Services | The Word of God Is Living and Active and So Much More

Bulletin

FBCWest
August 15, 2021

“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him.
must worship Him in Spirit and truth.”

Praise and Worship
SCRIPTURE READING – Micah 6:6 - 8
“Battle Belongs”
“Resurrecting”

Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“The Word of God Is Living and Active and So Much More”

PRAYER TIME / Time of Reflection
“Word of God Speak”


Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
“Higher Ground”
OFFERTORY PRAYER
SPECIAL MUSIC – By Pru Hungate

Continued Praise and Worship
“Sing, Sing, Sing”
“How Can I Keep From Singing?”

Benediction “Egypt”


Acknowledgements and Announcements


Sermon Notes
Hebrews 4:12 The word of God is
Living
Active
Sharper than a two-edged sword
Piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit
Both joints and marrow
Able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart
Hebrews 4:13 No creature is hidden from His sight, all things are open and laid bare to His eyes

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Scritpures

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Transcript of Service

If you'll turn in your Bibles too.

The Epistle of the Hebrews.

Chapter 4 starting with verse.

12

the last couple of messages we've been dealing with.

A warning that the writer of Hebrews has been giving us.

The writer, by his own admission, has written this book primarily for exhortation, to exhort us, to encourage us to move on into faith, but interspersed throughout that letter of exhortation he throws in some warnings, and we've taken a look at the two messages of warning. One is that if you hear the voice of the Lord, that you are to take immediate action today. If you hear his voice, you are to respond, and then the second part of the warning.

Was that the consequence? If you don't pay attention to that warning that you will miss his rest and to come into his promised land?

This third part of the warning that we're going to deal with today.

Kind of gives us the impact of God's word.

And.

How powerful it is and the consequences of it.

The rider started off in Hebrews talking about that God.

In various forms in various ways, spoke to us through the prophets, but in the latter days he's spoken to us through his son.

This last warning that we're going to take a look at. While you can say that the first warrant, the first part of the warning about taking action today. While that applies to the unbeliever because I've responded therefore.

I don't have to pay attention that warning and the second warning is if you don't pay attention that you own, enter his rest and say, well, I'm a believer believing internal security, so I'm safe. So it kind of.

Pass out on the warnings this third warning while it applies to those who are not believers. I also think that it very much applies to the believers and if you will, especially the pastors and theologians.

Why do I say that? Because it seems that pastors and theologians oftentimes will retreat from the power of the word of God.

If there's something that comes in conflict with it, and culture says that that auto win frequently, pastors and theologians give up give you an example through when Darwin's theory of evolution came into fruition and and great popularity, all of a sudden, now theologian start talking about that there was theist stick evolution because science is this. The Bible says this and Oh my goodness we can't support the Bible.

And therefore we come up with some way to accommodate quote unquote science.

And religion.

That's unfortunate.

'cause the power of God is through his word. He created this world and it universe.

By his speaking.

You will hear people say.

God said it. I believe it that settles it. If you've heard me for anything at the time, you know that I don't believe that. I believe God said it, that settles.

I believe it, but it doesn't matter whether I believe it or not. It is settled because God has spoken it.

And there is also often what we want to do is is to retreat from the word of God and will even try to convince other people.

That they ought to be believers, but we give up the word of God.

Now I will grant you.

Because the scriptures grant you.

That there is proof that there is a God and you don't have to use the scriptures.

The universe horse forced speech in praise of him that exists.

The powers of the ocean, the majestic city of the mountains, all of creation, the.

The birth of a little baby.

The complexity of the cells.

The vastness of life.

Tells us there is a God.

However, that doesn't nestel us.

Who that God is?

And as the writer starts off saying God has spoken to US, God has revealed who he is to us and how he is specifically spoken in these latter days is Jesus and Jesus is the exact representation of the glory and the majesty of God. If you want to understand who God is, you look at Jesus.

And so while we in our.

Attempt to bring others to faith.

Part of your ability to witness is to know how that you don't have to start. If you will with the Scriptures to talk about that there is a God, but if you walk away and say I'm never going to use the scriptures because they don't believe it, you just take away your weapon.

Because it's the word of God that tells us who God is.

And so it disturbs me when I hear pastors and others run away from the word of God because it is the word of God.

And if you've been alive, as long as I have, you've seen where science is gone.

