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Son of God.
All I wonder.
Did you hear that, Dave?
No, he said. Verse 9 or 10.
Shall we read the rest of the chapter again?
But here not in the flesh, but in the spirit. It so be that the Spirit of God dwelling now, if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit of life because of righteousness. But of the spirit of him that brings up Jesus from the dead dwell in you. He that brings up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirits dwelleth in you.
Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh, to live out to the flesh.
Where if you live after the flesh, you shall die, but if you through this Spirit, to mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For you have not received the Spirit of ******* again to fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry ABBA, Father.
The Spirit itself bears witness with our Spirit, that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ.
If so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together.
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in US. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who has subjected subjected the same in hope, because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the ******* of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth and pain together until now.
And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves grown within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
For we are saved by hope, but hope that is seen as not hope For what a man seeth whiteth yet hope for. But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience, wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also help with our infirmities. For we know not what we should pray for as we are, but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the Saints according to the will of God.
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God to them who are the called according to his purpose, for whom he did for know He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first born among many brethren.
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Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called them he also justified, and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
What shall we say then? What shall we then say to these things? Is God before us? Who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all? How shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died. Yeah, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword, as it is written, for thy sake, We are killed all the day long.
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Before we take up this chapter.
If the brother would mind if I ask a question that was asked of me in connection with.
The, the. The.
At the prayer meeting the other day, it was mentioned about Bibles and giving.
Funds to help those who distribute Bibles and foreign lands and and it was mentioned about going to places like China.
And about Bibles going to places where it is illegal.
To send the Bible that they do not want them, that it is illegal to take them.
And I was asked the question by a brother who may be here.
Would it be right, first of all, for us to try to take Bibles into a country like that if it is against the law of that country? Or secondly, would it be right for us to give money to those who were to support in that way that effort?
Do we have scripture that would help us with this?
We have to obey God rather than men. Is 1 scripture. You know He has told us and taught his own and that message and that commandment is gone on to us. Go you into all the world and preach the gospel.
Now of course.
Sometimes it has to be done in a country where they might not have.
A written Bible in their language.
But we are governed by the will of God, not by the laws of the land. We have to obey God rather than man. You know, when it comes to the laws of how to drive, how fast to drive, pay taxes paid to Caesar. What is Caesar, the Lord said.
All of these things we have to obey, but when it comes to the things of God, we do not.
Go by what the authorities of whatever land the Christian is in tell us. We go by the word of God. We have to obey God rather than man. Does that fit? Yes, it's very good.
Another part of the question, I'd like to just read a verse that we looked at earlier.
In the readings in Acts chapter 20.
Paul and his ministry in verse 27 says, For I have not shown to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
And the object of the Apostle, and really the Spirit of God working in the Apostle, and those that were with him when they went on their missionary journeys.
Was not just the salvation of souls.
It was that they might come into the knowledge of all the counsels of God, and the purposes of God, that he had for them to be gathered to the Lord's name in assembly, and to that there would be a local expressions of the testimony.
To arisen and ascended Christ, displayed down here below.
00:10:00
And we need to be careful, brother. And I don't think that the Lord's work is going to be hindered in any way. It's going to go on. He's going. He's going to accomplish his purposes.
But I don't think it's good to give that which the Lord has given us over and in abundance, whether it be in that which is put in the collection box or that which we have privately to put into the funding.
Of various efforts of believers in other places who have not the same object before them.
And I don't think it's that. It's a wise endeavor on our part to have fellowship in that way with those efforts. Let the Lord use them. He'll accomplish his purpose. He's doing his work. But for we who know the truth of God and have it brought before us, I don't think it be of the Lord to have fellowship in that way. With that, let the Lord take care of that. He'll get those Bibles into the hands of those that need them.
If he gives us the opportunity to do it in our way and some channel in that way, then that's fine. He's set that open door before us. But I don't think it's for us to take the Lord's money and use it in that way with those in fellowship with those who have not this object in mind.
And I'm thankful to know that there are Christians that work in areas where we cannot work, you know, and the Lord's work is not limited to those gathered to his name. And we ought to pray for the Lord's work everywhere and for God's people everywhere. Now our brother Prakash here lives in a land where they are not supposed to meet as groups, as assemblies.
But they do anyway. But they don't have big groups, you know, But they have to obey God. And so they meet, you know, and they do so.
And.
