Wednesday Night Bible Study
by Mark McCool
First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: Bible study
Scripture: Joshua 24:14-15, Matthew 19:4-6, Ephesians 5:21-33, 1 Corinthians 11:1-3, Proverbs 10:1, Proverbs 22:6, Colossians 3:20-21, Ephesians 6:4, Mark 10:44, Psalm 101:1-5, Proverbs 25:17, Proverbs 25:28, Proverbs 22:24-25, Proverbs 29:22, Proverbs 16:32, Acts 23:2-5, Ephesians 4:26-27

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/mark-mccool--wednesday-night-bible-study-41
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

------------------------------------------------------------
thank you for your giving thank you musicians for leading Us in worship uh Brethren I would like to ask us to stand and I'd like for us to kind of move to these two uh Center sections or you can sit in three but I like you scoot Scoot a little bit toward the front in these C here if that would be all right uh we're going to uh reconfigure ourselves just a little bit what a wonderful wonderful crowd of Brothers we have here in the sanctuary uh what a privilege it is to see every one of you here I'll uh as you're scooting over and scooting in uh let me give you just a bit of a word uh I'd like for the church uh all of the brothers to be in special prayer for uh Bishop mul he's having uh just a little bit of a bug under the weather and uh he doesn't want to give it to anybody else so he's not sick to death and so letest you call him and ask him if he's sick yes he's a little bit sick but he's doing all right but he asked that we be in prayer for him tonight uh in fact we have several who are uh fighting with uh illness as you know a lot of the school systems around us have closed but we've been blessed so far at Apostolic Christian School and we're hoping to continue uh feeling good and feeling better so uh thank you for praying for Bishop we are beginning a uh special series of lessons uh this month uh that we have indeed in title leadership begins at home and uh we wanted to take the opportunity to uh have some teaching sessions uh with the men and the women we just had our marriage Retreat and oh what a uh a mighty mighty uh several lessons from the Grizzles last Wednesday night and on Friday night uh to all that we enjoyed with brother Woodward uh some of the teaching that we received in preaching what a wonderful time and we wanted to uh continue right on during the month of February so uh just to keep keep you informed this will kind of be our format for a few Wednesday nights and this is with the consent and the encouragement of Bishop so we're not replacing Bishop's Bible teaching and he will be back involved uh has a a special lesson that he will bring later on to the entire church family but we're beginning tonight with leadership begins at home and my subject for tonight is the head of the house the head of the house and I would give you as a scriptural reference the Book of Joshua the 24th chapter and I'll give you just a moment if you're going to find find that your Bible or in your device now the one thing we will uh figure out tonight is coordinating with the ladies sister jimie is teaching the ladies tonight so uh we'll see who's more longwinded at dismissal time but don't tell them I said that okay uh just in case they're waiting on us when we get out in the lobby Joshua 24 we're going to begin reading at verse 14 and read two verses for our text now therefore fear the lord serve him in sincerity and in truth put away the gods with a little G which your father served on the other side of the flood and in Egypt and serve ye the Lord and if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord choose you this day whom ye will serve whether the Gods which your father served that were on the other side of the flood or the gods of the amorites in whose land you dwell but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord the head of the house according to mirian Webster the noun phrase the head of the house is defined as the person in the house who is responsible for making decisions and earning money now that's what Webster says and yes in our culture the status of being called the head of the house has taken on some stereotypical misogynistic self aggrandizing connotations for husbands in particular particular you know those statements I bring home the bacon my casa my house my castle I'm the man of the house I bring home the cheese you know that that's kind of the the uh Macho um posture that is taken and the head of the house indeed has the responsibilities for the house in the living or dwelling quarters usually stereotypically uh the head of the house is in charge of Maintenance and upkeep you can be a handyman you can be a Mr Fix It Or you can be good at watching YouTube maintenance videos or sometimes you can delegate I give it some free advice unless you know what you're doing plumbers aren't that expensive electricians know what they're doing uh roofers and Painters earn what they're paid and if you're fortunate God will give you a young man in your house that eventually can mow the grass for you too so there are things that that can be delegated as far as the maintenance of the dwelling place but it is important for us to realize in a spiritual sense that there are some spiritual responsibilities that can never be delegated from the one who is the leader of what we're calling the house but really our home and our family in our text Joshua even though he was a godall leader of Israel is making a statement and he makes the statement concerning his own family he says as for me and my house before he makes the collective statement of we will serve the Lord he even makes distinction