Address—Jim Hyland
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Like to start the meeting this afternoon with 264 thou sitstone high eternal word, as son of man, as sovereign Lord, And now by faith on thee, we rest till all thy title have confessed. 264 Perhaps would be helpful if we stood up to sing this, and if someone would please start it.
I see.
I'll stop.
For us.
All right.
Let's ask God's help and blessing. By way of introduction to what is on my heart this afternoon I'd like to read first of all in the book of Romans, chapter 5.
And verse 9 much more than being now justified by his blood.
We shall be saved from wrath through him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled unto God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And then I want to read a verse in Hebrews chapter 2.
Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 9. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he by the grace of God should tight taste death for every man. We're not going to spend a lot of time on these two portions we've read. As I say, I've read them by way of introduction to what I have on my heart this afternoon. Because what I have on my heart, brethren, is that we would get by faith this afternoon.
A fresh glimpse of our precious Savior where he is now at the right hand of God, and to take up particularly those offices that He is fulfilling for us now in living to make intercession for us. This morning we had the blessed privilege of looking back to Calvary and remembering the Lord Jesus in the breaking of bread. Wonderful precious privilege. I trust that it will be real to our souls until we need it no longer.
00:05:26
And were caught away to be with the Lord Jesus for all eternity. And then we sang at the end of that hymn of that time when the Lord Jesus is going to come. And I trust as we sang that together that it was the true response of your heart and mind as we look forward to a future day of being with the Lord Jesus. And we're not going to need exhortations in that day. We're not going to need to be stirred up in that day. We're not going to have the physical limitations that we have.
At meetings like this, and governed by clocks. But we're going to be with the Lord Jesus, there, with bodies of glory like unto his body of glory, perfectly suited to that sphere of things, never to be tired or weary again, and there to be occupied with himself in one way or another for all eternity. But what about in the meantime? As I say, we look back to Calvary. We rejoice at that finished work, we look ahead to a future day of glory, and we rejoice at the nearness and the promise.
His coming. But what about the present? You know, I've been impressed as I have gone through the word of God to realize that God always gives a present portion for his people. Yes, as we said in one of the reading meetings, he always gives an eye to the future because where no vision is, the people perish. And so he always gives an eye to the future. Paul was pressing toward the mark. He had Christ in glory before his soul.
But He always gives a present portion for us, just like His people in the Old Testament. We find that He redeemed them by the blood of the Passover lamb. He delivered them by a mighty hand from the Egyptians and from Egypt, and He set the land of promise before them.
But in those years that intervened, he provided everything that was needed. And brethren, as we've had in these meetings, the supply and resources that you and I have in Christ today are the same limitless resources that have always been available to the people of God. And as I say, we're going to speak of a couple of those resources. Our brother Vern mentioned them to us in one of the readings, and that is the office of the Lord Jesus living for us, first of all as our high priest.
And secondly, as our advocate, and so I read here in Romans, because we're saved from the judgment to come on the basis of the death and the shedding of blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we've been brought in, as these first few chapters of Romans tell us, we've been brought into the good and blessing of not just the forgiveness of sins, but justification. And as I say, it's based on the blood of the Lord Jesus.
We're justified by His blood, but then we find something else. Where we read here, we find that we're saved by His life. Now when we take up the scriptures, we always want to keep things in their proper context. And I know we, you've heard us stress this time and time again, But I believe it's very important because what I have found, brethren, is that sometimes we assume because we have a word or a phrase in one place.
That it's always going to mean that in every other place in Scripture, but that isn't necessarily true. You have to take things up in their context. And so I'll mention very briefly in passing that salvation is taken up in the book of Romans in three different ways. There's the fact, as we've been saying, that we're saved from the judgment to come and we're saved for heaven. We're on our way there. And that is what we have said is based on the finished work of the Lord Jesus.
And doesn't it rejoice our hearts, brethren, some of us look back over many years, some of you over a few years or a short time. But doesn't it rejoice our hearts to think of that time when we came to know the Lord Jesus as our Savior and we were saved? There's a future salvation you get later on in Romans, it says now is our salvation nearer than when we believe. You see, I thought we had our salvation. Oh yes, we have our the salvation of our souls.
