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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 prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us at 813-884-4328, or you can donate on the homepage at BibleLineMinistries.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.

Be the next statement. Isaiah 7, 15 and 7, 16, these two verses, they kind of go together. Look at him. He says, butter and honey, chalet, that he may know to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that thou have for shall be forsaken of both their king. In other words, there’s a verse right before this. It’s not in your notes. Everybody ever heard of Isaiah 714?

I wonder what Isaiah 714 talks about. Something about, behold, I give you a sign. A virgin child can save him, bear his son in child, call his name and Emmanuel. A woman’s going to have a child. And this child is going to be a perfect child. But you see, he never knew any wrong. You see, this is why they say, When you want to teach a child to, you know, the sock, they put some time they call it a sugar tip.

Now I’m not using profanity. How many of you know what I’m talking about? You can take some cloth, I wouldn’t take a whole sock. And you can put sugar in there and you can twist it a little bit in and then, and the baby, they like the sugar and they learn how to do that. And so we can help them. So what you’re doing is you’re giving them a taste. When the Bible says, train up a child on the way he should go, it means develop that thirst, that desire, and the way they should go.

So you gotta give them some, they say you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink, but you can put salt in his oats to make him thirsty. Well, that’s what you’re doing. That’s what we’re doing with people. We’re trying to teach even the kids how to have a thirst for the things of God. Because you can’t make these teenagers in rank, you can’t make them serve God. And so many of them we lose. When they get to where they can get on their own car, get a job, phew, they’re gone.

And most of them for the rest of their life. Only a handful of ever-mounts are from the Lord. Because most of them will fall in love with the world. Because they didn’t develop that taste. That’s why he says, taste and see that the Lord is good. Desired that sincere milk of the word that you may grow there by, taste and see if the Lord isn’t precious, that he isn’t good. And most people, they don’t do it. So we gotta try to develop a taste in people’s mouth because they gotta make that choice on their own.

I wouldn’t mind having a part of it, we just make everybody do right. You can’t. It’d be great if you could force people, but you can’t. And so these two verses show you that you gotta make choices and you want the kids to make right decisions and so like making the honey, where it’s really sweet. And praise and compliment kids when they do the things you want them to do. When they don’t do what you want them to do, you let them know that you’re disappointed.

You’re very disappointed, but you love them, but you’re disappointed. You expected more, I expect more out of you. That doesn’t mean you hate the kid, but you do love them. Look in verse Isaiah 65 and verse 12, therefore he says, I will number you to the sword and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter. Now get this, here’s a reason. When God tells us something, there’s usually because, because, because when I called, ye did not answer. So that that showed that they had a choice.

Why would God get on to somebody for not answering if they didn’t have a will of their own? Or they were not free to choose? Ye did not answer. When I spake, ye did not hear. Whenever the Word of God is taught, and you can hear it, and then not hear it. The Lord says, be ye not hears of the Word only, but doers of the Word. This man shall be half happy or blessed in his deeds. So he says here, you did not hear.

But did evil before my eyes and get this? Did choose that wherein I delighted not? That means they were free to choose. Wouldn’t you get that out of that verse? That God was not pleased with what they’re doing, but if God pre-programmed them to do all of that they were doing, how can God get upset with somebody who only did what God made them do?

Because God didn’t do it. Everything is not the will of God. Now, if you choose to rebel against the Lord, you could say, yes, God, it’s his will to have to chasten you. But that doesn’t delight the Lord. That’s not what he wanted to do. He wanted us to choose life. He wants us to please Him. He wants us to delight in Him. He says, delight thyself in the Lord and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

But it’s based upon what you delight in. Where’s that verse found? Psalms 37 verse 4. I learned that verse oh hundred years ago. Well not exactly energy. See I had a choice right then. I could have told the truth or lied and I lied. But I confessed it so I told the truth. True. Trace is over there. Look down at the bottom of the page. I said 66 verse 4. I also will choose get this their delusions and will bring their fears upon them.

Now why? Because when I called none that answer. And when I spake, they did not hear. For they did evil before mine eyes and get this, chose that in which I delighted not. They chose against the will of God. So you are a free moral agent. You’re the moral in the sense you should know what’s right and what’s wrong. And then you should make decisions be responsible for your choices. And God can either bless you or chasten you because there’s a reason why.

God doesn’t just beat his children to death. There’ll be a reason and God may even take some of his children home. Look at the next scripture, Genesis 1311, then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan. Who was the one who gave him a choice? Abraham told him says, you choose which and I’ll take the other, right? And he saw that the plains down towards Saudi Arabia, more of us so watered and it looks so green grass and I’ll take that.

