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Lord, now we wait for me to come and take us to Thy Father's home. And what ecstatic choice will be to spend eternity with these?
We also.
Just the first verse of 214.
214 just the first verse.
How blessed is?
00:05:05
Our.
President.
Just yet in verse 12.
Hebrews 12 and verse 12.
Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way. But let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord looking diligently, lest any man fail of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up, trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. Lest there be any fornicator or propane person, or as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
We know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears. We are not come under the mount that which might be touched.
Sorry for your not come under the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor under blackness and darkness and Tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words, which voice they that heard and treated, that the word should not be spoken to them anymore.
They could not endure that which was commanded. And if so much as a beast touched the mountain, it shall be stoned or thrust through with a dart. And so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake.
But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, into innumerable company of angels, to the General Assembly and Church of the first born, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling. That speaketh better things than that of Abel. See that you refuse not him that speaketh.
For if they escape not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven? Whose voice then shook the earth? But now he hath promised, saying Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word yet once more signifying the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a Kingdom which cannot be moved.
Let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear, for our God is a consuming fire.
This is the last reading of this time together, and we're not going to be able to get through the chapter at the same pace we've had at the previous ones. And the desire has been expressed that we please try to get to heavenly Jerusalem, which is verse 22. So I think the character of this reading meeting will be in some respects, more of an overview.
That we will be able to get the big picture and the encouragement of what's at the end of the journey, what's going to produce that, the joys that are ahead of us. And when we get to heavenly Jerusalem, we're going to find we're not the only ones that are there.
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That is we who are the Church.
There's it's going to be a wonderful large company. And when we get there to the heavenly Jerusalem, we'll find God's people from every generation from Adam onward who will be there collected with us to the honor of the Lord Jesus and the eternal joy which is ahead. And so while we may start in verse 12, we'll hopefully be able to pace ourselves.
In a way that we do have a little view at least of what's ahead at the end of the journey of the race.
I have a question. Our hands are others hands.
That we are to lift up.
That again so well, it says, lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees. Is that speaking to us about lifting up our hands and our feeble needs, or is that?
Others we are to lift up.
Where the answer I would give to that is that we're not in the journey alone.
We're on a journey together.
And at sometimes our hands and our circumstances of life may hang down.
But we're encouraged to help one another in the race, and so when hands hang down or the knees are feeble, we need to be careful that our own walk is such. That will be an encouragement to others and as it says in that verse.
Make straight paths.
For in the next verse, make straight paths for your feet.
And so how I walk is going to be a help or encouragement to you in the walk of faith. And likewise, how you walk is going to be either a help or a discouragement to me in the path of faith. And So what he's saying here is we're on the journey together. We're on the race together.
And how we live it affects one another. And so we have to not only be thoughtful for ourselves.
But we also need to walk in a way that is a help and encouragement to each other.
I wonder if we could maybe see it as a thought of prayer Paul could say to the Son in the faith. Timothy. I would not. Men everywhere lift up holy hands in prayer without fear and doubting. I'm not quoting that exactly right, but we can add in some of the hymns too. We can be intercessors for one another. And isn't it encouraging to hear the prayers of our brother to?
Strengthen.
One another lift one another up.
Of course there's a beautiful picture.
Who are holding up the hands of Moses in the war with Amalek?
I was thinking that, brother, why don't you elaborate a little more how that might apply?
Well, they have elect in the war against the pledge sometimes.
We've gotten easily discouraged.
And don't seem to be able to lift ourselves out of the situation.
And the suggestion is that those that are alongside.
They see that and recognize it can come in and.
Well, help.
Restoration involves more than this interior in your soul being restored, but it involves our whole body. And if we do, and we we've often in the discipline of our children's.
Had to proceed with the discipline until they not only submit, but they do it and willingly.
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And.
And serve or become back to their submissive self and working or acting normally.
Job wasn't blessed until he prayed for his friends, and so it must. The peaceable fruit of righteousness is in display in our actions, what we do with our hands.
Commission Area.
Was speaking to Moody.
Students at Moody Bible institute and people who.
Had expressed their desire to go on an emission field themselves and he made a statement, he said.
