Who Has the Final Word, Part 2

You can obey the sign. You can ignore the sign. You can defy the siren.

You do not change the way God has created us so Paul is writing to the church in Rome at chapter 13 and he says let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the daylight hours. Act as if you wouldn't be ashamed to be seen with no lights on, driving do you instantly check your speed and maybe slow down when you see a police cruiser. People will turn on the porch light at night because the presence of light is a deterrent and people are more prone to behave badly in the dark as Christians, we recognize that our ultimate authority is God.

He's always watching and always shining the light in our hearts and on our deeds. We need to live each day under the authority of God's word and working to learn more about that in Steven Davies lesson today called who has the final word will take your Bible and turn right to second Peter few run in the Revelation is gone too far. Second Peter chapter 1 and look at verse 20. But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will. In other words, this block was not deceived by human mind and human will is I do not really like this but I think I'll throw that in there. No, not by human will. But notice, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God that informs us that the spirit of God superintended the movement of men's hearts of the what they wrote was his truth. This is the word from God. So when we do about it if it's God's word. Look up in verse 19.

So we have the prophetic word made more sure to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place. In other words, this book is all the more important the more darkened your culture becomes around you. Do you have those who I am. The word is David in Psalm 119, 105 thy word is a lamp in my feeling in my pathway.

The word is the lamp.

The word is pointing the direction for the word is tell you he was out of bounds. The word helps you be trained and equipped for life. The word of God is the final authority follows this then and it will lead you by its light into light, dismantle it, discarded, ignore it, debated, redefine its and you will effectively abandon yourself to darkness and confusion like our culture around is it ever occur to you that the Christian is never asked to vote on matters God is made clear. God is never said you know not really sure about this… Take a poll with anything but think about know his word is the final vote is the only vote I'm amazed. Frankly, in our culture these days of the audacity of churches and denominations number my culture expected from them with churches that really bothers me and denominations.

I watch them over the recent years, establishing committees to study issues of sexual ethics relationships. In light of quote changing time.

How many times I've seen some church or school organization appoint a committee to take another look to take another look. One denomination said recently that they were going to appoint a committee to study the issues of sexuality that they would engage in a quote time of listening there listening to. That's another way of saying we we've heard from God.

We really don't like his message Orientalism for some other unit of all the other churches and denominations and nonprofits got together in our community and voted to redefine as an example marriage is one man and another man or one man and this is coming down the pike next and several women or one man and one woman for an arrangement of time called a lease wedding which is being proposed for one year three years five years doesn't really matter, does it because the vote of the people does not overrule the word of God in a group of pastors if they decide are priests or professors or politicians decided culture is evolving and that now something is politically correct, that doesn't really mean anything.

In fact market down things that are politically correct are typically biblically correct. Often recall a few years ago to visit our church and then wrote me a note telling me she would never be back because we quote take the Bible way too seriously." Wanted to send her a thank you note, you did leave her address for me to do that yes we did. It's the difference between darkness and light, and we make this promise as members. The God's word. When God speaks will be our authority as we correctly interpret. We are now living in progressive revelation in these letters of the apostles to the church we find in their marching orders we find timeless principles in all of Scripture. Whenever God speaks it's always true that we act as a church we live as a Christian in this dispensation of grace this church were committed when God speaks no one else has to.

That's promise number one I get 20 more to go is number two. We promise to pursue holiness in all aspects of life is a joyful act of worship to our triune God. We promise to pursue holiness in all aspects of life joyful act of worship to the triune God. Paul is writing to the believers. You might want to turn around chapter 12 I just dropped under very quickly. Romans 12 in verse one worry where he urges these believers living in Italy. He says listen, I urge you, I want to do you want to plead with you to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God which is your reasonable act of worship.

It is worship when you offered to him. Your body your mind and heart.

Your will deposit God. Thank you. And by the way, keep in mind he's not writing to unbelievers. You don't ask an unbeliever.

What you need to do is present your body to God asking unbeliever to do that they have sin that has to be dealt with. They may have a state of death that must be brought to life by means of the spirit of God in as they placed their faith in Jesus Christ. He's writing to Christians he's begging us to consider our bodies as living sacrifices, living not not dead ones. Look live once, which presents the dilemma does. It is one man wrote, since I'm alive am always wanting to climb down off the altar, so we make an ongoing presentation of our lives, our bodies every aspect.

Nothing is reserve.

Nothing is compartmentalized.

