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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 first part of this two-part message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Alrighty, let’s take our Bibles See what God’s word has to say. The clarity of the gospel will help you to understand an awful lot of Scripture. If you get fuzzy on the gospel, you just amazing how some of those hard scriptures are so difficult to explain. But if you use the clear gospel that no works can ever enter into it, no way possible, Then you know the scriptures that seems to say you got to do some good works. Well, maybe it means something else.

Maybe there’s something else to it. Another way of explaining it. And I’ll have to be honest with you, studying the book of Matthew used to really, well, throw me a curve. I didn’t get all the answers I wanted at Bible College. And now I’m thrown into the situation where I’ve got to preach. I don’t know how many times I was speaking 21 to 23 times a week with the college classes and the church, Christian school, and ranch, bus ministry, Sunday school, that’s a lot of hours a week.

Some of the college kids are taking, you know, 16 to 18 hours a week. I was speaking 21 to 23 hours a week. So there’s a lot of preparation and I really had to dig and study and so every night late. It seemed like every night late. I had to always study. And when you’re 26, 27, 28 years old, starting a journey, you don’t have a lot of wealth of knowledge to come in. You went through college and you put the notes of the teacher into the notes of the students and sometimes they never get in the mind of either one.

So now you’ve got to try to remember, try to draw upon it and then use some of that enlightenment that you received, trying to understand some of the scriptures and sometimes you were just in one step ahead of everybody else. I go into ranch, sometimes nothing. What am I going to speak on tonight? And I wouldn’t make up my mind sometimes. I sat down on my little stool and then when I didn’t know anybody got a question and do what I could.

Pray for me. I didn’t tell them to do that though but I had fun. And sometimes I’d be sitting upon the platform, getting ready to preach a sermon. No study all week, and then I look, and I think, nah, that’s the wrong one. I don’t need that one. So then I think of something else, and then I prepare it as I go. And I find out sometimes the people, they don’t even know you did that. So you, sometimes a hit and miss.

I think God overlooked some of our faults and what we do, and we don’t always give every message, you know, all the attention that it needs, but we do sometimes the best that we can. I want you to take your Bible and turn to the book of Matthew chapter seven. Matthew chapter seven, I do remember at one time in my life, I don’t remember how old I was, I could’ve been 10, 11, 12, but somebody got me to go to this Pentecostal church.

And so I went a few times and I remember them talking about the wise man and the foolish man. The wise man built his house upon a rock. Foolish man built his house upon the sand. And we used to do this. Anybody ever do that? The wise man built his house upon a rock. The wise man built his house upon a rock. Why has been built this house up on a rock? And the rain came tumbling down. The rains came down and the floods came up.

The rains came down and the floods came up. The rains came down and the floods came up. And the house on the rock stood firm. The foolish men built his house upon the sand. The foolish men built his house upon the sand. And the rains came tumbling down. The rains came down and the floods came up. The rains came down and the floods came up. The rains came down and the floods came up. The rains came down and the floods came up.

And the house on the sand went, BASH! She always did that. Now as a little kid, I remember that. I had no clue what no world are they talking about. And I really didn’t get it until years later. That’s why I’d done Gone to Bible School. Cause even when I was in Bible School, nobody explained that to me, but I did find it in the Bible. Cause we didn’t get a chance to study every book as thoroughly as I would like.

But in the book of Matthew, it does make this statement. verse 24, verse 24, therefore whosoever hearth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man which built his house upon a rock. And the range descended, the floods came and the winds blew and beat upon that house and it fell not for us founded upon a rock. Everyone that hearth these sayings of mine and doeth them not shall be likened into a foolish man which built his house upon a sand.

And the range descended into the winds, floods came and the winds blew and beat upon that house and it fell and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass when Jesus had ended these sins the people were astonished at His doctrine. Well I was too. What did you say? What do you mean? And I mean most people don’t even have a house and you’re gonna build a house. Well if you look at verse 24 when He says therefore it must be written because of what went before it.

But right before this, he’s talking to them about the false teacher and a false message. And many that are on the road to destruction, many will say unto him in that day, Lord, Lord, now look at this in verse 21, not everyone that said to me, Lord, Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth the will of my father, which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?

And thy name cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works? Well, if it was good works, is what you need to get to heaven, well, they should have had it made. The God done many wonderful works, but evidently that wasn’t the requirement. And then he will, I profess unto them, I never knew you, depart from me, ye that work iniquity. So the thing about the wise men and the foolish men building this house is based upon what, before this.

