Address—N. Berry
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Would you please turn with me to the book of Chronicles, the first book of Chronicles? It's very instructive to notice that in the books of Samuel and Kings.
The Spirit of God.
Tells the story of the history of these divided kingdoms back and forth, going from one to the other. But when we come to the book of Chronicles.
The story now is told by God himself in a heavenly view of these same happenings, and it is lovely to see that the very first word of the book of Chronicles is Adam. God would go right back to the very beginning and tell His story of grace and love to mankind and in those early chapters.
It is very sweet and precious to to see how that God has his men.
All the way along through those long lists of names, God has His royal line, that line which would eventually lead to Christ and all. How precious it is. Beloved young people here to know that all and everything would only lead us to Christ if you and I are redeemed by that precious blood in the glory it is going to be to gaze with.
Hiring wonder and love and adoration upon that blessed will face. And so it is ever the will, the desire of the Spirit of God to occupy us with that blessed One. Now as we know, this book was written long before the blessed Savior came to earth, but it is very remarkable, as I said, to trace those.
That royal line that was given to us in these early chapters, however.
I would like to go on now to the 9th chapter and it is very interesting to and I trust profitable to each one of us.
To go down, not to take up each verse by itself, but just to pass on a few thoughts which I have enjoyed in meditation on this chapter. And it is very remarkable to see that in this first verse.
God makes us sweep just tells in one brief verse that which was at the end. I don't know who wrote the book of Chronicles, but the Spirit of God brings the very end of almost to the end of the days of history of Israel prior to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. It tells us here in this first verse. So this is the first.
Chapter 9, verse one. So all Israel were reckoned by genealogies, and behold, they were written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah, who were carried away to Babylon for their transgression. Now I have received quite a bit of help by referring.
To the new translation in some of these passages and you'll I think to might we might be helped.
If occasionally we will be quoting from Mr. Darbys translation and it tells us there in that first verse, So all Israel were reckoned doesn't say was reckoned, it says were reckoned. It was an individual matter. Every one of them was going to be registered as the new translation gives it registered.
All beloved young people here today.
Have you, are you registered if we could use that expression, is your name written in the Lambs Book of life? Dear young ones here. Oh, we're living in difficult days and we're living in times when Satan would divert your thoughts and your eyes away from Christ. And we do pray that each one of us that is here today.
I can say yes, thank God my name is written in that Lamb's book of life.
What a wonderful registry that is. And so here it says that they were individually registered and behold, they were written in the book of the kings of Israel. Oh, it's wonderful too, to realize that your life and mine, if we belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. All beloved young people were the object of that love.
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Of of God, he cares about every one of us. They would tell you in the schools and in the universities that people don't understand you, but all there is one that understands you.
That blessed the heart of God and it would beat to encourage you.
Through the Scriptures to turn to God's precious word. And so here it tells us that everything was written down in the books. And then there's a break there. There's a period after the word Israel. And then it says and Judah was carried away to Babylon for their unfaithfulness. Well, we would wonder why.
God would would bring in unfaithfulness right at the beginning.
To that we might, we might become discouraged. We might say, well, why would God do this? Oh, I believe it is this, dear young people. And that is that God would would know. We would know that sometimes we do fail. Sometimes we do turn away. Sometimes we get back into this poor sad world. And yet God would encourage us with the rest of the story. He knows.
Feeble frame. He knows the problems that you have here in this in our in our world in this difficult time. He knows all these things. And though very often, as I said, we do get cold in our souls, how wonderful to know that we can fall back on the grace of God, which we're going to see in the following verses.
Now in this chapter there are different groups of people.
I'm not going to be speaking about the mall, but there are three particularly before me that I would like to speak up. Nevertheless, to get into the the the thoughts of this chapter, we might just pick out a few, it tells us.
That in the second verse. Now the first inhabitants that dwelt in their possessions in their cities were the Israelites, the priests.
