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.
Like the Council to take up Philippians Chapter 3.
Someone read it for us please.
Chapter 3.
Finding my brother rejoice in the Lord to write the same thing to you, to me, and he is not evil, but for you is They were a dog, you were an evil workers, you were the decision. For we are the circumcision which worship God and spirit and rejoice in Christ. Jesus often have no confidence in the bless. So I might also have confidence in the flash of any other man thinking that he has where else he might trust in the flesh armored.
35G Day of the dark of Israel, of the tribes of Benjamin and Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the law of Pharisees, and turning the zeal for executing the church, touching the righteousness which is in the law blameless. But what things were gained to me, those iconic laws for Christ, J Dollars. And I found all things but laws for the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord.
The loss of all things, and you count them but young that I may win right, and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, But that was just through the phase of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.
That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of his suffering, being made his warnful unto his death. If by any means I might have been under the resurrection of the dead, not as though I had already attained either, we're already perfect.
But I follow after that I may apprehend them. We call why an apprehended of Christ? Because.
Rather than I found out myself to have apprehended, but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth on those things which are before I breath for the mark for the prize and the high, calling God in Christ Jesus. But therefore, as many as be perfect, he does mind it, and if in anything he'd be otherwise lying through, God shall reveal this unto you.
Nevertheless, where do we have already obtained Let's Walk by the same rules. Let us find the same thing, brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them with walk those you have offering sample for many water whom I hold you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the Cross, right? Whose answers destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, reminders everything.
For our conversation is in heaven from one where we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. We shall change our vile by fashion, like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
As we all know, the epistle to the Philippians is a very practical epistle, not so much the unfolding of doctrine as the occupation of the heartless person, the Lord Jesus, as the one who is our life, our example, our object and our strength. For the whole Christian pathways. And I think the Spirit of God is ordered that it should be between Ephesians and Colossians.
Because of we have the precious truth of the Church brought before us in Colossians, we have the headship of Christ brought before us, and in between we have this precious epistle that it might become practical to us. Because, brethren, just knowing doctrine will never keep us, never cause us to rejoice just knowing doctrine, but being enjoyment of the person is blessed One who is the head of the body, the church head overall things to the Church.
00:05:15
It's the practical enjoyment of him and walking with him before us, with the hope of seeing him as we have at the end of this chapter that sustains us in the pathway. I just mention this because I think it's very precious that the spirit of God has ordered that in the way the Bible is put together. This should come between Ephesians and Colossians and should make Christianity not just a matter of knowledge, but a practical thing, a person who fills our hearts and lives.
God knows that everyone of us need enough. And the object you have that I have before me controls where I go and what I do. And God has given us these two creams, the perfect topic, Christ and glory. There is one man that finished the course. He is there just as you begun the course and I begun the course. We will end up there, but what will help us along the way is to have our eyes picked upon him there.
Paul here gives us a wonderful example of the fact that happiness and joy for a believer is not a set of circumstances. This is really the epistle of joy. But who would expect it to be written in prison? His circumstances were as bad as they could be. And yet we've got joy in this epistle 16 to 17 times. Join rejoicing. And I think it's beautiful to see that Paul wants us to know that joy never changes.
If your object and your eyes are on Christ, he says in the second chapter, fulfill ye my joy. Verse two, what would still have false joy? Well, if the people of God, his brethren, were going on according to the will of God in the mind of the Lord, that would fill up his joy even in prison. And so I just mentioned that he's showing us it's not a question of circumstances in our life, brother. It's Christ in our hearts.
And we in Christ that makes the difference, we have to keep an eye on him, to have that joy no matter what the condition is.
To see Paul's circumstances is really helpful because it adds really weight to what Paul says here when he says rejoice in the Lord here. To realize that he was perhaps in the lowest of circumstances that was humanly possible because the prison he was in was not like a prison that you, some of us have had the privilege of visiting today. I had the privilege of being in the new prison that they built in Bermuda in the last couple of years, and it's a fine facility compared to the prison cell that falls.
Often wrote from. And so it really adds weight to what is said here. And I often have contrasted 2 men in Scripture in this connection, because I've often thought, suppose Solomon in the Old Testament, who didn't withhold himself from any pleasure, who sat on the throne of Israel when it was at its pinnacle of human glory, and had all that his heart could desire. Suppose he had written rejoice in the Lord. Well, you'd say, of course he had everything his heart could desire, But what does Saul on the?
Solomon on the throne of Israel, Write.
Vanity and vexation of spirit. He tried it all. He had everything that was possible as far as circumstances in this life, but he writes across it that it was all empty and void. But the post Paul here had written. Vanity and vexation of spirit, we should say. Of course he didn't have anything anyway. He was in the lowest of circumstances. But it was just the opposite. Solomon who tried everything and all the pleasure of this world. He writes across it that it was vanity and vexation. But the Apostle Paul in these circumstances he writes to these believers who are in the joy of salvation.
And he says to them, rejoice in the Lord what weight it must have given to these words that he penned by inspiration as his brethren realized where he was writing this from. And I believe that it's good to see it. You take up a book to see the circumstances in which the writer was placed by God before he was used to pin the book by inspiration. Because I believe that it often adds weight and really magnifies what the spirit of God had for them. Depend.
