“ God's rule versus majority rule ” In one section of this message, Dr. Morecraft explains that in Numbers 16, Korah was dissatisfied with God's total rule over his life. He wanted some say in running his own life. Korah wanted democracy not theocracy. He was dissatisfied with theocracy where God rules and where God puts men in office and where God's law is the basis of all justice. Korah wanted a country where the majority rules and where the whims and fancies and choices and desires of all the people become the source of law. Whatever the people want the people get, whether it's abortion, whether it's homosexual marriages, whether it's gun control, whether it's out-of-control taxation, whatever it is. Korah wanted that rather than a theocracy where God rules by His Word.
“ Watering or withering ” Dr. Morecraft explains that there is one who distributes generously what he has, and instead of diminishing himself, increases all the more, in life, wealth and happiness. And there is one who withholds and hoards what he has, but who in the process loses everything. That is, someone who scatters his life to benefit and enhance the lives of other people, someone who throws his wealth, his energy, his time, his gifts, his talents, far and wide, generously with little concern for himself, putting the concerns of others above his own concerns, will increase all the more. But somebody who is so worried about the future, so worried about himself, and who clings to everything he possesses (his wealth, talents, and influence), despite there being people in need around him, will be the one who depletes his own resources. So we are always watering or withering.
“ Be good to do your children good ” As Dr. Morecraft explains, God's blessing on a faithful man is not confined to himself. The best way for any man to do his children good is to be good himself. In the Bible, the children of the righteous are delivered for the sake of their godly ancestors. This is taught in Proverbs 20:7, Psalm 103:17-18, and Proverbs 11:21. When God blesses a man, those blessings are not confined to himself. The future is going to be rough on our children and grandchildren. They're going to live in a rougher time than we have. There's going to be more persecution and more darkness to come in the near future than we have faced. The persecution until now has been largely emotional and ridicule. But our children and grandchildren will have worse things to experience because of the failure of the church in our generation and the generations before us. If you want to do your children and grandchildren good, then be good yourself. Don't be compromising. Don't play footsie with the world. Live a distinctively Christian life.
“ Greed is never satisfied ” Among the many matters covered in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft explains that greed reveals what your heart longs for, what you're obsessed with, and what the greatest desire of your heart is. Is your desire to please God by doing whatever He wants? Or acquiring material things? Greedy people will give up the faith before they'll give up money. Yet greed cannot provide the things your heart really longs for. It's empty, because it never satisfies. You always want more and more and more.
“ Greed is never satisfied ” Among the many matters covered in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft explains that greed reveals what your heart longs for, what you're obsessed with, and what the greatest desire of your heart is. Is your desire to please God by doing whatever He wants? Or acquiring material things? Greedy people will give up the faith before they'll give up money. Yet greed cannot provide the things your heart really longs for. It's empty, because it never satisfies. You always want more and more and more.
“ The day of God's wrath ” Dr. Morecraft explains that, in the Bible, the day of wrath can mean two things. In one case it can mean any catastrophe that God uses to strike down wicked individuals and nations. The day of God's wrath can be any moment in history when God strikes down ungodly individuals, families, societies, or nations because of their rebellion against Him. God has intervened in history many times since its beginning. Many nations and empires that are no longer in existence had the day of wrath come to them. They are gone. The Babylonian Empire is gone. The Persian Empire is gone. The Roman Empire is gone. Many other nations through the centuries are gone. And unless there is genuine heartfelt repentance on the part of God's people in this country, America will experience the day of wrath as well. The second meaning of the term day of wrath in the Scriptures is a final calamity for the wicked that takes place at the very end of history.
“ God's wisdom ” In this superb introduction to the Book of Proverbs, Dr. Morecraft explains that God's wisdom is His ability to use His knowledge and His power to accomplish His purposes in a way that brings the most glory to Himself, the most benefit to His church, and the most confusion to His enemies.
