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It says, For whosoever hath to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance, but whosoever hath not, for him shall be taken even that that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables, because they seeing see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Asias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand, and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. Now I want you to focus on verse 15. It says, For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. And the title of the sermon this evening is, A Heart That Is Waxed Gross, okay? Or we could just say, A Gross Heart, alright? Now, that's a very interesting statement that he says there in verse 15, For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing. Now typically today, when we think about the word gross, we think of typically the valley person who says, oh, that's gross, you know? And it's typically, you know, equated with something that's disgusting, something that's grotesque, something that is nasty, you know, if there's a certain food that you eat and it's just like not appealing to your taste buds, you say, man, that doesn't taste good, that's gross, okay? But gross in the Bible does not mean that at all, and in fact, gross would mean something that is without deduction, okay? It's something that basically is excessively fat or even bulky, that's what gross means. Let me give you an example of this, is for example, when you work, you earn a paycheck, and typically, you don't see it, but you earn, there's a gross income that you earn, right? Right before Uncle Sam comes and just takes it all away, you know, you're like, hey, wait a minute, I thought I worked a lot longer than that. And what is that? Prior to Uncle Sam coming and taking your money away, that's considered your gross income. That means it was without deduction. That's what you make without deduction. That is what it looks like before it's been subtracted. That's basically what gross means, okay? And in Matthew 13, we find the parable of the seed and the sower. This is a very familiar parable that Jesus Christ uses. It's a very helpful parable to help us as soul owners to understand that everyone we preach to is not always going to be receptive, right? Sometimes you sow a seed and the fowls of the air come and they devour that seed, lest they should understand and believe. Others fall into stony ground upon thorns, but we know that one of those actually receives the word of God, they get saved, and guess what? Some of them even end up bearing fruit, amen? And that's our goal. Our goal is not just to see people saved. We would like to not only see the people saved, but we want them to start bearing fruit themselves. And this is the parable that we see our Lord presenting here in Matthew chapter 13. Now, He gives the parable first, and then He gives the interpretation after. And often Jesus Christ will speak in what's known as parables. Now, parables is just another word for saying, another way of saying dark sayings. These cryptic type illustrations and stories that kind of cause the crowd to say, I don't know what that meant. What does this mean? And He kind of just leaves them hanging like that. And in fact, only a small group of people were actually given the understanding of these mysteries. So He would speak to multitudes of people, multitudes of crowds in Israel, and He would give them these parables and just like walk away. Just leave them in complete darkness. And they're just like, what do you mean by that? And look, there's even times when the disciples themselves did not know what that parable meant, and they were saved, amen? Obviously, we understand that the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them for they're spiritually discerned. You know, qualification number one to understand the Bible, you got to be saved. But then even thereafter, you have to be able to understand the Word of God, read it over and over again, have someone explain it to you for these dark sayings, these parables. So He gives this parable, and the disciples come to Him and they're like, we don't know what this means. So then He actually gives the interpretation of it. Now, the purpose of the parable was that so that the vast majority of the people listening would not understand. I mean, isn't that kind of weird, though? You think about that? It's like, what? He doesn't want them to understand the Word of God? I mean, what if I just came here and just spoke in parables and in dark sayings and just gave you all kinds of illustrations but gave you no interpretation thereof? You know, you'd be like, I can't even, how do I even apply this to my life? How do I even understand what you just said? Well, Jesus Christ did that on purpose. And the reason He did that was because He was speaking to a crowd. You got to understand something. He was speaking to a crowd who had received the Word of God over hundreds of years, multiple times, through Levites, through priests, through teachers, through preachers, through prophets. So they got the Word of God over and over again. So in other words, this is something they should already know. So they should have already received the parable, and because they knew the Old Testament, because they knew the Word of God, say, make the connection and say, oh, I know what that means. But what was the problem? They didn't know what it meant, right? So only very few were able to interpret it, and then He would leave off and say this. You'll see this over and over again in the gospels. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. What does that mean? It doesn't mean like people didn't have ears, like they were just like cut off like Malchus or something like, you know. And man, whosoever has a spiritual ear to hear, let him hear. Whosoever is paying attention, let him hear. So whosoever wants to hear and understand, let him understand, let him hear. And here's the thing that I've noticed is that God will give you the interpretation of Scripture. He will clarify dark sayings if you really want to know it. You know, if you really want to know the dark sayings, the deep things of God, you know, you really want to know what the parables mean and the stories in the Old Testament, things that are obscure, if you really want to know them, God will make it manifest unto you. God will reveal them through His Spirit as you study the Word of God, ready to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly divided in the Word of truth. But get this, the key word there is workman. As you work to read the Bible, as you work to study the Bible. Now given, there are certain things in the Bible that we will never understand. There are certain things in the Bible that God will not reveal unto us because He just doesn't want to. But let's not worry about that, let's worry about the