Do You Understand?

Good Morning Beloved,

I am so honored, so privileged to be able to teach the Word of God
and to share that with all of you today.
Thank you for joining us.

How is everyone holding up?
I pray that the previous messages, addressed some of the questions, anxieties and fears
that some of you had.

Now, like many of you, I want to return to "normal," and the Holy Spirit,
has moved me away from the pandemic sermon messages..

But first let us pray..

Heavenly Father,

Thank You!
Thank You for Your provision, Your protection
For supplying our needs, abundantly, exceedingly

Thank You for Your peace in this chaotic world
while others are panicking, hording, worrying
we have Your peace!

We are confident our needs will be met.
Unlike those of the world, we have nothing to fear
because we are privileged to part of Your family
And we are so thankful, so grateful for that

You are a good, good Father!
Amen

"Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?"
Acts 8:30-31

Today's Message: Do You Understand?

If you are a child of God, you know you need to make the Bible a priority in your life.
As a Christian, you hunger for God’s Word. But have you ever wondered, just how will reading, studying, and meditating on Scripture actually change you, your life? What effect will it have, on your relationships with family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers and so on? How it will effect  your decision-making? The way you handle achievements, your disappointments, the difficult challenges, and serious trials you face? And your usefulness to the body of Christ?

There are certain categories of theology, certain categories into which the truth of the Bible can be divided.

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.^"
2 Timothy 2:15
 
This is a very important key passage in Scripture. It is the Word of God but it's called in that verse the Word of truth. And believe it or not, for some people, it is the word of doubt or the word of confusion or the word of semi-truth or the word of experience.

Do you understand what you are reading?

Teaching the Bible involves taking someone from where they are to where they need to be. It is taking someone from what they currently know to what is unknown.
 
That's why I do what I do. That's why I love doing it. Taking the Word of God, the truth, and teaching it in such a way that those who have previously not understood, misunderstand, can understand.
At least that is what I attempt to do, though I'm sure always sure how successful I am, or every one would be a believer..

So, if you're getting it, that's good, that's terrific. I hope you're getting it.

Let's look at the approach to teaching used by Jesus. His lessons emphasized life application at every turn. His Word is not a collection of facts to be memorized and treasured. His Word is a guide for how we should live our lives today. This story is one for all who spread the Word. And if you teach, this is your story.

"And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear." 
"And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

‘You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; 

You will keep on seeing, but will not perceive;
For the heart of this people has become dull,
With their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes,
Otherwise they would see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart and return,
And I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."

"Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty."

Matthew 13:3-23

Now let me give you a very simplistic, basic definition of the doctrine of biblical authority or inspiration. Just listen carefully and if you want to write it down, you can review it in your own time.

But here is how we can sum up the basic doctrine. God, superintending human authors, so that using their own individual personalities, experiences, thought processes and vocabulary they composed and recorded without error His revelation in the original copies of Scripture.

Now just think that through for a moment, OK?

God spoke through men, and without violating their own personalities, their own thought processes and their own vocabulary abilities and so they were able to produce the Scripture without violating His truth. Now there is a good analogy of this to help you better understand it. 

How could God use human agents without getting a corrupt manuscript?
God dictated every single word to those men and they in turn wrote down the dictation.
They each speak about their own experiences. They speak even about their own feeling. And they do it, in such a way as to use their own vocabulary. 

That's why if you read Peter you get a very impassioned account, and with Paul, you get a rather logical account, and yet from the writer of the book of Hebrews you get this very intense scholarly, religious ceremonial approach. Each book written by each individual author, each written with their own personality and their own vocabulary, and dictated by God. Therefore, He was then able to use these human authors without abating His Word.

Through the years it has been copied and recopied and recopied and recopied and so on, and so we know where those copyists have made errors. Now, allow me to address that, God has also meticulously preserved the Scripture, but as with anything man handles, it will eventually bear the mark of a man. And even so, it has maintained it's purity. And certainly one of the greatest proofs of that accuracy and purity, was the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Which, by the way, were dated from before the time of Christ and show that the existing Bibles that we have today have not changed at all since then. Further evidence, that God truly has superintended His Word.

I'm going to go through this section rather quickly, so listen carefully and take notes as needed.
So, I want to mention, that there are three terms to keep in mind whenever you're looking at Scripture.
The first one is revelation, the next is inspiration, and lastly is illumination.

Revelation, is the body of the message, or truth, which God wants to communicate. That's the message!

Now we have inspiration, that is the method by which He communicates it.

Illumination is how you understand it.

Allow me to just summarize this now, we have God, revealing Himself, His revelation, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which is the method by which inspiration took place, And so whom do you depend upon in illumination? That's right, the Holy Spirit!

