Clean Transcript

The Faithful God

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

• And to Deuteronomy chapter 7 and verse 9. It is not my intent necessarily today to expound just this verse, but the theme that is found in this verse. So the title of the message is "The Faithful God." So if you look in Deuteronomy chapter 7 and verse 9, the scripture says, "Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations." Note, if you would, that God is specifically referred to as the faithful God. Over and over in the Bible, you will find the phrase that God is faithful. Or you'll find another phrase that refers just simply to the faithfulness of God. And the truth of the matter is I'm not only constantly reminded, but I'm also constantly amazed at the faithfulness of God. It's a truth that should strike home to each of us. And it should also make us constantly and consistently praising him for his faithfulness. His faithfulness, in one sense of the word, should be a rebuke to our unfaithfulness.

  #1 | 0:11 to 1:34 | cleaned

• As we are his children, we should be like him. And in fact, the Bible tells us that we are to be perfect, even as our Father in heaven is perfect. I think one of the greatest faults, one of the greatest failings, one of the greatest sins of modern Christendom is the fact that we are doctrinally deficient. We are doctrinally challenged. I suppose that's just a nice way of saying that we are ignorant concerning biblical truth.

  #2 | 1:34 to 2:05 | cleaned

• And that certainly is true, generally speaking, and consequently, we lose an awful lot of benefit by not understanding these biblical doctrines, especially in relationship to God. It's our understanding of truth that will keep us sane during what the world calls tragic incidents. We do not go crazy the way other people go crazy because we understand truth. I want to give you a quote to begin with from Arthur W. Pink, and I want you to listen. It's two paragraphs, and he hits the nail on the head. He's talking about the faithfulness of God, and he says this: "Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God, the faithful God." This quality is essential to his being. Without it, he would not be God. For God to be unfaithful would be to act contrary to his nature, which is impossible.

  #3 | 2:05 to 3:03 | cleaned

• "If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself." Faithfulness is one of the glorious perfections of His being. He is clothed with it. "O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto Thee, or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee?" So too, when God became incarnate, it was said, "Righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and faithfulness the girdle of His reins."

  #4 | 3:04 to 3:31 | cleaned

• What a word is Psalm 36 verse 5. "Thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens and thy faithfulness unto the clouds." Far above all finite comprehension is the unchanging faithfulness of God. Everything about God is great, vast, incomparable. He never forgets, never fails, never falters, never forfeits his word. To every declaration of promise or prophecy, the Lord has exactly adhered. Every engagement of covenant or threatening, he will make good. For "God is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent."

  #5 | 3:32 to 4:15 | cleaned

• "Hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" Therefore does the believer exclaim, "His compassions they fail not, they are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness." So what I would really encourage you to do today is this: to really meditate and concentrate on the faithfulness of God and let this sink deeply into your heart and deeply into your minds. Let it not only be a challenge to you, but also a challenge to our own unfaithfulness. I've said this before, that one of the passages that I quote practically every day is Lamentations 3:22 and 23. Because when I awaken every morning, I'm thankful that the Lord has allowed me and Alice to live through the night. And when I go to bed, I'm thankful that the Lord has allowed us to live through the day. And the Bible tells you very plainly in Lamentations chapter 3, it is of the Lord's mercies that we're not consumed because His compassions, they fail not. They are new every morning.

  #6 | 4:15 to 5:17 | cleaned

• Great is thy faithfulness. What we have not really comprehended is this, that our lives, our breath, our blessings, everything that we take for granted, basically is dependent upon the faithfulness of God. We usually do not think about, meditate upon, or even consider the fact what in the world would happen to our lives and what in the world would happen to this world if God ceased to be faithful. Just to show you what I'm talking about, we take it for granted that the sun is going to come up every morning and its warmth is going to produce our food and our livelihood. We take it for granted that we're going to live through the night. We take it for granted that we're going to live through the day. We take it for granted that we're going to have the strength and the abilities to perform our duties. We take it for granted that we're going to be given sleep and rest. And we take it for granted that this world is going to continue and to meet our needs and give us

