Reading
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Verse 11.
I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
But he that is an idoline, and not the shepherd whose own the sheep are not seeth the wolf coming, and leave it the sheep, and flee us. And the wolf catcheth them, and scattered the sheep the hireling fleet, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the Good Shepherd, and know my sheep, and known of mine as a father knoweth me Even so know I the father, and I lay down my life for the sheep.
Another sheep I have which are not of this, fold them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Therefore doth my father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I power to lay it down by power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my father. There was a division, therefore, among the Jews for these Saints, and many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad. Why hear ye him Others said, These are not the words of him that hath the devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind?
There was a Jerusalem at the feast of the dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us the doubt? If thou be the Christ? Tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believe not the works that I do in my father's name. They bear witness of me. And ye believe not, because you're not of my sheep.
As I said unto you, my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my father's hand. I and my father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.
Jesus answered them. Many good works have I showed you from my Father. Which of those works do you stone me? For which of those works do you stone me?
The Jews answered him, saying, For good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy, because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them. Is it not written in your law? I said, your gods, if you call them gods, unto whom the word of God came.
And the scripture cannot be broken. Say ye of him whom the Father has sanctified and sent unto the world. Thou blasphemous, because I said, I am the Son of God, If I do not, the works of my Father believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works, that you may know, and believe that the Father is in me, and I in him. Therefore they sought again to take him, but he escaped out of their hand.
And went away again beyond Jordan, under the place where John at first baptized, and there he abode, and many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle, but all things that John spake of this man were true, and many believed on him there.
Going back a little where we had his sheep follow him.
It's we should speak a little of the fact that.
The Lord has set the pathway before us when He was here.
And so that we have a path laid out in this wilderness to which we're passing.
That we might know what we should do.
There's a verse in the epistle of John.
The first John.
And chapter 2 and verse 3.
And hereby do we know that we know Him if we keep His commandments.
Now he's not speaking about the law emojis. He's speaking about those things which he taught when he was here among men, and he left a path for us. We don't need to go elsewhere for the path.
00:05:10
And so in all of our conduct, we find.
Everything is set before us in the path of the Lord Jesus.
The way we live, where we dress, everything.
Is before us.
Already we don't need to look elsewhere.
Our decision should be made on the basis of the principles given us in the word of God.
Another thing that I want to mention before we go on and that is the last part of the 10th verse.
Of our chapter.
I am calm that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.
Now in the Old Testament, there was a sense in which they had life, but not as you speak of it. In the New Testament we have the Holy Spirit indwelling the believer.
Which was not true in the Old Testament.
This is characteristic of Christianity Now the Lord here is looking forward to that.
It's only on the day of Pentecost that they receive the Spirit.
But what we have in John is looking forward to Pentecost.
It's the introduction of Christianity, you might say.
And so.
That they might have it more abundantly.
I wonder if availing ourselves of this precious truth.
That is, are we realizing in our souls that we have a more abundant life, not to live down here after the pleasures of this world, but to live in connection with heavenly things and separation from the world? That is the abundant life, and the spirit of God is continually setting these things before us.
Now I'm eleven first.
The Lord says I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Through all eternity, this will be our thing of praise.
The sufferings and the death of the Lord Jesus will be before us, and that's where we'll fill the courts of heaven with praise as we think of it.
I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd giveth his life, his life for the sheep. It's something for us to have continually before us the work of the Lord Jesus.
One of the sad things that we can observe about Christendom.
Christians in general is that they do not understand most. Many do not understand what this abundant life is that brother London was talking about that we have. In verse 10 the Lord came that we might have life abundantly.
The Old Testament Saints had life, but the Lord Jesus, who is that life?
He is the eternal life that was with the Father and was manifested to us, hadn't come yet. That life had not been seen, lived out in a man on earth until He came.
John says that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon in our hands, have handled the word of life. For the life was manifested, and we have seen it and declare unto you that eternal life that was with the Father, and was made manifest to us.