There’s people who are not listening to the truth. They’re listening to a wolf that’s got a wrong message. And a false teacher is revealed by his false message. So by their fruit, you shall know them. And so many people take that phrase and are always applied to the Christian. I’ve got to see your fruit. Got to see your fruit. Well, in context, it’s talking about false prophets. But anyway, when you read this, it’s not so much as a, it’s an illustration, but it’s built upon a principle in God’s Word about, okay, how do you get into heaven?

Or if they want to talk about getting to the kingdom of heaven? But whatever it is, I was talking to J.W. one time and he was talking about how that, I don’t want to go to heaven, I just want to get into the kingdom. And I says, well, he said, and you got to do worse to get into the kingdom. I said, you don’t have to doing good works. He said, yeah, you didn’t get into the king, you got to him.

I saw all it says in chapter 5, it makes a statement about that unless your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees, you shall in no wise enter to the kingdom of heaven. I said, so unless your righteousness exceeds theirs, you still ain’t going. And I said, I doubt if you’re as good as they are. But anyway, we got into a good argument. I didn’t win him. But then back in those days, I was trying my best to keep them from winning me, because they was after me as much as I was after them.

Now, I want you to remember some of these things we just looked at. Not not who’s there? Lord and Lord. And have we not? And so we’re talking about those who have built upon the sand. And then he talked about those who will listen to what he says and built upon a rock. Now we know that Jesus is the rock and he’s the foundation. And once you trust Christ as Savior, you’re on the rock. Now you may tremble on the rock, but the rock doesn’t tremble under you.

And so you have been given the free gift of everlasting life, and so that’s been taken care of. Now take your Bible and go all the way over to book of Matthew chapter 25, Matthew chapter 25. And you have two groups of people here. two groups of people and it usually talks about the the 10 virgins. Five or wise and five or what? Foolish. Well if they’re wise… Then maybe we were talking about the same place of getting into.

See there in verse one when he makes the statement, then shall the kingdom of heaven. So the kingdom of heaven is the king going to set up a kingdom and to get into the kingdom, this is what you got to do. This is the thousand year reign upon the earth. Christ came to set up his kingdom. The king, kingdom post bone, but he uses a simple illustration. And the whole purpose of the 10 virgins is really you don’t try to make everything in it mean something.

Generally a parable has a main point. What’s the point? Well there is a point all of this. And the point is about being ready. And if you will you look there in verse 44 of Matthew 24 where it says in verse 44, therefore be ye also ready for in such an hour as you think not the son of man cometh. The son of man is cunning. Now we don’t refer to that for the church age, but this is talking about the kingdom and the son of man had to be born of a virgin.

He has to be of the line of Abraham and David and so forth and have the right to claim the throne of Israel. So he does, but he’s coming back and he says, be you ready, be you ready. And so the point is in verse 10 of chapter 25, and while they went to by the bridegroom came and they that were ready, those were ready. Not everybody was ready. The ones that were ready with those that were five wise and those foolish ones weren’t ready.

Now when you go back to chapter 7 when he talks about we did this, we did this, we did this, we did this, but they still weren’t ready to die because if they hadn’t trusted Christ of Savior they weren’t ready. Some people are not ready to die. Let me ask you this, are you right now? Are you ready to die? Are you prepared to die. So you’re supposed to be able to say, yes, I’m ready to die. I am prepared to meet God.

But we don’t get prepared by our good worship because did you or did you not accept Jesus Christ as your Savior? So as you read down through here, five wise, five foolish. At one time it says, in verse 7, they all those those verses rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, give us of your oil for our lamps are gone. I saw they did have lamps, they did have oil and they did have burn.

But when the time came, they were not ready. But look what he says down here in verse 10. The last part of verse 10 says, the door was shut. The door was shut. Afterwards came unto the other virgins, also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. This is similar to what you have back there in chapter 7. When they said Lord, Lord, have we not, have we not, have we not? No, they weren’t ready, and they didn’t have.

So he says here in verse 12, but he answered and said, Verily, I send you, I know you not. Isn’t that what he said back there? I don’t know you. I never knew you. Depart from me ye that work iniquity. See, they weren’t ready because they had not trusted in the Lord. And the other ones do. So you have a good illustration that helps you to understand what he’s talking about way back there in chapter 7. And the illustration about the foolish man building upon the sand, that’s trusting in your works.

