Open—V. Redman, N. Simon, S. Ludvicek
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He'll be saying #327.
Lord Jesus, are we one with thee, Oh, hi, oh, death of love, and crucified and dead with thee now one in heaven above 327.
OK. Oh.
My God and blah blah blah blah blah.
Uh-huh.
Uh.
Umm.
Wednesday. Wednesday night of my life.
0121023.
OK.
I can give you a much more than one.
I like just to, uh, continue with a few thoughts that we had this morning in our reading meeting.
Uh, my wife and I, uh, have had the privilege.
And the opportunity to travel these past few years to various conferences. And we're most thankful that we have this opportunity. We really enjoy the the fellowship of the Saints.
But, uh, when we go to these conferences, we're so encouraged.
By the many young people that we see there, and to us older Saints.
And to younger ones, it's a it's a real encouragement to see young people out. I know you have places to go and other things to do, but you choose to be here for whatever reason. But you're under the sound of the word of God. And this is encouraging to have so many young people out. So I like to address a few thoughts that it has been in my heart and been exercised about to you young people and hopes that it might be an encouragement to you.
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Turn to Matthew, chapter 26.
If I seem to be nervous, please excuse me. I'm not used to being up here, but this has really been on my heart for several weeks now, and it seems that the Lord is exercising me to say what I can.
In Matthew 26, beginning verse 38.
Then saith he unto them, that is the Lord Jesus, My soul is exceeding sorrowful.
Even under death, tarry ye here and watch with me. And he went a little farther, and he fell on his face, and prayed, and saying, Oh, my father.
If it be possible, let this cup pass from me nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. And he cometh unto his disciples, and findeth them asleep. And he saith unto Peter, What could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you enter not into limitation. The Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. And he went away again the second time, praying, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drank it.
Thy will be done.
Well, here we have the Lord Jesus in anticipation. As we all know, we've read this.
Portion many times.
Here the Lord Jesus was in anticipation of going to the cross.
And here the price.
Of what it was going to be to redeem our wretched soul from hell was presented before him.
Now I was in real estate a little while few years.
And in real estate, we always try and bring the seller and the buyer together.
And there was a price that was presented and the seller always wants to get the most and the buyer always wants to get the lease. And so there was always a negotiation going on in real estate.
But, beloved young people, there was no negotiation here.
The full price to redeem our souls we've brought before the Lord Jesus.
And I can't emphasize that enough that.
There was no negotiation.
All that was.
Going to be required to vindicate a holy righteous God.
To glorify God, the Father was presented to the Lord Jesus. Here we've had the opportunity to visit this site.
They build a big church around what they thought the stone was that the Lord preyed on, but the, uh, trees are still there, and some of them over 2000 years old.
But here that was presented to the Lord Jesus.
And great agony, said he, sweat, as it were, great drops of blood, and God was presenting to him.
What it was going to entail for him.
To make that bride.
That body of Christ that we've been talking about?
He would have to be forsaken of God, his Father.
He would have to be made sin for us who knew no sin that Holy one of God.
What did that entail? I I don't know. I don't know what it meant for him. But on the cross he paid that price in full and he cried out. My God, my God, why are you forsaking me? And what was it?
For it to mean that for him to be made sin, all my sins laid on that blessed one. What did that I don't know, but I can respond to that.
I can respond to the what the Lord did for me and how he vindicated a holy God and he reconciled all things to himself and finished the work that God sent him to do. But the price was enormous, Dear young people, and what is our response? What should our response be? You know, if you ask some older brothers and sisters that have been at the Lord's table for 4050, sixty years.
They might very well tell you. I know it's true in my own heart.
And they've been doing it week after week for 4050. Sixty years. And they'll tell you that every Lord's Day is just as wonderful and just as precious and just as fresh as the day that I took my place at the Lord's Table.
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Why? Because our hearts and our minds reflect back to what it cost the Lord Jesus. It was all made before Him. And what did He say? No, I'm not going to do it. The price is too high. He sold all that He had to become sin for us, the forsaken of God.
