June 2026
Sermon Transcript
First of all, I just want to thank Pastor Stucky for this opportunity to be able to preach this morning. The title of my sermon is "These Things Have I Written."
We had that scripture reading in 1 John 5, and today I would like to look at this very well-known verse that we use out soul-winning. This is the verse that inspired the sermon today. In a day where there are so many Christians and so many sects of Christianity, this is a really important verse, because we as Baptists actually care about what is written. That is why this sermon is called "These Things Have I Written."
1 John 5:13 says, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." So there are things written that we might believe, and it also says that ye may believe — there are things written for that purpose. How do we know that we have eternal life? It is because of the word of God. It is what is written.
Point 1: We Share What Is Written
People think they know things. They think they are 100% sure about things because of experiences they have had throughout their lives. Their experiences give them the validity to believe the doctrines they believe. But the Bible says something different. Romans 10:17: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." The Bible is saying that you actually get faith from the Bible. It is not outside the word of God — it is actually in the word of God that faith comes. People do not believe unless they hear the word of God explained by a saved person. It is not some great story or some vision that is going to bring people faith, but what is written in the word of God.
I recently heard a podcast with Pastor Bruce Mejia, and there was a man there — I think he was a Catholic — who just kept saying, "Why do you keep going back to the Bible? Why do you keep quoting the Bible?" Well, because we believe what is written. That is what we care about and what we are going to be quoting. What else should our faith be based on? Should it be based on a vision, a great story, or an experience? It should be based on what the Bible says. These things have I written that you may believe. Faith cometh by hearing.
It also says how will they hear without a preacher. This is a great proof that to get saved you actually need a saved person to preach the Bible to you and explain it. After salvation we can also grow by hearing the Bible or reading it — whether through audio or reading it yourself. But to begin with, you actually need somebody to explain it to you, and afterwards you can also be blessed by people that help you grow in the word of God.
Ephesians 4:11: "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." There are going to be a lot of people that come and try to deceive us. But God has given us all these things — his written word and people to teach us — so that we can actually be stable in what we believe.
What about the unsaved? They need a preacher as well. 1 Corinthians 3:5: "Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?" Every person that has believed had somebody that God brought into their life by whom they could believe. A preacher is someone who preaches the word of God so that person gets saved. Every saved person needs this. Romans 10:13: "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?" You have that great structure: somebody calls upon the name of the Lord after believing the gospel. How do they believe the gospel? Because they heard it from a preacher. How will they hear the message they have to believe without that preacher — without us?
It is not just a Bible that someone can read and simply come to the knowledge of the truth on their own. I heard a story from a pastor here in Australia about someone who got saved because somebody tore up a Bible, threw it in the water, and then some fellow finds it, puts it together, reads a Bible verse, and that is what supposedly got him saved. The fellow ended up believing in repenting of sins for salvation anyway. You are going to hear all sorts of experiences of how people came to their so-called faith. Salvation, the Bible clearly says, is from faith to faith. You actually need a saved preacher to preach you the Bible.
It is a sad and lazy excuse of Christians today who say, "Just get people the Bible and they should be fine." That is just the excuse of people who do not want to go soul-winning. "We do not need to go soul-winning — God can just get them saved through the Bible." But the Bible says, how can they hear? God gave you to somebody that they would believe by you, and you can be a minister by whom people believe.
We need somebody to guide people. 2 Corinthians 4:3: "But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost." If we do not preach what the Bible says, people are going to go to hell. It is actually hid to them. Not just, well, if they do not get to see a Bible — if our gospel be hidden. Every individual Christian has that calling. God has called us to go and share the gospel with the lost. Verse 4: "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake." We do not preach ourselves when we go out soul-winning. Do not get intimidated by it. You are not preaching yourself. You are just preaching what the Bible says, what is written. They need a preacher. They need a soul-winner.
As we know from the story of the Ethiopian eunuch, he said, "How can I, except some man should guide me?" He was reading the Bible but nothing was making sense because he needed somebody saved to explain it. Philip came, opened to him the passage, and preached Jesus from that same passage. We actually need somebody to guide a person in order for him to get saved. Philip preached Jesus. We preach Jesus. We bring what is written. It is not a miracle we are bringing to people. It is not an experience. It is what is written that has the power of God, and we have to trust that.