“ Drunkenness is sinful and destructive ” Dr. Morecraft explains that whoever allows himself to be so overpowered by the effects of wine that he's no longer in control of himself is not wise, to say the least. Whether it's occasional drunkenness or habitual drunkenness, it's sinful. When a person is drunk, mental alertness, self-discipline and wisdom drown in alcohol. Drunkenness is a serious thing in the Bible. It's not something to laugh at. Anybody given to drunkenness shall not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21). Both of the terms "wine" and "strong drink" denote a beverage that will intoxicate if used in excess. The Old Testament does not condemn the moderate use of these drinks, and even considers wine a blessing from God (e.g. Proverbs 3:9-10, Proverbs 31:6-7). Moderate wine drinking is never forbidden in the Bible. But the Bible condemns drunkenness over and over again, either by the example of people who got drunk or outright statements about getting drunk. Wine and strong drink can excite the passions when consumed in excess, leading to various sins through a loss of self-control.
“ The fear of the Lord ” Among the matters covered in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft explains that the fear of the Lord is loving, adoring, worshipful submission to Him from the heart. You understand how small you are, you understand how big and glorious He is, and out of that understanding grows this awe, and this fear, and this desire to worship. Disaster and heartbreak will come, but when you fear the Lord you have God Himself as your shield and nothing will separate you in time or eternity from His love for you. So even in times of danger you will experience His rich blessings for your life. The fear of the Lord leads to life and all the blessings of life worthy of the name, so that one may rest secure, not worrying that he will be destroyed by evil.
“ Laziness is a sign of moral degeneration ” Dr. Morecraft explains that laziness is where someone has no initiative and no perseverance. A lazy person does not take the initiative, either in material things like everyday chores, or spiritual responsibilities. Laziness casts the lazy person into a deep sleep. That means he's totally unconscious of what's going on around him. He has no perception of the real world in which he lives. Instead, he lives in a dream of his own imagination. And as a result, all of his decisions are aimed at making himself happy. Laziness also makes the lazy person hungry because none of his appetites or desires are fulfilled due to his neglect. In other words, the lazy person is a slave to his feelings. What he feels like doing he will do if it doesn't require too much effort. Laziness is a sign of moral degeneration because the lazy person is only concerned about himself and his own feelings, not doing God's will.
“ Grief over a foolish child ” Dr. Morecraft explains that grief over a foolish child can destroy a parent's life. How can you keep from being destroyed by grief over a child that is a fool? You must live in Philippians 4, reading it and meditating upon it, day after day, week after week, with the prayer that God would bring your child home. You must believe in the sovereignty of God; that God has foreordained everything that has come to pass and has a purpose in everything that happens in your life, even the foolishness of your child; that God has a purpose for you, however painful it might be, and God has a purpose for your child and other people that you might not even be aware of. And somehow or another, He is going to turn that tragic situation out for His glory and for the benefit of other people. Only believing in the sovereignty of Almighty God can prevent you from being anxious about your foolish child. God does what He pleases, and causes all things to work together for good to those that love Him. He has a purpose in every tragedy that takes place in our lives.
“ Finding good ” Among the points made in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft explains that if you get wisdom and if you give heed to understanding, you'll preserve your life and you'll find good. And the most comprehensive use of the word "good" is found in Romans 8:28. Everything in the life of the person that loves God will work together for his good and his benefit and for God's glory. God causes all things, all the time, to work together for good to those who love Him. Or as Proverbs 19:8 puts it, to those who get wisdom and keep understanding, they will find good because God will work everything in their lives together for their good and for their benefit.
“ Walking in integrity ” Dr. Morecraft explains that it's better to be poor than it is to have all the wealth in the world, if when you're poor, you're walking in your integrity. To walk in integrity means to behave and to speak in a way that's consistent with what you profess to believe. We're never going to be perfect in this life, but we must seek to live like sons and daughters of God. It also means that whatever we say will always be consistent with our profession of faith. The Lord will bless the godly poor person, even in his poverty and affliction. The poor man that walks in his integrity is secure in God and sleeps well because he doesn't find his security in the material things of this world and investments; he finds his security in Almighty God and faithfulness to Him (Job 4:6, "Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope?") God blesses all those who fear Him. A poor person who walks in his integrity is far better off than a rich person who trusts in his own riches. Money does not add to our security if we're trusting in the living God and walking in our integrity.
“ You cannot outgive God ” After discussing matters related to obtaining a godly spouse, Dr. Morecraft explains that people who worship their riches are miserable in the depths of their hearts and their lives. Usually they hold onto their money with all their might to protect their god, in hopes that some day that god will protect them. They are slaves to their money. In contrast, the liberated thinking of the Christian toward wealth is: the more bountifully I sow, the more bountifully I reap. And the more sparingly I sow, the more sparingly I reap. Now, that does take faith because sometimes it doesn't calculate correctly on a computer. It takes faith to believe that.