  #7 | 5:17 to 6:24 | cleaned

• pleasure just because we take it for granted. And we not only do not realize everything is so dependent upon the faithfulness of God. In fact, the Bible says in Psalm 50 in verse 1, "The mighty God, even the Lord our God, hath spoken and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the setting or the going down thereof." And then the Bible in Psalm 74 in verse 16 says, "The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun." And when you stop and think about day and night, when you stop and think about summer and winter, those seasons and those times continue to exist just simply because of the faithfulness of God. In the book of Genesis, chapter 8 and verse 22, the Bible says this, God is speaking. He said, "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease." And that is a fact. We have day and night, we have springtime and harvest, and we have winter, and we have cold, and we have heat only due to the faithfulness of God.

  #8 | 6:24 to 7:39 | cleaned

• The reason that we have productive gardens, the reason that we have rain in due season, the reason that we're able to harvest those gardens and enjoy the produce from those gardens is simply because of the faithfulness of God. He said in Acts chapter 14 verse 17, "Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness." So God is the faithful God. Unfaithfulness is one of the sins and the evils of our modern day. And let me ask you a question. Have you ever considered

  #9 | 7:39 to 8:28 | cleaned

• in how many ways that you've been unfaithful to Jesus Christ? Have you ever thought about your unfaithfulness to God the Father? How many ways have you and I been unfaithful in our blessings, in our privileges, in our opportunities, and our responsibilities? I want you to just stop and think about unfaithfulness just for a moment. There is no way in the world that we would know how many homes have been devastated, how many families have been divided just simply because of the unfaithfulness of a spouse. We've never even considered the fact that a lot of children are totally unfaithful. They're not just simply unfaithful to their parents. They're unfaithful to their heritage. They're unfaithful to their upbringing. And on top of that, think, if you would please, about the preachers in the land that are unfaithful to the one who called them to preach his word. Some are actively now even denying certain parts of the word of God. And those who are not actively denying certain parts of the word of God have been unfaithful in a refusal to study and a lack of study and a lack of proclaiming the totality of God's truth.

  #10 | 8:32 to 9:56 | cleaned

• In times past, we understood that a man's word was his bond. In other words, we understood that his word was really a revelation of his character. And in times gone by, men would keep their word even if it cost them. Let me show you what I'm talking about. I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to Psalm 15. Psalm 15 is a wonderful psalm. The question is asked in this psalm as to who will abide in God's holy hill. Who will abide with the Lord in his tabernacle? And I want you to note this answer that is given. The Bible says in verse 1 of Psalm 15, "Lord, who shall abide in my tabernacle?" That's a good question. "Who shall dwell in my holy hill?"

  #11 | 9:58 to 10:58 | cleaned

• Now God begins to answer those questions. "He that walketh uprightly and worketh righteousness and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue nor doeth evil to his neighbor nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned, but he honoreth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not." He that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not. In other words, a man who keeps his word regardless of what it cost him. He is a faithful man. He's a true man. I remember years, years ago when I was young and naive, I had someone tell me something and I believed him. And then when it did not come to pass, I asked him why he had not kept his word.

  #12 | 10:59 to 12:03 | cleaned

• And he laughed in my face. Like, how stupid of you to think that I was ever going to keep my word anyhow. I mean, it was funny to him. And after that day, that was it. I never had another thing to do with him. Why would I? I mean, here's someone that did not have enough character to do what he said he was going to do. I'm just simply pointing out the fact that even today we are living in what you and I would call a dog-eat-dog society. I mean, clearly, hardly anyone keeps their word. Hardly anyone is faithful anymore. In light of that truth, we must understand that Latin phrase caveat emptor. Caveat emptor is a common law doctrine that places the burden on buyers to reasonably examine the property that they are about to buy from the seller. And caveat emptor is a Latin phrase that just simply means "let the buyer beware." It means that the buyer buys at his own risk. It means that he better be talking to the seller.

