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Shall we sing 200 and 18218?
Eternity.
We stop in.
He knows that dude was to the Mississippi.
Along with that, may we sing number one 74174?
Good.
Morning.
And we make friends.
Loving God and our Father, we have sung that we shall see Him.
Soon we look forward, Lord Jesus, to seeing Thee, and we have also sung that there aren't enough to fill and satisfy us. We pray that we might see the Lord Jesus and that which we take up this morning, we ask for Thy direction. We pray that distractions would be removed.
Be able to enjoy.
That which is brought before us, we just look to Thee for Thy help. We thank Thee again for that blessed One, that patient, spotless one that we can have before our hearts this morning. And so we just cried to Thee for Thy help. And we give thanks for affording us this opportunity for the kindness of our local brethren here and inviting us to be together. So we just pray for Thy help and the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
May I suggest a passage that I've had on my heart and Brother Harmon just read the part of that Matthew 5 I remember years ago. Stan Jacobson.
Giving a lecture on.
Our attitude adjustment.
And I think perhaps it would be profitable and practical that we look at some of those attributes which were modeled by the Lord Jesus. It really is the Lord Jesus characteristically, all of those attributes that you find in 1/5 of Matthew. I, I don't know if somebody else has something more, but but I've thought about it and the Lord has had that in my heart and we've driven over here and, and before.
I.
Think that.
The attitude of Christendom and Christians as rebellion.
And I think we need an attitude adjustment and maybe some of the some of the attributes that are missing will be brought back to our remembrance in the 5th of Matthew does that.
00:10:05
Somebody else has something that there's on your heart that be fine, but.
I think that would be very good, Brother Vern, because as.
Brother Harry Hayhoe used to remind us the wisdom of God is always the direct opposite of man's wisdom. It's not an improvement on man's wisdom, it's just the opposite. And what we get in Matthew 5 is the exact opposite of what we see in the world around us today.
Matthew, Chapter 5.
Matthew chapter 5 and verse one. And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain. And when he was set, his disciples came unto him, and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. You're the salt of the earth. But if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted?
It is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid, neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a Candlestick, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before a man, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father, which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you to help it. Till heaven and earth pass. One jaw or one title shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled.
Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of heaven. But whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the Kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, that accept your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment.
But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, Rocca shall be in danger of the council. But whosoever shall shall say, thou fool shall be in danger of Hellfire. Therefore thou bring thy gift to the altar, and their remembrance that thy brother hath aught against thee. Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way. And 1St be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Agree with an adversary quickly, whiles that were in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and they'll be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence till thou hast paid the uttermost Farthing. You have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
And if they right I offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body shall be cast into hell.
And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement. But I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery, and whosoever shall marry her, that is, divorce committeth adultery.
00:15:15
Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time. Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shall perform unto the Lord thine oath. But I say unto you, Swear not at all, neither by heaven, for it is God's throne, nor by the earth, for it is His footstool, neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
But let your communication be Yay, yay, nay, nay, for for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. You have heard that it hath been said, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you that you resist not evil. But whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
And if any man will sue you at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain, give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away. You have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. For he maketh his Son to rise on the evil and on the good.
And sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the public ends the same? And if you salute your brethren only, what do you more than others? Do not even the public in so be therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect?
Well, this passage is really referred to as a Sermon on the Mount, isn't it? These chapter 5-6 and seven. And we know that Judaism really gave God's minimum standard, you might say, of righteousness, of of man's conduct and so on. But here in this chapter and these, the Lord begins to reveal the name of the Father to them and so.
It's really the the Kingdom that's announced and the features, the moral features that would characterize those that are a part of that Kingdom. And so it goes way beyond what they had in Judaism. They were to hate their enemies. We don't hate our enemies. We pray for them.
And so there's the bringing out of these things. And it was the Son of God himself.
That was going to reveal the name of the Father and bring out these characteristic features of those that would be a part of the Kingdom.
Yes, what the Lord brings out here, as Robert has said, goes far beyond the law. The law could only judge what a man did or what he said. But the Lord here goes right to the root of the problem, doesn't he? And eventually deals with the inward thoughts and intents of the heart.
And.
As you say, Robert, it was the character of God's Kingdom that was being presented.
But could Israel inherit that Kingdom? Could they be part of that Kingdom?
