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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made through the Bible-lined website at calvaryoftampa.org. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Look what else he says here. In the next verse, 1 Corinthians chapter two, verse nine, It says, but as it is written, I have not seen, you’re half not heard, neither has entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him. Now, I wrote down in John chapter 14, in verse 21 where he says, if you love me, if you love me, serve me. And then it makes a statement in chapter 14 in verse 23.

The other one is in verse 21, but in verse 23, He says, and he that loveth me, my father will manifest himself to him. So if you really want to know the Lord, love him, serve him, and God will reveal himself more to you than someone who doesn’t love him. So when he simply says, if any man served me, him will my father honor. But God wants you to serve him because you love him. And if you love him, he makes a statement here, that God has prepared for them that love him.

And if you love him, you serve him. So those who serve him, they haven’t got a clue what God’s going to do for them and give to them. You cannot imagine. Look at the next point, the victor’s crown. Number one, 1 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 25. there in verse 25 where it says, and every man that strived for the mastery. Now the word strive, that’s the way in which you work. You’re striving for something. It’s not something that you just haphazardly do.

It’s on purpose. It’s with intensity. It’s with ferberancy. But you’re striving towards something, giving it all that you have, striving. it says, for the Master, in other words, to be the best, to do all you can for the Lord, why you can. And it links down to the word incorruptible, which stands for the incorruptible crown. You do this this way. And look what I’m going to give to you. Look at the whole verse, and every man that strive every man that strive for the mastery is tempered or shelf-controlled and all things.

Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible crown. There were crowns not added, but it is understood to be incentenced. So there is a link between the striding and the incorruptible crown. See down here you make accomplished things and people give you awards and and so forth, but they fade away. They’re not going to be worth much. Their value is only in the minds of the people who remember what you did. When nobody remembers it, it has no value to it.

You think about it. There’s no value. Look at a ribbon where I got this roar. Look at my trophy. But if nobody knows even what it’s for, what value was it? Or whenever it’s junk and I’ve seen them in garage sales yard sales All these trophies and things like that. I thought I’m gonna go out and buy me a whole bunch of Put on there, you know what I wanted it for. I Mean that’s how they got there somebody bought it gave it to him and that was in somebody’s judgment that he was deserving of it I can’t help it.

Nobody appreciates me like they should have I just came home Look at the next verse. Revelation 4 and verse 4 and round about the throne were four and twenty seats. And upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothing white raiment, and they had on their heads, and you ought to underline this word crowns. Crowns of gold. That means that they were earned. The Bible talks about five basic crowns and you earn those because of what you do.

A martyr’s crown, a soul, a soul, a soul. and so forth. And these are various crowns that you can have. So these are things that you have to earn. They’re the result of what you’ve done for the Lord. You and I can’t see yet the value. Only thing we have is God’s Word that it will be worth the. Remember I said Sunday night, it will be worth it all. So it will be. Look at the next verse. In verse 10 of chapter 4 of Revelation in verse 10 and 11, it says, the 4 and 20 elders fall down before Him that sat on the throne and worship Him that liveth forever and ever and cast and you ought to line these two words.

They’re crowns. See, you have to have them before you can cast them. They are the result of your faithful serving to the Lord. Now always keep in mind, rewards are earned. Salvation is free. Getting to heaven is the gift of God. It’s not a reward. I’ve heard people say, well, he’s gone to his reward. Well, that all all depends. If you trust Christ as your Savior, you get to go to heaven. That’s by grace and grace alone. And what is it that keeps a man from just doing whatever he wants to do in life without any restraint?

You see, knowing these truths is supposed to be the restraint that you need upon your life. That’s why you study doctrine, you study the word of God. And when you know these things, it causes you to think about the results of your decision. Because a lot of times we get down and discourage and we think of just stopping and quitting and letting loose and letting go and just doing whatever I wanna do and just maybe falling to any sin you want.

Well, what’s to keep a Christian from doing that? Because you know that it’s true. After you trust Christ as your Savior and you have eternal life, you can live any way you want and still go to heaven when you die. That’s just the truth. Don’t ever apologize for that. To soften that in any way is not to believe truly in grace. If it is by grace, then it is by grace. And not one word can enter into the picture.

So what’s to keep a Christian from living in sin? Truth. Teach doctrine, proper doctrine. That’s why it’s so important to teach people what the truth is, so that there’s a reason why you should live godly. But when you get right down to it, isn’t it true, saved or lost? Everybody lives the way they want to. Everybody lives the way they want to. Don’t read in your hick or you want to. If you don’t want to go, you won’t. Everybody does what they want to do.