Therefore, the Word is true. It is true because it is breathed out from God.
Revelation is the message of truth, inspiration is the process by which its communicated by the Holy Spirit and illumination from the Holy Spirit, is the manner in which we understand it.
Pretty basic stuff, once you understand the principals, am I right?

One important statement, I need to make, always start with the Scripture, because if you don't have the Bible you don't have anything else!

There are a great many today, even some pastors, who will claim, "that the Bible is true when it speaks on spiritual issues, but not true when it speaks on historical or geographical issues."

Look, all I can say to this is, either you believe ALL of the Bible is true, or none of it is true!

Now I have heard many claim that the Bible never claimed to be error free, Jesus never claimed to be God incarnate. That's just not true...That's just not true!

In Psalm 19:7-9, we have the passage, "The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether."

Makes no mistakes, the Word of God, is infallible! And in case some of you do not know what that means, it means error-free. The Word is pure and free of error! Scripture is not only infallible in the truth it conveys, but is inerrant in every word!

Then we have Proverbs 30:5-6,  you just can't get much more specific than that.
"Every word of God is tested;
He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. 
Do not add to His words
Or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar."

All Scripture is God breathed, it is breathed out by God. And because of His very nature, His character, because He is not a man, God cannot lie! 

If you let go of the truthfulness of Scripture, you have abandoned the truthfulness of God.

Satan’s greatest desire is to keep people from understanding the Word of God.
Understanding the Bible comes as the person opens his heart to God.

Referring to the earlier parable Jesus used, the success of the crop depends on the condition of the soil and the seed producing fruit! It is through continuous witness, prayer, preaching, and the operation of the Spirit, the heart softens.

The fundamental purpose of a pastor is not teaching but learning. Our focus should be on the learner.
Of course, we must be able to teach, but in order to teach, we first must learn ourselves! In either case, the focus is on the learning. It does me no good to preach, if people aren't learning. And I cannot effectively teach, if I am myself, not constantly in the Word of God, seeking the Holy Spirit for illumination of what I study. Learning for all of us, is a priority..

Another important, and I believe, critical statement that Scripture makes, is it's not only infallible, but it's authoritative. The means that Bible affirms that it is to be heard. And it makes that claim for itself.

Revelation 21:5 affirms that.
"..And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true."

Revelation 19:9 literally states, ".. These are true words of God."

They reflect that truthfulness of God and they are authoritative. If it is infallible, if it is inerrant, then it must also be authoritative. That's so easy to deduce!

So many times, in the Old Testament, we find the words, "The Word of the Lord came unto... and He spoke" and in the New Testament, we read it this way, "The Spirit of the Lord spoke to me."
So many times.

You shall not add to it, you shall not take away from it. Why is that?
Because the Word of God is not only infallible, inerrent, authoritative but it is complete. The Word of God is complete!

And I'm sure you all know what it says, at the end of the Bible, in Revelation 22, don't you?
"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book."

And in Deutoronomy chapter 4, verse 2, it says,
"You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you."

It is not to be added to, it is not to be diminished. It is complete. There is not any loose Scripture out there, just running around! It is in and of itself, complete. The Bible is complete. You can't add aything to it or take anything away from it. For those who do, well, Scrpiture clearly says.
"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book."
Revelation 22:18-19 

I certain we can all understand that, it's pretty straighforward, therefore, I do not believe that requires any further clarity.

Then the Bible makes another profound claim. The Bible claims for itself is that it is effective...that it dramatically effects people. God tells us, when I send My Word out it is effective, it does what I send it to do!

Isaiah 55:10-11 points out that astounding truth.
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it bear and sprout,
And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; 
So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."

Yes, indeed the Bible makes some amazing claims. It claims that it is infallible, inerrant, authoritative, complete and effective. Amazing, just amazing claims. So that leaves us with another question doesn't it? 

If all that is true, and it is, then why doesn't it convince all unbelievers when it's so convincing to us? 

I'll let the apostle Paul answer that for us, 
"But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ."
1 Corinthians 2:14-16

And there you have it! If someone does not believe in God, if someone does not believe that Jesus is God incarnate, if someone does not believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity, they cannot understand it.

It's like me giving you a book written in French, or German and you do not speak or understand the language, and have no way to translate it, how then you could possibly understand what the book says? You can't! You just simply could not understand it. 

The sole reason I know the Bible that is true is that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God has convinced me of it. Therefore, the Bible is primarily for those of you who already believe it to be true.

Just allow that thought to grab hold of you for a moment, because that's the key to everything.

What I do through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, is reaffirm and secure the faith of those who are already committed to it. I cannot convince anyone of anything, that's the Holy Spirits job to see to that. I can teach what I know, what I believe to be true. I am only capable of convincing someone intellectually, however unless the Spirit of God reaches their heart, turning their doubt and unbelief into faith and trust, they are not going to believe it and accept what I am teaching. That's why I encourage people to read and study the Bible for themselves, test it for themselves, the Holy Spirit can change any ones heart, I cannot.