Often you're going to be alone, and he says never get too tired.
Too hungry?
Are too lonely since those things.
And he used scripture to speak to each one of those things. He said that that's when the enemy can more easily come in. And I was thinking of an example of of lifting up somebody's hands.
Just in life.
When we see someone, a brother, a sister who's becoming overwhelmed me with the just the daily things of life.
Whatever they do and you look and you see and you said you know what, they need help. Not necessarily any advice from Scripture. They just literally need help, somebody to come and help them finish.
The job or do some of the work or help them with the work on their a farmer who's behind in his work, a Carpenter or a busy dad who's trying to, to build a garden shed. And I have things come to mind of people I've known that come alongside somebody who's trying to remodel their bathroom and, and it's been a mess and they're not able to use it and somebody comes and they help them and they get it done.
I don't know how many times someone has been helped in that way where it's had a very meaningful.
Uplift in their life, not only literally that they have got the job done, but if a brother or sister comes alongside and does that, how much that means that communication of love to that person to lift them up in that way.
Sometimes.
Saw the sign language. We look at someone without saying things we can tell. So often the sign of someone who sad or sorrow. We see the eyes look down. When eyes are looking up is often a sign of happiness. Eyes looking down, hands are down, feet are down. As in this case here that's mentioned is the sign of defeat. You can try to lift someone's hands. I'll give you an example.
That is not of any help. When my father-in-law was in his later days in the nursing home, the nursing home tried to do things to to perk up the the patients there so they would have parties and he wanted no part of it. And I can tell we visited one day we didn't know we were halfway through the party and I saw that nurse so energetically try to have him dance like the rest. He just sat there. He wouldn't get up. And she grabbed his hand and he can see that ragged doll as if it were just following the motion, but.
Lifting up his hand, often in the sign of joy.
Didn't help him at all. It has to be inward, doesn't it, as the other day we have a young brother that's focused Sunday school. We see his hands lifted up all the time. Now some people will say well that's not a good thing when you speak well, no, I look at it and say he shows the energy and his joy for the Lord. So sometimes we see that. So we see here. I think we have to connect that with the previous verse. How do you act after correction? Do you look so mopey that?
So defeated at that, as he sets you as if you were.
That you were a street party that's you were laying. Do we act like we're lame because we were corrected? So that's about ourselves as our brother turn out. But let it rather be healed. We need to learn from that and through the grace of God that we should be corrected and move toward more.
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As it mentioned in the previous chapter, to show to be particular of the holiness and be able to exhibit the fruit of righteousness, then I believe verse 14 would be.
What? What can we do to help others? How do we do it? Follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. I believe that verse speaks of our outward walk to help others.
Just like to make a suggestion with regards to the comment.
With regards to Moses hands Moses, there is a picture to us of the Lord and His high priestly service and His advocacy. If you look at the portion, only one hand came down.
It says Moses hands were heavy, but when you look at the portion only one hand came down.
And that would suggest to us that the Lord's high priestly service is always available to us. And when there's failure, it's on our part. And I suggest it was the her hand that came down for just that comment in connection with what our bill mentioned. I didn't want to stall us from from going further in the chapter.
The summary of voters.
Need to be that in chapter 10 we read that these believers were.
Enduring a great flight of afflictions, and they had lost their possessions, their goods were spoiled, and so on. And so they are encouraged to look beyond. Lift up, be encouraged, because you have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. Two things.
And then faith is needed. So we have that whole beautiful chapter. And then in chapter 12, how helpful it is as believers to have our difficulties, our our trials that are brought intelligent to us by our father to have context to say, hey, there's a reason behind this. And that's to me, part of what we've just covered last time in chapter 12, how we there's a reason for the chastening.
And it's done intelligently and it's for your blessing. And then verse 12, wherefore. And so the lift up the hand seems to be a quote from back in Job. If you have a cross reference in your Bible, you see that where one of Job's friends said to him, you've lifted up the hands, which hang down, you've strengthened the feeble knees, but now it's coming your way and and you're having a difficulty. That's another subject. But but anyway, I think that's where the quote comes from, which supports the the.
