The Second Half

Temple Baptist Church - 5-16-2021

Revelation 12:9-17

 

A.  The first half or 3 ½ years of the Tribulation Period are now history and it was “hell on earth” for those inhabitants that were left behind. 

 

1.  By “left behind,” I am speaking of those who heard a clear presentation of the gospel prior to the Rapture of God’s Church, received “strong delusion,” believed a lie and are the “walking dead” of humanity.  Alive with no hope of eternal salvation!

 

2.  Ignorant men have both written and received the “Left Behind Series” which in no way lines up with the Scriptures.  There will be no second chances after the Rapture for those who have heard a clear presentation of the gospel prior.

 

3.  Those who have never had a clear presentation of the gospel prior to the Rapture of God’s Church and will have opportunity to hear (through the witness of the 144,000 and an angel who will be preaching the Everlasting Gospel) and be saved.

 

B.  Now, let us look at prophecies concerning the second half. 

 

C.  Verses 10-11. 

 

1.  First, we see a multitude which cannot be numbered were saved under the witness of the 144,000.  Multitudes have been saved in the first half.  Those mentioned are the souls under the altar who were martyred during the reign of Anti-Christ. 

 

Revelation 6:9-11  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:  (10)  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?  (11)  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

 

Revelation 7:9  After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

 

Revelation 7:13-17  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?  (14)  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  (15)  Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.  (16)  They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.  (17)  For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

 

Their salvation is through the blood of Christ (7:14) and their suffering is no more through the comfort and provision of Christ in heaven (7:15-17).

 

2.  Second, we see a multitude which cannot be number being saved during the second half of the Tribulation Period through the witness of an angel.

 

Revelation 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

 

Revelation 12:10-11 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.  (11)  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

 

a)  These are saved by the blood of the Lamb.  Verse 10 – “brethren”

 

b)  These overcome through the blood of the Lamb.  Verse 11.

 

c)  These overcome by the word of their testimony.  Verse 11.

 

d)  These are martyred because of their faith.  Verse 11.

 

D.  Verse 12.

 

1.  Heaven is rejoicing because of Satan’s defeat and cast down to the earth never to return.

 

2.  A woe is pronounced to the inhabitants of the earth because Satan comes down having great wrath.  You think Satan is destroying today, his fall will create far greater consequences!

 

Isaiah 14:16-17  They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms;  (17)  That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?

 

E.  Verses 13-16.

 

1.  Verse 13, Satan turns his hatred and wrath upon Israel because it was the Nation of Israel that gave birth to Jesus Christ, the Promised Seed of the Woman—Messiah of the Nation of Israel—and Saviour of the World.

 

Revelation 12:13  And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. 

 

2.  Verse 14, God supernaturally hides Israel in “her place” from the face of the serpent, where she is “nourished” for 3 ½ years (“time, times, and half a time”—three and one half years, forty two months, or 1260 days).

 

Revelation 12:14  And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.  (Some teach that the “two wings of a great eagle speak of a great airlift that will carry Israel away but I personally believe that is the power of God that carries them.  I do not think that “her place” will be in Petra, the Hidden City of the Dead, because many people think that, and Satan knows where Petra is.)

 

I said that I believe that God supernaturally hides Israel from all prying eyes including Satan’s.  Here are a couple of examples as to what God can do.

 

Luke 4:29-30  And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.  (30)  But he passing through the midst of them went his way,

 

John 8:59  Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

 

3.  Verse 15.  Satan’s followers on earth will seek to find Israel but cannot.  “Water” is a metaphor for masses of humanity as Satan sends his followers on earth to find and destroy Israel.

 

Revelation 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

 

4.  Verse 16.  Whatever Satan uses to try to find and destroy Israel, God will again use supernatural means to thwart his plans. 

 

Revelation 12:16  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

 

Jacob’s Trouble or the Tribulation Period is not about Satan punishing or taking his wrath out upon Israel.  It is about Daniel’s Seventy Week, where God will once again deal personally with Israel and use this time to restore Israel (graft the natural branch back in) for His glory.  This is between God and Israel!

 

F.  Verse 17.  When Satan cannot find Israel, he will turn his wrath upon those Jews that have converted to Christ and are not hidden.  These have “the testimony of Jesus Christ” and Satan hates them.

 

Revelation 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The Local Church of the End Time

Temple Baptist Church - 5-16-2021

Psalms 134

 

Introduction:  Psalm 134 is one of my favorite Psalm.  I normally preach on this Psalm in just one way but, because of the importance of the Psalm, I want to preach more than one service on Psalm 134.