00:20:04
In their natural state, no, they could not, and neither can you and I. And if a man were to listen to the Sermon on the Mount?
Man or woman?
They would have to say to themselves.
I need a new life in order to carry this out.
Because I can't even keep God's minimum standard and hear the Lord's going to be excuse me?
Hear the Lords going beyond it.
Reaching right into my heart and into the thoughts that I have.
I can't carry this soda. I can't do it. I need a new life. And that is, of course, what had to be done. But nevertheless, all these are very profitable for us, aren't they? Because you and I as believers have that new life, we have the ability to carry this out with the Lord's help. And so it's, it exemplifies what ought to characterize the Kingdom of God. What is.
Here it's called the Kingdom of Heaven, of course.
And that has a little different thought, but nevertheless, it's God's Kingdom that is in view here and what ought to characterize those that are involved in it.
We say that the Lord Jesus modeled these things in his life.
Yes, fully.
Brother Bill mentioned the Kingdom of heaven and the Kingdom of God. It might be helpful to get a distinction between what the Kingdom of heaven is and the Kingdom of God. And there is a little definition given. I think it's in Romans chapter 14 is it That speaks of the Kingdom of God verse 17? Romans 14, verse 17. The Kingdom of God is not meat and drink.
But righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, for he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men. So it's really by faith that the moral features of the Lord Jesus are formed in US. And so we reflect what is suitable to being a part of the Kingdom of God. So the Kingdom of God is not something that's tangible, but it's really the fruit of Christ, the fruit of his.
The moral features of the Lord Jesus being reproduced in the believer. But then when it comes to the Kingdom of heaven, it's really a term that's used in Matthews Gospel, I believe exclusively. And it's used to denote the fact that the Lord Jesus is has a Kingdom and it's going to be ruled from the heavens. And so right now we the Kingdom is in mystery. It's divided really into two parts, isn't it? The Kingdom and mystery and then the Kingdom and manifestation.
So the Kingdom is in mystery right now. You can't see the king, his territory, it doesn't look like he's got any territory, there's no borders and so on. But it's really the the Kingdom is comprised of those that profess Christianity. They profess to know the Lord Jesus, they profess to acknowledge his authority. And so really, you might say it's the Western Christian world and it forms what God is.
Working in this scene and so it's really the Lord Jesus is the king he's rejected and so the Kingdom is in mystery. It's not visible to us but here he's referring to the Kingdom of heaven and that's what he's referring to. They didn't know at the time but he would be rejected, he'd be crucified and then he would ascend into the heavens and he is ruling he is reigning but it doesn't look like it but those that.
That acknowledge his authority. That acknowledge the authority of the Lord Jesus in their lives. Acknowledge that he has rights.
We are a part of that Kingdom, and so he speaks of these different aspects that would form our thoughts and moral features that would reflect that we belong to Him and that our thoughts are in line with those that acknowledge his authority.
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Lord Jesus can veil.
Some of his glories and he did as a man here.
They couldn't ever be less than what he is and the moral virtues of the Lord Jesus. The character of the Lord Jesus remains consistent throughout eternity. And so here he is on earth. I was enjoying the hymns that we sang. The first one said the Lord's coming soon.
But I thought, where's the Lord Jesus this morning?
He's sitting at the right hand of God. The 2nd hymn was patience. That's one of the virtues that we like to see in people. We like to have it ourselves. He's sitting at the rod's right hand this morning in perfect patience.
That's His character and it can't change. He's not agitated, He's not upset. He sits quietly at God's right hand this morning in patience, waiting for what the first Him said. Soon the Father will say it's time has come. You may fetch your bride and set the earth right.
But that character is something I think that in keeping with our brother's exercise of sometimes we need an attitude adjustment.
Is that we see in this chapter manifested some of the moral features of the character of the person of the Lord Jesus, and here he's presenting something to them as in its setting that I'm not going to take too long and comment on, but the thought is that he was manifesting to them.
That which was in himself a moral character, and they were being told, blessed are they that partake of this same character. He doesn't bring out what was going to be necessary in order to do it.
He did say I'm here to fulfill the law. What I'm saying to you doesn't set the law aside, and he did not at that time as he says in verse 18.
Not one jot or title of the law will be put aside until it's fulfilled.
Does his character.
