Open—G. Hayhoe, R. Ruga, R. Farrell
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I wonder if we could turn to John chapter 13. John chapter 13.
John chapter 13 and the.
The third verse Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God, He rises from supper, and laid aside his garments, and took a towel, and girded himself.
After that he poured water into a basement, and began to wash the disciples feet, and to wipe them with a towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter. And Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.
Simon Peters saith unto him, Lord not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith unto him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean. Every wet and GR clean, but not all.
Well, we know in the Gospel of John we have the thought of God as our Father and that we are partakers of that new life that he has given to us. And this especially brought before us in John's ministry. In Paul's ministry, we are taught that we are members of the body of Christ. But in John's ministry, it's more particularly the family and the enjoyment of the relationship that we are brought into in the family. So John Paul speaks of adoption. You can adopt A child, making part of your family.
But you can't give him the life and nature of the family. But the wonderful thing is that when God brings us into his family, he gives us the very life and nature of the family. And every believer in this room who has received the Lord Jesus for such is a believer. We have the very life of Christ within us. We are in the family by new birth. We have Christ himself is our life. Oh, wonderful this is.
While in the end of John we see the Lord Jesus preparing His disciples, He was going to leave them and He wanted them to be in the enjoyment of this relationship into which we have been brought. It's not what we know that controls our lives, brethren, it's what we enjoy. We can know a lot of things and not mean very much to us, but can we enjoy them? Yes, we have the capability of enjoying the portion that God has given us. The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost who is given unto us.
And so the Lord is about to go away.
And he, the sufferers ended now, and he is going to wash the disciples feet and prepare them, I believe, for the ministry that we have brought before us in 1415 and 16, and then his high priestly prayer in the 17th chapter. And so he takes a towel and girds himself, pours water into a basin, and starts to wash the disciples feet. And he comes to Peter.
And Peter said thou shalt never wash my feet. I think he thought it was too humble a place for the Lord to take to wash his feet. But rather than every one of us do need this if we only realize that that is we need to have our feet washed When Peter said not my feet only, but also my hands on my head. He didn't need to be washed all over again the second time.
We see, we read in Titus chapter 3, the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. That is salvation. We're washed all over. We're not only cleansed in the blood, but we are made new creatures in Christ Jesus. We are in the family. How wonderful that never has to be repeated. It was typified with the priests when they were consecrated. They were taken and washed all over.
After that they had constantly to wash at the labor, but not all over again, just their feet and their hands. That was all because that once they had been washed all over, they were sanctified for the office that they fulfilled. And isn't it lovely to know that every believer has been washed all over? We are new creatures in Christ Jesus. We're partakers of the divine nature. And indeed, Titus brings this before us as the ground of our whole Christian life. He says these things I will let thou affirm constantly.
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The thing which I believe in God be careful to maintain goods, works without making promises, but remembering the family that we're in. You and I are children of God. We belong to that family, and we are to display that character well. Peter said, thou shalt never wash my feet. The Lord said, if I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. And brethren, isn't it true that we all need constantly to have this washing of our feet? We pick up the fileman.
Says the Umm, Song of Solomon, the bride, bridegroom. Looking at the bride, he's says how beautiful are thy feet with shoes?
Oh, Prince's daughter, you know, you can go through a defiling world. If you don't have shoes on, you'll pick up all of the file on. But if you have shoes on, you can go through dirt and math and still you don't pick it up. And that's what we need. We need spiritual shoes, feet shot with the preparation of the gospel of peace. But we do pick up the filament just the same. We sometimes don't have those spiritual shoes on. We're not acting as we should. And so we have to have our feet washed. And well, how are our feet washed?
It's the application of the Word of God to our walking ways. Are we willing to do that? Am I willing, brethren? Are each one of us willing to have, as it were, put our feet into the Lord's hands and say, if there's anything in my life, Lord, that is not pleasing to me, I want to apply the application of Thy word.
The application of thy word to my walk, Are we willing to do this? That's so important for us. So as the application and the Lord even said when he had done this, he said he had given an example that they should do so to one another. And so it is helpful. And there's something that another person points out to us from the word. Do we accept that? Do we say well?
I'm thankful you showed me what the word of God has to say about that. And the Lord was washing the disciples feet, but he gave them an example. And so we can be a help to one another in this. Well, the Lord had to show Peter that that was necessary. Poor Peter didn't realize his own heart and none of us do. Brethren, the heart's deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. And in the end of this very chapter, after the Lord saying this, he is so confident he would never deny the Lord.
