INTRO.- ILL.- Casey Stengel lived from 1890 to 1975 and was a longtime major league baseball manager (particularly the New York Yankees).
Casey held a position on the board of directors for a California bank. Casey described his duties this way: "There ain’t nuthin’ to it. You go into the fancy meeting room and you just sit there and never open your yap. As long as you don’t say nuthin’ they don’t know whether you’re smart or dumb."
Stengel was right. If we don’t open our mouths people will never know much about us; good, bad or otherwise. For the most part, however, we do open our mouths and quite often!
Prov. 10:19 "When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise."
One of the quickest ways in the world to get into trouble is by opening our mouths, by talking too much.
ILL.- American historian, Will Durant said, "Talk is cheap because the supply always exceeds the demand."
Prov. 11:12 "A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue."
Prov. 18:7 "A fool’s mouth is his undoing, and his lips are a snare to his soul."
ILL.- Henry Ferguson said, "If someone paid you ten cents for every kind word you said about people, and you collected five cents for every unkind word, would you be rich or poor?"
Prov. 12:18 "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."
Prov. 17:9 "He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends."
Speaking may not be our only problem in life. Hearing could be a problem as well.
ILL.- In Exodus chapter 19 we are told that Moses listened to God on Mt. Sinai and that was good, very good. At the base of the mountain, Exodus 32, we find that Aaron was listening to the people and that was bad, very bad.
We are always listening to someone. We are always hearing voices, but to which voices are we listening the most?
Prov. 8:34-35 "Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord."
The wisdom of God says, "listen to me, listen to my voice and you’ll be blessed."
Satan speaks too. He spoke to Judas Iscariot. He must have spoke to his heart. He encouraged greed and look what happened to Judas.
It may be that Satan also spoke to a man named Demas. II Tim. 4:10 Paul said, "Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me..."
The indication is that when Demas deserted Paul for the world he also deserted Christ. DEMAS LISTENED TO SATAN THROUGH THE WORLD.
The world is constantly speaking to us through the means of TV, movies, books, newspapers, etc. Are we listening? Somewhat, yes. Be careful to whom you are listening!
Voices are speaking to us all the time. To whom are we listening? To whom are we listening the most? We need to be as cautious about our listening as we are in our speaking. We need to discern the voices around us.
PROP.- Here are some voices to consider from Psalm chapter two.
1- The voice of defiance
2- The voice of derision
3- The voice of declaration
4- The voice of decision
I. THE VOICE OF DEFIANCE
ILL.- President George Bush (Bush # 1) said one time, "I do not like broccoli and I haven’t liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I’m president of the United States and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli..."
There are a lot worse things than rebelling against broccoli. What is far worse is rebelling against the One who created broccoli!
Ps. 2:1-2 "Why do the nations conspire and the people plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One."
The voice of defiance comes from those nations that don’t want God to control them.
ILL.- Pharaoh of old hardened his heart against God and the people of Israel. In Exodus 5 when Moses and Aaron came before Pharaoh they said, "The God of Israel says, ‘Let my people go...’" But Pharaoh defied God and His messengers, saying, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go." BUT HE DID LET ISRAEL GO! Some nations and leaders defy God.
ILL.- Goliath of old was a defiant old cuss or maybe defiant young cuss. I Sam. 17:10 "This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other." By defying the army of Israel, Goliath was essentially defying God himself!
A short while later David said in I Sam. 17:26 "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
And we know the rest of this story. It’s not a smart thing to defy God, His people, His church, or His leaders!
ILL.- The German people under the reign of Adolf Hitler defied God with their actions, their treatment of the Jewish people. While Hitler may have claimed to be something of a Christian, nothing was further from the truth. His defiance of God cost him in a big way.
It is believed that he went prematurely senile or insane. On April 29, 1945 he married Eva Braum and dictated his political testament in defense of his actions. On April 30 he said farewell to a few remaining military men, retired to his suite and shot himself while his wife took poison.
Prov. 16:18 "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."
