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238.
238.
Our shepherd is the Lord.
Living.
To God.
Is so understandable.
We are.
Someone.
God Restore.
Sin his way.
Really makes our goal of George LeBron.
Romney.
Mercedes.
Benz.
Wherever we believe our love and we're faithful.
Shall we be as much as we shall live in?
Rejoice.
Before we pray, I'd like to read.
4 verses out of Acts 16.
Acts 16 verse 11. This is Paul with his group, therefore losing from Troas who came with a straight horse, to Samantha Rosia and the next day to Neapolis.
And from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia.
And a colony. And we were in that city abiding certain days.
And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a Riverside where prayer was want to be made.
And we sat down and spake unto the women which resorted thither, and a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple of the city of Thyrotyra, which worship God, heard us whose heart the Lord opened.
And she attended under the things which were spoken of Paul. I'd like to read the last half of that verse again.
Whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized in her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord.
Come into my house and abide there.
And she constrained us.
00:05:02
Notice the prayer meeting was consonant at the Riverside. Paul went there, and when she heard Paul, her heart was changed. She attained into Paul's doctrine.
And she has now a new purpose. It's beautiful to see this change in this dear sister's heart after hearing the words of Paul. We had the words of Paul before us here in the reading meeting. Let's give thanks. Our Father, our God. We're thankful for the portion before us. These last words, a servant Paul gave through the Spirit that we can enjoy 2000 years later and take in. We pray our Father and our God, that the Holy Spirit.
We would continue to lead and guide.
And direct in this portion before us, as we're sitting here in the last days, our Father, we recognize this.
And that we may come away from a prayer meeting as well as attaining into these words of Paul that have changed lives as well. So we're thankful, Lord Jesus, to have thyself before us and thy precious name. We give thanks, Amen.
It might just interject a personal note in connection with the scripture that was read.
Some years ago I had a chance to go down into Macedonia.
And I stood on a high Crematory or point along the coast overlooking the Aegean, and just down below was that city of Neapolis.
And my heart overflowed when I saw that city because I realized that was the 1St place on the continent of Europe that the Apostle Paul set foot off. And I felt if it wasn't for that, I wouldn't be in the place of blessing that I'm found now.
I had suggested the barrier. I think about verse 12.
Is that that reasonable? Yes. Maybe you could read into chapter two. Yeah, I had suggested possibly going down to verse 13. Go ahead. Have you got another suggestion? That's good.
Second Timothy chapter one starting with verse 12 for the which cause I also suffer these things.
Nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Hold fast the form of sound words which thou hast heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us. This thou knowest that all day which are in Asia be turned away from me, of whom are fie jealous.
And homogeneous the Lord give mercy under the House of onus. Ephraus. For he off refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain. But when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me the Lord granted to him, that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day, and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus thou knowest very well. Chapter 2. Thou therefore, my Son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
The husbandmen that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits. Consider what I say, and the Lord give the understanding in all things. Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead, according to my gospel.
Wherein I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even under bound bonds with the word of God is not bound. Therefore I endure all things for the elect's sake, that they may also obtain the salvation.
Which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. It is a faithful saying, For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him. If we deny Him, he also will deny us if we believe not. Yet he abideth faithful, He cannot deny himself.
00:10:40
If we want to stand for the whole truth of God, we are going to suffer for it, as Paul did.
Most of the time the opposition came from the Jews, and we still find today.
The Judaizing principles that have been brought into the professing church, which have brought Christianity down to the level of a worldly religion, and Paul suffered on that account. But he says here.
I am not ashamed. Why could he say that? He could say that because he knew that what he had taught, what the Lord had given him, was the truth of God. And even though it was not widely accepted, even though, as we find out in verse 15, that all they which were in Asia had turned away from him, Paul says to Timothy.
It's the truth of God. It's worthwhile. Carry on with it.
And what we have here, which has always been a particular interest to me, are the two deposits that are mentioned, one in verse 12 and one in verse 14. And it's not clearly evident in our King James translation. It's far clearer in the Derby. But when it says there in verse 12.
That which I have committed unto him against that day.
The word there should is accurate in the Let me start again. The word that more accurately describes that is the word deposit.
But then in verse 14 we have that good thing which was committed unto thee.
The good depot.
And we all know, all of us what a deposit is. It's something that we put somewhere for safekeeping.
And here there is a deposit that the we have or we should be committing to the Lord. There's one that Paul had committed to the Lord, but then there's a deposit the Lord commits to us. Maybe we can enlarge on that a little.
Every time you and I speak well of Christ and live and walk before him according to the precious truth that God committed to Paul, you and I are laying up a deposit there in heaven.
Down here in this world, men pay a lot of attention to their investments, pay a lot of attention into where they put their money and what kind of a return they're going to get, and.
Sometimes they get into the stock market and well, now what's going to happen is the market going up or down and what kind of predictions can we make and so on. And they get listening to various people that are supposed to know what's happening and they're very concerned about what is going to happen to that deposit. And at least in the past, not so much today, there have been banks that have failed.
And people have lost their money.
