Who Shall Abide? - How to Remain Faithful to Church

Temple Baptist Church - 7-9-2023

Psalm 15

 

Introduction:

 

A.  This Psalm is one of faithfulness or the lack thereof concerning the House of the Lord.

 

1.  Church attendance is not optional with the Lord.  Hebrews 10:22-25  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.  (23)  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)  (24)  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.

 

2.  Church attendance is not optional to the spiritual believer.  Psalms 122:1-2  I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.  (2)  Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem.

 

Acts 2:46  And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,

 

B.  As the “manner of some is” in Hebrews 10:25 continues to grow, I believe that it is essential to take a biblical look at some of the reasons behind unfaithfulness.  King David, who wrote this Psalm fielded the question to the Lord in verse 1 and would seem to be the Lord answered in verses 2-5.  The Psalm is summed up in the last sentence of the Psalm.

 

C.  Verse 1.  A Question to be Pondered.  “LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?” (Psalms 15:1)  Let us define some terms to get a proper understanding of the question that David asked the LORD.

 

1.  Abide.  To turn aside for lodging or other important things.  To gather or sojourn.  To use or to wait for a time.  We often sing the song, “Abide With Me.”  Abide with me, fast falls the evening tide; the darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide.

 

Genesis 19:2  And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.

 

 

2.  Dwell.  A permanent stay, to remain or inhabit.  A residence where we live.

 

Psalms 23:6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

 

3.  Tabernacle.  This comes from a root word in Hebrew that means to be clear or to shine.

 

4.  Holy Hill.  A mountain or high place that can easily been seen.  A holy place where God has chosen.

 

D.  The Tabernacle was the place where God inhabited and spoke to the people of Israel.  In our day, it would be the Local Church, the place where God intended for His children to meet, pray, and attend to the Word of God.

 

E.  The Local Church is a place to where we are to turn aside permanently on a regular basis.  Unfortunately, “not forsaking” has turned into a “general forsaking” as most “church members” attend either not at all or on an irregular basis.

 

F.  Will you abide in God’s house?  Will you continue to dwell in God’s house?  David listed some things that will cause you to stay with their opposites, things that will cause you to leave.

 

G.  King David set forth some things that, if attended to, can keep you faithful to church.

 

1.  Verse 2.  He is right Upwardly.  To Abide and Dwell, one must be Right Upward with God.

 

a.  He must Walk Right. “He that walketh uprightly”  Where he goes.

 

b.  He must Work Right.  “He … that worketh righteousness”  What he does.

 

c.  His Words must be Right.  “He … speaketh truth in his heart”  What he says.

 

2.  Verse 3.  He is right Outwardly.  To Abide and Dwell, one must be Right with Others.

 

a.  He does not speak evil of others.  “backbiteth not”

 

b.  He does not injure others.  “nor doeth evil”

 

c.  He does not engage in bad conversations with others. “nor taketh up a reproach”

 

3.  Verse 4.  He is Right Inwardly.  It Abide and Dwell, on must be right with Self.

 

a.  He sees Right.  “In whose eyes a vile person is condemned”

 

b.  He deals Right.  “swearth to his own hurt and changeth not”

 

c.  He continues Right.  “and changeth not”

 

4.  Verse 5.  He is Right Financially.

 

a.  Honest in his finances.  “putteth not out his money to usury”

 

b.  Honest in his financial gain.  “nor taketh reward against the innocent”

 

5.  Verse 5.  He is now Right in his Faithfulness.

 

a.  Who this person Is.  “He that doeth these things”

 

b.  Who this person Will Be.  “shall never be moved”

 

Psalms 92:12-15  The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.  (13)  Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.  (14)  They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;  (15)  To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Blessed Assurance - Part 3 - Assurance Of What We Know

Temple Baptist Church - 7-5-2023

John 10:22-30

 

Introduction:

 

A.  John’s Gospel and 1 John run together in many ways.  As I continue on the subject of Blessed Assurance, I want to tie some verses together.

 

B.  John 10:27  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

 

1.  Salvation – “My sheep”

 

2.  Spiritual Growth – “hear my voice”

 

3.  Spiritual Maturity – “and they follow me”

 

C.  1 John 5:13-14  These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.  (14)  And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

 

1.  Salvation – “that believe on the name of the Son of God”

 

2.  Spiritual Growth – “that ye may know … that ye may believe”

 

3.  Spiritual Maturity – “the confidence that we have in him”

 

D.  In Part 1, we found our Salvation.  We saw the blessedness of who we are in Christ Jesus.  Saved, forgiven, washed, sanctified, justified, Sonship, and completion.  Praise the Lord that salvation is both an act of God and a gift from God!  We do not have to maintain our salvation because we are in Christ Jesus and in Him is no sin!  Free from the penalty of sin though still having to live in the presence of sin but one day will be delivered from the presence of sin!