They have to be aware that anytime the authorities might find out and might cause them problems, but we have to obey God rather than men.
Coming back to our chapter is not in the flesh. We were in the flesh before we were saved and now in the Spirit, and we see in these verses that we may be after the flesh.
But the believer is not in the flesh.
But what is characteristic of this present dispensation is that the Spirit of God just does not come upon a believer, but he is in US and with us forever.
So we don't ask for the Spirit of God.
As we said yesterday that were sealed after that, you believe the gospel a person, whether they're three years old or 93 years old or 103 years old, when they believe the gospel, they're sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise until the day of redemption, the redemption of our bodies.
But the proof that a person belongs to Christ is that he manifests the Spirit of Christ.
And so we see the Spirit of Christ in the Gospels. We even see the Spirit of Christ in Old Testament Saints, because.
As we read in Peter, the Spirit of Christ which was in them did testify the sufferings of Christ, and so on. And so as you see Noah patiently working away in that ark.
And the undoubted markings of all those around him. And he worked the way he manifested the Spirit of Christ. He was not indwelt by the Spirit of God, but he did manifest the Spirit of Christ, and that is the proof that one belongs to Christ.
Always remember a local brother young. He was quite young at the time. He pointed out with David that they said man looketh on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart and people say, well, you can't tell what's in my heart. That's true. But immediately when David appeared, it said he was Ruddy and with all of a goodly countenance. And so it manifested itself to others that were around that he belonged to the Lord. And so our outward appearance will and should manifest the fact that we've been with Jesus.
And so that's why this verse says that if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have the spirit of Christ, he is none of his. You don't see the spirit of Christ in somebody, then you don't know they're the Lords.
I believe we could say that the expression of God.
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Refers to nature and power, whereas Christ brings it down to the practical level. In my life you get the same expression. In the first chapter of Romans. There's the gospel of God. But then Paul says I am not ashamed of the what gospel of Christ? It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. At the end of this chapter you get the love of Christ and the love of God.
The love of Christ is connected with practical difficulties that I can experience in this world. The love of God is connected more with that which is outside of the realm, you might say, of direct human experience. And so it talks about life, death, angels, principalities, powers, things, present, things to come. That's that's in God's realm. His power is able to deal with those things. So in a general way in Scripture, when you find something connected in the New Testament with God.
It is connected with the power to be able to carry something out, but when it's with Christ, it's the practical side of it exhibited in our lives, and I've just found that helpful in seeing some of these expressions that we find in Scripture.
Exactly. And so you see how the Lord reacted to things.
How he loved people and cared for people.
Now if you don't see that in an individual, I remember dear brother Tom Snyder, after he got saved, a friend of his professed to be saved. And Tom was not a man to make rash statements to people. And he said, Tom, I got saved and he didn't say anything. And a couple weeks later the man came back and he said, Tom, I got saved. And Tom didn't say anything till finally he said, Tom, you didn't say anything when I got saved and I want you to appreciate that. He wasn't hasty to say this, he but he hung his head and he said I haven't said anything because I haven't seen anything in your life that would indicate that that was true.
And I believe that's what we have here in the verse. It may have been true, God knows, but we we can only look at what we see. And so that's what he's saying here and.
We then he goes on to say, if Christ being you, the body of the body is dead.
Because of sin. But the Spirit is life. Because of righteousness, you see that life lived out in the life.
They are.
What I have picked up from the Ministry books as to the division of the chapter.
From verse 5 to verse 27.
That is the Spirit of Christ in the believer as the delivering power.
Then from verse 28 to 34.
God for us in every way.
Then verse 35 to 39.
No separation from the love of God in Christ. That's a nice.
Outline, you might say, or gives you an idea of the division in that chapter, so the Spirit of Christ.
In the believer as the delivering power. Well, how wonderful it is. That is what makes us Christians, that the Spirit dwells in US and he is the power, you know.
And I hope he can deliver us from whatever is wrong and demonstrate his power. He cannot demonstrate his power in the believer that goes on in sin.
You know.
The ungrieved spirit is the source of the power and the believer. And isn't that wonderful that he indwells the body of every believer? Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.
And we have by the takes through the indwelling Spirit, to live pleasing to God.
You're Christians and brother David Martin referred to earlier in the meetings and had some nice words about the Lord, but they immediately asked me if my pastor laid hands on my head and so on and different things, and you tried to bring it back to Christ and away from those things.
