The LORD Reigneth

 Temple Baptist Church - 8-23-2026

Psalm 99

 

Introduction:

A.  Why such a Psalm? Hmmm, let me take a wild guess?  Because of me?  Because of you?  Because of circumstances?  Because of spiritual and physical hardships?  Because of finances?  Hmmm, the answer is yes!  Because we are human and often weak spiritually!

 

B.  What causes such spiritual conditions?  Unbelief!  Simple enough.  Though the Bible says:

 

1.  Trust in the LORD!  Aha, an all too familiar verse?  Proverbs 3:5-6  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  (6)  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

 

2.  Be careful for NOTHING!  Aha, remember the verse we quote every Wednesday night?  Philippians 4:6-7  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  (7)  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

 

3.  Casting ALL your Care upon Him!  Yes, I remember!  1 Peter 5:7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

 

4.  Put your confidence in the LORD!  Oh, Pastor, why are you doing this?  Because I need it!  Psalms 118:8-9  It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.  (9)  It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.

 

Philippians 3:3  For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

 

C.  I thought of other verses of Scripture that WE love to quote but, in times of adversity, they hardly ever come to mind.  God reminds us in Psalm 99!

 

D.  I want to look at this Psalm of Praise tonight because of the first three words, “The LORD reigneth.”  Again, I call your attention to the “eth” ending of the word “reign”.  This word expresses the truth of God’s sovereignty throughout the ages.  The LORD did reign, the LORD does reign, and the LORD will always reign.  You can take that to the bank!

 

E.  This Psalm reminds us that the LORD will be “LORD of all” today, tomorrow, and forever!.  No matter what comes; no matter what problems that we face; no matter what disappointments and discouragements that we endure; the LORD will be the LORD and He will continue to control all things.

 

Acts 10:36  The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)

 

F.  The last verse of the Psalm exhorts us to 1)  “Exalt the LORD for He is our God”  and 2)  “Worship the LORD for He is holy.”

 

G.  “The LORD reigneth” speaks of His sovereignty, purpose, and power.  His sovereignty cannot be denied, His purpose cannot be hindered, and His power is unstoppable.

 

1.  Verse 1.  The LORD is sovereign in Heaven.  “He sitteth between the cheribums.”  He is LORD of heaven and, from there, controls His universe and all that is within it.

 

Isaiah 6:1-4  In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.  (2)  Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.  (3)  And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.  (4)  And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

 

2.  Verse 2.  The LORD is sovereign in Israel.  “The LORD is great in Zion.”  God still loves His covenant people and will graft the natural branch back in one day.  What we see in Israel today is controlled by God!

 

Psalms 102:16  When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory.

 

3.  Verse 3.  The LORD is sovereign in His name.  “LORD.”  “I AM THAT I AM” means that He Self-existent and Eternal. Jehovah God!  He needs nothing or anybody, He needs no advice nor counsel, He knows everything, He can do all things and is ever present!  He is LORD! 

 

Isaiah 9:6-7  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.  (7)  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

 

4.  Verse 4.  The LORD is sovereign in His Judgment.  “thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob.”  Rest assured that God knows all that goes on and will make it right, His time and His way! The judgment of God will be a right judgment and a right reward.

 

Romans 2:2-3  But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.  (3)  And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

 

5.  Verse 5.  The LORD is sovereign in Our Praise.  “Exalt ye the LORD our God.”  We worship the LORD and Him alone!

 

Psalms 150:6  Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

 

6.  Verse 6.  The LORD is sovereign in His Answers to Prayer.  “they called … He answered.”  When God answers our prayers, He will answer in a perfect way.  No matter where you are, no matter what you need!

 

Jeremiah 33:1-3  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,  (2)  Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name;  (3)  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

 

7.  Verse 7.  The LORD is sovereign in His Word.  “they kept His testimonies.”  You can trust your Bible in life, salvation, and death.