  #13 | 12:03 to 13:18 | cleaned

• He better be asking specific questions if he does not want to get stung, so to speak. The point I'm trying to make right now: if folks were honest and would keep their word, caveat emptor would be a useless doctrine. But because of depravity, because of sin, we certainly had better beware. And the sad truth is this, that many Christians do not understand the need or the necessity for faithfulness. I've had some professing Christians in time past. "Well, how long have you been a Christian?" And I would give the answer something like this: "Well, 20 years off and on." And when I hear that, I just assume that it's far more off than it ever was on. That is for sure. But it's astounding. It should not be surprising to you and I in the climate of unfaithfulness to grasp the inability of professing Christians to be faithful in anything.

  #14 | 13:18 to 14:20 | cleaned

• Stop and think about the ones who are unfaithful to church. They're unfaithful to worship. They're unfaithful in reading their Bibles. They're unfaithful in prayer. They're unfaithful in giving. They're unfaithful in tithing. They're unfaithful in anything related to the worship of God. How in the world can we emulate our Heavenly Father if we are so unlike him? I want to show you something. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Mark chapter 14. I find this absolutely amazing and yet at the same time it is so accurate and so true of you and I today. In Mark chapter 14, our Lord takes his inner circle, Peter, James, and John, and he goes into the garden to pray. And you'll notice these three are usually always with our Lord. I want you to watch. Look, if you would, in Mark chapter 14 verse 33. "And he taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy.

  #15 | 14:21 to 15:33 | cleaned

• And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death, tarry ye here and watch." Lord, just stay here with me, watch. "And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee. Take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. And he cometh and findeth them sleeping, and said unto Simon Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? Couldest not thou watch one hour? Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

  #16 | 15:34 to 16:16 | cleaned

• The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak." Can you imagine that? Our Lord comes to Peter and said, "What? What's wrong? Can't you just stay awake for one hour? Can't you do what I ask you to do for one hour? Can you not be faithful for one hour?" The point being here was the inner circle of the Lord Jesus Christ, and they were with him, and they failed to do what he asked them to do just for one hour. Now Peter, James, and John failed in that one hour, and certainly we fail in many ways, in many times. I want you to look, if you would, to the book of Luke chapter 16, because our Lord gives us a good lesson concerning our inconsistencies, our lack of character, our lack of faithfulness. Luke chapter 16, beginning there with verse 10, after our Lord has already been talking about the unprofitable servant, He makes this conclusion in verse 10.

  #17 | 16:16 to 17:33 | cleaned

• He said, "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. Therefore if ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?" Now, I want you to note something. There's a contrast in verse 11 between unrighteous mammon, which is money, and the true riches. Then what he says in verse 12, "And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Now there are several great truths here. I want to show you the first one is this: we must understand that even the smallest things afford us an opportunity to be consistent and to be faithful. The smallest things. Our Lord said, watch it very carefully, "He that is faithful in that which is least." In other words, we

  #18 | 17:33 to 18:52 | cleaned

• do not need something huge. We don't need something great. We do not need something incredibly magnificent to prove our love, our grace, our faithfulness to our God. No, no, no. He said, "He that is faithful in that which is least." Notice, if you would, there are little things that we can use to prove our faithfulness. What did he say in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 31? "Whether therefore ye eat or drink or whatever ye do, do all to the glory of God." Do you realize a housewife can keep a house clean for the honor and glory of God? A husband can keep the yard clean for the honor and glory of God. It's the little things. It's the small things. That's what he's saying. We do not necessarily need to have something huge to prove that we are faithful. We can do that in the small things. Here's a second truth. The second truth is that a man who acts faithful in that which is small will prove to himself and others that he may also act faithfully in that which is far greater, that which is much larger.

  #19 | 18:52 to 20:17 | cleaned

• Now, I want to give you at this point two quotes. One is from Adam Clarke and the other is from John Calvin. Both of them are commenting on this passage. Listen, if you would, to Adam Clarke: "He that is faithful in that which is least, who has the genuine principle of fidelity in him, will make a point of conscience of carefully attending to even the smallest thing, and it is by habituating himself to act uprightly in little things that he acquires the gracious habit of acting with propriety and fidelity and honor and conscience in matters of greater concern. On the contrary, he who does not act uprightly in small matters will seldom feel himself bound to pay much attention to the dictates of honor and conscience in cases of high importance. Can we reasonably expect that a man who is continually falling by little things has the power to resist temptations to great evils?"

