In this Sabbath lesson from Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis, Brother Joshua teaches that through faith comes the fear of God, and through that fear comes obedience. The first problem, he says, is that people do not really know the living God. If they knew him they would fear him, and if they feared him they would obey him. So the lesson walks through the three steps in order: build your faith by reading who this God is, let that knowledge put his fear before your face, and out of that fear stay obedient unto death. Every passage is read in the King James Version.
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1.Nobody Really Knows the Living God
The lesson opens with the title itself and the reason behind it. Brother Joshua says he watches Hebrew brothers out in the streets arguing and even cursing at people, and it convinced him to teach this. The root of it, he says, is that people do not know the God they claim to serve. He begins in Isaiah the fifty-third chapter, picking it up at the first verse.
Isaiah 53:1-9 KJV1Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
2For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
"See, that's what Isaiah said. He said, who hath believed our report? Faith is belief. That's why it says through faith comes fear and obedience. Through your belief. And who's the arm of the Lord? That's Jesus. He ain't revealed to the world. Everybody walk around with a Roman death cross symbol on as a necklace. So everybody know Jesus died on the cross, but do you know who he is?"
"When the Lord came in the world on the mission to die for the sins of the people, he ain't come like no pretty boy. He wasn't nothing to be desired. He is despised and he was rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Nobody know who this God is. This is the living God right here. This is none other than Jesus. This who we serve. That's why I ask people, who really know the living God? And that's the saddest thing about the world, they don't know who he is."
2.My People Are Destroyed for Lack of Knowledge
Why do they not know him? Because the Bible has been taken off the table and nobody reads anymore. From Isaiah the first chapter, the Lord charges a nation that will not even consider him.
Isaiah 1:2-6 KJV2Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
3The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.
4Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.
5Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.
6From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
"See, the book ain't on the table. Nobody really read the book. How you calling on Jesus and you don't even know who he is? The ox know of his own, but Israel don't know. When people do not consider, they don't even consider, because ain't nobody opening up the book and reading it to them. The whole head is sick and the whole heart is faint. And that's us as a nation. From the sole of the foot even unto the head, there is no soundness in it. We like a wound that can't even heal, cause you ain't even got your redeemer."
Then Hosea the fourth chapter names the exact problem: there is no knowledge of God in the land.
Hosea 4:1-6 KJV1Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
4Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another: for thy people are as they that strive with the priest.
5Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother.
6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
"It ain't no knowledge in the land. Our people don't know nothing. There is no truth, no mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. How you going to call on Jesus? You don't even know him. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. See, that's why we messed up, y'all. He said because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me. And seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I'mma forget about your son, I'mma forget about your daughter. Cause you forgot about me. The Lord know how to get to you."
3.Faith Cometh by Hearing
To fix the lack of knowledge, you have to read who this God is. In Romans the tenth chapter, Paul says his heart's desire is that Israel be saved, but they have a zeal that is not according to knowledge. Then he lays out how faith actually comes.
Romans 10:13-15 KJV13For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
14How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
15And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
"Everybody call on the name Jesus, but everybody not serving the correct way. I'm reading and you not, that's where we going wrong at. You have to read his word to establish your belief. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's why that name Jesus is powerful. But how then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And that's the problem, ain't nobody opening up the book, nobody's reading."
And what gives that faith life is the word itself. From Saint John the sixth chapter.
St. John 6:63 KJV63It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
"It is the spirit that quickeneth to give life. The flesh don't profit nothing. See, this book is the words. He said the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life. This is what's going to help you establish your faith. What's going to help you establish your belief is reading the book. The more you read and the more you study, the stronger your faith get."
He gives Ezekiel as the example. Before Ezekiel could go and speak to the people, the Lord told him to eat the roll, to fill himself with the word first.
Ezekiel 3:1-4 KJV1Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.
2So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.
3And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.
4And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.
"He said, I want you to eat what thou findest. He talking about eat the book, eat the scriptures. That's what he telling Ezekiel to do. We got to eat the roll. Even if you just open your book up and read one scripture a day, eat the roll. In order for Ezekiel to go speak unto the people, he had to eat the roll first. He had to get his faith established. He had to learn about this guy first. You gonna tell them something, you don't know nothing."
4.Now Faith Is the Substance of Things Hoped For
Having shown where faith comes from, the lesson turns to what faith is. Hebrews the eleventh chapter defines it and then names the men who had it, ending with Noah, who was moved with fear.
Hebrews 11:1-7 KJV1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
2For by it the elders obtained a good report.
3Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
4By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
5By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
6But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
7By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, of things not seen. Just off of you believing in him, that's a lot with God. That is a big move. But without faith it is impossible to please him. That's why it's always the first step, establish your faith. He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and how are you going to believe that he is? By reading about him. And by faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to save him and his house. His faith saved him and his household."
Then an example of how strong that belief has to be. In Saint Matthew the eighth chapter, a Gentile centurion comes to Jesus for his sick servant.
St. Matthew 8:8-13 KJV8The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.
9For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
10When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
"He like, look, don't even try to come under my roof, I ain't even worthy enough for you to come over here. But speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. That's how strong your faith got to be in this Lord. When Jesus heard it, he marveled and said, I have not seen so great faith, no, not in Israel. So that man impressed Jesus. And as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee, and his servant was healed in that selfsame hour. He ain't know too much about nothing, but he believed."
And in Acts the sixteenth chapter, Paul and Silas are in prison at midnight singing praises when an earthquake shakes the doors loose. The keeper of the prison runs in trembling.
