirit. 41:36 When you don't walk according to the Spirit, 41:38 you abide in death. 41:40 When you abide in death nothing that you know you are obliged 41:46 to do becomes a delight any longer. 41:48 It becomes like, Ah, man, do I have to do that? 41:53 No you don't have to do it. 41:55 Because the Bible says in Romans, 41:58 to be spiritually minded is life. 42:00 To be carnally minded is what? death. That's the battle. 42:05 You just decide. What kind of a mind do you want to have? 42:07 the left mind or the right mind? 42:09 Okay, let's go to No. 12. 42:22 We're going now to Romans 6. 42:26 Romans... What freedom do we find when we rely on Jesus 42:32 to honor His law? Romans 6. 42:39 And we're going to look at Verse 14, and Verse 15. 42:47 Okay, okay, great! What freedom do we find when we rely on Jesus 42:53 to honor His law? Romans 6:14, 15. 42:56 Okay. Here it is: 43:20 Let's just break that text down for a brief moment. 43:23 This is often the text that's used to say to Christians, 43:26 You don't have to keep God's law, 43:29 because you're not under law. 43:31 Misunderstanding the Greek here is saying, you are not under the 43:36 condemnation of the law. 43:37 What are you under? What are you under? 43:40 What are you under? 43:42 Look at the text. What are you under? 43:44 You are not under the law, but under what? Okay, okay. 43:49 Let's get this now. If you're not under the law, 43:52 but you're under grace; let's go back to the police scenario. 43:55 My good friend who got the first ticket, the police officer he 44:00 was hoping would say, Okay, I'm going to extend to you 44:03 grace to keep your record spotless. Right? 44:07 Now if the law, if the officer extended grace, does that make 44:13 him innocent of speeding? Yes or no? No! 44:18 We don't need grace if we are innocent. 44:23 We need grace because we are what? guilty. 44:26 When we are guilty we need grace. 44:29 A person that's guilty never asks for justice. 44:33 They ask for mercy, and for grace. 44:36 If you are guilty, you don't say to the judge, I demand justice! 44:40 He said, okay, you're going to get hanged. 44:43 You do the crime? You want justice? 44:45 We're going to hang you, or you're going to prison for life. 44:48 But if you're standing before the judge, and you know you're 44:51 guilty, you don't say, I want justice! 44:53 You'd say, Please, I need grace! 44:55 So now, get this, "Well, have mercy!" 44:57 Exactly! Have, please... 44:59 You know what this phrase in the judicial system? 45:02 Throw yourself on the mercy of the court. 45:06 That's why it amazes me when these criminals have their last 45:09 statement before they get sentenced, the ones that are 45:12 cocky and never apologize. What do they do? 45:16 They throw the book at em! 45:17 You're going to get 27 life sentences. 45:21 And if you come back on a 28th you're going back to jail. 45:23 Can you imagine that? 45:25 I don't know how they do that. 45:26 But when you don't ask for mercy, you don't get it. 45:30 When you don't acknowledge your crime, 45:31 You'll never get the mercy of God. 45:33 Now, here's the key: grace. 45:34 Do we need grace, yes or no? 45:36 For the fact that we need grace, for the fact that the guy that 45:39 was speeding asks for grace, means the speed limit 45:42 has not been cancelled. 45:43 For the fact that we live under God's grace 45:46 means the law is still there. 45:47 What it meant in this text is when you are in Jesus, 45:51 the condemnation has been removed. 45:53 Didn't we just read that? 45:55 There is therefore now no what? condemnation. 45:58 That's been removed. 46:00 The condemnation has been removed, not the law. 46:03 Would you want to live in a... 46:04 Would you want to live on an earth where there's no law? 46:07 where there is nothing that is against the law to do? 46:10 Can you imagine, Brother Hutchinson? 46:12 If all of a sudden we got a notice on the CNN tonight: 46:15 There is no law against murder, theft, stealing, adultery, 46:20 killing, suicide bombers. 46:23 If you want to do it, our new law in America is, 46:26 Do what thou wilt. Only the strong survive. 46:29 Can you imagine the pandemonia that would 46:31 ensue in this country? 46:37 That's not what this text is saying. 46:39 It's not saying that God got rid of His law. 46:41 It's saying He got rid of the condemnation 46:45 that we were once under. 46:47 And by His grace we are no longer condemned. 46:50 Praise God for that, Amen? 46:51 So let's put the answer. 46:53 What freedom do we find when we rely on 46:55 Jesus to honor His law? 46:57 What do we find? Come on, it's very powerful. 47:00 It's in there twice. 47:02 What do we find? grace! 47:05 Write it down; we find grace. 47:07 That's right. That's why the Lord says, Come boldly before 47:12 the throne of mercy, that you may find grace 47:17 to help in time of need. 47:19 He says, When you're messing up, run, run, run here. 47:23 Don't crawl here. Don't walk here. 47:25 Run to Me, and you'll get the grace and mercy that you need. 47:28 What a loving God! What a loving God! 47:31 That's why when I present this topic, and I think about the 47:34 commandments of God, I'm trying to... 47:36 I'm putting the commandments of God in the proper light. 