["Pomp and Circumstance"]
All right, good morning everyone. Welcome to First Works Baptist Church. Let's all find our seats.
As you find a seat, please turn your songbooks to song number 66
at Calvary, song number 66, and let's all stand together for this first song, If You Are Able.
Song number 66 at Calvary, all together nice and strong on that first verse.
Years I spent in vanity and pride
Caring not my Lord was crucified
Knowing not it was for me he died on Calvary
Mercy there was great and grace was free
Born and there was multiplied to me
There my burdens solve at liberty
At Calvary
By God's word at last my sin I learned
Then I trembled at the law I've spurned
Till my guilty soul and glory turned
To Calvary
Mercy there was great and grace was free
Born and there was multiplied to me
There my burdens solve at liberty
At Calvary
Oh the love that true salvation's planned
Oh the grace that I've held today
Oh the mighty gulf that God did spend
At Calvary
Mercy there was great and grace was free
Born and there was multiplied to me
There my burdens solve at liberty
At Calvary
Now I've given to Jesus everything
Now I gladly own him as my king
Now my raptured soul can only sing
Of Calvary
Mercy there was great and grace was free
Born and there was multiplied to me
There my burdens solve at liberty
At Calvary
Amen. Wonderful singing. Let's start off our service with a word of prayer.
Dear Lord God, Heavenly Father, we just thank you for giving us another day, Lord.
That we can come here to your house in fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
And we thank you for all the blessings that you give us, Lord, and the blessings of Calvary
And eternal life and salvation, Lord, of course.
And I just ask that you please bless the service this morning, Lord.
Please bless every aspect of it, the singing, the preaching.
Please fill Pastor Mihi with your spirit as he preaches the message unto us.
And give us your spirit also in the congregation, Lord, that we can take what he preaches and apply it to our lives.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
You may be seated.
Please sing your song books to song number 473.
Song number 473, Ship Ahoy.
Song number 473, Ship Ahoy, all together on that first verse.
I was drifting away on life's biddiless sea
And the angry waves threatened my ruin to be
When away at my side there I dimly descried
A stately old vessel and loudly I cried
Ship ahoy, ship ahoy
And loudly I cried, ship ahoy
Twas the old ship of Zion the sailing along
And the captain sky near ever ready to hear
Caught my wail of distress as I cried out in fear
Ship ahoy, ship ahoy
As I cried out in fear, ship ahoy
The good captain commanded a boat to be lowered
He took me on board and I'm happy today
All my sins washed away in the blood of my Savior
And now I can say bless the Lord, bless the Lord
I can say bless the Lord
Oh soul sinking down, it's His merciless way
Then trust Him today, no longer delay
For the old ship of Zion and shout on your way
Jesus saves, Jesus saves
Shout and sing on your way, Jesus saves
For the old ship of Zion and shout on your way, Jesus saves
Shout and sing on your way, Jesus saves
A round of applause. So congratulations to them. We'll add them to the list there.
And keep her in prayer. Of course you see the important reminders there at the bottom.
Some of the upcoming church events. Friday September 29th we have the home school field trip.
And that will be at Kids Space Children's Museum. Meeting there at 945.
The activity is free. And so you can see my wife if you are interested in that.
She has all the details. And then on Saturday October 7th is the Ladies Prayer Breakfast here at the building.
Meeting at 10am. If you'd like to participate or you want to be of help you can talk to Ms. Janelle Gonzalez.
She heads that up. And then on Friday October 27th is the Home School Park Day.
And then let me give one last announcement before this last announcement.
And that is this Friday Pastor Anderson will be preaching at Holdfast Baptist Church in Fresno.
And so a group is going out there from our church.
Brother Glenn is going to be driving the church van up there.
And so if you'd like to catch that. You want to catch a ride with the van there and the church van.
He's meeting here at 1am. Not 1am. Although I wouldn't put it past him.
Actually to meet here at 1am.
Now he's meeting here at 1pm. And so the van will be leaving promptly around 1.30 or so.
But meet here at 1pm. And then he's going to be heading out to Fresno.
And so Pastor Anderson is going to be preaching at our church in December.
He was supposed to come around during the summer during his road trip.
But of course he got injured and so he's going to be making his rounds over here in the beginning of December.
And so we'll let you know when that is.
And then lastly here Sunday October 29th is the Fall Program.
Now typically the Fall Program begins at the beginning of October.
But this year we're going to do a little different.
We're actually going to start it towards the end of October.
And finish it off with the banquet.
And so the first day of the Fall Program though is a big push for visitors.
Okay. So that instead of bringing visitors throughout the entire program.
Although you can. We want to encourage everyone to bring it on that specific day which is the 29th.
And we will have a gift card and a reward system for that.
And so I'll give you more details next week.
We're going to lay out the entire calendar on the left hand side for next week.
But just keep that in mind. Keep that in prayer.
Fall Program begins Sunday October 29th.
Looking forward to a great fall and conclusion to the year.
And then you see there at the bottom the regular reminders.
No food or drink allowed in the main auditorium except for water and coffee.
Please make sure you're not loitering in the four year fellowship hall during the preaching service.
Quiet time of course is this afternoon from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
And then please make sure you silence your phones during the preaching.
So as to not be a distraction during the service.
And that is it. Let's go ahead and sing our next song.
Number 152, Security.
Song number 152, Security.
Altogether on that first verse.
More secure is no one ever
Than the loved ones of the Savior
Not yon star on high abiding
Nor the bird in homeness hiding
God His own doth tend and nourish
In His holy courts they flourish
Like a Father kind He spares them
In His loving arms He bears them
Neither life nor death can ever
From the Lord His children sever
For His love and deep compassion
Comfort them in tribulation
Little flood to joy then yield be
Jacob's God will ever shield be
Rest secure with this defender
At His will all foes surrender
What He takes or what He gives us
Shows the Father's love so precious
We may trust His purpose wholly
Tis His children's welfare solely
Amen. Wonderful singing.
At this time the ushers will come forth to receive the offering.
You can turn your Bibles to 2 Peter chapter number 1.
Peter chapter 1.
2 Peter chapter 1.
Good morning. We're in 2 Peter chapter number 1.
2 Peter chapter 1 and the Bible reads,
Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ,
to them that have obtained like precious faith with us
through the righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ.
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you
through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
according as His divine power hath given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness
through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue,
whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises
that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue,
and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance,
and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness,
and to godliness brotherly kindness,
and to brotherly kindness charity.
For if these things be in you and abound,
they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful
in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
But he that lacketh these things is blind and cannot see afar off,
and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
Wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling
and election sure, for if ye do these things ye shall never fall,
for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly
into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance
of these things, though ye know them,
and be established in the present truth.
Yea, I think it meet as long as I am in this tabernacle to stir you up
by putting you in remembrance,
knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle,
even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed me.
Moreover, I will endeavor that ye may be able after my decease
to have these things always in remembrance.
For we have not followed cunningly devised fables
when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For we received from God the Father honor and glory
when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory,
This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.
In this voice which came from heaven we heard,
when we were with him in the holy mount.
We have also a more sure word of prophecy,
whereunto ye do well that ye take heed,
as unto a light that shineth in a dark place,
until the day dawn and the day star arise in your hearts.
Knowing this verse, that no prophecy of the scripture
is of any private interpretation.
The prophecy came not in old time by the will of man,
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
Let's pray to the Lord God,
just ask that you would meet with us here now,
please bless the preaching,
please strengthen Pastor Mejia and help us to be edified
and to be better Christians as a result,
in Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
Amen.
