How Should the Church React?, Part 2

About the place where you worship is the church were God's word is openly taught with boldness and without apology. If it is, you should be very grateful and so many houses of worship. Today, leaders have begun to rely solely on creative communication tech marginalizing the Bible as an accent rather than a focus well today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues his series called the church awakening sounding a wake-up call to the contemporary church. Our study is focused on second Timothy chapter 3 and we begin with sore father.

We live sacrifice of the fruit of our lips giving thanks to your name.

We can do nothing without your son Christ. We acknowledge that we tried and failed only to try again.

Fail again and relearning little by little, that it's true without him we can do nothing of eternal significance. We could do nothing of lasting importance than those without Christ bring them father to your son, were dependent on you to do that and we trust even during this time we prayed we given the name of Jesus. Everyone said amen you're listening to insight for resources designed to help you dig deeper into today's topic go to insight.now let's continue Chuck Swindoll's message titled, how should the church react warnings regularly and women we need warnings about our culture and about our times and about the church in general. We need warnings we need to be aware but I need to see a couple of things to begin with.

Here Percival hearing of danger is important, but it's incomplete. What's missing. What's missing is the right response, responding to warnings is each person's responsibility, unity, quietness and solitude in time alone with God in the development of your walk so that whatever happens, you can stand on your own. For this reason I asked the question what must the church realize last time we were together. I want to go to the other side and answer how should the church react and remember difficult times of, that brings us to our first of four guidelines. Verse 13 evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived first guideline stay realistic in the appraisal of your world.

When the greatest things you can do is just remain realistic. Don't drift will pull the covers up over your head thinking about tomorrow morning. Things will be better stay realistic in the appraisal of your world. Evil men, and the next word is impostors and imposter is one who fears from direct instruction in order to lead others into error that Paul exhorts Timothy to fall back on their own long-standing bond together is your roots as well to the next verse, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writing which were able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Paul says to Timothy continue in the things you learn to became convinced of the compensable long-standing prudence that you been taught it will help you when all hell breaks loose in your life it will help you when you get the report from the doctor and your eyes fill with tears. This will help you. This will hold you close to him. This will deepen you faith becomes reflected through the personal experience you've had with those people in your life meant something to John Stott writes this to be sure the church of every generation must seek to translate the faith into the contemporary idiom to relate the unchanging word to a changing world, but a translation is a rendering of the same message into another language.

It is not a phrase composition, yet this is what some modern radicals are doing, setting forth concepts of God and of Christ, which Jesus and his apostles would not it recognizes the role the apostles themselves constantly warned the readers of newfangled ideas and call them back to the original apostolic message. Here Paul enjoins Timothy to abide in what he is learned and I do the same with you.

Don't question it because it's long-standing don't see it is out of date because it goes back to your childhood truth then is truth.

Now, reliable information is reliable information that's timeless. Which brings us to our third four guidelines. Stand firm on the inspired word of God. Verse 16 we now come to the watershed issue of every generation. All Scripture is inspired of God. It may be familiar territory for many of you, but believe me today. My words come as strange words in the years of the majority.

Most people have never been taught about the inspired word of God and many who have been taught have been taught to disbelieve it for his Scripture states it is inspired of God word a little information that might seem over your head, but it isn't at all.

It may sound strange when you get it quickly fail to reduce costs is the word trends translated inspired of God.

Chaos is the word for God's toss is the word for spirit or breath God-breathed. The Scriptures are the God breathed message from God to mankind. That means God superintended the human authors so that using their individual personalities. They composed and recorded without error. Holy Scripture right down to the very words themselves. This is not mechanical dictation but the writing of various authors who were carried along by the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit to give you three words that will help you Revelation is God's giving his word to mankind that has ceased. There is no longer inspired Scripture being given to mankind that was done when the Bible was being written. The Bible has now been written.

The second word is inspiration. That's human beings are recording without error. The very word in mind of God. The third is illumination Revelation deceased inspiration has ceased, but illumination goes on. It's happening right now you are learning things that you did not know 30 minutes ago.

Perhaps you are discovering things from the Scriptures that are sort of lightning you are opening your eyes to call the doctrine of illumination.

God is revealed his word that's miraculous God is inspiring his word has inspired his word miraculous transfer of information so that humans wrote it down without error, and now we have his word and it inspires us, it it it it illumines us. It guides us, gives us direction when I'm not sure where to go. I seek the Scriptures and I go to prayer.