And he they asked about miracles and so on. But how is the Spirit of God, the power of the Spirit of God manifested in your life and in mind today? Maybe we could look at Colossians, where the Spirit is not actually brought out, but the life of Christ is seen.
And I believe it should we see the Spirit of Christ in this.
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Colossians, chapter one, verse 10. That you might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, on to patient unto all patients, and long-suffering with joyfulness. That's the Spirit of Christ, and the power of that is the Spirit of God, producing that in you and me.
In this day, it's not miracles, they're signs and so on, But it's it's all all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness.
God saved as a young man, I think in his late teens came to a gospel meeting and a brother spoke on Luke 15 prodigal son. He got saved.
He's going to work the next morning. He's worried about going to work. He worked as a mechanic in a in a tractor dealership.
And he used to swear and did all those things, and now he got Christ and.
He was. He wanted. He was timid by nature.
But he wanted to let the others know.
Without bearing too much reproach, the fact that he now belonged to Christ.
So he went to work and.
What about a job 10:00 Why coffee break time? So all the guys sat around together.
And they looked at him and they said, What's good into you?
He didn't have to talk. He had Christ. It came out. It's a natural thing that will come out, brethren, in our lives when we walk with him.
Called the Spirit of Christ.
Because it's the Spirit of God and his capacity and power to form Christ and the believer.
Hmm.
Why it says in the very next verse if Christ be in you?
How is that? By the power of the Spirit of God.
Their brother has said the Spirit is in us. It's God's power to form Christ in US. And if Christ be in you that if that is if we belong to Christ. The body is dead because of sin. That is that old sinful self that.
We acted in before we were saved. We know practically it is not dead, but God wants us to reckon ourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God. And so it says the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Through Christ we are the righteousness of God. In him we have the Spirit of God which wants to bring us to what we had earlier in the chapter here, that is verse four, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in US.
Walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. So it's a wonderful thing to know that.
God's desire for each one of us is that Christ might be displayed practically in us, very searching and yet very blessed, isn't it?
If you live after the flesh, he shall die, but if ye through the Spirit do mortify, put to death the deeds of the body, you shall live. And then he gives what is characteristic of.
A Christian For as many as are led by the Spirit of God. They are the sons of God.
Who was the one that was always led by the Spirit of God. That was the Lord Jesus, the Son of God. Now he says what marks out the Christian is that he's led by the Spirit of God, just as it marked him up.
The Spirit of God will never ever lead us to walk contrary to the word of God.
Hear people say it was LED of the Spirit to do this, or it was LED of the Spirit to do that, and what they're doing is manifestly disobedient to the Word of God. Spirit of God will never lead me nor you to act contrary to the Word of God.
Then the deliverance of Israel from Egypt.
You know, the Red Sea delivered them from the power of sin. And Satan, Pharaoh, a picture of Satan, their service in Egypt.
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Serving sin, they were delivered through the Red Sea from that, But then before they entered into the land, they went through the Jordan. And what happened then? 12 Stones were put in the middle of Jordan, and they are there to this day.
And then on the other side of Jordan, 12 Stones were put up.
You know the 12 Stones in Jordan speaks of us having died with him. Not only did he die for us, not only are we delivered from the power of sin and Satan, we ourselves came to an end in the death of Christ, and we are now a new creature in Christ. That's what is seen in the 12 Stones on the other side at Gilgal. You know they had to go return there to be reminded again and again of the deliverance that they had experienced.
We do well to remember in our souls.
Not only.
Were we delivered from the power of sin? And Satan, we ourselves as sinners died with him as we expressed into him when he died. Then we died with him buried in his grave relay, you know. And we are now new creatures in Christ. We are having a new life and have new creatures and we can live for God. That's what is seen with them. Being on the other side of Jordan, you know, and entering into the promised land.
You know why do a lot of people?
Not come to much of the enjoyment of what is ours in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. They're still on the other side of Jordan, you might say. You know, like the tribes, they didn't want to go across the Jordan, you know, they wanted to have blessing for this life.
That's what a lot of Christians think of all they're concerned about, that they are blessing for this life that's seen in those tribes that were on the other side of Jordan. God does bless.
Brought people, even if they don't understand their heavenly calling. But his purpose is that we enter into that which is ours in Christ in heavenly places, by faith lay hold of that. Now that will be our eternal portion.
