Reading
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
337.
337.
It's all right.
And so as far as far again tomorrow.
Stroud.
Long time ago and blood again, and the railroad was gone.
Last week.
Yeah, Oh.
Oh, now I want to make a thyroid. Thyroid and shallow breathing.
Around the sun.
Come and start.
Three, three, three in my eyes.
Rewind blah blah blah.
Let's.
And we saw it brought over here and.
There.
A lot of different.
Right.
OK, our God and our Father, we thank thee for an opportunity to be here and thy word is open. Pray for a blessing. We just do thank Thee that we know that we do have a father and that we're the sons and daughters of that father. And we just do pray that we might be more conformed to the image of thy son that whether it's at work or at school or at home in our marriages, umm, in our local assembly, that we might, uh, consistently be.
What we might appear to be here today and that, uh, we might have that, uh, consistency, that Christian consistency in our lives as those that truly belong to thee, Lord Jesus, we just do pray for encouragement in our hearts that might be built up. It might affect our feet. In Jesus name we give thanks, Amen, Amen.
00:05:39
For this reading, I'd like to suggest we only have one reading the last few verses of First Thessalonians chapter 5.
And Him We Just Sang brought it to mind in connection with his desire that we would glorify Him here in this world, while we're still here in the past. Faith and service.
And so I'd like to suggest, if we do that, that we begin at verse 16, First Thessalonians 5 and verse 16.
1St Thessalonians 516. Rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, and everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the spirit, despise not prophesying, prove all things, hold fast that which is good, abstain from all appearance of evil, and the very God of peace sanctify you wholly. And I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless.
Onto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faith will see that calleth you, who will also who also will do it. Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
While we were singing of that time when the Lord Jesus is going to come and we're going to be with him and we're going to be openly confessed as the sons and daughters.
Of God, and we look forward to that moment. And in this epistle he has taken up at great length the subject of the Lord's coming. And I trust that as we think of the Lord's coming, we lift up our hearts and say, Even so come Lord Jesus. But there are some practical exhortations at the end of the epistle and a little prayer that the apostle has for the Thessalonian believers, and this is really what brought it to mind when we were.
Singing the last verse of our hymn, and the apostle says here in the very God of peace, sanctify you wholly, and so on.
His desire for these Thessalonians while they waited for the Lord Jesus to come, was that they would go on in the path, glorify God, so that in that day there would be a rich reward and a Hardy well done, thou good and faithful servant, and that they would be preserved spirit, soul and body blameless. Whereas he says, yes, spirit, soul and and body. But at the end of this chapter there are then these short pithy exhortations.
It's not really doctrine we have here. It's some practical, some practical exhortations in connection with our walk while we're waiting for the Lord Jesus to come so that we will be preserved, blameless in that way when the Lord Jesus comes and when we stand before him at the judgment seat of Christ. They're not difficult exhortations to understand their short, their direct.
And perhaps, brethren, if we just go down these Scriptures and consider them in a very simple and practical way.
Perhaps it will encourage each of our hearts. The days are dark. We're right at the end. We've never been closer to the Lord's coming than we are right now. And we can go on for the Lord's glory until that moment when He calls us home.
I understand that the dispersed 16 is actually the shortest verse.
In the original Greek New Testament, rejoice evermore.
I think it's wonderful how the Spirit of God brings before us these exhortations in just a few words and simple words. And here we have in three verses that which we are to be doing all the time. First of all, rejoicing.
00:10:12
Secondly, praying and thirdly, giving thanks.
And notice it does say in everything. Give thanks.
I heard one say it doesn't say for everything give thanks, buddy, in everything give thanks. But you know, if we turn over to Ephesians chapter 5, I believe we see something that's very precious.
In Ephesians 5 and verse 20 it says giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
You know, we give thanks for that which does us good. And the fact is that no matter what takes place in our lives, I do believe.
For the Christians, it's an expression of the Lord's love for us, even the difficult circumstances of life. And so as we contemplate the love of Christ.
And it was manifest there at the cross.
Where he offered himself without spot to God.
For God's glory and for our blessing, we think of His love. We have to admit there's nothing in our lives but what His desire is that it would be for our good.
And that's why I think your pastor says give thanks always for all things.
Our brother Gordon Hanley say too, to give thanks for our trials too, because, uh, we may not understand why the Lord is bringing us through this trial, whatever it happened to be me, but we can be assured for our eternal, uh, good and blessing. And that's really what you have in Ephesians is not just giving thanks in the trial, but as Wally said, for it. Mm-hmm.
Because I don't believe we can really give thanks in the trial until we've come to the point in our experience that we've given thanks for it. Because until we realize that the Lord Jesus has allowed this circumstance in my life, I'm not going to give thanks for it. But when I realize that this has been allowed in my life and I give thanks for it, then there's a joy and a peace that comes in the in the trial, And I can rejoice it. I can give thanks.
In it.
But I, I don't, I think we ought not to skip these first two expressions. First of all, he says rejoice evermore. I like to put this verse with another short verse in the English Bible, and that is Jesus wept. If we put those two verses together, there's the two shortest verses in our English Bible and they stand in stark contrast to one another because God teaches us by contrast in His Word.
