St. John's Conference: 2018
Table of Contents
God's Pledge of Love
YP Talk—Robert Boulard
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Quietly as you could, but we heard him gone up and looked through the window and the sky was ablaze.
So I called 911 Dent Ramp Hill.
You went into that building recurring.
Out of that building, all the time his mother was screaming at him.
You know it wasn't worth his life, you know?
We watched that building burn.
From half hour for the fire department to get there and he lost perhaps seven years worth of work. Plus he's the 4th generation running that little business. So he lost everything that was in the workshop and the machine shop.
The sufferings of Christ.
The glory is called.
You know, we note down in the living room.
Afterwards, after fire, to the left, just the three of us, we thank God for what he allowed to suffer. And then there would be come out of it that there would be some blessing, and we're still seeing some of the blessings come out. You know what he said? I wouldn't wish it would be back the same way that was before.
And he submitted to it.
No passport a little bit.
Maybe about a month ago we were traveling our reps and got phone calls.
And, uh, online, he said, well, I just wanted to tell you that I have an interest in the young lady because his mother said, well, why don't you tell us earlier? Well, I knew you would agree. I knew you would approve. And so, uh.
Now he's engaged to be married.
But before he was engaged, he went shopping through a ring, went shopping for.
An engagement ring.
A pledge of his love.
Are you ready to look on the Internet? And you showed us some pictures and didn't look on the Internet. And we went to Perrystown and he took some photographs of some of the rings that he thought might be good.
They bought probably the nicest ring in Paris.
3 guidance and a setting. Beautiful rig engagement ring so with a plant in this log.
But what has God-given you?
And I, as a friend of his, love.
Why have you given me?
No.
It's interesting that that the Spirit of God doesn't give us a a total song. We might say we have to hunt it out, look for it ourselves. But in Ephesians chapter one, it says in verse three, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings.
In the heavenlies in Christ.
Bless us with all spiritual blessings. So what has He given us The place of His love?
Her God so loved the world that he gave his only God.
God loved this world, and he gave a pledge to this world to prove himself.
He gave his son, and so that you and I.
We'll know that the Father loved us.
The father said to the **** to be the savior of the world. He gave a lead his own son. But then you know the Lord Jesus he left us too. And it says in Ephesians chapter 5 it says.
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it.
The Lord Jesus loved you and he gave himself for you and only Apostle Paul says in Galatians chapter, uh, five I think it is, he says the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.
And so the Lord Jesus has given the pledge of his love for you. He gave himself.
But you know, if we read in Ephesians.
There's something else, many, many other things that he gave us as pledges. You could make a list of them, those things that we have that are in Christ.
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It says in the chapter one, that according to He has chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that He should be holy and without blame before Him is lost, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.
Well, we don't have much time, but I just want to say this.
It says he would often have children of the King James that should say sonship. So he loved you before the foundation of the world, before you existed.
And he wanted to prove his love to you, and he gave you this place.
He made you a son.
And I love you so much.
I gave myself 40 but now I'm going to tell you this.
I have now paid you a son. It's a pleasure my love. You are now a son in the sun, place of blessing and favor before God.
What up? Let it.
You have an inheritance.
Not inheritance you're going to share with Christ. It says in Romans chapter 8 that we're heirs of God. Join heirs with Christ. Heirs of God join heirs with Christ.
Why is Christ going to inherit?
All created things and being everything in creation.
Everything.
That you're going to scare.
I did give you a plan.
That you're going to enjoy it and you're going to reign with him over it. He's giving you a place. You know what it is.
Ephesians, chapter one.
Verse 13. In whom ye also trusted. After that he heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. In whom also after that he believed, He were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession under the praise of His glory.
Now that's a.
A big multiple, you might say There's a lot there, but you know you're being sealed with the Spirit. You know when you were sealed with the Spirit.
You know when you were in well with the Spirit of God, when you saw that the work of Christ was for yourself, that Christ sent his Son into God, sent his Son into the world to save you, and that Christ died on the cross for you, and that the blood of Jesus Christ His Son claims his knee from all sins. He was sealed with the Spirit.
You're given.
In earnest of the Spirit.
He will never leave you.
That the pledge of his love.
Pleasure is lost during wealth of the Spirit of God. You have been earnest of the Spirit.
Just loud kneel to myself, the security.
Let's look in the First Corinthians.
I think the first thing is maybe.
No. Second Corinthians, chapter one.
First one one.
This is all doctrine. We're reading what the apostle Paul taught the Saints, as in the heavenly character of what God had done for the faith, a present possession now. And that's what you have in Ephesians chapter one. All through the Epistle of the Ephesians is what we have now, not later. You got it now. You're a son now. You're not going to be a son. You're a son now.
You might say two Second Corinthians, chapter six, he uses the same term, he said sons and daughters.
So it's all right to say you're a daughter if you're a sister you can run into the family of God. But here he says in second Corinthians chapter one verse 21. Now he would establish about 50 years in crisis and hath anointed us in law who all that also sealed us.
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And given the furnace of the Spirit in our hearts.
There's three things here that the Spirit is on God.
And so he's anointed us and that is that he gives us power to walk the Christian life where well the Spirit thought and we have the ability to discern between good and evil, between good doctrine and false doctrine. That's in first John chapter 2. Might want to read it in the anointing or the accomplishment of the Spirit. You have the unction of the Spirit.
But he says, too, that you're sealed with the Spirit.
The work was finished.
When you accepted, try to Savior when you believe by the grace of God, when you believe that Christ died for you.
The Spirit came well within you, and you were sealed. Work with, finished. He picked you so that you could hear the voice of the Lord. He gave you light so that you could hear.
You know, Brother Gordon Hale used to tell us that in connection with Quickening. He used to say, you know, suppose we had a dead dog on the floor here.
And you put 100 lbs of bricks on the dog. You could call this dog, he wouldn't hear me.
But if you have the power to give that dog, like you said, live, he'd immediately feel 100 lbs of bricks on the back and he wants to get free. You call him and he would come.
As Paul takes up the eternal life, he takes up divine life, the giving of divine life to you in that state, he said you were dead in trespasses and sin.
One of the assurances of love.
One of the pleasures of this love is that he wanted you to know.
That you were filled with the fear of the work of faith. You can never lose your salvation. It's done.
Absolutely sure.
But then he says he's given us the earnest of the spirit in our hearts, and so the earnest is like it's an old English word, down payment.
I bought a house one time in Michigan years ago, 20 years ago, over 20 years ago. And I went to the real estate office and I said, this is the house that we'd like to buy. And you said, well, do you have any earnest money? I said, what's that? He said, give me a check for $5000 that proves that you're going to be really interested in how you're going to buy this house. And the offer is accepted. So I wrote out a check for $5000 and I said.
That's the house I want.
There's my earnest money and he stapled it could be offered and it went over to the owner and the owner accepted the offer and then I had to come back and pay for the rest of the house.
But God gave you a pledge.
Of the log.
Gave you a flight to send his Son into this wicked world, the most wicked place in all of God's creation. An essential sun. You gotta be lost.
And he told you before the president of the world.
And he wanted you to know that the story isn't over right yet, but it's going to be finished.
You're still here, but he's going to set you free. He's going to redeem your body. Your body isn't redeemed yet.
Your spirit and soul are that they're going to be set at liberty from the power of sin.
Your body is going to change. Can you just like Christ?
And so he wanted you to know that that work was going to be finished. And he gave me the spirit. He gave me as well in the spirit. Now in payment, you must say.
The reason? We know that you're going to share an inheritance with Christ.
Is that you have the Spirit of God indwelling. You know that he's going to change the work. You know that He's going to come and receive you unto himself.
Very short, but he's going to come. So I just want to encourage everyone here to make a list of those little pledges, grand pledges that he's made to us, pledges of love. Jonathan, my son, gave a ring.
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Beautiful, beautiful night. Beautiful.
Probably the most expensive drinks in Parry Sound. I didn't ask them.
But he wanted to make sure.
The baby thought.
Knew what he thought of her.
And God wants you to know.
What he thinks about you. And Christ wants you to know what he thinks about you, and he has gone to great extent and great difficulties, you might say.
To have the inspired word written so that we would be able to search out and find those pledges that he has given to us. Let's meet in closing in the Song of Solomon.
Chapter One.
As long as Solomon chapter one.
Verse two. Now this is a prophetic book. It's written for the Jews as they go through the Tribulation period, and they're going to get the assurance of the Lord's love for them as they go through the tribulation.
But you know the Lord wants you to have the occurrence of His love right now. And so this is what it says in verse two. Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth, 'cause I loved him better than wine.
You know what this is?
Is the assurance of the affection of someone or another.
Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.
What I love is better than wine. And so, dear brethren, as we go through the trials of life in this scene, life is not going to turn out the way you thought it was going to turn out.
It will not.
Because of the wisdom of God and because of the love of God.
He will look to assure you of his love personally.
And he will in small ways, perhaps larger ways.
Prove His love to you. He will assure you that He loves you personally. Individuals, He doesn't save certain assemblies and certain crowds. He says individuals and He works with us as individuals. And so the Lord is working even this weekend to give us the assurance of His love and that He is 100% for us and that He has given us the earnest of the spirit He will complete.
It all won't open the day of Grace, and so maybe this weekend, as we spend time together over the Word and in conversation with one another, encourage one another.
It says, not forsaking the assembly of himself together as men of some ends, but encouraging one another so much the more as you see the day approaching. And that day, Mr. Clarisse, Wendy used to tell us, was the day of apostrophe, the day of the giving up of the knowledge of God in the Western Christian world.
The Spirit of God knew that it would have a deadening effect upon us and he says.
Not forsaking the assembly of yourself together as a manner of some exhorting or encouraging one another. So much the more that you.
So if the one-on-one work and none of this is except let's encourage one another, let's encourage one another that the Lord has given us the pledge of his love. He soothes the Katie's bride.
Ephesians 1:1-3
Reading
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All the past the same birthday running by.
God and I feel like.
I'm on the road all the way to the end of the road, around the world and crowd, with days, all my joy and my joy and all my joy and the joy of the connection, all of my heart.
Umm.
I will be praying to the deputy of town. If not, let's go on this time and leave our lives. I love my father and his children. We must breathe, That's all. That's all. That's all that wild.
Yes, you're afraid it's just crazy. Let's praise the praise we found him.
And we also bring, uh #36 we go to meet the Savior, glorious space to see a manner of behavior jumped to, which is over here.
That's hard to increase the price. I'm a 36 five.
We are tracking our loving God and our Father. We thank Thee for these couple of hymns of being able to sing together. We think of how we're just about to see Thy face, blessed Savior, and we think of how this team has such a dulling effect upon us.
Instead of the excitement that UH could be building in our hearts.
In anticipation of scenery, in all thy glory.
Be with the like, the morally and physically, just like the savior.
We seem to be dulled in our senses and so we just ask you that our hearts might be refreshed and that's outside is by thy spirit to a portion or portions of the word of God that would be suitable for us in the state that we find ourselves in and to our God, our Father, that we might be built up in our most holy faith. We thank thee for the work of production. Blessed Savior, we thank thee that were set free from the power of sin and sin.
Our hearts and conscience set free to be able to sit in My presence, and the reeds thy word.
And then being part of like Spirit, so we asked me to minister those things of Christ that are necessary for us this day in these meetings, in this these couple of reading meetings, we asked by blessing our God and our Father, thank you for being together again in the precious theme of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
I'd like to just make a suggestion, perhaps 2 verse 10 verses of the season, chapter one.
I have on my heart just to suggest that portion. I know we only have a couple of reading meetings, but another part is called doctrine that is of interest and it's a real import in the day that we live in. It's the First Thessalonians chapter 4. But maybe in the first reading meeting particularly, we could just look at these first 10 verses because we are heavenly citizens.
We don't belong here and umm, these Saints of God in Ephesus have been saved out of idolatry and great wickedness, witchcraft and their brother speaking a little earlier about, umm, uh, we were speaking the whole way about how the Ephesians burned their books, 50,000 pieces of silver, the valuable books, witchcraft and all kinds of darkness. While it's coming back into the Western Christian world, this kind of darkness.
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But what they have been called into was the life of the truth, the heavenly proof of being heavenly citizens. I suggest these verses, brethren.
Ephesians chapter one were the 1St 10 verses particularly.
We could read the 1St 14 versions. That's really a paragraph.
Ephesians one versus 1 to 14 all an apostle of Jesus Christ. By the will of God to the Saints which are in Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus, please speak to you in peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. What should be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.
According as He has chosen us in him.
For the foundation of the world that we should.
Should be holy and without flaming before Him is lust having precaulated us under the adoption of Christ, by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, when He has made us accepted in the life in whom we have retention through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
Grinny is about us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known unto us the mystery of His will. According to His good pleasure which He has purposed in himself, and in the dispensation of the 400 times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth within Him.
Whom also we have extended inheritance, being predestinated, according to the purpose of Him to work all things after the council of His own will, we should be to the praise of his Lord, who first trusted in Christ, whom He also trusted. After that He heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and whom also after that ye believe.
You were sealed with the Holy Spirit's love, which is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession under the praise of His Lord.
Might just turn to the book of the Acts and read that portion that I mentioned in connection with the those in Ephesus.
Acts Chapter 19.
And, uh, first 17.
This was known to all the Jews, and reached also dwelling an emphasis, and here fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many that believed came and confessed, and showed their deeds. Many of them also would use curious art, brought their books together, and burned them before all men. And they counted the price of them, and found it 50,000 pieces of silver, so mightily through the word of God.
And prevail.
So there was darkness, this, uh, province of Asia, Asia Minor was the really, uh, emphasis with the capitalist city of that part of the world, uh, the civilized world, you might say. What characterized it was spiritual darkness. And so they had occult books, darkness and God intervened and in that city and brought forth the light of Christianity.
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And so those young men, those young people took those books. Perhaps there were older ones among them as well. They took those books and they burned them publicly. And that's what's necessary in our lives if we're going to enjoy the heavenly truth that are given to us in the Word of God in the New Testament. We're going to need to judge those things that this world goes on with, be able to walk and fellowship with Christ, the risen head and glory.
Be able to enjoy those heavenly things.
And so This is why if if fiscal opens this way that fall, right, doesn't apostle authority a messenger from God? That's what an apostle is. He was a messenger. He was commissioned of the Lord to go out to the Gentiles. We know that Peter went to the UMM.
Circumcision. But he was an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. He didn't make himself that. He was called of God being apostle. He was delivered the message and he delivered it to the Saints.
And the things really are those that are called out ones, holy ones.
God sees you as a St.
Thank you, God, you stand in the full favor and blessing of God as one. We read a little bit later on as the Son of God, but he, he doesn't look at you and say there's a Sinner or a saved Sinner that's beneath your dignity, beneath the dignity of the position that you have given you. He calls you a holy one, the Saint of God. And so he wrote to the Saints and all Christians are Saints, but he also wrote.
And he's very exercising those that are emphasis into the faithful.
In price, please. So it's possible to be the same as possible. Not on Facebook, but he wrote all of the things and particularly to those that were exercised in spiritual things. And it's a good thing for us to ask ourselves, are we exercise about the spiritual matter now we exercise about walking in obedience to the will of God and the word of God individually.
Over faith of God. But who ought to be faithful faith of God?
There's an expression here in this verse which appears at least a couple more times and maybe more.
Uh, the expression is in Christ Jesus.
You notice that there at the end of the first one and then at the end of first straight we're blessed spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ and then in chapter 2.
It says we are raised up together and they sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus Christ. I think that's a wonderful expression because.
If they're seeing ourselves, we look within and we see all kinds of of privilege and all those things, but the God looks upon us as in Christ Jesus. Perfect.
And umm, it also made, umm, makes our hope short.
Because where is the Lord Jesus now?
And so we will be there.
And, uh, it's almost as if to say we're all missing here.
That's needed.
That little expression is really, you might say, a little definition of that expression is to be in price place of acceptance.
Before God, you and I are seen in such a nearness of relationship to Christ as members of His body and as part of the bride of Christ, that we're seeing as already seated in the heavenly, in Christ, in Christ place of favor and blessing before God, God has given you and I individually now a place of acceptance before Himself.
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And a favor, that is.
Equivalent to the favor that he shows to his Son will never have been. Jesus is God, but you and I have accepted before God you can go to the Father. You're brought into a relationship with the Father and your blessings right now.
Are you have them and you're brought into that place of favor and blessings. Paul uses this expression all throughout his physical So at this point you know in second Timothy there's other places we can turn but second Timothy chapter one he speaks of in verse one Paul and apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus. You have divine light.
You have the very life of Christ. You accept this Christ as your Savior. You're involved with the Spirit of God.
You have divine light, light which is in Christ. You had a light that was corrupt, a nature that was corrupted.
That was an entity that enmity with God in opposition to him. But now you have divine life. You have the capability of enjoying divine relationships, your relationship with the Lord Jesus, the Son of God and the Father. It's a wonderful thing he goes on even in this. You can make a list of these things it says in verse 13. Let me just look at this, it says.
Hold fast the form of sound words without heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus.
So you have faith and you have an outline of Scripture, and you have it in the knowledge of the full blessings of that relationship in Christ.
So God wants us to know these things.
Well, we wrote to these things and episodes.
That they might have. I believe it was a circular letter that he wrote. And so it was all of the things, and he wrote to them that they might understand and know these things.
Remember, Paul was under house arrest in Acts chapter 28. I think it's pretty close to the end of the chapter. He was there for two years. He was in prison throughout the two years before that, and then two years under house arrest. And he had liberty to write. And so he wrote the epistles to the Ephesians, and he might say the companion of this over the Ephesians. He wrote all options. And then he wrote Philemon and he wrote the Lithium.
So we have those personal pistols.
Let's go.
The first, uh, 30 creation that we, uh, we have from God and Genesis.
We read there in Genesis three that UH-22.
The Red Wings The Lord is not a payment man, maybe a woman.
And brought her onto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone in my bone, and the flesh of my flesh. Ye shall be called woman, because she was taken a man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall plead on his wife.
And they shall be one flesh that was.
The Adam creation.
So I joined together, Adam and Eve become one flesh. We are now, you and I, in a spiritual creation under Christ.
Adam has been removed and a new headship has been brought in under Christ and God sees us connected to that new hit and glory. And in being in Christ is our standing that we have before God.
Right, that's a relationship that you and I have before God is he sees us in Christ Jesus and Ephesians chapter 6 we have there.
In uh.
Verse 28 will be from there. So what did your loving wives is her own bodies. He the love of his wife loves himself, for no man ever yet hated his own blood.
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The nourishes the cherries of it, even as the Lord the Church.
To see the church brought in here. But we are members of His body and on His flesh and of oath. So just as Adam and Eve remember one another, of Adam flashing of his bones we gave one, so are we spiritually in this new creation in Christ Jesus. We are part of Him.
I'll I'll more connected to the board yet than being part of the flesh.
And so we are in a place of endearment to God and Christ because he is done to work. He has brought us into this favorite place and now we destroy because we're God's children in Christ. But not just children, it says we have our sons in him, that is.
We have, uh, inheritance before God and Christ, and so everything that Christ has inherited, we are part of that. So we're going to enjoy that inheritance through all eternity because we're enjoying the Christ and we're in him.
It might be of interest to know that the city of Ephesus was quite a tourist place, you might say, in the Roman world, because there, there was this large temple to Diana. And as I understand it, the, umm, story went that umm, Diana fell down from, from heaven, uh, because she had been connected with Jupiter.
The king of the gods. But the wonderful thing is.
But the same synthesis learned that it wasn't someone on earth they were connected to, it was to Christ and with glory. And I think it's interesting to see that in this epistle we get the expression heavenly places. I understand it really should be in the heavenlies. And it's the only epistle where you get that expression because the assembly nor the church is seen in Christ.
In the heavens, in the heavens, in the book of Colossians, the church is seen on earth but connected to our heads in heaven. So I think it's interesting to see the contrast between those two books that you mentioned in Brotherhood.
I was going to see to that in Ephesians. Umm.
Hey, this is it's all of God the Father.
The you and I are not active in the first chapter at all or after the bond. It's all that God is doing and as done has blessed us through the Lord Jesus Christ. That's how he has worked at work and we are now found in Him. So this is every verse breaks down through where we read.
As not the practical side of you and I that's later on in the patients, but it's what God has done what he has done and it's we are not as I say in the active place whatsoever we're active on and this is what he has done his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
And blessed us with everything in Christ in the in the airlines.
Good to notice too that there is a division in Paul's epistle.
The doctrine, the doctrines of Christianity are in the first couple of chapters, and then in the last part of the Epistle, the practical Application of those doctrines. So the first three chapters of Ephesians we have the doctor, the teachings of Christianity that Paul was particularly bringing out to the Saints in connection with their heavenly calling. And then in the last three chapters we have the practical Application. So most of the pistols.
Follow that thing, umm, division you might say, but here he brings in this, uh.
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Relationship that we have in Christianity the Jews never knew God as their father. They never knew they They knew what it was to have the Spirit come upon them and David had the spirit of God come upon him when he was anointed the king over Israel and I don't believe the spirit ever left him but.
It was haunted. He wasn't his wealth. He appeared as God. You and I are unwell with the Spirit of God.
And we're brought into relationship. We addressed God as father. We have holy boldness to do this. We're not, we don't do it in ignorance or in umm, uh, with license. We do it with reverence. And so he addresses it says grace be unto you, to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ given this full title, the Lord.
Jesus Christ.
Paul tells us in this system, you know, I, I enjoy it in the 20 he says giving thanks always for all things under God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And so we address God as our Father and we do so and he is thorn, even the natives of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we're brought into relationship with the Son of God.
They brought a new relationship with the Father. We're indwelled with the spirit we have a little later on. I don't know how.
That's Kristen Brown could have divine light and I believe his brother just mentioned that genus mentioned that we have new life. We're part of a new creation race, remember?
That when God created this earth and umm, he created man.
God was head overall. And then we have the game, the angelic creation.
We're already created, but they were an intelligent creation. And then we had a lower creation than the angels, man, natural man. And then we have the lower creation of the animal. But when Christ came into the world, He was the head of a new creation race of man.
He was the head of a race of men that do not sin, cannot sin, never will sin. And so you and I have new life. We have new nature and those lives are connected with Christ. We have the very light and nature of Christ, you might say in that way. And so we have God is head over all and Christ raised from the dead as the as one who is a glorified head of that new racist men. So we have a new race of men.
Hello.
And then we have the following, the angelic creation, and then we have a fallen race of men, and then we have the lower creation animals. So God, when he looks at you and I, he sees this as a part of that new creation of race. He no longer recognizes us as a part of the fallen race of Adam. And so that's why we're instructed to.
Consider.
But, uh, we no longer are a part of that race and to live consistent with the truth that we are members of the body of Christ and in Christ and to live in the dignity of that position and following that we have so those of the relationships that we have divine relationships, Father, Son, and in 12 years of God.
Other Derek was pointing out what we have in this chapter is God's work and it's a finished work. And I think it's interesting to note how precise Scripture is in terms of having us recognize that finished work and earning her salvation. We can't, we don't earn the blessings that we get all that God is done for us in this chapter in the past tense. So verse three half questions, first floor, half jurors, first five having predestinals and so on. It's it's all past tense. It gets accomplished.
And if you get into the rest of the book, you get practical service. We don't get the practical service 1St and then we're not hurting those who are practical Peppers Berg is recognized when God's half time for us and then we can walk in the light of that. And I think of.
Back in, uh, Joshua.
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1.
It is actually opposed to my person to run it, but we haven't Joshua chapter one and verse 3.
And it says speak is on the visual. It says there's every place like the sole of your foot shall tread upon.
That have been given on you.
So the first part of the nurse has Rascal walk, which is something that we need to do.
God's responses and contingent on what we do, He has given to us. So every place that the soldiers wouldn't shelter it, that that might be given, on that I will give it. God's worth is finished, not for us to recognize that and walk in the light of that.
I was thinking how, oh, there's a teaching around Christendom, how that, uh, Israel and the church are connected in some way. And, uh, so there's a delving into the Old Testament and, uh, claiming some of the things that are written there and mixing it up with Christianity, which is a Pure great. And, uh, there are a number of things that we can talk about just to, uh, uh, few examples. What was just.
Uh, so true. Uh, the work has been completed in this man will be by Christ and, uh, we should live in the good of what we've been given as opposed to.
What they received as blessing was so.
Uh, just to show that going to do Veronica 28.
Now these are blessings in the land of Israel and we live there and you'll notice in verse one it says shall come to pass. If thou shalt hearken, I'll interface unto the voice of the Lord thy God throughout her and to do all his moments.
So I command you this day, that the Lord thy God will set you on high above all nations of the earth, and them to speak to her who restless Sidney and feel.
With their bodies and a little bit of ground. And there's more, the cattle kanji, there's baskets, they're stores, there's eight. It's about store houses and everything else.
I wouldn't.
Talk to many nations and the Lord the 1St 13 makes me the head and Undertale. These are all based upon you know demons of people and if they were to continue we would see that if they were disobedient and then the curses we had on but in Christianity.
Doing fine a lot of contrast to that first of all in our verse three it says that our blessings are in heaven. We face the door in the heavenly Sir God of earth. Their lives are rain you're in heaven. So we're in heavenly people out of here people and we can be given to these things free of charge as well. It's not dependent upon.
Our obedience. It depends wholly on our faith and priceless work.
And so these are hours now, as you mentioned, uh, later on in the epistle, then there's a lot which should go with that particular position that we have. But whether we are faithful or not, we still have these blessings.
And so it is such a contrast, uh, to what was given to give you the promise of this one, that there is absolutely no correspondence.
Because, uh, it's like that. It's a word put it put a new line in other bodies. And that's happening when Kristen comes here. And so we have a mixture of huge because.
The word of God is not working right.
00:40:00
And so we stand on Christian grounds as you can. So many things have been brought in already. For example, we've brought in the Spirit of God, which is not true, but it's just me in some of them. So we have a wonderful position in Christ to have these things and.
I think it's it's true and maybe I could do it correctly, but to read these this passage and to enjoy it is like entering the land of pain.
You know, it's often considered that, uh, across the Georgia, that's why we have been going to heaven. But really, I think the proper thought is, uh, entering the land is to enjoy the wonderful things that we already have. Because when they got into canals, the battle did fix.
No, I don't ever get you up there.
Anyway, just a few comments to, to realize that, uh, what was promised to Israel and what is true of Christianity is really a contrast, not a comparison, not a Configuration. And, uh, I believe that's, uh, Loblaw area, so.
We have a.
Earning Vegas and who has what we have that God has given to us.
In Christ Jesus, that can be never taken away from us.
Insecure in Christ we have a standing before God in Christ yeast and stand is not taken away. God is a gift that God is given as God does not repent.
You have to take back up what she gives. And so we have a perfect standing before him in Christ labor dots.
And so we didn't get it on the Moses covenant of God named Moses through works. We received it through grace, the Abraham covenant, God of God, name of Abraham.
And it was great, said God bore Jesus down to the cross, which is gracious, and he stayed there and paid the rest of his head until we had to drive in.
God's favor and stand before Him.
To grace and and the fitting work of the sun on the cross. Now there is a comparison.
For the pathway between the Old Testament Saints and ourselves.
There is consequences for our actions down here. That is not in any kind of punishment that we would receive at a later time, but we are all going to appear before the judgment seat of Christ and there is going to be taken off of what we think that we did here in our body.
