Address—B. Anstey
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Like to speak of some of the basic elements that are needed to live a happy, fruitful Christian life. The brethren here had asked me particularly to speak to the young people, which I was thankful for. Some of my comments are right along that line. I don't I profess to be deep in remarks that I make generally, but.
The happy, fruitful Christian life is really what has been before me and I suppose if we were to begin this meeting.
By asking the young people or all of us here, are you interested in living a happy, fruitful Christian life? I think if we began at one side of the audience here and went through one by one, everyone would probably, I'm sure everyone would say, Oh yes, I want to live that happy, fruitful Christian life. I want the blessing of the Lord in my life. I can't imagine there isn't somebody here that belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Who would say otherwise? And if there's someone here that is not the Lord's, I beseech you that there's no better time than right now.
To call upon him for your salvation. For the Bible does say, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord.
Shall be saved, and it's as easy as that. We put our trust in Him becomes our Lord and Savior. Thy remarks this afternoon are going to be particularly directed at those who do know the Lord of Savior and that the claims of Christ will be exercised in our lives that we might come to know in practice the happy, fruitful Christian life that I've been thinking of. I've been thinking of three basic elements that are necessary.
There could be more. I'm thinking particularly of three daily things.
That the Bible speaks of three daily things. Without these things, you and I will make shipwreck. We will not come into the present enjoyment of the happy, fruitful Christian life. Now let's look at them. Turn over to Psalm 86 for the first one.
The 86th Psalm and we read the 1St 3 verses.
Bow down thy ear, O Lord, hear me, for I am poor and needy. Preserve my soul, for I am holy. Oh thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee. Be merciful unto me, O Lord, for I cry unto thee.
Daily it's those closing words that I read, the last five words I cry unto thee daily. This brings before us the importance of crying out or praying unto the Lord daily. Daily prayer and communion with the Lord is the first essential thing necessary for the happy, fruitful Christian life.
All Christians are going to have a happy ending.
All Christians are going to have a happy ending, but not all Christians have a happy life.
And the reason for I believe is that these basic elements that we're going to speak about are missing in their lives. And if you want to have the happy food for Christian life that we're Speaking of here is going to begin with these elements that we're going to speak about. I cry into the daily, daily prayer and communion Prayer is simply.
Talking to the Lord in a reverent way. I don't think I could put it more simply.
Speaking to the Lord Jesus in a reverent way, the Bible tells us everything by prayer.
And supplication, God wants to hear the Lord Jesus wants to hear your prayers. He wants you to talk to him. And it says everything, not just some things. He says everything. And so He wants to hear what you're thinking about. He wants you to talk with Him. He died to redeem you. He loved you so much that He paid such a great price upon the cross. And He wants to have your fellowship and your communion with Himself.
As you go through this world.
And there's nothing that is more sweet than to live in communion and fellowship with the Lord as you pass through this world. There's no higher or no greater joy, I believe that a person can touch as he walks in this world.
So the Lord wants us to pour out our hearts, as another Psalm says unto him, just to tell him as how we feel about various things and what we see and what we come in contact with the day through the day, and the art of we could use that word of communion.
Learn to speak to the Lord as you would your dearest and nearest friends, just to talk to him as you would even the most dearest and nearest friend that you have. The Lord wants to hear your voice song, and says, Let me hear thy voice, let me see thy countenance. And the Lord wants to hear us, and he would delight to have fellowship and communion with you and I.
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Communion simply means to have common thoughts with God.
To commune together. Suppose we take this brother here and I, we go off over here. We'd be up against this stage here and we'd be talking together. You might say they're communing together. And that's all what communion really is, is to talk together, commune together. The Lord wants us to be found communing with him. Now if we turn over to Genesis, we can illustrate that. We'll see that the fruit and the blessing that comes from it in Abraham's life just for a couple of plants here.
