Pathway to Victory

Speaker 1

Hey podcast listeners. Thanks for streaming today's podcast from Pathway to Victory and Dr. Robert Jeffress.

We're dedicated to bringing you bold biblical teaching that transforms your life and strengthens your walk with God.

And you can study God's word alongside Dr. Jeffress in person on the 2026 Pathway to Victory Cruise to Alaska.

Speaker 2

Have you ever witnessed the breathtaking majesty of massive glaciers rising from crystal blue waters or stood in awe as bald eagles soar over snow-capped mountains?

I want you to experience these unforgettable moments with me on the Pathway to Victory Cruise to Alaska, June 13th through 20th, 2026.

Speaker 1

Join Dr. Jeffress and the Pathway to Victory family for a spectacular seven-day adventure aboard Holland America's luxurious Koningsdam.

Indulge in elegant staterooms, world-class dining, and expansive decks perfect for breathtaking views.

Visit historic ports like Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan, where wilderness and frontier history await.

Speaker 2

There'S something powerful about connecting with God.

Speaker 3

And fellow believers in the majesty of his untamed wilderness.

Speaker 2

I truly believe this journey will refresh.

Speaker 3

You spiritually, physically and emotionally.

Speaker 1

Cabins are filling quickly, so reserve yours today. To book your spot on the 2026 Pathway to Victory cruise to Alaska, call 888-280-6747 or go to ptv.org now. Here's today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

Speaker 3

Hi, this is Robert Jeffress and I'm.

Speaker 2

Glad to study God's Word with you every day on this Bible teaching program.

Speaker 3

On today's edition of Pathway to Victory.

Speaker 2

The mark of truly belonging to God is your desire to hear his voice and obey Him.

Do you desperately have that desire in your life to know God's will? If so, realize that although God might speak to you in many ways, the primary way he's chosen to reveal Himself.

Speaker 3

To you is through His Word.

Speaker 1

Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress. As Christians, we rely on the Bible to give us the truth about God, instructions for life, and guidance for the future. But we won't reap these benefits unless we understand how to properly apply Scripture to life choices.

Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Choi urges us to give God's Word the time and attention it deserves. But first, let's take a minute to hear some important ministry updates.

Speaker 3

Thanks, David, and welcome to Pathway to Victory. During the month of September, we're tackling one of the most common questions in the Christian faith: how do we make decisions that truly honor the will of God? For instance, when choosing a life partner, how do we know if he or she is the one God has for us? Or when choosing the right college to attend, how do we know which campus God has in mind?

Well, most preachers will tell you that to know God's will, you need to know God's Word. And that sounds good, but it assumes something that many people don't believe. Can we really trust God's Word to point us in the right direction? And if the Bible is so wonderful, why doesn't it answer my specific questions? We're going to deal with these issues today.

Our teaching series is called "How to Make Wise Decisions," and I've written a book by the same title. In fact, when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory, I'll send you a copy right away. After you're done reading your copy, pass it along to a son or daughter, perhaps a grandchild, who's wrestling with these questions too.

When we get to the close of my message, we'll be giving our contact information. Be ready with a pen or paper to write it down so that you can get in touch with us right away to request your copy of my book, "How to Make Wise Decisions."

Right now, let's get started with today's message. It's titled "The Bible Tells Me So."

Speaker 2

I think it's very important that we understand first of all what the Bible is. What is the Bible? First of all, the Bible is God's perfect revelation. He used men, their individual personalities, but he used them to communicate his message without error. God is the one who initiated Scripture and He moved. And that word means he carried along people to communicate his passage. The Bible is God's perfect revelation. It has no errors in it whatsoever.

Secondly, God's Word is God's complete revelation to us. There is no more truth about God being given today. Everything you need to know about God, Jesus Christ, heaven, hell, and salvation is contained in this book. This book is God's complete revelation.

