The Word We Have Heard

[00:00:00] While you're standing. Isaiah, chapter 30, and verse number 21. [00:00:07] Verse 21. This lesson will probably be like the forward of a book. [00:00:15] It kind of gives you an idea of what is coming. I feel like the Lord is just leading me in some teaching that I'll be doing on Sunday mornings. And I feel like this is kind of, kind of the forward, laying some groundwork for it. Isaiah 30 21 says this, and thine ears shall hear a word behind thee saying, this is the way. [00:00:45] Walk ye in it. When you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left, whatever direction you're going, this is the way to go. There's a way. It doesn't matter which direction you're walking, there's a way to walk in. [00:01:03] So this morning I want to teach the word we have heard. The word that we have heard. Let's pray together. Lord, thank you today for your goodness and mercy. Again, thank you for let our hearts become good, fertile ground to receive it, that it would change us, encourage us, help us to grow and be more of what you've called us to be. Lord, in this last day, we want to be that light shining, Lord, we want to be shining. Lord, your truth. So help us today to hear what the spirit would say. Father, we give you praise for it. In Jesus name, amen. Give him a hand. Clap of praise before you're seated. God's great hallelujah. [00:01:47] You can be seated. God bless you, and thine ears shall hear a word. [00:01:53] It's very important to me, I think, the way that he worded this behind thee, what's behind you is what's already been. If you're walking somewhere and you stop and say, oh, that's behind me. You walk past it. It's in your past. It's something that's. You've already been by, you've experienced it, and God's word has been from the beginning. [00:02:21] In the beginning was the word. [00:02:24] But we live in a time that, in this age and time, that there are so many new ideas. [00:02:33] We live in a world full of, you know, opinions and doctrines and beliefs. [00:02:40] The culture is trying not only to change just the ways of the world, but the ways that people can worship God or even talk about God. They want to come up with their own philosophies, about their theologies, about the God that we serve and about his word. And of course, we've heard these kind of things for years and years and years. Well, God's word, as you say, it's God's word, but it was written by men. And well, I don't deny that God didn't sit down with a pen and pencil and write it down. But the Bible says, as men were moved on by the Holy Ghost, every word of God is God inspired. It's breathed out by God, and his word is forever settled in heaven. The scripture says, heaven and earth could pass away, but his word would endure forever. And so we must realize the importance of God's word. We cannot try to live for God without the word of God. I've said this so many times over the years, but I feel like now more than ever before, we have to realize the very importance of living by God's word. [00:03:57] Scripture tells us in places, relates God's word and the keeping of it to firm, secure, safe foundation. Jesus would tell a parable that if a man hears my word and keeps my word, then he's like a man who would build a house on a rock, so that when the storms came and the winds blew and beat against it, that the house would remain secure. And if the house remains secure, those that are inside of it remain secure. There's safety and security in God's word and in the keeping of God's word. But then he flipped the coin over and he says, but to those that will hear my word, but will not keep my word, they are like a man who builds his house on the sand. There is no foundation. And when the wind comes and the waters rise, then the house falls. And great is the fall of that house. And the insinuation there is that you didn't just lose your possessions, but you lost your life because as you were in the house to take shelter from the storm, you had nothing to support you. We need God's word more than ever before today, and we need to know that God's word is forever settled. And no matter what this world says, no matter what they decide, no matter what laws they pass, no matter how many new groups and activist groups are formed and begin to pop up in this world saying, well, this is the way that people can be if they want to be. Well, people can be whatever they want to be, but you can't change the unchangeable word of God. [00:05:43] They could print a new Bible and take scriptures out of it. Won't change that. God has already breathed it out. You know, it doesn't matter if they take. If they were to take and burn every Bible in the world, it wouldn't eliminate God's word or the need for it or the need to obey it. We have to be built on this foundation of the word of God. We have to do that. And so this world wants to tell us, I mean, they're already trying to change the very essence, foundation of God's image. In the beginning, in the beginning, it said God created male and female. He created male and female. But today they want to say that you can decide if you're male or female. You cannot decide if you're male or female. It doesn't matter how firmly you believe it. [00:06:42] If a guy says, no, I am a woman, he can say it till he turns blue. It will not change the fact that he was born, just like the way God intended him to be born, and he is male and he is not female. It works the same way. You cannot decide you're a cat or anything else. [00:07:03] Whatever you, you can identify as whatever you want to be, it won't