The the interpretation that it's that it's something done to help others in the past, it was very much done, has been reminding us in all these readings that we're in a race, a path, we're moving ahead, we're moving through and and this is part of that. So help your brethren lift up the hands which hang down on the feeble knees and in verse 13, make a path for yourself as a believer that somebody that's not as able as you are.
Can walk it too, you know.
I've done the wrong. I remember when I worked in Colorado and taken taking Southerners on on people from Georgia and taking them on and I thought, well, we need to get so, so far before nightfall and taking them away if they were not up to taking and it. It's been a reminder in my life, Christy, somebody's following us before the days of GPS.
You know, the lights about turn yellow don't press through it. And every you know, it's there's a way to drive away, to walk away, to live our lives that we won't stumble others because yes, we feel weak, but there's others weaker. And I believe that's the force of making straight paths for your feet that you're there, I think is plural for our collective feet so that the weaker ones can walk it too. And the ones that are still that are healing up from various things.
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That as they go along, it's it's it's not stressing them that they can heal. And in every assembly we we experience this, we see this. Maybe it's us, maybe it's another. And then of course, verse 14 follow peace again with all it's collective that we press on so.
Hopefully we can press on through this chapter.
The hands and the knees is a quotation from Isaiah 35 and Isaiah. These were Hebrew believers and I'm sure that some of them had Isaiah 35 and recognized it. And it's a picture of our chapter. It's literally.
Parallels what is brought out in the what chapter 12 is about for the believer, but he draws on the knowledge of the Hebrew.
And it takes them on beyond where you can go in chapter 35 because it doesn't take you to heavenly Jerusalem as the journey we are on takes us. But the path itself and the character of the path is brought out in Isaiah 35. Again, we're going to have to stay to the sort of the overview side of things we could spend to the rest of the hour on on Isaiah 35 in contrast to Hebrews 12, but just to pick up a couple of verses to show it and then.
Leave it for your personal enjoyment or meditation if you haven't before done it. Isaiah 35 one the wilderness, the solitary place shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the Rose. The journey we're on we yesterday or day before were commenting it's through a wilderness, but it also can be a journey that has the refreshment that.
Can be found in the desert and was found for the children of God and so it was for them and yet to encourage them in verse 3, strengthen the weak hands and confirm the feeble knaves how say to them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, fear not. Behold your God will come with vengeance. Even God with a recompense he will come and save you. And so there was that encouragement that we are to give to one another.
Along the way to help one another in that path and we're not I can do it for you brother, but it's be strong fear not for your God will come and it's turning the soul to God that brings them and what does it help another verse five the eyes of the blind shall be opened years of the death shall be unstopped then the lame help that which is.
The next verse you know, the lame be healed, the lame man shall leap as in heart, and the tongue of the dumb shall say, for the wilderness shall waters break forth, and streams in the desert. And so it's a picture of our chapter, and he's drawing from this particular.
Chapter of Isaiah to illustrate what he's saying as to the blind man and so on, we say, oh, if everything's parks, there's no provision, there's no nothing.
But he said, no, it's not that way. The ground will become a pool. The Lord will provide for it, and then verse 8A, highway shall be there. That's what it is. It's a highway that's been provided for us. We're not having to try to struggle to get the end of the race alone or without provision. But God has given us a highway that we want to have straight paths to walk in that highway.
Provided for us and what is that way in our chapter? The way of holiness, Exactly what the chapter is giving to us, that it is the path, the highway our God has provided for us. Is that way of practical?
Walk of holiness, without which we cannot walk in fellowship with God.
And so the unclean shall not pass over it.
But it shall be for those, the wayfaring men, even though fools shall not err therein, even if there's no spiritual intelligence involved. If we walk on the King's Hwy. the provision is made, there is a path that will take one safely. And so it says, though fools shall not air therein, there's protection. No lions shall be there, no ravenous beasts, and so on. And.
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Where does it end for them? Verse 10 come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy. And so that's the end of that particular of Isaiah is to Zion in this case. That would be earthly Zion in this chapter, but for us it's heavenly Zion that the end of the journey takes us to.
Suggest to me.
The sense that I lose, I lose the sense that God is forming.
When we lose the sense that God is for us and He's ordering our circumstances for our blessing.
