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Ephesians 3, verse 16. That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man. That Christ may dwell in your heart by faith, that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with All Saints what is the breath and length.
And depth and height, and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, right?
Christian brethren regard to so much around us to overwhelm both in the world, natural disasters on the political stage, often things in our own lives, and in the assembly that seemed to overwhelm us.
Like to make a suggestion that perhaps for these readings we could look at the 4th and 5th chapter, the Book of Revelation and if that is the mind of the brethren, perhaps before we read that we could as a little prelude read the 1St 3 verses of the 14th chapter of John.
Make that suggestion, it's so good to look above.
The circumstances and days darken down here.
John 14 to start with. And you said Revelation four and five afterwards, huh? Maybe for this reading meeting we could read just the 4th of Revelation, but beginning with the 1St 3 verses of John 14.
Read John 14.
Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, you believe also in me and my father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and we see the one to myself, that where I am, there ye may be also.
In Revelation chapter 4.
After this I looked and behold, a door was opened in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was, as it were, of the trumpet talking with me, which said, come up, hit her, and I will show these things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit, and behold, the throne was set in heaven. And one sat on the throne, And he that said was to look upon like a Jasper and a sardine stone, and there was a rainbow round about the throne.
Insight like unto an emerald.
And round about the throne were four and 20 seats, and upon the seats I saw four and 20 elders sitting clothed in white, Raiment. They had on their heads crowns of gold. Now to the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings, and voices. And there were seven lines of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.
And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, And the third beast is a man. And the 4th beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about them they were they were full of eyes within, and they rest not day and night, saying, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was and is and is to come. And when those beasts give glory and honor and thanks to him that sailed on the throne, who live with forever and ever the four and 20 elders fall down before him, they sat on the throne.
And worship him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their pounds before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, oh Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
Well, we know that in Revelation 4 and five, John has this vision of what is ahead, has a glimpse right into the glory, sees the redeemed around the lamb, and so on. But I thought it might be helpful before we get into that chapter to just go back, as I say to the 14th of John, where we find the Lord Jesus is about to leave the disciples and to go to the cross and then return to the glory.
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What prompted what we often refer to in these chapters as the upper room ministry is what it says at the beginning of the 13th chapter. And that is that the hour was come that he should depart out of the world under the Father. Having loved his own, which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.
He was going to leave them. And just picture this little scene, brethren. The disciples gathered around the Lord Jesus, and he looks at this company of disciples, and he knew that their hearts were troubled. He knew that they were afraid as they thought of the Lord Jesus leaving them here. They had walked with the Lord Jesus during his public ministry, and he had provided everything that was needed for them in a temporal way, for the comfort and encouragement of their hearts and so on.
But now he wasn't going to be with them in the same way. And we know in these chapters that he brings before them much as to the provision that he was going to make for them in his absence. But what's interesting here in the 14th chapter, in these first three verses, is that he gives them three things for the comfort of their hearts on this occasion. And brother. And I suppose there's never been a day when our hearts desire to be comforted more than the day in which we live.
There's so many difficulties and problems. We've seen a natural disaster right here on our own continent, right here in the United States of America that seems overwhelming and we delight to have our hearts comforted someone who will speak to our hearts and give consolation. And so the Lord Jesus gives three things. And if you just allow me to mention these three things and it would be good to elaborate and comment on them as I say, before we go on to the to the.
Other portion, but just to very quickly enumerate the three things in the first verse of the 14th of John, the first thing he gives to them for their comfort is himself. You believe in God, Believe also in me, but it's not himself in the way he was going to be. He had been with them during his public ministry. If he sets before them himself in glory, In other words, he says you believed on God, whom you've never seen.
Now you're going to have to believe in me, in the same way you're not going to see me with the physical eye. And so we read henceforth know we know man after the flesh, though we knew Christ after the flesh, henceforth know we him no more. But I like what Peter says. He develops this, he says, whom not having seen ye love, though now you see him not yet rejoicing, ye believe with yet believing, you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.
And, brethren, isn't it a comfort this afternoon to look up by faith, not the natural eye, but by faith, and see that blessed one who's living for us at the right hand of God, who's there interceding for us? Who's there? A place of power? Doesn't this give us confidence to go on amidst the difficulties? The second thing he gives to them for their comfort is the new home. He's going to prepare a place for them, and he brings before them that this world is not the end of the story.
This and brethren, this world is not our home. It's not the end of the story. And that ought to comfort our hearts as well. And then in the third verse, he gives them the for their comfort, the hope, the truth, the promise that he's going to come himself and receive them to himself in that home. I think it'd be good if we just stopped and meditated on these verses here for a few minutes and to realize that while we see everything in chaos around us, in the breakdown of all.
Yet, brethren, we're going on to something far better. We can lift our eyes above the horizons of this sad world.
Very interesting, is it not that?
This 14th chapter. Let's turn now to the 21St chapter of John's Gospel. We see something else in connection with this, and also in connection with the Book of Revelation in the 14th chapter.
Of the 20th, 1St then Peter turning about, see if the disciple whom Jesus loved following, which also leaned on his breast at supper and said Lord, what is he?
Who is he which betrayed the Peter, seeing him said to Jesus, Lord, And what shall this man do? Jesus says unto him of thy will that he tarried till I come. What is that to thee? All of our need. You know John's gospel. This is fulfilled because the revelation is the Lord Jesus coming. Not alone in the 4th chapter, and that's probably not the the real indication of it, But a window was open in heaven and he was called come up, hit her a little indication of it.
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Of course we have it in first Thessalonians 4 and 1St Corinthians 15. But the end of all things are in Revelation, and John is the one that gives us to us. So it fulfilled. And then in the 23rd verse then went to saying abroad among the President, that the disciple should not die. Yet Jesus said not unto him, he shall not die, but if I tarry.
