There is a song we occasionally sing in our worship services called "My Father's Voice." The first line of this song reads: "I read the word of God, and then at once rejoice.” Well do you? When you read the word of God is your immediate reaction to rejoice? Because for me, that’s not entirely the case. I struggle with that. I struggle with having that excitement that causes me to run out and want to tell everyone I see what I read about. Terrible, but true. I doubt I’m the only one. In fact, for many of us, hearing this day after day, Sunday after Sunday; things change over time. Reading our Bibles sadly become one of two things: time spent in an entertaining storybook or a chore that needs to be done daily. Reality shifts and the inspired, God-breathed, scripture becomes more of “that book of rules I have to follow that I'm supposed to read at least once a day.” I don’t know about you, but I feel really uneasy about running up to someone in complete excitement and saying “hey I have this book that’s full of rules you should totally follow it!” Many people just want to know, “why do you people take this book off your shelf, open it, read it, and use it to make important life decisions?" "What is so special about this book?” How would you answer that question? Why do you guide your life by this and why would you suggest that someone else should do the same thing? Most of the time I think our “stock” answer to those questions can be “because I am a Christian and I’m supposed to.” Now that is a good answer and it is correct, let’s not overlook that. But if that’s it, I think we’re missing something. Is all of this, simply, because we’re "supposed to"? If even in the slightest, that’s our answer to the question “Why this book?” then I doubt that we rejoice at once, after reading it. Finding Enthusiasm Consider a story from Mark Chapter 7. I want to establish real quick, out front, the attitude that we are looking for. I think the story here, shows the enthusiasm that we should have with a proper respect for our Bibles. The story I'm referring to is in verse 32-36. "And they brought to [Jesus] a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. Jesus healed this man. Immediately this man can hear perfectly and he can speak as if nothing had ever been wrong. So what does Jesus tell him and everyone else there to do? "Now that you can speak....dont." Jesus did not want them to tell anyone. And then what happened? They told everyone they could. Why? Why would these people want to go to so much effort to spread this news about what Jesus did, in light of the fact that they were told to keep quiet? Because they were excited! What they had just witnessed lit them on fire, and they wanted everyone to know about it! The message that they were sharing with connected with them so strongly that they could not contain it! They had to tell people. Let's put aside the fact that these people didn't do what Jesus asked them to do, and just appreciate for a moment the absolute enthusiasm that these people felt about what they had witnessed. That is the enthusiasm we should have when reading the Bible. Because Jesus has done amazing things for us as well. The Personal Connection with Scripture Now consider this. What if Jesus came to you one day following your reading of the Bible, and said, “of everything you just read about; that I’ve done, or that God has done; DO NOT TELL ANYONE.” What would change about your actions following your reading? For me, sadly, there have been times in my life when my response would have to have been, “No problem! I wasn’t going to tell anyone anyways.” It’s because as I said earlier, this book; this God-breathed message, can become a storybook to me and can become merely a book that I am “supposed” to follow. As said earlier I think that I have just lacked an enthusiasm and a personal connection to this book and I would guess that I’m not the only one, Now, what I mean by personal connection is not that this book literally means something or teaches something different to me than it would to someone else. Instead, what I mean is making this book a reality TO ME. To understand for myself personally "Why do I, Cody, pull this book off a shelf and guide my live with it. What does it have to offer me? What does it say to me about my life? Why is it special to me? What does it mean to me?” Appreciating the Significance of Scripture I think one of the main reasons why someone might struggle to connect personally with this book, the Bible, is because they don't appreciate what scripture is and where they fit into it. 1. Consider the scope of the book The beginning of this book is God creating everything. Everything that follows page 1 only happens because God has set in motion a beginning. THE BEGINNING. This book starts from THE beginning of everything. The rest of the book points towards life after this world ends and an eternal life with NO end begins. This means that the time where this book is relevant and meaningful will not pass. It will continue to be relevant as long as there are still people left to read it. 2. Consider the main theme of the message. John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This book is a love story about God doing what needs to be done to get his true love back, which is his people. This book is God’s call to his people! Telling them of his love and expressing his desire to have them back. 3. Consider Our Role In God's Story Obviously as we said, this is God's story where he is the creator and the one expressing love to his people. 1 Timothy 2:3 - “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” I think most obviously, our role in this story, is the ones God is expressing love to. We are the object of affection in the eyes of the Creator within the greatest, longest, love story of all time! Let that sink in for a minute. 4. Consider Our Responsibility In God's Plan This book is as 2 Timothy 3:16 says, inspired by God. It Is God-breathed. But how does it get to men? Through men! God inspired men to write it down and now how does its message get to men? Us. Notice that Jesus when his time on earth was finished in Mark 16:15 said “Go out into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” Jesus could have stayed to spread it and make it known. But instead, he entrusted that responsibility to the men who he left behind, and through them, he left the responsibility to us as well. That places an important responsibility on us to know our Bible. However, evangelizing is not just our responsibility.  It is our privilege. In the story we read earlier from Mark 7, Jesus asked those people not to tell anyone what they saw. Jesus hasn't placed that burden on us to hold back our enthusiasm. We get to go out and tell anyone and everyone who will listen! Therefore, rejoice! Why this book? Because It is a God breathed message of his love for me and for you and God has given me the honor of getting to share that message with the world. If I'm not rejoicing in that, then I'm missing the message.