In Genesis chapter 12 There are two things that I would like to point out that was in Abrahams life that helped him to live that life of fruitfulness and happiness and blessing. There are other things but we want to just focus on these two. Genesis 12 and.
Verse 8.
And he removed from fence and unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the West and AI on the east. And there he builded an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord. There are two things in this verse. I'm thinking of the 10th and the altar, the tent and the altar. Abraham was a man that lived by the tent and by the altar.
Turned out to chapter 13, verse 3.
And he went on his journeys from the South, even unto Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning between Bethel and AI, and unto the place of the altar which he had made there at first. And there Abraham called on the name of the Lord.
Now the last verse of chapter 13.
Those verses that I've read, you see the tent and the altar again. Now verse 18, we'll read verse 17, our eyes, and walk through the land, and the length and of it, and in the breadth of it, for I will give it unto thee. Then Abraham removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mammary, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the Lord.
There you have the 10th and the altar. Again, we could probably find other places, but this is sufficient to show that Abraham lived with a tent with an altar.
The altar rings before us the idea of our communion with God that is, in her words, what he would put his worship upon. It would ascend to the to God, and it might bring the force or symbolize the idea of personal devotion to Christ and to the Lord in our lives. That personal communion and that fellowship with God over the.
Perfection of the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The 10th would speak to us.
Of a Pilgrim like character of life that one who belongs to the Lord would exhibit as he walks through this world. You know, a tent is a temporary dwelling place and a tent is something that someone lives in when they're traveling on a journey. As a Christian, you come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior. You're on a journey. The minute you accept Christ as your Savior, you begin a journey from earth to heaven. And that journey is through this world.
Opposed to God and there are many enemies and the journey that we live or we pass through.
Is a journey that should be like a Pilgrim on who does not really belong here in this world, but he's passing on to another spoken of and Peter's epistle as a pellegrum and a stranger. A Pilgrim is one that is not at home, and our stranger is one that's not at home. A Pilgrim is one who's on his way home.
And so the Christian life needs these elements.
And Abraham had a tent and he had an altar.
And the verse before that last verse I read in verse 17, you find that Abraham was encouraged by God to rise and walk through the land, the length of it, the breadth of it, and so on, and to enjoy the land that God had promised and given to him. Now that land, the land of Canaan that God had promised to him is a picture is typically of the portion that belongs to you and I as Christians, we were Speaking of it a little bit this morning.
In the Bible reading and you find that Abraham.
Touched in that and lived in that long before the children of Israel came there. Now notice another point. It says that he dwelt in the plane of mammary, which is in Hebron. The mammary means fruitfulness, or fatness rather fatness. And Hebron means communion. You may have heard that before. Hebron means communion. And so this man that lived with attention, with his altar, he dwelt in a place of fatness.
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Place of communion, that's what it would typify for us. How wonderful and how blessed this is. And it's no wonder that Abraham lived the life of a happy, fruitful child of God. He was used in blessing.
To others. But now I want to warn each one of us because what we're going to find here is in the life of a lot, we have a warning. There's something that we find that is missing. I want to point this out.
To emphasize our first daily thing.
Let's turn to chapter 13 again and verse 5. Now Lois, what it says a lot also, which went with Abram had flocks and herds and tents. Notice that.
Verse 12 And Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent towards Sodom.
Now there's two things that we spoke of that characterize Abraham, the tent and the altar. Now I've read a couple verses which characterize lots life.
Can you see that there was something missing?
It says that a lot had tents.
There's no mention that he had an altar. Verse five and verse 12 tells us that he had a tent. That is, he had that outward life as a Pilgrim, as a one who lived the life of one who was passing through as a child of God, for he was a child of God. But we do not find in connection with Lot that he had an altar. And the altars we have already mentioned would bring before us the idea of communion with God.
There was apparently the absence of this necessary, essential thing in lost life, that is, the communion that was necessary.
In his life and so outwardly, Lot traveled with Abram. Both had tents.
