23-1008a Transcript

Preacher: Jim Lokenbauer

(1:51) Good morning. (1:51) Good morning. (1:54) Well, back on September 17th, I brought you a couple lessons from my series, (2:00) Jesus the Great I Am, I Am the True Vine. (2:04) And in that series, we’re exploring how it’s always been Jesus throughout the entire Bible (2:11) that has been the one who interacted with man on earth.

(2:17) And Jesus, or rather the second person of the Godhead, would appear to man in his various forms. (2:27) And that Hebrew word means faces, in his various faces. (2:32) He appeared to Moses in the bush as the angel of the Lord and as Yahweh, which he calls himself.

(2:43) And then he refers to himself in that same conversation that he was also the El Shaddai (2:51) that the patriarchs knew. (2:54) The patriarchs knew him as El Shaddai, God Almighty, but they didn’t know him as Yahweh. (3:03) And so anyhow, this series, we explore Jesus throughout the entire Old Testament and New (3:11) Testament on how he appears to man.

(3:15) And finally, in the Gospel era, he came in the flesh as the Christ of God, the Anointed One. (3:25) And I thank the men for their reading, because if you notice, both readings talked about (3:32) the freedom we have in Christ. (3:36) And like I was referencing, September 17th, when I brought you where Jesus says, (3:42) I am the true vine in that discussion, which, by the way, I haven’t finished yet.

(3:48) That’ll be next time I get up and speak. (3:51) Not this evening, but the next time after that. (3:55) Anyhow, in that discussion, I had mentioned the freedom that we have in Christ, (4:00) that we’re not bound by law.

(4:05) And so today’s lesson, I want us to sort of expand on that idea. (4:15) When talking about the type of fruit the Christian produces for God in that (4:20) lesson about I am the true vine, I quoted from Galatians 5, 22 and 23, which Roger read, (4:28) and also from John 8 that John read, citing some of the advantages that we have in Christ, (4:40) and namely our freedom. (4:42) But freedom from what? (4:43) Yes, when we walk in the light, we’re not bounded by law, whether it’s the law of Moses (4:52) or even the law of sin and death, so long as we’re one.

(4:56) That’s a caveat, that so long as we’re walking in the light, we have this freedom in Christ. (5:03) But is it freedom to do anything we want, especially in worship? (5:08) That’s the question, especially in regard to a command of God. (5:15) So we’re going to look at that, and we’re going to be exploring an Old Testament, (5:20) some Old Testament history that I want us to, you know, make comparisons to.

(5:31) So this caveat, which is a stipulation or a condition, if you will, and that is we are (5:38) covered by God’s grace so long as we’re walking in the light with Him. (5:44) If we willingly sin and are unrepentant of that sin, we are walking in darkness, (5:52) and we’re back in Satan’s kingdom. (5:55) You’re in one of two places.

(5:57) You’re either in Christ’s kingdom or Satan’s kingdom, and if you’re in Satan’s kingdom, (6:02) you’re once again under the law of sin and death. (6:05) You have unrepentant sin that your stubborn heart keeps you from changing, from repenting. (6:15) You’re in a terrible situation.

(6:19) And of course, if you’ve been saved and you are in sin, you can always repent, (6:27) and God will welcome you back into His kingdom. (6:29) But my question is, do we really want a whole dual citizenship in both kingdoms? (6:38) Do we really want to vacillate between God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom? (6:44) You know, what does light have to do with darkness? (6:48) You know, you must make a choice. (6:52) Friends, it shouldn’t be that way.

(6:54) We should pick a side and stay on. (7:00) Vacillation between sides is like being lukewarm water in someone’s mouth, (7:06) and Jesus says, I will spew you out if you’re lukewarm. (7:12) Even though we have this amazing freedom in Christ, we still have to obey our Lord, (7:20) and that is how we show our love for Him.