And the Lord Jesus, as he walked through this world, he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
Now there was joy in his pathway too. There was the joy of doing the Father's will.
There was joy when souls came to repentance, there was number doubt joy when they took up the children and He took up the children in His arms and blessed them. And there was even a joy in going to the cross, knowing that He was going to return to the Father, having glorified God on the earth, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, and so on. But brethren, He was in His pathway as a man, the man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.
He groaned and wept. He wept at the grave of Lazarus when he saw the awful effects that sin had brought in.
And the sorrow that it brought to that little home. But brethren, what does he say to you and to me today in contrast? Rejoice evermore. The Lord Jesus has accomplished the work of redemption. And, uh, he's dest, He's, uh, an old death and he's conquered death and he's risen and he's brought us into a place of blessing where we're going to spend eternity with him and enjoy all the benefits and blessings that he has for us.
And what does he say? Rejoice evermore. Does that mean we're gonna see the the removal of the difficulties? No, we're gonna have, as we've already said, lots of trials, lots of difficult circumstances. But like Paul and Silas, we can rejoice even in a difficult circumstance. But notice, coupled with that, he immediately says pray without ceasing. And I suggest the two things go together. Is any Mary, let him sing psalms.
00:15:24
But it's any heavy lead impress is any thick. Let him prey. You get that in the end of of the Epistle to James and the two things go together. We need prayer. We need to cast our burden on the Lord. There's things to exercise. But if we do that, if we rejoice and we pray, then we can give thanks no matter what takes place.
In Psalm 30, there's a connection between the verse that was referred to in John 11 and the verse in our chapter. The latter part of verse five says.
Weeping may endure for a night.
But joy cometh in the morning.
There's different characters of prayer. We might say, uh, there's the public, uh, assembly prayer, which is very important. Umm.
Uh, collectively when we come together, sometimes the prayer meeting is the uh.
The uh, uh, a meeting which is uh, often, umm, omitted by people or, uh.
Umm, not, uh, often.
Uh, well attended, we might say, but it's important because, uh, it's the pulse of the assembly. And that's where we corporately, uh, make our request known to the Lord. That's the public prayer meeting. And the sisters have a part in that meeting too. And then there's a prayer in the closet when we can unburden our hearts to the Lord. No man, uh, observing us the greatest victories of our lives.
With our families and so on, we'll be on our knees. And that's the, uh, the closet prayer outlined in, uh, Matthew's gospel. Well, this is the third, uh, character. You might say it's prey without ceasing. We are to, uh, live in a, uh, a constant spirit of dependence on the Lord. As we're walking down the street, in school or business, whatever, we can lift our hearts, uh, to the Lord.
About that particular difficulty that we are faced with or problem, uh, we have an example of that in Nehemiah here. He was, uh, serving the, uh, king of Persia, a very powerful monarch and, uh, he was put on the spot, so to speak. How is he going to, uh, answer this, uh, this powerful, uh, tyrant that could have, uh, taken his life?
Or, uh, he had the power to do so. And it speaks of Nehemiah praying first, just there in the palace of the king, in the, uh, in the court of the, uh, of the monarch. He just lifted his heart in prayer and then he answered the king. It's a good example for us. Sometimes we're so quick to answer, but uh, we need to, uh, be in that spirit of, uh.
Constant dependence Prayer is an expression of dependence and confidence.
Umm, as we have, uh, continuing prayer and watching the same with Thanksgiving. So it's so important that, uh, prayer is not neglected, uh, in our lives, umm.
And, uh, if we live in that spirit of prayer and dependence, we will not have a fall. Umm.
Peter when he should have been praying he was, uh.
Acting in a fleshly way and following afar off and sleeping. And he had a fall. So this is a good exhortation for us to take to heart.
Let's go back and just read that incident because I I think it's helpful. God teaches us by example as well as precept. Just go back to Nehemiah chapter 2. I believe it is.
Yes, Nehemiah chapter 2.
00:20:00
We find in verse one, he's in the presence of the king as the King's cup bearer, and the King's cup bearer was to bring the cup of wine to the king, which speaks in Scripture of joy. But one day Nehemiah was sad in the presence of the king. I'll read from verse two. Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance said, seeing thou art not sick, for this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid. You know the kings in those days had the power of life and death.
And the King's cup bearer was not to be said in the presence of the king. And you can just imagine Nehemiah how he felt and the king is going to ask him a question. And he knew it was a question that needed to be answered wisely.
Verse three. And this is the king speaking, said unto.
Then I was so afraid, the end of verse two, and said unto the king, Let the king live forever. Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my father's sepulchre, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire? Now notice this. Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? Now Nehemiah knew that his answer had to be from the Lord, because if he said the wrong thing, he was going to.
I the least lose his job, if not lose his life. Now notice what it says. So I pray to the God of heaven. And I said unto the king, Well, if you go on and read this, you find that Nehemiah answered very wisely. He was given wisdom from the Lord, and the king not only granted his request, but far, far more than he asked. To think that this Gentile king would give him his request and provide for his journey so he could return to Jerusalem and view the wall and start the building.