I asked the Lord for guidance and I asked him to use some part of his word. I may have learned or I may now read and open my eyes to see how I can best respond to the situation in which I find myself by that we are standing firm on the inspired word of God.

Notice a second statement right here in verse 16 all Scripture is profitable see the word all Scripture is inspired by God and all Scripture is profitable. The same source I quoted earlier tells us that this term profitable could mean to be successful in accomplishing its objective. God's word is a successful in accomplishing its objective and what is that right here in the text profitable for teaching, that's the word for doctrine, giving you information to believe this is the foundation of our faith. The Bible gives us that information. For reproof, that word means to find fault, so the Bible gives us a discerning ability is able to discern truth from error, were able to reject this and accept that because Scripture is profitable, enabling us to do that and notice. Also, this is our fourth of the four guidelines that the the marvelous way we were able to take in the Scriptures we allow the Scriptures to impact our daily lives. We are not simply reading the Bible for what it says we are allowing the truth to fulfill its purpose in our lives. And that's the end of verse 16 and over 74 correction it means to set straight.

I love the living translation to its it straightens us out and let a good way to put it when I read the Bible I get straightened out. I wasn't thinking correctly.

Bible states it this way.

I just my thinking to the way it fits Scripture rather than the other way around, and for training in righteousness when we are saved we are declared righteous by God and as we begin to grow. The righteousness develops within us a righteous life and we become mature believers and that's part of the profitable work of the Holy Spirit. It takes training we get our word pedagogy from the term training in righteousness when were young and the faith were just babies we we have to learn skills and good spiritual manners and what is and is not appropriate.

How to relate how to forgive the importance of accepting others and extending grace and showing mercy, being compassionate, being people of prayer. Those who share our faith.

All that come from the script. Can you see the value. Can you see how subtle it is that individuals would want to question the Scriptures. That's like questioning the inch cake that takes 12 of them to make a book. But let's build your house and I'm going to tell you. Actually, for me in inches for for those so afoot looks like this okay but your house is going to be great and be a little larger than we planned on, but when I get to that point I will make the inch 1/2 an inch, and I want to fit it where I like it so that some of the smaller you go away.

Don't go my house don't leave the inch alone.

It takes 12 to make put make afoot, but it takes three of those mega yard let us stay with that. Why is it the standard if you fuss around and change the standard you got a weird result, something you not want to live in word of God is our standard and our guide, and it gives us enough training to equip us to be adequate in ready for every good work. Couple of practical things about and say so here are the end number one without the Bible you and I would never find our way without the Bible without the spirit of God using his word, which we would be for hopelessly lost in a given illustration lesson. You and I are exploring the jungles and we get into a deep, dense area of the jungle so deep it's almost dark and we have lost our way.

If our life depended on it.

We couldn't tell you were northeastward or more West is no river to follow.

We are hopelessly lost in the middle of our situation.

We hear footsteps that's fun.

But what's good is you hear your name being called. Someone is looking for you and for me. They walked out of the forest and there they stand and they say am so glad you found you will help you outta here. How can you get out you know your way. Actually I got back and I got a compass so we will make I don't think anybody hearing me right now would say no thanks that maps old good night. Who can trust that map the got wrinkled and torn. It isn't compass at that may not be North ghostly on my own, you stupid if you do that you also been a dyed in the jungle not going to get out. The Bible is God's map and the Holy Spirit is a GPS. Maybe that's a way to put it so will I run a get okay and it works. GPS is terrific things. They even talk to you. I expected to say sometime you dummy. I told you four times not to go that far but they say recalculating nice ruins of the Lord of the two dozen. I'm trying to get your attention here. I'm trying to turn your direction. The police that she ought to go. You'll never get lost if you got a map and you got a compass word of God with the Holy Spirit. You'll find your way. Second, with the Bible, you really will never lose your way. The better you got to know the Scriptures, the closer you get to know the Lord of the Scriptures, the more intimate you are in that relationship.

Those are just words, is a carefully chosen terms, the better you'll know your way through life and let me warn you, the more the minority will become. Chances are good you'll feel lonely at times when others around you aren't lonely, chances are very good that you'll experience attacks from the enemy that others are experiencing. This is not paranoia.

This is truth. There are times you will know the enemy is working against you because you're following what is this principle from the Scriptures and you know that to be true, but others around you don't want that. So let me urge you to value God's word and to learn all of it to see it is all of it. Equally important, equally inspired by what by that I mean if you carry a red letter edition.

That part isn't more inspired than the black print. Semi laughed at that.

