Purpose & Prayer

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Address—C. Andersen
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General Meetings, Toronto, March 1967 Address for Brother Anderson.
Let us turn to hymn #46 in the appendix, please.
Have I an object, Lord below, which would divide my heart with thee, which would divert it even flow in answer to thy constancy? Oh, teach me quickly to return and 'cause my heart afresh to burn #46 in the back of the book.
All right. And of Jacob Jacob.
So there are 1054 dollars blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah.
Shall we pray?
I would like to read one verse in Psalm 27.
Verse 4.
One thing have I desired of the Lord.
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That will I seek after that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.
Perhaps the last should read to inquire of him in his temple.
Farmers tires before him. One thing here.
And surely it's the Lord himself. But he says I have desired it.
No doubt you dear young people who know the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior. You have desires and I'm sure you're the Lord. You have a desire to please him, to walk worthy of him.
You don't want to walk carelessly. Surely you do have a desire that when the Lord comes, you might have been walking pleasing to him, that you might hear his well done, Thou good and faithful servant. Surely all of us have that kind of a desire, because as soon as you're born again, you have a new life in nature that has heavenly desires, divine desires.
And isn't it a marvelous thing to know that?
That when we are children of God born again, that there is a life in nature in us that has holy, heavenly, new desires.
But you know, it's one thing to have desires for a certain thing, and perhaps we're plagued with.
What we might call procrastination.
We have desires in certain directions. We know we ought to please the Lord, but it doesn't seem that we ever arrive. We're always floundering around, and never really.
Find out what it is to please the Lord, what he really wants, or whenever it rests in our own minds, and have peace about it, that we're really doing what the Lord wants us to do.
But it says here that will I seek after it was not only that the Psalmist had certain good desires for those who determination with him to seek that he might.
Fulfill those desires.
And what was his desire? What was it he was seeking after?
That he might dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of his life, well, that would speak to us of dwelling in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Because to be in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ is to be in the sanctuary.
Now I suppose we could divide this into two parts.
That is, there's an individual aspect of it, and there's a collective aspect. The Lord Jesus has said I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. And so we are actually in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ all the time, because he's always with us. But the sad thing is, we're not always conscious of it, and sometimes we're in such a state of soul that we don't appreciate the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ with us, and we're not conscious that He's with us.
But I believe that if we were conscious of being in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ at all times.
Individually, our lives would be different.
Well, this is what the Psalmist was seeking for, to dwell in the Lord's presence.
And not only that, but to behold the beauty of the Lord.
If you get occupied with the Lord Jesus Christ and you begin to see beauties in him, I believe the word beauty means graciousness. If you have, just like Peter said, tasted that the Lord is gracious, you found out something about his graciousness.
You're drawn to him and you want to please him.
And as soon as you find out a little bit about the Lord and have a vision of what the Lord Jesus Christ is.
You lose this desire to look around to find something else to satisfy.
And it wasn't only that he wanted to behold the graciousness of the Lord, but he wanted to inquire of him in his temple.
Enquire of him. I suppose that would bring us bring before us a desire for growth, because it would result in growth inquiring of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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The more we learn of him.
The more we grow, and I believe this is what Peter brings before us in the end of one of his epistles, he says grow in grace.
And in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ grow in His graciousness, learning more about His grace, how gracious He is. You know, it's the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ that melts our hearts. We find out, even though we've been terribly bad if we confess to him and own to him, that we're wretched things, that He forgives all, and we find Him just as precious and just as good as ever.
It's it's going on with those bad things that give us a bad conscience, and then we don't taste that the Lord is gracious.
But Peter is the one who speaks of tasting that the Lord is gracious, and he tasted it after he had failed and had been restored in his soul, and had acknowledged to the Lord his nothingness. Then he found that the Lord was taught him just like he ever was. He tasted that the Lord was gracious sometimes.
We we get away from the Lord, and I can speak from experience in this that if we do something that dishonors the Lord, we get away from him. You know, it's a little difficult to get back to him.