It can have an effect upon our hearts.
And.
Discouragement, disappointment can lead to bitterness. One of the worst roots, one of the worst weeds in the human heart is bitterness. So it's very important that.
We seek to have spiritual intelligence from the Word of God and be able to put our circumstances that we all go through into context that God gives us in His Word.
Think that's pressed in the word of God. Knowledge is not for knowledge sake, but to be fruitful and and to enable me to interpret my circumstances, not the other way around. We go through life just interpreting the word according to our circumstances. We're going to be lost at sea. And so I learned to process the disappointments of my life through the word of God and it helps me continue on in the grace of God.
I worked with a brother years ago when I was first saved and he wasn't a very good Carpenter. He was the boss. And he said, oh, I don't want to use my hammer because I might hit my thumb and, and, and fall from the grace of God. You know, in other words, I might hit my thumb and say a bad word. That's not it. It's to lose the sense in our souls that God is for us. We need that in order to press along. And so you may see someone processing their circumstances in a way that's just pulling them down.
And chronic discouragement can end and can lead to bitterness. And bitterness is a rough, rough weed to pull out of a heart.
I feel that's very helpful, especially considering we've had here in case in the Lord and I feel oftentimes chasing our lives isn't just God blessing. It's for those who might be further down the road or not as far down the road. They would say that. How often have we been in that situation you described in someone that's older that has had that same vacation in their life? They're the ones that come along and can encourage it. And so it's such an encouragement to see right after the chasing is where it says to lift up the hands.
And often times, after we've been chasing in our lives, we see someone else who might need the same help that we receive and so we can pass it along.
That's how we can help to keep others from failing of the grace of God.
Look at what it says there.
321032 Look at what it says there at the end. He endured a great fight of afflictions, partly while she were made a gazing stock, both by reproaches and afflictions.
And partly while you became companions of them that were so used for you had compassion of me and my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that you have in heaven a better and enduring substance. Look at Isn't it important that He was again showing them the end is in view. Don't be discouraged and look at. Cast not away, therefore your confidence, which is.
Great recompense of reward. So naturally speaking, we look at our circumstances and say God is against us, but what he's saying is God is for us. There's an end in view. Don't be discouraged. Cast not a great, not a way there for your confidence which has great recompense of reward for you if needed. Patience that after you have done the will of God, you might receive the promise.
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For yet a little while, and he that shall come, will come, and will not tarry. So it's nice, isn't it, to have the end in view, and to know that God is for us.
One bitter soul.
Can affect.
Many whole group.
And God's desire is that we might be a happy and praising people because of who we are. We belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are part of God's family. God is for us. How can we question this? He's feared not his own Son, but delivered him up for his wall. We think about it and it ought to cause us to rejoice, to realize that God loves you and me to that extent that he would send his own dear Son.
Into this world.
On our behalf in order to accomplish redemption. Well, it just brings to mind Judas Iscariot and how, you know, there was Mary that came and she anointed the feet of the Lord Jesus.
He really meant something to Mary, and she was willing to take a stand.
Knowing that he was about to go into death, he was about to be crucified, and she was willing to show her honor and respect and love for the Lord Jesus by anointing his feet. She had Jesus on her mind. He was everything to her. But what do we find in that incident? Here's Judas Iscariot.
His finding fault with Mary, he says, could not this ointment, it could have been sold for 300 pence and the money given to the poor.
Did Judas care about the poor?
Of course he didn't care about the poor. He didn't care about Jesus, he didn't care about the poor, tells us that he had begged. But you see, here's a soul that's very discontent, unhappy. He's bitter.
And what do we find? I believe it's in Mark's Gospel. It tells us there that they all they murmured at what had been done, so even the rest of the disciples were affected by.
Judas miserable most despicable attitude. It just rubbed off on on the rest.
And sometimes it only takes one, you know, one bad apple can spoil a lot of good apples. And we have to be careful about our attitude.
And I speak to myself, you know, even though I be sing to him, we come here. And I must say, the singing in this conference has been so uplifting. It's I, I don't know if it's the acoustics too, but it's, I think coming out of the hearts of the individuals that are here. You're singing from your heart. And it's more than joyful noise. It's a beautiful melody.