ILL.- What about Saddam Hussein? What kind of man is he? What kind of leader is he? The CIA says he is not just an ordinary dictator. What sets him apart is his brutality.
ILL.- "HE’S TWISTED, he’s mentally twisted," says former Iraqi nuclear scientist Dr. Khidhir Hamza. "He gains enormous pleasure from inflicting pain on people. He was a hit man from day one."
Apparently, Saddam Hussein is a defiant man. He defies both the creation and the Creator. His time will come.
Nations can defy God all they want, but there will come a time when they will pay the penalty. They will fall.
Ps. 107:10-11 "Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains, for they had rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High."
IT IS NOT A SMART THING TO DEFY GOD IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM! The voice of defiance will last only so long.
II. THE VOICE OF DERISION
Ps. 2:4 "The One enthroned in heaven laughs..."
ILL.- It is said that while the average child laughs 150 times a day, say researchers at the University of Michigan, the average adult laughs only 15 times.
Prov. 17:22 "A cheerful heart is good medicine..." If a cheerful heart or a laughing heart is good medicine, what comes from a frowning heart or a frowning person? Or a downcast person? Or an angry person?
ILL.- It is said that laughter is one of the greatest mental tonics known to man. It is the second most powerful human emotion we as people can possibly express (the first being love). Laughter can dispel anxiety, help manage stress, depression, fear and worry. It can stimulate the healing process. Laughter provides strong medical, psychological, social and even spiritual benefits. Laughter is like internal jogging.
Brothers and sisters, if these things are true and I believe they are, why don’t we laugh more?
Ps. 2:4-5 "The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath..."
The One in heaven laughs. I am convinced that God laughs in heaven. I believe there are times when God laughs joyfully. He made laughter. It must be His will for us to laugh as well.
The One in heaven laughs. This is the voice of God, but in this text it is a different kind of laughter. God laughs in derision, as in "Ha, ha, ha! So you think you are so smart. You will see..." God laughs. He scoffs. He ridicules or mocks those who think they are so powerful.
Adolf Hitler. Saddam Hussein. Osama bin Laden. And a host of others. It is to these people that God laughs in derision.
God laughs and says, "Have your way for a little while. But you will see. You are going to get a big surprise and then we will see who is in control!"
Brothers and sisters, God is still God. Never fear. Don’t worry. Don’t sweat the small stuff or even the big stuff. God is still on His throne and always will be! He is God! He can handle anything and everything! NOTHING IS TOO GREAT FOR GOD!
God is all-powerful and He laughs at the powers of the world. God laughs at them in derision and we can laugh with Him! Join the party! Join the laughter! Believe. Trust God. Walk by faith. Hold your head high. God rules and will always rule!
III. THE VOICE OF DECLARATION
Ps. 2:7-9 "I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father...I will make the nations your inheritance... you will rule them..."
ILL.- Four preachers were talking about things in the Bible. One said, "That’s what the Bible says, but that’s not what the Bible means." A little girl passing by, heard the conversation and said, "Sir, if Jesus and His apostles didn’t know what they wanted to say, how did you find out?"
Brothers and sisters, we have no right to tell God what He believes and what He doesn’t believe. GOD RULES BY DECREE, NOT BY DEMOCRACY! We don’t get to vote on how God is going to do anything!
ILL.- One time I heard the Televangelist Benny Hinn being interviewed on TV. He quoted from Genesis 1:26 "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air..."
Benny Hinn said that when God gave man dominion over the birds of the air that God originally meant for man to fly. He said the reason that we didn’t fly was because we didn’t obey God and we didn’t walk by faith. And I’m not going to tell you what I thought!!!
Some people think that Benny Hinn is a crackpot and some think he is a "Cracker Jack," that is, a cracker jack evangelist. I know this for sure. Benny Hinn doesn’t get to vote on how God does things. Nor does Billy Graham and he would be the first to admit that he gets no vote.
ILL.- A college boy said to his mother one time, "I have decided that I want to be a political science major and that I want to clean up the mess in this world." His mother replied, "That’s very nice. You can now go upstairs and start by cleaning up your own room."
