Kentucky Conference: 2019
Table of Contents
The Armor of God
Address—Bill Prost
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Begin by singing hymn #288 Two 88.
O thou whose mercies far exceed all we can do or say.
And then the prayer in the last verse that spirit, soul, and body may preserve free from stain.
Be blameless until that great day, Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
288.
All those mercies, Lord, save all we can do, the Lord said.
I did my big old.
Graving water is my name.
I saw grateful.
I say come on.
To hell rose shall flow, shall fall.
I don't think that anyone here would dispute the fact that we are living in the last days.
And as I believe Brother Bob mentioned in his prayer, there is a tremendous spiritual warfare going on, perhaps, if we might say even accelerated in these last days.
We know in the Book of Revelation there is a time when Satan will be cast out of heaven.
And when it is recorded in Scripture that he cometh down to earth, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.
But Satan is no fool. I believe he knows, too, that we are living in the last days, although of course he has no idea of the day and the hour of the Lord's coming. No more do we. But we are entitled to look around and to see the day of judgment approaching, and we know that the Lord is coming before that day of judgment.
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Not too long ago I was reading through the book of Ephesians in my own reading.
And afresh, it was brought home to my soul the importance of the whole armour of God. And with the Lord's help, this afternoon I'd like to talk about the armor as is given to us in Ephesians 6. So let's turn to that chapter, please.
And we'll try and dwell on it from a practical side. Yes, there is much that can be said about the armor of God, but we'll deal with it perhaps more from the practical side here. And so we'll begin reading in verse, or rather in Ephesians 6 from verse 10.
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power.
Of his might put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the Wiles of the devil.
For we wrestle, not against flesh and blood.
But against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand, stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth.
And having on the breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.
Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
And to take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Praying always, with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.
And watching thereundo with all perseverance and supplication for All Saints.
And for me that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel.
A few remarks before we launch into the details of the armor.
It's no accident in Scripture, nothing is an accident in Scripture, but it's no accident that the armor of God is given to us in the book of Ephesians, which has most here know well is the one book in the Bible that gives the highest truth as far as the privileges of the believer are in this dispensation.
It is in Ephesians, for example, that we learn that we are not only saved, that we not only possess a new life in Christ, that not only are we at times passing through a wilderness, but that we are dead and risen with Christ and positionally.
Already seated with him in heavenly places.
We were reminded in the last meeting of the Lord's coming for us.
And the details of the Lord's coming form one of the special revelations which God gave to the apostle Paul. But it's interesting that Ephesians is the one epistle of Paul in which the Lord's coming is not mentioned. Why is that?
Oh, it's incongruous to talk about the Lord's coming for us when the believers already seen as risen and seated in heavenly places in Christ.
What a privilege and we are seated there. It doesn't say we should be or we can be, but we are their positionally.
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Where we began reading today, it talks about the Wiles of the devil.
And the need for the whole armor of God.
Satan is already a defeated foe. The Lord Jesus defeated him at the cross so that we are told to resist the devil and he will flee from you. But where the problem comes in your life and mine is not so much with Satan's direct power against us, but rather the Wiles of the devil.
He seeks to deceive, he seeks to attract by appealing to our old sinful nature.
And as a result, instead of the enjoyment of those heavenly things.
Instead of the enjoyment of our Christian position as being heavenly people.
Satan seeks to bring us down to the level of this world, and I would suggest that that is going on today perhaps more than ever.
I have said this before, but it bears repeating that Satan knows that if he can bring the church down to the level of an earthly religion, yes, he will even make allowances for the gospel. He will make allowances for people being saved. But if he can destroy the sense in your soul of our heavenly calling.
Humanly speaking, we have lost everything.
And the believer who has lost his sense of the heavenly calling is no threat to Satan. Oh, I don't mean that the gospel can't be preached. I don't mean that there can't be blessing.
But in bringing Christianity down to the level of a worldly religion.
Satan knows that he has destroyed the threat.
That you and I are in this world.
When the Apostle Paul and his company went to a certain place, you will recall that the cry went out. They that have turned the world upside down or come hit her. Also, Satan knows that losing the sense of our heavenly calling will make us so that we will not turn the world upside down and so the whole armor of God is needed.
If I forget one part of it, Satan will discover that weak point.
And he will be able to attack. And so let's look at the armor from a practical side.
Verse 14.
Stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth.
Why is that mentioned first?
Oh, because I cannot effectively be a soldier for Christ if I could term it that way, if I am not.
Braced up, if I could use the term my loins where my strength is Gert about with that truth.
What does that mean?
Does it mean that I have to know all the truth at once? No, I am continually learning. I trust, and you are to throughout our Christian lives. What does it mean?
You will recall, and there's no need to turn to the Scripture, that when the Lord Jesus stood before Pilate, the Lord could say to Him in that confidence that He had.
Whosoever is of the truth.
Heareth my voice.
And Pilate's comment was what is truth? And then he turns away.
But prior to that, in his life here on earth, the Lord Jesus, in Speaking of Himself could say, And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
I say to each one of us here as I say to my heart, never get it into your head that some aspect of the truth of God.
Is irrelevant to today's world and that it must be laid aside.
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Pardon a bit of reminiscence I can still remember.
Our brother Harry Hajo saying in an address, he said, Brethren, can you suppose?
That when I stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
That there is any possibility that the Lord will say to me, Hey, oh, you were far too careful in walking in the whole truth of God. Of course He wasn't boasting as if he were doing that. He trusted He did. But to go back to what he said, can you suppose that the Lord will ever say?
You were far too careful to walk in the whole truth of God. You should have been a little more relaxed about it. You should have sidestepped it from time to time, and you could have been far more useful to me. Can you hear the Lord saying anything like that? Of course not.
Is the truth ever going to restrict your life and mind?
Whether in preaching the gospel or in living the Christian life to the point where I have to say, well, that may have worked in Pauls Day, that may have worked 150 years ago, but it's not relevant in today's world. Absolutely not. It is the truth of God that makes you and me free before God.
Having the loins girt about with truth.
May I be allowed to use a flagrant example?
It's flagrant, but it makes the point.
There are some today who would argue that same sex attraction somehow is okay, that same sex marriage is all right. And there are dear believers today who are going down that road and somehow twisting and turning this precious book to try and make out as if somehow you can make it.
Approve or at least condone that sort of thing.
Whenever I am faced with anything in my life, let me rely on the truth of this precious Book and have my loins girt about with it so that it guards me against my thoughts, my feelings and anything in my life going away from the truth of God's precious Word.
Loins girt about with truth.
Where do I get the truth?
In this precious book.
But let me go one step beyond that, if I may.
The Lord Jesus could say I am the way, the truth and the life and the truth is not merely a strict adherence in a cold legal way to what this precious book says. No, it goes beyond that because the truth of God's Word.
Will inevitably drive me back to the very source of it.
And the truth must be lived out in fellowship with the Lord himself. I cannot do it otherwise. And if I think I can pick this book up as a textbook that I would use in high school or in university, And if I think I can live the truth out in any other way but in fellowship with the Lord.
I will find that I will be sadly mistaken. It won't have the unction, it won't have the power.
It won't have what it needs to be a living operating force in my life.
Or have its proper effect on others. Loins girt about with truth.
Then it says having on the breastplate of righteousness.
Where is the breastplate? It's that which covers the vital organs in the chest.
Everyone here probably knows that when police officers and other people.
In.
Law, peacekeeping and law enforcement where a bulletproof vest, what does it cover? First of all, their chest. It protects the heart and the lungs from injury by a from a stab wound or a bullet or whatever it might be. And so the breastplate was worn right across the chest.
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Because right from man's earlier days, even though they may not have understood the circulation of the blood.
And why the heart was important. They knew very well that a good thrust to the chest.
Was invariably fatal.
What then is the breastplate of righteousness?
Does it refer to what Romans talks about, that we are the righteousness of God in him and so on? That's of course in Corinthians, but the whole concept of our righteousness being Christ's righteousness is developed in Romans. Is that what it's talking about? I don't believe so.
You don't start talking to a man or a woman that is risen and seated in heavenly places about the need for the righteousness of Christ.
No, this is practical righteousness. Practical righteousness.
It comes right down to the simple things of life.
It comes right down to being righteous in all my activities in this world, in my interactions with other people, whether fellow Christians or whether out in the world, so that there's no opportunity for anyone to point the finger and say, what about that?
What about what you did there? What about this? What about that?
It was a worldly man that made the comment that the measure of a man's true character, and of course he included women in that. The measure of a man's true character is what he would do if he knew that no one would ever find out.
Permit a story that my late father-in-law told me, obviously quite a few years ago now.
Of how when he was in full-time practice, there was a donation or what shall we say?
I suppose if you wanted to call it that, it was a kickback. We all know what a kickback is as.
He was in, or let me rephrase that, in his profession as an optometrist, he did business with companies that made lenses and sold frames.
And at one point in time, he received.
A check from them and it was not in the sense of something that was meant to attract his business, but rather just a bonus that they were giving because.
They were giving out Christmas bonuses anyway. He received a check from them and in the course of something being said about it.
Somebody said that'll be a nice windfall for you.
His comment was.
Well.
A nice windfall after the government gets its share, referring to the income tax that would be paid on it.
Oh, the company representative said. You don't, you don't have to declare this as income. There's, it won't go on our books as anything like that. It there's no.
No need to put that on your books as income.
My father in law's comment was Sir, he said. I like to keep my books as if the Lord were looking over my shoulder.
And that was that.
Was their blessing from it.
Quite a few years later, he got a phone call from a man whose name he didn't remember.
I was asked to come to the death bed and it turned out to be that same salesman.
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All, he said. I don't know where I'm going. I'm leaving this world shortly and I don't know where I'm going.
And I figured that you were one man that could probably tell me how to get right with God.
It pays off, but that wasn't the point. The breastplate of righteousness and how many lives of dear believers have been ruined when they have in a moment of weakness and don't think I'm not tempted in the same way, have allowed something in their lives that wasn't righteous, and not only did it give them a bad conscience.
But a piece of the armor was missing.
And sometimes someone else found out about it, or it came to light and it was the ruin of them.
How important, then, always, always to be wearing that breastplate of righteousness so that when you and I stand before the world, there's nothing that we have to worry about.
Now, is any one of us absolutely perfect? If someone wanted to, could they point to me?
And say, yes, there was a time when you said a sharp word to someone when you acted in an uncharacteristic way for a Christian.
I'm afraid that would be true, but let's be very sure that we act righteously.
And if we have acted unrighteously, let us make sure that it is corrected right away.
Verse 15 Your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace.
At first glance, that might seem to be a rather strange statement.
Because here is a man who is a soldier who is wearing armor, and we do not normally think of a soldier as being a man of peace. Yes, we have peacekeeping missions where certain countries send peacekeepers to patrol an area of the world where there is violence.
And they are there in order to keep the peace. They are not there primarily to fire shots or to deal with things, but they are ready to do so.
But here is a soldier whose feet are to be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.
Does that mean that I am to be ready to preach the gospel whenever there's an opportunity?
I don't believe that's the main thought, but I wouldn't deny the thought. I wouldn't take it out of that.
Expression here. It's a wonderful thing always to be ready to have a word for the Lord.
To be positive.
But what does it really mean to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace?
It means that the one who is living in heavenly places.
The one who is living in the consciousness of the fact that all his hopes are heavenly.
That everything that really belongs to him is up there, that every hope of his is centered not down here, but up there. He can walk in peace through this world.
A brother that's sitting here today made the remark once and I have enjoyed it ever since, he said. Did anything happen to day that disturbed the throne of God?
Some of us are old enough to remember President Lyndon Johnson of the United States back in the 1960s, and I understand that.
Excuse me?
There was a point in his life when he was having a very important meeting, cabinet meeting.
With his closest advisors, with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense and various others.
Over the war in Vietnam and somebody came in and interrupted that cabinet meeting.
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I guess if you're going to interrupt the cabinet meeting that includes not only the president of the United States but a number of his closest advisers, you better have something pretty important to say.
And Johnson, I gather, was not very pleased about it until someone said, Sir, we have to interrupt to tell you that Martin Luther King has just been assassinated.
It shattered Johnsons Day, I understand, as well it might. It shattered that cabinet meeting. It broke up right away.
But does that ever happen? We say it reverently to God Himself.
Many times you and I may turn on a computer and say, wow, look at that piece of news or somebody else.
Comes to his or her desk in the morning and there is something staring them in the face.
That spoils their whole day. Does that ever happen to the Lord? Oh no.
Does it need to happen to you and me? No. Does it not mean that we should be burdened about something or concerned? Yes, we should. Should I shed tears? Yes, indeed I should. It doesn't mean that we are unfeeling. It doesn't mean that we shrug things off. It doesn't mean that we say, well, what happens, happens. Oh no.
And our Lord Jesus on earth never did that either. But to walk in peace means to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. And that expression perhaps is hard to wrap our minds around. But I for my own soul, I believe it simply means.
That having had peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
And knowing where I am going and knowing where the pathway will end.
And knowing that an all wise Father, whatever he allows in my life, is allowing it for my blessing.
I can walk through this world in peace.
What an effect that has not only on my own soul, but on the lives with whom I live and move, with those with whom I interact, whether believers or unbelievers. Peace.
Verse 16.
Above all.
Why does it say above all?
These first few things, if we could categorize them.
They set us straight, first of all.
I have to be set straight before I can go out to war.
The defensive armor must be in place before I can pick up and deal with the offensive weapon.
Every army knows that that defensive Armory must be in place.
And if my state of soul, if my walk before the Lord is not right, the offense is not going to be worth having.
And don't think for the moment that I am pointing the finger anywhere but back here. But I want to lay this on each one of our hearts because many times in these last days.
Perhaps you and I collectively and maybe individually, bemoan the fact that we are not more effective as.
Ambassadors for Christ in this world.
We are not more effective in preaching the gospel. We are not more effective in sharing the truth with others.
I suggest that part of it has to start with the fact that the armor is not in place, and if there are too many ****** in my armor, Satan has a place to get in.
His Wiles of the devil. The Wiles of the devil. What is a while it means something sneaky, something underhanded, something that catches me unawares.
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You will remember that there were times in the Old Testament.
When somebody got hit even though he had a good armor on.
There was a king by the name of Ahab, we remember, who went out to war and what happened. Somebody drew a bow at a venture, hit him right in the wrong spot. Ahab was a little bit concerned about that war, despite the fact that he dismissed Mikhail's prophecy about him. He wanted Jehoshaphat to be in the limelight and not he.
But the Lord saw to it that that arrow that was drawn at a venture hit its mark.
And to know Satan, he has a way of getting his arrows in sometimes or his fiery darts. And so it says here number four in verse 16.
Taking the shield of faith above all, you know a breastplate has to stay in place, but a shield can be moved. A shield can be moved around.
A shield can be held here, or held there, or over there or over there.
Very, very important.
And here we have the shield of faith.
If Satan knows that, he can't aim something at the breastplate of righteousness.
He will shoot fiery darts because he can aim them anywhere. They can hit me anywhere. In the head, in the arm, in the leg, in the abdomen, anywhere.
But my shield can be against them. If I've got that shield. What is the shield of faith? Oh thank God. I know the vast majority and I hope all here.
Have that faith in our Lord Jesus Christ as Savior.
You have no question about your salvation. You know that if something were to happen to you today that it would be to be with Christ, which is far better.
But as we've often remarked, it takes only a little faith to bring the soul to heaven.
It takes only a little faith in the right person.
But what about the faith in our everyday lives?
Quite a while ago now.
I remember a young man.
Where things had gone badly in his life.
I knew him, knew him well. I have no question that he is a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ.
But when things didn't go well in his life and some rather serious difficulties came into his life, he made this remark not to me but to someone else, but it was repeated to me.
He said, and I hesitate to repeat the words, but he said these words.
The Lord let me down.
The Lord let me down.
Going back even a number of years before that, and this would be at least 40 years ago, I was talking to a sister who was old enough to be my mother and I wanted to be respectful of her and to her, but she was obviously having a very difficult time in her life.
And she complained about this and that and the other thing, and about the way things were going in her local assembly. And I, of course, was an assembly far distant from where I lived, and I knew nothing of the details of what she was telling me.
And I ventured to say to her, I said, have you been able to get on your knees and take the burden to the Lord? Have you been able to raise some of these questions that you have before the Lord?
And her answer was.
I have tried to do that.
But the Lord doesn't answer me.
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What was wrong? I would suggest that both of them had dropped the shield of faith and the devil had gotten a fiery dart in. What was the fiery dart? The dart was the same kind of thing he said to Eve thousands of years ago. Yeah, hath God said?
And way back in the Garden of Eden, Satan persuaded Eve that God wasn't doing the very best for her, that somehow God was keeping back something that was good and for her blessing. And Satan, if he can, will put a fiery dart in that will persuade you that the Lord isn't doing the very best for you, that he hasn't given you a, shall I use the term, a fair shake that he hasn't given you.
Breakfast.
But can still remember a brother praying in a prayer meeting and I hesitate again to repeat it. And I'm not throwing stones at the brother.
But I must confess that I shuddered a little when I heard the words. He was praying about another brother who was having a lot of serious difficulties in his life. And the brother began to detail the difficulties in his prayer, and he actually said these words. He said, Lord, if it is your will, please give him a break.
There's nothing wrong with praying that the Lord will alleviate the suffering. There's nothing wrong with praying, for example, for Jim Highland, that the Lord will alleviate suffering. But does the Lord ever allow anything in your life and mine which is not for a good and blessing? Of course not. And in your life and mine, I believe we will find if we take the trial from Him, that we will learn far.
More from that trial than if we simply had smooth and easy times. Now, that doesn't mean that the trials aren't sometimes difficult. And we have to ask the Lord why He allowed it, because it can be for different reasons. It doesn't mean that the Lord is chastising me for something in my life with which he is displeased.
It can be a number of things. Sometimes the Lord simply wants to see.
The fruit from one who goes through a trial and glorifies God in the midst of it, that's wonderful. Sometimes the Lord sees that there is fruit, but He says there's a potential for more fruit in that person. And whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth. I grew up on a fruit farm, and we pruned trees that were producing well with far more care.
Than we did with one that wasn't doing so well. Why? Because we knew that that tree that was producing well had potential. Very definitely.
The shield of faith, and I believe it says above all, because if I let that shield of faith down, Satan is going to get that fiery dart in and persuade me that I'm not really.
Permitted to trust the Lord in the way that I should. And if you and I have that faith in the Lord, in everything.
We can go to Him, take any difficulty, any problem to Him, in faith that He will hear and answer. Now, that doesn't mean He'll answer necessarily in my time frame. Sometimes I want the answer right away, and the Lord doesn't always do things right away. But does he hear? Indeed He does.
Maybe you've failed. Maybe I have failed and I hesitate to go to the Lord in faith because I say, how can I go to the Lord when I have been disobedient or I have allowed sin to enter my life?
Ah, I can always go to the Lord and say, Lord, I confess that sin.
But now, Lord, once I have confessed that sin, I can seek for the Lord's help in it. I can seek for the Lord's help in the midst of a difficulty. I never need to be. If we could use the term at my wit's end, I may be at my own wit's end, but the Lords never.
At his wit's end.
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Verse 17 and take the helmet of salvation.
The helmet.
The helmet goes on the head.
Is the head important to be protected? Indeed it is.
In years gone by, an arrow to the head perhaps was not as dangerous as it could be. Depended on how much force was behind the arrow, whether it was shot from a bow or from a cross bow or something like that. But other things could hit the head the Romans developed.
Catapults and things like that that were perfected, I think, under Julius Caesar. Important to protect the head and in your life and mine, it is important that the mind be protected. The helmet of salvation. Does that mean that?
I need to be saved or no? It goes beyond that. It means that on my head is that absolute certainty.
That at the end of the journey, my salvation is going to me, not merely to be with Christ.
But to be like Christ?
What gave the Apostle Paul that boldness when he stood before his accusers?
What gave man all down through history that boldness to stand before?
Those who were physically stronger and menacing in every possible way.
And yet they stood there boldly before them. What was it?
Oh, the helmet of salvation was firmly in place. The helmet of salvation.
Sometimes if we have sinned in our lives, we don't have that helmet of salvation in the same way, and we find that if we get far enough away from the Lord, perhaps we can even doubt our salvation or be a little hazy about what's what's going to happen and so on. Is that ever necessary?
No, indeed it isn't. No, that helmet of salvation ought always to be firmly in place.
So that as you and I go about in this world, we realize.
Very definitely where we are headed. Salvation in Scripture, as we know, is spoken of in more than one way.
There is the salvation that we have experienced when we get saved.
Saved from the penalty of sin. But there is the salvation which we experienced, all we experience all the way along the Christian pathway. The experience of being saved from the power of sin in our lives.
And finally, when we are called home to be with the Lord, not in death, but when the Lord comes for us, we will be saved from the absolute presence of sin.
Now don't get me wrong, I want to make it clear what I'm saying. The believer who departs to be with Christ is definitely saved from the presence of sin right away. But those of us who are still here will not be saved from it until the Lord takes us home, until He comes. How long that will be, we don't know. We have said the Lord's coming must be soon.
I firmly believe that.
But here we are.
Approaching the year 2020.
And we are still here. I don't expect to see this year lived out, but we don't know. Maybe it will.
But in the meanwhile, we need to be wearing that helmet of salvation.
But now we come to number six.
And the sword of the Spirit.
Notice that the.
Offensive weapon is toward the end.
Again, we repeat, everything has to be in place as to defense.
Before I can go on the offense.
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The sword of the Spirit.
What we want to emphasize today is that it is not your sword or my sword.
Sometimes we try and take it up that way, but if I think that a mere knowledge of the word of God and that is important, I am not in any way speaking against that very important. But if I think somehow that a complete knowledge of the word of God.
Not that it's ever complete, but a good knowledge of the Word of God constitutes my sword.
Ah, no, I'm mistaken. It's the sword of the spirit.
Many years ago, a brother in a reading meeting asked this question, What is your sword? And someone younger said it's the word of God. And that is true. It says that here, which is the word of God. But the old brother wisely remarked, he said, your sword is that part of the word of God that you have read and meditated on.
And walked him. That is your sword.
And if I think that I can use the word of God in the power of the old nature or in the power of the flesh.
I will find that I am sadly mistaken. Suddenly I will be fumbling for the sword and I can't find it just when I need it and maybe an hour later I think my.
What I should have said on that occasion. Why do I not have just the right word?
Because what has gone before has not been done. And again I speak to my own heart.
But what is needed, I would suggest today more than perhaps anything else, is those who are walking in the good of what they know. To have the sword of the Spirit doesn't mean you have to know everything, Oh no.
It means that you are walking in the good of what you do know and that you want to know more.
And here's where it comes down if we could use the expression to where the rubber hits the road.
Do you and I take time to read the Word of God? We have busy lives nowadays. It's a difficult world. It's not easy to find time to read the word of God. But it's absolutely imperative and I need to walk in the good of it. I need to apply it.
I need to read the Word of God. I need to make time to read that good written ministry that the Lord gives us.
And has given us. And then I need to walk in the good of it. And if this precious book forms my life, occupies my mind, and is before me, I believe I will find that the Spirit of God is only too ready to enable me to use it as a sword.
But it cuts me too. It's A2 edged sword, isn't it? It cuts me too, and it should.
But that sword will be effective. I won't always see the effect of it.
Maybe I used that sword and I'm not conscious that it was even having an effect.
But the Lord is using it. I believe the Lord is using your sword and mind more than we think.
The Lord doesn't allow us to see the results of it because we would be lifted up in pride and think I've done something.
No, in a coming day we'll see the results of it. So never stop using the sword as the Lord gives you opportunity. And the sword isn't always used on an unbeliever either. The sword is to be used on a fellow believer. Just the right word spoken, the sword of the spirit.
It works. It has power.
And our time is nearly gone, but.
What pulls all of this together? What pulls it all together?
Verse 18. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.
And watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for All Saints.
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And for me.
Prayer expresses my dependence and yours, and if there's no prayer in my life, there will be no power. Why? Because.
I must realize that despite the presence of the Spirit of God living within me, despite the knowledge of the Word of God that I may have, I am a dependent creature.
The life that I have is a derived life. It's life in Christ.
The Holy Spirit is the power and energy of that new life, and I cannot live independently of the Lord Himself. That's why our blessed Lord and Master found himself so often in prayer.
Departed into a mountain to pray. He spent all night in prayer. And so on. Why? Oh, because as the perfect dependent man, he showed us that example of how to live.
And walk and notice.
If I am really walking with the Lord, yes, there will be prayer for myself.
But it will take in All Saints, not just those within the sphere of my acquaintance either.
It will take in Saints everywhere, the whole body of Christ.
And Paul says and for me.
You might have thought, well, Paul, I don't need to pray for him. Probably the most faithful servant and the most energetic servant perhaps that the Lord ever had.
Do we need to pray for you, Paul? But here was Paul, at this point a prisoner.
And he needed the prayers of his brethren in order to be faithful. Notice that mean I can pray for every believer in the whole world within the sphere of my acquaintance. It's hard to do that sometimes. I don't know if others here, I'm sure you have, have had the experience of dear brethren and other lands Writing. It's easy today with e-mail, writing emails.
That are this long with details of things to pray about.
And sometimes I have to write back and say, brother, I'll do my best, but I find it almost impossible, impossible to remember all the names and places and details of all those needs that you mentioned.
But in a general way, my heart can go out to All Saints.
And.
Especially as it says here to those that are going on. Well, well, may the Lord bless His word to us.
Let us remember.
That today the armor, if it was ever needed, is needed more than ever. And as you and I approach the end of the dispensation and the Lord's coming draws near, may we not be LAX in putting on every piece of the armor.
You know and I know.
Sadly, about those who have failed in putting on the armor and whose lives.
Have become a shipwreck as a result of it, and I'm not immune to it. Neither are you. But if I'm ready to put on that armor, I need not fear Not the power of Satan so much, but the Wiles, the sneakiness, the underhandedness of the devil.
That's where he gets believers more than anything else.
Let's sing part of another hymn in closing.
168.
