Watch the video:

Study Notes:

(all scripture references are from the King James Bible)

There are two unseen reefs that will make a ship wreck of your faith

These 2 reefs lurk beneath the waters. The word of God is our compass.

The names of these reefs are “Unreasonable & Uncertain,” We will see how they make a shipwreck of our faith, The word of God keep our heading on a safe passage.

This study is about the sunken reef called “Unreasonable.”

In this session we will see how scriptural reason has been removed from modern versions and the devastating results that the rejection of reason brings.

Scriptures—that is the King James Bible tells us always to reason

There is a move afoot that diminishes the certainty and final authority in the scriptures. True faith is not blind faith. Satan wants an emerging church that is sure of nothing, with people, lurking in the shadows of a Dark Age searching for stability and certainty but, looking in all the wrong places. If we lose our certainty of the purity and preservation of the Holy Scriptures where then will we turn? I believe that worldliness is increasing and Christians are turning away from the foundation of the Holy Scriptures.

True faith brings the certainty and the confidence to reason, with God our creator, in an appropriate manner. Degrees of doubt bring uncertainty and, in the end, unreasonableness as ego dominates our perception. We move from the certainty of searching the scriptures (because we know they are the truth) to studying the scriptures (because we need to find out if they are the truth)

John 5:39

39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

You can check the scriptures out with modern versions I don’t want to sully the page by quoting them. You will discover as you read the King James Bible that we are expected to be able to reason. Reasoning is based on thinking and God has prepared our mind to be renewed by the word of God. We are able to reason perfectly. You will see examples in the scriptures of our ability to reason with God and for God to reason with us as well is our ability to reason with other people those things that concern the kingdom of God.

See how Samuel the prophet said to the people:

1 Samuel 12:7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD, which he did to you and to your fathers. [KJV]

Job, however, felt that he could not reason with God.

In his mind, it was God who gave to him and God who took away from him. Who can reason with God? The word of God tells us that the things that Job feared came upon him.

Job 3:25 For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me. [KJV]

We are going to see that God does, indeed, give us the right and the privilege to reason with him. Modern versions muddy the waters about this and tend to present God as completely unreasonable or rather beyond reason.

Job 9:14 How much less shall I answer him, and choose out my words to reason with him? [KJV]

Job listens to his comforters and of course they are not comforters at all because they see that the calamity that has befallen Job must have a reason that is connected, somehow, to Job’s sinful behaviour. This, of course, is nonsense because the word of God clearly says, 2 times, at the start of this passage that Job was righteous and just.

Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. [KJV]

Job 1:8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? [KJV]

Satan believed in the prosperity doctrine that gain is godliness and that gain is a sign of the blessing of God. He goes on about a protective hedge and that if God were to remove the hedge and let him, Satan, strike at Job that Job would end up cursing God and his righteousness would evaporate. Satan assumed that Job’s nature was the same as his.

Job 1:11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. [KJV]

Job opens up his heart and cries out that he would speak to the Almighty and that he desires to reason with God. By the time Job’s trials are over he learns that he can, to his amazement, perfectly reason with the Almighty. There are some astounding lessons that he learnt not the least was to count his daughters worthy of equal inheritance as his sons. But that’s another story.

Job 13:3 Surely I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to reason with God. [KJV]

Now Job pushes his faith out and wants the Lord to hear his reasoning and listen to the pleadings of his mouth

Job 13:6 Hear now my reasoning, and hearken to the pleadings of my lips. [KJV]

Job’s friends chime in that he is being unreasonable to expect that the Almighty God would reason with him and stoop to explain himself. It is evident, in their estimation, that the calamities that have befallen Job are directly linked to his unrighteous behaviour. This is presumption. You will find that Modern Bible versions presume far too much on the one hand and obscure the truth on the other.

Job 15:3 Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good? [KJV]

Elihu says:

Job 32:11 Behold, I waited for your words; I gave ear to your reasons, whilst ye searched out what to say. [KJV]

Now to add insult to injury this young buck, in anger, sets out to rebuke Job. He presumes that Job sees himself righteous in his own eyes but he is obviously unrighteous in God’s eyes. We know that this is nonsense because we have the testimony of the scriptures at the beginning of Job where he is called righteous. Even though he paid a form of pseudo respect by letting his elders answer Job 1st he is not backward in coming forward to vent his indignation and anger. Actually he rants on for the longest continuous speech that is recorded in the word of God. The thrust of his tirade is that Job should not presume that he could reason with God at all or that he should expect God to explain himself or give any reasons for his actions. I sincerely hope that I wasn’t like this young man when I was young. The point is that he argues, demonstrates and strongly suggests that God is Almighty and doesn’t need to nor want to reason or explain himself to anybody, least of all a man who is obviously unjust. We are going to learn, of course, that the exact opposite is the case. God most certainly wants to reason with Job.

Let’s turn to the greatest King set over the people of God as the nation of Israel:

Here is the man chosen to be King of Israel, God’s own kingdom on this world at the time. He says that he applied himself to search, seek out wisdom and to discover the reason of things. New versions hide the fact that we are expected to reason. Unreasonableness is one of the hidden reefs that snare/puncture the whole of your life and sink your vessel making a ship wreck of your faith.

Ecclesiastes 7:25 I applied mine heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness: [KJV]

We should not be surprised when the natural man working without reference to God is not able to successfully search out anything and will always tend to make a hash up of his conclusions that he draws from what he finds. Evolution/creation is a perfect example of this. Consider, for the moment, the teachings of the word of God and the teachings of those that support evolution. The findings or rather what is found or observed are the same by both but the conclusions are vastly different. The one has billions of years moving towards an end that evaporates into oblivion and the other has a very short time, comparatively speaking, moving towards an end that expands into unmeasurable billions of years. Both of these conclusions are drawn from observing the same searched out observations.

