Address—T. Roach
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Praise we to the Father, give God and whom we move and live children's praise. He loves to hear children's songs. He like his ear.
Start off with children tonight over.
Sing a Song About Children #131.
Well, we can go back to Ephesians Chapter 6.
We'll take up another.
Part of what we have some of last night.
And these relationships that we know here on earth.
That are also relationships that we have towards God. So tonight we'll look at children and fathers or parents and servants and masters.
It seems like there's quite a lesson in all of these for us.
Just read the first part begin with beginning at verse one.
Ephesians 6 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
Honor thy father and mother, which is the first commandment of promise, that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
And ye fathers revoked not your children to wrath, to bring them off to the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
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You know, we can't really totally separate the divine things from those that are have to do with our life down here.
Because the scripture speaks of that which is natural 1St and then that which is spiritual. So the natural thing that we're learning here is that children are to obey and not only children will come to that again with servants. And it seems like what God is telling us that the Christian life is one of obedience.
And it does make it simple.
We don't have to make a lot of decisions for ourselves. We simply have to obey what God says.
Children obey their parents in the Lord, and I think that I've often made this comparison with a verse in First John, the last verse of the 4th chapter that speaks of.
Love toward our brother. And it says how can you say you love God if you don't love your brother because you can't love your brother whom you can see. How can you say you love God and you cannot see? And just to make an extension of that.
Children have the opportunity of obeying those they can see, and what a blessing it is to learn obedience in the home. And then?
As children of God, we are accustomed to obeying, and if we can obey the parents that we can see, and then we understand a little bit about obedience to God when we cannot see.
Authorities in the world, and we're going to look at some of that later on, but it speaks of children and if we go back to John Chapter one, we find out how we can become children of God.
John chapter one and verse 12.
Nice to get the connection so we can read the previous verse. 11 He came unto his own and his own received him not.
As many as received him to them gave thee power for authority.
Become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were bore not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God. So the authority to be sons of God or children of God is to ban that believe on the name of the Lord Jesus, believe on his name.
It's quite amazing to find out how many times the name of the Lord is mentioned. Even the name isn't given, but the fact that it is the name of the Lord is.
Interesting to note perhaps that back in in Malachi 316, the verse that we like much concerning these last days, that speaks about those that fought on his name.
Those apartments name, and we often find that the name of God.
Lost feelings and so on.
Well, by trusting in the Lord, we find that we become children of God.
And we have that again in Galatians.
1/3 of Galatians in verse 26.
Year All the Children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Well, just as in the natural, so also then in the spiritual.
We have we are children of God and we have a responsibility to obey and to respect because it speaks of honoring father and mother.
To obey and to honor. We have that responsibility before dawn, and then the fathers and we we can again look in John chapter 20 this time.
After the Lord was risen.
And he met Mary Magdalene.
That's a remarkable story in itself that will read just verse 17 of John 20. Jesus said unto her, Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.
Without more or less establishes the relationship that we have where children God is our Father.
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And so we often refer to one another as brothers and sisters because we have the same Father. And is that simple, wonderful relationships that we have in the Lord Jesus.
Now the Apostle Paul speaks of it in a little different way in the first chapter of Ephesians he speaks not of of birth like John does, but.
He says in the fifth verse.
Having predestinated us, or mark us out beforehand unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.
How often we find Paul using the term sons and speaks of adoption and that no doubt has to do with our privileged position before God. There are things that are ours, Inheritance for example, because we're we're the sons of God.
It's a closer, close relationship, but then John speaks of us as children and.
Children that are born into the family and John three must be born again. So John speaks of the new birth and are being born into the family.
And if we go over to 1St John.
And Chapter 3.
First John in chapter 3.
We are part of the family there.
Again, John's epistles dealing with family truth.
And in the end of her spawn we'll read verse five of John chapter first John chapter 3. And you know that he was manifested to take away our sins, and in him is no sin.
I'm suppose we've all noted that the three places where three different writers of the New Testament speak of the sinlessness of the Lord Jesus. The Apostle Paul, the educated man was speaking to the educated and wise Corinthians. He says Jesus knew no sin to the connection, I think between the fact that Paul brings out that he knew no sin, the man that knew a lot of things and spoke to those who knew a lot of things.
Peter was an active man, a doer, and he was speaking to the Jewish people.