He didn't realize how even though we are saved, the flesh profiteth nothing. It never changes. Every one of us as believers have within us that old man is capable of doing the violence things. And so we need this constant feed washing. And we find just speaking practically of dear Peter, after the Lord's resurrection, we see the Lord washing his feet, talking to Peter saying Simon the son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?
Peter had said that so all should deny the yet will not I? And so to restore Peter, he says, as it were. Peter, would you still say that you love me more than all the rest of the disciples? He said, Lord, the hunt also things thou knowest thy lovely. He wouldn't dare to say he had more love than all the others. And surely the great danger with us forever. Do you think that we're better than any of our fellow President? We think we wouldn't do things we're capable of anything if the Lord doesn't keep us.
Well, maybe you'd be willing to let Him apply His precious word to our walk and ways. And what is the reason for it? That we might have part with him. What a wonderful privilege. The Creator of this world, the blessed Son of God who gave Himself for us. We can have part with him. We're in the family, brethren, and we can have part with Him. And now I was just on my heart to say a few words.
About some of the things that the Lord imparted to the disciples here, I'd just like to speak briefly of them. Let's turn over to the 14th chapter.
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Let not your heart be troubled. Ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. I just like to call attention in a few of these passages to that little word my, and this is the first one.
This is what the Lord was preparing the disciples to receive. Because we don't allow Him to wash, to wash our feet, we're not prepared to receive His truth. It's when we have thought to be exercised, to be desirous to please Him, then He can open up His truth to us that we might enjoy it. But this little word my is so precious. My Father's house, how wonderful that we are into such a place of nearness. The Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.
As we often sing, Oh what a home, the Father's house, their love, divine death, rest.
Satisfy our heart of the of the hearts of those in Jesus bless in my father's house are many mansions or a bowls. It really is. I believe the Lord was lifting their hearts above what we have brought before us in Ezekiel in the book of Ezekiel toward the end we find a description.
The heavenly, the earthly portion of God's people, and the temple that will be built in the millennial day. For there will be a temple, a wonderful temple on earth. You can read about it in the end of Ezekiel.
And in that temple there were many abodes for the priests and I'm sure that perhaps the disciples who were looking for the Lord to set up the Kingdom, not seeing the heavenly side of things. No doubt we're thinking of the earthly Kingdom. And in that mansion that will be built, the coming temple in the millennial day. Why there were many abols. You can read about it. I won't turn to it at the end of Ezekiel.
And perhaps that's what they were thinking about, but the Lord is saying, and I think this is beautiful. If I didn't have something better for you than what you have anticipated by I would I would have told you, he said I would have told you if I didn't have something better because you remember the disciples said without this time restore the Kingdom to Israel. You can see their thoughts were still earthly. But brethren, God has something better for us.
If everything were set right down here wouldn't be half as beautiful as what awaits us. We have this place in the Father's house, in the eternal glory up there in the heaven with Christ. In my Father's house are many abodes. And he says, I will come again and receive you unto myself. We remember the Lord Jesus and his death here this morning. And it was in view of that, in view of the time when the Lord.
Would come again and receive us unto himself. Mr. Darby in his beautiful little hymn says, Who shall to me that joy of Saint throng? Courts declare, tell of that constant sweet employee My spirit longs to share. Before this little gathering here in Binghamton is over. We may hear the shout, We may be right there what we're reading about, Maybe our actual enjoyed portion.
Isn't it wonderful? In my father's house are many of old. If we're not so I would have told you.
And I'm not gonna send someone to get you. I'm going to come myself. The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout. And I like to think of that shout as being the shout of joy, because the Lord is anticipating that day with more joy than we are. Just like when you're waiting for something says, oh, at last it's come, you shout out. And the Lord comes with a shout, and then with the voice of the Archangel. I'd like to think of connect that with how the angels are taking care of us.
It says they're ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation. We experience that along the highways and how he's taking care of us. Brother pointed out too, I enjoyed his thought. He said the Bible doesn't say for those who are heirs of salvation, but those who shallow the heirs of salvation. He said there was an angelic care of us before we were saved because we were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.
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And Percival and a narrow escape. Why didn't you die in that narrow escape? Because angels were taking care of you and preserving you. Because you were an air of salvation. You were going to be among that throng. Will the angelic care will be ended. They won't need to care for us when we're safely in the Father's house. And then it says, and the Trump of God, when Moses was told to make the two trumpets of silver, it tells us what those trumpets were for, for the calling of the assembly and for the journeying of the camps.
And so it says, when those trumpets were blown, they were all to assemble themselves to thee, that is, to Moses, who was their leader. And when that trumpet sounds that the Lord's coming, we're going to be gathered around that blessed person. Not at the door, brethren. Right inside in my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I come again to receive you unto myself, that where I am.
