Let Your “Yes” be “Yes”

What would you say is the most widespread and destructive moral problem in our day?
Many would say the breakdown of the family with a rejection of biblical morality.
Perhaps the most pervasive moral problem is the sin of lying.
The present financial crisis is largely the result of lies and deception at every level from giant banks to individual borrowers.
As we anticipate next year’s elections many have become cynical, having concluded that all politicians are liars who will say anything to gain and keep their power.
Many on “Black Friday” stood for hours in long lines, only to find out that the stores didn’t have nearly enough supply of the bargain items to meet demand.
People break their marriage vows. They perjure themselves in court.

Truth is a significant kingdom issue. God is true and cannot lie (Titus 1:2 John 14:6).. Satan is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). Your integrity reflects to whose kingdom you belong.
We have who have been brought forth by God’s Word of truth should reflect God’s nature as we live with integrity (James 1:18).

James, echoing Jesus, declares that we should not use manipulative oaths to deceive others. Instead our “yes” should always mean “yes” and our “no” should always mean “no”.

We will address several issues including:
Whether it is ever right for a Christian to swear an oath or to make a vow.
Why people lie.
How subtle our lies can be.
What biblical integrity looks like.
How liars can be transformed into people of integrity.

I would encourage you to read James 5:12 and Matthew 23:16-22.

Be Patient

Have you ever asked yourself, in the midst of suffering, “Why doesn’t God do something?”
James’ readers might have been asking such questions as they were living as exiles and were being horribly oppressed by the rich and powerful (5:1-6).
James encourages them (and us) to patiently endure in light of the fact that the Lord is coming soon. James’ teaching is an example of how the primary purpose of biblical teaching about future things (eschatology), is not to encourage speculation and disputation among believers, but to encourage us to patiently endure the hardships of this life as we pursue holiness.
James reinforces his teaching with powerful examples of those who patiently endured.

I know that many of you are in the midst of trials and my prayer is that the glorious expectation of the Lord’s return will encourage you to remain steadfast.

Shepherd God’s Flock

Because we are planning to ordain Craig Marshall as an Elder of Grace Bible Church, we will be taking a break from James (and I am really excited about the next passage 5:7-11).
I will be preaching from I Peter 5:1-5 and I Timothy 4:12-16 about the call of God upon the Elders and members of the church.
I will explain why we are convinced that Scripture teaches a particular structure for Christ’s church which is to be led by a plurality of qualified gifted elders, assisted by deacons, with every member engaged in the work of ministry. We pay special attention to the responsibilities of our elders to shepherd God’s flock in a Christlike way, and to how members should support their leaders.

The Goal of Godly Conduct

I have entitled this message The Goal of Godly Conduct. In this section is that famous language of “vessels . . . some for honorable use, some for dishonorable use.” Come tomorrow prepared for some reminders of the type of behaviors that accurately describe the make up of these two types of “vessels.” Both Godly and un-godly conduct is described in this text: things that you and I commonly struggle with. I am hopeful that the Lord would be pleased to once again use His powerful Word for the good of our souls, changing us to look increasingly like Christ, using us for good in the lives of those as yet without Him.

Please read the second chapter of 2 Timothy in preparation for the preaching tomorrow.

Thirsting for God

Psalms 42-43 go together. They are Psalms of lament with an almost identical refrain. 42:5 42:11 43:5.
These Psalms are of special value to believers who feel overwhelmed or struggle with depression.
We can relate to the Psalmist as he describes his own spiritual drought, longing for God to satisfy his thirst.
He also describes his situation as being overwhelmed by the floods of sorrow.
Yet within this Psalm we find the answer to our despair. “Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him.”

Martyn Lloyd-Jones used Psalm 42 in the first chapter of his famous book, “Spiritual Depression”.
He tells us that a key to overcoming depression is to stop listening to ourselves (complaining and worrying) and to start talking to ourselves (about the hope we have in God).

Please read Psalms 42-43 before coming to church.

God Speaks Through His Word

This Sunday I plan to complete our consideration of Psalm 19.
Last week we looked at the first six verses which declares how God speaks to all humanity through His creation (General Revelation)
This week we will consider the Lord’s speech to His people through the Scriptures (Special Revelation) in verses 7-11, and then our response in verses 12-15.

As you read over Psalm 19 before coming to church consider the following questions:

Do you notice that the first six verses use the name God and verse seven and following use LORD. Why do you think that this is?
How are general revelation similar to each other? How are they different?
Where can you see the gospel in this Psalm?