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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, 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 You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. 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.

The Bible is an awesome book. But there’s something that Jesus talks about that’s very interesting. And I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Luke in chapter 12, Luke chapter 12. But here in the book of Luke in chapter 12, it makes a statement up here in verse 13, and one of the companies said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. You know, I guess mom and daddy died and there’s an inheritance and he ought to divide it with me.

Well, evidently the firstborn in the family gets, you know, the goods. That’s why you always want to be the first one born in the family. You can’t determine that, can you? But you know, you have no idea what’s coming down the road and whenever you think about, you know, what does life consist of? What does it consist of? Well he says it’s not the abundance of the things that you possess. Well, if it’s not what I possess, then what does life consist of?

What determines your life? What are you living for? purpose of life. Here I am. I didn’t ask to be born. I didn’t ask to live and I don’t want to ask to die. But here I am. So what’s the purpose of my life? Why did he decide on me? What makes me different from you? I’m so glad I’m not you. I’m not talking about the Pharisee that looked down his nose and I’m glad I’m not you. I’m just glad I’m me.

I’m glad that I am who I am. Every person ought to be glad that they’re who they are because you’re not somebody else, you’re different, you’re unique. But why did God make you? And He says here in verse 14, He said to me, man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? But what does your life consist of? Isn’t it wonderful to be able to be alive? Then you just feel good this morning getting out of bed, if you could get out of bed.

Did you have to have help? But, aren’t you glad you can walk and see and hear and you’re still alive? And because you’ve never been on this day before. This is a new day, a new moment. And it’s never been lived by anybody before. This is the day that the Lord hath made. I will rejoice and be glad in Him. But, look what He says in verse 15. He says, He said unto them, Take heed and beware of covetousness.

Now what in the world is covetousness? That’s a big fancy word. Beware of covetousness. Anybody got a clue? Sheila, what do you think it is? Desire what somebody else has. All right. Anybody can elaborate on that anymore? That’s efficient for everybody. Desire what somebody else has. But anyway, it is desire of things that you don’t have, and it means that you’re not really content what you have because you always want more. And you think, well, I’ll be happy if I get this job.

And I’ll be happy if I get this money. I’ll be happy if I get this car. I’ll be happy if. And your happiness is always if, if, if, if. It depends on what I get. So if I was to get this, I’ll be happy. How many guys have made that statement, boy, if I could only win that little girl, I’ll be happy for the rest of my life? Okay, you did it. How are you doing? That’s because she’s sitting there.

Must be your anniversary or something. But if you hinge all of your happiness in life off of the things that you possess, you’re not going to be too happy in life. Because that’s not where it’s at. But it does give us a couple of illustrations to let us know. Because as we said before, the things of the world are hard to get, hard to keep in great sorrow when you lose them. Because you wrap yourself into those things. You work so hard to get something and then you can just lose it.

So learn to use the things that God provided for us, but don’t fall in love with these things. And I love my diesel car. I love my Mercedes. But I was listening to it this morning as I was coming to church and I thought, there’s a new sound. I’ve ever heard that sound before. Have you ever wondered whether or not is that sound worth fixing? Maybe if I let it go, it’ll just go away. So I took out my hearing aids and lo and behold, it went away.

Sometimes we don’t want to fix the problem, we just do away with, yeah, I don’t hear, I don’t hear. That’s why you’ll see over and over again in the scripture, especially the seven churches, is that he that hath an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit said unto the churches. Now that phrase is used in other places, he that hath an ear, let him hear, but it does say unto the churches because that’s yours in the book of Revelation.

But it gives us your brief story, and we’ll cover it briefly because of other things I want to say. In verse 16, and he spoke a parable unto them, saying, round of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. He thought within himself, saying, what shall I do? Because I have no room where to bestow my fruit. In the words, I have so much, I don’t know what I’m gonna do with all of it. Have you thought that way whenever you looked at your bank account, I got so much money, I don’t know what I’m gonna do with it all.