It must be taken up to uh.
Give punishment out in any way it's taken up so that the Lord can Every believer will find something that he can reward the believer for faithfulness in the pathway down here. Who? And so there is.
Really something that should help us to be energized to want to have a good report when we come before the judgment seat of price we don't wanna have.
One brother mentioned that Bonfire, like Kraft job would have had a lot. You don't want to have something there that would, uh, more tremendous for, but there is an accountability for us and we're all going to have to appear before right to give an account.
And so, uh, the size of it, we are Ethernet secure in price and that can't be taken away. But also in the practical side of things, our life here, we should, uh, should want to have something that, that the Board can say, uh, to us, uh, it's always done well and we take the servant or so on. So we shouldn't lose sight of that, that, that we do have.
A responsibility to serve you.
00:45:00
I have a question I think.
Even he speaks when he speaks to the seats which then hold the step part one. That's not a practical state. But then again, he speaks and to the faithful, and so he must do that for a reason. There's a difference there. And so we received these spiritual blessings, each one.
But is it not true that we must prevail ourselves with most spiritual blessings?
Well, you already possessed them, but you may not enjoy them. So we're a brother, uh, is bringing us their own. Is that Umm Joshua's little picture in the Old Testament illustration of having a possession, having an inheritance that's given to you by the Lord, but you have to go in to the land and in spiritual energy to, to enjoy it. It was already there.
He said to them, every place where the foot would tread if they would possess that. And so the truth give me like a it's ours, but we're not going to enjoy it unless we walk in it. It's not good enough to do it so that we have those illustrations given to us. It's helpful to read the book of Joshua and then those illustrations. And then we made this over the eczema. So you got the spiritual teaching.
There in Egypt so.
In the old house, the Saints had an earthly blessing. They had material blessings. They everything that they had was temporal. It was going to pass away. He takes that up in Hebrews chapter 12. We have a Kingdom that is never going to pass away, but the believer has blessings that are heavenly and it's in our 1St.
First three brings that out less with spiritual blessings in the heavenlies. So we have spiritual blessings that are in the heavenly.
Journal. But you and I will never enjoy the truth of what we have here if we're not faithful to the Lord and faith under the truth ourselves. It's still ours, but we didn't put our foot on it and enjoy it.
There is responsibility.
That's that's great though.
I was just going to offer Crack a a practical comment in connection with what has been said and that is that this is a lifetime experience. Did we not say?
In other words, we don't get saved from the Lord as our Savior and started in season one and then read it all and understand all and then get to practical part.
You learn here a little, there a little, and so perhaps some of what has already been said morning. Others enjoy. And I don't quite enjoy anything. And it's OK to be honest with you about the present. It's also just a joke awakened, and then you start to enjoy it. It's also true that what you do enjoy, even if you're not getting it yet, watching what you're doing.
And so there's like the analogy and Joshua, good, you walk all the soul of your foot. Well, that's only another. And so we all are at different stages. And I think it's also true that.
That's the only one and acknowledge that maybe something we didn't know. We don't quite enjoy it as much as you and we need to be awakened when we enjoy the dead and walk in the sort of it again. So it's a it's it's not an arrival thing where we won't get it. Then we start to walk in it and it's just your other life that be accurate or.
So I mean, I think I cut raw all right.
Is that what you said is just like to make a comment in connection with being in Christ?
It it takes energy.
Milwaukee Christian pathway. It's not just gonna happen.
The thing at him going to meet the Savior glorious faith to see what manner of behavior and stuff with this Oregon. If there's a behavior that is characterized and it's not just gonna happen.
To, to the other with those, uh, those clean fish and we find in Deuteronomy that had fins and tails. So why did they have finance tails? Well.
The thing was to go against the current and the scale was to keep out the corruption, keep out the the things that were not good. Umm, I I.
00:50:11
You know, I have to admit, uh, my younger days, I struggled with this portion, uh, of being impressed, umm.
I the way it was and uh, you know, if you look at Colossians, the concept in Colossians is priced in US.
We have that, but, but in Ephesians, uh, we're in Christ and the Ephesians had a struggle with it. They did. And I say that because there's three ethnicity Ephesians.
Is this one, and if they had a can't be for them the content of being in Christ, there wouldn't have been the other two epistles. One is Acts 20 where there's a warning.
And of course the other is in Revelation, where it was very evident that they had lost sight of the concept of them being in Christ, and it says they left their first love.
So the reminder of that is in this chapter many, many times. Let's just look at them in the end of the first verse we have in Christ Jesus.
The third was the end of the verse in Christ.
The fourth verse, the boarding had to have chosen us in Him.
At the end of the sixth burning adjusted end of the level.
The 9th burst yet purpose in himself.
The 10 first gathered together in one all things in Christ, the end of the verse, even in him the 11Th verse in whom I'm just pointing these out to show how important it is for us to get a hold of this concept that we're in Christ because we have a tendency to look inside and think, wow, I see some things there that don't correspond to being in Christ and we could go on. There's many other times. Well, let's just look at them.
December 31St in whom?
Part way through the 13 first in whom and it goes on through it. We only watch over the 14th person throughout the rest of the chapter two of the 15th verse in the Lord and so on. I'd just like to look at a a scripture in in the book of numbers for a moment.
Just to show numbers 23 that.
If the Ephesians think kind of kept before them this conducted phenomena crisis, they would have saved them from a lot of difficulty. And it's the same with us too.
No, it's, it's, it's pretty easy to lose sight of it. So here in Numbers 23 we have umm, we have Valium's parable, and he makes a comment here which we might wonder at. And then umm, in the 1St 20 of Numbers 23.
Well, here, just to get the picture here, Balik has asked Valent to prophecy against the people of God. And what he does actually he shows what's happening amongst the people of God is not good. It wasn't good. No, he takes him around one side. He said look what's going on here? And umm, they're prophesied and it's not really against the people of God. And it kind of bothers Balak. And so he takes around another place and he shows, he says, look what's going on here, This terrible thing is going on. The people have gotten and they get blushed again. And he doesn't affirm time.
And umm, the, the, the word here in the 23rd umm chapter first one is behold, I received commandments of blessed and yet blessed I cannot reverse it. Now we might wonder if as his next verse, if you were to look at the next couple of chapters, because there's a plane that goes up from the Lord and flares a whole pile of people because of their wickedness. But it says here in verse 22, he hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seemed reversed in Israel. It doesn't say that there wasn't wickedness there, but he said that he didn't see it.
And so that was a help to me in going through the 1St chapter of Ephesians to recognize.
Yeah, it's good for me to be able to see how God sees me.
But that's a real help and to have that constantly before me is a real help because if I start looking inside, it's not gonna be very pretty. I'm probably not alone and, uh, in, in making that statement, unless I'm very different than everyone here. Uh, it's just not too good when I, I see some things that characterize me, but they're constantly happy for me. The content that I'm, I'm in Christ and that's how God sees things is a great help to my Christian pathways. But we can't just drift.
00:55:18
It's not gonna happen. It takes energy to walk the Christian pathway. And the Ephesians say, umm, they didn't grasp that. And so in Ephesians in Acts chapter 20, the apostle reminds them and shows them he saw them things on the horizon there that were not good. He said, you know, you've got to take heed to yourself.
And then when we get to, uh, the Book of Revelation, we realize they've thrown these things over, these wonderful things that characterize them, and they left their first club. Well, it's not going to be different with us too, if we don't constantly have the force, this concept of being in Christ and all that he is.
I think we get an illustration of that.
Yes, yes.
Bye.
Yes, it's free.
23 and verse 21.
And Adam also, until his wife is the Lord God, made coats of skins and gloves. And now of course.
Adam fled with the person who asked because it was nice and everything and he knew that I didn't himself. There was no harm to that sick. It wasn't harm to God as to that state so.
But we find here that here, unfortunately, talking to the second chapter on the 3rd chapter of churches way before the Lord came in the law was a parenthesis and it demonstrated that man according to the flesh could not could not abide those come on, he was he was just like.
No strength at all. No way of, of of of of being obedient.
And, uh, but this of course is way to fall in and remember that we're in our chapter, what we're doing with this, the internal purposes of God to glorify Christ. So.
According to what God has said, Abraham died after an animal was died after.
What's good too?
And one more so before the road on my coast of stairs.
No it doesn't just.
Kill the animals like the Cubs. Put it on two months in.
Put it on the screen for progestin. So from then onwards, when God looked at that and what did he say? Did he see Adam? In all his life he didn't know all his things. Now he saw that it reminded him of what the Lord did.
On that basis so that he could go in parameters and that's exactly the position of real the law would save him. It's translator and and there's lots of practical instruction for us in it.
It's really a parenthesis.
Way back then.
You want to deal with Adam embraced and preserved his life.
He didn't die that day, and there's one with nervous at night.
Hospital pressure is not at home.
Our our life is preserved by grace because of that sense of that global price. We are in front.
What's that number here for I didn't crazy. That's what we left here for we left here to be replaced with glory. But what we have in this chapter here is nothing concerning our oppressive performance. So it's important that what we have as we get in the the the 10th and the 11Th versus that's all getting the dispensation of the form. If you can't. This is God asking for yourself to the glorious structure. That's why he brings thought of that brings forward that is very encouraged.
01:00:04
Well let's invisible purpose that is in Christ. God looks on me, he doesn't see David Perry and all his sins with his trust.
No, I love the previous verse. He didn't say. Let's look at that. The one you read, it makes it so vivid. You read us. The Genesis 3 and 21 is what you read to us.
But if you look at the creepiest birds.
We read an atom called his wife's name He because she was the mother of all living. And I think, are you kidding me? She was the mother of all dying. But that's not what it says.
And so the Lord always has before us that life in Christ even back here when you when you read a verse like that and think how is that possible to achieve the the mother of all living because everybody after her died. We say she she certainly the mother-in-law dying. No, that's not how the Lord looks at this that that line of faith all the way through the word That's beautiful to see that I mean actually with that 21St person.
There are three expressions that Paul uses in connection with Christ that are good for us to know and to enjoy, and one of them is that we are in Christ. The other one is mentioned in verse 10 it says.
That the you might gather together in one of all things in that Christ, the new translation. So when he seats on that Christ, it speaks of Christ and the bride together. And so God has a plan.
To glorify Christ in the world to come during the Millennium to display Christ in all his glory with his bride at his side. So he speaks of that Christ in that way. And then in Colossians, as you mentioned a little earlier in verse 27, chapter one verse 27, he speaks of Christ in you the hope of glory. And that is referring to not being in dwells with Christ. We're only as well with the Spirit of God.
We'll never be indwelled with Christ. We're indwelled with the Spirit of God, but we have the characteristics of Christ being formed in us so that we reflect the character of Christ in our lives now. And so in the future days we will only reflect the moral features and character of Christ. We won't have the old nature. It will be eradicated at the time of the rapture, those of us that are alive.
And uh, that that's fine, but uh, it's good to get the distinction between those 3 expressions that are a part of false doctrine that we are in Christ now to see in that position of favor and blessing before God. We also are a part of the Christ in chapter one, verse 10. He uses that in the other epistles to Romans as well. And then we have in Colossians.
Christ in you the hope of glory. And so the moral features of Christ being formed in his people now.
Where is Christ now? He's in the Father's house, in the presence of the Father, in the heavenlies.
Where does he want us to be in the heavenly? He's given us those blessings now. And I think the Lord has done everything possible to bring us near to himself in the in the heavenlies and into relationship with the Father. And so he wants us to enjoy our relationship with the Father. And so we have all these spiritual blessings. What are some of the spiritual blessings?
Maybe peace with God, umm, or heirs with Christ. We have the artist of the Spirit. Well, there's the adoption, officiation, atonement.
To have we have justification and we have we're, we've been glorified. There's so many blessings. It's just a few of them. Some of them we can enjoy now. Some of them will enjoy when we get to heaven. But.
What's an example of a blessing we have that we enjoy full peace. We can enjoy peace. That's one of the blessings. But do we take that blessing for ourselves? Maybe you're saved, but maybe you don't have peace and you worry about things.
There's justification.
Maybe just efficient justification is the fact that God has taken away all our guilt.
That's one of the blessings that you have, but you need to enjoy that blessing. You need to enjoy the justification. Maybe you have some sin in your life that you struggle with that you've confessed it and you try to go on, but you still live with the guilt of that. And that guilt kind of drags you down. So you don't enjoy the rest of your spiritual blessings. Well, the Lord Jesus, he said if you confess your sins, he's faithful and just to forgive you, your sin.
01:05:24
And now he's giving you that freedom, and you can trust the Lord that your sin is gone and you can enjoy the justification. So that's just one example of enjoying the blessings that we have. And so that the guilt is gone. Now we can proceed with our relationship with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.
That's why I've enjoyed this chapter. It's.
That's going back to the plan again as the Father wanting children in heaven 7 full of children and how was he to do it. That's his purpose and so he he purposed that would be through his son, the Lord Jesus. So he sent him here to die at the cross so that all these things are reading about would be ours. There's no other chapter. I believe in all of the Scripture that would point to eternal security than this one.
This was it because it's got nothing to do with me. Nothing, absolutely nothing. It's all of God and matter of fact, it's not even the person of the Lord Jesus Christ is in central here because it's what God has done by him, through him and in him. You'll notice for example, to jump down to verse twenty of our chapter, it says even the we know that we're born again by the Lord Jesus Christ.
And we know that he lay down his light. He could take it again. But it's not here. Here it's with you. Rotting Price. When he raised him from the dead, when it was all finished and done, it was God who raised him from the dead and brought him back to glory. And he's back there again with all the blessings and more he had before. Now we're in him. And so Father wanted children here. Yeah, we're children by rebirth. We're born again. Not here in this chapter.
Here we're children of God the Father by adoption, because this is what we have first five having predestined us on to the adoption of children.
How else do you want to get it? By Jesus Christ, That's the method.
So it's we are children of God by adoption, we're children of Christ Jesus by rebirth be born again. This is the whole thing says got nothing to do with me. It's all what God has done and it was from effective past eternity. Your chosen him then and he affected it. So this is the whole thing my God has done bringing us now in Christ Jesus and whatever the Lord Jesus Christ has, we have as well because we are in hand. So I understand this chapter.
And like.
That's just great because I don't want to lose that.
Yes, there's two lines of fruit that go run throughout the Scriptures. As we know, Mr. Arby makes this comment in the synopsis in the Genesis and it I'll just make this comment. He says that there are two lines of truth, the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man. Those two lines of truth go throughout the Scriptures. No reading of the sovereignty of God here. And I just say this if you're a young person.
And you haven't got it and sent it to synopsis. It's a wonderful set of books and it's not some of it is difficult to understand. I I read that but a lot of it is very understandable, very readable and gives us the principles of how God has written his word a nice outcome. And so it's not sometimes you've been discouraged from reading some of the old writers because that you know they speaking paragraph long sentences and that sort of thing. But.
Read those sentences, maybe break them up a little bit yourself in your mind, but enjoy them.
Maybe we could sing #265.
265 Oh God of grace, our Father, we bless thy holy name, we who enjoy thy favor made holy without. 265.
Oh God, the phrase are all and we can last night all day.
01:10:06
Because I have to tell her.
Just in connection with that him. Umm, just put that one scripture.
Look at the eye.
Chapter 7.
Interesting. It is, uh, this is uh, Steven speaking and he, he speaks about Abraham and he gives a long dissertation in Abraham and he goes to Jacob and he gives a long dissertation on Jacob. You get to Joseph and he gives a long dissertation of Joseph. He gets the most of the Moses and he goes on and on and on and on about Moses. When we get to David, of all the things he could have said about David, good or bad, he says this.
Act Chapter 7.
And the end of verse 45, David, who found the paper before God, Saul says that. David, I just love that.
The same a lot.
Vendor shelf.
My daughter and her father.
This is a humbling thing.
Let's sit here to realize that we've been chosen.
Hoping to enjoy it.
Thank you for that.
My beloved son.
So our God, we just would ask now to like help.
We would, uh, have some time fellowshipping together, present our culture, could be sweet and clean again.
01:15:05
That's the beneath of all that carrier would be for real profit for each one of them.
We thank you for our time and we don't feel like blessing the worthy and the precious things of our Savior for more future.
Five Characteristics of Nehemiah
Address—Stan Allan
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
I wonder if this afternoon we could just look at, uh, at least the same, uh #318 we all know this one very well. And certainly a prayer we need to pray in the day in which we're living. 318 O Lamb of God, still keep us close to thy peers inside.
It's only there in safety. Peace we can't abide.
318.
Oh, I'm a thug still, Caleb.
Who was there by their third time?
The bear and play.
I need to be crying out for one.
2nd and the ground.
Umm, there's something.
I don't have to take 3 lbs.
Through the channel and I think.
Your head and.
I'm resting.
Boring.
For your husband.
And grave I can see all the time.
Of my mom will.
Shall be the only strawberry.
Just ask the Lord's blessing.
Our God and Father, we come before Thee and thank Thee for this very happy time we are having together over Thy word and the beautiful day of Thou has given us. And O Lord, Thou would have us just to be exercised about the day in which we're living and our walk day by day before thee. And Lord, we just pray that what is said this afternoon might be for.
The blessing of each one, particularly the speaker. Lord, we need these things and uh, Lord, we need my help. For thou knowest that we are weak, and we thank you that we find our strength in thee. And so we would just pray that as we open my word for a few moments, that thou would bless what it says to both the speaker and the hearers. And we ask him now, and the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. Amen. Amen.
00:05:29
I wonder if we could just begin by taking a look at, uh, verse in Hebrews 13.
Just one verse there.
Uh, Hebrews 13.
And, umm.
Verse Umm 7.
Remembering them which have and I think it should rehab the guide over you, uh, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith followed considering the end of their conversation.
You know, there are many, umm, individuals in the scriptures, but I'm sure we have enjoyed meditating about, we think of Abraham and, uh, Jacob and umm, Moses and umm, uh, David and many others and uh, if we study their, their, umm, uh.
There are stories, there are many lessons that each one of us can learn.
And I was thinking today of speaking a little bit about, umm, Nehemiah. I'm gonna take this story up a little bit differently than perhaps you've ever heard it, but I have enjoyed this over the last few months.
The story of Nehemiah, you know, this is, he's one of the great, uh, individuals, you might say, of the Old Testament And certainly there's much that we can learn from his life. And, uh, I would just like to take a very quick look over the whole book, you might say, and, uh, try and bring out some of the, uh, things that we can learn from him. It's interesting that.
Many of these individuals that we read about in the scripture lived in a very dark day, a day of four O of what can I say, a weakness and darkness. And we have to admit that we're living in such a day-to-day. I know it's a beautiful day out there and it's sunny, but you know, morally things are weak and dark, but how wonderful but in such situations.
God often raises up somebody.
As a wonderful example, and uh, I was thinking of that first, you know that we haven't proper that says the path of the just is a shining light that that brought that shines more and more under the perfect day. And so the darker the day, the brighter the light of an individual that shines for the Lord until we are all caught up to the glory.
Well, I was thinking we don't have time to go into a long biography about Nehemiah. Actually, there's not much we can.
Say about him, I think he was probably born in captivity in the, uh, city of Babylon. And, uh, he felt very much the weakness and the, uh, failure of the nation of Israel and his part in it. And, uh, I would just like to, uh, look at him now, uh, with just five words, you know, uh, in Scripture 5 speaks of human weak.
Yes. I don't know if you've ever noticed before, but you have 5 fingers in one hand, 5:00 on the other. Five toes, 5 toes, 5 senses.
Umm all speaking in scripture of human weakness. So I would like to speak about 5 things in connection with Nehemiah Umm and the first one is prayer.
Nehemiah was a man of prayer and you know there's nothing that we need more in the day in which we are living than prayer because it expresses our dependence on the Lord. And you know without Him we can do nothing. I like that little verse that says, seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near.
We need Him. We need to make prayer our habits from day-to-day.
Uh, and so I'm just going to look at a few things. What's interesting as you go through this book, you find that Nehemiah was a man of prayer. Let's just take a look for a moment. Umm, well, look first of all in chapter 4 and umm, notice the the fourth verse here. Oh my God, or we are despised.
00:10:22
Verse 9. Nevertheless, we made our prayer unto the Lord, unto our God.
Umm, going on to chapter 19, uh, chapter 5. Sorry, the last verse. Think upon me my God for good.
Chapter 6 Verse 9 the end of the verse Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands. 14th verse my God, think thou upon Tobiah and symbolic according to these their works, and on the prophet, prophetesso and I and so on over and over again. What is Nehemiah doing? He's praying.
I'm just gonna make a comment sometimes, you know, it's nice when you're, uh, listening to somebody. It's good to have a pencil with you. And, uh, I said I was gonna mention five points.
Sometimes it's nice just to mark in, you know, all the things about prayer and perhaps the other things that we are considering because I don't know if you're like me, but I have a very, uh, brief memory. I forget things very quickly. I need to underline. So it's nice to see here all the times that need a line of prayer praise. Now I'd like to go back to the first chapter again.
And, uh, we'll just read a few verses, starting at verse. Umm.
Well, we'll read from verse one the words of Nehemiah the son of Achalia. And it came to pass in the month Chiselu in the 20th year, as I was in Shuchen, the palace at Hanini, uh, one of my brethren came, he and certain men of Judah, and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, uh, which uh, were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, the remnants that are left of the.
They're in the province, are in great affliction and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. And I said, Oh, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great, terrible God.
A keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments.
Let's sign here now we get tentative and thine eyes open that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee day and night for the children of Israel, thy servants and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against the and I and my father's House of sin. He could read on more of a history of that amount. So here's Nehemiah, he's living in battling and his brother.
Sanini and he asked Sanini, how are things doing in Jerusalem? You know, just before this, I guess maybe about nine years before, uh, Ezra had gone back to, uh, uh, to Jerusalem and they had rebuilt the temple. And, uh, Nehemiah wants to know how things are going. And you'll see here how, what Hanini has to say. Things are in a sad state of affairs. There's great affliction and reproach. And this was a real.
Certain to umm, to the online, you know, I think he thought of Jerusalem as a place where the Lord had placed his name. You know, I think of that verse that says umm in, in Psalms. I think I can quote it. Uh, great is the Lord and greatly to be praised in the city of our God in the mountains of His Holiness. Uh, beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth.
Is Mount Zion on the sides of the north the city of the great King?
That's the way he thought of Jerusalem, but look at what happened to it. And he had a real burden about it. And you know, I think this today we have to recognize that the, the, uh, the testimony is in a very similar state. Things are broken. They're not what they used to be. You know, we can look back and think of the wonderful things that we've enjoyed in the past.
And yeah, we have to see how things have become so broken. But you know, the Lord is the same, isn't it? Yesterday, today and forever He's the same. And we have the same God to help us today as we have had many years ago. Well, Nehemiah here. Notice how he responds in the fourth verse. I gotta watch the time here. It says I sat down, wept and mourned and fasted and prayed. Notice five things he did.
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What did he do? He sat down in the presence of the Lord. He thought about the situation.
So I was there in Jerusalem, he wept. He really felt it in his heart. Umm, but what he thinks are gone, he mourned. You know, you think of that verse that says, blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted of God. And you know something, Nehemiah means comfort of God. And uh, and so it says here he mourned and then he fasted. It had an effect on his life from day-to-day. And then it says he prayed.
And so we find here that Nehemiah was much before the Lord about this whole thing, and he began to pray and ask the Lord what he should do. And he began to formulate in his mind what the Lord might have him to do. And so he says, they're not six verse. Hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now night and day. Notice this wasn't just something that he did once and forgot about it.
Every day, every night he prayed and he was concerned. Are we that way? That's what we need to do. We need to to pray and we need to be before the Lord about these things that are so concerning. And that was the case here with with him. Well, when we go on, I'm going to come back and say a few more about this chapter, but.
If you go on the next chapter, you find prayer again. Nehemiah, he had a very responsible job.
He was cut there. You know, being a cop there back in those days was a very serious, uh, responsibility because someone was always trying to poison the cat to get rid of them. And so it was very important to have somebody that you could trust that would give you your cup of wine. And usually that cup there, he would always take a step 1St and then he would give it to the king. Uh, so the king knew it wasn't poisonous. Well, Nehemiah, he had this responsible.
Jobs And there he was before the king, and the king looked at him and he said, well, I might have meant to say something else about the cup here. The cup here was to always look happy and, umm, full of confidence. But this particular day when Nehemiah came before the king, he felt terrible and he thought of the Jerusalem and he was cast down. And the king said to me, what's wrong? What's wrong?
And umm, Nehemiah was frightened. Because if the king doesn't like the way you look, you could just have you execute it. But you know, Nehemiah told you the truth, He said. How can I be happy when I see the condition of Jerusalem?
Uh, I'm skipping no one. I just need one to say when he, the king first said to him, and what's wrong, Nehemiah? What does it say? Notice the verse, uh, verse, uh four. Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request that says So I prayed to the God of heaven. Was that a long fancy prayer? No, it was probably a prayer that lasted a couple of seconds.
And, you know, sometimes I think we think of prayers is something that has to go on for a very long time.
But if you notice here in the book of Nehemiah, many of the prayers the Nehemiah prays were very brief. Look at uh chapter 4 again, verse 4 here, O our God, for we are despised. Verse nine, we made our prayer to the God of heaven. They're all brief prayers and we need to do this. We need to get in the habit of praying in every situation like Nehemiah did.
Uh, we think it's Peter and you know, he said, Lord save me. He did not sign to figure out a big long prayer. He was sneaking in the water and all he could say is Lord save me. And umm, I, I remember.
Uh, some years ago I was traveling from Cago Falls, Ohio, where my wife lives, to Ottawa. It was the winter time and you've probably seen those signs on bridges sometimes.
A bridge freezes before pavement or something of that nature. I usually don't pay any attention to them. But anyway, we're going along about 70 miles an hour. And I was sleeping in the back seat. It was my car that that you that was being driven. And the driver was Barbara's cousin, Harold Smith. And all of a sudden I woke up and all I could hear is Lord save me, Lord help me, Lord help me, Lord help me. And the car was blowing this way. Then it was going the other way and it spun right around. This is.
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About 70 miles an hour and finally it slid right into the medium and came to a desktop and uh, we were just shaking. I shook for 1/2 an hour afterwards. But you know, I always felt the Lord answered that quick prayer. Lord help me, Lord help me, Lord help me. And there wasn't a scratch on my car. I got out of the car and there were about three other cars that did the very same thing we did. They smashed into the other cars and everything else.
But the Lord preserved us, so we need to get in the habit of praying in every little situation. And that's the way Nehemiah was. He was a man of prayer. Secondly, he was a man of the word. Study is the second word. Word I want you to study. He studied the Scriptures.
You know, we're living in an age where we can spend a lot of.
Time frivolously. Umm, and I have to admit, it's very easy for the speaker to do it too, because you take out your tablet or your computer and it's very easy to spend time on various things, isn't it? You know this, but you know we need to spend time studying the Word of God. And that's exactly what Nehemiah did notice in the first chapter again.
It says there in the umm uh, sex verse.
He says, no, I, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. A little bit further along verse 8, remember, I beseech that he's praying here, uh, the word that thou commandest thy servant Moses saying, if he transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations. So he's reminding the Lord of what Moses said. In other words, Nehemiah had studied.
The Pentateuch. Umm, because he's quoting here.
