Pella Conference: 2009
Table of Contents
Irritations in Our Lives
Address—Ken Harman
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May we begin the meeting this afternoon with 169 in our little hymn book.
Lord, we conceive by faith in Thee a prospect bright, unfailing.
Where God shall shine in light, divine in glory, never fading.
Oh, how we thirst the chains to burst the way our spirits downward, and there to flow in Love's full glow, With hearts like 9 surrounded. No more is here amid snares to fear a thought or wish unholy no more to pain the Lamb once slain, but live to love thee holy 169.
Lord, we can see by faith in faith.
Our prospect?
Right on failing, we're gone.
I'm not going to be taking up anything that is new to anybody here. And as our as we have a short hour this time, we'll have to go through these what I have in my heart very briefly and I'm sure I won't even get to the end of it and I won't suffer you through it because.
Our time is limited, I know, so I would like to start with reading these familiar passages in Philippians chapter 2, beginning at verse one. If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies fulfill ye, my joy that you might be like minded having the same love being of 1 accord of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or Vainglory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
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Look not every man on his own things or qualities, but every man also on the qualities of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought of not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given him a name which is above every name, that the name of Jesus, every knee should bow of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in My presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
Do all things without murmurings and disputing that you may be blameless and harmless. The sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation or generation. Among whom is ye shined as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life, that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain. Now we understand in this chapter, I'm sure very well as it's not. It's familiar to everyone here.
That there was a it was the apostles desire that these Saints would go on well together. And indeed it was a very happy assembly, I understand. And but it was a poor assembly and perhaps that that was helpful for their their being going on well, but.
The the apostle desired that, you know they they showed to the apostle that they really loved him.
And everything they did, they, they ministered to his needs and so forth. But he said, you know, the way that you minister to me, I want you to be, to do the same likewise to one another. And so there was a, there was a problem in that little assembly, even though it was going on. Well, outwardly there was, there was a little bit of, shall we say it's like when you get dust in your eye, it's an irritation. And no matter what you do, you can't, you rub it and you rub it and you do your best to get rid of it. And it just.
It just continues to irritate you there and sometimes the only way you can get rid of it is to go to the doctor and get the doctor to take it out so that you can get rid of that irritation. Then, you know, sometimes there are those things in our lives that irritate us and we, we blame it on this and we blame it on that and so forth. And we sometimes don't take the time to look at our own selves. Maybe that irritation is with me. And these things are very important, brother, that we.
That we we consider these things that in an assembly and even in a family, there are those there we are a group together and we are asked to go on one with another to keeping that unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. How important this is. And so the apostle here was a well aware of this. We're not told out here, but there was something in that little assembly that was that was a cause of irritation.
And the apostle is going on to give them the remedy for it. And you know there is a remedy.
For that irritation in my eye and it was when I went to the doctor to the physician and got him to remove it. And you know, it is the same way when there's irritations in our lives. We need to throw in that that that we we need to take it to the cross of Christ. We need to throw in that that tree into the water as as Elijah did in order that the waters would be would be.
Sweet. And it's when we bring these things, our difficulties.
In with one another into the into the very presence of the Lord Jesus to the Great Physician.
He alone can remove the irritation and we can go on and see clearly together.
And walk with one mind together in the in the good of the gospel. You know they were that was important here. That's why he said do all things without murmurings and disputing that why that she may be blameless and harmless. The sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation of whom ye shine as lights in the world.
You and I, brethren, have enough flesh in everyone of us.
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To divide an assembly.
But we also have enough life of Christ in us that we can go on together.
So which one is it that we're going to allow to show forth if there's a there if, if it's showing forth to the world about us, what what is it like, brethren, if there is an irritation there and there's something going on in the midst of the those outside say, well, what is going on there? What is going on? The world sees it or what? Can we go out and proclaim the gospel in those situations? Can I go out and hand a tract if I'm having difficulties with my brother or if I'm having difficulties in my family?
They look in your family and they say, what kind of a Christian is this? These things are fundamental. These are these are so important in our lives that we each one of us brother, and and not just to when we read scriptures like this, we say, you know, I wish so and so was here that he could hear this. No, I'm here, you're here. And each one of us needs to take this to heart and realize that we are the problem or we are the we can be the the answer to the problem.
We can be the remedy. Do we want to be the remedy or the cause?
You say, Why do you speak on these things? I say this, brethren, because it is common to everyone of us.
And we need to be mindful of these things because it's just like when we go through the book of Ephesians, the highest truth that there is and the word of God, we might say. And as we go through the, the, the 1St 4 chapters of the book of Ephesians, where we're, we're in the, we're in the, in the heavenlies and we're enjoying the truth that we are there with Christ and that we're, that we're living in the heavenlies. Now we can enjoy the, the, the Canaan land as it were in, in tight.
But you know, at the end of the chapter, what, what are we, what, what are we confronted with? Well, we're confronted with the warfare. We're we're told to put on the whole armor of God. There's going to be a war, there's going to be problems and we are faced with those things. But at the end of that, what does he say in Ephesians chapter 5?
Or chapter 4, after going through all this, where he's speaking about that we might be the beginning of that chapter, speaks out with saying, with all loneliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love.
Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. These are so important.
And then we go to the end of that chapter, and what does it say? And grieve not verse 30. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. And be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Well, we just sang in our little hymn here that the day is coming when it says.
No more to view thy chosen few than selfish strife divided. But drink in peace the living grace that gave them hearts united. Well, that's that's what we long for, brother, is the fact that when all these things will be done away, we'll be there in the presence of the Lord Jesus, and all these things will be gone.
And how thankful we will be, we won't have these bodies of humiliation, we won't have the flesh within us to to interfere and to dishonor the Lord Jesus, but we will be there in his very presence. And that's what we long for. And you know, if you and I are are to walk straight, shall we say follow that Kings highway and would not look unto the right or to the left, but keeping our eyes in the middle of the road and going on to the promised land, shall we say as it is in figure.
And justice looking on to that day when we will be in the presence of the Lord Jesus.
You know, we can walk together with no, no clamor, no malice, no nothing like that. It's, it's that's what the Lord wants. That's what the apostle Paul longed for these people. What does he say to the brethren, to those in in Ephesus that we turn to Acts chapter 20 I.
Let's turn to Acts Chapter 20 so we can get this correctly here.
He says in verse 26, Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men, For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost have made you overseers, to feed the flock the Church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
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Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Wherefore watch and remember that by the space of three years. Now note this, by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Three years, night and day.
That man not only only gave the whole counsel of God.
But what was before him, he knew that there was going to be problems coming in amongst them.
And there would be wolves coming in to destroy the flock.
That poor man.
I suppose we.
Each one here understand that in a way we should, I mean even as we lookout in the whole.
Church of God, what do we see? We see what the Apostle Paul feared.
And he knew was coming.
He knew that there would be those that would come in from outside and from inside to take away that which he had sown. And he cried night and day with tears. Did he care? Do we care? Do we care that the Church of God is divided?
I'm not just talking about our local assembly or whatever it might be, I'm talking about the whole.
Church of God.
And there we thank God for everyone of them out there without our desires to go on with the Lord in some measure. And you and I, brethren, as gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus, we have a.
We we have such a treasure right before us. Are we walking in it? Are we enjoying it?
Or are those little irritations in our eyes that we can't get rid of and we're not, We're not ready to go to the doctor about it yet. We're going to try and take care of these things ourselves.
I say we need to humble ourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God.
That he might exalt us in due time.
These are real things and I don't think we need to avoid or evade them.
We fly sooner, talk about the glories of Christ and that glory that's going to be going to follow. But we're in the pathway down here, brethren, that we have to face.
We have to walk through.
And we have to walk through, either to please ourselves or to please the Lord.
And as I said before, each one of us has enough flesh in us to divide the Saints of God. That's nothing to brag about. That's nothing to glory in. It's something for us to fear.
But to recognize too that we have a source within us that is able to.
Overcome this, and we have to first of all take heed to ourselves and to the doctrine continue in them.
Continue in them when the word of when when the word was given to the the the Israelites of old before they were told that they were to give these things to their children and to their children's children. The first thing was take heed to yourself.
And so I say, we don't look around and say, well, I wish so and so was here, or this is good for him or good for her.
This is where it needs to go, right here. And I say this to my own soul.
I don't point the finger to anybody else. I point it right back here because everyone of us, I believe there's not one of us in this room, can ever say we did not contribute to difficulties or to the state of the church in any way.
We have to humble ourselves and we have to bow our heads and say yes, Lord.
But there is, thank God there is a way that we can overcome these.
And the apostle Paul gave the Philippians the answer to it. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Look at him. Look at what he did, that one who has, who had all right, every right to exalt himself and to say, look at me.
And so he says to those those Philippians there.
Let nothing be done through strife or Vainglory.
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Do we have any of us have anything to glory in?
Just think what we were, Just think what we are by nature. Just think what is in US, that flesh that is so capable of of destroying ourselves and anyone that comes in contact with us.
So let nothing be done through strife or Vainglory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better themselves. I'm, I'm.
Reminded in this instance of that man Gideon, when he, where did they find him? We'll just digress from this a moment. Where did they find Gideon and at what time was it when they found him? He was in the he. It was in in a time when when the children of Israel were suppressed by the Midianites. And you know what Midian means. It means strife.
And you know where Midian came from.
He came from. He was a descendant of the child of Abraham through couture.
And so you see, these things are very close to us.
They don't come from afar. They're close to us and they're in each one of us. The capability of being able to carry on and present strife to one another, to our brethren, or whatever it might be, could be in our family, could be in our marital relationship, but these things are not peculiar to just one individual or two. It's peculiar to all of us, brother, we that flesh that is in us, that is ready to rise up. And the enemy knows that he can easily destroy a testimony.
By 1 little word or two.
And so where was Gideon? He was, He was.
He was grinding wheat, it says.
By the winepress, but it should be in the winepress. He was grinding wheat in the winepress and that that reminds us grinding the wheat is making is is occupying ourselves with Christ, that old corner of the land, the wheat that sprung up out of the ground.
And bore fruit.
That's what it speaks of, I believe. And so there he was in the Winepress. Why was he in the Winepress? Because it was empty.
There should have been wine in it.
But the land was destitute because of the Midianites. And when the Midianites came in, then, then they, they were distressed. Strife came in. And those poor children of Israel, they didn't, they were all hiding in the rocks and and so, so forth. But where was where was Gideon? He was, he was getting his, his food right there in the place where there should have been joy.
But it was empty. There was number joy in Israel at that time. They were distressed. The strife had come in and divided. And you know, when strife comes in, we lose our friends, we lose our everything that we have enjoyed before.
It's a terrible thing, and you and I are capable of contributing to it.
How do we like it if there should be a division amongst the people of God and you came to the realization it was my fault.
How terrible.
How terrible that would be in the face of God at the judgment seat of Christ.
And so where was Gideon again? I say he was. He was.
Getting his own food.
There, in that place where there should have been joy, He was enjoying. Shall we put it this way? It's like if we want to bring in a New Testament, it's like we are feeding on the Word of God. We are feeding on Christ. We are studying to make ourselves approved unto God, a Workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth, making it good for our souls, and walking in it that it might be evident to everybody, and that we might in some way be able to deliver the Saints of God.
Can we do that? Yes, we can. I don't say we have to say, look at me now, I'm going to deliver the Saints of God. No, but we can make it. We can get our food from that place that we can only place. We can get enjoyment from the Word of God and we can fill our souls. We can make it good to ourselves and we can show to others that we enjoy it.
And then maybe they'll follow you that.
You're profiting might appear to all it says.
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Young or old, doesn't matter. No age group.
You want to follow Christ? I remember brother said to me a long time ago, and I remember exactly where I was standing when he told me. He said you want to help the people of God walk with the Lord. That's all he said and I never forgotten it. I'm not saying I walked in it, but I've never forgotten what he said and it's the truth.
Just as simple. That's the remedy. There's no rules and regulations. There's no law book, there's no nothing to write down and say, well, if I do this or that, then this is going to happen. No, we just walk with the Lord and let him do the work and he'll take care of the stripe. You know what it says in the book of James? Let's go to the book of James for a moment.
James Chapter 3.
Verse 13. Who is a wise man and a dude with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. But if ye have any bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.
And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace that make peace.
Just take heed to that. Let us take heed to that. The soul, the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace. That's not the same as creating strife in our lives or in our assemblies. What are we? This, this, this was Gideon, you know, and but he didn't know it at the time, but he was, he was preparing himself for God's use to deliver the Saints of God. He didn't know it, but what he did, he humbled himself. He says I'm just a small man. I came up.
I didn't even come out of the right tribe. Why do you? Why do you choose me? But where did he, Where did the Lord meet him? Underneath the oak.
Underneath the cross, underneath of that which spoke of the of the the destruction of the flesh.
And that's where we need to get before we can deliver ourselves or the Saints of God in any way.
Let's not just set ourselves out to deliver the Saints of God, I say. Let us set our sights on glorying the Lord and satisfying His heart and doing what is pleasing to Him, and the rest will take care of itself.
And so Gideon.
Gideon was was prepared of God to go out and deliver the people of God and we all know the story. Our time is is going, but you know the story and I don't have to go go through it. It wasn't my intent to take up the book of Gideon, but I I love to to bring Gideon into this. This what what we we find in the book of Philippians, because it is so it is so related to that I believe, at least in my own soul.
But there is Gideon, he's being prepared of God. He's, he's not a thinking of himself. And so God uses him and to, to deliver the Saints of God. But first of all, he must bring him down. First of all, it's 32,000 people. You want to go out and help Gideon deliver the Saints of God. That's man's thoughts of how we're going to to deliver the Saints of God is we got to get an army together and we're going to have to defeat this. It's a group thing.
Is it?
It's an individual thing.
But God brought that number down, down, down, down, down until there was only 300 men.
That went out with Gideon. How? How do you expect me to deliver that great host of Midian as the sand of the Seasaur shore with 300 men?
And God, as it were, told him, Gideon, the work is mine. And so he didn't even send him out with a sword. He sent him out with a trumpet one hand and the and A and a light in the other hand. There he didn't have another hand to carry a sword. So he he went out to face the enemy with the, the trumpet in one hand and the light in the other hand. And we know what we read in, in, in the book of Second Corinthians.
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Chapter 4 I believe is little a little allusion to this.
2nd Corinthians, chapter 4.
And verse seven, for we have this treasure in earthen vessels.
That the Excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed, but not, not in despair, Persecuted, but not forsaken, cast down and not, and, and but not destroyed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Christ might be made manifest in our body.
And then in verse 12, so then death worketh in US.
But life.
Knew and So what happened was that.
They went out into to meet the enemy, and when Gideon said, when I blow the trumpet, you do as I do.
And they broke that glass, and the light shine shone forth, and the enemy was put to the worst, and they began to kill themselves. They were destroyed in a way that they never thought or imagined could happen.
And you know, that happens sometime that there's some some problems confront us in our lives or in in our assemblies and we say.
How are we going to ever overcome this? How are we ever going to get to the bottom of this? And we just cry to the Lord?
And the Lord will do it in a marvelous way that we never even thought of. But as to his glory and not to ours. This was to the Lord's glory and not to Gideon's. Now, as we go on further, we in in the book, let's go to to the book of Judges chapter 8. So we can get this straight to I'm just I'm just grazing through this, as you can tell.
So that we can have time.
And so he says in chapter 8.
Let's start verse 19. So Gideon and the 100 men that were with him came into the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch as verse 19 of Chapter 7 rather. And they had, and they had but newly set the watch and they blew the trumpets and break the pictures that were in their hands. And the three companies blew the trumpets and break the pictures and held the lamps in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands.
And bleweth all. And they cried the sword of the Lord and of Gideon. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp. And all the hosts ran and cried and fled in the 300 blew the trumpets. And the Lord said every man's sword against his fellow, even through all the host. And the host fled to Beth, Shitta and and Seraph, and to the border of Abel Mahola. And Tabith. And the man of Israel gathered themselves together out of NAFTA lie.
You know, the way to defeat the Midian is to, like we get in the New Testament, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace. Here they gathered those children, those people together.
To defeat the enemy.
And we can only do that, brethren, as we walk together in unity.
Just holding our fingers there for a moment, let's turn to the 3000 and 33rd Psalm in connection to the with this.
And we read their.
Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.
It is like the precious ointment upon the head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's heart beard that went down to the skirts of his garments, and the dew of Herman, and as the dew that descendeth upon the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
All of that, the dew, that oil that ran down, it's like the Spirit of God that is just flowing, shall we say, through our life and through our assembly when we go on together in unity. How beautiful it is for brethren to royal together in unity.
That is the spirit of God's desire for us. And so in the going back to Judges verse 2324 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all Mount Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Beth, Berra and Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together and took the waters unto Beth, Berra and Jordan. And they took 2 Princess of the Midianites, Orb and Zeb, And they slew Aurib upon the rock of Orab and Zeb they slew of the winepress of Zebra.
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And pursued Midian and brought the heads of Orb and Zebra.
To Gideon on the other side, Jordan, you know in the book of Galatians that says take heed that you that that you are no.
I'm going to have to turn to that again. Galatians Chapter 5. We'll notice that in the book of Galatians.
That one of the works of the flesh is strife.
It's not found in the in the in the fruit of the spirit, of course, but in the book of Galatians chapter five, he says.
And verse.
15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that he be not consumed one of another. It's interesting to me that the book, the name Aurib and Zeb, Do you know what that means?
One means Robin and the other is Wolf.
Take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
And so Gideon let the children of Ephraim, he called them. They didn't want to go up to the battle at first. They.
And so Gideon went by himself with with some other tribes, but not Ephraim. Ephraim turned him down. And then when the battle was won, Ephraim says, how come you didn't call me? Don't you know I'm an important tribe, as it were, Andy? And So what does Gideon say? Did he just say sorry and just?
Remind him of what he had done, he said. Look, he said, look what you did in comparison to what I did. You killed the Princess Orbenzee. What is that in comparison? What have I done in comparison to what you did?
What a wonderful a beautiful attitude that was.
And so that's why we get in. I like what it says there in back in Philippians again, where we started.
He says.
Let nothing be done through strife or Vainglory, but in lowliness of mind. Let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things or qualities, but every man also on the things of others.
What a wonderful, a beautiful attitude that is to say, look at what what have I done in comparison to what you've done? Even though that man was a cantankerous person and, and we go back in the history a little bit, we'll find out he always caused problems because of his, he was all puffed up about himself.
Sometimes there are those.
And sometimes we have to let them have their way and say, look at what you've done is just wonderful. Just look what it's done for the Saints of God.
Just look what what it's what it's doing and and then there will be peace.
But is humbling ourselves?
Step down, step down and let the battle be the Lord's. Let him do it because it's for his glory. Yeah, I think of another another instance too, when, when, when the children of Israel cried against Moses. And, and it's called when we read of it in the Book of Numbers, it just says that it would hurry smoke the rock. But when we read about, I believe in the 106th Psalm, it calls it the at the waters of strife.
Because there they strove with him.
And that was, you know, Moses was the meekest of men, and I believe.
At least Speaking of myself, if I were in his shoes I I'm sure I would have not have been as meek and humble as him.
Most difficult circumstances for 38 to 40 years, that man had to put up with those people with their cantankerousness and their and they're speaking against them, they're railing on him and they're and everything else. Could we have done that?
We think sometimes maybe it's hard enough just in a free year or two with sometimes in our circumstances, but here is a man, the meekest man. And you know, I love the illustration someone said about what what the meaning of meekness was. It's power in under control, power under control. Think about it.
That's what it was with Moses. He had the power there, and when a man walks in meekness and humility before God, there's a power there that people don't understand.
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But if you all of a sudden blow your stack and you lose your cool or whatever term you might want to use.
That estimation goes down.
And the people already, and then people say, oh, they're, you know, he's not what I thought he was. But you know, as Moses, all those years he walked in meekness and there was that power about him that God used to control that mass of people. But there came the time when Moses lost his cool and he smote that rock instead of speaking to it, smoked it twice. And God said God didn't even complain about that.
He brought blessing out of it anyway.
He brought blessing out of it anyway. And sometimes we do things foolish in our lives and in our assemblies and people point the finger out and they say, I'm not going to hang around there anymore. Look what those how those people act.
But it's God's place, it's God's assembly, and you walk out on him. You're not walking out on your brethren, you're walking out on the Lord.
This God's assembly, brother, and we need to walk down here.
In humility and meekness, like Moses walked through the wilderness with the people of Israel and until we get to the end of the way, Moses did eventually see that land, but he didn't wasn't able. He lost the privilege of walking through into that land with those people. But God saw to it that he saw it and he was in the land.
Well, our time is is gone. I just want to read a few verses in the book of Romans and then we'll quit.
I I think it's Romans chapter 12.
Three. For I say, through the grace given unto me to every man that is among you, not to think of himself, Or I think Mr. Darby puts that not to think more highly than he ought to think.
I think that's left out of there, not to think. It does not of himself more highly. That would mean that there is in some measure we can think highly of ourselves, but here it says just not to think.
Higher, that is.
For ourselves, to give ourselves some elevation in this world, some privilege in this world, or some attainment in this world, don't think higher than we ought to think. But it says to think.
Soberly.
As courting as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office, so we being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. What would go on a little bit here?
Verse nine. Let love be without the simulation, Abhor that which is evil, cleave to that which is good, be kindly affectioned. 1 To another brother with brotherly love in honor, preferring one another. And then verse 17, or verse 16, Be of the same mind, one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. Recompense to no man evil for evil, provide things honest in the sight of all men. So forth. And then it says.
Verse 18 if it be possible.
As much as life in you live peaceably with all men.
And then chapter 15.
And verse 30 Now I beseech you, brethren.
For the Lord Jesus Christ sake and for the love of the Spirit, and that you strive together with with me in your prayers to God.
Amen.
Philippians 1:1-10
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Write a song.
My honorable hand.
While we try and stand on sorrows and wake up.
My love of God.
Philippians chapter one I believe in the chapter we have that which gives further benefit to our souls on the matter we had before us in the first reading or the first address. And at the same time I believe the chapter also brings before us.
That which would be for the benefit of our souls in connection with the homegoing today.
Nancy and others. So I would suggest Philippians 1.
Philippians 1.
All and promote the servants of Jesus Christ for all the Saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi with the bishops and deacons.
Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine, for you all making requests with joy for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that he which has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
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Even as it is meat for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, in as much as both in my bonds and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you are all partakers of my grace, for God is my record. How greatly I long after you all in the vows of Jesus Christ. And this I pray that your love may abound yet more and more in the knowledge and in all judgment, that you may approve things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offence to the day of Christ.
Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ under the glory and praise of God. But I would ye should understand, brother, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel, So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and all other places, and many other of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confidence by my bonds.
And much more bold to speak the Word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ, even envy and strife. Some also goodwill. The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely supposing to add affliction to my bonds, but the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defense of the gospel. What then? Notwithstanding every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, and I there undo, rejoice, yeah, and will rejoice.
I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation of my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be life or by death. For to me to live with Christ and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor. Yet will I shall choose. I would not.
I am straight betwixt to having desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better.
Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for you, and having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith, that your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again. Only let your conversation be as it is becometh the gospel of Christ, that whether I come and see you or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit.
With one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, and in nothing terrified by the adversaries, which is to them an evident token of petition, but to you of salvation and that of God. For unto you is given into the on behalf of, in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake, having the same confidence which He saw in me, and now here to be in me.
Verse 7 the apostle says I have you in my heart.
In verse nine he says this. I pray that your love.
God has bound us together.
So that our happiness and our joy cannot be separated.
And we are bound together in that as well. The joy of the Saints in Philippi was Paul's joy.
The sorrows and the Saints of Philippi was Paul's sorrow because they were linked together.
In this life and for eternity, in a way that one's happiness, if you will, or loss, was bound to the other in a more wonderful and perfect way.
Our lives are bound to the life of the Lord Jesus in the same way.
If we were all but one to get to heaven and the Lord Jesus were to look around and see one missing, his joy would not be complete.
His joy would not be complete, he would say, where is.
Sister where his brother so and so and so. It's well for us to.
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Always remember that in its practice, as Ken had in the remarks that made at the beginning, that we would recognize that independence is not of God in spirit and will not result in joy in walk either. And so our joys and our sorrows are connected with one another and with each other, and it's a foundation for us to desire to.
Because it's natural to us to be happy.
You recognize that interdependence and this chapter, in a very practical way, it's not a chapter of doctrine particularly.
But it is a chapter that shows the living, practical reality of Saints of God and their relationship to each other in life and in death.
Alice has often been pointed out to Philippians, brings before us our experiences as believers here in this world, here in this, as we often say, wilderness seen through which we pass. It's not Ephesians where we're seeing positionally seated in heavenly places in Christ.
It's not even Colossians where it's Christ in you, the hope of glory, but it's the believer here day-to-day.
Treading through this wilderness scene where there are all kinds of difficult circumstances, all kinds of problems and ups and downs in the path of faith. And I, it's appropriate that we take up a book like Philippians in this chapter because as we've already been reminded in the prayer meeting and some of the comments that have been made, there are brethren here whose hearts are no doubt troubled and burdened as you sit in these seats. We all have burdens and cares.
We come apart for a few days like this and we enjoy one another's company and a little sanctuary and refuge from the world and from the cares of life. But when we think if in the normal course of things, when the days are over, we're going to go back to those situations.
But Paul writes to the Philippians here not to tell them that they're going to be taken out of the circumstances this side of glory, but to tell them that there's a resource that can come in to give them joy even in the midst of circumstances and rather more and more as we reach the end and.
Trials and difficulties seem to abound on every hand. I realize that we're not going to, and we oughtn't always even to pray for the removal of the difficulties, but to pray that we would be so in the enjoyment of Himself that through the difficulties there would be that joy and rejoicing. The three Hebrew children, they weren't delivered from the fiery furnace, they were delivered through it. And He doesn't always deliver us from the trial, but He does deliver us through it, and there can be joy and rejoice.
In either case, whether he delivers us out of the trial or whether he delivers us through it in the measure in which Christ is precious to your soul and mind, we can take the next step in the wilderness journey. We can meet the next hurdle, the next sand dune, so to speak, with the joy of the Lord in our souls. And that, brethren, is really what's going to give us courage to press on. So there were some difficulties at Philippi. He takes up those matters very faithfully and delicately later on in the epistle.
But he reminds them of what's ahead and what they have for their present resource.
I'd like to just make one further comment in connection with what Don said and the apostle Paul who cared for the Saints. It was an interesting comment that he makes in First Corinthians, Second Corinthians 11, where he's forced by inspiration to give a list of the things that he suffered in the path of faith and service for Christ and service for his brethren. And it's a tremendous list, things that I and perhaps most in this room will never be called on to pass through.
In the path of faith and service. But it's interesting that at the end of it, he says, and that which came upon me daily, the care of all the churches. Now I don't want to take away from the physical things that Paul suffered in the path of faith and service. He certainly never became callous to them. He felt them. He felt them very keenly as a man. But it seems to me that at the end of it, when he speaks of the care of all the churches.
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That was almost a greater burden to him than the things that he had suffered physically, and that was his care for the Saints of God, and not only his care for them in connection and his feeling for them in connection with what they passed through in a natural or physical way.
But what they passed through in connection with their spiritual well-being, Pauls desire. And as you read these epistles, there was something that even superseded their physical or natural well-being. He had that at heart, that's for sure. He delighted when Saints were were healthy and and circumstances were were good and so on. He thanked God for those mercies and he joined with the Saints in those things.
But I believe what really rejoiced the heart of the apostle more than even that was to see those that he had been used by the grace of God to bring into the truth. Those going on in the truth, going on happily together individually and as assemblies gathered to the Lord's name. Like John said, I have no greater joy than to see that my children walk in truth. And when Paul prays for the Saints in these epistles.
It's not usually about natural things, but it's for their spiritual well-being. Brethren, I trust everyone of us covet that care for the Saints, that we would have that same care and love one for another that would minister not only to the natural but would desire the blessing of the spiritual.
If we start with ourselves, things usually.
Don't workout right in our thoughts or in our lives. We always need to begin our thought patterns.
And everything else with God. And if we start with God and give him his right and proper place.
We'll come to right conclusions for a right walk. I say that because of verse two. It says grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul begins his epistles with.
The Father and with the Lord Jesus Christ and their thoughts.
And his desire for them from that which only could flow from God.
And so he says to them, Grace and peace be unto you from God.
Our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, that's the source of peace.
That's the source of good, that's the source of grace, that's the source of true love. And it starts with God. And if we miss that point and immediately are into the trial and the difficulty and the sorrow and the dissension and whatever else comes along in life, but lose that fact in our souls.
Our thought patterns are not going to come to right conclusions, but if we recognize that good is in the heart of God toward us and believe it, then we can face that which God has to teach us, that which we have to bear with, that which is in connection with any service for Himself, and so on, whatever comes along in life.