I know what I’m gonna do, I’m gonna give it to the college. Into what you said, I’m gonna give it to the radio ministry. I’m gonna give it to the church. I’m gonna give it to some missionary. I’m gonna give it, I’m gonna keep it. Did you know that God does not like stenginess? Ever seen somebody stengy? They just wouldn’t share if their life depended on it because they hoard. They’re afraid of losing something down the road. I’m gonna need this, I’m gonna need that.

Now, I’m glad there’s some things that I kept. But when I left up there in Georgia, I thought I had all these, the song material, things like that that we gathered over the years. I said, I’ll never need these again. I even had a little book binding machine that I used that I bound my stuff with. I said, I’ll never need that again. And so I’d come that into the trash. Bob Gilbert says, do we have one of those little book binding machines?

I said, well, I had one. like that that we’d gathered over the years. I said, I’ll never need these again. Just a few more, I get rid of something, I need it. And I almost got rid of a lot of the stuff that I have for the college. But I, for some reason, I just save stuff. And I’m so glad that some of the stuff that I kept, it makes going forward just a little bit easier. He says here in verse 17, and he thought within himself, I don’t have any place to put all my stuff.

And verse 18, and he said, this what I do, I will pull down my barns, build greater, there will I be still all my fruit and all my goods, my, my, my, my, my, and I will say to my soul, soul, you ever say to yourself, hello soul, heh, heh, himself, and he says, I’m gonna say to my soul, soul, vow have much goods laid up for many years. Now, buddy, there’s a retirement fund. I bet he didn’t have the IRS though.

But he says, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. for tomorrow we diet. In verse 20, but God said unto him, thou fool. Now why was he a fool? Because you see, you don’t have a clue how long you’re going to live. And then you work all those years and save up all of this so that you can leave it to somebody who probably doesn’t appreciate what you’ve done and you think, as he says in the book of Ecclesiastes, what did I labor for?

What was the value to give it to somebody who never labored? And yet Paul says that the parents are supposed to lay up for the kids, not the kids for the parents. But I think you ought to be nice to your kids because they might determine what nursing home they put you in. So he says here, this night thy soul shall be required of thee. Then whose shall those things be? Who are they gonna belong to? Which thou hath provided?

You’ve worked and you’ve slayed and you’ve saved And do you want what you have worked for to be wasted by somebody who doesn’t appreciate what you have? Or do you put it into something that’s going to be of value? But he was going to store his up and save it because he was going to retire and live off of it. Well, that’s nothing wrong with preparation. That was not his problem. problem was that he did not lay up treasure in heaven.

Because that’s the greatest thing that you can do. It’s a layup treasure in heaven. Look what he says. In verse 21, so is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God. You want to be rich, be rich toward God In other words, that’s why in Matthew chapter 6, lay up treasure in heaven where you can’t lose it. Because if you lay. you’re led up down here, can you lose it? You can lose everything. When you came into the world, how much did you have on?

Nothing, you were as naked as a J-bird. And when you leave this world, how much are you going to take from this world to wherever you’re going? Nothing. So all the things in between come and go. You came and you’re going to go. But you have something why you hear, but use it for the Lord. Whatever God gives to you, use it for the Lord. And so he says in verse 22, and he said unto his disciples, therefore, now the word therefore is because of what went before it.

So we told a little story, a parable, now he’s going to teach him something from it. What’s the point? What’s this? Jesus never worried, and Jesus never hurried, and Jesus never doubted. Now, isn’t that a description of you and me? We never worry, and we never hurry, and we never doubt. I don’t know if anybody in here could raise their hand. But Jesus was born, and Jesus died. And look at all the possessions that He had in between. He had a mansion on the hilltop, He had money in the bank, traveled extensively, everybody loved Him.