But third, this book, God's Word, is also God's living revelation. Now what I'm trying to communicate to you is don't ever think of this book as some third-class piece of mail addressed to occupant. Now this book is a first-class piece of communication from God that is directed to you. It is the primary way that we're going to discover God's will for our life.

But as wonderful as the Bible is, there are some things it cannot do for us. God's Word is helpful in discovering God's will as long as you use it correctly. Let me talk about three things that the Bible cannot do in helping you discover God's will.

First of all, the Bible cannot predict your future. Secondly, the Bible cannot answer our every question. Some people try to use the Bible as a theological encyclopedia to answer every question we have about life in general or our life in particular. And number three, the Bible cannot provide specific direction for every decision we face.

Or pastor, if the Bible can't predict our future, it can't answer our every question, and it can't give us the guidance we need for every decision, what good is the Bible? What does the Bible do for us when it comes to discovering God's will for our life? I thought you'd never ask, so let me answer it for you.

Here are three things the Bible can do for us when we're searching for direction in life. First of all, the Bible confirms God's sovereignty. Secondly, God's Word is valuable because it convicts us of sin. I can't tell you the number of times after a sermon somebody has come up to me and said, "Who told you?" I said, "What do you mean?" Obviously, somebody told you about my situation, and you tailor-made that message just for me.

Well, you know the answer to that. I didn't know about their situation, but God knew about it, and he was able to use His Word to penetrate that individual heart. That's what God's Word does. Hebrews 4:12 states, "For God's word is alive. It's active, it is sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing as far as the division of the soul and the spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." God's Word cuts through all the malarkey and gets to the heart of the matter.

Speaker 3

Matter in our life.

Speaker 2

That's the Jeffress paraphrase. That's what God's word does for us. Somebody has said the Bible is alive. It speaks to me. It has feet, it runs after me, it has hands, it lays hold of me. God's word can speak to us about our situation and give us the direction that we need.

Thirdly, God's word communicates God's purpose for our lives. It communicates God's purpose for our lives. Don't let anybody mislead you. Yes, the Bible does tell us God's will. Did you know God's will for your life right now has already been written in Scripture? It's found in Romans 8:29. If you want to know God's will for your life, memorize Romans 8:29. It says, "For whom God foreknew, he predestined to become conformed to the image of his Son so that he might be the firstborn among many brethren."

You know what that verse is saying? It's saying God so loved his son, Jesus, he was so pleased with Jesus Christ that he decided he didn't just want to have one child. He wanted to have many children. He wanted to have many sons and daughters, just like his firstborn, Jesus. And that's why God saved you if you're a Christian. He saved you not just so that you could escape hell; he saved you so that he could begin molding you, shaping you, conforming you to become just like Jesus.

Specifically, that means God wants you to love exactly the same things that Jesus loved, to think about the same things Jesus thought about, to behave in every situation just like Jesus behaved. That is God's will for your life: that you become a replica, a perfect image of Jesus Christ in your thoughts, your attitudes, and your affections. And he's in the process of doing that in your life right now.

You know how God's gonna shape you into the image of his son? You know how God's gonna do that? He's gonna take his chisel and his hammer and he's gonna chip away everything from your life that isn't like Jesus. That's what he's doing. He's trying to chip away those habits, those attitudes, those priorities that are unlike Jesus. Sometimes it's a painful operation. Contrary again to what the TV preachers are telling you, God's will is not for everything to be easy in your life. In fact, it's the hard things in your life, those hard things that some of you are running away from right now. It's those hard things that God uses to make you just like his perfect son.

That's God's general purpose for your life and for my life. But God also gives specific guidance in our life. Again, so many Christians are seeking a fresh word from God. "Oh, God, what do you want me to do in this situation?" when God's already spoken in his word. Let me give you some just real practical things God has already revealed to us about what we're to do.

First of all, we are to only marry another Christian (1 Corinthians 6:5). Some of you say, "Oh, you know, I fell in love with this wonderful person. Oh, God, do you want me to marry them? Show me." You don't have to pray about that. God's already spoken about that.

