Exposing the Family

If you have your Bibles, I want you to turn to Matthew chapter 5.

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

Matthew chapter 5, a boy came to his dad and said,

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

Dad, I just turned 16, or this year I'm going to turn 16,

and I wonder if you'd buy me a car for my 16th birthday.

And his dad said, I'll tell you what I'll do.

I'll sign a contract with you that if you make all A's

and if you read your Bible daily and if you get a haircut,

then I'll buy you a car for your birthday.

And the time went by and the boy's 16th birthday was approaching

and he came to his dad and said, Dad, I got straight A's in school

and I read my Bible daily.

Now what about that car?

And he said, that's good, son. I'm proud of you.

You made straight A's. You've read your Bible.

You hadn't got a haircut.

And he said, well, Dad, I've been reading the Bible

and I found out that Jesus had long hair.

And his dad said, that's right.

And he walked everywhere he went.

It's tough to raise a family today.

It is.

And family matters.

And so I want to spend some of these hot days this summer

talking about family matters.

I'll give you four reasons right off the bat

why I believe raising a family is tough today.

For one, we're a fallen people.

We were born in sin.

We have a sin nature to us.

And we live in a world of sin.

And we all willfully sin.

You combine that together and it makes for a fallen world,

which makes every relationship more difficult.

And so that plays into some of it.

Not only that, but our world is dark.

We live in a dark world.

And it's getting darker.

And, you know, when we say world,

really what we think about is America.

I mean, that's really typically what we think about.

And we feel like that whatever's happening in America,

that must be what the whole world's doing.

Well, I'm telling you that that's not necessarily the case.

But in our world, right here amongst us,

we live in a dark world, goofy stuff,

that is kind of unexplainable in a lot of ways.

It's going on around us.

And not only that, but our world is filled with social media.

And I really believe that it is a primary factor of why it's tough to raise a family today.

Because on social media, either everybody is perfect,

or they're not.

And they're telling you everything that's wrong.

One or the other.

There's nobody that's normal on social media, except for y'all.

There's nobody else that's normal on social media.

Everybody's always perfect.

And grand places are either, they're dismal,

and they need to speak to the Lord.

Instead, they just post it, you know.

So, and that makes us vulnerable.

It makes us vulnerable to the temptation to try to be like somebody else.

It makes us vulnerable to depression,

to temptations as well as depression.

All kinds of dangers.

Because of the evils of social media.

It's not all bad.

But there's so much of it bad,

that it has really changed our culture and changed our world.

And lastly, the fourth thing is, we're in a war.

And I'm not talking about the Middle Eastern war.

And I'm not talking about a political war.

I'm not even just necessarily talking about a cultural war.

We're in a spiritual war.

And I plan to spend all of this fall talking about the depths of the real war

that's going on around us.

But it affects us at the house.

It does.

And when you put that we're all a fallen people together with,

we're in a war,

that makes for a dark situation.

We live in a dark world.

You're exposed to the darkness.

Your family's exposed to the darkness.

As much as we don't want it to be,

you're influenced by the darkness.

And your family is influenced by the darkness.

The Apostle Paul put it this way in Ephesians 6, verse 12.

Ephesians 6:12

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood,

but against the rulers, against the authorities,

against the cosmic powers over this present darkness,

against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Please acknowledge and let's fight it accordingly.

Because family matters and because it does,

I want to talk about family matters this summer.

And I want to begin with a passage that's got a phrase

that just stuck out to me.

I kind of hung on.

It's in Matthew chapter 5, beginning in verse 14.

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

And Jesus said,

You are the light of the world.

A city set on a hill cannot be hidden,

nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket,

but on a stand and it gives light to all the house.

In the same way, let your light shine before others

so that they may see your good works

and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

I want to focus today on the last phrase of verse 15.

And the last phrase of verse 15 says

that we are to shed light to all in the house.

How do we do that?

Be a lampstand.

Lampstands are often mentioned in Scripture.

They're used instead of a light bulb.

And they are to shed light on many manners.

