Open—S. Stewart, J. Sacks, P. Daplyn
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For take up the subject that uh.
Trust in the Lord's will to look at.
Just wanted to read a verse from First Timothy.
And chapter 4.
Verse 13 Till I come give attendance to reading, to exhortation.
To doctrine.
I suppose normally we think of an open meeting.
As we had scriptures read to us yesterday in connection.
With first Corinthians 14 character of ministry that brings us into.
The presence of God, gratification, expectation, and comfort rather than doctrine.
But there's a burden with one's heart that we have a real deep need.
Of sound doctrine and the day that we're in, I'd like to turn to Romans Chapter 9.
Romans 9 verse one I say the truth in Christ.
I lined up my conscience also, bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart, for I could wish that myself were cursed from Christ. For my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh, who are Israelites, soon pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law and the service of God.
And the promises, whose are the fathers?
And of whom is concerning the flesh Christ came, whose overall God blessed forever. Amen.
In the book of Romans, the apostle Paul brings out in the earlier chapters the doctrine that there is no difference.
Between Jew and Gentile, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is no difference.
And in chapters 9:10 and 11:00 he takes up and he addresses the question that would come up in the heart of a Jew. Well, if there's no difference, what about the special promises made to Israel?
What about those?
Isn't there a difference to be made there? And the apostle in these chapters brings out that if man is going to come into blessing at all, it is going to be on the grounds of His sovereign mercy, on the grounds of His sovereignty, and nothing else.
And so the Jews accused Paul, even the believers that and when we we, if we looked at acts, when he returned to Jerusalem, they said to him, brother, thou see us how many thousands of Jews there are that believe and they're all zealous of the law.
They still saw themselves on Jewish ground even though they had received Christ as Savior.
And they felt there was a difference between them and the Gentile believers, and that here Paul was going around and making as if there's no difference, and really taking from them the special promises that were theirs and denying the special place that God had given them and the special privileges, and that he was really.
Putting down Israel.
And the apostle labors in these first few verses.
That that's not true and he brings out his heart that it is really towards Israel. He had them as a continual burden on his heart for their blessing. So much so that he even could have, uh, wished himself a curse from Christ for them. Not that he actually.
Wished himself that it would be, but that was a passing thought through his heart, just like Moses when he interceded for the people of God.
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And he said, and the Lord said, Moses, I'll take you and I'll make a nation of you. He says, if you don't go up with us, don't bring me either. You know, he, he really so identified with God's earthly people there in the wilderness. And Paul in the same way. It was a settled sorrow in his heart and the and so much so that this thought that you might say pass through his heart.
If he could only do something for his.
Berthin And then he acknowledges their special place. Who are Israelites? What does that name mean? A Prince with God. What a title they have Israelites, a Prince with God. For Jacob was given that name by the Angel as having power with God and with man.
Who are Israelites? Who pertaineth the adoption? That's the national adoption in Christianity we find we have individually.
A place of adoption, a place of sons in the family of God. They have a special place in the family of nations.
Out of Israel, out of Egypt have I called my son, God said of Israel.
They have that place nationally of sonship, having received the adoption and the glory. Oh, think of that cloud that overshadowed them, and that pillar of fire by night, the visible sign of the glory of God, the token of His presence with them all through the wilderness and.
The Covenants.
They had.
The special promises, blessings, covenants that God had, uh, made with them, that he made with no other nation on this earth, the giving of the law. They had the word of God. No other nation had the word of God in that way.
The service of God, the service of God, that wonderful Levitical service.
And all that surrounded it and all its order. And it's, it's uh, uh, sacrifices and ordinances, all that, uh, surrounded the worship of Jehovah, the service of God, and the promises.
Whose are the fathers they patriarchs were in? That's who they sprang from.
They were theirs.
Whose are the fathers of whom concerning the flesh Christ came? We have as Gentiles no such lineage as Israel had, and it was of Israel as concerning the flesh that Christ came.
Born to that favored nation.
Who is overall?
All as concerning the flesh. He came to Israel, but he's overhaul. He's not just their savior.
And so this goes out more broadly, who is overall God blessed forever?
Amen. He's not exclusively Israel. So according to the flesh, he came to that favored nation.
God blessed forever he is.
Though become a man, the eternal God, and worthy of eternal worship.
And so the apostle is reassuring them. He recognizes the special place that Israel had, the special blessings that they had, and fully acknowledges it and is hardest for them. He hadn't just thrown them off, didn't care anything about them. And this doctrine that he preached, there is no difference.