We must remember Solomon failed grossly. Paul kept the faith and finished the course. That is really important, President.
I was thinking of this expression finally. My brethren, rejoice in the Lord, and I was thinking of that expression in the book of Nehemiah. The joy of the Lord is your strength. I believe in this. It's practical, shall I say, on our side. That is, what more could we have in this whole world than just rejoicing in the Lord? We may have nothing, as our brother has said, but we always have the Lord, and we can always rejoice the unsearchable riches of Christ.
00:10:25
But I believe that verse, perhaps a little misunderstood at times. In Nehemiah, it says there the joy of the Lord is your strength. And I believe that's the other side. It's the Lorde joy in us that is brought before us in that verse. And that's a very precious thing for our souls, brethren. That is, that the Lord is finding His joy and seeing a company like this who comes apart from the world and are just sitting here to receive His words and to enjoy what He has for us.
The Lord finds joy in that, you might say. Well, just how does that fit to it, that the Lord is finding joy? Well, here, if you look back at that, we won't take time to look at it. In Nehemiah they were weeping. There was a sad condition existing among the people of God. They hadn't responded to the Lord's claims, just as we often have to confess that we don't. And yet the prophet could say, or at least Nehemiah could say.
The joy of the Lord is your strength.
Just compared it. Like supposing someone asks you to their home for the evening, but it turns out to be a very, very stormy evening. And you say, oh, it's such a bad night. Surely they'll understand if we don't come because it's such a bad night tonight. And while we're talking about it, the phone rings and they they're on the phone and they say please don't let the weather. India, we're really looking forward to having you. We really have planned a happy evening. We'll miss you so much. If you're not there, what happens?
A new shot of strength, you say. We've got to go. No matter what the weather is like. We've got to go. And that is the point rather than that verse we could well reap. If we thought of the condition of the people of God in our own too, we could well weep as we think of the trials the Lord is allowed among us. But isn't it blessed the thing that the Lord finds his joy and a few people who want to come together just to be occupied with him, to listen to his words?
And in the second thing we ourselves. Then you go for this evening, and you say, that was the happiest evening you ever had. You go, and you enjoy it too. So he says Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. So isn't it lovely to think the Lord's joy in us, and our joy responding? Shall I say we find our joy in him? And this is the exhortation to us given in this first verse, I believe.
Finally, my brethren here is connected with joy and rejoicing. 6 We'll find that finally, my brethren, there.
And instead of following with rejoice in the Lord, it says Be strong in the Lord.
Power of his mind. It's practical there and for us it compared to the.
Heavily positioned that we enjoy in Christ before we get there.
And it compares in the patients to the book of Joshua where they were going into gain control of the land and they had to.
Walk on the land in order to possess it and enjoy it. So they were going to be strong in the Lord and the power is mighty put on the whole armor of God. That is very practical and very necessary for us in that position that seemed brought into the heavenly position in Christ Jesus. But here is the person that is the object before us and it reminds one of first John. We might just turn to 1St John.
What that apostle brings before us.
He brings the person before us immediately in First John.
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon in our hands, have handled of the word of life.
Now notice the second verse where the lifeless manifested.
In these verses, the Apostle is bringing before us the weed, as those who broke to us through the Word what they had personally in walking with Jesus.
00:15:01
For the life was manifested, while the apostle saw it, we have seen it we, and bear witness, and showing you that eternal life which was with the Father, was manifested unto us.
Think of what you and I have got through the apostles ministry that goes on that which we have seen and heard declare We under you. Don't you want to know it? Don't we want to know it? That he also may have fellowship with us, That the apostles fellowship and that agent is the next. Truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. These things are still true brethren, but the next verse of what I wanted to get.
And these things rightly under you that your joy might be good. There's the joy in rejoicing, and again it's the person of Christ brought before the soul. That's the goal that will help us through the circumstances to get into in the normal Christian.
Experience what we get in the Epistle of Philippi. This is normal Christianity and there is a full supply for us to carry us through. Hassle, hassle, rejoicing in the Lord.
Paul says it wasn't grievous to write these things to you, wasn't grievous for him. It didn't make him sad that he's in the prison and they're out there free and walking around, he says If you find your joy in the Lord, if you have everything in him in your life, that's safe for you.
They are safe. And brethren, that's the only way we can be kept. We can't be kept. We can't keep ourselves. It's the Lord that keeps us. We know how many are not here anymore. Why? Well, I believe they lost sight of Christ. You know, he's in our midst with the Lord. He's everything. And what was wrong with the Corinthians in the Second Corinthians? I think it's 11Th chapter.
You have left, I think, is the thought, the simplicity.
That is of Christ. That's it. They were bringing in everything else. And brethren, he says for you, it's safe. And if we minister Christ wherever we are, Old Testament anew, it doesn't matter. It's going to be Christ. We have our joy because the Spirit of God makes sure that's going to happen if we're occupied with Christ.
And we ought never to apologize for the repetition of the truth, because I think this little expression to write the same things is very, very important to see, because the apostle never apologized for ministering Christ over and over again.