 

Psalms 138:1-2  A Psalm of David. I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.  (2)  I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

 

8.  Verse 8.  The LORD is sovereign in Forgiveness.  “thou wast a God that forgavest them.”  Oft times, we are slow to forgive but God is a God of forgiveness.  No matter what sin you have committed, failure that you have had, His ears are open to your cry and His arms are open to your embrace.

 

1 John 1:8-10  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  (9)  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (10)  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

 

9.  The LORD is sovereign in in Holiness.  “for the LORD our God is holy.”  God will always do right!  God cannot and will not do wrong so His ways will be right ways.

 

1 John 1:5  This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

 

Conclusion:  Because God is all these things, we need not fear or worry concerning this life as He holds our lives in His hands!

The Purpose of The Church - Part 3

 Temple Baptist Church - 8-23-2026

Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8

 

Introduction:

 

Matthew 28:18-20  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  (19)  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  (20)  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

 

Mark 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.  (We are not Calvinists, Reformed Theology) which is a Satanic doctrine.  Christ died for the sins of the whole world, and it is His will that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth! 1 Timothy 2:4)

 

Acts 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.  (Witnessing starts at home and spreads to the uttermost part of the earth in an orderly fashion.)

 

A.  Over the past couple of Sundays, I have been looking at the Purpose of the local church and its members.  In these last days, so many churches have lost their way as what they are to stand for and do.  The Internal Purpose of the local church is:

 

1.  To Gather.  We need exhortation and to exhort one another!

 

2.  To Glorify.  We need to magnify the Word of God which glorifies the Son of God!

 

3.  To Grow.  When we stop going, we stop growing spiritually and begin to decline spiritually!

 

a) Feed our Flock.

 

b) Grow our People.

 

c) Encourage our Discouraged.

 

d) Restore our Fallen.

 

e) Protect our Children.

 

4.  To Go.  Every child of God is commissioned to Go!  “Both” means personally at home and to the “uttermost” through missions!  We are all vital to the work we are sent to do!

 

B.  God keeps telling us, through the Bible, to seek and return to the Old Paths wherein is the good way, but not the popular one. 

 

Jeremiah 6:16  Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.

 

Therefore, we find that the Old Paths are not popular and are adversarial!  There are a “world” of things that capture our attention or thwart our return:  family, friends, finances, and foes in general.

 

C.  The external work of the local church is “witness and both” (Our Lord said “both” which means simultaneous).  In general, supporting missions!  By doing so, we can reach the uttermost, the outlying regions of the world. To go into all the world and preach the gospel, as every creature needs a preacher! 

 

Mark 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

 

Matthew 28:19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations …

 

D.  The second part of the external work of the local church is personal witnessing. We owed a debt that we could not pay, and Christ paid a debt He did not owe!  Now, we have become debtors.  Paul said:

 

Romans 1:14  I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.  (Someone or something was instrumental to your salvation.  Aren’t you glad that you are saved this morning and heaven will be your eternal home?  We owe this world the same!)

 

Romans 10:14-15  How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?  (15)  And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

 

E.  I find it of great interest that so many of the great song writers were women.  Margaret Clarkson told this story about her most famous hymn, "So Send I You":

 

When I graduated as a teacher in 1935, jobs were so scarce that I had to go to the far north of Ontario to get work. Seven long years were to pass before I could move to a position in my home city of Toronto. I was reading in John’s gospel one cold night in February, 1938, in the mining town of Kirkland Lake where I was teaching, when suddenly the words of John 20:21 leaped from the page. As I pondered on their significance, God seemed to speak to me. I had long known that because of a physical disability I could never go to the mission field, but that night God seemed to say to me that this lonely spot was where he had put me—my mission field. I wrote the first version of "So Send I You" that evening. Little did I think that it would one day be sung all over the world as a missionary hymn!

 

The words to the first verse of this song are these:

 

So send I you to labor unrewarded,

To serve unpaid, unloved, unsought, unknown,

To bear rebuke, to suffer scorn and scoffing—

So send I you to toil for Me alone.

