you
probably not realistic at this point
but if you still want to go
let me know
those that have spoken with me thus far
I've already RSVP'd us so we're good there
but if you haven't spoken
you
like immediately
in fact is there anybody else here that hasn't spoken
okay
I figured that'd be the case so I'm just going to assume that's it
but I'll get with
those families here in a bit
as far as let's get out of here
and then we've got home school field trip
coming up in a couple more weeks
to the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum
so that's right here
right up the road actually
not far from the church building at all
and we're going to have a great time there
at 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
we need to be there walking through the door
at 9 o'clock
don't show up at 9
we're all going to go in and then you can pay for yourself
when you get there, that's how that works
you need to be there earlier than 9
you need to be there at like 845
so I can pay for everybody and we can all go in as a group
so again this is open to anybody
with school age children
that would like to attend
they don't have to be home schoolers
but it's open to anybody
I'm excited about it
I think it's going to be really interesting
a cool museum, kind of outdoor
and then we'll have the live family theater
if you're going to go, please do sign up in the back
I know several names are out there
but if you sign up in the back
we've got the Christmas Eve service coming up
so that's going to be obviously in the summer 24th
we'll just have a quick greeting, Christmas stories
and some additional perils
and this is a great service to invite folks out
people will be having invites
to start handing out and inviting people
and we'll open up the Christmas CDs
this week as well
so let's go ahead and sing one more song
song number 205
song numberfourth
song number Th Jane
song number six
song number five
song number six
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus
those that maybe have just more life experience,
those that have been in Christian faith longer,
those that have been saved longer,
those are people that we should be looking to.
Now that's always guaranteed that just because they're older
or been around longer, they're doing everything right,
you know, but when you have a good example,
like Joshua Adamosis, you know,
we should learn from that individual
and we should then continue in it,
I mean, what good is it if you learn all these things
and then you just cast them by the wayside
once it becomes your opportunity
to go ahead and be the leader
one that's going to be the example, right?
What good would it have been for Joshua
to have been up in that mouth of Moses
if he would have later just been like,
just said, well, you know, forget Moses.
I'm just going to do things the way I want to do it.
I mean, kind of like the cold of Aaron, right?
Remember when Moses went up in the mouth of Aaron,
you know, he gave in to the people that pressured him
and he ends up building the building after.
We all know the story.
You know, what good would it be
if Joshua did something like that later in his life?
If he just disregarded the word of God,
just disregarded the commands,
disregarded everything that he'd been instructed.
It would all have been for naught.
It would have been a waste.
You know, it would have been better
to take somebody else up in that mouth and instruct them,
instruct somebody that understood the value
of not changing, of sticking with what they'd been taught,
like Joshua did.
You know, we don't want to be people
that just deviated for no reason.
You know, and this is what, you know, think about it.
This is a great attribute of God.
You know, it's great that we don't have to sit here
day in and day out and wonder, you know, what God's like.
You know, we know who God is.
We can know more about God.
We can learn more about God.
And those things that we learn about God, you know,
we can understand that those things are not going to change.
I mean, it's great that salvation isn't changing.
You know, that salvation has always been by faith
and will always be by faith.
We don't have to sit here and scratch our heads.
You know, am I still saved because I believe in Christ?
Or is there something, or has God changed in some way?
You know, we don't have to sit here
and wonder about whether or not, you know,
we can get right with God and live to the Lord.
You know, we will always understand that God
is always going to be tender and long suffering
and full of compassion.
We understand that God is always going to be merciful
and all of these things.
That's part of God's nature.
He doesn't change.
You know, thank God for that.
So you can see the value in not being somebody
who just changes with the times
and just goes along with whatever.
Bibles and Hebrews 13, I'll just read to you verse seven.
It says, remember that which has rule
and which has purpose, and which has purpose.
They follow, considering the end of their conversation.
Say, look, the people who have spoken unto you
the Word of God, those that are teaching you
and instructing you in the Word of God,
just like Joshua had a Moses,
had somebody that was teaching and instructing him
to draw him in closer to God, taking one of them out
and instructing these things.
He's saying those people are the people that follow,
meaning not just that you follow them in their own life,
but even beyond them, that you follow on in their footsteps,
that you take the things that you've learned
of them and continue in them.
That's what he's saying, who they follow,
considering the end of their conversation.
You know, I've alluded to this recently in another sermon,
considering the end of their conversation.
You know, why should I do what the preacher says?
Why should I live the way the Bible tells me to live?
Why should I try to follow the example
that's being set before me?
Well, consider the end of the conversation
of those that are speaking unto you in the Word of God.
Consider the fact that the people that are instructing you
in the Word of God, they don't have a lot of problems
that the world has.
Obviously, you know, nobody's perfect, but you know what?
I'm not trying to, I'm not,
I didn't have to sleep one off this morning.
You know, I didn't have to wake up and, you know,
have a Bloody Mary to get over the hangover
to come here and preach to you guys.
You know, I didn't have to, you know,
I'm not dealing with a lot of the problems
that the world has.