But you know, sometimes you go someplace and somebody is kind of dragging along with him so on, and it seems to affect everybody but.
We got so much to think about, don't we? And I believe that.
Our actions, whether it be in what we do, how we sing, or whatever, it has an effect on others and I really enjoy what's being said about the fact that God is for me.
That's what David said in the Psalms. This I know God is for me, and so if He is for you and me, everything that occurs in your life or mine is designed for our happiness in the end. It's often been said that He has our best interests at heart 24/7.
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So may we keep that in mind and not become discouraged because of the difficulties, the troubles, chastening has to do with troubles, but they're all designed for good. And maybe with the Lord's help, be able to rise above the circumstances, find our joy in Christ. And I believe this can rub off on others as well, but to get unhappy in our souls.
It's a bitterness develops. It's a root that grows and you know, the roots are underground and it can go on for a while before it's perhaps evident, but it tells us here.
Eventually it springs up.
And it comes out and it says here many are defiled. So we have to really be careful about this route.
That we look diligently.
Lest any man fail of the grace of God, we lose sight of the Lord's goodness.
To us.
And we become unhappy and discontent.
Roots could you included that?
Those who've lost a sense of grace, maybe instead of losing fully that God is for them, they've lost a sense of it, or they're adding something to it.
You know, recognizing God's unmerited favor and being able to say that that something's happened and they've, they're adding to that grace plus something, this loss of a sense of grace that people can fall into.
Or maybe even start out with.
It was pretty striking that it says, looking diligently.
We've been in one of the readings going through Galatians, and you see there the effect of a loss of the sense of the grace that saves being, the grace that leads us all in our Christian life. And the Galatians had fallen back into the principle of performance or legality, and the result of it was they weren't helpful, they weren't generous. They were picking at each other. And so the apostle has to say, if he bite and devour one another, seeing that you're not going to.
You're not consumed of one another.
And so they were diligent, but they were diligent at eyeballing one another like Saul, I, David. And an assembly that gets taken over with this legal spirit is a rough place to be. And it's it's, you know, people all kind of socks Does he wear? He's got flip flops on over there or all that kind of stuff.
Is not helpful, but the diligence should be put into place of. How is that brother?
You know, he just lost his job or he just laid off and you just kind of was just laid off. How does he processing that and and those are the kind of things that a father's.
Somebody pointed out recently in Corinthians that Paul had to say you have 10,000 instructors in Christ, but not many fathers and I have begotten you by the gospel and I'm still your father. And some Nick Simon pointed out the other night that instructors is not like a professor. It's a literature. You look it up in your concordance. It's literally a boy mind somebody that takes the kids to school. And so he's taking these high minded Corinthians and saying you're like little, you're like little nanny people like you're a nanny of boys.
Literally in the Greek language. So, so it was a rebuke. And Lord help us to be to have discernment in a way that's helpful for people and not just picking at people. You can read in the book of Leviticus, you have all this description of animals. You see chameleons, you see moles, you see all these animals that just Burrow in the ground. You know, like in Philippians minding earthly things, you see chameleons.
You see lizards, you know, we got lizards around our property there in the hot, hot Texas sun and they go after the ticket things and we, you know, those are pictures for us and, and we need to use the discernment the Lord has given us to be helpful and.
00:45:00
And grace over and over again is pressed before us because our hearts are naturally legal. Well, that would be a red flag. If someone you previously known seems to be less gracious towards others, there's something going on. If they're losing the ability to be gracious, they're having a problem underneath that. Maybe, as our brother said, has been going on for some time. I don't know where the quote is.
Amongst Mr. Darby's writings, but years ago, someone said that that he he was expressing fear of what he saw coming down the road. And he said when practice declines, practices press when what's needed is grace to be pressed. And that would be the cure. If you notice that if we're going to help somebody, we sense something's going on. Like you said, somebody lost their job, is going through something and we we get maybe they're having trouble processing.
For they need to be.
Lathered with grace.
Themselves and reminded.
And to be treated with grace before anything happens. It becomes a root of bitterness that springs up and troubles many. Because I'm sure.
