Address—J. Brereton
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General Meetings, Montreal, October 1971. Addressed by John Burton.
Guide us all, Thou gracious Savior, pilgrims through this barren land. We are weak, but thou art mighty. Hold us with thy powerful hand.
#276 remain seated and that some brotherhood started for us.
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I would like to look for a little while this afternoon.
To 2nd Kings chapter 4.
Second Kings chapter 4.
And beginning with verse 38.
And Elisha came again to Gilgal.
And there was a dirt in the land.
And the sons of the prophets were sitting before him.
And he said unto his servant sat on the great pot, and seat pottage for the sons of the prophets.
And one went out into the field to gather herbs and found a wild vine.
And gathered thereof wild gourds, his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage.
For they knew them not.
So they poured out for the men to eat.
And it came to pass as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out and said.
All thou man of God, there is death in the pot.
And they could not eat thereof.
What? He said. Then bring meals.
And he cast it into the pot and he said, pour out for the people that they may eat.
And there was no harm in the pot.
And there came a man from bail, Shalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the first fruit.
20 loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.
And his servator said, What should I set this before 100 men?
He said again, Give the people that they may eat, for thus, saith the Lord, they shall eat, and shall leave their own.
So he set it before them.
And they delete and left thereof according to the word of the Lord.
I believe, dear young people.
But in this portion of the word of God that we've read this afternoon.
We find something that can be of instruction for us.
And perhaps particularly.
So today.
We find in this account given to us here in Second Kings.
That the record opens with the announcement that there was a dirt in the land.
And your young people, we heard just this morning mentioned in the reading meeting.
That we live at a time in a day when indeed in Christendom generally.
There is a famine for the truth of God.
That well, there is a great profession, perhaps, of Christianity Today.
There is very little, if any, knowledge of the truth of God.
As we have it revealed in the Word of God.
Well, we find that art at this occasion when it was announced that there was a dirt in the land.
We find that there was provision made.
For the sons of the prophets.
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Who sat in the company of Elijah?
You notice in the first verse that we read that there was a dirt in the land.
And the sons of the prophets were sitting before him.
Well, one has enjoyed in these types that we get presented in the Old Testament many things.
But the portion before me this afternoon is to view in this picture before us.
A company.
Enjoying the presence of Elijah, the man of God.
And finding dear young people that.
They're sitting in His presence, sitting in the presence of the man of God.
Provision was being made to feed the sons of the prophets.
We find that as they sat there in the presence of Elijah, that he gives the instruction to his servant.
Set on the great pot, and seek pottage for the sons of the prophets.
Dear young people, God is seeing to it that by the Spirit of God.
The Lord Jesus is directing by the Spirit of God.
That provision might be made for your needs.
As far as feeding your soul is concerned.
We find that they were sitting.
With Elijah, what precious company to be in, to be in the company of the man of God.
Oh dear young people, do you know what it is to sit down in the company of God's man? To sit down in the company of the Lord Jesus Christ?
And to find to find.
That the Lord himself by his spirit.
Has set on the great part.
That the pottage might be sealed, That the food might be ministered to your soul and to mine.
Let me ask you a question.
Your soul refreshed this morning as we sat under the ministry of the Word of God.
Such a precious, simple ministry of the truth of God as we had this morning.
One was so struck when the meeting was over.
To, as it were, realized that there had been really nothing new brought out this morning. And yet one left that meeting refreshed. The truth of God had been ministered.
Young people who prepared it for us.
The Lord Jesus Christ by His Spirit has set on the great part, and there was the food for us, minister to us, by His servants, minister to us, as we see here the pottage prepared by the servant of Elijah. One believes in one's own soul, soul. We have a picture here of the Spirit of God.
That prepares the truth for us.
It is poured out by the sons of the prophets.
Before we go on to the portion of this, particularly before me, one would hope that we might lay hold of this picture for ourselves to see.
