1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:05,840 Well, we’re continuing our series entitled Worship, What We Do, and Why We Do It. 2 00:00:06,320 –> 00:00:10,080 And we’re looking on these Sunday mornings at each of the ingredients 3 00:00:10,080 –> 00:00:16,320 in a service of worship like this, so that we can understand the significance of each 4 00:00:16,320 –> 00:00:19,520 and therefore enter more fully into them all. 5 00:00:20,160 –> 00:00:26,080 And over the last weeks we have looked at the subjects of singing and praying and giving 6 00:00:26,080 –> 00:00:28,959 and today we come to the subject of preaching. 7 00:00:28,959 –> 00:00:33,840 Now, think about what we do every Sunday morning here at church. 8 00:00:35,759 –> 00:00:38,959 The Bible is opened and a passage is read, 9 00:00:40,320 –> 00:00:47,279 then the preacher gets up and he speaks about that passage for about 30 or 40 minutes. 10 00:00:47,279 –> 00:00:48,000 That’s what we do. 11 00:00:49,200 –> 00:00:55,599 And my task today is to explain from the Bible why it is that we do that. 12 00:00:55,599 –> 00:01:00,880 Now, some years ago I was asked by a couple who 13 00:01:00,880 –> 00:01:03,680 we knew in England to perform their wedding service. 14 00:01:03,680 –> 00:01:09,199 It was to be held at a beautiful ancient church in the village that they came from 15 00:01:09,839 –> 00:01:14,000 and they said, you know, this is a church in which there’s never really any preaching 16 00:01:14,000 –> 00:01:17,279 of the gospel but all of our family and our friends are going to be there. 17 00:01:17,279 –> 00:01:20,959 We would like you to do our wedding and we want you to preach, 18 00:01:20,959 –> 00:01:24,879 we want you to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ, 19 00:01:24,879 –> 00:01:26,199 and so we talked about that, 20 00:01:26,199 –> 00:01:28,720 we booked the church for the period of time. 21 00:01:28,720 –> 00:01:30,040 They said we want you to speak for about 22 00:01:30,040 –> 00:01:31,680 20 minutes after we’ve been married 23 00:01:31,680 –> 00:01:34,559 and to set it out and so forth and so on. 24 00:01:34,559 –> 00:01:37,440 So we planned the service and travelled to that area. 25 00:01:37,440 –> 00:01:41,199 Karan came with me, Andrew was just a baby at the time 26 00:01:41,199 –> 00:01:45,519 and during the service, in fact while I was actually speaking, 27 00:01:45,519 –> 00:01:49,680 Karan had to take him out of the church itself 28 00:01:49,680 –> 00:01:52,400 and so she was standing just outside the door in the entrance 29 00:01:53,199 –> 00:01:56,559 where also was the photographer 30 00:01:57,519 –> 00:02:02,519 who was pacing up and down like a caged lion. 31 00:02:02,599 –> 00:02:06,000 I mean, he had never seen a wedding service 32 00:02:06,000 –> 00:02:09,880 where someone spoke like this 33 00:02:09,880 –> 00:02:11,440 and so being somewhat relieved 34 00:02:11,440 –> 00:02:15,119 to have the company of a young mother 35 00:02:15,119 –> 00:02:16,320 who had come out with a baby, 36 00:02:16,320 –> 00:02:19,240 he engaged my wife Karen in some conversation 37 00:02:19,240 –> 00:02:21,559 and then still getting more frustrated 38 00:02:21,559 –> 00:02:23,339 and looking at his watch, he said, 39 00:02:23,339 –> 00:02:27,779 who is that guy in there 40 00:02:27,779 –> 00:02:32,779 who is going on and on and on 41 00:02:33,100 –> 00:02:36,039 to which of course she, with her charm and delight 42 00:02:36,039 –> 00:02:38,919 said, oh, that’s my husband. 43 00:02:40,919 –> 00:02:43,660 Well, that is, is it not, 44 00:02:43,660 –> 00:02:46,820 precisely the world’s view of preaching. 45 00:02:47,699 –> 00:02:51,619 That it is some guy in there going on 46 00:02:51,619 –> 00:02:55,179 and on and on, 47 00:02:55,179 –> 00:02:58,059 and if you ask someone who has a slightly more cynical view 48 00:02:58,059 –> 00:03:00,940 of what happens in church, they will say this, 49 00:03:00,940 –> 00:03:05,619 that preachers are people with far too much power 50 00:03:05,619 –> 00:03:08,100 who get their kicks out of telling 51 00:03:08,100 –> 00:03:10,339 everybody else what to do. 52 00:03:11,740 –> 00:03:15,779 Now, if that is what preaching is, 53 00:03:16,779 –> 00:03:19,639 it has absolutely no place whatsoever 54 00:03:19,639 –> 00:03:21,139 in a service of worship. 55 00:03:21,139 –> 00:03:23,100 No place whatsoever. 56 00:03:23,100 –> 00:03:24,300 No room for that. 57 00:03:25,699 –> 00:03:30,039 So we need to understand what preaching is, 58 00:03:30,039 –> 00:03:32,119 and if we’re to understand what preaching is, 59 00:03:32,119 –> 00:03:37,119 the place to begin is with what we believe about the Bible. 60 00:03:37,979 –> 00:03:39,580 Now I’m going to refer to a number 61 00:03:39,580 –> 00:03:41,160 of different Scriptures today. 62 00:03:41,160 –> 00:03:42,460 We’ll put them on the screen so that 63 00:03:42,460 –> 00:03:44,399 you can note them down and follow them up 64 00:03:44,399 –> 00:03:46,460 for further study and then later, 65 00:03:46,460 –> 00:03:48,660 we will focus on the passage that was read for us 66 00:03:48,660 –> 00:03:51,559 so well from the book of Nehemiah. 67 00:03:51,559 –> 00:03:53,119 Now I want to begin with some observations 68 00:03:53,119 –> 00:03:56,580 from the Bible about what we believe about the Bible. 69 00:03:56,580 –> 00:03:59,559 And first of all, its source. 70 00:03:59,559 –> 00:04:02,899 The Bible tells us in 2 Timothy Chapter 3 verse 16 71 00:04:02,899 –> 00:04:06,300 that all Scripture is God-breathed. 72 00:04:06,300 –> 00:04:09,059 It’s breathed out by God and it is useful 73 00:04:09,059 –> 00:04:11,259 for teaching, rebuking, correcting, 74 00:04:11,259 –> 00:04:14,000 and training in righteousness. 75 00:04:14,039 –> 00:04:16,820 In other words, the Bible’s own claim 76 00:04:16,820 –> 00:04:19,880 and what we as a community of believers hold to 77 00:04:20,959 –> 00:04:25,959 is that the Bible is not the Word of man about God, 78 00:04:26,640 –> 00:04:30,859 but it is the Word of God to man. 79 00:04:30,859 –> 00:04:33,760 Now that is a very, very important distinction 80 00:04:34,679 –> 00:04:36,239 because you see throughout history 81 00:04:36,239 –> 00:04:37,640 and across different cultures, 82 00:04:37,640 –> 00:04:42,640 various cultures have produced different religious writings, 83 00:04:43,640 –> 00:04:47,760 and our postmodern world has latched onto the insight 84 00:04:47,760 –> 00:04:49,760 that it would be very arrogant 85 00:04:49,760 –> 00:04:51,239 for one group of people to say 86 00:04:51,239 –> 00:04:52,839 that their set of religious ideas 87 00:04:52,839 –> 00:04:54,559 is better than anybody else’s. 88 00:04:55,480 –> 00:05:00,079 And if the Bible is just one set of religious ideas 89 00:05:00,079 –> 00:05:03,679 that happen to be written by Moses, Peter, James and John, 90 00:05:03,679 –> 00:05:06,420 why should it be given any higher value 91 00:05:06,420 –> 00:05:08,480 than other religious insights 92 00:05:08,480 –> 00:05:10,559 that were written by Mohammed or Buddha 93 00:05:10,559 –> 00:05:12,399 or for that matter, Oprah Winfrey, 94 00:05:13,279 –> 00:05:15,200 because at least she’s around today. 