The Bible is replete with examples of cause and effect when people do what is right in their own eyes
We say briefly last week how quickly events got out of control when a few began to do what was right in their own eyes – and before you know it the Israelites virtually killed off one of it’s own tribes – brother killing brother
Matthew 24:9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.
Matthew 24:10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.
Matthew 24:11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
Matthew 24:12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
Love for One Another
How do we know that we are true students of His way
John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
John 13:35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
[students, pupils, learners]
Philippians 2:3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.
Philippians 2:4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.
Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
It should be apparent to the Bible believer that we do not get to do whatever it is that we want to do.
Adam and Eve from the beginning
It was God that Created man and He knew what they needed to live a good life and to build the character necessary to make it into the Kingdom of God [Deuteronomy 30:19-20].
We continue in it because:
Pride and Ego
Watch out for Satan and his Tools and Ways
[2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2]
2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
Acts 20:29 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.
Acts 20:30 Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.
The next thing that you know
Making Good out to be Bad and Bad to be Good
Isaiah 5:19 That say, “Let Him make speed and hasten His work, That we may see it; And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, That we may know it.”
Isaiah 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Isaiah 5:21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!
It is our nature to be against God
Why Don’t we like rules why is it that we don’t want to do what God says?
In stead of doing what is right in our own eyes…
Right in the Sight of the LORD
2 Kings 22:1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath.
2 Kings 22:2 And he did what was, and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
1 Kings 11:38 Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.
Psalm 119:1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, Who walk in the law of the LORD!
David: Psalm 119: law, testimonies, His ways, precepts, statutes, all Your commandments, righteous judgments, word, ordinances, and knowledge.
Psalms 119:172 … For all Your commandments are righteousness.
Psalms 119:176 … I do not forget Your commandments.
Psalms 40:8 I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart.”
1. Written in the Heart
Deuteronomy 5:1 And Moses called all Israel, and said to them: “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today, that you may learn them and be careful to observe them.
Deuteronomy 5:29 Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!
Deuteronomy 5:30 Go and say to them, “Return to your tents.”
Deuteronomy 5:31 But as for you, stand here by Me, and I will speak to you all the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments which you shall teach them, that they may observe them in the land which I am giving them to possess.’
Deuteronomy 5:32 “Therefore you shall be careful to do as the LORD your God has commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. [as He commanded Josiah]
Deuteronomy 5:33 You shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess.
Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
2 Corinthians 3:2 You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men;
2 Corinthians 3:3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.
The hard heart that we get with Satan’s nature must be softened by God ‘s holy spirit
Use Holy Spirit
Ezekiel 11:19 Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh,
Ezekiel 11:20 that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 11:21 But as for those whose hearts follow the desire for their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord GOD.
Ties back into heart
1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written: “EYE HAS NOT SEEN, NOR EAR HEARD, NOR HAVE ENTERED INTO THE HEART OF MAN THE THINGS WHICH GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.”
1 Corinthians 2:10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.
1 Corinthians 2:11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
John 4:24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
Romans 8:8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Romans 8:9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.
2. Live By Every Word
Deuteronomy 8:1 “Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers.
Deuteronomy 8:2 And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
Deuteronomy 8:3 So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD (Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4).
Old Testament and New Testament
2 Timothy 3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:
2 Timothy 3:2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
2 Timothy 3:3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,
2 Timothy 3:4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
2 Timothy 3:5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
2 Timothy 3:6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,
2 Timothy 3:7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
2 Timothy 3:14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
2 Timothy 3:15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
2 Timothy 3:17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Act and Obey
Acts 5:29 But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.
Acts 5:32 And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.”
Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.
Matthew 5:15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
Matthew 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
2 Peter 3:17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;
2 Peter 3:18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
By Their Fruits….
Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
Matthew 7:16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?
Matthew 7:17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
Matthew 7:18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Matthew 7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Matthew 7:20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Galatians 5:23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
3. Be Humble / Humility
Are you right? Right at all costs? Are we going to insist on our ways? Are we going to actually say or believe that we know better than God? Are we going to stand OUR ground?
OR are we going realize our own weaknesses and shortcomings? Submit to our Creator and acknowledge that He knows better and has our best interest at heart?
If we have this mindset then God can teach us!
He Teaches the Humble
Psalms 25:9 The humble He guides in justice, And the humble He teaches His way.
Isaiah 66:2 For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist,” Says the LORD. “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.
There should be a humility that comes from realizing how great God is and how we are less than nothing without Him in our lives.
