Dirty Bible Words - Week 3 - St. Peter - Pastor Tim Glende
Dirty Bible Words
Week 3 - St Peter
Pastor Tim Glende
Welcome to week 3 of our sermon series entitled, Dirty Bible Words. I pray that you have caught some weeks, one and two on forgiveness and on submission weather at our downtown campus, The CORE, our North Appleton campus here at Saint Peter. If you haven't, you can find them on our YouTube page. As we'd love to have you check them out, to see the truths, God longs for us to know about his word as we live in a culture that might Define these differently. So, I got a question for you. What's wrong with the world today? If you're taking notes, if you are looking at the outline down below, write down three things that just pop into your mind. What's wrong with the world today?
Just by hearing that question, if I gave you even just 30 seconds, most of you would come up with three just like that you probably could come up with five very quickly. If I gave you the rest of the day, you might come back with a page and a half full of all the things that you think are wrong with the world today. And my guess is that as you thought about that question in a very quick manner, Certain things Rose to the top of your mind and they probably were things that other people in this room right now are watching us online. Also, thought of like, if you Google it, what's wrong with the world today? Most of the ones that I found earlier this week had a lot of similarity Like in a Broadway in a general way. What's wrong with the world today out the top of almost every list is poverty. Like you and me and many, if not most Americans have no clue about how many people in our world, the percentage of people in the world live in poverty.
Maybe another thing that Rose to me was war.
Maybe for some of you. What you came up with is because of our American climate today, but it's something that's probably true of many people worldwide. You, you came up with the polarized political scene that we have today. What's wrong with the world today? Like some of the lists I looked at had that as well. In fact, some of the list that I looked at went a little bit deeper and further as they rank them in the top 25 on, after they talk about politics and how polarizing it is in our world today, they included a rest of what's wrong with the world today liberalism But right below it fundamentalism like the two sides of the religious world and spectrum that influence in are affecting our polarization of politics.
But can you make it happen? I have had other ones that you came up with the truth is what's wrong with the world today. There are a lot of things that we might see or think but I'm guessing none of you put this on the list. I did find a list of our word for today's Doctrine. Like some of you when you hear that word like I don't know what that means. Okay, I'm glad you're here. We're going to explain it, we're going to talk about it.
You might wonder yourself. It doesn't sound like a dirty word, Pastor, a doctor in and of itself doesn't ring a bell. Does it spark anything in my heart like last week's word submission? Like who gets me ready to kick up the gloves and start fighting? Our next week's word. Hell. Like for many, that's a dirty word to give a note to it or mention. But Doctrine.
So today, what I want to do is help you see what doctrine means. What doctrine is the significance of it? And when we Define it from God's perspective, what makes it a word that the world would say He's dirty. They don't like it. Like, it's not just the Itself. It's all that goes along with it.
In order for you and for me to be on the same page but in order for you to know where we're going today, I want to give you a roadmap for things that I think are important part of this conversation when it comes to this word because many people in our world once we unpack it maybe some of you will think it will see why it's dirty and agree that it should be a dirty word. So understanding what the word means and its significance in our world today. The world's culture is important, like having understanding of the word and its significance and going a little deeper is important. Then I want you to understand what God means by the word Doctrine, when he puts it in his word and how that plays out for us. Then we're going to unpack and talk about why it's actually a dirty word. So, once we know the word, understand the significance of the word. See what God says, about the word. We can wrestle with talk about and dig into why it's a dirty word in the world. And maybe for some of you you would say a dirty word in your life as well. And then finally, after understanding all those things understanding, why this word Doctrine and God's definition of it, because not dirty but such a beautiful important thing, why it matters for things to understand that. I pray, you'll be blessed as we unpacked dirty words. Number three. So, let's get our definition of Doctrine in and of itself. Look it up in the dictionary. Doctrine is a set of beliefs. A set of truths. It is a set of things that one compiles together that are your convictions and Doc the definition itself, a set of beliefs, convictions, tenets, teachings. However you want to Define it like we did before in our service, we set a Creator’s creed as a statement of faith in many ways. Creed's unpack doctrines beliefs, the Apostles Creed impacts, the doctrines of the Triune god father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Doctrines are a set of beliefs by definition. And for the most part, when you hear the word doctor and it's almost always attached to a group, like church bodies, Church organizations, churches have a doctorate A set of beliefs, you go to any web page of any church. You go to any web page of any denomination or church body. The odds are pretty good somewhere on the top and one of the tabs they will have is what we believe they will lick. Basically lay out for you, what their set of beliefs are that defines them. Doctrine.
