Hold Fast to the Word, part 2

The following is the manuscript from last week's sermon. I pray that it will encourage you in your walk with Jesus in holding fast to the word------

Our holding fast to the word is the result and effect of the word holding fast to us and gripping our hearts and “owning” us.

In our examination of this exhortation to hold fast to the word, we began answering the question, why is it important, why it is necessary & absolutely essential, for us to hold fast to the word?

To answer that question, we began to do an excavation of chapters 3 and 4.

From 3:1-13, we found the first answer to our question.

It is important & necessary for us to hold fast to the word because of our perilous times.

Paul gives various descriptions of the attitudes, actions, and atmosphere that characterize these perilous & dangerous times.

In v. 1-4, Paul describes the corrupt character of people that would be dominant during these perilous times.

Then, we said that holding fast to the word enables us to turn away from corrupt character, and consequently help us build and cultivate godly character that will stand in contrast and distinction to the ungodliness that we as followers of Jesus would be in the midst of.

In v. 5, Paul describes the religious atmosphere in these perilous times—a description that is very apt for our day, particularly for churches in the South—“a form of godliness”

In light of the reality of reckless religion, we concluded that holding fast to the word helps keep us from the reckless religion of our day because it is damning and altogether spiritually unhealthy as it denies the transforming power of the gospel in people’s lives.

In v. 6-9 and 13, Paul draws our attention to the diabolical deceivers who have marching orders from Satan himself to “creep” into the households and churches to take captive and deceive those who are morally and spiritually weak.

Our only protection is to hold fast to the word and use the sword of the Spirit to test the spirits to evaluate and determine and make judgments concerning the teachings of those that would seek to influence us and shape our thinking as to whether they may be embraced or avoided.

In vv. 10-12, Paul reminded Timothy of the persistent persecution he faced as a messenger of Jesus Christ.

He also reminded Timothy that all who desire to live godly lives would suffer persecution.

Therefore, within the context of chapter 3 and main subject matter of the word, holding fast to the word is that which can sustain us in the midst of persistent persecution as well—

In each of these sections of chapter 3 so far, Paul has expanded for us the first reason why it is important and necessary to hold fast to the word in perilous times given the particular characteristics of those perilous times: the corrupt character, the reckless religion, the diabolical deceivers, and the persistent persecution.

A second reason why it is important and necessary for us to hold fast to word that we got about half-way through last week was this…

It is important and necessary for us to hold fast to the word because the Word is sufficient for our Christian lives.

There are many Christians today who will proclaim the authority of the bible as “God’s word”, but in actual practice deny its authority and its sufficiency.

We begin to reason with our own wisdom and experience—we look to other models for church organization and structure—we look to the world to find solutions for life’s issues—all to which the Bible clearly speaks

Based upon this reality, Hendricks is right on another point—many times we pay lip service to the sufficiency of God’s word, but not life service.

In reference to this reason of sufficiency for holding fast to the word, we began answering the question, “how and in what areas of life is the bible sufficient?”

In vv. 14-15 of chapter 3, we learned that the word is sufficient for salvation.

The primary tool that the Holy Spirit uses to bring about regeneration and conversion is the Word of God—particularly the gospel.

This primarily for us today refers to the person and work of Jesus Christ.

This would include his sinless life, his substitutionary death, and his subsequent resurrection from the dead to conquer our final enemy.

Romans 1:16 tells us, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe…”

Later in Romans 10:17, Paul writes, “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”

The gospel proclaimed verbally and lived out honestly, openly, and obediently are necessary elements in the salvation experience of those who do come to a saving knowledge of Jesus through faith—the gospel & its implications are necessary and sufficient as used by the Holy Spirit.

A second area where the word is sufficient for our lives is in the area of sanctification.

Sanctification is the process that begins at the moment of conversion whereby the Holy Spirit begins to work in our lives to transform us and mold us and shape us into the image and character and likeness of Jesus.

The primary tool that the Holy Spirit uses to do perform this work is the Word of God.

That is why it is absolutely essential for us to spend quality and consistent time in the scriptures on a personal basis as well as in formal teaching settings like Sunday school and corporate worship/teaching gatherings so that the Holy Spirit can work in us and on us to continually transform our character.

