Address—R. Boulard
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I wonder if we could open our meeting this afternoon by singing hymn #24.
#24.
Nothing but cry.
Well, you know, I've been.
Really searching deep searchings of hard as to what to speak about this afternoon and thinking of how the Spirit of God has very graciously given us a portion in Second Timothy to have before our hearts and the practical instruction of what was given to Timothy to lay hold of and to take the word of God and to seize it for himself, as it were, and to live by it. I just wanted to look at some of the things in Scripture, some of the.
Portions.
That I've enjoyed in my own soul so often. But umm, something that would give us to know what those pitfalls are for each one of us. The pitfalls that the enemy has, the little distractions that might take and rob God of the fruit that could be for himself in our lives. But that's the work of Satan. It's the rob God of the fruit that could be in your life and mine. Let's just look at the Song of Solomon chapter 2 and we'll read a few verses there and then comment a little.
I'd like to talk about some foxes, some little foxes in life, and how the scripture just points them out as little warnings, and how, in contrast, our blessed Savior was not affected by any of those foxes. Not one.
The Song of Solomon.
Chapter 2.
And verse.
Let's read from verse 12. The flowers appear on the earth. The time of singing of birds has come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land. The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. Oh, my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, and in the secret places of the stairs. Let me see thy countenance.
Let me hear thy voice, for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the lions, for our vines have tender grapes. My beloved is mine, and I am his. He feedeth among the lilies until the Daybreak, and the shadows flee away. Turn, my beloved, and be thou like a rower, a young heart upon the mountains of Beaver. And then in John's Gospel chapter.
15.
And we'll turn back to the Song of Solomon.
But John's Gospel, chapter 15.
And verse 4.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without Me he can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered. And men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what you will and shall be done unto you. So we have these, this little portion in the Song of Solomon and how it brings forth the yearnings of the heart of the Lord Jesus to have your company in mind in this scene of His rejection. While we walk in this scene, while we wait for His coming. He doesn't just want us to walk through this scene and not have the enjoyment of himself.
While we wait, and so he says, there are secret places in the stairs. Let me see thy countenance. He wants to see your face and mine.
And hear your voice. He wants to hear our voices in prayer and Thanksgiving.
Unto him in our private lives and in our public ministry too, no doubt. But this is in connection with a private life. He wants to hear our voices. For sweet as thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. But then he says, you know, take the foxes. There's going to be little foxes that come in, and they're going to destroy the fruit that spoil the vines for your our vines have tender grapes. Well, you know, I often have told the story, and I'll tell it just as an illustration as we begin.
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The looking at some of these scriptures, but in Hammer Bay, there's Grandpa Hammer, Fred Hammer planted a vine for grapes up on the rock right outside by the model tea shed. And those of you that know the location in Hammer Bay can envision it. And, and so the there are foxes in Hammer Bay. And so the vine is wonderful at this time of year. There's grapes on the vine and you can make grape juice and it's a lovely smell to walk up the hill and smell.
The grapes that are on the vine. But you know here it says take us the foxes to little foxes that spoil the vines.
And those little foxes in Hammer Bay don't like the grapes. That's not what they want. They want to come and suck on the vine. They want to chew on the vine. And the vine is connected to the fruit. And the fox, he doesn't care for the fruit. He just wants the vine. And he sucks the moisture out of the vine and he chews the vine. And, well, what's at the end of the vine is worthless as time goes on. And so, you know, that's the work of our the enemy of our souls.
Dear young believer, an older one too is the enemy of our souls, doesn't want us to be connected with that man in glory, not one who is the source of all of our nourishment, all of our blessing. In this scene, he wants that vine to be gnawed on. He wants some little fox to come along and to gnaw on that vine so that it doesn't bear fruit for Christ, so that God is robbed of the fruit in your life.
You know, when my little girl Annette was young, she was perhaps three or four years old.
And a fox, you know when he's one year old, he'll chart out a territory.
And you'll walk the same territory every day. And you can set your watch by the time that that fox will walk his territory, maybe one to three square miles. And he likes to walk on top of a Ridge. He likes to see everywhere. He likes to see what's going on. And he walks that bridge. And so this little fox, Annette, would go out, it was about 2:00 in the afternoon and, and she would see the little fox and she would run after the fox and try to scare the fox away.