Uh, from the book of Deuteronomy, you can look at Deuteronomy chapter 4. It won't take time, but he's quoting from And then in the ninth verse, if he turned on to me and keep my commandments and do them, uh, though they were of, uh, you passed out into the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather these from fence? There's a, a quotation, I believe from Deuteronomy 30.
And umm, then in verse 11, oh Lord, I beseech thee, and let thou thy here be attentive to the prayer of thy servant.
And to the prayer of My servants who desired to fear thy name and prosper. That's not the verse I was thinking of, but umm, that was verse seven. Sorry. We have dealt very corruptly against it and have not kept the commandments nor the statutes, nor the judgments without commanders. Thy servant Moses. So he was a studier of the word. And I'm just going to say this to all of us.
And to the speaker included, we need to spend time in the word.
And uh, if you read through and underline every time there's a reference to the scriptures, umm, that Nehemiah quotes is very interesting to see how much the value of the scriptures until we come to the 8th chapter and you all know the 8th chapter I'm sure very well heard of spoken on.
You know, there's an expression all through this chapter that I think is a real exercise to all of us. Look at the first verse.
It says, And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the Watergate, and they spake unto Ezra the scribe, to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded to Israel. Now notice that expression, all the people. Look how often it's mentioned.
Umm, in the first verse, look at the third verse.
The latter part, the years of all the people were attentive under the book of the law, verse 5, Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people and so on, not going to read them all of it over and over again. It says all the people, you know, sometimes I think you think that studying the Scriptures is something that umm, oh, David Burns can do, you know.
Umm, Robert Bullard can do. It's up to them. But you know, it says here all the people.
In other words, I believe the scriptures is telling us that we should all take serious seriously the studying of the word. I hope you don't mind a personal reference, but when I was growing up, uh, I sometimes bored my mother's Bible and uh, I would look at it and I would notice at the end of every, every chapter there was a checklist and maybe sometimes 4 checklists, sometimes 5 checkpoints.
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And I said to her one day, I said, why do you have all those checkmarks after you go to this in your chapters? Well, she said, every time I read the chapter, I put a check mark inside and.
I found it the fact that my mother spent time reading the word and she also read written ministry. You know, she could say to to me, I suppose I never would administer to anybody, but she took the time to read written ministry. She valued studying the Scriptures. It was a tremendous example to me. And so we find here that all the people came together to hear the word of God read.
And Nehemiah is mentioned. I know Ezra comes up quite often, but if you look in the ninth verse.
It says Nehemiah, which is the governor and Ezra the priest, uh, the scribe and the Levites that taught the people. So he was involved in this too. And they, they read the law and notice, uh, thus the uh, third verse, it says umm.
There he read therein before the street that was before the Watergate. Uh, from the morning until the midday notice.
There they were, all the people standing there from morning to the midday. Then the meeting must have gone on for maybe two or three hours. And you know, sometimes young people would get together like this and we said, when is this meeting going to be over Another half hour. And, uh, and we get all upset. Well, this man was talking too much and, uh, you know, uh, we gotta get out of here and so on. That's often the way we say, but here these people are willing.
Staying for two or three hours, listening to the Word of God, they took it seriously and those who did the reading knows what they did. Verse eight, it says they read in the book in the law of God distinctly and gave the sense and caused them to understand. I think that's so important and that's a word I think to those of us are older.
Do we take the time to read the Word of God?
Publicly, distinctly, so that even the younger ones can understand, you know, sometimes it just goes over their heads. But we, I know my wife is gonna turn and this helps me in this regard, she said. You've got to think of your audience. It's not what you know, it's think of your audience. And I think that's so important. So they, they, they caused the people to.
Hear the word of God distinctly and give the sense and cause them to understand.
Isn't the 10th verse I don't want to take too much time or time is running away. Then he said unto me unto them, go your way, keep the fats, drink the sweet, and send portions onto them for whom nothing is prepared. In other words, enjoy the word of God, listen to it. Take out about what you can that's sweet, take out of what is.
Going to build you up and give to those.
Who has nothing, uh, that's to whom nothing is prepared. I'm gonna tell you another story. I know that, uh, there was a lady in Ottawa. I could give you her name, but I won't. And every time there was a meeting, she was always writing notes, not for her own benefits, but so that she could send out these little portions to those who couldn't get out to the meetings. And she did this without telling anybody.
And to me, it was so touching that she would take that opportunity.
To send out portions to those who had nothing. So the study of the word is so important. Pray study.
One other thing about studying them, we shouldn't be studying just to get an encyclopedic knowledge of the word so that I know more than somebody else. We should do it because the Lord wants us to put into practice what we, what we've read and studied. That's so important. So the third thing, obedience, obey, obey.
You know you can come and you can hear the the word of God presented, but our brother.
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Robert here this morning talked about the importance of obedience. And we all know the story of Saul and Samuel and how Samuel told Saul to wait for seven days and wait for Samuel to come, and then they would make an offering to the Lord. And after the seven days, Saul didn't wait for Samuel and he went ahead and offered.
And then and Samuel was, uh, very angry with Saul because he didn't listen to the word of God.
And he said sacrifice and offering thou, which they're not that sort of stuff here. Uh, let's read the verse. Umm, it's in the first Samuel 15.
So I can quote it, but uh, sometimes it gets confused. Uh, First Samuel 15 verse 22.
And Samuel said, as the Lord has great delight in her offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord, behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hear.
In other words, what the Lord's values is obedience to His Word.
And you know, this is something that I think we have to take very seriously. Sometimes we don't make the progress in the things of God like we would like to. You know, there's that verse that says grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I think most of us here wants a growing grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Why is we don't?
Don't you think the trouble is sometimes?
That we don't want to do what the Lord have asked us to do. We are disobedience. I think that's often the problem. You know, a brother one time said, it's not that I don't know what to do.
It's I don't want to do it. And don't you think that's the case? Sometimes we don't want to do what the Lord wants us to do. The Lord wants us to obey and.
That's a word to me as well as anyone. We need to obey. We wanna make progress in the things of God. We gotta walk in the good of what we know.
Well, obedience is so important. Umm.
I think I said enough there, uh, going on then to the 4th, uh, word and that is work work. If you look through this book, you find work is mentioned many, many times. Umm.
Notice uh chapter 2, uh, Nehemiah here speaking to the king, verse 5.
I said unto the king, Have been pleased the king, and if thy servant have found favor in thy sight.
That thou would send me unto Judah, unto the city of my father's sepulchers, that I may build it.
So there he is, He desires to build. And then in uh, the 16th verse. And the rulers knew not whether I went or what I did, neither had I yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work. Then said I unto them, You see the distress we are in how Jerusalem?
Lies waste and the gates are off, are burned with fire. Come and let us build the wall of Jerusalem. There's worse again that we may uh, that we be no more a reproach.
Verse 18 Then I told them of the hands of my God that was good upon me, as also the King's words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good work. Verse 29 Middle of the verse, We his servants will arrive and build. And if you go through this whole book, you'll see it over and over again. Let us build, let us.
And so on all the way through. Good to take a colored pencil and mark in every time it's in. So here's another very important thing about Neelaya. He wasn't afraid of work. You know, I think sometimes naturally speaking, and I speak to myself, we become lazy Christians. Don't you think it's easy to come to a meeting like this? Or maybe in our local meeting, I should say.
Our local meeting and take a back seat and let somebody else go all over. Let them do the talking, let them do the praying, let them do the same.
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And I'll just sit in the back and maybe fall asleep. You know, that's the way sometimes things go.
But Nehemiah was a worker. He wasn't afraid to throw himself into it. And he, and he was one of the leaders, I'll come to that again. But he wasn't willing to get his hands dirty. And so when he was telling other people to get to work, he got to work himself. In fact, I think one of the things that's so nice to see about Nehemiah is that he was a great encouragement.
He stirred up the people so that they wanted to work as well.
And I think this is very important. You know, sometimes young people, we have big thoughts when we're younger. We thought, oh, I'd like to go and, uh, fix the gospel in Angola or, you know, I would like to get on the international to preach the gospel a 3 minute serving something like this. But you know, it doesn't start in Guyana or it doesn't start in Angola or wherever. It starts at home.
Do you have an exercise in your local assembly?
To take on responsibility. That's what the Lord wants us to do. Think of things you can do. It doesn't have to be something big. Umm, I remember a man in Ottawa, I won't mention his name, but umm, he always made his responsibility to get to the meeting room about 1/2 an hour ahead of time before there was anybody there.
And sometimes I used to think why are you coming so early? But you know, one time he came 1/2 an hour earlier and the furnace wasn't working and the place was freezing cold and he had to get it fixed. This same person.
Would you know the inbox of the gospel means this same person would fix the chairs? These are little things that we can do. The Lord has given us all something that we can do, and as time goes on, He might increase that responsibility.
So I think it's interesting to see here as you read how they all work together. Sometimes there was a problem. Look at the third, third chapter.
And the fifth verse, it says next unto them, they're building the wall here. Next unto them the techloids repair, but they're nobles put not there next to the work of their Lord. So here are the men who were really supposed to be the leaders, but they weren't putting their necks to the work. They weren't doing what they should have been doing. Does that mean that the work of the Lord was hindered? Well, it was hindered, but it didn't stop.
Because look, if you look on further in that chapter to the 27th verse, it says after them, that's a colon. This is the very same group we were talking about before. Umm, the Socolites repaired another piece. It doesn't talk about the nobles here in the 27th verse. It just says that's a coat. So even though their leaders didn't do very much, that's a collides carried on the work. And you know, if you don't want to do what the Lord can always find somebody else.
To do them. But, you know, I think we need to be exercised, uh, about what the Lord would have us to do. Uh, and we don't all we are. And I might say this is also true of sisters. You might think if you're a sister, then there's nothing that you can do. But read about Aquila and Priscilla, read about Phoebe in, in Roman 16 and you'll find that they had a work to do for the Lord.
So I believe the Lord would have us to pray.
He wants us to study, He wants us to, umm, work, and he wants us to obey the scriptures. Now, there's just one other thing that I wanted to mention.
Umm, Nehemiah was also a leader. He was a leader. And it's not that we have to decide to be a leader when we're young, but if we're faithful in praying, in studying the Word and obeying, and in carrying on the work, little by little the Lord might give us more responsibility. And I believe that was true of Nehemiah.
There's no question that this man was a faithful man, and the king recognized it in Babylon. So what did he do? He gave him the responsibility being cut there.
And once he got the responsibility of cut there, umm, and he came to the king and told him what was on his mind about going back to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls. What did the king do? He not only gave him an escort, but he actually made him the governor. I think we read that, didn't we, that he was the governor. In Chapter 8, he says he was the first half.
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That's uh, chapter 8 and verse, umm, 9.
Nehemiah umm.
Where was that?
Yes, the first nine of Chapter 3, Nehemiah, which is the first half. So he was appointed governor. He was given a very responsible job.
And so I think Nehemiah was naturally a leader. He probably didn't realize that at the 1St, but he had a vision of what the Lord wanted them to do. He went to the king and told the king when the opportunity arose, umm, what he wanted to do. He went to Jerusalem. And it's very interesting there. Uh, I didn't read it, but if you look in the second chapter.
In verse 12 it says I arose in the night.
I and a few men with me, neither told I, any man, what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem. That means building the walls. Neither was there, uh, any beast with me, save the beast that I wrote upon. And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon, well, until the dumb port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down on the gates thereof were consumed with fire.
Then I went on to the gate of the fountain and to the King's pool, but there was no place for the beast that I was under. I'm sorry, that was underneath the past.
In other words, you just saw the terrible situation of things there in the city and he formulated the plan of what he was going to do. Why did he do it at night? I think he did it night because he knew there were enemies there. Send Ballot, Tobiah Isham and these others, they wanted to stop the work at every turn. So he went out at night when no one could see it and he made his plan. What did you what did he do next?
He got the people together and he explained what he wanted to do.
Notice, uh, verse umm 17 again. Then said I unto them, you see the distress that we are in how Jerusalem lieth waste and negates their upper earth and fire. Come and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem. So he encourages them, let's get going. Let's do this and he was being a leader, wasn't.
And umm, if you go on, uh, what was the result? The end of verse 18? They strengthened their hands for this good work.
I like one other thing about 18. First it says the hands of my God, which was good upon me over and over again. He says that, you know, I think there's a good lesson there. It says accept the Lord, build the house. They labor in vain that builds. In other words, if we get the Lord isn't the one that has looked to and whatever we're doing, it's going to come to nothing.
But.
Nehemiah always gave the Lord the friends, and there was blessing and.
The work was done and you'll notice we didn't really show it, but I think in the 6th chapter it tells us that the work was done in 52 days. Uh, verse 15. So the wall was finished in the 25th day of the month, Elol in 52 days. Can you imagine a wall around the city? These are big huge stones and they were built up. I don't know how high the wall was. Probably the height of this ceiling at least.
And we're running around the entire city. They rebuild in 52 days. So the Lord really prospered them. And so how wonderful it was that the Nehemiah was a leader. So there are those five things that I think we need to consider. Prayer, study, obey.
Work and then maybe come to the point where complete very important.
Well, I just leave that with you. It's just a few things I've enjoyed and I certainly have not gone into, umm, a lot of the things in this book, but I just leave it for your meditation.
Maybe we could just, uh, sing a couple of her lines with him of 243?
Oh Lord, we would delight in thee and on thy charity path Thee in every troubles. We are safe on failing friends. Just the first, uh, two in the last verse of 243.
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Oh Lord, wait, what day? My theme? And come on, like everything else.
Our God and Father, we come before thee, and we thank thee for the story of Nehemiah. We thank Thee for his faithfulness, How much time he spent in prayer and studying my word. And oh Lord, we think of the example he was.
In in obeying the word and.
In helping at the building of the wall and use of the in such a mighty way. And oh Lord, we know that, uh, the little hymn says you and your small corner and I and mine. Lord, thou hast placed us in various situations. And we pray, Lord, that we might use Nehemiah as an example and uh, that we might, uh, Lord Jesus, seek to glorify thee in the place of knowledge puts.
And assume we just asked to provide help and my blessing, uh, upon these words, and we ask of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I should have mentioned about obedience. I'm always wanting to forget things, but if you look at the last chapter of Nehemiah, you would find there that, umm, the people were refusing from ties like they were asked to do under the law. They were involved in mixed marriages, uh, with the Ammonites and the Moabites, and they weren't keeping the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
And uh.
Nehemiah dealt with each one of those problems, uh, by referring them to the Word of God and urging them to act in obedience. I just forgot to mention that, but it's something to consider that last chapter.
Ephesians 1:4-9
Reading
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What bridge? Eternal person?
Who has been playing?
What is my Chelsea to be?
Proud of no children.
I can't breathe. You wanna join the world?
Where the world comes all the way.
Over once when you come back in the day of the last two days.
We can see from your red light.
Thank you loving God and Father privilege of being here today and I believe that we had to.
Be before thee and thy precious word, a word and those precious things that uh.
We have received freely from the loving God and Father through the work thy beloved Son and Calvary's cross.
And we've been singing to remind us of that coming day when we won't be with the air or changes of lightly.
Love, Father's house, time will cease to be. We will give thee the praise and the worship thou art worthy of while we're here in this scene, we learn that song to raise. So we looked at the air, Father, as we open thy precious word once more to feed us, uh.
Quite nice spirit, those things that I would have for us that would encourage us to go on for thee in the dark day in which we live, that we might honor thee. And all we do say where we go, we pleasing.
As fast I help you be. Thanks, my worthy and precious day, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Dropped one verse four. Maybe we leave the rest of the chapter.
And is this comment on those next few versions?
Ephesians chapter one, verse 4.
According as He has chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without place before Him. And look, having predestinated us under the adoption of sun by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He has made us accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption through His blood.
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And forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, wherein He is abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence.
Having made no enough loss or mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He has purchased himself, but in the dispensation of the fullness of times, He might gather together in one all things in the Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth, even in Him in whom also we have obtained and inherited, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him.
To work with all things after the council of His will, that we should be to the phrase of his Lord, who first trusted in Christ.
And whom he also trusted after that he heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. And whom also after ye believe you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession under the praise of his Lord. Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the Saints, seeks not to give thanks for you.
Making mention of you in my prayers.
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation for the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding or heart being enlightened, that he may know what is the whole of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance do. The things and one of the exceeding greatness of His power to us were to beliefs according to the working of His mighty power.
Which He brought in price, when He raised him from the dead, and sent him at His own right hand from the heavenly place, far above all principality, and power, and license, and dominion, and every name That His name, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. And put all things under his feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the Church, which is his body, the fullness of him.
All you know.
The first four begins with this term that were chosen all uses as he's chosen us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and without laying before him in love and predestinated us unto it should say the sonship on the sonship.
By Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. So he mentioned two things. One is elections.
The choosing of persons and then the next thing is the predestination, and so He chooses individuals for blessings, the sovereignty of God.
The law school is the grace of God is presented to all men and those of us that know the Lord Jesus the Savior come to the knowledge of the Lord and we acknowledge his love, his grace, his favor, and we recognize after we're saved that he chose us. We thought that we chose him. We thought that we chose to have our sins forgiven. We talked that it was an act of our own will, but that's the line of things taken up and the free will doctrine and it's not the truth of God. You and I were dead in sin, dead in trespasses, in sin. We would never choose God. We would never choose if we were given, if it was left to us.
And so Paul takes this, uh, truth up in chapter two. He tells us what kind of material that he was working with in connection with those that were Gentiles particularly. He says we were dead in trespasses and sins. He said we needed to be quickened. We needed to be given a new life.
John's Gospel and he says you must be born again.
John takes up the truth of being born again or quickened. It's really the same thought, but John takes it up from the point of view that you have a corrupted life and you have a corrupted nature and now you need a new life, one that isn't corruption, and so you need to be born again. But Paul, he in his ministry, he says your death trespasses and sins. You're absolutely dead. You need life itself.
00:10:09
And so you need to quicken them. So Paul takes that line of things up.
And so here he says that for chose in him before the foundation of the world. So God created the whole world full of people. He knew all about something before they were, uh, ever alive. You might say you knew all those things. He knew that none of us would come, but he chose individuals to come and to be blessed. And so you are one of those if you know Christ is savior that has been chosen.
Elect and we might just turn to First Peter, Chapter 5.
Because they're a little expression that is not quite accurately translated into Hingping version, it's more accurately translated into the new translation.
First Peter, chapter 5.
And verse 13 it says, and you'll notice there's italics in this verse. The church that is traveling elected together with you, saluted you and so department, my son. Well, it's not a correct translation what it should say.
Is that he that is elected with you in Babylon salutes you?
Election and accusing by God has to do with incidences and so God in the past eternity chose you for blessing. They are a wonderful thought.
The wisdom of God, the grace of God, and the sovereignty of God. You chose a few bark you out for blessings. You had a purpose that you accomplished a purpose.
Someone might ask the question, well if this is true what you're saying, why bother preaching the gospel? No, people have to make a choice. And it says, if thou shalt confess by no idea, and believe in your heart that God is racing from the dead, thou shall be saved. Why, umm why then are we asked to make a choice in this regard?
Because man is responsible.
And God always pulled man responsible for the life that he has. And so the two lines of truth, as we say, go through Scriptures, the Scriptures, the sovereignty of God and responsibility of man. Mr. Kelly made comment more than once in his writing. And he says apart from the sovereignty of God, this whole world would have been a total loss.
And you know if there would be any blessing in your life or mind.
We have to thank God for we have to thank the Lord that he intervened in our lives and he intervened in your life. You didn't know that he was going to intervene, but he intervened and chose you out for blessing. And so we don't preach that from the pulpit to it. We preach the gospel of the grace of God. Man is responsible 1000 years and to receive Christ as Savior.
But the sovereignty of God comes in and.
The truth given in the Old Testament that he speaks of hell and destruction never being full in both properties, but in the New Testament the Lord Jesus says that compelled them to come in, that my house may be full, heaven is going to be full because of the sovereignty of God and the love of God.
My brother said one time.
Uh, it says.
Over the door of salvation I am the door by me. If any man ever in, he shall be saved. But when we entered the door and looked back, we see another verse chosen in him before the foundation of the world. So we don't know who the Lord has chosen. And when we preach the gospel, the gospel goes out to everyone, and then those whom the Spirit of God is working with will respond to the to the message. Would you say yes?
Believe that's why we have a predestination after election.
If predestination was before election rather than an argument, but it's put after election, that is, an election takes up, we're selected, but predestination takes up, we're selected for, and so it doesn't, uh, omit our responsibility.
00:15:07
Because all men are responsible, but because none would come to God, God has selected something.
But then predestination takes up what we've been selected for, but it doesn't bypass the responsibility that, that I should have come to God on my own. I should have repented on my own. I should have come to him on my own court. But it tells the snowman coming under the father to my father, drawing it. So we've been drawn by the Spirit of God to the Father and uh, we've been given life, eternal life in Christ.
But it started from the point where we will look at his head. We're dead and trespassing. So what can a dead person do for himself? Not a thing. And they're lying there for somebody is the illustration the other day. But the dead dog and the poor lying there, and you put weight on that dog, he'd never owe anything. But he did give the dog light.
That immediately he wants to.
Go to his master and he wants to get rid of that weight. That's on. Well, that's a picture of us. When the Lord, when the Lord quickened us, immediately one realizes, well, there's something from place. There's a change in my life. All of a sudden. I have a nature now that I agree with what God says, but I have this terrible weight. All of all these sins are on me. What can I do? Well, Holy Spirit points us to the cross.
It's only through Christ, but that weight would be taken away from that burden of sin to be removed.
But it's, uh, it's the truth of Scripture. The, the train tracks are unparalleled one another and responsibility and God's thoughts. It is a humbling thing when we think about God's creation that nobody in the whole creation since that can turn to God on their own. They would come to him. Umm, no man come, Father, all have sinned.
Uh, so it is very positive when we realize that, that everyone here today is safe and saved solely by the grace of God, by grace. Are you saying nothing to do with any works? Works with green is something that I can host up, something that I have done, but we teach God teaches us something to do works. We're saved solely by the grace of God.
By grace that you stayed through faith without yourselves. If not of works lest any manual.
So you're not bothered We're here because of God's softened grace.
It's important to remember that while God elected in front of us the salvation.
Didn't elect me for condemnation.
Umm man has earned that his own actions or him condemn us and God mistrace chose to elect on the salvation and you get in Romans 3 already for all of sin toward the glory of God. It's honestly not only fallen short. There's not that seat belt. None of us would turn your eyes to God and I've always I've heard the illustration that helped me to think about this that this can be hard to understand how something chosen elected for glory others not.
Important. Another man's heart. So I've, I've heard the analogy of, uh, a boat has half size, umm, upriver, I mean Niagara Falls.
It's 20 people sleeping down there to work with that.
None of them are aware that there's a fall. I'm not aware of your condition and God doesn't work with you fair to heaven and to save them. And not one of them reach for his hand and even pop that hand away, getting his grades and chose to choose to say something. All are condemned among his first hand, all of them rebellious that he is grace selected to save and so he's grace. All the best. And because of our own actions and internal punishment, we can get love and grace. Not that we should agree, but we don't earn.
Our way to heaven. But even kind of selective yes umm, all of the VR and and.
First paid the debt for us so that we so that we're stating about this job seems OK for me.
Things are mentioned that in Romans Chapter 9.
00:20:03
Romans Chapter 9 it says.
Verse 21 has not taught our power over the faith of the same love to make one vessel and to honor another on dishonor. What if God willing to show His wrath to make His power known with sword with much longer suffering the vessels of raw fitted disruption?
Well, we were all we all fit ourselves in construction.
You also did, I'm sure it was boring. It wasn't in a place of condemnation. Every, everyone is born in this world, in that place, before God works in the soul. So we fit ourselves for that destruction. But then it says, and that he might think on the riches of His glory, on the vessels of mercy which He has before prepared.
And so.
He has good as usual, glory. But we were done.
Why was bad responsibility? We failed in it because we didn't turn from our way, because it entertained the sovereign grace and brought some of us in himself.
So we have a lot of solving and possibilities mentioned quite a few times in scriptures. Another place for attention.
A person might say how do I know it while a monkey lick?
Well, it's a very easy task.
Ask that person simply, uh, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you'll be saved. Do you accept that?
And they have to make a choice.
If they do.
If there you go.
And they're, they're lost, they don't change their way so.
Uh, there's no excuse for anyone who is a Sinner. And, uh, years ago.
And, uh, and would, uh, put the blame elsewhere.
It is a responsibility and it's a simple turning to God and believing this word.
So, uh, it wants to say yes to God or no to God.
And if you say yes.
You say no.
You look at Acts Chapter 9, you have an example in the apostle Paul salvation. He was Saul at that time, but the Spirit of God uses that word in connection with his own salvation in verse 15 when he was speaking to Ananias. So that's Chapter 9, verse 15. And the Lord said unto him, though thy way, for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the gunpowder, and kings and children of Israel.
Well, Paul's the one that teaches us that we need to be quickened, and he was quickened by the Spirit of God. He never heard the voice of the Lord before the last day. I believe he umm.
Heard the voice, a great voice from heaven, and then he saw that great light. Never had seen the light of the glory of Christ before. He never acknowledged him as Lord. And so he arose, and he obeyed the voice of the Lord, and he went into the city. And then when he heard from Ananias the details of salvation, and the Christ died for him, the blood was shed for him.
She believes it.
God gave him a faith to believe and I think it was already quoted here today in that umm, Ephesians chapter 2 That umm in connection with salvation. This again involves Speaking of this and he says in verse 8, Ephesians chapter 2, verse eight, provide grace. Are you saying true faith and that none of yourself. It is the gifts of God and so God gives us the faith to believe otherwise we would vote and say I have the faith to believe none of us.
You're worried about when we see the Lord Jesus will ever hope about anything because we'll recognize that our salvation to work on the process of Calvary, the love of God, the source of all the blessings before the foundation of the earth. We were chosen. We'll recognize that it was all of him and the only thing that we had to offer was our sin, our rebellion, our disobedience.
00:25:13
But we were responsible.
And so there are those two lines of things.
There's a question that, uh, I'd like to have an answer to.
Umm, I'll preface it this way. We have this chapter, we are chosen and beloved eventually. Apostle Paul is a chosen vessel, as Lord said. And have I not chosen the 12 and one of you as a devil?
Umm, how do we relate the scriptures as it's not willing that any should have reached that all should come through events. If I'm to understand what you said, not one of us would come because our will not come. Is that correct? So I might have to say then that and he has overcome my will that I came that that's so why does he overcome everyone's way?
My last year, I think it's uh, I can't remember which one that God is God, man is man.
I think we got to recognize that we deal with the divine person and we've got in in the 1St place too. Elect according to the form of God.
To accept that God would be surprised that any one of us would accept Christ as Savior would be to deny.
We deal with the divine person. We see a conflict between elections and social levels.
We have to leave it there because if God was to save every everyone on the earth, it wouldn't be anything to answer to that responsibility. Sure.
That is possible being and he made us all responsible. But uh, because nobody would come.
Because nobody will come. Who's the question? My sovereign will if I take something out of this world. We had that enrollment school, read it earlier there, almost nine says uh.
A Reaper 17 in connection scripture says on the Pharaoh. Even for the same purpose of I raise the up, I might show my power that my day might be declared through of all the curves.
Therefore has diversity, of whom he will have mercy, on whom he will be hardened.
I will say then on to the why does the equine fall for who has resistance as well?