 

E.  In Part 2, we found our Spiritual Growth.  We saw the blessedness of what we have in Christ Jesus.  Assurance, deliverance, peace, blessings, security, the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and representation.  Salvation is a gift of God, and these are gifts from God.  We are blessed as well as saved.

 

F.  In Part 3, we find our Spiritual Maturity, I want to look at some things that we, as spiritually mature children of God, should know.  These are things that the world will never know or even comprehend.  Here is my “Short List.”

 

1.  We know Salvation.  I do not think I am saved; I do not hope I am saved; I know I am saved!  A place of protection, perfection, and privilege.  Aren’t you glad that you are saved?  How do I know that I am saved?  The bible tells me so but there are also other ways of knowing.

 

a.  Because of Confidence.   Romans 10:9-13  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  (10)  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  (11)  For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.  (12)  For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.  (13)  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

 

b.  Because of Change. 2 Corinthians 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

 

c.  Because of Conviction.  Romans 9:1  I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost,

 

d.  Because of Company.  1 John 3:14  We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

 

2.  We know Truth.  We live in days of lies and deception.  The world lives in confusion and change but the Bible does not change!  What I hold in my hand tonight will continue to stay the same.

 

a.  Truth in Deliverance.  John 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

 

b.  Truth in Discipleship.  3 John 1:3-4  For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.  (4)  I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

 

c.  Truth in Doctrine.  2 Timothy 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

 

3.  We know Prophecy.  We live in days of fear.  Men’s hearts failing them for fear.  As God’s children, we need to have a peace of God that passeth all understanding.

 

a.  He is Descending.  1 Thessalonians 4:16-17  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  (17)  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

b.  We are Departin

g.  1 Thessalonians 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

 

c.  We are Destined.  1 Corinthians 15:51-54  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,  (52)  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  (53)  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  (54)  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

 

4.  We know Eternity.  Mankind is controlled by fear of death.  Hebrews 2:15  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

 

a.  We shall be like Christ.  1 John 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

 

b.  We shall be with Christ.  Revelation 22:3-5  And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:  (4)  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.  (5)  And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.

 

c.  We shall be satisfied by Christ.  Psalms 17:15  As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

What Did The Sea See When The Sea Saw?

 Temple Baptist Church - 7-2-2023

Psalms 114

Introduction:

 

A.  Many times, in the Psalms, we find the perpetual struggle between good and evil; between Satan and God; between the people of God and the people of the devil.  It began in the Garden of Eden and will continue until Satan is cast into the lake of fire and all evil is purged from this world.  It is inevitable and unending!

 

B.  Let me say, at this point, that the devil is a defeated foe and his future in the lake of fire is assured!  He is neither a problem nor threat to the almighty God who created it all!

 

C.  Psalm 114 was written about the struggles of God’s people.  It seems that Satan never gives up and constantly causes problems for the child of God.  I could preach on the “Why” of these struggles but that is not the message tonight.  I am more interested in what the sea saw!  Verse 3.

 

D.  Two different but same accounts are rehearsed in verse 5.  Psalm 114:5 gives an account of the Lord bringing Israel out of Egypt and into Canaan with only one reference to the wilderness. 

 

1.  The Red Sea was opened for the benefit of the people of Israel when God delivered them from the most powerful nation in the world in the most impossible situation ever recorded.

 

2.  The Jordan River was cut off and the water heaped up to show that God could do the same for the next generation as they were going into battle with numerous Canaanite Nations in their homeland and in their walled cities.

 

3.  In Psalm 114, these two are rehearsed together to show us that the God of impossibility that delivered these two generations can still deliver in the most impossible situations of our lives.

 

E.  As humans, we are so often entangled in our circumstances that we fail to see just what is happening and what the Lord is doing.  “I can’t see the forest for the trees” is an old saying that is so true.  The Red Sea had no “dog in this fight” and was simply an observer.

 

1.  Sometimes, as humans, we find despair in adversity.

 

2.  Sometimes, as humans, we find disquietedness in continued tribulation.

 

3.  Sometimes, as humans, we find discouragement in heaven’s silences.

 

4.  Sometimes, as humans, we find dread in view of our enemy.

 

F.  I find at least 3 times where things in nature “fled” at the presence and power of an almighty, sovereign, holy God:

 

1.  Revelation 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.  (The heavens fled from the face of the Son of God at the Great White Throne Judgment:  The judgment of God upon the unsaved.)

 

2.  Revelation 16:19-20  And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.  (20)  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.  (The islands fled from the judgment of God on the city of Rome, the Babylonish harlot.)

