The Cost of Discipleship - Word (poor audio)

What does it really mean to follow Jesus as a disciple? It means more than belief. It means counting the cost of walking in the wisdom of God found in the Word of God.

In this sermon we explore the connection between wisdom and Scripture, and why true disciples must be rooted in the Word like a tree planted by rivers of water. Jesus said that abiding in Him includes letting His Word abide in us, and Psalm 1 shows us the picture of a life shaped by daily meditation on God’s truth.

But this kind of wisdom is not free. It will cost us what money cannot buy, our natural desires toward sin, our personal pursuits, and even our comfort. Yet what we gain is far greater, the wisdom of God, the fear of the Lord, and a life that bears lasting fruit.

Key Thought: The disciple must count the cost of obtaining the wisdom found in the Word of God.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
 For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

Transcript

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To go out on the streets yesterday and witness and make some connections, I heard a rumor from my wife that somebody accepted Christ. Is that true? Oh, praise the Lord. I didn't know that. What the heck? I'm so glad that that uh is a reality. And I don't know if you remember their name or not, but uh Alex. Okay, that was Alex. I for some reason did not catch that he uh gave his life to Christ. So we need to pray for Alex this morning as we get going. Um but I know there were some other great uh conversations and connections. I talked to a guy uh named Chris who was at an art fair, and uh he was pretty outspoken about being Protestant, but I don't I don't know if he actually knows the Lord. Um it's it was hard for me to tell. Uh because a lot of times the gospel is right so cluttered with good works or people wanting to be good people, and uh that's great, you know, but the Bible's pretty clear that there are none good, no, not one, unrighteous, none that seeketh after God, and so we're just in desperate need always to be humble before the Lord. And so pray for Chris, give God praise for Alex. Please pray for that uh gentlemen. I know there are other connections unspoken, so uh thank you guys. Thank you for joining. It's a pleasure to serve with you. This morning we're continuing our time uh in a series on the cost of discipleship. So, again, you should see some details for our sermon this morning on the back of the bulletin. You can see where we've been and where we are headed. And uh, it's a real simple message this morning, y'all. I'm not saying anything that uh anyone in the room I don't think will know. But hopefully I can put you in remembrance, like Peter writes in his epistle, about some things regarding what it's gonna mean for all of us to continue to grow in our understanding of who God is according to his word. And so the cost of discipleship is really a sub-series of a larger discussion we've been having on discipleship. And we we ask what discipleship is and why it's so important. What are going to be the requirements to move forward in a relationship with the Lord? Really, what the requirement is or the prerequisite of discipleship is, is being saved. You need the Spirit of God to have a relationship with God. Otherwise, as Romans chapter 8 says, you are none of his. But it is that spirit that allows us to have a conversation with the Lord, to speak with him, to pray, to go boldly before his throne, but also to understand the deep things of God. And ultimately all God's calling us to do is be faithful. Be faithful. Not just consistent and showing up to a church service, but be faithful according to the word. And so, again, you know, words of remembrance this morning. Last week we talked about this idea of counting the cost of worship. In other words, if my life is positioned or oriented, its trajectory is to give everything to God in complete surrender, then up front I have to determine what a life like that is gonna cost me, what it's gonna look like. Like to truly be a follower of Jesus, what is it going to cost? Well, the first thing we considered was that it's going to cost me worship. It's gonna cost, yes, more than nothing, but also something. And then some specific things God's gonna ask. Not just anything, but some really precious things, like he called Abraham to do in Genesis 22 and the first mention of worship. But ultimately, the cost of discipleship is gonna cost you the worship of God with your whole life because God is worthy of that. Endlessly worthy, isn't he? And so we're continuing this study now, considering this morning, what it's gonna mean for us to count the cost of spending our whole life learning more about God according to his word. And that's a big task. And I think I'm speaking to the choir here. But most churches in the states don't really care about equipping people and making them strong in the Word of God. What they'll do is they'll gather people in a room and they'll have a good time of fellowship and community, and that's what we should do. But then they'll anybody raising their hand saying, I want to go deep in my understanding of God's word, they'll say, Well, we're connected with this Bible college. You should go check that out. Maybe you should consider how God would uniquely make your life, you know, in subjection to the word by going to seminary. And I just want to say from the bottom of my heart, while we're gonna leverage resources that are in our fellowship for instruction, Lord willing, over time, this building will be a place of education in the depths of God's word. And God will have to give me grace and understanding and capacity to be able to teach the deep things of God. And I really want that because it is necessary. And on the learning, on the teaching side and on the learning side, we all have to think what is it going to take for me to count the cost of really having a handle on God's word, not