Verses 4 and 50 Pardon us, Lord, that our love to thy name is so faint, with so much our affections to move. Verse five. O kindle within us a holy desire, like that which was found in thy people of old. 168 Verses 4:00 and 5:00.
1 Thessalonians 5:1-8
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Guide us, O thou gracious Savior.
Pilgrims through this barren land. We are weak, but thou art mighty. Hold us with thy powerful hand, Bread of Heaven.
Feed us now and evermore.
276.
Guide us so badly.
Around my life, who's in, God willing.
Oh my God.
I'd like to suggest First Thessalonians chapter 5.
It's.
It's interesting that it has the Lord's coming or the rapture in the chapter before and then reminding us the Lord's coming. And we have the farmers or at least some of the armors being mentioned in this chapter as well and on how we ought to walk. And I just want to see if that would be a suggestion that we can take up.
Recess Lions. Chapter 5. What other times in the seasons? Rather you have no need that I write unto you for yourselves. Know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape.
But ye.
Brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light and the children of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep, sleep in the night. They that be drunk and are drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day be sober.
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Putting on the breastplate of faith and love and foreign helmet the hope of salvation.
For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.
Wherefore comfort yourselves together and edify one another even as also ye do.
And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you.
And are over you and the Lord, and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work sake, and be at peace among yourselves.
Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, Comfort the feeble minded, support the weak, be patient toward all men, See the non render evil for evil unto any man.
Whatever follow that which is good, both among yourselves and to all men, Rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, and everything gives thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
When not the Spirit?
Despise, not prophesying.
Prove all things.
Past that, which is good.
Abstain from all appearance of evil.
And the very God of peace sanctified you holy. And I pray God, your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless under the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calls you who also will do it.
Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss.
I charge you by the Lord, that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
Drop and take up the 4th chapter.
And we find that in that chapter the apostle tells us about the rapture, and then he ends the chapter by saying, wherefore comfort one another with these words. And then they go on to the fifth chapter in regard to the Lord's coming from a different perspective. Now that touched my heart, because today among Christendom most don't know the difference between the rapture and the Lord's coming.
And often we walk and we sometimes hear comment that we may say, well our children are with Christians, they should be OK. And sometimes that worries me because what do they believe in just because they profess to be Christian? So here it tells us that we are walking differently. There is a lot of times and seasons. Well there are those that are still looking for earthly events such as times and seasons.
Rather than spiritual things. So we need to be careful and this chapter exhausted to tell us that we are not of this world, we are this.
It's interesting in the new translation in chapter 4, verses 15 through 18.
Are in parentheses. So if you go back to verse 14 of chapter 4, it says if we believe.
That Jesus died and rose again, Even so them also which sleep in Jesus.
Will God bring with him?
The Thessalonians had lost some of their loved ones in death.
And they didn't know, they thought they won't be around when the Lord comes back again.
So in verse 14 he says yes, they will be included. They will be there when Even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. So they're going to be included like you say, brother David's in the appearing it's two parts of the Lord's second coming.
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Both are part of the second coming, first of all the Rapture, and in that part he will only come, as it says in this chapter.
Four, he will descend from heaven with a shout, and he's going to come to the clouds and then we will be raptured. And then it's later on at the end of the great tribulation that he was coming back to planet Earth. He's going to put his feet down on this planet again.
And he will come with his Saints. That's called the appearing.
Sometimes the revelation, sometimes it's called the manifestation.
That's all when He comes back in person. And so you have the distinction. And then verse 15 through 18 of chapter 4 shows how those who are dead in Christ will be included when the Lord comes again in his appearing. So like you say, brother.
Dave, this chapter five really begins with.
The appearing what is what we know is the appearing in verse 23 of chapter 5. It's the rapture again, isn't it? That's referred to I think.
In Acts chapter one, it's interesting that when the Lord rose from the dead and was those 40 days with his disciples in the earth, they were with him and.
He they say in verse six Acts 16, when they were therefore were come together, they asked him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the Kingdom to Israel?
That's what they were thinking about. The Lord was going to establish his Kingdom.
And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons.
Which the father has put in his own power. That's in connection. Like Brother Dave said, times and seasons are in connection with his coming when he comes to establish his Kingdom. The end of the great tribulation times.
Times and seasons there's nothing to indicate when the Lord is going to rapture us home, but for his coming at his appearing, there is multitudes of signs and.
That God gives that the time is getting close and some of those were seen in the world today, the beginnings of them, brethren.
But he says here as to the in chapter five, he uses those same 2 words of the times and the seasons. Brethren, you have no need that I write unto you, for yourselves. Know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
So when it's that coming as a thief in the night, that always refers to his appearing, is that right?
We notice the language change too in the 14th chapter, verse 17 or those verses. There we find the word we be speaking to you, and He's speaking about we, we which are alive and remain. And I trust that many in this room this afternoon were associated with as we are. So He reminds us here about the times and seasons, but this is not about us. Because another clue to that is the Lord doesn't come for us as a thief in the night when they're not ready.
But then when we go on to verse three, we notice a language change from we to they. That's a third party reference, isn't it, for when they shall say peace and safety. And this world is often look for peace. There is no peace in this world, but we're looking for peace. We're looking for safety. We're looking for all these things that are temporal. We want to make sure this world goes on.
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Because we claimed it to be ours. But here they for when they say when they when this wall fingers peace and safety, then it's a sudden destruction cometh upon them.
And then he, I don't mean to have the time to finish the thought here. And then they remind us. But ye, that's speaking about us again here, brethren are not in darkness that the day should overtake you as a thief.
Maybe someone could help us with the difference between a crime?
I would just suggest and perhaps it's a simple answer, but what I have appreciated with of that is that.
A time tends to be more specific as to an actual.
Point in time, whereas a season is a period of time over which something happens, isn't it? And so we speak of the season of spring or the season of summer or something like that.
It's a period of time, whereas again, it's not always used that way, but in a general way, a time is when something specific happens, and there are things that the Lord does at a specific time, but there are things that are done over a period of time, and all of it refers to when the Lord comes back to this earth to deal with things.
Just as what I would call a simple example, the day of the Lord.
Well, the day of the Lord is not one day as we would express it, but it includes the judgments that will take place at the end of the tribulation period. But really the day of the Lord extends throughout the tribulation and includes the judgments at the end, or I should take that back. It includes the whole of the Millennium and includes the judgments that will take place at the end. And so to me, it's seems that the Lord sometimes.
Acts by doing something over a period of time, and sometimes acts by doing something at a specific time.
State director comment I I thought I'd understand it too that the times and seasons goes together sometimes into certain festivals, religious ceremony, et cetera that man go after. So we'll find that in within that Deuteronomy 1616 three times a year did it go into Jerusalem.
So there are fixed times for certain feasts as well. So this is more.
Of customs and things that man would want to follow.
It says, ye have no need that right unto you. Why not?
Because it's in the scriptures, this is relating to prophecy.
Now, when Paul wrote the Thessalonians, there was something that he did need to write them about and that was where what has happened to our brethren who have died. We were looking for the Lord to come and now they've died, they've missed it. So that was the subject. They needed clarity, they needed teaching on. There were certain things he did need to write unto them, and that's the point of First Thessalonians. But when he come to chapter five, he says, I don't need to write to you about that because it's already been revealed in the Old Testament.
Now, as far as times and seasons of Brother Dave, you may have this in mind that we find that we go to Revelation chapter 12 and 13, for instance. We find that.
That that 3 1/2 year period is spoken of. Is it time and times and half a time. We finally spoken of this 42 months. We find it spoken of his 12160 days, very specific time frames and it's connected with the Saints of God and suffering. It's been noted it's brought down to the days 12160 days. The blessed Lord notes the very day that we're going through. So the times and season it is connected with prophecy. No reason to write about it now because it's it's a subject of prophecy.
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But what the apostle does in this chapter now takes the appearing of the Lord, and brings it to bear on our present conduct.
The proper hope of the church is the Lord's coming for us, but here he takes up the subject of the Lord's coming with us, and that has a practical bearing on our life, our manner of life here in this world, and that's what he takes up in the subsequent verses.
It's true, and many Christian circles, that the distinction between these two parts of the Lord's second coming are not clear. The rapture when he comes for us, the church is a heavenly people, and when God.
Predestined us to for eternal glory. There was not even a world in existence yet.
The church is heavenly in every aspect, so the exit point of the church from planet earth is something that is not detailed in any time or season, but we know that it must be near. But we don't know The point is is to be ready at any time. But then he says here in.
Verse two yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
And sometimes I find that believers think that the Lord will come as a thief in the night for us. I sometimes say to them in a simple way.
Do you expect a thief at your house and they say no. Are you waiting for a thief? No.
Let me ask you another question. Are you waiting for the Lord? Yes. And do you expect the Lord to come? Yes, I say. Well then he won't come for you as a thief. He will come as your heavenly Bridegroom to take you home to glory. But a thief is for those people.
Who don't want him to come and don't expect him to come. That for them it will come as a thief. And it's interesting to go through the many scriptures in the New Testament that speak of his coming as a thief. And it's always in connection with his appearing, never in connection with the Rapture. So it's helpful just to get those things clear in our minds. There are two distinct parts.
Of the second coming. Both are part of the second coming.
There's another major distinction to that is that the rapture, the Lord come to take us to be with himself when there comes a thief later on, is he's coming to execute judgment. The difference isn't it? And we have gone out of this world rapture out to be with the Lord, and we will return with him to reign.
Might be able to go back to the beginning of the book of First Thessalonians, pick up a verse or two that helps get the context for the what's already been said. It's not really different than what's been said, but it's just reinforces it perhaps.
These believers in Thessalonica, it would appear, had only been saved a few weeks at the time that this letter was written to them.
So the Apostle Paul is writing to brand new.
Believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and he had to be separated from them, and he was concerned about them. And so he writes them a letter. And in his letter he begins almost at the very beginning.
Versus chapter one, verses 9 and 10, he says for they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you. Now here's what characterizes their conversion.
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To the Lord Jesus, their salvation and their expectation, he said. Ye turn to God from idols. It's the first thing that happened for them. They turned from all the world's idols.
Those were actual idols, but today there are lots of spiritual idols. You turn to God from idols to do what two things to serve the living and true God.
And the 2nd and to wait for his son from heaven.
And so this was what was given to them. They turned from their former way of life to God. And in turning to God they had now a new occupation to serve the living and true God. These two things ought to characterize any believer who puts their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ today. Whether it was then or now, we would turn to God from the idols that previously.
Controlled our lives, not necessarily physical idols, but other things that were the things that controlled our lives, that instead of God and to serve the living and true God. And in addition to that, when we put our trust in the Lord Jesus, it's to wait for his Son from heaven and we wait for one who was here, who died, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus.
And then this is what connects the last phrase with what's been said, which delivered us from the coming wrath, or the new translation, or Jesus our deliverer from the coming wrath.
All the verses that have been referred to in chapter four and five use the expression the day of the Lord, because the Lord is the one who's coming back to execute judgment, and it will be a day of wrath.
And then a day of peace. But when he first comes as Lord, he came as Savior. They had come to know Him as the deliverer from wrath. But now he says you've trusted in him. He's the one that will deliver you from wrath. And so when he comes back, you're not going to be coming under that wrath. He's the one that's already delivered you from it.
And in fact, in chapter 4, that's already been read.
And in Second Thessalonians chapter one, it's made very clear he can't come back until you're with him because he's delivered you from that wrath. And so when he is the Lord comes back to execute wrath on the earth, you have to be gone. You have to be with him, otherwise it would not be possible for him to.
Come back.
And so.
That's our place.
Is to serve the living and true God and to wait for our deliverer as we see the world get worse. Is that a cause for fear? No, it's a cause to serve the living and true God and as he says in in our chapter, to be a light.
In a dark place where the light of the world. And so it is for us, brethren, let's, if you will be like the Thessalonians were exhorted to live life intelligently in the understanding of where we are in this season of God's grace.
Just to comment on season, it often has to do with some activity that's going on for some period of time. And this should be a fruitful season for God when he's gathering out of the world a heavenly people for himself. But seasons come to an end, and this season will be finished and come to its end, and then those times that God has purposed to come will come.
Another distinction to be made between the rapture and the appearing is.
That the Rapture is something that is revealed in the New Testament only.
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Nothing about the Rapture in the Old Testament. Perhaps you say, well, there's figures of it and that is true.
Enoch was taken before the judgment of the flood, and that is in a certain sense a figure of it, but it was not something that was well known.
That was known in the Old Testament, whereas the Day of the Lord is something that is spoken of.
In a lot of places in the Old Testament, it's very common that. Just look at the book of Joel for a minute.
To see that it is a day of terrible judgment. In fact, it will be the most awful judgment this world has ever or will ever know.
Joel Chapter 2. Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord cometh. For it is nigh at hand. A dead darkness and of gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains. A great people, and as strong there have not been ever the like.
Neither shall be anymore after it, even to the years of many generations of fire devoureth before them, and behind them a flame burneth. The land that's the land of Israel is as the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness. Yay. And nothing shall escape them. So it's a awful day of judgment. The day of the Lord is a day when the Lord Jesus is coming back to exercise.
His lordship in the earth. And so it will include awful judgment that is mentioned here in our chapter 5 says.
When they shall say, verse 3 peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them as travail upon a woman with.
As travelled upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape. So it's a day of judgment and the day of the Lord is spoken of in both testaments. And it's really interesting to go through. The book of Isaiah speaks a lot of it, brethren.
So here, he says.
That's for those that will stay here in this world after the rapture. They're going to suffer the day of the Lord.
Judgment and destruction is not really the subject here, but rather to encourage the Catalonian Saints, which really in turn to us too, that we're not children. We are children of light. Do we? Do we value that? As he reminds us here, we are children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. We have to shine for him. We have a different character than the children of this world.
It was coming to earlier how things seemed to get so dark around us. We've got all the problems and difficulties we get. We, we can easily be depiled with all the, all the, the immoralities around us. But we have to shine. And in dark plays now, sometimes it's difficult to shine, but sometimes in the sense the darker the time, I remember, I think an old writer of old quitted, he said the darker the time.
The brighter the small testimony. So if you can picture yourself in a dark room and I told this story before we, we went through a cave one time for the children. You crawled through a few caverns and then we entered this big room. And then remember the man said blow your candles out or I should have mentioned we weren't allowed flashlight. We had a pink and welded sideway with a candle in it. It took a bit of time to get accustomed to that light and he had everyone blow the light out. It was so dark you couldn't see your fingers in front of your eyeballs.
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And then he lit a match. That's it, just a match. And the whole room lit up because he was so dark. So the darker the time sometimes the brighter the testimony.
We all have a sense of and night. Certain things characterized the day. Certain things characterized the night.
When the Lord Jesus came into the world, he presented himself.
As I am the light of the world.
The world said we will not have this man released unto us, Bravos. And so when the Lord Jesus, the light of the world left the world, the world is a system of things became a dark place and it's continued. This Thessalonians were very at the very beginning.
For most of the history of the Church on earth.
But the earth at that point was looked at as in night, because the light of day was not there and the person of the Lord Jesus. When the Lord Jesus returns as the Son of righteousness, then the world will be in day. The 1000 years of the coming Millennium will be a day of light and a day of righteousness and will fill the whole earth.
But it's important for us to recognize as believers in the Lord Jesus.
The day in which we live is the night, and we have to live as children of day in the time of night. And So what does the world have for its life?
Where's the light in the neighborhood in which you live? It's in the believer.
Each one of us on the street corner in which God has placed us has given us the responsibility of being light.
We're not the sun as the Lord is, but each one of us sometimes were looked at as a star.
In the view of Genesis one, we're looked at as light, light bearers and actually when you get to the revelation, the church before the Lord starts the period of the day of the Lord in in the revelation, the light that was in the world during the night is seen in chapters 2 and three where he reviews.
How did the Church fulfill its responsibility?
Of being the light of the world during its night.
Sadly.
That review ends in him having to say I can't use you anymore.
You are have failed to be the light that you should be.
And so as a testimony for me and the earth, I have to put you aside. And that's why it ends up in Laodicea being put aside as a light bearer for the Lord in a in its period of night. And then the question is raised, who's worthy now to do something?
And the worthy Lamb of God is identified in chapter 5.
As the one who can and then we see the activity in chapter 6 on of what is going to be the tribulation and the activities of the day of the Lord. And so it will be. But in here, as it says to the saying to the the Saints, you're the you're the children of the day. You're not of the night, you're not of the darkness. And so let's not sleep. Let's be sober. Let's live with an understanding of the day in which we live.
Otherwise, there's the danger of going to sleep or the danger of going into the darkness ourselves and the character of which we live our lives, that is living with the world.
It is a solemn thing, isn't it, that it is a solemn thing that when the Lord comes, evidently the disappearance of millions of people will have at least in an outward way, an effect on this world. But yet it says here in verse three, when they shall say peace and safety whatever.
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Explanation. Satan will have whatever lie he will have, he will somehow be able to persuade men. Don't worry, everything's going to be all right. Everything's going to carry on. And I believe for myself that there will be a measure of peace and prosperity in that day. There are many predictions today about how things can fall apart, how economies can fail.
How different events could cause a big breakdown in this world?
Humanly speaking, it could certainly happen, but I believe the Lord will see to it that there is something that Satan can latch onto that he will lull men to sleep with, just as they are now very, very solemn to think about it. And that, you might say, points out the basis for the exhortations that.
Start out with verse 4.
Need two things that we need to think about in this connection. One is sleep and the other is drunkenness.
Nothing wrong with sleep and the material sense of it, but it's speaking about.
Being asleep spiritually and I sometimes say.
If a person is asleep on the floor, I can speak to him. Hey you.
And he's not going to respond. Why doesn't he respond? He has life, but he's not alert. And sometimes, brethren, we can be very alert as to material things in this world that affect us personally, our business, our houses, our homes, our families, our cars. But when it comes to the Lord's things.
We're not alert.
That's what sleep is.
To not being alert to the Lord.
And so we're told not to sleep. Let us not sleep, as do others.
But let us watch. So the contrast to sleeping is watching.
You know how sleep can overpower you if you.
Let it. It's a hard thing to resist. So in these days, lots of people are going to sleep, Brethren, I really believe.
I must say some time ago I heard testimony on some of our brethren in the Muslim countries and how they without fear are carrying the gospel forward, and I think of us over here in the United States.
And sometimes we think if we want to go to meeting or we go. If we don't want to go, we don't go.
And justice hit me, Brethren, are we asleep? As to the Lord's interests, I fear that I can be asleep. And I say, brother, if you see me asleep, please come and give me a shake. I want to be alert for that momentous time when the Lord comes again. So let us not sleep. But the other part is to not be drunken.
What is drunkenness? It's being under the influence.
Perhaps not with alcohol, but under the influence of present things.
You can be under the influence of sports, nothing wrong with sports in themselves, but you get under the power of that to the point you're thinking only about that.
Don't be drunken. Don't be under the influence. Other people get under the influence of music. There's a lot of things in this present world that it's easy to become get under the influence of them. So we need to be alert. The Lord's coming.
And justice to think, brethren, I've often wondered, brethren, I honestly believe it's true that the moment we step across into the presence of the Lord Jesus and see him in all his glory, we're going to say, what was I doing down there in the earth? I was just fooling around. I didn't hardly put any importance to the Lord's things. When He's glorious, He's going to fill the whole universe with his glory and we're going to be with him, associated with him.
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Oh, how easy it is to get under the influence of present things.
When I see the way the Lord's blessing in other parts of the world, brethren, I say what's happening up here?
Materialism has had a tremendous influence on us and has dulled the testimony up here. It's self pleasing up here and I, I have to say I'm not pointing the finger anywhere else about myself because I know I've been affected by it. But that's part of what it is. Drunkenness is to get under the influence of present things to the point that I'm not acting.
As a Christian ought to act.
Sometimes too, it can go to the other extreme as well. I was thinking of later to see how they became neither cold nor hot. We'll get into that influence. We get influenced by that too, don't we? We don't want to make any opinion on anything. We don't stand for anything from the Word of God. And there's an old phrase, you don't stand for anything, then you'll fall for everything. It's so easy not to make a stand, especially about Christianity.
We find in our society that they want you to agree with them. All these terrible immoralities that they mentioned, if you speak up against it, they were saying you hate them. The word of God is the guide and we have to uphold that. So sometimes we became neither hot nor cold and then we find a Lord said he didn't like that neither and he spewed them out in the mouth. I like to quote a verse. This sounds very and I want to say I'm not reading this verse.
In mind but this first been on my heart. I ordered that at the last conference. Please if you heard it please let me do it again. In the book of Ezekiel chapter 33 I find I find myself falling to this position for many years by just sitting and say how nice and that nothing happens. Ezekiel chapter 33. I read this to for your encouragement.
Verse 31. Ezekiel Chapter 33. Verse 31.
And and they come unto they as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them. For with the mouth they show much love, but with the heart goeth after their covetousness. And lo, thou art unto them as a lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice.
And can play well on an instrument, for they hear thy words, but they do them not.
I read it more to say, do we fall into that condition sometimes? Have you told someone there was such such lovely address they gave or the comments they have made but.
Did any of this affect your hearts? Do what do is an interesting word. You'll find scripture use that a lot. 2 letters do this do in remembrance of me. Well, does everybody do it? And I know there are some in this room.
Would not do as the Lord would request us to do tomorrow morning if the Lord needs us here. If you go through scriptures, there are various doves. We Christianity is an action, isn't it? We're to do not just faith alone, faith and work together.
So today is in contrast to night as light is in contrast to darkness. We often speak of the increasing darkness, morally and spiritually, of the day that we're living in. I like to read a verse over in first John chapter 2 because I believe it gives us the flip side of the same coin.
First John, chapter 2.
Read well. Read from verse seven, brother, and I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which he had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you have heard from the beginning. Now verse eight again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you, because the darkness is past, or the darkness is passing.
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And the true light now shineth. Well, you might notice on verse 7, the old commandment is not the law of Moses. The old commandment was the words the Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples here in His public ministry. And now John is Speaking of the new commandment, his exhortation to believers. Now which thing is true in him and in you?
We walk in the light, that is, we walk in the light of God revealed.
First, John gives us the emphasis. It is the manifestation of eternal life in the Saints of God.
That light is now true in us, but it says because the darkness is passing now, isn't that an encouragement to us? Because we think of the darkness getting worse, but in the light of first John, the darkness is passing. That true light has already shined fully in Christ. It shines now in the believers, The life of Christ manifested, and it's in passing, and it's in view of the coming day when that light will be manifested in all of its fullness. There's a verse in Proverbs chapter 4 we're all familiar with, but I enjoy it in this connection.
Proverbs, chapter 4.
And verse 18.
But the path of the just.
Is as the shining light that shineth more and more.
Unto the perfect day for the Darby rights renders it. But the path of the righteous is as the shining light going on and brightening.
Until the day be fully come. And so it's all true that it is getting darker.
But on the other hand, as we take these things up in the ways of God, the day is upon us, and the day it is brightening as it goes on the path of the just is as the shining light that goes on and brightens until the day before He come, And so on the path of the believer here in the presence of this darkness, should shine more and more.
Because he was the true light, and it is the reflection of that light in us that that brightness.
And so we really do need to be in the enjoyment of him for his light to shine forth. That doesn't set aside responsibility, but there's energy.
In in being, in the enjoyment of Christ.
Some solemn thing.
To recognize that if the day is getting darker, it's getting darker because the light of Christianity is getting dimmer.
We look at the conditions of the world as getting worse and we look at it that way as it's getting darker and darker and that there's truth in that, but the light of the world, The Lord Jesus is not here, but he left his people in his place to give light in testimony for himself to the world, as you have again in Revelation 2 and three. But the sadness of it is, is when.
The believers take up as they were warned here in First Thessalonians 5 are exhorted not to if.
You are not shining in your personal life.
Than where you are is darker.
If I'm not shining as given to me where I am, then my street corner is darker. And it's a solemn thing to think that when we look around us and talk about darkness, we might not look at the other side of it and recognize the importance of being light for the Lord. And if we're not, then we have added to what's called the darkness.
The side of it is as he says.
Not to sleep and then we sleep and verses 6 and seven that have been spoken to, but then he speaks about us in verse eight. He says let us who are of the day we belong to the day we don't belong to the night, we belong to the time an identification with our Son of righteousness and it says.
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Putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for in helmet the hope of salvation. There are three things mentioned there, Faith and hope and love. Now go back to chapter one and see what it is that characterized these new believers.
And their lives.
It says in verse three of chapter one, remembering without ceasing. This is Paul in his prayer remembering them without ceasing their what?
Work of faith.
Labor of love and patience of hope.
In our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God our Father. And so there were three things that characterized normal, proper Christian life. There are three things that ought to characterize your daily life and mine. It's the work of faith.
The labor of love and the patience of hope. And so, as we already had, they had turned from idols. The idols of dumb, idols of darkness.
To serve the living and true God. How did they serve Him? By the work of faith and the labor of love. And they had the hope. And so it was. The hope was to wait for His Son from heaven.
And if you give up those things, you've given up the very things that protect.
The life and so if the turning to God from idols to serve the living and true God, he says.
What do we need? We need the breastplate that protects the heart.
And is that which preserves in connection with faith and love, our hearts, our source of love, and so on, and in the helmet the hope of salvation. The helmet protects the head. And when we lose the present enjoyment of our hope.
Because we don't have our helmets on, if you will, to protect us from the world's thoughts, which are contrary to God's thoughts, and we give up the protection of the breastplate of faith and love. Then we're going to go in with the world. We're going to walk in the darkness, and we won't have the joy and the comfort and the present service that is to characterize our lives now.
Perhaps add more things to that list and chapter 2.
And versus.
14 and 1514 and 15. It says, do all things without murmuring and disputing, that you may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation. This is a.
Talking about moral darkness in the world. Among whom you shine as lights in the world.
When the body of Christ, when members of the body of Christ are in constant argument with each other, that hinders the light in this world as well.
