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Washington, chapter 2 and verse 19. And not holding the head, from which all the body by joints and bands, having nourishment ministered and knit together, increases with the increase of God. Wherefore if he be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why is though living in the world? Are you subject to ordinances, touch not, taste not, handle not, which are all to perish with using after the commandments and doctrines of men.
Which things have indeed a show of wisdom and will, worship and humility and neglecting of the body, not in any honor to the satisfying of the flesh.
Should we stop there or continue on reading some?
How far, brother?
Chapter 3. If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth, for your dead, and your life is hit with Christ and God.
In Christ, who is our life shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.
Mortify therefore your members, which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil, concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry, for which things sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience, in which He also walked some time when He lived in them. But now you also put off all these anger, wrath, malice.
Blasphemy. Filthy communication.
Out of your mouth.
The end of the 19th verse that little phrase increases.
With the increase of God.
That increase will never stop.
When we pass out of this light.
When the Lord comes.
It's going to keep on and on and on for eternity.
Never the increase of the boundless sore.
Well, we have to feel, we have to rather send you to get perhaps we feel as a as a brother said, uh, Bruce said to me, the world thinks we have to do to get and Christian when this thought comes in.
Is that we have to do something to get something. And even in the way the epistles are written, our brother in his prayer mentioned the individual exercise. But in the last chapter we have individuals mentioned, and I just mentioned it, that at each of the end of the epistles we have examples of what is really practically worked out in the doctrine that is given to us in the beginning.
Perhaps allow me to recount a story when I was a young man.
Umm, in a home and there was some Bible readings there and they took up the book of Ephesians. I wasn't gathered then and they took up the book of Ephesians and the brother who took up the readings that I think we really should start with the last chapter and work towards the 1St.
And really show illustrates what our brother was saying we need to do to gas is that we are we take on the whole armor of God and then we walk with God and then we're seated in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. But Christianity is not that way at all because God can't be king didn't come to look for something, but to give something and that works itself out practically in our lives.
00:05:01
If you really hold the head, as we really see that in him, as all the fullness of the Godhead, bodily, as Timothy says, great as the mystery of godliness.
It was manifest in the flesh.
Is that godliness was perfectly manifested in a person that was in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and as we abide in the vine. I realized that now the vine only lasted a few hours so to speak, but it's a really abide in Christ. Then we're gonna bear fruit and we're gonna manifest godliness as you walk through this king in a practical way and we as we get into difficulty may feel that the remedy is.
Bring in human organs is not analog touch, not set a standard against evil, but the real standard against it is Christ, a life that's hidden, Christ and God.
He very briefly put God gives before he expans.
God gives before he expects, doesn't expect anything from us till He has given us the full ability to do it, whereby are given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness.
But the the response is the joy.
To enjoy those promises.
Proceeding great and precious promises. Enjoy them and and all blessing comes from God.
That lived in our life. It goes back to God and praises. Circuitry comes from God. It lived. It goes back in praise and adoration.
Praise and admiration in our hearts. He doesn't want our commitments and our pledges. And so that's will worship and that's what people are constantly.
You know, if you teach with your young people that commit your lives to the Lord and so on, what you want is your praise, which is your reasonable service, David said. Could I my only given the that's really what he wants from us.
And so that there's a great deal of will worship today, I'm gonna make a commitment. I'm gonna take a pledge to do 7 things. I'm gonna as if we have the power in our lives to live to please the Lord in this world we don't and to abide in Christ. And it's the same thing in the assembly is that we can start to look for something from man and all he wants to do is, you know, open your mouth and I'll fill it and to enjoy himself.
And that's the real ministry flows from the enjoyment of Christ. And so ministry too is the Lord's coming. You know, the faithful servant is found feeding the sheep of God instead of Peter. Lovest thou me? What was he to do is defeat the foxtrot. And the wicked servant says in his heart, I'm going to delay his coming to keep the man service. Try to whip them into shape. We're not looking to, so to speak, to improve the assembly.
To restore to the glory days of Pentecost or the glory days so-called the brethren in the last century, but just to go on in nothingness, and just to enjoy the Lord, to go on together and faithfulness.
It really may mean that it is that the Lord that the prop he laid the foundation in Matthew 16 and in Matthew 18, you really, I believe, described the last state of the church two or three and it may be reduced to just two or three. And you say, well, there's two brothers and a sister in a meeting. And so you say, well, we're going to have a an open meeting and let the prophet speak two or three and the other judge why you see how we're reduced to such weakness and even such a thing wouldn't be possible.
