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We think #172.
We'll teach us more, my blood way. Holy Land of God, fix the rooter.
Midnight race those redeemed by blood 172.
Dread.
You surprise each hour and meet I'm traveling home to God and a great 3 grace inspire.
Souls with strength divine.
The other thought God is fire and grace and service.
Our God and Father this morning how we do thank Thee from the bottom of our hearts.
Or the exceeding riches of thy grace, and thy kindness to us.
We thank you that's all has by Thy grace saved our souls.
And we thank You that Thy grace provides for us each step of the way.
On the way home.
And we thank these that glory awaits us. We thank you, Thomas, give both grace and glory. We feel so favored.
We absorb it.
We're making it all possible.
That we could be brought into a position of unspeakable favor before the accepted in the beloved. We thank thee for our Spirit, Lord Jesus.
We ask that because we have sewn together and I will teach us more. God bless ways, Lord Jesus.
We have to tell with six.
And root us in thy grace as those that have been redeemed by blood.
So here we are this morning in DI presence we.
Thank you.
And by thy grace, I was brought us near to thyself.
We thank Thee for the privilege of being gathered simply to thine age that Jesus.
And we do hope today that all will give us a portion from thyself to feed our souls.
We pray that I'll just guide us through what we should take up during the Bible readings. We thank you for each one present. Thank you for the children.
And for the young people, the teenagers as well as the older ones.
And tell us know the need of each heart we look to these five eye.
Spirits, through thy precious words that will just minister.
Our soaps and that it might indeed cause us to.
With one mind and with one mouth, glorify these.
For all IPS nitrogen. So we asked as we feel our weakness, we feel how dependent we are.
But we know what I desire and I delight just to bless, so we may also be give thanks for this time together, seeking that direction and precious worthy name of Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. Amen.
Under the brother might think of the.
Ephesians chapter 4 in our chemistry thing of.
Grace. We have grace for our salvation given to us, but we also need the practical grace for our pathway the Lord provides for us to walk.
We lost the grace.
We've got feet and shots forward.
To give them instruction.
We should walk in the new life that we can see.
29th versus especially that.
Mr. Grace along through.
OK.
I'd be happy to have somebody to read it.
I'll I'll read it unless you would like brother. I said no.
For Ephesians chapter 4.
I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called, with all loneliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, even as ye are called, in one hope of your calling. 1 Lord, 1 Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all.
00:05:28
And through all, and in you all, but unto everyone of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Wherefore He said, when He ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. Now that He ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that He may might fill all things. And he gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers.
For the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.
Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the **** of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they let they let lie in wait to deceive, but speaking the truth in love, may grow up unto him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.
From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplier, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, make an increase of the body onto the edifying of itself in love.
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that he that ye henceforth walk, not as other Gentiles walk.
In the vanity of their minds, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through ignorance, through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart, Who being past feeling, having have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, If so be that you have heard Him, and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus.
That you put off concerning the former con conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind. And that you put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your wrath, neither give place to the devil.
Let him that soul steal no more, but rather let him labor working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth but no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with malice.
With all malice, and be kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
OK.
Chapter 3 is a parenthesis.
And so chapter 4 is really picking up from the end of chapter 2 and the apostle and the.
The first three chapters really establishes doctrinally our position, uh, accepted in the beloved all the, the, uh, blessings that God has brought us into and where we are positionally, individually and collectively.
And the end of chapter 2, verse 21. And whom?
All the building, fitly framed together, groweth into an holy temple in the Lord, in whom ye also are builded together for inhabitation of God through the Spirit. And so he's Speaking of the collective side of things, the Church of God and seen as a building.
00:10:09
And.
The Lord Jesus Christ said upon this rock, Speaking of himself, I will build my church, my assembly. And so it's the Lord's building, and yet in verse 22, whom he also are builded.
He's making a present application and the builders not specifically named because he's going to start to go into the sphere that brings in our responsibility.
Chapter 3 of parentheses. We'll skip over it.
Where I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith thee are called.
He's going to take up more of the responsibility side now because he's laid before us the position that we've been brought into, but with position and with the blessings he gives, has given us calm privileges and responsibilities.
And this chapter begins to take up that side of things on through the rest of the book. Privilege and responsibility.
We sang together. Grace taught our wandering feet to tread.
That heavenly ghost.