The Greatest Reasoning Is Found in the Word of God

Here we have the cry of our Almighty God yearning for the salvation of his people. “Come now, and let us reason together” and what does he want to reason about? How our iniquity can be cleansed and overcome and what great and wonderful plans he has for us to be his people even though we have fallen.

~”Let Us Reason”

Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. [KJV]

The latest version of the NIV changes the concept of righteous reason into a 2 sided argument:

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. New International Version 2011

Isaiah 1:18 Come now, let us argue it out, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. [NRS]

Once again the Almighty gives us the opportunity to state our case to reason with him

Isaiah 41:21 Produce your cause, saith the LORD; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob. [KJV]

Losing the ability to reason is a direct result of lifting yourself up in pride and thinking that you don’t need God or that God is merely a flick of a finger to you or that you are not beholden to God in any way.

Let’s look at the greatest sovereign—yea Emperor—of the greatest kingdom of man that this earth has ever or will ever see (outside the establishment of the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ after his return):

Look at the greatest King in the greatest kingdom of the kingdoms of the earth after his pride and arrogance brought him to the point where God took away his mind for a season and upon regaining his senses he declares:

Daniel 4:36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me. [KJV]

There is good reasoning and there is bad reasoning. Good reasoning is when we come before the Lord with his word and his promises and we entreat him in the scriptural fashion.

Bad reasoning happens when we try to justify our doubt our fears and criticisms. We don’t want to be like the people in these following scriptures.

Matthew 16:7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. [KJV]

Matthew 16:8 Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? [KJV]

Matthew 21:25 The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? [KJV]

Mark 2:6 But there was certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, [KJV]

Mark 2:8 And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? [KJV]

Mark 8:16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread. [KJV]

Mark 8:17 And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? [KJV]

Mark 11:31 And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him? [KJV]

Reasoning always starts in the heart and then spreads.

Mark 12:28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? [KJV]

Luke 5:21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone? [KJV]

Luke 5:22 But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? [KJV]

Luke 9:46 Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest. [KJV]

Luke 20:5 And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then believed ye him not? [KJV]

To be able to reason is to be able to think and then express your thoughts.

Luke 20:14 But when the husbandmen saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours. [KJV]

Remember that Paul says that he wants to be delivered from unreasonable men. Unreasonable men are people who argue merely from emotion and ego rather than consideration and thought THAT IS RELATIVE TO THE WORD OF GOD. Thinking that is NOT influenced by the truth of the word of God IS UNEASONABLE.

Luke 24:15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. [KJV]

John 12:11 Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus. [KJV]

Acts 6:2 Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. [KJV]

We should be able to reason out of the scriptures with anyone at all. Sometimes we reason out of the scriptures with those who are hungry and sometimes we reason out of the Scripture with those who oppose themselves. We should always be prepared to reason out of the scriptures. Don’t forget that we have been given an invitation to come together with the Lord God of heaven and reason with him according to his word and his promises. We are not blind mice. Reasoning is not the same as arguing nor is it the same as a settlement. We do not pay the debt, our debt is paid by another and so we reason. We do not settle the debt, we thank God that the debt has been settled for us.

Scriptural reason is connected to scriptural reckon.

Romans 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. [KJV]

The apostle Paul always reasoned out of the scriptures:

Acts 17:2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, [KJV]

Reasoning allows you to persuade and persuasion changes the perception and the outcome.

Acts 18:4 And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. [KJV]

Acts 18:14 And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you: [KJV]

We can reason with people who say that they know the scriptures as long as they are open to know what the word of God actually says. Unreasonable men are not open to reason.

Acts 18:19 And he came to Ephesus, and left them there: but he himself entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with the Jews. [KJV]

As we reason in the scriptures the hearts of the listeners are open to the moving and conviction of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 24:25 And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee. [KJV]

Acts 28:29 And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning among themselves. [KJV]

Romans 8:20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, [KJV]

Reasonable service—Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. [KJV]

By reason of—2 Corinthians 3:10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. [KJV]

Hebrews 5:3 And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins. [KJV]

Hebrews 5:14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. [KJV]

Hebrews 7:23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: [KJV]

1 Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: [KJV]

2 Thessalonians 3:2

2 And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.

New versions do not like the idea that teachers and scholars can be “unreasonable.” As you can see they have completely omitted the idea of unreasonable ministers of the gospel. Just read chapter 2 and you will see that he speaking about false teachers who teach fables instead of the truth of the scriptures. People who teach the Commandments of men as though they were the Commandments of God—actually these days they are inclined to teach that there are no Commandments at all because we are under what they term as “GRACE.”

2 Thessalonians 3:2 And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith. [NIV]

Godly reasoning

Isaiah 1:18

18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Romans 16:18

18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

The record of the word of God is certainly that we should and are able to reason, according to the scriptures. Many modern Christians believe that the way to get revelation is simply to ask God for it. While that is wonderful thing to do it can’t really be left there because if you simply ask God to reveal something to you without reference to the written word of God you are unable to to reason about it because it simply comes down to what you believe in or what somebody else believes to be the case. We need to reason, according to the scriptures. God testifies to the truth of the scriptures and the scriptures testified to the truth of God. If you receive a revelation that is outside of the scope of the scriptures or indeed contrary to the word of God then you must conclude that you did not receive the revelation from God, the Lord Jesus Christ or the holy spirit.