Whose background was to do, to keep the law to do. And he says Jesus did no sin. It all fits in with the author that God used to write these things and how we now we have John, a disciple whom Jesus loved, who lay on his breast at the supper. And he was close enough to the Lord that he speaks in the first chapter of our hands have handled and our eyes have seen and our ears have heard and he says in him.
Is no sin.
I'm sure established in those things, but it's just a joy to think of them again that Jesus was sinless. Even the ungodly had to remark that. And Pilate spoke about just man. His wife spoke of him as a just man and he spoke of him as innocent blood. And the thief said this man has done nothing amiss. They all had to justify the Lord Jesus, the officers that were sent to take him.
And came back without him. They said Herman spake like this man.
Oh, they were impressed the person of the Lord Jesus. So here is John Speaking of of in Jesus there's no sin. That third chapter we go down to chapter in that same chapter to verse 9.
It says, Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God.
Well, that tells us that the nature of the Father is transmitted to the children. In Him is no sin and he gives us a sinless life. He gives us a life that cannot sin.
And when we look at ourselves and say, why do I sin so much then it's because we're allowing that old nature, that Adam nature, the flesh which cannot be changed, to act.
But this is just a little bit to indicate how we're children of God and God as our Father. And it's a wonderful relationship that we have as as children. We're to obey and we're to respect the Father, respect God.
And you know, if we respect someone, then we're willing to do what they say. We we want to please that person if we respect that person.
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And then we come to the Father, says fathers in verse four of chapter restart. Yes.
Region Six He fathers provoked not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Well, the fathers have a great responsibility.
And what about the mothers do too, but the fathers are responsible one. And so we as fathers are more or less in the position of God is to us. And that's a very serious responsibility because God is is perfect in his ways And we'll look at where some Hebrews in a moment, but.
Says Provoke, not your children to rap.
Now we have to be careful that we don't overdo.
The discipline and you have to remember the age of the children. We were in a place a few weeks ago where it was a 2 year old.
Sitting in the high chair and he spills his milk.
Just acting like a 2 year old, he can hardly stole. He didn't get scolded for that. It wasn't something that he should be punished for. It wasn't a willful act, it was a natural thing. Since that time I spilled something over too on the table. So it can't be too hard on the little part because they're just acting like they put things like that.
So here's that which might be a little bit overdone, and we're warned not to provoke the children and.
Factions of parallel portion of Colossians 3.
It says fathers provoked, not your children.
To angers and our talents, lest they be discouraged.
We don't want to discourage the children. We want to encourage them. And I believe that's what nurture and admonition has to do. And with bringing up the children, those things that would encourage them and train them in the way they should go and and bring them along in the admiration of the Lord. Well, let's look at Hebrews chapter 12.
Hebrews, chapter 12.
There's a bit of a portion here, I'd like to read it.
Region verse 5.
And you have forgotten the exhortation with speak, which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him for whom the Lord loveth he chased me.
Conspiracy every son whom he receiveth.
If you endure chasing me, God deals with you as with sons. But what son is he Whom? The Father chasing the God?
But if he be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are you ******** and not sons. Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh, which corrected us, and we gave them reverence. Shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father's spirits live?
For they barely for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure, but he for our prophet, that we might be partakers of His Holiness, now no chastening for the present, seemeth to be joyous, but grievous nevertheless afterward healed that the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised there by.
Well, I was just thinking of a few parts of this, but it's good to read the whole context.
Because God does chase of his children. He acts toward us in love, and he wants to train us, and he wants to encourage us. He wants us to bear fruit for him. And so he speaks of these things and what it says in the.
Well, in verse 9, the fathers who corrected us, we gave them reverence.
That's a beautiful relationship. When it works like that, it should be like that. But at verse 10 it says they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure. I believe that needs a little comment. We need to see the whole verse. It goes on to say, but he for our prophet, that we might be partakers of His Holiness, you know, we might have the wrong motive for correcting our children. We might want them to be.
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Good little children, so we can be complemented on how good our children are.
And we would correct them for our own pleasure so that we would get some some pleasure and some nice comments or to do well in schools. So that people said, well, I see your child may be on a roll and we may not be correcting them for the right reason. But the Lord, it says He corrects us for our prophet, for our prophet. Now we might, we might.
Open. I just want to be quiet and power the kids to be quiet, and it might be for our own pleasure, but they're still in that. I was thinking of using that for the example, but I don't think that's 100% because they do need to learn to respect others. So it might be that they should learn to be quiet at times, but they are kids. You have to act like kids, so.