And here we have.
Walking worthy of the vacation for the calling.
We're with ER core.
The only way that we can walk for God, I believe effectively is if we have a knowledge and appreciation for the grace that he has displayed toward us. And you know, grace is unmerited favor.
It's getting that which I don't deserve.
You know we deserve.
To go to hell.
Because of who we are and what we have done, we deserve judgment.
But we find that even though we have.
Rebelled against our Creator.
Against God.
Himself rather than abandoning.
You and me, what does he do? He reaches out to us to bring us into a position of unspeakable favor, and I believe that's what we have in the 1St and 2nd chapter of this book.
You know, inverse stuff.
Seven chapter one says in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches.
Of disgrace.
When we come over to Chapter 2.
We find that God has raised us up together. Verse six hate us, sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show.
The exceeding riches of his grace.
In his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus for my grace, are you saved and so on. So if we.
No, and appreciate the goodness of our God.
Tolls out.
In the unspeakable gift of his dear son.
The one chief Treasurer, as we often sing, is bosom freely gave his own pure love invention, his willing mind to stay.
And this works in our soul to give us a desire.
To please the Lord.
And it's not because we're subjected to rules and regulations.
It's not a question of do I have to do this or do I have to do this?
That for God, we want to do it.
Because of Islam great sprayed towards.
And so this is the footing I believe on which the Costco.
Peaches.
These ephesians that they would walk worthy of the.
Location where? With the airport?
00:15:02
And Paul, he was a prisoner.
He was a prisoner of Rome.
But he doesn't speak of it in that way. He says I'm a prisoner.
Of the Lord.
And.
The circumstances from all outward appearances.
They were.
Really undesirable.
Before the world, but, you know, fall.
He was willing to stop her for Christ.
As he contemplated the grace of God and how Christ suffered for him.
What is worthy?
Means what? What is meat? What?
What is the?
Proper.
Response.
Right, that's worthily and, uh.
So in the context of grace, where the lead does not have to do with.
Some kind of, uh.
Something you can be proud of.
Or even something admirable.
Usually worthy. Worthy is thought of as, you know, matching.
Kind of in quality matching something, but this is not the context here.
What is worthy of grace is lowliness, is not to walk with your nose in the air, holier than thou, better than others. That's this is not what it's talking about. What? What is meat? If someone has shown you grace, if you deserve to go to hell?
But God instead sacrificed his Son to save you. The response to that is not anything proud. The response to that is.
You hang your head and you realize I was not worthy of this grace.
And So what meets that is loneliness.
We're told to walk worthy. Second verse told us how to do it.
And meet.
Very easy to read these things, but the.
Carry them out or something else, something many things in the word that we know we should do or shouldn't do.
Sometimes we we are. It's harder here we're told to walk worthy.
How to do it? Hold your knee, pushing yourself forward. Or you said don't be proud of it. Something to be thankful for, not proud of.
Was there before that I.
A lowly brother doesn't, uh.
Goodwill vents.
And the makeup other doesn't take offense and Big Brother doesn't give offense.
So we're going to do that.
But if we're walking like we should be, wouldn't be offensive.
The vocation is the truth of the one body that the apostle brings out.
And the habitation of God through the Spirit.
The apostle, for the abundance of the revelations that he received, also received something else, the thorn not in, but for the flesh. Let he be puffed up through the abundance of revelation. You know, sometimes we receive a thorn for the flesh for other reasons than that. We've entered into the truth of God in such a full way as the apostle that we need something to keep the flesh down. We have other reasons.
00:20:15
But there is the danger of entering into the truth of God and then becoming proud in connection with either the knowledge or the practice of it. And so the apostle was given the thorn for the flesh.
And.
He wants us to walk worthy of it and so it's been brought out. It's got to be in humility. There is the danger of pride coming in in connection with position that we have been brought into as believers.
The apostle says he is a prisoner.
As well.
You know the Jews listened to him in Jerusalem.
Up to the point.
Where he brings out that the Lord sent him to the gentiles, and then they wouldn't hear him anymore.
And it was for the truth that Jew and Gentile were blessed in equality.
Joint partakers of Christ and the Gospel. A joint body.
And joint heirs.
The Jews would not dare to hear them.
And so it is for the truth of the one box.
The assembly, the habitation of God by the Spirit that Paul was a prisoner.