Till I come. What is that to be?
So the end of John takes us right from there into Revelation because John wrote the ending of all things. The Revelation closes the scene, the 19th chapter of the Lord coming out of heaven with his army of white young white horses, Army on white horses. The end of all things. And so John Kerry is right into Revelation. Of course John is the one that wrote Revelation. So in essence that comment that the Lord makes if I tarry, if he, if he should tarry to light, come and that's exactly.
Fulfilled in the Book of Revelation.
I have enjoyed in the 12Th chapter of John the Lord Jesus says in verse.
27.
Now is my soul troubled.
What shall I say, Father? Save me from this hour.
But for this cause came I unto this hour.
In John's Gospel, you don't get Gethsemane.
But if there's anything in spirit that relates to it, it seems to be this verse.
As he contemplates the cross, what was before him.
And he says, now is my soul trouble.
But here in this verse he says, let not your heart be troubled. Isn't this beautiful brother? He went into the awful trouble.
Of those three hours of darkness on the cross, so that he could say to us, let not your heart be troubled.
What consolation that gives to the soul to realize that the question of the judgment of God that we have so vividly taken up in the Book of Revelation.
And we see in the 4th chapter those elders sitting around the throne.
Lightnings and thunderings.
The.
Evidence that judgment is about to fall on this world, but they are sitting there in perfect peace around the throne. No trouble in their hearts, no brethren to know that that question of our position before God is settled, how important that is. But I think it is to what Jim was mentioning every circumstance of life.
We have a God who is interested in the minutest detail that may trouble us, and you see troubled hearts everywhere you look today.
He says, Let not your heart be troubled. This is a command. Don't let it be troubled. I have to confess, brethren, I don't obey this command very well.
And I find that it is because we get occupied with the circumstances around us. Somebody has put it this way. Either we believe our doubts or we believe God.
We have to make a decision. Are we going to believe the circumstances that surround us that seem to be?
So contrary to what God says? Or are we going to believe God?
Let's go back just a minute to in this line to Matthew 14, where the Lord Jesus is crossing. I should say the disciples are crossing the Sea of Galilee.
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And the Lord Jesus appears to him.
In verse 24 it says the ship was now in the midst of the sea. Matthew 1424.
Tossed with waves for the wind was contrary. That's the circumstances we're passing through today, brother.
The wind is contrary.
Who of us have an easy time with life? There's struggles wherever you go. And then the 4th watch of the night, Jesus went unto them walking on the sea, that beautiful above the waves of the sea, walking on them. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were trouble. Here's that word, trouble again, saying it is a spirit. And they cried out for fear.
And straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be a good cheer.
It is I be not afraid. What is it that takes away that those troubled feelings?
It is getting his person before our souls believing in him.
Peter answered him, and said Lord.
If it be thou did me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come.
And when Peter was coming down out of the ship, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
Faith wants where Jesus walks because of his word. Peter only got one word from the Lord, but faith is always based on the word of God. Faith comes by hearing and hearing and hearing by the Word of God.
You only got one word. That's enough for faith. Peter was a fisherman. He steps out of the boat and knew the storms. But I don't suppose he'd ever been outside of his boat in a storm before. But he walks on the water to go to Jesus. But notice verse 30, when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid rather than that's what happens to us. We get looking at circumstances.
Let me tell you, they are enough to make us afraid.
And beginning to sink. I've had that sinking feeling a lot of times. I'm sure many others have had it too.
He cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand and caught him said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Brethren, we believe our doubts and we doubt the precious word of God. That's what makes us sink. Lord help us to in simplicity to trust His word if there is a contradiction in our evaluation out of a set of circumstances and what God's word says.
Let's choose to believe God, because God will never be be unfaithful to His word. He will always fulfill His word. And that's the challenge. That's the trial of faith that we're going through here and now in this world.
It is as we've heard, believing in Him, putting our trust in Him to say, I don't understand where I am. I don't know what it is the Lord is passing me through, but I choose to trust Him and trust His precious word. Oh, how important that is. Excuse me. I'm very thankful for Peter and these three verses. I thank God for them.
It shows two things, my incapability and his sufficiency. And you know, Peter is bold and brazen and brash as he was. That's many of us. And the Lord never forsook you. And it's true he took his eyes off the Lord. But how many times have we done that?
But we always have the same answer, don't we?
The Lord immediately stretched out his hand immediately. And we've all experienced it, or at least we should have. It says he. He saw the wind. I I wonder how you can see the wind. I suppose it was a wave. He saw that the wind was blowing up. Sometimes those big waves come along, and I suppose he was walking pretty nicely. And then all of a sudden he probably wondered how he's going to step up until that next wave, and he got occupied. It's easy to happen, brother, and it happens to us all the time.
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Oh, just to simply trust him and when we get that sinking feeling.
Call on him. He's right there. It's interesting, Bob, in that connection that in the story that you referred to in the 14th of Matthew, this wind is mentioned three times. First, as you say, it's referred to as a contrary wind. In the same incident in John's Gospel, it's referred to as a great wind. And I've thought of that wind in connection with what we have in Ephesians 2, where it speaks of the Prince of the power of the air.
That force that is arrayed against us, and there is a mighty force arrayed against us, and it's a force that we're no match for. The enemy is greater than we are. And if we seek, get occupied with that wind, we're going to sink. Because it's interesting as you say, that when it says not when Peter saw the waves, although I'm sure that you say that was true. But he when he saw the wind boisterous, he began to sink. And brethren, if we only see the work of the enemy in that force, that's arrayed against us.
