His Love Ministries

RUTH 3:1-11 SEEKING OUR REDEEMER

Ruth
3:1 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, "My daughter, shall I not
seek security for you, that it may be well with you? 2 "Now Boaz, whose
young women you were with, is he not our relative? In fact, he is winnowing
barley tonight at the threshing floor. 3 "Therefore wash yourself and
anoint yourself, put on your best garment and go down to the threshing floor;
but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and
drinking. 4 "Then it shall be, when he lies down, that you shall notice
the place where he lies; and you shall go in, uncover his feet, and lie down;
and he will tell you what you should do." 5 And she said to her, "All that you say
to me I will do." 6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did
according to all that her mother-in-law instructed her. 7 And after Boaz had
eaten and drunk, and his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of
the heap of grain; and she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. 8 Now
it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and
there, a woman was lying at his feet. 9 And he said, "Who are you?"
So she answered, "I am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under
your wing, for you are a close relative." 10 Then he said, "Blessed
are you of the LORD, my daughter! For you have shown more kindness at the end
than at the beginning, in that you did not go after young men, whether poor or
rich. 11 "And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that
you request, for all the people of my town know that you are a virtuous woman.
Reasons for Levirate
marriage
·      
God protected the Israelite women
·      
God protected the family name of the Israelites
– very important in the first and second coming of Jesus Christ
·      
God protected the land rights of the Israelites
·      
In Old Testament times it was vital that a man’s
family name should be preserved. If he died without an heir, steps were to be
taken to make sure that he had an heir who would care for his wife, carry on
the family name and inherit the family property. The law said that the widow of
the dead man should marry one of her husband’s relatives, with the first son of
that union becoming the dead man’s heir:
Also relevant are the provisions of God’s law for what was
to happen when an Israelite family fell on hard times and sold their land. In
such circumstances, the nearest male relative, called the kinsman-redeemer, was
to redeem—to buy back—the land for his poor relatives:
Keep in mind that the Book of Ruth is
much more than the record of the marriage of a rejected alien to a respected
Jew. It’s also the picture of Christ’s relationship to those who trust Him and
belong to Him. In the steps that Ruth takes, recorded in this chapter, we see
the steps God’s people must take if they want to enter into a deeper
relationship with the Lord. Like Ruth, we must not be satisfied merely with
living on leftovers (2:2), or even receiving gifts (2:14, 16). We must want Him alone; for when we have
Him, we also have all that He owns. It’s not the gifts that we seek, but
the Giver
True faith takes initiatives on the basis of God’s Word
Lessons
God’s
sovereignty and providence does not overrule human responsibility2.       God’s
love for us is much greater than we know

RUTH 2:14-23 GOD'S PROVIDENTIAL CARE

Ru
2:14 Now Boaz said to her at mealtime, "Come here, and eat of the bread,
and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar." So she sat beside the
reapers, and he passed parched grain to her; and she ate and was satisfied, and
kept some back. 15 And when she rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men,
saying, "Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. 16
"Also let grain from the bundles fall purposely for her; leave it that she
may glean, and do not rebuke her." 17 So she gleaned in the field until
evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of
barley. 18 Then she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law
saw what she had gleaned. So she brought out and gave to her what she had kept
back after she had been satisfied. 19 And her mother-in-law said to her,
"Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one
who took notice of you." So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had
worked, and said, "The man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz."
20 Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, "Blessed be he of the LORD, who
has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!" And Naomi said
to her, "This man is a relation of ours, one of our close relatives."
21 Ruth the Moabitess said, "He also said to me, 'You shall stay close by
my young men until they have finished all my harvest.'" 22 And Naomi said
to Ruth her daughter-in-law, "It is good, my daughter, that you go out
with his young women, and that people do not meet you in any other field."
23 So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of
barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law. (NKJV)
 1.    
Gods
continual care through Boaz 2:14-16
He is gracious to her, letting her dip the bread in the
vinegar
Boaz
invites her to eat, he serves her personally, some might have been resentful
and wondered why she was eating with them, but when Boaz serves her, they know
it is okay.
His
provision is abundant
Boaz gives her preferential Treatment
2.      
God’s
abundant contribution for Naomi through Ruth
By allowing her to work, Boaz preserved Ruth's dignity, but
by providing generously for her he lightened her duties. The fact that Boaz
permitted Ruth to eat with his household servants was another blessing from the
Lord. Boaz's abundant grace reminds us of God's. It was a mark of his
godliness.
She works hard
Working in a hot
field is hard, then she has to beat out what she gleaned, she has already
worked till evening
Got about 10 days to 2 weeks of food, about 30-50 lbs of
grain
She wasn’t selfish, she kept part back for her mother in law
God’s providence for the hard working is shown here.  Mt 6:25 "Therefore I say to you, do not
worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your
body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than
clothing? 26 "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap
nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more
value than they? Mt 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and His
righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. The birds of the air
are provided for but work for it
Ps 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not
seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.
3.      
God’s
counsel from Naomi V19-23
Ps 41:1 Blessed is he who considers
the poor; The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
Her bitterness is now replaced
with praise
Naomi had hope because of who Boaz was—a near kinsman who was
wealthy and influential
When Ruth shared with Naomi what Boaz had said, Naomi’s hope grew even
stronger because the words of Boaz revealed his love for Ruth and his desire to
make her happy.
God has shown kindness to the living and the dead, by showing kindness
to Naomi and Ruth
He is close enough to be a kinsman redeemer, did not have to
be only a brother of the man who died.
Naomi twice blessed Ruth's benefactor (vv. 19-20). She prayed that
Yahweh would bless Boaz who had been a source of blessing to her and Ruth.
Every prayer in this book is a prayer of blessing, and God answered every one
of them
Naomi then explained to Ruth the law of “the kinsman redeemer”
(Lev. 25:47–55).
The beauty of Ruth's character shines forth in verse 21.
She did not view her relationship with Boaz as a way out of her own
responsibility to provide for herself and her aged mother-in-law. Instead she
rejoiced that she could continue to discharge her duty in safety.
Naomi knows that God has put the
right man in the right place at the right time because of Ruth’s obedience
It is encouraging to see the changes that have taken place
in Naomi because of what Ruth did. God used Ruth to turn Naomi’s bitterness
into gratitude, her unbelief into faith, and her despair into hope. One person,
trusting the Lord and obeying His will, can change a situation from defeat to
victory.
Ruth’s faith in God’s Word led her
to the field of Boaz. The love of Boaz for Ruth compelled him to pour out his
grace upon her and meet her every need
Lessons:
 1.       When
we show obedience to God’s word His character is displayed
a.       He
shows justice to the widow and orphan through us
b.      Boaz
displays the character of God to these women through his provision
2.       The
Love of God is to transcend all barriers
a.       God’s
prohibition is only along spiritual barriers not racial, or status
Ac 17:26 "And He has made from one blood every nation
of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their
preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 "so that they
should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him,
though He is not far from each one of us;

RUTH 2:5-13 LIVING UNDER GOD'S WINGS OF PROTECTION

Ru
2:5 Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, "Whose
young woman is this?" 6 So the servant who was in charge of the reapers
answered and said, "It is the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi
from the country of Moab. 7 "And she said, 'Please let me glean and gather
after the reapers among the sheaves.' So she came and has continued from
morning until now, though she rested a little in the house." 8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, "You will
listen, my daughter, will you not? Do not go to glean in another field, nor go
from here, but stay close by my young women. 9 "Let your eyes be on the
field which they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men
not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from
what the young men have drawn." 10 So she fell on her face, bowed down to
the ground, and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your eyes, that
you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?" 11 And Boaz
answered and said to her, "It has been fully reported to me, all that you have
done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have
left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a
people whom you did not know before. 12 "The LORD repay your work, and a
full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you have
come for refuge." 13 Then she said, "Let me find favor in your sight,
my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken kindly to your maidservant,
though I am not like one of your maidservants."
We
must live by the grace of God
V5 The Lord led Ruth to the field of Boaz and then led Boaz
to visit his field while Ruth was there.V 6-7 Ruth's character too was of high quality, as the
reaper foreman reported (v. 7) and as Boaz later testified he had learned
earlier (v. 11). We should probably understand the last part of verse 7 to mean
that Ruth had rested only a short time.  In other words, Ruth was a hard worker.
V8 1.  Boaz took the initiative TO PROVIDE
Grace means that God
makes the first move to come to our aid, not because we deserve anything, but
because He loves us and wants us for Himself. “We love, because He first
loved us 1 John 4:19
1.    
Boaz spoke to Ruth It was he who
first spoke to her, for she would not have dared to speak to a man, especially
one who was a stranger and “the lord of the harvest. What right did a widow
and an alien have to address a great man like Boaz? Yet he interrupted his
conversation with his foreman to speak to a poor stranger gleaning in his
field.[1]
When he told Ruth to continue gleaning in his field, he
apparently meant that she should glean there throughout the several weeks of
harvesting (cf. v. 23) barley (March–April) and wheat (June–July). Normally the
gleaners would move in after the harvesters had left an area. But Ruth was
invited to follow along with the servant girls as they worked in the
reaping. [1]
2.    
Boaz PROTECTED Ruth V 8-9
Ruth was not
only a woman of faith; she was also a woman of great courage. But then, as Boaz
said, she had come to this land to seek protection under the wings of the One
True God, and protect her He did. The human instrument of that protection was
Boaz, the mighty man of valor. I doubt that anyone gave serious thought to
molesting this Moabite widow if it meant incurring the wrath of Boaz.
(4) Boaz encouraged Ruth (Ruth 2:10–13)
By his comments,
Boaz revealed that although he had never seen her before, he knew a great deal
about her. He knew she had cared well for her mother-in-law since the death
of her husband. In addition, he knew that she had left her parents and her
homeland to come with Naomi to a people she had not previously known. He
pronounced a blessing upon Ruth, that God would reward her because she had
sought His protection. Ruth expressed her appreciation for his kindness,
knowing that she did not have the status of even his most lowly servant.
He
said she had taken refuge under
God’s wings, like a chick under the
wings of its mother hen (cf. Ps. 17:8; 36:7; 57:1; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4; Matt.
23:37).
Ruth’s virtue goes far beyond getting up early and working
late or extending her hand to the poor. Ruth’s great virtue is that she was a
woman of great faith. She, like Abraham, left homeland and family to come to
the land and the people God had promised to bless. She sought refuge and safety
under God’s wings. What a marvelous woman she was.
Ruth
neither looked back at her tragic past nor did she look at herself and consider
her sorry plight. She fell at the feet of the master and submitted herself to
him. She looked away from her poverty and focused on his riches. She forgot her
fears and rested on his promises. What an example for God’s people today to
follow!
Many
people are miserable because they don’t obey the admonition of Hebrews 12:2:
“fixing our eyes on Jesus. They spend so much time looking at themselves,
their circumstances, and other people that they fail to do what Ruth did,
namely, center their attention on their Master. Instead of resting in His
perfections, they focus on their own imperfections. Instead of seeing His
spiritual riches, they complain about their bankruptcy. They go to church “to
get their needs met, instead of going to church to worship the God who is
greater than any need. They need to heed the counsel of this little poem:
Look
at self and be distressed,
Look
at others and be depressed,
Look
at Jesus and you’ll be blessed!
Lessons:
1.       Is
my focus on me, or is it others Phil 2:1-4
2.       God’s
providence doesn’t assist the idle
3.       God
is involved in the lives of ordinary people
4.       No
person is so far from the grace of God that they cannot be saved