And there is a certain sense in which.
The more we understand and walk in the good of that truth that we will find there is opposition to it and we may come into a place.
Too, in a certain sense of ******* there will be things that.
Come in or we have to walk. If we're going to walk worthy of that calling that we have to walk in separation from what would be contrary to it. And we can find ourselves in a certain sense in a position like Paul.
And brother Lil used to stay back home.
In professing Christianity, Paul still in change, the truth that he received from his son is Christ is still largely rejected and refused.
And we will find that we are in that place as well.
If we want to walk in that truth. And so he brings that out, that he's a prisoner of the Lord in connection with those truths. But he says now I want you to walk Word and I want you to walk. You have your walk be in accord with the position that you have been brought into. But here is the spirit in which it's going to have to be walked in.
I think the new translation, uh, as in the in the Lord.
Out all the water, but in the ward, which is that one little word makes a big difference because.
There are loads a day that would say they're serving God and it's.
Have a necessity or just a religious thing that they're serving and may not even have life.
Their religious people out there that that are caught up in that kind of thing they could say, well, I'm serving God, but here the he makes it clear that it's in the Lord. He put his trust in Christ. He's looked at as being in him and so are we if we have accepted crisis or Savior.
We are in him and I think that.
They've got that word is a lot bigger than it's nice to look at it that way. If we're in Christ the apostle Paul who's serving the Lord in the Lord, he was serving the Lord in that way and.
That's the way that we can serve it too. We should look at ourselves as being a prisoner in that way.
We don't want to do anything that would offend him.
Anything that would cause.
And so we we want to do whatever we can that would we would have the words of Google.
00:25:05
Serve is a popular little uh, saying, umm.
May not get it all right. It's only one. Life will soon be passed. Only what's done for Christ will last. I think it if you're wiser to say only what's done in Christ will last because there's a lot of people that presume to be doing things for the Lord.
He may very well say, I never knew you, but if we say only what's done in Christ.
Will last. That's.
I think that's more scriptural.
I have a question the beginning of the third chapter.
Also I call prisoner of Christ Jesus.
Here I'm using the new translation. I have to have that open. I, the prisoner in the Lord exhorted, wondering.
Why the difference in the way this is brought before us someone?
Enlightenment.
OK.
I would.
I would go back to where from the very beginning the Apostle Paul was told by the Lord that the Jews will not receive you. I'm sending you to the Gentile.
And.
And yet you find wherever Paul went, first people he went to was the Jews and he fought and, and tried to get them to receive his message. He felt this, you know, you are the ones that you are the ones that should be receiving. And uh, even said I would even, I would even be willing to be a curse that my brethren would receive this.
So he just.
As we know, and you follow his ministry through the book of Acts, you just can't let that go. He, he, he wants to get the Jews to receive this, even though the Lord said they're not going to receive it. I'm sending it to the Gentiles. Well, what happens eventually in attempting to get the Jews to receive it, He ends up in bonds.
And so I believe that's what he means at the start of Chapter 3 is I'm a prisoner.
For your sake. For the sake of you, Gentiles.
And so the Lord was like, no, OK, so you're not going to cooperate then, you know, you can put a hook in your nose. I'm going to lead you where I want you to go. And he's led to Rome and that's where he ministers. This is where we get most of the New Testament was from when he was a prisoner. And that's where all the truth that blows out to the Gentiles comes from. So I think that is what, Chapter 3.
Chapter 3 I'm a prisoner, it says.
Of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles.
But in Chapter 4, it's a totally different character. It's just Bern brought brought out.
If he had never gone out to the Gentiles, he would have escaped.
And a large measure of the reproach.
So how do we apply that today? The apostle Paul brings out the heavenly calling of the Church of God.
We're not of this earth. We're members of Christ's body. We belong to glory where he is. Stephen looked up and saw.
The Lord in glory, standing at the right hand of God. And there is our place too, out of this world.
Weekend escape reproach too, you know.
We can escape reproach too, by not confessing our heavenly calling in this world. And Paul's ministry largely is bound up with that fact of the that grace has called us the heavenly calling and.
Professing Christianity has really departed from that heavenly calling and that heavenly character.
See her portion in this earth and in earthly calling.
