Address—C. Buchanan
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1St we want to read in Proverbs chapter 22.
2 topics.
I'll speak a little bit about.
This afternoon.
The first one is money.
And the next one is a shipwreck.
You find the Bible very, very interesting. Have you read it?
I recommend it. Read it. Oh, this wonderful book of proverbs. We're not starting with either one of those topics.
What we're going to read here? A few verses in the 22nd chapter.
Beginning with verse 17 through 21.
Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise.
And apply thine heart unto my knowledge.
For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep them within thee.
They shall withal be fitted in thy lips.
That thy trust may be in the Lord, I have made thee, and I have made known to thee this day.
Even to thee have not I written to the excellent things in councils?
And knowledge.
That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth, that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee.
In viewing.
For you all here this afternoon, including myself.
And like for us.
Put a question to ourselves.
As to why we are here today?
Have you come?
Because your parents have brought you.
Or have helped you to get here?
Have you come on your own violation?
Are you thinking about?
Meeting some very dear friends.
Maybe one in particular, but being in the company.
Of dear Saints of God.
And enjoying that.
Have you come because you enjoy the food and the accommodations?
Have you come?
Because you love the Lord Jesus.
And want to learn more of the truth as it is in Jesus.
These perhaps are all.
Good reasons if used rightly. At least some of them are.
Have you?
Because you might have a problem in your heart, in your conscience, in your soul that you'd like to get some help about.
Well, whatever it may be.
I can say for myself, I don't know of a better place you and I could be.
We have read about the words of truth.
And the message from the writer will say the Spirit of God is bow down thine ear and hear, hear.
The words of the wise In this book we find wisdom.
And I believe wisdom personified in the person of the Lord Jesus.
The affection seeking the good.
Of the son of all who want to hear.
And truth is such a rare thing in this world.
But it is here.
We can state from scripture thy word is true.
John 17, this is what we have here this afternoon and it writes about.
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The person of Jesus who said I am the way, the truth and the life.
Another verse says you shall know the truth.
And the truth shall make you free.
Men want liberty. They claim to want it and fight to get it and don't have it.
Another verse goes a little farther there in the eighth of John says.
You shall know the Son. If the Son therefore shall make you free, he shall be free indeed. Oh, to know the person and that this book is about.
Well, here was Solomon writing. We believe these wonderful words for us to take up and take to heart and to realize the excellence of what we have.
The Irishman said you will never find anything but where it is and that's.
Especially so concerning the truth. You will never find it but where it is.
And by the grace of God, we have.
And I will say there is a company that seeks to keep his word.
Deny not his name.
I'll go a little further.
For myself and say I think I'm amongst them. Blessed be God that I can feel that you find out for yourself.
It is the most valuable thing you can possibly get.
The truth of God.
I remember an old brother saying to us years ago everything that you have.
That you will endure forever, That you'll keep you have by.
Faith. The faith is another expression parallel.
The truth.
The faith once delivered to the Saints Jude writes about.
And you and I are going to have to earnestly contend for it.
This portion we have read is in the middle of a chapter.
Now call attention to a few other verses. Notice verse 2.
The rich and the poor meet together. The Lord is the Maker.
Of them all.
A profound statement, very simple.
And you and I rub shoulders with them.
There in the world the rich and the poor. Later on in the book, Solomon says in prayer, give me neither poverty nor riches for both of these extremes.
Bring problems.
Now the truth is being combated by.
Satan, in these last moments of the age in which we live, I'll say furiously.
We must contend for it.
There's another enemy that we have.
That's right, inside.
Cell.
But the one that I like to call attention to this afternoon is the third great enemy that we have.
And that's the world in which we live.
I am astounded.
And I suppose you are too.
At the immensity of the development that research.
And the energy of men have produced.
Out of material things in the world.
There's a verse that says as using this world but not abusing. I may not quote that right. It's in First Corinthians 7. You can look it up. We will cite an example of misuse or abusing what's in the world.
In our first parents, you know, they had the whole world.
And the dominion of it. And Satan stole it from them.
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And through sin they were afraid of God, and the first thing they did was abuse what God had given.
They went out and hid behind those trees. That's the wrong use.
Of material things in the world now the development.
Of the material things in the world.
I'm not saying is wrong, not at all.
I thank God for the mercies we enjoy.
To be able to come up here this morning some 250 miles in comfort.
Rather than to have to walk over the Andes Mountains huffing and puffing and having to get a horse to ride on to get over some difference while men made that car.
