The Disciple and the Word of God – Dr. Charles Stanley – Called to be a Disciple – Part 6
The Disciple and the Word of God – Dr. Charles Stanley – Called to be a Disciple – Part 6
It’s easy to feel sometimes that communication with God is a hard thing to do. But He has always spoken with His people. And now He speaks to us through the Bible. His Word plays an essential part in modern-day discipleship.
Following Jesus demands more than simple belief in the Word of God. According to John 8:31, only those who “continue” in the Word of God are truly His disciples. Continuing in God’s Word is not simply believing it, and it is more than just reading it. Continuing in His Word means resting in it, being nourished by it, and abiding in it. In this message, Dr. Stanley urges believers to continue in the Word of God by studying it, being sustained by it, submitting to its authority, and ultimately sharing the Word of God with others.
[Music] with a message from God’s word here’s Charles Stanley would you turn please to John chapter 8 we’ll begin reading at verse 12 of that chapter and read through verse 32 verse 12 then spake Jesus again unto them saying I am the light of the world he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of Life the Pharisees therefore said unto him thou bearest record of thyself thy record is not true Jesus answered and said unto them though I bear record of myself yet my record is true for I know
whence I came and whether I go that is uh I know where I came from and I know where I’m headed but you cannot tell whence I came and whether I go ye judge after the flesh I judge no man and yet if I judge my judgment is true for I’m not alone but I am the father that sent me it is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true I am one that bear witness of myself and the father that sent me beareth witness of me then said they unto him where is thy father Jesus answered you neither know
me nor my father if you had known me ye should have known my father also these words spake Jesus in the treasury as he taught in the temple and no man laid hold on him for his hour was not yet come that is they would have if they thought they could have and if God had not been protecting him then said Jesus again unto them I go my way and ye shall seek me and shall die in your sins whether I go you cannot come then said the Jews will he kill himself because he sath wheither I go you cannot come and he said unto them you are from
beneath I am from above you are of this world I am not of this world I said therefore unto you that you shall die in your sins for if ye believe not that I am he ye shall die in your sins that should be clear enough to an unbeliever then said they unto him who art thou and Jesus sath unto them even the same that I said unto you from the beginning I have many things to say and to judge of you but he that sent me is true and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him they understood not that he spake to them of
the father then said Jesus unto them when you have lifted up the son of man referring to the Cross when you have lifted up the son of man then shall ye know that I am he and that I do nothing of myself but as my father hath taught me I speak these things and he that sent me is with me the father hath not left me alone for I do always those things that please him now that’s obedience as he spake these words many believed on him then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him if ye continue in my word then are ye my
disciples indeed and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free therefore for some Sundays we have been in a series on discipleship and this morning the disciple and the word of God at no place in the scripture does our lord Jesus describe in one passage all the aspects of the disciples life but all the way through these gospels there is one aspect here one here one here one here and in this dissertation to the Pharisees and the Sadducees and the temple he speaks to them and describes really in one word the relationship of a
true disciple of Jesus Christ to the word of God to his word in that day or to us today to the holy scriptures now if I should ask you what you believe about the Bible this morning more than likely you could tell me yet here in this particular verse in verse 31 he says that a disciple’s relationship to the word of God is this that is if you continue in my word then are ye my disciples indeed and if you’ll notice often in fact almost every time that he described the attribute of the characteristic of a disciple it is
always a condition if or uh if you’re going to be my disciple you’ll forsake everything he that followeth after me must deny himself all of these are conditional Promises of discipleship now in this passage not only in this verse I believe that Jesus gives us here the different attitudes that people have toward the word of God one of of these is um the word of course that an unbeliever would have or an attitude unbeliever would have maybe two of them the other two are the attitudes of Believers but the last attitude is
that of a true disciple so I want us to look at this entire passage from that perspective of the attitude that men have toward the word of God because a man’s attitude toward the word of God makes the difference in whether he goes to heaven when he dies or whether he is eternally separ at from God I hear people today say well it doesn’t make any difference what you believe about the Bible because we’re all going the same direction my friend there are not but two directions and those two directions are determined by