That there is prepared for us as we sit in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, the food that your soul and mind needs, that we might be nourished in the things of God.
You notice too, that thing that which was laid on in the great pot. All one has enjoyed that expression, the great pot.
Dear young people, we couldn't possibly.
Take in all the wonderful truths of God that He has for your and soul enjoyment and mine. It's a great part, a great truth of God that He has for you and I to enjoy.
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But it tells us that it was a part of pottage.
In meditating on this portion 1 wondered about that.
Set on the great part, and see Pottage for the Sons of the Prophets.
Dear young people, why is it?
That some young people and older ones too, or the older ones, those of us who are older are not exempt. We come to the reading of the word of God.
And we go away after the meeting is over and we, as it were, all we've seen is cottage. We haven't seen that what we had before us.
We haven't enjoyed what we had before us as food for the soul.
Instead, we find that because we are not in happy communion, because our hearts are occupied with other things, because the worldliness, or because critical spirits have come in to our own heart, we find that that which God has prepared.
As food for our souls we have little appreciation of.
Dear young people, if if the truth of God ministers in these meetings has not been the enjoyment of your soul, if you found little in these meetings these last few days to refresh your heart.
Don't criticize the weathering for it.
Don't criticize the ones who have ministered it though, I'm sure they would own that it's been ministered in weakness.
But we want to look to our own hearts before the Lord as to why that which the Spirit of God has prepared as food for our souls we haven't enjoyed.
That which God has prepared for our nourishment we have looked upon as simply pottage.
Well, the danger, and that which is particularly before me this afternoon, we find coming in in the next verse. And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof Wild gourd. His lap falls, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage, for they knew them not.
Dear young people.
In this day, this year, this month, today.
One of the outstanding things, if we could call it that.
In the world around us.
Is the spirit of criticism of all things that are established. It's become a popular thing to quote the expression criticize the establishment.
We find here that there was one of the sons of the prophets.
Instead of being content to sit in the presence of Elijah.
Instead of being content to obtain his nourishment from that which the servant of Elijah provided, instead of being content to take that which was being prepared as food for his enjoyment, he goes out into the field.
With the thought in mind of finding something.
To improve the pottage, find something that he can bring in that will improve it, that will make it more attractive, make it more palatable, make it more tasty, whatever is thought.
And yet, dear young people, the striking thing is that he went out to get the additional ingredients. He went out into an area that we had already read was characterized by dirt. He went out into an area where there was a family and wanted to find something that he could bring in that would improve on that which the man of God.
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Was providing for them well dear young people, when he went out looking for it.
When he went out looking for it in the field, he found what looked to him to be more attractive. He found what he thought would be an improvement. He went out into the area of famine and found a flourishing gourd, a flourishing vine, so much so that he was able to fill his lap with these gourds that he found.
And after he had found them, he brought them back.
And you notice the expression that's used. He shreds them into the pot. He put them into the pot, not as growers, not in great big lumps that would be readily identified, but he shreds them into the pot. He added to what had been provided already.
And he added it in a way that it became disguised. It was shredded into the pot.
Dear, beloved young people.
I say to you, as I say to my own soul when I read these words, this is a great danger for us to feel that in this thing as contrasted to 10 years ago or 20 years ago or 100 years ago.
That we can borrow from the characteristics of the field of famine around us and add to the truth of God in order to make it more attractive, in order to make it more palatable.
You notice one thing also that said about this man, and about that when he shredded it into the pot, it says, and they knew it will not the end of the 39th verse before they knew them not. I am not suggesting, dear young people, that we go out, or that you or I might go out and look for strange things to introduce into the truth of God.
Deliberately knowing that it is going to cause.
Heartache, difficulty and death as we see here.
This man who went out, the son of the one of the sons of the prophets, when he went out and gathered what he found, his intentions undoubtedly were good and furthermore, dear young people, what he brought in, he didn't know the character of it, He didn't realize what he was introducing.