Outwardly, you may not have known the difference if you were to watch them pass along the way, but there was one who was missing this essential thing that in the life of a child of God, and that was the communion that Abraham had at his altar. Now we're Speaking of a daily thing that is required for a happy fruit for Christian life. We've spoken of that as communion and prayer and how necessary it is.
What we find in Lot's life that as he went along with Abraham, there came a time.
That he began to separate and they went different pathways. They had different objects in view and their lives separated. And it tells us of course that a heavenly minded believer and an earthly minded believer will never walk together. They see things differently. Their their motives, their values are different. And so we find that the pathways begin to move apart. Sad to say, but it's true. This chapter 13 tells us that they no longer.
Walk together.
Abraham had his altar in his tent, Lord had only tents. But we find that lot began to get on a course because there wasn't that inward a devotion to God and communion. And he outwardly went along that pathway for some time, but it began, there came a time in his life that it began to break down and his pathway begin to go off course and he left really the life.
Of a child of God altogether, that is the practical living of it.
You know, sometimes we look at young people and we're so thankful when we see them coming out to the meetings. There's a good deal of young people here. And then we come back maybe a year or two later, or if it's not where we dwell in our local assembly and we find out that this young person or that one seems to have gone off. And you wonder why they seem to be just like all the other young people. They might have the same type of clothes, they carry the same kind of a Bible. They what has happened? And you begin to wonder, well, what was it they came to?
They outwardly looked like some of the others, but there must have been something that was essentially missing, essentially from their Christian life that caused them to begin to get on a course like Lot got on that led to shipwreck and to sorrow and heartbreak. Ultimately, Lot got on a course here that I would like to warn the young people of.
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Simply because I I trace it anyway to the fact that there was not the altar.
In his life choice is important doesn't it shows you the importance of how this is necessary essential thing that if a person like this here who is a child of God could get so far off can be traced back to the fact that it was there was enough that prayer and communion with God. Now verse 10 of chapter 13. It tells us that law lifted up his eyes. First thing we find in this course is that he looked.
Sodom he lift up his eyes. He saw the planet of Jordan, He saw the well watered everywhere, and he looked.
Toward Sodom, it seems that it began with just a look.
Then verse 11 it says a lot chosen the plain of Jordan and he journeyed east.
Not not only like look towards Sodom, but he liked Sodom and began to put his life in gear toward that. Verse 12 And Abraham dwelled in the land of Canaan. Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent towards Sodom. There you have Lot leaning towards notice it says he pitched his tent.
In the cities of the plain and towards Sodom. He didn't get into Sodom right away. And declension is never something that happens all at once. We find that it is something that is generally a gradual thing. Then you look at chapter 14 and verse 12. We read it says and they took Lot Abrams brother who dwelt in Sodom and his goods.
Imparted there you have him living in Sodom then down in chapter 19.
It says in verse one, and there came two angels to Sodom at even, and Lot sat in the gate, and Sodom verse nine of that chapter says that he was a judge. So here we have him legislating in Sodom. And then chapter 19 and verse 33 it says then they made their father drink wine that night, and the first born went in and lay with their father. And he perceived not that she laid down, nor when she rose. And so on there we have he learned the ways of Sodom.
Might Beverly remember that since we're speaking to young people, I've thought of it in three or six different elves. He looked towards Sodom, he liked Sodom, he leaned towards Sodom, he lived in Sodom, he legislated in Sodom, and he learned the ways of Sodom. How could this be? What happened?
He lives with a godly man and it shows us that coming to the meetings and living and maybe being mixing amongst those who are spiritual and godly as you may think is not enough. That's going to keep us. Mixing with other young people that love the Lord is not enough. That's going to keep you to young person. There needs to be that inward devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ and daily fellowship and communion in your life.
Otherwise, there is going to be this departure sooner or later in your life, it's going to break down.
And you may get on a course like this man lot.
One more point about that word, Hebron. Turn over to number. Yes, numbers, Chapter 13.