RUTH 2:1-4 GOD DIRECTS OUR PATHS

Ruth 2:1-4 GOD DIRECTS OUR PATHS
Ruth 2:1 There
was a relative of Naomi's husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of
Elimelech. His name was Boaz. 2 So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi,
"Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in
whose sight I may find favor." And she said to her, "Go, my
daughter." 3 Then she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the
reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz,
who was of the family of Elimelech. 4 Now behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and
said to the reapers, "The LORD be with you!" And they answered him,
"The LORD bless you!"
 1.    
God's providential guidance of Ruth 1:22, 2:1-7
The theme of God's providence, His working out His own
plan through the circumstances of life, which runs through the Book of Ruth, is
especially strong in this section of scripture
Here, for the first time in the book, a man appears in a
major role.
V 1 Boaz was, by virtue of his family
relationship, was someone who was eligible to perpetuate Elimelech's line, the
larger of Naomi and Ruth's needs. He was also wealthy, so he could provide food
and physical protection for Naomi and Ruth, their immediate need (v. 1). The same
Hebrew words translated "man of wealth," later described Ruth (3:11)
and, earlier, Gideon (Judg. 6:12).
Boaz was a man who
stood apart from and above the typical Israelite of his day (as the Book of
Ruth indicates), why would we be surprised to read that he was (in military
terms) a “mighty man of valor” as well as a man of standing in the
community?
V 2 The author again
reminded the readers that Ruth was a
Moabitess (cf. 1:22), perhaps to
highlight the favorable treatment she was to receive from Boaz
Ruth did not wait for Naomi to serve her; she took the
initiative. Naomi encouraged Ruth to go.
V 3 To live by faith means to take God at His word and then act upon
it, for “faith without works is dead” (James 2:20, NKJV). Since Ruth
believed that God loved her and would provide for her, she set out to find a
field in which she could glean. This was completely an act of faith because,
being a stranger, she didn’t know who owned the various parcels of ground that
made up the fields.
Why didn’t Naomi take some
initiative, rather than leaving it to Ruth? More than this, why didn’t Naomi go
out to the fields, if not to glean, to provide Ruth with some companionship and
a measure of security? It seems obvious that she realized the danger of a young
widow going out alone into the fields to glean. Boaz certainly understood the
risk.
We don’t really know the answer, but Naomi’s passivity
does accomplish one thing here – it shows the reader that Ruth’s appearance at
the field of Boaz was totally a “God thing,” purely the providential kindness
of God in caring for His own.
Ruth qualified for gleaning as an alien and
as a widow. She submitted her plans for Naomi's approval and received her blessing.
Again the author stated that Boaz was from the clan of Elimelech (cf. Ruth 2:1). This fact is
important to the unfolding of events.
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean
not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall
direct your paths.
She is in the will of God and He leads her to the right
place
When you obey the will of God you do know, God will show you
more. 
Romans 8:28 God can order our steps
Ps 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my
path.
The Child of God in fellowship with God has the providence
of God.
Ruth
"happened" to glean in Boaz's field, from the human viewpoint (v. 3),
but, as the story unfolds, God's hand of blessing obviously guided Ruth's
choice to go to that particular field (cf. Prov. 3:5-6; Matt. 2:1-8).
".
. . the author's real meaning in 2:3b is actually the opposite of what he says.
The labelling of Ruth's meeting with Boaz as 'chance' is nothing more than the
author's way of saying that no human intent was involved. For Ruth and Boaz it
was an accident, but not for God. The tenor of the whole story makes it clear
that the narrator sees God's hand throughout. In fact the very lack of
religious expression here is his way of stressing that conviction. It is a kind
of make light of for effect. By calling this meeting an accident, the writer
enables himself subtly to point out that even the 'accidental' is directed by
God."
V 4 Boaz's love for God and other
people, those qualities most important in a human being from God's perspective
(Deut. 6:5; Lev. 19:18; cf. Matt. 22:37-39), are obvious in this record of his
dealing with his employees (v. 4). There was no labor management tension here
since Boaz treated his workers with kindness and consideration.
"Significantly,
the two greetings form a chiasm (a chiasm is a writing style that uses a unique
repetition pattern for clarification and/or emphasis) with the name Yahweh at its
beginning and end. Hence, the exchange dropped a subtle hint which followed up
the 'luck' of v. 3: in a simple, undramatic way, it affirmed the
presence
of Yahweh in this scene. . . . Thus, by this simple device the narrator
reminded his audience that, though offstage, Yahweh was nevertheless within
earshot"

RUTH 1:14-22 RUTH'S COMMITMENT AND NAOMI'S BITTERNESS

The Testimony of
Ruth 14-18 The Committed Believer, an Israelite at Heart
V14 but Ruth
clung to her.
Naomi was trying to cover up; Orpah had given up, but Ruth
was prepared to stand up! She refused to listen to her mother-in-law’s pleas or
follow her sister-in-law’s bad example. Why? Because she had come to trust in the God of Israel (Ru 2:12 "The
LORD repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel,
under whose wings you have come for refuge."). She had experienced
trials and disappointments, but instead of blaming God, she had trusted Him and
was not ashamed to confess her faith. In spite of the bad example of her
disobedient in-laws Ruth had come to know the true and living God; and she
wanted to be with His people and dwell in His land.[1]
v 15 Naomi says if
you are smart you would follow your sister back to Moab
Pr 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the
way of death.
Ruth’s statement in Ruth 1:16–17 is one of the most
magnificent confessions found anywhere in Scripture. First, she confessed her
love for Naomi and her desire to stay with her mother-in-law even unto death.
Then she confessed her faith in the true and living God and her decision to
worship Him alone. She was willing to forsake father and mother (2:11) in order
to cleave to Naomi and the God of her people. Ruth was steadfastly “determined
to accompany Naomi (1:18) and live in Bethlehem with God’s covenant people.[1]
1.    
V16 She is a
surrendered person
2.    
She is a
separated person
o  
From
her pagan people
Your people shall be my people,
o  
From
her pagan gods, a step of faith
And your God, my God.
1Th 1:9
V17 She is a serving
person
o  
Making a vow
that cannot be reversed, saying goodbye to Moab and cutting all ties
Lu 9:62
Deut 23 a vow to God, God would strike you dead under the Old Covenant
V18 When
you read the genealogy of Jesus Christ in Matthew 4, you find the names of five
women, four of whom have very questionable credentials: Tamar committed incest
with her father-in-law (Gen. 38:3); Rahab was a Gentile harlot (Josh. 2:5);
Ruth was an outcast Gentile Moabitess (Ruth 1:5); and “the wife of Uriah was
an adulteress (2 Sam. 11:6). How did they ever become a part of the family of
the Messiah? Through the sovereign grace and mercy of God! God is
“long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all
should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9, NKJV). (Mary is the fifth woman in the
genealogy, and she was included because of God’s grace and her faith. See Luke
1:26–56.)
V20 Naomi’s
Bitterness
We can’t control the circumstances
of life, but we can control how we respond to them. That’s what faith is all
about, daring to believe that God is working everything for our good even when
we don’t feel like it or see it happening. “In everything give thanks (1 Thes.
5:18) isn’t always easy to obey, but obeying this command is the best antidote
against a bitter and critical spirit. The Scottish preacher George H. Morrison
said, “Nine-tenths of our unhappiness is selfishness, and is an insult cast in
the face of God. Because Naomi was imprisoned by selfishness, she was bitter
against God.
Naomi accused the
Lord of dealing very bitterly with her
Trials can make you bitter or better
She was a woman with empty hands, an empty home, and an
empty heart. Because she didn’t surrender to the Lord and accept His loving
chastening, she did not experience “the peaceful fruit of righteousness
Heb 12:11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present,
but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of
righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Lessons
Living out of the will of God will make
you miserable – Example of disobedienceJohn 10:10 Thief comes to steal kill and
destroy
Count the cost of Living for God or the
world - Orpah was never heard of againLu 14:25 Now great multitudes went with Him.
And He turned and said to them, 26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not
hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and
his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 "And whoever does not bear
his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 "For which of you,
intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether
he has enough to finish it -- 29 "lest, after he has laid the foundation,
and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,
Ruth provides an example of real Faith
–she was like Abraham, Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the
place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing
where he was going.

RUTH 1:6-13 DON'T BE AN UNBELIEVING BELIEVER

Ru 1:6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she
might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab
that the LORD had visited His people by giving them bread. 7 Therefore she went
out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and
they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her
two daughters-in-law, "Go, return each to her mother's house. The LORD
deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 "The
LORD grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband." Then
she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to
her, "Surely we will return with you to your people." 11 But Naomi
said, "Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still
sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 "Turn back,
my daughters, go-for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have
hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons, 13
"would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain
yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much
for your sakes that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me!"
 The
Testimony of Naomi 6-7  The
Backsliding Believer, she is a Moabite at heartShe is out of
fellowship with GodShe is missing God’s bestShe is experiencing the consequences of her disobedienceLev 26:3-26 If you do this, blessing, if not then consequencesSometimes we say “Lord, we’ve asked you
to bless all these things;
but, have we asked please, Lord, make us
blessable. Naomi would have had to confess, “Lord, I’m not blessable.
Whenever we have disobeyed the Lord and
departed from His will, we must confess our sin and return to the place of
blessing.
V8 -13 She is giving bad adviceNaomi
tried to influence the two women to go back to their families and their false
gods.
If it was right for her to go back, it
was right for them to go back too
·      
Naomi
should have said to them what Moses said to his father-in-law, “Come thou with
us, and we will do thee good; for the Lord has spoken good concerning Israel
(Num. 10:29, KJV). Instead, Naomi tried to influence the two women to go back
to their families and their false gods.
v
11-13 She is thinking in human terms, not that God can do all thingsNaomi was trying to cover up her disobedience. If she returned to
Bethlehem alone, nobody would know that the family had broken the Law of Moses.
1.    
God
providentially closed their wombs so that there would not be any ½ Israelite
children, but the promised heir would come later
2.    
Over emphasis on
husband and children - she is wanting to find security in husbands and children
and bread- the physical vs the spiritual
3.    
She is Saying go
back and marry a Moabite
4.    
To find rest for
an OT Oriental culture was to find a husband and security
5.    
With no husband
they have no way to live
Three
times Naomi insisted that they return to Moab
 