things that we can understand. Okay? So they were not able to understand, they couldn't interpret the saying. And one thing we got to understand as I mentioned is that this crowd that he's speaking to is the nation of Israel according to the flesh. Now keep in mind that at this time, what we're looking at here in the Gospels, the nation of Israel as a nation is going into reparation. I mean this is like the last straw, right? Because he sent the prophets, he sent the preachers, he sent all these people to give them the Word of God. He sent John the Baptist who did no miracle but yet he was one of the greatest men because he preached the Bible. He made straight way the way of the Lord. They rejected him. And who's the last one the husband man sends into his vineyard? His son. Right? And what does the Bible tell us? That he came into his own and his own received him not. So at this point, this is the straw that breaks the camel's back and this is what causes the nation of Israel to go into reparation. Now this doesn't mean that everyone in Israel becomes a reprobate obviously. Okay? When we talk about a reprobate nation, it's just a nation that is rejected of God. For example, the United States of America is a reprobate nation. But there's Christians in America. We're here. Amen? We're saved. There's plenty of Christians all over this country. But as a whole, it's a reprobate nation. It's a nation that is rejected of God. Sweden! You know, Brother John just came back from Sweden and he can testify as I did a couple months ago, that nation is reprobate. That thing is long gone. That thing is beyond the hope of salvation as far as the nation is concerned. Now there's individuals within that nation that are open to the gospel. There's still Christians. There are very few. But as a whole, it's become a reprobate nation. And so their heart as a nation, so to speak, has been darkened. We're talking about Israel here. Why? Because how many times can you send a prophet, how many times can you send priests and teachers and preachers to give them the word of God and they just say no? And in fact, not only do they say no to the prophets, what do they do? They kill them! So not only do they hate the message that they're bringing, they're actually putting to death those who are bringing the message as well. This is very wicked. This is very bad. Therefore their heart has become darkened. And rightly so, Jesus Christ says that their heart has waxed gross. The word wax simply means to grow. For example, when you wax strong in the spirit. That means you're growing strong in the spirit. And how could he tell that the people he was speaking to, that their heart was waxing gross? Well, because they just couldn't understand what he was saying. And the Bible says that they had ears that were dull of hearing. Now what does that mean? That they're dull of hearing? It means they're bored with the message. They're uninterested. I mean, most of the people that follow Jesus, the crowds, what were they following him for? Because of the miracles, the food. They weren't necessarily following him because of the hard doctrine. And in fact, I mean, read John chapter number six, where he talks about how they have to eat his flesh and drink his blood. And they said, this is a hard saying. Who can hear it? And many at that time went back and walked no more with him, the Bible says. So many of those people left because they're like, well, he's talking some cannibal stuff right there. This is a hard saying. And they didn't follow him after that, you know? So they're bored with his teaching. They're bored with the word of God. Look at verse 10 of Matthew chapter 13 says, The disciples came and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. Ouch. I mean, that's pretty privileged right there, too, right? Is that for you? It's for you guys to understand. Oh, but shouldn't everyone get the word of God? Not if they don't want it. Not if they haven't been good stewards of it. Verse 12. Look what it says in verse 12. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance. But whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken, even that he hath. So you know what God is saying? If you're poor in knowledge, I'm gonna make you even more poor. That's a scary thought. Hey, if you're rich in knowledge, then I'll give you more. But if you're poor in knowledge, I'm gonna take from you. Why? Because of the fact that they rejected even that which was given. They didn't apply even that which was given. He says, Therefore speak I to them in parables, because they see and see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand, seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. They don't understand because they're uninterested in the Word of God. And go to Romans chapter number 3, if you would. I mean, think about this. You know, Jesus Christ even said himself when he came unto his own, I am sent unto none else but to the lost sheep of Israel. Right? He's going to Israel to give them the Word. I mean, they have God in the flesh. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among them, and they beheld his glory, as if the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. God manifested in the flesh, and they still rejected it. I mean, what is the greatest sermons that could ever be preached is from Jesus Christ himself, from the Word of God himself, and they still didn't want it. Think about that. Okay? So we see that the crowd that he's speaking to here does not hear the Word of God. They can't understand even the simplest of doctrines. Now look what it says in Romans 3 verse 1, it says, What advantage then hath the Jew or prophet is there of the circumcision, much every way chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. So let me just be sidetracked for a minute here. There's people out there that are Zionists, okay? And they believe that Jews are like superior to every single human being on the face of this planet. Okay? And they, you know, they don't get it from the Bible, obviously, you know, because the Bible does not teach that. And in fact, you go to these liberal versions of the Bible, yea, even the J.N. Nelson Darby version of the Bible, this dispensational Bible, they'll change this verse to say, What superiority then hath the Jew? You know, that's not what it says there. It says they have an advantage, not that they're superior to anybody else, right? But these racist people, they want to make believe that the Jews are more superior, that they're better than any Hispanic, better than any black person, better than any Muslim, right? They want to make it seem as though these people are superior in race, that God has just chosen them specifically, and they have a special blessing. They're the apple of God's eye, the rotten apple of God's eye is what it is. Here it says, What advantage? Because they did have an advantage. See, an