13th chapter of Numbers. Now remember we spoke of Hebron. It means communion. Numbers 13 verse 17 Moses sent them. That was a bunch of the spies, 12 of them. I believe it was to spy out the land of Canaan and to set unto them get you up this way.
Through it and get you up into the mountain and see the land. Verse 21 And they went up and searched the land from the wilderness of Zen unto rehab. And as men come to Haman and they ascended by the South, and came to notice Hebron, where a hymen and she shy and tell my the children of Anak were now Hebron was built seven years before zone in Egypt. And they came unto the brook bash call, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they.
Between two and a staff and they bought the pomegranates and the cigs. So it's interesting that Moses encouraged these young men, the spies to go up into the land and to spy out that land. And we were Speaking of that this morning, the land speaking to us of our portion in Christ. And these men were sent to go up there into the mountain and there to see that land and to bring back report. And God would have you and I to enter into our portion in Christ.
But it can only be through this one, this first essential thing that we've been Speaking of. Notice how they went up into the land. They went up through a gateway into the land, and that was through Hebron. Hebron was the way in which they got up into the land. And it stands as, shall we say, the gate into the land for these 12 spies. Hebron speaks to us of communion. Do you want to enjoy your portion in Christ? Do you want to enjoy the things of God? And he asked.
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Heavenlies all your blessings, it's going to have to be only through the portal, shall we say, of Hebron Communion with himself. That's the way. Now notice what else it says in that 20 second verse.
Hymen she shall tell my who they sons of annex.
Who were these people?
They were giants.
There are giants in the land and we know that these were people that loved, not God.
Let me speak to us of the enemy of our souls. And it is interesting to notice that this is where the part of the land where the giants dwelt, and it tells me that Satan would focus and gather his forces.
At the place where you and I need to be more than anything else, He comes out with all of his forces to seek to hinder the child of God from reaching Hebrews.
And so the strongest, shall we say Satan's strongest forces, is to hinder the child of God from dwelling, from living there, where Abraham lived in Hebrew. And these giants were there in Hebron.
Satan will do all he can do, a young person, the older one, to hinder you and I from enjoying communion with God. It hardly needs to be said, but that is the truth. But when they got there, what did they find? They found the grapes of Ashcall. They found fruit, pomegranates, figs.
Fruitfulness and fruitfulness that you're going to have in your life is going to come as a result of getting into the land and that through a little place called Hebron.
We don't have time. He's going to go on to our next point.
But you'll find that you turn it over to Joshua 12.
That this was the last place that they conquered in the Lamb. The whole conquering of the Lamb took place in in in two chapters in Joshua chapter 10 and Chapter 11. Chapter 10 gives you the southern conquest. Chapter 11 gives you the northern conquest. All in a summary form.
But we find that Hebron was the final place. It seems that the enemy put up the biggest struggle there to hinder them from taking that place. But it says in Joshua brought them there. Isn't that beautiful?
Well, let's look at another then turn over to Acts chapter 17. Make this the second daily thing.
Acts Chapter 17.
The 17th chapter of Acts in verse 10. And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night, and to Berea, who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind and search. The Scriptures notice daily whether those things were sold. Therefore many of them believed also of honorable women whisper Greeks, and of men not a few.
He spoke first of all in Psalm 86 of the need of daily prayer and communion. Now we speak of the second daily thing, and that is daily searching the Scriptures.
These believers that were found in Berea were spoken of as being not just noble, but more noble and more noble than those that were in Thessalonica. Back in the chapter we find that Paul visited the place called Thessalonica and he went into the synagogue as his manner was and he opened the scriptures. There was a reason why he opened the scriptures and that was to present Christ from the scriptures.
To present Christ from the scriptures and as he presented Christ from the Old Testament Scriptures there there were ones who believed and the manner of his was is that he reasoned out of the Scriptures the things to do with Christ. He did not reason into the Scriptures. He reasoned out of the Scriptures. That's verse 2. That's necessary when we take up with the word of God, we do not bring our reasoning minds to the Bible. We subject our reasoning minds.
