St. Louis Conference: 2010
Table of Contents
Romans 6 & 7
Address—Bob Thonney
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 this afternoon with #254.
254.
Death and judgment are behind us.
Grace and glory are before all the pillows are. O Lord Jesus. There they spent their utmost power.
The verse I'd like to focus on, especially as verse 3.
Jesus died, and we died with him.
Buried in his grave we lay.
One with him in resurrection.
Now in him, in heaven's bright day.
Death and judgment are behind us.
Grace and glory are before.
All the bellows roll, Lord Jesus.
There they spent their utmost time.
Renaissance.
I'd like to this afternoon.
Speak from Romans chapter six and seven.
Before we start to read in those chapters, I'd like to make a few comments on.
The book of Romans and the 1St 8 chapters. I think many are aware that there is.
Two major divisions in the first eight chapters, from chapter one to chapter 5 and verse 11, we deal with the question of sins. Those evil deeds we've all done. Scripture says we.
All have sinned and come short. Nobody is exempt from that.
And so God deals with that question. If there's going to be a relationship with God, it's necessary that he addressed that subject and he has addressed that.
And I'd like to say that God Forgives sin.
But from chapter 5 verse 12 Through chapter 8, when it uses the word sin, it's referring maybe not exclusively, but almost always.
Not to those evil deeds we've done, but the root of those evil deeds.
Sin, sometimes called sin in the flesh, sometimes called what we call the old nature.
But it is the root cause of those sins sometimes. I give the illustration.
Of an tree. There's a tree out in my backyard. It produces apples. Let those apples are so sour.
And I can't do anything with them but just get them together and throw them away.
Nothing else to do it, so I'm gonna try to.
Give that tree a chance and I'll dig around it and I'll put good fertilizer around it. And what is the result? It only produces that much more of those sour apples.
00:05:02
What do I have to do with that tree?
That tree is going to be condemned to be cut down. If you look at chapter 8 before we get begin, just want to read a verse there because this is what we want to speak about and I find that in our world today, sometimes we do not identify the source of the problem. We struggle with it in our lives. I have to say I struggled with it. Chapter 8 and verse three, notice it says for what the law.
Could not do in that it was weak through the flesh. There's that sin, sin in the flesh God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin condemned sin in the flesh. So this sin nature that is in me that all of us have from Adam forward.
God never forgives it, He condemns it.
And this is important to understand if we're going to walk.
In the life that God has given us in Christ.
That sin nature that is in US is condemned. Don't try to fix it up. You're not going to be able to if you try to fix it up. He's just gonna produce a whole bunch of more sour apples, that's all.
But.
You need to understand, like I need to understand what God has done with that. And when we read that third verse of the hymn, we sang.
Jesus died, and we died with him.
Buried in his grave, we lay now in him in resurrection.
And in him in heaven's bright day.
Oh, brethren, and I'm speaking to you young people. I'm speaking to you older ones too. Nobody is exempt here. But it seems to me that in the world we live, there is such a focus to please what is man in the flesh, that sinful nature, that we kind of get caught in the current of it and taken along. And so we recognize what we are as men in the flesh when God has condemned it.
And in the death of Christ he has buried it and given us a new life in Christ.
That is completely beyond the sphere of death.
We have a life, and I say this to everyone of you, young people and older ones too. We have a life that is beyond death. Death cannot touch the life that you and I possess in Christ.
Yes, this body, death can touch, but the life I have in Christ is a life in resurrection. It's a life in union with Christ. And Christ, being raised from the dead, dies no more. You cannot die.
Now it's beyond the sphere of death, and that's the life you possess. You know what exercises me? Young people and older ones too, is that sometimes we grasp this as a doctrine in our lives.
But we don't live it.
This is something practical, this is the life that you possess if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus and it costs a whole lot for you to have that life and you should enjoy it. But if you don't understand the position that God has put us in.
Dead with Christ and buried with Him.
And risen with him.
And most likely, as we pass through this world, you're going to give attention to that which appeals to the flesh in this world. And there's a whole lot of it, let me tell you.
I can't stand up here and say I'm beyond that temptation and I can't say that.
Because I can see that it appeals to me in the flesh. But I'd like to go over in a brief way these two chapters and speak about it. And I hope I can speak about it clearly enough that you can get a hold of it, because it is so important.
00:10:07
To get a hold of it, what your position is in price. Remember, the Son of God came into this world, He hung on that cross, He paid the price in full for our sins, and in his death all that we were as men in the flesh.
Is condemned and as far as God's concerned, is buried. It's gone.
Somebody dies.
We take him out the cemetery and we bury him.
Do you go out there and dig them up once in a while to see how they're doing? No, you leave them there.
Because if you dig dig them up, it wouldn't be a very pretty picture.
And that's what happens. We get occupied again with what we are in the flesh. And every time you do, young people, it's gonna get stinkier. The problem?
I struggled with that as a young person.
And I do believe that there is an answer here in these chapters, and I'm going to try to go through it and read stop from time to time to make some comments, but.
My desire is that not be something that is put to you for your understanding merely, but to be put to you in a way that will be practical so that you can live. That's what God means for us to do with it.
Truth of God is not something merely for the head.
In fact, I'm going to suggest that if you only have it in the head, you don't really have it.
Goes in through the head. Yeah, we have ears on our head. Goes in there.
But the proper place for the truth of God is the heart, and to get to the heart it has to go through the conscience. And so to touch you in practical matters of this life. Let's go to chapter 6 then and begin to read there.
What shall we say then? Shall we continue? And sin, that grace may abound?
You just said in the end of the 5th chapter just like to so you can get the reason why he says this, he says.
Verse 20. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound.
But where sin abounded?
Grace did much more abound. Isn't that a beautiful verse?
God send problem. Yeah, we all did.
But where sin abounded, grace did much more about. If that's the case, then shall we continue in sin that grace might continue to bound?
This is his reasoning and he says.
Verse two, God forbid.
How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein? You're a believer in the Lord Jesus. God looks at you as dead to sin. Have you ever seen a dead man sinning?
Supposing there's a body laying out here of a man who in life was known as a drunk.
Air is always drunk. He couldn't get away. He was an alcoholic. Poor guy. He was enslaved to it.
Let's offer him a beer or a glass of wine. You think he's gonna grab it?
No. Is he gonna struggle with it to deny that? No. Why? He's dead. That's where you are in the eye of God. You're dead.
You haven't died physically, but Jesus died for you.
And in his death, we died.
And so there is no problem. Maybe that man also knew how to fight.
Let's give him a kick. You think he's going to get angry?
No, I don't think so.
He's dead.
How shall we that our debt to sin live any longer therein? It's not that there's a struggle to resist those things. And I must say, in my own life as a believer in the Lord Jesus, I remember struggling to resist sin.
00:15:02
And you know what? Sin is powerful. I couldn't handle it.
I remember it was a particular.
Besetting sin of mine. You know, it wasn't what we'd call that serious.
But I just felt every time I did it that it was displeasing to the Lord.
And I felt grieved in my conscience.
Make it before the Lord and I say Lord, sorry I messed up.
And I get off my knees after confessing it with better determination. They're going to do that again.
Before I knew it, I was doing it again.
Soon as powerful.
I said, what is wrong with me? Why do I keep on giving in to the sin and the flesh?
Until I was brought to realize.
You can't fight sin in the flesh. No, you can't do it. You have to take God's word that says you are dead indeed unto sin. And you know the next time the temptation came to do the same thing.
I said I'm dead.
And the temptation dropped right off. It wasn't a struggle. It was simply a matter of accepting the truth of God's Word.
So what do we do with a dead person?
We take him out and bury him. Verse three Know ye not so many of us as we're baptized unto Christ Jesus, we're baptized into his death. Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death. That like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, Even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Baptism is identification.
You are baptized. You are identified as a Christian.
You're identified with Christ in his death.
And it mentions the question of resurrection here. It's not so much the focus as it is resurrection is more the focus in Colossians when it speaks about this.
But here it is death, and it's important to understand.
We are identified with him in his death.
You know, I, I don't think we grasp.
The awfulness of what the Lord Jesus went through for us, honestly, you know, when we come to remember the Lord. And I don't want to discourage anybody from doing that. I really want to encourage everybody to do it. But so often I get the feeling we sit down in a nice room where it's all comfortable.
Nice comfortable chairs to sit on.
But there is nothing comfortable about death for the Lord Jesus.
They crowned them with thorns. They beat those thorns into his head.
He faced death in all its awful reality.
The rejection of man, the reproach that broke his heart.
And then those three hours of darkness when God laid on him the Lord of our sins and the.
Full fury of divine judgment broke on his head. For three solid hours the waves and billows of divine judgment rolled over him.
We're so comfortable, brother.
We don't get the picture. It's important that we understand that his death was for us, he died for us, and we need to know what it means then to identify with him in his death.
And then we're buried with him.
And then were risen with him as well.
So we are buried, and that's what baptism speaks of. Person is put down under the waters, identified with Jesus in his death.
00:20:01
Don't leave them under the water and bring them back up again because Jesus came back from the dead.
He was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father.
So that we should walk in newness of life. Now let's go on reading here verse 5. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection knowing this.
That our old man is crucified with him.
Not interesting. It doesn't say our old man is dead.
It's crucified.
What's dead then? We are dead.
Sometimes we say our old man is dead.
Scripture doesn't say that, says we are dead, and it's important that we understand it that way. We are dead with him. And very verse six again, knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin, for he that is dead is free from sin.
It's interesting.
I asked. Sometimes in the prison where we go.
What is it that cleanses from sins those bad things that we have all done and that stain our souls? And generally everybody knows the blood of Christ is the only thing that can cleanse from sin. But then I pose another question. Often I say, what is it that will free you from this in nature?
Not the blood of Christ.
It is death.
As soon as a person dies, that's in nature has no longer any power in you or me.
Not that we have died, but it is that Jesus has died for me, and the death of Christ is the end of all that we are as men in the flesh. Now we speak of a new creation.
Because Jesus rose from the dead, and in his resurrection he has become the head.
Of a new creation and everyone who is a believer in the Lord Jesus is part of that new creation, that wonderful, wonderful truth. The truth that we need to understand well and practice.
Let's keep on going here, verse 8. For if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.
Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead.
Dieth no more.
Death hath no more dominion over him, for him that he died, he died unto sin once, but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
There it is very clear, the light that the Lord Jesus has is the life and resurrection.
Is a life beyond death? Is a life that death can not touch any longer? I think that's so wonderful. We live in a world full of death. Everywhere you hear about people dying, and people are wise to make other people die.
They have all sorts of gimmicks, bombs and certain things to make people die.
But now the place that you and I possess is a place beyond death and resurrection.
And we need to lock in the enjoyment of that brother. Think of those early disciples in the book of the Acts.
Oh, we're living in the power of his resurrection.
Beautiful to see it, you know.
Can you threaten a dead man?
Saying I'm gonna kill you, will that scare him?
No, it's not gonna scare her dead man. And that's why the disciples in the beginning of the book of the Acts, there was real power and they threatened them time and again will kill you. And that's the maximum threat you can do in this life. It didn't have one little bit of a effect on them. They just kept right on preaching the gospel.
00:25:09
And it was a power that just totally baffled the religious authorities, especially because it was a light that was beyond death and resurrection. That's the life that you and I possess. And you know, dear brethren, it's an exercise to me to see another lands, our brethren, who live in real circumstances of persecution.
The threat of losing their life at any time.
I don't know what it would mean to have to live in those kind of circumstances.
And I come back here to the United States and I see.
People just want to live it up in this life.
Something's not right here.
You and I understand that life that God has given us in Christ.
Wonderful life. Life beyond death.
And I don't think we should tempt the Lord and walk into dangerous situations, but I fear that sometimes we're so concentrated on conserving what we are as men in the flesh that we lose the sight of the wonderfulness of that life we have in Christ which is beyond that.
I challenge you young people to live this life, this life of resurrection that we have. We come to verse 11 of this chapter and to me it's a very signal verse.
Please pay attention.
Likewise.
Reckon, yeah, also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
He says you are dead, you are buried.
Now reckon yourselves or think this way.
Form your thoughts this way.
So that when you come along to a temptation that appeals to what you are as a person in the flesh.
You think? Wait a minute.
I'm dead.
I The life I have is a life to be lived into God.
No.
That's not where I belong. I belong over here where I can glorify the Lord in my life. Think that way. This is really important because I've had young people say I don't feel very dead inside. Yeah, I'm not saying whether you feel dead or not. I'm saying what God says, that you are dead. If you're a believer, you are dead. You may say I don't feel it. Then maybe that's true. Maybe you don't feel it.
But who are you gonna trust?
Your feelings are God.
I'm sorry to young people. Do your feelings ever change? Oh yeah, they change all the time. So you're gonna trust your feelings.
I would suggest you don't trust your feelings, you trust God. I have to say too, my dear young brother and sister and the Lord, that OFT times I don't feel that dead when there's temptation around, but I have to take God at his word, and he says we're dead. Reckon or think this way. Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God. Now let's go on in this chapter. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body.
That you should obey it in the lust thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness.
Unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace.
Oh, this is wonderful. It's not that there is a rule of law. Don't you dare step over that line or you're going to get it. No, that's not the point. You're not under law. You're under grace.
00:30:08
But do you understand what it costs our Lord Jesus?
In his grace to forgive you those sins, if you understand, if your heart is touched, I say to you, you are going to want to live to his glory. Nobody is standing over your head with a club saying I'm going to whack you if you get out of line. No.
But it's the constraining power of love.
Of His grace. He did so much for me. Now I want to live all I can for Him. That's the point. You know, people don't understand that principle very well.
We were living in South America. There was a time of economic.
Stress in the country and there is a lot of people on the high Alta Plano, Bolivia that were hungry.
And we were able to take some foodstuffs with help that came from up this area.
You take him up into the altar Plano to distribute them. And a lady once came to me and says, Sir, you must get a lot of favor with God doing this kind of work.
I said, ma'am, I don't do any of this work to get favor with God.
I already have favor with God because of what Jesus did on the cross.
But you know what? I feel so terribly indebted to him for all that he did for me. I'm trying to show in my little efforts how grateful I am to him. That's the principle of grace. It's not law. Dear young people, if you can get a glimpse in your heart and soul of what He did for you to save you from such a terrible death.
I tell you, nobody is going to be able to stop you.
In your desire to live that life He gave to you for Him. A little while we have left. But notice in these verses it speaks of instruments.