The lampstand that stands out to me the most

is first described in Exodus chapter 25,

Exodus 25 · chapter mention

along with a lot of other instructions

about the tabernacle holy place.

And very specific instructions are given

for this lampstand.

It's a large floor-standing oil lamp

that stands with six additional branches on it,

each that look like an almond bloom.

Each bloom holds oil that is to be lit.

And that was in the tabernacle,

strategically placed in front of the curtain

of the Holy of Holies,

across from the table that held

what was called the bread of presence.

Now, the bread of presence was 12 loaves

that were replaced every week on the Sabbath.

And those 12 loaves there would be removed on the Sabbath,

and the priest would eat them

and use that as their bread supply.

And then the new loaves would be replaced

on that table week after week.

And the point of that is,

well, the reason almond blooms are used

is because the Hebrew word for almond

means early, early waker.

In other words, God's watchfulness

and vigilant response to us.

It's kind of like an almond.

It kind of shows the signs of the times.

It blooms early.

And because of that, in the same way,

God is well aware of our circumstances.

And it reminds us of that.

The showbread there, the bread of presence,

there's 12 loaves because of the 12 tribes.

God provides for every one of his people.

And the names, the nearness and the provision of God

all is symbolized in that bread.

And the point of all that is,

God provides.

He steadily provides our needs.

His blessings come again and again.

That bread was always there.

The light always shone on that bread.

And one of the priests' primary job

was to make sure that that lampstand never burned out.

It was the single source of light in the tabernacle,

except for God's presence in the inner sanctum.

And that light was placed there,

get this now,

to shine on the ever-present loaves of bread

called the bread of presence.

In other words,

people were always to know

of God's provision and God's presence.

And in the same way,

just like Jesus told us,

we need to shed light for our family

in all the house,

in many ways.

I'll tell you four things

you ought to expose your family to.

One is you ought to expose your family to his care.

Expose them to God's care.

The care of the Lord for your family.

Everything that you have came from the Lord.

I hope you realize that.

And when you realize that,

I hope you'll tell your family that.

Families need to know that.

We need to acknowledge that.

And we need to know it a lot

because we're often to forget it.

That means that you tell them a lot.

That means that you faithfully give to the Lord

your tithe and your offering.

And sometimes,

when you give your tithe and offering,

you're going to do without some things

that you wish you had.

You're going to do without some things

that you want.

Don't be afraid to explain the choices

that you make.

Tell your family,

a lot of people replace the tithe

with another vehicle.

A lot of people replace the tithe

with recreational toys.

Or they take weekend outings

that we don't take.

Or they get another house.

We don't do those things.

We give to the Lord.

He provides our needs.

Could we have more stuff?

Yes.

But we believe everything that we have

is the Lord's.

And that we ought to honor Him with it.

Kids will trust the Lord

and watch Him provide our every need.

That needs to be a shining lamp

in your house at all times.

At every meal,

in every trip,

in every good gift along the way,

and every time you cannot get exactly

what you want,

you need to be reminded

and you need to remind those around you,

God provides.

We can trust in God.

He'll provide.

He'll take care of it.

So be clear to your family.

God's not taking what I give to Him.

I give it to Him.

I give Him cheerfully to God

because I want to bless God.

God's blessed me.

And there's no ties to this.

I don't give so that God will get me out of a hole.

That's prosperity theology

and it's not in Scripture.

No, you give to God because you trust Him.

You give to God because you love Him.

You give to God because He's been more generous to you

than He ever should have been.

And so therefore we give faithfully to God

because I want to bless God.

Not because I owe Him everything

because I couldn't give Him anything anyway.

There's nothing I got that would be enough

to repay what Christ has done for my life.

So I give out of obedience to Him

because He tells me to

and I also give it because

I want to bless the Lord with what I have.

He's given us all we have

and I want to be an obedient blessing to Him.

And I think that

your left hand don't need to know

what your right hand's doing.

I believe you ought to give in confidence to the Lord

and leave it between you and the Lord.

