25-0803p Transcript

Preacher: Steve Cain

(1:37) Once again, good evening. You know that we worship together (1:42) today, and we subscribe to an activity that is very important to us, and that is (1:52) the Restoration. We are interested in the Restoration Movement.

We’re very (1:58) concerned about the Restoration Movement. And as Christians, we believe that it is (2:04) very important to be concerned about the Restoration Movement. When I talk about (2:10) the Restoration Movement, what are we talking about? Many years ago, during the (2:16) Civil War, there was a period of time that people worshipped as they deemed (2:22) necessary, or as they wanted to worship.

And a group of people all of a sudden woke (2:31) up to the idea that God is concerned about how we worship him. He does have a (2:38) way that he would like for us to worship him. And we know that through evidences (2:43) like Cain and Abel, when God told Cain and Abel that he wanted them to have a (2:51) sacrifice, Cain went against God’s desire for the sacrifice, and Abel sacrificed (3:00) exactly the way God wanted him to.

And so we recognize the fact that God does get (3:06) upset if we do not approach him in spirit. Jesus told the woman as well when she was (3:18) talking about that, she was asking Jesus, where do we worship? You people worship (3:24) down in Jerusalem, and we worship up here in the world, in the mountains. And Jesus (3:30) told her, he said, there’s going to be a time when we’re going to be worshipping in (3:34) spirit and in truth.

And so with that particular concept in mind, Christians (3:40) are concerned about how we come together and how we worship. And so the Restoration (3:47) Movement reflects that concern. How do we worship God? Is there a way that God wants (3:54) us to worship? And we try to ferret out, out of the Scriptures, out of the Bible, and (4:01) using only the Bible, not using traditions or anything like that, we have tried to (4:12) come up with how God wants us to worship him.

And so out of the Restoration Movement, (4:21) we have come up with the various things that are important for us. We recognize the fact. (4:28) And so when we come together to worship God, it is in spirit and in truth.

We believe that (4:34) with all our heart. And the reason why we believe that is because we were able to ferret (4:39) from the Scriptures the various ways in which God wants us to worship him. And so when we (4:49) invite individuals to come in and visit with us, what is the first thing that they miss? (4:57) I’ll answer the question.

The piano or the organ, instrumental music, a band. What do (5:03) they miss? And so why don’t we do that? Well, we try to use a, I don’t know exactly what (5:18) you call it, but a test. And there’s a three-fold test that we try to use to try to help us (5:26) to establish how we are to worship God and how God wants us to worship.

And out of those (5:34) three tests, we’ve come up with, does God direct us and give us a direct command as (5:42) to how he is to be worshipped? And do we have examples from the first-century Christians (5:48) and how they worship God? And also necessary influence. Those are the three tests that (5:58) we use to try to establish whether or not we’re going to implement certain things in (6:03) our worship service so that we can worship God in spirit and in truth, and that God will (6:09) receive our worship service in a beautiful, savory smell that our offering will go up. (6:19) And so as we reflect upon it, the answer to why we don’t use instrumental music is that (6:25) we do have a direct command, don’t we? In Ephesians and also in Colossians, Paul writes (6:35) and tells us that when we come together, we are to encourage one another in spirit and (6:40) truth, but we are to encourage one another by singing songs, hymns, and spiritual songs (6:45) from the heart.

So we recognize the fact that that’s exactly how we are worshiping. We have (6:54) come to encourage one another and we are to teach one another with the songs that we teach. (7:00) And if you look at the songs, especially the ones we sang this evening, they have a message (7:05) and they teach and they encourage one another.

And so it’s coming from the spirit. It’s coming (7:13) from the heart. And so we have an example and we have necessary inference.

(7:20) Another one was we take partake of the Lord’s Supper every Sunday. How do you take the Lord’s (7:27) Supper every Sunday? Many of the denominations do not use the Lord’s Supper as we do. Many (7:34) of them only observe it once a month.

Many of them, one or two, doesn’t observe it only (7:41) once a year. How often are we supposed to partake of it? Well, we have the direct command. (7:48) Jesus came to his disciples just before he’s crucified and he, in the upper room, institutes (7:56) the Lord’s Supper.

And he is very precise. And he’s telling us, as often as you observe (8:04) this, you are observing my death barrel and my resurrection. So Jesus wants us to come (8:10) together.

So how often do we have an example? The first century Christians came together (8:17) on the first day of the week to partake of the Great Bread. And so how do we have necessary (8:25) inference? Well, we know that they drank out of a cup. Did they share the same cup around? (8:32) I’m sure they did.