We are going to indeed sink too, because we're going to realize that we are no match for the enemy. But it's interesting then when they come into the ship, it says the wind ceased. Now if we were to go to Mark 4, where you have the incident of the Lord asleep in the boat and there's a display of his power as creator, he He arose and it says he rebuked the wind and the wave.
And there was a great calm that was a display of his power as creator to calm the wind and the waves. But here it simply says the way the wind ceased. And it doesn't say anything here about a great calm brethren, because the Lord hasn't promised to take all the waves out of your life and mine as far as that.
Force arrayed against us, the Lord has that all in control. Greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.
But I say again, the Lord hasn't promised to take all the waves out of your life and mine. But what He does promise is the ability, as Bob said, to rise above the storm And just picture Peter. I know Peter failed here. I know Peter needed a rebuke from the Lord. But dear beloved Peter here think of the experience of walking hand in hand back to the ship with the Lord Jesus.
And Peter learned a lesson in a practical way here that the others who remained in the ship, though they observed it, didn't learn in the same way. Peter learned that not only was the Lord above the storm, but Peter learned that he could walk above the storm, above the waves, but only hand in hand with the Lord Jesus. Before we pass on, I just say one more little word about that incident. I believe what really brought peace to their souls.
What gave them calm in the midst of their fear were three little words. It is.
I, brethren, I think it's good for us just to stop and to meditate on those 3 little words. Maybe there's somebody here and you say, I've sure felt that contrary and that great wind arrayed against me. I felt the work of the enemy. You say the circumstances are overwhelming. The wave seems so high. The night seems so dark.
But just to stop and hear him say it is I I've allowed the storm. I've brought you here. I'm with you. I'm above the storm. You can rise above the storm. Hand in hand with me. Just to hear him say it is I. Oh, what calm. What confidence and peace that gives to the soul. Because, brethren, if we're afraid in the circumstances.
Of the sea of life. We don't get that from the Lord. We get that somewhere else, because he hasn't given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love, and of a sound mind.
Like to make a comment on.
Chapter 14 here in John. To me it's a real comfort in connection with these first three verses and that is the Lord Jesus here assumes.
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The affection of his disciples. To me, that's a real comfort.
In the previous chapter, chapter 13, as Jim already said, this is upper room ministry and all the disciples are there when he begins to discuss with them or tell them what's coming and prepare them for it. But in the 13th chapter Judas goes out and the Lords words to his disciples take on, I believe a little different and more intimate character. And here in the 14th chapter he says let not your heart be troubled.
It's based on the assumption and the certain knowledge that he had that his disciples were attached to himself. That is, there was love in their hearts for him and consequently he knew they would be troubled by his absence. If you don't really love anybody and they go, it doesn't matter to you and you don't need any comfort unless I person that you love.
You are separated from and consequently the Lord Jesus knew that they were going to be troubled.
On the basis of the love that was in their hearts for himself. And the same is true of the next point, he says. I have a home for you. What interest did they have in that? We all have homes. Do you have an interest in my home or I and yours? Well, a little bit, but not like the Lord puts it here. It's because of who he is and their relationship of love with himself.
Makes them want to be. He assumes they want to be where he is, and the thought of being where he is is going to be a comfort to them when he tells them that's where you're going to be as well. And so he brings before them a comfort of a home that again, is based on the certainty of the relationship between them, which was one of love we see in the chapters that follow. Peter fails.
And when the Lord restores Peter in the 21St chapter, what is it that governs the conversation between the two of them? It's the question of the relationship of love. Yes, we know there was self-confidence and boasting and so on that had to be corrected publicly and Peter. But when the Lord probes his heart, it's on the nature of their relationship. And the Lord starts out and says, well, Peter, do you, you love me?
That's stronger than attached or affection. Do you love me more than the rest and.
The probes, Peter as to that relationship and finally the Lord, as it were acknowledged as well. Peter just has to say, well, Lord, you know, you know, I'm attached to you. And I just want to say that brother, because it's so important for us and it's so true as well that we get real comfort because when we fail.
And we, most of us are. Not all of us would say we do fail. Then there is that thing that is so important at the bottom that even in failure there is a sense that we can have comfort in the sense of the Lord knows we are attached to one another. He loves me, and I'm attached to him and all of us in the bottom of our hearts. Unless there's a Judas in the room, or that is not really a Judas, but an unbeliever.
Then because to a little unbeliever, none of these things produce comfort if you don't find comfort in them.
Then either the heart has been a very bad state or you're not a believer. But if you are, then you find comfort in this. Because why? Because you are attached to the Lord and he knows it, and that brings joy to his heart and joy to yours.
One comment along that line.
The Lord could say to the disciples before He left them, I'll never I'll be with you until the end of the age. And then in Hebrews it says He'll never leave thee nor forsake thee. And it doesn't make I'm not leaving it on an opening, therefore doing what's not right. But it doesn't have anything to do with how we walk. And I'm not saying that's something that you can just do as you please, but it's because we belong to Him.
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That he'll never leave us nor forsake us. And the example is Peter. And Peter could say, Oh no, I love it.
And so, back in John 13 Peter says, you'll not you'll not wash me, you'll not wash my hands and my feet, the Lord says.
If I don't wash you, you don't have any part with me. But man, Peter says not only my hands and my feet, but I'm all over my body, my head too. And the Lord says, you need not to be washed. Save your feet. You need not to be washed at your feet because you're washed. You're clean, I realize it says, but you're not. All because there was one other that wasn't. That was Judith. But he said you're clean. And that's true of everyone in this room today, every single one in this room today that knows the Lord Jesus Christ the Savior, You're clean.
Your holy.