But at the same time,

without the details,

you need to share with your family

and you need to let them know

what God gives to us

has been entrusted to us by God

and we give back to Him obediently

and we trust Him for the difference.

And if you don't do that,

you should do that

because you can do that.

You can trust Him for the difference.

I promise you.

Expose Him to His care.

Expose Him to His lead.

Expose His lead.

Psalm 119, 105 says,

Your word is a lamp to my feet

and a light to my path.

Not only do you give God the credit

for everything in your family,

but you teach your children to look to the Lord

and to praise the Lord as you watch Him work.

But you also look to the Lord

in the decisions that you make.

Something is going to guide you

in the decisions that you make.

And that might be money.

And that might be opportunity.

And that might be power.

And that might be popularity.

It might be good old mammon.

And mammon is a transliterated Greek word

that speaks of the stuff

that we accumulate

because of the money that we make.

That's your stuff, you know.

The stuff you don't want nobody messing with.

That's your mammon, you know.

That stuff you save up for and you get,

you know,

and you treasure that,

that's your mammon.

That's your stuff.

Stuff's fun.

It can also be very deceptive.

I love what Lou Holtz said.

I heard him say one time,

he said,

if you want to be happy for an hour,

eat a steak.

If you want to be happy for a day,

play golf.

I bet he ain't played with me,

but anyway.

If you want to be happy for a week,

go on a cruise.

It's kind of like a prison with good food.

You can't go anywhere.

If you want to be happy for a month,

buy a car.

If you want to be happy for a year,

win the lottery.

But if you want to be happy for a lifetime,

you put your faith in the Lord Jesus

because he'll never let you down.

My friend,

that is so very true

and you don't need anything

to get in the way of your devotion to the Lord.

So,

be careful that your mammon

or your stuff

doesn't dictate your life.

And the best way to ensure that

is that God stays at the center of your life

and your family's life

is to keep the word of God

at the center of your life.

Let the word of God

light your path.

Let your family know

who leads the way.

It's a dark world,

but the word of God

empowered by the spirit of God

will navigate us

through it.

Jesus said in John 12,

John 12:35

verse 35,

he said,

the light is among you

for a little while longer.

Walk while you have light,

lest darkness overtake you.

The one who walks in the darkness

does not know

where he's going.

Parents,

let the word of God guide you every day.

Listen,

I'm glad you're here.

We got great attendance

for a middle of the summer

in June.

Not a special day.

Father's Day was great attendance.

I appreciate you being here

if you were here.

If you wasn't here,

shame on you.

I hope it was something extraordinary.

But now,

I'm glad you're here.

But I want to be clear.

I'll do everything I can

to encourage you

and to strengthen you

in God's word

every time you come

in these doors.

I'll do everything I can,

but I promise you

it's not enough.

You need the word of God

in your life daily

because when you go out

at these doors,

you'll face the world.

If you don't cut on

some ball game this afternoon,

you'll watch the news

or you'll watch

how somebody

takes care of their mammon

or whatever.

We'll immediately

get right back

in the world.

And

six more days of that

before we ever get

any spiritual nutrients

is not enough.

you'll be spiritually depleted.

You need a plan

and a pattern

in your life

to spend time

in God's word

daily

and you need

to tell your children

how you can,

they can trust

God's lead.

And when you do,

I want you to watch.

God will light your path.

He'll light your path

for your family.

Even in the midst

of the ever-surrounding

darkness,

God will light the path.

Not only spend time

in the word of God,

but share what he shows you

to your family.

Share it.

Just this past week,

I was,

Abby is here this week

and she is in the car

with me

and she was charging

her phone

and the phone

wouldn't charge

and her mother

had problems

with that cord.

Abby said,

the problem is

there's a short

in this cord.

But she said,

Daddy,

I know where

some more cords are.

They're down

in your chair

in the den.

But this is what she said.

She said,

they're down

in that Jesus chair.

I had never

called it that.

But she knows.

She knows.

That every morning

I get a cup of coffee

and I sit in that chair

and I read God's word

and I pray for my family

and I pray for my church.

And I don't know

what she meant by that.