Verse 6. Not as though the word of God had taken none effect.
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For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel. Let's turn back to a little past where we were in John chapter 8.
Lord, speaking to the Jews.
Verse 37 I know that ye are Abraham's seed. Please seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you. I speak that which I have seen with my father, and ye do that which ye have seen with your father. They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If he were Abraham's children.
He would do the works of Abraham.
Not all that were Israel by lineage were really of Israel. And so the Apostle Paul in the end of Galatians uses a phrase, the Israel of God.
That is, those who were of Israel, who had put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ were truly of Israel, and he calls them the Israel of God. And so he's going to take up this.
Thought.
As to natural descent, if that indeed is what entitled them to blessing.
Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children. But in Isaac shall thy seed be called, that is, they which are children of the flesh. These are not the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted for seed. For this is the word. For this the word is of promise.
At this time will I come, and Sarah shall have a son.
And so he goes back to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac, and he said if the promise, if the blessing is going to come based on natural descent, some natural thing.
Than Ishmael.
Should be a partaker.
Of those very things but gone. And his sovereignty had said that Sarah would have a son, and in him those promises would rest. And he would say, is he, is he saying to the Jews, if you insist that the blessing comes to you because of the family you were born into, because of your natural lineage in this world?
Then you must admit the Ishmaelites.
Into that line of blessing.
And Noju would ever, ever concede to that. But they might say, well, you know what? Ishmael was just the son of a slave woman.
And Isaac was the son of Sarah.
You know, through the book of Romans, we find that it's often a court scene and the apostle Paul, like a, uh, seasoned prosecutor, brings one argument up after another and deals with it before the bar of the court. And so he does here. He is a divinely inspired.
Reasoner here to bring up and deal with each argument that might come.
Well, he said, that's true.
Ishmael who acknowledge that foreign of Hagar she was a bond woman, but what about?
What about the next two that were born in that line? What about Rebecca's sons? What about Jacob and Esau?
And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by 1 even by our father Isaac. For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand not of works, but of him that calleth, It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger, as it is written, Jacob have.
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But Esau have I hated.
Here's to They're born of the same mother. One's not born of a bond woman and the other of the free. They're both born of the same mother.
They're twins.
Same father.
For God and His sovereignty.
Chose one.
Or blessing.
And he said that the elder would serve the younger before they were born, before anything in their character had manifested itself, before they had done anything in their lives.
Whether evil or good.
Nothing to.
Nothing in their lives that would either not commend them or commend them.
It's the sovereignty of God.
That made that choice. And what about you and I?
The only way you and I have come into blessing.
Is through the sovereign choice of God that election might stand. God made a sovereign choice and a past eternity, and He chose you and me for a blessing, just like He chose Jacob before those boys were ever born.
Now there are those who hold the doctrine of election.
But they also hold something else. They hold what is called an eternal decree of reprobation.
That is, that God from a past eternity has not only chosen some for blessing, but he has chosen some to be cast into the pit, into a lost eternity.
From before they were ever born.
Eternally he has decreed their reprobation. That's what John Calvin held.
And that group.
Of believers that hold that doctrine are commonly called Calvinists.
Is that true?
Jacob have I loved.
Police saw have I hated when was that said, you know, they take this scripture up and they read that verse and they connect it with what is just said before and they say, you see God loved Jacob before he was born and he hated Esau before he was ever born from a past eternity, he hated Esau.
And that's a twisting of the scriptures.
Because that quote is from Malachi.
All the way at the end of the Old Testament.
Long after Jacob and Esau had manifested their character, and Jacob or Esau showed himself to be the inveterate enemy of his brother who he hated, and he still is an enemy of Jacob. And after their character is fully brought out into the open all the way at the end.
Of the Old Testament, God makes this pronouncement. Jacob have I loved Esau. If I hated he did not hate him from a past eternity.
That is God's pronouncement after his character personally as well as his descendants, His posterity had fully manifested itself.
What shall we say then?
Is there unrighteousness?
With God.
Satan wants to put.
A question in our hearts.
And this is the question, is God unfair?
And this truth of his sovereign election and choice.
His unrighteous man to set in judgment on righteous God? No.
God forbid.
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God forbid that man, unrighteous man, should set in judgment upon righteous God. He does what he wants to do.
And it is his right to do what he wants to do.
And then the apostle says, well, let's take you up on this question.
Of righteousness. Is God righteous? Is he fair in this choice? Let's take up the situation on this principle of righteousness.
