Where Does the Bible “Fit” in Today’s Modern World?
Matthew 5:13
August 21st 2011 AM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
I.
Introduction (Matthew
5:13)
A.
Let’s be honest. We have lost
our “savour” – our flavour - our effectiveness as Christians
1.
We are like TASTELESS salt!
a.
No matter how much you use,
and pour onto your food, there is no difference
b.
No matter how many
“Christians” there are, there is no difference
2.
Not for lack of “biblical
knowledge”
3.
But for lack of backbone
a.
The courage to live by the
very words that this world is crying out for
b.
The courage to live by the
very words that we claim to believe!
c.
To just consistently according
to the words in this Book!
B.
Throughout history…
1.
RELIGIONS have multiplied, but
so has abuse and disgrace at the hands of some of the most religious, and most
devout
2.
POLITICIANS have risen to such
great power, but only to enslave their peoples, and destroy their neighbours
a.
Every one of the leaders of
the middle east, and
b.
The Bolshevik Revolution of
1917 promised freedom and prosperity for all Russians through communism – yet
all Russians got were labour camps and mass starvation!
3.
ATHEISTS and agnostics have
taken over almost every school and university, only to oversee the most
murderous wars of the past 100 years!
4.
Every attempt at
“enlightenment” by the human race has only enslaved, and slaughtered more people
than ever before!
5.
No one has found anything that
does not harm and ruin life, except for this Book, the Bible
C.
Our World is a Mess
(1John 5:19) – I don’t even have to tell you that!
1.
Violence that once was only on
the streets of third world countries is on our streets
2.
Wars are only on the increase
3.
Divorces, Domestic violence,
absolute distrust amongst people, wicked living
4.
Well, Humanism is NOT the
Answer
a.
Stalin murdered over 30
million Georgians in his “purging” of the 1930’s
b.
Mao tse tung forced march over
30 million peasants to their death in the last 1940’s
c.
Hitler enacted his “final
solution” resulting in the murder of over 6 million Jews, 9 million Russians and
5 ½ million Polish
d.
And the killing hasn’t
stopped!
1)
Someone worked through all the
statistics and came to a colossal number for the total number of abortions for
the last 60 years and put it at 900 million!!!
2)
THAT is the fruit if HUMANISM
– ME first! God last!
5.
Religion is NOT the Answer
a.
22,000 religious groups in the
world
b.
Atrocities unmentionable at
the hands of multitudes of religious zealots
6.
Feminism is NOT the Answer!
Moving motherhood to the bottom of society hasn’t made things better –
especially not for the children that are handed off to the arms of others!
7.
Politics is not the answer. We
had better have learned this by now!
8.
The Media is not the answer
a.
Ted Turner, creator of CNN and
very wealthy said in a 1996 interview with Audubon Magazine that a 95%
population reduction would be ideal. Below is his quote. “A total population of
250-300 million people, a 95% decline from present levels, would be ideal.” He
said that because he thought humans were animals that need to be contained and
stopped from using up all the earth’s resources!
9.
Science is NOT the Answer
a.
I love science! I love
studying physics and astronomy, and biology
b.
But today, people are
constantly thinking that science has disproven God
c.
They are trusting science like
it has all the answers!
d.
Yet science offers no answers
– only pain killers, and smarter bombs!
e.
It can’t answer people’s
problems with anything more than drugs, bombs, and the internet!
f.
The Space programme has
discovered new cures, or found out where life came from
g.
All it has done is given the
world the illusion that it is more advanced than the Bible.
h.
Science is messing with
genetics and only making profits, not things better!
i.
Did you know that there are 77
cures developed from adult stem cells, but ZERO cures come from aborted babies -
and YET that is where all the money is!!!
10.
Drink and Drugs are not the
answer
a.
55% of Irish adults 15 years
and over drink 6 pints of alcohol every week
b.
We lose 1,000 lives a year to
drug overdoses
c.
