It All Comes Down To This... | Sunday, August 25, 2024

Amen, amen, amen! Praise God. God is good. Thank you so much, Anthony and team. Good morning, Cross Connection. You can have a seat. Welcome to Cross Connection Church! I am so glad that you are with us this morning.

We're going to get into the Scriptures in just a moment, in the book of Hosea, at our last chapter. So, we're going to finish the book today. But before we do, I just wanted to mention a couple of things as we move into the fall season. Of course, during our announcements, there are a number of different opportunities where you can plug in and be involved. I want to encourage you, if you want to grow in your relationship with God, one of the best ways to do that is to grow in your connection with other people within the church, through our growth groups and connect groups, but also through serving on a team.

I know when I say that, there are a number of people who think, "Oh, I don't know if I could do that." It can feel like a frightful and scary thing to plug in. However, we could sure use your help, and I guarantee you it's not as scary as you might think. It's actually pretty easy! We would love to have you help out in the kids' ministry. We need help in all the different grades during the second and third services. We also need help with security, worship, tech, and all the things that are going on here.

Outside of here, we have Child Evangelism Fellowship and many other opportunities. Serving might seem scary, but I assure you it is not as hard as you are making yourself think it is. Personally, I have been a part of this church since I was a kid, but I started to really see growth in my relationship with God and my understanding of His Word when I began to step out and serve Him, even in very simple ways. I guarantee you will grow in ways you can't imagine if you plug in. God will give you the ability that you don't think you have.

I know our flesh gets worried, and there may be a component of the enemy trying to discourage us from plugging in, but truly, God will give you the strength. So, think about that. Consider it, and go talk with one of the guys at the connection point after the service. We could really use your help.

Alright, that's my pitch for today. If you would take out your Bibles, if you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and one of our ushers will bring you one. We are in the Old Testament book of Hosea, which is where we have been for the last 13 weeks. If you've been with us for all or most of that, then you know this is an intense book. I will confess my messages have felt even a little intense for me as I've been thinking, reading, and writing.

Praying through the passages in Hosea and then preaching them on Sunday has been a heavy undertaking. The subject covered in this book is indeed a heavy subject. I will say I am very happy that we are in the last chapter and will be moving out of Hosea next week.

As I've shared over the last 13 weeks, if you've been with us, Israel is in quite a mess at this time in their history, 2,800 years ago. Hosea is effectively the last prophet that God is sending to this people to give them an opportunity to turn away from their sin. They are on a path that is going to lead to inevitable destruction, and he is the last messenger calling them to try and turn before they head off a cliff, if you will.

The people have been involved in persistent and perpetual immorality through idolatry, which has brought about the destruction they are facing, as seen in the book of Hosea. Many other passages leading up to this point in Israel's history show very clearly that they have sown to the flesh. To sow is to plant, and they have planted this and are about to harvest and reap the consequences of sowing to the flesh for centuries.

Hosea, like many of the prophets before him, is begging the people to repent. To repent is to turn away from the path they are currently on and turn back to the Lord in faith and faithfulness to God. However, as is evident from history, unfortunately, the people did not listen to Hosea. It was not uncommon for a prophet to come to the people and call them to turn away from the path that was headed towards destruction, only for the people to reject that word and not heed the prophet's message.

Now it all comes down to this: Hosea chapter 14. Look at the opening verses, verses 1 and 2. One last time, Hosea says to the people, "Oh Israel, return to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to Him, 'Take away all iniquity; receive us graciously, for we will offer sacrifices of our lips.'" These are the final words of Hosea.

In this opening verse, the speaker provides a simple summation of everything that has been discussed in the previous 13 chapters. He is calling the people back to the Lord. I have repeated this over and over again, but it needs to be stated one more time: the principle emerging from Hosea's message to his people is applicable in our day as well. Even though this is around 720 BC, nearly 2,800 years ago, this prophet is speaking these words to the people of Israel. The message he delivers is relevant for us today.

The doom that they are about to face, the destruction they will endure, is the product of their own choices and actions. As I have shared before, my dad, Ron, has these sayings I keep track of, and one of my favorites is, "They did it to themselves." Here, the children of Israel did it to themselves, and they are about to experience the inevitable consequences of their actions and their sin. This is clearly stated in Hosea 14:1: "You have stumbled because of your iniquity." You might want to underline those words in your neighbor's Bible because they need to see it. They have stumbled in the things they are going through, and this punishment, again, is preventable.