No, I'm not making any excuses for a wrong pathway. That's not the point. The point is, you have been watched and you're clean and the Lord knows it. That's what Peter said. Lord, thou knowest that I love thee.
So he speaks about the Father's house. Here. It's interesting that the Lord Jesus speaks of heaven or glory in this way. We refer to it in various ways, but here he speaks of it as the Father's house. Now, perhaps for a couple of reasons, it was in keeping with the character of John's ministry, because in John's Gospel, in John's ministry, we have the family of God, and we think of a family. We think of the Father as the head of that home. He provides a home.
For his wife and for his children, For his family. But isn't it precious, brethren, to think that as God's children, when we get to heaven, when we get to glory, whatever title you want to use for it, it is going to be above all, I believe for us, the Father's house. You've heard me use this illustration before, but I'll repeat it. When I travel amongst the Lord's people and you enter the homes of the Lord's people, they come out.
And they try to make you as comfortable as is possible in their home. And they say, we hope you make this your home away from home. They try to make you feel at home. But you know, as I've learned over the years, that as comfortable as the Lord's people make you in their homes, and we're thankful for it, yet you're never as comfortable as in your own home. When I return to Smith Falls and I shut the door with my and sit down with my wife and children.
I am as comfortable as is possible to be this side of glory, because there I am in my own home, surrounded by my own family. And rather than think of it, first of all, the Father is going to rejoice to have his children there. The Lord Jesus is going to rejoice to have His own gathered around himself, and we are going to sit down in the presence of the Lord Jesus in the Father's house, Perfectly comfortable. Now try to imagine what that's going to be like.
I don't think you can, because as comfortable as our situation may be in this life, there's always something to bother us, something about our surroundings. And I suppose no matter how many homes you live in in your lifetime, there's always something about that home that isn't quite as commodious as you had hoped it would be. But there's going to be nothing to bother us as to our surroundings, nothing to bother us from within, because John takes it a step further in 3rd in the third chapter of First John.
To say that we're not only going to be with Christ, but we're going to be like Christ, and so there'll be nothing from within, nothing about these bodies that will annoy us or bother us in that day. We're going to have bodies of glory like unto his body of glory, a body that is perfectly suited to that sphere of things, rather than if this doesn't rejoice our hearts and encourage our footsteps to press on the few moments that are left. I don't know what it will encourage our hearts to think, brother.
This is not our home. We're thankful for mercies along the way, but you know, we've just seen 10s of thousands of people have had their homes swept away by wind and water. Those homes are gone. That could happen to any one of us in a moment.
But we have a home that's secure above all that We're going on to the not just to heaven, brethren, but we're going on to the Father's house.
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The Lord Jesus doesn't say in my house. He says in my Father's house.
There's something exceedingly precious about that, because, especially in John's Gospel, he is revealing the Father, something that had never been known in Old Testament times.
He is now known as the Father, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And I like to go back to the first chapter of the Gospel Brethren and read the 18th verse because I think it bears on this in some way. It says no man hath seen God at any time.
The only begotten son which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
That was his eternal abode, the bosom of the Father, later on in the chapter.
Two disciples are with John and they John looks at Jesus, verse 36, looking upon Jesus as he walked. He said, Behold the Lamb of God. The two disciples heard him speak and they followed Jesus.
And Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said unto him, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, which is to say, being interpreted, Mastered Where dwellest thou?
And he said unto them, Come and see.
They came and saw where he dwelt in a boat with him that day.
In a certain way, brethren.
The instruction to us is the same. Come and see.
To follow Jesus, where does he dwell? And even though he was as a man here in this world, he was always the eternal Son in the bosom of the Father. I love that hymn 127 that we sing.
In one of the verses it says dwells in his bosom knoweth all that in that bosom lies.
And came to earth to make it known.
That we might share his choice.
Oh, brethren, that's before us. The Father's house.
Where the Father's love is known in all its fullness, we'll never be able to understand that place that was always his, but He brings us into the enjoyment of that same love.
And they think of it in this way too, brother. And he says there are many mansions.
Sometimes people think that there's a whole bunch of houses in heaven. Only scriptures only speaks of one house in heaven.
The father's house. But it's a house with many abodes.
Everyone of us are different.
None of us are the same as any other one of the redeemed. Think of the millions upon millions of the redeemed.
That will be there in that day. Yet each one has a place peculiar for him and a boat. There is a place for you, brother and sister that I cannot fill. There's a place for me that will be especially for me, and no one else. None of us will feel at a distance from the Lord will be all there in his house to enjoy.
His love forever.
Laurie that kill me. Go ahead clip that as soon as Jesus went there.
As a man the risen man went up to heaven, went to play for man hadn't been before, and as soon as he went there it was the place was prepared for man.
The errors was made for man, but Jesus went up there to make a place for us.
What love of the part of God? God does the whole thing. The Father and the Son, They do the whole thing.
There were really two things that need to be accomplished at this point so that the place could be prepared why he speaks of it in the future tense. Here the work of redemption had not yet been accomplished. The Lord Jesus was going to the cross, and on the cross he prepared the people for the place. It's the work of Calvary that has prepared us, provided for us, so that we can look forward to that. But then, as you say, Brother Buchanan, it was something else that needed to be accomplished.
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And that is that the Lord Jesus not only rise from the dead as a man, but as a man he ascend back to the Father's house. And his presence there at the right hand of God has now prepared the place for the people, is the work of Calvary prepared the people for the place. But his presence there is a man has prepared the place for the people. And I think it's important to see that because some people talk about the Lord up there, getting the place ready for us now.