A an old man who art thou that you suck?
Reply Reply us against God, shall the thing form say to him that formed it not quite as how may be thus hence not the modern power over the place of the save loft to make one vessel on to honor and another vessel on dishonor. We know that we're all we're all vessels.
Uh, fitted, fitted ourselves for instruction and uh, none of us have any excuse.
For not coming to the Lord and.
And, uh, repenting, we are all guilty for God, all his sins, he said. I'm short of his glory. And uh, because nobody would come to God, God, he takes liberty to take some soul to himself.
Umm and I when I be able to save my God chose me. Now I don't think anyone here today can say well why did God choose me instead of somebody else? All we know is that God is love and if you could have chosen 1.
Very good you guys love and they had chosen for the vessel pitted for a glory. There's nothing I suppose in about it. That's all God's word. It's all his doing so he doesn't leave any room of scripture or any anyone that he has crossed himself. The votes are only votes in the Christ be false and false that he could only boast in the cross and that's.
00:30:02
The only thing we can post it is what has been done for us. We can't take any credit for anything ourselves. All has been done. This chapter here that we're reading today is all what God has done for us outside of it. And uh, all these blessings that we're reading about, we have received them not because we did one thing to deserve them, but because God has been pleased to give them to us because Christ the Son has made it possible.
Thought not any man born under Adam's name that they could cause cold because of all of sin.
Lomax, the racist citizens of another, but Christ, the head of a new creation, God's only son. He had the power and he had the will to go to the cross and to be a substitute for us. And it's in him we are enjoying all the blessings that we have. We have to take ourselves out of the whole picture here. We're reading this chapter, something to do with us.
I uh, I think it's fair to say that.
There are many in this room in the world always struggle with this subject and.
Umm, I would like to suggest that we not spend too much of the meeting on it, but there has been something that has been practically very helpful to me. Less to do with this subset, but related to what Dave mentioned earlier about the one we deal with is behind God in their Bible reading. This morning you read the daily calendar and you know this verse, so like you just quote it. We know that all things work together for good.
And then a little later in that same chapter, we have gone before us. Who could be against us? I work in a company of 55,000 people.
And.
I happen to manage a very very small subset of that company, 75 people.
And the people who?
Say our new employees, very often they have absolutely no understanding of some of the decisions that I make. They may be upset with me for those decisions either.
Frankly, it can be very upsetting to me that people don't understand why I may do something the way I do. But I've had to learn too, that if you go all the way up to the top of the company, the decisions that they make may be completely.
I may not understand it either, but what I need to get a hold of is that there's a bigger picture of you and I just have to trust.
That's the one who is and and it's difficult in the world.
Publicly traded company and the decision to be made correctly. So for us it's different. We will not be able to understand.
But can we not fall on the fact that God is for us and he gave his own Son to die in the crosshairs and that all things work together for good?
Do we need to always understand it relative to our time in the corner? No, because the picture is far bigger than me, far, far bigger than me. And it's great to fall on the heart of the one who we know gave his own son for us and not necessarily always be able to understand. And I just think that that would cover not just with respect to this topic, but for all things in life.
We can trust the heart of the one who needs his own son who is there.
Could I give all yours love you right?
The second chapter he tells us what kind of material he had to work with and it wasn't very good material. And he says he tells us the position that we were in that in verse 12. And then at that time he were without Christ being aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise. God didn't know us anything. He did not owe us anything. He never made a promise to the gentleman.
Having no hope without God in the world, but now in Christ Jesus you sometimes he who sometimes were far off from 8-9, but by the blood of Christ for the last. So the last part of the first four that we're reading that we should be holy and without blame it for a bit of love.
00:35:04
So we don't find that our standing before Him is as those that are saved sinners, or even saved Gentiles or save Jews.
Whereas though He saved us, He brought us into favor before Him as those that could be holy and without blame before Him in life. And then He tells us to proceed to tell him how He can look at us as those that are holy, and look at us as those that are without blame before Him.
I want to see no, so I'd like to cover up anything.
This is the wonder that heaven is going to be filmed with praise. We're going to reconcile the work of Christ. The value of that work is a magnitude. We wish that we understood or even enjoyed it now and in the future. They were going to understand a little more of the place of blessing that he chose for us. But these are things now He didn't choose us to be the core Him as those that are safe considered, but as those that are holy without blame it for him in love and so predestinated us to the destination. What destination do we have?
The sun gets.
Who's your son?
Profound, you see, and he had the choice, he made the choice and he has the power to implement that choice in your life before the foundation deserve for me.
In the in the Greek.
Uh, children. They, uh, some place.
So well, so I just brought us into His presence in the very place that His Son occupies for Him. We are looked at as already being there in Christ. We've gone into that favorite position.
And the sun. But in the place that our Savior has won for us, Lord God, we are here, Him in that place.
I'd like to make a comment too that I have enjoyed. We have two expressions here. 1 The riches of his grace in verse 7.
And in verse six, to the praise of the glory of his grace. And it's often been said that God could have just sent his Son to die on the clock to keep from going up to a lost eternity.
And that would have been wonderful. That would be to the richest of his grace. But he wasn't content to just rescue us from a lost eternity and to put away our sins. He actually brought us into a relationship with himself.
As his sons, and that's to the glory of hers. I sort of enjoyed that thought, the difference between those two expressions.
The characteristic of Christianity that we know the heart of God, we know that the Father, and we're brought into the intelligence of what he has done in the past and what he is doing now and what he will do in the future.
And so those that were servants never knew those things, not even David or Solomon or we think of Moses.
On various esteemed servant of God use of God to write the first five books of the Bible. We know about the creation of the world because Moses told us he wrote it by inspiration.
It's a magnificent work that was given to Moses. He was a tremendous servant of God.
But he didn't know his father says God is his father. He wasn't as well with the Spirit of God and he wasn't, he didn't find himself before. God is the Son of God. Yes, he's a child of God. All those Old Testament Saints were children of God here, Saints of God, but you're a son.
My daughter, you have a place of favor before God and you understand that place to favor and look full piece of his prayers at the end of this chapter that we might know it and that and then phrase a little bit later on in chapter 3 that you might enjoy it. The enjoyment of the glory that is Christ and the enjoyment of what we have in Christ.
00:40:00
So what characterizes your skin? Enjoyment of it and the null exhibit and you tell your son secrets that you have observance.
Sometimes and sometimes he can go to employees and really they occupy the place of the servant. You really don't unburden your heart in connection with your family matters to the servants, so to speak. The employees in your in your company, you just wouldn't feel comfortable that way.
And it's really put you out of character, but if you have a son, you can tell your son, if you have your confidence, He walks in communion with yourself, you can just unburden your heart. And God has unburdened his heart. Wednesday to us in the day of the living, that we might understand and enjoy the future aspects of what He is going to do in connection with the glorification of the sun. But He wants us to know what He's going now.
What our standing is before Him and what He has done for His own glory and for our blessing.
But his brother and he doesn't reminded us that not all about us. This chapter is not about us, it's about what God has done for his own enjoyment for his own.
As you said earlier, probably in reverse four, it's not really our responsibility there. It's a bit. It's the state that we should be holding our blame. That's true. We should be. That's practical side of the third chapter and beyond. This is the actual situation because.
We are predestinated as on the sun here, and we're going to be given a success in verse 13 about the OR 14 the earnest of the inheritance. The Holy Spirit must come.
So there has to be a body that would be suitable for the earnest to come to the Holy Spirit as well. So the last verse in chapter 2 is the conclusion of the work in this scene. He also are built together for an obitation of God through the Spirit. God did not come in and the Spirit did not come in as well unless the work was completed and finished and perfect.
And so this is what what God is doing in this chapter.
OK, what he has done so that can do with our practical side of the process completed so that the Spirit can come as well and and he could be in the scene as he is right now involving each believer and collectively the church until shall be correct.
My brother Dave brought a note. Brother Dave Burns. But maybe it was yesterday and connected with, uh, her. It was this morning in connection with numbers.
He has not beheld iniquity in Israel.
And so God has placed us in a position of favor and blessings before him in love, and He looks at us as those in that Newton. There's that new standing before him, and it's impossible. There's nothing that you can do to alter that standard. Isn't that wonderful? There's nothing that you can do about it. Change it. And so He's done it according to His will, for his good pleasure, the pleasure of his will, and to the praise of his, the glory of his grace, where He had made his accepted in the beloved.
You're accepted of God. You have a place of acceptance before Him.
And you know.
You know the Old Testament Saints never had a courage conscience.
They had been making offering for Sid. Every time they sinned, they had to offer a sacrifice for sin.
Have they only got me that one sacrifice, 1 Sacrifice at a time, one sin at a time with government, but our sins were dealt with that one sacrifice for sin?
Roll.
It is at John's Gospel.
It is a spirit that quicken it. The flesh crosses nothing.
The more that, uh.
The more that we can learn by grace above beyond worth enough on worthiness of ourselves.
More more clear.
00:45:03
But we haven't tried what we brought before us. That is, we all enjoy spiritual things in a lot greater capacity.
If we judge ourselves, keep flesh out of our lives and uh, one of those aspects is giving ourselves credit for things we really have to now see they are worthy of anything, anything of oneness, unworthy. But we have it because that's the place to give it to us.
In the second chapter we have, uh, I think of the remembrance of the Lord and the death we ask, we are asked to remember the Lord and His death over here to refresh our memories of what it costs God to give His Son and have us redeemed at such a price. He paid to help all that He went through there on our behalf to redeem us so fast. I remember that.
Well, Chapter 2 he's also asked us to remember what we were.
Why is that it it brains who are memory are the terrible condition?
That we were in it says there umm verse 11 of chapter 2.
Work or remember that evening and time past entitled to the flesh who are called on circumcision by that which is called the circumcision in the blood. They lay hands at that sign He will without Christ being aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel.
Which claims any blessing that God's earthly people had been given.
And with Rangers, Rangers and the covenants were promised having no hope and without God in the world. What a terrible uh, condition that we were in were to remember that and but now it says in Christ Jesus, ye who are sometimes far off, are they gnaw your dear by the blood of Christ.
So I I like to think of this also.
When we come together, remember the Lord, remember what a class Christ to redeem us, but then remember what we were we were poor nothings. 7 any hope without God in the world run side all the covenants and promises Israel and God was pleased to pick us up from nothing and look where he is at all to this to.
And and the place in the sun, and his place and glory.
Sunshine Price, what a position that he has brought us into. We feel that we're deserved nothing from God and what God has been pleased to.
Give us all these blessings that we have in Christ.
We were inside earlier, we were just discussing the faithful and we mentioned that life was distinguished. The difference between.
And you know, Paul brought this up to both Saints and the faithful because.
They both needed it to be reminded of these things. Sometimes we get a little bit of a head of ourselves and, you know, we're hearing these words chosen. And he laughs. And media starts to allow us to think that we're something a little more than what we are innocent, bringing that out very clearly.
Things we think of simple verses such as John 15 that says that we can do nothing without again and but in listings. I think it is that we can do all things through God, but strengthen me.
And so it shows us these things. And I was reading a little booklet just the other day, and it was on. If I had it, I read it. But Mr. Harry Hayhoe, it was all his little thing. And I can't probably quote it exactly right, but he said something to the effect of this sort of goes with Mr. Boulayer's talking with all the praise of heaven and our thankfulness. But he said something to the effect of.
We should be humble.
Because we know what we are and what we were, but be thankful for what he has brought us into or what he has made us. And we know in flash and he has made us meet our papers and the inheritance of the things in life and and that, you know, we're holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight. All these things he has done for us.
00:50:07
And so, you know, I think he was 13 tells us that yes, Sir, that phrase is gonna be in the glory continuum. But it should be the fruit of our lips now too. It should be continued. It should be because of what he has made on.
OK, I just want to, uh, suggest your thought and, uh, have some help on it. But, uh.
I would uh, suggest that maybe at the end of first floor where it says we should be fully and without rain before in the morning without neither of specifications.
From verse 7 to talk about the forgiveness of sins.
So I believe there's a difference between those two things. In fact, if we go over to Romans chapter 4, there's a, an expression there that, uh, from a natural standpoint.
Would be an impossibility.
And I'm looking at verse 5.
To Him as to God that worketh not, or to I'm sorry, to a person that doesn't work, but believe it from him, that's God that justifies beyond God. His faith is counted to righteousness.
You know, in, uh, natural terms, you can't justify the ungodly or the guilty. And, uh, maybe to help illustrate what I have on in mind, suppose that a person is charged with a crime and brought before the judge in a courtroom.
And the witnesses give their testimony and it's, there's no question about it. This person did react. They're guilty.
But because of circumstances or because the person they built themselves with the mercy of the 4th or whatever they might be forgiven. They were guilty. So the guilty person can be forgiven.
But let's suppose back up and these charges were brought against a person, but witnesses are brought to show that that person was nowhere near the scene of the crime. It was impossible that they were guilty of.
In that case they are justified.
Because they never did.
So.
It says here just to find the console for the guilty man. Can't do that. It's one or the other. You're either forgiven or you're justified. But when it comes to God, he can do it.
And I wondered about that and perhaps there's a couple of reasons, uh, that I mean to mind. And again, I'll just share it and, uh, perhaps I'll just have comments on it and maybe corrections. But it seems to me it's based on the fact that we are given, uh, to be partakers of the, uh, divine life.
And as a result, uh, God looked upon us as in that particular aspect has never hadn't seen.
The other possibility, uh, for a way of looking at it, is God sees us in Christ.
You never seen?
And that's what we have in our captive over here.
So only God justified my blood.
This is what it says in Romans chapter 8. It says in verse 33.
Romans chapter 8 verse 33. Who shall play anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God to justify it. So when He speaks of justification, he speaks of the new legal standings before God. You were sinners. You were.
Umm, an enmity with God. You were, umm, haters of God. All those things. But, uh, God never erases the fact that we did it. You might say we did sin. He doesn't pretend that we didn't sin, but he gives us a new legal standing.
Before him, as those that are accepted before him, it's a legal expression, justification. And so he, he redeems us, he forgives us and umm, he gives, he uses all these terms and there's reason why they're given. So redemption has the thought of liberty. Purchase and redemption are very similar, but the purchase, there's a new master you now have a new master you were serving.
00:55:26
Unrighteousness. You were serving the devil, you were living apart from God. But now you have a new master, You have a new Lord. But when it comes to rejection, there's the thought of being purchased and set at liberty. So now you're at liberty before God. He set you free from the power of sin and safety, and then He brings in forgiveness. You were guilty before God, but Christ shed his precious blood.
And on a righteous basis.
You no longer guilty before God, someone else pays the penalty, someone else paid the price. And so we have these little expressions, redemption, forgiveness, they're all connected to the work of Christ and justify God justified Sinner because of the work of Christ. He can place him in a new legal position before God. So perhaps may say it's not that God looks at us as never having sinned, he did sin.
You know, to pretend we didn't. But he does place us in a new legal standing before him on a righteous basis. He doesn't sweep anything on his heart.
That's what we did in Roman St. and I've got to get a little bit far away from our chocolate, but uh, we have the end of this whole week and again to the easing Christ Jesus and God to be appreciation through faith in his life to declare his rights and our initial things that are passed with experience where I say at this time is righteousness. He might be just as God just.
Now if God if the Lord Jesus Christ I need the Christ of my sins on Calvin regarding just and decline with anything from me.
It would be just because you're on the subject only and the Lord Jesus Christ to pay the full Christmas to declare this time his righteousness. He might be just and then he becomes adjusted for our students and Jesus. So we've had the importance of the court of law that Gerald mentioned and what happened. The judge picked up the bench comes in six months to meet, he says.
This man has accepted the old Jesus Christ of heaven, and John, you're caught by a child against Jesus.
Just himself.
Used to become adjustable.
Faith is what justified before God, isn't it says there in that chapter of Romans chapter 4. It says there verse three. The one says the scripture Abraham believed God, it was not counted on to him for righteousness.
And so the base is really taking God as it were Old Testament saying they had light, they believe what God said and and they desire to please God in the walk importance to the will of God. He had a new nature there. He desired that. And so God justified because they had faith in him. But it's often, as said, like an Old Testament, the sacred was saved. Brilliant credit.
Uh, the work of Christ hasn't yet been. Christ hasn't come.
The work of redemption on the cross was not completed, so they could not have faith in that. And so they were under the law for their righteousness as well. And so when they send they, they still have to pay them sacrifice and, uh, and so on. But, uh, an Old Testament saying because he believed God, God counted that as he was a righteous person. After Christ died in the cross, we have enrolled those areas also died from the sediments in her past. The Old Testament Saints who.
Both sinned recovered, then it could not have been covered before Christ came. But will Christ items across you not only covered my sins, but he covered the sins of all the Old Testament things as well and uh.
01:00:06
Scissor chapter 5 or the first verse. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The Old Testament St. get a certain amount of peace that he followed the law and he did God's goal they never really had.
Peace before God is to ascend being covered like you and I have. We have peace with God and tells the Father after the blood of the cross.
That work is completed now once for all, and we have a saddle piece within our soul that our sins are gone, removed from God's sight forever. Never do you come up again. An Old Testament saying didn't have that. He didn't have that subtle piece of those sins because the sins were still on his conscience. He didn't have a courage conscience until after Christ died on the cross.
Then Christ, God reveals the guilt that was associated with those sins from us. That guilt was born by Christ on the cross. He took her. And so we have a full and pretty deliveries from our sins, which in Old Testament say didn't wasn't any enjoyment of we are today, but still an Old Testament saying we're just typing for God.
Place a space nestled, God justified.
One of the most difficult aspects of being a a believer is to give up.
Our own will.
You know, my own selfish will be beautiful weather on Monday and I think the Lord might have something different in mind. I don't know. It's a very difficult thing to give up what we want and our will. It's beautiful to see in this chapter that three times we have God's will mentioned in verse five, the good pleasure of his will. There's nine having made known unto us the mystery of his will, verse 11 after the council of his own will.
He drove to Hebrews chapter 10. We would read there in the 10th verse of that chapter. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
What distinguishes my will from God's will? My will is focused on me and what I want and my self desires, and it separates me from God. But in this chapter here you learn something beautiful. God's will look out at others. It gives it purposes to bless.
What a beautiful and glorious thing that is. Do we want our own will? The hard thing to give up. When we submit ourselves to the will of God, we come into that giving that outward look on others and great, great life.
Chemical thing to consider, uh, our condition with respect to our sins and to how it was in August and as we mentioned, as we mentioned, uh, there seems to recover because there was a given sacrifice God made that provision, uh, for a person to sin, however.
Ignore the Hebrews for a moment. Hebrew is just a chance.
And it says.
In verse 4.
It is in it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away.
You're given.
And you might say put into an account which, uh, the Lord Jesus paid.
Eventually when he came into the world notice in the 9th chapter.
It says at the end of verse 26.
Now once in the end of the world, happy Christ appeared to put away sin.
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What's the difference put away by the sacrifice of himself?
Again, in chapter 10 into verse 11, it says that every priest in the Old Testament they offered the same sacrifices that could never take the wedding to see.
But this day, after he had one sacrifice since whatever sat down on the right hand of God, signifying the finishwork.
Thank you, Bye bye. One offering he has perfect.
Whatever them instead of saying what a wonderful expression perfectly for him.
Best could read the verses there in Romans chapter 3 connection with the Old Testament Saints. I think it clears it up somewhat. But yeah dude.
Chapter 3 and verse 23.
Mentioned there that all have said I'm sure the glory of God.
Their inventions being justified really by his grace through the redemption that is in right She's that redemption price was so perfect, so great.
That God could come out freely with His grace, and forgive us every sin because of God. That does not say when God has set forth to be of appreciation and officiation being the moment not bad, we have officiation through faith and blood to declare his righteousness and remission of sins that are better through the preparance of God.
A lot of their patients, Old Testament Saints and their sins.
Looking onwards at the time when those sins would also be covered by the blood of Christ with health, and so God for bear with them up until Christ died, and when Christ died, it says.
Whom God had set forth to be an appreciation through the faith of the blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed, speaking Arab in Old Testament Saints, and their sins forever cleansed by the blood of Christ when he died of the cross. And so there is no guilt attached whatsoever with an Old Testament saying their sins are covered in the same precious blood as ours sins are covered in.
Perhaps it goes a little beyond that. I wonder if, uh, it really our sins are gone. And uh, he gives a little illustration. The Spirit of God gives a little illustration in the Old Testament. He says our sins are cast into the depths of the sea. He uses the another illustration of songs as far as the east is from the West, so far as the put our sins away in the future day, the nation of Israel is going to rejoice because their sins, their natural sins as well as their sins individually.
Those who have come to faith were dealt with on a righteous basis. Their sins were forgiven, but their sins are gone. Your sins in mind were placed on the Lord at the cross of Calvary, and God who knew them laid them on him. And believing we were free, we have that little hymn that we often sing. But our sins were placed upon him, and God judged His Son.
God is the judge of sin, who judged his Son, who punished his Son for those sins. Those sins were laid upon him. And then the example is given to us in the Old Testament, where the let's just read it in Leviticus chapter 4 so that we get the point of it. Leviticus chapter 4.
And there's all kinds of different examples there, but we'll look at the last one.
Uh, first, uh 27 Leviticus 4 verse 27. If any one of the common people through sin, sin through ignorance, while he knew it somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord, and turning things which ought not to be done and be guilty, or of this sin which he has sinned come to his knowledge, then he shall bring his offering and kid of the goat female without blemish for his sin which he has sinned. He shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering and slay the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering. And just the last part of verse 31.
01:10:10
And it shall be forgiven him. 1/5 He put his hand on the head of the goat. And it's a little picture of our sin being transferred to Christ. And Christ died for our sins. He was punished for our sins and our death. And so our sins were laid on him.
And then?
After the work was done, he said, it is finished.
He really He has dismissed his spirit.
You would bury rose again, rose again, and rose again. He's in resurrection lightning. His body is glorified, and he ascended into the right hand to the right hand of majesty on how you feed it in the presence of God.
Where are? Where are your kids? Where are my sins? Where are the Old Testament sins? To think the sins are the same, they're gone.
They're gone. God will never ever remind you or I of a sin in the future.
You will never obstruct the seat of Christ. You review our lives, those things that we did in the body, but he's never going to remind you of a sin and say that one was really, really something that was difficult to bear. No, He will judge our lives, review our lives and we will reward those things, but our sins are gone and on a righteous basis. And so that word atonement and brother Darryl bring up is the word means a covering.
So the Old Testament Saints had their sins covered with the blood.
So just a little picture of the bloodshed and the skin covered, the blood covered, it was sprinkled on the mercy seat.
That was on credit, so they didn't recover.
But your sins are covered, they're gone. God has dealt with your sins on the righteous basis, they're gone. And Christ that's on high, seated on the right hand of the majesty, on my evidence that their sins are gone and that God has drugged them. And on a righteous basis, that man speaks on the right hand. They're wonderful. Thank you.
And to have that third client to know that God will never remind you, never hold you accountable for any of those cities house depression or future they've gone. And so that's what it means to have forgiveness of sin or remission. The old, the King James translators, they use those two words really the same word, permission or forgiveness. You're no longer guilty before God. Someone else bore the penalty.
And you can never be charged with the crime.
Yes, I think that's important. And unfortunately we mislead ourselves sometimes by the way that we use the word for chunky.
I'll let this, uh, my brother go through that this may cover.
But in all custom times they benefited from the home. It was God's best deal for the hotel in protest by by offering making an offering that was in the greater opponent, the sins were covered.
Now the high priest, all, all the sins of the people, and on the basis of that and the death of that animal, the sins were covered. What does that mean? They were put out of sight. And because the things have been put out of sight, God.
Mm-hmm. Could you switch? So it's, it's, it's continuing to run the dispatch. We're learning about the New Testament.
I think it's in the second moment, but then the the, uh, the, uh, small.
Now, I know we speak of the Italian depth of Christ, but we're really speaking these types.
The reality is, as we get in Hebrews 9, where we get an illusion to the high freestyle of going into the question during the proceed question. What did he say?
Neither by the blood thousand of cogs, but by his own blood is the Lord Jesus Christ. He entered once ignorance into the Holy Grail. He didn't have what I thought the libraries the high priestess had seen with his own sin church.
01:15:05
But he he went into the holy place having a time to decide farming, redemption, eternal redemption is far better than the truth. And, and, and so we have to be safe and we have a new flat work. We, I think we tend to mislead ourselves, but sometimes when we use the word development when we should be talking about the country.
So verse 26 of that Chapter 9 in Hebrews.
The Hebrews Chapter 9 verse 26, it says now once in the end of the world, or should say at the end of the age of the ages, happy appeared to put away.
By the sacrifice of himself. Isn't that lovely to see the scripture so accurate, isn't it? Can't you just enjoy that phrase to put away?
Sin by the sacrifice of yourself. God wanted you and I to have a conscience that was perfectly at peace.
With him even now in the day that we live here. And so he tells us to do things. So the sacrifice of Christ has dealt with the putting away of our sins and then it says a little bit further on in verse 28. You might just read it. So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many.
He died for all. The work of Christ is sufficient that all couldn't have their sins forgiven if all would come. But as we already said, none would come. But in the sovereignty of God He is chosen, elected, and some have come by grace.
That he bore the sins of many. And so that's why when he preached the gospel of the grace of God, it's good for us to recognize that he died for all.
Make the way open, but only the menu before the sins of many.
Well, in verse nine he said he speaks of the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he had purpose in himself.
And so we have read these things, some of them here, and they have to do with the secrets that God had in his heart. He had the secrets in the past eternity. He has a secret. He had a plan, He had purpose that he would have those that were from among the Jews and Gentiles brought in the blessing and made sons, made part of the bride of Christ. He had these secrets.
That he would.
Have Christ glorified and have a bride alongside with them, and that's what He's Speaking of, of the mystery of His will according to his good pleasure, which He's purpose in himself, that in the dispensation.
For the future administration of the fullness of times and, Speaking of the Millennium, the fullness of mind.
Price is going to be glorified, Christ will be seen by this world and beside the Lord Jesus with him will be his bride. They're going to see you and I put Christ.
It's astounding to think that those that have rejected strikes in this world.
Are going to bow the knee to him, but those during the millennial scene that have found them even are believers and those that are in the gentile nations.
They're going to see the Lord Jesus and they're going to see His glory, and they're going to see you and I with them. And so God had this secret, this mystery, this secret in his heart.
And he wanted to tell the believers in the day that we live in all about the family. So there are many secrets that he had. This is one of the secrets that he had.
Mentioned in the revelation there chapter uh chapter 4 verse 11.
Thou art worthy, O Lord, receive glory and honor. Power without hast created all things and.
For like pleasure they are and we're created. And so we see here that, uh.
He's revealed this mystery to us of His will according to His good pleasure, which is purpose.
01:20:08
In itself.
God created man for his pleasure. God is going to have that pleasure of having us before Him.
As sons think of God, well, pleasant beloved son, so my soul he desired as a whole family in heaven, just like my son. We've been brought into that, uh, place.
Through God's pleasure.
His will, he has brought us in and so even though creation got might say, uh.
Satan, uh.
Upset things for a period of time because sin came in, yet in the end.
In Revelation, God is going to have his pleasure. He's his will is going to be final. And uh, we can just be thankful that that we will be.
Part of that which God has determined, uh, even before he in creation, he determined that things would be made for His pleasure. And uh, we are part of that right here.