95 00:05:15,200 –> 00:05:16,799 I mean, she’s not out of date. 96 00:05:18,839 –> 00:05:22,760 After all, we’re told, religion is a private matter 97 00:05:23,959 –> 00:05:26,739 and it’s up to every person to decide on a personal basis 98 00:05:26,739 –> 00:05:28,519 to believe in their own way. 99 00:05:30,600 –> 00:05:33,480 And the way in which this is sometimes illustrated to us 100 00:05:33,480 –> 00:05:37,040 is by saying that we’re all like ants, 101 00:05:37,040 –> 00:05:40,679 little insects, not A-U-N-T-S, A-N-T-S. 102 00:05:40,679 –> 00:05:44,279 We’re all like ants on the back of an elephant. 103 00:05:44,279 –> 00:05:46,500 You see, when it comes to this religious thing, 104 00:05:46,500 –> 00:05:50,640 we’re all engaged in the great search for the elephant, 105 00:05:50,640 –> 00:05:54,959 but each of us ants just has his tiny little perspective 106 00:05:54,959 –> 00:05:57,339 and of course, at the end of the day, 107 00:05:57,339 –> 00:06:00,299 none of us can actually know the elephant. 108 00:06:01,179 –> 00:06:03,799 We’re all scratching around with our tiny insights 109 00:06:03,799 –> 00:06:05,700 and the more we say about our little insight, 110 00:06:05,700 –> 00:06:07,940 the more foolish we sound because we’re all actually 111 00:06:07,959 –> 00:06:11,119 talking about what is ultimately unknowable to any of us. 112 00:06:13,260 –> 00:06:15,959 Of course, the answer to that is to ask this question. 113 00:06:15,959 –> 00:06:19,279 What if the elephant spoke? 114 00:06:21,279 –> 00:06:24,140 What if the elephant spoke in a language 115 00:06:24,140 –> 00:06:26,100 that the ants could understand? 116 00:06:27,559 –> 00:06:30,739 What if the elephant said to the ants on its back, 117 00:06:30,739 –> 00:06:34,600 let me tell you about my trunk that you cannot see. 118 00:06:34,600 –> 00:06:38,079 Let me tell you about my tusks that you have never felt. 119 00:06:38,079 –> 00:06:40,920 Let me tell you about my feet and about my tail. 120 00:06:40,920 –> 00:06:43,859 Let me tell you about where I am going through the jungle. 121 00:06:43,859 –> 00:06:47,720 Let me tell you about what I purpose to accomplish. 122 00:06:49,519 –> 00:06:53,359 What if the God who made this world and everything 123 00:06:53,359 –> 00:06:56,000 in it has actually stepped 124 00:06:56,000 –> 00:07:00,179 into history to tell us about Himself? 125 00:07:00,179 –> 00:07:01,720 What if He has actually chosen 126 00:07:01,720 –> 00:07:03,679 to speak in words that human beings 127 00:07:03,799 –> 00:07:06,899 like us can actually understand? 128 00:07:06,899 –> 00:07:09,359 What if the God in whom we live and move 129 00:07:09,359 –> 00:07:11,959 and have our being has actually spoken 130 00:07:11,959 –> 00:07:13,779 to us? 131 00:07:13,779 –> 00:07:16,100 You see that is precisely what the Bible claims 132 00:07:16,100 –> 00:07:18,000 and what we believe. 133 00:07:18,000 –> 00:07:20,299 That God has made Himself known. 134 00:07:20,299 –> 00:07:25,320 He has spoken to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses. 135 00:07:25,320 –> 00:07:29,720 By the way, that is why true Christians 136 00:07:29,720 –> 00:07:33,660 have the highest respect and the deepest affection 137 00:07:33,660 –> 00:07:35,700 for Jewish people. 138 00:07:35,700 –> 00:07:37,940 Because it was through this line that God 139 00:07:37,940 –> 00:07:41,600 chose to make Himself known to the world. 140 00:07:41,600 –> 00:07:43,040 God has spoken. 141 00:07:43,040 –> 00:07:45,799 He has breathed out the Scriptures, 142 00:07:45,799 –> 00:07:48,500 giving them through apostles and prophets. 143 00:07:48,500 –> 00:07:50,739 He has made Himself known to little people 144 00:07:50,739 –> 00:07:53,399 like us in language that we can understand. 145 00:07:53,399 –> 00:07:56,980 That is why the Scriptures are like any other book. 146 00:07:56,980 –> 00:07:58,980 That is why they teach us, 147 00:07:58,980 –> 00:08:00,179 they rebuke us, in other words 148 00:08:00,179 –> 00:08:01,920 they tell us where we’re wrong, 149 00:08:01,920 –> 00:08:04,220 they correct us, they bring us into the right path, 150 00:08:04,220 –> 00:08:07,100 and they train us in righteousness. 151 00:08:07,100 –> 00:08:09,980 The Bible does much more than give us information about God, 152 00:08:09,980 –> 00:08:13,140 it actually equips us to live a life 153 00:08:13,140 –> 00:08:15,220 that is pleasing to God. 154 00:08:15,220 –> 00:08:17,779 Now do you see the importance of this distinction? 155 00:08:17,779 –> 00:08:20,059 If the Bible was just another collection 156 00:08:20,059 –> 00:08:22,720 of man’s ideas about God, 157 00:08:22,720 –> 00:08:26,420 it really should be relegated to the museum of history 158 00:08:26,480 –> 00:08:27,619 and we should listen to some 159 00:08:27,619 –> 00:08:30,100 contemporary spiritual teacher today instead 160 00:08:31,059 –> 00:08:32,320 because it would only be a record 161 00:08:32,320 –> 00:08:35,260 of what people used to think about God 162 00:08:35,260 –> 00:08:37,919 and that’s of little relevance to us today. 163 00:08:38,940 –> 00:08:43,940 But if the Bible is God’s unchanging words 164 00:08:44,280 –> 00:08:46,700 to men and women of every culture, 165 00:08:48,299 –> 00:08:53,299 then our destiny will depend on how we respond to it. 166 00:08:54,059 –> 00:08:58,619 That’s what we believe about the Bible and its source. 167 00:08:58,619 –> 00:09:01,739 Secondly, what we believe about the Bible and its power. 168 00:09:01,739 –> 00:09:03,659 Hebrews chapter four, verse 12, 169 00:09:04,719 –> 00:09:07,299 the Word of God is living and active, 170 00:09:07,299 –> 00:09:11,020 it’s sharper than any two-edged sword, 171 00:09:11,020 –> 00:09:13,940 it penetrates even into the dividing of soul and spirit, 172 00:09:13,940 –> 00:09:17,599 it judges the thoughts and the attitudes of the heart. 173 00:09:18,739 –> 00:09:20,700 So then the scriptures themselves are claiming 174 00:09:20,700 –> 00:09:22,260 God reveals to us that the Bible 175 00:09:22,359 –> 00:09:25,460 is much more than a source book of information. 176 00:09:25,460 –> 00:09:27,359 It is life changing in its power, 177 00:09:27,359 –> 00:09:29,640 it is the sword of the Spirit, 178 00:09:29,640 –> 00:09:32,520 it is the means that the Holy Spirit uses 179 00:09:32,520 –> 00:09:35,760 to bring change in our lives. 180 00:09:35,760 –> 00:09:38,619 The Word of God is living and active, 181 00:09:38,619 –> 00:09:41,419 when it is received by faith, 182 00:09:41,419 –> 00:09:44,919 it will bear fruit in your life. 183 00:09:46,099 –> 00:09:49,700 Martin Luther said the Bible is alive. 184 00:09:49,919 –> 00:09:53,500 It speaks to me, it has feet, 185 00:09:53,500 –> 00:09:56,900 it runs after me, it has hands, 186 00:09:56,900 –> 00:10:00,140 it lays hold of me. 187 00:10:00,140 –> 00:10:02,679 And that isn’t always a comfortable experience 188 00:10:02,679 –> 00:10:05,260 because when the Word of God gets inside of us, 189 00:10:05,260 –> 00:10:07,880 it cuts us off, it’s like a sharp two-edged sword. 190 00:10:07,880 –> 00:10:09,940 It judges us, it finds us out. 191 00:10:09,940 –> 00:10:11,479 I look in the Bible and I say, 192 00:10:11,479 –> 00:10:15,260 oh boy, I don’t like what I see of myself when I read this. 193 00:10:16,080 –> 00:10:20,119 Now let me give you just a sample of what the Bible will do 194 00:10:20,119 –> 00:10:24,200 when it is received by faith in the life of any person. 195 00:10:24,200 –> 00:10:27,219 You might like to turn now to Psalm 19 196 00:10:27,219 –> 00:10:29,400 because there’s a list of at least six things 197 00:10:29,400 –> 00:10:31,539 that God does through his Word 198 00:10:31,539 –> 00:10:34,640 in the life of anyone who receives it by faith. 