Those of us who are older have experienced that and our assembly amongst people, we know where that's happened to somebody and you just down the road, you just shake your head at what's become of them.
I.
Pray for Kurt, Tony out and Walla Walla.
He's in a very dark place.
And that's what's happened to him.
And he's not even sure he's saved anymore.
How could that be? How could that be from someone who has so much and known so much to come there? Well, something happened where there's a root of bitterness that has taken him to a place in his own soul where he's in a dark, dark place.
Do I want this year in the King James translation we read lest any man fail of the grace of God and some of you who have the Darby translation will see the word uses slightly different. I'll just read it and I'll make one more reference and let you meditate on that. It says watching, lest there be anyone who now here's the word.
Locks.
The grace of God not fail, but lacks the grace of God. And if you look in the footnote just for property, he stressed, he said the emphasis on the word black is more like it would be in in Ecclesiastes chapter 6 verse, verse one and two. And I'll let you meditate on that. There is an evil which I have seen under the sun and is common among men.
A man to whom God hath given riches.
Wealth and honor, so that he wanted nothing for his soul of all that desireth.
There are parallel lines of truth on the highway. One is holiness and the other is grace. And if one lacks either one, there's going to be difficulty. They have to have both in order to stay on the highway. And so we find a person like Esau.
Who lacks in holiness, but I want to give an example that connects with yesterday of the failure of grace.
And that's Joe, first book of the Bible written takes up a very, very fundamental matter. And it has to do with what we had yesterday of the Lord putting his hand on our lives and admonishing us and teaching us something and probably the number one.
Person that the scriptures have given to us to teach us that lesson is Job. We don't have time to go over the book of Joan, but I'm just going to give a couple of comments about it and it the book starts out with the words there was a man in the land of Oz whose name was Joe. Now listen to how God, not man, but how God characterizes him and you see a picture of holiness and that man was perfect.
00:50:13
And upright, and one that feared God and eschewed evil. He was a holy man among men, and God put that statement upon him as to what he was.
The root problem in Job was far beneath anything he understood or was aware of, but God saw it and was going to work in his life in the matter of grace.
And so God allows Satan to start to work with him, put his hand on his life.
All ten of his children he loses, all of his property and wealth is gone. And it's just almost immediately before 1 message comes to him, he gets another message and another message and like in the period of a day, he's lost everything.
What's the result?
That holy man God could record of him that in spite of losing everything in a day, none of us have ever experienced anything close to what he lost in a day. It says he sinned not but worship God, an incredible expression of how he was holy.
But then the Lord says to Satan. Now Satan says, But you won't let me touch him.
His body. And so Lord says, OK, you can put your hand on his body and he gets the boils.
And he's miserable when it affects him personally, physically, his own being.
And his wife talks to him and she says.
First, you know.
Just tell God what you think and he somewhat rebukes her.
But underneath the word of God says he sinned, not with his lips.
Descend not powerly he acted just why you should, but inside.
There was a response that was sinful, even though no one else could see it.
And so the whole book goes on to.
Bring him to see the root.
And ultimately Elihu is used of the Lord and says to him, Job, you haven't been speaking right to your friends.
You are standing up to God like you had a right to question what he does.
And so on, but just shorten the comments to the time we have.
The route.
Of bitterness. He was angry. He became bitter.
Don't get better. He did the very thing we have in our chapter. There was bitterness in Job and he spoke with bitterness and he was rebuked in the sense by logging for it.
But as another, as very wisely said in summarizing the whole subject, he said God made Job a holy, righteous man, and Joe took credit for it.
He did not ascribe to God that he was what grace had made him.
And another word for that is pride.
And it's the most difficult perhaps of all routes that easily takes place in every one of our lives, and we're totally unaware of it unless God puts his hand upon our lives in a way that brings out through circumstances and manifests that deep down I'm look at somebody else and I'm kind of glad I'm not like him.
You know, I, I've kind of walked in the right way. Man compares man to himself in a way that he can look at himself as better.
I can be gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and look at somebody who's not and think of myself as a little better.
And what's that? That's prime. That's price. And so the grace of God.