Luke 16:22: "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: for I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment."
You see the rich man saying, "Please, can you just send Lazarus? I understand I am in hell, but can you just please send this person from heaven to share with my five brethren?" He is actually thinking about his brethren. Sometimes you do not realise that when you are sharing the gospel, there are people in hell who are family with those you are talking to — begging and hoping that person is going to come to the saving knowledge of the truth. And what does this rich man say? He is actually saying, "Just send the miracle. When they see that Lazarus has come from the dead, they will believe." He thinks they are going to get faith by the things they experience. They know Lazarus has died, and if they can experience that great miracle, that is what will get them to believe.
Verse 29: "Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them." Let them hear what is written. It is not an experience that is going to change people's minds — it is what is written in the Bible. And he said, "Nay, father Abraham." This person is in hell, burning, and he is still stubborn, still arguing with Abraham. He is saying, "No, no — try it my way. Try the experiences. Try the miracles." Even from hell he is saying that God's word is not enough. He says in verse 30: "Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent." So now suddenly the man from hell is an expert on how people get saved. Even in hell, he is trying to say that God's word is not enough. But Abraham says, "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." If someone cannot get faith by hearing — faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God — they are not going to be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.
It is interesting because there is another Lazarus who actually did rise from the dead. Jesus raised Lazarus, and you actually see that the Jews, instead of believing that miracle — everyone knew he was dead — ended up wanting to kill Lazarus after that. People are not persuaded by seeing a miracle. They actually sought to kill the man risen by Jesus Christ. They both share the same name, but it is no coincidence that people are not going to be persuaded by experiences and miracles. They get persuaded by what is written in the Bible.
"These things have I written unto you that believe." Why am I a Baptist? Because I believe what is written — all of it. That is why we are Baptists. Not because of some experience, because those things can be fleeting. You could be putting your trust in something and thinking, "Well, I saw something." The more sure thing is the Bible. Peter had legitimate experiences — he saw great things. Let us look at 2 Peter 1:16: "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount." He is saying, "I actually got to see these things. I got to hear even God the Father speaking." At the mount of transfiguration, Peter got to experience this amazing wonder — Elijah and Moses were there, he got to see Jesus Christ in his glorified state. An incredible experience. But look what he continues to say in verse 19: "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation."
Peter is saying that the thing that is even more sure than his experiences is the word of God. That is what we can always be stable about. That is why we are Baptists — because we believe what the Bible says. It is not experiences that determine what we put our faith in. It is what is written in the Bible. It is a never-changing word of God. The Bible says, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but God's word shall not pass away." Verse 21: "For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
Psalm 119:89: "For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven." God's word is eternal. Whatever is written, it is going to be there forever. God has promised to preserve his word. A great documentary is called "The Preserved Bible" — you can see the history of the Bible there. God has promised to preserve his word, and they try to destroy it and it just keeps multiplying because God is able to do that. While people say, "I know what I have experienced," we can say, "I know what I have read" — and that should trump people's experiences.
Point 2: Experiences
A few years ago I had a conversation with a deacon from my old church. I was trying to talk to him about what we believe, and he actually said, "Look, the reason I chose the Pentecostal faith is because I wanted to feel something. I wanted to experience something." I showed him Romans 4:5: "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." It was like he was seeing this verse for the first time. He was looking at it and just stumped by it. He was there with another fellow, a youth leader from City Life Church — one very conservative Pentecostal, one very liberal — and interestingly enough they were both ganging up on me saying, "No, you cannot just live however you want." And as I said, his reason for choosing the faith he believed was, "I was just looking to be able to feel something." But our faith is not based on feelings or emotions. It is based on what the Bible says.
Let me be clear: everybody has faith. Even somebody that believes there is no God — that is a faith. You need faith to actually doubt the existence of God. People believe all sorts of things about how to get to heaven — that you need to be a good person, that you need to repent of your sins. They all have a faith. But we believe that salvation is not of ourselves, as Ephesians 2:8 says, and it is also not of works. What is your faith in? Do you believe the truth? Does your faith rest in the word of God, or in some experience you have had?