To the authority of the Bible.
I said that's absolutely necessary if we're going to take up with the Scriptures. That was Pauls manner. It says in verse 2. But anyway, these Thessalonians were regarded, as I understand it, to be noble because it says in verse 11 That they were more noble than those in Thessalonica. That is, the Bereans were more noble than the Thessalonians.
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We take it then that the Thessalonians were noble, but the Brians were more noble? I think I asked one of the boys through the question last night, What was it that made the Bereans more noble than the Thessalonians?
Why were they regarded more noble?
Than the Thessalonians.
Well, the Thessalonians, if you read there in the early part of the chapter, they were glad to hear Paul open the Scriptures and to read them and to hear the things of God.
They sat there and they just enjoyed it and they took it in and God regards that as being noble. That's a wonderful thing when we have people like Bethesda Lincolns who would desire to come to meetings like this and to hear the Word of God being ministered to listen to the Scriptures and the young people that are here, you come along to the meetings. It's a good thing. It's a noble thing. We're glad to see it that you want to hear the Word of God.
And if you like to come and to hear it, God regards that as to be a noble thing.
But what's the what's the Bereans? They were more noble because not only did they listen to what was told them, they went home and searched it out for themselves. And God says now that's even more noble than just to hear and listen to the word of God being ministered. So we're thankful for the young people we've got to as they get saved and become interested in the word of God that they would listen. They come along to the meetings. But you know, to be more noble is to.
Search these things out for yourself, to look into the scriptures on your own, and to study the Word of God.
And thereby can see from the scriptures for yourself.
They were more noble.
And I understand that the festival and I can that word means victory over fallacy. And so there are many of false things that are in the in the world. And the way to know the difference is to compare it from the word of God. We know in the Thessalonica letter it says.
Try all things, Hold fast to that which is good. Prove all things, rather hold fast to that which is good. How do we prove it? We prove it by the word of God.
Anyway, we find that these ones in Berea, they received the word of the apostle with all readiness of mind. Notice, and then it goes on to say that they searched the Scriptures. It doesn't say that they searched the Scriptures to see if it was so, and then they received it. They received it first and then searched it out because they recognized that this one that came with the open Bible to them was a vessel sent by God, and they recognized that and they received what he said.
But they didn't leave it just there. They searched it out for their own selves. And you know, it is necessary for you and I to get into the Scriptures just a little bit more than letting someone else minister to it, it to us. It's very noble to do that. But God would have you do young people, to take up with the reading of the scriptures yourself personally, to develop a daily habit of taking up with the Word of God.
Now.
I said read the scriptures, but this is not what they did. The Bereans did not necessarily read the scriptures. It says they searched the scriptures. That's different from reading the scriptures in the sense that they didn't just take up and just read it through and read the chapter, close it, so to speak. They searched the scriptures. It shows that there was energy involved. They were looking for something.
What were they looking for as they searched so hard in the scriptures?
Well, if you read back to verse 3, Paul said that you can find Christ in the Scriptures. And he opened and alleged that Christ could there be found in the Scriptures. And when he came to the brands, he told him the same thing because that was the manner of his preaching. And when they heard that, they went and searched the Scriptures themselves to see if they could find Christ there. And they did indeed find Christ in the Scriptures.
And so it says whether those things were so, and many of them believed. And it says an honorable woman too. Now, this is encouraging for us too, because sometimes we get the idea. Well, searching the Scriptures, you know, a Bible study belongs to those brothers, you know. But here we find that there were.
Honorable women that took up with the reading of the word of God and the searching of the scriptures to and so the searching of the scriptures is not something that's exclusive for the brothers here.
But for the sisters too, the young sisters that are here, God wants you to search the scriptures yourself.
