Open—R. Boulard, M. Payette, K. Gorgas
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Wonder, brethren, if we could look at Hebrews. Chapter 11, verse 23 was mentioned this morning.
In our meeting and in this little him that reminds us.
We have in the chapter that we took up this morning, those few verses in Ephesians chapter one, the sovereignty of God brought, brought out in connection with his purposes, according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. And so we know that we never would have chosen Christ, we would have never chosen to follow the Lord Jesus in a path of any sense of obedience to Him at all.
Except that we're for the sovereignty of God this afternoon that finds us here at this little meeting together. But here we find that, uh, in Hebrews Chapter 11, there's, uh, the aspect of faith is brought out, but also the, the aspect of responsibility before God. And it's the grace of God that he brings out this little, uh, picture in Moses. And there's seven things here that I'd like to notice in connection with Moses that God.
In his grace brings out.
We'll just read from verse 23, Hebrews Chapter 11 by full by faith. Moses when he was born was hidden three months of his parents because they saw he was a proper child and they were not afraid of the King's commandment. My faith Moses when he was come to years 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, for a seasoning the reproach of Christ, greater riches than the treasures in Egypt. For He had respect unto the recompense of the reward. By faith He forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king. For he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. Through faith He kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood.
Lest he that destroyed the first born should touch them by faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, which the Egyptians are saying to do were drowned. What we find in the path of Moses that the beginning had to do with his parents. I like that little portion in in Exodus chapter one. I can't quote it, so perhaps we could just read it very briefly.
In chapter 2, I should say verse one, there went a man of the House of Levi and took a wife, a daughter of Levi.
And so here we have two people of faith, two people that were brought up, uh, if you will, in the household of faith, the children of Levi. And that household of faith produced a child that was brought into the world. And that child saw for three months, not only three months, but uh, for several years, saw the effect of faith and what it was to walk in faith in this world.
Not to walk by faith, not to walk by in a path of luxury and a path of ease, but a a path of faith saw Moses, saw his mother and his father walk in a path of faith. And so we find here that God records that by faith, Moses when he was born was hidden. The faith of the parents hid him from the world, hid him from the eye of Pharaoh. And brethren, we need to do well by this word is to remember to hide.
In a certain sense, the world from our children to hide them from the umm. Those things that would defile them and those things that would umm.
Choke off the fruit that would be born in faith. And so Moses was hid by his parents. And you know that name. Moses means drawn out. He was drawn out. And it was a work of God to draw out Moses out of the river of Egypt, to draw him out. And so Moses didn't save himself out of that river. It was in the sovereignty of God that Moses was taken out of the river. And God had a purpose for him, for his life. And God has a purpose for every one of us in this life.
For thy pleasure we are and were created. Moses was created for the pleasure of God, that his life might be a a path of faith and that might please God, Your life and mine. We were created that we might please God in this theme, that we might walk in a path of faithfulness to God. So Moses was hid by his parents because they saw he was a proper child. Mr. Darby's translation says there he was a beautiful child.
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Who are fair to God? I believe that's the terminology. Fair to God. He was fair to God. Every one of us is fair to God. Everyone redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. But God has created all things for himself, as we've read in Ephesians chapter one. And so we know that God has created all mankind in responsibility before him, in sovereignty. He chooses, He predestinates.
He blesses with all spiritual blessings in Christ, but there's responsibility. And so this is what we have here in responsibility. They saw that he was a proper child or fair to God, and they were not afraid of the King's commandment. And so, you know, the laws of this land and the one to the north of us, many of these laws that are being passed now are not according to the Word of God, not pleasing to God. And we need to recognize that a path of faith will require us to walk before God according to the Word of God.
Not according to the laws of this man, this, this land, or the one to the north of us. We need to remember that a path of faith takes up the Word of God and recognizes that As for God, his way is perfect. And so the purposes of God are perfect. His will is perfect. You and I have a will, and sometimes it's a strong will, and it's not always according to the Word of God, is it? But the will of God is perfect. God's purposes and councils are perfect. They're without flaws.