There's one place where you can put a deposit up there in glory and you'll never lose it All in all.
God keeps it for us, and Paul says he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against.
00:15:04
That day, what's that day? That day refers, I believe, to the judgment seat of Christ.
When your life and mine will be reviewed and God will place His stamp either of approval.
Or disapproval of how we have used what He has committed to us. And I say to myself, what kind of a deposit am I making up there? But then just to make the comparison in verse 14.
Paul says to Timothy, The good deposit which was given unto thee by the keep, by the Holy Ghost.
Which dwelleth in us. You and I have been given a deposit as well.
And it may be different for every one of us, it may be different for other people out there in other parts of Christendom, but whatever the deposit is, the Lord says.
I want you to keep it. Are we keeping it or are we giving it up? Are we valuing it or are we throwing it away?
Our brother yesterday was mentioning the importance of all that we have been given.
And we have.
Without boasting, many here have been raised under the sound of excellent ministry, ministry that very few people have the privilege of hearing. Are we willing to live and walk in the good of it? Paul says that good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in US. Now I know I've skipped over verse 13, but.
Those two deposits are very important to us, one that we make up there with the Lord, one that the Lord makes down here with us.
It's interesting here in Matthew chapter 6 where the Lord brings in that two aspects of depositing, one what we should not deposit and one that we should deposit. In Matthew chapter 6 verse 19, he says.
Deposit not up for yourselves treasures upon earth where moth and rust does corrupt.
For these breakthrough is still but the posit up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor Russ corrupt and we're thieves do not ride through nor steal. And here's the the secret of all that for where your treasure is here's where your heart he also well we know where Paul's treasure was, wasn't it his object was the Lord Jesus and he was running a race and he was going through.
Race and faithfulness. And so in the in the second.
Chapter that we're going to be getting into.
He could say.
And I've lost my place here. Just a second here.
Yeah, and.
Excuse me a minute here in in Titus.
Chapter 3.
He could say lost my place here, I'm sorry.
In in the 4th chapter Second Timothy, he could say I have fought a good fight.
Finish my course, and I've kept the faith, and henceforth there is deposited up for me a crown of righteousness. Mr. Lord, thy righteous should shall give me in that day, and not only me, but unto all them also that love is encouraged.
Was 13 is good to connect I think with verse 14 isn't it?
Deposit is the outline, that's what the new translation reads, holds fast the outline of sound words which thou has heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. It's the.
00:20:01
Teaching that Paul gave us, and I just want to encourage young people to get an outline of Scripture.
I still remember a meeting that Gordon Hayhoe gave up and I think it was in Toronto. He went over the whole book of First Timothy in one meeting. I can still remember how edified I felt after that meeting. He gave us an outline and once you have an outline, you know where to put the pieces and that is very helpful. So try to get an outline of Scripture.
And I think that is sometimes we go into Scripture in a lot of detail, and I don't say that's wrong, but we do need an outline. And So what is First Timothy deal with? It was the House of God in its order. That's what he taught us there. And he went through every chapter and gave us an outline. He didn't go into details too much, but it was an outline. And I found that.
Very helpful. Somebody is going to build a house, they have the plans for that house and they know where to start and they know where to put everything because they have the outline, the plans. And so in Scripture it is the same thing. I must say, dear young people, I too was brought up in the meeting and I must say when I was a young person.
Walla Walla, I didn't really understand very much of what was said.
But little by little, as I grew, I picked up something here and something there. And as time went on, I could pick up more. And it has become a treasure in my heart, the knowledge of the truth of God. And it's so important, especially when we're talking about Paul's doctrine, because he brought in the heavenly calling of the church.
As no other one did. And he was a special instrument chosen for that purpose. And today when I see how covenant theology has affected the Christian testimony, which basically teaches that there is no difference between the Old Testament believers and the New Testament. It's all one group.
Not to understand that there is an earthly people and a heavenly people hinders a lot that needs to be understood.
When God promised blessing to Abraham, you remember how he said it, that his descendants would be as the stars of the heaven and as the sand by the seashore.
Two spheres of blessing in God's eternal purposes, and the church is part of the heavenly sphere. And to understand that is so helpful and that's why we need the outline of Scripture.
I think of the first few words of this verse hold fast.
And some years ago I was reading in the first chapter.
Judges. And I was very puzzled by a few verses that I read there, beginning at verse 6.
An Adoni Vizac fled, and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
Dhoni Bizak said three score and 10 kings or 70 kings having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table as I have done and so forth. I thought, well, that's a very puzzling verse. Why does it go into those details? Having your thumb cut off, having your great toe cut off.
But then I realized, without the thumb there could be no grasping, there could be no holding. And I thought of those scriptures that we have that exhort us to hold fast. Without the great toe, there is no real balance that would enable us to stand. And so we have so many injunctions, admonitions to stand fast.
00:25:03
After that, I realized why this verse occurred in the first chapter of Judges.
What you were saying about verse 13, the outline fits well.
With that verse in the second chapter, verse 15. Study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that needeth not to be ashamed in this part, rightly dividing the word of truth.