change the fact of what you are. [00:07:10] But they want to say that we have to agree to this. And I'm not going to fight people over what they say. They identify as if I meet a guy and say, oh, I'm not a guy, I identify as a woman. I'm not going to slap him or kick him or hit him or begin to humiliate him, but I am not going to agree with him. [00:07:33] But just because I don't agree with him doesn't mean I have to hate him. I don't agree with the way it is pushed on us today and the way that they have decided that this is what the world is going to be. They are trying to progress past God, but God's word is forever settled. It can't be. There will never be anything greater than the word of God. [00:08:01] The scripture says, by faith, we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, by the word of God, and we understand that. And it doesn't matter how advanced this world gets. You know, the big thing now in the world is the AI. Well, AI stands for artificial intelligence, always crammed full of man's wisdom. But it's artificial when it lines up, they named it properly because it's artificial intelligence, it's man's wisdom instituted. And it may help you with your apps, it may help you on your phone, it may help people with their jobs, but it will never, ever, ever take the place of God. And even when they start creating these androids or robots or whatever it is, it is really crazy to see the things they are creating. If you ever spend some time researching it and you see some very lifelike, realistic looking droids, androids, artificial, whatever they are, terminators whatever they are. [00:09:11] But when it just shows their face for a moment until it begins to move, you don't know if is it real or is it not. And they are saying these things. They say they have a life, they're alive, and they can think. You can ask them a question and then they can hear what you asked and then reply accordingly. I mean, that's on your phone, Siri. [00:09:38] You can ask Siri a question, Siri will answer. And that's the way they're doing. But there's no soul, there is no spirit in these things. It's artificial intelligence and it is not a substitute for God. They can say, look what we have created. So what? [00:10:00] So what it does it change God? And maybe to the world we seem old fashioned, and maybe to the world we seem outdated because we trust in this living God. And though we cannot see him, we still love him and we love him. And we rejoice with joy, unspeakable and full of glory, because we know that he dwells within us and we know that we were created in God's image. And this is the way that it is. It was like this from the beginning. In the beginning, God created in the beginning, God gave man instruction and dominion and told him this was how it was in the beginning. They were in God's image. [00:10:48] And that's the way it is today. But they want us to follow the ways of the world and not follow our convictions. Turn loose of these old relics that you cling to and let this stuff go and embrace this world, embrace this culture. No, we're not going to do it. [00:11:13] I'm not going to do it. It ain't going to happen. Listen, from the very beginning, God has spoke. Even I didn't give you these scriptures, but over in Isaiah 48, twice, he said, in 48 and three and 48 and five, God said, I have declared the former things from the beginning. And he said, I declared it before. [00:11:36] He said, I told you things before you ever had idols, before you got off into any kind of graven images or molten images, before you started worshiping other gods. He said, I said it first so you would know what you created, didn't do it. Man, if that's a word for today, that God declared it from the beginning, so it doesn't matter what man creates now. What they worship now, how they worship now, does not change that. He, the God of Abraham, Isaac of Jacob, the holy one of Israel, the lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world. He is our God. And no matter what they invent or create or say or pass or do or enforce. God is still the king of glory. God is still on the throne. And we are still the church built upon the word on a fountain. He said, I'm going to build my church on a rock. Well, that rock is the word of God. In the beginning was the word. The word was with God. The word was God. And the word was made flesh and dwelt among us. We know that our rock is not like their rock. [00:12:45] The Bible says, look unto the rock from where you were hewn or where you were cut out from. Look back to the image that you were created in. And so we need to understand that as we move forward, we have to look backwards, not at our past, but we've got to look back to see the things that God has declared from the beginning. And that's what he said in Isaiah 30 and 21. And your ears shall hear a word behind you saying that this is the way. He's telling me that the things that I declared before you were ever born, before you were ever formed, those things that are behind you, that are in the past, this is the way. Walk ye in it. When you go this way, keep walking in my way. When you go this way, keep walking in my way. We will never outgrow the word of God. We've got to stay with the word of God. The scary thing in this day and hour is that the twisting of scripture and the lack of desire to really understand what scripture says. So they take one or two scriptures and say, this is what I want to do. But you don't get to just do what you want to do with scripture. [00:14:08] Philippians two and twelve. I don't think I gave you