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Thinking About Evidence
Psalms 119:153-160
March 6, 2022

We are nearing the end of our study of this wonderful Psalm.

We have seen our Psalmist in and out and back in
Various afflictions and moments of oppression.

But the one constant in his life is that
He has not failed to seek, trust, and obey the word of God.

For him Scripture has been the solution to all his problems,
And his commitment to it is unwavering.

And as we have said several times of late, his commitment is so steadfast
That it has actually landed him in trouble.

• It was back in verse 122 that the Psalmist first introduced us to the
presence of “oppressors” in his life.

These are men who have rejected God’s word
And now cause difficulty for him because he refuses to do so.

• In verse 141 we find that he is “small and despised”
• In verse 143 he wrote “trouble and anguish have come upon me”

• And last week we saw the situation become even more serious.
Verse 150 “those who follow after wickedness draw near;”

And that is why last week he gave a very sincere and intense prayer
For God to step in and deal with his oppressors.
AND HE WENT TO GOD’S WORD FOR THE ANSWER

Well, tonight his prayer continues.

In fact, just from reading this prayer to get started
You may have easily spotted what it is that our Psalmist desires.

Three times the Psalmist said it, “Revive me”

(154) “Plead my cause and redeem me; Revive me according to Your word.”

(156) “Great are Your mercies, O LORD; Revive me according to Your ordinances.”

(159) “Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.”

It is obvious, the Psalmist wants to be revived.
“Revive” translates HIGH-YA
It literally means “to live”

Often times we think of revival as an emotional experience,
Or some sort of spiritual high.

For our Psalmist it simply means to live life as God intended it.

He just wants freedom from his oppressors not so he can be apathetic but so that he can serve God unhindered.

And you even see HIS BASIS FOR ASKING for revival.

(154) “Plead my cause and redeem me; Revive me according to Your word.”

Clearly he knows a thing or two about God.
• He knows God intercedes in our lives.
• He knows God is a Redeemer.

He has read all about how God intervened in the lives of His people
To deliver and save and redeem.

And he simply wants God to do for him
What he has read about God doing for so many others.

I’ve read your word and I know about how you give life to the dead;
DO THAT FOR ME!

(156) “Great are Your mercies, O LORD; Revive me according to Your ordinances.”

“ordinances” is a word that speaks of “God’s judgments or rulings in a matter”.

And the Psalmist knows one thing about this Judge
HE RULES IN MERCY.

“Great are Your mercies”

And so the Psalmist appeals for revival, not on the basis of his merit,
But on the basis of God’s mercy.

• God, I know you revive Your people – do that for me.
• God, I know you are a merciful Judge – be merciful for me.

“Revive me, O Lord, according to Your lovingkindness.”

“lovingkindness” of course is that familiar CHECED or “God’s loyal covenantal love”.
It is the love God has for the elect.
• It is the love God has for His own.
• It is God’s partiality and favor that He sovereignly bestows on those He has chosen.

And so the Psalmist appeals to God as one of His own.
Deliver me like I am one of your own.

And this is where the PSALM REALLY GETS INTERESTING
For look at the entirety of verse 159.

“Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.”

The Psalmist is appealing to God
To treat him as one of God’s very own children.

BUT FIRST THE PSALMIST OFFERS EVIDENCE
That he is in fact one of God’s very own children.

What is that evidence?
“Consider how I love Your precepts”

• Our Psalmist appeals to God for revival on the basis that he is God’s child.
• And how does he set out to prove that he is God’s child?

By his love for God’s word.

SO FIRST we must acknowledge that:
Love for the word of God is one of the evidences of a child of God.

AND THEN we ask ourselves:
How does one tell if a love for God’s word is genuine?

CERTAINLY IT IS TRUE THAT GOD’S CHILDREN LOVE HIS WORD.
• Honestly the entirety of Psalms 119 is a testimony to that fact.
• But it’s not the only testimony.

I think the best place to see this is here:
TURN TO: 1 CORINTHIANS 2:6-16

The Bible is not specifically mentioned there,
But certainly you recognize that God’s revelation is His word.

Once we’ve been redeemed are those who “have the mind of Christ”
• Once we were ignorant to the things of God.
• Once we are clueless about what God was doing.
• But in Christ we were granted insight and understanding.
• Our minds were transformed to love the things of God.

And with that comes a love for God’s word.

Redeemed people love God’s word.
• We are not those who love the darkness, but rather who love the light.
• We are those who long to draw nearer to God in knowledge and truth.
• There is a comfort and a joy there.

We see the opposite side of this in the fact that the unredeemed are those who do not love God’s word.

• When Paul writes to the Thessalonians about the coming Anti-Christ and the
judgment of those who will be deceived by them.

2 Thessalonians 2:8-10 “Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.”

There the unredeemed are described as those who
“did not receive the love of the truth”

The point is that there is a correlation here.
God’s people love God’s word.

And this is what the Psalmist is out to prove to God.
He is out to prove that unlike the world, he does in fact love God’s word.
“Consider how I love Your precepts;”

NOW YOU CAN “TELL” GOD YOU LOVE HIS WORD

• But honestly, Israel doesn’t have the best track record with God in this area.
• Many times they have said they love God or His word and then blown it with their actions.

Psalms 78:34-37 “When He killed them, then they sought Him, And returned and searched diligently for God; And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. But they deceived Him with their mouth And lied to Him with their tongue. For their heart was not steadfast toward Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant.”

Hosea 6:1-6 “Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us. “He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, That we may live before Him. “So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; And He will come to us like the rain, Like the spring rain watering the earth.” What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning cloud And like the dew which goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of My mouth; And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth. For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

Israel was notorious for making all sorts of
Promises of commitment to God while in the bed of affliction.

Israel often said they loved God’s word and then rejected it.

Just read the book of Judges some time.

Well, the Psalmist is claiming to be different.
I am your child and You should revive me.
I do love Your word.
I CAN PROVE IT.

“Consider how I love Your precepts”

And that is really what this entire stanza is about.

It is the Psalmist explaining to God how he loves His word.

And so tonight we see what it looks like
When a person loves God’s word.

And we get to easily ask the question:
DO I LOVE THE WORD OF GOD?

There are 5 things the Psalmist wants God to consider as proof
That he loves His word and will be faithful even after being revived.

#1 THE DEVOTION HE SHOWS
Psalms 119:153

Now again, we recognize his plea for deliverance.

And please recognize that the Psalmist has gone back to
Using the word “affliction” instead of oppression.

He does so, indicating that his oppressors
Have actually begun to make life difficult for him.

And because he is afflicted he wants God to “rescue” him.

And that is certainly understandable.
Any time we walk in hardship it would please any of us to have God just reach down and lift us out.

And so the Psalmist wants deliverance.
And you will notice that the Psalmist gives
The first piece of evidence that he deserves it.

It is the first proof of his love of God’s word.
“For I do not forget Your law.”

And this is not a testimony to his great memory,
But rather a testimony to his great devotion.

We have actually seen this mindset for several weeks now,
But the Psalmist refuses to be bullied away from God’s Word.

Regardless of the hardship…
Regardless of the affliction…
He continues to remember the law of God.

And “do not forget” means that he not only knows it is there,
But he always consults it as a viable answer to his dilemma.

It doesn’t matter if the problem is physical, financial, spiritual, emotional, political, relational, etc.
He always goes to God’s word for the solution.

HE NEVER OVERLOOKS IT.
He is trained to believe that God’s word works.
And certainly that is an attribute of one who loves God’s law.

It reminds us of Jesus during His temptation.
• After 40 days of eating He then became hungry.
• Satan told Him to turn rocks into bread.

Matthew 4:4 “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’”

Jesus’ devotion to truth was greater even than His personal hunger.

This would be true throughout His life.
• When Satan tempted Him to throw Himself off the temple: “Do not put the
Lord to the test.”
• When Satan called for worship: “Worship God and serve Him only”
• When the Pharisees attacked him for really any reason, “Have you not read
where it says in the Scriptures…”
• When Peter pulled in a sword in the garden: “How else will the Scripture be
fulfilled which says it must happen this way?”

There is no doubt Jesus loved God’s word.
Jesus was devoted to it at all times.
Every situation proved His one desire was to obey the word of God.

CAN WE REALLY CLAIM TO LOVE GOD’S WORD WHEN WE FAIL REMEMBER IT?

Can we claim to love God’s word if we never consult it for answers in life?

You see, in those difficult times we reveal where our trust is.
The Psalmist tells God his loyalty is obvious.

When it is difficult, “I do not forget Your law.”

NOT “I will not forget” but “I do not forget”
This is his track record.

God, You know, I always remember to go to Your word
For guidance and answers.