men’s attitude not only their attitude but their commitment to the teaching of the word of God period there is no Middle Road there is no middle fence you either are heading One Direction or the other direction and it does make a difference what you believe about this word because Jesus said in the 24th verse if you if you believe not that I am he ye shall die in your sins and the only way for a man to believe that he is who he says he is he must accept the testimony of the word of God as being just that not something that men threw
together over a period of time but the unfolding revelation of who God is revealed to Men by the Holy Spirit pinned by men through the guidance of the spirit printed on the page and shared with the world under God’s Sovereign control for its accuracy a man who does not believe the word of God will never get to heaven period makes no difference what he believes but all the philosophies of life now there are several attitudes the first one is this there are those whose relationship to the word of God is that of a Critic and
this was the attitude of these men as Jesus spoke the word of God they said to him why you’re not who you say you are you’re not from the father who are you where did you come from where are you going he says I’ve already told you those things and you believe not now it’s evident today that men do not believe the word of God and I suppose one place where men are skeptical and are critical of the word of God that’s taken its greatest toll in the whole of our nation is not on the streets where
men are living in sin and living like the devil now we can put up with that but in the institutions of learning where people are supposedly sending their children to get a higher education of some sort sending them to religious schools Christian schools and learning that the Bible is not the word of God John did not write John Paul could never have written Galatians and all of the fallacy and the error that’s supposed to be higher education this lady came up to me she said I want you to pray for my daughter I said well tell me who she is
and why she says I’ve lost her I said what do you mean you’ve lost her she said well she was a member of this church she was saved when she was uh 15 years of age uh she was devoted she felt the Lord was calling her to missions she’s gone away to college this is her third year and now she says the Bible is not true she says the church is just an out Antiquated institution and she’s given up on everything that she’s ever believed and my friend that’s not an isolated case that is the majority of
the cases you go go to the average University in America and take a survey of how many kids believe the word of God and my friend you’ll be shocked many of them went to school believing many of them were there not very long until they began to say well this Fell’s got a PhD he studied all of these things therefore if he’s got a good education he studied all of this if he says it that’s true and I said to college students you ought to go to the university with a sifter in your mind don’t believe everything you
hear what is not consistent with the word of God throw it out because what you accept that is absolutely and directly opposed to the teaching of the word of God will one day destroy you you can mark that down there lots of people have to find that out the tragic way but they’re critics of the word of God now the reason men a Critic is because this men are critical of the word because the word is critical of the way they live men judge the word of God as being untrue because the word of God judges them as being untrue in the way they
live men do not like the word of God because it contradicts the way they live and therefore the only way to get rid of the sting of their heart is to decide that’s not true if that’s not true you can chalk God out and then you can live a life of Ease comfort and pleasure continually suppressing the ever Rising concept that the word of God is true I’d hate to have to live the rest of my life like this just going around like this all the time pressing down what I know deep inside of me is true they’re the
critic of the word of God secondly there are those who are curious about the word of God now that’s the group that uh some of these that were following Jesus the scripture says they said to him now uh who are you some of them who said that were just being critical they did not believe he was who he said he was some of them are curious they’d watched him perform Miracles and listening to him talk there was something extremely different about him now Jerusalem was filled with rabbis there were rabbis coming and going going all the time
teaching all kinds of things but there was something significant about what he taught and the way he taught and of course he said I came from the Father the father and I won that was absolutely blasphemy to them that this man who was a Nazarene who is a rabbi another teacher for him to say that he and the father were one they came from the same place and that you could not know the father until you knew him and they were saying now wait a minute don’t tell me being a good Jew that I don’t know the father because I don’t know you I’ve
never seen you but I’ve trusted him or believed in him in all of my life and my friend that’s exactly what men say today they say don’t tell me about Jesus but I know all about God I’ve believed God for years but I do not know about your person Jesus Christ now but these were not all that critical some of them were not they were curious and curiosity about the word of God implies at least some interest and they had an interest in him that was a a compulsive interest in some of these to discover the reality