Why, it was almost unthinkable, But when Nehemiah's brother John said when he expressed that dependence on the Lord, the Lord came in. And I know you've experienced this. You've been driving your car. Some question you know you're going to have to answer when you get to work or school. And you know if you don't answer wisely to your employer or your teacher that it's going to be a difficulty. And you're praying and you're asking the Lord. Someone asks you at work to do something. Some other young person asks you to go somewhere. And you know you've got to answer carefully. I know you've done it. Just a swift little prayer. Lord, help me. Lord help me. Lord tell me what to do.
Well, Nehemiah did that. He didn't have time like Daniel and his three friends when they faced the king to get together in their room and have a prayer meeting. No, he had to give an immediate answer. Well, I believe this is a wonderful illustration, as Brother John has pointed out, of praying without ceasing. It isn't that we're necessarily always forming words in our minds like we would normally think of prayer when we go into our closet or we get along with the Lord or in the assembly.
But it's to be in the spirit of dependence and confidence. And if I can put it this way.
To keep an open line between yourself and the Lord so that you can turn to the Lord.
At any time, you may not always be actually praying, but you're in that you're walking close with the Lord, that open line. Nothing has come between you and the Lord so that when there is that question or that difficulty, you can say, Lord, what should I do? Lord help me. That's really what it is to pray without ceasing good. I was thinking also in the rejoice ever more we think of the apostle Paul and all the sufferings, afflictions.
Perils that he endured. Uh, he mentions similar words in the Philippians. 4 Rejoice always. And again I say rejoice. But his circumstances were very difficult. If Solomon had said that in, uh, the palace of Jerusalem, we might understand it. We would say, yeah, you have everything that your heart can wish. But Paul was in privation and suffering and difficulty in being persecuted and imprisoned and so on.
And yet he could say, rejoice evermore. What a wonderful triumph of grace and the the we have the same God that we deal with.
Yeah, prayer and Thanksgiving there too. Don't be in Philippians chapter four. First, rejoice in the Lord hallway. And again I say rejoice has been brought out. We can always rejoice in the Lord, knowing that He does not change, and we rejoice in the wonderful salvation that we have in Christ.
00:25:03
And the fact that we now have a relationship.
With God as our Father as a result of that finished work of our Savior at the cross.
And we know that the Lord Jesus always goes with us.
He's promised never to leave, nor to forsake us.
And so we rejoice in this companionship that we.
Have with the Son of God the one who could say, all powers given unto me, both in heaven and in earth, and his love is just as great as his power. And these things don't change. You know, our circumstances do change.
And so I don't believe that if we're basing happiness on circumstances.
We're gonna be very happy because sometimes circumstances are very difficult.
But you know the Lord is with us in those difficulties and rejoice in the Lord always doesn't say rejoice in the circumstances always.
But then in verse.
5:00 and 6:00.
Philippians 4. Let not let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand, Be careful for nothing.
Or be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving, let your requests be made known.
Unto God.
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
I believe that even as we pray, we can give thanks.
To the Lord for the answer that He's going to give.
It may not be the answer that we expected, but it's going to be a good answer. So even as we're praying, we can be thanking the Lord for the answer He's going to give.
Because we know He loves us with a perfect love.
And perfect love casts out fear.
And with respect to Thanksgiving?
What impresses me is that the Lord Jesus.
Could give thanks for that which spoke of his deepest agony, suffering.
You know, when he was there in the upper room with his disciples, it tells us he took the bread and he gave thanks for it and that he break it. It's that which spoke of his death. He said this is my body which is given for you. And then it tells us that he took the cup and likewise he gave thanks for the cup.
Well, I believe the Lord Jesus saw that God was in all of this that was before him.
And he knew that his father made no mistake. He gives thanks.
For the bread, for the wine.
Well, sometimes young people ask how can we know the will of God? Or I want to know what God's will is for me in my life.
And there are many things that when we seek the will of God in our lives and we do them, we have to say, well, we trust.
We have the Lord's mind in doing this or that, but you know, there are some things in Scripture that were not left in any doubt as to whether it's the will of God or not.
And we have just had three statements that bring before us three things that are the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
That's what he says in verse 18. And so it's God's will that we rejoice evermore.
It's God's will that we pray without ceasing. It's God's will that in everything we give thanks. We don't have to wonder whether it's God's will or not. And brethren, and I can only say this to my own heart, if these three things.
Are not characteristic in a practical way in my life, then I'm not fulfilling at least one aspect of God's will for me in my life.
God's will is that every believer would rejoice, pray, and give thanks.
And so we need, I think, to take an assessment of our lives, look back over some of us were here last year, look back over the past year. How much has this been practically true in your life and mine?
Different aspects of prayer.
00:30:00
That we could consider and we turned over a page to 1St Corinthians 2. We see.
I exhort, therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, and intercessions, and giving a thanks be made for all men.
Supplications have to do with our needs. And so we're noticing recently as we're looking to look at Matthew.