They did not need to go through this if they had heard the words of the prophets. If they had not only heard but heeded the words of prophets like Hosea and other named and unnamed prophets, they could have avoided this entirely. It was completely preventable.

As I reflected on this last week, I was reminded of a Sunday afternoon many years ago when I was 20 years old. I remember it very clearly; it was a Sunday afternoon in November of 2000. There are certain days you remember, and the reason I recall this one is that I came home from church to my parents' house. When I arrived that Sunday afternoon, my younger brother Paul was there with his friend Andrew, who had his dirt bike. Andrew asked me, "Hey Miles, do you want to ride the dirt bike?" I thought about it and realized I had never ridden a dirt bike before, but I wanted to give it a try. He showed me how the throttle works and how the clutch operates.

I remember how to change the gears, and my incredulous mother was standing there. She looked at me and said, "I'm going in the house. You're going to hurt yourself. You shouldn't do this." I replied, "I got this." But I didn't have it. That afternoon, I spent time in the ER at Palomar East, which is no longer there. If I had heeded the words of Prophet Genie, I would not have had to go through that.

In the ER, I had my chin stitched up, a huge knot on my head, a concussion, and my neck hurt. I had road rash all over my hands. I will never forget this lovely nurse who came in to clean my hands of the road rash. It was one of the most painful experiences I had ever faced up to that point. When the doctor came in, he looked at my hands and said, "Oh, we're going to need to clean those hands up a little bit more." I winced, and he quietly asked the nurse, "You did numb his hands, didn't you?" At that moment, I had never wanted to ring someone's neck more. They eventually did numb my hands, and it wasn't quite so bad.

Now, decades later, I still have problems from the concussion I received that day. I experience vertigo from time to time, serving as an ongoing reminder of that Sunday afternoon in November. The words of Prophet Genie ring in my ears. There are avoidable disasters that we go through, entirely preventable. In Israel's situation, it was preventable. They knew for centuries that this path would lead to ultimate destruction and exile. This was the final step of the punishment that God promised them 700 years before this period of time through Moses in Deuteronomy chapter 28.

I have shared this with you before, but they went into this knowing exactly the path toward blessing and the path toward what I refer to as anti-blessing or curses. For centuries, they had been on the path leading toward the curse, the ultimate curse being exile. Along the way, there were signposts and prophets warning them not to go down this path, but the children of Israel would not listen. They are experiencing the inevitable consequences of sin. Their doom was the result of their own doing. Still, it is an amazing thing that there is an opportunity to turn back. There is still a chance to avoid this, and we see it.

There in verse two, "Oh Israel, return to the Lord your God. Return to the Lord. Say to Him, 'Take away all iniquity; receive us graciously.'" This is a crucial thing for us to remember. Even though we're separated by time and distance from the children of Israel 2,800 years ago in the northern kingdom, this is such an important truth for us to hold in our minds and our hearts.

Point one, if you're taking notes: As long as you have breath, you have an opportunity to repent. This is such good news, and I hope you know it. However, I think you also might need to make it known. You might need to remind yourself of this because there's a good chance that some of you sitting here this morning have a family member or a friend who has persisted down a path that you know, both intuitively and scripturally, will end in disaster. Maybe not today or next week, but even years from now, you know they are heading down this direction. Perhaps you've said that to them before, and they've rejected your words.

There is a temptation for us to feel like it's a lost cause. They haven't listened to us up to this point, so we might as well just stop speaking to them. Listen, the Prophet Jeremiah, the Prophet Isaiah, and the Prophet Habakkuk—all these different prophets in the Old Testament—came to the same juncture. There were certain points where they said, "I just can't say this anymore; nobody's listening to me." Isaiah even expresses this to God in chapter 6. He asks, "How long do I have to keep saying this message?" Unfortunately, God's word to Isaiah wasn't all that encouraging. He said it was going to get much worse, and the people would be reduced to a very small remnant. But God told Isaiah that he needed to persist; he needed to continue to share this message.

