Hello and welcome to our broadcast. This is number 10 in a series on learning to discern. Stay tuned for our program. Well, we mentioned in our last broadcast, if you want to learn to discern, you have to make a decision. I want to learn to discern, yes or no. It's just that simple. Yes, I want to learn to discern, or no, I do not want to learn. Well, if you want to learn, then these broadcasts are for you. The next thing after making a decision is we need to go into a direction and the only direction to go into is truth. The Bible says, Jesus said it in John 8 and 32, you shall know the truth and the truth will make you free. He said when praying to his father, he said thy word is truth. So we're going to know the truth. We need to know the Word of God. Now, in learning, that is step number one. Discerning is simply a byproduct of learning. So, we do not want to set our goal here. Our direction is not to say, okay, I'm going to learn to discern. But our goal is, I'm going to learn the Word of God, I'm going to learn the truth, and the byproduct of that is that I will have discernment. Joshua 1 and 8, for instance, says that this book shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night. He said you must also observe to do all that is written therein. Then, he said, thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Now that word success has been translated understanding 12 times. So when you get into the book, it does not depart. We meditate in it day and night. We observe to do all that is written therein. Then, he says, you will have good understanding. Well, there's a foundational rule for Bible study, and that foundational rule is that everything we look at must be taken in its context. Now, Right at the beginning we go back all the way to the book of Matthew and Jesus has his disciples up on the mountain there and He said to them in Matthew chapter 7 and verse number 14 Straight is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it Matthew 7 verse number 14 now That is probably the most violated scripture as far as taking a scripture out of context that you'll find anywhere in the Bible. Commentary after commentary, I've looked at all kinds of them, and they seem to think that this has something to do with going to heaven. This has absolutely nothing to do with going to heaven. if we look at it and look at the context. First of all, we have to ask ourselves, who is talking? Second, who is he talking to? Third, where did this take place? Then we need to ask ourselves, when did it take place and why did it take place? Six, is there a lesson here for me? And finally, the question needs to be, what am I going to do about it? Well, in this question of who is talking. Obviously, it's Christ. It says in Matthew 5 and verse 1 and 2, and seeing the multitude, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set, his disciples came unto him, and he opened his mouth, and he taught them. Now, you don't need a Bible college degree to figure that verse out. His disciples came unto him, he opened his mouth, and he taught them. So who is Christ talking to? He's talking to his disciples and only to his disciples. We know that because we read in Matthew 5 and verse 16, he said, ye are the salt of the earth. He didn't say that to the crowd. In Matthew 5 and 14, he said, ye are the light of the world. He didn't say that to the crowd. In Matthew 5 and 16, he said, Your Father, which is in heaven. He said that again in 5 and 45, 5 and 48, chapter 6 and verse 1, chapter 6 and verse 8, chapter 6 and verse 15, and chapter 7 and verse 11. He referred to their Father, which was in heaven. Now, he didn't say that to the Pharisees and the Sadducees and the hypocrites at the bottom of the mountain. He is talking to his disciples and only to his disciples. He is still speaking only to his disciples when he said, Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction. That word has been translated waste twice. and many there be which go in thereat, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Now again, that's Matthew 7, verse 13, verse 14, and these verses have absolutely nothing to do with getting saved. Why is it, then, that this verse is taken out of context and applied to the unsaved getting saved? Well, the main reason is we're too lazy to study the Bible. It is much easier to spend 10 minutes in somebody's commentary or listening to a program like this than to spend 10 hours studying the Word of God and comparing Scripture with Scripture and studying to show ourselves approved unto God, workmen that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth. We're too lazy to do that? Well, then don't expect any discernment. Now, he said it here, that it leadeth unto life, that phrase here. It is obvious that Christ is not talking about eternal life. He was talking to the people whose Father was in heaven. He said that over and over and over again. He said, Year of the Light of the World. He is talking to Christians. They already had eternal life. He was talking about the Christian's life in Christ, as it's referred to. in Romans 8 and verse number 2. He was talking about Christians walking in newness of life, as it says in Romans 6 and verse number 4. The Bible says to the Christian that the Christian is to be, if he's carnally minded, it is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace, Romans 8 and verse number 6. Well, the first thing we need to realize if we're going to get involved in learning how to discern is you're going to be in a very small group. because few there be that are interested in that. Few there be that find it, because few there are that are looking for it. Well, Christ offers no cheap discipleship. He told them, men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake, And we said, well, I don't want that. Let me just go to church and listen to a few hymns and a nice little sermon, and I'll go home and be a Christian. I don't want that, you know, like Saul was breathing out threatenings and slaughters against the disciples of the Lord. I don't want that. I don't want what they got there in Hebrews. where it said they had trial of cruel mockings and scourging, and they were in prison, and they were sawn asunder, and they were destitute and afflicted and tormented. Oh, I don't want any of that. I just want to be a nice little Christian, and I want all the benefits like going to heaven when I die, but I don't want to live for the Lord on earth. Oh, no, that's not for me. Yeah, well, then you're an abnormal Christian. That's what you are. Jesus said, If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and his mother, and his wife, and his children, and his brethren, and his sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. He said, You need to count the cost if you're going to follow me. Now, does a soldier going to war still love his father and mother and his wife and his children and his brother and his sisters? Of course he does. However, he has an urgent need here that has arisen, and he is going to sacrifice whatever he needs to sacrifice in order to take care of that need. We have preachers today who offer a no-cost discipleship, and as a result of that, we are plagued with Christians that the Bible says in Matthew 5 and verse number 13 are good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under the foot of men. Most Christians refuse the narrow way because they want to carry all their baggage that is bulging within their self-needs and their self-esteem and their self-satisfaction. Christ made it plain three times. He very plainly said to those kind of professed Christians, you cannot be my disciples. Well, he also said the Bible says in Amos 3 and 3, can two walk together except they be agreed? If we are going to walk together with Christ, it will have to be on his terms. Christ has no me first disciples. In Luke chapter 9, three men offered to follow Christ. One of them was concerned about his personal comforts. The second was disqualified because of his me-first attitude. And the third was concerned about his family more than the cause of Christ. One man said, I will follow thee, but another said, suffer me first to go and do what I want to do in Luke 9 and 59. Another said, let me first in Luke 9 and 61. Me first, I want to do what I want to do, and I just want to get all the benefits of following you on the sideline, minus the persecution." And what did Jesus say? He cannot be my disciple. Jesus said in Luke 9 and 23, if any man come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. Well, what is the conclusion of all this? We're talking about learning to discern. We're talking about, if we're going to learn to discern, we need to know the truth. If we're going to get the truth, we need to keep the scriptures in their context. And so we began by saying that there's several questions that we need to ask ourselves. Let me review those questions. If we're going to understand the context, here's the questions. Number one, who is talking to? Who is he talking to? Three, when did this take place? Four, where did it take place? Why did it take place? What lesson is here for me, and what am I going to do about it? Well, two very important questions are the last two. What lesson is here for me, and what am I going to do about it? Because unless that is a reality in our lives, we're just studying the Bible to get a head knowledge, then you can't expect to have the blessings of God from that. Again, Joshua 1.8 says, this book shall not depart out of thy mouth. Two, thou shalt meditate in it day and night. Three, thou shalt observe to do all that is written therein. Then comes the discerning, it says here. Then shalt thou make thy way prosperous. Then shalt thou have good success. Or as I said, it's been translated understanding 12 times. Discernment is a byproduct of learning. If we're going to learn things, we've got to keep them within their context. As we study to show ourselves approved, workmen that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.