That'd be good, just to look at the end of Roman 16 where Paul speaks of this, uh, industry.
Invert 25 chapter 16 of Romans verse 25. Now to him that is of power to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ. These were two works that Paul was given to do. One was to preach the gospel of the grace of God and to teach the gospel. And that's what he does in Romans. He teaches the gospel. He was preaching it in the book of the Acts and he was defending the gospel in relation, but here in Romans he's teaching it.
And then he says the second part of the work that God gave him to do was to reveal the mystery according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is named manifest by the scriptures of prophecy. Pathetic scriptures really call both writings according to the commandment of the everlasting God made known for all nations for the obedience of faith. And so we have.
All used of God.
It was revealed in him these revelations, great revelations who said in in chapter 5 in connecting with church. It says in chapter 5 verse 31 right at the end of day two shall be one. This is a great mystery that I speak concerning Christ in the church. So Paul God revealed to Paul the secrets.
That were not known to the truth they were not known to the Old Testament Saints, but they are made known to you. You're brought in your relationship with him because you know him you're a son, you're a daughter you're in relationship with him. He wanted you to know all of the secrets and so God has revealed the truth to his people in the epistles and fall the heavenly truth of the Christ in the church. Other things and.
He wanted you to know it.
And you enjoy it now. Not legal.
Same #319.
Her sins were borne by Jesus.
The only man of God took them all in freedom.
And that's OK. So you also born by the pieces. We watched the criminal change and waited quite long. Distractions from not a spot in China.
Our sins were borne by.
Jesus.
And all night breathing from God, from everyone.
MMM.
Let's see our godfather.
Redeemed us into.
Sunshine, the praise of my glory.
Run into this.
We're here to marvelous. Thank goodness to us.
My goodness, trust this thing some other place.
Thanks. How about Jesus Christ?
Darkness and God's Light
Gospel—Tim Roach
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Just as I want to receive.
Now there's broken the day summer. It's different savior for today.
The girls standing, blanketing.
Shining is like for my grandson.
This is the savior for me.
Shredding his blood for my ground.
This is my savior for me.
The third line of verse one talks about says Long, I was changing since darkness. Tonight I want to talk a little bit about darkness. There's spiritual darkness in this world, there's physical darkness at night, and there's going to be darkness in eternity. For those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior. I'm just thinking back when the children of Israel, the nation of Israel, was captive and slaves in the land of Egypt.
And Moses was there at that time, and they were slaves, but God was going to use Moses to rescue them out of the land of Egypt. And God said about that time God sent 10 plagues on the land of Egypt until Pharaoh would let the nation of Israel go out free to worship the Lord. While the 9th plague that they had there was darkness. And there is darkness in all the land of Egypt.
And it said it was darkness that could be felt. Not sure exactly what that means, that it was darkness that could be felt. But I believe there was pain in the darkness. And the Bible says that the angels were sent in the darkness to torment them and they, the people, were afraid in the darkness. Let's look at John chapter 12.
John, Chapter 12.
In verse 46.
This is the Lord Jesus speaking. The Lord Jesus says I am a light into I have come a light into the world that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. From this verse we understand that you as you sit here tonight without the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, you are in your sins. This verse says you are in darkness, spiritual darkness, without Christ. And the Lord Jesus comes. He delight his love. He's light and he wants you to be part of his family.
In heaven. But you can't be part of His family unless the light shines in your soul. And you accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and have the light of life within you. And so in order for that to happen, we need to take care of the question of our sins. Our sins need to be taken away so that the Lord Jesus can then come into our life. Well, in the lake of fire there will also be darkness.
Start this that can be felt and let's look in Revelation chapter 16 and this will talk a little bit about darkness that can be felt.
In Revelation, chapter 16 and verse 10 says in the darkness.
And and we need to see here that in the darkness of God's wrath there is pain. And so in verse 10 it says in the 5th Angel poured out his vial upon the seed of the beast, and his Kingdom was full of darkness, and they gnawed their tongues for pain.
Pain is not something that we enjoy.
Pain is you go to the doctor and he says how much pain do you have? Umm tell me on a scale of one to 10, how bad is your pain? And I remember one time I had a #10 pain, I was working with some equipment and I got stuck between two pieces of equipment and my foot was stuck there and I couldn't get out. And the two pieces of equipment were trying to move towards each other and crushing my foot and it hurt and I couldn't get out and I was screaming.
00:05:22
And I was embarrassed because I couldn't not scream. I just continued to scream and I tried to stop and it just the screams just coming, coming out. I couldn't stop screaming in time to even yell for help. And so about 15 minutes later the neighbor came over and he was able to help. But I was there for 15 minutes of torment, alone, screaming, alone.
Psalm 78 verse 49.
Psalm 78, verse 49. He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation and trouble by sending evil angels among them. I believe this might be a reference to the darkness, because if you go through this, this, this chapter, it's talking about all the plagues in the land of Egypt. And I believe this might be a reference to the plague of darkness that could be felt in the land of Egypt. And the people were suffering there in the terror of the darkness.
When the angels of God were sent in there to trouble the people in the darkness.
Matthew 22.
There's many examples of darkness in the scriptures, and we'll look at a few of them. Matthew 22. And this is a story of a man in a wedding garment, and the results of him not having on a wedding garment. He was invited to the wedding, but he was not dressed appropriately. And in verse 12, the master of the ceremonies, he says he came and saith unto him, friend, how camest thou in hit her not having a wedding garment. And he was speechless.
Then said the king to the servants, Find him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
If you reject Jesus Christ tonight as your Lord and your Savior, and you will find yourself at at some future time when you stand before God and He sends you into a lost eternity and you're cast into outer darkness, you, the Sinner, will have no excuse as you are thrown into the darkness of hell. You will have nothing to say. You will have no arguments. You have no defense. The Sinner is guilty.
And the justice of God will be glorified as the Sinner is cast into the darkness of hell, which was prepared for the devil and his angels. God didn't prepare hell or the lake of fire for you. He loves you.
And that's why we have the Gospel meeting. That's why the Lord Jesus came down into this world, because he knew there were so many sins, Everyone was a Sinner, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. The Lord Jesus knew that until he came down into this world. So there could be a remedy for your sin. And the Lord Jesus himself is that remedy for sin.
And let's look at Luke Chapter 8.
And we'll find out what 2000 Demons said to Jesus.
Luke Chapter 8.
A man named Legion, and his name is legion because he had a legion of aid of devils inside of him. And these demons, these devils, they were controlling this man, they possessed him. And verse 28 when this man, when he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou son of the Most High?
I beseech thee, torment me not.
You see, the demons know that the lake of fire is a place of physical torment and physical pain and emotional terror, and they tremble in fear. And the demons, they don't want to go to hell. They don't want to go to the lake of fire. They don't have a choice. They are going because of their way they treated Jesus, because the way they treated God. But you have a choice.
00:10:04
You you don't have to go to hell. You have a choice. And your choices you leave on the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus has prepared a place for you in heaven.
And he wants you there with him. And tonight he's offering you that place in the Father's house with the Lord Jesus. He's offering you freedom from your sin to have your sins washed away. He's offering you eternal life tonight. Well, the demons don't want to go to hell. Let's look in Luke Chapter 16, verse 23.
This is a man.
He was a rich man.
And there was another man called Lazarus, and the rich man had many good things in his life.
The Lazarus had not. He was a beggar and.
When they both died, the rich man, he had no faith in God and he went to hell.
And in hell, let's read verse 23. And in hell. This is not the lake of fire yet, but he was still in hell. And he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus that may he may dip the tip of his finger in water and pull my tongue. I am tormented in this flame.
But Abraham said son.
Remember that now in thy lifetime received good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things. Now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. We've already expressed the fact that in hell it's darkness. It's outer darkness. There's pain in there, and there's also flames. And this man, he wasn't even in the lake of fire yet, but he was tormented in the flame. And so from these verses we understand that there will be no relief from the suffering.
In the torment of hell, after the Sinner dies, he goes directly into torment. That's what you have to look forward to. Yeah, you may reject Jesus tonight. You might have a wonderful time when you go out in the and do whatever you do in your in your own life, but that's only gonna last for a short time. That's only gonna last. You don't know when you're when your death date is.
It's only gonna last until the end, Until the end of your life, or until the Lord Jesus comes. And if you're still living at the end, you will be sent to a lost eternity in hell. But in James Chapter 2.
James, Chapter 2.
And look at verse 19.
This verse is also speaking about eternity without God and it's also.
Speaking about the demons, the devils verse 19 James Two you believe that there is one God you do well. The devils also believe and tremble.
Maybe you do believe that there is a God. Maybe you even believe that you're a Sinner and you're lost in your sins. But you have not yet put your trust in the Lord Jesus. But it is good that you believe that there is one true God. But do you tremble? Do you tremble? Are you ready to repent? Are you ready to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ?
Do you believe that you are a Sinner?
Do you believe that you deserve to suffer in hell because of your sin?
Do you believe that Jesus is God and that Jesus died as your substitute to take your punishment for sins? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Though the Lord Jesus came into this world to save sin, to save you, He came to save me and thank God he has saved me.
The Lord Jesus came to save you, and in order to do that he had to suffer, and he suffered anguish and pain and terror as he experienced the wrath of God.
On the cross, were you?
He died for you as your substitute.
He shed his blood for you to wash your sins away. And Jesus suffered so much as he endured the cross and the shame and the punishment of sin against himself. He did no wrong. He had no sin. He did no sin. He didn't even think sin.
00:15:18
Is the perfect folding Lamb of God, the Son of God, the Lord Jesus. But yet he was willing to go to the cross and have my sin put on him, and he would suffer there as if he were the guilty one.
He suffered so much shame.
For you.
And he did this. The Lord Jesus was willing to suffer in this way because he loves you.
The Bible says that the Son of God loved me. That's the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus loved me and gave himself for.
Jesus loves you. He doesn't want you to go to the lake of fire. Let's go to Isaiah, chapter 53.
Isaiah chapter 53 and these These verses describe a little bit of what the Lord Jesus had to suffer while he was there on the cross during three hours of darkness. Because it was during those three hours of darkness that the Lord that God had put our sin on Jesus and the wrath and anger of the Holy God fell on Jesus Christ.
During those three hours of darkness, Isaiah 53, We'll start at verse 4.
Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yeah, we did esteem him, stricken and smitten of God and afflicted. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are you.
All we, like sheep, have gone astray, We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Lord Jesus was as we said He was innocent. He had no sin but my my iniquity. All our sins and our iniquities were laid on him.
Then he sucked.
Suffered so much we can't even imagine what it was like. It just says here he was wounded for our transgressions and he was bruised for our iniquities. That doesn't explain the fullness of the wrath and the anger of God that fell on Jesus for me.
Many years ago I told this story before, but many years ago there was a name, a man named Placidus and his wife and his two sons, and they were Christians. And they were arrested because of their faith in Christ, because they were Christians. And they were put into the Roman Colosseum at that time. And they put them in there with the wild beasts and they put the Christians in there, and the wild beasts would come in and eat the people and tear them to pieces. And so that's what happened to Placiduses family. They're put into the Roman Colosseum and when the wild beasts refused.
To tear them to pieces and to keep the family, they took the family.
Out of there. And they had a brazen bull, a big brazen bull. It was hollow inside and they put the family inside that hollow, brazen bull.
Then he shut the door and locked the door.
And then they lit a big fire underneath.
And they got it very hot.
And slowly that brazen bull got honored by.
And the family that was inside started to get hot and started to burn and it became intense and they started to scream and the screaming of the family as they were in their screaming pain. The noise of the screaming went out through the hollow head of the bull and out to the audience in this Colosseum and sounded as if the Raging Bull were alive.
While the Christian family was roasted to death.
And all the people cheered.
Can you imagine the look of pain on the faces of that family?
As the heat as the brazen bull got hotter and hotter and they're screaming pain, tortured their faces.
It's good. Isaiah 52.
Screaming pain is written on the faces.
00:20:01
Of those who suffer.
Isaiah 52, verse 14.
Speaking about the Lord Jesus.
As many as were astonished at thee. His visage was so marred, more than any man in his form, more than the sons of men.
The appearance of Jesus, his face, his appearance. It was marred more than any man as he endured the wrath of God against sin. God did not want man to look on his Son, Jesus Christ as he endured the wrath of God in the punishment for our sins. It was too terrible to look at.
So there it was, darkness, 3 hours of darkness. And besides that man would never be able to look unto the righteousness of God.
And still live.
They looked at the righteousness of God. They would die too, as the righteousness of God punished Jesus for our sins. Well until for three hours. While Jesus suffered for our sins, God turned off the light of the sun and darkness, covered all the land. Lord Jesus endured the darkness, and during that time our sin was put on Jesus and God punished Jesus for our sins.
And as we said, all was in darkness, so we don't know exactly what happened.
During those three hours during that time of supper.
But out of the darkness Jesus Christ. And he cried with a loud voice. He says, My God, my God, why? Why hast thou forsaken me?
Shortly after that.
Jesus commended his spirit to the Father.
Anytime.
The soldier was standing there.
He saw that Jesus had died.
But his hatred had not yet been complete until he took his spear, and in hatred he threw it into the side of the Lord Jesus.
An act of hatred.
Brought forth the blood and flowed from the sides of the Lord Jesus.
And the Lord Jesus, his blood was shed. It is that precious blood of Jesus that can wash your sins away tonight. That precious blood of Jesus was evidence that he had died and he was punished for our sin, our sins.
Over all the land, there was darkness.
It could be filled. The Lord Jesus felt all the anguish and the pain in that darkness.
If Jesus suffered so much.
That he was willing.
And he loved you so much.
That he was willing to suffer that much for you.
So that you could go to heaven to be with him.
If he suffered that much, he is not going to let you go. He's not going to let you get away from him.
Nothing will be able to separate you from the love of God.
I see.
I'm now talking to a person who has believed on the Lord Jesus.
You believe in the Lord Jesus. He will give you eternal life. He is your you are the child of God the Father. You belong to the Lord Jesus.
And His love is what is reaching out to you tonight to save you. And nothing will separate you from His love when you are saved. Not your sin, not Satan, not your own selfishness. Nothing can get you out of the hands of Jesus, and nothing can get you out of the hands of the fallen.
So you are safe forever.
That's what it's offered to the believer.
If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, this wonderful love, this wonderful future is offered to you tonight. But how can you have your sin removed? Well, let's look at a verse in First John Chapter 4.
First John chapter 4, verse 9 and 10.
00:25:01
And this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him. Verse 10. Here is his love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Oh, the love of God is so great, the love of the Lord Jesus was willing to come into this world.
To be the propitiation for our cities appreciation is kind of like a covering. It takes away our sins.
And Jesus, the Son of God, is the remover of sins. He's the propitiation for our sin.
Tell you a little story. We had a guest.
Some time ago.
Some guests and one of the children found a a patch of berries, big big berries, and they took them and they started writing on the white wall of the house and graffiti here and there many places.
Into the various things on the wall. And when the father found out he had done that, he took the boy and he got some soap and some water and some chemicals and they scrubbed scrub, scrub, scrub, and they couldn't get the very stain off. It would not come on.
That is how we are with our sins.
We can work hard to be good, we can be kind to other people, we can give our money to charity, We can do so many things.
Trying to make our good works outweigh our bad so that we'll have a chance to get in to him.
But there's nothing good that we can do to get rid of our safe. Just like that boy scrubbing on the very stain with the soap and water. It won't come off. And that is why God the Father sent His Son, Jesus Christ into this world to be the substitute to die for us sinners. And this when the Lord Jesus died. This allows God to remove the sin that makes it impossible for us to have fellowship with God. That's the reason God put you in tears, so you can have fellowship with you. He wants you to be His friend. But because of our sin, we can't have that fellowship. And so Jesus had to come and die.
Well, when that boy could not remove the very stain off the white wall.
Bottle bleach, some spray cleaner and we spray it on the stain. It's all it disappeared and the wall was white again.
Well, that's just like the blood of Jesus Christ.
We read that the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin.
How do you get the blood to be applied to you so you can be saved? Well, there's two points of responsibility for you so that you can receive eternal life and so that you're free to go to heaven. Those two things are repentance towards God and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ. And you'll find that in Acts chapter 20, verse 21. Now repentance. Repentance means that you adjust your thinking to turn away from your own purpose.
And to turn away from your own will, and to turn away from your desire to sin, and you submit yourself to the will of God. That's repentance.
Now faith towards the Lord Jesus means to believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Believe that you are a Sinner who deserves sin, who deserves death and judgment in the lake of fraud, and believe that Jesus endured the judgment of God and that he was punished as your substitute.
For your sins.
Believe that Jesus died. Believe that his blood was shed to wash away your sin. Believe means to put your trust to trust that Jesus did all the work to save you from your sin.
If you believe on the Lord Jesus like this.
Let me see that easy. Believe and trust.
Maybe you are convicted.
Maybe you're you're sorry for your sin.
Maybe you want peace in your life, in your heart.
00:30:04
I want the Lord Jesus to be a part of your life.
If you haven't understood what's been taught tonight.
Please come and talk to me after the meeting. I'll be here this afternoon. This afternoon. I'll be here tomorrow. But don't put it off. Don't wait any longer.
To experience the peace and the joy of having eternal life.
Why don't we see #13? The Lord Jesus suffered so much. He had a lot of sorrow in his life.
And but he is our Savior. Man of sorrows. What a name for the Son of God who played a king, ruined sinners to reclaim Hallelujah. What a savior.
Man of sorrows what I need.
To ring like a little bit of water.
Day No.
Is there any shame? And scarcely brown in my life.
That's great. Our God and Father, we give thanks for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of sinners. We give thanks that there's a there's hope for anyone here who is a Sinner who needs to be saved. Lord Jesus, we give thanks, Lord Jesus.
That you have gone to the cross since you've taken the punishment, endured the wrath and anger of the Holy God against sin.
So that means we go free. Oh, we give thanks for that love, Lord Jesus, that. And we just ask that that love withdraw our hearts to give thee worship and glory and honor and praise. We give thanks, Lord Jesus and your name, We pray.
Surprises
Children—Jonathan Martin
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Let's start by singing some songs. Who has some songs? Do what you think you have the Sunny.
Priority will be given to younger people anyway.
Thank you. Uh, let's see 50 fif 56.
November 856.
All the time with you about any bad time, but have them in a group. And what's the gentleman's name? What happened to you, my child?
And I rolled by that and left on top of the house.
All right.
Take me away from heaven. What about the distance? And then organize the organization.
All right. Anybody else have one I'd like to take?
It's working books too, somewhere in the file.
4545.
I'm so happy and here's the reason why Jesus took my burning all the way.
I don't know.
If I'm happy and here's the reason why Jesus puts my burden and all the bread and everything.
Anything else? That one, Yeah.
Call the service line.
Hello, which one's number 11 There?
OK.
Will your anchor hold since we know that one.
With your anger all in the storms of light falls there winds up strike.
When sometimes the and very low strength.
So.
I can do the rock Red can't talk to them and get me in the same goodbye.
00:05:03
Goodnight, and all the strength of him, and the breaker's roar, and the ring is near.
When I saw him.
On the pillow.
How did you understand?
Your favorite song?
Anybody else have one? What do you want to say?
Right.
Now.
Called in his head and a miracle.
I would never buy anything to get it together and I didn't help me.
It was like different.
From the ground and grounded, grounded, grounded, crowned cricket ground and one of the problems in here, I'm very good at the time.
Good.
Do you have that one?
Number six. Number six.
Oh, that's umm.
ABCDEFG.
HIJKLMNO.
PQRSTU we need to be answered.
Even if I have come here, that's why I feel like.
Number one.
Number one.
Uh, certain man who made a living thing come home. Come here with Christian Belkin. Here's something more than cold. We just did something more, something more difficult, giving him something more than no.
Yes, it happened on a certain day. That's when I'm never stole and peaceful after wearing something more than no.
Uh, yes, there's something more. Something.
For them.
He finds a tree above the grounds of land. He might be all that wasn't one of the hard to give him something more than gold.
00:10:07
There's something more, something more than wrong. You know you're enjoyable for giving it something more than gold.
No, no, no.
Need sometimes I have nothing to do. Some questions which are prosthetics, you know.
9/6.
1.
All right. Let's see a couple more and then if you guys have verses that you want to say that you've been working on, we can do.
9191.
And you're right for him. Oh my goodness.
Wondering will come to see his girl one metal hard part of him now in my ear make some large feet and I said a million oh OK continue to be.
4646.
46.
You have all the accessories at home. We have a bunch of accessories for the software.
In the house and now the door is driving by them, sweeping floor, watching, hiring, pending to depressing by his mirror.
Jesus, how to do the apology that I'll give you all over again now I'll get it now. Let's make it. Now. Let me take a look at everything for everything.
00:15:28
He helped me through the.
Anybody have versus they've been working on that they want to say?
Happy.
Go ahead.
And.
Judged on Facebook.
Let's hear it.
I want those food and breakfast and it seems that you're in they come in, but and that is that is the best is MMM.
Yep, it's given unto you on behalf of Chris, not only should be on his name.
But just the first thing for me, I'm surprised. 129 and 21.
I think maybe one more, let's see number 77.
Salvation is a big world.
You have the.
I won't get any help and all our options and not what I need.
I love the ground and gave you something that for me and you know.
It's free for Jesus Christ. What's the energy in you and me?
The application is Farhan is a real valley for me and she'd come by myself and cannot be lustrous again.
Based on that.
Before we start.
OK, we're going by we just get thanks for the time we've had together over yesterday before, umm, to be hearing your word and thank you this morning for the time you have any songs and, uh, if any song your word to memory and, umm.
00:20:15
Great for help now and umm, a little more time over your word and.
Leaders, we remember you and your love for us and your death for us. You should ask for your help. Thank you for loving us and dying for us.
I want to talk a little bit today of surprises.
You guys like surprises, yeah.
Where we surprised somebody else?
That's not fair. I always knew I was going to talk about prices because it's not. There's a long message.
Umm, I should try some features. Oh, so like, that's surprising.
Sorry.
I was thinking about surprises. I've had a few surprises over the last month.
And the first surprise I had was.
Five months ago, with my birthday, my wife surprised me and bought me an airplane station to go see my family and see them in a long time.
I was surprised and I got a plane and flew back to Montreal where my dad and my sister lived.
And I got to see them. That was a nice surprise.
And then when we were driving from the airport to my dad's house, we had to make a quick stop, so I said we could get something.
And I went to help her get something. And then there's another surprise.
My friend asked me a long time. OK, I'm in the room real nice Friday, so those are good surprises. I got to see some people that I love that I hadn't seen for a long time. I got to see my dad that I talked to on the phone, but I don't see you very much. And my sister.
That reminded me that there's good surprises that are waiting for us.
And that I'm going to just read a verse that talks a little bit about that, and it's in First Corinthians.
I think maybe.
Yeah, First Corinthians chapter 2.
And verse 9.
As it is written, I have not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things that God is prepared for them to love you.
Oh, there's. Haven't seen, haven't really even heard about.
Can't even imagine what God is prepared to reveal them unto us that we that we get to know God better and better and the Lord Jesus better. We get a little bit more ideas, but what heaven might be like we don't really know.
That was a little bit of a reminder for me. That might be what heaven's like. That was my father there that I talked to on the phone, but I don't see very much.
And that's kind of like my Heavenly Father. I talked to him, but I don't really see him.
And I'll talk to him, and there'll be people there that I haven't seen for a long time that I love, that will be there. And it'll be a nice surprise. No matter what we think we know about it, how we try to think what it might be like, it's gonna be a good surprise. So much better than.
What we think, you know, we get kind of comfortable down here. We have our friends and, and maybe your dog and we have our room just the way we like it and everything is pretty comfortable. We're not, we're not too stressed out. We don't have too much going on. And we know that heaven is going to be wonderful because the Lord Jesus is there and he loves us, but we don't really know what it's gonna be like. We might get kind of.
Nervous that we don't. We don't know what it's gonna be like, and once we get there, we're there for eternity. And what if I don't like it? But I'm sure.
From reading the Bible and from what I know about the Lord of Jesus, that we're gonna let you think of the best surprise that you've ever had in a day. We're all just the best days. That I'd be OK if this thing never ended and I could just stay here and keep doing what I'm doing. That's not even close to how amazing it happens to be like for us.
The Lord loves us and, and, and the gift, the Bible says, uh, talking about the Lord's love and and giving.
00:25:10
US.
Us who are evil know how to get good gifts how much more and bother him. So best thing that we could ever imagine doing for someone that we love having to be much, much better than that.
So we wanna make sure that everybody is ready who knows how to get there. But last week I had a different kind of surprise.
This wasn't that good of a surprise.
On Friday last Friday, I had a job interview.
You guys were at a job interview?
No, I didn't think so. Some people on this side of the island had job interviews.
I haven't had too many job interviews. I'm a Carpenter, so I build houses.
And I had one job interview when I was 15 or 16, and it was Mr. McCann, her son that I was working for. He wanted to know if I had a car, if I would get there on time, if I'd like to come to work or if I'd like to take these off and if I knew how to push groom.
Had a car and I could get to work and I could withdraw so I had stuff and.
And I worked for a few different companies and umm, I learned more, more. And then I would have another job interview and it would be in the front of a pickup truck. And they wanna know if I could swim hammer and if I could get the nail when I swung the hammer. And if I had a car, I'd be like, we can work on that. Or if I like, take things off. So I had two job interviews like that, but last Friday was a different job.
Sometimes I like my job, but sometimes I'll see a job that I would call a long shot and I will send in an application because you never know.
So on Friday I had a job interview and I wear my best seated clothes and I had to sit across the table from a few people that were also wearing their best knitting clothes. And they worked for the government indirectly, and they had some harder questions for me. And so I sat through them and I answered the questions and I answered some questions pretty good.
Thanks. And some questions I didn't know the answer to. They wanted to know if I knew something. Some of the things I did know, some of the things I didn't know.
They wanted to know what I would do in this situation.
And they said.
Thank you and.
We'll call you. So I went home for the weekend and I was thinking.
Well, I wish I'd answered that a little better, but I think this one I answered pretty good. Umm, I wonder what that like. I may have a chance. I think I did. I did all right on that question and umm, I got it. It'd be nice. I don't have to work outside in the cold city inside and look out the window and you know it's gonna be outside working with snow we kind of see.
Then on Monday I got an e-mail from the man I got an interview with, he said. Dear Mr. Martin, don't think I need to tell you that your interview went or.
Oh, that was a bad surprise.
All weekend I was thinking.
I'm sure the questions I got wrong weren't nearly as important as the questions I got right.
Probably. In the end of the day, I probably did OK. The things I did right, I'm sure were more important than things I didn't know. On Monday I got an e-mail and said Nope.
We've unanimously decided to move on to the next candidate.
Is that a good surprise or a bad surprise?
That's that's not thankful, that's not the end of the story. It has this whole other half, but it doesn't matter. But I had the whole weekend where I thought and did pretty good and all the bad things I did. I'm sure it didn't really matter. And all the good things I did I'm sure is what they were really concerned about.
And on Monday I found out it was probably the office.
And all the stuff I answered wrong or poorly was the stuff that would really work. And all the stuff I answered right probably didn't matter that much Now. It made me think that that's the way a lot of people go through the whole their whole life to think, man, all the stuff I do wrong.
Doesn't really matter and all this company right will make up for all this. Definitely wrong and I'm sure at the end of the day hugging it in heaven.
