Anatomy of a Man of God: His Mouth

Introduction: The Centrality of Preaching and the Series Context

0:00 This sermon was preached on Sunday morning, October 2nd, 1988, at the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey. We have confessed in the words of the hymn we have just sung that when we come to the teaching and preaching of the Word of God, we do not come to a book, nor do we come to a greatly exalted book, or even to a holy book, but we come to a living Lord who Himself speaks to us in His holy book, the Bible, and let us then seek His face that each of us will have a heart to receive that which our Lord Himself would say to us from the Scriptures. Let us pray. Our Lord, we have confessed in the singing of this last hymn that we are gathered,

1:09 honored to hear Your voice, and we acknowledge that left to ourselves we have no ability rightly to understand Your Word. We have a native disinclination to receive and obey that Word, and we therefore pray that there would be copious measures of the Holy Spirit resting upon this gathering of Your people that both of us would be able to hear Your voice. With He who seeks to open that Word and to teach and preach it, and each one who sits before it will be conscious of Your presence and power in the midst, causing that Word to come to each one of us not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much conviction. Hear us as together. We plead these mercies from Your hand because You died and rose from the dead, and You sit at the right hand of the Father that we might be so blessed of You. Amen.

2:30 For the past several Lord's Days, we have been considering together the subject, the anatomy of a man of God. In this brief series of studies, I have been attempting to set before you the Biblical description of an able minister of the New Covenant, the Biblical description of a true servant of God equipped by the head of the Church and set apart to labor in the Word and in doctrine. Now since only a relatively few of you will be sovereignly marked out and properly set apart for this function, you may ask the question, why have I chosen to address this theme before the whole assembly of God's people? And that question is a fair question and deserves an honest answer. So before we proceed to consider the next feature in the anatomy of a man of God, let me answer the question, why consider such a theme, in the whole gathered assembly? Since the fall of 1977, we have had functioning within our assembly and as an integral part of the life of the Church,

3:58 a full-time program of ministerial training called the Trinity Ministerial Academy. And each year in the month of September, we mark out a Lord's Day evening and designate it as Academy Night. And on that occasion, the new students introduce themselves to us and one of the elders brings a ministry from the Word of God that focuses upon and underscores some aspect of the work of the Christian ministry. And our purpose in that night and in those ministries is to set a biblical standard of ministry for the students among us, to seek to impart, seek to impart a clear vision to the newer members among us as to what this ministry of the Academy is all about and then to renew that vision for those who have been members among us for a longer period of time. Now having answered the question, why address this subject in the whole assembly, I want to address a second question and that is, what have we seen already concerning the anatomy of a man of God? Well, as we looked at his head, we saw from the scriptures that a man of God has a head

5:25 marked by at least these three features. It is covered with the helmet of salvation, 1 Thessalonians 5.8. It is filled with the knowledge of the Word of God, 2 Timothy 2.2 and Jeremiah 3.15.

5:42 And it is furnished with the tools for a lifetime of a fresh and sound ministry in the scriptures, 2 Timothy 2.15. Then we move to a consideration of the eyes of a man of God. And we saw from the scriptures that they are marked by these three features.

6:04 They are fixed on the unseen world of spiritual reality, 2 Corinthians 4.18. They are focused upon the Lord Jesus Christ, Hebrews 12 and verse 2. And they are perceptive to the true state of men, even as are the eyes of our Lord Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 9 and verse 36.

6:30 Then we contemplated the ears of a man of God. And we saw likewise three things that characterize his ears. They are continually open to hear the Word of God, Isaiah 50, 4 and 5. Continually responsive to the reproofs and corrections of God, Proverbs 15.

6:53 And they are ready and waiting to respond to the special call of God, Isaiah 6 and Acts 13. And then last Lord's Day we looked at the heart of a man of God. And we saw that it is, first of all, a constantly guarded heart, Proverbs 4.23.

7:16 A continuously tender heart, contrasting 1 Samuel 24 with 2 Samuel 11. And that it is an increasingly loving, responsive and vulnerable heart, 1 John 3.17, 2 Corinthians 6.11 and 2 Corinthians 6.12.

7:38 And verse 14. Now this morning we come to a consideration of another feature of the anatomy of a man of God, namely the mouth of a man of God. Having considered his head, his eyes, his ears, and his heart, we now come to the question, according to the Scriptures, what will characterize the mouth of a man of God? Now we live in a day in which, relatively speaking, preaching is little thought of.

