HOW READETH THOU? Dr. Kenneth W. Jones, Pastor, Practical Living Ministry

Transcription

1 1 HOW READETH THOU? Dr. Kenneth W. Jones, Pastor, Practical Living Ministry

2 Scripture 2 Colossians 4:6 - Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man. 1 Peter 3:15 - But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

3 Introduction: Significant Thought 3 We must encourage and foster an atmosphere of inquiry and not experimentation in our churches today Usually because a lack of inquiry there is more experimentation Some churches indulge themselves in an environment of not knowing in order to accommodate compromise and inclusiveness In order for this atmosphere of inquiry to be encouraged, God s leaders must be apt to the task, skilled and temperate to rise to the need

4 Be Ready and Prepared 4 As disciples for Christ, we are to be able to refute corruptible doctrines and teachings that seek to divide, mislead, and distract those needing the gospel Salt, from its use in preserving food from corruption, and rendering it both savoury and wholesome, has always been made the emblem of wisdom We can be ready to give a defense if we have made ourselves ready in knowing the Bible. 2 Timothy 4:2 - Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

5 Why Is This Message Important? 5 Doctrinal Unity and the Unity of Message is Powerful, especially in the kingdom of God It was essential to the Early Church and even more now Acts 2:42,43: And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine (teachings) and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. Continued steadfastly uses a Greek verb communicating a steadfast and single-minded fidelity to a certain course of action. (Longenecker). There was to be no departure from the apostles doctrine, because it was the truth of God. The Early Church operated in power and unity because the message was the same along with their attitude towards the Word They fellowshipped together and they studied together Are we doing that today?

6 6 God Knows That Even Evil Can Prosper from Unity Genesis 11:5,6: And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. As we move into these last days, we see this satanic power deceiving the minds of the people on a global scale. During these times covetousness and immorality is infiltrating this world and people would hold fast to their lives and forfeit eternal life Notice that the people were not only of one language, but also of one SPEECH. That is, they all thought the same. There is a push today to enforce people thinking the same thing

7 Example: Rehabilitate and Reeducate 7 Owners of a Bakery refused to do a wedding cake for a lesbian couple. The lesbian couple filed a discrimination with the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries and told their story to local newspapers and television statements. The LGBT protestors then turned on other wedding vendors around the community. They threatened to boycott any florists, wedding planners or other vendors that did business with Sweet Cakes By Melissa. Christian bakery closes after LGBT threats, protests State Commissioner: Everybody is entitled to their own beliefs, but that doesn t mean that folks have the right to discriminate, he told the newspaper. The goal is to rehabilitate. For those who do violate the law, we want them to learn from that experience and have a good, successful business in Oregon. Christians who live and work in Oregon must follow man s law instead of God s law. But in a show of benevolence, the state is willing to rehabilitate and reeducate Christian business owners like the Kleins. This type of discrimination is increasing in out country, meanwhile, the church is too busy catering to Seekers, and trying to please the world these are the people who want to destroy us and infiltrate their doctrine into our churches, homes, and communities

8 Why Is This Message Important? 8 Many Christians, due to biblical illiteracy, do not know how to give an answer for their faith Meanwhile the world is slowing and detrimentally trying to give us their answers The Great Commission is a Command from God, not a suggestion To speak the Truth we must also realize that it is to be rightly divided

9 God s Commission to You 9 I CHARGE [you] in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, Who is to judge the living and the dead, and by (in the light of) His coming and His kingdom: 2 Herald and preach the Word! Keep your sense of urgency [stand by, be at hand and ready], whether the opportunity seems to be favorable or unfavorable. [Whether it is convenient or inconvenient, whether it is welcome or unwelcome, you as preacher of the Word are to show people in what way their lives are wrong.] And convince them, rebuking and correcting, warning and urging and encouraging them, being unflagging and inexhaustible in patience and teaching. Paul wrote this to Timothy so is this just for Pastors, or should every believer have this sense of responsibility to herald s God s Word? (Mark 16:15-18)

10 Paul s Encouragement to Timothy 10 Do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord nor the gospel of Christ (2 Tim 1:8; Romans 1:16) Hold fast the pattern of sound words (2 Timothy 1:13) Sound doctrine Suggests that true teachings according to God s truth should be taught in a pattern so that one with a discerning mind and heart can follow We hold fast to the pattern so that we are not easily misled or misguided to where the Word sown in our heart is taken away from us by the enemy The things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men (2 Timothy 2:2) Who are you sharing God s Word with? Rightly dividing the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15) A servant of the Lord must be... able to teach (2 Timothy 2:24) Do you consider yourself a servant of the Lord? Realize that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God (2 Timothy 3:16)

11 Point of Emphasis 11 To fully grasp that all Scripture is given by inspiration will require some perspiration on your part as you give yourself, your time, your heart to truly search the Scriptures daily and desire to apply its principles to your life Unfortunately, we are becoming Non-believing Believers The word inspiration simply means God-breathed. Inspiration means the Bible truly is the Word of God and makes the Bible unique among all other books. Most Christians today do NOT believe The Bible IS the inerrant word of God. 85% of students at America's largest Evangelical Seminary don't believe in the inerrancy of Scripture. 74% of the Clergy in America no longer believe in the inerrancy of Scripture.