There ye may be. Also, I'd just like to mention one other little point here in this 21St verse.
He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me, and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and uh, I will love him, and will manifest myself unto him. Judas saith unto him, not as carry it. Lord, how is it that thou old manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode.
May I mention that the word abode in this 23rd verse is exactly the same word in the original as the word translated mansion in the second verse. He'll come and make our abode. He says you can have a little previous enjoyment of it before you get there. He says, I'll make my mansion in your heart. That is, you can. I can enjoy beforehand a foretaste of heaven.
If we walk in that path of obedience, if a man love me, he will keep my words, My Father will love him, we will come unto him and make our abode with him. So it's my Father's house. Now passing on to the 27th verse.
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Disliked and emphasized that little word My, my peace I give unto you. Everyone who is saved can say we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That is the portion that every believer.
Is entitled to enjoy peace with God because the whole question of our sins and our guilt was settled by what the Lord Jesus did when he bore our sins in his own body on the tree and our sins have been forever washed away in his precious blood. We have peace with God. But here this is a little bit more. It says here, my peace I give unto you. I believe that the peace in which the Lord Jesus walked is the same thing that's spoken of in Philippians.
The peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. I heard of two artists who were asked to draw a little picture that would illustrate peace. And uh, one of them drew a countryside where everything was very beautiful and peaceful, and the other one drew, oh, quite a storm going on, but a little bird sitting in a very sheltered place.
Absolutely undisturbed.
By the storm. And that was his conception of peace. Brethren, that is the way we are. We're in a troubled world. We're in a world where there's even trouble among the people of God, for even Saints get troubled. But isn't it lovely? My peace, I give unto you that precious Savior. He ever walked in the enjoyment of his Father's love and his Father's will. And so there was perfect peace.
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Even when they came to take him and carry him away, he was a perfect piece. He said If you seek me, let these go their way.
When they were about to take him, it says He, passing through the midst of them went his way. Another time they told them, Herod will kill me. An hour is not yet come. He walked in perfect peace because He was always doing His Father's will. Brethren, we need that ourselves.
I can fast, but I don't always enjoy. Circumstances upset us. Are we entitled, in the midst of a stormy world like this, to walk in peace? Yes, we can. The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Just to know that the person who loves us, who died for us, is in control of every circumstance. There's absolutely nothing.
That happens by chance and he makes all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. My peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth. The world can't give that kind of peace. The world's idea of peace is always to bring about a settled state of things and then there's peace. But the peace of God is a peace that we can enjoy when everything is in turmoil and tumult because.
Just like Paul and he was there in the uh, storm in the in the sea, notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me. How? How blessed brethren, and the Lord says, my peace I give unto you not as the world give us, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
And then passing on to the 15th chapter, how we find another one mentioned here, a well known one in the ninth verse.
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love.
We think of the love that the Father had for His Son. He did His will in everything that He did, and the Father found infinite delight in that Blessed One. Isn't this a marvelous expression? As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. We can't measure the Father's love to His Son. And just to think of those wonderful words, As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you, that unchanging love.
As he said to Israel of all, In fact, I've enjoyed, uh, noticing that the assurances of love that God gives to his people were not at times when you might have expected it at the close of their wilderness journey, when they had, uh, grieved the Lord so often by their manners in the wilderness. At the very close. It says in Deuteronomy, I think it's 32. Yay, He loved the people.
All his Saints are in my hand. Isn't that wonderful? 40 years they had grieved him. Had it changed his love not a death yet he loved the people. All his Saints are in thy hand. Then we turn over to the book of Jeremiah and we see there the people had got so far away from the Lord that the Lord had to tell him that in his dealings ways with them he was going to have to bring.
The ethereum up against them, and the king of Babylon, and that there was judgment going to come because of their ways. Did it change His love? All of us know that beautiful verse in the 31St chapter of Jeremiah. I have loved thee with an everlasting love. Therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee. Does our failure, our weakness, brethren, does it change His love? May change our enjoyment of it, but not His love.
Having loved his own, which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. Oh, how lovely. Then it tells us too. And Malachi, that was the last book in the Old Testament and they were saying it's vain to serve the Lord, and they were offering the lame and the blind to the Lord. A lot of things were really grieving to the Lord that were taking place. And they're mentioned there in the book of Malachi.
But it very opens up with these words, the burden of the word of the Lord by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. The burden of the word of the Lord. It would have, I would have expected the book to begin by saying how grieved the Lord was. He does mention some of the things that grieved him afterwards. But he starts by saying I loved you, I loved you.