(7:23) We really do have to learn to say no to ungodliness. (7:26) We have to deny ourselves and our desires and pick our far cross daily and follow after Christ. (7:36) So following the teaching of Christ is doing His will.

(7:41) It is when we want to do what we want ahead of what Jesus tells us (7:46) what to do that gets us in trouble. (7:50) We tend to be self-willed. (7:53) We tend to be selfish in choosing between what we want and what we know that God wants from us, (8:01) especially in regards to sin.

(8:03) So as New Testament Christians, we don’t follow the old law. (8:10) It was removed by Christ at His death on the cross. (8:14) But it is still important to us because through the old law, (8:20) we learn many lessons.

(8:24) Paul tells us in Romans 15, 4 that everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. (8:32) And likewise, in 1 Corinthians 10, he tells us that these things were written down as examples (8:41) for us that we won’t sin as they did. (8:48) So we do not follow the old law.

(8:50) We study it and we learn from it. (8:54) And there are principles from the past that are still relevant today. (9:00) And a principle is a doctrine or a fundamental law or a standard of a guiding pattern (9:09) of thought that we follow in regard to an ideal.

(9:14) And as an example, the command not to eat blood and the proper treatment of blood is a command (9:21) that is the same through all three Bible dispensations, the patriarchal age, (9:28) the mosaical age, and now the Christian age. (9:33) God told Noah, do not eat flesh with the blood in it, for the life of the creature is in the blood. (9:43) Likewise, the law of Moses, this law is repeated, and we’re actually given the principle (9:50) in where it’s stated in the law of Moses.

(9:54) In Leviticus 17, 10 through 11, the command is given to Israel, (10:00) and then the principle is given in the following verse. (10:04) And the principle is the reason behind the command. (10:08) So listen to Moses' words here.

(10:11) First, the command is given in verse 10, then the principle in verse 11. (10:16) If a man of the house of Israel or the strangers who live as foreigners among them, (10:22) who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul who eats blood (10:30) and will cut him off from among his people. (10:35) For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you (10:43) on the altar to make atonement for your sins.

(10:46) For it is the blood that makes atonement by reason of the life. (10:54) From this, we see that life and blood are almost interchangeable words. (11:00) They’re like synonyms in this text.

(11:04) We also see the law of sin and death at work here. (11:08) You sin, you die. (11:10) Your life, or another way of saying it, your blood is required of you.

(11:15) Your blood is on your own head. (11:20) And the ultimate point of this command is to get us not to sin, especially by eating blood. (11:24) Secondly, the principle is to get us to value life, (11:29) to have regard for blood and its proper treatment.

(11:36) The principle is to get us to understand God’s mercy and grace, (11:45) because through blood is where we’re gonna actually get true redemption for the Son of God. (11:56) And so God doesn’t want us having such a low opinion of blood (12:02) that we easily shed it or we eat it or anything carnal like that. (12:09) You know, we have to respect life that God made.

(12:13) God made man in His image, and so we have to love each other the same way we love God. (12:22) We’re made in His image, and so we all share a common blood. (12:33) God provided a way for us to have our sins taken away without our lives being taken from us.

(12:41) And first it was through animal substitution, (12:44) and this goes all the way back to the garden when Adam and Eve sinned. (12:50) Jesus, in His form of Yahweh, (12:54) Adam, where are you? (12:56) And they were hiding. (12:58) And once God got them to fess up to where they were, He pronounced judgments on them.

(13:10) And then He took animal skins and covered their nakedness, covered their skin, covered (13:19) their sin with those animal skins. (13:23) Something had to die to cover that sin, and this was the first animal substitution. (13:33) So from that point on, all the patriarchs had to offer animal sacrifice to atone for sin.

(13:43) And throughout the Bible, God says, the soul that sins will die. (13:48) That’s the penalty. (13:49) That’s the law of sin and death.

(13:54) The day of you eat of it, you shall die. (13:58) And that law is still in effect today, believe it or not. (14:06) But God provided a way for mankind to postpone that sentence through animal sacrifice.