 

A. While the Bible emphasizes the importance of the House of the Lord in the last days, the world minimizes it. 

 

Hebrews 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

 

1.  There are Morning Psalms, Evening Psalms, and Psalm 134—a “Psalm of the Night.” 

 

a)  The First Mention of the word “night” ties it with darkness.  Genesis 1:5  And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

 

b)  The First Mention of the word “darkness” shows us that darkness and light cannot co-exist.  Genesis 1:1-4  In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.  (2)  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.  (3)  And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.  (4)  And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

 

c)  Where there is darkness, there is an absence of light as light dispels darkness.  Darkness is a type of sin while light is a type of godliness.  John 12:35  Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.

 

d)  Our Lord prophesied the coming of a “night” when no man can work.  John 9:4  I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

 

e)  Thus, we now find ourselves in the “night” just prior to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

1)  We all know that it is getting spiritually dark outside as the “night” of Jacob’s Trouble approaches.  COVID has done more to stop the work of the local churches and missions than anything I have ever seen.

 

2)  I am glad that I am one who is looking for the coming of the Lord and know what time it is on God’s spiritual clock.  The Lord is coming during the night and darkness of this world.

 

Mark 13:35-37  Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:  (36)  Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.  (37)  And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

 

Luke 12:35, 38  Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; … And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.

 

2.  The interpretation of Psalm 134 is that, though the day is gone and night has come, there IS STILL work to be done.  I call this Psalm “The Third Shift.”  In the coal mines, third shift was when we did “dead work.”  Little to know production was done on third shift but the third shift was an important one as it made preparation for the work that was to be done in the morning when First Shift came in.

 

a)  Today, we see fewer and fewer people in America, the Bible Belt included, find time to go to church.  Churches that were once filled Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night have suffered a serious decline in numbers along with church services canceled or hindered.

 

b)  The “Not forsaking” believers continue to be faithful to the local church.  With many churches, the people attending are becoming older.

 

c)  The “as the manner of some is” crowd has forsaken the ways of God for the things of this “present evil world.”

 

d)  The end result of humanism is atheism! 

 

B. I understand that many of these unfaithful members are lost but an increasing number of saved have become unfaithful.  For a long while, Sunday morning congregations held their own though the evening and mid-week services suffered decline.  Now Sunday morning services have empty pews that were normally filled.

 

C. There are numerous reasons for the “falling away” of the once faithful. 

 

1.  There is the sinfulness of our times.  There was a time when many things were done only in the dark or in the shadows.  They were there but not spoken of by most people.  Now, everything is “out of the closet,” and known by most people.  Sin has become acceptable as people have gotten “used to the dark.”

 

Ephesians 5:11-12  And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.  (12)  For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.

 

Matthew 24:12  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

 

2.  There is the apathy of the Laodicean believer.  So many people in our day simply do not care for the things of the Lord and that includes many who attend occasionally.  Solomon ended the Book of Ecclesiastes with these words:

 

Ecclesiastes 12:13  Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

 

Revelation 3:15-16  I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.  (16)  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

 

3.  There is the enemy of covetousness.  America has become the “Utopia” of the world because of the accessibility of things that people in other countries can just dream of.  Now, things are not only accessible but also “free” to many who refuse to work. 

 

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.

 

4.  The love of worldly pleasures.  John, when writing the great epistle of 1 John, said:

 

1 John 2:15-17  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  (16)  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  (17)  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

 

2 Timothy 3:1-4  This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.  (2)  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,  (3)  Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  (4)  Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;

 

5.  A lack of understanding of the importance of God’s house!  Going to church is a privilege, not a burden.  A thing of joy, not a thing of drudgery.  “I was glad” has turned into “I was mad” when Sunday or Wednesday comes around.

 

Hebrews 10:24-25  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:  (25)  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

 

6.  The rejection of the authority of the Bible.  Denominationalism, along with a myriad of modern translations of the Bible have caused both confusion and spiritual division.

 

2 Thessalonians 2:2  That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

 

7.  A failure to doctrinally ground their people with “all the counsel of God.”  Pulpits have bowed to the will of the people instead of the will of God.  Fear of losing the worldly crowd has caused preachers to “cherry pick” their subjects and become unoffensive.  The Bible has always been offensive to the world.

 

Acts 20:26-28  Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men.  (27)  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.  (28)  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

 

Conclusion:  The list could go on, but I want to key in on the last one this morning.  I SAID ALL THAT TO SAY THIS:  Do not be discouraged as our Lord said that we would one day stand here in such a time.  But there is still work to do!

 

1.  We must sow the Seed of God’s Word while there is some light left.  There is still witnessing to be done and are souls to be won as the harvest is now greater than it has ever been and the labourers few.

 

2.  We must be faithful to the things of God.  If there was ever a time to be faithful to God, the things of God, and the local church—this is that time.

 

3.  We must keep our eyes on the Lord in the expectancy of His coming and walk in His light in this dark world as “candles” that cannot be hid.