of who is this man Jesus now curiosity about the word may be the beginning but my friend if your relationship to the word of God has never reached beyond the stage that you are curious about how it all got together curious about uh uh what it teaches curious about uh maybe some of the mechanical parts of uh who divided into chapters and uh who divided into the verses and uh who really wrote fimon and uh did Paul really write Corinthians and who was this man Paul if curiosity is all that you have my friend that is not enough to be saved by the
man who is critical of the word of God in unbelief will not be saved until he consents to the fact this is the word of God and secondly curiosity is no way to approach the scripture now if you’re an unbeliever you will begin out of curiosity but my friend if you are a believer curios it about the word of God which would simply result in your reading it once in a while or if you heard something about it every now and then that stirred you up and say and you would say well I wonder where he found that is that written in the Bible have I
ever heard that before there is an interest in the word of God but you see curiosity stops right here a man who is curious about the word will investigate certain things about it but unless curiosity leads to the next step he will stop at the place of person Al involvement now I want to ask you this morning is your relationship to the word of God one of of being a Critic you’re an unbeliever because you don’t believe the testimony of the scripture or you said well now I wouldn’t say that I’m um
critical of it I would just say that I’m curious to know if it’s really true I wouldn’t say that it’s not I’m just searching and seeking listen you will never discover whether it is true or not simply by a a distant curiosity until you are willing to read it yourself and ask the Lord if it is true bear witness to my heart that this is true curiosity only for curiosity sake stops at the place of personal involvement a man says yes I’ll read it uh I will read about it I’ll read books about it but me
cross the line of personal involvement and say that uh I’m willing to begin to study and to pray to ask God to speak to my heart no I’m not too sure I’m willing to do that now these to whom Jesus was speaking that in the temple they were curious about what he said because of what they had seen him do now I believe so early in our children’s life we ought to instill within them a curiosity about the word of God that as soon as their minds are capable of comprehending what we mean by it being the word of God the
revealed word of God their curiosity ought to be so strong and so intense that it would just be the natural normal thing for a child to step over into absolute faith in the word of God let me tell you something daddy you can’t live like the devil in your household and expect your children to believe that book because when they start reading the book and their curiosity moves to the place of conviction and convinced that it is the word of God the first thing they’re going to have to ask is this is my father or is my mother true or is the
word of God true and you see many young people today have turned the word of God off because they’ve watched too many of us who believe the word or say that we believe the word and that it is our guide to Christian Living they’ve watched too many of us live a way that is contradictory to what the Bible teaches now if a man says I am a Christian if a man says the word of God is true if a man says I have accepted the word of God as true then it is natural and normal that that man has the right to be expected to live according
to what he says is the Christian’s Guide to Life curiosity is not enough that’s only a stage in the walk then the third step I want you to notice that’s implied here and that is convinced some of these people were convinced of what he said look if you will in verse 30 and as he spake these words many believed on him first of all they were critical they said no uh we don’t know who he is or anything about him then they began to be very curious about the fact that some things he said made sense and the way in
which he described the father even though it was difficult for them to accept the fact that he came from the father those who believed on him were those who were convinced of the truthfulness of the word of God now I want to ask you this morning are you convinced that that Bible is true from Genesis the Revelation or do you say well I believe that part of it is true now some people have their frustrations over some parts and I understand that but it’s not a matter of being critical but a person who has chocked off part of
the scripture how in the world can can he really give himself to Jesus if he believes that Jesus has allowed his word to get mixed up with man’s word and it’s a matter of take some leave some take some leave some a man who is a Believer is one who is has consented to its truth and that is he has consented to the point that he has surrendered himself to the teaching of it he has received the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior I consent to its truth I commit myself to the truth but there is another aspect of