8:17 We live in a day in which there is a demeaning of the unique place of preaching in the purposes of God. And in place of the Biblical emphasis upon preaching, we find the church inundated with an emphasis that is totally out of proportion to the Word of God, if not out of direct or indirect contradiction to the Word of God. And we see that in place of the Biblical emphasis upon preaching, that there is a tremendous emphasis upon music, upon drama, upon mime, upon entertainment, and a host of other things which are never said to be the instrument chosen of God for the calling of His elect and for the building up of His saints in their most holy faith. And so as a preview and a lead-in to our contemplation of the three characteristics of the mouth of a man of God, let me remind you, or for some, for the first time, point out how central, is the act of preaching in the purpose of God so central that there is a specific focus

The Primacy of Preaching in God's Purposes

9:44 upon the mouth of the servant of God as a unique instrument of accomplishing God's purposes. Look with me briefly at three texts that set forth this truth so clearly. First of all, in the 15th chapter of the book of the Acts of the Apostles, Acts chapter 15, we shall look in a moment at a statement of the apostle Peter. In this particular setting, the church at Jerusalem is gathered with the apostles who were resident in Jerusalem at that time.

10:26 Representatives have come from the church at Antioch, and they are gathering to discuss the whole question of whether or not Gentiles can be brought into the church as full-blown Christians and members of the body of Christ without having to submit to circumcision and becoming ritual or practicing Jews. And Peter is about to stand and declare why it is that he is convinced that God has already answered that question in the conversion of Gentiles, particularly Gentiles of the household of Cornelius. Now, in that context, we read in verse 7 of Acts 15, And when there had been much questioning, Peter rose up and said unto them, Brethren, you know that a good while ago God made choice among you that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. God made choice not that by my guitars and drums, not by my acting troop,

11:52 not by my dancing feet, but by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And then in verses 33 and 34, I should say back to chapter 10, where what he's describing actually took place, notice the focused emphasis again upon the mouth and upon speech. Verse 22, And they said, Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous man and one who fears God and well reported of by all the nation of the Jews, was warned of God by a holy angel to send for you into his house and to hear words from you. Not to hear songs, not to see mime, not to watch your feet, not to enjoy your musical performance, but he was informed that he would hear words from you. And when they were all gathered, Cornelius having had a vision, men go to Peter's house, Peter's had a vision, and they're all gathered, notice the emphasis in verse 33,

13:18 forthwith therefore I sent to you and you have well done that you are come. Now therefore, we are all here present in the sight of God to hear all things that have been commanded you of the Lord and Peter opened his mouth and said, verse 42, and he charged us to preach unto the people and to testify, verse 44, while Peter yet spoke these words, the Holy Spirit fell. Now you see brethren, when Peter reflects upon all of this, later on in that council in the church at Jerusalem, he says, God made choice that by my mouth, and here the centrality and the primacy of preaching is underscored in such a vivid way that it is impossible to miss the divine intention upon this emphasis or in this emphasis. Then in Romans chapter 10, we have a similar emphasis in this passage familiar to many of us. We have the wonderful promise in verse 18, 11 of Romans 10, for the scripture says, whosoever believes on him shall not be put to shame,

14:46 for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, but the same Lord is Lord of all and rich unto all that call upon him, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have been called? In whom they have not believed. And how shall they believe in him whom they have not heard?

15:17 And how shall they hear without a musician? How shall they hear without an actor? How shall they hear without a mime or a dancer? No.

15:33 How shall they hear without a preacher? And here God has taught the salvation that comes to every sinner, Jew or Gentile, who calls upon the Lord to the primary instrument by which men will be brought to call upon him the activity of a preacher. And then one other text, 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Remember we're simply leading into our subject by demonstrating the centrality and primacy of preaching in the purposes of God's saving grace.

16:17 And here we read in 1 Corinthians 1.21 the following, For seeing that in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save them that believe. Now this is where translators find a difficult task. The marginal reading of the 1901 is through the foolishness of the thing preached.

16:50 And often people read the text as though foolish preaching were owned of God. No, that's not the sense of it at all. What the text is saying is this. Though men in their vaunted so-called wisdom do not come to the knowledge of God, God is not like that.

17:09 God has not left the world to bury itself in the ignorance of its so-called wisdom. But rather God has exercised His sovereign prerogatives and determined through that which the world calls foolishness He would rescue sinners who are brought to faith in the gospel. And He has chosen that great end and the means to that end. You see, there are many in our day who have no question that it's the gospel alone that saves.