The brother who suggested this chapter had no hesitation about giving out a chapter that we often take up on an occasion like this, because we need to have these things right before our hearts and our consciences over and over and over again. When the apostle Peter wrote to the Saints in the second epistle, he said, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them, he says. I know you already know these things, you've heard them many times, and not only that, but he doesn't be established in the present truth.
He said, you're even going on in some measure in these things. But he says, I'm not going to neglect to bring these things to you again and again. And the apostle John said no new commandment right I unto you, but that which ye have received from the beginning. When Jude wrote of appalling days of apostasy and giving up, what did he say? He said that he earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the Saints. In other words, these ones who rose by inspiration said, don't look for something new, because what we have in Paul's ministry, we have nothing beyond that.
It's all been given. And, brethren, we need to be on our guard. I know I've said this many times, but for those of us who are younger here, we need to be on our guard. If someone comes along and tells us they have some new truth or new revelation, we need to be very, very careful. God never gave fresh light at the end of a dispensation. It's a principle with God that he always gave light at the beginning of an administration and responsibility connected with that light. And at the end of the dispensation. When man had sailed under that dispensation, then he brought in judgment.
He never gave fresh light. Now it's true there's recovered light during a dispensation. You see that with some of the godly kings like Josiah and Hezekiah, and later on with Zerabavo and Nehemiah, Ezra, Nehemiah and those men that returned after the captivity. But it was a going back to what they had been established at the beginning, not fresh light given. It was going back and acting on that which had been lost and given up When they were there was a revival That was always the reading of the law in the ears of the people and so on, because it was going fast to that which had been established.
00:20:02
Brethren, it's very, very important. And so I just say we need to make no apology for repeating the truth over and over and over again. And it ought to be. There ought to be an exercise that would be given out in a fresh way and in the power of the Spirit. But we need to stick to the book, because, brethren, if we stick to this book, we won't go wrong and we should believe.
Just like the Lord said to the woman in the 4th of John, woman believed me.
We don't have to apologize for God's words, and I don't think it's right to take up the fact that we should reconcile God's work. It is God's work. It's immutable. It's unchangeable. We don't have to reconcile the word of God. What we've got to do is reconcile ourselves to God. Believe this book.
And that portion a brother mentioned in Second Peter, chapter one, when he says, I will always put you in remembrance of these things, Then he said, though you know them now, notice and you could be established in the present truth. Now the present truth of Peter's day is the present truth of our day. And let's never forget that truth is always the same. It never changes.
The word of God is never changeable. It's the same present truth, and we just feed on it because we need it. And the reason we feed on it again and again is because we're forgetful people. That's why we need it again and again. I I think it'll be time.
Two Christians are talking together after a conference in the one at well, how was the conference? And they said, yes, it was very nice. What did they take up? And the first inventions, what they took up. And the first one said, oh, the same old thing. And I said praise the Lord.
Because that's what we need. If you look at the modern movements which have gained such a following, thousands and thousands following them, it's just what Jim was saying. It's it's not the old truth, it's fresh. It's something new that's not founded on the word of God and it's not present truth anymore, is it? It's an emotional kind of thing. And that's what gains the followers, that's what gains the numbers. So we we must not be discouraged because our numbers.
Are decreasing.
But thankful for those that are still going on in the past that God has marked out for us, it hasn't changed. It's still the same. And the recovered truth of the last century was going back to that which was from the beginning and establishing that which was always in the word of God, but had been neglected and lost through the ecclesiastical rubble that had acquired through the many years. So we're the word of God is our safeguard is in God.
One thing that's important. Have you noticed how often the brothers had mentioned truth? Truth is what we're talking about. The word of God is not necessarily it. System uses the Word of God, but man's thought applied to the word of God. It's not the truth. The truth is only applied and brought to us by the Spirit of God, no other way. And the truth is what we want is based on the words, of course, but many of them use the same scriptures in a different way.
And they do not have the truth. So let's remember that's the important thing, the truth. Could I also mention that the present truth refers to Christianity? There was that which was given under Judaism proper and right for the children of Israel in that time. But now God has given a further revelation of His mind and will. He has made it known in the truth of the Church. And very often the difficulty is not seeing what the present truth is.
That is not seeing that Christianity is not an extension of Judaism. It's an entirely new thing. Just as the Lord Jesus said the new line had to be put into new bottles, he also said that it wasn't a patch on the old, but it was a new, new piece of cloth. And so it's good for us to know what the price of truth is, and so that what we see around us is the mixing of the Old Testament state of things and what God gave to them as an earthly people.
And ourselves as a heavenly. 1 And so the Bible speaks of rightly dividing the word of truth. And I want to make it clear that it's all the truth and was all given of God, and what was necessary for the time in which it was given. But now in Christianity it has been given.
00:25:03
A very helpful little book written by Charles Stanley. The First Years of Christianity and What is the Church? He takes us back to the beginning, for God always shows his mind, brethren, when he sets up a thing. The failure may come in, but what he has set up is always revealed at the beginning, and he never changes from that. And they asked him about marriage, took them right back to what God made in the very beginning. And so it's well for us to see if we're going to know what true Christianity, what the present truth is.