And so we have here this little picture in in Moses life that his parents were not afraid of the King's commandment. And so they trusted God for that that child and they walked in faith. But then it came time for Moses. He had observed the path of his parents.
He observed their path of faith. He observed, perhaps heard their prayers. Perhaps he'd observed how they spoke to one another. Perhaps he.
Say he observed.
Their appreciation.
For what they had heard of God and so he observed that and then there was a time when he was going to come into responsibility by faith. Moses when he was come to years refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. I just want to point out that the Lord Jesus.
In perfection, we'll just look look at Luke's Gospel Chapter 2, just at the end of that that chapter.
The Lord Jesus by faith forsook Egypt, He forsook this world. And by faith, in verse 49, chapter 2 and verse 49 of Luke, he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not, that I must be about my Father's business? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. And he went down with them, and he came and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them. But his mother kept all these things in her heart.
And so the Lord Jesus knew that he must be about his Father's business. And there comes a time in each one of our lives, those of us that know Christ as Savior, when we have a sense of the age of responsibility that we're at and that we must be about the Father's business, That we have a a walk before God. And it's going to be either a walk in the leisure and the pleasure of this world or a walking path of faith before God.
And that's really the point of our lives in this scene, to walk before God in his sight and to walk in a path of faith. And so here Moses, he came to the age of responsibility, perhaps that age of responsibility in the Lord Jesus. He's he was about 12 years old. And here we have Moses. I don't know exactly how old he was, but there was an age of responsibility and now he chose as it were, he by faith.
In responsibility before God.
He refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. You know, this world desires that each one of us would walk in a relationship to him. The world could see that Moses was a man of principle, that could see that Moses was perhaps blessed in what he did in the world, wanted that too. The world wanted Moses strength, his youth, his energy, and Moses by faith.
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Refused.
That relationship. And so sometimes in our Christian pathway, there are those relationships that are a hindrance to us. And God would desire that there would be fruit in our lives. And if there is a relationship that isn't according to the mind of God and was perhaps, uh, placed upon us, uh, in a certain sense that, uh, we recognize by faith that that relationship is a hindrance and we lay it aside.
By faith, Moses did that and it cost him. You know, sometimes it cost us friends to walk in the truth of God. It's not something that we look forward to perhaps, but the Spirit of God would remind us that Moses made a choice and he refused that relationship. Well, that's the first thing he refused. He actually refused something that this world wanted to bestow upon him, a position. He was perhaps the next in line to the king, to Pharaoh.
He could have had an A life of luxury and ease. He could have had honor, glory, He could have had the wealth of Egypt before him. But he refused. And so the world will present things that do not have to do with a path of faith and obedience or devotion to Christ, affection to Christ. Moses refused. Well, that's something that speaks to my heart, to my conscience, Do I refuse?
That position that the world desires to bestow upon me. Well, verse 25 says something else. He did. He chose. Now this is not uh, as we say, it's the sovereignty of God that Moses could choose, but it was in responsibility he chose, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. The word of God is very precise.
And God, in his wisdom, put these things in a particular order.
That they might exercise our consciences and that they might bear that we might bear fruit for him. There's going to be a choice in my life and in yours. We're either going to choose.
To suffer affliction with the people of God. We're going to identify ourselves with the people of God, with the people of faith. You know, I had many people ask me this past week what I was going to do this week. What was I going to do this weekend?
What sort of pleasure and activity was I going to engage in? And I said often times this week I plan to be with other Christians at a Bible conference this Saturday and Lord's Day. And I'd like to use that terminology in the presence of unbelievers. Lord's Day, not Sunday, all they could. It's there's no reproach in saying Sunday. But if you say the Lord's Day, why you bring in the Lord's name and there's a reproach. There's perhaps a little affliction going to go along with that. But identify yourself.