199 00:10:34,640 –> 00:10:36,219 So you might like to turn to this. 200 00:10:36,219 –> 00:10:39,679 It’s a wonderful passage to get hold of, Psalm 19. 201 00:10:39,679 –> 00:10:43,359 Look at what the Word of God does. 202 00:10:43,979 –> 00:10:48,059 First, verse seven, the Word of God gives life. 203 00:10:48,059 –> 00:10:51,119 The law of the Lord is perfect, 204 00:10:51,119 –> 00:10:56,179 reviving or converting the soul. 205 00:10:56,179 –> 00:10:58,619 We are born again, we’re told in the New Testament 206 00:10:58,619 –> 00:11:02,760 in First Peter through the living and enduring word of God. 207 00:11:02,760 –> 00:11:05,440 Think of how a new life is conceived in the womb. 208 00:11:06,659 –> 00:11:08,380 An egg is fertilized. 209 00:11:09,359 –> 00:11:14,260 Where there is faith and it connects with the living seed 210 00:11:14,260 –> 00:11:17,619 of the word of God, their new life is born 211 00:11:17,619 –> 00:11:21,320 into the soul of a man or a woman. 212 00:11:21,320 –> 00:11:24,200 The word of God will bring new life to your soul. 213 00:11:24,200 –> 00:11:26,280 It will give you new direction, new energy, 214 00:11:26,280 –> 00:11:29,080 new power, new capacity. 215 00:11:29,080 –> 00:11:31,479 You may find yourself absolutely flaked out, 216 00:11:31,479 –> 00:11:34,280 you will find yourself lifted up by the word of God 217 00:11:34,280 –> 00:11:36,140 when you come to it with faith. 218 00:11:37,000 –> 00:11:39,260 Secondly, wisdom. 219 00:11:39,260 –> 00:11:42,840 Verse 7, the statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, 220 00:11:43,919 –> 00:11:46,059 making wise the simple. 221 00:11:47,159 –> 00:11:49,700 The Scriptures will show you the path of wisdom. 222 00:11:49,700 –> 00:11:51,919 They’ll never lead you astray. 223 00:11:53,359 –> 00:11:54,559 That’s so important. 224 00:11:54,559 –> 00:11:57,419 I can trust the Scriptures, they’re trustworthy. 225 00:11:58,380 –> 00:12:00,340 See, I can’t trust my own mind. 226 00:12:00,340 –> 00:12:02,359 I can’t trust my own heart. 227 00:12:03,179 –> 00:12:06,340 If I just go by what I think, 228 00:12:06,340 –> 00:12:08,880 there’s too many foolish ideas in this head 229 00:12:08,880 –> 00:12:10,419 that will lead me down wrong paths. 230 00:12:10,419 –> 00:12:13,140 I need my mind to be guided, 231 00:12:13,140 –> 00:12:14,900 shaped by the Word of God. 232 00:12:16,059 –> 00:12:17,799 And if I just go by my heart, 233 00:12:17,799 –> 00:12:19,659 that’ll be a path to disaster. 234 00:12:20,900 –> 00:12:24,299 I read a lot these days of living by your heart. 235 00:12:24,299 –> 00:12:26,940 That’s a potential recipe for disaster. 236 00:12:28,179 –> 00:12:29,500 Even the redeemed heart 237 00:12:29,500 –> 00:12:31,900 has all kinds of other passions mixed up in it. 238 00:12:32,820 –> 00:12:36,400 You see a young couple going out on a hot date, 239 00:12:37,479 –> 00:12:38,580 and you say to them, 240 00:12:38,580 –> 00:12:41,119 live by your heart. 241 00:12:41,119 –> 00:12:42,919 That’ll be a recipe for disaster. 242 00:12:45,559 –> 00:12:48,559 You see someone who’s despairing on the top of a cliff, 243 00:12:48,559 –> 00:12:51,479 and you say, just follow your heart. 244 00:12:51,479 –> 00:12:53,280 That’ll be a recipe for disaster. 245 00:12:55,059 –> 00:12:58,440 But the statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, 246 00:12:58,440 –> 00:13:00,039 making wise the simple. 247 00:13:00,059 –> 00:13:02,539 They save us from being naive. 248 00:13:03,780 –> 00:13:07,559 The simple person doesn’t have the capacity to understand, 249 00:13:07,559 –> 00:13:11,599 but the word of God will show even the simple how to live. 250 00:13:13,539 –> 00:13:18,539 So mothers, if you want to shape wisdom in your children, 251 00:13:21,859 –> 00:13:24,479 teach them the word of God on your knee. 252 00:13:25,200 –> 00:13:30,200 Fathers, if you want to shape wisdom in your family, 253 00:13:30,580 –> 00:13:33,700 teach them the word of God around the table. 254 00:13:34,820 –> 00:13:38,440 The culture is dumbing our children down. 255 00:13:39,320 –> 00:13:42,859 The Bible will wisen our children up. 256 00:13:42,859 –> 00:13:45,679 It will expand their capacity. 257 00:13:48,140 –> 00:13:49,780 Thirdly, joy. 258 00:13:49,780 –> 00:13:51,859 The precepts of the Lord are right 259 00:13:51,859 –> 00:13:54,159 giving joy to the heart. 260 00:13:55,059 –> 00:13:56,580 Boy, if you really love a person, 261 00:13:56,580 –> 00:13:58,820 you love to listen to them talk. 262 00:13:59,820 –> 00:14:01,340 And if I really love God, 263 00:14:01,340 –> 00:14:03,159 I will love to listen to him speak 264 00:14:03,159 –> 00:14:05,380 and he speaks in his word. 265 00:14:06,340 –> 00:14:08,940 Imagine listening in a conversation 266 00:14:08,940 –> 00:14:11,299 to the God of the universe. 267 00:14:11,299 –> 00:14:14,500 How could anything that he says be dull or boring? 268 00:14:15,780 –> 00:14:18,340 The precepts of the Lord are right 269 00:14:18,340 –> 00:14:20,219 giving joy to the heart. 270 00:14:20,219 –> 00:14:22,979 That’s why David says oh, how I love your law, 271 00:14:22,979 –> 00:14:24,159 that’s one of the first marks 272 00:14:24,520 –> 00:14:25,840 of a real Christian believer 273 00:14:25,840 –> 00:14:28,799 that he or she loves the word of God. 274 00:14:30,000 –> 00:14:31,320 Fourthly it brings hope. 275 00:14:31,320 –> 00:14:33,960 The commandments of the Lord are radiant 276 00:14:33,960 –> 00:14:36,260 giving light to the eyes. 277 00:14:37,460 –> 00:14:39,280 There’s maybe someone here in this congregation 278 00:14:39,280 –> 00:14:42,320 you feel you’re in absolute darkness. 279 00:14:42,320 –> 00:14:44,479 You say I can’t see any light at the end of the tunnel. 280 00:14:44,479 –> 00:14:46,679 I don’t know how this is all gonna work out. 281 00:14:48,400 –> 00:14:50,280 And what David is saying to us 282 00:14:50,280 –> 00:14:55,280 is that the word of God is a light source. 283 00:14:55,280 –> 00:14:59,539 It brings light to eyes, it gives hope. 284 00:14:59,539 –> 00:15:01,659 And if you will come to the word of God with faith 285 00:15:01,659 –> 00:15:05,039 in your darkest moments you will find the path 286 00:15:05,039 –> 00:15:07,000 and the light of hope there. 287 00:15:07,000 –> 00:15:12,000 The entrance of your word gives light, the Psalm say. 288 00:15:13,760 –> 00:15:16,380 Then verse 11, it warns us, 289 00:15:17,239 –> 00:15:19,719 not just that God’s word points us in the right direction 290 00:15:19,739 –> 00:15:22,000 but it keeps us from the wrong direction. 291 00:15:23,460 –> 00:15:26,099 My son, do not go down the way of the adulteress. 292 00:15:26,099 –> 00:15:28,460 Boy, we need that warming in our culture today. 293 00:15:29,619 –> 00:15:30,500 Wine is a mocker. 294 00:15:30,500 –> 00:15:32,859 Strong drink is raging and whoever is 295 00:15:32,859 –> 00:15:34,380 deceived thereby is not wise. 296 00:15:34,380 –> 00:15:36,500 Boy, we need that in our culture today. 297 00:15:40,039 –> 00:15:41,039 Then look at the reward. 298 00:15:41,039 –> 00:15:44,099 In keeping them, there is great reward, verse 11. 