We go back to what God established in the beginning of the Christian dispensation with the coming of the Holy Spirit. I just mentioned this because a person might hold a verse from the Old Testament right and proper for God's earthly people, but it doesn't apply to us. We need to be established in the present truth.
And if we give up dispensational teaching, then we're going to become confused. And I believe there's many believers today who are completely confused as to our present position and responsibility.
As to the Rapture, as to the Tribulation, why are they confused? Well, if you talk to them, they've given up Dispensational truth. Because if you wipe away Dispensational guidelines as if they don't exist, then what you're really saying is that all Scripture and its strict application applies to us today, and we know that's not true.
Now all scripture is given for our prophet and for there is a present application. But as you say, there are many scriptures that apply to God's dealings with Israel. There are scriptures that deal with His working His judgment in this world in the coming day and His taking up Israel in the coming day. And if you don't see dispensational guidelines, you cannot rightly divide the word of truth or draw straight lines when it comes to the truth. But I'd like to say, just in connection with what Bob said a moment ago too, that the word proof, and it was help for helpful for me when I was a little younger to get a hold of this, that it's always in the singular.
We talk about sometimes people talk about the truths of God's Word, and I know what people mean when they say that, but it's always in the singular. When the spirit of proof is come, he will guide you into all truth. I am the way, the truth and the life. And I believe one of the safeguards is rather than when he take up any portion of the word of God, that we take it up in the light of the whole context. If we do that, we're not going to go astray. Timothy was told to hold fast the formal sound words or an outline of proof.
And so when we hear something in the meeting, the reason I say this is there might be a young person here, and you say, well, sometimes I sit in the meeting or I read my Bible and something comes to me. The Spirit of God reveals something that I never saw before. Well, that may be true, and we can have a fresh enjoyment of these things, and there may be things that we never saw before, but we need to. When we have something brought before us in that way, then we need to be sure that it's in the light of the whole context of the word of God.
If it doesn't fit with the whole pattern of things rather than, we need to be very, very careful and set it aside. I sometimes likened it to a jigsaw puzzle when we were children on a snowy evening. We used to do a lot of jigsaw puzzles and if you take a piece of a jigsaw puzzle and you put it in the wrong place.
Not only he has to force that peace, but nothing around it fits properly. You have to begin forcing other pieces. And I believe that every false doctrine that's ever been propagated, and Christendom is the director indirect result of taking scripture out of his context and building a doctrine on that without taking it up in the light of the whole word of God. So what was the answer with those jigsaw puzzles? Well, we had to go back to the original piece that was put in the wrong place and we had to take that piece out.
And when we took that piece out and put it in the right place, then everything else fit properly. And if someone has to try to force a point to make it fit the pattern of truth, rather it's a red light to us. We need to be careful. We need to have an outline of truth. And I realize you can spend your whole life and still only have an outline, but I believe that it's not very difficult to just have some outline of what the different writers their line of ministry and what they bring before us. I believe it will be a help with to us in taking up any portion of the word of God.
So we have the warning in the next verse, here, chapter verse 2.
Of the attacks of the enemy.
How you would like to take this joy away from us and the truth itself. And there are three of them. Beware of dogs, that shameless evil and the age in which we live. Anybody would disagree that there is shameless evil rampant in Christendom and they're they're evil workers Now that's that's those that bring in full ducks. And the enemy has done that over.
00:30:16
Over again Paul warned about it. Previous call at her end up staring the block also of your own self, so grievous so men arise seeking her verse.
Full stop to draw away disciples after them. One of the best things that Christians can think of doing is getting together and starting a new church. If you don't find anything that's completely false, Doctor, we're going to be aware of these things and beware of the concision. I suppose that was setting them up.
To go on in Jewish tradition and the rules of men, well, we have to be aware of these things and stay with the truth. I'd like to turn to 1St John chapter 2. Somebody was quoting something of this after the Spirit of God.
He is here. He has written a book. God has given us the book, and the Spirit of God is here to teach us what he is writing in this book. We're here to hear what the fear of God has to say.
And this verse is so clear.
First John 227.
But the anointing of the ocean, now that's the Spirit of God sat down here, which he had. We have the spirit of God.
We see of him a bit of in you. The spirit abides here. We can't drive in the way. We might try to quit him and we might bring him, but he abides, and along with that the truth abides, talking much about the truth and not his children.
The President and in first in the end of Second Corinthians somewhere says we can do nothing against the truth but pour the truth. Whether we don't have to fight for this book, it'll take care of itself. Just read it and believe it. And how are we going to understand it going on with this 27th verse? Again the same the anointing which we have received of him a bit in you and he knew not that any man teach you, not a mere man.
He can use teacher, but the same anointing teaches you. That is the fear that God teaches.
Teaches you of all things. That's the fulfillment of John 16.
And then it says him is true. Who is truth? The Spirit of God is truth.
Let's go to the 6th chapter. The 5th chapter. You'll see that again.
He is true, the 5th chapter in the first John and the sixth verse.
