Maine Conference: 2020
Table of Contents
2 Timothy 2:1-7
Reading
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.
A God, our Father.
Give me thanks for these words as we can sing, or thou astronaut us after thee, and let us run, and they retire.
Present shall our comfort be.
And so we just give these thanks that we can have this time before us this morning and we just.
Realize that we need strength to be able to run, and we just desire that.
Portion that would be before us would be food for our souls.
There was always have for us, Father and justice. Pray for Thy health and direction. As far as suggesting a passage, whatever we might take up and whatever comments might be made, just pray that my Spirit would lead and that we would just be blessed as we sit here in my presence, Lord Jesus this morning, so we commit our time into Thy hands and the rest of the day in Jesus name, Amen.
Let it be profitable rather to consider Second Timothy in chapter 2.
For your consideration.
I would read that portion.
2nd.
Second Timothy, chapter 2.
Thou therefore, my Son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
Things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also.
Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
No man that wore it entangled himself with the affairs of his life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man also strived for masteries, yet is he not proud except he strive lawfully. The husbandmen that laborers must first be partaker of the Bruce.
Consider what I say and the Lord give the understanding in all things.
Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel.
Wherein I suffer trouble, trouble as an evildoer, even as unto bonds.
But the Word of God is not bound. Therefore I endure all things for the elects sake, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
There's a faithful saying, For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him.
If we deny him, he also will deny us.
And if we believe not yet he abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself a.
These things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord, that they strive not about words of no prophet, but to the subverting of the hearers.
Study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
A Shun profane and vain babblings, for they will increase unto more ungodliness, and their word will eat, As doth the canker of whom is Hymenaeus and Philitus, who concerning the truth of air, saying that the resurrection is passed already, and overthrow the faith of some. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth shore. Having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his.
And let everyone that name it the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wooden earth, and some to honor, and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purged himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor.
Sanctified and me for the masters use and for.
Unto every good word. Lee also youthful lusts, but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace with all of them to call on the Lord out of the pure heart. But foolish and unlearned questions avoid knowing that they are gender stripes.
Servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men. Apartment to teach, patient in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves. It's God for adventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, and that they might recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, or take a captive by him at his will.
00:05:28
Started the meetings off singing Oh God of matchless grace.
And it just makes me think of this first verse. Be strong in the grace as in Christ Jesus. Reminds me of that verse. I think it's Hebrews 13.
Says it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace, not with means and we can think that we're strong in a lot of things we can think we have a strong will or we have a lot of knowledge or whatever it is and Timothy certainly was someone who.
Had been faithful in many ways but.
It's just encouraging here, I think, and encouraging for our day that he's encouraged to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. I, I take it that that just means that he is to lean on the Lord for his strength and depend on the Lord for his strength, not to.
Look to something else, good teaching or whatever it may be. Not that those things aren't important, but that his strength was to come from the grace of the Lord.
Greece is really such a wonderful thing, isn't it?
And when we have a realization of it in our souls.
And held properly, it really helps us to have the right attitude in the right perspective.
And in all of us were honest deserve.
Never to be able to see the face of God. We deserve the lake of fire.
That's what we by nature and my practice.
Earlier, but when we see that God instead of giving us what we deserve, has given his Son has given us to appreciate what is really like if we can be strong in that that we have been given everything that we have.
Then we can have the right perspective. Are we going to be focused on ourselves?
When God has given us such grace, you know, that's so weird to be strong in, you know, isn't that something that's a challenge for each one of us?
To think about ourselves a lot.
The grace gives us to get outside of ourselves and realize that God wants to glorify His Son. We are connected with Him and we can be strong in that, you know, we can be fruitful, it goes on to say. And the things which thou hast heard of me, you know, it's not just that we would leave the word of God aside in order to be strong in that which we have been given to.
But they're together. It's not one without the other.
And we just appreciate that so much the 2GO together.
We have in verse two it says the same commit that a faithful man we shall be able to teach others also.
So we tend to like to as it goes on in chapter Florida, here's something we haven't heard before, to hear a fresh perspective or something new and exciting. But here it's the same commits out of faithful manner and we can't get beyond appreciating the Lord Jesus, what he has done, who he is.
You know, if we do we've we've got off the top, it doesn't mean we can't have a fresh enjoyment of him.
Of everything that is true, but it's the same. It's not our own perspective that we need to pass on. We don't need to add something to the Word of God to make it better. You need to enjoy what He is given to us.
Saying you know it says commit thou to faithful man who shall be able to teach others also.
There's some here that are that are mothers.
Have opportunities special time with children be able to teach them the truth of and those that perhaps teach in a different capacity, but each one of us it's not just to pass it on to, you know, certain brothers who are going to teach others.
The truth of God is for each one of us to appreciate the Lord Jesus.
00:10:03
I think there's a proper order of things that's brought out here, but I think if each one of us thinks this is to somebody else, we're going to mess up.
The Lord has something for each one, and Timothy obviously is who is being written to here, and there is a specific thing that tendency is to be doing.
I think each one of us can apply it to our own selves. The Word of God is not just for others.
Enjoy the new translation.
False says so, my child.
There's this fatherly care towards this younger brother who had had a.
The occasion to to minister with him, to be with him, as it says here, and learn many things of him.
That was witnessed by many. You know, it was all always transparent. His teaching was was a public teaching. It was consistent. It was over time and and Timothy was with him and he's really, you know, he is really handing off as it were. You know, Paul was an apostle. He had particular authority.
Filleting of the foundation of the assembly, but here he is handing off to a faithful young brother and admonishing this young brother to to entrust the word commit is translated trust these teachings, these words to other faithful men and that's really the way that the the Lord by his grace.
You know, has there is a way there is that's the way things have been handed down. You know there were those that teach you the.
Official standing down. It's not official. It's faithful men.
And by the grace of God, here we are, 2000 years.
After these words were written almost and we have this word in our hand.
Thank God there have been those faithful ones who have.
Done this, handed this word out and it is as Kevin said, it is the word of God that we have.
The grace of God and the Word of God that will get us through it works.
God's way.
That's to consider. You know, I think of times when we were younger and we had, you know, and I had the privilege of having many people.
Stay at our house and I think it was a time when there was more traveling.
Especially.
Many of the those who were laboring administering amongst the Saints with travel a lot and you had that privilege of.
Having many stay with us and.
I can think of those times.
Often after meeting or at night.
Put the kids to bed and sitting with some of these ones and it was a great privilege and you know.
Be very thankful to be considered one who was a faithful person.
Mean a faithful man, which is a little discretion there, isn't there?
So it's a real.
You know it's a real.
It's it's a real call to do this is care and there's care.
And how the truth is handed on this Karen Witten, the way it is handed on.
I still think of again some of these interactions with like brother Bill Asali.
Norman Berry and.
You know, you know, Fatherly way.
Take a side of young brother and say here.
These are important things.
And you have a responsibility towards that.
I'm giving you these things.
Trusting them to you, it's really something, isn't it, To continue that.
00:15:18
Walk on faithfully in this world.
It's going to require hardship.
And I think all of us have a tendency to, I mean, it's just human nature that we don't like the hard path. We want the easy path. So most men go down the Broad Rd. they don't go down the narrow road. And many Christians take the easy way as opposed to the hard way. And so this is this exhortation is given to Timothy to endure hardness as a good soldier.
Of Jesus Christ.
Sally's given me a bit of a love for history, and as I have a long commute to work, I've listened to a few books on history. And it's amazing when you look back in history or even today, of what a soldier has to go through. Even today, what a soldier has to go through, but even more so back in the in this day, it was an incredibly arduous.
Occupation.
Long marches, marching through cold and summer uniforms, through heat and winter uniforms, you know, lugging water, building fortifications, and then of course the ever present danger of death at the next corner. It's really not. It's actually a lifestyle. I know it kind of sounds glamorous, but it really wasn't a very fun or exciting thing.
Most of the time, and it certainly involved an incredible amount of hardship and the Roman soldiers, you know, a little bit about Roman soldiers and how they were drilled. You know, they, you know, decimation happened. Just it's incredible the thing that a soldier is called today or and, and back in in the day when this was written to go through and a lot of times maybe we just think as a Christian that I'm entitled to.
The Lord loves me and the Lord's over also. I really should have a pretty easy life. I don't know why I should really have to go through a lot of hardships. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I mean, I should be able to have a pretty easy life, and it's rare to me anyway. I believe it's rare. But the easy way is the right way, the way that would follow the Lord. And so he calls them to endure hardness as a good soldier.
You have bought a lot of even.
Even today, the present time, a lot of.
What those who are you say in the service having to do? It's, it's continuous, it's monotonous. It's not necessarily interesting. And again, if there are times it may be that, you know, very uncomfortable, certainly today modern soldiers, at least in our country, probably have more creature comforts in many cases. But then there are times when they don't and they're trained for those times, right?
So we all know basic training is the beginning of whatever service you're in and whatever discipline you end up going into in the in the service.
When you end up at a desk job or or firing artillery, you know, they all start with basic training and that's where they have to drill and kind of push the limits.
They have these drill sergeants that yell at them and.
Make them feel not so good to see if they can do it. You know, part of it is that people quit people. Not everybody can endure that. Not everybody can take it. But then again, you know, a lot of the the actual day-to-day.
Service of a soldiers that you know, it's marching, it's the drills, it's the it's just the going on in those things that aren't necessarily fun in themselves and in many cases.
You know our as it says, but yet what you do, you just do it. You do it until you're done. And you know a soldier also.
So I understand. I've never been in service, but I understand.
My person enlists.
00:20:00
They are, they actually sign a paper signing, you know, in the United States military, they sign over really their all their rights to the government.
During the Spirit of God.
So they have no rights.
And the good soldier needs to be focused on the one.
Who had chosen him to be a soldier That's so important?
So these entanglements.
Entanglements is when you get all wound up.
Thanks. And again, soldiers are.
There are strict codes. They can get disciplined for violating these codes and getting involved with things.
That, you know, either bring dishonor or danger, in many cases to to their fellow soldiers and to the government that they serve.
So they wear a uniform. The uniform identifies them.
And.
Other things. And so it is with us.
To be entangled with the affairs of this life.
We're here to please the One who is in heaven.
His his interests are heavenly, not earthly. His interest in the earth or.
With the souls of people who he loves.
He died now that is his interest here in this world.
I think it's so beautiful how in the Scripture, you know, simple illustrations are used that we all can just easily relate to. And the youngest one, well, maybe not absolutely youngest, but you know, the youngest one here with understanding can, can, can relate to and these three are given.
And I know that there may be some of the words or words we don't use so much today.
But the first one is has already been written. It's just how effective is the soldier going to be going into battle if he's busy shopping and busy, you know, checking on his Amazon delivery status and, you know, whatever it is?
How effective is he really going to be as he goes into battle? And the answer is obvious. He's not going to be effective because he's not focused on what's in front of him. And then you have the next example in verse five. If a man strive for masteries yet is he not crown except he strive lawfully while striving for masteries is just an old way to say that you're you're in a competition. So you can think of it like a race. And if someone's in a race and then they decide to just.
Cut across, you know they're in some long distance race. Decided to cut across some.
Shortcut in the path? Well, that's all fine and good. It may look to everybody like they won the race.
But as they review, they're not going to be crowned unless they strive lawfully. So there is that principle as well. And we can seek to take shortcuts, avoid hardness. I mean, you think of running. I think we probably all have run. And you can just, you know, you just think of how every every step becomes agony as you get towards, you know, as you get into a race and you just.
Everything is hard, and the thing that you want more than anything is just the race to be over. So if there's a way to take a few shortcuts to make things easier, the temptation is there.
And we can all think back in times and, you know, they're running the Boston Marathon or whatever, and people try to take shortcuts and.
So there's that danger as well that we would seek to avoid hardness by taking, by just bending the rules a little bit, as we might say.
Does it really mean that Exactly. You know, I think the Lord understands.
I think that's a very dangerous statement. And then you have verse six, the husband, and that's just a farmer. The farmer. And it's kind of, I think it's a little clearer. I'll just read it in Darby because it's helpful. I think the husbandmen must labor before partaking of the fruits.
So you can't start, you know, when you're on your, your way. If you see some strawberries and they're not, you know, you have to work at it. You have to put in all the energy ahead of time. It's not until the end that you're able to actually select that that fruit.
And so maybe sometimes we do something for the Lord and we expect some great reward, like right away one, you know, people's adulation or whatever it is.
00:25:10
That's not appropriate. We are looking for our reward in the future time.
Not now.
Yeah, thinking about the farmer, you know, this is the time of year that the seed, the seed catalogs come out.
Get these beautiful pictures and nice bright luscious fruits and vegetables, you know, on some people. Oh, that's great. I'm going to have a garden. And then when it's time, you know, the summer and the garden school release, things don't look quite like the pictures in the seed cattle off because you know, it doesn't. You have to labor. That's what husbandry is that active daily.
Paying attention, you know, the labor is really paying attention on a daily basis to the needs and to the situation. You know, if it's gardening, then it's wedding and dealing with bugs and transplanting and mulching and and then finally, if you do all of that, you get to eat some good stuff.
And you know, whether it's animal husbandry or whatever, it's a care, It's a daily care. You can't, you know, I appreciate one of the things our kids, I think.
Benefited from by having animals to take care of is you know even when you don't feel like getting up early before school or before even extracurricular activities at school to deal with the animals you got to do it anyway you can't say I'll wait till long just.
This doesn't work, so it's a. It's a very good thing to think about.
But daily continuous routine and attentiveness. What it is you're growing or raising?
Just one more comment in regards to the soldier. I was thinking of Uriah, how he was called from the thick of battle to David. David had his own intentions.
In that, but Uriah did not go home to his wife.
He would not entangle his concentration, his battle concentration. He had been called, he expected to be going back to battle. And so he slept, I believe, on the steps of the palace and.
That's the kind of concentration that the soldier has to have, otherwise distraction could cost his life or the life of his comrade.
Consider what I say.
And the Lord gives the understanding in all things.
You know, we don't always have understanding of the things that are being committed to us.
Sometimes we have to.
Gain experience. We have to live life and if we do so.
With the Lord in mind.
Then.
We gain understanding, we go through experiences that show us the truth and the value of the Word of God.
And as we imparted to others, we.
They gained by that experience someone else's experience.
Sometimes we read a scripture.
One more 20 years old.
And we just kind of read over it a few years later or a year later we read it again and well, there seems to be something there, but.
Maybe 10 years later.
Or 20 years later, we go through that passage and we are just amazed, but we've gone through some things.
I like again the new translation says think of what I say.
Or the Lord will give the understanding and you know sometimes.
Sometimes something can be communicated.
And you've got to work. You've got to work at.
Understanding it and, you know, I teach electric theory and such and you know, sometimes I, I, I know I do with a group of students and I put something out and talked about it and they look at me with blank eyes and I've just got to say you just need to just think about it. Just think about it and then sometimes.
00:30:23
Through a lot of struggle, suddenly the lights start coming on and go, wow, yeah, I didn't, I didn't. So you have to work at these things. There's a there is a labor in understanding even, and we don't always understand.
And we understand more.
You know, these little ones understand a certain level of these very same scriptures that we're reading that they've memorized for Sunday school, but.