Okay, we're in 2 Peter chapter 1,
and look down at your Bibles at verse number 20,
it says, knowing this verse,
that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man,
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
And the title of my sermon this morning is Holy Men of God.
Holy Men of God.
This morning, I want to preach about the men that God used to pen the scriptures.
And obviously we know that at the end of the day,
God is the ultimate author of the Word of God.
The Bible says that all scripture is given by inspiration of God.
It's profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness,
that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
Ultimately, God is the author of the Word of God,
but obviously he used human instruments to pen down his words
for the generations to come.
And I want to talk about these particular men that the Bible refers to,
and why is it that God calls them Holy Men of God?
And some of the misconceptions regarding that title as being a holy man
and what a lot of false religions will claim that actually means.
Now I want to do a little bit of comparison this morning
with the Holy Men of God in the Bible
and what's commonly referred to as the Qumran sect.
Yes, I'm going to talk about the Qumran sect again.
A couple weeks ago, I preached on the book of Enoch
and I touched on the Qumran sect a little bit,
but I'm going to go a little more in depth of who they are.
And if you don't know who they are, then that's great
because now you're going to learn something new
and you probably forgot what I talked about a couple weeks ago.
And so a lot of this stuff will be new to you.
Now let's talk about Holy Men of God here
and what the Bible says about them.
Let me read to you a couple scriptures by way of introduction.
Hebrews chapter 1, you don't have to turn there.
Verse number 1 says,
God who at sun-dried times and in diverse manners,
spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets,
hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son,
whom he hath appointed heir of all things,
by whom also he made the worlds.
Now obviously we understand that in the Old Testament
God didn't always pen down, or should I say,
he didn't always speak to a prophet face to face.
Sometimes he would do it third person, second person,
in diverse manners, sundry times the Bible talks about.
Maybe it's through a vision.
Maybe it's through a dream that he spoke unto them.
But at the end of the day, whatever it is that we have here in the scriptures
is exactly what God wanted us to know,
what he wanted us to read and have for all generations.
Let me say this about the men of God
who are referred to as the holy men of God here in 2 Peter,
is that first and foremost,
they weren't carried about with every wind of doctrine.
Look at verse 15 of 2 Peter chapter 1.
This is Peter speaking.
He says in verse 15,
Moreover I will endeavor that ye may be able after my decease
to have these things always in remembrance.
So he's saying, you know, the reason I'm repeating these things to you,
teaching you the word of God,
is because once I die, I want you to keep these things in mind.
I don't want you to forget about what the Bible says
regarding the preservation, inspiration and preservation of scripture.
He says in verse 16,
For we have not followed cunningly devised fables.
Now the men of God of the Bible who were used to pen the Bible,
they weren't perfect men,
but they weren't carried about with every wind of doctrine either.
They weren't just buying into Jewish fables and endless genealogies.
Obviously they weren't the most perfect of men.
All of them made mistakes to one extent or another.
But at the end of the day, when it comes to their testimony
and their witness of Jesus Christ, they were correct.
Because they didn't follow lies and fables
and all this nonsense that was around in their time.
He says in verse 16,
For we have not followed cunningly devised fables.
When we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For he received from God the Father honor and glory.
When there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory,
this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.
And this voice which came from heaven we heard
when we were with him in the Holy Mount.
So what is he talking about?
He's referring to the Mount of Transfiguration.
And what he's explaining here is that
he has a pretty strong testimony
because he was actually present when Jesus Christ was there.
He was present with James and John at the Mount of Transfiguration.
He was clearly a first-hand witness of these events.
So what does that do?
It lends credibility to Peter and his teachings, what he's saying here.
But even on top of that,
he's not necessarily relying on that testimony per se,
on that vision, on that experience at the Mount of Transfiguration.
Or should I say he doesn't want his readers
to rely on his particular visions and dreams
to validate what he's saying is true.
Look at verse 19,
we have also a more sure word of prophecy.
What is he saying?
The written word has more credibility
than even his eyewitness and his dream
and his experience at the Mount of Transfiguration.
He says this is more sure,
it's more stable, it's more credible.
Why? Because at the end of the day,
it doesn't matter what dreams or visions you may have,
even if they are in accordance with the Bible,
at the end of the day the Word of God is the final authority.
So our experiences, visions,
I don't have visions, but if you were to have visions,
and dreams, even if they match up with the Word of God,
at the end of the day the Word of God is superior to that.
And that's important because of the fact that
we live in a day and age where everyone has visions.
And everyone has all these prophetic dreams and revelations from God
and they try to share these visions and dreams
as though they're authoritative
and they come from God and they try to supplant the Bible
by their visions and dreams,
whereas the Word of God tells us that
we need to put this first above all else.
It doesn't matter how convincing the dream is,
how convincing the vision is,
how convincing the antidote may be,
we go to the more sure word of prophecy.
He says that we have also a more sure word of prophecy
where unto you do well that you take heed
as unto a light that shineth in the dark place
until the day dawn and the day star arise
in your hearts.
Verse 20, knowing this first,
that no prophecy of the scripture
is of any private interpretation.
In other words, all the prophetic statements in the Bible,
the Word of God,
is not something that is just subject to one person.
What Peter is saying lines up with what Paul said.
What Paul said lines up with what Jesus said.
What Jesus says lines up with what the prophets say.
They're all in accordance
because it's not just a private interpretation.
It's in harmony with the Word of God.
You'll never find a prophet, a scribe, an apostle,
a disciple, penning the Word of God down
saying something completely different
than what everyone else says in the Bible.
It's all in harmony. Why?
Because at the end of the day, the author is God
who's using these men throughout history
to pen down these words.
Therefore, there's no contradictions in the Bible.
And someone tries to point out,
well, what about this contradiction?
You don't know how to answer that.
Just believe the Bible.
A lot of times, people are swayed to doubt the Bible
and think that maybe there is contradictions
and errors in the Bible
because someone points out a seemingly contradiction,
a seeming contradiction, and think,
oh man, maybe this isn't the Word of God.
Whereas what the Bible wants us to do
is to approach it with faith.
And the Bible says,
he that cometh to God must believe that he is
and that he is a rewarder of them to diligently seek.
So we have to believe the Bible
whether we understand it or not.
And by experience, we know that
the more we read the Word of God,
the more we understand it,
the more we realize these aren't errors
or contradictions.
We just need to understand the Word of God more.
And of course, the ministry of the Holy Spirit
is to teach us the Word of God as the years go by.
So he says, no prophecy of the Scriptures
of any private interpretation.
Why? Verse 21.
For the prophecy came not in old time
by the will of man.
You know, the reason why
these other extra biblical revelations
outside of the Bible,
the reason they contradict themselves,
the reason there's errors is because
they're made by the will of man.
They're not made by God's will.
They're made by self-willed men
who have their own agenda,
a nefarious agenda to corrupt God's Word.
And we know that man is in error.
Man makes mistakes.
Man will corrupt things.
And so when he writes something
and claims it to be the Word of God
when it's not inspired by God,
you know, it's going to have errors.
It is going to be of a private interpretation
because it's by the will of man.
He says, but holy men of God spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
So obviously when we read the Word of God
from cover to cover, we see that
a lot of the Scriptures are written
with the writer's personality, right?
We have the writer's personality
being inserted into the text
when John writes his epistle
his letter, his gospel.
It's obviously very much distinct
to John and the way he writes.