Verse 6 carries along the same idea, being confident very thing he who has begun a good work in you will perform it till the day of Jesus Christ. When we look at our Christian life and I have a lot of Christian so-called Christian friends outside the assembly. Often they're looking at the mirror to grow in the Christian life. And yes, we have responsibilities. Yes, we should read our Bible, yes, we should pray, yes, we should share the the scriptures and etcetera.
But the Christian life is centered in one person, our Lord Jesus Christ. God's the one that began the Christian life in us. We didn't save ourselves. God saved us. I wasn't reaching and jumping up toward the sky trying to get to heaven. I was digging a hole, trying to go underground when God and his sovereign grace and love that he bestowed upon us reached down and saved us. We'll run to that a little bit more in chapter one, verse 29, but.
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Here, when we get that straight.
He who begun the good work in you. Well, if we were saved by grace, if we were saved by God, how do we live the Christian life? By good works, by the law, by the power of the flesh. Of course not. As we've begun in the Spirit, we're going to continue in the Spirit. The Galatians problems were that they began in the Spirit, but they wanted to continue by the flesh. This verse is telling us that our growth and grace, our love toward God.
Isn't coming from something in us. We love Him because He first loved us. And when we center our Christian life not on what we do for Him, but what He does for us, His love for us is what makes me love Him. What He's done for me is what causes me to do for others. It's the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. And here we see that. We know that the grace and salvation is unconditional. And here this verse emphasizes.
That the grace in our Christian growth is unconditional grace.
When I fail, it's my fault. When I succeed, it's because of God's grace in my life.
My very first carries with thought of assurance.
We've heard that the Book of Philippians is about being joyful.
And the word joy or rejoices in it. 12 * 5 of them are in this chapter.
It is not superficial joy, it's true joy.
I can have superficial happiness and put on a fake smile.
And look happy on the outside and be miserable on the inside. This is not superficial joy. This is true joy.
In order for me to have true joy in my salvation, I have to have insurance assurance. Excuse me, I have to have assurance. It says that He hath begun past tense a good work, and He will perform. That carries with the thought of it the present tense, that He's performing it now and he will in the future continue to perform it until the day the Lord takes us off of this scene.
Be it in death or whether we're raised up alive so we have assurance at the moment of salvation. When we're brought from darkness into light and we are so saved, we automatically start to receive assurance, don't we?
And the woman that touched the hem of the garment of Jesus turned around and started to walk away. And he called her back, and he asked her to tell her all.
And brothers and sisters, when we tell somebody about our salvation and about the Lord, it thrills our heart and it helps to build our assurance. We can pick up verses after verses after verses. Psalms 29 and 11. He's going to give His people strength.
And peace, we are standing on the promises of God.
Our assurance, and without that assurance, we could not be joyful.
We have to have that assurance, don't we? We have the assurance that we're going to see him face to face. We have the assurance that we are going to be in heaven, the great hope that lies ahead of us. And we can go on and on and on about the assurance. But He hath begun a good work in us, a work that is trying to perfect us, to mature us in maturity. That's what perfect means in Scriptures, in maturity.
He's taken us from milk, taken us into meat and he's really feeding us and he's performed a good work in our lives. And if we have?
The life of Christ in our mind.
And the way that we are living on this world, we can be joyful inside with a true joy and not a superficial joy. And that's what we've been hearing from our brethren here before us. But we have to be able to pick out these verses of assurance. He's not going to leave me today with this good work. He's not going to leave me tomorrow. He's going to keep at it continually until the day of the Lord.
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Suppose we get this difference in the thought between the servant and the bondservant.
What is the difference between a servant and a bond servant? The bond servant, I believe, is one who has the affection for his master and is willing to serve him forever. Whereas a servant may be one who is who has been being paid for his services and he can leave at any time. And so if we don't have the assurance in our souls of.
The love of the Lord Jesus and the love of God towards us, then we, we could probably pull out at any time in our, in our pathway. But if there's that affection in our souls that like, like that we get in, in Genesis or Exodus 21 where he says I love my, my, my wife, I love my Master and I love my children and I will not go out free. And so the, the, the affections of the Lord Jesus in our souls will keep us. It's the love of Christ that constrains us.
And so we find the apostle, the apostles here saying, calling themselves not apostles, but.
Bond servants, it should be of Jesus Christ. And they named themselves the same with the Saints and with the bishops and deacons. They're all on the same, shall we say, on the same level. And it's not, it doesn't say here that it's under the bishops and deacons, but with them.
They are, they are not under them, they are under, they're all servants of our bond, servants of Jesus Christ. And it's as we walk in that capacity and that consciousness that we can go on together in our pathway until the Lord comes.
Another aspect that sets the right attitude in the very beginning as he not only speaks.
As from God, grace and peace be unto you, from God our Father, and so on. But also Paul's own spirit is immediately expressed in verses three and four. I thank my God for every remembrance of you. Do we have that same spirit when we go to God, or when we think of our brethren? And verse four, it's in every prayer when he spoke to God.
About the brethren there was that in which He found joy, and when he spoke to them.
He about them to God, he said I I thank my God and it's an incredibly important thing to start right and how we look at things and here the apostle Paul's heart was that in which he found that to be thankful to God and and yes, we see things that needed correction and so on but.
It started with a thankful spirit and I would just make this backup comment if for any reason 1 can't.
Thinking about any other brother or sister in the body of Christ expressed verses 3:00 and 4:00. Then I suggest to you that every day of your life you bear that specific person by name before God in prayer, seeking God's blessing.
Not God's righteousness, but His blessing, because you need to have that heart for that soul.
Not that God's going to do what they have to, you know, just set them right, but that you have the God's heart toward them.
Even though God's government in ways might require other things to come in, but God always acts first according to his own heart of love.
And all those in Asia turned away from fall. We don't find them condemning them.
He thanked God for those that were left, but he didn't condemn the others for leaving him.
It's a great test, isn't it, to get down on our knees and pray for our brethren, and not just in a general way or by assembly or area of the world. It's easy to pray for the brethren in such and such an assembly. It's easy to pray for the brethren in the northwest or the southeast or in Western Europe or something like that. But it's quite a test when we get down on our knees and pray for one another, name by name and need by need. And it's even stronger in the book of Romans because when Paul wrote to the Romans.
There in that first chapter, he said, I thank God for you all. Now that's quite a test, isn't it, for you all. We might thank God for certain brethren that we kind of click with and get along well. And I'm not saying there aren't those things too. There are. There are brethren that perhaps we feel a little more comfortable with and in natural things we perhaps click a little better and so on. But Paul was thankful for all his brethren at Rome. He prayed for all his brethren at Philippi.
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And I believe that if we would do that honestly before God, and I say this to my own heart, brethren, if we would do this honestly before God, name by name and need by need, we would not be able to hold grudges and bitterness against those brethren. And it would give us the grace to each esteem other better than himself. How can I get down on my knees and pray for you and get up and speak I'll about you to someone else?
How can I get into the presence of God and supplicate on your behalf and thank God for you and at the remembrance of you, and harbor some bitterness in my soul toward you? Pretty difficult. In fact, I suggest it's impossible. And so it's a great remedy for many things, isn't it? We so tend to talk about one another and to discuss situations, and certainly Paul did that on occasions too. There were times he gave warnings about certain brethren and certain situations.
But so often in doing that, we forget to get down on our knees and pray for one another.
You know, we know little about a man at Colossi by the name of Epifras, but one thing we know was that he labored in prayer not only for the Saints at Colossi, but at some nearby assemblies, Heropoulos and Laodicea as well, and he was praying for the Saints. And I think, again, it wasn't just in a general way.
But when he went into his closet, he strove at the throne of grace name by name for the people of God. And so Paul here, he says, I thank God upon every remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine, making requests for you all. I want you to notice that for you all making requests with joy. And so let's pray for all the Saints of God. And I don't mean just in a general way.
And learned in the presence of God his own worthlessness. And it's helpful if in some measure we learn our own worthlessness. Then when we run across the worthlessness of those around us, it won't be so difficult.
We get all we we we can we can put up with.
The shortcomings of our brother and if we have a sense of what we are that God has shown us.
And that's really what grace does, isn't it? You know, it's, it's remarkable that no matter how well an assembly was going on, no matter how high the truth he could give them, by the Spirit of God, he always brings in grace first. Because it's a sense of grace in our souls that does two things. Grace adjusts us in our practical relationships to God and to the Lord Jesus and in our practical relationships with one another.
Because it's grace that teaches us to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present evil world, in this present age. And so it's grace that teaches us to walk before God in that which is right and according to His mind and His word. But as you say, it's also grace that gives us a sense of what we are. And to Him that's to whom much is forgiven, the same loveth. Much if I can see myself as to what I am naturally speaking in the presence of God.
And what I have been brought into solely on the grounds of grace that adjusts my relationships to my fellow Christian, that doesn't puff me up, that doesn't make me feel better. What that does is it again, helps me to practically esteem each other better than better than myself. And so that's why I believe the Apostle Paul so often he stresses grace and at the end, at the beginning of each of his epistles, and usually at the end too.
He brings in that grace that is needed for the practical Christian pathway because grace is what meets us in our present need. The Lord will give grace and glory. Glory is what comes at the end, and He's going to bring that out in this chapter. But grace is what meets us in our present need and in our relationships, one with another.
I believe there's a nice order too for the gym. You you brought before us the the verse in chapter 2 and it's.
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It's in verse three. It says let nothing be done through strife or Vainglory, but in everything but in loneliness of mind let each esteem others better themselves. The apostle Paul is going to probably correct a few things in this.
This epistle that had to do with personal interrelationships one with another in the assembly, but we see that the Apostle Paul was prepared to do that by the Spirit that he displays that Brother Don just brought out.
In the first chapter.
The Apostle Paul had the right spirit concerning his brethren. He he felt a love for them. He didn't have a sense of being above them and so he was a vessel that was fit to be used of God to possibly correct a deficiency that was existed in that assembly.
And that's true. If we're going to be helpful and used to correct things within our assembly, we have to first have been brought to the point where we have that spirit of loneliness and love for our brethren.
He was thanking God for their fellowship in the gospel from the first day until that day. Turn over to chapter 4 when he gets very specific about difficulty in the assembly. It's on the gospel and fellowship in the gospel. I think it's very significant that here he's saying when he thinks of God and he gives thanks, it was with respect to fellowship in the gospel, but then in chapter 4.
He says in verse two, I beseech Yodius, I beseech sent a key, that they may be of the same mind in the Lord.
And I entreat thee also, true yoke fellow, help those women which labored with me in the gospel. And then back in chapter one where he says in the next verse, being confident of this very thing. And then he speaks of his confidence that the work that the Lord was doing he would perform to the day of Jesus Christ. Here again is something that sets the pattern for the rest of the epistle. And that is even in an area where there was a problem.
The apostle, even in that, was giving thanks to God in every remembrance of that fellowship, which was now brought into some matter of question. But at the same time, why could he give thanks? Because he had confidence in God's work.
That was going to do that work to bring about a good result. And sometimes we see something, it's not the way it should be, we recognize we may be part of it and so on and so forth. But.
Do we lose confidence in the one that can and Paul had not and consequently he could give thanks even in this matter because he could be confident that the one that had begun the work in them. He's not talking here about a soul being saved. It's in you fellow believer that are not yet a finished product that God is going to continue that work to its perfect and end result. And so it is with us we.
We need to have confidence in God with respect to His work in each of us, that it will come to that good end.
Speaking of them here as to the assembly, isn't he when he says having begun a good work in you. That's plural. And so it's to the assembly. And then over on the in the second chapter, it says verse 13 for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure and do all things without murmurings and disputings. And so he was about to he was not going to be able to be with them. And so he was confident that the work that God had begun in what in them was going to was going to be completed. It would be fulfilled.
And because it was him that worked in them both to will and to do of his good pleasure. So as you say, sometimes we refer to this as the individual in in, in the soul being saved or being being brought into the being quickened and then being saved and brought to the knowledge of the truth and being eventually getting to glory. But, and it may be applicable in that way. But here it's that plural thing. It's the the assembly that he's talking to here.
Helpful in understanding what's not about. Our chapter precedes what you said in chapter 2. Wherefore, my brother, and as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more my absence, look at your own salvation with fear and trembling. We understand that in the context of the assembly, it becomes much clearer. It's just exactly what you said. The apostle was in prison. He couldn't be with them. He had a real concern for them. And I always liken this book to Joseph. When he sent his brethren back to their father, he said two things to them. Regard not your stuff.
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And see that you fall not out, by the way, really that's the subject of Philippians. And so the Apostle Paul in this letter was responding to fellowship that they had sent to him.
And we find out at the very end of the book, and I just read it from the new translation in the 4th chapter, verse 10, that I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that He now, however at length He have revived your thinking of me.
Though surely you did also think of me, but lacked opportunity. And then again in the 4th chapter a little later, he says, not because I desire a gift, but I desire fruit that may abound to your account. So the apostle have plenty of reason to rejoice, didn't he?
He gives them credit. He doesn't say you stop thinking of Maine, but he was confident by the gift that they had sent him. Not because he desired a gift, but he desired to see fruit.
And I think that's what we've been talking about here, that if we look at our brethren, we can always find fault with them, can't we? But if we just look for an look for that fruit that they have, that they're producing in their life, we have plenty of reason to rejoice, don't we? And so the the apostle here takes this occasion of them sending him a gift to write this letter to address these frictions that were developing within them, amongst them. And yet he can be so thankful for the regard that they had shown to him because it was evidence of fruit in their life. I think that's also.
Somewhat into that in the fifth verse of the first chapter for your fellowship in the gospel from the first to answer. Now not all fellowship in the gospel is in going out and preaching, is it? It can also be done in practical ways.
That first day was.
Washing his stripes.
He'd been beaten and put in prison.
What a memory.
The tender love that would rush those stripes.
Speaking about prayer, it always makes me happy when I hear a brother at the local prayer meeting.
Praying for everyone that is present.
That it shows us that this brother has got nothing against me. We might sometimes sink over this brother. I haven't talked for him for weeks and now all of a sudden now he's praying for everyone that is present. So they must be including me.
It it makes a closer bond with each other and another thing also.
It makes everybody feel that it is important to be at the prayer meeting.
Because.
You might get into a condition where we think, oh, prayer meeting we can skip.
And we pray only about those that are sick and that need special prayer.
But in our hearts we show that we are close to each other when we pray like that.
There's something special in your own name being used in that way.
Rather than just generalizing, but when your name is mentioned, God calls. It says about the stars. He calleth them all by name. And if you and I are stars in God's Galaxy, shall we say in his house, well, he knows us all by name and, and we love to know that. And someday he's going to call us all by name in glory.
He knows every here that's in our head by number. That means he cares about us in the smallest detail because we don't even know how many we got ourselves. It's nice to look at this epistle and we have to remember that Paul, on his second missionary journey, saw Lydia saved. He saw the little damsel girl who used to have a different master get a new master. He saw the Philippian jailer get saved.
So he saw some converts, didn't he?
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And many years later, he wrote this epistle. Why do I know it's many years later? Because it includes bishops and deacons in verse one.
As well established assembly was, wasn't it? And we heard from Brother Dawn about the further or the fellowship of the gospel in verse five. And we're looking at an epistle to an assembly, aren't we? The local assembly at Philippi and they had fellowship in the gospel together. Now look at verse 12, which speaks about the furtherance of the gospel.
The local assemblies are going to continue the gospel together until the last soul is saved and the Lord shuts the door. Aren't they the furtherance of the gospel? Now look at verse 27, breaking into the verse.
I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel. We see unity in the assembly, don't we? Here we see one spirit, one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel. It was definitely beyond his mind and his heart when he wrote this little epistle in chapter one about the gospel.
The fellowship of the Gospel, the Furtherance of the Gospel and the faith of the Gospel.
It's important to recognize that God has saved us.
And each of us he has brought in such a way that our lives, especially in the local.
Sense of it, but even here at the conference too, in a greater sense, he has brought our lives to commingle them. That is to make them mesh together as a common whole with common interests, common desires, common object as we have in this epistle. And he puts that back before them later on, that their object is Christ and so on. And so Paul here in the beginning, again setting the framework for what he's going to have to correct later, he said.
It's a righteous thing for me to think about you in this way, because I have you in my heart.
And he had them in his heart. He had been there. They had joined together. They had fellowship in common, activity in the gospel itself. When we come together, for example, to pray in assembly, we come together to join together in a commingled sense of uniting and bringing that which is important to God, we trust and important to us, not individually, but together.
As a unified voice to God as to that matter which is before our hearts, Well, if we don't have.
It's an important thing to cultivate that practical common interest and fellowship and activity that tends to unite, or if there's a difficulty, tends to bring a burden about it that it might get resolved to go on in that sense.
And Paul had that with the Saints in Philippi. And it's a normal, proper, healthy.
Aspect to desire, and if it's not present then to say, Lord help us that it be that.
In that connection, well, and when you speak of the assembly prayer meeting, that is the opportunity for every brother there to exercise his priesthood. He may not be a gifted brother, but if you can pray, you can pray on behalf of the assembly in a collective way and exercise your priesthood. It's important brother for us to do that, to exercise that priesthood that God has given us. It's different than having them being a teacher or a, or a pastor or a, an evangelist. Those are gifts that are given by the head, but.
The other requires no gift.
Unless you're tongue tied, but other than that it's our responsibility.
And it also, it also, as you mentioned, it unites the assembly as one, and we come before the Lord on behalf of the assembly and behalf of the gospel and his people or whatever it might be as one voice. So I, I would encourage every young brother and older ones too, that have not opened their mouth. And you don't have to wait until you come to go someplace else to do it in your own local assemblies where it begins.
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And those things are important, I believe.
Paul's desire for his brethren, which is so often expressed in the various prayers that are given to us for them in various of the epistles, was not only that they would go on individually, but that they would go on collectively as assemblies and as an already expressed. That was really his burden for the Saints at Philippi. Wasn't it because there was a great testimony had gone out from Philippi. There was real joy and freshness in the assembly at Philippi.
And others had heard of that joy, and there had been a great testimony in the gospel. But Paul knew that that was the very assembly that was going to need extra prayer, if I can put it that way. In fact, this is just a little parenthesis, but it is interesting to note that the times that the apostle Paul prays for his brethren are not usually times when they're going on badly, but for assemblies when they were going on well. Ephesians.
You have his prayers, Colossians, Philippians. It's at times when there was real freshness, appreciation and going on in the truth of God. And here we find, as we said, there was a real testimony and a joy in the gospel that had gone out and been recognized even by other assemblies. But Paul said that's an assembly that's vulnerable. And we know it's been already alluded to and from what he takes up later on in the epistle, that the enemy was already trying to get a wedge in to spoil that joy and testimony.
Because the enemy doesn't just attack us, brethren, as individuals and families. That's true, but his desire is to spoil and smash if he can. Any testimony that there is collectively by those gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus, or any testimony there is by Saints going on together in fellowship in any measure. Satan hates that he knows it's a testimony.
And he's right there to get a wedge. And Paul, later on, he reminds the Philippians, you're our joy. I've told you that in the first chapter, you're our joy. Now don't allow something to come in with there, particularly between two sisters. But he doesn't have to be between two sisters, but.
He says don't let something come in now to spoil that testimony.
And to mar our joy and what we see is being accomplished in and through you collectively there at Philippi. And if I can just say this to brethren and I've seen it and you've seen it to our.
To our sadness and to our shame, and it ought to humble us, that when there is a gospel, a testimony in the gospel, the enemy is right there. And often the work of the gospel is hindered and even stopped by contention and dissension.
Coming in amongst the people of God. You know, we often say that gospel work is individual exercise, and that's true. But isn't it wonderful when brethren have an exercise and they go on in the path and in the truth, and then they go on together and strive together for the faith of the gospel? That's real power and testimony. Satan hates that. And if he can bring something in to get us occupied with one another, to get us occupied even with the problem, as necessary as it may be to be occupied with the problem.
What it does is it hinders or even stops a work and a testimony in the gospel. Brethren, are we going to let Satan have the victory in that regard? Or are we going to seek to go on in the joy of the Lord and pray for one another, not just individually, but collectively, and seek to go on and strive together for the faith of the gospel, that there might be power and testimony?
What you mentioned there, Jim, too, I was thinking of what we get in Galatians. Do we find anywhere in Galatians that Paul prayed for those for that assembly?
Instead, yes, but we aren't. It's not mentioned here. Instead he says he says in verse in chapter one and verse.
Six, I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that have called you unto the great, into the grace of Christ, unto a different gospel. So in Philippians we find them laboring with him in the gospel here, that they have been removed to another gospel. And so there's no mention of him praying for that assembly.
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Because they're in such a sad condition, he went right straight to the point when he started writing to them and dealt with that matter.
Find verse 8.
Extremely challenging and humbling.
The apostle says for God is my record or God is my witness.
That I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.
Here's a man that had a sense in his own soul before the eye of God.
That the affections of his heart were as an expression of the affections of the heart of the Lord Jesus toward them. What more could we want, brethren, than that? That there was active in our souls before the eye of God that expression of the heart of the Lord Jesus toward one another.
Is that the right spirit? We couldn't ask for a better spirit than that, in other words.
Is my heart loving you with the same kind of love that the Lord Jesus loves you and is am I acting toward you in the same practical expression of that love? The apostle here could have that sense in his heart that his feelings, his thoughts, his expressions of it was that which.
Was representative of the heart of the Lord Jesus. To me, that's tremendously humbling.
Almighty said I long for my freedom, that I could come and visit you. And that would have sounded very well. But Paul longs after several things in this epistle, and it's always in connection with the blessing of the Saints at Philippi. And so Paul did long after these ones, and long that they he'd be able to minister to them, be amongst them, longed for their going on in the truth and collectively and so on. But he it isn't for himself.
And it isn't for some credit to himself, either. You know, it's like our children.
Those of us who've had children perhaps have had to grapple with the fact, do we desire that our children go on well for the Lord so that it looks good on us, that it's some credit to us or we do we desire that they go on for the Lord, for his glory and for their good and blessing? There's quite a difference. And I think you see that with Paul's children in the faith. He never desired that they would go on for the Lord, that it would look good As to his ministry, commend his ministry.
But his desire was that they would go on well for the Lord, for their blessing, for the Lord's glory first.
And for their blessing, Well, as you say, what a, what a motive it is. I'd like to just say this too, in connection with confidence.
Paul, not only does he not have confidence in their ability, but he doesn't have confidence even in his own ministry. Paul might have thought, well, I've ministered the word in such a faithful way to these Philippian brethren that they can't help but take hold of it and go on together in the in the good of it. No, it wasn't in the confidence of the way he'd been presented the truth to them or how he had behaved himself amongst them or so and so on.
Those things were no doubt very commendable, but his confidence was in the Lord. His confidence was in their God. And brethren, if we have that confidence, maybe we go out and we preach the gospel and we preach it with we feel we have such power in preaching and wonderful, if we feel feel the power of God and preaching the gospel, we say, Oh, I have every confidence. The Lord will bless his word. We minister to our brethren in some way and we say we feel the power of the Spirit of God behind it, and we say, oh, we have every confidence.
Because of the way it was presented, no.
It's not our ability to present the Word or to minister to our brethren in any way that is going to bear fruit. But our confidence is in His desire and His ability to bring about blessing which in whatever he's been sown in ever so feeble away in gospel or in ministry, or in practical help to the Saints. The blessing is only going to come in the measure in which we have that confidence in Himself and His desire to bless, which far supersedes any desire that may be in the.
The grace of God in our hearts to see fruit and blessing in our brethren.
See how the spirit of of the apostle here that I think you alluded to that, Jim, that there really wasn't any indication that he was complaining that he was imprisoned or that he desired to get out of there or that he was unhappy about his circumstances. He said that he had he had learned and what whatsoever state he was in there was to be content and I believe he meant right there in prison. And so he was content to know that God was working in them.
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That which was his will and he could stay right there in prison and he could write this epistle for you and me to read today that just think of the loss that would have been if if he had a had a pressure. Shall we say, if it's possible to say this, the Lord into getting him out of prison so he could go and help those dear brethren out there.
What a loss that would have been for us.
In verse nine, he speaks.
About love.
This I pray that your love may abound yet more and more knowledge and all judgments.
Now, what knowledge does he mean here? Of course knowledge of the scriptures, but also knowledge of each other.
And in judgment, not judging each other, but first of all, judging ourselves.
And then in all the circumstances, after he got get into, let it not be circumstances of stretching each other, but loving each other and and that connection. I I think of a verse in first John where he says he that loveth his brother abideth in the light and there's no occasion of stumbling in him.
There's too much of judging each other, even at home sometimes.
In the family, that can happen too.
What you say is true there and but I wonder if in verse 9 the better work or judgment isn't intelligence.
So that.
That your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all intelligence. That was what they needed was the intelligence and the things of God and the intelligence as it goes on to say that you may approve things that are excellent or the marginal reading, I believe is correct, which is that try or differ things that differ. And there are things that differ, you know, brother, and sometimes.
We tried to put everything into the same mold.
But if their true intelligence in the things of God and true dependence on Him, there are some things that that differ that we have to to make a judgment about.
Different than something else, if you know what I mean. It's.
Circumstances are not all the same.
And so it wasn't with the Philippians.
And So what his desire was that they might, rather than judge, as you were saying, they might judge it properly, realizing that there are things that differ and they need intelligence in those things, and God only could give it to them. And so that's how you and I can bear with one another, is that that I don't judge you according to myself or myself against you, or this brother, that brother or sister against that sister, or whatever. There are things that different in each circumstance.
And that's what we have to have intelligence in and dependence on the Lord to learn. And otherwise that's why he goes on to say, I believe in the later on in in the epistle where it says.
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended no further back a bit, not as though I had already attained, neither were already perfect, But I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which I also am apprehended of Christ Jesus. And then he says.
Verse 15 there let us therefore as many as be perfect, or have that full perfect object before us. Be thus minded, and if anything you'd be otherwise minded. God shall reveal even this unto you. We're not all at the same level of intelligence or spiritual knowledge, and so we can't judge everything on one level as you know what I mean. It's there are things that differ.
Discernment. Discernment is discernment. That's why it ties in with the next verse, that you may approve things that are excellent.
So you discern those things.
You use your wisdom and your knowledge and what's been given you from above that you may be sincere and when he's talking about.
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His tender mercies back in in ate his bowels things of from the great depths inward inside of us. You see, he he's talking about those things inside of us, how we can can have those tender mercies from deep down and how we can discern things spiritually.
You see, and you're sincere about it.
When we put our trust in the Lord Jesus, we're born again.
And we become babies. Really.
In the family of God, but we are children that have the full potential because of the very life and nature that is given to us. We understand this in natural things. You see a little baby born and you look at it and it has all the capacities that it will ever have in the sense of what its potential is. But it has to grow and.
The desire of the mother and the father is that that child is going to grow to the day when they will be, you might say, equals in the sense of knowing and understanding and sharing and fellowship with one another. Because the child is full grown now and can has entered into the heart and thoughts of its parents and their conscience and so on. What's true with us and God's family? When we're born, we have to grow. And Paul always in his epistles in Ephesians, we have the same thoughts expressed even more than here.
Of that thought of growing in the knowledge of God.
The true knowledge of God. And I say true knowledge because another scripture says knowledge puffs up.
But that's not the same knowledge. The knowledge that puffs up is that knowledge that is factual and man learns to his own glory.
And if I can memorize more scriptures than you have, and I can recite them, then maybe that kind of knowledge I'll be proud of, in fact, probably would be. And it's wrong. It's not the true knowledge of God. It doesn't tell me God's mind or heart.
But to grow in the true knowledge of God is a humbling thing.
Because the more I have the mind of God, the more I see myself as I really AM and the more truly I see myself, then the more I'll recognize the grace of God. And, and what Phil mentioned early in the meeting about, you know, if you, if you recognize what you are in the flesh, if you really learn that, if we've learned any of us, I don't know if anybody has the flesh profiteth nothing. And it's full practical reality then.
That's not going to puff up the soul. That's a very humbling thing to the soul. And so the apostle wanted to see these dear brethren continue to develop and grow in that work that in their souls. Why? Because he wanted them to know God better. He wanted them to know the truth of what God had done in the assembly, in the gospel and so on. And so it's God's desire for us gathered here this for this weekend.
That we will, when we leave, know him a little better.
That everyone of our hearts will leave and as we go back to our homes.
There'll be, maybe we won't be specifically conscious of it. Child doesn't know, doesn't watch itself grow. It's a work that's taken on unconsciously, but the desire is an apparent desire is to see that child grow little by little. And so a conference is an opportunity.
For God.
To continue his work in US.
Rather interesting that he says that your love may grow, that your love may.