He says to the Jews, Where would you be if we took everything up on the principle of righteousness, and where would you be, and where would I be?
If everything was on the principle of righteousness.
For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
When was that sent?
Oh, let's go all the way back to that scene at the bottom of Mount Sinai.
As for this man Moses, we don't know where he is. Aaron, make us gods break off your earrings. Give them to me. And he fashioned the golden calf.
He set it up. This be thy gods, O Israel.
And they had a feast to Jehovah.
And they worship that calf.
And made themselves naked, dancing around that calf. And Moses comes down from the mount with the law of God in his hands. Those two tables of stone. There's the inflexible rule of righteousness.
You can't bend stone.
And he had to break it beneath the mound. He couldn't bring it into the camp that pure.
Perfect righteous standard for man.
Else all would have died.
There wouldn't even be a Jew left for the Apostle Paul to speak to.
Let's take it up on the grounds of righteousness. Where would you and I be?
Centers of the Gentiles.
Oh, how thankful.
We can be for the sovereignty of God that set His heart of love and grace upon us and picked us up.
I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.
And I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
So then, here's a conclusion.
So then it is not of him that willeth, or of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy.
It is not.
In the force of man's will that he is brought into blessing.
Why?
Because his natural heart is an enmity with God, he has no desire. The flesh cannot please God. It cannot do the will of God, has no desire towards the will of God.
It's not of him that Willis, nor of him that runneth, not of anyone that's doing anything. Our brother Wally well brought that before us in the Sunday school this morning. Not by works of righteousness, which we have done. It's not by any labor or anything that we can do. Not of will, not of effort.
But of God that showeth mercy.
Let's turn back for a moment.
I can't remember if these, uh, exact scriptures were read by my brother John this morning. I think so from John's Gospel chapter one.
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Some of these he read John chapter one.
Verse five And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not.
A strong. It's a stronger word than comprehend. It should be translated Apprehend. Comprehend means I understand the thing. Apprehend means I've got a hold of it. A thief gets apprehended, law lays a hold of him.
It didn't even apprehend the light, couldn't even get a hold of it.
The light turned on and the darkness didn't even go away. Didn't even realize there was light.
Didn't apprehend it.
So he sent a man named John, and what was his mission? He said there's the light.
There's the light. He had to point it out to the darkness because it apprehended it, not.
Verse 9. That was the true.
Light. Why the true light?
The light that is in thee be darkness. How great is that darkness? There's a lot that professes to be light in this world to day and its darkness. It's not the true light. He was the true light.
Which lighteth every man that cometh into the world? Or this is the true light, that upon his coming into the world has shed his light, or enlightened every man, not enlightened him in his conscience, or in his mind, or in his heart, but as shed light upon him to expose him in his true condition before God.
Lost.
Lost.
He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. And so at the cross, when the Gentiles took him and nailed him to that cross, he said, Father, forgive them. Why? For they know not what they do. They knew him not, but his own received him not.
His own received and not all the darkness if we were to turn the lights off in this room won't hurt us.
It's passive, but this darkness was not passive.
It was energetic in its opposition to the light and is.
And it refused the light, but as many as received him to them gave he power or the right.
The privilege.
To become.
Should read the children of God, even to them which believe on his name.
The believers in the Old Testament were children of God, but they didn't know it.
When Christ came.
Then those who believed on him, he gave the right to know that they were God's children and to know one another as God's children and to know God as their Father and they as his children. That's what he gave them that believe on His name.
That's what he's given you and I that believe on his name.
But who has believed on his name?
The darkness didn't know him.
It refused him wouldn't receive who then who then believed on his name?
That he gave such a right to.
Which?
Were born.
Not of blood.
Those who believed on his name were born but not of blood, not of natural descent, not by any family they belong to or any family title.
Whether it's family or nation or whatever it was.
Not of blood. Not because you were born of Israel.
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Or is Brother Wally brought before us? I think one of those sticks was because my parents are Christians.
Not of blood.
Nor of the will of the flesh.
Not of any internal willing and desire that it would be so. As we already said, the flesh is an enmity with God. Romans 8.
Nor of the will of man, not by the exertion of anybody else's will upon you or upon me. No priest's absolution.
Nothing of anybody else's will towards me or for me in any way, but nor of the will of man, but of God.
Which were born, Oh God.
Those are the ones that believed on His name. Those were the ones He gave the right to know that they were God's children.
And relationship to him and to one another.