Sadly, I was not able to convince that deacon. He was a little bit interested and asked what things I believed, so I sent him a documentary called "Being Baptist," which you can find on YouTube. After watching it, he got up in church and doubled down extremely. We had about a 20-minute conversation — cordial, nothing unpleasant — but nothing got through to him. He ended up getting very angry in church and saying that they needed to protect their children from this doctrine going around. He just clung to what his experiences told him. But we want to cling to what is written in the Bible, because it is forever.
Are there going to be many people deceived in this world? Matthew 7:22 — it is going to be a multitude of people who call themselves Christians who, when Jesus returns, are going to be cast out. Many of them are going to be standing before God and trying to present their works, but they are going to hear some very sad words. Matthew 7:22: "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?" If you look at other translations you will see "marvellous works" or "marvellous miracles" there. But the King James Bible is clear — it says wonderful works. So you have people that were doing miracles, had the experiences, but were also trusting in their works to take them to heaven. Verse 23: "And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." If you are trusting in anything other than what Jesus did on the cross, then Jesus is going to say, "Depart from me. I never knew you." Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." There is only one way to be saved.
It is interesting that there are going to be many people who come to Jesus Christ and say, "Lord, didn't I repent of my sins? Didn't I serve faithfully in church? Didn't I become a deacon? Didn't I do all these great things and serve you?" But Jesus is going to say, "Depart from me. I never knew you." I do not hate Pentecostals. The reason I am preaching a sermon like this is because I hate the false way of salvation that is being preached. It is sending people to hell. It is sending my loved ones to hell. Many of your loved ones are potentially in that religion, and it is just something we need to focus on.
Psalm 119:104: "Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way." Because of what is written, we understand what the truth is, and what happens as a result? You start to hate the false ways. You start to hate the false doctrines, the false religions. There is a multitude of other ways — many will say to Jesus in that day, "Lord, Lord." They even call him Lord. They understand who he is. They might even believe the gospel, but it is another gospel. They might even believe about the death, burial, and resurrection, but then they pervert the gospel because they add works to it.
I heard John 3:16 throughout my whole life. I heard it preached. It was the golden verse. We used to quote it in Sunday school and youth, and I never understood it. I probably heard it thousands of times. But because there was not a saved person to help us understand what it means — how can I know except some man guide me? — nobody was there to explain what it means. And it is super clear: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Not whosoever goes to church, whosoever does good things, whosoever repents of their sins — whosoever believeth in him. Many of our loved ones believe in a works-based salvation. Most false Christians believe in a false gospel. They may believe the Bible, but which Bible are they trusting?
2 Corinthians 2:17: "For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ." Even back then in the Corinthian church, there were so many people corrupting God's word. How many Bible versions do you see today? So many people wanting to corrupt what God said. It is the work of the devil because they are clearly attacking passages that explain that salvation is just by faith. They are putting doubt on God's word — like the devil said, "Hath God said?" So many people corrupt the word of God. It says we are not as many that corrupt God's word — not a few people, but many. That is why we need to hold fast to the King James Bible and realise that this is the perfect word of God. We are never going to have any other version preached from here, because these things have I written. We always want the King James Bible preached here.
False versions of the Bible attack the truth. And there are false prophets — people who say, "Thus saith the Lord," when the Lord has not spoken. False religions. People basing their entire faith not on what is written, but on what another person has experienced. "That person had a really amazing experience. I am going to believe what they believe." Deuteronomy 13:1: "If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him."
There could be somebody giving you a sign and a wonder that actually comes to pass, but then they start to preach against what is written in the Bible. The Bible says you are not to hearken to that person. Through thy precepts I get understanding, and that is why we hate all these false ways. God's word says to fear him, to cleave unto him. Isaiah 66 says, "But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word." You need to be fearing God, trembling at what he said. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. We are not to listen to anyone that speaks contrary to God's word. As soon as someone speaks contrary to what is written, we are just not to listen to that person.