“ The power of speech ” Among the matters covered in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft discusses the good, wholesome benefits of good speech, and the deadly effects of evil speech. What we say to impact other people in some way, sooner or later impacts ourselves either for good or evil. Our words are like food people feed on. As they feed on that food, it influences their behavior, which influences their destinies. Whatever a person says to another person, whether beneficial or harmful, he himself will feed on it and be affected by what he said to the other person. Or to put it in more familiar terms, words come back to bite you. The point is this: be careful what you say.
“ Enduring sickness ” Dr. Morecraft explains that the strength to overcome sickness comes from a true knowledge of the Word of God. Everything we need to know to get through this life is in the Word of God. It contains everything pertaining to life and godliness. And that comprehensive knowledge that comes from the Word of God is power. If this knowledge consumes you, and you seek to live in terms of it, it has a power in your life that enables you to endure sickness when other people are falling apart. And it preserves you from a broken spirit.
“ Gossip is destructive ” Dr. Morecraft explains that gossip is not simply telling somebody else something bad about another person. Gossip has to do with motive. That is, gossip is cutting down somebody or telling something bad about somebody else to another person with a malicious motive because you want to harm the one you're talking about. You want to bring him down and you want to make him look bad. Proverbs 18:8 describes gossip as "dainty morsels" that "go down into the innermost parts of the body." This must be an important point because Proverbs 26:22 says the same thing again. Abusive speech and gossip are both destructive and they alienate people from each other. But gossip is delicious and it's contagious, and therefore it's more dangerous. In hurting other people, gossip destroys relationships by ruining a person's reputation in the eyes of his friends without him even knowing anything about it.
“ The importance of doctrine ” Dr. Morecraft explains that it's only by divinely revealed truth that a Christian can understand life. Christians should love and delight in doctrine for two reasons: 1) The more we know of divinely revealed doctrine contained in Holy Scripture, the more we know God and the better equipped we are to glorify Him and enjoy Him. 2) The more we learn divinely revealed doctrine, the more we understand how we are to relate to other people, and we build more relationships upon that truth, and influence more people with it.
“ When the civil magistrate becomes a beast ” Among other points made in this sermon, Dr. Morecraft explains that Romans 13 and Revelation 13 are both about civil government and politics. Romans 13 describes the responsibility of the civil magistrate to be a minister of God, to punish the wicked for the protection of the good. In Revelation 13, however, the civil magistrate is described as a monster who's destroying Christians and making it impossible for them to flourish in society. How does the civil magistrate become a beast that persecutes Christians? Christians won't get jobs, and their families won't flourish, if they don't wear the mark of the beast. In Deuteronomy 6:8, God commanded His people to put His law on their hands and foreheads to demonstrate that His law dominates their lives. The point is that in every respect, their lives were to be governed by the law of God. The beast in Revelation 13 says to forget what God said, and instead put his law on their hands and foreheads so that they bear his mark and think in terms of his sovereign authority, otherwise Christians will not get jobs and their families will suffer for it. A civil magistrate becomes a beast when it enforces upon its citizens laws not based upon the law of God.
“ Wisdom is nearby ” Dr. Morecraft explains that the fool fails in living life because he orients himself towards godless and unattainable goals instead of focusing his heart, mind and life on God's nearby and attainable wisdom found in His Word. To feel the bite of this verse (Proverbs 17:24 - Wisdom is in the presence of one who has understanding, But the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth), understand that it is addressed to covenant children who bear the sign of the covenant and have been claimed by Almighty God, and have been raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Dr. Morecraft refers to Deuteronomy 30:11-14 and explains to covenant children that they don't have to go off to the far ends of the world and study all the religions and the philosophies of the world and compare them all and try to come to some understanding of things. They don't have to take far journeys and search in various other worldviews and ways of life and try to evaluate them all and then come to some conclusion as to which one is true for themselves. The real way of life and truth and wisdom is closer to covenant children than their breath. It is in the Word of God that their parents read to them, and their pastor preaches to them every Lord's Day. It's that close.
3/6/2022 5:22 PM
