MOUNTAINS WILL BE SHAKEN BUT WORD OF GOD WILL STAND
By Rev. Dr. Jerry Schmoyer jerry@schmoyer.net
http://india.christiantrainingonline.org/
WEEK BEFORE: make sure to bring your Bible next week
Announce in bulletin
Email all week before to bring Bible
Have extra Bibles available, give page numbers as well as passages
Don’t put on PP but make them look in Bibles for verses
INTRODUCTION
MUSEUMS = weapons, Smithsonain when in Washington in May
Saw old, 2 sided swords, took 2 hands to use
Interesting, but useless today
Good only for museum
See Sword of the Spirit same way today!
2 weeks ago I shared a new favorite song with you that I heard at Labor Day Gospel Concert
ONE DAY THE NEXT DAY COULD BE THE DAY HE COMES
Today another song, same group – Down East Boys
I. THE IMPORTANCE OF GOD’S WORD
A. GOD’S WORD IS ETERNAL
The mountains will be shaken but the Word of God will stand.
World today unsteady, nothing to depend on
Can’t build life on -finances, shakey and can go at any moment
-job, economy take that, eventually too old to work anyway
-health, will get old and health deteriorate
-relationships, they change, people leave, all have own imperfect
Only stable is God and HIS WORD, that stays and lasts forever
Future worse – all will be destroyed
Very MOUNTAINS THEMSELVES won’t be able to stand
If they can’t, what can?
ONLY THE WORD OF GOD!
It will stand forever!
(ALL LOOK UP) Psalms 119:89 Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.
TRANSITION
Because it is powerful and eternal Satan attacks it to keep us from using it
B. GOD’S WORD IS ATTACKED
Satan’s FIRST ATTACK against man was on the Word of God – Genesis 3 “did God really say that?”
Insinuating that God didn’t
Trying ever since to devaluate place of Word in our lives
If can get us to set aside our offensive weapon much better chance of victory!
Today: people ignorant of Word, believers or unbelievers
(ALL LOOK UP) 1 Thess 2:13-14 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
Today: undermine trust in the Bible, what we have fake, untrue, or full of errors
More better manuscripts of Bible than any other book in history
Within 100 years after written (Latin, etc, 1 or 2 800 yrs later)
Compare with what was written in various languages/cultures
Current Roman and Jewish historians affirm all the basic tenants of Christianity
Fulfilled prophecy fantastic accuracy, one in billions
HOLD BIBLE, look at it, what if really God’s Words to you? What difference make?
C. GOD’S WORD IS OUR WEAPON
GOD’S WORD our only offensive weapon
(ALL LOOK UP) Eph 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
NOT antique sword in museum but living and active
Jesus quoted Bible when tempted!!! If He needed to so do we!
WORD OF GOD useful, powerful, does what a sword does
(ALL LOOK UP) Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
NOT wave Bible like banner
BUT wear Bible like a sword
TRANSITION
We would all agree on the importance of supremacy of God’s Word
But that doesn’t mean we know how to use it
II. THE USE OF GOD’S WORD
A. DAILY PRACTICE
(ALL LOOK UP) Acts 17:11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
Bereans searched Scriptures daily – do you?
No one ever became a Bible scholar on one sermon a week
No one ever learned how to use a sword looking at it in museum
Or hearing one sermon about someone else using it
To learn to use sword must practice with it daily, hour after hour
Not come naturally, take time to get good at it
Satan interfere with time, priorities, emphasis
How to get the devil to leave us – learn to use the Bible!
John 17:8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.
Jesus gave us God’s Word and we accepted it
Jesus’ time with disciples – gave them God’s words
B. PERSONAL PRACTICE
One spring our family was driving from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa, Florida. As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. When we stopped for breakfast, I ordered orange juice with my eggs. “I’m sorry,” the waitress said. “I can’t bring you orange juice. Our machine is broken.”
At first I was dumbfounded. We were surrounded by millions of oranges, and I knew they had oranges in the kitchen–orange slices garnished our plates. What was the problem? No juice? Hardly. We were surrounded by thousands of gallons of juice. The problem was they had become dependent on a machine to get it.
Christians are sometimes like that. They may be surrounded by Bibles in their homes, but if something should happen to the Sunday morning preaching service, they would have no nourishment for their souls. The problem is not a lack of spiritual food–but that many Christians haven’t grown enough to know how to get it for themselves.
