Isaiah 30:10 (3/6/24)

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Isaiah 30:10 (3/6/24)

Hard Words

March 6, 2024 • Benham Brothers • Isaiah 30:9–11

* Today we have the rise of the emergent church that speaks a very soft gospel, one that's consumed with God's blessings but not with God’s boundaries.

* Why? Because of the fear of offending.

* If you present truth and it offends then they cannot build this big thing they want to build.

* MLK once said the church is the “conscience” of the state.

* Imagine living without a conscience - without that inner voice telling you the right way to go.

* You’d end up on the wrong path - on the path of death.

* The same thing was happening thousands of years ago.

* Listen to the prophet Isaiah:

* vs 9-11 - “For these are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. They say to the seers, “See no more visions!” and to the prophets, “Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions. Leave this way, get off this path, and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!”

* What’s the worst thing a parent can do for a kid who’s begging for something?

* To give him what he’s begging for.

* Why? Because it not only teaches him to beg and makes him selfish but because IT REVERSES AUTHORITY!

* It puts the kid in control of the parent - and that’s not the authority structure God put in place.

* Satan loves reversed authority - it’s the only way he can win.

* If a pastor gives people what they want to hear it places them in control over him.

* And what type of shepherd puts the sheep in charge?

* No shepherd at all!

* TWO KEYS:

* 1) Embrace Truth.

* “Hard words make soft people and soft words make hard people."

* Hard words are tough to hear, but if we want to become all that God wants us to become then we need to welcome them.

* The way you know if your heart is hard is by your longing to only hear soft words.

* If you have an utter disgust for any type of criticism, etc then you can rest assured that your heart is hard and needs to be broken.

* Once it's broken God will mend it and keep it soft if you simply listen to His rebuke!

* 2) Speak Truth.

* Think about a parent who never speaks truth to his kids for fear of offending them.

* Will those kids end up soft-hearted or hard-hearted?

* You see, if you use hard words (truth) it softens hearts.

* But if you use soft words (devoid of truth) it hardens hearts.

* Let the hard words come and learn from them - they will keep you soft!

Jeremiah 36:7 (4/24/24)

April 24, 2024 • Benham Brothers • Jeremiah 36:7

* A merciful mindset positions us for favor with God. * If one of my kids shows mercy to their brother or sister, it makes me want to reward them! * God feels the same toward us. * James 2:13 - “For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who is not merciful…” * Jesus shows us this with the woman caught in adultery. * They wanted judgment, but Jesus taught mercy. * But He didn’t lower the standard to show it - “Go and sin no more.” * Two OT prophets - Jonah and Jeremiah. * Jonah - got mad at God when He showed mercy to Ninevah. * He wanted justice for the people, not mercy. * God did not like that. * Jeremiah - he had to deliver a harsh message to the king who had imprisoned him. * Look how he responds as he asked his assistant Baruch to carry a message to the king: * vs 5-7 - ““I am restricted; I am not allowed to go to the Lord’s temple. 6 So you go to the house of the Lord on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the Lord that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who come in from their towns. 7 Perhaps they will bring their petition before the Lord and will each turn from their wicked ways, for the anger and wrath pronounced against this people by the Lord are great.” * Jeremiah shows us the power of a merciful disposition. * Jeremiah 51:8 - “Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken; wail for her! Take balm for her pain; perhaps she may be healed.” * We should want our enemies to experience the mercy of God. * Not because they deserve it, but because God showed us mercy when we didn’t deserve it. * This disposition will keep us from getting bitter an angry toward others. * And it will keep us from falling prey to James 2:13!!!!

1 Corinthians 4:15 (4/24/24)

April 24, 2024 • Benham Brothers • 1 Corinthians 4:15

* We are “watchmen” not “watchdogs.” * We don’t do the “latest news.” * Our mandate from God is to expose evil and help you stand strong. * We do that by helping you think through stuff. * Five observations from the Mark Driscoll saga. * 1) The Jezebel spirit is real - it thrives on three things: * Sexual Anarchy (LGBTQ+) * Child Sacrifice (Abortion) * Murderous Spirit (Cancel Culture) * 2) A fatherly mindset is the only way to deal with Jezebel. * 1 Cor 4:15 - “For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” * A pastor is a “father” - a dad doesn’t let the kids lead the home. * Pastors today are allowing creatives to take the lead. * Jehu was the one who was tasked to take out Jezebel - he was a “bad” dude. * 3) Etiquette should not be valued over purity. * Pastor Lindell should’ve addressed both issues. * 4) The consequences of private sin will affect you down the road, even after you’ve repented. * Mark’s personal sin caused him to shrink back. * 5) We have to “let the prophets speak” - because their words are hard. * Most prophets travel alone - often because they have “issues.”

Acts 13:49-50 (4/17/24)

April 17, 2024 • Benham Brothers • Acts 13:49–50

* God uses people to accomplish His will on the earth. * He uses both good and bad people. * Satan uses people to accomplish his will on the earth. * He uses both good and bad people. * Backstory - Jesus was off the scenes and now the growth of the church was the responsibility of the apostles. * Paul and Barnabas were preaching like crazy! * Jews and Gentiles were getting saved by the droves. * vs 49 - “The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.” * Through their witness the kingdom of heaven was advancing forcefully against the kingdom of hell. * Then something happened: * vs 50 - “But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.” * A “God-fearing” person who’s a “leader” is a Christian Influencer! * The Christian Influencers of the day were now on the wrong side of God’s Kingdom expansion! * We need to always remember the four spiritual players at work here. * Revelation 17 shows us: * Dragon - Satan himself. * Beast - Antichrist spirit (any idea that stands against God). * Babylon - (PEC) Political, Economic, Cultural system of the Beast. * The goal of Babylon is to turn people away from God. * Harlot - Religious system of Babylon that gives credence to the Beast. * The only way people will desire Satan’s way more than God’s way is if there is a religious system that legitimizes it. * That’s what happened here in Acts 13. * Satan needed good-hearted Godly people to buy into his lies and hinder God’s work. * Note - These influencers were first convinced by the “religious” leaders. * “…the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women…” * What are our pastors teaching us today? * How do we make sure we don’t get used by Satan? * 1) Wrap knowledge around our zeal. * These influencers certainly had a zeal for the Lord, but they didn’t have knowledge. * They needed a Biblical worldview to filter the lies being spoken into their ears. * We need to “study” Scripture to be intimately familiar with the truth. * We need to study it through the lense of a battle. * 2) Look and listen for the spirit behind what’s being said or done. * EX: Jesus with Peter. * EX: Stanley - teaching Christians to stay out of the “hot topic” issues. * “If you need an enemy to prop up your leadership, you’re not leading.” * People clapped - but the Bible is a book about God’s enemy. * 3) Ask God what He thinks. * Then pause and listen. * 4) Sit under leaders with a “Fatherly” spirit (and Motherly). * They’re willing to talk about all things. * They teach about boundaries.