47:39 I'm not putting the commandments of God in the first four 47:42 obligations, last six obligations. 47:45 I'm putting the commandments of God in a love relationship. 47:48 When you love God, you won't take His name in vain. 47:51 You won't make idols before Him. 47:53 You won't, you know, worship other gods. 47:56 You won't violate the Sabbath. 47:59 You wouldn't do any of that. 48:01 And then in the same way, you'll honor your 48:02 father and your mother. 48:04 You won't kill, steal, lie, cheat, commit adultery, 48:05 bear false witness. 48:07 You won't do... covet. 48:08 You won't do any of that, if you love. 48:09 But if you don't love you say, Do I have to? 48:14 And that's the unfortunate part. 48:17 So much of Christianity today is in the, Do you have to? 48:20 So we've got these denominations that say, You don't have to. 48:23 You can be saved. You don't have to. 48:26 You don't have to do that. 48:28 See, we are a, we are a... Ah, what's the word here? 48:34 We are... It will come to me in a moment. 48:37 We are a grace fellowship. 48:40 That means you don't have to keep anything. 48:43 It's grace to everybody. 48:45 Here's the other ones that say, Free, we are freewill. 48:49 It's whatever you will. It's free! 48:52 In all these denominations; we kind of separate down God's 48:56 requirements to find one that will fit your size shoe. 49:00 And then that one will get you there. 49:03 No! There's only one way, and that's through Jesus, Amen? 49:06 Let's look at No. 13. 49:08 Look at No. 13. Is it really possible to keep 49:15 the commandments of God? 49:17 Is it really possible to keep the commandments of God? 49:21 For those of you that are theologians, you know the text. 49:24 Philippians 4:13. I won't hold it out too long, 49:28 because you might start repeating it. 49:29 Okay. Here it is. I can do what? all things. 49:36 I can do what? all things. Bring a text up. 49:46 Or strengtheneth me, if you have the King James Version. 49:48 Where does the strength come from? from Christ. 49:52 You see, a Christ centered message is a message of hope. 49:54 It's taken the obligation off of you. 49:56 If it's God who first... If you're no longer alive, 50:00 and Jesus lives in you, and He wills, and then does, 50:06 and then strengthens. 50:09 Well, on who is the obligation? 50:12 It's on Him, not on us, because He's the One in charge. 50:17 When you live your Christian life, and you're you charge, 50:21 Ah, what do I have to do today to remain saved? 50:26 But if you get up in the morning and you say, I've got to die 50:29 today so that I can continue in this saving relationship, 50:32 then the Lord takes over, and you have a successful day. 50:35 Isn't that right? But now let's look at a couple of other things 50:38 here, because these are the... I'm using some of the texts, 50:41 I'm approaching this also from the perspective of some of the 50:45 statements that have been made. 50:47 For example, some of you may have heard that, some of you 50:50 may have been taught that, Well, the reason why you don't 50:53 have to keep the commandments is because they 50:55 were just for the Jews. 50:57 And since you're not Jewish... 51:00 Let's look at No. 14. 51:14 1 Corinthians 7:19. Now you all know the answer is what? 51:17 Say it to me. What's the answer? 51:19 No. The answer is no. 51:20 But let's look at what the Bible says. 51:22 Now the reason why this is such a weak... 51:24 And do you know why? 51:25 Do you know why they often get that statement? 51:27 Do you know why pastors tell their members that the 51:29 commandments are just for the Jews? 51:31 Because they lock it down to the Sabbath. 51:33 They say, Ah, there's one commandment in there. 51:37 If we can tie that one to a nation, then you don't have to 51:40 keep it, because you're not a part of that nation. 51:42 Well, in the same way that the other nine commandments are not 51:45 for any particular nation, neither is that one. 51:47 And let me tell you why the fourth commandment about the 51:49 Sabbath is not just for a nation, because it says, 51:52 in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, 51:55 and all that in them is. 51:57 That means man and woman. 51:59 If you were not made during the six days of creation, 52:02 then you don't have to keep the commandments. 52:04 Isn't that easy? If you were not a part of creation, 52:09 you don't have to keep the commandments. 52:10 Let's just see the... 52:12 Anyone who is not a part of creation send me an e-mail. 52:15 If you were not a part of God's creation, 52:17 send me an e-mail. I won't even look for it. 52:20 Because each one of us is a product of God's 52:23 creative ability. Amen? 52:24 He made male, and He made female. 52:28 So the only way that you can be isolated from honoring 52:33 the commandments of God is if you were not a part of creation. 52:35 Let's look at the answer the Apostle Paul puts here. 52:38 Here it is: He says on this very issue. Together: 52:46 That was a Jewish rite. 52:55 What do you say? He said, It doesn't matter whether you're 52:58 a Jew or a Gentile. 