And many churches up until recent times would have one cup. And then (8:40) the members would come up and they would partake of it. But in times like COVID, who would want (8:49) to drink after another person? So necessary inference would say, well, why don’t we be (8:56) a little bit more concerned about spreading our germs and so on? So we have individual (9:04) cups.

We have individual bread. And so that’s a necessary inference. And those are the ways (9:11) in which we came up to try to determine how to worship God.

But it doesn’t stop there (9:17) because when we think in terms of worshiping God, we know that we are to come together and (9:25) we see that the first century Christians did this. They would come together. They would (9:31) eat in a house perhaps, but we’re so much larger than they are.

And it’s not as convenient (9:38) to meet in those homes like they used to meet in the homes. So necessary inference implies (9:45) that we have a building heated and cool and comfortable. And so we’re able to come together.

(9:53) And so there’s our necessary inference. There’s examples from first century Christians, how (9:59) they came together once a week. So then we also have the fact that they sang songs together.

(10:07) So we have a song service going. We also know that necessary or as divine example, that (10:17) they prayed and we know that they had sermons. And so we implement the songs, the prayers, (10:27) the sermons, and Paul points out in 2 Corinthians how that we need to have a collection so that (10:37) we might be able to put money together for necessary situations that come up, emergencies, (10:43) for example.

And so we have that. So we come together and we worship. So we take pride (10:53) in the fact that we are worshiping in a very similar way in which the first century church (11:01) worshiped.

But can we settle there? Is that enough? And obviously, it’s not because (11:13) I wouldn’t be asking the question. That’s one of the reasons why I had the Matthew account (11:23) read for us because God is not pleased with just having the sacrifices, the communion, (11:36) and the various other things. There are certain things that he really wants us to do.

What (11:42) turns God off? What really angers God? Do you ever stop to think about that? What really (11:50) angers God? When we read in Romans the first chapter, and that was read not too long ago, (11:58) how did the, if you want to turn to that, turn to Romans the first chapter, and you’ll (12:06) see where God’s wrath is really, really displayed for us. Paul talks to us about God’s wrath. (12:19) In Romans the first chapter, starting with verse, I believe it’s 18.

My eyes don’t focus (12:26) on, very well on small letters like that. But notice what he says. The wrath of God (12:33) is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people who (12:41) suppress the truth by their wickedness.

Since what may be known about God is plain to them (12:50) because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible (12:57) qualities, his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from (13:05) what has been made so that people are without excuse. I like that phrase.

You know, individuals (13:17) who are godless, individuals who do not want to retain the knowledge of God, they don’t (13:25) have an excuse. Because God has been working in their lives making it evident that he is (13:33) and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. He’s making it very plain the fact (13:42) that he does exist and that the world does not just happen and provide food for the (13:49) world.

He sustains the world. I know that Scott just got through having lessons on Genesis, (13:58) especially the first chapter. And you look at those days and the creations and the things (14:05) that he did, he was creating things to sustain life before he created life.

And he continues (14:15) to sustain life. When we read in the Psalms, we’ll read how that God continues to provide (14:21) for the animals and he provides for you and me. He provides for every creation, created (14:29) things that he has ever created.

So we need to acknowledge the fact that he is. So he (14:37) becomes very angry. And we know that he becomes very angry.

And what causes him to become (14:45) very angry? Take a look at Noah. What caused God to turn on the people at that time? What (14:56) caused God to destroy the world and bring a flood upon us? What caused him to do that? (15:03) Take a look at Genesis, the 6th chapter, verse 5. And as we see, the author of Genesis tells (15:13) us exactly why God destroyed the world. We’re going to the 6th chapter and we’ll pick up (15:26) around verse 5 or so.

Yeah, we’ll pick up at verse 5. Genesis 6, verse 5. (15:37) The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth and that (15:45) every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord (15:52) regretted that he had made human beings on the earth and his heart was deeply troubled. (15:59) So the Lord said, I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created (16:06) and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground.

For (16:12) I regret that I have made them. What about Sodom and Gomorrah? Why did God destroy Sodom (16:25) and Gomorrah? Because their thoughts were evil all the time. They were given to homosexuality.

(16:34) We read that in Genesis, the 19th chapter. And we see that when the angels came to get (16:43) Lot and his family and get them out of Sodom and Gomorrah before God destroyed the world (16:48) or just destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, that people in Sodom rallied around Lot’s house (16:56) and wanted Lot to produce the angels or the visitors that they saw so that they could (17:07) have fun with them. What kind of fun are we talking about? They wanted to have sexual (17:15) immorality.