And the little fox would run fast, and he'd run up the hill and.
Off you go. And so that happened one year, but then, you know, the fox grew bigger.
In the next year, Annette tried running after the fox and the fox wouldn't run any faster. He would look at her and he wouldn't budget. And you know, I just say this, young believers especially, there are little habits in your life, mine little habits that we form that become foxes. And they gnaw at the vines. And instead of being in communion with the Lord Jesus, there's a little fox that's latched onto the vine and chewing on the vine. And there needs to be spiritual energy to identify that there's a fox, something in your life or mine a habit a little.
Habit, perhaps, that is formed in youth that we need to judge and.
That we need to set aside, you know, you, you think that you can handle a sin, perhaps a little sin, you might say little disobedience to the word of God, but it's not so. And a little sin grows into a big sin. And you can read in the 19th Psalm and how there's just a well, let's just read it. I'm not gonna, I don't wanna misquote it.
It says uh in the 19th Psalm.
In umm verse 12.
Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults. There's a little beginning, a little fox, a little beginning.
Keep act thy servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. And so you have a progression, a secret sin, a presumptuous sin that's really going against the Word of God, and in knowledge doing that which is disobedient to the Word of God.
And then there's a great transgression if it's continued on. And so the little fox grows bigger. Well, I want to talk about the first little fox that I think of in Scripture is in Genesis chapter. I think it's 18.
Now it's chapter 19.
00:10:00
And verse 20, now we all know these little stories and I don't want to take a lot of time to read all of the portions, but we'll just get the little glimpses. And maybe in your own meditation you can read those portions of Scripture and glean something else from for your own soul that might be of benefit. So here's the first little one here in verse 20, chapter 19 of Genesis, the lot was speaking. He says, behold, now this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one.
Oh, let me escape thither, for is it not a little one? And my soul shall live.
And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou have spoken haste the escape thither, for I cannot do anything till thou become thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar or little. Well, you know, beloved brethren, the city is really a community of individuals that are joined together for a common purpose and common betterment. That's really the description. If you look in the in a dictionary, you may be different dictionaries have different descriptions, but.
It's a community of individuals that have banded together in a certain location for their common betterment and, uh, for their, umm, for the purpose of just getting along together and assisting one another and that sort of thing. And so lot wanted to live in a city and he, the city life attracted that young man. And I wonder, you know, is it that which would attract my heart or your heart? Something about city life that would attract or distract my heart?
And the city would speak of confusion. We have entertainment in the city.
The we're the enemy of our souls has raised up systems of entertainment, systems of, uh, ball games and, and the music and all kinds of things to disrupt and to distract the heart of man and to form that little fox. And if you lay hold upon that little fox of the city and you want the city, the culture of the city, the life of the city, the entertainment of the city, why what suffers are the things of God.
And so, our beloved brethren, isn't it nice how the Lord Jesus that speaks of him going outside, He didn't live in the city he took it says that he moved to the city of Capernaum. That's in Matthew's Gospel and he called it his city. But we find that he lived in the fields, he lived upon the hilltop.
Birds of the air have nests, the foxes have holes, the Son of Man hath not where to lay his head. And so isn't it lovely for us, each one, to have an exercise of heart, not to desire to enter into the city life, so to speak, of what this world is occupied with, but to see the Lord Jesus as that one that is rejected alone, a Sparrow upon the housetop, and how we can identify ourselves with Him and not.
Associate ourselves and take pleasure in what the world has raised up, what Satan has raised up as a world system.
And a city system, as it were, that would form a fox that would take and gnaw upon the vine.
And all the fruitfulness wouldn't be for Christ. And I say, you might say as a young person or maybe someone older that I can take a little bit of the city life. I'd like to just enjoy a little bit of it, a little bit of this world's culture and entertainment. But when it get, when you get older, when you get a little bit bigger in life, that little fox becomes so strong.
You can't, you can't let it go. You can't be released. You know, I have an uncle, had an uncle who is a real believer.
And he had two little foxes. He lived in Rockaway Valley. And his mother was a godly mother, godly woman. She was my grandmother. And she loved the Lord. She prayed for her children. And umm, but her son had two little foxes. They were smoke and drink. And that man was saved. He never came to the Lord's table. He would go to the gospel meetings, but he rarely ever went to a breaking of bread because that little fox.