Wonder if I could share something I saw recently, and I won't try to expound it, but in reading that passage you referred to, I noticed that God had commanded the children of Israel to take up the 12 Stones out of the river, but He never commanded them to put the 12 in.
Joshua did that by himself.
See both Red Sea and the Jordan speak of the death and resurrection of Christ.
The Red Sea speaks of redemption in delivering them. They had three enemies. There were no enemies at the Jordan, but there were enemies at the sea. There was the the world, the flesh and the devil. Egypt the type of the world. Pharaoh type of the devil, and the Egyptians the flesh. And they were trying to.
Keep the Israelites under ******* and they got delivered from that when they crossed the Red Sea.
But if he then.
You go to the Jordan.
Let's eliminate the 40 years of wandering in the in the wilderness and put the resurrection side of the Red Sea and the entrance side of the Jordan and you you leave, you go into it's into the Red Sea and you come out in the Jordan and that's the full that's the full gospel and.
If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, that's bringing us into the into the promised land.
As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
True of all believers, not referring exactly in its context to guidance by the Spirit, but the indwelling of the Spirit.
The same question in the same way because I think I had the same question.
And you can.
Brother Ruger, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I had the same question when I was thinking they're led to by the spirit of God.
And every believer is led by the Spirit of God, but.
Don't we all have to confess? We don't always follow?
We do sense the leading sometimes and we don't.
Is that kind of what you were getting at?
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It characterizes the Son of God is that he's led by the Spirit of God.
That's what characterized the Lord Jesus, and there was perfection in it, not in you and me, but it's still what characterizes the Son of God. He's led by the Spirit of God and and A and a person of the world doesn't have that.
They can't. They might be a good person. They might seem to be as we look at them outwardly. Might be. We may not be able to tell much difference between 1:00 that's led by the spirit of God and one that's just a good person. But there's there's a vast difference. One is saved and the other one isn't.
He is a senior law first as what we have in First John. He that is born of thoughts and it not.
You know that a believer is viewed in the divine nature. You know the believer has the divine nature and if he lives.
In that lives, that life he will not sin. That's how he is viewed in first John. You know some Christians have great difficulty with that passage. They come to realize that they have sent something, have done something that is sin and they say well.
Am I born of God?
The scripture says he that is born of God sinneth not. But the believer is seen as in the divine nature that nature doesn't sin. That's the point in first John you know and we have to live that life and let the spirit control.
And we have what it takes to live pleasing to God. And if there is failure, it is because we have not availed ourselves of what is available for us.
As Christians?
The Lord used the expression ABBA father in Mark's Gospel, the only time.
And we have it here in verse 15.
He have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry as a father, we cry the same cry that he did, and again you get it in Galatians.
That's Christianity. That's true Christianity. The world can't do that.
They cannot cry of a father, one of the world.
I think that the Red Sea is in Romans and the Jordan is in Colossians.
When the brother goes son came back to his father, he had a little speech prepared for him.
Of confession.
And he had a little speech prepared to ask that he be received back as a servant. Make me as one of Thy hired servants. And it would have been very gracious of his father to do that, considering the path that that young man went on and what he had done.
But you know, even if the father had received him back in that way, he would have had to work from that point on to gain acceptance.
To be a good servant and hopeful each day that his work and labor was sufficient to gain acceptance.
With his father. But that's not the way we've been received. So his father brushed aside that part of the confession. He never got it out.
And he receives him again as a son. As a son, he receives him back into that household with a particular status. The status that he has is that of a son, and it's seen as well in the Old Testament with Jacob and blessing his sons.
He blesses his son, but he also blesses the sons of Joseph. And when he does, he says as Reuben, or as I have turned back to it, as Simeon, perhaps as Levi. He says they are mine. In other words, he's bringing He's not looking and regarding them as his grandsons, He says no, I'm elevating you to a different status in the family.
I'm bringing you in on the same ground as my twelve sons. I'm bringing you in and blessing you equal with them as sons, and so they received the status in that family of a son.
Later on what do you find when the tribes go in and take the land? Is here much of the tribe of Joseph occasionally here that mentioned, but it's Ephraim and Manasseh. They share equally with the rest of the sons. When Israel, when the land of Palestine was divided to those Suns, they were brought in on that level and so this term adoption.
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Really brings that thought before us. We're brought into the family of God through new birth as children.