I remember a number of years ago someone spoke at a Sunday school. I like those Sunday school because often the lessons are simple and it seems to stay in your mind longer. And this brother asked the children. He said, have you seen St. Lights? And of course every one of the children put their hands up and say yes. He said, have you ever seen St. Lights in the whole city put into one corner?
So why? It doesn't make sense, but it sure makes it very bright.
His point was that a light is to be distributed evenly through our all the areas to shine. It may not be as bright as all the light in one spot, but it's a lot more useful. So the Lord put us into various corners, for lack of a word. So we think of this room. Here we have many lights shining as if it was under a bushel. No one out there can see us in it. And as a word of encouragement.
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In a few days you will be going home away from your friends and the influence you have with your brethren.
Are you light for the remain, shining for your friends? And I think our brother brought that point out very nicely that why is there darkness around us? Is there Bush old? Did we put our light under a bushel and it's not shiny? Or have you let it's not let the light shine as we ought to?
Brother Bill, you spoke about the breastplate of righteousness in your meeting here. It's the breastplate of faith and love. How do you fit those two together?
Well, I suppose that what we get here was written to very new believers, wasn't it? We know that when Paul went to Thessalonica, he was there probably less than a month. It says 3 Sabbath days, so he couldn't have been there very long and.
We might say Paul crammed an awful lot of teaching into that time period. He brought them right out of idolatry, right out of heathenism, into the light of the gospel. But he had also given them a good deal of instruction as to the Lord's coming and what would happen and so on. And as Dawn was mentioning, the three things that he brought before them very clearly were faith and hope and love. And so those things are.
Very necessary for the new believer. They're necessary for all of us.
And in that sense, the breastplate is composed of faith and love, and the helmet is the hope of salvation. But in Ephesians, which is, as we mentioned, the highest truth that God gives us concerning the believers blessings during this time of His grace, it's a little different, isn't it? Because they were seen as risen and seated at heavenly places. And so it's a breastplate of righteousness and a helmet of salvation.
It's necessary that there be a walk and that there be the definite security of where that salvation is and where it's taking us. And it's not merely the hope of the Lord's coming, but all the ramifications of it that protect us, isn't it? And so the use of those pieces of the armor here is perhaps more suitable for new believers.
That perhaps were not so well instructed, but the others are.
You might say a little bit more advanced in Christianity, and to bring before them the importance of being maintained in the heavenly places and in the enjoyment of it.
Is that the way you would see it?
Faith and love, if they're in operation, will certainly produce righteousness. One thing.
And here, like you say, in connection with the helmet of salvation, it's with a specific view of the Lords coming. And so it's the hope of salvation or as in Ephesians, it's it's the merely the helmet of salvation which is more inclusive of all our earthly pathway going through this world. We know that in the Lord Jesus we have complete salvation through it all.
Wonder if we have these practical working out of the helmet of the hope of salvation at the end of Romans chapter 13.
Romans, 1311.
And that knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believe. Clearly this is in reference to the Lord's coming. We have the salvation of our souls, and this is not a practical salvation. It's something we're still waiting. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
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Let us walk honestly as in the day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying, but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof.
So here is the armor of light that while we think of light often as bearing witness.
It's and it's also a great defense against this, the armor of light. The light will repel the darkness. And so we're to cast off the works of darkness. That's a little bit more than as we sometimes sing dropping off like autumn leaves. That's more of an act of putting it away. He said, well, let these go unto the Lord and these things will fall off. Well, that may be, but we we can't sometimes we need to be a little bit more energetic.
And putting away from us the things of darkness, and using it rather to put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.
That is the life. That is the life that this world should see in US.
The hope of salvation doesn't imply a question concerning its reality, does it?
No, we use Hope Indiana a different way, don't we do, John?
In many cases, when we speak of hope, there's an element of uncertainty as to it. But the only uncertainty as to this hope is the timing, not as to the actual.
Fact of it's going to take place. When we speak of hope, we often use a matter of uncertainty as to whether it will happen or not. But here there's no question of of that. It's merely a matter of timing.
Save 234.
234.
Three Parables, Luke 15
Gospel—Bob Thonney
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Good evening.
God our Savior, who will have all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Are you saved?
I can't tell as I look around this group if you're saved or not.
But.
I greatly fear that there might be somebody who is not yet saved.
And that's why we're here.
So whoever you are.
We hope the message gets across God.
Our Savior will have all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Let's sing #37.
Or hymn sheet, the gospel of thy grace.
My stubborn heart has won.
The Gospel of.
How are you doing again? So I want to be trusted on the raw once I have been waiting.
Tonight I'd like to use.
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A parable from the Scriptures to speak about the Gospel message. It's a parable that has three distinct parts.
And each parable.
Starts with sorrow and ends with joy.
Luke, chapter 15.
It's the Lord Jesus that told this parable.
And in the 1St 2 verses of this chapter, we'll find that there were two distinct groups that were there to hear the parable that he told. Notice verses one and two. Then drew nigh near unto him all the publicans and sinners.
For to hear him and the Pharisees.
And scribes murmured saying, This man.
Receiveth sinners and eateth with them. So you see the two groups that there were. First of all there were the publicans and the sinners. The publicans were the tax collectors and they were known for swindling the people and ending up with a good quantity of money in their own pockets. They were despised because of it. So the publicans were grouped with.
The Sinners.
How many in this room are sinners?
I see a few raising their hands, some raise a little finger like that, and maybe that means they're not quite as bad. But I think we all recognize we are sinners.
And sin is a very serious thing in the sight of God.
Sin brings death.
You sin, you die.
Are there any exceptions to this? In this world that we live, that is something that applies across the board. Nobody escapes naturally speaking, and so it has its consequences.
And.
Death does not end at all because Scripture plainly tells us after death, the judgment, there is ultimate accountability for every single person that has lived on planet earth. Maybe you say, oh, they died and they got away from it. That is not the end. Death is not the end. Death is only temporary until the resurrection of that great day and then.
Everyone must meet Jesus.
There is no way you can escape meeting Jesus. But here he is with Republicans and sinners. But this other group, the Pharisees and scribes, they were the religious ones of the day. They thought they were good enough as they were. They thought I don't need to repent any in any way.
I'm religious, I'm good enough.
And so Jesus tells a parable in which these two groups are reflected. And as I read this parable, notice it's one parable, but it has three parts and the first part is about a a man that had 100 sheep.
And one gets lost. The second part is about a woman.
In a house who has 10 pieces of silver, one gets lost. The third part is about a father who had two son, one gets lost.
The amazing thing is that the last one when he's found causes more joy than all the rest that thought they were good enough. Where do you stand before God? Do you recognize you're a Sinner?
Or do you think that you're good enough as you are? You know what? I was raised in the meeting, and I think most of you all have been raised in Christian homes.
And I never got into The Dirty side of this world as I was growing up.
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With the time came when I had to recognize I was as lost as any of those bad people out there that I might have despised because of my sin. I was lost and I needed to be saved. It's an individual thing. You might be a part of a Christian family. That's great.
I'm not speaking against it, but I say you have to come to the conclusion.
That you personally, you need salvation in the Lord Jesus.
And so let me read this parable to me. It's a beautiful parable. He spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you having 100 sheep, if you lose one of them does not leave the 90 and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it. And when he had found it, he layeth it on his shoulders.
Rejoicing, And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them.
Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.
I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one Sinner that repenteth over more than over 90 and nine just persons which need no repentance.
Second part Either one woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it. And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors together, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the peace which I had lost.
Likewise I say unto you, there is.
Joy in the presence of the angels of God over one Sinner that repenteth.
3rd Part. And he said, A certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto him his living. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and.
They're wasted his substance with riotous living.
And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land, and he began to be in want, And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine, and he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat.
And no man gave unto him.
And when he came to himself, he said, how many higher servants of my father's?
Have bread and enough despair, and I perish with hunger.
I will arise and go to my Father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. Make me as one of thy hired servants. And he arose and came to his Father, and when he was a great, he had a great way off. His father saw him, and had compassion.
And ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
The sun said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the Father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet, and bring hit her the fatted calf, and kill it, and let us eat and be merry, for this my son was.
Dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found and they began.
To be merry Now his elder son was in the field, and as he came.
And drew Knight to the house, he heard music and dancing, and he called one of his servants, and asked what these things meant. And he said unto him, Thy brother is come, and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. And he was angry, and would not go. In Therefore came his father out.
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And entreated him, And he answering, said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee.
Neither transgressed I at anytime thy commandment, and yet thou never gave us me a kid that I might make merry with my friends.
But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, has killed for them the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meat that we should make merry and be glad for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again, and was lost.
And is found. So we have this parable.
Of three parts, the first part a man that has 100 sheep. Second part a woman in a house.
And the third part of Father, who has two sons in this parable, we see that the whole Godhead is in operation to bring about your blessing if you are lost in sin. And that's where you are, whether you recognize it or recognize it or not.
But the first part I want to talk about first is I figure out the Lord Jesus.
And it's interesting to me there were 100 sheep.
One got lost.
You know what, if I have $100 in my pocket and I lose a dollar, I'm not going to be that concerned about it, OK? I still got 99 in there. I'm not going to worry about that dollar that's lost. Is that the way God is? I don't know how many people are here tonight, but if there's 100 people.
And there's just one that's lost. I want to tell you, come.
Is interested in you. He is not satisfied that you are lost.
And so this man with the 100 sheep, what does he do? He lives the 99 in the wilderness.
And he goes after that, which is lost.
How long does he go after it?
Notice what it says at the end of the verse until he find it.
How long was that? Doesn't say, but I want to tell you about this story of the Lord Jesus Christ, the one who went after the lost sheep until he found it, what it cost him.
The awful.
Death of the Cross of Calvary went back to pick up this.
Poem I printed out at home. It's the song that was put to music by Is that Mister Sankey?
In the last century, or the century before, I guess it was now we'd have to say. But here's the third stands of it, and I it touches me to the heart.
None of the ransomed ever knew.
How deep were the waters crossed, nor how dark was the night?
The Lord passed through. There he found his sheep that was lost out in the desert. He heard its cry.
Was sick and helpless and ready to die.
And the ransom never knew how deep were the waters crossed or hard died Was the night the Lord passed through where he found his sheep when it was lost, Do you think he stopped and halfway and said, oh, I don't know if this is worth the sacrifice. Just one sheep. I still got 90 and nine. No, that's not our God. Our God is interested in every single one.
And if you're here without salvation, he wants to save you tonight.
And he went to extreme lengths to save you.
Yes, he went to that cross of Calvary, and that story is a story that just enraptures my heart every time I think about it.
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The Lord Jesus, before he went to that cross, went out to pray.
In a garden called Gethsemane. And he prayed, Father, if thou be willing, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless not my will, but thine be done. And his sweat, as it were great drops of blood. Everything in His holy character shrunk from the idea of contact with sin. And yet He went straight forward, because there was no other way.
That you and I could be saved, but that he go and that he suffered.
That awful cross. And so he went forward, and they stretched out his arms and his feet, and they nailed him to that cross outside the city of Jerusalem.
His head crowned with thorns, his face disfigured with the blows of those Roman soldiers.
And there he hung from 9:00 in the morning till noon.
And then came the night. Darkness covered the face of the earth. Nobody could see what was happening in those hours from 12 noon to three in the afternoon. But God is holy, and if he's going to forgive your sin, somebody has to pay the price. It cannot be swept under the rug. And so in those three hours of darkness, God laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Of divine judgment broken all his fury on the head of our Savior.
You don't have any cry from that center cross in those three hours of darkness.
Silence until the very end. There's a cry. My God, My God, what has thou forsaken me? Will never understand. The only one that did fully. The will of God. Forsaken of God. How can you explain that? You know how I explain that?
God is a savior God, and He wants you in his house above.
That's what it cost him. That's how far he had to go to find that sheep that was lost.
Notice what he does when he finds that sheep.
In verse five, when he had found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
Oh, the joy that God has when a Sinner comes to repentance. He could have said, You honored little sheep, now get on home, get on home.
Nope.
He picks it up. He lays it on His shoulders. Now if you go back to the book of Isaiah Chapter 9, you'll find that the Lord Jesus in the coming day is going to have the government on His shoulder, only one shoulder. He holds up the government of this world.
But when it is the matter of returning a lost sheep to the fold, he puts it on his shoulders. And how far does he go with it on his shoulders?
Come on, He comes home. It's he's in all the way home. Savior, He will not abandon you in halfway. No, He's going to take you all the way home To me. It is such a beautiful thing.
When he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying with them, saying unto them, Rejoice with me.
God is a God of joy, and he will rejoice in those that have come to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven.
Over 1 Sinner that repenteth.
More than over 90 and nine just persons which need no repentance.
Repentance. What is that?
You know it comes from the Latin word.
Repent is to think in Spanish. It's Pensac.
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So repent means to rethink. It means a change in your thinking.
Yes, you start in here in America. I'm going to have my life the way I want to do it, and I don't want anybody messing with me. I'll do it just like I wanted you.
You know what, you need to repent. You need to change your thinking. That kind of thinking is going to take you in the wrong direction. And so that's one thing that's important in salvation. Repentance will not save you. It's faith in Christ that will save you. But repentance is necessary.
The Lord Jesus says in the Luke's Gospel. Here too, he says.
Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Repentance is important. It's necessary.
So next we have the woman in verse 8A figure of the Holy Spirit of God, because the Holy Spirit of God dwells in the House of Christian profession today.
And what does the Holy Spirit do?
Notice she has 10 pieces of silver. 10 is of is a number of human responsibility. God put man in the Old Testament under 10 commandments to see if men could perform. Was there anybody, anybody that could gain God's favor that way? You know the answer. Nobody. Absolutely.
No. As to our responsibility, we.
Have failed. You know, people talk about free will. I have free will. I'll do what I want to do.
You know what? Since there's sin in your life, you do not have free will. You're not free to do. You might will to do something, but you're not free to do it. But you are responsible, and that's the better word to use instead of free will. You are responsible before God. And so there's one piece that was lost. What does she do?
She lights a candle and sweeps the house.
And seeks diligently till she finds it. To me, this is a tremendously.
Powerful figure of what is true in the Christian profession today.
Lost in the house?
Is it possible that there are those who have professed faith in the Lord Jesus and are in the House of professing Christendom but our lust, Yes, that is the case. And it's tragic. So many people think, oh, I was baptized.
I'm all right.
I don't know you are.
Lost in the house. We have a case in the book of the Acts of a man in Acts chapter 8, Simon the sorcerer, he did his magic tricks. He had the people of Samaria hoodwinked that he was some great person.
And people listened to him until there was a power that was greater that came to Samaria. It was the power of God and the gospel.
Philip came there preaching the Gospel, and many were saved.
And so Simon said, hmm, I see I'm getting left behind here. I think I better join the crowd. And so it says, it actually says Simon believed and was baptized.
Was he saved?
The problem with Simon there was number repentance. He was a great one as a sorcerer. Now he wanted to be a great one in the House of God.
No repentance. So later on he shows his true colors to Peter and Peter says repent of this your sin.
If perhaps God will give the repentance to the acknowledging of the truth.
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And you know what Simon said to him. Pray for me that none of these terrible things will come upon me.
Simon was lost in the house.
And there is no record that Simon ever got saved. Tragic. Is it possible that there's somebody here? You know, when I think of Jesus is 12 apostles?
And of those 12?
One was faked. Judas Iscariot had the other apostles so convinced that he was real.
That when the Lord Jesus said, One of you shall betray me, the son of perdition.
Woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It were better for that man if he had never been born.
The disciples said Are you talking about me? Is it me? They didn't know who it was he was referring to until Judas saddened.
Is it me? And the Lord said yes. So Judas got up and went out and did what he had planned to do.
Never any repentance with Judas.
He was filled with remorse afterwards because the plan he had made-up didn't work out like he thought it should.
But he never truly repented.
And Judas isn't a lost eternity. So close, so far.
For me, it scares me and I must say I think I've maybe told this story before of a young man we met when we first moved to Bolivia.
We arrived in 1975 in Monterrey, Bolivia and bought a lot right next door to the meeting room to build a house on, and the brother we contracted to build a house had a young man working for him. His name was called Jaime Martinez.
And he was coming to the meetings, he was baptized, he was breaking bread. He actually on some weekends when we go out to visit some of the other meetings, he would accompany us. But after we got done building the house, I lost contact with him because he went off somewhere else to work.
And sometime later, I met him in the marketplace in Santa Cruz. I said, Jaime, where have you been? He says I'll be coming back to meeting. I'll be coming back to meeting.
So I'm not talking about coming back to meeting, I just want to know how you've been.
Anyhow, didn't see him anymore for a while. If you've ever been to Montero, Bolivia, they have. They use their motorcycles as taxis in that town. You just get on the back of a motorcycle and take you where you want to go and you pay them the fee.
These motorcycle taxis started turning up dead.
They'd find them out and some abandoned Rd. on the side of the road dead.
They couldn't figure out who did it.
One day.
They found a guy that had been shot in the head.
But it hadn't killed him.
Him. Evidently the bullet had gone around the side of his skull and.
They brought him into the hospital and he recovered and told who it was.
Jaime Martinez was arrested and put in the prison there in Monterrey, Bolivia. People in Montero were so incensed that they mobbed the prison and they had to transfer him to another city.
But he at that time it was a military government in Bolivia.
And in examining him, he confessed to having killed 12 People. He would take their motorcycles and sell them.
And I heard him speak a message that was broadcast on the radio.
Instead of being any repentance, he vowed to do even worse things if he got out.
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So one day the police under a military government, they handled justice matters a little different than under democracy. They took him out into the country police to investigate where he had sold one of the.
Motorcycles.
And as they were standing there.
Jaime started running for the forest, for the jungle.
They said stop, He didn't stop. The police took out their pistols and.
Jaime Martinez went into a lost eternity.
I tell you, it shook me to the core. Is it possible as someone that I broke bread with is in a lost eternity in hell in torments right now?
Yes, it's possible. That's why it's so important we get it straight. Where are you sitting there? But you know you haven't accepted in a personal way the Lord Jesus Christ as your own Savior. I ask you to get serious with God.
To face the matter of your sin, one sin is enough to keep us out of heaven forever.
And God is not going to allow any sin to go unpunished. Either you accept what Jesus did for you on the cross as payment for your sins, or you yourself will pay in a lost eternity for your sins forever. It's way too important.
Get it straight please. Young people they were. Those that are older as well haven't made a decision.
Remember a lady one of our conferences down in Bolivia?
We were studying.
The Lord's coming.
Like we have been today.
And.
She came up to us afterwards, after the day she was she'd been baptized, She was breaking bread. But she said to me, you know what, I see it now. I'm not ready. I haven't done the transaction yet.
When I first came, they told me what to say, the prayer to pray, and I did it all and I thought I was all right.
And I was baptized and now I see it. It's a personal thing. I've got to accept it myself. And she kneeled down and confessed the Lord as her Savior there. Oh, it was a happy day. She came to repentance. And that is so important. And notice this is the case here in verse 10. It mentions repentance again.
Likewise I say unto you, there is joy.
In the presence of the angels of God, it doesn't say that the angels rejoice.
What does it say in the presence of the ancients of God? Who is it talking about? It's God's joy when a Sinner comes to repentance because he can meet him right where he is. It doesn't matter what kind of history you have, God can meet you there and bring you into His presence.
With joy.
Now the third part. And he said a certain man had two sons.
Younger thus said to his father, Father, give me.
Give me that's what happens so oftentimes.
Sons say to their fathers, Give me.
And he took his goods, portion of goods, and he gathered it all together and took his journey into a far country. Let me get as far away from my old man as I possibly can.
And what did he do?
There he wasted his substance with riotous living.
You know, if you spend your money just to have a good time, you know what you're doing.
You're wasting your substance.
That's not going to bring you lasting joy, and it so happens that when your pocket is full of money.
00:40:05
There's plenty of friends to gather around when the money is gone.
The friends have a way of disappearing too, and so it came to pass when he had spent all Verse 14.
There arose a mighty famine in that land, and he began to be in one.
And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and sent him into his field to speed swine. Anything so I can have a bite of food.
And as he sat there, said he went fain and filled his belly with the husks. The swine did he, and no man gave to him, sitting there watching those pigs eat those husks, and he wished that somebody would give him some husks.
You know that's what this world gives to try to satisfy a soul.
In their spiritual hunger, the hunger of their soul. Sometimes I watch people like file out of a theater.
The movies and watch to see if there's anybody that really, truly looks happy.
Oh yeah, they might be laughing.
But I really don't see that they're happy.
They're still hungry inside.
But notice.
Verse 17 When he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bred nothing to spare, and I perish with hunger. I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him.
Father, I've sinned before heaven and against heaven, and before Thee, and I'm no more worthy to be called Thy Son. Make me as one of Thy hired servants.
All this he's saying as he's sitting still there with the pigs, watching them eat.
The other two parts speak specifically of repentance. This last part doesn't speak of repentance, but this is an illustration of what repentance is. He came to himself. All of a sudden there was a change of thinking. Look, what in the world am I doing here? Hungry.
And watching those pigs when my father has.
Plenty enough in his house.
It has plenty of servants that have all they can eat. What am I doing? There's a change of thinking. That's what repentance is. That's why it's so important that you repent.
So notice what he does verse 20. After he's repented, he arose and came to his father.
And this next part is so beautiful. When he was yet.
A great way off, his father saw him.
And had compassion and ran and fell on his neck.
I kissed him. Oh, God runs to meet the repentance Sinner. I think this is so beautiful.
He runs to meet the Repentance Center.
He didn't say when he got to him. He said now you get cleaned up so I can give you a hug. No, he hugs him just as he is. I want to tell you God loves you just as you are. You don't have to do any clean up. Act for God to love you. He loves you just as you are.
And so the Sun comes out with his prayer confession that he'd made-up notice.
Verse 21. The Son said unto him, Father.
I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight.
And then no more worthy to be called thy son.
Hey, he forgot the last part.
He was going to say, make me as one of thy hired servants. Why doesn't he say that?
You know why?
He realized his father didn't want anymore hired servants. His father wanted him back at home, at his table with him to enjoy fellowship with him. God has millions upon millions of angels to do his service. He's not looking for more servants. You know what he wants, He wants.
00:45:08
Sons that are repentant of their sins to come back to enjoy the fellowship of His table in His house.
What he wants.
And So what does the father say? He interrupts the sign in verse 22, the father said to his servants.
Bring forth the best robe and put it on him.
He couldn't go into the father's house in those filthy rags.
That he had on. He had been with the pigs.
Couldn't go bring forth the father says Bring forth the best Rd. put it on him.
And Isaiah says you have to close me with the robes of righteousness.
The believing Sinner is justified by faith in Christ, so that God looks at him as clothed in the righteousness of God by faith in Christ. What a wonderful thing as he looks at you and me. If we trust in the Lord Jesus, He sees us completely.
Righteous. That's the best robe.
And the second thing.
Put a ring on his hand.
A ring is what we use in our culture.
To show.
Next month it'll be 45 years that I put a ring on that lady's finger.
And if you look at that ring, you know she belongs to somebody. She belongs to me.
And so when you accept the Lord Jesus as your Savior, he puts a seal on you. It's the Spirit of God that is the seal for security. You belong to Him. You do no longer belong to yourself. And so put a ring on his hand and.
Shoes on his feet. You know what I hear sometimes people say? You know why I don't? I'm not a Christian. I could never, ever walk the way a Christian should walk. Never could do it. You know what I tell them? I say, you know what? I never could do it either. But when I accepted the Lord Jesus as my Savior, He put shoes on my feet.
He gave me the power to walk as a Christian should walk.
And then there's one more thing here.
Verse.
23 Bring hit her the fatted calf, and kill it, And let us eat and be merry, so that there could be a feast of joy.
There had to be death.
Let me tell you, dear brother and sister in the Lord Jesus. And if you are not a brother or sister yet, let me tell you too.
That the greatest joy is because there's been a victim that has been killed, and now there will be a feast that will last forever. Notice what it says at the end of verse 24. They be.
To be married.
In verse 14 it talks about the prodigal son in the far country. He began to be in want, but now.
They began to be married. Oh, the joy that comes from truly knowing the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior.
A being reconciled to God of being able to come into the Father's house.
To sit down at the Father's table to enjoy fellowship there. Oh, what a privilege it is.
But notice.
There's an elder son outside.
And the elder son.
Comes up and he hears the music and the dancing and he couldn't figure it out so he asked his servant.
And they say thy brother is come, and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. He was angry. People that are religious can't understand grace, and it'll only make him angry.
00:50:11
Where do you fit in this picture?
I trust that you're not as the.
Older prodigal son. He was prodigal too, because his father said come in and he would not go in. He had never gotten that far away, but in heart he was a long ways away from his father. He said to his father, you never gave me a kid that I can make merry with my friends. He didn't want to make merry with his father. He wanted to make Mary with his friends.
He was a long ways off.
He never repented. He never got the blessing.
You see the picture of the two groups that we spoke about the beginning of the meeting.
The Pharisees and the Scribes. Oh how sad.
Because they think they're good enough, they will never get into the Father's house to enjoy the Father's fellowship.
So I appeal to you. There's somebody here that still hasn't accepted the Lord as their savior, still hasn't made a personal decision.
Because it is a very personal thing you have to accept for yourself.
I plead with you.
To not let this opportunity go as we bow our heads right where you are.
Make that decision, open your heart, say Lord Jesus, I accept you, I repent of my sins, and I accept you as my Savior.
There is any question that I can help clarify after the meeting, I'll be sitting over here and you can come and ask me. Be glad to talk with you.
Be Watchful, Stand Fast, Be Strong
Do People Know You Are a Christian?
Children—David So
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Have your hand up, I'll remember you next number.
We will sing the 1St and the last verses. Is that OK? Hymn #23 Behold, behold the Lamb of God now It's lovely to hear younger child too to choose a hymn like this. The Lamb of God and someone raised the tune please.
All right, who? We have to. Oh, you had your hand up. Go ahead.
Hymn #27.
Is it OK we're seeing just the first and last one OK? Can someone raise their tune for us please hymn #27?
One with the voice. Aha.
#25.
Can we sing the first and last verse of that as well? Thank you #25 Can someone raise the tune please?