Had stained his fingers, and he was ashamed to come into the presence of the Lord because his fingers were stained.
And I say the little fox of drink grew into a big fox and it eventually took his life.
And he died in a little cabin in Rockway Valley with $0.10 in his pocket.
And not even 65 years old. And so, you know, dear ones, these little foxes, the the enemy raises up desires to distract our hearts. We need to be so careful of now. We'll just turn to Proverbs chapter 6 and we'll look at another one.
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Proverbs chapter 6 and verse 10.
Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep. So shall thy poverty come as one that travelled, and I want as an armed man.
You know, it's very instructive in scripture when averse of scripture is mentioned twice.
Very instructive, you know the Joseph could say to Pharaoh because that the Lord has doubled the dream. It was very important. God wanted him to know something. And so in Proverbs chapter 24, the same verse, I believe it's even at the end of the chapter exactly the same 2 verses are written, a little slumber, a little sleep, a little folding of the hands to sleep. You know the instruction was given to Timothy to study, to show himself approved unto God.
And he wasn't found sleeping, as it were, but he desired to rise early.
And to study the word and it, it spoke to his heart of Christ, and it spoke to him of the truth of God. And he knew what what the apostles doctrine was. And he walked in the apostles doctrine. I believe Timothy held fast until he went home to be with the Lord. He desired to hold fast those things that he learned. But you know that little fox of sleep is something it speaks to us of that which is.
When we're unconscious of that, which is going around, going about, going around, about around us, we're unconscious, insensitive to what is going on in our lives. When we're asleep, we have no idea what's going on. And so it's high time to wake out of sleep. The scripture says, you know, that little fox will grow into a fox that will gnaw the vine if we rather sleep and be insensitive to spiritual things.
Then there won't be that fruitfulness for Christ. What a blessing it is to be able to have courage and a desire, purpose of heart to cleave under the Lord, to rise up and to read the Word of God for ourselves. And beloved brethren, will never grow in the things of God, never grow beyond babes in Christ, unless we read the Word of God for ourselves. We study the Word of God for ourselves, We pray ourselves, we have a private time ourselves in the presence of the Lord.
And were awake to the voice of the Lord as he calls to us. What may it be so well, I just want to look at the Lord Jesus. You know, he wasn't one that slept much. And then Mark's gospel chapter one we find in verse 35.
In his life of perfect fruitfulness for his.
It says that.
Matthew Mark chapter one and verse 35. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. Oh, what power there was in his life as a result of prayer. What up? What communion with his Father, what fruitfulness for God as a result of his time.
He would rather sleep less and pray more. He would rather be in the presence of his God rather than sleep. Oh, what a smite my conscience as I think of how little I robbed myself of sleep, as it were, to be able to be in the presence of the Lord. And so, you know, it's a real privilege for us to recognize that the Lord Jesus as one that rose up early a great while before day.
That we ought to be following him in this point.
Want to just turn over a few pages to Ecclesiastes? We'll look at another fox. A third fox.
It's chapter 10.
And verse one.
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Dead flies caused the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. A wise man's heart is at his right hand, but a fool's heart at his left.
And then if we just turn to 1St Corinthians, I just want to read a couple of verses there about the Lord Jesus.
In UH chapter one and verse 24.
First Corinthians one and verse.
24 But unto them which are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God.
And the wisdom of God, because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
For you see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called, but God hath chosen.
The foolish things of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen the weak things.
Of the world to confound the things which are mighty. And so we find that Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. And if as we're occupied with the Lord Jesus, occupied with his life of power, occupied with the work that he accomplished on Calvary's cross.
Not finished holy work and occupied with himself as that one that's a glorified man, seated upon the right hand of the glory of God, who walked in perfect wisdom in this world.
Not a foolish word ever fell from his lips. Not a foolish act Not one.
Ever fell from his act, from his mouth, from his feet, from his hands. They could put nails through those holy hands and those holy feet that ever walked in wisdom of God and perfect, perfect obedience to his God and Father. But how is it with us? How is it with me? It says a little folly. Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. And so if you know the Lord Jesus as Savior as I do.