(14:20) Animals are not humans. (14:22) They can’t sin. (14:24) So in a sense, it’s innocent blood, and it temporarily atones for sin.

(14:31) And God put that in place until a better sacrifice could be made. (14:37) And that points to the Christ, a better sacrifice. (14:43) So God accepted that form of sacrifice until Jesus could come along.

(14:48) That better sacrifice, being the Son of God, is by virtue of His perfect, sinless life. (14:58) And that’s why in Leviticus it says, by reason of the life. (15:05) And that’s why animals can’t really take our sins away.

(15:09) But God accepted that as a temporary stopgap measure to atone for sin. (15:16) And by reason of Christ’s perfect, sinless life is the one final sacrifice that all mankind (15:27) can accept its offer to all. (15:30) And it takes sin away, and that makes us sinless when we accept that perfect gift.

(15:41) So in Acts 15, one of the few rules, believe it or not, that that counsel found upon the Gentiles, (15:55) there were four, if you count them, no fornication, no eating of flesh strangled, (16:05) and this one here, which is, do not drink blood. (16:14) Those are the things bound on the Gentiles as they were arguing about, (16:21) should Gentiles be circumcised, anyhow. (16:25) So again, we see the proper treatment of blood.

(16:30) That’s my point. (16:31) So another principle in the Bible involves love. (16:37) It’s the theme throughout the ages.

(16:39) We are to love God, love our families, our friends, our neighbors, strangers, (16:44) or even to love our enemies. (16:47) Paul gives the essence of this principle for love in 1 Corinthians chapter 13. (16:54) You want to know what agape love is? (16:57) That is the definition of agape love, godly love.

(17:04) So how do we follow God’s commands is also an important principle (17:11) and will be the focal point of our lesson. (17:16) This principle of not adding or taking away from a command is of utmost importance, (17:23) and Moses spells it out for the Israelis. (17:27) In Deuteronomy 4, he says, (17:29) You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take away from it, (17:35) that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you.

(17:41) So we’re to keep the Lord’s commandments. (17:43) How do we do that? (17:45) By doing what he says and by not adding to or taking away what he says. (17:52) So our first story in our lesson this morning is when God and Yahweh and Moses (18:00) led Israel through the desert, making their way to Mount Sinai to receive the law.

(18:06) And Yahweh was in his form of the angel of the Lord, (18:11) who appeared as a pillar of fire at nighttime and a column of smoke by day. (18:19) So Israel was following this tornadic-looking big cloud with Moses following the cloud. (18:30) Some things that happened along the way to Mount Sinai, (18:33) God made the bitter waters of Mara sweet for them to drink.

(18:37) He gave them manna and quail for food and water from the rock that followed them. (18:42) And Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10, (18:44) and that rock was Christ, to sustain them through their travels. (18:50) God also kept their clothes and sandals from wearing out.

(18:54) So before they made it to Sinai, they engaged in their first battle, (18:59) and that was with the Amalekites. (19:02) And the Amalekites were scoundrels. (19:07) So in Exodus 17, April 14, it says, (19:12) Then Amalek came out and fought against Israel at Rephidim.

(19:17) So Moses said to Joshua, (19:19) Choose men for us to go out and fight against Amalek. (19:23) Tomorrow I will station myself on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand. (19:29) Joshua did as Moses told him and fought against Amalek.

(19:33) And Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up on top of the hill. (19:38) So it came about when Moses held his hands up, Israel prevailed. (19:43) And when he let his hands down, Amalek prevailed.

(19:48) But Moses' hands were getting heavy. (19:50) Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. (19:54) And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other.

(20:00) Thus his hands were steady until sunset. (20:03) So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. (20:09) Then the Lord said to Moses, (20:11) Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua, (20:16) that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.

