-Transcript-
00:37 Amen. Glory to God. Thank you for being here today.
00:40 Welcome to the cafe. It’s a great day here. I’m so thankful for God’s Word.
00:44 Amen. I hope you are too. And today that’s exactly what we’re gonna spend time talking about.
00:49 God’s Word, the Bible. You know, is the Bible important to you? Is the Bible just a book or is it more? Is the Bible something that you spend time with each day? Is it something that collects dust on a bookcase or in the back seat of your car or in the trunk or in your bag and never really comes out? Is the Bible something you care about? I’ve heard a lot of preachers talk about, hey, a good beat-up Bible is a sign that somebody really believes in God. And I’ll say yes, I guess as a preacher.
01:23 Sometimes you’ll see somebody with a Bible. I saw one that had, it was a duct tape on the binding and it was almost like ridiculous. You know, the pages were falling out and they seemed really proud of it.
01:34 Like, hey, look at this. But then I, you know, I kind of like having a nice Bible. I’ve got a newer Bible.
01:40 It’s got big print on it. It’s got the little thumb things. I don’t know what they’re called or you can turn to the different chapters.
01:48 You can find it. I kind of like having a nice Bible. I got a case for it.
01:53 And you know, I think that that’s a good thing. So it’s good to have a beat-up Bible. It means you’re reading it.
01:59 But it’s also good maybe to value the Bible enough that you have a nice one that you care about, that you take care of, that you use every day. So hey, let’s make it look nice and let’s make it very readable. So for me, I don’t love the really tiny prints.
02:13 Like I said, it’s not the hugest print Bible, but it’s a bigger print, easy to read, just a wonderful Bible. Christian Art Publishers or Christian Art Gifts, I love them, the company we work with in our business side. And I’m so thankful for what they’ve done.
02:30 They’ve made some really nice King James Bibles. And I was mentioning recently, we even have some at our church that we use. And so I’m very thankful for the Bible in a material sense.
02:39 I can carry it and look at it. But look, it’s what’s inside that matters. And we need to be about our Father’s business.
02:46 And we need to understand a very important truth today that we can then convey to others. Because if you’re listening to Christian Radio today, thank you by the way. Maybe you’re already saved, maybe not.
02:58 But you have an interest in the Word of God. And you need other people to understand there’s a truth here, that God’s Word still stands today for a reason. Isaiah 40: 8, the grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the Word of our God shall stand forever.
03:15 Isaiah 40: 8. I mean, think about this. Think about how our Bible has been written, okay? And it’s the 66 books by the however many authors assembled over however much time. You know, you’re reading in Genesis about the creation of the earth.
03:36 Amen. In the Garden of Eden, you’re reading about pre-flood stuff there before the flood. And I know there’s a technical scientific word for that, but I don’t have it for you here today.
03:46 But you’re reading about really fundamental how the world came to be, which is really fascinating that that true story is in a book that we can just go and buy on a shelf today. Download and have on our phone. Search it up online.
04:02 Go to library and read it. It’s in a book. Amen.
04:06 And that book has stood the test of time. And the most important part of this book, and it’s all relates, the whole book relates to this, is the love of Jesus Christ, the love of God, setting His only begotten to die for us on the cross, the beautiful sacrificial death of Jesus and resurrection of Jesus to save the sins of the world. And the whole book points to Christ.
04:29 And you can see Christ in every book of the Bible. All 66 books point to Christ. And it’s very clear.
04:36 Some people think it’s hidden or something. It’s a very clear picture of Christ and His sacrifice in so many ways. And I wish I had time to get to all those.
04:46 I guess I could bring up a few. We think about Jonah and the belly of the whale for that period of time. Amen.
04:55 It’s like Jesus going in to the earth for those three days and being raised from the dead. Amen. We think of God shutting in Noah in the ark.
05:03 And God’s the one that shut the ark. And He’s sealed until that time that the waters subside. Just like when we’re saved, we are sealed until the day of redemption.
05:11 Amen. And we are sealed by God through God’s finished work on the cross, through the person of Jesus Christ. And you can go through the whole Bible and see Jesus Christ.