only to know it for my own life, but also to instruct others. So that's our conversation this morning. Again, welcome. Again, thank you to the team. But I want us to just kind of quiet ourselves, quiet our hearts, and ask the Lord to bless our conversation this morning. Can we do that? Alright, let's go to him. Father, we love you and thank you. I pray for our time in the Word. As we open it, we consider various men, women in the scriptures. We think about your words and the significance of what they mean for us to continue to learn and follow you. Not to just have a Bible nugget or some knowledge, but to learn you and to know you and your grace more and more every day. Lord, give me strength to know at what pace to speak this morning. Uh please fill my mouth with gracious words. Um we want to hear from you, and anything that is of me, I just pray you'd help people not hear it. We want to just consider what you would have to say to us according to your word and your spirit this morning. Amen. Alrighty. Um, as I've mentioned the last few weeks, we've been working through this cost of discipleship series. We're on now the second part of uh four key areas that we're gonna look at. So we're on the second of four key areas, and those areas are gonna line up with goals that we're trying to get established in the life of believers as they raise their hand and say, I really want to know God more and want to walk with him. There are many people who claim the name of the Lord Jesus, but their life isn't reflective of that claim of those words. Claim the power of the name of Jesus. They love the idea of being a Christian, a little Christ individual. And yet their life doesn't look like Christ. They're not humble, they don't forgive, they're not sacrificial, they're not servants of all. Um they're kind of selfish. And I think it's because we actually love building an image of God that's comfortable to us. And we love creating a God in our minds that allows us to just live as we we want to live. And the God of the Bible is a loving and amazing and wonderful God who will bring you perfect peace, but he will make you uncomfortable in the flesh. You know that? He's gonna ask you to go deeper and farther and trust him for more and give more of your time and energy and efforts. And in that process, it's gonna be a little uncomfortable. And so, in the counting of the cost of learning the word of God, you have to up front consider God may have some things to say that don't line up with my perspective of him. And you've got to count the cost to learn again, maybe some things that you've had settled in your heart that aren't true. The reality is we have to take God at his word to know how to live according to how he wants us to live. A lot of sincere uh Christians in the world, but many that are still will say it this way, sincerely wrong. Good intentions aren't good enough. We can say it that way as well. A lot of people who want to live a life honoring to God, they have a great virtue in them to say, I want everything in my life to matter for the Lord Jesus. And then there's some disconnect between what that, what they think that means and what God wants them to understand. The key thought this morning is that the disciple must count the cost of obtaining the wisdom of God found only in the Word of God. So we're in a time in human history where God has revealed his mind to us in the scriptures. He's not giving new revelatory knowledge through dreams and visions. And so the way you're gonna get the wisdom of God, the way I'm gonna get the wisdom of God is not through a feeling or sensation or spiritual moment where we have a great excitement about the things of God, but when we begin to study the scriptures. And once again, there is a cost to that. So I want to draw this connection for us between the wisdom of God and the word of God. That's actually a pretty big claim, right? That to obtain the wisdom of God is to study the word of God. There are many, many churches who would not hold to that. They would say something like, to know the wisdom of God is to know the word of God and experience his presence. I mean, and yeah, that's true, but I would say to experience his presence, you need the word of God. You have to have the word of God. There's not separate, a separate category that God's operating by to give you special insight into the deep things that he wants you to know. It's the word. If his spirit is revealing something, then it's not going to be in contradiction to his word. And so I want to actually let the Bible convince you of that and show you that the wisdom of God is connected to the word of God. To first do that, I want to suggest that the disciple of the Lord Jesus is to not only abide in the vine, but uh but let his word abide in them. John chapter 15. John chapter 15 and verses 2 through 4. And then 7 through 8, it says, Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away, and every branch that beareth fruit he purgeth it, sorry, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine. No more can ye accept ye abide in me. And then it goes on in verse 7. It says, If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit. So shall ye be my disciples. So again, what does it mean for us to count the cost of becoming a disciple? It means we have to count the cost of getting the word of God inside of us, letting it abide in us. Moreover, disciples are to be fruitful as they are planting themselves by the river of God's word. And they first do that by planting themselves by the book. That's what we read in Psalm chapter, or Psalm 1 in verses 2 and 3. It says, But his delight, speaking of the blessed man, is in the law of the Lord. And in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth fruit in a season, and his leaf also shall not wither, and withers and whatsoever he uh doeth shall prosper. And if you remember or have studied the scriptures, Ephesians chapter 5 likens the word of God unto water. A