Read a little bit more here.
Verse.
15 What then shall we sin because we are not under the law, but under grace, God forbid?
Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey?
His servants ye are to whom ye obey.
Whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness. But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered unto you.
Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men, because of the infirmity of your flesh. For as ye have yielded your members.
Servants to uncleanness, and to iniquity, and to iniquity Even so, now yield your members servants to righteousness.
Unto holiness, for when we were the servants of sin, you were free from righteousness.
What fruit had ye been in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.
But now, being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness in the end.
Everlasting life for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Speaks of instruments, it speaks of members, and I'd like to just apply it in this way.
We have members.
We sing him in Sunday school sometimes. Too little eyes to lick the guy.
Who is to hear his word? Two hands.
Is that the next one?
It was 2 feet to walk his ways.
One little heart and one little tongue. Instrument of 10 strings. What are you doing with those instruments on your body? Your hands? What do you do with your hands? Remember, he paid a price for those hands of yours. What are you doing with your feet? Where do your feet take you?
00:35:10
Do they take you places you know you shouldn't go?
Your eyes.
What do you watch?
Is there movies you like to watch that you know?
Are not pleasing to the Lord.
Did you know that those eyes were bought with that precious blood on the cross?
You get on the Internet and watch stuff that you know is not pleasing to the Lord.
Are you using your members that way?
When he paid such a price? Come on, dear young people, I don't want to give you the idea that I'm standing over your head and threatening you, but I want to encourage you to live the life that you're called to. It's a far more fulfilling life than that stuff that this world offers you.
Don't give in to it.
I speak to my dear, dear young sisters.
You know, did you know that Scripture tells the sisters to adorn themselves?
Two times it tells him to Dorn himself.
You're supposed to be adorned.
But how do you adorn yourself?
There is a.
Ornament that is spoken of in First Peter chapter 3.
Very beautiful ornament that women are told to adorn themselves with. There's also another thing in First Timothy chapter 2 That women are to adorn themselves with. But if you look at it carefully, you're going to see that it was not anything outward.
I want to encourage you, my dear young sisters.
To adorn yourself properly for the glory of the Lord Jesus.
And I see many of you that do that. I thank God for that.
May the Lord encourage you.
The way you dress, something that makes the young men look at you in an improper way. Remember, our bodies belong to the Lord Jesus. Now, not only did He redeem us, our spirit and our soul, but our bodies belong to Him, and anything we do should be for Him. So those instruments, those members of yours.
Yield them to God.
I like to think.
Getting up in the morning.
And saying to the Lord Jesus.
Lord Jesus, today, another day before me. Here's my hands.
Here's my feet, here's my ears, here's my eyes.
I want to use them for you.
I want to yield them to you. Do your will.
Oh, how important that is in our lives. Make it practical. You know what I'm going to tell you? If you have the grace to do that, you're gonna find life thrilling and worth living.
You know what really impresses me?
In South America especially, there's lots of countries in South America you wouldn't call third world countries because they're not poverty stricken like others. Like Argentina is a fairly well off country.
But there are countries that are very poor and you find families that are extremely poor.
I have never found.
A child in a poor family saying I'm Borg.
Doesn't have time to be born, he has to get out there with his shoeshine kit and earn some money.
They come back to this country where we have luxury all around.
And kids are saying I'm bored, don't have anything to do.
You know what?
We don't have it's straight what life we're really living.
We've been appealed to by this world to live what we are as man in the flesh. That's dead, that's buried, that's gone. Leave it there. Live the life that He gave you in Christ. Oh, the thrill on it. To live for Him, to live for His glory.
00:40:17
There will be fruit. What kind of fruit do you want?
It talks about the fruit.
That they had to be ashamed of.
That was unto holiness in the end. Everlasting life. You know, I noticed that sometimes young people shy away from that word holiness.
Sometimes they say I'm not that holy.
I'd just like to.
Make a comment on that.
Holiness means separated to Christ.
Separated.
You know, what's so interesting to me is to see how much we like to go to weddings.
Why do people always like to go to weddings? What's the big deal at a wedding? You know what the big deal is.
A young lady.
Separates herself from everybody else to be joined to one man. Likewise, the man separates himself to be joined to one woman.
That is so beautiful and everybody likes to come and see it.
And I must say, I enjoy it too. I really do.
Find it.
Beautiful.
Let me tell you.
To be separated to the Lord Jesus is beautiful. Don't shy away from that word holiness.
It's beautiful. I sometimes say it to young people.
This didn't happen to me, but.
What would you think if this would have happened to me when I asked my wife to marry me?
If she would have said, OK, I'll be 95% for you, but I like to reserve 5% for somebody else, what would you think I would say?
Oh, I wouldn't be very happy.
So maybe she's up at 99%, just 1% for me.
It's all or nothing.
That's the only option.
Young people, are we saying, OK Lord, I'll be most of my life for you, but I'd like to have a little reserve to do my own thing in my own time.
Are you living like that?
You're robbing yourself a tremendous joy by saying that.
Holiness means all separate to him.
Those members of yours, don't use them for other things.
Use them for him. You're going to find the joy. That's the result.
Let's go to the 7th chapter now because in the 7th chapter and I'd like to only have 15 minutes left, I'd like to read through the chapter.
And as we do, you're gonna see that there's a struggle that's going on with this person in this chapter. And I find that this is often the case with us, that we go through a real struggle in connection with this sin in the flesh.
It begins in verse one. Nor ye not, brethren, for I speak to them that know the law.
How that the law has dominion over a man as long as he liveth.
For the woman which hath and husband is bound by the law to her husband, so long as he liveth.
But if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called and adulterous.
But if her husband be dead, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ, that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sin, which were by the law.
00:45:00
Did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death, but now we are delivered or freed from the law that deemed dead, wherein we were held that we should serve in newness of spirit, not in the oldness of the letter. I'm gonna pause there. You're speaking about the law here, and you know there is the thought.
Sometimes with Christians that the law is a rule of life.
Is the law a rule of life for the Christian?
Very clear here that we are dead to the law.
We are delivered. We are free from the law.
The law is not the rule of life for the believer in the Lord Jesus. What is the rule of life?
It's Christ himself.
His glorious person, it's nothing more, nothing less than that. Beautiful to see it. But I, I bring this out so that we can understand. He uses a illustration of a married woman here and that she cannot be to another man while her husband is living because that is what is called adultery.
But if her husband is dead, then she's free from that loss to be married to another.
And the apostle Paul is using that to show that by the death of Christ, through the body of Christ we have been delivered. We are dead to the law by the body of Christ. Sometimes give the illustration.
In the prison, there is a man on death row.
Is sentenced to be taken out of his prison cell tomorrow morning at 8:00 and to be executed.
Tomorrow morning at 8:00 the guards go in to take him out of the cell for his execution, but they find that during the night he died.
Now what are they gonna do?
He was sentenced to be executed. Are they going to take him out and execute him?
No. Why not? The sentence was passed by law.
The law is made for men who are alive in the flesh.
And in Christ we are dead to the law by the body of Christ.
And what we have in the verses that follow that I want to read something of, you're going to see that the law is an instrument that provokes the flesh to sin. Don't use the law. It's not the proper norm for the Christian. It is perfect. Nothing wrong with the law, but it will only provoke the flesh in US.
Verse seven. What shall we say then? Is the lost sin? God forbid.
Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law. For I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I was alive without the law once. But when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
When you lose law to contain the flesh, you just provoked the flesh.
That flesh sin in the flesh in US.
Is provoked. We don't want to be told what to do.
And if I say do this, you don't want to do it. And if I say don't do this, you want to do it because it's contrary to the law of God.
It is an enemy of God.
Verse.
Let's see verse 9. For I was alive without the law once, But when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, just and good. Nothing wrong with the law.
00:50:10
The problem is.
This sin in the flesh.
So the law is holy, the commandment holy, just and good. Verse 13 Was then that which is good made death unto me, God forbid but sin, that it might appear, sin working death in me by that which is good, that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.
For what? For that which I do I allow not. For what I would that I that do I not but would I hate that I do notice there is a struggle inside of him.
Perhaps it relates to what we have in Galatians, where it says the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh, and these things are country, the one to the other, so that we would not do what we.
Should.
You ever feel that struggle, young person?
I felt it strongly in my life, you know, and I think it affects those of us who have been brought up in Christian homes.
I have to say for myself what the Lord has taught me in this struggle is.
Being brought up in a Christian home and lived fairly sheltered life, sometimes we think we're not just quite as bad as all the rest of those bad people out there.
You know, as long as you have that idea about yourself, even if it's unconsciously there.
You're not going to enjoy the grace of God.
You're not going to enjoy.
And so this man struggles. Verse 16 it says.
If then I do that which I would not, I can send unto the law that it is good.
7th Now then, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. OK, he's coming to the point where he's identifying the problem in him. It's not I I want to please God, but sin in me.
It's there.
And I struggle with it.
For I know that in ME verse 18. Notice this is a signal verse in this chapter.
I know that in me that is, in my flesh dwelleth.
No good thing for to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good? I find not.
Come on, Paul, aren't you a little bit hard on yourself?
I've heard some.
Christian.
He came to the right conclusion here. I know that in me, that is, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.
Far as the man in Adam, there is nothing. You're absolutely corrupt. Corrupt.
Can take the worst criminal in the judicial system of the United States of America and stand him up beside me and say there is no difference for all of sin and come short of the glory of God.
Brother, it's important to come to that point because if you don't get to that point, you're not going to appreciate properly what is the grace of God. The only standing I have before God is in grace. If it depends on performance, and sometimes we give that idea, we who are older sometimes give that idea to our young people. It's performance.
That's the principle of law.
And as long as we put the law down, there's going to be a provoking to sin. That's not the answer.
00:55:05
Verse.
19 For the good that I would I do not, but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now notice verse 20 again. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. There again he is identifying the problem.
Sin that dwelleth in me, that sin nature.
And he says I find then a law that when I would do good.
Evil is present with me, for I delight in the law of God after the inward man, but I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
And then he cries out in his wretchedness.
Oh, wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death.
You know there's word pictures in the scriptures and I understand that one of the.
Punishments for criminals in the Roman Empire when this was written.
The Roman Empire was for a criminal, and I don't know for what crime it was given to him, but.
A dead body was chained to him until it actually rotted off his back.
He had to live with it.
This is the picture.
Oh, wretched man that I am.
He cries out, Who shall deliver me? What do we need? We need deliverance.
That's what we need.
And the answer for deliverance is in the next verse, the last verse of this chapter.
I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind, I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh, the law of sin.
Now the next chapter is the tremendous expose of this new life in Christ that we have beautiful. You'll notice that in the 7th chapter the Spirit of God is not mentioned. It is mentioned time and time again in the 8th chapter because the Spirit of God is the power of that new life so that we don't obey that sin in the flesh any longer.
But that we give place to those.
Wholesome desires of that new life that we have in Christ. Well this is what I had on my heart, dear young people, and let me stop here just to.
Once again, encourage you and exhort you in the name of the Lord Jesus. This is the life that you have if you are a real believer in the Lord Jesus. I Sometimes we think we sometimes treat our young people as if they're just people in the flesh. Sometimes they act that way, don't they? Sometimes we older ones act that way too.
But we need to recognize if they are a real believer in the Lord Jesus. You have a life that wants to please God. Let's encourage that. Let's be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Let's not lay down a law.
The law will provoke the sin in the flesh, and that's not the life that we have been given in the Lord Jesus. May the Lord help us.
I trust.
That you can take these scriptures and meditate on them and get the profit from them. Dear young people and dear brother and sister and the Lord Jesus that are older as well. May the Lord help us.
The Presence of the Lord
Address—John Kaiser
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 begin with number 42 in the appendix Savior.
Lead us by Thy power, safe unto the promised rest. Choose the path away, whatever seems to Thee, O Lord, the best. Be our guide in every peril. Watch and keep us night and day, else our foolish hearts will wander from the Strait and narrow way #42 In the Appendix.
Savior.
Say within till I promise pride.
Cheers, but I don't wake my brother.
Is being all over the hell.
And thine rise and fall away.
From your.
In my grave we have gone. We can bother.
This afternoon.
I have before me a subject, a wonderful subject. This book is full of them. You know, a wonderful subject, something that.
Is wonderful and yet we take it for granted. Something we depend on.
Habitually.
And habitually ignore.
Let's turn before we pray to look at a few scriptures.
In Genesis to start with.
Genesis chapter one.
Verse Genesis chapter 17. I'm sorry, Genesis chapter 17 and verse one.
And when Abraham was 90 years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am.
The Almighty God.
Walk before me.
And be thou perfect.
And then?
00:05:00
Verse 18.
And Abram said unto God, Oh that.
Ishmael.
Might live before thee.
Turn to Psalm 16.
Verse.
8.
I have set the Lord always before me because He is at my right hand.
I shall not be moved. Verse 11 Thou wilt show me the path of life.
In my presence is fullness of joy.
At thy right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Isaiah chapter 63.
S.
Verse 9.
In all their affliction.
He was afflicted, and the Angel of his presence saved them.
And in his love and in his pity he redeemed them, and he bare them and carried them all the days of old.
The Angel of his presence saved him.
And then one more verse. An axe.
X.
Chapter 10.
And verse.
33 The middle of the verse.
Now, therefore, all we are, are we all here present?
Before God.
To hear.
Some while ago.
I was sitting in meeting, we were singing this hymn.
Which we just sang.
42 in the appendix in And then we sang in thy presence we are happy in thy presence we are secure in thy presence. All afflictions we can easily endure.
In thy presence we can conquer, we can suffer, we can die. And I thought.
You know, my experience doesn't live up to that.
And I know the experience of those around me doesn't always live up to that expression.
This is an expression of faith, as our prayers ought to be, and hymns are properly expression of faith. But.
They ought to some measure, also be an expression of reality.
If his presence makes us happy.
Why are we not always happy?
If his presence makes us secure, why do we worry?
If his presence enables us to bear afflictions, why do we get complaining, get impatient?
If His presence enables us to conquer, why do we struggle?
On my own conviction, from my own soul.
Is that we don't really.
No, and appreciate his presence as we are.
And so what's my desire this afternoon just to look in Scripture and see where his presence is mentioned?
And to learn a little bit better.
What that means now I can give you a definition of the word presence.
It comes from 2 old words pre which means before an essence, which means to be. It means to be before. That's the meaning of the word.