But it's not just religious organizations that have doctor and politically the word applies as well. Like, if you're a history buff, you've heard of the things like the Jackson doctor in the Monroe Doctrine throughout history, for America sets of beliefs that were governing foreign policy different policies Doctrine. And while Republicans and Democrats don't use the word, the reality is that those parties have doctrines, they call them platforms when they get to their big conventions. Like, these are our platforms are pieces, but Political parties have things that they believe that caused them to operate the way that they do to maybe elect the candidates that they choose. And you could go further in life when you're a member of an organization. Most organizations are organized around Doctrine. Like from 4-H to the VFW to other places, they have a set of beliefs that's a part of what makes up their DNA that governs and guides how they act and what they do. That's almost all most of you. Probably get it.
But you think of doctrines and a set of beliefs, and it means It's a part of an organization that you're part of and so some of you here today are saying pastor Tim, I don't follow any doctrines.
Like maybe you're not a part of a church. Maybe you're just joined our church 922 you would say if I said it believes it is not a determiner defined by a religious organization outside of that I have my own so I don't have a Doctrine. Maybe you're one of those in our world today. Who cannot align themselves with Republican Democrat or any party and you call yourself independent. I don't really have a set of beliefs that a group holds to therefore, I don't have a doctor when it comes to politics. Maybe not a part of an organization. Outside of myself, it's dangerous to think of Doctrine, a set of beliefs, only through the lens of a group.
Because here's the truth that you need to see about the word and its significance. It's a set of beliefs and when it comes to sets of beliefs, if you're taking notes and filling the blanks, everyone has a Doctrine
Christian or non-Christian atheist, agnostic Lutheran Catholic, republican-democrat american-canadian like, it doesn't matter where you live, who you are, how you align politically, where you are at on the religious Spectrum. At the end of the day, everyone has a doctor, a set of beliefs
A set of beliefs about God. Say, the police about the Bible. A set of beliefs about identity and gender, a set of beliefs about marriage and finances. Like everyone has a doctor
But let's take one of the easy ones that I just talked about. That's not going to push any buttons today because I want to be careful before you get up and leave. Think about your finances. Everyone has a set of beliefs in regards to their finances. For your spender. Are you saver? You have a doctorate. Like you might view it through the lens of percentages, like every paycheck XML goes out to retirement. X amount goes into savings X Amounts is spendable, x amount to put in the vacation fund. You have a set of beliefs that is governing how you act in regards to your money. Doctrine.
And so I need to ask you the question with all those things in mind that everyone has one, that is a set of beliefs. What is yours? And even more importantly, what is it? That is shaping them. I'll come back to that question a little bit later in a little more detail. But I want you to think about that. Right now you have a Doctrine in regards to God, religion, all the things going on in our world today. What is if that is setting the tone for them? What is it? That is causing you to have that set of beliefs Understanding the word and understanding its significance that you and I have one
Is also something God knew was important.
Two thousand years ago words I just read earlier God do and the Apostle Paul knew that everyone has a Doctrine, a set of beliefs which is why the Apostle Paul to another Pastor named Timothy said these words that I read just a few minutes ago watch your life and Doctrine closely.
Watch your life.
And watch your Doctrine.
Watch your life closely, watch your doctor and closely, and he put an and right in the middle. Like they're a ham and eggs pair, you can't separate the two God knew and the Apostle Paul by inspiration. New, The reality that everyone has a Doctrine.
And to view it closely, to watch it closely matters because your life is attached to it. If everyone has one, And a doctor is a set of beliefs and you watch your life and doctor closely. Then we would say this is true. And here's why this is an important discussion for us. This is why when we talk about it being dirty, why it's so important for us. Paul says, to watch it closely. And here's why what One Believes Affects how one behaves.
What One Believes in Your set of beliefs? Affects how one lives. What One Believes? What your Doctrine is, what your beliefs are? Will affect how one lives, acts, behaves.