The Devotion he shows
#2 THE DOCTRINE HE BELIEVES
Psalms 119:155

This is a very doctrine-heavy statement.
“Salvation is far from the wicked, For they do not seek Your statutes.”

The first thing we would notice is simply what he said,
And that is that there is a definite reason why the wicked are not saved.

The wicked are not saved because they do not seek God’s word.

They don’t care what God’s word says (which is why they are wicked)
And therefore without God’s word they cannot be saved.

This is exactly the truth that Paul taught us in Romans.
Romans 1:16-17 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.”

Paul unequivocally stated that the gospel is the power for salvation.

Some would ask “why?”
“For in it the righteousness of God is revealed”

Contrary to popular belief God has a very definite desire for humanity.
GOD WANTS THEM TO BE RIGHTEOUS.

• Jesus said, “You shall be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect”
• Peter wrote, “As it is written, ‘You shall be holy as I am holy’”

God wants holiness.
God wants righteousness.

And there is only one source that reveals that righteousness.
It is the gospel.

(Namely the word of God reveals how to get that righteousness)
“For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

Only the word of God reveals where a man can get
The righteousness that God demands.
And that answer is of course through faith in Jesus.

And that is why “salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek Your statutes.”

And our Psalmist believes that doctrine.

But there are plenty, even churches who may say they love God’s word (like the gospel) and then live otherwise.

“Ashamed of the Gospel: When the Church becomes like the world” by John MacArthur.

He speaks all the subtle ways that churches reveal
That instead of loving God’s Word, they are in fact ashamed of it.

At one point he lists a group of church reviews
About local churches in the area.

• “There is no fire and brimstone here. No Bible-thumping. Just practical witty messages.”
• “Services at [the church featured in the article] have an informal feeling. You won’t hear people threatened with hell or referred to as sinners. The goal is to make them feel welcome, not drive them away.”
• As with all clergymen [this pastor’s] answer is God – but he slips Him in at the end, and even then doesn’t get heavy. No ranting, no raving. No fire, no brimstone. He doesn’t even use the H-word. Call it Light Gospel. It has the same salvation as the Old Time Religion, but with a third less guilt.”
• The sermons are relevant, upbeat, and best of all, short. You won’t hear a lot of preaching about sin and damnation and hellfire. Preacher here doesn’t sound like preaching. It is sophisticated, urbane, and friendly talk. It breaks all the stereotypes.”
• “[The pastor] is preaching a very upbeat message…It’s a Salvationist message, but the idea is not so much being saved from the fires of hell. Rather, it’s being saved from meaninglessness and aimlessness in this life. It’s more of a soft-sell.”
• “The idea, [this pastor] says, is to get people through the front doors, then disprove the stereotype of the sweating, loosened necktied, Bible-thumping preacher who yells and screams about burning in hell for eternity.”

And the whole reoccurring theme is that the message of the gospel
Is some sort of bad thing.

The notion that man is sinful and headed for judgment is just too harsh,
And anyone who would try and stand up and proclaim it
Is a sweaty bible-thumping preacher.

Anyone with the audacity to preach over about 15 minutes
Certainly fails to understand the desires of the culture.

But Scripture teaches it is through preaching that people are saved.
And not just trendy preaching, but preaching the gospel.
(repentance from sin – faith in Christ)

Well, the Psalmist is not ashamed of God’s plan of redemption.

The doctrine he believes is not a doctrine
That diminishes the need for Scripture
But one that puts the need for Scripture at the forefront.

In fact, he reckons a disregard of Scripture
To be the leading cause in a lack of salvation.

And because of this, he is certainly NOT the kind of man
Who would overlook God’s direction for his own life.

Think of:
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.”

You only do that if you truly believe
That a failure to obey God leads to destruction.

So can we say that in our lives?
• Can we say that no matter the situation we remember and consult God’s word?
• Can we say that no matter the answer we obey God knowing that His word alone saves?

That’s what it looks like when someone loves God’s word.

The Devotion he shows, The Doctrine he believes
#3 THE DURATION HE MAINTAINS
Psalms 119:157

This is certainly not a new concept for our Psalmist.
We are talking about the concept of ENDURANCE.

It doesn’t matter how much pressure, how much adversity,
This guy stays the course, and that is what he reminds God of here.

“Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, Yet I do not turn aside from Your testimonies.”

And notice the word “Many”
• This isn’t one wicked man trying to make his life difficult.
• This isn’t a couple of disgruntled people causing strife.
• This is “many” people.

His stance has caused him to offend many.

Do you stick with God’s word when everyone else is offended by it?

• Caleb and Joshua standing against Israel saying they should enter the Promised Land.
• Joshua telling the people, “Choose you this day whom you will serve…”

I’ve always liked Paul’s final warning to Timothy in that first letter.
1 Timothy 6:20-21 “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.”

• Timothy, you’ve got to stand even if you stand alone.
• Even if you are considered to have “knowledge”.
• Even if it makes you look foolish.
• Stand.

THE PSALMIST HAS A TRACK RECORD OF THAT KIND OF COMMITMENT
He has stood even when he had to stand alone.

HOW CAN WE CLAIM TO LOVE GOD’S WORD WHEN PEER PRESSURE CAN EASILY TURN US AWAY FROM IT?

It is a sad thing in the church when cultural issues
Can dictate what the church believes.

And yet on a consistent basis we see the rise of feminism, homosexuality, or any other WOKE idea in the church.

All that is, is bending to the culture,
Instead of clinging to God’s Word.

The Psalmist loved God’s word more than he loved his reputation
Or his comfort, he endured, he does not leave.

The Devotion he shows, The Doctrine he believes, The Duration he maintains
#4 THE DISDAIN HE HAS
Psalms 119:158

Here we find his great zeal again.
“I behold the treacherous and loathe them”

I think it is safe to say that there is a group of people
That just get under his skin in a major way.

He calls them “the treacherous”

But beyond that, he tells you why they rile him so much.
“Because they do not keep Your word.”

Treachery is defined as “a violation of faith or trust”
It comes from a root Hebrew word that meant “to coveras in deceitfully”

These are men who promised to keep God’s word,
They said, “Trust me I will do it” and then they didn’t.

They were liars. They were phonies.
They claimed allegiance and then fell away.

These people who do more harm to Christianity than any other.
They claim a love for Jesus and then deny Him before the world.
They supply unbelievers with years’ worth of ammunition.

Romans 2:17-24 “But if you bear the name “Jew” and rely upon the Law and boast in God, and know His will and approve the things that are essential, being instructed out of the Law, and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of the immature, having in the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth, you, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one shall not steal, do you steal? You who say that one should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the Law, through your breaking the Law, do you dishonor God? For “THE NAME OF GOD IS BLASPHEMED AMONG THE GENTILES BECAUSE OF YOU,” just as it is written.”

They do a great disservice to God,
And so the Psalmist says, I “loathe them”

Now I don’t want to get in to promoting hatred or things of that sort.

But let me ask you, “DOES IT BOTHER YOU WHEN PEOPLE DISOBEY OR DISREGARD GOD’S WORD?”

I’ve been in plenty of churches were it didn’t.
I’ve been in meetings where Scripture was read and instantly disregarded.

• A preacher from my home town held his bible up and told his
congregation, “This is a good book, but you can’t believe everything in it.”
• A former preacher here in Spur told me, “I don’t believe the Bible is true.”

DOES THAT BOTHER YOU?
DOES THAT ANGER YOU?

If you want to see an example, just play a Joel Olsteen sermon for Carrie.

Well, it angered the Psalmist,
And the reason is because he loves God’s word.

David said:
Psalms 139:19-22 “O that You would slay the wicked, O God; Depart from me, therefore, men of bloodshed. For they speak against You wickedly, And Your enemies take Your name in vain. Do I not hate those who hate You, O LORD? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with the utmost hatred; They have become my enemies.”

And the reason is because David loved God!

And that is true of our Psalmist.
He proves his love for God’s word
Because of the disdain he has when men disregard it.

So we know he loves God’s Word because of:
The Devotion he shows, the Doctrine he believes, the Duration he maintains, the Disdain he has

#5 THE DECLARATION HE MAKES
Psalms 119:160

What a great statement.
Take all of God’s word and add it all together and all you get is truth.

He is saying God’s word is without dilution.
It is pure and perfect, all adding up to perfect truth.

“every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting.”

What a great declaration to make about the word of God.

Back in the 60’s and 70’s Baptist fought a battle.
It was called the Inerrancy Controversy.

Some claimed that the Bible was without error, inerrant,
Others refused to make the declaration.