He is the eternal life. He is the true God and eternal life, and that life has now been lived out in perfection in a man on earth. That's the life that you and I have that's been communicated to us by grace. We live it out very imperfectly, with much failure.
When we want to know what is the life really like that I have, we have to look at Christ, because he is that eternal life and he came to give it. He came to give that abundant life.
Life in the power of the Holy Spirit in John 20 as the risen Christ. Let's just look at that.
00:10:00
For a moment, John 20.
He appears to them in resurrection.
In verse 21 Then said Jesus to them again, peace be unto you, as my Father hath sent me Even so send I you.
He had already said it in verse 19. He had said, peace be unto you, that they might have it for their own souls. And now he sends them forth with the message of peace. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive you the Holy Ghost. So here now they have that abundant life, and the power of the Spirit.
Breathed into them by the resurrected Christ, and they would understand then that, and that we Christians are to understand that the life that we have is a resurrection life.
Its life and association with a risen man, a glorified man, and in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 82 Says it this way, The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.
Has set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 7. The man is in ******* under law. He says, O wretched man, that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death? And he finds deliverance in Christ and the Spirit. The law of the Spirit, the the fixed principle of the operation of the Spirit in the new life, delivers us from the law of sin and death. Under law man is in *******. Under grace he's in in liberty, and he set free.
And that's what the Lord came to give that abundant life. And that's Christianity. That's what we were looking at yesterday in the reading. He came to come, come into the sheepfold and to lead them out into the green pastures of liberty, Not ******* any longer, not in enclosure, not a confinement, but the liberty of grace in the power of the Holy Spirit, in the enjoyment of the risen, glorified Christ, and in the power of his risen life. That's Christianity.
It seems that what we're talking about, life and the abundant life may be pictured to us in the 5th chapter where there was this porch in the the pool of Bethesda and there was some blessing there under that old order of things, there at the center, the temple.
But.
There came the Lord.
And he in the power of the Spirit could bring.
All blessing. It's just kind of a picture of that limited blessing that was there under the law and that they did have life, but now the one who is life, the one who is indwelt by the Holy Spirit and could give life and give sight to the blind and give a liberty was there.
But he didn't set that people free from the law yet. He left them under that. But he's introducing here, as has been said, the wonderful, abundant blessing that comes when the Spirit of God is given down here. Now Peter carries out a little further, I believe, in his second epistle right on to the end.
In the 11Th verse of the first chapter, Second Peter.
111.
Well, I'll read 1011. Wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure that's sure unto yourself. That's those that keep His commandments. That's the verses read to us from First John.
And making sure unto yourself by keeping his commandments. For if you do these things he shall never fall. And then it says, For so in abundance shall be ministered under you abundantly.
Into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that is.
These that keep His commandments, those that make their calling an election sure unto themselves, and enjoy the liberty of grace that they already have, and the life they already have, sail right on into that region that we sang about, the realms of the blessed, that everlasting Kingdom, Isn't that what we want for ourselves? So the Lord in our chapter is presenting truth that sets free from the yoke of ******* which.
00:15:01
Let's read a verse in Acts 15 which describes that.
Where the problem had been taken from Jerusalem up to Antioch about keeping the Law of Moses and being circumcised, they couldn't be saved. There's a decision made in the power of the Spirit of God, and I like the way that it reads here in verse 8-9 and 10.
11 God, which knoweth the hearts, bear them with us, giving them.
The Holy Ghost, the Gentiles, even as he did unto us Jews, putting no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now therefore why tempt you God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they now this brings us into the wonderful liberty of grace, where we can enjoy that abundant life.
I think I'm, I could be corrected that just like to say that I think abundant life is really the thought of eternal life is the same thing. There is the idea sometimes that perhaps some believers have been saved, that there is a kind of second blessing you get into where you enjoy the abundant life.
And I think it is important to understand that every true believer in the Lord Jesus has this life in abundance as eternal life. You might not understand it, you may not be living in the full enjoyment of it, but it is their present possession. Is the thought of we have in chapter 17 of this gospel with the Lord Jesus says this.