And we remember that each Lord's Day morning, a fresh.
And of course, it's the fact that the Lord is in the midst in a very special way, and God delights to honor His Son. We read that He has given him a name which is above every name.
But here in his scene of his rejection and people still have the enmity towards God, they still hate God and they still reject the Lord Jesus as much as they did 2000 years ago. If you don't think that's true, young people get some tracks, get some gospel tracks and go out and try and pass them out to some of these people on the street. You see how much Christ is rejected.
But God, you like to honor His Son, and dear young people, I would.
Bring this to your heart. Nothing honors Christ more than to be at His table remembering Him in the midst. Nothing honors Him more. Nothing you I could ever do.
And nothing is is more delightful to the Lord Jesus.
But to have his own gather to his precious name, nothing brings more delight to him.
So what is our what should our response be to what the Lord Jesus has done on the cross to put away our sins, to bring us into this family of God?
To bring in that wonderful prospect position and hope that we have.
I believe we find the response of what it should be and what I press home to your hearts. Dear young people, we have it in First Corinthians.
The chapter before the one that we were taken up.
And I think this is a good response that the Lord would exercise our hearts.
It says in First Corinthians Chapter 11 verse 23, it says, For I have received the Lord, that which I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed.
Took bread and so forth and so forth here, the Lord Jesus, the very night that this took place just before Gethsemane.
Here was.
The night that he was going to be betrayed.
By his own all forsaken.
And he knew what lied ahead of him. He knew that the price that he was going to have to pay at Calvary was going to be presented to him in the Garden of Gethsemane. Yet he wanted a few of his own to remember him. A few gathered around himself in wonderful fellowship on that very night that he was going to be portrayed and handed over to wicked sinners like you and I and hung on the cross. He wanted a few around himself. Isn't that wonderful?
This should be our response to what the Lord Jesus has done for you and me.
He wants us to remember him. He wants us to take our place at the table.
As part of that body of Christ.
Any of us deserve to be there. No, we're there, by the grace of God, it was pointed out. But he's inviting you, dear young people.
Is what we have.
In verse 26 it says for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you do show the Lord's death till he come. It's got to be personal. It's got to be individual. We, we come together collectively, yes, to show forth the oneness of the one body, but it has to be individual that we come to the Lord's table.
And I would lay it on your hearts to young people, if you're not there, that you make it a matter of prayer that your hearts might be exercised as to asking for your place. It's gotta be personal. It's gotta be individual. So in this 26 verse, put your name there. Put your name in there and see if it does not apply to you for it. As often as Virgil Redmond eats this bread and drinks this crop, Virgil Redmond does show the Lord's death till he comes. I've had that wonderful privilege for almost 50 years.
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And I thank God, by the grace of God, that I'm there. I could be anywhere.
But he exercised my soul, my heart 50 years ago that this is the place that he wants me to be. And in view of what he's done for us, doesn't he deserve our remembrance?
Isn't he worthy of us to be at his table?
To do this as he's asked us this do and remembers to me, well, that's the only few words that I had. But I trust it might be an encouragement to young people that.
You would prayerfully consider these things and be exercising your heart as to being at the Lord's table to remember the Lord till He come.
I'd like to turn to Matthew chapter 18.
And I pray, with the Lord's help, that I might be able to speak for a few minutes on what it means to be gathered unto the name of the Lord Jesus.
Our brother mentioned it.
In exhorting you to remember the Lord that it has gathered to His name.
So let's just read.
Matthew 18 will begin with verse 15. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother, that if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church. But if he neglect to hear the Church, let him be unto thee, as an heathen man, an republican. Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. Whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth, as touching anything that shall, that they shall ask, it shall be done through them of my Father which is in heaven.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
It's with a great sense of my own weakness that I speak on these subjects. But let me express what's on my heart. And if another is exercised to add to it, then may they have liberty to do so. But recently I had the opportunity to speak to an individual. There was another brother with me, and that individual said, Well, the Lord is in our midst right now. There's three of us here.