RUTH 1:1-5 THE COST OF IGNORING GOD'S WILL

1 Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled,
that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah,
went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The
name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of
his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion-Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they
went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi's
husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 Now they took wives of the
women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth.
And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died;
so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.
·      
We have
to decide which world we are going to live in for eternity
·      
We have
to decide which world we are going to live in now
·      
Three fatal mistakes
o  
Walked by sight not faith - Deut 28
·      
Bethlehem means house of bread
·      
Should have repented instead of going to Moab,
and God would have lifted the famine
o  
Focused on physical not the Spiritual
§ 
Better to be in Bethlehem and be hungry than to
be in Moab out of the Will of God with a full stomach
§ 
By doing this He honored the enemy instead of
the Lord
o  
He broke covenant with God by leaving the land –
Deut 28
Moab is my wash pot, in other words instead of eating at the
house of bread, he is eating out of the garbage can
§ 
Like the Story of prodigal
·      
They became
comfortable in their disobedience
o  
They remained
there – lived there 10 years, made it their home
o  
Got swept up into the culture
o  
They were disciplined by the Lord
After Elimelech died the sons Married
Moabite women
Am 3:3 Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?
2Co 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what
fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light
with darkness?
Lessons
1.      
It’s
been said that crises reveal what we are. 
They also make us what we are in God’s plan 1 Peter 1 and
James 1 says count it all joy and let patience have it’s perfect
work. Don’t get out of the trial, learn what God wants you to in the trial
2.      
You
don’t want to be anywhere out of the will of God.  It’s better to starve to death in God’s will rather
than be somewhere He doesn’t want you to be
3.      
When
we disobey we put others and ourselves in danger of God’s discipline and all
kinds of bad things can happen.  We can
lose everything.
4.      
God
loves it when we come home to Him.
Lu 15:6 "And
when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to
them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'

EPHESIANS 6:18-24 TO WIN THE BATTLE YOU HAVE TO PRAY

Eph 6:18
praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful
to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-- 19 and
for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to
make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in
chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. 21 But that you
also may know my affairs and how I am doing, Tychicus, a beloved brother and
faithful minister in the Lord, will make all things known to you; 22 whom I
have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and that
he may comfort your hearts. 23 Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from
God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace be with all those who love
our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
 PRAYER, the means by which we remain "watchful"
Now the fact that it
is climactic in the Book of Ephesians is planned by God's Holy Spirit, it is
not by accident. Our Lord urged men always to pray and not to faint in Luke
18:1. And He knows that in the battle when it gets hot you can faint, you can
get weary, you can give up, you can abandon the fight if you don't pray. You
really only have two alternatives, you either pray or faint, there's no middle
ground. And so in the warfare that he's just talked about prayer becomes vital.
But it's more than just that context. The reason prayer comes here is because
it fits the ending of the total book, the whole letter of Ephesians comes to a
climax and a peak and a pinnacle at this point in the great anthem of praise
that is the book of Ephesians.
We
should understand spiritual warfare as influencing life within the church, not
just as a personal matter. "Satan
trembles when he sees The weakest saint upon his knees."
I
want you to see the general instruction in verse 18, and you'll notice there
are four all’s.
First of all let's look first of all at the frequency of
prayer; When are we to pray? Always
Secondly, we see not
only the frequency of prayer but the second “all” shows us the
variety of prayer. "Praying always with all prayer and supplication."
Now what does he mean by all prayer and all supplication? He means there are
general areas of prayer, we pray more generally, and then we also pray
specifically
                Thirdly, we see the manner of prayer. He says, "Watching
thereunto with all perseverance and supplication." In other words we are
to watch with all perseverance, and again you see the idea of perseverance
meaning to stick to it, to stay at it, to hang in there, to continue, to
persevere, praying continuously while watching. Prayer is to be alert to the
issues, alert to what's happening. Jesus said, "Watch and pray" many
times. First Peter 4:7, "Watch unto prayer."
In the Garden of
Gethsemane, Jesus taught that we must "watch and pray, lest you enter into
temptation" - Mt 26:36-45, 26:51-54, 58, 69-75; Mark 8:29-33, Peter;
1Peter 5:4;
                You see God answers prayer to put His power on display; if you don't
pray specifically then He can't display Himself.
                What Paul is saying is this, “here
is the war and it is about the war that you must pray.” It's not easy for you
to fight the battle and so I pray for you. Oh, I pray now and then for people's
physical things but more than that I pray that God will give you victory, I
pray that you'll win the battle against the enemy. I don't really care what
happens to my physical body or yours as long as we gain the victory for the
glory of God, amen? That's the battle, that's the real issue.
Lose yourselves in
the real things that matter, the spiritual battles of other people. Lose
yourselves in consuming prayer for the Kingdom of God and you won't have
trouble with your little petty anxieties.
There's one final
thought in this verse 18, and it's this that when you've said it all, the
frequency of prayer, always. The pervasive thought is in the middle of
the verse, we are to pray in the Spirit. This does not have anything to do with
speaking in tongues, you cannot introduce tongues into this verse.
                In Jude 20 it says,
"Praying in the Holy Spirit." It is not talking about some ecstasy;
it is not talking about some ecstatic language. Praying in the Spirit is the
same as praying in the name of Christ, it is praying in consistency with who He
is and what His will is. Learn to pray in harmony with the Spirit’s desires.
Then Paul closes with
a specific illustration, if you want
something specific to pray for, here it is. Verse 19, "Pray for
me," what should I pray for Paul? "That utterance may be given to me,
that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for
which I am an ambassador in bonds; that in this I may speak boldly, as I ought
to speak." He says, I'm the illustration, pray for me, not my physical
needs but my battle, my warfare, pray that God will allow me to be bold and
courageous and straight forward and give me utterance.
CONCLUSION
1. When we arm
ourselves with;
   a. Truth
   b. Righteousness
   c. The gospel of peace
   d. Faith
   e. The hope of salvation
   f. The word of God
   g. Prayer
   ...then we are "strong in the Lord and
in the power of His might"!
   - Ep
6:10
2. With such
strength, we are able to resist and stand firm against anything Satan might
throw against us
   a. But the choice to "put on the whole
armor of God" is up to us...
   b. Are we taking care to put on this wonderful
armor???

EPHESIANS 6:17 TO WIN THE BATTLE YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE HELMET AND THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT

SALVATION, which is like a helmet
A Roman soldier
wouldn't go to battle without a helmet, he'd be foolish. A Roman soldier would
be very careful to get his helmet on. Now helmets were made out of basically
two things, leather with some patches of metal on it, pieces of metal or else
those molded solid cast helmets, you know you've seen with the plumes depending
on what regiment, what function, what period of time you were involved in. But,
but a helmet was very important to protect the head from arrows flying around
for one thing but primarily from what was known as a broad sword. There was not
only the machaira, the little dagger that he uses in verse 17 but there was in
the midst of a battle those who carried the broad sword which was from three to
four feet long, longer than your yard stick, and it had a huge massive handle
that you held with both hands like a baseball bat. And you just lifted it over
your head and went around flailing away at some footmen down there. The broad
sword was a tremendous weapon and you wanted to have a helmet to deflect a blow
from a broad sword, because it would deal a heavy, splitting blow to the skull.
                                He's not talking about past element of
salvation or the present feature but he is talking about the fullness of it. We
are waiting in hope, we are holding onto hope that someday the battle will be
over and someday we won't have to struggle with sin and the flesh and the devil
and the world and demons. Someday we'll know the hope of a full righteousness.
Look at 1Peter 1:3 and here is a great benediction, Peter says, "Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his abundant
mercy, has begotten us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead." In other words he says we have been saved to a
hope, to hope for an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, that fades not
away, reserved in heaven for you." Our hope is heaven. "We are kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation." A salvation "ready
to be revealed in the last time."
                In other words in case you get
weary and you think maybe there's never going to be an end to it, He'll be back.
There will be an end, there will be a goal, and there is a finish line. And
that's exactly what the helmet of salvation is; it's the hope of ultimate
salvation. 1Thessalonians chapter 5:8, "But let us "who are of the
day," that is we're not of the night that's Satan's dominion, we're of the
day that's sons of light in God's Kingdom, "let us, who are of the day, be
sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love," now watch,
"and, for an helmet, the hope of salvation. There is still an element
of salvation to obtain, God has appointed us to obtain that finally, and it is
the helmet of salvation. The writer of Hebrews says Heb 6:16 For men indeed
swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all
dispute. 17 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of
promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, 18 that by
two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have
strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before
us. 19 This hope we have as an anchor of
the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the
veil, 20 where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become
High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Summing it up, the
helmet of salvation is confidence in a full, final, total salvation to come.
It's confidence that someday the battle will be over. I couldn't fight if I
didn't think there was a finish somewhere, could you? There's got to be an end.
                That big broad sword that the
Roman soldier would have to face had two sides? Do you know what Satan's big
broad sword is; it's got two sides to it? One side is discouragement and the
other side's doubt. You know what Satan wants to do? He wants to belt you
right in the head with discouragement and doubt, get you discouraged, you're
sure giving a lot and not getting much in return, you're living this Christian
life, setting yourself apart from the world you're living it, and what happens?
You just lost your job. Great blessing, huh? You've been reading your Bible
every day and your wife is as cranky as she was before and nothing has had an effect
on her at all. What's God doing in your life? You've been going to church for
so many years, look at your kids, they don't respect you now any more than they
ever did. And you begin to get discouraged. I've been teaching a class so long
and I wonder whether anybody gets anything out of it, you say. And you get real
discouraged, that's one of the things.
                The other thing Satan wants to hit you in the head with is doubt. How
do you know you're really a Christian? Are you sure you're really saved? You
don't deserve it look what you just did. Do you think that's a manifestation of
being a Christian? And people suffer from doubt and discouragement, and that's
what he uses. And the helmet of salvation is a protection.
                Let's talk about the area of discouragement, look in 1Kings 19,
great story of Elijah. Elijah is kind of the Peter of the Old Testament he's up
and down a lot But Elijah at this point has just had a great victory, I mean a
victory like no other prophet of God ever had, he just took out a sword and
slaughtered four hundred and fifty priests of Baal.
God said, Elijah you
have no business being discouraged, now you get yourself up here in Mount
Horeb. Elijah gave Him some song and dance about I'm the only one left Lord, I'm
the only one left, I'm the only faithful person You have. And the Lord says in
chapter 19:18, “Yes, I have seven thousand others beside you, it's not just
one, it's seven thousand and one Elijah, now get back there and get busy.” It's
so easy to become discouraged, and I can vouch for that even at the moment of
some of your greatest triumphs you go back to reality and you go wow, how did I
get here? It's easy to be discouraged.
And
you hang in there because you know that day when you're going to be like Jesus
is coming.
                Dr. Richter of Johns Hopkins
Medical School carried out an experiment that attempted to measure the
motivational effect of having a goal. The experiments involved placing rats
into cylinders of water that were thirty inches deep by eight inches wide.
After a short time, half of the rats were momentarily rescued by being lifted
out of the cylinder for a few seconds, then put right back into the water. The
other half were not. The group that was given hope swam for more than three
days. The other rats drowned almost immediately.
The
rats that knew there was a chance of being rescued again had a goal - to stay
alive until the next rescue. The other group had no goal, so they just gave up.
*              There's
a second thing, and that is that Satan has another edge on his sword. It isn't
discouragement it's doubt. And maybe doubt is the ultimate discouragement. Do
you know that Satan wants you to doubt your salvation? Oh he is really good at
that. Most people suffer from that at some point in their Christian life.
                Ro 8:38 For I am persuaded that
neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things
present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created
thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
It is the
"hope" that salvation provides that can protect our minds against
things like despair and fear Is 59:17;
Ro 5:10
We have the mind of
Christ 1Co 2:16; Ro 12:2; 1Pe 1:3-5;
John 10:28; Ro 8:31-39; Phil 1:6
THE WORD OF GOD, which is the "sword of the
Spirit"
Finally, to the sword
of the Spirit which is the word of God. The previous armor has been primarily
defensive but now we come to a piece of armor that is both defensive and
offensive. I've heard people say that this is offensive. It is more than that
it is defensive as well.
The
word of God is similar to this short sword for the Christian. "Word"
(Gr. rhema) refers to the utterance of God rather than to the written Word or
the living Word of God (Gr. logos). It seems most likely
to
refer to the words of Scripture that we use to counteract the particular temptation
we face. It is the appropriate Scripture spoken or put to use by the Christian
in a given instance of temptation that is in view (e.g., Matt.4:4, 6, 10).
"As
Jesus used the words of Scripture to repulse the tempter, so must the Christian
know and use the words the Spirit has inspired to drive away Satan."
         a. Here is the "offensive"
weapon that Christians must use in their battles, and it is a powerful one! - He 4:12; 2Co 10:3-5; Luke 4
         b. With this "sword" it is
possible for the Spirit to "cut to the heart" those who hear the Word
- cf. Ac 2:36-37; 7:54
It is the sword of the Spirit in the sense that the
Spirit has given it. But if you put both together you get this idea, our sword
is spiritual because it was given to us by the Holy Spirit. 2Ti 3:14.
                The Scottish pastor and writer Dr.
Guthrie said, "The Bible is an armory of heavenly weapons, a laboratory of
infallible medicines, a mine of exhaustless wealth, it is a guidebook for every
road, a chart for every sea, a medicine for every malady and a balm for every
wound. Rob us of our Bible and our sky has lost its sun."
                One writer said the
authorship of the Bible is so wonderful. "There are words written by
kings, by emperors, by princes, by poets, by sages, by philosophers, by
fishermen, by statesmen, by men learned in the wisdom of Egypt, educated in the
schools of Babylon and trained at the feet of rabbis in Jerusalem. It was
written by men in exile, in the desert, in shepherd's tents, in green pastures
and beside still waters. Among its authors we find a tax-gatherer, a herdsman,
a gatherer of sycamore fruit. We find poor men, rich men, statesmen, preachers,
captains, legislators, judges and exiles. The Bible is a library full of
history, genealogy, ethnology, law, ethics, prophecy, poetry, eloquence,
medicine, sanitary science, political economy and the perfect rules for
personal and social life. And behind every word is the divine author God
Himself."
                First of all, the Bible claims that it is infallible. That means
that it is without error in total. That the sum of it all makes no mistakes.
That it is faultless, flawless, without blemish. In Psalm 19:7 it says;
"The law of the Lord is perfect.” In its total, it is reliable.
                Secondly, in its parts it is inerrant and that means that there is
no error in it. In Proverbs 30:5 it says, "Every word of God is pure,"
Every word. "Pr 30:6 Add thou not unto his words, Lest he reprove thee,
and thou be found a liar." And so His word is infallible in total,
inerrant in part.
                Thirdly, it is complete. Revelation 22:18-19 says, "If any man
shall add unto these things God shall add unto him the plagues that are written
in this book and if any man shall take away the words of this book God shall
take away his part from the tree of life." In other words, you can't add
to it and you can't take away from it and that means it is complete.
                Fourthly, the Bible is authoritative. In Isaiah 1:2 we read;
"Hear oh heavens and give ear oh earth for the Lord hath spoken."
When God speaks everybody better listen; that's what it means when it says it's
authoritative.
                Fifth, the Bible is sufficient. In 2Timothy chapter 3 it says:
"That it is sufficient to make you wise unto salvation, it is sufficient
to make you perfect thoroughly furnished to all good works". This book can
bring you to salvation and bring you to perfection. There is nothing other than
that that is needful. So the Bible is infallible in total, inerrant in part,
complete, authoritative and sufficient.
                Sixth, it is effective. When it speaks things happen. The Bible
changes things. The word of God works transformation. In Isaiah 55; "So
shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth, it shall not return void but
shall accomplish what I please." It is effective. The reason I preach it
is because I believe it will do what it says it will do.
                Seventh, it is divine. 2Peter 1:21, it says; "That the
scripture did not come from any private interpretation, it came not from the
will of man but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy
Spirit." It's God's book. Now listen, a book that is infallible, inerrant,
complete, authoritative, sufficient, effective and divine is a book that ought
to be cherished.
                Lastly, it is also determinative. What a person does with a Bible
reveals his relationship to God. Jesus said; "John 8:47 He that is of God
hears the words of God: for this cause ye hear them not, because ye are not of
God". If you listen to the Bible it shows you belong to God. If you don't,
it shows you don't The Bible, then, becomes a determiner in the sense of a
man's eternal destiny and his relationship with God. What an incredible book.
There is no book in existence in the universe that can make these claims and
substantiate them, only the Bible.
                What does the Bible do for you? What does the Bible offer you? What
resources does it bring to you?
                First of all, it's the source of
truth.
John 17:17 says, "Thy word is truth." It's the truth about life, death,
time, eternity. The truth about heaven and hell, the truth about right and
wrong, the truth about men and women, the truth about old people and young
people, the truth about children, the truth about society, the truth about
every relationship between God and man, every relationship between man and man
and every relationship between man and creation. The truth about everything
that's needful.
                Secondly, the Bible is a source of happiness. We see the world
around us chasing happiness like mad, just furiously chasing happiness and the
simplicity of scripture is this, Proverbs 8:34; "Happy is the man who
hears Me." The simplicity of the statement of Jesus in Luke 11:28,
"Happy are they who hear the word of God and obey it." That's happiness,
no man is happier then he who discovers truth.
                Third, the Bible is the source
of growth.
Life is all about growing but not growing in the way that they think. We are to
grow in the knowledge of the word of God, because Peter says, "Grow in
grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ." How do you do that?
Again, the word is the source of growth. In Peter he says, 1Peter 2:2, "As
babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby."
                Also, the Bible is the source of power. We're really impotent in
our lives if we don't use God's word. The Bible is the source of our power.
"The word is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword."
                The Bible is the source of
guidance,
Psalm 119:105, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my
path."
                The Bible is a source of comfort, Romans 15:4 talks
about the comfort of the scripture. The Bible is the source of perfection, 2Timothy
3:16, "That the man of God may be perfect!" The Bible is the
source of so many things. This incredible book that never has an error,
never makes a mistake is always sufficient and complete and authoritative and
effective and determinative can bring to your life truth and happiness and
growth and power and guidance and comfort and perfection.
                And one other thing, the Bible is the source of victory over the enemy.
And with that we arrive at Ephesians 6:17. It is the sword of the Spirit which
is the word of God that gives us the weapon against our enemy. That's why I
preach the word of God. That's why we systematically teach the word of God.
Because, it wouldn't even matter if all of those other things I said about were
true if you never learned it. You would have at your disposal a resource never
used.
                Now the word sword here is a
very interesting term. It is the word in the Greek “machaira”. This is the more
normal sword carried by the soldiers, anywhere from six inch long daggers to 18
inch swords or so. They were put into a sheath or a scabbard by the side of the
soldier and were used in hand-to-hand combat.
                Paul said to the Corinthians in
2Cor. 10:4 that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but spiritual. That's
his implication there. And so we are using a spiritual sword. The fact that
verse 12 says we are fighting spiritual wickedness; he's talking here about a
spiritual sword. Of course, all of this is spiritual. We have really a
spiritual belt and a spiritual breastplate and spiritual shoes and spiritual
shield and a spiritual helmet.
                The Bible in your life is a weapon. It's only a matter of whether
you know how to use it. And learning how to use it is dependent upon how
diligently you get involved in studying the word of God. That's why the apostle
Paul spent three years in Ephesus and said, "in Ac 20:27 For I shrank
not from declaring unto you the whole counsel of God." Why? He wanted to
teach them how to use the sword. He wanted to give them the whole thing so that
they would be able to use it effectively.
                The word then is our weapon, and
it's powerful. It's powerful in Romans 1:16 it says, "So powerful",
he says, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ for it is the power of
God unto salvation". You wield this sword and people will get saved. You will literally use the sword as it were
to tear away souls from the kingdom of darkness. With the sword you can cut a
path through Satan's dominion.
                It can be used in judgment. In Hebrews chapter 4:12 where it says
the word of God is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword
piercing even the dividing asunder of soul and spirit of joints and marrow and
is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. The word discerner means
to judge by sifting out the evidence. The word of God becomes that which judges
people. You preach the word and it brings to bear on their life the judgment of
God. And it sits and weighs their life in the balance of the authority of the
word of God to show them the fact or reality of their sinfulness.
                The next verse he says that's
why, Hebrews 4:13, "no creature can hide himself but everyone is made
naked before God's word." God's word comes like a sword taking souls from
the kingdom of darkness. God's word comes like a sword piercing into the hearts
of men, sifting the evidence and showing them their own sin and guilt before a
holy God. This is a powerful weapon. It
is so powerful it can bring truth into error. It is so powerful it can bring
happiness into sadness. It is so powerful it brings light to darkness and shows
you the way. It is so powerful it changes sorrow into joy. It is so powerful
that it changes stagnation into growth. It is so powerful it takes an infantile
person and makes them mature. This is a powerful thing. This is what we
hold in our hands; the sword of the Spirit.
                Let's talk about
its defensive capability. If you've ever seen anybody use a sword
you know that a sword is used as much to block a blow as it is to inflict one.
And a person who uses a sword uses it along with that part which covers his
hand to defend himself against the blows of his enemy. And the way you use the
word of God defensively is really critical. Satan comes to attack you with his
temptations. He comes to attack you with his assaults and you can literally block
his blows with the proper use of the word of God.
                For example, we see our Lord, in
Matthew chapter 4 and in Luke chapter 4 and Satan comes to Him three times and
Satan attacks Him with three direct temptations. Number one is to don't trust
God, make stones into bread, don't wait for God to supply your needs, grab it
on your own. And Jesus comes back and quotes scripture exactly related to that
temptation out of Deuteronomy. Satan comes a second time and says, “Furthermore
I'm going to tempt you now to trust God where you have no business trusting
God, dive off the temple and let Him catch you.” And He uses another scripture
from Deuteronomy exactly dealing with that temptation, third time, bow down to
me. And He uses another scripture exactly dealing with that temptation.
                In other words, precisely He
uses the “machaira” of the word, He doesn't flail It around indiscriminately He
uses it precisely to deal with exactly the temptation that Satan shot at Him.
Listen, you have to be able to defend yourself at whatever angle the temptation
comes from. And there are Christians who own Bibles and they've sat in churches
and they've been in classes and they've even read it but they don't really know
the principles and so they can't stop the attack at one point or another.
Satan will find out
where you don't have that information and that's where he'll start hitting.
                You must learn the principles of
the word of God and that's why 2Ti 2:15 says you have to study to show yourself
approved unto God.
*               Secondly, it's an offensive
weapon.
This
word is powerful, so powerful the Bible says it converts the soul. No word of
man can route the spiritual hosts of wickedness, only the Word of God. So it is
defensive as we know it to defend ourselves, it is offensive as we go out and
conquer Satan's dark kingdom. And again may I remind you that when you use the
word of God offensively it has to be specific?
                But, if you're going to be
effective at communicating you've got to know the word so you can be instant in
season and out of season. As 1Pe 3:15 says but sanctify the Lord God in your
hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason
for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; So that you have an
answer, Peter said. We need to know the word of God.
                Walter Martin says the tragedy of Christianity is that a ninety day
wonder out of Jehovah's Witnesses can take apart a Christian in thirty minutes.
And in many cases that's true. We just really don't know the word like we
should. Because we don't know it like we should we can't defend ourselves and
we can't use it as an offensive weapon. Oh, the more you know the word the more
you're going to march through Satan's kingdom because God's Word has answers
that cut right into the core of his lies. And so we need to know the word.
                He not only gave you the book,
He planted in your heart the resident truth teacher and He'll teach it to you
if you'll submit to His teachings. Nobody's going to be able to plead
ignorance. I don't understand those big words. You can understand God will
enable you to understand as much as you need to understand to win the victory.
It isn't that tough, I understand it.
            If
anything is ever good, it indicates that somebody's put a lot of effort into
it. That's the way it is in your life. Just because you own a Bible doesn't
mean you have a sword. You can own a Bible warehouse and not have a sword, if
you don't know how to use it defensively and offensively. Jesus gave us the
pattern, He said, "What does the scripture say?" That's how to live
life, that's how to approach temptation, that's how to approach ministry. In
Acts 17 it says “The Bereans were more noble then the others because they
searched the scriptures.” That's true Christianity.