Very young ones. Every one of us needs this. I need it too. We need to identify ourselves with Christ, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God.
Do I identify myself with the people of God, or do I identify myself with the people of this world or a particular profession in life? No, I ought to identify myself with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. So there is pleasure in sin, and Moses had the pleasure of Egypt before him. He had the entertainment of Egypt. He had the culture of Egypt.
Before him, he could have had it. He could have had all of it, He could have had the very best of it. And you and I, in the age that we live in, are in the position with the wealth that we have in this country and the one to the north of us in North America, We can have the best of the entertainment of this world if we want it. And it touches my conscience when I think of how perhaps I engage in listening to some of that entertainment from time to time.
Or just, uh, let my eyes wander from what instead of reading the word of God, reading something that perhaps is feeds that the flesh and not the inner, not the spirit. And so we have Moses here would speak to all of our consciences. He refused. He chose something. He chose the affliction of the people with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. And you know.
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If you and I suffer affliction together in a path of faithfulness to Christ, a path of devotion will be able to remember that in the glory desert ways will be rehearsed above. We'll remember spending a few moments together like this in the presence of the Lord and just enjoying Christ together. Well, here we find in verse 26 that because of his choice, because of his refusal, then there's a little progression. Moses could see things from God's point of view.
It says he esteemed something he was esteeming the reproach of Christ, greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, for he had recompense unto the He had respect unto the recompense of the reward. You know I was in a place, you know, wicked city, where they have.
A replica of the King Tut's tomb. They have his alabaster replica I believe of his alabaster drinking cup.
He was 19 years old, I believe, when he left this scene. They have his actual bed in that place they have.
A very realistic tomb of King Tut, and it was sorrowful. My heart was moved as I saw that place and I saw what the treasures were that that king had in his burial chamber and the emptiness, the other frustration.
Of what he saw, what he had there, what he had that accompanied him into that tomb darkness. But Moses could see from God's perspective and he had a proper estimation. This is really the root word of this estimating. He had an estimation of that he took and perhaps viewed the, uh, riches of Egypt, the gold coins, you know, in those cabinets in that place that I was in, they had cabinets with security guards and they had some prices on some of the coins and some of the.
Sculptures and the gold objects in the cabinets and they had some prices on some of them 10,000 dollars $25,000 others were marked priceless. Make an offer.
But they're all there in that cabinet, worthless in the sight of God for all eternity, worthless. And Moses could see the some of those very objects. I believe he could see that the gold and the wealth of what Egypt had to offer was going to be worthless in the sight of God, was going to be worthless for all eternity. And so this world wants you to gather up the treasures that it has, the goal that it has, the the objects that you can see.
But there was an estimation. Moses estimated that the value of that material good was worthless in the sight of God. And so that's what faith does. And in responsibility to God he could esteem or estimate that the reproach of Christ was greater riches in the sight of God than the treasures of Egypt. For he had respect unto the recompense of the reward, And so he could see that it was.
Possible to have a safe soul if you will, and a lost life and he wanted to walk before God.
So I say this to myself, do I want to walk before gone? Do I have a respect unto the recompense of the reward? You know, if we turn to 1St Thessalonians, we agreed there.
What the apostle said to the Thessalonians.
And verse 19.
Of chapter two, First Thessalonians 2 and verse 19. For what is our hope?
Our joy for a crown of rejoicing are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.
Isn't that wonderful?
Can you just imagine the Lord Jesus speaking these words? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ that is coming. Perhaps the Father could speak these words.
What is our hope or joy or crown of rejoicing are not even me in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? Well, there's going to be a glory associated. There's going to be a reward given. There's going to be that which is an estimate of great value in the sight of God for those that have walked in some devotion, some affection for Christ and have chosen and that have esteemed, have seen from God's point of view.
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That there is something that's better than the riches of Egypt, the treasures of Egypt. Well, verse 27 says that he first took Egypt.
That's the fourth thing. The first one was he refused. The 2nd is he chose. The third is he esteemed, The 4th is that he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king.