Abound yet more and more in knowledge, and I'll read it from the new translation, because it seems so much clearer. And this I pray that your love may abound to get more and more in full knowledge, and in all intelligence, that you may judge off and approve the things that are more excellent, in order that he may be pure and without offense for Christ's day being complete as regards the fruit of righteousness.
Which is by Jesus Christ, to God's glory and praise. I read the whole thing because it's one sentence. But it's rather interesting that he says that your love may abound yet more and more in full knowledge and in all intelligence. Because we live in a world today where we're told that love accepts everything. And yet here we find that there is an intelligence and knowledge that's associated with love that we might be pure that says.
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That we might be pure and without offense for Christ's day being complete as regards the fruit of righteousness, which is by Jesus Christ, God's glory and grace.
Just comment that to that in John's first epistle, first John, when you read through it, the light God is light and God is love and the God is love is not separated in John's epistle from God is light. And in other words, what God exposes holy and his character is totally connected with his love and so.
As Nick said, you there's an intelligence to the love of God.
That is the expression of the fullness that he is like.
A Greek word.
Sincere here means without wax.
And the word is used in connection with pot making.
When you make a pot to add, in order to that the pot be strong, you have to.
Put it in the fire and put heat to it and when you put heat sometimes to the pot you don't want to do but you get some cracks in it.
So there were those that were dishonest pot makers. So they get a little crack and they cover it up with wax.
So that it looked like a good pot.
So if we remember here that this epistle is written to an assembly, even though these truths can be applied in in a certain way to individuals, us as individuals, it's really we're looking at a whole assembly and the Apostle Paul wanted the assembly to be.
One that had a true testimony of the work of God in them, the work of grace in them, so that there weren't people that shook their heads when they thought about this group at meat over here. Isn't it assembly because there's some people there that aren't what they ought to be. So that's what this means that.
The Lord really wants those of us who are in the assembly to pray for the whole assembly and, and to realize that we're part of an assembly and, and what our individual lives do and what the lives of others in the assembly puts forth is a testimony. And we're to be really concerned about the testimony that our assembly puts forth.
And.
The Lord wants us as it says here to be sincere, the assembly sincere. We really are an assembly want to please the Lord. We want to an assembly that wants to to be real and real in our concern and love for the unsaved and and going on together in the assembly we get on in love together.
Without having the things going on in the assembly between us as individuals, that that really have an effect upon the whole assembly and its testimony. So the Lord wants us to be as an assembly, sincere, without wax.
In 172.
In #172.
Address 2
Gospel 1
Gospel—Bill Shane
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Come every soul by Sino Press. There's mercy with the Lord and He will surely give you rest by trusting in His word. Hymn #9.
Come every soul by.
Real Shirley.
To the book of Job.
The Book of Job, chapter 23.
With the help of the Lord.
Tonight we can look at the man.
Going to read 3 questions.
Asked by job.
Three questions asked by job.
Job 23 and verse 3.
Oh, that I knew where.
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I might find him.
Oh, that I knew where I might find him.
Now turn with me to job.
Chapter 9.
Job Chapter 9.
Breaking into verse 2.
For the second question, how should man?
Be just before God.
How should man be just?
Before God.
And now for the third question.
Turn with me to Job 14.
Job chapter 14 and verse 14.
If a man die, shall he live?
Again.
If a man dies, shall he live again?
Tonight looking at these three questions.
I want to start out with O that I knew where I might find him in the order that I've read him in.
The second question.
In Job, 9:00 and 2:00.
How should a man be just before God was such a very important question.
That it was actually asked three times.
Let's look at the other two.
In job 9 and verse two was the one when I read it in verse 20 of job 9.
He asked it in another way.
He says if I justify myself, shall my mouth condemn me? And then there was one more time in Job 25.
That he asked the question and that is verse four, Job 25 and verse four. How then can man be justified with God?
We're going to take the three questions together, starting with Job 23.
All that I might know where.
I can find him.
All that I knew where I might find him. Excuse me.
Job said to himself. God is invisible and I can't see him.
And how can I find him?
In the book of Job, in the first chapter, it opens with a burnt offering and a sacrifice.
And in the last chapter it offers another sacrifice. The book of Job begins with Jesus Christ, and it ends with Jesus Christ.
Symbolic of our Lord and our Savior.
Jesus is the 1St and the last. Jesus is all. Jesus is everything. And so we need to look at the man Christ Jesus to answer 3 questions.
Oh, that I knew where I might find him.
With that thought, let's turn together to Matthew.
Chapter 2.
Verse one Matthew 2. Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the King, behold, there came wise men from the east of Jerusalem.
Saying, Where is he that is born the king of the Jews?
For we have seen his star in the East and are come to worship him.
There's a bumper sticker out that says wise men still seek him.
When we were little children, we read the story of the three wise men, and our Bible doesn't say 3.
It does say men, plural.
But it doesn't say whether it was 1234. But it does tell us very carefully that wise men.
We want to know where he was at.
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Where is he?
I can remember reading back in Genesis after Adam had sinned and was walking in the garden and he was hiding from God and God looked down and said where art thou Adam?
Just the opposite question. Now here the wise men are looking for Jesus. They're wanting to find Him.
There's no one being hid here.
No one being hid. Last night I went down to the pool.
I went down to that pool at 10:00 and looked in there. Nobody was in there. So I got back to room, got my towel on and went down. I got in the pool. By the time I got there was 5 little kids in there.
I thought I was going to sneak down, be all alone, had five little kids in there. Pretty soon I had another brother. Art was in there with me, and pretty soon I had another brother from Minnesota sitting on the sideline watching. Pretty soon I had more children and more children, and I got one laughing back here. She remembers playing a game. It's kind of like hide and seek, isn't it? One was it 1 would go down in the water and the fingers would go up 12345678910.
Enough they'd come with their eyes closed.
And they had to tag the other person so that they wasn't it anymore. And the other ones tried to stay away and they tried to hide.
And they would splatter water and then they would make them yell so they could try to find them and so they could touch one of them so they wouldn't be it any longer. But the thing was to stay away from and not be found.
Jesus Christ was born into this world and it was never hid from anybody.
God created a star for him that they might find him.
A star just for the birth of his son.
Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews, For we have seen his star. From the moment that Christ entered into this world, and took on a body like unto a man, God manifested in the flesh. He was never hid from the Sinner. Never has he been hid from the Sinner.
Right away God put a star up there that they could find him.
He's never been hid from you.
You might think he's invisible, but we're going to show you how it relates today that you can never not find him. He can always be found. Last night, that little game of tag, there was one and all the rest of them were trying to stay hid from that one that they would didn't get touched. And I sat there and I watched that game. I says it's going to fit right into the night if the Lord can use it. And thank you for the game.
Because I want to tell you something, when you find Christ, you're going to find it all.
He's never been hid from anybody from the moment of his birth.
Now turn with me to Romans Chapter 11, please.
Romans Chapter 11 and verse.
Excuse me, I want Hebrews 11 for a moment. I'm sorry, Hebrews 11.
Hebrews 11 and verse 6. Excuse me?
Hebrews 11 and verse 6.
I quite often say Romans instead of Hebrews. I'm sorry.
But without faith, it's impossible to please God.
For he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, diligently seeking Him. Now look at Luke together. And if you want to keep your fingers on it, we can go back and forth.
Luke, chapter 19.
And verse 10.
For the Son of Man is come to seek, and to save that which was lost.
First of all, in Hebrews 11 and six, it says without faith it's impossible to please him.
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If you're sitting in your seat and you're unsaved at night and you've never believed and trusted in His Son, you have never pleased Him. If you can't believe and trust in His Son first, you can't please God. Without faith, it's impossible to please Him. Impossible.
For he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
Now we have the Son of Man has come into this world for one reason, to seek and to say that which was lost. And I said from the moment that he was born, it was always evident how you could find him. And He came for one purpose into this world, to seek and to save that which was lost. If you're lost and unsaved in your seat, He's seeking you now, and He wants to save you. He's seeking you now.
And wants to save you.
Right now, that's current. He's seeking you right now. That's why he came into this world, you know?
I've watched railroad car after railroad car get hooked together and two clamps are wide open.
And they come together.
And the catch and they hook because those two clamps are ready to receive one another.
He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
Let me ask you this question.
Oh, that I might know where I can find him.
Have you found him yet?
Have you been diligently seeking for him?
He's going to reward you if you diligently seek for him.
Because he's already seeking for you. It's different than the little game where one was trying to stay hid.
We have two seeking and when you have two seeking one another.
They're going to be found, they're going to find one another and he's going to give you a reward.
The reward is eternal life in heaven.
Let me ask you the question.
Do you want eternal life?
Do you want a free gift? The reward?
For God so loved the world he gave.
His only begotten Son God loved, God gave.
He that believeth hath everlasting life Can you believe and have on your part.
Done his part, he loved you and he gave.
What have you done on your part? Have you diligently seeked Him? Do you want to find Him as your savior? Let me ask you that. That was our original question. All that I might know where I can find him. Do you want to find Him?
Do you want a reward? Do you want everlasting life?
The results? As hell, an eternal lake of fire.
Who would want that?
Everlasting life, diligently seeking one another. We've got to move on. Romans 10.
Christ is still easy to find today.
Romans 10 and verse.
8.
But what saith that the word is nigh? In our English language we would normally say near. Okay.
And I like to translate it easily, especially for the unsaved. But what saith that the word is near thee, even in thy mouth?
And in thy heart that is the Word of Faith which we preach. It's near.
Thee OK now John chapter one and verse 14.
John 114 and the Word was made flesh, Speaking of Jesus.
Being born that we read about and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory.
The glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace.
And truth.
God sent the only.
Soul representation of himself.
00:20:03
To this world.
His only begotten Son.
And he said the word was made flesh. Now we just got done reading. Where was the Word?
The word is near thee.
It's nigh thee, it's even in your mouth.
And in your heart.
For a time I quit settling underneath the word of God at about the age of 16, About 28, I got saved.
I would like to thought I was an atheist, but if anybody would have asked me about how I could get saved I would have argued to the end that what my parents told me was true because I knew in my heart it was true.
I knew in my heart it was true, I just didn't want to admit it until the Lord brought me down low. It was in my mouth and in my heart. When I got saved, Ephesians 28 and nine had been on the wall of my parents home. I didn't have a Bible and I couldn't remember anything but the one verse that every time I was sick I had to lay and look at it. And now I love the verse 2 verses 4. By grace are you saved?
Through faith, not of yourselves a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.
It was even in my mouth.
He was that close to me. He was that nigh, that near. He wanted to save me. If you're sitting in your seat tonight.
Quietly say John 316 to yourself right now.
You know it, don't you?
It's even in your mouth.
He's that close.
That close.
Isaiah 45 and 22.
Isaiah 45 and 22 Look unto me and be saved all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else.
Let's pair that up with John chapter 20.
And we got to get moving on to the next question, John chapter 20 and verse 29.
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou has seen me, thou hast believed. Blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed. Why did Job ask the question, Oh, that I might know where I can find him, because he was invisible?
Job couldn't see him.
Job couldn't see him.
What does God's Word say? Look, there's a life for a look.
Look unto me, who are we looking at? A man. What did Job ask? Oh, that I might find.
Him.
The man Christ Jesus look unto me and be saved all the ends of the earth.
Blessed are they that have not seen.
But they have believed.
All you have to do is believe.
Job couldn't see the invisible God. All you have to do is take a look at him spiritually in your heart.
Look at that man Christ Jesus that God gave for you.
And he came to this world and there was his own personal star from the moment he was born. And he's never been hid from 1 Sinner ever.
Never. Let's move on to the second question.
How can a man be just with God?
I have an elderly brother in my Iowa Falls assembly named Lyle.
Love my dear brother.
One of the first things he taught me was.
Just as if I had never sinned.
How simple to understand? Just how can a man be just before God right now on this current radio station?
There's songs out and I don't have good hearing and the pitch is at a wrong pitch for me to really understand the words and they all sound about the same. If they could sing How Great Thou Art in a baritone, I would. I would sing right along with them. I know the words, but I turn on some of these new radio stations, but there's one song in there that I catch part of the words and I might be a little wrong on it.
00:25:09
My God is an awesome God, An awesome God.
And awesome, is that correct? I think that's the way the words are. My God is an awesome. I'm hearing it from. Thank you. My God is an awesome God.
The word in the Bible a lot of times is terrible because we stand at all and our translations in English, it's a little bit easier for the unsaved to understand. He is awesome, He is pure, He is holy, He is 100% love, and yet He's 100% judgment. And He cannot be lacking in anything because if He is, He wouldn't be God. So we are at all.
About our Savior.
He was perfect. He was spotless. There was number guy found on his mouth. None.
Yet he died for you on Calvary's tree.
The awesome God.
Jesus, God manifest in the flesh, going to Calvary's tree, the gospel Mark. We got to get to cross, don't we? The gospel of Mark to answer this question.
Mark, chapter 15, verse 16.
Mark 15 and 16. And the soldiers led him away to a hall called a hall called Praetorium. And they called together the whole band. And they clothed him with purple and planted a crown of thorns about his head, and began to salute him. Hail, King of the Jews. And they smote him on the head with a Reed. And they did spit upon him, and bowing their knees, they worship him. And they mocked him. They took off the purple robe, throwing, put on his own clothes, and they let him out to crucify him. By the way, purple says a sign of royalty. And so they was mocking him with that royalty code.
And they compelled 1 Simon of Cyrene, who passed by coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bearish cross. And they brought him unto the place called Gotham, which is being interpreted the place of skull. And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh, but he received it not. And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots for them that every man should take. And it was about the third hour. And they crucified him. And the superscription of his accusation was written over the King of the Jews. And with him they crucified 2 Thieves, the one on his right hand, the other on his left. And the Scripture was fulfilled, but saith he was numbered with the transgressors.
Verse 33.
And when the 6th hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until about the ninth hour, 3 hours of darkness. Verse 34 And in the ninth hour Jesus Christ loud voice saying Eli, Eli, Lama Sabath and I, which is being interpreted, My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? Verse 37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice and gave up the spirit. Verse 3938 Let's read it. And the veil of the temple was torn, or rent entwined from the top to the bottom.
And the centurion who stood by facing him saw that he so cried out, and gave up the spirit, and he said, or gave up the ghost, and he said, truly this man was the Son of God.
In there.
We have the crucifixion of Jesus if we have an awesome pure God that is spotless and sinless.
Job when he saw him.
He said.
I repent to dust and ashes.
Isaiah when he saw him, he said.
I am a man of unclean lips. Woe is me.
Here we see two seeing the holy awesome God, the pure God, and look at themselves as dust and ashes and repenting.
And one said I abhor myself. It means to shrink with hatred about themselves.
How can a sinful man, and we have to get to the sins of men stand justified?
Just as if I had never sinned before God.
How can a man stand justified before the pure and holy?
For without the shedding of blood there can be no remission of sins.
We have to get to the cross of Christ.
Jesus answered in his birth the first question. Oh, I might know where I can find him.
In his death, he answers.
How can a man be just before God?
00:30:01
He spanned the great gulf between man and God.
At Calvary's tree he bore your sins in his own body on the tree.
In First Peter it says he bore your sins in his own body on the tree, doesn't it?
What are your sins tonight?
Where are your sins?
Are you just before God?
Have those sins been removed?
Where are your sins?
Are they still on yourself?
God says they're not there. He says he bore your sins in his own body on the tree.
He says your sins are on him.
Him, Christ Jesus, the man at Calvary's tree, removed those sins.
Are you making God a liar?
God says you're on him. Where are your sins? Are they on you or are they on Him?
He bore your sins in his own body on the tree. He shed his precious blood for the remission of sins.
There is power, power, wonder, working power in the precious blood of the Lamb.
He can remove your sins as far as E is from the West right now because he already paid the debt in full and answered the thrice holy God.
He already did it at Calvary's tree. He shed that blood and he bore your sins there. And God says your sins are on His Son, and all you have to do is accept it and believe it.
They can't be two places at one time.
If you know you're sitting in your seat as a Sinner.
All you have to do is trust and believe. God says her on his Son. Take him at his word that the price has been paid in full.
That he bled and died on Calvary's tree so that you can have everlasting life.
That you can stand at a coming day? Justified.
So that God can look through the precious blood of his Son and see you spotless and without a blemish on you, because no sin can enter into heaven and you can't take one up with you.
They have to be removed by his son's blood.
There is power, wonder, working power.
In the precious blood of the lamb.
The man that died on Calvary's tree for you.
Yay for me.
That veil that was torn from top to bottom.
In another passage it can says that the rocks were rent.
I can walk out of here and I can walk out to the first Pebble outside the door and pick it up and I can look at the cracks they're in and I can stand right there and I can point at those cracks and I say that was for me.
That was because of my sins. Those cracks are in that rock.
The whole sun went dark for three hours, because the billows and the wrath of God was upon him so great, that the sun stopped shining, and the whole shook, and every rock was rent.
Because of your sins? Yeah, because of mine.
He loved me unto death, He loves you unto death, even the death of the cross. Walk out and pick up the rock and look at it and say He was bearing my sins on Calvary's tree when this happened.
The whole earth was changed.
That's how great it was. Psalms, 22. His tongue cleaved to the roof of his mouth and his bones fell out of joint.
At Calvary, he was justifying you just as if you had never sinned.
Removing them as far as E is from the West.
He was paying the price.
He was shedding his precious blood because he loved you. What have you done with him?
And where are your sins tonight?
00:35:02
God says they're on his son. Don't make him a liar. God says they're there.
Let's look at Isaiah 1 in 18.
Come now.
And let us reason together.
Thus saith the Lord.
Though your sins be like scarlet, they shall be white as snow. Though they be red like Crimson, they shall be like wool.
Let's just break it down briefly here in the last few moments of this question.
Come now. First of all, we have come the great invitation of the Bible.
Because God.
God's Son paid the price. He wants you to have a free gift.
He wants you to diligently seek Him.
He wants to give you.
Everlasting life. And he turns around. He says come on over here, let's sit down a moment. Just you and I.
Right now it's urgent. Your sins are taking it to hell.
Let's get this over with. Let's come over and let's sit down right now together, just you and I.
And let's personally talk about your sins.
I don't care about the other guy's sins.
I had a little bit of a hard time with the other guy Sims.
I want to prepare myself different than somebody else.
God says for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. I said I ain't like that center down there.
But if I made a thing up here and I said let's put everything in here, that's a circle.
Somebody says here's my orange, that's a circle. Somebody else says here's my beach ball, that's a circle.
Somebody else says, well here's my hubcap. It's kind of flat on two sides, but it's a circle.
And we put all the things in there. There were circles. They still fit in the category of circles. Big ones, little ones, round ones, all kinds circles.
The last five words of verse 22, Romans 3 and 22 are. There is no difference.
For all have soon to come short of the glory of God.
He puts everybody into the center category for there is no difference. It only takes one sin and we're all sinners, aren't we?
That's why a saved person can say I'm only a Sinner saved by grace, and when we get to heaven we're just going to sing sin. He was saved by grace because we're no longer sinners when we get there.
We're no longer sinners when we get to heaven. Right now we're saying I'm a Sinner saved by grace, don't we?
Are you a Sinner that hasn't been saved by grace yet? You're in the category of sin sinners.
So he says, let's reason together about that.
Saith the Lord. Just you and the Lord, no one else.
Though your sins be like scarlet, they shall be white as snow, justified, just as if I never sinned.
That's what it is, the removal of your sins, the.
Though they be read like Crimson, they should be like wool.
Are you justified?
Have you found him?
And are you justified yet? Move on to the third question.
Job 14 and 14. If I die, shall I live again? Back to the Gospel? Mark, chapter 16.
Verse one Mark 16 and verse one.
And when the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Shalom, and the.
Had brought sweet spices that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came under the sepulchre. The rising of the sun at the rising of the sun.
And they said among themselves, Who shall roll away the stone for us from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away, for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting at the right side, clothed in a long white remnant, And they were a frightened or they were amazed.
00:40:02
Our God is an awesome God.
We stand amazed. They were amazed at the words that proceeded out of Jesus's mouth as a little child.
Amazed. Isaiah says his name is wonderful. The word goes back to wonder, to ponder, to deeply meditate. John said behold the Lamb of God. Tomorrow around the table. We're going to behold him, and each and every one of us should be amazed, and each and every one of us should wonder and ponder.
He is an awesome God.
And he said unto them, Be not.
Frightened and amazed, ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was Christ crucified. He is risen.
He is not here.
Behold the place, the empty place where they laid him. Behold the place he is risen. Hallelujah, Christ arose up from the gravy rose with a mighty triumph over his foes, victorious. Oh death, whereas I sting.
We've had one question though, that I might find nowhere to find him.
In the birth of Jesus Christ we've had how can a man be justified before God answered in the death of Jesus Christ and we have the third question here, the third question if I die, shall I live again answered in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 great questions out of the book of job, and every one of them answered by Jesus answered in his birth, his death and his resurrection.
We don't worship Muhammad that is dead. You don't go down here to southern Iowa and see where the Mormons crossed.
And go to Illinois and see their big temple and worship a dead Mr. Smith.
We have a living Savior that sits in heaven at God's right hand in verse 19. So then after the Lord had spoken to them, he was received up to heaven and sat on the right hand of God.
Alive, a living savior.
And what can a living Savior do for you? He can give you life after death, eternal life.
That no one else can give you.
No one else.
Because he arose victorious.
Right up out of the grave, God gave him the power and raised him up for you.
So you can have everlasting life. So you can have a free gift.
If I die, shall I live again?
First Corinthians, chapter 15.
Verses 3. For I delivered unto you first of all that which also I received, that Christ died for our sins, according to Scriptures, and that he was buried, and they rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures. Hebrews 7.
Hope I'm not wearing your fingers out. Hebrews 7, verse 25.
Therefore, he is able also to save them.
To the uttermost that come unto God by him.
Seeing he ever liveth.
To make intercession for them.
Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
We have a living savior.
Yes, he did a finished work at Calvary.
But he has a work that is continuing on right now in heaven.
He ever liveth to make intercession for you.
He's alive.
I just retired April 3rd.
Don't have a job anymore?
I don't know, I'd like to take on a real job maybe.
He ever liveth to make intercession for you.
He loves you, He bled, He died, came to this world, left the glories of heaven.
He arose off for you personally.
00:45:03
Do you want everlasting life?
You can't meet God in the future and say I couldn't find him.
He's nigh unto you even in your mouth, in your heart. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth and believe in thy heart, thou shalt be saved. And don't miss it by about 15 inches, neither get it in your heart. Just don't confess it with your mouth. Do them both and believe it with your heart. He wants you to confess it with your mouth. For the assurance, believe it in your heart.
Thou shalt believe, thou shalt be saved. Acts 16.
He ever liveth.
I'm going to take a verse that probably you've never heard in the gospel before. I want to go to Jude.
Little epistle to Jude right before Revelations.
Jude chapter or verse one? There's only one chapter, verse one.
One, the servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James to them that are sanctified or set apart by God the Father.
Now look at and preserved.
In Jesus Christ and called preserved in Jesus Christ is why I want to look at.
My mother.
Canned and canned and canned.
And she put away tomatoes and tomatoes and tomatoes because she ate about a jar every day of stewed tomatoes.
If we ran out of jam upstairs, all I had to do was walk down the stairs, open up the big wooden doors on the shelves.
Was more jam.
And that jam would last me all the way to the next season. When Mom made more jam and it was called preserves, she had put it, preserved it, and she had sealed it with wax and the Pickles had pickling salt in it to preserve them. Preserved.
We read a verse today that was assurance in our Bible study.
This is the similar type of thing.
Do you want?
To be preserved throughout the endless ages of eternity.
Or do you want to be where there's weeping, wailing and gnashing of the teeth?
Throughout the end of the stages of eternity, it says preserved in Christ Jesus. Because he lives, He ever liveth, He is alive.
I could not be preserved in something that's dead.
Brothers and sisters were preserved in Jesus Christ Assurance.
Security.
Never to be plucked from the palm of his hand.
What a thing that is.
We've looked at 3 questions.
Oh, that I might know where to find Him. And we found it in the birth of Jesus Christ. And he's diligently or he's seeking you. If you're diligently seeking him, you'll find one another.
The second question, how can a man be justified with God, was answered in his death at Calvary and the shedding of his blood and his bearing your sins in his own body on the tree. And we have the third question, If I die, shall I live again in the resurrection and the ascension of Jesus Christ?
Three questions that were great questions asked by Job 3 great questions.
He was concerned about death and immortality.
And the answer is in the resurrected Christ. Now, in closing, there's a couple verses that I would like to look at.
In Psalms 119 is one of them.
My time is about up, maybe a couple minutes early here, but that's all right. Psalms 119.
I'd rather not run over.
Verse 174 A large, large chapter.
Psalms 174.
I have longed for thy salvation.
I know I'm in a gospel meeting and I'm going to speak to the unsaved about this for just a moment, but I also want to relate to the Christians on this little portion, OK?
I have longed for thy salvation.
00:50:01
If a soul longs for the salvation, he will be saved.
He will be saved.
Christ didn't die on Calvary's tree in vain.
There is still a soul out here that hasn't been saved yet because the door is not shut.
And the souls that are going to get in before the door is shut are the ones that are going to long for the salvation.
The ones that want to be saved. The ones that want to see their Lord face to face. The ones that want eternal life. The ones that want off of this scene and this sin and this sorrow. The ones that want to go to heaven and see their mom, their dad, their grandma, whoever it is, their loved ones.
The ones that have had enough of this world.
And their longing.
You're longing for the salvation. You will get saved.
Get that in your heart and start longing for it.
To say the Lord I want to be saved.
He'll hear you.
You can speak to him and tell him about your want to be saved, your salvation.
He's willing to listen to you about that.
To the Christian have I longed for my completion of my salvation.
We were saved, we're currently being saved and we will be saved.
The completion of our salvation, the day that he comes and takes us up and out of this scene.
We're supposed to be waiting for it. We're supposed to be looking upward. But have we longed?
For that day.
Have you longed for the completion of your salvation, brothers and sisters?
Get it in your heart and justice long for it.
The day that we can walk away.
The day that we can have.
No sin and no sorrow throughout the endless ages of eternity. Time will end.
The beauty of heaven.
I read this week in a book.
That if a captain of a ship said to some people, come on board with me and I'm going to take you to Hawaii, it's a beautiful place and they knew nothing about Hawaii.
And they just trusted in him that when they got there, was a beautiful place.
We don't know everything about heaven.
Now I see in part. Now I know in part.
There's coming a day when I'm seeing face to face someone know it all, and I don't mean it the way I just came out. I'm sorry.
I'm going to think like my God, I'll be pure.
Spotless, clothed in robes of righteousness, White linen, The righteous acts of the Saints. Revelations 19.
Longing for that salvation, the completion that day.
We have unsaved souls that should be long before salvation now, and Saints that should be longing for the completion of their salvation now. Turn with me to Psalms 107.
Psalms 107, verse 9.
For he satisfieth the longing soul.
For he satisfieth.
The longing soul.
I'm going to close in prayer and we're going to sing hymn #26.
Hymn #26 after the prayer.
26 There's a life at the.
Beginning.
I'm doing.
1.
We believe you are very beautiful. I miss right. What is thou? Thy heart to convert?
I feel tired. Why it doesn't sound good?
The grass. Grow my grass from your bed.
But.
I'll be back.
Together, the red slides and huddle. I thought, you're going to see if I want there is life.
Based on the whole planet.
Good and Bad Surprises
Children—John Kaiser
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And I guess you were expecting to start a little early.
That's all right, but we need a few more children up on the front row. There's an awful lot of empty seats up here, and there's much more encouraging to talk to filled seats than empty seats.
Besides, I'll have a little giveaway for later on for those that are up here in the front row.
Good, I don't get a few here.
Now you know how we usually do this. As we sing, we try to concentrate.
On the songs that are on the back where it says children's hymns and choruses.
But there's lots of good songs inside the hymn sheet too. But we'd like to concentrate on the stuff on the back. But we'll take suggestions. So does anybody have a song they would like to start with this morning? Yes.
#44 into a tent where a gypsy boy lay dying alone at the close of the day.
News of salvation we carried.
Said he. Nobody ever has told it to me. This is a true story about some a a missionary who visited a boy in a gypsy tent. This boy was dying and he learned about the Lord Jesus and trusted the Lord Jesus before he died #44.
Into the deadly.
Children can say of the children of men.
Nobody ever has told me before.
Here is A1 day up or little boy.
And I'm to be the good sightings of joy.
May thy not perish. My hand will be full.
Nobody ever must bring us home.
I'll take it again.
Salvation story reaping, or at all?
You can say of the children of men.
Nobody ever has told me before.
And we caught the last words of his friend John as he answered about the hotel God sent his son to ever send he.