If we fail in this and insist that we are smart enough in and of ourselves and we have the ability to come to an understanding or right from wrong during our brief time on this Earth which is but a blip in history then the Bible has a lot to say about that as well.
Pride goes before the fall
Proverbs 16:5: “Everyone who is proud in the heart is an abomination to the LORD…”
Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.
Proverbs 16:19 Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud.
Proverbs 16:25 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
Proverbs 11:2: “When pride comes, then comes shame, but with the humble is wisdom.”
And if we are humble and wise in the word of God and do what is right in the eyes of God then….
Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
Proverbs 13:10: “By pride comes only contention, but with the well-advised is wisdom.” Notice the link between being “well-advised” and wisdom. A humble person is willing to consider the advice of others.
Proverbs 15:33: “The fear of the LORD is the instruction in wisdom, and before honor is humility.”
Proverbs 18:12: “Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, and before honor is humility.”
Proverbs 29:23: “A man’s pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honor.”
4. Seek God While He may be Found
Isaiah 55:6 Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.
Isaiah 55:8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
Isaiah 55:9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Some are going backwards…. Moving away from God. they will come to the point that they will not be able to find Him because He hides His face Deuteronomy 31:17-18; 32:20
Our sins separate us from God. We have to stop doing this.
God is giving us an opportunity right now to find Him and understand Him and what He requires of us
Isaiah 45:19 I have not spoken in secret, In a dark place of the earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in vain’; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.
Big 4: PRAYER, BIBLE STUDY, FASTING AND MEDITATION
These are methods for understanding the will of God…and we are to LIVE that way too
Ephesians 5:15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
Ephesians 5:16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
5. Test All Things; Hold Fast what is Good
Especially necessary now! Our eyes vs God eyes
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.
Acts 17:11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
Whether we do it or not we are going to be held responsible
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,
Ignorance is no excuse. You will be held accountable for what you dont know and doubly for what you do
Discerning
Proverbs 2:3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding,
Psalms 111:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.
This also implies knowing them, else how would we know what to keep?
Endurance / Perseverance
Matthew 24:13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
2 Timothy 3:14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned
Must Continue in the way because it is not once saved always saved.
We can’t let down, we must hold fast! This is mentioned many times in Revelation (as well as other parts of the Bible)
Revelation 2:13 “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
Revelation 2:25 But hold fast what you have till I come.
Revelation 3:3 Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.
Revelation 3:11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.
The Church has always had to test the word of the man that the “truth” is coming from
Revelation 2:2 “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;
Jude 1:3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
Jude 1:4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.
John 10:16 And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
Voice of the Shepherd
Prophecy against the Shepherds Ezekiel 34 so it’s very important now
- Minister by definition is a Server
- A spiritual leader, but a servant leader; Be an Example; Shows love
- Feed the Flock – Give them what is necessary for life
- Grow the People of God
- Preach the Gospel
- Give Life for the Sheep / Cares for the Flock
2 Timothy 1:13 Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.
Don’t Listen to Heretics (opposite of Shepherd’s voice)
2 Peter 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, andbring on themselves swift destruction.
2 Peter 2:2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.
2 Peter 2:3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.
2 Timothy 2:14 Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers.
2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
2 Timothy 2:16 But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness.
2 Timothy 2:17 And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort,
2 Timothy 2:18 who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some.
6. A Love for the Truth
Genuine; do we value; is it precious to us
2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
2 Thessalonians 2:2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
2 Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,
2 Thessalonians 2:10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
[refused to love the truth]
2 Thessalonians 2:11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,
2 Timothy 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
2 Timothy 4:4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
As we progress forward
7. Examine Ourselves
Heard many times in lead up to Passover
look at:
1 Corinthians 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
1 Corinthians 11:29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
1 Corinthians 11:30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
1 Corinthians 11:31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.
1 Corinthians 11:32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
Hopefully I will be able to make a presentation on another time of the year specifically that we should focus on this
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.
Do we talk the talk and walk the walk? When we review our lives on an ongoing basis are we TRULY doing what is right in the sight of the Lord?
Conclusion
In this time:
Matthew 24:10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.
Matthew 24:11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
Matthew 24:12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
When people of the world and in the church will increasingly do what is right in their own eyes
We must now more than ever make every loving word of God a part of us. And by the power of the HS seek out, test and live by all scripture until the return of Christ
Hosea 14:9 Who is wise? Let him understand these things. Who is prudent? Let him know them. For the ways of the LORD are right; The righteous walk in them, But transgressors stumble in them.