That's why a lot of similar words
are being used in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John
and even in the book of Revelation
because the human author has distinct
attributes in his writings, right?
However, what the doctrine that he's saying
matches up with Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
The doctrines that he teaches
matches up with Paul.
And what's interesting is that
the vast majority of the New Testament
is written by Paul.
Okay?
And a lot of what Paul teaches
matches up with the gospels
even though the gospels were not
physically written as of yet
during the time of Paul's ministry.
So he didn't have the gospels to reference
when he's writing his epistles.
He didn't have Matthew 23, or excuse me,
Matthew 24 to reference for end times
Bible prophecy and teaching that
the rapture is after the tribulation
and all these doctrines that match up
with the word of God.
He didn't have that, but it doesn't matter
because he had the Holy Ghost.
And the Holy Ghost is not going to lead him
astray, he's going to inspire him
to pen the correct words.
And that's why we can place our faith
in the word of God.
Not because of the men themselves.
Not because there's something special
about them, but because they were inspired
by God to pen the word of God.
And in fact, the majority of the writers,
I shouldn't say the majority,
all the scribes who are used to pen down
the word of God in the Old Testament
are unknown.
We don't know who they are.
We know of Moses, we know of David,
we know of the big shots,
but there are certain prophets and writers
and scribes that pen down the word of God
that are just nameless.
They're just like the unknown soldier.
And you say, well then how can we trust
the writings?
Because at the end of the day,
the author is God.
And it doesn't matter who he uses
to pen the word of God,
as long as he's the one behind
the inspiration of the text,
we're a-okay.
Amen?
And so I want to talk about these men.
Now let me say a couple things
regarding what it means to be a holy man.
Because a lot of religions,
namely Catholicism, Orthodoxy,
will insert a certain definition
to what it means to be holy, right?
A holy man of God.
Let me tell you what it doesn't mean
first and foremost, okay?
It doesn't mean to be absent of sin.
So when the Bible talks about
holy men of God spake as they were
moved by the Holy Ghost,
this doesn't mean that they were
just completely absent of sin.
They were sinless.
They were without fault.
No, these men were sinners.
And in fact, some of these were murderers.
And in fact, some of these were adulterers.
Now go to Romans chapter seven,
if you would, Romans chapter number seven.
So holy men of God,
don't get it mistaken,
holy men of God,
holy men of God does not mean you're sinless.
And we can literally point to
the vast majority of writers
in the Old and New Testament
and see how God greatly used them
in spite of just glaring flaws
and sins that they had.
You know, there's an exception.
There's a couple exceptions.
You have Daniel, for example,
who was a man who was above reproach
and the Bible doesn't seem to highlight
a lot of his flaws,
but it depends upon the narrative of scripture.
We know that he was a sinner
like everyone else.
There's no exception to that rule.
And in fact, look at Romans chapter seven
in verse 14, the Apostle Paul speaking here,
who again was used greatly
to pen down the majority of the New Testament.
It says in verse 14,
for we know that the law is spiritual,
but I am carnal, sold under sin.
What is he saying?
He's a fleshly Christian.
He's carnal, fleshly.
It says in verse 15,
for what I would, that do I not,
but what I hate, that do I.
If then I do that which I would not,
I consent unto the law that it is good.
What is he saying?
That there's instances in his life
where he doesn't do that which is right
in the sight of the Lord.
And there's instances where he does do that
which is right in the sight of the Lord.
You say, well, what's the explanation to that?
The flesh versus the spirit.
How can God use the Apostle Paul
who's injurious, he was a blasphemer,
he was disobedient.
He's saying he's carnal
and sometimes he doesn't do that which is right.
How can God use such a man
to pen down the word of God?
Because he's a holy man of God
and holy man doesn't mean sinless.
He says there in verse 17,
now then it is no more I that do it,
but sin that dwelleth in me.
Now, don't misunderstand what this is saying.
He's not passing the buck here
and it's not like he's not taking responsibility
for his actions.
It's not like, hey, the devil made me do it.
Or it's just like, oh, man,
my flesh takes over and I have no control over it.
It's not what he's referring to here
because his flesh, the sin that dwells within him
regarding his flesh is a part of who he is.
That is Paul.
That is Saul.
And so God does hold him accountable
in this life for the sins that he commits.
He says in verse 18,
for I know that in me that is in my flesh
dwelleth no good thing,
for to will is present with me,
I find not.
So one of the greatest Christians of the New Testament
is divulging his experience and his difficulties
and his struggles that he's carnal,
he's fleshly, he sins.
Now, how can we apply this to us as Christians?
Well, obviously we're not being used
to pen down the word of God
because we already have it in these 66 books.
But you know, when it comes to serving God
and living for the Lord,
it doesn't mean you have to be perfect.
You know, God expects you to be a holy person
and to be able to attain this side of eternity.
It's just like, well, you know,
in order to be used of God,
to get people saved,
to influence people's lives,
to make an impact in this world,
you just have to be this perfect person
who's read the Bible perfectly,
who understands the statutes perfectly,
who obeys God perfectly.
That person doesn't exist.
And we preach you have to repent of your sins,
not to be saved,
but to live a life that's pleasing unto the Lord.
But nowhere do we teach or does the Bible show
that you have to be sinless in order to serve God
because it's impossible to attain.
You cannot be sinless this side of eternity.
Obviously we know that there is a doctrine in the Bible
known as sanctification
where God is continuously cleaning us
and sanctifying us on a day-to-day basis
as we read the word of God,
as we hear preaching, as we walk in the Spirit.
That's an important aspect of the Christian life.
But you know what?
No amount of sanctification this side of eternity
will ever make you completely clean
because our cleanliness in its entirety, in its totality,
doesn't come until we die
and our souls go to heaven
and we are separated from this filthy rag of the flesh
where we're no longer tempted to sin.
Being a holy man of God,
being a holy woman of God
doesn't mean you have to be sinless.
Don't listen to these holier than thou,
these self-righteous pompous jerks out there
and these churches that want to condemn people
for their sin and say they're not even saved
because they're sinful,
because they commit all these sins or whatever
and yet the pastor is often one of the biggest sinners.
Most ignorant person in the church
and that's the most hypocritical person in the church.
So what is a holy man of God?
It doesn't mean to be absent of sin
but also it doesn't mean to be pious.
Go to Matthew chapter 23,
we're going to cover Matthew 23 this coming Thursday
in more detail.
What do I mean by pious?
Meaning self-righteous,
thinking that they're better than other people,
just having this holier than thou type of attitude
and they are essentially trying to live a holy life
not because they want to please God,
because they want everyone else to see them
living a holy life.
Look at verse 5,
when talking about the Pharisees it says,
but all their works they do for to be seen of men,
they make brothel phylacteries
and enlarge the borders of their garments
and love the uppermost rooms at feast
and the chief seats in the synagogues
and greetings in the markets
and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
So the Pharisees weren't being separated
and living holy lives in a practical manner
so that they can please God,
they're doing it to be seen of men.
They want people to look at them and think,
oh wow man this guy is a holy man of God,
oh man this guy is so holy and righteous
I can't attain into that level of spirituality
but at the end of the day
they were some of the most rotten people of that time.
Outwardly their sepulchres so to speak
were adorned beautifully
but inwardly they were full of dead men's bones
the Bible says.
Now obviously God wants us to live
literally righteous lives
but he also wants it to reflect the righteousness
that's inside as well.
And he wants us to do it with the right motive
because we love the Lord
and we want to please God.