Then I am sure I sent him for me.
Tell him again.
Tell him again.
Salvation story reaping horrible.
Till all I can say of the children of men.
Nobody ever has told me before.
You know this song has a wonderful message in it.
So in the end of the last verse here, God sent his son.
Whosoever he said he, then I am sure that he sent.
Him for me. I hope everyone here this morning is sure that God sent the Lord Jesus Christ for you. Now there's still room on the front rows like that. We'd like to see more boys and girls on the front row. Now is the opportunity to come forward.
00:05:06
OK. Do we have any other choices?
If we don't get a choice from the front wheel, we'll take Rd. we'll take a choice from elsewhere.
And I have bad eyesight, so if you want to make noise when you wave your hand, that's all right too.
All right, what number?
#5 All right #5.
We'll sing the whole song.
All happy.
Watch and pray. I'm going to Renoise sing every day.
I believe I feel the baby when you see some swords my sins away.
It is on the grave transactions on I am my Lord.
And he is mine. He threw me out. I followed on life to come back one day behind.
I believe I did it when Jesus called my sins away.
He won't be home to your heart and pray I'm living joy say delivery day.
I believe, I believe.
My.
I never mind, it's not that blood and Santa rats nor ever fraud. My Lord Dee fires wisdom of God, bring to it closer.
I must be there. I must be there.
When James must watch my sins away.
He got me out to one and pray and will rejoice in every day.
I believe, I believe.
When Jesus falls.
Now, you know, there's a big word, the beginning of the second verse of this song says tis done, the great transactions done. And I remember singing this song when I was a boy, a young boy, and I didn't know what a transaction was. It sounded pretty impressive, said the great transactions done. And so it sounded good and I enjoyed singing about it. Who can tell me what a transaction is? Says the great transaction is done.
What is a transaction?
Anybody on the front row know what a transaction is?
Nobody knows on the front row what a transaction is. Well, how about who would like to volunteer for a transaction?
Good.
All right, Vera transaction is very simple. Trans means a cross. When I was a boy, there was a there was an airline called Transworld Airways. TWAI think it actually flew into Des Moines.
I flew on it, TWA, Transworld Airways and Trans Means Across, so they wanted you to get the idea that they went all over the world.
00:10:10
Trans means across. It gives the idea of something going from one place to another and an action. What's an action?
That's something you do. This is a transaction. I'm going to give you a calendar. Thank you. That was a transaction. Wasn't that simple?
That I held it out and he received it. What's your name? Pardon Lane. I gave Lane a calendar and he just took it like that. Was that difficult? No big word for a simple action, but you know, there's a great transaction that's just as simple and that's receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior. And so the person who wrote this song had experienced that transaction.
They had received that this person had received the Lord Jesus Christ as a Savior and he said tis done, it's done, the great transactions done. I am my Lords, and he is mine. And you know what Sunday school all about?
What is Sunday School all about, Paul?
Exactly.
It's about Jesus and me.
And Jesus and you, that's what it's all about. This first song we sang, there was a gypsy boy who realized that Jesus loved him and died for him, and he received Jesus. The person that wrote this song received the Lord Jesus. Have you, has everyone in this room?
Simply received the Lord Jesus.
That's the big question this morning. All right, how about another song?
All right, number one, OK, it doesn't seem like we're concentrating on the back of the sheet, but that's fine. This is a very serious song, and we don't sing it much in Sunday school. I wonder if anybody knows the story behind this song. You know, there was a ruler that the apostle Paul was preaching to, and he said, you almost persuade me. It's a terrible thing to be almost persuaded.
Like that's like almost getting in.
But missing the boat, or missing the train, or missing the plane?
You know being almost is not good enough all right #1.
Oh.
Two.
Christ.
Come on today, all over this way.
Turn on again.
Jesus.
Invite you here.
Where's your hands pointing something?
On my ears.
Come.
Oh, we need to be conscious.
That the Lord is speaking to us this morning.
Notice this first verse says seems now some soul to say go spirit, go thy way. Does anyone here consciously said that? No, the song says it seems that way because the Spirit of God is speaking to souls. You know God speaks to us all the time. The problem is we just don't realize it.
00:15:02
God is always ready and willing to communicate with us.
Our problem is we don't listen. And so it seems. Now some soldiers say, Go spirit, go thy way, some more convenient day to thee I'll come.
As if we could decide on a better time.
Now today is the day of salvation, all right.
How about another song? Anymore in the front row here?
OK, somewhere else.
So we want to help me.
41 All right #41.
Around the throne of.
Put on heart and shining on the fondness why each one will be arrayed, dwelling in everlasting light and joys like never facing.
Glory.
Glory.
Glory.
What brings them to that world?
Where all is peace and joy and love. Our pains of children.
They're singing glory, glory.
Because the sacred shed his blood to wash away their sin.
No one sins that most righteous blood behold, and white and clean sinking glory.
Glory.
Glory later.
On.
You know there's lots of children in heaven right now.
You're going to join them, you're going to be with them, to sing with them around the throne of God.
Are you ready to go to heaven right now?
We don't know how long we have. I had a cousin who was who died when he was six years old. Went to be with the Lord Jesus I believe.
I have a son who went to be with the Lord Jesus when he was six years old.
How old are you?
How old are you?
Ten God's given you four more years of life.
Now it's time to pray, and then we'll say the verse.
Our pad.
An easy verse, I thought. Now maybe you don't learn the memory verse. Does anyone here who did learn the memory verse that would like to say it this morning? All right, Paul.
What?
16.
Very good. Anybody else?
Go ahead.
Very good. Anybody else?
At.
OK. Anybody else on this side?
You want to say the verse?
00:20:08
And thou.
16.
31.
All right, did you say the verse this morning?
Go ahead. What should I, what must, what must I do to be saved?
You say X.
163031 Very good. All right, I forgot about getting the mic. I could move this mic and you could have heard the other boys here. Now I want to talk about surprises and suicide this morning and that strange combination.
But it relates to the verse we had to memorize.
How many here like surprises?
Always.
Are all surprises. Good surprises. I remember, and maybe some of you heard this story before, and you'll forgive me. I remember when I was 12 years old, on a nice Sunday afternoon, and why I did it, I don't know. I got it, got on my bicycle, went for a bicycle ride, and I'm still wearing my Sunday gotomeeting clothes.
When I was going down the street and my front wheel fell off, do you think that was a surprise?
Didn't think it was a good surprise. No, it wasn't a good surprise. I got all banged up and ruined my pants and my mother wasn't happy and and I I wasn't happy. I had to fix my bike. I said I won't go into this long story how that wheel came off, but it was really strange.
It was a total surprise what had happened. Something inside the inside the steering column had rusted so badly. I thought you couldn't tell it, you couldn't see it and it just fell apart. There's good surprises and bad surprises. I had a surprise yesterday and they asked me to speak this morning.
And so I asked the brother, well, what's the memory Versace? I like to talk about the memory verse. And and then he brought me this paper. So I said, oh wonderful. That's one of my favorite stories. So let's talk about Acts chapter 16.
The story in Acts chapter 16, we'll talk about this briefly. We'll read it together and see how this verse fits in Acts chapter 16. And there's a lot of surprises in this story.
And we'll.
We'll start with.
Verse 16. Acts Chapter 16. Verse 16.
The apostle Paul was in Philippi and we've been in the reading the Bible, in the reading meetings, we've been in the Epistle to the Philippians. So this fits in good too. Acts chapter 16, verse 16. It came to pass as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of domination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothe saying anybody. What soothe saying is yes.
Yeah, say that predicting what was going to happen. Right. She did fortune telling. That's what Sue's saying is this. It says this poor girl she had says she was possessed with a spirit of divination. Now that's a demon. But she thought she could tell people their future. And people believed her and they paid to listen to her. You think, isn't that silly? Well, people do it today, too. People listen to lies.
Produced by the Devil.
And, well, we see what happens here.
The same verse 17 the same as that girl followed Paul and us and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which show unto us the way of salvation. And she did this many days. But Paul being grieved, turned and said to the Spirit, I command thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, come out of her. And he came out the same hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas and drew them into the marketplace onto the rulers.
And brought them to the magistrates and we'll stop there. You see this girl, she had a couple of people who were making money off her and when Paul commanded the demon to leave her, why she was no longer convincing as a sooth Sayer. I'm not saying that all these people that you you know and I see ads for it, you know I don't I'm not going to assume that all these people that claim they can predict the future are demon possessed. But this girl was and.
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And now she couldn't do her job anymore, because the demon had left her and her masters, her employers were unhappy, and they caught Paul and Silas and took them to the magistrates. That's the authorities saying, verse 20, these men being Jews, to exceedingly trouble our city and teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. And the multitude rose up against them, and the magistrates rent off their clothes and commanded to beat them.
So the magistrates, the authorities.
They listen to the these these men who were lying and the and the crowd was all upset too. And the people around were all upset. And so they took Paul and Silas and tore off their clothes and beat them.
Now does that sound like fun?
Anybody interested in beating This Morning?
No, I'll tell you about that in a minute. And it says here, verse 23. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them in prison, charging the jailer to beat, to keep them safely. Now if you read another translation, it says they were commanded to be beaten with rods. And so I borrowed a rod here this morning.
You might not recognize it as one, but it's close enough.
I'm going to make it a little bit longer here.
I'll make it there. Something like that.
You know, they say a beating really helps to focus the thinking.
Is that the way you want to?
Start your day or end your day. That's the way Paul and Silas ended their day says They laid many stripes on them. They beat them a lot.
And then what? Who knows what happened next? Without looking, some of you must know this story.
Yes.
Put them in prison. That's right. Yeah. They didn't take him to the hospital and treat them nicely. They put them in prison. Let's read it here. It says they commanded to beat them, and when they had laid many stripes on them, that means they beat them a lot. They cast them in prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely, who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison and made their feet fast in the stalks.
Now, this is something that was really uncomfortable. They were beaten, their clothes were ripped off them. It wasn't done gently and they were put in prison. Their feet were in stocks. That means they're they were, they were clamped in in a particular way, so they couldn't move very well.
And the prisons, and I've been, I've been a number of prisons in my life. The Roman prisons were not nice places. They were dirty.
Filthy and they were. They just weren't comfortable places. They weren't meant to be nice. And it was, Dark says. Because they were on the inside, the inner prison.
And they told the jailer to keep them safely, who, having received such a charge, thrust them into inner prison and made their feet fast in the stocks.
How many here have ever been shut up in a room that didn't want to be?
Has anybody ever been? I remember that when I was a child, sometimes I was disobedient. My mother would make me go to my room. Anybody ever have that happen to them? You had to stay in your room. And even though. Yeah, and even though I like my room, I didn't like having to stay in it. But this wasn't even a nice room. Paul and Silas were in this room and the reason they were in this room.
And suffering is because of the Lord Jesus Christ, because they've been preaching about the Lord Jesus.
So and I saw a couple boys here raise their hands. They said they'd been shut up in the room.
Were you happy there when you no notice what Paul and Silas did? It says at midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God.
It's a good thing to do when you're shut up. Let's pray. But they did more than pray now. I mean, usually when we pray, we don't pray real loud necessarily. And I don't suppose I don't know that Paul and Silas pray real loud. After you'd been beaten a lot, maybe you wouldn't feel like praying very loud. But it says they prayed and sang praises to God and the prisoners heard them. Just think what it's like in it, that dark, that dark.
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Prison and people are people. A lot of unhappy, a lot of unhappy people in there. It's midnight and the people are not sleeping well because they've been sitting there all day. They're not tired. And all of a sudden they hear Paul and Silas singing lol. In the grave he lay Jesus.
My Savior.
Waiting the coming day. Jesus smiles, my Lord.
You know the chorus up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph for his foes. He arose the victor from the dark domain, and he lives forever with his Saints to reign. He arose, He arose.
Hallelujah, Christ a rose.
Now wouldn't that be a surprise in a jail?
But something like that happened. We don't know what's what him they're saying, but it says they they sang praise to God.
And the prisoners heard them.
And somebody else heard him. Who else heard them?
Nope, the jailer was sound asleep. Doesn't say that. We don't think. I don't think the jailer heard him because it we, we. I'll show you why in a minute. Who else heard them singing?
The Lord, Yeah, God did. And God did something it says here. And suddenly there was a great earthquake. That's another surprise. There was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and immediately all the doors were open and everyone's bands were loosed. I imagine these the chains that the that Paul and Silas and other prisoners were fastened with were fastened into the stone walls and they had a earthquake and possibly those.
Chains just fell right out of the walls. What else happens? It says here the foundations, the prison, were shaken and really all the doors were opened at everyone's bands, or chains were loosed. And then the Keeler, the keeper of the prison, woke up. I don't think he heard the singing, but he felt the earthquake.
What's an earthquake like?
What's an earthquake like? Yeah.
Go ahead. Yeah, it's really shaky. Can you imagine this whole room shaking? Would that bother you? You looked up there and saw those lamps swinging all the sudden and everybody moving around like that. Yeah. It's a very disturbing experience.
This jailer, he woke up and he was scared and then he looked and he saw all the doors were open and he did something that you and I wouldn't have done. We probably would have run out and and see what we could do about the situation.
The jailer did something else.
He took out his sword.
He probably kept his sword right near him. He took out his sword and he was going to kill himself.
Because the jailers in those days were responsible for their prisoners. If they lost a prisoner, they were going to be killed anyway. That's the way the Roman government worked. If a jailer lost his prisoner, he gave up his life to pay for the prisoner. Well, this jailer assumed all the prisoners were gone. He was going to kill himself. And there was another surprise.
Paul shouted out. Do yourself no harm. We're all here.
Do you think the jailer was glad to hear that? What do you think? Yeah, wonderful thing to hear.
This is a really a an earth shaking experience for him. And so he says. He says here Paul cried out with a loud voice saying, do yourself no harm for we are all here. Then he called for a light and sprang in and came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas and brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
And we this morning said the answer that Paul gave him. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. That was good news.
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That was good news to that man and it made the difference in his life.
He believed, notice what it says here. And he brought the mountains and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved and thy house. And Paul and Silas spoke unto him the word of the Lord to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was baptized, he and all his straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat, that's food before them, and rejoice.
Believing in God with all his house. And so we sang that song this morning. Oh Happy Day. That fixed my choice. This man was happy.
You know, believing.
And happiness go together, trusting the Lord. I look at sometimes boys and girls and I wonder, do they really love the Lord? Do they trust the Lord? Are you happy this morning? Because the Lord Jesus is your Savior?
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. This jailer knew he was in danger. He wasn't afraid of the earthquake. He was afraid of the God that made the earthquake.
Are you ready to meet God? Are you in danger of God's?
Judgment this morning you may be sitting back.
Behind other people, thinking that this is all for the boys and girls up front, but every one of us is responsible to God. Are you ready to meet God? And I've gone over my time already and I had another story to tell you. I was going to tell you a story about. I got too enthused about this.
So I'll let you read the story.
01015 OK. I do have time. All right, That's right. Thank you. Thank you very much.
I want to tell you about a person named Valentine Burke.
Was Valentine Burke a boy or a girl? What do you think, Valentine Burke?
Boy, you think a boy would have a name? Would be named Valentine.
How many boys would like to name Valentine?
No, you're right. His name was Valentine. I don't know if that had anything to do with the way Valentine grew up, but there was a boy named Valentine Burke.
And I think he would have had a rough time with that name, but he grew up and he got a reputation for his occupation. He was known as Burke the Burglar.
What did Burke the burglar do for a living?
What did Burke the burglar do for a living? Anybody know what a what a burglar is, Paul? What's a?
Robber, a thief? Yeah. He burgled for a living. We don't use that word very much, but that's, that's the that's the right term. Burke, the burglar burgled for a living. Do you think it was a very good living?
Where do you think he ended up?
In a nice house. What do you think? He ended up in jail, of course. That's where most burglars end up pretty quick. Burke, the burglar, burgled his way into jail. He stole things. He went out at night, probably mostly, and stole things. I don't know too much about his history before he got caught, but he ended up in jail. He thought he had a bad deal.
And.
Now this is a true story and it happened about 120 years ago, 2000, twenty, 130 years ago. Burke the burglar got caught and he was put in jail and someone brought him a newspaper and there was an article in the newspaper.
And the article was titled How the Jailer at Philippi Got Caught.
And Burke thought, now that's, that's that's doing things my way. He wanted to read that story. Now I want to tell you the story.
We just read it.
Because it was a sermon by DL Moody and in those days they printed DL Moody's sermons in the newspaper.
And DL Moody, an evangelist, had talked about how the jailer at Philippi got caught.
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Did he get caught? Yes he did. He got caught right in his own bed. God woke him up and made him realize.
He needed a savior.
Well, Burke the burglar.
Read that story.
And it wasn't what he expected.
And he thought about it and he thought about it and he said, you know, I'm going to trust the Lord Jesus Christ too. And he got saved that night.
And later on.
He was released from prison from jail and he had a hard time getting a job.
He went from place to place looking for work and who wants to hire a burglar? He had a reputation, but eventually.
The sheriff called him in and Burke thought, Oh no, they found something more about me and he went into the Sheriff's Office and the sheriff, said Burke.
How is this religion going before you and.
Burke said it's good and the sheriff says I know.
When you got religion, I set my men to watch you.
And you've lived straight. I've got a job for you. I want you to be a guard.
And he ended up being a guard. In one case, he was guarding a viable shipment of diamonds. And I think it was Mr. Moody came to visit him. And Burke, the burglar, was saying, look.
I used to be a burglar and now they trust me with all this wealth. Why? Because God had made a new man out of Burke. The burglar now.
I have extra copies.
Of this story of Burke the burglar. If anybody wants to read them, I'll put them up here on this table and the kids on the 1St on the front row can help themselves 1St. And if anything left over, why anybody else can. And then I have another little paper here that tells a story a little different way. I told you this is one of my favorite stories because, you know, I have friends who committed suicide and it's to me, it's a very painful thing, even these days, children.
Think about suicide. And I know that a lot of people in this room, at one time or another, maybe when there were children, maybe when they were teenagers, they thought about suicide. What is suicide? What does the word suicide mean? Anybody know what the word suicide means? We've got some pretty intelligent fellows on the front row here. What does suicide mean?
Self murder, suicide, Yeah, not a word that most children know, but unfortunately some children do it and teenagers do it. And it's, it's nice to be a warrant in advance that there is something better. That jailer, he was going to commit suicide. He's going to kill himself because he was so upset about the way things were turning out.
And then he got the message from God. Do yourself.
No harm.
I want to tell you.
Satan's got lots of suggestions for your minds. His his ways always lead to death.
Do yourself no harm, trust the Lord Jesus Christ. I've got a little booklet written up showing how God.
Was titled Do Yourself No Harm, How, when, where and why God stopped a suicide. Maybe you know somebody that could use a book like that. And so again, boys and girls on the front row get the first choice. Maybe we have time for one more hymn.
One more song.
All right.
46.
Collide.
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Everything are here when I see him.
I love all their sins. I watch somewhere. Remember our verse said believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. That's God's promise. The Lord Jesus is all we need sometimes. I illustrate what it means to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
I believe in shares. I've been sitting in one here at this conference. I believe in this chair. But now I'm believing on it. I'm committing my whole weight to it. Can you trust the Lord Jesus just that way? Trust yourself to the Lord Jesus.
That's what God wants. That's what He deserves. The Lord Jesus is worthy of our trust. I read a statement recently that stuck in my mind. It is more honor to be trusted than to be loved.
Can we give the Lord Jesus the honor of our trust?
It is more honored to be trusted than to be loved.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
And thou shalt be saved. Let's pray.
Address 3
Philippians 1:11-19
Reading
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
For Jesus Christ the Savior, we only look to thee, descend thy love, and favor our souls. By Liberty 211.
Oh Jesus Christ.
The same.
On the day of the day. Can't make a chance, I wonder.
All of our souls, I live without any.
Wednesday. Wednesday.
Say say please.
The rocks and trolls are proud of us and the blood swelled on my heart.
In Philippians chapter one and.
Start in verse.
11.
The Olympians chapter one and verse 11.
Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God. But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out of out rather under the furtherance of the gospel.
So that might bond in Christ, or manifest in all the palace and in all other places.
And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confidence by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed, preach Christ even of envy and strife, some also of goodwill. The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely supposing to add affliction to my bonds, but the other love, knowing that I am set for the defense of the gospel.
What men, notwithstanding every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, neither do rejoice. Yeah, and will rejoice. I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and my hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body.
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Whether it be life or by death.
For me to live as Christ and to die is gain, but if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor.
Yet what I shall choose I would not, for I am in straight betwixt to have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. Having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith, that for your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.
Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ.
And whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, and in nothing terrified by your adversaries, which is to them an evident token, a partition, but you, but to you of salvation and that of God. For unto you it is given on behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake.
Having the same conflict which he saw in me, now here to be in me.
Chapter we have that the expression the day of Jesus Christ. Or could someone just give a thought on that?
Is that the day of manifestation? When?
We will when Christ will be manifested, and he will be glorified in his Saints.
Expression also appears in the second chapter.
And verse.
16.
Holding forth the word of life, that I may rejoice in the day of Christ.
That I have not run in vain either. Labored in vain.
And.
Paul's letter to the Corinthians, and the marginal reading of it, is that today is man's day.
And I believe Christ's day is set, in contrast with Paul, to man's day. This is the day of man. Man is having his way.
In this world it's characterized by man doing what he wants to do and the apostle Paul said it doesn't mean any. It's not important to me what man thinks. My life and the manner of my life is what man thinks about it isn't important, but there is. He could have said and and here he does express it, that there is a looking on to a day which is going to be Christ's day and instead of what?
Man is what man is, and he manifests himself. I like that word. Can he manifests himself?
But there will come the day, and we believe it soon when it's going to be what's of Christ and it's going to be his day. And can I say then it'll be done his way. And the Apostle Paul here in speaking to the Saints in Philippi, is it where he could say there's a work going on in you that will have its completion and manifestation when Christ has his day.
You're not a finished product yet, but there's a work going on. And then it repeats it here when it talks about growing. And he says you need to grow in love and in the the knowledge that the knowledge of true love that is appropriate to the day in which things will be the way of Christ. He himself looked on to it and he says, brethren, you're my joy.
My crown of rejoicing and if you don't go on well, if you don't continue to in the path, then for me I won't see that result in Christ day. That would be from for God's glory, for your blessing and for my joy. And so the question can be asked of us this afternoon, what day are we living for?
Are we living for man stay?
Our our objectives of life, our thoughts in this life, all centered in the here and now. Or are we living now with that sense that?
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What's important now is going to have its fulfillment and its manifestation in the day of Christ. And so it's given to exercise us to say.
What do I want to live for? Do I want to live for the here and now? That's going to.
Begone and its character even in the day of Christ, even before eternity? Or am I living in view of his day but it.
This way it's always exercised my heart this way. Is there going to have to be any change in the character of what's important to me on the day of the Rapture or on the day of manifestation? Yes, physically we will all change. But will our motives, our objectives, what's important to our hearts going to have to change?
It didn't for the Lord Jesus. When he went from earth to heaven, He didn't change in that way at all.
It didn't have to change what he was in his character or in his interest. And so the more we grow, the more we are going to be spiritually grow conformed to the day.
Of Christ that is coming.
There are four perhaps.
Very significant days that are brought before us in the New Testament.
And I think it's helpful to keep them in their perspective. And brother Dawn is brought before us. Man's day.
The day we live in, which is really a day in which man is asserting his allowed to assert his rights.
And when was there ever a day when man has asserted his rights, like the day in which we live and the.
God is allowing man to do that. God is behind the scenes, of course, but he's allowing man, in a sense his own way. But then there are three days that are yet future. There's the Day of the Lord, the Day of Christ, or the day of Jesus Christ and the Day of God. I just want to suggest that the day of the Lord and the day of Jesus Christ, there is a little bit of a difference. They're both days of manifestation.
And we're not talking about 24 hour time periods. We're talking about a time frame in which God allows a certain thing or operates in a certain way. And I just want to suggest that there's a little difference. The day of the Lord is a day when he will assert his rights. There's a day coming, as Dawn said, when man will no longer be allowed to assert his rights publicly and get away with it. The Lord is going to come back and he's going to assert his rights as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
But the day of Jesus Christ is perhaps more in connection with the Saints of God. As we've been saying, it's the day of a day of manifestation, and it's for Christ's glory, but it's a day when He will be glorified in His Saints, as Brother Ken alluded to that verse. In fact, let's just turn to that verse and Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, chapter one.
And verse 10, Speaking of a future day, says verse 10, when he shall come to be glorified in his Saints and to be admired in all them that believe. And if you leave out the italics in that day, you know there's a day coming when Christ is going to come back with this Saints and every St. is going to reflect fully the glories of Christ. But before that, there is going to be what we often refer to as the judgment seat of Christ.
And Paul's desire was that he and his brethren live in view of that day, that day when for his glory he can give reward and commend his people. Because when he appears with his own, I'll be after the judgment seat of Christ, after the marriage supper of the Lamb, there's going to be the manifestation of those rewards that are given at the judgment seat of Christ, those things that he could commend for.
That are referred to in the Book of Revelation as the righteousnesses of Saints. And are we really living in view of that day? We heard a little exhortation at the end of the last reading in connection with being sincere in view of that day, living in view of that day, not being fake, not trying to cover up things now, but living with the realization that there's a day when everything is going to be manifest and his sense.
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Of what is right is going to be manifested, then not man's sense, not our brethren's sense of what is right and to be commended, but his sense. It's Christ's day, but it's a day of manifestation for the Saints, for the Saints of God. Just to round out our remarks, there's the day of God which will follow all that when the Kingdom is delivered up to the Father, and after all enemies are put down and the last enemy to be destroyed, his death, and he delivers up the Kingdom, that God may be All in all in the eternal state, then is referred to as the day of God. But I want to connect where we started.
With what we've said from verse 10, because he speaks here in verse 11, being filled with the fruits of righteousness. Now in Galatians where it's a in connection with our walk in the Spirit of God. We live by the Spirit, we walk by the Spirit. It's called the fruit of the Spirit because it's in the power of the Spirit that we manifest the attributes of Christ in a practical way in our lives down here.
But we might then question, why is it referred to here as the fruit of righteousness? Well, I believe it's just because of what we've been saying. It's in view of a day when everything is going to be brought into display and commended in a right way, as according to what was right, as to his sense of it. You know, Mary poured out her ointment at the feet of the Lord, and not only did Judas speak up against her, but all the disciples.
Spoke up against her. The Lord commended it as to what He saw was right and for His, for His glory. He gave the proper sense of what was right. And maybe you do something for the Lord and you say nobody appreciated it. Nobody thought it was the right thing. Never mind, Paul said. We labor that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him. He was living in view of the day of when all that he did down here was going to be brought to light.
And the fruit of righteousness was going to be commended. And that's why Paul said in the almost the last words he penned by inspiration was in connection with loving his appearing and how at that time he was the Lord Jesus is going to give a crown, notice this, of righteousness to all those that love is appearing, and not to me only, but not to me only, but to all those that love is appearing. Why is it a crown of righteousness?
Paul had sought to live righteously in an unrighteous world. He'd been misunderstood. Not just by the world, not just by his.
Brethren by nature, the Jews. But he'd been misunderstood often by those he sought to love and serve as his brethren in the faith. The Corinthians misunderstood him. They others had forsaken him and turned away from what he taught, and so on.
Paul said there's a crown of righteousness. There's one who's going to give a proper sense in the coming day.
In view of that reign of righteousness. And he said, I live in view of that day. Now, as Dawn said, are you and I living in view of that day, or are we just looking for some commendation here? Nice to commend one another, nice to praise when there is something done that's noteworthy and Scripture encourages us to do that. But brethren, are we willing to leave those things that are not appreciated or understood? Paul said, I know whom I have believed.
And am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him, when against that day, he said, I'm waiting for the day of Jesus Christ, when it will be properly commended. And not all have the glory, but Christ will have all the glory, and that's the key.
And glance at the grammar real quick leading into verse 11. It proves rather helpful starts off with in this I pray that but that there's showing a strong.
A strong purpose this is, it's also the content probably of his prayer, but this is the purpose of the man's prayer. His purpose is that the believers love should abound in knowledge and on certain discernment. The knowledge here is cures the idea of an experimental knowledge and the fullness of an experimental knowledge. This isn't some abstract mental love, but a living acting love that he's talking about with discernment. A verse or brother pointed out earlier.
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Yesterday we saw about knowledge puffeth up, but love edifying it in the context there the knowledge is the freedom that a Christian has it in Christ that might offend other people in the exact context is talking about meat offered to idols that knowledge without this special love that we have, I'll just go eat the meat offend people. But the special love causes me to consider you more than important than me It considers makes me put my.
