Good morning and welcome in everybody. 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.
Many years ago I used to drive a forklift for a large company, and when products came in, I would store them in tall racks until they were ready to be used. Sometimes I would place pallets on a huge scale, jotting down their weight and wrapping them up in plastic as they spun swiftly on top of a large turntable. But most of the time was spent bringing materials up to a staging area where they would be loaded into semi trailers and shipped off to other businesses. During the time that I was employed there, I had seen some very dangerous things happen. At those moments I was very thankful for my training, because it had prevented me from getting hurt. You see, before operating a forklift, you were required to complete classes where you were instructed out of a safety manual. You were tested to make sure that you had full knowledge of the dangers and hazardous situations that involved this type of job. You needed to be able to quickly identify dangerous situations before you or others around you got seriously injured.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
God has given us a safety manual which is capable of saving our lives as long as you follow the instructions inside. Salvation requires more than just knowledge in itself, but the faithful application of the things that you have learned.
James 1 ²¹ Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. 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. ²⁵ 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.
God’s Word can save us, but you need to humbly submit to what it teaches. You must place yourself in subjection to biblical instruction in order to be rewarded by God.
“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” 1 Peter 5:6
God lifted up his servant Moses who was extremely meek, submissive, and obedient to the will of God.
“(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)” Numbers 12:3
The calling of Christ Jesus is a narrow path of obedience, which stands in stark contrast to the place that we are currently living in. I believe that we are in one of the darkest times in history, evidenced by the numerous forms of false Christianity throughout the world, places that are filled with absolute rebellion, wickedness and disobedience toward the will of Christ Jesus. It will get progressively worse as this world enters into an age of great suffering that it has never known before. God’s wrath is going to be poured out upon all of those who have forgotten about God, and rejected the teachings of His Precious Son Christ Jesus. As a perfectly just Father, He will reward His obedient children, and punish the wicked.
2 Thessalonians 1 ⁶ Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; ⁷ And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, ⁸ In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: ⁹ Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; ¹⁰ When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.
God’s Word can protect us from the wrath that is coming, but you must obey and do what it says
Revelation 18 ⁴ And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. ⁵ For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
Can you imagine looking in the mirror, but then completely forgetting what you look like later that afternoon? Yet many people hear the teachings of God’s Word, and completely forget about the person that they are supposed to be in Christ. Genuine love for Jesus and what He did for us at the cross would compel somebody to willfully submit to what He wants us to become. True discipleship is to reject sin and become a new creature, one who has been converted by scriptural truth.
John 8 ³¹ Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
³² And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. ³³ They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? ³⁴ Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. ³⁵ And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
³⁶ If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
1 John 2 ⁵ But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
⁶ He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
To become pleasing unto Him requires complete dedication to His will rather than our own. His directives have already been laid out for us throughout the teachings of the New Testament, and to be saved eternally, we simply must apply what we have learned to our daily lives. God has given us scripture to guide us through the darkness of this world, and light the path for our feet.
“….Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalms 119:105
2 Timothy 3 ¹⁴ But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; ¹⁵ And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
¹⁶ All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: ¹⁷ That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
There were a few times that I was saved out of some potentially lethal situations, but through quick thinking and putting into action the procedures that I had been trained in, I was able to avoid serious consequences. God’s Word is capable of doing the same thing. He has given us scripture in order to protect us from getting hurt, but it can only save you when you obey its instructions. We are living through some perilous times, in a hazardous world where danger lurks around every corner. We must be prepared to spring into action every time that harmful conditions present themselves, remembering all of the things that we have learned from….
……. The Safety Manual
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 goups. 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 