Don’t they commit adultery because they wanted to? Don’t they commit murder because they wanted to? You see, even when you want to live God, you want to. Everybody does what they want to. But God says, now, I want to give you something that can help your discernment between right and wrong to make right decisions. Though God will never cast you out and never lose you, you can’t go to hell. Your heavenly Father says He will chase you and discipline you.

Maybe take you home before your time. But He says, if you will serve me, I’m going to make it work your while. All you got is my word on it. Remember in the Old Testament, all they had was God’s word that the Messiah one day would come and make a payment for the sins of the world. And they believed it because even though it was future, they trusted in Jehovah. So we’re looking back to the payment that Christ made.

Now we’re looking forward to His return. And He says, when I come, I’m bringing my reward with me. So He’s going to give it to every one of us. Look there at verse 11, of how art worthy, O Lord, in your underlying needs to receive, glory and honor and power. Now if the Lord is worthy to receive those things by these that are there at that time, isn’t He worthy to receive the praise, honor and glory now? If he can receive it, can’t he receive that now?

Can’t we give to the Lord to pray? Let’s do the Lord. Whenever God’s for you, you ought to praise the Lord and thank the Lord and be good and honor the Lord. Brag on the Lord. I don’t think he would mind. He might even enjoy it. But did God want? God says, wants everything that hath breath. Praise ye the Lord. Look at number two, positions of authority. The day will come when God’s going to give you something. I don’t understand all of it.

I’m not able to understand it all. But here in Matthew chapter 25 verse 21, where it makes the statement that whenever he comes back, Power in great glory, and set up his kingdom upon the year. He says in verse 21, his Lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Thou have been faithful over a few things. The word faithful. And I will make thee ruler. I will make thee ruler. You see, that’s the link that goes back to thou has been faithful.

Because you did this, you’re going to get this. So whenever you get to heaven and you don’t get what you thought you should have gotten, you should have done more for the Lord while you could have. Would it be better to serve the Lord now with all that we have because we know that when that time comes, we’re going to be glad we did. Or do you want to wait until you get there and then have all the regrets?

Aren’t you glad you still have some time left to straighten up? You say, I don’t know if I want to live longer or not. I might mess up. I had a man tell me one time he says, I just pray to the Lord that if God knows I’m going to mess up my life, I just pray He’ll take me home. Isn’t that a good prayer? Lord, if you know I’m going to mess up my life, I want you to take me home first.

I know quite a few people have said that and God didn’t and they messed up, bad. And God didn’t take him home. God let him live for years. So I don’t think that’s a good prayer, and God probably won’t honor it. God may just let you live your ungodly life, set you on a shelf and never use you, and let the years just pine away, and have the misery of knowing that, you know, I could have done something. If I have only, if I don’t only, we’re going to start a club called if I are only club.

For all those people that were, if I’d have only, well, you’re not in heaven yet, so you don’t have to be part of that. If I’d have only, you can just go ahead and do it, Club. And serve the Lord now with what you have. Look at that last part of that verse. that word, thou hast been faithful over and get to few things. As you look at this whole life of ours, God calls it you a light affliction and there’s just a few things in life that God gives to you.

When you compare it to eternity, you realize how few opportunities it seems like we have and yet they come disguised. You know all of your God-given opportunities come disguised as work most of the times. And all the problems, the heartache, trials, all those things are nothing more than opportunities for you to be found faithful through whatever it is so that you don’t say or do something against God that you shouldn’t so that you know God will reward you for it.

So while you’re in this life, you are going to suffer for the Lord. I’ve listened to people and they’re telling me sometimes, I just don’t know how I’m going to get through this. And they’re ready to break down. I’m just, I just don’t, I don’t have any strength. I don’t have any joy. I just can’t go on. I’m not happy. And buddy, they’re at the bottom of the barrel. We have a, I had a radio station out in Colorado, not in Pueblo, my brother and I.

And we had a person that would come on and, you know, they had their little time slot. It wasn’t long, maybe 15 minutes. And as the years roll by. You get to listen to a certain person and they begin to make an impact upon you. This individual was a quadriplegic. She didn’t have use of her arms or legs. And she was always on our radio uplifted, bright, charming, positive, such a blessing. Somebody asked her, says, you know, I wish that I had your smile and your positive outlook.