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Yes, and that love hadn't changed. We turn over, we think of those two sisters, Martha and Mary. I would have expected if I was reading that verse.
That says thou Jesus loved Martha and her sister. I would have expected to be the Jesus loved Mary and her sister but doesn't say that it says Jesus loves Martha and her sister. What Martha is the one that was covered with much serving and didn't show her affection in the same way that Mary did. Yes, she loved her and in the last church that we have in Revelation in the third chapter of Revelation, the very last one.
The only one where he mentions his love it says in uh, in the last year she says as many as I love, I review can chase me.
Oh, it's never allowed Satan to get a thought in our mind that caused us to doubt His love. Doesn't it hurt us when our children doubt our love to them because we've had to correct them or deal with them or something? They they question our love? Doesn't it hurt us while we grieve the Lord, brethren, if we don't, His love is gonna take all eternity for Him to bestow that love upon us. Well, it says here.
If uh, uh, you, uh, as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Continue, ye and my love. Now the next one in the tenth verse. If you keep my commandments, she shall abide in my love, even as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in his love. Notice that word, My commandments. Perhaps you wonder why it says that commandment, because you know, we all understand we're not under law, but we're under grace.
Why does it use the word commandment? Well, perhaps I could put it this way. When love is active in our hearts, what the Lord wants us to do has all the power of a command. We don't, we don't say, do I have to do that? If love is active, why we want to please Him. The law didn't impart new life. It says if there had been a law given which could have given life fairly, righteousness had been by the law.
But the Lord Jesus spoke of His Father's commandments because everything that was His Father's will for Him became a commandment to his blessed, loving, obedient heart. And so you say, do I have to do that? Is there something in the Scripture? And you say, do I really have to do that? If you really think of how much He loves you, what He wants you to do has the power of a command.
Because I sometimes said if I were away from home and I get a letter from my wife and she says when you're in such and such a town, when you pick this up for me, they have them there and would you bring it home for me? Did I say, is that a request or is it a command? I wouldn't talk like that, would you? You'd say, oh, I must do that. The person I love is asked me to do that. It becomes a command to a loving heart. And so rather than if you love me.
Keep my commandments. If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love. It's in the path of obedience. Those of us who have children know a willful child does parents love. An obedient child knows its parents love and yet the parent loves them both the same. Maybe the wealth will run a little more because it feels so badly that the child does his love and doesn't want to walk in the parents company. Well, rather than he, he wants us. My love, my commandments, my Father's house, my peace. This is our portion, brethren.
And now going a little further here.
In the.
14th verse Ye are my friends, if I do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servant, for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth. But I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard of my father, I have made known unto you, my friend. This is not a lovely expression says about Abraham. He was called the friend of God.
Why was he called a friend? Well, because the Lord God made known to Abraham the thing that he intended to do in connection with the promises of the blessing that was going to come to the them as a nation, and also what he was going to do with Lott, who had gone down there to live in Sodom. He made known these things to him. And isn't this a lovely thing? Did you ever stand in a crowd of people?
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And just think of yourself, the Lord saying you're my friend. We all love that little hymn. What a friend we have in Jesus to know him as our friend, but for him to call us his friend. Isn't that infinitely more? We know very well that we wouldn't tell everything to somebody who's not very close to us, but our friends, those that we really call our friends, we can open up our hearts and brethren, I've often said me and bears repeating.
That Christian is the only person who has an intelligent outlook on what's going on in the world.
The Lord calls us his friends and he says, and you can see a lot of turmoil going on in the different countries. You can see the movements of the nations and so on, but you're my friend. The newspapers may try and explain some of these things, but you're my friend. I'm going to tell you what I'm doing. I'm in control of this situation. When Israel goes back to their land, it's not just a historical fact. I want you to know that you're my friend. I'm telling you they're going back because the time is coming.
When I'm about to call you to be with myself and give Israel back their land, we see Europe coming together, a great political move going on, and this is occupying the minds of great statement. But here we are, shall I say, insignificant nobodies as far as this world is concerned. We knew that I could show you a book written 100 years ago where her brother talks about about each, about Europe coming together and the nations that will unite there.
Were his friends present? Isn't that lovely I say again when you want to down the street and feel kind of left out. Nobody cares. Just think I've got the best friend of all and not only can I call him my friend, but he looks down on me and he says you're my friend, you're my friend. I'm going to tell you what I'm doing because I want you to know my secrets. The secret of the Lord is within the fear him all rather than how wonderful this is and just one more before we close.
And that is, yes, it doesn't say my in the 16th verse, but I just like to notice that He has not chosen me, but I have chosen you on ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain. And whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. It doesn't have the little word in my, but I like to think it's introduced here.