00:10:00
But if I were to define the presence of the Lord, I would limit it.
It's a word he uses, and the best way to understand it is to see how he uses it in Scripture.
And we find it first.
In Gen. in the book of Genesis, very early in Genesis. And let's look at that passage.
Genesis chapter 3.
Verse eight we know the story.
And they heard Genesis chapter 3, verse eight. They heard the voice of the Lord walking.
In the garden, in the cool, the day.
And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord.
Now if you have a modern translation like the NIV or something some other paraphrase, it may read as the NIV does. They hid themselves from the Lord.
And that's an impossibility.
But Skechers says they did hide themselves from the presence of the Lord.
They sought to remove themselves from being immediately before him. And that's why I read the passage about Abraham, because that was the sense that God says walk before me. That's what presence means, at least as far as the English word is concerned, to be before.
It is our privilege. We know it is. We're going to look at some passages of Scripture to bring this out. It's our privilege to walk before the Lord, to live before the Lord, not just in this life.
But forever.
And so the Lord Jesus to his disciples, he said, I go to a prayer place for you, that where I am, there ye may be also.
Says Revelation 22. They shall see his face.
That's another way the scripture uses to express his presence, to see his face, see his countenance.
And how sad it is that right at the beginning Adam and Eve were uncomfortable in his presence. Well, we know why it was They were guilty. They had a bad conscience. They saw themselves naked. And Scripture says all things are naked and open before the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Everyone in this room, whether you are saved or lost, whether you're a child of God or not, you are going to have to do with God.
And he is dealing with you right now.
Adam and Eve sought to remove themselves.
From being right before God. It didn't succeed, of course, but God made a provision for them. He provided coats of skin and you would have thought.
The mankind would have learned the lesson.
We know what happened in the next chapter.
Cain slew his brother.
And the Lord appeared to Cain. Notice what it says in chapter 4.
Verse six The Lord spoke to Cain.
The Lord said to Cain, Why art thou wroth, and why is thy Countess fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou doest not well, sin or sin offering life at the door, God was ready to make provision.
For Cain, as he had made provision for Adam and Eve.
But notice.
Umm, what it says in verse 16. And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord.
Cain chose to go from before the face of the Lord. He turned his back on the Lord.
And we say, oh, what a terrible thing we read yesterday about someone else who did that.
Physically went out of the presence of the Lord, says Judas did the same thing. It says he went out.
And it was night, a dreadful thing for him to do.
It's a dreadful thing to turn your back on the Lord, you say I'd never do that.
Turn to the book of Jonah.
00:15:11
Jonah, Chapter one.
Now the word Jonah chapter one verse one. Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the Son.
Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.
But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
And that's the course of the flesh. And we all have the flesh.
And we have. We know what it is.
By experience, there are times when we have turned our backs. We who know the Lord, who are believers in.
The word of the Lord came to Jonah. God picks His servants. Jonah was one of his servants.
Jonah knew about the Lord. Matter of fact, Jonah felt free to pray to the Lord later on in the chapter.
There was a relationship there, but Jonah had a will and the Lord asked him to. Well, the Lord ordered him to do something that was contrary to his culture.
Contrary to his inclinations, contrary to his tastes. And the Lord does ask us to do those things sometimes.
Because he's Lord of all.
He's not one to be ordered by our whims, our preferences. And so God sent Jonah to Nineveh and Jonah culturally, religiously.
Politically.
Naturally hated Nineveh.
And he didn't like the message he was supposed to take to them either.
You and I have responsibilities, and they're not all. Not all the responsibilities the Lord gives us are easy or pleasant.
Jonah got up and he went to Tarshish. He found a ship.
And God prepared a fish.
And we know the result. Jonah went to Nineveh.
And that was God's mercy.
Sometimes when we rebel, God says, all right, I'm going to use somebody else.
In this case he used John anyway, and God often uses us despite.
Ourselves.
But the sad thing is, it's recorded in Scripture here that Jonah fled.
From the presence of the Lord.
We don't have time to look at all the instances and the scriptures full of instances of the Lord being present in in lives, but I'd like to look at umm.
Enjoy is a strike. There's a striking example in the case of Joseph, which I've become to appreciate just recently.
We looked at Abraham already. Abraham was told by the Lord, walk before me. And Abram sensed that that was a privilege, and the Lord's presence is a privilege and.
He desired that for Ishmael. He said all that Ishmael might walk before thee. Well, the Lord had other purposes, and we find that in Abraham's descendants. We have one called Joseph, and we'll look at a little something in his life here.
Uh, Genesis.
Chapter.
Umm.
39.
And Joseph was brought down to Egypt and Potiphar. This is verse one. Genesis 39 Verse one. Joseph was brought down to Egypt and Potiphar. And officer Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian brought, bought him at the hands of the Ishmaelites, which had brought him down thither. And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man, and he was in the House of his master, the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him.
Now, you know, I suspect, I don't know for a fact that Joseph, I suspect that Joseph may not have been conscious that the Lord was with him. If I'd been Joseph's situation, I would have felt pretty abandoned. He'd been betrayed by his brother and sold. And I can imagine that as far as feelings were concerned, Joseph felt pretty alone. It says that the Lord is with him.
00:20:16
That's a wonderful thing about the presence of the Lord. It's not something we're necessarily conscious of.
The Lord is with us because His presence is His presence.
And he can do what he likes with it. And he chooses to be with his own. Now. That's been his choice from eternity.
Here he was with Joseph. We don't know if Joseph was conscious of it, but it's interesting that Joseph's master was conscious of it. It says his master saw that the Lord is with him.
And you know, we may not be conscious.
Of the Lord being with us, sometimes we may feel alone, rejected and neglected.
But if we're walking to please the Lord others.
My sense is presence. Just a thought.
Oh right, let's look at another person that really learned to appreciate the Lord's presence was.
Moses.
It says of Moses in Hebrews 13. He endured as seeing him who is invisible. Let's look at.
At Exodus chapter 33.
And see what it was that Moses had that helped him to endure Exodus chapter 33.
In verse 12.
And Moses said unto the Lord, See thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people.
And thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me, Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast found grace in my sight.
Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, show me now the way.
That I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight, and consider that this nation.
Is thy people, and he that the Lord said, my presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. That's a wonderful promise. If you remember some chapters earlier in Exodus.
Umm, Joseph's father-in-law had visited the camp and he'd seen how Burton Joseph, uh, I'm sorry, Moses, Moses father-in-law had visited the camp and he'd seen how burdened Moses was and he said this is too much for you. And he suggested, umm, delegating responsibility.
You know, I have the sense that I don't. This is the sense of my own soul that.
Somehow that didn't do a whole lot to relieve Moses.
And there are those commentators who feel that that was a mistake altogether for him to delegate responsibility that God had given him in any case.
He still needed rest.
Moses was, I believe was at this time I I can imagine most of the time he must have felt pretty much at wits end with the people of God says he was the meekest man in all the earth, but he lost it on an occasion we know.
And he said if my presence go not with me, carry me, not offense.
If the Lord was with him, he could do it.
And the Lord gave him a promise. He said, Not only will I enable you to go with you enable you to do it.
I will give you rest.
Now we have those words before us this morning in Sunday school where the Lord Jesus said, Come unto me.
And I will give you rest.
You know there's rest in his presence.
We're gonna get to glory and we're gonna experience it, but we can experience it down here. The Lord Jesus said come unto me and I will give you rest.
We're gonna see if we have time later, we'll see how David expresses that. But it's interesting here how Moses says.
Verse 15 he said to him, If thy presence going out with me carry us not offense. Moses is thinking of God's people.
And he says, For wherein shall it be known here that I and my people have found grace in thy sight? Is it not in that thou goest with us? And so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are on the face of the earth?
The presence of the Lord Moses was counting on it, not only for himself, but for the people of God.
00:25:04
And and there are a number of passages we can turn to to show.
That God did accompany his people. We read one in Isaiah. The Angel of his presence saved them.
God accompanied his people. Matter of fact, he put He made it very evident there was the cloud.
The pillar of cloud which at one time stood between them. The fiery pillar of cloud that stood between.
The Israelites and the Egyptians at one point.
And other another time went ahead of them in the wilderness. God made his presence very evident, not only to the heathen, but to the children of Israel themselves. And yet there were times when they failed to give him his due.
What does that mean, to give him his due? Well, he's a simple verse in Proverbs that we often quote.
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding and all thy.
Ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
The Lord is with us. You know what, it's so helpful. I, I have bad eyesight and I find it helpful to travel with other people and I can ask the directions and uh, I can ask them to, I have a, a, a, the other. Just the other day my, one of my son said, I've heard you say right sight for a while. Well, I haven't. Sometimes when I, because I have difficulty focusing, I'll be looking to the left because that's my side and when I'm driving and I'll tell the person on the right.
Look right, as you say, right sight, and I'm glad I have them there to consult. It says in all thy ways, acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths. You know we read in, in umm, Psalm 16 because he is at my right hand. That's close, isn't it?
When you want to take control of something, most of us because our right hand, we reach out with the right hand and he's right there.
He's right there, handy, and I don't mean to be disrespectful.
It says.
Another place that the Lord is a present help. He's right there and since an amazing thing. Well, I'm taking the some of these scriptures all out of order that I'd hope to speak on in the I'm getting losing the order I hope to stick with, but I've got so much to share I might not get it all in anyway.
It's a wonderful thing we see in Scripture is that we can get away from the Lord, but He's still near.
When Paul spoke to the heathen on Mars Hill, he spoke of the Lord being near. We find the same expression in Romans chapter 10.
Because God, if you look in Jeremiah 23, says am I not a God? Let's look at it. Jeremiah 23. I can't quote it right.
We may be far off. Ephesians chapter 2 Says that by nature, we're a far off God.
Speaks of his own people saying they honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, and we may be far off from God. But notice what it says in Jeremiah 23. In verse 23 am IA God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God far off.
Can Annie hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him, saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? So we may be away from the Lord, we may be wandering, we may feel ourselves afar off. We may be a far off spiritually and not feel it. But the Lord's near. Isn't that wonderful? Now we think of the Lord Jesus told the story of the prodigal son. We looked at that a little bit this morning.
No, that father, he was just a physical father.
So we find him staying at home when the sun wanders off. But that father in that story was fairly wealthy.
And if I had been a wealthy father, I'm just going to suppose.
I might have sent somebody out to look at my son, see how my son is getting along, and see when he's ready to come home. We saw because we find the Father watching for his son. I'm maybe he watched for him from the day he left. I'm sure in his heart he did. But my point is, God is always interested in us. Whether we're interested in him or not, He's always interested in us. And so Moses had this promise for himself and for the people of God. Now notice.
Joshua turn to Joshua, chapter one.
00:30:14
Joshua chapter one and verse 5.
It's amazing the encouraging words that God gives to Joshua.
Joshua chapter one, verse five. There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life, as I was with Moses.
So will I be with thee. I wasn't that grand encouragement as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee. I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
You say, well, that's a wonderful thing for for Joshua to hear. Not only did Joshua have to cope with these ornery people, but he was no longer leading them through a wilderness. He was going into battle. They were going to conquer the land. He needed that same presence. And you and I have a lot of things to face.
We need that same presence. We got it. Let's read this verse here.
As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee. I will not fail thee.
Nor for safety. Now turn to Hebrews chapter 13.
He Hebrews chapter 13 verse five, it says let your conversation be without covetousness, that means love of money and be content with such things that you have or be content with present circumstances.
For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Who is this written to us? Flavors Christians? It's written to us the same promise that God gave.
Joshua.
What's the same God?
My presence shall go with me.
David was another. Let's look at some of the David's, uh, things that David enjoyed. We're familiar with Psalm 23, so we'll start there. We already read a little bit in Psalm 16, which is also a Psalm of David. And if you want to enjoy the presence of the Lord, read the Psalms. The Psalms bring us into the presence of the Lord. The Psalms recount the effect of the presence of the Lord. You want to know the presence of the Lord, read the book of Psalms.
You know, the Old Testament Saints had the book of Psalms and you find a lot of things in the Psalms that sort of make those you that suggest that the presence of the Lord is conditional. But it's a wonderful thing that what things were conditional in the Old Testament because they were under the law.
R unconditional in the New Testament because we're under grace.
And so in Psalm 23.
We find these words.
And we we enjoy these words, people like this verse, Psalm 23 verse one, it says the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.
And then they think, oh, if they think about wanting, wanting things, and we're occupied with things and wanting, wanting, wanting. That's the nature of this society we live in. Everybody wants things.
And so of course the sense there is I shall not need anything and people aren't anxious about needs.
So the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. But there's something better later in the Psalm.
Psalm 23.
And verse.
Four. Yeah. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For thou art with me, Thou art with me.
Not merely as the Lords of faithful shepherd. And he takes us to a good pasture, and there's plenty there.
But he himself is there, the sense Notice, notice the connection.
Thou prepare us to table before me in the presence of mine enemies. I'll notice my head with oil. You don't do that at a distance.
The the psalmist here, David himself, enjoyed the near presence, the presence of the Lord, not just the provision of the Lord, but the Lord's presence, and he refers to it often.
00:35:06
You look at Psalm 27.
Verse four. One thing I've desired of the Lord that will I seek after.
Is this what we're seeking after? That I may dwell on the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, to inquire in his temple. For in the time of trouble or the day of trouble, he shall hide me in his pavilion, in the secret of His Tabernacle shall He hide me, He shall set me up on a rock. Verse 8 When thou says, Seek ye my face, my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
That's why God said that David was a man after his own heart. When God says look here, seek me.
David says yes.
Are we continually saying yes to the Lord?
Seeking his presence. Enjoying his presence. Now notice.
Umm.
Umm, now let's go on. We're I, there's so many songs I could refer to and, and David's Psalms, and I'm going to skip some. We're missing some precious passages, but I want to look at a verse in, uh, Psalm 119. It just comes to mind. Psalm 119 and the verse 150.
You know, David had some awful experiences in his life.
And that there was a time when he came back and found Ziklag destroyed and says David encouraged himself in the Lord.
Well, that's because David enjoyed the Lord's presence. He felt comfortable there.
This Psalm is not written by David, but it's an interesting verse in Psalm 150.
Psalm 100, a hundred and sorry, sorry. Psalm 119, verse 150. Psalm 119, verse 150. It says they draw nigh that follow after mischief.
They draw an eye. Ever felt pressured?