Our reputation is that we're what ought to characterize us as the same wisdom that Christ walked in.
We ought to follow the Lord Jesus, and our mouths ought to be characterized by the wisdom of God, the kindness of God.
The gentleness of God, the words of wisdom that are written in His Word, that's what ought to characterize our hearts.
In our lives. But you know that little fox of foolishness comes in.
Just a little foolishness, you might think. And what does God say? It stinks.
A stinking saver. So you know this, the flesh stinks in the sight of God. You know that's the meaning of Jericho. Is Jericho means a constant pleasant odor. But it was a city under the curse, a constant pleasant odor. And it was a constant pleasant odor to the flesh. And all that went on in that city in disobedience and rebellion against God was a stinking savor, as it were to God. But.
When it comes to the believer, why the life of the believer as he walks with his Lord and desires to bear fruit for Christ, as he is occupied with the Lord Jesus, as it abides with him and is occupied with him while he walks in wisdom and he sets aside the foolishness of this world and he goes on with Christ and there's fruitfulness. But you know, beloved brethren, this world has all kinds of foolish attractions, foolish things to get occupied with, whether it's foolish music or foolish.
Occupational things, just distractions, computer games and all kinds of things that maybe.
We might say in themselves are not really wrong and sinful, but they become foolish, sinful things to us when we get absorbed with them and we act in foolishness with our time. And it's just maybe just a little foolishness, but it impacts the fruitfulness and it's a little fox that can grow into a big fox in our lives. And then there isn't that fruitfulness for Christ who just encourage each one of us to search our consciences, search our hearts.
And to lay aside those little foolish things that we go on with, and perhaps we've just taken up some foolish thing.
That isn't going to benefit us internally, isn't going to benefit our brethren, isn't going to benefit our family.
That's just a little foolish thing and we've allowed it to come in and.
Where it needs to be judged or else it'll get to be a big thing, a big fox, a big habit, and then it won't be able to be broken, it won't be able to be set aside, and others will be harmed because of it.
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Well, if we turn over to.
Haggai, we'll find another.
Little Fox, a little excuse.
Hagia chapter one.
Habakkuk, Zephaniah and then Hagia.
Chapter one and verse 2.
Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts saying this. People say the time is not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built.
Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai the Prophet, saying, Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your sealed houses, and this house lie waste. Now therefore, thus saith the Lord, Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and have bring and bring in little. Ye eat, but ye have not enough. Ye drink, but ye not filled with drink. Ye clothe you, but there is none warm. And he that earneth wages, earnest wages, to put it into a bag with holes.
I just want to turn to Luke's Gospel chapter 2 as well, and we'll read just a little bit.
Of the Lord.
Here you know the the portion. I could have just quoted it.
Luke chapter 2.
And verse 49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wish ye not that I must be about my father's business?
You know this little fox is one that gnaws the fruitfulness of the Christian life. It's a little excuse and you might have a different excuse than I have for not walking with the Lord. You might have a different excuse than I have for not walking in obedience to the word of God. But Haggai says in chapter one here in verse two, he says that the the Lord speaketh thus speaketh the Lord of hosts saying this people say the time is not come the time.
That the Lord's house should be built, and you know the time to live for the Lord is now.
The Lord Jesus is coming and he's going to come very soon. We're going to leave this scene behind and the time of living for himself and living and associating ourselves with him in his rejection, the time is now.
And let's not make excuses to say I don't want to walk with the Lord just yet. I don't want to.
Spend time reading the word and not just yet. I have other things that I'd rather do.
Right now. And so these dear ones in Haggai's day, they'd come as a remnant testimony of come into the land and they'd settled instead of doing something for the Lord and building that temple, they had desired to make excuse that it might not be done. And it grew into such a fox, such a large fox, if I could put it that way, that they ended up building their own houses instead. They ended up looking after their own interests and instead of being like Timothy.
Who was like no other man that Paul had that would look after the things of Christ. Why, they looked after their own things. And it was something that distracted the heart and it wasn't fruitfulness for Christ in their lives. Now they they were stirred up and they took and began to do that work. But you know, in connection with the Lord Jesus, isn't it lovely? There was never any excuse on the Lord's part never to do a part of the work that his Father gave him to do.