My godly mother taught me an interesting lesson when I was young. Confused sometimes about where to put things. Like you get a bit here and a bit there, but how it all fits.
We used to put puzzles together in the winter in our house and play board games and that kind of thing, and she said to me, it's like putting a puzzle together. You have 1000 pieces dumped on the table. Where do you start? You start with the corners in the outline.
And then how do you rightly divide? You put the colors that are the same in the same spot. And I remember playing with kids who put a puzzle together. They find a piece and it looked like it fit, and they'd be trying to force it in there. And I said, what are you doing? Why are you trying to force it in there? You're not going to get the right picture. But there's people like that. They're impatient. They want to force it into the spot. We'll put it with the colored pieces and then you'll come along.
And this is my mother. And you'll know where it fits. And then you put it in and the picture slowly grows. I've never forgotten that idea, that thought. And I've shared that with young people and newly saved folks saying don't worry about getting that thing together overnight. You know, the Lord will help you. And you just do that like a puzzle. It will fit together and the Lord will guide you that. I think that's a good illustration of those two things.
Get in the outline and then rightly dividing.
Learn something if we have to unlearn something first.
Much easier if we would come to a subject open and willing to to learn the truth rather than having to other amount experience or others to have to overcome a wrong understanding the passage.
I say that I know we need to press on to the chapter, but I would just like to reference back to verse 12 again in regard to what Brother Bill has already mentioned.
Passage that I misunderstood for some time. And we may sing a gospel him. For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed against unto Him against that day. And what are we thinking about? What are we singing about? We're singing about our souls committing that to the Lord. It's not what the verse is talking about. The context of this verse here.
Was the end of Paul's ministry and there is in prison. What does he have to show for it?
Didn't have anything to show for it. He shows all that are in Asia. He turned away from me. I'd like to reference the passage back in Isaiah 49. Again, not to linger too long on this, but I believe it's a beautiful word of encouragement for us in a day when you see there's so little to show for our efforts but Isaiah 49.
Verse three. It's in reference to our blessed Lord. And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for naughty and in vain, Yet surely my judgment is with the Lord and my work with my God. When the Lord Jesus ended his earthly ministry here, what did he have? A few devoted woman that came to the grave says and Daniel that he'll be cut off and have nothing, nothing in regard to Israel. What did he have to show for his labor? He said, I've labored in vain, but what does it then say? Yet surely my judgment is with the Lord.
In my work with my God.
And now saith the Lord that formed me from the womb, to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him. Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing, that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preservative Israel. I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
We see the end results of the Lord's ministry blessing that has come to us Gentile dogs even in this day, and Israel will be restored in the coming day. But I say that as a word of encouragement because sometimes we come and just say, as we sometimes say between us, we don't say I've tried and failed anymore. We say we failed, but we tried. And yet the Lord is going to take that up and His own purpose and His own accomplishment since this is the context.
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That Paul is ministering and seeking to encourage start off without as a groundwork. He's in prison and yet he is his words of encouragement for him to go on and again, as you mentioned brother Sam in chapter 2 just to anticipate a moment in verse eight of that chapter. The reason the Darby remember Jesus Christ of the seed of David raised from the dead according to my gospel were to remember him of the seed of David. Where is he now? He's in resurrection. His ministry down here. There was nothing outwardly of show, but in resurrection He sees the food of his work.
And established and bolstered in that truth will give us great encouragement to go on in the day of of weakness and great outward failings. It's good to be reminded if you have that we need to get a correct understanding of what the text is actually teaching. But we're application of it is also wonderful. I don't know how many times in my life that inner conversation that I've had with myself that we all have.
Being troubled that I have said to myself, I know whom I have believed and am persuaded he is able to myself those words. I'm not talking about the the doctrine that's being taught here except this, this idea, this principle. Why wasn't Paul ashamed? Why could he say this? Because he knew somebody and he knew him well. And if you know somebody and you're facing something that's.
Very believe our impossible in full. You may say this to yourself. I know whom I have believed that confidence there in this person. You can express those things and make that application. We know what the doctrine is for here, but how helpful is that and realizing that's why Paul could say that because he knew him and you can say to yourself, well, maybe I need to get to know my Savior better so that I can have confidence to say something like that.
Because any believer can say that and then stand on that in the face of all kinds of trouble and difficulty.
I think that's that's good that we realize that before Paul starts out with this idea of an outline, he says this. He does not say I know what I have believed. He says I know who I believe.
It is, it is critical for all of us. There's so many situations where we come to the end of our knowledge, where we come to situations we don't know how to face and we have to just turn to the one who we believe.
That's what we believe because we don't know. Maybe some know a lot more than I do, but I come to that quite regularly and.
Yet it's important that we have a knowledge, it's important that we have an outline, it's important that we understand the truth. But sometimes we come to the point where we just have to say, I know who.
Well, the truth of God, properly understood in the soul, will always lead us back to the source of it, won't it? And that's so important. If Christ is not the object, then mere truth by itself is not really enough to keep us. It has to be connected with the source. But as we've been saying, Paul brings out, and he was the special vessel given that truth.