Why? Because as long as you have breath, you have an opportunity to repent. That may be just the thing you need to hear this morning for that friend or loved one in your life whom you think is beyond God's grace. They are not. As long as they have breath, there is an opportunity to repent. Though it does get harder and harder, and more difficult the longer a person goes down that path, oftentimes it's harder because of ego. They just don't want to change, and they become stronger in the hardness of their hearts. That ego can stand in the way.

But I'll tell you, as someone who has been in the room more than a few times where there's been someone on their deathbed...

Bread is nearing that point where they're going to breathe their last. I've been there, where I've shared the news of the Gospel, the Scriptures, with someone who, for a very long time, persisted and was hard-hearted. It is not until the very last moments that they finally yield to that. Sometimes, it takes the breaking down of this flesh; this flesh can be incredibly strong, and the ego can be incredibly strong. But it finally comes to that point where they're willing to yield. As long as they have breath, there is an opportunity to repent.

But for Israel, what would that repentance look like? How would it be seen? At this point, repentance, as Hosea alludes to here, would require a huge sacrifice. It is not the sacrifice of animals, though that was the sacrifice that the children of Israel were familiar with for centuries. God had called them to approach Him in worship and to connect with Him through animal sacrifice to atone for and deal with their sin. They would offer lambs, bulls, goats, burnt sacrifices, and sin offerings—all these different offerings that they would present to the Lord. While these offerings were very costly, God says the sacrifice He is calling them to bring here is much bigger than that. A far greater sacrifice than that of bulls and goats is what He is calling for, and He refers to it as a sacrifice of lips.

Look at that: "Take words with you; offer the sacrifices of our lips." What does that mean? Well, someday, probably in the not-too-distant future, we're going to study through the books of Samuel—First and Second Samuel. In Samuel, we will be introduced to the shepherd boy David, who became king. In many regards, he was a great king; however, he had some major issues too. If you've read about David, you know some of them. At a certain point, well into his career as king, he commits adultery, commits murder to cover it up, and engages in deception for at least a year to keep it hidden. He continues down this path that inevitably leads to total destruction. Fortunately, a prophet comes to him, and he actually heeds the word of the prophet and repents. His repentance is recorded in a song in Psalm 51. In Psalm 51:17, as he records his repentance, he says, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise."

The sacrifices of God, mind you, are significant. King David had a deep understanding of sacrifice; he had offered many sacrifices of animals throughout his life. It would have been very costly for him to do so. However, he states, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. These, O God, you do not despise."

It can sometimes be easier to offer the actual practical sacrifices of bulls, goats, and rams than to offer the sacrifice of a broken spirit and a contrite heart—those which God does not despise. This is the sacrifice of our lips that Hosea speaks of. God desires a different kind of sacrifice, one that can be far more costly than the sacrifice of animals.

Point number two: repentance requires a sacrifice of breath through words of humility and contrition. This is the kind of sacrifice in which God delights. The difficult part is that we can offer tangible sacrifices. While we do not bring sacrifices of animals, goats, or bulls in our time, we still have certain practical, tangible sacrifices that we give. For example, your time spent coming to church is a sacrifice. If you serve and help out, that is a sacrifice. If you give, that is a sacrifice. All these different actions are sacrifices.

Here’s the danger: we can fall into a pattern where we perform these sacrifices and appease our own conscience. We might think, "Well, I went to church, I gave, I prayed, and I helped," yet we can continue to engage in immoral and idolatrous behaviors. We may convince ourselves that we are okay because we did these things. This is exactly where Israel was during the time of Hosea. I guarantee you that this was also where David was during the entire period he covered up his sin of adultery and murder. You can be sure he was still going to the temple or the Tabernacle to offer sacrifices.

You can perform religious acts and appease your conscience. One of the dangers of religion is that we can check off all the boxes of what we are supposed to do and then feel that we are okay. However, God says, "No, what I really want is your heart." During the time of Hosea, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah, saying to the people, "You worship me with your lips, but your hearts are far from me." God wanted them to move in a different direction.

Different direction here: the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. These, O Lord, you do not despise. So, what would it look like for Israel at the end of the 8th century BC to bring this kind of sacrifice?

Look at verse 3 of Hosea 14. They would have to acknowledge this with their lips: "Assyria shall not save us." Why was that important? Well, during this period of time, Israel was hoping in their self-sufficiency and their own ingenuity, paying money, silver, and gold to the Assyrians, who ultimately would destroy them. They were trying to pay them off, appeasing their conscience and consoling themselves with the belief that if they just kept giving them silver and gold, everything would be just fine. They thought they would be okay.