husband is to wash his wife by the water of the word. So a disciple, a true disciple, is fruitful as they plant themselves by the river of the book, but also their brothers and sisters, who will also water them as a well, if they're willing to go and listen. And a disciple is to do that. They're to go to older, more mature believers and say, Teach me about what it means to understand God's word. Not just to know it, but to understand it, to live according to those truths. Proverbs 18, verse 4. It says, the words of a man's mouth are as deep waters. And the wellspring of wisdom as the flowing brook. The wellspring of wisdom as the flowing brook, the river, that creek, the deer it goes down by and drinks from. The words of a man's mouth are deep water. You may think, well, I hate deep water. That's not a good thing. Maybe that's maybe that's a bad thing. Well, Proverbs chapter 10 and verse 11. I don't think this is in your notes. Proverbs 10 and verse 11 in the first part. It says, the mouth of a righteous man is a well of life. Okay, so how do you get your life planted by the water? You've got to go get by the river and the well spring. How do you do that? Well, you get by either the book or your brothers and sisters to feed you the book. And you've got to learn in that place, and it is there that, like any tree, your roots grow deep, and you have a constant source of feeding. And that is the thing that will allow you to be fruitful as a disciple and thereby allow you to glorify God by bearing much fruit. So, again, rhetorically, the question I'm asking as we get going is Is there a connection in the Bible between wisdom and the words of God? Or the words of a man who's wise? Simply put, yes, there is. Take, for example, God's word to Israel through the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet by warning. Jeremiah chapter 8 and verse 9, it says, The wise men are ashamed. Now just hold that thought. The wise men are ashamed. There is a different type of wisdom that we'll talk about here in a moment. It says, They are dismayed and taken. Lo, they have rejected the word of the Lord, and what wisdom is in them. Okay, so because of their rejection of God's word, they are now absent. Though wise in this world, they are absent of the wisdom of God. And I want to just call your attention to James chapter 3. I made a note here. Let's turn there real quick. The end of James chapter 3 actually gives us a contrast to two different types of wisdoms that exist in the world. Now, you may know this actually from the prophetic books talking about the creation of Lucifer. It says he was made perfect in beauty and full of wisdom. And in Lucifer's pride, he actually corrupts wisdom. He corrupts wisdom. And so when you enter into the book of Proverbs and you're learning about wisdom being likened unto a woman that stands on the street at night and is provoking men to come in and be seduced by her, you're learning about, yes, God's wisdom, but you're also learning about a dark wisdom. And Solomon to his sons is trying to help them understand that. There's two different types of wisdom in this world. Look at me at the end of James chapter 3. Let's start in verse 13. It says, Who is a wise man endued with knowledge among you? Let him show forth out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. But if any have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthy, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion, and by the way, he is the author, the enemy is the author of confusion, and every evil work. Okay, but, verse 17, the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreating, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace to them that make uh to them that make peace. And so I just want you to see there that contrast between those two wisdoms, because there are sometimes in life you hear a good idea and you think, and maybe I should yield to that. Maybe I should agree with that idea. And I'm just letting you know it's provocative because it's devilish. And that counterfeit draws us in. And if we're not stable in the Word of God, if we don't have our roots in that river soil, we're gonna be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. Maybe you caught what Psalm chapter 1 said. But there's some wind that that tree is actually resilient against because of its roots. And us too, we've got to be planted in that way so that we're not tossed around by the false wisdom that is being offered to us all over the place. And marketing and philosophy and our school systems, everywhere we go. Colossians chapter 3 and verse 16. It says, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom. There's the connection again. The word of God, the wisdom of God. Let the word of Christ dwell in you all richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another, in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Our first key point for study is that obtaining the wisdom of God, which is found in the Word of God, will cost you what possessions or money cannot afford. Silver and gold have I none, Peter said. You can't buy the truth. I mean, it's actually impossible because God's giving it away for free in terms of your financial, your financials, but it will cost you something. Just nothing possessions can afford, nothing this temporal world can afford. Why? Because Proverbs chapter 8 and verse 11 says, For wisdom is better than rubies. And all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it. I've been thinking about this verse maybe more than any other in my sermon all week. For wisdom is better than rubies, and all things that may be desired. So that if that doesn't prod you to ask the question, Lord, what do I desire? And is wisdom at the very top of that list? I mean, I don't know how to poke you anymore, and I don't really want to. But that's my question to you. What do you desire? What do you want? What do you ask God for all the time? Is it wisdom? I mean. It says that it's