Who Has the Final Word, Part 1

Beloved, there's no plan. There's no hope of atonement or forgiveness in the Qur'an. Even Muhammad was fearful of his sin standing before God. There's no hope of forgiveness or salvation in the Bhagavad Gita. You're simply on a course and you're reincarnated, selffully ascending, ascending, ascending.

And if you were bad, you'd come back as a termite. They all put you on a process of self-improvement and good works. And maybe if you're good enough, you get into whatever heaven you believe in. The message of the Gospel, and therefore the message of every true Christian church, is that there is only one way of salvation. For over 2,000 years, being part of the church has been an act of bravery, and it still is today. Christian living is not for fence-sitters or culture lovers.

It's not for people who want society to accept them. It requires complete submission to the authority of Scripture, the pursuit of holiness in all aspects of life, and the avoidance of sinful habits and entanglements. As a church, we must walk together in the path of light, keeping each other accountable and being encouraged by God's Word, which is the final authority. Here's Stephen Davey with a lesson called, Who Has the Final Word?

Our series on the church continues today. Thus far we've covered who we are, why we belong, why we exist, how we behave. In this fifth study together, what I want to do is begin covering a number of points that are woven into our new constitution and bylaws.

They're just sort of being the final version and the proofing and all of that before they go to print. In a simple categorical phrase, these points could be understood as what we promise, what we promise each other. Older terminology would refer to promises like these as a church covenant. If you're old enough in the faith, you may remember perhaps joining a church with a covenant at the beginning of its constitution and bylaws.

It was full of things that you would agree to as members. I pulled out our original covenant. Those of you that are members of this church, you may have never seen it or read it. I don't know, but it's there. It's a page long in its length, and these original points or promises are basically being carried over, but the formal language is being changed so that we can understand it without a dictionary nearby.

Some of the phraseology changes. In fact, this covenant dates back to over 100 years ago, even though for us it's 30 years old. It's in the original covenant like we strive to promote the prosperity of the church.

We have to redefine prosperity in these days, don't we? We promise to give it a sacred preeminence over all institutions of human origin to cultivate Christian sympathy and courtesy, to always be mindful of the rules of our savior. What are the rules of our savior and what does it mean to cultivate Christian sympathy and courtesy? Well, one of the things we're doing is giving clarity to this matter of covenant promises, and we're dropping the vocabulary that we no longer understand. However, it is worthy of revising and it is worthy of rehearsing effectively these privileges and responsibilities of the members of a local church. Church covenants go back hundreds of years in church history.

It reminds the believer that we are not only surrendering to the truth of the gospel and his word, but we are choosing to surround ourselves with people of like faith and like doctrine and like passion and like purpose. It's possible to actually join a church nowadays and not even know what they believe. You walk down the aisle, you turn around, you sign a card, they raise their hands and you're in.

You're in. Nevermind what they believe or what they pursue, but even still, it's possible to join a church and inspect the documents, to inspect the roles of elders and deacons, to look at the finer points of doctrine, to focus on the bylaws and its relationship to tenures and officers and annual elections or whatever, and do all of that and have absolutely no commitment to one another. It is possible to join a church and not really like the people in it, and that would be okay. We can do all of that and not love each other, but we sign our name to tell everyone of those things and those things in which we will play a role and we will play a part in the body of Christ, the local church. A church covenant effectively causes us to resist the pull of radical individualism.

It's that American breed where you're it, and you're all that matters, and it's I, me, and mine, and you're going to ride solo to heaven. No, that isn't the idea of the New Testament church. You explore the New Testament and you find yourself in the pages of the New Testament as a believer who not only belongs to Christ, but he belongs to a redeemed people, to a local assembly in particular. So the language, as we've learned it, of a church is a reference to the body, a body in your hand, or a foot, or a mouth, the sinew muscle. It refers to the church as a family. It refers to a church as a called out, a commissioned body of believers. And so we read that Herod began to persecute those who belonged to the church.

They were seen not as individual identities, but as members of an assembly. Acts chapter 12, verse one, we read of Paul and Barnabas being welcomed by the church from a missionary journey. We find the body commissioning people to the field of service, which is one of the things we had the privilege of doing today with the Hamans. In Acts 14, 27, they gathered the church together.

