“THINGS WE NEED TO KNOW - Sermon Outlines. Org



“THINGS WE NEED TO KNOW!”

DEUTERONOMY 29:29

INTRO: Moses refers in v29 to “secret things”. The word “secret” there means

“hidden or concealed.” There are many things contained in the Word

of God that we could classify as “secret things.” These are things that

we just cannot understand or that our minds are incapable of finding

out. In the military many times soldiers are given orders or

commands to follow and not told why they must follow them. If they

ask why, they are told that info is on a need to know basis and they

do not need to know.

In our Christian walk there are many things we don’t understand.

There are questions that we have about the Bible that we cannot find

answers to. Many times we speculate and surmise about the how,

when, or why of God’s workings. But friends, let me give you

something this morning: the things we must concern ourselves with,

as God’s people, is not the secret things but the things we know we

MUST be doing! Many today get so caught up trying to figure out all

the mysteries that are contained in the Word of God that they lay

aside obedience to the Word! Many pious people would rather study

the Bible than practice what it teaches. An old man once said, "For a

long period, I puzzled myself about the difficulties of Scripture, until

at last I came to the resolution, that reading the Bible was like eating

fish. When I find a difficulty, I lay it aside, and call it a bone. Why

should I choke over the bone when there is so much nutritious meat

for me? Some day, perhaps, I may find that even the bone may afford

me nourishment." (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version 3.0f.

Copyright 1990-1998, by Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Worldwide).

Folks, I want to speak on the subject, “Things We Need To Know.”

Mark Twain said, “Most people are bothered by those Scripture

passages which they cannot understand. But for me, the passages in

Scripture which trouble me most are those which I do understand. –

Mark Twain, Christian Reader, Vol. 33, no. 5. (Bible Illustrator For

Windows. Version 3.0f. Copyright 1990-1998, by Parsons Technology,

Inc. All Rights Reserved Worldwide). Note three things with me today:

(1) GOD’S RIGHT

DEUTERONOMY 29:29a—“ The secret things belong unto the LORD

our God…”

A. SECRET THINGS CANNOT BE UNDERSTOOD. We must understand that

there is no comparison between our minds and the mind of the Lord. You

might as well try to put the ocean in a tiny cup as to try to fathom the mind

of God! God says in Isaiah 55:8-9—“ For my thoughts are not your

thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the

heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways,

and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Friends, If we understood God we

should be equal to God. If we could explore the mysteries of this world we

could have made it. If we found no difficulties in the Bible we could have

written it. God cannot be grasped by the mind. If he could be grasped, he

would not be God. -- Evagrius of Pontus, "Eastern Orthodoxy," Christian

History, no. 54. (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version 3.0f. Copyright

1990-1998, by Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).

Romans 11:33 says, “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and

knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past

finding out!” Some of God’s wisdom can be known, but not all! There are

things we will not find the answer to until we get to Heaven.

B. SECRET THINGS CANNOT BE UNVEILED. Note the words “belong to the

Lord.” God has a right to reveal what He desires and withhold what He

desires. There are some things that God sees which would unwise for

Him to communicate. “What God has thought proper to reveal, he has

revealed; what he has revealed is essential to the well-being of man, and

this revelation is intended not for the present time merely, nor for one

people, but for all succeeding generations. The things which he has not

revealed concern not man but God alone, and are therefore not to be

inquired after.” (Adam Clarke’s Commentary On the Bible. e-Sword. Version

7.6.1. Copyright 2000-2005. Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).

God will not suffer man to have a knowledge of things to come; for if he had

prescience of his prosperity, he would be careless; and if understanding of

his adversity, he would be despairing and senseless. -- Saint Augustine, q

quoted in New Beginnings. Christianity Today, Vol. 34, no. 4. Friends, in

this way, the secret things which remain veiled are a blessing from God! I

am glad I don’t know what the future holds! I am glad I don’t understand

why trials come! Let it be enough for us that we know who holds tomorrow!

Let it be enough for us to know that God is control of all things even our

trials in life!

(2) GOD’S REVELATION

DEUTERONOMY 29:29b—“… but those things which are revealed

belong unto us and to our children forever.”

A. REVELATION COMES BY FAITH. We are encouraged to diligently seek

and inquire into the things which God has revealed! In fact, 2 Timothy

2:15 says, “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that

needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” “Those things

which are revealed…” come to us by faith. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians

2:6-14—“ Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not

the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to

naught: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden

wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of

the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have

crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear

heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath

prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his

Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For

what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in

him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now

we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God;

that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which

things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but

which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are

foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually

discerned.” Unless a person receives Christ into his heart and life he

cannot understand even the basics of the Word of God! The Holy Spirit

must illuminate the mind and influence the heart! “Faith is the vitamin

that makes all we take from the Bible digestible and makes us able to

receive it and assimilate it. If we do not have faith, we cannot get

anything.” -- A. W. Tozer in Rut, Rot or Revival. Christianity Today, Vol.

40, no. 5.

B. REVELATION CARRIES A RESPONSIBILITY. The things that God has

revealed unto us bear a great responsibility on our part. “If our faith is

something that really does not make a very big difference, if it is actually

not crucial that we or others believe, no wonder it seems boring to some of

our young. Anything we don't care much about can't be very interesting.

The things we do care about, however, we inevitably talk about.... If faith is

real, it seeks expression. It will communicate and profess. It will have the

energy of passion. -- John F. Kavanaugh in The Word Encountered.