00:05:03
Like everybody, by the way, it was going to be right.
I'm going to be in the light.
I can't call. I can trust with my name and finish using time.
Singing a warning voice. May the Lord your hide his voice, who has a holy world.
The longer way you may find your own way and your life is considered.
Now, I think I heard wrong. Did you give out 25 or 45? It is 25. OK, I thought I heard you wrong, but this is nice. Oh, OK, We'll sing one more than I want to have a story for you. OK.
40 Oh, that's thing the first and last verse about Jesus loves me. This I know you know, this is such a lovely hymn. I I don't know of hardly anyone in this world, at least the English speaking world that don't know of this hymn. And brother Bill would remember when we were younger, we visited a place called Seeton House. This is where.
Men have no place to live and they give them a bed and.
The older one used to go down and preach Jesus to them and you look at these hardened men.
They have no homes, they have a terrible life. Most of them were taken over by the influence of alcohol and other things, and when we asked them, hymns they like.
This still was one of the favorites. They may be as a world car down and under. They still know this hymn. Perhaps they learned it when they were young. So it's a lovely hymn, isn't it? To recognize and remember in your heart that Jesus loves me. Not only that, he says Jesus loves me. This I know.
Do you know that? How do we know that? For the Bible tells me so Let's sing this together. Someone started him. Please.
Jesus.
Strong.
Believing yes, it is not lost me.
00:10:18
Yesterday.
If some of you remember, we talked about darkness and light, yes, we talked about many things and I heard various ones commented on that even in the course of our conversation afterwards. Light, There's something different about light. You know, sometimes people say light is the opposite of darkness or darkness is the opposite of light. Now, I don't believe that's true.
There's a big contrast because if this room have no light, it would be darkness. You can't take darkness into a room full of light, can it? Light dispel darkness.
A light also stands out.
I brought something with me. I know some of you already saw me walk in.
I'm going to put this on.
When you see someone.
I hope I can put it on with my shoes on.
When you see someone with this on, does it mean anything? What I just put on was a payoff. Bright orange overall with fluorescent light. Her fluorescent stripes on it so it can be seen from a long way. Have you ever seen people wear this?
What do you think when you see someone with one of these on? What do you think of that person?
Oh, I need to borrow perhaps a phone. What do you think when you see someone have this?
Need to watch out. You need to watch out. Oh, that's interesting. Yeah. Especially if you're driving. You want to make sure you see a worker down there. You need to be careful. He's not a target, is he? I know some of you boys play this video game. It is fun to run things over, isn't it? Then you go, oh, I got two points. I got six points. What else does this tells you?
Does it tell you anything about the person who?
Oh, they're probably construction workers.
That's that's a good deduction. I see a lot of construction workers wear something like this. Any other thought?
Okay.
Traffic off and to realize that for people to cross something could be actually it's more tell the traffic to be careful. It stands out, doesn't it? You know, I, I noticed that one night I had looking for something in the dark, I turned the flashlight on and I noticed these reflectors. There's a reason why they put these reflectors on.
It really shine and you see it from a distance. So how are we? You know the word of God says we should be workmen. Do you think of this as a Workman when you see a man with this on actually could be a woman.
Story behind this one, I'll tell you a bit more. This belonged to a woman.
They couldn't find one that fit me, so they had to find a woman's size small enough that I can have.
It's a Workman, isn't it? Now here's the problem that we as workmen do We let people know we are workmen. Are you a Workman?
What do workmen do? They sometimes wear certain uniform. And someone suggested this must be a construction guy's uniform, right? And then maybe I come in with a set of blue overall and you say, oh, he's probably working the warehouse. There's something. What about you and I? Do you have a uniform on that someone can tell you are a Workman?
You know, it's funny, I'm a Workman, but I wear a different uniform. Sometimes I put a tie and a jacket on.
Because what my line of work? That's my uniform.
00:15:01
Do you have one that the world knows you are a Christian?
Do you have something to tell the world that you stand out?
Now I'm going to do something else for a second. I'm going to kick this off and just.
Another problem we have.
I'm going to take this off and you're going to see that I still have balance, right?
Who would like to try this out? Yeah, you try this out.
So she's going to get into this?
Does she look like a Workman now?
Huh.
Something's not right.
What's wrong with that outfit?
She looked like a frog person with a big flipper's on.
Anyone else want to try this?
Anyone in the front row see if they fit them.
Boys, no. OK, so sometimes too. You know what we do, children, We we like what the other workmen do and we follow what they do. But maybe it's not what the Lord has for us. It's not always good, a brother read yesterday. The harvest is ready, but laborers a feel a few.
There's a lot of work to be done, but is that your calling? Do you remember David?
David was before sauce. So I said you OK? You going to go fight that giant? I'm going to let you wear my armor. Can you picture David in his armor? It would be like this. And her It doesn't fit. So we need to get our own uniform to show the world, don't we?
Now then there's the other side. There's always a story behind a story. So many of you suggested that this was a construction worker.
I don't know how many of you, and I'm sure there's some engineers here. Let's see.
Adam, you can read What does this say?
OK, I know you're always told don't use a cell phone in meeting. I know many of you sneak and do it, so I'm going to let you do that. This thing says HRC 2.
How many of you know what that means? That means this uniform has a special rating.
Yeah, pull your phone out. It's OK for now. For the next two minutes, you can Google HRC 2.
Google is slow in here I guess.
Well, I'll tell you then they can look and see if I'm right. This is not a construction worker's clothing. HRC two sets. It can withstand 240 calories per centimeter square.
See a big mark is about 680 calories. We know that right? Wait a minute, I believe this calories use the capital letter C and you go look after under a Big Mac, they use the little C, not exactly the same calories, right?
What's a calorie? See, that's interesting, isn't it, that we need to be to be a good Workman, you need to know the insurance and outs of things, not just as the word of God said, the outward appearance. Now your children ready to memorize this one calorie?
I hope I remember that.
One calorie is the energy required to raise.
1°C on one gram of water and one atmospheric pressure. Got that? OK good, I just repeated that I have no idea what it says. I looked it up too.
This here.
Is for power worker with electricity because there's always a danger on what they call an arc flash. This is like an electrical explosion and often these electrical workers not do they get executed, they actually get burned badly. So this is for workers to avoid the burnt.
HRC is one of the lowest level 2 is the lowest grade but is better than nothing. Now as you can see, I'm not a real worker. I pretend to have one of these because he was given to me and he can see I work on my cars with it just to have an overall. That's why it's dirty. But isn't it interesting that?
00:20:19
We need to know, just like the Bible.
How many people have said bye Paul, it's just all fables? Why do you read that?
But yet I know many in this room can tell us the pressure. Oh yes.
I'm sorry. OK, now you say that again.
That's good to get knowledge, but what is heavenly knowledge, isn't it? And knowledge that this world doesn't see. When you don't know that you're just an Oval. I can go to Walmart and spend five nights one of these, or electrical worker will have to spend $600 to get one of them.
Is it different? Do you know the preciousness in the word of God?
Do you know that the word of God tells us a lot of things pertaining to life and godliness? You know, I'll tell you another story. It may be for the old, somewhat older to understand this. There was a brother that used to be in fellowship with us. It didn't really take much part. I'm not sure how much he knows, and he doesn't think he knows a lot about scriptural things, but something got him upset one day so he left.
We hear stories like that, don't we? He went to this church and because he knew more than the rest of the people, they made him an elder right away.
Because they said, you know, the word of God, He said, no, I don't how many of us feel like that We don't know the word of God that well, but.
He was made an elder. So one day they had problems and the elders get together and by the way the elders so-called is not according to the word of God. So they made a decision and he said wait a minute, this is not right. He said well what's wrong with it? So he opened up his Bible and he told them from the word of God, I don't believe this is right. So they took his advice and they made a different decision.
On the way out they said to him the next meeting, do not bring your Bible because you messed everything up.
What does this do? It tells us more about the Word of God pertaining to life and godliness.
Now we should be as good workmen.
And learned.
But then sometimes things happened. I brought another one. Some of you may have seen me wore this for the last few some winters.
What is this?
Now I'll give you a hint right away. It stands out. It does stand out. I have people remark that I can see you're half a mile away.
What do you think this is?
Probably like the code that you have with the overall matching code. With the overall it's like.
The boy's uniforms were working. Boy's uniform for working. Any other guesses?
Cover your arms. Covered. That's good. All right. Let me tell you.
In the business world, there are things called pride. How many of you heard of that word Pride. A5 letter word.
PR. What's in the middle? PR.
What is it?
I. I is the middle word, right? PRIDE in the middle of it all is me.
Well, how is this code? What does this coach got to do with me? So when you're in a company with many people, they have different ranks. They call it them pay grades. This code is only for managers. You notice how clean it is or how much cleaner it is. Workers, the workmen were overhauls. The managers wear this and I was told as a manager.
You're not a button up or zipper up your coat because you need to make sure they can see you have a jacket underneath. So when you walk around you know you're one of the managers.
00:25:01
Isn't it interesting pride? Sometimes we can make people know we are Christians.
Do we do it because we want to tell for the story of God's grace, telling them that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and the apostle Paul would even say I'm the worst of them all and they came to save me. Are we better when we can proclaim the gospel of God's grace? No, but sometimes some would think they are better.
I saw the news the other day. This preacher was so good.
So many people listened to his preaching and now he has so much money that he was buying his third private airplane. He said he deserved it.
Pride can easily come in. Now the rating on this quote, I can show you the tag is worn out is a lot less. But why is that? Because it's really only for sure. The effectiveness of this code is not that important. It's just to say, hey, look, I'm a manager in this company.
Anyone want to try this to see if he can show off? I'll let someone else this time I'll say, oh, anyone else want to try see what you look like in someone else's coat? All right, come on up.
Let's put this on.
How does she look?
I think I look like a Penguin.
You think you look like a Penguin. Well, we have to thank you.
Back to that same thought is we need to know what the Lord has for us. Now I want to leave with you just one verse. I purposely did not turn to many scriptures because I find often there's so much going on we can remember what I want to go to the first epistle of John first John, as we sometimes call it.
Maybe if someone could help me now where you set we they tried the spirit?
I thought it was.
Chapter 4 yes, thank you. Now chapter 4 verse.
Three, and every spirit that confesseth nod that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God. And this is that spirit of Antichrist, that wherefore ye have heard it, that it should come, and even now already in this world.
Now I'm going to reread this, but starting from verse 2 here. Know ye the Spirit of God, Every spirit that consensus that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is God.
How is that going together? Well, just like this.
How wordly it looked the same.
There are so many people professed to be Christians, and I'm glad they say they're Christians rather than others.
But many don't believe in the Word of God, as the Word of God teaches us.
You know, I was sad to hear that a major religious organization.
They said they found that most of the ministers are atheists. They go, that's OK, it's not OK because they don't believe that Jesus is the son of God. They don't even believe that there is a God.
So we need to look deeper than just what the outward we often use that God judges not by the outward appearance, but look into the heart. That's what our actions. But with people we're with, we have to be very careful, don't we? Do they believe that Jesus, the Son of God who came into this world as a man?
That's what he meant by in flesh. There he lived, he did good, and then we, as men said, crucified him.
00:30:04
We do not want this man to reign over and we nail him to the cross.
This is the gospel story, as sad as it may sound. It's the gospel story that God's Son came into the world so that he can die for you and I, and that's the only way of salvation. I'm going to stop here.
I understand the verses.
To be set, how many of you memorize your verses?
Good.
I need somebody to help me pass this out. So for saying the verses you've got two choices. I have no idea what this stuff is.
Beirut.
I know what kit kats are. I like kit kats.
Now, I have to confess this part. We bought this on our way down here. I didn't realize how hot Kentucky is and how much harder it is inside the car. So forewarned you that I'm not sure exactly what state these chocolate bars are in. Yeah, if you can open it for me. Thank you. But you're welcome to have it. I think they still taste the same weather as well.
Different shape.
OK, who's going to You have your hand up, am I right? Yeah, go ahead.
Believe.
It.
Leonardo's fries, naturally, said, accepting 31.
Allergies, Christ, and now, shall we say, Acts 1631.
Believe her Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Acts 1631. I can't believe these four boys know us so well. Do I need to go around? We do. Maybe we should just stop here and give them the candy bars and.
No. OK. Benji, would you like to say it?
OK, you snack up to say it. Go ahead, believe.
These choirs thou shalt be shade Arkansas search Tampa thank you.
And I miss someone. I'll come right back.
Believe on the way Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Act 1631. Act 1631. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.
Cleveland Allergies Christ and that shall be saved X 1631 Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 1631 Did I miss anyone? Oh.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 1631. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 1631. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 1631.
If I miss you, you can say it to your parents and you can come up after meeting to get one of the rewards. That's a wonderful verse. We be repeated it about 15 times. Believe, you know, the story goes somewhat like this. It was the Philippian jailers, wasn't it? They set the paw and Silas, sirs, one must I do to be saved.
Oh, they really wanted a good answer.
And Paul and Silas can reply back, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. You know what I really enjoy about that verse? If you look it up, it says believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. And there's a little comma, a little comma after that verse. And then they go on and they said and thine house.
Isn't it precious to know that He wants you to be saved and the blessings come through the whole household as well?
We have time for a couple more hymns.
Oh, I didn't you and then you OK, You first #41 I'll come right back to you #41 Oh, this is precious.
Around the throne.
00:35:01
Singing Glory.
3032.
Nothing is a great.
What can one?
Because we'll have to make me whole life here, not before the world.
Is wrong. Oh crap.
May see why I saw.
00:40:24
All we pray. I think I should sum up what we say. We talk a lot about different things. I don't know about you children. I have trouble with this. Whenever I leave a conference, someone else will say, did you enjoy it? I go, yes, it was nice. What did they talk about? I don't know.
I have trouble recalling a lot of things, so I want to help you. Just maybe little things you can say. Well, Mr. So brought all these ugly uniforms. No, no, that's not what it was for, was it? Maybe just two thoughts to sum it up. One.
We as Christian should stand out. We're meant to be peculiar, aren't we? We're peculiar people. Does the world know that we are His?
How are we to shine for the Lord? Now? Don't ask your mom and dad to buy one of those. That's not the idea, OK? We all have different ways to shine for the Lord. That's one. Can you remember that? How do we shine for the Lord 2?
Test everything with the Word of God. There's a lot more to it than what people have to say. What does the word of God has to say? The word of God should have the final word.
That two things how do we shine for the Lord and test everything with the word of God. And really, before you can test it, you need to know what's in the word of God. You have to study to show thyself. Approve as that workmen need not to be ashamed.
I AM
Address—Don Rule
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
#212 called from above, and heavenly men by birth.
Who once were about the citizens of Earth?
As pilgrims here, we seek a heavenly home.
Our portion in the age is yet to come.
And my God will pray.
Close.
To the education, oh heavenly God, let me know why you're nervous at times. All sorts of you sleep the grass I've seen.
If we were conscious of what we were just doing, we were talking to the Lord.
In song form, but nonetheless directly speaking to the Lord.
Turn with me to the Gospel of John and the Lords Prayer.
Found in chapter 17.
John, Chapter 17.
And verse 13 to start.
And now I come to thee.
And these things I speak in the world.
That they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
There are a number of things in this prayer that the Lord Jesus speaks of as His own.
And some of these things in His prayer, He wants to share with us and pass on to us to have them with Himself. And this afternoon we're going to give emphasis to this one thing that was His, that He desires that you have it. It's His prayer. And I trust this afternoon that He will use what He asked of the Father.
To fulfill.
Some of what he has expressed in this prayer.
For you and for me here, he says in this verse 13.
He's praying, he says, that they may have my joy.
Fulfilled in themselves.
Think of that.
Words are easy to say, but think of the meaning of it for yourself personally.
Lord Jesus is here saying to his Father, Father, I want those.
Of my own children, of your children, those whom you have given me, who are gathered together in Mayfield, KY, on this Lord's Day to have my joy.
To have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
Lord Jesus himself had a joy.
He had a joy in this life when he was here living.
And he anticipated while he was here, a joy that he was going to have after this life was over.
And so as he expresses it here, as he's about to leave this world, the end of his life had come, as he could say, as the divine Son of God. Earlier I finished the work earlier in the chapter in the prayer, I finished the work which you have given me to do. And now he was returning to the Father.
Who had sent him into this world?
But while he was here, we may give emphasis at times, and rightly so, and we did this morning to the suffering side.
00:10:09
In which He also wished His disciples, to the extent that they could, to be with Him and to enter into it that suffering. In anticipation of the Cross. He said that you might be with me, and that we might have this time together and anticipation.
This morning.
That there was number more anticipation for him.
That suffering had gone through. He had accomplished it.
But His soul still has it in my remembrance. And he wanted, he desired that you and I sit down with him this morning and remember what He passed through. So for us, it's in remembrance. For the disciples it was an anticipation, even though they didn't really enter into it very much, the very fact that He was with them.
Was a comfort to his heart at that time. But this morning?
His sufferings were fresh in his own soul.
And as he can, I say, remembered them.
My soul hath them still in remembrance, as the Prophet says in lamentations. He said as it were to us this morning, I want you to get sit down with me and let's remember together.
Well, here he's Speaking of a joy that he had, that his prayer was that that same joy that he experienced might be also fulfilled in your life.
And mine that you and I this afternoon might enter in.
To the same character of joy that was characteristic of his life. And so the question can quite naturally be asked, well, how? What is the joy? What is it that he experienced that he wants you to experience as he did?
And if you do, you will have the shared joy of having experienced the same as he did forever. And that's important.
To recognize as well that the things that you and I share in this life, if they are of Christ and not of the flesh, those things will be enjoyed together for eternity.
And the Lord Jesus wants us to experience things.
That he experienced so that we might have that shared.
Common memory for our blessing and benefit for ever. One of them here is joy, The other one. Another one. Not the only one. Another one is service.
Another one is sorrow.
Do you want to know the heart of the Lord?
You have to pass through sorrow, not the same measure that he did, but you have to experience it as something common to yourself and himself, that it might be shared together. And so the joy that he wants you and I to experience as we pass through life is that which.
Will go right on into eternity.
And be shared together forever.
In order.
To.
Share enjoy with himself as he expresses it in this prayer.
You have to and I have to enter in to the same relationship that he had.
The same character, at least a relationship that he had with his father as he passed through his life.
The very first.
Words of the Lord Jesus in resurrection.
Were the letting loose in his own heart that now he was going to be able to share and they were going to be able to share with him something that he had enjoyed in his whole life here that they hadn't enjoyed, but now they were going to be able to enjoy with him.
00:15:17
And in entering into it with him, we're going to be able to have his joy fulfilled in themselves. And that is I ascend to my father.
And your Father, and to my God and your God. You can't have his joy if you don't have the same Father.
His joy was intimately connected with his own relationship to his father.
In daily life he had that constant fellowship and communion as sent by his father here into this world to do a work that he was doing, and he found his daily joy. I delight, he says, to do thy will.
Oh my God, and so is a man here on earth. He found his joy in doing the will of his Father.
And God.
If you're going to have his joy.
Fulfilled in yourself, you have to have the same relationship and you have to have the same walk as well.
I delight to do thy will, O my God. That was a relationship that could not be. We could not be brought into the disciples could not be brought into it until the work at the cross was finished, and then they could.
They could be brought into that relationship to know God his Father.
We're going to trace a little bit of how that is found. There are four places in John's Gospel where the Lord Jesus.
Speaks these words.
Where I am.
It's four different chapters, 5 different examples and we're going to look at them and the Lord Jesus in speaking those words that where I am.
There you may be also was expressing something in them that I believe has both present application and future as well.
Particularly future as to their fulfillment of it, but as to the walk, it has application now. So let's look at the first of them. And I trust through them our hearts will be led to.
Have a greater appreciation that His love might be fulfilled in US.
Turn to first one in John Chapter 7.
Notice how this chapter starts. It says after these things Jesus walked in Galilee, for he would not walk in jewelry because the Jews sought to kill him. That is, at this point in this gospel, he's a rejected man.
He has presented himself as scent of God to the people.
And he has come forth from the bosom of the Father.
The scent of the father and yet in his heart he dwelled always in the enjoyment of the affections of his father. And so it is to have his joy fulfilled in us. We too need to have the relationship.
And also the enjoyment in our souls that we too are loved as He is loved and have that place with the Father that He had. In that way, we're not uniquely the Son of God, but we are the sons of God. We are the children of God. And so he could say, as the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you.
And that the Father loves us as he loves the Son.
And so here in Chapter 7, he's a rejected man, the people.
Are asking a set of questions. We're not going to read too much, but just to get the thought.
00:20:09
No, we'll just start verse 33. Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while I'm with you. Then I go unto him that sent me.
Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me. And here's the expression.
And where I am.
Thither you cannot come.
Then the Jews among themselves says, Whither will he go that will not be able to find him?
Will he go to the dispersed among the Gentiles and teach of the Gentiles, and so on?
What manner of saying is this, that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me, And whether I am that you cannot come?
If you don't have a living connection, a life that he's given, what we call eternal life, he goes where you can't go.
And I can't go.
No one by knowledge goes to heaven.
For he is.
He had come.
He had presented himself, he had been rejected, and if he's rejected by a soul, you can't be where he is.
You have no place where he is this afternoon.
At the in the Father's house.
But I want to notice something in connection with that that it says have my joy fulfilled in themselves. There is a criteria really identified in this chapter, but it takes some meditation, I think to see it. Notice the last verse they.
Think about the chapters. Here's people and they come and they talk to the Lord Jesus and they have this conversation. He's speaking to them and they're speaking to Him. And as the normally happens, conversations come to an end. You've had conversations at the dinner table and they've come to their end, and now you're not at the dinner table in the next room anymore.
You're back somewhere else, and so these conversations were taking place.
But it's significant how the Spirit of God ends the chapter.
The last verse of the chapter says, And every man went unto his.
Own house.
Every man went to his own house.
Now turn to John. We see the same expression again in this Gospel.
Right at the end, after the Lord's risen from the dead, go to the end of the Gospel in chapter 20.
And we'll see this same expression.
Chapter 20. Verse One. The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark under the sepulchre, and see if the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not.
Where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together.
And the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre, And he stooping down and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying. Yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and see if the linen claws lie, and the napkin that was about his head not lying with linen claws, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw and.
For as yet they knew not the Scriptures, that He must rise again from the dead. Now notice this verse, what they do.
After what we just read.
Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.
You're here at the conference. I'm here at the conference. We anticipate it's going for different ones of us to end at a different time, some to the last meeting, some will have to leave perhaps this afternoon and some tomorrow morning and so on. But where are we going to go when we leave here?
00:25:08
In most cases, it could be these words could be said. We went to our own home.
That's where we anticipate going when we when we leave here. Perhaps most of us do anyways, and that's proper in its place.
But notice one person is different.
Verse 11.
But Mary.
She didn't go to her own home.
But Mary stood without at the sepulchre, weeping.
And as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the sepulchre. And seeth 2 angels and whites sitting.
The one at the head and the other at the feet were the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, Why weepest thou? But she said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him, but when she has thus when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. And Jesus said unto her, Woman, Why weepest though?
Just a woman of joy at this moment.
Why weepest thou whom seek us Thou? She's supposing him to be the gardener, Saith unto him, Sir, if thou hast borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary she turned herself, and saith unto him. Or a bone eye, which is to say, Master.
Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not.
For I have not yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my father, and your father, and to my God and your God.
The Lord was pleased.
To communicate something very precious to his own heart.
To one who would be satisfied with nothing less than himself.
The Lord.
Delights to communicate to your heart.
And to my heart.
What's precious to him when he sees that it's would be precious to our own hearts?
The others, they all had a home.
They went there.
The disciples didn't yet understand the truth of resurrection, and yet John went beyond. Peter in the sense that's recorded here is when he saw what he saw, he believed. Perhaps he remembered what the Lord had said at that point, but nonetheless, what he saw he believed, even though he still went home.
I believe.
In the application of it to us this afternoon is.
To have the Lord's joy fulfilled fully perhaps measures in which it is, but His prayer is that each one of us might enjoy it.
And enter into it and have his joy fulfilled in.
Mary is brought into the relationship of joy with the Father that he had and that he communicated with her, and nothing less could satisfy. But there was a price, if you will, in that sense, to be paid in the chapter that we read in John 7.
At that point, he's hated. What did he have? Did he have a home on Earth? Then? No, he didn't.
He was a rejected man as far as the earth was at that point in his life. Earlier he had a home.
He at some point in his life. From Mark's gospel we know he lived a rather normal life.
Up until the age of 30, and by that point there was a house apparently in Capernaum, where he could go and live when he wasn't otherwise occupied. But when he went out into his service for God to fulfill the purpose for which he had come, and he presents himself, he's rejected. And as a rejected man, he then had.
Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man had nowhere to lay his head. He had no home.
00:30:05
Morally speaking on Earth anymore he couldn't have done.
What the disciples, if you will, and these people did. And to Mary's heart He was everything. And she has the joy of being the 1St to have seen Him in resurrection. And He had the joy of being able to communicate something precious to His own heart with her. And so I present it to you, is to have the joy of the Lord fulfilled.
And for me to have it in myself, we have to identify with him.
In the place that he has in the earth today.
The amount of the rejected man.
You can have.
The knowledge of the Lord Jesus.
As Savior and the assurance that at the end of life you're going to be with Him in heaven.
But neither of those mean that you identify with Him as a rejected man in your daily life, that you take the place that He took. And if that if we don't, we will not have his prayer fully fulfilled at this time.
In glory, yes, it will be fulfilled for every one of us, but in its present now.
Form unless we are willing to follow him in that way. So let's look at the 2nd place where we have where I am.
It's found in the 12Th chapter.
There's a foolish man.
And we're just going to read the last words of Lord's comment on a foolish man in chapter 12 and verse 21.
He's Speaking of this fool, he says. So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
And then?
He speaks to his disciples about confidence and so on in himself, and then goes down to verse 34.
Saying where your treasure is, there will your heart be also and.
I'm sorry. Thank you. Appreciate the help.
There's a common moral point, but it won't say the same words as where I am.
