100:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,860The first thing that you have to say about Jehoiakim is that he was raised in a godly200:00:07,860 –> 00:00:15,640home. He had a father who followed the ways of god and a mother too, and now the great300:00:15,640 –> 00:00:21,920question after his upbringing, now that he was the king, the question was how would he400:00:21,920 –> 00:00:25,360respond to the word of god.500:00:25,360 –> 00:00:29,620Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. I’m David Pick. Glad you could be600:00:29,719 –> 00:00:34,259with us today and Colin many Christians have had the experience of being brought up by700:00:34,259 –> 00:00:37,459Christian parents. I believe that was your experience.800:00:37,459 –> 00:00:41,860It is a marvellous thing to be raised in a godly home. Let’s give this encouragement900:00:41,860 –> 00:00:47,060to every godly father and mother listening to the programme today. What a blessing to1000:00:47,060 –> 00:00:51,080be in a home where you are taught the word of god, you see an example of it lived, you1100:00:51,080 –> 00:00:57,220are surrounded by love. That is a marvellous thing. Today we are going to look at a story1200:00:57,220 –> 00:01:03,540of a man called Jehoiakim who also was raised in a godly home and yet the path of his life1300:01:03,540 –> 00:01:10,260was very different. He ended up burning the word of god, taking the pages of the scroll1400:01:10,260 –> 00:01:17,400of scripture and burning it. What an extraordinary choice and what a tragic outcome for a man1500:01:17,400 –> 00:01:18,660who had such a great beginning.1600:01:18,660 –> 00:01:23,580We are going to continue looking at Jehoiakim’s story today. Join us if you can in Jeremiah1700:01:23,639 –> 00:01:28,620chapter 36. As we begin, feed on God’s Word. Here’s Colin.1800:01:28,620 –> 00:01:34,160We’re going to talk about God’s word today. So I’d like you to take a bible in your hand.1900:01:34,160 –> 00:01:37,639You may have brought one to church you can reach for that one. If you didn’t, there2000:01:37,639 –> 00:01:41,760will be one in the pew in front of you. They may not be one for everybody but let’s make2100:01:41,760 –> 00:01:46,739sure there’s no bible in this church that isn’t going to get opened today. Because we’re2200:01:46,739 –> 00:01:54,779going to talk about the word of God. But how God actually speaks to us. I’m going to tell2300:01:54,779 –> 00:02:00,980you a story for a few moments and then we’re going to take up a story from Jeremiah and2400:02:00,980 –> 00:02:05,220chapter 36. So you might like to turn to that now so that you’ve got it when we come to2500:02:05,220 –> 00:02:12,059that point in a few moments. Jeremiah and chapter 36 in the middle of the old testament.2600:02:12,880 –> 00:02:19,559Now, we’re continuing this series entitled Deck Chairs on the Titanic and we’re discovering2700:02:19,559 –> 00:02:25,580how we can avoid taking a plunge to disaster. Now, I want to give you today’s principle2800:02:25,580 –> 00:02:32,600right upfront. It is very simply this, if you want to avoid taking a plunge to disaster2900:02:32,600 –> 00:02:41,639then feed on God’s word, the Bible. Paul put it very simply in Colossians chapter3000:02:41,940 –> 00:02:49,5803 in verse 16. He said, you’ve got to let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. You’ve3100:02:49,580 –> 00:02:56,059got to let Christ’s word, the word of God live in you richly. Now, what does it mean3200:02:56,059 –> 00:03:03,059to feed on the word of God? What would it mean for the word of Christ to live in me3300:03:03,580 –> 00:03:09,220in a way that is rich? Well, we’re going to discover that in our time together this3400:03:09,240 –> 00:03:13,000morning. I want to tell two stories. The first is about3500:03:13,000 –> 00:03:18,039a father and I’ll just tell that story, you can look it up later. And the second is about3600:03:18,039 –> 00:03:24,300a son, and that’s the one we’re going to find in Jeremiah, in chapter 36. The stories3700:03:24,300 –> 00:03:31,160are held together because they’re both stories about men who heard the word of God. They3800:03:31,160 –> 00:03:38,160heard from the Bible, but they had completely opposite