And a wise man, Well, trust what Christ did. That’s a wise man. That’s the only way you can be ready. But the clarity of the gospel will help you to stay safer. Now, you may have somebody that can teach you a hundred different ways and tell you all kind of the spiritual truths and draw out so much more. But when you get it all bowled down, salvation is still always by grace. It is not by your works. And a man is wise if he’s ready.

He’s unwise if he’s not ready. So I don’t try to get more complicated and I don’t need all the Hebrew and the Greek to try to understand. I just read and read and read and read and read. But it’s good that if you know more, you might be able to come out to explaining it a little bit better or a little bit deeper. But I guess overall for 56 years I’ve been a little on the shallow side. That’s okay.

But more people can understand what I’m saying too. Because I’ve got to really study it good to be clear. Now, note what else. When you read in chapter 25, And verse 31, there’s an interesting portion of scripture that’s mentioned here that, well, kind of blow your mind. Because you see, in verse 31 it says, when the Son of Man shall come in His glory, see the Son of Man, this is talking about when Jesus Christ comes in power and great glory.

And most of these scriptures you’ll notice always says, and the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto this, so the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto this. But you’re not talking about the church age, just talking about this kingdom of heaven. The time of Christ’s rule upon the earth. But notice, he says in verse 1, a 31, when the son of man shall come in his glory and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory.

Now, the truth about the rapture has not yet been given. So we know these scriptures, not talking about the rapture, this is talking about at the end of the tribulation period. When he comes back, power and great glory, everybody sees him and there’s the Balavarna getting, then he’s going to set up his kingdom upon the earth. And then he sets up the judgment of the nations. Now he uses a simple illustration between the sheep and the goats. The sheep are on the right hand and the goats are on the left.

That’s why even Republicans are on the right and the Democrats are on the left. just follows through like that. But now the sheep are those that are believers and the goats are those that are not believers. So you have the saints and the inks, the haves and the havenots. So he says in verse 32, and before him shall be gathered all nations, these are the ones that are still existing after the battle of Armageddon before the kingdom starts upon the earth.

and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divided his sheep from the goats. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, goats on the left. Then shall the king, because you’re talking about the kingdom, he’s not the head of the church here, he’s the king of Israel. Talking about setting up the kingdom. So he says, good shall the king say unto them on his right hand, come ye blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundations of the world.

Talk about the kingdom. Not talking about anything heavenly. This is earthly. This is on the earth. And so when he says, come ye blessed of my Father. So hold your place right here. Turn all the way over there to the book of Galatians, the book of Galatians. And you’ll notice that when he says, those who have been blessed. Now I have been blessed by the Lord. And the blessing that I have received is salvation. You see, I used to be under a curse.

I was under the law and I was under a curse. And the law cursed me, says I have to die. Well, I don’t want to die. I don’t want to have to pay for my sins, But I was cursed with a no sinful nature. Therefore I don’t have much I can do about it. So there’s a difference between being cursed and blessed. So in the book of Galatians in chapter 3, look in verse 13, Christ had redeemed us from the curse of the law.

See, as long as you’re under the law, you’re under a curse. This is why it’s ridiculous for people to try to put themselves under the law to try to earn their salvation because they placed themselves under a curse. When you read verse 10 of the same chapter, chapter 3, it says, cursed is everyone who continue, if not at all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them. You can’t pick and choose, you’ve got to do everything the law says.

Now you don’t even live long enough to learn everything in the law before you can even keep everything in the law. I mean you’re doomed from the very beginning. You haven’t got a chance. So he says here in verse 13, Christ hath redeemed us. That means he was born under the law. But he kept the law so the law couldn’t curse him, he didn’t have to die. He was made of a woman made unto the law, that he might fulfill the righteousness of the law.

But then he voluntarily took our place, died in our place, paid our sin debt, and came back from the dead. Why did he do that? To redeem us from the curse of the law. He says in verse 13, it is written, cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree because you were hung on the tree because of some hideous crime that you have committed and Christ was hung on a tree and it was a hideous thing. It was a shameful thing, a disgraceful thing, but he hadn’t done anything wrong.

We did and we deserved to die. But He made this statement in verse 14, why did He become a curse in verse 14? That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, or Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith so that you and I by faith in what He did we can be blessed. But what is the blessing, I’m glad you asked. Look there in chapter 3 and look in verse 6.

In verse 6, where it says, even as Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture foreseen that God would justify the heathen through faith. That would be a blessing, in, wouldn’t it? If God would justify the heathen through faith, wouldn’t that be a blessing? Well, that’s what He says. Priest, before the gospel unto Abraham said, and thee shall all nations be blessed.

