Fatherhood: A Fortress For The Family, Part 8

I want to welcome you, you let me start out telling us that one over again. I want to welcome you to another Wednesday evening as we study God's Word together. I'm glad that you're able to come and tune in and hear Some of the great truths of the scriptures. I just want to let you know that tomorrow Patrick and I will do a QA Some of you have submitted questions, so we want to answer those questions for you So, we're going to do that tomorrow, and hopefully, you can tune in for that as well

But tonight, we're going to continue our study on fatherhood, a fortress for the family, how the father is that Strength, that shield, that protector for his family And I hope that you're learning these things. I hope that you're applying these things to your life You know, David said these words, so good, so good, in 2 Samuel 23, verses 3 and 4 Listen to the words of King David's last words

He says, The God of Israel said, The rock of Israel spoke to me: He who rules over men righteously, who rules in the fear of God, is as the light of the morning when the sun rises. A morning without clouds, when the tender grass springs out of the earth through sunshine after rain He talks about the refreshment that righteous, godly leadership brings to a nation

Can you imagine how much refreshment it would bring to your family if you ruled righteously? If you ruled justly, if you led in a way that was honoring to our Lord, can you imagine the springs of joy that would erupt in your home? That's my prayer for you. as we try to understand this for that fathers bring to their family We told you that you need to focus on life's priority That was number one As you focus on life's priority, you abstain from all iniquity You run away from sin And then we went on to look at the third principle, which was to treasure your legacy

As you begin to treasure your legacy, you as a father Begin to live a life that truly honors the Lord and that truly brings refreshment to your family And that's what we want to see happen Then you honor your family Having honored your family, you embrace God's sovereignty, you renew your spirituality And tonight, I want to show you how you hold fast your integrity Hold fast your integrity The fact that you're believable The fact that you're credible The fact that everything matches That is, what happens on Sunday matches with what happens on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday

What happens at home matches what happens at work Integrity is wholeness It's completeness Paul would mention it this way in Ephesians chapter 4 When he says that we are to walk worthy of our calling, he says, I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called In other words, your position in Christ is to be equal to your practice in Christ There should be no difference between the two And as you begin to live out your Christianity, you're living it out in such a way that it matches who you are in Christ Jesus

Walking worthy of your call Interesting that Job, we talked about him earlier, was a man who lived a blameless and righteous life, who walked in his integrity In fact, his wife said Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die Why do you continue to hold fast a complete life? That was her question. A whole life. A life that's worthy of its calling Just curse God and die But Job did not want to compromise his integrity He wanted to hold fast To that blameless kind of life The kind of life that you can't hold anything against That is, there's nothing you can charge to one's account

That will bring a blot upon his life in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord You want to live a wholesome life. A beautiful life The one that brings refreshment, as David would say in Second Samuel chapter 2 See, David became the standard for the kings He became the standard for all the good kings Jeroboam became the standard for all the evil kings and bad kings David said this in 2 Samuel 22, verse number 22

He said, For I have kept the ways of the Lord. and have not acted wickedly against my God for all his ordinances were before me and as for his statutes, I did not depart from them. I was also blameless toward Him, and I kept myself from iniquity Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness before Him With the kind, thou dost show thyself kindness With the blameless, thou dost show thyself blameless

In other words, David says, as he begins to depart from this world, that I have not departed from your words and your statutes. I have kept them. I have been blameless before you That's the life of integrity That's one who would hold fast his integrity And he became the standard for all the righteous kings He was always measured, or all the kings were measured by that standard, the standard that David provided for them Likewise, Jeroboam He became the standard for all the evil kings because he caused Israel to sin Interesting that Jeroboam, he began well

Remember, he was put into office because of King Solomon King Solomon in First Kings chapter 11 says that Jeroboam was a valiant warrior When Solomon saw that a young man was industrious, he appointed him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph Why? He saw something in Jeroboam that was unique and special And so the prophet Ahia would come to him and begin to prophesy He would tear his cloak and give ten parts of it to Jerob, and the other two parts would be kept back for Rehob

The descend of Solomon, because he would reign over Judah, there would be a divided kingdom after Solomon's death Under Saul, David, and Solomon, there was a united kingdom But because of the sins of Israel, there now would become a divided kingdom But Jeroboam was given this promise It says, and I will take you, and you shall reign over whatever you desire And you shall be king over Israel This is what the prophet said was going to happen to Jeroboam with the northern kingdom

Then it will be that if you listen to all that I command you, and walk in my ways, and do what is right in my sight, by observing my statutes and my commandments, as my servant David did Then I will be with you and build you an enduring house as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you This was the promise given to Jeroboam by God through the prophet Ahia All you have to do is abide by my word, as your father David did Follow in his footsteps. I will give you what you desire You will be king over all Israel That was the promise But Jeroboam didn't do that He caused Israel to sin