299 00:15:45,260 –> 00:15:47,539 Notice that it doesn’t say there is a reward 300 00:15:47,559 –> 00:15:49,099 for keeping them. 301 00:15:50,340 –> 00:15:53,559 It says there’s a reward in keeping them. 302 00:15:54,820 –> 00:15:57,820 See there is no greater life, no better life 303 00:15:57,820 –> 00:16:02,640 than you can live, and to live according to the law of God. 304 00:16:02,640 –> 00:16:04,739 The person who does this will be like a tree 305 00:16:04,739 –> 00:16:06,539 planted by streams of water, 306 00:16:07,440 –> 00:16:12,320 who yields fruit and whose leaf does not wither. 307 00:16:13,940 –> 00:16:15,679 Now, this is life-changing. 308 00:16:15,700 –> 00:16:17,780 The Holy Spirit uses the Scripture 309 00:16:17,780 –> 00:16:20,059 to bring these benefits into the soul 310 00:16:20,059 –> 00:16:21,840 of a person who believes. 311 00:16:22,799 –> 00:16:27,219 And the question, then, is how can we experience 312 00:16:27,219 –> 00:16:30,179 the life, and the wisdom, and the joy, 313 00:16:30,179 –> 00:16:32,219 and the hope, and the warning, 314 00:16:32,219 –> 00:16:35,859 and the reward that comes from the word of God? 315 00:16:37,020 –> 00:16:39,419 And the answer is we will experience this 316 00:16:39,419 –> 00:16:44,419 as we submit ourselves fully to that word. 317 00:16:44,960 –> 00:16:46,619 And that’s where we come to the third thing 318 00:16:46,619 –> 00:16:47,979 that we believe about the scriptures. 319 00:16:47,979 –> 00:16:50,679 Its source was the first thing. 320 00:16:51,599 –> 00:16:55,640 Its power, and now its authority. 321 00:16:55,640 –> 00:16:57,320 Evangelicals have used a phrase 322 00:16:57,320 –> 00:16:58,960 that I think is very helpful. 323 00:16:58,960 –> 00:17:00,659 It’s not heard so much today. 324 00:17:00,659 –> 00:17:05,000 They used to talk about being under the word. 325 00:17:05,000 –> 00:17:07,160 What they meant by that is that the word 326 00:17:07,160 –> 00:17:10,479 gives direction to me not the other way around, 327 00:17:10,479 –> 00:17:11,520 that even when there are things 328 00:17:11,520 –> 00:17:13,040 that I don’t fully understand, 329 00:17:13,040 –> 00:17:15,920 or things that I find difficult or hard to do, 330 00:17:16,939 –> 00:17:20,000 that I live under the authority of the word of God, 331 00:17:20,000 –> 00:17:22,520 it is over me. 332 00:17:22,520 –> 00:17:24,119 The only alternative to that, of course, 333 00:17:24,119 –> 00:17:27,079 would be that we are over the word, 334 00:17:27,079 –> 00:17:28,380 and if that was the case, 335 00:17:28,380 –> 00:17:30,079 we would have the liberty of taking the bits 336 00:17:30,079 –> 00:17:33,020 that we like and discarding the bits that we don’t. 337 00:17:34,119 –> 00:17:39,119 I call that the Channel Hopper’s approach to the Bible. 338 00:17:39,540 –> 00:17:44,619 Now, have we got any self-confessed channel hoppers here? 339 00:17:44,619 –> 00:17:47,380 We may all do this stuff if we’re watching television 340 00:17:47,380 –> 00:17:49,699 at some time, I guess. 341 00:17:49,699 –> 00:17:51,800 You sit with your remote 342 00:17:51,800 –> 00:17:54,239 and you flick through the channels 343 00:17:54,239 –> 00:17:58,699 until you find something that suits your mood. 344 00:18:00,219 –> 00:18:02,099 And when you see something you don’t like, 345 00:18:02,099 –> 00:18:04,939 you just keep switching the channels, why? 346 00:18:04,939 –> 00:18:08,719 Because you don’t want to be shaped by it. 347 00:18:09,939 –> 00:18:12,260 Now, when it comes to the Bible, 348 00:18:12,260 –> 00:18:15,280 it is precisely the opposite. 349 00:18:15,280 –> 00:18:19,699 We do want to be shaped by it. 350 00:18:19,699 –> 00:18:21,199 We want the life, the wisdom, the joy, 351 00:18:21,199 –> 00:18:22,640 the hope, the warning, and the reward 352 00:18:22,640 –> 00:18:23,839 that comes from the word of God 353 00:18:23,839 –> 00:18:26,540 to fill our souls. 354 00:18:26,540 –> 00:18:28,359 And the only way for that to happen 355 00:18:28,359 –> 00:18:30,199 is for us to submit ourselves 356 00:18:30,199 –> 00:18:32,339 to the whole of scripture. 357 00:18:32,339 –> 00:18:34,199 To say that this word is over me. 358 00:18:34,199 –> 00:18:35,199 I don’t come to it 359 00:18:35,199 –> 00:18:36,380 like the channel hopper 360 00:18:36,380 –> 00:18:38,520 looking for something that I happen to like 361 00:18:38,579 –> 00:18:40,520 ignoring everything else. 362 00:18:40,520 –> 00:18:41,520 Jesus said, 363 00:18:41,520 –> 00:18:42,920 Man shall not live by bread alone, 364 00:18:42,920 –> 00:18:46,319 but by every word that proceeds 365 00:18:46,319 –> 00:18:50,060 from the mouth of the Lord. 366 00:18:50,060 –> 00:18:51,199 So to give a different picture, 367 00:18:51,199 –> 00:18:52,199 my son, Andrew, 368 00:18:52,199 –> 00:18:55,060 is a long distance runner 369 00:18:55,060 –> 00:18:57,040 And if the team has a meet 370 00:18:57,040 –> 00:18:58,359 on a Saturday, 371 00:18:58,359 –> 00:19:00,680 they will go out and 372 00:19:00,680 –> 00:19:02,920 load up on carbs, 373 00:19:02,920 –> 00:19:05,520 on pasta on Friday night. 374 00:19:05,520 –> 00:19:07,680 So all you folks are on a low carb diet, 375 00:19:07,900 –> 00:19:09,780 it is completely the opposite. 376 00:19:09,780 –> 00:19:10,780 These guys go out 377 00:19:10,780 –> 00:19:13,739 and they load up on the carbs. 378 00:19:13,739 –> 00:19:14,880 Why? 379 00:19:14,880 –> 00:19:15,880 Because they know that 380 00:19:15,880 –> 00:19:16,880 that is what their bodies 381 00:19:16,880 –> 00:19:18,079 will need to burn 382 00:19:18,079 –> 00:19:19,599 over the long distance 383 00:19:19,599 –> 00:19:20,939 of the run that’s coming up 384 00:19:20,939 –> 00:19:23,260 the following day. 385 00:19:23,260 –> 00:19:24,260 That’s how we’re 386 00:19:24,260 –> 00:19:26,119 to approach the Word of God. 387 00:19:26,119 –> 00:19:27,119 Not picking out a little bit 388 00:19:27,119 –> 00:19:28,119 that happens to fit 389 00:19:28,119 –> 00:19:30,540 our mood or our interest 390 00:19:30,540 –> 00:19:31,540 But knowing that 391 00:19:31,540 –> 00:19:32,540 the Word of God 392 00:19:32,540 –> 00:19:33,540 is what we need 393 00:19:33,540 –> 00:19:34,660 to sustain us 394 00:19:34,660 –> 00:19:35,880 in a life of service 395 00:19:35,880 –> 00:19:36,880 and ministry 396 00:19:36,880 –> 00:19:37,880 without all of the pressures 397 00:19:37,880 –> 00:19:38,920 and temptations 398 00:19:38,920 –> 00:19:41,300 of this hostile world. 399 00:19:41,300 –> 00:19:42,680 So here’s what we believe 400 00:19:42,680 –> 00:19:44,479 about the Scriptures. 401 00:19:44,479 –> 00:19:47,140 That they are God breathed. 402 00:19:47,140 –> 00:19:48,479 That they are life changing. 403 00:19:48,479 –> 00:19:50,680 And therefore that 404 00:19:50,680 –> 00:19:52,180 we are to submit ourselves 405 00:19:52,180 –> 00:19:53,180 to this Word 406 00:19:53,180 –> 00:19:54,439 so that our lives 407 00:19:54,439 –> 00:19:57,800 are shaped by it. 408 00:19:57,800 –> 00:19:59,579 Now, that’s what we believe 409 00:19:59,579 –> 00:20:02,280 about the Bible. 410 00:20:02,280 –> 00:20:03,859 And these convictions 411 00:20:03,859 –> 00:20:06,500 are the foundation 412 00:20:07,119 –> 00:20:08,119 of everything else 413 00:20:08,119 –> 00:20:09,119 that we believe 414 00:20:09,119 –> 00:20:10,119 about preaching. 415 00:20:10,119 –> 00:20:11,540 Now will you then turn 416 00:20:11,540 –> 00:20:13,099 with me to Nehemiah 417 00:20:13,099 –> 00:20:14,099 Chapter 8 418 00:20:14,099 –> 00:20:15,099 which was read for us 419 00:20:15,099 –> 00:20:16,219 earlier 420 00:20:16,219 –> 00:20:17,479 to see how this works out 421 00:20:17,479 –> 00:20:18,479 in practice. 