Talking about Jesus manifest as a man, this either came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ not by water only, but by water and blood. That just means that Jesus came a real man. He wanted just words. He wasn't just a spirit, he wasn't just an impression, he had a body.
He came.
And then it goes on, says and it is.
The Spirit that Beareth witnessed. Why? Because the Spirit is true. We have the truth in the spirit of God. We have the truth in the word of God. And Jesus could say, I am the Christian now. We can't do anything against the truth. Get a bite. You're fighting against those. You fight against the truth. You can't do it later. You might tell a lie, but that doesn't do away with the truth. The truth is still somewhere.
And so that they had the Spirit of God. He is true, but we can do something for the truth, brethren. We can help the truth alone. Let's teach, Let's walk in. It is remarkable that that passage you referred to in First John Two is addressed to the babes. Not addressed to mature believers, but to the babes.
And I believe it in connection with the verse you also call attention to in John 16.
And that is, if I might read that again, because I think that those verses are important, versus John 16 verses 13 and 14 I'll be When he the Spirit of truth is come, he shall guide you, he will guide you into all truth, for he shall not speak of himself. But whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, And he will show you things to come, He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you.
00:35:03
And some may have heard me remark this before, but I have often said you can make a simple test of any doctrine that's presented to you by asking Does this line of teaching exalt man or does it exalt Christ? If it exalts men, then it's not of the Spirit of God, because the Spirit of God delights to honor and exalt the Lord Jesus of Christ. And so that's why I believe it's written to babes. I say this because a lot of young people here, and you might say, how am I going to be able to deserve a lot of these things that come up?
Just ask this question. Does this line of teaching exalt man or does it exalt Christ? You'll find with everything that's false, it gives something to man. Just take one simple example of it, the doctrine that many teach that you can be saved and lost. Well, we go to the root of it. Maybe they'll be some perplexing verses that they'll bring before you, but go to the root of it and what is it? It's a little bit of glory for man. That is, the Lord saves you. But now, unless you do your part, you're not going to be in heaven.
He saved you by his grace, but you have to contribute your part or you won't be there.
So you can see that gives glory to man. Take the question of baptism.
Some think that's necessary to salvation. Then I couldn't be in heaven unless a man said certain words over me and put me under the water. That was the completion of my salvation by a man. And so I may not be able to explain all the verses that they bring forward, but I see there's something wrong here.
Preaching is giving glory to man. It's not giving glory to Christ. And I say this for the sake of those who are younger. When people come with these kind of things, get down to the root of it. Does this teaching glorify man or does it glorify Christ? If it's the truth of God, it will glorify Christ that you've been bringing before us, and that's important. And so beware of all those things. Beware of dogs, shameless evil. Beware of evil workers, evil doctrines, the concision. I believe that spiritual pride that you've cut off certain things and you're now doing this and doing that. It's really and a measure is returned to law.
But we are the circumcision. What is the circumcision? It's the knife on self. The children of Israel could not go forward to conquer in the land of Canaan when they entered it until they first lifted the knife on self. God said make sharp knives not for battle with the people of the land, but make the sharp knife for yourself. And when that's been carried out on yourself, then you go forward, counting on the Lord who is the captain of the Lord's host, and he was the one that was going to give the victory.
How wonderful is the word of God. It always gives glory to Christ. What is false brings man in, even if it's only in a little corner. Something that man can glory in, but he's a glorious setting. Glory in the Lord.
Brother, I would just like to add a word of what you had referred to, and to me it is the crux of this portion what we're reading. The fact that when you quoted the joy of the Lord is your strength to get the right perspective there, that it is his joy that in Psalm 104 says the medication of my shall be pleasant unto him.
It all reflects to him and if you have this portion before us and.
And as the young people, if there's anything they do, if it they find that it is joy to him that's going to motivate our heart. But when we have the sense that it is my love or my joy, he's lost his place. It's his joy and his life. And I believe that if he read this portion and please excuse me for making, for coming in here, but I just feel it's so important that we get that sense in our soul. If him, it's his joy and what Paul says in the eighth verse.
In this chapter is that that I may know him, That I may know him well, rather, that's what we need.
One thing to be aware of is how is truth preserved by the Lord among the gathered Saints? Because that's where it is. And you know, it's very important to realize this. It's by the Spirit of truth. That's how it's preserved. And if you realize the spirit of truth, that's the Spirit of God is in each one of us, each one of us. And when one speaks, the others are able to see whether that is according to the word of God in the Spirit.
00:40:04
And that's a precious thing to preserve truth. Example is second team chapter 4. When they look, the sons of the prophets look to Elijah type of Christ. And she said bring the great plot and one went out and he got together. Gorge, wild gorge. You know, a laptop, not hard to get it out there in Christendom. You get a laptop, you get it at ease, sit down and get it. And he brought it and shred it in the pot. So nobody knew.
Now this happens, brethren. Does that mean we're helpless? Of course not.
Did one discern that there was poison in the spot? By the way? They didn't say poison, they said death, but all of them discerned. There was death in the pot. And when one speaks in assembly and thank God it's true, if we do not give the truth, it's going to be judged. It's going to be corrected.