53:00 It doesn't matter whether you are a Greek or Jew. 53:02 It doesn't matter whether you are a Corinthian or Roman. 53:06 That's not the issue here. 53:07 You're not locked onto a ceremony. 53:09 Circumcision of the heart, that sinful heart, that's what the 53:13 Lord wanted to get rid of, not circumcision of the flesh. 53:16 In the ceremonial system it was required of males to participate 53:21 in circumcision, but not when it comes to commandments of God. 53:25 Not necessary. The ten commandments of God is in a 53:30 relationship between Jesus and His saints, between those who 53:35 accept Christ, and those who decide to follow Christ. 53:38 So circumcision had nothing to do with that. 53:40 The obligation was here... 53:42 Keeping the commandments of God is what matters. 53:46 So write that down. What matters? 53:48 Aren't the ten commandments for the Jews? 53:50 What's the answer? Put it down very quickly; two letters: No. 53:54 No, not at all. Absolutely not. 53:57 Let's go to No. 15., No. 15. 54:00 Here's another reason why the commandments of God have 54:02 often been referred to as unnecessary, unnecessary. 54:06 Question 15 is: 54:22 Well, hum, and the reason I bring this one up is because 54:26 of Romans, obviously. 54:29 Romans 5:8, 9, 10. It says: For by grace you have been saved 54:34 through faith, and that not of yourselves. 54:36 It is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast. 54:39 Lest anyone should do what? boast. 54:42 So are we saved by grace? Yes or no? 54:45 Was saved by grace through faith. 54:48 Now does this faith relationship, since we're saved 54:50 by grace through faith, does it say, Now since you're saved by 54:53 grace through faith, that all the obligations of obedience 54:56 are now put out the window? 54:57 It actually doesn't. 54:59 Look at Romans 3:31. 55:01 Here is the question. 55:02 There is the question, and here is the answer. It says: 55:10 What's the answer? 55:12 Or God forbid, right? 55:14 I like the King James Version, God forbid! 55:23 Have you heard of a law abiding citizen? 55:25 That's what this means. 55:27 A neighbor that you don't have to worry about. 55:29 You might say to your neighbor, I'll be out 55:31 of town for two weeks. 55:32 He's not going to break into your house. 55:34 He's a law abiding citizen. 55:36 He's not going to steal your chickens. 55:38 He's not going to steal the feed out of your barn. 55:42 I'm speaking in country language, as you can tell. 55:44 We're in the country. 55:45 He's not going to break into your house. 55:47 He's not going to steal your television, 55:49 if you're in the city. 55:50 He's not going to do anything that... 55:51 You could say, My neighbor is trustworthy, because he, 55:56 through his life, lives in harmony with 55:58 the laws of the land. 56:00 The law is established in his life. 56:01 That's why people like gated communities. 56:05 That's why people like applications to move 56:08 into this community. 56:09 Have you ever been a felon? 56:11 Yes? Well, we don't rent to former felons or present felons. 56:16 That's what's happening in America. 56:18 There's no grace. See, have you been a sinner? come on! 56:22 Answer. Have you been a sinner? 56:24 Yes. Okay, God brings us into relationship with Him, 56:29 even when we were sinful, living that life. Amen? 56:32 He brings us out of it, removes the condemnation from it, 56:36 and says, You can move into My neighborhood. 56:38 Now you understand why the angels sometimes get nervous? 56:41 They looked down here on this earth and said, Ah, are they 56:45 moving up here anytime soon? 56:46 Yeah, but I'm not done yet. 56:48 The beauty of the relationship with Jesus is, He who has begun 56:53 a good work in us will do what? He's going to complete it. 56:56 So when the angels look at the people that 56:58 they are assigned to... 57:01 I don't want to ask you how tough your life is. 57:03 How much does your angel get paid to keep up with you? 57:06 I mean when you think about the life that each of us lives, 57:10 we have to remember that this faith based relationship is not 57:13 a relationship that removes from us the obligation 57:16 of obedience to the Lord. 57:18 When you think of the obedience being removed, 57:20 then it's no longer a faith relationship; 57:23 it's a relationship based on, Do I have to? 57:26 Well I remember growing up, my mother never asked me, 57:28 Do you want to go to church? 57:30 I never even thought about it. 57:31 She used to say to me, As long as you're breathing, 57:34 and you're not deathly ill, you will be in church this Sabbath. 57:39 Get your clothes ready. 57:41 Iron them before sunset, cause there'll be no ironing on... 57:45 She'd really pull me together. 57:46 But you will be in church. 57:48 So friends, here's the point: if you have a faith based 57:51 relationship with Jesus, don't think of the things of God's 57:55 Word as an obligation that brings burdens. 57:58 Keep loving the Lord, and one day whatever doesn't make sense, 58:01 will surely come into a sharper focus. 58:04 God bless you! |
Revised 2018-05-15