Secondly, God's word says we are never to divorce except in the case of adultery and desertion. "Oh, God, I'm not fulfilled. I'm unhappy in my life. I've met my true soulmate in life. Oh, God, show me if I'm supposed to leave my mate to go find true happiness in life." You don't have to pray about that. God's already spoken about that (Matthew 19:9; 1 Corinthians 7:10, 24).

We're to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We're to refrain from critical speech (James 3:5-12). We're to attend church regularly. You know, people asking, "Well, are you going to cancel for this event? Are you going to do this?" I don't have to pray about that. Okay? We're not to forsake the assembling together of ourselves.

We're to perform our job with enthusiasm and excellence (Colossians 3:23). We're to refrain from grumbling. Mark that down, especially Philippians 2:13. Okay, some of you, that can be your life verse right there: "Do all things without complaining or grumbling."

We're to share the Gospel with unbelievers. You know, quit saying, "Oh, Lord, if you want me to witness to this associate or this family member, just show me." If I'm supposed to witness to them, don't pray about it, just do it. You don't have to ask God about guidance for that. The Bible says we're to share the Gospel with unbelievers.

We're to submit to those in authority (Ephesians 5:22-7:6, 12). Again, some of you are struggling about issues about whether or not you ought to do this or that when those in spiritual authority have already given you the direction you need. Much of what we need to know is already found in Scripture.

Well, now it's time to get real specific and practical. If the Bible can do all of these things for me, if God wants to speak to me through Scripture, how do I allow the Bible to become a part of my life? How can I make sure I'm listening to God's voice? I could give a lot of suggestions, but let me just mention three practical ways to make God's Word a part of your life.

First of all, don't neglect your spiritual preparation. If you truly want to hear the voice of God through His Word, don't neglect your spiritual preparation. You see, folks, God doesn't speak to everybody through His Word. There are two prerequisites, two conditions to hear from God in His Word.

First of all, write it down to the side: you have to have a supernatural power. To hear God's voice, you have to have a supernatural power. D.L. Moody said one time, "Trying to read the Bible without the Holy Spirit is like trying to read a sundial by moonlight." You just can't do it. You see, when you become a Christian, God sends his Holy Spirit into your life, and his Holy Spirit illuminates it, throws light on it, allows you to understand the truth of God's Word.

There are some of you here today, maybe you've been reading the Bible. You're like the Ethiopian eunuch, and it just didn't make sense to you. You need a teacher, and that teacher is the Holy Spirit of God. We need a supernatural power, but secondly, we need a submissive mind.

See, the question really is no longer, "Do I take the Bible literally?" The real question is, "Do I take it seriously?" God gave us the Word to apply it. And if you approach the Bible with the idea, "Well, Lord, show me what you want me to do so I can decide whether or not I want to obey," God's not going to reveal himself to you.

In Psalm 119:33, the Psalmist talked about the relationship between understanding and obedience. He said, "Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes, and I shall observe it to the end." He said, in other words, "Lord, if you will teach me what I need to know, I pledge to you, I will obey what you reveal to me." If we're going to come to the Bible to hear from God, we have to do so with a submissive mind.

Number two, if you're going to hear from God through His Word, develop a plan. If you simply say, "Oh, God, I would like to know more about your Word," that's not enough. You need to have a plan. Let me suggest to you that a plan, if you're really serious about hearing from God's Word, needs to have these three ingredients with it.

First of all, you need a period of time, a period of time that you set aside for reading God's Word. Secondly, your plan needs to designate a place. And by that, I mean there needs to be a geographical location where you meet with God. Well, are you saying God can't meet with you anywhere? Of course he can meet with you anywhere. But I think there's something special about having a place you've designated where you're going to read your Bible.

You know, when God met Jacob, he met him at Bethel. When God met Moses, as we're going to talk about tonight, he revealed himself on Mount Sinai. God met with his people at geographical locations. I think there's something about having a chair by your bed in the bedroom, or maybe in your office or the sewing room, or some special place where you meet with God. There needs to be a place.