 

Every Christian does not go to the foreign mission field, but every Christian is commissioned and sent to carry the gospel everywhere and share it with everyone he meets. Just as Jesus willingly came to this world to be our Savior, we must be willing to take His message to those who still have not heard, regardless of the cost.

 

F.  The personal, external work of each individual is threefold: we witness in three ways, with our Lives, with our Lips, and with our Literature.

 

1. With our Lives. I do not know who coined the words “A life lived is worth a thousand sermons preached,” but it is so true.  If our lives do not reflect Christ, then all else fails at that point.  Our Lord said at the Sermon on the Mount:

 

Matthew 5:13-16  Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.  (14)  Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  (15)  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  (16)  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

 

a.  We are to be Salt.  Salt gives the world Desire.  Salt is both for savour and preservation.  I wonder what kind of spiritual taste we leave in the hearts and minds of those around us.  If you are not going to act like a Christian, do not say that you are one.  We hear so much about hypocrites these days because professing Christians to not act like it!

 

1 John 1:5-6  This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.  (6)  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:

 

b.  We are to be Light.  Light gives Direction. Our Light shines ever so brightly in the spiritual darkness of the world in which we live.

 

Matthew 5:16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

 

2. With our Lips.  Salt and Light open the way of verbal witness while failure in those two things seal the lips of witness.  The door of verbal witness is ever so important.

 

a.  Because this world confuses the lost as to what salvation is.  They are being taught that baptism, communion, good works, and a myriad of other things, according to which “ism” or “schism” they ask, will add or take away from the simplicity that is in Christ Jesus.

 

2 Corinthians 11:1-4  Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me.  (2)  For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.  (3)  But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.  (4)  For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus (who is neither holy or Lord) whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit (which operates in disobedience to the Scriptures), which ye have not received, or another gospel (adding to or removing from), which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

 

b.  They need to know and understand that salvation is a relationship based upon repentance and faith in a finished work, the Gospel.  I often say, “If going to church will make you a Christian, sleeping in a garage will make you an automobile!”

 

1 Peter 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

 

c.  The importance of a verbal witness: the lost need to know what the Word of God says. Notice the questions asked: 

 

Romans 10:14-17  How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?  (15)  And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!  (16)  But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?  (17)  So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

 

3. With our Literature.  Bible based gospel tracts are available on the tract rack beside of the front door!  Why the stressing of handing out gospel tracts?

 

a.  Because it is something that all can do!  You may not think that you can adequately express what you have in your heart.  Just tell them how you were saved!  If nothing else, put a gospel tract in their hand or in the envelope along with a bill.

 

b.  Because there are times when there is no time for a gospel presentation.  At work, at a grocery store, at some event, or otherwise.

 

c.  There will be many times when it is not convenient to witness verbally, therefore, “tract” them!

 

Conclusion: “Go ye” is the second part of the external work of the local church!

A Door Is Set Before Us

 Temple Baptist Church - 8-19-2026

I Cor. 16:1-14

 

Introduction:

A.  In Romans 7:7-24, we saw the heart of the Apostle Paul revealed, teaching us that God can use fallible people.  Men and women who still have a sinful flesh to battle.  Men and women who often fail and yet get right and continue to live for Christ.

 

Romans 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

 

Romans 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

 

B.  In 2 Corinthians 10:10, we read that God can use men and women who are not physically strong or eloquent and articulate in speech.

 

2 Corinthians 10:10  For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible.

 

C.  In Acts 9:4-6, we saw that God can use men and women who will bow to God’s will and way in life.

 

Acts 9:4-6  And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?  (5)  And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.  (6)  And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.

 

D.  God used one small, weak man to travel by foot to one great big world and help turn it upside down for Christ! 

 

1.  How did Paul know where to go?  How did he know where to start?  God open and closed doors to get him to the centers of travel and trade to establish churches that could spread the gospel to the world!