As soon as the Lord Jesus as a man with the marks of atonement in his body, what left them out of olives and returned to the Father's presence and sat down rather than that place has been prepared. All He's waiting for now is that word from the Father to come forth and fetches people to himself. And then he that will come shall come and will not tarry. But the place has been prepared. I say again, the Lord Jesus as a man is there with the marks of atonement.
And always will be, yes. In Matthew's Gospel, 11Th chapter, toward the end about the 27th 1St, it says, No man knoweth the Son saved the Father period, and no man knoweth the Father saved the Son, And he to whom the Son doth reveal him, that's what he came for. And then Phillip says to him, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us the Lord could turn to him, and say, Philip, that's still been so long time with me, and hast thou not seen me?
He that seeth me has seen the Father. That's the only sight we're going to have of God. The Father is through the Son. We're going to see every attribute of God the Father and the Son.
And what he was raised from the dead, he turned to Mary Magdalene. He's gone to my under my brother, and says, If I go unto my father, and your father, and to my God, and your God, What a marvelous comment.
He goes to his father, but he's our father, Beautiful. He's our father too, if we see him, and by the eye of faith we do. We see the attributes of the Father, Every bit of it.
So then we have this precious promise. I will come again.
Brethren, if we could just stop and meditate on these 4 words, I believe what comfort it would bring to our hearts. I will come again. Now I realize that it's been perhaps over 2 millenniums since the Lord Jesus made this promise. Has this promise failed all the promises of God? In him? Yeah. And in him. Amen. To the glory of God, by us there have not failed one word of all his good promise, wherewith he have promised it was. I think that's the words of Solomon, the dedication of the tempo, as he looked back in retrospect.
To God's dealings with His people and bringing them in and establishing them in the land, and so on. And, brethren, here's a promise that we can claim. And if we would let the import of this promise sink down into our souls, we would not have troubled hearts in the midst of circumstances. Not that we would see the circumstances removed, but it would give us confidence and comfort in the midst of troubled circumstances. Because He has promised, and He is not going to fail in His promise.
You know, sometimes I make promises and I'm very sincere when I make those promises, but by the time it comes to fulfill the promise, I have to shake my head and I say I'm sorry. I promised more than I had the means or power to fulfill. Sometimes we promise too much. But the Lord Jesus, when He made this promise, He has, I speak reverently every intention of carrying out this promise. And when you go to 1St Thessalonians Chapter 4.
Where the Apostle Paul by inspiration develops just how this is going to be carried out, he ends by saying, wherefore comfort one another with these words? What comfort would we have today if we didn't have this promise? If we weren't looking for the Lord Jesus to come this afternoon? What comfort would we have as we see the news reports and hear of what's going on around us?
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But, brethren, this promise is what gives us comfort. Wherefore comfort one another with this, with, with, with this whole, with these words, with these words. Thank you. And not only that, but Hebrews tells us which hope we have as the an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast. Some of us were talking about this in Lawrenceville the other night. What other promise, What other hope could we ever say, was sure and steadfast?
Again, what you said about the 4 runner up there, I did. Many of these folks haven't heard that. Well, let's just, let's just read that then, just to get the scripture in Hebrews chapter 6, because it goes right along with what we were saying about the Lord Jesus as a man there in the glory and his entrance as a man. As we said, having accomplished the work of redemption. His entrance there as a man has prepared the place.
And he in Romans chapter 6. I'll begin at verse 18. Hebrews chapter, I'm sorry, And Hebrews chapter six, That by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge, to lay hold upon the hope set before us, which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enter it into that within the veil.
Whether the forerunner is for us entered. Even Jesus made an high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Though I never really understood the import of this forerunner until I realized that the Apostle Paul or the Apostle we believe Paul but not named. Here the apostle makes an illusion to something in connection with the history of sailing at that time, and history will tell us that many of the Greek harbors back in the times of the Bible.
We're only accessible at high tide. They were only accessible at high tide because of the Shoals and rocks across the mouths of those harbors. And history tells us that when a sailing vessel approached the harbor that it desired to enter if it was low tide. They had a little boat with the ship called the Forerunner Little flat bottom boat, and what they would do is they would take the anchor securely fastened to the ship.
Place it in the Forerunner and a man would roll the forerunner across the mouth of the harbor and drop the anchor safe inside the harbor. And that acre dropped safe inside the harbor was the assurance to the crew and passengers on the ship that when the right moment came, they were going to gain safe entrance into the harbor. So if you had stepped up to the deck of one of those sailing vessels.
That was waiting. And you said to the captain, well, are you really sure you're going to enter the harbor? How can you be so sure that you're going to make your desired destination always? Say you see that rope tied to the ship. There's an anchor on the other end of that rope, and the Forerunner has dropped that anchor safe inside the harbor. And that's our assurance and brethren. Our forerunner has already entered there. As we've been saying, the Lord Jesus is a man having accomplished the work of atonement.
He's there at the right hand of God, as Dave said, he's going to remain a man for all eternity so he can share heaven with his own. And there he is. And if you ever doubt that you're going to get there, if you ever doubt the promise of the Lord, if it doesn't seem sure and steadfast in your own soul, just look up by faith. See the Lord Jesus at the right hand of God, because God having accepted the Lord Jesus back to his own right hand and seated him there.
God having done that, and again I want to speak very carefully, but if he were to refuse you and me now, having availed ourselves of the finished work of Calvary, he would have to vanish His Son from the Father's house for eternity. And brethren, that's impossible. That's the security of the hope and the promise that we have that we are going to be there around the Lord Jesus in the Father's house. Nothing can change that hope. Rather, no wonder the Lord could say in our chapter.
Let not your heart be troubled.
We sing it. We have an anchor, sure, and steadfast. How true that is.
Let's go to the 4th chapter of Revelation.
