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Father's house above.
Format and is prepared.
There is the home, the rest we love, There are bright rewards #48.
High in the Father's house.
Of.
Our engineers preferred.
A war.
Thank God and our Father, we thank Thee once again that Thou has directed our hearts.
To that heavenly home where we are headed.
And we thank Thee too, that thou hast not only told us concerning Thy coming, Lord Jesus, for which we wait.
But thou hast in thy word.
Taking us right on into a coming eternity, whereas we have sung together, all taint of sin shall be removed, and all evil done away.
We thank Thee, our God, for the prospect of that precious fulfillment. Behold, the Lamb of God is taketh away the sin of the world. And so we look to thee now for Thy guidance and health in these meetings.
And we know, our God, that thy Spirit is here, willing to lead.
Willing to guide and direct.
As to what we should take up and we pray our God that he may be free to lead.
We pray that.
Thou would direct us to the part of Thy word that would be most suitable for us, and that the remarks that may be made may not only be accordance in Thy mind as given to us in Thy word, but that they might need meet the need of each one. Here don't know what's our God. The various degrees of spiritual understanding and maturity here thou knowest to the.
Various states of soul. And we pray our God that according to thy wisdom, by thy spirit, fellow minister, according to our need. So we commend our time together to thee, and look to thee independence and in expectation, for we ask of Lord Jesus in thy precious and worthy name, Amen. Amen.
For if my brethren would consider Luke's Gospel chapter 12.
It's too big of a chapter I think, to try and take up all of it. It's quite long, but.
I would make the suggestion, and again subject to what my brethren feel perhaps starting off with.
Verse 30 or 31 and going to the end of the chapter. The reason I suggested is that.
I think it fits with what we've had before us in our hymns and in the prayer meeting.
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And the Lord here is directing his own to.
The heavenly side of things to the heavenly blessings. Not in the sense of what Paul gives us, but.
Away from an earthly Kingdom to laying up treasure in heaven.
And although very much, of course, in Luke has a Jewish flavor, yet, as our brother Clarence Lundin used to remind us, more than any other gospel, Luke's gospel is the introduction to Paul's ministry. And that's true. It's very true.
What do my brethren think of that? And I won't be offended if someone says I've got something else on my heart.
Mother had the same thought that the priority of the test already the subject. Amen.
Well, perhaps if that's all right, we could start at.
Verse 30 and perhaps read to the end of the chapter. We can refer to what's earlier on perhaps if we need to, but.
The last half of the chapter would probably be enough for us.
Luke's Gospel chapter 12 and verse 30. For all these things to the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knoweth that you have need of these things, but rather seek you the Kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. Sell that you have, and give alms. Provide yourself bags with wax not old. A treasure in the heavens that faileth not.
Where no thief approaches, neither moth corrupteth.
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Let your loins be gird about, and your lights burning, and ye yourselves liken the men that wait for their Lord, when he will return from the wedding, that when He cometh and knocketh, they may open unto Him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord when He cometh, shall find watching. Verily I say unto you, that He shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meet, will come forth and serve them. And if he shall come in the second watch, or in a third watch, and find him so, blessed are those servants.
And this know, that if the Goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. Be therefore ready also, for the Son of Man cometh in an hour when ye think not. Then Peter said unto him, Lord, speak us out of this parable unto us, or even to all. And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful? And why steward, whom his Lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?
Blessed is that servant whom is Lord, when he cometh shall find so doing.
Now the truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. But if that servant say in his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming, and shall begin to beat the men, servants and maidservants, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken. The Lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, in an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him asunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers, and that servant which knew his Lord's will, and prepared not himself.
Neither did, according to His will shall be feeding with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit many commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For enter whomsoever much is given of him shall be much required, And whom men have committed much of him, they will ask them more.
I am come to send fire on the earth, and what will I if it be already kindled? But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how am I straightened till it be accomplished? Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you nay, but rather division. For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, 3 against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father, the mother against the daughter.
Daughter against the mother, the mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And he said also to the people, when you see a cloud rise out of the West straight way, you say there cometh a shower. And so it is. And when you see the South wind blow, you say there will be heat, and it come at the pass. You hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky of the earth. But how is it that you do not discern this time? Yeah, and why even of yourselves? Judge ye not what is right?