Those his moral virtues that he fulfilled the law and himself perfectly. He's the only man that ever did you and I can't do it. The ones that were addressed in Matthew 5 couldn't do it. They were taught what was desired and necessary for the Kingdom of heaven or in his broader character, the Kingdom of God. But it took the work of the cross and it took resurrection life.
And the coming of the Spirit upon those that accepted what He said, and then they too were able to truly live in the character of the Kingdom of God. And so everyone here this morning has the capacity, if you have life in Christ and if you have the Spirit of God which you do, dwelling in you, if you have that life, to have the right attitude.
To live this morning in a way that the Lord Jesus, as he looks down upon you and I, can find pleasure.
Wouldn't it?
Give joy to your heart to think that as the Lord Jesus sits you, sees you sitting in this room, and your seat is finding pleasure in you this morning as a child living according to the Kingdom of God with the right attitude.
Might just say and a little bit that the attitude adjustment is not just saying that I acknowledge the authority of the Lord Jesus, but acknowledging it in practice, acknowledging in practice that I own the authority of the Lord Jesus in my life. And we could ask, I could ask myself, we could all ask ourselves, do we?
00:30:03
Practically.
In practice.
Profess to acknowledge the authority of the Lord Jesus in our lives, but do we in practice?
Allow him, the authority in our lives, to act.
Struck by the two lines in #250.
With him is all our business now.
And those that are his own.
And that's.
Where?
The practicality comes in.
Not only acknowledging it, but it is my business, is my interest, the Lord's interest, what his desires are, That's where it starts. And then what's His interest for his people? What's his interest for the lost?
It's all about his interests and and that's where we're conformed to his image.
Remember Brother Clarence Lundin saying that he oftentimes tried to read the Gospels every week? He was trying to read the Gospels and it's striking that it says in verse two he opened his mouth and taught them saying, and so you and I can learn, can't we? As we read the Gospels, we can learn and see how the Lord Jesus reacted in various circumstances for the glory of his Father.
And he acted in obedience to the Word of God and recognized the authority of his Father in his life.
And so we can see from his life as we read of it in the Gospels. So he opened his mouth. Isn't it blessed thing to read of the Savior, those four gospels that we have? And here in this gospel, he's presented as the rightful king, the rightful king of Israel. And he was rejected as his, as the king, as the Messiah of Israel. And so his Kingdom is in mystery, but he will come, He will appear in glory.
After the rapture there's going to be a time of judgment we know called the time of Jacob's trouble. The the Lord Jesus himself in Matthew 24 called at the beginning of sorrows the 1St 3 1/2 years and then the last 3 1/2 years. He calls the great Tribulation, but at his appearing.
He's going to manifest his Kingdom. He's going to bring with him all of those that have delighted in his authority, delighted in his love, delighted in his instruction, and have in some small measure manifested his character and his moral features. So he begins to teach them something that is beyond what our brother Bill said is beyond Judaism, beyond the law. And so it goes far higher, so he says.
Blessed are the poor in spirit.
For theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
And so it was that which characterized the Lord Jesus, His poverty, His in spirit. He didn't. He came unto His own. His own received Him not.
And nevertheless, those that received them unto him gave you power to become the sons of God. And so there's not the pushing forth of ourselves in even in the things of God. And it's the poverty of spirit. It's the humility that the Spirit of God delights to honor. And so there are going to be those that are part of the Kingdom, those that are identified with the Lord Jesus, and not because they were so bold in this world and so popular in this world. And.
Successful, you might say, in this world, but those that identified themselves with the humility of the Lord Jesus and in spirit they manifested His grace in this scene.
So this has been called the Magna Carta of the Kingdom of Heaven, isn't it? In other words, the Lord Jesus was introducing the character that would be evident during the Millennium. And that's a wonderful thing, isn't it? It's also the character of the remnant we see in the Book of Psalms, isn't it?
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There it falls short of Christianity. The Magna Carta of the of the of the Christian are the Epistles.
It brings a higher standard, but nonetheless, this is the Magna Carta, the Kingdom. We might just summarize the main elements very quickly. We've touched on some, but just to give an outline, it's the remnant position. It was the Lord's character, of course, but it's the character of the remnant in that future day, and it was the character of the remnant in the Lord's day. We know that that was.
Set aside.