And then number three, you need to have a program for reading through God's Word. A program for reading through God's Word. Suppose somebody came up to you and said, "I've read this great book that will revolutionize your life, and I want to give you a copy of it." And you take it. You're a little skeptical, but you say, "Well, if it's a life-changing book, I'll read it."

So one night you open that book, open it up in the middle, you read a couple of pages, makes no sense to you. Then you look back at the back, read the last couple of paragraphs, makes no sense to you. You open it up to the front, read a couple of lines, "What in the world is this about?" And you close the book and say, "I don't understand what the big deal about this book is." You'd never read a book like that.

And yet many people approach God's Word in that kind of haphazard way. Don't you think it makes sense that we ought to read the Bible at least with the same amount of respect that we would read any other book? We need to have a program for reading God's Word.

Now, through the years, many people have suggested different plans for reading the Bible. A lot of people have their "read through the Bible in a year" plan. And if that works for you, that's great. I don't want to discourage you. Those plans have never really worked for me because what I found is I'm more interested in getting through those four chapters and checking them off the list sometimes than I am really in hearing from God.

Listen, it's not how much of the Bible you've read, but how much of the Bible has been incorporated into your life that matters. I often say, you know, the Bible took 1600 years to write. Why do we feel like we have to rush through it in a year? I think it makes a lot more sense to read smaller sections of the Bible and let God's Word speak to you.

I came across a plan a few years ago that John MacArthur developed that has really been of great help to me. And maybe you'll find this helpful, too. John suggests that you take one book of the New Testament, say the book of Philippians, and you read through it once a day, every day of that month. Say starting February 1st, you read Philippians once a day for all 28 days.

You say, "Well, you know, I'm not a pastor. I have a real job. How could I ever have time to do that?" Remember, most of the books of the New Testament can be read in 20 minutes or less. Did you know that? It only takes 20 minutes. But you know what? If you read through the book of Philippians 28 times by that last week, you'll know that book backwards and forwards and inside out. You'll be able to understand what God is saying through his Apostle Paul.

And it's that same way through every book in the Bible. The Bible wasn't meant to be read verses at a time or even chapters at a time, but in its entirety. And when you come to longer books like Romans or Matthew, just divide it up into thirds. One month, the first third of Romans; the second month, the second third; the last month, the final portion of it. And I think you'll find that to be a very helpful plan.

Number three, if you want to hear from God through His Word, learn to distinguish between principles and precepts in Scripture. Learn the difference to distinguish between principles and precepts. Remember, the whole purpose of reading this book is to change your life, to hear from God, to operate your life according to his plan. But if you don't know what commands are meant to apply to you, you're going to be really confused, if not misled.

One of the questions, whenever I'm on a radio talk show or TV talk show, there'll always be somebody who'll call in, some unbeliever asking the same question. And this is what they'll say. They say, "You Christians are so hypocritical. You pick and choose what parts of the Bible you want to follow." And I'll use this example. They'll say, "Now you Christians, you say homosexuality is wrong, and you quote Leviticus 18, and yet in Leviticus 19, it also says you're not to wear a garment that's made with two different kinds of fabric. So why is it that you say Leviticus 18 applies for today, but you say Leviticus 19? Oh, that was for the Jews back then. Isn't that inconsistent?"

By the way, how would you answer that question? How do you know what parts of the Bible apply to us and what parts don't apply to us today? The key is in knowing the difference between principles and precepts in Scripture. Precepts, commands, are specific commands that apply to us. That's what a precept is. It is a specific command that applies to us. Some of God's word are precepts—specific commands. Abstain from sexual immorality, do not criticize or grumble—all of those things. Those things are specific commands.