00:10:04
As far as the forgiveness of our sins and justification and being saved from coming judgment and so on, but there is a salvation that's yet future and that's when we get our changed bodies at the rapture we're going to have bodies of glory like unto his body of glory and we're going to be delivered from the power and presence of sin and be caught away to be with the Lord Jesus. But I believe the salvation that we have noticed here in the 10th verse of Romans 5.
Saved by His life is something different, and again, it's something for our present preservation. We're saved by His life. That is, we are preserved in the path of faith and service for the Lords glory by His present intercessory life for us. We're saved from judgment by His death, but we're preserved or saved in the pathway by His present life.
And so we want to be occupied this afternoon of with Christ where He is now. And that's simply why I read the verse in Hebrews, because Hebrews opens up to us, the heavens, in a very remarkable way. It opens up to us, the heavens, not so much that heaven can look down, but so that you and I can look up and be occupied with Christ where He is now. I remember at a Bible conference some years ago.
That someone raised the question, what is Christianity? And someone else said Christianity can be summed up in one word, Christ. But that needs explanation, because it's not Christ as he was as a man walking here in this world. It's not Christ as he was the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. It's Christ, yes, but it's Christ where he is now. Christianity associates us with a risen, ascended, glorified Christ.
At the right hand of God. That's Christianity. And Hebrews brings before us not where the Lord Jesus was, but where he is. In Hebrews, it's not so much the work, it is the work, but not so much the work as the results of that work.
Because the resurrection, the ascension, and the glorification of Christ are God's. Amen to the work of Calvary. Do you want proof that God has been glorified and satisfied in what His Son accomplished here in this world? Just look up and see where he is now at the right hand of God. You know, when the Lord Jesus was here as a man in this world, heaven opened up on more than one occasion.
And heaven opened up to be occupied with that perfect object walking here in this world. But heaven is open to you and to me this afternoon to look up by faith, because that object is now at the right hand of God, and he's the one that God would always occupy his people with. And before we go on, brethren, I would just say that in the measure in which you and I get a fresh glimpse of the man in the glory, in that measure we're going to avail ourselves of the resources that are ours in him.
And in that measure, we're going to be encouraged to press on in the path of faith and service. But why is it so often I get discouraged? Why do I get cast down? Because I've lost sight of Christ where He is, and I am not availing myself of the resources that I have in him.
We've had in these meetings stressed, and I trust it's been helpful to us. We have all things that pertain unto life and godliness and brethren, when I stand at the judgment seat of Christ, and I look into his lovely face, and there's been failure in my life and it's all going to be brought out there, thank God. It's going to be burned up and gone, but it's all going to be brought out. And when he says, why did you give up? Why did you get discouraged? Why did you do this and that? What excuse am I going to offer the Lord Jesus in that day?
I'm going to realize that all the resources were there and that there's no need for failure and sin in our lives. We're going to see later on. There's provision for it. Thank God There is provision for it. But there's no excuse, brethren. We have all the power. We have all the resources we need.
Don't be discouraged. I know the day is dark. I know things are bad, and I realize that the moral and spiritual darkness is deepening over the Western world every hour. But we have all the resources we need. In fact, if the day ever gets so dark that we can't live for God's glory in this world, then he's going to take us out. And so, as I say, I want to take up this subject and show how the Lord is interceding for us, praying for us every hour of every day.
00:15:23
At God's right hand, before we turn to some verses, I'll just say this. It's been a great comfort to my soul to realize this because, you know, prayer is a wonderful resource that we have for the path of faith. You'll just pardon a little parentheses in our talk, but I never understood, till I went through some recent circumstances, the power of intercessory prayer, the power of praying for one another.
It's wonderful to pray for ourselves, but I believe the power of intercessory prayer is a power that is tremendous. Maybe you go to your little prayer meeting, or you pray in your home and you mentioned some things and you wonder if it really has effect. It has effect. Intercessory prayer is a great resource, wonderful to be able to pray for one another. But you know, sometimes I forget to pray for others. I forget my own needs. Sometimes I'm not even aware of them.
But I'm thankful that there's one praying for me every hour of every day. He knows my frame, He knows my down sittings and my uprisings. He knows my thoughts are far off and he knows every need. And he doesn't forget one of those needs.