But when I said it,

when I heard her say it,

I thought,

Lord,

may some of that

trickle down

and let her know

that her daddy needs

the word of God

daily.

expose them,

folks.

Expose them

to the darkness.

And I don't mean,

please don't get this wrong.

Ephesians 5

lets us know

where we've come from.

And as Christians,

I'm not going to read

the whole chapter.

You can this afternoon.

But how God

has changed us.

Ephesians 5 tells us

it challenges us

to live that way

that God has changed us.

And Paul tells us

to walk as children

of light

and to try to discern

what's pleasing

to the Lord.

And he goes on

to explain that

we are to expose

the darkness.

Call it for what it is.

Live a life

contrary to the darkness

of the world.

He then tells us

to watch how we walk.

Ephesians 5,

15 through 17

says this.

Look carefully then

how you walk.

Not as unwise

but as wise

making the best use

of the time

because the days

are evil.

Therefore do not

be foolish

but understand

what the will

of the Lord is.

Listen.

When we shed light

in our daily walk

we expose

the wrong

in the world

by not participating

in it.

By not pandering

to it.

Don't get lost

in this world folks.

Not parading it

before our kids.

We serve

a holy God

and we are

to strive

to be holy

and that word

means set apart

for his purposes.

We don't wonder

in the dark

and the only way

to keep from

wondering in the dark

is to stay near

the light.

You better pay

attention to that.

I love the old hymn.

Not all of it

but I love this verse.

It says this.

Prone to wonder Lord.

I feel it.

Prone to leave

the God I love.

Here's my heart.

Oh take

and seal it.

Friend

if you don't

pay attention

to the traps

of darkness

you will wonder

right into them

and you'll take

your dear family

with you.

See it

for what it is.

The evil one

is at work

around us.

Don't fall

for that.

Don't take

your kids

down the wrong way.

Don't be

permissive

in what you

allow them

to venture

into.

Don't do it.

It's not worth it.

You have to

recognize the darkness

for what it is

and then call it

for what it is.

Expose it

to your family.

The will of God

is that we live

for the Lord

and by doing that

we expose

our family

to what is right.

We expose

them to his care.

We expose

them to his lead.

His will

is also

to stay away

from what is

dark

and ungodly.

Don't bring

that garbage

in your home.

Don't encourage

it.

Don't allow it.

Don't be silent

about it.

Expose

the darkness.

Call it

for what it is.

Please.

Because if you

don't

this world

will get us

in a whirlwind

friend.

We'll lose

our train

of thought.

We'll head

the wrong way.

Lastly,

expose

the truth.

Expose

the truth.

Jesus made

it clear

in Matthew

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5

that we are

to spread

the light

of the love

of God.

That's not

only speaking

of philanthropy

and charity

work.

It speaks

of the gospel.

It don't

do any good

to do a bunch

of nice things

for somebody

and then let

them go to hell

without ever

hearing the gospel.

it speaks

of the gospel

and Jesus

is the only

way to heaven.

John 14

6

he said

I'm the

way the

truth and

life and

no man

comes unto

the father

but by

me.

You need

to talk

about that.

Start

with your

family.

Mix

it in

with the

provisional

talk.

How God

provides.

Keep it

coming.

Think about

the stuff

that you

see on

TV.

Think about

the stuff

you hear

in songs.

See others

do.

Even watch

us do.

Either it

is consistent.

The other

day we were

in the car.

I talked

about my

radio station

last Sunday.

I'm going to

get into that

again but a

song came

on.

We were in

the car and

a song came

on.

It's a

horrible song.

It's horrible.

I said

girls have

y'all ever

paid attention

to that song.

Debbie said

let me tell

you about

that song

daddy.

She said

you gave

me permission

to buy

that song

on Apple

Music

years ago

without

listening to

it.

And then

when you

heard it

you went

what are

you doing

with that

song?

What are

you doing

with that?

Don't you

dare play

that song.

And what

I'm saying

is folks

if we go

to sleep

we don't

pay attention

to what

we're doing.

we expose

others to

things that

they don't

need to be

exposed to.