My choice, my choice. I've heard young people say sometimes, no, I was chosen out of the whole class to give that little speech, or I was chosen out of the whole class to do this or that. But isn't it wonderful to lock down the street and look and look up and say, the Lord has told me, I you're my choice, you're my choice. That's what Paul said to the, uh, Thessalonians believers, he said.
I know you're being persecuted and I know you're going through a lot, but he says.
He says, knowing, brethren, beloved, your election of God that is out of this whole world, you're my choice. You're my choice. Doesn't this fill your heart with gladness that the Lord should have? We were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. Well, brethren, our meetings here are drawing to a close. Most of us are going to have to go back to our own homes and our assemblies. What is going to keep us?
There's a lot in the world to upset us, and sometimes even among the people of God, trials and difficulties come in.
But I believe if we're in the enjoyment of these things, are we willing, brethren, to let the Lord wash our feet? And if there's anything in your life or mine that's a hindrance to our enjoying these things, let's not say to the Lord, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Let us be willing to, as it were, put our feet into His hands and say, Lord, if there's anything in my walking ways not pleasing to see, I want the application of Thy word.
To that situation, so I wouldn't be going on with something that displaces thee. And the Lord said, now you can walk in my company, Now you can enjoy what's in my heart before you at the Father's house while you walk through this world. You can have my peace, you can walk in my love, and I'll give you all direction that you need for your pathway, My commandment. If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love. I'll give you all the directions you need. The way of man is not in himself. It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.
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But we have the direction in the precious Word of God, and he's given it to us, brethren. And then he says, last of all, he says, you're my friends, you're my friends. And then he says, out of this whole world with all the people that are in it, you're my choice, my choice. Well, may the Spirit of God make these things good to our soul. We're living in difficult times, but we're living in wonderful times.
I like that little verse that just mentioned in Isaiah in Psalm 45. It says instead of thy father shall be thy children and thou mayest make Princess in all the earth. In other words, when the children of Israel were going through are going to go through a novel time, the godly remnant are going to have an awful time and even says all of them that are with child and give suck in those days and they look on their children. They think what terrible days for our children to have to live.
Oh, says the Thomas, they might be the most wonderful days because when the Lord comes and sets up his Kingdom, their children will be Princess and all the earth. And our children are growing up in a very difficult time. School systems are teaching them things we don't like them to hear or do, but they may be living in those wonderful time of the whole church history. They may be the one who are living in the various generation. When the Lord comes and gives the shout, oh, how wonderful if they're saved and they're young and go up to meet him.
Wonderful privilege is to live in this generation and to live in the enjoyment of our portion. May the Lord grant it may be so.
Turn with me please this afternoon to.
Genesis chapter 30.
Our brother just finished his comments in connection with.
Children and with parents. And you know, as we look around the room this afternoon, there's still many precious families which the Lord has brought here together this weekend.
What a blessing it is.
To worship the Lord as households together in the presence of our Lord and Savior, as we've done this morning. And so I'd like to, with the Lord's help.
Look at some passages beginning here in Genesis 30.
Directing my comments mostly.
To perhaps those of my own generation as an encouragement. And I trusted the help, umm, in connection with our children, you know, I must confess that.
Perhaps.
I didn't know it. Enjoy.
My children, as I should have, but by the grace of God.
I believe that the Lord by his Spirit the past few years has given my wife and I perhaps God's thoughts about our children. You know, it tells us in Psalm 128, it says that love children are heritage from the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is His reward.
And so I desire for each one of us, particularly his heads of households.
To have God's thoughts about our children.
And not neglect in any way our responsibility towards them.
And, you know, as parents, I believe that.
We need to constantly be on our knees before the Lord.
About depression gifts and she bestowed upon us for such a short time. Spoken with many parents here.
It's from this afternoon. They all say the same thing, how quickly our children seem to grow and my older brother, I'm sure, can say that that particular phase in our lives is here.
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And gone like a vapor here for a little time. I was there in James four and then finishes away. And so it is with this period in our lives that God sees fit to give us the fruit of the womb. It's only a very, very short time period in our life history. So I believe that we need to be on our knees. I like to look with the Lord's help this afternoon. I don't wanna be too lengthy.
Had some pairs of knees in connection with our children. Jeff is 30 here beginning with verse one and what Rachel saw.
That she bear Jacob no children. Rachel envied her sister.
And said on to Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel. And he said, Am I in God said, Hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my me Dilha, going out to her, and she shall bear upon my knees that I also man children by her. And so I don't want to stretch the point, but.
The thought that comes home to my soul here in this passage.