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Is that which recognizes that anything that is of God and Christ in me is a work from God. It's not something I produce by my diligence, my faithfulness and my whatever. And it if there is that working in us, then in the root of the matter.
We will find ourselves ultimately if God puts His hand on our lives, finding a response in US, whether vocalized or not. Which is why did God allow this to happen to me?
So they're they're, they're not, unless we have a sense of our own merit.
I cannot be.
I cannot be angry about a situation in my soul if I have a sense that I don't deserve anything to begin with.
But when I.
When I entertain.
Any thought that I deserve something, that's when I become bitter, when that which I deserve doesn't happen.
Then it produces bitterness. But the root of the reason why the bitterness is there is because there is merit present. I feel that I deserve something because I have lived up to a certain standard. I have I have produced something.
That God needs to recognize, and that is not the principle of Christianity.
Principle of Christianity is God's giving everything. Everything that we enjoy is because of who God is. It has nothing to do with what we have produced. So there cannot be bitterness if there's not a sense of the fact that we deserve something because of our own area or that we didn't get something.
Or we've got something we think we don't deserve.
The other side of that.
I find a problem.
I don't even realize I have that root of bitterness or anger within me until certain certain circumstances arise and those anger comes out. I remember story an older brother told. He said this young man came to him and they were talking about this subject and they said I've learned. I learned to just not letting anything bother me. There is no root of bitterness. There's nothing.
And this brother picked up the glass of water that happened to be on the table and he splashed it right on his face. And this young man got up and said, and this I just want to prove a point that we don't even know our own heart. That you laugh at that. I look across the room that many of you who are driving.
I don't know about you. I get very angry when somebody cut me off. Where did that come from? And I believe the sisters included. Now, yes, we are a little bit better. We yell and scream with the windows up, where some people will do that with the windows down. But it showed what's in our heart and we have to acknowledge that before the Lord too.
Just a preview of becoming attractions the fullest through the last 25 minutes.
Verses 16 and 17 esau was so consumed with his stomach, the immediate things of this life that.
That he gave up what he had ahead. And so verses 18 through 21, what was in the past, the law is brought out 18 to 21 or first two. And the law was given at Mount Sinai. So there's the law of the past and then in verses 22.
Through 24, it's contrasted with Mount Zion, which represents grace. And then verses 22 to 24, there are 8 beautiful things that will enjoy here at the end of the meeting. And there's eight beautiful things that it says here come unto. They're all things that chronologically lie in the future for us. But our forerunners already there, the object of our faith is finished, that race of faith. So if our heart and our object is there, we're come to them by faith now.
Even though chronologically those eight things lie ahead. And then verses 25 to 29 give us an exhortation as we come to the end of this doctrinal part of the book, to go in and recognize the character of our God and fully take advantage of all that grace that's that's held out to us to go all the way through to the conclusion of the journey.
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Can't take us.
Man in responsibility can't get himself to that place of permanent.
And happy joy.
All the law was was a schoolmaster to teach us.
And when man is under the principle of law with God, there's always going to be fear.
And there will be fear as well if there is a lack of grace in us both as to walking under law, Job admitted later in his laments. He said I was afraid of what might happen.
And to me, and now it's happened. And so there is always that lingering sense in the soul that's not established in the relationship with God as to where the end of the journey is going to take them. They can go along the way with.
Inside unstable fear of what might happen.
Rather than the confidence that the God of grace is in control of every circumstance of the life. And so here it was under law. Man did not have the revelation of the true heart of God. He didn't know God is a God of grace. God was gracious.
In practice with the children of Israel all the way through the wilderness.
He showed him over and over again His grace, but they didn't know him in that relationship.
They saw more of His Majesty and they were afraid. They Moses, you go talk to God, but we don't want to get near Aaron when you have to go into the Tabernacle, into that place of darkness once a year.
He was airing himself who went in, was afraid he might not come out alive.
Showing that the way into the holiness and presence of God had not been opened yet. But as it says, we're come to Mount Zion. We're come to the very home of grace. We're come to that place that God purposed for us before he created the world. And he wants us to have the anticipation, as just said, of the joy of being there with him.
Lord, and with all those that likewise are gathered there along with us.