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When thou goest with thine adversary to the magistrate, as thou art in the way, give diligence that thou mayest be delivered from him, lest he hail thee to the judge. And the judge delivered thee to the officer, and the officer cast thee into prison. I tell thee thou shalt knocked apart thence till thou hast paid the very last might.
I.
Well, as we as we said a few minutes ago.
I believe Luke's Gospel is.
Introduction to Paul's ministry. And in that sense we get many things that give hints as to what was to come. And we know that of course in Luke's gospel, it's not written chronologically the way some of the other gospels are, such as Mark. But Luke tends to group events together or parables together because they have a moral connection. And so it's important to recognize that.
And when reading through Luke, we don't find everything perfectly in chronological order, but.
What I have appreciated about this chapter is that the Lord Jesus is bringing before them, in a general way the giving up of present advantage in order to have future gain. And we all understand that in natural terms. We understand, for example, how a young person might work hard to get an education, anticipating the good job that he or she might get down the road.
We know how individuals and we're encouraged along those lines today to.
Put money aside in order to be able to have some there for retirement and so on. But what we have here goes far beyond all that, doesn't it? Because the Lord Jesus is really calling his own to follow a rejected Christ. They were expecting an immediate Kingdom, of course.
And the Lord here doesn't completely.
Shall I say turn his back on that because he knew very well that there would be an opportunity after His resurrection and dissension for Israel to hear the gospel from a risen Christ in glory. But in a general Ray, in a general way, he points them to treasure in heaven to following a rejected Christ. We get it here, for example, in what it says in verse 51.
Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on the earth.
What did it say at the beginning of Luke's gospel when the angels praised They said.
Peace on earth and goodwill toward men, or good pleasure in man. It could read. But now the Lord says, Oh no, that's not going to happen right away. No way, no.
Have not come to give peace on earth, but rather division, and that's what we are experiencing and have experienced all through the Christian era and will experience until the Lord comes and sets up His Kingdom. But then the encouragement here.
I say it to my own soul. The encouragement here is some of the most wonderful encouragement I believe in the whole Bible.
To those who are willing to follow a rejected Christ.
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Starting off with the verse that we began.
We are reminded that the nations of the world seek after what seems to be necessary in life down here. And it's true, we do need food. We do need clothing. We do need shelter. But.
The Lord goes through all that, including the story with which we are all very familiar, of the rich man who had his fields and his crops bring forth plentifully, and so plentifully that he even pulled down his barns and built bigger ones, and then was all set ready to relax. Take it easy.
Eat, drink, and be merry. Thou hast much goods laid by for many years.
And the Lord reminds him, this night thy soul shall be required of thee. And we see that going on all around us in the world today, where the horizon of men's thoughts is the world down here. How are we going to save the planet? How are we going to fix the war in the Ukraine? Where are we going to get enough to eat?
Supplies are going to dry up and all the rest of it, and it is very real. It is very real. We're not making light of it. We have been accustomed to a pretty significant degree of prosperity in these favored lands, especially in North America, for many years. The Lord has been very good to us, and we'll see later in the chapter that we are more responsible because of that.
But then.
In verse 31 we get the direction, and this isn't the only place where this verse occurs.
Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. And that's a promise. Doesn't say we'll get everything we want. It doesn't say that the Lord will give us whatever we might have had in the past. But all these things shall be added unto you. And what a precious privilege it is for you and for me.
In these last days of the Church's history.
To be taken up with Christ's interests in this world.
It's a tremendous privilege.
Brother Bill, we've been told that all we have as is a spiritual blessings as Christians, you know, we've been blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places and, and now you're telling us, are you telling us that we have earthly blessings too? I'll just explain it. I'm just asking a question because all I've I've always heard that our blessings are just spiritual. And you are quite right, Vern. And sometimes we need dear brothers like you to make us use our language more accurately.
Because strictly speaking, our blessings are heavenly and what we have down here in the way of temporal things the scripture calls mercies. Is that is that what you were bringing out? I wasn't bringing out. That's that's the, that's what it means. Yes, mercies and blessings are different. They're not the same thing. And I, I love it when someone is brings us back to accuracy in those things because.
Our blessings are definitely heavenly and Paul gives them to us in Ephesians one and verse 3.