We will never grow toward the spiritual maturity that God desires for us or in conformity to the likeness of Jesus without consistent time in and exposure to the word of God.

Some believe that life experience automatically equals spiritual maturity—some believe that common sense (whatever that is) automatically equals spiritual maturity—some believe that intellectual knowledge automatically equals spiritual maturity—some people believe that giftedness and talent automatically equal spiritual maturity—God may use all these to transform us, but none are infallible measurements of spiritual maturity

Spiritual maturity is not measured by any of those things but is measured by the knowledge of and application of scripture to life, the practical discernment of truth and error, and the conformity of one’s character to the likeness of Jesus in attitude, word, and deed in obedience to the Father’s will

As the Holy Spirit changes us and transforms us, we respond in obedience by putting off the old way of living whether it is attitudes or actions and putting on the new way of living in Christ and walking as Christ Himself walked by the enabling power/ability of the Holy Spirit—that is in consistent fellowship with the Father and in obedience to the will of the Father.

Another way we might say this is the way James says it—“But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves”

Real biblical, life-change moving forward to spiritual maturity occurs as we apply and implement what the Holy Spirit teaches us through the scriptures into life.

Notice how this works from 3:16.

The scripture is profitable, useful, and valuable because it is God-breathed—it is the sword of the Spirit according to Ephesians 6:17.

The Holy Spirit of God wrote the bible and therefore, the bible is the primary tool the Holy Spirit uses in the life of a believer to produce life-change and transformation of character—our attitudes and actions—to bring us into conformity with Jesus.

Notice the four areas of the work of the word in v. 16…

• For doctrine

This primarily refers to right teaching, which in turn affects our thinking.

The scriptures are the plumb line, the gauge, the standard by which all other doctrine is evaluated and judged—it is the standard by which we judge our own thoughts, motives, and intentions.

No matter the credentials that are held by a teacher, the ultimate judge is the Word of God.

Our thinking about truth and doctrine must be informed by scripture—not by the latest news articles or books by famous people, but by the scriptures themselves.

This requires that we spend significant time in the scriptures so that we might understand what “sound doctrine” and “spiritual truth” is according to the Holy Spirit, and then, we will be equipped to test the spirits as we are instructed in 1 John 4 to determine if that which is being taught—that which we are reading—that which we are listening to—is truly from God.

• For reproof

Reproof, by the scripture, is the act of exposing error.

It can refer to the exposing of error in false teachers and also error and sin in our personal lives.

It is a rebuke—where we are made aware of our sin, our straying off the path of righteousness, our missing the mark of God’s holiness for us.

Let me see if I can illustrate this spiritual reality with a human example…

When one child desires to have a toy that another child has, conflict occurs—one starts yelling for the toy and the other begins screaming, “I had it first”—the behavior by both children is the expression of an internal desire—“selfishness”—that selfishness expresses itself in desiring that toy too much, making that toy into an idol…

As parents, we need to get to the heart of the issue, not merely the behavior modification

The word gets to the heart of the matter—that is the selfishness in both children’s hearts—most of the time we parents “rebuke” the behavior without ever using the scripture to rebuke the internal attitude that produced the behavior

The tool for rebuke is the scripture—the Holy Spirit uses the scalpel of the word to dig to the heart in order to bring conviction, even godly guilt and shame, in order that the person might be brought to true confession and repentance

Why does the Holy Spirit use the word (and consequently why should we)…

One reason is because of Hebrews 4:12-13—“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”

The word of God reproves and rebukes us in our hearts—our motives, our thoughts, and the intentions of our heart—all is lay bare before the Word of God.

If “rebuking” is negative, then the next phrase is the positive side…

• For correction

Correcting is the idea of being made straight—being brought back in line with the life that God desires for His people to live modeled by Jesus

Again the primary tool of the Spirit is the Word.

Rebuking and correcting are two sides of the same coin that are expounded in other passages of scripture.

Paul uses language of “putting off” and “putting on” in Ephesians 4 and Colossians 3.