It led to a fight and ultimately a split in our denomination.
FUNDAMENTALISTS vs. MODERATES

Now suppose you stood before a counsel of moderates who pressured and pushed you for a verdict on where you stand.
• Would you stand before the masses and hold to your convictions?
• Would you declare that the “sum of Your words is truth”?
• Would you declare that “every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting”?

Suppose you go to a secular work place where the Bible is maligned?
Suppose you go to a college where a professor mocks the Scriptures?

Are you willing to give testimony to your belief in the inerrancy of Scripture?
The psalmist did, because he loved God’s Word.

The Psalmist called for revival on the basis that He was one of God’s children.
The evidence he offered that he was God’s child was his love for God’s word.
And when he wanted to prove his love for God’s word this was his evidence.

• He was devoted to it in every situation.
• He believed that disobedience to it led to destruction.
• He continued to obey it even when oppressed and afflicted for it.
• He had genuine disdain for those who said they would obey it and didn’t.
• He was not afraid to declare his allegiance to it in any situation.

THAT IS HIS EVIDENCE THAT HE LOVES GOD’S WORD.

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Do Not Love The World – Part 2
1 John 2:15-17 (16-17)
March 6, 2022

Last Sunday we began looking at this very penetrating litmus test
That John has provided for us.

And as we pick back up here I just want to be clear again
As to JOHN’S PURPOSE in sharing such a direct truth.

Surely you aware by now to the fact that everything John writes
He writes for the benefit of the church that he loves.

This is NOT a letter of condemnation.

John is NOT seeking to condemn the church or upset the church
Or lead the church into some sort of despair or confusion.

On the contrary, John is writing to COMFORT the church
And to SOLIDIFY THE CONVICTIONS of the church.

He is writing so that those who are saved will know that they are saved.

And in order to do that John is writing very clearly
About what is Christianity and what is not.

We understand how lines of truth can get blurred.

Even in our day, we see TV preachers and prosperity gospel guys
Who have been very successful in promoting a corrupted gospel.

These preachers have somehow managed
To combine Christianity and worldly prosperity.

And there is a great multitude who is buying what they are selling.

But suppose you are someone who has given your life to Christ but you don’t have the prosperity they speak of.

• What if you are even poor?
• What if you suffer some other tragedy?

• Is that an indicator that your salvation is not real?
• Is that an indicator that you really still are on the outside looking in?

Of course WE KNOW that is NOT the case.
Instead we clarify Christ’s call to forsake the world
And we are comforted in realizing that poverty is not a sign of lostness,
Nor is prosperity a sign of salvation.

And a direct truth like that actually produces comfort and assurance
To those who are redeemed.

Well that is what John is doing.

He is writing boldly and confidently because he seeks
To reassure those who are saved that their salvation is genuine.

And this is so valuable for us.

At the same time we do realize that with verse 15 John HIT A NERVE.

“Do not love the world, nor the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

That truth seems to bump up against our American cultural mindsets perhaps a little harder than some of the others.

But that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

It simply reminds us that as those living in an affluent society like ours
We must be all the more aware of the constant threat we face.

PROSPERITY IS A THREAT IN OUR CULTURE.

IT IS A THREAT TO THE LOST.

We remember Jesus’ explanation of the Rich Young Ruler’s rejection.

Matthew 19:23-24 “And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

We cannot ignore that truth.
• Rich men can be saved.
• Zacchaeus, Matthew, and Joseph of Arimathea all prove that.

But it doesn’t change the fact that it is hard.
Prosperity is an enemy of salvation.

PROSPERITY IS ALSO A REAL THREAT TO SANCTIFICATION.

Remember the warning of Paul?
1 Timothy 6:9-10 “But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

And that is why Paul told Timothy:
1 Timothy 6:11 “But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.”

And again:
1 Timothy 6:17-19 “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.”

Prosperity can even be a threat to those who are saved in that
It can cause them to LOSE FOCUS and PURSUE THE WRONG THINGS.

In our culture we have to be aware of that.

It is OFTEN today (and rightly so) that we LOOK AT THE RICH YOUNG RULER as a warning of the dangers of prosperity.

But BEFORE the Rich Young Ruler the Bible had another person
Who was held up as a shining example of the dangers of loving the world.

Jesus spoke of this person in just 3 words:
“Remember Lot’s wife”

Luke17:32-33 “Remember Lot’s wife. “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”

She was of course that women
• Whose heart had become so infatuated with the worldliness of Sodom
• That even when the Lord was performing a work of grace to save her from the
judgment on that place,
• She had remorse and looked back.
• The Bible says she became a pillar of salt.

As Jesus warns of the dangers of loving the world He tells us to “Remember Lot’s wife”

So I simply remind you again that love of the world is a constant threat.

And, as we said LAST TIME, love of the world is also
A very real indicator of whether or not salvation is genuine.

JOHN HERE GIVES US A LITMUS TEST.

We are talking about people who love the world,
And John is giving us three characteristics about them.

We saw the first last time.
#1 THE LOVE THEY LACK
1 John 2:15

“Do not love the world, nor the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

If you remember John was talking about a DEVOTION TO THE WORLD.
John spoke of a devotion to the world’s things.

It can be physical things like our STUFF
Or it can even be worldly IDEOLOGIES and the world’s approval.

Don’t love it.
Don’t be devoted to it.

Now, that is a command for the church.

• John is writing to the redeemed.
• John is writing to those who are saved and the command is clear.
• “Do not love the world, nor the things in the world”

Don’t do it.

But there is a reason.

That reason is because loving the world is not a fruit of salvation,
Loving the world is a fruit of lostness.

“if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is no in him.”

• You can’t do both.
• You can’t love the world and God.

Those who love the world demonstrate a lack of love for God.
That was John’s first truth about those who love the world.

This morning we’re going to move on.

The Love They Lack
#2 THE LUST THEY SHOW
1 John 2:13

This point builds upon the first.

One person might ask, “John why do you say that if you love the world then you do not love God?”

Well here is John’s answer to that supposed question.
“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.”

The quick answer is simply this:
Because everything the world is about is contrary to who God is.
• The world is not pleasing to God.
• The world is not delightful to God.

And one asks: “But I thought God loved the world?”

1. God does not love the evil and wickedness of the world, God loves people.
2. But even the love God has for people is fueled by mercy not by merit.
3. And even though God has love for the world, do not forget that He has also
promised to destroy it.

The world is sinful, rotten, fallen, deprave.
God already flooded it once, the next time He will burn it.

THE POINT IS that the world is nothing like God.
The world is totally incompatible with Him.
And it is therefore impossible to love the world and love God.

It’s a contradiction too great to exist.

That is the simple point.
But you’ll notice that John gives clarity.

He gives 3 characteristics of the world that are totally incompatible with God.

1) THE PASSION OF THE WORLD

John calls it “the lust of the flesh”

“flesh” there is the Greek word SARX
One person defined it as “the animal nature of man”

It is that basic, bodily, fleshly, base desire.
It is the animal instinct in humanity.

And John says the world lusts for it.
That is they crave it even though it is expressly forbidden.

This is what the world is about.
The world is all about satisfying their carnal, fleshly, base desires.

It is that passion that was seen in Sodom and Gomorrah
• When the men of the city surrounded the house of Lot and demanded that he
send out the angelic messengers so that they might have relations with them.
• And even when those men where struck with blindness the Scripture says that
“they wearied themselves trying to find the door.”

Ezekiel adds about Sodom
Ezekiel 16:49-50 “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. “Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it.

• It’s the desire for a drunken revelry…
• It’s the base nightclub desire looking to hook up…
• It’s the lottery ticket / casino craze just wanting money…
• It’s the idol of comfort even if it requires overlooking those in need…
• It’s the desire to simply live it up and drink up the world…

There are so many more, but you get what we’re talking about.

And this is the world.
It is what the world craves.

Romans 7:5 “For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death.”

Romans 8:5-8 “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

It is as Paul said, they “set their minds on the things of the flesh”
• It’s what they desire.
• It’s what they crave.
• It’s what they are consumed with.
• It’s what they want.

I mean listen to secular music some time and you tell me what the world is consumed with. (Sex, money, and alcohol)

It is their passion.
And it is NOT the passion of God.

It isn’t Godly at all.
• The world is NOT focused on holiness and sanctification and truth.
• They are moving in opposite directions with opposite passions.
• If you love the world it is evident that there is no love for God.

But’s not just their passions.
2) THE PURSUIT OF THE WORLD

“and the lust of the eyes”

You might ask, “What’s the difference between “lust of the flesh” and “lust of the eyes”?

And the answer is: OPPORTUNITY
This is the next step.

A man may lay in his bed full of sinful desire with no opportunity.
Jesus taught us that such lust is already adultery of the heart.