05:17 Even all of the little details of the of the temple and the tabernacle and the veil. What happened to that veil? It was rent in two when Christ finished His work on the cross because that symbolized that now through Christ and through being saved by Christ, we have access to the throne room. Amen.
05:37 I could go on and on about how the Bible talks about Jesus Christ from beginning to end and shows us that He is the way, that no man cometh to the Father but by Him. And that word, that very important word to give us that understanding, it still stands here today. How many people have hated God over the years and wanted to destroy the Bible, and yet it’s still alive and well today? It was, I think it still is, the most published book or the most purchased book, the most available book.
06:08 And I know that in some countries, especially those that are very poor and those that are dealing with very rigid governments and deal with persecution, the Bible is hard to access. And they’ll fight over Bibles. I’ve read stories of Bibles coming in in a box and people are fighting over them in China and other places.
06:24 And oh, how I wish that we had that love and the desire for God’s word as they do. And that we aren’t so lazy, spiritually lazy, and saying, Oh, well, there’s a Bible everywhere, and I don’t need to worry about it. God’s word is true.
06:38 And we should be desperate for His word. It’ll change our life. And it’s a living word.
06:43 And it’s applicable to our life from beginning to end. And it can save, it has the power to save by the work of God. And we see here, the grass withereth, the flower faded, this idea here of the seasons changing and what happens in the winter, even I mean, you look at a golf course, how much money and time do they spend on their grass at a golf course, look at a golf course in the winter, that grass is dead.
07:08 Okay, that grass is brown, or at least up here in North Carolina, maybe down in Florida, it’s not but North Carolina, that grass is dead. It’s patchy, and brown and black, the grass withereth, the flower faded. But God’s word is never died.
07:19 God’s word stands true. How many scorners how many haters of the Bible want to destroy the Bible and saying, Oh, the Bible won’t be relevant in this time. And this time, how many of those people have died? I told my congregation the other day, I said, Look, those people with those hateful words for the Bible, we can’t even think of their names.
07:36 We don’t know who they are. They’re dead, their words are dead. And if they hate God, and they never got right with God, they’re burning in hell today.
07:41 But we don’t know them. We don’t think of them. But how many times do we quote Scripture? How much of Scripture has influenced our lives? How much of Scripture has influenced our nation, our country, our founding? And people say, Oh, well, Bible wasn’t involved in the founding of the United States.
07:56 Hogwash. Look it up. Amen.
07:59 Look at the principles. Go to court and look at some of these obscure laws in court and say, Oh, that’s from the Bible. It’s infused in our laws.
08:06 It’s infused in our life. I read one time that there was a claim made, I think in Israel, over an area there. I believe it was the grave of Abraham and the patriarchs.
08:19 And they used the Old Testament in court to try to argue saying, Look, this was given to Abraham. A document was signed. Amen.
08:27 The Bible is true. The Bible has stood the test of time. The Bible is applicable.
08:31 And people look at the Bible as old and biblical value is old. Come on now. The Bible is as current today as is more current.
08:38 In fact, it’s future looking. Amen. It’s the most current thing you can have.
08:42 It’s applicable to today and yesterday and tomorrow and the day beyond. And I’m so excited about the Bible. I think you can tell I’m so excited about the Bible.
08:49 I love God’s Word. I turn to it every morning. Amen.
08:53 Every morning I get into God’s Word. I try to stay in God’s Word throughout the day the best I can. I listen to preaching and teaching just like you.
08:58 I do the same thing. I listen to preaching and teaching. About what? About God’s Word.
09:03 And at night I try to read scripture. I try to pray over scripture if I can. Amen.
09:07 And I’m not perfect. Amen. But the point is I know I’m dependent upon God’s Word.
09:12 And God’s Word is so accessible today. It still stands true today. It still saves today.
09:18 And guess what? It’ll never return void. Isaiah 55:11. So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth.
09:24 It shall not return unto me void. But it shall accomplish that which I please. And it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it.
09:30 God’s saying here way back in Isaiah. Look. My word’s going forth and it’s not gonna return void.
09:40 It’s gonna accomplish that which I please. And it shall prosper in the thing where to I sent it. I believe Isaiah 55:11 is dealing with God’s great sovereignty.