And we are blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in heavenly places in Christ. We this that isn't brought in here in the same way, but the things that we enjoy down here in a temporal way of their mercies and the Lord is has promised us that he will look after us.
If we look after his interests, we don't need to worry about his looking after our interests.
For the sake of those that are younger here, I wonder if someone would give us just a brief comparison between the the terms the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of heaven. I'll just mention this. A verse that's been helpful to me in regards to the Kingdom of God is in Romans 14.
Verse 17.
For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink.
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Righteousness and peace.
Boy and the Holy Ghost. So sometimes we say that the the Kingdom of God is not something that is seen, but it's more of a moral thing, a moral term. Whereas with the Kingdom of heaven that Matthew uses in his gospel primarily is more tangible something that will be seen. It's it goes on in mystery form right now because the King's not reigning.
We as believers can recognize the Lord's coming place and we can acknowledge him in in our hearts as the the true King, even though we we have a closer relationship than that. But I was just thinking of since it's it's mentioned in our chapter here, it might be helpful if someone could add to that.
What about her brother Steve? You usually can delineate these things well for us.
Seems to me here it's it's.
The president aspect of things, the moral aspect of things that our brother John referred to in Romans, and seeking those.
Those things to be walking in accordance with the the moral characters of those who belong to that Kingdom.
And just might add, when he says, All these things shall be added unto you.
It might be more than just what the nations seek after, but it's the state of soul that goes through this scene. Not anxious, not caring in a way of being overwrought as to whether we're going to have the things that the nations of this world seek after, but the peace and soul. And that goes along with seeking first the Kingdom of God.
Seeking first his interest here below will not only have our practical needs taken care of, but we won't.
Suffer the anxieties that the world suffers.
I'm sitting here trying to not look back at Luke's gospel from the full understanding of a Christian position.
And wondering to myself.
What did they think he meant when he said Kingdom of God? Because all through the prophets.
Of course we're raised up when there was a need for prophetic ministry, corrective ministry warning.
You get this continuous pattern of serious warning and rebuke to the mass of the people that were going on at best, indifferently at worst.
With total disregard for the privileges they had and for their responsibility to the one true God. And yet woven into that is encouragement for those that humble themselves at His Word, who felt the the straying of the nation, who felt it.
Continuously held out to them. And it's of a moral character. You think of the end of the book of Isaiah and other passages like that. And at the beginning of this chapter, it's there's so many people here. There's an innumerable multitude of people and they're stepping on one another. There's a whole lot of people here just pressing to listen. And yet the Lord seems to address his comments to disciples.
And if you use disciple in the broad sense, of course, many disciples were not morally fitted yet or maybe ever to really enter into the Kingdom of God as we we know it from John's gospel, from the epistles. But I have to think that a godly Jew listening to the Lord Jesus is just trying to process this. Is he talking about a literal Kingdom that's about to come finally?
Or is he talking about something more mysterious and it's.
And so as you say, it's, it has to be a moral character of things that, that, that gradually that the wheels are spinning and, and it's got nothing to do with the Romans. It's got nothing to do with those things. It's got to do with pressing in, in a moral way to that which is in conformance with the with the mind and nature of God.
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I wonder, Bruce, if a verse in Luke 17 and I just make the suggestion.
Might help us in that.
Because as you say, there's no question that the Jews and the Lords disciples who were close to him were expecting a visible Kingdom. But what does the Lord say in chapter 17 in verse 20? Now granted, this was the Pharisees, not his disciples in that same sense, but.
Luke 17 verse 20, and when he was demanded of the Pharisees.
The Kingdom of God should come. So evidently they did. At least some of them understand it or take it as being a visible Kingdom.
He answered them and said, The Kingdom of God cometh not with observation, neither shall they say, lo here, or lo there, for behold the Kingdom of God.
Is within you, or perhaps more accurately, is among you. And so he directs them away from a visible Kingdom to his own person. What was the Kingdom of God? It was the exhibition of all that was suitable in a moral way, in the ways of God, that was perfectly displayed in Christ. You, You agree with that, Bruce?
Yes, and so the Lord makes it clear eventually that there isn't going to be a visible Kingdom, at least not right away. But you are seeing the Kingdom of God, and that is what you are seeing in me, the person of Christ, which bears out what brother Steve said.