between himself and the rest of his family the first thing he said as for me it's important that we understand a proper head in a family relationship will have Christ first for me because when we put Christ first for me then the we is much more likely to follow and please understand the context of our text for for this is not a young vibrant viral muscular Herculean of a man Joshua at this point in his life if you know the history Joshua makes this statement just before he died at age 110 he is still proclaiming as head of the family that we will serve the Lord let me tell you no matter what age you get you never can relent the responsibility of being the leader of your home yes you will have children they'll grow up and you'll grow old but you still have a responsibility and an opportunity to make the proclamation for all your family as for me and my house we will serve the Lord understand he had already been through the Wilderness experience think about it just a little bit what Joshua had faced Joshua had faced what it the the unfortunate situation of being in the minority of one of the two voices of the 12 Spies that said we can possess the land that God has promised sometimes as much as I believe in democracy a democratic vote in this instance wasn't so positive for you see 10 dissenting voices would forever limit an entire generation for from fulfilling the promise that God had given them an entire generation would have to wander in a Wilderness for 40 years but you see it would be Joshua and Caleb's families even because of their voice of saying we can take the land it would be that generation that would be able to survive and would see the promised land so he had experienced that he also had experienced the joy of a victory in Jericho the amazing things that God had done for his people at Jericho so let me ask every one of us tonight as that quote man of the house or aspiring to be in your future where does your moral Authority and headship find you scripturally in Matthew 194 Jesus said this he answered and said to them have you not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female now Whoever thought that would be controversial but Jesus words hadn't changed okay so I'm going to take Jesus words over the social abnorm of today have you not read that he which made the at the beginning made them male and female and he said for this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave his wife and they twain shall be one flesh wherefore they are no more Twain but one flesh what therefore God ha joined together let no man put aunder understanding this headship relationship that God established yet understanding being one flesh with your wife the scripture later on we'll read about it talks about the great mystery of it Ephesians 5:21 gives this headship relationship Ephesians 5:21 says submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God wives submit yourselves under your own husbands how as under the Lord Lord for the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church and he is the savior of the body therefore as the church is subject unto Christ so let wives be to their own husbands in everything husbands love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it you see this passage of scripture does not give we men the right to pick and choose which part of it we like sadly there are too many they like to uh cherry-pick this passage I'm the head I'm the boss I'm the head of the house but they fail to understand in accordance with Jesus words in Matthew that you're one flesh and that you have the responsibility to love your wife how as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it a giving love a caring love this is the part that the world very rarely understands or institutes in the marriage relationship First Corinthians 11:1 says be ye followers of me even as I also am Christ now I praise you brother that ye remember me in all things and keep the ordinances as I delivered them to you Paul teaching the Corinthian Church but I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ and the head of the woman is the man and the head of Christ is God Ephesians 5:23 made it clear who should be the head of the household according to God's design for the family for the husband of the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church his body of which he is the savior but please please not a head cannot function on its own somebody used to tell me a corny joke they said did you hear about the police discovering a head floating down the river I said what they said yeah it was singing I ain't got no body so the head can't function without the rest of the body nor can the body function without the head it takes them being one flesh God's word defines headship by comparing it to Christ in the church and the headship role is best fulfilled when the husband loves his wife in the same manner as Christ loves the church because it's a giving love he gave himself for it it's not being a bull bully it's not being a master Ephesians 5:28 said so ought men to love their wives even as their own bodies he that loveth his wife loveth himself now again the earthy examples of how do you love your own body you love your own body and you know how much you really love your own body the most when you're injured for if any part of your body is injured the rest of the body rushes to assist it to relieve the pain if you mash your thumb you're grabbing your thumb you're saying oh Jesus I hope that's what you say anyway you're you're trying your best to alleviate the pain you're looking at it and hoping and it's not bleeding if it is you want to stop the bleeding you you love your your own body and