And so, because he caused Israel to sin, over in First Kings chapter 14 It says this about Jeroboam You have not been like my servant David Remember, David was a standard for all the good kings Who kept my commandments and who followed me with all his heart to do only that which is right in my sight You also have done more evil than all who were before you, and have gone and made for yourself other gods and molten images to provoke me to anger and have cast me behind your back

Therefore, behold, I am bringing calamity upon the house of Jerob, and will cut off from Jeroboam every male person both bond and free, in Israel, and I will make a clean sweep of the house of Jerob, as one sweeps away dung until it is all gone How sad is that But Jeroboam was the first of 19 kings in the northern kingdom, and all of them did evil None of them did that which was right in the eyes of their father David The Lord God of Israel And so therefore, God says, You have followed after Jeroboam, who caused Israel to sin But David was a righteous king

He walked in the ways of God, kept the statutes of God, and served his God Because David was one who walked in integrity His life was blameless It wasn't that he never sinned He did sin But he repented when he did In other words, there was a certain aspect to David that made him a unique king, that caused him to say to his son Solomon, If you lead this way, he will be such a refreshment To the people of Israel That's what they need That's what your family needs So I want to charge you with this, men, to hold fast your integrity

Stand firm in living a life of wholeness, completeness, where everything about your practice matches your position, your high calling, your Heavenly calling, your holy calling in Christ Jesus our Lord Daniel was one like that Remember Daniel? It says this about Him because the way he lived his life It says in Daniel chapter six that David possessed an extraordinary kind of spirit

And it says the comm and the sat began trying to find a ground of accusation against Daniel in regard to govern affairs, and they could find no ground of accus or evidence of corruption, inasmuch as he was Faithful, and no negligence or corruption was to be found in him Wow, what a tremendous testimony Daniel had There was nothing about him, nor was there anything in him that they could hold to his account, because Daniel was a blameless man He was a man who walked in his integrity, who served the Lord God of Israel in that capacity That's what God wants for you That's what God wants for me

That's why Solomon would say in Proverbs 20, verse number 6 Many a man proclaims his own loyalty But who can find a faithful man? Who can find a trustworthy man? Then in verse number seven, he says, A righteous man walks in his integrity, and how blessed are his children after him The blessing of your children falls in line because you have walked in your integrity You have not compromised the truth of God's word You have held fast that which you know to be true You've matched your pos and your practice You 've walked worthy of your call That's what God wants for you

That's what God wants for me For that to happen, you must watch over your heart Guard your heart with all diligence That's what Solomon says to his son in Proverbs chapter 4, verse number 23 Watch over your heart with all diligence, for out of it Flow all the issues of life Out of your heart springs life And if your heart is evil, Then it springs forth evil things But if your heart is righteous, it springs forth righteous things That's why over in Proverbs 23, verse number 7, it says, As a man thinks in his heart, so is he So guard your heart Protect your heart

Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that our heart is deceitful and desperately wicked No man can know it Only God knows your heart That's why Proverbs 21, verse number 2 says, Every man is righteous in his own eyes, but it's the Lord who weighs the heart We're all righteous in our own eyes, but it's God who examines the heart It's God who weighs the heart It's God who tries the he. 1 Samuel:

God says to Solomon or to Samuel, excuse me, I have sought for a man who seeks after my heart. I've looked for a man who wants my kind of heart, a righteous heart. 1 Samuel 16, 7 man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the he So, tonight I want you to be challenged with the fact that you need to guard your heart Watch over your heart with all diligence Because that's the kind of heart That's a life of integrity that matches pos with practice There 's a wholeness about your life

Your life is screaming equality from church to home to workplace to play to whatever you do, wherever you go, it's all one and the same There is no difference in your life That's what God wants for you Hold fast your integrity To do that, you have to guard your heart So I ask you this question: Have you guarded your heart? Have you guarded your heart? So important So, how do you guard your heart? How do you have a guarded he? First of all, a guarded heart is a God-given he It 's a God-given heart In other words, God has given you a certain kind of heart Remember what the prophet Ezekiel said

The prophet Ezekiel, so important in Ezekiel chapter 36, when he talks about the new covenant In Ezekiel chapter 36, our Lord says this: For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land, he's speaking to Israel And then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean, and I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols

Moreover, I will give you a new heart. and put a new spir within you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh, and I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances That's the new covenant It's all about a clean heart, a heart that God gives you You see, a guarded heart is a God-given heart It's a clean heart It's the heart that God Himself Gives to those who follow him in obedience and want to honor his life