this I want to notice and especially this 31st verse listen he says that in verse 30 31 as he spake these words many believed on him then said Jesus to those Jews who believed on him if you continue in my word then are ye my disciples indeed now listen he said to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ one must continue in the word of God now let’s see what he means by that look if you will at that word uh if he says if you continue in my word then are ye my disciples indeed conditioned he says a man can believe
upon me that is he’s accepting the word of God as true that’s one thing a man can have little knowledge very little knowledge of the word of God and be saved he doesn’t have to know it all and none of us would have been saved but when he consents to the fact that it is the word of God and trust the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior that makes him fit for heaven but that does not equip him to be a disciple and what I’m talking about this morning is not do you believe the Bible or not because more than
likely 99% of you do you’ve already settled the question of your belief in the scripture but now listen discipleship demands more than belief in the word of God he says discipleship demands continuing in the word of God now what does he mean by continuing let me tell you what it does not mean first of all it does not mean that a man who’s saved can become a disciple if he keeps On Believing in the word of God doesn’t mean that nor does it mean uh that a man is a uh is a disciple if not only does
he believe in it but he reads it every day if he reads it and studies it every day he’s a disciple not necessarily there are people who read the Bible and study the Bible every day who are not disciples at all no evidence of discipleship in their life so when he says continue in it he does not mean simply reading it but what does he mean well let’s look at this word contined for a moment the word continue in the Greek is Mino which is the same word translated in John chapter 15 abide look in John chapter 15 for a
moment let’s look at two or three verses and we’ll come back in John chapter 15:4 as he’s describing the relationship now of the branch and the Vine of a of a grape vine he says in verse four abide now watch this abide or continue in me and I in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide or continue in the vine no more can you bear fruit except you continue in me I am the vine ye of the branches he that abideth or continueth in me and I in him the same bringeth forth much fruit for
without me ye can do nothing now what does he mean when he says abide he’s speaking of drawing from something that which sustains life now watch this he says continue in me now what happens when you and I are saved we’re like a branch that is simply grafted into the vine and that Branch sinks its roots and becomes a vital part of that vine so that the branch is doing what it is being nurtured and sustained by the life of another that is the life of the vine now what is he saying here he’s saying
if you continue in my word that is if your life is sustained by a relationship now a plant abides in the ground it sinks its roots in the ground and it draws up its nourishment and strength it is sustained by its environment a fish in the sea it lives its life off of that which is around it is sustained by the life that is around it he says that the believer who is in Christ is sustained by his relationship of his environment what is his environment he says spiritually we have been grafted into the vine Our Roots
have sunk deep into him and we are sustained by that relationship now when he says if ye continue in my word what is he saying he’s simply saying if a believer One is truly a Believer if a Believer is sustained from the word of God in the word of God living in the word of God drawing up nourishment from the word of God resting upon the word of God as it spiritual environment being nourished by it he says that man is a disciple now what in the world does he mean by that well turn to Colossians chapter 3 and
there’s a familiar passage here that uh concerning the word that I want us to notice in chapter 3 he says in verse 16 of Colossians 3 he says let keep on keep on allowing permitting letting the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom he says let the word of God dwell in you richly now watch this he says first of all we are in him drawing up nourishment from him he is the source of our life you turn that right over and what happens he says not only are we in him but his word likewise is in us and in John chapter
15:7 he says if you are abiding continuing that is being sustained and drawing up nourishment from me and he says likewise the word of God abiding in you nurturing you he says then you can ask what you will and it should be done unto you the believer’s life is a life of resting and continuing in him now Jesus said that is if you are continuing seeking and drawing up strength and nourishment from my word then are ye my disciples indeed it is not just a matter of reading it it is not just a matter of studying it it is a matter of resting
continually looking to the word and drawing from the word of God the sustenance for our life now when I think of what’s involved in that I think there are four things involved in continuing in the word it isn’t just the matter of reading it I want you to notice what these are first of all and if you’ll get these down they all begin with an S so you won’t forget them first of all for a man to continue in the word of God first of all demands a study of the word of God because you see there’s no way in