 

2.  Paul mentions two places in particular where God opened a door:  Macedonia and Ephesus!

 

E.  Paul called it, in verse 9, “a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.” The word “Door” is mentioned 189 times in your King James Bible.  A door can be either physical or spiritual.  This door was a spiritual one.

 

1.  First Mention of “Door” is in a spiritual sense - Genesis 4:5-7  But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.  (6)  And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?  (7)  If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

 

2.  Last Mention of “Door” is also in a spiritual sense - Revelation 4:1-2  After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.  (2)  And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

 

F.  I give these verses to drive home a point.  When God opens a spiritual “door,” it is normally one door at a time.  It is a single, specific door.  Oft times we try to do everything when God wants us to identify and do one thing that is special to us.  This individual “door” is a “door” of opportunity. 

 

G.  The world was big and Paul was small and one, therefore, God opened doors in strategic places, centers of trade and culture, where local churches were established to spread the gospel in their own lands.

 

H.  Spiritual doors, like physical doors, are entrances that can open and they can close.  These doors are opportunities opened by God to both individuals and or churches corporate.  Spiritual doors can close as quickly as they open, and must be entered when the opportunity is there to do so.

 

Revelation 3:7  And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

 

J. Each time, these doors, opened to Paul, brought about the salvation of the people of these cities along with the establishment of local churches.  Salvation is a door that God opens for each of us.

 

K.  In our text for tonight, we find two places mentioned where God opened a door for Paul.

 

1.  Macedonia. God opened a great, effectual, and adversarial door in Macedonia, in Acts 16:6-15, often referred to as “The Macedonian Call.”  God opened the door into Macedonia and Paul was obedient to go where God sent him.  There Paul found a few women in Phillipi having a prayer meeting by a river.  Lydia, a seller of purple, had her heart opened by God and Paul shared the Gospel with her.  She was saved along with her household, baptized, and invited Paul to abide in her home.  Thus, the beginning of the Philippian Church. 

 

“The Macedonian Call.”  Acts 16:6-15  Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,  (7)  After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.  (8)  And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas.  (9)  And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.  (10)  And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.  (11)  Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, and the next day to Neapolis;  (12)  And from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony: and we were in that city abiding certain days.  (13)  And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.  (14)  And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.  (15)  And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us. 

 

2.  Ephesus.  God is now opening a door in city of Ephesus, referred to in Acts chapter 19. One city at a time, God open the door for the Gospel to be preached.  Ephesus, located in Asia, was an important city under Roman rule.  God would use Paul to establish the church at Ephesus.

 

a)  The church at Ephesus became one of the greatest in the Apostolic Age.  Young Timothy was sent there to remain and keep their doctrine right, and did so.  When speaking of the Church Age, in Revelation chapter 2, God referred to the Apostolic Age as the Church at Ephesus, a church that loved God and Paul and did everything right but, in the end of the age, left their first love.

 

Revelation 2:2-4  I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:  (3)  And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.  (4)  Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

 

b)   It was a church to whom the Epistle of Ephesians, often called the “Highlands of Faith,” was written.  An epistle that dealt with both the Positional (chapters 1-3) and Practical (chapters 4-4) aspects of salvation.

 

L. Paul describes this “door” in 1 Corinthians 16:9: “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.”  I see three things that describe the “Door” Paul mentions that was opened to him.

 

1. It was a “Great” door.  A door that only God could have opened.  An opportunity to establish a church in Ephesus where the Temple of Artemas, called Diana, the goddess of the Ephesians, stood. 

 

2. It was an “Effectual” door.  Paul was able to start and establish the church at Ephesus.  A local church in the midst of idolatry and sinfulness. These are doors that, when God opens, one MUST step through because they may or may not remain open long.  I have often said that you can be in the right place at the wrong time or in the wrong place at the right time and be wrong in both cases!

 

3.  It was an “Adversarial” door. These doors would swing on the hinges or resistance.  Though the adversaries cannot shut the door, they WILL resist those who step through them!  These adversaries can be satanic or circumstantial. 