I was in the Philippines talking to a person out soul-winning and he said, "I chose the born-again" — which is pretty much the Pentecostal religion in the Philippines. He said his mother had been sick and she was miraculously healed, and that is why they were following that religion. I asked him questions about salvation and he was not right on salvation. What is the point of going towards an experience if you are going against what is written in the Bible?
Deuteronomy 18:22: "When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him." As soon as they make one mistake, you are not meant to be afraid of that prophet. I am not afraid of these prophets because I am commanded by the Bible not to be afraid. That is why I have the boldness — because of what is written in the Bible.
Signs and wonders may come to pass, but they should never overrule what is written in the Bible. God could even be testing you — trying to prove you to see what is in your heart, whether you are going to serve the Lord, love the Lord, and fear him. Pentecostals obviously have all types of prophets. Another religion that has a lot of prophets is the Seventh-day Adventists, with their major prophet Ellen G. White. You probably know about her experiences. Again, they are basing their faith on experiences people have had, and somehow that just trumps what God said in his word. During her visions, Ellen G. White was described as being filled with superhuman strength. In 1845 she reportedly held an 18.5 lb — that is 8.4 kg — family Bible in her outstretched hand for half an hour. And the Adventists believed that during her longest vision in 1846, lasting 4 hours, she held up a heavy family Bible, turning pages and quoting texts correctly while not looking at the book. They look at this experience as something that should just trump everything — something that makes it all true. But she rejected some really clear biblical doctrines. She did not believe in hell as an eternal place of torment — she believed in annihilationism. She rejected the doctrine of once saved, always saved. Her experiences taught her another gospel, and people were basing what they believed not on what the Bible says, but on what she experienced. The Bible says we should not hearken unto these people and we should not be afraid of them.
1 John 5:10: "He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son." If you do not believe that record — if you do not believe that once you have received eternal life it is truly eternal, that it is in Jesus Christ and it is eternal — the Bible says you make God a liar. Ellen G. White made God a liar. People from Pentecostal churches make God a liar because they are just not believing the record that God gave of his Son. We believe the record. We believe what is written. That is why this sermon is called "These Things Have I Written."
Point 3: Another Gospel
People chase miracles. They do not care about what is written. They let experiences trump the Bible, saying, "How could these people be wrong? How could Ellen G. White be wrong?" Regardless of whether a prophecy did not come to pass, they are still afraid of that prophet, even though the Bible says, "Thou shalt not fear him." How do cults form? We see many cults form because they have extra-biblical revelation. And these are not small cults. Muslims make up nearly 2 billion people on this planet. This is an extreme cult, and it is sending all of them to hell. They deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They even deny that Jesus died on the cross — they say someone else came in his place and Jesus was somehow taken up into heaven. This is a huge cult, and they believe what they believe because of extra-biblical revelation. An angel apparently appeared to Muhammad — I believe it was the devil appearing to him — and gave him the Quran, about 600 years after the time of Christ. That is why they are so unreceptive to the gospel. Even the Mormon church — Joseph Smith had a revelation, the angel Moroni appeared to him and gave him the Book of Mormon. They actually have what they call "another testament of Jesus Christ." They had an angel appearing to them, and that is how the Mormon church formed. They do not believe what is written — they believe extra-biblical revelation.
The purpose of these false prophets is to sway people from the word of God. Galatians 1:6: "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ." Here we see that it is "not another" — many false prophets are going to actually preach the same gospel. They are going to preach that Jesus died on the cross, that he was buried and rose again, which is not another, but then they pervert it. They say that is not sufficient to get you to heaven — there are other things you need to do as well.
What should our attitude be? Verse 8: "But though we, or an angel from heaven," — this is obviously those angels that came to those false prophets — "preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." They were so sure in Galatians that they said, even if we ourselves preach it, we should be accursed. No one can bring extra-biblical revelations that are going to trump what God said. Verse 9: "As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." He is hammering the same point. This is serious. You do not just keep being nice to people who continually preach another gospel. The Bible says let him be accursed. Let them be damned, because they are damning people to hell. It is a serious thing.