When we talk about how people present themselves, we can mean any number of things: how they dress, how they talk, their posture, even their hygiene and things like that. We understand that we can “present ourselves” differently in different contexts. I would not walk into a job interview wearing a hoodie and gym shorts any more than I would climb into bed at night wearing a tux and dress shoes! I have never really met any sort of celebrity or high-ranking public official, but I know that if I got the opportunity, I would have to dress appropriately for the occasion. Think about this idea in a context other than just meeting someone famous or powerful, but representing them. For example, there are very specific rules for how the British royal family is to conduct themselves in public. For diplomats, there is an extremely high level of decorum and professionalism that is expected of them when representing their homeland. Now think about it this way: how do you represent God? How do you “present yourself” before Him? In Romans 12:1-2, we read an incredible answer to how we should answer this question. Paul begins by saying “I appeal to you therefore brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice…” It is clear that Paul feels strongly about what he is about to say. He does not just quietly or discretely imply that we should do this, but he implores them as brothers, making his appeal on the foundation of God’s mercy! But what does this mean? In the first several chapters of Romans, Paul has talked extensively about God’s mercy. While not taken from Romans, Paul’s words in Ephesians 2:4-5 beautifully summarizes Paul’s view of God’s mercy and its implications: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved…” He continues, but the fundamental point is this: we were dead because of sin, but by God’s grace and mercy, we are alive again. So how does this connect back to Romans 12? Remember, it is because of this incredible mercy that we are told to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, but Paul does not stop there. In describing how we should be as “living sacrifices,” Paul tells us to be sure our bodies are “holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” If we are created in the image of God (which we are), and desire to serve Him (which we do), then we cannot do things with our bodies that profane them! Several “profane” behaviors are laid out for us in the next chapter, when Paul says, “the night is far gone, the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires” (Romans 13:12-14). In other words, if we are going to present our bodies as holy, we cannot “take it easy” and be casual about sin! Our “worship” will be tainted by our sinful conduct, just as lambs and bulls in the Old Testament had blemishes at times that meant they were not able to be used in the sacrifices commanded under the Old Law. Go back to our example of meeting a celebrity or world leader, or even going on a first date with someone you are trying to impress. You would want to make sure and have fresh breath, have your hair done, make sure your clothes are not wrinkly or stained, etc. If we care that much about a date with someone we do not know, then of course we want to be even more careful how we “present ourselves” spiritually to God! Paul even gives us some specific advice for how to present ourselves better before God. We are not to be conformed but transformed! Many people have made terrible decisions using the excuse of “I’m not the only one.” It can be easy to hide behind the idea that “everyone is doing it” or “that’s just the world we live in now” or “its not that big of a deal,” and those commonly are in fact the ways the world looks at sin. However, if we want to present ourselves acceptably, we have to “transform” our mindset. Sin is not something we dabble in, play around with, or “tolerate.” As we see in the rest of Romans 12:2, this way of presenting ourselves requires testing, in order that we may “discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Living a Christian life is making Christ-like decisions, even when it is difficult and unpopular. It is staying away from sin even when “everyone else is doing it.” It is going through testing, and relying on what God says is good, acceptable, and perfect, so that we can have a new and improved outlook on life. If we do these things, by the grace of God, then we will continue to successfully present ourselves as holy and acceptable living sacrifices before our Heavenly Father.