And yet the Lord is there. So we need to satisfy our hearts with the Lord by faith or below, not to try to get back. We need to get back to the foundation that Nehemiah removed the rubble to get back to Christ. And not, so to speak, to get into all of these things, but we start to try to whip things into shape and strive with our brethren and so on. That's really the danger that we get into if we don't really satisfy our hearts with Christ.
Peter, he's, uh, gave one admonition and if Paul, Paul gives another. Peter gave an admonition to the older ones, to the elders, and he said to be thou an example.
To the flock, that's a message to all the older ones. We are to be giving an example to the ones that follow on. But Paul in First Timothy 412 Said the to the young man be thou an example of the believers of the believers.
00:10:18
The message that can apply to every one of us here.
Why do people get discouraged if you think of those two on the road to a mayor? I think it was Mary and Cleopas. But it's just the point of expectations. You know, we hope for something that doesn't happen, but if our heart is satisfied and Christ will never be disappointed. And so we're looking for something if we're looking for the restoration of some great thing or even some self improvement.
We're not gonna find it, really, but if we're satisfied with Christ, we're gonna grow up into him being mature.
But, uh, we're living in days of great weakness. And so if we're looking for the restoration of great yet, where is it? Or if we're looking for something in ourselves, we're not gonna find it. But if we're looking for Christ, we're gonna be satisfied. We're not gonna be discouraged.
The expression increases with the increase of God reminds you that more blessed to give than to receive, and God's portion is always that of the giver.
He's more willing to give than we are to receive. I'm sure. Naomi was quite surprised when Ruth came back and waited down with all these things that Boaz gave her and, uh, well, she was in the right place. And so she received Bountiful.
Just like, uh, the early apostles, you know, others took note that they had been with Jesus. Lord is willing to bless us this day according to this increase that we have here, far more than I'm sure we're willing to receive.
There's a verse in uh, Ezekiel chapter, verse four, that's good for covenant connection. In verse 18 there it says, umm, there's an admission that the Lord gives to uh, those that were teachers in Israel or shepherds. Ezekiel 34 verse 18 it says seemeth in a small thing until you have eaten up the good of the pasture.
But you but you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures, and to have drunk of deep waters. But you must file the residue with your feet. And As for my clock, they eat that which you have fraud and with your feet, and they drink that which you have fouled with your feet. Well, the remedy is Christ. It says there in verse 23, I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them. Even my servant David, He shall feed them and he shall be their shepherd.
And I, the Lord, will be their God.
Well, we have, uh, an insidious, uh, situation that, uh, the enemy of our soul desires to see the good pastures trampled and see the water foul. And so it's a really ought to be an exercise a soul that we don't ever speak of against the truth of God, regardless of our state of soul. Sometimes our state of soul might be such that we want to, umm, justify our position. Well, the truth of God.
Uh, we'll stand at the latter day, the Lord Jesus will have all the glory. The truth will remain. And uh, here we have, uh, in the chapter, in verses 19 and 20 of our chapter that something is coming into substitute, the truth of the word of God, the remnants of the world. And the question is asked, why? Why is living in the world? Are you subject to ordinances but not, ought not to be sold? Because if we live by faith, if we walk by faith, we'll want Christ, we'll want those deep waters. We'll want the pastures that the Good Shepherd provides.
Just wonder if there's not also another word for his parents detail. 34 and I hope I think practice properly but.
You know, we can trample the path just to try to get to the deep water, so to speak. And, uh.
My brother was just mentioning that the older bread and they enjoyed it either younger brothers enjoy the truth and the younger ones enjoy the truth. Not really is the mark of father written on you father because you've known him that is from the beginning and we've often heard that the cream lies at the surface and.
There ought not to be a, so to speak, an anxiousness in our souls to try to be more spiritual than we are in a certain sense, but just to enjoy the things of Christ and the measure that we're able to, and to give those things out in the assembly. But the assembly of velocity may well have gotten into difficulty, and brethren to set last century got into difficulty.
00:15:20
By constantly grasping the probe into things to get deeper and so to speak, and mysticism in these things. I think it's just a guard for us in the Assembly. It's just to give out what we've known and not to go beyond that. And the Saints can enjoy that. And when we try to go beyond what we said, we usually get into negative statements about the truth. And Mr. Darby said that negatives and divine things are dangerous. That is to say, we give out in a positive way what we've understood and not go beyond that. But if we exclude other things.
A reminder, we may in fact be excluding the truth. And so we just need to. And I thought an encouragement to us is those of us who are younger just to give out the truth and the measure we've understood it and not go beyond that. And that can be a help and an encouragement to the Saints because the Saints do enjoy the truth.
And our fed bodies.
It would seem to me that.
Oh, message to Timothy would be his last word to the church. The perilous times.