this. [00:14:13] This is a dangerous scripture. If you just read this one scripture, because people what it says, wherefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence. He's talking about, obey the word of God. [00:14:31] But he said, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. But what people are saying is, that means I can decide how I want to be saved. I've just got to work it out for myself, though. You can't change salvation. [00:14:48] Salvation is still through the blood of Jesus. There is still no other name under heaven given among men, whereby you must be saved. So to think you can work out something that eliminates the name of Jesus. And if we believe and are baptized to be saved, and there's no other name under heaven given whereby we must be saved, and you decide to be baptized, in any other way than the name of Jesus. You're trying to work out your salvation outside of God's parameter. [00:15:15] I want to do what I feel. I'm going to work out my own salvation, and I don't feel like I need to do that. And I don't feel like I need to do this or I don't feel like this is wrong. And I understand there are different personalities and convictions and things as we are so many different individuals. But what God's word said about it or says about it settles it. [00:15:37] And there is not multiple ways to be saved because it was that way from the beginning. [00:15:45] That's why he would say, ask for the old paths. The old path. That's what's behind you. You will hear a word from behind you. This is the way from ancient times, from the beginning. From the foundation of the world, God, the spirit of God, is saying, there is a lamb of God slain. From the foundation of the world, you must believe and obey the gospel. It still takes the blood of Jesus to wash away all of our sins. Ye must be born again. When you get the picture, when Jesus is talking to Nicodemus, this is the eternal word. Speaking when he said, you must be born again, that's not something new for him. This is the way it is. And he's the beginning and the end, the first and the last. He's the almighty, the eternal. It has always been like that with him. He was simply revealing what was behind. Nicodemus. Nicodemus, what you're hearing, I'm looking you in the face, but the voice you're hearing is coming from way back, saying, ye must be born again. [00:16:55] The word is eternal. It existed long before we did. And it didn't just happen when he spoke it that day, it was already in the mind of God. It was already in the plan of God that we must be born of water, that we must be born of the spirit. We have to be born again. This is the way. Walk ye in it. [00:17:19] That's why no matter where they went as apostles, they were preaching that way. Because from the beginning, that's what they heard. Even John would say and would write. They would testify. He said, we're testifying about the things we have seen and the things that we have heard. We heard him. We walked with him. We handled the word of life. And so when we're preaching this baptism in Jesus name and being filled with the spirit, we're only telling you what we heard while we were with him, we're preaching the word from behind us. Friend, we have heard a word from behind us, an eternal word, a word that is forever settled in heaven. And so don't you let somebody just because they're very charismatic or energetic about the way they come across with their doctrine. It doesn't change what you have experienced. It doesn't change what you know, and it doesn't change what the word of God says. They will very fervently try to dissuade you from the truth and from the gospel that we believe and obey. They'll tell you, oh no, just believe in your heart. Just do these things. And yes, you need to believe in your heart and do these things, but you must obey the gospel. [00:18:34] It was like that from the beginning. That's the way it was supposed to be. The word of God is what always settles it for us first. Peter 123 our new birth born again. Not of corruptible seed. That's man's doctrine. That's man's way. That's the world, the world's ways, the world's culture, their theologies, their philosophy. And we are not born again by that. You are not going to be born again by what the nicene council created. [00:19:10] You're not going to be born again by any other tradition, man made papers or extra writings or books that have been put out. You are not born again by the memes that you post from 03:00 a.m. thoughts I see people. People. You know what? People have decided I don't have to live by the word of God. I just need to live by every meme that I find on facebook. [00:19:36] It's the truth. It makes me sad. It breaks my heart because I watched, I said, I see people post more memes than they do scripture because the thought, those thoughts, they line up with my emotion. [00:19:51] They line up with my feelings. [00:19:55] But the Bible says we live by every word, but we are born again out of corruptible seed, the incorruptible. I didn't finish my scripture. By what? The word of God. We are born again by the word of God. What does the word of God say about new birth? You must be born again. You must be born of the water and of the spirit, or you cannot see or enter into the kingdom of God. You wanna know why these people can't see what we see? Because they haven't truly been born again. [00:20:25] When you're talking to them about baptism in Jesus name and they're like, I have no idea what you're talking about. You know why they can't see it? Because they haven't been born again. [00:20:34] Why? They