Nothing is closeted. Nothing is managed does it mean when I gonna try to crawl them off the altar need confrontation and conviction, repentance, rededication to get back up there. Absolutely. But this promise means that we are not debating it were not debating it. We decided the pleasure couple of days ago talking a college student was out here on the sidewalk in the Stockton Brought up on what does been doing in his life. He was raised in a godly family walked away from the Lord in the gospel of the new and never really committed his life to it anyway.

And now he finds himself sitting in jail. The series of events he would be released, but he said in their effectively God arrested got arrested him is not following with great passion for Lord we talk together for a few minutes about how wonderful it is because I was just a year younger than him. When I gave my life to Christ as a 17-year-old. How wonderful it was to get up in the morning, no longer a double minded young man to get up in the morning and not have any discussion with yourself about your gonna live for, and which direction you're gonna walk to my get a list for Stephen or God walk in truth or in darkness, and not given the slingshot for two days to go after this more debating you've decided by the goodness of God, which leads you to repentance, to follow after Jesus Christ and by the way, for those of you to do that you can understand what I mean when I say that pursuing holy living is not dry jury is the only way to live your miserable when you don't write. It's a joy to please your father. That's a you can go to heaven because here in the bridal party heading there. So the apostle Peter urges the believer with this text in first Peter chapter 1 as obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours and your ignorance but like the holy one who called you the holy yourselves in all your behavior as pretty comprehensive.

It only in all your behavior and this is our direction and joy. The next promise follows closely along with the lease get through number three. We promise to avoid sinful habits and entanglements such as illicit drug use, drunkenness, gossip, gluttony, and all other sinful behaviors taught in Scripture. We promise to avoid sinful habits and entanglements such as illicit drug use, drunkenness, gossip, gluttony, and all other sinful behavior is taught in Scripture. In other words we thought we might just list a few attitudes and actions directed the days of cotton Mather pastored during the days of the of the Puritans and will probably bring some of these maybe next Lord stated tell you some of the things that they listed which were fascinating. Bullfighting was among them. You are allowed to do that is a church member of the Gorgon risk that one, but it anyway.

Why list anything I mean in this in this legalistic legalistic to rattle off some specific things like gluttony or gossip or drunkenness mean, isn't that being picky will take your Bibles and turn back to Galatians to the church in Galatia. Paul got a rename of the picky apostle is about to add this long list by the way, Paul gives a lot of last generating some time a lot of lists effectively trace the covering sometimes use a categorical term. The just me for everything related to that plea, he adds, list up unless he writes this walk by the Spirit. Verse 16. Chapter 5. Sorry. Galatians 516 but I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. Now you put it. There are good to God because we know that okay law according to the spirit is known. He's going to go on the flesh sets its desire against the spirit mysterious. The flashier urine during this tension. Those are in opposition to one another so that you may not do the things that you please. You can ever say what this is our God made me.

I like this is never the standard, but if you are led by the spirit you are not under the law and of the deeds of the flesh are obvious okay put it. There, let's go have lunch no there obvious.

What are they pulses of just list some immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities strive jealousy outburst of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. In other words, I could go on and on and on and on. You're saying stuff like that. God, in his goodness. By the way he is, is clearly informing us about those things look like this is that this is that the manual he's is giving us the information in his grace. He's effectively segment this kind of lifestyle never fill you up in Olympia, leading to despair leading in the darkness and never satisfy you and it will ruin you. In fact, he ends at paragraph by saying universe 21, and those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God keywords practice. I cherish that I want to do that. I don't think I repented.

I think that's okay, pursuant you don't inherit the kingdom of God. God isn't a killjoy he's marking out the path with incredible kindness and the church is a body of believers who said we promise to avoid what God says we should pursue. We we take his warning seriously few months ago I was speaking at a conference in Kentucky to pastors and wives and my wife and I were planning see if you sites along the way. We enjoyed the drive it went one point the GPS put us on a tollway effect we're laughing.

I think I share with the audience. Number of months ago on Sunday evening couldn't help but laugh about our oldest daughter who do came off the mission field for a while and and and share the Christmas break and set a good New York season sites with one of her girlfriends and so they were headed to New York and got put on the New Jersey tollway. I think it was and she called damage the daddy when really cash but to get this total run tollroad but but but it's okay because we we were able to go through this.

This line is it easy pass. I said I don't think that's what E-ZPass means.