Consider the end of the conversation,
the way they live their lives.
Consider the fruit of their lives.
That should motivate us to want to follow in those things
and not just change them.
And say, well, you know, I really like what they've got.
Well, if you like the fruit, then you have to, you know,
you have to have the roots.
You can't have fruit without the root, as the saying goes.
You know, if you want the conversation that others have,
then you obviously have to follow in their footsteps,
follow in their faith, and you can't change it.
You can't say, well, I like that,
but I'm just gonna change this or I'm gonna change that.
You have to follow in these things.
I mean, this is an attribute of God.
It says in verse eight, Jesus Christ the same,
yesterday, today, and forever.
I mean, thank God that God isn't a God who changes,
who just, you know, changed his mind suddenly.
We just, you know, I used to be this way,
but now I'm gonna do things differently.
Obviously, God, you know, can change his mind
about how he's going to deal with man.
God is some robot, but the attributes of God,
the nature of God, is unchanging.
That's a great attribute of God.
It goes on and says, be not carried about
with diverse and strange doctrines,
for it is a good thing that the heart
be established with grace.
You know, it's a good thing that our hearts be established,
that we find the good way, we're in the ought to walk,
and then continue, and it cannot be somebody
that's just given a change, moment by moment,
day by day, carried about with every wing of doctrine,
right, and cutting the affiness of men.
That was what Joshua shows us.
There's obviously a lot of great lessons
that you can learn from Joshua,
that we look at his life,
but Joshua was somebody that was instructed, taught,
and then did not deviate from what he had been instructed in.
He continued in that path.
Go to 2 Timothy chapter number three,
2 Timothy chapter number three.
Obviously, you know, as I said earlier, sir,
that the value of being instructed
is that you will continue in it.
What made Joshua a great leader was the fact
that he continued in the things that he had been instructed in
that he didn't waste it, that he didn't just cast it off
and change things, he saw the value,
what he had been taught, and he continued in it.
That's what gave that instruction value.
You know, if you're instructed in something,
but you don't apply it, what good is it?
You know, if you know what the Bible says,
if you know what's expected of you,
and then you don't do it,
well, what good is the teaching then?
It only has any value if you actually apply it to your life.
You know, we ought to be people
that look for that good way, right,
like it says in Jeremiah chapter six, it says,
Thus sayeth the Lord, standing in the waves,
and see and ask for the old paths.
Where is the good way?
And walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls.
He's saying, look, you need to ask for the old paths,
you know, not the new path that's being forged out there,
not the, you know, the new trendy thing, not the new thing.
You gotta be asking for the old thing,
looking for the old thing.
Where is the good way?
You know, the try and test it, the time test it,
the proven good way, the old way,
and then he says, walk therein.
Again, it's good to know where that path is,
but if you're not gonna walk in it,
it's not really gonna do you any good.
But if you know where the good way is,
and then if you walk in it,
if you continue in that instruction,
then you shall find rest for your souls.
But you know what that's the requirement is?
You have to actually walk down that path.
You know, what good is all the instruction
in the word of God if we don't apply it to our lives?
If we just wanna be people,
wanna do things differently,
you know, for the sake of just being different,
of not wanting to be a conformist or whatever.
I mean, think about all the new things
that are out there, Christian.
Look at all the new Bibles that are out there.
You know, all the new Bibles that are produced,
decade by decade, the multitude of different versions
that are out there.
You know, the love of money is the root of all evil books.
That's the only reason why these books are being produced.
You know, we have the time tested and true word of God
in the King James Bible for English speaking people.
This is the standard.
This is the good way wherein we ought to walk
in the King James Bible.
We don't need some new translation
where we can just profit some publishing company.
You know, what about even in churches?
Aren't churches trying to do things?
A lot of churches have been doing things in a new way.
You know, they've gotten away from the old traditional hymns.
They've gotten away from old fashioned preaching.
You know, I had somebody recently say to me like,
oh, I heard you're a preacher.
Yeah, I said, yeah, I'm a preacher.
Well, I hope we don't yell at anybody.
I said, well, I'm a Baptist preacher.
I mean, it's kind of, isn't it funny?
That's kind of what you're known for.
If you say you're a Baptist preacher,
you want this preacher that lifts up your voice
like a trumpet like the Bible tells you to.
That you cry aloud and spare not
as the Bible tells you to.
But what do we see today?
Put behind a lot of pulpits.
You see a lot of people getting away.
You know, this type of preaching
is what's going by the wayside.
This type of preaching is being changed, isn't it?
Where now I should be, you know,
getting up here with a bunch of piercings,
and tattoos, and graphic teams, holy jeans.
I don't mean holy, like Bible holy.
I mean like literal holes in them.
You know, and a glass pulpit,
and a faggy little microphone,
and you know, and Bible bars.
So I don't have to share with you guys.
You know, just have a permanent grin the whole time.
Just make everybody do it one more time.
That's what's popular, right?