When the Lord was rejected and then Christianity came in. But this is going to come to light again after the church is gone. But we have the remnant position. They're separated as that's what it means by being poor in spirit. They were not the great ones of the earth. They were the ones that were cast out in the earth and they were persecuted as we see in verse verse 10. And secondly, as we've been mentioning, it's moral.
Not merely external reality. So many Christians today think that the rule of life is the 10 commandments, but that's not true, is it? There is a moral content to it, but this goes much beyond the 10 commandments because there must be moral reality and not merely external.
Consistency with the 10 commandments. And then righteousness is raised. That's an important consideration. Grace is also brought in and then finally.
A new, new relationship is introduced and that is the Heavenly Father.
They don't know him with the same intimacy that we do, of course, but there is that relationship with God in a general way as the Heavenly Father.
And I might mention too that so often we have parallels in Scripture, don't we?
And so this was written right at the end of the period of what we call the law.
And it it's a parallel to our own day because we live in the end of a dispensation as well. We live in the end of the church dispensation. And so these are things that in many respects would characterize us morally, wouldn't they? Poor in spirit. It's not that we seek to be the great ones in the earth because that's not characteristic of Christ. He was rejected in this world.
Persecution. Well, we don't face that immediately so much in this land, but we may. Many of our brethren do already. And so the rest of these two would characterize those who, in the end of a dispensation, have their heart set on that which is spiritual and not merely temporal.
Proverbs 20 says the spirit of a man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly. And three times in the epistles we have the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Be with your spirit. It seems very significant that the first phrase of the Beatitudes mentions the Spirit.
I was thinking the same thing. It's seems to stand right at the top.
It's been said that we edify one another more by our spirit and by our words.
And to kind of Fast forward as as brother Don Rule was doing.
From what those disciples position was then to where we are now as children of God and also sons, indwelling spirits and all the rest.
It's humbling to realize that the God of glory is occupied himself with our moral growth.
You would think that the one who spoke and made galaxies exist and sustains them right this moment throughout this big universe would have bigger things to occupy himself with. But no, he he's begun a good work in US.
And he's going to complete it right up until the day of glory, the day of the manifestation of what he has done.
In your heart, in your life and mine. I appreciate the comment made because it strikes me it's so central that the Lord Jesus Christ be with our spirit. In Proverbs we read about rich people and poor people, among other things. Literally rich and literally poor, but we apply them spiritually. It's really unbecoming of us if we act in a in a in a with a rich spirit rather than.
00:40:12
Poor and spirit.
And it takes what do we we don't have to get up in the morning and say, OK, I'm going to work at being poor in spirit today. But as these beautiful hymns that the brothers have given out and we've sung together by sitting at his feet, being occupied with himself, Lo and behold, we end up morally being more like him while we're still down here. The wonderful work of the Spirit of God day by day and hour by hour in our lives, in our hearts, that we might be more conformed to the image of his son.
And so in Proverbs, the rich answereth roughly, but the poor useth entreaties. That's just one of many of those examples that show the contrast. And as we interact with each other, we we, you know, it's, it's been said, it's not hard to see the flesh in others. It's really, it's really easy and not that we're occupied with it, but it's it's there harder to see it in ourselves.
And so we need to be before the Lord and close to the Lord that we judge ourselves, and when we do, then this Christ like character will be more reproduced than us and we will be those that are poor in spirit.
Or in spirit lifts up and he looks around and he sees nothing material that attracts him.
We don't belong here, do we? We're strangers and pilgrims. We ought to be strangers and pilgrims. And the Lord Jesus didn't belong to this world, and so he was poor in spirit. It's interesting that the last words of the apostles, the apostle Paul, Apostle Peter, the apostle John, each have to do with the Spirit. And so it might just refer to them in the Second Timothy chapter 4. Paul says in verse 22, the Lord Jesus Christ, we'd be with thy spirit.
Grace be with you. Amen. And then in Peter the second Peter, right at the end of the epistle, he says in verse 18 of chapter 3.
He says, but grow in grace in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory. I'm sorry.
Grow in verse 18, but grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever. Amen.
In John's ministry Revelation, really right at the end of the word of God, chapter 22, verse 20, he which testified these things says surely I come quickly, Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen. And so those apostles that saw the decline from the power and the glory, you might say of the the testimony at the beginning of the testimony, they saw the decline.