The time has come when even Christians are not enduring sand doctrine and it only records is a second Timothy 315 the Holy Scriptures and the holy Scriptures knowing of whom?
Now it's not the hospital doctor and that is holding the head trying to be faithful to the very end to the to the Holy Scriptures.
No matter it says, uh, he says in this last shot, very last shot, the Lord stood with all men forsaken. The Lord, I'm going to be faithful to the Scriptures no matter what appearances are, we're always coming to those days.
It's a very important thing to realize that with the at the end of the 2nd century when the Bible was assembled.
And prior to that, the Holy Spirit's coming, and between the two, the death of the apostle Paul, which was the beginning then of the decline. But with those three things occurring, there is like a curtain fall, nothing new to be revealed. Everything that we need the church would need to know from that time.
Break to the Rapture.
Nothing new, and we have the Word of God that's applicable for every possible need in the Scriptures. Nothing new, no new revelations. And as Mr. Darby said, if it's new, it's not true, and if it's true, it's not new. That sounds so old fashioned, but how solid it is a rock. We have everything that we need in this world.
Anything beyond what the scripture explains gives is inquisitive enough of the human mind.
It seems like with them, doesn't it? Yeah, You know, all this problem and especially divine things, and nothing is as dangerous. Umm hum. If a mind gets active in divine things.
So that the children of Israel, you know, the ones that want the adults to wander in the wilderness and they died and only the children went in and they set their faith as a little child. That's really what we need.
Written on your products that you've known him that it's from the beginning and so go beyond that.
According to the first word says.
It doesn't really mean.
If they deliver.
It it did with grace.
But it would almost be. We could use the word but since where? For? Since you have died with or dead with rice from the Adirondack, the rudiments of the world.
00:20:05
Not any question of any believer not being risen, everyone is. But since I got I can look at so many folks here and say if you're Americans, you act this way. Well, it's not a question whether you're American or not. If you are an American. This is the way an American is is to act the laws used to keep. So I believe that that's the the force of that verse. If he be dead, every deliver is dead and risen with Christ.
In the new life.
Our old life died at the cross with Christ. Are we living in a new life or living in the old?
Would that be our standing? Yes, That's where we stand, isn't it? Yes. And God's desire, uh, from the very beginning is to bring our state up to our standing. And our state surely does the ebbs and flows, doesn't it? We're not always in the enjoyment of the position that God has brought us into. I enjoyed the thought that you know, about the whatever.
Whatever God has exhorted us or given us some exhortation to walk in a certain way is already put us in a place in which we can do that.
Because we have the Spirit of God the child of God now has been brought into a blessed position. He he has eternal life. He's engulfed by the Spirit of God. And so now God can say to that to each one of us as belonging to him. He shows us a marvelous truth and he belonged to him. Now he says I want you to walk in this. I want you to enjoy this and how can we do it if we're not subject to that is the word of God unto the Lord Jesus. So as he said here, if he if if he if he if he are dead with Christ from the elements or rudiments of the world.
Why as though living in the world, are you subject to our religion? If we're really dead with Christ, why would we take up with ordinances? It seems rather, umm, uh, mundane thing, isn't it? To think that that we would do that and go back to the same thing that we've been delivered from. So I see it as the and of course, in the next chapter begins with if, if then since you're risen with Christ. So not only have we been, we've died with Christ. That's a positive statement, isn't it?
Doesn't say, uh, you should be dead with price. No, that's not it. We are dead and your life is hit with Christ and God. It's a positive thing.
I think it's a very important principle to get a hold of and that is we always have a tendency to be thinking of our state of soul and the goal from that and just the lamenting, oh, I'm such a failure and so on. And I wish I would like this sister or brother, but if we go out from our.
Enjoyment or start out each day with the realization of our standing that is taking up.
Automatically it comes up and.
We all, but we always unveil face the order and the glory of the Lord are changed into the same energy. He changes. But I believe it's important for us to to to not just be satisfied with our standing, but to be enjoying it and then our state of soul increases.
In the in the enjoyment overall, but otherwise they can uh.
Would like to occupy us with our experiences. For instance, in our store years ago when I was running DMV, uh, we had Canadian distributors of the publishers, the Christian publishers from the state and they would send books to the store each month of all the latest Christian books. Well, we had to reject 99% of them. What were they occupied with?
Experiences.
Experiences at the trend is toward experiences, but we need to base our stand our our enjoyment on the position that Christ is in which he has put us. And then go on in the United States some helpful advice, he said. Preach back. Yeah. And a lot of times perhaps your young brothers ask to take the gospel or speak for the Sunday school or whatever.