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To read it and you know the Lord Jesus has always the example. How did he handle the Scriptures? It says in Luke 24 that he beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them the things of Christ. And so we learned from that that He went through the Scriptures in an orderly way. He began at Moses. That's the first five books in the Bible and he went on through the prophets and says also the Psalms and the prophets and so.
We need to have an orderly search of the scripture.
It's not enough for us in our Christian life or we're going to be bearing fruit for God, live that happy fruit for Christ, a Christian life that we were Speaking of. If we just aimlessly read the Bible a little, you know, today, a little tomorrow and this type of thing. It needs to be a little bit more study to show thyself to prove unto God the Bible says, and some brother who is a little more of a Greek scholar than I am, I don't profess to be anything like that.
Said to me that that word study is the same word used to describe a a battle horse that is galloping at full speed with all four hoofs off the ground.
Now he must be really running.
To have all four hoofs off the ground. But that's the way Paul speaks to Timothy as to how we should study to show ourselves, to prove them to God. That is, there should be energy and real diligence involved, and there's going to be reward. And so I remember one time when I was a teenager, Clarence Mundine came to town, or was it at one of the conferences? It doesn't matter. I distinctly remember him addressing the young people.
And he says, how do you read the scriptures? You remember his low and deep voice he used to have, still has. And he said, is your reading of the Scriptures an occasional Psalm?
Or Proverb? Or is it a study of the Word of God? And that spoke to me because I had been reading the Proverbs steadily for about a year. It was easy reading and I just suited me fine. But that's not the way the Lord wants us to take up with the study of the Word of God. He wants us to search the Scriptures, and that's all of them. Read the Bible through and get the blessing that God would have for us. Then we can be instructed in our most holy faith and we'll have Christ.
Before us now, one time I was speaking on the subject of searching the scriptures with a group of young people, and I wrote down 10 reasons why a Christian should be reading the scriptures.
I like to repeat them to you.
We're going to flip to 10 scriptures in a hurry. Would that be OK with the brethren? We don't have an we don't have a moment to comment on them. We'll just read them. John 5, verse 39. John 539. You'll pardon me if I pick up my pace here. Search the Scriptures for in them you think you have eternal life and they are they they which testify of me or should read they it is which bear witness of me.
And so here's one reason why we read the Scriptures, and that is to find Christ in them. Christian wants to know more of Christ, and so he reads the Scriptures to find Christ. We've been speaking about that second one, Acts chapter 20, verse 32.
Acts 20, verse 32.
And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace. That would be the Scriptures which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. Here's another reason why we read the Scriptures to learn of the extent of blessings that are ours through the finished.
Work of Christ that we might be built up and established in the most holy faith. How are you going to learn the Christian, the body of Christian knowledge if you're not going to be willing to search the Scriptures and learn them? How are you going to know if you're going to be eternally secure or the eternal sonship of Christ or many of these wonderful doctrines? You're going to have to learn to read the Scriptures in an orderly way and to study and to search. Let's look at another one now.
Psalm 19119.
119th Psalm.
Verse 9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto, according to thy word. There we have another reason why we read the Scriptures. It has a cleansing moral effect in our life. We pass through a world that we get defilement. We pick it up as we go through the world, we things we hear and see and so on. And God would have us to read the Scriptures because there is a cleansing effect by the washing of the water by the Word. And so we have that as well.
And let's look at another one. Psalm 119, verse 49, verse 49.
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Remember the Word which thy servant, which unto thy servant, and upon which thou hast caused me to hope. This is my comfort in my affliction, for thy word hath quickened me. Another reason why a Christian reads the Bible is because he gets comfort in times of trial and affliction. How wonderful. What are some of the most precious and sweet things we can read in the Bible that gives us comfort at a time of bereavement? There may be someone here that's passing through a sorrow, do you know that?
Can give that comfort. Oh yes, many wonderful scriptures we can read. We can let the Lord Jesus speak to us. Second Peter, chapter 3.