The apostle Paul was a highly educated man trained by some of the best teachers of his day. He was very intelligent. Yet, he was able to teach on the level of his students. He spoke “in holiness and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom,” 2 Corinthians 1:12. Why did he speak so simply? He wanted all hearers to understand. Paul also warns us in 2 Corinthians 11:3, that the devil will try to rob you of what you haven't understood. "But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ."

I think the testimony of Jesus is the heart and soul of the entire argument.

"I and the Father are one."
John 10:30 

"If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me;"
John 10:35-37

Jesus knew that every single word, every single letter, every dot of Scripture had to be fulfilled. He believed it to be the Word of God. Remember, in Matthew 26, He told Peter, that He didn't need the protection of Peter's sword because if He wanted to He could call down a legend of angels.

“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 5:17-19

I know that doesn't mean anything to most of you but when they combined words they'd occassionally take an "i" out of the word itself and put it underneath another word. You see that occassionally in a foreign language, He is saying do not mess with it, just do not do it, not even one little dot, nor one tiny squiggle!

Jesus, also knew of His own death, He knew that the prophecy of Psalm 22, it said that the Messiah would say certain things on the cross. "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?"
That is exactly what He said verbatim from the Old Testament.

And for those of you who want to deny the creation account found in Genesis, all I can say is, then you're going to have to deal with Jesus on that because He believed it. He believed in the creation account of Genesis and furthermore, He sustained it. So you just take that up with Jesus! What He believed is so clear!

"And He answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female,"
Matthew 19:4 

The real key is the testimony of the Holy Spirit. 
"but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written,

“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”

For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words."

1 Corinthians 2:7-13 

So what can we conclude from all of this?

Allow me to summarize it quickly, as we're almost out of time..

The testimony of the writers was objective, it's right in the text. The testimony of Christ is objective, it's right in the text. The testimony of the Spirit is subjective. That means it's internal. The Holy Spirit
is the confirming ministry to affirm to our hearts as to the truthfulness of Scripture.

Let me put it another way, by denying the truth of Scripture, you are simply following the original temptation... "...Indeed, has God said...?"
If Satan can just get people to deny the truth of what God, he is free to attack them from every other angle. 

However, a natural experience, there is no better testimony than the overwhelming impact of a transformed life! When the Holy Spirit has changed you, your life, and you've seen God at work for yourself.... When you have personally applied the truths of Scripture and see for yourself that they work. That's not just experience. That's powerful!

One last things, I know many attempt to attack Scripture from a scientific standpoint, claiming it cannot be scientifically proven... allow me just respond to that... From a scientific standpoint, oh Ok, but isn't that exactly how the Bible begins?

IN THE BEGINNING, hello, that's time! And GOD, that's force! CREATED, isn't that action?! THE HEAVENS, I'm pretty sure, that's space! AND THE EARTH, admittedly I am no scientist, but is that not matter? 

Many of you know that in science, there is what is called the second law of thermodynamics which is the basic law that says all matter is breaking down, tends toward dissolution.

As far as I understand, God cursed the earth, isn't that right? And it was at that point that death entered into the scene, it didn't exist before the fall and from that point, everything began to follow the law of thermodynamics, it's breaking down. Yet, many scientists would rather juggle the tension of the law of thermodynamics and believe in evolution.

If read the oldest book in the Bible, which is Job 36 I'm sure you could do a whole hydrological dissertation.

"For He draws up the drops of water,
They distill rain from the mist, 
Which the clouds pour down,
They drip upon man abundantly."
Job 36:27-28

Also, in Psalm 135, I believe it's 135:7, you may want to check that to be sure for yourselves, 
"He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;
Who makes lightnings for the rain,
Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries."

I have yet to able to find, where it says anywhere in Scripture, says that the earth is held on the back of elephants who produce earthquakes when they shake like the Quran says.

Allow me to just sum it up. Scripture claims to be true. It claims to be the Word of God. It claims to be God-breathed. It verifies those claims by internal evidence that is both objective and subjective. By external evidence that is experiential and that's subjective and scientific and prophetic and that's objective. You see, every way you cut it, inside, outside, objective, subjective the Scripture verifies itself. The Word of God, not from men but from the Holy Spirit breathing on men.
By supernatural inspiration, breathed by God.

We are in trouble and we lack certainty and the trouble is in us, not in the Holy Scripture. 
Basically in the fact that the church today in its broad perspective does not believe the Word of God to be the Word of God. And so there's no standard...no standard at all.

I pray now, you understand.

And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen

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