The Holy Spirit rebukes/reproves us through the scriptures concerning the heart issues and then transforms us through the scriptures so that the internal heart issues are corrected and the fruit of the Spirit is demonstrated/produced in our lives as we walk in the Spirit being obedient to the Word of God as we are corrected and brought back in line in our hearts.

When we stray from the path of righteousness, Blackaby says there has been a heart shift; the word gets to the heart of the matter and begins to correct our wayward hearts and bring us back in line with God’s desires.

As the Holy Spirit uses the scripture to inform our thinking through right teaching, rebuke us when we go astray, and correct us, the fourth use of scripture continues the process of sanctification…

• For instruction in righteousness

The instruction or training referred to here denotes the positive training and discipline used to develop within a person Christian character and keep us on the right spiritual track toward godliness—1 Timothy 4:6—“exercise yourself unto godliness”

This Christian character is evidenced in a holy-set apart lifestyle that avoids sin and embraces practical righteousness—basically, it is Christ-like character in attitude and behavior—

The instructor in this gymnasium of training is the Holy Spirit and the training manual is the Word of God—its teaching and modeling presented by Jesus

Each of these four uses of the word declared in 3:16 form the foundation and blueprint for the sanctifying work of the Spirit in our lives—personally and corporately—and our development and progress as Christians depends upon following the blueprint

Spiritual growth will not and cannot occur if the Word of God is neglected or even marginalized in our personal lives, our families’ lives, or our church’s life—this is God’s goal for us and the Word by the Spirit is the avenue to reach that goal

It is essential that we hold fast to the word because it is sufficient for our sanctification.

Another area in which the word is sufficient is the area of service.

Look with me at v. 17…

The word “that” in the beginning of verse 17 introduces a purpose clause—“so that” or “in order that”—the on-going process of sanctification is for the purpose of equipping Christians for every good work that God might call them to do for the advancement of the kingdom.

To be equipped is the picture of someone who is “furnished completely” or “in fit shape or condition.”

I had the opportunity to play some tennis this week with some friends—a sport that I haven’t played in two, three, maybe even 4 years—

It only took playing about an hour and a half to realize that I was not “furnished completely” or in fit shape or condition to go on tour with the likes of Andy Roddick or Roger Federer.

I would have to do a major overhaul in my fitness lifestyle and practice and practice some more—I would need to hire a coach, probably even go back in time 10 or fifteen years to be in fit shape or condition.

For Christians to be equipped or furnished completely for the work to which God calls them, we must be nourished in the scriptures and in the process of being transformed by the scriptures as the Holy Spirit works in our hearts and on our character.

The condition of being thoroughly equipped carries with it the idea readiness—always being ready for God’s call upon our lives whatever that might be in his sovereign providence…

Here’s how one commentator summarized this: “If Timothy would nurture his spiritual life in the scriptures that he would use in his ministry, he would be fully qualified and prepared to undertake whatever tasks God put before him. What a tragedy for any Christian to be labeled as spiritually unprepared for a task when the means of instruction and preparation are readily at hand.”

God has called all Christians into His service for the expansion of His kingdom upon this earth through our lives, and the primary tool by which we are equipped for this calling is the “nourishment” of the scriptures as the Holy Spirit works in us and on us to fully prepare us and equip us.

The Word of God is sufficient for our lives in the area of salvation, sanctification, and service; therefore, it is important and necessary for us to hold fast to the word.

We have so far examined two reasons why it is important and essential for us to hold fast to the word…

--because of our perilous times
--because of its sufficiency for our lives

Next Sunday, Lord willing, we will examine the third reason why it is important and necessary for us to the hold fast to the word…that is…

It is important and necessary for us to hold fast to the word because of the coming judgment

Until then, let’s return to the questions we posed last Sunday…

What kind of grip do we have on the word in our personal lives?
• Do we acknowledge that the Word is essential to our spiritual growth and that without it we will not grow?
• Do we acknowledge that spiritual growth occurs as we apply and implement what the Holy Spirit teaches us as we immerse ourselves in the word?

What kind of grip do we have on the word in our church’s life?
• Do we acknowledge and use the scriptures as our primary tool for “making disciples” and fulfilling the Great Commission?
• Do we acknowledge and follow the scriptures as our primary blueprint for being a faithful and dare I say successful church?