can't understand being filled, the spirit of God, and speaking in other tongues as the spirit gives other. You know why they don't understand it? Because they haven't been born again. They can't see it. They can't enter into it until they believe and obey the gospel. [00:20:51] When the gospel is preached, Jesus said it preached the gospel to every creature. And they, those that believe and are baptized. See, now they have believed the gospel. They're obeying the gospel. They're going into the water in the name of Jesus. They're being filled with the Holy Ghost in my name. They'll speak in new tongues. He's simply talking about the new birth. And that's what the apostles would preach, a word that they heard from behind them. [00:21:15] They were reaching. They didn't go forth preaching their own doctrines. That's why in the book of acts, you'll never find anybody that was baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son of the Holy Ghost using that phrase, because they did not baptize that way. It was the catholic church that changed the formula for baptism. [00:21:34] But that's not the word that was forever settled in heaven. [00:21:39] And we need to stand on this word and not be afraid to live by this word. And look, they're not afraid to tell you what they think. Don't be afraid to tell them what you think. [00:21:52] You don't have to be afraid of people that say that y'all are crazy. [00:21:57] No, y'all are crazy. [00:22:01] You're the one that wants to do less of things, to try to make it to heaven. You're the one that wants to not do anything and say, oh, I'm just gonna make it. Cause God exists. [00:22:11] That's the way they believe. Oh, God is love, and God loves me. And so I'll just do what I want to do. When I die, he'll welcome me home. [00:22:21] He said there'd be some in that day that say, lord, Lord. And he'd save this part for me. I never knew you. [00:22:27] Oh, Lord, Lord, I don't know who you are. [00:22:32] Very sobering. But those people that are born again, born by the word, when they are filled with the spirit, they are adopted into the body. He knows and he knows those that are his. And that's what he's saying. I don't know you. How do I know you? You're not mine. [00:22:51] I want to make sure that I am sticking with the word of God. I need to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. We can't depart from it. Job said, I esteem his words more than my necessary food. We have to eat to live. But he said, I need God's word more because there's a life after this that I wouldn't. In other words, I would not trade his word for something that would just take care of me here. [00:23:22] I wouldn't trade the word of God, God for you, for anything that would just satisfy me momentarily. For temporary pleasures. What would a man give? [00:23:33] That's what Jesus asked. What will a man give in exchange for his soul? What would it profit if you gained the whole world but lost your soul? And what will you give in exchange for your soul? But I got to do this, and I got to do that, and I've been here, and I've been there, and I've experienced all these things, and you miss the most important. [00:23:53] I want to live by the word. [00:23:57] And so when it talks about working out your salvation with fear and truth, it does not mean I. Hey, you decide what you gonna have to do is. That's why Jesus, the scripture would say in Isaiah one, he said, we've got to come to a reasoning. We've got to come and reason together. You know, when you're reasoning with something, you're working it out, and you're going to have to work it out with God. [00:24:20] That's what he's talking about. You've got to come and reason together with him and come to the understanding that God's way is the only way. He's telling you you're going to have to work past your flesh, past your emotions, past your feelings, past this world's culture, past theologies and doctrines and philosophies and all the things that are coming. You're going to have to work it out so that you can stay saved, because that's what Paul mentioned. He said, you obeyed these things while I was here, and while I'm not here, much more in my absence, you have obeyed these things. He's saying, you've got to hold on to the things that were behind you. That voice you heard from behind, that eternal word that called up to you and spoke to you and said, this is the way. [00:25:03] Just think when you heard, the first time you heard this message, this gospel preached, it wasn't the preacher just came up with some brand new, just unwrapped it message, but it was a message that was eternal. You are hearing something that was in God's heart before the world was ever formed, before he ever said, let there be light. The word and the foundation the salvation was already there. And when you hear someone preaching from this book of acts and preaching this doctrine of new birth and being born of water and spirit, you're not hearing some. It might be new to your ears, but it's eternal. It's a treasure that was buried in a field and hid. But you found it, and you said, I'll sell everything and buy the field because what I found is going to take care of me the rest of my life. It is the pearl of great price. And you'll let go of everything else because you know now that this is what I need. [00:26:11] This is the word that we've heard. [00:26:14] Ancient, holy, uncorrupted. [00:26:22] It's not misshapen and full of men's interjections. It's simply God's pure, undefiled, unadulterated word. It says what it means. It means what it says. It will not return void, but it