00:25:09
And you're really cast and the Lord as to what to do. But there's great question in preaching facts because many things just don't simply know the facts of what their position is. And then how can I behave if I don't know what I am brought out and I think I heard it attributed to you. I don't know if you got it from somebody else, but wherever we read the word if in Scripture it brings in man's responsibility. As you said now since and so it flows from the position you're in. But if I go to work and I don't know whether.
I'm the teacher or the janitor or the, uh, fellow vending machines. How can I properly fill the plate that my master put me in? And then many believers, they don't understand what their position is. They see the church as a servant of Christ. They don't see her as the bride of Christ. They don't see that we're separate from this world as our brother was praying before us in the last meeting. And so they think that we have some kind of responsibility to get involved in government.
And so they would exhort you, and I had the sister say to me, you've got a responsibility to go out there and change the things in the government. But if I don't see what my standing is, what my position is in this world, how can I know how to behave myself? And so a great deal of the confusion among God's people and even the gathered Saints that flows, our confusion flows from not understanding clearly what our position is. So when you know, when we have an opportunity, whether it's a friend at work or school or.
Taking off or speak to the Sunday School. Preach back.
To clear on these things and teach them and there's great blessing in that. And then the practical applications that flow from that will come of a will come flow from that.
It would be the same, wouldn't it, Uh, not only in preaching, but in seeking to encourage or wash, uh, someone's fee. It's, uh, it's very bladder, say it'd be the same in, in seeking to encourage someone or watch someone's feet is the bringing the facts and.
Umm, and not just, uh, trying to, uh, outsmart their circumstances or figure out, you know, the family background, etcetera, etcetera. Umm, this is the, the pattern that we see with Paul and this epistle and all the epistles. Uh, brother little mentioned a, a reminder of the, of the great place of dignity we've been brought into through grace and.
Flowing out from that standing to the practical side that our state may, may rise up, but, umm, today it seems more and more that, uh, that brothers and sisters feel hesitant, uh, to carry out this needful function with one another because of some lack of special training or as if we have to become specialists in some particular type of sin or failure or background. I don't think Scripture teaches that. It says in Galatians, you which are spiritual.
Restore such a one in the spirit of meekness. So it's considering myself. So it's really a state of soul.
And as we have enrollments 15 where, where Paul writes in the 15th chapter. And I myself, brethren, I'm persuaded of you that you're full of goodness, filled with knowledge, uh, Abel also to admire one of them. So, uh, the green, uh, of fast and gracious spiritual way, umm, we'll build up the Saints. We don't need to start reading books about this type of abuse or that type of sin in order to help the Saints.
So we ought not to uh, uh.
Just feel paralyzed, uh, from helping one another in a matter how we, how small the assembly, uh, leave the house is still furnished and there is still provided by the Lord that is necessary to, to help us along in our way.
I think we have reverse over in John chapter 8. You don't need to turn to it, but just, uh, verse 41, you're speaking to the Pharisees there and he says, why do you not understand my speech?
They were saying they didn't understand this.
Very simple. He put, He says, because you cannot hear my word. That is, the conscience wasn't exercised to hear what he had to say. So they could say, well, we don't understand. Don't we hear some of that today? We don't understand these things. Are you hearing His word? Are you listening? The word of God is very plain and very simple and very clear. But if we don't, if we don't hear his word, then we can say well or make the excuse we don't understand.
00:30:06
So that was the first. He wasn't, he had to remind them of that. And so with us, we need to be aware that we have in our hands the word, the living word of the living God. And when he speaks, I should listen, I should give ear, I should open my ears to hear what he has to say for me because he has something to say. I think has been brought today too, something to say to each one of us as individuals. And if we hear, if each one of us as an individual.
Here what he has to say to us and we adhere to that. When we come together, we have a great time, don't we? Coming on in the knowledge of God. That is not not.
Soaring in some kind of wisdom, but in the knowledge of God, knowing what his mind is, having the word of God before us.
Sometimes it's painful about the Lord and they say, well, I read the Bible too, but you know, they read the Scriptures but they don't read them understandingly.
It doesn't penetrate to them. You see that no St. in the district after Daniel, when Belshazzar, they called into his presence all the wise men and the astrologers, uh, to read the writing on the wall in verse 8, the 5th chapter, he says, but they could not read the writings. Well, you know, they couldn't read that writing, understandably because it was written in Chaldean. It was written in their language that they couldn't interpret it. Uh, it took a man with spiritual discernment like Daniel to come in and to interpret those words which were written in their language to the kings.
Oh, it is with the word of God. You know, it takes the Spirit of God.
You unfold the Word of God to our heart, doesn't it? An unconverted person. You read the scriptures too and not get anything out of it. What you do, what the Lord exercises you about in the scriptures.
There's individual responsibility as well that's required there. We can't just.