He never made excuse, He never delayed. And you know, I've been impressed lately by how quickly the Lord acted when His Father gave him something to do. You know, we often think of Isaiah chapter 6 and how the Spirit of God records there that little conversation. Who shall I send and who shall go for us? Then said, I hear my send me. Oh, quickly He came to do the Father's will. Quickly He came to bless.
When the CRO, when the thief was on the cross beside him and said, think upon me, or Remember Me when thou comest into thy Kingdom quickly the Lord Jesus forgave him, and there was that word today shalt thou be with me in paradise today quickly. Oh, he could look upon the leper that came to him in Mark's Gospel chapter one. And if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. Oh quickly there was a touch that there might be blessing.
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Quickly the blessing flowed from His heart of love. Oh, how He desires that our hearts would be engaged with Himself, and that as we know what His will is. That we would desire to be fruitful in His presence, and that we would quickly respond in our hearts to His desire to see us, to see our countenance, and to hear our voices. And that we would in obedience take the little foxes and judge them in His sight, and not allow them to become big foxes.
And to restore that fruitfulness in His presence.
We'll talk about First Corinthians chapter 5.
We'll just read one little verse there.
Verse 6.
Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
You know, I often think in connection with this.
The uh, in first John, I'll just read it. It's first John chapter 3 and umm, verse five. You know that he was manifested, He was revealed to take away our sins and in him is no sin.
And so you know.
A little lawlessness. Sometimes when we're young, we think just a little lawlessness, a little sin.
Is all right Oh sin is hateful to God. It's he's a pure eyes that didn't then to behold evil. And so you and I that know the Lord Jesus as Savior. We've been redeemed with his precious blood cleansed from all sin. You know the Old Testament Saints couldn't say that there was atonement made and this the blood covered their sins. It covered them. But you and I because of the finished work of the Lord Jesus can say that our sins are cleansed the blood of Jesus Christ his son.
Cleanseth us from all sins.
But with the Lord Jesus, oh, the Spirit of God reveals that in him is no sin. And the apostle Paul says he did no sin. And Peter or I think it's Peter that says he did know sin. Neither was guile found in his mouth. And the apostle Paul says he knew no sin. And John says the apostles communion says in him is no sin. And so here once I speak perhaps more to the younger ones.
But the enemy is deceitful, and there's deceitfulness in connection with sin, and sin robs you of your enjoyment with Christ, Rob you have communion with Christ, robs you of the fruitfulness that could be for Christ. And it's a little fox, just a little sin. A little sin is leaven in the sight of God, and it grows into something big. And we read that in the 19th Psalm. And these things need to be judged early.
Young while they're young, while they're small and why we look for fruit in our children's lives. We look in that way and the Lord looks at us and he desires fruitfulness and he sees whether there's little sin, something that is hidden from the eye of our brethren, something that isn't going to be for his pleasure. You know, it says I'll just read in Exodus, refer to it in.
Connection with the.
Zipporah. Zipporah means a little.
Sparrow.
In verse chapter 4 of Exodus and verse 25. Then Zipporah took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me? So he let him go. Then she said, a bloody husband art thou because of the circumcision, while the Lord had met Moses in the inn by the way, and sought to kill him. And that Sapporo, just a little Sparrow.
That had to take.
The sharp stone and to circumcise her son there at the inn. Now I just say that because, you know.
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The circumcision was something that no one saw but the Lord and so this child of Moses and Zipporah, just a little Sparrow, a little something of the flesh that was allowed and it wasn't for the fruitfulness that could be in Moses life. He was called to a great work and he was going to be used of God to deliver the children of Israel and the picture of the going through the Red Sea and Christ laying down his life and redemption, all that was going to be before Moses.
But God was not going to allow a little of the flesh to be a part of that work. And So what wasn't seen to the eye of man was seen of God. And so Zipporah speaks of just a little Sparrow, a little something of a flesh that would be allowed. But it wasn't for the glory of God and was going to rob fruitfulness. Well, there was fruitfulness in the Lord's life, perfect fruitfulness because there was no sin. And so we want to walk with the Lord.
And anything that is sin in our lives, we want to judge it and be in the presence of God that it might not grow into something.