His life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God.
And Jesus Christ, whom thou has sent so life, eternal life and abundance, is the knowledge. It's not only a life that lasts forever, but it is the knowledge of the true God, and of Jesus Christ, whom God has sent.
Is that intimate knowledge. I enjoy the new translation in First Timothy chapter 6, where.
He's enjoining the rich in the world, and at the end of that verse he says that they might lay hold of eternal life. The new translation says that which is really life, and this is really life. It's abundant life. It's eternal life. It's all the same, I think. Is that right?
It's not a it's not a possession of a certain class of super spiritual Christians, but it's the possession of the whole family of God, isn't it?
It's Christianity contrasted with Judaism. Christianity contrasted with the old order of things. It's not a class set up in Christianity of super spiritual ones. That's false. That's not the teaching of this passage, is it? It's the difference between the new order of things, which is the possession of all God Saints today, whether they're in the enjoyment of it or not. All have abundant life if they're in Christ.
That expression that the person was read in the second Peter.
As to the Kingdom, may I just make a remark that there's a great deal of confusion as to the Kingdom.
In the coming day there will be a Kingdom on the earth spoken of as the King or the Son of Man.
That has nothing to do with what we have in that 11Th, first or second Peter.
Seeing them in Second Peter.
Is an everlasting Kingdom. The Millennial Day is not. It ends.
This is the Kingdom of God.
It's a vast moral Kingdom with Christ the Son of Man at the head of it.
And it lasts forever.
And we will be in it.
It begins, of course.
At the administration of those things in the heavens.
Probably after the Millennial day, more so than.
At that time.
So that when this Kingdom is introduced, it's there now of course, the Kingdom of God.
00:20:03
It's often spoken of in Scripture, but when the Lord Jesus reigns, forever will reign with him and we'll be with him in the heavens.
And will be ushered into this Kingdom. And the point here is.
The enjoyment of what Peter sets before us in this first chapter of the Epistle.
If we're in the enjoyment of it, it says, Pursuant entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We would like, would we not to have an abundant entrance.
That's what is before us here, an abundant entrance.
Against the Lord. Say that we have one each one individually. Brother Lundin, would it be right to connect what you just said with the verse in Romans 5? I'd like to read it. I was thinking of this in connection with what you were saying in verse 17 of Romans 5. For if by one man's offense death reigned by one, that's Adam, much more they which receive abundance of grace.
And of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life.
By the one Jesus Christ. Here it talks about reigning in life and that's going to go on forever, isn't it? That will never end.
That's in contrast with the results of sin. This is what Christ has brought in. I just wondered if that there might be a connection there, entering into the abundantly, into the Everlasting Kingdom. Yes, there is. There is a connection between the two.
In fact, that's what it is.
And.
We must remember that the Kingdom on the earth.
And the Millennial day.
Is a Kingdom where there is a king ruling and his subjects are under the his authority.
In a special way because.
Because there's still a sin on the earth and the Lord reigns in that millennial day.
To maintain a righteousness throughout the earth.
But there won't be anything like that in this Kingdom that you mentioned in Romans and also in.
Second Peter, in that Kingdom there will be a life.
Of exactly like the life of the Lord Jesus, we have it now.
And there won't need to be anyone administering in the way that they do in the will do on the Kingdom of in in the earth, so that it'll be the affections drawn to Christ, those who are His subjects, and not only the church or His subjects, but all all those who are saved, wherever they may be, on the new earth or in the new heavens.
All will be subject because of affection, not because of constraint. It's the Kingdom of God in its fullest sense. I don't want to take you off the subject, but I thought it would be nice to have that clear because it's so misunderstood today.
If I could ask a question of the subject Abundant life. I agree with everything that's been said here and yet we seem to have a lot of discouragement and not entering into things. Is there an aspect of this of perhaps 3 words, our state and our growth and our communion that affects how we enter into that abundant life or not? Perhaps someone could help us with that.
