That Ye May Know

The point: Cultivate a prayerful reflection upon the word after it's been preached, asking God for enlarged, accurate, and spiritually perceptive views of your privileges in Christ.

A snake crawling past the Empire State Building has no capacity to appreciate its grandeur, just as a natural man cannot perceive spiritual truths without the Holy Spirit's illumination.

and bumfumboozled that you'll say I'm not going back to that place again for a while these things go right over my head I'm never upset when anyone has said at the end of a sermon you know I just didn't get a thing out of that if I have reason to believe they don't profess to know Christ I glory in that because the scripture says the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God for they are foolishness unto him neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned I'm not surprised that a snake might somehow crawl down the middle of New York and be right next to the Empi...

25:45 - 27:14 Read in full sermon

The point: Combat mental laziness, which can be a key issue in spiritual stagnancy, by training your mind for close, deep, penetrating thought.

Martin compares his 'gimpy legs' being unprepared for hours of football to a lazy mind being unprepared for close, deep thought when hearing the Word of God, illustrating the need for mental discipline.

you will not come to that increased understanding that is necessary to increased growth and for some of you perhaps the key issue in the stagnancy of your spiritual development is your cursed mental laziness the dissipation of mental faculties too much TV watching too much sitting around just reading the sport page until your mind becomes lazy that when you come to hear the word of God you can't sit there and think hard and close for 45 minutes your mind is as untrained for that as my old gimpy legs were to go out and play football for 8 hours or 6 hours on my Sunday school picnic and so I end...

31:39 - 33:08 Read in full sermon

The point: Utilize moments when your hands are occupied but your mind is free (e.g., doing dishes, ironing) to meditate on God's Word and pray for illumination.

He suggests a housewife can prop her New Testament above the sink while doing dishes or ironing, using those times when hands are occupied but the mind is free to meditate on God's Word.

I know what that aversion to close thought is I'm not scolding you as one who's exempt from it that's what I have to wrestle with and if I don't wrestle with it you'll see it in my preaching those of you who have any discernment no no together we must labor we must wrestle we must think we must in the words of the first commandment or the summation of the first commandment love the Lord our God not only with all the heart but with all the mind oh may God send saving virtue to our minds this morning that we may be careful that we'll not cause them to atrophy by just reading the funny page and r...

34:36 - 36:04 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin describes the blessed outcome when preacher and congregation, dependent on the Spirit and engaged in thought, receive new sight of Christ's glory, leading to fervent…

Martin shares his personal experience of struggling to understand Paul's prayer, even feeling like quitting, to show that mental effort is required even for preachers and to sympathize with the congregation's struggles.

Lord can I have it like that all the time can I have it like that all the time that wouldn't be good for me because then I couldn't sympathize with you who are sitting out there sometimes and you can be surprised what I can see I can almost hear some of you sitting there someday saying Lord what in the world is he saying Lord what's he driving at I can see the look and your brow's all screwed up and you just well I know what that is we're in this situation together but oh wonder of wonders when we've gathered together to worship and God through the spirit and the labors of his servant has been...

37:33 - 38:56 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Rather, the vision of biblical Christianity is that we gather to have some new vision and sight of all that God has conferred upon us in Christ and then God says, because you have this and you are that, be this and be th…

He criticizes evangelical churches that motivate duty by 'rubbing consciences raw' with commands, likening it to creating 'wooden soldier people' regimented by 'evangelical popes,' contrasting it with biblical motivation from grace.

Why? the only other alternative to this and I will take just a minute to mention is to always be reverting to heathen concepts to get the people of God to do something and many evangelical churches are like heathen religions in that they seek to move the people of God to the performance of duty how? by rubbing their conscience raw with the presentation of their duties. Do this, do this, do this, don't do this, don't do this, do this, do this, do this, do this, until you've got a bunch of wooden little wooden soldier people, everyone regimented, going about doing his thing to keep, as it were, ...

39:05 - 39:46 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Rather, the vision of biblical Christianity is that we gather to have some new vision and sight of all that God has conferred upon us in Christ and then God says, because you have this and you are that, be this and be th…

Paul tells husbands to 'shape up' by taking them to the cross, where Christ loved the church, illustrating that true obedience flows from a vision of Christ's grace, not mere duty.

Rather, the vision of biblical Christianity is that we gather to have some new vision and sight of all that God has conferred upon us in Christ and then God says, because you have this and you are that, be this and be that. And then we go out desirous to be that and to do that. Not because our conscience has been rubbed raw, but because the heart has been suffused with a new vision of the glory and the majesty of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why when Paul wants to tell husbands to shape up, he takes them where? To the cross.

39:49 - 40:26 Read in full sermon