Is the needs of reproduction, the fact that God in His gracious ways has brought a man and a woman together in holy matrimony? A beautiful picture we know of Christ and the Church. What a lovely thing it is when a husband and a wife married together in the Lord. As time goes on, perhaps in that blessed union the Lord may be said.
In his blessed ways to give children.
And you know, I believe that it is not only a natural thing, but it is perhaps a spiritual thing too, in the sense that God's desire is that we should reproduce and have children. Why do I bring that point out? Because, you know, brethren, I believe we're living in a day where the world at large with their mind frame, with their way of thinking.
Children.
That's fruit of the womb in a certain sense, and I think every head of household who goes out into this world each day to seek to make a living, to bring home bread for himself to eat and his family will understand what I'm talking about. Children themselves have become regarded as a reproach.
Perhaps we understand what I'm talking about.
You tell someone on the street.
About the love of God and you're talking to them a little bit and maybe you share a little bit of your life with them. While I have three children, I have five children that the Lord has given me and they say, well, what's wrong with you? How can you possibly afford such a thing? That's ridiculous. Children themselves have become or approach here, Rachel, you know, I believe that if we had opportunity to travel to other societies, we would see the children or not regarding as the reproach in any way, shape or form.
They regarded as a blessing, and here Rachel had the sense in her soul.
That somehow God and his governmental ways, in serious ways perhaps he had withheld from her the fruit of the womb, and she would come all of her earnestness of soul. Like Hannah of old, she would say, give me children or die when she wanted offspring.
Well, I trust that the desire of every one of our hearts that we want not only to have children, but having obtained them from the Lord, to bring them up for the Lord to reproduce before them every day, with the Lord's help, the heavenly grace of Christ, and thus as we reproduce Christ.
As we live Christ before our children from day-to-day, that Christ who by the grace of God be formed in their precious little hearts. Well, the knees of reproduction, if you will. Now turn over a few chapters to Genesis 48.
I'm gonna look at another pair of knees in connection with children.
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S.
Genesis 48 and verse 11.
And Israel, that is Jacob.
Said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face, and lo, God hath showed me also thy seed.
And Joseph brought them out from between his knees.
And he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
What a blessed place this was for his children to be.
And again, I must confess that you pardon me, telling on myself something that unfortunately had to perhaps learn the hard way. Look around you. See, fathers and mothers, the blessed thing it is that holding their children on their knees. These are the needs of protection, brethren.
What a vital thing that is. We're living in a very hazardous scene. Our brother has brought that out.
Thorns and briars.
Temptations on every hand. Our children need to be protected, don't they? And all how we can thank the Lord Many of us in the room this afternoon have had that privilege.
Uh, being raised and the protective needs of our parents and oh, what heartache and sorrow Dad and Mom perhaps preserved us from because they wanted to take their children and keep them on their knees.
But a blessed place, that is the knees.
Of protection.
Well.
Time is slipping by. Drop down a few more chapters to Genesis 50.
And we'll read about this same man, Joseph.
Janet is 50 and verse 23.
Another pair of knees, and Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation. The children also of Maker, the son of Manasseh, were brought up upon Joseph's knees.
I say again, what a blasted place that is for our children to be found. And here we see that Joseph, he was a grandparent.
You know, I think we read about Joe, that he saw perhaps his grandchildren's, the 3rd and the 4th generation. God extended his life and gave the fruit of the womb to his offspring and they perhaps were brought up on his knees. Oh, do we have that desire, brethren, to see the blessing not only of our children but of our grandchildren to take the time.
To spend time with them, you know, if we have a child on our knees and we have that child there consistently, we are going to get close to that child. There's that bond that is formed, I believe between.
Parents and between child and it needs to be not only formed but it needs to be kept.
You know, sometimes our family.
We have a boy who is nine years old.
Sometimes in the middle of needing.
How come see that I want to sit in uni?
I hope there's no one here whoever gets the mistaken notion that, well, my child is too old. I mean, he should just be exercising without sitting by himself.
Let's be willing.
To stay close with our children.
As I said earlier, they're like the flowers in the field, aren't they? They're here and they're gone and they're on their own. I look around this room and I see children who only 15 years ago were sitting on the lap, their fathers and mothers perhaps right here at the Vessel General Meetings. Now, those children, they're not children any longer. They're 225 lbs. And it'll be very funny indeed see them sitting on their knees.
Of their parents. And so I just challenge my own heart again.
Let's seize every opportunity we possibly can.
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To take our children.
So stay close to them.
Right on up until that time when they, as it were, are no longer under our umbrella of responsibility.
Well.
We know that the needs are.
In connection with a very important part of our relationship with God.