And perhaps we get a feeling, well, what's the use? We might as well go on the way we are, but it gets worse and worse.
All that we might remember that the Lord is gracious and that we can come to Him anytime and confess to him and get right with him, and we'll find that he's just as precious as he ever was.
Inquire of him. What are you learning about the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you inquiring of him?
We have a whole book about him. This Bible is a story concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. There is history in this book, but I would like to call it his story. The story about the Lord Jesus Christ from beginning to end. And wherever you open the book, you can learn of him. Are you opening the book to learn of him?
Don't forget the word and don't forget to be in his presence.
But I hadn't thought to say very much on this verse. I'd been thinking about Daniel.
Daniel has, perhaps.
What might we might say special meaning to me?
I was named Daniel.
And whenever I heard anything read from Daniel.
Or I read it myself.
There was something in it that spoke to my heart. Well, I'm sure that this part of the word of God is there for everyone, even though your name is not Daniel. Because we read that all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and it's profitable. And it's profitable for every one of us.
We might read the first chapter of Daniel.
In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, came Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand with part of the vessels of the House of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the House of his God. And he brought the vessels unto the treasure House of his God. And the king speak unto espionage, the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel.
And of the King's seed, and of the Princess children, in whom was number, blemish, but well favored, and skillful in all wisdom and cunning, and knowledge, and understanding, science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the King's palace, And whom they might teach the learning and tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed them a daily provision of the King's meat, and of the wine which he drank, so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah. Daniel. Hananiah, Michelle.
And Azariah, unto whom the Prince of the eunuchs gave names. For he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar, and to Hannah and I of Shadrach, and to Michel of Meshach, and to Azariah of Abednego. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with a portion of the King's meat, nor with the wine which he drank. Therefore he requested of the Prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Now God had brought Daniel into favor and tender love with the Prince of the eunuchs.
And the Prince of the eunuch said unto Daniel, I fear, my Lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink, For why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? Then shall you make me endanger my head to the king? Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the Prince of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah initial, and Azariah.
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Prove thy servants I beseech thee 10 days, and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink. Then let our countenances be looked upon before thee, and the countenance of the children that eat of the portion of the King's meat. And as thou seest deal with thy servants, so he consented to them in this matter, and prove them 10 days. And at the end of 10 days their countenances appeared fair and fatter, and flesh. Then all the children which did eat the portion of the King's meat. Thus Meltzer took away the portion of their meat and the wine that they should drink, and gave them pugs.
As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. Now at the end of the days that the king had said he should bring them in, then the Prince of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar, and the king communed with them, and among them all was none found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mitchell, and Azariah. Therefore stood they before the king, and in all matters of wisdom and understanding that the king inquired of them, he found them 10 times better.
Then all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm, and Daniel continued.
Even unto the first year of King Cyrus.
If we were to take this just simply as a story, isn't it a nice story? Isn't it a lovely story? But I'm sure that this is in the word of God.
For more than just the fact that it's a story, there's a purpose for this being here, because whatever things were written before time were written for our learning that we through.
Face comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Well, there's something here for us to lay hold of by faith, and there's something here to encourage us. And I know you dear young people need more confidence in the word of God. That is faith in the Word. And you need to be encouraged by the word of God because we're living in dangerous days, we're living in terrible days, and anyone that has any.
Touch with the outside world at all knows anything about what's going on. We'll realize that times really are getting worse and worse.
And it's getting to be like it was in the days of Noah, characterized by violence and corruption.
Violence and corruption, well, I believe the violence is connected with in subjection to authority. And I believe the corruption is connected with the moral decline in this world we find both in submission to authority and moral decline. And dear young people, let us guard ourselves that we don't get caught in these things.
In submission to authority, there is constituted authority in this world. God has put it here. It began in the days of Noah. When Noah came out of the ark, a new dispensation of time began, A dispensation, or period of time of human government, and it was instituted by God. And God put the sword into Noah's hand, that he might bring into submission all the people that were under his hand, and if anyone murdered.