And she just went on bragging to the school and the girl told her, says, look, I can’t use my arms or my legs. Every day I have to depend on somebody to come and give me a bath, comb my hair, brush my teeth, put my clothes on me, set me in my wheelchair, roll me into the other rooms, take me everywhere I go every day. And when I wake up in the morning, a lot of days, most days, she says I wake up with tears.

I don’t even want to live that day. I am so down and so discouraged. What I consider what other people can do and I can’t. I’ll help this I am. She says, I tell the Lord I just don’t have the strength to go on. I’m not sure if I want to. I’m discouraged, I’m depressed. I don’t have any smiles to give. And she says, I talked to the Lord and I said, Can I borrow yours? Can I borrow your smile today?

She told the lady, she says, this isn’t my smile, it’s God’s. My joy is not mine, it’s God’s. I borrowed it from Him. And my strength to go on and face this day, I borrowed that from the Lord too. I don’t have anything on my own. I’m not worthy of anything. When you stop and think, have you ever planted a garden and couldn’t find a rake or a hoe from your barred one? Or are you gonna hang a pitcher and you need a hammer and you have to maybe borrow a hammer from a neighbor?

Have you ever considered that when sometimes youPercent you don’t have $Residents on you, you might bark fromFlorrieving. I’ll pay you back, I’ll pay you back. You know the thing about borrowing a smile from God joy from the Lord. You don’t have to pay them back. He’s got plenty left over. So when you need a smile, just borrow one from the Lord. When you need some strength to face that day, just borrow some from the Lord. He has all the strength you need.

Just use his. And you You be surprised what you can do with his joy and with his smile. They’ll lift you right up and you give to people what God gave to you. But this is what you’re talking about in serving the Lord. Aren’t you glad as we said here, we’re not quadrupleed, do you, can we? We got use of our arms and our legs. Most of us can still walk around and talk and sing and take a bath and eat and comb our our hair, wash our face and close ourselves.

We can do all those things. What do we have to complain about? And yet you’d be surprised how many Christians are down in the bottom of the garbage can. And always whining and pining and moaning and groaning. Just borrow some things from the Lord. That’s what God’s told me. He says, my strength, my joy, my peace, my happiness. And you’d be surprised the difference it can make in your life if you just learn to look to the Lord Look what he says there in Timothy in chapter 2 he says if we suffer We shall also reign see the the link suffer rain There’s a link between the two see the word if cuz you don’t have to nobody can make you There’s a choice that you can decide for yourself.

Nobody can make you trust the Lord. Nobody can make you serve the Lord. There’s a personal choice. But it reveals the wisdom that you have. To me, a man would have to be a fool. If he knows Christ and won’t serve him. There goes a whole because the server Lord is the most important thing in all world. Now look there he says in number three, an eternal inheritance. Galatians 4-7 says, poor for the heart, no more age serving but a son and if a son than an heir, you ought to underline the word heir.

This is who you are. You have an eternal inheritance. See by trusting Christ as your Savior, God becomes your father. So you inherit what your father has. So your heirs of God. But it says your joint heirs with Christ. You see, one is by birth and the other one is by service. And when we are joint heirs with Christ is because we served with Christ. We suffered with Christ. So therefore we’ll reign with Christ. So joint heirs is because of service.

that’s because of my birth. So I’ve got a great inheritance. And when you trust in Christ as yourpires, you are saved from something too, and inheritance is convinc646able and undefined, that faith if not away reserved in heaven for you. That was because you got saved. So you became a child of God. You get to go to heaven. You get to live in the Holy City. But there’s so much more that we don’t fully understand. more that we don’t fully understand.

And so he says, there in Matthew, in chapter five, and verse five, blessed are the meat, for they shall inherit the earth. We’re going to get it. In Luke 22, 28 to 30, it says, ye are they which have, and you ought to underline those three words,727 with me. He says, ye are they which have continued with me in my temptation, And I appoint a kingdom to you. Now I don’t know if he’s just talking about the kingdom upon the earth or after that when it says the increase of his kingdom, there will be no end.

How many kingdoms will there be? I don’t know. But God says, if you’ll serve me now, you’ll rule and reign with Christ. You see, This is just the dressing room to get ready for eternity. We’re just preparing to meet God. And in verse 29, and I appointed you a kingdom as my Father hath appointed unto me. Sounds pretty good to me. Look at the next page. At the top of the pager where it talks a bit, in chapter eight, verse 16 and 17, about the Holy Spirit, the Spirit itself bear witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.