There are those things that we need to examine the motives in our correction of the children, and they will respect us. They will give reverence for that.
Well, this is so then, in our relationship with the Lord. And I was thinking of an example.
We can just turn to first Timothy.
Oh sorry, Philippians, Philippians for this one.
Timothy was brought up well. It wasn't his father, it was his mother and his grandmother. And that from a child he learned the Holy Scriptures.
And that's a wonderful thing when children are brought up to learn the Holy Scriptures, memorize the verses.
But what I was thinking of was the effect in Philippians 2.
Timothy because earthly father, his natural father, did not train him because he was a Greek.
We don't know anything more about him than that. At least he had followed a spiritual father who really did much for Timothy.
And so in Philippians 2 and verse 19.
The Apostle says of Timothy, But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send to Morpheus shortly unto you. But I also may be of good comfort when I know your state. For I have no man like minded who will naturally care for your state, or who will care with genuine feelings. How you get on for all seek their own things, not the things that are Jesus Christ, but you know the proof of him that as a son with a Father.
He has served with me in the gospel.
Now we have both father and son here, and it's nice to see that an example of one who very tenderly as a father, cared for Timothy, and how Timothy really responded to that training. No doubt his early training from his mother and his grandmother and how they had instilled things in his mind, the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make him wise into salvation.
Wanted to avoid turning to too many scriptures, so didn't turn to Timothy. But you would see there that he was exhorted to to continue on from the things that he had heard, had learned knowing of whom he had learned them, knowing of whom he had learned them. And I believe as we teach our children, we need to recognize that we're living, we need to remember to live what they're telling so that there's a responsibility there.
To live Christ before them.
So that they would have an example and they would not say, well, that's what they say I've heard of.
Children whose parents smoke, telling the children not to smoke. Why shouldn't they? The parents are doing it, so they learned the bad habits well. We're going to teach them good habits if we try to train them in the way they should go. We ought to be talking of the things of the Lord at home as well as in the meetings.
And living those things well. This is a big responsibility. And I'm sure that everyone of us who has gone through parenthood and into grand parenthood, we have lots of things that we wish we had done differently and we recognize many mistakes that we've made. But the Lord is overall, and He desires to see a good purpose apart going on for him.
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Well, let's go on to Servants in Ephesians chapter 6.
Verse 5.
Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart, is under Christ for thy service as men, not with thy service as men pleasers, but as the servants of Christ doing the will of God from the heart.
With goodwill, doing services to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man do it, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.
So here is the exhortation now the servants beginning again with obedience.
In many ways it's very simple to be a servant, because the servant doesn't have to reason whether it's the right thing or the wrong thing. He just has to be obedient, he said, to do what he's told. And so it's very simple for a server. And as the servants of the Lord, which everyone of us are the word servant in the New Testament, I don't know if I can speak authoritatively that every place, but I believe most often, if not in every place, it's a slaves. It's not simply.
One book has gotten a job.
But we could apply it that way in our own lives, because we don't have that same system of slavery but as respecting the Lord if we're saved as free men, where the Lords grown men were his slaves. To service there were to be obedient to masters.
And here it speaks of masters according to the flesh.
And that's important, because if we don't, if we don't fulfill these obligations, whether it's in the family or whether it's as servants, the various scriptures speak about how the name of God or the Word of God will be blasphemed on account of us, and that's not something we want. We would rather have someone turn to the Lord through the light, and we sometimes do hear of a person who.
Whose life and testimony has led another to inquire, and want to come to the Lord.
It's nice when that happens. So servants are to be obedient to.
Masters, according to the flesh, with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart as unto Christ. That may be very difficult. There may be folks that are over us in the business, or wherever it might be that are very hard to deal with, but we are to remember that it's under Christ. I remember the story of two young brothers, one that was a foundry they worked at and one worked in the office.
So that wasn't such a hard job. But the other fellow got a job in the foundry. So that's heavy work. They're pouring castings or stoves in this case, and as dirty and it's hot and it's heavy work. And at noon time, these two brothers had lunch together. And the one who just started in the foundry, he was trying to keep up with everybody else, you know, because he thought he had to do that. He would just knew. And he was so discouraged at noontime.
But going home the evening he was very cheerful and the first brother says to him, what's what happened during the day. He said that you were so discouraged at noon time and and you're going home cheerfully now what he said in the morning I was I was trying to to work hard and please the the people at the the shop. I said in the afternoon I did it as unto the Lord, I just did the best I could and so he went home, cheered and happy and that's the that's the way to be.