And it will be for every single soul that is there, the result not of law, not of being a good person. Every single soul will be there as a result of the work of the grace of God.
Wide mouths not having considered erase the picture of grace, why is Mount Zion consider a picture of brace?
Why is Mount Zion considered a picture of grace?
It's gonna have to fail after the priesthood, Shiloh, the tabernacles that Shiloh and God called David to institute the Kingdom and to establish Mount Zion right beside the temple, and it was a fortress and so the Zion.
Was an emblem of God's grace in reviving Israel under new principles where they had failed.
And so three figures, the Millennium as well, the new principal under which Israel could be gathered and be brought into a happy relationship with Jehovah. And it will happen.
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The children of Israel be the center of government on the earth, and Zion will be the center of the whole world.
Jerusalem will be the center of government of the whole world, and there will be peace.
That will.
Be here.
But it's then goes on for us to beyond earthly Zion, takes us in our expectation to the heavenly Zion.
And ultimately even the earthly Zion and the whole order of things will be replaced by the new creation. And only when sin. There will still be sin in the Millennium, even though it'll be a time of righteous government and grace. Then there will be when the shaking is all done. That's described in the end of the chapter, when that shaking is finished.
There will be a new creation, that in which righteousness dwells and God rests in His love, and nothing will ever be shaken again.
Played on nicely in some 132.
Well sounds good in that connection, but says in verse 11.
So I'm 132 eleven.
The Lord has sworn in truth unto David. He will not turn from it. So this is something dependent on what God said again on performance.
Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne. And so in that coming day there will be, of course, there's the Messiah, the great David's greater son, the root and offspring of David. But there also be a Prince of the family of David on the throne and the millennial day. And it says in verse 13, For the Lord hath chosen not Sinai.
But Zion, he has desired it for his habitation.
They have to fight really hard to get that. David had to fight really hard to get that fortress.
The enemy.
Would seek to hinder us from laying hold of grace. He would point us to going back to law or going back to your own righteousness is the best standing.
Well, it's a wonderful thing to be free from that or beyond that and.
Stand on the goodness of the grace of God that gives us a platform because of Christ that's eternal secure.
Lord Jesus had to fight really hard for us.
To secure for us that which is ahead.
Oh God, City.
The city of the living God.
Cities are where people come together to live together, to share together.
Enjoy common things and God has purpose that will be part of that that we will be You live in your home, your town, I live in mine and so on here but we look forward to that time when there won't be any. This is the last meeting and we'll all get on the road and go somewhere but when we come to the.
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Arrest above.
We go in to go out no more and so we look forward to that and when we are there.
It's going to be a place of innumerable company of angels to share in the enjoyment of it, to minister to the needs of those who are present.
And so on. It'll be a general assembling the children of Israel once a year came to Jerusalem.
Are actually 3 * a year they but they would come to Jerusalem and assemble there for the one of the important times was the keeping of the Passover and they assembled. But then when it was done, they went home. They went back to where they came from. But this assembly will be brought together and remain together. That's home. It's home for each and for all.
And the enjoyment of it will be persistent. It's.
Includes the Church of the first born. That's where you and I fit in to the collection. We're part of the Church of the first born, the preeminent one, the Lord Jesus Christ. It's his church, it's God's church, and it the first one of first place in it is the sun.
Of the Lord Jesus Christ.
When it says.
Also.
The spirits of just men made perfect. That includes all the Saints of God, those who have their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ from Adam onward, who are not part of the church. They many of them will be there and they won't even have known the name of Jesus, but they had faith in the revelation that God gave to them and so.
The work of Christ was applied to them. They died and passed on from this earth. And yet when that day comes, they'll be gathered up and be part of the General Assembly of those who.
Enjoy forever.
Heavenly Jerusalem, that which God has brought them into.
Why does it say the spirits of justice are made perfect?
At the end of Chapter 11, they're not yet made perfect because God has provided some better thing for us.
But it seems like by the time we get there they will be resurrected. But it says the spirits of just man made perfect.
Have an Antigua for suggestion in the new translation. Man is in bracket so we could read it. Actually it says and to the and the word there is in bracket too, so it's true spirit of just made perfect.