When you only rely on a revelation to establish what is the truth you end up in the seat of one who suggests that the man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with the argument. This is not a sound place on which to ground your faith and behaviour. All real revelation can be reasoned from the scriptures. You may not be able to arrive at the truth by simply reasoning the scriptures because we are a spiritual people and we need spiritual revelation. But once we have received spiritual revelation that revelation is always confirmed in the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses because it can be soundly reasoned from the scriptures.

We need to be reasonable men and women. God our Father wants to reason with us according to his word.

GREED has seeped into every aspect of life.

Greed is a toxic fog that silently pervades us.

THE LOVE OF MONEY

This subject ought to be looked at in greater detail. The term money is used some 125 odd times in the King James Bible and of course the subject of “money matters” is scattered right throughout the Bible. I should probably do a study just on this subject alone. On the subject of greed I would like you to read this quote from Abraham Lincoln. I find it quite chilling. It was definitely prophetic. It was made at a time when 7 out of 8 men were self-employed but he foresaw the rise of what were to become imperial corporations. We are at this point well and truly when very few people are self-employed or running what could be called small business. The vast majority of the people who vote in our Western democracies are, working for government directly, working for some government agency or associated not-for-profit / charity or large multi-national corporations or are recipients of some type of welfare. These are the perfect conditions for wealth to be accumulated within the power of a very few. We Christians need to avoid greed. We are supposed to be the salt of the earth and it is this flavour that keeps back the chaos, confusion and twilight.

Lincoln said, “We may congratulate ourselves that this cruel war is nearing its end. It has cost a vast amount of treasure and blood. . . . It has indeed been a trying hour for the Republic; but I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. As a result of the war, corporations have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever before, even in the midst of war. God grant that my suspicions may prove groundless.”

There is no doubt that the massive & destructive downturn of our economic future in 2008 was laid squarely at the outcomes of unregulated greed. Ever since the Scottish economic model was produced, this model ended up promoting the idea that society would move forward when everybody tried to arrive at their personal best, our culture has been doomed to wallow in greed.

I notice that in the USA they are trying to move hard on “insider trading” in the wake of the recent financial disasters but you have to ask the question, “how many of the perpetrators have been actually prosecuted and sentenced?”

More importantly the financial sector should be firmly regulated and not left to being manipulated by a greedy few. You should not find it surprising that where ever there are national disasters that the stock exchange, affected by those nations, suddenly surges because greedy people realise that they can profit from needy people.

One of the main reasons that are Western economy collapsed was because the foundations of home mortgages were subtly altered to allow massive speculation, including insurance against the speculation of their failure, when they were traded on a massive scale.

When I was young, a true savings bank account was protected and a true mortgage of the family home was protected. This protection was guaranteed by the government of the day. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. The new style savings and mortgage accounts are not the traditional protected accounts but are in the form of investment accounts and, as such, carry no such government protections. Superannuation has suffered the same fate. Do not be misled by the term “superannuation guarantee,” this is just a guarantee that all employers must pay superannuation it most certainly is not a guarantee that the employees will be able to collect it. This new policy has produced speculation of the markets on a truly massive scale. When you see the current commercial ads for superannuation funds make sure that you listen very carefully to the wording of those advertisements.

Western democracies, which for the majority of the last 200 years, have understood that they had to regulate financial freedoms in order to protect the very people that they govern, have in the last three decades systematically removed regulation from the financial sector to find themselves left with the care and the responsibility of the people but no control over the money to do so in an effective manner. This unbalanced mechanism is driven by greed.

When greed drives a nation, an economy, a business entity, a churrch, a family or an individual the end result is that somebody, somewhere, pays a massive price.

The Bible warns against greediness.

The trouble is that “enough is never enough.” I’d like you to follow me through a few scriptures that highlight how the word of God views greed and greediness.

We will start with Paul’s admonition to Timothy about food & raiment.

1 Timothy 6:5–11 KJV

5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.

7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.

8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.

10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

What do you do with a set of scriptures like this?

The Scriptures strike at the very heart of the problem and correctly describe the situation today.

Should you let the Scriptures change your lifestyle?

In view of all the various teachings about the prosperity of the people of God we should know precisely what the Bible has to say on this subject.

Are these verses relevant to our lifestyle today?

We live in a day when the gap between the rich and the poor of this world is growing exponentially. The people of God need sound teaching in this area.

Is it possible that we can drown in destruction and perdition?

Absolutely, no grace of God is irresistible and we are all held accountable for what we have and what we do with it. I think this scripture in Proverbs should sum up our attitude.

Proverbs 30:8–9 KJV

8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:

9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

“Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:” this is the correct moderate idea because anything more or less than this opens the door way to being overcome by temptation. To me it is very similar to the injunction for a married couple. A married couple are to maintain their intimate relationship or else it would open the door way to being overcome by temptation.

What does the term “will be rich” really mean?

(The desire to be rich) Rich is defined as the opposite of poor. The moderate form of lifestyle is clearly described here. If you have enough food and raiment (raiment could be described as having reasonable accommodation to live within your society and culture.)

How do we relate to “the love of money”?

To love something is to desire it and to want to make it yours.

If I have the “love of money,” does this mean that I will err from the faith?

The love of money is one of the great causes for people, particularly preachers, erring from the faith (they have erred from the faith.) “To err” is slightly different from the meaning of “to fall away.” Sexual misadventure, un-forgiveness and bitterness will cause you to fall away. When you err from the faith you take the wrong path and if you are leading others they might also follow you down this path and so become lost as well.

Think about the term “gain is godliness.”