And sometimes you'll say, well, this is science.

In just a few years later, they say, whoops, it's something else, and then oops again. It's something else, and goofs again. Is something else but the word of God stands forever.

And there will come, and you will hear people say, well, God is just a God of the gaps. If you don't understand something, then you just plug in God. No, no science had done the opposite. They don't understand something. So they plug in science.

But eventually God will be proven true in every other man a liar. So the warning here is to us to make sure that we understand and protect the value of the word of God. So in verse 12 it says this for the word of God is living.

I want to start there. It's going to give us a number of things that the word of God is and it starts off with living. Now. Unfortunately our culture they messed that word up.

'cause if you've gone to school and if you've heard anything about our US Constitution, you will hear that people will say the Constitution is a living document.

Now what they mean by that is that it isn't moving. Whatever they're saying is is that whatever the culture decides now, the Constitution will adjust.

And without trying to get too political. So for instance, they'll say well, back in the day they only had muskets, and so the Constitution says you could have the right to bear arms. But now that we have other types of firearms, the Constitution adapts its living.

That's not what the writer of Hebrews is talking about. It's living, he's talking about the number one. It causes life.

We are dead in our sins, but when we are confronted with the word of God, it can create life in us.

It is also alive in the sense that is not a dead letter.

I can read.

Some science books.

Back in the Middle Ages.

And we'll talk about the earth being the center of the universe.

Other books on social science and whatever will talk about this thing or that thing and the culture will adopt it.

The word of God is living. It applies to every single culture and every single time frame.

This letter to the Hebrews is acable today as it was when he wrote it to the Hebrew believers.

It's living, it doesn't die. It doesn't have a shelf life. It is always alive and causing life by those who read it.

So it is living.

And active.

It just doesn't sit there when you read it. It calls for a response. Now that response might be, I don't want to do it. I don't believe in it. It's difficult.

It tells me that I'm supposed to forgive and I don't want to forgive it, it it may. It is. It may not come with the result that we think it ought to have, but it always impacts the result. It is active, and it causes us to reflect on our relationship with God and each other.

It's active.

It's one of those things where.

There's little phrase that says.

This book will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from this book.

It's active when you read it. It calls for a response.

To be different to be more like Jesus.

So it is living and it is active.

And sharper than any two edged swords.

It can cut both ways if you will. It can cut to heal or it can cut to judge.

A scalpel can be used to remove, let's say cancer or a growth. It's used to cut out and sometimes the word of God is there. To say you need to get this out of your life and by getting out of this out of your life, you will have a better life, maybe even a longer life. But it eliminates that illness that sickness, the word of God, is a sharp.

Two edge sword.

But it also if you fail to respond if you fail to have it cut those things out, then it can be used as a form of judgment.

And piercing as far as in vision of soul and spirit of both joints and marrow.

You see the word of God isn't a blunt instrument.

As an example.

Jesus was confronted by a young man who is very wealthy.

And he said, what must I do to be saved? And Jesus gave him the initial year to basically follow the commandments, and he goes. I've done all those since.

My youth, but the the Richmond new and he goes both.

I'm still lacking something. I know my heart tells me that I'm lacking something in Jesus perceiving his problem.

Said sell everything you have, give it to the poor and follow me.

Now God Jesus didn't make that request of everyone.

He makes the request of those who have something in the way of their following him.

And the young man went away. Very sorrowful.

'cause he was very wealthy and couldn't do it. You see, those things owned him and so the word of God can and that is why a lot of times we don't want to read the word of God because we are confronted with exactly who we are and we don't like it.

It's much better.

If I stand up in front of a mirror.

And the image I see back.

Is a handsome Hollywood star.

But that mirror would be lying to me.

I might want it to tell me that.

But it will be like when I look into the mirror I see who I am.

When you look into the word of God, you see exactly who you are and it tells you maybe riches is not your problem. Maybe it's forgiveness, maybe it's not being humble. Maybe it's your.

Zeal to succeed, whatever it may be, the word of God confronts us with that. It's able to surgically, and it's it doesn't hit us with a blunt force. It says for you, it's this problem. Solve it for you. It's a different problem. Solve it for the other person is a different problem. Solve it. It is going straight to the point and it as it says, it pierces as far as a division of the soul and the spirit of both.