reactions to it. Now the first kind3900:03:39,300 –> 00:03:46,300is the story of Josiah. Some of you may be familiar with this story. At the age of 26,4000:03:46,860 –> 00:03:52,360Joseph experienced something quite remarkable. He was the king over Judea, at the southern4100:03:52,360 –> 00:03:58,339part of God’s people, just over 600 years before the time of Jesus Christ. And he had4200:03:58,339 –> 00:04:04,839planned that there would be a major project of remodelling the temple building. Money4300:04:04,839 –> 00:04:11,500had been gathered from taxes to pay for this, and it had been stored in a vault in the temple.4400:04:11,500 –> 00:04:17,160And when the time came to initiate the building project, Josiah sent the secretary of state4500:04:17,160 –> 00:04:23,660down to the temple to get the high priest to open up the old hidden vault and to bring4600:04:23,660 –> 00:04:28,839out the money so that the payment could be made for the renovations that were being done4700:04:29,600 –> 00:04:30,739building.4800:04:30,739 –> 00:04:36,640Well when the high priest went into the old vault in the temple and he brought out the4900:04:36,640 –> 00:04:40,559money he made a fascinating discovery.5000:04:40,559 –> 00:04:47,559There was a dusty old disused book, probably a scroll, it was the book that we called Deuteronomy,5100:04:51,000 –> 00:04:56,059it was part of the Bible, it was the Word of God.5200:04:56,220 –> 00:05:01,279This book had become lost, because during the previous fifty years the king who had5300:05:01,279 –> 00:05:06,480reigned before has taken a completely different path to the Word of God, he had no place for5400:05:06,480 –> 00:05:10,899it, and so I guess the priest had just thrown the old book of God’s law into the vault5500:05:10,899 –> 00:05:15,720and left it there, and now all these years later it was discovered and when it was discovered5600:05:15,720 –> 00:05:17,820it was brought to Josiah the king.5700:05:17,820 –> 00:05:23,700Now I want you to try and imagine the scene, here’s someone twenty-six years old and5800:05:23,700 –> 00:05:29,559they’ve never heard the Word of God, and this old dusty book is found in the vault5900:05:29,559 –> 00:05:32,660and it’s brought to King Josiah,6000:05:32,660 –> 00:05:36,859and Josiah says, read me the Word of God.6100:05:36,859 –> 00:05:42,760And so the secretary began to read the Word of God to the king, he read the whole of Deuteronomy,6200:05:42,760 –> 00:05:44,640it’s a fascinating book to read.6300:05:44,640 –> 00:05:48,500It’s a long book, but you can read it in one sitting, you get the impact of it just6400:05:48,500 –> 00:05:52,579as it came to King Josiah.6500:05:52,600 –> 00:05:58,359And when he heard the Word of God, we’re told that he tore his robes, you can read this6600:05:58,359 –> 00:06:01,739in 2 Kings chapter 22, and he said,6700:06:01,739 –> 00:06:07,260great is the Lord’s anger that burns against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the6800:06:07,260 –> 00:06:09,059words in this book.6900:06:09,059 –> 00:06:13,480He realised when he heard the Word of God that he lived in a culture that had gone in7000:06:13,480 –> 00:06:15,179a completely different direction.7100:06:15,179 –> 00:06:19,040You’ll often experience that at church, as you hear the Word of God, you’ll think to7200:06:19,540 –> 00:06:23,619yourself, this is completely different from the world in which I live.7300:06:23,619 –> 00:06:25,959And Josiah realised that.7400:06:25,959 –> 00:06:31,220I’m living in a culture that has gone completely the opposite direction from what is said in7500:06:31,220 –> 00:06:36,540this book, and therefor God’s anger upon us must be very great.7600:06:36,540 –> 00:06:41,059That’s why he tore his robes, that was an ancient way of expressing deep sorrow and7700:06:41,059 –> 00:06:42,059repentance.7800:06:42,059 –> 00:06:48,100Then he did something else, you can read about it in 2 Kings 23.7900:06:48,100 –> 00:06:53,179He called for a national day of prayer and repentance.8000:06:53,179 –> 00:06:59,540He gathered a vast crowd in the temple, and he read, the king himself actually read the8100:06:59,540 –> 00:07:04,140whole of the book of Deuteronomy aloud in their hearing.8200:07:04,140 –> 