Anyone he was to be killed, nor was authorized to use his sword. And you know what's going on today in the world? They're trying to abrogate the law of capital punishment.
This is their indirect violation of the truth and principle of God.
God has put authority in this world, and he has put authority into the hands of men to rule, and he has put authority in the home, too. The parents have authority from God. There's authority in the assembly as well. And may we watch that. We submit to the powers that be, for the powers that be are ordained of God. Do you submit to your parents?
Or you say I'm waiting until I'm 18, until I'm 20, when I can get out from under the influence the the rule of my home. I think that's sad, if you have any thought like that, because there should be respect for parents even until.
You're older, even as long as the parents may live. I believe that the word of God brings this before us, that we're to honor our parents.
And that doesn't mean just when we're children or young people. I believe it means as long as they're living, we should honor them. And even after they're gone, honor the memory of them.
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And then what about the assembly? Oh, there's constituted authority in the assembly. The Lord Jesus Christ has vested authority in in the midst of the two or three or more gathered in his precious name, because his name is what stands for that authority. And in the assembly, surely we ought to bow to the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ that's there if we want to go on happily. Well, I believe if individually were subject to the Lord Jesus Christ and subject to his word, will find no difficulty with being subject to the authority.
That God has placed in the assembly, and we won't find any difficulty in being subject to the powers that be.
And sometimes we may grumble and complain about the laws that have been made, but let's see grace from the Lord to be obedient. We know how we fail in these things. And when it comes to the speed limit, you know, we think we can we can exceed the speed limit. But we need grace from the Lord in these matters. And I don't suppose that we can point our fingers at one another. And it's not a good thing to do to start pointing fingers at one another, because, you know, as soon as you start pointing at somebody else, there's a finger pointing back at yourself.
So we need to watch that we judge ourselves before the Lord and not be looking at others.
In this first chapter of Daniel, we find what we might call the world set up.
We find here certain things that answer to what we find in the world around us. The children of Israel had failed. The 10 tribes had been taken captive long ago to Assyria, and now the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, had been taken captive to Babylon.
And God doesn't reckon history according to the kings of Israel or the kings of Judah anymore when we come to the Book of Daniel. But this is where you begin. Gentile history. This begins the times of the Gentiles.
God had committed the government, as it were, of the world, to Israel, but they failed. Why?
Why did he take the government away from them? Because.
They failed, Jeremiah says. My people have committed 2 evils. They have forsaken me, the Fountain of Living Waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water. Two things for shook the Lord and shot something else.
You know, the first step in getting away in our spiritual lives, in decline, is getting away from the law, forgetting the law, forsaking the Lord.
Perhaps we wonder why.
We're seeking after the things of the world. We look for this and we look for that. We want to. We're trying to find something that will satisfy our hearts in this world. Why is it because we've forgotten the Lord. We've left the Lord. We've forsaken the Lord. The moment you're seeking for something in this world to satisfy you, that's a sign that you've gotten away from the Lord. It's a solemn thing. And you know, dear young people.
We tell on ourselves all we're telling on ourselves all the time.
We're telling out what state of soul we're in.
And if you are seeking the satisfaction.
From things in the world. It's just a sign You've gotten away from the Lord. Because if you're walking with the Lord, you're in His presence. The Lord is filling your heart. There won't be any desire for these things of the world. You won't try to find satisfaction anywhere else.
We see young people all around us as we perhaps are out on the street. We see them going down the street and we know they're not happy, they're dissatisfied, and we see things characterizing them in their drafts and in their ways and all, and you can just see that they're not happy.
They're bored. This seems to be a general condition of things. All over the world. People are bored, bored with life, trying to find something new to satisfy them. Some new thrill, some new adventure.
And all dear young people, people are trying all kinds of things today, and that's why this world is becoming like a Sodom and Gomorrah.