That perhaps our brethren might have to judge what we need to be so careful that there might be anything that is hidden that we haven't. Perhaps it's not exposed to our brethren, it's exposed to the heart of God, to the eye of God and we need to judge it that it might not grow into a big fox and rob that the fruit that could be the Lord's. Let's look at James.
Chapter 3.
And verse 5.
Even so, the tongue is a little member and boasts of great things. Behold, how great a matter is a little fire kindlet, and the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. So is the tongue among our members that it defileth the whole body and setteth on fire, the course of nature, and it is set on fire hell.
Well, we'll look at the.
The Lord Jesus in connection with the I thought of this and enjoyed it for myself and John's Gospel, Chapter 7.
It says there we could just even quote it in verse 46.
Well, let's read verse 45. Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said unto them, Why have you not brought him? The officers answered, Never man speak like this man Then answered They them answered them, the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Wasn't it nice that the Spirit of God could record this? Never man speak like this man never man speak. There wasn't another man that used his tongue.
And blessing.
It's like the Lord Jesus, there was never any fruit for God that could ever have been exhibited by anyone else in this scene but that perfect man sent from above, the man Christ Jesus, who loved you and I and gave himself for us, and who loved his Father and came in obedience to his Father's will. And on the cross he could say, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. When he was reviled, he reviled not again all when he threatened, he threatened not.
There was a blessing that flowed from the tongue of that blessed man and that has flowed through the pages of Scripture as we've been able to read the words that He's spoken. What blessing flowed? But you know, we're given this little illustration of a little fox, a little hindrance, something that would hinder the fruitfulness for Christ in your life or mine. And that is a little tongue, a little fire, a little something that we're engaged in, a little gossip, a little something that will.
Not exalt Christ, something that will perhaps exalt ourselves, something with our mouths that we might be singing or that we might be saying that we might be occupied with verbally that wouldn't yield fruit for Christ. Something that would be a fox to that fruitfulness that could be his. Oh what a just a lesson and a warning to each one of our hearts to follow the Lord Jesus even in the words that there might be.
Something in our tongues, something that the world could say, is something that our brethren could say.
Never a Christian spoke like this Christian instead of the other way around, that those words were hurtful. All we need to speak gently. The Lord Jesus spoke gently with his disciples. He spoke gently to those patiently to those that offered foolish questions. He spake gently to the young man that came to him and said what must I do to inherit eternal life? Always spoke gently and kindly. And so that's how we need to speak with one another and as we speak of Christ that there might be fruitfulness born not only in our lives but in other lives as well.
00:40:28
Well, let's look in John's gospel at the last little Fox in.
Chapter 21 I think it is.
And let's uh.
Freed in verse, uh, from verse six. Uh, from verse 5.
Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and you shall find. And they cast therefore. And now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loves saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he Gert his fishes fishers coat unto him, for he was naked, and did cast himself into the sea.
And the other disciples came in a little ship, for they were not far from land, but as it were 200 cubits, dragging the net with fishes. As soon as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon and bred.
Well, you know we have with the Lord Jesus.
I'm just reading the verse in John's Gospel. 17 We know it. I have glorified Thee on the earth. I have finished the work which thou gave us me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Thou me with thine own self, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world. Thine they were and thy, and Thou gavest them me, and they have kept my word, while the Lord Jesus could say, I have glorified thee on the earth, I have finished the work.
Which thou gave us me to do. And so you know we have this little ship and Peter.
Was perhaps discouraged, perhaps just, uh, after all that had taken place at the Cross and all that.
He gets the ones on the road to Emmaus. Could say art though. But a stranger in Jerusalem?
Oh, they wondered why he spoke the way he spoke with them. And Peter after the cross and after all that had taken place could say, I go fishing. In verse 3, Simon Peter said unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also will go with we also go with thee. And they went forth, and there wasn't fruitfulness for for themselves.
You know, maybe the Lord has given you just a little work to do for himself, just something to occupy.
Till he comes some little vineyard, some little fruit for himself and umm, maybe there's a little difficulty and something comes in to discourage the heart. And then we just say, well, I'm just going to go fishing again. I'm just going to take a little ship and I'm just going to go off and do something else. And our brother mentioned a little island, Christian island, a little island Christian that wasn't going to do a whole lot. I'm just not going to walk with my brethren the way I walk before. I'll just go and.