I have a question.
In Paul's ministry, what would be the closest state?
Thank you for this verb.
Question in Paul's ministry, what would be the closest total statement that he would give that would?
To this verse.
I'm not sure which verse you're talking about, Dickie. First, the Kingdom of God and his righteousness. I'm sorry.
Isn't that reality the Kingdom of God in that sense?
In contrast with the Kingdom of heaven.
Wouldn't there be what was read to us in Romans?
That it's not in those physical things but Lovejoy and peace in the Holy Ghost. As far as a quote from Pauls ministry. But there's another quote from Paul we might add to it and that's from Acts chapter 20.
Verse 25.
And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the Kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.
That's that he went among the Saints preaching what was proper to them as those that were in the Kingdom of God as to their moral walk through this world. And when we intersect that with the truth of the assembly, we really get it in First and 2nd Corinthians very largely a practical conduct and walk of the Saints through this world. Their moral conduct is what he preached.
Among the Saints.
Could someone maybe take a look at the 1St chapter of Acts? Maybe read that? I don't have a mic handy but.
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Acts chapter one speaks of what the Lord Jesus taught in the 40 days that he was with his disciples.
I was just thinking that I'm not sure what passage you were you were had in mind, but in Acts one in verse 6.
When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the Kingdom to Israel?
And his answer in the next verse. And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in his own power. In other words, He didn't tell them that it wasn't going to happen, but He told them that it was not going to be their portion that they would know when. And then He directs their focus into another direction, because there was something that they had to be occupied with, and the Spirit of God would be sent down to to empower that testimony that they would give. But.
I was thinking of it. I'm not sure what you had in mind, but I was thinking of it because even though they went through all the Lord's ministry with Him for those three plus years.
They, like we, tend to be a little bit slow learners or slow in transition, and they're still kind of stuck on that same idea. And indeed it is. It is still yet future to us as well, but the Lord redirects them.
Were you thinking of verse 3 John verse three of Acts 1?
And Speaking of Jesus, the antecedent in verse one.
And then it says in verse 2, Until the day in which He was taken up. After that He through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom also He showed himself alive after his passion, by many infallible proofs, being seen of them 40 days. And here it is, and Speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.
Brother, if you could also read the last verse of Acts.
Yes, last verse in the book.
And it's very significant.
Acts Chapter 28.
Verse 30 And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching the Kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding him.
Thank you brother.
Well, we could probably spend the whole afternoon on the Kingdom of God because of course it goes right on into the eternal state and there will be a vast moral Kingdom encompassing heaven and earth in a future day. But as Steve reminded us, what we need to get is the meaning that I believe the Spirit of God would have a state from it in this chapter, and it is a moral state that isn't keeping.
With those who recognize the rightful king.
And walk according to his.
In other words, according to his ways and his truth in a world that is opposed to Him and will continue to be opposed to Him until He comes to reign in power and glory.
And what is very precious is.
Verse 32, it says the Lord Jesus says fear not little flock, that is, they weren't to expect a visible Kingdom. If they were expecting a visible Kingdom, God wouldn't call them or the Lord Jesus rather wouldn't call them a little flock. But then he says it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. And if I remember rightly, maybe someone has the Darby translation.
Is that not in the past tense in the JND?
It has been your father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. Yes, it has been your father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.
I don't pretend to be able to explain that fully, maybe others can do a better job, but to me it seems to imply that if we can put it in common language, the Lord Jesus is saying.
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It has already been your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.
You are going to get it. And because of what God has determined in His purposes and councils as a divine person, the Lord could say it's already been given to you in that sense. Are we going in that sense to inherit a Kingdom? We are. And is there any doubt about it or any question about it? Definitely not.
Now this chapter does have a Jewish component to it. The Lord does tell them that he will come as we get in verse 39. There's a there were the Goodman of the house and knowing what hour the thief would come and so on. That's the way the Lord comes when he comes in judgment.
He comes as a thief in the night and he comes as the Son of man. But at the same time there's encouragement here for those.
Who were, perhaps with some justification, saying.
Where is that coming? Where is that Kingdom? And the Lord says.
You've already been given the Kingdom. My Father already has it all arranged for you. You are going to get it, and it has been the Father's good pleasure to give it to you. You won't see it right now. It's not going to be a visible Kingdom, but you're not going to lose out.