And yet they instructed the Saints of God to be careful as to the spirit that they had, that it might manifest the Spirit of Christ in the last days. So it's an appropriate word for us, isn't it?
A meeting on each one of these beatitudes, we might say in thinking of how our Lord Jesus characterized them. But I just wanted to refer to chapter 20 of this Gospel of Matthew where the Lord speaks of what it is to be poor in spirit.
He says in verse 25, But Jesus called them unto him and said, You know that the Princess of the Gentiles exercised dominion over them.
And they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it should not be so among you. But whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister. I think another word for that would be servant, and then the next verse. And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant. Or you could say bondman. And so you might say, the Lord is going lower and lower servant, and now bondman. And then he says in verse 28.
Even as the Son of Man came not to be served or ministered under, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. Just think of that, brethren, servant to bondman to giving his life.
We read of those that hazarded their lives for the sake of the brethren lay down their necks. And I just think what a wonderful thing if we could lay hold of of each of these and see these.
00:45:11
Exemplified in the Lord Jesus and then seek seek to be like him that's.
This is real greatness. This is real being chief, if you will, is to is to go down, down, down like the Lord did.
Those who were the leaders.
At the time the Lord Jesus was presenting the gospel of the Kingdom.
Where the scribes and Pharisees and they aspired to honor and glory and power.
And authority.
They saw the Lord Jesus as a threat.
To them, and to the place which they wanted and had.
Again, going back to the theme of attitude, it's as natural as breathing to be proud and to aspire to be something or to be somebody in whatever sphere of life we're called to be in.
And.
Yet the contrast is the Lord Jesus.
The only fit one to truly reign that was on earth at the time he was here and yet what was his moral character that God was going to use to make him reign over all the earth which hasn't yet come but will he then says in Chapter 11 I am meek and lowly in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls and so when we.
Occupy our souls.
The Lord Jesus, we see in Him sometimes that which is the very opposite of what man would think is suited to some particular person or position among men. And sometimes we aspire to things because we think it fits us for something that perhaps we desire, and in doing so it's easy for our attitude to get wrong.
And so the Lord Jesus recognized the need of those.
That he spoke to later in Matthew 11 and he says, I like, I sometimes add a little word to it. You'll know what word I'm adding. Perhaps come down unto me.
And you shall find rest.
And if we come down unto him, we'll learn what it is to be meek and lowly in spirit, and that's the place where our soul will find rest. But it is also that place in which is suited to the Kingdom of heaven.
Following verse four, we get something further, don't we?
And again, this is not something that is natural to us unless there's something that is really bothering us.
Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.
And I believe the thought here is that one who is seeking the Kingdom of God and wanting to appreciate it will feel things in this world as Christ felt them.
It's interesting, and I don't say that the Lord Jesus never did laugh, but there's no record in scripture of his laughing.
But there are records in scripture of his shedding tears.
Again, I say I don't make a pronouncement that he didn't laugh. But whenever you see pictures in this world, generally they are people who are happy and with a big smile on their faces. You and I should certainly smile. You and I should certainly not have a long face. That isn't what is meant. But to mourn in this world is to feel the condition of things here.
As Christ felt them, and because of His love, not only because He was the Creator, although that was true, but because of his love, he felt the awful condition in which the world is. You and I are saddened as we hear of the results, for example, of the war in the Ukraine, or of extreme poverty and famine in some part of the world, or of war and bloodshed in various places, whatever it might be.
00:50:13
And perhaps to a certain extent we mourn about that. But do we mourn as the Lord Jesus would mourn as to what he saw and what he felt in this world?
But then what's the answer? They shall be comforted. How is that?
Comforted. I believe in the thought, and it isn't brought out in this chapter as Dawn was mentioning to us. But they shall be comforted in knowing that there is a day when the finished work of Christ is going to reverse all of the awful effects of sin. It hasn't happened yet. We aren't going to see it totally until what we might call the eternal state that comes after the Millennium.
And so now is a time when we mourn as we see what sin has done in this world.
But that was the heart of our blessed Savior, wasn't it?
Truth is brought out when the Lord Jesus.
Went out.
To the grave of Lazarus.
And when he went out to the grave, says he groaned in spirit.
In the shortest verse in the Bible, Jesus wept.