I suppose today that your state and your growth and your perception.
Depend upon keeping His commandments as is. Instead the doctrine of the Lord gave is what will govern and have us in a good state so that we do grow and we perceive the truth. It comes down to that, to obedience to the sayings of Christ. And if you look in our chapter, that's what caused the division in the 19th verse. There was a division therefore among the Jews for these sayings.
It was what Jesus was teaching that caused the division in this chapter. Back in the 9th chapter, it was a division because of his works. That's the 16th verse of the 9th chapter. We'll read that.
00:25:17
Therefore, said some of the Pharisees, this man is not of God because he keepeth not the Sabbath. Others said how can a man that is a Sinner do such miracles? That was his work.
What happened? There was a division among them because of his works. Go back to the 7th chapter and you have the First Division. There are three divisions.
In John and the first one was because of himself personally, the second one was because of his works and the one in our chapter was because of his teaching what he said. So that in the 7th chapter it says in the 48th verse.
Well, there was a question about.
The Christ.
Reading from them from verse 40 to get the sense many of the people there for when they heard this saying said of a truth, this is the prophecy. They were guessing who Jesus was down here.
Others said This is the Christ. They said this is the Messiah. He's here. But some said, shall Christ come out of Galilee?
They didn't understand that they hadn't read their word well enough.
As the Scripture have not the Scripture said that Christ cometh of the seed of David.
And out of the town of Bethlehem where David was. So there was a division among the people because of him personally. Now those same three things that work today when Christ is preached, whether he preaches person, his works or his words, some believe, some don't. That's very serious. But coming down to your question, our state and our growth and our understanding.
Will depend upon our reception of his teaching.
And his teaching will reveal who was in his person and what he has done, so it reverts right back to keeping his commandments. That is the word of God.
Thistle at Colossians.
Chapter One, the Apostle phrase that they might be filled with the full knowledge of God.
First epistle of John. Hereby we know that we know him.
If we keep His commandments, the knowledge, the true knowledge.
The extent of my knowledge of God is the extent of my obedience to His Word.
And then, if you love me, keep my commandments. The extent of my love for Christ is measured by my obedience to the word of God.
There's a verse back in the Gospels. I can't turn to it, just a statement of the Lord for those he was talking to. It says here and understand Bob was talking yesterday and frequently mentions that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.
But there's the understanding that's what you're getting at state growth and perception or understanding, we get it by hearing.
And understanding as we receive the teaching of the Holy Spirit from the Word As to the whole of everything that is revealed. So God doesn't want to leave us ignorant. And that puts us, I suppose, in an embarrassing situation as to how much we do understand.
And what is our state? So that your question raises A researching thing. In everyone of us, I believe, and we all of us ought to pay more attention. We ought to hear the word of God, and we ought to understand it as revealed by the mind of Christ which is given to us. And it's open out in the word of God. Now to go on, I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. This would take us if we go back.
In the picture to the 22nd song here in this chapter, it's the Lord giving his life for the sheep, so it touches our hearts as we think of what he went through as the Good Shepherd, the sufferings there of the cross which begin with atonement, and the expressions of all that He went through given their in that Psalm.
00:30:13
To think that he did that for me. This reaches our affections.
1St, that perhaps in connection with your question Dave, that I've enjoyed in connection with that life that we do possess but oftentimes is not evident, is not manifest in Second Corinthians chapter four. That is perhaps been a help to me and just share the thought. Second Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 10.
The Apostle Paul is speaking, he says. Always.
Bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. There's a sequence there. First it is burying in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus might be made manifest. That's the life that we have, that eternal life.
We have the very life of Christ, but why isn't it manifest in my life? More is because perhaps I am not varying about, first of all, the dying of the Lord Jesus in my body. Therefore the life of Jesus is not manifest. We have it, but it is not manifest.
Bob is preparing about in the body of the dying of Jesus, reckoning ourselves dead with him.
Is that the same?