But what's good for me is unimportant. What's spiritually best for you is very important, OK? It's where this is supposed to be happening. And if this happens, it's for the purpose or the result that we can approve the things that are more excellent. We can discern what is best.
And we need this in two areas of our life. First, as I mentioned in Christian Liberty, on Christian Liberty, we need love to be able to know whether I'm just using my liberty for an occasion to the flesh or if I'm using my liberty to edify other people. We've all used our liberty for selfish purposes before.
But we should grow to where we use our liberty for the purpose of others.
And as this happens.
We become since oh, in the other area, I'm sorry, is in areas that are good. Well, let's see, I have an hour to kill. Should I read my Bible? Should I pray, should I go out and share the gospel in this hour? As we grow in the experimental love of Christ living and thriving through us, we naturally, and this isn't intellectually, but through the Spirit we remember the Spirit and the word always work together.
A person that says I have the word but I don't know the Spirit has, and somebody tries to claim the Spirit without the word is nothing. The Spirit and the word always act together. So as I grow in this and understand scriptures, as I understand the person of the glorified man of heaven, I become able to start a Christian liberty. What I should do, I became able to discern through the work in the Spirit in my heart and mind.
What is best for now and that you may be sincere. And it's another purpose clause. It's like all his other prayers. He mixes together different ways of expressing purpose all through the prayer, but one phrase always builds on the other phrase and all the Pauline prayers for the purpose that we might be sincere.
And then the next phrase is very interesting. It may sound a little different when I'm getting ready to say than our brother said, but it's really the same thing. Having been filled the the construction or the timing of this is before the time of the prayer. Before he prayed, the Saints were already filled and continue to be filled with righteousness. This is very similar to Second Peter. What refers to us having department of them to divine nature.
That Christ in US carries different but similar concepts that he could pray this for a believer because the righteousness of God has already been placed and will continue in US till the day of Jesus Christ and after the day of Jesus Christ.
Excuse me?
In 11 verse that says.
Being filled with the fruits of righteousness.
And we have a apple tree on our property. And last year it was filled with fruits. It was loaded. We made applesauce and neighbors got apples and used them. And there was so much that we couldn't use them all up. And there was a piled up on the ground. After the season was over, it didn't get used. There was one bountiful harvest. But this year there are only four or five blooms on that same tree. It's the same tree.
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Where they're only going to be four or five apples. It's not going to be filled with fruit this year.
And so the Apostle Paul wants us to desire.
That there's more righteous fruits produced in our lives.
A real fruitful, fruitful tree he wants us to be and another interesting thing here is apostle Paul speaks of things that happened to him only fell fell out to the furtherance of the gospel which is right righteous fruit as well. Remember we heard it today someone.
Bringing before us what happened in the 16th of Acts at Philippi when he was put in Silas or put in prison. And and there at midnight they sang praises and prayed and there was an earthquake and and as a result of it, the jailer and his old household got saved and others got saved. That was something fell out.
To him there that.
He wouldn't have chosen, but God even turned that into fruits of righteousness.
Souls are saved. And the same thing is true in many other instances of Paul's life. For instance, he was arrested at at Jerusalem, and he got to give the gospel to Felix and to Festivus and Agrippa, and he was shipwrecked on an island of Melita, and he gave the testimony there of Christ, and many were saved. He went on to Jerusalem.
And even got to go right before Caesar.
And so all of these things fell out. It didn't seem like a wonderful thing to happen to him, but everything that happened to him only gave an opportunity to give forth the gospel, and many were touched. They wouldn't have ever come in contact with the gospel except those things that happen.
Like to read?
The 12Th.
Verse in Mr. Darby's translation.
But I would have you know, brethren, that the circumstances in which I am.
Have turned out rather to the furtherance of the glad hidings.
The circumstances in which I am everybody this afternoon in this room is in some set different for different ones of us, but every one of us sits here.
In present circumstances, every one of us is living today in some set of the circumstances, as Paul said, the circumstances in which I am.
We can say something about Paul's circumstances when he said this. He was sitting in prison with an uncertainty as to whether he was going to be condemned to death or not. Most of us wouldn't consider that to be the most ideal of present circumstances. In fact, most of us would probably say our own circumstances aren't quite that severe. But nonetheless, we each have this afternoon our present circumstances.
And what is important for us to understand and appreciate and accept is God is presently perfectly in control of them.
They are allowed and ordered of God according to His work.
To accomplish what's said in this chapter, he said, He that hath begun a good work in you will complete it unto the day of Jesus Christ day. The present circumstances in which every one of us is in this afternoon is ordered of God toward the fulfillment of that perfect work.
And in addition to that is having given us something in our lives to do or bear, He has ordered the circumstances of our lives for the furtherance of whatever use He may have of us.
In his service and here in the case of the apostle Paul, he was given of God to preach the gospel to the Gentile, and here he was in prison. He might have said, oh, Lord, this just doesn't add up. You gave me this job to do. You entrusted me with this responsibility, and now I'm sitting here in prison and I can't fulfill it. Please change my circumstances so that I can get on with it.
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Is that how he says it? Is that what the next verses say? No, no. He then goes on to explain to us he found joy because God was using His present circumstances to the furtherance of the very work that God had given him to do, and in this case through others, Some you might say with right motives and some with wrong motives, but nonetheless he stepped back from himself.
He didn't focus on himself. He did recognize his present circumstances.
But then he could see what the Lord was doing in them and he was happy and content. May the Lord allow us to be the same and be an acceptance of the circumstances that God has said. All things are working together for your good.
I think those are beautiful picture of that. Is he not? And when we think of what his circumstances were at the time as a young man, young boy and his father sent him out for to see of a house, brethren did and that was the last time he saw him. And for what would it be close to 20 years or so.
1713 years was, pardon me, 15. I thought he was 17 at the time.
And pardon me.
Well, he he was raised up after that and it would seem like he was almost 40 before he saw them again.
His father by this time had had grieved him, and we well might sympathize with Jacob as to his thoughts towards.
This whole his circumstances at that time and and yet we get the end of the story when we see.
When Joseph sees his brethren then, and he could say.
Now therefore be not grieved nor angry with yourselves that ye sold me, hit her for God did send me before you to preserve life and that is such a wonderful thing. The rest of the story is is so beautiful because we see God's hand in it and all this time the various thoughts of the various ones. Joseph is lost and his father grieved and how often this has happened in the circumstances that we go through in our lives. We think all is lost perhaps and and we see someone.
Depart and we say that's the end of them, but.
That's not the end of the story yet. What does God have in purpose for it all? So I think this is the story of Joseph is such a wonderful picture of what you have just been saying, Don.
And deliverance when he interpreted the dreams and he had to remain another two years in prison, must would have been, could have been very discouraging if he hadn't realized that God has a perfect timetable. And brethren, in the fast-paced life we live in and where there's instant answers and remedies to everything, I think we need to be careful to realize that God's timetable may be very different than ours. And sometimes we pray and we give God a timetable.
I do that sometimes. I say well God, this has got to get cleared up by the 25th of September and if it doesn't what's going to happen? We should never lock God into timetables. God has a perfect timetable but He doesn't deal in 24 hour days and seven day weeks like we we do Thank God. He has put us in the realm of time so that we can operate in the physical sphere in which we find ourselves. I would like to just say this too in connection with Don's remarks and that is.
But the apostle Paul never, and Joseph too. They never became callous or indifferent to their circumstances. They felt what they were passing through. But what gave them the energy of faith to accept their circumstances and be content in them was to realize that what God was doing was the very best. Do we stop in the circumstances of life, brethren, and consider that.
That God is doing what God is doing in our lives is the very best. It may be very different from what we think should be be done, but it is the best if we're willing to leave it in his hand. And what the apostle Paul wrote here to the Philippians had great moral weight in Philippi. Why? Because we were reminded earlier this morning that Paul and Silas had once been in a prison in this very city.
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In this very city that he's writing to these brethren, He'd been there and at midnight, as we were reminded, they rose up and prayed and sang praises. I want to just mention those two things. If it said they prayed, you might think well they got under the circumstance. If it just said they praised, you'd say maybe they were indifferent to their circumstances. But the Spirit of God has told us that they did two things. They prayed, they felt the circumstance and they prayed.
But they also sang praises because I've often wondered if they remembered the verse in the 119th Psalm. I think it's the 62nd verse that says at midnight will I arise and sing praises unto thee because of thy righteous judgments. You know, they realized that what God had allowed was right. Maybe it didn't seem like it was the best, but it was right. Maybe they didn't understand why, but they realized that it was right.
And realizing that it was right, they could arise at midnight and sing praises to the Lord. And brethren, it's not a question of knowing all the reasons why. You know, I sometimes said, if God allows some difficulty in your life, even if He came to you and told you all the reasons why, you can't have joy in that circumstance without submission. But you can have joy in the circumstance without knowing the reasons why.
If you submit to his will in your life and realize that He's doing the very best, and so it says, David said, commit thy way unto the Lord, Trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass. It may not be to pass in the way that we thought was the best, but it will be a pass according to His will and what He sees as the best. And if we're willing to submit and leave it in His hands, then there will be a joy.
In the circumstance, not indifference to the circumstance, not the removal of the circumstance, but a joy in the circumstance and blessing not only for our own souls, but as we're going to see here, blessing for other souls both in the gospel and for his brethren as well.
Another.
Lesson that we learn is from the life of Joe and that's in that situation and they just think of what Job went through and I'm sure he was not too happy in his circumstances. I know I wouldn't have been. And yet all through that God preserved him from from cursing God and dying as his wife would suggest.
But at the end of it all he could say, I have heard of thee with the hearing of my near.
But now mine I see it thee, and I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. So had he been delivered out of those circumstances, he would never have learned God like he did through those circumstances. And that's perhaps why He puts us through these circumstances too, is that we might learn Him in a whole different way than we would if all our circumstances were perfect.
Friends made the mistake of thinking that prosperity was a sign of God's approval and affliction was a sign of God's disapproval and very dangerous to.
To walk in that way, being guided by our circumstances, isn't it? And you know, there's other examples you could bring up, like for example, the case of Lazarus. His death was for God's glory. So there are many times and, and, and this is.
So critical in the day in which we live, where there's this gospel of prosperity that's being preached.
In which case Paul was the biggest loser that there ever was. I mean, he ended, history tells us being.
Decapitated.
Suffered capital punishment. He ended his life in prison. All of Asia turned away from him. You know if.
If he was guided by his circumstances, then at the end of his life he must have assumed he was all wrong.
Parents, they asked the Lord in connection with the blind man, but he said they neither this man nor his parents, but that the works of God may be manifested in him. There was going to be glory brought to God and the Lord Jesus through the healing of that man, and a great testimony in that day. But when we read these next few verses in connection with the furtherance of the gospel, and how some were preaching out of contention and so on, don't we think of the verse in the 76th Psalm that says, the wrath of man shall praise thee?
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And the remainder of wrath thou shalt restrain. Paul said himself on another occasion, We can do nothing against the truth but for the truth. And no doubt the enemy thought, if I can lock this man up in jail, he's not going around preaching the gospel and encouraging the Saints of God. No doubt the enemy thought he had a great victory. But the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath thou shalt restrain. God showed that he was in full control of this circumstance.
And Paul recognizing this, he's content in the circumstance and he's content to be there if it means that the truth and the gospel is going out in some way. And so, as we often quote, the word of God is not bound. And some were preaching even out of contention. Paul said that's OK. Whether in truth or pretense, Christ is preached. And I there in due rejoice, Yeah, and will rejoice. He might have thought, well, I wish I was out there telling the gospel.
I wish I could do that. Don't we do that sometimes, Brevin? We say, I wish I was the one the Lord sent there to to preach the gospel or sow the seed and all the blessing. No, Paul said if, if, as long as the gospel is going forth and whatever instrument, whether it's whether it's with the right motive or wrong motive, the Word of God is living and powerful, it's not the vessel, it's not the presentation, it's not the motive. In the final analysis, fruit and blessing is going to be a result of the living Word of God going forth in one way or another.
He said, I'm very content. He rejoiced, Could I do that rather than could I rejoice? You know, it's like in Philippi when he was there as a prisoner, I think I would have been grumbling and saying, well, Lord, I thought I got a vision to come over here and help somebody. And my job is to preach the gospel and to reason with the Jews and the synagogue on the Sabbath day. And what good am I doing here? My feet fast in the stalks, my back bleeding. But that wasn't Paul's attitude. No, he knew that the word of God was going to go forth and there was going to be blessing.
And what was the testimony in the prison at that time? Why, the prisoners heard them. The jailkeeper got saved. There was an assembly, no doubt established, gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus. There was fruit and testimony because a servant of God was willing to accept his circumstances from the Lord and rejoice in it as a result. And here Paul, as I say, when he writes this, it has moral weight when he tells them he's content as a prisoner of the Romans.
Because the gospel is going forth, they believed it, they understood it because they had seen it manifested in his life. Well, brethren, it's a word to us all, isn't it? And you know, so often we can be jealous of what others are doing and what I can't do because of circumstances the Lord has placed me. But again, our testimony to others is our is often our joy in the Lord in our acceptance of what are difficult circumstances.
And this is a practical manifestation of Ephesian truth. You know, we can say, oh, I understand these great positions. I understand I'm in the heavenlies. But until these truths become more real to us than the way our back hurts in the morning or the bills that come in the mail when we get home from this conference, it's not a reality. But as the truth set forth, Romans clash and Ephesians become real to us.
This is the way they manifest themselves in our personal lives. We see this all through the book of Philippians. Not in the errors that Paul was correcting and a little disagreements in the assembly, but in Pauls life. Here's one that was willing to suffer anything so that the gospel would go out later. We see that nothing is important to him in chapter 3 except to know Christ. He doesn't care what it cost him. How much pain?
There's one thing he wanted to do was known, know the heavenly man to experience him in knowledge.
And experimental knowledge more deeply. He wanted to cry out for me to live as Christ. To die is gain. I would rather be in heaven, but for for your benefit, my benefit, I'd go straight to heaven right now. But for the benefit of the Saints, I'll suffer in this present evil world for your benefit.
You know these great positional truths. We can't exhort people into living this way. We can lay forth their responsibility, but it's only by a deep grass and a living reality of our union with the man in glory that these things can be expressed in our lives. We can set up a bunch of rules of do's and don'ts and try to produce them, and maybe outwardly look good for a while, but to produce them in our lives the way the apostle Paul did.
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Only comes through a living reality of being in Christ.
What were the false circumstances at the time?
I understand that he was under house arrest.
And what were the incidents?
Bread caused him to be there.
There were quite a few circumstances.
First of all, he insisted to go to Jerusalem and take a vow. He had a vow on him.
Had his head shaved.
And then he.
Caused the riot there, he got into jail.
And then he was examined by certain rulers there, and finally he appeared to Caesar.
And he was finally sent on that ship.
To Rome.
And that's quite a few circumstances there that happened to him.
And what we see there, they all went to the furtherance of the gospel because he was chained to a soldier there and a lot of people were visiting him, first of all, the Jews, and I'm sure I was too. And they all heard the gospel. That was his object was always to bring the gospel to people.
Salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ.
And that's really our object too, isn't it?
We are definitely into circumstances every day. I just got talked to a neighbor lady.
And I was able to.
Get into a conversation with her and she told me that.
What religion she had and she said, well, I'm Catholic, I'm Christian, and these were her circumstances and they made everything right.
Well, then we have the opportunity to tell what really.
Makes things right. What really her responsibilities to God isn't what really makes 1A Christian. So on. So we have opportunities every day, all the time, because we constantly are in certain circumstances.
I like what Don was mentioning about that, where it says the circumstances in which I am, we can just go back to that a minute. And I would say that every morning that you and I get up, if we ask God to help us to please Him in the circumstances in which we are that day, there would be unlimited opportunities for us to to speak a word in to our neighbors or to speak a word in season to those that are in difficulties or whatever. Yeah, you name it. But.
That is so important like we you're saying there that even with your neighbor, you've got a circumstance there that you can either pass by or you can take, you can accept it, you can make use of it. And I dare say it's speaking for myself most of the time I let it go by and it's to my shame. I remember 11 situation where I just about let a circumstance go by and and I was on my way home from work and I there was this old brother that was in our town that was a nice Christian. He used to show up at our.
Our Lord's evening meetings, he said that that was the highlight of the week for him was to come to our Bible readings. And so he was he, he'd had a heart attack and, and he was not well. And so I was on my way home on a Friday night and I went past his place and I said to myself, you know, I think I should turn around and go back and stop and see him because I know he'd had a visit from a man who was.
A a British Israelite and this would get him very upset. I know that. So I stopped in there and I spent.
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Two hours with them and we had a real nice conversation. We had reading and we had prayer together and the next morning I got a phone call and said this man had gone home to be with the Lord. Just like that. He got up in the morning and he healed over and I was the last one that had stopped to see him after that other man that had got him so upset and I was so thankful for taking advantage of that opportunity.
And you know, and I say we we can either pass it by or we can take advantage of it. And I say this to my shame that I don't do it so often.
It's natural to us to want to control.
Our own circumstances, it's just the way we are. We would like to be in control of the circumstance itself. But I think we have a lesson, a valuable lesson here. In the case of the apostle Paul, he did fail.
In Jerusalem, and it did bring upon him the circumstances in which he was when he wrote this letter.
But at the same time, God overruled it and put him or allowed him to be in those circumstances because God had an agenda too, and God's agenda was better than Paul's. And there were, as he says in the next verse, so that in my bonds, verse 13, Christ are manifest in the palace. Why was it manifested in the palace? Because of those circumstances.
I We know that Felix and Festus and the jailers and those who were responsible for his house address. We know from Romans chapter 16 that there were certain ones in the palace of Caesar who came to know the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior. Why?
Through the circumstances that God allowed Paul through his own wrong in a way doing to be in and so brethren, even when we fail, God overrules for good for our own blessing for our own training, learning, but also to accomplish what his purpose is in himself are I well remember and I was struck by it a brother once that I went to visit.
In a hospital, and he was there for a fairly extended period of time. And as I talked to the brother and as I was there at the hospital, I saw how many people in that hospital had the testimony of Jesus Christ presented to their souls. And in that sense it's as if God were saying to me, I put him in there. Now, did he choose to go there? No. He was there because he was sick. He had a fairly serious problem.
But in another sense of it, the Lord put him in there because the Lord had a work to do in that hospital with souls, and he put him into those circumstances and to accomplish that work and.
I want to add this one more comment about the circumstance. Your neighbor if you hope you don't.
Play the lottery. That's the first thing that came to my mind. But let's suppose you inherit $5 million from somebody and your neighbor hears it. They're going to say, wow, I could be happy, too.
But if you just lost everything and you're happy, your neighbor says, where's that come from?
One is a testimony to the power of God if you're happy in adverse circumstances.
And it for is works out to the furtherance of the purposes of God and blessing for souls often times.
Bless really beneficial circumstances that your neighbor can look at and say, sure, I could be happy too if I had your house, your car, your circumstances or whatever. Many times doesn't work. The Lord doesn't use it in the furtherance of His purposes. And so we can be thankful even when circumstances are not to our natural tendency or liking that God may have put those there because He has a greater purpose through us.
See in verse 14 how that that which fell out to the furtherance of the gospel was an encouragement to others too. And I was thinking of Jonathan and his armor bearer, you know, when they went up and while his father was sitting down there under the pomegranate tree with the 600 men and Jonathan was out to fight the Lords battle. And he and his armor bearer went up and they conquered that little piece of ground up there. And, and, and where were all the rest of the children of the, of the, of the Israelites other than those that were with the assault?
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Well, they're in the caves and they're hiding. They're under, they were under the the fear of the Philistine. But Jonathan and his armor bearer went up there and they won that little piece of land. And what did it do to other brothers? They came out and they supported.
That's a very good point.
Our behavior does influence other people.
And here in the case of the apostle Paul, what happened to him caused others to be brave and to say, well, the apostle Paul was in that circumstance and.
The way he set an example for us, we know that the Lord is in control and so they're made brave to go out with the gospel. The example encouraged them and strengthened them and they through that example, they, their whole life was influenced so that they instead of cowering back and and withdrawing, they were.
Emboldened to go out with the gospel.
So we need to remember that how we react to things influences others, the other side.
Too bad that it took Paul being a prisoner of the Romans to bring out these brethren boldly for the Lord. And I want to just make a practical comment and bring this down to our situation where we're at today because, you know, I guess we've all experienced it as we've seen perhaps older brothers taken, they're not able to get around like they used to. Brothers that we counted on as help in the ministry of the Word and the preaching of the gospel.
Or maybe even on the local assembly, a brother who's been a great help, maybe moves away through circumstances, maybe through some physical difficulties, not always at the meetings and able to help like he once was. Or maybe the Lord takes him home in death. And it often does exercise those who are younger and others, some who are not so young sometimes to step up and to fill in the ranks and to come out more boldly for for the Lord in that way, as far as the gospel or help to their brethren.
But, you know, it's too bad that sometimes it takes those circumstances. It took this circumstance to bring many out in Pauls day boldly. Now Paul rejoiced that if this was a fringe benefit of his being in prison again, he was very content and he rejoiced. But, you know, I just want to say, particularly perhaps to those who are younger, and I'm getting to a point in life where I can say this, that you know some of those who take responsibility in your local assembly.
Or in a situation like this, we're looking for the Lord to come today. But if the Lord doesn't come, they're not always going to be there or able to take the responsibility that they once did. And you know, Paul perhaps felt this even more near the end of his life as he realized he was going to become a martyr and lay down his life for his testimony. He wrote to Timothy and he encouraged Timothy to step up and to.
Timothy had taken hold of the truth, but now his desire was that Timothy would exercise his gift and pass on the truth to others and do the work of an evangelist and so on.
It's just like Paul Saint Timothy, you're not going to be able to live in my shadow forever.
Timothy, I'm not always going to be here to take the lead forever. The Lord is going to Take Me Home and you need to step up even before the Lord takes me home. You need to step up and take responsibility and come out and out for the Lord. And so as a result of Paul becoming a prisoner of the Romans and not able to travel and preach the gospel, many were encouraged by his spirit and attitude, and perhaps as they saw the need, the gap that it left.
As a result of His being put away in this by these circumstances, they boldly stepped out in this way. But I just want to encourage those who are younger particularly be exercised. God has given you something. He's given you gift and ability. Exercise it, stir it up. Of course, in accordance with the truth of God, it has to be done in a proper way and with discretion and realizing.
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Where you're at in your Christian life and where you are naturally to but be exercised to step up and come out boldly. And you know this was alluded to earlier, there are no shortage of opportunities. There are no shortage of opportunities to preach the gospel and be a testimony in whatever our circumstances are, whether our circumstances are a one mile radius or whether we have opportunity to travel the world wherever we are.
There's no shortage of opportunities. There may be a shortage of diligence on our part and I can only speak for myself on my part to avail myself of those opportunities. But you know, you don't have to get up in the morning and pray for opportunities as much as you need to get up and pray that you would be in such a state of soul and a watchful exercise to avail ourselves of the opportunities as they present themselves.
Again, Paul and Silas.
They were in a difficult circumstance in the 16th of Acts, but they availed themselves of the circumstance of the opportunity in the circumstance to be a testimony. They weren't grumbling and saying, well, these circumstances, what good are we? No, they availed themselves of the circumstance, the opportunity and the circumstance in which they found themselves and whatever circumstance, maybe it is in a hospital bed, maybe it is in our neighborhood, maybe it is at work, maybe it is in difficult circumstances, but use the opportunities in those circumstances.
And the Lord can turn it into joy in your soul fruit for His glory and blessing for others.
This can also work over a long time.
Just reminds me of a story my wife's sister told me in Germany.
There was like 20 or more years ago she worked in the woods planting trees and cleaning walkways and the like.
And there was a lot of work to do. So they apportioned to her helpers 6 people and they were from, I think they were from Vietnam.
And she used to talk to them people. She taught them first to count in German, and she taught them all the phrases that they need during the day. Of course, there's a lot of time they spent there. And then later on, she retired and these people, they went to school to learn German.
And while they, the teacher was teaching them there and the same things that she had taught him there, the teacher said, well, where did you learn those things? Oh, we were working with a lady there in the woods, and she told her all those things.
Well, they learned a lot and just in a very peculiar circumstances they learned. So we can see that we use the opportunities.
The work can work a long way and especially when we use them for the Lord.
And our verse about the brethren being influenced by our behavior.
And the way we react to things that included even their being beheaded them.
Crucified for the Lord. Almost all of the apostles were. And it influences people in this way if you don't really believe something, if you are really coming forth with something that's false.
And you are put on the line to give your life for what you're teaching and holding.
Do you think that has an effect on people when they see that what they're preaching, you are so sure of it and it's so real to you that you're willing to lay down your life?
In order to promote it if I were promoting some false.
Product and it was going to cost me my life, I'd get out of there and quickly get away from that danger. But if I really believe that the Lord Jesus is God, that he's a savior and that he died on the cross for my soul and he's my savior and my Lord and I go out and tell others about him.
01:05:03
And even if they take my life because I'm doing it, that impresses them. They're greatly impressed.
I'm sure the Apostle Paul was impressed with.
They his are clothing of those of stone. Stephen to death, were put at his feet. He was greatly impressed by that behavior. Steven there and others were equally impressed with in a greater way, when they were willing to lay down their lives for what they were preaching.
There's more blood under Smyrna than there was elsewhere at other times, and that's the time of persecution. Thou shalt suffer persecution. 10 days. It says they're in Revelation. And so as I think it was mentioned in our the last address about Smyrna.
How that God allowed that to come in because the Saints had lost their first love and were going back into the world and so.
Circumstances that God allows causes the fruit for him. It's like the the flower, the smell of the flowers that come over the wall there and Song of Solomon chapter 4 I believe it is the north wind blows and it brings the the perfume of the of all the the flowers and the the spices over the walls.
So that others can smell it.
And it's not always the South wind blowing softly that brings fruit. It's the north wind put off.
Well, to remember, brethren, that sometimes circumstances are used of God to manifest what's in our hearts.
What was in the heart of the apostle Paul here is summarized as our time is about up. It summarized in verse 18, Christ is preached.
That was what was important to Paul. It wasn't himself. His circumstances were not centered on what makes me happy and good and comfortable and all the rest of it, but the circumstances as adverse as they were in his life as he evaluated them before God, he found that in which he was content and found joy in because Christ is preached. And that was what was the real heart of the motivation of fall.
Sometimes if we find it difficult to accept circumstances that have come into our life.
It's a good reason for us to stop and say to our own hearts before the Lord, what is my motivation? What is it that's frustrating me in these circumstances? Because we may find that it is something that's not, if I may use the expression on God's agenda, it's not that line on which He's working. And in fact, the circumstance is not a hindrance to Him. It's a hindrance to us and what we want and what we would like to see happen.
With respect to our own lives, But if that which is motivating us is truly of the Lord, then we may find in the Lord that which will give us peace in it, and joy even that He is something that He is doing for good.
Circumstances even in the life all because.
If I read this correctly, there was no fruit for God in Pauls life from the time he left Ephesus to the time he got back on that ship. On the way to Rome. He said he wanted to go to Rome and and the Lord said you're going to go to Rome, but you're going to go my way and so.
It was his determining determination to go to Jerusalem.
To keep that feast and I don't believe it was God's mind for him to do that, but he let him go and there was number fruit from that time to the time he got back to where he left off. And that should be a voice to us that we we are more.
Desires to wait on the Lord and to rush ahead on our own, with our own plans.
44.
God moves in our mysterious way. Yes, one character.
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On your eyes and everyone's hands and blood see and crystal on one sword.
I'm holding every hour.
Gospel 2
Gospel—Jim Hyland
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Gospel Meeting this evening with hymn #4 on the gospel hymn sheet. Christ is the Savior of sinners. Christ is the Savior. For me. Long I was chained in sins, darkness. Now by His grace I am free. Savior of sinners, Savior of sinners like me, shedding His blood for my ransom. This is the Savior for me. I realize that there are many in this room this evening.
Will be able to sing this hymn with glad joy in their hearts. And I trust that our faces will show it too as we sing this old gospel hymn together. But you know, it is very solemn to consider that there may be somebody who is going to join in the singing of this hymn who will be singing a lie. I want you to think about these words, Savior of sinners like me shedding his blood for my ransom. This is the Savior for me.
I trust that if there's anybody who's not saved here tonight that you won't wait till later on in this gospel meeting to get saved. But as we sing these words together, you will simply receive the Lord Jesus as your Savior. And that before the end of the singing of this hymn, as we come to the last chorus, you too can join in with gladness, Savior of sinners. For me, I'm going to suggest that those of us who can would stand up to sing #4 on the hymn sheet and if someone will, please start it.
Christ is a savior of Savior.
Christ is the Savior for me. Lord, I was agent since artists and I just grace I am free.