There was a morning in his soul, and a weeping that went beyond simple compassion.
For Martha and Mary and the death of their brother, but it was his entering into.
That which sin had brought into the world, and all its consequences for man.
And he felt it in his soul.
That he could, he says to his father. I'm saying this for their sake, you know.
And I know He could look on to that day when there would be the peace and the joy that would come when all such things had been removed from the creation, and when His Father could rest in His love. But He entered into it, and it's well for us to enter into that same spirit that we recognize and feel that which sin has brought into the whole of creation.
That isn't going to change and even in until the eternal day, but it's certainly way better in the millennial day here on earth. And for us, we will enter into the joy of what it is to be in the Father's house with the Lord Jesus and have all that's presently behind us. But the spirit of his own attitude was that which it.
He more than we because he doesn't have.
In him sin that the sin in US limits some of our sensitivity. We don't fully feel things as the Lord Jesus felt them because of the working of what is in US hinders us from a full sensitivity to things. But that'll be removed when we get to glory and then we will be able to be fully sensitive.
And feel things more perfectly as the Lord Jesus felt them here as a man, and to look back and feel them in that way. And so it's important to recognize though, that the Lord felt these things and the attitude of our hearts, or can I say the desire of our hearts should be more to enter into things as He feels them rather than simply our perspective of how it affects me.
I say that in a summary way.
We do far better if we seek to see things as the Lord sees them, then as our natural heart see them.
You have an example of these things with Moses, don't we? He was providentially brought into the favor of Pharaoh's court, and he might have thought, well, from this vantage point I can really serve the Lord. But we read in Hebrews 1124, by faith, Moses, when he was come to yours, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin.
00:55:11
For a season, esteeming the reproach of Christ, greater riches and the treasures in Egypt. For He had respect unto the recompense of the reward. And there's the key, isn't it? He had respect unto the recompense of the reward. If we have our goals set on Christ and on the end, we will be with Him. That will determine our whole walk through this world on it.
The Lord came out of heaven.
None of us did.
He came out of that place where he was for all eternity and walked here as a stranger.
And was morally separated from.
All the sadness that was all around him. The fruit of sin as brother rule saying.
And to the extent that we enter into that same spirit of things, we too will be in the character of mourners.
Mourners makes us very separated and people don't.
Generally want to be around somebody.
Bus are really close to them that has tears running down their face. It's just a certain you just feel.
A little bit like you should leave them alone.
I remember when I was working.
In New York City.
We were an hour and a half or two hours away from closing out a bid. You have to have it in by 2:00 sharp. Not two O 1 or months and months of work is thrown out the window.
And around 10:30 or 11:00.
I got word that.
One who had, really.
Been closer to me than my own father had just gone to be with the Lord.
So.
I couldn't leave my work immediately.
But there were tears.
Nobody could understand it. Who was this person? I just, I can't tell you. Lives in Palmyra. ME. I need to leave.
So I asked the colleagues, I said Kenny take over, I need to leave. And so I did.
But those kinds of experiences, you know, that touch our hearts like that.
They affect us, Abram, when Sarah died.
He stood up in front of the sons of Hath.
And he said he didn't share with them a eulogy, he said.
I'm a stranger and a sojourner with you in the earth.
Give me a place to bury my dead out of my sight.
And they said, Oh no, you're a great, you're a great man. You're a Prince among us. But that was his feeling. I'm a stranger and a sojourner.
So as we enter into the sorrows, sorrows of our own immediate circle, disappointments of life in the local assembly or the brethren that we know all over.
And in the Church of God that we're part of at large in this world, this Western world.
It has a very feeling that has a separating effect upon us, and that's good and wholesome.
To walk in that way.
And this, this is something that the believer understands that the world doesn't. They don't understand why you would drop everything at a moment's notice and and go to be with a brother.
But we everybody in this room probably understands that.
Another aspect that's helpful to know and that is and to enjoy is that we mourn because the Lord Jesus, his name, is despised in this world. We mourn when we hear his name used in ridicule and as a swear word. We mourn that he's not acknowledged as the rightful Lord and heir of all.
And so we mourn. And the Jews, as they go through the Tribulation period, our brother Eric has mentioned, they're going to mourn that they're going through that process, and they're going to mourn that the apostate Jews have received the Antichrist and so on. And they're going to long for the true Messiah to come and to reign and to assert his rights and to be honored in the nation. And so you and I mourn that.