That's what's new, but is that the good way
where we ought to walk?
Is that what's gonna bring,
or is that what's gonna give us rest to ourselves?
Or is it gonna be the old time, you know,
fire, brimstone, you know, fire, brimstone,
hell, damnation, thus saith the Lord type preaching
that's actually gonna profit us?
You know, is it gonna be the face-ripping sermons
that are actually gonna give us the peace
for our souls that we need?
It's gonna be the old way.
It's gonna be the old time preaching.
The preaching, and you say, oh, you mean just like,
just you baptism?
No, like the preaching of Jesus.
You know, Jesus ripped face.
You know, the preaching of John the Baptist,
the preaching of Peter, the preaching of Paul,
the preaching of the prophets that came before them.
That's the old way.
But what do you see today?
You see the new way that's out there.
The people are just changing them.
Why aren't they changing?
Just so they can build the crowd,
just so they can just bring people in.
They're not actually offering those people anything.
They're not gonna benefit them at all.
They're not even gonna preach them
the right gospel a lot of times.
Well, you know, I can see a lot of these new churches
just springing up all the time, doing things a new way,
these new evangelical churches
that just wanna turn church into just,
you know, a time of entertainment.
You know, that's not what church is about.
We're not here to entertain people.
We're here to preach the word of God
so that you can be instructed
in the way wherein you ought to walk.
And if we decide, well, that's not what I want,
I'd rather I want something different,
you know, you can have something different,
but is it gonna give you rest under your souls?
You know, are you considering the end of the conversation
of those that are speaking under your words of God?
You know, is it gonna benefit you?
The value of being instructed is that you apply it,
not that you know it,
but that you actually apply it to your life.
That's when instruction has its value.
You go to 2 Timothy 3, go there if you haven't already,
but the Bible says,
the feared award is the beginning of knowledge
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
So many people today, they don't like,
oh, I don't wanna go to those churches
where the preacher yells at me,
tells me, thus saith the Lord.
And God already tells me,
I gotta do this and quit doing that.
Well, you know, the Bible says
a fool despises wisdom and instruction.
You know, and instruction often comes in the form of a proof.
He says, my son, here are the instructions of thy father
who is safe not to allow thy mother.
They shall be an ornament of grace in thy head
and chains about thy neck.
You know, the godly instruction
that we receive from our parents
is only going to benefit us if we don't perceive it.
You know, then it will be a chain about our neck.
Then it will be an ornament of grace upon our head.
But, you know, we just say,
well, I wanna do things differently.
Okay, well, you know what?
No ornament of grace, no chain of gold about your neck.
You know, it's gonna be some kind of other bondage.
Look at 2 Timothy 3, verse 14.
This is something that's just reiterated
throughout the scripture.
Old Testament knew all the way through,
don't forsake the way in which you've been taught.
Don't forsake the things that you've been taught
and instructed in when it comes to the word of God
and even life itself.
Look at 2 Timothy 3, verse 14.
But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned.
You know, think about that.
Continue in it.
Where's the value in what he's been taught?
It's the fact that he continues in it.
What good is it if Timothy just said,
well, I learned a lot from Paul,
I'm just not gonna do it anymore.
You know, I'm gonna change, I'm gonna be different.
You know, this is not the example
that we see from leaders in the scripture.
Joshua was somebody who was instructed
and then continued in the things that he had been taught.
Same for Timothy.
He learned a lot of great things from the apostle Paul,
but Paul admonished him at the end
to continue the things which thou hast learned
and has been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned.
Go to 2 Timothy chapter number two.
Bible says in Proverbs 6,
my son, keep thy father's commandments
and forsake not the law of thy mother.
Bind them continually upon thine heart,
tie them about thy neck.
When thou goest, it shall leave thee.
When thou sleepest, it shall keep thee.
And when thou wakest, it shall talk with thee.
For the commandment is a lamp and the law is like,
and reproofs of instruction are the way of life.
You know, a lot of people today,
they don't like that last part.
You know, they wanna learn things,
they wanna know things,
but they don't wanna hear the reproof of instruction.
You know, the reason why a lot of people
don't continue in these things
is because, or we're not bothered learning them at all,
is because a lot of times the things that we're instructed,
the way we're instructed, the way we're taught
comes in the form of a reproof.
We're told, hey, you need to change.
You know, you need to get that right.
You need to change things.
You know, if you read the Bible,
if you hear the Bible preached,
you know, you're gonna be told to change.
It's all gonna, you know,
we're all gonna get our toes stepped on.
It's all gonna fall in our lap at some point.
We're gonna have this big, glaring thing
that we have to deal with in our life.
And if we don't, you know,
then we can't really say that we're gonna be led,
that we're gonna walk in a good way.
You know, it's reproofs of instruction are the way of life.
That's where the blessing is, is through obedience.
Look at 2 Timothy 2, verse 1.
Thou, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace
that is in Christ Jesus,
and the things that thou hast heard of me
among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men.
He's saying, here's the things I want you to teach, Timothy.