However, they had to come to a point where they acknowledged and recognized that Assyria shall not save us. Not only that, they had to come to the realization that they would not ride on horses. What does that mean? To ride on a horse means to be victorious. They were appeasing the Assyrians and their own consciences by saying that if they just paid them off, everything would be okay. As a result, they believed they would be victorious, thinking they could get through this by their own ingenuity and self-sufficiency.

God says, "No, you need to come to the place where you recognize and acknowledge that your self-sufficiency can't save you. You are not going to be victorious in this." They could no longer say to the work of their hands, "You are our gods." They needed to turn away from the comfort they found in paying off the Assyrians and consoling themselves with the idea of victory. They also needed to reject their idols, the things they had made for themselves, and acknowledge that ultimately their only hope is in God.

For in You, God, the fatherless finds mercy. There is a lot going on in this verse, but basically, God says the sacrifice He is looking for from Israel is for them to reject their self-sufficiency and the idea of dealing with their problems by paying off the Assyrians. They must reject the comfort they have found in believing they would be victorious and turn entirely to the Lord, saying, "God, in You alone and in Your mercy alone is the only place we have hope."

If Israel would offer that kind of sacrifice, what would happen? What would God's response be? Look at verse four. God says, "If you do this, I will heal your backsliding. I will love them freely, for my anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall grow like the lily and lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; his beauty shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall be revived like grain and grow like a vine. The scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon."

God says, "If you will repent, if you will turn away from your self-sufficiency and your ingenuity, and away from your idolatry, and you will turn to me and trust in my mercy alone, then I will bless you. I will forgive you. I will love you. I will receive you. I will pour out my blessings upon you."

This leads to point three: repentance invites God's reviving power and renewing grace. I assume there are probably a few here today who need God's reviving power and renewing grace. The path toward receiving that is to turn away from what you have been trusting in or dedicating yourself to. If it's not God, turn away from that and turn to the Lord. This invites His reviving power and His renewing grace.

The same message was preached to the children of Israel by the Apostle Peter in the book of Acts. As he is preaching to the people in Jerusalem at the Temple Mount in Acts chapter 3, Peter says to the people there, "Repent and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." If you will turn to the Lord, then He will turn to you and bring times of refreshing from His presence.

When that refreshing comes, it brings great joy. This is what David experienced in Psalm 51 when he repents and offers the sacrifice to the Lord of a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. Those sacrifices God does not despise. God restores unto him the joy of His salvation as He renews a right spirit within him, as recorded in the Psalms.

God's promise in Hosea is very simple, and it remains the promise that God gives to people today. The promise is this: bring to me the sacrifice not of bulls and goats and animals, not of your time or money necessarily, but bring to me the sacrifice of your humble repentance. I will receive you, I will heal you, I will love you, and I will turn my anger away from you. I will turn my blessing and kindness upon you, and you shall be fruitful and bring forth an abundance of fruit.

However, before this reviving power and renewing grace could come to the children of Israel, they must come to this place of repentance before God. It is conditional; there is a contingency on this. If you went through the Scriptures and highlighted all the promises of God, you would find that there have been authors who have done this. There are books out there, like "The 7,000 Promises of God in the Bible," and there are probably more than 7,000 promises of God in the Bible.

If you conducted a study of the promises of God and highlighted or underlined those promises, I guarantee you that in the vast majority of them, you will find a contingency, a condition on that promise. It is often framed as "if this, then that." This is the law of sowing and reaping that we talk so much about; it is this Deuteronomic principle: if you will walk in my ways, then you will receive this blessing and this abundance. That is a promise.

It is equally a promise of God that He says if you do not do this, you will be judged. That is a promise, but it's probably not the promise you will claim on Monday morning. You are unlikely to thank the Lord for the promise that if you don't follow Him, He will squash you. That's not a promise you give God glory for, but it is a promise nonetheless. It is connected to a contingency. If Israel persists in their immoral idolatry and sin, then they will continue down the path of destruction.