Brings out the truth of the assembly.
For this dispensation.
Very, very important and his brother Bob was saying it's very, very helpful to have a good outline of sound words and without going wanting to go ahead you get it expressed in the seventh verse of the next chapter, chapter 2. Paul says consider what I said and the Lord give thee understanding in.
All things.
We will never understand the Word of God.
Unless we understand the Church of God, the truth of the assembly.
And how everything fits around it. It's central to the understanding of everything. One brother expressed it well, he said.
Paul gives us the truth of the assembly in which everything is displayed and it's true. And he could say there in Colossians he was given the privilege and responsibility to complete the word of God.
00:35:17
There's no further revelation after Paul's ministry. Filling in the details, yes, but no further revelation as to God's ways with man beyond Paul's ministry. And if we lose sight of that?
And a brother, brother said one time I thought it was very good. And it's true, I never quite seen it that way before. But he said when the church loses the sense of its heavenly calling, humanly speaking, it loses everything.
Now we need to clarify that.
The Church is the bride of Christ will be carried up to glory when the Lord comes.
And she'll be his bride there for all eternity. Nothing will spoil that. But as to the testimony down here, if the church loses a sense of its heavenly calling, humanly speaking, for testimony in this world, it loses everything. And I believe that's why Paul was so concerned here for Timothy, because essentially Paul knew that that was where things were headed.
Satan was going to pull the church down to the level of a worldly religion and in that sense he was going to render their their testimony null and void in this world. And sad to say, we see that still going on around us.
And so how important is it says here to have an outline of sound words and understand the ministry that God gave to Paul and then how everything else fits perfectly in around?
That this epistle is written to an individual, it puts an added perspective into these exhortations.
Because we might comfort ourselves and say, you know, someone may ask us at work or at the, you know, at the coffee pot or at school about a line of things. And we say, well, and we, we, we caught up, draw a blank. We say, well, you know, the brother know. And, you know, we have that collectively. And, you know, Tuesday night or Thursday night, you know, I'll hear about it again. And it's there.
Well, that's good that it's there, but this is a personal exhortation from one man to another and the truth. Yes, reading meetings have been a blessing for the Saints for almost 200 years.
But there is something we don't talk about that much, which is that truth in a vital way is communicated from person to person, from grandmother to mother to little boy to little girl, older brother, younger brother. It is. It's the way the truth is passed on. It's personal. It's in a personal context that it's passed on and it needs to be held personally. And so he writes to Timothy in that respect. And so it says here.
Uh, which thou hast heard of us? Not heard of me. I know Paul was unique in that he was impossible and unique even in his apostleship, but we can apply it to ourselves in that way. Heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. There are many brethren in North America in their homes. They have a shelf full of black books. You know what I mean? There's about, what, 35 or 37 of them? I've seen them in many, many homes.
I was in a home once for lunch years ago.
The assembly was, in my judgment, tipped upside down on a certain matter that I thought was very simple, but it was upside down.
And this couple had us for lunch. We were young, they were older. And I said, well, it seems to me from Scripture that it ought to be this way.
And the sister said, well, this is the way we've done it for a long time. And she pointed in the sitting shoe. We have all the books. And she pointed to that long black robe. Now, don't get me wrong, I have a black robe too. I love it. I love it. I travel with someone all the time for business and now for other business. So I value it. That's not my point. But my point is we have to lay hold of these things individually.
00:40:04
When when the children of Israel that were in captivity in Babylon.
Were released by the by the Persian king Cyrus, I believe it was.
The Lord stirred up their spirit to come back.
It wasn't everybody that came back. It was some that were stirred up by the Lord. They came back and before they left there was weighed out to them by weight and by number, precious vessels of silver and gold. They were numbered and they were waved when they got across that dangerous travel and they got to Jerusalem.
On the 4th days, I think it says eight, they were weighed out again. And it exercises me personally because much has been weighed out to me and to all of you much, and it's precious. But when I get home to see the Lord and be with the Lord and he reviews everything He's given me, it's going to be an exercise. Was it weighed this much and now it was this much.
How much did I lose along the way? How much did I spend? And years ago I was reading some ministry by that brother who wrote, whose writings were collected in those black books on Matthew 25 and the talents. And at the end of it, he said it all boils down to this. Have we sufficient love to trade? Oh my. I must have shared it with my wife or else she read it on her own, because whenever I would get.
Spiritually lazy.
She would Zing me back with that comment. Well, do we have sufficient love to trade? That's exercising, isn't it? Paul was seeking to stir Timothy up. He needed the power of the Holy Ghost to keep what had been committed. We get that of verse 14 when it's in the context of faith and love.
Expand on that thought a little bit. That phrase.
Please.
Sufficient love to trade.
Well, we're reading Galatians where they were struggling with legality. This little expression I think of sometimes in the 5th chapter, Faith which worketh by love.
And you say, well, you know, we need to. I heard some brothers speaking between the meetings today about contending for the faith. So on all of that, there's been a lot of contending amongst us over the decades that I've been alive. But has it always been with that absence of contentiousness? Has there been love driving it? Because faith works by love and.