That's how truth is preserved. They all knew there was death in that life, not just one.
What Bob is saying is so important that I think it shows out in John's ministry in a remarkable way.
Writings and the Epistles. He writes 1 Epistle to the Elect Laden, and her children to my loving the truth. Then he writes the 35th of John to the well beloved Gaius. And there was Demetrius there. Well, those two epistles make much of the truth, and when the situation got so bad, where diastrophe was.
John didn't go there and fix it up. He and he was an apostle. He had apostles authority but he didn't do it that way because it's written for us when we don't have a problem, but we do have the truth. It is the truth that holds the truth. Now we have the truth and the faith. We have the apostles, writings and the prophets writings. We have the word of God and thy word of truth.
So the way for poor brethren in 1997 to be kept?
Is through. The Trojans get obliged and it's strong enough to stand up against any of these evil workers and.
Please don't. And those who set up their own rules and have a moral way to answer questions. But it it won't hold the truth and it won't keep souls, and it won't make you happy. It'll put you under law and a burden. So how wonderful he is. He shall know the truth.
And the truth shall make you free. And this is the most precious thing that we have committed to us down here, to abide in the truth and notice the the word concision and the word circumcision. And the same CISION. They're related words with a different preposition in the front of them. And he says beware of the concision. Now these are the legalists.
These are those that.
Are they were pressing circumcision of the Gentiles because that mark in the flesh they felt made one superior to others. So they were trying to elevate these Christian Gentiles into a superior place in the flesh which they occupied with respect to the Gentiles. In the Old Testament, the Jews were the circumcised ones.
But Paul says beware of that legal spirit. He wrote the whole Epistle to the Galatians to refute that teaching of the circumcision and that they were. He says if he be circumcised, he are debtors to keep the whole law. You can't pick and choose like people do today.
They're going to pick this commandment or that one. If you if you're circumcised, if you're committed to that principle of circumcision that the Jews were pressing, that's the concision. And then Paul says we Christians are the circumcision. What is circumcision really speak of spiritually, a total cutting off and judgment on the flesh. So he said, we Christians are the true circumcision, and those that are pressing it after a physical sort are the concision, and they are not true to the gospel.
And he wrote that whole epistle to the Galatians. He says he desire to get the Gentile circumcised, that he made glory in their flesh. And that's what Gordon was saying. It's something that we can glory in in the flesh. And you look around with and Christensen today and you see.
00:45:13
Just about. And just I shouldn't say just about every false religion, whether it's Christendom or the world, whether it's Hinduism or Mohammedism or whatever, every false religion is based upon the flesh doing something in order to gain God's acceptance. And that's just the opposite to Christianity. That was the principle of Judaism too, and they had to learn that God gave that to show the man that he cannot gain acceptance with himself on that principle.
That's why the law was given. And now we have grace that brings us into blessing. We are the true circumcision, which worship God by the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. The true Circumcision are those that recognize that the flesh profiteth nothing.
So the two words are related, but they mean exactly the same. The opposite things don't. They can and circumstances. Circa means all the way around the circumference. We use that word there, but it's complete cutting off. It's any area.
All the way around there is no place for the clash. Confession itself need to just think of the little word cutting at the flesh. And so they cut acts and make rules and regulations to control the flesh because for them.
Their flesh is not entirely cut off. But to understand our position now in Christ is to recognize that God has set us in a place where he no longer recognizes the flesh in any way, shape, or form.
And he's made this way so wonderful that we can worship Lord and the Spirit, the highest occupation, the greatest joy we can ever have is to worship God in the Spirit. And he wants that. And you can't do that except according to God's way. There was one way to get into the Tabernacle. That was God's word. No other way would work. Typically, it was all there.
Of course it's people couldn't get in there. Well, let's.
Thing was standing, but the type of it was that we have to.
Come God's way, and that's the way of worship today. There are no details into the presence of God to be there because his glory to praise and to worship it has to be God. It's quite simple here in spirit and in truth.
I mean worship God in the spirit of putting out John Four what you want to get to. But there are three things here. It's in the Spirit what you have to have the Holy Spirit and he has to Your spirit has to be in subjective to his spirit. But if you got that, you've got to start. But we've got a person to bring. We don't come empty handed. We've got Christ Jesus to bring him in and worship comes that finally no confidence in the place but that.
Can't get you. Can't get to God.
Anything of the flesh, he won't let it, that no place should glory in his threshold.
So to the woman. The Lord has said the woman believed John four Do we believe God? Do we believe the Lord Jesus? Do we believe this word?
The hour cometh and now is when the true worshippers shall worship God in the Spirit. I better read that to get that let's John fool. Let's look at those words because they go somewhere with what we have here.
John 4.
Yeah, but.
Believe me 21 verse 21 Jesus say it under her woman. Believe me, That's where we start. We believe what the Lord Jesus has put down, believe me. And then he goes on and tells her.
The hour cometh, and when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem.
00:50:01
Worship the Father. Then the Samaritan said he worketh. You know not once they were all mixed up. Error come in way back in the we know what we work. If that is the Jews had a God-given book and they knew God in the type and God accepted them up to the point they believed God.