the world to continue in the world that is to draw up nourishment from it and to rely upon it and to have it as a source of life and strength to you unless you study it now people who just uh Breeze through the word of God once in a while or turn to the scriptures when they’re in trouble or open the Bible once in a while and say Lord I’m going to see what you’re going to say to me and they Point their finger to a verse that’s not what we were talking about remember we said that a disciple is one who’s been who’s
accepted Christ as Savior yielded to him him as Lord and one through whom the Lord Jesus Christ is reproducing himself in the life of someone else now listen the only way for Jesus to reproduce his life in us and through Us in the life of someone else is that he must work in us and through us with what we have now watch this God demands that the disciple because the word implies learner that a disciple is one who is continuously learning about the one whom he’s serving it is one who is learning about him and whose lifestyle is compatible
with the one he’s learned about now the only way in the world for you and I to know who God Is to learn who Jesus is how he responds in circumstances and situations is to study the word of God in order to study the word of God you need several tools first of all you need the Bible secondly you need an inquisitive sensitive h hungering thirsting yearning mind to know what it teaches and thirdly you need the ministry of the Holy Spirit to teach you that truth now it’s amazing to me how many people who have never been to Seminary
have such great insight into the word of God praise God he didn’t limit that to Seminary students now I’m not knocking the Seminary I think you need to get all the education you can get as long as it’s right kind but if a man will go to the word of God open his heart and tell God I want what what you want any way you want to give it when you want to send it the only thing I don’t want is disobedience in my life Lord I am willing to commit myself to whatever you willing to teach me I believe God will
get the gospel truth to that man one way or the other a disciple is a learner a disciple has an inquisitive mind not now watch this not about simply the facts of scripture but the principles of the word of God listen quoting verses is not what I’m talking about watch this learning and applying spiritual principles is far far far beyond being able to quote verses now I would never never under any condition be critical of people who are learning the scriptures the best way to start is memorizing the verses but
remember it isn’t just memorizing them it is getting them the principles of those scriptures into your life and making application a true disciple who is continuing in the word of God will be consistently studying the scriptures to find principles he can apply to his life that’ll make a difference now you show me a growing Christian I’ll show you one who’s in the word you show me a growing Christian and watch this I’ll show you one who’s in the word looking for principles that will change his life a
man who simply studying the scriptures to find out if this is true if that’s true or if he quote this that or other or so he can know the sequence of events he can miss the whole point but a true disciple is searching the word of God for the principles of God to make application in his life that he might become more like God the study of the word the second thing I want you to notice that is he will be sustained by the word of God a true disciple is going to be a student of the word looking for the principles in order secondly to be
sustained by the word now listen I know lots of people get in all kinds of trouble who read the Bible not a thing happens sometimes people will come and they’ll say preacher I’m want to tell you about my problem that is poured out and poured out and poured out and I’m going to tell you before you come the first question I ask you you ready the first question I ask is have you been reading the Bible lately it is amazing how that is the greatest psychiatrist that you can ever find the greatest counselor ever to be known as the Lord
Jesus Christ and when you’ve got this you’ve got the solution to most of your problems the problem is sometimes we don’t know where to go in the word to get the solution I’ve met many many people who could quote scriptures who read the Bible who were not being sustained by it now listen the only way to be sustained by it is in the study of it to concentrate asking God to bring to light from the word of God those scriptures and those truths that you need at that particular time or any time and each time in order
to sustain you in a given situation for example there’s sickness and discouragement and disillusionment seemingly no hope of healing the doctors don’t know what to do now you can read all kinds of verses on healing and sometimes people do that and they end up saying well I read all those verses on healing and I’m still as sick as I was now if you go to the word and say now Lord I want you to give me what I need I’m going to draw from the will of Thy word as your disciple and I’m going to
trust you when I bring it up I want you to meet my need the person who goes to the word as a student of the word to apply principles and one who seeks to be sustained by the word will discover in the word of God that in every given situation he has exactly what you need for the moment to sustain your heart so many of you said to me you know Pastor I was reading the other day and EXA I want you to I just want to tell you what God said to me and all over themselves with surprise they give me a verse that perfectly applies to their situation