The Levites and the nephronyms, well, it tells us there that these were important people in God's sight.
The priests and the dear young people, or we will learn from first Peter two and five, that if you have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, you are a priest before God. You are brought into this place of favor now where you can come through the veil into the very presence of God. But then also we are leave lights, and that is that we have.
Work to do down here, a service for God. And so the Levites were there too.
And then there were others in these families and we'll go down now to the.
10th verse and of the priest. Then it lists quite a few names.
All ordained of God, everyone written here, some of the names hard to pronounce, nevertheless God has recorded every one of them. And oh how beautiful this is to realize that you dear young boys and girls that are here today, God speaking reverently, He is vitally interested in everything of your life, every little detail.
Everything is known to Him. He would encourage you to go on in these last closing days. Well, so there were priests there. Now then in the 13th verse.
And their Brethren Heads of the House of their Fathers, 1703. Score 1760.
Well that was a quite a number wasn't it? I wondered why this number was was given 1760 and I just pass on these few simple thoughts to you. It is 40 * 40 and in the scriptures we know that 40 is a time, is a number that denotes testing. Well now here was testing to the essence, wasn't it 40 * 40?
Or how these men were tested. But what does it say now in the next part of the verse, that 13th verse, very able man for the work of the service of the House of God. Oh, isn't that lovely? Could this be said about us all? We have to hang our heads in shame so often and see and know. But nevertheless God saw that there were those.
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Very able men. Oh, may you and I realize that this is the day of privilege to be living for the Lord. The day is coming when we're going to be in the glory, and how close it is we do not know, but it might be this very day. Oh, our day of service is limited to this earth and faithfulness to Him, faithfulness to Christ.
Or might it be true of each one of us? Might it be true as this verse puts it?
Now then, the 14th verse changes to the Levite and of the Levite. Well, as I said, the Levites were connected not with the with the worship of God in connection with the Tabernacle, but in the service of God carrying the sacred articles across the wilderness. And I might just say in passing that when you and I are in the presence of the Lord, it is as priests.
We're in in the Lord's presence, as priests in worship.
But when you and I are on Monday at school, Oregon work, wherever it might be, we're leaving before this world, and it is our privilege as the Levite to carry those sacred articles, every one of which would point to Christ. Or that we might be faithful Levites.
As we pass through this world in front of our classmates or those with whom we work, might we be faithful Levites? Now then, 17th verse and the porters. Now this is the first group of those that I would like to speak up. The porters, They were at the door and I was wondering why it would be that they would be.
Mentioned here, but as we go on in these few brief verses, we'll find that God in his wisdom.
Places them there first. They were those who guarded the doors. And as we go on we will see this 17th verse and the porters were, and it mentions their name, 18th verse, who hitherto waited in the Kings Gate eastward. It wasn't very much to wait, was it? Waited.
They just waited there. Well, isn't the true dear young people that waiting?
For God is one of the hardest things, isn't it? It requires such patience. We have a tendency to want action and not to be waiting. But here were these men that waited. That's all they did. It was waiting there hitherto waited in the kings gate. Or is that lovely? The King's gate. Not in the world's gate, The King's Gate.
Eastward they were door keepers, door of the camp of the children of Levi. Well, we'll see this developing. They were first of all mentioning here as the doorkeepers. Now then, 19 and Shalom, the son of Corey, the son of.
EBay Asaph, the son of Korra and his brother.
Of the House of his father the korah height were over the work of the service keepers of the.
Thresholds. You see that in the margin keepers of the thresholds of the tent. Well, who are these? These were descendants of Korah. Korah for his unfaithfulness.
Felt the judgment of God.
But all his, his descendants now are listed here as faithful men to God, as doorkeepers. Wasn't that lovely, that very thing wherein their Father had failed? Here they are sighted now for their faithfulness. Oh, we might say, well, sometimes.
Some of those who have gone before may not have been very much of an example to us.