advantage is when someone has one up on you, right? And you know what one up they had on us is the fact that the oracles of God were committed unto them. And look, they can brag and boast about that all they want, but you know what that means? That means they're accountable for more. Because they had the word of God committed unto them. Sending prophets, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Obadiah, Hosea, all these prophets of the Old Testament just one after another, tailored for them. And yet they not only rejected them, often they would kill the prophets who brought the message. And it says there that they unto them were committed to the oracles of God. Now go to Romans chapter number nine if you would. This isn't a sermon on Zionism. You can look some up on YouTube if you want. I preach plenty of those. I might slip some in here because it's dealing with this subject. But here's the thing is that the majority, the major problem that Israel according to the flesh had was that they heard the word of God over and over and over and they didn't apply it. Because weren't they supposed to be a light unto the Gentiles? Weren't they supposed to be the ones who were preaching the gospel unto the uttermost parts of the world? But did they do that? No. In fact they became proud. They became an arrogant nation thinking that they were better than everyone else and they were just letting the rest of the world go to hell. Their responsibility was to get the light unto the world to see people saved. Look at Romans 9 verse 31 it says, But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at the stumbling stone as it is written, Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense, and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. Go to Matthew chapter 22 if you would, Matthew chapter 22. So what do we see here? We see that the Jews, they stumbled at the stumbling stone. Who's that? Jesus. Because when he came into his own they rejected him. They crucified him. Okay? That's a very heavy penalty to be paid right there. And that's why Jesus said that they shall receive the greater damnation. That's a huge responsibility to have the Savior come to you. You see him face to face. You reject him. You crucify him. To whomsoever much is given of him shall be much required. Now look at Matthew 22 verse 29 says, Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. God, this is something you will commonly see throughout all the gospels is that the nation of Israel knew squat about the Bible. They knew nothing about the Bible. I mean over and over they thought that Jesus was bringing like new doctrines. They're like, I don't understand this. This is new. No man ever spake like this before. But it's like this is nothing new under the sun. He's teaching the Bible. And in fact, Jesus is quoting over and over again the Old Testament. Take it easy on them. You know the Pharisees and lawyers. You know why they call them lawyers? They don't call them lawyers because they're like, you know, persecuting someone. They're part of the prosecution and the defense or whatever. A lawyer in the Bible is someone who knew the law. Law, your, right? This is someone who would study the law of God. Or at least they're supposed to. So the lawyers would come to him. The Sadducees would come to him. The Pharisees would come to him knowing zero about the Bible. Why is that? Because of the fact that they emphasize what? The traditions of man more than the word of God. And then by their traditions made null and void, they made void the law of God. Because they would put the traditions of man, they would teach it as though it was doctrine and they would completely negate the Bible. And therefore God's telling them, hey, you do err not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God. Don't turn there. Bible 27 says, he is not the God of the dead, but of the living ye therefore do greatly err. Hey, how about this? Nicodemus, who's a ruler of the Jews, right? Didn't even know how to get saved. Didn't even know what the Bible says about getting saved. Jesus took him to Jesus Baptist College, taught him Jesus Bible Baptist College. And it just was not registering within Nicodemus. And what does Nicodemus say? He's like, can a man enter into his mother's womb again? It's just like, and what does Jesus tell him? He basically tells them, you know, art thou a master of Israel? And no, it's not these things. In other words, it's like, it's expected of you. Aren't you a master? Aren't you supposed, aren't you a Pharisees? Don't you know the word of God? And you don't even know something as simple as salvation. There's something wrong with that. By the way, that is an encouragement to me to never go to Bible college and try to get my master's degree, right? First of all, call no man your master or father. And by the way, has anything changed today? The masters of theology probably know as much as Nicodemus does. Let me just be honest with you. You know, these masters of divinity, masters of Israel, they get their little certificate, and they don't even know the simplest, most basic doctrines. That's the problem. You know, Bible college is a huge problem in independent fundamental Baptist churches. Now, duly noted, there are people that go into Bible college, come out of Bible college, they learn something. I'm one of them. We got a couple folks here who went to Bible college and they learned something from Bible college. But you know what? The exception proves the rule. Okay? And look, most of the time, people go into Bible college and they come out just a full-blown hyper-dipstick dispensationalist. Just all about dispensationalism, and they have so much sewage that they have to rummage through to just find a nugget of truth. It's like, wait, hold on a second. So is it preacher or repulsor? What is it? I'm serious. You know, you think of, like, for example, you think of the doctrine of replacement theology. I read my Bible scores of times before I learned replacement theology, and once I found out about it, I was just like, I can't believe how dumb I am. What do you mean, you're up? I'm just kidding. I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I was just, can you take him out? And then, like, once I learned it, it was just, like, all over the New Testament. And I was thinking to myself, like, how did I miss this? It's everywhere. Now, look, the posture pre-wrath rapture doctrine, obviously it's in Matthew 24, but the depths, the details, the timeline, that takes some studying. I'm sure there's people here who still haven't nailed down the timeline as of yet, because it's a little complicated. It can be complicated. But replacement theology is everywhere. And, in fact, I spoke to a pastor friend of mine, and he said this, Pastor Bruce, I literally memorized Galatians, you know, Hebrews, Ephesians 2. He goes, and I still didn't see it. By