Second Peter, chapter 3.
Verse one and two.
This second epistle of and I now write unto you.
In both which I stood up your poor pure minds by way of remembrance, that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy Prophets, and by the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior. Well, the words that were spoken by the Holy Prophet, the Apostles, were of course, the New Testament Scriptures, and so on.
Here we have another reason we read the Scriptures because it stirs up our souls to want to press on for the Lord Jesus. Turn back to chapter two of First Epistle of Peter, First Peter chapter 2, verse 2.
As newborn babes desire the sincere mark of the word, that ye may grow thereby.
There's another reason why we read the scriptures that we might grow spiritually. I just grow in the knowledge and grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jeremiah 15.
Jeremiah 15 and verse 16.
Thy words were found, and I did eat them, and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart.
That beautiful? Well, we read the scriptures because it makes us happy, rejoices our cheers our hearts, encourages us.
Now let's read another one. And I should have maybe read this when we're in second Peter ready, but it's back to Second Peter Chapter one. That's scripture about the lamp would be a good one, I suppose, for this point.
Second Peter chapter one and verse 19 we have.
The prophetic word made sure, or the more sure word of prophecy. Where unto ye do well, that ye should take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn and the day star arise in your hearts, and so on.
The point here is that we read the Scriptures because the Lord teaches us of things to come. The Christian is the only one who has the an intelligent outlook on this world because he has a Bible and he reads it and the Scriptures glorify Christ. God wants to glorify Christ in two spheres, and prophecy tells us how he's going to do that in heaven and on earth. Head up all things in him. And so consequently the Christian is given.
The knowledge of future events.
Now the life that's #9 #10, now 119th Psalm and verse 171.
119 a 171.
My lips shall out her praise when thou hast taught me thy statues. Statues is another word for the scriptures that we have praise. It makes our hearts well up in praise and Thanksgiving to himself. Well, I've gone far enough on that subject. 10 reasons why we read the Scriptures. There's probably more. Now one last scripture we're going to look at, and that's Luke's Gospel Chapter 9.
This is the third daily thing that is necessary.
For us to live a happy fruitful Christian life. And I apologize for the turning in many scriptures, but.
It's nice to get the score for this Luke 9 and verse 23. And he said unto them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Daily taking up the cross and following him. The third daily thing, the necessity of identifying our ourselves with a rejected Christ. You know, the world gave Christ the cross. They rejected him. They turned him out of this world by putting him on the cross. And now the Lord is speaking about the cross and he's speaking about you and I taking up with the cross and to bear it in that sense, it speaks to us of identifying, I believe, identifying ourselves with Christ.
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His rejection to accept the path of rejection. And so this daily thing would be daily obedience and following Christ in the path of rejection.
Unnecessary you know, it's one thing to to pray and and and talk to the Lord wonderful ask the first daily thing. It's wonderful to read the scriptures and to learn how richly you've been blessed. That's the second daily thing but you know the Lord wants us to go further than that. It needs to get cracked down into the practical side of our lives. That is to take up the the path of following Christ in this world and to bear our cross and that is to bear our burden in this world that he's called us to to.
To bear for Him. Well, and I don't have time to look at it, but there are three reasons why He wants us to take up the cross and follow Him. You have to turn over to Matthew 16. You can look at it in your own time because we're run out of time. Now in Matthew 16, the latter part of the chapter, he mentions the same verse and then he says four. He reads a few words and he reads again. 4 the next verse, 4, there's three fours there.
It begins at each verse and there are three reasons why the Lord would have us.
To follow Him. The first one is very simple, and that is because what's not done for Christ in this world is going to be lost.
The second one is what even if we could gain everything that's in this world, live for this world to get it all, you can't take it with you anyway. And the third one is because He has rewards for those who want to please him. There's three reasons why we should take up the cross and follow Him. May this be so. May God, people, and all of us to live the happy, fruitful Christian life.