But we've received the status of sons in that family. It's a different thing. So we've been chosen in Christ from before the foundation of the world.
Also, the truth He's given us a position, a status in that family as sons, and so the Jewish mind perhaps grasped it a little better. You know, they have things called bar mitzvahs and bar mitzvahs when a son comes to a certain age and he reaches a certain level of maturity.
They have a celebration called a bar mitzvah. He's brought into a new status in the family. Before that time, he's just one of the children. But now perhaps his father is a business and he's come to that age and they have that celebration. And he says, now, I want you to come down. I want to show you all the business. He I want to lay out the plans that I have for it. And I want to bring you into the good of all the councils that are in my heart concerning this and the portion that you have in it. And then he goes out in front of the business and he hangs a new sign.
And it says.
Heinz Brinkman and son.
He's brought into a new status in the family, and he's brought into all the councils of the Father's heart, and the Father confides in him. And that's the place that we have been brought into in the family. A place where the Father has confided all the councils and purposes that he has in his well beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to each one of us brought in as sons adoption.
He have not received the spirit of ******* again to fear.
But you have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry ABBA, Father.
It's one thing to be a child in the family you're born into it, but to be adopted in you, you're adopted into it, into a place of nearness, and we have the spirit of adoption. You get that in the Galatians.
Developed as well When they were Jews under law, they were they were with if they were the Lords. If they were quick and born again, they were in in a position. But they they weren't mature.
The sign that's on the door doesn't say Smith and shot children. It says Smith and sons. That means they enter into the same position as their father.
Because.
In our normal way of thinking, when we use the term adoption we think of, that's the way a child is brought into our family. That's not the way Scripture uses it. This isn't how we're brought into the family. This is the status that we received in the family because of the work of Christ and the indwelling of the Spirit of God consequent upon that work.
We were children by birth. We've received a status in the family by adoption.
Father, only we Christians know God as Father. Let me repeat that only we Christians know God as Father. In Exodus we have that God revealed himself to Moses and he said I was known to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty. Now he revealed himself to Moses as Jehovah. That was a new thing and he brings them into a relationship consistent with the name by which he makes himself known.
We as Christians know God as Father.
And ABBA father, what does that mean?
Well, we have been able to travel in the Middle East, you know, and if you have a child in Egypt, addressing his father or in the Jewish land, he says ABBA.
It's like daddy. Now I would not suggest that we call God daddy, but we can use ABBA with that knowledge that we are close like a child.
And we can say ever father, it's not a distant any longer. You know, we are very close to him. We can say ABBA father beautiful to get a hold of that, you know, he's not at a distance. We're close to him, you know we are, you might say. We can sit on his lap, you know.
Be in his arms, He would love to have us that close to him.
The Lord said in John 17 six, in reference to what Brother Hines just said, as to when God reveals himself to us by a name. The Lord Jesus said, I have manifested Speaking of the Father, I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world.
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And in relation to what Brother Hendrix said, that was Galatians 41 Says. Now I say that the air that is a child.
As long as he is a child, different nothing from a servant, though he be Lord of all so in their culture.
There was a time when all the children were adopted and I had a man visit one time with me many years ago, a brother I believe, and he said this word, adoption, he said It's important to me because, you know, my parents adopted me.
And I tried to explain to him that that's not quite the same meaning of what we use it today is not the same as what it means in the Bible. All children, even children born in the family, became a time when they were given the status.
Of sons, of children. It was males, of course, but for for us it doesn't matter.
All of us are adopted in that sense.
Sons by adoption, Yeah, I remember the story of Abraham Lincoln was having a conference with his higher ups and the door opened up and then walked his son. He came, he sat on his daddy's lap and Abraham Lincoln said, we'll just postpone this meeting for a little.
His son was right there on him. He had a place of nearness that the others didn't have. Well, that's the place that we have, isn't it?
Witness with our Spirit that we are the children of God, and if children.
Then heirs, Heirs of God.
Heirs of God? We're heirs. Who are we? Heirs of God?
Well, what? What has he bequeathed to us? Joint heirs with Christ? Everything that He's inherited is ours. We're one with him.
So that's what a portion is. Ours. If so be that we suffer with him. That's quite, a quite a joke. In the middle of that verse, it brings us up to the very highest, nearest place. If children, then heirs. If heirs of God and join heirs with Christ. And then there's a break. If so be that we suffer with Him.