Is that true?
Let's examine that in the light of Scripture. Does this verse simply mean that we're two or three believers come together?
They can claim the presence of the Lord in their midst in this collective way that we have expressed here. I'm not Speaking of an individual sense of His presence.
But is he there in their midst? Is this what they're saying? Well, let's have a look at these verses. Now, another common thing that we're told these days is that we just take these verses out of context. These verses have nothing to do with the assembly or.
The way that we come together.
Well, we have a bra, a situation described here where one has trespassed against another and we're exhorted to go to that individual to express our concern and if he doesn't hear or she, then we're to take that individual to two or three witnesses. So we have two or three right there. So why don't they settle the matter? Why don't they take care of things? Because they have absolutely no authority to do so.
They cannot, because they cannot claim the presence of the Lord with them in that sense that we have in Matthew 1820. But instead, if the two or three are not heard, then they were to tell it unto the Church, unto the assembly.
And why?
Well, it went on to say, What server ye shall bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven. That's not true of the two or three that had just come mentioned in the the verse previous to this. That's not true of them. That is true of the assembly. Why? Because verse 20. Why? Because where two or three are gathered together unto my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Brethren have always taken this verse to mean something more than just coming together and claiming the Lord's presence.
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No, we are gathered. That's in what we call grammatically the passive Something is gathering us, and that something must be the Spirit of God, and I won't get into that right now.
But the thought is of we are being gathered together unto him, you say, well, in my Bible, if it's the King James in front of you, it says in I don't want to get too much into in versus unto. I can assure you that in the original it is indeed unto.
But I could argue just as possibly if I was to use the word in to do something in someone's name, We we just don't I, I just can't take a a check and sign Barack Obama and the the signature line and say it's good on the.
The treasure of the United States government, I can't do something and in his name, I have no authority to do it in his name. But that's exactly what Christians are doing. They're taking the name of Lord and saying of of the Lord Jesus and saying that they have his authority when they're acting in their own will.
Let's move on and look at another familiar portion, First Corinthians 5. Here we have probably the best known example of assembly discipline in the Scriptures. First Corinthians five. He was a man that was caught in immorality and the assembly has to act. If what I have just said is true, we would find those principles in this chapter.
Let's see what it says.
So First Corinthians 5, the apostle, now the Corinthians were very carnal. He was a person that was ultimately immoral, immoral. It was commonly reported. It wasn't a hidden thing right there in their midst. And the apostle Paul has to exalt them to act. You know, there's two things emphasized in, there's more than two emphasized, but there are two things emphasized in First Corinthians. There's a lordship of Christ and the Holy Spirit. And we've seen something of that this morning.
But he is having to exhort them and he says in verse 3, for I verily as absent in body. In other words, he wasn't there physically. He says I'm not there with you physically, but I am present in spirit. Little S having judged already as though I were present. You know, this matter didn't require a court to sit down and examine the person to weigh up the pros and cons. This person was living in clear violation of Scripture.
You know, there are many incidences of things that come amongst the Saints of God where we don't have to debate them.
They're in clear violation of scripture and the assembly is called upon to act. Why? Well, is he Lord or not?
And so the apostle Paul says, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that's the only basis of authority that they had to act. It had to be in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. When ye are gathered together and my spirit, again, Paul couldn't be there, but he says in spirit, I will be there with you.
With the power of our Lord Jesus Christ to deliver such a one unto Satan, on what basis could they claim the power of the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, the only basis we can claim the power of the Lord Jesus Christ if we're gathered together unto Him.
And he is there in the midst.
Going back to what I said in Matthew 18, those two or three that were called or the two that were called to come along to be witnesses, they didn't have any power to act in that matter. It had to be brought before the assembly. And why? For where two or three are gathered together under My name, there am I in the midst of them.