  #20 | 20:17 to 21:25 | cleaned

• And certainly that is true. Now, listen to what Calvin said: "Christ, therefore, exhorts his disciples to act faithfully in small matters in order to prepare themselves for the exercise of fidelity in matters of the highest importance. He next applies this doctrine to the proper stewardship of spiritual graces, which the world indeed does not estimate according to their value, but which far surpass, beyond all question, the fading riches of the world. Those persons, he tells us, who act improperly and unfaithfully in things of small value, such as the transitory riches of this world, do not deserve that God should entrust to them the inestimable treasure of the gospel and of similar gifts. There is, therefore, in these words an implied threatening, that there is reason to fear lest on account of our abuse of our earthly stewardship we fail to obtain heavenly gifts. In this sense, what is true is contrasted with riches, and what is solid and lasting is contrasted with what is shadowy and fading." So I think Calvin really hits it on the

  #21 | 21:27 to 22:51 | cleaned

• head, which I'm going to hope to enforce just momentarily. But he is saying that our Lord is teaching that if we cannot be faithful in the little tiny area of monetary faithfulness, God is never ever going to entrust us with great spiritual blessings. If we would be like our Heavenly Father, we have to learn to be faithful in small things. In fact, in the book of Zechariah chapter 4 and verse 10, we are admonished not to despise the day of small things. Now, I was thinking this past week on the faithfulness of God. And I want to show you several passages that specifically relate to God's faithfulness. And I hope it will be an encouragement to us in order that we might be more faithful unto him as well.

  #22 | 22:51 to 23:57 | cleaned

• So let me give it to you first. Number one, think about this. God is absolutely faithful in his word. He is faithful in his promises. He's faithful in his precepts. He's even faithful in his punishments. I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Deuteronomy chapter 28. I want you to look, if you would please, at verses 1 and 2, and then we're going to skip down to verse 15. So note, if you would, here are the promises of God, the precepts that he's laying out, and the punishments. He says in Deuteronomy 28 verse 1, "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: and all these blessings shall come on thee and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God." God said, look, all you've got to do is obey. All you have to do is be faithful, and these blessings are going to fall upon you.

  #23 | 23:58 to 25:07 | cleaned

• Now skip down to verse 15. He said, "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day, that all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee." And then he lists the curses. In other words, God is saying, "I am faithful. I'm either going to bless your obedience or I'm going to curse your disobedience. I'm faithful to my word." That's why David said it like this in Psalm 119 in verse 86, "All thy commandments are faithful." Now listen, he went on to finish, "They persecute me wrongly; help thou me." Think about this. He said, "All my commandments are faithful. They persecute me wrongly; help thou me." In other words, "Lord, I'm depending upon your word. I am being wronged. I'm being sinned against, but Lord, here is your word. Here's your promise. Here's your precept. Lord, I'm relying upon it." Have you ever noticed when Daniel prayed, when Ezra prayed, when Nehemiah prayed, when Moses prayed, they all reminded God of his word, of his promises, of his precepts. "Thou hast said. Thou hast spoken. Thou hast covenanted." How many times when we pray do we say, "Lord,

  #24 | 25:07 to 26:36 | cleaned

• You have said in your word." You must understand that God is faithful in his word. That's why David said in Psalm 119 verse 138, "Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded are righteous and very faithful." So everything that God has said is faithful, for he is the faithful God. Here's the second thing. I want you to turn in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians chapter 1 and look, if you would, at verse 9. 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 9. Look at this. You'll see this phrase over and over in the Bible, but I want you to understand that God is faithful in calling us to Himself. He said in 1 Corinthians 1 in verse 9, "God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord." Now this calling is an effectual calling, and it is a calling that results in salvation. It is a calling that results in the fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ. It is a calling whereby we are called to be saints. Note what he said, "God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord."

  #25 | 26:36 to 28:02 | cleaned

• Now, I want you to turn back a few pages to Romans chapter 1 and look, if you would please, at verses 6 and 7. Romans 1 verses 6 and 7. Then I'll put this together for you. Paul writing to these Roman Christians says this: "Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ." Saints in the Bible are referred to oftentimes as called ones. Note, if you would, "Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ." Verse 7, "To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." I don't know if you've ever thought about this or not, but God did not choose you and then forget you. He did not begin and not finish. God faithfully provided his so great salvation in Jesus Christ. God faithfully provided every area and every obedience of Jesus Christ for us. And then once Jesus Christ accomplished that work, he called us to Himself. By His marvelous grace, out of darkness into light, He faithfully illuminated and enlightened our mind and granted us understanding.

  #26 | 28:02 to 29:30 | cleaned

• He faithfully released our wills from the bondage of sin. He faithfully then enabled us to come savingly to Jesus Christ by giving us faith. Do you understand that God always finishes that which he started? God is faithful who called you unto his Son Jesus Christ. Now I want you to look in Philippians 1 in verse 6. If you cannot quote this verse, I would encourage you to memorize it. Watch this. God isn't only faithful to his word. He's faithful to call us savingly into himself. He said in the book of Philippians chapter 1 in verse 6, "Being confident of this very thing, that he who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." God did not bring us to Christ to drop us and leave us in the world. He did not bring us to Christ to drop us and leave us to ourselves. He did not bring us to Christ and drop us and leave us to the devil. No, he brought us out that he might bring us in. "Being confident of this very thing, that he who hath begun a

  #27 | 29:31 to 30:38 | cleaned

• good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." He's going to do exactly what he said he's going to do. He will finish the work. Here's the third one. I want you to look in your Bibles to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, look if you would in verses 23 and 24. 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Look, if you would please, at verse 23. The Apostle Paul is praying and he says this: "And the very God of peace"—now watch this—"and the very God of peace sanctify you wholly, that is completely, totally. And I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." Now watch verse 24. "Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it." In other words, this

  #28 | 30:38 to 31:46 | cleaned

• passage puts together the previous two points. God is not only faithful to his word. God is faithful in calling us savingly to Jesus Christ. But that's not all. He's now faithful to sanctify us. He's faithful to preserve us in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, listen to me. If you have been called savingly unto Jesus Christ, you are going to be sanctified. That's all there is to it. That's what he said: "Faithful is he who calleth you, who also will do it." So let me put it to you like this. There's no such thing as a justified, unsanctified person. Those whom God justifies, he sanctifies. He may sanctify us through the use of affliction. He may sanctify us through the use of tests and trials and temptations. I don't know. But whatever God uses to sanctify us, he will sanctify us. Because faithful is he who calleth you, who also will do it. So, God who is faithful to call us out of darkness and justify us in Jesus Christ, He's also faithful to sanctify us and to preserve us in Jesus

  #29 | 31:46 to 33:13 | cleaned

• Christ as well. Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles, fourthly, to 1 Corinthians chapter 10, because I want you to see this. I'm trying to put this together for you. God is faithful in his word. God is faithful in calling us to himself through Jesus Christ. God is faithful in sanctifying us and preserving us. And I just mentioned that God can sanctify us through the use of tests, trials, afflictions, heartaches, whatever he chooses. But I want you to note this. If you have not memorized this passage, I would encourage you to do so. 1 Corinthians 10 verse 13. Note, if you would, what the Bible says. "There is no temptation taken you but such

  #30 | 33:13 to 33:59 | cleaned

• as is common to man." What's that mean? That means that Clay has the same temptations or tests or trials that I have. Gary has the same one that I have. Marshall has the same one that Gary has. So the point I'm trying to make is this: none of us experience what you and I would call a supernatural temptation. You hear people say all the time, "Nobody's ever going through what I'm going through." That's a bunch of hogwash. Everybody goes through common temptations, tests, and trials. Now look what he said. "There is no temptation taken you but such as is common to man." Are you ready?

  #31 | 33:59 to 34:41 | cleaned

• "But God is faithful, who will not allow or suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able." God knows exactly what it will take to sanctify you. He knows exactly what it will take to make you submissive. He knows exactly what it's going to take to give you a broken heart. "There is no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation make a way of escape, that ye may be able to bear it." What is the way of escape? The way of escape is usually through obedience, but note what he said: he's faithful. So let me put it to you like this: whatever test you are going through, whatever trial, whatever affliction, whatever temptation, God put it on you, you can take it. It's that simple, because he's promised he's never ever gonna put more on us than we can handle. "There is no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not allow or suffer you to be tempted above that which ye are able." Now in

  #32 | 34:41 to 36:01 | cleaned

• light of that, I want you to turn in your Bibles to Psalm 103. I want you to see this truth in light of 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 13. I love this passage, and I've quoted this to myself so many, many times. Before I read it, let me ask you a question. I know the answer. Have you ever been tired? Have you ever been just given out? Have you ever been to the point that you think, "I just can't go on"? Really? I want you to see this. Psalm 103, note if you would verse 13. "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him, for he knoweth our frame.

  #33 | 36:01 to 37:02 | cleaned

• He remembereth that we are but dust." You remember that passage? "There is no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able." Think about this: "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that we are but dust."

  #34 | 37:03 to 37:24 | cleaned

• There have been times in my life that I've just—I wanted to do things, I needed to do things, I mean in the ministry. And I would just say, "Lord, I'm worn out, I just can't keep going unless I get some rest, unless I get a break." Do you realize even our Lord told his disciples, "Come ye apart into a desert place and rest a while"? Lester Roloff used to say, "If you don't come apart, you will come apart." Well, that's true. That's true. But notice, if you would, "Like as a father pitieth his children." So I had my children, they were supposed to be doing certain tasks, and sometimes they couldn't quite finish. What would I do?

  #35 | 37:25 to 38:11 | cleaned

• I'd go over and help them. I would have pity upon them. You know, that's exactly what God does to us. "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him." When we think that we can't, he helps us. You remember it was the Apostle Paul who had that thorn in the flesh. He said thrice, three times, I besought the Lord to remove it, and what did God say? "My grace is sufficient for thee." So God knows exactly what we can take and what we cannot take. Now I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, to 1 Peter chapter 4. 1 Peter chapter 4, because still in light of what I'm talking about.

  #36 | 38:12 to 38:53 | cleaned

• God is known in faith in his word. He's faithful in calling us. He's faithful in sanctifying us. He's certainly faithful in protecting us. But look, if you would please, in verse 19 of 1 Peter chapter 4. He says, "Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator." So notice, if you would, there is suffering according to the will of God.

  #37 | 38:53 to 39:28 | cleaned

• It could be by means of sanctification. It could be by means of just glorification. There are many reasons why we suffer. May I remind you of Philippians 1 in verse 29, when he said, "For unto you it is given on behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake." So just like faith is God's gift, suffering is also a gift of God. And just like God does not give his gift of faith to everyone, he does not give his gift of suffering to everyone. But those who are called upon to suffer, he said, let them commit their souls to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator. God is faithful. Do you realize that God knows exactly

  #38 | 39:28 to 40:14 | cleaned

• how to comfort us, how to console us, how to calm our fears and our anxieties? According to 2 Corinthians chapter 1, He is indeed the God of all comfort. He will protect us. He will preserve us. He will provide for us. He is the faithful Creator, Savior, and Redeemer. Now, I've showed you from the scripture many passages concerning God's faithfulness. In light of that truth, may I point out the fact that God requires faithfulness in each of us. He requires faithfulness in that which is least, because that evidences whether or not we will be faithful in that which is greater. I pointed out when we were looking in Luke chapter 16 that the true riches are not monetary. The true riches are the blessings of God and the ability to honor and worship him. God does require faithfulness. Let me make a statement. I believe in reality, based upon scripture, that one reason God has not used us—and when I say us, I'm talking about Christendom in general right now—one reason God has not used us for his greater good, for a revival so to speak, for an awakening to truth and righteousness, is because of our unfaithfulness. Scripture says, "Every man will proclaim his own

  #39 | 40:15 to 42:16 | cleaned

• goodness, but a faithful man who can find?" Stop and think about the unfaithfulness in the average Christian, in the average church. Now here's what the Bible says, 1 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 2: "Moreover, it is required of a steward to be found faithful." It is required of a steward to be found faithful. The word "required" is the Greek word "zeteo." Literally, it is demanded of a steward that a man be found faithful. So let me ask you a question. How many of you would keep an unfaithful housekeeper? How many of you would keep an unfaithful employee? So if Marshall hired me to give him 40 hours in five days, and the first week I showed up for four hours, the second week I showed up for six hours, the third week I showed up for two hours, how long do you think I'm gonna have a job? You see, Dr.

  #40 | 42:16 to 43:43 | cleaned

• Bob Jones Sr. used to say it like this: "The greatest ability is dependability." And that's true. God demands that we be faithful. "Moreover, it is required of a steward that a man be found faithful." Each of us is a steward. Think about this: God has entrusted each one of us with knowledge, with abilities, with monies, with families, with opportunities, with responsibilities. We have a stewardship. Marshall and Megan have a stewardship right there with those three kids. Anyone that has children has a stewardship. Anyone that has money has a stewardship. Anyone that has abilities has a stewardship. Anyone that has knowledge has a stewardship. God requires us to be faithful.

  #41 | 43:43 to 44:42 | cleaned

• I want to show you. Turn in your Bibles to Psalm 108—I'm sorry, Psalm 101. I want to read through verse 8. There's only eight verses in Psalm 101, but I only want one verse out of it. But I want you to see this psalm because it's such a wonderful psalm. This is called the "I Will" psalm, and you will understand why. David said in verse 1, "I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O Lord, will I sing. I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. A froward heart shall depart from me.

  #42 | 44:42 to 45:38 | cleaned

• I will not know a wicked person. Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the Lord."

  #43 | 45:38 to 46:09 | cleaned

• Now, I want you to think about this. This is a psalm of David, and David makes a statement in verse 6. It's very important. He said, "Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me." May I remind you that David is a type of Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus Christ sits upon the throne of David. In fact, when you get to Matthew 1:1, Jesus Christ is called the son of David as well as the son of Abraham. But now in verse 6 he says this, watch it again: "Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me." Now the word "faithful" is the Hebrew word

  #44 | 46:10 to 47:07 | cleaned

• "emun," which refers to those that are trustworthy, those who are worthy of confidence. And it refers to those who are firm and steadfast and faithful. In other words, he's saying not only his eyes, but God's eyes are upon them, looking for them, searching for them, recognizing them, and using them and blessing them. Here's a quote from John Gill on Psalm 101 verse 6. Listen carefully: "Christ's eyes are upon faithful persons, or faithful ministers of the Word, who preach the gospel faithfully, administer the ordinances truly, are faithful to the souls of men in watching over them, reproving and exhorting them. His eyes are upon them to keep and preserve them, to honor and reward them with a crown of life that fadeth not away. His eyes are also on faithful members of churches, such who truly believe in him, who hold fast the faithful word, and keep close to his worship and ordinances. His eyes are upon them to show favor to them, to bestow blessings upon them, and to protect and defend them, and to preserve them from

  #45 | 47:08 to 48:28 | cleaned

• perishing, that they may dwell with me, or sit with me at his table, or at the council board, or in judgment, and assist him in the affairs of government. So such as are faithful shall dwell with Christ both here and hereafter. They dwell in him and with him by faith, and have communion with him. They dwell in his house below, and they shall dwell with him above forevermore." So even John Gill takes this and says, it really refers to Jesus Christ who is the greater David, whose eyes are upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me. Now I must tell you, number one, God does require us to be faithful. Think about this. He tells you in

  #46 | 48:28 to 49:28 | cleaned

• Matthew chapter 5, "Be ye perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect." Have you ever stopped to think about the application of just this one truth? He said in 1 Peter chapter 1 verse 16, "Be ye holy; for I am holy, saith the Lord." "Be ye holy; for I am holy, saith the Lord." If the holiness of God demands that we be holy, does not the faithfulness of God demand that we be faithful? I'm just simply pointing out the fact we are to be like our Heavenly Father. We are to emulate our Heavenly Father, and we cannot bring him honor and glory unless we are faithful. Now here's the point I want to bring to your attention. If I were to ask you, "Have you ever been unfaithful to the Lord Jesus