EPHESIANS 6:14B-16 TO WIN THE BATTLE YOU HAVE TO STAND FIRM

V14b The whole armor of God involves putting on the
breastplate of RIGHTEOUSNESS, which guards like a breastplate 2co 7:1;
1Th 5:8 This means we have a right relationship with God
A breastplate covered two vital
areas, the heart and the bowel area. Now to the Jew this had a great significance,
symbolically the heart represented the mind. The Bible says in "Pr 23:7
For as he thinks in his heart, so is he" " Mt 15:19 "For out of the heart proceed evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness,
blasphemies. "The heart is the thinking aspect of life, the heart in
Hebrew terms or symbols means the mind. "The heart of man is deceitful
above all things and desperately wicked." Thinking is associated with the heart. The bowels are associated with
feelings and emotions.
The heart then means
the thinking process and the bowels refers to the emotions, and if we can draw
that across to our imagery in terms of the armor this is what we're saying.
Satan wants to attack a believer in two areas primarily,
one, in his thinking, two, in his emotions. One in the way he thinks and feels
another in the way he responds emotionally. And the believer must be protected,
because this is where Satan makes his attack, he feeds your thinking and your
emotions with false information, he wants to cloud your mind with false
doctrine, lies, religious untruth, anything he can, and he wants to appeal to
the wrong parts of your emotions, he wants to bring about evil emotional
responses, he wants to twist and pervert your affections. And so the sum of it
is this, if you protect your thinking and your feeling from the attacks of
Satan you're protected. He'll try to confuse your mind with false doctrine or
he'll try to confuse your emotions to make you long for, lust for, feel after
and have affection for the wrong things.
V 15 THE GOSPEL OF PEACE
What is the first word in verse 14? Stand, this is not
going, this is standing that the Apostle is speaking  in reference to. And the point here is not
evangelizing the lost, the point here is not preaching the Gospel, the point
here is fighting the devil. This is conflict for a Christian. He is not talking
about going anywhere and preaching, he's talking about standing where you are
and fighting the devil.
The idea is best in the words, expressed in the words of
1Corinthians 16:13, "Stand fast in the faith." And he is saying,
because our feet are shod with the Good News of peace we stand our ground, we
don't slip, we don't slide, we don't fall when we're under attack
V16 FAITH, which is like a shield
And
so that's what Paul sees here, this thing quenches the fiery darts of the evil
one. Now we need to ask ourselves, what are the fiery darts? What is it we're
trying to stop? Well in the battle of those days the archers would get their
arrows and they would put some material, some ball of cotton or something like
that on the tip and it would be soaked in pitch, which would burn rather slowly
but rather hotly, and then they would have that dipped and before they would
shoot the arrow they would light it, and when it hit its target it would
splatter the pitch and it would start little fires on the clothing of the
soldier or whatever and burn him, or burn up perhaps whatever target they had
in view, if it was made of wood. And so this was what was in Paul's mind, and
with the deflection of a metal face on a shield or the leather that would
extinguish these there could be protection.
                Now what are Satan's fiery darts? They're seducing temptations, that's
all. He's simply referring to temptation. Satan fires shafts of impurity,
shafts of selfishness, doubt, fear, disappointment, lust, greed, vanity,
covetousness, it all comes down to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes,
and the pride of life. He literally bombards the believer with the arrows, the
fiery darts of seductive temptation to bring out of us ungodly, non-Christ like,
evil responses. And the only defense we have at this point, Paul says is the
shield of faith because sometimes it just rains temptation. We live in a world
where it’s all around us and we must have the shield of faith.
Now what does he mean
by the shield of faith? We understand the Roman picture, we've got the picture
of the army and the arrows flying around, why is faith a shield against
temptation? How does faith block the arrows, how does faith secure the victory?
Well the term faith means believing God
and that is the bottom line of the Christian faith, that is the bottom line
of everything we believe, everything we hold to, everything we have our
confidence in. The whole of Christianity is an act of believing that God is,
and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seeking Him seek Him.
Believing that He wrote the Bible, believing that Christ is God, believing that
He died, believing that He rose, believing that He's coming, believing that by
believing we can enter into His Kingdom. The whole thing. That's why Habakkuk 2:4 says, "The just shall live by his
faith." Romans 1:17 says, "The just shall live by faith."
Galatians 3:11, "The just shall live by faith." Hebrews 10, "The
just shall live by faith."
The shield of faith is the consistent
application of what we believe about God to the issues of life. Now if you don't trust Him then you don't know Him well enough, because
if you really knew Him you'd trust Him.

EPHESIANS 6:11B-14A STANDING AGAINST THE SCHEMES OF THE DEVIL

First we have to have our strength in the Lord and
secondly we have to have the armor on.
We need to be strong
in the Lord so we can know who our enemy is and so we can stand against the
schemes of the devil  1
Corinthians 15:58 – Be Steadfast, Immovable
Not only do we battle against Satan, but we battle
against: demonic forces
         a. principalities and powers, rulers
of the darkness of this age, spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly
places
Our duty is not to
attack Satan, or to defeat him, but rather to withstand his attacks
1Co 10:12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take
heed lest he fall.
                You know when you are
vulnerable? When you think you are not. When you think I have all the
information - I've mastered the book of Ephesians, I'm alright, and I know what
to do. I've got the principles. Or when you think you can handle Satan. I've
got all the necessary equipment. But on the other hand, the point is this, when
you think you can do it - you can't. But on the other hand, when you depend
upon God there is nothing Satan can do, to you that needs to cause you to lose
the victory.                1Co
10:13
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is
faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but
with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to
bear it.
            Paul’s words about spiritual warfare
in chapter 6 in the context of Ephesians, means we wage the spiritual war, not necessarily
in terms of grand battles and heroic actions, but in terms of simple faith in
the teachings of Paul in chapters 1-3 and in terms of our obedience to the
commands of Paul as found in chapters 4-6.
Paul’s instructions
concerning the spiritual war are similar, in that Paul is informing every
Christian that they have been drafted, not to fight a physical war, but to
fight a spiritual war. We are not encouraged to take up the “full armor of
God,” we are commanded to do so. These verses are our marching orders, and we
dare not ignore them, or fail to carry them out to the letter.
             When our life comes to an end, I
pray that we will be able, like Paul, to say, “I have fought the good fight, I
have finished the course, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).

EPHESIANS 6:10-11A INTRO TO HOW TO WIN THE BATTLE

We Need To Know We Are In A War Is 14:12-14,
Ezekiel 28:12-15
 When it comes to defining the Christian
life, the best term is warfare. At the end of Paul’s life he said, “I have
fought a good fight.” In his ministry he said, “I fight not as one who beats
the air.” To Timothy he said, “Be a soldier who endures harness.” Repeatedly in
Scripture the Christian life is seen as warfare. When Jesus began His ministry
the first part of His ministry was a battle with Satan, after forty days of
fasting in which Satan approached Him and tempted Him subtly three times. And
the way His ministry ended was the same way as Satan began to come against Him in
the garden of Gethsemane and He began to sweat as it were great drops of blood.
                                The Christian life never stops
being a war, but the longer you fight the battle the greater the number of
victories. And the more battles you win, the more confidence you have in God
and the more you know that HE is going to take you through and the more exciting
it is as you see God's power working in your life.

JAMES 1:14-15 TESTS AND TEMPTATION PART 3

JAMES 1:14-15  But each one is
tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15
Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is
full-grown, brings forth death.
 As we continue our
lengthy discussion on the subject of temptation we will begin to see it all
begins in the mind.  God allows us to be
tested and tempted, but the temptation comes from the devil and he plays on the
inward desires that we have for all kinds of pleasure.  God wants to see how much we really love
him.  Are we satisfied in Him or do we go
elsewhere to meet what we think are unfulfilled needs and wants?  It really is a battle for our mind, which is
why we are bombarded everywhere we go by so much junk that we see, or told that
we need.  It all began in the garden with
Eve and the devil and it has been happening ever since.  The devil tells us that God is holding out on
us and we believe him.  God only withholds
from us that which is not good for us or we are not ready to handle.  He only has our best in mind.  The old show on TV had it right, Father Knows
Best.  How about you, are you satisfied
with all that God has given you, or do you want your way?