Psalm 14, verse number 1, Isaiah chapter. 53, verse number 1: A fool has said in his heart, There is no God The foolish man says, There is no God But the righteous man says, No, my heart's been cleansed by God. I have a clean heart. I walk in the ways of God Jeremiah 29:1 says that you will seek me and you will find me when you search for me with all of your heart That's what God does As He draws you to Himself, you begin to seek Him It's a God-given kind of heart, a heart that's guarded because it's the peace of God Rules in your heart That's what Paul says in Colossians 3, verse number 15

Let the peace of God rule in your heart Let it be the umpire in your heart Because it's that which guards the heart, protects the heart That's why Philippians 4, 6, and 7 says Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplic with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God and the God of peace The God of peace will cause your heart to ab with all kinds of peace beyond any kind of comprehension That's what God does, because He guards your hearts and minds It's a God-given kind of heart Remember Lydia in Acts:, it says that the Lord opened her heart

To be able to guard your heart, it must be a God-given heart You must be born again You must have a clean spirit washed in the blood of the Lamb. A guarded heart is a God-given heart. A guarded heart is an und heart It's undivided There is no duplicity There is no hypocrisy, because there's nothing but loyalty in that heart Psalm 86 Psalm 86, verse number 11 The psalmist says these words Teach me thy way, O Lord, and I will walk in thy truth Unite my heart to fear thy name. I will give thanks to Thee, O Lord my God, with all of my heart, and will glorify Thy name forever

Unite my heart, O Lord, to fear thy name In other words, the psalmist doesn't want a divided heart He doesn't want a heart that's been separated He doesn't want any distractions in his life He doesn't want there to be disruption in his life, division in his life, doubt in his life He doesn't want to be a double-minded man who James says is unstable in all of his ways Not just some of his ways, but all of his ways Because he's asked the Lord to unite his heart He's the kind of person that has an und heart Matthew 6:2, right? You can't serve two masters

Because you're going to hold to the one and despise the other one You need to have an undivided heart That's the guarded heart It is completely loyal to God You've given all of your heart to God, not just partial parts You've given everything to God It's a united heart You're crying out, O Lord, unite my heart to fear only your name, because I want to walk in your truth. I want to be a whole man. I want my Practice to match my position That's what you want. A guarded heart is a God-given heart, is an undivided heart, is an armed heart, an armed Heart, your arm for battle

How many times have we said over the years that when you wake up, you go to war, you're going to battle, and you must be prepared to fight that battle And so there's this offensive weapon in Ephesians 6 that God gives you It's called the sword of the Spirit How do you arm yourself for battle? All the other pieces of the soldier's warfare Are used to defend off the enemy But the offensive weapon is the sword of the Spirit It's the Word of God That's why when the Lord God was tempted on the Mount of Temptation there in the wilderness, He used the Word of God to ward off Satan's temptations

Because he would take Satan back to Scripture to show him, show you and me This is how we ward off the enemy with the sword of the Spirit, the word of the Lord That's the only offensive weapon you have Nothing else. I have treasured your word, O Lord, in my heart, that I might not sin against thee It's a sword of the S That God wants us to use to fight out the enemy Are you armed for battle? Is as Paul says in Colossians 3:1, let the word of Christ be at home in your heart Let it dwell in you richly You know, God's word is everything

And you need to be able to muster up what you have memorized and what you meditated upon during times of temptation and say, yes, but the word of the Lord says this You're going to succumb to temptation if you're not strong in the Lord and in the power of His might If you're not a man of the Word, if you don't let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly God's word must engulf you. A guarded heart is a God-given heart It is an undivided heart It is an armed heart. I know I'm going to battle. I need the sword of the Spirit. I need the Word of God to win

The victory over temptation. A guarded heart is a repentant heart. A repentant heart How do you guard your heart? You confess your sin That's what David did David was a blameless man He was a righteous man It doesn't mean he was a sinless man It doesn't mean he never sinned He did sin But he repented of his sin That's what's so important Psalm 51: Create in me a clean heart, O Lord, and renew a right spirit within me Psalm 32 is his cry of prayer amidst his fallenness with Bathsheba And when he cried out to the Lord, the Lord cleansed him He had a repentant he. A repentant heart is a clean he

God uses clean vessels Because those hearts are the guarded kind of hearts To this man will I look, Isaiah 6, 2, to him who is broken and of a contrite heart, who trembles at my word That 's the repentant heart. A crushed A broken spirit, as it says in Psal thirty four, number eighteen It's the pure in heart that see God, Matthew 5, verse number 8 And the pure in heart is the rep Heart That's the guarded heart He is so sensitive to sin If there's any inkling of sin in his life, he confesses it He turns to God