00:07:09,380Then he followed it up by going on a personal campaign all round the country in which he8300:07:09,380 –> 00:07:16,940smashed the idols that had been setup and closed down some of the dark pits of evil8400:07:17,140 –> 00:07:21,380that have prospered over the previous 50 years.8500:07:21,380 –> 00:07:27,239It was an extraordinary change, and God says about Josiah at the end of his life that there8600:07:27,239 –> 00:07:33,160never was a king like him who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and all his8700:07:33,160 –> 00:07:34,559strength.8800:07:34,559 –> 00:07:37,059That’s the first story.8900:07:37,059 –> 00:07:45,220Josiah heard the word of God, and when he heard it he believed it and he obeyed it,9000:07:45,239 –> 00:07:49,920and he not only believed it and obeyed it personally, but he communicated it, he proclaimed9100:07:49,940 –> 00:07:56,980it to the whole of the community, the whole nation at that time.9200:07:56,980 –> 00:08:00,420Now the second story I want us to follow, and this will bring us to Jeremiah and chapter9300:08:00,420 –> 00:08:08,27936, is the story of Jehoiakim because Jehoiakim was Josiah’s son.9400:08:08,279 –> 00:08:12,059So the first thing that you have to say about Jehoiakim is that he was raised, like many9500:08:12,059 –> 00:08:14,500of us, in a godly home.9600:08:15,260 –> 00:08:22,519He had a father who followed the ways of God, and a mother too, and now the great question9700:08:22,519 –> 00:08:29,000after his upbringing, now that he was the king, the question was how would he respond9800:08:29,000 –> 00:08:33,320to the word of God, where would he lead the people of God?9900:08:33,320 –> 00:08:41,539Now Jehoiakim became the king when he was 25 years old, and his first decision didn’t10000:08:41,559 –> 00:08:44,159seem very encouraging.10100:08:44,159 –> 00:08:50,820Because as soon as he became king, he decided that his first priority was to build a lavish10200:08:50,820 –> 00:08:54,200palace for himself.10300:08:54,200 –> 00:08:58,979He decided that this would be the first priority, though frankly it was not a good time for10400:08:58,979 –> 00:09:01,659that kind of expenditure.10500:09:01,659 –> 00:09:07,659He couldn’t afford to build the palace so he had to have forced labour to do it.10600:09:07,700 –> 00:09:14,239It was his first big mistake, he bought into this huge house that simply was beyond his10700:09:14,239 –> 00:09:19,979means, and it was a great mistake, a wrong priority.10800:09:19,979 –> 00:09:26,979Secondly, he built a life strategy around an alliance with Egypt, a lavish lifestyle10900:09:27,159 –> 00:09:29,760and a mistaken life strategy.11000:09:29,760 –> 00:09:35,359When Jehoiachim came to the throne, Egypt was the great superpower of the day, he thought11100:09:35,479 –> 00:09:39,599to himself…you know, we’re a little country, but as long as we’re protected by the big11200:09:39,599 –> 00:09:46,460fire-power of Egypt, we’ll be secure, we’ll be fine.11300:09:46,460 –> 00:09:51,599But during Jehoiachim’s reign there was a great battle, an important battle in history11400:09:51,599 –> 00:09:57,979between Egypt and Babylon that took place in a place in the north called Carcimesh.11500:09:57,979 –> 00:10:03,840It was a heavy defeat for Egypt, and marked a great shift in the balance of power in the11600:10:03,919 –> 00:10:08,020world, away from Egypt and towards Babylon.11700:10:08,020 –> 00:10:15,700Now Babylon imposed taxes on God’s people, and Jehoiachim accepted that for three years,11800:10:15,700 –> 00:10:21,239though in his heart of hearts he always felt that this was only a little problem and that11900:10:21,239 –> 00:10:27,799given time, with the help of Egypt, everything would be just fine again.12000:10:28,260 –> 00:10:35,400And that was his second big mistake, because God’s hand was in the rise of Babylon and12100:10:35,400 –> 00:10:40,119Jehoiachim was trying to resist something that God was doing.12200:10:40,119 –> 00:10:45,080You’re listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and a message called, Feed on12300:10:45,080 –> 00:10:46,080God’s Word.12400:10:46,080 –> 00:10:52,520It’s from Jeremiah chapter 36, and it’s part of our series, Deckchairs on the