I suppose that's all I can say about it. You know, it's, it's very personal.
In the early verses, and not to go back, but why does Paul?
Why does Paula, why will he point to an onusiferous as we get to it?
Why does he say in verse 4, greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears?
That I may be filled with joy.
It was personal between him and Timothy. And that was kind of like the, the, the medium of these, this communication of spiritual things. We're not robots. And I read a comment the other day.
About grace and truth. Truth is simple.
Older brother said that in his writings, truth is simple. It's a light. It turns on. You can see turn on the light. It's it's all there. But grace is what's needed by us and faith, which worketh by love. So I don't have much to say other than that we've received the truth personally. We're drawn where our hearts are knit together. And it's not just a robotic thing in the assembly. If it becomes robotic, we're going to be the losers.
What assemblies? Where there is, where there is personal, Where there is Phileo? Bob and I were talking earlier this morning where there is.
The the affection side of love.
There's an atmosphere for spiritual growth and for holding that good deposit which has been deposited with us.
And ultimately.
As we said earlier, the mere enjoyment of truth will not keep us. I can trade in truth.
00:45:06
Without really being close to the Lord. Now don't get me wrong, we need the knowledge of the truth, but ultimately.
We will, if I could use the term run out of steam unless our affections are involved and if our affections are involved.
That's what keeps us going. And you find that constantly in Paul's ministry, constantly over and over again, expressions that bring before us faithfulness to Christ, the love of Christ, the enjoyment of His love, and the enjoyment of the truth. Why? Because it is connected with the One who is our Lord and Savior. And if that element isn't there, then we can. We can.
Talk about truth, we can even minister it, we can delineate it and all the rest of it, but it will not keep us without our affections being involved.
Just recently.
I read something that I hadn't read before.
Some years ago, my Uncle Guilford wrote a history as much as he could remember the gathering in Woodbridge, NJ.
And it goes back.
Into at least the early 1880s.
And he recalled some of the early brethren and sisters that were in fellowship.
And I found out some things that I didn't know before.
For example.
My grandmother's parents.
Were in the assembly in New York and my great grandmother as a girl.
Was a servant in the house in Germany.
Where Brother Darby used to regularly visit.
And he was given the title Hair Doctor.
A name of respect.
But she commented on the fact of how gracious Brother Darby was every time he came and visited, and what an encouragement he was not only to his hosts, but to all of the staff in the house as well. And so we need to cultivate very much of that same spirit, do we not?
The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. For thy love is better than wine, because of the savior of thy goods, or thy name is as ointment or forth. Therefore do the virgins love me, draw me, we will run after thee.
The King that brought me into his chambers. We will be glad and rejoice in thee. We will remember thy love more than one.
Someone once said that I don't know that they used the term trading and truth as you have, but when you're about the business of trading and truth, I guess if you have a sense that you're being about your father's business, it makes a difference.
You think it's your business?
Or if you think you're being about your father's business, it makes a difference in how you approach what you're doing for the Lord.
You realize the value of the truth rather than the form of sound words? Then it's something you want to hold fast to, I must say.
Mention was made of the reading meetings and how the Lord has used reading these. It says let the prophet speak two or three.
Let the others judge, our brother Clem Buchanan said. I think that applies more in a reading meeting than it does in what we call an open meeting, although the principal still applies there as well. But and I, I can say that that I have really profited by that because there's a balance in a reading meeting. I can say something and I might be a little bit lopsided and one sided. Another brother sees that and helps by bringing in some other scripture and I found it very helpful reading meeting.
00:50:28
It's interesting in Latin America, or I should say not all over Latin America, but in Bolivia and Peru, and I think in Argentina too. If you go there, you probably will never be asked to have a meeting. They don't ask speakers, brother. They come together with the recognition that the Lord may use somebody to give them something. And I find that that I come to a meeting like that with exercise.
I've not been tapped but I come with exercise. But not only I, but.
The others come with exercise too, and we need to come to a meeting with exercise and somebody is, and I don't discount having an address, brother, but not criticizing that. But I say when we come with exercise, then there's a different attitude. If I know somebody else is going to have the meeting, I kind of sit back without the exercise that perhaps I shouldn't have anyhow. I think that is part of holding the.
Form or the outline of sound words and I just want to express again the importance of understanding Paul's doctrine in relation to what was the truth in the Old Testament times there's a distinct difference between Israel, God's earthly people, and God's heavenly people in the present day, the church and that is not distinguished in the.
Much of christened and today even evangelical Christian.
One of the things they say that the temple is a building. There's the temple there. When you go there you have to be respectful of the Lords presence. Isn't the Lord always with us? Shouldn't we always be respectful of his presence? Where is the temple now? We are the temple and we should always live in the fear of God. So you see the difference there was between the the.
People of Israel and they have their temple, which was a sacred place, no doubt about it. But that's not the case in the New Testament. We need to distinguish what is the temple. Now, another thing that I found interesting, and I mentioned this for the young people, sometimes they say why don't we use instrumental music in our meetings?