James 1:13-14 Tests and Temptation Part 2

James 1:13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by
God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt
anyone.  14 But each one is
tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
 In this section of scripture we are taking another deeper look at
Temptation.  A temptation is a test that
is reacted to in a wrong manner.  God
Tests us, the devil tempts us.  God wants
us to become better people, the devil wants us to become bitter people.  We are taking a several message long look at
who is tempted, why we are tempted and how to handle it.  I hope you will listen to all of these
because the Bible says we are all tempted, just as all are tested.  The question is how will you react and do you
know how to overcome the struggle we all have in this area?  If you don’t, please stay with us for this
whole series because God wants us all to know how to deal with this area or we
will never become the Christians that God wants us to become.

TESTS CAN BECOME TEMPTATIONS

In this
section of scripture we will see that God wants the poor man to be satisfied in
Him and the rich man to realize that only in God is there real riches.  He will also tell us in verse 12 Blessed is
the man who endures temptation; because Trials can quickly turn into Temptation
if we don’t trust in God.  This message
begins a series of several messages on Temptation, what is it, how does it
happen, who is responsible when we are tempted, and most important of all, how
to resist temptation.

Ephesians 5.22-6:9 Displaying God's Wisdom In Our Families

 Eph 5:22 Wives,
submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the
wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.
24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to
their own husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ
also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and
cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her
to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but
that she should be holy and without blemish. 28 So husbands ought to love their
own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no
one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord
does the church. 30 For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His
bones. 31 "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be
joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." 32 This is a
great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless
let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the
wife see that she respects her husband. (NKJV)
 1. How we conduct
ourselves in our marriage and family relationships can greatly affect our
efforts to make known "the manifold wisdom of God"...
   a. Marriages and families that are
"dysfunctional" serve only to give a false impression to the claims
we make about the gospel and its power to transform lives
   b. Whereas marriages and families based upon
the teachings of God's Word can speak volumes as to the value of principles
inherent in the gospel; such principles as:
      1) Submitting to God and others in
authority
      2) Exercising authority with sacrificial
love
      3) Obeying those placed over us by God
      4) Developing others through training and
admonition, not intimidation
      5) Rendering service that is sincere, not
hypocritical
      6) Exercising authority with justice and
fairness

EPHESIANS 5:15-21 UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE WILL OF THE LORD IS

1.     
Walk Wisely v 15-17
James 1:5, James 4:17, Rom 12:1-2
The Will of God is that we be saved, sanctified,
suffering at times, Spirit filled, and Thankful
1.      Walk in Wisdom v15-16
Eph 5:15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as
fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
·        
Walking in Wisdom means being careful how you behave
Eph 5:16 Walking in Wisdom means
Redeeming the time
Eph 5:17 Walking in Wisdom means knowing God’s will,
because not too is foolishness
2.     
Be Filled with the Spirit v18
Eph 5:18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is
dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
Acts 1:8, Acts 2:4, Acts 13:45, Luke 4:28
To be filled or controlled by the Spirit is to let God's
Word control you, dying to self, pursuing purity, confessing all known sin,
surrendering to God's will, and depending on His Power for all things.  It is to live dominated by the mind of
Christ, so that everything that you think or do flows through what the Word
teaches and is in harmony with it.
Col. 3:15-17
 The Results of the Filling of the Spirit
v19-21
Eph 5:19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
1.     
Joy…a sense of adequacy and confidence in the Lord no matter
what
Phil 4:11, Acts 2:13-15, Acts 16:25
ThanksgivingJames 1:17, 1Thess 5:18
V21 submitting to one another in the
fear of God.
3.     
Submission
Phil 2:3-5, Gal 5:22-26
D.L Moody said, "I believe firmly that the moment
our hearts are emptied of pride and selfishness and ambition and everything
that is contrary to God's law, the Holy Spirit will fill every corner of our
hearts. But if we are full of pride and conceit and ambition and the world,
there is no room for the Spirit of God. We must be emptied before we can be
filled."

EPHESIANS 5:7-14 WALK IN LIGHT

Ephesians 5:7
Therefore do not be partakers with them. 8 For you were once darkness, but now
you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the
Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding out what is
acceptable to the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness, but rather expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of those
things which are done by them in secret. 13 But all things that are exposed are
made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. 14 Therefore
He says: "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give
you light."
V 7 Be not ye, therefore, (what?)
partakers with them." The word partaker means partners. Don't join the
world in its evil. The past is past.
We avoid
immorality because it is not love, and because it satisfies our physical
desires at the expense of others.
v8 Walk as Children of Light
·      
Walking
as Children of Light Means you now are on the true path to God
V9      
Walking as Children of Light Means showing love by action ….Goodness
·      
Walking
as Children of Light Means being right before God and Man…..Righteousness
·      
Walking
as Children of Light Means being Truthful….living in truth
V10 
Walking as Children of Light Means Learning God's will as you walk in
his ways …Rom 12:1-2
V11
 Walking as Children of Light Means being
pure or avoiding evil (or the appearance of)
V11-13
 Walking as Children of Light Means
exposing evil
V12  Walking as Children of Light Means not even
speaking of their shameful deeds
V13
Walking as Children of Light Means making things clear (their sin) to others by
being transparent
V14
Walking as Children of Light Means guiding others (sharing the Gospel)

EPHESIANS 5:2-6 IMITATE GOD BY WALKING IN LOVE

Ephesians 5:2 And walk in love, as
Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice
to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. 3 But fornication and all uncleanness or
covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 4
neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not
fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this you know, that no fornicator,
unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in
the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for
because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
 
1.         Walk in Love
Because You are Beloved (highly valued by) of God v1
Sonship is the motive and the means of
imitating God
Look at verse 1 now, it's a command, be imitators of God,
it's not a suggestion, it's a command.
This verse
explains how we are to imitate God, namely, by loving. The measure and model of
our love should be Christ's love for us.
Godlikeness is
godliness; godliness is godlikeness.
First of all the depth of your love is indicated by how much you
forgive. Now think about it. Do you hold a grudge against
somebody in your house? It isn't their problem that's your problem. Your
inability to forgive belies your love, and I say to you if this is
characteristic of your life you're not a Christian, because if you don't have
love you're not God's child. Think about it.
Secondly the depth of your love is
indicated by how much you know you've been forgiven.
2.     Walk in Love
Because You were Bought at a great price v2
3.     Walk in Love
Because You are a saint (holy, set-apart by God) v3
Christian Love Hates Immorality
Where God establishes true love, the world comes along and
establishes the phony, the counterfeit.
·       Walking in Love
Means avoiding immorality …or sexual
immorality (lust of the flesh (sexual) and the lust of the eyes (covetousness))
"'Immorality'
(RSV) and sexual perversion of almost every kind might be included under the
[Greek] word porneia, translated fornication in NKJV; it involves all that
works against the life-long union of one man and one woman within the sanctity
of the marriage bond.
Love is both positive and negative:
“Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good”
(Romans 12:9). Christian love is demonstrated by acts of sacrifice, to God and
to men. Christian love never expresses itself in immorality.
·       Walking in Love
Means avoiding impurity (sins of the tongue) or sensual talk v4
Paul
proceeded from immorality to vulgarity
Clean up your life, clean up your talk.
·       Walking in Love
Means giving Thanks v4
God's love is unselfish
and faithful and the world's love is faithless and selfish.
4.     Walk in Love
Because You are a King and are part of the Kingdom v5
From the time you were converted there's going to be a change. Because
salvation is based on repentance. If you ever learned anything when you were
saved you learned that. Titus 2:11 listen to this, "For the grace of God
that brings salvation has appeared to all men." Now when you got salvation
it says this, "Teaching us," did you know your salvation teaches you
something? It teaches you "denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we
should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present age."
v6 there are some
people who want to deceive, there are people who want to deceive by selling a
counterfeit kind of love, and the world's counterfeit love involves fornication
and adultery and covetousness and uncleanness and all of that stuff. But we are
not to buy the counterfeit, if we're true Christians our lives will be not
characterized by the counterfeit but real love.
This is the punishment now. They're not going to enter the Kingdom." don't you
let anybody tell you, you can do this and be a Christian, don't you let anybody
tell you, you can live like this and God will forgive you, don't you let
anybody tell you you're going to be all right, you're going to get in the
Kingdom, it'll be okay you made a decision, you did your religious thing, it's
all right to live like this. Don't let anybody deceive you with those empty
words, they're empty, they're meaningless, they're useless. "For because
of these very things," what things? Fornication, uncleanness,
covetousness, filthiness, foolish talk and coarse jesting, "the wrath of
God comes on the sons of disobedience." Do you see? These are the very
things for which God damns people to hell. Don't let anybody deceive you. These are not characteristics of children
of God, they are characteristics of children of disobedience. Do you see the
contrast? Verse 6 ends with the children of disobedience, verse 1 began with
the dear children of God. There's a difference.
Lessons:
We avoid immorality because it is not love, and
because it satisfies our physical desires at the expense of others.Let us leave this text with a clearer grasp of what
Christian love is all about. It is not about self-gratification, but about
self-sacrifice and the glory of God

HIS LOVE MINISTRIES ACCOMPLISHMENTS 2014 ANNUAL BANQUET

1.        
Billy
Miller - Pastor of Isle of Hope Baptist Church Speaking about His Love
Ministries over at John Wesley Assisted Living Facility and the part the
ministry played in his life
 2.   
Shelly
McKenzie - Reading a letter from a Resident at Habersham House Assisted Living
 3.        
Martha
Jenkins - Speaking about her role as a Bible Teacher to the girls at the Youth
Detention Center
 4.        
Erik
Lacanilao - Speaking about his role as a fill in Bible teacher in for the
Prison, the ministry he does at Coastal Men’s Transitional Center with the Substance
abuse Program, and as a Bible Teacher to the boys at the Youth Detention Center
5.        
Ronnie
Nichols - Speaking about his role as Bible teacher in for Coastal Harbor
Treatment Center Adult and Youth Facilities
 6.   
Marty
McKenzie - Speaking about his role as head of His Love Ministries
 7.   
James
Rody and the Hope Band - Playing 2 Songs – Worship His Holy Name and I’ll Fly
Away