You know, I had a man in my office not too long ago. He works for me and he's a believer. I hired him and I didn't know that he was a believer when I hired him.
And he said he was having difficulty with one of his children.
And he doesn't know whether his daughter is saved or not. He thinks he might be. But, you know, there's a struggle going on. There's a difficult struggle going on in that girl's life. And there is this struggle if you're going to forsake Egypt or not. And each one of us, perhaps in some stage of our lives has recognized that there was a struggle where we're going to forsake Egypt or not. Were we going to walk in obedience? We were going to walk and.
We experienced some of the affliction with the people of God. Well, it wasn't possible to experience that affliction with the people of God and still go on in fellowship with Egypt. And so by faith and responsibility before God, he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king. So that's what God says. And what the point is this, that Satan is wrong? I believe if I could be, I wanna be reverent, but.
Satan is wrong when one gets saved. Satan is wrong when one has to make that choice, whether to foresee forsake Egypt or not. And when we decide to forsake Egypt, there's a struggle. Satan is at work. There's an enemy of our souls. He doesn't want us to forsake Egypt. He wants us to have a little bit of Egypt, just a little bit of it, not a lot of it. If you don't want all of the fame and going, all the wealth, just take a little bit of it.
But Moses forsook Egypt, the whole thing, the whole principle of what this world stands for, this whole world system, it's entertainment, it's pleasure, it's political power, it's relationships. He gave it all up and he left Egypt. Now you and I by faith can leave Egypt. We can walk in the path of obedience to the Lord Jesus. We can be gathered to his precious name. We can come into His presence. We can leave Egypt. We can forsake Egypt.
And walk by faith while he endured, that's the fifth thing he endured as seeing him who is invisible. And so I believe the thought here is that it's going to take endurance.
I have a little document that I use when I interview people for employment and it has on it. One of the questions is.
Are you a stable, steady individual or are you real hot one day, real productive one day, and then very unproductive another day? One week you're very high, you're all on fire. You're you're just very suitable for, for the job. You're enthusiastic. But then the next week it's another story. Well, I believe the, the picture here is that Moses endured. There was going to be opposition. There were going to be temptations. There were going to be occasions when that relationship would look attractive.
When the world and what it had to offer and what he had forsaken perhaps would look attractive again, perhaps for that little.
Decision that he made, the great decision, I should say, of suffering. Choosing to suffer affliction with the people of God would require endurance.
And God values endurance. God values the fact that those that choose to follow him in a path of faith in the wilderness and forsake Egypt.
And suffer affliction with the people of God. Identify themselves with the people of God He.
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Recognizes that it's a path of endurance and there are those that go on for a little while, perhaps they are very on fire for a week, two weeks, then a week they're down. I must confess I I'm not weighing myself.
We're just on fire for one day, perhaps the Lord's Day, and then Monday. The fire is a little dimmer on Tuesday and Wednesday, but we need to have that refreshment in the presence of the Savior at the reading meeting, at the prayer meeting.
At the gospel meeting or we need to have food, uh, for our souls at the assembly meetings, But then we need Christian fellowship too. And this is something that.
I believe the Spirit of God would bring before us here in verse 28. Through faith He kept the Passover. That's the sixth thing that Moses did. The fifth one he endured. But then through faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the first born should touch them. He kept the Passover. What it meant to the heart of God to see the Passover slain.
And to see all over the land of Egypt that night the Passover lamb eaten the bread, the blood sprinkled on the upper door post, on the lentil on the two side post. What it meant to the heart of God to see His people in obedience and faithfulness, just eating that Passover. Now you and I have the ability to remember the Lord Jesus in His death.
To keep the Lord's day.
To honor the Lord's Day, to eat the Lord's Supper on the Lord's day at the Lord's table. Isn't that wonderful? Every one of us has that privilege. Those of us that know Christ as Savior. There's a place for us that the Lord's table and Moses through faith kept the Passover. It meant something to God. He mentions that here and all the children of Israel blessed. He that destroyed the first born should touch them. So it came. He came under the.