How were we born of God?
Let's just turn over Chapter 3.
Verse 5 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit.
Of his own will. Let's just read it, James. I love this verse.
James chapter one.
Verse 18 of His own will begat he us with the word of truth.
That we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Turn over to Peter.
Chapter one, verse 23 Being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the word of God. Go back to Romans 9.
Dear ones, He has exercised His sovereignty towards you and me and imparting a life where there was none before in His sovereign. Will you?
Have been born of God.
And you didn't have anything more to do with it than you did your own natural birth, born of God. That's how you came into blessing and into His family, His sovereign action towards you. Why? Just because He did it. And He loved you and set His love upon you and upon me. We owe Him.
Everything.
Perhaps it's that we've slipped from this sense of the sovereignty of God and his election as to our salvation and eternal destiny that we become careless in our souls as to our walk because we think we have something to do with the matter.
We owe everything to him.
Back to Romans 9.
Verse 17 For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, and that My name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore he hath mercy on whom he will, have mercy on whom he will.
He hardeneth.
You know, our thoughts really can't go.
Verse 18 brings us to a point that we just can't pass in our thoughts.
And the sovereignty of God.
Goes beyond our understanding.
But Pharaoh is brought up here as an example from the scripture.
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God told Moses.
That pharaoh was going to refuse to let the people go from Egypt.
He told him that he would harden Pharaoh's heart.
I would really recommend.
And studying this out that you read the new translation and that that account in Exodus.
Over and over again.
Until we get I believe it is Chapter 9 of Exodus.
It says a pharaoh.
That he hardened.
His heart. But when we get to Exodus 9 and verse 12.
It says, And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them, as the Lord had spoken unto Moses the King. James. Translation.
Translated by men.
Who held the eternal doctrine doctrine of eternal retro reprobation and did not understand?
The scriptures that we're taking up this afternoon.
And there are mistranslations in connection with Pharaoh hardening his own heart, and it's translated as if God was hardening his heart.
But you'll find in the new translation that the first historical place that God himself hardened Pharaoh's heart is Chapter 9 and verse 12. Over and over and over, Pharaoh hardened his own heart.
Towards God.
And God then finally hardened her, hardened Pharaoh's heart, as he had told Moses he would do.
For this cause have I raised thee up. Those that hold the eternal doctrine of eternal reprobation would say God from a past eternity chose Pharaoh, and purpose that he would be born.
Destined to a lost eternity.
He hardened his fair, his heart from his birth.
It's not true.
It's not true. It's not what the scripture says. For this cause have I raised thee up? Is not for this cause have you been born.
For this cause have I raised thee up to a place of power and prominence in Egypt, that I might be glorified.
He was not born in the purpose of God.
For a lost eternity.
But God raised this wicked man up to a place of prominence and power, that he might show his might and his glory might be displayed. And that wicked man hardened his heart towards God over and over, and God finally.
Hardened it permanently.
There's a little thing heard from time I was young.
Omni.
Done well.
Some shell.
Whosoever will may come and take of the water of life freely, all may.
None will. Let's just turn to a verse again. And John for that.
John's Gospel, the chapter that we are in.
Pepper 6.
Well, let's actually the Versailles probably wants chapter 5, sorry John 5 and verse 40 and ye will not come to me that you might have life.
There's man's will all may whosoever will may come not, all may none will ye will not come to me.
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Some shall.
Who? Those who were born?
Of God, through His sovereign act of showing mercy, on whom He will show mercy, and having compassion on whom He will have compassion.
All may the work of propitiationists satisfy the heart of God, and free them to come out in love and grace to loss and ruin man. But man's heart so poisoned in all its.
It's springs by Satan's lies, prefer Satan's lies to God's truth, and will not come that he might have life, but God has purpose for the satisfaction of his own heart.
That some shall come, but he has to act. And so it's pictured in Luke chapter 14 in that House of that great man who sent that invitation out. All things are ready come. And it says in the new translation, without exception, they all began to make excuse without exception.
None will.
And he sends this servant out to compel.
To come in that this house might be filled, that's the Spirit of God.
Are you going to be in the Father's house? The Lord comes in a moment. We'll be there. You will be in the Father's house as one who has been compelled by the Spirit of God to come in and let's rejoice in it now. We're all here who know the Lord, compelled once, compelled sweetly.
Says the poetry forced me in.
Because I would not.
But his heart will be satisfied, his house will be filled with those he has compelled to come in.
But if God leaves you alone.