In our assembly in Mount Tabor says in Matthew 918, Well, he speak these things under them, behold, there came a certain ruler and worshipped him, saying my daughter's even now dead. Isn't that interesting that it's called worship when he expresses?
Is need and I believe it's because.
He's recognizing that one as the one, uh, who could answer the need. And so that's worship. So supplications are part of prayer and it's part of worship, uh, in a certain sense, because we recognize that he's able to answer our needs. And then it says, uh, speaks of prayers and that all aspect of prayer involves devotion, so.
Uh, when we express our, our worship, our praise to the Lord, uh, that's all part of prayer, of course, and but all prayer, I think suggests the thought of devotion to the Lord.
And then the third aspect is mentioned here, intercessions, that is, uh, for we might pray for others and that's another aspect of prayer that we have enjoyed even today. And then finally listed as the giving of thanks.
Be made for all men.
Uh.
Giving thanks and that's already been talked about. So we have these four things, supplications, prayers, intercession, and Thanksgiving. That's what I call the spit formula. That's for supplication, P for prayers and so on. So when we have our needs, when we have.
Something to give thanks for, something to worship, something, uh, to ask for others. We need spent, uh, those four things.
And we might mention also in passing that, uh, prayer is not a question of ability or gift, uh.
Uh, it's a priestly function and, uh.
Remember, uh, brother Gordon, uh, saying years ago that?
A young brother that wanted to be a help in the meeting. He thought it would be nice first of all to hear his voice in prayer. I agree with that. Umm.
We can all participate, brothers, I'm referring to in the, uh, prayer meeting. Uh, certainly it doesn't need to be a, an eloquent presentation, but it's in refreshing to hear a young brother lift his heart and maybe a simple short prayer in the assembly meeting. And, uh, it's not a question of having a gift. It's a priestly function.
Now there is ministry, which we come down to here in verse 19 and 20. There is ministry in the assembly, which, uh, supposes a gift, an ability, but not in the prayer meeting. Is that right, Jim? Yes. And that really does bring us to these next few statements, doesn't it? Because we've spoken at a great length about the individual aspect of things. We've spoken about rejoicing in the Lord.
Individually, we've spoken about praying. I know we've brought it out in connection with the assembly too, and but particularly in connection with personal prayer and instantaneous prayer and so on. We've spoken about giving thanks and how this is the will of God for each one of us. But now he's going to bring us to the collective side of things because our interactions with one another are important as well. And so first of all, he says quench, not the Spirit.
Now in Ephesians he speaks about grieve. He says grieve not the Spirit, the Holy Spirit.
To grieve, if I can put it this way, to grieve the Holy Spirit is really to hinder the work of God in US. It's more an individual side of things. If I allow sin in my life or something to come between me and the Lord, it's going to hinder the work of the Spirit of God in me. You ever get down on your knees to pray or you opened your Bible to read the Word yourself and you just felt you couldn't pray or you didn't get anything out of what you read from the Word of God?
00:35:28
Well, perhaps it's because you've allowed something in your life to grieve the Spirit of God so that he cannot, uh, lead you, uh, guide you in prayer because he's the one that we pray in the, in and by the Holy Spirit or he cannot minister to you the things of Christ from this book because it's the Spirit of God that takes of the pages of this book and makes it real and precious to us and brings out what God is saying to us.
But that's to grieve the Spirit of God. If to grieve the Spirit of God is to hinder the work of God in me, then I suggest that to quench the Spirit is to hinder the work of God through us. That is if I can use a very practical illustration. Perhaps you've experienced it, brothers, you sit in a in a meeting and some him comes to your mind and it's pressed upon your soul and you just don't give it out. You say, oh, I'm not, I'm not going to open my mouth today.
One of two things may happen the Lord may the Spirit of God may use somebody else to give out the same hymn because.
God is very gracious and He's greater than our weakness. But you know, sometimes I have to say to my own soul, I've sat in a meeting and not said something that I are given out to him that I felt the Spirit of God was leading me to do. And somebody gave out something else that didn't seem in keeping with the character of the meeting or the leading of the spirit. You can't question or judge, but you know, we need to be exercised that we don't quench the Spirit of God.
If the Spirit of God, we need to maybe you won't open your mouth in a meeting, but come with exercise brothers, that if the Spirit of God desires to use you that you're a ready vessel to be used. Otherwise you may quench the Spirit of God. So he's taking up now some things in connection with the our interactions, the collective side of things. He's going to go on to say despise not prophesying. We're going to we're having ministry here.
In these meetings, there's going to be some open meetings, some addresses, this reading, what are we going to do? Are we listening to what God is saying to us through his, through his servants? Are we listening to what he's ministering to us from the word of God? Or do we say, oh, well, that's not for me, or I just let that shot go over my shoulder, or we shut our ears to what is being said. Maybe it bothers our conscience, speaks to our hearts, so we just set it aside. No, we don't want to despise what God is is saying to us, what is prophesying for our purposes. It's speaking the mind of God.