17:47 But their thesis is that we are at liberty to use whatever medium of communicating the gospel that we choose. And if we choose to communicate the gospel by drums and guitars and acting troupes and mines and whatever else and films, that's our prerogative. So long as it's the gospel that is communicated. But you see, that's not what this text says.

18:13 It says it was God's good pleasure through that which the world regards foolishness, namely the kerubma. And that word means the thing preached. And it brings into an inseparable relationship both the message in its content and the manner of its communication. Kerubma is basically the message heralded by an official messenger called a herald.

18:48 So that we can understand the emphasis of the word by simply using this altered emphasis. It was God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the thing preached to save and believe. And there the emphasis falls upon the content of the message. It is the message that the king himself has authorized, namely the gospel.

19:19 But it can also be rendered it was God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the thing preached to save them that believe. And in that very word God has captured the primacy of preaching in the saving purposes of God. Now in the light of these three texts and many others could be marshaled to demonstrate that principle, let us now contemplate what the scripture says concerning this part of the anatomy of a man of God, namely his mouth. And in the time allotted this morning I want to focus upon three aspects of the mouth of a man of God. It is, first of all, a purified mouth. Secondly, a skilled mouth. And thirdly, an anointed mouth.

Characteristic 1: A Purified Mouth

20:19 First of all then, the scriptures tell us that the mouth of a man of God is a purified mouth. That is, it is a mouth kept free from corrupting, abusive and destructive speech. Will you turn please to 1 Timothy chapter 4. We should be looking at a number of texts.

20:46 1 Timothy chapter 4. One of the unique designations of Timothy is the very term in the subject of our message, man of God. He is called that in chapter 6 and verse 11. But thou, O man of God.

21:08 And in chapter 4 of 1 Timothy, Paul is exhorting Timothy that he give no necessary grounds for people to be prejudiced against his message and ministry because of his relative youth. He was probably in his late 30s. And he says in verse 12, let no man despise your youth. Let no man think light of you because of your youth.

21:37 Let no man say, well, what can you expect? Timothy is still wet behind the ears. But be an example to them that believe and then notice the first particular that is mentioned in word, then in manner of life, in love, in faith, in purity. Timothy, neutralize the liabilities of your relative youth by a blameless exemplary life and paramount among the areas in which you are to be exemplary is the matter in word, in speech. Timothy, let no man despise your youth, but be an example of believers in your speech as well as in your general demeanor. Timothy, if you would stand in the congregation at Ephesus, and when you would command and speak and teach and exhort in terms of the many things that I've told you about in this epistle, your credibility will stand or fall in terms of whether or not the mouth that speaks the word of God is a mouth that is free from corrupting,

23:03 abusive and destructive speech in your ordinary life and conversation. Timothy, do not expect to speak with grip and power and convincingness the word of God from the pulpit if your speech in your ordinary movements among the people of God is not a pattern of godly speech. The same emphasis is given to Titus, who is Paul's representative in the churches there in the isle of Crete. And so he writes to Titus after telling him the many things he is to teach to old men, young men, older women, younger women. He says in verse 7 of Titus, chapter 2, in all things showing yourself an example of good works, in your doctrine showing uncorruptness, gravity, sound speech that cannot be condemned. That he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed having no evil thing to say of us. Literally healthy speech which in the setting seems not only to apply to his public teaching but to the general exemplary pattern of his life.

24:32 That no one will be able to undermine the official teaching coming from Titus' lips in the pulpit because of what they've heard from his lips in their general interaction with Titus the man. And then we turn to Ephesians chapter 4 and we find these very searching words addressed to all of the people of God in general. All of the people of God in general. Verse 29, let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth but such as is good for edifying or building up as the need may be that it may give grace to them that hear. Now follow my reasoning. If it is incumbent upon every child of God the most immature babe in Christ to make conscience that no corrupt speech proceed from his mouth no speech that would be like rancid and decaying food but only that which will build up and edify like wholesome fresh nourishing food if it is incumbent upon all the people of God in general to have their speech always regulated unto edification

26:01 and not unto corruption how much more the speech of one whose mouth would be an instrument of life and salvation and edification to the people of God. If this is the standard for all of God's people then surely that standard is intensified and heightened in the one who would have a chosen mouth to be a chosen instrument of bringing distinct redemptive blessings to men through the preaching and teaching of the word of God. A similar line of reasoning can be taken from the third chapter of the book of James. James chapter 3 writing to all of the people of God in general in this classic chapter on the tongue filled with graphic imagery about the evils of the tongue the power of the tongue the unruliness of the tongue James captures the imagery of a fountain and notice his language in verse 9 Therewith bless we the Lord and Father and therewith curse we men who are made after the likeness of God out of the same mouth come forth blessing and cursing my brethren