And if we seek to walk in and confess the heavenly calling, we're going to find reproach. We can avoid it. The apostle didn't avoid it. So he was the prisoner for you Gentiles, in order to carry that truth to them.
00:30:14
They could not have prices.
It's all the same spec and Trinity.
Chapter One.
Fall since all day that are in Asia.
And there he was in prison and chains.
There was one who came to visit me and that's the forest, I believe it was.
It wasn't ashamed of the chains. It wasn't ashamed, of course, because I believe he knew Paul.
Had the word of God.
And that he was promoting the truth of God even though it wasn't popular in the world. And truly, as you point out.
To indicate that our prospects are heavily as Christians. It's not popular in the world.
And the world looks upon a Christian often is.
One that's so heavenly minded he's of no earthly good.
I mean, you talking about heaven, that's where you're going. Well, I believe that there is reproach connected with this profession, but really this is what our quality is, because where is the Lord Jesus Christ at the present time? Where is it?
Is he here on Earth as he was almost 2000 years ago?
And that's where our hopes are in Christ and their heavenly because He is sitting at the right hand.
Of God.
And also the desire is that we might set our affections on things apart where Christ sits.
But there is a tense testimony to render here in this world to Christ.
And the fact is that we are members.
Of his body, the true Church.
And you cannot give testimonies to witness in a practical way to the truth of the Church of God.
You're just one person.
There has to be more than one in order to testimony. Witness the Church of God. Now I believe Satan would seek to divide and scatter.
The Saints of God, that this testimony might be extinguished.
But I do believe God maintained the testimony collectively.
In the name of Christ, but.
Belief in a practical way to display it before the world involves we have here in verse 2, loneliness, neatness.
Long-suffering for bearing one another in love.
I've been endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit.
In the Father's peace.
And the day of Pentecost, I believe that all believers were baptized by the Holy Spirit into one body.
Is that not the unity of the Spirit?
The fact that we are all.
Baptized into one part.
Now we are sorted here.
To seek, I believe, in a practical way to demonstrate that unity.
We see the word peace.
It, uh, puts responsibility on us to keep that unity.
He said that on the day of Pentecost.
The church was formed the Spirit of God.
And all believers were baptized into that one body.
Endeavoring to keep the unity.
As we know failure on our heart.
As we look around today, we can't say that.
00:35:01
The body of Christ, it practically is one body anymore.
It's all split up into little divisions all over the place, different names, different titles. And so practically speaking, that testimony of the one body has been lost.
In the world.
There's a remnant testimony of it.
And, uh, and we endeavour to keep that.
Lord as he graciously provided a remnant testimony to the one body, but uh, Patrick's and speaking that testimony to the world has been lost, but, uh.
It's not loss of God. God preserves it. Every believer we know is in the body of Christ and preserve that way and cannot be removed.
There's also the practical part of it, and that's what we have here. Endeavors. Keep it and on that part you have built.
There is a.
There is a teaching.
That it has gone out.
Amongst the gallery of Saints, I've heard it.
For more than one source.
And uh.
And the teaching is that it is not telling us to keep the unity of the Spirit here.
But that is the point here, is to keep it in the bond of peace.
The teaching is that the unity of the Spirit is kept by God.
And our responsibility is to keep it.
In the bond of peace.
They're all fathers have heard that not.
That does not agree with what?
The great earlier brothers and teachers.
And I don't believe it's what this verse is saying either.
For one thing.
It is the fact that there is one body that is kept by God.
That's what's kept my thought. There is one body.
The unity of the Spirit speaks of the manifestation of that one.
And that is our responsibility to keep.
Now in the bond of peace, the teaching centers around the Word and I believe.
That it's like, you know, keeping.
Keeping your You know, your oatmeal in a sealed container, you know it's it's.
Where you keep how you keep this important?
That's not what this is teaching. For one thing, the word in in Greek.
Is used in a number of ways, but here if you turn to Romans chapter 12 and the last verse.
OK.
Romans chapter 12 and verse 21 it says be not overcome of evil but overcome evil with good. The word with in that verse is in the Greek word Eng that we translate in usually.
And so that that word een is used as a umm, as a way of doing something. And that's the way it is here in this verse. We are the teaching here is for us to keep the unity of the spirit by means of.
The bond of peace.
That's that's the way the word is being appeared. It's by means but.