09:48 Do you know we deal with a sovereign God? That means that God is in full control. And you say, Brother Clark, there’s wars and there’s problems and there’s this and there’s that. God has a reason.
09:57 Amen. Maybe that war is gonna stir up revival. Maybe that problem is gonna allow people one last chance to be saved before it’s totally too late.
10:04 Maybe it’s God’s judgment for a sinful nation or a sinful world. Maybe it’s something else that we can’t explain that only God knows. But He’s sovereign.
10:13 He’s in full control. He nothing happens without God’s will for it to happen. He’s allowed it.
10:19 Now did He want a school shooting to take place? No. But did those little children end up in heaven with Him? Yes. Does He understand fully what’s going on? Yes.
10:29 And there’s a reason why. And you’ve heard preachers say they took the Bible out of school. They took prayer out of school.
10:36 Yes. But also they took Bible out of home. They took prayer out of home.
10:40 I’ve heard that too. And that’s a good one. That’ll preach.
10:43 Amen. We aren’t living by his word. And so we’re facing great grave consequences because we’re not living by His word.
10:48 And people don’t want to hear that. But that’s true. The wages of sin is death.
10:54 What is God gonna say? The wages of sin is death? And then he removes all death from the picture? No. It’s gonna happen. Amen.
10:57 The wages of sin is death. Adam and Eve dealt with it. They were exiled from the Garden of Eden.
11:01 I believe they wouldn’t have died if they hadn’t eaten the forbidden fruit. But they did. They’re exiled out of the Garden of Eden.
11:06 And guess what? Death entered the picture. And it stayed in the picture. And there’s problems that are abounding.
11:11 But God’s word will never return void. His plan will never return void. God’s word will be the basis for his people to be saved.
11:20 Amen. His word is the basis for people to be saved. Think about it.
11:23 We plant the seed. God does the saving. How do we plant the seed? Through his word.
11:27 What do we do? Recently I preached a message on salvation. What did I do? I went down Romans Road. I read these verses from Romans.
11:35 You also can go in 1st Corinthians, I think it’s 15 verses 1 through 4, which gives a picture of the gospel, an abbreviated one. God’s word will be the basis for the salvation of his people. Therefore God’s word will never return void.
11:45 Through God’s word you can be saved today. Anyone can be saved today. God’s word will predict the future accurately.
11:52 Why? So his people are not fooled. And so they know that he is God. God uses prophecy in a number of ways.
11:58 Number one, to show that he is God and he knows the future. And only God can know the future. No man can truly understand the future but God.
12:06 And God knows the future. That’s how prophecy helps us understand he is God and his power. And helps us understand that he transcends time as we know it.
12:15 And God’s word through prophecy helps the saints understand what’s coming and to be prepared for it. And to understand how to act and live in this world. And God’s word will edify the saints until He calls us to heaven.
12:27 He’ll help us accomplish what he wants us to do. He’ll help us have peace in the midst of trouble and tribulation. He’ll help us have a heavenly perspective.
12:39 He’ll help us to understand that we are to love our enemies. To understand that there’s principalities that we should be waging war against and not people. To help us understand to love our neighbor.
12:46 To be charitable beyond measure. Help us understand who he is and what he promises us. And to hold on to those promises.
12:53 Which by the way, to repeat, to recite, and to pray over God’s promises is one of the best ways to not just live life but to live it abundantly. And remember this, John 1:14, and the word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory.
13:09 The glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. And that’s capital F, Father. That’s Jesus Christ.
13:16 And we understand that God’s word came to life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And Jesus Christ is King now and will be King and Lord of Lords forever. And will be worshipped forever.
13:27 And His sacrifice on the cross, His obedience on the cross, will be glorified forever. His resurrection will be spoken of forever. We will praise Jesus forever.
13:36 And He is God’s word. And so we see God’s word in the Bible we hold. We see God’s word through the truth in it.
13:43 We see God’s word through Jesus Christ. And his word never returns void. Trust the Lord today in everything that you do.
13:49 Trust the Lord and thank him for his word. What a great gift he’s given us. We are so truly blessed.
13:55 Thank God and praise God. I appreciate you listening. I thank you so much for joining me today.
14:00 Take care, God bless, and Amen.