better than all things to be desired. I mean, when we go to God and we ask, are we asking him so that he can liberally give it to us? That's what James chapter 1 says? God will. The Bible makes a promise in James 1 that God will give wisdom liberally to those that ask. Are you ready for it? Or are you asking for financial blessing? A job. And that's important. You need a job. Are you asking for stability, a relationship, other, good health? Something to happen in your family. What's the thing you want most? God says there's nothing better than wisdom. You know, this is a silly illustration, but my wife has started to learn the process of making sourdough. And I'll tell you what, a warm piece of artisan bread loaded with butter. Nothing better than that. The wisdom of God. You know, Jesus said, Man shall not live by bread alone, but every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. And this week I've just been eating some like warm, good buttery bread. I'm like, I don't know, this is pretty good. Alright, silly example, but when we really like drill down on our life and we think about the things we long for, deep down, we long for. I want to be happy. I don't want to be depressed anymore, tired of being frustrated. The Bible says there's actually something better in this life than even you not being lonely. You know, you can be lonely and have the wisdom of God. Jesus was. What do you desire? It's an important question because what God says in his word is that there's nothing better than to know his wisdom, which is from above. It's better. I don't know what that thing is. Write it down, cross it out. Put wisdom in its place. Proverbs 16 and verse 16, it says, How much better is it to get wisdom than gold? And to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver. Look at it with me. This is a longer passage, Job 28, verses 12 through 19. Job 28, 12 through 19. Could be argued that this is a full mention of wisdom. I'm not going to make that claim. But nonetheless, it speaks about it a lot, and there's a lot to learn here. Job 28, starting in verse 12, it says, But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof. Let me just push pause here. The study we're in right now on the cost of discipleship has come out of a synthesis of a bunch of word studies related to the word cost. So price, purchased, counted, reckoned, reconciled. Oh no, you can get the point. Here it is, the word price, right, brings us to a passage so that we can learn about wisdom and us needing to count the cost of it. But the passage says in verse 13, man knoweth not the price thereof, neither is it found in the land of the living. Now that's a statement. Neither is wisdom found in the land of the living. It means something has to die before you get in. You've got to die to yourself. Die to your flesh. Verse 14. It goes on and says, The death saith, it is not in me. That's because Christ has risen. Christ died and has risen again. It goes on and it says, Is not in me and the sea saith, it is not in me. Verse 15, it cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof. It cannot be valued with the gold of ophur, with the precious onyx or sapphire. The gold and the crystal cannot equal it. And the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold. Verse 18. No mention shall be made of coral or pearls for the price of wisdom is above rubies. 19. Topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, neither shall it be valued with pure gold. Whence then cometh wisdom? And where is the place of understanding? Verse 28. And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom. And to depart from evil is understanding. Okay. So if I'm going to get the wisdom of God according to the word of God, then I'm going to have to fear God. And that is the beginning of wisdom, according to Psalm 111 and verse 10. It says, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and good understanding have all they that do his commandments. His praise endureth forever. And so there's one thing to have knowledge. That's like facts. Wisdom is to have knowledge according to God's perspective. And understanding in the Word of God is to do the wisdom. That's the distinction. Knowledge, wisdom, understanding. They're not just the same word, and God's like, we've used this one too much. I need to change it up a bit for creative writing's sake. No, God's trying to teach you some things. You can know some things. You can know some things from God's perspective, wisdom, and then you can finally understand that wisdom if you begin doing what the Bible says. Discipleship's that way, right? A lot of us have a knowledge of discipleship. Others of us have a knowledge of discipleship according to God's perspective or heart. And then some of us have actually done it, or we've experienced it, and we've seen the effectiveness of somebody investing and pouring their life into us, or maybe we've seen that as we've gone out and we've invested in others. Okay, you hear the point here. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but Proverbs chapter 1 and verse 7 say it's also the beginning of knowledge. So if you see that progression, knowledge, wisdom, understanding, it means that you have to begin with the fear of the Lord to even have a knowledge of God's word. But the fools despise wisdom and instruction. The fool despises it. The fool doesn't want it because his affections and attention are given to its natural propensities. And that's your next point. Our second key point this morning is that obtaining the wisdom of God, found in the Word of God, will cost you your natural propensities. There's your spelling V contest for the morning. Propensities. Your tendencies, your sinful habits, the things you always go back to, the things you long for or want but fail to give up. Learning wisdom or obtaining the wisdom of God according to the Word is going to cause you to give those things up. It's going to cost you those things. To give up the