Soundness

This sermon was recently preached by Minister David Boyd, at my home church.

This is a time where we need to be sound and firm. Whatever your adversity is, Whatever is challenging you, Whatever is trying to move you away from what you know that you are praying to God for; I want to encourage you to remain steadfast and firm in your trust. DO NOT BE MOVED! BE UNSHAKABLE!

There is much chaos and confusion going on around us, but we can’t focus on the confusion..We must focus on God. Which means we must remain sound and sober minded at all times. Not allowing every doctrine or opinion to shake our faith.

Week after week, perhaps you the reader bring your challenges and issues into your church sanctuary. In moments of weakness, you may feel like giving up, but don’t give up. Remain firm in your trust in God to deliver you. Be of a sound mind, and don’t allow your mind to drift all over the place.

We’ve all experienced this. We’ll encounter a major challenge; And the voice of the evil one will show up to bombard our mind with thoughts of discouragement, but Galatians 5:1 says, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”

We go to church, We listen to messages on TV and the radio, We read encouraging Blog posts..But what are we going to do with what we are hearing?

Psalm 46:10-11 says, “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.” You may be experiencing anxiety and restlessness, but God is saying, “Wait. Don’t get in a hurry. Be still and get to know Me.”

Whatever comes our way, we must filter it through the Word of God.

The things that are occurring in our lives right now are not just by chance. God is the orchestrator of every event..what He does and even the things He permits to happen. He is a God of purpose.

God doesn’t think like us. As humans, we love ideal situations. We love for things to be smooth sailing. But God masters in cleaning up messes; And turns mess into something precious.

You may be dealing with a messy situation; but ensure that you continue to know God in the midst; And that He has promised to deliver you from this mess.

Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Focusing on the mess makes us weary. But God is looking at an end result. God is looking to take the mess we see and turn it into a glorious testimony.

It doesn’t matter what they told you on the job, or what the doctor said. There is something in the midst of that, that God wants to get the glory out of. God wants our life to be a living testimony. So, however He wants to get the glory; We can ask Him to help us to submit to His will. And endure hardness as a good soldier. If we endure hardness as a good soldier, we are going to reap a reward. We may acquire some battle scars, but let’s persevere, because there are some rewards awaiting us In fact, the Word encourages us to do all things without murmuring and complaining.

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;”(John 8:31) Again, what are we going to do with what we are hearing?

We have got to apply the sound teachings we are receiving; And work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.(Philippians 2:12) Each of us has got to ensure that we are doing the right things. The only way the Word of God is going to do anything for us is if we digest it. David said, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”(Psalm 119:11) And applying that Word means that we are willing to obey it. Not just on Sunday, but everyday.

As an analogy: Let’s say you can tell me, all day long, that you are a plumber. But you haven’t studied to be one. You haven’t educated yourself to be one. But we’ll find out if you’re truly a plumber or not, because when you’re put to the test can you find the leak? The proof of who we truly are is demonstrated when we are put to the test. Do we have the right tools, and do we know how to use them? II Timothy 2: 24 says we should be apt to teach. The best witness for God is not what we say, but it is what we practice.

We just don’t show up at church on Sundays to look handsome and cute. There is a real world outside the four walls of our sanctuaries, that has real issues. We have real issues that we need help with. The Bible is an instruction manual that gives us principles that we must implement into our daily life, to help us live the way God wants us to live.

It behooves every person to get to know God. The Bible is good, because it tells us about God…But we need to know the God of this book personally.

Repetition is important. We can’t do anything we don’t know. Therefore, we must spend time memorizing and meditating upon what is written within God’s Word. There are going to be things that are going to come up in life, where we won’t be able to quickly pull out the Bible, but if we’ve put in the time of studying, we can recall the right biblical principles to apply to any situation. We must digest the Word, so that it can nourish us. The Word must be moved from our head to our heart. Then we will know how and when to apply it.

The crux of the hour that we are living in is us learning how to apply biblical principles in our daily lives. The best testimony that we can have to a dying world is to see you and I, as followers of Jesus Christ, applying the Word.

Regard the Word of God, with everything you’ve got. Get it in you, because once you get the Word in you, you will be able to stand and endure as a good soldier.

Go to God. Learn of Him; And apply His Word.