Contrary to popular belief it is not a sign of godliness to have more than enough. When the apostle Paul talked about having a prosperous journey he did not mean that he made a lot of money it means that he arrived successfully to his destination. That is, his journey accomplished what he set out to do.

Romans 1:10 Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. KJV

Here you can see the 1^st time this word is used in the King James Bible and it gives you a clear reference to understanding it.

Genesis 24:21 And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not. KJV

He was looking for a wife for the son of his master and this had absolutely nothing to do with making a lot of money.

Isn’t the teaching of prosperity, that gain is godliness or a sign of God’s blessing, a common enough sentiment among Christians today?

Does the word of God really mean that if you think that or behave in a way that promotes the concept that gain is godliness you will be perverse, corrupt minded and destitute of the truth?

Let us look at verse 7 again: “Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.” The people that suppose that gain is godliness have perverse disputings coming from corrupt minds that are destitute of the truth! The solution for us is to “withdraw ourselves!” Surely this verse is clear enough. It is no good arguing that you think that the character and disposition of a person, minister or not, is different from this, if they promote the concept that financial gain is a sign of godliness. Such people are of a corrupt mind and destitute of the truth.

To me the central theme is “having food and raiment let us be content.”

Verse 11 tells us plainly what to flee and what to follow. This surely means that we are not to chase after or desire riches and we certainly should not have a love of money.

The hardest person to judge righteously and effectively is yourself. The scriptures say that the perfect have their senses exercise to discern good and evil. It is always difficult to get to the root and the source of some issues within our lives. This is especially true when we are endeavouring to discern the actual motivation behind our actions.

You will find the video stream of this here:

Here in Australia, we have a long established justice system.

We have what we call Common-Law.

This stretches back To the UK system

Eventually, to the conventions in Genesis when God told Moses that everything was established in the mouth of two or three witnesses.

The witnesses were to be true and faithful to the truth.

When somebody gives evidence in a court of law in this country, they are formally asked to swear by placing their hand on a copy of the word of God. They announce who they are and the phrase that they “solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

Now I know that some Christians, me included, do not like to take an oath by swearing on anything at all.

In this case, we are permitted to make what is called “a solemn declaration.”

Essentially this is the same as making a promise to “tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

I have friends in the legal profession here in this country, who tell me that there are less and less court trials before a jury and there is a swing away from trusting human witnesses to using forensic evidence or specialist witnesses in order to provide evidence.

I do not want to get into the pros and cons of this.

What I want to do is to draw attention to the fact that it is our system of law and order that provides a safe environment for us to live in.

The truth that we are free from chaos and anarchy is due to the fact that we have a justice system.

This rule of law relies on people, when called upon, who promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Lying has become the new art form

Today there is more lying & evading of truth than I can ever remember.

Lying seems to be on a wholesale scale

Nobody really believes anybody any more.

This as it may be but the fact remains that in order for there to be truth that is heard and understood and trusted people must be prepared to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Once we accept that normal people living in the culture of a modern society, are expected, when called upon, to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, how much more should we Christians, who are of the truth, always tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

If we expect Christians to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, how much more should we expect preachers and teachers of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

When someone speaks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ they should absolutely tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Seeing that the Bible, the King James Bible, calls for all truth to be established in the mouth of two or three witnesses so that a witness can be judged to be sure that they are telling the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, should not we expect to have a Bible that is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

Of course we should. I believe that the King James Bible is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

I do not place my hands on the King James Bible and swear on it that I am telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth

When I speak it is as though I was doing this

I don’t need to swear on the Bible because I am expected to always tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth

What is more I should expect the truth that I tell to be confirmed in the mouth of two or three witnesses

This particular Bible is full of examples of everything being established in the mouth of two or three witnesses.

It often repeats whole phrases two or three times so that you clearly see that everything that this Bible states can be found in the mouth of two or three witnesses.

These witnesses are spread across 66 books from multiple inspired writers from immensely varied backgrounds.

This is miraculous. If you count the King James Bible to be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth you would expect preachers and teachers of the gospel of Jesus Christ to knowingly and solemnly tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

There is a Scripture that tells us that if the head is sick then the heart is faint the whole body is sick.

Isaiah 1:5 Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. [KJV]

If ministers of the Gospel do not tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth in both the things that they minister, preach and teach about, and also in their everyday conversation, how can we expect believers to be people who are committed to always telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

Indeed, Christians should not have to make a solemn declaration or promise that they are telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

They should tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth at all times as a matter of course, because they are of their Father the truth.

Jesus said,

“you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”

So we Christians do know the truth and we most certainly should speak the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth as we are witnesses to the work of God and the word of God in our lives.

John 8:44

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. [KJV]

Many Christians don’t understand that the devil is a liar and, indeed, the father of all liars.

When a Christian tells a lie it is like sweet and bitter water coming from the same fountain.

When you lie you sin!

2 Corinthians 11:31

The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not. [KJV]

You can be absolutely certain of this fact—the Father knows exactly when we tell the truth and what we tell lies

He knows each and every lie that we tell

The only way to remove a lie from the memory of the Father is to repent for telling the lie and believe in God’s forgiveness for sin

1 Timothy 1:10

For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; [KJV]

Lying and the telling of lies is contrary to sound doctrine

Who said that sound doctrine does not matter?

Titus 1:12

One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. [KJV]

Even if you come from an environment where lying is an everyday occurrence, as soon as you become saved you should put lying away as a deliberate decision.

Ephesians 4:25 KJV

25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.