Like what One Believes about marriage and God's Gift of sex, what One Believes about Authority? What One Believes about things that we've talked about already in this series religious, things like forgiveness and submission, what One Believes about next week's topic. And I'm not going to dig deep into hell. But one believes that will affect how one behaves, how one acts, how one lives in relationships for God in our world and it will guide your path.
It will affect it. Influence your roots.
What One Believes effects? How one behaves. It's why the word Doctrine is so important. Because what your set of beliefs is based upon Will affect the outcome. Of your life here in this life, and And for eternity,
And all those things. Make the word significant. Help us Define it, understand it. And with that in mind, I want you to understand what God says about it. What God's view of dr. Dennis, what, how God expands on and he only uses the word six times. What does God want us to know and understand about it? Well let's look a little further as he writes to another Pastor named Titus. He said this key referring to Titus or pastors leaders in the church. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught. In other words, hold on to watch closely the word of God that has been taught so that he can encourage others. Here's why it's important for a pastor to be in God's word, hold firmly to the trustworthy message of God, so that he can encourage others with sound Doctrine and refute those who oppose it. Like, when God says there's a doctor, and he doesn't say there's a smorgasbord or potluck of beliefs that are valid and acceptable when God looks at. Doctor and he says, there's sound Doctrine and not sound Doctrine.
He doesn't say there's a wide variety, he doesn't say. This is like going to the Golden Corral and picking and choosing at the buffet line. What you like like Pastor Tim, go dig into all the things that you like that are fried and ignore the cauliflower and broccoli. It's not like a pick and choose Buffet. Sound Doctrine is opposed by wrong Doctrine. Everything else Doctrine Even a verse later comes back to go back. One more point to that, you must teach what is appropriate to sound Doctrine. And maybe, just maybe because the word Doctrine is only used six times. You've now heard it three times. The best way to understand what God means by Doctrine, is to look at that. Other words that's used here and a few other places sound.
Because that word is used in a lot of places in the Bible. It's you. The word describes the servant that Jesus healed of a rich man and when he got back home, they told him that his servant was well. It's the same word that's used for that servant as used here, healthy, not sick, not ill sound. We use the word the same way, right? Someone is of sound mind, someone's health is sound. Someone has been out traveling on a long trip and they get home and they are safe and sound. Well, God says healthy Doctrine. Sound Doctrine is the trustworthy message of God and his word. What's been taught to you, Titus? What's been said to you Timothy So, let's take a look at what God would say about that word. If sound Doctrine, is based on a trustworthy message? Why does that qualify? It says that every word of God is flawless.
Sound Doctrine based on the trustworthy message. Why is it trustworthy? Because when God speaks, it's without error, unlike human beings on their own for you. Been born again, Peter said through the living and enduring word of God, it's alive, and it's Eternal, it's less, it's not of a time or for just a time, it is enduring Through Time.
Sanctify them by the truth. Jesus said your word is truth the night before he died in the upper room praying for his disciples. He said Lord sanctify them through your truth. Your word is the truth. A few hours later the ruler of that area Pontius Pilate will put Jesus in the eyes right before he condemned him to die. And said the question what is true like for Pilate there was no authoritative Truth for Pilate, you know things changed as time went on there's no Authority, from a spiritual perspective. Even in a worldly perspective, how do you know what is true? Your word is truth. Jesus said “and all scripture is God-breathed”. So Doctrine is a set of beliefs. Everyone has a Doctrine, what you believe, determines how you behave, God calls for leaders in his church. God calls for pastors, God, calls for Christians to have sound Doctrine, healthy Doctrine. Well, Doctrine because it's good for your soul, it leads to eternal life, it is the truth. If you're looking for a definition that we're working with, and here's where it's going to get dirty for a lot of people, When God says, follow sound Doctrine, opposed
Anything that goes against sound Doctrine? Sound Doctrine is this: God's inerrant, Inspired, unchanging, encouraging word. It's God's. He inspired it. It's God's from beginning to end. It's inerrant. it's flawless. There are no errors. It's unchanging. It's living and enduring and it is encouraging. It gives hope to the lost. It gives peace to our soul. It points us in the direction of joy, that is eternal from God, all things. This world cannot offer like sound Doctrine. Tells you that there is hope that there is an ultimate piece that there is only one way to heaven that. Are there is an art rules that govern how we live our life here on Earth, like God's word, declares all those things and now you probably have since the rub
Because that goes against the world.