27:29 these things ought not so to be does the fountain send forth from the same opening sweet water and bitter and then he changes the imagery can a fig tree my brethren yield olives or a vine figs and then he changes the imagery again neither can salt water yield sweet you see he's underscoring the fact that there should not be the kind of incongruity between our speech which if it occurred in nature would cause us all to wonder if the world was falling to pieces at the seams what would you think if you came to what was reputed to be a fresh spring coming out of the side of a rock that was supposed to be the purest water in all of that particular area of the country and standing before that spring someone had a ladle and they took a ladle of that water and drank and their faces their face lit up and they smacked their lips and they did everything but write poetry and songs to celebrate the sweetness the deliciousness the purity the invigorating quality of that water and right after that someone came with a ladle from the same spring drank a mouthful

28:58 and began to double over in agony and inside of three minutes was lying right there writhing on the ground and in five minutes lay there dead you say it's impossible how could sweet life-giving poem invigorating song precipitating water in one moment be this and a moment later cause death he said it doesn't happen in nature then he changes the imagery and says do you find a tree that one man comes by and he plucks off some ripened figs and he extols the virtue of the figs and two minutes later someone comes by and plucks off some olives and they're extolling both figs and olives off the same tree he says brethren it doesn't happen and likewise you don't find someone taking a bucket of sea water and then putting it in elegant he says you see in nature this is utterly incongruous that from the same source there should be such utterly contradictory things coming forward likewise he says then out of this mouth there should be only the pure water of life

30:27 out of this mouth there should be only the sweet non-brackish water that is true of all of the people of God in general how much more of those whose mouths in a unique way are to be the instrument of imparting life and salvation and edification to the people of God surely the mouth of a man of God must always be a purified mouth a mouth kept free from corrupting abusive and destructive speech and in preparation for this ministry I think for the first time I appreciated something that's always mystified me in the call of Isaiah the prophet we had occasion to look at Isaiah 6 in conjunction with the ears of a man of God now let's go back to it to the vision of a man of God you remember that Isaiah is given this shattering vision of the exalted and holy God and when he has this vision of God in his exaltedness and holiness

31:56 he is given an acute sense not only of his creatureliness but his sinfulness but notice what he felt in this vision then said I verse 5 woe is me for I am undone because I am a man and I would have thought him to say of unclean heart and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean hearts for mine eyes this vision of the exalted Lord in the brilliance and intimidating ness of his holiness would lay bare the depths of a man's heart by contrast yet Isaiah's conviction focused upon his lips woe is me for I am undone because I'm a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean hearts in my heart and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean hearts that are usual my beating closely with

33:26 my � quiere and I dwell in this one spirit and I dwell in him one of the shining ones the burning ones must take tongs and then what did he do with it he took that white hot coal and touched verse 7 his mouth you know what it's like when you just sip a little coffee that's too hot and it touches your lips you place a piece of meat or an instrument that's too hot the lips with all of their sensitivity one can only imagine the shriek of pain in the curl of smoke in the smell of burnt flesh that went up into isaiah's own nostrils in this vision when god touched his lips he burnt and seared his lips with a coal so hot that one of the burning ones could not hold it except he held it with tongs and he touched my mouth with it and said lo this is touched thy lips and thine iniquity is taken away and thy sin forgiven, then he hears the voice of God and then God says, verse 9, go and

34:47 tell. Go and tell. You see what God is saying? If I'm calling my servant to a ministry in which his mouth will be the unique organ that comes into my service, then my cleansing will focus upon that very instrument of his humanity, upon that very faculty of his humanity. Would he speak for me with his lips? Then the lips must feel the cold of the purging, fiery cleansing of God. And only then is he set apart and commissioned by the living God. God would purify Isaiah's mouth.