The teaching is to keep the unity of the Spirit, and that is to maintain that manifestation or expression of the oneness that God keeps. But it is our responsibility to keep the unity of the Spirit.
And this is more.
Than just, you know, being warm and friendly to your brethren that are that you meet on the street or at work or something. You know, it seems there are some that the word church only means one thing to them. And that's the aggregate of all the believers on the face of the earth. But it's not used that way in the New Testament. That's not the way Paul uses it. He's referring to a practical meeting. And for me to for bear, you know, for us to, for bear with one another in love.
If we just meet each other once in a while.
00:40:03
Where's the need for forbearance?
We find the need to prepare with one another with those that wear yeah, rubbing shoulders with on a regular basis. That's when there's a need of preparance, just meeting someone at work and.
Trying to, you know, and it's good we should we, they're our brethren. We should try to feed them if we can. And you know, but the need for really building up need for, for parents, for one another, forgiving one another and all this that's only gonna come if we're meeting together on a regular basis.
So that's where the assembly, where the rubber meets the road, so to speak, where God's going to get the manifestation of the unity of the Spirit.
Is in practical practical assembly.
Almost all of the New Testament exhortations as to the practical display of love and grace and all its attributes are within the household of faith.
Often profession Christianity makes it towards the world, but read them. It's within the household of faith. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples. If you have love one for another. It's part of the testimony that we render in this world through Christ. And so the expectations are really most of them connected to the exercise of those things within the household of things.
Endeavoring doesn't mean just give it a good splatter.
The thought is to to keep it, not to just give it a good try, but to keep it and to be diligent about the keeping of it.
Not to just say, well, I gave it a good try, it didn't work.
That's not the excupation.
I've enjoyed if you pardon that. I guess every illustration probably has holes in it, but.
My children thinking back to the days when they were at home.
And we formed a family together at home. They had a certain responsibility in connection with being my children.
And they've had have a unity that is particular to them. They're all children of the same father.
And.
There's responsibilities that go with that, obedience to what I have to say. It's certainly part of that is a fellowship that they enjoy in that family, brothers and sisters, if they're all out playing.
And a call goes out. It's time to come in for supper.
Their responsibility.
Is to obey and.
Four of them say, you know, we're having a really good time out here.
And, uh, we want to stay out here and four of them say that's the time to come in for supper and they start to head in for supper. And the four that want to stay outside, What are you doing? We're having a good time out here.
You're spoiling our unity.
We're all brothers and sisters. Let's stick together.
And the other four say that's it's time to commit.
Time to commit and they head on in.
Who's keeping the unity, if I can put it that way, of their father?
Before that, obey.
Bad word. And what if now the other four that stayed out my claim that they're spoiling that unity, are they?
No, before that. We then are endeavoring to keep the unity that's proper to them as my children.
And so there's a responsibility incumbent upon us to diligently keep the unity.
That was formed by the Spirit of God that embraces every member of the body of Christ.
And it's only going to be kept in obedience to His Word.
In subjection to his work and even if others are not interested who are part of that unity.
00:45:09
Others are not interested in keeping it. It does not matter. It's for us to obey and to diligently keep that unity that is ours.
Formed by the Spirit of God, kept only in his powers.
But practically kept with certain characteristics, loneliness, meekness, the uniting bonds of peace.
Was it Hezekiah that said that there may be peace and proofs in my time?
Got the order wrong.
2 fantasies.
We see that as rain began with such faithfulness and recovery, but in the end his heart was lifted up.
There's another striking example of that, and that's in the book of Esther.
You know in the book of Esther, God's name is not mentioned once through the whole book.
There was a little company of Jews who had responded to the liberty proclaimed by Cyrus to return back to Jerusalem, and they had gone back, they got involved in mixed marriages. And he read and Ezra and Nehemiah, and they had to judge themselves before the Lord, and separate must have been hard from those that they had married that they should not have.
But back in Mesopotamia.
Whereas there and more to Ki were.
After Mary's a gentile king.
A marriage that the scripture would say no, she should not have done.
God, Provident providentially uses it for the preservation of even the Jews in Jerusalem.
He's able to overrule everything.
So that doesn't make what she did right. And in the end the proclamation goes out in connection with that. And again, a piece at.
The orders reversed.
It's not an order of truth and peace.
Because things are not really in order.