God raises up men to, to convey his mind. We don't have foretelling like they did in the Old Testament perhaps, but we have 4th telling and God has his prophets today and, uh, we need to listen to what they have to say and then weigh what they have to say. Prove all things. What do you think, Steve? Is that right? I think that's, uh, that's right. Not all that is said might be of the Spirit. So there is that need to prove all things.
The, uh, the faithful remnant in the coming day is warned against false Christ and the earth, but we're warned against, uh, uh, false spirits and to try the spirits. And so there's needs to be carefulness that, uh, we, we prove that all that is said is really according to the word of God and, and it's the Spirit of God bringing it out. Just like to mention a brother said something to me just before the meeting that we desire good doctrine and.
And exhortation and encouragement. But he said, what do we really want? He said, we really want the leading of the Spirit of God in the assembly meetings. And then we'll get all those things that we need and that we desire. And so it needs to be our desire and prayer and, uh, a real waiting in our souls on the leading of the Spirit of God that we get what the Lord has for us.
Just like to mention two connection with what our brother John said and, uh, a young brother's voice being heard, perhaps first in prayer that there's really a moral order there. And because one might say, well, why first in prayer, you know, the temptation really, especially if the Lord's young brother is giving you an ability to minister the word of God, the temptation is perhaps to minister the word of God first.
00:40:21
The reason that it's better to be heard in prayer first is this, uh, as we have here, prophesying is forth telling and it might be edification, exhortation or comfort, but it's really.
Helping your brother and on in the past and giving them what they need. But if you can't pray for your brother, how can you tell him how to go on for the Lord? And if you can't give the Lord thanks for what he's done, do you really have any business telling your brother how to go on for the Lord?
There's a moral order of being able to intercede for others and give thanks to the Lord first before we're used to the Spirit of God to instruct others. And, uh, the Lord really wants.
And 1St and primarily one opinion from us. What thank you of Christ before we have a lot of other opinions about how our brethren ought to go on. The Lord says I've got one opinion I want to hear from you. What do you think of my son? And if you can't OfferUp an opinion, so to speak of, of your thoughts and on behalf as and as the mouthpiece of the assembly of of your appreciation of the Son of God.
Then really, uh, it's, it's getting things out of order to minister to the hearts of the Saints of God.
In the assembly, we recognize the scriptural order that uh, uh.
God has given gifts to his church. The Spirit of God has imparted gifts and we recognize those. The authority comes from the Lord for the exercise of those gifts in the systems of men around us. They really quench the Spirit because, uh, they don't allow the exercise of those God-given abilities and gifts in the, uh, in the church.
But they, uh, confine them all in the person of, uh, one man.
Uh, or, or a few, but there's not the free exercise of the Spirit of God to, uh, minister to the Saints through the gifts that have been imparted, uh, from, uh, an ascended Christ in the glory, so.
Quentin, not the spirit, Uh.
Well, we often apply that to, uh, the reticence to, uh, to speak, uh, when, uh, we feel, uh, that we should, uh, participate for God's glory. On the other side, some of us fail on the other side, we quench the Spirit by speaking too much. And uh, Bo, neither of them are, are correct. We need to be dependent on the Lord in, in those matters.
I'd like to make a comment, umm, on proving all things in connection with, uh, what we find in Acts 17, and we could turn there for a moment.
Max 17 in connection with the Bereans.
Not 17 In the 10th verse we have the brethren immediately sent away, Paul and silence by night unto Berea. The coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews, and these were more noble than those in Thessalonica. I wonder if perhaps that may have been part of the reason why we have this exhortation, uh, to the Thessalonians to prove all things. We find that theft graphs didn't characterize them the same way that did the Bereans. But we read here in the 11Th verse, these were more noble than those in Thessalonica.
In.
That they received the word with already and searched the scriptures daily. Whether those things were so And I've just appreciated in this verse that umm in relation with searching the scriptures daily.
It says here that there was a readiness of mind and I found myself sometimes having an agenda in something that I wanna do, and sometimes I search the scriptures to try to justify what I want to do. Well, here we find with the Bereans.
It says they had a readiness of mind. So in relation with proving all things in our personal lives and in our assembly lives, what a marvelous thing to be able to look at the Word of God with a readiness of mind to realize what the Lord wants for us to learn as opposed to seeking to find out from the Word what we really want to do.
00:45:20
It's been said, I believe it's true that.
The great sin of Christendom today.
Is sin against the Holy Spirit?
And it's been brought out how that there has introduced.
Into the church, that which takes the place of the Spirit of God.
You know, the Holy Spirit is really the only divine leader that is to be in control of all proceedings in the assembly.
But we find.
Human arrangement has come in and.
Instead of waiting upon the Lord to direct by His Spirit and worship and ministry.
Some individual makes up a plan and this is what we're going to follow.
You know, Brother Steve, if I came to Vestal and I said now.
This large day morning.
Got a program and I would like this brother to give out this him and another brother to read a portion and I'd like you to break the bread.
I don't think you'd accept that.
You wouldn't be too pleased.
And yet I believe that's what's happening. You would say, well, we'd rather be under the control of the Spirit of God to lead in this meeting this morning. And it's a wonderful thing, you know, when God is in control. So I just mentioned that because I think that we.