To do it as unto the Lord. It may not be perfect, we want to do a good job, but it it's done as unto the Lord, and it gives us joy in doing it.
Not with eye service as men pleasers.
That's that's a common thing in the world today for pardon the boss is looking.
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Verse 7 but with goodwill, doing services to the Lord and not to men.
Believe in.
Over himself to Colossians want me to turn to the third chapter, Colossians that speaks of the.
Servants.
Verse 22 Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eye services men pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God, and fearing the Lord. And whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men, knowing that of the Lord, you shall receive the reward of the inheritance, for ye serve the Lord Christ.
Well, that's encouraging, isn't it? To do our work is unto the Lord, if we only did it for any other reason for.
Shoulder or works for an engineering firm or something like this and.
And you're building things, and you're doing things well. If we do it as unto the Lord, it can be burned up, and we wouldn't care so much if our work was destroyed that way. But we've done it as unto the Lord. The attitude has been as unto the Lord, and that's what he's looking for in our lives.
And the second of some other servants.
There's of course we are familiar with the one in Exodus, that servant.
The faithful servant in Exodus 21.
Now these are the judgments which Nashville set before them. If that by a Hebrew servant 6 years he shall serve in the seventh, he shall go out free for nothing.
Came in by himself, he shall go out by himself. If he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master have given him a wife, she have borne him sons or daughters. The wife and her children shall be her masters, and he shall go out by himself.
The servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children. I will not go out free. Then his master shall bring him unto the judges. He shall also bring him to the door or unto the doorpost. And his master shall board his ear. Through all he shall serve him forever.
You might wonder why the ears?
Why would that mark be in the ear?
I believe it's because of servants. To be obedient he has to listen.
He has to listen, has to hear. And so if we're going to be obedient servants for the Lord, we have to be listening. And it's the ear. And I can't help but think, and I'm sure you're thinking of it too. The Lord Jesus, the perfect servant. It says my ears has no date. He got ears as God. He could command. He could say, let light be and light was. He can create the heavens and the earth and a word.
But he was going to take the place of a dependent man, and it speaks of ears.
His ear. And so oftentimes we'll read this scripture on Lord's Day Morning in connection with the Lord Jesus, as though his fear were poured through. He came to hear and he says, and John's Gospel, he says, I came not to do my own will, but the will of him in sentence.
So the Lord Jesus was a perfect servant and it failed.
And that is what he would expect of us, that we would go on faithfully for him.
We can't help them but think going back to the New Testament of the Lord, Jesus is that perfect servant, and I'd like to read that in Philippians 2.
Again, a familiar portion. The Lord Jesus as the perfect servant.
Philippians 2 Beginning at verse five, Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal of God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death.
Even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also has highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name. But at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord for the glory of God the Father.
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If something is brought out here, this person connection with the Lord Jesus, but you notice.
The words we often know, men in Lord's day, mourning the first part of verse five, are very important for us in this convention that we're looking at. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. That applies to us what the the Lord Jesus did, how he humbled himself.
And became obedient as a servant. You notice that in verse eight he became obedient unto death. And then it says in verse nine, God has highly exalted him.
As a servant, the servant doesn't look for any special recognition. He does his job, he might be glad to hear well done, but he he doesn't get any special recognition for doing what he does. There's a nice verse in that connection for us. We need to turn to it. But the 17th of Luke in the 10th verse, it says after we've done what we're commanded to do, we're to say we're unprofitable service. We've done what was our duty to do.
Someone misunderstood me one time on that one, as though it's so it was indicating that we could do something and say I've done my duty.
Believe what it's telling us is no matter what we do, it was only our duty anyway. We have the responsibility to do it. So if we do it, we can't pat ourselves in the back and say, well, could I accomplish something? We've only done everything.
But this verse 9 here says God also has highly exalted him. We need to wait for that coming day when he will say well done, good and faithful servant, unsuccessful servant, but faithless. Or. I understand Brother Brown used to make a comment or had made a comment that if it said successful, he'd have given up long ago. But he was willing to be faithful. Try to be faithful and let the Lord commend him. In the end leave the successes with him.
So it says.