You don't have to turn there
but go to 1 Timothy chapter 4
I'm going to read to you from Isaiah 65
and verse number 5 it says,
Which say, this is referring to Israel
who had become a self-righteous pious group of people
in the days of Isaiah,
they would say this,
Which say, stand by thyself,
I'm holier than thou.
I mean how self-righteous and ungodly
and just wicked do you have to be
to say such a thing right?
Just not self-aware
to say well don't come near unto me
because I'm holier than you.
These are a smoke in my nose
and a fire that burneth all the day
meaning that people like that annoy God.
And these aren't just people who exist
existed in Isaiah's day
they exist today too.
Holier than thou, pious, self-righteous, arrogant people
who think that they're better than everyone else
and in some instances,
obviously they're saved holier than thou's
but the vast majority of holier than thou's are not saved.
They live like that
or they portray themselves to be something that they're not
because they want to redirect attention to someone else
they want people to think that they are righteous people
they want to feign themselves to be just men.
Here's another thing that
when it comes to holy men and what it doesn't mean
it doesn't mean to be ascetic.
What does that mean?
To go without.
Asceticism is the teaching that
you essentially relinquish
the pleasures of this world
the possessions of this world
because you think it has something to do with holiness.
And when I think of this particular concept
I think of monks.
And I'll get into that in just a bit
but I think of monks
and I'll get into that in just a bit
where they essentially go without certain pleasures
and possessions of this world
because they think that that increases their godliness.
But you know the Bible tells us
that God has given us all things richly to enjoy
and in fact, they'll often
a lot of these types of groups
and cults
will often focus on two major things
that they need to give up.
Right?
Food
and alcohol
food
and relationships
with women.
Marriage.
But you know the Bible says that's the doctrine of devils.
Look at 1 Timothy 4 verse 1
it says,
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly
that in the latter times
some shall depart from the faith
giving heed to seducing spirits
and doctrines of devils
speaking lies in hypocrisy
having their conscience seared with the hot iron
Now,
correct me if I'm wrong
but you know
this really kind of highlights the Catholics
and Orthodox, right?
Church.
And they say well you know
that's just someone's choice
well no no they forbid priests to marry
and where do they get that from?
Because priests in the Bible
and the Old Testament were married
and in fact it was imperative
for the priests in the Old Testament to marry
because they were part of the priesthood
and so the generations that came after them
the sons that they were bearing
were going to take up their mantle to become priests
so where are those children coming from
if they're just celibate their entire lives?
The priests in the Old Testament
were not celibate
men of God
who just stayed away from women
no they got married
because marriage is a biblical institution
set forth by God
it's holy matrimony, amen?
But these guys forbid to marry
and what they say is that
a lot of these sex communities
and religious groups
that claim to be so pious
that they're forbid to marry
they're often some of the most perverted people
who commit really wicked sexual acts
so it says there verse 3
forbidding to marry
oh look what it also says
and commanding to abstain from meats
now obviously meats
is referring to food in general
but I do believe that in this particular verse
it's referring to animal based products
you say well you know
I don't know how you can get that
because meats can be used
if you talk about bread
or any type of food in general
yeah but the text later on says
for every creature of God is good
so if it's talking about creatures
it's talking about an animal
and lo and behold Catholics are also guilty
of commanding their congregates
to abstain from meat
on Good Friday for example
but other religions do this as well
so they can't abstain from meats
which God has created to be received
with thanksgiving of them which believe
and know the truth
for every creature of God is good
and nothing to be refused
if it be received with thanksgiving
for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer
and look this is one of the reasons
that I personally am against veganism
and vegetarianism
not saying that a person who's a vegan
or a vegetarian is ungodly
and they're wicked
because they're not
in the narrative of the Bible
it's very much pro-animal based products
and against plant based diets
and in fact the Bible specifically says
in Romans 14
that he that eateth herbs is weak
now you say yeah but that's referring
to their faith okay
wasn't that the most important thing
so you can interpret it either way
if it's referring to your faith being weak
okay then start eating meat
so your faith can increase
and be a better Christian
if that's what it's referring to
okay well I don't want to be bodily weak either
I don't want any type of weakness
that will hinder me from serving God
okay now at the end of the day
meats don't commend us unto the Lord
okay so having a specific diet
doesn't make you a worse
or a better Christian
however when we look at the narrative
of the Bible it seems to be
more pro-animal based diet products
than plant based
and it seems to condemn those
who forbid people from eating meat
okay to abstain command to abstain
to eat meat
the Bible says in Hebrews 13 and verse 9
you don't have to turn there
be not carried about with diverse
and strange doctrines
for it is a good thing
that the heart be established with grace
not with meats
which have not profited them
that have been occupied therein
so don't make it so much about
what we're eating
because like I said what you eat
doesn't necessarily make you a better
Christian or not but it does improve
your quality of life which in turn
improves your spiritual life as well
because we're three elements right
mind body and spirit
and so that's important
now let me I don't want to deviate
too much from that
the next thing I want to say is
that holy men of God doesn't mean
monasticism okay and I kind of already
referred to this you know just like
well I'm so holy I'm gonna go out
to the desert or some island
and just isolate myself in a monastery
okay you know the Bible talks about
going out into the highways and hedges
it doesn't talk about having a ministry
with a bunch of dudes on an island
in the middle of the desert
secluded from every secluded from
all the communities around the world
and cities and towns
it commands us to go out into the world
and preach the gospel
it commands us to preach the gospel
go therefore and teach all nations
you know we're to go out there
to the people who don't have Christ
who don't have the word of God
and preach the word of God into them
not isolate ourselves
in a particular part of the world
where we're just away from the
influences of the world
away from the influences of worldliness
and lust and covetousness
no actually we live in the world
and we're supposed to minister into
the world as well okay
so what made the writers of the Bible
holy men of God
now I'm referring specifically to
the writers of the word of God
okay because obviously God
also providentially used men later on
to preserve the Bible
such as our beloved King James Bible
by translating it
these men weren't necessarily
some of them weren't saved
okay some of them have different beliefs
but because they held faithful
to the translation of the Bible
of the underlying Greek text
and the Hebrew text
that's why we have a great King James Bible
so these men were providentially used
to preserve the Bible
I'm talking about those who were used
to pen its words down okay
now let me just say this is that
what made these men holy
well first and foremost is the most obvious
and that is that they were saved
okay they were saved
look at 1 Peter chapter 1 if you would
go to 1 Peter chapter 1
say why is that important
I want to talk a little bit about
the Qumran sect okay
and the Qumran community
is essentially a group of
Jewish apostates
that had forsaken the temple
of their time
and went into the middle of the desert
in Qumran
next to the Dead Sea
created this commune
of their believers
of believers not necessarily
believers of the word of God
but they created this commune
where they essentially lived
this ascetic monastic type life
apart from Judaism
apart from the biblical Israel
apart from the temple
that God commanded people to participate in