And John chapter 12, he says.
In verse 23 Jesus answered them, saying, The hour has come that the Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone.
But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. This is the connection with the Fool.
He that loveth his life shall lose it. He that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me.
And where I am.
There shall also my servant be.
If any man serve me, him will my father honor.
Now is my soul troubled? And what shall I say, Father, save me from this hour, But for this cause came on to this hour. Father, glorify thy name. Then came their voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
Umm, down connect. It's also connected in verse 35 to what we had in the reading yesterday afternoon.
Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you walk.
Well, you have the light less darkness come upon you, for he that walketh in darkness.
Knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have the light, Believe in the light, that ye may be children of light. These things speak Jesus, and departed, and hid himself from them.
00:35:03
If we are.
To have His joy fulfilled in US.
We have to have the right perspective as to this life.
This perspective was I have no home there.
I'm a rejected man there. My home is my Father's house, and it's in heaven.
And so I'm not going to love my life here on earth and get Max out of it, a pleasure and enjoyment and so on, but I am going to walk through it in fellowship with my father, doing his will and look forward and look on to home.
And where is He? Where I am? He's in the glory with his Father.
And so he would say to his own.
I have a purpose here.
I'm here to be light in a Dark World, and while I'm here, I'm the light of the world.
And it's a joy to present my father to the world.
And if you're my disciple, you have to be a light too.
You have to be a child of light and not a child of the darkness.
And.
If you are, then in I will my father may fulfill my joy in you to walk together and shout fellowship into that which we both are.
But there's a cost to it, isn't there?
And he recognized the cost as he faced it, he said, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die.
That abideth alone.
If he had not died, if he had abided alone, he could never have prayed what he prayed in the 17th chapter, because there could be no one where I am.
In the Father's house with him? None.
Zero.
And so he would abide alone in that way, and have none with him, except he, the corn of wheat, fall into the ground and die.
And then there would be much fruit for God, and you and I this afternoon are part of the fruit.
That has been produced through his death. And yet.
He had to give his life, let it be so. The cost to him was life itself.
And much more in his suffering at the cross. Let's turn over to Chapter 14.
Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me.
In 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 receive you unto myself that where I am.
There you may be also.
For him.
The Father's house was the House of Joy.
I'll use a little analogy to it. It's been precious to me many times.
But it connects a little bit with yesterday.
In the Gospel.
We had Luke 15.
And we had the son.
Who left the father's house willfully?
In rebellion against the Father, without the joy of the Father.
And he goes into the far country, and he ruins himself with his living.
And in the end of it we see him coming back to the father, and the joy of the father in welcoming the wayward son. And then they, the son is properly guard Raymond to sit at the father's table, just as an analogy to it.
00:40:10
Taking parts that one wishes to to make the point.
Think of it as another.
Outline of a perfect sun.
Left the father's house to go into the far country.
That perfect sun in the far country.
Perfectly honored the Father.
And did all that the Father's heart could wish.
And.
In one sense, he spent all.
He gave life itself up.
His very body became.
A body in which on sin was placed.
And he?
Gave everything in the far country.
I can only imagine.
But and you can too.
But at least it cheers the heart, even if we really can't enter into it. But just try to imagine in your own heart.
That father.
Welcome in that Slough home.
When God the Father welcomed home.
And instead of I have sinned.
There is. Well done.
Absolute joy.
That will never.
Stop.
The Father's delight in the Son that accomplished his will in the far country.
Is a joy that has begun that will have no end.
The Lord Jesus had that choice.
And he wants that joy in its way, fulfilled in you.
He wants you to live your life.
As he lived his.
For the Father's will.
He will accomplish in your life whatever his purposes of that life are.
And he looks forward to having the father.
Receive you.
In the same way. Well done.
Good and faithful servant.
So he says here.
I will receive you unto myself. He wants you and I.
To share in his.
What he enjoys now.
And in the relationship in which he enjoys it as son.
Something that I found delightful, really, but after the Sunday school.
I was going over to the bathroom and there was a little boy.
Maybe a big He was standing there and he was concentrating, he was looking around.
He didn't look scared.
But he was looking for something, and it wasn't hard to recognize.
I recognized him, he's one of Han's kids and when he saw I pointed out his father and mother to him and oh, a big smile came across his face and he went running to them.
That's a little illustration of.
The Lord's joy.
With the father.
And I doubt not it a figuratively way that it wasn't only the father that came running.
To meet, but the sun as well came running to meet the father.
And that's a joy that the Lord wants for you and I.
00:45:12
To make a few more remarks.
This chapter doesn't only include joy. We're not going to talk about it, but I will note it for your further if you're interested, meditation.
In this Lord not only wants to share, have His joy fulfilled in US, but he says, Father, I've given him the words that you gave me, and so He has passed on to us the words that were given to Him by the Father.
And John, he also says I have my peace.
I want you to have that piece too. I want you to have the same piece that I have, and that's something else. That is the desire of the heart of the Lord Jesus for us.
He gives the purpose, he says.
I pray that they also may be one in US that we may have the same.
Collective oneness.
Don't have time really, I think to develop that, but we'll make one point out of it.
That oneness of commonness that the Lord enjoyed with the Father is a oneness that He wants us to enjoy with Him, with the Father.
All of us together entered into a oneness, and in order to get Her into that oneness, there has to be two things that are true of the Father that have to be true of US1 Is light, that is holiness.
And the other is love, and to be joined together in that same bundle of love and light.
We have to have life.
And we have to be separated from all that's inconsistent with what God is. And so if we were to enjoy it now, we have to have what we had yesterday and those things that protect us. Because if you go back to the Garden of Eden.
And you see what happened.
You see that Satan's attack on man?
Was to introduce unbelief.
In God's heart.
And therefore we need faith.
And that faith has to be protected so that we not be separated.
From the heart of God through unbelief.
God's commandment, even though righteousness is a thought, hadn't come in yet. But there had to be obedience on Adam and Eve's part. There had to be dependence on Adam and Eve's part.
To walk and be defended.
Look at the life of the Lord Jesus.
Did he have a breastplate?
Did he walk?
With armor.
I present to you he did.
He had on the breastplate of faith and love.
And he was tested in it beyond anything that you or I will ever be tested.
That breastplate had to be on when he faced.
The abandonment of God for sin.
When he said, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? What kept him?
From unbelief.
Breastplate.
There was number evidence that he was at that moment loved of God as a man.
You've been rejected by man. But he was absolutely, utterly alone in his own being.
00:50:07
And he had the breastplate on.
Turn to We talk about the three things of faith and hope and love. What about hope?
Did he have on?
The helmet of salvation.
Turn to Hebrews chapter 12.
Recall Hebrews Chapter 11, the chapter of faith, and we have all these heroes of the past.
Who demonstrated faith, and they're given to us as the cloud of witnesses.
That we might also.
Have our helmet of salvation.
Our shield of faith.
To protect us. But after Chapter 11 is done, what happens? It turns to chapter 12, and almost, you might say, and you can put all aside Chapter 11 and focus on Chapter 7, as it says, verse 12, verse one. Wherefore we're compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily doth beset us, and let us run with patience.
The race that's set before us, how's he going to run it?
Looking at Chapter 11, well it's an instructive and beneficial, but going forward, what's what do we need looking unto Jesus?
The author and finisher of Path of Faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand.
Of God.
So we said Christianity is of faith and hope and joy.
Lord lived the matter of hope.
He had to live in hope and as a man. This isn't the work of atonement that's in view here. It's a path of faith. It's living as a man in this world and here he lives.
And he had hope. He had the hope.
As it describes it here of the glory and sitting down as he did at the end of his path of faith at the right hand of God. And yet in it that hope is connected with joy.
He wants that joy fulfilled in you.
He wants you and I to go through the same path of faith as He went through it.
Having the same armor that he used, and in doing so he was directly.
More directly than any of us. Or where tempted by Satan to to go out of that path to leave it.
To get everything that Satan could give him of the world, if he would only.
Submit.
An homage.
And yet hear the Lord Jesus.
Exhibits his faith.
Exhibits that with a hope set before him and.
It was a joy. It was a joy to his heart as he went through the path toward the end and could look forward to the joy at the end of the path.
May the Lord help us to if I could say.
If needs be, brethren, let's be willing to leave home.
That is to find that the true home, the only true home, Not that we don't live in houses and not that we don't have daily life, but it's, it's a character of heart. It's a it's a enjoyment of the soul. We easily sing as strangers and pilgrims. We do not seek a home. Word's coming. You see it out of our lips. Some of them have probably sung it 1000 times.
But in the actual practice of life.
We need to enter into what it was to the Lord Jesus and follow Him and have that attachment of heart to Himself that we.
00:55:09
A little more could say, but Mary.
But John or Jim and so on, and apply it to ourselves so that we enter into it as the experience of our own hearts with himself, and then have the shared joy forever of what we both experienced himself and ourselves.
1 Thessalonians 5:9-16
My Lord
Gospel—David Mearns
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Like to welcome everyone to the Gospel meeting tonight.
I'd like to read a scripture before we sing a hymn. If you could turn with me in your bibles.
To the book of Job.
The Book of Job, the 23rd chapter.
Jove, 23.
And verse 16.
For God maketh my heart soft.
Our desire tonight is that we would have soft hearts, every one of us, if there's someone here perhaps, and you've hardened your heart to the gospel perhaps time and again, and maybe nobody here knows it. Our desire is that tonight God would soften your heart. He would soften all of our hearts as we hear this wonderful message of the gospel that we heard last night, that we heard this morning.
Let's turn to our hymn sheets and sing hymn #10 if somebody could please start that for us.
There is a savior.
Angry.
Lord.
This.
Turn with me to Luke's Gospel Chapter one.
Luke's Gospel chapter one.
I was.
Going through Walmart.
Just a couple days ago.
Here in town and I've been praying as to what the Lord would have.
And as I was strolling up to the checkout to pay for my purchases, the radio was on and I don't generally hear what's going on, but occasionally I hear a comment. And the comment I heard as I was going up to the checkout on the radio was this.
Oh my God.
That's what I heard in the radio.
That's probably a scripture that is more quoted than any other scripture.
In this world, how often do we hear that scripture? Oh my God.
We hear it time and time again, we hear it flippantly, we hear it as a curse word. And yet it was those words that were uttered.
On the cross prophetically by our blessed Lord in his extremity. Oh my God, I cry in the daytime now hear us not 22nd Psalm.
Well, my God, be not far from me.
Psalm 38.
Oh my God, make haste to help me. Psalm 71. We hear that so often, don't we? Oh my God.
I was going through an airport.
Short while ago.
And I was trying to make a flight.
And I was in the washroom and I was washing my hands at the sink.
This great big black guy beside me, he's washing his hands too. There's someone else that washed their hands and they've gone over to the paper dispenser. They pulled out a paper towel to dry off their hands and a whole bunch of them fell onto the floor. And he uttered those words. Oh my God.
Picked up the papers, threw them in the garbage and went out the door. The big black guy beside me turned to me and said I'd prefer to say Oh my Lord and proceeded to tell me why. Well, we only had 30 seconds or a minute together. As this brother shared a few words in the gospel, I shared with him that I was a brother in Christ. We shook hands. He went his way, I went my way.
I don't even know the man's name.
Going to spend all eternity with him. But he said, I prefer to say, Oh my Lord.
00:10:04
He said that tonight. Have you said that, you know that gave birth to the subject I have in my heart tonight and that is to look at those in the word of God that I've said, my Lord, there's only four of them. We have many people in the Old Testament.
That have said my God, but we only read up four I believe that have said my Lord.
Oh, have you said that tonight? Have you owned Jesus as Lord? You say to me, concerning those people that rushed into eternity? Ah, they're just statistics. Yes, perhaps they are just statistics if the Lord leaves us here.
Every one of us here is going to become a statistic.
This is the man I bought my car from that we drove here.
Passed away last week.
52 years old, he owns the car dealership.
No evidence whatsoever. I put a bathroom in for his folks. His folks are in their late 70s. I called them up right after he passed away, said Dave. We're just devastated and there's no evidence whatsoever that this statistic.
Knew the Lord Jesus as his Savior, nor his parents, although they're ready to listen now. What about you tonight as you sit there in your chair thinking?
Yeah, maybe one day I am going to become a statistic. I'm going to ask this question, ask for a show of hands. Anybody here been through this life before? Anybody been through this life before? Anyone.
Not even a little finger like we had last night. Nobody. No.
It is appointed unto men once to die.
And after death, the judgment, everybody here, we're all through it for the first and only time. Nobody's been here before, every one of us. That the Lord should leave us here are going to become a statistic.
Are you ready to go? Have you said to that blessed one, our Lord Jesus, my Lord? So let's look at this first one in Luke's Gospel, the 1St chapter.
Luke's Gospel chapter one.
You know, I'm going to I'm going to look at another one First, let's go to John's gospel. Let's go to John's gospel chapter one got chapter 20 rather this one we had this morning.
It's Mary.
John's Gospel, chapter 20.
And we'll pick up from the 11Th verse.
But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping. And as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the sepulchre. And see if 2 angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, Why weepest thou? And she saith unto them, Because they have taken away. Here's our subject, They have taken away, my Lord.
And I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.
And Jesus saith unto her, Woman, Why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? And she's, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Lord, if thou borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. And Jesus said unto her, Mary. And she turned herself, and said unto him, Raboni, which is to say, Master. And Jesus said unto her, Touch, Be not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father, but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my father, and your father.
And to my God and your God. And Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord.
And that he had spoken these things unto her.
My Lord, you know, I just enjoy the way this little portion starts out that marries at the sepulchre. And we read this and she wept and stooped down. Oh, what a posture that everyone is going to take. We had that this morning. Every knee is going to bow. Every knee will bow. Look at this beautiful posture. And she stooped down. You know, I just returned from Egypt and it was interesting because one of the things.
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That we did. We went to the pyramids and wanted to see them and the Great Pyramid.
Which was likely there when Abraham went down into Egypt. It has a stairway up to where the Pharaoh was buried in his sepulchre at the top of the pyramid. It's quite a climb and it's interesting that the way he designed that pyramid.
And there are these massive stones and in that pyramid that are there are 2,000,300 stones.
3 to 2,300,000 stones, massive stones, and the proportions of that, of that pyramid, if you measure this side and you measure that side, that side and that side, they're within 6 inches of each other. Tremendous piece. And yet this walkway that goes and you start walking and it goes up to the top. It's about this high. And he designed it with the steps far enough away that you have to be always bound down to him as you walked up those steps.
That's the way he engineered this pyramid. And the steps are far enough away from each other that to come down, you can't come down frontwards. You have to come down the same way you went up. And so as anybody that went up there and everybody's coming down, they're all bowing down to the Sparrow. Well, he's not there at the present time, but I thought, wow, every knee is going to bow.
The posture of this blessed woman. She stooped down and she looked in. Oh, have you bowed the knee? You're going to bow.
Everyone of us is going to bow. Many of us here have bowed the knee here and now I'm so thankful to be able to stand here. A happy man, you know, is at A at A at a toll booth just three days ago. And I passed the girl, my money and I, I said to her, you know, I'm a happy man. I know the Lord Jesus as my Savior. And she looked at me and she says, well, I hope it works for you, you know.
Marvelous to be able to stand here.
With my sins gone.
Can you say, my Lord, are your sins gone?
What a portion. So here we find it says she looked into the sepulchre and see if the two angels in white sitting the one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus.
Lame. You know, we had a little prayer meeting just before this gospel, and one of the brothers down there, he prayed.
Thanking the Lord for the resurrection and all that it means to us and all the blessing that it is brought to us. Oh, I just loved hearing that here we have the body.
It says where they have laid him. It's past tense. There's no the body of the Lord Jesus, of course, was not there. The resurrection. What a marvelous thing to consider the resurrection. You know, we, we think, we think of the resurrection and we think what a marvelous thing and yet.
That, you know, there are so many things in this world that we look at and we think about that we just take for granted. And I mentioned this as I drove to the to the.
To the the conference in Carrollton, because I was going by these in Erie, I was going by these, these these marvelous vineyards, rows and rows and rows of grapes and I was I was contemplating the the, the sign that we have in John's gospel with the Lord Jesus turned the water to wine and we think, wow, what a miracle. And yet, you know.
Is it any less of a miracle to have the rain come down and to go into the roots of those little vines and go up the vine and then go into the grapes and be turned to grape juice and then turn to wine? It's every bit as much of a miracle. But just because it doesn't happen fast, we take it for granted and the resurrection is the same. Think of what transpires in our area in the winter time as you look at all these trees and they look so dead. And in the springtime, everything just blooms.
Resurrection. Oh, the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. What a marvelous thing.
On What is your faith tonight?
We're not talking about how much faith you have, we're talking about what is attached to at the other end, not the amount.
You know, we, we, we sing, we sing a hymn sometimes 290 in our little flock hymn book starts off why those fears behold to Jesus the second verse.
Though the shore we hope to land on only by report is known, yet we freely all abandoned.
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Layered by that report alone.
On what you hang your soul salvation tonight? On what is it hanging?
You know, that's a that's a marvelous thing to consider. This, this.
This man that passed away, I brought this because.
The pamphlet.
Is at a He was laid at a Funeral Home and the Funeral Home is a person that I do work with and I had a conversation with him some time ago and he said to me.
Dave, I just can't see how. There's only one way. I just can't see it. And he works with all kinds of people. He embalms all kinds of people, all kinds of walks of life, all kinds of different religions.
And he just said to me, he said, you know, they all go to the same place. They all go to the same place. And I wouldn't advise preaching the gospel this way. But I said to him, you know.
If you're right, we're both good.
But if I'm right, you're not.
You know, he raised it with me. Again, pray for the man. His name is Stan. He knows not the Lord Jesus as his Savior, although he's heard the gospel time and time again. I think how many times, Charlotte, your father has preached him the gospel time and time again. A man without Christ. Well, every knee is going to bow just like this dear woman. She stooped down and everyone is going to realize.
The Lord Jesus has been raised from the dead. Well, let's read the 14th verse here.
Says that when she had thus said, she turned herself back.
And she saw Jesus standing and knew not that it was Jesus. I wonder if there's someone here tonight and the Lord Jesus is working with your soul right now, and you don't realize that it's Him right there as you're sitting in your chair.
And perhaps the Lord is knocking on your heart's door.
As he seeks to make himself known unto you through the word of God. Are you listening? Do you realize it's him at all? The Lord Jesus, the Lord Jesus here we're standing and Mary didn't know as the Lord Jesus. Oh, I trust that there's nobody like that here tonight. And Jesus said unto her, woman, why weepest thou? Well, you know in the 16th verse, Jesus says unto her, Mary, and it says, and she turned herself.
Oh, if there's someone here tonight and you're on the Broad Rd. that leads to destruction, you have to do just exactly what Mary did. You have to turn.
Yourself, you have to turn yourself. Everyone of us hears that, not hear that, knows the Lord Jesus as our Savior. We had to do the same thing. We had to turn ourselves.
We had to have our thoughts in line with his Oh here Mary, she turned herself, and she saith unto him, Raboni, here we have that expression twice in the word. We have it in Mark 10. And which which is the same master. And Jesus said unto her, touch me not. Well, let's go over now to Luke's Gospel, to the next one, Luke's Gospel, chapter one.
Where we see the next two of these are women and two are men.
This is also the second woman in Luke's gospel chapter one.
It's a beautiful story.
It's a long one. I don't want to touch in on Mary so much, but rather on Elizabeth, who says in the 43rd verse, and whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? Well, let's go back now.
Where Mary says in the 34th verse, Then said Mary unto the Angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
And the Angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost, which shall come upon thee, the power of the Highest shall over shadow thee. Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be not became, but shall be called the Son of God. And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived the Son in her old age, and this is the 6th month with her. Notice what it says doesn't say who was barren, but who was called barren.
You know if you're without Christ, there is no fruitfulness in your life.
None whatsoever it could be said of you that you're called barren. And it says here, for with God nothing is impossible. And Mary said, Behold, a handmaid of the Lord, it is unto me, according to thy word. Well, we turn into Elizabeth now in the 41St verse, and it says it came to pass. And when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.
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All we trust tonight.
That if you are without Christ.
That tonight you would be entwelt by the Spirit of God. You know I had a young man that worked for me. I don't have any men now as of a few months ago, but one of them.
Most of them were gathered, but one was not the Lords And one of my men was up a ladder with him. And he he, he turned to him that this was just a short while ago. And he said, he said to me, he says, Austin, how come you can't come to the Lord?
And Austin Wiseman said it's just too easy. It just seems too easy. Austin came to the hobby class. Austin, we've prayed for Austins been spoken to, but as far as Austins concerned, it is just too easy.
Or if there's someone like that here, you know, it was not easy.
For the offer of salvation to be held out to you, it costs God his only son. It costs the Lord Jesus his life on Calvary. His precious blood was shed to wash my sins away, and yours too, if you'll have him. Oh, that you would be filled with the Holy Ghost like Elizabeth was here. And then we go on to.
We go on to read here where she says, and whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me for a lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, and the babe leaped in my womb for joy, and blessed is she that believed. You know I think of this word belief.
First time we read of it is in the book of Genesis. It's in the 15th chapter. Abraham believed God. It was accounted at the Him for righteousness. We have that repeated in the New Testament.
Three times.
We have James records it. The apostle Paul records it in Romans. He records it in Galatians. Abraham believed God. He believed.
Do you believe is that something that you can do? Oh that you would have the faith to believe. Blessed is she that believed and there shall be a performance of those things. You know God is going to is going to complete what he says in his precious word. It's going to happen just as Elizabeth could say here that God is going to perform those things. Yes, indeed, he's going to come. He's going to complete that which he has started. He's going to complete in your life and mine and that which we've been taking up those future times.
God is going to perform.
Well.
This, this woman, she believed.
She believed and I you know, we had a scripture read to us. We quoted to us our brother quoted you know, by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves. That is the gift of God and it's not of works, lest any man should boast. Had a situation happen in my business.
Well, I have a daughter, a granddaughter. That's a year. So that's how long ago it was. It was just when she was born. I was working in a man's house, a man and a woman. They're elderly.
And I was working there with my son-in-law. The two of us were working in a kitchen and.
And the woman came to me and she said, you know, Dave, my husband is sick. And actually he was in a hospital bed in the in the next room. And she said.
You seem to have a lot more confidence.
In a lot more peace than anybody at our church. Would you take my husband's funeral?
I thought, oh, well, yeah, I guess these are not believers and go to a place where I'm not sure that the, the pastor would be a believer and she's all about works. And, you know, I thought about that and I went into the living room and I asked her if she had a Bible. And she said she did. She went and got her Bible. And I, I opened up and I, I, I read to her the account of the thief on the cross.
And you know, I said to her, I said how? How much?
How much good works could he do? I said he couldn't pay back what he stole. He couldn't even tell somebody sorry for what he stole. Here he is hanging on a cross. And I read the account to her and I left. And this so impressed her that she took that in and she read it to her husband, who's on his deathbed, and that gave him peace.
Man's name is Lyle Gibson and he came to know the Lord Jesus as his as his Savior by his unsaved wife reading this account.
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In Luke's gospel of the thief on the cross, marvelous thing and he believed my wife went there the next day to take them some buns and he brightly confessed the Lord passed away that week. You know, marvelous to be at his funeral and realize that that he's with the Lord. Well, he also was someone that could say.
My Lord.
Now I'm going to stress this.
Have you owned Jesus as Lord?
Have you owned Jesus as Lord in your life? Are you able to say like Mary said?
Like as Elizabeth said.
My Lord, let's go back now to John's Gospel, the 20th chapter.
John's Gospel, the 20th chapter.
Where we read another one who says my Lord and it's Thomas.
We're often hard on Thomas and it's because of this portion.
We don't hear as much of this portion as we do some of the others.
We're thankful for the questions that Thomas asked. Thomas was the disciple that.
Was always the spokesperson for the disciples when they were when they were despondent. That's the time that we hear Thomas piping up. And so you know, when the Lord Jesus in the 11Th chapter of John said that he was going to go to Jerusalem and the disciples said, well, no, we can't go there. Thomas says let's go there with him and let's die with him. Thomas is the one, you know, how many people have been blessed through Thomas's question where he says Lord.
How come we know the way?
And the response is, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. A question that Thomas asked. Wonderful. But usually when we hear and we think of Thomas, it's this portion.
And So what do we read about this portion here? We said in the 24th verse it says but Thomas, one of the 12 called Didymus.
Was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. And he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side. I will not believe. Oh, is there someone here tonight?
And that's your words I will not believe.
I will not believe Thomas here. He wouldn't believe he had to see it. He just needed to thrust his.
His finger into the print of the nails and thrust his hand into his side.
Said, I will not believe. Well after eight days again his disciples were within Thomas with them. 26th verse. Then came Jesus, the doors being shut, stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. And he said to Thomas, Reach hit her thy feeling finger, Behold my hands.
Reach hit her thy hand and thrust it into my side.
And be not faithless, but believing.
Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord.
Oh my God, my Lord, my God, you know that's beautiful.
It's the only disciple that says that I have all of them.
Beautiful, my Lord. Sometimes we worry. Perhaps there's someone here, someone younger, and you're just maybe wondering if you're really saved or not. You know what's interesting? I told you the story about that man that passed away.
Well.
Right after he passed away.
I thought I'm going to go to.
His widow's house and just check in on her.
And I went in and this is just a couple days before the funeral. So this is all happening pretty quick. We're working there.
She asked me to take a funeral. He's alive for another couple days. He passes away. I have a daughter that's a granddaughter that's born. And then I turn up at the house, I ring the doorbell and she comes to the door and I just said, Shirley, how are you? She said, Adeva, I'd just been reading my Bible and I just, I just asked God to forgive me of all my sins. Do you think he has? Do you think he has?
Isn't that wonderful when a simple soul.
Simply ask the Lord Jesus to forgive them of their sins and it's almost good to be true. And she was asking me, is that how easy it is?
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I assured her. We opened up the word that she had. She had our Bible open there on the on the sofa inside the house.
She asked God.
To forgive her of all her sins. And she wondered if God would do it.