(20:21) And this is the first time that God told any of his people to record an event (20:27) for posterity’s sake, for historical purposes. (20:30) But why is God so absolutely set on wiping out Amalek? (20:37) Well, here’s the rest of the story to that question. (20:41) In Deuteronomy 25, 17, it says, (20:46) Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt, (20:51) how he met you along the way, (20:54) and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear (20:58) when you were faint and weary.

(21:01) He did not fear God. (21:03) Therefore, it shall come about when the Lord your God has given you rest (21:08) from all your surrounding enemies in the land of the Lord, (21:11) which God gives you as an inheritance possessed. (21:15) You shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.

(21:19) You must not forget. (21:23) So on top of all the reasons that God had already given them (21:27) to dispossess the nations in Canaan, (21:35) Amalek was particularly cruel and evil in their dealings with Israel. (21:41) And God had had it with them.

(21:44) So don’t feel sorry for them with this genocide that is going to happen. (21:52) By the time of our next story, (21:55) which is 400 years when those words were penned, (22:00) this is when the period of the judges is almost over. (22:06) I’ll read from several passages in 1 Samuel.

(22:10) In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelis asked for a king, (22:16) as foretold by God in Deuteronomy 17, 14. (22:20) And Samuel is the last of the judges and is the prophet at the time, (22:26) and he’s also the high priest of God. (22:32) And Yahweh tells Samuel, (22:34) they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me as their king.

(22:40) So in 1 Samuel 10, by God’s direction, Samuel anoints Saul. (22:47) And Saul is the first king of Israel. (22:50) He’s from the smallest tribe of Benjamin, (22:53) and from the smallest family of Benjamin, which is called Matri.

(23:00) And God changed Saul’s heart, and the Spirit of God came upon Saul with power, (23:06) because all the kings were anointed. (23:10) And when they’re anointed, they receive Holy Spirit. (23:14) In 1 Samuel 13, it tells us that Saul is confronted by a massive Philistine army, (23:24) and some of the men are starting to panic and run away.

(23:29) They’re deserting. (23:31) And to make matters worse, Samuel, whom they rely on, (23:35) is late in arriving to offer the sacrifice to God (23:39) and inquire God on behalf of the king. (23:44) So King Saul acts presumptuously and offers the sacrifice himself, (23:51) which is against the Lord’s command to do.

(23:55) So when Samuel arrives, he sees Saul offering the sacrifices to God (24:02) and rebukes him and tells him that his kingdom will not endure. (24:08) So in chapter 14, God gives Israel a victory over the Philistines (24:13) because of Saul’s son, Jonathan, having faith in God and showing great bravery. (24:21) And so that kind of completes our context for the story, (24:24) and our main focus is going to be in chapter 15.

(24:30) Well, it is chapter 15 of 1 Samuel. (24:35) And this evening, we’ll do a verse-by-verse examination of chapter 15. (24:45) So let’s go ahead and read chapter 15 together (24:48) so we’re prepared for the rest of the story for this evening’s sermon.

(24:55) Starting at verse 1, (24:56) And Samuel said to Saul, (24:59) The Lord sent me to anoint you king over his people Israel. (25:04) Now therefore, hearken unto the words of the Lord. (25:07) Thus says the Lord of hosts, (25:09) I will punish what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way.

(25:16) When they came up out of Egypt, (25:18) now go and smite Amalek and utterly destroy all that they have. (25:24) Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infants and suckling, (25:33) ox and sheep, camel and ass. (25:36) So Saul summoned the people and numbered them and held it in, (25:41) 200,000 men on foot and 10,000 men from Judah.

(25:46) And Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley. (25:51) And Saul said to the Canaanites, (25:54) Go, depart, go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. (26:00) For you showed kindness to all the people of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.

(26:05) So the Canaanites departed from among the Amalekites. (26:10) And Saul defeated the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt. (26:16) And he took Agag, the king of the Amalekites, alive and utterly destroyed (26:21) all the people with the edge of the sword.

