Goodmorning and welcome in everyone. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
One sunny morning, there was a young man driving down the highway on his way to work, when all of a sudden, his car completely died. He managed to pull safely onto the shoulder of the road, and pop the hood. For a few minutes he was trying to ascertain the problem, when a car drove up behind him. An older gentleman approached him and kindly asked him what had happened. The boy explained, while the man listened intently.
” Well, I have a good idea where you could start looking. It might be something relatively easy to fix.” he said, as he stroked his gray beard.
The boy responded, ” I do quite a bit of tinkering at home in my garage. I’ll get this figured out.”
An hour later the boy eventually had to call a tow truck, who pulled his vehicle to the nearest auto mechanic. When he walked into the shop, he tapped on the back of someone wearing a greasy pair of coveralls. To his surprise, it was the same man that he had met on the highway a few hours earlier.
“Well, we meet again,” the mechanic said with a gentle smile. He grabbed a can of gas from the shop, and dumped a gallon of unleaded into the boy’s tank. A few moments later, the car fired right up.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
Some people can make life very difficult for themselves, simply because they choose not to listen. The scriptures teach us that God’s way is always the better way. The Lord Jesus came into this world to help us, by turning each of us away from our iniquities, but some are so blinded by their own pride and sin, that they turn their ears away from the truth. They cannot even see where they are going because that darkness has blinded their eyes. One of the worst things is claiming that you understand something, but you really have no comprehension of it at all.
John 9:39-41 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also? Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.
Have you ever had dinner with a group of people, when someone started speaking on a topic, but you knew that they really didn’t have any idea of what they were talking about? Pride does that. They just wanted to impress others with their feigned knowledge. Spiritual pride is a stumbling block to overcoming sin. The proud Pharisee is an example of this. (Luke 18:10-14) He was filled up with so much religious pride that he couldn’t even see his own faults. His sin blinded his eyes to the truth. He really felt that he was a wonderful human being, but the reality was that he was a sinner just like everybody else. Instead of humbling himself, and realizing his shortcomings, his sins remained.
In order to go through a conversion and transformation in our lives, we need to look inside of our own hearts, and recognize things that are displeasing to God. Scripture is there for that very reason, so that we can go on to spiritual maturity.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
The thing that can prevent this from happening is being dull of hearing, refusing to receive or believe the truth of God’s Word.
Matthew 13:14-15 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
God wants to heal us, not only physically but spiritually, but you really can’t help people who don’t want any help. He wants to free them from their sins, but some don’t want to hear the truth. Like a radio station that somebody doesn’t want to listen to, people shut off the thing that can help them the most, the teachings of Christ.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
If someone is truly going to attempt the Christian Life, you must be capable of hearing God’s Word and allowing it to change your life and direction. If that doesn’t happen, there’s no faith. Genuine faith will motivate you to become obedient to the will of God which is found throughout the new Testament. If you truly are of God, you will open your ears to the truth.
1 John 4:5-6 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
John 8:47 He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.
God wants to purify us from sin, but that means turning away from the things that are displeasing to him. What pleases God is obedience to His teachings, which results in sanctification.
2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
It’s by God’s Word that we are purified of sin.
John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Keeping his commands are not that difficult.
1 John 5:2-4 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
Our precious Lord wants to make things easier for us, if we would only open our ears to the truth.
Matthew 11:29-30 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Are you going to listen to the truth? Will you choose the easy way, or….
….The Hard Way?
Let’s think about these things for right now, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
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