That was something that was proper in the Old Testament, and David says in the 150th Psalm, praise the Lord with all kinds of spirit of instrumental music.
But in the New Testament, where do you find instrumental music? There's two instruments that God.
Speaks about in the New Testament that we are to employ in the praise of our God. One is the heart and the other is the lips. Those are the instruments we use and I find that so interesting and important to keep before us. There's a reason for these things.
Another thing is the clergy in the Old Testament was only one tribe, Levi, that was chosen to do the service of God. Of that one tribe, only one family, the family of Aaron was to be what could go into the holy place. Know that one family, only one person could go into the holy of Holies only once a year. That's the one it was in the Old Testament.
Today we have what is called the clergy, certain ones that are qualified, other believers. No, they just sit there and do nothing. Brethren, I think we need to be exercised about this. And I've been thankful for some of the exhortations that have been given to our younger brother and especially when it relates to prayer and praise to be occupied, to be exercised with expressing our praise to the Lord that.
Belongs not only.
Two brethren who sit up in the front row here belongs to us all, and it's important, I fear sometimes that we get to looking at a special class amongst us as if they are the labouring brethren. We're all laborers in different ways. Let's not give place to the idea of a special class amongst us. Thank God for what we can do for the Lord. But everyone should be laboring for the Lords and so.
00:55:25
Idea of clergy has been imported into the church.
And it's done tremendous damage, I must say. I look at some of those that are called pastors.
And they really don't have the gift of a pastor. I feel sorry for those men. They are loaded with all sorts of responsibility that they were never really meant to exercise. God is working amongst us all. Dear brethren, One other thing I say for the young people that one of the things that has been imported from the Old Testament is the principle of tithing.
10% for the Lord, 90% is yours. I sometimes say to people who insist on that. I say if you tithe, you are really robbing God of 90% because it's all his, you and I are only.
Administrators, to use what God has put in our hands, don't think that tithing is the answer.
Dear brethren, these things are some of the things that show the difference between what Israel was in the Old Testament and what the Church of God is in the New. And this is what the apostle Paul brought out so clearly in the New Testament. And may the Lord help us to hold fast these precious truths.
I'd like to ask a question if I could. I trust in the light of what we've been considering. We have an expression. We've read it five times. I think it's seven times in this epistle, began in the first verse. This expression, the promise of life. This is what I'm thinking of, which is in Christ Jesus. What does that expression mean? Paul uses it over and over. It seems to me there's something very important that he wants us to grasp.
When we consider this thought of what it is.
Be in Christ Jesus. We're just considering faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. And I just was thinking to make my question maybe a little clearer. You know, the man in Romans 7, he had a difficulty and it wasn't until he came to see this truth of being in Christ Jesus that that difficulty was settled. If also Paul wrote to the Corinthians.
And he brings right off the beat, right out of the beginning, this thought of their sanctified in Christ Jesus. God has made it. Christ is made into them, wisdom in Christ Jesus. They were carnal assembly. They they were not in the good of this truth, but he lays it out before them. And we come here to Timothy and it's a day of ruin as we've had before us. And there's all this breakdown.
And he brings before them continuously this thought of in Christ Jesus. It seems to me it's someone could explain it. It's foundational for us to lay hold of this in a real way that we understand it, that we can grasp it, and we'll have a real effect upon our soul.
Well, for my own soul.
Then it seems, it seems to me, that yes, we get the expression in Christ many times in Paul's ministry, don't we? It was one of those special revelations received by Paul from a risen Christ in glory, that the believer is in Christ.
You get that way back in the book of the Acts. We could turn to it. Acts 13 is one of the earlier references to it and.
Paul says there. Paul says in verse 38, Acts 13 and 38. Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren, that through this man.
01:00:10
Is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins. That much they had already heard from men like Peter and John and Stephen and others that had labored. But then Paul says in verse 39, and it's much clearer in the J&D translation it should read. And in him all that believe are justified from all things from which she could not be justified by the law of Moses.
That is, the believer is not only forgiven.
But he is now seen as being in Christ and.
Without giving a complete explanation of it, it seems to me that in Second Timothy we find that there is a giving up. There is.
A laying aside of the precious truth that Paul had given. And Paul has to say all they which are in Asia be turned away from me. What does he come back to? He comes back to everything that is in.
Christ Jesus, the promise of life. Do we not have that life? Indeed we do. But the enjoyment of it, the laying hold of it, the present, living in the good of it, that is something that we need to have and all the other things that are in Christ Jesus.
It seems to me that Paul wants to refer us back to the one who was the source of it all and to point out that this is not just some esoteric teaching, this is not just some high sounding teaching that he is going to bring before them, but that everything that they have relates back to that Blessed One who gave that truth, who gave all those things.
Arisen Christ in glory. Do we have the right? I say it reverently. Do we have the right to say, well, I don't really. I don't really care too much for all that. I don't really. I can remember a young, young man of my own acquaintance. He was also raised, gathered to the Lord's name, and I can still remember his words. He said, I know I'm saved. I know I'm going to heaven when I leave this world.
And that's all I need to know. That's that's it for me. That's enough.