Save grand savings. Save You're not sailors like me.
Shedding his blood for my grandson. This is the Savior for me.
Now I can say I am pardoned, happy and justified free.
Saved by my Blessed Redeemer, This is the Savior for me.
Change your life for my grandson. It's just a savior for me.
Just as I want to receive me thinking from judgment to please.
This is the state here for me.
Save your sin. Prayers say to God, sailors like me.
Standing in front of my grandson, This is the Savior for me.
Change.
Let's ask God's help by way of introduction to the subject that's on my heart tonight.
And the New Testament verses we're going to turn to in a few moments, I would like to read a verse or two from the Old Testament that really sums up what we're going to speak of in the presentation of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. The verses I want to read are in First Samuel chapter 17.
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First Samuel chapter 17 and verse 20.
And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took and went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the trench as the host was going forth to fight, and shouted for the battle. And then in verse 28, any liab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men, and he lie of anger, was kindled against David.
And he said.
Why comest thou down? Hit her. And with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride and the naughtiness of thine heart, for thou art come down, that thou mightest see the battle. And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a 'cause? I suppose, if we were to put a label or a title.
On this gospel meeting this evening, it would be this last phrase that we have read. Is there not a cause? We know this story well, and it's not my thought to take up the story that we so often refer to as the story of David and Goliath recounted to us carefully by inspiration in this chapter. Suffice it to say that David here in this chapter is a very beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus.
Acting in obedience to his father in the New Testament language, saying, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God.
The one who came into this world and went to Calvary's cross, met and defeated the enemy there, and offered himself as that supreme sacrifice for sin. And so we know the story. The boys and girls have heard it from the very early days of their childhood, of how David went down and overcame Goliath with those smooth stones in his shepherd's bag and that swing in his hand. But we see here that when he came to his brethren.
A lie of raises a question. Why comest thou down? Hit her, and I want to apply this in connection with the gospel tonight. You know, one of the first words that my children learned other than no and mine was why? And I suppose all our lives were asking why, Why this and why that? And people like to know the reason.
People like to know the cause or the purpose. You know when you step up to an immigration desk, whether it be at an airport or whether it be in your vehicle, as you cross the border into another country, one of the questions that they invariably are going to ask you is why are you entering this country? What is the purpose of your visit here? And if you can't give them a good reason or if you give them a reason that they feel is invalid.
A threat to their country in some way. They reserve the right to refuse you entry into that country. You better have a good reason why you're coming into that country or you're not going to be allowed entrance. Eliab asked this question of his younger brother. Why camest thou down? Hit her and we might ask the question tonight. Why did the Lord Jesus come down from heaven into this world?
And we find here that David answers very wisely and he says, is there not a cause? And tonight we want to go to several New Testament scriptures that answer this question in regard not so much as to why David came to the camp of Israel on this occasion, but why the Lord Jesus came down into this world scent of his father. Because you know every question.
That is raised in the word of God is answered in some other place, I think that's so beautiful to realize. You know, we have many questions. I have no doubt there are people here tonight, young people and perhaps some who are not so young, who have many questions. Questions as to life, questions as to circumstances. Why this and why that? And there are many questions in the word of God.
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But you know, when we go to the word of God with genuine desire to have our questions answered by God, the answer to every question is there in the word of God. But we have to search it out with a real desire to hear what God has to say. Why is it that men today don't have their questions answered? It's because they're either looking in the wrong place.
They're looking to the wrong person. Or if they are looking in the word of God, they're looking for something that satisfies what they want to hear. They really don't have ears to hear what God has to say to them. They really don't have a heart that is receptive to what God has to say. But you know, as has often been pointed out when the Queen of Sheba came to Solomon, another very, very beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus in the New in the Old Testament.
She came with a lot of questions and they were hard questions.
But you know, when she got into the presence of Solomon and asked Solomon her questions? You can read about it in First Kings chapter 10. It tells us that every one of her questions was answered, and it was answered to her satisfaction. She went away from the court of Solomon with her heart, satisfied with the answers that really filled her and gave her peace of soul.
And rest of mind and you can go away from this gospel meeting tonight with your questions answered to your satisfaction, if you're willing to hear what God has to say. And so we want to deal specifically with this one question. Why camest thou down? Hit her. Why did the Lord Jesus come down into this world? And we can only hope to look at a few scriptures which give us various reasons as to why the Lord Jesus.
Came into this world.
And I am going to say from the very beginning that this is not an exhaustive list of reasons.
This is, these are not an exhaustive number of scriptures that we're going to look at, but perhaps just a few scriptures as the Lord leads and as we have time, that will, at least in part, give us some of the fundamental reasons as to why the Lord Jesus came in to this world. Let's go first of all to John's Gospel chapter 6.
Remember our question?
Why camest thou down? Hit her. Is there not a cause?
John's Gospel chapter 6 and verse 38 for I came down from heaven.
Not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me here. We find the Lord Jesus walking here in this world. And you know, as the Lord Jesus walked here in this world as a man, as he went about dispensing blessing on every hand, as he went about speaking words of kindness and invitation, As he went about speaking words of faithfulness, as he went about healing the sick.
Cleansing the leper as he went about taking children up in his arms and blessing them, speaking to the multitudes. There were many who questioned who he was, where he had come from, and why he had had come. And he says here I came down from heaven. But he doesn't stop there. He gives a reason. He gives a purpose not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me. And we want to establish at the very beginning.
That the Lord Jesus was indeed the one who was sent of his father. Why had David come to his brethren with provisions for them? Because he was sent of his father Jesse, and in acting in obedience he had brought him to his brethren, who were fighting the battle with the Philistines. And the Lord Jesus came scent of the Father. He came down from heaven, but not to do his own will, but the will of him that sent him.
And as the Lord Jesus walked through this world, he had ever before him.
The will of God the Father my Father worketh hitherto, and I work. He could do nothing of himself but except directed by God the Father. Every word he spoke, every intonation of His voice, every movement of his body, was in complete accordance with the will of the Father, even when he was bowed low in the Garden of Gethsemane.
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In anticipation of his greatest hour of trial.
As the cross pressed upon his soul, and all that it meant to him.
It's true, as a man he prayed and said, Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.
But he immediately says nevertheless, not my will but thine be done.
In that regard, let's just go on in John's Gospel to the 12Th chapter.
John's Gospel, chapter 12.
And verse 27.
Now is my soul troubled.
And what shall I say?
Father, save me from this hour. But for this cause came I unto this hour. Why camest thou down? Hit her. Is there not a cause? Oh, the cause was that he was to go to Calvary's cross, and there to suffer for sin. You know, if the Lord Jesus had come in obedience to the Father, and grown up in this world, and lived the perfect life that he did.
And if he had turned back in the hour of his greatest suffering in the hour of Calvary.
Oh, there would be no gospel meeting tonight. There would be no salvation. And so he says. But for this cause came I unto this hour. Now I want to make it very clear that his first and foremost reason for coming into this world and for going to Calvary's cross.
Was obedience to his father.
That was the first and foremost reason he had that I say, ever before his soul, to finish the work that his Father gave him to do, to glorify God on the earth. But all through it all there's been blessing extended to mankind through the gospel. The gospel has been going forth as was commissioned to the disciples upon the Lord's resurrection. Because you know, the Lord Jesus not only went to Calvary's cross and died.
But he died, he was buried and he rose again the 3rd day according to the scriptures. Oh marvelous that the Lord Jesus is a savior on high in the glory tonight. He's a savior that went on to Calvary cross. Yes, He gave his life. Yes, his blood was shed. So vital, so necessary because it's through that blood that were cleansed, that we have the forgiveness of sins that were justified, that were sanctified, that were washed.
That were made nigh that we have the forgiveness of sins. But oh I say another vital element of the gospel is that he rose again the 3rd day according to the scriptures and so God now can reach out in blessing to mankind. This is what was before God's soul in sending his heart and sending his Son. This was before the Lord Jesus too when he came into this world. Yes to first of all accomplish the will of God.
To glorify his Father, but all then to realize that he was going to have heaven full.
Of those that He will delight for all eternity to call His own.
And so he goes from this point that we have read of. He goes on, I say to the cross.
And there man takes him, and there they treat him so cruelly. There they nail him to that cross.
There he lays down his life that he might take it. Again, we're looking at these scriptures very quickly, but let's follow this thought on a little bit further in John's Gospel to the 18th chapter.
Chapter 18.
And verse 37.
Pilate therefore saith unto him.
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Art thou a king? Then Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Everyone that is of the truth, heareth my voice.
Pilot saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again.
Well, here we have another reason. And I know we've pictured this scene in our mind's eye so often, the Lord Jesus having been brought from the Garden of Gethsemane and he stands before Pilate.
And here's the one of whom it is stated, I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me. But you know the solemn thing is that here was the truth come into the world, and they didn't want him. They rejected him. You know man doesn't want the truth tonight.
They don't want the truth. And as I suppose this is punctuated in the day in which we live, where there are no absolutes, there's no right or wrong.
We become desensitized, and lying is a thing, I think, that we hardly realize we do sometimes.
Truth.
I know this is a small thing but.
Parents, some parents were telling me some time ago of a school district in which their children were sent to school and.
On the spelling test at the end of the week, I don't know if they give spelling tests much anymore, but you know, when I was going to school on Friday, there was a spelling test. We were given a list of spelling words on Monday and we were to memorize those spelling words and there was a test, 20 words or whatever it was. And on Friday those words were dictated to us by the teacher. Everybody had the same list.
And some did well and some did not.
I won't exactly tell you what category I felt fell into, but I'm very glad for spelling grammar check on laptops and computers today. However, if you got too wrong, it was too wrong in relationship to the rest of the class. If you got six wrong, it was 6 wrong in relationship to the rest of the class. If you got them all right, it was in relationship to the other thirty students in the class.
But in this school district, they do it a little bit different.
There are perhaps 40 or 50 words listed on the board on Monday morning, and the children are free to choose any of those words. We're going to say they have to choose 20 from that 40 or 50, and so they choose twenty of those words. And conceivably, every student has a different list.
And so when you get one wrong or all right on Friday, they're not pitting one student against another. It's not one wrong in relationship to the rest of the class. You're not graded in relationship to the rest of your student fellow students, because you can't do that anymore. No ones really right and no ones really wrong.
When my daughters were going to are going to, we're going to school. One still is, but they're in elementary school. They had free expression.
And there was a period of years where the teacher wasn't allowed to correct the spelling or grammar.
And after they would bring that report home, I'd read it out loud at the dinner table.
The way it was written, not the way it was intended. Sometimes it was so ridiculous we couldn't get through it without tears of laughter running down our cheeks. You say those are small things, but they only show how truth is undermined and absolutes are undermined. The word of God is undermined. The gospel is undermined. In the day in which we live, nobody's right and nobody's wrong. They used to have an expression. All roads lead to Rome.
And now you hear people say, well, as long as people are sincere in what they believe, it's all going to end up in the same place and it's all going to end up OK in the end. That is not what we have in the word of God. And here the Lord Jesus, who was the truth and who testified of the truth, he says to Pilate, for this cause came I into the world that I may bear witness under the truth. And then he says, everyone that is of the truth, heareth my voice.
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And Pilate raises a question. What is truth? But he wasn't willing to wait for the answer. He went immediately out. He didn't really want to hear it. His conscience told him.
That if he waited for the answer, it would condemn him.
That the judge would be condemned of the prisoner. And so he didn't wait for the answer. He went immediately out and we know what happened. He eventually tried to wash his hands of the situation and he delivered the Lord Jesus into the hands of the Jews to be crucified. Let's go back a little bit to the again to the 12Th chapter. I believe it is.
Yes, chapter 12 and verse 46.
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness, and just turn back a few more pages to a verse in the 9th chapter.
Chapter 9 and verse 39.
And Jesus said, for judgment, am I coming into this world that they which see, not might see?
And they which see might be made blind. Well, here we have more of the answer to that question, Is there not a cause? And here we find that another reason the Lord Jesus came into the world was as the light. In fact, when he was here in the world, he referred to himself as the light of the world. But he had to say, men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil.
And it tells us earlier in this gospel that the light shone in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it. Not so great was the moral darkness when the Lord Jesus came into this world that the light shone in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. Could you imagine complete total darkness in a room like this? And bringing in a Lantern or turning on a light? And so great was the darkness that the light didn't penetrate it. You can't imagine a condition like that.
But that was the moral darkness that existed in the days of the Lord Jesus. And the Lord Jesus came, I say, as that light.
Oh, it's true. The light exposes, doesn't it? You know, the light exposes what we really are. And I suppose that's why men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. You know, most crime takes place in the darkness.
Most crime, I suppose, if we were to check statistics, takes place between sundown and sun up and people will put security lighting and yard lights and they will leave lights on in their businesses to try to keep those who would rob them and do harm from coming into their office or their place of business or their home. The light exposes and when the Lord Jesus was here.
As the light of this world, he exposed what's in man's heart. And tonight the entrance of his Word gives light. And that's why men have closed the pages of God's Word. They don't read it in the schools, don't read it in their homes. They don't want to come to places where it's opened and read because they don't want to have their hearts exposed. Because naturally speaking, when the heart is exposed, it is not a pretty picture.
Because all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is none that doeth good. No, not one. There is not a man on the earth that doeth good and sinneth not. That's what the light of God's word reveals. And yet, if there's going to be blessing, we must be brought into the light. We must be brought into the presence of the Lord Jesus with God's word open before us.
To reveal our true condition, sometimes the boys and girls.
Sing of the word of God is a mirror, A mirror Myself deceived you know you look in a mirror. A mirror doesn't lie. A mirror gives a perfect reflection, a perfect image of what we are. If our face is dirty, it's going to show our face dirty.
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You know, you might take a photograph of one of your children and their face is dirty and you Photoshop it or something like that, and you remove that dirt and the picture isn't really.
Isn't really a true likeness of the person when that photo was taken. But you can't Photoshop a mirror, can you? You can't Photoshop God's Word. No. God's word reveals exactly what we are. And the Lord Jesus, when he was here in faithfulness, he revealed exactly what the hearts of men were.
And I suppose that's why in the 9th chapter he gives another reason why he came. He came to judge, you know?
That's a rather interesting statement because you might immediately say, well, I thought he came to save.
And it's true. If we were to back up in John's gospel to the third chapter, we find that God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. That's really why the Lord Jesus came. He came to save. He didn't come to judge or condemn. But I believe the reason we read this statement here in the 9th chapter is because they had rejected the Lord Jesus.
And the light having come and exposed what they were, and the light being rejected, sealed the judgment of this world, He could say, now is the judgment of this world. And we would be less than faithful tonight if we didn't stress the fact that for those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ there is judgment coming.
On this world, and more than that, those who go out into a lost eternity without Christ will stand at what is called the Great White Throne, and they will be judged there.
And there's no question as to the verdict at that judgment seat. There's no question as to the verdict.
In that courtroom, you know, in the courtrooms of this land and around the world, sometimes there are surprises.
And sometimes there is injustice, but not so at the Great White Throne judgment.
No, the die has already been cast. The doom of those who stand there has already been sealed.
Because they have rejected the one who came down from heaven. They've rejected God's offer of mercy through the death and the shedding of blood, of the blood of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And there they stand to be judged and to be taken and cast from the presence of God for all eternity, to be cast into the lake of fire, where there's weeping and gnashing of teeth, where there's no liberty, no freedom.
Where they're bound hand and foot.
And where there is no hope, no hope of any escape from that awful doom. But, oh, tonight there is hope, isn't there? Let's go on to first Timothy Chapter one.
First Timothy chapter one.
And verse 15.
This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.
That Christ Jesus came into the world.
To save sinners of whom I am chief. Why camest thou down? Hit her. Is there not a cause? Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Oh, for our purposes tonight in the gospel, this is foremost. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. We've already established that we're sinners.
But I want to establish another fact before we go on, and that is that not only are we sinners, but we're helpless sinners, and that there is not one thing you and I can do to get rid of our sins. We're holding with the cords of our sins, as it tells us in Proverbs, and we can't loose one cord of sin.
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We can't liberate ourselves. We can't better ourselves before God. No, we need a Savior and Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
The date was October 14th, 1987. The setting was Midland, TX.
And there was a little girl by the name of Jessica McClure.
And she was playing under the watchful eye of her mother in their backyard.
The phone rang.
And her mother.
Left Jessica, 18 months old.
In the backyard for a moment while she went in to answer the phone.
When she came back a few minutes later, there was number Jessica.
She looked around and then, in distress, realized that a stone had been moved.
A stone had been pushed aside that was in the middle of the backyard.
And always struck terror in that mother's breast because that mother knew only too well.
That under that stone.
That was now exposed. There was an 18 inch hole that was a well many feet deep, dry well that have been covered by that stone.
And neglected for some years.
In terror, she went over to that hole and sure enough, she could hear a whale a cry from down below.
She immediately called 911.
And the call was answered in record time.
Other emergency crews were called and we won't go into the details of the story, but the first thing they did was bring a bulldozer thinking that they could dig out that area and rescue young Jessica.
But it was very quickly discovered.
That that well had been drilled.
In an area where there was granite, granite stone that was going to take more than a bulldozer to get through.
On a construction site nearby, there was a drill that they used to go through such things.
And it was brought to the site.
And they began to drill.
Near very close to the original well that Jessica had fallen into.
And their thought was to drill down far enough below where Jessica was.
And then to somehow make a tunnel over and rescue her, hopefully alive.
It was a very slow operation Hanford by a number of things.
And over the next 58 hours, different experts were brought in. There was a millionaire living in the in the town of Midland, TX, and at his own expense, he brought in several experts and other equipment that he thought might be needed for the rescue.
And you can imagine a mother and a father.
As they wait at the top.
For the rescue of their 18 month old child, Jessica, I'm going to digress for a moment.
You know, everyone of us here, naturally speaking, are stuck in a pit of sin, and it's a pit from which we cannot rescue ourselves. Jessica had no ability to rescue herself. She was completely dependent on others.
But you know you have an enemy tonight, an enemy that does not want to see you.
Rescued from your sins and an enemy that will hamper the work of the Spirit of God.
In every way he can. That enemy is very powerful. That enemy is Satan.
But all Satan's not your friend.
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About 3 weeks ago I was on the island of Tobago preaching the gospel and visiting believers there.
And we had opportunity.
One night to go out to a certain beach to observe one of the wonders of God's creation.
Atlantic Leatherbacks are the largest turtles in the world.
And there are only two spots where they come up to lay their eggs at this time of year.
One is on the northern coast of Trinidad and the other is on Turtle Beach on the island of Tobago.
And it what it is, leatherback turtle season. And we went out there one night and these turtles come up out of the sea. It's the only time of the year they come up out of the sea and they come up out of the sea for about 2 1/2 hours to lay their eggs.
And they come up and they come up to the top of the beach where it meets the jungle.
And they dig a pit.
And in that pit they lay 70 to 80 eggs. Now the wonder of it is during the three month season they're going to come up 10 times and each time they're going to lay 70 to 80 eggs, about 800 eggs in a season.
They cover those eggs and then that turtle, and we watched the whole process.
Under the careful direction of a guide who kept us back far enough, kept our voices down, had black light so as to not to scare the turtle. And by the way, the shell of this turtle from tip to tip was almost 6 feet enormous beast.
That's not including the head and the tail.
But she lays those eggs and covers them up and then she makes a 10 foot or so radius around those eggs.
Stirs up the sand and makes about six other mounds to camouflage.
Where those eggs are laid and when she's satisfied that she has camouflaged the area enough, she heads back to the sea.
But what I want to say is that when those eggs hatch, one out of 1000 of those eggs.
Is going to survive to maturity to adulthood, you say that's not a good, very good ratio when, Well, when a turtle lays 800 eggs a season and there are hundreds of turtles, it's probably a good thing that only one out of 1000 survive. But the first thing that happens is that a number of those turtles never make it out of that pit.
Because that pit is buried in several inches of sand. And when those 8070 or 80 eggs are hatched, there are a number of those turtles who are on the bottom of the heap and they never make it out of that pit.
And then those that do make it out. Most of them.
Are eaten or destroyed between the pit and the sea. There's the gulls, there's the dogs, there's the people and the other predators. A good many of them are going those that make it to the sea. A good many of them are going to find other predators like sharks and other sea creatures waiting to indulge in a tasty meal. But my point is this. You are in a pit of sin tonight.
But there is hope. There is a savior for you tonight. And David himself said he brought me up out. So also out of a horrible pit, he set my feet upon a rock and established my going.
Jessica was 22 feet down in that pit in that well, helpless to save herself.
They went down close by and they drilled a hole big enough for a man to go down.
And a man went down in that pit in that hole. Yes, he did. I'm not claustrophobic, but I'm not sure I would have gone down there. But he went down there and oh Christ, Jesus had to come down from heaven.
I came down from heaven, we read.
Christ Jesus came into the world. It took a man to go down in that pit. What would you think? If they had drilled that that pit in that backyard and no one had gone down, that would have accomplished nothing for the rescue of Jessica McClure. But a man went down in that pit. But there was another problem. They had to then drill from that pit very carefully.
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From that shaft they had to drill over to where Jessica was.
They brought in another special piece of equipment for that, some kind of a drill. And I don't understand these things at all, but some kind of a drill that would drill through rock and sand underwater pressure. And they brought this drill down and this man's carefully and in his own words. It was slow, tedious work to drill very carefully through and to come out in the very spot.
Where Jessica was.
You know, in the meantime, they had lowered some tubes down to where Jessica was to give her two things, warmth and air.
And they had sent through those tubes. They had forced warm air down into that cold, dark prison.
And so this man, he drilled very carefully And finally, as I say, the whole process took 58 hours. Finally, he was able to drill through and to pull her legs down toward himself and back through that shaft, and then to give a signal and to be pulled up with Jessica in his arms.
To a very thankful mother and father, to very appreciative relatives and neighbors and town folk who had gathered.
Praying that the operation would be successful. Oh, what a rescue. And you know, you can go to websites even today and you can see pictures posted from the newspapers back at that time.
And you can read those articles and you can see the names of the heroes of that time.
And what they did in the service of humanity, some of them were injured.
None of them gave their lives for Jessica, but they took risks. They suffered injuries to save her, that helpless child in that pit. But oh, tonight we're talking about the Lord Jesus who came down into this world and went down, down down to Calvary's cross. He didn't just risk his life. No, he gave his life.
He died.
On Calvary, does that mean something to your heart tonight?
That the Lord Jesus died on Calvary's cross. He didn't just come into this world.
Now he came down to the cross.
And he gave himself. And his desire tonight is to save sinners. His desire tonight is to bless you.
On March 26, 2011, Jessica is going to turn 25 years of age.
At the time of her rescue, there was what was dubbed a Well Wishers Trust Fund set up for Jessica.
And she will be able, at 25 years of age, on her birthday, to begin to draw on that trust fund.
And rumor has it that that trust fund is something in excess of $1 million.
Quite a lot of money, isn't it?
We would say quite a blessing she's been brought into as a result of that awful tragedy.
Which, as she says herself, she has no memory or recollection of.
But all tonight, God doesn't want to give you $1,000,000. I speak carefully. He doesn't want to give you something of this world. No, He wants to save your soul, because what shall it profit a man if he gained the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
You know we're not going to turn to it. But it tells us in Luke 19 that the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost. That's why he came. He came to seek. He's seeking you tonight. He came to save. He came to save you. He desires to save you tonight.
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If we were to go back to John's Gospel, we would read another reason in the 10th chapter I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. Oh, the Lord Jesus wants to give you life tonight. The gift of God is eternal life.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, are you the possessor of divine life tonight, or are you holding on to something in this world that is keeping you from coming to the Lord Jesus Christ? Oh, it's not worth it.
You know, we have spoken at great length tonight of the Lord Jesus coming into this world.
And we have from the word of God seen many scriptures that answer.
That question raised in the Old Testament Why comest thou down? Hit her. We have seen what the cause was.
Do you know the Lord Jesus is coming back to this world a second time?
Yes, he is. First of all, he's coming in the air to give a shout, to call everyone who knows Him as Savior, whether they're in the grave or whether they are alive and remain to be with Him in the Father's house for all eternity and the coming of the Lord Draweth Nigh. And when once the master of the house hath risen up and shut to the door, it's never going to be opened again. As much knocking as there may be on that door, it will never.
Be opened again to those who have rejected or neglected.
God's offer of salvation.
Oh, that's why it's so important to come now.
That's why it's so important to make haste when it comes to the gospel and receiving the Lord Jesus, because behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. And then there's a day coming when the Lord Jesus is going to come back to judge this world in righteousness. Yes, it's an established fact on God's calendar. He's appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained and that he hath given assurance unto all men and that he hath raised him.
From the dead?
But I want to, in closing quote the verse of a hymn that we sometimes sing.
In connection with the cause.
I think it's The Last Hymn and the Little Flock hymn book.
The cause was love. We sink with shame before our blessed Savior's name.
That he should bleed and suffer thus because he loved.
And pitied us. I want to leave you with that. Oh, do you realize tonight how much the Lord Jesus loves you? He came down because He loves you. He wants to save you. He wants to bless you and have you for himself for all eternity. Oh, tonight you could just get one glimpse of his lovely face and one taste of his infinite love. Well, tell one more little incident from history in closing.
King Cyrus was the founder of the Persian Empire as we know.
In fact, it was during his reign, as we know from the book of Daniel chapter six, that Daniel was cast into the lion's den.
But you know, in one of the conquests of Cyrus, history records that amongst other prisoners, he took the king a king.
And his family.
Prisoners and back to his court.
And they were brought before him one day.
And Cyrus said to this king who he had conquered. What will you give me if I let you go?
He said Half my wealth.
He said. What will you give me if I let your children go?
He said all that I possess.
He said. What will you give me?
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If I let my wife. If I let your wife go.
And without a moment's hesitation, he answered myself.
You know that great king Cyrus was so impressed.
And overwhelmed with that man's answer, that he let he and his children.
And his family go free.
And all tonight.
Like that Hebrew servant, picture the Lord Jesus, he said. I love my master.
I love my wife. I love my children. I will not go out free all to think of the love of the Lord Jesus. He wouldn't go out free. He wouldn't turn back. He went to Calvary's cross and he gave himself. He sold all that he had.
He laid down his life. He shed his blood. Does love like that? Touch your heart?
Earthly love expressed by a conquered king could touch the heart of the props, the greatest monarch of the day.
But all has the love of the Lord Jesus touched your heart tonight?
Or tonight, taste and see that the Lord is good.
He loves you. He wants you. He died to redeem you only believe his word Why came as thou down hit her. The cause was love. Let's pray.
Philippians 1:20-30
Reading
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Praise the Savior, ye who know Him, who can tell how much we owe Him gladly Let us render to Him all we have and are 256.
Praise the Savior.
And tell how much we are gladly love stranded to him.
All we have.
More.
Thanks forever.
He is faithful changing.
Never.
Force, Lord, I'll consider.
Lost him.
Notification honestly you think myself and still believe me till they are all of our receiving.
Promise.
And we shall be where we would be, and we shall be what we should be what we should.
OK I sleeping till I stop and still believe.
Our receiving.
Run destroyed.
This chapter for reading that it includes the.
Verses 21 to.
And beyond.
So for connections sake I would perhaps we could start in verse 20, but.
Try not to miss the latter part of the chapter.
The Olympians chapter one and verse 20.
According to my earnest expectation of my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed for that, but that with all boldness as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be life or by death. For to me to live as Christ, and to die as gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor. Yet what I shall choose I would not.
For I am a straight particular having desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith. That you're rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again. Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ.
And whether I come and see you else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel, and in nothing terrified by the adversaries, which is to them evident token of partition, but to you of salvation and that of God. For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake.
Having the same confidence which ye saw in me and not here to be in me.
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When Romans that are intelligent, service is to present our bodies as a living sacrifice.
We know in 2nd Corinthians 5 that when we come before the judgment seat of Christ, it's to manifest the Lorde mind in the deeds done in the body. It's in our bodies that we act, and sin is always connected with that which is done by man in his body and the very.
Evil principle that came into man when he disobeyed in the Garden of Eden is associated with his body, as we have in Romans 7 in Romans 8.
This body of death, and it's called a body of death there because it's sin in the body.
And so here the apostle in this 20th verse, he wants to magnify Christ in that body, a body of responsibility. And whether it's Christ is honored through his life or through his death, he wants to be sure that Christ is the one that's magnified in the body. And so each of us are living each day and in our bodies we are either acting.
To the honor of the Lord Jesus or otherwise.
And so it's an important responsibility that we have this day to also magnify Christ in our bodies.
You were mentioning before how the IT wasn't the apostles desire really that he would be delivered out of the prison. And when just if you don't mind just backing up to the 19th verse there he speaks about my salvation for I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. And some, some might think, well, that means that he's talking about his deliverance out of prison here. But really it's not that his desire was that he could stay in prison.