I wonder if I might add.
One thought to the discussion about the Kingdom of God, which I.
We have spoken of with the use of the term moral and I know when I was younger I I didn't know what was meant when that was referred to.
That the Kingdom of God is a moral thing? Well, what do we mean by that? And for the sake of the younger like, I was once myself a little bit confused about this.
When we talk about something being moral, we mean that it has to do with simply with what is right.
And wrong in relation to our or with respect to our relationship with.
Men and with God.
It's not something that can be seen. This Kingdom of God does not come with observation, as Bill just referred to. It is invisible. That's why it's sometimes called mysterious. It's not something that can be seen, but it is moral, meaning it has to do with what is right and wrong concerning our relationships with God and with man.
So help me on the use of of his reference here to father.
We're we're used to thinking of.
Of the wonderful position we have now after Pentecost, the Holy Spirit send down to us, indwelling each of us, giving us to be able to cry ABBA Father, because we're sons. We get that in Galatians and other places, and we identify that as a peculiarly Christian privilege blessing. And the Lord introduced it, sending the message via Mary.
To his disciples I ascend unto my Father.
Your father to my God, and your God, after his resurrection, that new place he took was really one for you and me, and we enjoy it today. But here he's talking about your Father. And again I'm putting myself back with them. And are they scratching their heads? Because it wasn't a known revelation, as I understand it, to a godly Jew that they would address the Lord as Father. There's a couple.
General references in the Old Testament, Father of Eternity.
And and and so on, but not the revelation of God is Father. Is this is this the transition bill that you were speaking about from from Luke into Paul or how how do we understand this?
Didn't mean to put you on the spot. No, you're not. I just.
I have enjoyed it that way and I hope I'm right because the Lord Jesus did refer when he was speaking to the nation of the Jews to.
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Heavenly Father He referred to their heavenly Father, and in that way the Trinity, which had not been revealed, at least not in fullness in the Old Testament, was revealed to them. They knew who in their day when the Lord was here, their heavenly Father was, and he introduced them to the expression about the Holy Spirit and.
That your Father will give you the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him, and so on and and so on.
But I like to think that the adjective heavenly is deliberately left out here by the Spirit of God because.
And we don't want to make a man an offender for a word, but the expression Heavenly Father is not really, strictly speaking, a proper expression for a Christian to use. Now we hear many dear believers pray Heavenly Father and so on, and we don't, as I say, make a man an offender for a word. But we don't find that expression once the full truth of Christianity comes out. But I'd like to hear the remarks of others on that.
I have enjoyed it that way and really, really appreciated it that the term heavenly is not added to Father here because the Lord is bringing them slowly into that blessed relationship, which of course we eventually get in the 20th chapter of John. I ascend unto my Father, and your Father, and unto my God, and your God.
Hadn't he introduced them to that in the first part of the Levitz chapter when he in the Lord's Prayer or the Disciples prayer? Yes, he had. Thank you.
But he does say our Father, which art in heaven, so the expression is still there, that's all.
But do you think he was Heavenly Father?
In the new translation, though, it doesn't read that way. Yeah. How is it, Ben? It's Father thy name be hallowed, thy Kingdom come doesn't.
Express it, Heavenly Father. New Translation.
Well, that only supports what we were saying. Would you? Would you see it that way?
Well, it's a wonderful thing, isn't it, to know God is our Father. And what an expression that is. The Lord Jesus could say in another place, the Father.
Himself loveth you, and so if it is, if it has been our Father's good pleasure to give us the Kingdom.
When a divine person says something.
If we could say it this way, it's as good as done, isn't it?
There can be no question whatever about it, but you and I are asked to give up the enjoyment of a Kingdom here on earth in order to have it in the future and to follow a rejected Christ, and without wanting to be critical or throw stones at anyone else.
So-called Reconstructionism or Covenant theology is destroying what we have in this chapter and it is sweeping North America where we all know what covenant theology is. I hope it's the idea that Israel merges with the church and that our job in this world is not so much to follow a rejected Christ, but to jump into the political arena and every other arena.