And I still remember a much older man who was not gathered to the Lord's name.
And he said, I'm not interested in all these points of teaching that you get into the epistles. There are souls out there that are going into a lost eternity. That's what I'm aiming for. I don't care too much about all this ministry of Paul, really. Really.
Where did that teaching come from? With whom is it connected?
So precious was it and is it to the heart of the Lord Jesus, that He commits it to you and to me, not merely to be held as a deposit, although that is important, but for the enjoyment, because it connects us with Him Himself.
Would you agree with that, Ben? You've obviously had some meditation on it. Usually the brother that asks the question has some thoughts of his own.
I'm just thinking about this morning meditating on a little I have been.
Really, really enjoyed reading a bunch of Bruce Anstey's exquisitions on the New Testament books. What a blessing they've been to very, very many.
Saints, whenever this expression in Christ Jesus comes up in the passage that Bruce is writing about, invariably he'll, he'll spend a paragraph or two on it. And, and, and the essence of it is, is that we are in Christ's place before God. And I appreciate that simple way of how he he expands on it, of course, and you can see it for yourself. But that's a wonderful thought to lay hold of. We are in Christ's place before God.
There's a hymn in our Little Flock hymn book that says we stand accepted in the place that none but Christ could claim. And this, this, this put so much value on the truth of the resurrection and the ascension of Christ. Because there's only one man that has been raised from the dead and he has taken a place as man that no one else has. But he associates us with him self in it even while we're still down here.
01:05:25
We just briefly touched on that in Philippians 3 the other day and you see it all through the scriptures. There is a man.
In heaven, a glorified man, spirit, soul and body. When I was a teenager, I remember walking through a living room of a friend's house.
And the the Americans had just, I think, landed some sort of a little buggy on the moon, and a man was walking on the moon, I think it was.
Around 1969.
And and the the words that he uttered were no doubt rehearsed in advance. He said one small step for a man, 1 Gray giant leap for mankind. Well, I don't know if it was a gianty. I know it wasn't a giant leaf for mankind because man is still what he was before that. And he'll be that way outside of the work of God's grace and his power in a human heart. So it hasn't been a great but when the Lord Jesus stepped foot in heaven.
He positioned himself there for you and my blessing for all eternity. And it's our privilege to be now in a spiritual way, identified with him in that new place. So I appreciate Bruce's clear exposition on that. To be in Christ is to be in Christ's place before God. Bill, you're going to say something. I can see that across the room. Yeah. With, with strong concurrence of what you say, brother Bruce, with regard to our place in Christ.
Christ place before God, that is our place.
I would take it here though in Second Timothy we are not so much on doctrinal positional truth per se. And I, I take it here that this expression such as you get to chapter 2 and verse one, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. That's not a positional thing per SE. And I take it here are these exhortations. We sing that little hymn, yet I may come and come again to thee. Where are we going to get the grace to go on in this day of giving up?
Day of opposition and hostility, it's in Christ Jesus. That's where we're going to go. How about faith and love? Where are we going to get that which is in Christ Jesus? So I take it that he's the great resource for us in these things as well. So I've just considered it in this way that while those verses are very clear and we want to have them established, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new and so on and.
We want to, that's clearly established, but I just taken it here that in these practical matters when there's discouragement and disharmon.
Where are we going to go to? The world would say dig deep, look within, pull yourself up, move forward. No, see Christ Jesus if that's all right.
Let me do my part to move us along in the chapter, if I may.
In in coupled up.
Coupled up with the realization that Paul is writing to a personal letter and surely the Lord knows the end from the beginning. New millions of us would be reading it over the over the centuries. But still it's a personal letter. And so he gets personal and he calls people out by name. It's it's the contrary, I suppose is is important for us when when it's not personal to not call out by name in a negative way.
We were noticing in our readings in the book of Acts, we learn in Galatians that Paul went up to Jerusalem for that very vital conversation with the brethren in Jerusalem about the Gentiles and others keeping the law in Acts 15. But on the way he stopped in these different cities. And what did he talk about? It says he he.
You find that in Acts 15 it says.
In verse two, there is no small dissension in disputation, but then they go up and on verse three of Acts 15, brought on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles, and they caused great joy unto all the brethren thus beautiful. And along the way, and I'm sure Paul was really concerned, deeply concerned about what was going to transpire at Jerusalem, but along the way he shared very positive things.
01:10:03
In Acts chapter 20, when he had that meeting with the.
The Ephesian elders, they came down on the coast to meet him. He says I kept back nothing that was profitable. And so we we all need to be exercised about about the tongue and about being what do we share and how much detail we share it here. Paul felt it was important to give Timothy examples of what he was talking about because these two phagellis and homogeneous weren't the only ones that were turning aside from this this heavenly.
Pauline doctrine, as we call it. There were other.
And he gives just two examples by jealousy and homogeneous. And then he passes on to a beautiful person. An example of onusiferous. In other epistles he calls out people in a positive way. What an encouragement they were, where he seeks to exhort them and stir them up. I'm not aware, correct me if I'm wrong, that he calls out in a negative pointed way for for Timothy's warning some that were causing mischief in the Church of God and dragging down the Saints.