(26:25) But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fatlings (26:32) and of the lambs and all that was good. (26:35) They did not utterly destroy them. (26:39) All that was despised and worthless, they utterly destroyed.

(26:43) The word of the Lord came to Samuel. (26:47) I repent that I made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me, (26:53) and he has not performed my commandments. (26:57) And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night.

(27:02) And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning. (27:07) And it was told Samuel, Saul came to Carmel. (27:10) And behold, he set up a monument for himself and turned and passed on and went down to Gilgal.

(27:18) And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, (27:22) Blessed be you to the Lord. (27:24) I have performed the commandments of the Lord. (27:28) And Samuel said, What then is this bleeding of the sheep in my ears (27:33) and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? (27:37) Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites, (27:40) for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, (27:44) to sacrifice to the Lord your God, and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

(27:50) Then Samuel said to Saul, Stop. (27:53) I will tell you what the Lord said to me this night. (27:57) He said to him, Stay on.

(28:00) And Samuel said, Though you are little in your own eyes, (28:04) and you are not the head of the, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? (28:09) The Lord anointed you king over Israel. (28:12) And the Lord sent you on a mission and said, Go, utterly destroy the sinners of the Amalekites (28:19) and fight against them until they are consumed. (28:23) Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? (28:26) Why did you swoop on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord? (28:33) And Saul said to Samuel, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord.

(28:38) I have gone on the mission which the Lord sent me. (28:41) I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. (28:46) But the people took the spoil, the sheep and the oxen, and the best (28:50) of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice them to the Lord your God, and you’ll go.

(28:57) And Samuel said, Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offering and sacrifices (29:04) as in obeying the voice of the Lord? (29:07) Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken better than the fat of rams. (29:16) For rebellion is as the sin of divination, (29:20) and stubbornness is as the iniquity of idolatry. (29:28) Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you from being king.

(29:37) And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, (29:44) and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice, (29:50) now therefore I pray, pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord. (29:58) And Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, (30:06) and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel. (30:11) As Samuel turned to go away, Saul made hold of his skirt, the skirt of his robe, and tore it.

(30:18) And Samuel said to him, the Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, (30:25) and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you. (30:30) And also the glory of Israel will not lie or repent, for he is not a man that he should repent. (30:39) Then he said, I have sinned, yet honor me now before the elders of my people (30:44) and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord your God.

(30:50) So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord. (30:54) And Saul said, bring here to me Agag, the king of the Amalekites. (30:59) And Agag came to him cheerfully.

(31:03) Agag said, surely the bitterness of death has passed. (31:07) And Samuel said, as your sword has made women childless, (31:12) so shall your mother be childless among women. (31:16) And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord and Gilgal.

(31:23) Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah. (31:29) And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death. (31:33) But Samuel grieved over Saul, and the Lord repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

(31:42) So we’re going to stop there, and we’ll finish the rest of this lesson this evening. (31:49) So we can see how not following God’s Word is sin. (31:58) And the type of sin that it is, is compared to idolatry and witchcraft.

(32:05) Leaving something out that God has commanded is evil. (32:10) Adding to something God says is evil. (32:16) Now, as New Testament Christians, we have freedom in God.

(32:23) But do we have freedom to choose to worship Him in any other way (32:30) other than what is written for us? (32:33) That’s the only way we know we can be pleasing to God, (32:38) is by doing what God’s revealed Word tells us. (32:44) Anything else, we might be breaking that principle that Paul laid down in 1 Corinthians 4, 6, (32:52) which says, do not go beyond what is written. (32:57) So even though we’re not bound by law, (33:00) we’re still bound by the principle of following what God says to do.

(33:06) So if you haven’t been following what God says to do, (33:11) and you’re in need of prayer to be restored back, (33:14) or perhaps you have been touched by the Spirit to put God in baptism, (33:19) now is the invitation, and we’ll be glad to help you in any way we can. (33:25) So come as we stand and sing the invitation song.