Umm, blessing of that bloodshed, you know. Wonderful to recognize that blood shed and enjoy.
What it means. And then the last thing in verse 7, by faith, they passed through the Red Sea. And so they went a whole company. And Moses, a man of God, walked by faith. And as a result of the path of obedience to the Lord and those choices that he made and the endurance that he had, the refusals that he made, the estimation that he made, God used it. God used Moses.
To bring the people of Israel out.
Into the promised land, they crossed the Red Sea, they went through that Red Sea, it was a picture of baptism, and they went out into the wilderness, they left Egypt. And so he had his life of faith, had an influence on many others. And so this is the point here, because there's a little progression, but there Moses could not have been used, I don't believe, for this work if he had not by faith refused.
By faith made a choice, by faith estimated the value of what Egypt had and seen it from God's point of view. He wouldn't have been able to use be used in this way if he hadn't forsaken Egypt. Why would he lead the whole company of those out from Egypt? God's people? He endured, He was faithful, He had stamina, and then they kept the Passover in obedience.
And faithfulness to God. And then he was used to lead the people of Israel out. Well, this is a path of obedience and faithfulness to God in Moses. He was drawn out. I trust that each one of us is drawn out from this world and has a desire just to please the Lord and to go on. And devotion to Christ.
Proverbs 27, verse 7.
The full soul Lotus and honeycomb.
But to the hungry soul.
Every bitter thing.
Is sweet.
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And a verse in John chapter 21.
John's Gospel, chapter 21.
Verse 5.
And Jesus said unto them.
Children.
Have you eat any meat?
To answer them.
No.
There are many questions in the scriptures you know.
And some of them have are not answered.
Further, uh, Smiler quoted the question this morning. Who shall separate us from?
The love of Christ.
The answer is.
No one we can answer by faith. Nothing, nobody, nothing will separate us from the love of Christ and the love of God.
Here's the Lord's question to his children.
Those disciples had gone fishing, children.
Have you any meat?
And they said no.
And already directed them to cast the net again. They just all night didn't catch anything. But on the Lord's word they did. And they had.
Much the other fishes.
When they got the shore, they found that there was already a fire there, and the Lord already had on the fire some food prepared for them.
This is what I wanna talk about, that question the Lord asking us.
Adding any food? Have you anything to eat? Have you any meat?
We think of the instance in the book of James where it speaks of faith.
Where we meet up with someone who lacks the necessities of life.
What do we do when we meet up with someone that lacks the necessities of life? What does the Lord want us to do?
OK.
He wants us to provide for them.
Make yourself warm, have something to eat. You can't just say that you have to provide for their needs. Help them out with the love of the Lord. And truly as Christians, we're called to do that, to feel that love of God in a practical way to those that are in deep need.
But you know, the necessities of life for us here in North America is quite different, are quite different than what we experiment when we visit Third World countries where people are poor and some have very little for sustenance.
Was in recently in Africa. Dear brother, I was traveling with brother Joseph Pete.
He's an African brother, he's poor but he finds food to eat. But they're used there, they're very used to suffering from.
Hunger, you might say, well, I would call it suffering. Maybe they don't call it suffering, but.
Traveling up north, it was 2:00 in the afternoon and he hadn't had anything to eat yet, and I might have chewed a few peanuts, but I was getting pretty hungry. So we stopped by the roadside and I had a real feast, You know, real feast.
I really mean, it was a piece with sardines and pineapple. You ever had sardines in pineapple? That's terrific. Delicious. Best sardines I've ever had. Best pineapple I ever had because I was hungry. I was really hungry, you know?
The Lord is so good to us. We have this first chapter, Ephesians this morning, feeding our souls, reminding us of the love that tells us in him and the Lord Jesus before the foundation of the world, to have us before him, in love, without blame, unreproachable before him, all from his love, His provision of love.