422 00:20:18,479 –> 00:20:19,479 We’re going just 423 00:20:19,479 –> 00:20:20,479 to look together 424 00:20:20,479 –> 00:20:21,680 at an example. 425 00:20:21,680 –> 00:20:22,680 A model 426 00:20:22,680 –> 00:20:24,079 of 427 00:20:24,079 –> 00:20:26,119 true preaching. 428 00:20:26,119 –> 00:20:27,119 Now the setting here 429 00:20:27,119 –> 00:20:28,380 is very simple. 430 00:20:28,380 –> 00:20:29,400 Jerusalem had been 431 00:20:29,400 –> 00:20:30,400 a wasteland 432 00:20:30,400 –> 00:20:31,400 for about 70 years 433 00:20:31,400 –> 00:20:32,400 after it had been 434 00:20:32,400 –> 00:20:33,400 devastated 435 00:20:33,400 –> 00:20:34,199 by an invading 436 00:20:34,199 –> 00:20:35,760 army. 437 00:20:35,780 –> 00:20:36,780 God’s people had been 438 00:20:36,780 –> 00:20:37,780 taking prisoners of war 439 00:20:37,780 –> 00:20:38,780 to Babylon 440 00:20:38,780 –> 00:20:39,780 but now around 441 00:20:39,780 –> 00:20:40,780 50,000 had come back 442 00:20:40,780 –> 00:20:41,780 and begun to rebuild 443 00:20:41,780 –> 00:20:42,780 the city. 444 00:20:42,780 –> 00:20:43,780 Then a man by the name 445 00:20:43,780 –> 00:20:44,780 of Ezra who was a 446 00:20:44,780 –> 00:20:45,780 Bible teacher 447 00:20:45,780 –> 00:20:46,780 arrived and when 448 00:20:46,780 –> 00:20:47,780 he arrived and saw 449 00:20:47,780 –> 00:20:48,780 the spiritual condition 450 00:20:48,780 –> 00:20:49,780 of the people who 451 00:20:49,780 –> 00:20:50,780 were working in Jerusalem 452 00:20:50,780 –> 00:20:52,079 he just sat down 453 00:20:52,079 –> 00:20:53,160 stunned 454 00:20:53,160 –> 00:20:54,819 for a whole day. 455 00:20:54,819 –> 00:20:55,959 You could hardly believe 456 00:20:55,959 –> 00:20:56,920 that God’s people 457 00:20:56,920 –> 00:20:57,920 in God’s city 458 00:20:57,920 –> 00:20:58,920 doing God’s work 459 00:20:58,920 –> 00:20:59,920 were so far from living 460 00:20:59,920 –> 00:21:02,959 according to God’s word. 461 00:21:02,959 –> 00:21:03,959 These people of course 462 00:21:03,959 –> 00:21:04,959 had grown up in Babylon 463 00:21:05,260 –> 00:21:06,260 for 70 years 464 00:21:06,260 –> 00:21:07,880 the generations had been 465 00:21:07,880 –> 00:21:09,119 shaped by an 466 00:21:09,119 –> 00:21:11,479 unbelieving culture 467 00:21:11,479 –> 00:21:12,479 and the challenge for 468 00:21:12,479 –> 00:21:13,660 Ezra was to shape 469 00:21:13,660 –> 00:21:14,959 a worshipping community 470 00:21:14,959 –> 00:21:16,780 that would be different 471 00:21:16,780 –> 00:21:18,020 from the surrounding world 472 00:21:18,020 –> 00:21:19,640 and the way that he 473 00:21:19,640 –> 00:21:20,760 did this over a period 474 00:21:20,760 –> 00:21:21,760 of time 475 00:21:21,760 –> 00:21:22,760 was through 476 00:21:22,760 –> 00:21:25,180 the word of God. 477 00:21:25,180 –> 00:21:26,420 Nehemiah 8 describes 478 00:21:26,420 –> 00:21:27,420 how this began 479 00:21:27,420 –> 00:21:28,420 with the whole community 480 00:21:28,420 –> 00:21:29,420 being gathered 481 00:21:29,420 –> 00:21:30,420 by one of the gates 482 00:21:30,420 –> 00:21:32,520 of the city 483 00:21:32,520 –> 00:21:33,520 They told Ezra 484 00:21:33,520 –> 00:21:34,520 verse 2 485 00:21:35,040 –> 00:21:36,040 to bring out 486 00:21:36,040 –> 00:21:37,719 the book of the law 487 00:21:37,719 –> 00:21:39,579 of Moses 488 00:21:39,579 –> 00:21:40,579 Now by the way 489 00:21:40,579 –> 00:21:44,400 That is a marvellous thing 490 00:21:44,400 –> 00:21:47,560 A community of people 491 00:21:47,560 –> 00:21:51,219 saying to its leader 492 00:21:51,219 –> 00:21:52,680 Please teach us 493 00:21:52,680 –> 00:21:56,979 the Bible 494 00:21:56,979 –> 00:21:57,979 I tell you 495 00:21:57,979 –> 00:21:58,979 as I think about 496 00:21:58,979 –> 00:21:59,979 this community 497 00:21:59,979 –> 00:22:00,979 of Christian people 498 00:22:00,979 –> 00:22:01,979 this church 499 00:22:01,979 –> 00:22:04,060 that does so so many things 500 00:22:04,060 –> 00:22:05,819 that 501 00:22:05,819 –> 00:22:06,819 I think of with 502 00:22:06,819 –> 00:22:08,099 Great Thanksgiving 503 00:22:08,099 –> 00:22:09,099 This would be 504 00:22:09,099 –> 00:22:10,099 right at the top 505 00:22:10,099 –> 00:22:12,439 That here is a community 506 00:22:12,439 –> 00:22:13,439 of people 507 00:22:13,439 –> 00:22:14,439 who love the bible 508 00:22:14,439 –> 00:22:15,900 and in a thousand ways 509 00:22:15,900 –> 00:22:18,020 Say 510 00:22:18,020 –> 00:22:19,119 to its senior pastor 511 00:22:19,119 –> 00:22:20,319 please 512 00:22:20,319 –> 00:22:21,400 teach us 513 00:22:21,400 –> 00:22:24,099 the bible 514 00:22:24,099 –> 00:22:25,099 And I tell you 515 00:22:25,099 –> 00:22:26,099 that there are churches 516 00:22:26,099 –> 00:22:27,099 all over this country 517 00:22:27,099 –> 00:22:28,099 that are saying 518 00:22:28,099 –> 00:22:29,099 very very different 519 00:22:29,099 –> 00:22:30,099 from that 520 00:22:30,900 –> 00:22:32,900 There is a sense 521 00:22:32,900 –> 00:22:33,900 in which a Christian 522 00:22:33,900 –> 00:22:34,900 congregation gets 523 00:22:34,900 –> 00:22:35,900 what it prays 524 00:22:35,900 –> 00:22:36,900 and longs for 525 00:22:38,160 –> 00:22:40,160 I thank God 526 00:22:40,160 –> 00:22:41,160 that as we look back 527 00:22:41,160 –> 00:22:42,160 over 50 years 528 00:22:42,160 –> 00:22:43,160 there is a 529 00:22:43,160 –> 00:22:44,160 heritage here 530 00:22:44,160 –> 00:22:45,160 that 531 00:22:45,160 –> 00:22:46,160 a Christian community 532 00:22:46,160 –> 00:22:47,160 through the years 533 00:22:47,160 –> 00:22:48,160 has been built 534 00:22:48,160 –> 00:22:49,160 around the word of God 535 00:22:49,160 –> 00:22:50,160 with a hunger 536 00:22:50,160 –> 00:22:51,160 and a thirst for it 537 00:22:51,160 –> 00:22:52,160 May it ever be so 538 00:22:52,160 –> 00:22:53,500 Now where that is the 539 00:22:53,500 –> 00:22:54,500 case 540 00:22:54,500 –> 00:22:55,500 it places an enormous 541 00:22:55,500 –> 00:22:56,500 responsibility 542 00:22:56,500 –> 00:22:57,500 upon the one 543 00:22:57,500 –> 00:22:58,500 who is trusted 544 00:22:58,500 –> 00:22:59,500 with the privilege 545 00:23:00,180 –> 00:23:02,420 and so Ezra brings out the Bible 546 00:23:02,699 –> 00:23:04,260 here is a group of people 547 00:23:04,260 –> 00:23:05,260 who want to be fed 548 00:23:05,260 –> 00:23:06,260 and they want to be taught 549 00:23:06,479 –> 00:23:07,479 and notice 550 00:23:07,479 –> 00:23:08,479 that there are four 551 00:23:08,479 –> 00:23:09,479 distinct things 552 00:23:09,479 –> 00:23:10,479 that happen 553 00:23:11,439 –> 00:23:12,479 The first is 554 00:23:12,479 –> 00:23:13,479 the reading 555 00:23:13,479 –> 00:23:14,479 of the Bible 556 00:23:14,739 –> 00:23:16,079 Look at verse 8 557 00:23:16,939 –> 00:23:17,939 They read 558 00:23:17,939 –> 00:23:19,540 from the book 559 00:23:19,540 –> 00:23:20,719 of the law 560 00:23:20,719 –> 00:23:21,719 of God 561 00:23:22,880 –> 00:23:23,859 They read the Bible 562 00:23:24,760 –> 00:23:25,760 We do that every Sunday 563 00:23:26,780 –> 00:23:27,780 I have to tell you 564 00:23:27,780 –> 00:23:28,780 I have been in a number 565 00:23:29,140 –> 00:23:30,140 of churches 566 00:23:30,140 –> 00:23:31,140 over recent years 567 00:23:31,140 –> 00:23:32,140 when I have had 568 00:23:32,140 –> 