But nevertheless the effect was the same.
The effect was the same. The world says you've got to change.
You've got to change with the times. You've got to change with the as the years go by. But beloved young people, the truth of God does not change what God has for us today. The truth for our souls to enjoy today is the same truth that was ministered to the Lord's people 100 years ago. The same truth. And it was theirs to enjoy them, and it is ours to enjoy now.
And we are not going to improve upon it. We are not going to make it more palatable. We are not going to make it more helpful to the Saints of God, even with the best of intentions, by bringing in that which is strange and which has not been prepared by the servant of the man of God, if it is not that which the Spirit of God has prepared for His people.
Dear young people, it is not going to be of any use, but rather it is going to do grievous harm. Oh, how often we hear.
From young and some not so young.
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Saying we think things should be different, that things should be done differently today.
That we should change, that we have seen this kind of thing work in business or in other parts of Christendom. That we have seen ideas used, and we saw the work there. Dear young people, this gourd, this vine, it flourished out in the field. It produced fruit out in the field, but not fruit for God, not what God could use.
That which would feed his people. The result is that when they had introduced it, when they had shredded it into the pot so that it outward identity was lost, the result was there was now death in the pot. All beloved young people.
The Satan himself longs to introduce death into the pot. And if you and I are not careful.
We can be instruments in His hands to bring in that amongst the Saints of God that will be harmful, that will be damaging, that will bring death in, rather than that which would nourish and be of help and encouragement to the Saints of God. We find that when this had happened, so they poured out for the men to eat.
Now we noticed beforehand that the order was that the man of God, this type perhaps of Christ, gives the instruction. We have the servant, the Spirit of God, who sets the pot and provides the food. And then we have the sons of the prophets who poured it out. All dear young people, we saw some of it being poured out this morning.
That which was being poured out was for your encouragement, for your souls, nourishment, and for mine. We had some poured out yesterday and the day before. We've had three days of pouring out and the great pot is still full. But beloved young people, let us be very careful. Let us be very, very careful before God that we don't try.
We don't even try to introduce into this great part, this precious ministry of the Spirit of God that's for your soul benefit and mine, that which would bring in death. All around us, all around us, there are wild things that we can bring in that we can introduce into the Assembly of God.
That we can bring in.
And add to the ministry of the Word of God. But the result will be as it was here. There is death in the pot.
When these ones went to taste of it, they recognized thankful we can see it. They recognized that that which had been added.
Would produce death.
Dear, beloved young people.
Their recourse when this took place was to cry to the man of God and beloved young people.
We don't have to look any farther than our own hearts. We don't have to look any. At least speaking for oneself, we don't have to look any farther than our own hearts to see that that which.
Can be picked up all around us in this world. Find the lodging place in our hearts.
But, beloved young people, what are we going to do about it? What are we going to do about it?
These things come in, some of them have already come in.
Some of the things that come in that have already come in amongst the Saints of God.
Give his people much heartache.
What is our recourse? What are we going to do?
When we see worldliness in our own hearts, when we see worldly practices in our own hearts, when we see those worldly practices coming in amongst the Saints of God, what are we going to do? Well, the sons of the prophets, when they recognize, and all beloved young people, May God give us to recognize death in the pot when there is there.
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May God give us to see that which has been added in any measure. That is not the teaching of the Spirit of God, it's not the ministry of the Spirit of God, but that which has been added in some cases, as one said, to make it more palatable, to make it more attractive. Oh, you'll hear it said if you, if you, if you're too faithful, if you minister the truth faithfully.
Some of the young people are some of the older Saints or some of the Lord's people are going to be offended.
Beloved young people, what are we to do? Are we to give up the truth of God?
Are we to say just some of the gourds? We'll let some of the gourds stay know our recourse is to cry to the man of God we find it says.
And it came to pass as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out and said, All thou man of God, there is death in the pot, and they could not eat their own beloved young people.