They draw an eye that follow after mischief. They are far from thy law. Thou art near, O Lord, and all thy commandments are truth. Matter of fact, some have said that the Hebrew here is stronger. Thou art nearer. You feel pressured.
The Lord is nearer than those pressures.
He is not a God afar off, it says in Philippians chapter 4. Let your yielding us be known to all men.
The Lord is at hand. He's near. He's ready to deal with it in ways we can't.
Well, we looked at at umm.
David, we've looked at Abraham, Abraham and there were are others perhaps we could look at. We're running out of time and umm, like to look at a verse that has impressed me just recently and 1St Corinthians chapter 6.
And you notice most of these examples I've used so far deal with the Lord's presence in the Old Testament.
In the New Testament, it's brought into more detail. Uh, we, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us.
Uh, we have those passages with the we just.
Touched on in the Upper Room ministry where the Lord said let not your heart be troubled, and He was going to talk about His own presence with His own there.
But there's a verse here that just struck me recently that.
First Corinthians, chapter 6.
First Corinthians chapter.
6.
Verse 15.
Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them?
The members of an harlot, God forbid what know ye not that he which is joined to his and harlot is one body for two, saith he shall be one flesh, but he that is joined unto the Lord is 1 spirit.
Joint.
Join. How close is that?
Well, you know, I've read this path these many, many times and I would say, yes, I'm joined. I'm part of the body of Christ, and yet the body of Christ is scattered. And I didn't understand the significance of this passage until just yesterday. At least I think I got a little bit more light on it. I don't say that I've got a full understanding, but notice the context here. It says he that is joined to a harlot IS1 body. That's a close contact.
00:40:22
For who saith he shall be one flesh? But he that is joined unto the Lord is 1 spirit.
He joined to the Lord.
That's really close. That's the context here.
And that is why God, you know, it's, it's, there's no distance as far as God is concerned. And that's why sin is so odious to him because.
When we get involved in sin, we're bringing it close to him.
He that is joined to the Lord. Oh what a privilege. I saw an example of that recently.
Uh, somehow or another I ended up on a YouTube, I don't recall how. It was a YouTube video of Siamese twins.
Two sisters.
Add 2 like.
They were rejoined at the hip.
They in a way they could not be separated.
Two hearts, 2 heads, 22 separate umm sets of organs in the upper torso.
They're joined.
What one did, the other had to do, or had to go along, or else there would be conflict, a lot of discomfort. They had learned they were the the video introduced them in their teens. They had learned to live with each other, to appreciate each other, to care for one another.
Uh, still not a life I would envy at all.
We have something far better than that.
But it gives a little bit of a taste. We are closely joined to Christ.
Rejoined to him.
Now there was one passage I skipped over I want to go back to. It's very precious in Psalm 31, one of David's umm Psalms.
Psalm 31. I feel we'd be missing a lot if we missed this passage. Psalm 31.
And then I want to look at some other things.
Uh.
Psalm 31.
In verse.
20.
Just a little phrase is kind of different. Psalm 31, verse 20. Thou shalt hide them in the secret or the secret place of thy presence.
A little bit different aspect.
I think that's perhaps what David enjoyed, that time when he.
Found Ziklag.
Where could he go? His men were all around him in distressed. Where can he go? And sometimes we're in situations where there seems like there's no relief in our circumstances. There's still the secret of his presence.
You say, what is it? Where is it?
You'll have to go to him to find it.
But is there the secret of his presence? Thou wilt hide me. Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man. Thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.
Just a precious verse to remember. Now we talked about the presence of the Lord with us individually and we've talked a little about the presence of the Lord with his people collectively. I'd like to just look at an interesting, some interesting pictures we get in Luke chapter 24.
Luke chapter 24. You know, the Lord is with us because he's with us individually. He's with us collectively.
And, umm.
Now, simply, I guess I'm just, I'm gonna say interesting pictures. Something to consider here in Luke 24.
Verse One. Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing spices which they had prepared.
And certain others with them, and they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre, and they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
In the case you pass. As they were much perplexed there about, behold two men stood by them in shining garments.
And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye, the living among the dead? He is not here. Just a picture. They weren't really looking for the living presence of the Lord, but they were looking for the Lord as they had known Him. They were looking for His physical presence, and it wasn't there. It was where they expected it to be, and it was not there.
00:45:14
He is not here, they were told. He is risen.
Well, let's go a bit further down the chapter, verse 13 and behold, two of them went up the same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem, about 3 score furlongs and they talked together of all these things which had happened.
And it came to pass. While they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. With them. These two were traveling together, and Jesus joined them. He went with them. We talked about the collective presence of the Lord. Here it is in its simplest form. The Lord was with them, not with each of them, but with them. He was there as He is with His people, and they didn't know it.
It is possible to be in the Lord's presence collectively and not know it.
Why didn't they know it well?
Notice what it says down here.
Verse 25 And he said to them, O fools, and slow of heart, to believe.
Faith, lack of faith. We walk by faith, we enjoy our benefits by faith down here, and we enjoy the Lord's presence by faith.
After the Lord said that.
It says.
Verse 27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded to them, and all the scriptures the things concerning himself. So he brought before them the Scriptures.
Then they drew nigh unto the village whither they went, and he made as though he would have gone further.
But they constrain him, saying, abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent, And he went in to tarry with them.
Came to pass as he sat with them. He took bread and blessed it and break it, and gave to them, and their eyes were opened, and they knew him.
And he vanished out of their sight. Then they recognized His presence. They heard the scriptures, and they broke bread with him, and they recognized His presence.
But he was there before.
You know what's the The presence of the Lord is a wonderful thing. I was just thinking, when was it that the children of Israel celebrated?
The Lord's presence with him as after they crossed the Red Sea, but they, as far as God's purposes were concerned, were just as safe. Before they crossed the Red Sea, God stood between them.
And the Egyptians, they were safe then, but they didn't appreciate it once they got across the Red Sea. They appreciated the Lord's presence they saw.
And the Lord sometimes does things in our lives.
To cause us to be conscious of His presence and His provision.
Now look at verse 36.
Uh, well, no, Let's let's.
Verse Verse 33 These are the two that were on the way to Emmaus. They rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the 11 gathered together, and them that were with them, saying, The Lord has risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
I'm just gonna mention that God there there's no accidents in Scripture.
It says.
Verse 30 He took bread and blessed it, and their eyes were opened. They said down here he was known to them in the breaking of bread. It's not an accident that God expresses that God records these things for us.
There is That is one way we experience the presence of the Lord.
And.
Verse 36 As they thus spoke, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them and said, peace be unto you. Oh, that was a wonderful surprise. Here come these people from Emmaus and they're all excited. We've seen the Lord and the others are sitting there. It's like we wish we'd seen him, and there he is.
Someday we're gonna see him.
That was a wonderful surprise for them, but it it wasn't just the fact that the Lord was present. We know he was present there, it says.
Jesus himself stood.
In the midst of them, and said unto them, Peace be unto you. He was present, but he was present.
00:50:00
In a special way. Why do I say that? Because it says in the midst.
And that's not an accident. That's not an insignificant detail. God records it because.
Those words belong to the Lord Jesus Christ in the midst. Turn to Psalm 22, please.
Psalm 22.
In verse 22.
I will declare thy name unto my brethren. In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
Is that a picture of victory?
Preeminence. Triumph.
And that's the place that belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ in the midst.
Turn to Zephaniah. I'm just looking at a few passages. Zephaniah.
Chapter 3.
This is prophetic Zephaniah chapter 3, verse 17. The Lord thy God.
In the midst of thee is mighty. He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy.
He will rest in his love. He will joy over thee with singing.
What's this? A picture of power?
Turn to Revelation Chapter 5.
And we find the presence of the Lord. What do you? We're going to have a heavenly scene. Of course you're going to find the presence of the Lord here.
But notice what it says. Revelation chapter 5, verse six. And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne, and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb as it had been slain. What's that a picture of?
Authority. The Lord Jesus come into his own. There's a Lamb slain who has the right.
It says.
Verse two who is worthy to open the book? And our gaze is directed to the Lord Jesus in the midst, who is worthy?
That's the place that belongs to him in the midst.
Now.
So wonderful thing to be in his presence.
Let's turn to Matthew chapter 18 and verse 20.
Matthew 18 verse 24 where two or three are gathered together.
In my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Yes, the Lord is present there. He is going to be present from the mere fact that His owner there.
Where two or three are gathered together in my name though, it says.
There am I in the midst of them? I'm assuming we're assuming here as we're talking about believers, where believers are the Lord is present, but His presence.
He has desire for his presence. It says there am I in the midst of them?
That place of preeminence, of authority, of power.
And it says.
What's the condition where two or three are gathered together in my name?
What's connected with his name is authority. This is an authorized, shall we say an authorized assembly.
It's not a whimsical assembly, it's an authorized assembly.
What what I mean by authorized? Well if.
Some woman walked into this hotel, presented herself at the front desk over there and said, I'm Mrs. John Kaiser, we'd have a problem.
She might produce some credentials of some sort, but there's only one Mrs. John Kaiser, only one other person here that bears my name.
And it's legal. It's authorized. Only one person qualified to bear it, and the Lord is possessive of His name. You might find that that funny. Others might find it confusing. I would.
I'd be very concerned. The Lord is his name. It's not a play thing of man. You know what's interesting? It says in in.
00:55:06
X is 20. I shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, and people just limit it to swearing.
We need to be careful what we apply his name to. Let me let's look at.
Deuteronomy.
Chapter 12.
Deuteronomy chapter 12 we see the Lord being possessive of his name.
Umm Deuteronomy chapter 12, verse one. These are the statutes and judgments which he shall observe to do in the land which the Lord thy God, the God of thy fathers, giveth thee to possess it all. The day is that ye live upon the earth.
Verse 5 Unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes.
To put his name there, you find that expression repeated in this chapter.
The Lord makes the choice and His name.
Where is put? That's his prerogative. It's his name. We have no right to put it where we choose to put it. He puts it where he chooses it.
His name and his presence are his name and his presence.
Now just one other verse that I I remember reading this as a young person and being impressed with the fact that God is exclusive. God is exclusive.
He reserves to himself the right to his things.
Let's look at.
First Kings.
Another passage that impressed me much as a as a young person.
First Kings Chapter 9.
Verse one I came to pass when Solomon had finished the building of the House of the Lord.
And the King's house, and all Solomon's desire, which he was pleased to do, that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time.
As he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the Lord said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and thy supplication, which thou hast made before me.
I have hallowed this house.
Which thou hast built to put my name there, to put my name there forever.
And mine eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually. While the Lord was present with his people, but He was uniquely present here.
Yes, the Lord is present with his people. We we have passage after passage, but he was uniquely present here. He says, I have hallowed this house which thou has built to put my name there, and mine eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually, His eyes, his discernment, his heart, his affection.
He was uniquely there.
No place better in Israel for the presence of the Lord than right there.
And so to me, that gives a lot of weight to the verse. Matthew 1820.
Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I.
In the midst of the.
Now you say, well that's interesting. Do we have any examples in Scripture?
Of the Lord.
Uh, not present in assembly. Well, I don't think with scripture ever puts us that way, but I believe we have an interesting picture in Revelation chapter one. Uh, chapter 3. I'm sorry, Revelation chapter 3.
And this is just something for our hearts to consider.
Revelation chapter 3.
In verse.
14.
Not to the Angel of the Church of the Laodiceans write these things, saith thee, Amen the faith, one true witness.
The beginning of the creation of God. I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot.
I would the tower cold or hot. So because thou art Luke warm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.
Because thou sayest I am rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing, and knowest not that thou art wretched and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked, I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich.
01:00:08
And white raiment that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear. And anoint thine eyes with eyes have, that thou mayest see as many as I love I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door.
Where does the Lord place himself relative to this assembly? Does he picture himself in the midst? No, this assembly is is satisfied. The Lord's there, He's with his people, He's right at the door, but he does not picture himself in the midst. They might have thought he was there. They said they thought everything was OK.
And as a matter of fact, they were so sure of it that if you would visit the assembly, you might have agreed with them. This is assembly that felt good and looked good.
But the Lord was not in the midst.
He's at the door.
As many as I love, I rebuke and chase, and be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock.
If any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come into him and Sup with him, and he with me. Here is the Lord now at the other end of the book, and the Lord still seeking fellowship, still seeking that communion.
Our enjoyment of his presence, he says open the door and I will come in to him.
You know.
This whole book is about relationship, not religion.
Relationship is expressed by fellowship, and fellowship is best expressed and enjoyed.
By companionship, that's why we have these conferences. That's why families have get togethers.
Companionship.
Now God has one standard for that. My time is up. I want to say something very briefly.
We said that God is exclusive. He is heaven's exclusive.
In the beginning.
In the beginning of Acts we find God's people gathered together, enjoying his presence. There's no question of that. And there was one practical fellowship. There's no question about that either. We get to the end of the book, the Book of Revelation. We find in the very end all things gathered around the Lord Jesus Christ. That's God's purpose.
Why did it happen that way in the beginning? Why was there one practical fellowship in the book of Acts? Because in the beginning, Because that's the way the Spirit of God worked.
We get to the end.
We're all gathered around the Lord Jesus in heaven. Why? Because that's God's standard. That's where God's standards are displayed. God's.
Standard hasn't changed. The way God's Spirit works hasn't changed. It's just us. They've introduced change.
In the interim.
Something to think about, pray about.
Gospel 3
Gospel—John Kemp
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.
So we open our meeting with singing #15 oh, blessed gospel sound. Yet there is room. It tells to all around, yet there is room.
The guilty may draw near.
Though while they need not fear with joy they now may hear, yet there is room.
Some brother would start it.
Yes, there is no.
Price everything and there is room.
Oh, word again. Now come play came for the Mercedes and all day and you'll help me.
Yes, there is room.
Some guests will be the last.
Yet there is room.
Yeah, it turns out patrol day wrong. You will pass away.
That's correct. No more, we'll say. Yes, there is room.
Well, this is the last gospel meeting or the last meeting of the conference. I guess we are all aware of that. Certainly the last gospel meeting that will be held in this room.
Uh, for some time, perhaps, perhaps never again will the gospel of God's grace be sounded forth from this platform because we are on the threshold of the Lord's return. And at any moment we may hear the shout, and the master of the house will rise up and shut to the door. And then that woeful cry. No room, no room.
But God's heart is overflowing this afternoon with love for sinners, and you may be one of them. Those that we look at here this afternoon are.