But on the day his eyes behold the opportunity;
Then he moves from passion to pursuit.

Before he dreamed of the opportunity now he can chase it.

And the world does this as well.

If the world is good at anything it is at creating opportunities for sin.
• The world loves to give people a chance to pursue that which they think will satisfy their cravings.

And the world is all about trying to satisfy them.
This is why we don’t see a moral world with a dirty thought life,
But we actually see an immoral world.

Men eventually practice the sin they dwell on.

The word “eyes” here is OPHTHALMOS
Which does speak of the eyes.

But let me show you another place it is used.
Mark 7:21-22 “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness.”

The word shows up in that text too, only there it is not translated “eyes”,
It is translated “ENVY”.

It is to identify that which you think will bring you satisfaction.
It starts in the heart and it is carried out in the pursuit.

It is what Jesus spoke of:
Luke 11:33-35 “No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. “The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness. “Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness.”

Jesus said “The eye is the lamp of your body”

What is He talking about?
• What makes your eye twinkle…
• What catches your eye…
• What do you envy…

You can tell a lot about a man here.

As Peter talked about false believers in the church, he described them as:
2 Peter 2:14 “having eyes full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a heart trained in greed, accursed children;”

There it was “eyes full of adultery”

THIS IS THE WORLD.
They dream of sin and watch for opportunities to satisfy their cravings.
• This is not Godliness.
• This is not what God is like at all.
• They are polar opposites in every way.

So to love the world is evidence of a missing love for God.

Their Passions, Their Pursuit
3) THE PRESUMPTION OF THE WORLD

John also talks about “the boastful pride of life”

The Greek word there for “boastful pride” is ALAZONEIA
It means “empty braggart talk”

It is only used one other place in the New Testament.

James 4:16 “But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.”

• James talked about this empty boasting in arrogance and said it is evil.

Do you remember what James was talking about?
James 4:13-16 “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.”

That is a man
• who NOT ONLY has a passion for worldly success…
• And NOT ONLY does he pursue worldly success…

But notice he is convinced that
Such success will be to his ultimate satisfaction.

Do you remember the promise Satan made to Eve in the garden?
• He promised her that if she would just eat the fruit then she would be satisfied.
• And in arrogance, Eve believed him.

It is the same arrogance seen in this man:
Luke 12:15-21 “Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. “And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.” ’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Did you hear that man’s arrogance?
“And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”

That is the arrogance of the world.
• Not only do they dwell on sin with a passion…
• Not only do they pursue sin at every opportunity…
• But they do so convinced that even though it is contrary to the Law of God they are certain that it will be all-satisfying.

The deception of the world is that they
Can defy God’s Law and still find ultimate satisfaction.

What lie is that!
That was Satan’s lie in the garden wasn’t it?

That is worldliness. It is not Godliness.

And salvation itself is a salvation FROM worldliness TO Godliness.

TURN TO: EPHESIANS 2:1-10

Do you see those first 3 verses there?
• You see the same sort of categories there that John mentions here.

“Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest”

That is just basic unregenerate worldliness

What happened?
(4) “But God, being in rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when were dead in our trespasses and sins, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places.”

• Do you see that God pulls people out of their sinful passions?
• Do you see that God delivers people from the lust of their flesh?

And then what does a redeemed person look like?

Well skip down to verse 10
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Do you see the difference?

God rescues men from sin He doesn’t guide them there.
Love of the world and love for God are polar opposites.

James 1:27 “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

And this is why John can say that
If you love the world then you don’t love God.

It’s impossible.
• All of the world’s passions…
• All of the world’s pursuits…
• All of the world’s presumptions…

John says “is not from the Father, but is from the world.”

• If those are your passions you didn’t get that from God.
• If those are your pursuits you didn’t get that from God.
• If those are your presumptions you didn’t get that from God.

There is NO COMPATIBILITY between worldliness and godliness.

Luke 16:14-15 “Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were scoffing at Him. And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.”

And if you are in the church and have forsaken the world,
Don’t let some prosperity preacher cause you to think
That somehow you must’ve missed what true Christianity is.

No, you’re right on track, their supposed Christianity is a mirage.
But you see clearly as John speaks of the man who loves the world.

The Love They Lack, The Lust They Show
#3 THE LIFE THEY FORFEIT
1 John 2:17

This is perhaps the saddest reality for those who love the world.

John says, “The world is passing away, and also its lusts;”

Last time, when we defined the world “world”
We talked about the usage of the word KOSMOS.

We said it could be the literal physical created world.

Well, guess what, it will not last.
2 Peter 3:10-13 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.”

If your hope or your satisfaction is in any way bound up in the physical realities of this planet then I need to prepare you for some bad news.

Read the Revelation.
• First God will ravage the world with war and famine and plague.
• Then God will terrify the world by ripping off the sky and revealing Himself on the throne.
• Then God will burn up 1/3 of the earth.
• After that God will turn 1/3 of the sea to blood and kill 1/3 of the life in it.
• God will then ruin 1/3 of the earth’s fresh water.
• Then God will strip away 1/3 of the earth’s natural light.
• God will terrorize the world by turning loose a horde of demons to torment the world like locusts.
• Following that God will unleash 4 demons and their 200 million strong army to inflict death on the earth.
• God will then give malignant sores to all unbelievers
• He will turn the rest of the sea to blood
• He will scorch men with the fire of the sun
• He will put men in pain causing them to gnaw their tongues
• And finally He will gather the rest of them to a place called Har-Magedon where Jesus will slaughter them and the blood will run in the streets up to a horses bridle for 200 miles and the birds will gorge themselves on their flesh.
• And then God will destroy the entire universe and create a new one.

My point?
If you tie yourself to this ship, you are going to be sorely disappointed.
God is going to destroy this place completely.

Isaiah 24:20 “The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard And it totters like a shack, For its transgression is heavy upon it, And it will fall, never to rise again.”

But it’s NOT JUST the physical creation that will pass away.
John says, “also its lusts”

That is those “things of the world” which John also told us not to love.
• Worldly logic
• Worldly ideology
• Those “lusts of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life”

All those things are leaving too!

Revelation 21:1-8 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. “He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Revelation 21:27 “and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”

Revelation 22:14-15 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.”

There is coming a day when the sinful passions of our world will no longer exist.
• Sexual immorality won’t be cool in heaven.
• Drunkenness and arrogance and greed and envy won’t exist there.

God is getting rid of all of it.

And as Peter said we are “looking for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
Those who are loving in the world are loving something that they don’t get to keep. They are attaching themselves to a sinking ship.

BUT that is NOT the case
For those who forsake the world and who love God.

“but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”

The simple point is that when you love the world you lose it,
But when you love God you keep Him forever.

Isaiah 51:6 “Lift up your eyes to the sky, Then look to the earth beneath; For the sky will vanish like smoke, And the earth will wear out like a garment And its inhabitants will die in like manner; But My salvation will be forever, And My righteousness will not wane.”

And of course this is nothing new, it’s exactly what Jesus said:
Matthew 16:25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Of course this prompted Jesus then to ask this question:
Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Jim Elliot was one of those famous missionaries who were speared to death while seeking to reach that wild tribe of natives in South America.

Jim Elliot’s famous quote is: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

That was Jesus’ message.
That is John’s message.
The church is marked by those who love God, not the world.

This is basic Christianity 101.
• Christ calls us out of the world.
• Christ saves us from the world.
• And we leave the world that we may gain Christ.

Don’t let the prosperity culture in which we live blur that line.
“Remember Lot’s wife”

And now to sort of wrap up this segment of John’s message
I want you to turn to the book of Revelation.

TURN TO: REVELATION 18
• If you’re not familiar with Revelation 18 the best way I can sum it up for you is that Revelation 18 is about the fall of world’s economic system.
• (Revelation 17 is about the fall of the world’s religious system)

God speaks of the fall of this system in one day.
And I first want you to see the grief of the world as this system falls apart.

(READ 9-24)
• Do you see how God will devastate all those who love the world?
• He’s going to crush it all.

But there is a message in this chapter for the church.
(you already saw in verse 20 that God does this “for you against her”)

(READ 1-8)

Did you catch that warning?
“Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues”

There is a threat and a danger here.
Do not attach yourself to that which God will destroy.

Do you see why John is commanding the church not to love the world?
• Not only is loving the world a fruit of lostness…
• Not only is loving the world contrary to Christian living…
• Loving the world is a dangerous threat to you…

Don’t buy a ticket on the Titanic
Lest you get seduced by her extravagance and end up in judgment.

“Remember Lot’s wife”

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Thinking About How God Answers Prayer
Psalms 119:145-152
February 27, 2022

Tonight we come back to the 119th Psalm
And again it is a text that we have studied before.