What kind of grip does the Word have on us?

May I challenge you today in one particular area…that of personal bible study?

How often are you in direct contact with the Word yourself—not in Sunday school, not in preaching, not listening to sermons, but direct contact?

Are Sunday school and consistency in sitting under the teaching of God’s word essential—absolutely—

However, oftentimes, people will substitute all of those things for personal bible study and never actually get into the Word themselves—whether personally or in a small group of believers just to study the bible.

For spiritual growth to occur, God has designed the Christian life in such a way that we need all of these exposures to the scriptures.

They are all important and necessary for us to grow up to the measure of the fullness of the stature of Christ according to Ephesians 4.

The one that seems to be neglected most today is personal bible study…many think that spiritual growth just happens, but it doesn’t…it cannot happen unless we nourish the spiritual life that God imparted to us on the day of our regeneration and conversion…

So, here is the challenge…will you commit today to begin spending just 15 minutes a day in personal bible study?

Start with the book of 1 John or the book of Ephesians.

Most bibles have the books separated into paragraphs with headings or bold-print verse numbers.

Read a paragraph a day—usually a few verses.

Then, on the insert in your bulletin, there are some questions that you can ask the text you are reading—and as you ask those questions and answer them, you’ll be “studying” & “applying” before you know it.

Then, as we study, learn, and apply what we learn we will see how important and essential the scriptures are to our sanctification—

God desires for all of us to grow—and we cannot grow apart from the scriptures—they are important and necessary, therefore we must hold fast to the Word.

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The insert referred to is copied below:

Questions for Personal Bible Study
(taken from Living by the Book by Howard Hendricks and class notes from Dr. Daniel Akin)

1. What does this passage say about God?
2. What does this passage say about Jesus?
3. What does this passage say about the Holy Spirit?
4. What does this passage say about man?
5. What does this passage say about the gospel?
6. What does this passage say about the Christian life?
a. Is there an example for me to follow?
b. Is there a sin to avoid/confess?
c. Is there a promise to claim?
d. Is there a prayer to repeat?
e. Is there a command to obey?
f. Is there a condition to meet?
g. Is there a verse to memorize?
h. Is there an error to avoid?
i. Is there a challenge to face?
j. Is there a principle to apply?
k. Is there a habit to change - i.e. start or stop?
l. Is there an attitude to correct?
m. Is there a truth to believe?

Articles on the Gospel & Its Implications

Here is a link to a site with some good articles.

Check these out when you get a chance. There is some good reading here.

Home Schooling

Well, we began our homeschooling journey with our older son, Cameron today. I am looking forward to the challenge and the extra time I get to spend with my son. I pray for God's grace in attempting this endeavor.

Pray for us as we make the necessary transitions for this to work. I know it means extra work for me, but in the end, I believe it will be worth the effort and sacrifice.

Thank you for praying.

Making Disciples

A friend emailed the following to me with the caption "The Test of Successful Ministry":

The measure of how ministry is progressing in your church or fellowship, and the way to evaluate whether you are making progress, is not attendance on Sunday, signed up members, people in small groups, or the size of our budget (as important and valuable as all these things are!). The real test is how successfully you are making disciples who make other disciples. Are we seeing people converted from being dead in their transgressions to being alive in Christ? And once converted, are we seeing them followed-up and established as mature disciples of Jesus? And as they become established, are we training them in knowledge, godliness and skills so that they will in turn make disciples of others?

This is the Great Commission—the making of disciples who obey all that Christ has taught, including the command to make disciples. And this is the touchstone of our faithfulness to Christ's mission in the world, and the sign of a healthy church: whether or not it is making genuine disciple-making disciples of Jesus Christ.

That's how we should evaluate the "success" of our churches.

What do you think?

I would say we have much work to do.

Hold Fast to the Word

This past Sunday, we examined 2 Timothy 1:13.

In that examination, we explored reasons why Paul exhorted Timothy to "hold fast" from 2 Timothy 3 and 4.