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But let's stay close to the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's not drift away from him, cleave to him with purpose of heart. We read here in this portion of Scripture, verse 8. The Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with a portion of the King's meat, nor with the wine which he drank. Therefore he requested of the Prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Daniel had a purpose, he purpose to be true to the Lord.
Like another one said to some disciples, new converts, he said, cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart. Daniel purposed to cleave to the Lord. He purposed to be true to the Lord. He wouldn't go contrary to the principles and truth that he had learned from the scriptures. He wanted to be true to God and to his Word, and he would not defile himself. He wanted to be separated, separated to God.
And being separated to God meant he was separated from these things that would defile him. If we're only thinking about the negative side of separation, and I'm afraid.
That we're going to get into difficulty. We're going to get ourselves under a sort of a legal system.
Separation does not only have its negative side, it has its positive side. And I believe if we're separated, holy in heart, unto the Lord Jesus Christ, we will not have to worry about setting up for ourselves a set of rules and regulations to keep us. We may have to, in a certain sense, determine that we want to be true to the Lord, But I believe if we are like the Psalmist, as he said in that verse, we just had before us.
If we, like him, have a desire to please the Lord and we're seeking after, the Lord will honor it, the Lord will honor it.
We need to have an object before our hearts and when our hearts are filled with Christ.
There won't be any room for anything else. It's just that simple. The heart filled with Christ.
But as I said, we're in an enemy's land, we're in this world, and there's much that preys upon our time.
And sometimes we think we're busy. And we aren't busy. We waste a lot of time.
You know, dear young people, and this applies to everyone of us, older ones too.
If we spent.
Our wasted time in reading the scriptures, in meditation, quietness before the Lord, reading some good ministry.
I'm sure that it would show in our lives wasted time, oh how much time we waste if we have a real desire to go on with the Lord. I believe one element of seeking after it would be to budget our time to have some kind of an arrangement, some schedule to form.
To follow.
We need to do that sometimes in purposing to go on with the Lord. In purposing to cleave to the Lord and be true to Him, we have to be diligent and budget our time and arrange our time so that we have time to pray, time to read the word. I know of some young brothers that get up early in the morning.
They spend time reading the word. They spend time in meditation.
I spend time in prayer.
And I can tell it in the reading meetings too. Yes, it shows up after a while.
We're sometimes famished and hungry in spiritual things. And why? Well, it's because we're not diligent in Proverbs. It says the diligent soul shall be made fat.
Fat in the things of the Lord.
And sometimes we take something in hunting some spiritual truth.
Some spiritual nugget and.
We don't roast what we take in the hunting. The hunter is supposed to roast what he takes in the hunting. He's supposed to make use of it. And we need to need to ask the Lord for help that we might be able to make use of what we're taking in in these conference meetings.
Daniel was a man of purpose. Do you have a purpose or you just wandering about aimlessly through this life? Oh, I trust that we don't do that. Go on aimlessly through life, and then finally come to the end of our life and have to bewail the fact. Well, I wasted a lot of time that could have been used for the Lord.
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The king was the one.
Who had appointed their meat and drink? The king here no doubt represents Satan, who's the Prince of this world, because Satan is the Prince of this world is behind all the scenes.
And the Lord speaks about the whole world lying in the wicked one. And he also speaks of Satan as the God of this world. He's the God of this world religiously.
He's the Prince of this world politically, and let's not forget.
That he's a great power in this scene today and he is doing a lot of things and he's moving human beings.
But I'm so thankful that God is over all, and he's the one that's behind the scenes, and he has all things in control, and he'll not allow Satan to do anything that he shouldn't, that he doesn't want him to do. Oh, how wonderful it is to be in God's hands and to know that he has all things in control. And this is what Daniel knew. He knew that God had all things in control even though they had been taken captive and they were over in Babylon.
He still had confidence in the Lord.
Well, in a way, the church has been taken captive to Babylon 2. The church, all of Christendom has been taken captive into the world. And it's sad sometimes. You can hardly tell what is the world and what is the church. The borderline is so dim you can't see it.