that same care should be the care of giving to protect and to love your wife the mate that you have before God now understand we are still talking about that leadership begins at home home starts with this family relationship and that's why we're taking a little time to review the relationship between man and woman husband and wife so no man ever yet hated his own flesh verse 29 but nourisheth it and cherisheth it even as the Lord the J you you don't like to go around hungry all the time you like to nourish yourself that's because you love you you care about you for we are members of his body and of his flesh and of his bone for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother shall be joined unto his wife and they two shall be one flesh here it is this is a great mystery but I speak concerning Christ and the church nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself and the wife see that she reverence her husband simple as this for leadership to begin at home you got to love your wife that it's just that simple scripture is consistent in teaching an order or a chain of command if you will for after the husband and wife relationship God gives many families and gives husband and wife children children are the result of a love relationship children are commanded to to obey both parents not just the head of the house undisciplined children bring shame and disgrace to mother and not just the father Proverbs 10:1 says a wise son maketh his maketh a father glad but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother let me give that a little bit of that parental advice wise parents and all you folks all you young men here that are in the room I'm letting y'all in on some secrets that Mom and Dad should have okay wise parents agree on rules and discipline in front of the children disagreement should be held behind closed doors so the parents can present a united front as far as the children are concerned mother and father working together are the heads of the household you would be surprised how much more obedient well- behaved children are when Mom and Dad are in agreement and they anticipate issues or if there's an issue taking place then Mom and Dad get together first and speak in a United one voice and it's important again these are all just scriptural reference to understand that is your responsibility as head of the house working with one flesh that you train your children and not provoke your children there's a big difference Proverbs 22:6 said train up a child in the way should go and when he's old he will not depart from it Colossians 3:20 said children OB oy your parents in all things for this is well pleasing unto the Lord fathers provoke not your children to anger lest they be discouraged now simple parenting skills those who their approach to dealing with their children is they correct them only when they're angry or when they are mad they are inconsistent an in their parenting something is wrong one time and it's ignored at other times if you feel good you're going to let it slide and if you feel bad you say hey buddy I brought you into this world I can take you out there needs to be consistency in training and not provoking our children and you fathers Ephesians 6:4 ye fathers provoke not your children to wrath but bring them up in the n nurture and admonition of the Lord that term nurture means you care for and encourage the growth or development of your child they're not a bother they're not a dread they're not Rugrats you care about their future you care about their proper growth you care about their development it's a teaching process it said nurture and admonition admonition comes from the word admonish which is the act of authoritative counsel or warning dads do that as well dads speak with authority because they're consistent dads give warnings and by warnings that doesn't normally mean I'm only going to give you four more chances warnings are the consistency of making your child aware of consequences of wrong making your child aware of mistakes that they are about to make and trying to help them not make those mistakes there are three principles relating to what it means to be the head of the household number one the head goes first Godly leadership is servant leadership Jesus said in Mark 10:44 and whoo of you will be the chiefest shall be servant of all if you're the head head of the house you're probably going to be a servant to all that's not talking about necessarily taking on domestic tasks but you are willing to give our of your resources your ability your care and your love to be the servant of all your family and that's the way you lead the head of the house is the role model for everyone else let me say that again the head of the house is the role model for everyone else if we want our family to speak kindly and respectfully and with class we must be the model of that type of speech if a husband wants his wife to honor him he must honor and love her if we want our family to respect authority we must respect authority now heard the story of the little boy that got in trouble at school for stealing a pencil and sent him home and his dad said son you know better than to steal a pencil I can get all you want at work something's just not right there if you want your child not to develop habits that affect their health and their well-being don't be that Dad that says if I ever catch you smoking I'll beat you to the ENT of your life we must be the role model the consistent one if we want our children to have a good work ethic we don't need to lay around and be too lazy to strike at a snake if it's about to bite us if we want our home to be a home f filled with prayer we must