Here is reason #1: Hold fast to the word because of our perilous times (2 Timothy 3:1)

Holding fast in perilous times to the word helps us...
1) Turn away from corrupt character (2 Tim. 3:2-4)
2) Keep away from reckless religion (2 Tim. 3:5)
3) Protect us from diabolical deceivers (2 Tim. 3:6-9, 13)
4) Sustain us in persistent persecution (2 Tim. 3:10-12)

We also explored part of reason #2: Hold fast to the word because of its sufficiency for our lives (2 Timothy 3:16)

The word is sufficient in the following areas...
1) Sufficient for salvation (2 Tim. 3:14-15)
2) Sufficient for sanctification (2 Tim. 3:16)

This is where we finished up yesterday.

We plan to pick up here with some review and finish our examination of the reasons this coming Sunday.

With that being said, I have started another blog over at Hold Fast.

The title of this blog has come about because of the gripping of my heart concerning this passage (2 Timothy 1:13-14). This new blog may not get as much attention, but I hope to use it as a journal of sorts as I study the scriptures and their implications for my life personally and the life of the church.

God bless...

Is there any hope?

After teaching through the 10 commandments over the last 13 weeks or so, it is very easy to become discouraged when we see the perfection of God in his holiness revealed in those commandments and then to realize that He requires perfection in us...so, last week we asked the question, "Is there any hope?"

And, the answer: absolutely YES!

Our hope is in Jesus.

Here are 6 reasons from the sermon why Jesus is our hope:

A. Jesus is my hope because He fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law.
Romans 8:1-11
B. Jesus is my hope because He became the curse of the law.
Galatians 3:10-14
C. Jesus is my hope because He satisfied the wrath of God against sinners
Romans 3:21-26
D. Jesus is my hope because He gave me His righteousness.
2 Corinthians 5:21
E. Jesus is my hope because He is my faithful and merciful high priest
Hebrews 4:14-16
F. Jesus is my hope because He enables me to obey God’s commands
Romans 6:1-14

May your faith be strengthened today by God's grace and Jesus Christ, the hope of glory!

On the Sovereignty of God

I read these two paragraphs in The Peacemaker by Ken Sande in the chapter entitled "Trust in the Lord and Do Good"...

"Nothing is a surprise to God; nothing is a setback to his plans; nothing can thwart his purposes; and nothing is beyond his control. His sovereignty is absolute. Everything that happens is uniquely ordained of God. Sovereignty is a weighty thing to ascribe to the nature and character of God. Yet if he were not sovereign, he would not be God. The Bible is clear that God is in control of everything that happens." (p. 69)

"If examining the sovereignty of God teaches us anything, it teaches us that real satisfaction comes not in understanding God's motives, but in understanding his character, in trusting his promises, and in leaning on him and resting in him as the Sovereign who know what he is doing and does all things well." (p. 69)

Some deep thoughts to ponder on this Thursday morning...

Back from vacation

We are back from our vacation in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. We had a great time just being together as a family. Regular posts should begin again at the beginning of the week.

God bless you all.

For quicker updates, blurbs, and comments on what I'm reading or studying you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Commandment #10 - Covetousness

Today's message was on Coveting, the 10th commandment.

I made the following two points about the purpose of the commandment being last in the list:
1) It gets at the root heart motivation that underlies the breaking of the other commandments that relate to loving our neighbor
2) It exposes the idol that plagues us all--that is "unchecked desires"

Our desires can go unchecked in at least three ways:
1) the motivation of our desire
2) the direction of our desire
3) the depth or intensity of our desire

Principles to overcome covetousness:
A. Cultivating consistent repentance of our unchecked desires
B. Cultivating contentment in God’s providence
C. Cultivating trust in God’s promises
D. Cultivating reliance on God’s provision
E. Cultivating an open-handed/generous lifestyle
F. Cultivating an eternal perspective
G. Cultivating the reality that Jesus is all we need

Here are some scripture references to meditate upon:
1- Psalm 16:11
2- Psalm 73:25-26
3- Matthew 6:25-34
4- Philippians 4:11-12
5- James 4:1-4
6- Hebrews 13:5-6

You can check out our website for the audio of today's message.

God bless.