accomplishes, because there's no fault in it. It's pure. Every word of God is pure. The word of God is powerful. It's sharper than any two edged sword. It reaches in the places inside of us that nothing else can reach. There are things that people can say that we say, oh, that wounded me inside. But there are simply places in man that God cannot reach. I mean, that man cannot reach, but only God can reach. And he said, it takes that word to go into that deepest part of that spiritual man. So somebody could come up and stab you, and they could touch every organ they want to with a knife or something like that. Because this is just that temporary thing. The things that are seen are temporary. But the unseen man, only God can reach into that Mandev. Only God can touch that man. Only the word of God. That's why when you heard that word and something, you felt like something hit you on the inside, something jumped inside of you. You're like, something is going on here. And it's because the creator was touching the creation he was bringing back to life. That was the new birth experience, that we were being born again as God intended us to be. Because this didn't change. [00:28:03] I still looked like I looked when I. [00:28:07] The way I looked when I went in the water. When I come up, I still looked the same. But on the inside, the man, the inner man, was reborn. He was born in God's image. To live holy, to live by the word, to speak with tongues of men and of angels, to be adopted into the family. That's what it meant. And something happened on the inside that changed the outside. [00:28:31] His word is what we need. In John, chapter six, Jesus knew that even in that day, there were. The crowd would not always be the answer. [00:28:44] He had many people following him, but he was preaching that day. And it said, and at that time, many of his disciples, not just many of the hey, I came to see the show people, he said, but many of his disciples would not walk with him any further. They liked him up to a point. They liked the miracles. They liked the miraculous. They liked all the things that were going on. But when Jesus began to say, you're going to have to eat this body and drink this blood, and you're going to have to be a part of me, oh, this is a hard saying, and I can't handle this, and said, they walked away. [00:29:19] The crowd will walk away. [00:29:21] The crowd won't always exist. But he turned to those that were following him. Jesus said unto the twelve, will you also go away? [00:29:30] And Peter said, lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. [00:29:40] I'm gonna tell you what Peter, not just knowing this is the Christ, knowing that revelation he had of him, he said, you have the words of eternal life. Those words, the words. You've got the words. [00:29:56] The words. When we heard you speak, we knew that it was the words coming up from behind us, catching up to us. [00:30:04] And even more recently maybe, when Jesus said, will you go away? Peter remembered the first thing Jesus ever said to him. Follow me. [00:30:15] All of a sudden, there was a word from behind that caught Peter, eternal word of Jesus, in his ear. Peter, follow me. I will make you fishers of men. Follow me. So, lord, how can I walk away when your word has already indicted me to follow you? How can I turn or go anywhere else? [00:30:38] How? Because you have called me to follow you, to take up my cross daily and follow you. So how can I? God's checking them, testing them. Will you go away? Or will you remember the word from behind? Follow me. Follow me. Whenever you start getting challenged with a new word today from somebody else from this world, you remember the word from behind. No. I heard my pastor say, repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. And that happened to me. [00:31:19] So I don't want to hear your new doctrine. I don't want to hear your new fangled revelation. I simply won't. That word from behind telling me, this is the way. Walk ye in it. [00:31:36] The psalmist said in psalm 119 and 128, therefore, I esteem all thy precepts that's God's word concerning all things. [00:31:50] Whatever your word says about anything. God. [00:31:53] That's what he's saying. [00:31:55] See, we like God's opinion on certain things, but we don't want God's opinion on everything. [00:32:04] But he said, I esteem all your precepts concerning all things or anything, to be right. Whatever you say about what I should look at, you're right. Whatever you say I shouldn't look at, you're right. Whatever you say that I should or shouldn't listen to, you're right. Whatever you say about the way I present myself outwardly, you're right. [00:32:30] You can't argue God's word. And that's why when they say, well, you know, I still love God, but I know I was born a little boy, but now I want to be a girl. [00:32:44] And you don't esteem God's words about things. You're saying that God made you wrong. [00:32:50] It happened. If it was an abomination in God's word, it's abomination. Now, I know that's tough and that's stout, but it's the truth that does not advocate or condone hate or being ugly to people or doing anything like that. That's not what I'm saying. But you cannot change God's word. How will they ever know that there is a right way if nobody stands for the right way? [00:33:20] So I must esteem all your precepts concerning all things, to be right. And I hate every false way. Anything God that they're bringing in, that's not lining up with your word. That's what I hate. I don't hate the people, but I hate that. [00:33:36] And so