They grow, they'll understand more.
And that's the way it is. But it takes that, that effort that, you know, the, the chewing on the thinking on the meditation.
Very important.
Could we sing 275?
Our God is light and God.
Of our heartless world.
I like God, our Father would be thank you for.
The word we've been able to enjoy this morning by word.
We just again thank you for diversities to us and thy grace.
Just commit ourselves to be in Jesus name.
2 Timothy 2:8-26
Reading
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.
Could we sing 191?
Still in.
I thought our father we.
Just look today for this time you set aside for the reading of Thy word. This next hour you commit the time today. We look today for the leading of Thy Spirit again. We pray for each one of us that we would have years to hear Thy words and.
We just ask this now.
In the blessed name, the Lord Jesus.
Continue with Second Timothy, chapter 2.
Save or save? Yeah.
Second Timothy chapter 2 verse starting with verse 8.
Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel.
Wherein I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even unto bonds, but the word of God is not born well, therefore I endure all things for the elect sake, that they may also obtain the salvation, which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
It is a faithful saying, For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with them. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him. If we deny him, he will also he will also deny us.
If we believe not yet the abide is faithful, he cannot deny himself.
But these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord, that they strive not about words to no prophet, but to the subverting of the hearers.
Study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
But Sean profane and vain babbling, for they will increase unto more ungodliness, and the word will eat, as doth a canker of whom is Hymenaeus and Philitus.
Who concerning the truth of earth, saying that the resurrection is passed already?
And overthrow the fate of some.
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth. Shore having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his, and let everyone that name it the name of Christ, depart from iniquity.
Fought in a great house, there are not also only vessels of gold and silver, but also wood, never some to honor, some to dishonor.
If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor.
Sanctified and meet for the masters use is prepared up to every good work.
Also youthful us, but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace with them to call upon the Lord out of a pure heart.
Foolish and unlearned questions avoid knowing that they do gender stripes.
Servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men. Apartment to teach, patient in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves.
If God, her adventure will give them repentance to the acknowledgement, acknowledging of the truth, that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by them as his will.
The.
Before Timothy these very practical.
Expectations. Really.
And charges he brings in this this verse.
Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David.
Was raised from the dead according to my Gospel and the new translation said remember Jesus Christ raised from among the dead.
Of the seed of David, according to my glad tidings and I would love to hear others but.
She's Jesus Christ.
Is, you know, anointed 1.
00:05:01
David speaks of this really kingship.
Raised from among the dead.
You know that.
The Lord was crucified, rejected, but raised up.
According to my gospel and you know.
There were times this is one of the places where God where Paul refers to not the gospel, but my gospel.
And this is what I'd love to hear. Other comments, but really false ministry.
Was.
So much.
Illuminated and instructed by the knowledge of Jesus Christ, the Rejected 1.
And going on in this world as belonging to him, the one who was rejected as a part of as the heavenly body of Christ. And so.
You know, it's just interesting. It's near the reference. It's not the gospel. There's my gospel.
So Paul had a certain line of teaching.
That he was given by God and then he was faithful with. But really in so many ways it has to do with the heavenly calling of the believer going on.
As belonging to a resurrected but rejected Christ.
I'd love to hear some comments on this.
I just appreciate that like, like, like you read from Dougherty and other good translations have it that way as well. It's not so much remember a fact, but it's really remember a person. So that person being Jesus Christ and he's just been talking about enduring hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. And I take it that.
He lays before them an example in the Lord Jesus, the one who endured hardness, one who suffered, and we can be thankful there are many soldiers who have to follow generals.
Who never saw combat and who never had to go through the toil and the trenches and whatever.
It was the West Point that graduated, became officers and flew a desk for a while, and now they're commanding soldiers.
Difficult for them to relate to those soldiers experiences when they command them, you know, want you to go take position act. And we can be thankful that we don't have we're not serving someone like that. We're serving one who went far beyond anything that we will ever be expected to go through. And then he also sets before them himself in verse 9, wherein I suffer trouble as an evildoer even unto bond.
So he also Paul, the apostle Paul, who is saying this is also not one who is, you know, just preaching from a desk, if you will. He's one who is he's been in the field, he knows what it's like that he's telling us to to follow those same footsteps.
Along that line and.
Colossians chapter one, verse 24, it says now I rejoice in sufferings for you. I'm reading from the Darby translation and I fill up that which is behind of the tribulations of Christ in my blessings for his body, which is the assembly.
So.
It was the body that was paramount, and Christ.
Had shown how paramount it was in the giving of himself at the cross, and Paul sees his own tribulations as as the same outworking.
Of Christ on behalf of the assemblies.
And as far as my gospel, it goes on to say in Colossians.
Of which I became minister, that is, of the assembly according to the dispensation of God, which has given me towards you to complete the word of God. The mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but has now been made manifest to His Saints, to whom God would make known what are the riches of the glory of His mystery among the nations.
00:10:15
Which is Christ in you? The hope of glory? That was false gospel.
Encouraging in verse 10 to see the care that Paul has towards the elect.
That would include you and I think you really had a care towards.
Obviously was the folks done too, but.
He was willing to endure all things.
In their state, because he recognized that he had something that was valuable, so he was willing to give up his own comfort, his own advantage.
Things that He had in the flesh for others for their blessing that they could have the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. And He had seen that Himself. And so to Him it was worth it what He was going to suffer because He wanted others to be able to have what was so valuable to Him.
And say being alone in prison, having your friends all forsake you is worth something. Well, it was the eternal glory, the salvation that he recognized was worth it. It wasn't comfortable. It wasn't glamorous, wasn't something that others would look on in the flesh and say, wow, I wish I could be like you. No, it was like faith.
That you perceive these things and was willing to take up this supper even as an evil doer, not being one, you know, we might suffer a speeding ticket because we're speeding. That's not fake. And he was suffering as if he was an evil doer even though he wasn't. He was suffering that unrighteousness.
For the blessing of others. And that kind of care is really needed amongst ourselves, isn't it too?
Don't want to send this down a rabbit trail at all, but.
Last in New Jersey.
Can't remember exactly how he put it, but Fall in Love was telling me this little quote I guess he heard. He said we don't do what we do because we're unwilling to face the consequences.
And in other words, you don't go the speed limit.
For the reason that just started getting a ticket, if that's the reason that you're going to speed limits, then where is there any reward for that? You're just scared, that's all.
And I think that that has application with a lot of the things that we face right now and today.
We don't do what we do because we're scared or because we're not willing to face the music. You know, let's submit because I don't want the government to come and block us all up or whatever it is. That's not why we do or it should not be why we do what we do. We should be doing what we are doing for the glory of God.
So if there is found in us.
The spirit of being unwilling to suffer, that's not good, should be.
Willing to stop her.
Says the word.
Or it is a faithful saying you have. The translation says the word is faithful.
Or if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. That's the consequences we're looking for. We don't have our eyes on consequences here, but the consequences of being faithful according to the word to Christ. So if we.
If we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. What could be better than that? Death has no claim on us.
If we suffer, we shall also reign with him.
If we deny him, he also will deny us. That's a sad.
00:15:03
Circumstance there.
Verse 12, I take it? I know that there are different thoughts on verse 12.
So I would welcome other thoughts as well, but as I understand verse 12 it just refers to if we deny him.
It means the first part of the verse if we suffer the second part if we deny. So there is the Lord tells us to do something and we deny him and we say no, or we deny him as Peter denied the Lord and do not want to admit our our association with him says He also will deny us. And the way I understand that anyway is it says we and I take it to be believers that the Lord will deny us in a practical way.
What we ask of him, if we ask, if he asked us to do something, we say no, I'm not going to do that.
Then we turn around and get sick and we say, oh Lord, please heal me.
It may not be that the Lord will do that, that's how I take it, but I know that there's other thoughts on that so.
Make room for that. But in verse 13 is talking about salvation. I believe if we believe not or literally if we are faithless. Did he abide as faithful? He cannot deny himself. So if we are saved, we are in Christ. The Lord cannot deny Christ. How can that even make sense? One says you're always saved, so he's careful to make that distinction.
So the thought would be that if he.
If we are not faithful, He still abides faithful to us.
Such a It's such a comfort and joy to know that the Lord abides faithful.
There's many that we perhaps might look up to that might let us down.
We know ourselves. We let ourselves down.
With the Lord Jesus, He just abides safely.
That's just such a constant when we have circumstances that change people to change. He's the same.
And that's never going to change for eternity either. And he just abides faithful.
And even if he has to deny us.
You know, we still know that all things work together for good to them the love God to them who are the called according to his purpose.
And even if, like Peter, you know, he missed out on that opportunity to stand with the Lord, but the Lord was at that point where everyone turned away from him. He missed that opportunity.
You know, the Lord still abode faithful Peter. He still loved him and he wanted him back. He wanted Peter to be fruitful again.
It's just wonderful for each one of us, our measure as we go through this life and perhaps wandering here longer there the Lord abides, faithful, and He always wants us to enjoy fellowship with Himself.
Always, you know, it's such a, such a constant. I think it's easy to take it for granted because, you know, he's so faithful.
Is referred to as the Faithful and true witness.
He's been faithful to the uttermost to his Father's will.
And.
By the same token.
In the same work, he is also faithful to us to the uttermost.
And bringing us.
To his father.
And.
That faithfulness does not.
End with salvation.
It goes on.
He is our great high priest.
Is faithful.
To keep us from failing.
He's our advocate when we do fail.
00:20:04
Be faithful.
They're just the last few minutes. Here is only two readings.
At this time, I just think of the last few verses.
Just give us some instruction in a time when there is perhaps a lot of.
Contention or differing opinions It talks about of all the foundation of God standing sure.
The building that is built on it, if you will, has become a great house.
And it's huge and it has all kinds of different vessels and summer of good quality and some are of bad quality and some are dirty and some are clean. And we're instructed, we're given instruction with regard to that condition of things to separate ourselves from those vessels which are unclean.
But as we get down to like verse 23, it starts to talk about how we would interact.
With each other when there is a kind of divided state of things.
And I just appreciate the wisdom of some of these verses. Difficult to act on it sometimes, but foolish and unlearned questions avoid knowing that they do gender strikes. There are some questions, we we tend to call them in our vernacular as a loaded question. I think sometimes we just call it that.
And we just made a question where, you know, that the questioner is really just looking for a fight. That's, that's really all it is. And so they ask a question and, and, and the goal of that question is to really draw you in to some sort of a debate, which is not going to be for anybodies blessing. It's just going to result in strike. And the instruction that is given is to just avoid those questions, to just avoid them.
And it could be so tempting, you know, you feel like you have wisdom. You feel like, oh, this one, I know I can, I can get this one. And you go down that road and it just an hour later, it just.
Should never answer this and there's such wisdom in this avoiding the foolish and unlearned questions and it just presents the principle of how we are to deal in the face of disagreement when we're talking with somebody in verse 24. The servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men have to teach patients feel like if you're in a discussion and you realize at some point it just kind of comes to life in the middle of that discussion.
That you're striving, you're wrestling. You're not talking anymore. If you're wrestling with that, that brother, your sister, you're striving with them, then you have to recognize that you have failed.
Because now you're striving with them and you haven't been yet and.
And then there's more instruction in verse 25 unique about it structure. Those that oppose God will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. It really requires when somebody is wrong.
But they don't think that they're wrong, and they take up some line of things and they start to argue that point. It's really hard. It requires a repentance, a change of thinking, and it's humbling to admit, okay, I was wrong. That's not easy. It's not easy for any of us. It is so much easier to say, okay, you know.
I just don't want to admit that I was wrong, you know, and just keep arguing or whatever it is so we can seek the Lord.
To give them repentance, the acknowledging of the truth.
There's many practical excitations in this chapter.
And so often.
The Lord is brought out in many of these verses, and I think in carrying out any of these things.
It really needs to be in communion with the Lord. There's no substitute or shortcut.
Living the Christian life, we need to do it in communion and you know, whether it's the servant of the Lord must not strive nor representing him.
In everything that we do and say, all of our interactions, whether other people know about them or whether they don't.
00:25:02
And all these things that we just try and carry them out without connection to the Lord, you know, we're going to come up short.
Really need to be firmly connected with him and carrying out these things.
Can't do them in our own strength. If you try, and you can try all these things and some of us maybe are stronger characters, you can do a better job of carrying them out and their own strength. But we're going to come up short unless we have the strength of the Lord to carry these things out.
Day the home is brought before us in verse 22 we also youthful us to flee is the run of fear. This isn't you know linger around give yourself opportunity, but it's to run the fears to stay away and in connection with the Lord Jesus. You know where to follow that which is right you have a pure heart. That's what he desires. He doesn't desire to have those that are you know maybe going to give him 5% of our focus or.
Maybe even 50% of our focus and once at all. He wants our hearts to really love him and notice that's a tough word to each one of us. You know, it can come to meeting and do what I need to do a meeting, but the Lord wants our hearts all the time. We're going to carry out these things like Timothy that needs to be in connection with him. You know, we know that.
Then there's, you know, those decisions we make more time and how we carry it out and we just need to talk so much to do these things.
It's sobering to consider.
That when we lack.
In that communion with the Lord.
And.
He failed and.
Some of these and other exhortations.
It's it's begun with an individual or.
Two, and then you end up with a great house.
You know that troubles me. Again, small, but they can grow.
There can be parties that are formed one side to the other.
And the result is, is that the truth is set aside because the Lord has been set aside. And so now we carry our own.
They don't carry anything for the Lord it's.
It's all outside of the realm of Christianity, and so you have that which is watered down.
Could we sing 172?
I.
Show with friends.
Our gracious God, our loving Father.
We were just bowed with shame.
For anything that we may have done that or would have caused discouragement to another.
Or have.
Driven them from Christ.
Father we.
The best that we may.
Off times, be unwilling to perform or do those things that make for peace.
Unwillingness to deny ourselves.
Take up our cross and follow him.
We thank the Father for the scriptures we've had before us.
We just look to Thee for blessing from them.
That we would be not leaving here, leaving it behind, but be mindful of that.
00:30:03
That we might profit from them to thine honor and glory.
We're thankful, our Father, for all thy love and grace.
That have been shown to us.
So abundantly in the giving of thine own son.
And in judging him.
In our place.
For that which we are and have done.
Sinners and sin.
Father.
We thank thee.
For the love of that blessed One who would so suffer and die for our sakes.
And what he bore in those hours of darkness, we shall never know.
But we shall know the peace, the joy.
The glories of the heavenly place.
Because of his faith, we thank Thee for that blessed point.
So we just commend ourselves to the.
Remainder of her time together.
In the long, worthy and precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.
Christian Fasting
Address—A. Nash
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.
Let's start by singing #246.
From every stormy wind that blows, from every swelling tide of woes, there is a calm, a sweet retreat that's found before the mercy seat.
Maybe somebody else could raise the two.
From every storm.
Just pray.
Our God and our Father, we would come before thy mercy. Seat now.
Lift up our prayer and ask for your special grace and help throughout this.
Next 45 minutes, just pray Father, that the message would be clear. It would be from myself. Just pray for help to present it and for help for everyone to listen and to have grace. We just pray and commit this time Father, into thy hands. We're thankful to be here. We're thankful that we can have this time. We just pray that it would be a blessing. Pray in Jesus name, Amen.