It means something, brethren. It means something. Otherwise, if we make it to mean we're just any two or three Saints of God come together. I could be on the street out here talking with two of my brethren and we could enact something and claim it's done in the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, and it would.
Affect all of you what you say. I don't believe that either. And indeed that's what's happened in Christendom. They take this verse in Matthew 1820 and say wherever any believers that come together, the Lord Jesus Christ is in the midst because he's promised that. But when an assembly does act or a so-called assembly does act, no one else recognizes it. In other words, they don't recognize the power of the Lord Jesus Christ in the midst. They don't recognize it. It's in name only. They've completely gutted this verse of any meaning.
Let's look at another verse in Hebrews.
The 13th chapter.
In Hebrews chapter 13 and verse 9, be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is good thing that the happy established with grace, and not with meats which have not profited in them, which have occupied, which have been occupied. Therein we have an altar where they have no right to eat, which serves the Tabernacle. This thought that there might be some that have no right to eat.
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That's completely gone and Christendom.
The thought of separation from others within Christendom is met with outright indignation, and yet Scripture calls upon us to separate from those that we can't go on with because of perhaps immorality that they're connected with, perhaps a system that they're connected with, perhaps doctrine that they're connected with. We'll talk a little more about that in a minute.
I don't want to take too long. Verse 11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto Him, without the camp, bearing his reproach. If we want to be gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we go unto him. We don't ask Him to come to us, we go unto Him, and if we go unto Him.
We will be found together. We will be found collectively together, gathered around the Lord Jesus. Now it says here that again, I refer back to verse 10. We have an altar where they have no right to each which serve the Tabernacle. Think about that. Where was the Tabernacle in that day? There was no Tabernacle. There wasn't one. There hadn't been for hundreds of years. You know, sometimes the Apostle Paul.
Required those that he wrote to to understand a little bit about what he was writing.
And sometimes you and I have to apply our minds, you know?
Knowledge pops up, but that doesn't mean to say that we shouldn't have knowledge. You know, ignorance is not a good thing. We need to have knowledge, but it needs to also go down into our hearts, and sometimes it's a long way from our head to our hearts. There was no Tabernacle in those days. But he's referring back to one of the sin offerings where the offering had to be burned without the camp.
It's an interesting study in the Old Testament to look to see those occasions with a Tabernacle had to be taken outside of the camp, and it's always in connection with defilement had come in amongst the people of God. Were the people in the camp no longer the people of God? No, they were the people of God. But if they wanted to worship, they had to go without the camp. And those principles are as true today as they were in that day. Christ has suffered without the camp.
And whether it's Speaking of Israel and it it certainly was Speaking of Israel in those days, you know, the Lord came unto his own and even after the cross, he worked with his own. But there was a point where the disciples had to be separated from the synagogue. And we see that process throughout the book of Acts. And so there were those that even if they claimed to believe that the Lord Jesus was Messiah, as long as they continued on worshipping.
In the Jewish way, they're required a separation from them. They had no right to eat in this conversation that I had with this individual. And they said you make too much of reception at the Lord's Table.
You know, if I want to come and break bread, that's should be up to me.
And they asked where in Scripture do you have a chapter that talks about receiving at the Lord's Table where it says, well, you have to meet with the individual and then you have to wait a month and has to be reported to the care meeting. And I will grant you that there isn't such a chapter. And maybe in some cases we are too hesitant. In some cases we're too stuck in a, a, a tradition, perhaps even. But you know what, just as a, a side note, I would hesitate.
To condemn old tradition, it's a, it's a, it's a popular thing to do to label something tradition.
And thereby condemn it. Umm, I could show you a verse we won't digress but in I believe it's First Thessalonians where it talks about those things handed down from the Father's traditions. Don't be so ready to throw out tradition because you don't understand them. Find out why things are the way they are. Why? Why?
But going back to receiving at the Lord's table, being gathered to the Lord's name, let's just quickly.