Christianity Today, Vol. 40, no. 12. (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version

3.0f. Copyright 1990-1998, by Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Worldwide). The Bible here says, “those things which are revealed belong

unto us and to our children forever…”. When something belongs to you then

you bear a responsibility to it. The word “belong” means “to be the property

of, to be a part of.” God has revealed certain things to His people. They

belong to them and to their children. What has God revealed? :

← THE TRUTH ABOUT SIN AND SALVATION. We know that sin is an affront and abomination to the holy nature of God. We know that apart from the righteousness of Christ no one will see the Lord! We know that salvation is the gift of God given by grace available to all. But that it can only be received by faith. We know that Christ died and rose again the third day for our justification. But the mystery surrounding the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior cannot be explained. Friend, you and I cannot understand these mysteries but we can accept that they are facts. We can receive Christ as our Savior and then tell others about His marvelous love and grace!

← THE TRUTH ABOUT SERVICE AND RESPONSIBILITY. The Bible gives us the express will of God for our lives. Friend, there may be then thousand things in this Bible you don’t understand but there is not one single command in this Bible of which a child cannot understand! And a willing child will obey! God’s Law has been revealed and communicated to us through His Word. They belong to us and to our children forever. The responsibility we owe to the Bible is not to explore the “secret things,” things we cannot know, but to follow the commands given by God that we do know! We should ask ourselves as we read God’s Word: 1) What is God’s will for me in this passage of Scripture? 2) What is God trying to show me? and 3) What does God require of me according to His Word? When we answer those questions then all that is left is submission to the will of God and obedience to His commands. If we fail to follow “those things which are revealed,” we sin (James 4:17). You can't understand all you read in the Bible, but you can obey what you do understand.

(3) GOD’S REQUIREMENT

iHi DEUTERONOMY 29:29c—“that we may do all the words of this

law.”

A. THE THINGS REVEALED MUST BE OBEYED. Because of God’s revelation

we are to “do all the words of this law.” In other words, there is not one

part of this Bible we which should not follow. Friend, hearing and reading

God’s Word will not be of any value if we don’t obey what God commands!

Matthew Henry wrote: “All our knowledge must be in order to practice, for

this is the end of all divine revelation, not to furnish us with curious

subjects of speculation and discourse, with which to entertain ourselves

and our friends, but that we may do all the words of this law, and be

blessed in our deed.” (Matthew Henry’s Commentary On The Whole Bible. e-

Sword. Version 7.6.1. Copyright 2000-2005. Rick Meyers. All Rights

Reserved Worldwide). What good is revelation without obedience? It is but

empty knowledge that deceives a person into thinking he is right with God

when he is not! James wrote in James 1:22-25—“ But be ye doers of the

word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a

hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his

natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and

straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into

the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful

hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”

ILLUS: The Bible is not only, to be read, it is to be followed. An

old hunter in Michigan, when the country was new, got lost in

the woods several times. He was told to buy a pocket compass,

which he did, and a friend explained to him its use. He soon

got lost in lay out as usual. When found, he was asked why he

did not travel by the compass. He said he did not dare to. He

wished to go north, and he "tried hard to make the thing point

north but it wasn't no use; "'twould shake, shake right round,

and point southeast every time." A great many people fail of the

right direction in life for the same reason of the mishap which

befell our Michigan friend: they are afraid to take the Bible

and follow just as it points. (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version

3.0f. Copyright 1990-1998, by Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights

Reserved Worldwide).

B. THE THINGS REVEALED MUST BE OUR ONLY GUIDE. Someone has

said, “Our human reasoning alone isn't enough to discern truth from error.

The best protection against deception is to know God's revealed truth, the

Bible. -- Ruth E. Van Reken, Christian Reader, Vol. 35, no. 2. Notice it

says, “that we may do all the words of this law.” It says, ALL not just parts!

It only should ALL of it be OBEYED but ALL of it should BE OUR ONLY

GUIDE! Instead of seeking out the counselors, the psychiatrists, and

philosophers, we need to just consult the WORD OF GOD! It contains the

answer to every problem because it is the mind of Almighty God! "God has

given us His Word, the Bible. Do you want to know God more deeply and

intimately? Do you want to discover His will for your life? Then read and

study the Scriptures daily." - Billy Graham, _Approaching Hoofbeats_, p.

42.

ILLUS: Wisdom is not gained by seeing the works of God. It is gained in

knowing the ways of God. When the Israelites were wandering in

the desert, they could only see the works of God. But, God allowed

Moses to see His ways. The Israelites were infatuated with God at

first. But when troubles came, their love affair with God quickly

died out. They began to murmur and complain. Moses saw the

wilderness from God’s perspective, however, and approached God

in humility and honor. As a result, God taught him to lead His

people out of darkness into light. Do you know the ways of God?

Have you learned to see life from His point of view? Or are you still

trusting in your view of life to get you through the hard times? –

Adrian Rogers (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version 3.0f.

Copyright 1990-1998, by Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights

Reserved Worldwide).

Let us all proclaim, “For this God is our God forever and ever: he will be our

guide even unto death.” (Psalm 48:14).

CLOSING: Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “I ask with all my strength what God is

trying to say to us through [the Bible]; since I have learnt to read

the Bible in this way it becomes more marvelous to me every day.”

-- Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Christian History, no. 32. What about you

friend? THE THINGS WE NEED TO KNOW: GOD’S RIGHT: “The

secret things belong unto the Lord…,” GOD’S REVELATION: “…those

things which are revealed belong unto us and our children,” and

GOD’S REQUIREMENT: “…that we may do all words of this law.”

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