You have to put away lying it has no place in the new life

Numbers 23:19 KJV

19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

1 Samuel 15:29 KJV

29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

Men lie – God does not lie

Titus 1:13

This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; [KJV]

While a Christian tells lies they are not sound in faith & without faith it is impossible to please God

Lying displeases God!

Titus 1:14

Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth. [KJV]

Christians who lie and who don’t repent and stop lying will turn to fables—wrong doctrine—evil communications & find themselves losing their moral conscience and degenerate into sinful behaviour

Titus 1:15

Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. [KJV]

You become defiled when you lie and if you don’t repent and turn away from lying you will descend into unbelief and harden your heart

Titus 1:16

They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. [KJV]

This is exactly what happens to you when you become a liar—someone who tells lies for whatever reason

Revelation 2:2

I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: [KJV]

We should not put up with Christian liars

The truth is that we should not let people who say they are Christians get away with lying—we should pull them up even when they deny the lie

It is a good idea to ask someone if they are lying or rather if they are telling you the truth and then give them the benefit of the doubt the first time

The Holy Ghost will always manifest false Christians and expose Christians who lie

Contrary to modern physcobabble & popular media and TV shows. You cannot always spot liars with body language, micro expressions and electronic machines. The gift of discernment will expose the liar

Revelation 21:8

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. [KJV]

AND ALL LIARS

We don’t associate liars with murderers, adulterers, sorcerers and warmongers BUT God does

Revelation 22:15

For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. [KJV]

Are you a liar? Someone who tells untruths? Someone who loves and makes lies

Galatians 4:16

Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? [KJV]

When you tell the truth you will often turn people into enemies

Do you love the truth enough to experience this?

Galatians 4:17

They zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them. [KJV]

When you tell the truth you will often find yourself excluded because truth always pricks liars in their deepest conscience

Liars will always want to include you in thier lies.

Galatians 4:18

But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. [KJV]

It is good to always tell the truth and to warn exhort friends, family and workmates when they lie to you

Psalms 41:9

Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me. [KJV]

It really hurts when someone who is your friend that you love and trust lies to you

Just make sure that you don’t lie yourself to anybody

Bearing false witness

Exodus 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. [KJV]

This is lying

When you lie you bear false witness

Our testimony must be true in all matters

The flying roll

this was one of Zechariah’s visions

Zechariah 5:1–4 KJV

1 Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.

2 And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.

3 Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.

4 I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.

A person who

Swears falsely by his name as a Christian is a liar

We Christians do not swear at all our “yes is yes” & “our no is no” – everything we say is as if we have sworn it by His name.

So for us, lying is swearing falsely – this will end up with you being cut off.

Someone who steals & lies will have the foundation of the house of faith crumble

Deceitfulness

The problem, as my spiritual mother told me so many years ago, is that those who deceive become themselves deceived

It is a terrible thing to be deceived

You lose your moral compass

You become prey to fables

If you continue to walk in deceitfulness

You risk the possibility of your conscience being burned

Once that happens

you lose the greatest gift that God gave to mankind

Adam and Eve after they had sinned knew that they had because their conscience witnessed to them

1 Timothy 4:2 KJV

2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;

Someone with a burnt conscience falls into the category of thinking that they are standing when in actual fact they have fallen

1 Corinthians 10:12 KJV

12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

It is a dreadful thing to think that you are standing when in actual fact you have fallen because your conscience no longer works

We are the people of the truth

Let’s be people who tell the truth even if it is to our own hurt

Psalms 15:4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. [KJV]

Let’s love the truth

Ephesians 4:15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: [KJV]

This gets perversely twisted so that it is said, “if you really do love somebody you will not tell them a truth that might judge them, hurt them or discriminate against them

The world, the flesh & the devil do not understand the power of love or the power of truth

Let’s love the truth

Have a love of the truth and always the truth

2 Thessalonians 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. [KJV]

The love of the truth always says the truth

The love of the truth should be your hallmark

Be like Jesus

John 8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. [KJV]

They thought that simply being the natural children of Abraham made them right. It did not. Their deeds and behaviour showed who their real father was.

Always tell the truth

Galatians 4:16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? [KJV]

You will certainly divide people into friends and enemies when you start telling the truth as a general set of principles.

Are you prepared to pay the price?

Are you prepared to pay the price for telling the truth?

Does this include all your relationships with friends, family and workplace?

People who tell the truth always have God as their friend!

TELL THE TRUTH ALWAYS

TELL THE WHOLE TRUTH

TELL NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH

SO HELP ME GOD!

You can listen to the audio stream here:

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This word of exhortation is about the word of God and the word of faith. That being said, I would like to make it clear that I know that faith is given to us firstly so that we should believe that God is always true but every man may be a liar. We need faith to come to an awareness of our fallen state before God and the need for God to save us. Faith allows us to enjoy the promises of God, the forgiveness of God, to live in righteousness, holiness and separation from the world. Without faith it is impossible to please God and you can only be just and live righteously through faith. This is the primary reason that faith is given to mankind. The principles of faith can be used by those who don’t know God to fulfil their own ends and their own lusts. Once we know God, the primary motivation for faith is to become like Jesus Christ and live for his will and not our own selfish desires.

This exhortation is nearly all a stream of scriptures. I will give the Scripture reference and read the Scripture. All the readings will be from the King James Bible. Normally in a video I will either scroll the scripture text up the screen as I read or show a reference to the scripture within the video. Because there are so many scriptures in this short exhortation you will have to follow the link in the comments under the video to my blog site where the full transcript of this video is stored in order to have a written reminder of all the Scripture references.

Some of the content of this exhortation/teaching comes, in part, from ministers like John G Lake &. A S Worley. Both of these brethren are with the Lord Jesus now. I did have the joy of meeting A S in person during the late 1960s.

What we say as Christians, who believe in the grace of God in Jesus Christ, is very important.

Let’s look at why this is the case.

You must know that when you look around you at creation in general that it is obvious that, behind the wonder of all this, there is a designer, a creator.

Creation reveals to us that there is absolutely a creator and that this creator is God. Looking at the stars, life, nature and landscapes all show the hand of the creator.

Observation of the creation can show you definitely that there is God but to know who he is and what his name is then we have to turn to the word of God.
Proverbs 30:4 KJV Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?

It should be no surprise that God has prepared something for us, the ones to whom he has revealed his name and his son’s name. This is something special.

1 Corinthians 2:12 KJV Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

1 Corinthians 2:14 KJV But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

It means something to know God personally. It means something to be born again. It means something to have the spirit of God. These things of God are not seen or heard with the natural eye or ear or understood by the natural mind of man and they are much more than all that is known, dreamt or imagined by the mind of man.

You need to know about God. What you know about anything else is always secondary. We are made for God and God makes us the most important part of everything that he has created. Our first commitment must be unto God and all those things that are to do with him. Here is a Scripture that needs our attention

The prophet Daniel said. Daniel 12:4 KJV But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

We can see the evidence of this all around us. Add this to what the prophet Naham said. Nahum 2:3–4 KJV The shield of his mighty men is made red, the valiant men are in scarlet: the chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of his preparation, and the fir trees shall be terribly shaken. 4 The chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall justle one against another in the broad ways: they shall seem like torches, they shall run like the lightnings.

You get a picture of the hustle and bustle of modern life. Consider the Peoples of the earth and the nations and even the size of some of the national countries the vast distances, the endless oceans and the teeming variety of human life. Gaze out into space as far as you can see and suddenly we as individuals are dwarfed.

Isaiah 40:15 KJV Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.

Isaiah 40:17 KJV All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.

Isaiah 40:18 KJV To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?

Isaiah 40:21–26 KJV Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: 23 That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. 24 Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble. 25 To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.

When we look back at our history have you noticed how nations come and go have great leaders rise and disappear how empires wax and wane? Historically Nebuchadnezzar and the empire of Babylon had the greatest power over individual human life ever. This is what he says Daniel 4:2–3 KJV I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me. 3 How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation.

How great is our God! Romans 11:33 KJV O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

God is the best one that you can choose to know.

Once you are convinced that God is, then as you look into the word of God for an understanding of him you’ll find this over and over 1 John 4:8 KJV He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

Love is his nature. Love makes God great. Love gives him power over all. The love we humans have can go a long way but essentially it’s limited. God’s love is totally unlimited. He loves every human being. He loves all humans whether they please him or not, whether they are rich or poor whether they are highborn or low born. Human beings have God’s love. This is absolutely great. Hallelujah! This is the best thing that I know about God.

Jeremiah 31:3 KJV The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

Isaiah 49:15 KJV Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

The scriptures teach us that Jesus Christ, the son of God, healed, blessed, delivered and fed the multitudes because of his compassion. It is love that moved him to action. And this is what love does. Love moves to action.

Acts 10:34 KJV Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:

What a mighty Scripture this is! God loves me and God loves you because he is “no respecter of persons”

The love of God for us caused him to send his son. John 3:16 KJV For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

God’s love compelled him to express his love and compassion for us by sending his son Jesus Christ to be our saviour.

Acts 10:38 KJV How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

Jesus Christ is not just any man. He is the word made flesh. He is the proof of God’s love. When you know his son Jesus you know about his divinity, his Trinity, his name, his power to save, his Lordship, his authority and his love for us.

Matthew 28:18 KJV And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

The best thing that I know about the Lord Jesus Christ, the son of God, is his life.

Jesus said. John 10:10 KJV The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

I know that the Bible tells me in Romans 6:23 KJV For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

And I absolutely believe this because my conscience tells me that I’m guilty before God and that I have no confidence in my situation when it comes to God’s judgement. Romans 5:6 KJV For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

We had no spiritual life we were dead. We were all dead in trespasses and sins. We were without hope and without God here in this world. And then the son of God came. When Jesus came we were dead inside living in the middle of this marvellous creation. God the Father loves us and Jesus the son loves us. He came to pour out his life for us. Life is in the blood. Jesus Christ died on the cross of Calvary. He shed his righteous blood and so opens the doorway of eternal life for us. Jesus said, John 10:11 KJV I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. 1 John 3:16 KJV Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 1 John 5:11–12 KJV And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

Yes, the most wonderful thing, the best thing that I know about the son of God is life. His life poured out, given on the cross for me. 1 John 5:13 KJV These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 1 John 5:20 KJV And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

Did you know that we can say, just like Paul said? That although it may be true that Romans 7:18 KJV For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

The final victory and truth is Romans 7:24–25 KJV O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Realising that Paul meant by the term “with the flesh” he was referring to his life outside of Christ. Romans 7:5 KJV For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. Romans 8:9 KJV But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

What a wonderful victory it is to know that once we were in the flesh but now we are in the spirit.

The wonderful thing that I know about the life of the son of God is his word. Jesus said, John 6:63 KJV It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

How could we have known about our heavenly Father and is wonderful son the Lord Jesus Christ unless he had written this in his miracle book called the Holy Bible? And he takes miraculous steps to keep this written word of God pure and preserved for all generations. Our God places the highest honour on his word. Psalms 138:2 KJV I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

We also find out that this word is the same as and equal to God. John 1:1 KJV In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. His word is eternal, everlasting Mark 13:31 KJV Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

His word is powerful. Ecclesiastes 8:4 KJV Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?