And there's some people that are gonna have a bad surprise.
For some people, we wanna make sure nobody in this room is surprised. That way we wanna make sure that you know how to get to heaven. That's why we have Sunday school and gospel meetings. And Mr. Roach had a meeting last night.
00:30:05
We talked about that people try to balance all the good things to do with all the bad things they do, and in the end, it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that you accept the Lord uses what your Savior. And accepting the Lord Jesus as your Savior is even one of the good things you do that goes on the pile to balance out the bad things you do. That's the only thing that matters, what you can do.
And that's why we had meetings. We wanna make sure that everybody understands how to get to heaven. And then by accepting the Lord, you just love you and we love you enough. Go to the cross and die for you. Take all your sins and say I will pay the price for all of those sins. I will go.
I'll He was treated very badly, you know, he was killed because he loved us so as you.
Get older, it's gonna be easier and you're gonna.
Do it more often than probably. Just do the best you can and try your hardest and eventually it'll even out. As long as you're a nice person that'll make up for all the best things you do and so I will have no choice but to let you. Such a nice guy. That's not how it works in the Bible.
So that's why that was.
Reminded me that there's gonna be some people.
That have a very bad surprise, but you don't need to worry that.
You're gonna have a bad price. You don't have to think. Well, I, I hope I did enough things after I tested the working system. And boy, I hope when it comes back, I hope I can go. You don't have to worry. The only thing that you have to think about is to accept the Lord Jesus as your savior, that he loves you very much. He died on the cross escape.
And all he wants you to do is to love.
Now, now we can do all kinds of nice things and the Lord has all sorts of things for us to do that afterwards he has, uh, planned for everybody. You might be part of it. You might have a friend that you need to tell about the Lord. You might have someone you have to help. He says the Lord, he just loved you. He left somebody else. But the 1St and the most important thing that you.
Not interested in in going our own way to look down on your creation and your system to give your Son to he must. Lord Jesus, thank you for loving us and for going across the sailor. We just addressed the issue.
Lessons From the Kings of Judah
Address—Paul Hadley
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Start with #122.
122.
Last reverses.
May every.
Man die around his life.
All granddaughter of God, you'll be alive.
And Father, we're about to, my word, raise the fellow, open it to us.
Read Thou bless each soul here.
Help.
Myself to speak well of thee and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Yes, my blessing, the name of your Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
Thank you for your Amen, I appreciate it.
Amen is umm.
Words. That means let it be. But he just asked for it. Let it, let it be.
So you all pray with me.
Appreciate that. I'm gonna pray again though.
And I'm going to.
Read read the prayer from my prayer book here.
One of the nice things about prayer.
Saying Amen. Is that the voice of the assembly, just like singing as the voice of the assembly? And so the ladies sing.
No sound to the assembly.
They sing because it's the voice of the same, but it's not their voice.
Same thing As for Amen.
Appreciate it.
Any of the sisters that said Amen to that prayer? Bummer. We pray again now.
Lord.
But where's my mouth?
The meditation of my heart acceptable, and I say the Lord.
My strength, my Redeemer. Amen.
Want us to turn to First Peter Chapter 3?
To start with.
I have in mind to consider some of the kings of Judah.
But.
In view of this, I'm about to read.
First Peter, chapter 3.
Verse 15 goes like this.
The sanctify the Lord God in your hearts.
Now the rest of that verse is nice. I want you to ignore it for now.
Because if we get fixated on the last half of the verse.
00:05:01
You will miss what I have in mind. Bring before you today.
There are, umm, lots of translations, of course, and.
Like to refer to Mr. Kelly's translation in this because I think it really brings out the thought.
Of this passage and it would go something like this.
The sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.
Set aside Christ, says Lord in your hearts.
Now there's lots of Christians out there. He walked out in the street and said, are you a Christian? They say yes, I go to church every Sunday or.
Every year or whatever.
I named the Christians.
There are those who.
Have accepted the Lord as a sacred. I hope everybody in this room is in that category.
And so they've accepted Christ as a savior.
That's better than just saying you're a Christian by name.
But there's something beyond that.
That is this.
Call him Lord. That means he's in charge of your life. He's your master. He's the one you're following. Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Yeah, there's one more stage beyond calling him Lord that's doing it in your heart.
Let's give a heart. Give your heart the desire to follow him. That's like what Daniel did. He purpose in his heart and not to find himself by the King's meat.
He made a commitment. He was going to follow his God no matter what. Might have to eat the this.
Holsters.
Or food all his life. But he wasn't going to file himself for the kings. And they he purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself. And you know what? When he did that.
Feel the sunset. You know I'm going to do the same thing. If you purpose in your heart, follow the Lord, it's going to affect other people.
This is what we need. We need you and me, the purpose in our hearts.
Set aside Christ as Lord in our hearts. The purpose in our hearts followed Him regardless of whatever else.
And then Ezra, he did the same thing.
Tells us in the book of Ezra.
Uh, I'm gonna that he prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord and to do it and the chief Israel statutes and judgments.
They prepared his heart.
This is something that requires a little bit of commitment, a little bit of effort. It doesn't necessarily just happen, you know?
He prepared his heart. So I'd like for you to take a look at this verse that we just just read in first Peter. Put your eyeballs on that and.
I hope that somebody in this room might today.
Say I am sanctifying Christ as Lord in my heart today.
You know there is.
A. There's a passage in the book of Chronicles, and you don't need to turn to it, is what David said to the.
To, uh, people.
He said.
Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day under the Lord?
There's Chronicles 29 and verse 5.
I As I say, I'd like you to look carefully at this passage that we've read in First Peter and think about it.
And perhaps you will be one of those who will be willing this day to consecrate himself under the work of the Lord.
I'll be turning into other passages.
As they go, think about some of the kings, some of them purposed in their heart, compared their hearts, these one of them that says he didn't do that.
00:10:07
You don't need to follow along. You don't need to put. I put put marks in my Bible places I want to turn and I don't want to wait for you to find them.
That's perfectly fine with me if you close your Bibles and just listen. Or maybe you want to look at it, but, uh, I'd rather have you listen.
Then spend your whole time flipping through your pages.
So we have the kings of Judah.
There was salt.
The People's Choice.
I'm tall and handsome. People's Choice.
David, he was the king after God's own heart, it says. And as we heard yesterday, he found.
Favor with God.
What a wonderful thing that would be if you could find favor with God today.
You could.
Live your life in such a way that you would find favor with God. God has such ability to bless you and me.
It's immeasurable.
His resources, he has ways that he works behind the scenes to bring about that which is good for you and for me. Well, for me we could.
Get into the favor of God in our lives. What a difference would make it in every life if.
If you get into his favor, like David.
So, David?
Thursday, Warrior came.
Yes, son, he was Solomon, king of peace. Solomon. The name is derived from the Hebrew word of peace, Shalom. Shalom, a man, Solomon.
But when he was, when Solomon was born, Nathan the prophet sends to David, and he says.
His name is Jedediah.
Jedediah.
He loved in the Lord is what Jedediah means.
Oh, you know, you and I, each one or beloved of the Lord.
Yeah, perhaps all entered into it properly and Solomon didn't kind of forgot it later in life, but.
He was blessed. He was blessed of the Lord with wisdom and riches and glory.
His beloved of the Lord. Just a little bit of a taste of what God could do for someone.
I don't mean that you and I are gonna get rich in this world.
But it's observable, a taste of what God can do to bless somebody that he loves. He loved the Lord like Daniel two. He was called the love of the Lord.
Oh man, greatly beloved. What a title.
When you say something.
We could be called Oh man, greatly throughout.
Well, what a great start that was for the people of Israel.
With uh.
David and Solomon start off that Kingdom.
So then Solomon has a son.
We'll bring a bone.
I wanna read you something about Ray alone.
Send miracles.
And uh.
It says in the second Chronicles 12 and verse four that he did evil because he prepared not his heart to seek the Lord.
So this is the king that I was Speaking of that.
Specifically says he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.
So what happened in the grain of a ray of bone?
00:15:04
Was he blessed like Solomon? We all know he wasn't.
We can find that and that the reign of Ray of Om.
Well, first of all, he presumed upon the goodness of God.
We can rest on the goodness of God. It's a wonderful thing.
I don't believe we ought to ever presume upon it.
Ray of Allen thinks all this stuff is coming to me regardless of what I do.
Like the Christian who says.
We invited Romans 6 up. I can send.
Regardless of what I do, it just brings more glory to God if he saves me. That's why I read a bomb was.
We presume that all this stuff is coming to him by inheritance. Doesn't matter how he treats his people, he's gonna play the tough guy and so.
Refined that there was division amongst the people of God and the 10 tribes revolted.
And uh, Ray of Own decides, well, I'm gonna fix that. I'll show them I got in my armies and we're gonna go down and fight and we're gonna get them back. They are gonna be under my phone.
But what we find, and I'll read it out of the first CRE first Kings 12 is that umm.
The the word was sent away along. Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up nor fight against your brethren. The children of Israel return every man to his house, for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the Lord, and return to depart according to the word of the Lord.
The division was from God.
I've been in places where I've heard.
Brother, who was promoting and encouraging division amongst the people of God, referred to this verse. This thing is from me.
Why was it from me?
If you want to find out why, you have to go back a chapter.
That in Chapter 11 and verse 30.
Uh, 33.
When?
I was told to Jeroboam that he would have parted the Kingdom. The reason was given because that they have forsaken me and have worshipped Asterisk, the goddess of Zaidonians, Chimoshans the God of Moabites, and Milton the God of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways to do that which is right in my eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments as to David his father.
The reason it was from me is because idol worship had crept in amongst the people of God. It wasn't because God wanted his people to be separated.
Ray of Balm allowed that.
Solomon had allowed it.
And then in fact, I say encouraged it because of his wives.
So we have Rhea Bone, the king of division.
Because of idol worship and because he had not prepared his heart, said the Lord.
Al Raybhom has a bizarre abyss, has a son, and ASA has a different solution to this problem. What do we do about this division?
They call them enemies.
Their enemies and it says that ASA and Beisha had war all their days.
People of God who are not with us are not our enemies.
They're brothers and sisters in Christ and we don't have war with them all our days.
They're brothers.
Then it comes to Jehoshaphat.
Jehoshaphat and I like Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat had a heart for all the people of God.
00:20:03
He lived at the same time as King of the Earth, the northern Kingdom, that King Ahab.
And the same time as Elijah.
The Northern Kingdom was ungodly and was an ungodly man.
Introduced idolatry officially into the people of God. Officially it was idolatry all along, you can see, but officially he made it the UMM.
Worship of Baal in the Northern Kingdom thanks to his evil wife Jezebel from Sidon. And uh, she brought the idolatry with them.
But Jehoshaphat did love all the people of God, and I like that about him.
But you know what? He did it. He made mistakes.
Pray as long as I could force the unity.
Hey Sir, thought you could.
Hi there. He, he called that, uh, called the people I work with them enemies.
Josiah Fat though may compromises in order to make a fake unity. Some of it might say like amalgamation.
And so you have the fat.
He goes where they have to battle.
And he?
He says that they have. I am as you are. My people are as your people. My horses are as your horses.
And he makes the unequal yoke. And during battle.
Ahab and it almost cost of his life.
It almost cost him his life. He was. They have.
Hide himself amongst the people and to where his kingly garments and that made him a target.
That's a large scale because the Lord did lovely.
The hospital does the same thing a little bit later on with one of they have children.
I named.
So, uh, it's our own.
Jehoram or Joram the same name.
Durham, uh, says Jehoshaphat.
You know, uh, we need to go fight Moab because they've got rhemophilia.
And that belongs to us.
Just just the same thing to him as he said to to his father, he says I am as that one.
My people are black people. My horses as your horses, they go down around the South at the the Dead Sea. Into the desert they go.
Where the they're about to die.
From thirst, there's no water.
Those 3 Kings that gathered together, they had no hope. Fortunately, Elijah was there at that time.
But he wouldn't have listened to him apart from.
The fact that you have stopped there and he delivered them.
There is alliance where they have and that will almost cost him his life, his alliance with Joram.
And battle all those customers, hold his whole army.
They have another son, a Josiah.
He only rang for a year because he fell through the lattices, remember? And uh.
And he made an alliance with him also another unequal yoke.
To go on like a commercial adventures.
This kind of customer shifts.
So we almost lost his life, he almost lost his army, he did lose his ships from his unequal yokes in battle and his unequal yokes in commercial things.
Worst of all, they did.
Was he aligned himself in marriage?
00:25:03
Marriage is such a wonderful thing.
We're talking about the marriage the other day, Thursday night, and I hope I we didn't leave any of the young men in women under the impression that you ought not to seek a wife.
One of the young brothers, after a meeting pointed out something that he should have kind of pointed out during the meeting, at least pointed out after that, and it says he would find it in white. Like a good thing. It involves seeking.
Remember what the Lord said.
Remember what God said.
Not good for men to live alone.
And seek your Good Wife. Pray about it.
Intelligent.
Finance, the one that will bless your life.
What did your house affected?
He decides to in order to join the kingdoms. Better Together, friendly things. Let's make a marriage.
I think it would be nice, he says to himself.
I don't know what he said, but uh, I imagine what he said himself.
Let's make an alliance. You have a nice daughter there, uh, Athelia and I've got my son here is about to ring. Let's, uh, turn together.
Chicopee Green, my son could be king and.
Uh, it won't fine.
Ahab had a curse on him.
November.
What do I just sent to him?
Every one of your male children.
They're gonna die.
Those that die in the field, they'll be eaten by the birds.
Die in the city. They're going to be eaten by the dogs. Your wife, Jezebel.
The dogs are going to lick her blood.
Itself.
Was under that curse also.
Do you know what Jehoshaphat did? He married him to a curse. He married his son into a curse.
Oh, how great a thing a marriage is.
Stand up watching Chimney and so many others.
Then I can see some others where what a catastrophe in their life it was.
You know, there's, uh.
Interesting thing about the word's genealogy if you look at it in Matthew One. You don't have to do it again if you look in.
That genealogy.
You'll find that sticks of Joseph.
I guess I should have told you this already. Tell them it's a little confusing because Joseph had named his son Joseph.
They have named his son Jotham also.
It's even more confusing because after Akhenziah dies, that's just older brother.
He always doesn't move. The son of Jehoshaphat named him after his brother-in-law, so he got a lot of names that are kind of hard to start out there, but anyway.
So if you read in the genealogy of the Lord.
Says Chosen. He got Isaiah.
What happened?
There's three people missing there. Joseph's son was Ahaziah. Eziah, he got Joash, the seven-year old king. Joash, we got Emoziah, Amazon, we got Messiah. So it's 33 generations. Skip there. What a goof up the revival, huh? What's that all about?
We find goof ups. We always find there's a beautiful thing about it.
Tell you what that's all about.
If we were to read in Exodus 20.
Uh, it says in the 10 commandments.
00:30:02
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. For I, the Lord thy God, of a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the 3rd and 4th generation.
Of them that hate me, they have.
Was the one who introduced idolatry officially through the Kingdom of Israel, the northern Kingdom, and he was visited to the third and the 4th generation because he hated God. He might say he.
Put God out of his life.
And.
Introduced idolatry instead.
So that third and 4th generation.
And Isiah? Joe asked. You actually a good team?
That 7 year old boy is a good king. And Wasiah, Joashimi, Hesiah. No, here's the order. And Hosiah, Josh and Embezziah, they're struck in that struck out the official genealogy of the Lord, as they were descendants of the one who introduced idolatry into the Kingdom of Israel.
Well, as far away it's reaching effects of uh.
Sam, it's amazing how we can be blessed Oh if we kick our feet against the ****** and resist God is equally amazing how things can go in the opposite direction so bad.
That's what happened to.
And Messiah's son.
Isaiah was greatly blessed.
He was.
It was.
There's a great king. It says that. In fact, it says that he repaired his heart. I believe it's one of the ones that prepared his heart.
Umm.
And serve the Lord.
And he?
Prospered.
Every direction he went he prospered and the the Lord blessed them and enriched them.
That tells us in Chronicles that it's not in other things. That's in Chronicles, but.
Went into.
The temple of the Lord and wanted to offer incense.
What time?
You know the story.
And.
And there was the priest that stood up.
Others with tell them that this is not for you. OK, did you?
What did he do? Get a chance? You had a moment like Chris said, I was wrong.
More side effects.
But to read in the Bible that what happened instead of that?
He was rough, and while he was raw, leprosy started to.
Oh boy, how God can dress. And he did dress. They uh, he did bless as I am so much.
He had prepared his heart to serve the Lord.
But tells us in chronicles that when he was lifted up and I think he had like the second longest reign of the king of all the kings of Judah, 52 years.
Uh.
And.
You started out at, I think at age 16, guys at 67 and, uh, or something like that and.
I suspect that all this prosperity.
00:35:01
Everything went so well, eventually got to went to his head.
Probably laid in his wife. I don't know, maybe he was 63 or four or five.
Uh, there's something that's.
Got it all.
And then he takes a step over.
His bounds and enters.
Priesthood.
Ethics wants to offer instance the leprosy crops upon his head.
Out he goes into a separate house and his son Jotham reigns in his doesn't reign that he's a Regent, which means he's in charge. He takes, he takes charge. Uh.
Because.
This proud man as I am.
How the Lord can humble you and me?
We should tread that.
You see any pride lifting up in our hearts, we should dread the possibility of what could happen next.
So I was so blessed. One thing wrong, gets it, gets it go to his head and he gets humbled down into the House of the luxury girls.
He was a goblin man, I suspect. I suspect it's not said, but I suspect he guided his son Joseph.
Uh, in the reigning of the Kingdom.
And Joseph was a fine king.
Uh, Aziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah are all joined together. Those 4 kings. They're joined together because.
Prophet Isaiah prophesied in the days of those kings.
Three of the best kings.
Of all the history of Israel, or dude, I should say three of the best kings of the history of Judah.
As I am.
Joseph Hezekiah.
There, in the midst of those three, is the one of the most ungothy of all kinds.
You know spirituality is not inherited.
God delights the blessing families, but if you haven't committed your soul to Him, you haven't made a commitment to con or consecrated your life to Him, you could end up like like a house.
And sad to say.
There are many, many.
Children of true believers.
You've gone the way they have.
May none of you pay such.
What does AIS do? First of all, because he's an ungodly person. He's not blessed.
He is in deep, deep trouble.
The northern his neighbor to the north, Syria.
What's the fight with them?
And Syria joins with Israel.
Site with with, uh, with a house.
And they he has in his army are destroyed, says 120,000.
Men of his army died one day, one day 120,000.
And 200,000 are captured and taken away to Israel.
200,000.
Naked.
Published hungry slaves.
Fortunately.
The mercies of God.
Prophet Oded comes and preaches to them, tells them.
With your brother.
That's weird, Slates your brothers, sisters in Christ.
And those 200,000 get sent back home. But it tells us also in the same passage that many multitudes exactly exact words, but many were captured and taken to to uh Syria. So 200,000 that were were captured as slaves for Israel.
00:40:19
They returned, but the many slaves that were taken.
By the Syrians. They were not returned.
Ray has had a rough time, tells us in Isaiah how that when he heard all about this, that the people's the people were moved like the trees in the wind.
Terror of what was about to come upon them. Every soul was in distress.
What do you think Trouble Ahaz was in? Yeah, you know God would still desire to bless. This is another point that I like to bring out.
God wants to bless you even if you are resisting him. And so we read in Chapter 7 of Isaiah that.
Isaiah was sent to him and told him to ask for a sign.
Heaven above, earth below waters. Ask any sign you want.
Because Isaiah tells them these two firebrands, Syria and Israel, you don't need to worry about that.
As far as Ezra goes, another 65 years from now, they're not even going to be a people.
That was, that was fulfilled.
20 years later they were carried away. Another 45 years into captivity, they lost all their identities.
Or they even have people.
What do they have? Say Oh no, I'm not content the Lord by asking a sign.
We're not necessarily.
Called the astrosigns or put out the places the expression goes.
The Lord occasionally doesn't like to let us know that He's there.
And he does give us little signs from time to time, and he's there.
That he wants to bless.
And they has.
He figured, well, God's not going to do this anyway, so I'm not going to ask him.
Not disabled. He is able.
Hezekiah.
Son of a house.
The son of one of the most ungodly kings, the only one to compete where they has would be Manasseh. Just as a kiosk. Here he is between the two most ungodly kings of Israel he has and Manasseh.
And I think Hezekiah is the one who finally got things right.
Just about.
So I want to read and uh as a try a little bit.
Chronicles. Second Chronicles.
Chapter 30 if you want to look at it.
Oh, 29 is.
Hezekiah 29 verse three. He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors.
The House of the Lord repaired them.
Nice to have a good start. This wasn't just a good start though. Hezekiah was committed to doing this and it was a lifetime thing. We'll see that.
Verse six for our fathers of trespass and done that which is evil. The eyes of the Lord. He recognizes the people that errors. This isn't quite as good as what Daniel said.
Daniel said we are married.
What even went beyond that?
He didn't say we are have Eric put in songs. He speaks of taking upon our sins as his own.
It's easier to save my dad's and then I send.
00:45:01
Uh, and so, uh, Hezekiah does admit that they had gone wrong, though verse 10 now is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel that his fierce wrath may turn away from us.
Now notice it doesn't say the Lord God of Judah. He has a sense that it's.
He is the God of all Israel.
He has a heart for all the people of God, just like Jehoshaphat did.
And so then it goes on and.
1St chapter Umm same chapter verse 30. Moreover, Hezekiah the king and the Princess commanded the Levites to sing praise under the Lord with the words of David and Evasiere, and they sang praises with Gladys, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.
And Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the Lord, come near, and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the House of the Lord. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings, and as many as were of a free heart principal.
You know this commitment to the Lord.
This opening of the doors of the House of God.
It brought great joy.
Great worship.
No, Hezekiah.
You would face some of the same problems as his father did.
Overwhelming force coming against him.
You see how it's different reaction we get?
Verse 34 But the priests were too few, so they could not flay all the burnt offerings. Wherefore their brethren Levites to help them till the work was ended, until the other priest had sanctified themselves. For the Libra were more upright in in heart sanctifying themselves than the priests. You know sometimes the leadership of the people of God.
It's just not gonna work. Uh.
No, people thought that children of God have a heart, that they're true believers have a heart for the Lord, and all needs to be brought out a little bit.
They increased.
Didn't have it, didn't have their heart on it very much.
They there were too few because they hadn't sanctified themselves on the Levites helped.
Verse 36 And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people that God had prepared the people for the thing was done suddenly.
And God is in it. Things can happen quickly.
Chapter 30 In Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the House of the Lord at Jerusalem to keep the Passover under the Lord God of Israel.
The king had taken counsel and his Princess and all the congregation in Jerusalem to keep the Passover in the second month.
Because they could not keep it at that time, because the priest had not sanctified themselves sufficiently, neither had the people gathered themselves together at truth.
So now go about reading how the Hezekiah.
And his efforts?
Serve the Lord joins all the people of God together, I say.
I think Hezekiah got it right. He did not try to force unity. It could not be forced. It did not count the people of God as enemies and not our enemies. They're brothers, they're sisters. He did not compromise. He had a heart for all God's people, and he created.
Spiritual unity.
Invited them to join in the Passover.
Now the story has been.
Mentioned. We'll skip over most of it.
Just pointing out how that everything is done. Almost so much was done wrongly.
00:50:00
I mean wrong months.
Priesthood wasn't doing their job. Had to get help from Levites.
And then it turns out that people were coming that wanted to participate in the Passover and they really were not qualified.
They, uh, they haven't satisfied themselves.
So.
Find verse 18 for a multitude of people, even many of Ephraim and Manasseh is growing up because everyone had not cleansed themselves yet. Did they eat the Passover otherwise? Then it was written the Hezekiah prayed for them, saying the good Lord pardoned everyone. The part that prepared his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.
The Lord hearkened to Hezekiah and healed the people.
You can do it right.
The Lord saw a heart.
And they honored the heart more than the procedure.
This is why I say we need to prepare our sanctify the Lord God.
Sacrifice as Lord your hearts. If only our hearts would be sanctified. Everything else.
Secondary.
What a wonderful time that was. I sometimes wondered, sometimes wondered why they didn't continue and have Passover every year. They did. I think they did, uh, says in chapter 32. After these things and the establishment thereof, it was established that there would be a Passover every year, and I think it was.
You know what?
There's a big problem. It's a Necker comes.
Hezekiah.
He was in trouble, so Nagra was a mighty force.
Overwhelming.
He had the same problem that his dad had.
With the overwhelming force coming in.
And.
They reacted a little differently. You spread this thing out before the Lord.
He went to the source of the real source of strength, and we find that the Lord came in and.
Draw it down to the ground. The mightiest that invading army. Wonderful story. We don't have time to go into that, but, uh.
What a difference between those who did not prepare their heart serve the Lord and those who have prepared those who have consecrated themselves. You know, some have criticized Hezekiah for asking for more time. Should have done it at 15 more years.
And he goes up in those last 15 years.
Now I want to.
OK, OK.
Reverse and in connection with that.
Chapter 32. Verse 23.
Umm Verse 24 In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the Lord, and he spake unto him, and he gave him a sign. But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefits, not unto him, For his heart was lifted up, therefore those wrath upon him, upon Judah and Jerusalem.
I want to point out this, there's nothing wrong for Hezekiah and asking for more time. Nothing wrong with that.
But when the Lord answered his prayer.
He was committed then to be different from then on.
If the Lord does something for you, you are now indebted to Him.
It should change your life. The Lord answers my prayer. I have to remember that, and it has to affect my life from then on. That's what it says here. Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him. No criticism for asking for the time.
00:55:16
But once he got his answer to prayer.
He was responsible to have his life changed from then on.
Instead, you got lifted up in front and then you know the rest of the story. It didn't work out so well.
The Lord had a purpose of blessing tells us that.
Sennacherib came at the same time.
And he was sick. This guy wrote 29 years.
15 years before that means 14 years into his ring at the same time. That's an effort, OK?
Imagine that here he is, a certain Lord of these 14 years. That's a good and uh, now he's sick and he's just not ready to die and an invading army is coming. He has no chance against apart from God.
All this happening at the same time, everything going wrong for him all at once.
God had a purpose of blessing for him.
He wanted him to ask for the extra time and he wanted to bless him in that, and he wanted Hezekiah to respond and have a change of life as a result of this answer.
God has a purpose question for you.
Want to sing Buzzing?
340 I think it is.
3:40.
Under we commend our spirit.
Live.
Sounding and everything was not bad. It's raining.
Our God and Father, we thank you for thou is the purpose of the blessing for each one of us will only.
Well after thee we pray that each one might consecrate our hearts to stays sanctify Christ and Lord in our hearts. We pray that help us and strengthen us to do that.
Yes, that's what's going on in each one. Remember, Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
Rightly Dividing The Word of Truth
Open—Enos McCavour
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O thou whose mercy all we can do is play.
Umm, where did you say Go ahead and close down your eyes. Great day in the morning.
Through the verse in Ezekiel.
Chapter 34.
On the third, sorry, the end of the second verse.
Should not the shepherds feed the flocks?
Verse six. My sheep wandered through all the mountains and upon every high hill.
May my clothes were scattered upon all the face of the earth.
The non discern after that.
And then there's.
23.
I will set up one shepherd over them.