 

4.  We must keep our hand to the plough and our eye to the point, eliminating spiritual vertigo. 

Mother’s Day

 Temple Baptist Church - 5-9-2021

Ephesians 6:1-3; Exodus 20:12

 

Introduction: 

 

The Fifth Commandment - Exodus 20:12  Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

 

Ephesians 6:1-3  Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.  (2)  Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)  (3)  That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

 

A.  Today is Mother’s Day!  If your mother or mother-in-law is living, I pray that you will visit or call them on their special day.

 

B.  I want to begin this message by honoring and thanking our dear ladies.  Your pastor loves and respect each of you because you are both special and important to the operation and well-being of this local church.  I do not minimize your contributions and service for the Lord.

 

C.  Our verse for today is one of great importance because it is the first commandment given with a promise.  Honor your father and mother that your days may be long upon the earth!

 

D.  The woman was the first gift that God gave to man is found in Genesis, chapter 2.  Adam had a special need to diminish his loneliness and Eve was a special gift to meet that need.  Adam lived in a perfect environment in an imperfect way and God saw his need of companionship.

 

Genesis 2:18  And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

 

E.  Eve was Purposed. God made Eve in Adam on the day that Adam was created!  I want to look at a couple of passages of interest. 

 

Genesis 1: 27  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

 

Genesis 5:1-2  This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;  (2)  Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

 

1.  I find this interesting because it would have been logical that, since God created Eve in Adam, that He would have made them come forth at the same time.  Though Eve was created in Adam when Adam was formed, there was an expanse of time that lapsed before God took a rib from Adam and made Eve.

 

2.  God knew that Adam would need Eve before Adam ever got lonesome!  God knew that Adam could not function properly without Eve.

 

3.  I thought this one over and came up with this: God wanted Adam to know that he needed Eve!  I love Mother’s Day, but every day should be “Mother’s Day!”  May the Lord help us men and children to know just how special mom is.

 

F.  There are three names found in Genesis that were given to Eve.  Two were given by God and one was given by Adam:  1) help meet  2)  mother  3) Eve.

 

1.  Help meet – “to aid” and the “opposite part” or “counterpart.”  The “mirror image” which is both the same and the exact opposite.  Eve was man’s “completer.”  Without Eve, man was lonely.  With Eve, man knew the fulness of life and companionship.

 

2.  Mother – “bond.” The word “mother” is described as a “primitive word.”  The word “mother” means “to bond.”  Mother is as old as time. 

 

Genesis 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.  (Cleave-To bond.  Cling, adhere, or to stick to.)

 

3.  Eve – “life giver.”  Because she was the “mother of all living.”   Mother not only gives birth to the children but she is also the “bond” of all living.  We know that she is the bond of the home but she is also the bond of every person who was ever born.  Other than Adam and Eve, we have all had a mother!  God chose for the mother to bond with her unborn child for 9 months: hearing her heart beat and listening to her voice!

 

4.  What makes Eve and all other mothers so special is that they not only give us birth but are always there with us and for us the rest of our lives.  I understand that there are some mothers who forsake their families, but the rule is that mom is always there for her family.  The father is the head but the mother is the heart!  The father is the head but the mother is the bond!  Without mother, the home becomes a house.

 

G.  Eve was the Perfection of God’s creation.  The first woman was everything that God intended for woman to be.  She was the pinnacle; she was the zenith; she was the apex; she was the benchmark; she was to be the role model for all womanhood to follow; she was made by God and she was perfect!

 

H.  Eve was the Priority of happiness!  It was not good for the man to be alone so God made a helpmeet for him.  Everything God made was perfect except for Adam.  Adam had a need!  She was what Adam needed first and foremost.  Eve was so special!  Made just for Adam.  It was not Adam that sought a helpmeet; it was God who gave her.  I want to say again this morning, “Ladies, God made you special!”  I want to give you a few simple things about Adam and Eve:

 

J.  If you have a mother:

 

1.  Love Her - Ephesians 5:25  Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 

 

Proverbs 10:1  The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

 

Proverbs 5:18-19  Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.  19  Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.  (Men, love your wife!  Children, love your mother!)

 

2.  Honor Her - 1 Peter 3:7  Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.  (Honor means to place upon a pedestal.  To worship and reverence her.  Be careful how you treat your wife, husband!  Be careful how you treat your mother, young person!)

 

Proverbs 20:20  Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.  (Be careful how you talk to her!  You disrespect mama and you get in trouble with God!) 

 

Proverbs 30:11  There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother.

 

Proverbs 30:17  The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.

 

Proverbs 31:28  Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.  (Place her on a pedestal in both the home and in public.)

 

3.  Remember Her - Proverbs 31:10  Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. (Sometimes her labor, love, and strength go unnoticed by her family.  If you have a good, loving, faithful, conscientious wife—be grateful and thankful.  Never take your wife or mother for granted because they will not always be here.)