And that's what something he's just saying
over and over again, Timothy, 1 Timothy 4.
These things command to teach, right?
It says it again in 1 Timothy,
1 Timothy 4, I'll just read to you verse 6.
If thou be the brethren's brother,
in remembrance of these things, what things,
the things that I have taught you, Timothy,
these are the things that you have to put them
in remembrance of.
Teach the word of God in man, and teach the word of God.
We have to continue in these things.
But the problem is today is that so many people,
they just wanna change.
They just wanna do things differently.
And again, if there's something that needs to change,
if we're doing something wrong,
then obviously we need to change.
But today, some people just immediately equate change
with progress.
They just say, oh, we're different,
therefore we're progressive.
Yeah, but sometimes you can change
and actually go backwards.
Sometimes you can be heading in the right direction
and then change direction and actually end up
going in the wrong direction, okay?
Go to Acts chapter 17, Acts chapter 17.
You know, we're living in a day and age
where people just, they're more interested
in just being entertained, they're just more interested
in being distracted, they're just more interested
in something new, they just wanna constantly
have new things, they just constantly wanna be stimulated,
24-7, you know, they don't wanna just stick with something
and see it through to the end.
They don't wanna just follow on
in the things that they've been instructed in.
They wanna change.
You know, obviously some change is good,
but not all change is progress.
Just because you're changing something
because the things are new,
that doesn't make it a good thing.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs chapter 24,
my son, fear thou the Lord and the king,
and meddle not with them that are given to change.
You should just meddle with people
that are constantly given to change.
For their claim that he shall rise suddenly,
and who know what the ruin of the belt look at Acts 17.
Verse 16, it says, now while Paul waited for them at Athens,
his spirit was stirred within him
when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.
That's something we can really relate to in this city.
Therefore, disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews
and with the devout persons, and the market daily with them
and met with them.
Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans
and of the Stoics encountered him,
and some said, what will this babble say?
Other, some, he seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods
because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection.
Excuse me.
And they took him and brought him into Erdupagus saying,
may we know what this new doctrine,
what this new doctrine where of thou speakest is,
where thou bringest certain strange things to our ears,
we would know therefore what these things mean.
So it sounds like these people are well-intentioned.
You know, that they want to hear what Paul has to say,
but notice it tells us why they wanted to hear it.
Right?
They're saying, hey, you know,
you teach us what this new doctrine is, you know,
because these are strange things.
They haven't heard this before.
You say, oh, well, they must really be curious
about the gospel.
They must be really curious about the Bible.
No, it tells us there in verse 21,
here's why they wanted to know.
For all the Athenians and strangers which were with them
spent their time in nothing else,
but either to tell or to hear some new thing.
So it wasn't necessarily that their heart was inclined
under the gospel or that they were just really curious
about Paul and the Bible and these same spiritual matters.
It's just that this was their custom.
This is just what they did.
They just spent their time in nothing else,
but to hear or to tell some new thing.
We don't want to be people that are like this,
that are just constantly looking for the new thing,
constantly looking for something to change,
constantly looking for, you know,
some new direction or some new instruction.
You know, we need to get in the old past
where it's a good way and then continue in it.
Look, we won't continue in these things
if we're people that are given to change.
Don't be given to change.
Don't automatically think
that just because you're changing, you're progressing.
Is that true?
The Bible says in Proverbs,
go back to Joshua 8, it says in Proverbs 22,
remove not the ancient landmark which my fathers have set.
You know, there's some ancient landmarks
that have been set that we ought not to move.
You know, we don't need to change things
just for the sake of changing.
We don't need a new Bible.
We don't need to do church different.
You know, we'll draw a bigger crowd.
Yeah, well, what you win and win
is what you gotta keep winning.
You know, if we win people with a bunch of newfangled methods
with a bunch of entertainment,
you know, if we just got a big screen up here
and then I could just use, you know, PG-13
and R-rated movies to illustrate my points,
you know, we'd probably draw a crowd.
You know, maybe we could get up here
and start, you know, singing Bon Jovi songs.
We could all get up and sing Livin' on a Prayer.
We could get some lights in here.
We could make it look like a, you know,
we could get real entertaining, right?
That's new.
It's different.
And it would work.
I'm telling you, we'd draw a crowd.
We'd have to knock down the wall and find another building.
That's not progress.
Because what good is it
if all we're instructing people in is some new thing?
If we're not teaching them the old way?
If we're removing the ancient landmark which has been set?
The ancient landmark is Bible preaching.
The ancient landmark is thus saith the Lord.
And, you know, if people don't like it, well, that's on them.
If people don't want a church like this,
well, that's their problem, not mine.
That's their problem.
That's not your problem.
You know, and they can go out, and you know what?
We'll consider the end of their conversation.
Then we'll all get to the end of our life,
and we can all look back, and we can compare notes.
We can say, well, let's compare between the people
that continued in that good way,
who found that old path that continued there,
and let's get to the end of our conversation.