EPHESIANS 4:30-5:1 GRIEVE NOT THE HOLY SPIRIT AND IMITATE GOD

Eph 4:31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil
speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one
another, just as God in Christ forgave you. Eph 5:1 Therefore be imitators of
God as dear children.
 Why be concerned about putting off the "old man"
and putting on the "new man"?
When Christians act like the "old man", it grieves
the Holy Spirit
By the Holy Spirit we were sealed for the day of redemption
- cf. Ep 1:13-14
Did you know that the Holy Spirit can get sad? That's what
grieve means.
We are to exchange natural vices for
supernatural graces
Eph 4:31 Negative Let all bitterness,
wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
Therefore, we ought to put away those
things befitting the "old man" (bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor,
evil speaking, malice)
It's all relational here.
He's not talking so much about your
relation to God in this whole passage, it's how you relate to people because
the body is the concept here in this book.
Eph 4:32 Positive And be kind to one
another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, Reason just as God in Christ
forgave you.
You say - Oh man, but you don't know
what they did to me, I have a right to be angry. They've never changed and I'm
bitter. And when I see that guy I'm going to clamor (yell). And meanwhile I'm
going to evil speak (speak evil about them). And I've got a right. Look what he
did to me.
And that's just why verse 32 ends the
way it does. "Even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."
Look at Ephesians 5:1 now, it's a
command, be imitators of God, it's not a suggestion, it's a command. And sure
you have to start from the point of sinfulness and sure you have to start from
the fact that you can't do it, but that doesn't change the command. You've got
to be what you can't be. That's where the Spirit of God comes in.
The whole of the Christian life could
be summed up in that one statement, be mimics of God, that's it. Reproduce in
you everything that is true of God. In other words the whole of the Christian
life is summed up in this, be imitators of God, be like God. If you're fumbling
around trying to get a handle on what God wants out of you it's that.
CONCLUSION
1. What a contrast there would be if
all those in the church truly carried out the admonition to "Walk In Truth
And Holiness"!
2. Brethren, are we "grieving the
Holy Spirit of God"?

EPHESIANS 4:25-29 PUT OFF THE OLD MAN AND PUT ON THE NEW MAN PART 2

Eph 4:25 Therefore, putting away
lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor," for we
are members of one another. 26 "Be angry, and do not sin": do not let
the sun go down on your wrath, 27 nor give place to the devil. 28 Let him who
stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is
good, that he may have something to give him who has need. 29 Let no corrupt
word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification,
that it may impart grace to the hearers.
Number
one, you exchange
lying for speaking truth.
Eph 4:25 Negative Therefore, putting away
lying, Positive"Let each
one of you speak truth with his neighbor," Reason for we are members of one another.
      1. The "old man" thinks nothing
of lying
      2. The "new man" puts away
lying, and in its place speaks truth with his neighbor (especially to those who
are members of the same body)
The "old
man" gets angry and lets it linger, or get out of control
The "new
man" may get angry, but does not...Let it linger ("do not let the sun
go down on your wrath"
Reason Eph 4:27 nor give place to the devil.
Allow it to prompt
sinful behavior ("nor give place to the devil")
"Horace was right when he said, 'Anger is momentary
insanity.' . . .
"'Anyone can become angry,' wrote Aristotle.'But to
be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the
right purpose, and in the right way—this is not easy.'"
Second,
you exchange unrighteous anger for righteous anger.
Eph 4:26 " Positive Be angry, Negative and do not sin":
do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
3rd you are to exchange stealing for
sharing.
Eph 4:28 Negative Let him who stole steal
no longer, Positive but
rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, Reason that he may have something to give him who has need.
1.
The "old man" is willing
to steal
Instead of stealing, work so you can give to other
people. In other words, be a Robin Hood, only without the stealing part.
Instead of stealing to get, work to give. Great thought.
Three
features of the speech of the new man, verse 28.
You can tell a lot
about somebody's heart by what comes out of their mouth.
Psalm
141:3 says: "Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth and keep the door of
my lips? Listen, if Jesus Christ is the doorkeeper of your lips, then He'll be
the one to determine what comes out.
The
"new man" not only avoids "corrupt communication", but
seeks to speak that which is uplifting to those who hear
First, it should be edifying which is good
for edifying. Whenever you talk if the Lord is keeping watch over your lips and
you open your mouth, whatever comes out should build other people up, edifying
means building up. It should build them up.
Secondly, it ought to be necessary. It says in verse 29, the
little phrase - to the use. And literally it means as it fits the needs. Listen,
my mom used to say to me when I was a kid, I'd start to say something - Hey,
mom, do you know what so-and-so, And she'd say - Now is that necessary? If we
just said what was edifying and necessary people would flock to be near us.
Third, gracious, the end of verse 29: "That it may serve
grace to the hearers." It's coming out like water And giving them a
feast of grace. Is there sweetness in what you say that blesses and currys
favor. You know, every time you open your mouth it should be building, it should
be fitting and it should be gracious. That's the way we ought to talk. That's
what ought to come out of our mouths, not filthy communication. We have a new
heart and out of the abundance of a new heart should come a new speech.
I love what it says in Luke 4:22:
"And everybody bore Jesus' witness and wondered at the gracious words
which proceeded out of His mouth." Oh, I love that. When Jesus opened His
mouth graciousness came out. And when He spoke it was edifying, it was
necessary and it was gracious.

EPHESIANS 4:20-24 PUT OFF THE OLD MAN AND PUT ON THE NEW MAN

Ephesians
4:20 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and
have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off,
concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to
the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that
you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness
and holiness.
1.  Eph 4:20 But you have not so learned Christ,- "If
indeed"means "surely or since"
first
contrast, the old, is self-centered, useless, the new, Christ centered,
purposeful. – Jer 29:11
Every
day to me is a fantastic adventure because I'm right in the middle of God's
unfolding plan for the ages.
v21 as the truth is in Jesus
Second thing, instead of being ignorant
of the truth like they are in verse 18 you know the truth,
Eph 4:22 that you put off, concerning your
former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful
lusts,
Third And because we know the truth and
because Christ thinks through us instead of being shameless, instead of having
no morality, instead of having no basis for life we are sensitive to sin, verse
22, we are called to "put off concerning the former manner of life the old
man, corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Instead of not knowing what corruption is, we sense it in the
smallest doses, don't we? There's nothing as miserable as a sinful Christian,
wretched people to be around.
b.        
Putting off the old man is needed because it is
never content, but "grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts"
(like addictive drugs, you always need more)
Lust means any urge or
basic drive. We will get closer to the essential meaning of this word if we use
the term urge. These deceitful urges are constantly coming to us as we
react to various situations in which we find ourselves.
all these urges that arise out of the self life, the
old man, are utterly valueless. They do not do anything for us, they are
deceitful. They promise much, they deliver nothing.
Lusts
are deceitful because they promise real joy but fail to deliver it.
2.  V 23 And to "be renewed in the spirit of
your mind"
Fourth point. You learn
Christ and when you learn Christ He fills you with His truth and when you have
His truth you have a moral sensitivity, and so sin is a hated thing. And as
long as you have Christ's truth and you know what is right and you know what is
wrong then you're not going to have a reprobate mind but a renewed mind, verse
23, "Be renewed in the spirit of your mind." The only time in the New
Testament “(renewed) ananeo” is ever used, it means to create again, to make
new. When you become a Christian God gives you a new mind but you've got to
fill it with new stuff.
That's why Philippians 4:8 says, "If there be any virtue, if
there be any praise, think on these things that are pure and just, holy, good
report, honest." And so a renewed mind, not a reprobate mind. When you let
Christ think through you you'll have a standard of truth, that standard of
truth will give you a judgment on sin and it'll renew your mind to be the kind
of mind that pleases God. What kind of mind? Verse 24, it will be a mind
"created in righteousness and true holiness." Instead of being a
reprobate, vile, lascivious, greedy, unclean mind, it'll be a mind filled with
righteousness and a mind filled with holiness and when that's true in your mind
that's the way you'll live. "So be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and
put on the new man." The new mind, the new thinking process that results
in righteousness and holiness.
         a. Which is the key to true
"transformation" - cf. Ro 12:1-2
Paul’s words indicate that our
old nature and its deeds are not merely to be rejected, they are to be replaced
c.             V 24 and true holiness"
Now
there is a word we squirm at, holiness. We usually think of some pious Joe.
That is our picture of holiness. But let me use another word that is an
accurate translation of this word -- wholeness. That means health of being,
wholeness of personality, a whole man, as God intended man to be. Now, that
results from the life of the Lord Jesus within. But the process to it is
twofold: Put off, and put on. Our problem is that we are afraid to put off the
old man, for fear we will be left with an empty husk of life. It never seems to
dawn on us that the Holy Spirit is simply waiting for us to put these things
off in order that he might rush in and fill us with the wholeness that is God's
intention for man, the wholeness of Christ.
               Putting off the old man is like
squeezing the water out of a half-drowned man's lungs. You do not do that
because you want his lungs to be empty, you do it because you want the air to
get in so that he can live. What the Scripture reveals to us is that this old
egocentric life of ours, this old man, the self, has been suffocating us,
killing us. It has been cutting off the breath which we were designed to
breathe. The only air we were designed to breathe is God. Yet we find such
difficulty believing this and therefore we do not experience it.
The implications
of Paul’s teaching in our text and its implications in our practical daily
living.
1.  Our pagan
culture believes that the past is the key to the present. What we think and how we act, we are told, is the
result of our past. It is only by understanding our past that we can live as we
should in the present. In other words, the past controls the present.
The Bible
reverses this. Paul teaches us
that our thinking and conduct in the past was the outworking of our
unregenerate thinking. Paul insists that we refuse to allow our past to control
us in the present. Instead, Paul teaches us that what we now are, in Christ, is
what should override and overrule our past thinking and behavior. What we now
are in Christ should cause us to put away what we once thought and did as
unbelievers. Our past
should not be resurrected, analyzed and dwelled upon, it should be buried in an
unmarked grave. It is not what we were that matters, but what we are. Let us
ponder what we are, in Christ, and not what we were without Him.
2.  In our
culture, what you believe seems to have taken second place to how you feel. The
sensitive, intelligent, and probing thing to ask these days is, “How do you
feel about that?” Paul would rather have us focus on what we believe. What we
feel is often a far cry from what is true, and even from what we believe.
Faith, as I understand it, calls upon men to act on the truth God has revealed
in His Word, not on how we feel. Abraham
did not “feel” like leaving his homeland and relatives to go to an unnamed
place, but he obeyed God. Neither did he feel like offering up his son, Isaac,
but he was willing to obey. Our Lord did not feel like going to the cross of
Calvary, but He obeyed the will of His Father. Let us act on what we know to be
the truth as revealed in the Word of God, more than on how we happen to feel.
As a rule, faith acts on the facts of God’s Word and disregards our feelings.
3.  If the renewing of our minds is so vital to our Christian life, how is it
done? The Bible is
not a book of formulas, but I would like to focus your attention on one key
element: the Word of God. When a person wants to learn a foreign language, what
is the most effective way to do so? It is to enter into that culture and
language and become saturated with it. This is how our children learn to talk
and to think as we do. If we would
desire to have our minds renewed, then we must find God’s thoughts and immerse
ourselves in them. His thoughts have been incarnated in Christ, the Living
Word, and recorded in the Bible, His inspired written Word.
Most
Christians spend more time in front of their television sets, radios, phones, magazines,
and books than they do in their Bibles