And I thank God for material things too.
Well, it's not all wrong. I told you I was going to talk about money. Just refer to it a little bit.
Relatively.
I'll say everyone in this room is rich compared to many of our dear brethren in Bolivia.
For the rich and the poor meet together, for the Lord is the maker of them all. They are a relative terms.
Well, we can thank God for the land we live in and the comforts we enjoy.
And the wonderful thing is, I'd like to say that we can take these things up.
In a positive way.
I'll quote another verse from Luke 16.
In a slightly different translation that says.
Make to yourselves friends with the mammon of unrighteousness, that when it failed, he may be received into the everlasting abodes.
Telling us of the great privilege.
That you and I have.
To use that mammon of unrighteousness which can be termed Will.
Riches, money, material things that are put into your possession to use those things wisely.
I think we have come to a verse a little later on, but I'll quote part of it now.
We brought nothing into this world and it's certainly can carry nothing out. Another profound statement that is very simple to understand.
Every person in this room was born naked. When you leave it, you're not going to carry anything out either.
Not one thing.
But the blessed thing is that you and I can send ahead. We can, as it were, bank in heaven.
And I just think that's tremendous.
But our task as being in the world.
Aren't great. There may be some here who are out of employment.
Who are certainly not rich.
And in need of work.
We have these things in this country too.
And these things are difficult.
But we have one to turn to in all our difficulties.
But for many of us, the allurements.
Of those fine things out there.
Can get too much of a hold upon us.
As it were, I believe Satan is fixing up his palace.
In these last moments of this age.
So we should not set our heart upon these things.
The last words.
In the first Epistle of John is.
Little children, keep yourselves from idols.
Now, idols today are different I think.
Than they were back before Christ came into this world.
And the light of Christianity.
Exposed many things.
Idols like Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold.
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A fine thing. And there were all kinds of lesser idols that men bowed down and worshipped.
But today?
It's more apt to be.
Some of those material things which in themselves are not wrong.
That get too big a hold of us.
An apartment to get a hold of the heart so much that we forget what?
Has eternal value.
We're going to come.
To that shipwreck.
Not talking about.
The one that Paul and the others were cast in the ocean from on the 27th of Acts.
Does somebody else know a chapter that reads about it?
A shipwreck I'm sure there are.
But the one that we're going to take up now is found in Ezekiel. Let's look at Ezekiel.
Chapter 27.
We're coming to something which is prophetic.
Although it is historic.
And much of the revealed mind of God as to the future has had a partial fulfillment.
And to me, this is intensely interesting.
Because the timing of it is getting very close.
Well, riches and the means to get it.
Are largely.
In the hands of Oregon, under the power of what we call commerce.
Commerce, I remember.
Well, to state in this Assembly here in Chicago.
Years ago, there used to be a brother named Brother Clown. Her brother Ralph Erisman would remember him, I suppose. I don't, but I know about him and I understand that he was the founder of one of these markets in this city, which today has grown up into an immense market.
I remember another time visiting here in Chicago and a brother named Verssteg took me down to the Chicago Board of Trade grain building and I tell you, I had more fun than I've ever seen. I've been at a few football games and this was better than that.
And to see men.
Jumping up and down and shouting at the top of their voice and waving their arms with so many digits up there trading.
Thousands of bushels of contracts of grain.
It was an amazing thing to me. Now the world operates.
A large part of the world operates on commerce carried on in the various fashions.
Largely with pieces of paper.
I say this because.
Do you remember that verse when it failed? That's the mammon of unrighteousness. It's going to fail, I carry in this Bible.
Two effective bills not effective anymore. One of them is from Bolivia.
One of them I acquired.
25 years ago, nearly.
And it had the figure on it 10,000 pesos.
I acquired it for a nickel of our money.
A short time afterward, it wasn't even worth a nickel.
About 3 1/2 years ago, down with Bob and Bolivia, I got another bill that says 10 million.
10 million.
I paid $8 for it. I understand it's worth about 5 now.
This illustrates the value of paper without anything behind it.
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Let's read Ezekiel 27.
The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Now thou son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyrus, and say unto Tyrus, O thou that art, sit to it at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many Isles. Thus saith the Lord God, O Tyrus, thou hast said, I am of perfect duty.
Thy borders are in the midst of the Seas. Thy buildings have perfected thy beauty. They have made all thy ships.
Boards of fir, trees of Sinner. They have taken Cedars from Lebanon to make mass for thee.