00:23:33,140 the opportunity 569 00:23:33,140 –> 00:23:34,140 to visit other places 570 00:23:34,140 –> 00:23:35,140 where I not have heard 571 00:23:35,140 –> 00:23:36,140 the Bible read 572 00:23:36,140 –> 00:23:37,140 at all 573 00:23:37,140 –> 00:23:38,140 I have heard it referred to 574 00:23:38,140 –> 00:23:39,640 but not read 575 00:23:39,760 –> 00:23:42,260 and the Apostle Paul 576 00:23:42,260 –> 00:23:43,260 says to Timothy 577 00:23:43,280 –> 00:23:44,280 in the New Testament 578 00:23:44,280 –> 00:23:45,280 Give yourselves 579 00:23:45,280 –> 00:23:46,280 to the public 580 00:23:46,280 –> 00:23:47,280 reading of Scripture 581 00:23:47,900 –> 00:23:50,760 If the Scriptures 582 00:23:50,760 –> 00:23:51,760 are really 583 00:23:51,760 –> 00:23:52,760 God’s Word 584 00:23:52,760 –> 00:23:53,760 to us 585 00:23:53,760 –> 00:23:54,760 if this is how 586 00:23:54,760 –> 00:23:55,760 He speaks 587 00:23:55,760 –> 00:23:56,760 to us 588 00:23:56,760 –> 00:23:57,760 then when we come 589 00:23:57,760 –> 00:23:58,760 to God 590 00:23:58,900 –> 00:23:59,900 it makes sense 591 00:23:59,900 –> 00:24:00,900 that we should 592 00:24:00,900 –> 00:24:01,900 listen 593 00:24:01,900 –> 00:24:02,900 to what He says 594 00:24:03,300 –> 00:24:04,300 If we are saying 595 00:24:04,300 –> 00:24:05,300 that we are here 596 00:24:05,300 –> 00:24:06,979 to serve you 597 00:24:06,979 –> 00:24:07,979 we have to listen 598 00:24:07,979 –> 00:24:09,260 to what He tells us 599 00:24:11,839 –> 00:24:12,839 We talk to God 600 00:24:12,839 –> 00:24:13,839 in worship 601 00:24:13,839 –> 00:24:14,839 through our songs 602 00:24:14,839 –> 00:24:15,839 and through our prayers 603 00:24:15,839 –> 00:24:16,839 we make our requests 604 00:24:16,839 –> 00:24:18,180 but something is wrong 605 00:24:18,180 –> 00:24:19,180 if we do not 606 00:24:19,180 –> 00:24:20,859 want to listen 607 00:24:20,859 –> 00:24:21,859 to what He says 608 00:24:21,859 –> 00:24:22,859 to us 609 00:24:24,560 –> 00:24:25,560 Some time ago 610 00:24:25,560 –> 00:24:26,560 I had received 611 00:24:26,560 –> 00:24:27,560 a call from 612 00:24:27,560 –> 00:24:28,560 a leader 613 00:24:29,119 –> 00:24:30,119 He talked about 614 00:24:30,119 –> 00:24:31,119 his philosophy 615 00:24:31,119 –> 00:24:32,119 He was new to 616 00:24:32,119 –> 00:24:33,119 his position 617 00:24:33,119 –> 00:24:34,119 and he said 618 00:24:34,119 –> 00:24:35,119 I want you to know 619 00:24:35,119 –> 00:24:36,119 that I’m into 620 00:24:36,119 –> 00:24:37,119 servant leadership 621 00:24:37,119 –> 00:24:38,119 He told me that 622 00:24:38,119 –> 00:24:39,119 his organization 623 00:24:39,119 –> 00:24:40,959 existed to serve us 624 00:24:40,959 –> 00:24:42,560 and that 625 00:24:42,560 –> 00:24:43,560 since he was new 626 00:24:43,560 –> 00:24:44,560 to the position 627 00:24:44,560 –> 00:24:45,560 he wanted the opportunity 628 00:24:45,560 –> 00:24:46,560 to get to know me 629 00:24:46,560 –> 00:24:47,560 and to learn more 630 00:24:47,560 –> 00:24:48,560 about our vision 631 00:24:48,560 –> 00:24:49,560 for this church 632 00:24:49,560 –> 00:24:50,560 so that they could 633 00:24:50,560 –> 00:24:51,560 help to serve us better 634 00:24:52,040 –> 00:24:53,040 Well I knew 635 00:24:53,040 –> 00:24:54,040 his predecessors 636 00:24:54,040 –> 00:24:55,040 so we 637 00:24:55,040 –> 00:24:56,040 arranged to go 638 00:24:56,040 –> 00:24:57,040 to lunch together 639 00:24:57,040 –> 00:24:58,040 and as soon as we 640 00:24:58,040 –> 00:24:59,040 were seated 641 00:24:59,040 –> 00:25:00,040 I rambled 642 00:25:00,040 –> 00:25:01,040 onto the table 643 00:25:01,040 –> 00:25:02,040 he started 644 00:25:02,040 –> 00:25:03,040 I’m so excited 645 00:25:03,040 –> 00:25:04,040 he said 646 00:25:04,040 –> 00:25:05,040 to tell you 647 00:25:05,040 –> 00:25:06,040 about my vision 648 00:25:06,040 –> 00:25:07,040 Then he launched 649 00:25:07,040 –> 00:25:08,040 into a presentation 650 00:25:08,040 –> 00:25:09,040 of what he 651 00:25:09,040 –> 00:25:10,040 thought his 652 00:25:10,040 –> 00:25:11,040 organization could do 653 00:25:11,040 –> 00:25:12,040 He brought 654 00:25:12,040 –> 00:25:13,040 out charts 655 00:25:13,040 –> 00:25:14,040 He brought out 656 00:25:14,040 –> 00:25:15,040 summary sheets 657 00:25:15,040 –> 00:25:16,040 beautifully done 658 00:25:16,040 –> 00:25:17,040 with colour 659 00:25:17,040 –> 00:25:18,040 and then he 660 00:25:18,040 –> 00:25:19,040 had a budget sheet 661 00:25:19,040 –> 00:25:20,040 and he began 662 00:25:20,040 –> 00:25:21,040 to explain 663 00:25:21,040 –> 00:25:22,040 how we could 664 00:25:22,040 –> 00:25:23,040 be involved 665 00:25:23,040 –> 00:25:24,040 in fulfilling 666 00:25:24,040 –> 00:25:25,040 his vision 667 00:25:25,040 –> 00:25:26,040 and how in 668 00:25:26,040 –> 00:25:27,040 particular 669 00:25:27,040 –> 00:25:28,040 I began 670 00:25:28,040 –> 00:25:29,040 to wonder 671 00:25:29,040 –> 00:25:30,040 how long 672 00:25:30,040 –> 00:25:31,040 I could go 673 00:25:31,040 –> 00:25:32,040 without saying 674 00:25:32,040 –> 00:25:33,040 a single thing 675 00:25:33,040 –> 00:25:34,040 except 676 00:25:34,040 –> 00:25:35,040 for YES 677 00:25:35,040 –> 00:25:37,040 and MMMMD 678 00:25:37,040 –> 00:25:38,040 and I 679 00:25:38,040 –> 00:25:39,040 discovered 680 00:25:39,040 –> 00:25:40,040 that I could 681 00:25:40,040 –> 00:25:41,040 go through 682 00:25:41,040 –> 00:25:42,040 the entire 683 00:25:42,040 –> 00:25:43,040 lunch 684 00:25:43,040 –> 00:25:44,040 without being 685 00:25:44,040 –> 00:25:45,040 asked a 686 00:25:45,040 –> 00:25:46,040 single question 687 00:25:46,040 –> 00:25:47,040 and that by 688 00:25:47,040 –> 00:25:48,040 the end 689 00:25:48,040 –> 00:25:49,040 he did not 690 00:25:49,040 –> 00:25:50,040 know a 691 00:25:50,040 –> 00:25:51,040 single thing 692 00:25:51,040 –> 00:25:52,040 about me 693 00:25:52,040 –> 00:25:53,040 or about 694 00:25:53,040 –> 00:25:54,040 our church 695 00:25:54,040 –> 00:25:55,040 or about 696 00:25:55,040 –> 00:25:56,040 our vision 697 00:25:56,040 –> 00:25:57,040 or about 698 00:25:57,040 –> 00:25:58,040 our relationship 699 00:25:58,040 –> 00:25:59,040 or that 700 00:25:59,040 –> 00:26:00,040 in a 701 00:26:00,040 –> 00:26:01,040 lunch like 702 00:26:01,040 –> 00:26:02,040 that he 703 00:26:02,040 –> 00:26:03,040 didn’t have 704 00:26:03,040 –> 00:26:04,040 any interest 705 00:26:04,040 –> 00:26:05,040 in our 706 00:26:05,040 –> 00:26:06,040 vision 707 00:26:06,040 –> 00:26:07,040 or in 708 00:26:07,040 –> 00:26:08,040 our 709 00:26:08,040 –> 00:26:09,040 relationship 710 00:26:09,040 –> 00:26:10,040 all he 711 00:26:10,040 –> 00:26:11,040 wanted was 712 00:26:11,040 –> 00:26:12,040 my help 713 00:26:12,040 –> 00:26:13,040 to achieve 714 00:26:13,040 –> 00:26:14,040 his goals 715 00:26:14,040 –> 00:26:15,040 I don’t 716 00:26:15,040 –> 00:26:16,040 mind being 717 00:26:16,040 –> 00:26:17,040 asked 718 00:26:17,040 –> 00:26:18,040 but if 719 00:26:18,040 –> 00:26:19,040 that’s all 720 00:26:19,040 –> 00:26:20,040 that happens 721 00:26:20,040 –> 00:26:21,040 in a lunch 722 00:26:21,040 –> 00:26:22,040 like that 723 00:26:22,040 –> 00:26:23,040 you begin 724 00:26:23,040 –> 00:26:24,040 to feel 725 00:26:24,040 –> 00:26:25,040 used 726 00:26:26,040 –> 00:26:27,040 we want to 727 00:26:27,040 –> 00:26:28,040 talk to you 728 00:26:28,040 –> 00:26:29,040 we want to 729 00:26:29,040 –> 00:26:30,040 tell you our 