So the whole thing is, God is really concerned about how we think and what (17:25) we do. And that’s where it constitutes the fact that we can’t be guilty of vain worship (17:33) even though we’re doing exactly and approaching God on the first day of the week and worshiping (17:39) and offering our services to Him and the worship would still be in vain. (17:49) Take a look at the passage that was just read in Matthew, the 15th chapter.

We want to (18:00) see what Jesus had to say about his crowd who were basically Jewish. Matthew, the 15th (18:11) chapter starting, let’s pick up at verse 1 and read on down to it so you can have the (18:19) context. Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and (18:30) asked, why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands (18:35) before they eat.

Jesus replied, why do you break the command of God for the sake of your (18:43) tradition? For God said, honor your father and mother and anyone who curses their father (18:50) or mother is to be put to death. But you say that if anyone declares that what might have (18:57) been used to help their father or mother is devoted to God, they are not to honor their (19:04) father or mother with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.

(19:11) You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about Europe. He said, these people honor (19:20) me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain.

Their teachings (19:27) are merely human rules. What is Jesus pointing out to them? They worshiped exactly the way (19:39) God told them to do in the most of the time. When God set up the temple worship, when God (19:47) set up the worship and the sacrifices that were to be offered, he told Moses how to do (19:53) it and everything, they did not miss one beat.

They worshiped God exactly the way (20:02) God wanted them to worship. They were doing exactly what he asked them to do. What was (20:09) lacking? Their hearts.

What was lacking? The way in which they lived. What was lacking? (20:23) What we know is that they were supposed to look after the widows and the orphans. But (20:28) they were violating the orphans and the widows.

They were taking their properties away from (20:33) them. They were doing all kinds of things that God did not want them to do. Their lifestyle (20:42) was completely out of step with what God wanted them to do.

And I think that that’s where (20:49) we need to come in and that we need to realize that God is redeeming us out of the world, (21:00) redeeming us from the wickedness, the violations of the world, and he wants us to adopt a lifestyle (21:11) and a way of life. He calls that having your heart circumcised. And he keeps asking them (21:21) have your heart circumcised.

What does that mean? It means bringing it in line with God. (21:32) Get rid of the way in which the world thinks. Get rid of the way in which the world approaches (21:38) life.

Their cursing, their drinking, their various lifestyles like that. So Paul, when (21:48) we look at Paul, is he concerned about how they’re worshiping? He realizes that they (21:56) are worshiping the way they’re supposed to worship. He left Timothy and Titus behind (22:01) so that they could help the people learn how to worship God and how they ought to conduct (22:07) themselves in the church, in the worship service.

That was not a concern of his. The (22:18) concern that he had was the lifestyle that the Christians were living. And he’s telling (22:26) them in Romans the 12th chapter, take a look at Romans the 12th chapter, he’s telling them (22:32) that they need to be ready to present their bodies as a living sacrifice.

Take a look. (22:45) As I get into it, somehow or other, we’re going to go to the 12th chapter now. (23:00) Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies (23:08) as a living sacrifice, wholly pleasing to God.

This is your true and proper worship. (23:15) Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your (23:22) mind. Then you will be able to test and prove what God’s will is.

His good, pleasing and (23:32) perfect will. He’s concerned about how we conduct ourselves. Paul writes several times (23:42) in the Ephesians letters, the Colossians letters, even Peter writes and John writes (23:49) concerning the lifestyle that we need to be living.

And so I want to just basically make (23:56) as an example, Ephesians the fourth chapter. Take a look at Ephesians the fourth chapter (24:06) where Paul talks about that. There’s a section in my Bible that says instructions for Christian (24:13) living.

So, verse 17, I tell you, so I tell you this, and insist on it, I insist on it, (24:28) in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do in the futility of their (24:35) thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because (24:42) of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. There’s where (24:48) your circumcision of the hearts comes in.

Having lost all sensitivity, they have given (24:56) themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity. And they are full (25:04) of greed. He’s telling us, let’s abandon that.

Let’s get rid of that. Let’s change (25:12) our lives. So, that, however, is not the way of life you learned.

You didn’t learn that (25:21) from Jesus. When you heard, let me re-read that. That, however, is not the way of life (25:29) you learned when you heard about Jesus and were taught in Him in accordance with the (25:35) truth that is in Jesus.

You were taught, with the regard of your former way of life, to (25:41) put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in (25:50) the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self created to be like God in true (25:58) righteousness and holiness. This is what is pleasing with God. So, therefore, verse (26:06) 25, each of you must put off, and this is what he’s going to say, and these are things (26:14) that will eventually hit anybody, I don’t care what our audience is made up of, we’re (26:21) going to have one of these issues that he’s going to talk about that we need to put off.

