Who Is Doing The Preaching Now?
Throughout the years, God has used unique ways to teach His people some very important truths. Let us take a look at a few ways and some "strange preachers" that God has chose to use, whose messages we would be wise to heed.
If each one of us would think for a moment, we could remember the events that led us to our conversion.
What kind preacher brought the message of love to you?
Was it a near divorce or divorce?
Was it a near death experience or the death of a Christian loved one?
Was it finances?
Trouble with the law?
Titus 2:11
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men
NIV
Genesis 4:9-10
"And the Lord said to Cain, ’Where is Abel your brother?’ He said, ’I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?’ And the Lord said, ’What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground."
I. THE BLOOD OF ABEL PROCLAIMED THREE TRUTHS!
1. Man cannot hide from God. Cain should have learned this from his parents (Adam and Eve) who tried to hide in the Garden from God.
2. Man cannot hide his sin from God: "What have you done?…"
"Be sure your sin will find you out." Numbers 32:23.
3. Sin always brings a consequence. All sin, unless forgiven, will be punished. Sometimes swiftly, sometimes delayed…but always certain.
II. THE PILLAR OF SALT IN THE VALLEY OF ZOAR!
"But his wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt." Genesis 19:26.
The pillar of salt teaches us that every commandment of God is to be obeyed.
"Looking back at Sodom" did not seem such a grievous sin but it resulted in the death of Lot’s wife.
No commandment of God is casual.
Samuel declared to God’s people: "If you do not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you, as it was against your fathers." I Samuel 12:15.
III. THE DONKEY OF BALAAM THE PROPHET!
Peter, in speaking of the worldly-minded, declared: "They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and are accursed children. They have for- saken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he was rebuked for his iniquity; a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet." II Peter 2:14b-16.
This incident warns us to take our God-given responsibility seriously.
"And the Angel of the Lord said to him, ’Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse before Me. The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her live." Numbers 22:32-33.
IV. THE ROOSTER THAT CROWED IN THE COURTYARD!
"Then He said: ’I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me." Luke 22:34.
Yea, sure. Its me Jesus Peter, the stone, remember? I cut a man’s ear off protecting you. I’m ready to get it on.
I’m not going to keep my light under a bushel, I am the salt and the light in this world.
Its not guts that will keep you from denying a relationship with Christ, its a love relationship with Him that will keep you from being ashamed of Him.
"Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a certain servant-girl came to him and said, "You too were with Jesus the Galilean."
But he denied it before them all, saying, "I do not know what you are talking about."
And when he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and * said to those who were there, "This man was with Jesus of Nazareth."
And again he denied it with an oath, "I do not know the man."
And a little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, "Surely you too are one of them; for the way you talk gives you away."
Then he began to curse and swear, "I do not know the man!" And immediately a cock crowed.
And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, "Before a cock crows, you will deny Me three times." And he went out and wept bitterly."
Matthew 26:69-75 (NASB)
The crowing of the rooster in that Jerusalem courtyard has a message for us today: "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." I Corinthians 10:12.
Rom 10:9
[That if thou shalt confess] The word here rendered "confess" homologeoo is often rendered "profess"; Matt 7:23, "Then will I profess to them, I never knew you;" Titus 1:16; 3:14; Rom 1:22; 1 Tim 2:10; 6:12-13,21; Heb 3:1, etc. It properly means to "speak what agrees with something which others speak or maintain." Thus, confession or profession expresses our "agreement or concord with what GOD holds to be true, and what he declares to be true." It denotes a public declaration or assent to that, here expressed by the words "with thy mouth." A profession of religion then denotes a public declaration of our agreement with what God has declared, and extends to all his declarations about our lost estate, our sin, and need of a Saviour; to his doctrines about his own nature, holiness, and law; about the Saviour and the Holy Spirit; about the necessity of a change of heart and holiness of life; and about the grave and the judgment; about heaven and hell. As the doctrine respecting a Redeemer is the main and leading doctrine, it is put here by way of eminence, as in fact involving all others; and publicly to express our assent to this, is to declare our agreement with God on all kindred truths.
[With thy mouth] To profess a thing with the mouth is to speak of it; to declare it; to do it openly and publicly.
[The Lord Jesus] Shalt openly acknowledge attachment to Jesus Christ. The meaning of it may be expressed by regarding the phrase "the Lord" as the predicate; or the thing to be confessed is, that he is Lord; compare Acts 2:36; Phil 2:11, "And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." Here it means to acknowledge him as Lord, that is, as having a right to rule over the soul.
[Shalt believe in thy heart] Shalt sincerely and truly believe this, so that the external profession shall correspond with the real, internal feelings. Where this is not the case, it would be hypocrisy; where this is the case, there would be the highest sincerity, and this religion requires.
[That God hath raised him] This fact, or article of Christian belief, is mentioned here because of its great importance, and its bearing on the Christian system. If this be true, then all is true. Then it is true that he came forth from God; that he died for sin; and that God approved and accepted his work. Then it is true that he ascended to heaven, and is exalted to dominion over the universe, and that he will return to judge the quick and the dead. For all this was professed and taught; and all this was regarded as depending on the truth of his having been raised from the dead; see Phil 2:8-11; Eph 1:21; Acts 2:24,32-33; 17:31; 2 Cor 4:14; 1 Cor 15:13-20. To profess this doctrine was, therefore, virtually to profess all the truths of the Christian religion. No man could believe this who did not also believe all the truths dependent on it. Hence, the apostles regarded this doctrine as so important, and made it so prominent in their preaching. See the note at Acts 1:3.
[Thou shalt be saved] From sin and hell. This is the doctrine of the gospel throughout; and all this shows that salvation by the gospel was easy.
Phil 2:13
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure
