Fed and Led

by Brian Faulkner

Text: Psalms 23

Introduction:

  1. Live in a society that wants no responsibility
  2. Welfare mentality
  3. Want someone else to do the thinking
    1. Little or no investigation
    2. Even less concern
  4. Do as little as possible
    1. Runaway lawsuits to get rich
    2. Lottery
    3. Want and look for the easiest way out
  5. This leads to socialism and communism
  1. Many want to avoid labor
    1. Labor with your own hands (Proverbs 13:4)
    2. Taught to work to support selves and family (I Timothy 5:8)
    3. Paul made tents to support himself and his companions (I Thessalonians 2:9; II Thessalonians 3:8)
    4. Laziness is sinful
    5. Old Testament example Proverbs 6:6-11
    6. Find a scripture or an example of society giving to those who will not work
  2. Often we avoid spiritual labor (I Corinthians 15:58)
    1. Study non-existent
      1. Bible class is often nothing but a listening exercise
      2. Research for class?
      3. Search the scriptures daily (John 5:39; Acts 17:11)
    2. Evangelism too much trouble
      1. Door to door?
      2. Hand out tracts?
    3. Why do we always have to beg for Bible class teachers?
    4. That is the job of the preacher and the elders
      1. Yes it is
      2. And it is the job of every Christian
    5. Visitation is nothing more than a shadow of times past
      1. Remark when visiting a brother in the hospital after surgery
      2. How would you feel? (Hebrews 6:10)
  3. Many will digest only what is spoon-fed
    1. Amazing to hear some talk about politics
      1. Will only parrot what they hear
      2. A lie told often enough will become accepted
      3. Global Warming
        1. Even after it has been proven to be falsified
    2. Don’t learn from the past
      1. Doomed to repeat it
    3. Some will believe whatever their leaders say
  4. Spiritual food mixed with poison (II Timothy 3:16-17)
    1. Reliance on extra-biblical material
      1. Nothing wrong with extra-biblical material per se
      2. Becomes sinful when we rely on and can’t live without
      3. Can’t study without commentary
      4. Quote magazine before the Bible
    2. Study at the hands of denominationalist
      1. Will get denominational doctrine and dogma
      2. Exactly what reformers were opposed to
  5. We can, and should, be fed and led
    1. Must be led by God “The Lord is my shepherd”
      1. No man either good or evil
    2. No craving for other doctrines “I shall not want”
      1. Fulfilled in every way
      2. Need of nothing physical or spiritual (Matthew 6)
    3. Protection from harm “I will fear no evil”
      1. Even if we are led where danger exists
    4. God’s plan is always good and right “Dwell in the house of the Lord forever”
      1. Where God's people are
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