Let's turn over to 1St King.
Chapter 18.
And just.
1St 42 for another set of needs. First Kings 1842 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink.
And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel and cast himself down upon the earth and put his face between his knees. And we know that the knees in Scripture often bring before us the necessity of prayer. Our brethren and I in my home assembly, I'm so thankful for they often remind us.
The importance of praying for our children, especially our children go to public schools, uh, every hour that they're there, I believe we should be thinking about them. We should be praying for them that the Lord would cheat and preserve our dear children from all that which abounds there. We can talk perhaps for a long time about that, but here in this passage, I believe Elijah, he's not only.
Just praying as it were, because the general course of the day he's in earnest about it. His face between his knees. I think that will bring before supplication, wouldn't it? The needs of supplication, perhaps as husband and wife there in first Peter chapter 3, that your prayers be not hindered. Remember that's your passage. Husband and wife on their knees together. Supplication. What supplication?
Earnest prayer.
Crying out to God, not only for the salvation of our children, but for the blessing of them, for their welfare, and that they may grow in grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And further, that they may become, if He sees fit, men and women of God.
That was Hannah's desire.
I trust it's my desire. I trust it's the desire of every heart, every parent here this afternoon.
Our older brethren have often told us that if the Lord be not come, the ranks will need to be filled.
And as our dear brother Henry Short so often reminds us in his ministry of the fact that God in his ways has been said to preserve this testimony, we can, feeble as it may be, 5 perhaps in the eyes of men, but to preserve this testimony primarily through the offspring, the families of the Saints. So, brethren.
And we'd be on our knees as perhaps our parents were, on their knees for our good, our spiritual blessing, supplication, our faith, between our knees, crying out to God.
Well, let's turn now to.
Another set of knees and.
Second Kings I believe it is.
Second Kings 19.
I'm sorry.
First change 19.
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Another set of needs in verse 18. First Kings 19, verse 18.
The Lord speaking, He says, Yet I have left me 7000 in Israel. Albanese which has not battled unto bail in every mouth which hath not.
Cheers him.
Well, I can't help but feel this will bring before us the needs of faithfulness. Faithfulness.
Oh, how vital this is.
In the training of these dear children for that glorious team towards which we're traveling.
You know we sometimes think, don't we together?
Have an object Lord below which would attain.
Which would keep my heart, my spirit from thy coming again, O Lord.
Is it possible that I have an idol in my heart? Perhaps it's my job.
Perhaps it might be something so insignificant as a home or a vehicle. These things that come in the cares of life, the deceitfulness of riches tells us in the gospel that come in and they choke out the word.
And the word becomes unfruitful, and perhaps I become unfaithful.
And don't my children know about that?
You know.
So many times.
That perhaps our children know us much better than we know ourselves. They know what we're about.
And so I searched my own soul this afternoon.
Do I have any faithfulness like the 7000? I realized they were not.
And a totally proper position before the Lord. They should have been with Elijah here.
That's where they really belong. They should have been willing to identify with God's men, but at least they didn't bow the knee. They weren't taken up with the course of that present evil day. I know by the grace of God, may that be our exercise and heads of households not to be so swept up.
Important as the cares of this life are, we placed a lot of emphasis on putting that loaf of bread on the table because we say, after all, I, my family, we need to eat. How true that is. Hello, brethren.
To be exercised before God. Most importantly, to take the living bread of God come down from heaven.
And to feed our children with that, to place more emphasis on the spiritual blessing and welfare of our children.
We need the needs of faithfulness and perhaps there's going to be reproach involved, perhaps there's going to be.
A missing out we might say, on being elevated in the local company for which we work. I saw thicker the other day and it was amazing because I saw twice in the same day it said work union live better.
No, brother, let's be found safe with the Lord.
Better is little and quietness there with.
And a house full of sacrifices and great strife.
Let's see content with our wages at John the Baptist told the Soldier.
And so I must keep saying Psalm 37. I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. He's ever gracious. And Linda, the Lord will provide Jehovah Jireh.
Yeah, with Abraham and Isaac, there it is with another household. So better it is. I say again, dear brethren, to remain low on the totem pole.
To be found exercising the needs of faithfulness before our children.
And to rise high in the local corporation and to have our children swallowed up.
With this world in time.
Well.
Another important set of needs in Isaiah.
We could turn to.
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Isaiah 35.
Isaiah 35 and verse.
Three.
Strengthen you the weekend and confirm.
The Siebel Knees.
You don't have to turn to it for the sake of time, but there is another passage that I'd like to read in Ezekiel 17. Ezekiel 7.
17.
All hands shall be feeble, and all knees shall be weak as water.
