TREMBLE AT GOD'S WORD

TREMBLE AT HIS WORD – PART ONE
Just recently, an article appeared on the Faith Page (Religion Section) of the Prince Albert Daily Herald. A United Church of Canada minister had made a statement at a ministers conference which was editorialized in the heading "Minister states that some parts of the Bible are not worthy to be called ‘divine words of God’".

I was appalled about the statement by this minister, called a "Christian minister". I reacted, and maybe in hindsight I should not have reacted, by writing a letter to the editor. I used the Word of God to disprove this minister and to point out that she might be what Jesus called a "scoffer".

I blind-copied my letter to the editor to a number of ministers in the city – ministers that I believed to be "men of god" who believed that the "Word of God" was indeed the "Word of God" meaning the total Bible, the total Word of God, not some portions of it.

Maybe I blind-copied the letter to these ministers to see if they would (at least) support me in my analogy. That they would (at least) be an encouragement to me in public stand I was taking.

It is interesting to note that only one gave me an encouraging call – the others remained quiet – not one phone call, not one word of encouragement, not one e-mail, nothing, nothing, nothing.....

However, what was more encouraging was that the usual writers to the editor also remained silent, except one, and that one did not get the point at all that we, as born-again believers, accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, and that this really means that we, by faith, believe the whole Bible, the whole Word of God (Jesus according to the Gospel of John) and that this "minister" really makes a literal attack on our Lord and Savior by stating that parts of the Bible can not be called "divine" and that the Bible is really a book full of fables and myths.

Reflecting back on this week, this whole thing has not left me.

And than this week, Hannelore, my Bible College students, and myself attended a wonderful conference – a conference during which a re-commitment and total devotion to the Father, to Jesus and to the Holy Spirit was preached. It could not have been made more clear through teaching, preaching and testimonies.

It really encouraged me, and, more important, it really showed me that the stand I took was correct and that, no matter the silence by the ministers, we really need to go back to basics and start standing on what we, by faith, accepted – that Jesus, the Word of God, was sent by the Father to die for our sins, that He rose again, and whoever believes in Him (in the heart) will have eternal life.

So, this week Jesus drew me to a Scripture in Isaiah – Open up your Bibles and read Isaiah 66: 1-2 :

"Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me ? and where is the place of my rest ? For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: BUT TO THIS MAN WILL I LOOK, EVEN TO HIM THAT IS POOR AND OF A CONTRITE SPIRIT, AND TREMBLETH AT MY WORD."

So, no matter what that minister said, no matter the silence of the other ministers, what is important to me is what God said. He said that He will pay attention to those who tremble at His Word. He said that He will esteem those who tremble at His Word.

When you opened up your Bible a few minutes ago, did you tremble when you read this Scripture ? Do you really believe that what you have in your hand is the Word of God ? Do you really believe that whatever you read in the Scriptures is awesome ? Do you really believe that this Word, you have in your hands, is Jesus, the living Word of God ? What do you believe ?

Are you trembling ? Are you trembling right now ?

Psalm 119: 112 & 120 :
"I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway, even unto the end............My flesh trembleth for fear of thee; and I am afraid of thy judgments."

David trembled at the Word of God. This is why David is called a "man after God’s own heart. Acts 13:22 :

"And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will."

The word "tremble" in Hebrew is "hareddee" or "haredim".

"This is the one I esteem : he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word"

A true student of God’s Word trembles at it. Those who tremble at God’s Word do not originate anything. They simply study and obey God’s Word. They do not add to it nor take away from it,

Deut 4:2 :
"Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you."

They do not add to it nor take away from it, because they do not wish to suffer its judgements, as written in Revelation.

Those who tremble at God’s Word share a desire to continue a biblical way of life believing the Bible lifestyle can withstand the cultural attacks of modern, secular society. Tremblers at God’s Word reject ideas of assimilating into their society, becoming acculturated to their society and reforming their faith to fit their society. They believe God’s Word is for all times, for all people and for all cultures.

Therefore, in order to fully obey God’s Word, a "trembler" must study the Word of God to know what and how to obey.

For instance, I believe that the Bereans were "tremblers" – Acts 17:11 :

"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true."

Jesus chose his disciples and appointed them to be with Him and to preach. You can found the account of the Gospel of Matthew, Luke and Mark (Matt 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11, 6:12-16; Mark 3:13-19)

The word "disciple" actually means "student". In Luke 6:13, the word "disciple" is "mathetas" in the Greek text. However, in the Hebrew New Testament it is "talmid" which means "student"
Talmid (pronounced Talmeed) comes from the root "Talmud" which means "to study".

So, Jesus chose his "students". He frequently took them aside for deeper study.

It states in the Scriptures that Jesus taught his disciples, his students with one having authority – Matt 7:28-29 :

"And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine. For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes."

Then, in Matt 28:18-20, he releases this same authority to his students (disciples) and us and commands us to do the same he did throughout his ministry. (READ)

Who does God consider a student ?

Ecclesiastes 12:9-14
"The Teacher was very wise and taught the people what he knew. He very carefully thought about, studied, and set in order many wise teachings. The Teacher looked for just the right words to write what is dependable and true. Words from wise people are like sharp sticks used to guide animals. They are like nails that have been driven in firmly. Altogether they are wise teachings that come from one Shepherd. So be careful, my son, about other teachings. People are always writing books, and too much study will make you tired.
Now, everything had been heard, so I give my final advice: Honor God and obey his commands, because this is all people must do. God will judge everything, even what is done in secret, the good and the evil."

Isaiah 50:4
"The Lord God gave me the ability to teach so that I know what to say to make the weak strong. Every morning he wakes me. He teaches me to listen like a student."

II Timothy 2:15
"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth."

Based on these three Scriptures, we can pose the following questions :

1. In all three passages, what is the purpose of study ?
2. In Eccl 12:9-14, what are the four steps a teacher must take to properly present a lesson?
3. According to Isaiah 50:4, is there a time to study ?
4. In II Tim 2:15, to whom does the student need to seek approval for his study ?
5. Is studying work according to Ecclesiastes ?
6. What does it mean to "correctly handle" the word ?

DELIVERED ON MAY 24, 2009 AT UNDER THE JUNIPER TREE CHAPEL BY PASTOR JOHN FRYTERS.