If He doesn't act in His sovereignty towards you and towards me, what would happen? We would go on in the hardness of our hearts into a lost eternity. And if God does not step in, in that sense, He hardens man's heart.
Because outside of his sovereign action.
That's exactly what happens to man's heart. It just gets harder and harder and harder by virtue of the fact.
That he does not step in. Man's heart stays hard and becomes harder, just as Pharaohs.
Wilt thou say that unto me? Why does he yet find fault? For who hath resisted as well? Why does God find fault then?
If it's only His sovereign action and he does what he wants to do, who can resist His will? You have, just like Pharaoh, resisted his will over and over again, and hardened his heart. Who hath resisted his will? Man is resisted his will, unrighteous man. Who would call God in question? If we want these truths settled in our souls, there is something we need as a foundation.
Settled in our own souls, and that is to give God His place. He's God, and for us to take our place as men, just creatures.
He is God, who art thou that reply us against God?
You must give God His place or you will never understand and enter in to these truths.
Shall the thing form say to him that formed it? Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the Potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel, and to honor, and another to dishonor? Yes, he has power to do what he wants.
He has power over the clay to do what he wants for the vessel he makes.
We'll mark this God never exercises His sovereignty except for blessing.
Let's give him.
And our thoughts? What is His? He has power to do what He wants, and none can call Him in question. But our God is a God of love, and He never exercises His sovereignty except for blessing. Ever.
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He has power.
And so he goes on to say, what if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction, those who have opposed his will?
He's endured with much long-suffering.
These vessels fitted for destruction.
God has power over the clay, but notice the carefulness of the words.
Of this chapter it never says he formed a vessel for destruction.
They fitted themselves, just like Pharaoh fitted himself.
For destruction when he hardened his heart.
The only vessels that says that God prepared are those that He prepared for mercy. He never ever exercises His sovereignty that way, except for blessing, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy which He.
Had afore prepared unto glory even us?
Whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles. For there is no difference. All have come short of the glory of God.
Oh, must be the objects of the sovereignty of God if they're going to come into blessing.
Your brother read, uh, yesterday regarding this meeting, but the prophet speak two or three and let the others judge and, uh, our brother Steve, he said that, uh.
Who's going to do doctrine? Not prophecy. I think he did prophecy. Umm, prophecy as I understand it. Perhaps I others can state it.
Better than I by prophecy is really taking the word of God and applying it to our present circumstance. Maybe that's an oversimplification, uh, but in that light, the Lord has a desire to speak to us. That's why we have meetings like this. Umm, and I believe that the Lord, uh, spoke to us this afternoon and so I have.
Really just I want to read umm, a few verses. Try not to.
Skip around too much but.
I wanna kind of go, uh, build.
Build upon umm, what our brother has brought before us regarding the sovereignty of God.
So, uh, Genesis chapter one.
In the beginning chapter one and verse one in the beginning God created.
The heavens and the earth.
And the earth was waste and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep.
And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters, which I'm reading in the new translation.
By accident, I'll read it in the uh.
King James as well. Uh, and the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, let there be light, and there was light.
So we have at the very beginning of the Holy Scriptures.
We have these verses.
This is really beautiful. You know, it's been said, I, I enjoyed this thought, uh, given to me years ago when I was a young believer that Genesis is the seed plot of the Bible. And, uh, in the book of Genesis, we see seeds that grow up through the scriptures and develop.
And so here we have.
A seed.
My brother was speaking.
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Of the fact that is God's sovereign will.
That he has called us to himself.
And so we see here the earth was without form and void.
I don't believe it was created without form and void.
But it was in that state.
And you know.
I'm gonna apply this to us as individuals.
That's the state that God found us in.
When according to his sovereign will.
He interrupted our lives. He interrupted our course.
And it says the Spirit of God moved upon the waters.
But what to do in my life?
Spirit of God moved.
Without form and void.
You know we're in as as our brother went to Romans. It speaks of the flesh. The flesh profiteth nothing. The carnal mind is at enmity with God and that's the state we are in by nature.
The Spirit of God moved upon the waters.
So for us individually, the Spirit of God moves.
And God says, let there be light, and there was light.
The salvation of a soul, isn't that beautiful? Isn't that beautiful?
Let's go back to the Gospel of John, my brother read.
John, Chapter 3.
First one, there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest except God be with him.
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man, be born again.
He cannot see the Kingdom of God.
Nicodemus said unto him, How can a man be born when he is old?
Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born?
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except the man be born of water and of the Spirit.
He cannot be born.
Into the Kingdom of God. You cannot enter the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh.
And that which is born of the Spirit.
Is spirit.
And so we have, uh, brother.
Read to us earlier, we have this.
Conversation.
Between the Lord Jesus and this man Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a religious man. He was a a well taught man.
He was one who knew the Scriptures.
And the Lord.
Things before him.
This truth you must be born again.
You know.
People will put these, uh, bumper stickers on their car. I don't wanna be critical. You must be boring again.
That's true.
You must be born again.
You can't tell somebody to be born again.
They have no control. We did decide to be born. We can't decide to be born again.
Not a command.
Is something that has to be true.
Before the word of God.
Can take root in the soul. You must be born again, and that's God's sovereign will. The Spirit of God moves upon the waters.
God said let there be light, and there was light. And so the Lord says to Nicodemus, you know, you're a ruler, you're a leader, you're a ruler. You should know these things.
It must be the sovereign will of God. He must intercede in our lives and give us eternal life.
And so.
We have the Spirit of God moving.
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And then God said.
What does the Spirit of God do?
The Spirit of God.
Is God.
Spirit of God is.
Is one of the persons of the Godhead and.
The Spirit of God is our brother again alluded to the servant who carried that, umm, vessel of water. The Spirit of God carries the Word of God to our souls, and that's so important and so, umm, without that work of the Spirit of God, umm, the Word of God really does not have an effect. I remember as a young man, not raised in a Christian home.
And getting to a point in my life where I realized there was something missing, I just didn't know what it was.
Umm, but I knew I wasn't happy.
And I even went out and bought a little Bible because we didn't really have them in my house.
Umm, well, we did. They were on the shelf. They weren't to be read. They were on the shelf in the living room. I went out and bought a little Bible and I tried to read it and I didn't understand it.
And I remember there was a, uh, another student in the college I was at, he kept on trying to witness to me and he gave me a little trap that uh, had a recipe for bread. And he said, Jesus said I'm the bread of life. I didn't understand it. I didn't make any sense to me. It was weird. I just didn't get it. But then by God's grace.
He brought me to my knees.
I realized I was a Sinner.
And again, it was the word of God.
That told me I was a Sinner.
And for the first time in my life, I was able to say.
I'm a center.
I hope this is true.
And I was able to ask him.
Actually, it doesn't say to ask them to just believe the word that was brought before me that I'm a Sinner.
That he loves me.
And that his promises are towards me.
And the next time, as I began to read the scriptures after that, I could, I could understand them. Isn't that amazing? So the Spirit of God bears the word of God.
We cannot understand the word of God except by the Spirit of God, and that's very important. And so I don't wanna take all the time, but I just wanna kind of close out, read a couple of verses and bring, I'm kind of talking about the individual aspect right now. I want to carry it, uh, to our collective aspect of in our present.
Calling if you will. So go to look at that.
2nd chapter.
Ask Chapter 2.
First, one-on-one, the day of Pentecost was come. They were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of the rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues of fire, like as of, uh, cloven tongues like as a fire, And it sat upon them, and they were filled.
With the Holy Ghost.
And so as we know.
Most of us in this room understand.
What this is about?
And so this is after the resurrection, the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus.
Was with the father.
You've gone through the cross to the cross. You've gone through those hours of darkness.
He satisfied a holy and righteous God.
In the question of sin.
He gone to his father.
And as he told his disciples, he said, when I go, I'll send a comforter and he will be with you.
And so we have these, these people that were in this one place and what brought them there? They were there because they were attracted to the Lord. They were there.
In faith. But what happened at that point in time is the Spirit of God came down and united them into the body of Christ.
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And so today, that's Our Calling.
Man, that kind of wandered in here this morning. There was a, uh, individual that ended up coming here. He just thought it was a different group. He came and sat with us, seemed to enjoy it. Umm, but we, he asked questions, uh, about, uh, what do you think about the 2nd chapter of that? That's a good chapter. It's a good chapter.
Speaks about the birthday of the church.
We are now believers. You know, there's always been faith.
God has always interceded since the days of Genesis, but.
After the 2nd.
You know, after their Pentecost, believers now have been united into one body.
And the Spirit of God dwells within us.
And unites us in a way that has never happened before. And it's unique to this present calling. So I just wanna go.
Ephesians.
Ephesians chapter 4.
Inverse.
Four, there is one body and one spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling. 1 Lord, 1 faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all through all, know in you all.