All of the grace of God. There's not one of us that can do any boasting. We are all brands plucked from the burning. We are all sinners saved by the matchless grace of God.
We were once foolish, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in enmity and fear, hateful and hating one another. This was our life.
But now by.
But now, by the wondrous grace of God.
We have come to the knowledge of Christ and this is the purpose of our meeting this afternoon.
That if you still are a stranger to that Blessed One who stands with arms wide opened.
00:05:01
And who invites?
Sinners today.
To come and receive.
Uh, forgiveness of sins.
Outside the Evergreen Cemetery in New York, there is a tombstone that has only one word on it.
Forgiven.
We don't know anything about the person whose remains lie there.
His name or her name or anything about their lives. But one thing we know, they were forgiven. They might have had a a wicked life to their credit, but they were forgiven. And that's what we want to announce to you today, that there is forgiveness of sins. Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren.
That's true. This man is preached unto you. The forgiveness of sins, an individual matter. You can't pass in with the crowd. God speaks to you individually.
Salvation is an individual matter.
And damnation is an individual matter, and so it says in the word of God to strive to enter in at the straight gate. For many, I say unto you, will seek to enter, and will not be able.
When the master of the house has risen and shut to the door.
And she began to knock and to say, Lord, Lord, open unto us, how solemn.
To leave these meetings here in Saint Louis without hope and without God and without salvation, when the invitation is coming to you this afternoon from the very heart of God.
God is interested in your blessings. So interested.
That he sent his son, not a prophet, not an Angel, but his own beloved son, the one who was in his bosom from a past eternity.
The one in whom was all his delight, he sent him into the world.
To reveal the heart of God to us.
To open the gate of salvation, to show that he really had an interest in our blessing, in our salvation from sin, from hell, from judgment. How marvelous to be able to proclaim.
Christ is the Savior of sinners this afternoon and to point you.
To the one.
Who has the living water? Whosoever will let him come and take of the water of life freely.
Knowing, I'm told, in the desert of Arizona, there's a lighthouse.
We don't think of lighthouses being in deserts as a rule there along the banks, dangerous.
Areas around the sea, on Shoals and so on, but there's a lighthouse.
In the desert of Arizona.
And it shines every night there. What is it for? It's to tell people that there is water there because for 30 miles around, there's no possibility of getting water.
And that lighthouse points them to that refreshment, which might mean, for a thirsty traveler, life instead of death. And you know, the living water is presented to you tonight.
From the heart of God.
God is beseeching. A last man is still refusing to be made forever glad. But tonight we have a message of pardon, a message of salvation. As I came down here to Saint Louis, I had the privilege of distributing some.
Distributing some tracks along the way.
Uh.
So high.
As we moved down through the airports, we gave out some gospel tracts and I said to a number of people, seeing it was Thanksgiving Day, I said, dear friend, thanks be unto God.
00:10:15
For his unspeakable gift, well, there was some response, thankfully not from everyone, but there were some that seemed to appreciate the desire of my heart.
In offering them a gospel tract and a calendar. Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift and gift. And I asked a few, Now this is Thanksgiving Day, but have you thanked God for that?
Unspeakable gifts. The greatest gift of all.
You know, we thank God sometimes for our food, which is well and good, and for some of the mercies that we receive along the pathway of life.
God tells us He fills our hearts with food and gladness, but have we thanked Him for the supreme gift, His beloved Son?
Heaven's beloved one, think of God.
In his marvelous grace.
Sending into a world of wickedness and evil, a world that would spit in the face of His Son God, knowing the treatment that He would receive from hands like ours.
Would still continue to send that blessed one to would.
Would deep would leave?
Let his beloved Son leave the throne of glory.
Leave His very presence, veiling His divine glory that He had from a past eternity.
And entering a world.
That would reject him and had no place for him, unwelcome in the very world which his hands had made no room for him in the end.
Room for pleasure, room for business, but for Christ the crucified, not a place that he can enter in the heart for which he died. But God's love it could not.
Be quenched, you know. Every obstacle might be put in front of it. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. We know as children we used to.
Put those obstacles, little bridges in front of a stream that was coming down from a mountainside. We try to block up that stream with a dam of some kind, remember?
But it always.
Built up and overflowed. We couldn't stop it in its course down. Such is the love of God.
That comes from the heart of a Savior, God. That love, though it met with many obstacles in its course.
And in the Lord Jesus, in his pathway, we see him rejected, scorned, ridiculed, and finally crucified. This was.
Uh, the grace of God that overcame every obstacle in the way, dear friend, this afternoon.
We are here to give a little gospel message to you and we trust that, uh, you will hear not only the voice of the speaker here, but the voice of God. I want to turn for a few moments to Luke 12.
It's a passage that.
We're familiar with I'm sure probably we have heard this spoken on.
Uh, many times.
But, uh, we'll just make a few comments on this passage of scripture and look at a few other references.
Uh, that bring before us the heart of God.
The, uh, carelessness of mind and uh.
00:15:04
The way of blessing.
For the Sinner, well, verse 13 one of the companies said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divided the inheritance with me.
While this man was occupied.
With Earth, he thought that he didn't get his rights. He didn't get enough of the inheritance, perhaps from his brother. He was occupied with Earth.
And is that not the heart of man?
The Lord wanted to.
The heart of man for heaven. He was bringing heavenly riches to man.
But man was occupied with earth and with the things of this life.
That was his, uh, concern, Master, speak to my brother, that he divided the inheritance with me and uh, this is the Lord Jesus. He said unto him, man who made me a judge.
Or a divider over you? Yes, the Lord did not come to judge.
He didn't come to divide the things of earth, but he came with heavenly riches.
And he came to win the heart for heaven, and that is the purpose of the gospel meeting, that your heart might be one for heaven tonight.
And then the Lord goes on to describe here the sin of covetousness. He said unto them, Take heed and beware of covetousness, for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
Covetousness is that desire to acquire, to have something more in our lives and how much we hoard up. Man wants to acquire something. It may not be dishonestly.
But the desire to increase our goods here is called covetousness. And the Lord says beware of covetousness. Umm, it's gathering things around myself.
Uh and uh.
The determination to acquire things down here.
And we all have that failure, don't we?
Uh, but a man's life, the Lord said, consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
What does man's life consist of, then, if it's not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth?
What is the object of our lives? Is it to acquire something down here?
Uh, reputation or riches or whatever? Or is it?
To have Christ as the object of our lives, to serve Him, to live for eternity rather than the things that are going to pass away.
Because these things that we see are only for time, God would have us to look on into eternity, to endure as seeing Him who is invisible like Moses did.
He had all the glories of Egypt at his feet. He could have.
Then the next Pharaoh on the throne, the ball was at his foot, so to speak, but he turned his back upon Egypt when it looked the fairest and most promising. And his career down here, because he endured as seeing him who was invisible, he looked on into eternity and the recompense of the reward. Well, this is a a a word for the conscience of each one of us, a man's life.
Consisteth not.
In the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
And then the Lord Jesus goes on here to give us a.
A parable to illustrate covetousness.
The Lord uses the very interruptions that came along his pathway. This man here really interrupted the Lord in his discourse, but the Lord uses it as an opportunity to bring out truth.
He's bringing out truth to each one of us this afternoon. And so he spake a parable unto them, and I guess we are all familiar with this parable. Verse 16 He speak a parable unto them, saying the ground of a certain rich man.
00:20:13
Brought forth plenty well this rich man.
He was prosperous. We might say he was a gentleman farmer.
His crops were prolific. He had undisputed right of all that he possessed.
And.
I suppose everyone in the neighborhood would have looked up to this man as being clever and.
Prosperous. He was a rich man.
The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully, and he had received God's blessing. The sunshine, the rains, uh, he had, uh, undoubtedly.
Receive the blessing of God in his life.
Because it says that the crops were so plentiful that he hadn't he didn't know where to put them.
The store houses were crammed to the roof.
They were bursting at the seams, so to speak.
And he thought within himself.
What shall I do? Did he turn to God in thankfulness for what he had given to him? Did he think of the poor?
And the needy that were around him, no.
The whole center.
Of his interest was himself.
And, uh, we might ask the question, where was he, uh, making these plans? Because we see that he made plans for the future. Where was his counting house? I think it was his bed. I think it was, uh, in the.
Silent hours of the night that he was raising these plans in his mind.
He was the architect, and here, before his eyes are rising these piles of new storehouses.
The old barns would be removed.
He was planning for the future.
Uh, he was, uh.
A man who was a wise man in this world and he looked on to the future and he says.
I must make provision for the future because I have What shall I do? Because I have no room where to bestow my fruits, what shall I do?
That was his question. I have more than I can handle, but I I have plans for the future. As he lay on his bed there he.
Had everything laid out before him, what he was going to construct? Uh, what about the claims of God? They weren't in his calculation at all. You know, I think that we could label this parable here by one word. That is miscalculation. Yes, He had plans for the future.
But you know, he left the Lord entirely out of those plants.
There was no part of his plan that he brought God into. His thoughts were revolving only around Himself.
That's what he thought of his future.
Down here.
Much good many years.
He was looking forward to a a time of ease and, uh, retirement and the pleasure of his life.
Dear friend, you may not be as rich as the man in the parable here, but perhaps you have planned for your future as well, and you've left God out of those plans.
00:25:00
Uh, you haven't thought of your eternity?
And where you will spend those endless ages which your soul has to face in blackness of darkness or riches of grace.
You may, uh, be thinking of your situation and your new business or your new home or your education and you have plans for the future, but, uh, you have left God out entirely. He's not part of your plan. And how many people there are in the world today who are living like this?
Without God and without hope.
And their one object is to enjoy themselves down here.
To enjoy, to, to have pleasure down here. It was a pleasure pole taken a few years ago in the United States. And, uh, I think it was 68% of the people who were asked what they found pleasure in said that they enjoyed television. That came, uh, at, on the first of the list and others, uh, eating and drinking was about 50%.
But religion, so-called, was at the very bottom. So man is just like the person we have in this, uh, in this parable here. Selfish, covetous, a godless man thinking only of himself.
And gratifying his own desires.
Contemplating a life of ease for years to come.
But leaving God out.
Dear friends, he was really a foolish man.
He miscalculated there in his counting house on his bed that night.
Because he had a rude awakening. He had a visitor that he did not expect would come in the middle of the night. It was death. You awoke with the dew of death on his brow.
And he heard those solemn words. Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.
He had fallen asleep with contentment on his face.
He had provision for many years, but he was unprepared, He was unconverted.
He was.
Unblessed and unsafe. How solemn.
He left behind.
Everything in that soul returned to God.
And God is the one that had the the last word.
Because he left behind all his riches that he had trusted in and gloried in.
And he was.
He was conscious that he was in the presence of God and the voice of the Lord was speaking to him.
May I speak to you today, dear friend, if you are still without Christ.
You may have a lease on your health, but you have no lease upon your life. Your soul belongs to God.
So we we point you this evening.
Uh, to the one who, uh, loves you and has, uh, provided, uh, eternal salvation at, uh, such a cost.
That love that uh.
Brought the Lord of glory.
From heaven to suffer, to bleed, and to die on the cross for you. Years ago there was a great preacher. His name was Charles Spurgeon. I'm sure we've all heard of him.
And, uh, at the end of one of his, uh, masterly presentations from the platform because he was called the Prince of Preachers.
He found an old gentleman at the back of the hall who was weeping there.
And so he went over to him.
And he said.
What is it, dear friend, that is troubling you? Well, he said. It's my sins. Well.
We're pleased that you are concerned about your your sins, but what part of the message really touched your your soul? Because we can see that you have been affected by the word that you heard.
00:30:08
Oh, he says, Sir, it wasn't the servant you preached. Because I I'm deaf, I couldn't hear much of it. But when you sang that last hymn, Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom fly, he said. I realized that I was holding out against such marvelous divine love.
Uh, and.
God spoke to me. He showed me.
That I was lost and that I was refusing that marvelous love that He had shown to me here in His love. Not that we love God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Well, a wonderful this man here in our story was not prepared.
And it shows us the uncertainty of life. You know, we read in the book of James, what is your life? It is even a vapor that appeareth for a a time and then vanishes away.
But we want to point you this afternoon to the cross of Calvary.
In the north of England there is a, uh, there is a signpost. It's the, I suppose, the oldest signpost in the world.
And it is pointing the direction at the crossroads. It's pointing the direction that you want to go.
And although the writing is blurred, not legible entirely, that signpost has been there for 17 centuries, put there by the Romans, and it's still pointing the direction to the place you want to go.
And dear friends, if you're unsaved this this evening, you are at the crossroads, and the cross of Christ is the signpost, let me tell you.
Uh, that it that it points you to God into his marvelous grace.
And in giving his son to die for you. And the writing is not blurred, it is clear.
Clear for everyone to read the love of God expressed in the unspeakable gift of His Son, that you might be forgiven your many sins. I ask you the question, where have you left those sins?
You know, it says in the book of Jeremiah, though thou wash thee with and take much salt, yet is thine iniquity marked before me, saith the Lord. So those sins are either marked.
Before the face of Jehovah this afternoon, or they are washed in the blood of Christ.
John Bunyan was a great author. We've all read, I think, Pilgrim's Progress. John Bunyan wrote it in prison when he was a young man. He was a wild.
Careless youth. He made good resolutions, he said. From now on, I'm not going to break the 10 commandments anymore, especially the Sabbath day, which I have desecrated. So he made the resolution in church that day.
But before the day was over, he had thrown himself into sports activities there and on the green near Bedford, where he lived. His resolutions didn't last more than an hour.
But he heard a voice.
Coming from heaven to him, he threw down his bat, and he listened, and stood there as a statue. Wilt thou keep thy Wilt thou leave thy sins and go to heaven, or keep thy sins and go to hell?
The spot can be shown where John Bunyan heard those words from heaven.
And our speaking to him and, uh, well, with John Bunyan, he thought it was reformation.
00:35:03
But, dear friends.
It's not reformation that you need, uh, it's regeneration that we have been Speaking of. A new life, a new object.
To come to know Christ, not simply by name, but to know Him as your Savior and your Redeemer, and the One who paid the price with His own precious blood to redeem you from all iniquity, to deliver you from that eternal condemnation that hangs over your head as a sword by a thread.
And to bring you into eternal blessing, to give you heavenly riches. So dear friends, this afternoon we want you to realize the urgency of the message. This man here.