To Genesis chapter 2.
Genesis chapter 2.
Starting with verse 7.
Genesis 2 verse seven and the Lord God for man of the dust of the ground.
And breathe into his nostrils the breath of life. A man became a living soul.
I just read that verse. It's not very much associated with what I have on my heart to talk about, but.
There is a heresy that is around. It's been around since shortly after the time of Christ.
Called Gnosticism and it is actually still alive and.
Fairly healthy, unfortunately, today, and one of the ideas that's behind, well, one of the results of that heresy.
Is that there is a belief that basically the body is one professor put it as icky body is kind of icky. And there's a quote that sometimes is said, it's attributed, I guess to CS Lewis, but apparently he never said it. It doesn't really matter, but the quote goes like this. You do not have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.
And it doesn't sound that bad when you first hear it, but that is gnostic.
And the idea behind that quote is that you somehow, you yourself are really a spiritual being and you simply inhabit a body for this time. In other words, the body is something sort of separated from yourself. You are not your body, you're something separate and you merely inhabit a body. We know that this body that we have is temporary, but it also is part of us. It's part of who we are. We're a Tri part being.
And I just felt this verse, this may be other verses are better verses. And I think we all know this. I'm not spending really any time on it, but just to remind us that the body is very much who we are as well as the spirit and the soul. So we have the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground. What did he form? He formed a body. That's what he formed. He called it man, but he formed a body and then into that body to breathe.
00:05:07
The breath of life, the spirit of life. Man became a living soul.
So I'm not really wanting.
To get into spirit, soul and body. I'm not very well equipped to do that, but just to make the point that we are a spirit, a soul and a body.
That composes us.
Turn to Luke.
Chapter 5.
And hopefully we'll see why that is important in the subject that we're going to talk about to Luke Chapter 5.
And we have this question addressed to the Lord in verse 33. This is the Pharisees described, the Pharisees speaking.
And they were looking to find fault with the Lord and with his disciples. And so they say this to him. They said unto him, Why did the disciples of John would be John the Baptist fast? Often they make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees. But thine eat and drink.
He said unto, and he said unto them, Can you make the children of the bride chamber fast? Will the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.
We're living in the days in which the bridegroom has been taken away.
We know that in a way we are not separated from the Lord and we're with the Lord. You know what? But we see through a glass doing, and we're looking forward to the time when we will see face to face, and until that time, we are in this time.
In which the bridegroom has been taken away. And so we have instruction in this verse that we are during this time to fast.
Fasting, meaning the simple.
Restriction of food.
To ourselves, to meet our bodily needs, our desires.
And.
I just I want to make the point that we should be fasting.
And I realized that I remember the first time I came in contact with someone who was fasting. It was when I worked at McDonald's.
And there was a young lady in there, name was Thora, Thora Wilboy, and she didn't look well. She was a friend. She was a very bright believer, had a lot of respect to Laura and did a very great testimony on like I did at that time.
Anyway, she didn't look very well one day and.
I just asked her, you know, the normal, hey, you know, what's what's going on, what's wrong? And she said, oh, I've just, I've been fasting now for some number to sound. It's just an eternity to me at this time. I don't remember how long it was. I mean, three or four days or something. I've been fasting for the last three or four days. And it's just really, really hard for me to be here right now with all this food. I'm just kind of struggling.
And I remember going home and thinking about that.
And justice thinking what a terrible thing here this Christian is under ******* and and seeking to go on in something which is Jewish, not released from that. What a terrible, terrible thing they get. The thing was, is that I knew Laura because she was a deer and a bright believer. Now I don't know why she was fasting and whether it was indeed ******* or whether it was Christian fasting, I have no idea.
But just that gut feeling or that knee jerk reaction that I had. Fasting is wrong is Jewish. We shouldn't do it.
It runs contrary to this verse, but the idea is there and I'm guessing I'm not the only one who struggles with it. So I just want to turn to a few other verses. Let's go to Acts chapter 13.
I've chapter 13.
And verse one.
Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers as Barnabas and Simeon that was called Niger and Lucius so Cyrene and Mana, which have been brought up with Herod the tutor Arkansas, and they ministered to the Lord and fasted.
00:10:06
The Holy Ghost says, Separate me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work, where unto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
Well, here is a very clear instruction of the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, and in fact many in that assembly, maybe the whole assembly I'm I'm not sure, but a clear example of them fasting.
And in fact, it says that they serve the Lord with fasting. And we read the same thing of Anna when the Lord was born, how she served the Lord with fasting. It's clearly something that pleased the Lord.
So what is this doing here? Is this just, you know, early *** transition or something like that?
Can see it again in chapter 14.
I.
Verse 23 when they had regained them elders in every church, every assembly and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord on whom they believed. Again, another example of it. And just lest anyone think that this is just somehow early acts and transitionary and we shouldn't be doing it today, just one more.
First Corinthians, Chapter 7.
First Corinthians Chapter 7 and verse.
Three to start with, verse 3.
Husband renders tongue to the wife do benevolence likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife has not power over her own body. This is talking about sex, so she doesn't control.
When she wants to or doesn't want to have sex and the husband likewise also the husband does not have power over his own body but the wife.
In other words, if life wants to have sex, you have sex, the husband wants to have sex, you have sex. It's the way it works. Verse 5 defraud ye not one the other. Don't say I'm too tired tonight or you know whatever it is, don't defraud each other except it gives US1 provision except it be with consent for a time that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer.
There is that exception, and that is clearly talking to us today and to Christians, that we should at times be giving ourselves to fasting and to prayer. Let's go back to Luke chapter 5.
Because there is a reason, and I think a very, very good reason why we should be very nervous anytime we hear of someone who's a Christian, who is fasting, a very good and solid biblical reason why that should concern us. And the Lord takes that up immediately after he talks about that.
In verse 36 he right following after he talks about them fasting, he gives this parable. He spoke a parable unto them. No man put it a piece of a new garment upon an old otherwise in both the new makethoran and the piece that was taken out of the new agree if not.
With the old and no man put his new wine into new bottles, whilst the new wine will burst the bottles and be spilled and the bottles will perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles and both are preserved.
The point that he is making here is that especially with respect to fasting, but with respect to a whole bunch of other things as well, if you try to take that. So say you've got, I'll just put it in a Weezer way or more common language, I guess. If you've got two pairs of jeans and one of them you've worn 100 times and washed 100 times and one of them is brand new, and then the old one that you really like gets a hole in it. Do you go and take scissors and cut out of your nice new pair of jeans and go and you patch your old hair?
You can do that if you want it, but then as you keep wearing it and washing it, it's just it's going to shrink and then it will actually make the tear in the old bigger and then you've also ruined your new pair.
Same thing with the wine. They used to have wine, they don't. They didn't have bottles, so they had wine skin. They were just literally skins with wine in them. You put new wine in the skins and it would have a, it would stretch out the skins. Well, if you, you know, drank all the wine or whatever and then you put more new wine in the same old skins, it would continue to stretch, but the skins would have already stretched out as much as they could. They would break the wine would spell. You'd lose both the skins in the wine.
00:15:00
That he's making is that, yes, I'm giving you an instruction to fast, but it's to be new and it's to be done in a new way, not in a Judaistic way. If you try to take fasting, if you will, as the wine and put it in the container of Judaism and practice it that way.
They're going to lose everything. You're not using Judaism, the law properly and you're also, you're going to not be fasting properly. So how did the Jews fast? We can just see this briefly if we go to Luke chapter 18.
And we have these two men, one the Pharisee, and one is a publican. And verse 10, two men went up into the temple to pray, the one of Pharisees, the other Republican, the Pharisee stood and praised us with himself. God, I thank thee, but I am not. As other men are extortioners, unjust adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
And we can also turn to another one would be Zachariah.
And.
Under there it is.
Zechariah Chapter 7.
And verse 5.
Speak unto all the people of the land and to the priests, saying, When he fasted and mourned in the 5th and 7th month, even though 70 years, did you get all fast unto me? Even to me? When he did eat and when he did drink, did you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? Should you not hear the word that the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, etcetera?
The point that is being made here is that under the law you were too fast, or under a legal system you were to fast. But the fasting, the purpose of the fasting, was merely to fulfill the requirements of that legal system, and it resulted in pride, as we saw with that Pharisee.
I'm so thankful that I'm not like all these other poor, you know, fellas out there and has this evidence because I fast twice in the week.
That is something that is obviously obvious to God and it's prideful. And so when we are when we fast, we are not to do it in that way. We are not to do it in a way which is legal or a way which is, you know, this day of the year comes around and I begin to fasten.
Three days later I ended or. However, it is where some rules are made-up and followed by some greater code.
But what is fasting and how are we supposed to do it?
There's another verse. I'm sorry I'm referring, it's just.
Many verses to remember them all. Psalm Chapter 35 of the 35th Psalm.
And verse 13.
But As for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sacked. I humbled my soul with fasting.
I humbled my soul with fasting, the Lord said. When the bridegroom was taken away, they will fast in those days. In those days they will fast. Why would we fast in those days if not to draw near to the Lord who's been taken away from us?
We are too fast to draw near to the Lord, and this is the point where we being a tripartite being is so important.
If, if somebody, if you were sitting there and someone is sinned against you and they come walking in and they just open up their heart and say I have sinned, I am so sorry. And they just weep and they mourn and they just everything in front of you. And then they walk out and you go and you look at 5 minutes later, they're laughing and joking with their friends.
You would just like there's something that's not right here.
That's not accurate. It is the same thing. You can't go before the Lord and pretend to be mourning and weeping and just broken about something that's going on and then go sit down to a steak dinner.
There's something that's wrong because you're a tripartite being and half of you or 1/3 of you can't be mourning, or the other 2/3 doesn't warm if we mourn.
00:20:13
We all **** right? You can't mourn in the spirit, not in the body. And there are times, and I think we can all think of times, when some terrible situation comes up and you just can't eat.
Why? Why can't you eat?
Why he needs food? Why can't you eat? The reason you can't eat is because you're mourning. And it's true, real mourning. And so you fast, not because you decided to fast.
Because you're mourning now the fasts that we see in Scripture are not a fast where it just kind of happens to you. It comes along and grabs you and like I was just describing where some situation comes up and you just can't eat about it. There are fast where they are the fast that that please the Lord. They they are fast which are decided upon and there's a purpose of heart that goes into those times, but it is not again, it is not to be in a legal.
A legal requirement or a legal sort of a way?
Sorry, my sugar is coming down hell.
So that was the first point or the main point I guess that I wanted to make was just to allow us to be able to to, to fast and be able to do it in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. And to recognize that if we do go before the Lord and we do claim to be broken and, and contrite it and whatever it is. And there isn't anything that's in our physical body that.
That reflects that. That's nothing short of hypocrisy. It's just you going and acting before the Lord. There's nothing else to say about it.
So we can see examples and I had thought of just going through and presenting examples of different people fasting. I think of Daniel. We can maybe look at this one really quick just to make an important point. I think Daniel chapter 10.
Daniel 10 We have Daniel fasting.
And again, of course, it's associated with morning.
Fasting is always we never just fast just, you know, to see what it feels like or something like that. There's a reason that we fast. So in verse two, in those days, I Daniel was morning 3 full weeks. And then this is a description.
Of how he mourned says I ate no pleasant bread. Neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all till three whole weeks.
Were fulfilled, Daniel at this point, it's in the third year of Cyrus. We don't know when Daniel died, but it must have been very shortly after this. He would have been a very old man. As you read through Daniel 10, you get something, you know, just you see some of his, his bodily weakness that he has at this stage in his life.
There's no way, but I shouldn't say that there's no way. But it seems very unlikely that Daniel could have just come without any food at all for three weeks. And it's very rare that that you find any sort of example like that in Scripture at all.
But what he does do is he ate no pleasant bread.
He didn't eat fresh or drink wine and he didn't anoint himself. So you think of a man who's not eating dessert and who isn't eating steak and isn't drinking showed up. I'm just trying to apply this maybe how we would see it today and not taking showers.
Is kind of.
It's not something that any of us would really look forward to or any of us would would say, yes, sign me up. That sounds, that sounds good.
And the reason is, is because it's more and Daniel was in mourning. I don't know exactly why Daniel was in mourning. I suspect it was because not very many people had responded to Cyruses call in the first year to go back to Jerusalem, but I don't know that.
But every time that that we see.
This this fasting which is pleasing. I think of David when he fast for his sons life.
Every time there's something, there's a reason. And so if we are going to fast, there needs to be a reason, a real reason that we're going to be before the Lord fasting. And, and I think that is so hard for us to separate in our minds. Like I think I was telling Sally, it's sort of like when I first thought of fasting, it's sort of like, you know how you're at the restaurant, you know, Texas Longhorn or something and, and the smells are walking around you and you're so hungry.
00:25:24
And like the moments before they bring out the food and you're just like, come on, you know, where's that food? I'm so hungry. And I think of that just extending out for three days, if you fast for three days. But that's not really the way. That's not really the way it is. And when you fast, you have opportunity to devote that time and attention which would normally be given to your, your, your body and your natural sustenance, to devote that time and attention to the Lord and to be really before the Lord.
On a nearly continuous basis of justice, pouring out your heart to the Lord and being real, and your soul being humbled within you as a result of that fast. Fasting is a very humbling experience if done correctly.
So I hope that that makes the point as far as fasting that we should fast. There's a lot more and there's a lot of depth that I don't know and couldn't go into. But at least hopefully that breaks the ice for, for some people here. And, and you'd be able to consider doing that if there's a burden that's on your heart and if that's something that the Lord lays before you. Now I want to go to.
Ezekiel, Chapter 9.
And make an application.
Ezekiel, Chapter 9.
And verse 4.
And the Lord said unto him.
Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, instead of mark upon the foreheads of the men that cried, oh sorry, that side and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst of their lives.
And to the others he said in mind hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite, but not your eyes spare, neither have you pity. So I utterly old and young, both maids and little children and women, but come not near any man upon whom is the mark, and began at my sanctuary.
And they began at the ancient man, which were before the house.
Point that I wanted to make with this verse of these verses is that the Lord specifically.
Tells this this man, it says man clothed with linen. I'm not sure it was a man or an Angel. Anyway, he tells him to go through and look for those who mourn or or who sighed and cried and to make a mark on them. And then basically everybody else was going to die.
And the Lord.
Is looking for that. I just think, you know, we've had before us in Palmyra last week, I think it was last Sunday, a little bit about the devil and how this whole pandemic and everything going on with with Covad. I think the statement was made. The devil is having his way with us.
And it's just amazing to me. I feel sometimes like you got to play pot and you drop it and it just smatters and smashes into 1000 pieces. And pieces go everywhere. And sometimes it takes you months to find them. And it just seems like different assemblies that we are in fellowship with all across this nation and I suppose across the world.
Are handling this COVID pandemic in a different way. Some are breaking bread over Zoom. Some are having Zoom meetings, calling them assembly meetings. Some are having Zoom meetings but calling them non assembly meetings. Some are not restricted from meeting, but they're not meeting because I don't want to say why, but you know, they're just not meeting due to the pandemic. Some are submitting to the government, some are not submitting to the government. And I could go on. It seems like it's hardly a month goes by that I don't hear of some.