And so.
We really have here.
Uh, a snapshot of of of what the earth is today. Umm.
We have 3 circles. Within circles we have.
Those who are in the body of Christ.
What characterizes us?
So we belong to Christ, we've been redeemed by His blood, where you and we all have the Spirit of God dwelling within us.
And we've been united into one body, head in heaven, body on earth, because we are the body of Christ.
But then we have the 2nd circle and I know there are probably different different ways of looking at these verses, but I've appreciated this.
This this way of looking at it, the 2nd circle speaks of the profession of Christianity.
And you know, we have in the Gospels.
Elsewhere, places where the Lord spoke, He spoke of the word going out and.
How, uh, this thing that would grow from, from the word going out from his disciples to grow into a great tree. There'll be all kinds of birds in that tree We have in Timothy how there's a great house full of vessels, clean and unclean. And I believe that and I, I certainly would be very open to any kind of correction on this, but I believe that this is the circle of profession.
This is that which calls upon the name of the Lord. This is the.
Baptism is the entry into it. But they're not. They're not all real.
They don't all have the Spirit of God within them.
And then we have the final circle 1 Lord, uh, one God, one Father of all. And so, you know.
Man was created in the image of God. God breathed into Adam and he became a living soul. And you know, we see even even with unregenerate man, we see, umm, things that they do that reflect their creator, both in terms of, you know.
Things they create and invent, things that they do. Kindness is even right. We're all children of God in that sense. We've all been created by God.
So we have all humanity really, uh, really encompassing these three circles today, but we, we have faith if we, if we're safe with the body of Christ.
So I just want to just final thought, trust the Lord by His Spirit.
Tie these together so they're not. Just don't come across as a rambling. I hope they're not Umm. I'll go to uh.
First Corinthians, Chapter 11.
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Strangely reading these verses but.
Umm First Corinthians Chapter 11.
And start with verse 8.
For the man is not of the woman, but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man.
For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.
And so Paul is speaking to the Corinthians of practical matters.
But the beauty of uh.
These things, as we read and, and, and, and we spend time in, in these epistles and, and on all the scriptures, you, you begin to see so much. And so when Paul brings a practical matter, there's always a spiritual truth behind it. And he's Speaking of the head covering.
That the women read where you know.
And I and I've meditated this. I think it's a beautiful thought.
You know we're not in a legal.
Situation some some groups are.
But we have a beautiful truth here.
We have, umm, that the women, first of all, it says the women are created for the man. Now in our day and age, people go, oh, that's way out, but that's what scripture says.
The church was created for Christ.
Eve was created to be a help meet to Adam.
Young brothers and sisters, as you as some of you may be considering.
Who it is here?
Maybe you're gonna.
Spend time with the rest of your life.
Pray about these verses.
Because I believe a marriage in the Lord is a marriage where the.
There's perfect, there's beautiful order, and as a unit you serve the Lord, and there's an order there.
This does not mean the man is to be selfish.
And that is his wife or his woman is is to serve him. That's not what it means.
Jesus, the man gave all that he had.
Beloved church, he gave himself for it.
That's the pattern.
The woman's for the man not to usurp headship.
Not to try to dominate or to leave.
But to walk and to help.
Fulfill the purposes really of God's, God's purposes.
Together.
And I and I love this little verse and and I think of the angels, you know, it says because of the angels. Well, what's that mean? Well, the angels look down.
Now the world is celebrating the birth of Christ. Beautiful thing.
Jesus Christ was born.
And you know, they have all these major scenes and three Kings and so-called 3 Kings doesn't say that in scripture but but you know.
The angels did rejoice.
They rejoice, they rejoice when the Son of God, as we sing in some of our hymns, he passed angels by, He came down, He was born as a baby. And what did they say? They said goodwill to men, goodwill to men. There's going to be blessing to men.
And, uh, just a beautiful thing.
So.
Jesus.
Passed angels by the angels, look down upon this earth.
And I and I just enjoyed the thought.
You know, perhaps a meeting like this, maybe I'm taking too much liberty with this thought. But he looks down.
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And he sees, they see an order. They can't see their hearts.
They can only see the outward, God sees the heart.
But they see an order that comes out of a desire to please the Lord.
And that means something, you know, It's a powerful thing.
And that should be the motivation, you know, for a young sister perhaps that considering these things doesn't understand head covering before them the principles.
Not a legal rule. You gotta wear a hat.