The world has come into the church and the church has gone into the world. And they're walking in a way, we might say, hand in hand. Oh, how sad it is.
But Daniel knew to whom he belonged, and he wasn't going to give in to this ruler.
He dared to take a stand. Do we dare to take a stand? He says prove thy servants. Why did he say that? Was he boasting when he said this? No, I believe what he really meant. Prove the Lord. Prove God.
But of course, it was Daniel and his three companions that were proving God.
But Daniel and his companions were being proved by those people.
10 days speaks of testing, the number of testing our responsibility and they were just turning over the responsibility of all of this to God. Yes, we have great responsibilities dear young people.
But let's take our responsibilities to God and trust him to enable us, because without the Lord we can do nothing.
So he says let them give us pulse to eat and water to drink. Very simple fare. I believe pulse was made from lentils and on one occasion there was one in Israel that defended a field of lentils, Sham I believe it was. He wouldn't let the enemy take that field. Well, it was food for the people of Israel. It was Canaan's food reminding us of heavenly food.
And surely that's what it must remind us of. Here. Let them give us pulse to eat and water to drink heavenly food. Water, the word of God.
Do you dare?
To feed on the heavenly food, the Lord Jesus Christ food for the soul, the bread from heaven. Do you dare to feed upon the word of God and believe that you're going to benefit from it, rather than feeding upon the things of the world, the wine and the meat that this world wants to provide? The wine speaks of earthly joy, and the meat speaks of that which would appeal to the flesh, the lust of the flesh.
Do you believe that you would become fair, fair and fatter in flesh? That is, that you would really grow in your soul, become strong in the Lord if you just fed on heavenly food, the Lord Jesus Christ and read His Word, meditated upon it?
This is something to cover, you know.
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To become strong in the Lord. Paul told Timothy. To be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. God wants us to be strong, not weak. Christian strong.
For laughter they had been tested out, and they had eaten this simple fare. They were brought in before the king, and it says in verse 20, in all matters of wisdom and understanding that the king inquired of them, he found them 10 times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all Israel.
Well, there's something else.
That I'd like to call attention to in connection with Daniel. That's his prayer life.
Daniel had private prayer.
And he was also part of collective A collective prayer meeting.
And over in the second chapter of Daniel, we have this collective prayer meeting.
The king had dreamed a dream and he had forgotten the dream, and he wanted the magicians to tell him what the dream was, and they couldn't.
And of course they said, why nobody ever asked us to do anything like this before. And he was about to kill all all these magicians and wise men. And of course that meant Daniel and his companions were slated to be slain too.
Daniel then asked for opportunity to.
To think about it, to go before the Lord, he asked for time, verse 16. Then Daniel went in and desired of the king that he would give him time and that he would show the king the interpretation. He seemed to be so confident that God would show him the dream and the interpretation that he could say it even before he went to prayer. Then it says Dan. Then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mitchell and Azariah, his companions, that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning the secret, that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men.
Babylon. Well, I had a prayer meeting. I believe the first record we have of a collective prayer meeting.
I believe up until this point all the prayers are individual.
You know the collective prayer meeting is very important. Private prayer is important.
But the assembly prayer meeting is very important too, and I like to see young people at the prayer meeting. I've been in some prayer meetings where I see quite a number of young people and it encourages my heart. Perhaps you think that the older folks.
Are sufficient in themselves. Well, I don't feel that way when I see young people going on for the Lord. Oh, what an encouragement it is to me. It rejoices my heart.
And we like to see our dear young people going on with the Lord. And for the Lord we like to see them in the prayer meeting. You add something to the prayer meeting. You add what we might say, a freshness to the prayer meeting by your presence there.
But what about private prayer? Do you have a time when you?
Are alone with the Lord sometime during the day. If you go over to the 6th chapter of Daniel, you'll find that Daniel had the habit of being on his knees three times a day.
I believe Daniel is a good example for us.
I believe there would be a real difference in our lives if we followed Daniels example, and I believe we would be able to stand against the world and the and against Satan and his Wiles if we followed his example.