However, if they will bring sacrificial repentance to God, then they will find His blessing and His grace. What does God want to see from them? He wants to see this: look at Hosea 14:8. Ephraim shall say, "What have I to do anymore with idols?" For literally centuries, they have given themselves to the worship of idols. They continued to worship God as well, taking the name of the Lord God in vain by worshiping Him at the same time that they were bowing down to Baal and Asherah.

Molech and countless other Canaanite deities were what the people were giving themselves to. God says, "This is what I want to hear you say: Ephraim needs to say, 'What have I to do anymore with idols?'" God says, "I have heard and observed him. I want to hear that. I want to see this."

Then what will God do? He says, "I am like a green cypress tree. I will be like the shelter of a green cypress tree to them, and your fruit is found in me." If they would abandon their idolatry, what more have we to do with idols? Then God will hear their repentance, and He will observe it.

What does it look like to see repentance? To see repentance implies that there are activities and actions associated with the word. As I said a moment ago, repentance requires the sacrifice of the breath through words of humility and contrition, but it is also observable in actions.

Point number four: repentance involves a change of heart and action. It is a change of heart and action, and God longs to see it. There is a movement from the path of sin that leads to destruction to the path of life in Christ Jesus. That shift is repentance. It begins in the mind and in the heart, but it moves an individual towards action.

If the children of Israel would repent in this fashion—through words and actions—then God would be a shelter and a blessing to them. He says, "I will be like the green cypress tree, and their fruit shall be in me." When I come to God with this repentant heart, evident in my actions, turning away from the path of destruction and sin and towards the Lord, what do I find? I find that God immediately moves towards that. He invites His reviving power and His renewing grace every time. God is drawn towards that, and He blots out sin; He brings times of refreshing.

This is the simple message of Hosea. Through the last 14 chapters, it has been the consistent simple message: your sin has brought devastation, and your continued sin will bring...

Death is a serious matter, but if you turn from your sin to God and approach Him in faith, He will pour out upon you forgiveness, mercy, and restored grace, ultimately granting you eternal life. What does that message sound like? It resembles the message found in the book of Romans. If you've been in the church for any length of time, you may have heard about the Romans Road, which was quite a big deal many decades ago. Although you don't hear much about it today, the Romans Road consists of a series of verses in the New Testament book of Romans.

In the beginning of Romans, Paul states, "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of God, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, regardless of their background, whether they are Jewish or Gentile." The Gospel is indeed the power of God. Throughout the book of Romans, Paul articulates this message clearly. Romans 3:23 tells us, "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Romans 6:23 continues, "The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus." Furthermore, Romans 5:8 declares, "God demonstrates His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

In Romans chapter 10, we read, "If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved." This is the same message that Hosea was preaching 2,800 years ago. While he didn't use the name Jesus or the name Christ, he was still pointing to God. We know the name Christ and the sacrifice He made, demonstrating His love for us on the cross. We understand this from books like Romans and the Gospels, which were written hundreds of years after the time of Hosea.

Yet, it is the same message: you have been on a path of sin leading to destruction and death. If you turn away from that, repent, and confess—saying with your mouth and believing in your heart that God alone is your salvation and trusting in His free gift—you shall be saved. It's not complicated; it's not novel. It is the same message that God has been rehearsing for millennia, whether during the time of Hosea or Isaiah, Elijah or Elisha, Habakkuk or Obadiah, or during the time of Peter and Paul. This message has been preached by D.L. Moody and Billy Graham, and at this very moment, it is being proclaimed from countless pulpits around the world.

Pulpits across this nation and throughout the world convey the simple message of the Gospel. It is not a difficult message; it's not complicated. It is very simple. Listen, even preschoolers understand this. You do not have to be a doctor of philosophy with a theology degree to know this and articulate it. In fact, if you've just heard this from me right now and you know those simple verses—"For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God," "The wages of sin is death," but "God demonstrates His love for us, that while we were sinners, Christ died for us," and "If I confess with my mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in my heart, trusting in Him, then I shall be saved"—if you know that, you can sign up today for children's ministry and tell the preschoolers they need to hear it.

A couple of our preschool teachers, who have been committed to teaching in preschool, are now moving to the junior high ministry, and we need you to take their spot. We need you! If you know this, you can share it. Here's the amazing thing: even the youngest kids can understand it.