Have a look at a verse in Romans 15. The Scriptures say nothing about receiving individuals at the Lord's table. Nothing about receiving individuals.
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Well, I don't understand why God has given us the scriptures the way that He has.
But you know what's just as true of prophecy? I'd love if there was just one book of the Bible that just neatly laid out prophecy from beginning to end, just the way that I wanted it.
But God hasn't chosen to do that. Instead, he chose to communicate these things concerning the church through Paul's epistles where he was writing to different assemblies and there were different needs of those assemblies. And so you have to go through Paul's epistles and you'll find a little bit here and a little bit there and so on. But in Romans chapter 15 it says.
Verse 7 Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.
Well, there we have something about receiving one another, but it's as uh, I just lost my umm, as Christ also received us. Let's just move on to chapter 16. I commend unto you Phoebe Al Sisto, which is a servant of the church which is in Saint Crea. Now, why would the apostle Paul write that about Phoebe if Phoebe could just go to Karen and just.
Receive herself at the Lord's Table, on her own testimony, on her own witness. Why did he bother writing this? Does it not matter? Do these things mean nothing to us?
Let's just turn back to Acts chapter 20. So those two sides were, let's say, the positive side of things. And one, we have an expectation to receive one another even as Christ has also received us. And now that we see Paul commending our sister Phoebe to the assembly there in Corinth saying please receive her.
But now we get to the negative side in Acts chapter 20.
It says.
And uh, I just began reading in verse 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter it among you, not sparing the flock also of your own selves, your men arise speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after themselves. Therefore watch and remember that by the space of three years I cease not to win everyone night and day with tears. This individual suggested that as I said, that we make too much of receiving and, and we should more or less receive anyone. And when something shows up like close Corinthians 5.
Then we should act on it. And I asked that person, what are we supposed to do with this exhortation that we have here?
What are we supposed to do with it? What? How am I supposed to act on that practically?
Or collectively, I should say housing Assembly supposed to act on that. Collectively, I don't know what they thought, but they didn't give an answer. We have exploitation here as to what would come in and that we're to watch. Let's look in Jude now, in Jude Chapter 4.
Well, there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Well, here were.
A case where individuals had crept in unawares. Why does it say unawares? Well, if they'd been aware of it, they wouldn't have let them come in again. What are we supposed to do with a verse like this?
Are we not supposed to care as to who is coming in and who is in our midst? Are we not supposed to be exercised about it? You know, there was a verse, and I'll just wrap up my brief thoughts that, but there was a verse that was read this morning from Hebrews chapter 3. It says Christ the son of his own house. Whose house are we? Whose house is it? It's Christ's house.
It's not our own house. I said earlier on that in Paul's letter to the Corinthians, he emphasizes the Lordship of Christ and the Holy Spirit. Whose table is it? It's the Lord's. Whose supper is it? It's the Lord's. Let's turn to 1St Corinthians 10 again. 11 Sorry. Well, what does that mean? What does that mean? What does that mean to you to say that it's the Lord's table, that it's the Lord's Supper, that it's his house?
Excuse me? That is his day, the Lord's Day. What does that mean to you? Does it actually have any meaning left in itself?
You know, I've used this example before, but if I was to I, I left my two sons home this weekend and I do indeed pray that they're behaving themselves wisely. And my, uh, parents went away on vacation when I was a boy and left myself and my two brothers to take care of the farm. My two brothers are older than me. But let's say one of my sons decides he's going to do something and my other son says no, no, no, I don't think that would be good. Why?
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You know, my younger son might say to my older son, no, no, no, you really shouldn't do that. And he, my, my oldest son might tend to say, boy, what authority have you got to tell me anything? Well, it's not our house.
It's not our house. And so that's what it means when it says it's the Lord's Supper. It's not our supper. That doesn't mean that we don't care.
That doesn't mean we don't have a care for those that are in our midst. We should have a godly care and we should have a godly care as to those that come into our midst.