And this is a question I have from the Lord. Has he anything to eat?
One morning in Porto Novo, we had a we had the mermaids of the Lord, you know.
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And the the brother that broke the bread, he had the same verses it had to mine. And the Lord was telling us we had something to eat. You know, we had that loaf of bread and a cup of wine. And he said before us that we were receiving from his hands to show his death till he comes. And he says, have ye anything to eat?
I know many of you young people, you come to the meetings and uh.
You hear many of these things, but I wonder if you've ever had the question from the Lord.
Have you anything to eat?
That he set before you and not to refuse so far.
For whatever reason, to take and eat a disastrous to do.
Well, this verse in Proverbs, you know, is, uh, is.
Takes us a little bit a little step further than that. Not that we were dying from hunger. We have necessary food in North America.
And we have spiritual food, abundance of spiritual food, brethren.
And I trust we have appetite for it.
But you know when you've had a good meal.
And you're full. Somebody says that. Would you like some of this? Thank you. I'm fine. I've had enough. Happens to us, doesn't it? North America. I heard plenty. And sometimes every week. I've had too much. I've had too much.
So it says here the full.
Soul, loathe it and honeycomb.
Honeycomb is sweet.
It's like dessert, you know?
But to the hungry soul, every bitter thing is sweet. Someone that's hungry, you'll give them some stale bread, you'll eat stale bread, be happy for stale bread. And when they get a a loaf of bread in the morning, you can get it for $0.10 Canadian, maybe a nickel America. And in the evening you can get it for less than half that price.
Because they don't have preservatives, it gets dry pretty quick.
Verse 41.
The end of the verse.
Have you eat any meat or have you anything to eat?
How do you hear any meat?
We could say we had a lovely meal downstairs before and we had plenty for our bellies and we're very thankful we had much.
And spiritually, we had a wonderful reading meeting this morning. So we've we've had much, but I believe the question here from the Lord and we missed that.
He's asking if there's anything for him.
For him, have you hear any meat or who? For him? For him, all we've had plenty.
The full soul treaded on their foot the honeycomb, that which is sweet for the heart of the Lord.
So I gave you that verse when I was in met up with some beautiful believers gathered just like us almost.
They're meeting in Porto Novo, where the Saints are gathered there, in other cities, in Benet.
And I asked the brother, and I said, is it sweet for the Lord that he would find us on the first day of the week, on the Lord's Day?
Together to sing praises and to read His word. There's a Lord would enjoy that.
This is enjoyable for the Lord, that we come together and for the first day of the week and that.
We partake of the loaf and a cup of wine. Remembrance of him. Yes, that would be sweet, full, O Lord.
Can I ask those brethren, is it sweet for the Lord?
That they come together and we come together in the vision.
Separate because of whatever reason.
Is that sweet for the Lord?
Well, it says in our proverbs there, uh, for the hungry soul, even that which is better, the sweet.
The Lord takes what we bring.
He takes us the way we are.
He enjoys what is to be enjoyed.
But you know these disciples in Luke chapter 24.
They gave him some fish.
It was cooked. It wasn't raw. Fish had been prepared. There was something that had been prepared that was given to him, something prepared for him. And they gave him a honeycomb, something sweet for his heart.
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Young people here, older ones too. This is what's on my heart.
That our hearts would be turned to Him and that we would answer that question.
Have you hear any meat?
That the answer of our hearts would be.
That we would bring something sweet for him.
Something prepared for him.
There's a hymn in French we sing, and I sang it with these brethren, you know, that we're not gathered with, and it says, what sweetness in this worship of brethren, where the Holy Spirit is our conductor.
And I was thinking about him. You know what sweetness in this worship of brethren? And the question that the Spirit of God put to me was sweetness for who?
Sweetness or who? Sweetness for us or sweetness for him?