Connection with Esther's marriage. God used it. He overruled it, even affected those back at Jerusalem, but at Jerusalem, where they were endeavoring to keep the unity that became the children of Israel.
And to be where God center was in this earth, they had to obey the truth of God. If they were going to go on in that unity and in connection with their mixed marriages, they had to judge that in the sight of God.
I believe that the Spirit of God.
Gathers souls in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The function of the Spirit of God is to exalt Christ, to honor him. And you take a verse like Matthew 1820, we're familiar with where two or three are gathered.
I believe it's the Spirit of God at work in the soul.
To gather 1 to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And I wonder if this doesn't tie in with the unity of the Spirit.
Now to be gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Wonderful privilege.
And.
I believe there's a great responsibility connected with because truly to be where he is is to submit to him through his authority.
Which the flesh.
Is not interested to do, but I believe if you're walking in the spirit, we would like to be in his presence, to be where he is.
And I just see.
In a very popular.
Modern Translation.
In that verse.
It says something to this effect where two or three come together.
In my name.
There am I with them.
00:50:01
Spirit.
And I believe that.
Sometimes we allow our bones.
Will to direct this.
And I talked to folks like this, and perhaps you have two. They're looking for a place.
Where it suits them.
Where perhaps they have, uh, well, music or dynamic preaching.
Or perhaps very ornate buildings.
All of these things that appeal to an individual.
And they say, now that's where I'm going to test my ankles.
I don't think that's unity of the Spirit.
As believers, we need to look for the Lord.
Yeah, he might guide by his spirit.
And.
Of course.
Often we find it.
The Lord is not at the center.
You know in glory the Lord Jesus Christ will be the center.
Of that fast in the floor and we're going to be gathered around him and he will be the center of attraction. Well, as it is in heaven, so he is on earth.
But I fear that sometimes.
It's not price to extension.
Somebody else?
Luke 22, They just.
Site that doesn't really have to do anything, did they? They asked a question.
Where we'll now have it prepared. Always done for them.
That the Lord guided them.
To the place where he would meet with them.
Man bearing a pitcher of water. Holy Spirit followed the large upper room. It was all unprepared for them. I didn't have to do anything. All they had to do was show up.
And uh, really, it's no different today. If there's a desire to to remember the Lord and be in His midst, the Lord will.
Give the right direction before you do the work go.
It's all Invisible Man has his own ideas.
And and where he might make where he should go. And he and he doesn't ask the question to the Lord, he takes it upon himself. And he likes his will decide where where he should go.
Then there's a problem, and that's what's happening.
All around us we see different little groups meeting here and there.
It all hinges really on.
Whose will is?
Is active or responsible for the gap?
And I know there's been a lot of controversy about this, but in Matthew 1820, when it says are gathered, that is a passive verb, and anyone who says otherwise, it just doesn't.
No Greek or Greek word forms. It is passive.
They are gathered. They don't gather. It's not their will. They don't come together by their own will. They are gathered.
And that's crucial.
Because there's a, you know, there's lots of Christian groups and meet just like we do.
And you hear people say, well, they're the same as you.
Well, outwardly that may be an appearance. It may be insane.
But what's going on inside the hearts? That's something that you don't see.
And that elbow hinges on that. And so let's agree if we don't talk about us and them don't need to, let's just agree that the Word of God says that it's where two or three are gathered that implies submission.
And let's agree that if two groups are both in submission to the Holy Spirit, they would be in fellowship with one another.
Let's agree on that. You can't have two in submission in the Spirit of God, and there's not unity manifest.
So either both one or both are wrong, but they can't both be right.
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That doesn't make them not Christians. That's silly.
But let's just agree that.
It is a matter of submission to God.
And if it's man's will that has built it, it's man's building it's.
It's man's will that is set up the table. It's man's table.
Don't need to talk about us and them, but we do need to agree that according to the scripture.
There's just one body and there's just one fellowship and the unity.
Has to be manifested, and if there's submission to the Spirit of God, that unity will be manifest.
OK.
Another thought and connection with the bond of peace is.
A practical one for our own hearts, not so much in connection with our interactions with one another, but what about my own state of soul and connection with the truth of God? You know, we can get really anxious about things, can't we? We can get really over rock that things aren't going in a particular way in connection with the practical display of this truth and in the day of weakness.
And feebleness. Umm, we can get restless and.