And the way he, his spirit bears witness with our spirit is through the Word of God. The Word of God tells us we know it and we believe it and we accept it. And if children then heirs, heirs of God by birth, join heirs by service with Christ. And there’s the Word if, if so be that we suffer with Him we shall be also glorified together. But there’s something more for those that suffer for the Lord. In the words, you may give up all of your plans and dreams here, your desires and so forth for the cause of Christ.

You may give up money for the cause of Christ. You may give up time for the cause of Christ. There isn’t anything you can give to the Lord or sacrifice for the Lord that He won’t pay you how much more in the dance. You can’t compare it to Him. will be worked at all. Look at Colossians in chapter 3 there in your notes. Verse 23 says, and whatsoever you ought to underline that whatsoever, whatsoever you do. Do it hardly as unto the Lord and not unto men.

When you go to work tomorrow, you look at it this way. You’re not going to work for that boss man. You’re going to work for God tomorrow. And you do your work like you was working for God. You want to give it all you’ve got. You want to be honest. You want to be fair. You want to be just. You do all the things you’re supposed to. Don’t you ever cheat on your job. Lie on your job. Do things you should not do on your job.

You always do right. You always honor God. You’re to do whatever you do as unto God. When that woman is cleaning that house, you ought to clean that house as though she’s working for the Lord. God’s house. Everything that you have belongs to God. And always remember. Look down there in 1 Peter. 1 Peter chapter 3 and verse 8 and 9 says, Finally, be you all of one mind, having compassion, one of another. Love his brethren, be pitiful, be courteous, not rendering evil for evil or railing for railing, but contrary to all of those things, blessing.

Knowing that that ye are there unto call, and you ought to underline, that ye should inherit a blessing. Now you don’t know when or how, but you got God’s Word on it. And all of this is upon the premise that God is righteous. Remember we read that verse the other night in the book of Hebrews in chapter 6. God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love. It would be a sin for God to overlook what you did or to forget about what you did.

He can’t forget. It would be a sin. God is righteous. So anyway, as you read these things that are supposed to help encourage you to be found faithful to the servant of the Lord, listen, nobody can solve all of your problems. They’re not meant to. You’re not meant to solve all of your problems. You’re just meant to go through your problems, to endure your problems, letting God walk you through these learning experiences, because you don’t know how long a problem is going to last.

Some problems don’t last long, and in other ones seem like you’ll never get out of it. I used to wonder, sometimes it seemed like it was a long dark tunnel. And finally, lo and behold, I saw light at the end of the tunnel. And as I got closer, it was as guerrilla with a flashlight. Yeah, he went them all. But in Acts chapter 20, look there in verse 32, And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to, and here’s three little words you ought to underline, build you up.

See, it’s one thing to be saved to have eternal life, another thing to be strong, to be built up. And then He makes a statement to give you, go and align those three words, build you up and to give you something. You’d be surprised how many times the scriptures talked about receiving something from God. And we’re not talking about just about salvation. Salvation is only the beginning of wonderful things. I did that 51 years ago. I trusted Christ as my Savior.

They gave me eternal life. Well, that gets me to heaven, but there’s so much more. And I want that much more. I want it. Look at the next statement, treasures. The loot cell that you have, give on, provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens. Provide yourselves bags which wax not old. In the Old Testament it talks about putting your wages into a bag that has holes in it. Now what does that mean? You can work and you get your money and you put it into a bag and you lose it all.

Do you know there’s people of the day that they work and work and work and as time goes on they have nothing to show for it. There’s not discouraging just a pad. Have you ever tried to save something? I saved my money one time for a whole year. And then I blew it on an ice cream cone. Sometimes you just don’t have much to save. But there is a thing in the God’s Word that talks about laying up treasure in heaven where you can’t lose that.

We’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida, with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you were blessed by today’s message. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, you can reach Bible Line and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing toll free 1-800-576-3771. That’s 1-800-576-3771. If you wish to hear today’s program again or would like to download a free MP3 of today’s or any previous Bibleline program, go to BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the spinning globe in the upper right corner of our homepage.

If you’re in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10.30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by going to our church website, calvaryoftampa.org. Thanks for joining us on Bible Live. And now we’re closing thoughts from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound. We will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon and just keep looking up.