Different iteration of what different a different assembly is doing with respect to this covet and and the government restrictions on how we should handle it.
And.
It just reminds me of the time in Judges. It's not like there's two camps, right? It's not like Gray Obama and Jeroboam where you've got, well, half of doing it this way and say they're right, and half of doing it this way and say they're right.
00:30:12
There are some assemblies who are handling it the same way, which we can be thankful for, but it's like judges where every man or every assembly is just doing that which is right in our own eyes.
And if that isn't a situation to be burdened about, I don't know what is.
And I just feel like we have been, I have been to conference after conference and we have talked and talked and talked about how, you know, strong we are doctrinally, especially with respect to the assembly and especially with respect to gathering and here comes along this pandemic.
And just we all scattered and everyone's doing something different.
It's not like everybody's right.
People are doing exactly the opposite thing and saying that they're right and the other things wrong. Everybody can't be right.
It can be different faith, I suppose, in different situations and you want to recognize that. But the point that I'm making is that the situation that we are in right now.
Is terrifying and it's a situation that we should be on our knees about and that we should be mourning about.
And you know, I, I just, I'll confess this. I have sat at the dinner table.
And talking with Sally and just I have just what do you want to admit? But you know, I have just said, well, I wonder when the division will happen.
I've said that over and over. I wonder what the division will happen. I wonder who will go where.
And I've just been so confident, I guess you could say that there will be a division. And even if we muddle through this and who knows, the vaccine comes out and restrictions come off and we just kind of all say, OK, well, let's just get back together and pretend nothing happened. The seeds of division that are being sown now are just going to spring up some 5-10 years later.
There's going to be a division.
At some point.
That's how I see it.
But what happened in the times of the judges? What happened over and over and over again when the people of God ended up in trouble?
They cried out to the Lord, and the Lord saved them.
Lord save us from this pandemic. Can the Lord save us from the divisiveness and just separation that we see?
I think we know that the Lord is capable. I think we know that.
But it requires humility, and it requires that we fall to our knees and cry out for salvation.
Requires that you know I have said those words from one when the division will happen.
And I smell my knees crying out to the Lord. I was just sitting there wondering when it would happen, not doing anything about it.
How embarrassing.
How embarrassing for God's people to be so divided. And I am sure that there are great many who are very exercised and are fasting and praying about this, but I just had this on my heart to present that.
We should be burdened about it too.
And we should be before before the Lord about it too. And so should I.
And I'm not saying that we all should go home fast.
Just leave that with the Lord.
But there should be exercises and there should be a crying out to the Lord because if the situation at the juncture that we're in.
I mean, it's always true, but it's very obviously true now. The Lord is the only one.
Or is it going to be some great meeting by across or something you know where everything is clear now I wish that that were so.
But I think we're beyond that.
So my point is just that.
The Lord is looking, He is watching, the eyes of the Lord are in every place, and he looks to show himself strong.
So may we cry out to the Lord and be on our knees and seek His blessing and His health throughout this time and.
The wait for his coming and perhaps he will save us.
This time.
Maybe we just, we have a little bit of time, maybe we can just sing again #246I.
00:35:04
Sing the same song again, but.
It's just such a beautiful song with beautiful thoughts. Maybe though.
Mean a little bit more to us, hopefully now #246 and then we can.
Our God and our Father.
We do pray for Thy strength and we do pray for Thy health. We ask that.
Thy word would prevail and not if anything has been said that it's not according to Thy will that would be allowed to fall by the wayside would be judged. We just pray Father for the blessing on this company of the people and we just pray for a blessing and thy assemblies here upon the earth. Just look for Thy saving hand and saving grace and we just commit our the rest of our day to thine hands in Jesus name.
Amen.
Question and Answer
Q&A
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 also wanted to have a question and answer period.
You have four questions. We don't obviously have to take the whole time, but we do not want to dwell too long in any one particular question.
So we'll probably have probably around 10 minutes per question at the goals. The first question, can everybody hear me okay?
First question is, is giving money to a charity of good idea?
Is giving money to a charity of good idea?
Having the privilege of knowing some of the questions ahead of time, when my brother would consider it, I would just say a few things.
We learn in Acts chapter 5 that the money that we have is ours. You know when Peter is talking to Ananias and fire, the things that Lord has given you, they're yours. We also have in 2nd Corinthians 8 that God loves a cheerful giver.
We have in Mark 14.
Where the disciples were upset because the ointment was wasted on the Lord, and the Lord tells them, says you know the poor you'll have with you always and and as you have opportunity, you may do them good for me. You have my office.
In another place we have do good unto all, especially day of the household of God.
And so kind of that thought is that we clearly have the responsibility for us as individually and what do we do with the funds for time, whatever the resources we have as to what to do with that for the Lord and in accordance with his word.
It's not as though we're going to wipe out poverty. As Lord said, you'll have poverty always.
But the other overarching thing is whatever we do, we do for the glory of God.
And so while we have a compassion and sympathy for those in troubled times, and we often, and we ought to, you know, seek out the Lord as to how to use our funds in time and other resources, we also want to understand that when you give to charitable organizations, and I'll pick on the Red Cross because everybody knows it.
You ought to consider who is getting the glory of that. You know you give money and the Red Cross goes in and people are praising and looking for the Red Cross.
Believe the Lord is not necessarily getting the glory of that.
So I guess for I would say that you can't say it's a sin.
Ought to be an exercise about what we have fellowship with. There are also those organizations that you know are really anti Christ, you know, and they really we haven't and John you know you don't even people Godspeed that they don't bring the document express and so we have to consider.
You know, when we give to those in need, how we do it. And while these charitable organizations are convenient, it's not necessarily that which would really promote Christ.
For the glory of God.
Other spots?
I guess just one verse comes to mind at First Timothy 6.
Verse 17 Charge them that are rich in this world, they be not high minded or trusted on certain riches, but in the living. God will give us virtually all things to enjoy. That they do good, that they be rich in good work, ready to distribute, willing to communicate.
And.
I think distribute would be given to the poor, I think.
So have that thought.
So I think it's clear that we should give to the poor.
But do we do it by means of charities? I guess that's another question.
00:05:03
That was question money to a charity.
I remember, you know, one of the things that was very helpful to me as a young brother was going to.
Otter Lake, I've only worked. There's only one when we were able to go.
But I remember, you know, Gordon and Pearl had an exercise.
To invite young people initially, I think their exercise for was really for for young people that did not grow up in in Christian homes, but it, it sort of morphed over the years into a more of a.
Included many that were grown, grew up in the assemblies, but.
We would have these types of questions and answer sessions periodically through the week and these types of questions would come up and I remember one thing that when answering a question like this, Gordon would say almost consistently, have thou faith, have it to thyself before God believe. That's from Romans show exactly.
References. So there a lot of these questions really are and I think all you.
You prefaced it well, I mean.
The money is ours. We have it in our care as we've worked, we've earned it. We know on, you know, we know ultimately everything comes from the water. But you know, we, we certainly have this money that we have custody of. And some of these questions aren't.
Black and white answers, but we do have principles to follow, and I think one principle in giving.
Is is the principle of fellowship?
So there are times where you just give simply.
You give. You don't even ask the questions. What's behind it? You see something, you respond to what you give.
There are times where you have to some some giving. You actually have to. They want you to become a member to give.
And I've been exercised about that because I think when you become a member of something, that's a little more than just giving a.
So I think there's a lot of exercise in that. I think that's a, that's a good principle to understand is that principle of fellowship.
You know, to become a member, to become a part of an association.
Is different than just, you know, someone on the street says, you know, hey, you know, can you spare a dollar? You know, I could interview the guy and try to discern everything he's connected with and what he's going to do with the money. Or sometimes I may the Lord just may say give him a dollar. I don't know. I don't know. I'm not going to go there. So sometimes when we give him in a formal way to a charity as the question was.
It may, it may be you're actually as a member, you're, you're becoming part of that in a sense, you're becoming part of that organization as a giver and that brings you to a, you know, a very.
Personally, I feel very exercised about that so.
You know, there are definitely charities today that are able to help out in situations some.
That maybe we would not be able to help in and we maybe feel burdens for the situation and that may be a vehicle to be able to.
Use some of our resources to help. But it is exercising in terms of. Does that put me in a place of?
Association with that organization per se, in a formal way. It's it's an exercise.
And there's definitely our chairs that are in Jesus name, that give in Jesus name. They there are good charities. I think this is.
As bad, one of the things to consider is.
What's the overhead of that charity? What percentage of the money you give actually goes to the need?
There are some charities that it's a very low percentage that goes to needs because.
They're they're the wages of their those who administer these funds are so high. I know of a case where.
The president of such an organization makes us much or more than the president of the United States. So, you know, it's those are things you need to consider.
00:10:12
Is that a profitable use?
Of the Lord's Ponds is money.
And it's good to consider too, that.
There are likely.
Sufficient need just round about you without going to an organization and the Lord can lay these things on your heart and from that I believe the Lord will get get the glory more than if you give it to our normal organization, which is them getting the warrior.
Just on that line, you know, talking with Fred last night.
He there's a man that doesn't have a lot, but he he knows the situations of individuals and he has a desire to help them.
And you whatever funds you have so kind of along the line with our brother was just bringing out, you know do good on the wall and so to be engaged with those around you might very well lead you to a exposure will probably have you to help out in some situation.
If there's nothing else.
Go on to the next question. What is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost?
Was blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.
I believe when that's referred to its.
If it's in the gospel, I believe and perhaps.
That but it's right after the Lord basically says all sins be forgiven except against the Holy Ghost Spirit and it is when they were ascribing the works of God Satan.
Such and I believe that's generally, you know, the blasphemers speak skill or or badly to defame or discredit something and so.
To not recognize that you know what the Lord was doing. This was of God publicly.
I believe is the context of that verse. So I would tend to think it's along that line that it's ascribing, you know, God's work to think.
It's Matthew 1224.
And 32.
I.
I.
I think this question comes up a lot of times because people are worried that they can lose their salvation if they, you know, commit this sin. And I guess I would just say that, you know, there's very clear versus.
Scattered all throughout the Bible and the New Testament. I mean done shall **** them out of my hand. This is a common one that's used.
To deal with that idea that you could lose your salvation.
To even include one work, it's, you know, in my salvation meeting, I was saved because the Lord died for me and I never did. This sin is in a way blasphemy against the Lord is defaming the work that he did. So I know that's a reason that question tends to come up is because we may think, well, maybe I could lose my salvation if I do this certain thing.
00:15:00
That's not true.
Yeah, that's, I mean the principle there is, is a verse like this, which may be difficult.
We we don't want to make things that we do know will never overturn one that we are struggling to understand. So the concept of we are our salvation is based upon the blood of Christ and it's able to wash away.
You know, since I mean I where I was saved.
Terrible things. Not even knowing what I said, I was just stupid. Foolish things came out of my mouth.
About things that were holy and.
Thank God that he.
Hooked me up as a Sinner and.
Saved me, but you know the real sin that the.
Pharisees and Judas really was guilty of doing was.
Sort of.
Almost knowingly, as the Spirit of God was so clearly manifesting one thing, They were, you know, Judas.
Turn against it.
There's nothing. There's nothing left for the Lord. There is nothing beyond that. So this is a challenging verse, but definitely it does not undermine the truth that whosoever will make common.
But to ascribe you know to you cannot, there has to be attorney to the Lord or judgment.
Falling down before.
Before him.
Never judge that.
No Sellers said that this is a national sin because of where it's placed in Matthew.
Maybe that's true very knowledgeable brother instead of taught that so I hesitate to disagree, but I think you could go down that road and say it's a national sin that you're going to step away from covenant theology and is really done for things they committed to sin. I think it's a very dangerous idea. I understand why people would think that. I guess I I tend to think that just personally.
Clear on it, but I tend to think that this is the sin of someone rejecting the gospel, that the Spirit of God brings things before the soul and.
True means of preaching or through events or signs, whatever it is, and if somebody takes that.
And just pushes it away and just says, you know what? That's not you know, I don't believe that. I think that's just of the devil or it's just just some some man's religion. I.
I guess I think that what this is but.
That could be relative.
Yeah, it's also fine, Luke and.
And you know, I to that point, I mean, I did that. I mean, I literally said, I mean, I mean, someone came to my dorm room and preached me the gospel. My roommate and I locked it afterwards. And you know, it's like this isn't for me. I did that. But I'm saying right, but but to not turn from that, there is no, there is nothing else the Lord has to offer. There is no forgiveness beyond it. There must be.
A bowing to the Lord, and a recognition of the Spirit of God avowing to that work in the soul.
So, you know, I thought I thought the same in the sense, yeah, it is a rejection. You cannot reject what the Spirit of God brings. He brings us Christ. You cannot reject that.
And not.
End up in hell. To be honest, you cannot, and yet the Lord is.
Gracious. And he doesn't give up, you know he.
00:20:03
Some of us, He comes at us again, the Spirit of God.
Strives, you know.
Sex.
Context.
These people witness.
It work by the Holy Spirit.
With they saw it.
And they called it work itself.
The work of the Holy Spirit is a direct work of God.
And.
They witnessed it.
All that the work of the bell.
That's the context.
How you apply that?
But as Alex said, you know it's.
Person who has eternal life have an internal life. End of story. And if the person who asked that question is concerned about whether a person can be prevented from ever being saved, I don't think that you need to go there.
If the person is living is breathing, you have to believe that they can keep safe.
And if you're saved and you're a believer, I don't think that.
You can be unsaved by committing sin of anything.
May be wrong, but that's the process and in order to call something the work of the devil, you have to believe yourself. So these were not just unbelievable, these were religious people that were envious.
They worship college image, but when they witnessed him directly, they hated him and called him the devil. That's essentially what he did.
I guess I was just going to say one more thing.
That is that like if you read the story you've mentioned a few times in the Seeking Allah Finding Jesus, read that story. He goes through how he investigates the Lord Jesus and he comes to a point where he is able to look back and see he has basically interesting incontrovertible evidence that these things actually did happen, that there was a man Jesus, that he gave him miracles, that he lived on the earth and was crucified and rose again.
And it kind of stops in the book. He says at this point I had to make a decision. And in a sense, I think the decision he had to make was the other has to ascribe that power that hit all those things to the devil, in which case he can reject it, or to God, in which case he can accept it. And of course, Nabil accepted the Lord and was saved. So we had that beautiful book. That is. I wonder if that would tie in this game.
Yeah, I thought of that. I'm trying to find. There's a verse that speaks about the moment of the.
Moment or the time of visitation that all men have. And I think that just as God is, you know, God is.
Righteous and.
You know, in the sense each man.
Woman.
They're going to have that moment.
Where the Spirit of God is.
They're either gonna say yay or they're gonna say that.
Say nay to the to the Lord when he brings you to that point. You know the apostle Paul resisted.
Vigorously the work of the Spirit of God and attributed it to he was, you know, it was it was an enemy, it was against God in his mind, but when he saw the Lord.