Titanic,12500:10:52,520 –> 00:10:57,719in which we look at a number of characters from the Bible, who failed to deal with sin12600:10:57,719 –> 00:11:00,919in their lives, and as a result, plunged to disaster.12700:11:00,919 –> 00:11:05,080Don’t forget if you ever miss one of our messages you can always catch up, or go back12800:11:05,080 –> 00:11:10,140and listen again online, at our website, openthebible.org.uk.12900:11:10,140 –> 00:11:14,599There you’ll find all the messages which have already gone out on-air.13000:11:14,599 –> 00:11:17,159Back to the message now, here’s Colin.13100:11:17,159 –> 00:11:26,179Now during the times of both Josiah and Jehoiakim, there was a prophet and his name was Jeremiah.13200:11:26,280 –> 00:11:32,760A prophet was a person who actually heard the words of God, so that they were actually13300:11:32,760 –> 00:11:36,559able to speak the words of God to the people.13400:11:36,559 –> 00:11:41,280So a prophet was not like a journalist, or a commentator who you would see on a news13500:11:41,280 –> 00:11:45,820programme simply giving their perspective on the stories of the day.13600:11:45,820 –> 00:11:52,340A prophet actually heard the word of God, was moved by the Spirit of God in such a way13700:11:52,539 –> 00:11:57,239that they were actually able to speak the words of God to the people.13800:11:57,239 –> 00:12:03,119God spoke to the prophets, so that the prophets spoke from God.13900:12:03,119 –> 00:12:08,080Now, what Jeremiah had been saying was not terribly popular, and he had actually been14000:12:08,080 –> 00:12:10,299banned from the Temple.14100:12:10,299 –> 00:12:14,479And that brings us to the beginning of Jeremiah chapter 36 that I hope you have open in front14200:12:14,479 –> 00:12:15,859of you now.14300:12:15,859 –> 00:12:19,460Look at verse one of Jeremiah 36.14400:12:19,460 –> 00:12:27,640In the fourth year of Jehoiachin, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to14500:12:27,640 –> 00:12:30,760Jeremiah from the Lord.14600:12:30,760 –> 00:12:38,500Take a scroll, and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah14700:12:38,500 –> 00:12:46,479and all other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah until14800:12:46,479 –> 00:12:47,479now.14900:12:47,479 –> 00:12:51,200By this point in the story that was a total of 23 years.15000:12:51,200 –> 00:12:56,900And God says to Jeremiah I want you to write down every word of prophecy that I have given15100:12:56,900 –> 00:12:59,760to you over a period of 23 years.15200:12:59,760 –> 00:13:05,219I want you to write it all down and put it in one place on a scroll.15300:13:05,219 –> 00:13:11,159And so Jeremiah called his secretary, a man by the name of Baruch and began dictating15400:13:11,159 –> 00:13:16,380the words of God that had been given to him over this period of 23 years and sure enough15500:13:16,440 –> 00:13:19,020Baruch wrote them all down on a scroll.15600:13:20,280 –> 00:13:23,500At the end of that time Jeremiah said, verse 5.15700:13:23,500 –> 00:13:24,919Look at it there.15800:13:24,919 –> 00:13:27,599I am restricted he said.15900:13:27,599 –> 00:13:31,099I cannot go to the Lord’s temple.16000:13:31,099 –> 00:13:35,979He had been banned from speaking there because he was so unpopular, so he says to his secretary16100:13:35,979 –> 00:13:41,940Baruch, so you go to the house of the Lord, that’s the temple, on a day of fasting and16200:13:41,940 –> 00:13:50,299you read to the people from the scroll the words of the Lord that you wrote as I dictated.16300:13:50,299 –> 00:13:55,580So as we follow this story Baruch went to the temple and he read the words of the Lord16400:13:55,580 –> 00:13:57,440from the scroll.16500:13:57,440 –> 00:14:03,840He found a house, verse 10, a room that belonged to Gemariah, a man who obviously supported16600:14:03,840 –> 00:14:10,039the word of God and this little room was above the new gate to the temple and so if you can16700:14:10,039 –> 00:14:17,099picture Baruch he’s standing there with his scroll on this floor above the ground level16800:14:17,099 –> 00:14:22,659and he’s reading out from the window over the gate as crowds and crowds of people are16900:14:22,659 –> 00:14:30,020coming in and as they come into the