There are times when we may find ourselves in a heated discussion or perhaps an argument with someone: friend, foe or family member. But there is one person with whom it will do no good to argue and that’s God!
God’s Word is God’s Word. God’s decrees are final. His Word is final. He always gets the last word on everything and every issue. We may have our ideas, opinions, and interpretations but God’s Word is final on any subject.
ILL.- Someone put it this way: "Revelation is what God said. Interpretation is what we think God said." And sometimes, our interpretations are not right.
The voice of declaration is God’s voice. And His voice declares that Jesus is His Son and the Savior of the world! And that’s final!
John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Acts 4:12 "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to me by which we must be saved."
I John 1:22-23 "Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist - he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also."
That’s God’s decree! God has decreed or declared many things in His Word and mankind would do well to listen.
ILL.- Old preacher Vance Havner said, "Some time ago a school principal said to the teachers, ‘Don’t tell the students to obey. That’s out. Tell them to cooperate, but not obey.’ COOPERATE is not the word my daddy used when I was growing up. If I had not cooperated, he would have operated and you can be sure of that."
God’s decrees are final. If mankind does not cooperate, He will operate.
IV. THE VOICE OF DECISION
Ps. 2:10-11 "Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling..."
ILL.- A well-known professional golfer was playing in a tournament with President Gerald Ford, fellow pro Jack Nicklaus, and Billy Graham. After the round was over, one of the other pros on the tour asked, "Hey, what was it like playing with the President and Billy Graham?" The pro said with disgust, "I don’t need Billy Graham stuffing religion down my throat!" With that he headed for the practice tee.
His friend followed, and after the golfer had pounded out his fury on a bucket of golf balls, he asked, "Was Billy a little rough on you out there?" The pro sighed and said with embarrassment, "No, he didn’t even mention religion."
Billy Graham had said nothing about God, Jesus, or religion, yet the pro stomped away after the game accusing Billy of trying to ram religion down his throat.
Brothers and Sisters, could it be that pro golfer had somehow tasted of the conviction of God’s Holy Spirit? It’s very possible.
The voice of decision in our text could well be the Holy Spirit warning us to turn to the Lord and serve Him. I think we all would agree that the Holy Spirit does warn us in various ways: through the reading of Scripture, the teaching of Scripture and the preaching of Scripture!
Is God’s Spirit prompting you to decision? To decide for Christ? To decide to serve Christ in some form?
ILL.- The Holy Spirit convicted the people on the day of Pentecost when Peter preached, "God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." Acts 2:36 And what did this conviction of God’s Spirit cause them to say and do? They said, "They were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’"
Peter told them to repent and be baptized in the name of Christ. And again, God’s Spirit moved and motivated them. Acts 2:41 "Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day."
HOW DOES THE HOLY SPIRIT SPEAK TO YOU? Does His convicting power move you to decide to follow Christ and serve Him?
ILL.- I started to walk into the Wal-Mart store last Monday afternoon. Before going into the store, I noticed a car at the door, waiting for someone. When I got to the other side of the car I saw an elderly lady with her walker loaded down with several sacks of merchandise. I started to walk by, but I didn’t get two steps. I turned to that lady, put her sacks in the car, folded her walked and helped her get in.
I think it was God’s Spirit saying, "Remember, Steve, you too had a mother with a walker."
The voice of decision is the voice of God’s Spirit speaking to us. "Come to Christ. Surrender to Him. Love Him. Serve Him."
CONCLUSION---------------------------------------
ILL.- Good listening is like tuning in a radio station. For good results, you can listen to only one station at a time. And if someone is with you, like your mate, and they are talking, you’d better turn off the radio and give him or her your undivided attention.
Voices are speaking to us from nearly every direction. Some of them we need to turn off and some we need to tune into. We should have a deaf ear to the defiant voice of the world, but when God speaks, we need to tune in.
Matt. 7:24 "Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock."
Matt. 11:15 "He who has ears, let him hear." Are you listening?