I think you're going to get an easy ticket you get a good one. Here we were where we put on a toll and in a in a tollroad.

I do not carry cash. I just don't I might have a couple of dollars on the verities debit card. Everything is receded and if you rob me after church.

You might get three bucks. I don't know there's probably not much there. I just don't. I wasn't too worried about it because I been on tollways in Pennsylvania specially needs your credit card and not a problem. So here we are on for quite a while about an hour.

Pull up to the tollbooth. I am leaving my debit card.

She says no sir.

We only take cash. I said really she said yes. We don't accept credit.

I should've taken a E-ZPass lane that was right next to right we we scrounged up enough money between us.

We were when you lift the arm rest to look inside pennies and nickels and quarters we found enough to get through. We made it through paid by the tall so after the conference was over on her way back. I told Marcy that I had clicked in the GPS the option to avoid toll roads, that's brilliant. There is snobbery. What that means is your effectively telling this lady to take you on every Back Rd. in West Virginia which is exactly what we were doing to avoid the tollroad, which was the interstate. We are literally winding on these steep mountainsides one cutback after another and it took a long, long time course my wife was with me. I immensely enjoyed that five more points okay at any rate, so I thought this is crazy what you would see would straighten out a little bit and we see another sign in those signs would take you no slowdown or caution and sometimes would draw a picture of the curve or whatever and then sometimes it attached to speed limit and sometimes it was it was done 5 miles an hour were a long way from home. Here comes another sign slowdown.

Now I can respond to those signs in one of three ways I can obey the sign slowdown I can ignore the sign and maintain my speed and be buried in West Virginia somewhere in the hills or I can sign ends should@but one thing remains constant, no matter what my response is the truth of that sign is a curve coming and you better slow down my actions do not change the truth of that sign. I member reading the interview of the famous actress who was asked about God and morals and everybody know she didn't have any.

She was asked about and she said if I could meet God and she was angry if I could meet God. Right now I would want him to explain to me how he could take something as beautiful as sexual relations with whomever I want to have it and connect that activity with the disease, I would ask him why he would do something like that. It's called a gracious warning from God. You can obey the sign.

You can ignore the sign. You can defy the sign but you do not change the way God has created us and made us so Paul is writing to the church and Roman chapter 13 and he says let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the daylight hours. Act as if you wouldn't be ashamed to be seen with all the lights on, not in carousing and drunkenness in word carousing and showing up out twice and text are ready. I wonder what that means. I went back and looked up the original word and it literally means in the first century to go to drinking parties don't go to drinking parties and typically following carousing is the word drunkenness because it's typically what happens not in carousing and drunkenness, Paul adds in this list, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. By the way he's writing to us, not the world is writing to us. He goes on to lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the daylight. Listen, God is calling us to purity is calling us to holy living.

To make that decision to point our toes in that direction and this will be our pursuit to asking for wisdom to avoid the sinful traps in the entanglement of corruption that hangs on our closing in every aspect of life. The church is made up of people that ought to be made up of people who are serious enough about following Jesus Christ that they want to pledge their lives not only to the testimony of the gospel, but to each other. We want to be reminding each other. We want to be exhorting each other.

We want to be discipling and warning and confronting each other took to watch out for those pitfalls is the path of light. Unfortunately in our culture and our generation today. We've grown up to now have it we inherited joining the church is nothing more than joining a tennis club. Being willing to pay some fees every so often stick around. Club pro is talented and the courts are nice and cleanly swept in and then people leave you alone joining the church.

11 belonging to a local assembly of believers. According to the New Testament is nothing less then a mark of courage.

Courage you dare to meet with people who will invite the presence of a holy, righteous God into its midst you dare to align your life with others who are forsaking their darkening culture and choosing to walk in a path marked by the light of God's word. Are you kidding joining the church to be nothing less than an act of dedication promising to take on holy obligations as a relates to run personal conduct with those of the first three, but I wonder before we close.

What do those first three promises make you want to do joint or get as far away as you possibly can go by the way, if that's the tension created them very grateful because this might because it is my prayer and objective to erase the little ground. It is either holy obligations and promises to one another or I really want nothing at all to do with this church. There is no such to sit on.

There is no middle ground. I call you to one or the other. Elijah said to the Israelites. If there is God will file God is following this is our promise to one another that promise is to raise obligations that God has placed upon us as a church you're listening to wisdom for the hearts with Stephen Davey, if today's lesson was an encouragement to you.

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