To you instead of. And I say this to my own heart more than anyone.
Do you, instead of criticizing the Lord's people, instead of criticizing the Lord's servants, instead of criticizing the brethren who seek to minister the truth of God, do you pray to the man of God, to God's man, that his people might be preserved from the death that comes in so easily?
We see as each conference goes by, we see many new faces, ones who have been added, dear young people who are going on in the truth, and one rejoices and thanks God for it. We see young families established. We see families coming to these conferences that last year were not families at all, but God has added.
But then we sometimes see those who are missing.
Those who have been stumbled, those who have been turned aside, those who have gone off after something else and their young people. Do you ever search your own heart?
1/6 grace search ones own heart as to any measure in which we have contributed to their being stumbled or turned aside if we have in any way brought in through young people.
Through older ones, whatever it is, in any way that we have introduced that which has put death there, which has caused a stumbling or a turning aside for those who are the Lord, the Scripture says make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way. And so we find that they cry to the man of God. There is death in the pot.
Beloved young people.
We have a resource.
A resource that is all powerful, one who loves your soul very much. And he longs to hear us turn to him and ask him to come in and deliver his people.
Oh, I don't suppose I I'm sure I can't get the birth of my heart across in this.
But we hear so much discussion today.
About the troubles.
And the difficulties that afflict the people of God, beloved young people.
The resources of our brethren of 100 years ago. The resources that Paul had in his name.
Are the very same resources that are yours today.
If you have the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior.
You have the word of God, the complete reward of God, you have the Spirit of God, and God has granted to you the privilege, and I mean every word of it, the ineffable privilege of being where the truth of God is ministered, where no part of it, even though there is much failure and weakness.
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Where no part of it is set aside as not being applicable today. Beloved young people, that great part, that wondrous.
Collection of food for your soul is ministered. Do you thank God for it? And is it your desire? Is it my desire to ensure in with grace and through grace a long supply of God?
To see that we in Norway.
Encourage.
The adding of that which will bring in harm to the people of God.
You notice it says when they cried to him, all thou man of God, there is death in the pot, and they could eat not could not eat thereof. But he said, then bring meal.
You know there's a danger for us when we're young, perhaps.
Perhaps older too, but there's a danger for us to feel that we want something new.
We want something different. We sometimes hear someone say, well, that's the same thing that we heard last year.
We heard the same thing the year before.
Dear young people, when they cried to the Lord, what was His remedy? The sons of the prophets had introduced some. One of the sons of the prophets had introduced something new, but it had brought in death. But now the man of God, he doesn't introduce anything new. He simply introduces again that which was already there.
Get then bring meals and he cast that into the pot.
Beloved young people, as we mentioned before.
Do you come to conferences to hear something new?
And you go away disappointed, perhaps because there was nothing new, Brother So and so got up and spoke, and he said the same thing that you'd heard last year or the year before.
All beloved Saints of God, God doesn't have things that are new. If it's it has been said, if it's new, it's not true, and if it's true, it's not new. The truth of God that we have for the enjoyment of our souls now is that which Paul enjoys, that which Paul ministered from that prison and rule, that's the food that God has for you.
To enjoy now when we speak about the Lord's coming.
Dear young people, Paul was looking for the Lord's coming, and now 2000 years have gone by and you and I are looking for the Lord coming. It's not new, but it can be the joy of your soul if you're walking in communion and in the expectation that He's coming very soon. When they cried to the man of God, he introduces again that which had already been prepared by the Spirit of God before.
He adds to it what was already there. And beloved young people, we come to a conference like this again. I want to say how much my soul enjoyed that meeting this morning. I came away refreshed, refreshed in spirit, even though there was nothing particularly new. But I found one soul refreshed as the Spirit of God poured out for my soul from the great part, some of that precious food that the Spirit of God had prepared for us.
But he used his servants to pour it out.