Acts 16:29-31 KJV29Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
30And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
31And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
"Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God, and all the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, and all the doors were open and everybody's bands were loose. And the keeper of the prison came trembling and said, sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. That's the first thing he told him, you gonna have to believe on this guy. He seen the prison doors open, he seen the bands loosed off of all the prisoners, and that was enough for him. He and his whole household got baptized."
He notes that this is the same thing his brother taught the week before on being saved, and points to Acts the fourth chapter, where about five thousand men heard the word and believed.
5.How Moses Grew in Faith
To show that faith is something a man grows into, the lesson follows Moses. When the Lord first met him at the burning bush, Moses was afraid.
Exodus 3:4-6 KJV4And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
"I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. Moses at this time, he wasn't close to the Lord like that. The Lord trying to send Moses to free his people out of the hand of Egypt, but Moses was a little shaky about it at first. He like, man, they ain't even gonna believe me. He said, I am not eloquent, I got a slow speech and a slow tongue, Lord, you might not want to use me. And he said, oh my Lord, send somebody else. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, go get your brother Aaron, cause I know he can talk well."
But that same shaky Moses did not stay that way. By Exodus the thirty-second chapter, he comes down from the mountain, finds the people worshipping the golden calf, and there is no hesitation in him.
Exodus 32:26-28 KJV26Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD’s side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.
27And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour.
28And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men.
"So remember when Moses was telling the Lord, I'm not eloquent, I got a slow speech? That ain't the same Moses no more. Moses is not playing about the Lord no more. Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, who is on the Lord's side? Let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him, and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. That ain't the same Moses that was keeping the flock of Jethro. His faith grew abundantly. And that's how ours gonna grow. The more we read and study this thing, we going to grow."
6.The Fear of the Lord Is the Beginning of Knowledge
Once your faith is established, the next step is fear. Anything you are truly afraid of, Brother Joshua says, you keep yourself away from. So if you fear the Lord, that fear keeps you from iniquity. Job the twenty-eighth chapter shows where that fear sits.
Job 28:23-28 KJV23God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
24For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven;
25To make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.
26When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder:
27Then did he see it, and declare it; he prepared it, yea, and searched it out.
28And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
"God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof. He lookth to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven. This is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He have to make weight for the wind, cause too much wind will blow a house over. And unto man he said, behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding. Once you read about him, once you learn about him, you study him, now you got your faith established. Now it's time to establish some fear."
Proverbs the first chapter says it plainly.
Proverbs 1:7 KJV7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
"The fear of the Lord, that's the beginning of knowledge. When he put the fear in you, that's when the knowledge is there. But fools despise wisdom and instruction."
And the same chapter warns what happens to those who refuse that fear.
Proverbs 1:24-29 KJV24Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
28Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
29For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:
"Because I have called and ye refused, I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded, I also will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh. When all these problems come upon you, then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer. They shall seek me early, but they shall not find me, cause I'm hiding my face from you. For they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord. Cause if y'all would have chose to fear me, y'all would have been obedient."
To show that the Lord deliberately puts his fear in his people, the lesson goes to Exodus the twentieth chapter, right after the commandments were given.
Exodus 20:18-20 KJV18And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
19And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
20And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
"All the people saw the thunder and the lightning and the noise of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, and they removed and stood a far off. They said unto Moses, speak thou with us, but let not God speak with us, lest we die. They were scared. And Moses said, fear not, for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. See, he want you to fear. He did this on purpose, he meant to do this."
And at the Red Sea, in Exodus the fourteenth chapter, the fear and the faith come together after Israel sees the Egyptians destroyed.
Exodus 14:30-31 KJV30Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore.
31And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.
"The children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand and on their left. And the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea, there remained not so much as one of them. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians. And Israel saw that great work which the Lord did, and the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord, and his servant Moses. They feared the Lord, they believed the Lord, they feared Moses and they believed in Moses."
7.If Ye Be Willing and Obedient
The fear of the Lord is what keeps a man obedient. In Acts the sixth chapter, the fruit of it shows up in the priests.
Acts 6:7 KJV7And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
"Once you establish that fear, that's what causes you to keep your obedience. Now I want to stay obedient to this guy, I don't want to cross him. And the word of God increased, and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly, and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. That's what you want to do, you want to be obedient to this guy."
Isaiah the first chapter lays out the condition for the blessing.
Isaiah 1:16-19 KJV16Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
17Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
18Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
19If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:
"Wash you, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings, cease to do evil, learn to do well. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. The Lord said, come on back to me, I'mma make it white as snow. And verse nineteen, if ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. See, that's the thing, you got to be willing, you got to be obedient."
And the pattern for that obedience is Christ himself, in Philippians the second chapter.
Philippians 2:5-8 KJV5Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
"Cause Jesus was obedient unto death. He was obedient unto death, and that's how we got to be, we got to be obedient until it's our last breath. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
The lesson closes in First Peter the first chapter, where obedience and holiness are tied together.
1 Peter 1:13-16 KJV13Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
14As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
15But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
16Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
"Gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you. And that's what hope is, hope is another form of belief. We hoping to the end. As obedient children, be ye holy in all manner of conversation, just like how he called you to be holy. Because it is written, be ye holy, for I am holy."
Closing Word
"Be ye holy, for I am holy. And that is through faith comes fear and obedience."
Brother Joshua closed the way he opened, on the three steps in order. First you build your faith by reading who the living God really is. That knowledge teaches you to fear him. And out of that fear you stay obedient, willing and holy, all the way to the end, just as Christ was obedient unto death.
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This lesson was taught at our Sabbath service at Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis, IN. Join us every Saturday at 12PM, or watch the Sabbath live online.