Abraham went the other way. Abraham made a choice. He was gonna live by the choice that Lot made. You see, God will allow you to make choices and God will live with that. God will accept your choice. But you can either choose to be blessed by God or chastened by God, but you get the freedom to make the choice. That’s why he says, stand faster for it in the liberty where we have been made free. This liberty means don’t become trapped again in the law where you have to do it.

Serve God because you love him, because you want to. There’s freedom of choice. Look at the next scripture, Joshua. Most of y’all have heard this verse before. He says, you this day whom you will serve, but as for me in my house, what? We will, what? Serve the Lord. You can do whatever you want, but as for me in my house, this is what we’re going to do. And he was the head of his home. And so he says, at verse, you see, your witnesses against yourself, ye have chosen you, that you chosen you the Lord to serve Him.

Served Him. Look at 1 Samuel 10 and 24. And Samuel said to all the people, see ye Him whom the Lord hath chosen. Now this is important because of the very next verse that follows it. God chose. Now looking 1 Samuel 12 and verse 13. Now therefore behold the King whom ye have chosen, with whom ye have desired, and behold the Lord have said a king over you. God told them at the beginning, he would rule over them, theocracy, he would rule, and ask them judges that rule in God’s place.

They said we want a king so we can be like all the other nations. So they wanted a king. And so God told them, says, Samuel, tell them what it’s going to cost them, how that he’s going to take their men and their women, and they’re going to take them to cattle and he’s going to take some of their land, and just tell them what they’re going to have to do. And the king is going to be the king.

And that means he’s an authority. And so God says, that’s what you want, you can have it. So they chose to have a king. So God chose the man. that was hidden shoulders above everybody. And Correctly when he was little in his own eyes, God could use him and bless him. Later on Saul got too big for his britches and God had to humble him and he died a horrible death along with his son Jonathan. But they had choices.

Look at the next scripture, 1 Chronicles 28, take heed now for the Lord half did this, have chosen thee to build a house house, and then he says, be strong, then he says, do it. You see, it wasn’t Nike that said that. The Lord says, do it through as a scripture, it’s right there. And so he says, these three things to him, talking to David, I want you to do that. But David had already determined, Lord, I want to build you a house.

And the Lord says, you got too much blood on your hands. You just get everything ready. And I’ll have your son Solomon, he’ll build it. So that’s why it’s called Solomon’s temple. God used him. But there were choices that were made. God even gave Solomon a request. What would you like? Did you get asked me Solomon for anything? What would you want? You can see I want this and this and this and this and this. He mainly asked for one thing.

You remember what it was? He asked for wisdom. I want the wisdom that I need to rule your people. Isn’t that a good question? And his youth. And God gave him wisdom. He gave him all the wealth, the honor, the fame. He got everything else with that. But he got wisdom. And then he, well, he got so lifted up. He says, anything I wanted, I did. Whatever I wanted to do, I did it. And any woman he saw, he got.

By the time it was over, he had 300 wives, 300 porcupines. Conquipines. And when he married these women, it wasn’t long before those women turned his heart away from the Lord until the false gods. this man that was so wise became such a fool. So you see, you can be one way at one time in life and you can have the benefits of it. And so toward the end of his life, God says, I’m gonna take the kingdom and split this kingdom, but not in your day.

After your dead, I’m gonna split the kingdom. So 10 nations became Israel and two became the nation of Judah. And so you had Judah and Benjamin and the other 10 tribes. And then it wasn’t long before Syria came and took the one of Syria. And then it wasn’t long before here comes Nebuchadnezzar from Babylon and take the southern part and then they destroyed Jerusalem. You see, they could have stayed in the land and everything had been wonderful. He says, as long as you’ll serve me, I will put none of the diseases upon you.

They would have had us to best health care you could have ever thought about. You see, we’re suffering a lot of things in our country because we’re rebellious. we are rebellious to God, and therefore we pay the price of it. But anyways, we’re moving right along here. Look at the next statement. Luke 10, verse 42, said, but one thing is needful. You know the story of Mary and Martha? Well, Martha was busy trying to get everything ready. She was just serving, serving, serving.

And she looked over there and there says, Mary, and she’s sitting at Jesus’ feet. Well, that’s not fair. fair. I’m doing all the work and she’s sitting there on her can not doing anything. And so she complained. I do all the work. You know you have to watch it even in the Lord’s work of complaining about those people that won’t help. Look at me. Poor, poor me. I do all the work. Nobody else helps. You’re only doing what God wants you to do, right?

And they’re not what’s your problem? Does God see what you’re doing? Are you doing it for Him? Is God going to reward you for what you do? So don’t worry about it. Just do what you can do. You don’t want to make people do things. Drag it. You know what trying to make people do things? Where’s you out? It drains you of all of your energy. It takes to smile off your face, the joy out of your heart. When you try to force and make people do things and they don’t want to do it, just happily go ahead and do what God wants you to do and don’t worry about whatever that body else does.