There are people who think that you not. That's the Ritz section. So that's more important. Those are just the words of Jesus, but there no more inspired than the words of the prophet or the Psalms or Genesis can choose tells a great story in his book to guard the deposit. Dr. William Evans pass through the college church in Wheaton, Illinois 1906 to 1909 and was an accomplished and usually accomplished man. He had the entire King James version of the Bible memorized as well as the New Testament of the American Standard version. Dr. Evans also authored over 50 books. His son Louis Evans became one of the best-known preachers in America and for many years passed to the Evan at First Presbyterian Church Hollywood, California, when Dr. William Evans retired he moved to Hollywood to be near his son and when Louis would be away he would substitute for me in the pulpit one unforgettable Sunday Dr. William as he was affectionately called, spoke on the virgin birth, all were amazed when he raised his Bible and tore the pages out but narrate the birth of the Lord is a tattered scraps floated down toward the congregation.

He shouted if we can believe in the virgin birth. Let's then, as he drove home his point tour of the resurrection chapters one by one and then the miracle of narratives and in than anything conveying the supernatural floor was literally littered with mutilated pages.

Finally, with immense drama. He held up the only remaining portion and said this is all we have left the sermon on the Mount, and that has no authority for me it a divine Christ didn't preach it.

After a few more words.

He asked his listeners to bow for the benediction, but before he could pray a man in the vast and sedate congregation stood up and cried. No, no, go all we want more. Several others joined in. So Dr. Evans preached another 50 minutes love guys like that Dr. Evans was right since Kent Hughes. You cannot pick and choose from the Bible what you want to believe is inspired, the Bible does not present itself that way even more. The Bible will have no sustaining power for life.

If you make yourself the arbiter of what you will and will not believe about take some ladies and gentlemen, this most magnificent, most magnificent book on the planet most valuable source of information in the world you need it to serve, and you need a church that teaches speaks on its behalf and hold you accountable to the truths with otherwise replaying in religious games and were back the nonsense like this and what he represents will shout for joy.

He will be delighted because he knows when you do that you go to hell let's put our heads together to sit there quietly for a moment I want to talk with you about what you've heard, you've heard about the Bible, you've even heard the name of Christ. You've heard the statement about salvation related to Christ explain to you during our time of offering was clear statement that giving something to God or not. It does not in any way ingratiate you to him. You don't win his favor because you drop a five dollar bill in the plate or $20 bill or million dollar check.

It's only confusing you go, you know God through faith in Jesus.

That's a decision you have to make on your own in the quietness of your own life. If you've never done that. That explains why life isn't working for you. Not believing in Jesus won't suddenly take away all the struggles for make all the bad stuff go away. But you have a map and you have a compass of the day. I invite you who've never trusted in Jesus to take him as your Savior now. Now if we can help you. Our prayer room is open to all who seek information and direction and assistance.

That's why the ministry goes on to help people find their way we can help you connect with us, the Lord, thank you for truths to live by erased from our minds.

Anything that might be any in any way misleading and direct us to those areas that need attention. Maybe find greater delight in pleasing you in serving you in following your directions than we do in any other relationship and begin with me Lord, I ask you to begin in my own heart. Show me again the value of time spent in your word hold me accountable Lord to be a good, faithful, accurate spokesman for you in May that flow out into others lives so that they become that for other people. Just as people have been that for me. We worship you. We love you and I want to him who is able to guard you from stumbling and present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding great joy to the only wise God our Savior be glory and majesty, dominion, power, now and forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and all God's people said a male originally delivered to the congregation that Chuck Swindoll serves as senior pastor you're listening to a message titled, how should the church react its message number seven in the nine part series called the church awakening.

This is insight for living. To learn more about Chuck Swindoll in this ministry. Visit us online@insightworld.org and if you're serious about applying these principles to your life and if you're inspired to find a church that exercises these biblical values, then we highly recommend reading Chuck's book called the church awakening. It's painful when local churches prioritize entertainment, teach feel-good theology or cave to political and cultural pressures. God never designed the church to do such things and Chuck's book addresses these issues head-on while offering help in finding the right church for your family to purchase a copy of Chuck's book called the church awakening go to insight.org/offer or call us if you're listening in the United States, call 800-772-8888. You often hear us say that insight for living relies on your personal support to make these daily programs not only on your local radio station. But on a variety of channels that make learning more about the Bible easily accessed by people everywhere. For instance, did you know that Chuck provides a daily devotional. It sent to your inbox each morning to help you start your day with God.

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