Because it's not our supper, it's the Lord's Supper. Now in First Corinthians 10, the Corinthians were coming together and, uh, they were believing that. They were remembering the Lord and the apostle Paul has to tell them.
In verse 20, when you come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's Supper. Here's to tell them what you're doing is not the Lord's Supper. And then he goes on to describe and tell them what no doubt he had taught them earlier about how to appropriately.
Remember the Lord.
And at the end of that chapter, he says.
In verse 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup, for he that drink eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the body or the Lord's body, it says in our translation.
What is this really saying? Well, first of all, let's make it very clear that it's speaking to those that were thought they were remembering the Lord, speaking to those that were remembering the Lord.
But the Corinthians had turned it into such an appalling occasion.
That the Apostle Paul has to address their behavior.
And what he's addressing here is that very behavior, the manner in which they were doing it. And the apostle Paul says, no, no, you need to examine yourself. This is not the way you're supposed to behaving. This is not the way that you're supposed to be doing it. Examine yourselves. And so let.
Him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. So in no way does this chapter by any stretch of the imagination refer to receiving at the Lord's table is speaking to those that were remembering the Lord and it was speaking to the manner in which they were doing it, which was entirely inappropriate. And it says if you remember the Lord in such an unworthy manner that there's no wonder that sickness and trials have come in amongst you.
Because this is not the way the Lord intended.
I started out by talking about being gathered to the Lord's name and how that it means something, has always meant something, and not simply where I choose to come together that I can claim the Lord's presence in the midst. I just want to go back to that subject because I have one other thought and I apologize for being so disconnected.
But do we find an assembly in Scripture where the Lord is not in the midst?
I mean, surely that would be very telling, wouldn't it? If, if what is true in Christendom where any believers come together, the Lord's in the midst, they can claim that, then it would be very telling if we could find an assembly in Scripture where the Lord is not in the midst. And yes, we do have one, it's called Laodicea. Let's just turn to Revelation chapter 3 in closing.
Revelation chapter 3 and verse 20.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. The Lord is outside the assembly. I know this verse is taken up in the gospel and umm, there's an appropriate way and means to do that, but this verse is both speaking to a literal assembly and should never be forgotten.
It's also given to us and there's a word for it, but I don't know that word. I'll ask Jonathan afterwards, but where it would it it speaks to us of these seven churches give us an outline of the history of Christendom. But I taking this both literally and in the latter sense. Here we find an assembly, especially the the literal sense. Here we find assembly where Christ is shut out and he's seen as outside knocking at the door.
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But notice what follows. It says, If any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come into them. No, it doesn't say that. It says unto him, and will Sup with him, and he with me. I believe with all my heart that there are many dear fellow believers in Christendom that have a strong sense of the Lord's personal presence with them, that are even ministering in the power of the Holy Spirit, and souls are being saved, or whatever the case may be.
But they are associated with systems that I cannot identify with, if I'm going to say true to the word of God. And I'm thankful that there are those in the camp still ministering.
But remember, I'm not asking you to be gathered to meet, I'm asking you to be gathered to the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And if we both are, we will be found together.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I, in the midst of them, right where Nick was talking about.
I've always looked at that verse and taken it just as it is.
And in connection with diverse, he also quoted in Romans chapter five or First Corinthians chapter 5.
It's being gathered in the name of Christ and unto His person. We talk and we make much about the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you're gathered unto His person, you're also gathered unto His name. It can't be without it at all.
But he is the attraction of that, and whenever the discussion comes up about assembly, discipline and assembly decisions and so on, sometimes people get lost in that, this talk about authority, that there is authority. We don't have intrinsic authority in ourselves, but why is there authority in a place that is truly gathered in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ on the ground truth and principle that there is one body? It's because He's there, it's Him, it's himself.
