Brother Gary Sunday Morning 8/9/15

Brother Gary Sunday Morning 8/9/15

2Ti 2:19  Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

As time passes there are always questions that arise, men that arise with new doctrines and questions about this and about that.  Paul was writing to a younger man and wanted to tell him that the foundation of God standeth sure.

We are living in a day where there are always a lot of uncertainties. 

Paul wanted to emphasize that the foundation of GOD stands sure.  There is a foundation that is sure that you can build your life upon that has stood, is standing, and forever will stand.

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

There is already a foundation laid: Jesus Christ.

1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;

1Co 3:13  Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

Jesus Christ is the only foundation.  People can choose to build upon it of the gold, silver and precious stones: the eternal teachings of the Word of God.  Or they can choose to build with wood, hay, and stubble:  their own ideas of how to get to heaven.

Many people have ideas of how to get to heaven.  They tried to build the tower of Babel, and built a physical road that would reach to heaven.  They never accomplished that because the languages became confused and the work became confusing. 

Some will tell you there are various ways to get to heaven, but there is only one way. 

Jeremiah teaches us that the Word of God is like a hammer and the Word of God is like a fire.  If the method that I choose does not stand the fire of the Word of God then it will be burned up. 

1Co 3:14  If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.

1Co 3:15  If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

If the Word of God shows us that the method we are using to get to heaven is not going to get us there, then the Word of God tells us that we will suffer loss.  Never let it be part of your disposition for it to be hard to say, “The Bible shows me that I am wrong.” 

The Bible teaches us that we need to repent, acknowledge, “I am not doing right,” and turn and start doing right then we will be accepted. 

2Ti 2:19  Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Malachi was written about 460 years before the birth of Christ.

Mal 3:16  Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.

Brother Figeroa left lots of thoughts with me; one that comes back over and over again is that he told me, “Iron sharpens iron.”  This morning one of the best things that you can do to help your brother and sister in Christ is to encourage them with a challenging and edifying thought from the Gospel.

There are some really encouraging things that are ours by speaking often one to another.  A word of encouragement:  if you are struggling, trust God. 

You may say, “I have really been having spiritual battles.  I have been going through a tough place in my life.  I feel the enemy offering things of the world but I know deep down inside that the pleasures of the world are only for a moment at best.” 

The just shall live by faith.  Paul taught us that we walk by faith.  Even though the world may promise many things today, God promises the best; we must sometimes wait on the Lord.

They spake often one to another and the Lord hearkened.  God hears our words of encouragement. 

Isaiah had a desire to have an encouraging tongue.  “The Lord has given me the tongue of the learned…”  He went on to say, “He wakeneth morning by morning, He wakeneth my ear to hear as the learned.”  It is a wonderful thing when someone writes you a note and says, “I want to encourage you that God always comes through.  You can Trust Jesus.” 

Mal 3:17  And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

If you don’t have a family this morning, I can identify desiring to belong to a family.  If you have a family on earth there are wonderful times of getting together and there then comes the sad times when they begin to leave us.  Sister Dorothy lost her last living brother recently.  It is now down to having one last living sister, Lois. 

There is something about little children, they think, “There is always going to be family.  I have my brother, my sister, my mother, my father, my aunts, and my uncles.”  It is an interesting thing that families shrink.  My wife comes from a large family.  It has shrunk in time and it will continue to shrink.

There is a family that is growing.  The prophet Isaiah says, “They shall be mine.” 

My first name is Gary, I was born in 1946 and I have no idea where my mother found that name.  I was thinking last night about the first radio that I can remember.  It was a piece of furniture and it stayed in one room.  Dad had copper wire fed out through the house and outside and through the trees to try to catch the radio waves. 

It was not played very often.  Maybe mom heard the word Gary over the radio, I don’t know.  But I know where my second name came from, it came from West Virginia.  I was named Gary Bertram after my uncle.  My family name was Kelly.  I was named Gary Bertram Kelly. 

That name did not make me of the family of God.  When I got saved, I was given a new name.  The bible teaches us, that we become a part of the family of God.  My new name is Gary Bertram Kelly God. 