2 John 1:10: "If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds." If a Jehovah's Witness knocks on your door, or someone comes up trying to preach another gospel to you, do not even have anything to do with that person. We are meant to have that strict attitude about people coming to convince you to follow another gospel. If they are family and they have understood they are not going to try to convince you about what they believe, that is different. But if someone is coming to preach to you and stray you away, the Bible says do not even bid them God speed. Do not say God bless you. Do not say all the best with your endeavours. Do not receive them into your house, and do not bid them Godspeed. Because God does not want us to be a partaker of their evil deeds. We do not want to be encouraging these types of people — we want to be discouraging them.
What is the false prophet in 2026? 2 Corinthians 11:13: "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works." This church, Soulwinning Baptist Church, goes and preaches the gospel. We are ministers by whom people believe. But there are also ministers of righteousness, and the Bible says Satan's ministers transform themselves into ministers of righteousness. If Satan is transformed into an angel of light, I am not surprised there are all these false prophets in 2026. They seem really pious, do they not? They seem like they have it all together. They seem so righteous.
When we understand that we sin every single day, we understand how great God is and how hard it is to attain the perfection of Jesus Christ. We understand that even the thought of foolishness is sin. We understand that to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin. We understand that we are to love the Lord our God with all our mind, with all our soul, and with all our strength — and every day you are going to fail that commandment. But for these false prophets, it is as if they have arrived. They are ministers of righteousness. But they are false prophets. They are deceitful workers preaching against salvation by faith alone.
If someone is really sincere and actually wants to find the truth, regardless of which of those churches or false prophets they are sitting under, I believe God will bring someone to them. Maybe God stirs your heart and you reach out to them. But if anyone is really sincere in those places, regardless of what cult they come from, I think God is going to reach them with the gospel. As the Bible says, he that seeketh findeth.
Some might say, "These people have healings. These people have miracles — they must be from God." Well, does God heal the unsaved? Can God perform a miracle for the unsaved? The Bible says that God makes his sun to shine upon the good and the evil. Luke 22:47: "And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss? When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword? And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear." Another gospel tells us it was Peter — and Jesus answered and said, "Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him." So Jesus heals this man, and what happens? Do they all stop in their tracks? Do they say, "Wow, we just saw a miracle — that person's ear just came back"? Surely that is going to get them to not arrest Jesus. Let us look at verse 52: "Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness." They were getting to hear the words of Jesus Christ. They were getting to see the miracles. And what happens? They just take him. They saw that amazing miracle — they saw the healing — and they did not care about the word of God. They just took him.
This proves that Jesus can also do healings to the unsaved. They saw the miracles and still rejected him. Receiving a miracle does not mean you are on your way to heaven. That man who received that miracle was not automatically God's special loved one going to heaven. Someone gets healed of cancer, or healed of something, and they think, "I must be right with God because God healed me." But God makes the sun to shine upon the evil and the good.
1 John 5:13, what is written: "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life." Do you have eternal life today? Are you 100% sure? Do you know that you have eternal life? If you do not, just come and talk to us and we can show you from the Bible. If you are seeking to know 100%, that is why it says here, "These things are written that ye may know that ye have eternal life." Knowing is being 100% sure about something. When we go out preaching the gospel and ask people from 0% to 100%, how sure are you, you will get a variety of answers — 80%, 40%, 60% sure. But the Bible says there are things written so that we can be 100% sure, because we have believed on the name of the Son of God.
A lot of people want to follow God's will in their life. They want to do what God says. But first of all, the Bible says we are to believe on the name of the Son of God. Unfortunately, with people from these various religions and experiences, instead of going to God's word, which has all the answers, they go to man to hear from God. They call a prophet. They reach out to somebody who they think has special revelations from God. But you have the daily bread. You have the will of God in your King James Bible. John 17:17: "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." Whatever problem you have, whatever scenario you are going to be going through in life, you can just reach out to the Bible and it will give you the answers. You might reach out to a minister or a pastor and they can quote you some Bible verses you probably have not thought of — and then your foundation is not in what they have apparently heard from God himself, but in something that is actually in the Bible. Something that you can realise — this is the solid rock. I can put my feet on this.
1 Timothy 2:1: "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." God wants all of us to come to the knowledge of the truth. When you are saved, you actually understood what the truth is. You came to that knowledge. You saw it in the word — because these things have I written. You can bring people to the knowledge of the truth. Once you know what the Bible says, you have the knowledge of the truth in that matter.