EPHESIANS 4:17-19 WALK NO LONGER LIKE THE UNSAVED

Eph 4:17 This I say,
therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest
of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their
understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the
ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who,
being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all
uncleanness with greediness.
 I. THE ADMONITION
(17-24)
A.  NO
LONGER WALK LIKE THE REST OF THE GENTILES... (17-19)
The issue here is the mind, the whole issue here is how you think.
Look for example at verse 17, it ends with “the mind,” verse 18 begins,
“the understanding,” verse 18 also talks about ignorance. Then as you come down
to verse 20 you have the word “learned,” and in verse 21 you have the word
“taught,” and in verse 23 the word “mind” again. In other words this whole
thing of learning and teaching and mind and knowing as opposed to ignorance,
the mind is the issue, the, the point being this, now here's the key,
Christians think different than pagans, " Pr 23:7 For as he thinks in his
heart, so is he. ". We've got to think different, and when we think
different we will act different. Salvation first of all is a change of mind, it
is a new thinking process. Unsaved people can't think right.
Salvation is a change of mind. A new thinking process. He says it in
verse 20, "You have not so learned Christ." And we have told
you enough about that so you understand that Christianity is mental, before
it's experiential. It is a thinking that draws us to God. We think different
about our sin than we used to think, we think different about God than we used
to think, we think different about Christ than we used to think, we think different
about what we ought to do with our life than we used to think and a new
thinking process brings us to salvation, and salvation is a change of mind. That's really what the word repentance
means, to change your mind, new thinking process. So, the pagan thinks one way
and we think another way. Now how does a pagan think? Well he's got some
problems.
 He
shows us four elements of pagan thinking.
1.    They walk
"in the futility of their mind"
First is self-centeredness, and you could
also call it useless thinking, but let's call it self-centered.
2.                  
Which leads to "ignorance that is in them"
Ignorance here surely does not refer to
one’s intelligence. Neither does ignorance seem to refer to what one does not
know. Ignorance, as Paul uses the term, refers to the “knowledge” which
unbelievers possess, in which they place their trust, and from which they base
their actions.
Because of such ignorance they are
"alienated from the life of God
       
C. It starts with the "hardening of their heart"
Their being insensitive to God and His ways
               And the better word is hardness of heart.
Because man willfully is alienated
from God, willfully ignorant and willfully hardens his heart he gets his
understanding darkened judicially by a sovereign God.
3.       
They
are shameless. One thing about pagans, when they continue in sin and they
turn themselves off from the life of God they will become shameless, verse l9,
"Who being past feeling." They just don't feel anymore, apathetic,
insensitive, they don't care. There are no standards, they don't care what the
consequences are. They don't mind shocking people. Their whole processes of
thought are just destroyed.
4.       
Which
finally results in what we could call borrowing a term from Romans 1 a
reprobate mind.
        Shameless thinking people,
leads to shameless action. First of all, center on yourself, that's where it
starts, pagan, centers on himself, all his own things, his own attitude.
Centering on himself in his useless, purposeless, pointless existence he turns
God off and then he begins the hardening process that hardens him against God
and pretty soon he has no sense of shame, he'll say anything, do anything he
can get away with, the only ethic becomes, can you get away with it?.  
     
"work all uncleanness with greediness"
        
-- Desensitized, they seek after ever-increasing forms moral depravity -
cf. Ro 1:18-32
The word work is very interesting, it is a
word that means business, it, it, it can mean actually business, they make a
business out of uncleanness
 Lessons: 1. We are to
be different, unique and set apart.
2. We don’t need a list, we know what is wrong  - Ro 14:23 But he who doubts is condemned if
he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is
sin. If in doubt, cut it out

EPHESIANS 4:12-13 THE GIFTS FOR UNITY PART 3

Ephesians 4:12 for the equipping of the
saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,13 till
we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God,
to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
 V12 Equipping is to bring from sin to
obedience…to mend or restore something.
As believers we are to restore those
who have fallen or lost their way back to what they were intended to be, a
useful member of the body of Christ.  A
body only works right if all parts are healthy
Every person, therefore, is essential and valuable as part
of the whole. By ourselves, we may sometimes feel insignif­icant, unneeded, and
of little value, like so much spare change. But as individual parts that make
up the whole, each of us is needed.
All people are unique individuals, but as Christians we are
also indispensable parts of the body of Christ, and of greater value than we
can ever know. –David MCcasland
THERE ARE NO
UNIMPORTANT MEMBERS IN THE BODY OF CHRIST.
It
says in verse 13 when we do this it results in Christlikeness.  We ought not to be like the Hebrews who had
not matured and not followed these principles.
Heb
5:12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to
teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come
to need milk and not solid food.

EPHESIANS 4:11 THE GIFTS FOR UNITY PART 2

Eph 4:11 And He Himself gave some to be
apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
v11 Apostles
·      
Lay
the foundation of the church
·      
Receive,
declare, and write scripture
·      
Give
confirmation of the Word by signs, wonders, and miracles
Prophets
·      
Served
in a Local Congregation
·      
Gave
direct revelation
·      
Explained
scripture
·      
Were
judged by other Prophets
1Co 14:29 Let two or three prophets
speak, and let the others judge.
These two gifts were replaced by the
Evangelists and Pastor Teacher
Evangelists…Share
the good News
Pastor/Teacher…Feed, Lead, and Protect
the Flock

EPHESIANS 4:7-10 THE GIFTS FOR UNITY Part 1

 Ephesians 4:7 But to each one of us
grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift. 8 Therefore He says:
"When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to
men." 9 (Now this, "He ascended" --what does it mean but that He
also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is
also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all
things.)
                In this section we face a most important question. How is
the church expected to demonstrate the power of God and thus influence society? Is it by some miraculous, wonder-working, dramatic display
of divine power? Is it something that captures the attention of the multitudes
by miracles? Or is it by the power of numbers -- getting people together to
vote the same way and thus exert pressure upon the legislatures to obtain the
right kind of legislation? Is that the power of the church? Is it by agitating
for change by joining picket lines? Is it by attending conventions devoted to
discussions of various things and the passing of resolutions? Well, you notice
the apostle does not waste one moment on these kinds of activity. He suggests very clearly that the power of
the church lies in each Christian discovering and intelligently exercising the
spiritual gift that was given to him when he became a member of the body of
Christ. That is largely a forsaken principle today, and that is why the church
is so weak. If we ever recover the strength God intended the church to exert in
human society, it will be by a return to that simple thing, the exercise of
each person's spiritual gift.

EPHESIANS 4:2B-6 ENDEAVORING TO KEEP THE UNITY OF THE SPIRIT IN THE BOND OF PEACE

Eph 4:2b with longsuffering,
bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were
called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one
God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
 Our heart has many pacemaker cells that keep the heart
beating in rhythm.  When it gets out of
sync, it can cause many problems, even making the heart burst apart.  It can cause the same thing in the body of
Christ when we are not unified, we have many problems and even break apart
instead of being one as Jesus said we were to be in John 17:21 "that they
all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be
one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.
Verses 2 and 3 depict attitudes, not techniques or methods.
In world, and even in evangelical circles, people are more interested in
techniques than in attitudes. They buy books written by people who appear
successful, and who tell them how to be successful, too. The Bible has little
to say about techniques and methods. It has much to say about obedience and
about the attitudes which are conducive to godly conduct.
Believers’ attitudes are important. These attitudes which
Paul calls for in verses 2 and 3 are necessary because they are the attitudes
of our Lord Himself (see Philippians 2:5-8). If we are to reflect Jesus Christ
to the world in which we live, then we must manifest His attitudes.
Furthermore, these attitudes are those which promote Christian harmony and
unity.
Humility is listed first because of Paul’s emphasis on unity
(pride promotes disunity; humility
promotes unity) and to counteract their past pride, so as to facilitate
obedience to and dependence on God. Christ was the supreme example of humility
(Phil. 2:6–8).
            Seven elements of unity follow that
unite believers in the church. Believers should remember them when tempted
to break unity. Again all three members of the Trinity are in view and play a
part in this process.

EPHESIANS 4:1-2A WALK WORTHY OF THE CALLING WITH WHICH YOU WERE CALLED

Eph 4:1 I, therefore, the
prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you
were called, 2  with all lowliness and
gentleness,
              In this section we see Paul telling
us to walk worthy of all that God has given us and called us to in Chapters
1-3.  Paul says based on all God has done
for you, now you live this way.  Chapters
1-3 tell us what God has done for us, and Chapters 4-6 tell us our responsibilities
based on His grace and mercy.
The power to serve God is not found in us, in our own
striving or strength. It is the power which God Himself provides in Christ and
by means of His Spirit. Chapters 1-3 speak much of God’s power, which is at
work in us, enabling us to serve Him in a way that brings Him glory (see
Ephesians 1:19-21; 3:16-21).
The
doctrine of chapters 1-3 provides the motivation for our conduct.
Chapters 1-3 are all about the grace of God and this grace produces gratitude.
In
the Old Testament God said if you obey me I will bless you and now in the NT He
says I have blessed you already so now you need to obey me
Gratitude for God’s grace is one of the motivations for
our service. Another is the hope and assurance we have of the
fulfillment of God’s future promises. Another strong motivation is the knowledge of our
eternal security (Ephesians 1:13), and that God has
not only provided the grace to be saved, but also to serve Him, to His
glory.In this lesson we will begin to consider the “new” way of walking
which we are to learn and to practice as believers in Jesus Christ. May God
grant that we would understand Paul’s instructions and that our walk would be
consistent with our high calling in Christ.

EPHESIANS 3:18-21 THAT YOU MAY BE FILLED WITH ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD

Eph 3:18 may be able to
comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and
height-- 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be
filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to do
exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power
that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all
generations, forever and ever. Amen.
               We finish up this great prayer
that Paul prayed with him bowing on his knees to God the Father and praying
that we would have inner strength because of us allowing God to be at home in
our lives through the Holy Spirit.  Then
this would lead to knowing how great Christ’s love is for us.  Then that would lead us to be filled so full
of God that we would live for Him and Him only. 
Then he begins to close this section with a great praise to God because
He can do so much more than we ask or think and He does it because of His great
power that resides in us through the Holy Spirit and us meeting each of the
preceding conditions which are needed for this to happen.  He finishes by giving God all the glory
because of what Jesus Christ does in us, the church.