That does not include all the
EFFECTS of addiction and violence that drink and drugs bring with them!
D.
The world needs to see what
the Bible Can Do – What God can do through obeying
His word
1.
The Bible is something that
cannot be housed in a museum and do any good, any more than a cure can remain in
a laboratory – it has to be applied to the problems we are facing!
2.
The effect of this Book is
amazing!
a.
The effect of this Book on a
single, solitary life is simply marvellous to watch!
1)
You and I are proof of this!
2)
It convicts hardened,
sin-cursed hearts, bringing grown men to their knees in repentance
3)
It convinces the most
self-righteous and arrogant of men and women that they are wrong
4)
It corrects wicked thinking
5)
It cleanses a heart filled
with sins and Satan
6)
It starts people all over
again, but this time, with God!
7)
ONLY the Bible can do all
that!
b.
Not only that, but Its effect
on a nation is amazing! As we are going to see this morning
c.
What a Book the Bible is! It
has its place today! At the very centre of the life of a nation! It is the devil
who is behind all the efforts to put the Bible into a museum behind a glass
case, when it was written to save souls, forge lives, bless families, and raise
up great nations!
3.
But how is the world going to
see what the Bible can do? (2Cor 3:2)
a.
The world needs to see and
meet and be able to watch Bible believing Christians (Philp 2:15) live, and love
and thrive!
1)
Not just religious people!
2)
But people who can influence
our generation for God, before it is lost!
3)
Christians are Light in this
dark world
4)
We need to live like light –
shine in our dark world – not hide what Christ put in us
5)
But Christians must choose to
walk as light - live as Jesus Christ told us how to live – as LIGHT in the midst
of a crooked and perverse generation
6)
We need to be that harmless
but effective influence that Jesus saved us to be!
b.
We have a lot of work to do
1)
Being not JUST Christians…
2)
But the kind of Christians our
world needs!
E.
Well, I want to motivate that
desire this morning, by looking at just how important the Bible is in even our
post-modern society of the 21st century!
II.
Review - Last week I
taught you all just one truth…
A.
Our Hearts Need This
Bible
1.
Before we can talk about
anything else, we need to put the Bible back where it belongs – in our HEARTS!
2.
What our heart is (Jeremiah
17:9)!
a.
People can lie to themselves,
and believe anything they want to
b.
But the fact is…
1)
Our hearts are so desperately
wicked
a)
We are not messed up just a
little bit
b)
We are so wicked that none of
us even know how low we could go
2)
Our hearts are where every
problem comes from (Pr 4:23; Mark 7:21-23)
3.
What Only The Bible Does –
mark these and learn these truths!
a.
The Bible Exposes
the Heart (Heb 4:12) – cuts it wide open, exposing everything inside
1)
Counsellors won’t do it
2)
X-rays can’t do it.
3)
Only the Bible tells us what
is really in every heart! And it is beyond belief! Depravity! Filth! It is
simply BEYOND words what is in every heart in this room!!!
b.
The Law Convicts
the Heart (Acts 5:29-33; Rom 7:7) – makes us very guilty
c.
The Words of Scripture
Converts the Heart (Rom 10:9,10) – transforms it! Doesn’t “patch it up”
and make it feel better! It changes it!
d.
The Truths of Scripture
Rebuild the Heart (Heb 10:16,17) – repairs all the flaws
e.
The Words Keep
the Heart and Mind Clean (John 15:3)
4.
What an amazing Book! But it
only works when you obey it, trusting God!
5.
Ask God to give you a heart
for His Law, for His words (Jer 24:7)
a.
So that you can say like David
in Ps 40:8 “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my
heart.”
b.
So that it can be said of you
like it was of king Hezekiah in 2Chron 31:21
“And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and
in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his
heart, and prospered.”
6.
Only then can the Bible affect
the world around us – when we allow it to affect US!
B.
This morning, I want to see
what else could use a good dose of this Book!
III.
Message
A.
Our Homes Need This Book
(Dt 6:1-9)
1.