temple they hear the word of God.17000:14:30,020 –> 00:14:35,979Now there was a man who was in the crowd and his name was Micaiah.17100:14:36,219 –> 00:14:44,039Micaiah was the grandson of the Secretary of State who had actually read the words of17200:14:44,039 –> 00:14:50,280the book of Deuteronomy to old King Josiah eighteen years previously.17300:14:50,280 –> 00:14:58,059Now his grandson stands in the courtyard and hears the word that God has given to Jeremiah17400:14:58,059 –> 00:15:04,500being read aloud over the temple area and as he listens to the word of God he thinks17500:15:04,500 –> 00:15:09,539to himself this is something that has to be heard at the highest level.17600:15:09,539 –> 00:15:11,719This has to be heard in the palace.17700:15:11,719 –> 00:15:16,559The king has to know what God says.17800:15:16,559 –> 00:15:22,299Now Micaiah because his grandfather had been the Secretary of State obviously had access17900:15:22,299 –> 00:15:28,559to places other people couldn’t go, and so he goes into the palace and actually interrupts18000:15:28,640 –> 00:15:36,059a committee meeting of some of the Secretary of State’s assistants and colleagues in government18100:15:36,059 –> 00:15:40,919that are actually sitting in a meeting in the palace and Micaiah actually breaks in18200:15:40,919 –> 00:15:43,580on them in the middle of their meeting.18300:15:43,580 –> 00:15:50,580Verse 13, Micaiah told them what he had heard and immediately they send for Berukh – they18400:15:51,460 –> 00:15:58,080say you know if there is a word of God it needs to be heard in the palace.18500:15:58,760 –> 00:16:03,880So Berukh now comes in to this interrupted meeting of the Secretary of State and he reads18600:16:03,880 –> 00:16:10,880the word of God and they hear it and it has such impact upon them that they say that it18700:16:11,280 –> 00:16:14,280has to go all the way to the King himself.18800:16:14,280 –> 00:16:21,280The King must hear this word for the good of this nation and so verse 16, when they18900:16:21,280 –> 00:16:28,280had heard these words, they looked at each other in fear and they said to Berukh, we19000:16:29,739 –> 00:16:34,299must report all these words to the King.19100:16:34,299 –> 00:16:40,320So as we follow the story, they now come upstairs to the King’s private quarters and all the19200:16:40,320 –> 00:16:47,320King’s personal attendants are standing around there, it must have seemed like old times,19300:16:47,400 –> 00:16:54,119old times. It was now 18 years since the dusty old book of the law had been found in the19400:16:54,119 –> 00:17:00,659temple vault and had been read with such power in Josiah’s life.19500:17:00,659 –> 00:17:07,079But now there’s a new king and the word of God is being brought on a scroll. When Josiah19600:17:07,079 –> 00:17:12,260had heard the word of God, it was a personal turning point for him and it was a national19700:17:12,579 –> 00:17:19,579turning point for the people. The question was how would the new king receive the word19800:17:19,819 –> 00:17:26,819of God. It went to a man by the name of Jehudi who was a messenger to actually read from19900:17:28,660 –> 00:17:33,859the scroll. Verse 22,20000:17:33,859 –> 00:17:40,859It was the ninth month, and the king was sitting in the winter apartment with a fire burning20100:17:41,040 –> 00:17:45,579in the firepot in front of him. And whenever Jehudi20200:17:45,579 –> 00:17:50,839had read three or four columns from the scroll, you’d open a scroll bit by bit a few inches20300:17:50,839 –> 00:17:57,839at a time and read in columns, the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw20400:17:59,300 –> 00:18:06,300them into the firepot until the entire scroll was burned in the fire.20500:18:06,300 –> 00:18:13,300Now, the secretary of state, the officials from his department who had already heard20600:18:14,760 –> 00:18:21,760this scroll must have cringed as they saw this. This is the Word of God, and the king20700:18:22,380 –> 00:18:28,719is taking a penknife to it and he’s saying this is what I think of that, and he’s20800:18:28,719 –> 00:18:33,160tossing it in the fire, until it’s all gone.20900:18:34,160 –> 00:18:38,800Now the question, of course, that we’ll want to ask at this