Think about

the stuff

that you

watch on

TV.

Think about

the stuff

you hear

in songs.

Think about

the stuff

you see

others do.

Think about

the stuff

you even

watch others

do.

And either

it is

consistently

bad

those

things

or it

is

inconsistently

good

because

none of

us are

perfect.

And so

that's

why

your

family

needs

the

gospel

just

washed

over

them

again

and

again.

Combat

the world's

influences

with the

gospel.

You see

a mean

man

somewhere

that man

needs

Jesus.

You see

a mad

woman

somewhere

that woman

needs

Jesus.

You see

somebody

that's

messed up

on the

street.

We saw

a guy

the other

day in

Pickens

was riding

down the

road

he's having

a fight

with himself.

I think

he won

but he's

having a

fight

with himself.

You know

what he

needs?

He needs

Jesus.

That's

what he

needs.

Tell

him

folks

need

Jesus.

Shed

light

on

every

dark

situation

and

let me

remind

you

of where

we

started.

You are

the light

of the

world.

A city

set on

a hill

cannot be

hidden.

Nor do

people light

a lamp

and put

it under

a basket

but on

a stand

and it

gives

light to

all

in the

house.

In the

same way

let your

light shine

before others

so that they

may see

your good

deeds

and give

glory to

your Father

who is in

heaven.