and they were simply in this desert
just kind of living
Jewish monk life
okay and
what they did a lot of their times
they spent in communal eatings
they spent penning down scriptures
that were already in existence
they spent penning down
a lot of their own writings
so when you think of
or when you hear about what's called
the Dead Sea Scrolls
this is what that's referring to
and a lot of people make a big deal
about the Dead Sea Scrolls
as though it's something novel
or something that is exotic
but at the end of the day
they're just that they're dead
they have no life to them
we never want to refer to
the word of God as being
powerful sharper than any two-edged sword
it pierces even to the dividing of
center of soul and spirit
joints of the marrow
and is a discernment of the thoughts
and the intent of the heart
the Dead Sea Scrolls are simply that
they're dead they're dead writings
that have no life they have no power
well when they dug up these scrolls
there's approximately 930 manuscripts
that were found 400 of which
were considered the word of God
and in fact 400 of them were about
were the Old Testament
the exclusion of the Book of Esther
and even some of the writings
that were found that were
from the Old Testament
they were kind of changed a little bit
you have Genesis Apocryphon
where the writings are slightly changed
the narratives are changed in there
you had two copies of the Book of Isaiah
one of them which the Qumran sect wrote
and then another one which was
the legitimate Isaiah rendition
so it's not like they didn't have
a good copy of the Bible
they had it there
but then aside from those biblical manuscripts
they also had apocryphal readings
or what's also known as pseudopigraphal readings
such as the book of Enoch
the book of Thomas
the book of Jubilees
things of that nature
just readings that were only subject to
or relevant to the Qumran sect
so in this community
they had this library
of all of these writings
and all they would do
is just copy these words
copy these scrolls
well it's said that
in 70 AD
when Rome took over Jerusalem
and they're just kind of wiping out
all the Jews there
that they probably came after the Qumran sect
and in light of that
the Qumran sect essentially took those writings
and put these writings in these caves in Qumran
which are essentially in close proximity
to the community
11 caves as it were
and then later on in 1947
you have this Bedouin shepherd
looking for his flocks
he throws a rock into one of the caves
here's pottery shattering
and then he goes in there
and he discovers all of these manuscripts
and essentially 11 of them
were just filled with manuscripts
different items
and that's what's known as the Dead Sea Scrolls
okay
well a lot of people esteem these men
as being just legitimate holy men of God
because when they look at the way
they live
they seem to be so devoted
and so ascetic
and they're living this monastery type life
and they seem to be so strict
on their religious beliefs
it's like they're holy men of God
and they were just used to preserve
not only these apocryphal readings
but even the word of God
but here's the thing folks
is that the word of God existed before
the Qumran sect
the Old Testament scriptures
were already in existence
and in service to the world
they were in circulation
before the Qumran sect
from the 3rd, 2nd, 1st century BC
they were already in existence
so people try to say
you know I know it looks bad
that the Qumran sect
had these apocryphal readings
they had, and not just apocryphal readings
by the way
they also had just private readings
of community rules
and just letters that they would write
to the high priest in Jerusalem
criticizing them
just all these private readings
and so when you look at those readings
when you look at those writings
you see all the stuff that they said
you're like man this group is crazy
so people who are advocates
of these apocryphal readings
will say I know this looks bad
that they had all these
that they were against the temple
and all of these customs
that were sanctioned by God
authorized by God to be carried out
in the temple
yeah but sorry that doesn't count
because biblical texts existed before them
and in fact think about this
that makes it even worse
that they had the biblical texts
it actually doesn't help their narrative at all
you say why?
because of the fact that
tomb server much is given
of him shall be much required
so why were they so wicked and apostate
if they had the biblical texts
right? because they had the Bible
that means they had no excuse
to go apostate and start teaching
all of these extra biblical rules
that weren't found in the word of God
if they had the word of God
so they're actually accountable for more
right? and so they can't use this excuse
as oh you know but they did preserve
these biblical writings
no they didn't
because some of them they changed
and even the ones that they didn't
they didn't listen to
they are elevating their writings
and the rules of their communities
and the teachings of the actual Bible itself
look at 1 Peter 1
oh this is what I wanted to say
they weren't saved
which is the most important aspect right?
all that to say they weren't saved
because anybody who changes the word of God
is not saved
they weren't saved
they had this heavy belief on predestination
by the way
which if I was a Calvinist
I would not want anyone to know that
my spiritual ancestors
were these Jewish monks
who were allegedly by the way celibate
and they had this weird view on women
that I'll share later on in the sermon
but they believed in predestination
some would even allege that
they didn't even believe in an afterlife
so what's the point of believing in predestination
if you didn't believe in an afterlife?
1 Peter 1 says
receiving the end of your faith
even the salvation of your souls
of which salvation the prophets have
inquired and searched diligently
about the grace that should come unto you
referring to Jesus
verse 11
searching what or what manner of time
listen to this
the spirit of Christ which was in them
did signify
when it testified beforehand
the sufferings of Christ
and the glory that should follow
talk about the spirit of Christ that dwelt within them
now we obviously know in the Old Testament
the spirit of God
didn't indwell believers permanently
but there were instances where he did indwell in them
okay
and Jesus said later on
when talking about the comforter who's the Holy Ghost
he says he dwells in you
or he dwells with you and shall be in you
so obviously the transition between Old and New Testament
and one of the major transitions
is that the Holy Ghost not only dwells with believers
but actually dwells within them as well
the Bible says in Ephesians 1 13
in whom ye also trusted
after that ye heard the word of truth
the gospel of your salvation
in whom also after that ye believed
ye received with the Holy Spirit of promise
which is the earnest of our inheritance
unto the redemption of the purchased possession
essentially signifying our salvation
so these holy men of God
they weren't sinless
they weren't perfect
but they were saved
and in fact when the Bible talks about saved people
it often refers to them as holy
because they're separated unto the Lord
via salvation and faith in Christ
this is why the Bible also refers to believers as this
saints
which is another term that Catholics have hijacked
a saint doesn't mean someone who doesn't sin
a saint is someone who's been separated unto God
by the gospel of Jesus Christ
by their belief and faith in Jesus Christ
so we're saints here
all of us are saints
you know the Catholics is like
a dead Catholic has to wait like a thousand years or something
to be considered a saint
in the eyes of the Catholic Church
based upon their works
so it's like they finally get their plaque
hundreds of years later
that they're a saint
as they're burning in hell
folks we don't even have to do anything to be a saint
other than believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
holy means set apart
you know the Bible says
the Holy Spirit of God
is sealed within us unto the day of redemption
which is why we shouldn't grieve the Holy Spirit of God
when talking about David
it says in Mark chapter 12
you don't have to turn there
go with me if you would to first Peter
you're in first Peter stay in first Peter
Mark chapter 12 verse 35 says
and Jesus answered and said
while he taught in the temple
how say the scribes that Christ is the son of David
for David himself said
by the Holy Ghost
the Lord said to my Lord sit thou on my right hand
till I make the enemies thy footstool
now David murderer
David adulterer
I mean he did a lot of bad stuff in his lifetime