things that you love, which are against God, and the things that you hate, which God actually loves. It could be said this way: the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. Therefore, to count the cost of discipleship is to give your fear, your little g God fears, and your concerns about things that don't matter to God. If you want to fear the Lord, you've got to begin actually realizing that He's the only thing to be feared, and all the other little things that you're worried about don't matter to God. At all. At all. Proverbs 17 and verse 16. It says, wherefore, Proverbs 17, 16, wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom? In other words, he's not looking for wisdom, and so he doesn't have any money in his hand to pay for it, seeing that he hath no heart to it. He doesn't want wisdom, and so where's his money at? He doesn't have it. Verse 24, wisdom is before him that hath understanding. But the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth. The reason the fool doesn't have money in his hand to buy wisdom is because what? In his eyes, he's looking out at this earth and he's seeing all the things that he can get for his temporal existence. But God's saying, I'm offering to you wisdom from above that's better, that's eternal, that can actually allow you to bear fruit to and through eternity. It plainly means an individual must depart from evil to begin fearing the Lord. And this is going to include us surrendering all the things that we dread and avoid. It means we should be willing to give up our constant desire to be looking for affirmation in the flesh. It means we have to give up to get wisdom, to obtain wisdom. We have to give up those natural propensities where we run to carnal desires. What it means is you're going to have to mortify the deeds of your flesh. Romans chapter 8 and verse 12. It says, Therefore, brethren, we are not, I'm sorry, we are debtors. Not to the flesh, but live after the flesh. For if we live after the flesh, ye shall die. But if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of your body, ye shall live. Proverbs chapter 8 and verse 12, it says, This is again 812, I wisdom dwell with prudence, and I find out knowledge of witty inventions. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil. To get wisdom is to get the fear of the Lord. To get the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. What is that? Pride? And arrogancy? And the evil way and the forward mouth? God says, Do I hate? Verse 14, Proverbs 8, Counsel is mine and sound wisdom. I am understanding, I have strength. Okay, so for us to count the cost of what it means to be a disciple that is established in the Word of God. In a serious manner, like to really learn God and learn His Word. It means we're gonna have to learn the fear of the Lord and ultimately hate the things that God hates. Not the things we think he's kind of cool with. I've got to give up my pride. I've got to become a humble individual. I've got to give up my arrogancy and not put confidence in my flesh and turn from the things that God hates. Once again, Psalm chapter 1. Making sure my life isn't seated with the scornful. Or those that are, you know, heiferers of God. Just as this verse said, discipleship is going to cost you pride, arrogancy, an evil way, and a forward mouth. It's going to cost you things that in your flesh you think matter. And that is including your strength. Your strength. Look again, this connection between the words of God and the wisdom of God. Psalm 19 in verse 7. And also the connection to the fear of God. Psalm 19 in verse 7, all the way through verse 11, consider all the language that is in connection with words or speech. And then see it juxtaposed to the fear of the Lord. It says the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making the wise wise and simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is thy servant worn, and in keeping them is great, there is great reward. And so again, these these words, the law, the testimony, the statutes, the commandment, the judgments, all set against the fear of the Lord. They're all connected to one another because to know wisdom is to know the fear of the Lord, and to know wisdom is to know God's word. It's all bound together. So just remember here in the second point regarding the cost of our natural proclivities, is that the process of sanctification in the Christian life is not a process where your flesh gets any better. So I want you to think about the actual work of sanctification or the work of the Holy Spirit in the Christian's life as they're perfected into the image of Christ. Sometimes we think, as I grow in my relationship with Christ, I'm going to become a better person. And in some sense that's true as you get perfected into Christ's image internally in the inner man. But you know what never gets better until you put off this incorruption? Yeah, your flesh. Your flesh, all the way up until the day you die, is going to want things that are contrary to God. Sanctification is not the process of all your temptations magically disappear. It's the process of you learning how to think about God's word properly so that you respond to the temptations rightly. Your flesh is always going to be contrary to God. And I know that's probably not encouraging. You think, man, if I was just strong in the Lord, all of my problems would go away. They won't. They will be ever strong. And in fact, as the light of God's word gets into your life, you're going to see more and more of how broken you and I actually are in the flesh. And we become frustrated. You think, God, I thought I was growing in your word. Why am I not any better? And God's like, well, I'm just showing you really what's been there all along. And that's not changing until I give you a glorified life. But what I am doing is some invisible work inside of you, teaching you how to be like me in the face of trial and temptation. That's what wisdom gets you. The