Uh, he probably had his opportunities, were not told that he was an immoral man, but uh, he was a man that neglected eternity and how many there are we meet day after day who neglect their eternity, no concern for the next World and where they will spend those endless years.
Uh, that lie before them.
Uh, in heaven or hell? God's day of salvation is now.
Do not neglect.
Do not put off the strivings of the Spirit of God.
The story is told.
Of a uh.
A newspaper announcer who, uh.
Was in a burning building in the city of Minneapolis.
And he was on the 9th floor of that building. Fire broke out. The flames were raging below him. He was on the 9th floor, uh.
Announcing to all of America I'm on the 9th floor and the fire is on the 6th and in 1/4 time later I'm on the 9th floor and the fire is on the 7th floor. And then a little later still he was bravely announcing I'm on the 9th floor and the fire is on the 8th floor. But by this time he was getting a little uncomfortable.
And he thought he should make an escape. But.
The fire escapes were so hot that he couldn't descend by them. The stairwells were filled with smoke and flame.
There was only one hope that was to get out the window, and there was a guy rope that he thought he could reach if he jumped. That announcer stood on the ledge of the window and jumped to catch this rope and let himself down to the ground and he missed it.
The rest of the story, you know.
It was simply, uh, an example to us of neglect.
And how many people are neglecting their eternal salvation?
How many are?
Putting off.
Till tomorrow, the umm the most important matter as this farmer that we have read about, They think there's time enough, but God's house is filling fast and yet there is room.
When the Queen of the North, that great fairy that was plying through the inland passage there a few years ago of Canada, you probably have read about it making its journey down to Vancouver, I suppose from Alaska, when it hit a submerged rock in the middle of the night. I think there was 101 passengers on that.
That luxury ferry?
And it was soon evident that it was going down. There was no hope and.
They lowered the lifeboats immediately and they got everyone got in. At least they thought everyone was. And to be sure that they all had the warning, the captain of that.
00:40:06
Liner, he said to his staff, go through the the cabins and knock at every door to be sure that we haven't left anyone behind.
And so they did that. They pounded at every door, and as far as they knew, everyone was in a lifeboat. And when they got to land there on the British Columbia shore, they took account.
9899.
100 but there's one, there's I think it was two people that were missing from the final count.
What happened to them?
I don't think we'll ever know because the ferry went down into several 100 feet of water. Not going to reveal many secrets now. But those people, they had a warning whatever happened, whether they thought it was some sort of a fire drill, but they didn't pay attention to the warning and they lost their lives.
The provision was there for them to get into the lifeboat and to escape, but they for some reason did not heed the warning. And how many people there are, dear friends?
Uh, in the world today, you are not heeding the warning.
How uncertain life is? We hear of catastrophes every day.
There, uh, traumatic, uh, events are taking place. We all remember that tsunami that took place was, was it 2004? You know, there was a warning given them too, uh, three hours before the tsunami hit the coast of India.
Where I have often visited and where we plan to visit Eleanor and I in December again, the warning was given 3 hours before those huge waves hit the the eastern coast of India.
Near a place called Nagapattinam, which is where the brethren go every year to proclaim the gospel and give out the word for for about 10 days.
In that very area where they yearly go out with the thousands of tracks and calendars was where the tsunami hit. Some say the 10,000 lost their lives. I think that's a little high, but the warning was given from the Asian.
Headquarters that the the waves were coming in three hours, but the Indian government, they they didn't have preparation.
They knew the warning, but what could they do? Things were not in place, they didn't have time, and they didn't have the provision for those people to be warned and to be evacuated. And when it hit three hours later, many, I guess several thousand were ushered into eternity.
The warning was too late, but dear friends, God gives you a warning because He loves you and that He wants you to, uh.
Have a place of safety for all eternity. We want you to be on the shoulders of the Good Shepherd. You know the Lord. As we say to the boys and girls, The Lord holds the whole world on one shoulder. The government shall be upon His shoulder. But a poor lost sheep that he picked up from the miry clay, he puts on both shoulders.
And takes it all the way home. What a savior we have the Good Shepherd who loved us and gave himself for us on the cross of Calvary. Well, we're just going to look at another expression in Acts chapter 2 in closing.
Now we're going to see the same word.
That was.
Pronounced by, uh, the farmer in the parable that we read coming down to verse 22.
The men of Israel hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man, approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know Him, being delivered by the determinant, counsel and foreknowledge of God.
00:45:08
Ye have taken in my wicked hands, have crucified and slain.
A very serious indictment here. Here were people that seven weeks before.
Had crucified their Messiah and Peter was preaching the gospel to them here.
He himself had denied the Lord three times, but he was restored in his soul, and he had a message for these people, warning them, showing them their guilt.
And if we, uh, we could go down the tractor here, but we see that it had a marvelous effect upon these people. They were convinced they were convicted of their sin.
In refusing their Messiah and crucifying Him, they were just like the man in Luke chapter 12. They miscalculated. They thought they would get rid of the Lord, put them out by that cruel death, and not hear of Him again.
But verse 24 God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that she he should be old enough.
Therefore verse 36 let all the House of Israel know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
What a solemn message for these people who knew that Christ was crucified, who whose hands were, were stained with his blood, we might say. And here was a message to them that awakened them. And they weren't indifferent like the rich farmer. They had miscalculated like he did. They thought they were getting rid of Christ.
But.
Now.
When they heard that verse 37.
They were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles.
Men and brethren, what shall we do? But this wasn't in the same character as the rich farmer. What shall we do? They were.
Uh.
They realized their guilt before God. They were convicted by the message they heard by the Holy Spirit of God. Then Peter said unto them, Repent and be baptized, everyone of you.
In the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Repent. That was the message that was wrung out here by Peter to these people. Repent, that is, have a change of mind. You thought that you had got rid of Christ, but have a change of mind. God has exalted him, and God has appointed a day in which He will judge this world in righteousness by that man.
They realized that they were.
They were in opposition to God.
That he had exalted his Son. He had raised him from the dead, the one they had crucified.
One they had nailed to the cross was now raised from the dead.
And He was here 40 days to show the genuineness of His resurrection. Men and brethren, what shall we do? So they were brought to the the end of themselves.
And they repented and believed the gospel. They turned from their sins.
They bowed in humiliation at the feet of Peter and at the feet of the Lord here and received the wonderful salvation that God was providing, was offering to them, and they received the Holy Ghost and the remission of sins. Isn't that wonderful? The remission of sins, the forgiveness of sins and the Holy Ghost?
That's much better than the many years that this farmer was looking forward to, uh.
00:50:03
The pleasures and the many years, and the much goods, all which he lost. But here God had something infinitely better. He had the remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost. So they did repent of their.
Of their sins they turned to the Lord and found a full and a free salvation.
This one more scripture I want to look at in closing in Luke's Gospel chapter, uh.
20.
Luke Chapter.
20.
We're going to see the same words used again.
We'll just read a few verses here.
Uh, verse 9 Then began he to speak to the people, this parable. A certain man planted a vineyard and LED it forth to husbandman, and went into a far country for a long time.
And at the season he sent a servant to the husband, that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard, but the husband men beat him and sent him away empty.
Again he sent another servant, and they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully and sent him away empty. And again he sent a third, and they wounded him also, and cast him out. Then said the Lord of the vineyard.
What shall I do? The Lord of the vineyard is God, and he's asking this question here. What shall I do? Rather strange that God should make that inquiry. What shall I do?
I will send my beloved son. It may be they will reverence him when they see him.
So God could have righteously drawn the sort of judgment as he saw the way that his prophets had been used, had been killed, had been entreated shamefully. He could have drawn the sword of judgment.
But instead, he says, I will send my beloved son.
Surely they will reference him and so.
This was the last resource that God had.
And he did not spare his own son, delivered him up for us all.
But we know the result. Man rejected the Son of God.
And even after that terrible exhibition of the heart of man, because at the Cross of Calvary you see the heart of man displayed in all its evil.
And wretchedness and hatred of God at the cross, after man had done his very worst.
God steps into the scene, and He brings down upon His Son the awful judgment which those sinners deserve if they will but repent, as we had in the case of the children of Israel. If they will but repent of their sins, God will offer them forgiveness through the work of Calvary, and there in the hours of darkness.
After man had done his worst, God laid upon Christ the iniquity of us all.
How wonderful to leave your sins there.
And to know that they are no longer marked before the face of God. So this was God's resource in himself. He, uh, in spite of man's evil, he would, uh, show the heart of his, his heart of love and his heart of grace toward guilty man.
So we know the treatment the Lord received.
Yet where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. Well, dear friends, we're coming to the end of our.
Of our gospel meeting tonight.
You know, I think of a story in closing. It won't be long.
But it's often struck me.
Because it brings before us.
The uh.
The the UMM plan of the enemy of souls. There was once a man that had a dream.
00:55:06
And in his dream he saw Satan on his throne. There and before him were all his hosts of demons and angels. And he asked this question, Who will go forth to ruin the souls of men?
One of the demons stood up and said, I will go. What will you say?
I will tell them there is no God.
Oh, Satan said that will not work because although they try to stifle the thought, still in their conscience they know there is a God, and when they get sick and into trouble, they turn to God. That's not going to work another.
Themed stood up and said.
I will go forth and deceive the souls of men, and what will you say? Satan said. Well, I will tell them that there is a God in heaven, but they are too bad to come to him.
All Satan said that will not work either because.
All they need to do is read their Bibles and they will see that.
God is a merciful God. He's a God that will forgive.
Umm, that will not work. They have the gospel right before them. There they can read and know that though they are sinners, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
No, that will not work. So a third demon stood up and he said, I will go, and what will you say? Well, I will tell them there is a God, and I will tell them that he is a God of love, and I will let them hear the gospel as often as they want.
Uh, that, uh, there is salvation through Christ and that uh, the God of mercy waiting on sinners, all Satan said, Uh, how will that ever deceive men?
All he said with a.
Laugh, he said. I will let them hear all those things, but I will tell them there is time enough. There is time enough. And there was applause throughout the hosts of the hell there. They said go forth, you will be successful in that plan.
Which, uh, was hatched in hell, is still being used of the enemy today. Time enough and to spare. When God says that now is the day of salvation, now is the accepted time. We have no promise of tomorrow. May we close in with God's offer of mercy today, the day of grace.
Because Satan is a powerful enemy, procrastination is not only the thief of time, but is it is the thief of souls. May God bless His word to us tonight as we.
Word of prayer. Maybe we could sing that, uh, uh, stanza. There you have your hymn sheet.
We could sing.
#17 Have you any room for Jesus, He who bore the Lord of sin?
Have you any room or?
Sin not stand outside. There's a chance.
Then they're blessed in life and then you're in the end.
Roger's house for all four of the.
Lies
John 12:1-9
Deuteronomy 19
Gospel—Al Coleman
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 hymn #4 #4.
Christ is the savior of sinners. Christ is the savior for me Long I was chained in sins darkness now by his grace I am free number four. Christ is the savior of the.
Christ is, must be California.
I must change things and thyself.
No, there's no problem in this shine. There's still some danger for it.
There it comes.
In the end, second girl's dinner like me.
Shining as much for my life and flawed if there's nothing if it's a bigger for me.
Turn with me to a verse, just part of a verse. Matthew Gospel, chapter 3.
And verse 7, the latter part of the verse.
And it says this.
Flee from the wrath to come.
Flee from the wrath to come. Do you know what that word flee means? It means hurry up. Hurry up.
There is an urgency to the message of the Gospel. Why? Because?
The day of Grace is fast coming to a close. The gospel has gone out for 2000 years.
Through this world.
And many, many, many souls have been saved, and I can say that the Lord Jesus has saved my precious soul, and I know I'm on my way to heaven.
The Lord Jesus died on Calvary's cross for me.
Love with a love that's unchanging. How would you like that?
You can have it, it's yours.
I love that the Lord Jesus loves guilty sinners such as you and I. They love me even though I was dead and trespasses and sins without hope and without God in the world. He loved me and He saved my precious soul. And that's what I can. I can relate to you tonight, but you know the day of grace is fast coming to a close. And so we read this first here.
00:05:12
In Matthew 37, then, it says, plea from the wrath to come, because there is coming judgment upon this world.
Coming judgment. It's the Lord Jesus was to come tonight.
And you're not saved, you'd be left behind for the wrath of a holy sin hating God.
That would be your portion, but you know the Lord Jesus doesn't want that of you.
He doesn't, no. He wants to save you. And I think of how amazing it is that God is.
Had this gospel go forth for 2000 years.
God beseeching our human, our first hand. God be seeking, man refusing. I know how many there are that refuse this wonderful grace of God from a God of love.
But it says flee, hurry up, hurry up. The time is short, very, very short. Flee from the wrath to come. Now I want you to go with me because I've been looking through this portion. I've spoken on it before.
Let me tell you a little bit about this portion.
Maybe you, uh, some of you here, older ones might have known Bob Brimlow.
There's a smile on his face. Yeah, he's a he's a lovely brother, Mike. My children and and his children grew up together, and we had a lot of wonderful moments together. Well, about 40 years ago, I spoke on this portion that I'm gonna speak on tonight. And this portion that I'm gonna speak on tonight is in Deuteronomy chapter 19. So let's turn to it.
When the Lord thy God hath cut off the nations, whose land the Lord thy God giveth thee.
And thou succeedeth them, and dwelleth in their cities and in their houses. Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst of the Thailand which the Lord.
Thy God giveth thee to possess it.
Thou shall prepare thee away. Notice that thou shalt prepare thee away, and divide the coast of thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee to inherit unto 3 parts. That the Slayer may flee, may flee. Hit her.
And this is the case of the Slayer which shall flee, hit her, that he may live, whoso killeth his neighbor ignorantly, whom he hateth not in time past. As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbor to hear wood, and his hand fetches a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree and the head sliver from the hill, and lighteth upon his neighbor that he flee.
That that he flee to one of these cities and live.
Let the avenger of blood pursue the Slayer while his heart is hot overtaking him, because the way is long, and slay him, whereas he was not worthy of death, and as much as he hated him not in time past. Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt separate three cities for thee. And if the Lord thy God enlarge psychosis, he hath worn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers, Thou shalt keep all these commandments, and do them which I commanded thee this day, to love the Lord thy God, and to walk in his ways.
And thou shalt add three more cities.
For they besides three, these three, that innocent blood be not shed in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon me. Well, about 40 years ago I preached on this very passage and it was probably one of the first times I I spoke in front of a large audience and Bob Brimelow was sitting in the in the audience and.