Oh, isn't it wonderful to know that we can count on the grace of God to come in as surely He did here and fight these faithful ones as being at the the threshold of the tent?
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And their fathers and their fathers notice as we go on very often, fathers and sons. Well, I know you're hearing a great deal these days about the generation gap, but I was thinking as I read over this chapter, I don't see any generation gap here. I find that the fathers and the sons were standing together. Oh, beloved Saints of God, I speak now to us. Who are fathers? Are we?
Our sons and our daughters, are we pointing them to Christ? Is Christ the subject of our home around the table? Are we feeding our young people upon Christ? Fathers and sons going on here faithfully to God together? Or may we be kept in these difficult days?
Well now then, we go on in that 19th verse, and their fathers.
Set over the camp of Jehovah were keepers of the entrance were keepers of the entrance. Isn't that nice? What would this be? I believe it's faithfulness to Christ, faithfulness to God's Word.
Care to be maintaining the Word of God? Care to be maintaining the truth and to which you and I have been brought? We're living in days when the truth is being given up everywhere.
Subtly substituted by those things which are not according to the word of God. Or we have to be on our guard to be at the threshold to be faithful to Christ according to His precious Word.
So here we find these ones, the fathers at the entrances. Now then the 20th, 1St and Finna has the son of Eliezer was the ruler over them in time past and the Lord was with him.
Well, I like this little note. Here is Eliezer. He must have gone on before now because it says there who was in time past. But it's nice to realize we'll see it farther on.
Here we have a a priest cited for his faithfulness, Eliezer, one who had stood apart from his family in faithfulness to God. And now God remembers him, and he cites him as one who is faithful, who has gone on before. And what does it say there? And it says the Lord was with him. Oh, isn't that lovely? The Lord is with us.
They love it. Young people, He's with us. He'll never leave us. He wants to encourage you and me to keep on though the days are dark. Finna has faithful one who had passed on before. Oh, we know many, do we not? Our mind, our thoughts go back to those who have gone on before, and we can surely say whose faith follow. May we have the grace to go on and realize that God has.
By His grace to the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that He has entrusted us with the Word, this Word of God and that truth to which upon which we can speed and which we can hear in our reading, meetings and wherever the Word is ministered.
How? What a great privilege it is for you and for me to sit under the ministry of those who have tasted the good word of God and who are able to pass on and to encourage those of us who come on after. So there was finna head. The Lord was with him. Now then the 21St verse and Zechariah.
Well, Zechariah is cited here. What does his name mean? Remembered of the Lord?
Oh, isn't that nice? The Lord remembered Zechariah and here it tells about him. The son of Michelin and Michelle Amaya was doorkeeper and we still have this group now. Doorkeepers at the entrance to the 10th of meeting.
Now we might pause here for a minute. We must remember now that it wasn't in the great and palmy days of Solomon that we're speaking. It was in the days before this, in the days after the journey, long journey of the wilderness was over. But now they're in the land, but they don't have the temple yet. They only have a little tent, just a little tent. And it wasn't very much the guard and it wasn't very much to point at in the.
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Solomon, they could proudly say, oh, look at this wonderful building in the tent. It was certainly very, very, very little to attract the eye. And oh, isn't this true? Dear young people, unless you and I value Christ as the gathering center, we're just liable to say, well, it's not very much to look at. And somebody says.
What a religion are you? Well, it causes us to turn a little bit.
We shrink away from it, don't we? And we're afraid to say so often. I'm gathered to the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ here. These men were guards at the 10th of the meeting. Nothing much to look at. But oh, how much they valued that privilege. Do you and I value the blessed privilege?
To which has been given to us of being gathered to that precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
So here was Zechariah sighted 22nd verse all these.
Were chosen. Wasn't that nice? All these were chosen. Chosen.
You belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. You have been chosen to all. Chosen what for? Not only to be servants, but to share with God the Father His delight in His beloved Son. Forever to be brought into this wonderful place of sweet communion with him, with a Father, and with the Son, and with one another.