And I love Luke's commentary and spent a long time. I don't know how long that church service was, but it was evidently long enough for Luke to say it was a long time. So it's clear the believers belong to each other and what is called a local church. We demonstrate the gospel to each other. We delineate and strategize on delivering the gospel through us to those who've, who've never heard the average Christian in this culture especially has lost the concept of what it means to have holy obligations to a body of believers that he isn't writing solo to heaven, that he actually belongs to a wedding party, a wedding party as members of the bride of Christ heading for the marriage supper of the lamb and event yet in the future when the bride is completed and Christ calls us to himself and to the father's house. So in the meantime, during this wedding processional, what kind of relationship do you and I have with the rest of the bridal party? What if somebody told you they were married, had some kids and you asked them, well, you know, what's your relationship like with your wife and your family? Oh man, I love my wife and I love my family. Really?

Oh yeah. I, I, I, I go home at least once a week if she's cooking something I like and, and, and I'll eat it. And if my kids are doing something I want to see, which isn't often, but if they're doing something I want to see, I'll, I'll stop in at least a, you know, maybe two or three times a month for about an hour. But man, do I love my family. What would you say of that man's devotion? Not much. Have you ever thought about the fact that a body of believers have holy obligations, privileges and responsibilities to one another? So what do we promise each other? Well, the elders have put together 21 of these, 21, and we're just calling them, we're dropping the name or word covenant, and we're just calling them the holy pursuits and promises of membership. The holy pursuits and promises of membership. Now, obviously, if I'm going to preach a message with 21 points on holy obligations, we're not interested in increasing our membership more than likely. We're not necessarily interested in decreasing our membership, though I think both will happen. What we are saying is that we are not falling in line with the average American church that is lowering the bar to such a degree that anybody and anyone can join.

No, I want to send a message. I do hope you get this. We are raising the bar. We're raising the bar. Our intention as shepherds of this flock is to call people to the definition of the New Testament church and then watch as God applies the truth of the word. Some are going to want to join. Some are going to want to get as far away from here as they can. This may be the last time we see you. I don't know.

We're hoping that you understand and make such commitment to Christ that you cannot be apart from a local church, either this one or another one of like faith and practice. I think of the early church in Jerusalem where God moved in holy anger toward two individuals who lied. They came into the assembly and they lied about the amount of money they were going to give. They said, this is the amount of money for a piece of property we sold, and it really wasn't.

They'd kept much of it for themselves. And God's Spirit so moved in holy justice that He struck both that husband and wife dead. How's that for a church service? And the telling comment in the New Testament church as it's just being inaugurated, and I think God did that for a reason as it's just being inaugurated. You read this telling statement that the rest of the community did not dare to associate with them, but they held them in high esteem.

Acts chapter 5. Imagine being a church that is both feared and respected by your ungodly culture. Imagine somebody not going to a church assembly for fear that God might move in righteous anger against their hypocrisy. I mean, how's that for a church sign out on the lawn? Welcome to all who are prepared to die if you're a hypocrite. Services at 8, 930, 11, and 6 p.m.

Welcome. I don't know about you, but the older I get in the faith, the more I'd like our church to become a place where people fear to go, knowing that God is uniquely present in the assembly, that people are afraid to attend unless they truly and transparently desire or want to know how to truly worship this true and living God. So listen, we're not doing this.

This is not an exercise this fall because we really want our membership to increase. We want it to be clarified in our doctrine, position, and commitment to one another. Now, what I've done is I've taken these 21 promises and holy obligations and basically much of it from our original covenant. We've rewritten them, added some, took some away. We've divided them into three categories. At first I thought this week I would do a three-part sermon.

Each of them have seven points. And since I'm only going to get through the first three of 21, this is going to be who knows how long, but this is the exercise we're engaged in. And so here we go.

All right. The first category is this, a member's promises regarding their conduct, their personal conduct. The second category is a member's promises concerning their church. What are we promising each other? And then thirdly, a member's promises regarding the community. Have you ever thought about the fact that there are at least seven things that you and I are promising our unbelieving community as members of the local church? All right. The first category, and we'll get through three points today, a member's promises regarding their conduct. Now, let me, let me make a statement. I think we're going to get it up on the screen next Lord's day so that you can see it. But it starts out by, by saying this members of this congregation willingly and faithfully pursue these promises.