And I told these brothers, and they would have been, it would be sweetness for him if those things that are keeping us apart will be dealt with. If those things in your life are keeping you from the Lord's table are dealt with. If those things in your life that are keeping you from enjoying the Lord fully and giving him the fullness that he deserves from your heart, that they'd be dealt with. And that we would have our largest satisfied with every bitter thing that he appreciates though, because.
He's so gracious, but that our hearts would be too forgiven. Some of that big fish, cooked fish and a honeycomb just for him to be there just for him. That he would find that sweetness and you and I being there in unity for him, going on together for him.
Going on in our brothers meeting, dealing with issues and peace. For him, for his glory. Because we love him, because he's the worthy 1.
I'd like to look for just a minute at a verse in Philemon.
Phylleman, verse 22.
And just the beginning of the verse.
But with all, prepare me also a lodging. And something that Paul wrote to this man. But prepare me. But with all, prepare me also at lodging. Now let's go over to the book of Acts. In the last chapter of the book of Acts.
In the West two versus of this book.
And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching and preaching the Kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding him.
I think, I hope I'm not reading too much into this to think that there's some instruction here for us that speaks more than just the historically of poll and how for our interest, how he was living out the last years of his life, he wrote there to find Lehman with all prepare me a lodging.
We need individually.
To prepare a place for Paul's teaching in our hearts and in our lives. He's an instrument that the Lord used to unfold many wonderful truths to us. And it was basically in the course of Christendom, the setting aside of Paul's teaching, that allowed the church to intermingle with the world.
We need to prepare personally a place for Paul's teaching in our life, the characteristic of the church.
Distinct from Israel, I have it linked with the Lord Jesus Christ in a heavenly calling. Those are things that the Lord used Paul to bring out. He speaks of my gospel, human Gentiles, one body together. Those things, we need to make room for them in our life because they will as we, uh, my brother spoke to us in the beginning here. The separation from this world is it's needed in our life.
00:45:05
The course of things separate from the course of this world, we need that, Paul said. All days that are in Asia are turned away from me.
He didn't say they turned away from the Lord. They denied the faith. He said they turned away from me. I believe that brings before us the turning away from what he had brought out, what the Spirit of God had used him to bring out So individually there's that importance of preparing for Paul for his teaching of lodging a place where they'll stay with us, where we can dig through and I remember reading in a a book on the history of the church that when Paul's.
A copy somewhere was found of the epistles that Paul wrote, the letters that he wrote, many, and this is around 800 I believe, AD somewhere in that time period many people were saved. Many were liberated from the dark times that were coming upon the whole professing, umm, the whole part of the world that was professing Christianity. They called them the Pelicans and they were people that were liberated from this darkness that had crept in.
With all prepare meal lodging that's individual. But then we read in the book of Acts here at the end that Umm Paul dwelled two whole years in his own hired house and received all that came in unto him.
The book of Acts gives us the transition from the Jews as God's favorite people and the the Jerusalem is the center of worship.
To getting into the Gentiles and the gospel spreading out and it being something not confined to a locality. Remember that the Lord Jesus said that the time would come. We're not in Jerusalem or in this mountain, but in spirit and truth. Would God have worshippers? Because God is a worshiper and those that worship him must worship him in spirit.
And in truth.
And how would we get from the end of the Gospels to the beginning of the book of Romans? It would be in kind of an incoherent jump to us, wouldn't it, if it wasn't for the book of Acts that gives us that transition there. But it comes to a close here and says Paul dwelt in his own two whole years in his own hired house. Well, you know, we still have Paul's teaching here and God has appointed it specifically for this time period. The sum of likened to a parentheses.
In God's dealing with Israel, that is, the day of Pentecost marked the beginning of the church, and the rapture will mark the end of the church being here on this earth. And the special application of Paul's teaching is in regard to the church. Behold, I show you a mystery. I speak concerning Christ and the church. Two whole years in his own hired house, 2000 years roughly, have gone by.