Anxious, but you know the Lord will maintain though being a remnant characters our brother brought out. Uh.
A place where we can practice the truth of God according to the Word of God.
So in verses 4-5 and six, these are statements of fact, aren't they? This is what was said earlier. These are things that are facts that are maintained by God.
There is one body, there is one Spirit, 1 hope if you're calling 1 Lord, 1 faith, one baptism, one Godfather of all.
These are facts. These are.
These are foundation, they are unmovable.
And maintained by God.
We could be thankful for God's sovereignty.
Doesn't feel.
We can be thankful.
For #1 just repeat it over and over and we'll.
Can you imagine if it's it?
OK, two back 2000, what confusion would raise?
But you know, God has given us this truth in a way that we don't have to be confused.
We just have to look to him, the guy.
There's one way of salvation.
There's one way to get it.
Now the president.
Part of me to mention this stuff.
He said Jesus.
Is a way.
But he wouldn't go so far as to say he's the only way to have.
One way too heavy. And afterwards Jesus Christ. And if we don't accept that?
We can.
OK.
Remember, as a young believer, someone showing me, uh.
The nurses, uh, really that all, all of humanity is encompassed and it was helpful to see it in that way, trying to sift this, these things out. There's one body that's, those are those that are truly, they belong to Christ. And again, they're not all the testimony isn't there today that all true believers are one body. That testimony is not there, but the truth of it is there. And that happens when a person accepts Christ.
And then there's one faith 1 Lord, there's a profession of Christianity, and we know that the end of that profession.
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Will be apostasy, but it's a profession that molds Christianity the faith of you know of Christianity and there were many that are that make that profession that do not have life. They are not saved, they do not know the Lord firstly.
And then the third, you know, you can think of it as a sphere within a sphere within a sphere. And the third sphere includes all of humanity. We're all made in the image and likeness of God. So there's a sense in which God is is the father of all humanity. And so that's the third step. So there's really 33 spheres here, and they encompass all of these.
We have in chapter 2 That.
The church is a habitation of God through the Spirit.
Is what the apostle is taking up that were to walk worthy of that location and so as these spheres go out, they get greater and greater, don't they until they encompass all creation and it's a tremendous estate.
But he who owns it all dwells in the House of the estate, the habitation of God through the Spirit, and that's that very center unity.
One body, one spirit, 1 hope of Our Calling. Only true believers have that hope.
And that's where it comes back in and says.
One God and Father of all, who is above all and through all. Now He comes right back into the center. And then you all, and you all the believer. Habitation of God.
Atmospheric.
Our our time is just about up. I'd like to make just one comment.
Goes back to some things said earlier. In Matthew 18 and 20 I was emphasized how that the Spirit of God is the one that gathers people out together to the precious name of Lord Jesus alone.
And, uh, I was just thinking how if we connected that up with, uh, Hebrews chapter 13.
It seems to me that.
There's a responsibility for us to respond to the Spirit of God. That is, we ask, where wilt thou that we prepare? And then when the Spirit of God shows us, and then we should follow up. So in Hebrews 13 and verse 13 it says, let us go forth therefore unto Him, without the can, scaring his reproach.
Now there's two things there. One is that the place of gathering seems to be without the camp.
Outside of what we might call Christendom.
Because it's lost its testimony.
The other thing is that it's bearing his reproach. It's not a popular place.
There's not many who desire to remain in that place because of the reproach.
And to escape that reproach may end up compromising, if we will.
I would like to draw your attention to the end of verse 16.
With such sacrifices, God is well pleased.
And so we should ask ourselves, do we want to please God?
Or are we interested in pleasing ourselves?
Says if we obey what it says here.
Then God is wealthy.
Is truly established bringing joy with happiness in our souls.
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When we go God's with.
And I think how the Lord Jesus said, if you know these things, happy are ye if you do.
And so it's important does show us the way.
To take the steps.
You know, because light accepted.
Bring it back.
But why reject it? Bring it tonight.
OK.
OK.
Could we sing 230?
OK.
I say it hasn't got no Ohio.
Lords of Rain check Long.
I think I didn't watch the chair by the heart and waste smiles.
When I left home, they used to do the flowers.
We gave a lot of time.
And they would like.
To be.
And I never saw that brown strand and white sugar flying.
And I can't remember anything.
OK.
OK.