This Book must be in our
heart… AND it must be in our homes
2.
The Bible has its place…
a.
Like the TV has taken its
place
b.
Like the Internet
c.
Like the Telephone
d.
Like the Radio
e.
We have basically replaced
GOD’S Word with so many substitutes, and we are paying for it dearly!
f.
And so, only dust accumulates
on this eternal Book of God today!
g.
It needs to be pre-eminent
once again – to be THE Book we read all the time! As much as we read the
newspaper, as much as we argue, we need to be learning this Book!!!
3.
Our homes need a Law – a way
we ALL have to live and think
a.
Not a religious view, or a
popular opinion, but Christ’s clear commands
b.
And NOT just discussed, but
obeyed!
c.
Modern homes are simply war
zones!
d.
Today, most homes are
dependant upon counselling, upon expensive holidays, upon every child getting
everything they want, upon everyone being allowed to just do as they please, in
order to not self-destruct!
4.
Our homes need…
a.
A power greater than the past
1)
Too many are comfortable with
their past because it gives them power
2)
Power over their husband, or
wife – using their hurt as a weapon
3)
Power over their
responsibilities
4)
Power over their emotions
b.
Some promises greater than all
our failures
1)
With 50% separation rate in
Europe, and 15% of all marriages divorcing in
2)
Simply because of human
failures
3)
What did any of you expect
when you got married? Putting TWO imperfect people together only makes things
MORE complicated! But the benefits with God’s help are worth it all!
c.
A force greater that fears
1)
We live in the most fearful
time since World War II
2)
People won’t admit it, but too
many people can’t sleep without pills!
d.
A joy greater than late night
TV!
e.
We need God’s perfect word on
how to live as families – how to treat one another, how to love one another, and
how to worship God together! It doesn’t ever come naturally!
5.
Without the pre-eminence of
the Bible in your home you can only expect…
a.
A divorce – or a permanent
separation. That is the best the world can offer
b.
Teenage pregnancy – or Teenage
abortions
c.
Sexually transmitted diseases
and sterilisations
d.
A home filled with anger and
fighting
e.
Porn on every mobile phone and
on every computer
f.
Lazy sons and daughters all
just following in their lazy father or mother’s footsteps
g.
Incest and paedophilia
h.
Drugs and drink being taken by
your 10,11 and 12 year grand-children
6.
IS ANY OF THAT WHAT YOU WANT?
a.
If not, then bring this Book
home and sit down and start reading it together as a family, every day at a
meal. Just one chapter! Get to know every story of this Book!
b.
Mom! Read and memorize and
obey Ephesians 4:30-32; 5:22-24
c.
Dad! Read and memorise and
obey Ephesians 5 and 6
d.
Kids! Learn from every life
you read about in this Book of books! Instead of idolizing every drunkard and
druggie you see in your estate!
e.
Granddad and Grandma, read to
your grandchildren the wonderful words of life! Tell them Jesus made them, and
loves them! Show them in the Bible!
f.
When our society becomes more
and more tolerant of the homosexual lifestyle, the family unit took another
downward spiral.
1)
Notice, I said tolerant of the
homosexual lifestyle, not the homosexual. God loves the homosexual and wants to
change them and give them a normal life. However, He hates the sin of
homosexuality as it is destroying many lives and families.
2)
When laws are established that
encourage sin, then the fruit of that sin brings confusion to society.
Laws in our nation that are trying to gain acceptance for gays to marry
will further escalate destruction to the family.
g.
The Lord desires for the
family unit to once again thrive with the husband as the head of the family who
loves and nurtures his wife and children.
Christian homes that are in God's order will produce happy and loving
families. Many cultures throughout history made women only the property of the
man. The Biblical model for
marriage is a partnership between a husband and wife, where both parties love
and respect each other. Cultures
and societies without the Bible's influence usually repress and use the women
and even the children.
h.
However, our culture has,
swung in the opposite direction with many woman dominating and lording it over
the man and trying to rule him.