Oh, how sweet it is then to realize that that we're chosen. Chosen before the foundation of the world.
What a privilege does it make it make us proud should cause us to have our faces in the dust. We really are realizing this wonderful place to which we have been brought. And that person, I don't want to speak too much about the place. It's the person of Christ that I would emphasize. And so all these were chosen.
To be porters in the threshold.
Where 212 These were registered by genealogy in their villages. A semi colon comes in there. A stop just in their villages. Wasn't very much. Very much.
Prominence. It wasn't in Jerusalem, but in the villages. And some of you come from small assemblies. You might say, Oh well, if I were in a big assembly, why I surely would be.
Much more faithful to the Lord. But here they were in their little villages. You might come from a little village, you might say, well, a lot. I don't have very many young people to encourage me. Ah, the Lord is with us and he will encourage you. And so they came from their villages.
Now then, it says here, David and Samuel, the fear had.
Ordained. I'm not sure how that goes in there in their trust.
Well, David and Samuel are brought in here. Now I mentioned before Eliezer, who do we have here in these three thoughts? Prophet, priest, and king and king all brought before us sighted.
As those who were involved in this faithfulness to God, pointing us to Christ, Prophet, Priest and King, so here these ones had appointed these faithful men.
Now then, 23rd verse.
And they and their children had noticed there again, children or sons had the oversight of the gates of the House of the Lord, namely the House of the Tabernacle of the ward. Now I'm sorry, I should go back to that 20 second verse because there's a nice little point there.
It says in Mr. Darby's translation.
David and Samuel had appointed them on account of their faithfulness. Well, isn't that lovely? In the first verse we found that they were carried away because their unfaithfulness. Here we find that they were appointed because of their faithfulness.
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Oh, isn't that nice? Wonderful to realize that God is looking right down into the life of everyone of you, dear young people. He will reward you. We don't act for a reward, but surely we can know that the Lord would reward you and me for faithfulness. Here. They were rewarded for their faithfulness. Now then, 24th verse.
At the four quarters were.
The doorkeepers toward the east and West and North and South. Well, as I said, it was just a little tense, but there was an east and a West and a north and a South door, and there were porters. There were doorkeepers for each one of these. And oh, again, I say, dear young people were living in dreadfully difficult times.
We need to be on our guard on the east gate and the Westgate in the north gate. In the South gate we can't afford to say, well, it doesn't really matter.
We can give in a little bit here and a little bit there. Oh no, here there were gay men, faithful men at each one of those gates eastward where the sunlight, where the sun rises. Oh, isn't it wonderful to realize that if we belong to Christ, we're facing the sunrise, we're looking toward the east. This is our night, dear young people, but our day is surely coming.
And for those who are unsafe, they face the West.
Eternal night, that darkness that shall be forever. But we have to be on our guard in all these four directions we have. We never know when the attack is coming, where it's coming from. How subtle are those attacks? You know better than I do in school. You know how subtly the enemy is working.
To divert your eyes from Christ. Or may we be standing guard then east, West, north, and South. 26th verse.
Four these Levites 4 in their trust.
These four were the chief doorkeepers. Well, here are four for their faithfulness. Again appointed to these 4 doors.
Wonderful, isn't it, to realize how God carefully notes and appoints as those that were faithful to Him Now then 27.
Four, this is a a lovely verse. Four, they stayed round about.
During the night they stayed round about during the night. Oh, it would be one thing to be around this tent when there were a lot of people around and it might be noticed that there was quite a bit of faithfulness and standing around.
But what about when all the folks went home?
Well, here they were. They stayed around at night, during the night. Oh, isn't this lovely? Dear young people, this is our night. As I said before, our day is coming. This is our day. This is our night. This is man's day. But it's our night and all. May we be standing faithful to the Lord during the night, during the night.