opportunity to respond rightly to suffering. Wisdom. It's a strange thing, but it's going to cost you a lot. You can't buy it with money, but it'll cost you your life for sure. It's likened to that precious, that sweet honey. Isaiah chapter 5 and verse 20, though. Isaiah warns Israel, he says, Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil, that put darkness for light and light for darkness. That put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Just don't replace the sweeter word of God for some lesser wisdom. Don't do that. Don't run to things that feel better or taste sweeter because the word of God ultimately is the thing that will refresh your soul. Will be that spring in your inner man. Our third key point for study this morning is that it's going to cost you other pursuits. Obtaining wisdom found in the Word of God will cost you other pursuits. Time, energy, desires, career, whatever it might be. A lot of these things obviously have overlap, and devotionally we can consider them. Consuming our whole life and our existence. But here, specifically, I want you to consider the things you pursue, the things you actively give your time and energy to. What are you so focused on? There's a difference between desiring something and longing for it internally, and also the things you chase after, things you're entertained by, or maybe for many, it's you know a career. People get addicted to making money in this world. It's like that's not going to satisfy you. It is going to be an intentional act of you pursuing God's word that you get wisdom, not an accidental one. Can you think about it that way? The cost of getting God's word in you is not going to be accidental. It's going to take some intentionality on your part. And what that means is you're going to have to give up certain pursuits to be able to pursue God in the way that He desires. Proverbs chapter 2 and verses 1 through 7, I think give us a pretty good idea of this doctrine and this need in our life. It goes on, starting in verse 1, my son, if thou wilt receive my words, and look at the progression here, what it's going to take for this son to receive the wisdom of God. My son, if thou wilt receive my words and hide my commandment with thee, so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom and apply thine heart to understanding. Yea, if thou criest after knowledge and liftest up thy voice for understanding, if thou seekest for her as silver, again, there the currency related to what people would have made in their careers, silver. That seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures. Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God, for the Lord giveth wisdom. Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous. He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. And so there's a correction there, right? To receive the words of God is a different process than hiding the commandments of God in us. Receiving the words of God is different than inclining our ear unto wisdom, actually giving attendance to these things. There's a difference between inclining our ear to wisdom and applying our heart to it. There's a difference between applying our heart, you see the correction, crying out and saying, God, please, I need this wisdom in my life to know how to move forward. We have to lift up our voice. We have to seek for her as silver. Some in the room have careers, some are probably in the process of studying and getting careers. Just think about the amount of work that goes into getting silver in this life. Getting a paycheck. It takes work, doesn't it? The Bible says seek for wisdom that way. But the same amount of drive or passion or zeal. Do the same with the wisdom of God. But it goes on. And searches for her as for hid treasures. Now, okay, think about the amount of effort that goes into getting a paycheck, but then process this idea, okay? This week, you end up going home, and in your mailbox, you find a letter that's written. And from a long series of events, you found out that the house that you purchased actually belonged to a greater estate of a really wealthy individual. And back in the day, they didn't know how to keep their riches and their goods. And so what this gentleman did was he actually buried a massive amount of treasure in the backyard. And this letter that we've received actually said that somebody came out and surveyed and saw that there is a large mound of metal and goods somewhere here in this general area in your backyard. What are you gonna do? You're gonna leave it there? You're gonna start grabbing a shovel, you're gonna go Westlake and call your friends. Maybe you won't call your friends. You're gonna be like, I'm gonna see how much money this is first. But what are you gonna do? You're gonna, I don't know what you're doing at that moment, you're abandoning any priority that you have to say, I'm writing the back of it. I'm doing something, I'm getting that treasure out of this yard right now. You're right, everything that seemed important in the moment was pretty worthless. Because you knew that there was some treasure to be found. Okay, guys. I know we use the language. The Bible is likened, the wisdom of God likened unto a treasure. And the invitation is search for her as in treasure. Do you do I pursue God's word in that way? Often I don't. But I think it's just an opportunity for me to say to you this morning there's treasure in your backyard. And you know what, probably on your nightstand or on your kitchen table or in your backpack. And if you would just spend time digging, it'll be worth it when you're able to dig that thing up. And it's not a review, too, it's just saying there's some precious things God set out in front of us. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and verse 11 says, it says, and that ye study to be quiet and to do your own business and to work with your own hands as we commanded you. What this means is that discipleship will require that you count the cost of your fear of being lonely, as I said earlier. If you're going to study God's word, one of the things the Bible tells you is that you and I need to study to be quiet. Some of us, the greatest fear in our life is being quiet, being alone. We just are desperately wanting people around us. We don't know how to sit still, and so what we do is we fill our life with busyness, ministry activity, for those that are like really involved in a bigger church. We surround our life with music. Like everywhere we go, when we get in the car, we're putting on music. When we're at the gym, music, when we go on a run, music, when we're at work, music. When we're whatever it might be, we have no time in our life for quietness. Because I think we're afraid of it. Because we know that when we get quiet before God, we're gonna have to be honest with God about who we are. Counting the cost of getting the wisdom of God is going to mean that you have to spend, spend your life being quiet before God. Are you ready for that? Am I ready for that? To give up the noise and the busyness, to deal with the reality of my heart before living God, who's to be feared. Proverbs chapter 18 and verse 1 it says, Through desire, a man or woman, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddh with all wisdom. A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself. Do you separate yourself? Do you have a desire to separate yourself and seek and intermedle yourself with all wisdom? God's giving you that opportunity to separate yourself from social media, from entertainment, from the things that you find rest or pleasure in, and he's saying, I want to just dwell with you and spend time with you and give you wisdom if you ask. But, verse 2, again, a fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself. Our fourth key point, as we continue and even close this morning, is that obtaining the wisdom of God, found in the Word of God, will cost you your comforts. Your comforts. Maybe one you don't want to hear this morning. But it says in Ecclesiastes chapter 1 and verse 18, for in much wisdom is much grief. And he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow. One of the things that you're gonna have to count the cost of as a discipleship is getting to the place where you realize that as you get closer to God's heart and his word, you will become broken over the same things he's broken for. And as you go about this world, you will be walking around with a burden. Now, with the Lord Jesus, it's a burden that's light. It's not the burden of sin or darkness or the pain of being lost. It's a burden that's ever growing, and that you ever get an opportunity to be in fellowship with God. But nonetheless, Jesus isn't taking away your burden. He's coming alongside you and making it light. And a pursuit of wisdom and growing in wisdom is going to lead to a life of grief. Why? Well, because you don't get to just go around and say, let us all live happily and peacefully, you know, peaceably together. Oh, you're sinning? No big deal. Oh, you're not living a righteous lifestyle, and you're addicted to this, that, and the other. No big deal. God loves you. No, the man or woman of wisdom is just so grieved by their family members who don't know Christ. They're grieved by their children, they're grieved by their friends or their coworkers. And everywhere they go, they just look and they see the faces of people and they think, these people need the Lord. I need the Lord, but these people need the Lord and they just don't know what they're missing. You know, in the Gospels, we never see once the Lord Jesus laughing. Isn't that interesting? There's not a single mention in all of the scripture that says that Jesus laughed with his disciples. Now I'm not telling you that he didn't. I think as you read the Word of God, the Lord is hilarious. Like I think there are some passages you read and you just think, what in the world? Like that is so funny. Like, why did God record that about Peter or whatever it might be, that John ran faster than Peter, or whatever it might be? There's some funny things in scripture, but you know what God did in the preservation of his word? Never recorded any of those moments. But what did he record? You know, the shortest verse in your Bible, Jesus wept. And the other verses where he looked on the multitude with compassion, and he became sorrowful, sorrowful and of a heavy heart. It broke God's heart to know the reality of what was before him and those that didn't accept the truth. Moreover, our hearts will become greedy, and we have to count the costs of that up front, saying, if my life's going to be on the trajectory of understanding God's word and its deaths, then I better be ready for grief. To love people who are hurting, to suffer with them, to be with them there, knowing that that's the very thing that Christ would have done. And my life becomes more reflection of him. The objective of our lives should not be the pursuit of happiness. That is one of the greatest lies of the last century. That the greatest goal in life is to be happy. I'm submitting to you this morning that our objective in life should be to know God. That's it. To know God. And in doing so, you know what you'll do? You'll be happy. And in doing so, you know what you'll do? Let other people know about it. And in doing so, every other need in your life is fulfilled. The pursuit of your life should be know wisdom. And live a life of understanding according to that wisdom. To know God, not to be happy. Why? Because wisdom calls us into a place of intimacy with Christ where we get to fellowship in his suffering. Philippians chapter 3 and verse 10 tells us there are some things that we can't know about God if we're unwilling to suffer with him. Paul said to the church of Philippi, he says, that I might know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death. Sufferings don't conform us unto his death, they make us conformable. They humble