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You know the third chapter ends the last four churches in the third chapter, and with the thought of the Lord's coming, and it starts with Thyatira, hold that fast out till I come. And so is that interesting that the next chapter, the 4th chapter, starts out with a door open in heaven and the one John is called up into heaven and everything that proceeds from here until the end of Revelation is looked at.
From heaven. It's looked down from heaven and we see everything that takes place from the other side of glory.
Not from this site. And of course chapter four and five is a parenthesis in the book. And the judgments that are going to fall in this world don't start until the 6th chapter. And then they proceed. And you know, when we see things that are happening today, we can say truly the Lord's coming is very, very near because this world will not see judgment until we're gone. We're going to be gone when that happens. And that's the 11Th first of the third chapter.
We're not going to be here, but how beautiful that we end the third chapter with his promise of his coming. We enter the 4th chapter with the door open in heaven. So we've been called out of this scene before The judgment followed him.
Let's just put that in perspective, Brother Dave, because in the second and third chapter of Revelation we have, as we know, the epistles to the seven assemblies in Asia Minor. Now these assemblies were chosen very carefully by the Spirit of God, and they're listed in this way, written to in this order, not only to bring before us difficulties, real difficulties and situations that existed in all of these seven assemblies.
At that time. But they are chosen and listed by the Spirit of God very carefully to give us an outline of Church history, to show us the history of the Church from the book of the Epistle to the Ephesians to right through to Laodicea, where you find this indifference to the claims of Christ. And so on. And so after he completes the giving us this prophetic outline of the history of the Church.
That which was to unfold in the history of the Church from the days of the apostles to the Rapture. Then he opens up to us this door in heaven to give us things from a heavenly perspective. And I want to just emphasize what you said, because.
I know there are perhaps young people here, and you go to school and work and you have Christian friends who try to tell you that the church is going to be here when the judgments begin to unfold that the church is going to go through the Tribulation. But it's very important to see here that between the end of the history of the Church, Revelation 3, and the beginning of the judgments in Revelation 6, there's a confirmation in these two chapters.
That the redeemed, the heavenly people are now there, safe beyond what is going to unfold on the earth. And people will try to tell us too, that prophecy is unfolding today, I don't believe. Rather than that the prophetic clock is ticking today. It's just like God has his finger on the hands of the prophetic clock. He's holding that clock and it won't start ticking until we're gone, what we are no doubt seeing.
Are signs of the last days as we get in Timothy and various scriptures, and we're seeing the seeds perhaps of what is going to unfold after the church goes up. But I want to stress this that in no way is prophecy unfolding and in no sense of the word are we, the church, going to go through the tribulation. You say there's some awful, catastrophic things going on in the world today.
Right here in our on our continent, as we've mentioned, but rather those things are not the beginning of the tribulation, the beginning of sorrows. Now let me use a little illustration that I, again, I've sometimes used, but perhaps it would help us to understand what we're Speaking of. We'll suppose you go to hear a production, you go to the Opera House to hear the orchestra play and to hear a production and as you're sitting there at the Opera House.
You are anticipating the moment when the curtain is going to go up and the production is going to begin. Now as you sit there in anticipation, things begin to happen. The orchestra is tuning their instruments in the orchestra pit. Perhaps you hear a hustle and bustle behind the curtain. The curtain moves as things are bumped and stage is being set for the production. But you wouldn't say that the production begins until the curtain goes up.
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You see things that indicate that it's getting close just before the production begins and the curtain goes up. The house lights are dim. That's where we are in our history now, so to speak. The house lights are dimmed, ready for the production to begin. But I say again, the production does not begin until the curtain goes up. And brethren again, things are not going to unfold in a prophetic sense in this world until the church goes up.
We're waiting for the Lord Jesus to come at any moment. There's nothing needs to be fulfilled or ever needed to be fulfilled in the history of the Church for the Lord Jesus to come and call us out of this world. The Apostle Paul said. We which are alive and remain, who is he referring to? Himself in the Thessalonian brothers? At that point he was looking for the Lord to come. I know later on he realized he was going to go through the article of death, but at that point he said rather we're going to go. The Lord's coming any moment.
We which are alive and remain now, brethren, that's what we're looking for. And then, and only then, will prophecy unfold.
Like to read a verse in Matthew 24?
That sometimes is used by those who do not distinguish.
The people of God, the earthly people of God and the Church.
To confuse the issue whether we will go through the tribulation or not.
Revelator, Matthew 24 and verse Notice verse 29.
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and then verse 31. And he shall send forth his angels with a sound of a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. Sometimes this is given as to show that the church will we will go through the tribulation.
But I'd like to point out the fact that when he says in verse 31 he's going to send forth his angels, whereas what we've had in John 14, it is very clear the Lord Jesus says I will come again and receive you unto myself. So what are you speaking about in here in Matthew 24 are his earthly people that are scattered amongst the nations.
The nation of Israel, the 10 tribes which are scattered throughout the earth. He's going to send his angels to regather them at the end of the tribulation, but that is not referring to the church. The church was something that was not revealed at that time as it is now. It was spoken of in the 16th chapter, but it was not in existence yet.
So he's not referring to the church in verse 31. It's his earthly people that he's going to gather there. But when he comes himself, not going to send the angels to get us, he himself is coming to take us home. Oh brother, I just tried to grasp in my soul, brethren, what it's going to be.
That moment.
When we're going to see him face to face.
It's just too much for our.
Poor hearts to grasp in this body that we live now.
We can't. We can't imagine the glory from one moment to the next.
Face to face with Jesus.
The prophecy of Hosea, if you want a prophecy, agrees with what you're saying.
We might look at Hosea.