Out of the oaks ofation have they made thine oars, the company of the Asherites.
Have made thy benches of ivory. Have brought out of the Isles of Chittenden. Refers to the West or to Cyprus fine linen with broidered work from Egypt was that which thou spreadest forth to be thy sail.
The blue and purple from the Isles of Elijah was that which covered the the inhabitants of Zion and Arvad were thy Mariners. Thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
The Ancients of Gibel.
That is a town which is still in Lebanon, I believe today. And the wise men thereof were in the thy caucus. All the ships of the sea with their Mariners were in thee to occupy thy merchandise, they of Persia. Persia is Iran, where so many problems.
Are prominent in that area right now with US engaged to protect ships going through that gulf there to load up oil and bring back Persia.
Is Iran or Iran I should say is Persia and of blood of verse 10.
And have put wherein thine army thy men of war, They hang the shield and helmet in thee. They set forth thy comeliness. The men of our red with thine army were upon thy walls round about. And the gamma dims were in thy towers. They hang their Shields upon thy walls round about. They have made thy beauty perfect.
Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of all kind of riches.
With silver and iron and tin.
And LED that traded in thy fares. Farmers here know about corn and beans and wheat and cotton. Those things are traded in the world today too, as well as these metals. Javen, I believe that's grease, tubal and meshach up in the north, perhaps in Russia. They were thy merchants.
All of these were coming down to Tarshish.
Tire a Tyrus, which is tire. All these were coming down there as merchants. They traded the persons of men. Both slavery went on.
And vessels of brash in thy market, they of the House of Togarmah, I think another city up in the far north, Russia perhaps traded in thy fares.
I was at the 1933 World's Fair here in this city. They had fairs then, and Brother Ralph took me down to see that. I remember the streamlined trains were just new then. Fares. They're current today. They had them then. That's where the commerce is carried on, much of it with horses, horsemen and mules. The men of the Dan were thy merchants.
Many.
Aisles were the merchandise of thine hand they brought thee for a present.
Horns of ivory and Ebony. Ebony.
Came from India. That's where they have found it.
So clear over the tire Tyrus. This merchandise carried on Syria. Verse 16. Very nearby Syria was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of the wares of thy making they occupied in thy affairs. These fairs went on with emeralds. Now we're getting high price things. Purple embroidered work.
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Perhaps like those Persian rugs and all that fine linen and coral and agate, these wealthy things.
Judah and the land of Israel. Oh, right there.
Next door at the tire. They were thy merchants. They traded in thy.
Market wheat, oh, wheat does come in interesting for us farmers. Wait a minute, Anag and honey and oil and bomb, things that are very nice and practical, helpful in life. Damascus was thy merchant in the multitude of the wares of thy making. Damascus is believed to be the oldest city that has been continually lived on.
Live in the oldest one known, Damascus. It's still there, very much there.
In.
Damascus was thy merchant in the multitude of thy wares, of thy making for the multitude of all riches in the wine of Hellborn and white wool, what's necessary in the north, in the cold countries then also, and Javen going to and fro occupied in thy affairs, They're having more fairs.
Bright iron cashew Calamus Quincy market hidden was thy merchant in precious clothes for Chariots. Arabia, all the Arabs. They've got plenty of money now, lots of them. And all the Princess keyed are they occupied we with thee in lambs and Rams and goats. That's what they used to trade in instead of oil. And these were they as I merchants, the merchants of Sheba Rhema, they were thy merchants.
They occupied in thy affairs with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones and gold.
Heron and Cannon and Eden. Isn't that interesting Eden. I wonder if it was over that region near Iran and Iraq.
The merchants of Sheba, Asher and Chill man were thy.
Merchants. These were thy merchants in all sorts of things, in blue clothes, embroidered work.
In chess of rich apparel bound with cords.
And made with cedar among thy merchandise. I still marvel at these wonderful chests we've seen coming out of Hong Kong and China and other places. They have them. Then Evidently the ships of charsish did sing of thee in thy market, and thou wast replenished and made very glorious in the midst of the sea.
Now we have Tyrus as the center of all this trade by ships.
But refining in the chapter that Tyrus itself is likened to a ship, and we're coming to the point where she's sinking, let's go on and read here verse 26. Thy roars have brought thee into the great waters. This is a figure, a symbol of Tyrus itself as a ship out in the great waters.
The Rapture, the collapse of commerce is what we're getting.
It's going to collapse.
This system, this monetary system.
This commercial system, which has been operative in the world of these millennials, is going to collapse.