We know what we worship for salvation is of the Jews. The Lord brought the hour cometh and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Now there are those two records you don't get to God in worship. Any other way have to be in by the Spirit and in truth.
The nice thing is coming up.
For the Father seeketh to worship him, we started out with the person of Christ. He's the object before us.
Now God set his object upon us. He isn't exactly asking us for worship. He's wanting us there. He wants his children there to bring the glories of Christ that we've enjoyed and put them in His ears. Wonderful. Thank you, Worship. You need to see the contrast between Judaism and Christianity, because in Judaism they did have those things ordered of God. The Tabernacle was made according to the pattern that was shown to.
Moses on the Mount and Solomon's temple was built according to a pattern given to Solomon by the Spirit. And so that order of things was given to test man in the flesh. Why did God give such a beautiful temple? Why did he give robes? Why did he give all those instructions? Man was under trial previous to the cross. Could anything good reproduce? Would Ban become a worshiper because he had a fine building? Because the singers had white robes? Because they had a multitude of instruments?
Would that make him a true worshipper?
For a nation that had all those things, with the very nation that rejected the Lord Jesus, he walked out of the temple and said, your house is left unto you desolate. And Paul, speaking on Mars Hill, says to the Athenians, neither is worshipped by men's hands as though he needed anything. Seeing he give us to all life and breath and all things, we have to see the difference between Judaism and Christianity. God did give a fine building. He did give roads, He did give musical instruments.
Those things. But now, as our brother is mentioned, he was saying to this woman, there's a new order of things coming in. Neither at Jerusalem, not in this mountain. The true worshippers worship the Father in spirit and in truth. And that's where the new wine is put into the new bottles. That's where the new garment of Christianity comes in. And so as we sang to him in the opening of this meeting, wasn't how well we could sing, it was whether there was true melody and worship in our hearts.
That's what God accepted. That is what is produced by the Spirit. I think it's so important for us to see that it was an order of things given of God in Judaism, but it's entirely set aside in Christianity and as we have.
In Hebrews chapter 13, we go on to Him without the camp. What do we offer? The fruit of our lips? Giving thanks to His name. Outside of our ritual of Judaism, we worship the Father in spirit and in truth. And that's what it was hard for the early believers to get hold of this. They still clung to the old thing, and in much of Christianity they cling to the old saying and even ourselves. Brethren, I say again, isn't how well we can sing. That's whether it comes from the heart, produced in the heart by the spirit of God.
That is true worship.
In that 13th chapter of Hebrews that you mentioned, the conclusion that the spirit of God brings to four both Hebrew Christians is that we have an alternative. Christians have an order at which they serve. The sovereignty will have the right to eat. There is no place in Christianity for bringing in Judaism. That's the conclusion. The Spirit of God constant.
When the Lord said in John Four, as then brought out, the Father seeketh such to worship him in spirit and in truth, That's what we do tomorrow morning and that's what the Father wants. And there's a beautiful thought in numbers. I think it's 28, numbers 28.
00:55:06
Verse one and two.
The Lord spake unto Moses, and what he said in verse two is Give me my prayer.
I put it in my words, command the children of Israel, and say unto them my office, my bread for my sacrifice made by fire, a sweet favor unto me. That's the burnt offering, That's Christ. It's all Christ. And I sort of put it that way on Wednesday morning. He really says, give me my bread, that's what I want. And you know, when we are occupied with Christ, by the Spirit on that, on that wonderful hour.
God gets his bread.
What is do is that's worship.
It's very important to see that because I believe that true worship springs really from a heart that has an appreciation of the person and work of Christ and really what the person and work of Christ means to the heart of God. Sometimes I come on Wednesday morning and if I'm really honest with myself, there wasn't as much worship. There wasn't a response in my heart like perhaps there ought to have been. Why was it? Well, I wasn't in the enjoyment of the person and work of Christ during the week, Brethren, we cannot expect to come on work day mornings and have something to pour out in praise and worship if we haven't been in the enjoyment of the person and work of Christ.
During the week it's unthinkable to think that we can come and sit down at 11:00 on Wednesday morning and then set aside all the cares of the world and all the things that perhaps are our responsibilities and so on. And never having had any thought of Christ during the week, so all of a sudden have a response in our heart. There must be that enjoyment of Christ during the week that we might have something to pour out. It says, let none appear before me empty rather than we ought to be exercised by that verse. Do we come on Wednesday morning? I say it to my own heart. Do I come on, Lord, see morning. And I don't have anything in my basket. I come empty. Brother, may it not be so with us. Why is it? I'm going to speak very practical for a moment.
One is that sometimes when we sit down collectively to worship the Lord on Lord's Day Morning, but there are long pauses at the breaking of bread.
I believe rather more often than not, it's because it's because of our own weakness. We haven't enjoyed the person of Christ individually. How can we come and collectively worship him? The assembly can be no more than the individuals that make it up. Now, I don't say that there isn't times we wait on the Spirit and so on. I don't want to take away from that. But, brethren, when we sit 10 or 15 minutes in the breaking of bread with dead silence, it ought to exercise our hearts. Sometimes I don't want to speak facetiously. Sometimes I think the chairs are going to cry out.