If you’ve been listening to those sermons from the first time through
Then you know that the last time we studied this stanza we called it “Handling Oppression” and we talked about the importance of prayer.

I certainly think the truths we learned then are as important as ever.

For what you see clearly in our stanza is that the stakes have been raised.

(150) “Those who follow after wickedness draw near;”

• It’s one thing to be hated.
• But when the one who hates you is knocking on your door that’s a whole new situation.

The oppression our Psalmist is facing is getting more real by the moment.

This of course has caused him to turn to God in prayer.
And I would quickly remind you of what we learned last time
About his prayer in this situation.

We talked about: THE INTENSITY OF HIS PRAYER
(145) “I cried with all my heart”

We talked about: THE REQUEST OF HIS PRAYER
(146) “I cried to You; save me”

We talked about: THE PRIORITY OF HIS PRAYER
(147) “I rise before the dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words”

We talked about: THE ENDURANCE OF HIS PRAYER
(148) “My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word.”

We talked about: THE HUMILITY OF HIS PRAYER
(149) “Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness”

All of those realities form for us a tremendous example for our prayer life
And they are also realities that we see throughout Scripture
From those who are devoted to God.

Jeremiah reminded us about the INTENSITY of prayer:
Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”

Jesus taught us about the REQUESTS of prayer:
Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

Paul taught us about the PRIORITY of prayer:
Philippians 4:6 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

That oppressed widow in Luke 18 taught us about the ENDURANCE of prayer as she refused to stop appealing to the judge for legal protection.
Luke 18:6-8 “And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said; now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

The Pharisee and the tax collector taught us the HUMILITY of prayer.
Luke 18:14 “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

So the things we see in our Psalmist are certainly attitudes
Consistent with what the Bible teaches about a healthy prayer life.

When you are afflicted.
When life is difficulty.
When your oppressors draw near.
Most certainly you should run to God in prayer.

It’s just as the hymn writer recorded:
What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry Everything to God in prayer! Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged—Take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful, Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy-laden, Cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge—Take it to the Lord in prayer. Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In His arms He’ll take and shield thee, Thou wilt find a solace there.

You see that clearly in the Psalm here.

But what we talked about even more than that LAST TIME was
Why the Psalmist was so quick to turn to God in prayer.

And the answer was because of His confidence in God.
(Faithful prayer is the result of faith in God)

You see the things in this stanza that he knew about God.

GOD WON’T LEAVE
(151) “You are near, O LORD”

GOD CAN’T LIE
(151) “And all Your commandments are truth.”

GOD NEVER LOSES
(152) “Of old I have known Your testimonies That You have founded them forever.”

• You don’t pray to God if you don’t believe He is near.
• You don’t pray to God if you don’t believe His answer is correct.
• You don’t pray to God if you don’t believe His testimonies last forever.

And so the encouragement the last time we studied this stanza was
TO BELIEVE GOD MORE.

• Believe that God is trustworthy
• Believe that God will never leave you
• Believe that God will never lie to you
• Believe that God will never fail you

And as you believe that
You will also find it easier to take your burdens to God in prayer.

That was our encouragement last time and honestly, that’s still a good encouragement.

BUT TONIGHT, the second time through,
We get the opportunity to examine a different aspect of this stanza.

We clearly here have a Psalmist who is devoted to prayer.
• He is praying and he is not stopping.
• He wants God to answer.
• He waits for God to answer.
• He has put all his hope in the fact that God will answer.

But there is another aspect of this stanza that I think is also important to consider, and it is this:

HOW DO YOU EXPECT GOD TO ANSWER?

And by that I DON’T MEAN “what” do you expect God to answer.
• This isn’t to say whether or not you expect Him to say “yes” or “no”

What I mean is that when you cry out to God in prayer, and He answers you, how do you expect to know what that answer is?

Do you expect Him to email it to you?
Are you looking for a text message?

And this is a relevant question because so many in our world are willing to make a request to God and then I guess they just expect the answer to randomly pop in their mind.

Or perhaps they ask God and then go to looking for some sort of affirmative sign to indicate that God is doing or not doing what they ask.

Now I certainly DO NOT wish to insinuate that God never changes our circumstances or moves in ways around us that we can see.

I’m not trying to limit how God is forced to answer.

But I do want you to recognize this one thing from our Psalmist here.

• Our Psalmist was committed to pray to God for the solution to His dilemma,
• But the Psalmist was equally convinced that when God answered,
• That answer would come from only one place: The Scripture.

That’s what I want you to see tonight.

THERE IS A LINK BETWEEN PRAYER AND THE SCRIPTURE.
It is a foolish notion to pray to God and then to neglect the word.

If you have asked God for an answer,
Where else do you really expect to find it?

Having looked previously at the aspects of prayer in this stanza
Tonight let’s look at the role the Bible plays
In the answering of your prayers.

There are actually 5 truths about the Bible I want to point out to you tonight,
In really no particular order to show you
Why the Bible is where you should be looking for the answer to your requests.

So let’s talk about the Bible
#1 IT’S ORIGIN
Psalms 119:152

The Psalmist says: (152) “Of old I have known from Your testimonies That You have founded them forever.”

Clearly the Psalmist is referencing God’s word,
Which he hear calls “Your testimonies”

But the phrase I really want you to pay attention to is the fact that
“You have founded them”

There is an origin for the Bible and that origin is God.
There is an origin for the word of God and that origin is obviously God.

We might say it this way.
The Bible is “God’s Word”

That is why every time we read it, we make the statement that,
“This is now the word of God”

2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;”

If you read the NIV of course the familiar phrase is “God-breathed”

When you talk, what is happening is that
• Your diaphragm is forcing air through your vocal chords to make sound,
• Which is shaped by your tongue and mouth and lips;
• Through which you form words.

But what we are actually hearing, when you talk, is your breath.

Well, when you read the Scripture,
What you are actually hearing, is the very words of God.

2 Peter 1:20-21 “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, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

1 Thessalonians 2:13 “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.”

When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He responded by saying:
Matthew 4:4 “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’”

That alone is a very important truth for us.

When you ask someone a question,
Typically it is because you desire a response.

And yes there are times when you can get the answer through observing your circumstances, but still the reason for a question is to get a response.

I can ask Zek, “Where did you park the truck?”
• And it is true that I may eventually find that answer through observation,
• But the purpose of the question was so that Zek would tell me.

Now that’s certainly an oversimplification of all the purposes of prayer,
But the basic reality remains.

If you ask God something, or you make a request to Him, where are you going to look for His answer?

Well how about you look where God is speaking.

The simple point here is to remind you that the Bible is God’s word.
If you are asking for an answer
Then it is obvious where you should be looking for it.

God is the origin of the Bible.
The Bible is God speaking.

Something else about the Bible.
#2 IT’S DURABILITY
Psalms 119:152

Still that same verse, but notice now a different aspect of what the Psalmist says.

“You have founded them FOREVER.”

What does that mean?

Not only is the Bible the place where God has spoken to us,
But it is a place where He will always speak to us.

The Bible has no expiration date.
• The Bible is “living and active”
• It is both where God spoke and where God speaks.

Listen again to that statement of Jesus.
Matthew 4:4 “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’”

NOT “every word that proceeded”
Rather “every word that proceeds”

Think about the famous verse of Psalms 119
Psalms 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”

The Psalmist speaks of something current.

Again to the statement of Peter:
2 Peter 1:19-21 “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, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 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, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

Peter not only talks about the origin of God’s word,
But also as that which you should continue to pay attention to.

God is still speaking there.
God is still guiding there.

This is NOT some ancient book
Where we are simply trying to learn from history.

When you read a history book
• You take the stories,
• You put them in context,
• You evaluate the consequences
• Then you try to learn from their mistakes and successes.

But that is not all the Bible brings to the table.

Certainly we do place narrative in context and evaluate the circumstances of the day,
But the Bible brings far more to the table
Than just a moral lesson from history.

What the Bible says it says to you today.
It is just as relevant now as it ever was.

So if you are praying to God and you are making requests to Him,
It only stands to reason that the answer to that request
Would come from the place where God is still speaking.

From that place where He will speak “forever”

It’s origin, it’s durability
#3 IT’S CONTENT
Psalms 119:52

Again look at another aspect of verse 152.

The Psalmist says that what you find here are “YOUR testimonies”

• The Bible comes from God.
• It will come from God forever.
• AND IT IS WHAT GOD HAS TO SAY.

• THE NEWSPAPER is not the testimony of God.
• THIS SERMON is not the testimony of God.
• Some would-be PROPHET’S DREAM today is not the testimony of God.
• Your DEVOTIONAL BOOK is not the testimony of God.