I would understand it that way. It's He died unto sin once, and when we accept the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we occupy that same place that he occupies, and that is the place we are dead indeed unto sin. But now we need to reckon it to be that way. And the measure that I do reckon it to be so, the life of Jesus becomes manifest in my body as well.
Go ahead with your sequence in the next verse, Bob.
For we which live are always delivered unto death, for Jesus sake that life, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
I've just enjoyed it and share it. Maybe someone else has a thought that verse 10 is what we ought to do, always bearing about in the body, but sometimes we don't do it. Brethren, in verse 11 seems to be something that God allows in our lives. We are delivered unto death for Jesus sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
In other words, were delivered unto circumstances that are very uncomfortable. Perhaps sickness, accident, something that comes into our life. God permits it. Why? So that that life of Jesus might be made manifest. And here it does not say in our body, it says in our mortal flesh. In other words, we're subject to sickness and.
Other problems?
But thinking as we were talking about prevent life and question in his low hands, sometimes we think of one life and we're thinking about a happy Christian and an unhappy Christian.
Some of the happiest Christians I know that have met and have got to enjoy their fellowship for those who have.
Come to the knowledge of the Lord Jesus in his and some of the heavenly truths that we get.
Some of the high truths of Ephesians and and Hebrews, this man Christ Jesus.
And I would like to recommend our brother's writings that would lead you into these truths, even here in the Gospel of John.
Helpful and enjoyable to my own soul was our Brother Bellix book on the Evangelist, where he he goes through these chapters and he presents to the believer.
00:35:01
The man Christ Jesus, the heavenly stranger on earth and these heavenly truths are for a heavenly people which God has called us to be a heavenly people. And if we want to be happy, I think sometimes confusing it with abundant life but being happy would be.
To enjoy Christ in these ways as these heavenly truths and some of these writings of our brethren, and some of the ministry, maybe even on tape that would lead us in this direction where we're not occupied with earthly things, would be very beneficial to our souls.
Yesterday we spoke a little about the hireling and we're coming down to that verse 12.
After the meeting of Brother approached me and says maybe we ought to be a little careful about pointing out hirings. And I agree with that. We can easily do that. I think it's written for every one of us to take to heart. What kind of shepherding care am I?
Doing.
Well, may it not be as Lords over God's heritage.
Peter warns us, and may it not be for filthy lucre sake.
But in affection to care for the flung.
And to defend them from enemies and so it's a very wonderful.
Verse to take to heart here about the hireling that runs away when the enemy attacks. And then we go on into what Paul prophesied in the 20th of Acts about that flock of God. Let's turn to it, Acts 20. He tells what was going to happen in the flock there.
Which by that time was the church men included Jews and Gentiles brought in, whereas our Lord's words here referred to directly to Israel as the sheep of the fold.
But the development is here that Paul prophesied in Acts 20, beginning with verse 28. Take heed, therefore, under yourselves and to all the flock. Don't be a hiring.
Don't run away when the sheep need care over the which the Holy Ghost have made you overseers to feed the Church of God which he had purchased with his own blood.
Then he prophesized, for I know this.
Paul's words that after my departing after Paul was gone, shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock also of your own selves shall mineralize speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them. Here we are living at the end of the age, can look back and see how the prophecy given by the spirit of God through Paul has been fulfilled over.
And over.
Again, to our shame, the Ruin introduced, but still the standard is the same.
Still, the flock remains. They are still here, and it's a wonderful thing.
To seek to take up faithful in a faithful way, this shepherding care. And we don't have to fear the enemy, even Satan himself. We're never told to fear Satan, we're told to fear God and.
He has a defeated foe as he'll just use the word of God. So to take the heart of what we have here, the Good Shepherd has given us life. He has died for us. We ought to remember that he died for us and go on for God seeking to care for the flock.
