"The Church Must Speak Out!"
Psalms 107:1-9
INTRO. In Matthew 16, after asking His disciples, “Whom do men say that I, the Son Of man, am?” (v13), and after receiving this bold confession of Peter, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (v16); Jesus declares in v18, "…Thou art Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." This is the first time we see the word "Church" mentioned in the New Testament, but after this occurrence, there are some 116 other occurrences of the word "Church" found in the New Testament.
The English word "Church", used here in the New Testament, is a combination of two Greek words. The first Greek word is "Ecclesia" which means "an assembly of called out ones," and the second Greek word "Kuriakos" which means "belonging to the LORD." So, if we put the two words together, we get this meaning, "An assembly of called out ones belonging to the LORD." There have been times that the Church has been a mighty force in the world, and there have also been times when the Church held little importance to many in the world. That seems to be the case in our world today! I want to title the message, "The Church Must Speak Out!"
In our text, Psalms 107:2, the BIBLE says, "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy." I ask you, "Who constitutes the Body of Christ, the Church?" The redeemed, for Ephesians 5:25 tells us, "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it." Again, speaking of the "Blessed Hope" of the redeemed, the BIBLE declares in Titus 2:13-14, "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works."
Christ has done so much for us, his people, thus we MUST SPEAK OUT for Him! In Acts 4:19-20 Peter and John, before the Sanhedrin, accused of preaching in Jesus' name, which was forbidden, declared, "…Whether it be right in the sight of GOD to hearken unto you more than unto GOD, judge ye. For WE CANNOT BUT SPEAK the things we have seen and heard." "Will you speak out?" Let us see 3 things we MUST, as the Church speak out against and 3 ways to accomplish this.
THE CHURCH MUST SPEAK OUT AGAINST:
(1) SIN’S DEVASTATION
Psalms 33:12a—“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.."
A. WE MUST LIFT OUR VOICE (Ezekiel 33:1-7).
B. WE MUST LET OUR LIGHT SHINE (Matthew 5:13-16).
(2) SPIRITUAL DESERTION
1 Timothy 4:1-2—“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the
latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to
seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in
hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.”
A. SPIRITUAL DESERTION IS APOSTASY. The word apostasy is found
twice in the New Testament. It is from a Greek word “apostasia” which
means "a falling away, a withdrawal, or a defection." It is amazing
some of the things being preached from the pulpits of American’s
churches today! Someone has said, “You can tell the sheep are in
trouble when the shepherd starts speaking kindly of the wolf!” The
apostasy in the pulpit has lead to apostasy in the pews!
ILLUS: John Wycliffe, John Knox, David Livingstone, Hudson Taylor,
Charles Haddon Spurgeon, G. Campbell Morgan--what a
notable list of Christian leaders from Great Britain! They
established vital churches, publishing houses, and mission
societies. In spite of this godly heritage, a recent edition of the
London Times stated, "Britain emerges as one of the most
irreligious countries in the Western world from the latest
survey by the British Social Attitudes team." What happened?
The emotional scars of two World Wars, the loss of a world
empire, and the weakening effects of liberal clergy could all be
cited as causes. But there is a deeper, spiritual reason for the
decline of any nation. Its citizens lose interest in God. They
don't believe He makes any difference in their lives, so they
make gods out of their own accomplishments. --David
Burnham
B. SPIRITUAL DESERTION IS A SIGN OF THE TIMES. Paul wrote to
Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1-4—“I charge thee before God, and the Lord
Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing
And his kingdom. Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine. For the
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their
own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned
unto fables.” Friends, we are living in those days. People don’t want
to hear doctrine. People don’t want correction. People don’t want
reproof or rebuke.
ILLUS: Are we entering a 'doctrine-free' era?
In the first edition of the new Journal for Baptist Theology
and Ministry, Steve Lemke (who is Provost and Professor of
Philosophy at New Orleans Baptist Seminary) writes: "I
believe we are entering a doctrineless era, an age in which
not only are specific traditional doctrinal commitments
viewed negatively, but the very notion of having a doctrine
falls into disfavor as narrow-minded bigotry. I have seen in
my students over the past decade at Southwestern Seminary
and New Orleans Seminary a significant move away from an
interest in doctrinal matters. Interest in theological issues
that were of great interest in the past, such as soteriology,
pneumatology, and eschatology, no longer incite great
student interest. The fact that we have entered a new
millennium without any best selling books on biblical
prophecy (even Dr. Walvoord) would have been shocking to
those of us who were seminary students in the 1970's. (from
"Evangelical Theology in the Twenty-First Century" in
Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry, Vol. 1 No. 1
(Spring 2003), pp. 58-77.
Our generation is ripe for the coming of the Lord! 2 Thessalonians 2:3
tells us, “let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not
come, except there come a falling away first, and that the man of sin be
revealed, the son of perdition.” Paul mentions two events here that must
take place before the seven year tribulation: a falling away and that the
man of sin be revealed. The words “falling away” are translated from one
Greek word which means “apostasy”. Warren Wiersbe writes concerning
this verse: The word “apostasy” means “a falling away.” Here it refers to a
falling away from the truth of the Word of God. While there were certainly
false teachers in Paul’s day, the church at large was united on the truths
of the Word of God. If you met another Christian, you knew he believed
the Word of God, the deity of Christ, and the salvation by faith in Christ.