He didn’t have anything. Of the world’s possession, he had nothing, but was he rich toward his Father? He was rich in obedience. And God says in Hebrews chapter 1 that he hath appointed him heir of all things. The Father gave all things to the Son. We don’t know all that we’re going to get when we get to heaven. I don’t want it to be said that you had a lot here, but what did you have when you get to heaven?

Are you willing to invest in the things of God and to use your life for the Lord? Because see, God can give you things, but use what you have for the Lord. And God said, he’d bless. Now note it. He says in verse 22, therefore I say to you, take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, neither for the body, what you shall put on. Of course, you know you’ve got to put on something. But you have a body, you’ve got to provide for it, but understand it.

It uses the illustration. And it tells us not to worry because in verse 23 the life is more than food. It’s more than the clothes that we wear. But some people think that that’s all it is. I live to eat. Now you’re supposed to eat to live. But some people just live to eat. If you had a choice that you could go and sit down at a restaurant and have one little plate of some food, or would you do that to go to a restaurant where it’s a buffet line and you can go back as many times as you want and get all that you want of everything there.

Which one do you like the best? Now if you’re trying to learn discipline, you better settle on that one little bitty plate. Well the temptation is great. After you go to a buffet line and you have eight four or five plates, don’t you whenever it’s all over with a, oh I feel so guilty. I shouldn’t have done that. I shouldn’t have. I’ll not do that again until the next week and you’re right back again because you like to make and get as much as you can make it worth it.

It’s gonna be worth it. But if it’s sweet to the lip, it sticks to the hip. Now you know that. And if you don’t burn it, you wear it. So here in verse 24, remember, worrying in God’s eyes is needless. It’s not necessary because it doesn’t accomplish anything. I had a guy tell me one time, don’t tell me worrying doesn’t pay. 90% of what I worry about never happened. That’s how it didn’t happen because he worried about it. Oh well.

So in verse 24, consider the ravens that they neither sow nor reap, which neither have store houses, nor barns, and God feedeth them. You ought to underline those little words. God feedeth them. It’s almost like God’s saying, I will feed you. I will feed you. Therefore, don’t worry about the food, I will feed you. But there’s a key to all of this, and he hasn’t got to that yet. But he’s letting them see that life consists of something more than just the things that you possess.

You see, there’s something that God wants from you. God wants you to learn to trust Him. And if you trust Him, He says, I will give you all that you need. Not all you wants, but I’ll give you what you need, if you can learn how to trust Him. And so He says, seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. To do right by God, please God with your life. Because that’s what life consists of. Is your walk with God.

And then he says all these other things will be taken care of. So he says here in verse 24, they don’t have storehouses, but God feeds them. How much more are you better than the files? God says you’re, we’re so much more, you’re better than the files of the year, the animals, and you’re better. And so God cares about us. And we’re supposed to live and believe that. look there in verse 25. And you’ll notice that not only is worrying, it’s needless because you don’t need to do it.

And it’s useless because it doesn’t produce anything. Worrying does not produce, therefore it’s useless. And it’s hopeless. You see there in verse 25, and which of you with taking thought can add to his statue one cubit? Did you know that that’s why sometimes in life in regards to how hard you try something just seems totally hopeless and you can’t change the situation. So you talk to the Lord who is able to change the situations. Who can do things you can’t do, but that’s what God wants more than anything else is you to feel so in life so hopeless and so helpless that you have to trust Him.

But if you don’t get there, you’re just rolling your misery and you never learn there’s more than life than the things that you possess. And God will do so much more for you. So verse 26, he said, if ye then be not able to do that which is least why take ye thought for the rest? Why, in other words, not just about, but why worry about it? And you’ll see that over in the book of Philippians in chapter 4 where he talks about casting your cares upon the Lord and not worrying about things and bringing everything to God in prayer, making your supplications known unto the Lord.

And then he says, in the God of peace will be with you and think upon these things because he said, if you don’t think right, you’re going to worry. And the worry is what causes you, that’s why you’re afraid. And you live in fear because you don’t see how God’s going to do something or how is it going to come through? Or if he will. And God wants something more from you, and that’s your faith, your trust, your walk with him, that I can’t lose the Lord.