 

3.  Psalms 114:3  The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.  (The Red Sea fled from the judgment of God upon a Pharaoh who persecuted the people of God.)

 

G.  I want to deal with one of these miracles, the opening of the Red Sea.  The magnitude of this miracle is beyond human comprehension. 

 

H.  Here is what the sea saw when Pharaoh chose to destroy the people of God:

 

1.  The Sea Saw The People Of God – God’s chosen people.  A good piece of advice: “Don’t mess with God’s People!

 

a.  A People Purged – “went out”

 

b.  A People Prized – “house of Jacob”

 

c.  A People Peculiar – “from a people of strange language”

 

The sea saw the People of God.  When in trouble, remember that we are the people of God.  We are His chosen; we are His children; He sets His love on us; He cares about what we care about!  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  We are the people of God!  We are His and He is ours.  He loves us and cares for us.  He will put the angels on half rations in order to supply all of our needs. GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF HIS CHILDREN!!!

 

2.  The Sea Saw The Purpose Of God – God’s Chosen Purpose.  He was bringing  them 0ut of Egypt to bring them into Canaan!   A good piece of advice: “Don’t mess with God’s Purpose!”

 

a.  For God’s People

 

1)  God Bringing Them Out of Egypt

 

2)  God Bringing Them Through the Wilderness

 

3)  God Bringing Them Into the Promised Land

 

b.  For God’s Rejecters

 

1)  To Deceive Them

 

2)  To Damn Them

 

3)  To Destroy Them

 

The sea saw The Purpose Of God.  God has purpose in our lives and He both can and will bring those purposes to pass.  All of the devils in hell cannot stop what God ordains for His children!  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  A sovereign God!  Pharaoh fought against a sovereign God!!!

 

3.  The Sea Saw The Place Of God – God’s Chosen Place - The Red Sea!  A good piece of Advice: “Don’t mess with God’s Place!”  Every good general picks his place and his time.  God is a “man of ways.”

 

a.  Pharaoh’s Purpose – Exodus 14:4-5

 

b.  Pharaoh’s Power – Exodus 14:6-7

 

c.  Pharaoh’s Pursuit – Exodus 14:8-9

 

The sea saw the Place Of God.  God brought Israel to the Red Sea!  In our lives, God both authors and allows circumstances in our lives where the devil tries his best to take us down.  God is in complete control of everything that touches the lives of the child of God.  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  I can trust God in my circumstances!  You can trust God in your circumstances!

 

4.  The Sea Saw The Protection Of God – The sheltering wings of almighty God! Pharaoh’s attempt to destroy Israel is frustrated.  A good piece of advice: “Don’t touch or hurt what God loves!”

 

a.  The Pillar Of God

 

b.  The Position Of God

 

c.  The Protection Of God

 

The sea saw the Protection of God.  Even Satan knows that God has hedged about the people of God.  We are in God’s hand and anything or anyone who tries to get to us must go through His fingers!  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  Pharaoh never touched Israel!  Nothing touches God’s children without God’s permission!

 

5.  The Sea Saw The Power Of God – In no other scenario did God show more power than at the Red Sea!  A good piece of advice: “Don’t mess with God period!”

 

a.  God’s Power Over Pharaoh

 

b.  God’s Power Over Predicaments – The blast of His nostrils opened the Red Sea

 

c.  God’s Power Over His People – He did not allow either Pharaoh or  the Sea to destroy Israel.

 

The sea saw the Power of God.  There is nothing either impossible or hard with God.  He can do anything, anytime, and anywhere.  Every situation that we face is a possibility with God.  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  God can meet our needs; God can bring us through our problems; God can overcome our enemies; God can DO ANYTHING, ANYTIME, ANY WHERE!!

 

6.  The Sea Saw The Person Of God – What a sovereign God the sea saw!  A good piece of advice: “Don’t disobey God!”

 

a.  God’s Omniscience

 

b.  God’s Omnipresence

 

c.  God’s Omnipotence

 

The sea saw the Person of God.  He is the Creator and Sustainer of all heaven and earth.  We speak of God, believe in God, pray to God, and then doubt God!  He is always there with us and for us!  When in the midst of troubles, we fail to see what the sea saw!  Before anything was in eternity past, He was God!  After everything is done in eternity future, He will be God!  Between everlasting and everlasting where we dwell, He is God!

 

Conclusion:  We, as God’s children, need to see our seas of life, our impossibilities, as the sea saw!

 

The Great Experiment

 Temple Baptist Church - 7-2-2023

Jeremiah 18:1-4

 

Introduction:  Lessons from the Potter’s House.