In respect to the prophecy that has been brought to our attention, it's profitable to notice the distinction between the grievous wolves and the men speaking perverse things drawing away after themselves. Disciples, we must make a distinction between those that the Apostle speaks of in First Corinthians 3, who build with wood, hay, and stubble that very well could be men speaking.
That which is not founded on the word of God and making schools of opinion and sex within the Church.
00:40:03
And those of whom he speaks in that same chapter 3 who destroy the temple of God, He that destroys or corrupts the temple of God. Him will God destroy these perverse men? I mean these wicked men here? Grievous wolves, they are those who destroy the temple and then come into the judgment of God. Others who are just building with wood, hay, and stubble their work will go up and.
Ashes come down to ashes, but they themselves will be saved. And so there is that distinction, isn't there?
Let's not make the mistake that because we're gathered to the Lord's name, we only build gold, silver and precious stones. We can also build wood, hay and stubble. That is everything that we do for the Lord in service or whatever it may be. If it doesn't stand the test of scripture, it's not gold, silver and precious stones. We are just as apartment to make mistakes.
As any other Christian, because we have the flesh, we're no different. We know better. We're no superior. We just are saved by the same grace and dwelt of the same spirit, have the same life as all our brethren elsewhere. And there are many dear Saints of God in system that are serving the Lord in probably more faithfulness to the light that they have than we are. Many of us, I'm speaking myself, certainly.
But.
We have to be careful to distinguish between our state of soul that is living up to the light that has been given to us. And we have so much more light that has been given to us than most Christians. We are far more responsible to walk according to that, and we fail. Our brother was mentioning in prayer this family that.
Has been stumbled because, well, there may be things wrong in them. Maybe they tend to be legal, but they have seen things in us that have not commended the truth to them and that's sad. And we know these things exist, so we have to judge ourselves. But the I think it's important that we don't minister the truth in such a way as to exempt ourselves.
From the failure that we want to fix upon other Christians that are not with us.
That's that's a sectarian spirit and I don't believe that's approved of God.
All the Scripture that's been given to us is for our instruction and to speak to our own consciences.
What we build in the portions referred to in First Corinthians 3 is.
What we hold and teach, it is our doctrine. It's not people. It's what we hold in practice and what we teach. And that reverts right back to the commandments Christ has given us. It reverts back to this chapter, His sayings, so it comes right home to the truth of the word of God. Do I live up to it if others see in me something that.
Hinders.
I'm not building correctly.
If my doctrine is not correct, I'm not building correctly, so it comes right back to the word of God, the truth and the sayings of the Lord.
Because.
The.
Good Shepherd. In her chapter he gave his life on the sheep, and we get the highlights of the care of the sheep.
It says in One Corinthians 12 That there are.
Many gifts, diverse. Well, let's read it in connection with what Paul was just saying.
00:45:05
1St Corinthians 12.
Verse 4. Now there are diversities of gifts but the same spirit. Diversities of gifts but the same spirit. And there are differences of administrations or services, probably easier to grasp what's meant there. But the same Lord. Now each one of us has a gift, and they're varied. Your gift isn't mine, mine isn't yours, your service isn't mine, and mine isn't yours. And because your service is different than mine.
I'm not to sit in judgment upon your service just because it doesn't square with what the Lord has given me to do, and vice versa. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh All in all. So there are many gifts but one Spirit, the same Spirit and many services, but one Lord. We're all serving the same Lord, and each one has His service. One in one area. One's an evangelist, one's a shepherd, one's a teacher.
Each one has his gift and his service, And let not one judge another who art thou that condemnest another man's servant.
To his own master he standeth or falleth, and God shall be make him stand.
What I was talking about before was the material that we use in building should be according to the word of God, according to the principles of the Word of God. What has been built in Christendom is largely Judaistic.
Choirs.
Big ornate buildings with stained glass windows.
A priesthood standing between the people and God. That's all patterned after Judaism. That's not Christianity. And.
That's wood, hay and stubble that's going to be burned up. That's not according to the present truth.