Joints and morale so it can be used fine too. It pierces, usually a sword.

There are different types of swords.

He says that the word of God is a two edged sword, which mean it's you swing, but there are other types of swords. The whole point is just to jab you.

It's called the foil. I learned these things when I took fencing.

They're they're savers, there's oils and and so this two edged sword can also be used as a foil to Pierce exactly what needs. So no matter how complicated the situation may be, whether it's between the soul and the spirit or both, joints and marrow.

It takes fine skill to cut.

In joints it takes a lot of string to cut down to the through the bone to the marrow.

So the word of God is both specific and tailored and strong.

And.

Notice all these ants.

It's not, it's not just one or the other, it is.

Living it is active. It is sharper than any two edged sword.

It comes on and it is able to judge the thoughts and the intentions of the heart.

Oh no wonder when we want to continue sinning. We don't read this word of God.

Because it's able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Now heaven has greater technology than we have. I don't know what that technology is.

Gods there never.

So to kind of understand.

Heavenly technology, let's just let's just for so that you might understand that there is a thumb drive hard drive on your life.

But it not only shows what you did.

But it shows what you thought while you were doing what you did.

Now I bet most of us, if not all of us, would spend any amount of money we could to get that.

Thumb drive and get rid of it.

But there may come a day.

In heaven.

At either the judgment seat or the Bema seat or heaven, whatever that little thumb drive is sticks it into.

The computer of heaven and said OK, we're going to watch a movie.

On your life.

There used to be a TV show called this is your life, but it usually talked about how people appreciated you and all these types of things. No no, this is your life.

Maybe we wouldn't think the things that we think, and maybe we wouldn't do the things that we do if we understand that the word of God knew exactly what we're thinking, exactly what we're doing.

Because our attitude tends to be well, I can do it because I believe in Grace and God is going to forgive me.

In yes there is grace, and yes, God will forgive.

I still would rather not see my life in flashing in motion pictures for the whole universe to see.

But the word of God can do that.

It's that specific.

And in case you're thinking well.

OK, but

who my God's not gonna notice me, right? You know it's not like I'm a president or a governor or.

Even a local council person.

Notice the 1st 13 and there is no creature hidden from his sight.

No means no one.

There is no. There is no exemption to who God doesn't know.

There's no in no exemption for what God doesn't know KNOW.

He knows everyone.

From Adam and Eve.

Until the last man and woman born and die on this planet.

No creature is hidden from his sight.

But all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of him.

So.

Your best friend may not know what you did.

Your spouse may not know what you did. Your parents may not know what you did.

You may even try to fool yourself, and you may not know what you did.

But God knows.

And he's going to leave it open and laid bare.

To his eyes.

And then it's there's a little strange.

Rest of the sentence says with whom we have to do.

Kind of an odd phrase.

So I tell you what I believe that means.

And before I do, it's probably one of the reasons that people don't read the word.

Don't believe in God.

Want to do their own thing?

Because we don't want to be accountable to anybody.

Let alone our creator.

What do you mean you're going to tell me what to do?

What you know, we don't even want to hold our politicians accountable anymore. As long as he's our.

RRD, then whatever ** *** does, it's OK 'cause he or she's on my team. But if that person over we don't even hold our we don't hold people accountable.

But this is saying is that.

You are accountable to God.

Now you may not want to believe that that's fine.

But the word of God says you are.

Because he is your creator.

He is the one who gave you life. Who gave you talents, who gave you abilities? Who gave you what you have?

And you are accountable to him for what he has given you.

So if there's something God has not given you.

And the answer to that question in case you don't know, is nothing.

'cause every time you breathe the breath he gave you that breath.

And when you sing with the melody of the angels.

He gave you that gift.

When you are.

A physician and able to heal people.

He gave you that gift of the understanding to do that, science that needs to be done to accomplish the understanding of the body.

Or if you have faith to move mountains.

Faith has been given to you.

There is nothing.

That you have.

Or hope to have.

That hasn't been given by God.

If.

I give you some money.

And say I want you to do X with it.

Then you are accountable to me for doing X with it.

Because I gave you something and now you are accountable to so if I give you money and say OK, I'm gonna let you spend it on something.

My grandson came up yesterday and said Papa I'm hot.

Can I get a snow cone 'cause they just advertise a snow cone?

So.