You know, dear Soul Tonight, have you done that? Have you just simply?
Ask God repented of your sins and ask God to forgive you of your sins. You know, it's true. It's it's almost too good to be true. You know, I, I sat there this morning and I through that breaking of bread and I hardly wanted to open my mouth lest I spoiled the beautiful scene that we had this morning. I was choked up a number of things times just thinking of the Lord Jesus and in his extremity. What a humbling thing to sit there this morning.
And to be able to answer to the dying requests of that blessed One, our Lord Jesus.
As he said this do in remembrance of me, what a marvelous thing, what a marvelous portion was ours this morning. And perhaps you were sitting there this morning and you were sitting there in your sins. That's how simple this woman that I was just talking about, she said. I just asked, you know what's interesting?
A couple of days later was the funeral took the funeral she and her husband's with the Lord. It's interesting. His grave marker was right beside another one that said ironic this, this, this grave marker and it says I don't know who the man was, but he's he's under he's his grave marker said I've seen the many mansions and I thought beautiful. And here's this man that we laid to rest right beside him with the Lord.
His wife beaming there that she's the Lord's. I don't know if there's anybody else there that was the Lord's, maybe one or two.
What a wonderful thing. And she's just so thankful. I don't believe any of her family was, but she knew that her sins were gone. And I, I, I, it's interesting because I was, I was talking to another one of my customers and I was, I told her the story and she knew the woman. She, she was delighted because of it. And she said, you know, that skepticism or that doubt as to whether God would forgive her of all her sins. This is a woman that's 70 years old. And she said to me when I was in high school.
I.
I worked at a department store.
And one of the things they taught us in that department store where there was people in the town of Smith Falls that would come in and steal, and this woman was one of them.
And she said they taught us to follow these people. And this customer of mine used to follow this older lady. And she says that's why she's wondering if God is going to forgive her of all her sins. You know, she's a peace man. I asked my wife. She visits with her all the time and has little studies with her.
Marvelous, those that are able to say, my Lord, my Lord, Thomas said, my Lord, no argument, no big long story, just my Lord and my God. He said that tonight. Have you said that in your life? Let's turn to the last one. It's in the book of Philippians.
The Book of Philippians.
The third chapter.
Philippians, Chapter 3.
Verse 7.
What things were gained to me?
Those I counted loss for Christ, yet doubtless.
And I count all things but loss.
For the Excellency.
Of the knowledge of Christ Jesus.
My.
Lord.
For whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them. But dung that by may win Christ. You know the Christian pathway. It's not a competitive thing. You think of every scenario in the sports world that's competitive. It doesn't matter whether you're playing ping pong or whether you're playing tennis or any of the group sports. There's got to be a winner and a loser.
The pathway of faith.
Everyone can win. Everyone can win. What are you substituting?
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In this present time for that which is going to last for all eternity. Well, what are you substituting? You'll hear the apostle Paul. He could say I count all things but loss for the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. You know the apostle saw the Lord Jesus, Mary saw the Lord Jesus Elizabeth.
She knew.
And was affected by.
Our Lord, that was in the womb of Mary.
Thomas Suttle, Lord Jesus.
All these ones saw the Lord.
None of us here have.
What we have is this precious book. Everything is based on this book.
But, dear one, it's a living book.
It's alive.
It's really, truly alive.
And for those of us who belong to the Lord Jesus, we know how much it affects us and we know what kind of effect it has on us when we don't read it. It's really truly alive. You know, I had a I'm just going to tell this one other story before I before I commend us to the Lord. This happened just a few months ago.
I was.
My wife was in Florida and.
I came out of the bank and there's this man standing outside the bank. We don't see us in Smith Falls very often where there's someone that's asking for money. This man was tattered and torn, greasy hair, just obvious addictions in rough shape. And he just said to me, he said, can you spare me a bit of change? I'm hungry.
And I can't fix everything in this world. I kept walking and got up to my truck and and.
When I got there, it was like the Lord was saying.
Maybe a better deal with this one. And I kind of took a deep breath and said, OK. And anyway, he started to walk up the street. When he got to my truck, I, I, I said to him, hey, you want to go for something to eat? Oh, that would be great. That would be great.
Sit up in the truck. So he hops in the truck and the two of us go off to a fast food and on our way over I said to him, umm.
You know, I asked him his name. His name was Gary. I said, you know, Gary, you've got a story and I've got a story. Let's share each other's stories and you can decide who goes first. He said sure. So we we get to the restaurant and we get our sandwiches and we go sit in the booth and he looks at me and he said, I'll go first. I said sure. He said, you're going to think I'm really weird.
I said try me, he said. Well, you're really going to think I'm strange.
He said.
You picture the scene, OK, There's a booth there. I'm sitting there with a sandwich. He's sitting there with a sandwich. He's looking pretty rough. It's my dime. And he, he turns to me and he says I'm what they call a Christian.
Not exactly what I'm expecting and I thought well.
And he starts to tell me a story about I'm just going to let him go, he said. I never knew my parents, never knew them.
I went from foster home to foster home to foster home and every one of them was a Christian home.
And had the word of God read to me and I was saved from my sins when I was young.
He said I got older, I got married, married a wonderful, wonderful woman.
Had four children and I'm still letting him go, OK? He's got no idea on the Lords, he said.
I got in with a bad crowd at work and I started to drink and he said immediately I became an alcoholic.
And he said it just so affected me. I just, I just needed that drink. I needed it and I needed it. And I get up in the morning. That's why before 7:00 in the morning, I had to have that first drink. And he said it led to other addictions. And he said it cost me my job.
So it cost me my house, cost me my wife, cost me my children. I ended up a homeless, helpless wreck on the street.
But he said a few weeks ago.
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God put it in my heart to start to read my Bible again.
And, you know, it transformed him. He said at that point I kicked in and told him he was talking to a brother in Christ. It was very, very interesting. And he said, you know what? I've got these addictions. I'm trying to get over them. And it's hard, but I've got something that's real now. And it's the word of God and it's real. And dear one here tonight.
It's the only thing we have that's real is this precious book.
It's what my entire life of faith is based on, and everyone here, that's what it's based on.
What about you tonight? Do you know the Lord Jesus? Have you said those words?
My Lord, is he your Lord? You know I stand here a happy man, knowing Jesus as my Lord. I've bowed the knee. Now we're all going to bow, every one of us at some point. And there's so many here tonight that have vows. Or won't you bow just like Mary stooped?
What's your bow tonight?
Your heart heart that we trust God is making soft.
As we started tonight, oh, we just pray that that would be so as we just consider those four people that said those words, my God, may it be put into your heart tonight and that you would turn to the Lord Jesus just as Shirley Gibson did. And she asked God to forgive her of her sins. And yes, he's done it.
Oh, may you come to the Lord Jesus tonight.
The Word: Occupation With It; Delight in It; Sharing It
1 Thessalonians 5:16-28
Reading
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Lord, we rejoice.
Lord, we rejoice.
Would verse 19 be about right?
Sure, First Thessalonians chapter 5 and verse 16. Rejoice evermore, Pray without ceasing, and everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit, despise not prophesying, Prove all things. Hold fast that which is good.
Abstain from all appearance of evil.
And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly, and I pray God your whole spirit.
And soul and body be preserved blameless under the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it. Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss.
Charge you by the Lord, that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
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Since we started at verse 16, I could just make a comment on verse 1617 and 18. I did not have the privilege of knowing our brother Harry Hayhoe, who I've heard quoted many times and I've enjoyed. When I was a young man, there was a little track maybe still around called sentence sermons. And as I recall in that little paper there is an expression, a brother, hey, oh, that says.
That joy will ever rise in proportion to prayer and Thanksgiving.
That's verses 1617 and 18. Rejoice evermore. Joy will ever rise in proportion to verse 17 prayer and verse 18 Thanksgiving. And so has often been said, or maybe not often enough, that our testimony to the world is our joy in Christ. That might be another quote from our late brother, but how is the key to joy? There is something that is so disheartening and that is to seek not a sober Christian now.
But an unhappy Christian? There's a big difference between being sober and walking in a sober way and being unhappy.
But don't we often find that the reason there are unhappy believers is these two components are lacking in their life. They're lacking more specifically in my life. If there is not that prayer in Thanksgiving, in everything, give thanks. That is the key. The three great things to joy is giving Thanksgiving and forgiving. Now in Ephesians, it says a little bit different thought there. It's not giving thanks in in everything giving thanks, but it's giving thanks always for all things.
Well, you say, how can that be? How can we thank the Lord for something?
Sinful or sad or tragic, that happened. Well, the verse doesn't end there, it says.
Unto the God and Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we give thanks for all things as qualified and defined in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, so for all things, but also here in all things. And again, what a simple yet profound.
Guidance for us. If there's joy lacking in our life, we need to focus on verse 17 and verse 18. And if we don't feel thankful, thank the Lord anyway.
And that will produce joy and Thanksgiving in our hearts.
Matthew Chapter 11 when cities had.
Rejected him.
A Verse 24 He says, But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for thee at that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, oh Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because I was hid these things from the wise and prudent, and has revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father, or so it seemed good in thy sight.
One overall isn't there. We can always thank him.
When I was a boy, my 18 year old uncle drowned.
And my Uncle Bob, who's now turned 91, last Thursday.
He was a dear Christian then, and he went by grandfather's bedside and thanked the Lord.
For taking Uncle Marvin.
And that just gave grandpa more strength to be able to get up and even attend the funeral. He had a really bad heart.
But giving thanks in all things can be at times.
Difficult and take grace to do so.
Verses in the Bible with two words in them.
And I think you all remember the other is Jesus wept and here is rejoice evermore.
Beautiful to put the two together.
But I appreciate what you give Brother Bill.
Pray in the Darby translation. It's a two word verse two. Pray unceasingly.
It's to be the continual attitude of our hearts, the sense that the Lord is at our side, and to be conversing with Him.
All the time. The sense of His presence with us. Oh, how important that is. Prayer, brethren, I do believe that we don't put enough time to real intentional prayer.
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It's so easy in our busy, distracted lives to not give time in the Lord's presence to talk to Him.
And.
I remember a quote by Martin Luther, he said I have so much to do every day. I dare not take any less than three hours to pray.
No wonder that man had a tremendous influence on.
The circles in which he lived at that time. But prayer is so important.
Individual prayer. Assembly prayer. Family prayer.
We have those mentioned in scripture and we need to.
Exercise them. But here it is. Pray unceasingly. We are in a spiritual warfare, and our brother Bill on Saturday mentioned that in Ephesians 6. I just want to go back to that to read it because it goes right along with what we're saying.
Verse 18.
Of Ephesians 6 praying.
Always.
With all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching there into with all perseverance and supplication for All Saints.
There's several things there that call my attention that word supplication.
Can you explain that to us a little bit, Bill?
Well, I have always looked at it as if prayer was something in which I should have.
As you just said a moment ago, it should be my attitude at all times in my life, even if I don't have any special burden on my heart at the time, or any special difficulty to take to the Lord, either on my own behalf or someone else. I should be in an attitude of prayer. But sometimes there are particularly heavy burdens that weigh on us, aren't there? And they should. And in that case, supplication seems to me to be.
A deeper thing, it's an imploring the Lord a getting into a real almost wrestling in prayer for a particular need. Realizing of course that as many will recognize the source of this quotation, that prayer ultimately is based on the wonderful privilege of our having common interests with God. And if I have a sense in my soul that what I am supplicating about.
I can pray.
I Maybe it's, and I don't want to get into a long dissertation on it, but I've linked it up with the fact that enrollments 8. We have the Spirit making intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. That is, there is the feeling there of the difficulties with which we are occupied, and in supplication I am.
In that sense, taking all that before the Lord, does that commend itself?
And that verse in Romans 8 that you mentioned with groanings which cannot be uttered. There are things that we get before the Lord about that are so difficult we don't actually know what or how to ask, do we? And I often think sometimes all you can do is groan. And God knows our hearts.
And he takes it. The Spirit of God intercedes, and he is within us.
And he intercedes with groanings which cannot be uttered. So I've often wondered, people have said, why should we supplicate? Which is more intense pleading with God, when God is going to do his own will in the end? What's the purpose of us supplicating?
And it's just come to me so much what you mentioned there, Bill that.
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In prayer and supplication, we get into God's thoughts about His purposes.
And when I ask, for example, for the salvation of some soul.
God's desire. Does he desire the salvation of that soul? He desires it even more than I do.
Then why should I ask? Because God wants me to be in the curd of his thoughts about it.
And I think in that way we are in the current of his thoughts. Isn't it beautiful to think about, brethren, how God wants fellowship with us? And so prayer is such an important thing. I often remember our brother, late brother Clem Buchanan.
Who said long prayers for the closet? Short prayers for the prayer meeting?
And I think that was a good statement. And we do need to be conscious that when we are in a prayer meeting that there are others there and that they should be exercised to pray as well. But do we know what it means to get into the closet, have our own place, a prayer with the Lord and to get there and to deliberately, brethren, I have to say I find prayer real work.
It's not easy for me. I kneel down my particular place, and I find my mind wanders off in One Direction and up in another direction, and I have to bring in those stray thoughts and concentrate. Here I am, kneeling in a particular place in my house, but really before the throne of God in heaven. And to think of the tremendous privilege there before that throne are those millions of angels attending him.
And they opened ranks so that I can go right straight before the throne.
What a privilege. What a tremendous privilege. Do we value it properly? I I just fear we don't.
Someone was approached once, a man was approached a believer and asked by someone who didn't really know the value of prayer and said, do you really think that when you pray you actually change God's mind about what he's going to do?
And his answer was, oh, he said, you're holding the stick by the wrong end. He said, when I get into the Lord's presence and pray.
It's usually I that get changed, not the Lord, and that's very, very true.
And I would just suggest that in that sense these verses are connected because the next scripture says.
Quench not the Spirit.
If I come before the Lord in prayer, we know, and we can be thankful for it. That when.
That prayer goes up to the Lord. It does not go perhaps, or let me take out the Word, perhaps, it does not go in the imperfect way in which I see the need. It goes up according to the one who searcheth the hearts and knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession according to the will of God, but on the other end.
If I get into the Lord's presence in prayer, am I willing to let the Spirit change my mind, change my thoughts, change my outlook? We often talk about quenching the Spirit in connection with taking part in an assembly meeting, and that is certainly included. But I believe here it's a much broader thing than that. We are all if we're truly saved and dwelt with the Spirit of God.
And we know that the Spirit dwells here on earth during this time of God's grace, dwells collectively among believers as the House of God.
And so we have the Spirit of God working both in our hearts individually and then working collectively among believers. And in that sense despising, not prophesying, says despise not prophesying. That also has the thought of not quenching the Spirit if the Spirit in Brother Lemoine.
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Speak something and I say, oh boy, I don't like that. I don't want to hear that. Then I'm quenching the spirit and I'm denying what the Lord is seeking to bring home to my soul. And so it has a multifaceted application, doesn't it?
If I neglect the reading of the Word of God, would that be quenching the Spirit?
I hadn't thought of it that way, but I suppose it would because I should be reading the word of God.
Yes.
I could rather bear with me.
We've said these verses are all lengthened. The string of verses that we started with starts with rejoice evermore. I'd like to just say one more thing about rejoicing, which is linked with all this and with quenching the Spirit to turn to Romans chapter 15.
Wow.
Romans back at 15.
Verse 13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing joy in believing and turn to Philippians chapter one.
And verse 25.
And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide to continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith.
Before we got too far from that verse, I wanted to stress.
That joy is a fruit of the spirit. If we quench the spirit, we're not going to have joy.
It's not a feeling.
We often look at ourselves and we say, I don't feel very joyful, but it's not joy. It's not a feeling. Happiness is a feeling. Joy is a fruit of the spirit and it's encouraged by faith. It's developed by faith. And so I just wanted to.
Get that cleared. If I'm not if I'm not joyful, then it's I've been neglecting.
Believing in the Lord.
Maybe just a further thought on on supplication, if we could look at Luke, Luke 11 for a moment.
In Luke 11, the disciples come to the Lord.
In the first verse and notice what they don't say.
They don't come to the Lord and say.
Teach us how to pray.
They say teach us to pray.
Which is.
More the difficulty that we face than knowing how to pray.
But then as we go down through the portion, we've all enjoyed Mr. Mcintosh's discourse on this portion where in the fifth verse he says, you know, we go to the Lord as our friend. We're very specific.
This one says lend and he just doesn't say lend in a general way. He says lend me and then he just doesn't say I need some bread but he's very specific as to the bread. He says lend ME3 loaves but then he goes on to say.
And this is often what I think we're faced with, He says here for a friend of mine and his journey has come to me and I have nothing to set before him. So often we, we have a burden on our heart and we just have a hard time to engage. We, we have someone on our heart and, and, and we draw alongside and we just, we just have nothing to set before them that is able to alleviate the burden.
Both on their hearts and on our own.
But if we go to the previous chapter, and I appreciated this being taken up in the in the in the gospel mentioning in the gospel, but in the previous chapter, we we have this Samaritan that that comes to the ditch.
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And he sees the man in the ditch.
And I've so enjoyed the wording here because in Luke 10, and let's look at the 31St verse, it says there by chance there came down a certain priest that way and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, the Levis Levite, when he was at the place, he came and looked on him and he passed on the other side. But a certain Samaritan uneasy journey, he came where he was and when he saw him, he had compassion on him. So we can picture the scene here, the Samaritan, he comes right to where the man is.
But then it says and he went to him. How can you go to someone if you're already there?
And I think that's the point.
Is we can draw alongside of someone.
And we're right there.
But in spirit and in feeling and trying to get.
Trying to get to find out what's going on underneath. We're just miles apart.
And I believe that supplication is the step between these two points.
Where this American comes where he was, but he needed a further step and supplication is that further step where?
There's a friend of mine in his journey, he's come to me. I have nothing to set before him. We just, we're right there and our spirit is there and we want to engage. We want to help.
But we just can't. And it's that next step of being, of being right where the person is. But then it says and he went to him and that is what's needed. And it takes supplication to do that.
Richard says in my presence is fullness of joy. At thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore.
We cannot truly in our spirit be in the presence of God without joy.
It's his place and his desire that we dwell.
The Lord Jesus dwelt in the bosom of the Father, and dwelling there, He had the constant place and source from which joy comes. And so the rejoicing evermore is often connected with, Is there anything that's hindering me from the constant enjoyment of the presence of God and being before Him? And so when we're exhorted to rejoice evermore, it's that we might ever be.
Consciously in our daily life as we go through it moment by moment.
In the constant enjoyment of his presence.
And our place with Him there is the Lord dwelt in his bosom, so we too may enjoy that same.
Relationship and when it says pray without ceasing, in addition to what's been said, there is also a sense.
Of constant dependence.
Were not sufficient in ourselves, for ourselves or for anyone else.
We have to gradually learn that in me, I can't do it, no matter how little it is. We, the tendency of prayer is to say, well, I can do this, that and the other and we do it. We don't even think about praying, we just do it. But there are other things that we have some sense in US. I can't handle this. And so that's when we tend to turn to prayer.
And so often our activity of prayer is connected with things that we have a conscious sense we can't do for ourselves or for somebody else. And so we pray about them and and that rightly we're expressing dependence. But in the prey without ceasing to me has in addition to it the sense that I can't do anything.
First thing comes to my mind I.
Just getting up in the morning and going through the morning routine from the moment our eyes are opened in a real sense of the word, we need to have the conscious sense of dependence. It's don't just start praying, you know, okay, I've got up, I've brushed my teeth, I've washed my hands or whatever the routine is. Now I'm going to have a time of reading the word in prayer. It's well if when we wake up, one of the first conscious senses we have is to.
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Consciously come into the presence of God.
And begin the day with God before we ever get out of bed, before we ever start into any routine that there might be nothing.
That's between our soul and God. So then when it says in everything, give thanks to me, there's not only dependence that should be characteristic of our beings, but the other thing that's often been said.
This submission.
And in what said here and everything, give thanks. I can give thanks and everything if I truly am submissive to God.
It's when there is some conflict between my will and the will of God that I'm unwilling to submit to Him in. Then there's going to be difficulty in prayer. There's going to be difficulty in my behavior and everything else.
But if there is true submission in everything, then we can truly in our hearts, whether we understand it or not, we can submit to it because connected with that as well is.
Our quote There seems to be days of quoting other people.
Every failure of Saint or Sinner springs from unbelief in the goodness that's in the heart of God for us. That's another very hajo. But I will say on his behalf, most of his sayings came from his own reading of writings. So they didn't. Many of them didn't originate with him. But I'll repeat that if you haven't heard it. Every failure.
Whether of Saints or Sinner springs from unbelief.
In the goodness that's in the heart of God toward us, and consequently in everything, give thanks. If there is no unbelief in what's God's heart is toward us, then there can be submission. And if there's submission, there can be giving of thanks for everything, because there is the confidence that everything that originates in the heart of God or that God allows.
As a purpose of good in it, and so I can give thanks for it. Whether I have any understanding of the terrible tragedy, as we call it, that occurred or not, I can give thanks. And so it then says, for this is the will of God.
The giving of thanks is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. And then I connected in my own soul with quench, not the Spirit in the sense that the Spirit is quenched.
Or can be quenched when there is a divergent of will between my soul and God and then I act in myself will in some way that is a hindrance to what the Spirit is doing. But if there is truly.
A submission of the of the previous things, then they will help me not to act in my own will.
And I will that is a contrary to the will of the Spirit of God, and in that way oppose it and hinder it. And so if it's God's will that another brother do something and I do it instead of that brother, that wasn't the will of the Spirit and I hindered the Spirit and so on. And as it's often been said, it's we the examples quite often are given in connection with in a meeting.
When we're together like we are right now, but it takes place in every aspect of life.
Don, you touched on it, I believe, but there's the other scripture exercisation not to grieve the Spirit of God or by ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Could you, could you give us a word on the difference between quenching the Spirit and grieving the Spirit?
Of God when I sin.
But I quench the Spirit of God when I hinder its working by self will. But it this if there's sin in my life, it's a grief to the Spirit of God who dwells in me and.
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The Holy Spirit of God, for me to do something contrary to God in sin is a grief.
To the Holy Spirit that dwells in my body and will remain in me.
And so I think the aspect specifically of grieving is what I do when I I act in an act of sin. It's a grief to God dwelling in me by the Spirit to do anything that is against what God is in His Holiness, in his love, in his truth and to.
If.
I can only appreciate this one example that that I would help helps me A brother in Michigan many many years ago worked in an automobile plant and he was a well known among his fellow workers as a being a Christian and so on a break one time, some of the workers kind of gathered around him to tell a dirty story, as we would call it and.
They, he said to the men.
I live in the presence of God.
And that had a spiritual weight with them that they stopped trying to defile him by what they were a dirty joke. Whatever.
Would to God that that his expression be ever with us. I dwell in the presence of God.
And every single act that I do or every single thought that I have.
Is in the immediate presence of the Spirit of God.
So May God help us to live in that sense of His presence that we do not grieve Him.
Ephesians 4 where it says that brother John.
Be good to read those verses, perhaps Ephesians 4 and verse 29 it says let no corrupt communication pro ceed out of your mouth.
But that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace into the hearers, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed into the day of redemption. Then it continues, Let all bitterness and wrath, and anger and clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice, and be kind one to another, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ sake of forgiving you.
Another brother has put it in this way that we grieve the Spirit of God when we do those things he tells us not to do. We quench the Spirit of God when we don't do what the Spirit of God leads us to do. So those are things that can be chewed on. I'd like to go back to verse 18 a minute about in everything given thanks and.
Brother Bill mentioned that verse in.
Ephesians 5 that says giving thanks always for all things. I must say, brethren, I find it a challenge to do that because there's some things that just go against the grain in our thoughts and to be able to stop when something has happened and to be able to say thank you Lord.
I must say.
I find it's a struggle in my soul at times. Thank you Lord.
How can I say thank you Lord, when things are so messed up?
And I go back to that verse that is so well known in Ephesians or in Romans 8. All things work together for good to them that love God. And then that last part we often leave out to them, who are the called according to His purpose. In other words, God has purpose in everything that happens in our lives and often we do not see those purposes.
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Right away, but God's purposes were formed in that eternal past.
His eternal purpose of blessing and do you think?
He's going to be frustrated in his purposes of blessing.
No, not really.
My comprehension of those purposes is extremely limited and so OFT times I don't understand and things happen in my life that are different than I thought would happen. But to be able to stop and say thank you Lord.
In everything, give thanks, for this is the will of God. And I suggest Don it is the IT is the Lord's will that we give thanks. But even what is permitted, and I like to put it in this way, that the work of redemption has set us so in the favor of God, that even those things that are negative in our life can only work in the end.
Our own blessing and to be able to accept it from the hand of God.
Brings peace. I see people sometimes when they have things happen that are negative, they're wrestling against it, they're wrestling with it.
We need to recognize the hand of the Lord and to say thank you, Lord, and to accept his hand in what's happened to us, and that will bring peace. And I find that that does bring peace when we simply accept it.
Just make one more comment and it's come home to my soul this way.
I would suggest there's a reason why it says in Thessalonians to give thanks in all things and in Ephesians to give thanks for all things. They were two different companies.
The Thessalonians were new believers and sometimes when a very difficult event occurs in our lives, and I speak from my own experience.
I wasn't, if I could say it this way, a mature enough Christian to give thanks for it.
I thank God that I can honestly say there was always the giving thanks in all things. I believe there was a submission to the will of God, but the overwhelming difficulty and the overwhelming grief sometimes made it difficult to give thanks for it. But then the Ephesians, they were those who received the highest truth that God ever gave as to the believers blessings.
And when we're risen and seated in heavenly places in Christ and enjoying that place.
Then I believe we can more likely give thanks for all things. The one who can always give thanks in all things will perhaps give thanks for that thing sometime down the road as it comes home to our souls. What the Lord is doing as the lesson that we need to learn, or the blessing that we get from it comes home to our souls. Then we can give thanks for it. But I can't always give thanks for it right away.
You can always give thanks in all things.
Further comment.