That goes against American culture in the 21st century. That there is an authority. That someone else to clears, what the set of beliefs should be and what shouldn't get included. Because let's just be honest for a second.
Like who doesn't like the spiritual potluck Buffet? But I love to dig in the word and find the text that speak to your problem or your problem, or their problem and give them the hammer. But I like to avoid the spiritual broccoli that applies to my issue and just bypass it because I don't like it.
Or how about this?
Like, there are doctrines. That the Christian church.
That God's Word. Sets of beliefs around. Things of our world today that if we spoke against them, the sound doctrine that God says should be your beliefs. It is Politically Incorrect. Because the world says otherwise,
So, what is it that shaping your Doctrine? Are you someone who likes the Potluck nature to spiritual Doctrine, pick and choose.
What is shaping your Doctrine? Is it secular or is it sacred? Like what lens is shaping? Your Doctrine. We've got two sets of lenses up here and you know, they serve different purposes. These ones help me see clearly, so I can read because I'm getting old and my eyes are going bad and these help block things out because I don't want to see the sun when I'm outside might not be. I will never see that again.
Let's call these the sacred and call these the secular. Like, if I'm viewing my Doctrine through the secular lens, it's my truth.
It's my body.
Some of my rights. It's my money.
Who are you to judge?
It's all about me. What I want, how I view it and when it comes to doctrines of the Bible, out of you, it is through the lens of what the world says, about my friends, say, other influences that have on me anything. But the Bible and God, Like what lens I view it through. Is it secular, is it biased? Is it tainted? If these are the lenses, my beliefs will determine my behavior. It just will. But if you put on the sacred lenses, it's not my truth. It's God, his word is truth. It's not just you do you? It's God. Designed you to be who you are in his eyes.
When it comes to my money, if the sentence secular is guiding, you is different than the sacred, which says it's not yours, everything belongs to God, it's only on low in them. Like when it comes to marriage and sex when it comes to the language that you use, when it comes to heaven and hell, when it comes to how you get to heaven, when it comes to every last thing, the sacred is different than the secular.
So I need you to wrestle with. Which one is guiding you? And if you want to know what's guiding you, look at your behavior.
How are you living? What are you accepting? Because that'll help you understand what your believing. And what's your doctor?
And this wasn't anything new. It's not new in today's world, it was going around a long time ago. And here's why it's a dirty word because it's not what we want to hear when the time comes. When people will not put up with sound Doctrine instead of suit their own desires. They'll gather around them. A great number of teachers say what their itching ears want to hear. They'll turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to miss.
Quick bill not put up with sound Doctrine. Like they'll just say no. I don't like it. Not going to do it. I don't care. I won't they won't put up with things that are healthy. They will take in and desire things that are bad.
Things that are. Them to live how they want to live. Look at it, shouldn't shock us, right? Like just think of food, if we're talking about healthy for our souls or not healthy for our souls, think about the foods that you like to eat, like join me some Friday around 11:00 at draft and I'll show you bad food, but so good. It's a burger with brisket and bacon on it and instead of just getting the cheddar cheese that they offer with the chipotle sauce, I smother it in in Moody blue cheese, like we're talking 3,000 plus calories in 30 minutes going into this mouth and I will do it every Friday because it is that good, but it is so bad. You know what? I don't like the healthy food that my wife makes me eat. I get to eat Monday through Thursday, cauliflower rice with chicken breasts. No fried food. No seasoning like no barbecue sauce. Like just some salt and pepper, that's it, but it's good for my body. It sound. Like if you want to sound its skeleton, if you want to sound body that lasts is healthy, you need to put things in it that are good for you. Not bad for you. So once a week I break down, I call it a cheat day. It's okay I got a book that tells me it's all right. See my set of beliefs is right there. Spiritually speaking, this is why people go down this path. This is why it's a dirty word because they're itching ears. They scratch them and they find somebody who will tell him it's okay to live that way to believe that truth to not believe that truth, God says, if you want to know the truth, what sound doctrine is, I'm going to tell you this right now. Don't just go to my website or our website at 922 and look at what we believe and accept it as truth. You need to be in the word to hear the word. I'm not making this up. Is what the Bible says. For some people, they don't like the Bible's doctrine and you know what they do. The lens secular, they look at it and go, that's outdated. God's an old fogey. It doesn't apply to me. Eternal Word of God. You can argue with me, we don't have to agree on it but I'm going to look at what God says about his word. And let it determine for me, what sound? Don't just take your Church's word for it, don't just believe your pastor is of sound Doctrine. I dig into it. And here's why. I get dirty. You know why its dirty? Now the individualistic nature of our country that we don't like everything good for us. Bad things are appealing to us. I want you to see this truth.