Ought to be so thankful, if indeed we are in a place.
Where the authority of the Lord Jesus is acknowledged and there's a vowing to his authority.
And to his leading.
By his spirit, the Spirit of God.
Well, when we do prove all things, then we see them from Scripture that what we've heard is right. As Dave said, the Bereans didn't take the Apostle Paul's word for what was ministered. They went and searched the parts of the Scripture they had and they saw what he was ministering was the truth of God. Then what are we to do, brethren? To just leave it on the table, so to speak? Know where to hold it fast. And So what is right? What we we come to meetings like this.
Maybe there are things we that are said that aren't according to the Spirit of God. Maybe they aren't quite accurate. We're to set those things aside. But what about the things we have proved us to be right from God's word? Well, we're to hold those things fast. And I believe that the great work of the enemy today is to get us to compromise. And to compromise is to let things slip slowly. It's to have a little pinhole in the bottom of the cup. It's as.
We used to say the thin edge of the wedge, it's letting the barrier down slowly. It's not giving up in great chunks or pouring out the cup all at once. No, it's just to let things go very slowly. But what are we to do? We're to hold fast. If there's an exhortation in, well, let's just actually, let's just read it in Revelation chapter 3, I believe.
S.
Revelation chapter 2, Revelation chapter 2 and verse 25.
But that which ye have already, hold fast till I come. And then in chapter 3 and verse 11, behold, I come quickly. Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. Now what is it that we've been given that we're to hold fast to? It's the precious truth of God. It's the word that we hold in our hands and those things that have been ministered to us from the Word of God, and we're to hold them fast and to hold fast to something.
Gives the thought of energy expended. You know, if you're doing some rock climbing like they have in the back of this gymnasium.
Or you're doing some gymnastics, you grip that bar, you grip those rocks and you hold them fast because you know what's going to happen if you don't.
00:50:01
If there isn't all your energy put into it to hold fast, you're going to fall, you're going to get injured, and so on. And brethren, we need to seek grace, to hold fast to the truth. The devil wants us just to give up a little bit, to just loosen our grip here and there. But Paul exhorts the Thessalonians, when they have proved all things, then they're to hold fast that which is good, and then abstain from all appearance of evil. But I'm gonna read this in Mr. Darby's translation because.
Perhaps a little broader thought. Hold aloof from every form of wickedness. And so we're to hold fast to that which is right, that which is good. But what are we to do with that which is not right, that which is not good, that which is not according to the leading of the Spirit of God? We're to, we're to set it aside. We're to stand aloof from it. We're not to get near it. We're not to touch it. Touch not, taste not, handle not.
Why is it so often we get entangled with things because we think we know our own heart and how far to go say, well, I, I can get maybe a stand on the edge of the Grand Canyon and you know, we've been there and there are barriers back from the edge and warnings not to go beyond that. But what would you think if I said, well, that's, that's too far back for me. I know how far I can go and still, still not fall. And so I climbed that barrier and I, I stand right on the edge and I go over. You say there were warnings. There were warnings to not to stand aloof from the rim.
Of the Grand Canyon. But I thought I knew how far I could go. And many a believer has got entangled in false doctrine, in moral evil, in ecclesiastical associations, because they thought they knew how far their hearts could go. God says take and hold fast to the good, but that which is wicked, don't even go near it. Stand completely aloof.
There's a, a helpful, uh, illustration of that brother with Samson, you know, in the end when, uh.
When, uh, he had laid his head in Delilah's lap and the Philistines came and his hair was shaved off, it says he went out.
To shake himself a as at other times, but he whisked not that the spirit of the Lord was departed from him. And you know when we go right to the the edge as it were, because we think we know how far we can go. We don't realize that something has changed. A moral change has come in. We're not the same person we were morally before we took that step to the edge. He wished not that the spirit of the Lord had departed from him. There was a moral change with Samson. Something had changed and he was completely unaware of it. And so when we think we're strong enough to go so far but not go over the edge.
And we take that step, we're morally a different person than we were before we took that step. And we no longer have the strength to to not go over the edge. We're different, we're changed. And he was changed and his eyes were put out and he ground corn for the Philistines in the House of the Philistines.
Speaks about Sampson, how that uh.
The Spirit of God began to move Samson just as a young person and.
And no doubt he responded to that movement of the Spirit of God and.
And in the next chapter we read about.
Under the control, the power of the Spirit of God, he was able to slay a lion and then he performed many amazing exploits for God. But under the power of the Spirit of God that came upon him. But you know, it tells us that the Spirit of God began to move him. And I'm thinking that here in this gym today, there is the Spirit of God working in some of these young.
People.
Young men and beginning to move and don't resist that, you know, don't quench that moving of the Spirit of God.
The Lord leaves you give out of Him or to pray or read scriptures. I think the best thing we can do is to do that.
Sometimes it's difficult because we think of the consequences and we wonder if we'll be able to do that, but you know.
The Spirit of God.
00:55:01
Disable.
To.
Help us.
Enablement is there.
I recall the first time asked to give the gospel.