In that parable, well done, good and faithful servant, Wouldn't it be wonderful to hear that, to get to heaven and hear the Lord say it? Sometimes we're content to have our brethren say it, and well, that's all right to encourage somebody, but it it's going to be wonderful if the Lord would be able to say that, if any one of us.
It isn't limited to certain brothers. It's all the same. Everyone of us were servants of the Lord. Children who believe were servants of the Lord, and they can do things for him is unto him.
But a blessed thing, then, to be a faithful servant, God has highly exalted the Lord Jesus.
The servant is under obedience.
You know, we better look on at the back in Ephesians 6.
To the masters.
Verse 9.
Adi masters do the same things unto them for bearing, threatening, knowing that your master also is in heaven. Neither is there any respective persons with him.
I believe that's all said about the masters there.
There's something I found interesting looking this over that both here and Colossians. It refers to the fact that the masters.
Master over them. Masters have a master over them. Now many of us are in the position of being the boss somewhere and having those under us. This would speak to us how we should treat those under us. It speaks here for bearing threatening. We spoke of it last night, I believe, about threatening.
The word of God, God himself never threatened.
He promises, he warns. But he doesn't threaten. And we might we might tend to threaten. The master might threaten.
Servant.
And parents may threaten children. It doesn't refer to it here, but we hear it. We hear it in the supermarket, we hear it all the time.
Threatening same things that are not going to be carried out. Parent doesn't intend to carry it out, the child knows it's not going to be carried out.
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Please, God doesn't threaten like that.
God warns because he is going to carry out his judgment and if he delays it, and take the case of Nineveh, Nineveh for example.
He sent Jonah there with with a message. Yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown and we might say, well, he didn't carry that out. Not then. But is it 125 years? If I remember, someone said I'm not up on those dates, but 125 years or so later Nineveh was destroyed because they they went back into their evil. But there was a stay.
Of that execution of the judgment because they repented so masters are exhorted not to threaten, but we should.
What we mean and mean what we say.
How easy it is to save them and then wish we hadn't said them and want to take them back.
Speak it for myself.
The masters then that have a master over them as an example in Matthew 8 that I find quite interesting.
Matthew Chapter 8.
And the centurion that comes to the Lord Jesus.
Verse 5.
And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him and saying, Lord, my servant, live at home, sick of the palsy, grievously tormented, Jesus said unto him, I will come and heal him.
Centurion answered and said, Lord, I'm not worthy that thou should have come under my roof, but speak the word only if my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this man, Go, and go to another, Come and cometh to my servant. Do this, he do with this. And Jesus heard it. He marveled, and said unto them that followed. Verily, I, Sandy, you have not found some great faith.
No, not in Israel.
Well, this man was a gentile and he had, he was a centurion, so he had soldiers under him.
But it is interesting to notice that when he explains what's on his heart to the Lord, he says I'm a man under authority.
Wouldn't we expect him to say I'm a man in authority? He seemed to have quite a sense that the authority he had over those soldiers was not his own authority. He was a man of your authority. And anyone of us that has any authority at all, we haven't gotten it from ourselves. It came down for the Berry has often said all authority comes down.
Start with God. He delegates it to the rulers and to those in authority over us and for lesser rulers, and they establish another level. And the policeman has authority, but not his own. There's a law behind him, and there's authorities over him and over them. And here's this man seems to recognize that I am a man under authority. And so he speaks of how his authority goes out to the soldiers, but it's not his own authority.
And we have that in John 19, which I think is very instructive for us as to the flow of authority.
When Pilate was speaking to the Lord Jesus.
John 19.
And verse 10 Then said Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldst have no power at all against me, except that we're given thee from above.
Therefore he that delivered me unto thee of greater sin, the authority that Pilate had, is given him from above. Now how Pilate understood that I don't know. He might have thought it was Caesar's authority, but the Lord was speaking about the word Caesar get his authority from.
All of the powers that be are ordained of God. And that's interestingly the apostle writes that at a time when the worst rule of the world was ever seen as in power, one of the worst anyway. And he says those authorities are ordained of God and were to obey them.
00:45:07
So we if we have any authority at all, it's derived from above. We're under authority. And we we have to use that with that discretion, because these masters had a master over them. And you find the same thing again in Colossians 41. Masters give unto your servants that which is just an equal, knowing that he also have a master in heaven.
I think that's quite interesting and instructive that the authority is coming down and there's nobody that has authority of his own. You must remember that and not try to misuse authority. Men and authority almost always misuse it in government so.