point is very simply,21000:18:38,800 –> 00:18:45,800what did he burn? What did he burn? You might like to turn back, and this is the21100:18:46,420 –> 00:18:49,760only other cross-reference I’ll ask you to turn to today, it’s still in Jeremiah21200:18:49,760 –> 00:18:56,760but go back to Jeremiah chapter 22. What did he burn? Well, we’re told that21300:18:57,520 –> 00:19:04,520he burned the words that God had given over the 23 years that Jeremiah had prophesied21400:19:07,479 –> 00:19:12,520during the time of Josiah and during the time of Jehoiachin. That means that it was the21500:19:12,520 –> 00:19:19,040vast majority of what is written in the first 36 chapters of Jeremiah. That was what was21600:19:19,040 –> 00:19:24,000on the scroll. Not everything in these first 36 chapters, there are a few chapters that21700:19:24,880 –> 00:19:29,920were dated later in the time of Zedekiah or the letter to the exiles and so forth.21800:19:29,920 –> 00:19:34,800But what was read to him was most of what was in the first part21900:19:35,920 –> 00:19:43,839of Jeremiah, including chapter 22. Try and picture these words being read by Jehudi22000:19:44,479 –> 00:19:52,640to the king. Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness.22100:19:53,599 –> 00:19:55,760Remember what Jehoiakim’s first choice had been?22200:19:57,839 –> 00:20:06,160His upper rooms by injustice, making his countrymen work for nothing, not paying them for his labour.22300:20:06,160 –> 00:20:10,959He says I will build myself a great palace with spacious upper rooms.22400:20:11,520 –> 00:20:15,760Jehoiakim was sitting in them at that very moment as he heard this.22500:20:15,760 –> 00:20:21,680So he makes large windows in it, panels it with cedar, decorates it with red.22600:20:21,680 –> 00:20:22,319Does it make?22700:20:22,640 –> 00:20:24,800You a king to have more and more cedar?22800:20:26,239 –> 00:20:28,239Did not your father have food and drink?22900:20:28,239 –> 00:20:29,439That’s Josiah of course.23000:20:30,800 –> 00:20:33,760He did what was right and just and all went well with him.23100:20:33,760 –> 00:20:36,319He defended the cause of the poor and the needy.23200:20:37,359 –> 00:20:39,040And so all went well with him.23300:20:39,040 –> 00:20:41,439Is that not what it means to know me declares the Lord.23400:20:42,479 –> 00:20:47,119But your eyes and your heart are set only on dishonest gain,23500:20:47,119 –> 00:20:50,560shedding innocent blood, on oppression and extortion.23600:20:50,560 –> 00:20:53,680Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim,23700:20:53,680 –> 00:20:56,640son of Josiah, king of Judah, they’ll not mourn for him.23800:20:57,280 –> 00:20:59,920He will have the burial of a donkey,23900:21:00,959 –> 00:21:06,560dragged away and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.24000:21:07,920 –> 00:21:09,839And Jehoiakim said give me that scroll.24100:21:10,800 –> 00:21:13,599And he took out his pen and he said I’ll show you what I think of that,24200:21:15,119 –> 00:21:17,040cut it off and threw it in fire.24300:21:17,040 –> 00:21:20,479And you see what’s happening here,24400:21:21,920 –> 00:21:24,959Jehoiakim, the word of God,24500:21:24,959 –> 00:21:28,000condemns your lifestyle.24600:21:29,439 –> 00:21:31,599You run up debts that you cannot pay.24700:21:33,359 –> 00:21:35,520You think of no one but yourself.24800:21:35,520 –> 00:21:38,319You place intolerable burdens on other people.24900:21:38,319 –> 00:21:40,319Your whole life is about yourself.25000:21:40,319 –> 00:21:44,479Jehoiakim, God condems your lifestyle.25100:21:44,479 –> 00:21:46,000There’s no other way to describe this.25200:21:47,680 –> 00:21:50,479God’s Word nailed his sin.25300:21:50,479 –> 00:21:52,560That’s one of the things the Bible does for us.25400:21:52,560 –> 00:21:54,079God nails our sins.25500:21:54,079 –> 00:21:56,880That’s why we’re sometimes a bit reluctant to read it.25600:21:59,199 –> 00:22:03,439When God nailed his sin He tore up the word of God25700:22:03,439 –> 00:22:06,160and he threw it in the fire.25800:22:07,920 –> 00:22:09,359A powerful message there about25900:22:09,359 –> 00:22:12,800the response of two kings to hearing the word of God.26000:22:13,520 –> 00:22:15,040And