But he said then bring meal and he cast it into the pot and he said pour out for the people.
That they may eat and there was number harm in the pot.
All dear young people, one has been struck with this expression and there was number harm.
In the pot where the spirit of God.
Prepares.
The food that His servants pour out, there is no harm to the people of God. There may be that which reaches our consciences. There may be that which causes exercise in the presence of God. And if there is, then one seeks for oneself grace to thank God for it. That He spoke to my heart and to my conscience about that thing which His eyes saw needed.
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Corrections, but that ministry by the Spirit of God.
The ministry from the great part that has been prepared by the Spirit at the direction of the Lord Jesus Himself. Beloved young people, that ministry brings no harm. It will not harm you in your pathway of obedience of service to Christ. It will not harm you in any way, but it will.
Feed your soul.
It will nourish that new life that is yours as a child of God. All dear young people.
When we lay hold of the picture, we have the Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the body, who loves every member of that body.
We have the Spirit of God, that by which we are joined together by 1 Spirit into one body, and we have the Spirit of God preparing for us in this great part, this food for our souls. Now, dear young people, if you and I are not enjoying it, if we are not enjoying the ministry of the Word of God by the Spirit, or it may be given with stammering lips.
It may be giving it given in a halting way. It may be given with poor English. It may be given with very little manifestation of gift. But, beloved young people, if it comes from Christ, the ascended head, it's for your soul's enjoyment, for the nourishment of your soul by His Spirit. And if you're not enjoying it, why?
All the first inclination is to say that's brother, so and so I I he just.
My brother will pardon me using an expression that's used so often today. He just turns me off to hear him. He just turns me off. Dear young people, it isn't a question of being turned off by brother so and so. If it's the truth of God, it was for your soul's enjoyment. It was food for your soul. Now, if you didn't enjoy it, why is it because of brother so and so?
The question is, was it the truth of God?
Was it according to the Word of God? If it was, then your soul can enjoy it even if the brother himself has given it out.
As.
Can easily be done in a very poor way or a poor manner. Even dear young people will hear it said well.
That brother isn't even walking in the truth. He's giving it out, and he isn't even walking in it himself.
Dear young people, that is so often true. So are speaking for oneself. It is so often true.
But if it's the truth of God, if it's what the Spirit of God has prepared for your soul, then you can enjoy it. You should be in the enjoyment of it. You can receive it from the Lord even if you find that which is not in keeping in the one who ministers it. Beloved young people, I say this to my own heart.
This day is a day where it is popular to criticize.
Where it is popular, it is the popular thing. It is the end thing to be able to say, well, I don't agree.
I don't agree.
But the Spirit of God is preparing for our soul's enjoyment, for the ministry that we need, and He uses His service to pour it out for us.
Beloved young people, let us receive it. Let us see grace from the Lord, to receive it from Him, and not to be occupied with the servant, but occupied with Christ.
When we go on to the last part of this chapter, one has been struck about in the that in the first part that we read, we have that which we might call the collective scene. We have the Spirit of God preparing for His people this great pot, and we have them pouring it out.
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And we have the admonition, the warning of the danger of introducing death into the pot.
But another thing that we hear so often today.
Is what am I going to do? What am I going to do? Dear young people, what are you going to do and what way? In what way can you?
Best serve Christ and his people.
Has been struck in this further portion that we read at the end of the chapter. We find here that there was a man.
There came a man from Baal Cilicia, and brought the man of God bread of the first fruits.
20 Loaves of barley and full ears of corn in the husk thereof.
Mr. Darby translates that fresh ears of corn in the husk thereof.
And he said, Give unto the people, that they may eat. Now we have an individual here.
An individual and what is he doing?
Beloved young people, he is bringing to the man of God the first fruits. His first fruits. He is bringing to him, to the man of God fresh years, of course.
What are you going to do with your life? What am I going to do with blind? Are we saying if we've heard it said so often, there are thousands, millions of souls all around us?