 

A.  The interpretation of our text is the Nation of Israel.  The application can be varied all the way from the individual to our nation, The United States of America.

 

1.  I believe that our nation began in the hands of the Lord as people came to this great land of plenty in the late 1400’s.

 

2.  True that some came for Gold as the spices of the Caribbean Islands and the gold of the America’s drew many.

 

3.  But there were many who came for God.  They came to escape the tyranny of the English kings.  They came because of the religious persecution that was rampant in the British Isles and Europe.

 

4.  Through it all, “God wrought a work upon the wheels.”

 

5.  Previous to the founding of our great nation, there were only two different kinds of government.  Theocracy – Rule by God.  Man did not want that so the only other option that worked was a Dictatorship – rule by man or men.

 

B.   Two hundred and forty-seven years, on July 4^th, the Declaration of Independence was signed by 56 men in the Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA. 

 

1.  Thus, the beginning of the first recorded Republic was formed, and the Revolutionary War resulted as Americans severed their relationship from the Dictatorship of England.

 

2.  Here to for, every world power and known nation had either a Theocracy (rule under God in early Israel) or a Dictatorship of some sort.  The newly formed Republic (America was never intended to be a democracy) was called “The Great Experiment” by many as there had never been a nation, as far as could be discerned, that had a government ruled by its people.

 

3.  In 1787, the Founding Fathers of the newly formed Republic hammered out the U.S. Constitution in the same Independence Hall in Philadelphia.  Afterward, Benjamin Franklin told a woman who inquired about what they had written about, and he said, “A republic, madam, if you can keep it.”

 

cC  Now, in the 2023^rd year of our Lord, we see the beginning of the end-result of that experiment.  Can sinful man maintain a Republic without God?  I fear that the answer is evidently “No!”  America, the Potter’s Vessel—the Utopia of the World, the Carrier of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Symbol of Freedom—has become marred in the hand of the Potter!  Can God. 

 

D.  Jeremiah, called the Weeping Prophet, penned these words under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost as he wept over the Nation of Israel’s spiritual condition.

 

Lamentations 3:48-51  Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people.  (49)  Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth not, without any intermission,  (50)  Till the LORD look down, and behold from heaven.  (51)  Mine eye affecteth mine heart because of all the daughters of my city.

 

E.  If “Happy is that people, whose God is the Lord” is right, then “Unhappy is the people, whose God is not the Lord” is also right.  America is searching for happiness and fulfillment outside of God and the result is unfulfilled lives, deepening sinfulness, and ultimate implosion.

 

F.  America is unhappy today because she is in Sad Shape because of Sin and Dictatorship! She is both Immoral and Insensitive.

 

1.  Morality is a thing of the past! Sex, sodomy, drugs, drinking, and lawlessness permeate the land.

 

2.  Murder is an accepted form of birth control!  Our nation is filled with the killing of the innocents, our posterity!

 

3.  We Can See America’s Sinking into the mire of apathy and despair!  Over the past few decades, we have watched the decline of America.  The America that we once knew is no more. 

 

a)  Families are in a Sad Shape. They are permeated with division and divorce! 

 

b)  Homes are out of Order!  It’s the Children, Mom, Dad, and God last!  God’s order is just the reverse!

 

c)  Churches are in a Sad Shape. (Both Apostasy and Apathy)  Pulpits are Compromised, Pews are Cold, and People are Calloused!

 

4.  God has become an Outcast!  Psalms 9:17  The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

 

G.  Can God help America?  He can but America must be willing!  What are we to do?

 

1.  We Need To Intercede for Our Nation.  1 Timothy 2:1-2  I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; (2)  For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.  (If we do not pray for them, then we have no right to criticize them!)

 

2.  We Need To Be A Light in the Darkness of Our Nation. 

 

a.  The Light of a True Conversion.  2 Corinthians 4:5-7  For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.  (6)  For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.  (7)  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

 

b.  The Light of a Life Lived.  Matthew 5:14-16  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.

 

c.  The Light of the Gospel.  2 Corinthians 4:3-4  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:  (4)  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

 

3.  We Need to be Proactive in our Politics.  Ephesians 6:11-12  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  (12)  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

 

a.  We are to be Vocal.  The “far left” are certainly vocal and there is a peer pressure for the “far right” (Ultra-Conservative—that’s is THE Biblical position) to be quiet.

 

We are to be Voters.  God has given to us a Republic to be maintained!

 

4.  We Need to be Hopeful.  2 Chronicles 7:14  If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

 

Conclusion:  Can the Potter make another vessel of America upon His wheel?  Yes, God can!  The Potter is able to remold the clay!  May God bless America, land that I love; stand beside her and guide her; through the night with a light from above!