We sometimes sing that hymn brightness of the eternal glory shall I pray?
On uttered life, just if you allow me just to draw a little practical application from what you have in John chapter 2.
I know there's a prophetic character there to the marriage of Canaan and Israel and so on, but I've often barely thought of those six water pots that were set there at six days of the week. And when they lack wine, which speaks of joy and praise in the scriptures. What was the answer? Well, they were to fill the water pots and they were to fill them full, and they were to fill them with water. How are we going to enjoy Christ? It's the word of God because we have the scriptures before us and we are enjoying the person and work of Christ, which the water perhaps speaks to us of if we fill the six water pot 6 days of the week.
Then we'll have something, shall I say, on the 7th day to come and to pour out to the true governor of the feast. But if the water pots are full of water during the week, there's not going to be anything that he will be able to turn to wine to praise and joy. Well, I just say this to exercise my own soul. I believe, as I said earlier, that true worship springs from the measures which we have an appreciation and the measure in which we are in the enjoyment of the person and work of Christ, and what it means to God the Father.
I'd like to add one thought. There's so many here. We are all priests. We have all US standings to offer under God.
Worship has nothing to do with gift to the church, and so all the brothers and the sisters are priests too. They have their fart, and I believe sometimes it's greater than any brother. But that's not the point here. All of us have the privilege to empty our baskets that morning. Wonderful. And you should. It doesn't take gifts if the Spirit puts him on your heart to call it. It doesn't take gifts to praise a simple prayer.
01:00:05
Thanking God for his Son. It doesn't take gifts for these things, but the Spirit of God will let us then offer His bread to the Father. That's all we're doing. Give me my bread.
Says in Hebrews chapter 13, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually. And I think sometimes rather than the reason why we don't have much on Sunday morning is because we haven't really made it a practice of our lives to praise Him continually. Is it true in our homes there's a meeting or not a meeting? Brother, we need to praise the Lord. That's our testimony.
Sometimes we think of our we talk about our testimony, thinking about ourselves. Brethren, our testimony really is the result of occupation with Christ and letting the praises flow to the glory of his name. That's going to result in the setting forth of the Christ of God. And souls are going to be attracted. So often when we put ourselves forward, so are discouraged. The brethren is studying the Christ of God.
Before our souls, not only our Lord today morning like every day of the week. I just like to comment a little bit further on this. We worship God in the Spirit because I think it's important for those who are younger to understand why we don't use music.
Why we don't have fancy buildings like what's common in what? Like with characteristic in Judaism, as we've heard, it was proper in the Old Testament, and there was no more elegant building than Solomon's Temple with its great costly stones covered with gold and silver and precious stones. It was of God in that time. It was.
A worship. It was a service.
Worship that was adapted to man in the flesh and man in the flesh could appreciate it, and I'm sure if we would have seen that building we would have been amazed ourselves and impressed by it. But now it's totally different. The character of our worship is not that. It's in spirit, and I've heard sometimes young people say that they don't sing in the meetings because I don't have a very good voice to sing.
I really can't make much of music. I'm not gifted that way, so I bet just keep my mouth closed. I want to encourage you, even if you can't make a very good noise, to make it anyhow, because it's what flows from the heart that is pleasing to God. We do not come when we come to worship the Lord, to please our own ears. That's Judaism. We come to please God here and what pleases his ear as he looks down.
Into our mix when we're together to praise Him is not music that pleases Ari. We're so self-centered in this society that we live in that we often think of what pleases are you. That's not the point today. It's pleasing God's ear that counts when he sees a heart that is truly touched with gratitude to the Lord Jesus and to him for having given the Lord Jesus why, that is pleasing to his ear.
We need to concentrate, understand that.
And worship in spirit. Not told to sing beautifully. We're told to make a joyful noise under the Lord. We will be beautiful singers when we get home. But I suggest rather Bob that we're not the singers we once were. And I think this is a problem because when we were growing up. Thankfully I can look back to many times when there were impromptu him things around the brothers piano. He went out to visit someone in the evening and it ended up that you had a little thing brethren sing in their homes. But I'm saddened.
That there's a generation coming on that aren't the singers that Brethren once were. And I just encourage those of us who have families at the family reading Get out the little Flop hymn book. Get out the echoes of great hymn book. Really, we have a tremendous heritage of good scriptural hymns. Get it out and teach them to your children.
Tremendous blessing to my own soul, and I'm thankful that as I look back, I took the trouble when I was a little younger to memorize some of these beautiful hymns that we have. It says speaking to yourselves and hymns and songs and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart for the Lord. This is part of offering the sacrifice of praise to God, not just for one hour on Lord's Day, but continually.
01:05:05
Kevin 187, I just make a comment, Bob, in regard to what you're saying, very practical. My brother who had to do the truth and was brought for the first time in a conference in Chicago.
And the first time that he was amongst the brothers and.
A using statement was very helpful to us, I think, he said. He never sat in the midst of so many people who didn't know how to sing and yet how beautiful it sounded when they were all singing together.
187.
Perhaps.