be prayer warriors we have the responsibility of being Prayer Warriors for you see too many times I see homes that all of the secular thing we men we want to be the boss we want to be the head we want to do this we want to speak and everybody respond but suddenly when it comes to spiritual things I see Too Many Men absolve themselves of spiritual resp responsibility to their wife and yes we are all blessed to have Godly wives but the Bible talks about honoring the wife as the weaker vessel it does not say she's a weak vessel it says she's weaker that means we got to be strong well that I've seen a few fellas spiritually the wife's really going to have to weaken herself down to be weaker than their husband we need to be the strong spiritual guide and leader of our family it's not we're telling our kids to pray we show our kids how to pray it's not we say you need to go to church we lead them to the house of God we lead them to church headship is not a dictatorship the head of the household seeks wisdom prays through issues then gently instructs the rest of the family in the direction they should go if the head of the house is not functioning as a healthy head the entire family will suffer the head takes responsibility when God handed out rols for the family place the heaviest burden on the men headship may sound like superiority until we actually read God's expectation the head of the household is responsible before God for the spiritual and emotional well being of our families there is a widely quoted statement by Mother Teresa of Mal of Kolkata that goes something like this you'll see this on plaques and signs in homes that say this if you want to bring peace to the whole world go home and love your family now that's a great quote and I agree with it but did you know she didn't really say that I told you that great quote but it has been paraphrased let me tell you what she really said because it's important as well at the end of her 1984 Nobel Peace acceptance speech here's what she actually said she said and so my prayer for you is that truth will bring prayer in our homes and from the foot of prayer we W will be that we believe that in the poor is Christ we care about others in other words and we will really believe we will begin to love and we will love naturally next or rather first in our own home next door neighbor in the country we live and then in the whole world prayer must begin in our homes it is great to come into the house of God with a wonderful group of Believers and we experience it so much the blessings and the powerful move of God from corporate prayer among Believers it's it's a wonderful thing thing to experience but it is just as wonderful if you'll try it put it into action in your own home to have a prayer time and to have a prayer life a Time first of all not that you're forcing everybody else to pray all right kids you've got to pray for x m no that that sends a wrong message but if your kids see you pray if your kids hear you praying if your wife hears you praying about not just major decisions I can remember being in my mom and dad's home and I would hear oh God sometimes scare me to death I don't mind telling you until I realized my dad was crying out before the Lord I would hear my mom praying consequently I've been guilty in my home own home a few times not realizing that Jamie or any else anyone else is around I just felt like talking to the Lord and and kind of just pray out loud and she said well you scared me to death well there's a lot worse things that could scare you our homes need to be a place of prayer because that'll help you pray for your neighbors that'll help you pray for your community that'll help you pray for your Church that'll help you pray for your nation it'll help us pray for our world and then let me say once the headship in your home is established be careful since you're the head of the house what you allow in your home you certainly will rise to the occasion if you see some shady masked masked individual trying to get in your home Uninvited trying to pry open a door or slide up a window you will take all actions possible to protect your home and your family but sadly we allow some things in our home that invade and create much Havoc the psalmist said this in Psalms 1011 I will sing of mercy and judgment unto thee oh Lord I will sing what songs are you singing at home I know you can read all the words on the screens but what songs do I sing at home what's the melody that are entertaining my heart I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way oh when will Thou come unto me I will walk within my house with a perfect heart somebody prayed a prayer said oh God help me to be the man that my dog thinks I am it's not so much what we are at church it's not so much what we are when others are watching but what I am I at home what have I allowed in the walls of that sacred Place verse three said I will set no wicked things before my eye no no Wicked thing before mine eyes I hate the work of them that turn aside it shall not cleave to me a Fred or a willfully disobedient heart shall depart from me I will not know a wicked person what are you allowing in your house and notice verse number five who so privately slander his neighbor him will I cut off him that that hath a high look and a proud heart will not I suffer please be cautious of the conversations that you allow to take root and to cultivate in your home it's great to be congenial and kind to everybody and smile and shake hands and you're so this and you're so but when you get in the confines of your home if you slander everything your kids hear that your wife hears that you know I can barely stand so and