He turns from the evilness of all of his ways and follows God. A guarded heart is a God given heart, an undivided heart, an armed heart, a rep heart, a disciplined Heart, a disciplined heart Proverbs twenty three, verse number twelve, says these words Apply your heart to discipline and your ears to words of wisdom, words of knowledge Apply your heart to discipline Discipline, as we said last week, is not easy, but you must apply your heart To discipline Proverbs twelve, twenty-se

Man 's most precious possession is his diligence. A disciplined heart is a determined heart. A disciplined heart is a diligent heart. A disciplined heart is a devoted heart It is a dedicated he In fact, the disciplined heart says no more than it ever says yes It's always saying no You ever like during this quarantine, you know, you're probably called the quarant, probably gonna put on 10 pounds, right? That 's because you didn't say no enough You got to say no to that dessert You got to say no to that snack That's a disciplined life

You've got to say no more than you're ever going to say yes. because you're saying no to temptation every single day But that takes discipline, and the guarded heart is a disciplined heart And the psalmist would ask for the Lord to give him that kind of heart That would not waff when it came to the truth of God's holy word We're to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our mind, with all of our strength, with all that we have That's the disciplined, devoted, diligent life

The guarded heart is a God-given heart, an undivided heart, an armed heart, a repentant heart, a disciplined heart It is an examined heart. I'm going to guard your heart You discipline it, you examine it We talked about this last week: self-examination, right? Remember what it says over in Psalm 26, verse number 1: Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity And I have trusted in the Lord without wavering Examine me, O Lord, and try me Test my mind and my heart For thy loving kind is before my eyes, and I have walked in thy truth That 's the exam heart

Listen, the exam heart is always open for scrutiny Always It welcomes scrutiny It welcomes questioning It welcomes exam Because you want to walk in your integrity You want to be like Daniel, live a blameless life, like David, like Job, living a life Of blamelessness Abraham, same way, a life of blamelessness There is nothing that you can hold to charge that one person With a blight of sin upon his life that he continues to engage in Because when he sees his sin, he confesses it, he repents, he turns From that wicked way, He disciplines His heart He disciplines His mind to follow the Lord God

He does it through examination That's the guarded heart. A God-given heart, an undivided heart, an armed heart, a repentant heart, a disciplined heart, an examined heart That is the delighted heart, a guarded heart Lives in joy and delight Proverbs 11, verse number 20. I love this Proverbs 11, verse number 20, the perverse in heart are an abomination to the Lord, but the blameless in their walk, those who live a life of integrity, They are God's delight That's what a delighted heart has It has the delight of God God delights in you Boy

What better life to live than to live a delighted life? That's the guarded heart It's so precious That's what God wants for you Over in Psalm thirty-seven Psalm 37, verse number 4 says this: I sought the Lord, he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears They looked to him and were radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed It says In Psalm 34, that we're to taste and see how good the Lord is Oh, taste and see, the Lord is good How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him That's what the life of integrity does We hold fast our integrity

We delight in the Lord God of Israel because we know that, as 1 John says, God's commands are not burdensome Listen to what it says in Psalm 15 So rich, so pure Psalm 15, verse number 1 Says, O Lord, who may abide in thy tent, who may dwell in thy holy hill, he who walks with integrity and works righteousness That's who dwells in the presence of God Those who live a blameless life hold fast their integrity That's what we're supposed to do You're going to be a fortress for your family You're going to live a life of credibility

You've got to live a trustworthy life. A life that, when your wife looks in your eyes, She sees nothing but believability She trusts you Your children trust you Your church trusts you Is that the way you are? Listen, if you're serious about this, go to your wife and say, honey, look me in the eye

Do you trust me? Do you believe me? Do I live a credible life? Do you think our children trust me? Is my word my bond? Do I live a life of integrity? Because I want to hold fast that integrity. I want to be strength for your soul. I want to be the rampart for my family, a fortress for my family. F fast your integrity You'll be just that Let me pray with you Lord, thanks for today, all that you do Lord, help the men of our church to be strong Help them to be a fortress for their family Hold fast their integrity Never waver Be one who repents from their sin

Be the person who wants to have an exam life The kind of life that's disciplined The kind of life that truly is armed for battle every day Because you've given them a special heart, one that's been cleansed in the blood of the Lamb Lord, we thank you In Jesus' name, amen We trust you'll join us this Sunday as we continue our study In abolishing anxiety, looking at the scripture and how it says that we are to rid ourselves from all kinds of fear and anxiousness It is a great stud Gather your family around you Gather your friends around you to hear the word of the Lord this Sunday

Have a great rest of the week.