Of Christianity and we have to understand what Christianity is in order to conduct our service, exercise our gift in a way that is in accordance with the present truth that will meet its reward. A man is not crowned unless he strive lawfully and if he violates the rules, if he ignores the principles of Christianity, a heavenly.
Company, not a world of Christianity, has been made by Christendom to be another worldly religion, to correct the world's ills and to try to straighten out the world. It isn't that. It isn't that Christianity we're here to witness. To the world you have rejected, the Son of God. He's in glory now. We belong to him. There we have another world. But the way we're living our lives is as though this is the scene of our enjoyment.
It's the way we live our lives, most of us. I speak to my own soul here as though this is the scene for us to enjoy.
You're almost embarrassed to talk about being strangers and pilgrims in this world. We know so little about it in this country. Being strangers and pilgrims, we haven't been true to the testimony that we're to render as being identified with a rejected Christ.
And one with him in glory, passing through, not being attracted by all the attractions that are out there in this world and pursuing advancement down here, trying to make a name for ourselves down here. It comes out in our children. A children score well in school and they get a a reward and so on. And we feel so good about that. Well, it just shows where our hearts are.
If we're really true to Christ, we're going to live.
A life that will meet with the world's rejection. We don't like that. I don't like that. I don't like to see that in my children. I don't like to see them rejected. But if it's for Christ, it's worth it. Well, these are just some thoughts that.
Are we building, are we advocating in our meetings, in in, in all the activities that exist in the fellowship? Are they in accordance?
With the word of God, that's important because he's the one that's going to evaluate it all.
Chuck mentioned yesterday afternoon the reading.
00:50:04
That the introduction of these Judaistic principles into Christianity was a serious error, and we visited together about it later, and it is a fatal error. The cause to bring Judaism back into the Church of God overthrows the very principles that we've had brought out here this morning. It's a fatal error. It's a destruction, an adulteration.
Of the truth. And that epistle of the Galatians stands as evidence of that, Paul had to say, I'd stand in doubt of you when they brought these legal and Judaistic principles in instead of the grace of God that he preached in which they had received.
This 15th verse is so beautiful to go ahead with. As the Father knoweth me, Even so know I, the Father and I lay down my life for the sheep.
In this gospel, the Father is mentioned many times.
118 times I have a mark at the beginning God is made known as Father in John's Gospel. So much so that in the 14th chapter.
Jesus could say to Philip he that hath seen me, hath seen the Father, and in our very chapter the 30th verse I and my father are one. Now. This is the relationship that we are to enjoy, For it says ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus, and he has the sheep before him.
The Jewish sheep in verse 15 and the next verse means so much to.
Us who are sitting here now, other sheep I have which are not of this fold.
And he says them also I must bring.
Oh, how wonderful that the Lord has his thoughts upon you. And I sitting here today to bring us to God, to make us His sheep, to go on and lay down His life for the sheep, as he so often says in the end of verse 15 I.
Lay down my life for the sheep, and then the.
Verse 17 Therefore doth my father love me because I?
Lay down my life, that I might take it again.
Now.
God is revealed in His word.
And he has revealed in the three essential things that he is in himself. I think first of all, I am, I am that I am spoken to Moses in Exodus.
That is, he is the eternal, that is God in the Absolute. In addition, He is light. Children learn those verses. God is liked and God is love.
Those three things are what God is. He's the absolute, the eternal, and we can't understand it. But he was going to reveal Himself, so light has to come first.
And in John's Gospel, light comes in first and then another little space in love. In John's epistle, it's the same late in the beginning, a little space and then love.
Now the Lord says, Therefore does my Father love me because I lay down?
My life for the sheep.
You would say.
More than the Father always loved him.
Now what's he telling us here?
I think it's the revelation of love coming out.
In a very practical way and a very searching and tender way for us to consider, we have the third.
Chapter of John the 16th verse that everyone here could probably quote.
00:55:01
For God so loved the world about that love, we could say that's the love of compassion as he looked down at sinners.