35:36 Before he makes that mouth the instrument of his grace to others. You men in the academy, you can't afford the luxury of a loose and a careless tongue. You cannot expect that a mouth that dabbles in corrupting, abusive or destructive speech, let alone double innuendo speech that is borderline true speech that is borderline. pure you cannot indulge with your lips those sins and expect that god will take that mouth and make it an instrument of life and salvation and healing to others and you must cry to god for an acute sense of a heightened awareness of the sins of the tongue and of the mouth that that organ may be a peculiarly kept organ of life and salvation as you people pray for the men in the academy and you say what shall i pray for them well remember this element of the anatomy pray that they will not only have the kind of head we've seen in scripture the kind of eyes and ears and heart

36:56 but pray that they will have a purified mouth that as they live and walk among us and move in and out while they move among us as real men, as whole men, as natural as opposed to plastic and artificial men, that in their most relaxed moments of belly laughter, when their whole humanity is poured out in wholesome laughter, there will never be anything that is corrupting, defiling, abusive, or destructive. And you men, remember, all you need do to have an erosion of your usefulness is to have it become known, not based upon slander or the prejudice of someone who is resisting your ministry to their conscience, but have it known based on your performance and your own lifestyle, that you have a careless mouth, a mouth that can speak sarcasm in cut and abuse, a mouth that can speak half-truths as though they were whole truths, a mouth that strains reality and strains fact. Let that be known, and I don't care if you have the eloquence of an angel. There will be very little usefulness in your pulpit ministry over the long haul.

Characteristic 2: A Skilled Mouth - Accurate Proclamation

38:24 The mark of the mouth of the man of God, like that of Isaiah, is that it is a pure mouth. But then, secondly, it is also a skilled mouth, a skilled mouth, and I chose my words carefully. I did not say eloquent. Eloquence may only be within the reach of a few, but a skilled mouth is and must be within the reach of any man who is to be set apart to labor in the word and in doctrine.

39:02 And by a skilled mouth, I mean a mouth gifted and trained to proclaim the truth of God in an accurate, articulate, and persuasive manner, a mouth both gifted and trained to proclaim the truth of God in an accurate, articulate, and persuasive manner. Let me break those points down. It must be a mouth gifted and trained. In an accurate proclamation of the truth of God, 2 Timothy 2.15, 2 Timothy 1.13, Hold the form, the pattern of sound or healthy words, which thou hast learned from me. 2 Timothy 1.13, 2 Timothy 4.4,

40:05 Preach the word, be instant in season and out of season. The mark of the mouth of a man of God is that it is a skilled mouth, a mouth gifted and trained in an accurate proclamation of the truth of God. Not a mouth joined, perhaps, to a sincere heart and even a godly life that, when it attempts to articulate the truth of God, puts the tail where the head belongs and puts the ear where a foot belongs, and so jumbles God's truth as to confuse God's people and misrepresent God. No amount of personal godliness or heart purity or sincerity of motive will unjumble the misrepresented truth of God. And so the mark of the mouth...

41:04 The mark of the mouth of a man of God is that it is a skilled mouth, a mouth gifted and trained in the accurate proclamation of the truth of God, but secondly a mouth gifted and trained in articulate proclamation of the truth of God. And if you were to look up the word articulate in your dictionary, you would find these several meanings expressing oneself easily and clearly. To speak distinctly.

Characteristic 2: A Skilled Mouth - Articulate Proclamation

41:37 In 1 Corinthians 14, we have perhaps the best biblical statement on the necessity of articulate speech in a man of God. 1 Corinthians 14, verses 9 or 8 and 9. If the trumpet give an uncertain voice, who shall prepare himself for war? Here are all the soldiers in their tents.

42:08 The captain gives orders that it's time to come and to take arms and to prepare for a battle charge. Now he tells the trumpeter to give the appropriate sound upon his trumpet, while the poor fellow gets the notes so mixed up that some men in one tent are grabbing their mess kits and heading out to the mess hall. Another group going to the parade grounds. They think there's going to be an inspection.

42:35 2 Corinthians 14, verses 9 and 10. The soldiers begin to unleash their boots. They think it's a call to a little R&R. You see, the trumpet, if it does not give a clear and certain sound, the poor soldiers won't know what they're supposed to do.

42:48 That's the imagery. Now he goes on to say, verse 9, so also you, unless you utter the tongue, so shall it be known what is spoken. You will be speaking. Now the Bible teaches that only the Holy Spirit can give spiritual perception of something.

43:15 Now the Bible teaches that only the Holy Spirit can give spiritual perception of something. Now the Bible teaches that only the Holy Spirit can give spiritual perception of something. It can't be likened to anything. It says, I beep out a moral message of what God mixture means with a word that actually makes a difference.

43:23 It can't be from the spirit, at first glance. It can't come from the spirit, He knows that. If a man knows the spiritual truth, God knows that. And if any man doesn't know it, a year in the ministry will prove it to him.