us. They put us in a position where we're finally tender enough to be changed by God. And there it is, the invitation of wisdom to be more like Jesus, to be in his presence, to learn of him, to learn how to be changed by him. And listen, to know the power of his resurrection. You can't know the power of the resurrection unless you and I die with Christ. So every day we wake up and we take up our cross. Isn't that what we learned last week in Luke 14, where we find the phrase of this idea of a disciple counting the cost of discipleship? You and I are supposed to take up our cross daily and follow Him. If you and I want the power of the resurrection, we've got to go through the grave. My question to you this morning as we wrap up here is what do you call a successful life? So again, that question is, what do you call a successful life? In your mind. At the end of your life, maybe you could be prodded this way and think, what would be my biggest regret in life if this didn't get accomplished? If XYZ thing didn't happen in my life, I would feel like I wasted my life. Maybe to answer this question, what do I consider a successful life? I should ask myself, what am I afraid of most in my life? What do I fear might not get accomplished by the end of my days? I think that actually will give us insight to know what we think success does in this life. And I really want you to process. What do I call success? Day to day, yes, but I'm saying the full course of my life. What would be failure in this life? So Joshua chapter 1 and verse 8, it says, This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Mark it down, this is the only mention in all of the Bible of the word success. This is the only time the word success comes up in the English in the King James. Joshua chapter 1 and verse 8. And what is it connected to, directly connected to? It's connected to meditating on the word of God day and night. In other words, success according to God is being saturated in his word and ultimately his wisdom. If you want to live a successful life, it's not going to be having a big bank a cow or having a bunch of influence even in people's lives. It's going to be a life meditating on God's word. When you wake up, when you're eating lunch, when you're, I mean, driving. You get it. When you're laying your head down at night, what are you thinking of? Are you worried about the next day? Worried about the uncertainties of your very situation? Or are you meditating on the promises of God's word? If you do that, the Bible says you can be successful and you don't need to worry to fear. You don't have a job, no big deal. Your family falls apart, no big deal. It hurts, it's horrible, it's painful, but you know what? You can still be successful in this life. You're not a failure. If any of those things happen, all you've got to do is be in the presence of God and meditate on his word. Hide it in your heart. Let it dwell in you richly in all wisdom. Okay, 2 Timothy chapter 2 and verse 15, it says, Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly divide in the word of truth. The reality is studying the Bible is going to take hard work. You've got to read, you've got to listen, you've got to meditate, but you have to study it. And this is the point that most people, this is the place in the Christian experience most people never bridge. They never walk across. They're willing to sit under sermons, they're willing to learn from podcasts and YouTube videos, but they're not willing to open the Bible and the quietness of their home and study it. And that is that line of demarcation that shows us in ourselves, whether we are true disciples or not. Are we studying the Bible? This is the crossroads for so many people. I mentioned to you now two mentions of the word study. The only other mention in all of the Bible is Ecclesiastes chapter 12 and verses 12 through 13. So again, three mentions. 1 Thessalonians, that tells us where to study and be quiet. 2 Timothy chapter 2 and verse 15 that tells us to study to rightly defy. And then now here's a reality check on what that means. Ecclesiastes chapter 12, starting in verse 12. And further by these, my son, be admonished or warned, and of making many books there is no end. And much study is weariness of the flesh. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. This is the end of the book of Ecclesiastes. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. In a life of success, you're going to have a weary flesh. You know what counting the cost of getting established in God's word is? A weary flesh. What it means is you've got to figure out ways in your life to actually be exhausted in your study. Searching for wisdom as that hit treasure. I can only imagine trying to dig up a treasure with a shovel. And that's what we do is we compare scripture with scripture. We are just one shovel load at a time, tossing dirt aside, searching for that little nutty of gold, or maybe that in the chest. It's those moments that God just gives us a great excitement about his word. I don't know if you've ever been there, you've been begging God for answers, and then all of a sudden you're like, thank you, Lord. Like it all makes sense to me now. This is my last verse to you. Proverbs 4 and verse 7. Wisdom is the principal thing. Therefore get wisdom, and with all thy getting, get understanding. It is the principal thing. You have a list of priorities today and this week and this year. Maybe you set some goals at the first of the year. I'm going to lose XYZ pounds. I'm going to make XYZ money. I'm going to build XYZ thing. Just make sure that wisdom's at the top of that list. And every day you toss a shovel boat over to the side and just say, Lord, help me find those treasures. And help that treasure be this earthen vessel. Alright, if the Christie wants to come up, I'm going to just pray for us as we close out and we can end our time worshiping together. We're going to be singing in Christ alone. Christ alone.