what his word says about anything at all, any subject is right. It's not out of date. It's not selective. It's not up for debate. It is what it is. God's word says it. That's the end of it. If it applied to the church, then it applies to the church now. If it was good enough for the first century church, it's good enough for this church. [00:34:04] People looking for modern church. [00:34:07] I want modern church where they make me feel good about myself and I go home. [00:34:12] Well, if you love God's word and you love being in his presence, you'll feel real good about yourself. [00:34:19] It's not the church's job to make people feel good about themselves. [00:34:28] It's not our job to be ugly to people and tear people down either. [00:34:32] But we're in the business of helping people get to heaven. [00:34:38] We are trying to get people into glory. So we must preach the gospel. That's why Paul. Hey, I don't know anything among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. [00:34:48] I'm not talking to you about all your other issues. I'm telling you that if you can get it right, if you can obey the gospel, Jesus Christ and him crucified, everything else will begin to fall in place. [00:35:00] But you gotta get. [00:35:03] Get it right. [00:35:06] He said, this is the word that I heard. [00:35:09] It came from behind me. Because this lamb, Jesus Christ, was slain. From the foundation of the world. It was already settled. And now I have this revelation. It came from behind, and it caught me. [00:35:21] And as this world drifts farther away from truth and the truth of God's word, they created new doctrines and new denominations. [00:35:31] When we see these things, we have to remember from the beginning, God declared things, and from the beginning it was not so. And God doesn't change. He said, I am the Lord. I change not. His word doesn't change. And his word is where we begin. Because it was from the beginning, John one and one. In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God. And the word was God, unchanging and forever settled. [00:35:59] In revelation 182-1622 and 13. He is the beginning and the end. [00:36:06] His word was from the beginning. His word will be there for eternity in the end. And what we believe, how we behave our lives. It will begin with what the word says and how it was in the beginning in Matthew, chapter 19. Let me go there. I'm trying to jump around, because I see my time's going to run out on me. But I told you, this is just a kind of a preview of what we are going to be dealing with more specific subjects as we go through over the next few weeks, just of how things were from the beginning. [00:36:45] Matthew 19 three. [00:36:50] The Pharisees came to Jesus, tempting him, said unto him, is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? Now, I'm not fixing to teach you a lesson on divorce or marriage or anything. I want you to hear what Jesus is about. [00:37:04] And he answered and said unto them, have you not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? And said, for this cause shall a man leave father, mother, and shall cleave to his wife. And they twain shall be one flesh, wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh? [00:37:23] Therefore God's joined together, let no man put asunder. And they said, well, if that's the case, now that's God's word. [00:37:31] That's God's word. [00:37:34] He says, well, if that's the case, then why did Moses come in and give a writing of divorce? Was to put her away. And he said unto them, listen what he says, moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, suffered you to put away your wives. But from the beginning, it was not so. [00:37:52] They would only go back as far as what Moses wrote. He went all the way back to the beginning. [00:37:58] He said, I know what Moses said, and because of the hardness of your heart and to fix things with you, he wrote that, that you could give them this letter of divorce. But from the very beginning, it was not so. [00:38:13] And that's the problem that people have today, is that they want to come a little farther away from the beginning. They want to get closer to where we are now and come up with a loophole, an alternate way to live. They want to. [00:38:29] Saul would do the same thing. God told him to go and destroy all the amalekites and do this. And when Samuel shows up, he says, I have fully obeyed the word of the Lord. [00:38:40] And he said, then why do I hear all these animals making their noises? [00:38:45] Because God said, destroy everything. Animals, people, all of it. Get rid of everything. And why is the king still alive? But he said, I have fully obeyed. He changed it because of the people. He said, well, then he threw it off on the people. The people, they kept everything. And, you know, you're the king, buddy. [00:39:06] You tell the people what to do. [00:39:09] But what he did was he said, this would be a good thing, to save all this and do this with it. And we'll still be honoring God. And Samuel said, God has more pleasure in obedience than he does sacrifice. He wants you to obey his word. And the word you heard, Saul, was for you to make sure that you destroy all of it. But you didn't do it. And on that day, the kingdom was rent from Saul. [00:39:41] Never going to prosper away from God's word. In John 412, he was talking to the woman at the well, telling her about living water and things like that. And she said, are you greater than our father, Jacob, that gave us this well? [00:39:57] You're greater than just Jacob gave us this well, and