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The Lord Jesus hasn't come yet, and we mourn that he is dishonored, but we will be comforted. We shall be comforted. We're going to come with Him. We love his appearing, and we're going to be comforted, no doubt at the rapture, but at His coming, at his appearing.
We will be comforted as we have mourned in this world that he has been so dishonored. We're going to be comforted. He's going to be glorified. He'll receive every honor and every dignity that God could bestow upon that blessed man publicly. And you and I will be with him, will be comforted.
One of the keys, isn't it what is it that separates us from this world Well, it's in part of it's in the end of verse 5, isn't it for they shall inherit the earth Well, why is it why is it that we're strangers in pilgrims because we belong to a different world. Remember Gordon Hayes speaking so many years ago about two worlds. I never forgot that such a help to make we live in this world we look around us and we see the world of which.
Satan is the God and Prince. He is the head of the religious world.
He's the head of the political world. It's one of the reasons why we stay out of politics, because Satan is the head of that. Let's remember that, brethren. I think we have gotten too close to the edges of that, particularly in recent years. But Satan is the God and Prince of this world. The Scripture tells us that Christ is the center of a different world, and he's the world of which to which we belong now, because we're dead and risen with Christ. And so we look forward to that time. They shall inherit the earth.
Well, this again is the Kingdom of heaven. We're going to inherit both heaven and earth. That's both heaven, both heaven and earth. That's even a greater privilege, isn't it? Because we're heirs of God and Co heirs with Christ. The more that gets a hold of our souls, the more it's going to separate us from this present evil world, isn't it? And so I think that's one of the secrets here. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Sometimes we wonder what what, what do we do when we go to heaven?
Well, we know there's going to be a great greeting when we get to heaven.
The Lord is going to welcome us, each one, and then we do have the judgment seat of Christ in the first half of the Tribulation period, no doubt. We don't know how long it lasts, but it does last for a certain period where the Lord will take us aside and He'll go over our life story with us. It's our report card, so to speak, isn't it? Not a question of whether we have a right to be there or not, but our report card as far as our life is gone.
Because we have to be reminded that we can have a saved soul in a lost life.
So the Lord is going to go over our life with us, but also we're going to be in sympathy as as represented by those four and 20 elders. I know the four and 20 elders in Revelation includes not only Christians, but also all those that were, were, were a part of the rapture going all the way back to Adam. But we're going to be fully engaged with what's happening on earth, aren't we? We're going to look at our brethren there that are still on the earth.
And we're going to see these that have this spirit that pass through these trials as we read about, especially in the book of Psalms and so many other places, and we're going to be supporting them as well. So we're going to be busy in heaven. We can be thankful for that. We're not just going to sit around playing harps like some people say. But if we understand this principle, for they shall inherit the earth, that's what's going to happen. The Lord is going to have his rightful place in this world, and what a wonderful place it's going to be.
Just think how wonderful it would be if this was the character that characterized men today. It's nowhere near that. I read the other day that this year is not very old yet. I think it was a couple weeks ago. I already read in the United States, there's been 123 mass shootings in this country alone. Well, this is far different, isn't it? We look forward to that time when the Lord Jesus is going to have his rightful place.
This is going to be the character that's going to be prevalent in the world, and we're going to be rejoiced. We're going to rejoice for it, aren't we?
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Eric, we'll ask a question. I have a friend who feels that his wife has died and she's looking down on him. But we know that in the disembodied state, you're conscious, but you don't see what's going on in the earth. But you, you just spoke about being able to see. Is that when we're glorified, then we will be able to see what's going on in the earth? Well, certainly we will then, won't we? But remember, the rich men knew about his brothers still alive, didn't he?
What was that? The rich man and Lazarus, when he was in his disembodied state, he knew about his brethren that were still alive, but how much, how far that goes, I wouldn't be prepared to say.
We might make a comp. I'm sorry, did someone else?
God was so pleased with what he saw, He opened heaven.
To declare this is my son and whom I'm well pleased.
God wants.
His children.
Just like his son.
He said I'm meek.
And consequently, God is doing a work that.
When you and I are in heaven will be just like him.
