Jeremiah 23:29 Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
Hebrews 4:12 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.
The Word of God:
-is like a fire.
-is like a hammer.
-breaks through the hardness of our hearts.
-is quick.
-is powerful
-is sharper than a two-edged sword.
-is piercing.
-is a discerner.
a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
God knows exactly what is in your heart!
He knows your thoughts.
He know your intentions.
He knows if you desire to follow Him.
He knows your trials.
He knows your temptations.
He knows your commitment to Him.
He also knows your lack of commitment.
He knows your strengths.
He knows your weaknesses.
He knows if you are willingly following Him.
He also knows when you have rejected Him.
God knows you …
-.and the real you will show itself when you are all alone and when you think that no one is watching.
Luke 11:28b Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
Hearing the Word of God is very important but it will do little good if it is not put into practice.
James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
Deception begins when I hear the Word of God but reject it or do not put it into practice.
Matthew 7
Judging
Matthew 7:1-6
¶ Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
Object Lesson:
Beam: lust, envy, bitterness, pride, fornication, adultery, idolatry, and so on.
Mote: hygiene, opinionated, easily offended, a loose tongue
Ask, Seek, and Knock
Matthew 7:7-12
7 ¶ Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
12 ¶ Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
The Narrow Way
Matthew 7:13-14
13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
There are two ways but only one way to God and that is through the shed blood of Jesus
Christ.
The fruit that comes out of our lives will stand as a witness of which way we have taken.
Beware of False Prophets or Teachers
Matthew 7:15-20
15 ¶ Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
What is the evidence of a false prophet or teacher?
-a false prophet or teacher looks good on the outside and may even speak with conviction but his life will not line up with the Word of God.
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Saints verses the Deceived
Matthew 7:21-23
21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Who will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven?
– he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Who will not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven?
-those who do not do the will of the Father but are called “workers of iniquity.”
The Wise and the Foolish
Matthew 7:24-29
24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:
29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
The wise man and the foolish man both ________________.
Is hearing and knowing the truth, enough?
Matthew 7
19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
John 15:1 ¶ I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
What does the wise man do that the foolish man does not?
-he is doing the will of the Father.
-he is bearing much good fruit.
-and he builds his house on the solid rock, Jesus Christ.
What is the end result of the wise man?
-his house did not fall because it was built upon the rock.
-and his treasure is secured in Heaven.
What was the end result of the foolish man?
-his house fell because it was not built upon the solid rock but on the sand.
-and he found himself in total disaster.
It takes little to no energy to be a foolish man.
A foolish man has desire but lacks commitment.
A foolish man is afraid of “works”.
A foolish man is a man that has not come to the end of himself and in essence thinks that he knows better than God.
A foolish man is a self-righteous man.
A foolish man is a self-willed man.
A foolish man is more concerned about the here and now than he is about eternity.
In contrast, a wise man also has desire but is committed to doing what is right regardless of what it may cost him.
A wise man allows the Word of God to penetrate his life and puts it into daily practice.
A wise man is a man that has come to the end of himself and daily allows God to fill him with power from above.
A wise man allows God to fill him with His righteousness.
A wise man is a man that follows the will of God.
A wise man is focused on the Kingdom of God and looks at life through the eyes of eternity.
Where do you find yourself today?
Have you built your life on The Rock, Jesus Christ?
Or maybe you find yourself slipping in the sand.
Maybe your life is full of confusion
1Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
Maybe you are struggling with fear or anxiety.
2Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Romans 10:9 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.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Revelation 3:1 ¶ And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
4 Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.