Do we say well, meetings one hour and when the clock starts to get towards the last 15 minutes, glancing up at the clock.
That our thought or are we enjoying being in the presence of the Lord? Are we realizing how privileged we are to be hearing the precious word of God open and hear these ones stayed there during the night. Well this was recorded. They might have it might have been some cold night and yet God in heaven. He saw their faithfulness and he saw that they stayed there all.
During the night, oh, as I said before, may we realize that this is the day that God has given to you and to me to test us, to see how real the truth is to us, how precious Christ is to us. Is He attracting our heart?
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As we often say, if the Lord Jesus doesn't attract our hearts, God has got nothing more in the glory. If we get tired of heaven speaking reverently, and we know He never will, God has got nothing else but Christ. No one else but Christ, whom I have I in heaven but thee. Oh may then that blessed person, the Lord Jesus Christ.
May be the attraction of your heart and mind as the days.
Darkened now then the 28th verse.
It changes here. No longer the doorkeepers, they're important as they were. Now we come to those who were preparing as the instruments and those things connected with the Tabernacle. And I think this is wonderful too. I think this is the next step in your life and mine. First, that we must be faithful doorkeepers.
At the threshold, guarding the truth, and guarding the word of God, and guarding the glory.
Of the Lord Jesus Christ, his divinity. And then we go on now into this next group.
And here's what it says about them.
And certain of them.
Have the charge of the ministering vessels or instruments.
Of service, that they should bring them in and out by tail or numbered. Well, now there were all kinds of instruments. Every one of these instruments would bring before us Christ in some way or other. And here were these ones now who were in charge of the instruments.
Might not again have been very prominent. They might have been looking after the instruments back at home. Nevertheless, they were keeping those instruments carefully, clean, ready for service. They might not be the ones that would use these instruments, but they were getting them ready. Oh, isn't that lovely to know that God takes note of everything that is done? And so here they were.
They were to bring them in and to bring them out, some of them.
29 Some of them also were appointed to see.
To oversee the vessels and all the instruments of the sanctuary. The word holy there is the holy instruments of the sanctuary. Well, pause there for a minute. Holy instrument. Oh, isn't that grand? Do you and I realize that we have that we are gathered to the precious name of the Lord.
Jesus Christ, holy instruments that we sit in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, pure gold, pure gold to gaze with the eye of faith upon the Lord Jesus. Holy instruments. These men were preparing and keeping us fit. And the fine flower, well, that's nice too, isn't it? Glorious subject, trace through the Old Testament.
Fine flower, Christ in all his beauty, his loveliness, his evenness, the fine flower, that beloved person, how lovely it is to to to to read of his life of perfection and even fear. And so there were some of the men that prepared the fine flower.
That's what their work was, just a fine flower.
And the wine. Here were some more now that would bring joy.
Some of those we might listen to, they would tell us of the loveliness of Christ. Some others, some other brother might stand up, bring before us the joy of our heavenly position, the beauty of Christ. Here were some of the men that brought the wine and the oil, the power of the Holy Spirit.
Or this is the one that keeps you and me. Now in these difficult days there were some of the men that prepared the oil and the frankincense. Isn't that lovely? Oh, the frankincense, the beauties of Christ, all that he is to his Father, that frankincense that was poured onto as though at the altar, and there that cloud filled.
The Tabernacle and the temple. The frankincense.
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The beauty is the loveliness of Christ. Oh, isn't it lovely to hear some of the brethren sometimes lifting our hearts up as we are occupied with Christ? Oh, they're the ones that are bringing the Frankenstein and the voices. 30th verse. And it was.
One of the sons of the priests who compounded the ointment of the spices.
Now here, it's nice, it doesn't mention who this one was. No mention of it as name, no prominence given to him. Would he say, well, why wasn't my name mentioned there? I don't think so. Why? Because he to him was given one of the greatest privileges of all, and that was to compound those holy and sacred ointments and.