You’ll come out so much better than I weigh in. It really will. Look at the next statement. But in that verse, it is important to take time in your life to set it the feet of Jesus and study His Word and load up so gene goes serve. And sometimes you don’t always have those opportunities. Mary knew Jesus was gonna be gone soon. And she wants to learn everything she can. She wanted to spend time with the Lord. So you can get so busy trying to serve God and the things that you do that it wears you out because you don’t spend time with him personally.

You cannot shortcut this thing. And if you’re always getting out and if you’re outflow is greater than your intake, then your outflow will be your downfall. Your service to God and for God can destroy you if you are not in love with it. Because in all of your work can be in vain because they’ll destroy you, because when you love, love is a motivator. But when you lose that, then you just do it out of, you know, whatever you wanna call it, but it won’t be real.

It’s just you’re going through the motions and you wear yourself out physically. Remember that happiness is not a destination, it’s a way of travel. It’s like we’re gonna go on a vacation to Denver, Colorado. Well, when I get there, I’ll be happy. No, I wanna be happy on the way. Getting there is my vacation too. I wanna enjoy all the time. Get to where you can enjoy the Lord as you go. There’d be so much better way of thinking.

Look at the next statement, John. It makes the statement 6, 70. Jesus answered them, “‘Have not I chosen you, 12, and one of you is a devil.'” You see, if Calvinism is true, didn’t Jesus choose Jews? Well, if he chose the disciples and he chose them to be saved, and that’s what they always try to take, that chosen, he chose them to be saved. Well, then if Jews was one of them, then he chose them to be saved too.

that I could just get lost. Because he wasn’t chosen to be saved. They were chosen as disciples to follow a learner. Look at the next scripture and you’ll see it better in verse 18 of John chapter 13. I speak not of you all. I know whom I have chosen, but the scripture may be fulfilled. He then eat his bread with me, have to lift it up his heel against me. Now get to it. If we were chosen for salvation, Why wasn’t Jesus saved because he was chosen?

There’s no doubt about that. No question about he was chosen, but he was not saved. And so don’t think, Dave, time you see the word chosen there. That’s the sign you would say, chosen to be saved. No. Look at the next scripture. John 15 verse 16, ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you and ordained you that you should go to heaven over everybody else. No, he chose him for a purpose. You should go and grain forth fruit.

Go and grain forth fruit. And that your fruit should remain. And the only way your fruit can remain is they got eternal life. You’re talking about eternal fruit. Look at the next scripture. And John 15, 19 says, if you were of the world, the world would love his own, but because you’re not of the world. I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Listen, I got people that write me and email me and sometimes call me.

That literally hate me. And I’ve done nothing to them, excel, tell them how to go to heaven. That’s all I’ve done, tell them how to go to heaven. And I believe that the way I’d tell people how to go to heaven is the way you want how to go to heaven. because they’re not of the Lord, they don’t see it, they don’t understand it. So they fight against it. Look in Acts 1, 24, it says, and they prayed and said, Thou Lord, which get this and you’re not on the line, it’s in your nose.

Knoweth the hearts of all men. Does God know the hearts of every person? He does before the Gentiles and the kings and the children of Israel. I’m wrong with them wrong with them. Show whether of these two thou have chosen because they were trying to make a decision about who is he gonna be the next one to take Judas’ place? And they were trying to make choices. God has given us the power to make sure. Not for salvation, but for a title of service.

In Acts 9, 15, but the Lord said unto him, go thy way for he is a talking about the apostle Paul. He is a chosen vessel unto me to bear my name before Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. God chose Paul to do a work for him. Well, hasn’t God chosen us to do a work for him? Yes. But you see, God did not decide to outlaw all you people out here and you’re all lost. And God says, I’m going to pick about five of you to go to heaven.

and the rest of you won’t have a chance. And I’m just gonna pick, I’ll pick that young girl over there. I think she ought to go to heaven. She just looks nice. And I’ll take Theresa. Okay. She even knew she was chosen. She chose herself. She chose herself. But you see, if I made a couple choices like that, the Bible doesn’t teach that God does that. But can God use certain individuals for service, for whatever he wants? He can do that with lost people too.

And concerning the nation of Israel, he did that. Now look at the next statement. In Ephesians chapter one and verse four, a courting as he had chosen us in him before the foundations of the world, that we who chose to believe should be holy and without blame before him in love. All believers are predestined for something. Not only pretty distant, we will be made pure and holy, set apart, going to heaven, where’s children, and also the Bible talks about our adoption has been predetermined.

We’re getting into that another time, but it’s awesome. Now look at the next verse, but we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brother, and beloved, of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning, now get this very important, chosen you to salvation. See, there’s a verse right there, it says God chose you to salvation. But should we stop right there? No, look at the next part. Through sanctification, it means to be in made pure and holy by the Holy Spirit.