God knows His own.  Have you ever walked into a bus station stranded 75 miles from home in freezing weather?  You see someone that you don’t know very well but because you are acquainted with them you say, “Is there any way that you can drive me?”

The Lord knows those that are his.  God knows if you belong to Him. 

2Ti 2:19  Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

In Luke 24 it speaks of Jesus being laid in a tomb and then He rose again and was with the disciples for 40 days.  Then ascended up to the Father which is in heaven. 

The disciples were confused.  They thought that He had come to set up a kingdom.  He didn’t come to set up a literal kingdom but a spiritual kingdom.

Luke and Cleopas had traveled together and Jesus drew near.

Luk 24:45  Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,

You may have real questions, “How can I be right with God?  How can I take care of these problems in my life?  If I got saved, how would I deal with this or that?  How can He help me since I have done these things in the past?” 

I know how God deals with that.  He helped me.  He forgives, He forgets, He casts our sins as far as the east is from the west.  He buries our sins in the depths of the sea. 

He opened their understanding:

Luk 24:46  And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:

There is a reason that He suffered.  You and I are the reason.  He was misunderstood, beaten with stripes; He was hung on the cross.  His hands and feet were pierced by spikes.  There was a literal spear that pierced his side.  He could have called ten thousand angels.  He died on the cross because of love.

You have seen the power of love.  You cannot understand a mother’s love or a father’s love.  You cannot understand that greater than the love of a husband is the love of Christ. 

Here we are this morning.  Jesus went through it because He loved us and wanted to prepare a place for us.  He knew that only way that I could be one of His is for His blood to pay for my sin.  We work, but there is no way that we can pay for our sin.  You cannot pay for it with good works.

Luk 24:47  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Repentance is a result of Godly sorrow.  There is a vast difference between the sorrow of the world and Godly sorrow.  Godly sorrow is, “I am so sorry.  I am sorry to you.  I am sorry for everything that I have done wrong.”  I cannot produce godly sorrow in anyone.  I cannot produce it in myself.  It is God that comes by and says, “You need to repent.”

When you truly repent, you come before God, you don’t have to break down and cry but you might, you come before God and say, “I am so sorry.  I realize that the reason that I can even think or see that candle is because of you.” 

If someone walks in with a baby then everyone wants to see them.  They think, “If I could just touch that baby.”  Then they say, “Can we hold it?” 

Remission of sin is when you confess to God, God forgives sin, and you become a babe in Christ.  That is the reason that Jesus went to the cross. 

Preached among all nations:  I am so glad that the message goes to all nations. 

Mat 7:24  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

Mat 7:25  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

Mat 7:26  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:

Mat 7:27  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

Jesus was referring to the beginning of His message, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” 

When we obey what Jesus has taught us, when we obey what the Word of God says, then we are as a wise man that built their house upon the rock.  The rain descended. 

You may have seen the title of the book, “How come bad things happen to good people?”  Storms come to all.  The vast difference is if you built upon the rock, when the storms come, the house did not fall for it was built upon the rock.

Those that hear and do not are like a foolish man that built upon the sand.  Spiritually the sand would be my own ideas, “I don’t think I will do what the bible says, I hope to get to heaven by raising garlic, by being a good person, by being a good parent, or a good husband or wife.” 

It takes more than any or all that.  It takes living in obedience to Jesus Christ.

For the foolish the house fell and great was the fall of it.

The foundation stands sure, whosoever builds with gold, when his work is tried by fire, can say, “I have done what the Bible says and I know that you will bring me through.”

The wise man builds upon the rock.  Jesus is the Rock according to the Word of God.

Jesus taught us that the storm comes to all.  As hot as it has been in Montana, it won’t be long until they will begin saying, “I feel fall in the air and it will soon be hunting season.” When I see fall in the air, I realize that I better have a woodpile.  One of these days a killing frost will come.

So is it in our life.  “Have you had storms in your life?”  Yes I have.  I have had sleepless nights and lots of tears.  Jesus was always there.  He will never fail.