Your time is nearly up, but when we.
Read of one that OFT refreshed the Apostle Paul. We are reminded of some of the verses that we have in Romans chapter 16.
The.
No mistake that the word off is is mentioned, and it's no mistake. In Romans 16 when we read verse 6, read Mary who bestowed much labor.
On me or on us? And again.
The end of verse 12, which labored much in the Lord, was no mistake. God notice these little details and brings them out, doesn't He? For our encouragement.
May we seek to emulate those that acted in this way.
Just one more comment about Onessa Force I believe.
As we've been saying that he's a most beautiful character, and as we were saying earlier, how much affection is needed in the things of the Lord? And here was one that had it who sought Paul out very diligently and found him in role and encouraged him.
But there is an expression in connection with Onessa Force that.
Could be very puzzling, at least it was to me for quite a while.
In verse 18, Paul says the Lord grant unto him.
That he may find mercy of the Lord in that day.
What does Paul mean by that?
That day can only refer to one time, the judgment seat of Christ.
And he uses that expression back up in verse 12.
He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
And then he says, the Lord grant unto him, that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day. I've asked myself, how could Paul ask that someone find mercy at the judgment seat of Christ?
I'll share this with you. It puzzled me for a long time. I had my own thought on it.
Just about all of our good writers, including the one that wrote the Black Books, skirt around it, don't talk about it, don't mention it. And I thought that's interesting.
Why are they skirting around it? Finally 11 reliable writer came through.
And without wanting to say this in any boastful way, he had the same thought as I had, I really believe. Where was Vanessa Forest from Ephesus? Where was Ephesus in Asia?
What had gone on in Asia all day, which are in Asia, be turned away from me. I really feel that dear owness of force for a while had been carried away by the crowd. He had missed the path. He had forsaken Paul's doctrine, probably under the influence of others. But it was in the end of the journey. It wasn't the end of the chapter, it wasn't the end of the book later on.
01:15:15
He was restored. He comes to see Paul in Rome. He realizes the mistake he had made and Paul.
In the character of intercession with the Lord, says Lord, I, I, I hope you'll remember the judgment seat of Christ, all that he did for me, even though he did for a time fail. And I say that as an encouragement because some of us have failed, Speaking of myself.
Others, perhaps have failed.
And yet Paul takes his time to record what happened with Vanessa Forest after the failure. No, others may disagree with that explanation, and that's fine if you do. But I believe for myself that that's the thought that Onessa Force, being an Ephesus, have been LED away by others and had for a time given up on Paul's teaching. But then he comes back again.
And this time he's stronger than ever. And Paul says, Lord, you remember that, please, when you come to the judgment seat of Christ, because he really deserves a reward for all that he's done. And I believe Paul had the mind of the Lord in saying that.
#18 in the next number 18.
When they deserve.
To stay.
Glory.
To.
Right, so sunrise and.
Now.
Yeah.
Oh.
God.
We glory.
Worldly.
There with joy shall be.
01:20:30
Before we pray, I'd like to.
Read a verse in Ephesians. Chapter 4 has already been referenced.
Ephesians chapter 4 verse 20. Ye have not so learned Christ, if so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus.
Hmm.
So appreciated.
Brother just brought out spent a wonderment to my own mind. It seems like the Spirit of God.
Through Paul.
Speaking of Vanessa Forest brings something toward our souls. It gives us to realize how cast upon him we need to be that someone that that was such a helpful fall and such a refreshment to fall.
How he could be turned aside?
We know those that have.
Enjoy this very same truth that we've enjoyed here this morning and then they've somehow been able to go.
And to to be connected with and associate with what our brother Bob has brought out all these things that that have sought to Judaize Christianity. And we say, how can they? How can they be in that and go on in that?
I thought I knew them differently, but I just so I think of this verse.
It's so important that we hear him and I believe this afternoon, this morning we have by his grace and to be taught the truth.
With our affections.
The truth being spoken in love and held in love.
So that because so often the truth is given up, we're told in Proverbs by the truth and sell it. Not so when the truth is given up, it's generally sold. It's something that I gain for myself, and I'm willing to sacrifice some of the truth in order to have a present gain.
We've been exhorted, encouraged not to, but rather to hold fast. And if we learn it as it is in him.
Then we learned it in our affections that we can't anymore give it up than we can give him up.
Our God and Father, we thank Thee for answered prayer this morning.
We thank Thee for searching our hearts.
For encouraging our hearts.
To keep the good deposit.
That's been entrusted to us.
And to trust the.
Our God to keep out which we entrust to thee.
Even when they may feel.
That our labor has been in vain, and there is out that has seemed to overwhelm it and destroy it. And so may each one of us.
Heard thy voice this morning, Lord Jesus.
And the precious truth that we have heard.
May appease from thee and find its lodging place in our hearts.
To stay there.
And to buy it.
Not to sell it, but we just thank Thee for Thy wonderful goodness to us. We thank Thee for our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the truth. Livingly, may He become more precious to us.
And his worthy and precious name we pray. Amen.