Lost, guilty and helpless, He had compassion. He sent his beloved Son to be our Savior. There is the beginning of the love of God revealed.
And then we can go to Hebrews 12 and learn the love of relationship.
Whom the father loveth, he correcteth. We believe, and we're saved. We come into the family, we get training, but it's always in love. I remember an old brother when I was younger. Some of you here.
Said to us, God has many children and he loves the mall alike. And I didn't understand that till I learned the love of relationship. We have five children, we love them all alike in the love of relationship and you do too.
But when your son is very obedient to you.
You have an added love for that, son.
That's the love for obedience of this verse. 17 Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life, that I might take it again?
You see, the Father had sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
Jesus came into this world with the greatest work before him that has ever been done by anybody at any time. That's redemptions work.
I'll say that again. Jesus came into this world with a commandment from the Father to do the greatest work that has ever been done.
Redemption's worth. He laid down his life.
Now he went back to the father.
And the sight of his countenance.
Made his joyful acts. 228 That was the obedient Son. Now that's the love of God expressed for obedience. Now you and I have the privilege of bringing joy and delight, and experiences experiencing the love of our Father by keeping these sayings, by keeping his commandments, by obeying the doctrine of this book. It pleases God.
And we experience a special love from God our Father. I believe in the consciousness of obedience to Him that we have really obeyed and He is pleased. There's one more love I'll speak on in the 14th chapter, and that is what we are enjoying.
Today, in these meetings and with our brethren, and it has to do with the commandments again.
The 21St verse of John 14.
He that asked my commandments and keepeth them. We've been speaking about that.
What's it approved for, he It is that loveth me.
Our proof of love to God is not what we say.
It's what we do and what we are obeying the Word. And what is the result? The rest of the verse, he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father. Notice it's a love of the Father. This is the love of communion. And it's very wonderful. He says I will love him. That's the Lord himself. The Father loves those that keep His word, keep His commandments.
And comes to us, and I will manifest myself to him.
That's not future, that's present. Now the 23rd verse develops a little more. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, do you love him? Do you love Jesus? What do you do? He will keep my words. What's the result? And my Father will love him. This is the love of God the Father. And we plural, will come unto him and make our abode with him.
This is the communion that God felt broken when sin came in. Now God wants this communion. You and I want it, and we can enjoy it. It depends upon our obedience to the word of God.
01:00:15
Another very precious aspect of this love that we've been reminded of just now. Therefore doth my Father love me when the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world?
He came as has been said as son.
Father loveth the son that was always true in eternity past.
Grew up before him, Daly his delights. When the Lord Jesus Christ became a man, he became something he never had been before.
He became God Incarnate and as being here.
As a man before God.
All the love of the Son hath committed all things into his hand.
Committed all judgment unto him because he is a son of man. So here we have.
Man who?
Has become obedient to God. Was obedient to God and his entirety of his life. And because he did that, because he accomplished the redemption of the Father that the Father sent him to accomplish this great work, he opened up a spring of affection for the Father that he never had before, because the Son had never been a man before, so as an obedient man going into death, even the death of the cross.
There are new springs of affection opened up for God the Father to the Son. The Lord Jesus Christ owned his Son, and incarnation has given God a new Ave. of expression of that love for the sun. Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life.
For the sheep.
We might develop a little bit.
More I guess our times up, but we might briefly turn to the 9th the 5th chapter of Hebrews just to make a few comments to go on with the thoughts. The 5th chapter of Hebrews on the 8th and 9th versus.
Hebrews 5/8 though he were a son, you see, he was always that.
He was always the son.
It says Yet learn the obedience by the things which he suffered. That's the obedience of Christ.
Obedient unto death. It's the experience of Christ.
As a man to obey even unto.
That always bearing about in the body that dying of Jesus.
He was obedient unto death, and he learned by experience what that was. Then it says, being made perfect as to learning what obedience was as a man, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him. And he went right on and has brought that eternal salvation to us. That's that abundant life. That's that eternal life we've been speaking about.
Listing #9.