That's the power, that's what makes the difference. It has nothing to do with us. And in recognition of that, that it's him. And as our brother was saying, I'll talking about his two sons having a conversation back home. It's their father's house. It's not their house. And when that's thought of, it's because of him. And when the Lord Jesus is seen in that way, uh, I grew up in the assembly and certainly I didn't know very much about.
Those things, I heard them as a youth and as I grew older and began to grasp hold of them as time went on and learn from many who have have taught and began to get a hold of that, yeah, you get a little bit better understanding as time goes on, but that it's him.
That he's there. You know, Scripture tells us both in the Old Testament and the New Testament of the Lord Jesus, it says in the old that he actually sings.
In the congregation in the new, it says he sings in the assembly. The Lord Jesus sings in the assembly. Yeah, he does.
And if we know and believe that it is true, that we have been by the Spirit of God brought to some place, and gathered in his name, and attracted to His person, and we have also gathered unto His name.
In practical ways, sometimes in conversations we have with others as brother Nick was talking about, there was a dear brother that I knew years ago that I worked with and he was a soul winner and he was a Baptist brother. He happened to be. And we had a number of conversations about this subject. And as Nick had brought out and others, I know a lot have had some conversation where people will say to you that, well, you make too much of this. And the same thoughts about well, if you're.
Two or three Christians hanging out playing basketball. The Lord is in the midst. Well, that's not what Scripture is talking about. This has already been pointed out.
But the Spirit of God really does lead and guide, and he does take the scriptures and he does draw us. And he would have us go so far, and we only go so far as we're willing to go. So in this conversation, we were talking about this and the story went along this line. I said to him, I said, Jim.
Let's make a hypothetical situation. I said I have dear friends that go to South America and go to faraway places. I've never been to these places, but let's make it easy for you. Belize is an English speaking country and you speak English. Let's say you went there to some outer village on vacation, you and your wife and I know you, Jim. I said if you had opportunity you would speak of Christ to those who were there. Let's say in this place there are no churches, there's nothing. All that's known is paganism.
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And nothing of Christ, but you're there and you lead a soul to Christ and another and another and another. And pretty soon, in a few days time, there are 50 people who have responded to the gospel. I said, I know you, Jim, you would be rejoicing. Be so happy to be there and be doing this. I said, now tell me from Scripture what you would do next.
Told me from scripture, there's no Baptist Church. There's nothing. There's no place to go. You've got 15 new people that have come to know the Lord Jesus as their Savior. You've given them Bibles, they can read them. They're there. What what are you going to do next? He said, well, we form a church. OK, show me.
Well, you gotta have a church.
Show me, I said. First of all, Brother Jim, you're a Baptist. What would you do next? Oh, baptize them.
And we chuckle just like we're chuckling. And of course, any we looked at that and baptized. What would you do next?
Get a form of committee. I mean, we kept coming back that you have to have a church. I said. How about they already are the church?
Dozens of scriptures that we've been talking about that we had in the meeting before, these new believers, 50 of them, including Jim and his wife in that city, wherever they are, they are now members of the body of Christ. They are the church in that place. And what do you need to do? Show them from here that that's what they are like we've had in the meeting today in the reading that this is what you are, you know?
You have been born again. The Spirit of God has joined you with Christ, who's in heaven. Now you start to show them what this is. Well, what do those people do?
What do they do? What says here they came together and they broke bread, they prayed, they did these things?
Well, do we have scripture instruction for them? I said if you did that.
One step at a time, you would be following the leadership of the Spirit of God and those people would be coming together some place where there was a convenient area. It could be in the field, it could be in a home, in a barn, along the lake, wherever it is. And you would say, well, it says here, for where two or three are gathered together in my name, Who is the gatherer? He is the Spirit of God. What do we do when we come together? We do what the Scripture says. What are you? You're members of the body of Christ. You are the church. You're the redeemed. All those things began to be learned upon.