 

a)  Fierce opposition from the Jews.  (Acts 19:8-9) Paul first reasoned in the synagogue, but some became hardened and spoke evil of “the way”. Paul then withdrew and taught daily in the school of Tyrannus.

 

b) Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, became alarmed because Paul's preaching was turning people away from the worship of Artemis. He stirred up the craftsmen, and a huge crowd gathered in the theater. The riot that ended up in the theatre. where the people shouted for 2 hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians.”

 

c) Paul later described his experience in Ephesus in remarkably strong language:

 

2 Corinthians 1:8  We would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life.

 

In 1 Corinthians 15:30–32, Paul says: “And why stand we in jeopardy every hour?”

 

1 Corinthians 15:32  If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.

 

d)  Paul's work at Ephesus was not merely a short evangelistic visit. He spent years teaching and building up believers.

 

e)  But, through it all, Ephesus was not simply a place where Paul had problems. It was also one of the places where his ministry had extraordinary success. Acts 19:10 says that “all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.”

 

f)  His hardships occurred alongside remarkable growth of the gospel.  He mentioned more hinderances in other places.

 

Romans 15:22-23  For which cause also I have been much hindered from coming to you.  (23)  But now having no more place in these parts, and having a great desire these many years to come unto you;

 

1 Thessalonians 2:17-18  But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire.  (18)  Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.

 

M.  Now, if you do not mind, a personal illustration:

 

1.  I was not looking for God when God was opening a door for me.  It was a great door, an effectual door, and an adversarial door.  God opened my heart with the Word of God, and I walked through the Door which was Christ and was saved.

 

2.  I was not looking to pastor a church, but God opened my heart and, when He called me into the ministry with Matthew 9:38, I stepped through that door.

 

3.  From that point on, God began to open and shut doors to get me here in 1987.  I did not know where Laurens was, much less Temple Baptist Church.  I walked through the doors that God opened for me one at a time.

 

N.  Some doors God opened for us that we should walk through.

 

1.  The Door of Salvation.  John 10:9  I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. (God opens this door but will eventually close it if not entered!)

 

2.  The Door of Spiritual Growth.  1 Peter 2:2-3  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:  (3)  If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.  (A never ending door as babes in Christ can become giants of the faith!)

 

3.  The Door of Sanctification.  Romans 12:1-2  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present (a presentation to God, not a departure from the world) your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  (2)  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.  (Not just separation from the world but separation to God!  A positive, not a negative thing!)

 

4.  The Door of Service.  Isaiah 6:8  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.  (As we are all different, we have different callings and work to do in the body of Christ!  A surrendered heart is a useable one.)

 

5.  The Door of Sharing.  Acts 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.  (Both through foreign missions and sharing the gospel through our lives, testimonies, and literature, we can witness to our Jerusalem!)

 

6.  The Door of Separation.  2 Corinthians 5:6-8  Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:  (7)  (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)  (8)  We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.  (One day, thank God, we will walk through the door of death or be caught up in the air to forever be with the Lord!  This sinful body gone and this sinful; world forgotten, we will forever be with the Lord!)

 

Conclusion:  When God opens a door, step through it because it will be great, effective, and protected from its adversaries.  If God has not yet opened your door, learn to wait in contentment until He does open it.

Money Cannot Buy Eternal Things

 Temple Baptist Church - 8-16-2026

Psalm 49

 

Introduction:

A.  Tonight, in Psalm 49, we get to expose an untruth that permeates today’s society.  “The love of money!”  I have heard it said that everything has a price.  This flies in the face of biblical truth.

 

1. The bible has a lot to say on this subject.  First, let me iterate that money, in itself, is amoral.  It has no morality, good or bad, until man gives it to it.

 

2. Therefore, the love of money is the culprit because it is born out of an unregenerated heart or, in some cases, a backslidden one.  Since I am not addressing the unregenerated tonight, we will make the application to the regenerated hearts in our congregation.