And then let's look over here and see somebody else
who said, well, I just want something new.
I want something different.
I don't want this old book.
I don't want those old hints.
I don't want that old preaching.
I don't want any of those old things.
I want something new.
Let's get to the end of our conversation.
Let's get to the end of our lives,
and then let's compare notes.
And then let's see who's truly blessed.
And I'll tell you right now,
I already have the promise of the word of God
that if we continue in these things,
then we will find rest unto our souls,
that if we continue in the old way,
the old path, we're in this good way.
That's what the blessing is.
It's out there in some new thing.
Look, having a big crowd is not necessarily a blessing.
As was expressed to me at one time,
poor people means poor problems.
You know, that's just human nature, which is fine.
And I'm not, don't go the other direction either.
And think that, you know,
it's only good if you have a small church.
I did not have a small church mentality.
I'm not one of these people that just
insists on having a small church.
You know, I'm not interested in just only having,
I want this church to be as big as it's going to get
without having to compromise the old things,
without having to compromise and change
just for the sake of drawing a crowd,
or change just for the sake of bringing people in.
You know, I'm, so again,
I'd love this church to be as big as it's going to get.
Not against that.
Not trying to, you know, have a small church.
But I'm also trying, not trying to just change things
in order to have a big church.
You know, I'm not going to compromise the word of God.
I'm not going to change the way we do things.
I'm not going to remove the ancient landmark
that has been set.
You know, because that's what God is going to bless,
ultimately.
You know, and when it comes to this idea of church growth
and things like this, really, it's quality over quantity.
You know, I'd rather have a small handful of people
who truly love God and are zealous and lost,
that want to go out and preach the gospel,
and that care about the things of God,
that love the word of God, that love the Lord.
I'd rather have a small handful of people like that
than a great big crowd of people
who could just take or leave the King James Bible,
who aren't really interested in going out
into their community and preaching the gospel.
You know, or just put a hanger on our door.
I mean, isn't that sad, when you have, you know,
just yesterday, you got home from church,
from, yeah, from church, from Solvody.
You know, we came down here on a Saturday
and went out and knocked doors
and preached the gospel to people.
You know, and then I go home, and the Baptist Church,
I'm talking independent, fundamental, Baptist Church,
King James only, that's literally five minutes away
from my house, came to my house,
and did they knock on the door?
Nope, they left the door hanger.
My wife said, yeah, I saw them come to the door.
They never knocked.
Yeah, but, yeah, we were out there Saturday,
you know, just Saturday, knocking on the door,
so we went by a whole group of, what, JWs
that are out there knocking on the doors.
You had the old, you know, these Baptists
who actually had the truth,
are forsaking the old way of Solvody,
and just going out and putting a hanger on the door.
Are you saying against door hangers?
I'm not, but while you're there,
why don't you knock on the door
and preach the gospel while you're at it?
Say, well, you're already saved.
Yeah, well, they're not knocking on my door.
They're not knocking on my neighbor's door,
at my neighbor's door, at my other neighbor's door.
You know what, they're getting, you know,
these Baptist churches are getting away from Solvody.
They're getting away from knocking on doors.
They just wanna get everybody in their church
so they can just preach them down an aisle to some altar.
You know, this isn't an altar here, folks.
Let me just, I know we got a step here, okay?
That's not an altar.
You gonna start doing altar calls?
No, there will never be an altar call in this church
on the side behind this pulpit, period.
Get a bunch of people up here, you know,
sticking their rear end up in the air,
and everybody behind them.
It's crazy.
It's nutty.
But that's where they're at
in these old Baptist churches.
Just preaching down an aisle.
You know, don't go out there
and actually preach the gospel to anybody.
Why?
Because they've forsaken the old path.
They're removing the ancient landmark.
They're changing and saying,
well, it just doesn't work anymore.
Could have fooled me.
Oh, you can't build a church like that.
I'm not trying to build a church like that.
I'm trying to accomplish the work of preaching the gospel.
I'm trying to fulfill the great mission.
Is that why I don't go soloing, is to build a church?
No, it's not.
I don't go soloing so I can get people in here.
Look, people come as a result of soloing, praise God.
And I'll do the follow-up,
and I'll go talk to people after they get saved,
give the Bibles, and just stand and just be ready
to have them say I'm not interested.
And just be, you know, have them tell me they're,
yeah, I'll come to church and then not be ready
when I show up.
Or say, oh, I changed my mind.
You know, and I'll just praise myself for that.
But that's not why I'm going soloing.
I'm going soloing because that's the old way
where I got to walk.
Didn't Jesus say, well, that's just something
the Baptist started doing.
That's just something they started doing
when Jack Hyles came around.
I'm pretty sure Jesus was the one who said,
going into all the world, I preached the gospel
to every preacher.
I'm pretty sure that was Christ that said that.
You know, and I'm pretty sure that would be considered
an old way, that would be an ancient landmark.
I'm pretty sure it was the Lord who told Israel
they were gonna be a light unto all the Gentiles.