For the past couple of years, I have held a weekly Bible class through an app called “Meet-Up.” One of our elders’ sons has a really big group on Meet-Up, which allows us to reach numerous people in the Dallas Fort-Worth area. I have led several different Bible studies pertaining to worry, the church, and one called Salvation Stories. In this study, we walked through the Book of Acts and studied the different accounts that Luke, who was inspired by the Holy Spirit provides for us.  There is a lot of confusion when it comes to what a person must do to be saved. Some say: Say a prayer and accept Jesus in your heart. However, that’s not found in any of the examples in the book of Acts. Some teach that infant baptism is necessary because people are born with sin. However, we don’t see this being taught or done in the book of Acts either. What we do see is what Jesus taught a man by the name of Nicodemus one night from John 3:3-7. Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” When you read the book of Acts (which I encourage everyone to do), what you will find are people being born again! You will find men and women, Jews and Gentiles who have heard the good news of Jesus, His life, His death, and His resurrection, and who responded with obedience to His words. Let’s consider Acts 2. What we find is Peter and the other apostles in the city of Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost. Listen to what Peter preached concerning Jesus in Acts 2:22-32. “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know – this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. For David says of Him, ‘I saw the LORD always in my presence; For He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue exulted; Moreover my flesh also will live in hope; because you will not abandon my soul to hades, nor allow your Holy One to undergo decay. You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of gladness with your presence. Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the partriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was neither abandoned to hades, nor did his flesh suffer decay. This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. " Acts 2:22-32 Peter taught Jesus after His resurrection ascended into heaven and reigns in heaven, Acts 2:33-35. Then he concluded that Jesus is both Lord and Christ, Acts 2:36. Peter shared with them the good news of Jesus. Peter used Old Testament scripture that spoke of Jesus concerning His death, resurrection, and kingship. Many in the audience responded with a question in Acts 2:37. “Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brethren, what shall we do?’”  Acts 2:37 If saying a prayer to accept Jesus in their hearts was necessary, Peter would have said it. But he didn’t. If doing nothing was necessary, Peter would have said it. But he didn’t. So, what did Peter say? Consider Acts 2:38, where he said, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” What we find is that these individuals heard the good news of Jesus! They certainly believed it because they asked what they needed to do. Now, they were given Holy Spirit inspired instructions. They were to repent (to turn away from their sins). They were to be baptized (immersed in water) and the reason given was “For the forgiveness of their sins…” When they heeded these words, they would be born again as Jesus taught. About 3,000 people obeyed the words of Peter, Acts 2:41. They were saved that day by the precious blood of Jesus! This is one of many salvation stories found in the book of Acts. Have you considered these stories? Have you responded in the same manner as these people did?

I used to be "Church of Christ" Benjamin Lee April 21, 2024 Download Outline File Download Presention File Emotionalism, Never Believed, Sin, Authority, unbelief, faith, church

West Main Sermon Audio I used to be "Church of Christ" 00:00 / 49:08 I used to be "Church of Christ" April 21, 2024 God Is My Strength 00:00 / 38:16 God Is My Strength April 14, 2024 The Wayward Son Comes Home (Luke 15:11-32) 00:00 / 38:23 The Wayward Son Comes Home (Luke 15:11-32) April 10, 2024 The Seduction of Joseph (Genesis 39:7-23) 00:00 / 42:44 The Seduction of Joseph (Genesis 39:7-23) April 9, 2024 Selling and Stirring (1 Kings 21:25) 00:00 / 43:48 Selling and Stirring (1 Kings 21:25) April 8, 2024 Things that Encourage 00:00 / 45:09 Things that Encourage April 7, 2024 Nevertheless (Luke 5:1-11) 00:00 / 37:16 Nevertheless (Luke 5:1-11) April 7, 2024 Believing God 00:00 / 49:09 Believing God April 7, 2024 Resisting Temptation 00:00 / 51:12 Resisting Temptation March 31, 2024 What Sort of People Ought You to Be? 00:00 / 34:57 What Sort of People Ought You to Be? March 24, 2024 Can We Trust the Bible? 00:00 / 52:55 Can We Trust the Bible? March 17, 2024 How We Got the Bible 00:00 / 51:32 How We Got the Bible March 10, 2024 According to the Pattern 00:00 / 47:15 According to the Pattern March 3, 2024 Rejoice 00:00 / 39:09 Rejoice February 25, 2024 The Lord's Work In Africa 00:00 / 49:39 The Lord's Work In Africa February 25, 2024 Prayer In Perspective 00:00 / 36:19 Prayer In Perspective February 18, 2024 Baptism 00:00 / 50:33 Baptism February 11, 2024 In, But Not Of 00:00 / 54:01 In, But Not Of February 4, 2024 The New Testament is our Authority Today 00:00 / 37:28 The New Testament is our Authority Today January 28, 2024 Were Do We Find Authority For... 00:00 / 37:33 Were Do We Find Authority For... January 21, 2024 Really, for real, a Christian 00:00 / 36:52 Really, for real, a Christian January 14, 2024 Be Steadfast 00:00 / 21:17 Be Steadfast January 7, 2024 2024 Theme Elder Presentation 00:00 / 14:24 2024 Theme Elder Presentation January 7, 2024 Load More Looking for sermons before 2024? Click Here

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