God is God and God knows all things, and he says my ways are not your ways, and my thoughts are not your thoughts.
God's management of the affairs of this earth and the billions of people that are on it and the interactions of the lives of those people is not subject to God explaining every detail of every action and all the interactions of what He's doing in every life, including our own, including our interaction. We never know all the facts and the details about what God is doing.
Even in our personal lives and how things happen that affect us. And so it's well for us to recognize my ways are not your ways and my thoughts are not your thoughts. Because so easily we think that what we need is to understand what God is doing in order to give thanks about it or to accept it.
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I don't believe that's the intent. God says, have I communicated to you adequately that you know my heart? And if you know my heart, you can accept everything without understanding, Or if I choose to or you need to know, I'll tell you. But we honor God.
By trusting him.
And that's the root we honor God when we trust him. And if we what God wants us to learn isn't so much the details of what he's doing in every respect, but he wants us to know his heart. And in order that that is so, he has given us eternal life and that life is perfect. It's the life of Christ. And so.
It has the divine character of love.
In it, and that's God's heart of love, we also learn that God is perfect in light and holiness, and that also is given to us by the life that we have. And consequently God has said to us, I have given to you that which is necessary for you to know me as light and love.
In my very character and essence. And if we have that, then we can fulfill all these exhortations without regard to whether or not we understand what he's doing in a particular instance or or way. And it's the character. I'll make one more comment about it. It's the character of Christianity in contrast to Judaism. That's why James.
Said Until I see him, I will not believe.
That is the Jewish side of things, and in the Millennium or in the Tribulation, when the earthly people are restored in their relationship to their Messiah, that process of restoration, they'll look at the wounds in his hands, and then they'll recognize Him as to who He was, and they will see Him, and that will confirm their belief.
But for us, we live in a time and in a relationship which is based on faith, not sight. It's based on a faith that doesn't require.
Explanations of every detail of what God is doing. It is based on depending by the direction of the Word of God and the Spirit of God to be able to act in submission and conformity to His will.
So I say these things particularly to the intent that we not think we have to understand in order to give thanks in all things.
That what he wants us to understand is one thing. His heart himself.
To know him, and if we know him, we can accept that his understanding and how he acts is beyond our many things He's we're not going to know in this life at least.
Having not paid, we rejoice with joy unspeakable.
Matthew 11 You know, we often.
Read these verses and.
Verse 27 says, All things are delivered unto me of my Father, and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father, neither knoweth any man the father save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him, come unto me, all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. We often use that in connection with the gospel.
But how is it with us as to our walk and take my yoke upon you and learn of me? Well, he just.
Had spoken of that wondrous relationship with father and son and.
For I am meek and lowly in heart, and you shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy. My burden is light. That's a big lesson for us, isn't it, to walk so with the Father in Psalm 43, verse three. And it says, Oh, send out thy light.
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And thy true.
Our Lord Jesus says I am the light of the world.
Ye that followeth me shall not walk in darkness.
And thy truth, I am the way, the truth.
And the light, what a man has been in your world and mine to give such a wondrous display of the Father's heart.
In every circumstance of life and even.
As he gave himself into death, let them lead me, let them bring me unto thy holy hill, unto thy tabernacles. Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy.
Mr. Darby translates that God, the gladness of my joy, we are brought to enjoy God himself. Isn't that amazing? We who were guilty and lost?
Now have this privilege.
And to walk with a similar yoke which will fail at he never did.
But that's our privilege as Saints of God.
Connection.
The verse quench not the spirit. I would like to.
Think a little bit, brethren, about the wonderful, tremendous privilege it is when we become believers and says, when we believe the gospel of our salvation, we were sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise. And it tells us very clearly in John's Gospel that the Spirit of God is with us to guide us into all truth.
And so he's there to guide us and very interesting in First Corinthians chapter 3, it speaks of the Spirit of God dwelling in us. That's collectively He dwells in each of our bodies. Individually we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, but collectively.
As those believers.
That composed the Church of the living God. He dwells in US collectively.
And He's there to guide us collectively. And I think it is a beautiful thing to see in Scripture and to recognize in our assembly meetings that the Spirit of God is here to guide us into all truth. And it's beautiful in a reading like this to see the different ones that bring up some thought, and it helps us to have a more balanced view.
Of the truth of God. So the Spirit of God is in US collectively.
To guide us. And so we are told not to quench the spirit. Somebody has said we can quench the spirit by not speaking when the Spirit of God tells us to speak, or we can quench the spirit by talking too much.
And that quenches the Spirit, perhaps for a brother that God wants to use to say something. And so there needs to be a sense in our souls of the fact that we are one member amongst many. Look at the First Corinthians chapter 12 for example.
It says in verse four there are diversities.
Of gifts but the same Spirit there are diverse differences of administrations, but the same Lord. There are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh All in all. Beautiful to see that in the body of Christ there's diversity and unity at the same time. But notice verse 7. The manifestation of the Spirit is given.
To every man or everyone to profit withal.
So there's not one brother that God may use. He may use one brother.
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In an address, but in a meeting where we leave it open to the Spirit of God to guide.
Then there is profit in everyone as we give the Spirit of God liberty to guidance. And so there should be the exercise. And I want to say a word to you younger brethren. I know you don't feel like speaking up that much. I remember being in that same position and, and, but I, I find if there's a sensitivity as to the presence and the direction of the Spirit of God, sometimes a younger brother can bring up a thought.
Or perhaps a question that really helps to develop the?
Theme of the chapter that we're going over so be exercised to be led by the Spirit of God in whatever meeting we're talking about.
Aspect in which the Spirit of God affects our lives or is is a very dominant force in our lives as believers, we're told in Romans 8 that ye are not in the flesh that you're in the spirit. If so be the Spirit of God dwells in you. You know we we we have learned quite a bit. I know that we fail in it that we've learned quite a bit about.
Seeking to follow the leading of the Spirit of God.
In our meetings especially, it's an exercise for the brothers that we sense the Spirit of God.
Very, very obvious sometimes when we fail to do that. But what about our individual lives? Do we realize that the Spirit of God is the energy for our new life?
Are we dependent on the Spirit of God to produce?
The fruit of the Spirit.
Do we walk in dependence? It says walk in the Spirit. The lead of the Spirit is is the activity of the Spirit of God something that we are we are dependent upon and aware of? Because when we're not, we can be sure that the Spirit of God will be quince.
He is the only energy for this new life. And if there is something produced for the glory of God from our lives, it's going to come through the activity of the Spirit of God. And so this is something, this is something for us to understand that this is what God is designed in the in, in, in our, in our Christian experience.
That the Spirit of God is absolutely necessary for there to be fruit to be born for God.
I really think that's important, Phil, I must say. If we don't learn to walk individually as guided by the Spirit of God, recognizing that He's within my body and He's there to guide me and to give Him place, then when we come together, how can we expect Him to guide us? We need to practice that on the individual level. Then it will be evident.
When we come together collectively, I must say it has been exercising to me too. The.
Exhortation we have in Ephesians 5, where it says.
Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit.
What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit?
It means that what guides us are the impulses of the Spirit of God, not our own natural impulses. When the Lord Jesus had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, he was a hungered says. Was it hunger that moved him to act? The devil tempted him. Change those.
Stones into bread.
You're the Son of God, but that was not what guided him.
What guided him was the Spirit of God through the Word of God, and he resisted that temptation and how often we're guided by our own natural impulses.
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We give the illustration of walking through a shopping center and come buy a coffee shop and they pump out that coffee smell into the aisle you're passing through. What's the purpose of that?
You know what it is to turn on your desires and come in and have a cup of coffee.
Well, those are natural impulses, but are we aware of the presence and the power of the Spirit of God? And when you look at the book of the Acts and see those who were filled with the Spirit of God?
Beautiful illustration in Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.
I think it's so beautiful, brother and I. It's a challenge to me as I think about it. Is it what really guides me in my life individually, the Spirit of God, or are there other impulses?
The mind of Christ referred to in the past birth of First Corinthians 2. Is that the result of the indwelling of the Spirit?
The Spirit of God has celebrity as we've been talking. It's not quenched. Then there's the openness to good and there's close to evil. We become permeable membranes, if you think of it that way. And so verse 20 is touched on a while back. Despise not prophesying. There's the openness to good and there's closed to evil. Verse 21 prove all things hold fast that which is good.
Those two attitudes are nicely, I think, illustrated in Acts 17 and Acts 17. Speaking of the Bereans, says in verse 11, these were more noble than those in Thessalonica in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind. They were open to the good, they weren't close to it and searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were. So they filtered it to make sure that what they had wasn't evil, wasn't wrong, It was consistent with the Word of God.
So there are those two things we ought not to be. We ought to be permeable membranes if we're guided by the Spirit of God, open to the good.
And retaining it and close to the evil.
I remember traveling with brother Glenn Mckennon a number of years ago and and a brother spoke in a meeting and it's a brother that I didn't particularly have a lot of respect for. And I afterwards I mentioned it to brother Clem and.
He is this verse 20. He said despise not prophesying.
He said you may not respect him.
You may not like him that well, but listen, because God often uses instruments. We least expect to say something that's for our profit. Let me tell you that has been a very helpful correction in mind. Doesn't mean that we accept everything that's said. It goes on to say, like you say, prove all things hold fast that which is good. So we got our Bibles open. You young people, are you checking it out?
Is that what it means? Is this what the Spirit of God is saying to us? Prove it.
And that which is good, hold fast to it and abstain from all appearance of evil. So those are good challenges to us.
We spent quite a bit of time on the word everything really is like ball. So in giving thanks is everything. Now if you notice that in verse 18, in everything, not just some, we don't choose to give thanks on something over others and then.
When it speaks in verse 21 about proving well, what do we have to prove? Which is exalted to prove all things, all things not part of it. And then as to evil, we we find that to be a very big problem today. Evil is all around us.
Abstain from what part of evil?
All all appearance. And often we ask the question, well, what's wrong with that?
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What is wrong with and that I remember that when I was a teenager that was a question raised and some of you I remember you as a youngster now your parents and I'm sure you have your your children asking you the same question. What is wrong with that? And I don't think we have enough answers for all that, but really is what is right with it before God that you need to prove all things and if it gives any hint of an appearance of evil, which as we're to abstain from them from all of it.
Authority reads the broader than this, it says abstain.
From every form of evil I believe, and so it covers the appearance of evil.
Yes, sometimes we may not actually be doing something wrong, but it has the appearance of wrong. But the broader thing is every form of evil.
Generally speaking, in our hearts there is because of what we are, there is a strong feeling about a certain evil, and perhaps because of tendencies in our own hearts, we don't feel quite so strongly.
About something else, but.
The Old Testament tells us in the book of Ecclesiastes dead flies.
'Cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor, and then it gives the application of it.
So.
Now lost that train of thought.
So.
A little folly, thank you, Lemoyne. So a little folly in him that is held in reputation for wisdom and honor. And so a believer may be going on very well and be used of the Lord, and there may be blessing in his or her life, but it doesn't take much to spoil the whole thing, does it? And I believe that's why.
This verse is here because it doesn't take much to spoil our testimony, not only before the Lord, but before the world. And the world in some cases knows better than we how a Christian should walk. And it's a humbling thing when the world pulls us up short for some inconsistency in our walk, isn't it? And I speak from experience, it's it's a very humbling thing because they know what a Christian should do and they know very well.
When we step out of line and do something, even if it's something small. And so every form of evil has to be carefully avoided, doesn't it?
Also, sometimes they're translated to wickedness. And I was thinking perhaps I'm not quite in touch with the young people. Sometimes they have a phrase when they see something nice, they'll say wicked. That's not very good, is it? They are trying to imply something good. They may say, well, what's the big deal? It's only an expression, but there's a very bad expression and implying evil along with it.
In Deuteronomy chapter 16.
It talks about.
Eating unleavened bread in connection with the celebration of the Passover.
They weren't to eat of it for seven days. First three, Deuteronomy 16 verse 3. Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it. Seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith.
But in verse four it says, And there shall be no leaven bread seen with thee and all thy coast seven days. Not only were they not to eat the leaven bread, but they weren't even to have it show up anywhere in the whole country for seven days.
Nonprofit signs.
Things and not to treat them lightly.
We often whenever we see a word that involves the word prophecy, we think of what's going to happen in the future. And we got lots of books up there in the display on the subject of prophecy. And we might originally read this and say, well, we ought to despise what God has said about what's going to happen. I don't believe that's the intent of these words.
Prophesying is.
The in the broad sense of the word is God giving his mind.
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About something as it applies to a particular need or situation.
And so it's in the Old Testament when you had prophets, the most common use of those prophets was the king. And something was they were questioning what should we do or shouldn't do.
The king would say, Well, go to the prophet and let's ask him. And so they went to the prophet to ask of the prophet, What is the mind of Jehovah with respect to this situation in which we are?
And the prophet would often give them what God had to say to him to tell them both in many cases as to the present, but he also often the Lord would say because of this, this is going to happen down the road, if you will, of time.
The importance of it in this chapter is there may be a situation. I'm going to use an example to illustrate the point, but it has a broad application.
There may be a situation that comes up in the assembly and the brothers in what we call a brothers meeting get together to consider what to do about that matter. And the aspect of it is what is the mind of the Lord for us, and what does the Lord's mind concerning this matter? And if there's something to be done, what is it that the Lord wants us to do about it?
We are to be before the Lord and recognize that maybe the Lord didn't tell you.
But he may have told your brother, and your brother may have the mind of the Lord for all of you in that situation. And so we need to listen.
And not lightly esteem what another says about a matter that is involved in knowing the mind of the Lord in the matter. And if the Lord gives it to someone, our responsibility is to recognize the Lord has spoken.
And the Lord has used that instrument, And how do we receive It is given in the prove all things, hold fast that which is good, abstain from evil, if it is the mind of the Lord.
It can be tested in the that it will be according to the Word of God. It will be totally consistent. The Lord may use that brother to bring before us a specific scripture.
Not always, but I suppose sometimes a specific scripture that says, brethren, I believe this is the word of the Lord concerning what we are to do or not to do in this matter. And secondly, as has already been mentioned, in good and evil, it will not only be according to the Word, but it will be consistent with God in balance, that God is perfect in love and perfect in holiness.
And very often we have to test things because they may get imbalanced in emphasizing love at the expense of holiness or holiness at the expense of love. And so it takes a spiritual mind to discern sometimes that this is truly a word from the Lord that is according to the Word of God and maintains both the good.
God is love and the evil that is God is light and it is not according to God is light, and very often when it's, I'll say not according to the mind of the Lord. Very often there can even be a scripture, but it will emphasize God is love at the expense of God is light, or it will emphasize God is love at the expense that God is.
One or the other is.
Is not upheld, and I believe that in this thing it is. That's part of what the Spirit of God wants us to get out of it.
I think with regards to that.
The way we receive a message has to do with the one that gives it, and we need to differentiate between that. I'll just give an example. David and his life had two people that came and gave him a message.
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One of them was Shimmy Eye. He threw dirt and stones at him.
And he told him he was a bloody man.
And there was another man that came to David Nathan.
And he came in a much different spirit and he said, you know, David, I know you want to build the temple, but God has said to me that because you're a bloody man, because you're a man of blood, you're not able to do that. Now we like the Nathan. We like an Anton that comes alongside of us and he puts his arm around us and he delivers the message. We don't like Ashima, who throws dirt and stones at us. Now David could see.
Through the situation with Shiny Eye and when his men wanted to take his head off.
He said no, the Lord has bid him. And so just in connection with what you're bringing before us, Brother Dawn, that often when a message is given, we line it up with the messenger instead of recognizing whether it's actually the mind of God or not, regardless of the messenger. And so I've just appreciated that with David, here's exactly the same message by two different messengers, exactly the same message.
You can have the exact flip side of it in the sense of not wanting to accept because of your feeling of a brother, or you can miss the mind of the Lord because you seek somebody that has a good reputation and try to get their concurrence. That's the opposite, but it is equally.
We're all as a brother, you often said when I was growing up, we're all a bunch of crooked streaks and and there it's so easy for us to seek and it's illustrated multiple times in the Kings where they.
Wanted.
Oh, Saul said, I've sinned the prophet, But then he said, now honor me before the brethren. That is, he sought concurrence of somebody else.
For.
And Walt so and so says so. So it ought to be right And.
There's an instance in the end of Second Kings where they go to the prophet to ask the prophet what to do. And it he tells them what to do and it says they don't accept it. And they don't accept it because they already had their mind made-up and the prophet exposed that they were going to act a certain way anyways and God was angry with them for doing that. But we can also.
Ask the mind of the Lord of others, will you help me with this, to know the Lord's mind? But if our heart doesn't go in trueness of wanting to know, then we're not going to listen anyways unless they agree with us. And that's a danger too in upholding these verses.
Perhaps just a comment or two on verses 23 and 24 before we close the meeting.
Here we have, I believe, several things. First of all.
We have sanctification not so much as that which.
Is positional. We get that when we're saved, but that which the Lord is doing with us all through our Christian lives and.
There's an order here, Spirit, soul and body. Quite often in Scripture the spirit and the soul are put together because in one sense they can't be separated. But they are very distinct from one another, aren't they? The spirit being the God conscious part of our being, and the soul being what we might call the seed of our appetites and desires and what makes us individuals. And then of course the body, the house in which both of them live.
But if we are going to be preserved, it has to start with the Spirit of God.
Working on our spirit, the human spirit, we have a human spirit and that is the part that responds to God's claims. But as a result of that, we can progress down to the soul, where my appetites and my desires are formed by the power of the Spirit of God and the Lord working in my life. And then of course, that will naturally translate into the body being kept from sin.
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But it's a wonderful thing to think that.
The Lord is willing to do that and.
The next verse says Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
We might ask ourselves the question then, why is it that in some cases we do not see a believer preserved spirit and soul and body as this verse says, if the Lord is faithful and he will do it, then why doesn't it happen?
Oh, it's because we have not allowed the God of peace to sanctify us wholly.
Mentioned a few minutes earlier in this meeting, we have allowed our own wills to try and and they have sometimes thwarted the will of God. But I love the comment. I think it was in Mr. Wiggum's ministry and it's beautiful. It's been a big encouragement to me. He said if the Lord sees in your heart any desire to go after Christ, He will work it in you.
That's what we have here, I believe. Is there a desire in my heart?
Maybe I don't know how to bring it about. Maybe I don't know what to do. Then the Lord will bring circumstances into my life, put me through a tuition if necessary, even bring severe difficulties into my life in order to do what? To preserve me blameless under the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. And so we can all have confidence in that. Now, maybe others can add to that, but it has been a tremendous, a tremendous encouragement to my own soul.
To see how that this epistle is ended up by. Now there are a couple of other things said beyond this that are very nice, but.
Having had all these exhortations that have been brought out, can we do it in our own strength? No, but the Lord will work it in US. He'll preserve us, spirit, soul and body, if there's a desire in our hearts and if we allow the Lord to sanctify us holy.
So there's that, which contaminates on each of those levels, isn't it?
Spiritual wickedness there is that the bad desires that are encouraged in the world we live in.
And there is that which contaminates the body.
Fornication is a sin against the body.
Specifically, and so we're to be sanctified.
Holy Lord, help us to be that way.
I often think, too, that God made us in his image and likeness.
God is triune and so we are three parts in one. The Lord help us to be.
For his coming again blameless that seems like.
It's impossible, isn't it? But when you take into account verse 24, faithful is he which calleth you, who also will do it. So let us let our confidence be in the Lord, brethren, to keep us. He will, if we want to be kept.
Like comment on how the epistle closes and this way too. There's God at work at the end of the epistle, right? He also will do it. Here is perhaps the most experienced most.
Outstanding Christian that's ever lived the pattern of Saints the apostle Paul and here's some brand new newborn believers and what's he say to them pray for us. There is an God has so established what we are collectively and individually that he has formed an interdependence that I need you and you need me and woe to the Spirit that says I have the Spirit of God in the Bible and I don't need anybody.
That is not that's a bad attitude. That's not according to the way script work. Scripture presents it. So he says I charge you that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. In other words, here you've received this letter now share it. And so part of our interdependence is what the Lord gives to us needs to be shared there. There are many things that we all need and in the end it begins with he will do it.
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And what is his heart toward us? That we depend on the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Can we not say when we walk out of this building that the end of the afternoon the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us?
88.
Till thou shalt fully have obtained in us the fruits of grace.
And we enjoy said, Never end shall see thee face to face #288.
All those merry boy.
I will come back for my sleep.
By.
Age of obligated when you're feeling.
I shall pray full moon of the man from now, every heart away.
The Lord's Guidance in Our Lives
Address—Bill Brockmeier
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
We cannot always trace the way, for Thou our gracious Lord does move, but we can always surely say that God is love #9 in the appendix.
With.
I assume.
For God.
Is our water all of our?
Turn, if you would first please, to second Samuel 22.
Like to.
Draw our attention this afternoon to a few passages that have to do with the ways of the Lord.
And then to branch out a little bit into our pathway through this world and maybe some comments or some principles from the word that would help us and those matters where there is not a direct scripture to guide us or to direct us.
Now.
If we turn to Psalm 18, we would find this effectively, not quite, but effectively, a verbatim rehearsal of Second Samuel chapter 22.
One difference being verse one of chapter 22 of Second Samuel is more the introduction of the preface in Psalm 18. There's a couple reasons I'm reading for from this chapter, but before I comment on those, let's just read from verse 31.
As for God, His way is perfect.
The word of the Lord has tried. He is a buckler to all them that trust in him. For who is God save the Lord, and who is a rock save our God.
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God is my strength and power, and He maketh.
My way perfect.
The second Samuel comes in at the end of David's life. Next chapter we find the last words of David. But this chapter does not, was not occur at the end of David's life. On the contrary, it was written at the time of the beginning of his life or the beginning of his reign. Actually, before he was even on the throne. He sang, he spoke this song.
The day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hands of Saul.
40 years more or less before. Why do we have it here now at the end of his life?
Somewhere in these meetings I believe there was a comment made something to this effect of our appreciation as we get older.
Of that which occurred before.
That's a very poor paraphrase of the thought expressed, but it's one of the benefit of experience, isn't it, that?
It's a privilege to be able to look back 40 years and think about how the hand of God helped and kept us and preserved us at a time. And it's true, we may have appreciated that the time and thank the Lord for it. At the time. David no doubt was very grateful for the deliverance from the hand of Saul. But it strikes me in the sense that here at the end of his life, this, this portion is brought in just before the words of the mighty men, that there is a fresh and a deep and a richer appreciation of all that he experienced in his pathway before.
And one thing that he had come to realize was, As for God, his way.
Is perfect.
Shortly after my grandfather Smith died April 7, 1978, I was standing with my grandmother, I don't remember where exactly, and different ones would come up to her and say a word of comfort. And there was one.
Older sister that came up to her and said well he hasn't made a mistake yet.
If you know Doctor Lois Groth, he would understand the way that was framed.
I thought at the time, I thought, well, that's a unique way of expressing comfort at this time.
But as the years have gone by, I can hear our sister's voice. Well, he hasn't made a mistake yet. As for God, his way is perfect.
But you know, there's something else very beautiful. And I thought of this too, at the end of the readings this morning. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
Notice the end of verse 33. And he maketh my way perfect.
Faith says Amen has forgot his way is perfect, but to say he makes my way perfect. The other reason, the one reason of reading Second Samuel is because it's the end of David's life instead of reading the passage in Psalm 18. The other is if you have the Darby translation of this, you will notice that he translates that he makes my way.
Perfectly smooth where you don't have that. I don't know why. It's the same Hebrew word, but he doesn't translate it that way in Psalm 18. He makes that way perfectly smooth. And it struck me in this way, and perhaps there's better and deeper thoughts than the way it's presented itself to me. We know that God's way is perfect, and all His ways are perfect with us in our imperfect ways.
But God's work is too, if I can put it this way, bring our pathway, our life.
Into Communion.
And consonance with himself into alignment with himself.
I was thinking that verse there in John is a Chapter 11 when the Lord Jesus is at the grave of Lazarus and he prays and says, Father, I thank you that thou hast heard me. And I'm not quoting it exactly, but the thought is he was not praying.
But he was praying for the benefit of those that heard him.
And the blessed Son of God, he there was always complete communion. He always had that complete sense of communion with the Father, oneness of mind, oneness of thought with respect to the Father.
We don't have that so much, but this is the path the Lord would seek to bring us on. But the first comment here about the way.
Of God, it's perfect.
And faith stays with what the Scripture says, as we have this morning. We may not understand it, we may not be able to reason it out, We may not even be able to figure how can anything good come out of this. But faith says this for God. His way is perfect. Now turnover for the next passage, please, to Hosea, chapter 14. That's the last chapter of this prophet.
00:10:22
And just because of time, I'm just going to make a few.
References about this book before we come to the closing end.
Then said Hosea was written to Judah about Israel, but both Judah and Israel are addressed in it. And when we say Judah and Israel, Judah has to do.
With the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, there in Jerusalem, you remember during the time of Jeroboam 10 tribes.
Israel, they went to the northern Kingdom, to Ephraim. Samaria was their center, and there was that breach between the 10 tribes and two tribes that exist until this day. In this book, primarily, not exclusively, but primarily, it's addressed to Ephraim. Judah is addressed, and it really brings before us the restoration of the 10 tribes.
You get a similar thought in Jeremiah chapter 31. It's not addressing there the remnant of Jews. It's not addressing to those that were guilty of blood, guiltiness, crucifying their Messiah. They were not in the land when He was there. Jeremiah 31, we read the expression the remnant of Israel, not of Judah, but of Israel, the 10 tribes, the songs of degrees that we enjoy Psalm 120 to Psalm 134. It has to do with the restoration of Israel as they're going to come back into.
Fellowship with their brethren and praise the Lord. One other thought on Ephraim, you remember in Nehemiah, we're familiar with the third chapter in the 10 gates there and there's two gates mentioned in Nemi. They're not in the third chapter, the prison gate and the gate of Ephraim. I love the thought of Ephraim because God says there are those that went out of the 10 tribes. There will be a gate of Ephraim for the 10 tribes to come back in and they will in the coming day.