the way, just to let you know, Galatians is all about replacement theology. So is Hebrews, and so is Ephesians chapter number 2. But why is that? Well, because so much sewage of false doctrine, preconceived ideas, are placed into our minds, and when we're shown the truth, it's just like you've got to rummage through all of them, like, okay, yeah, it's right there. Yeah, they are not far from the kingdom of God, but, you know, when there's a lot of garbage and sewage. But Nicodemus is a master of Israel. So he has a lot of sewage to fight through, right? I mean, he's not even saved, for crying out loud. And he's a master of Israel. Now, go to, let's see here. Go to Matthew 23, if you would. I'm going to read to you from Matthew 12, 13. It says, but he said unto them, Have ye not read what David did when he was an hungred, and they that were with him? By the way, another phrase you'll commonly see throughout the New Testament, he'll tell them, have ye not read? He'll say, have ye not read? Because they're not getting it. They're just like, huh? And he's like, have ye not read? Verse 5, Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the Sabbath day the priests in the temple profaned the Sabbath and are blameless? Matthew 19, 4, And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? By the way, this is in regards to divorce and remarriage. He had to teach the Pharisees, hey, didn't you read the Old Testament? Because they're over here wanting to get divorced and remarried. He's challenging that. And Jesus is like, obviously you haven't read the Bible. Look, let me tell you something. There's nothing new under the sun. There's pastors today that are acting like a bunch of Pharisees misinterpreting the Bible, trying to make it say something that it doesn't say. You know what Jesus is saying? Hey, have ye not read? Have ye not read? And here's the answer. No. Matthew 23, 31. I'm sorry. Yeah, Matthew 23, 31. Go to verse 1. I'm going to read to you from verse 31. But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God? Mark 12, 10 says, And have ye not read the scripture, the stone which the builders rejected, is become the head of the corner? Now here's the difference between those of today and them of back then is that they did read. They were constantly reading the scriptures. They would be in the synagogue every Saturday, right? They would teach the word of God. They would memorize it. Oh, I mean the Pharisees even had phylacteries. They would put the scripture on their forehead and wrap it around their arms just to show how godly they were. The equivalent to that would be like the Bible college students that carries like a huge King James Bible with them, right? Everywhere they go, but they're not even reading it. Or a church member. Look at Matthew 23, verse 1. Then spake Jesus to the multitude and to his disciples, saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. All therefore, whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do. So look, what is he telling them? Whatever the Pharisees tell you to do, yeah, you should do it. Because they sit in Moses' seat. What they're teaching is what Moses teaches. He said, then what's the problem with them? Why are they so wicked? Why are they not even saved? Why do they not know the Bible? Let's read on. But do not ye after their works, for they say and do not. You see, the Bible is only valuable to you if you put into practice what it's telling you to do. It can only help you, not if you just put it in here, but you put it right here and right here. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. You see, charity puts into practice what knowledge puts in your mind and in your heart. And when you begin to just take in knowledge, you learn the Bible, you learn doctrine, but you don't put your hands to the plow, guess what's going to happen? Your heart is going to wax gross. It's going to be dull of hearing. You're going to have a big, fat, spiritual heart and know that's not a good thing. Because eventually you're going to get a spiritual heart attack. Because you know so much, you're so much more accountable for what you know. By the way, this is not a sermon to say, well, I'm just going to be stupid then. I'm just going to be ignorant. I'm just not going to know anything. Well, you know what the Bible also says? The simple are passed on and are punished. So sorry, that's not a good option for you. So here's one of two options. You could either remain simple about the things of God and still suffer the consequences of those who don't know the Bible or don't know anything about God or someone who is even disobedient or you could learn the Bible, apply it, and receive the blessings because of it. You say, well, is there something in between? Yeah, your heart can grow wax. It can wax fat. It can wax, you know, gross. And then you'll be accountable for the things that you're supposed to know. And guess what? Not a good thing because God will hold you accountable for that. Go to Romans chapter number two, if you would. Romans chapter number two. Romans chapter number two, going back to the Jews here in verse 17 says, Behold, thou art called a Jew. Now, is there any question who he's talking to? Pretty clear, right? And rest this in the law and make us thy boast of God. So these people are like, hey, we're about the Bible. We're about the law of Moses. We know the Bible, right? And know it's his will and approve it to things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law and are confident, thank you, that thou thyself are a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which has the form of knowledge and the truth and the law. Thou, therefore, which teacheth another, teacheth not thyself. Thou that preacheth the man should not steal, dost thou steal? Thou that sayeth the man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? Thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege? Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonorous thou God? For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written. So they're like, yeah, we know the Bible. And Paul's like, yeah, but are you doing the things that the Bible tells you to do? Are you violating the law of God? Well, we know according to Matthew 13, their heart has waxed gross. And the reason they're even in this situation is because they didn't put into practice that which they're learning. The Bible says in Psalm 119 verse 70, their heart is as fat as grease. That's funny. But I delight in thy law. So David said. So what is he saying? We're both learning the word of God, but their heart is fat. Greasy, fat, full of triple cheeseburgers and pizza. Look, I'm all for like, I love pizza. Amen. I love double cheeseburgers. But you know what? If you don't like work off those calories. Yeah. Your heart shall be fat as grease. So if you're going to eat all that junk food, go run on the treadmill for a while. Go work it off. All right. Go work out what you're putting in. All right. I think I hit something there. I think it hit home. You're going to eat those tacos, those tamales. You're going to eat the bacon burgers and the pizza and all this good food. It's good. I'm not down on it. Look, I'm on keto right now, but I'm not down on that food at all. That stuff is good. But here's the thing. The person who eats it and does nothing will eventually die. They just constantly eat, but they're just a couch potato, and they're not working it out. They're not burning those calories. Their heart is just going to be like that anyways after a while. That's the food you're supposed to eat every once in a while, by the way. Just I eat. You've got to eat healthy, guys. You've got vegetables and all the goods and stuff like that. Everyone just had dull ears right now of what I was just saying. But the person who eats and actually works it out is actually profiting from those calories, from all the fats and the things that they're eating, and that's what it's for. Well, spiritually speaking, it's the same way. When you eat the Word of God, and by the way, if you're part of this church, you get a double portion because of the fact that you're reading the Bible on your own because we emphasize reading the Bible here. And you're getting the preaching of the Word of God Sunday morning, Sunday night, Thursday night. I'm fattening you up. But you've got to work it out or your heart is going to be fat as grease. You're just going to have a spiritual heart attack eventually because you're learning a lot. That's why in the sermon this morning about reprobates, it's true. Someone can easily become a reprobate here. They can. Some of these old IFB churches may take a while because they get so minimal amount of truth there and so little Bible preaching, it's just like, you're good, man. You're not getting anything at all. Whereas here, if you're constantly being fed the King James Bible Word of God and we're given doctrine, people can easily become reprobates if they're not saved, obviously. But their heart is as fat as grease. Why? Because they're not giving out that which they're taking in. Now, go to Hebrews chapter number 5. So they became dull of hearing, it says in Matthew 13. Verse 15, let me read it to you again. It says, for this people's heart is waxed gross and their ears are dull of hearing and their eyes they have closed. Dull simply means to be uninterested, bored with the truth. Now, let me say this, is that some people are bored with Bible preaching only because the preacher is boring. So that's true, right? Aren't there preachers out there that are just really boring to listen to? Like preachers, they're preaching and you're just like, looking back at the clock because you're just uninterested in the message. And look, I understand that. I've sat under preachers that are just like as dead as last year's Christmas tree. Boring to listen to. Not exciting at all. I remember I went to this church up in Northern California and I was on tour group or something like that and I was like the preacher there. And I remember like the pastor told me, it was like an older church and the pastor told me like, hey, I'm going to try to convince the Sunday school teacher to let you teach because you got some vinegar, you know? You got like energy and stuff. And I was like, hey, whatever you want, you know? And the Sunday school teacher is like, no, I got this. I want to teach my lesson. And man, he taught for 15 minutes for an hour. What I meant was like those 15 minutes seemed like an hour. It was just like the most boring. I don't even remember what I learned. It was like he had like a projector. You guys remember in math class, the math teacher would have that projector screen with a clear sheet? That's what he had. And I'm just like, you know, I'm thinking to myself like, this is boring. You make me not want to read the Old Testament. You know, and he's like monotone voice, just boring. Oh, you're mean. No, the Bible says that the word of God is quick and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. What does that mean? It pierces, right? When you hear the word of God, it should have power behind it. Not just because it's the word of God, but you know what? The vessel projecting it ought to be able to project that power as well. And you know why pastors today are just boring when they preach? Because they don't believe what they're preaching. That's why. They have no core values. They don't believe what they're saying. Well, you know, we don't want to raise our voice because, you know, that's of a different spirit. Yeah, it's called the Holy Spirit. Maybe you should get to know Him. Raise your voice a little bit. Slap your knee. Kick the pulpit. Do whatever you got to do to communicate the word of God. And look, there's people out there that are just boring to listen to. I understand that. You know, the Paul Chapel crowd, very boring. I'll just be honest with you. Who's going to argue with me about that? Are you going to seriously argue with me about that and tell me that that's not boring to listen to? Why do you think they have to make their sermons about 25 to 20 minutes long? Because it's boring. And the attention span, the retention of the crowd is so small and minimal that they have to cut the sermon because they're already losing the people. So I understand. You know, there's preachers out there that are just boring to listen to. But let me say this. Some people are just bored with preaching just in general because of this. Number one, the lust of other things entering in choke the word and they become unfruitful. So sometimes people, even in a church like this, can get bored with the preaching not because of the content of the sermon, not because of the delivery of the preacher, but because they're allowing the deceitfulness of riches, right? The deceitfulness of riches, the lust of other things entering in. The Bible says they choke the word and it becomes unfruitful. So when they're hearing the preaching of the word of God, because they're watching television, because they're watching movies all week long, they're not feeding the inward man. You know what they do? They just get distracted. They can't focus on the preaching. It's boring to them. Because they're so used to commercials. One image after another, one image after another, one image after another. And reading is just not as exciting. Well, you know what, to that I say, clean your heart. To that I say, learn how to pay attention. You know, I mean, I'm trying to go like 50 minutes, but sometimes I go over 50 minutes. Sometimes I go over an hour. You're like, oh man, I was reading the whole group. Yeah. But you know what, if your attention is good, if you know how to focus and pay attention, you'll enjoy it. Because at the end of the day, I'm not feeding