So here we would have Denise of Weakness.
You know, we like to think.
Sometimes in our.
Family relationships As heads of households, we may be entertained the false notion while I have everything in control.
Things are going real good.
And then the Lord said something along.
It just.
Like maybe our family. Like a boat out of the blue.
And our needs to come as weak as water.
Are, like we read here in Isaiah, just so feeble we can't hardly even stand up upon our own 2 feet.
Well brethren, I believe that they place a weakness is a place of blessing. So as quoted earlier in this conference, I don't remember who quoted it. Second Corinthians chapter 12 Says for my Paul, the Lord speaking to Paul, he says, For my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory my eternity, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. And so by nature.
We like to think we're in control.
We like to take the credit to ourselves, the goodness of God which He daily bestows upon us, but begin to take for granted, we think well, like maybe to Nezra, is this not great Babylon which I have built? Look at my family. Oh, it's doing so well, and the Lord can come in and strike our false attitudes down so quickly. So we need to exercise the needs of weakness. Brethren, we have no strength of our own.
Without him, we will surely fall.
And so let's be exercised about exercising the needs of weakness.
Save me, O God, friendly do I put my trust. Preserve me, O God, Fern D that put my trust. May that be the expression of our hearts.
Heads of households. One further set of needs in the New Testament.
Ephesians chapter 3.
Verse 14.
For this 'cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named.
So here we have.
To partner application.
We have the needs of worship.
In connection with our family, so how vital that is.
In view of everything else that we've considered.
Should we not be like Eliezer of old, having tasted of the goodness of God, God graciously guiding and protecting him across that wilderness journey, bringing him right into the presence of the very one that he was looking for? And after having gotten over the formality and Becca, I can just picture her going back.
Excitedly telling her family about what she had just been told. Can we read? We won't turn to it there in Genesis 24.
He bowed ahead and worshiped. How shouldn't that be the expression of our hearts? What a privileged family to be found worshipping God, having tasted of His great salvation to be considered. This morning we sat at the table of the Lord.
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Having tasted of the fact that He's brought us into the heavenly family by sovereign grace.
Our brothers, He's brought before us the fact that we are bound for those heavenly boats all secure with us. We have every reason to bow the head and worship together with our families.
Our privilege.
May be the expression of your heart and mind.
And so we see is less space.
Like to open our Bibles?
To Philippians.
Philippians, Chapter 4.
And verse 4.
Rejoiced in the Lord, and again I say, rejoice. Is that what it says?
Is that what the verse says? It says rejoice in the Lord always. And again I say rejoice and just think of the context.
Of this verse, the last chapter first, the third chapter, when the apostle wrote about his pedigree and his lineage.
And then he said in verse 7, But what things were gain to me, those I counted lost for Christ, ye doubtless. And I count all things but loss for the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and to count them but dung, that I may win Christ.
Nobody here in this audience.
Has suffered the loss of all things. Somebody here in this audience, I don't believe was a success as Paul was a success in this world and yet he suffered the loss of all things for Christ. And he could say rejoice in the Lord Alway. And again I say rejoice. And when I read this Vo, this verse, this fourth verse, this 4th chapter, it speaks to my soul because I failed, I failed.
In a very dramatic way to apply this to my soul.
Circumstances that are very insignificant come along in my life.
And then I'm unhappy so many times my happiness.
Is situated in the circumstances in which I am.
But my happiness should not be a matter of circumstances as other others have said, but my happiness should be in the Lord, and so many times.
It comes along just some insignificant little thing. There's a cloud comes into the sky, the sun is blocked out and I'm no longer rejoicing. But our happiness as the days grow darker and darker must be in the Lord if we look to our circumstances.
Our circumstances may change for the worse. Think of Paul or people.
Who are adding to his bonds, preaching and adding to his bonds. And here he was a man who had made it in this world, lost everything, and was in a Roman prison. And he could write these words chained to a soldier in a Roman prison. Rejoice in the Lord.
Always and again I say rejoice. It's a challenge to my heart because I fail so much in this.
So many times when children go to school, it's hot to put.
Put so much of their effort into becoming a success in this world.
And it's important that they get a good job, I believe, But it's so important to put the emphasis in the right place. And I think of that verse in Joshua, one, maybe we could turn to it. I can't quote it by heart.
1St chapter of Joshua.
Verse eight. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein, for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. I think it's so important in our lives to to place the emphasis in obeying God's word, and that we view those who do that as being successful and not those that have accumulated great wealth.
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Or attained a higher education, but that our emphasis beyond the right things and that our happiness be in the Lord, and we can say rejoice in the Lord alway and again I say rejoice.