What are we going to do about them?
We sometimes hear it said, you people are too, you look too much to yourself. There isn't enough outgoing, beloved young people. The direction that God would have by his Spirit from my soul and for yours is to give Christ the first fruits. Bring to him the first fruits of your life. Give to him and all. How one says this to oneself more than anyone.
Give to Him the 1St place, the 1St place and He will use it in a way that is for His glory. We have this man. He comes and brings to the man of God the first fruits. He brings to Him 20 rules bread of the first fruit, 20 loaves of barley and full or fresh years of corn. What are you going to do? Are we going to give Christ? Are we going to give to the Lord Jesus Christ the first place?
The first place some of you are not just at the time where you're planning your lives.
Where you're looking and wondering about what you're going to do next, perhaps about college, perhaps about work, perhaps about having a family, what being married, whatever it is, here are young people. The instruction, the direction that we get and I believe it's presented to us here in this type is that the man of God, we bring to him the first fruits. Now we notice that there were those who said.
When the man of God said, Give unto the people that they may eat.
And his servator or his attendant. This isn't the same person as the servant in the earlier part of the chapter.
It may be that this was the servator or attendant of the man from bail Shalissa, I'm not sure, but it's a different word that's used than the servant that we read about earlier. This man, he says what?
Should I set this before 100 men? Dear young people.
The scripture speaks about despising the day of small things. God has given to you certain talents, certain ability, whatever it is, and that is what He would have you use for him. Now, what is the result when He gets the first fruits? When the first fruits, the first things in our life, the first place in our life, in my life.
Is presented to him, then he says that his people will be fed.
His people will be fed. There were those who looked upon it and said, what do you mean? From this small offering, from this little thing, you're going to feed all these people. Yes, dear young people, if you place, if you and I place in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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The first fruits of our lives. He will use it not only.
Wondrous as it is for the feeling of His people, but there will be that leftover, there will be a full measure of that which runs over you. Notice it says, And he said, Give unto the people that they may eat. And his servator said, What should I set this before 100 men? He said, again, Give the people that they may eat, for thus that the Lord they shall eat.
And shall leave thereof from this offering, this small offering that this man brought.
100 men were fed, and there was that which was leftover. Beloved young people, we have come here to these meetings and we have seen the Lord Jesus provide. Provide for our material needs, true, but above all, provide for our spiritual needs, ministering the truth of God. Now, dear young people, how can you help? How can I help? What can you do?
All there are, there are going to be those who will save.
Very much, not very much. You don't have very much. But beloved young people, if what we give to the Lord is the 1St place, the first fruits, whatever they are, the 1St place, if we allow Him by grace that He supplies to use us for His glory, the result is that the people of God are fed.
One was struck in meditating on this portion of the contrast.
Between the son of the prophet who went out and gathered from the field and brought that which would bring only death, and this one who brought up the first fruits and offered them to the man of God, and the result was that the people of God were fed. Oh, dear young people.
In this day, I say again, in this day in which we live now.
The spirit of the age is to criticize. The spirit of the age is to prove that the young are the ones who are as if we're taking over. Now, dear young people, that, and I say it, I trust as a voice of my own heart, that is not according to the mind of God. And if we are not careful, we are going to gather, we are going to pick up.
From the fields around us.
We are going to gather from a scene where there is only famine.
The wild things, and bring them in, and rob the Saints of God, of the food that the Spirit of God has for them.
Instead.
May we have grace, may I have, and you have grace from the Lord to bring to Him the first fruits of our lives.
And the result will be that the people of God will be fed.
As the Lord uses that which we place in His hands.
For His glory.
Might we sing hymn #17?
May the grace of Christ our Savior and the Fathers boundless love.
With the Holy Spirit's favor, rest upon us from above #17 Remain seated, and some brother will start it for us.
Holy Spirit.
Spare heart.
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Oh God.