That they were, you know, the Gentiles would see them,
following God, see God's blessing on them,
and say, hey, we want some of that.
Teach us about your God.
Pretty sure that's an ancient landmark,
being a testimony, being a city that is set on a hill
which cannot be hidden.
Being a light that's not put under a bushel.
That's an ancient landmark.
I'm not gonna move it in this church.
And if it's not gonna build a church, I don't care.
That's what God is going to bless.
And by the way, let me just say this.
I don't want anyone who's willing to get this mentality,
because we're not Calvinists here,
that God is just gonna automatically
just bring sure people to this church.
Is that how you ended up in church here?
Just one day you woke up and were like,
well, I can't, what's happening?
Why am I creating my Bible and getting dressed?
What's going on?
I'm in the car, I'm not getting control.
Oh, I'm in this building.
Is that how it happened to you?
No, you decided you wanted to come here.
Somebody told you, right?
So let's not go to the other extreme and get this mentality.
Well, if we go slowly, and that's it,
then God's just gonna bring people here, like, magically.
God's just gonna take over people and push them to the door.
Look, God will get us out there.
People, you know, find out about us.
God can measure your circumstances, I get that.
But, you know, God, we're not Calvinists either.
So we still have to do our part
if we want to build a church.
I wish there were more people here.
Okay, who have you invited?
Oh, that's your job, is it?
Is it?
It's just my job to invite people to church?
I mean, you don't know anybody?
I'm the only one with friends?
I'm the only, you know,
you probably have more friends than I do.
To be honest, you know, I'm a bit of a hermit.
You know, I show up at the building
and I go home and hide in my office all week.
You know, maybe shame on me.
Maybe I do need to go out there more.
You know, I'm out there knocking doors
and we fall trying to get people in here.
But, you know, it's not just my job to build a church.
You know, it's all of our job.
You know, if you want this church to grow,
what do you do to help it grow?
You know, are you inviting people?
Are you trying to get people out?
Are you preaching people a gospel?
Are you inviting friends, family, co-workers?
You know, that's one way it's gonna grow.
Because I'm telling you, God's not just gonna take over
people and shove them through the door
because we went sold them.
God isn't just gonna bless our efforts.
You know, we have to drag people to church
if you want them to grow, okay?
You know, and being here would be a huge step
in helping this church grow.
Being consistent to church,
so that when people do show up,
they're like, oh, there is something going on here.
You know, I know it's a holiday and some people are away
and we got a little bit of a smaller crowd this morning.
But it doesn't have to be like that every Sunday, okay?
Look, I'm not removing the ancient landmark of soldiers.
But I also, I'm not delusional about
what soloing is and what it isn't.
I don't think that, you know,
just because we changed something,
that we're making progress.
That's not how Joshua succeeded, is it?
Joshua was probably, you know,
I guess I can't say one of the most,
with no doubt Joshua was an incredibly successful leader.
I mean, think about what he accomplished.
Joshua literally took over the Promised Land
and divided the inheritance.
You know, he fulfilled, you know,
that God's will that God had had, you know,
since he brought them out of Egypt.
After wandering in the wilderness, you know,
Joshua's the one that went there to conquer him.
He's a great, powerful leader.
Well, what do you attribute his success to?
I'll tell you what I attribute Joshua's success to
is his faithfulness.
The sticking to, the time vested in truth,
not just giving, being somebody who just changed things.
Not just kind of like,
well, I'll just go along with Moses while I'm just serving.
I'll just go along until the old man passes off the scene.
And then once I take over,
we'll do everything in his mind.
No, he was faithful to what he had instructed him.
You know, they didn't consult the Lord
and they just kind of thought,
oh, A.I. is going to be easy.
And he just sent some guys up there
and they all get slaughtered.
And then he then consults the Lord.
Then he seeks God.
God says it's because, you know,
someone in the camp is taking the curse.
Then he knows the story.
And eventually they find out it's A.D. and it's slaughtering
and it's whole family and burning.
And he owns a pile of rocks upon it.
Pretty hardcore story.
But, you know, he corrects it.
After he figures that out,
he gets back on course and he goes and defeats A.I.
And then afterward,
notice what he does,
he rehearses not what's something new,
but what he's already been taught.
He says, man, we need to stop here.
Before we go any further,
let's learn our lesson and let's be reminded of the things
that we have been instructed in.
It says in verse 30, Joshua 8, verse 30.
Then Joshua built an altar on the Lord God of Israel
in Mount Ebal.
As Moses' servant Lord commanded the children of Israel,
as it is written in the book of the law of Moses,
an altar of whole stones,
over which no man could lift up any iron.
And they offered thereon,
burnt offerings on the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings.
So after he kind of corrects course,
you know, he kind of gets off course a little bit.
He kind of corrects course after this,
you know, the matter of A.I.
And then he builds an altar.
He says, we're going to seek God.
So he built a, he thought,
well, let me come up with my own way of building an altar.
You know, I want to get a hold of God.