so and such and such you know I think that teacher at the school or I think that preacher or whatever uh I I just be careful what you confess with your mouth even in the confines of your home the psalmist said who so privately slander with his neighbor him will I cut off God is not looking for slanderers God is looking for praisers who sing of his mercy and sing of his judgments remember David first sinned at home when he lusted after Beth Sheba David in the confined of the king's Dwelling Place would go up on the roof and let lust enter into his heart but that happened at home aen when God had given a victory aan rather than being obedient to God's word and utterly destroying everything Bible said he partook of the accursed thing and then achen took the goodly garments the gold and the silver he took it back home with him and he hid it in his tent story of aen is so sad for first of all ain's Disobedience and greed under the Commandment of God after God had given a victory would cause many others to die in battle in the future but But ultimately his family and all that he had would suffer and be destroyed because what he took into his house be careful what you take into your house you're the head of the house there's some stuff that should never be watched in your house there's some stuff that should never be listened to there's some reading material that should never be entertained there's some conversations that should never be had in your your house keep it a holy place because leadership begins at home and then let me also say make sure you all always know where home is make sure you know how to go home and when to go home Proverbs 25:17 said withdraw thy foot from thy neighbor's house lest he be weary with thee and so hate thee uh sometimes time to go home it's good to have friends good to have Fellowship sometimes you don't need guests in your house you need to go home by yourself just you and your wife or just you and your family uh I'll I would again give you this parenting advice uh sister Jamie and I rarely if ever till they got a whole lot older just right before they got got married would allow brother Anthony or sister Ashley go spend the night anywhere we wanted them home we had curfews and had times they were supposed to be home oh that's so archaic that's right call us old buddy daddies there were times we needed our family home together there were times we needed to be home if you aren't careful you will never develop vop a home atmosphere it it it'll just be a place that you run in and change clothes and you're always you've always got somebody over now I'm not saying you can't be hospitable but there are times that your home needs to be that castle that protected place that nobody else but you and your family are there I want to talk to you a little bit of how to be a sucessful failure as head of your house that's not to that's to not be in control of yourself Proverbs 25:28 says this he that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down and Without Walls having no walls makes one open to attack you are spiritually vulnerable you need to be able to raise some spiritual walls s that mean means you're in control of your own Spirit you are in control of yourself he that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down without walls You're vulnerable to be vulnerable means you're easily hurt or you're easily harmed mentally or emotionally you're open to attack you're capable of being physically or emotionally wounded or damaged Matthew Henry the Bible commentator said this about proverbs 2528 here is the good character of a wise and virtuous man implied everybody in here ought to determine in your life that you want to be a wise and virtuous man he is one that hath rule over his own Spirit he maintains the government of himself and of his own appetites and passions and does not suffer them to rebel against reason and conscience he has the rule of his own thoughts his desires his inclinations his resentments and keeps them all in good order the bad case of a vicious man who has not this rule over his own Spirit who when temptation to excess in eating or drinking or be or are before him he has no government of himself when he is provoked breaks out into exorbitant passions such as a one like a city that is broken down without walls all that is good goes out and forsakes him all that is evil breaks in upon him he lies exposed to all the Temptations of Satan and becomes an easy prey to that enemy he is also liable to many troubles and vexations it is likewise as much a reproach to him as it is to a city to have its walls ruined unguarded you are capable of making bad decisions and allowing bad spirits to control you I want to talk and we we will not finish this lesson tonight but I want to take you to one more section of my lesson because I I want to be I want to have some walls up against spirits that would invade men in particular one of the most dangerous spirits that can invade men is an angry Spirit Proverbs says this make no friendship with an angry man and with a furious man Thou shalt not go lest thou learn his ways and get a snare to thy Soul lest thou learn his ways he said don't hang around don't find yourself in a friendship with an angry man and with a furious man Thou shalt not go lest thou learn his ways a common example of verse 25 of learning his ways have you ever heard of mob mentality it's amazing when one person loses control in a group and suddenly begins influencing others and they find a common cause now I'm not talking about necessarily someone riding in the streets because their freedom is a about to be taken by a political party I'm talking about it can be