That we may be also glorified together. We're we're going through suffering time. The full display of our our place of nearness with him will be in the glory.
We're not there yet.
Plan we might not suffer as those who live in Muslim lands.
And.
Where the Christians are persecuted, but there is still suffering connected for the Christian even in the Western land.
You know, ridicule may pan up. Dear young people. Don't mind if those in school make fun of you because you're Christian. You're suffering, for Christ's sake.
You know, and it is a privilege to suffer for him.
You know there's a reward given.
You know, according to the faithfulness that we have manifested which led to suffering, there will be in the Kingdom a difference in the Kingdom. Not all will be in the same exalted position. In heaven there's not going to be any difference, but in the Kingdom there's going to be a difference. We shall be glorified with him when we are in heaven, but according to the way we have suffered for him and for His name's sake.
In the Millennium there is going to be a special place given for those who have suffered for Christ.
Well then, a couple other places. I won't turn to them, but one is he speaks of. He wanted to be.
Fellowship with the sufferings of Christ.
And in another place he said that he filled up what was lacking of the sufferings of Christ for his body's sake. Those are not. Those have nothing to do with the Lord's suffering for redemption, nothing at all that is to suffer.
With the Lord for the sake of His body. And it's not just to suffer persecution by those outside. Think of how much suffering the Apostle Paul suffered at the hands of believers.
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Both, I believe both true and false.
He even suffered.
From those that he had brought to the Lord.
And we all of us, I think, as our brother Bruce.
Made that word this afternoon, I think.
In reference to that, there's always opportunity for us to suffer for the sake of the Lord's body.
There is a difference, isn't there in scripture?
We don't want to split hairs, but I believe the difference is very decidedly there between.
Suffering for Christ and Suffering with Christ. Here in our chapter the expression is suffering with Christ and other scriptures we do get suffering for Christ. For example in Philippians under you it is.
Given how does it read there?
Better turn to it, Philippians.
Chapter One.
And verse 29.
For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ.
Not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake, there was a question of adversaries of outward persecution and as we mentioned.
Some dear Saints of God, even today are feeling this very much, and down through the ages there has been plenty of it.
But suffering with Christ in one sense is a deeper thing, although it may not always entail physical sufferings.
Because suffering with Christ is walking through this world with his life.
Manifested in US and in that sense walking through this world.
As a man with new life in Christ, feeling everything as he felt it, and as our brethren have been mentioning, that can take place among believers that can take place in connection with the world, that can take place in many different circumstances. And in that sense, if we're willing to walk to please the Lord, then we will find that we will all suffer with Christ in that sense.
Not just in the past, but he suffered in the past. When his name is dishonored, isn't that a grief to his soul? Shouldn't that be agreed to us? When sin occurs amongst God's people, doesn't it grieve his soul? Shouldn't it grieve our soul that is suffering with him, You know? And to have fellowship with the Lord in these things, to feel these things at least in measure?
We could never feel it as deeply as he does feel it.
But in measure, at least, we should enter into it and have fellowship with him in it. He died. He died that he might gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. When he sees what the enemy has done to divide the Saints of God, he suffers. We should suffer too.
You just said before we close.
I'd like to go back to some.
Earlier portion of the meeting.
And read a verse in Luke.
Actually reached out the birthday, most of which have already been read.
Luke, Chapter 9 and verse 49.
And John answered and said, Master, We saw one casting out devils in my name.
And we provide him, because he followed not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not.
Connection with the Bibles that were asked about the beginning of the meeting.
I don't think there's any spirit among us about forbidden.
And I'm very, very thankful for that.
Albeit that's not the end of the verse.
For he that is not against us.
Is for us.
And then where we've just been reading.
In Romans 8, just read that verse again for as many as are LED.
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By the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Now the subject was the Bible.
And perhaps there's things that we might say, perhaps even things have been said at this conference.
That has not been fully addressed.
And perhaps even put into a more proper context.
But we're talking about the word of God.
This is a completely different subject.
The Lord Jesus Christ, he said.
I am the way, the truth and the life.
And a little bit later.
He says.
My work is true.
And so the two are completely comfortable.
Christ and His Word.
I think we have to be awful often careful.
The Lord directs.
That there be Bibles sent out. That should be the thought.
It's not a matter of helping out Hurricane Katrina.
Or giving to the Salvation Army for certain social goals. Or the Red Cross.
But for those that carry Bibles?