I do not need to learn what God says about marriage from some specialist. I have already got the knowledge of the truth. I do not need to hear how I should raise my children and whether I should spare the rod because some psychiatrist says it is going to affect their mental state. I have got the knowledge of the truth. God told me, "He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes." If you want to learn things, we have got the knowledge of the truth. We have the Bible and we have that stable ground to stand on.
Jeremiah 23:28: "The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord." You know how you look at people's dreams and experiences — it is just like the chaff to the wheat. But it says, "He that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully." Verse 29: "Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith." These people are saying all these things claiming God said them, but God did not say them. Is not my word like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? We have come to the knowledge of the truth. We know what is written in the Bible, and that trumps any dream or any experience that anybody has had.
Acts 6:1: "And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word." Even in the New Testament, the early church elevated the word of God. They are going to give themselves to the Bible. That is what is important. We are going to care about the widows, but we are going to appoint people over that business, because we really need to focus on prayer and the word.
Acts 4:29: "And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word." Is not thy word like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? God's word is powerful, but we need boldness to preach it. We need boldness to not be afraid of what it says. We can see that people are elevating the word of God, and we are the ones who have come to the knowledge of the truth. How do we understand what is true? "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth."
We do not need people to teach us what we need to be doing. We have everything we need in the word of God. And if someone brings something to you from the Bible, you ought to hear it and believe it. These people who bring a false gospel — the term "repent of your sins" is not found once in the Bible. That should get people's attention, because they did not come to that doctrine because of what is in the Bible. They came to it because of someone who taught that damnable heresy. "Repentance of sins" means turning from your wicked way to get saved — not just admitting you are a sinner, but actually giving up your bad lifestyle, living in a constant life of repentance. I was laughing with my wife one morning about this: a man gets up sharing an experience about a pastor from Africa who, just before he died, argued with his wife. And because he argued with his wife, he went to hell. Then he came back from hell and is now bringing a testimony to everyone saying, "Look, I ended up in hell because even though I lived right, at the last second I argued with my wife. I am warning everyone that you have got to turn from your sins." These types of experiences just fool people. It is not the knowledge of the truth. It is not the knowledge of the Bible. It is just experiences people have had.
2 Timothy 2:15: "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." Because you are studying the Bible, because you care about what the Bible says, you are not ashamed, and you are rightly dividing the Bible. Verse 16: "But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker." There are people who have their own word — not the Bible's word, but their own word. That profane babbling is that false stuff that is not even in the Bible. The Bible says we are meant to shun their word — those things that do not match up with the Bible. Why? Because it increases unto more ungodliness. False teaching is words that eat as a canker. It is not the word of God — it is the words of the false prophets. We need to call them out. Let them be accursed.
Even people that are saved but are preaching heresies — not necessarily damnable heresies, but heresies — we should shun what they say too, because those things also lead to ungodliness. When people are not preaching what the Bible says, twisting God's word, even if they are saved but they have a fear of man and they are just preaching to please people — those things can also eat as a canker. You might be looking up to those people to hear what the Bible says, and it could be affecting you. The Bible says it is like a disease. Canker is like a cancer — it eats at you. We have to shun their words. We are to call it out. Let those who preach a false gospel be accursed. People who corrupt God's word need to be called out.
Paul is clearly calling out Hymenaeus and Philetus. People are going to get called out for their sins. If it happens, do not get offended, because even Paul called people out by name for their wickedness. Verse 18: "Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some." These two are getting in church and telling people the resurrection has already happened, and people's faith is getting overthrown. These things need to happen in the right order, and people saying things that are not in the Bible are going to overthrow people's faith — like, for example, believing in a pre-tribulation rapture and then the tribulation comes upon us. People are going to say, "I was expecting to be raptured out of here — why am I facing this?" These things can be really dangerous when we do not rightly divide what the Bible says.
Conclusion
The Bible wants us to have good doctrine. What is the purpose of our preaching? It is to put you in remembrance of these things — to put you in remembrance of what is written, so we have good doctrine and understand what the Bible says. 1 Timothy 4:6: "If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained. But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. These things command and teach. Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."