Chapter 5 and verse 14.
And part of chapter 6.
Hosea 514, he says. For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion.
And as a young man to the House of Judah, I even I will tear and go away.
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I will take away, and none shall rescue him. I will go and return to my place.
Till they acknowledge their offense and seek my face.
And their affliction they will seek me early. This is the Lord going up to heaven.
Waiting to get through the friction to get the people prepared. And then it goes on and says, and you can trust prophecy. Peter says one day is with the Lord. 1000 years and 1000 years is 1 day. Going into chapter 6. Come and let us return unto the Lord. They're saying that for he has torn and he will heal us. He has smitten and he will bind us up after two days after 2000 years.
Joy, I understand.
He will revive us in the third day. He will come and raise us up, and we shall live in his sight that's yet to come to the House of Israel.
As was earlier mentioned that we are seeing a preview of what's coming and Bob didn't read the next verse, which is the 32nd verse of our chapter chapter of Matthew Now learn a parable of the fig tree when his branch is yet tender and putteth forth leaves. You know that the summer is night. Well, that happened in April of 1948 and so that's been going on since then. And then if we were to turn the loop, it says.
Consider the fig tree and all the tree. The nationalism of the nations around Israel has risen up since 1948. And so we see the forerunner of what's coming on this world. And it's amazing to me that it hasn't come yet 1948, that's more than 40 years ago. And you know, 40 is a testing time. It's marvel to me that they're still allowed to go. But let's get back to our chapter, Chapter 4 of Revelation. It's more than 50 years.
Yeah, well, this, yeah, yeah, I said more than 40, which is. But tell us what the fig tree is, brother, because the fig tree is Israel. The fig tree is Israel. That's always been throughout Scripture and all the trees of the nation round above.
That nation came in into existence again after more than two millenniums.
With their original language, that is one of the most marked signs that we are in those last days.
How to get back to the chapter? We're in the 4th chapter. What an amazing thing. In the fourth verse around about the throne were four and 20 seats, and upon the seashore I suppose we could translate that throne. I saw four and 20 elders close in white raiment, and they had on their heads crowns of gold. Every single saved person from Adam to whenever the Christ comes for His church is seated here.
And so there are 24 elders, the Old Testament Saints.
And all the Saints from the day of salvation, the day of grace.
And so we're all seated in heaven here. And it's beautiful to look at because from there we look down and you know, we're going to be there. Everyone in this room that knows Christ as savior, we're going to be there, and we're going to look down on the scene that's going to unfold before us in this world. It's not going to be a pleasant sight. However, it will be a pleasant sight to those that know him because he will be executing righteous judgment on a wicked world, on the world.
That crucified his Son.
Hymn that this world stands guilty of the crucifixion of His Son. And that's true. Like to say that Jim has mentioned that in chapters 2 and three we get the Lord Jesus standing as a judge in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. And that's what we are where we are today, brother, right now it says in First Peter 4.
The time has come when judgment must begin.
At the House of God. And if it first begin at us, what shall the end be?
Of them that obey not the gospel of God, so that the Lord Jesus is in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks, and it is a historical history of the Christian testimony down through the ages we are in the times. I suppose nothing characterizes the Christian testimony as much as Laodicea today indifferences to the person of Christ.
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But the Lord is in the midst of those candlesticks.
As a judge, why is it that there are so many trials in our life, brother?
Is it not because the time is getting close?
When he will is going to begin the judgment of this world and before he begins this world, he's going to touch us, his household. And so that's what's happening. We should not be find it strange that there's so many trials and problems and troubles. It's the Lord Brethren. He is the one that is in the midst of those 7 golden candlesticks. But as you were saying, brother.
Day of In chapters 4 and five. It's kind of an interlude before the judgments begin, and I think it is helpful to see that in both chapters you have a throne mentioned. It's kind of interesting I often.
Would think if you saw a throne you would speak of. I saw a person sitting on a throne, but notice how it puts it when he is caught up there immediately. I was in the spirit verse 2 and behold a throne was set in heaven. It mentions first the throne and then it mentions the one that was sitting on me. Why? The throne is the basis upon which God?
Is going to execute the judgments for this world. What right does God have to execute judgment in this world? And there are two major rights that God has. Chapter 4 is creation.
And in verse 11 it says, For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
And in chapter 5, the reason, the basis upon which judgment will be executed is redemption. He paid the price when he saw the treasure in the field.
He sold all that he had, and he bought, doesn't say bought the treasure. He bought the field, He bought the whole world. He paid the price to bring it back into conformity with himself. And so you have two major reasons.
Why God has every right to judge this world? Because he is creator and because his Redeemer. Those are firmly set in place before the judgments begin. And I think brethren here in this chapter where we have more the rights that God has as creators, it is interesting how people.
Cling to the theory of evolution.
It has been shown to be fallacious in so many ways that I have been surprised in magazines that have come out, how they are blindly going back to simply embrace evolution. They're turning away from the light and they're going to embrace darkness. Why is there such an effort to do that? Because people.
Want to get away from their responsibility to God?
Oh, what an awful thing it is to turn away from the light as we are seeing happening in our country.
2nd Thessalonians we don't need to turn to a chapter two. We have there what the reason is, don't we? The God of this world has blinded the minds of them, which believe not. That's one point. But the other is they refused the love of the truth. That's the whole basis of Second Thessalonians.
Chapter 2 verses 9/10/11 And so it says in the next following verses that God sends them a strong delusion that they might believe a lie who believed not the truth, but it was not based on that was based on the belief not the love of the truth. God's love send his Son.
Into this world.