Now I can maybe lose my job, I can lose my health, I can lose my wife, I can lose my kids, I can lose everything. But what’s the most important thing in this life is being the Lord. And I can’t lose him. He said he had never leave me and never forsake me. Now, if you had a choice of a million dollars of the Lord’s presence, which would you want? Well, that’s a hard one. That’s really a hard one.

Just think what you could do with that million dollars. Well, you’d probably waste it. Do things wrong with it. Because if you’re not right with the Lord, you’re going to blow it. And then whenever you leave this world and you get to heaven And you’ve got to look at the Lord and He says, you left me for a million dollars. You forsook me for a million dollars. Now, here’s the mansion I have for you and you’ll notice this whole place up here is paved with gold.

I didn’t need your million dollars. And this place here, we got gates of pearls and walls of jasper. I mean, we got eternal comfort and bliss and a million dollars can’t buy this. And look what you’ll give up for what God had for you. See, going to heaven yet, that’s free, but look at the cost. And what you have when you get to heaven, there’s a price to pay for God’s eternal rewards. It’d be wonderful if everybody could think right so that they would live right.

So he makes a statement here. In verse 27, consider the lilies how they grow. They tall, not they spin, not, And yet I send to you that Solomon in all of his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Don’t we just marvel over the beauty of flowers? One time when I was young, I had gotten this fight with this guy in Athens, Georgia. And anyway, in the midst of the little battle, I got my nose broke. It was over here on this side of my face.

It had been moved over here. Called a nose transplant. Anyway, they tried to straighten it, but they never got it straight, and it was all broke up in there. So I couldn’t breathe them. I know it hardly for 38 years. Finally went to the VA, and they said, we’ll fix that for you. So they went in there, and they had to re-break all the bones. They put me to sleep. And they re-broke it all and tried to fix it right.

And it’s never as perdy as it was when I was 17. But it’s still my nose. my nose nose. So we came home from the hospital and I was walking up toward the Parson there in Athens and there was this one tree that was setting there and I walked by it and I bet he’s something smells great. She says Yankee it’s the tree. I’d walk past that tree probably five years never smelt the flower on that It was some kind of a bush, and I smelt it, and it was so good.

And she says, it’s been there all the time. It’s just to say, I was not capable of smelling it because I couldn’t breathe through my nose. But whatever they did, it really helped. And I was able to enjoy something. Because see, you can become immune to some things in life, and you don’t appreciate some of the things. God says, He made the flowers, but flowers are no good, you can’t see them. And sometimes they’ll have beautiful smell, but then you don’t smell, you can’t smell them.

Well the Bible talks about the lost man. He cannot discern spiritual things because He doesn’t have the Holy Spirit within him. He’s not capable. But see once you trust Christ in saving the Holy Spirit and dwells Him, you’re capable now of things you were not capable of before and you want to become sensitive to the things that are better, not just good, things that are the best that God has for you. So he says in verse 28, because you see, if you don’t have your perception right, you’re not going to think right and you’re not going to live right and therefore you’re going to worrying.

So, worrying is faithless. It means you without the faith that you need. That’s why he makes a statement, oh, you have little faith. It’s because you’re faithless. You don’t have your confidence in what God says. So he says in verse 28, still then God so closed the grass which is today in the field and tomorrow is cast into the heaven. How much more will He clothed you, oh, you have little faith. See, worrying destroys faith. Worrying is the result of not having faith in what God says.

And that’s what causes us. And sometimes we think whenever we were young, we’d go into all these problems. Boy, I’ll be glad when I get older and then I’ll have everything settled. So lo and behold, we lived to be 50 and 60 and 70 years old. Now, isn’t it wonderful that when you get that age, you don’t have any more problems. Is that what you think? Well, if you don’t want to get old, you’ll have to die early. But if you do live, you have problems when you get old, just like you have problems when you’re young.