1)
Many women in our modern
culture do not have a submissive attitude toward their husbands, but rather,
want to do their own thing.
2)
Many women in
3)
It is not always wrong for
women to be in the workplace, but generally it is better for the mother to be at
home with the children when they are young. Children no longer are being
mentored by their parents, but by daycare workers, baby sitters, humanistic
school teachers, and the wicked influences of the media that have brainwashed
them with the evil ideas of the day.
4)
The Bible is just
old-fashioned enough to advise parents to teach and raise their children.
i.
Our homes are being battered
from many different sources.
1)
Pornography is another area
where our laws need tightening and enforcing.
Our nation also has laws on the books against this evil. However, we have
allowed evil to prevail in the name of freedom.
2)
Without a Christian influence
against this kind of evil, more women and children will be exploited, and lust
will destroy the intimacy of our marriages.
3)
Keeping the commandments of
the Bible is all that stands between us and this flood of evil.
j.
It is only the "salt and
light" of Christianity that keeps us from total destruction. Again,
Christianity's effect on the family unit is demonstrated as people follow the
Lord's plan for a happy marriage with the husband loving and caring for his wife
as the Lord cares for His bride, the church.
7.
Everyone in your home needs a
copy of the Bible – their own copy of the King James Bible
a.
It’s funny how everyone has
their own TV, their own computer, their own mobile phone
b.
But so few have their very own
Bible that they own and love and cherish and read and cling to in times of
success and times of sorrow!
c.
Make sure everyone in your
home who can read, reads this Book
d.
You don’t have to fully
understand it to benefit from it!
e.
How can we raise our families
right if we just “hope” they turn out right?
8.
Let the Bible guide your
decisions about
a.
Music
b.
Movies and entertainment
c.
Friends
d.
Dress and fashion – I think
the Bible has something to say about all that
e.
As well as the words you will
and won’t allow yourself to say
f.
About attitudes that will and
will not be allowed in your home
g.
About what you are going to do
on a Sunday
h.
NOW you see why the world
thinks so little about this Book – because CHRISTIANS think so little about this
Book!
B.
Churches Need this Book
(2Tim 4:1-4)
1.
a.
They preach popular opinions
like a talk show on TV
b.
They present all the various
views and theories and bibles
c.
They spend an hour
entertaining their audiences, and 15 minutes tickling their ears with social
quotes of spiritual enlightenment
1)
They quote people – Church
websites quoting famous people instead of Jesus
2)
They may refer to one or two
Scriptures, but the rest of the time, they talk out of both sides of their
mouths – saying everything that will please their audiences
3)
Churches, modern churches have
left the Bible behind them!
4)
Used to be that Churches had
the words of Moses, and David and Paul engraved on their walls – but now, only
disco lights illuminate their walls and floors!
2.
The majority think the Bible
is just simply outdated – I’m talking about CHURCHES
a.
The majority of churches
believe the environment is more important than preaching the Second Coming of
Christ
b.
The majority believe equality
of the sexes is more important than exposing the depravity of man’s heart. It
doesn’t matter to them what the Bible says about women preachers
c.
Today’s modern churches
believe God would never send anyone to hell
d.
They think that God used
evolution to make everything that there is
e.
They believe in a positive,
fun loving Gospel
f.
They believe that your
happiness is the highest good
g.
They think it is “Christian”
to accept homosexuality as a valid lifestyle
h.
They believe abortion is a
personal choice
i.
I’m talking about CHURCHES!
Churches that no longer love this Book!
3.
They are so wrong!
4.
Churches have lost their
“savour” – their effect! No wonder our world is disintegrating fast!
5.
Groups that call themselves
CHURCHES must get back to preaching this Bible like it is the perfect,
infallible, inerrant words of the living God!
6.
Christian churches need to get
back to unashamedly declaring
a.
THIS IS GOD’S WORD on every
subject that matters
b.