And the impact of those the importance, I should say, of those things that Paul brought out right in the beginning that were the of the foundation how believers are to meet together. What is their standing. The very things that we've had in the reading meeting here. God's purposes, God's counsels concerning Christ in the church. There still needs to be a dwelling place for Paul's teaching for his doctrine two whole years in his own hired house. What's that bring before us? Well, it says if we looked in Hebrews.
Chapter 13 that we seek no continuing here, we seek no continuing city, we seek one to come.
Those that are living in a a building a house for themselves expect to be there for a while. If you were sent on a mission that you know was going to be for two years to a certain area, you wouldn't consume half that time building a house for yourself. Would you be content to dwell in a hired 1?
It brings before us a transient state, doesn't it? Confessing that we're about pilgrims and strangers here.
He dwelt in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him.
Scripture says he that's weak in the faith receive ye and not the Downing disputations. It tells us, uh, in that same book of Philemon, umm, the message was receive them as a brother. It's to be in our hearts to receive all the command unto us. Now there's some that Scripture tells us not to receive, aren't there? There's those to come bring another gospel, those that teach things unsound concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, those who are following their own belly.
But here our heart is to encompass who the Lord has received, those that he's received. We can have no higher standard than what he has himself, those that he gave his own life for the Church of God, which he purchased with his own blood. Our hearts are to encompass all that are in that who are the brethren? It's all that have a common father, is it not? And it is all those that are part of God's family. That's what makes us.
00:50:13
Brothers and sisters in Christ, here's the attitude of Paul's doctrine is that it receives all, umm, receiving all that came in unto him.
Preaching and teaching, preaching the Kingdom of God and teaching those things which concerned the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding him. Well, what was the key to us having that confidence? Do you think as he spoke to things concerning the Kingdom of heaven, Kingdom of God announcing that?
This world in which we live is aching for a message.
People are desperate to know what's really real. It's not to say they're going to receive it, but as we heard earlier in the Reading meeting, our job is to proclaim that glad tidings, to speak of those things concerning the Kingdom of God.
God delights that by the foolishness of preaching to save those that He's marked out for eternal life. What a privilege it is to be messengers. That's our business that we're to be about, isn't it just? And that's what Paul's teaching with teachers, isn't it? Preaching the things concerning the Kingdom of God and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ. Not to be teaching all the history of churches and where they split and at what juncture and how. If you get on this side of the issue, you're right, and on that side of the issue you're wrong and so on, but the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our message, and it's not this, I don't mean to say we're to be ignorant of what's going on and christened them or throughout the the world, but the object of our conversation, the object that we are to point and direct each conversation toward with souls is the Lord Jesus Christ.
He is the center, he is the object with all confidence. No man forbidding him if we set up to.
Lay aside these principles under which Paul lived and set up build for ourselves houses, so to speak, try to build systems are enduring, umm, structures. If we, umm, if that's what we're looking for, we're gonna lose our confidence as we speak if we set up and engage so often, you know, I just in closing to tell a little story. Umm, we had breakfast with a brother once who, who was involved in child evangelism and.
Some regard and through his life and someone asked him how how he was getting along financially and he said, well, to tell you the truth, it's been really rough the last few years. They used to be a lot of different churches and missions and groups that send a lot of things, he said. But it's it's pretty rough right now.
And one in the company there asked them, how is it, uh, do you think that the Saints are less generous or just caught up in this world and making a living and have forgotten about, uh, forgotten about the gospel? He said, I don't think it's that at all. I think that what it is, the things give as much as they did before. So much is consumed in real estate and in how to pay for the snow plowing, cutting the grass and the carpets in this place, in that place and so on. So I think they give us much, but so much is paid in interest on mortgages and so on.
A very searching thing, isn't it?
Paul dwelt in his own hired house. He recognized the transientness of.
Is passing through here and what are the markets as believers as we sang in that him farewell to this world's fleeting joys that we're not building anything here our our direction, our energies, our money, our time might go to the Kingdom of God keep preaching the Kingdom of God and teaching those things concerning our Lord Jesus Christ.