Umm, go about without exercising. Told about what we hear, there are some things that we ought to know. As believers, we have that responsibility of thinking in First Corinthians chapter 6.
There's the same question is asked several times there. First two of First Corinthians 6 it says do you not know that the thing shall go to the world? And then in verse three, know ye not that we shall judge angels?
Little further on it says in verse 9, Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God? And then a little further on it says again in verse 15.
Know ye not your bodies are members of Christ? Verse 16 What? Know ye not that he was just joined you in harlot as one body? There are things that we know that we ought to know, that we have responsibility to learn from the Scriptures, and that we can be taught in fear of God. We need to know.
Same brother, uh, Ruben that earlier in Daniel chapter 2 and Daniel's prayer versus a little.
Saw Daniel's prayer brought out that UMM connects with what I had for us.
Daniel's prayer in chapter 2.
Verse 21.
The end of the last part of the verse. He gave us wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that no understanding.
And then in June chapter 29 or 28, verse 28 unto man, he said, Behold the fear of the Lord, his wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding. They give wisdom.
To the wise doesn't give wisdom to the fool, give wisdom to the wise. Who are the wise, and who are those that no understanding? Those that fear the Lord is apart from evil, those that will tremble at his word?
Getting back to our burst, it seems that.
The failure of the Colossians to lay hold of the facts of their standing as being complete in him from verse, uh, verse 10 of the chapter and realizing that, uh, as to their standing, there was nothing that needed to be added. They were complete in him and further, there was nothing that needed to be put away because they were circumcised.
00:35:04
Uh, with the circumcision of Christ and everything that needed to be put away was put away and, and it was a finished thing. And so as someone was saying yesterday, burial, someone was saying that nothing more is expected from that body. So it is very, it is very. And those are facts that are presented here wisely by the apostle And it's made an appeal for them, uh, to turn away from the, this, uh, we had earlier this afternoon this, these, uh.
These gores of, uh, one of the most legalities is a principle that rests in the natural heart of man that he has to do something to get something. And, uh, it's not that we don't understand that we're saved by grace. It's not that we don't understand the gospel and its foundation that it's a free gift. But there's a more subtle tendency in the human heart, even of a well taught Christian, umm, that if we're careless and uh, and it fall out of communion.
We start to put ourselves under the principle of law in our relationship with the Lord and we become unhappy and we, and even worse than that, we start to hold our brethren to a certain line. It's usually a hard line. And, uh, these ordinances come in and start to take shape and they grow up around us, uh, like some sort of a, of a deposit in water. They just grow up and pretty soon they're there and, uh, they're undesirable. Why?
As though living in the world. Are you subject to ordinances? Touch not. Taste not. Handle not that.
All are to perish with the using it with the menace and documents of men.
So this is, uh, an appeal by the apostle, uh, to give up this principle altogether because we're not in that sphere anymore where these things apply. And in the third chapter, uh, we developed that even more important, I believe to grasp these verses from, uh, touch Knob and 22 and 23.
It looks, I know, I hear people.
Putting it the other way around, but the last words.
We could put it in a positive way. The flesh will be satisfied with these says not to the satisfying of the flesh. Well, it that's that's kind of a double negative there. But if we grasp the the teaching of it and I believe it is that that let's not delude ourselves that the flesh isn't satisfied with the ordinance.
It is satisfying, but it's not satisfying to the new lights at all.
Why is that? Well, if I have a little list of rules of things that I don't use, things I don't eat and things I don't touch, and of course I define that, you know, around myself. And, uh, it's very satisfying because I set my boundaries and I live within those boundaries and I see somebody who's, who's, uh, doing those things and I can point the finger at them and say, well, I would never do a thing like that. But the principle of law is to do is condemn. And though Paul was.
Imagine a man that concerning the law overly was blameless. He never ever was caught lying or stealing or.
Many adultery are taking a lot of fame in vain, and yet there was one thing, and yet it slew of.
And we set up a much shorter list and a much more imperfect list of commandments of men. And we live by certain things, and the flesh enjoys that because we set our boundaries according.
By our by ourselves rather than by God. But then when we see it for a new creature in Christ, and we're at liberty to do anything that Christ would have done, we wouldn't do it unless he wants us to do it. That's Christianity.
He had suffered in the flesh, has seats from sin.
Not in relation to these first two.
There's no use, no, uh, way that we, uh, we shouldn't delude ourselves into thinking that the flesh won't suffer if we don't do something. We know that is a is a sin.
And if we don't do it, and we don't commit that sin, but the flesh suffers.
You don't like that too? No, no, I my old nature is what God says. That old nature is dead. Don't feed her.