And that language is important. It doesn't say that members of this congregation have arrived. No members of this congregation pursue these promises. In other words, nobody gets it perfect. We're, we're not going to say if you didn't get it right, don't come back next week. Who would be here? My wife would be just want to throw that in. She's in this hour, honey.

That's at least worth five points. Okay. None of us, none of us. We fail and we'll get through the list and we'll talk about the grace of God and a lot of things, but we sometimes have makeup work to do, right? We stay after, we need a little help tutoring. We call that discipleship in the church.

It's a wonderful thing. We're not, we're not, we're not grading you. We're not promising to have our little card out.

I don't know about you, but my report cards, I don't want to go there. They were never something to talk about. My parents never put my report card up on the refrigerator.

It was never something to behold. We come home on Friday, they had to sign it. I had to take it back on Monday. Those were the worst weekends of my life. In fact, one year when I was in sixth grade or seventh, I couldn't remember.

It came back to me. I thought it'd be better if my parents never saw my report card. Their missionaries are already suffering for Jesus.

Why make them suffer even more? And so I forged my father's name on that report card. And then I did such a horrible job that I dribbled water on it and smudged it up to try to make it look like I'd made dropped it in the yard or something. And, and let's, let's just say it didn't work and I went into the pastorate instead of becoming a forger. Okay.

It was not a good time at all. Listen, we're not doing that. We're not handing out report cards.

We're not going to sign it. However, however, we are going to do what you love to get in high school or college or graduate work when your teacher would give you an exam schedule and guideline. Didn't you love to get that? This is what's going to be on the test. This is, this is the standard I'm going to expect you to regurgitate back on examination day. Basically the teacher of our church who is Christ has delivered to us the examination guide to tell us how to live and what to learn and what to relearn and how to walk.

There's, there's no confusion, no confusion. So here are the holy obligations and promises we're going to make in relation to personal conduct. Number one, first, we promise to submit to the authority of scripture as the final authority to whatever it speaks. It is the final authority.

There are other authorities in your life and mine, but they are subordinate to the authority of God's word, which we cannot violate. Take your, take your Bibles and turn to second Timothy three quickly. Second Timothy three. And let me just drop in quickly on a text here.

Second Timothy three. Love to hear the rustling of pages. It's a great sign by the way. You can't do that on an iPad. Just wanted to make that comment.

Although I bet somebody is going to come out with an invention that's going to make the sound of until then, nevermind. Verse 14, second Timothy three, you, however, he's writing into Timothy, a young pastor Paul is writing him. You, however, continue in the things you've learned and become convinced of knowing from whom you learned them. We know he learned them from his mother and grandmother from another text that from childhood you have known the sacred writings.

Would you underline that in your mind or maybe even on the page? You have come to know the sacred writings. These are the sacred writings. What about the Bhagavad Gita of Hinduism? Is that sacred?

What about the Quran of Islam? Is that sacred? Well, ask yourself the question, can they lead you to this sacred destination? Can they lead you to this sacred truth? Verse 15, the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

Beloved, there's no plan. There's no hope of atonement or forgiveness in the Quran. Even Mohammed was fearful of his sins standing before God. There's no hope of forgiveness or salvation in the Bhagavad Gita. You're simply on a course and you're reincarnated, hopefully ascending and ascending, ascending.

And if you were bad, you'd come back as a termite and you start all over again. There's no sacred destination or forgiveness in the Apocrypha or the Book of Mormon. They all put you on a process of self-improvement and good works. And maybe if you're good enough, you get into whatever heaven you believe in. Interesting that this sacred text gives us the wisdom that leads us to salvation. I was witnessing to a Hindu here in our community and eventually after asking him a lot of different questions I knew some things that he believed and I finally said, you know, sir, the distinctive difference between your belief and mine is what I have seen myself. I have watched priests in India washing in what they call the sacred water of the Ganges, attempting to wipe away or wash away sin through ritualistic cleansing. The difference between what you believe and what I believe, the primary distinction and what you believe to be sacred writings in mine is that mine delivers to me the news that my sins can be forgiven and I can be saved and yours does not.