  #47 | 49:28 to 50:32 | cleaned

• Christ?" I believe I know what your answer would be, because you would have to answer yes. I'm a sinner. I haven't prayed the way I should. I haven't studied the way I should. I haven't witnessed the way I should. There's a lot of things. I haven't treated folks the way I should. I haven't been the sweetest husband, the sweetest wife, the sweetest child. Yeah, yeah, we failed. I want you to see the grace of God in Jesus Christ. I want you to turn to two passages. I want you to turn to Revelation chapter 17 and then 1 Timothy chapter 1. Okay, go ahead and find 1 Timothy chapter 1. I want you to find that, and then we're going to go to Revelation chapter 17. Okay, 1 Timothy chapter 1, you hold that. Then if you would go to the book of Revelation chapter 17, and I want you to look, if you would please,

  #48 | 50:32 to 51:43 | cleaned

• at verse 14. Just want to point out these words. Our Lord, of course, is destroying his enemies. The Bible says, "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful." Now we've already seen that we're the called of the Lord. We already know that we're chosen because the Bible tells us that he chose us in Jesus Christ before the foundation of the world. We can understand called and chosen, but faithful? When each of us understands that there have been times in our lives that we've been unfaithful, either through ignorance or through just sheer rebellion and sin, but we've been unfaithful, and yet the Bible says those who are with Jesus Christ are called, chosen, and faithful. Now, I want you to look in your Bibles to 1 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 12. Look what the Apostle Paul said: "And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry." Now here's a good question based upon 1 Timothy 1:12. Was Paul perfect? No. Paul was a sinner. Was Paul always faithful? The

  #49 | 51:44 to 53:31 | cleaned

• answer is no. Only Jesus Christ is perfect. Only Jesus Christ is always faithful. But look what he said in verse 12: "And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry." The word "counted" in the Greek is "hegeomai," which literally means to count, to think, to esteem. So here's my question: How did God esteem Paul faithful? How did he count him faithful? How did he think that he was faithful? He only counted him faithful and esteemed him faithful and thought him faithful because he's in Jesus Christ, who is perfect, who is the faithful witness, who is obedient par excellence. He was in Jesus Christ. Here's the greatness of God: even in our unfaithfulness, which is sin, which is wickedness, and yet God in his grace and mercy looks at us and he sees us in Jesus Christ, and since Jesus Christ is the faithful one, He views us as faithful in Jesus Christ.

  #50 | 53:31 to 54:47 | cleaned

• I'm gonna tell you something, folks, that ought to challenge you to endeavor to be more faithful in every area of life. The Bible says in the book of Proverbs chapter 28 and verse 20, "A faithful man shall abound with blessings." A faithful man shall abound with blessings. If we want the blessings of God, we need to learn to be faithful in the minutest areas, in the smallest areas. Because he that is faithful in that which is least will habituate himself to be faithful in that which is greater. And if God graciously counts us faithful in Jesus Christ, we should never let him down. We should say, "Father, help me to live up to your estimation of me in Jesus Christ. Help me to be the faithful servant."

  #51 | 54:51 to 55:59 | cleaned

• What is the blessing that our Lord said? He said that our Lord would say to the faithful servant, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." We need faithfulness because our God is faithful and we must be like him. Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, we bow to thee. We thank you for your word. We thank you for your truth. Lord, we have to confess we failed in so many areas. We've been unfaithful in so many ways. But yet, Lord, thou art the faithful God, and thou hast covered all of our sins and all of our iniquities in the sacrifice and obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thee praise. Help us, Lord, to be what we should be, what we ought to be, what we can be by thy grace. Make us holy and make us faithful in the name of Jesus Christ.

  #52 | 56:00 to 57:20 | cleaned

• We ask and pray. Amen.

  #53 | 57:20 to 57:40 | cleaned

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T18:19:21Z