But Ephraim had their own set of issues. Judah had theirs. Ephraim had theirs.
Idolatry hold your place in chapter 14. I should read just a couple to.
To get a thought here chapter 4, verse 17.
Just again, I'm going to read a couple of there's other verses you can just go through the references to Ephraim and you can see it's not an uplifting picture, but in chapter 4, verse 17, the word is Ephraim is joined to idols. Let him alone. A solemn word. You're linked up, you're lined up, you're committed to these idolatries. The Lord backs up, let him alone. What a sad and sorry thing it is to get to the point where we're beyond correction.
Maybe the Lord's people. Maybe the Lord just backs off, lets you go.
Chapter 7.
When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered in the wickedness of Samaria will stop there. It seems like the Lord is coming in here. He wants to heal Israel. He wants to heal the 10 tribes. And to use the proverbial expression, pulling back the layers of the onions, He comes to heal Israel. He pulls back on what happens. The iniquity of Ephraim is discovered. It's a tribe, but it's a tribe that's spoken of characteristically of the nation. So he peels it back, and now we've got iniquity. As the Lord comes in to bless, He exposes iniquity.
It was discovered and the wickedness of Samaria pulling it back further. It's not just the tribe now, it's the it's the city, it's the capital center. And as the Lord comes into healing, into restoration, he pulls things back. Oh, there's more problems. There's more problems. We got to get to the root of this Chapter 10.
First one says Israel is an empty vine. We have thoughts of bearing fruit for the Lord, but Israel was not bearing fruit for the Lord. It was an empty vine, nothing for him in it. But now in verse four it says of Ephraim or Israel, they have spoken words of the Darby translation puts it they have spoken mere words.
I'll talk no action, no sincerity, no genuineness, no authenticity, mere words. But now in chapter 14.
The Lord loves his people. We won't read it all, but he says in verse.
Two, take with you words.
I love that in chapter 10 he says they have spoken mere words, but now he says take with you words. The Lord wants to hear words, not mere words, not words without meaning, without substance, without.
Reality but he wants to hear words and turn to the Lord and say unto him take away all iniquity and receive us graciously. So will we run to the calves of our list. Oh we see in the book of Hosea. If I can characterize it this way. There seems to be three things that work through this book that brings those that that nation back to the Lord and the first is they follow their own way and it's seen in the life of Hosea's wife who left him and was unfaithful. The first thing is.
00:15:25
She realizes that the nation realizes the path they are choosing and what they hope to attain.
It all fizzled. There wasn't the joy, there wasn't the satisfaction, there wasn't the answer what they were seeking for. They chose the path and they're made to feel the emptiness of it all.
But there's something else in addition to that, and there is the Lord's chastening hand upon them because of their ways. Not only the emptiness of the path, but then also the Lords hand upon them. But there's a third thing, and without it there would be no restoration. It's a remembrance of his love.
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely. Chapter two he speaks of alluring them and the result of this what seems to be an impossible situation for me for more it says he joined idols. Let him alone. And I just say as a word to my own heart, let's never give up any of the Lord's people.
Are any in a place so far as Ephraim let him alone? He's joined the idols. The Lord's going to restore Ephraim or the Lord? And we've had the privilege of seeing it, haven't we?
In case, as we say, this is, it's over, there's no hope and the Lord in sovereign way comes in and brings restoration and healing and blessing. But now the last two verses of chapter 14.
And I'm going to read this. Pardon me if you keep referencing the Darby, but it makes the point clear.
Ephraim shall say, what have I to do anymore with idols in parentheses? The Lord speaking, I answer him, and I will observe him.
Close the parentheses. Ephraim says I am like a green fir tree, and the Lord responds from me.
Is thy fruit found? He from the one that was joined the idols. Now comes to the point.
Says What have I to do anymore with idols? I'm done with that.
And the Lord says I've heard him and I've observed him. It's not mere words. There's a life that corresponds to that. Ephraim is done with idolatry. Ephraim says I am like a green fir tree. Oh, what a delightful thing to see the sign of life and of growth and a blessing. How do you get there from me as thy fruit frowned. It's not from us. But now this point is to the ways of the Lord in verse nine. Who is wise, and he shall understand.
These things prudent, and he shall know them, for the ways of the Lord are right.
And the justice shall walk in them, but the transgressors shall fall therein.
For God, his way is perfect, and here are the ways of the Lord are right.
To see the Lord working in a marvelous way in restoration. And the summation is the ways of the Lord are right. One more passage and that's in Romans Chapter 11.
As to the ways of the Lord.
We're familiar that in the Epistle to Romans.
And so fully sets out the gospel of God. Chapters 1011 and 12 are something of a a parentheses. So in chapter 8, you end up with the doxology. And now we're going to come up with the doxology at the end of Chapter 11. At the end of chapter 8. It's in reference to the love of God and the love of Christ and Paul is.
Can't constrain himself or restrain himself as he bursts forth in this praise to the blessed Lord. But now in Chapter 11, the subject is not the love and the grace of God, but it's the ways of God.
Read from verse 32. For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that is, Gentile and Jew.
That he might have mercy upon all. Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God.
How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his counselor, or who hath first given to him? And it shall be recompensed unto him again. For of him and through him and to Him are all things to whom be glory forever. Amen.
00:20:02
The depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God.
In reference to.
The Jews in an hour place of blessings, seen as the olive tree.
They failed. God graft in the Gentiles into the olive tree.
That place a favor of the Spirit's favor on earth. They'll be cut out again and the jewel will be brought in. Now one word here. We don't want to mix metaphors. Maybe that's not the right expression or mixed symbols. The green, the olive tree is not the body of Christ.
You know, the body of Christ and the House of God are two aspects of the assembly per SE, but they're different, just different lines of things. Well, the olive tree is neither one. It's not it's not the church at all, but it's a place of the Spirit's blessing on earth today is primarily occupied by the Gentiles. That's true that the Church of God, all that love, the Savior are in that place, but it is an outward place. And so about being cut in and.
Out of the the the the olive tree is no reference to the body of Christ. We're we're mixing things that differ if we do that. But as Paul surveys this, he says the depth of the wisdom and of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out now that hymn we sang. I've sometimes thought more accurately with saying we can rarely if ever.
Trace the ways with our gracious God to smooth but.
And reading this verse, I say even that's even. That's too strong. His ways are unsearchable, are untraceable.
Untraceable, we cannot trace out other than what he's revealed to us or is unsearchable as judgments and his ways past finding out is untraceable and his ways are untraceable. Unsearchable and untraceable unless he reveals them to us. And then the show who's known the mind of the Lord, who's been his counselor. There's no one here that would give. Maybe we've been brash enough to give the Lord counsel, but he doesn't take counsel from us.
No, not in his wisdom and his end in view for blessing what I find here as Paul surveys the work of God.
And the Gentiles being grafted in and then the Jews being grafted in because of unbelief. How God accomplishes even the unbelief of Jew and Gentile for his own glory. He burst forth in praise for of him the Source, and through him the instrumentality and of to him or for him the end in view are all things to whom be glory forever. The ways of the Lord. So Simply put, we took a lot of time, but these three things as to the way of God is perfect.
It's right and it's untraceable and faith says I accept it and thank God and praise God for that.
Now I'd like to address a few things.
I think especially of younger brother and I realize that there's plenty that are my peers are older. I I'm not going to come across as exhorting you dear ones, but maybe to share a few things have been helped to me that maybe can be helped others in the guidance of the Lord.
Where we don't have exact scriptures but before we do.
Only two verses in First Thessalonians, one of which we just read in the readings and one in chapter 4, that have specifically to do with the will of God.
Things that are direct are specific.
That we do or not? Do we know we're doing the will of God? First Thessalonians, chapter 4.
In verse 3. For this is the will of God, even your sanctification.
That you should abstain from fornication. I'll just hold it right there. Portion goes on. Fornication is a general term for all sexual sin and morality, but the will of God is that we abstain from it. I find that in one sense hugely encouraging, because here is something that you don't do, and by not doing it, you're doing the will of God.
So there are times life where we don't do something and by not doing it, we know.
We're doing the will of God now. Chapter 5 and verse.
18 and everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you, something that we don't do. We know that we're doing the will of God and something that we we should do in giving thanks. We do know we're doing the will of God. I only bring it up for this point. Not every passage of Scripture that directs us what we should do says it's the will of God, but it clearly is. Children obey your parents. For instance, a child can know he's obeying his parents that he's doing the will of God.
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But the reason I bring it in here is because.
There are often questions in our life. We want the Lord to guide us. We want the Lord to show us His way, to show us His way. But first we need to come back and say, is there anything in my life?
That I am allowing and I am going on with that I know to be wrong. That I know is against the will of God.
How can I expect God to show me his will in a more general area if what he has specifically told me not to do, I'm doing?
Conversely, if I'm not giving thanks in all things, which is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us.
If I'm not doing that again, how can I expect God to show me his mind and his will and those things that are less specific?
So we want to walk according to the light that God has given to us.
What have we often heard? That light refused brings darkness, so the will of God?
Now turn back if you went to Proverbs chapter one.
Power has been said. It's heavenly wisdom for an earthly path.
And I like to think of verses 2 Through 4 as the table of contents of the book of Proverbs. There's 10 things identified here that we will learn, that we will gain in considering the Proverbs to know wisdom and instruction. I would like to focus on just two or three. Verse four says to give subtlety to the simple or prudence to the simple.
In a certain sense is to give streets smarts to the naive.
Its prudence, it has the thought of being wise as serpents, harmless as dove, to have that ability, to have that that prudence to be preserved from the Wiles of the enemy to the young man. Knowledge, information of the sound character and discretion, thoughtfulness or reflection. But the one other on verse three I missed is judgment.
Judgment.
It has to do with trying things that differ. I love the hymn. I think we all do. With mercy and with judgment. My web of time. He wove. The judgment. There is not condemnation. It's not the pouring out of wrath, but rather it's the judgment of the Lord. It says we had in Romans Chapter 11 to guide us through this complex and difficult world.
With judgment.
You know, in Exodus 20, what is about 20212223 in there we have the judgments there for for Israel and they're really moral evaluations. And it's important that we read things you say, well, these things sound almost alike here, but there's a distinction and we need to read these things so that we we begin develop judgment. We sometimes we refer to someone that man, that woman has good judgment.
And sometimes they say very poor judgment.
I just want, just wouldn't trust that person to make a financial decision for me. They have very poor judgment, but judgment.
See if I can find it as it's over in chapter.
24 hours.
Concern myself when I think of a verse and I turn to it before I know where I'm turning. But I did find it. Chapter 26.
Proverbs 26 and verse 4.
Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest they'll also be likened to him. Answer a fool according to his father, lest he be wise in his own conceit. I had an older brother tell me one time he says, well look right there, there's a contradiction in the Bible. There's a contradiction right there. Verse verse 5 contradicts verse 4.
And I was real uncomfortable with how he positioned that as a contradiction. We often say, and I believe rightly so, there are no contradictions in the word of God. And here, here in one sense, there's two different scenarios to answer full or not answer a fool.
But I believe the difference is this. It's a matter of judgment we don't have.
An action plan laid out as to when we apply one and when we apply the other. But there's, there's counsel for us here. And perhaps I have answered a fool according to his folly, and I've been like him. And other times I've not answered a fool according to his folly, and he has been wise in his own conceit. But judgment would be able to weigh these things and to apply them to the situations of life, the situations at hand.
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That's one of the benefit. That's why we need to read the word of God. That's why we need the word read the proverbs that we have the wisdom of God.
Stored up in our souls that the Spirit of God can use it and guide us.
And the thought of discretion is the thought of thoughtfulness or reflection. It's the knowledge.
That comes of reflection or well considered thoughts.
Well with that I would turn if you went to Matthews Gospel chapter one.
And what I'd like to pursue right now is.
The four dreams of Joseph.
Not Joseph the son of Israel, who had two dreams, but Joseph the husband of Mary, the mother of Jesus. And there's four instances where he had a dream where he was a man that was guided of God in very unique and challenging situations.
We do not look for guidance from dreams, but the point being is in the absence of specific scriptural direction where we can say this is the will of God, It gives us principles on which we can make and take actions. So Matthew chapter one and verse 18. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise.
When is his mother? Mary was espoused to Joseph before they came together. She was found a child of the Holy Ghost.
Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put away privilege. But while he thought on these things, behold, the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in the dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee. Marry thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost, and she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.
Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled, which is spoken of the Lord by the Prophet saying, Behold.
A virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel.
Which being interpreted as God with us. And Joseph being raised from sleep, did as the Lord did, as the Angel. The Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife, and knew her not till she had brought forth her first born son, and he called his name Jesus.
What a momentous.
Seeing Daniel as it speaks of the Messiah as the desire of women, Whatever godly Jewish woman or desire to bear the Messiah prophesied Isaiah, Virgin shall be with child now.
I've been corrected on this before, so I will couch my remarks somewhat. I had taken it here.
In Matthew's Gospel that that it was the Lord that told Joseph of, of Mary being with child brother said to me one time he says, oh, that's so that's so that's so wrong that you think that Mary would have told him. I don't argue that. I just, I'm just going by what I'm reading here. And so if, if, if that was the case, I I.
I'll accept it.
But the point here is now Joseph is faced with a situation that had never occurred before and never occur again. He's a godly man. He's a just man. And here's his espoused wife with child.
What am I going to do?
Now what does he do?
Verse 20 while he thought on these things.
There is the knowledge that comes from reflection.
We are in a day where a situation presents itself. On whom we act, we move.
But the wisdom of God is to wait. I'm not going to take the time to turn to it, but there's many proverbs, there's many verses of scriptures outside of the proverbs that would give us counsel about waiting on the Lord.
You're familiar with the proverb that says he that hasteth with his feet sinneth. Again, the translation on that he that hasteth with his feet maketh false steps. We rush. We're going to make a mistake.
You remember in the book of Daniel when Nebuchadnezzar was incensed, he seems he realized he was being played by his wise men. And yeah, tell us a dream and we'll interpret sin. You can you can come up with anything here. You tell me the dream and the interpretation, then you'll be a true man.
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And they could not. And he, the king, is livid. He has orders. All the wise men killed.
So what is Daniel who brings this matter before his three friends to pray? What is what's the word they say? Why is the king in such a haste are so urgent about the matter?
Nebuchadnezzar, just for a moment. What's the harm of giving it another 24 hours?
Waiting. What's the rush? Administration wait?
He that hasteth with his sheep maketh false steps. Joseph thought on these things.
And as he thought on them, the Lord comes to him and communicates that which would have thrilled his soul.
That that which is Mary is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
That as he waits and ponders before the Lord. And he was a just man, and if he had to put her away, he was going to do it privily, quietly, secretly. He wasn't going to make a show about it. We will discreetly and quietly handle this matter in the way it should be taken care of. It wasn't trying to get.
Front page headlines in this regard, but the Lord comes in and helps him now believe this is one warning and help to us that you know the Lord said in John chapter maybe seven. I'm not sure now exactly the chapter judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment. See I see the situation. I sized it up. I know what to do.
It's not what Joseph did. He waited and pondered on the Lord and as he did.
The Lord gives him remarkable, this remarkable dream, this insight which would have thrilled his soul.
So we don't want to rush. Now I will say this on the other hand.
The matter of forcing our way ahead.
Again, I'm referencing and I trust you in all these passages. In your mind, we don't take the time to turn to it. You remember when Samuel told Saul, wait seven days and then we'll have these offerings. Wait for me and and and for the 7th day and then we'll go forward.
Saul waits seven days and Samuel isn't there. Saul a man after the flesh is. I don't know what he thought. Sam is unreliable. But you know, we got to get moving here. We got Philistines are on us. We need to, we need to, we need to have the offering here. So he does. Guess who shows up? Samuel. The flesh can never wake God's time.
And what does Saul say to Samuel about this? He says I forced myself.
To offer the burnt offering.
He forced himself.
Didn't force himself. Why couldn't you wait God's time? And I think that's the other side of it. Not only do we rush ahead sometimes, sometimes we force things.
Tell a story.
I It goes back a good number of years, but it.
It.
Was very sad. I worked with a woman and I did not know at the time she was a believer.
She was divorcing and I guess a divorced her husband. I don't think she has scriptural grounds for doing it. She had a little girl.
And she was engaged to a man happened to be a Jew and a lot of talk in the office. This isn't good. So she and I were we had the same same boss and we were in his office. He had he had to step away from me. And he's like, I got to step by just just wait here. I'll be back in just a couple minutes. But I have to I have to step away. And so the two of us are sitting in his office waiting. And you know, those awkward silences and.
So I called her by name and I said.
Your upcoming wedding, I said. Be a piece about it.
If I knew she was a Christian, I might add something else I just said. Do you have peace about it, boy? She came out at me and started laying out all the reasons why this wedding was this marriage was right and.
Went on for some time, didn't answer my question.
Well, she got married.
Two weeks of horror after the honeymoon, she eventually fled with her daughter for her life.
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And months went by, months went by and she was seen a little bit, but she came up to me one day and she says Bill.
Do you remember when we were in Jim's office and you asked me if I had peace about this?
I've been thinking about it ever since I said yes, I remember she said. Bill. The one thing I did not have was peace.
And she told me what transpired after was just it was just it was horrific. But she didn't have peace. And she was a believer. And I will say now that she's she's become much a much brighter Christian. But I believe how important that is, whether here is someones of the world, but in our pathway here, do we have peace? Saul forced himself to offer the burnt offering.
That we need to look to the Lord and wait on the Lord for His time. So we got to act now, do we? Maybe one more word on that, and I'm taking a little too much time on this, but the other is this when Paul told the Corinthians.
As there was a readiness to perform on your part, they wanted to give, they were ready to give, he says. That's good, but finally has like the churches in Macedonia, but finally has this to say. Your willing heart was good, now let there be a performance of it.
There is a time for decisiveness and there is a time for action, not indefinite procrastination.
There is a time to move and to act, so the scripture does give us balancing these things. But this point here.
Joseph's first dream is not judging according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment and wait on the Lord for a signal from him.
Now chapter 2 we find commonly referred to as the slaughter of the innocents when Herod destroys those that are two years young and under. Now understand here in this passage when the wise men come into the house, it's the Lord of Jesus is a young child and I know for probably 95% of us we have it down, but I think it's important to understand.
This is a house. This is not a stable. The Lord Jesus is not an infant. This is not and this is not shepherds. These are wise men. Doesn't say they're kings. They're wise men. Doesn't say they're three either. They bought gold, frankincense and myrrh. But these wise men came into the house and worshipped Jesus. But Herod goes on his rampage of killing those that in that land, two years old, males 2 years old and younger.
But now in verse 12.
In reference to the wise men, Sizemore Sullivan being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country.
Another way, so the wise men receive a dream.
And when they were departed, behold, the Angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in the dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother.
And flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word. For Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt, have I called my son? Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked to the wise man, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts are up from 2 years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men, and so on.
So Herod had heard it. He was Edomite and vitamin and Edomite who particularly is seen as personal enmity against the people of God. And there was enmity against the Lord Jesus who was the true King. But at any rate, the Angel is now giving guidance to the wise men and to Joseph. Now this is the point I'd like to make here. And maybe these points are very simple, but this one is, is, is I believe is very important.
The Lord gave guidance to the four wise men to go into their country a different way.
Joseph packed up and went with them. No, and there's a great danger and I think.
Especially in the matters of I might be so bold as to say it even in matters of raising children.
God is going to give you as a father and mother, wisdom for your children.
You can't copy and paste instruction of others and all that, regardless of what their outward success might be, and plan it here and say I'm going to follow that instruction. God gives you the light and the wisdom if we're exercised about it before the Lord. Joseph did not follow the wisdoms of others, she said, well, he directed those four wise men to go that way. Yeah, he did. But he didn't direct Joseph to go that way.
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The Lord has a different path for different ones.
And if he had gone with the Wise men, he would not have gone.
Down to Egypt and the prophecy would not have been fulfilled out of Egypt how they called my son. All that is hypothetical that we don't bring in the things of God. But the point was he didn't follow the movements of others and it's a real danger. Maybe as we're young believers and we see someone that seems to be doing well as to want to emulate them. Shall we say business, we say sharing best practices. Well, let's do it that way. Let's do it that way seems to work out real well.
No, God gives special light and wisdom.
When I was a, as a young father, a young failing father, now I'm an old failing father. But there was a passage that was a great help to me and John the Baptist that God told Zacharias that you're gonna, you're, you're gonna have a son and you're gonna name him John. And so Zacharias does not believe.
The Lord, How can this be? Well, it can be this way because the Lord told just told you. It's gonna be that way. At any rate, he's dumb with silence. He's not permitted to speak because of his unbelief.
So the process of time, John the Baptist is born. I wouldn't call him. Well, the family, you know, they all got something to say about family matters, right? And they say call him Zacharias after his father.
Elizabeth. No, no, His name is me. Call John. What do you mean? You talking about John? And there's no one in the family named John.
So what do we have here? Family reaching in saying this is the way it needs to be in your home.
Well, ask. Ask Zacharias. He is the head of the house. Give him a tablet. His name is John.
Case closed.
They just struck me in this way. However weak and failing we may be, we can count on God to give us the wisdom and the multitude of counselors their safety. We don't minimize that, but the danger of following the direction of others.
God directed the four wise men in a certain way, but He had unique and special direction on Joseph, and Joseph waited until he had a word from the Lord.
Now, verse 19.
But when Herod was dead, behold, an Angel Lord appeared in the dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for they are dead, which sought the child's life. And he arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
Here we have the third dream. Joseph is in Egypt, where he's supposed to be and words out. Herod's dead coast is clear. Now let's sail back up there.
No, not, not, not so fast. Joseph waits until he gets direction from the Lord.
Now I want to speak of this as as presumption.
You say, well, you think of Acts 16 there where where the Lord is, is is the spirit suffers Paul not to go into Byphenia and Missy and so on until he comes to Troaz where he gets a vision. He sees a man in a vision that says come over and help us. And then they assuredly gather that the Lord is calling them and directing them. We're not.
Governed and guided by circumstances. That is really walking by sight, not by faith, however.
It's a wonderful thing. I will the blessed Lord, to him the Porter openeth. He makes our way smooth.
The Lord opens the way, but just because the coast was clear, as we might say.
Herod was dead, Joseph, I can go back. He waits until he gets direction from the Lord. It seems to be a pattern. He doesn't move unless the Lord gives him direction, said Man. I've had 40 years of success now making the right call and making the decision and the next one.
It comes you're going to make a mistake if we don't look to the Lord for it.
You know, it's just a sobering note. I just of late, we realize often and and with a youth, how important is the real important issues of life being married and and starting a job and where you're going to live and so on. How how important those decisions are young in life, but how.
Tough it has been to see dear older ones.
Make bad decisions.
When they're too old, they make them bad decisions and they're costly. Some of us that are middle-aged or that we can make very bad decisions. And so we realize that I hope the vulnerability that we're in, but to develop that constant spirit of looking to the Lord for his guidance in that unique situation. So then the next one here.
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Verse 22. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither.
Notwithstanding being warned of God in a dream, he turned his side into the parts of Galilee, and He came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth. That it might be fulfilled which is spoken by the prophets, he shall be called a Nazarene.
But now.
If I'm in this situation, I know exactly what I'm doing right now. I'm second guessing myself. So Bill, you know, you're too quick to move up there and now you thought the coaches, Claire, you go up there only to find out Archelaus is now in place. So you got rid of one, but now you got somebody else that's just going to be just just as much of a problem. The situation isn't solved. And so the danger is that sometimes the situation is that we act in fear. Says he was afraid.
There's nothing wrong with fear. If it if it if it drives us to the Lord.
But again, his decision was not based on fear anymore that it was based on presumption the time before.
Again, he hears this report.
But his movement to go into Galilee was not based.
Simply on the news that he heard, but rather he was warned of God in a dream. God was faithful to his servant Joseph. We find this man. And in that sense the Lord Jesus was the son of Joseph, the son of son of David through Joseph the legal, the legal heir to the throne.
Through Mary the the seed of David.
But we find this man in this book of Matthew that gives us really administrative principles.
A man that learned to wait upon God and seek his guidance and direction.
I just say this too. We love Matthew 1824. Two or three are gathered together to my name. There am I in the midst of them.
I've heard plenty of attacks against that verse and those who seek to rob it of all its meaning.
On the other hand.
Sometimes, I'm afraid we carry that verse beyond.
Its scope. It does not contain all of Paul's doctrine.
The point of that verse primarily is.
Anticipates the ruin of the church.
And the church can't claim to be the church because of the broken condition. For two or three, simply gather to his name.
Take an action in the Lord's name. The focus of it is administrative authority.
And it's a binding action.
And again, it's in the book, the Gospel that really has to do with the Lord is the king and of administrative principles. And we see what Joseph, a man that should have been king, he should have been sitting on the throne of Israel, but a man that submitted, accepted the position he had from God and then waited upon God for direction.
Again, he was not moved by appearances, nor by the movements of others, or by presumption or by fear, but he waited upon the Lord. So he has so much in in waiting upon the Lord, and how we need to not force things wait to have that spirit of peace.
Sing that hymn, and when we know not what thou doest, that we wait the light above. Something like that.
How important it is to wait upon the Lord? Just one verse in closing Psalm 27.
You know the first verse, The Lord is light, my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? And so on. Not a new thought with me, but something. I heard Him from my youth, and I appreciate it very much. So we have the fullness of the Lord's provision for His people, His guidance, His direction.
But the verse 14 says wait on the Lord be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart. Wait, I say on the Lord. The Lord is there for us to guide us, to guard us, to lead us to help us. But may he present us, whether it's in our in our individual lives, in our family lives, or maybe even 2 as you get older in the assembly to learn to wait on him, to wait his time and he will strengthen thy heart.
Cops in closing, we could just sing that little hymn.
I think it's 311 before we depart.
Yes #311.
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God and our Father, we thank you for thy word. We do thank thee, our God.
Be Watchful and Strengthen What Remains
1 Thessalonians 5:9-18
Camp Fire - Focus Life Change