and yet he spake by the Holy Ghost
why because he was saved
he was a holy man of God
who was used greatly to pen down the Psalms
whom we all love
and we love the Psalms
we considered it inspired scripture
because David was a holy man of God
you know there's Psalms in the Dead Sea Scrolls
with its own insertion of the Qumran sects
little ideologies in it
and it's garbage
they add weird ideologies
and doctrines to it
try to make it their own
they try to custom fit it to their community
it sounds like trash because it's not God's word
and so the Qumran sect
was not a safe group of people
they're very pious
they are Jewish monks
living in this monastery in the middle of the desert
who have these ungodly rules
that are not sanctioned or authorized by God
these are rules that they have set forth
they're teaching for doctrines the commandments of men
and in fact honestly they make the Pharisees look like
almost like Christians
because they're so strict
and ridiculous on their laws
they're even against the Pharisees and the Sadducees teachings
I mean good night
you're in 1 Peter
let me say this is the holy men of God
these men were saved
but they were also separated from the world
listen to this
and separated unto God
the Qumran sect
they were separated from the world
they were so separated they lived in the desert
with no one around
they're away from Jerusalem away from the temple
away from the epicenter of worship
of the true God of the Bible
they're in the desert
but it's not like they're evangelizing though
they're just kind of keeping to themselves
so they're like these Amish
who just go into the middle of the desert
I think it's in what is it Pennsylvania
they're just going to the middle of nowhere
to just live this ascetic holy pious life
pleasing unto God
but they're not pleasing unto God
because that's not God's model
for Christians to live in this world
he doesn't want us to be so separated
from these metropolitan cities
where people are
that we just don't come in contact with anybody
that's not godly
why because he wants us to proclaim his word to everyone
he wants us to convert people to Christianity
he wants us to go to the highway
and hedges and reach people
and talk about the Bible
that's what he wants us to do
not just move up our stakes
and go somewhere in the middle of nowhere
and let's just be like Jim Jones
and Guyana
which is exactly what he did
and by the way this is a common
this is the common model for all cults
they always like to just take their church
or take their group of people
and just move to the middle of nowhere
with no accountability
and just kind of live their own private lives
that's not the model of the Bible
no one in the word of God did that
what do we see with Paul
he's going to Rome
he's going to Greece
he's going where the people are at
he's going where the fish are biting
he's not so holy and righteous
and pious that he's just like come not near me
Apollos
come not near me Aquila and Priscilla
no he's going to them
the men of the Bible were separated
but they were separated unto God
see it's important that we are
live separated lives
but not just separated lives
we need to be separated unto the Lord
for his services
it says in 1 Peter 1.14
as obedient children not fashioning yourselves
according to the form of lust and your ignorance
but as he which hath called you is holy
so be holy in all manner of conversation
conversation there is not necessarily
referring to our words
it's referring to our conduct
because it is written
be holy for I am holy
John chapter 17
and then I'm going to get into
some of the comparisons with the Qumran sect
and some of the wild things that they believed
now keep in mind
these are the people that modern scholars
and people who are advocates of this
of these apocryphal and pseudopigraphal writings
like to uphold and say
oh man these are the guys
they were so devoted
and they kept these scrolls
they kept these writings
but you know what we're going to peel back
we're not model Christians
we're not model believers
we're not model Jews either
but what it says in John 17 and verse 9
Jesus Christ speaking here
of his disciples says
I pray for them
I pray not for the world
but for them which thou hast given me
for they are thine
and all are mine are thine
and thine are mine and I am glorified in them
and now I am no more in the world
but these are in the world
and I am come to thee
that they may be one as we are
while I was with them in the world
I kept them in thy name
those that thou gavest me I have kept
and none of them is lost
but the son of perdition
referring to Judas
that the scripture might be fulfilled
and now come I to thee
and these things I speak in the world
that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves
I have given them thy word
and the world hated them
because they are not of the world
even as I am not of the world
God is making his people distinct from everyone else
he says we are not of this world
and by the way being not of this world
doesn't mean you have to put a sticker
on your vehicle
that says not of this world
he's like oh man
he could have fooled me
he's saying there I have given them thy word
so what separates us from the world?
the word
what separates us from the world system?
the word of God does
our beliefs
our doctrines
our biblical ideologies
is what makes us different
from the world
which is why God is constantly telling us
to renew our minds
transform our minds
to have not a worldly mindset
to be not conformed to this world
but be transformed
by the renewing of your mind
of course via the word of God
so the word of God separates us
from this world
makes us different
he says in verse 15
I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world
so he says there
I'm not trying to ask you
to take my disciples and Christians
out of the world
but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil
so the model that we see
is that we live in this world
we are essentially in the thick of it
with the evil compassing us round about
but we're still separated
by the word of God
not separated to a geographical location
separated in here and in here
by the word of God
so the separation
is not a physical separation
it's a spiritual separation
it's a heart separation
it's the fact that the world is crucified unto us
and we into the world
via our beliefs
because at the end of the day
why do people
when it comes to Christians
the world to a certain extent
can admire Christians
and even things that are good people
it's just until you start
telling them what you believe
what the Bible says
so when they look at you and your family
and all the kiddos
and they're just like wow what a beautiful family
oh man you guys just look so great
you guys look like Christians
but then once you start telling them what you believe
and in fact let me say this
when you describe what you believe from the Bible
you don't have to separate from people
people separate from you
people are like I don't know what to do with my worldly friends
just tell them what you believe
easy
that's too easy
if you're having a hard time with your worldly friends
all you got to do is tell them what the Bible says
and they will quickly separate from you
because what makes us holy
is the Bible
what makes us different
the Bible
what makes us distinct and separated
from everyone else in this world
not our geographical location
it's the Bible
and God says Jesus is saying
I don't want you to take them out of the metropolitan city
I don't want you to take them out of California
I want you to keep them from Gavin Newsom
I want you to keep them from Hollywood
I want you to keep them from
the Jews
and all the wickedness of this world
I want you to keep them from the false ideologies that this world is pushing
I don't want you to keep them from
their geographical location
I want to make sure that they're just holy
in the way they believe
so here's what's funny about
for example the Amish
they're so physically holy
that they're separated from everyone
but they're profane up here
because they don't believe right
they believe in a workspace of salvation
they're separated from the world
that one day when they die they're going to go straight to hell
he says in verse 16
they are not of the world
even as I am not of the world
listen to this again
sanctify them through a geographical location
is that what it is?
sanctify them by helping them to move somewhere
in the mountains, in the cabin
away from all of the influences of the world
no it says sanctify them through thy truth
thy word is truth
as thou hast sent me into the world
even so have I also sent them into the world
what is he saying?