But he counted on the prayers of the Saints that his faith might not fail and that he might be strengthened by the Spirit of God while he is there where he is. It's not a case of being released. If that's what the Lord wants, that's fine. If not, he'll stay there. But his main desire was that his own body would be used to glorify Christ. And I think that's a beautiful thing to see that with this, with the apostle there, that he was satisfied again, carrying out what he says before.
In whatsoever state I am there with to be content. And there he sat in that prison. But he was going to be.
No matter where he was, he would be used by the Spirit of God for the good of the Saints.
So it's a good question to raise in our own souls. How much do others see of Christ in our lives? Because it's through our actions, our words too, but through our actions that Christ is magnified in our bodies. And it's easy to be a Christian when we're together on a weekend like this. We have one another, we enjoy the word, we fellowship together, we're in a secure hothouse setting, so to speak. And that's wonderful, Great opportunity to be together and we're thankful for it.
But as we go now, is there going to be something reflected of Christ in our lives back in our neighborhood, back at school, back at the office, the shop, wherever we operate from day-to-day, Others ought to be able to look on and see Christ reflected in your life and mine. I know it's perhaps a slightly different thought, but our brother Darryl read us that verse this morning in Corinthians, how that were changed into the same image from glory to glory. And it's by beholding the Lord Jesus where he is now.
Occupation with himself is going to give a reflection of Christ in our in our lives. And so I say we need to be exercised because brethren, we're epistles known and read of all men. And I think it's very searching to realize that all that this world is going to see of Christ is what's exhibited in your life and mine. And especially in a day when they've closed the word of God, they don't read the word of God.
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So they've shut their they've shut out the light of the word of God. What are our neighbors going to see of Christ this week?
What are those we associate with and come in contact with going to see of Christ in the next few days? It is what is exhibited of Christ in your life and mine through our actions, through our words, through just our occupation with Christ and some reflection of Christ in your life and mine. That's what they're going to see. And so we need to be exercised like Paul, his whole desire, his whole life.
His whole zeal and energy was that he would reflect Christ in everything that he said and did.
To see in this epistle the references to Jesus Christ. So back in verse six, we have until the day of Jesus Christ, verse 10, verse 11, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ.
The verse that we've just had the Spirit of Jesus Christ, and if you keep looking through this epistle, you find references to Jesus Christ many times. Well, why is that? Because Jesus Christ was the man.
That came and walked through this scene to the glory of his father. And so it's.
Just nice to reflect on that man Jesus Christ.
And his walk through this wilderness scene in which we are currently passing through.
Content our brother.
Mention how Paul learned to be content in all things. There's only one way we can be content in all things is to know what God's purpose is and want that. What's God's purpose? To make us happy, make us feel good, etcetera? Of course not. God's purpose is to conform us to the image of Christ here and perfectly when we see Him in the air.
And all of lot life doesn't make sense unless you look at it through that lens of glasses until you see the only thing that's important to me is being conformed to the image of Christ. Nothing makes sense once you look at it that way. You're content in all things because you know God is conforming you. He's promised it. The God who cannot lie promise he's going to mold and changes to his image. And once we're in tune with that.
Everything makes sense in true contentment, whether you're flat, broke or rich.
Whether you're in pain, whether you're at a child's wedding or at a child's funeral or another one's funeral.
The only way anything makes sense is when we realize what God's doing and that's what we want, because God always knows what's best.
For me to live is Christ. This is not Roman truth, is it? This isn't Christ does the new life, the perfect life, the divine life. That's true. But what he's talking about here is the practical everyday living of the Christian pathway. Paul, I believe his exercises we've been saying was to get up in the morning and to live Christ, to reflect in by what he did and what he said something of Christ in his life. And so this is very practical.
It says our brother Bob Brimlow used to tell us where the rubber meets the road. This is here in the wilderness pathway. We're not home yet. This is living out something of Christ in your life and mine every day. Brethren, this is exceedingly practical. This is not doctrine. This is practical Christianity. Christianity is a very practical thing. Is that right, Don? Absolutely.
This is the practice.
Not the doctrine of Christianity, and sometimes when we're.
In school.
Some of us can still remember some of those days that we were taught that we were to make priority lists and something was given a list of things and there was something given to be #1 priority and #2 priority. And we hear about people saying we ought to prioritize that they are lives so that we have the most important things. Well, if Paul had made such a list, it had one item on it.
Just one Christ, number one, there was number 2. There was #3 there was no #10 in his life. There was just #1 Christ. And it's also significant to my own heart that there are times when the apostle Paul says we.
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And there are other times in his ministry when he says I.
And this is one of the eye cases, that is, he cannot speak for anybody else.
In this matter.
He can only speak for himself.
He doesn't say for us to live as Christ because as Jim said, it's a very individual, practical expression and God in his grace has given to us the apostle Paul as a patterned Christian. There is no other in the New Testament that is quite like Paul. He is a man that God took to the third heavens to see what heavenly.
Things are the true Christian place, and then sends him, as it were, back to earth to live in view of that, and he's put before us as a pattern and just to express how.
Much it has to be said for me to live as Christ.
I don't say it hasn't been said, but I have never read in my life and I have never spoken to a person who said this about themselves.
Accepting the Apostle Paul.
He's the only one, in my own personal experience, whoever used such words that would say face to face or even in a biography that said for me to live is Christ. And so as he presents to us here, there is plenty of room for us to take to heart for personal growth, the practical reality of that desire, if we can't say it as a fact as Paul could.
At least expressed that it is a desire. It's my desire that Christ be everything to me.
So later on we read that Paul could say my God shall supply all your need. He doesn't say your God will supply all your need, but he says my God shall supply all your need according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus because he had proven that for himself. And so if I were to go to you and say my God shall supply all your need, I'm only am I really saying that from experience and from my own heart or am I just pair talking the apostle Paul? And so it shouldn't be an exercise us to say if I can go and encourage somebody else.
Well, I may be just pair talking the words, but I need to experience that in my own life in order to be able to say to you, my God will supply all your need because I've experienced my own life. And so it's a very personal thing with the Apostle Paul. And I was going to say too that that Christianity is not a religion.
Mr. Lundeen should say it's a life.
And so people will say, well, that man's got religion, but if that's all he's got, it's going to fade away. It's not going to help many. But if, if, if his life is Christ, he's got a life and that's going to what's going to be manifested. I trust it's not just religion with us, brother. It's got to be more, more than that if we're going to be able to walk on and please the Lord down here. Paul was forced, if I can put it that way, to say things by inspiration that were really not things he would have said otherwise. I don't think they were things he would have put out when he was ministering in the third loft in Troas or.
Ministering to the brethren or sitting at their kitchen table orally, but they were necessary that they be recorded by inspiration.
Even though they were things that were as to Paul's character, things that he wouldn't normally have said, for instance, and Don alluded to it when he said to the Corinthian brethren, be followers of me even as I am also of Christ. Would any of us dare say that? No, I don't think there's a person here I trust not that would dare say that, but because of the need at Corinth and the way they had been treating him and questioning things.
He was forced by inspiration to say that because, as Dawn said, he was raised up at the beginning as a patterned St. to those who would hereafter believe when he says for me to live is Christ. He was forced by inspiration, as it were, to pen these words for the blessing of the Philippian Saints and in the context of what he was writing to them and for our encouragement today. But we might ponder this, this expression and say, what does he really saying?
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Well, if I can put it in everyday language, you know, the athlete says for me to live is sports. And he gets up in the morning and he goes out to train, spends a few hours training after whatever other duties he has in the day. He spends some more time training, spends time with his coach. He's living sports. Maybe he's looking forward to the day when he's going to compete at the Olympics or professionally or whatever it may be. The student says for me to live his education, he's looking forward to the day he's going to get his degree. And so he spends his day studying, not just in class, but he's doing research afterwards and so on.
The businessman and I see them in the airport every week for me to live his business. And the minute they are allowed to use their Blackberries and their cell phones, when the plane touches the tarmac, they're doing their business. They're rushing to the business lounge to get something done before the next flight and the next seminar or the next sales meeting. For me to live is business. Well, I know brethren, there's many practical sides to life. We're going to go back to business and school and whatever.
Sphere of things God has placed us in, but can we say right over all that and we need to do everything heartily as unto the Lord, whether it's our business or family matters, practical matters, whatever it be, but can we write across it in our own souls for me to live as Christ? Now again, that's something that we have to deal with in our own souls. We don't go around saying it publicly, but do we really say in our own souls for me to live as Christ? In other words, no matter what else I have to do today.
Whether it's going to the office or school or keeping the home or doing the shopping or traveling back from conference for me to live as Christ, you know, in the third chapter, Paul said this one thing I do, you know, that's not multitasking, that's focus. One thing I do now, there were many facets to Paul's path of faith and service, but over it all, he said this one thing I do, I'm pressing toward the mark. I've got Christ as my goal. I've got Christ as my object for me to live as Christ.
And I don't think at least for my own soul, we can drill this into our hearts enough, brethren, to have this focus, this object, this desire. You know, David said one thing of I desire to the Lord. He didn't stop there. He said that will I seek after? And what was it that I may dwell in the House of the Lord, when forever. No, that's the 23rd Psalm. But in the 27th Psalm, that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life. In other words, David's exercise was to walk in the conscious sense of the Lord's presence with him every day.
Now do you and I have the exercise to walk in the conscious sense of the Lord's presence, that there might, that Christ might be magnified in our bodies.
That's fairly what he said, dear brother.
Put it in simply another way, we all need to make that choice. It's a choice we make.
Each one of us in this room, young and old, you make the choice whether you're going to live for Christ. And then if you do make the choice, whether you're in business or whatever, even in business, you make a choice. I'm going to live for Christ even in this business. If I'm going to school for education, I'm going to make the choice in school. I'm going to live for Christ even in school. It's we need to get a hold of this truth.
You need to make the choice what you're going to do.
Ever a Jewish young woman in Iran?
And of course, she had to wear the chador in public.
Which she didn't like to wear, of course, and but she worked at a business and she happened to be in the lunch room with a man.
Just the two of them were in there and it was their opportunity to say why are you so happy?
And his reply was, I follow Jesus.
She was from a family that had lived in Iran 2700 years, a Jewish family.
And the man gave her the gospel, and I think she was saved right there.
And then he gave her.
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She knew. She looked around. She knew it was very dangerous for him to even mention the name of Jesus.
And then he gave her an address to go to in the middle of the night.
She went there, knocked on the door and the door opened and they were. She was just received with welcome. We've been praying for you for months.
You know, we we look at the laws changing in our land.
We've assumed.
Will always have the same liberties.
But, brethren, we have this option always.
And it's really the most powerful one. Personal testimony.
It's more powerful than a page of literature handed out.
You can hand out literature and if personal testimony don't add up.
That's not going to come into literature.
But I was thinking of how our brethren in many oppressed lands are.
They're going on with Christ and you know, they're praying earnestly for us.
It's one thing they can do.
In their circumstances is intercede for us. We we have so much we take for granted. But what a wonderful thing this is for me to live as Christ years ago Borodin, I don't know if you're familiar with him. He was a famous name among the Communists. He was the one who took communism to China in the early early.
Early 40s or maybe before that.
One statement he made.
If I could just have more people like the Apostle Paul. But he was educated in Indiana. He was so successful at spreading communism to China that when he went back to Russia, Stalin had him killed.
And you know, we just.
I couldn't help but be impressed that he valued a man whose.
Object never wavered.
And of course, he thought.
The imitation.
Of Christianity, Communism seeks to imitate a lot of it, but without God.
Having all things in common and all that. But what a wonderful thing is this privilege for me to live is Christ. And the other factor is we don't have to live, you know?
We naturally have a very powerful instinct of self preservation.
But we don't have to live.
Here's the other side. To die is game.
And he would lay his life before Christ for it all.
And.
Says they had lost their first love and they're exhorted to return to their first works. 1St works are associated with first love. And so a new bride, she doesn't wake up on the morning after her marriage and say my priority number one for today is my husband #2 is to do the laundry #3 is to do the washing. In fact, her husband is not even a priority. It just flows out of her affection for him.
And so, you know, we need to be, and I'm not at all countering what has been said about priorities. But if if you're going to make crisis a priority in your life, perhaps you're missing something. If we are occupied with him, he is our priority, isn't he? And so this book is often being divided up the four chapters into Christ our life, Christ our pattern, Christ our object, Christ our strength.
I'll call my question over in my mind. What the?
Differences between.
Living for Christ and living Christ.
Here it says for me to live is Christ. It doesn't say for me to live for Christ. And I, I think that you just touched on that.
We're living for Christ there. There seems to be a little bit of a a little bit of a disconnect.
But if we are living, if our life is Christ, there is a real bond and connection. Wonder if maybe we could just.
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Maybe discuss a little bit the difference between living for Christ.
And our life is Christ.
How many times do we use to hear try to love God any more than you do Just sit down and and think about how much he loved you. And so it's been said never try and be a testimony you live for Christ. You will be a testimony. It'll show on your face and then you and and in your life. And so I I perhaps that answers a little way. It's it's not a case of trying so much because if we're going to try something and emphasize that we're going to fail in some way. But if I just live Christ.
It'll it'll, the testimony will be there.
Of the Spirit of God in us too. It is the Spirit of God which produces Christ in us. It's not some action from within ourselves that generates the life of Christ. It's the Spirit of God that does it. And so it's it's good for us. We were Speaking of this isn't this isn't a doctrine of Romans. This is practice but it's very difficult to live a life of Christ without.
Really understanding the doctrine of our position.
In Christ and what the work of Christ has made has brought us to and so.
I think it's important for us to realize that we do need to understand the doctrines that maybe we have in Romans so that the life of Christ might be might be lived in us in a practical way. It's to live Christ really is the thought in this verse. The is is an italics if you notice to live for Christ is a conscious decision.
And I'm thankful when a young person says I really want to live for Christ. I've come to that point. Maybe they've come to some crossroad in their lives and there's been a real work of the Spirit of God and conviction in their soul and purpose of heart. And they say, I want to live for Christ. And I'm thankful when I hear that. But to live Christ is the unconscious.
Christ, in our scene, in our lives, it's so that another looks at you.
And says, I see Christ in that person. I see Christ in what they, in what they do, in what they say.
It's Christ. Could you be dropped somewhere? Somewhere where they've never had the testimony of the gospel and the life of Christ be seen in you from day-to-day? Somewhere where you couldn't speak the language, Somewhere where you couldn't communicate other by than by your actions?
And after a week or a month or a year, you finally learn the language and you're able to maybe present the word of God to them, but they've already seen Christ manifested in your life in a practical way. And so when Paul says for me to live, his desire was to live Christ. It's not so much to live is Christ, but to live Christ. In other words, he said, I want Christ to be seen in me.
When I go about my daily life, my daily routine from day-to-day, so those that came from the presence of the Lord, they took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus. There was something seen in not so much what they said, but by their actions and their life. There was something seen of of Christ.
And read verse three. I believe it's a. It's a.
It's a perfect display of what we're Speaking of in the Lord Jesus.
Verse three of Hebrews chapter one. Who being the brightness of his glory.
And the expressed image of his person, the Lord Jesus.
You could say lived God.
He was the brightness.
He was the brightness of His glory in the expressed image of His person. And so for us to live Christ would be to do the same thing, display the brightness of His glory and expressed image of His person. I wonder if that's a there's a thought there.
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I think the verse has. It's important to see the second-half of the verse.
In connection with the first half, they are connected together.
When he says for me to live as Christ and to die is gain.
How can?
Dying be gained.
In the connection with the first half of the verse.
The Lord Jesus.
Was everything to the Apostle Paul.
He was.
Absolutely everything to his heart. And when he says to die is gain, he recognized that even in death he was going to have more.
Of the very thing that was everything to himself, he doesn't say it's gained for you Philippians. It's a personal thing. He's speaking about himself. And in fact, the verses which follow say that he expected to live for their sake.
But for himself personally, you get it in the third chapter when he's talking about himself and he he says I want Christ for my gain. And then he talks about death and he says as it were, you know, I think I would benefit if I died because.
If I died, I would go through and experience that the Lord Jesus went through.
And going through the experience which the Lord Jesus went through, I would then be raised by the same power by which He was raised. And in that happening to me as it happened to Him, it would be an opportunity for me to know Him better.
And that's everything to my heart to have him, to know him better. And so it's a it's a very personal expression of what was everything to the heart of the Apostle Paul and and he in any possible way in which he could have more of the compelling fulfilling.
Person of Christ, he wants it.
And even death itself he sees as gaining for himself more of that which is everything to him. And, and I think we see another aspect of him. And Jim was bringing out some of that too. That's seen in Galatians 2 and 20. I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.
And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. That it covers some of the aspects that we've had a little bit before us as well, that the apostle was done with the old life.
Now he had a new life. Christ was that life as Colossians 3.
Presents it and also he goes on in the end of it. I live by the faith of the Son of God. That is, I live by that faith which has the Son of God as its soul and supreme object. And that's the life that he was living. And it's connected with what we have here. But I think it's intensely the sense of Paul's own heart. He is absolutely everything.
Into his heart, going back to what we had before us earlier about being a testimony. We are all a testimony one way or another.
We're either a good testimony, Christ, or we're a bad testimony.
And.
Living the life of Christ. So people see Christ in me and I, to my shame, I would say I have probably failed in that regard most of the time. But I want to relate a story, a true story that Brother Eric Smith told us many years ago. Many of us remember Brother Smith and he labored in Peru and Bolivia for over 30 years and he was responsible, with the Lord's help, for setting up many assemblies.
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Countries and he would go about and visit those assemblies, of course, because he had a love and care for them and he would he would go and visit and if they had problems going on there they would usually.
Will say in their culture, they felt that was they would ask brother Smith, well, what what do we do about this? We got this little problem here. We got this situation, What do we do about it? And they weren't learned in the word. So brother Smith would sit down with them and and from the word of God, he had explained. But the one that stuck with me and probably any of us that heard this, he said, I recently visited an assembly, I believe it was Peru or Bolivia and it was it was not a large assembly, but they had two leading brothers.
They had two brothers that took the lead and the one brother was a little more humble than the other one and the other brother, he sort of put himself forward but and did more of the talking. There were other brothers in the assembly, but Brother Smith was there for about a week and he noticed that whenever the one brother spoke, the other brother just totally norded. He'd even close his Bible.
He totally ignore him and this went on and brother Smith noticed this that he he went to this dear brother and he said, brother, I've noticed that when your brother sitting there.
When he reads the scripture, you don't turn to it when he prays you what is going on here? And he said Brother Smith.
I don't have anything personally against that brother, but he says I can't hear what he's saying because of the life that he lives.
He says one thing in meeting but he doesn't live that kind of life. I said I'm sorry but I can't hear what he's saying to me because of the way he lives and acts.
And Brother Smith went to the other brother and they talked it through and sure enough, this brother was not living the light that he should be living as a Christian, and especially if he's going to be a teacher and then put out the words. So I just say that hopefully as a good example.
We are judged by how we act, you know, that's a stronger witness than what we say.
You know, put a little shoe leather on that.
For the younger people, what do we mean whenever we say live Christ or people see Christ in US? Well, personally I'd consider an insult if somebody called me religious.
What do they mean, Philippians, Or what should we mean Philippians? 48 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things, those things which you have both learned and received and heard.
And seen in me. Do we often say, you know, we want to manifest Christ, but it's so vague. What does it actually mean? Manifests his personal characteristics, not religion, not a stiff neck and a fancy suit and thumping her Bibles. Nothing wrong with that, I guess. But when you say something, do your peers know that what you've said you're going to do regardless?
When there's a conflict, will unsaved people bump you and ask you what's right and what's wrong and more than likely can't attend that direction? Another list if you don't mind me reading it. Galatians chapter 5, verse 22 or 24.
For the fruit of the Spirit is.
Is Lovejoy peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance against such thing? There's no law. Usually when I hear unsaved people talk about somebody being religious, they're not referring to these qualities. They're referring to somebody so hard headed they can't get along with the guy.
That doesn't. That's not very long-suffering.
You know, if we're truly, if Christ lives in me, if I'm living by faith and the one who brought me into death with him.
This is what's manifest. Not stubbornness but long-suffering. Not argumentative, but peace.
00:45:02
You know, young people, if you're unsaved associates are a little confused by you, something's wrong.
I know my unsaved friends, so-called friends are confused.
You know, why do you live a moral life? It makes no sense to the unsaved, a virtuous life. If we're living Christ, we're kind of an enigma to people because we don't make sense. We're nice, we're honest.
But yet we don't live in immorality. We don't do immoral things.
Yet we're offering them love, not judgment.
Another aspect in which we may.
Can I say help ourselves to understand this 21St verse is.
The apostle said to die is gain.
Again, we're speaking about his personal life. He's not talking about service to others.
But another way of looking at it is to ask myself the question, what would I lose?
If I died.
What would I lose?
If I died.
And if I look at it that way, then I may say that which I would lose expresses that Christ is my life and.
The things that I would feel that were lost to me would be what else beside Christ is actually presently has a importance in my life in addition to Himself. But if it is truly, as Paul could say, he would say there's nothing presently that is before my heart and my life that personally would be a loss to me.
If I were to die because Christ was solely his life. But I think if we ask ourselves sometimes and we look at our own, those things that give us pleasure, those things that are important in some sense to us in our lives, that would be immediately and forever left behind.
Are those things which really.
Us. What else is going on in US? And that's important to us. That is not simply Christ my life.
Every living person has to act that question.
What am I living for?
If that person does not ask himself this question.
And just keeps on living. He's going to end up standing before an abyss and looking down.
And justice, be desperate.
We all go to school. We all went to school and we learned how to read and write because we knew we had to go through life.
And we all learned something.
Where there was a trade or profession.
Or whatever it was, I wanted to be a teacher one time. I never ended up being one.
And the basic question for young people today is what am I living for?
The Apostle Paul, his goal at first was to kill Christian. That's what he was living for.
But then Christ came into his life and he turned him around, and after that he knew what he was living for.
And we all have to come to.
To answer that question, what am I living for? Now we have a scripture that says in whatever trade, I just, I don't quote it, but I just say what it means and whatever trait you are and keep on doing that. Well, why does scripture tell us that?
Because.
When we know Christ in whatever we do, we keep on following him whatever we do.
And the basic thing for us is to spread the gospel, to spread the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and to glorify him. That's basically what we are living for. For me that is. And that's what it was for the apostle Paul. Living for Christ. We keep on doing what we are doing, but while we are doing what we are doing, once we know Christ, we know what we are living for. And it doesn't matter how old we are, whether we are five years or 15 or 50 or 75.
00:50:35
The minute we get to know Christ, that's when we know what we are living for.
And a person who does not know that he really has lived in vain. He's lived for nothing. It's a very sound thing to think that, but it's true.
In a nutshell, it might be where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The Lord Jesus treasure is here on earth and our treasures in heaven.
I think that's a good point, and that's good to.
Acknowledge these things and be before the Lord in in self judgment if you will, and seek whether we're young or old to live Christ.
But is there not a a danger to seek to approach that in the way the man did in Romans 7?
Perhaps it's been suggested here, but I would read another.
Couple of verses just to give us that object that would enable us to do so. We've often been reminded, you mentioned old sayings and we've been reminded of the danger of self occupation. And in the second chapter of this book, one verse is verse 13. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
First John chapter 32 verses.
Second Verse Beloved now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear.
We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is, and every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure. And again, I, I don't mean to take away from anything that was said. And we should have that desire. And I've had someone tried to explain this third verse to me once saying that if we acknowledge this, why, we'll purify ourselves. We're going to, we're going to do this. I think we all perhaps understand that. That's not really the thought, is it?
There's the hope of his appearing in association with him that brings about an ongoing purification. That's really his work, isn't it? And well, we need the Lord's help and it should be our exercise to judge those things and seek to to ask him for grace to practically be able to live Christ. But again, I think our focus should be back on on him, himself, his word, his coming and.
We will be able by grace to to in some small measure.
Show that out again, what you're saying to not be occupied with being a testimony, but simply.
Occupation. We will do so.
In that verse, it's important to see that to Him is not in himself, but it's in Him.
It's in Christ he that hath his hope in him purifies himself. It's not in himself, although that should be true too. But I believe the thrust there is in the Lord himself, isn't it? Air Canada's frequent flyer program uses the slogan Live for the moment. And isn't that what the world does? They live for the moment. And that spirit of things can often seep into our own thinking and our own lives as believers. But Paul always, as a believer, lived in light of eternity.
And brethren, we need to live in light of eternity. And when Paul says to die is gain, there's another aspect to it too. He knew what was on the other side. He'd been caught up to the 3rd heaven. He'd heard unspeakable words that it was not lawful for a man to utter. He didn't see Christ here as the other apostles had in the flesh, but he'd seen Him as a risen, glorified man at the right hand of God. And he knew what was ahead.
And with that, before his soul, he could, he didn't live for the moment. He lived in the light of eternity. And when he said to die is gain, he knew what was ahead. And when he goes on here in these verses to say he couldn't choose, we're talking about choices. But here's a choice Paul couldn't really make. And he says, I don't know what to choose. But when he realizes that for him to remain in the body for a time was for the blessing and for needful and for the blessing of the people of God.
00:55:23
That's really more unselfish than if I came to that conclusion in my soul, because I might come to that conclusion in my own soul. Well, I want to go home, Lord, but if there's something you have for me to do for the blessing of others, I'm content to stay. But I never had the experience Paul had. And when you think of what Paul had experienced, to be actually caught up to the 3rd heaven, to paradise, to the eternal dwelling place of God, to know what was ahead, and then to be able to say now, brethren.
I want to go, but I'm content because it's for your good and blessing. What an unselfish attitude. Could he have done that if Christ wasn't before his soul? I don't think so. But Christ was so much before his soul and his desire to live Christ and for the blessing of others that he said Even though I've had a little experience, I've had a little taste of what's ahead, he said. I'm glad to remain for your blessing.
It shows us that he had grown personally in his life in such a way that.
Self centeredness and his own desires were not what controlled or motivated Paul, but the Spirit of Christ which was.
Totally for God's glory with self having no place in it. And so the appalled could speak about himself and personal gain. But when it came to the matter of going on forward, he thought about the needs of the Saints in Philippi. And as it were, his soul could say well.
Christ wants those things, their needs fulfilled.
So I'm going to still be here because there was he wasn't motivated.
Even while the desire to be part be with Christ was in him, it wasn't what motivated his actions or his his behavior, but it was rather the Spirit of Christ in him by the Spirit of God, which recognized the needful part. And so that was what was going to happen. And he had a sense in that. It's an amazing thing that a person could have that sense in them.
And recognized they weren't going to at that point in time be put to death really, because they were so in fellowship with the heart of the Lord that they could see that which was the line of, of what the Lord was doing and.
Without.
A personal agenda without a self will involved in it or with the whole spirit of the old. The flesh wasn't there active. He had the flesh in him, but it wasn't working. It wasn't active in him when he says this. And so he says, well, I, I'm going to, I know I'm going to remain for your sake.
So he puts self totally aside after having expressed what was in his heart to have Christ and so on. As Jim said, he couldn't make a choice, but he knew what the Lord's choice was. And that was, that was fun. That was everything.
The Apostle? Excuse me.
Quickly, in the late 18th century, 19th century, the missionary cry often the preachers would say only that which is done for Christ will last. I need to be rewritten. That's what we're saying. Only that which is done through Christ will last.
Well, they remarked as I was going to make was simply Apostle Paul said in another place, by grace.
I am what I am and we have to realize that if we make the choice that for me to live as Christ, We can't do that in our own strength. We have to have. We can say that trusting that the Lord will give us grace to live for Christ and grace is available to us all. He wants us to make the choice to live for Christ.
01:00:02
But we can't do it in our own strength.
We have to have the grace of God in order to live for Christ.
Our brother in our time is slipping away. I was wondering if we could have a few words on the 27th verse before our time goes. It says, only let your conversation be as becometh the gospel of Christ, that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel.
What I had in mind was that which becometh the gospel of Christ.
And striving together for the faith of the Gospel.
A neighbor, Jill. Before we take up the 27th verse, I'd like to make one more comment.
With respect to the 23rd and the 20.
4th verses There's a contrast here, brethren. There's the better part.
And there's the needful part.
If the Lord Jesus.
Before the Rapture, if it doesn't occur today, sometime today, the Lord takes one of us to be with himself, we will have the better part.
Nancy Weeks today has the better part.
She has a better part than anyone that is sitting in this room at this moment.
To be with Christ, which is his desire, the Lord, when he talks about.
He doesn't talk about heaven, really.
There are multiple instances in which the Lord's personal desire is that we be with Himself.
And so to have his desire fulfilled, that we are with himself, as Paul says, to depart to be with Christ.