Just like Daniel was able to stand, all Daniel was in a difficult spot. Oh, he was just a young man too.
Along with his three companions and look at the three companions.
They took a stand, and they were cast into the fiery furnace.
But the fire didn't touch them. God delivered them.
They were trusting God and I believe if we had asked them, well, do you have great faith, Daniel? Do you have great faith?
Addressing the three companions Oh no, we don't have great faith, but we have a great God. That's what faith is. It lays hold upon God. It trusts him.
Oh, let's not talk about our great faith, but let us talk about a great God, one who is our Father, that we've come to know through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ here in the 6th chapter.
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Verse 10 Daniel is on the spot. A decree has been signed that no one should pray to anyone but the king, and if they do pray to anyone else, they must be thrown into the den of lions.
But it says when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house and his windows being opened in his chamber toward Jerusalem. He kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did it four times. He didn't alter the course of his life. He didn't say, well, I'll just pray twice a day now, or I'll just pray once a day. No, he continued on the same way. He was not moved because his confidence was in God, the one to whom he was praying.
And notice.
It says he opened his chamber toward Jerusalem. That meant he recognized Jerusalem still as the center of God's earthly people.
He still recognized the foundation. All things were in ruin.
God's people had been carried away into the world, to Assyria and to Babylon, but he still believed in the center. He still believed that there was a center, a center of gathering. And according to the prayer that Solomon uttered in in First Kings Chapter 8, and I believe Dino was acquainted with it, he believed that the Lord was still there.
And that if he would pray toward that place, the Lord would hear him.
His prayer was directed toward the center. You know, that's what happens when you come to the prayer meeting. The Lord Jesus Christ is in the midst in the prayer meeting, and we're directing our prayer toward him toward the center.
And you're going to miss something. If you don't come to the prayer meeting, you certainly will. You'll miss being in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
You know, we're talking about being in the presence of the Lord Jesus for all eternity. We're looking forward to it. I hope we are.
You know how we get used to being in the Lord's presence? By being in His presence, in the prayer meeting, in the Reading meeting, in the large day morning meeting, as we were this morning. We get used to being in His presence. We get better acquainted with him that way.
And shouldn't we want to be in the Lord's presence as much as we can?
And when you miss any meeting where the Saints of God are assembled together around the Lord Jesus Christ, you've missed something. You have missed something for all eternity, and you'll never find it again. You'll never make it up. It's gone forever.
You know you when you get to glory, you won't learn.
By experience, as you do down here. This is training time for raining time. This is where we're learning lessons. And you learn lessons by being in the presence of the Lord, not only individually, but collectively too. And if you don't get into the presence of the Lord, look what you're going to miss.
And maybe you'll enter into glory with just a little tiny capacity to enjoy the law. This is the place to develop your capacity for the enjoyment of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you develop your capacity here by being in His presence, reading His Word, being in His presence in the Assembly. You get better acquainted with Him. You enjoy Him more.
Paul spoke of having our hearts enlarged. And certainly we need our hearts enlarged in these days, that we might enjoy the Lord Jesus Christ in a fuller measure. And the more we enjoy the Lord Jesus Christ, the less use we'll have for the world and the things of the world. Oh, they'll become distasteful. Sometimes you hear a Christian that's going on with the Lord and deploring the fact that somebody wants this and somebody wants that, and perhaps you say, oh, he's just legal.
Why we hear those expressions sometimes?
Dear Godly Saints of God charged with being legal.
But I'm sure the reason they don't want the things of the world is because they are satisfied with Christ. They don't need it.
No, we don't give up these things of the world because somebody laid down a law for us. If that's the only reason we give it up, we'll soon be going back to it, yes. But if we give up the world because Christ is filling our hearts and we continue to go on with Him and He continues to fill our hearts, we won't have any desire to go back to the weak and beggarly elements of this world. Oh, may the Lord keep us going on with himself until He comes to take us home.
When we'll be in His very presence for all eternity shall we bow in prayer.