Now those things may be testimonies about God.
Those things may be true and even potentially helpful.

But there is a drastic difference
Between man’s testimony and God’s testimony.

Jeremiah 23:28-29 “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”

Isaiah reminded:
Isaiah 55:8-11 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts. “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

There is a difference between man’s testimony and God’s testimony.
The Bible is God’s testimony.
The Bible is what God has to say.

So again, if you are in prayer and you want to hear God’s answer,
You really can’t go anywhere but to the Bible.

That is where God has spoken.
That is where God is speaking.
That is where God will speak.

Now that’s sort of INTRODUCTORY, but look now at our Psalmist.

It is clear that our Psalmist is convinced of that very fact.

(147-148) “I rise before dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words. My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word.”

Do you see the connection?

It starts obviously with his priority to pray.
“I rise before dawn and cry for help”

• So let’s establish again that this man is committed to pray.
• And let’s also make the point that hearing from God is obviously a big deal
to Him.

He says, “I wait for Your words”

We are not dealing with a nonchalant seeker here.
This is NOT a man who is apathetic as to whether he gets an answer or not.

Any man who will consistently rise like this and pray like this
Is obviously serious about getting an answer from God.

But notice WHERE HE THINKS that answer is going to come from.

“My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word.”

He is eagerly waiting for a time when the hectic schedule calms down
And he’ll have a second to simply ponder.

And his objective is to “meditate on Your word”

It should be blatantly obvious where he expects he’ll find God’s answer.
When God speaks to him he is convinced where it will come from.

And notice, he’s not necessarily expecting to easily see it.
• He’s not praying and then expecting to just randomly throw open his bible and stick his finger on the page, read the verse, and get his answer.

No, he’s going to read and he’s going to MEDITATE.
• There will be a lot of reading.
• There will be a lot of pondering.
• There will be a lot of hermeneutics here.

Why go to such trouble?
Why put yourself through such extensive effort?

BECAUSE HE IS CONVINCED THAT HIS ANSWER FROM GOD
IS CONTAINED HERE.

I would even say it like this.

If on your earthly pilgrimage
You want to know where you are going to commune with God,
There is no better place to start than His word.

It is a foolish and overly mystical person
Who assumes they can pray and just walk outside
And find their sign or random answer through looking at THE CLOUDS.

Creation is the revelation of God, but it is the GENERAL REVELATION.

Romans 1 tells us we can learn about God from creation.
Romans 1:20 “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”

Psalms 19:1-3 “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard.”

What our Psalmist wants is the SPECIAL REVELATION of God
And that is fond 1 place: The Bible.

Psalms 19:7-11 “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward.”

So when you want to hear God’s answer to your prayer,
Follow the example of the Psalmist and seek the word of God.

And when you seek it, seek it diligently.
Seek it through study and meditation.

God speaks there, even if it takes effort to discern it.

That is the content of the Bible

The Origin, The Durability, The Content
#4 IT’S POWER
Psalms 119:149

“Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your ordinances.”

When we studied this stanza in regard to prayer
We talked about the “lovingkindness” part.

We talked about the HUMILITY OF PRAYER
And how the Psalmist pleaded for mercy.

But let’s look at the rest of the verse.
At first these statements almost appear to be unrelated.
• We see the statement “according to lovingkindness”
• And we see the statement “according to Your ordinances”

And we wonder what those have in common.

Well, look at the request.
The Psalmist says “Revive me”
• That is literally a request to give him life.

And here is how the terms align.
• “lovingkindness” = God’s motive for granting revival.
• “ordinances” = God’s means of granting revival.

And that is where we circle back to the power of God’s word.

See the Psalmist wants more than answers.
Certainly he would like an explanation,
But you don’t see that as his primary request.

(146) “save me”
(147) “I cry for help”
(149) “Revive me”

He doesn’t just want an explanation, he wants God to intervene.

And this is also why he goes to God’s word.
• God’s word is power.
• God’s word brings life.

One only has to GO BACK TO CREATION to verify this.
• Where did light come from?
• Where did land come from?
• Where did fish and birds and animals come from?
• WHERE DID LIFE COME FROM?

“Then God said…”
“Then God said…”
“Then God said…”

In 1 John, John actually calls Jesus “The Word of Life”

Jesus said:
John 5:24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

Listen to God reveal to Ezekiel the source of the new life that is coming:
Ezekiel 37:4-10 “Again He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.’ “Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life. ‘I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the LORD.’” So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, sinews were on them, and flesh grew and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life.”’” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.”

The power for life and revival comes from God’s word.

That is why we are committed here to expositional preaching of the whole counsel of the word of God.
• We’re not into emotional displays…
• We’re not into gimmicky tricks…
• We’re not into mood music and mood lighting…

But it’s not just because we don’t like it.

It’s because we don’t believe there is any power to give life in those things.
• We believe it is the word of God that raises the dead.
• We believe it is the word of God that brings revival.
• We believe it is the word of God that has the power.

That’s true in a worship service, but it is also true in your prayer life.

If you are praying for a powerful intervention of God in your life.
Not just for explanation but for revival power.
Why would you pray and then neglect the word?

Our Psalmist didn’t.
• He knew who to ask for revival – God.
• He knew why God would give it – “Your lovingkindness”
• And He hew the medium God would use to give it – “Your ordinances”

It is the power of the word.

It is important for you and I to remember that even as we pray.

It’s origin, It’s durability, It’s content, It’s power
#5 IT’S DIRECTION
Psalms 119:145-146

Here we get a glimpse into the understanding of the Psalmist.
• He is not ignorant of the will of God.
• He knows exactly what God’s will is for his life.

AND INCIDENTALLY, YOU SHOULD TOO.

You say, what is God’s will for my life?
1 Thessalonians 4:3a “For this is the will of God, your sanctification…”

Romans 8:29 “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;”

Hebrews 12:14 “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.”

Clearly you understand this.

God is sovereign.
• And WHILE God has certainly granted us the privilege of prayer.
• And THOUGH He does answer our prayers.

That is NOT TO ASSUME that the circumstances we find ourselves in
Were outside of His control.

God placed you in that circumstance for a reason
And if God brings you out of that circumstance
That will also be for a reason.

And you say, “What reason?”

And the answer is always SANCTIFICATION.

God is always working to conform you into the image of Christ.

• Remember humanity was created in the image of God.
• Humanity fell through sin.
• Christ came as the chief example of what humanity is supposed to be.
• Christ is redeeming us back to what we were intended to be.

This is the overarching purpose of it all.

So (like the Psalmist) you have a request to God to save you from some circumstance you are in.

If God grants that salvation…If God grants that help

For what purpose do you suppose He will grant it?
To further your sanctification.

So, if that’s the goal,
as you pray it only makes sense that you also appeal to that
Which will not only answer you and give you power
But that which will also guide you in the right direction.

Notice our Psalmist.
(145-146) “I cried with all my heart; answer me, O LORD! I will observe Your statutes. I cried to You; save me And I shall keep Your testimonies.”

Do you see his understanding?
He knows where this is headed.

It is a foolish man who would cry to God for deliverance
And at the same time assume that
God is going to deliver you simply to allow you to be more wicked.

That is an evil mindset.

In fact, look at verse 150, “Those who follow after wickedness draw near; They are far from Your law.”

It is a wicked man who has no interest in what God has to say.

But the Psalmist, a man deep in prayer,
Understands that part of seeking an answer from God
Contains a commitment to God’s word.

I hope that makes sense to you.

And tonight we simply make that point.

That in your prayer life, when you seek an answer from God,
That should include a corresponding commitment to God’s word.

• That is where God will speak.
• That is where the power is.
• That is where God’s direction for your life is laid out.

So certainly commit yourself to prayer as the Psalmist does
And at the same time commit yourself to the answer
Which is found only in the word of God.

Download Here:

Do Not Love The World – Part 1
1 John 2:15-17 (15)
February 27, 2022

As you know, John has written us here a very direct and bold letter.
It’s not a hard letter to understand, though it can be hard to swallow.

• John writes in clear absolutes.
• John writes with black and white dogmatism.
• John quickly and succinctly gets to the heart of the matter.

And after studying verses 12-14 we know why.
THE CHURCH IS UNDER ATTACK.

The truth is being distorted and the lines of what is Christian and what is not
Are beginning to be blurred.

John writes to bring clarity.
• He wants those who are lost to know they are lost.
• He wants those who are redeemed to know they are saved.
• He wants the new converts to rest in the fact that they know the Father
• He wants believers who are contending for the faith to know they are right
• He wants the spiritually mature to pass on their convictions

In short, John is writing to solidify conviction.
And you don’t do that by being vague.