00:40:06
Still there just about this 23rd verses Scripture tells you to take an umbrella or anything just to read that in the new translation and harsh treatment of the body, not in a certain honor. There is a certain honor which we also render to the body. You know, it's raining outside. People go out and get soaked and wet and catching cold. Umm.
After all, our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost, aren't they? And we are required by the scripture here, uh, that there is a certain honor that we should give to our body, but not backed by our flesh. As you see the brightness. Is there a lot of things that we may tend to that man would instigate, you know, and say you have to have the, it's cold here. Ludim is an element by fine buildings. You should have vestments and you should have acquires and all this finest thing that's, that's the rudiments of the world. And it was.
Umm, well, just thumbs up.
All these umm ordinances in verse 21, they can all some information of them all as a customer taste not and handle not. That's under the substance of all the ordinances that man can lay before you as far as the body is concerned about there is an honor that becomes.
I think they said in principle too, and the fact that in that 20th was the end of the 24th. Why is though living in the world? Are you subject to ordinances?
When?
People. This is speaking rather bluntly when people separate from the Lord's Table and.
Establish a A.
Fellowship, if you want to call it. There are two things that they must that body must have, I believe again from this verse. One is that they have to set a, make a set of rules and they go by that rule that they all agree, uh, to that rule, that is.
The their tracker or there has to be one person who does all of the deciding. One or the other characterizes every group of Christians not gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now that sounds a little bit easier.
Straight talking, but I believe it's important that we can learn that from these versions that you have to have a set of rules or there's one person that is the boss has the authority whereas when the Spirit of God gathers us to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ here is our authority. Nothing need be added. This were taught by the Spirit of God.
No one person.
Or, you know, group or at least an assembly for brothers to make a decision by themselves. It's not good.
It's interesting they're feeling this just, uh, just thinking of the end of this chapter and looking at the opening of the next chapter, it seems that the Spirit of God is seeking to lift our thoughts above the elements of this world, uh, as we had before us here in verse 20. Wherefore if he did with Christ, uh, why? As though living in the world, well, we're dead to Christ. That death has come in. Christ died, we died with him.
And, uh, these other things follow in that course, don't they? If we're, if we're dead, we're not going to be occupied with the elements of the world. We're not going to be occupied. We're just seeking more wisdom in the world somewhere. But I just enjoyed the thought now and the opening of this next chapter. If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above. Now he takes us from the scene of death to all these things. Now he says Christ is risen. Keep the things up there where Christ is.
Uh, to me, I've enjoyed that the thought of the, the spirit of God through Paul here lifting our spirits now up and saying, well, Christ lives. Not only have you died with Christ, but you live with Christ. Christ lives and you live too. And so how beautiful it is. I, I, I think of it in connection with how they come down to the end of the chapter and it seems to go down, down, down. But then in the third chapter, he listed back up and says, now look, don't look around, look up.
If you're dead with Christ, then seek those things which are not around you, but about, but about where Christ sits and draws right hand. So I enjoy that. It's an important principle. What God isn't. He never simply asked us to separate from something. That always gives us something to separate too. We had our meeting this afternoon. Very enjoyable that you actually separate and that's very good.
00:45:19
But Abraham wasn't simply told to leave her of the calories. He was told to go to Canaan. And so that's something very important to remember. The Lord never asked simply to separate from from something he gives us something better separate food. So then in this chapter we have see those things which are above and the Lord has something far better for us. And as we had this morning, we asked this of this world. We we have a negative. Yes, we're told to separate, but it has something far better.
I'm jealous and brothers were, uh, sent back.
To speak to their father, they were told to tell of Joseph's glory in Egypt. But when the boys get back there, they burst into the room of their father and they all say it in unison. They don't say that anything but the glory, they just make one announcement. Joseph is yet a lie.
Joseph is yet a lie. That was the great thing for them, and Christ lives in the glory now as we enjoy that, then on comes some of the things about the glory, and we never will come to the end of that. Christ lives now. Let's not forget, He lives for us. In the afternoon there is sitting a man somewhere in heaven, flesh and bones.
Praying for us, sustaining us, encouraging us.
Warning.
Living for ever lives to make intercession for.
Hold those things that are above, and it is a conscious thing to set our affection on those things, not on earth, and so we need to realize that.
Our brother was speaking the Sunday school this morning. There is a conscious decision that we often have to make and other refer to that scripture. You want to field houses in the Lord's house lies in ways and it's a conscious decision that we have to make. We need homes to live in and let's say we need to repair the roof and so on but.
There's a conscious decision that we have to make to set our affections on things on earth, and the things that we may set our affections on here may, in and of themselves, not be wrong.