And he with a courteous attitude sadly nodded his head at me and he said, what you say is true. These are the sacred writings delivering the stunning truth that eternal life isn't earned. It's not something you do for God, whatever God it is, hoping to get in good favor with that God, it is something God has done entirely for you. Verse 16, all scripture is inspired by God, inspired, the breath of God.

This is God breathed. It's profitable for teaching. It tells you what's right. It's profitable for reproof. It tells you what's wrong. It's profitable for correction. It tells you how to get right.

It's profitable for training. It tells you how to stay right. So wonderfully outlined, that verse is by Warren Wiersbe. Verse 17, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. That word equipped is a reference to someone about to embark on a long journey and they're stocking the boat. They're stocking the ship.

They're bringing supplies down the dock and they're loading it on the boat. Paul in this analogy is effectively telling Timothy what you've got to do is stock up with the word for your voyage in life. But somebody might say, well you know with the Bible, it's just a bunch of guys writing down their opinions.

They've just made this stuff up. Well take your Bible and turn right a dozen pages or so to 2 Peter. If you run into Revelation, you've gone too far. 2 Peter chapter 1 and look at verse 20. But know this, first of all, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will. In other words, this book was not conceived by human minds.

And a human will that said, you know, I really like this point, I think I'll throw that in there. No, not by human will, but notice, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. That informs us that the Spirit of God superintended the movement of men's hearts so that what they wrote was his truth. This is the word from God.

So what do we do about it? Well, if it's God's word, look up at verse 19. So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place.

In other words, this book is all the more important the more darkened your culture becomes around you. Do you have the lamp of the word? As David wrote in Psalm 119, 105, thy word is a lamp into my feet, a light into my pathway. The word is the lamp, the word is pointing the direction forward. The word is telling you it's out of bounds.

The word helps you be trained and equipped for life. The word of God is the final authority. Follow this then, and it will lead you by its light into light, dismantle it, discard it, ignore it, debate it, redefine it, and you will effectively abandon yourself to darkness and confusion like our culture around us. Does it ever occur to you that the Christian is never asked to vote on matters God has made clear? God has never said, you know, I'm not really sure about this, so let's just take a poll.

What do you think? Let's take a vote. No, his word is the final vote.

That's the only vote. I'm amazed, frankly, in our culture these days of the audacity of churches and denominations. Never mind culture, I expect it from them, but churches, that really bothers me, and denominations. I've watched them over the recent years establishing committees to study issues of sexual ethics and relationships in light of, quote, changing times. I don't know how many times I've seen some church or school or organization appoint a committee to take another look, to take another look. One denomination said recently that they were going to appoint a committee to study the issues of sexuality and that they would engage in a, quote, time of listening.

I don't know who they're listening to. Now, that's another way of saying we've heard from God, we really don't like his message, or we're going to listen for some other message. It's the difference between darkness and light, and we make this promise as members that God's word, when God speaks, will be our authority as we correctly interpret it. We are now living in progressive revelation in these letters of the apostles to the church.

We find in there our marching orders. We find timeless principles in all of scripture. And whenever God speaks, it's always true. Now, how do we act as a church?

How do we live as a Christian in this dispensation of grace, this church age? We're committed that when God speaks, no one else has to. When God speaks, no one else has to. That's because God always has the final word. Thanks for joining us today here on Wisdom for the Heart with Stephen Davey. What you just heard is part one of a lesson called Who Has the Final Word?

The written revelation of God's word is contained in the Bible, and we obey whatever we find there. Stephen has more to this lesson, but we need to pause right here, and he'll resume it on tomorrow's broadcast. Our ministry receives all of its funding by people like you who listen and support us. You can send us a gift from our website, which is wisdomonline.org. And if you'd like to write to us, our mailing address is Wisdom for the Heart, P.O. Box 37297, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27627. That's P.O. Box 37297, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27627. We'll have the conclusion to this lesson tomorrow, so join us here on Wisdom for the Heart.