43:27 The natural man receives not the things of the Spirit, God. They are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them. And Paul is not denying that truth, but what he is saying is this. Though the Holy spirit alone can give spiritual perception of the truth, don't expect, added to the gracious miracle of divine illumination.

43:47 A miracle is Wowie. miracle of divine interpretation of the speaker's words no the speaker must speak in word to be understood brings in the matter did and train to think clearly with distinctiveness to use a range of vocabulary that will communicate accurately and meaningfully it has to do even with volume you see the text says unless you utter by the tongue speech easy to be understood matter how simple and graphic and well ordered are the words there is not sufficient volume transmit them through the eardrum to renerve on the brain there will be no edification there will be no side there will be no salvi a mute seeking to communicate the gospel to others and therefore the mark of the mouth of a man of god

Characteristic 2: A Skilled Mouth - Persuasive Proclamation

45:10 is that it is not only a mouth gifted and trained in the accurate proclamation of the truth of god but gifted and trained proclamation of the word of god but then thirdly under this head it is a mouth gifted and trained in the persuasive communication of the truth of god while we believe again that only god makes his truth effective to secure the consent of the human will we do not believe that the truth comes as mere moral suasion that if a man has enough words arranged in the right way sufficiently illustrated and hurled home to men's hearts with passion and earnestness and entreaty his words can overpower the reluctance of his will we believe no sir we believe it takes a gracious divine intrusion upon the human will to turn from self-love into the way of repentance and faith but the bible also teaches that god uses means the apostle paul could say in second corinthians 5 11 knowing the terror of the lord

46:32 we persuade men he says in second corinthians 5 later on he seeks in the state be reconciled to god in the moving passage that we looked at yesterday last last last Lord's day just briefly in closing paul in second corinthians 6 says all are open to you and he says our open mouth was but the mirror of our open heart our heart is enlarged our mouth is open and when we read the apostolic preaching and when we read the apostolic entreaties in the pastoral interaction in the epistles we find that there was not only a sense of Society as a means accommodation of command as the commandments of Islam but there was not only an accurate presentation of God's truth and articulate the kolikra the othshee qk the best land there was always لك

47:55 logic of the heart and the mark of a man of god though no man attains to the standard seen in the lord jesus no man attains to the standard that he sees even in those servants of god recorded in the bible the mark of a man of god's that he gets beyond the acts of the mind presented that an aim to spread his own be present paul could but you we were willing to him that's persuasive you men in the academy you face the ministry in our day with a tremendous disadvantage

49:11 you live in the day of cool you see from the tie up to the top of the head and barely the width of the shoulders the prime time newscaster who without any passion or pathos can talk about the weather in the same breath that he talks about 200 people dying in a bus in a flood in the wake of a hurricane he's not seeking to make any direct appeals he's not seeking to entreat he's not seeking to move he's just this marvelously efficient emotionally bland word machine and even at the highest level the epitome of that as some of the very candidates set before us in highest political office and we suffer because in god's common grace we've not heard a churchill that could mobilize a whole nation that was down for the count with the referee having five fingers up on one hand and four on another and under god with words brought a nation off its back to face the third reich and bury it and i can still hear some of churchill's words

50:39 in my ears and standing in the pulpit it's maybe unspiritual but i get goosebumps the element of persuasive and we suffer because we don't even have them in the world and alas there have been so few in the church in our generation but oh i beg you man pray god will liberate you from the false modesty that makes you afraid to spread your heart out over your people yes you've laid out the truth clearly and you've said it's not true and you've said it's not true and you've said it forth i wonder if indeed god has set you apart to mirror his son for he never spoke the truth in a take it or leave it manner and we are his ambassadors to speak or that soft intense

51:51 we wanted them to know and piece the realities that have been set forth in the word of god it's an interesting statement we look at it very briefly in acts 14 to close this second head luke the great theological historian who's not at all ashamed to give theological interpretation to the history of the church to write concerning lydia whose heart the lord opened to write as many as were ordained to eternal life believe yet in acts 14 he writes as follows and it came to pass at iconium that they entered together into the synagogue of the jews so commentary i believe demonstrates what the church has done to the church and to the church and to the church and to the church

53:07 from a linguistic standpoint that the emphasis junction of the warm function the manner of their speaking that agree the same luke who says as many as were ordained to eternal life believed in chapter 13 now says they so spake that a multitude believed no contradiction for god is the god who works by means and oh my younger brethren aspiring to the ministry cry to god that he would take the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the church and the whatever native gifts he has given and by art have them so trained in discipline that you have this mark that you may so that it will not at all incongruous that god should use the manner of your speaking to in that he salvation and conversion of his elect and in healthy churches