(26:28) Put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of the (26:36) one body. In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, (26:45) and do not give the devil a foothold.

Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, (26:52) but must work doing something useful with their own hands that they may have something to (26:58) share with those in need. Notice now, he didn’t stop there, he’s still got more to talk about (27:08) that we need to conform our lives to. Verse 29, if I’m reading it right, do not let any (27:19) unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others (27:26) up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

And do not give the Holy (27:35) Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, (27:44) rage, anger, brawling, slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind, compassionate (27:56) to one another, forgiving each other, just as Christ forgave you.

When he’s talking about (28:06) that, he’s also talking about the fact that when we’re with other men or with other women, (28:15) they have a tendency to want to start telling coarse jokes. We’re not supposed to tell coarse (28:23) jokes. We’re to refrain from telling coarse jokes.

We’re not to use any curse words or (28:32) foul words. And we are to clean our language up. So he’s asking us to do something that (28:43) is perhaps what we would perceive as being difficult, hard to do.

But as I mentioned (28:53) this morning, we have hope. God has given us hope. And we can conform our lives to the (29:01) things that God wants us to conform.

We can bring our lives around to being righteous (29:08) in every aspect of our lives. And righteousness is something that is a goal that I strive (29:15) for. I haven’t attained it.

I’m looking for it. I strive for it. And perhaps you do too.

(29:22) And I’m sure you do. But we want to be righteous. We don’t want to approach life as the world (29:29) approaches it.

We want to approach life the way God wants us to approach it. So we have (29:34) hope. So God has given us the avenue of hope.

And where does that hope lie? It lies in the (29:49) Holy Spirit. Because you see, God knows that we need help. God knows that we want to be (30:02) what he wants us to be.

And the Holy Spirit has been given the challenge to help you (30:09) and I eliminate sin from our lives. The Holy Spirit empowers us with the ability to rid (30:19) ourselves of sin in our lives. And as long as we’re walking in the light as he is in (30:28) the light, Jesus is cleansing us of our sins.

We may not have cleaned ourselves up yet, (30:36) but Jesus is forgiving us of our sins. As long as we’re walking in the light as he is in (30:43) the light and that we’re trying. He doesn’t want us to give up.

God doesn’t want us to (30:51) give up. He’s giving us hope. You can, we can, any man, any person can give up the various (30:59) sins that we’re talking about.

Whether it’s addiction, anything, whatever it is, God is (31:08) willing to forgive and remember our sins no more. Notice what he said in Hebrews. Take (31:20) a look at Hebrews.

I believe it’s the eighth chapter where he quotes Jeremiah. Jeremiah (31:37) 31 and 31. We pick up with verse 7. For if there had been nothing wrong with the first (31:48) covenant, no place would have been sought for the other.

But God found fault with the (31:55) people and said, and this is why he destroyed Noah, people in Noah’s day, Sodom and Gomorrah, (32:06) is because he found fault with the people. The days are coming, declares the Lord, when (32:11) I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It (32:17) will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand (32:23) to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant and I (32:29) turned away from them.

Now notice, this is what God is going to implement now. This is (32:37) the covenant I will establish and this is the covenant you and I are under today. This (32:42) is the covenant that Jesus implemented and introduced to us.

We are under this covenant. (32:48) This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after the time, declares (32:53) the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts.

I will be (32:59) their God and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor or say to one (33:05) another, know the Lord, because they will all know me, from the least of them to the (33:12) greatest, for I will, do what? I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their (33:25) sins no more. God is promising us that we can have hope and live out the Christian life (33:39) that God wants us to live.

We have the Holy Spirit working with us. The Holy Spirit is (33:48) to convict us of our sins and not only is he to convict us of our sins, what does that (33:54) mean? To make us aware of the fact that we are sinning. To make us aware of the fact (33:59) that we need to correct our lives.

And he is also empowering us to be able to correct (34:06) that. To get rid of it. So it leads me to my favorite passage, Romans 8. You know, I (34:23) love to quote this many, many times.

How is God not going to forgive us? Or how is (34:34) God going to forgive us of our sins and remember them no more? He’s not going to bring it up. (34:41) He’s not going to bring it up. Oh, do you remember when you did this and did that? Oh, (34:46) we can’t forget it.

There’s no way we can forget our sins because we are human and we (34:53) don’t forget anything that we’ve ever done or said. All you’ve got to do, just like (34:58) the computer, press the right button and you’re reminded of all your sins. So it’s (35:07) not a matter of us remembering our sins, it’s a matter of God giving us a clean conscience.