Verse 9, so then they which are of faith are blessed. You see, being saved is a blessing. Not being saved is your under a curse. I have been blessed. You have been blessed because you have trusted Christ as your Savior. You are redeemed. You’re going to heaven when you die. So you have already been blessed. So you can ask God, bless me, Lord, bless me, Lord, bless me. Lord, bless me. God said, I did. I did. I did. He said, you are blessed and we should understand that.

Now notice what he says here. Also. You are blessed. And we should understand that. Now notice what he says here. Also, I want you to see this in that verse 14 where it says that the blessing of Abraham might come on you. Then notice what he says in verse 22, but the script your hath concluded, all understand that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that what’s that word? That believe. So because we have trusted Christ of Savior, we have been blessed.

Now go all the way back there to the book of Matthew. And notice in Matthew in chapter 25 verse 34, then shall the king say unto them on his right hand, come ye blessed, that’s already past tense, blessed of my Father. You see you have already been blessed in that you have received the free gift of salvation. This is why they’re on the right hand because they are the righteous ones. I was thirsty and all this, but look what he says in the last part of verse 34, inherit the kingdom, the kingdom prepare for you from the foundation of the world.

And then he gets into a very interesting portion of scripture. And it gives you the appearance that you’ve got to be saved by your works. And now this is based upon what you did. How you treated yourself or treated other people and all this. But look what he says in verse 35, for I was hungry and you gave me meat. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you took me in. Naked and you clothed me.

I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him? Says, we don’t know what you’re talking about. See, they are righteous. On the right, the sheep, they’re blessed. And says, what are you talking about? When did we do this? Now, notice what he says. In verse 37, then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee a hungry and fed thee or thirsty and gave thee drink, when saw we thee a stranger and took thee in or naked and clothed thee, or when saw we thee sick or in prison and came unto thee, and the pain shall enter and send to them, verily I send you in as much as you have done it under one of the least of these, my brother, and you have done it unto me.”

Now, I wonder what in the world that means, because you gotta explain it. Now we know that you’re not saved by what you do, because remember Ephesians 2, 8, and 9, for by grace are you saved through faith, that not of yourself, it is the gift of God not of works. So he can’t be referring to their say by their works, but it looks like that. Don’t it look like it, but it can’t be, because you know that. But now he says, or in verse 40, he says, you did it one of these.

you It’s like you did it in to me. Verse 41, then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, depart from me, ye cursed and to everlasting fire, prepare for the devil and his angels. Depart from me, ye cursed. You know, that’s the same thing, he says back here in Matthew chapter seven. I never knew you, depart from me, ye cursed, so I’m. So then he says, in verse 42, for I was hungry and you gave me no meaning.

I was thirsty and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger and you took me not in, naked and you closed me not, sick and in prison and you visited me not. Then shall they also answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee a hungry and a thirst or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not minister unto thee, then shall he answer them saying, Verily, I send you in as much as you did it not to one of the least of these you did it not to me.

and these shall go away into everlasting punishment, the righteous, and the life eternal.” Now, doesn’t it have an appearance that works what you did or involved in your salvation? You see how it’s so easy for people to begin to say something like that and then because they can’t explain it, they just leave these scriptures alone, pretend like they’re not there and then nobody ever asked me a question about those. But they are there. And so you use clear verses to help you understand verses that seem to say, or that somebody could take in a wrong way and say, you got to apply this to salvation because it’s what they did.

Now take your Bible and turn to the book of Matthew in chapter 10. 10. Now you’ll notice that many things like in a particular book, if you can’t find in the context of a chapter, well look in another chapter, either before after. Sometimes the Scriptures will teach you what he means. So you can’t just read chapter 25 and totally neglect all those other chapters that were also written. So you go back there to Matthew in chapter 10 and you’ll notice in chapter 10 verse 1 that he’s told his disciples some things here but also he told him some things that were going to be a near prophecy and a far prophecy.

In other words like history going to repeat itself things they would go through here but things they’re going to go through later and so he tells them he says now the Son of Man is coming. See over there in verse 23, but when they persecute you in this city, flee you into another. For verily I send you, ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of Man become. In other words, I’m coming back. Who will be he and he will be left?

Are you a new listener to Bibleline? Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well if you’ve never contacted us before before we want to give you Dr. Arnold’s book, The Gospel Driven Man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works, and about how to share the gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy.

There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply call us at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of the Gospel-Driven Name. The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address, and God bless you and thank you for listening to Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address 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. Believe in that the Lord is coming soon. Just keep looking up.