Now, listen, there are very deep theological truths in the Scriptures that I even have a hard time wrestling with, but this is the most simple and basic truth. It is the essential truth. What you know and believe about how and when the Earth was created—was it a long time ago or a short time ago? Did God involve the Gap Theory or all these different things? Those are big theological issues that people argue about. Whatever you believe about the end of the age—will it come after a time of tribulation? Is there going to be a Rapture?—those are big things that people argue about. However, neither one of those things is essential.

The essential core truth is simple; it's not complicated. It's the same message Hosea preached. It's the same message that, if you're a Christian today, you believed. It all comes down to this, and I love the way that Hosea wraps up this entire book. The last verse is beautiful to me. When I read through this last week, I was just gripped by these words in verse 9. It's only 33 words: "Who is wise? Let him understand these things. Who is prudent? Let him know; for the ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them." I love the way he wraps this up.

After 14 chapters, the author didn't write it as Chapter 1, 2, 3 through 14. It's divided up for us so that we can turn there quickly. However, after writing all of this same consistent message from Chapter 1 until the end, the message remains the same: you are on a path to destruction. You have chosen this path by your own sinful actions, and it is going to lead to death. If you repent and turn to the Lord, then you will receive His life and His blessing.

At the end of all this, he asks, "Who is wise?" How many of you today would like to be counted among those who are wise? There are some of you who aren't raising your hands. Pay attention; you can keep your hand down on this one. How many of you want to be counted as a fool? Good! I didn't see anyone raise their hand in the first service. I said, "You are not listening." So, who wants to be counted among those who are wise? Oh, praise God! Yes, who is wise? It is the person who understands these simple principles.

What simple principles? The simple principles of sowing and reaping. The person who understands that sin invites destruction, that sin invites devastation, and that sin invites wrath, therefore departs from sin and finds forgiveness and renewing grace—that person is wise. The person who keeps doing the same sinful thing over and over again is a fool. It has been observed that insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. That's what Israel had done for centuries, even though the prophets had been calling out to them to turn to the Lord.

So, who is wise? The person who understands these things. Who is prudent? The person who carries this knowledge and acts wisely upon it. Imagine you had knowledge on Sunday, the 25th of August, that at the opening bell tomorrow, a certain stock was going to increase by 600%. You had insider information—now, I know it's against the law—but you had knowledge, like maybe you had this prophetic unction. You knew that tomorrow this stock was going to increase by 600%. You would think, "Man, that's some awesome knowledge!" If you didn't invest in it, you would be a fool. That's right, yes, you'd be a fool. The wise person would...

The person who has knowledge that implies or moves into action is to be accounted among the wise. The prudent take that knowledge and turn it into action. To put it another way, if you knew that a hurricane was coming and you had a coastal house, and you knew where it was going to hit and when it was going to hit, but you did not board up your house or fill the sandbags, you are a fool. The wise person is not just the one who has the information but the one who takes that information and turns it into action.

The wise and the prudent are those who understand this. The ways of God are those ways that are right, true, and good. The wise person knows what is right, true, and good, and then does what is right, true, and good. By their right actions, they become what is called righteous. What does God give to the righteous? He pours out blessings upon them. Such a person will reap the blessings of righteousness, but those who are grasped by sin will stumble and fall; they will reap the inevitable consequences of unrighteousness.

Simply summed up, wisdom and prudence are found in repentance unto righteousness, in doing what is right, true, and good. Now, you may ask, how do I know what is right, true, and good? There are at least two ways. Number one, God has written it upon your heart in the form of a conscience. Number two, He has expanded or given us greater understanding of what is right, true, and good in His revealed Word.

So, if you want to know what is right, true, and good, remember: God has given you a conscience, and you should dig into the Scriptures to discover what He has identified as right, true, and good. Yes, we do need the empowering of the Holy Spirit, so we can say, "God, would you help me to walk in what is right, true, and good?" If you walk in what is right, true, and good, you will be called righteous, and you will reap the rewards of righteousness—the blessings of obedience. Knowing and applying these simple truths is essential.

Undoubtedly, that which leads to success is a Divine principle. God created the world in this way; He made the world as it is, where the principle of sowing and reaping is a reality. He created this construct, and that is how it works. He gives us the understanding of how it works in the Scriptures. He says, "If you will do these things, then you will experience God's blessing."