something as simple as their team lost or their team won because it happens with both one person says I'm going to be upset because the officials made a bad call against my team and cost us a championship I'm going to break out the front window of this department store yeah by the way that car right there has a bumper sticker for the opposing team let's rock it let's see what will happen now in the calm of a church setting doesn't that sound ridiculous but the psalmist said don't make friends with an angry man with a furious man Thou shalt not go lest thou learn his ways that's that's the mob mentality I'm going to be like you know I'm up said about that too come to think of it you know what I'm going to take advantage of that and before it's over folks lose their lives they destroy things because of someone who is not in control of their own Spirit verse proverbs 29:22 says an angry man stirreth up strife and a furious man aboundeth in transgression what wonderful words how awesome how beautiful you see all you young men out there not that not married yet that uh you guys that have got driver's license or you're about to get driver's license uh let Pastor speak to your heart never oper ra an automobile in Anger there's a reason that young men's insurance rates are so high mainly it's because most of them haven't been taught Proverbs 2922 an angry man stirreth up strife and a fierce man aboundeth in transgression I'm upset about something I'm mad about something watch this I'm going to Squall my tires watch what watch it watch my vehicle fishtail watch this I I'm so upset I'm going to throw gravel everywhere I'm going to just speed as fast as I can I'm so upset I'm going to run my fist through the drywall unless you find a stud then you're going to run yourself to the ER uh but anger sometimes is improperly build as manliness being out of control is sometimes put on a list as being Macho don't fall for such ignorance is that brother Woodward said you don't say stupid in the pull pits so ignorance Proverbs 16:32 said it this way he that is slow to anger is better than the mighty and he that ruleth his Spirit than he that taketh a city if you don't have rule of your spirit your anger your emotions you're as a wall a city with no walls if you have control and you're slow to to anger you have the ability to take a city that's the difference abusive men who physically or emotionally tag their mate are not men they're a mouse don't you ever lay your hand on a woman or anyone else there's better ways to handle your business that's not the way Christians do things we're not we're not physically abusive we are not verbally abusive there's a better language of love there's a better way to handle things you're smarter than that we will not be angry men so I see too many I've seen good talented Minds who couldn't keep a job not because of a lack of ability or skill but a lack of emotional control over their anger and their passion I may as well go ahead and say it I said this before to to men's conferences so I'll talk to the men of First Apostolic church I personally believe in and support the defense of our Second Amendment rights but with that said if a concealed and carry permit makes you aggressive quarrelsome and confrontational you might need a trip to the altar to get Spirit control instead of worrying about gun control you need to be in control of your emotions especially anger I speak to you not from Perfection scripturally because some of the Great Men of the Bible had issues with anger the Apostle Peter lost his cool cut the servant of the high priest ear off trying to defend Jesus you can have the intentions of helping Jesus and have the wrong Spirit you see Jesus had to bail him out if you shoot somebody's ear off you not may not be lucky to have Jesus put their ear back on you better be careful Paul lost his temper when standing before the high priest ananas said strike his mouth he was saying some things that shouldn't have been said according to annias acts 23 you can read it for yourself acts 23:2 it said and the high priest annias an commanded him that stood by him to Smite him on the mouth then said Paul unto him God smite thee thou whed wall forid us thou to judge me after the law commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law he mouthed off to the high priest and they that stood by said revest thou God's high priest then said Paul I wish not Brethren that he was the high priest for it is written Thou shalt not speak of the speak evil of the ruler of the people at a moment of passion even the Apostle Paul lost his temper and lost his cool we must guard our spirit ephes iians 4:26 said be ye angry and sin not let not the sun go down upon your wrath neither give place to the devil those who sin in Anger give the devil a seat at your table in your house and in your existence Brethren Lord bless you next week we're going to continue talking about the head of the house and Leadership begin at home and we're going to talk about a hoty spirit Lord bless you let's stand and let's pray savior I love you God I'm grateful for this wonderful room of Believers for these Mighty Men of Valor that so Faithfully serve you God I pray that the power of the Holy Ghost would give guidance in our lives Lord that we can be the husbands the fathers the spiritual leaders that you have called us to be Lord your direction is so pure and so true I pray that we would always be sensitive to what your word tells us as we deal with the cares of lives and the challenges of our homes let every man in this room have a holy ghost anointing fresh and new for all this we're grateful and thankful in the name of Jesus Jesus we pray amen