 

1 Timothy 6:10  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

 

Luke 16:11  If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?

 

Matthew 6:19-26  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:  (20)  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:  (21)  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.  (22)  The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.  (23)  But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!  (24)  No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.  (25)  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?  (26)  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

 

B.  A simple Outline of Psalm 49:

 

Verses 1–4 — Hear the Wisdom of God

 

Verses 5–12 — Wealth Cannot Save

 

Verses 13–15 — God Redeems His People

 

Verses 16–20 — Don't Be Impressed by Wealth

 

“You Can't Take It With You—but God Can Take You With Him.”

 

C.  Verses 1-2.  God puts all men (male and female – mankind) into one spiritual basket. 

 

1.  God is no respecter of person.  Romans 2:11  For there is no respect of persons with God.  God has no “Caste System.”  Low, of common sort or status, and high, of high status, great-mighty in power or status.

 

2.  God is no respecter of financial clout.  James 5:1-2  Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.  (2)  Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. 

 

James 2:5  Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

 

D.  Today’s success is measured by three things: wealth accrued, possessions gained, and status attained within society.

 

1.  If you make enough money, you will find security.

 

2.  If you accrue enough possessions, you will have happiness.

 

3.  If you earn a higher status, you will be more likely to be respected and liked.

 

E.  Many people believe that if they can earn enough money, they will find security, happiness, and meaning.  Psalm 49 refutes that statement. 

 

1.  There is living and there is living.  Many people how live have never lived.  Making a living will not make you live.  The believer needs to understand what the world misses: life is not all about the things of the world though, if gotten right, there is nothing wrong with having them. The afore mentioned things will all perish when we die! 

 

2.  Psalm 49 challenges that way of thinking while reminding us that while wealth has value in this life, it has limits. The greatest problems of humanity—death, sin, and eternity—cannot be solved with money.

 

3.  The psalmist invites everyone, rich and poor alike, to listen to God's wisdom.  This Psalm contrasts the temporal and the eternal.  The Apostle Paul spoke of this in 2 Corinthians.

 

2 Corinthians 4:17-18  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal (these are strong words) weight of glory;  (18)  While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

 

F.  "Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world, both low and high, rich and poor together." (Psalm 49:1–2)

 

G.  There is nothing wrong with either money or riches.  It is their perspective that it is problematic.  The love of money is evil because it creates covetousness and covetousness is sin. Money promises security, power, freedom, and happiness.  These promises eventually fail you.

 

Money can buy a house, but not a home.

Money can buy medicine, but not immortality.

Money can buy comfort, but not peace.

Money can buy a funeral, but not resurrection.

Money can buy many things in this life, but it cannot buy redemption.

 

H.  What money cannot buy.

 

1. Money cannot buy you life!  All people live but most people never live.  This may seem to be an oxymoron, but it is not. True life is found only in Christ. 

 

Colossians 3:1-4  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.  (2)  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.  (3)  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.  (4)  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

 

2.  Money cannot extend your life.  Life is short and death is sure.  No man has the power to retain the spirit in the day of death.

 

Ecclesiastes 8:8  There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.

 

3.  Money cannot buy salvation.  Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No man cometh to the Farther but by Him. 

 

1 Peter 1:18-19  Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;  (19)  But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

 

4.  Money cannot but eternal security.  Man sacrifices the eternal on the altar of the temporal.

 

2 Corinthians 4:17-18  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;  (18)  While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

 

5.  Money cannot buy contentment.  Acres of diamonds, mountains of gold, rivers of silver, and riches untold cannot make one content.  How much more does the rich man want?  Just a little bit more!

 

Hebrews 13:5  Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

 

6.  Money cannot buy peace of mind.  Only a clear conscience can make a soft pillow. 

 

Isaiah 26:3-4  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.  (4)  Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength:

 

7.  Money cannot buy a relationship with God.  Enoch walked with God.  Noah walked with God.  They were righteous men, godly men, and men of integrity.

 

Hebrews 12:14  Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: