Five Reasons to Preach the Word

We take some photos. This is a formidable war out there a formidable set of fortresses. According to the terminology of second Corinthians 10 were for the destruction of fortresses. These are these are strong fortifications, ideological fortifications, it must come.

Smashing them were called regarding the truth called to preach the truth can give either.

We don't understand that is God's word and today John MacArthur will show you why he preaches God's word and why that continues to be his priority even after five decades as a pastor and as the Bible teacher here on grace to you.

The title of this study is simply why I teach the Bible. Now, maybe you're thinking I'm not a pastor or a Sunday school teacher. So how does this study apply to me while John's lesson today. Five reasons to preach the word could also be titled five reasons you need to heed the word you're going to see how to apply God's truth to the decisions you make, and it's life-changing wisdom to every part of your life. With that said, here's John preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction that brief verse defines biblical ministry in one central command preach the word along with that you could add first Timothy three where pastors and overseers and elders are to be did Dr. Koss in the Greek skilled in teaching and preaching. We are to preach the word skillfully. That is our calling in this verse is definitive as few others of that calling because it speaks so concisely and precisely preach the word and you will notice that the apostle Paul adds the time and the tone here.

The time in season and out of season. We could debate what that means but if I can lead you to a very simple conclusion. Whatever he may have had in mind, specifically about in season and out of season is only possible to either be in season or out of season. Therefore, it means all the time preach the word all the time. There is no time when we change that commission. No China no time when that method of ministry is set aside for something else preaching the word is to be done all the time. The concise and clear unmistakable unequivocal command to preach the word is supported by five compelling realities that become for us strong motivation. Number one where to preach the word because of the danger of the seasons we take some photos.

This is a formidable war out there a formidable set of fortresses. According to the terminology of second Corinthians 10 were for the destruction of fortresses.

These are these are very, very well designed, strong fortifications, ideological fortifications, it must come smashing down were called to guard the truth were called to preach the truth. We can do either. If we don't understand the truth. The second reason why they must preach the word, not only because of the danger of the seasons and the word is the only thing that cuts through the air.

But secondly, because of the devotion of the saints because of the devotion of the saints. You can't get out of step.

You can't go your way.

Invent your own approach. You're just one in the long line of men who were called to preach the word. What you do that so I look at my own life when I was a little guy something before my 10th birthday my grandfather who was a faithful preacher of the word of God all through his ministry right up until his death was on his deathbed at his home. My father was there and I was there. My father said to him, dad is there anything you want. He was dying of cancer at a just a few years older than I am now, and he's a subject is there anything you want. Dad, he said to them, yes I want to preach one more time, preach one more time is on his deathbed all racked with cancer and want to preach one more time. What happened was he prepared a sermon he hadn't preached. It's hard to handle folk sets fire in your bones.

You need to get rid of it and interestingly had prepared a sermon on heaven and never preached. He died without ever preaching. So my dad took his notes which he had written out on the sermon, printed them all up past it out to everybody at the funeral so my grandfather preach on heaven from heaven that had a tremendous effect on me as a young boy what a faithful man, right down to the last breath only wanted to do was preach the word one more time. I don't. I want to be any different than that. I don't want to do anything differently and the same was true of my father. He was an example to my father who all through his ministry.

Life did nothing to preach the word. That's all he did preach the word when he gave me my first Bible after hours called the ministry and I went off to begin my studies. You wrote in the flyleaf preach the word. Eventually I went away to seminary and I went to Talbot seminary because I wanted to study with Dr. Charles Feinberg, Dr. Feinberg was the most brilliant Bible scholar I ever knew anything about that incredible mind. I don't think I ever really understood how incredible I remember he told me he taught himself Dutch in two weeks when times are good read Dutch theology.

He studied for two years to be a rabbi and was converted to Christ went to Dallas seminary got his doctorate there and he went from there to get a PhD in an archaeology from my Johns Hopkins University.

It started and will impossible Foxwell Albright was the greatest archaeologists about of the time is an immense mindnumbing, just a very brilliant mind and and he loved the word of God and he read through it four times a year and he was just absolutely fanatical about every word of God about inerrancy and about inspiration, about the word, being true, and preach the word and not he's the man I wanted to have influence my life.

I want to do it differently. I want to do, like he did it. I want to learn how to preach the word well a member. My first year in seminary was first class I ever attended was an OTR Old Testament reduction class. It's a lot of material really hard to absorb for the young guy coming out of an athletic career in college getting exposed to all this academia and I said in the class the first day a student asked a question and Dr. Feinberg dropped his head never looked up and said if you don't have a more intelligent question. The net don't ask any more questions. You're taking up valuable time pull no more questions that semester.

He had all the time to himself. Believe me, but he was so dead serious about things of God. So, dead serious about the Scripture. He assigned me to preach a text in my first try to preach as a first year seminary student before the student body and the faculty. He assigned me a text and all I want to do is please him because he was the man and I worked about 50 hours on this thing. I got up and preach that and I thought I had done fine and he he had a they had criticism papers. They filled out while you're preaching this up behind you and criticize you while you were preaching and they gave you their criticisms and he just sent me a paper with red across the front, you missed the whole point of the passage.

I thought how that's not that's pretty clever. You know, spent 50 hours to get around the point, you know, how could I do that how can I missed the whole point that that is the greatest lesson ever had in seminary, and then he called me into his office and boy, he was really upset because you know he he want to make an investment in me. He didn't appreciate me missing the whole point of the passage since that's the whole point of the ministry and I got out I got a lecture that I never forgotten and from then on I you know the man still sits in my shoulder and whispers. Don't miss the point of the passage, MacArthur even always been in heaven for a few years when I graduated from seminary called me into the office on graduation day, said have a gift for you.

He picked up a big box at 35 volumes of Kyle and Dale. It's which is the Hebrew Old Testament commentary and he said this is the one I've used for years and years have all my notes in the margin. I want to give it to you as a gift. It was an expression of his love to me but it was also another way to say now you have no excuse for missing passage in one of the highlights of my life I think was when his family asked me to speak at his funeral. So somewhere along the line he must've told him that he thought I finally got to the place where I could figure out the point of the passage.

He's he's with the Lord.

But I don't want to do any different. I just want to do what faithful men have done. I want to do what godly prophets did. I want to do what godly apostles did I want to do a godly preachers and evangelists in pastors and missionaries of done through the years. I'm telling some folks. I am astonished at the boldness of people today people in ministry who will discard the God ordained scripturally mandated pattern and invent their own what audacity do you think you are, what astonishing pride that is so preach the word because of the danger of the season because of the devotion of the saints who came before you just get in line take the baton and run your lap.

Thirdly, we preach the word because of the dynamic of the Scripture we preach the word because of the dynamic of the Scripture verse 15 Timothy, you know, from childhood, from breath foods from infancy when you were a baby in your mother's arms. From infancy you have known the sacred writing that said that's agreed Jewish term referring to the Old Testament.

Hire a grandma time you've known the Old Testament, which is able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

Timothy was raised under Jewish influence in his family.

Though his parents were Jew and Gentile are one was doing what was Gentile, yet still the influence of June in his family and of the Old Testament law. He says you know from a child. The. The law prepared you for the gospel. That was the point, the Jews used to claim that there are that their children drink in the law of God with their mother's milk and it was so important on the hearts and minds. They would sooner forget their names and forget God's law.

The law was the tutor that led to Christ, and Timothy had been raised on the sacred writings of the Old Testament and he had been given the wisdom so that when the gospel was preached it unfold in the understood because the understanding the Old Testament law prepared him for it. Bottom line, he saying you know that the word of God is the power to save. It has the power to lead you to salvation. What else would you preach it sharper than any two-edged sword. First Peter 123. What does Peter say it couldn't be more clear you've been born again through the living and abiding word of God is the power of the word that produces salvation is the word of God, which converts the soul. Psalm 19 77 when you understand that the word is the power that converts the soul you preach the word if you don't preach the word you don't believe that no matter what you say is not only the source of salvation. It is the source of sanctification. Look at verses 16 and 17 all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction training in righteousness, but the man of God, and everyone who follows his pattern may be perfect or complete, equipped for every good work is the power of the word that saves it is the power of the word that sanctifies it provides doctrine. It reproves error and sin, it sets up right and then trains in the path of righteousness. That's a sequence you lay a foundation of doctrine. It reproves error and sin, then you correct that it literally means in the Greek to make someone upright who is fallen down. You pick a backup correct their error in their iniquity and then put them in the path of righteousness train him to live an obedient life.

The word does, that the word makes the man of God and everybody who follows his pattern complete.

It prepares them spiritually. This is what we call the sufficiency of the Scripture.

It completely saves completely sanctifies it sanctifies and saves those at the highest level of calling that is the preacher, the man of God and make it possible for him to be an example of God… Everybody else can follow. It is sufficient to save and sanctify all what else would you use like I can't fathom why anyone would use anything other than the word that saves in the word that sanctifies and only the word well to give you the fourth we preach the word because of the danger of the seasons, the devotion of the saints. The dynamic of the Scripture and the demand of the sovereign.

The demand of the sovereign. Look at chapter 4 verse one. This is a frightening versus verse strikes me with holy fear.

I confess it is a terrifying verse. This verse helps me to understand why John Knox before he ascended the pulpit, the preach fell on his face and burst forth. His biographer says, and abundant tears out of fear. The fear of preaching and misrepresenting the truth. The fear of divine scrutiny. Listen to verse one, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God, even of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom preach the word pretty serious. I solemnly charge you means a dead serious command.

Paul is dead serious, or I command you with all solemnity with all seriousness, my friend. He says you are under the scrutiny of the God who is Jesus Christ who is the judge and he will judge all the were alive and all who have died. I think it's best to see the Greek as even the Lord Jesus Christ.

Since he is introduced as the judge in the verse where preaching under the scrutiny of the omniscient holy judge. I agree with Paul in first radiance for us it's a small thing. What you think of me and I say that with all love to you.

I can't build my sense of faithfulness on whether you like my sermon.

I can't build on whether you don't like my sermon. I appreciate your commendations.

I cherish them. I appreciate your criticisms I cherish them but in the end, I want to preach to honor the one who is the judge right and in the end he's going to reveal the secret things of the heart. He's going to give the the reward to those who are worthy of it and only his judgment really matters. A reporter said to me one time for whom do you prepare your sermons. Newspapers are written for the eighth grade level for whom do you prepare sermons and I said to be truthful with you. I prepare them for God is the judge that I have to stand before he's the one that really matters.

I just want to get it right before him, I don't want to take the word of the living God, and somehow corrupted or somehow replace it with foolish musings of my own manufacture. Stop being so many teachers. James said there is a greater condemnation. Hebrews 1317 says we have to give an account someday before the Lord and I want my life to be gold, silver, precious stones, I want to receive that reward that evidence is my love for him and that reward which I can cast it is feeding honor and praise. And someday we will all stand before that judgment seat for that time of reward very serious thing for me this matter.

Preaching sometimes people say to me you spent so much time in preparation why not because I think you needed. I think God's word deserves I could get by with you because you're such loving folks and frankly with most people. A few good stories will do it, but with God. It's a different matter, sometimes with you'll just be kind enough to indulge me when I get down so deep you're drowning. I really do have human mind and the honor of his truths.

Lastly, this whole matter of preaching the word, not only because of the danger of the seasons, the devotion of the saints. The dynamic of the Scripture, the demand of the sovereign. Lastly, this is really important because of the deceptiveness of the sensual because of the deceptiveness of the sensual, the great enemy of the word of God is anything outside the word of God. The word of Satan, the word of demons, the word of man and we are living in very dangerous seasons concocted by seducing spirits and hypocritical liars propagated by false teachers, and here's what makes them successful. Look at verses three and four. The time will come, and it does it it to cycles through all of church history when they will not endure sound doctrine.

People don't want to hear sound doctrine sound means healthy whole wholesome. They don't want wholesome teaching they don't want the sounds solid word, they just want to have their ears tickled, that's all they want. They are driven by the sensual, not the cognitive they're not interested in truth or not inducing theology only want is ear tickling sensations. That's what they want, they refused to hear that the great truth that saves in the great truth of sanctifies and according to chapter 2 verse 16. They would rather hear worldly empty chatter that produces ungodliness and spread like gangrene were in such a season. Now they tell us of being doctrinal being clear about the word of God is divisive, unloving, prideful, the prevailing were the prevailing mood I should say in the world of postmodern Western culture is that everybody determines truth for himself and everyone's opinion is as valid as everybody else's opinion and there's no room for absolute authoritative doctrine and folks that's one other-ism. You can add to the list of dangerous seasons. Relativism you look at evangelical church and you can see a perfect illustration of how the church is fallen victim to this Christians all over the place are all whipped up to fight abortion and they're all exercise to fight homosexuality and the influence of homosexuals and places of influence and power, and we want to fight the lesbian trends we want to fight for religious freedoms in American and we want to preserve prayer in the schools we want to fight against euthanasia and that's all that all has a place but I want to tell you something and you need to understand this the worst form of wickedness in existence consists of the perversion of God's truth that is the worst form of wickedness in the church today is utterly indifferent to that doesn't care about that. The treats that with indifference as if it was harmless as if the right interpretation of Scripture somehow was unnecessary if not intrusive into an otherwise superficial tranquility.

Here we are fighting all of this peripheral stuff and given away everything at the heart that defines our whole faith is a suicide like a beauty church to fight anything we know preserve the truth the ability to distinguish between false and true is absolutely critical. Can't speak truth can't guard truth can't understand truth we we raise up a seminary in order to train men who can do that. You know what's wonderful. They go everywhere 23 countries of the world. All these various cultures and you know what they don't have to figure out what is culturally relevant to just go in there with the word of God sort through the issues and bring the word of God to bear upon that society.

And you know what whatever language you speak, and wherever you live your heart for God is in the same needy condition and the truth of God trends transcends all cultures but we live in a time when people want to depreciate sound doctrine. We want to sort of well want to be more loving me Tyson RC Sproul and I were talking about this a little bit and the idea that I don't want to tell you the truth I don't want to call error error. I don't want to confront your sin or your ear because I love you is just not true because I love you I love you I'd seek your best and highest good night and that's completely connected to your understanding of and obedience to divine truth.

So if I don't if I say well I I'd I just I want the superficial tranquility I know I don't want to fight.

I don't think it's loving to do that.

Truth is, you know love them you love yourself. That's the issue and what you really do is love yourself so much. You don't want them not to like you self-love that sin your freight if you confront something they will like you. So you rather love yourself and have them like you than the love them enough to confront their error. Show them the truth, which can lead them to the blessing and well-being that produces God's greatest good in their life. Loss of truth, loss of conviction, loss of discernment, loss of holiness, loss of divine power loss of blessing only want to get their ears tickled, tell me a little about success. Tell me all about prosperity can be some excitement elevate my feelings of well-being, self-esteem, and give me a bunch emotional thrills, you know what when they want that. It says in verse three, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires. The market creates the demand and as Marvin Vincent said in his Vincent word studies in periods of unsettled faith skepticism and curious speculation in matters of religion.

Teachers of all kinds swarm like flies in Egypt. The demand creates the supply the hearers invite and shape their own preachers of the people desire To worship a ministerial Maker can always be found. Can I be very straightforward with you. It is an offense to our rational truth revealing God.

It is an offense to the true work of his son is a defense to the true work of the Holy Spirit to use the names of God or of Christ or of the Holy Spirit in any mindless emotional orgy marked by irrational, sensual and fleshly behavior produced by altered states of consciousness, peer pressure, heightened expectation or suggestibility that is socio-cycle manipulation and mesmerism and it is a prostitution of the glorious revelation of God talk clearly and powerfully to an eager, attentive and controlled mind what feed sensual desires pragmatically or ecstatically cannot honor God, you have to preach the truth to the mine.

That's where the real battle is fun. This is grace to you with John MacArthur. Thanks for being with us. John is Chancellor of the Masters University in seminary. He's titled our current study why I teach the Bible in John we been talking about teaching the Bible and how important that is. So talk for a minute about what happens in a church where people take God's word seriously. How far-reaching are the results likely to be when we really begin to understand and apply everything that's in this book and I think that maybe the best way to answer that is to say this when people are saturated with the Bible truth. This, not that they remember every sermon it's is that every sermon is a is a building block and week after week after week, Bible study after Bible study, and if the reading theology or reading the Bible. It just continues to add bricks to the to the wall and that wall becomes basically the set of convictions by which people live and it gets to a point and in you. I see this all the time in our church where it isn't that in any kind of a situation, people are looking for a Bible verse or people are trying to grab out of the air. We know what principle do I apply is so in the fabric of their lives that they are able to navigate the ins and outs of life and II think a great illustration of that bill has been the way Grace Church is responded to to the two years of covert nonsense that's going on in the world and you've never been in a place with such joy of such peace.

Such happiness, such contentment because they see all of this biblically. They are a see through all the deception all the lies all the folderol and of this is good and this is been evidence of what happens when people really do have a profoundly structured set of convictions so that there is no fear. There is just joy that's that's their theology so it's it's been incredible indications.

I think it's the involuntary responses of people are saturated in the Bible that they don't necessarily have to think about it. It's just how they're programmed by the word of God and having said that, let me just mention again two very important books that can take you down that path where you can have those kinds of convictions in their critical in the world in which we live. One is the MacArthur study Bible. Everything from hardback to leather additions and then secondly, the book biblical doctrine is a thousand page book that puts together a full systematic theology. It's a detailed orderly study of God and divine truth. This is a book that will steer you away from superficiality and lead you to strong convictions about God's word God the father, the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit, man, sin, salvation, even angels, holy and fallen the church and eschatology, so I suggest that you hurry up because if you order by this Friday will get you delivery by Christmas. The MacArthur study Bible of the book biblical doctrine. Yes, and friend.

You may think that studying doctrine is an activity reserved for Bible scholars. But if you want to better understand God and how to worship him. To the best of your ability. This book biblical doctrine is for you to order a copy or to purchase the MacArthur study Bible. Contact us today. Call toll-free 855 grace or place your order@ourwebsitetty.org and remember, as John said this is the last week, we recommend using our free standard shipping option deliveries will likely be extra strain this year and want to make sure you get your gift for Christmas as economically as possible again to order the MacArthur study Bible, or the systematic theology book called little doctrine, call 855 grace or go to our website TTY.org that website one more time. TTY.org and to keep up-to-date on the resources available from Greece to you or to fill your newsfeed with biblical truth. Make sure you follow us on social media. You can find us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and check out our YouTube channel as well.

Now for John MacArthur in the entire grace to you. Staff I'm Phil Johnson encouraging you to watch grace to you television this Sunday on DirecTV channel 378 or check your local listings for station and times and be here tomorrow when John continues his look at why he is so committed to teaching the Bible. It's another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time on grace to you