Thy riches, verse 27 And thy fairest, thy merchandise, thy Mariners and thy pilots, thy caulkers, and the occupiers of thy merchandise, and all thy men of war that are in thee, and in all thy company which is in the midst of thee, shall fall into the.
Midst of the Seas, in the day of thy ruin.
The ship of commerce goes down.
And it's a lamentation for all the merchants and all the people of the world that depend upon merchandise.
This is the collapse of the thing.
It's going to happen.
Beloved here, Go and reach some more here.
Verse 28. The suburbs shall shake at the sound of the cry of thy pilots.
And I'll handle the ore. The Mariners and the pilots of the sea shall come down from their ships, and they shall stand upon the land, and shall cause their voice to be heard against thee, and shall cry bitterly, and shall cast up dust upon their heads. They shall wall themselves in the ashes, and they shall make themselves utterly bold for thee, and gird them with.
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Gloss, and they shall weep for thee with bitterness of heart and bitterness of wailing.
And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee, saying.
What city is like Tyrus?
Like the destroyed in the midst of the sea. Very clear now what city? This city of commerce is just a figure of the whole commercial system upon which life is sustained by transporting these things that are necessary for life, and things that aren't necessary too, that men might live the good life apart from God.
Think of the patience of God.
Which has let man go on nearly 6000 years. You remember Cain?
For the first man born into the world, he went out from the presence of the Lord and builded a city. Now that's a figure, a symbol of man seeking to make himself comfortable in his own company, apart from God.
And men have astoundingly developed necessary things to sustain life.
In the Arctic Circle.
And in the deserts of Arabia.
Where life apart from certain?
Things that men provide would be, we might say, impossible.
God has let them do that.
We're in an air conditioned room, maybe 90 outside. We thankful for it. You can stay awake and apprehend more truth. I hope this is a mercy for us. We don't condemn all good things. No, it's the use that we're going to make of them that we have to check ourselves upon because they can get a hold of us, the world.
Is a marvelous thing, in a way, the glory.
The glamour, the glitter, the convenience.
And the ease of life.
Far different from when I was a boy.
And it's nice up to a point, but what are we doing with what God has given to us? Well, thank God we're all here.
I trust to hear the truth these 2 1/2 days because the truth is what's going to abide.
The truth will abide.
This word of God liveth and abideth forever.
Then I'll repeat again, you and I can do a little banking in heaven.
He can make to yourselves friends with the mammon of unrighteousness, that when it failed.
He may be received into the everlasting habitations. The habitations, the abodes, are everlasting.
You and I have everlasting life. We are going there, but we can use wisely.
And put to our account there like those Philippians fruit that abounds that your account Joe, that brilliant man said.
My record is on high.
Yours is 2 -, 2. It's there. Wonderful that we can use the mammon of unrighteousness wisely. It's a great thing.
In contrast.
To getting our hearts set upon it and building up a big pile. I'm amazed you notice some of the news. What did Ivan Boesky gain by all the billions he got control of? He's in trouble with the law.
And it seems to me.
That some of these great men.
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The more money they get, the more.
They want.
These things are notable.
I'll mention another thing which is a shame.
And that is the great men in the camp have caused a tremendous scandal over money. Money.
Well, perhaps that's enough to say about it.
What are you and I going to do? Well, thank God we're here. Thank God we have the truth and the truth as it is in Jesus, and these things which abide and the enjoyment of the Lord before we get home to the glory, we can have as much of Christ as we want.
I like it when I see somebody sitting down and reading their Bible. I saw two people doing that when I arrived here this morning.
This word lives and abides forever.
Well, here we have the collapse of that city.
It, I believe, runs about parallel to the collapse of that other city, Babylon.
The mother of harlots. The religious system.
It is going to collapse. You will find quite a parallel.
Between some of the verses we have read here and what is stated about her, I think it's Revelation 18. It's Revelation anyway, the trade that goes on in that thing, and we know just about when.
Babylon the Great is going to collapse. She is likened to a queen.
Because she is that religious system that supplants.
Before men, the place of the bride.
The way whereas Tyrus is called a Prince.
You get that in the next chapter. We have read mostly most of chapter 27. For your own reading, you'll find out you can go on with Tyrus and the Prince of Tyrus and the King of Tyrus in the next chapter.
It's a Prince there because it's commerce. The commercial thing goes on around us.
In a tremendous way.
And it works as long as it works. But there's going to come a day when it's going to sink. This is foretold in the scriptures.