Having been around organizations along time, I looked at my wallet and I had $2.00 and a $20 bill, and I suspected that a $2.00 wasn't going to be enough.

But I knew $20 are going to be too much.

So I told him. Here's the $2.00 if if it's that, pay for that and bring back to 20 if it's not enough. Here's a 20 by the Snow cone and then bring me back so I gave him the ability to buy something for himself. But it did say you can keep the 22 bucks.

I said you can have enough Tobias to comb the rest combos back to me and then grandma making sure and she goes. Make sure you don't lose it.

Because it's.

22 bucks.

Gorgeous in essence as I gave you life, I gave you talents.

It's not yours.

Even we who are believers says that we have been bought with a price we are not ours, we are his.

So if I'm only speaking to believers at this point and say OK, then even us we say, OK, forget about the world we have been bought with a price we are accountable to God. We are to do what he says.

And there is nothing.

That is not laid bare.

So we don't have to face the great White Throne judgement, praise God.

It's not going to be a pretty sight.

You don't want to be there.

But there is something called the bema seat.

Or we will be rewarded or not rewarded for what we have done in this life.

As it is says, some will receive for what they've done. Gold, silver.

Precious stones and others have done wood, hay, and stubble, and they'll be burned up.

But you will be saved.

We want to be.

The richest people in the world. Most people. We don't necessarily want to work for it, we just know they may win the lottery doing, but we want to be wealthy. We want to live in big houses. We want to do this and those are great and I'm not disparaging those. And Lord knows, I'd like to live in a really big house.

I won't go off on that tangent, but right?

But at best.

I met with the son of a client who just passed away.

He lived to be 100.

Libby, my wife and and her sister, having an aunt who just celebrated her 100th birthday.

Those are significant milestones because very few of us get there.

So let's say you live to be 100.

And you live in the greatest house.

You know you would put.

Bill Gates to shame the house that you have.

After you live to be about 100.

Somebody else going on it.

So why not be the richest person in heaven?

Now the economy in heaven is all different 'cause we like to collect gold and silver and whatever the streets are paved with gold.

So it's a different economy.

The scripture says that we are to send our treasures ahead.

Which means.

You can be poor than a churchmouse here.

And send vast untolds of wealth.

Ahead.

If we actually believed in the word of God.

And while you might be lucky to live to be 100.

God has promised us that we will dwell in his house forever.

So why not be rich there?

Because it never ceases.

Goes on and now the poorest person at heaven is still better than the richest man in hell.

Cycle, it's like all of real estate is location, location, location.

But

we need to pay attention.

To the word of God, and we need to make sure that we don't tolerate pastors and theologians who say, well, you know. Yeah, the word of God might, but you know, know, know once you start retreating on the word of God.

There'll be no end to the retreat.

And to use a.

Earthly example.

The greatest danger?

An army faces.

Is when it turns its back and runs.

That's where more soldiers die.

So maybe in the spiritual battle.

It is better to take our stand.

As the word says to put on the full armor of God.

The stand firm.

Then it is to retreat and retreat and retreat.

And I would rather and I know I will never say this, but I would rather say God, I died because I believed you and maybe you didn't make it right then to say God. If I believed you maybe had a stood.

But because I didn't have faith or I didn't read, or I didn't whatever I decided.

To retreat.

We sang.

That the battle belongs to the Lord.

If it does.

Stand and fight.

Stand and fight for his word.

Stand and fight for him.

Sand and fight for your feet.

Word of God speak.

Speak to me. Speak to others.

And I understand fully and you need to also understand.

That we can come up with the most creative.

And most convincing arguments to why people ought to believe.

But until they hear his voice.

It just doesn't matter.

So we need to be ready to give an account to those things that we believe.

But to understand that we came to faith because we heard his voice.

And that we need to tell others.

And not be surprised when they don't believe.

But they see God to speak to them.

And after God speaks to them, that they might.

As the first warning says, respond today.

Word of God speak.

We need to hear.

The awesome thing is.

As a writer started.

God spoke to the prophets in many ways and in many portions, whether it be through dreams or personal contact or visions.

But in these last days, he's spoken to us in his son Jesus.

It tells us.

Of a God that's so loved us.

That he gave his son for us.

You won't know that thinking about it, but you'll understand it in the word of God.

And all my God's people said.