isn’t it always the way that26100:22:15,040 –> 00:22:17,920we need to have a response to hearing the word of God.26200:22:18,560 –> 00:22:21,839You’ve been listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith26300:22:21,839 –> 00:22:24,400and the message called Feed on God’s Word26400:22:24,400 –> 00:22:28,079about the importance of daily intake of God’s Word.26500:22:28,800 –> 00:22:31,520Don’t forget, if you ever miss one of our messages26600:22:31,520 –> 00:22:34,479you can always catch up or go back and listen again online26700:22:34,479 –> 00:22:38,640or as a podcast and those are available on all the main podcast sites26800:22:38,640 –> 00:22:42,239if that’s a better way for you to keep up with Pastor Colin’s teaching.26900:22:43,119 –> 00:22:44,880You’ll find those by following a link27000:22:44,880 –> 00:22:48,479from our website openthebible.org.uk27100:22:48,479 –> 00:22:51,599or indeed just go to your favourite podcast site27200:22:51,599 –> 00:22:53,680search for Open The Bible UK27300:22:53,680 –> 00:22:56,560and subscribe if you want to receive regular updates.27400:22:57,280 –> 00:23:00,640You know Open the Bible is supported entirely by our listeners27500:23:00,640 –> 00:23:03,119and if that’s something you’ve been considering doing27600:23:03,119 –> 00:23:04,880but haven’t done up until now27700:23:04,880 –> 00:23:08,640this month if you’re able to support Open the Bible financially27800:23:08,640 –> 00:23:11,439in the amount of five pounds per month or more27900:23:11,439 –> 00:23:14,079or a one-off gift of 50 pounds or more28000:23:14,079 –> 00:23:18,400we’d love to say thank you by sending you a copy of Colin’s book28100:23:18,400 –> 00:23:21,599Heaven, How I Got Here? The Story of the Thief on the Cross28200:23:21,599 –> 00:23:24,640and also the booklet How Can I Be Sure of Heaven28300:23:25,199 –> 00:23:28,880and a special open the Bible pen and bookmark.28400:23:28,880 –> 00:23:33,119Colin, how will people be helped by reading Heaven, How I Got Here?28500:23:33,119 –> 00:23:36,000It’s a small book, very easy to read28600:23:36,000 –> 00:23:39,920and it tells the story of the Thief on the Cross in the first person28700:23:39,920 –> 00:23:43,839and the mission of the book, the reason for writing it28800:23:43,920 –> 00:23:47,359is that this story really explains grace28900:23:47,359 –> 00:23:50,640better than any story that I know or could think of.29000:23:51,280 –> 00:23:55,760Many people have the idea that if you’re going to get into heaven29100:23:55,760 –> 00:23:57,839you’ll do that by living a good enough life29200:23:57,839 –> 00:24:00,239and obviously the Thief on the Cross didn’t do that29300:24:00,239 –> 00:24:04,479and he did get into heaven and he got there by God’s grace29400:24:04,479 –> 00:24:08,239so for anyone who needs to grasp what the grace of God29500:24:08,239 –> 00:24:12,719is… this is a very simple story that explains that29600:24:12,800 –> 00:24:15,119and so this is a book that you can read and enjoy29700:24:15,119 –> 00:24:17,439and I hope a book that you’ll think about passing on29800:24:17,439 –> 00:24:19,839to a friend who needs to discover God’s grace29900:24:19,839 –> 00:24:22,079Well this book Heavyn How I Got Here30000:24:22,079 –> 00:24:24,800along with a booklet How Can I Be Sure Of Heaven30100:24:24,800 –> 00:24:28,160and a special open the Bible pen and bookmark30200:24:28,160 –> 00:24:32,160are our thank you gift if you’re able to set up a new direct debit30300:24:32,160 –> 00:24:34,880in the amount of £5 per month or more30400:24:34,880 –> 00:24:37,520or a one-off gift of £50 or more30500:24:37,520 –> 00:24:40,479to the work of Open The Bible in this month30600:24:40,479 –> 00:24:43,040For full terms and conditions and to give online30700:24:43,040 –> 00:24:44,719come to our website openthebible.org.uk30800:24:44,719 –> 00:24:49,760For Open the Bible and Pastor Colin Smith30900:24:49,760 –> 00:24:52,319I’m David Pick I’m glad you were with us today31000:24:52,319 –> 00:24:56,640and I hope you’ll be able to join us again tomorrow31100:25:00,319 –> 00:25:04,640In Old Testament times one ancient king actually burned the Bible31200:25:04,640 –> 00:25:09,599Find out why next time on Open the Bible