you're greater than him. The Jews would do that. [00:40:04] When he would talk about Abraham, they would tell him, you know, we're Abraham's seed. We've never been in Bondage or anything. And we have Abraham for our father. And God said, jesus said, you know, before Abraham was, I am, and I've always existed. But if you believed me or believed Abraham, you'd believe me. If you believed Moses, you'd believe me because he's telling them I was before you. If they had believed him, why wouldn't they believe Moses? [00:40:40] Cause Moses wrote of him. [00:40:44] They couldn't hear the word from behind, trying to make their own way. And there's nothing wrong with Abraham. There's nothing wrong with Jacob or any other prophet or apostle. The fivefold ministry was given by God for the perfecting of the saints. But the servant is not greater than his master. [00:41:07] Even Paul said, if I or an angel from heaven preach any other word, let him be cursed. You can't change what is eternal, and you can't change it. So they preach another. Because he would tell the galatian church, he'd say, I marvel that you're so moved away to another gospel. But then he said, but it's not a gospel because there is only one gospel. [00:41:34] But they were moved away to another gospel, and that's all men can do. They can try to clone it, try to fashion it and shape it, and that's what the Catholic Church did. [00:41:44] They kept some scripture in there to form it to where they could pull people away from this apostolic oneness, truth, and bring people into this trinitarian doctrine that they create. They created. [00:41:58] They created. I got about two minutes. So that's what people are doing today. They rely on themselves or some other person, some famous person, some religious icon, some the nominal paper or tradition, even movies or books, memes, like I said earlier, to try to justify the position, their walk with God. [00:42:24] They look everywhere but here. [00:42:29] You don't need a book written by somebody to back this up. [00:42:35] This stands on its own. [00:42:37] There's nothing wrong. I've got a lot of books. I read a lot of abstract authors and things like that, and I read those books, and they've got great insight, but they're not backing up this. [00:42:46] They're simply preaching what and saying what this book says. They're not trying to. Oh, let me. I'm trying to give credit. And it makes people know that the Bible is real. [00:42:57] Nobody can change that. This book is real relevant, and whoever's doing music, come on up here, and I can finish up right here. We have to stay with the word of God. There's a way that seems right to man, but it says those ways end up in death. [00:43:14] Paul said, in colossians, beware of don't be spoiled by philosophy based deceit. After the tradition of men, gotta be careful. And Titus and I'll get there, and you want to stand with me, that'll help me get out of here. [00:43:29] Titus, chapter one. [00:43:33] He told him, he said, hold fast the faithful word that's been taught so you can be able to, by sound doctrine, exhort and convince the there are many unruly and vain talkers, deceivers, especially they of the circumcision. He said, they're jewish people, that they believe in one God, but they are deceivers. [00:43:56] They were trying to get people away from Jesus. There's a lot of people today that say they're christian, and they're trying to get people away from apostolic truth, from the truth of God's word. [00:44:08] There's podcasts that are out there now that are. They have their podcast solely for the purpose of attacking the apostolic church, attacking this word. [00:44:24] He said, their mouths must be stopped. [00:44:29] They subvert whole houses. They teach things that they ought not to for money. [00:44:35] One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said that the Cretians are always liars. They're evil beasts. They're slow bellies. This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to jewish fables and commandments of men that turn people from the truth. [00:44:56] Be careful about things that try to turn you from truth and the truth you've obeyed. [00:45:01] There is a word that we have heard. [00:45:04] I know I didn't even get to everything today, but we're going to be talking about some things over the next few weeks in our Sunday school class. [00:45:14] But there is a word that we have heard, and we've obeyed it. How can you deny what you've experienced? When I see people walk away from this truth and then speak so harshly against it that I marvel at that their conscience must be seared with a hot iron, as the scripture says. Because how could you not be afraid to speak so ugly against something you once loved so dearly? [00:45:46] How could you be so cruel and hateful to something that only blessed you and. [00:45:53] And made you who you were and just walk, just put it under your feet and walk all over it. [00:46:01] It's not good. [00:46:05] It's the day we live in, and we can't just sit back and say, well, I'll get a little word here, a little word there. We've got to hear this word. I got to hold on to this word, cleave to this word, live this word, preach this word. Get it inside you, hide it in your heart. [00:46:27] Cause the time has come. And Paul would say, they will not endure sound doctrine. They're not going to hear it. It doesn't matter what you say, how you point it out, they will not hear it. [00:46:39] But that doesn't stop us from preaching it. [00:46:42] So there is a word from the beginning, a word behind us. This is the way. Walk in it.