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 ask you something.
There are numerous fighter jets in the military, including the F-18 hornet that carry a price tag of well over 65 million dollars. Its been claimed that the B-2 Spirit Bomber is valued at a whopping 2 billion dollars a piece, and is believed to be the most expensive aircraft in the entire world. Do you really believe that they are going to allow someone to fly these planes without any kind of adequate training? How many of you have owned something really expensive, such as a brand new pickup? Would you hand the keys over to a 10 year old who really doesn’t know how to drive yet? It can take many years of testing and training to eventually learn to fly a fighter jet, and before anybody is going to hand over a 100 million dollar aircraft to your care, you must first show that you are capable. Before you ever sit in the cockpit and taxi down the runway, you must first prove yourself worthy of being chosen for the machine seat.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
To inherit eternal life, we also must first prove ourselves worthy of God’s coming kingdom, and it requires many years of training. It’s a day by day process of walking in obedience to Christ. God is watching our progress, and will someday reward His faithful with the gift of eternal life. It’s given to those who have used God’s grace to transform into a completely new man. It’s a prize awarded to those who have redeemed the time, and proved themselves worthy of salvation. Are you a Christian? Then you must prove it to the Lord.
Ephesians 5:9-10 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
To prove what is acceptable to God, means to show by your actions that you are capable of turning away from sin, and are worthy of the calling that God has bestowed upon you. When you obey Him and do His will, like a pilot, you are proving yourself to be capable and faithful. For example, at a job, the employer might give the workers a short list of things to do while he goes to eat lunch, but as soon as he walks out the front door, it’s party time. What’s the old saying, when the cat is away, the mice will play? Instead of being gone for an hour as usual, today he returns after only a few minutes, finding his employees doing nothing at all. To truly be a Christian, you must prove you are a Christian, through your obedient actions. It’s more than just saying that you are a follower of Christ, but becoming a doer of His will.
James 1:21-25 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 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: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
Naughtiness is being mischievious and tending to misbehave and act badly. It is also defined as being evil, wicked, and morally reprehensible. The Apostle warned the church about this kind of behavior. To eventually enter into eternal life someday, we need to submit to the teachings of scripture. God’s Word cannot save your souls if you choose to rebel against it. In that mindset, a person isn’t following Jesus, they are following their carnal nature. To truly inherit a blessing from God requires obedience to His will, a quality that the Philippian church was filled with.
Philippians 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Paul didn’t have to stand over them and straighten them out, because they did it to themselves, proving through their obedience, that they truly believed in God with their hearts.
2 Corinthians 6:12 Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels.
The Spirit-filled life is about proving ourselves to God, not living the way the world does but completely changing your mind and fulfilling God’s will.
Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
To prove ourselves, we must be transformed from the teachings of this world and its philosophies. We must transcend above and beyond the sinful nature to achieve the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. We must strive daily to attain Spiritual perfection, walking in God’s perfect will, found throughout the teachings of Holy Scripture. It’s a matter of proving ourselves and pleasing Him perfectly.
1 Thessalonians 4:1 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.
Colossians 1:10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;
Through God’s grace, and a submissive obedient heart, we can become a completely new creature, prepared for a new kingdom. An entrance into paradise awaits such people as these.
2 Peter 1:10-11 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
It comes down to a daily matter of examining yourself, to see if you truly are walking in the true faith.
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
We prove what we are by our actions. Someone proves that they can drive a car, through practice and eventually obtaining a license. Someone proves that they are capable of flying a jet fighter through years of obedience to the things that they have learned and been taught. Someone proves that they are Christian, by their obedient lives towards Jesus and the gospel. Are you proving yourselves worthy of being chosen for the….
……The Machine Seat?
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
tlkjbc.com
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 