And get everything all ready for the Kingdom. Because literally they, some of them, it depends. There are different flavors of covenant theology, but by and large, some of them say that we're already in the Kingdom. The Kingdom is here, and it's our job to see that it's established and straighten everything out in this world and bring it all into line with what God would have. Well, if that is true, then we better tear this chapter right out of our Bibles because it's totally contrary to it.
The Lord here is basically saying and we get it all through.
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Paul's epistles and other writings in the New Testament that you and I are now called to follow. A rejected Christ. Yes, he says he'll look after us. Will there be a Kingdom? Indeed there will, and because he has already given us the Kingdom in that sense.
You and I can be encouraged to follow a rejected Christ. It's not a matter of drudgery or a matter of OK if I have to or something like that. No, it's a matter of joyfully and gladly looking after his interest down here and as Dave Harmon was bringing before us, showing to this world the moral character what is right and wrong, not according to the world's ideas, but to God's ideas.
What is right and wrong between me and my fellow man? What is right and wrong between me and God? We are to show that according to what God's Word teaches us and what the Lord Jesus was bringing before His own year. That is a wonderful privilege, and it's a privilege you'll never have in the glory. We'll never have the chance again to follow and serve a rejected Christ.
Recently in Walla Walla the Lord is seems to be has given us a new meeting room. It's previously a church and when they left, they left their hymnals there. And so I was looking at one the other day leafing through it and it just made me thankful for our him look.
I think of Mr. Darby years ago.
Being used of the Lord to help.
Edit this hymn book a little bit and then to think, well, what's he going to call it?
Well, he seemed to be affected by this verse, the Little Flock hymn book, and I think what you say, Brother Bill.
As you read through that, how many times have we?
Sung those hymns and they lifted our hearts right out of this world in the the tone and character that they have. And as we enjoy that why it will give us to be content to be a little flock wanted in this world while we wait.
Hmm.
And so if we have a future Kingdom that is already ours, we can afford to start carrying out what we get in verse 33.
Cell that you have and give home, Provide yourselves bags which wax not old. A treasure in the heavens that faileth not where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupt them. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also and.
We can afford to use what we have down here for Christ's interest. That doesn't mean being careless with our money or just throwing it away. It doesn't mean using it in a wrong way.
It doesn't mean using it without wisdom from the Lord, but we can use what we have down here. Why? All because there's a Kingdom waiting for us ahead.
And the Lord has promised it to us. And so we can well afford to do what we we are advised to do in verse 33 here, and to lay up that treasure in heaven.
You know, everyone is worried today. So I see on the Internet, or at least I shouldn't say everyone, but people that invest in the stock market now are quite worried about it because I gather that it's gone down a good deal in the last few months. And people are wondering all this talk of what's going to happen, is the market going to keep on going down and so on and the so-called bull market or whatever they call it that has been going on for many years.
00:50:07
Going to turn into a bear market and so on and all this kind of thing.
Yes, all that is part of life down here for some people, but everyone that has an investment there is worried about it. They're saying where are things going to go and what's going to happen to us?
But you and I can make the very best investment possible, can't we? The very best.
Very best investment there is is to lay up treasure in heaven and it'll bear fruit for all eternity. That investment, nothing can touch that. And so we can well afford to use what we have down here for the Lord and to use it for his interests knowing that it's.
Putting things into an investment that can never, never fail.
So how far are we to take his words?
Sell that you have and give home.
Provide yourselves the bags which wax not all how? If he's saying sell how much? How will you not have a bank account?
How we live from day-to-day, he says. Sell what you have give off.
So I'm thinking that maybe somebody is thinking, what does this mean?
I think this stands in contrast to what we had earlier in the chapter where it says in verse 21, So is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich towards God. For the Jewish mind, earthly riches were a sign of God's blessing, but now their thinking is going to be turned completely on its head as it were. They want to look for earthly riches when it says seek ye first the Kingdom of God. They want to seek it in this world and the blessings, what they thought of as the blessings of this world and as Christians too.
That's not our position to seek.
God's.
Approbation through the material things of this world. That's not what we look for and so he's directing their minds. Heavenwood. Now this is and a new relationship. We've mentioned the word father. It's rather interesting in John in Matthew chapter 6.