Watch your life and doctor and closely persevere in them because if you do if you persevere in them here's why you watch it closely Pastor, Tim leaders of the church. Any Christian you will save both yourself and your hearers It is of Eternal consequence to have sound Doctrine to have healthy Doctrine because it leads to eternal life.
C, sacred lenses. Biblical lenses. Ones. That look at God's word to let God set. What is right and wrong to determine our beliefs in all things spiritual how we live Secular lenses, do not get us. The place God wants us to use Sacred lenses. If you're taking notes, lead us to find sound Doctrine and sound Doctrine, and here's why you want. It will produce and lead to spiritual fruit. Like you know why Americans push back so much on Doctrine they call you beat. You've been indoctrinated. You've been brainwashed. Right. They'll say all these things because America is maybe of all societies the most individualistic Nation on Earth, individuals, and as a part of our DNA,
Thomas Jefferson. When he wrote the document Declaration of Independence to the lot of what he found it from Thomas Locke who was maybe the founder of individualism, like everyone has rights, everyone has the right of peace and liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It doesn't Define what that is. It lets you define what it is. And it's only grown over time. And you know what? Most of us push back on us older people, I need to see you. Younger people hear this. I am sorry. If your gen Z or younger, your gen none, whatever. We complain about you, you're all about. You, you make it all about you. You want your job to be about you? It's our fault. We cuddled you. We made it about you. We ran you to every last thing. Put you in every last program so I am sorry but tell me how has life when it's all about you? Are you anxious? Are you nervous? Are you concerned about the future? You don't know if you're gonna make it and I have enough money. Like that's our fault too. It's those secular lenses. Have not produced the spirits fruits of joy and hope and peace, that is found in Jesus Christ Alone. The answer for an anxious heart is the peace of God. Not a good job. Secular or sacred, your purpose in life. Can be overwhelming, unless you understand your purpose in life, is to know the love of God, and that you loves you. Like your identity is not what you do. It's what God did like getting this right? Is life-changing. Now, getting this, right, is eternity changing for you? And for me, because at the end of the day, sound Doctrine matters, because at the end of day at the center of all doctor and my friends is what the Apostle Paul told Timothy You have known the holy scriptures which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. You want to know I sound Doctrine matters because all doctrines. All roads doctrinally lead back to Jesus Christ, the way the truth and the life when it comes to sin and what it is when it comes to heaven and hell and what it is, when it comes to our life, in our identity, and who we are. Jesus Christ is at the Doctrine and sound doctrine, that leads to eternal life is found only in Jesus Christ, there's no other way.
That's why it matters.
And it's why I'm glad that our church is not perfect, we don't get every application, probably, right? But our church is built on sound doctrine, and grace alone, through faith alone, scripture long. That's why I pray. You'll join me in celebrating 38 young people standing up and just a few hours by the power of the spirit and Fell to confess their faith and their going to make statements, I believe in Jesus Christ as the way, the truth and the life. His word is the inerrant word of God. Those Jesus Roots have produced fruit, like, thank the Lord for the instruction and teaching that they have been able to learn and I thank God for that Doctrine. And then it's sound. Because my son was one of those who wrestled with the secular and the sacred. Like my son when he went away to college, after all those years of being indoctrinated, in our sound Doctrine, get the real world. We're all his friends, and believe different things. Some religious,
And so, he questioned. And you know what he didn't do? He didn't take his dad's word for it. He didn't go to my website, our website to prove it, he dug into the Bible. And he saw it.
And he understood the significance of sound Doctrine. Because at the end of the day, all roads lead to Jesus Christ. And without Jesus Christ, we don't end up on the road to heaven. So I pray for our church, I pray for you that, but in a world, there's so many things that are wrong. And while this word is dirty, sound Doctrine is so right. And I pray that you can appreciate it too, even though it's hard sometimes to hear.