just the way God sent God the Son to this world
separated from heaven but to preach the word of God
and to be salvation unto the world
Jesus Christ is sending us
to the metropolitan cities
to these areas in the world
not to be separated from them
but to trust them
hey folks stay holy up here
I just don't like you know
and by the way if you don't like city life
you want to live in a farm I'm not against you
but don't move so far away that you're just away from everyone
and you're not reaching anyone
right you know if you're not a city dweller
I get you I actually don't get you
because I'm a city boy and I love the city
and this is where I'm going to be
but you know what if you're the type of person you like
I want a farm and a cow and a chicken
hey I'm all for that
I'm going to get some eggs from you amen
how's it going Sarah you know
I'm all for it
I think it's great you know to have raw milk and all these things
but let me say this hey don't be so separated
that you're not reaching the loss
right
don't be so separated that you're just
you know you're not even in touch with a church
that's all a lot of people have become
right
be in church be separated from the world up here
be separated from the world here
stay where the people are at
not like this Qumran sect
alright let me get into some of the beliefs of the Qumran sect
as I mentioned the Qumran sect was a community of apostate Jews
who essentially boycotted the temple
uh led in the middle of the desert
to start what essentially became a Jewish monastery
and their writings speak of a man by the name
or by the title of the teacher of righteousness
okay and he's essentially the one who's accredited
for influencing these group of men
or Jews in Jerusalem to come out with him
into this monastery type living
and he's essentially the one who's responsible
for teaching these extreme pious rules
that exceeded the boundaries of God's laws
okay
they had very strange beliefs regarding purity
uh they were it was outside of the parameters of God's world
when it came to the purity laws
and in fact they specifically wrote a letter
to the high priest
it's known as the halakhic letter
where they're essentially criticizing the temple
and the high priest
and basically highlighting 22 differences
between the way they observe
sacrificial and ritual
or excuse me sacrificial and purity laws
and the inferiority of the way those in Jerusalem would observe them
and they basically said like hey if you're willing to change your ways
we'll come back
you know but I don't think anybody even esteemed them
as being so important that they wanted them to come back
but they literally were so high and mighty in their own sight
that they thought you know if you're willing to change your ways
your customs and essentially adopt our views
we'll come back
they had really strange views on women too
okay
now in some of their writings you see that
it's possible that there were celibate men who were living there
if they weren't celibate maybe some of them were married
it's not 100% sure whether that's the case or not
but when you look at some of their writings
you see that they had a very strange view on women
they had a couple writings regarding women
such as the wiles of the wicked woman
and it's kind of similar to your Proverbs 6 and 7
chapter of women just kind of warning the men to stay away from godless women
who will seek to seduce them
things of that nature
and you think to yourself well that's not bad
good warnings you know we should be warned of that
but then they also had another writing
describing wisdom as a woman
which the Bible also does right
in Proverbs chapter 8
we have you know the book of Proverbs highlighting
or giving that symbolic representation of wisdom
as having feminine features
but the Bible describes her as being like our sister
whereas the woman in the wisdom writings
of the Qumran sect is sexualized
and I can't even read what it says because it just sounds perverse
and so the goal of the writing of the wiles of the wicked woman
is to not be enthralled sexually with this woman
whereas the goal of the writing of the book of wisdom
is to get enthralled with that woman in a sexual way
so their description of gaining wisdom and knowledge
is very much similar to sexual acts
you say why? because they're probably perverse
because unto the pure all things are pure
but unto them which are defiled is nothing pure
but even their mind and their conscience is defiled
so even something as wholesome and pure as wisdom
they perverted
and they often say yeah but they had the book of Genesis though
that's the first book
yeah but it was called the Genesis Apocryphon
and they insert there an extended description of Sarah
and how beautiful she was
something that was not in the word of God
obviously the Bible talks about her being fair
but it spends an inordinate amount of time talking about her features
in Genesis Apocryphon
so very strange views on women
let's talk about their membership qualifications
because when you think about the membership at Qumran
generally it's noted that it was about 150 to 200 people living there at a time
from the third century BC to the first century AD
and so it was about 200 people at any given time
but they had really strange qualifications to become a member of their community
now here at our church this is the way you become a member
get saved, you get baptized and you just start coming here
pretty simple
you don't have to fill out a membership covenant
you don't have to sign over your social security
and give us all your information
get saved, get baptized, come to our church
you're a member of our church
like how do I lose my membership?
stop coming to our church
pretty simple right?
but their membership qualifications were radical
because think about
you got to think about the fact that they had these very weird views on purity
and so a person who wanted to join the Qumran community
I don't know why they would
but if they wanted to join that sect
they were considered ritually impure for at least three years
ritually impure
so the first year they're ritually impure
they cannot touch the solid foods
for an entire year
now they can have their own little food
but as far as the communal eating is concerned
they can't touch the solid foods because if they did
it would be ritually impure
because they're considered ritually impure
for an entire year
second year okay
you're still ritually impure
but you can touch the solid foods
you just can't touch the liquids
because these
the Qumran sect were really big on
these purification baths
they would constantly purify themselves with water
and they had all these pools where they would do so
but they weren't allowed to touch any liquid whatsoever
in the second year
because they were considered ritually impure
third year okay after thorough examination
now you can touch both solid foods and liquids
and now your possessions and your property
can be integrated into the community
so it's just like now that you're a member
now your stuff is our stuff
okay
I mean it sounds like a cult
it's like sign over your deeds
property, possessions, everything you own
can now be fully integrated into the community
and in fact if a person
refused to integrate their property
into the community
like let's say they had
you know just a lot of expensive things
and they didn't want to like share that with the community
there is actually a penal code of punishment
in their writings
where their rations would be reduced
their food rations would be reduced
it's like oh you don't want to give me your property
okay well just take half of that rice there
or half of this food and you don't get as much
I mean this is crazy
not exemplified in the Bible whatsoever
and in fact the priesthood in the Old Testament
had an over abundance of food to work with
most of the time
because you know a lot of those sacrifices
they got to partake of
God made sure that he took care of his priests
whereas these guys the teacher of righteousness
here along with this community
are punishing people
if they're not willing to
give up their possessions and their property
okay you can't have as much food then
these are the crazy things that they believe
okay
they're very big on apocalypticism
referring to the fact that they're very much obsessed
listen to this
with the ideology that Christ can come at any moment
that's what they believed
and this is very much evident in their writings
they believe that the Messiah
which is not Jesus by the way
could come at any moment
because they believe that their Messiah
came at them from the house of Aaron
whereas we know that Jesus Christ
came from the tribe of Judah
okay
but they believed so strongly
listen to this
they believed so strongly in the imminency of Christ
that they literally thought that they were in
a new messianic era
where they considered themselves the sons of light
and everyone else were the sons of darkness
and they even predicted that when the Messiah would come
that there would be a 40 year war
between the sons of, where the sons of light
would drive out the Roman Empire
and that this war would be
essentially mirrored in heaven in the cosmos
well history says otherwise
okay because the Roman Empire ended up
destroying Jerusalem in 70 AD
so you know I don't know if you know this
but the Bible says if you make a prediction
and it doesn't come to pass you're a false prophet
that's exactly what happened to them
and let me just say this
the imminency of Christ
they didn't even bother to prepare
a successor for when the teacher of righteousness died
because according to their predictions
once the teacher of righteousness died
that was the marker to indicate
that the Messiah was coming speedily
well when he died they had to scramble around
and find officers to take over his responsibilities
because obviously the Messiah didn't show up
so they were really big on that
and obviously we know based upon their writings
they're really big on the end times
which is something that the book of Enoch
is very much about is end times Bible prophecy
false end times Bible prophecy
the teacher of righteousness
his writings were often geared towards
and against the high priest
that he would refer to as the wicked priest
or the teacher of lies
but think about this you know
you say well yeah but that's just what they believe
you know leave them alone
you know they did preserve the scriptures
they had yeah they had apocryphal readings
but they also had the word of God
well here's the thing though
there's zero evidence
that the Qumran sect ever evangelized
they never evangelized
so think about this you know
if they really believed that the book of Enoch
was just the inspired and preserved word of God
that it's so beautiful
and it's God's word and it has so much value
why aren't you sharing it with the world then
why are you hiding it
if you believe these apocryphal readings
are so valuable and godly
and something that the world needs to know
why weren't you going to
the highways and hedges proclaiming it
why are you keeping it exclusive
why are you hiding it under a bushel
why are you putting it in a cave
for thousands of years
and no one's finding it until
the 1900s
I mean think about that
yeah but they were used to preserve the Bible
well okay why not preach it
you know the Bible says in Romans chapter 10
and verse 18 when talking about the word of God
that their sound went into all the earth
and their word unto the ends of the world
why because God's intention for his word
was never to just have a prophet
write down the word of God and put it in a cave
and just hide it under a bushel
his intention has always been
to proclaim his word from the housetops
to spread it to all nations
throughout all generations
to be hindered so that every generation would have the word of God
well you know what
either the book of Enoch and these apocryphal readings are God's word
and God is lying here
or it's not God's word
it's proven by the fact that it was hidden for generations to come
because no one cared about it
it wasn't being used
they weren't using it to evangelize
they weren't spreading the word of God
to different parts of the known world at that time
they were only secluding it to themselves
keeping it to themselves
for the Bible
but of course those apocryphal readings
pseudepigraphal readings are not the Bible
go to Philippians chapter 2
and you know people want to point and say
yeah but you know here's the thing though
the New Testament has some seeming quotes
from these apocryphal readings such as the book of Enoch
you know because I always point to that
you know Matthew and Peter and Jude
they did quote you know some of those apocryphal readings
well aside from the fact that it says Enoch prophesied
it doesn't say Enoch wrote these things
they seem to forget that we literally have
4,000 years worth of biblical history in the Old Testament
dozens of scribes dozens of prophets
who were in closer proximity to the so-called book of Enoch
than the New Testament writers
and yet not a single one of them ever said as Enoch had said
as Enoch had written
as the scripture had said in the book of Enoch
why? because it's not God's word
and so if you have 4,000 years worth of biblical history
in the Old Testament dozens of prophets preaching the word of God
talking about Old Testament prophetic statements and writings
why isn't Enoch mentioned even once?