Matthew we think of as the most Jewish of the Gospels, and it certainly is. But Matthew chapter 6, the Father has mentioned 12 Times. Matthew Chapter 11, the Father is introduced again. But the disciples we find in connection with the Lord's Prayer has brought out more. In Luke they ask, how should we pray? This was a relationship that they were very uncomfortable with. This is not a Christian way of thinking. We don't ask how should we pray. It flows naturally. Now that we have the Spirit of God and that new life within us, we cry, have a father. It comes as naturally as a baby.
But for these disciples, this was all new, new, all new to them. So I think if we take this up in a very literal way, well, I'm going to sell all my goods and empty my bank accounts. We're right back where the Jewish thinking is. We're thinking in terms of material things and not in terms of spiritual and moral things.
Verse was one remark in our written ministry. Brother Vern was a big help to me and I pass it on.
Because I think your question is an excellent one, but we maybe should be asking you to answer it.
Without revealing too much, but you've got a year or two on me and maybe I should be asking you. But anyway, here's something that.
Really helped me, a brother said.
If my heart is set on anything on which Christ could not have His heart set to that extent, I am out of communion with Him.
Now.
We don't want to miss be misunderstood.
Suppose I have a car. Does Christ have his heart set on that car and therefore mine can be?
No, that's not the thought. But if you and I need a vehicle to get around in, then there's nothing wrong with having one. And if we need a house to live in, there's nothing wrong with having one. And I need clothes to wear and a few other things and so.
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How far to carry this verse cell that she had? To me it means sell those things which are not necessary.
For your role in this world, which is to seek Christ's interest.
Now that has to be an individual exercise with each one of us. And I have no one, dear brethren, who have had big homes, but they use them for the Lord. They use them for the Saints. And if they invited a crowd in, they had room to put them up and they had room to have a good number of people for a hymn sing and all the rest of it. They weren't their, their heart wasn't set on that. And what is very interesting, and I'll repeat it because it really.
Impressed me going back in this same chapter.
To verse 15.
It says, Beware of cup, take heed and beware of covetousness, for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
But the JND puts A twist on it that is rather interesting.
I'm not quoting it accurately, but it's roughly.
A man does not have to be in abundance for his life to be in his possessions. Is that pretty close?
And I can honestly say from my travels and I, I've had the opportunity to travel extensively in some of the poorer countries of the world and I have seen.
People in some of those countries more taken up.
This is a true story and I don't want to single out anybody, but it's not being derogatory. In the city of Kolkata in India, they have rickshaw pullers and the government tried to outlaw them because they said that was too demeaning for one man to grab two shafts of a rickshaw and run through the streets with people sitting in the back of it.
And there was an awful outcry from them. They said, look, that's our living. That's our.
Livelihood. Don't you dare take that away from us.
And I remember talking to a young man who was in his 20s who had managed to scrape together enough money to buy a rickshaw, and he was all excited about the money he was going to make and how good life was going to be for him because he had a good career ahead of him as a rickshaw puller.
You and I would.
What is it really? I don't know what kind of a place he was going to get to live in or anything like that, but I wouldn't even begin to compare with what many of us take for granted. But he was taken up with it more than with people over here that perhaps have a very expensive home or something like that, just because that's what homes cost over here, so.
I guess what what I I would feel this scripture says.
You'll be exercised is what you spend your money on.
Going to help you look after Christ's interest down here? Or is it merely to gratify your own lust?
And I would be the first one to say that I have been guilty of the latter. I don't know. Does that commend itself, Vern? Would you agree with that? Yes. I think it's just your heart will follow your treasure. What is your treasure, exactly? Yeah.
That the monks are old who took this very literally and gave up everything. But I would suggest they were just as occupied with material and earthly things as those that had riches. In fact, they were very much occupied with them. So that was my point. It's.
We're going to be occupied with material things without many or few I'll wind and it's going to be set on things down here, isn't it? Not of things in heaven. I I appreciate the I've not noticed that before the translation of what we had earlier in this chapter that Bill gave us in verse 15. I found that very helpful. What is not because of a man. A man is in abundance that his life is in his possessions. It's where our focus is.
But the issue is so if my focus is my material things, I can sell them all and I'm still going to be just as focused on material things.
Brother Bruce, when you were mentioning earlier about the people at the time thinking, well, what's this about and scratching their head, shouldn't we remind ourselves that dispensationally speaking, what we're doing is gleaning principles? These marching instructions for were for those of that day and that time, not directly for us. We're gleaning principles from it. Looking back from where? After the cross?