You often hear people say what's wrong with this or what's wrong with that? As young people, you know, we tend to think that older brethren are legal. But I think that the word legality, I'm not sure that I really like it. The term really is decision and scripture. That's the cut off the flesh without judging it, but we.
As young people we tend to and tend to say, well, what's wrong with the thing? But the question is wrong because really the part of the book, the new nature, delights and what is good. It is true that the Lord will tell us what's wrong, but then constantly we're going to the Lord and He's always having to show us everything we want is wrong if we get into that pathway. But we really have a heart set to please the Lord and He's going to delight our hearts with good faith.
And word affection.
Very important, isn't it? Because we're told that our affection on things above and, uh.
Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. And the price is really our treasure. Our affections will be set on things above, and so that's what's set before us is priced himself. Umm, well, I mentioned a few minutes ago a little bit when he turned back to Corinthians. Enjoy the first there. Our brother is not before us anytime.
And uh, Second Corinthians 3 and verse three, it says for as much as uh, manifesting declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with aid by the Spirit of the living God in this part, not in tables and stones, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
So when we started to help with brothers, sisters composed the CV taking a step in the wrong direction. And you desire to guide me, Well, you don't come to me with those tables of stones.
Thou shalt not what thou shalt, but what you do is you step before you pray because I have the life of Christ. Perhaps I'm taking a step in the wrong direction, but belonging to the Lord, I have the very life of Christ and she set Christ before me. There's going to be a response in my heart to that. And so it's going to be for them question papers with the heart settings right before the person, and that's the way for the feet washed.
00:50:17
It's not, it's not the tables of stone. I shall not setting Christ and appealing to the affection. It's interesting that that you say that the word affection in the Darby translation is mine. Well, it's nice to bring the two words together, isn't it? The affection and the mind and use one or the other.
And if our.
Flipping is for negative sixes. Be careful for nothing but in everything. No, that's not the worst. Uh yeah. Shall Garrison your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Hearts and minds, affection and mind. He will Garrison or he will protect you. But it's our responsibility to set our minds and our affections on things that are above.
This is an amazing contrast.
In this section.
In the.
It says.
Uh, the reverse 10 verse, chapter 2, verse 10 ye are completed then that's absolutely positive. It's absolutely I can't change it. God forbid I don't want to change it and then in in three.
33 Your life is headed with Christ in God.
That is is true the second I trust in the Lord Jesus and yet in the very in verse five is the old man. God hasn't taken away the old man.
Especially put it in there and.
What what it says in verse 15 is saying, I suppose to have to do it, I've got to be passive in his presence.
Let him work.
Let's let's the taste of God, let the word of Christ what we need.
It's uh, I think it helps to see that, umm.
The way it's translated in the uh, Darby translation because.
A Christian can get a state of soul where they don't have much affection.
And so they say, well, how can I?
How can I set my affections on the things above? I just feel so cold I don't feel like having it.
Uh, Psalm 16 think is, uh, very helpful in this respect. And then it's a brother Lundeen, umm, for pointing this out once, uh, Psalm 16.
It seemed to me, uh, prophetic of the perfect man who walked here.
Lord Jesus.
Notice first aid.
I have said, the Lord always before me.
Well, that that doesn't take any kind of, uh, special state of soul at all.
You can be cold, discouraged his heart and uh, I have to confess I've been that way and that you can do this. You can set the Lord before yourself, uh.
Umm, it's not uh, it's just a practical thing. You can do this and notice when when he does it. I have, I'm not implying this. The Lord was in in.
State, but we can get that way. I assess the Lord always stay for me because he is at my right hand. I shall not be moved.
Now all of a sudden there is a resurgence of confidence. The sense of his presence is at my right hand and I'm going to be all right. I shall not be moved. And then it goes even further. Uh, therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices. My flesh also rests in hold. So, so it's, uh, it's beautiful to see in a practical way how we can.
Be recovered and restored by a starting on the base of things again as, uh, in a humbling way, we often have to start over again. Uh, I hope I'm not the only one that's feeling this way, but, uh, at times we just have to start with very basic things and, uh, and set the Lord before us and the rest come. And it's the one, I should say that as you're pointing out here, devotedness and confidence.
00:55:19
Brings joy.
Devotedness to the Lord gives us confidence in the Lord. What is the result? Joy, real joy in that the enemy comes along and says, well, look what you just did you, you just failed. Well, you go back to the word of God and we find out God's love doesn't say it at all. We can put our confidence in him. We can put our uh and be, have a devotedness toward him and the result will be a real joy.
Oh, about 1513, says joy and peace in the living room.
I don't need to take away from the other comments. I'm actually good and said I don't want to. I don't mean to take away from the brother's comments about affection because they're they were good comments, but I I noticed that other side that is a practical help. One of the troubles is God is set before my heart, the most beautiful object in the whole universe, and yet I still have a heart that will go after the ashes.