12 So What is Being Taught? 12 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:6-9) We are in a dilemma today where erroneous teachings have merged together with truth, causing innocent believers to become disoriented and blinded.

13 Charisma Magazine Article: 13 Seven Great Lies in the Church Today: (Author: Steve Hill is founder of Heartland World Ministries Church in Dallas. the-7-great-lies-in-the-church-today Overemphasis of Prosperity preaching Jesus as a means of financial gain to those motivated by greed (1 Tim 6:9-11) Exaggerated View of Grace - some hyper-grace preachers live in sin and ease their consciences by preaching about a God who is all love and who never condemns, a God who doesn t judge us by our conduct. (Jude 1:4) Antinomianism - Antinomianism long word, simple meaning. The word literally means against law. They teach Jesus has set us free, however, the truth is that Jesus did not set us free from sin. The law is not the problem, man s sinful nature is. Deification of Man It s all about me movement. The error that in the American gospel says that Jesus came to make you into a bigger and better you. That is not the gospel! The gospel requires self denial, not self portrayal (Matt 16:23,25)

14 Seven Great Lies in the Church Today: (cont d) 14 Challenging the Authority of the Word - Since satan s challenge in the garden of Eden, the challenge still exists: First, did God really say that? And second, God didn t really mean what He said. After all, you won t die if you eat from the tree (vv. 1-5). The Bible must live up to my standards. People will judge the God of the Bible based on their understanding of their approved or acceptable morality. In short, when the Scriptures contradict our feelings and preferences, rather than crucify our feelings and preferences and bow down before God and His Word, we question God s Word. Rejecting Hell - Because we preach an imbalanced gospel emphasizing God s love and ignoring His wrath, emphasizing His mercy and ignoring His justice we no longer have room for hell and future punishment in our theology. There will be a white throne judgement (Rev 20:11-15). Universal Reconciliation - Universal reconciliation promotes a get-out-of-jail-free mentality that in the end, everyone will make it into heaven because of Jesus death on the cross. (In contrast, universalism teaches that all paths lead to God.)

15 Quote 15 For Many, Truth Has Been Reduced to Only What One is Willing to Believe Dr. Kenneth W. Jones Sr. Pastor, PLM

16 A Decline in Spiritual Manifestations 16 During Jesus time and with the Early Church signs and wonders followed their teachings We are seeing fewer manifestations of the spiritual gifts and manifestations of the Spirit s power due to a lack of teaching One of the main causes of a lack of spiritual discernment and spiritual manifestation is the church's weakening of doctrinal clarity and conviction Keep in mind Spiritual discernment requires desire, prayer, learning from the gifted and mature, dependence on the Holy Spirit, and a diligent study of God's Word.

17 Demonstration Through 17 Acts 6:7 - The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith. Were obedient to the faith - To become obedient to the faith, therefore, is to obey the requirements of the gospel, particularly what requires us to believe The above scripture also happened as people stood up to serve. We are experiencing a decrease in stewardship in the church as believers come together expecting to be catered to rather than serve others I believe a Revival is needed today

18 The Power of Speaking the Truth 18 The Greek word for truth is aletheia, which literally means to un-hide or hiding nothing. It conveys the thought that truth is always there, always open and available for all to see, with nothing being hidden or obscure God desires for us to know all that is available to us It is the revealed truth that sets or makes us free (John 8:32) Truth frees us from ignorance and error and causes us to grow and increase in knowledge and understanding Some people may never know the truth (2 nd Tim 3:7) The effect of the gospel is to break this hard bondage to sin and to set the sinner free. Most people feel condemned to serve sin, but the gospel reveals that sin has no dominion over us and that we can serve freely, the Lord with all our hearts (Romans 6:9)

19 The Power of Speaking the Truth 19 The Hebrew word for truth is emeth, which means firmness, constancy and duration. Such a definition implies an everlasting substance and something that can be relied upon. Knowing the truth especially about God and His promises builds a capacity for faith and trust in him Sustaining Truth Guides us -John 16:13 - "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. Ephesians 1:13 - In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation--having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,

20 Practical Living Ministry 20 Practical Living Ministry exists to assist individuals, groups, and organizations to operate to their full God-given ability by sharing life changing principles for spiritual growth and development. If this message touched you, please let me hear from you. If you would like to encourage us financially to keep sharing these kind of messages, please go to our donation section on our website at If you would like to contact Dr. Jones for a speaking engagement at your church or event concerning biblical leadership, mentoring, and Christian culture. Please contact Pastor Kenneth Jones at kenjones@practicallivingministry.org