And what’s those last words? Belief of the truth. Every person who will believe the truth, believe the gospel, God has from the foundations the world chosen to save everyone who chooses to be saved. God chose to save everybody who chooses to be saved. And you can choose whether or not you want to be saved or not you’re free to choose. Go in all over and preach the gospel to every creature. That’s because God wants everybody to hear the gospel, but God does not force anybody to trust him.

Look the last statement. As a child of God, we’ve got a lot of decisions to make. And so he talks about that you and I should make choices. And one of these choices is, as he mentions right here, we’ve been chosen to be a soldier. That’s why he says, do not entangle yourself with the affairs of this life that you may please him who have called you to be a soldier. God called you to serve Him. So that means automatically you’re going to.

No. You can say yes, you can say no. And you could decide to say yes and after five years I had enough of this and choose not to. You say you can be up here and then you can be down here. You can be all over the place. You can be like a yo-yo. But being faithful it means you stay like this. I made that decision 59 years ago after I trust the Lord. I want to be found faithful.

So I’m not up here and I’m not down here. I try to be right here, stable. I’ve made it my mind. I don’t question anymore. I’m like to hold and believe that I’m solid as a rock and you watch something tomorrow, shake my whole life. Remember, you’re on a foundation. That foundation is the rock that’s christen. and that foundation will never shake under you. You may shake on the rock, but the rock won’t shake under you. It’s the best news in all the world.

Anyway, those are some thoughts that helped you to realize you and I, we are responsible for our decisions. So that’s why you study the Bible so you can learn how to make wise decisions. Because you don’t want somebody else making them for you, do you? Maturety is where you’re getting old enough and mature enough that you can decide for yourself. Do you want to serve a Lord? You can. If you don’t want to, nobody can make you. But this light’s going to be over one day.

And when you get to heaven, you’re going to wish you had a, you know, there’s that little song, I wish I had given him more. It’s a beautiful song. I wish I had given him more. Look up here, the sin represents you and me. The wallet represents sin. We all have sin on us. God loves us. Now he hates our sin, but he does love us. And because of sin and we’re in debt, we’ve got to pay for it.

So we’re all condemned. God loves us and wants us to go to heaven. To go to heaven, we’ve got to be perfect, but there’s the problem. We’re not perfect. None of us are. So God says you cannot save yourself. There’s no other payment you can make. No amount of works that you can do. can do that would ever pay for your sins. This then represent Jesus Christ. He’s the Lord God in the flesh. He came into the world because He loves us.

And God says, because He loves us, He sent His Son. And the Son said that the world may know that I love the Father. This is what I’m going to do. I’m going to take all of your sins and pay for them. Come back from the dead and you are not. You’re free to choose. You’re free to choose. That’s why it’s called grace is risky. God took a risk on you. He was willing to pay that much and not making you accept it or believe it, but you were worth it.

I would hate to think He did it in vain on my behalf. When I heard the gospel, the first time I really heard and understood it, that night, I trusted Christ as my Savior. He paid for my sins, gave me eternal life, and I get to go to heaven or what Jesus Christ did for me. Let’s pray, sorry. Heads, bow, nice clothes, no one looking around. This is a choice. If you’ve already trusted Christ as Savior, you don’t have to ever do it again.

But if you’re here tonight and you’ve never trusted the Lord, God knows the hearts of every individual. Does he know if you have really trusted him or not? He knows. Wouldn’t it be a shame for you to be so close? Did you know that 99% and still 100% lost? You can’t be almost saved. Is he the you are? Are you not? I pray that you’ll trust Christ to save you if you haven’t. If you’re watching by the internet, right on the screen and says, yes, I’ll trust Christ as my Savior.

I pray that you would if you haven’t done so. So in his bow and knife clothes, no one looking around, is there anyone here tonight? You say, pre to that made sense to me. I will accept Christ as my Savior. I wanna make the right choice. I wanna make the best choice I can ever make in my life. I will accept Christ as my Savior. And friend, God said, if you trust Him, because of that, He will give you eternal life.

Because you trust Him as your Savior, He will make you his child. He will take you to heaven. He will make you pure and holy. You’re set apart. You belong to him for all eternity. Anyone all before we close? Just slip your hand up very quickly or back down. Then we’ll all follow. We do thank you so much for loving us, for making the payment for our sins, and giving us the freedom. Yes, even the servia. The freedom are not serving you.

But help us, Lord, not to abuse this liberty that we have. Help us to learn to walk within, love you, do the things that we should. Help us to do right. Bless us in Christ’s name we pray. You’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 Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing 813-884-4328.

That’s 813-884-4328. To listen to today’s message again, or to obtain a free download of any of our Bibleline programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the Radio broadcast link. 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 1030 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcasts of our services may be seen by clicking the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org.

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, and just keep looking up.