And I was so.
You might say reluctant to do that, but a brother, he could see my reluctance and he said.
Wally won't be thinking about yourself. Think about the Lord. And it was a good word, you know, because we need to think about the Lord.
Verse 23 brings before us the important subject, large subject. Perhaps we couldn't cover all the aspects of it this morning, but sanctification is really separation from evil, holiness, delight in that which is good, and abhorrence of evil.
But the prayer of the apostle here, the very God of peace, sanctify you wholly. I pray God, your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved, blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now sanctification is presented in two ways. I think we are all aware is a positional sanctification, absolute, uh, which we have in the Epistle to the Hebrews. We are sanctified.
Through the work of Christ once for all. There's no growth there, There's no progression in that sanctification. We are set as set apart for God, perfect, holy, blameless in the sight of God, by one offering. He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. But that's not the aspect of the apostle is bringing before us in our verse here. This is the practical side.
This is the progressive side.
Of, uh, of sanctification, uh, and we should be more sanctified from the world this year than we were last year. And how that comes about is not presented in this, uh, particular verse, but we know from other scriptures, it's through the word of God.
Uh, and occupation with, uh, Christ in the glory. But here you notice that spirit comes first and then soul and body because what we think about and pursue after as an object controls our lives.
We know that too well. And the apostle would bring before us the importance of the Spirit. What we, uh, what we are occupied with is going to, uh, affect our whole lives. But it was his desire that we might be separate spirit, soul and body.
Uh, from that which is a dishonouring to the Lord. And we have it all around us, do we not?
So the Lord pray too for the disciples. Sanctify them through Thy Word. Thy Word is truth, and the Psalm is set in the 119th Psalm by word. Have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee? And so if we're going to walk in practical sanctification through this world, one of the keys is to have the Word of God before us at all times. It has a sanctifying, cleansing effect. And I suppose too, that's why in connection with the Spirit being first, as John said here.
Our spirit, it says in Colossians, if you notice your margin and it's a better rendering, it says that we're to set our mind on things above because if we set our mind on things above where Christ sits and our minds are full of Christ and occupied with him, it's going to take care of those things that are soulish. The soul is the seed of the emotions. The spirit is the God conscious part of our being. We are a tripart being as we often say.
The Spirit is the God conscious part of our being. But then the soul is the seed of affections and emotions. And why is it so often our affections and emotions are directed in the wrong way? It's because we haven't set our mind on things above. It's because our mind does affect what affect our heart. So the order is very important. And if the mind is set on Christ, full of Christ, then.
01:00:04
These things that we take up.
As to the affections and emotions, and there are things that are soulless, they're not wrong in themselves, but they're going to be taken up in the proper balance and perspective. Eat so much honey is as good for the honey speaks of those things that are natural, natural sweetness. And it's good to eat a little honey. Jonathan took a little honey and his eyes were enlightened. But if that is in perspective, then the body is going to be preserved. But so often the body is not preserved. So often the body falls into that which leaves a mark on it, moral evil and so on and other things.
The way of the transgressors hard and the body can often suffer because of it. But what is why is it so often we our bodies are abused or there's a mark of moral evil left for the rest of our lives and so on? It's because we haven't followed the order here, the Spirit first. Are our minds really set on Christ? Are they full of Christ? If they are, then yes, there are those natural things that they'll be in the proper balance and perspective.
And in the proper, within the safeguard of the relationships that God has instituted for the blessing of man on the earth. And then our bodies will be preserved. And so Paul's prayer and desire for these Thessalonians while they waited for the Lord to come, was that they would be preserved spirit, soul, and body in the three parts of their being.
Interesting to see our part and God's part set, uh, against each other. That is, we were exhorted to be judicial proof all things and hold fast what's good and hold aloof from what's not good.
Well then, that's our part. But then.
If we just leave it there, we're in bad shape. Uh, it's really the Lord that preserves us.
So we have our our responsibility to.
Umm, be holy, we might say, but it's the Lord that actually preserves us. So he praised that we might be preserved under the blameless, under the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, and adds that faithful as he that calls you, who also will do it, Not only is he able, but he will do it.
Stop.
He's the God of, of peace that's gonna stand by us, will sanctify us, able to sanctify us. And peace is a nature that's satisfying. Umm, just think of it like a dog in the front porch there in his blanket in the sun. He just, everything he wants is right there just stretched out and he soaking it in. And we have a new nature that, uh, God alone can satisfy and he can satisfy it and fill us with all that it longs for and desires.
We have an old nature too, that, uh, has the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, and seeks to satisfy itself and cannot, no matter how much it gets to this world, it cannot satisfy itself. And soon it dawns on us that we have no power to satisfy what the flesh longs after. And it just is this endless agitation of desiring and desiring and never being happy because we can never be satisfied.
That's the opposite of peace. But we have a new nature that, uh, is given to us of God and, ha, having its proper object, Christ set before it is satisfying. And God fills us with good things. And that new nature we have then finds its rest and satisfaction. And there's no lack of anything, so to speak. There's a contentment of peace. That's peace and nature.