54:33 in which his rule is loved and his spirit is present with power now you'll notice that in every one of the subheadings i said a mouth gifted and trained here at proclamation gifted and trained articulate proclamation gifted and trained in persuasive proclamation and why did i use the word gifted in every subheading for the simple reason that i believe what spurgeon said in his lectures to his students and that is that god can man cannot give the gift of utterance men and discipline and hone and train and develop but god give a gift though i'll not take time there is an excellent section in his lectures to his students in which the bottom line is and says if god has not given a man the gift of utterance the best thing for him to do is to leave our pastor's college because we cannot help him and you people as you pray for the academy pray the discernment will be given to us as we listen to the tapes of these men as

55:56 they go out and preach as we get the input from the churches where they preach one of the hardest things in the world is to tell a man who loves christ who lives a godly life who has a heart for the kingdom of christ to tell him at this stage in his life we have no reason to believe that god has given him the gift of utterance that's one of the most difficult things to do but we've got to be faithful to do that we must be faithful or we will blight congregations who cannot be edified and personal godliness or by his sincerity or by his love for the kingdom of peter did not say god made choice that by my gentiles might hear and believe what an awesome responsibility is upon us there is that beautiful description of a man of god found in the book of ecclesiastes and i close the heading with this text the book of ecclesiastes psalms proverbs song of solomon ecclesiastes i'm sorry song of solomon ecclesiastes 12 verse 9 and further because the

57:18 preacher was wise he stood the people knowledge yea he pondered and sought out and set many proverbs the preacher sought to find out acceptable words and that which was written up rightly even words of truth the words of the wise are as good and as nails well fastened are the words of the masters of assemblies which are given from one shepherd that a beautiful picture of a man of god under the one shepherd of the sheep here is the shepherd seeking out and setting in order the words tend to seem function as gold and as nails in the assemblies of god's people well i must hasten to touch briefly upon this third aspect of the mouth of the man of god it is not only a purified mouth a skilled mouth but it is an anointed mouth and what do i mean by that i mean it is a mouth marked by authority

Characteristic 3: An Anointed Mouth

58:44 it's the word impority it's the nature of victory there is no ail that 여기 bien paris coordinate if in our unashamed and vehement rejection of second work of grace theology, the nonsense and the wild claims of many facets of the charismatic movement, we should in any way infer that we do not believe in or cherish the biblical doctrine of the anointing of the Holy Spirit that is particular to the servants of Christ who speak the word of Christ. When Paul would have the Ephesians pray for him, notice where he wanted them to focus their prayers. Ephesians chapter 6. After giving an exhortation to pray for all the saints, he then says, don't forget me.

60:06 And this is what he wants them to pray for him. Verse 19 of Ephesians 6. And on my behalf that utterance may be given unto me in opening my mouth. To make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.

60:26 He says, as you pray for me, don't pray for my feet. Don't pray for my hands. Don't pray for my ears. Pray that I give utterance to the gospel.

60:47 Paul, there was an immediate divine operation.

60:56 Faculties by which he would speak for the word of God. And it's interesting in the book of Acts, how there is a condemnation. There is an instant and repeated emphasis in this matter of the connection between being filled with the Spirit and speaking. It begins on the day of Pentecost.

61:15 Verse 4 of Acts 2. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak. Now this is not to say that the Holy Spirit operated only at what we would call the mental and the mechanical faculties of the speech. Bypassing the heart and the emotions.

61:35 No.

61:39 There was conjunction between filled.

61:44 And you find later on, 4th chapter, the same emphasis. Acts 4. Then Peter filled with the Holy Spirit unto them. Acts 4 and 31.

62:02 There would give them grace to go on preaching in the face of opposition. Verse 31. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken wherein they were gathered. And they were all.

62:16 You see, there is such a thing.

62:32 Particulate. And perhaps. That's even human preaching that lacks the endowment of the Spirit. Paul, in chapter 2, that though Christ crucified was his central theme.

62:54 He says there was also another characteristic of his preaching. He said, I was with you in weakness and fear and much trembling. And in that context, he said, my speech and my preaching were not with enticing words of men's wisdom. But in demonstration.

63:12 In demonstration of the Spirit and of power. In demonstration of the Spirit.

63:19 He says in 1 Thessalonians 1. Our gospel came not unto you in word only. But in power.

63:27 And in much assurance or much conviction. And while I can. My total ignorance of much of the whole theology and psychology. The biblical psychology of the work of the Spirit in conjunction with preaching this much.