730 00:26:30,040 –> 00:26:31,040 needs 731 00:26:31,040 –> 00:26:32,040 but 732 00:26:32,040 –> 00:26:33,040 if that’s 733 00:26:33,040 –> 00:26:34,040 all we do 734 00:26:34,040 –> 00:26:35,040 and we have no 735 00:26:35,040 –> 00:26:36,040 interest in 736 00:26:36,040 –> 00:26:37,040 listening to 737 00:26:37,040 –> 00:26:38,040 him I 738 00:26:38,040 –> 00:26:39,040 wonder does 739 00:26:39,040 –> 00:26:40,040 God not 740 00:26:40,040 –> 00:26:41,040 look down 741 00:26:41,040 –> 00:26:42,040 and say 742 00:26:42,040 –> 00:26:43,040 don’t you 743 00:26:43,040 –> 00:26:44,040 want to 744 00:26:44,040 –> 00:26:45,040 know what 745 00:26:45,040 –> 00:26:46,040 I have got 746 00:26:46,040 –> 00:26:47,040 to say 747 00:26:47,040 –> 00:26:48,040 don’t you 748 00:26:48,040 –> 00:26:49,040 want to 749 00:26:49,040 –> 00:26:50,040 hear 750 00:26:50,040 –> 00:26:51,040 something 751 00:26:51,040 –> 00:26:52,040 that is 752 00:26:52,040 –> 00:26:53,040 important to 753 00:26:53,040 –> 00:26:54,040 me that 754 00:26:54,040 –> 00:26:55,040 this is 755 00:26:55,040 –> 00:26:56,040 the word 756 00:26:56,040 –> 00:26:57,040 of God 757 00:26:57,040 –> 00:26:58,040 this is 758 00:26:58,040 –> 00:26:59,040 the word 759 00:26:59,040 –> 00:27:00,040 of God 760 00:27:00,040 –> 00:27:01,040 we cannot 761 00:27:01,040 –> 00:27:02,040 come just 762 00:27:02,040 –> 00:27:03,040 to talk 763 00:27:03,040 –> 00:27:04,040 to God 764 00:27:04,040 –> 00:27:05,040 if we so 765 00:27:05,040 –> 00:27:06,040 are not 766 00:27:06,040 –> 00:27:07,040 ready to 767 00:27:07,040 –> 00:27:08,040 listen and 768 00:27:08,040 –> 00:27:09,040 he speaks 769 00:27:09,040 –> 00:27:10,040 to us 770 00:27:10,040 –> 00:27:11,040 through the 771 00:27:11,040 –> 00:27:12,040 scriptures 772 00:27:12,040 –> 00:27:13,040 second 773 00:27:13,040 –> 00:27:14,040 not only 774 00:27:14,040 –> 00:27:15,040 does 775 00:27:15,040 –> 00:27:16,040 it 776 00:27:16,040 –> 00:27:17,040 explain 777 00:27:17,040 –> 00:27:18,040 do you 778 00:27:18,040 –> 00:27:19,040 see that 779 00:27:19,040 –> 00:27:20,040 in 780 00:27:20,040 –> 00:27:21,040 verse 781 00:27:21,040 –> 00:27:22,040 8 they 782 00:27:22,040 –> 00:27:23,040 read from 783 00:27:23,040 –> 00:27:24,040 the word 784 00:27:24,040 –> 00:27:25,040 of God 785 00:27:25,040 –> 00:27:38,459 the under 786 00:27:38,459 –> 00:27:39,459 this 787 00:27:39,459 –> 00:27:40,459 is 788 00:27:40,459 –> 00:27:45,459 convenient 789 00:27:45,459 –> 00:27:46,459 this 790 00:27:46,459 –> 00:27:47,459 is 791 00:27:47,459 –> 00:27:48,459 the 792 00:27:48,459 –> 00:27:49,459 second 793 00:27:49,459 –> 00:27:50,459 meaning 794 00:27:50,459 –> 00:27:51,459 is 795 00:27:51,459 –> 00:27:52,459 read 796 00:27:52,619 –> 00:27:54,579 of 797 00:27:54,579 –> 00:27:55,780 the 798 00:27:55,780 –> 00:27:57,780 world 799 00:28:28,780 –> 00:28:32,819 He explains the message that God has already given 800 00:28:34,119 –> 00:28:38,540 He doesn’t decide on a message and then find some bible-text to back it up 801 00:28:39,479 –> 00:28:44,520 He comes to the scripture and he allows the scripture to determine 802 00:28:45,119 –> 00:28:47,119 the message 803 00:28:47,239 –> 00:28:51,660 Because you see the life-changing thing is not in the charisma of the speaker 804 00:28:51,839 –> 00:28:52,859 it 805 00:28:52,859 –> 00:28:57,280 Is in the power that God has invested by the Holy Spirit in the word 806 00:28:58,199 –> 00:29:00,199 That’s what changes us 807 00:29:01,560 –> 00:29:07,540 Right speakers with wonderful stories make a temporary impression the word of God changes lives 808 00:29:10,359 –> 00:29:16,500 God has not promised anywhere to bless my words or to bless any other preachers words 809 00:29:17,900 –> 00:29:22,160 But he has promised distinctly to bless his word 810 00:29:23,119 –> 00:29:27,280 so the task of the preacher then must be to fill our words as 811 00:29:27,579 –> 00:29:34,959 Full as possible with God’s word so that our words become an explanation of his word so that people engage with and understand 812 00:29:35,640 –> 00:29:37,640 What it is that God is saying? 813 00:29:38,920 –> 00:29:40,920 It’s what preaching is 814 00:29:41,400 –> 00:29:45,260 they read the word they explained the word certainly applying the word 815 00:29:46,760 –> 00:29:49,520 Ezra tells the people you see he brings out the book 816 00:29:49,520 –> 00:29:53,400 He says this is what it says. This is what it means. This is what we have to do about it 817 00:29:53,400 –> 00:29:55,400 That’s preaching right there 818 00:29:56,420 –> 00:30:02,800 Notice the effect that this has on the people verse nine all the people had been weeping as 819 00:30:04,180 –> 00:30:09,619 They listen to the words of the law she great Sunday morning 820 00:30:12,119 –> 00:30:16,180 Preachers speaking the word of God, and what’s the result all these people are crying 821 00:30:16,180 –> 00:30:20,859 Now that tells you something about the preaching though, doesn’t it? 822 00:30:22,760 –> 00:30:26,540 This is not the kind of speaking that strokes people’s egos 823 00:30:28,119 –> 00:30:31,439 This isn’t the kind of speaking that tells us we’re all really good at heart 824 00:30:31,439 –> 00:30:33,859 And we just need to be encouraged to keep going in the right direction 825 00:30:36,579 –> 00:30:41,060 Now when the scriptures were explained when the Bible was opened up 826 00:30:41,939 –> 00:30:47,979 The effect was that the whole community saw how far they were from the Word of God 827 00:30:48,219 –> 00:30:54,500 How far we all are from the life that God has called us to lead. That’s always going to be the effect of true preaching 828 00:30:55,920 –> 00:30:59,239 true preaching exalts the Savior and 829 00:30:59,939 –> 00:31:04,739 It humbles sinners and these two things always go together 830 00:31:04,739 –> 00:31:08,880 They are opposite sides of the same coin because you see the more we think of ourselves 831 00:31:08,959 –> 00:31:11,199 the less we will think of Jesus Christ 832 00:31:12,680 –> 00:31:16,800 The more we see our own need the more we will value Jesus Christ 833 00:31:18,300 –> 00:31:23,920 See that is why the Pharisees had so little time for Jesus because they thought so much of themselves 834 00:31:26,060 –> 00:31:32,579 That’s why the prostitutes and the tax collectors thought so much of Jesus because they felt and saw their need I 835 00:31:35,599 –> 00:31:38,640 Expect that the crowd that gathered when Ezra spoke were pretty 836 00:31:38,880 –> 00:31:43,500 Respectable people like us today. They had a lot of vision type a personalities rebuilding a city 837 00:31:44,160 –> 00:31:47,920 worked hard made many sacrifices overcome difficulties in opposition 838 00:31:47,959 –> 00:31:51,880 They were known as God’s people they were full just like us 839 00:31:53,719 –> 00:31:59,020 But when the Bible is read and its meaning is made clear they see in a whole new way 840 00:31:59,040 –> 00:32:01,040 Just how far we all are 841 00:32:02,079 –> 00:32:06,540 From what God has called us to and how much we need the grace and mercy of God 842 00:32:07,020 –> 00:32:09,020 True preaching will always bring us there 843 00:32:10,180 –> 00:32:14,780 And we need to come there. We need to be humbled so that we will value the Savior 844 00:32:18,060 –> 00:32:21,479 Their reaction of course also tells us that they were taking the Bible seriously 845 00:32:25,160 –> 00:32:29,599 So they weren’t the kind of folks like the Channel Hoppers who said oh that was a nice talk on Sunday 846 00:32:29,599 –> 00:32:31,599 Yeah cheered us all up wasn’t that marvelous 847 00:32:32,599 –> 00:32:38,699 They looked at the Bible, they took as seriously the word of God and they said boy if this the word of God 848 00:32:38,719 –> 00:32:40,719 we need to change 849 00:32:41,680 –> 00:32:48,119 So you think even about this message about the centrality of the word of God, how do we need to change? 