So you know, it's true. This is a this is an interesting verse, but there is no forgiveness if this if the work of the Spirit of God as it goes to a man's conscious or persons conscience reveals it is revealed and they say no, there is no forgiveness beyond that, they're just God has nothing more he can offer. There is no forgiveness.
If anybody else has anything to add.
Go on to the next one and I think it's understood that, you know, these are.
Questions which are only partially being answered. You know, our brethren, brothers and sisters, but you know.
00:25:01
Consider more, you know, once these come out, so it's not like this is the end all of an answer all the questions 100% the next question.
How does someone deal with the sin which so easily besets us? Set them step by step with scriptural references.
So.
How does someone deal with the sandwich so easily resets them?
Step by step spiritual references scriptural.
You look at that verse similar so easily.
There's 12/1.
I.
So.
There's some no prescriptions that we have.
Translated.
Collections of hundreds of manuscripts, parchments, Dragons of old writings and so.
Many of which don't have the death of.
So Mr. Garvey says he leaves it out. He says sin.
And if you think about it.
If it's not sin, but God has left us with a big question.
And I have to Object to that.
God's not going to leave us with big question mark in his work. And it would have to be if it's not saying what sin, which sin? Do we all have a deceiving sin? Is that what it's teaching? Then we all have to ask ourselves what it is.
So I believe what it's saying here is it's sin which so easily and we all should know what to do with that and it's not a step by step process.
We understand that our sin has been washed away.
You don't deal with it at all.
You walk by the Spirit.
That's what you do. That's the answer. You walk by the city.
And.
If one sins.
The blood of Jesus Christ, the Sun.
That's not a cleansing that takes place.
When we send or after we send, it's a cleansing that took place when he walked away our sins on the cross.
Well, that's going to stay after before we were even born.
So patient with sin, struggling with sin and battling against it and so on. Just.
Is a way not to go on.
To way to go on to drop it, move on, walk in the spirit.
Because the sin has been twice.
When we sent it so we're not walking in the spirit.
Yeah, I think that's that's well put and.
Old brother, I used to talk about the lettuces and scripture. This is one of the lettuce. And to, to to let to start with the phrase, let us, it implies that we have the ability to do so. And so when somebody is struggling, when you know, many of us have had those conversations or maybe have been in that place ourselves where it's hard and we don't know what to do, there is no substitute for what Ted just said.
Walking in faith, you can't say, well, I don't want to hear the script, I know the scripture. Don't call the scriptures. There is nothing else.
This is what it is. It is walking in faith. And if you have faith, if you have relationship with the Lord, if you washed in the blood of Christ, you have the ability to do it. And the fact that it's hard doesn't mean you don't have the ability. I remember.
Learning how to downhill ski when I was 38 years old and.
00:30:00
At one point I was ready to give up. It's like I can't do it and you can't say you can't. And I did. You know it went the minute you say you can't, then you then you're not believing you can't. And so the Scripture gives us everything we need to encourage us. If we have new life, we respond to those things in faith. For someone that does not have new life, they can do it.
They really can't. They do not have that liberty. They have not been free. And sometimes somebody, maybe they think themselves as a Christian, or we think they're a Christian and maybe they it becomes manifest that there's something more.
There's enough. There's a greater need than overcoming the physical sin they need. They need to get saved. That's the real group issue. Don't have life.
In Ephesians chapter 5.
Familiar scriptures, but.
If the first asked this question, I would really directly here.
It says be filled with the Spirit.
Thinking to yourselves.
To you as an individual, that means speaking to yourself.
The psalms and hymns and spiritual songs singing.
And making melody in your heart.
To the Lord.
Now, if you're struggling with sin, maybe you should himself.
That's your way of life comes out in the morning to start singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.
This is the scriptures where God and this is how you film with the Spirit.
Because it all starts with your mind, wherever your mind is. And This is why we can get those tripped up that we can get a thought. Thought can just come, or thought can come because of the situation or thoughts and time can come through because of something somebody says to us.
These thoughts take our mind off the Lord and start directing us somewhere else. Now you're you're allowed to get tripped up. So This is why it says set your mind on things above and not on things of the earth. And then in the context specifically talking about religious things, because people get occupied with religious, earthly, religious things and now they're going to get tripped up. So set your mind on things above what's above.
So it's really where your mind is stuck.
Singing, making melody in your hearts. I'm sure you know when you're thinking about the Lord and joining Him as you do your work and so on. You filled with the Spirit.
It's not a nice little, you know, Scripture here. This is serious stuff really, to be singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. That's the way to be told with the Spirit, and that's the way not to be beset by sinners.
I know our time on that question dropped, but without.
Without taking away from any of the answers given.
I I don't know who asked the question, I don't know what their intention was, but.
It's perhaps the one who asked the question has a specific sin that they seem to struggle with often.
I think the best advice.
Beyond beyond what's already been said is.
Help from someone who is someone of some brother or sister who you can speak.
Don't you know we're not alone? We have each other as resources as well.
I guess that was sort of the same thought I had when I read the question. I'm sorry. I heard the question was just that, you know, I can think of times in my life when there was just some sin that you, you know, you just couldn't seem to beat, right? You just seem to keep coming up over and over and over again. It seemed like it just was no ability or power to resist and it was just like it just.
What can you do? You start to feel a little helpless about it and just start to feel like, you know, this thing is just my master and.
00:35:07
I guess I was thinking of the same thing as Mr. Porter, that that thought of a of a master is actually presented in Romans chapter 6.
And I guess maybe there's so much to this question, I don't have time, but.
It just in verse 12 it says let not sin therefore reign.
In your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lust thereof. Now they yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourself unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace. And then verse 16 Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourself service to obey his servant, ye are to whom you obey, whether of sin unto death, or of obedience of the righteousness toward a very real sense.
Labor can become a slave to sin. And they can, you know, send calls if you will. They come knocking and say do this. And it's like you just have to do it. And it can feel that way. But the principle that's presented here is that we do not deal with that by legal means. We do not get up in the morning and say, I'm going to try extra hard this time. I won't do it. I won't do it today. I just, I promise I won't do it and just try to work up some courage or some nerve or something.
By legal means his bikes race. We are not under law but under grace. So we seek for the Lords help and like Mr. Porter was saying we get up and we just seek to spend our day depending on the Lord and leaning on His strength and his grace. Illustration.
Because this was always helpful to me if you're, if you're associating a strange thing in a canoe, right, the big rock in the stream.
If the water is low, you're going to hit the rock, right?
But if the flow is high.
It's still right over, like it's not there.
OK, think of the level of the Florida River as you're enjoying it with Christ.
Your enjoyment of communion with the Lord during the day. If it's low, you're going to hit that besetting sand.
If it's high, you're just even sail on through like it's not even there, but it's still there. And we know that that's the flesh, right? The flesh doesn't change. Your flesh isn't going to change. You're not going to get stronger against that sin in that way. But every day we have to try to get our level of enjoyment of the war.
So that we can sail over.
Those are rocks that are still there, but because the level of your enjoyment of communion with God is so high, it's almost as if it's not even Him. And that's really what walking in the spirit of technology. I would just mention that in Hebrews 12.
After that is noted about the sin or sin, it says looking under Jesus and also says consider you know him. That endures his contradiction. Those are two things which have really been being mentioned. You know, looking at him, consider him. What's it say lest you be worried and faint in your minds. This is a thing. And then when we look at Philippians 4.
Verse seven says peace of God, which path is all understanding shall keep your heart and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brother, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just what sort of things are Pure? What sort of things are lovely? What sort of things are looking for?
To be any praise, think on these things.
So really, you know the scripture gives us an Object to think about inside our own question love and such is generally, you know, the manifestation through sin Saxon has been brought out. You know, walking is very won't fulfill the last.
So when we, as we mentioned, we want to work step by step, think about it, consider Him, think on the things which are Pure, good and all those other things, and the peace of God will keep us.
First thing is confess your sin and he's faithful and just to forgive it and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. The second thing is now to occupy ourselves for the things of the Lord.
00:40:11
Yeah, time is gone, so we won't have time for the last question.
Our meal isn't ready anyway, so.
Okay.
That's the last one. This is the last one, but not the least one. You have one, it's a. It's a long one.
And we probably will have to cut ourselves short.
Oh oh, we need a couple of times here.
How should Christians interact with politics? Should we listen to the news or talk show host or talk about politics amongst ourselves?
Should we vote when key issues like abortion come out? What versus specifically there were these questions.
So again.
How should Christians interact with politics? Should we listen to news or talk show host or talk about politics amongst ourselves? Should we vote when key issues like abortion come out? What versus specifically deal with these questions?
Set your mind on things above.
Right whatsoever is lovely. What if it is the scriptures that?
The series is talking about politics conducive to that.
Amber.
This is the problem.
And our brother Tim Rose gave a word in Michigan which he said that democracy, politics, divides the Saints.
Where does it put your mind?
Where do those discussions put your mind?
Where does it take their mind? Because where your mind goes is where the rest of your being is going to go.
You know, Verse I.
Spoken up before but Second Corinthians 520 now then we are ambassadors for Christ as though God did beseech you by us and we pray you in Christ dead be reconciled to God. So really as an ambassador we represent the country that sent us we are sent here to represent Christ. His interest is with soul be reconciled with God. Does that mean that we are you know that we we are oblivious to what's going around us No I mean we're we're we're people that think and.
And, and certainly we, we make judgments and we react to things, but that's different than understanding that, than losing a sense of what our role is here. And an ambassador is not allowed to get involved with the politics of the country they're in. They're going to get withdrawn. They can't. It's against the law. And yet they're going to, they live in that country and they send their kids to the schools and they drive on the roads. They obey the laws in the country, but then they're not. Their job is not to try to influence those laws.
At all. It's to represent their country. I think that verse is so helpful in this matter of at the level which we participate in, you know, in the politics of this country.
We're in it and we're affected by it. We should pray about it. We're told to pray about it. We're definitely told to pray about it so.
Oh OK I know like this is a verse in first John 519 it says when we know that we are of God and the whole world lies in wickedness and I know personally several who like when.
Gay marriage was being legalized here in Maine. It was a big like idea of a few that will like, well, I want to go and vote against that just to make it kind of like a stand. I keep my flag in the soil, if you will say I stand against this and.
I just, I mean you can see how someone would think that you don't want to.
You know, we struggle to say that, that, that that sentiment of wanting to resist evil is, is wrong. But but the but the principle that's given there is that the whole world lies in wickedness. And So what are you going to do? I mean, you go, it's certainly someone described as if you go to a condemned house.
00:45:01
And then you try to like paint some, some boards on the side. Well, I just wanted to look a little better. You know, I just want, and I do know that some people feel very strongly about abortion specifically because it results in death, you know, and they feel very strongly about that one specifically. And I think that one's much harder to, to.
I don't know. You know, it's a much harder question because it's not just wickedness. It does result in death for people, innocent people.
But but again, it's not under our purview and I guess it's just a hard thing to to say that, but you have to leave it with the Lord.
You know, it says we condemn, we reduce their unrighteous works, and we're to stand against it.
And to mute it but.
I guess that's all.
I think personally, just the most important thing to remember, regardless of whether you're talking about.
A specific law or a specific leader or anything else is to remember that God's in control and whether or not we vote or don't vote for anything else, God's going to have the outcome is going to be how who chooses, not how we think it should be or how we vote it should be, or anything else.
We believe a lot of points the the, the rule, the authority.
That isn't it true that whether I vote or not is not going to change that? OK? Why would I waste my energy?
I mean, to me it's an active vanity.
At that's it is an active annex, you can't change the outcome.
God points and the story, I just put that out there and I'm not going to judge others, but to me it's just patently an act of unbelief. God either it does or he doesn't, and he puts the basis of men in power.
He shows in the scripture with numbers and others that no matter who's in power, he can put a hook in their nose and leave them wherever he wants. And it also shows that he can change the heart of an entire group of people. He has armies that turn on each other.
To kill each other, that's the power of our job. So even in a democracy, God is able to put in the position of army goes he wants air. And if you even begin to know that you're going to find that your mind is now going in the wrong direction, right?
The issue following which is I think what Alex is doing.
Scripture does say do good to all men as much as is within your power.
And the people that the Lord were in the land that the Lord was taking the Israelites to would sacrifice their children.
I don't want to frighten little ones, but they would. They would cause their little ones to walk through the fire.
And God said this never entered into my mind. It never came up in my mind for someone to sacrifice their child. And he was so hated that what did he do? He he wanted his people going to wipe those people out because we do that.
That's not our mission, but as far as this whole abortion thing goes.
He's going to deal with it, but it's not for us.
That's just not for us to do.
Not one still strongly thought.
You know, it's the the taking of an innocent life that's murder.
And I wouldn't hesitate to say that and I don't hesitate to say.
But I don't think it's my business to go and decide whether it be that's that's just not like we really like those ones that Alex mentioned in Ezekiel. We saw him cry for the abominations being done and such. And you know, we often talk about a lot of how he was a righteous man. He went down and and he was in that that city of ****** Moore, which God had purpose to judge.
00:50:18
As almost a shining example of his judgment and you know the response was this is this man came into sojourning be a judge amongst us.
We're told plainly in Scripture, you know, first of all in first Corinthians 5, that we judge that which is within God, judges that which without, and that we are also pro at the end of the court. Disciples were told the end of the gospel. Don't preach the gospel, teaching them the commandments of the Lord. That's in a certain sense our mission not to. You know, we need to change parts as we're ready to look in the heart. I can say, you know, not that we're going to somehow.
As well put it, dress up the old man and make him work, Richard.
Are you OK now?
If there's nothing else.
And we'll just close the prayer.
Blessing the loving godving Father, we should thank Thee that we've had this time together. Both You have these lovely hymns that would remind us of thyself and I finished work, Lord, and we do thank you to proportions that have been wrenching to our ears and to our minds. And just pray we realize that there is much more to consider. These questions have been raised and just pray that each one might be satisfied and at peace. And just look to me that we might.
Endeavor to dig more into Thy Word to truly understand how to address each of these matters. Do thank you for this day, for the much thought we've had of myself before us. We thank you for that blessing and wondrous work Word of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Resurrection
Children—K. House
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.
All right, well, welcome to Sunday school this morning, everyone. Glad to have everybody feel your smiling faces.
Through Rust. All right, well, let's start with singing some.
Together. Does anybody have one?
#3 All right.
#3.
A Little Chef was all I see was that.
So who could this glorious person be?
Yeah, that's right, The Lord Jesus.
Is this glorious person?
This song talks about something that I'd like to talk about this morning.
When it said let's see why, I was thinking of all but one, were sore afraid of sinking in the beep and talk a little about that later on. Anybody else have another song for us? Did you have a song you like to sing? Which one?
The wise man said.
7878 Scarlett. Scarlett. Yeah. All right. Thanks for help 78.
Number 78 Scarlet. Scarlet.
All right, maybe one of the bigger kids. What scripture does that song come from?
Good if the songs that we sing are from the word of God, but who can think of what scripture?
This song comes from.
Anybody think of what it might be?
What do you think, Liz?
Well, Moses did talk about scarlet and the law, and they had to do some of the offerings. They had to get scarlet.
It wasn't what was the one I was thinking of, but.
Yes, that you're connecting that.