Principles are general truths that we have to live by now. Precepts—the commands we follow—are found in the New Testament. That's where we find the specific commands that we are to obey. The Old Testament contains principles that we apply to our individual situation. For example, we don't live under Leviticus 19 anymore. We don't have to worry about wearing a wool and cotton blend, okay? That's not against God's law for us today. But there is a principle from Leviticus 19 that as God's people, we're to live holy lives. We're to live lives that are distinctive from unbelievers. We have to apply that to our situation today.

You say, "Wait a minute, you didn't answer your own question. Then why do we apply that prohibition against Leviticus 18 about homosexuality? Or why? Pastor, are you preaching on the Ten Commandments if those commands don't apply to us?" The reason I'm preaching on those is those precepts are repeated in the New Testament. And that's where I find the precepts that I'm to follow. They're found in the New Testament of Scripture.

Know the difference between principles and precepts. If there's one truth I want you to come away with from today's message, it's this: the mark of truly belonging to God is your desire to hear his voice and obey Him. "My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me." Do you desperately have that desire in your life to know God's will for your life? If so, realize that although God might speak to you in many ways, the primary way he's chosen to reveal Himself to you is through His Word.

Are you desperate enough to hear from God? Do you so want his approval in your life that you're willing to develop a plan to hear the Master's voice? Oswald Chambers writes, "The mere reading of the Word of God has power to communicate the life of God to us mentally, morally, and spiritually. God makes the words of the Bible a sacrament, a means whereby we partake of his life. It is one of his secret doors for the communication of his life to ours."

Speaker 3

Today's message on pathway to victory sets the foundation for our entire series this month. Knowing how to make wise decisions begins with immersing ourselves in God's Word. Earlier, I mentioned a book I've written that goes deeper into this subject. Like the teaching series, it's also titled *How to Make Wise Decisions*, and a copy is yours when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory.

In this full-size book, I'll expose three common approaches to discovering God's will and why they don't work. I'll give you a plan to spend five minutes a day that will revolutionize your life, and I'll help you identify three people you should consult before making any major decision from beginning to end. My goal in this book is to guide you back to the Bible to show you how God makes His plans known to His children and how you can act on these plans.

So get in touch today with your generous gift and be sure to request a copy of my book *How to Make Wise Decisions*. Remember, when you invest in Pathway to Victory with a gift, you're not only receiving helpful resources; there's a bigger benefit. God is using your gift to shine His bright light of truth into places of darkness. And He's using your gift to help Christians who, just like you, are wanting to make God-honoring decisions in their life.

So thanks for partnering with us as together we pierce the darkness with the light of God's Word. Here's David with all the details.

Speaker 1

You're invited to request a copy of how to Make Wise Decisions when you give a generous gift to Pathway to Victory. In this practical book, Dr. Jeffress explains how God makes His plans known to His children and how to act upon those plans.

To request your copy of how to make wise decisions, call 866-999-2965 or visit ptv.org. When your gift is $75 or more, you'll also receive the complete CD and DVD teaching set for our current series, how to Make Wise Decisions. Call right now, 866-999-2965 or go online to ptv.org. If you'd prefer to send a check, write to P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222. That's P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222.

I'm David J. Mullins. You know, few things are more frustrating than trying to speak to someone who's clearly not listening. Next time, Dr. Jeffress encourages us to avoid making that same mistake with our Heavenly Father. Hear an important message called "The God Who Speaks" that's Friday on Pathway to Victory.

Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. Experience the breathtaking majesty of America's last frontier on the 2026 Pathway to Victory cruise to Alaska.

Speaker 2

Board Holland America's luxurious Coningsdam ship with Amy and me for a journey that.

Speaker 3

Will refresh your soul and renew your spirit.

Speaker 1

Experience the unforgettable adventure June 13th through 20th, 2026. To book your cabin, call 888-280-6747 or go to ptv.org.

You made it to the end of today's podcast from Pathway to Victory, and we're so glad you're here. Pathway to Victory relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. One of the most impactful ways you can give is by becoming a Pathway Partner. Your monthly gift will empower Pathway to Victory to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and help others become rooted more firmly in his word.

To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org/donate or follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.