I think every time that’s great I want tell you how great it is when you think of an omnipotent omniscient omnipresent God who is unseen with a naked eye who placed every star in space every blade of grass is under his thumb every fish in the sea every F that every human being that he loves you enough to take time to see to it that what you need in his word when you dipped from the word he saw to it that in your Dipper you got exactly what you need brother that that’s great every time amen that’s
great every time the God who can count every single grain of sand on the sea thinks enough about you to be sure that you get in your Dipper your bucket exactly what you were drawing for now the disciple is one who knows how to dip in the word of God and the disciple is the one who knows that when he dips he’s coming up with what he needs he doesn’t have to taste to see if it’s going to satisfy he just turns it up and gulps it down and Praises God because he knows it was suited just for him so when you go to the word you’re
not just seeking scriptures and facts you want sustenance for your life now the third thing watch this one a true disciple continuing in the word is not only going to be a student of the word he’s not only going to be sustained by it but he is going to be submissive to the authority of the word now here’s where we have our trouble fell says yes I believe the word of God and I do I want to be sustained by it then are you willing to be submissive to its Authority now here’s the problem today the problem today is that people want to
look to themselves as the authority they’re willing to do anything up to a given point or a group of people willing to do anything up to a given point now watch this in the life of the disciple there is never any question as to what is the final Authority for his life never a question about that it is not men’s opinions it is not passing philosophies the only and final Authority in the life of the believer is the word of God now listen the reason I emphasize this is because we go back to the fellow who’s
the critic of it I just curious about it the fellow who believes only part of it the man who believes only part of it will never accept that as authority never and the man who does not accept that as the authority will never be happy never find peace he’ll all here’s what he’ll tell you he’ll say well I believe most of it and I’m searching and Paul said there are those who are ever learning and never able to come to the truth a true disciple is studying the word of God having accepted it as such
is being sustained by the word of God and those two things are profitable now watch this are profitable because when God does bring a truth into his life that demands change or confession or repentance he confesses that sin he repents of that sin he allows God to change him and then what does God do he just carries him deeper and deeper he sustains him in an Ever widening way now you watch but the man who goes to the word of God and the Lord in his sustaining power in his directing that life brings up to that dear Soul an area
of Life a blind spot that needs to be changed he says no not going to handle it and so he skips chapter 7:34 and goes on to verse 35 now he may do that in his mind but you know what God does God says all right that’s it that’s as far as your understanding is going when a man is studying the word of God and being sustained by as a disciple he moves to a point of obedience and God says this is what I want you to do when he says all right Lord I’m willing and he keeps moving as long as he is able to keep on
submitting to God’s Authority in the word each time he brings up something that he’s willing to obey he keeps moving but the man who says nope not going to do it so he tries to bypass he can’t get around why because he keeps hitting a a stone wall and this is why people can go to church at the age of 12 and are going at the age of 75 and listen for all practical purposes when it comes to spiritual truths they understand no more about the word of God at 65 than they knew at 15 because God stopped them dead in their tracks where
they were unwilling to be obedient to reveal truth now listen do you know how lucky you are how fortunate how blessed you are you have been saved by God’s grace and love and goodness and mercy and you were saved because holy God saw fit in his infinite wisdom to reveal to you enough truth to get you saved now listen you could never have reached up and gotten God the philosophers are seeking the highest truth of the sum and bonum of Life they never find it that way a man is saved when God reaches down and
s himself to him and don’t forget this a man is saved when God reaches then reveals himself to him therefore the man who’s seeking and searching and trying to get God in his own mole will never find him when you realize that God loves you enough to reveal to you that is to explain to you to make simple to you I mean Divine truth search truth absolutely incomprehensible truths God is able to make you and me to understand those I’ll tell you dear brother to know the truth to discover the truth by his
Revelation his illumination his inspiration and then to deny the application of that truth in your life to refuse to be obedient to the authority of the word of God is sin above sin how in the world would we ever explain that to God because there is much human knowledge floating around there is only one one source of divine wisdom and knowledge for a man to know the truth have the truth revealed and then to be unwilling to submit to the authority of the word of God is sin of the highest caliber now we look around here to