Who else can help me?
Didn't have to be a kid either.
Talked about Scarlett as you talked about.
Since we was.
Yes, the verse I was thinking about and being the words found.
The first I was thinking of is in Isaiah chapter one and verse 18 and says come now and let us reason together, saith the Lord. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they be red like Crimson, they shall be as wool.
That's quite a contrast. Usually if we spell ketchup on our clothes. Or maybe some red wine.
Some things that stain pretty bad, right? And sin is like that, it stains us.
But you know, usually this time of year we see quite a bit of snow on the ground, but not today.
Nice and white.
We can be whiter than snow, right? Because snow has a little black thing in it, a little piece of carbon.
Little bit of a black spot even in snow, but the Lord Jesus and his blood can wash us even whiter than snow. So the way God sees you or he sees me.
He sees us perfectly clean. Now that's wonderful. And talking with that a little later, who else has the song for us?
No one there yet.
#10 All right.
Together #10.
Around the throne of God.
Very good. Number six, number six.
ABCD.
00:05:02
They also have one.
59.
59.
Well, let's talk about Jesus.
Let's ask for the Lords help in our time together.
God and our Father, we're thankful to be able to be together and to be able to sing. These songs bring before us such wonderful truths concerning my beloved Son, our Lord Jesus. We just ask for help this morning as we speak about Him, that He would be precious to each of our hearts, so there will be glory brought to Him.
Need of help Speaking of such a wonderful person and so would ask Father in Jesus name.
All right, so I'd like to talk this morning about one of the most exciting stories that's contained in this book.
Anybody have a guess as to what it might be?
Sam.
That's a great guess. It isn't actually the one I'm thinking of leaving Ezra.
What is somebody else? It is about Jesus. So give you a hand. What do you think, sweetheart?
Yeah, it is about Jesus. You're right.
You know something spectacular about Jesus. Go ahead.
That is one of my favorite stories, but that is not the one I was thinking of later in the Gospel of John.
What I what I wanted to talk about a bit this morning is the resurrection.
So what can you tell us? The resurrection assignment?
The resurrection is when Jesus rose from the dead.
That's quite incredible, and I'd like to go to where we were yesterday in the reading meetings. So what brought us to my attention? So Hebrews chapter 2.
Sorry, Second Timothy chapter 2. Go to Hebrews 2A little later, little going Second Timothy chapter 2.
And.
Verse 8.
It says, remember that Jesus Christ is the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel.
Or perhaps it could say, remember Jesus Christ raised from among the dead?
Oh my gosh.
So this verse is telling us to remember something.
Anybody ever forget anything?
Think all of us forget things sometimes.
But it's nice one to remember, especially when it's something that's important.
Right. And this verse is telling us to remember Jesus Christ raised from among the dead.
OK, so another verse I wanted to talk about that I mentioned a second ago in Hebrews chapter 2 That I've been thinking about.
Hebrews, chapter 2.
I.
And I like verse nine a lot, so I think I'm going to read it. But the one I'm thinking about is further down the chapter Hebrews 2, verse nine. But we see Jesus, who has made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, should taste death for every man or for everything.
And then we'll stop. We'll move down to verse 14, or as much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also himself likewise took part of the same that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to *******.
All right, so right now.
We're all sitting or I'm standing here in this meeting room wearing masks. OK. Is this kind of what we normally do? No. This is different than normal. All right, so the government has told us that we're put on some masks, so we're doing that to obey them. OK, But why?
00:10:23
Are they telling us to wear masks? Well, stop the spread of the virus. OK, Now what might the virus do? It might cause you to die, right? There is a chance, and some people have a higher chance than others.
And I think all of us know that.
They can't die without the Lord allowing.
Right, but there's a lot of people in this world that don't know about Jesus.
And think that they have to stop things from happening to keep people from dying. And I realize there's a responsibility the government has, and that's not my point to getting to you at all. The point is there's a lot of people who are terrified to die.
They're in a *******. OK, so ******* is kind of like being imprisoned. You're tied up by something.
It's not very nice to be tied up. Sometimes as kids, we would tie each other up. It's just trying to escape. It was kind of like a game all right, But if you realized you were stuck and you had to ask somebody to help you get out, it really wasn't that nice.
And there's lots of things that people can be in ******* to. You can be tied up by stuck, OK? And there's a lot of people in this world. Maybe there's somebody in this room that's stuck in this fear of death.
Because one thing is certain.
All of us were born.
And all of us will die.
Now we know from the word of God that Jesus is going to come back. Read that verse a little later. Lord welcome. And he is going to take the people who have believed in Him to heaven, and they won't die, but everyone else is going to die.
All right, that's for sure.
You might get sick, you might not get sick, but you will.
Not there's no escaping them other than what I said with the Lord Jesus knowing Him.
Taken to be with.
All right, so this last week was the last week week before.
I guess be the week before, because this is the Lord's Day. The week before.
Last week that we just went through, we had a very sad thing happen at home at the same time, a very happy thing. And that was a very good friend of ours, Lynnwood, a sister in Christ. She died. She had cancer and she came to the end of her time on earth and she died OK. And it was sad, very sad. And she was the person that babysat our kids. She was a sister in the assembly that had an open home. She always had people in. She always said, look at my doors are always unlocked. If you need something, even if I'm not home, come in and get it.
She had a very, very big heart towards everyone.
And we're going to miss that sister, but we know that she, when she died, went from being in a body suffering with cancer, lots of pain, to being with Christ, which is far better. You know. Do we have sorrow for her? Are we sorry for laying that she died? No.
But if Wayne wasn't trusting in the Lord Jesus, Oh dear.
That fear of death that she would have had would have been very legitimate. She would have gone to hell.
That would be awful.
To be forever separated from light and love.
To be in darkness with hatred forever.
That's awful.
But it doesn't have to be that way. You know, the fear of death, you know, laying. She was talking about death before she said I know what's going to happen after I die. I'm going to be with Christ. But she said it's I don't quite know what it's going to be like to go and to.
Pass through death to go to the other side and really thought too much about that myself, but the Lord has said he's going to take us to be with himself and so however that feels or is like, you know, we can trust him for that.
00:15:03
But you know, your kids particularly we're talking to this morning, but each one of us, do we have that fear of death, a ******* like chains or handcuffs that are holding us? Or do we have a confidence because of what God has said that we're going to be with him?
You know that fear of death, He doesn't want us to have it. You know I don't want to die.
I'm very glad to be alive, but I know that if I die, I'm going to be with Jesus. You know? It's going to be so much better than you know. It's nice to be with all of you, but by comparison, to be with Jesus is going to eclipse everyone else. Everyone else is going to be eclipsed by him. You know He's perfect.
His glory is wonderful.
And the wonderful thing is that he loves each one of us.
He loves us personally.
You know, to the important people this world love the individual.
No, they don't.
But Jesus does. He cares for each and everyone of us intensely.
You know, it's the very hairs on our head.
Understands every feeling, everything that we've passed through. He partook of flesh and blood so they could understand.
And so it says that through.
Death, he might destroy him that had the power of death. That is the devil. And so that's where the resurrection comes in. Okay, so I think each one of us knows the wonderful story, the sad story, and yet the amazing story of how the Lord Jesus was hung on a cross, how they took those nails, they pierced my hands and my feet.
They hung him up there to die.
For everyone to see. And you know what he did? The soldier with this spear. He took that spear and he thrust it into his side, and forthwith came there out of blood and water he was.
Death, you know, there was a few men, Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus, they took that body down from the cross and there was a tomb, seems sort of like maybe a cave. We would call it some sort of a, a hole in the ground. I don't know exactly what it looked like, maybe a cave. And they carried him in there and they took his body and they wrapped it up all nice with linen clothes and put some nice spices in there so it smelled nice.
And they left that body.
And they rolled the stone back over the door.
Jesus was dead.
You know, there are some people that really loved him, like Mary Magdalene.
Some other women marry his mother, Joanna.
Those women that truly loved him. And they were there. They were weeping.
Because the man that they loved was Dash.
The one that they had hoped would be the savior, the one that they had hoped would redeem Israel. He was going to be the king, set up the Kingdom. He was dead.
They were devastated. How could it be? He never did anything wrong. The leaders took him. They killed him.
Seemed like the end.
But you know what? It wasn't the end. Miss First tells us that through death you might destroy him. That had the power of death. That is the devil. And so the first day of the week, same day we're on today.
Maybe we'll just look at it quickly in John.
John 20 says 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 supplement.
All right, so.
Mary in her love and devotion, she comes while it's still dark.
Just to be at the sepulchre, just Jesus dead body was enough for her.
And there was some discussion amongst the ladies how, how are we going to open the door? How are we going to roll back this enormous stone and put the spices that we prepared on his dead body?
You know when they got there.
Was the stone still over the door?
00:20:00
What do you think, Lydia? No, the stone wasn't over the door. Now that would be a little surprising. You're coming while it's dark and the sepulchre is open. There had been guards there. We read in Matthew that they had sat there to make sure the disciples didn't come and steal away his dead body at night.
So there were guards that they were worried about. I mean, I shouldn't say I don't know whether they're worried about them or not, but the regards that were there, there was a stone that I don't expect these two ladies could have rolled back by themselves.
And yet they come, and here is an open sepulchre.
And this is different than they expected. You know, first of all, they didn't expect Jesus to die. Now they don't expect the sepulchre to be open.
So she run up and cometh to Simon Peter, 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 the other disciple and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together. The other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. And he's stooping down looking in, saw the living clothes line. Yet when he not in, then come as Simon Peter following him.
And went into the subtle currency at the linen clothes. Why? And the napkin that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, 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 believed, for as yet they knew not the Scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again under their own home.
Stop there for a moment. So Mary, she runs away from the sepulchre and comes and she tells Peter and John, perhaps the others, and so they run. Who is the faster runner, Henry? You know who the faster runner was? One of them? Peter and John. All right, I put you on the spot, Sam. John seemed to be the faster runner, so he got there first.
So he peeks in, and when he peeks into the sepulchre, he saw those linen clothes that they had wrapped Jesus up in, and they're lying there, but there's no body.
I don't know, I'm sometimes a little.
Creeped out by things like that. So I probably wouldn't have gone in. Kind of like John, he just kind of peeked in and then he stayed out. But Peter wasn't like that. He came in, he wanted to see exactly what happened. And so any ghosts right in, he looks at everything. And when Peter was there, then John seemed to.
Going to.
And I thought, what is going on?
We know he was dead, but his body isn't here. What happened? He says John saw and believed.
But it also says that they didn't realize that the scripture said he was going to rise again from the dead.
So they went back home.
But who didn't go back home?
Verse 11 Mary stood without 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? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.
When she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hands, tell me where the house laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary.
She turned herself and saith unto him, Or bone I, which is the same master.
Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not, for I'm 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. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.
00:25:05
I'm just so impressed by the heart of Mary.
That loved the Lord Jesus so much.
So much.
She just wanted to be with him. She didn't know where his body was, but that was the last place she knew it had been.
She was just there, weeping.
She wanted to be with him.
You know what? Each one of our hearts wants to know the Lord to be with Him. He's going to reveal Himself to us.
He wants that closeness.
With each one of us, you know, does he just want it for those that are older? No, he wants it with each one.
To be close with him.
You know he had suffered for married sins.
Mary had had seven demons cast out of her.
She had known evil.
And she also knew that Jesus had set her free, and she left.
You know, he revealed himself to her and he revealed this wonderful truth that we have. I ascend to my Father and your father to my God and your God. And he told that to Mary, the one that wanted to be with him.
By rising from the dead, Jesus showed that death is not the final answer for people.
Because death up to that point had claimed people and they had not returned. Yes, there were people who had been raised from the dead, but they would die again.
Lazarus there was the one who touched the bones of Elijah.
There was the widow's son who's brought back to life. Maybe with both Elijah and Elijah there were people who had been brought back from the dead, but they died later on.
But when Jesus rose from the dead, he showed that death is not the end.
We looked at that sister lane lying in the coffin.
Body is there.
That's not the end, even for that body. That body is going to rise again, just like Jesus rose from the dead. Each one of us has this body that we live in. That is part of us, as Alex was speaking about yesterday.
So that fear of death, that *******.
By going into death, showing that Jesus was in death, He was dead. He came out of death. It no longer could hold him.
You know what? He offers that to each one of us, with the offer of eternal life.
The death cannot have that final dominion over us.
Now each one of you here, each one myself.
Do we have the confidence?
That what God has said in His Word.
True.
Believing God, Right faith.
OK, so I'd like to go to another well known verse in Romans chapter 10.
Romans chapter 10 and verse 9.
That if thou shalt contrast with thy mouth.
The Lord Jesus and.
Hand shall believe in thine heart that God has raised him from the dead. Thou shalt be saved.
Believing.
In the resurrection.
That Jesus died and he rose again.
00:30:00
We believe it. What does it say here if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus? Jesus is Lord. You believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead. You will be what?
You can help me?
Saved. You will be saved. Does it say you might or there's a 99% chance? No, you will be saved.
Know your kids. You can have full confidence that you are saved. Do you believe that Jesus died and rose again? Yes. All right. Have you confessed in your mouth? Have you said I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ?
If you have, then you're saved. You don't have to have the fear of death. You don't have to have that *******. You can be free now. This is amazing.
How many people in the world do not have this?
So many and we have this treasure right here in the Word of God. Jesus has died for us so that we can be saved.
Sometimes we get so used to it.
Same old story, heard that before I know all the details really.
That's not what it meant to marry. She wanted to be with her part. It meant something to her.
You know I need to respond that we have to the Lord Jesus we so appreciate.
Matters to him.
And I understand.
Get in First Corinthians 15 that.
She disappeared to more than 500 believers at once.
We know he appeared to Peter.
You know, Peter, when Jesus was being accused?
Peter said. I don't know him.
Even said bad words.
To announce I don't know this man.
Says that Jesus had met with Peter 2.
Perhaps there's somebody here that you.
Feel like you're away from the Lord.
Something that perhaps we've got.
The Lord wants you back to.
He didn't want Peter to just go off on his own. He wanted Peter to be fruitful and he wants that for each one of us. Don't stay away from him. Always come back. He always wants you back. He never wants us to be left.
You know Jesus went back to heaven.
And I said we'd refer to this person helping remember it, but in John 14.
Maybe we'll just end up with these verses. John 14.
1St 3 verses Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many matches. 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, the where I am.
There he may be awesome.
You know this is the promise.
That the Lord Jesus left to his own shortly before he was going to go to the cross.
I will come again.
And receive you to the many mansions.
I will receive you to myself.
The where I am.
There you may be also.
No, that's the hope that we have for us is to be with the man who loved us and gave himself to be with him.
To be fully satisfied.
That's his promise. He said he was going to rise again after three days and then he also said I will come again.
So we have to look forward to each one of us who has put our trust in him, has believed in the resurrection. It's confessed with our mouth. They made you kids. If you really do believe in your heart, but you haven't told somebody with your mouth, say you believe it in your heart. Say it with your mouth.
00:35:13
All right, sometimes it takes a little courage to say something.
Do it. It's a privilege, you know, Think about Jesus suffered or to remember that he was raised from among the dead. He went into death for us.