63:43 I do know.

63:46 That when he is present. And when he is attending the mouth of the servant of God. Those who sit beneath this ministry. Unless they are given up to hardness.

63:57 Or on any given day have had a difficult night. And are there half asleep because of physical weariness. Not because they are spiritually backslidden. The general tone of the assembly will be such.

64:10 That people are conscious that from the time the words leave a man's mouth. And fall upon their ears. There is. A weight.

64:18 There is an authority. There is a reality. There is a pressure upon those words. Which cannot be in terms of personality.

64:29 And God. On the very wings. Of Spirit anointed preaching.

Prayer for Anointing and Discernment

64:36 He rides in the chariot. Of a man preaching with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. And oh dear men in the academy. With all of your labors to acquire a working knowledge.

64:50 In the original languages. In all. Of your labors to absorb. A disciplined mind as you interact.

65:00 Educational and theological disciplines. Of systematic and pastoral and historical theology. And exegesis with all of them in the place of prayer.

65:19 Children if an earthly father will give to his children. Bread when he asks for bread. How much more will you give the Spirit to those. And have your prayers focused upon the anointing of the Spirit.

65:33 Of God. For I am convinced God would say to many a man. Who may have a ministry that is biblical. You cannot fault his exegesis.

65:45 It is articulate. You cannot fault the order and the structure. And the choice of words. And it may even have elements of persuasiveness.

65:56 But the one thing he lacks. God would write these words you have not. Because you ask not.

66:08 If you are evil. You will know how to give good gifts to his children. How much more will the heavenly father. Give the Spirit to those who ask him.

66:20 And so the mark of the mouth of a man of God. Is that it is not only a cleansed mouth. A skilled mouth. But an anointed mouth.

66:31 And as you people pray for the men in the academy. Pray for your elders who stand before you. Pray for his servants. Pray.

Application to Unbelievers: God Takes Words Seriously

66:40 That God will give us all the mouth. Of a man of God. And for you who are here. Strangers to grace.

66:48 Who have wondered what is there in all of this for you. Well I think the message is clear. And surely it is this in the language of our Lord. God takes words seriously.

67:00 Every idle word that men shall speak. They shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment. In your lies. In your dishonesty.

67:08 And your slander. And your mean and ungraciousness. And your malicious speech concerning others is all noted by God. And unless your sins are washed in the blood of Christ.

67:19 You will stand and be condemned. God will need nothing more. To show the justice of sending you to hell. Than to bring forth the words you have spoken.

67:30 That are contrary to his law. My friend as surely as the servants of God. Need the blood of Christ. And the spirit of Christ.

67:38 To have a purified mouth. And as they need. The aid of the spirit. To have a skilled and an anointed mouth.

67:45 So you need the blood of Christ. To have a standing before God. That will fit you to die. And go to judgment.

67:53 And while we've been speaking about what a man of God is. I would not even begin to be worthy of the title. Did I not in these moments as we close. Urge you if you're a stranger to grace.

68:07 To go to Jesus Christ. Who alone can do helpless. Sinners good. The Christ who died for sinners.

68:16 And lives to welcome sinners. Go to Christ. If you've not had heart dealings with Christ. Your religion is of no account.

68:25 Before God whatever it's name. The rituals you've had done to you. Are of no account. If you've not had heart dealings with Christ.

68:35 That have brought you to possess. The cleansing of his blood. And the renewal of his spirit. So I beg you to go to him.

Concluding Prayer and Exhortation

68:42 The anatomy of a man of God. We've looked today at his mouth. May God be pleased to grant such mouths. To his servants here in the academy.

68:57 And throughout the earth. Even in our generation. Let us pray.

69:09 Our father we pray that you would take your holy word. And so write it upon all of our hearts. That we may have. A fuller and more.

69:23 Biblical understanding of what we are praying for. When we ask you. To raise up men of God in our generation. Grant oh God that this generation shall know the blessing.

69:39 Of being confronted with men of God. Whose mouths are purified. Skilled and anointed by the spirit. To speak.

69:52 The everlasting gospel of Jesus. Oh Lord help us as a congregation. That we shall bend our prayers and our efforts. To do all within our power.

70:05 To see. That such men and such men alone. Are encouraged to pursue the work of the ministry. Lest congregations be blighted.

70:17 With good godly sincere and earnest men. Who've not been given the mouth. Of a man of God. Hear our cry and answer our prayer.

70:29 For Jesus sake we plead. Amen.