The Three Counselors Of The Christian

THE THREE COUNSELORS OF THE CHRISTIAN

1 Cor. 10:23; 6:12

INTRODUCTION

A. HUMOR

1. I heard about a pastor who bought a new horse. He trained it to respond to “Praise the Lord,” meaning giddy-up, and “hallelujah,” meaning woah. Every time he said praise the lord, the horse would take off running. When he said hallelujah, it would quickly stop.

2. One day he was out riding and the horse got spooked and took off straight toward a cliff going full blast. In the panic, he couldn’t remember what he taught his horse. He said “blessed God,” “glory,” “Amen” -- nothing worked!

3. At the last second, he shouted “HALLELUJAH”, the horse came to a screeching halt inches before the edge of the cliff. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, “Praise the Lord!”

B. IDEA & TITLE

1. Thomas Jefferson, later in life, took a razor in one hand and glue in the other and cut-out and pasted the New Testament apart & back together. He cut out all the miracles and any mention of the supernatural; he removed any reference to the Second Coming, Heaven, Hell, and the resurrection. In the end was a work called the Jefferson Bible which has about 84 pages. We all would say that’s terrible.

2. How do you treat YOUR Bible? Obedience is not an option when God speaks. To most Christians the Bible is like a Luby’s Cafeteria, where you pick and choose which items you want to eat! We agree with it until the Bible doesn’t agree with us. Then we do just like Thomas Jefferson and cut out the parts we don’t like!

3. We need to read & obey ALL the Bible. Tonight we’re looking at how to be led by God and the title is, “The Three Counselors of the Christian.”

I. GOD PROMISES TO GUIDE YOU

A. WHO BETTER TO BE OUR GUIDE?

1. God is omniscient – He knows everything. He’s the only Being who knows the future and every detail about us personally. He knows what we’re designed for and what we will be successful doing.

2. God is not just an observer of events, but a mover of events. Therefore the most knowledgeable person for us to seek as a guide is God.

B. PROMISES OF GUIDANCE

1. If we seek Him, He promises to guide our decisions. Proverbs 37:23, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delights in his way.”

2. Psalms 25:9; “He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.” Psalms 48:14; “For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even to the end.” Psalms 73:24, “You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.”

3. God didn’t save you from sin to be unproductive; God didn't predestine you from the foundation of the world as His child so you could be a spiritual failure; God didn’t save, sanctify, & set you apart, for you to live a defeated life or be overwhelmed with addictions;

God made His plans for you so that you would Conquer, be victorious!

C. ILLUS.: Worry flees when you trust in God

1. James Cash Penney (who started J. C. Penney stores) made some unwise business deals and became very depressed. He was so overwhelmed he had to be admitted to a hospital. One night he was certain that he would die, so he wrote letters to his family and fell asleep.

2. He woke up the next morning and was surprised that he was still alive. He heard people singing “God Will Take Care of You” in the chapel and went in. As he listened, something happened.

3. He later said, “I realized that God, with His love, was there to help me. From that day forward my life has been free from worry -- all because I realized that God WILL take care of me!” GOD CARES ABOUT US!

II. FIVE WAYS TO KNOW THE WILL OF GOD

Here’s 5 ways you can know the will of God.

A. THE WORD OF GOD

1. First is the Bible. It’s God’s standard for you to apply to your life. It may not tell you which girl to marry, which college to attend, etc. But it will give you the correct principles to make those decisions.

2. For example, the Bible says, “Don’t be unequally yoked together with unbelievers” 2 Cor. 6:14. So, if you come to me and you say, “Pastor, I want to marry Susie. Do you think I ought to marry Susie?” “Well, is Susie a Christian, Bill?” “No.” “Then it’s not God’s will. God said, ‘Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers,’ that ought to settle it, right?” I mean, that’s the Word of God.