He's, uh, he's thinking to himself as.
As I'm going along and preaching, he says, isn't he gonna tell us that the city of Refuge is Christ? Isn't he gonna tell everybody that the city of Refuge is Christ? And so it went on in the gospel meeting. And finally, about halfway through the gospel meeting, I may mention this, that the city of Refuge is Christ. Bob Brummel says, Hallelujah, praise the Lord.
00:10:27
And that's the point I wanna get through to you tonight that the city of refuge that we've that we've read here is Christ can't be anything else. It's wonderful. And so we've we've read this first in Matthew. It says flee from the wrath to come, but flee to who flee to who? Flee to the Lord Jesus Christ. Why because of coming wrath that is coming upon this world.
And God doesn't want to send a man to hell. That's the last thing he wants to do and he has provided.
Salvation and every way of escape whereby man could come to him. Man is not gonna have any excuse. He's God is giving man every opportunity to be safe and and and I've seen this in the in the in these last few years.
An amazing way in which God has given a person another chance to be saved. And so are you coming in here into this room tonight? I don't know.
Uh, everybody in this room, you come here into this room and I don't know your heart. I don't know whether you're saved or not. He's given you one more chance to be saved tonight. One more chance. No wonderful. What a wonderful God we have. You know, I kept him waiting for many years. Listen, don't keep them waiting. Don't keep them waiting. You know his arms are outstretched you tonight. He says you come up to me, come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. I love that verse. You know, there's many that tonight.
Are laboring under their load of sin and you know they find well maybe I'll try this way and that way to get saved or this way and that way to get to heaven, though you can't do it. Everything has been done on calories crossed the Lord Jesus could say it is finished. Everything has been done to accomplish your job salvation and all you have to do is come as a guilty hell deserving lost Sinner lost Sinner. That's it that's it.
I got guilty hell deserving loss, Sinner, and you know he'll receive you.
It says, it says this man receiveth sitters and eateth with. And that's what we've been thinking in our hymn, Christ is the savior of sinners. Christ is the savior for me and I'm proud to be I I, I, I'm happy to be able to say that he is a savior for me.
Wonderful to be a child of God. Wonderful to be a child of God. And so with this thought in mind as we take up this, Oh yeah, another thing I was, I was thinking of when we when I was going through this.
Do you know that this same passage is recorded five times in the Word of God? Now why did God record the cities of Refuge five times in the Word of God, once in Exodus?
Once in in Numbers, twice in Deuteronomy and once in Joshua. Five times. You know, it just seems to me the heart of God of how like I say.
He's given man every chance, every chance, every possible chance to come to him.
R.
You know, coming here, uh, this afternoon we had a problem.
Uh, how many of us got a BAG? PS:.
There you go. OK. And we got lost. We, uh, we took the wrong turn, you know, uh, somebody in the back seat says, uh, uh, why don't you, uh, why doesn't that girl on the, uh, on the GPS say you're going the wrong way, You're going the wrong way. And, you know, there are many that are doing that very thing. They're going the wrong way. You know, the Lord Jesus could say I am the way.
The truth and the life no man cometh unto the Father by me. He is the only way for this world. And you know there are many, shall we say?
00:15:08
People in this world would say, will you follow me and, uh, and I'll get you there? No.
There's only one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all.
There's only one savior for this world. Only one savior.
And so then in this portion we we were reading.
I like it this way. God made this account in the Old Testament and he had something in mind for the Slayer of a man, the innocent Slayer of a man. But you know something, he also had something more. And that's what the the wonderful picture that we get in this, in this precious portion, the city is a refuge. He was thinking of a coming day when the gospel would go out.
And the gospel is going on. Think of it tonight that once more the gospel is going out in this room.
God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance, and so He wants you to be saved tonight.
And so.
Then it says in verse 3, Thou shalt prepare thee our way. I love that. You know, they're just beautiful. Thou shalt prepare thee away. And what is he saying here? I'm giving you every opportunity.
You know, I often think of this, we're we're going down the highway. We're driving down the highway and with a car and all of a sudden there's a sign that says detour.
Or there's a sign that goes this way, you know, like that. And yeah. And, you know, sometimes a person's going going the wrong way, going his own way of salvation. And sometimes God has to bring a roadblock in front of him so that he goes the right way, the right way.
And I think of that so many times. He brings a roadblock.
And he brought a roadblock into my life because I was going the wrong way.
Oh, I'm gonna ask you tonight, everyone here in this audience, which way are you going?
There is a way that right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
I'll repeat that again, there is a way which seemeth right unto a man.
But at the end or all are the ways of death. I give out many tracks. Downtown Atlanta, downtown Vancouver.
Downtown Atlanta, they have a favorite expression. I'm OK.
I'm OK and uh, they passed me by. They don't take a track. I'm OK. What does that mean?
Does that mean that they're OK, They're on their way to heaven? I doubt not. It means that they just don't want to bother about it.
And there are many like that. Don't bother about that with, with with me. Don't bother me tonight. Are you saying that tonight to God, to the Lord Jesus Christ? Don't bother about the Lord Jesus Christ.
Oh, think of it, dear friend.
To save your precious soul. You know what he did.
You know what he did for you? He went to Calvary's cross and suffered the untold agonies of Calvary's cross.
Yes, he did. Why did he do that? Because he loved you.
He loved you.
And wanted to save your precious soul, and to think it that not only that, He wanted to take you to His wonderful home in heaven, that He is prepared for you. And it says in John 14 In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you, I'd go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also. I'm going to that wonderful home by the grace of God and by the word of God that tells me so.
How about you? How about you?
Or are you going your own way?
Is God gonna have to bring a blow, a roadblock, a detour in in your in your life?
00:20:01
It was clearly marked and I've read the account of this and some of the ministry that I've read, and I better believe that there were signs that pointed refuge, refuge and an arrow pointing refuge. And I'm doing it again.
The way is clearly marked.
There's a sign that says refuge go this way. The Lord Jesus says I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
There it is, refuge.
Thou shalt pare thee away, and divide the coast of thy land there which the Lord thy God giveth thee. And this is the case of the Slayer, which the flayeth year hit her, that he may live, whoso killeth his neighbor ignorantly.
Whom he hated not in time past.
Whom he hated not in time past.
They that hated me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head. They that hated me without a cause are more than the hairs on my head. That's what the Lord Jesus could say in Calvary's cross.
And to think that the Lord Jesus on Calvary's cross could cry out. My God, my God, why a self forsaken me?
It was an account of my sins that he was there being the sin bearer for me.
Because he loved me.
Can you say that tonight, dear friend, tonight he wants to save you?
MMM.
Dear friend tonight.
I'm gonna tell you this.
You reject the Lord Jesus Christ, you'll go into a lost eternity forever.
No.
This is what happens.
Here's this man, he goes out with his buddy and they're going out into the woods.
Built in the woods and he has an axe and he comes to this tree and he starts chopping down this tree. I know what that's all about. I've done it lots of times and he's got this axe and he.
Goes against the tree couple of laps and maybe the 3rd or 4th rap he goes with all his force and.
The axe head flips off, broke right off and it goes like this like that through the air and lands on his buddy's head.
And his buddy falls over down there, dead. He picks him up. He says up and he is. He's devastated, my friend. He's lying on the ground. He's dead.
He killed him.
What am I gonna do? He's dead. What am I gonna do?
Flee to the city of Refuge. Flee to the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what this portion is all about.
What was it?
There was the wood of the axe, and there was the metal of the axe head.
Two things that were used in crucifying the Lord Jesus Christ 2000 years ago.
Tuesday.
You say, uh, wait a minute, I wasn't there. I wasn't there.
So wait a minute.
Have you taken sides with the Lord Jesus Christ against yourself?
Have you come as a guilty Law Center before a holy God?
That's it.
The wood and the metal. Think of it. They nailed him to a cross.
The woods, the nails were put in his hands and in his feet the Lord of glory, the Lord Jesus Christ, God's beloved Son.
00:25:05
A very solemn thing to think of it, though.
That God because of what man did to his Son.
He could have had 12 legions of angels at his disposal.
And I believe that man would be exterminated because of what they did, the insult that they gave to the Lord Jesus Christ. That is very solemn.
But dear friend, tonight, what have you done about him? What have you done with the Lord Jesus Christ?
The 1St that I love to preach at every Gospel meeting is this. It's in Matthew 27 and it says what shall I do then with Jesus, which is called the Christ? So what are you going to do about it?
First of all, I'm going to say, are you going to accept him as Lord and Savior of her life? I did many long years ago and I can say Christ is the Savior of sinners. Christ is the Savior for me. And can you say that tonight?
He'll receive you if you'll come to him.
And then this man, he's lying his, his buddy is lying down here.
And then he realizes, wait a minute.
This man is dead. There's no witness. No witness.
Bill, his friend, will think that I killed him.
And he would be a murderer.
There's only one thing this man can do, and yet he has to flee to the city of refuge.
And that is exactly what you have to do tonight is flee to the Lord Jesus Christ.
And So what did he do?
He gets going and he starts on the road and.
It's March. There's the refuge.
There's a narrow and so he follows that.
But wait a minute. There's a pursuer on his tail. He turns around and he looks. There's a pro. He's coming after me, his friend.
Friend of this guy is coming after me and he's pursuing me. What am I going to do?
Please hurry up.
And so I say tonight, hurry up and come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Times is short.
The day of grace is closing fast. Some guests will be the last. Who knows that this might be the last gospel meeting, the last opportunity that you'll hear the news of salvation. And so this that urgency to the gospel message tonight. And so we say again, please to the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is what this man is doing. He's fleeing to the city of refuge.
What does he do?
He gets right up to the city of refuge and he opens the door, the gate of the city, and he goes in and he stays.
Isn't that beautiful? He's safe. The avenger of blood. Now who's that? Who is that a type of the God of this world? Satan.
You know.
He's present too, and you can be sitting in your seat like I was many years ago, under lots of gospel meetings and, uh.
The, uh, pursuer of my soul could say not tonight, not tonight, not tonight, not tonight.
Anybody ever remem maybe the old? Anybody ever remember Stanley McDonald, you know?
Our gospel preacher like.
He would stand up here to minister the precious Word of God and the gospel, and the tears would be just streaming down his face when he was talking about the love of Christ, a girl lost, sinners, and I'd be sitting in the audience.
Is.
00:30:00
If the love of Christ and the work of Christ and Calvary's cross doesn't breakdown your heart tonight.
To come to him, nothing will.
God does not want to send you to hell, but if you reject the gospel message, God will send you to hell.
It's very.
And so we say to you tonight, flee from the wrath to come.
It says.
That he hated him not in in the time past the end of verse 6.
You know it says in Psalm 69, they that hated me without a cause or more than the hairs of my head. They that hated me without the cause, they're more than the hairs of my head. It was hatred to the Lord Jesus Christ that man put him up there in the cross as man's heart changed in 2000 years. No, it's still the same.
You give out a gospel tract and see what happens.
I see it all the time.
Ah, that get away from me.
Man's heart's not changed.
They that hated me without a cause are more than the hairs in my head. Do you know dear one tonight, that the Lord Jesus never did one thing wrong, Not one.
Not one.
The sinless humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was without sin, couldn't even think of sin.
Has often been said, you know, he, he, he, he would, he, he could say, excuse me, I shouldn't have said that.
He was without sin, a perfect, spotless man that walked through this world 2000 years ago, and yet the heart of man put him, put him up on the cross.
How about you, friend? Tonight? Do you know this wonderful Savior? He wants to save you tonight and He's offering you salvation, and He wants you tonight to flee to the city of refuge, which is Christ.
Acts Chapter 2.
Verse 22. Ye men of Israel.
Hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders, and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as He yourselves know, also know him. Being delivered by the terminate council and foreknowledge of God, He have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain, whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death.
Because it was not possible that he should have beholden of death.
Him being delivered by the determinant, counsel, and foreknowledge of God, ye have by wicked hands crucified and slain. It was the wicked hands of man that put the put the Lord Jesus up in the cross, and it be the wicked hands of you, dear friend, tonight, that reject the gospel of the grace of God.
Wicked.
But yet still, in his long-suffering mercy, he's lingering.
In your life, it wants to be LED into your life.
Will you receive him? Will you receive this wonderful person?
When the Lord Jesus was up in the cross, he could say, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Oh, think of it dear friend, tonight, can't you just picture the Lord Jesus Christ up in that cross crying out? My Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Man in his wicked heart could put that blessed One, God's beloved Son.
00:35:26
Up in that cross, and with arms outstretched and nails in his hands.
He could say to those around him, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Now think of that verse in Matthew also it says, and sitting down, they watched him there. Think of that. Oh, the hatred of band's heart to just sit down there and watch the Lord Jesus suffer on Calvary's cross, the host untold agonies of Calvary's cross.
That man's Rick at heart, man's sinful heart put him up there.
And again, you'll probably say to me I wasn't there that yes, have you received the Lord Jesus Christ? Have you taken sides with the Lord Jesus Christ against yourself? Have you received him? That's the question tonight. Have you flown to the city of refuge? Has God put a road block in your life? Think back. Think back in the last little while.
Maybe you've been walking down the street.
And somebody offered you a gospel tract. God is putting a little roadblock. He wants you to go this way, just like those signs.
Or maybe you had a little car accident.
Another roadblock. This way, this way, this way, he's saying.
He doesn't want you to perish in your sins. He's providing this for you. I think of it.
What a wonderful God.
There was a man.
And this is very solemn and I want you to listen to this. I'm not going to read the scripture because there's an example in the Word of God about the city of your refuge and about a man that was fleeing to the city of refuge. You go to the second, a second cha, second Samuel, chapter 3. There's a man there by the name of Abner. And Abner, you know, in his life.
He was given every opportunity. He was offered the command of of David's army and David, David made a great feast for him. And you know, that's exactly what what what God is doing for you tonight.
We in North America, we have a great feast. We don't want anything.
And yet, man is not thankful for what the bountiful. Uh, we're all right. An example is Thanksgiving weekend.
How many have thanked the the God of heaven for that roast Turkey that they had and all the benefits of the of of the of a wonderful dinner.
But never thinking about a wonderful God.
And so.
There's Abner. He's he's fleeing to the city of refuge.
And there's a pursuer on his tail and that, and that is joy.
Jobe is after him because, uh, Abner had, uh, killed his brother.
And he comes up to the city of refuge, which is Hebron.
And it's just about, I think of this, many souls are like this.