He shall feed them, and then my servant David, he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd, and I, the Lord, will be their God.
26.
There shall be showers and gluten.
This one.
Godfather we.
I'm so thankful that we have one who is our Shepherd, the Good Shepherd who gave himself to the flock.
We'll come down into this world.
Walk among the people right where they were understanding.
00:05:05
The daily tribulations and their hurts and their sorrows.
We choose to.
Not even staying at home, but sometimes the outside.
And he deeply cared and entered into what they were dealing with, and he wept over them too.
And we are so thankful that he is the one that desires this very day. Complete floss.
We surely are very, very much in great means this day.
Of two.
Like here. And we just would pray that the Word of God that is ministered to us this afternoon will be with great dependence and exercise.
With the true care and compassion for the flock.
For the bubble with a view to.
The One, the Lord Jesus, who alone is able to meet the needs of every person here today.
For our daughter, we cry out to thee for showers of blessing this afternoon. Jesus name.
Like it's turned to a few verses before I start.
That's a good look at that.
The book of Romans.
Chapter 15.
Hmm. Hmm.
Should have put bookmarks in here like Brother Paul did.
Anyway, and uh, Romans chapter 15.
Verse four says what for whatsoever things were written before time were written for our learning that we through patience and comforts of the scriptures. Quite a quote.
In First Corinthians chapter 10.
Verse six. These things.
For our examples to the attempt that we do not lust after, you'll think that they also lost it.
It is pimp a theater verse. I'll just quote it. Uh, says there's a study that shows like self approved not to go out of Workman that he does not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
So God has given to us all His word help us to encourage us through the pathway here in this scene.
Wasn't always that way. God's word was limited. At one time they only had the Old Testament scriptures. And when the Lord was with his disciples on the way to Emmaus, he encouraged them in their hearts he take He took the the Old Testament scriptures and their hearts burned within them as He revealed himself.
To them the Old Testament scripture that he opened up.
Spoke with him and so the Old Testament scriptures can be a great encouragement to us, but we have to be careful that when we read them that we don't get the mixed up with New Testament truth. That is, they should be rightly divided as read the verse of Timothy.
Be a Workman rightly by God's word of truth. But there's so much encouragement in the Old Testament, so many principles, so much good things there, that we don't want to overlook it. Not just to say that some people heard say, well, I'm a New Testament saying.
00:10:17
Does that mean New Testament say? It means that perhaps just looking at what's written in the New Testament and you're ignoring all the good things that God has given to us in the Old Testament. And so we're missing a whole lot if we think that way.
I had you before me. This thing here is not too stable, but I have before me that like that.
7:00.
#13.
Here we rate of account, uh, of, uh, children of Israel.
And they're going through the wilderness.
And we're going through the voters. So there is parallel example we can't ignore. We're strangers and pilgrims. We're taught in the New Testament, we're going through the wilderness scene and we read the First Corinthians that these things are written for examples, that we should not do the same things they did because.
Grief of the Lord or provoke the Lord into anger and so.
We have this.
Fact that we are traveling through the wilderness. The Old Testament St. had a destination that they were traveling to promised land. God has also given to us destination that we are we are going to be with Christ and glory.
The Old Testament Saints had a guide to guide them through that wilderness scene. Moses. We also have been given a guide to guide us.
I think it's a John 16 that when the horse book was Holy Spirit coming down.
On the day of Pentecost, he referred to him as a guide who will guide you into all truth and so.
God has sought our need in the wilderness pathway for us today, and He has given to us a guy to guide us. And umm.
There's also things in the pathway when we travel through the Wilderness Scenic and discourage us.
And there were things that could discourage us people at all we read this portion mentions about.
I'll read, uh, verse 17.
Moses said in the spy of the land of Canaan, said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain. See the land, what it is people with well, if they're in, whether they be strong or weak, few or many, what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be litter bad, and what the cities there be and dwell in, whether intense or strongholds, what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood there in or not.
Be a good courage, create the fruit of the land. The time of was a time of the first fruits first, right grapes.
It says umm.
Verse 23 they came onto the Eshkol cut down from that's a branch one cluster of grapes and they buried between two upon a staff. They brought also of the pomegranates and the figs. The place was called Eshkol broken Eshkol because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from fence.
We don't have a very vivid imagination. One cluster of grapes.
Some grapes up here the other day and clusters there that they plucked off, they said one flustered grapes.
Zoom in, put ASAP of her shoulder. Next man in front of the sample over his shoulder. Same SAP hung in between 1:00.
Just what that's true? Grades.
That was a picture of the fruit of the Promised Land that God had promised the children of Israel He would bring them into overflowing with milk and honey.
And, uh, God brought that question of grapes back to his earthly people, the Jews, to encourage their hearts, to encourage them of what was ahead, to go in and take possession of the land.
00:15:17
Well, the Lord has blessed us today. We have all the blessings of God as we journey through the wilderness because crisis companies will flee to the work of redemption for us. God has opened the storehouse of blessings and poured them all into us. We have them now, but we still need encouragement as we go through over the scene.
And so we mentioned that the Lord says Holy Spirit down and so on to help us.
To guide us and teach us spiritual truth.
Well, we need to focus on what's ahead of us, just like the children of Israel. God wanted them to focus and what light ahead for them. The land overflow of milk and honey place that was really spectacular, you know.
Speaking of a guy, I've got a little information. We're staying a couple of days, Lord willing, after the conference is over. I got a little information from, well, payroll, a little bit from, uh, brother Allen and, uh.
Things to do, uh, around here.
Over here just two days. And so in a way they're guides. They, they're guiding us to what's here, what's around. And so I've also, we also had trips abroad at times and foreign languages and not being there. You need a guide to, to guide you around. And so we're in a world where it's full of.
Booby traps, you might say. No matter what age you are, there's there's moving crops that the enemy has set.
Around the catches and uh, so we need a guide. God's word, Holy Spirit kind of play his word. You guide us around those.
Those things that would trip us up 'cause it's grief.
But he wants us to be encouraged and He wants us to focus on what is ahead of us, what's ahead of us, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior. That's what lies ahead for us in the promised land. We're going to be with Christ for all eternity. But just as there was a responsibility with the Old Testament states.
To go in and possess the land God had given them. They were under the law.
For the righteousness they had responsibilities. We're not under Moses law, any sense of a word. We have a higher calling, a higher standard as Christians. And uh, if we have Christ before us as we journey through, he will keep us focused on what life's ahead. We are told a little bit about it.
No more crying there, no tears, no sorrow.
Everything will be so much different when we get to glory.
We won't even remember, I don't think much about anything that we were involved with down here. It'll be a whole new, whole new thing all together. But, uh, there was consequences for the children of Israel when they disobeyed and they, and they, uh, didn't do what God asked them to do. And there's consequences for us too, because it tells us in First Corinthians 3 that we're all going to appear before the judgment seat of Christ.
And, uh, it's not.
To receive any kind of a penalty there because crisis paid her debt full, but as the received rewards. So, uh, the Lord wants to reward us for faithfulness as we journey through this wilderness sea. And so he's going to review our lives and anything that is done for him is going to receive a reward, But things that are not done for him that those things will be burned up.
And so we have a lot of parallels samples when we look at.
The children of Israel and our own selves as we journey through the land, but.
They went up anyway. They looked at the this land and they brought back some fruit of it and, uh, says, uh.
When they came back.
Verse 27 They told him and said, We came under the land, whether thou sentence us. And surely it flowed milk and honey, and this is the fruit of it. So they went and they got the fruit. They brought it back and they showed people what was there. What?
00:20:13
Would lie before them and they had a boy to possess it. Though just just looking at it wasn't enough. We just hear ministry.
And it's encouraging to us, but we don't make all of it. It doesn't really do us a lot of good. We have to make it our own, lay hold of what God has for us in His Word.
Anyway, there were UH-12 men that were picked One piece cry.
Like to look at that verse one and two, the third chapter 13.
Perhaps, uh, three, uh, and the worst thing unto Moses, saying, Send thou man, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give on to the children of Israel, of every tribe of their fathers. You shall send a man, everyone a ruler among them. And Moses by the commandment of God, sent them from the wilderness of Grant. All those men were heads of the children of Israel.
So these were just ordinary, everyday working men that were picked.
To go into spy out the land, These were the leaders among the people of their tribes.
They went out of the 12 it went, it was only two that brought back the good report.
Why?
Thales and Joshua, Joshua, they saw God in the situation. They saw the Lord in the situation. And we sometimes are faced with situations and uh, if we don't see the board there to help us and get pretty depressing, we may, uh, find yourself discouraged. Well, 10 out of those 12 discouraged the people. Why they didn't, they didn't lie.
They brought back a report. The report was true, but they didn't see God in it. They didn't see God in it. They they called the people about all the negative things.
With the giants and everything that they saw in the land, they do so we can't overcome them. For too many, they just swallow up the earth and it's the spirit of people. They didn't want to go forward. They wanted to turn back to Egypt where they had come from, where they were suppressed under Pharaoh and and treated badly. They wanted to go back there. And how many, how many of us?
Maybe not in this room, but among the Lord's people.
Since the discovery of the truth have been discouraged by leaders.
Leaders that God had raised up.
And, and they've taken the word of God and what they've done is they've diminished all the wonderful truths of God, the revelations that God had given to us. And they've, uh, they've poisoned that fruit in a sense by discouraging God's people.
We might say, well, how can they do that? They've done it.
You might say that the things that we have been given today, Christianity through the work of Christ, Think of each one of what we of the apostles doctrine, think of each one of each state that we have been given by the impossible. When you went up in the glory and he saw things there that he couldn't even utter because we wouldn't be able to take in. We're going to that place.
We don't. We can't even possibly understand what lights ahead of us. It's so wonderful and great that the Apostle Paul himself wouldn't have put it into simple words for us to understand.
But he brought back revelations to us that the Lord Jesus had given to him. Many wonderful revelations in Scripture that we have today that we can hang on to and cling to. One of the big things is that we have a great block is eternal security. How many of us people a day?
You're Christians.
Worry I met some of them about their internal security.
They just don't. They haven't been able to grasp a whole of that truth, that they're eternally secure in the blood, in the blood of Christ, that every sentence from ever.
00:25:01
Place away by the blood of Christ.
Knowing that people that.
I think they believe that their sins are forgiven, but then they don't understand when they send again that they need to confess it. But that's send to us and forgiven.
A lot of Jesus Christ has us from all sin, past, present and future, but uh, present sins can keep us from communication, but they, they're covered in the blood of Christ and nothing is able to disrupt that eternal security that we have in him in John's Gospel, chapter 10, the Lord Jesus.
Said himself. Let's read that because I just want to touch on a couple of these things today.
But this one is so important.
Something that you and I enjoy, perhaps, but many of us people don't enjoy this truth.
It says uh.
Verse 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give off to them eternal life.
Eternal life, We have that in Christ.
Realize it, but you have a crisis eternal. You cannot be taken away.
See, and they shall never perish.
No Fear of dying. Body may go into the ground, but the soul, the spirit is going to be with the Lord. Amen. It body dies.
They shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them thee, is greater than all that. No man is able to pluck the mother like Father's hand. I have the Father of one. So the Lord Jesus has us in the palm of his hand.
And the Father's hand is over his hand.
Housing cure? Can that be?
And eternal life and no man is able to pluck but.
There's many other versions we can turn to not regard, but that's just one.
We have this wonderful blessing, but not all of God, God's people is enjoying it because somewhere along the line they receive that doctrine, but they haven't received the truth as it is here in the Word of God. And so read the Word of God. Read what God says. Don't take my word for it or somebody else's word for anything.
Proven in the Word of God.
Whether it's true or not, and that's another thing that.
That we, uh, we really enjoy and maybe maybe another, some other Christians don't enjoy it as well. Is that, uh.
Is that we have.
Peace with God, the subtle peace of God, because the work on Calvary's cross for our sins has been settled before God.
God is pleased with the work of Christ. He raised him up from the grave. He seated him at his right hand and glory.
He's all pleased with that work.
And, uh, because we are seeing in Christ.
Justified by faith there therefore be justified by faithfully and peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. When we go farther on in Romans that says we're justified by his blood. So that's what justifies us before God is the blood of Christ has been shed, covered her sins and because of that we have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Another thing that we have, uh, the day that, uh.
It's a valuable thing, a wonderful thing, a purge much before an Old Testament St. and all he.
Yeah, obviously the conscience that the sins were never really dealt with entirely. He couldn't have that sense because Price had not yet come. The work on the cross was not yet finished, so.
He had a governmental forgiveness of God because he took the offering like he's supposed to take, but it never really gave gave us conscious peace.
Saying that himself.
Let's uh, give the conscious peace or wash away instead of staying.
00:30:04
Let's look at that in Hebrews.
Chapter 10 and I'll just read a couple of verses.
So the law having a shadow of good things in common, not the very image of the thing, never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year, they can continually make the commerce there on to perfect. But then what they not have ceased to be offered, because of the worshippers, once purged, could have no more conscience of sin.
Sins, but no sacrifice. There's remembrance against sins every year.
It's not possible that the blood of bulls and gold should take away sin, so.
They never really had.
Approach conscious, but you and I, because of the work of Christ, we know they're conscious no longer condemns us because Christ took the condemnation of my sin, He was condemned for my sins and so.
There also is a oh, I get into that too much, but purge conscious. There's also the practical side of it too that we should actually exercise yourself. If there's something on our conscience. We know this is pleasing to the Lord, the purge it away, get rid of it.
Uh, to compassion, ask for the help with it maybe, but to get rid of it, we like, we like to have is a, is a good conscience when we pure conscience before God. The apostle Paul said he had a good conscience before God and man always he said, so that's important and.
Yes, not just one more we'd like to play hold up and uh.
Romans Chapter.
Chapter 8.
First one, it says there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.
No condemnation. There's no judgment hanging over our heads. Prices war at all.
Well, some believers don't enter into this.
Because they have that teaching, that doctrine, they don't enjoy these things. We could go on to, uh, talk a little bit in their meetings about being children of God, being God's sons, uh, being heir, uh, with price to what he has won for us. We, we are before God as sons in Christ.
And uh, we inherited what he has won for us.
That's another thing we could dwell on and so we could take all these different rates of using this as a just as an example, but what we have is far better today than what the Old Testament says that the grapes of vegetable.
Is magnificent and is wonderful. Is that true look that was brought back with courage. The children of Israel take the session of the land to give them.
Some drive to give them some hope of what was ahead, to go in and take them. We have far more, better, greater, greater things because Price has come and finished the work of our redemption on the cross, and God has poured out all the sore hands and blessings for us. He wants us to lay hold of them.
He doesn't want any one of us walking around thinking that we're not forgiven internally or thinking that there's some condemnation still hanging over your head because of your sins. No, He wants you to enter in of the truth, what Christ has done and enjoy those truths. Enjoy the truth that they that was given to the Apostle Paul and then revealed to us.
Perhaps.
That's a few words I'd encourage us to. I know what encouraged me to, uh, say these wonderful promises that God has made for us in his word and give it to us to, to enjoy now this scene.
God Gathers, Satan Scatters
Open—Derek Mollon
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
I'm not sure. OK.
I was encouraged much of all I earlier and John read Make that long walk.
Paul talked about, uh, the purpose of the Old Testament.
That all of God's people would come together, not just Israel, not just you, but all of Israel. And we got that one center and we joined together. And I think that's the purpose of that in the Old Testament and in the New. It's also, I believe, what we have before us in our reading meetings. I'm going to try to bring that together a little bit within the sun.
Former teacher so I I'm used to summarizing things so I just like to do it still.
Well, you judge that any case. Umm.
Oh, it was interesting what I said that it was. The sanctifying of the Lord in the heart was by far more important.
The desire to bring the Lord's people together more so than the order.
So have a great weekend.
Greatly. And we're in a time of great weakness. Everyone sitting in this room, every single person is fixed.
The moment I think I'm a straight stick.
We wanna straighten you out. We're in trouble.
And so I believe this is sort of the theme almost of the weekend because it starts off with this letter. We have the Ephesians.
So God telling us what he has already done, and what he has already done, no one can touch.
Both and large by any charge against it is God who justifies we're already in. So it's we never got really through the practical side, but I'm going to read a verse. I'm going to read the end of my little talk first.
And I'm going back to Ephesians chapter 4 and read the last closing statement first.
Increases.
Oh.
And it's the last verse.
And be kind one to another, tender hearted for giving one another even as God's sake after giving you, everyone of them should know that words and follow that verse and make it essential to our hearts because.
That's something.
No.
What would be visions is a letter.
And a letter was written.
And if you receive a letter and you walk into the house with a letter?
Are you holding up? There's gonna be 3 questions. I mean that left if you don't say anything, three questions and you all move to three questions. First one being.
Who's it from? Who's it from? Second, who is it?
Good. Is it too insert 1?
What does it say? Like I said, it's not.
And that's why increases business. So three, when we look at that in a little different way, and I trust that every single one of you here will give me some leniency because I'm going to go back and come forward to why this letter was written, who wrote it, why it was written and when it was written, and what's behind it because it's so important to know these things.
We sent the letter and they sent it to. What's it about?
OK.
We've had some of the lot already, OK, in the two reading meetings and we know, for example, uh, rose product. Well, when it's a mystery of price, this reveals a mystery of price. God in Christ, but God has done in Christ.
And uh, someone that said long time ago, I never forgot it, that if you were to find one verse in the Bible.
That would give you the purpose of God in a single verse. It's in this book, in this chapter, they say it's first hand. This reason together because this is the whole purpose of God that in the dispensation of the fullness of times.
00:05:07
That's the millennial data coming when price will range for 1000 years.
He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth. Even in the end, I believe that takes in the heavenly citizens, which are every believer in this room, and the earthly Saints as well. In that day it's gonna be two rules and they're gonna join in one. I believe it's just one testimony.
One solid testimony has a personal price.
Drive together in one but.
In this portion, I believe here it's joining two others. Yeah, groups. I'll come back to that. Now I gotta go back.
I'll go back to the very beginning, but just by mentioning something and that is the enemy of our souls.
In the very beginning.
As some scattered our God wants to bring together as in who God has joined together after the sun was meant to be a permanent thing. It is meant to be that landscape and I bring us all the it's always that way but the enemy came in and he he divorced he scanned.
And that desire and that theme and that.
Program.
Is still a steam today as it was back in evening. It's still the same as he wants, even though he cannot touch. My God is not here. We're all one. That one buys something yet the practical silence.
Right. We know, for example, that we want we could take everyone, every single individual, this person is wrong and turn you into a Baptist one.
That's true and it'll be everyone would be a different denomination right, all paying to be Christians and all watching a different path to a certain degree. Is that is that a lot of together or is it up to the enemy separate? I mean they say something, you know what it is.
Because he's, uh, clever.
The first scattering we might save again.
And even because.
I mean there population would have been all one altogether living forever on the earth. I've seen you spoil.
Spoiled separation from God. Man driven out of the apparently out of paradise. No way back. Flaming sword down.
But not at a plan.
It's some would come.
The shepherd, a great shepherd of sheep, would come, and he goes to the cross, as we know. We know that stories are part of the story right here. And what did he do?
You open the way that.
The enemy thought.
Ah, spite the shepherd.
She's standard.
We gained, he put his forces to work in Calvary, and when the king came into Jerusalem, we will not have this man crucifying him, crucify him. So the shepherd was smitten and so.
The sheep, according to the enemy, would have been scattered, except three days later very soon happened like.
He's back again.
And they tell us those are faithful ones, He says, I'm gonna go back and follow Acts a little bit now. Acts chapter two, he says, I want you to be in UMM.
The upper room.
Ten days after I had sinned to heaven, I must go back because my work is finished. But there's another coming. The Holy Spirit, the brother mentioned coming down to join you all together.
He's gonna come. He's gonna join in one body by the Holy Spirit. And so we read those reverses because I wanna.
Mention again we get into Ephesians 1.
So I'm just going to be opening verses of chapter 2 of X.
And whether they are Pentecostals who become they were all one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as I'm rushing mighty winds, and it filled the house where they were sitting, and there appeared on the enclosing tongues like as a fire, and sat up on each of them. They're all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak at other times as the Spirit gave them.
00:10:16
Told us that I sealed the Holy Spirit.
But these are all Jews.
One room all joined together. Is that one body God is joining together? Yes, that's his purpose is to unite in one.
So let's go on to.
Uh-huh. Let's go to Chapter 8.
So chapter 8.
First of all.
And injector rate, we have this group now joined together and uh, what do we have? 3 verse one you need a man named Saul.
And Saul was a man named Steven and just preached for the power of the Holy Spirit, asking that they would just believe.
The resurrection of leaving Jesus Christ and enjoying themselves at the end. And they picked up stones and these stones in the desk.
He calling on God, saying forgive me.
For the Mona plastic too.
Anyway, there's a young man there.
They were tired or warm or hot stoning Steven it's they took off their clothes and put their clothes in the young man's feet compared to my clothes. I hit young man. It's a man named stop. And so we read first one of chapter 8 and Saul was contending unto his death. And at that time it was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem and.
They were all scattered abroad.
Through the reaches of Julia, Samaria, except the apostles.
First three. And As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, hindering into every house, healing men and women, committing them to prison.
It's gonna be safe to say.
But they're each gatherer chief instrument used gathering in those early days.
So.
This is remarkable. YouTube Ephesians 1 The Gatherer.
Paul, same person is my name.
Or, it says, scattered by sheep.
Forgot and he's gonna find is a lot tougher.
Yeah, there's a step.
Got pillow in the wind?
Sorry, you're up on the single yesterday, right? We took one of those feathered pillows and opened up there. These are scattered and feathers back today.
It's a tough assignment and Paul was given the toughest time. This is what he's I mean we're coming up to because the mantle that came off steel is gonna be put next chapter himself. So it's gonna be a converted man. He is converted just to not and he'll take up the championship now gathering.
To the little.
So it's not it's not a loan as others computers wouldn't go. So let's go now because there's other people too. There's other sometimes we're full Chapter 10.
See the chapter 10. Yeah, a man named Peter who gets a message from a man named Cornelius who was Peter is a Jew. Arnelius is a Gentile. The people with him are Gentiles. Come down. So he goes down even though he says.
Another day it was stretches on the door. Some of the Gentile is defiling and I showed them I've made cleans of what you call them call comma as we goes and when he gets there, he hears what carnivorous has to say. So verse 34 Peter says this that Peter opened his mouth and said father truth. I perceive that God has no respect for persons, but in every nation he that feareth.
And work in places this is accepted with you, Donny, that wasn't so.
So I'm another There's a few questions. Of course. It was an epiphany.
00:15:06
As long as we're open and then he well that was taking place in verse 44 Paul Peter yet spake these words holy clothes fell on all them heard the word and they at the circumstances believed were astonished as many as came with Peter because that on the Gentiles also was poured out gifts of the Holy Ghost.
And.
When they heard them speak tongues.
And thank you my God, same as the 1St time.
Now they had a big part together, but the Jewish contingent, another magenta one, Peter has used the key. It's almost 10,000, but it'll be Paul will go through that door to bring them in. Paul's going to be used as a messenger to the Gentiles. That's what we're going to follow along a little bit. So let's go chapter 13. We're going to go as far as 21 with a couple of jumps and then we're going to.
Complete patient. Chapter 13.
Umm.
Bruce who?
And as they ministered.
To the Lord and fastest, the Holy Ghost said. Separate the Barnabas.
Uh.
Installed for the work or until I have called him and when they have faster than prayed and laser ants on them they sent them away. Paul and Vernon's first missionary turned 24 of them. This is the Brady first one and they're leaving now from the call the Gentile center. OK, there's two centers.
In Jerusalem as well as were James and the apostles are leaving them and the group around them, of course, is scattered. Love them are scattered or Ivy. But then the genitals come in after Peter there we need open the door right. And the place called me. Yeah.
Right. And it's from Antioch that all goes out in these journeys, visiting all the Gentiles for the service.
So in this chapter, as this one is, he goes to the Gentiles, yes, the Jews first, some people in pieces of them. First one is called 1344.
And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.
But when the Jews saw the multitude, they were filled with envy and escape against those things, woken up by Paul contradicting and blast, meaning then falling around this wax bowls and said it was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you, by seeing you put it from you, and judge yourself unworthy of everlasting life.
While we try and gentiles.
That's just how really it was raised up, and I was coming into it. For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light to the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth. And when the Gentiles were this glad and word of the word, as many were again to eternal life.
There it is. It's set up now.
He's going more to the Gentiles.
How we have first problem?
First issue between two centers.
Right, chapter 15. Just read verse one.
This first one, so in certain language, came down from Judea, that's from Jerusalem, that's the Jewish contingent.
Taught the brethren and said, this is the brethren. Here's the gentleman.
They're saying 70 be circumcised after the matter of Moses, you cannot be saved.
See you all of a sudden something different. I mean, they kind of put the Gentiles back under the law. You got to be circumcised. People called Moses. So they go back up all of our must go up and get this big meeting at the end of the meeting, basically saying no, no, no, no, we're we're James says it's OK. We just don't need to keep the law until you find your way. But he didn't tell them.
That us Jews are going to do it, though.
00:20:01
We're going to circumcise our children and we're going to continue to keep the law.
Until now, we find out that in chapter 21.
Now you have to see them.
So what? How long coming here?
Hold on. Good.
Could be division, could be a real problem here too. You don't have two centers because us bringing them together. But the forces are going to try to look at the idea. And so we get to chapter 21 That's over there because now we're jumping over all of Paul's missionary journeys. And in chapter 21, he wants to get back to Jerusalem.
Because in the meantime.
We're in the back of Jerusalem. All is already written Romans.
In Galatians, First and 2nd Corinthians, and maybe some others.
You know, we said, Aloha, those books.
Give me the one now he gets back and when he gets back, the first thing there is there's James who is the main leader there in the Jerusalem and the apologist report, of course, right. So let's just look at the verse 19/21/19 and when he has saluted them.
Small he declared particularly what things God and rob among the Gentiles by his ministry.
And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, This is lost foremost in their mind.
Thou see his brother, how many thousands of Jews there are, was believed.
And they are all zealous of the law.
Salt was a very devout man before it was converted.
He thought he was doing his last work.
There was none more zealous than me. He had a seal that was not according to knowledge.
A little later on, in Romans 10, he said the very same thing of his people as nations, but they have a zeal of God, he says, but not according to knowledge. You think that was himself? I was like, that is that I was persecuting the church and dragging them off the prison and medicine, death penalty. He had a real zeal.
So can we?
It's not just zeal alone, in other words.
It has to be other things.
So now when Paul is converted, he realized all of a sudden this scales fall from his eyes and in three days he's preaching Christ. You go back to chapter 8 again at 9, he's preaching Christ. Two things he preaches. Christ is the Son of God is the first thing. And the second thing is that he is the Christ in this life. That's his first two things he preaches.
So there, he says.
They are all zealous alone, these Jews.
November 21.
And they are informed of thee, that thou teaches all the Jews, which are among the Gentiles, to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to long after investment.
It's kind of dirty, says what is it there? Football. Multitudes are going to each come together. You want to hear you?
And James won't give him a chance to answer.
Because that's exactly what I'm telling you.
You can't believe it.
And so.
At most the same as the Lord did not want Paul to go there for that great reason supposed to be seen. Next thing we know, Paul's a prisoner. He has no more liberty to to.
Give this message.
I've taken and it becomes a prisoner and he's after wrong. He's imprisoned in Rome and in Rome he gets a family and he likes the weather.