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And after we've had Paul's teachings, we're looking back at those things and gleaning principles from isn't that an accurate way to put it?
Yeah, but we have we have our own mail to read too, along the same lines. You know, in First Timothy 6, I was just noticing a similar.
Exhortation to US, verse 17 of First Timothy 6. Charge them that are rich in this world or this age, that they be not high minded, nor trust in the uncertainty of riches, but in the living God, or in the God who giveth us richly all things to enjoy. That they do, but that they be rich in good works.
Ready to distribute, willing to communicate, laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come. That they may hold that that they may lay hold on eternal life.
That's a very direct exhortation to us, and sometimes we hear exhortations well meaning that.
That we in the western world are somehow a slink out of the gymnasium with our tail between our legs because we have some prosperity and we make much some make much over the the the object poverty in some countries.
There is the government of God with respect to countries.
And we read in the book of Proverbs why a country is filled with people that are in abject poverty. Brother Manuel Adamus is, I believe, is in Cuba right now. And we've talked a bunch about the Cuban brethren and, and it's, it's a debilitating situation. But to me, it's, it's not glorifying our brethren because of their poverty, even though we are happy for their spirituality.
That perhaps their poverty drove them and helped them to to see things and lay hold of what's really live. But we on the other hand.
I you know, we we don't need to slink out of the room an embarrassment the our exercise ought to be how we use what the Lord has given us not only with our funds, but with our time when we think just in one generation when I think of the housewives on my little St. growing up and and those those women that there was one car.
And the husband went to work in that one car and the women there were workers and they had something on Monday, something on Tuesday, something on Wednesday and just a little kid and didn't, you know, pay that much attention to it, but they'd have a tea break. My mother's from Scotland, but they'd have a tea break at a certain time and some of them would meet and then they back to work and, and, and today we don't have, we're not pressed that way, are we? And some have jobs that are.
You know, 40 hours a week, I've never had one of those, but a lot of people do and and there's a lot of time and what do we do with it? We need to plow that under and invest that time in the things of the Lord or in just just prayers as I'm not the only one. You get older, you don't sleep so well and what you can get a lot done between 1:00 in the morning and 4:00 in the morning in prayer. Can you I think other people probably will experience that. Well, you can cover a lot of ground in in meditate on things. But anyway, that's a digression, but.
We have this.
It's it's the. It's the, it's the portion we have. Let's use it for the Lord. Time is short.
Like that one thought and connection with brother Sam's question when you look at similar portions in Matthew and just comparing Luke chapter 6. I'll just read the verse. He lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said blessed be ye poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God. And Matthew he said blessed are the poor.
In spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the Me, for they shall inherit the earth, and it looks on even to a day in an earthly people.
Inheriting the Earth when it comes to Luke.
It's very much right down to us in Matthew 24 where you get the prophetic outline. It goes on and it looks at the tribulation. It speaks of what those.
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Represented by the disciples, the faithful remnant are going to pass through in the tribulation. When you come to Luke 21, the first part of the prophetic discourse very much applies to Christian persecution and it's the disciples. It's not until you come to later in the chapter.
Get the destruction of Jerusalem that was going to take place. Then he goes on into what we would call future things still to us. And when it comes down to our chapter here, I think it is very much a present application to us. And maybe what we get in Matthew can often be a case of where we are looking at things that apply to very directly and earthly remnant in the coming days and we draw principles and apply here. I think it's right to us.
Write to us everything #337.
Let us, Brother wall on earth and foes and strangers mix, be mindful of our heavenly birth, our thoughts on glory. Fix that. We should glorify Him here. Our Father's purpose is 337.
God who dwells.
Above we call our father and our friend.
And blessed all his children.
All Chelsea in the end.
Oh no deserts, love, they will come.
When you make.
Houses.
Where all of us are concerned, take us home.
To see him and see him.
Oh, no, no.
No.
How so long, God?
Confess.
My love.
And shall see.
I'll read free. We are blessed.
Then let us.
Breathe and while on Earth.
We have fallen.
Bakers Mix.
Be mindful of our heavenly birth.
Our son, the Lord.
Relax that we should glory.
I am here.
Our Father's.
Savior shall appear.
I'll only hold.