Sweet voices.
Christ again, in all his beauty, no one was ever to put on those.
Ointments on themselves. If they did, they would be cut off from the congregation of Israel. Oh, it's Christ in all his beauty and loveliness again. And one of them, one of the sons of the priest. How sweet a privilege it would be for you, dear young people here to be engaged in some of these things. Privilege. Yes indeed, open to us, yes indeed, as the old ones pass on.
You younger ones, you're going to have to. If the Lord doesn't come soon, you will be filling their places. Are you being prepared? Are you preparing? Are you feeding on Christ? Are you reading God's precious word? It would be one of those ones that would be be bringing these sweet spices, as again I say he might. This man might not have ever been seen. He might have been preparing these things at home.
Wasn't that a good place?
What is our testimony at home? That's where we are. That's where it all starts, doesn't it? That's where faithfulness must begin. And so here this man might have been preparing these spices, as I said, to compounding them according not according to his mind, but according to the word of God. So much of this and so much of of other of the other beautiful.
Fragrances all again as I said.
Christ in all is beauty. So here was one of them, unnamed, but all recorded in God's Word. And well does he know who this man was, or then might we be like some of these men. And now just the 31St verse. And Matthias, one of the Levites, who was the first born of Shalom, the Korah height, had the set office.
Or the word of trust or was in trust over the things that were made in the pan. Well, I haven't got time to go into these details, but here. And we find some of the other offerings that were prepared in the pan. Again, as I said, might be prepared at home and brought them to the Tabernacle. And that was the end of his work. But God records it and there they were faithful to him.
And other of their brethren of the sons of the Cohesites were over the showbread to prepare it every Sabbath. While here was some more of the men. What were they doing? They were preparing the bread. 7 loaves of of showbread had to be prepared and changed every Sabbath. The priests, of course, would be the ones Aaron and his sons would go in bringing.
12 loaves that had been prepared by this, these men and in they would go into the Tabernacle and there in the courtyard they would eat those 12 loaves. But here was the man that made them unsung. You might say no, indeed recorded of God, all beloved ones, young people, I trust that you are getting this message that God knows he knows that you're faithful to him. What?
Of your heart, you might say, well, I just can't do very much. Or is it the desire of your heart to live faithfully for Christ? He knows that and He records it. And you will surely be richly blessed. Never mind what others might say. Here were some of these ones working in the night, working at home, behind the scenes, unnoticed. But God knew, and God looks into your heart. And if there is some, there are some here today.
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Have a desire in your heart to live for Christ or He will help you and he will, He will record it and he will bless you and he will record it and He will reward you. Now then we come to the last group, 33rd verse. First the doorkeepers, then those who prepared the the articles for the worship of God.
And now we come to the singers. Last but not least, singers.
Privilege ones, these surely work, and I might say the result of the other two. And surely we realize that as only as you and I are faithful to the Lord as doorkeepers, only as we are engaged, occupied with Christ in the offering up of Christ to God and worship, that's what will be the result.
Song. The praise will flow out of our heart. Songs in the night. So here we come now to the 33rd verse. And these are the singers.
She fathers of the Levites, who?
In the chambers were free from service. Well, that's nice, isn't it? Free from service. They weren't encumbered now with the other works that some of the other ones had. Everyone had their own work. Some might be guards at the door, some might be busy preparing these different articles at home.
Some were free of all the service and what were they?
Singer. Oh, isn't that lovely? What a wonderful privilege it is for you and for me there to be a singer too, singing the praise of God, exalting the blessed name of the Lord Jesus Christ, thinking about His blessed name.
Sing then. Oh yes, those songs of praise will come out of our lives.
What, are we singing a foolish songs of this world, or are we singing those songs that we will be singing in the glory praise to our God, such as we had in our hymn? 317 And so here they were, for they were employed in that work day and night, day and night singers.
Day and night, they didn't just say save.