you, I'm feeding your inward man. I'm feeding the inward man who delights in the law of God. Paul said I delight in the law of God after the inward man. But you know what, if you're all flesh, if you're constantly walking in the flesh, you're fulfilling the lust of the flesh, guess what? You're not going to want to hear the word of God. You're going to want to know what's for dinner. You're going to want to know, man, I hope this is over on time because I got a show I got to catch and all this stuff. I got other things to do. Well, go do your other things. Don't let me waste your time. You know, I'm here trying to feed the inward man and this is the way we're going to do it. So sometimes it's the lust of other things entering in their attention span. Sometimes it's because people just love the world. And the love of the Father is not in them. You know, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Well, what did Jesus say? If he loved me, keep my commandments. Right? So when you love the world, you have no affection towards the Bible. Okay? But here's the main reason why I think people become bored or dull of hearing the word of God. They're not putting into practice that which they're learning. They're not putting it into practice. Because you know what happens when you actually put it into practice, is that what you're hearing? You're like, whoa, my faith just increased because this is true. You avoid a sin or you put into practice soul winning or you put into practice reading the Bible. You start cleaning up your life. You start loving the Lord and obeying the things of God. Guess what? God actually manifests those blessings in your life. And then you're like, wow, this is exciting. Look, there is no perfect church. This is a perfect church for me. This is my perfect church. These people, we're not perfect, but for me, this is like the perfect church for me. And you know one thing I love about our church is the energy that this church has. It's got a lot of vinegar, a lot of excitement, a lot of zeal. But you know what that tells me? It's a lot of people who are putting into practice what they're learning. You know? It shows me, look, I can go throughout the entire auditorium and pick out people and show you how they were before they came to our church and how they are now. Or how they were when they first came to our church and how they are now. And you know what? There's a vast difference between the two. You know what that tells me? It's people who are actually putting into practice that which they're hearing. They're not just growing in knowledge. They're growing in their charity and exercising that which they are learning. Now, there's people who are just like, well, I just want to learn a new thing. You know? Just give me something new. No. I'm just going to tell you what I told you last week. You know, if you don't like it, then apply it first. Maybe I'm re-preaching it because I see that you're not applying it. You know, the Epicureans, the Stoics, they love to hear, or excuse me, the Athenians like to spend their time hearing new things, right, in the book of Acts. Don't be the kind of Christian that comes to church only wanting to hear some new thing. By the way, no new thing under the sun, and I don't teach new doctrines. You got a problem on your hands if I start teaching new doctrines, right? I'm going to teach you what people have taught for thousands of years in the Bible, and I'll even simplify it more. We're going to talk about the things that we already know because we need to be reminded of them. Well, yeah, but that's kind of boring. Yeah, well, you know what that shows me is that you're not even applying it. That's why. We need to get reminded of the basics. The basics are the foundation. It's what helps us to stay in this fight. Yes, obviously we're going to go into the intricacies and the details of certain deep doctrines. The Bible tells us that the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. And there's going to be times when we go down deep and we come up soaking wet. But, you know, most of the time it's just reiterating that which we already know. I already know that. Well, guess what? You're knowing it again. And I'm just reminding you again. Okay, look at Hebrews chapter 5. Look at verse number 8. It says, Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him. Now let me stop there. This is the book of Hebrews, right? What he said in verse 8 and 9, is it any different than what was being said in the Gospels, 1 and 2 Corinthians. Everything is pretty much in tandem. Wouldn't you agree? This is a common theme that Jesus Christ is the eternal son of God. He brought salvation, right? Verse 10, called of God and high priest after the order of Melchizedek, of whom we have many things to say and hard to be uttered, seen, hear, or dull of hearing. So Paul's like, I need to say a lot more about this, but it seems that you're dull of hearing, though. You just don't want to hear it. And by the way, if you read Hebrews 1 through 5, you'll see this concept reiterated over and over and over. Read the book of Hebrews. You'll almost see the same statement worded differently over and over again. But you know what he tells them? Oh, you're dull of hearing, though. You know what that means? They're tired of hearing it. And by the way, is it any coincidence that he's talking to the Hebrews? Look at verse 12. So they're dull of hearing. Ouch. So he's saying, look, you should be a teacher. You should be actually teaching other people what I'm teaching you, but it seems as though because you're dull of hearing, you actually need someone to teach you again. Why? Because you're not applying that what you're being taught. He goes on to say in verse number 13, So who is the wise man among you? Who is the person who is mature in the Lord? Who is the person who is mature, who's perfect, as incomplete? It's the person who by reason of use. That means when they got the milk, they put the milk to work. You know what? God is not going to give you strong meat, and you're not going to understand strong meat until you drink your milk. You need to drink your milk. I want some strong meat, though, but you're not even finished with your glass of milk. And look, don't come to me if you've only been saved for like a year or less than that, trying to tell me how to run the church, trying to tell me what kind of sermons I've got to preach, trying to tell me how not exciting my sermons are or whatever it may be. Why don't you go ahead and shut up and drink your milk, and then we'll talk. In Spanish, we call it pacha. Drink your bottle first, and then we'll talk. But what happens is you get these guys who are just filled with all this knowledge, but they're not putting into practice that which they're learning, and all of a sudden they think they're skillful in the word of righteousness. But you know what? Their lives are