And by now I think we can clearly say that
• If you are saved you probably love the bold and direct nature of John here.
• If you are lost this is not a pleasant study.

But for both groups it is a necessary one.
Our encouragement is to simply hear what John say,
Believe him, and respond accordingly.

Well, having explained the purpose of his boldness,
THIS MORNING John immediately returns to being bold.

And these 3 verses might be the biggest litmus test yet.

LET’S JUST BE HONEST.
• We live in America
• We enjoy financial prosperity
• Having plenty has become a way of life

While we certainly give thanks to God for all the things we enjoy in life
We must at the same time recognize that
OUR PROSPERITY IS ALSO A GREAT THREAT TO OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE.

YOU HAVE TO SEE THAT.
When you live in a country as affluent as ours
You must maintain a visual image of the Rich Young Ruler
Walking away from Jesus weeping
And you must hear in your ears the explanation of Jesus:

Matthew 19:23-24 “And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Certainly NOT every rich man is lost,
NOR is it that no rich man can be saved.

When the disciples recognized the difficulty of what Jesus said there, they asked, “Then who can be saved?”

And Jesus said:
Matthew 19:26 “And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Rich people can be saved.
• Zacchaeus is an example of that.
• Matthew is an example of that.
• Joseph of Arimathea is an example of that.

Rich men can be saved,
But it is important to recognize how difficult it is.
Earthly prosperity is NOT the easiest road to salvation.

And it is therefore important to recognize that
• While God does give us all good things to enjoy,
• Prosperity in this life will always be a threat
• Not only to salvation but also to sanctification and faithfulness.

There’s just no way around that.
That is a truth that you must come to grips with.

We LIVE IN A CULTURE WHERE PROSPERITY IS HIGH ON THE LIST.
• We live in a culture that seeks nothing like it seeks prosperity.
• We live in a culture that will do almost anything to protect its comforts.
• We live in a culture that applauds prosperous and questions the poor.

Now, it’s not your fault that you were born in America.
God determined the days of your life and the boundaries of your habitation.

BUT YOU MUST RECOGNIZE THE THREAT OF THIS PLACE.

In a place like this there is a constant temptation; a constant pull;
For you to SEEK, LOVE, and TRUST in earthly prosperity.

This is blatant idolatry.
We are called to seek, love, and trust God.

And, we also understand that seeking, loving, and trusting God
Is EASIER when you are POOR than when you are rich.

I just want you to be aware of the threat. (and so does John)

In fact, John now approaches perhaps his most convicting test yet.

John has already questioned whether or not we walk in darkness.
• Do you walk in darkness?
• Do you live in a sinful lifestyle?
• How you answer that is an indicator of the genuineness of your salvation.

John has already questioned our humility and repentance.
• Do you sin?
• Do you have sin?
• Do you confess that sin?
• How you answer that is an indicator of the genuineness of your salvation.

John has already questioned our obedience.
• Do you obey Christ?
• How you answer that is an indicator of the genuineness of your salvation.

John has already questioned our love.
• Do you hate your brother?
• How you answer that is an indicator of the genuineness of your salvation.

And now John moves to another test. Perhaps the hardest.
DO YOU LOVE THE WORLD?

In our culture this may be the most important question you or I ask ourselves.

John is about to expose a cancer that none of us can afford to overlook.

And as we begin, I want to remind you of something Jesus said:
John 3:19-21 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

Let that be a verse that guides our study of these very important verses.
• Let us not be people who reject the truth for fear of being exposed,
• But let us be people who run to the light in hopes that God will expose and
show us everything we need to know.

Well, let’s start with John’s simple command.

(15a) “Do not love the world nor the things in the world.”

That is the simple imperative.
It is clear, it is concise, and there really shouldn’t be any confusion.

However, let’s look at it and ponder it for a moment.

Let’s think about the word “world” for a second.

• What does John mean when he tells us not to love “the world”?

The Greek word is KOSMOS

• It can speak of the literal physical created world.
• We talk about the cosmos as the entire universe.

The word also speaks however of “order” as in the order of the universe.
• You are familiar with the word “cosmetology” which speaks of someone putting their face in order or their hair in order with cosmetics.
• Sometimes this word is even translated “adornment”

So is that the command?
• That we are not to love the created order?
• That we are not to love the physical universe?
• Is that what John means?

Well, listen, today there is some reality to this.

We think of ENVIRONMENTALISM
I’m going to tell you today that environmentalism is very much a religion.

I’m NOT saying a Christian should not care for the planet.
• The Levitical Law even prescribed things like providing the land with rest.
• The land was a very important aspect to the covenant God made with Israel.
• We read often of them polluting the land with the shedding of innocent blood.
• And obviously there is the common sense reality that if you make a mess of
your surroundings that those surroundings are going to be far less
pleasing to live in.
• Things like conservation and cleanliness are certainly not bad things.

But there are plenty of ways in which environmentalism
Has turned into a religion for many people.

We even hear of idolatrous and mythical terms like “Mother Nature” or “Mother Earth”
As the source of life.

And certainly we see the misguided mindsets
That regard the salvation of the planet
As the salvation of the human race.

But Scripture promises that
• This created order will one day be totally annihilated by God.
• He will burn up the elements with intense heat.

If you want to talk about ECOLOGICAL DISASTERS
Just go read the book of the Revelation.
No one is going to trash the planet like God will one day trash the planet.

God will destroy this one and create a new heavens and a new earth.

ANYONE who has made it their calling or purpose to “Save The Planet”
Is following a misguided purpose in life.

Certainly anyone who worships the planet is guilt of idolatry.

Romans 1:22-25 “Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”

There’s a sense in which John is saying don’t love the physical world

Though I think we all realize that THERE IS MORE HERE THAN THAT.

For John doesn’t just stop by saying “Do not love the world”.
John goes on to say, “nor the things of the world.”

It’s CLEARLY MORE than a command about the physical created order.

IN ONE SENSE we here have to address the love of physical things or maybe better called “STUFF”.

Earthly treasures.

Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

• We think of the Rich Young Ruler who refused to sell his possessions.
• We think of the disciples who left houses and farms and lands and fishing boats and money tables to follow Jesus.

There is a real aspect here in which John is telling us not to love stuff.
• It is the sin of hoarding.
• It is the sin of storing up treasure.
• It is the sin of putting our trust in retirement as our security instead of God.
• It is the sin of seeing our brother in need and closing our heart.

1 John 3:16-18 “We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”

And this is a REAL PROBLEM and TEMPTATION in our affluent society.

Our society constantly preaches of the importance of financial security
And having enough for me first and things like that.

But we must be ever aware of
• The temptation to trust in our surplus as our security.
• Our propensity to hoard that which we do not need.
• The sin of finding satisfaction in stuff instead of God.

When John tells us not to love the things of the world
There is a very real and timely warning here regarding stuff.

And that may STILL NOT BE THE BEST understanding.

It’s NOT LIKE “things” are only physical things.

There are other worldly things we can love
That aren’t necessarily physical things.

For example we can talk about worldly praise or worldly esteem.
• The WORLD’S ADMIRATION is certainly something people are prone to love.

We live in a culture right now that craves worldly approval.
The current word is “WOKE”
Which oddly enough is supposed to mean “awakened to the truth”

What it actually represents is when a person
Has altered their beliefs to be accepted by the social majority.

• It is to love the approval of men so much that you cave on your convictions and
toss out any conflicting opinion so that you can have the world’s pat on the back.

That is one of the “things” that many have shown to love.

Even in Jesus’ day.
John 12:42-43 “Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.”

Loving the things of this world would include WORLDLY IDEOLOGIES.

Think about the temptation of Jesus.
Matthew 4:8-9 “Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”

There was both a physical aspect there and a spiritual one.
Satan offered Jesus both thrones and glory.

When Jesus called His disciples to follow Him He was speaking about leaving physical treasures,

BUT ALSO THINGS LIKE THEIR COMFORTS AND REPUTATIONS.
• One man was told he’d be homeless if he followed Jesus.
• Another was told he would have to relinquish his earthly inheritance.
• Another was told he could not be concerned about his reputation.

Those are all “things” that we are told we cannot love
And “things” which we must surrender.

Matthew 16:24-25 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

There is a wide element here of what John is saying.
• Don’t love the physical planet as your source of security and provision.
• Don’t love the stuff of this world as your satisfaction or security.
• Don’t love the ideologies of this world as your guide for belief or conviction.

ALL OF THAT COULD CERTAINLY BE IN PLAY HERE.

John says, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world.”

Now some would immediately throw their hand up and quote:
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

And I suppose one could ask, “How can John tell us not to love the world when Scripture is clear that God loved the world?”