Thus saith the LORD God
almighty
c.
There really is an eternal,
tormenting place called hell, full of fire
d.
There really is an eternal,
rewarding place call heaven
e.
There really is still only one
way to escape the devil’s hell – through repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ!
7.
This nation needs Churches
a.
who believe in the absolute
authority of Scripture.
b.
Who will preach its words
without fear or compromise.
c.
Who will obey what is written
herein.
d.
And that will do everything
humbly, not arrogantly, but meekly as Christ showed us how to!
C.
Our Government Needs This
Book (Psalm 33:12; Deut 4:5-8) – I hope to talk
about this another day
1.
We swear by it! But as a
nation do not know what it says!
2.
We know what governments are
capable of when they have unrestrained power, but we forget that GOD has a way
to balance powers – even governmental powers!
3.
Our leaders need this Book
(Josh 1:8; Dt 17:18,19)
4.
Our laws must be founded upon
the laws of this book
5.
All our rights come from our
creator – not from our cravings!
D.
All Our Society Needs
This Book
1.
All Nations Do! They wait for
it, just as our memory verse says (Isa 42:4)
2.
Not slammed down their
throats, but visibly seen, lived out by thousands and thousands of Bible
believing born again Christians, who just live differently, like the Bible says
to
3.
Every area of society is empty
of something real!
a.
The people on your job need to
know what this Book says
b.
The kids at school this year
c.
The TEACHERS at your school
d.
Your extended family members
e.
The people at the park
f.
Everywhere
g.
And they will probably only
hear it from YOU!
h.
Paul said, “I am not ashamed
of the Gospel of Christ!”
4.
Our society has accepted every
wind of fashion and change – and has paid the price in lost homes, lost decades,
lost youth, lost innocence, and lost freedoms!
5.
But, Everything good that we
have been blessed with in our society here in
a.
There’s nothing this world
does well! All of man’s best efforts result only in wars!
b.
But thankfully, there is
nothing that this Bible cannot fix!
IV.
Conclusion
A.
Throughout history no one has
found anything that doesn’t harm and ruin life, except for this Book
1.
Religions have multiplied, but
so has abuse and disgrace at the hands of the most religious, and most devout
2.
Politicians have risen to such
great power, but only to enslave their peoples, and destroy their neighbours
3.
Atheists and agnostics have
taken over almost every school and university, only to oversee the most
murderous wars of the past 200 years!
4.
Every attempt at enlightenment
by the human race has only enslaved, and slaughtered more people than ever
before!
B.
The effect of this Book on a
single, solitary life is marvellous to watch!
1.
It convicts hardened,
sin-cursed hearts, bringing grown men to their knees in repentance
2.
It convinces the most
self-righteous and arrogant of men and women that they are wrong
3.
It corrects wicked thinking
4.
It cleanses a heart filled
with sins and Satan
5.
It starts people all over
again, but this time, with God!
C.
If only someone in this room
would let it!
1.
There is nothing this world
does well!
2.
And there is nothing that this
Bible cannot fix!
D.
Our Government Needs This Book
(Deut 4:5-8)
E.
Our Society Needs This Book –
All Nations Do! They wait for it!
F.
Our Churches Need this Book
G.
Our Homes Need This Book
H.
But it all begins when WE let
it affect Our Hearts… OUR Hearts Need This Bible!
1.
Please ask God to give you a
heart for His Law, for His words (Jer 24:7)
2.
And then Let it start to…
a.
Cut Up and Expose your Heart
(Heb 4:12)
b.
Convict your Heart (Acts
5:29-33; Rom 7:7)
c.
Convert you, and make you
completely better (Rom 10:9,10)
d.
Rebuild the Heart (Heb
10:16,17)
e.
Keep your Heart and Mind Clean
(John 15:3)
3.
It only happens when you get
busy reading, and memorizing vast portions of this Book of books! Psalm 119:11
4.
Only then can the Bible affect
the world around us – when we allow it to affect US!