And that's the energy, the power that we have to live the Christian life.
He's given us what we need.
Remember Jesus Christ raised from.
Her.
Father, we're so thankful to.
Be able to read these scriptures together and be able to consider for a few moments.
This wonderful story of the resurrection of thy son.
Thank you for that grace in offering salvation to each one of us.
We could be brought from the ******* that awful fear of death that we legitimately have and deserve.
They will be free and instead to be able to look for the Lord's promise to come again. Father, just pray that each these things would touch our hearts. There would not just be a doctrine that we put on a shelf somewhere in our mind but that it would affect every area of our life. It's thank you for help this morning.
Pray that our hearts can be drawn out in worship to our Savior, Lord Jesus.
As we'll gather together, just pray in His precious name.
Following Jesus' Footsteps
Open—W. Mazerolle
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.
You see #275.
275.
Our God is like.
Christian.
Our loving God, our Father, we.
To thee this afternoon for this time that we've purposed to be together.
We think of how we have sung that.
We walk.
Across a trackless wild, but it's our board footsteps.
It gives us.
Guidance each step of the way, and we thank the.
That we can confidently look to be more for direction.
So there be a wilderness before us.
And so we would seek the.
By direction this afternoon, this week.
Want to hear?
God.
Here thy voice.
So we just commit ourselves to these for this time.
To thee.
For the leading of thy Spirit we pray for each one of us too.
Really have ears to hear, hearts that are prepared.
Receive thy word, and they ask this in Jesus name, Amen.
Can we sing #181 if someone can start please?
Yes.
When safety appears.
In try out like that.
Our Jesus footsteps ever show the path.
For every child.
Our Jesus footsteps ever show the path.
For every child.
Let's.
Let's hear a story first.
I think that children like stories.
I know I do. The Lord Jesus told a lot of stories.
They're called parables.
There was a sister that I knew.
She was a grandmother.
Very kindly heart.
And she told me this story.
She said that she had been asked to.
Babysit her granddaughter, who was probably about six years old.
And.
She had had her all day because her parents had had to go somewhere.
And it was storming that day. Winter storm, snow, Blizzard, wind.
Very cold.
And so it came to the hour where?
Grandmother would bring granddaughter back home.
And they just lived a little ways.
Maybe down the street.
From where her parents were.
And so.
They got dressed up real warm and.
Scarves and so forth because it was a Blizzard.
And it was dark. And so they step outside and the snow is that's built up. You can't see walkways, you can't see the street.
00:05:02
You don't know.
Of any path.
But Grandmother knew the path.
Even though it seemed to be all covered up in the darkness.
And so she said to her granddaughter.
Now you be careful. You follow me, OK? Make sure you stay close and you follow me.
And.
So they began to go. The granddaughter had a scented.
Now you can imagine that if the granddaughter decided to.
Wow. She might have gotten lost in the dark. She might have fallen into a a ravine or whatever, a low place and been deep in the snow, been very uncomfortable and difficult for her. But she was she was a good girl. She followed her grandmother and her grandmother turned back and said, are you OK?
She was checking on her and she said yes, I'm putting my feet into your feet.
And the grandmother looked, and she was stepping in the holes in the snow where her grandmother had put her feet. And so each step she took was into a hole where her grandmother's feet had been.
That was easy for her to follow.
So.
So it is drugs.
You know, if we're going to arrive at our desired end, it's important.
To follow the Lord's steps, I just want to read a few verses.
In first John chapter 2.
It talks about sin in first John, and sin separates us from.
Company or communion of.
But the one who loves us.
And.
The granddaughter, fortunately.
Didn't get willful and start wandering off and make things difficult for herself and the grandmother. She followed. She listened carefully to what had been said and she did what she was told.
Here chapter two of first John verse one my little children.
We're all little children.
John here is speaking to believers.
My little children.
These things right I unto you, that ye sin not.
And if any man sins, we have an advocate with the Father.
Jesus Christ the righteous and He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
And hereby we do know that we know him if we keep his commandments.
Those are the footsteps.
His commandments.
He that saith I know him, and keepeth not his commandments.
In other words, doesn't walk in the Lord's footsteps.
So he that saith I know him and keepeth not his commandments is a liar.
And the truth is not in him.
The truth is in US when we walk in it.
Not just if we hear it. That's not enough.
But if we walk in it, do it.
00:10:01
But whoso keepeth his word?
In him, verily, is the love of God perfected.
Hereby no we that we are in here.
So when we keep this word.
The love of God is perfected. It's not just perfected in us in that we enjoy what it is that He has for.
That perfected love gives us to our desired end.
To a safe place.
So the love of God is perfected when we obey His commandments, when we keep His word.
Hereby know we that we are in him.
This is how we know if we're in here.
He that says he abides in him.
Aught himself also to walk, even as he walked.
If you say.
That you belong to the Lord Jesus.
And you're disobedient.
And you show bad behavior.
Have bad attitudes.
And how do you know that you belong to him? That's not him. Those attitudes, those.
Sins, but not Christ.
But he that says he abides in him ought also himself to walk, even as he walked.
So how did the Lord Jesus walk?
Oh the Lord Jesus.
Has loved and kindness and compassion in his heart.
So much so.
That he left his place of glory, His place that really was.
Was his to be in.
It was a it was a place of comfort in a certain sense. Why? Because there was no sin there.
Things are uncomfortable because of sin.
In this world, we're always struggling to get comfortable.
That's because it's full of sin.
And we think that maybe if we get a better car, we'll be more comfortable or a better house.
There's lots of things we do.
Sometimes we think.
If I get a better woodworking machine, I'll be able to do more. I'll be able to put out more better stuff. And maybe that's true.
But always trying to do something.
To get more comfortable and to feel like we're accomplishing.
But you know what goes on in this world?
The only way that it has value is that if it's done.
As unto the Lord.
If it has the purpose.
Of a servant serving its master.
So when we serve the Lord.
We walk in this He shows us how to get through this world to our desired end.
He that saith, he abideth in him art himself also. So the walk, even as he walked, that's the place of comfort, the little granddaughter.
She was in the place of comfort. Maybe she didn't fully understand that, or maybe she was very smart.
Maybe she understood if I don't do this.
I'm in trouble.
And she stayed close to her grandmother. We need to stay close to the Lord. We need to get to know him better. And you know, if you get to know the Lord better, if you read about him in the Scriptures, if you think about what you read, what's it telling me about the Lord Jesus? What's it telling me about God's love? What's it telling me about sin?
00:15:26
These things will all serve to bring us closer to Christ to understand how.
Deep this love is how amazing it is compared to anything we experience here on the earth.
And so we have.
That position of safety, putting our feet into his feet.
And being expressions of the Lord Jesus here, we don't have to be 30 years old to do that. We don't have to be 70 years old.
Little children.
Do kindness show love be helpful?
Obey.
That's something all of us little children.
He that saith, he abideth in him.
Ought himself also so to walk even as he walked.
I'll look at a couple of verses. One verse that just.
Came into my mind this morning.
Haven't really been able to get it out of my mind.
The Lord have us to look at it.
Genesis chapter 49.
So the scene here we have on Jacob.
Whose name was.
Jacob, as we know, was.
The grandson of Abraham.
Abraham is called God.
Out of the.
Of the Chaldees out of an idolatrous.
Culture and was called to.
For places we read in Hebrews that he did not know, he did not know where he's going.
But it was called by God to be so that God could make him the Father.
Of the nation.
No, Abraham walked by the state. It's a beautiful.
Beautiful accounts that we've often enjoyed and I think will be one of this everyone in this room.
Familiar, not speaking to an audience of people who aren't familiar with the scriptures. It's a wonderful thing in itself.
And then we know his son Isaac.
Sort of the recipient of much blessing, you know. His father had gone.
Obey God.
And Isaac was brought into.
Much blessing.
As you know.
It's a wonderful thing to be raised in a home.
In which the knowledge of God is known.
And Isaac had that.
Great privilege. And you know his father was careful.
Careful to the way he.
Bride for his son.
He was careful.
With his son.
We know that, Isaac.
He too had to labor. He had to believe he was had to retake.
Who else?
Or maybe take some wells.
He had to also exert some spiritual energy.
00:20:02
That there's always.
Energy in the path.
Of faith and he had two boys. We can look at Abraham or Isaac.
We can find failure in them, but we also see that.
Which is the faith of the beautiful thing.
And then we know Isaac had two sons. He saw her and Jacob.
He was deceived.
My son Jacob.
And Jacob, as we know.
He sort of had.
Way of taking things into his own hands at times.
And yet God's desire was to bless him from his right, from the home. God's desire was blessed. Jacob had.
Jacob sort of had this struggle.
And his whole life really was a life.
That was.
Much There's a lot of struggle in his life despite God's blessing, and we know his name was changed to Israel.
They wrestled with the Angels. Amazing. These are real men, you know, These aren't just stories.
They will see the real men that really on Earth.
So I want to read. We know that Jacob had.
The 12 tribes of Israel came from him twelve sons.
And so here this scene.
Genesis 49 We have Jacob, now an old man.
An old man in Egypt.
His sons gathered around him.
And then finally enough, you know, in a place in his life.
I believe he can say he was really resting.
You know, he had finally come to a place where he was able to.
Stop that struggle just characterized so much of his life. Such a beautiful story because you know, I hate to use the term stories because they apply as if they're made-up, but these accounts.
That the Lord gives us in His word.
So in Genesis 49, it's blessing.
His children.
So I'm just going to start with.
First feet.
Judah.
Thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise.
Thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies. Thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
Judah is a lion's wealth from his prey. My son, thou art gone up. He stooped down and couched as a lion, and there's an old lion who shall rouse him up.
The scepter shall not depart from Judah.
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet.
Until Shiloh come not to him.
Shall the gathering of the people be?
And that was the verse that.
Sort of. I haven't been able to get out of my head.
Until Shiloh come.
And unto him shall a gathering of the people be.
If we read it in the Army translation, it's interesting.
Says.
Until Shiloh come and unto him.
Will the obedience of peoples.
Will be the obedience of.
And so.
As Jacob blesses his sons, each one, each one has a distinct blessing.
And Jacob also understands.
You know he knows his son, so he describes their characters.
But we have this prophecy. Really.
And as towards Judah, and it says that there's going to be the.
00:25:03
The scepter will not depart. So Judah has a rule, a rule in ruling.
And then we have.
This name, it seems, it seems as if it is a person. Shiloh. Shiloh come. So who is Shiloh? Who is Shiloh that we know if you go over to judges?
Chapter 18.
The judges.
18.
First one.
The whole congregation of the Children of Israel assembled together as Shiloh.
You set out the Tabernacle of the congregation there.
What was the reference again? 18 chapter one, chapter 18 verse one.
Judges, I'm sorry, Joshua.
Sorry about that eighteen one.
Joshua 18.
So.
So we we have this place Shiloh. So in Genesis it seems to be a person.
But in judges is a place.
The place associated with the Tabernacle.
Place where they set up.
The Tavern out the place where God.
Well, and then if we go over to judges, I'm sorry, Samuel.
Familiar with this?
And see Shiloh again. We see Shiloh a number of places through the Book of Judges.
But it says.
And Samuel?
Chapter One.
I.
In verse 3.
I will start with start with chapter verse one. Now there was a certain man of remix theme Zopium of Mount Ephraim, and his name was Alcana, the son of Jehovah realm, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuff and Ephraim.
And he had two wives. The name of one was Hannah. The name of the other was Pennanina.
Nina had children, but Hannah had no children, and this man went up out of the city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the Lord, the Host and Shiloh.
So we see Shiloh.
So Hannah goes out with his, her husband to Shiloh to worship. So this is a evidently, even now, so many years after what we read in Joshua, we seen the Tabernacle still here because they're going up there for more ships in the same place in Shiloh.
And you know, we know the.
We know the story here that Hannah goes to Shiloh.
And.
She eventually she expresses her sadness to Eli, who makes a false priest there, who makes a really a false.
You know, thinks she's drunk. She's so hot. She's overcome with sorrow.
Because she has no sun.
She but she goes there.
And the Lord gives her a son, and she brings that boy Samuel.
Shiloh.
And we know that Shiloh.
Was where the Tabernacle was. The care of the Tabernacle was given to the priests and the Levites.
And this man, Eli, is the.
Priest there. You know, there's great failure, great failure there.
00:30:01
Says that the lights would would go out at night and it was dim. You know, they're supposed to keep these lights going all the time. So there was a lot of failure in Shiloh.
And it was failure with Eli's family.
That's still where Hannah went and still where she brought her son. She brought him and she left him there.
And she left a little.
So this place was a place recognized, and certainly Hannah recognized it.
As the place.
For the Tavern, Apple God was.
Despite all this failure, right So.
Kind of amazing.
So now I just want to make some connections with some of the comments that we made yesterday.
Over the last couple weeks, we've been reading the revelation.
And we'll tie it to again versus surely are familiar with.
Matthew 18.
1824 where two or three are gathered together in my name. They rely on this event.
So we have.
The connection. I think most of us in this room are probably familiar with this, but we have.
The Tabernacle being the place where God is on earth.
And then the disciples, we know they recognized that Jesus was the Christ, and they.
We're looking for him to set up his Kingdom.
They could never quite understand.
Really where where he was coming from, As we would say in today's vernacular, they didn't understand.
That he wasn't going to be.
Setting up his Kingdom where he would rule and reign.
And we have this verse. This verse really is a verse that we.
Understand, I think.
We understand, I think those of us here understand, that the Lord does not have a physical.
Place from which he.
Rules in the Earth is not in Rome, some people say sign Constantinople.
It's not in.
Some Bible school down South.
Where there's a lot of scholarly research.
Or there's some big TV stations that broadcast all over the world.
It's not where the Lord.
Where his authority is.
Authority or two or three are gathered together. I'll take his name.
And we connect that with the fact that Shiloh, there was that place.
And so.
And it's interesting again in the King James, it says on.
To him the gathering of the people should be, but in the new translation it clearly.
Also implies that his authorities there, it's an authority. And so, you know, we've talked a lot we've had in our meetings recently about authority.
Authority in the world?
And that all authority.
Is of God.
And.
Yet we have here an authority that is.
Most important part for us to understand it is God's authority directly.
The highest authority.
In the world today, is already is.
And.
The assembly.
Is in a state of ruin.
Just like it was in the days of Shiloh.
God was faithful to His own word.
The scriptures don't change.
And it's amazing.
00:35:00
And so I just say this by ways of you know, and and I remember as a young Christian.
We give a personal reference.
Having been saved out of the world.
With no Christian background, you know, it wasn't like.
Second generation like Isaac.
Many of you here are and have been, and that's wonderful. I really didn't know.
I just didn't know if I was right and wrong really regarding so many things. And I got saved and so excited that there was this guidance, there was this light, there was these clear answers, questions that I just didn't think was even possible.
And then after two or three years of getting after being saved, I just got so confused.
Because I get an answer here from some Christians, an answer there from other Christians, and everything was big and.
And I started getting confused, feeling like there's no practical way.
There's no practical way to put these these verses into my life and want them. I don't know how to do it.
Because there seemed to be no authority, because the word of God, there was no authority and.
By God's grace.