I say these things because.
We are so favored here in this land.
We here today, to me, are a parallel to the Saints at corn.
Who were rich?
And trying to live as kings without Paul and the others.
And they had gifts too. And thank God there are gifts amongst them, the people of God today. I don't say we have them, all of them, but we got gifts. And they are gifts in Christendom too. And some of them are being misused, but that's their responsibility. Let's see that we use wisely these gifts too, because this is a part of our will.
To use what God has given us.
Use it wisely. I think we should go to First Timothy, chapter 6 to conclude the remarks this afternoon.
I'll say while you're turning there that I'm not aiming.
At any person or persons here. If I did, I'd be like that ball my daddy bought me when I was about seven or eight years old. A nice new rubber ball and I decided to go out to the barn and learn how to catch that thing by bouncing it off of the barn.
The horses were in the barn and the boards were made out of oak. Tremendous boards in those days.
12 inches wide, up to 20 inches wide and over an inch thick. They were cut to endure, but in the sun they would warp. When I threw that ball with a good deal of my strength and it bounced right back, hit me in the face before I could dodge.
So if you think I'm aiming any remarks at anybody here, they're going to bounce back and hit me harder than anybody. That's what I want because.
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We, we all need it. We have so much and so much privilege.
But we are in this fight and faith in the 6th chapter.
Now First Timothy.
And there are some words about the master and the servants, but let's begin with verse 3.
Where it says if any man teach otherwise and consent not to wholesome words.
Even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And the doctrine which is according to godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and stripes of words where I'll cometh envy, strife, railings, and evil surmises. I was impressed in reading.
The way it writes here in verse three, the words of our Lord Jesus Christ pull this place and turn with me to Acts chapter 20.
I've often puzzled about this verse.
In chapter 20 of Acts.
35A puzzle about why we don't find this in the Gospels.
I'm not sure of the answer yet, but it's impressive to read it the way it is here Paul speaking to the Ephesian elder says, I have showed you all things, how that's so laboring. Ye ought to support the weak. Now notice what it says, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said it is more blessed to give than to receive. I notice that remember.
The words of the Lord Jesus. And here we have just read in verse 3.
Now First Timothy 6, the words of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Well, he said, there is more blessed to give than to receive.
And it is. It's just that way. It's more blessed to give than to receive. Why should men get up and beg for?
Millions of dollars from the public.
Why shouldn't they?
I don't know.
It's more blessed to give than to receive, isn't it?
Well, here is the wholesome words that we are to listen to, and if we don't listen to them, it says he is proud.
The world to teach you to be proud. That's another thing about the world.
I had a question put to me by a young person not so long ago.
What's wrong with organized sports?
Well, I suppose you could suggest a lot of things.
What kind of associations do you get into?
What do they teach them? Do they teach them to be proud or to be humble?
Well, that's enough said. Let's go to the scripture.
He is proud, knowing nothing but doting about questions and stripes of words.
Where I've cometh, envy, strife, reelings, evil, surmising, perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds gets worse.
And destitute of the truth, oh, from all untruth to fleece, destitute of the truth. That's where man's minds lead them. That's going to be LED by those things, our reasonings.
Destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness.
Well, we know some of the things about this that's going on in the world today. Gain is not godliness.
Such withdraw thyself. Now what? But godliness with contentment is great gain, Paul could say. I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content, content, content.
Thank God for the good meal we just had. Sometimes you eat a meal in Bolivia and you wonder what you eat.
Well, you just have to be content with it.
But godliness with contentment is great gain. And hears the verse we brought nothing into this world.
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And it is certain we can carry nothing out having food and raiment. Let us be therewith content.
But they that will be rich fall into temptation, and snare into many hurtful, foolish, and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root, or a root of all evil, which while some coveted, after they have heard from the faith, heard from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God.
Flee these things and follow after righteousness, godliness, fee, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith.
Lay hold on eternal life, or what is really life, Wherein do thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses? There are four FS here. There's faith. There's fleet.
And there's.
Follow.
And I thought there were four, but there's three anyway.
And.
These things are the positive side that you and I can go on in.
In the truth, in the faith, and learn what is.
Really. Life in contrast.
To the material I materialistic system of things which is around us, which we partially enjoy but have to learn not to let it get hold of us, but rather to take it and use it wisely. Get this wisdom from God so that we can.
Send ahead and build up an account there.
Maybe then all of us be delivered from the world.
That is going to go down like the sinking ship.