There's another, uh, few birds that's been, uh, the Psalms in chapter 37 groups that, uh, might go along with, uh, what you're saying there. It says in first four, Psalm 37 and the 4th, 1St delight myself also in the Lord. What do we find our delight in, in the Christ fathers? Uh, a little question that I asked award when I was younger. I said, well, what does that mean to delight myself in the Lord?
What does it mean? It says in Isaiah chapter 58 there that, umm, it gives us a little, little indication that uh, in verse 13 that if you, uh.
If I turn away from thy foot, from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day, and shall call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord honorable, and shall honor him not doing thy own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words, and shall proud delight thyself in the Lord. And I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and Fisi with the inherited, with the heritage of Jacob thy father, for the month of the Lord has spoken it. So we have a high calling.
We can delight in the, uh, highest objects that are part defections can have in Christ Jesus the Lord.
Is number 24 of the Lord referred to the things concerning himself, which would be even broader than his strictly his person, but the glories that flow out from him like, uh, what we had before us this morning a little bit with Joseph, uh, he's the revealer of secret savior of the world and.
Gloria emanates out from him and uh, he would seem to be in the early first couple verses in Colossians include those things as well as the, the glory and loveliness of a person. But those things, heavenly things, which would include his counsels and his relationship, various relationships, uh, they have to his people and the various glories that he's acquired as a man.
Uh, and so on.
And in contrast to things on the earth.
So it would encourage us to seek to be one of him, right? That puts it to become more familiar. I can't exactly remember the phrase early him in the attendance where the the hymn writer expresses the desire to become more familiar with his glory and.
We shouldn't desire that as well as his, uh, spouse. Uh, right. He's a more familiar with the honors that are soon going to be, uh, uh, manifested to be his.
A brother sent me a book once. A brother from Chatham. Who who?
Most, some of you have been sent votes by them too, probably, except that a lot in this particular book, I never even cracked the cover, but I enjoyed the title and, uh, still have it. And I think the title of it is Whatever Happened to Hitler? And, uh, I guess they did crack it because I read the process and, uh, apparently the brother's burden was that, uh, Christendom is becoming so preoccupied with the struggle down here.
01:00:15
Uh, along the lines of what are the Keith brought out?
And along the lines of what brother Barry referred to in the, all of the book publishers sending, sending AB and P books. So Christian experience and one young sister who worked in a, in a Christian book room said, said the whole industry, book industry is becoming filled with meatballs. And I said, what are meatballs? Well, you know, it's the Christian and money that question Christian and weight loss, the Christian and this and she called the meat books. And we can, we can get into that ourselves and become so occupied at times with, uh, the struggle down here.
And, uh, it's good to be exercised because it is, uh, a terrible warfare, uh, instead we're going through, but in order to go through it happily in the way that honoring the war, we've got to have a pre constant fresh infusions of, uh, of heaven. And so I've enjoyed the title of the book, Whatever Happened to Heaven? If that was his burden, We don't seem to talk about it anymore or think about it or enjoy it before the meeting, after meeting and so on. And, uh, I think that's a good burden to have and to remind ourselves that soon we're going to be there at the end of, uh.
We're reading meeting yesterday afternoon. Brother gave out to him.
What will it be, uh, to be there? And at first I have to confess this, I thought, well, what's that going to do with what we were just taking out? I have to confess myself that way. But when I started singing, I thought, well, that's beautiful. And, and, uh, it looked at me out, but I, I think, uh, those, uh, maybe straight thoughts here, but, uh, they come to me with respect to these first couple verses. So much need our hearts lifted up beyond the weary scene, you know, just to breathe a little bit of what it's like. And during the millennial reign, at the end of the reign, at the end of First Corinthians 15, when he delivers up the Kingdom.
And, uh, we have the privilege to start to.
You know the smells always smells to and by the spirit of that coming day ahead of time and I believe that the Lord is teaching us in his word that we need that to do that ahead of time to join him as the morning star now in order to be able to lift up the hands which hang down the female knees. Not a question of setting up our treasures there are working to set treasures there. That's John the Baptist teaching.
But Christianity?
Christ is our treasure, and He's better all up there, and that's where our treasure is, but he is a treasure.
I was wondering what this 22nd verse meant in the second chapter, but I think the latter explanations are wisely brought to mind.
Which are to all to perish with the using of short lived. All the common things are with things and the Christian at large faces and how he attacked the problems that that are presented in life.
They're all so short lived. It seems like these matter things that you've been exercising with cancer. Internal issues are providing for us in Christ, aren't you?
#270.