Don’t wait for others to give you the word, go to the source yourself!
SERMONS, BIBLE STUDY good, but don’t rely on it only
BOOKS, RADIO, SPEAKERS, AUDIO TEACHING good, but still 2nd hand
INDIA PASTORS: ‘chew your own food!’ don’t swallow what others chew, chew yourself
SAVE TIME, TROUBLE – ME CHEW FOOD SO ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS SWALLOW!
WE DO THAT SPIRITUALLY – devotionals, books, messages, etc – but not study Bible own
Don’t just read books ABOUT the Bible, read the Bible!
(ALL LOOK UP) 2 Tim 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
HOW TO UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE?
The main things are the plain things
The plain things are the main things
Understand Bible in NATURAL sense
Common sense, not make Bible a mystery book
Come with faith of a child to understand it
Understand the Bible in the GENERAL sense
Look at context, let scripture determine scripture
Understand Bible in CULTURAL sense
Put self in place of ones first receiving, reading text – what mean to them?
GO TO DOCTOR, say don’t feel good, he gives you prescription and says ‘next’ – how feel?
ASK QUESTIONS, check, observe, gather facts
Then interpret them so can APPLY – correct Rx
Same with Bible study – can’t just read and say how apply
Only remember what already heard (food someone else already chewed for you)
Or read footnotes or commentary (food someone else already chewed for you)
ASK QUESTIONS – won’t answer a question of don’t ask it!
If ask author sitting with you, what would you ask them to explain?
Write, ask questions – best way to get more out of your Bible study
Then pray about, look up answers
FIND EXAMPLE PASSAGE TO PRACTICE ON!!! – 2 Tim 3:16-17
God-breathed – what mean? ‘in breathed’ = “inspired” by God
OK to use footnotes, commentaries, etc., when asking & answering questions
NOT OK when look to apply it to own life
Teaching what mean? How Bible do it? Example of it in own life?
Rebuking what mean? How Bible do it? Example of it in own life?
Correcting what mean? How Bible do it? Example of it in own life?
Training in righteousness what mean? How Bible do it? Example in own life?
Equipped what mean? How Bible do it? Example in own life?
Thoroughly equipped what mean? How Bible do it? Example?
Good work what mean? How Bible do it? Example?
Every good work what mean? How Bible do it? Example?
C. MEMORIZING THE WORD = VICTORY IN LIVE
(ALL LOOK UP) Psalms 119:9-11 How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
JESUS knew it by heart, much of OT – quoted Deuteronomy 3x when tempted by Satan!
If from age 18 save $1 a day with interest, by time retire have 1 million
If from age of 18 store up a verse a day, great working knowledge of Bible, victory
D. MEDITATING ON THE WORD
(ALL LOOK UP) Psalms 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
MULL ON IT in mind, think about it, fill mind/heart with Scripture and let it form thoughts and attitudes
TIME to let it soak in
Not TV, radio, news, etc on but quiet to meditate
Go for walks, sit and relax, go to bed before exhausted
JOURNAL thoughts, insights, etc.
CONCLUSION
In the 1930s in Stavropol, Russia, Stalin ordered that all Bibles be confiscated and Christian believers be sent to prison camps. Ironically, most of the Bibles were not destroyed, yet many Christians died as “enemies of the state.”
With the recent dissolution of the U.S.S.R., a CoMission team arrived in Stavropol in 1994 for ministry. Their request to have Bibles shipped to Moscow was being held up. But someone told them about a warehouse outside of town where confiscated Bibles were still stored. Remarkably, the team was granted permission to distribute them. Hiring several local Russian workers, they began to load their trucks.
One young man, a hostile agnostic, came only for the day’s wages. But not long after they had started, he disappeared. He was found in the corner of the warehouse, weeping, a Bible in his hands. Intending to steal it for himself, he had picked his own grandmother’s off the shelf! Her signature was on the front page. Today, that young Russian is in the process of being transformed by the very Bible that his grandmother was persecuted for, but still held dear.
GREAT PRIVILEGE to own Bible of your own
Very words of God Himself
Will last, still true, after everything in this world gone!
Words of life – so important to read, study it!
ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT SUNDAY:
PHILIPPIANS verse by verse, slowly (unless already reading Bible)