people who are lost and we say well this fellow’s doing this and he’s doing that and he’s breaking this commandment or the other listen that’s not nearly as bad in the eyes of God as a True Believer who knows the truth who will deliberately deny the application of scriptural Authority in his life and hold on to sin or Disobedience a disciple of the Lord is not only going to be studying the word sustained by it but he’s going to be submissive to the authority now in Colossians chap 3:1 16 he says let the
word of God dwell in you richly listen the word dwell means it was used in the Greek as to describe a person who was at home that is let the word of God just be at home in your life be at home in your dining room be at home in your living Liv room be at home in your in your guest room be at home upstairs be at home downstairs be at home in the basement that is the whole house is subject to his wanderings where wherever he wants to go now the person who says oh I believe the word but then he puts limitations on he says all right Jesus
you can go in the kitchen and dine with me you can go in the living room and sit down and talk you can go in the family room but you can’t go upstairs and you sure can’t get in the basement and there are lots of people who say I’m willing for the word of God to be a part of my life but only a part of it a true disciple says that every facet of my life is opened every area of my life is to be exposed Lord send your word into my life wherever you find anything you don’t like expose it that I may confess
it repent of it and cleanse my life subject to the authority of God’s word and the last thing I believe is true in the disciples life is this a man who’s continuing in the word well not only not only will he be a student of it sustained by it and submissive to its Authority but he’s going to share it how can you imagine what a contradiction in terms that a disciple of Jesus Christ would not share his faith that’s a contradiction in terms because you see a disciple is one who has been discipled by someone else
in order that he may be a discipl of others and I want to ask you this morning is that happening in your life and through your life are you a discip of him what is your attitude toward the word of God whatever it is will determine whether you can be a true disciple of his or not and we’ve talked about many aspects of the disciples life his love toward others his Detachment from the world his persecution by the world the cost of surrendering everything he says here if you would be a true disciple a man must commit himself to continue that
is to search the word and study to be sustained by it Moment by moment day by day in every sit situation that man must be willing to be submissive to its Authority continuing my word then are you my disciples and that man is going to be sharing the truth of the scriptures it’s one thing to believe about it that’ll never get you to heaven to believe in it to the point that you give your life to him that’s what it takes but to be a disciple my friend means that you go beyond the believing continuing in the word making
personal scriptural applic ation in every facet of your life and my friend if that is the mark of a disciple could you say to him this morning Lord my relationship to the word is beyond being critical I believe it secondly it is beyond being curious I’ve already settled that it is beyond simply being convinced my relationship to the word of God is that I am committed to its study its sustaining power its submissive Authority and sharing it with a world that is yet to discover Life at its very best Our Father we thank you this morning that
there has never been a time in our life or the life of any believer really when you’ve ever failed to keep every single promise in the word We Know It’s True by experience by the testimony of hundreds and thousands by the witness of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the fact that we’ve never found anything in con consistent in the Bible with how he lived nor have we ever found anything that he taught to be inconsistent with real truth and wisdom and understanding we would ask you today to speak to some Dear Heart
maybe a student maybe an adult who has been very critical of the word of God maybe because of their teaching or their instruction maybe the lack of that in their home they’ve grown up to be a skeptic father I pray that you’ll speak to to that heart and help that fellow or gal to understand that all of their life they’ll be wondering and frustrated and upset and seeking and searching for the solutions and answers to life all to know Avail until they are willing to accept by faith the scriptures as the
word of God then for all of us who are your children I pray def that you place within our hearts such an insatiable hunger and thirst we will would not even attempt to be satisfied without the study the sustaining power the submission to its Authority and the wonderful privilege of sharing it with someone else let that be true Lord in each of our hearts and give us such an insatiable hungering thirsting yearning desire for you that we just would not even begin to think about trying to be satisfied with any relationship toward
you less than that of being a true disciple continuing in committed to the word of God for we ask it in Jesus wonderful name and for his sake