let me

point out

that the

light

of God's

love

is to

give

light

to

all

the

house

not

just

at

supper

with

the

memorized

prayer

not

just

at

bedside

for a

good

night

prayer

let

it

be

the

whole

house

let

it

be

out

in

the

yard

whatever

you're

doing

as

God

gives

you

opportunity

point

your

family

to

the

Lord

shed

light

on

the

greatest

truth

shed

light

through

this

church

and

I

know

I'm

talking

about

family

but

your

family

will

be

drastically

impacted

by

your

church

your

family

will

be

drastically

impacted

by

your

involvement

in the

church

or

your

lack

of

involvement

in the

church

so

make

it

a

priority

in

revelation

the

message

of the

church

is

seen

as

a

golden

lamp

stand

and

John

relays

the

message

of

Christ

to

the

church

of

Ephesus

that

was

not

living

fervently

for the

Lord

they

wasn't

horrible

they

just

wasn't

doing

some

things

right

and

they

were

living

a

compromised

life

they

had

they

had

one

foot

in

the

world

and

one

foot

in

step

with

God

now

think

about

this

for

a

minute

if

I've

got

one

foot

on

the

bank

of

the

river

and

I've

got

the

other

foot

in

the

river

where

am

I

at

am

I

on

the

bank

or

am

I

in

the

river

I'm

already

wet

folks

I'm

in

the

river

and

the

reality

is

you

can't

you

can't

live

for

the

world

and

live

like

the

world

you'll

live

like

the

world

period

you've

got

to

keep

a

balance

there

in

your

life

to

not

be

half

way

not

be

compromised

when

you

live

a

compromised

life

you

are

living

in

and

of

the

world

and

do

you

know

what

the

Lord

told

the

church

of

Ephesus

about

their

compromised

life

in

Revelation

Revelation 2:5

2

verse

5

he

said

remember

therefore

where

and

do

the

works

you

did

at

first

if

not

I

will

come

to

you

and

remove

your

lampstand

from

its

place

unless

you

repent

in

other

words

what

he

was

saying

is

you

will

lose

your

witness

if

you're

to

shed

light

on

things

I'll

take

your

lampstand

you'll

lose

your

witness

now

listen

he

might

have

been

talking

about

the

preacher

they'd

lose

a

preacher

but

bigger

than

the loss

of

the

preacher

is

the

loss

of

the

witness

don't

lose

your

witness

do

not

burn

out

the

Olympics

of

trials

have

started

and

we

were

in

Indianapolis

a week

ago

and

man

they were

talking

about

how

we

were

there

one

week

there was

11,000

messengers

and their

families

and so

we were

there

one

week

the

next

week

was

going

to

be

the

Olympic

swim

trials

and

then

Taylor

Swift

was

coming

and so

man

all up

and up

were

about

all

of

it

and

now

that

they've

been

swimming

this

week

I've

seen

it

on

TV

and

they're

right

down

the

street

from

where

we

were

and

all

that

stuff

the

Greeks

had

a race

in their

ancient

Olympic

games

that was

unique

the

winner

was not

the

runner

who

finished

first

the

winner

was

the

runner

who

finished

with

his

torch

still

lit

and that's

what our

job

is

we

will

light

our

world

when we

expose

his

care

shed light

on the

provision

and promise

of the

Lord

talk about

it

tell them

about the

days

before they

were born

tell them

about the

hard times

tell them

how you

had to rely

upon the

Lord

how God

provided for

you when

you relied

upon the

Lord

expose

them to

his

lead

follow

his

lead

and shed

light

on his

path

and talk

about that

talk about

how you're

going to

trust the

Lord

with this

talk about

how you're

going to

trust God

to provide

for that

expose

them to

the

darkness

shed

some light

on what

in the

world's

going on

call an

ace

an ace

call a

spade

a

spade

expose

the

truth

and let

me be

clear about

something

the truth

is a

person

when

somebody

says

well my

truth

is this

that's

hogwash

my

truth

there is

the

truth

period

your

marginalized

relative

thinking

is not

real

truth

it's

compromised

truth

is a

person

and his

name is

Jesus

and you

need to

share

the

truth

you

need to

share

Jesus

with your

children

and then

just live

it

before

them

with every

head bowed

and every

eye closed

I want

you to know

something

it ain't

too late

it's not

too late

some of

you may

have

listened

today

and looked

back

and see

mistakes

that you

made

along the

way

I want

you to

know

you still

got

influence

you still

got

influence

you

got

influence

on the

kids

in your

home

you got

influence

on the

grandkids

that see

you from

time to

time

or maybe

a lot

you've got

influence

on the

kids in

this

church

just a

couple

of weeks

ago

we had

dozens

of kids

in here

for

vacation

Bible

school

learning

of the

truths

of God's

word

several

of them

wrote

down

they want

to know

more

what it

means

to give

their

heart

and

life

to

the

Lord

Jesus

we have

a job

to do

folks

and

the

most

basic

thing

we can

do

and

the

best

thing

we can

do

is

just

live

our

faith

out

before

folks

live

it

out

live

it

privately

and

then

live

it

publicly

and

you

can't

have

one

without

the

other

it's

not

real

if

you

try

to

do

it

public

and

don't

do

it

private

and

if

you

do

it

private

and

it's

real

it's

going

to

come

out

it's

going

to

be

seen

so

tell

folks

about

it

don't

have

them

wonder

what

the world

is

different

about

him

what's

different

about

her

don't

make

them

ask

that

question

tell

them

the

difference

that

Christ

has

made

in

your

life

so

this

day

I'm

telling

you

today

let's

just

say

Lord

Jesus

I

want

to

live

from

you

from

this

day

forward

there

are

patterns

in

my

life

there

are

habits

in

my

life

maybe

even

strongholds

in

my

life

that

I

need

to

change

and

today

dear

God

I

commit

to

change

them

and

I

ask

that

you

help

me

to

influence

others

but

God

do

a

work

in

me

maybe

you're

here

this

morning

and

you've

never

accepted

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

you've

never

asked

him

into

your

heart

you've

never

confessed

your

sins

to

God

you've

never

come

into

relationship

with

Christ

and

I

want

you

to

know

that

opportunity

is

here

for

you

today

today

is

the

day

of

salvation

there's

any

yearning

in

you

at

all

to

come

to

the

Lord

you

didn't

come

up

with

that

on

your

own

that's

God

doing

that

he's

working

in

you

he's

drawing

him

to

himself

to

himself

so

you

respond

to

that

in

obedience

we'd

love

to

guide

you

in

what

it

means

to

give

your

heart

and

life

to

the

Lord

Jesus

maybe

you're

here