falling apart. And I'm not thinking about anything specific. This is preventative medicine right here, amen? Before you try to come doctrinally, let's look how you're living first. Amen? How's that breastplate of righteousness working out for you? How's your marriage going? Hey, how's your relationship with your wife? How's your relationship with your kids? How are you doing as an employee? Because these are the things you put into practice after you've learned certain things. Now look, if you've got both in the bag, let's talk. I'm willing to learn. But here it says that strong meat belongs to them who are of full age. Do you know what that does? It doesn't belong to immature little punks. What belongs to them? Milk. Just thought I'd throw that in there. But these are the same people who are dull of hearing. Oh, let's just hear something else. Just give me some new doctrine. No, scroll through the sermons. You'll see a repetition of the same sermons, different titles. Sorry to break it to you. Oh man, this whole time, my life's been a lot. Yeah, it's the same sermons. I preached this like 12 months ago. I don't remember that exactly. Now you see where I'm going with this. Got to be reminded of it. And by the way, those who remember that sermon are those who actually put it into practice and they're enjoying it right now. But we got to make sure that our ears are never dull of hearing, that we're just bored with the word of God, that we're uninterested in the Bible. Oh, why don't we have like a screen here? We'll just have like movie nights and we'll play Superman and we'll make that biblical application with Jesus and Superman and all these things. First of all, that dude looks like a queer. I'm not comparing Jesus Christ with a queer. Second of all, the Bible's far more exciting than Hollywood. It is. If you don't believe me, that's because you haven't read it. Read the Old Testament, the stories of the Old Testament, far more exciting than any Hollywood movie could ever be. And here's the difference. It actually happened. The Hollywood movies didn't happen. CGI. It's all fake. The Bible is actually real. These things actually took place. But His commandments shouldn't be grievous to us. We have to constantly work at delighting the word of God. And look, often the Bible will refer to itself as what? As honey, right? Won't it refer to itself as honey? And why is that? Because it is sweet. Sometimes we hear a sermon, even if it's an encouraging sermon, it's just sweets of the soul. Or it's re-emphasizing a doctrine that we've learned and it's just sweets of the soul because that's what we believe. I heard a sermon this morning of something that I thought about this week and I'm like, man, that was sweet to my soul because I knew these things and He just reinforced that which I believe. It's sweet. But here's the thing. It's also compared to honey because the more you consume, the more bitter it will make your belly. Right? Honey is always sweet, but the more you consume, how many of you have ever had a lot of honey and it made your stomach hurt? You guys ever done that? You're like, what? Honey? Honey is like sugar, but it's like the real kind of sugar, you know? I've had honey in like, how many of you have had those honey sticks? Am I on an island here by myself? Okay, thank you. Okay, they're really good, right? But they're super sweet. I can't have them right now because they'll spike my insulin. But if you have too much honey, it literally hurts your stomach. And it's biblical. Okay? Now, the application of that is this, is that the Word of God is always sweet to our taste because the inward man delights after the law of God. But you know what? Did you know there's more negative in the Bible than there is positive? And you know the more you read, the more negative you'll consume and the more it'll make your belly bitter. But you know what the Bible says? That the stripes are like to the inward parts of the belly. Rebukes are like stripes to the inward parts of the belly. It begins to clean you up. The Bible says that the Word of God should be desired more than gold, yet in much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Psalm 119, 103 says, How sweet are thy words unto my taste, yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth. But here's the thing. Proverbs 27 says this, The full soul loateth in honeycomb, but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet. Full meaning you're full. So the Bible's saying here, the soul that is full doesn't even want the honeycomb. But to the hungry soul, every bitter thing is sweet. He said, what's a full soul? What's the one whose heart has waxed gross? It's just taking all the honey but it's not giving anything out. And then it's like, I don't want the honeycomb. Whereas the person who is taking and giving out is hungry and wants the honey even though it makes his belly bitter. It's the person who comes to church and has been soul winning, been living a holy life, and they come to church and you can give them a face-rippin' sermon. The most negative sermon. And they're just eating it up. Like, I'm hungry. Just give it to me. And they enjoy it. The full soul loateth in honeycomb. Now go to 2 Timothy chapter 3. Let me give you a couple points here and we're done. So what's the sermon about? It's about this. We've got to make sure that our hearts are not waxing gross. That it's not becoming fat, spiritually speaking. We've got to make sure that it stays healthy. And the way we make sure it stays healthy is what we consume. We've got to make sure that we give out. So how do we avoid getting bored with the Bible? Because it will happen. You will get bored with the Bible. Well, not me. You know, I don't get bored with the Bible. Yeah, you're a liar. You're a liar. I love the Bible 24-7. No, you don't. 24-7, you're dreaming about the Bible? When you sleep? Let me give you some practical things that will help you to avoid getting bored with the Bible. Number one, continue in the basics. I know that's real practical, but it's true. Continue in the basics. Why? Because the basics make you a pro. Look at 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 13. Take a drink of water here. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. So it's telling us here that in the latter times, evil men will grow worse and worse. They'll become more wicked, more vile. But look at verse 14. But continue thou in the things that thou hast learned and has been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them, and that from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is 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. So what do we have to do in order to make sure that we don't get bored with the Bible? Just continue in the basics. Like salvation. You know, we teach on salvation here. Amen? That it's by faith, that it's eternal, it cannot be lost, that once you're saved, you're always saved. We go through all the pertinent Scriptures that deal with eternal security and salvation. Why? Because we want to strengthen the things which remain. We want to strengthen the basics. And we want to make sure that anybody who comes through these doors, if they want to know if you're saved, you're able to give them a clear answer. Amen? And we also want to just build a good foundation of doctrine. But in order to do that, we need to continue in the things which we have learned. You say, well, I know everything there is to learn about salvation. Yeah, we know the most important things, but you know what? The Bible is inexhaustible even when it comes to salvation. There's so many stories and parables and different Scriptures and stories that relate to salvation. And you know what? How many of you have ever had that feeling when you're reading the Bible and you read through a story and you make that connection? Doesn't that make you feel good? You're just like, wow, I was just taught by the Holy Ghost right now. Because I've read through this story many times before. I never saw that. And you know what? Now I saw it, I see it, and I just learned something new. But you know what? Wasn't it something basic? We've got to emphasize the basics. Why? Look at 1 Timothy. Hold your place there in 2 Timothy. Go to 1 Timothy chapter number 1. Look what it says in verse number 5. It says, now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, verse 5, and of a good conscience and of faith on fame, from which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain, jangling. What does that mean? They just talk stupid stuff. Because why? Look what it says. Desire to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm. So these are the people who just talk all confidently about doctrine and they don't know squat about the Bible. I mean, you look at that person and you're like, you just kind of humor them like this guy knows nothing. Those two guys we threw out a couple weeks ago, right there, understanding neither what they say. Oh, yeah, but in the Greek, ekklesia means church, or he tried to give some weird definition to ekklesia. Oh, milata lindika. Kathe levena lindika. Amen? And he's like, well, I don't speak Greek. You shut up. Because you understand neither what you say nor whereof you affirm. So how do you even know ekklesia means what you're saying it means if you don't even know the language? You know what we call that? Vainjangling. I don't want to vainjangle. I want to speak clearly, right? I want to speak clearly. I want you to know that what I'm saying is clear. I want you to understand what I'm saying. But in order to do that, we need to make sure, it says in verse 5, Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned. We need not to swerve from those things. We need to emphasize the basics, okay? Go back to 2 Timothy. So number one, we've got to continue in the basics. Number two, we've got to cover all basis, right? And what does that mean? To cover all basis means this, we don't just talk about salvation. I try to have a healthy rotation of spiritual meals here where we talk about doctrine, we talk about the family, we talk about something that encourages you to make it through the week, we talk about false prophets, amen? We expose false doctrine and false religions because we need to well balance that. What are we doing? We're covering all the bases, right? Look at 2 Timothy 4 verse 1, So he's telling them, look, preach it all. Preach the entire word of God. Why? And they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make foolproof of thy ministry. So we as a church, we need to make sure that we cover all these doctrines, right? Cover every single subject, cover every single topic, talk about Catholicism, Pentecostals, Jehovah's Witness, La Luz del Mundo, you know, talk about reprobates, homos, talk about Calvinism, talk about salvation, talk about child rearing, marriage, we got to cover it all. Because there's people in the congregation that have itching ears. What does that mean? They grow restless. What does that mean? Like, you know, people in church when they hear about salvation every single Sunday, the entire sermon is about salvation on Sunday morning. They grow restless of that. That's why they go to the liberal churches or whatever, you know. We need to make sure that we give a well-balanced diet. And lastly, conduct all beliefs. What does that mean? We need to make sure that we're putting into practice that which we're learning, okay? You say, well, how do I apply this to my life? Well, number one, pay attention. Be swift to hear, slow to speak, right? Pay attention to what's being preached and then ask yourself, how do I apply this to my life? Well, one way I can apply it to my life is that I need to make sure that I take one truth of this sermon and try to apply it this week, right? Because you want to stay fresh. You want to make sure that you're staying fresh in the Christian life. You want to make sure that your ears are not dull of hearing, your heart is not growing gross. You got to make sure you exercise yourself rather unto godliness, right? That you're teaching, that you're soul winning, that you're living a holy life, that you're doing that which is pleasing. That you're not just to hear the word but you're a doer also, you understand? So what's the sermon today? It's simply this, let's have healthy hearts, so to speak. Don't let your heart get so fat with knowledge that you end up having like a spiritual heart attack because you know so much. You know, hey, if you eat the steak, eat to your heart's desire, but you better be working that off too. You know, eat the cheesecake, amen. Glory. Eat the cheesecake, eat the fat, eat the chicken, eat the pizza, eat it. But you better be working off those calories. You better be putting into practice that which you're learning. Don't, why? Because then you'll be dull of hearing. Then a year from now, you'll be here at First Works Baptist Church like, I already heard this, I'm bored of this. Can we talk about something else? And you know what that shows? It just shows that you haven't been giving out what you're taking in, amen. Let's give out what we're taking in. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for your word and thank you, Lord, for how alive it is and how relevant it is for us today. And thank you for the preachers who brought it to life for us in times past. I pray, God, that you'd help us to continue to be doers of the word and not hearers only. Help us not to deceive ourselves into thinking that we're good Christians because we're hearing good doctrine. Lord, we become good Christians when we put into practice that which we're hearing. And I pray, God, that you'd help us to do so. Continue to bless our church, our people, bless the fellowship to follow, and in Jesus' name we pray, amen.