That's the better part. But if we are still here in this room today, it's because in one way or another, they're still for us, the needful part.
With respect to the Apostle Paul, the needful part was the needs of the Saints of Philippi and elsewhere.
And so it was in the Lord's way, needful for Him to remain to fulfill that needed part. It may be the same for us. There may be something that the Lord is using us for Himself that is needful, and we will remain until it is fulfilled that maybe the needful part is that which is unfinished in His work.
In us that is not in conformity to himself. And so he's passing us through circumstances and discipline from the hand of the Lord because he loves us, He's chasing us and so on. And it's needful. It's going to make when we are with Him a better, richer experience for us as having gone through the training. And it may be a mixture of those things.
But we're still here because they're still in us. A needful part. But at the same time as Paul, could we we look forward, we trust eagerly to when the Lord can I use the expression promotes us to the better part.
Another translation gives the.
Word for flesh to be the body if I live in the body.
And the other one that we had here. Nevertheless, to abide in the body is nor more needful for you.
Yeah.
Just to go on then for a moment to the 27th verse. It's helpful to read at least this first part. I'm just going to comment on this first part. Other can comment on the rest. But if you read it in Mr. Darby's translation only conduct yourselves worthily of the glad tidings of Christ. You know a tremendous message has been entrusted to you and me. We think of Paul's gospel and the message that he has given to us, gave to those in his day, and that which is preserved to us by divine inspiration.
01:05:08
We think of the testimony in the gospel, as we've spoken of that was going out from the assembly at Philippi. But Paul reminds them to walk, worthy to conduct themselves, worthy of that message that had been conveyed to them. What a message has been conveyed to you and to me. We don't have the apostles as they did in the early days. We don't have the Philippian Saints as we are reading about here. The players have changed, but you're one of the players. I'm one of the players.
And we've been given a great message, but there's a conduct that is in keeping with the message that you and I have been given.
Some comments were made already, but I think of the hymn we used to sing as young people. Your walk speaks so loud that the world can't hear what you say.
And so there's a conduct that is worthy of the glad tidings. We're here to present Christ by our lives, by what we say. We're here to present Christ to this world. Now, are we walking worthy of that message and that person that we are left here to represent and to present to this world? Again, this is very, very practical. It's easy. And I want to just go back for just for a moment to a comment that Lemoine made about Christians and other lands.
You know, it's easy to live for Christ in a sense, when there's no outward persecution or opposition. But you know, I've said about our brethren in Egypt and other places.
There's no half hearted Christians there. It's one or the other. There are maybe, but in a sense it's one or the other. You've got to be all in, all out for Christ. You can't hide your Christianity in a sense. And you know what the result is going to be. Why was Paul a prisoner? Why was he suffering as a Christian? We're told to suffer as a Christian. Christianity in Scripture is not a popular thing. They were first called Christians at Antioch.
Was it a popular thing? Was it a mark of favor? No, it was a mark of derision. And Peter speaks of suffering as a Christian. And so we can't expect any better treatment than the Lord got. But are we walking worthy of that? And what would happen tomorrow if we didn't have the liberties that we have today? What would happen tomorrow if we had to bar the windows and doors to meet for a Bible reading? What would happen tomorrow if we.
Risked our lives.
To present Christ or to live Christ in the world in which we live, the area in which we live? I can't answer that for my own soul. I've never been put in that kind of test. But we need to seek grace, brethren, as we leave this place to walk worthy of that which has been committed to us.
Two, that the verse is collective.
As Jim brings before us, we aren't collectively more than we are individually and as emphasized, the individual. But we also need to recognize, brethren, that this worthiness here that Paul was concerned about was the collective walk of Philippi because there was sisters and so on. There were things in that assembly which he saw were a hindrance to the collective.
Conduct that is worthy of the gospel.
I doubt not. They're not only the service people that are interacting with us in this building and in the food area and so on, but even the town of Pella.
Looks upon us as a collective whole and yet judges us by what they see in individuals.
In US, and so there is a responsibility for us to seek to walk collectively in a manner which is worthy of the message which we present to this world. Back in the first chapter in the 15th verse, it says some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife, and some also of goodwill. The one preached Christ of contention or the word could be factious Over in chapter 2 it says, let nothing be done through strife, or the word is faction again, or vain glory.
There was this tendency, as there is with us, to have friction between us.
And the Apostle Paul is, it seems to me, is saying in verse 27, if there is conflicts, brethren, this is the conflict that I would have, that you stand fast in one spirit with one mind striving, or as Mr. Darby translates it, with one soul laboring together in the same conflict with the faith of the glad tidings. That's the conflict he would have us in, not with each other.
01:10:20
There was a general I think during the civil War. Mentioned this elsewhere recently, but there was a general during the civil war and he found two of his soldiers.
And conflict with each other. And he went up to the two of them and he, I think he put his hands on them and he pointed them across the way to where the enemy was. And he said, gentlemen, there's the enemy. Well, of course in the gospel it's not an enemy as such, but it is the fact that it is striving together one with the other. For there is an enemy, it's Satan, but seeking the.
Blessing of souls in the Gospel. But if the two were striving with each other.
He properly recognized it was going to harm them in the what was really the common purpose.
180.
We are.
A stranger here.
And it's horrible.
Hardest to hear and I can't hear our home.
01:15:41
This hymn in Philippians chapter.
One first of all.
Just go back to the 27th verse, Philippians 127.
Only.
Let your conversation.
Be as it becometh.
The Gospel of Christ We find the same word both in English and in Greek, basically in the third chapter.
Verse 20.
For our conversation is.
In heaven.
From whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our body of humiliation, that it may be fashioned like unto His body of glory, according to the working, whereby He is able to subdue all things unto.
Himself.
Open 1A
Open 1B
Open 1C
Open Mtg. 12
Open—V. Redman, B. Weiss, D. Perry
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Save your leader.
Seems to be.
Toward the end, we are now in every federal 1 Champion.
Redemption I am celebration, for I pray nothing.
In our souls it's hard. And what forgetfulness of thee Now I can say I'm saying progress more than Congress we shall be.
Sweetheart.
We need some freedom.
And my friends, and sweet and fond sweet. We can solve, we can die.
Wandering from the radar capable left by the Lord gave us night.
Few thoughts.
In the book of.
Nehemiah.
Just a few thoughts I had I've enjoyed lately.
In Nehemiah the 1St chapter.
The words of Nehemiah, the son of Hatchelia, and he came to pass in the month of Chris Lu.
In the 12Th year I was in Shawn Cheyenne, the palace, and Han I one of my brethren came, and he and a certain men of Judea. And I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captives concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captive there in the province are in great affliction and reproach.
And the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned.
With fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept and mourned certain days.
And fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. And I said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, and the great and terrible God.
That keepeth the covenant, the mercy for them that love Him, and observe His commandments. Let Thy ear be attentive and the eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of Thy servant, which I pray before Thee now day and night for the children of Israel Thy servants, and confess thy sins and the children of Israel, which we have sinned against Thee. Both I and my Father's house have sinned. We have dealt very corruptly against Thee and have not kept.
The commandments, nor statues, nor judgments which thou hast commanded thy servant Moses, remember, I beseech thee.
The word that thou commendest, thou servant Moses, saying, If thou transgression, I will scatter thee.
Scatter you abroad among the nations. But if you turn unto me and keep my commandments, undo them.
Though thou were of a cast out unto the utmost part of the heavens, yet will I gather them from thence, and I will bring them into the place that I have chosen.
00:05:02
That set my name there now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou has redeemed by the Great Power.
And by the strong hand, And oh Lord, I proceed to Let now thy ear be attentive to their prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name and prosper. I pray thee thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the King's cup bearer. There's a lot of really practical instructions in the book of Nehemiah that I've really enjoyed for my own soul lately.
Here is a people that.
He got the news from.
One of his brethren.
And what was the condition of the people of God here? They were cast out.
Despised. Reproached in captivity.
And he hears he has a he has a concern for the people of God, doesn't he? Nehemiah has it on his heart.
And so he inquires as to their condition.
And what does he do? Does he say, does he throw up his arms and say, well, what can I do? I'm in captivity.
There's nothing I can do. I'm only the King's Cup bearer, not a real high, lofty position.
But no, the first thing he did is he went before the throne of grace, and we've been having that in our meetings lately. How wonderful that he He knew the resource of the one who could meet the needs.
Naturally speaking, this wasn't an impossible situation. And it was of God, wasn't it?
For their disobedience.
Further now to vain the commandments of God.
They were castaway and LED into captivity. And yet he praised this prayer.
And he identifies.
With the sin of the people.
And I believe that among the Saints here, sometimes that's lacking.
It's difficult to identify with other people's.
Sin and fault, and yet we're told to eat the sin offering.
To see our part in this, we know we are in the day of ruin. No one would question that for a moment.
And there is a real reproach to them who would seek to live for Christ.
As we had in our portion.
And the enemy is very active, especially those that are gathered to the precious name of the Lord Jesus. He's very.
Active in seeking to bring a reproach tomorrow that testimony, and to dishonor Christ.
In any way that he can.
And so.
We need to identify that, don't we?
There's not one in this room that wouldn't confess that we can feel the effects of the ruin around us.
But he goes to the source that can meet that need. God is greater than any need that we have. But I just wanted to point out a few things here in connection with this. We don't have time to go through all of this.
But I noticed that in the first chapter does God he goes to.
The Lord in prayer, He knows that God is interested in his people.
And He would have us to have His people on our hearts as we read in Philippians 1.
That the Apostle Paul had in his heart those Philippians.
And beloved every anytime we have the people of God.
And the Lord's honor and glory on our hearts, He'll always answer our prayers. There will never be.
Never have a a time and we go to the throne of grace that we don't and that we have the people of God on our hearts in his honor and His glory that He won't answer our prayers.
But we noticed that in the second chapter he is four months later that he answers.
His prayer, it's not answered right away, is it? And sometimes.
We have to weigh it on the answer from God.
Maybe four months, maybe four years.
Now I have mentioned before, if we have the people of God.
00:10:01
On our hearts, in prayer before the throne of grace, and we have His honor and glory before us.
He'll answer our prayer according to his time, and I just wanted to.
And sometimes.
We need that patient grace from the Lord to wait His time.
A brother once told me just recently, he said that we're either ahead of God's time or we're lagging behind, so we need to be in His time. His time is perfect for us, and I just want to read one verse, keeping our place there back in. I think it's an Exodus 14.
Yes, verse 13 Exodus 1413. And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will show you today. For the Egyptians which you have seen today, you shall see them again no more. And so here was an impossible situation, naturally speaking.
That.
The Children of Israel had been redeemed from Egypt.
There were God's people.
And they were backed up against the Red Sea, and how were they going to? And here comes the Egyptians down on them, insurmountable.
Impossibility, naturally speaking, that there was no escape.
The only resource they had was to stand still and see the salvation of God. I suppose that some of them who were good swimmers could have jumped in the river and started the lake there, or whatever it was the sea started swimming, but that probably wouldn't have gotten them too far. But here was a situation that really called for just waiting on the Lord.
And how so often I know in my own life and I speak to my own soul in this and we get ahead of the Lord and we really miss the blessing that he has for us. And I know we're living in a in a fast-paced high tech.
Age right now you buy a laptop computer and six months later you must throw it away or get it redone. So things are moving at A at a very fast pace, especially for the young people. They have so many things thrown at them, so many decisions, obstacles and the world wants to keep you busy. And sometimes if we really want to get the blessing and to know the will of God in our lives and and the direction he wants us to go.
For his purpose.
If we really want to live for Christ.
And we have to sometimes just back up and stand still and let the Lord work on our lives and wait His time. We are a very impatient people. I know I am, and I just wanted to bring that before you. But then back in Nehemiah, the Lord does answer his prayer in a marvelous way. And he's even prayed for the man. He didn't even call him a king, but he.
Says this man.
He was preparing the man's heart. He knew the Lord could prepare the man's heart.
And so.
He goes to the king and the king asks him why he said his continents and eat and I guess in that time it was a.
A pretty scary thing to go to a head of a monarch like that and a king that had all the power to life and death.
But he lets them know what his request was and.
The king grants to him his request.
And you know, and I think Nehemiah realized that it was all ordered of God ahead of time. And yet the grace of God we see in this that he as we have, and I believe it's in Ephesians where it says that he.
He answers our prayer exceedingly and abundantly, above all that we ask or think.
How many times we've prayed about something and the Lord so graciously has?
Has brought that prayer and answered our prayer and has brought it so exceedingly, so abundantly.
Far more than we ever expected. And so.
He gets ready to go and but he doesn't realize that.
00:15:06
At first that he's about to meet a great opposition. You know, when we're in the Lord's will.
And we're going on with the Lord. There's always opposition. There's always that which the enemy will seek to disrupt.
And to hinder that work and we won't go into all of these right now.
Because I don't want to take all the time up, but there's there's seven things that.
The enemy.
Sought to confront.
And to.
To hinder the work of God that Nehemiah and his company.
We're about to do the first one was grief, and then there was laughter and wrath and mocking, fighting, compromise and then false accusations. So all of these things.
The enemy can throw at us.
But then he gets letters.
In a company of people to go with him. So what does he do now? He's not aware of what lies before him.
So how does he prepare to do this great under tax?
Well, we get that in Psalm 71.
And I think he probably knew and was aware of this verse.
I've enjoyed this for my own self.
71 verse 16 I will go in the strength of the Lord, so when we finally know the Lord's will and purpose for us.
And we know the pathway that's been marked out. Do we go on our own strength now? We're going to fail, aren't we? We go on the strength of the Lord. And we had a a great deal of that about being weak, that I'm strong.
We were reminded again that we can do all things without me. Excuse me? Where? It said without me, John 15, you can do nothing.
And so I believe that Nehemiah went with this idea that he waited on God's time. God answered his prayer in a way more than he ever expected, and then he went in the confidence and the strength of his God. He knew that if God called him for a purpose and a pathway and a work that needed to be done, he was going to supply the resource and enable Nehemiah.
And to provide whatever was needed for the work to be done, regardless of what opposition we might run into. So how wonderful we see this, that there's a time to sit still.
And let that still small voice speak to our hearts.
And then there's a time to go forward, but we need to remember to go forward in the strength of whom we can draw on, inexhaustible strength in the Lord Himself. So these are only the few things that there's so much more in here that I've enjoyed, but I just wanted to bring those two things that we just need to be before the Lord as to our time.
And waiting on him.
And how easy it is to get ahead of the Lord in service and the gospel work. We're eager to go out, but even in the gospel work, we need to be before the Lord. That it might be that we are LED of the Spirit of God in whatever we do for the Lord, that it might be that him working us, in US.
And then when we do go forward, we need to go independence and know that without him we can do nothing.
Are to continue in that same vein if we could, if you're still not in Nehemiah to turn there again.
To the other end, to Nehemiah 13, the last chapter.
Nehemiah having waited on the Lord, like brother Virgil mentioned here, having been LED of the Lord. What happens at the very end of this story here?
Verse 31. Very last verse in Nehemiah.
He says.
Remember Me, Oh my God, for good.
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And I remember when I first read that I thought.
For lack of better term, is this not a little self-serving?
If you'll notice through the chapter here, just kind of glance down, not going to take up much of your time, but he says did not I do this or that? Verse 17, for example, I contended with the nobles of Judah. Verse 25I contended with them and cursed them.
Smoked certain of them plucked off their hair, but.
I had to remember what was his Commission, his was to rebuild the wall. We have that as a little picture of separation here. They came back to the land from the captivity and great weakness and the and that wall was all that was between them and their enemies, which sought to overturn what the Lord was doing and bringing them back to the land and so.
Well, at the beginning of Nehemiah, he had a great deal of enemies on the outside. It turned out that they are often allied with those that were supposedly his helpers, and it was very, very difficult for him. And then the other thought that came to me was perhaps is Nehemiah interceding against the people of God like we have in Elijah. But you'll notice a little difference here. Go ahead and turn with me to 1St Kings.
Chapter 19.
And let's just look at Elijah's complaint for contrast, because I really believe we have something very different here.
At the end of verse 13, First Kings 19.
The Lord says, What doest thou hear, Elijah?
And he said I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts.
Because the children of Israel.
Not anybody in particular.
But he seems to have tarred the children of Israel with a very broad brush. He's included everybody.
The children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, slain thy prophets with the sword, and I even I only am left, and they seek my life to take it away.
Well, we know from the account in Romans and from what later happens that basically at this point his ministry has ended. He does a few more things, but the Lord tells him to Commission Elijah to take his place here. And furthermore, the Lord points out to him in verse 18, Yet have I left me 7000 in Israel all the needs which have not bowed unto bail in every mouth which hath not kissed him. So the Lord was in effect saying.
You know, you cannot characterize my people this way. You cannot speak about them thus. So if we turn back to Nehemiah 13.
You'll notice.
That Nehemiah does not characterize all of Israel, or even of the returning remnant that way. He speaks very specifically of those particular evils that he had to deal with.
And how he met with each one of them. And again, I don't want to take up too much time doing it, so I'm going to just kind of need your help to look over this yourselves.
But if you just glance down the chapter.
He verse 9 For example, I commanded they cleansed the chambers, chambers that have been defiled while he was gone. Verse 13 I made treasures over the treasuries.
Verse 22, I commanded the Levites they should cleanse themselves and cetera. What he was doing. He's not really bragging about himself.
He is more or less can I say of pouring out his heart to the Lord as if to say, you know, I've had I've, you've left me alone to do this work. In a way it's been difficult, but to you, O Lord, I can pour my heart out and what I guess I would encourage all of you to do.
Is that sometimes you're going to feel like you're all alone.
Especially in issues of separation, where you've walked a narrow path, where you've gone to meeting, sometimes not everybody else comes with you. You may be just one of a few there. For some of the younger folks, you know you don't have the outreaches and the programs and things that you see your peers enjoying in churches and so forth. And you know you've done things that the Lord has asked you to do and nobody else perhaps has noticed but Him. This, I believe, is what the Lord is saying here through Nehemiah. He's taking this path of separation. It's been hard.
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Sometimes people that were with him and close to him working with them, he had to rebuke them. And you know, it wasn't easy. It broke his heart. And so in the same sense here when he says, Remember Me, Oh my God for good in verse 31.
This just wasn't a private transaction between him and the Lord. This came down.
On the pages of Scripture to come down all these thousands of years for us to read and we can say, yes, Nehemiah, the Lord remembered you for good and so do we.
So we enjoyed our brother.
Simon's address yesterday afternoon on the Minor Prophets.
And no doubt in trying to.
Cover the scope of all those books. He left some crumbs on the table.
Perhaps we can look again at justice. A few things in the Minor Prophets.
I feel the burden of this because.
What I have on my heart here applies to me first.
In my brethren.
Micah, Chapter 3.
Verse 10.
They build up Zion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity.
The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priest thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money.
Yet will they lean upon the Lord and say.
Is not the Lord among us?
Non evil can come upon us.
Therefore shall John, for your sake be plowed as a field.
Jerusalem should become as heaps.
And the mountain of the house.
As the higher places of the forest.
He is not the Lord among us.
You know, I believe in these the last days we have the privilege.
Have been gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ at His table.
And he himself sits at the head of that table.
As we remember him.
And these are the last days of Christendom.
And the mess that the Christian Church has become because of a lack of faithfulness for people by you and me.
In.
Matthew 25, The 10 virgins, they all slumbered and slept.
Did any of them live up to their responsibilities now?
Have any of us perfectly lived up to our responsibilities?
As Christians.
Each with a gift.
To be used for the building up.
Of the Church of God, that which he loved, actually he valued.
And he gave me, he gave it to us to take care of.
Have we been faithful in that responsibility?
Now.
And here we see those who would boast of having the Lord's presence.
But their moral condition didn't answer to it.
What was God's answer?
Well, we read in Ezekiel how the presence of the Lord leaves that temple.
And I believe the prophet here, Micah, looks forward to that time.
When Nebuchadnezzar's going to come in and destroy that temple?
Now there is a comment.
In Mr. Darby's synopsis, and I think it's regarding a scripture in Jeremiah. Forget exactly where I come what what scripture it related to it.
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Now.
But the comment goes like this.
It is a solemn thing.
When God destroys that which he set up.
A solemn thing when God destroys that which he stood up.
But he destroyed that temple.
Mr. Darby goes on to say.
Because it no longer represented him.
The moral condition of those who were in that temple.
We know that.
Idolatry came into that temple.
One of the kings rearranged the temple to suit himself and putting an altar there that was a copy of one from Damascus.
And eventually the Lord.
Destroys it.
Because it no longer represents him.
I hope you'll bear with what I say now.
When I was first at a Des Moines conference was nearly 40 years ago.
Conference was about a week later that year.
I came from a small waiting in England.
Found a large number of gathered Saints there in Des Moines.
Able ministers of the word, amongst them Chapter Brown, I think are just about just recently gone to California. Tom McMillan.
Younger brethren, that was zealous for the Lord.
Outreach. Prison work.
The Wall.
This is what an assembly has gathered to the Lord's name ought to be.
Where is it now?
Is it a warning to us?
To boast the Lord's presence amongst us, but not at the moral condition that answers to it.
As a collective testimony.
Do we for reflect the light and love the wisdom and grace of our Lord Jesus?
Collectively and as we were commenting on this morning, it was an individual thing we had before us this morning, but I think our brother Don was quite correct when he associated that our collective testimony has been the sum of our individual testimony.
And so if I allow things in my life and you allow things in your life.
It detracts.
From that testimony.
Had been gathered to the Lord's name.
I believe the Prophet answers that in the 6th chapter.
Verse 6.
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the High God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings and with cars of a year old? No.
If I dare answer that question.
May the Lord be pleased with thousands of Rams or with 10,000 rivers of oil, No.
Shall I give my first born for my transgression, and the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
No.
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good.
And what does the law require of thee but to do justly?
And to love mercy.
And to walk humbly.
With thy God.
That was the moral condition.
That would answer to the Lord's present amongst them.
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I can't judge.
Those brethren that were in Des Moines, only the Lord knows, but I just have to. It just seems so striking to me.
40 years ago.
What was there then?
Until we find now a company.
That we can recognize as gathered to the Lord's name in that city.
I know that there's a universal principle of Scripture which I'll read and in First Samuel.
24th Samuel two, I think.
Yeah, that's a part of verse 30.
Then the honour me I will honour.
And they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
Yes, if there's one who knows the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior.
And would go along to a company of Christians.
With a sincere desire to honor the Lord Jesus, I believe that the Lord honors that person.
But does that mean that?
Because there is a Christian there, I can associate with that group of Christians.
Or is there amongst the mess of Christendom 1 Lord's Table?
Paul said, Is Christ divided?
Paul couldn't accept the concept of a bit of the Lord's Table here and a bit of the Lord's Table over there.
But at the same time.
As we have that privilege of meeting around the Lord's Table, there is that moral responsibility that goes with it.
I don't know, obviously I can't comment.
As to why the Lord allowed that in respect of Des Moines?
But looking back, if somebody had said me to me 40 years ago.
What do you think is going to happen to you? More enough? Or well, maybe the Lord will come first, but the concept of no more those gathered to the Lord's name.
When there appeared to be such strength.
Did the Lord detect something that I didn't?
And doesn't it bring before us our responsibility?
To live up, shall I say, to be dependent upon Him, in dependence upon him, as we had this morning.
To have that desire individually.
To walk through his praise and his glory. You know the apostle, he had a choice and he told us what the result, what what he would choose. He said to depart and be with Christ is far better.
But as I think it was pointed out this morning, he didn't exercise that choice. He left that choice to the Lord.
The Lord raised me up in health and strength this morning.
He's done that in the measure for everyone in this room.
Maybe we could say it wouldn't be our choice.
We know that to be with Christ, which was far better, but the Lord has done it.
And he has a purpose for each one of us to die in doing it.
We should walk for His praise and for His glory.
Another happier picture.
You know and Sunday school Bible class at Pine Grove we.
We read through Ezra.
Nehemiah, Esther.
And then all the post exiled prophets, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
Most instructed I.
Would recommend it to anyone who wants to do it.
And so we find another little picture in Haggai.
The nation had gone into captivity in Babylon.
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That the opportunity comes for them to return.
To Jerusalem.
And.
Just a few thousand out of a nation that was probably a couple of million at the time.
Return to Jerusalem.
Most of them have become pretty comfortable in Babylon.
They've made their fortune.
The Jews seem to do that wherever they go.
They made themselves very comfortable in Babylon.
And the idea of going back to God's center, acting according to God's Word, and seeking out God's center.
And going back to Jerusalem and building that temple didn't seem terribly attractive to them. And they stayed in Babylon.
But that remnant went back.
With a desire in their hearts to please the Lord and act on His word.
And as we were reminded yesterday, they soon got discouraged.
Maybe even start to look after their own things, themselves, their their their leads and their comforts became their first.
Objective rather than rebuilding the Lord's temple. And so Haggai would encourage them. He rebukes them and encourages them.
But notice what he says. Then spake Haggai, the Lord's messenger, in the Lord's message to the people, saying, I am with you, saith the Lord.
I am with you, saith the Lord, the Lord's messenger, delivering the Lord's message. I am with you.
And then encourage us in the course to build that temple, to exercise that Christian responsibility which we all have, to use whatever gift he's given us for the Lord's glory, for building up his church.
Where was the Lord?
In those days, was he with a couple of million in Babylon?
No, you read the book of Esther and it's remarkable.
It deals with.
Those that remained in the Babylonish Kingdom.
And their trials and difficulties.
And we learn there that God is always.
He never neglects his people. He may allow trials to come in. He never neglects them.
And so trials are allowed to come in.
And the Lord delivers them.
But does he associate his name?
With them in Babylon.
Now the Lord's name is not mentioned in the book Vester.
But here he says to this company.
I'm the Lord's messenger and I'm going to give you the Lord's message. That's this little feeble remnant.
I'm with you, saith the Lord.
And it's repeated.
Chapter 2.
Verse five, I believe this was read to us yesterday according to the word that I covenanted you when I came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you.
Sorry, I should have read the previous verse or the end of the previous verse.
I am with you, saith the Lord of Hosts, according to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt.
So my spirit remains among you. Fear you not.
And then he goes on, of course, to describe the.
That which will happen when the Lord before, just before the Lord, comes to take his rightful place as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, He will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land.
What encouragement it was for that little company.
Ezra tells them to go back and think of what Solomon's temple was. Yeah.
We don't live in Apostolic times, do we?
But nevertheless, there was a little company there that acted on the word of God.
And he says I'm with you.
Malachi.
Our brother commented on the.
Parallels between the minor prophets, as we call them.
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And the.
And the.
Seven churches.
And Malachi is the.
Laodicea of the seven churches.
There was that which was due to the Lord, and they were careless about it.
Once again, they were looking after their own things.
They wanted the best for themselves and second best for the Lord.
Does the Lord get second best of our energy?
Our time. I've got to speak to myself in this, haven't I?
Two or three years ago I was in England.
Went to a fellowship meeting there and brother Paul Kendall got up and.
Ministered.
Do you know what scripture you read?
Ephesians 4.
See if I can find it.
So yeah, yes, verse 28.
That him that stole steal no more.
How would you like to minister on that scripture?
Him that stole still no more.
I felt for my billfold and my English brethren become light fingered.
Then he turned to Malachi.
3rd chapter isn't it?
Verse eight Will a man rob God?
Will a member of God? Are you a robber?
Are you taking what the Lord gives you and using it for yourself?
Got to speak to myself in this, haven't I?
Second best was for the Lord.
If an animal is lame, oh that's a good one for an offering.
And so they robbed God.
They took of that which He had given Him, He had given them to use for his praise and for His glory, and use it for themselves.
But even in this, there's a little bit of an encouragement, shall I say?
Because in the 16th verse of that chapter. And they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened and heard it in the book of remembrance was written before him.
For them that feared the Lord.
And that thought upon his name.
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels, and I will spare them as a man spare of his own son that serveth him.
And I like to see in Luke's gospel.
I believe we get a little glimpse of, shall I say, that remnant of a remnant.
In Simeon.
And Anna?
And.
Just reading concerning Anna, and she was a woman. She was a widow of about four score and four years. What weakness?
Which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in at that instant, gave thanks likewise unto the Lord.
And spake of him.
To all of them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Yeah, I believe that was just that little remnant, that little remnant of a remnant that we reel of in Malachi were there to welcome the Lord Jesus Christ on this earth.
What about responsibilities as Christians?
Have we taken what the Lord has given us and used it for ourselves? Have we robbed God?
Does our moral condition looked at collectively?
Answer.
To that privilege that we have.
A being at the Lord's Table had been gathered to his name.
311.
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One to several.
Days pursue.
My name shall be grilled in.
Daniel Was Greatly Distressed
Y.P. Address 7
Death and Resurrection