(35:14) And he’s saying, and the conscience is very important because you want to approach God (35:20) with a clean conscience. And God is saying, I am going to forgive you of your sins and (35:29) I’ll remember them no more. And you can approach God knowing full well he has forgiven you (35:36) of your sins and he does not bring them up.

He doesn’t even remember them. But we do. (35:45) But we also know that we have the assurance that we can clean our lives up.

And so here (35:52) it is. How do we have that assurance? Therefore there is now, this is Romans 8 chapter verse (36:02) 1. Therefore there is now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, because through (36:10) Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free. This is the law of (36:17) the Spirit.

The law of the Spirit has set you free. So, you are free from the law of (36:26) sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, (36:33) God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.

And so (36:42) he condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirements of the law might (36:49) be fully met in us. Do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (36:56) And then he goes on and he talks about the fate of those who continue to live in the (37:00) flesh.

And he also talks about the benefit of living in the Spirit. But what is Paul (37:07) telling us? Jesus came to condemn sin in the flesh. We do not have sin in the flesh.

He (37:25) came to give us the opportunity to eliminate it. We can eliminate it. How do we eliminate (37:38) it? By becoming a disciple of Jesus.

And how do we become a disciple of Jesus? He establishes (37:49) that and doesn’t establish how we become a disciple of Jesus. We don’t have the right (37:57) because we’re not Jesus. Jesus has the right to make the demand and the restrictions of (38:04) what it takes to become a disciple of his.

So, we see him giving instructions to his (38:11) disciples before he ascends into heaven, don’t we? Mark 16, 15, 16, Matthew 28. What does (38:19) Jesus say to his disciples? Paraphrasing, bring it all together. Go into all the world (38:28) making disciples of me, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy (38:36) Spirit.

That’s how you become a disciple of Jesus. Anybody who complies to Jesus' (38:50) requirements are a disciple of him and they have their sins washed away. Complete.

God (38:59) is not going to remember anything and Jesus walks with us and as long as we walk in the (39:05) light as he is in the light, his blood will continue to cleanse us from it. That means (39:11) our tenor of life needs to be, I want to do what God wants me to do. I want to be righteous (39:18) and Jesus is able to, because he forgives us of our sins, continues to forgive us of (39:24) our sins.

He is able to present us before God without spot and without blemish. Isn’t (39:32) that beautiful? So, it’s important for us to recognize the fact that God is giving us (39:39) hope and he’s giving us the power and he’s empowering us to eradicate sin from our lives. (39:49) Don’t let me elaborate on what those sins might be.

I’m not going to try to elaborate (39:56) on what those sins might be. What are those sins are? He’s able to help us eliminate them (40:05) from our lives. Isn’t that beautiful? There is now, therefore, no condemnation to them (40:12) who are in Christ Jesus.

And isn’t that what the gospel of God says in John 3, 16 and so (40:20) on? For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth (40:26) on him shall not perish but have everlasting life. But it doesn’t stop there. Because (40:32) John tells us that Jesus did not come into the world to condemn the world.

Why? Because (40:43) we were already condemned. He didn’t come to re-condemn us and to make us aware of our (40:52) sins. Oh, you’re going to go to hell! You’re going to go to hell! No, he came to redeem (40:59) us.

He came to do the will of his Father who sent him. And the will of the Father who (41:07) sent him asked him to die on the cross as a propitiation for our sins. And he did.

(41:15) And he empowered Jesus to be able to forgive the sins of whosoever comes to him. And there’s (41:24) no other name under heaven whereby man may be saved, is there? So, God wants us to come (41:32) to him through Jesus. We saw that this morning.

God wants us to come to him through Jesus. (41:40) There’s no other avenue. And Jesus said that.

I am the door. I am the way. No man cometh (41:48) unto the Father except by me.

So, we have hope. We have every reason to want to continue (42:02) to live a Christian life. Even though we have trials, we have troubles, we have everything (42:09) pulling at us, that God has said, I won’t remember your sins.

And Jesus says, whoever (42:22) walks in my life, there’s no condemnation. I’m not condemning you. Never will.

But to (42:32) extend to anyone who might be here that needs the prayers of the congregation or to respond (42:38) to the invitation, I’d like to extend to you the opportunity to do so. And that’s another (42:43) part of the restoration. I’m extending an invitation, giving a person the opportunity (42:49) to respond to God’s will.

We know that God does not desire that any should perish, but (42:55) that all should come to everlasting life. So, come, if you need to, as we sang the song (43:01) of invitation.