Another verse that was read.
In X.
20 Verse 27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
And the only place to hear Paul is in the Bible.
The only place to read of the counsels of God are in the Bible.
So we're dealing with a completely different subject than maybe some subjects that may have come up in this conference.
Brother.
Jim Highland purchases Bible from the Trinitarian publishers in Michigan.
I know Mr. Van Holstein, I believe what the situation is, but he used to get Bibles from place in Texas.
And I don't know where Brother Ruben gets Bibles to take to Mongolia? To Liberia where?
But funds are taken out of a pocket and given to those publishers.
And those publishers also?
Send out free bibles based on people that will donate to them.
We have to trust God.
We have to trust that he uses his word, not necessarily the hand of the person that handles that Bible and puts it in someone elses hands and I have not asked our brother over here from Bhutan.
But if I were to guess.
He did not receive his first Bible from someone who has gathered through the Lords things. That's but again.
I know that that is true in the United States.
That many of.
Some in this room I should say, do not receive your first Bible from someone who is gathered through the Lord's name, but yet in that Bible.
The Word of God.
Is the counsels of God. And there is where we hear Paul and there's where we hear Christ.
Brethren, please.
Let's have a respect.
For what God himself has put together.
For the benefit.
Salvation for those who are lost.
The encouragement of building up.
Those of us, by its grace, are saved.
At.
What we can do as individuals, sometimes we cannot necessarily do as an assembly.
You know there is more liberty given to us as an individual.
Then as an assembly, there are more restrictions there, but hopefully we will have individually an exercise.
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In connection with distributing bibles or good literature, do it.
When you have the opportunity.
You know, like Malawi, they, many of them read English and they don't have money to buy a Bible. They don't have money to get ministry books. You know, it's a privilege to help in that way. And if you know Brother Ruben is there in the South, you know they are now in Malawi 33 assemblies.
When we start first when there were a few people interested.
You know, and those people are generally very poor and we can be exercised about it, but be careful.
And channel things through people that we have confidence in and that we know know how to use things that are entrusted to them. You know there is starvation.
You know, you might have heard that news. Three people died there.
One of starvation, one from malaria and another was eaten by a crocodile.
You know, that's the kind of circumstances that our brethren live in, in some of those lands, but we can be thankful that we know people there that we have confidence in and that we can channel things through.
And they will, I'm sure, be faithful to use what is entrusted to them. And there is need for food. Now of course, the harvest isn't far off.
In Malawi, once the harvest comes in, things will be better, but just things.
Somebody, a Christian, starved to death in Malawi.
You know, and he's not the only one.
You know, so when we become aware of needs, not only Bibles.
Also such needs as lack of food.
We are in a position that we can help.
But use what you have wisely entrusted to people that you know will handle it faithfully.
I'd like to add 1 if I may. I know our time is gone, but one of the values of a reading meeting.
Is that there is opportunity for to give balanced truth. One brother may say something and another brother may say something else. And I remember years ago being in a care meeting, and I remember our brother John Brereton saying when there was difference of opinion about something, he quoted the verse in Proverbs. In the multitude of counselors there is safety. And I'd like to add one comment in connection with the verse that our brother Hines quoted. We ought to obey God rather than men.
That was quoted to the high priest. It was not quoted to the.
To the government authorities and and in.
There's a verse in Romans I'd like to read, and I'll just It's a 13th chapter. Let every soul be subject under the higher power, for there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power resisteth the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.
Now, Brother Knight, you know I'm going to tell you I've got to call myself a chicken Christian. I find it very difficult to.
Go a little bit further than maybe some other brethren would go in giving out the gospel, and maybe.
Challenge. Well, I don't know exactly what word to use, but you know I have deep respect for those who would carry the gospel. And may the Lord may we pray for those who would take a chance, maybe that some of the rest of us wouldn't take, and what their exercise is before the Lord to pray for them in connection with it, if it involves taking the gospel to to foreign lands.
Let's get on our knees and pray and ask the Lord for wisdom, for them to know what to do. I think there's difficult decisions sometimes that they face. As to crossing the line about this, I don't know what's right and what's wrong sometimes. So let's close the meeting with prayer. Let me question question one thing. Do we have to obey everything that the government expects of a Christian? Well, I don't know brother, but I just quote the scriptures and may the Lord give us.
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I'm asking you.
Some of us have felt that we could not. I could not.