Maybe for the principles bring the principles bring the Lord before it's a beautiful thing.
So I was just thinking of this so.
It has. It's all about submission.
Price submitted himself.
The man As men, we have to submit ourselves first.
And there's trouble in my family and perhaps there's some sparks flying. I have to in, in my relationship with my wife. I have to honestly.
Get before Lord and realizes probably right here by the reason maybe I'm not submitting, not her. It's really me.
His submission?
That's what the angels are looking for.
And so just to go back, just to refer again to that first verse.
The Spirit of God moved upon the waters, and God said.
So.
The Spirit of God.
Works in our lives.
It is very, very important.
That we give him his place. The Spirit of God will never glorify himself. He will always glorify Christ.
But when we have to, whether it be looking to the Lord for a meeting like this.
Is very important.
Much not the Spirit of God.
Whether it be decisions in our lives.
So I like this guy. Do I like that girl? Well, maybe you do, maybe you don't. What's the Lord say? It's just the Lord's will. How's the Lord leading in this matter that's so important?
And the Spirit of God always brings the Word of God. And so there are many things that we can find answers directly to the Word of God. There are other perhaps things in our life, in our lives that are that we're not going to necessarily see it written in the Word of God, but the Lord will lead us through his Word in everything by his Spirit. And so really what I said on my heart today.
I know the time is, uh, just about gone. I only wanted to make a couple of comments. I trust this of the Lord and our brother Steve was bringing before us the sovereignty of God.
And you know each one of us.
Fact. The very fact that we're gathered to Lord's name is truly the sovereignty of God. It's the Lord working in our heart. It's a sovereign. Will we come to the place where he's placed his name?
You know, we when we read Matthew 18 and 20, umm, we don't need to turn to it. It's the sovereignty of God and you truly lay hold of what that verse really means.
And uh.
He certainly worked in my life.
Is is the sovereignty of God that six weeks after I was saved that I was brought to an assembly in South fall?
And I can see I can see it working.
Sovereignty of God brought him to the place.
And I didn't know very much. For the first time, I sat back with breaking your bread, you know, watching these emblems being passed around. I didn't know very much, but I knew it was in the right place.
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Indeed, the sovereignty of God.
As you know.
My son, my dad, was saved five years before I was and umm.
When I was safe.
I, I started coming to the meetings with Falls, uh, six months after I would say that I asked for my place.
I encouraged my dad to umm, to umm, go to the meetings in Toronto and uh.
I, uh, gave him some, uh, uh, tapes on the subject and I, I trust you listen to them. But, uh, he loved his brother and he was fellowshipping with and, uh, for that reason, umm, he never laid hold of that truth of being gathered to his name.
The Lord Jesus, it was his loss.
But the.
I just wanted to mention that each one is.
Are here because of His sovereign will, nothing else. Pure grace and His sovereign will.
Thing #42 in the back.
But we also sing #43 in the appendix, the next PM #43 in the appendix.
Our God and Father, it just thrills our souls this afternoon to.
See how the Taoists worked.
In the lives of others, and in our own lives as well.
To draw us to the Savior.
And we thank thee that Thou has seen us in our wretchedness, our helplessness, our need, and I was met that need in a marvelous way. We thank Thee that we find ourselves complete in him, in Christ.
But this afternoon we think too of that which not only satisfies our own hearts, but has satisfied die hard as well, For we know our desire is to bless. We thank thee.
For thy purposes and councils to.
To exalt thy dear Son, Lord Jesus Christ, and to bring us into blessing in Christ. And so we are so encouraged as we have been under the sound of Thy word here this afternoon. We do indeed thank Thee for the exceeding riches of thy grace.
And thy kindness to us, we know it's all sovereign grace from beginning to end.
And we thank thee that.
He that has begun a good work in US will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
So we do give you our thanks for that precious word, Thy Spirit, our God, to make it good to our hearts. We really feel so blessed and it causes our hearts to rejoice. We do pray for the gospel. We do indeed pray for feathers that are blinded by unbelief.
By the God and Prince of this world, we pray that they might be delivered.
From the power of darkness.
And they too would be translated into the Kingdom of thy dear Son.
So we ask Thy blessing and Thy Word wherever it's going forth this day worldwide. We thank You for the prospect that I soon returned, Lord Jesus, to be with Thee, like Thee, the one who has loved us and who has washed us from our sins in his own blood. We give you our thanks, our praise, our worship, our God in the most blessed.
Worthy name of my beloved Son, our Savior, Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.