Satisfied.
And not only that, that object that God sets before that new nature, Christ.
Forms that new nature to his own image, He. He gives us what we need to be satisfied. He gives us what forms us and conforms us to that which he desires. And there's peace, a nature satisfied. But the old nature never will be and will never be at peace. There is no peace, There is no rest for the wicked, saith my God. Some years ago the question was asked to John D Rockefeller.
01:05:11
What is satisfaction?
And he gave a very short answer, a little bit more.
Than that.
Well, it's interesting, isn't it, that Paul praised this for the brethren in Thessalonica, doesn't pray that they'll get a good job or get their grades or whatever it might be, but he prays that they might be preserved in this way. Not that Paul wasn't concerned in the practical things of his brethren too, but his desire, really there was a desire that superseded the practical everyday, as someone said, the lost button type of prayer, and that was that they would be preserved in this way. But isn't it interesting that as soon as he has prayed this.
He turns around and says, Brethren, pray for us.
Did Paul need their prayers in this regard too? The Thessalonians might have looked at Paul and said, well, he's arrived.
The great apostle Paul, he's arrived. No, Paul said. We need your prayers just as much as we're praying this for you.
And I just want to say this to those who are younger. Perhaps sometimes you look at your older brothers and sisters and you feel like they've arrived. They, they don't, they don't need the exhortation or the prayer anymore. None of us have arrived, no matter where we are in our Christian pathway, whether we're children, young people, middle age, raising families a little further along in the path of faith and service. We need to pray for one another in this regard.
Sometimes we pray for our young people. You know, it's always encouraging when a young person comes to me and says, Mr. Hyland, I'm praying for you. I know you're going through some circumstance or you're going somewhere and I'm praying for you. You know, that does my heart good, nice to for the older ones to pray for our younger ones. But I think it's beautiful. And we who are a little older, we need the prayers of our younger brethren that we would be preserved in this way because there's always the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes.
And the pride of life, I suppose those three things affect us at different times in our lives generally, But I think too that we can be affected by all three at any time in our lives. So Paul, yes, Paul, the apostle Paul, he desired the prayers of his brethren. Then I know our time is gone. But just to these last few verses, greet all the brethren within. Holy kiss. Well, brother and I, I know we don't do that so much in our society, but.
The kiss has always been, in Scripture, the sign of affection. Do we greet one another warmly and affectionately?
You go to different parts of the world. There's different ways that brethren perhaps carry this out, greet one another in an affectionate way. But whatever it is in our society, there needs to be that greeting one another in a in with affection. Then he says, I charge the Lord that the epistle be read to all the holy brethren. This wasn't just for some, this wasn't just for certain ones. This these exhortations were necessary for all and they're necessary for all our hearts, aren't they? And then he says the grace.
Of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. So characteristic, isn't it, of Paul to end his epistles with this commendation of grace? Because as he takes up the truth, various aspects of the truth in each of his epistles, as there are the exhortations that go with the aspect of truth and doctrine that's brought out in each epistle, then at the end of the epistle the Spirit of God realizes that if there is going to be.
In any measure, a taking in a holding fast and a walking, in the practical good of the truth of the Epistle, it's only the grace of God. And brethren, it is only the grace of God that preserves us. Have we been brought along in some measure, preserved in some measure, spirit, soul, and body, up until this moment? We can only look back and count it as the grace of God, of all we received, of His fullness and grace upon grace.
It's for the that grace is available to everyone of God's people. Do we need more grace? He gives more grace. Is that all we need? My grace is sufficient for thee. So glorious. What comes at the end when the Lord comes. But grace is what meets our present need. And David said, I think it's the 84th Psalm. The Lord will give two things, grace and glory. Again, glory is what we're waiting for.
01:10:07
But in the mean time, as we wait for the glory, we need that grace. And so at the end of each of most of his epistles, I believe, if not all but maybe Hebrews, he speaks in some way of the grace of God as that preserving factor.
Oh umm.
It will be more than 11.
Right on my heart.
Uh, 5:00 most precious time sleep.
I fell on the train and go.
Phone number please. I'm all the heads up. And then I said I'm all.
6:00.
Uh.
And ourselves, our loving God and Father, we thank you for encouraging him that we have sung together and the prayer connected with it and the last verse that we have sung.
We think of the short expectations given to us in this chapter. We pray, too, that we might not just give lip service to that which we have spoken about this morning, that we may truly allow the Spirit of God to work in our lives and to work in the assembly too. We've heard this morning about breathing the Spirit and quenching the Spirit, and I believe.
Blessed Savior, there is much for us to reflect upon in this regard this morning. We just thank C2 for the fact that we can rejoice in our circumstances. We thank you for that joy that we have in Christ. We think of the encouraging scenario that we have read about this morning that we weeping may in endure for a period of time, but the fact that joy shall come in the morning.
01:15:20
We thank thee too, that we can pray for one another.
We think of the words of that hymn. I need the prayers of those. Certainly we need to pray for one another on a regular basis. And we thank you too for the hope of Thy coming and Thy grace which has been given to us to sustain us on our.