We can see the power of God revealed when the Centurion comes to Jesus asking him to heal his grievously sick and tormented servant. Jesus told him, Matthew 8:7 KJV And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

And this Roman Centurion replied and said, Matthew 8:8–9 KJV The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

This concept is very important. The reason this Centurion could order a servant around or tell a soldier under him what to do was because he, the Centurion, was under the authority of the Emperor of Rome. There was a clearly defined chain of command and the power and authority that was invested in the Centurion to order those that he was responsible for and in authority over came from the fact that there was a chain of command above him that led all the way to the Emperor himself. This chain of command, this chain of authority stretched from the top to the bottom. This centurion perfectly understood his place within the chain of command. He acknowledges that Jesus is in the chain of command when it comes to spiritual matters and affairs. Centurion acknowledges that Jesus Christ had the power and authority in a chain of command that stretched to God the creator of all. Creation came into being when God spoke and as far as the Centurion was concerned he knew that all the Lord Jesus had to do was to speak and command and it would be done.

Yes there was power in the words of the King of the Roman Empire but consider, here is another King, the Prince and King from heaven, and with power and authority given to him from God the Father. This Roman Centurion acknowledged this higher power when he said, Matthew 8:8 KJV The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

“BUT SPEAK THE WORD ONLY.”

God speaks and the nations tremble: God speaks and the mountains are moved. Hebrews 4:12 KJV For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Luke 4:32 KJV And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.

When Jesus spoke devils were cast out: when Jesus spoke the sick were healed: when Jesus spoke the storms were calm. We Christians, his people, should know the power of Jesus. The devils certainly did. Luke 4:33–34 KJV And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, 34 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.

We should know because they knew him and they knew his authority over them. Luke 4:35–36 KJV And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not. 36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out. Luke 4:38–39 KJV And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon’s house. And Simon’s wife’s mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her. 39 And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them. Matthew 8:26–27 KJV And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!

We Christians are sent out in the name of Jesus. Matthew 10:16 KJV Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Moses said that God would raise up a prophet like unto him and that the people would hear him in all things. Deuteronomy 18:15 KJV The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; Acts 3:22 KJV For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. Acts 7:37 KJV This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

It is true that God used Moses in a great way, he spoke the word and waters gushed out of the rock. But Moses had somebody who spoke for him and his name was Aaron. Exodus 4:15–16 KJV And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. 16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and he shall be, even he shall be to thee instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God.

It is not unlike the concept that Jesus has authority with God and now has, at this time, while he sits at the right hand of the Majesty on high, on this earth somebody to speak for him—his body.

In this brief study and exhortation we now have two examples of how we, the body of Christ, are in a chain of command so that we can and should speak with authority. 1. Moses and Aaron 2. the Emperor and the Centurion.

This should not be that surprising because we are his witnesses. We speak on his behalf, the words of life. Acts 1:8 KJV But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Can we see that God’s word in our mouth could be the same as in Jesus’ mouth? Jesus spoke to the fig tree and it dried up from the roots, he said that we could speak to the mountain. Have you ever rebuked the devil in the name of Jesus and seen him flee? Have you ever spoken to a sickness and commanded it to cease its work in a body? Have you ever spoken the word of Jesus into a stormy situation in a home or in the business of life and seen the miracles of the spoken word of God take place in a moment’s time? The most wonderful thing that I know about the life of Jesus is the life of his word.

The most wonderful thing that I know about his word is faith. We must have faith. It is impossible to please God without faith. And how does faith come? Romans 10:8 KJV But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; Romans 10:14 KJV How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 1 Corinthians 1:21 KJV 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Romans 1:16 KJV For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Romans 10:17 KJV So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. John 20:31 KJV But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

The word of God brings light, understanding, knowledge and so faith. The word of God is called a mystery. It is hidden from the natural man and his understanding. But God has chosen a fivefold ministry namely apostles, prophets, pastors, evangelists and teachers, for the purpose of opening our understanding and to give us faith in the unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ.

Our faith in God is according to the revelation of the word, which has been opened up to us by the Holy Ghost, as we sit under this fivefold ministry of Christ. Our God wants so much for his people. He wants us to become perfect in love and in the unity of the faith even to the faith of the son of God. This is not so much as us all living in a form of human peace with one another but being at peace with God and through faith united with him in his word. God is bringing many sons unto the full stature today as they feed on the manner of the living word of God. Praise him! It is not hard for us to walk in the light once that light shines on our pathway and in our hearts. The word of God does this for us when it is revealed in all its power and glory.
Psalms 119:105 KJV Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Psalms 36:9 KJV For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.

Our prayer is, “dear Lord Jesus open your word to us and we will have sufficient faith. Amen.”

The next wonderful thing I know about faith is the confession of faith. We must take this step this is so simple. This is the cap-stone and it is the crux of this message.

So I can say, “The best thing that I know is God.” The best thing I know about God is his love. The best thing that I know about God’s love is his son Jesus. The best thing that I know about his son Jesus is his life. The best thing that I know about his life is his word. The best thing that I know about his word is faith. The best thing that I know about faith is that I can confess it—that speak it—say it.

What we long for and what we need is what is called Christian victory. Job had battles with life and came through victoriously. This was his confession, Job 42:2a KJV I know that thou canst do every thing,

God has placed faith in our heart and in our mouth we have the strength in the authority to speak the word of God. Caleb confessed in the face of opposition and adverse circumstances Numbers 13:30 KJV And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

He made it perfectly clear as far as he was concerned. He then went and took possession of what he had confessed Joshua 14:12 KJV Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.

David in the face of strong and powerful opposition at a time when he was fearful he made his confession for all to hear. He later said and admitted quite freely Psalms 27:13 KJV I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

Just consider and listen to David’s confession of Faith, 1 Samuel 17:45–46 KJV Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46 This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

Doesn’t that absolutely thrill you? Don’t under estimate this. His bold confession followed after all his prayer and meditation of asking the Lord and considering his word. He was able to stand up to overwhelming odds and boldly say what he believed.

Our faith is measured by our confession. Jesus said. Mark 9:23 KJV Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

The Bible also says. Proverbs 23:7a KJV For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:

The scriptures also tell us. Matthew 12:34 KJV O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

Will you say what the word of God says or will you say what your feelings and circumstances tell you? Which one of these two are we going to let be true by the words we use? We open or shut our doors and opportunities in life with our confession, with what we say. God made the whole of this creation with what he said, with his confession. Genesis 1:3 KJV And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

And God said, and God said, over and over until creation was completed. Genesis 1:14 KJV And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

Joshua, one day, in front of Israel, commanded that the sun standstill in the heavens and that is exactly what happened. Joshua 10:12 KJV Then spake Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.

Elijah openly said what would be and it was so. Think about it the spoken word of God controls the weather on more than one occasion., 1 Kings 17:1 KJV And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.

Jesus told a figtree what to do in front of his disciples and then turned to them and called on them to have faith in God. Mark 11:12–14 KJV And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry: 13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. 14 And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it. Mark 11:20–22 KJV And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. 22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

He then goes on to explain to us how to have faith. Jesus would never tell us to have something without telling us how we can have it. He carefully explains what we need to do. Mark 11:23 KJV For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

Don’t you think it’s time that what we said agreed with what the word of God says? Don’t you think it’s time to make our faith confession before God and man? Romans 8:31 KJV What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

You know Paul stood on the deck of a doomed ship and calmly and clearly surrounded, by a howling sea and a murmuring unbelieving mob, said Acts 27:25 KJV Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.

Jonah learnt all about hopeless circumstances. In the dark wet belly of the whale at the bottom of the ocean he came to himself. He ended up paying no attention to his circumstances but paid attention to his vows to God and makes his own confession of faith and so, enjoyed a great deliverance. Jonah 2:8 KJV They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.

When you are surrounded by dire circumstances and desperate feelings do you ever think of Job, Jonah or David? They had a confession of faith in their darkest hour. We need to establish our confession of faith. Try it some time. Job 22:28–29 KJV Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways. 29 When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, There is lifting up; and he shall save the humble person.

As the late A S Worley says,

“FAITH TALKS—TALK FAITH.”

Romans 10:8–9 KJV But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

This word saved means completely saved, set free, healed, delivered and preserved. Romans 10:10 KJV For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

We are bound to say something. What is it that we will say today? Proverbs 18:21 KJV Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Matthew 12:37 KJV For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Let’s read those mighty verses again!

Proverbs 18:21 KJV Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Matthew 12:37 KJV For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

We might be living a normal natural life in this world and in this creation but we are not of this world and not really of this present creation. We have the power to talk and confess as people who live beyond the bounds of this creation after the spiritual man. 2 Corinthians 4:13 KJV 13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

It’s time to start talking in line with those that are living in a higher country. If the great thing about faith is our ability to confess it, what are we to confess? Psalms 107:2 KJV Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

Think of the wonderful parts of the word of God that you know is the truth of the word of God about you and simply confess them. For instance “the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.”

Yes the best thing that I know about faith is that I am to confess it with my mouth.

The best thing that I know about confession is the victory that it establishes. One of my heroes is Winston Churchill, I was able to take photographs of him as a young boy and I believe that, in that strange wisdom of God, God raised him up to stand against the forces of evil and oppression in the Second World War. He used to stand and boldly say, “I know nothing but victory.” This is an unsaved man that God used for his own purposes within the ordering of nations. We are born again soldiers in the fight against the forces of evil Revelation 12:11 KJV And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 1 John 5:4 KJV For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

When you are tempted to turn away from the Lord Jesus or your mind fills with thoughts that you know are contrary to the word or the will of God, stand your ground, tell them to leave you alone and cast them out and boldly say, with your mouth “the Lord is my helper.” . When you’re surrounded by opposing circumstances and or crushing oppressive feelings, do not give in to the voice of the world, the flesh or the devil. Do not give in to the voice of the natural mind and speak out any feelings that exalt themselves against your knowledge of God. Do not confess any unfaithful responses to the challenges of faith.

Boldly speak what you know the word of God says. Give the Lord Jesus a chance to be the high priest of your confession and profession. Hebrews 4:14 KJV Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. Romans 10:10 KJV For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Some suggest that “confession” and ” profession” are not the same but the King James Bible uses them both to mean something that is both said and lived, but definitely includes something spoken with the mouth, Matthew 7:23 KJV And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

This is definitely something that is said. In the light of this, look at; Hebrews 10:23 KJV Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) Hebrews 4:14 KJV Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 1 Timothy 6:12 KJV Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

The tongue is a mighty force for good or evil. James 3:2–13 KJV For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body. 3 Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. 4 Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. 5 Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. 7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: 8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. 9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. 10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be. 11 Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? 12 Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh. 13 Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.

So you can plainly see that we must bring our tongue under the subjection of the spiritual man and the WORD OF GOD.

FAITH TALKS—TALK FAITH

I hope that you are inspired and encouraged to take control of your tongue on the things that you say. To become someone who truly believes that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.

FAITH TALKS—TALK FAITH

Psalms 19:14 KJV Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.