if this book is an antediluvian book that survived the flood
why is it missing through the annals of biblical history?
I'll tell you why because it wasn't real
it didn't exist until these people came
and wrote it and tried to make it seem as though it's the word of God
along with every other writing that's within those manuscripts
look what the Bible says in Philippians chapter 2 verse 14
do all things without murmurings and disputings
they ye may be blameless and harmless the sons of God
without rebuke in the middle of the desert away from everyone
not in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation
think about that
he says you're to be the sons of God without rebuke
harmless and blameless in the midst in the middle of
a midst of a crooked and perverse nation
listen to this among whom you shine as lights in the world
how are you going to shine in the middle of the desert
when there's no dark lights around
there's no darkness around to shine in
there's no people to shine forth from
the Bible says let your light so shine before rocks
before sand and mountains
no let your light so shine before men
that they may see your good works and glorify your father which is in heaven
he says among whom you shine as lights in the world
in order for us to even shine brightly
we have to be in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation
hey the darker the night the brighter the light
he says in verse 16
holding forth the word of life that I may rejoice in the day of Christ
that I have not run in vain neither labored in vain
can we really say that the Qubran sect was doing something like this
they weren't in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation
they were the crooked and perverse nation
right because we are a royal priesthood a holy generation
we are the chosen generation
they're the crooked and perverse nation
they didn't have any light
and what light they literally physically held on to they didn't obey
they supplanted the word of God that they possessed
because they were into their writings and their visions or whatever
you know that's not God's will
go back to 2 Peter if you would
2 Peter
let me finish with this
is that the men who were used to pen the word of God
were holy men of God because they were spirit filled men who spake by the Holy Ghost
you see one key factor regarding these men who pen the Bible
is the fact that it doesn't matter how short they fell
or how flawed they were
at the end of the day
what they wrote matched up and was in conjunction with the rest of the Bible
because the Holy Ghost spake through them
okay look at 2 Peter 1 verse 20 again
it says knowing this first that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation
for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost
the Qumran sect were not holy men
these were men which separated themselves sensual having not the spirit
that's what the bio says about that
whereas the holy men of God these are men who spake the words not what man's word teaches
but what the Holy Ghost teaches comparing spiritual things with spiritual
Bible says but the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God
neither can he know them for they are spiritually discerned
they are foolishness unto him for they are spiritually discerned
that's what the Bible says
and so thank God for the holy men of God that were used to pen the word of God
and they are an example unto us that you don't have to be this devoted monk
you don't have to join a monastery and go without food and sleep
and the pleasures and possessions of this world to be a godly Christian
no you have to be holy here and you have to be holy here
but you don't have to be so separated that you're just better than everyone else in this world
you know we're not better than anyone in this world we're just better off
because of our faith in Christ
and so what can we learn from this?
well first and foremost what we can learn is that we don't need any extra biblical revelations
outside of the word of God
the word of God is enough
we don't need exotic teachings on giants
on you know purity laws that are outside of the parameters of God's word
we don't need exotic teachings about the end times because the book of Revelation is sufficient
along with the gospels and even the book of Daniel and 1 and 2 Thessalonians
that's all we need
we don't need any extra biblical revelation or rules outside of the parameters of God's word
we just need to know to stay away from that one tree and all the other trees are good to go
right?
whereas the Qumran say they're just like don't eat any tree don't even need it all
and if you don't give me your possessions then your rations are going to be taken away from you
you know it's just this nonsense
and so don't let people tell you
well you know my Bible is superior because what it uses for its underlying texts are the Dead Sea Scrolls
have you ever heard of the Dead Sea Scrolls?
this is what you can tell them yeah and they're exactly that dead
they have no life to them
because the Holy Spirit didn't inspire that
and so why would I want manuscripts
and let me just say this last thing okay I'm done already it's close
let me say this last thing
we believe in the inspired and the inspiration
we believe in the inspiration and preservation of scripture
preservation does not mean that God preserved a physical document in a cave
preservation means that God has preserved his word within the hands of believers
throughout the generations so they can be read, obeyed, preached, lived from, and adhered to
that's what preservation means
it doesn't mean like he you just you find a document in a cave
oh man God preserved his word
that's not preservation
preservation is that the document stays alive
that is being read in churches
that people are using it in church and out of church preaching the gospel
that people are reading it in their homes
obeying its readings
becoming more godly because of their readings
did the book of Enoch make any any Christian better?
no in the thousand years that it's been in hiding it didn't improve anybody's life
and you know it should have remained in that cave
should have stayed in that cave
because we believe in the inspiration and preservation of scripture meaning that God inspired holy men of God
to pen down these words and those words that Peter wrote are the words that we have today
because Christians throughout generations have used them unhindered in churches
in homes door to door evangelizing and sowing and memorizing and obeying and using throughout the eras
that's what preservation means
and so thank God for the word of God
Amen let's pray Father we thank you so much for your word
and we thank you for the holy men of God who spake
Lord that you use as human instruments to pen down the word of God
we know that the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost
these apocryphal readings and pseudepigraphal writings
they are in direct contradiction to the Bible
because they were made by the will of man
however we know that what we have in our hands is the inspired and preserved word of God
for your people and that it's been around for ages and ages
not just a hundred years not just a thousand years but thousands of years
throughout all human history we've had the word of God
because you've never allowed your people to go without it
man should not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God
and so in order for churches and Christians to thrive we need the word of God in every generation
help us as your people to appreciate the holy men of God
that you used and recognize that holy doesn't mean sinless
it doesn't mean that they were perfect it just means they were separated unto you
for the work that you've called them to do
and I pray that you'd help us to take that to heart
in Jesus name we pray Amen
please turn your songbooks to song number 372
song number 372 let the lower lights be burning
song number 372 all together on that first verse
brightly beams our Father's mercy
from his lighthouse evermore
but to us he gives the keeping of the lights along the shore
let the lower lights be burning
send a gleam across the wave
some poor fainting struggling seamen
you may rescue you may save
dark the night of sin has settled
loud the angry billows roar
eager eyes are watching longing
for the lights along the shore
let the lower lights be burning
send a gleam across the wave
some poor fainting struggling seamen
you may rescue you may save
trim your feeble lamb my brother
some poor sailor tempest tossed
trying now to make the harbor
in the darkness may be lost
let the lower lights be burning
send a gleam across the wave
some poor fainting struggling seamen
you may rescue you may save
amen wonderful singing you are dismissed