I believe.
He answered that.
He's yearning in my own heart. Desire.
To see the clear authority of the Lord on earth.
And it was through scriptures.
And you know, I remember us began to come to a place where the Bible, the Word of God, was held as the authority and the confidence that the Lord would.
Would guide according to the word of God.
And Christian friends would say, oh, yeah, you found a church. Oh, you don't have a pastor. Oh, well, that's not going to last very long.
Few years later, oh, you still go on that shirt. Yeah. Oh, that's interesting. 10 years later, still going that church, Yeah.
And, you know, having conversations that you know.
I could be wrong, maybe maybe this is not the place, maybe maybe we're wrong, but I know the scripture says there is a place.
It's always good to know because we can be wrong in our judgments, but the Word of God is not wrong.
But there is a place.
We're God's authority is.
Where two or three are gathered together.
So that's a amazing.
Thing and it says until Shiloh comes so we know.
Fulfillment.
Of you know when the Lord comes.
Then he will reign over the earth.
And his authority will be known.
Throughout the earth, as we had this morning in Philippians 2. I didn't mean will bow.
Every day, not just believers in this.
Every needle bow, very humble test, there will be no question. But in the meantime.
We have privilege.
Of understanding these things that God is.
With the Lord Jesus is.
You know he is the Christ, He is the King.
And he is the ultimate authority, and in the assembly we have.
That.
Responsibility and that privilege to own it.
And to expect that he will work according to his work.
So I was just thinking of these things to Shiloh cause we haven't again in Revelation reading there.
And we know.
Read chapter two and three again each assembly.
Has a lot of issues, so to speak. God knows there are issues.
But their assemblies.
And so.
Is as far as on there.
That's a very important principle, if you can look around and we can see problems.
You can begin to.
00:40:01
Lose the sense that the Lord is there.
Now we do know canvas this can be taken out.
That's up to God the Lord.
That's the sets them out. The Lord takes them back.
It's really his assembly.
Told anything but it's also a wonderful thing, so.
It's just wonderful that he has not left us here.
Rudderless.
He has given us His word and He has given us His authority here in this world.
And it's really a liberating thing.
So you're saying #35 in the appendix?
#35 in the appendix.
All the paths the Saints are turning.
On.
Our gracious God, our loving Father, we.
Thank thee for the understanding that, whether individually as believers or corporately as an assembly.
That Christ is the focal point, that He is the occupation for our hearts. He's the guide. He's the pattern.
He's the one through whom we are kept and preserved.
Only go on to the.
Thy desired end for those who are called thy people. So we're thankful for the times that we've had together. This evening, today and this weekend, we just commit ourselves to the.
For.
The exercise that would come from thy word as we've heard it, whether it was in the question and answer period or and any other point for this weekend. We just look to the the there would be those things both for young and old that would be memorable and helpful to us without our glory. We look to leave for those who come from afar and.
Will soon this coming week be traveling?
The Renaults and Generuga and we just committed commit them to thee for safety, for their travels and.
We.
Thanks to our Father for all our gracious, gracious provision this weekend. And we think of Jeff catering, Jeff in particular, who seems to take an interest in spiritual things and yet.
Seems uncertain as to whether he truly is thine.
Though in a sense he professes it, it seems like there's a hanging back. So we just looked at it for any contact that might be had with him that that was give wisdom.
And a word in season.
And we pray for his workers too, for their souls, and are thankful for their laborers on our behalf. In Jesus name we give thee thanks, Amen.
Shiloh: the Person, Place, and Power
Open—J. Sacks
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.
I'll look at a couple of verses. One verse that just.
Came into my mind this morning.
Haven't really been able to get it out of my mind.
Maybe the Lord would have us to look at it.
Genesis chapter 49.
So the scene here we have Jacob.
Whose name was.
Jacob, as we know, was.
The grandson of Abraham.
Abraham is called God.
Out of the.
Chaldeans out of an idolatrous.
Culture and was called to.
For places we read in Hebrews that he did not know, he did not know where he's going.
But it was called my God to be so that God could make him the Father.
Of the nation.
No, Abraham walked by the faith. It's a beautiful.
Beautiful accounts that we've often enjoyed and I think will be one of this everyone in this room.
Familiar, not speaking to an audience of people who aren't familiar with the scriptures. It's a wonderful thing in itself.
And then we know his son Isaac.
There's a.
Sort of the recipient of much blessing. His father had gone.
Obey God and Isaac was brought into.
Much blessing.
As you know, it's a wonderful thing to be raised.
In a home.
In which the knowledge of God is known.
And Isaac had that.
Great privilege. And you know his father was careful.
Careful to the way he.
Bride for his son.
He was careful.
With his son.
We know that, Isaac.
He too had to labor. He had to believe he was had to retake.
Well, I'm sure maybe take some wells.
He had to also exert some spiritual energy.
That there's always.
Energy in the path of faith and we had two boys and we can look at Abraham or Isaac.
We can find failure in them, but we also see that.
Which is the faith, the beautiful thing.
And then we know Isaac had two sons. He saw her and Jacob.
He was deceived.
My son Jacob.
And Jacob, as we know.
He sort of had a.
Way of taking things into his own hands times.
And yet God's desire was to bless him from his right, from the home. God's desire was the blessed Jacob had.
Jacob sort of had this struggle.
And his whole life really was.
That was.
Much There's a lot of struggle in his life despite God's blessing, and we know his name was changed to Israel.
They wrestled with the Angels. Amazing. These are real men, you know, These aren't just stories.
The little Steve, the real men.
So I want to read. We know that Jacob had.
And 12 tribes of Israel came from him twelve sons.
00:05:03
And so here this scene.
Genesis 49 We have Jacob, now an old man.
An old man in Egypt.
His sons gathered around him.
And then finally in a, you know, in a place in his life.
I believe he can say he was really resting.
You know, he had finally come to a place where he was able to.
Stop that struggle just characterized so much of his life.
Such a beautiful story piece. You know, I hate to use the term stories because they apply as if they're made-up, but these accounts.
That the Lord gives us in His word.
So in Genesis 49, it's blessing.
Children.
So I'm just going to start with.
Verse 8.
Judah.
Thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise.
A hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies. Thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
Judah is a lion's wealth from his prey. My son, thou art gone up. He stooped down and couched as a lion, and there's an old lion who shall rouse him up.
The scepter shall not depart from Judah.
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet.
Until Shiloh come not to him.
Shall the gathering of the people be?
And that was the verse that.
Sort of. I haven't been able to get out of my head.
Until Shiloh come.
And unto him shall a gathering of the people be.
If we read it in the Darby translation, it's interesting, it says.
Until Shiloh come and unto him.
Will the obedience of peoples.
Will be the obedience of peace.
And so.
As Jacob blesses his sons.
Each one, Each one has a distinct blessing.
And Jacob also understands, you know.
Knows his son, so he describes her characters.
But we have this prophecy. Really.
And it's towards Judah, and it says that there's going to be the.
The scepter will not depart. So Judah has a rule, a rule in ruling.
And then we have.
This name seems it seems as if it is a person Shiloh. So Shiloh come. So who is Shiloh? Who is Shiloh so we know if you go over to judges.
Chapter 18.
The judges.
First one.
The whole congregation of the Children of Israel assembled together as Shiloh.
You set up the Tabernacle of the congregation there.
What was the reference again? 18 chapter one, chapter 18 verse one.
Judges, I'm sorry, Joshua.
Long, sorry about that eighteen one.
Joshua 18.
So we we have this place Shiloh. So in Genesis it seems to be a person.
But in judges is a place.
There's a place associated with the.
A place where they set up.
00:10:02
A place where God.
Well.
And then if we go over to judges, I'm sorry, Samuel.
I'm not familiar with this.
We see Shiloh again. We see Shiloh a number of places through the Book of Judges.
But it says.
Samuel.
Chapter One.
I.
In verse 3.
I will start with start with chapter verse one. Now there was a certain man of remix theme Zopium of Mount Ephraim and his name was Alcana the son of Jehovah realm, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu the son of Zuff and Ephra type.
And he had two wives. The name of one was Hannah. The name of the other was Pinanina.
Nina had children, but Hannah had no children, and this man went up out of the city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the Lord, the Host and Shiloh.
So we see Shiloh.
Hannah goes out with his her husband to Shiloh to worship. So this is a evidently, even now, so many years after what we read in Joshua, we see the Tabernacle still here because they're going up there for more ships in the same place in Shiloh.
And you know, we know the.
We know the story here that Hannah goes to Shiloh.
And.
She eventually she expresses her sadness to Eli, who makes a false priest there, who makes a really a false.
You know, thinks she's drunk, she's hot, she's overcome with sorrow.
Because she has no son.
She but she goes there.
And the Lord gives her a son, and she brings that boy Samuel.
Shiloh.
And we know that Shiloh.
Was where the Tabernacle was. The care of the Tabernacle was given to the priests and the Levites.
And this man, Eli, is the.
Priests there.
You know, there's great failure, great failure.
Says that the lights would would go out at night and it was dim. You know, they're supposed to keep these lights going all the time. So there was a lot of failure in Shiloh.
And it was failure with Eli's family.
That's still where Hannah went, and it's still where she brought her son. She brought him and she left him there.
And she left there with you, I.
So this place was a place recognized, and certainly Hannah recognized it.
As the place.
For the Tabernacle and what God was.
Despite all this failure.
It's kind of amazing.
So now I just want to.
Connections with some of the comments that we made yesterday, over the last couple of weeks we've been reading the revelation.
And we'll tie it to again versus surely are familiar with.
Matthew, 1820.
Matthew 1824, where two or three are gathered together in my name. They rely on this event.
And so we have.
The connection. I think most of us in this room are probably familiar with this, but we have.
The Tabernacle being the place where God is on earth.
00:15:04
And then the disciples, we know, they recognized that Jesus was the Christ, and they were.
Looking for him to set up his Kingdom.
They could never quite understand.
Really where where he was coming from, As we would say in today's vernacular, they didn't understand.
That it wasn't going to be.
Setting up his Kingdom where he would rule and reign.
Then we have this verse. This verse really is a verse that we.
Understand, I think.
We understand, I think those of us here understand, that the Lord does not have a physical.
Place from which he.
Rules in the earth inside Rome. Some people say it's not in Constantinople.
It's not in.
Some Bible school down South.
Where there's a lot of scholarly research.
Or there's some big TV stations that broadcast all over the world.
It's not where the Lord.
Where his authority is.
Authority or two or three are gathered together. I'll take his name.
And we connect that with the fact that in Shiloh there was that place.
And so.
And it's interesting again in the King James, it says.
To him the gathering of the people should be, but in the new translation it clearly.
Also implies that his authorities there, it's an authority. And so, you know, we've talked a lot we've had in our Latin meetings recently about authority.
Already in the world.
And that all authority.
Is of God.
And.
Yet we have here an authority that is.
Most important part for us to understand it is God's authority directly.
The highest authority.
In the world today is already.
And.
The assembly.
Is in a state of ruling.
Just like it was in the days of Shiloh.
God was faithful to His own word.
The scriptures don't change.
And it's amazing.
And so I just say this by ways of you know, and and I remember as a young Christian.
To give a personal reference.
Having been saved out of the world with no Christian background, you know wasn't.
That second generation, like Isaac.
Many of you here are and have been, and that's wonderful. I really didn't know.
I just didn't know what was right and wrong really regarding so many things. And I got saved and so excited that there was this guidance, there was this light, there was these clear answers to questions that I just didn't think was even possible.
And then after two or three years of getting after being saved, that just got so confused.
Because I get an answer here from some Christians, an answer there from other Christians, and everything was big and.
And I started getting confused, feeling like there's no practical way.
There's no practical way to put these these verses into my life and walk them. I don't know how to do it.
Because there seemed to be no authority, because the word of God, there was no authority and.
By God's grace.
I believe.
He answered that.
He yearning in my own heart desire.
To see the clear authority of the Lord on earth, and it was through His scriptures.
And you know, remember us began to come to a place where the Bible, the Word of God, was held as the authority and the confidence that the Lord would.
00:20:11
What guy? According to the word of God?
And Christian friends would say, oh, yeah, you found the church. Oh, you don't have a pastor. Oh, well, that's not going to last very long.
And then a few years later, oh, he's still going on that shirt. Yeah. Oh, that's interesting. 10 years later, still going that church. Yeah.
And, you know, having conversations that you know.
I could be wrong, maybe maybe this is not the place, maybe maybe we're wrong, but I know the scripture says there is a place.
It's always good to know because we can be wrong in our judgments, but the Word of God is not wrong.
But there is a place.
We're God's authority is the same.
Where two or three are gathered together.
So that's an amazing thing. And I says till Shiloh comes, so we know.
Real fulfillment.
Of you know when the Lord comes.
Then he will reign over the earth.
And his authority will be known.
Throughout the earth, as we had this morning in Philippians 2, every knee will bow.
Every day, not just believers means.
Every needle bow, very humble, fast there'll be no question, but in the meantime.
We have privilege.
Of understanding these things that God is.
The Lord Jesus is.
You know he is the Christ, He is the King.
And he is the ultimate authority, and in the assembly we have.
That responsibility and that privilege to own it.
And to expect that he will work according to his work.
So I was just thinking of these things till Shiloh Cosby had me again in Revelation reading there.
And we know.
Read chapter two and three again each assembly.
Has a lot of issues.
So to speak. God knows there are issues.
But their assemblies.
And so.
As far as on there?
That's a very important principle, if you can look around and we can see problems.
You can begin to.
Lose the sense that the Lord is there.
Now we do know candlesticks can be taken out.
That's up to God.
The Lord.
That's the sets them out. The Lord takes them back.
It's really his assembly.
Anything. But it's also a wonderful thing, so.
It's just wonderful that he has not left us here.
Rudderless.
He has given us His word and He has given us His authority here in this world.
And it's really a liberating thing.
So you could say #35 in the appendix.
#35 in the appendix.
All the path the Saints are turning.
Honey.
00:25:10
Our gracious God, our loving Father, we.
Thank thee for the understanding that.
Whether individually as believers or corporately as an assembly.
That Christ is the focal point that he is.
The occupation for our hearts is the guide. He's the pattern.
He's the one through whom we are tapped and preserved.
Through whom we go on to the.
Thy desired end for those who are called thy people.
Or thankful for the times that we've had together this evening, today and this weekend, we just commit ourselves to the.
For.
The exercise that would come from.
Thy word as we've heard it, whether it was in the question and answer period or.
Any other point this weekend, we just look to the there would be those things both for young and old that would be memorable and helpful to us for our glory. We look to leave for those who come from afar and will soon this coming week be traveling.
The Renaults and Generuga and we just committed, commit them to thee for safety.
For their travels and.
We.
Thanks to our Father for all our gracious, gracious provision this weekend. And we think of Jeff catering. Jeff in particular, who seems to take an interest in spiritual things. And yet I.
Seems uncertain as to whether he truly is thine.
Though in a sense he professes it, it seems like there's a hanging back. So we just looked at it for any contact that might be had with him that that was good wisdom.
And a word in season.
And we pray for his workers too, for their souls, and are thankful for their laborers on our behalf. In Jesus name we give thee thanks, Amen.