Take up with a little ship, as it were. Oh, the Lord Jesus would desire, you know.
That there would be blessing and how he dealt in patience with Peter and with these disciples.
As they were discouraged and they took up with a little ship, a little something, a little, if I could say, a little job, a little employment, a little something that they were earning a living with before the Lord called them to do the work for for him. He called them to be fishers of men. And then they got discouraged and they said we're going to give it up and we're going to take up with our occupation again and we're just going to go off. And we were doing all right before perhaps. And and so they were discouraging. The Lord met them in their discouragement. Not lovely.
He met them in their discouragement, and while they didn't bear fruit for himself, they didn't bear fruit for themselves.
They didn't catch any fish all night long. Why? He came and he told them to cast on the other.
Side and yet there was a blessing. And so I just say that we ought to be occupied in a way that we can glorify the Lord in what we're doing to make a living. And sometimes, dear young ones especially I say sometimes we do take up or desire to take up a line of work that isn't going to be a glorifying occupation for the Lord that isn't going to be able to allow us to get to the meetings.
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On time, perhaps it's going to rob us of our fellowship with our brethren, something that's going to hinder us. Perhaps that we just love to do a certain type of work and it takes us away. It becomes a distraction to the heart and it takes us away from Christ and that little fox. And there isn't that food, that fruit for God. The little ship comes in and perhaps it grows into a big ship and you make lots of money and you make a great success in this world and you have the biggest house there is.
And the world would look at your life and say it's a great success. But spiritually?
There would be that fox that had been a small fox, a little ship, and it grew into a big ship.
And Christ didn't have his place and he was left on the sideline, so to speak. And then at the end of life, what would there be but just that? All that money and all that wealth and all that was going to have to be left behind. You know, I often quote in business Jeremiah chapter 45. I suggest, you know, every one of us needs to read this frequently. It's the shortest chapter in Jeremiah.
And it says in verse five, we won't read the whole thing that.
In verse five it says, uh and seeketh thou great things for thyself.
Seek them not, for behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the Lord. That thy life will I give unto thee, for a prey in all places whither thou goest.
No one was young.
My father went on for the Lord in some measure. Some of you perhaps met him.
And he had a little ship.
And he went to the meetings. But that ship grew into a big ship and.
It occupied all of his time to the point where he began to work on the Lord's Day and he began to think nothing of working on the Lord's Day. And after a while he wasn't at the Lord's table anymore and it robbed him of his fruit for Christ. It robbed the Lord of having him in his presence on the Lord's Day morning, on the reading day, reading meeting night, and prayer meeting night.
And it became a fox that ruined his life. And it can ruin your life. The enemy has these 7 little foxes, perhaps more we could speak of that would chew on the vine and rob him as a fruit that could be his. And so we need to consider that the work that we do, we, you know, our brother once told me and I, I like the saying, he says our work, our job is just the camel to get us through the desert. Sometimes we have to switch camels.
And but we have to ride a camel through this desert, through the wilderness scene. And it's just a camel. Just walk through this scene and don't set your heart upon the wealth of this world. And don't set your heart, don't seek, uh, great things for thyself in this world because the Lord is going to judge it all. The only thing you're going to bring out of this world is that which is connected with Christ. And thank God for it. Thank God that we're only going to bring that which is done for Christ out of this scene. Everything that is done to please ourselves and to occupy ourselves and.
All those little foxes that stole our time and that perhaps robbed the fruitfulness that could have been his. We'll look back with regret and wish that we had judged them in the presence of our God. Wished that there was just a little bit more fruit for himself. Wished that we could just have lived more acceptably to Him while we waited for his coming. Wish that we could have been associated with Himself in his rejection while we walk through the scene.
We will wish that we had walked and not made those little excuses and not had those little foxes. Beloved brethren, let's just as we have the word of God before us and we see that in Second Timothy, there's a releasing of those things, that of the truth, a releasing of the grip, and a releasing of the heart's affections for the truth of God. Let's just desire with spiritual energy to grasp the things of God and grasp the things that have to do with the person and the work of the Lord Jesus.
That's all we're bringing out of this scene. Everything else will be left behind. Well, let's, uh, thing #46 in the appendix.
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#46 in the appendix.