The Final Exam

Good morning and welcome in. Today we’re going to look at a passage of scripture but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.

Many years ago when I was a senior in high school I had a class that I was miserably failing. I really needed to complete the course in order to graduate that year. As far as I can remember I had four F’s and a couple d’s. The teacher explained to me that it was going to be very difficult to pass his course unless I did really well on the final exam. I had approximately three weeks to prepare for the test and I slowly began to cram as much information from that class into my little brain that was possible.

I had some close friends at the school who I used to hang around with. Instead of having conversations about what we were doing that weekend, they were constantly quizzing me with questions about my class. It seemed like it was never ending. I lived and breathed political science for 3 weeks, memorizing dates and events in history.

There are many people who have taught that repetition is a good teacher and that is exactly what I did for three weeks. Over and over and over my friends quizzed me tested me and encouraged me. It didn’t matter where I was, in a car, or on a boat, in the lunchroom or at home my brain was completely bombarded with questions to spur my memory.

The big day had come, and I sat down in my desk to take the final exam. In about 4 hours we had completed our testing. The next day the final exams were posted on the door of the classroom. Miraculously I had achieved an A-.

This has always reminded me of the Christian Life. In order to do God’s will we have to remember the things that we have been taught from God’s holy word. This is why the apostles and disciples of the Lord constantly preached so that they would bring the church into remembrance so that they wouldn’t forget.

1 Cor 15:1-2

Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;

² By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

Memory is the faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information. Memory is something remembered from the past or a recollection.

As I already said, repetition is a good teacher. When we come to the church to hear the word of God preached we certainly may have heard it already many times before, but when we hear it again it refreshes our memory. Preaching of God’s word and exhortations must happen daily, for this is what the Lord did each day.

Heb 3:12-13

¹² Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

¹³ But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

A lack of Biblical teaching each day can result in forgetfulness. You can forget what you’re supposed to be doing and you can forget the will of God. This is why we need constant exposure to the teachings of Christ.

James 1:22-24

²² But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

²³ For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

²⁴ For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

Imagine if I had completely forgotten the things that I learned in three weeks, I would have flunked the course. You don’t want to flunk out on eternal life, but pass with flying colors. It’s the Holy Ghost in Spirit-filled men of God that brings us into remembrance of the ways of Christ.

John 14:26 – But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

This is exactly what Timothy was doing for the church. He was helping them to remember the truth of scripture.

1 Cor 4:17 For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church.

It’s the responsibility of a minister in the church to bring people to remembrance by the preaching of Christ’s Holy Word.

1 Tim 4:6 If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.

The Apostle Paul was constantly bringing Timothy into remembrance.

2 Tim 1:6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

2 Tim 2:14 Of these things put [them] in remembrance, charging [them] before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, [but] to the subverting of the hearers.

Even though the church knew the teachings of Christ, Peter constantly reminded them over and over by preaching.

2 Peter 1:12-13

¹² Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

¹³ Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;

2 Peter 3:1 This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in [both] which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:

It’s a very good thing to study the scriptures daily just as I studied for my test in high school. Heaven is a prepared place for prepared people.

Let’s think about those things for today and Lord willing we’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.❤

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