Because that's what God wants. He wants children that are like his Son. And you and I, I look around and I see you, that I'm going to see people that maybe it's not quite true yet, but you're going to be just like him, meek.
As it says in, it says here inherit the earth. He wants the remnant.
Those who have faith in the coming day of the Millennium to be like His Son, and He will do that work, that they too inherit the earth as meek because God's interested not only in the heavenly company, but in those who are of His Son on earth. That He can look down upon the earth when His Son reigns here and see a people that are inheriting the Kingdom who are also meek.
It might be helpful to just clarify that point, Brother Vern, that you brought out. I'd like to just refer to Ecclesiastes Chapter 9, Ecclesiastes Chapter 9, and let's read verse four and five. It says for to him that is joined to all the living, there is hope physically alive and living. For a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know not know that they shall die, but the dead know not anything.
That they don't know anything really that's going on on the earth. They're dead, they're their bodies are in the grave. Neither have they any more. Reward for the memory of them is forgotten. So the scriptures are clear. Those that are in the disembodied state don't know what's going on on the earth. They really they're occupied. If they're believers, why they're occupied with heavenly things. They're in the presence of the Lord. They don't see the Lord yet. That we're all going to see the Lord at the same time.
At the rapture, but they don't know what's going on here, they're not occupied with that, but when we at the appearing of the Lord Jesus.
When I should say at the rapture we're going to have our bodies will be raised.
Glorified and reunited to our souls and spirits. And once again we will be occupied with what the Lord is occupied with. And I believe that there's going to be some sense of what's going on on this in this world. So you see that in particularly in Revelation chapter 6, where and seven Chapter 7.
I believe that the scripture is pretty clear that those that are in the disembodied state are not occupied with what's going on on the earth.
Just one more comment, too, on that word, Meek.
We sometimes tend to associate meekness with weakness.
But Scripture never does that.
The Lord Jesus was meek. That did not imply that he was weak.
I remember once, many years ago, a sister in our local assembly.
And she's with the Lord now, and we knew each other pretty well.
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She said to me, Bill, scripture says that a woman is to have a meek and quiet spirit. She said, I'm sorry, but that just doesn't work for me. I can never be like that and there's no use my trying. Ouch.
We had a bit of a discussion about it, and I pointed out to her that meekness did not constitute weakness, but rather that it was strength. But it was under God's control and I believe if we could say it with all reverence.
That's what we see in Christ himself. Was there absolute strength there? Indeed there was. There was power to rebuke the wind and the waves. There was power to pass out between those who would have arrested him and sought to kill him before it was God's time for him to suffer on the cross. There was power there to call down the scribes and Pharisees and what they were doing.
To take up a scourge and drive the animals and all those.
In the temple who were profaning the place and making it a House of thieves, there was plenty of power there, but it was all under God's control. It was in perfection, under control of the Spirit of God and doing nothing without the will of the Father. And so I just suggest that that let's not associate meekness with weakness.
But rather with real strength, but clearly and definitely under control of the Spirit of God and working and dealing according to God's mind. And so now it's a day when we don't seek to take the place that we will have in the coming day. Paul could say to the Corinthians, now ye are rich, now ye are full. Ye have reigned as kings without us.
Was it wrong to rain?
Not in the future, but they were, as we would say, jumping the gun. They were going ahead of God's time.
It's a time to be characterized by meekness, but as we've had brought before us, to look forward to the day when we will inherit the Earth.
Number two 34234 We are not of the world which fadeth away, We are not of the night, but children of the day. The change that once bound us by Jesus our ribbon. There are strangers on earth, Our home is in heaven, and soon we shall enter our own promised land. Around his bright throne and glory shall stand our song then forever and ever shall be.
Glory and blessing Lord Jesus to be 234.
We're not.
Always.
We're not children.
Of them.
I think that one's found.
Our son and forever and ever.
Shall be.
Our glory and whilst the Lord Jesus.
It ourselves.
And.
Our blessed God and Father.
Our souls are lifted up.
In worship.
As we consider.
That it was thy sovereign will.
That thy beloved son would enter into this world.
In poverty.
And as a mourner.
We worship, we praise.
We thank our God and Father.
That thou hast revealed us.
Revealed thyself to us.
In such a full and wonderful way.
We think the.
We praise Thee.
In his alone worthy name of the Lord Jesus Christ.