Things, Jim, I said that you already know about, but now in a practical way are taking place. Now what you have, you have the church doing what it's supposed to be doing. It is the body of Christ. It's acting. And you learn and you begin to learn. You know, I told that story to him because as I was growing up, some of the most helpful things that I learned were from Brother Whitaker and Dan Anderson, who learned those things as they tried to explain.
To the Africans in Africa, simple things from the word of God and not tradition from church or denominational things they actually learned as they were trying to teach others. And I remember those stories that they told as they expressed those things from back in Africa and is one step at a time. The Lord brought them along because they were honestly trying to tell new people who knew the Lord Jesus brand new, the simple truth in a simple way.
And they learned them themselves going one step at a time that they are what they are. So when we hear growing up in Christian homes, uh, if you grew up in an assembly someplace gathered to the name and unto the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, you've heard of on the one body, on the one body, maybe so many times you just, it just loses its meaning.
The ground truth or principle, and I I will say it like that, that there is one body and not many.
That truth that we know that we've been talking about this morning, that principle is the basis or ground. There is no other. If you come up with something else, when I was talking with this dear brother, I said, you know, if you form something, you have these 50 people. If you make something, you have the same 50 people. But whatever you make is something you make. It may be real Christians, all fifty of them, it's, it's the church. But whatever you made, you laid on top of it.
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You made something new, and I don't care what you call it, it's something you made. It's something different other than what the scripture says.
And that's what happens right there is where many believers take a hard left or right turn because they're so used to the idea that you have to do something instead of just taking one step at a time and following it through the Scriptures. So yeah, no matter what age you are, when you hear that thought about being gathered in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ unto his person on the ground truth and principle that there is one body, there is only one body. The Lord knows it, He sees it. He knows every true believer on this planet.
No matter what group they happen to be with, He sees every single true one there and they shine out unto Him. He knows who they are and that body is one and it is linked together. He sees it and whether they know it or not. Just like Nick says, the Lord does provide for their feeding wherever they are. But if we do follow the scriptures and we do understand truth and we want to obey them, then there are places we cannot walk. And even though you can meet the.
Lovely believers along the way when you travel, I do often in business.
Uh, it's lovely to have a little moment with them one-on-one when you can. Just before I left.
The law firm that I work with asked me to pick up some documents at a, at a business place and take them over to the office. And as I sat with this dear old lady in her office, uh, she, the son owned the company. She had, uh, taken some time to get these documents together. And I, she told me she'd been ill. So I sat there and she said, they tell me I have cancer. I have a large growth next to my, my kidney and I, and I'm going to have to have surgery and it's very difficult. The 1St doctor said, Oh no, I don't think I can.
But another doctor said, yes, we're going to operate. And she was frightened. And as we talked, I realized she was the Lord. And I said to her, can I pray with you? Oh, yes, please. So we held hands across the desk and we prayed together.
As this dear lady, a simple believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, a simple statement of faith and a member of the body of Christ. And we wept together and we prayed as she faced this surgery. And I laughed and she thanked me and I walked out of there and went delivered the documents to the office. I told my boss who was a Christian about it. And he allows me that freedom to be able to do whatever I want when I'm with wherever and there's no restrictions. That was a member of the body of Christ that I enjoyed a little time and moment with and I will treasure it as I go along the way. I will see her again.
And if it's not on this earth, I will see her in glory. And the Lord loves her every bit as much as He loves anyone of us.
#22 in the appendix.
Uh.
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She didn't understand the name.
Of all.
123, 10-4 19.
1439.
3/5.
115.
And of the church.
My body.
Of Christ, love, grace, thou grave come when they get through the blood thinning. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
OK.
You're taking.
Oh, oh, we should have done today in the vinegar. 1A Bhaiyyaji Jayaraman, a lot of things. They didn't make it and then I'll turn on the oil. Umm.
All right, well, I'll go over everything.
And drop down again. I can't hear you.
I haven't had a fire, and when I'm tired and I'm fine, but it's bright. Shuffled among the winds into your eyes.