850 00:32:50,760 –> 00:32:55,719 What needs to change in family life if we are really to build a family around the word of God 851 00:32:57,040 –> 00:33:01,160 What do you need to do if Sunday is to be built around the word of God? 852 00:33:02,359 –> 00:33:07,439 What I need to do if my personal life is to have the word of God at the Centre 853 00:33:07,439 –> 00:33:12,439 And it’s to be my food, and it’s to sustain my Christian life. How will I be different? What am I going to do? 854 00:33:15,319 –> 00:33:17,319 They’re applying it 855 00:33:18,439 –> 00:33:24,439 And then the last thing notice how they celebrate. You see the word of God brings us 856 00:33:25,619 –> 00:33:29,560 To see our own need, but it never leaves us there, never leaves us there 857 00:33:30,560 –> 00:33:34,560 It humbles us, but it takes us through that into the joy of a new life 858 00:33:35,959 –> 00:33:42,520 Notice verse 10. Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks he says to these folks who’ve seen their needs to change 859 00:33:43,719 –> 00:33:50,780 Because this day is sacred to the Lord. Verse 10 do not grieve for the joy of the Lord is your strength 860 00:33:51,400 –> 00:33:52,959 here’s these folks who are 861 00:33:52,959 –> 00:33:59,199 Seeing how far they are from a life that God has called them to lead and Ezra talks to them about God’s joy 862 00:34:00,479 –> 00:34:06,099 It reminds me of the words of Jesus who remember he said that when a sinner repents 863 00:34:07,160 –> 00:34:09,379 There is joy in heaven 864 00:34:10,320 –> 00:34:13,260 See when there are tears on earth, there is joy in heaven 865 00:34:14,959 –> 00:34:18,300 When I come to the place of saying Lord, I’ve messed up I 866 00:34:19,719 –> 00:34:21,719 Need to change I 867 00:34:22,500 –> 00:34:23,919 See something in myself 868 00:34:23,919 –> 00:34:26,979 I never saw before and I need you to cleanse me off it 869 00:34:27,219 –> 00:34:31,919 You say God doesn’t look down with a stern face and say oh my goodness 870 00:34:32,820 –> 00:34:34,820 He reaches out with joy 871 00:34:35,100 –> 00:34:39,219 he’s been wanting me to come to that point for a long time and 872 00:34:40,300 –> 00:34:47,739 It’s the fact that God embraces me in my repentance with joy that gives me the strength to move forward 873 00:34:48,219 –> 00:34:50,459 See that was at the heart of the story of the prodigal son 874 00:34:50,580 –> 00:34:54,699 Remember this fellow who made such a mess of so many things in his life 875 00:34:55,139 –> 00:34:59,500 And then he thought, well, maybe I can slip in the back door of the old house and dad 876 00:34:59,500 –> 00:35:01,800 I’ll take me on as one of his hired servants 877 00:35:02,620 –> 00:35:06,719 He began to trudge his way back towards the house and then to his amazement 878 00:35:06,719 –> 00:35:13,179 The father came out running, and he kissed him and he embraced him, put shoes on his feet, he puts a ring on his finger 879 00:35:15,520 –> 00:35:17,520 The father’s joy 880 00:35:17,760 –> 00:35:19,760 Was the son’s strength 881 00:35:20,159 –> 00:35:22,179 When a father who loves you like that 882 00:35:22,179 –> 00:35:25,139 you could begin a whole new life 883 00:35:26,399 –> 00:35:33,020 With grace and mercy that comes through Jesus Christ like that, all things are possible for you 884 00:35:34,600 –> 00:35:40,280 So, do you see the heart of this ministry? Reading, explaining, applying 885 00:35:40,419 –> 00:35:44,439 Celebrating the Word of God, do you see the pattern 886 00:35:44,580 –> 00:35:48,419 The scriptures are the Word of God, God speaks to us through the scriptures 887 00:35:48,419 –> 00:35:52,860 These are not the words of men about God, they are the Word of God to men 888 00:35:54,000 –> 00:35:57,260 Therefore, when we come together, the scriptures are to be read 889 00:35:58,080 –> 00:35:59,600 The heart of preaching 890 00:36:00,040 –> 00:36:03,320 is that the scriptures are to be explained and applied 891 00:36:03,459 –> 00:36:05,500 And when they are, it will humble us 892 00:36:05,560 –> 00:36:09,000 but it will show us our need of Jesus Christ and it will lift us up 893 00:36:09,120 –> 00:36:14,620 Because as we come to him in that spirit, his joy will be our strength 894 00:36:15,560 –> 00:36:18,300 And as we see his grace and his mercy 895 00:36:19,219 –> 00:36:23,500 He will give to us the strength to move forward in new lives 896 00:36:24,080 –> 00:36:27,800 that are marked by new levels of obedience 897 00:36:28,020 –> 00:36:30,060 Let’s pray together, shall we? 898 00:36:33,219 –> 00:36:37,199 Father, we’re bowing in your presence as a community right now 899 00:36:39,159 –> 00:36:44,580 Sitting where, for as it were, over 50 years, others have sat 900 00:36:45,620 –> 00:36:49,639 We thank you for our privilege of being part of a community 901 00:36:49,639 –> 00:36:51,600 that values the Word of God 902 00:36:54,199 –> 00:36:57,080 Thank you for the blessing of being fed 903 00:36:58,300 –> 00:37:02,379 The Word being read, of it being explained, of being applied 904 00:37:02,580 –> 00:37:05,459 of us being humbled, of Christ being exalted 905 00:37:06,379 –> 00:37:08,939 The father’s joy becoming our strength 906 00:37:08,939 –> 00:37:10,780 granted us by your strength 907 00:37:16,360 –> 00:37:19,320 We see that we live in a time where so many hear 908 00:37:22,199 –> 00:37:23,719 so little of your word 909 00:37:24,080 –> 00:37:27,679 And therefore we pray that we will hide it in our hearts 910 00:37:27,919 –> 00:37:29,120 that we will value 911 00:37:32,439 –> 00:37:33,479 The scriptures 912 00:37:33,479 –> 00:37:36,540 That you will give us a sense of the importance of listening to you 913 00:37:36,679 –> 00:37:38,040 and hearing you speak 914 00:37:39,179 –> 00:37:40,139 by the spirit 915 00:37:40,139 –> 00:37:41,479 through the scriptures 916 00:37:42,580 –> 00:37:47,540 And let us not be a community of people who delight ourselves in hearing only 917 00:37:50,459 –> 00:37:52,699 But rather in doing, in applying, 918 00:37:56,280 –> 00:38:00,360 in experiencing the life change that comes when the Word is met 919 00:38:01,719 –> 00:38:02,439 with faith 920 00:38:02,439 –> 00:38:03,959 and change, and new life 921 00:38:04,780 –> 00:38:05,979 and power results 922 00:38:07,199 –> 00:38:11,639 And Lord may we come to see many people who are touched and changed 923 00:38:12,100 –> 00:38:13,540 deeply, by your word 924 00:38:14,100 –> 00:38:17,699 May it bear fruit in our lives and through our ministry 925 00:38:18,820 –> 00:38:23,060 And may all this be for the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ 926 00:38:23,860 –> 00:38:25,340 On whom we depend 927 00:38:26,340 –> 00:38:27,820 In whom we rejoice 928 00:38:29,080 –> 00:38:30,760 and in whose name we pray 929 00:38:31,000 –> 00:38:32,360 In God’s people said 930 00:38:32,800 –> 00:38:33,300 Amen