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And if the world won't have that, what's left? Well, there's only one thing left, and that is judgment. Only one thing. And so you refuse the love of God. There's only one thing that's going to fall upon you, and that's the judgment of God. And that's what this whole story is based upon. As you say, it's true. He owns the world by creation, but he bought it with his love.
John 14 When we were there before we went here to Revelation.
The emphasis in the 14th chapter was on love.
And the love of relationship between ourselves and the Father. But when you go to the 17th chapter of John the Lord in his prayer, says, Father, I will that they may be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory.
And in Revelation 4 and five, that's more the emphasis that is before us. The Lord Jesus has taken us then.
Into His presence, and there we behold His glory. And in the 4th and the 5th chapters it's not so much the love, although we needed the reassurance of it in the first chapter of Revelation. And so before the matter of His glory being displayed and displayed in judgment, we get the reassurance of our relationship and redemption in Chapter One. But He takes us to Chapter 4, and He takes us off into the glory that we are into His presence in the Father's house. Really.
That we may behold His glory, and the revelation is the vindication of that glory.
The judgments come as a result of the necessity of God to maintain his glory in the face of vans rebellion, and so he does it. But I just like to add one more comment too, in connection with chapters 2 and three and chapter 4 of Revelation. And that's this.
The heavens are open in the beginning of chapter 4, so that John could be taken there.
It's not simply that heaven's open so we can look up like the Hebrews, but it's heaven is open so that John can be taken up in spirit to see. And he sees from the Presence, you might say sometimes you someone says, well, I don't understand. I can't see what's going on. I really don't. I can't figure this out. It's as if God says, well, John, I know you can on earth, but let me bring you up where I am and then you can see things as I can see them.
And then you'll be able to understand. And so we're taking off in the Revelation into God's presence now in spirit, so that we can look down and see what's ahead for this world and can I say, see it from that perspective. But it's a solemn thing, brethren, to recognize that chapter two and three we are not, we are not. Taken into that perspective. It's not as if John gets to go up to heaven in the beginning of Chapter 2.
And see things from that perspective, because chapter two and three is us now on the earth in responsibility. And when we're on earth and responsibility, we don't get the perspective of having in the same sense that we do in chapter 4 and beyond, because.
Here in responsibility, we have to act, and if we don't act in keeping with God's hand, then, as Bob said, judgment begins with the House of God.
And it begins with us here on earth, and it's a solemn thing and it's a humbling thing because many times we don't see very clearly, many times because of our own condition or our own state which is at issue in this exact chapter two and three. Then we see a totally and I say many times confused and differently because our hearts are being brought into and our conscience is into exercise before God. And again I say with respect to responsibility and.
End is done. It's very humbling.
Very, very humbling. But it's a it's a tremendous thing to part realize that when we get to Chapter 4 and we're in God's presence, we're there, we're there. We've had a lot about the church not going through the tribulation. That's because the words consistent and when we're there, we're there and we see it from that perspective until we're there, then we're like you might say some of the people that are going to go through Chapter 24 of Matthew.
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The Jews that are going to have to go through that period, they don't have a heavenly perspective.
You go to Joel and they just practically they say, Lord, how long is this darkness?
In some ways we're going through our period in which we have the exercise in that way with God, the Lord Jesus. The paramount thing is that we are going to be with the Lord, and that's why the Lord Jesus said in John 14 and we didn't really comment on it. He didn't say I will come again and receive you to the Father's house. That's true. He didn't come say I'll come again and receive you to glory or to heaven.
That's true too. But he said, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also Now that's what will satisfy his heart, to have his people gathered around himself there in the Father's house. And I thought of when our brother Dawn was speaking earlier, of how what he really wants from our hearts is a response that desires nothing less than being physically in His presence.
There, in the father's house now things come between and there are distractions and so on.
I know he sometimes uses circumstances, as we've been saying, to stir us up and to wean us from this world. And we're certainly looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. And brethren, the longer we're left here, the more of a mercy it's going to be to be gone. But is that really what he wants as to a response from us? No. What he wants is, I say again, a heart that is so attracted to himself, goes out so much to the person of Christ.
That we desire nothing less than being physically in his presence. And so the Apostle Paul again, when he explains it in the fourth of First Thessalonians, he says, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Now that's a key to understanding where we will be when prophetic things unfold. When He's in the Father's house, we're with him when he comes back to reign over the earth.
We're with him wherever with the Lord. Brethren does not thrill our hearts to think that when we hear the shout and we're out of here and we see him on the cloud and he ushers us into the Father's house, we are never going to leave his side again. We are going to be ever with the Lord. Now does that thrill your soul? It ought to. It's the most blessing thing you can have. And.
Now.
He's given us the Holy Spirit who will stay with us until we leave.
Like a comment on that. Yeah, go ahead when you said it in the last.
Absolutely. Last thing on the whole of the word of God is on this subject. It's.
The coming of the Lord Jesus for His own. If you go to Revelation chapter 22, three times his coming is mentioned at the very last words of the Lord. It shows us how much this subject is on his heart.
I hope it's on our hearts. And the Lord has been bringing it before us this afternoon. It's on his heart. It's the last thing that he had to communicate to us in the whole of the word of God. And so he says Revelation 22, verse 16. I, Jesus, have sent mine Angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David the bright and morning star. He says who he is.
Just says I'm the bride of Morningstar. The Morningstar before the coming dawn, before he comes back to this world. What response is? Jim just used the word response. Does that stir in the heart of his pride? The spirit and the bride say come. Clem just mentioned the spirits down here on earth with the bride with us. And so just to mention the name of the Lord Jesus the proper response and the affection of the heart of the bride is and the spirit of God who is in the bride.
Says come and if it has that character, then she turns around to those about her and she says and let him, the hearers say come.