I want to give God's blessing.
Let me just do it the way I think I should do it.
No, it says very clearly that he did it
as it is written in the book of the law of Moses.
I mean, he's going through the scripture.
How are we supposed,
how was it again that we were supposed to build this altar?
How was it that we're supposed to worship God?
Let's get into the word of God and find out.
Just make your life all about money, right?
Make your life all about,
and the Bible has some strong warnings about riches.
Go read 1 Timothy chapter number six.
Next year, let me just go ahead and break it to you.
There's nothing new in there.
It hasn't changed.
It's still, it's still these and thou,
it's still thus saith the Lord.
It's still chronologies.
It's still hard to pronounce names and places.
And it's still powerful truths.
It's still life altering truths.
It's still things that will touch your heart.
It's still things that will motivate you and inspire you.
It's still things that will rebuke you and instruct you.
It's all still there.
It hasn't changed.
Praise God for that.
This book hasn't changed.
That's where it is.
That's where the success is.
Where was Joshua's success when he started to get off course?
When he got back to what Moses had taught him.
He got back into the word of God.
That's when he started to find success.
That's when God said, okay, now bless it.
When he started to build that altar and said,
how are we supposed to do it according to the law of Moses?
Not trying to come up with some new things
and just doing things his own way.
So what was it that we were taught to do?
Look, that's where your spiritual success lies in 2023,
is in getting this book and doing what it says.
You want to have success in your parenting?
It's here.
You want to have success as an employee?
It's here.
You want to have success in any area of your life?
Apply this book to it and you'll have success.
You'll succeed.
It goes on in Thessalonians, verse 32.
And he wrote there upon the stones
a copy of the law of Moses,
which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.
And all Israel and their elders and the officers
and their judges stood on the side of the ark
and on that side before the priests and the device,
which bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord,
as well as the stranger as he that was born among them,
half of them over in Mount Gerizim
and over half against the Mount Ebal,
as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded before
that they should bless the people.
Say you're going to bless the people,
then you're going to do it just the way Moses said to do it.
Not some new way.
I mean, he's doing it exactly the way
he had been instructed by Moses.
Joshua's looking at Moses and saying, what a blessed life.
He's considering the end of his conversation.
And he's saying, I'm going to walk in that same way.
I'm not going to try to find some new way.
I'm not going to do things differently than Moses.
I'm going to do it the way Moses did it.
You know, look at the way other people are succeeding
and say, well, pattern yourself after that
instead of trying to come up with some new thing.
It says in verse 34,
And afterward he read all the words of the law.
He read the words of the law.
He didn't say, and then he set the Bible aside
and just, you know, just shared.
He just wrote, he just preached 40 days of grace.
Like I'm all about the love and the grace
and everything else, but you know,
we need to preach the whole counsel of the word of God
because that's where, that's the word
that's written on the law.
The blessings and the curses
according to all that is written in the book of the law.
There was not a word, verse 35,
of all that Moses commanded,
which Joshua read not for all the congregation of Israel,
with the women and the little ones and the strangers
that were conversant among them.
So he preached the whole word of God
to the entire congregation,
men, women, and children, young and old.
See, why even a family-integrated church?
Because, well, there you go.
You know, I believe, we believe in having the little ones
in here to hear the preaching of the word of God.
Well, it's kind of over their head.
They'll get it, they'll get something out of it.
You'd be surprised how much little kids get out of it.
I mean, my wife's always telling me, you know,
my son says this and your daughter's got that.
Maybe they're not gonna, you know,
rehearse, verbatim the entire sermon,
but most adults can't do that.
That's why you want a little secret about preaching,
it's trying to make it about one thing, one thing,
because that's typically all people ever get,
because that's just human nature, that's how we are,
trying to get people to understand one thing.
If you can walk out that door this morning
with one thing, you know, that's gonna help you.
Instead of just trying to back up the truck,
I'm like, all right, let's just learn
the entire Bible this morning.
That's not even practical, right?
What's the one thing this morning?
You know, stick with the time past and improve it.
Don't try to be somebody that's just gonna do things
for the sake of doing something new.
Don't change for the sake of changing.
Stick with what's been proven with the whole lot of God.
And that's what made Joshua successful.
It was his faithfulness to the things
that he had already been instructed in.
You know, he saw the way Moses handled himself,
conducted himself.
I mean, Moses had a pretty good death.
Moses' death was pretty good.
He had a pretty good life, a pretty exciting life.
You know, Joshua was sitting there watching the whole thing.
I mean, probably better than anybody else,
he had a front row seat with Moses.
I mean, Moses at the end is buried by God himself.
I mean, he's coming down from the mouth,
his face is shining.
He's gotta wear a veil over his face
because his skin is literally shining
from the amount of time he spent in the presence of God.
He's seeing God the Father's kinder parts.
I mean, he's getting a glimpse.
I mean, he's seeing all just the magnificence
and glory of God.
He's more than any other man, probably.
You know, and Joshua was seeing all that,
saying, man, I want some of that.
