Open—Robert Boulard
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Perhaps, brethren, we could just turn to 1St Thessalonians, chapter one.
Just read a couple of verses there.
Verse 8.
First Thessalonians chapter one, verse 8. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and IKEA, but also in every place. Your faith to Godward is spread abroad, so that we need not speak anything.
They themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
And then in the book of the Acts, chapter 17.
Verse 22 I'm not.
Blessed with the privilege of having a parallel edition up here, so maybe some have the new translation. Mr. Darby's more much more accurate in this passage, But from verse 22, we'll just read a few verses.
You could read it in the new translation and it's very, very striking.
Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious, or in the new translation given up to demon worship. For as I pass by and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, or a shrine with this inscription to the unknown God.
Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship Him, declare I unto you God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is the Lord of heaven and earth dwelleth not in temples made with hands, neither is worshipped with men's hands. As though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life and breath, and all things, and hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and have determined.
The times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord, if happily they might feel after Him and find Him, though He be not far from every one of us. For in Him we live and move, and have our being, as certain also of your own poets have said. For we are also His offspring, for as much then as we are the offspring of God.
We ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold or silver or stone.
Graven by art and man's device, and the times of this ignorance.
God winked at or had patience with, but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent, because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, others said, We will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them.
Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed, among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
Well, my purpose in taking up these couple of passages of scriptures just to show the darkness and the ignorance that was characteristic of the Gentile world, because, you know, the Gentiles lived without God, without hope in this world that says in Ephesians chapter 2. And they were strangers from the covenants and promises given unto Israel. And so they had fallen into all kinds of darkness and wickedness.
But you and I have been blessed with the privilege of having been brought up in a Christian environment. We might say, I don't know if all here have been brought up in a Christian home, but what a blessing, what a privilege it is to have been brought up under the sound of the word of God and have had the word of God read in the home. I want to encourage you this afternoon if you.
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Are a young parent.
Have the Word of God open daily before your family, and you don't think perhaps the antenna is up and that they're listening and that they're really too engaged. But they are engaged and they are hearing what is being said. And let the Word of God have its effect upon the soul and upon the conscience of the young, as they listen and teach them the truth.
Because it's the light of Scripture, and the opposite is the darkness that we have in this world, and it's a darkness.
That God characterizes here in the Gentile world that was characterized by idolatry.
That is, men are worshipping the things that they have manufactured themselves.
And instead, on our Lord's Day morning, going to be in the presence of the Lord.
They're polishing their new cars. They're doing all kinds of things. You see it yourselves. Every one of us need to be engaged with the Lord and recognize that we've been brought into the light of Christianity. While these dear brethren in Thessalonica, they turn from idols.
They were steeped in idolatry and all the wicked practice of those immoral temples that they had in the Western world, in the Roman world at that time. They turned, they believe the word of God. And you know, I was thinking of Acts chapter 2 and how we need to be found under the sound of the word. And let the word judge us. Let the word search us.
Let the Word of God have its effect upon us. Let's read in Acts chapter 2.
And let's read from verse 36. We don't have a lot of time here, but it says, therefore let all the House of Israel know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart and said unto Peter into the rest of the apostles.
Men and brethren, what shall we do then? Peter said unto them. Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Well, there was a call to repentance. There was a word of God that was spoken, and the apostles of their brothers mentioned had a word from God, and they presented the word of God, the Old Testament Scriptures, as well as the revelation that they had from the Lord in connection with the Lord Jesus as being the Christ, the Messiah, And they allowed the word of God to judge them.
They didn't take the word of God and judge the word, but it was the word of God.
That was read, that was spoken to them, and they allowed the word of God to judge them.
It's a false principle for us to take the word of God.
And say I personally agree with this or I personally disagree with this. It's a false principle and it will lead to idolatry as has been presented to us.
And so we need to submit to the wisdom and of the Word of God and the light that God gives us in His Word. And these Thessalonians, they did that. They turned from there to God.
You're going to have to have an object. Everyone of us has to have an object as we walk through this world. And it's either going to be Christ at the center of life, Christ the object of life.
Christ who is the source of divine life, Christ the source of my blessing. And in the relationship that we have with the Father, every good gift and every perfect gift cometh down from above, from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. So we're going to receive what we receive from the Father in relationship with him, or we'll reach out and we'll become self-centered and will think that.
Christianity is about me. What is in Christianity for me? What? It's all about me. No, it's not. It's all about Christ. Life and having a fruitful life is having Christ before us. And so they turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God. Oh how the Lord delights to have us turn from those things.
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That would replace.
The affections that we have had for him perhaps in the past.
And that have robbed us in some small way, very subtly, the enemy just uses other things to come in and to displace Christ in our lives and how He longs for us to turn to Him. Now they turn to Him for salvation. But we can turn to Him in repentance for what we have gone on with, what we've allowed in our lives, perhaps what we've allowed into our homes. And we can.
Turn to God.
From idols to serve the living and true God. And how will it show that we've turned? Oh, I think it's precious, you know, as you and I are believers in these very last days, just before the Lord comes, it will show whether or not we are waiting for His Son from heaven.
Or whether we are not.
I was in a home not too long ago, not of one gathered to the Lord's name, one of my nieces.
And her husband. And there were signs of divine life all over in the home. There was gospel text. There were Bibles on the tables. I was so thankful to you to see it. So thankful after the meal, the brother.
Push the plates aside, open up his Bible before things would get too busy and he read a passage of scripture. Not very well educated, he had a difficult time reading that chapter, the 10th chapter of Ecclesiastes. He didn't even barely make any comments on it, but how it warmed my soul to hear him stumble through reading of that chapter.
With his family and with the guests at his table. Not a man of gift, but he had a priority that they would have the word of God.
Before them, I made a comment to his wife a little bit later about the coming of the Lord. She said, oh, that might be a long time away for now.
I'm not. I'm not concerning myself too much with that.
I was sorry to hear it.
It will characterize your life. It will color the flavor of your life. It will color what you how you prioritize your day. It will color how you prioritize your week, your career. You might, whatever it might be if you are found watching and waiting for the Lord to come. Not just waiting, but watching.
And waiting for him to come. And so this is what characterized these brethren. I would just want to encourage.
Each one of us again to read the scriptures daily, to search whether these things are so as they have in Acts chapter 17, and to be sure to allow the Word of God to search us out.
Not for us to render an opinion about the word of God or to judge the word of God. Say I agree with this or I don't know, that's not of God. Let the word of God judge me and search out the truth of God and bow to it. Because what was delivered to the apostles has been delivered to the church from Christ, and he used the apostles to deliver it to the church.
May we submit to the truth that He has given us in the light that He has given us, and walk in fellowship with the apostles that continued steadfastly, and the apostles doctrine and fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers. They did that at the beginning of the church period. May we be found doing it now at the end of the church period.
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Oh Lamb of God, still keep us.
This weekend.
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