The main center of magenta.
He is a circumstantial.
Around all and you want to tell me something?
00:25:02
I think later, possibly before they'll sit down to me.
Because it is accepted too much. This calling is not to the circumcision, but the way he knows he wants like.
That's not his copy because my he doesn't tell him. I'll always thought it must have another thing.
I don't believe I'm keeping my understand.
So let's go now to.
Field second one.
So after the question.
Who's the letter from?
Please speak to you and please from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's a heavenly message. The Lord Jesus is now back in glory. This message coming through the apostles falls from God the Father and.
Lord Jesus Christ, who is the letter Q.
We have opening doors, the same press emphasis.
Faithfully Christ Jesus. Now I've read this one Jonathan. I'm some reader. I don't know. It was maybe double started, but it wasn't they see he put two of them together. It's just like to the to the umm.
To the science and faithful, you link them together.
So not two groups, but one. I don't know. Like holy and beloved brethren have two different groups, but holy and beloved descriptions of the same group, it doesn't matter.
But the thing I believe is that it's too Ephesians. It's the Gentiles.
I don't. I wanna show you this and you feel free to write me afterwards. It's not a major point.
Important. I mean, that means you're.
If I'm wrong, please correct me. I don't see this opening book.
As a letter to individuals.
I think it's a letter to Ephesians.
We in the eat as the Jews and the Gentiles. I believe you're speaking about bringing the two groups because they're at dangers. They're trying to bring them together, but they're pulling apart and He wants to put them on the same base where God has done for all of them.
I want to show them that my God asks for the Judean brethren in Jerusalem. He has done for you.
Absolutely no difference whatsoever.
Because he says, for example.
Justice 3. Personal.
For this 'cause I called the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, he's saying that's why I'm in Rome. I'm in Rome because I'm a prisoner for you. The Jews took me and sent me away to Rome, but shut me up.
I'm running to you then he tells in the Chapter 2 is to prove to me that it's a.
It's not Illinois, we're single. It's the it's the group, for example, on USB brick and they were dead and trespasses and sins. It's the Gentiles we read this morning our meeting right verse 12 Harold, at that time you were without Christ. It's the Gentiles, the aliens in the Commonwealth of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise, no hope.
This is now in Christ Jesus.
You are so much far off. I may die by the flood of Christ in verse 14.
For ease, RFP's that made both one and have broken down the middle of the wall of partition between us. You know what it means.
The wall in the temple.
You know the Gentiles go to the temple.
There was a memo's court, man's court, over the other place for the holy and most holy.
In front of all there was a wall. It was called a Gentile wall. It was a wall of partition, and the Gentiles could not go beyond that wall in the temple.
And so this is what I was talking about, that Christ has removed that wall of partition, so now the Jews and the Gentiles can come together.
It's removed in Christ by the blood of Christ it's gone. That's what he's telling them so those that were far off took Gentiles are are as nice so he says that he entered he said verse 16 and he might reconcile both unto God in one body either cross.
00:30:11
Had explained the empathy they're buying and came and preached peace to you which were a follow up and to them which were nine.
It's the two groups.
The Jewel of Gentile is bringing together, I believe here. I've enjoyed this.
I've been just as well.
Thank you.
Is it in the first chapter?
I believe it is.
Show to you you probably know how to say something in chapter one he comes down through and all the things that God has done. Don't go over those things beautiful. It's what God has done through Jesus Christ and he is the operative 1. Even the Lord Christ is the one that was who is using and he raises Christopher's office. It's all our stuff every minute.
And then when Paul speaks, he speaks these two things.
1:30.
He says that we.
In verse 12 and in 13 that ye.
OK.
Paul, is it you?
He's part of the way, so we're saying that we should be to the praise of His glory, who first trusted in Christ.
The most humorous, I'm about to say.
It's, it's Darby, I think says are you trusted?
Pre chosen, pre trusted. See what do you mean pre trusted thing? What he means is before the Spirit came down, when the Lord Minister was finished, there were those.
We said to you also go away.
Mm-hmm. Goat, you have to watch eternal life. They had already trusted. So in the spirit, you know those who have pre trusted the other 20 in the room were joined together in that one body.
And after that, as we spread the Gentles have gone in you got these tests in whom you also as Gentiles, right? Ye also trusted. After that he heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation in him also after that he believed that Acts 10 beginning that's 10.
He were sealed, but the Holy Spirit accomplished. He sprained the two groups together, telling them you have exactly the same history.
Once again, your beginning is their beginning. Just move the space and time apart. Your boss feels the Holy Spirit. There are one body, so it says.
Verse seven of chapter 2 And in the ages sitcom he might show the exceeding riches of His grace and his kindness toward us through crisis.
The purpose between, as we said verse 10 of the day coming all one testimony heaven and earth, it would be witness of Christ explorer.
But it's it's not. Let's start right here, from the earth before it calls. I want to renew all believers, all Jews and Gentiles, when they're coming into one body, no separation. I'm joining together. The enemy don't want sex.
And we just look around the world today and we see how successful he is at preventing that.
No, no. All right. I'll be two minutes. Do I have two minutes?
I've already refunded.
Oh.
444, yeah, I thought Microsoft. Yeah, OK.
All right, give me two minutes.
All right.
Here's the conclusion because I it's a spirit of things I said this is the the tie us all together. It's the spirit of the thing that the Lord brought in this chapter for us that he wants us for shown that he has done every misery to believe.
All believers, we have this, we are having a citizen, we are blessed about a lot of things. We are in Christ. Nothing can touch us. We belong to him. We're all the same, all from the six, but yet straighten this.
00:35:12
And now he said, you know what manner of living? How should we live? Let's go to Chapter 4 now and.
The spirit which we deal with each other. For example, verse 31 That all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor, evil speaking and put away. I knew it all malice. Be kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another even as God for Christ's sake and forgiving you those who are sitting in a place.
Goes into one at the end.
So.
We can't stress that enough.
And here it talks about have you go to chapter 4 and verse 16, the end of the course. I'm going to umm.
Making increase of the body on the edifying of itself and love. Love covers a multitude of standards. It doesn't mean to pass low, doesn't say compromise, but there has to be that level.
That's unconditional because God loved us unconditionally. None of us in this room merit salvation.
No, no, every listener's been a year, but now the last thing I wanna say is a minute. Is not? Is that in the verses before?
It's a finger at me and that is, for example, speaks for itself. Whoever.
Umm, put on the verse 2324. Put on the Newman. That's a practical question.
Around the new man and then put off the old verse 22 off the old man the old things. Therefore verse 25 put away lines beat every man through his neighbor yes, that's.
My son I have a truthful I appreciate the job this morning don't have story about how we lost that job because my own heart I don't want to tell that right I must be able to tell you how I got the job you know a little bit although I lost it that's speaking the truth that's good we need that kind of thing it opens and then the stores steal no more don't get placed to the devil so anyway these are the things your practical side because.
Because we do live on.
And this is how we should conduct yourself. So I thought it was.
Yes.
Follow the Lord, You Won't Regret It
Open—Benj Roossinck
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
I'll be brief, uh.
There's a prior here in this book.
And I'm just going to read it.
And then it says here day by day, dear Lord of the UMM.
Three things I pray to see thee more clearly, to love thee more dearly.
To follow thee more nearly day by day. Amen.
Some people Have you made a decision to follow the Lord?
And if you have made a decision to follow the Lord, you won't regret it.
Lord is here with us, and He'll be with us till they take this hold of glory. To follow the word nearly that means to follow the Lord. Wherever you are in your life, follow Him. You won't regret it.
You know when I was a kid.
I didn't know right from wrong. I didn't know God. God didn't matter to me. But now God does matter to me. Thank God this matters to you.
Today.
So, uh, I say again people, if you make a decision to follow the Lord, you won't regret it. The Lord doesn't promise an easy life, but He does promise to go with us. And I mean that for all the brethren here. You won't regret if you follow the Lord and do what he asked.
So I have followed the Lord, and you won't regret it.
That's all I have to say. And then clothing with this. I wanna sing a chorus that we all know.
And it has to do with price. Maybe we'll just sing that.
Uh, the last verse of the hymn. I think we all know it, but.
Don't forget, make your decision to follow the Lord. Very important.
All the love that drew salvation.
Went Oh, my grace, I brought it down here and now.
It's raining.
Over it.
The young people and older ones don't forget. Make your decision to follow the Lord. You won't regret it.
Let's pray so, Oh Father, we thank thee.
For this time that we can come here together to express our need of thee and Father, we pray for the young people and the older ones too. Lord, we pray that they might make a decision. To all thee, Lord Jesus, we know that we'll never regret following Thee, Lord Jesus, after all dollars done all that is possible.
So we ask thy blessing on the rest of this day, and pray that blessed the gospel.
We are. God bless you Father, and give thanks.
For the meal that we will eat later on, we pray to bless our time and fellowship together. Thank you for this time, for Jesus. In thy name, Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen. Amen.
Parable of the Sower
Gospel—David Mearns
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
Like to sing with him tonight #11 We sang it earlier just like the thing the 1St 2 verses.
You know as we present the gospel of the grace of God.
Many here presented it. It was presented last night.
Sometimes we present it as if our life depends on it.
Tonight mine doesn't.
But yours might.
What's the thing #11 The first couple of verses?
Please start that.
Will your anchor hold in the storms of light?
When the.
Umm.
And the wild winds blow the airway and let your fire farm.
We have Lakers and give some soul.
That's not some cure. I wasn't alone.
Which cannot move. What is there can be in the Bangor's Law?
Maybe if we have enough time in the meeting.
We'll sing the latter 2.
Versus of that lovely hymn.
I stand before you here as a happy man.
My anchor holds. Does your anchor hold?
Just before we pray.
Like the total incident?
I buried my first sibling.
About a month ago.
My brother Peter.
He's at home with the Lord.
That's all a little incident in his life when he was four years old.
He's eight years older than I am, so I don't remember this incident, but my mother told it to me. So it was the winter time and he wanted to go to slide and play and she dressed him up in his winter clothes and.
I don't know what it was, but she told him he wasn't supposed to do something.
Anyway, you went outside.
Unbeknownst to him, she could see him from the kitchen window, goes inside, and he does exactly what she told him not to do.
So he comes back in and umm.
She challenges it.
I told you not to do such and such. I didn't do it.
I guess you did.
No, I didn't.
Yes, you did. Well, how do you know?
And my mother's French Canadian way of presenting things, presenting to them that he had a guilty look on his face, she said. It's written all over your forehead.
And umm, and it will transpire, but.
Few days later he comes in again and she's got no idea what he's been doing, but he comes in the house and he's pulling his hair down.
You know, as older ones, we're not four years old.
We're a little bit more sophisticated, aren't we? And that the saw that we have and the veneer that we put on.
00:05:03
How about tonight as we pray and we listen to the message?
You get the hair off our foreheads and we would be real with God.
He was trying to pretend.
Cover up, Maybe there's someone here tonight.
You're lost in your sense.
And you've been faking it this whole time.
Perhaps there are those here. I think you know the Lord Jesus.
And you're nothing but a fake.
Great tonight that everyone of us would be real ourselves, would be real before God.
There would be no when you're here, right?
Our foreheads, that's just great.
Our God and our Father, we thank thee for the Lord Jesus.
Thank you that last night He was presented in all his glory.
Mid to darkness there can be marvelous light.
And we thank you now it's our privilege to be able to open my precious word and the read from these blessed pages. We just would pray that our hearts would be open tonight and we would have a listening here and that we would seek our God to be real before the selfish desire to be real with us. So we would ask for like help tonight.
And we just would pray for thy blessing upon Thy precious word.
There's some part here with perhaps without Christ. We just would pray that they would come to a safe and College of origin and the sea. God bless the one and all of duty and all his glory.
And we have to go on the waiver choicing.
That means your computer. So our God reacting thing that just went.
It asked for special help tonight, for utterance and for uh, and for wisdom. We ask it in the worthy and the precious name of our Savior, the Lord Jesus. Amen.
Please to the book of Luke.
Mm-hmm.
OK, look.
8th chapter.
Group Chapter 8. Commitment to verse 4.
And once when once people were gathered together and we'll come to him out of every city, he's picked by a powerful us over when it's to sow his peace.
And he told Some fell by the wayside. It was trodden down and the falls of the air devoured it. Some fell upon a rock.
And as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked the moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. Another fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bear fruit in underfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. And disciples asked him, saying, At what point this mirror will be? And he said.
Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, but to others in Caribbean.
Of seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. How horrible is this? The seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are made, and here then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. Say on the rock are they which one they hear receive the word of joy. And these have no roots which were a wild belief. And in time of temptation fall away.
That which fell among thorns are they which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of his life, and bring no fruit and perfection.
Ground are they good heart, having heard the word, Keep us and bring forth fruit with patience.
Listening and I hopped on the plane on Thursday and, umm, our seats, uh, were not together. We thought maybe we could just sit together on the way here. What's my portion? I sat down on my seat. Gentleman came along, sat down, very talkative.
He was ahead of.
The engineering firm and, uh, he's complaining that, uh, he always, uh, he always, uh, flies first class and that, uh, it was full and he wasn't able to do that and umm, he went on to tell me about his business quite talking to fellow I, I sat there in the same thing and just listened to him speak. And after he went on, Ronnie said, So what do you do? I say, oh, I hammer some nails. Oh, that's a nice profession and umm, he pulled out his Wall Street Journal to the.
00:10:26
Section and umm and sorry to read it and they stopped and he look at me and he said he wanted to tell me more about his life. He said, you know, I was brought up a Catholic and umm I've left that behind. I'm umm, I'm an agnostic, that's what I'm.
I'm not sure where this, where this came from, but I'm just sitting there and he's agnostic and he's, umm, his wife got married in a, in a nomination where they could get it done fast and there would be no spiritual investment. And, umm, he's quite happy the way he, umm, miss his wife. And anyway, he opened up his paper and, and, uh, started to check out the, uh, the uh.
The Dow Jones.
So I sat there for a while and then after about 20 minutes, I reached down into my, uh, to my briefcase and I pulled up my Bible.
Am I, I don't know my lap, but I'm reading it and, uh, sitting there with the paper and I have my first reason why like I see and it looks over like this and it looks over again and pretty soon he's.
And uh, I'm thankful for your comments and marking up your Bible. After a while he umm, put the paper away and he says, you know, that must be umm, that must be an old family Bible for many generations.
All those markings intermittent. It's actually my new bucket.
It's a new bike. I pulled out my old bike.
Pattern and yellow and he said, wow, that looks centuries old. And he, he just stopped. He looked, he said, wow, that must be a real passion.
I said well.
Actually, the authors of Ash.
You know that the whole demeanor changed.
All of a sudden he's asking questions.
And this concept of being an agnostic was fading.
It's the background. As he was sitting beside someone, I was reading a book.
That meant so much to him. I looked to him. It was an old, old book.
I'll tell you the rest of the story. I wanna pull and look at what we have here in this hospital. We start off with this parable of the sword.
And it says the store went into sow his seed and he sowed some felt by the wayside.
And was trodden down in the fowls of the air.
The wayside.
And we read a lot about the wayside. It was the wayside where, umm.
Increase Trudeau went into pain on the wayside. We read about Eli and said he was sitting on a in his seat by the wayside when he when he heard them the the umm, the arc was taken. We revoked, uh, Lion Bartelia by the wayside. Such a number of places by the wayside. What is the wayside speak to itself the wayside if you can picture in your mind.
A a track in the country where there's graph on either side and grass up the middle and there's these two tracks where where the tires go. You can all picture what I'm talking about where the tires go. That's the waste light. It's the hard packed dirt.
Where when you throw the seeds nothing can happen because it's so hard.
I'm just wondering.
If there's someone here tonight and your heart is like the wayside as we present the word, it's hard packed.
You're just not interested. It it can't. It can't. It can't go down into the ground and it can't germinate and it can't sprout because it's hard.
Turn with me for a moment to the The Book of Job Job.
23.
Because if there's such a one here tonight, this is very meaningful for you. Job 23.
12/23 and verse 16 it says For God maketh my heart soft.
00:15:06
Oh, I trust that there's someone here tonight, and you have.
A hard, hard heart.
My prayer, the prayer of many here tonight, is that God would soften your heart so that the good feet with land in fertile grounds, the wayside.
Hard act dirty.
To elaborate on that, we've got 12 minutes left.
Let's go on to the next one.
Verse 6.
And some fell upon a rock.
And as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.
The rocky ground.
Perhaps there's someone here and you've got no interest whatsoever in the word of God.
You know the the reason that that the seed withered when it landed on the rocky ground because it lacked moisture. So you see the expression it lacked moisture and.
I think both of us were believed. We don't read the word, Uh, we're just gonna wither. But if there's someone here and you're opposed to the word, there's no spiritual value in your life, none whatsoever. And God has given you the opportunity tonight. Perhaps your, your, your heart was hard like a hard packed dirt. Maybe God is making it soft tonight.
Maybe the water is a word that we're presenting right now. It's gonna cost.
Moisture to go in and to be able to take the good seed that we're sowing the fridge of, germinate and bring forth fruit.
Then when we reached for seven and some hell among four.
And the thorns sprung up.
And choke.
That's an interesting expression. You know, we we had before us yesterday the.
All the all the demons and how they went to the pigs and said the pigs ran down. It's actually in the next chapter.
Uh, it's actually in this chapter.
Umm, chapter 8.
UMM verse 33 then went out the demon out of a man and entered into the swine, and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake and were choked. This is interesting concept in connection with presenting the worst because if you look over at first UMM 13.
It says are they on the rock?
Or rather, they are on the thorns. Verse 14. They which fell among thorns are they which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked. The cares and the riches and the pleasures of this life bring no fruit to perfection. There are those things that choke at the word. Understand the concept of the word choking.
You know if you ever seen a.
A baby starts to choke.
And what the mother does.
She doesn't casually sit on her chair with her feet up on another chair and watch the baby choke. You know, everything else goes out of her mind that she goes that big and tries to dislodge what's stuck in that in the throat of the child. And that's what happens when we're choking any of us when we choke, you know?
We're not conscious of anything else around other than what's stuck in our throat. And that's what the enemy does with these things that he's thinking about the pleasures, the cares of this life which are real.
And they choke out the words. You know, it's interesting. Turn over to, umm, to umm, Matthew's gospel, uh, the 18th chapter.
Matthew 18.
In verse 23 it says, therefore is the Kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants, and when he began to reckon, one was brought in a major 10,000 talents.
And for as much as he had not to pay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children all that he had a payment to be made. And the service therefore fell down and worshiped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me in all, Pay thee all. And the servant, Lord, that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the death. And the same servant went out and found one of his fellows servants, which owed him 100 pence, and he laid hands on him. And this is the thought of choking. He said he took him by the throat.
That's what he did, tried to dislodge and try to try to stop the air from going in. And it's interesting, isn't it?
00:20:00
That that's what the enemy uses to try to dislodge the word stone in our hearts. You know what's amazing? That in Luke's Gospel, the the enemy is referred to the devil twice. Once when he unsuccessfully pencil or Jesus and the other when he very successfully.
Deceives men, and he does it by choking out the words. And I just wonder if there's someone new tonight.
As we present the word.
As we present, I'm not thinking of an audience here. I, I recognize that there was some here that, umm, I walked in that haven't been here all day, that we've changed years here a little bit. But we're speaking to an audience that has heard the gospel many, many times. And maybe there's someone here tonight and the enemy of our souls is trying to choke you. You don't listen to the word.
A solid thing.
No, it says here.
First aid. Other fell on good ground and sprung up and barefoot on hundredfold.
When you said these things, he cried. He that hath ears to hear left him here. Oh, we trust that there's someone here tonight that doesn't know the favor that you would hear. You would listen.
The Gospel of the grace of God.
You know, just three weeks ago.
I, umm, was working with my son-in-law in a house, I was kind of directing traffic there and, and, uh, the lady of the house, uh, we worked there a number of times before the lady came over to me, her husband was sick. He's actually a cancer patient, umm, in a hospital bed in the living room. And she called me into another room and she said they, umm.
Umm.
Need to talk to you. Yeah. So we're sitting there in the in the family room, He's in the living room. We're seeing the family. And she said Dave.
You seem to have a lot more.
Confidence and a lot more peace than anybody at the church that we go to. Would you take my husband's service?
Piece of let's pass away umm off the boards either, I'm thinking well.
Umm, yeah.
I guess I could do that. Umm, anyway, uh, few days later I have to visit with him and I go in and I visit with her and umm, she's all that works. All about umm, the good things she's done and, and how umm good living people and uh, she's.
Telling me the whole story and umm, and uh, you know, it's interesting. Umm, she had never, her husband had never talked.
About him stepping over that line.
And I I turned her to the thief on the cross and we went through that portion where the thief on the cross. I would have turned to this portion. We don't have time to it would have turned to if there was someone here that just walked in. But the season across says to the Lord Jesus, Lord, Remember Me.
Now comes into thy Kingdom, the thief on the cross. He owned Jesus.
Ask Lord.
And I went through that portion with this woman and I said, you know.
What could this man do in the way of good works? He was a robber. How could he pay back the things that he had stolen? How could he even go to someone and say he was sorry for the things that he did that he had done?
Kind of thought about that. And you know, I left unbeknownst to me, she goes into her husband and she takes up the thief on the crossword. And my wife and I are discussing this at home and umm, my wife decides she's going to go and visit with them the next morning. She arrives with a basket of, I don't know, lungs or scones or whatever. And, uh, never met them before.
And and goes in and and 2 1/2 hours later the man has greatly confessed the Lord.
90 years old, just a short time.
Well, he passes away.
And, umm.
She told me the service is gonna be in another few days and umm.
On a Friday night I get a call from a brother.
And the first name said, you know, there's a young man here and umm.
00:25:04
He's a grandmother who's dying of cancer and umm, she lives in a little town called Pitbulls and umm, he wondered if they knew anybody in Spitballs or close by to be able to go and visit with his grandmother and give her the gospel. So of course I live right around the corner. So umm, I go there the next morning, umm, my granddaughters just born. So I have a peek at her and I go to look this lady up and I couldn't find her.
Couldn't find anything about her and I thought, well you know, I need the time to do this. Umm, I'm.
Maybe I'll go over and see this widow. It's just they lost their husband. So the way the world opens the door, I go over there, she's reading John's gospel.
And, uh, just from reading the word she says to me, they, umm.
I've asked, umm, I've asked the Lord to forgive me of all my sins. You think he has, You think He has.
8085 years old. There's a man 90 years old.
Wife 85 years old. Both come to the saving homes of the Lord Jesus.
An old Jesus as Lord.
You know, I found out that the lady in the hospital had died.
That's why I couldn't go to see her. And her grandson had been on the phone just before she passed away, And she turned to the Lord, too. You know, it's marvelous.
That the Lord can take of the Word of God and make it good to the soul.
And I'm just thinking, is there someone here tonight? And you know the gospel, you know the Lord Jesus has died, you know that he shed his precious blood for your sins, and you know that if you would simply repent and ask the Lord Jesus.
To deal with those sins that it's done.
Is there someone here you know? We're in progress. We have a hard time.
You have a hard, hard time only Jesus as Lord.
Would you do that tonight?
Would you be able to do that? Oh Jesus is Lord, own your lost and ruined condition.
For the Lord himself, before God, be real before him, with no hair over the forehead. Could you do that tonight and just ask God?
I washed those things away in the precious blood of Lord Jesus.
It's marvelous.
Here in a company with so many that know the Lord Jesus and Savior.
And we just trust that there's someone here and your heart is hard. So the word can't penetrate all that. It would do something like, you know, I had the privilege of, of two years ago in the winter time, a man calling me up and saying, Dave, umm, I'd just like to have your piece. I'd like to have your piece.
And I said, well, I don't come on over and my wife is in Florida and uh, we spent some time together over the word and I, I said to him, I said, you know, how real is this? He says it's real. I said, is it real enough to talk to God better right now? And, uh.
He said yes. He just poured his heart into the world.
You know, a few months later.
After I had some Bible studies with him, he, he said to me, David, I'm, I'm having a hard time, uh, having a hard time reading the bicycle, read all kinds of things like having a hard time reading the Bible.
And at the time I was reading this portion, it looks possible.
And umm, you know, I came to this portion here where it says umm, and the, the umm in verse 6, some fell upon the rock and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away because it lacked moisture. I thought, you know, he needs to hear that. He needs to hear that if we don't read and we're just going to be like that, we're just going to wither. And so if I go over to his house and, uh, on my way over, I, I stop and I park and I just admit to the Lord and ask the Lord to.
To, to, to bless his words, help me to be in a good spirit to be able to present it and help him to be in a good spirit to be able to receive it. And I drive in his driveway just as he's taking a sprinkler and putting it onto some fresh grass that's up this high that he planted a week before.
You know, it's amazing the way the Lord opens up something like that. And I'm just thinking tonight, if there's someone here and your heart is like a hard packed thirst, two things.
The heart has to be so that's what that's the work of God, and the moisture of the Word of God has to go in.
00:30:01
OK, bye.
Oh, just tonight here, time is up. If there's anyone here and you're lost in your sins and perhaps it's the the cares of this life that are talking the word out. Maybe it's a hard packed dirt or maybe some moisture. Oh tonight trust that you would turn to the Lord.
Come to know Him as your Lord and Savior, and God is your father. But I think those last two verses.
And then we started with #11.
Will your anger hold in the floods of death to somebody? Starts the third and fourth verse.
Oil your anger, hold in the blood of town when the water falls till your legs, and then.
Right on the rising rise.
We are anchor that is powerful and rest assure all the devil's role happened to the wrong which can happen.
Would you like me to hold through the clock in my life?
Laughing out loud in the heart of my life.
You know, I mentioned that my brother passed away.
A month ago.
He passed away suddenly.
He dropped out of a heart attack.
This other man were speaking about, he was on a deathbed and he had a few days.
After the gospel was presented to him. If my brother had been lost.
There would have been no opportunity to come to the Lord.
We don't know how the Lord's gonna take us.
You know, a day and a half before the Lord took my brother, we'd have been in constant contact because he had hip replacement a couple months before I did, so I was kind of eager to know what the next step was. This is what he texted me a day and a half before he dropped it.
I've been enjoying the peace of God.
And the God of peace.
As I'm facing heart surgery in the next few weeks, I've had this going through my mind constantly. Oh, the peace forever flowing from God thought of his own son. Oh the peace of simply knowing on the cross that all was done. And he says the peace that comes from knowing who is in control passes our understanding. Last word I got from my brother day and a half of what the Lord took him.
You have that piece tonight. I know so many here do, but you haven't tonight.
You sit down in your chair. He's a God. This is all I understand. Oh, we trust. Tonight we've come to the stage, you know, touch his brain.
Our God and our Father, we thank you for the Savior. We thank you for so many of us here.
Oh, that blessed one of our Lord, Lord and Savior, we thank you, our God, that we can know He is Father.
Yeah, company here, but perhaps there's someone here and they don't have these.
There is someone here in their heart. It's like a heart.
Packed wayside just looked great. Their hearts would be touched on it. Or perhaps there are those cares of the life, the pleasures of me, the various things that the enemy of our souls choke of the word. Oh, we just would pray our God, the good feet of fall on fertile soil tonight provide honor and glory. We ask these things, our God, as we give thanks.
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Worthy and the precious thing of our emoji. Amen.