And you need faith all the way through your life in trusting Lord, and He said, He will walk with you. He’ll walk with you. Only until you’re 40 years old. Oh, maybe when you get 50. Even David made the statement, he says, don’t forsake me. It’s just because I have gray hair now, and I’m old. He says, in the last part of his life, he said, I’ve never seen the righteous forsaken or his seed-bagging bread. Look what he says here.

In verse 29, He says that it is useless because of a doubtful mind and seek not what you shall eat or what you shall drink, neither be of a doubtful mind, doubting, doubting. Did you know that when you read the book of James, let’s just hold your place right here just very quickly. I just want to show you this real quick because it’s so important. You have to learn how to think the right way. But James in chapter one.

James chapter one. And you’ll notice there in chapter 1, in verse 5, if any man lack wisdom, how do you know you lack wisdom? Is it God will bring you a problem or allow you to have a problem that you can’t solve? That’s how you know you’re not smart enough that you’re lacking wisdom. I don’t know what to do. So he says, let him ask of God. Now doesn’t that make sense? that give it to all men, all men, this is a promise.

And I pray if not, it means he won’t chide you, mock you, make fun of you. And it shall be given unto him, but let him ask in faith, nothing wavering, not doubting him. For he that waverth is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed, it means that he is driven and he’s unsettled. So in verse 7, but let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. But you can ask.

But you ask because all your questions and all your doubts and you don’t trust the Lord, you don’t believe him. Yes, they do, no, I don’t. Yes, I do, no, I don’t. Back and forth and so forth. God says, don’t let that man think he’s gonna get anything. And you wanna go, God doesn’t answer my prayer. Oh, yeah, you did. You didn’t read the book. So there’s things that God says He wants you to believe Him, to trust Him, to walk with Him.

And so back there in the book of Luke, he says there in verse 30, for all these things do the nations of the world seek after and your Father knoweth that you have need of these things. But you have not because you asked not. So your Lord knows what you have need of, then verse 31, But rather, seek ye the kingdom of God.” No, when Matthew taught about seek the kingdom of God first. And all these things shall be added unto you.

They’ll be added. Down in verse 34, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. In other words, what you really love, that’s where your heart is. You see, if all of your love is in your house or in your car or in your this or that and the other, Well, that’s what you think about, because that’s what’s valuable to you. That’s what’s precious to you.

How precious is the Lord? You know that one little song that we sing, he’s more beautiful and he’s precious than gold and silver and so on? Leah, that little chorus that is in that thing is a good little thing. Lord, you are more costly than gold, more precious and so on. It’s a good little bird, but that’s what he’s supposed to be to you. Well, then God’s going to find out, do you love something more than Him? Do you love life more than the Lord?

My life belongs to the Lord. He gave it to me. And realize the one that can sustain your life, the one that gave you life, is the one that you don’t want to offend. Let’s pray, shall we? Father, we thank you so much for your blessing. Thank you for your words, to your givenness. We just pray, Lord, that each one would be consistently encouraged to do that, which is right, to walk with you in the trust. Give us a good service to following Christ’s name.

Due to the generous offer of an anonymous Colorado supporter of Bibleline, we want to make you an offer you cannot refuse. He has purchased 68 copies of the book, The Gospel Driven Man by Dr. Ralph Yankee-Arnold to be given to anyone who donates any amount as they thank you for helping to keep Bibleline on this station. He writes, What would be the most important item one could receive that would be appreciated, which would answer many questions, which would be easy to read, understandable, and uses God’s word as the source.

What came to mind was your book, The Gospel Driven Man. This book has helped me and my wife considerably. We have given the book out as gifts before and continue to do so. All the basic doctrines you hear me teach on the radio is found in this book. One book per donor, so remember, mail your gift up any amount today, and we will send you your copy of the Gospel-Driven Man. Be sure to include your mailing address. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline.

If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound. And 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? Just keep looking up.