But before we speak of the high priestly work in that aspect, I would like to go to Hebrews chapter 8.
Hebrews chapter 8 and verse one.
Now of the things which we have spoken, this is the sum. We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true Tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man. For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices.
Wherefore it is of necessity that this man has somewhat also to offer, for if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law. As I mentioned earlier, Hebrews opens up to us the heavens in a very remarkable way, and perhaps I'll just mention something that's been mentioned many times, but we find that four times in the book of Hebrews we have the Lord Jesus seated at the right hand of God.
In the first chapter he seated having made the purification for sin.
In the 10th chapter he seated, having offered himself as that great sacrifice, and by one offering he had perfected forever them that are sanctified. In the 12Th chapter he's set before us at the right hand of God as the object for faith, which has already been brought out in these meetings, because there is only one who is the object for faith, and he's the one who began and completed the path of faith and perfection.
And he's the only one that did. But here we find him seated as our high priest. Now when it says of the things which we have spoken, this is the sum he's referring back to the previous chapters. And in a few moments we're going to go back to some of those verses and we're going to get, I trust, a little outline of the high priestly work of the Lord Jesus in that regard. But I suggest here that we have the aspect of his priestly work in a little different way.
And that is his high priestly work in offering our prayers and praises to God. Because we don't often think, at least I don't always think, of the Lord Jesus in that way. We find here that he's He needed to have something to offer.
Well, we the Lord Jesus didn't need to offer a sacrifice for himself. And the offering here is not himself. You get that in the 10th chapter and other places. What is He offering here? Well, it's like the high priest in the Old Testament who took that fire, and with the incense he put it on the golden altar, the altar of worship. We sometimes sing a hymn that sums it up to all our prayers and praises. Christ adds his sweet perfume.
And love the sensor raises these orders to consume. This morning we had the privilege of collectively pouring out our hearts in praise and Thanksgiving. This morning we didn't come to get. We came to give. We came to give the sacrifice of praise. And the Lord Jesus, as our high priest, took that sacrifice and he presented it to the ear and to the heart of God. I find tremendous comfort in that.
00:20:25
Now notice where he is as a high priest. He's not on earth. It tells us here that he did not function as a priest on earth. Why? Because it would have been very wrong for the Lord to, say, have gone into the temple and offered a sacrifice because the Lord Jesus was not from the priestly tribe of Levi, he was from the kingly tribe of Judah. And it would have been very out of character as a man on earth to operate in a priestly function.
But now in heaven, at the right hand of God, he is there as our high priest. And so he's offering our taking, our praise and prayers, our our worship, our Thanksgiving at giving, and he's offering it as our high priest to God. I say I find comfort in that. And if we were to go back to the 28th chapter, I believe it is of Exodus. We won't do it. You can look it up sometime, but there we find that Aaron, who is a type of the high priest.
Of the Lord Jesus as the high priest, one of the things that Aaron was to wear or was the miter, and it says very specifically of Aaron, when he put on the mitre, it was to bear the iniquity. I want you to notice this of the holy things of the children of Israel, because you know, even in our holy things, even in our praise and worship, there's iniquity there. It's checkered with self, There's pride sometimes comes in.
It's not always perfect or what it should be, but by the time it reaches the ear of God, my high priest who wears the miter, he has filtered all that out, and he presents it perfectly. And I want to encourage you in that regard. Perhaps just a little word to particularly to the young brothers, or to any of the brothers who are a little shy or reticent sometimes, to take part publicly in the breaking of bread or other meetings.
You know, we want to pray intelligently. We want to praise intelligently. We need to sing with the understanding, pray with the understanding, as First Corinthians chapter 14 tells us. But you know, sometimes we may not always express things in quite the right way. But isn't it a comfort to know that by the time it reaches the ear of God, it has been taken and it is perfect and it's sweet to his to his heart?
Encourage you in that. In that regard. And young brothers, I was encouraged this morning. But you know, the first time you stand up and pray in the assembly, the first time. Maybe you give out to him or read a scripture. Maybe it doesn't quite fit. Perhaps, but you know you'll learn the spirit of God can teach you. I was saddened to know.