The obvious difference is that God’s love for the world
Spoke of humanity not things.

Jesus did not come to save the planet.
Jesus did not come to save our stuff.
Jesus came to save humanity.
Jesus came to save sinners.

Certainly John is clear in his letter that we are to love people too.
• We are to love our neighbor.
• We have already been told not to hate our brother.

The distinction is obvious.

John’s command here prohibits us from loving the physical things of the world and the ideologies that the world broadcasts.

That is what John means by “world”

But let’s talk about ANOTHER WORD there.
Let’s talk about the word “love”

We’ve seen the object, but let’s talk about the action.

• John didn’t say, “Don’t store the world”
• John didn’t say, “Don’t admire the world”
• John didn’t say, “Don’t respect the world”
• John said, “Do not love the world”

What does that mean?

“love” there AGAPEO

Which is that familiar word which speaks of “God-like, or unconditional love”

If you look up the definition, especially as it relates to “things” it is defined like this: “to be well-pleased; to be contented at or with a thing.”

But I think there is ANOTHER PASSAGE THAT MIGHT BETTER HELP you understand the gist of what John is saying.

Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

Certainly you see the word “love” there in the text
Where Jesus said a man will “hate the one and love the other”

There Jesus uses hate and love as OPPOSITES.

But if you notice in the text, Jesus also uses synonyms of the words
To better understand His point.

For Jesus immediately restates the concept by saying,
“he will be devoted to one and despise the other.”

There “devoted” and “despise” are also OPPOSITES,
But they are also synonyms of the previous statement.

In this text to love something is synonymous with being devoted to it.
And hating something is synonymous with despising it.

That is a good way of understanding what the Bible means
When it talks about you loving something.
THE ISSUE IS DEVOTION

What are you devoted to?
• Are you devoted to God or to wealth?
• Are you devoted to God or Mother Earth?
• Are you devoted to God or your stuff?
• Are you devoted to God or your reputation?

• What was the Rich Young Ruler devoted to? (clearly wealth)

Do you understand then what John is talking about?

“Do not love the world nor the things in the world.”
Or
“Do not be devoted to this world or to stuff or to worldly esteem”

THERE IS OUR FIRST REAL POINT OF SELF-EVALUATION.

John very clearly tells us not to love those things.
Now I must ask, “Do I?”

• If Jesus asked me to part with my stuff and follow Him where would my devotion lie?
• If Jesus asked me to part with my reputation or comfort and follow Him, where would my devotion lie?

Now listen, don’t answer that as a herd.
You have to answer that as an individual.

What we like to do with passages like this is look around the room and say, “Well everyone else in here is keeping all their stuff so surely Jesus doesn’t care if I keep mine.”

I know that temptation.

It reminds me of when Jesus told Peter that he was going to be martyred.

John 21:21-22 “So Peter seeing him said to Jesus, “Lord, and what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!”

We don’t evaluate our devotion
By whether or not I appear as devoted as the next guy.

The Rich Young Ruler was told to sell everything and follow Jesus.
Zacchaeus agreed to give away half of his possessions and apparently keep living in Jericho.

I DON’T KNOW WHY.
• But I do know the issue of the heart was devotion.
• Neither of them was allowed to love their money.

In our culture with such a priority set on prosperity and security
Every one of us ought to take a deep inward look
And ask ourselves where our devotion lies.

Is there something you possess that God can’t have?
Is there something you are more devoted to?

The consistent call of God is that men lose this life
And forsake this world in order that they may gain Christ.

And though the extent of that loss may look different in various people
The willingness of that loss is 100% the same.

IN FACT, the willingness to forsake devotion to the world
Is such a central concept to Christianity that John uses it here
As another litmus test by which we evaluate genuine salvation.

John is actually going to show you that loving the world is characteristic of the lost.
• Loving the world is what lost people do.
• Loving the world is what unregenerate people do.
• And thus the command for us to not love the world.

IN THE REMAINDER OF OUR TEXT
John will show us 3 truths about people who love the world.

#1 THE LOVE THEY LACK
1 John 2:15

“Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

First you see the clear distinction.

A person can either love the world or they can love God
BUT THEY CANNOT DO BOTH.

Jesus made this same statement in the verse we looked at a moment ago.
Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

James was pretty dogmatic about it as well.
James 4:4 “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

It’s a wonder the church could ever get confused about such an issue.

Few truths in Scripture are spoken about
With more clarity and force than this one.

Genuine believers forsake their love of the world for a love for God.
Genuine believers forsake their devotion to the world for a devotion to God.

Paul said:
Philippians 3:7-9 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,”

After the Rich Young Ruler left Peter said:
Matthew 19:27 “Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”

There is simple fact that must be acknowledged:
You cannot love the world and God.

TO FURTHER CLARIFY you should understand
Why the statement “the love of the Father” is a distinguishing statement.

This love is not something that is produced by the person.

While we are commanded to love God, it is a command
Which can only be fulfilled through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

Your love for God is not a love that originates with you.
It is a supernatural love for God
Which is given to us when the Holy Spirit moves in.

IN FACT, the love a believer has for God
Is actually the love which Christ has for the Father.

In that famous Romans 8 passage (which is often misunderstood)

Romans 8:38-39 “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

• In that passage Paul is NOT SAYING (as so many claim) that nothing can cause God to quit loving us.
• That is true, for He loved us at our worst, but that is not Paul’s point.

• Paul is talking about tribulation and hardship and peril.
• He IS talking about the types of things that might cause us to quit loving God.
• But Paul says that we overwhelmingly conquer in all those things and that none of those things “will be able to separate us from the love of God”

He is talking about our love for God.
And then Paul defines that love. He says “which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”

The love that the believer is given for God
Is the same love which Christ has for God.

It is a supernatural love which does not originate with ourselves.

This is why love for God is such an accurate indicator of salvation.
It cannot be produced by the human will.

If a person has genuine love for God they are redeemed.

If you’ve ever heard R.C. Sproul talk about ASSURANCE OF SALVATION, he has a favorite analogy.

Someone would come and ask how to know if they are saved.
Sproul would ask them 3 questions.

1) “Do you love God perfectly?” (of course they must answer no)
2) “Do you love God as much as you should?” (well #1 is no then this is no too)
3) “Do you love God at all?”

And if you say “yes” then the next question is “Where did that love come from?”
That is a mark of regeneration.
That is a mark of salvation.

BUT HERE IS WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW.

You cannot lay claim to that mark of salvation if you love the world.

When asked “Do you love God?”
If you love the world you cannot answer “yes”
(at least not honestly)

For John is clear:
“If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

And that is the first point here.
• Those who are devoted to the world cannot claim to be devoted to God.
• And if they do make that claim, then it is a false claim.

I realize that this is somewhat of a painful test,
But it is a necessary one none the less.

The facts are these:
• God’s children do not crave the world, lost people do.
• God’s children do not pursue the world, lost people do.
• God’s children do not trust the world, lost people do.
• God’s children are not devoted to the world, lost people are.

Galatians 6:14 “But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”

That is a mark of regeneration.

Galatians 5:19-24 “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

You see it again.
Those sinful lusts and desires that crave the world
Have been crucified by child of God.

When Peter talks to the redeemed he says:
2 Peter 1:4 “For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

Believers don’t see the world and its evil system
As something to be loved, they see it as something to be escaped.

The world is anti-Christ and the believer has no desire for it.

They sing, “I’d rather have Jesus than silver and gold. I’d rather be His than have riches untold. I’d rather have Jesus than houses or lands. I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand. Than to be a king of a vast domain or be held in sin’s dread sway. I’d rather have Jesus than anything this world affords today.”

They sing, “Take the world, but give me Jesus, all it’s joys are but a name. But His love abides forever, through eternal years the same.”

They sing, “Where the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small. Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”

But that is a desire that the unredeemed lack.

They may be like the Rich Young Ruler
And understand that Jesus has answers for eternal life,
But they are too devoted to their wealth to receive that life.

Those who love the world demonstrate “The Love They Lack”
And that is that they lack a love for God.

But that’s just the first one, there’s 2 more.
And we’ll have to get to those next time.

You can sign up here for our summer camps.

There is a $100 sign up fee, and provided the fundraisers go well, this is all you will have to pay for camp.  If you cannot afford the deposit, please contact Rory Mosley at the church to arrange a scholarship.

NOTE: All Jr. High and High School students are required to work the March 27 meal fundraiser at the church and to work some shifts in the Little League Concession stand as well as the yearly softball tournament which are the major camp fundraisers.

 

You can pay by credit card through this link, but if you’d rather pay the church office directly type “CHECK” in the promo code.  

 

ALSO NOTE: When filling out the form:  “Registrant Info is the parent, Attendee is the student”

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