 

Proverbs 15:20  A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish man despiseth his mother.

 

4.  Relish Her – Proverbs 23:22  Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old. 

 

Ecclesiastes 9:9  Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. (Make every day with her a special day.  One day, she will be here no longer!  When she is gone, make sure that you have no regrets!  I miss greatly mom and dad.)

 

5.  Take Care of Her – John 19:26-27  When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!  27  Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.  (The last act of our Lord Jesus Christ was to make sure that mother was cared for in the best way possible.  The disciple “whom he loved.”)

 

Conclusion:  Again, I want to wish each dear lady here this morning a very special Mother’s Day.  You deserve it!

Why Do I Believe The Bible

 Temple Baptist Church - 5-2-2021

2 Peter 1:16-21

 

Introduction:

 

A.  The Importance of your Bible:

 

1.  My Salvation depends upon it.  My salvation cannot be trusted if its foundation is flawed.

 

2.  Sound Doctrine demands it.  My doctrine cannot be trusted if its foundation is flawed.

 

3.  My Christian growth necessitates it.  I cannot grow to spiritual maturity if my diet is flawed.

 

4.  My Daily Walk counts on it.  I cannot follow right if I am not sure of my path.

 

B.  There is much misinformation out there about who I am: Ignorant and Unlearned (I may give them the benefit of the doubt on this point); Cultic; Divisive; Following men instead of God.

 

C.  Why do I believe the Bible?  Because what God says about the Bible in the Bible.  THIS IS NOT DIFFICULT! 

 

1.  I am a Bible Believer!  I am a Biblicist: one who completely relies upon the singular of Bible.  What the Bible says is right and final.  Plus nothing, minus nothing, and mixed with nothing.

 

2.  What angered the “educated and wise crowd” of Jesus’ day was that men who spoke the Word of God, for the most part, were ignorant and unlearned men who just believed God.  Those who came to Christ, for the most part, were poor people who were rich in faith.

 

D.  This message is not about me, it is about you.  I never want to cast a shadow of a doubt upon the Bible, this Authorized King James Bible.  I want you to believe it, read it, live by it, and measure every man and his message by it.

 

E.  One of the most important parts of the pastor’s work is to instill complete confidence in concerning your Bible.  To do otherwise is both sinful and counterproductive to faith.

F.  Do not take my word alone for it, read what God said about the Word of God, your Bible.

 

1.  God’s’ Word is Inspired by God!  2 Peter 1:21  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. (Moved – to carry, to bring forth, to be driven.  Verbal inspiration: every word; plenary inspiration: full from cover to cover.)

 

2.  God’s Word is Preserved by God!  Psalms 12:6-7  The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.  (7)  Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. (Preserve – to keep a monument, a watcher.  This is a God Book, not a man book.  The King James Bible is the Word of God.)

 

3.  God’s Word continues in its Preservation and Inspiration.  2 Timothy 3:13-17  But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.  (14)  But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;  (15)  And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.  (16)  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:  (17)  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.  (Timothy had only 2 Original Manuscripts that I know of, 1 and 2 Timothy.  All the Word of God that he had been brought up with—what he was taught, what he knew, what he believed, and what he personally taught were preserved copies, not original manuscripts.  God called his copies “holy scriptures” and declared them to be “inspired.”)

 

4.  God’s Word is Necessary for our life.  Matthew 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.  (We cannot live by “every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Why would Jesus make such a statement if we do not have it?  “Proceedeth” because it was not completed at that time but today it is finished.)

 

5.  God’s Word is Unfailing.  Matthew 5:18  For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.  (The last time I looked, heaven and earth were still here.  Infallible!  That is where I stand.)

 

6.  God’s Word is Very Pure.  Psalms 119:140  Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it.  (No mixture of error.  Inerrant!  That is where I stand.)

 

7.  God’s Word is Protected.  Three Sentinels in the Bible:

 

Proverbs 30:5-6  Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.  (6)  Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.

 

Proverbs 30:5-6  Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.  (6)  Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.

 

Revelation 22:18-19  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:  (19)  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.  (I fear that many preachers and teachers take these statements lightly.  They add to and take away from the Word of God as their “bibles” change.)

 

8.  God’s Word is both Living and Abiding.  1 Peter 1:23-25  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.  (24)  For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:  (25)  But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

 

9.  God’s Word is both Preserved and Sure for our generation.2 Peter 1:16-19  For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.  (17)  For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.  (18)  And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.  (19)  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 

 

Conclusion:  I thank God for my Bible.  It is one of a kind and there is not another for the English-speaking people.  It will not confuse you and it will not fail you.

 

You and I Must Have It!  2 Timothy 3:16-17  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:  (17)  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.