I'd love to have a life like that.
Well, you know what, Joshua?
Then you're gonna have to do it the way Moses told you.
Do you see somebody else that has a blessed life
that you're gonna have to do it the way that they told you?
I mean, I remember when I was a young man,
I got around some godly family,
some man who had, you know, some godly children.
I just thought to myself, man, I'd love to have that.
And then I, so what I did is I looked at that man and said,
well, how did he live his life?
And he lived his life according to the word of God.
And that's how he got those things, and God blessed him.
You know, you can't do something differently,
but you expect the same results.
His faithfulness was what made him successful,
and it's his faithfulness to the Lord,
not just vain tradition, okay?
We'll close in Judges, chapter number two.
Go to Judges, chapter number two.
So remember in the beginning, in Joshua, where we started,
it said, it calls, Joshua's referred to as the son of none,
Joshua, or Moses, his minister.
He's referred to as the Moses' minister
in the beginning of Joshua.
And then he goes on, and what do we see?
We didn't cover the entire arc of his life
this morning, obviously, but right away,
as soon as he's going to the Promised Land,
he's learning very quickly that he has to continue
to do things the way he's been instructed,
that he can't just come up with some new way
of doing things, that he has to get back to the law of Moses.
He has to do things exactly the way Moses told him to do it
in the law of God.
He has to do the way things, the way God instructed Moses.
He has to do things according to all the word of God, right,
as he's been instructed.
And then he has success.
Then we know the stories.
He goes on and defeats kings.
He conquers the land.
He divides the inheritance.
And then he gets to the end of his life,
and notice he's no longer referred to as Moses' minister,
but actually as a servant of the Lord,
it says in Judges chapter two, verse seven.
And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua,
and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua,
who had seen all the great works of the Lord
that he did for Israel.
And Joshua, the son of none, the servant of the Lord,
being a hundred and 10 years old.
So again, in the beginning, he's referred to,
when you first see him in Joshua chapter one,
it's Moses' minister.
At the end of his life, he's called what?
The servant of the Lord.
Because ultimately, who he was serving was God.
The reason why he did things the way he did them
is because that's the way God wanted them done.
It wasn't just because of some vain tradition of man.
It was because that was what was written
in the word of God.
So obviously, if there's things in our lives
that we're doing that have no biblical basis,
unless they're harmless or benign in some way,
they probably need to change.
You know, if we're just doing things,
if we're just gonna live our life
just the way others that went before us live,
if we're just gonna repeat the patterns
of the previous generation
just because that's the way they did it,
that's probably not a good way to live.
What we need to do is we need to go,
okay, what did they do that was right?
How was what they did lined up with the Bible?
I mean, Joshua did that because that's how Moses did it,
and said, oh, that's what's in the law of God.
This is how Moses said in the law of God.
That's what he was following.
That's why he gets to the end of his life,
and he's called the servant of the Lord,
because he's not just following some vain tradition.
Look, if you're, I mean, honestly,
if those that have gone before us
have made a mess of things,
let's not follow in that vain tradition.
You know, well, I just do it that way
because that's why Daddy did it.
Well, you know what?
Daddy was this, that, and the other thing,
and maybe you need to change that.
Well, I just do things that way
because that's just the way I was brought up.
Well, if it's contrary to the word of God,
go ahead and change it.
But if it's not contrary to God,
if it's in line with the word of God,
don't change it.
It's right.
Keep it.
Walk in that way, and you will have good success.
So have the blessing of God in your life.
You know, we need to change only that
which doesn't line up with God's word.
Don't just change things for the sake of changing.
That's how Joshua had his great success.
By being faithful to all that which was written
in the law of God.
Let's go ahead and pray.
Dear Lord, again, thank you for the opportunity
that you have in this life, Lord, to serve you, Lord,
and not to just wonder what it is that's expected of us
or what you desire from us, Lord, that we have.
An entire book that has been given to us,
inspired and preserved and Lord kept unto all generations.
Lord, it's there to instruct us and guide us and lead us
that we can know all about your unchanging nature.
Lord, I pray you help us to be people that change
when needed and Lord, that we stay faithful
when required as well, Lord, that you help us to be people
that seek that good and old way where we ought to walk.
Pray just bless us as we go down in Jesus' name, amen.
All right, we'll go ahead and sing one more song
before we go.
Let's turn our handles to song number 426.
Let's see the news we'll bring,
of peace on earth and will to bear.
And for the rest of the day and month,
the best peace of all is to come,
and hold us all through the storm.
There is hope, peace on earth and will to bear.
And for the rest of the day and month,
the best peace of all is to come,
and hold us all through the storm.
And for the rest of the day and month,
when we are all faithful and dear,
God is good and your God is sweet.
The Lord shall come, the Lord shall be near.
When peace on earth and will to bear,
and hold us all through the storm.
When peace on earth and will to bear,
and hold us all through the storm.
And for the rest of the day and month,
the best peace of all is to come,
and hold us all through the storm.