This is certainly not true today! We live in a day of “Christian unbelief”;
people say they are Christians, yet deny the deity of Christ, the inspiration
of the Bible, and so on. This apostasy, or falling away from the truth, is
promised in 1 Tim. 4 and 2 Tim. 3. We are living in apostate days right
now, which indicates that the coming of the Lord is near. The professing
church (Christendom) has departed from the faith. (Warren W. Wiersbe.
Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on The New Testament. pp. 610-611).
THE CHURCH MUST SPEAK OUT AGAINST SIN’S DEVASTATION, SPIRITUAL DESERTION, and finally THE CHURCH MUST SPEAK OUT AGAINST…
(3) SOCIAL DEGRADATION
2 Timothy 3:1-7
A. OUR SOCIETY IS SELFISH (v2b).
B. OUR SOCIETY IS SINFUL (vv. 2b-4).
HOW CAN WE SPEAK OUT?:
*By being good stewards of all things Christ has given us! (1 Corinthians 4:1-
2). SPEAKING OUT:
(4) WITH OUR TESTIMONY
Text: Psalms 107:2-3
A. THE PURPOSE OF OUR TESTIMONY (1 Peter 3:15).
B. THE POWER OF OUR TESTIMONY (Revelation 12:11; 2 Timothy
1:7-9). When God's people are silent, Satan wins!
(5) WITH OUR TALENT
A. EACH BELIEVER IS A REFLECTION OF GRACE (Romans 12:1-6a).
WE are to “present our bodies a living sacrifice” because of what God’s
grace has done. We are to reflect His grace to others by serving Him
with whatever talent He has blessed us with. Matthew Henry said, “We
receive from the Lord every day the fruits of his mercy. Let us render
ourselves; all we are, all we have, all we can do…Whatever our gifts or
situations may be, let us try to employ ourselves humbly, diligently,
cheerfully, and in simplicity; not seeking our own credit or profit, but
the good of many, for this world and that which is to come.” (Matthew
Henry’s Concise Commentary).
B. EACH BELIEVER IS A RECIPIENT OF A GIFT (Romans 12:6b-8; 1
Peter 4:10). Each believer according to Romans 12:3 has been given
by God “the measure of faith.” We are saved by grace through faith and
we are to exercise our spiritual gifts “according to the measure of faith”
(v3b) and “according to the grace that is given to us” (v6a). Let us use
our gifts for His glory! Use what talents you possess: The woods would
be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best. - Henry
Van Dyke
(6) WITH OUR TIME
Psalms 90:10, 12—“The days of our years are three-score years and
ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore
years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is
soon cut off, and we fly away. So then teach us to
number of days, that we may apply our hearts unto
wisdom.”
A. LIFE IS SHORT (Psalms 90:10; Job 14:1; James 4:14). None of us have the promise of tomorrow. What we want to accomplish for Christ we must do today.
ILLUS: Scientific measurements indicate that we are moving even
when we are standing still. Continental land masses sit on
enormous slabs of rock that slide very slowly at the rate of 1 to
8 inches per year. America is gradually moving westward,
away from Europe, at the rate of 3 inches per year. Our Milky
Way galaxy is hurtling through space at 375 miles per second
or 1.3 million miles per hour. But that's not all. Within our
own galaxy the sun and its solar system are zooming along at
12.4 miles per second (43,000 mph) in the direction of the star
Vega in the constellation Lyra. Just as we are hurtling
through the heavens at unimaginable speeds, so too we are
moving from here to eternity. Our days and opportunities to
live for the Lord pass so rapidly that we cannot afford to waste
time.
B. LIFE IS A STEWARDSHIP (Psalms 90:12). God says when we live and
when we die. Job 14:5 speaking of man says, “Seeing his days are
determined, the number of his months are with thee, thou hast appointed
his bounds that he cannot pass.” We must use the time God has given
us to be a witness to this world of His love and mercy. Many experts
say that we should be arrested for murder when we kill time. Close
examination, however, makes it obvious that killing time is not murder
- it's suicide. - Zig Ziglar
ILLUS: In football when the team faces a tough decision, the coach
often calls for a time-out. In basketball when the press is on,
the captain can call for a time-out. In soccer when the team is
bushed, they can gain a few minutes respite with a time-out.
But life does not work that way. There is no way that we can
stop the clock to think about our problems. We cannot save,
store, or stretch time. We may use or we may abuse time, but
the clock keeps on ticking-inexorably. We can only plan how to
spend the time given to us.
CLOSING: In Luke 19, beginning in v37, we see Christ, Our LORD, entering
into Jerusalem. Much people have went out to meet Him carrying
palm branches. In v38, we see the whole multitude saying,
"Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the LORD: peace
in heaven, and glory in the highest." The Pharisees watching the
spectacle said to Jesus, "Master, rebuke thy disciples," (v39) but
Jesus told them, "If these should hold their peace, the stones would
immediately cry out." (v40).
I don't know about you, but I don't want any stones to cry out for
me! I want to lift my voice for the LORD! Will you speak out for
Him? With your TESTIMONY? TALENT? TIME? Against SIN’S
DEVASTATION? SPIRITUAL DESERTION? SOCIAL
DEGRADATION?