WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT THE BIBLE - The Beacon of Life 8-3-25
INTRODUCTION
New series about the Bible
The Word is the source of life.
The Word is the certainty of life.
Culture comments from last week clarified.
Last week I mentioned that we should not allow culture to demand changes in the Word.
There are cultural changes in the pages of Scripture. (i.e. the Jerusalem council of Acts 15)
Gentile Christians did not have to live by the cultural laws of the OT.
Gentile Christians should abstain from food polluted by idols, abstain from sexual immorality, abstain from meat of strangled animals, and abstain from blood. No other Jewish cultural practices are mentioned for Gentile believers.
Interestingly, this proclamation did not absolve Jewish Christians from the other Jewish cultural practices.
Psalms 119:105-112 NIV
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws. I have suffered much; preserve my life, Lord, according to your word. Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws. Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law. The wicked have set a snare for me, but I have not strayed from your precepts. Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart. My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.”
Psalm 119:105-112 NIV
This pericope has lines that all start with the Hebrew letter nun.
Hebrew parallelism - “lamp for my feet, light on my path.”
Brian Mavis
BIBLE FACTS:
The system of chapters was introduced in A.D. 1238 by Cardinal Hugo de S. Caro, while the verse notations were added in 1551 by Robertus Stephanus, after the advent of printing.
According to statistics from Wycliffe International, the Society of Gideons, and the International Bible Society, the number of new Bibles that are sold, given away, or otherwise distributed in the United States is about 168,000 per day.
The longest intercontinental telegram ever sent was the text of the New International Version of the Bible, sent from Geneva, where it was translated, to New York for printing.
The Bible can be read aloud in 70 hours.
Brian Mavis, Sermon Central, Jun 6, 2001.
The Word is the beacon of life.
LET US PRAY!
I. THE WORD IS A LAMP FOR OUR FEET
Psalm 119:105 NIV
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
Psalm 119:105 NIV
The investigation of the meaning of words is the beginning of education.
Antisthenes
A. A lamp or candle
1. A tool to produce light
2. A tool to allow sight`
B. A lamp for our feet
1. For the home
2. For work
Proverbs 6:20-23 NIV
“My son, keep your father’s command and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. Bind them always on your heart; fasten them around your neck. When you walk, they will guide you; when you sleep, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you. For this command is a lamp, this teaching is a light, and correction and instruction are the way to life,”
Proverbs 6:20-23 NIV
II. THE WORD IS A LIGHT ON OUR PATH
The little girl was sitting with her grandmother, who had presented her with her first little children’s Bible, in an easy-to-read translation, when she was very young.
Now, a decade or so later, the elderly lady was ready to spend a few sweet moments handing down the big old family Bible, in the time-honored King James Version, to her only grandchild.
Understandably excited, the youngster was asking a number of questions, both about the family members whose births and deaths were recorded therein, and about various aspects of the Scriptures themselves.
Her grandmother was endeavoring to answer all the child’s questions in terms she could understand, but the one that stopped her cold was this sincere inquiry:
"Which Virgin was the mother of Jesus? Was it the Virgin Mary, or the King James virgin?"
http://www.cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh
Psalm 119:105 NIV
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
Psalm 119:105 NIV
Whats in a word? Consider the difference between “wise man” and “wise guy.”
A. A light
1. Torch, lamp, candle
2. Sun
3. God’s radiance
B. A light for our path
1. “My path” gives light to others as well.
2. A journey
3. A pilgrimage
C. The light of Jesus
Matthew 4:13-16 NIV
“Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.””
Matthew 4:13-16 NIV
John 9:5 NIV
“While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.””
John 9:5 NIV
III. THE WORD PRESERVES OUR LIFE
Psalms 119:106-112 NIV
“I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws. I have suffered much; preserve my life, Lord, according to your word. Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws. Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law. The wicked have set a snare for me, but I have not strayed from your precepts. Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart. My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.”
Psalms 119:106-112 NIV
A. The Word directs us to praise God.
B. The Word directs us to learn from God.
C. The Word reminds us to never forget God’s revelation.
D. The Word reminds us to not stray from God’s precepts.
E. The Word proclaims that the Word is our heritage.
F. The Word proclaims that the Word should be the joy of our heart.
G. The Word proclaims that our heart should be set on keeping God’s decrees.
Taiwo Oyradirn
I like to tell this story about my son as a 2-year-old. I always liked to give him a shower/bath and like most kids that age, he liked playing with the water.
Many times, when there’s water and soap on his head and face, he, of course, had to close his eyes. That part he didn’t like. No kid would like that part, right?
It was always funny to hear him say in two-year old tongues, eyes closed, a little panicked, “Who turned off the light? The light is off! Who turned off the light? Turn on the light!”
And then I would say, laughing, as I tried to quickly rinse the soap off his face, “No, nobody turned the light off! You closed your eyes! The light is on. Just open your eyes.”
Sometimes, we act like that. There’s light and revelation knowledge and direction in God’s Word, and yet we ask why it is dark. Sometimes, we close our eyes willfully when light comes from the Word. Sometimes we are not just mature enough to tell the difference.
The issue is not that there are no answers in the Word or that the Word is dark, but that we need to open our eyes.
Taiwo Oyradirm, Sermon Central, March 23, 2019.
CONCLUSION
The Word is a lamp for our feet. The Word is a light for our path. The Word preserves our life. The Word calls us to action.
Brad Beaman
There is a made-up story about a man who had a dream about heaven. The story is not true but the point it illustrates is true. In this story a man had a dream he died and went to heaven. He toured heaven and it was marvelous just as he imagined it would be. He sees mansions, streets of gold and pearly gates. Then the angels showed him a room with shelves and there were rows and rows shelves with mushrooms on the shelves.
The man asked why so many mushrooms in heaven? The angel explained they were not mushrooms, but they were people’s ears. They were the ears of the many people who heard great Bible messages but did not apply the teaching. The result was that only their ears made it to heaven.
Of course, we don’t believe in the immortality of ears, but in practical Christianity we must be more than hearers. We must be doers of the word. There is action required when hearing takes place. If you think attending church and hearing great biblical messages is enough, you deceive yourself.
Brad Beaman, Sermon Central, Oct 8, 2022.
INVITATION
It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word. You may want to follow Jesus. You may want to proclaim your faith. You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things). Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church. If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now. If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.
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