We can see we are going to really care about what the Bible says here at Soulwinning Baptist Church. We are not just going to be going out preaching the gospel every Saturday and Sunday, but we also want to be unapologetic about what God actually says. It is written: we are to preach the word of God. We are to refuse the bad and exercise ourselves rather unto godliness. Whoever is going to preach from this pulpit, we want you to preach the word of God faithfully.
We ought to be examples to the believers. If you get a chance to preach, be an example in all things, because you do not want people to question you. "Let no man despise thy youth" does not just mean that because you are young, people are going to despise your age. It means do not let people despise you — do not let people accuse God or be given a bad example, because they are going to end up despising who you are. We have people like Pastor Oz in Oklahoma — he is about 28 years old and he is a great example. Even though someone is young, they are just preaching what the Bible says and they are not ashamed, and we cannot despise them because they are an example.
Verse 13: "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." Again, it is just: Bible, Bible, Bible. What is written? What is written? Just keep caring about what is written. Verse 14: "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery." When someone gets ordained, hands are laid on them by the presbytery — somebody already ordained laying hands on a man to ordain him. It is not just a church deciding who they want as a pastor. It is actually going to be from a pastor who has already approved and seen whether that person is able to do so. The Bible says let them first be proved, and then afterwards hold the office. We do not want people that are not approved by someone. If anyone is going to be ordained in this church, it has to be that somebody has seen them and approved them — and that somebody has to be a pastor who has himself been properly ordained.
Verse 15: "Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all." People can see when you have been in the word of God. Your profiting can be seen by your spouse, by your fellow church members. When you get out soul-winning and you are able to share the gospel, people can see that you have got your feet shod with the preparation. Your profiting appears not just to saved people but also to the unsaved — they can see, this person has understood the Bible. We should all be ready and have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel. How do we get there? By meditating on God's word. Give yourself wholly to it, and it is going to be clear to everyone that you have done so.
These things have I written. This is where our faith has to be — not in what we have experienced, but in what we have read. Why did I preach a sermon like this at our second event? My goal for this church is for us to believe God at his word. There is going to be preaching here, and I just want you to realise — if it is written, let us just believe that. Your emotions and feelings may not really like what was preached from the Bible, but you should just obey it because it is written in God's word. Your emotions and feelings are going to follow afterwards. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. The more you hear God's word, the more you are going to grow in faith and realise, okay, that is God's will.
Why are we Baptists? John the Baptist — John Baptist was his name. And he was beheaded. Why? Because of the word of God. He preached that it is not lawful for a man to marry a woman that is divorced, and he was ready to die on that hill. He told a man, "It is not lawful for thee to have her," and got beheaded for it. But he was ready to stand on what God says, ready to suffer the consequences. Whatever you might go through — we might not be martyred for the word of God, but you might be persecuted for believing something in the word of God, for preaching something that is in the word of God. As Soulwinning Baptist Church Melbourne, we ought to realise, even if I do not agree with it right now, I should just believe it because God said it. And your emotions and feelings are going to follow afterwards.
There is a family in the Philippines that had a really naughty child in church. The father got saved — I led him to the Lord. He got baptised in the church and started coming out soul-winning. His child was pretty naughty. I was talking to him about it and mentioned that my parents really disciplined me, and I showed him some Bible verses — what the Bible says about chastening. He started doing it, and out of nowhere my wife said, "The kid is so well behaved. He has his Bible out in church. He is paying attention." You just see what happens when someone starts to apply what is written in the Bible, even as a new believer. They start seeing the fruit. The Bible says, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." Faith cometh by hearing, and we are all to believe it and make the changes where necessary.
May God help us to elevate God's word in our lives. It is written, and that should settle it. What is written in the Bible? Then I have got to change my mind. I am wrong. The Bible is right. You should have that attitude — I might not like it right now, but the Bible is right.
Father God, thank you so much for giving us your word. Thank you for writing it all down and preserving it so that we, Lord God, could have direction. Your word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. We are just grateful that we have this church. We pray that you bless our pastor, Pastor Stucky, and bless also our time of fellowship afterwards. We pray all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.