Secondly, we know that it's true by observation. We see it in our own lives and in the lives of other people. Look around at the people in your life who seem to be experiencing blessings. They are most likely walking in what is right, true, and good; they are walking in righteousness. They don't have to be Christians necessarily to reap the blessings of obedience. However, to reap the ultimate blessing of eternal life, they need to turn to God in Christ Jesus. Still, there are blessings that can be reaped here in this world that God has created by doing what is right, true, and good. God calls us to this.

God spoke to the children of Israel and to Joshua right after Moses gave this great epic message called Deuteronomy, which we studied a couple of years ago. After he gives this message about the law of sowing and reaping—"Do this and you'll be blessed; do this and you'll be cursed"—the children of Israel are about to go into the Promised Land. God says to them and to Joshua, "Be strong and of good courage." In Joshua 1:7, He instructs, "Only be strong and courageous." To do what? To be warriors in battle? No, but to observe and do according to all of God's law, which Moses, My servant, has commanded you. "Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, so that you may prosper wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, so that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success."

You don't need to raise your hand, but how many of you want prosperity and success? Now, prosperity and success, according to what the Scriptures describe, is different from what Hollywood or the news media might tell you. Still, the success and prosperity of God is an awesome thing. If you want that, He says this is how you get it: walk in the ways of the Lord.

Three thousand years ago, there was a man who has been considered by many to be one of the wisest men who ever lived. His name was Solomon, and Solomon set out on some...

Shall we call it doctoral research? He was going to do the empirical research so that you don't have to figure out how to get meaning, joy, and greatness in this life. He wrote it down for you in his doctoral dissertation called Ecclesiastes.

He thought, "Well, maybe I'll find it in drinking," so he tried that, and that didn't go so well. He thought, "Maybe I'll find it in sex," so he tried that, and again, it didn't go so well. He considered that maybe he would find meaning in having lots of wealth and money. He tried all these things; he did the empirical research so that you don't have to.

What did he discover? He discovered emptiness. "All is emptiness," or said another way, "Vanity, vanity, all is vanity." Then he concludes the entire thing. Here is his conclusion from his doctoral dissertation, circa 3,000 years ago: Ecclesiastes 12:13. "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all." Wisdom is found in the fear of the Lord.

He tried it all so that you don't have to. He said all of that leads to emptiness. "All is emptiness." This is the conclusion of the matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all. Why? For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.

It all comes down to this: it is relatively simple. Unfortunately, this relatively simple reality is also what Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, calls the narrow path. Matthew 7:13 states, "Enter by the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way that leads to life, and there are few that find it."

God has clearly stated it for us. This is the path to blessing and ultimately the path that leads toward eternal life. It is to walk in what is right, true, and good. As you do, you will experience here in this world the earthly blessings of obedience. However, if you walk down this path, you will experience death, destruction, exile, and punishment.

Wide is that path; many are those who go down it, but narrow is the path that leads to life. God help us that we would walk down the narrow path, and as we go, we would call others to come along.

With us, there are many people that we meet on a regular basis who are walking down a path that we know leads to a certain end. Wisdom is knowing the right path and walking on it. God help us. Would you stand with me as we close in prayer?

Father God, I thank you that you have made it relatively simple. It is almost so simple that it seems complicated, or at least we complicate it. But God, I pray that we would walk in this path that you've set before us, enabled by Your Holy Spirit. When it all is said and done, I find in myself dwells no good thing, and I find in myself very little power and ability to walk in what is right, true, and good. But You, by Your Holy Spirit, enable me to do that. You lead me in the way everlasting.

God, would You help us to walk in those things that are pleasing to You and to reap the benefits and rewards of obedience? Lord, would You give us boldness to share the truth of these realities with others? For thousands of years, Your messengers—whether they be called prophets, preachers, or simply saints—have been speaking forth this word. You commissioned us to go into all the world and to preach this gospel.

Lord, I pray that You would enable us and empower us to do that today and this week. Help us to believe this gospel. Give us the enabling power by Your Holy Spirit to reject those things that are gripping our lives and leading us down a path toward brokenness and devastation. Lead us in the way everlasting. By Your Holy Spirit, pour out Your Spirit upon Your people, we pray. We ask this today in Jesus' name, and all those that agreed said, "Amen."