And misuse their authority. Well, we're exhorted here to be careful about that.
And to remember that there's one over us.
Well, back in Ephesians then, we have the armor. This is very.
Instructive.
Finally, my brother, verse 10. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and the power of His might. It seems that that's the end of the categories of husbands, wives, children, fathers, servants, masters, when he speaks to us all. Finally, my brethren, be strong, the Lord in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, you may be able to stand against the Wiles of the devil.
All armored God may be able to stand against the wild the devil. Satan's power was defeated at the cross, but he's the wily foe. And you remember when Joshua and the children of Israel went into the land of Canaan.
They they were never defeated in a battle. They won all the battles that they entered. But.
To north was the the Gibeonites and the form of this word Wiley, it says they did work wildly.
Tongue twister. Word. Wildly. They were they were clever and sneaky and subtle, and they worked a deal. And it was it was not done properly. It was not handled properly. But God held them to it. God held them to it.
And I think we can learn a lesson even from that. That's not our subject tonight, that the the illegal agreement between Joshua and the Princess with the Gibeonites, God held him to it. And later, when Saul tried to kill some of them, there was a famine in the land because of it, and David had to take up the matter and settle it with the Gibeonites. We need to learn those kind of lessons, but here we're told to put on the whole armor of God and may be able to stand against the Wiles of the devil.
Stand and we have that word stand throughout this portion and we have the truth of God-given to us. And we're told to buy the truth and sell it not. And someone has said it's easier to gain the truth than it is to keep the truth.
So here we are to stand.
We've been had a lot of the truth. We've had all the truth committed to us. We may not understand it. All is committed to us and we're responsible to hold it, to hold on to it, to stand, I think, of one of David's mighty men.
He was standing there, The Philistines were all gathered together and it says the people fled and the man was standing there alone and he had the sword and defended that field of food. The Lindos he defended, he stood. He stood. And if another one of those men, it says his hand play into the sword like gold, he held on to the sword. You know what think of the sword, of the spirit, Let's hang on to it. And.
Use it and.
Defend and stand. And that's the important thing. There are these powers in heavenly places.
Then in verse 13 and again it says, Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand, stand.
Therefore, what so emphasizes and stand not gain, not try to gain, because in the first chapter of Ephesians we have been given all spiritual blessings, and having a Galatians in Christ, we have them all. There's nothing to gain. And the apostle, in the end of that first chapter, toward the end, he says he prayed that there the eyes, of their understanding, of the eyes, of their heart, our hearts would be opened to understand.
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Not to gain, but to learn what those blessings are, and to use them. And here it is to stand, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness in your feet, Shawn, with a preparation of the gospel of peace, above all, taking the shield of faith. For with ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit.
Which is the word of God, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance.
Supplication for All Saints.
Well, this is a blessed portion to have the armor. It doesn't say go and get it. It says take it unto you, put it on. God has given us the armor. He just wants us to use it.
We have it. We're equipped. We had reference.
Last night to the man of God, referring to the man of God, Timothy was called hotel man of God. And that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished unto all good works. Well, we were furnished by the word of God, We're furnished. And so these things that are mentioned here, the truth we find out in the word of God, the breastplate of righteousness, would perhaps speak of a good conscience. And we we learn of that much of that in the word of God, preparation of the gospel of peace that comes from the Word.
A shield of faith? Well, we learn about that too. But we learn in this very book that it's the gift of God.
Works with study manager, bills, even the faith.
And so then we have all these things to.
To use them and use them for him.
I know it's not a question of.
Having been been successful in all this, we know that we fail often. We might get discouraged if we just said, well, how well have I accomplished these things as a wife, as a husband, as a child, as a parent, as a servant, or even as a master who failed often. But the Lord looks in the heart. And I believe when he looked at Daniel and saw that he had purposed in his heart, he gave Daniel the courage to act for him, and he gave him wisdom too. All the rest followed, because.
Purpose in his heart, so we're exhorted. Even in the New Testament, Barnabas exhorted the folks in Antioch.
Believe it was to phone the Lord for the purpose of heart. What more can we do? Follow the Lord the purpose of heart, and not give up. Not give up. It's easy to give up.
Want to continue on?
Let's see #46 and the appendix.
46.
Like that last verse, we can sing the whole hymn, be Val the object bright and fair to fill and satisfy the heart, my hope to meet thee in the air and nevermore can be departed, that I may undistracted be to follow serve and wait for the.
46.