They're coming right up to the city of Refuge. They're coming up right up to, uh, Christ.
All, all except Christ tonight and they can't. And like Abner, he comes and probably he reaches out for the, uh, door, uh, door latch of the city of refuge to enter in and, and Joe comes up behind him and he says, just a minute, Abner, I wanna talk to you.
He says just a minute, I wanna talk to you.
00:40:04
And you know, he died right there.
He died right there.
Joel came up to him and he says.
He he put us. He put a a spear into him and rate umm under the fifth rib in his heart. He was gone.
Great available to him. Salvation was available to Abner.
He could have been safe and all he had to do was just take one more step.
And he would have been safe.
And dear friend, tonight.
Don't toy with the grace of God. Don't toy with the grace of God.
And that's why I'm saying to you tonight, Behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. Come tonight before it's forever too late. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth.
Tomorrow may be too late.
Tomorrow may be too late.
Oh, He wants you to come tonight. And so I say again, He's saying to you, come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Are you heavy laden with sin? The Lord Jesus can take it all. He can take all those sins. He can give you a new life in Christ, a new life in Christ. What a wonderful thing it is to be a child of God, to know that that great question of my soul, salvation is settled once and for all.
I'm safe, I'm on my way to heaven and a beautiful, what a wonderful God, what a wonderful provision. Oh, how we can thank the Lord Jesus for what he has done for us in Calvary's cross. And that's what I want to ask you tonight. Have you ever come to the Lord Jesus? Maybe there's a young one here tonight. Have you ever come to him and say thank you, Lord Jesus, for dying on Calvary's cross for me? That's what he wants to hear from you. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for dying on Calvary's.
Cross for such a rebel, sinners such as we.
That's what He wants to hear from you. Will you respond to the Lord Jesus? Will you come to that city of refuge? And you will be safe?
Safe in Christ, there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.
But oh, what a solemn thing it was for Abner. He was just about there.
There won't be any just about Christians in heaven. Another one.
Anyways, and he died there at the king.
Just think of that. What a solemn thing. And I say to you tonight, you'll have nobody to blame but yourself if you reject the sovereign grace of God, if you reject the gospel message that has been given you tonight, Decide for Christ tonight. Don't put it off. One more day, one more hour. Come tonight.
You'll take all those sins that you've committed in your life and wash them all the way in the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin.
All sin, all my sins are gone, washed in the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. He did it all for me. You know, friend, you can't do anything to married your salvation. Not one thing, not one thing.
All the good things that you've done in your life, they won't work. It's all been done for. You did it all.
Teardom.
Those are the cities of refuge.
Six cities of refuge.
There's one more.
Hebrews, chapter 6.
Hebrews chapter 6, The last city of refuge. I'd like to include this. I think I can.
Chapter verse 18 that by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lie.
We might have a strong consolation who have planned for refuge to lay hope.
Hold on the hope set before us, which hope we have as an anchor for the soul bow sure and steadfast, and which enters into the veil.
00:45:13
Whether the Porter runner is for us entered even Jesus made and high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
That by two immutable things it is impossible.
To for God to life.
You know.
God is offering you salvation and you can be saved tonight.
Is is eternal, this precious word of God? You can live by it, live by this precious word of God.
God cannot lie.
And you can lay hold upon that wonderful.
The Lord Jesus is coming. That's my hope. That's my hope to be with the Lord Jesus in that coming seat of Lord.
I know he's coming.
He cannot lie. He cannot lie. He is coming.
He's coming. Maybe tonight.
So I say this again, the Lord Jesus was to come tonight. Where would you be? Where would you be? Would you be still in your sins, faced and lost eternity? Or have you, dear friend, tonight fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hopes that people come tonight before it's ever too late? I got one last thing to say tonight.
That is this. I said that everything about the cities of refuge was Christ, and this proves it.
These are the six cities, and each of the six cities have a beautiful, beautiful.
Umm, look, I'm fighting for a word, Uh.
A A beautiful type of the world. OK, Kaddish.
Hebrews 726.
The Lord Jesus was holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners. Shechem shoulders. He layeth us on his shoulders, rejoiced.
The Good Shepherd carries us on his shoulders. Luke 15, five. Hebron Fellowship.
That we've been brought into a fellowship with.
God, wonderful, isn't it no wonderful to have this fellowship tonight?
This is one of the most beautiful benefits of being a child of God. Lovely, beautiful.
Beezer, Psalm 18 Two. He is my fortress, my exceeding high tower. Can you think of anything safer than that?
My fortress, my exceeding high tower. Rhema. He is high. He is the highest position in glory. Hebrews One and three.
Golan joy, we joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 511 everything about the city of refuge. Again, I say this to you tonight is Christ.
It's Christ, and I want you, dear friend, tonight. I want to say this one last thing to you tonight. If you're still not safe, flee to the Lord Jesus Christ tonight. Tomorrow may be too late. God doesn't want to send you to hell. He has provided salvation full and free for you. Everything's been done. Everything's been done for you. All you have to do is come as a guilty Sinner.
Oh Lamb of God.
I come, let's see that.
Uh, hymn #12 just as I am without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bids me come to Thee, O Lamb of God, I come.
Hymn #12.
I want to tell you, dear friends, tonight.
That as I stand thee up here before you tonight.
You're St. you're you're looking at a person that the sovereign grace of God saved many years ago.
One of the worst sinners you could ever find was this person here.
God save me.
And he'll make you a child of God.
And you'll never regret one moment.
And you'll have us all the way home, Savior, or one that will look after you and care for you and bless you and keep you every day of your life.
00:55:05
Then in the end, they'll take you to that wonderful home in heaven that is prepared for you. That's what He can do for you if you'll just come just as you are.
John 13:1-5
Choices
Address—Don Rule
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.
This afternoon with the hymn that we ended with at the end of the last meeting.
250 We will sing the 3rd and the 4th verses of #250.
250 Verse 30 Lord, the way, the truth, the life.
Henceforth, let sorrow, doubt, and strife drop off like autumn leaves.
Henceforth, is privileged by the simple.
Wonderful word, simple and undistracted. 2 wonderful things that we all have trouble with. I think our souls, which to the cleave and the words I want to emphasize in verse four are childlike.
Attend to what thou wilt say #250 beginning with verse 3.
Lord, save our sweet, sweet dream.
Turn with me to John's Gospel, Chapter 14.
John 14.
And verse 6.
Jesus saith unto him.
I am the way.
And the truth.
And the life.
No man cometh unto the Father.
But by me, Luke's Gospel, chapter 18.
Luke's Gospel chapter 18. The last three words of verse 22.
Com.
Follow me.
In a certain sense, I'm done.
But I'll follow Jim's admonition and put a few words around it.
I trust that every one of us will and has responded to those 3 words.
Com.
Follow.
Me.
I am the way.
The truth.
And the lights.
The world and everybody in it always makes choices.
It's been said that.
It's not so much whom.
What you know, more important is who you know.
00:05:03
It's true. It's important to let you know that. It's even more important who you know.
It could also be said.
It's important what you follow, but it's even more important who you follow.
And everybody in this room has made choices and you're following.
Someone or something, your life is characterized by what it is that you follow.
If someone were spiritually discerning, they could observe your life for a little while and perhaps be able to tell.
What it is that is motivating you and governing, controlling your life?
Hear the Lord Jesus says to a man, Come.
Follow.
Me.
I am the way.
I am the truth.
And I am the life.
Before we consider for ourselves what choice we perhaps have made.
Uh, Adam and Eve made a choice.
And everybody since has made choices, and those choices are, in one sense rather simple ones, but they have a profound effect upon our lives and upon the world in which we live.
I am the way.
Turn with me to Jeremiah, chapter 10.
Jeremiah chapter 10 and verse.
23.
Oh Lord.
I know.
That the way of man is not in himself.
It is not in man that walketh.
To direct his steps.
I'm going to make an application of this verse.
That is significant and important to the world in which we live and to your life and mine.
When Adam made the choice to disobey God.
I did it.
He was lost.
And every single person who has lived since Adam.
Has entered in this world.
In that condition.
Of being lost.
A person is lost because of what they are not so much because of what they have done.
We're sinners because of what we do, but we are lost because of what we are.
When Adam disobeyed God, he lost.
The moral center of his life.
He lost the connection between himself and God, and when he lost that connection, he became a wanderer.
Cain, who went out from the presence of the Lord.
Was a wanderer and a fugitive.
He was a wanderer because he had no center outside of himself to guide him anymore.
And the way of man is not in himself. Man is not a creature that is sufficient within himself to rightly guide his own way. He must have something outside of him, that is that which guides and directs and controls his life.
And when Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, he was a wanderer.
He wandered the rest of his life as far as the scriptural record gives us.
When he as a wanderer.
Mistreated by murder his fellow man, he became a fugitive.
And his life was characterized by being a wanderer and a fugitive.
00:10:09
The way a man is not in himself.
It's important to accept that as the truth.
We live in a lost world. We live in a world full of people who spend their whole life wandering.
They never find anything.
They wander and wander and wander and they never find anything, and they have no moral center to their life.
They have nothing that provides to them something that will give them a solid center.
Or is it sometimes said object, reason for existence and belief in being?
They wander.
If you sit in this room and it's not a gospel meeting necessarily, but I'll use the gospel in it.
And you don't know the Lord Jesus Christ. You're a wanderer.
And you'll wander your whole life, and you will never find.
Outside of the way.
A true center.
You're lost.
That's why Jesus Christ tells us in Luke 19. He came to seek. You have to seek somebody that's lost. He came to seek and to save the lost. The whole world full of them.
Lost people. The world is full of lost people and it's a sad condition to be in. I am the Way is the alternative.
The Lord Jesus says I am the truth.
The world.
Is a lie.
The world is a lie.
When Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden.
They made a choice between truth and the lie.
The truth was.
Thou shalt surely die.
If you eat of that fruit of that tree, the lie was thou shalt not surely die.
They made a choice except of the lie, and they refused the truth.
They went out, came, went out from the presence of the Lord.
To live a lie.
It was a lie because it wasn't a proper What's the truth?
Well, we know something and what we would call facts and true statements and so on, but that's not what truth is. In its essence, Truth puts everything in its right order and its right relationship.
And the minute.
Adam and Eve disobeyed God.
They got the truth substituted by us, a lie, and they put themselves out of their proper relationship with God.
And so.
When Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, he lived a life without its proper relationship to God, and after a while it caused him.
Not to have his proper relationship with his fellow man.
And man lives the lie.
I often ask a group of young people, do you believe I've lied?
Never had him once in spite of me standing there and probably they hadn't seen me commit a lie. They all immediately say yes, you've lied.
I say I taught my children never to lie, and I had three children. Do you think any of them ever lied?
They say yes. Why?
Because man's become a liar.
Nobody fully believes everything his fellow man says.
00:15:05
The world itself is constantly promoting things which in truth or a lie.
They do not hold anything in its proper balance and relationship with respect to God.
I am the truth, the Lord Jesus says.
The alternative the alternative choice for life is to live the life.
And the whole world system is.
And will have to be removed.
Completely from God, it tells us in John the whole world lies in the wicked one. And what is he?
The father of lies.
Does he promise? Sure he does.
He promises with great swelling words of vanity.
Liberty.
Many a man.
Says here, come follow my way, the way of liberty, the way of pleasure.
And makes another man a bond slave to the same corruption that he's in.
Pitiful, isn't it?
But it's true.
It's true. It is the moral condition of what you're living in.
Young person, older person, every person.
There's the truth and there's the lie.
I in the way is the alternative. I am the truth.
Is the alternative.
I am the light.
The day that thou eatest thereof.
Thou shalt surely die.
We live in a dead world.
Sure, everybody has physical life, everyone goes about daily life, everyone struggles with it and so on.
But God looks at it as a dead world, a dead place, a place in which the Spirit of God has to come and breathe to bring life to dead souls.
It's a dead world.
When it doesn't have God.
When it doesn't have the Lord Jesus, I am calm that they might have life.
And that they might have it more abundantly.
I am the way, the truth, and the life.
The contrast.
Wandering.
Lies.
What's the choice you've made?
What's the path of life you're on? Are you lost?
Are you living the lie?
Are you like the woman in Proverbs? It says.
She being dead while she lives.
You live a dead life.
Life, that it could be said, the way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Where is your life so-called headed?
Is it headed to life eternal or is it headed to death?
It's when it's all over, is it going to be shown that it was just a lie? Or when it's over, is it going to be shown that it was a life of truth?
Are you going to wander all the way through life?
Miserable way to live.
Well, you're not sufficient in yourself to find your own way the way a man is not in US.
It's not in us to direct our steps.
00:20:03
One way or another.
Or followers.
Let's go back to the man to whom these words were addressed in Luke's gospel and read it and think about him.
Luke, chapter 18.
Luke 18, verse 18.
A certain ruler asked him saying, Good master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? There is none good save one, that is God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor thy father and mother. And he said, All these things have I kept from my youth up. Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him.
Yet lackest thou one thing?
Sell all that thou hast and distribute to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come follow me.
And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful, for he was very rich.
And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the Kingdom of God?
For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God.
And they that heard it said, Who can be saved? And he said the things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house or parents.
Or brethren, its brothers and sisters, or wife or children, for the Kingdom of God's sake.
Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time and in the world to come, life everlasting?
Amazing young man.
Really.
He comes to the good master, the good teacher.
And he's interested in having eternal life.
Good, good desire.
He wants to know what he has to do to have it.
So we asked the teacher.
The teacher responds first by saying, if you're gonna look at me as a teacher, you have to remember there's only one that can be called good. That's God.
But then he goes on.
As a good teacher.
To tell him you know the commandments, you know what you need to do.
And he names to him five of the 10.
The man says it's amazing, really. We assume it's a true statement. I've kept all five of those.
I don't know how many people in this room could stand up to that man's character.
Would you care to come up here and stand beside me? I can't stand here. I'll get off the platform. You can come up here and say.
No, I haven't committed a Moultrie. I haven't killed. I've never stolen.
I asked that same question to the kids. They said I raised three children and I taught them never to lie, never to cheat, never to steal. Do you think anyone of them ever lied, cheated or stole?
When they get over a little bit of shyness of having to answer to me. Yep.
Really. I I taught them not to steal. Do you think any of them ever stole?
I don't know how many could stand up in this room and stand here beside me and say I've never taken anything that didn't belong to me. I've never stolen. Maybe you could name some of the others and say I I couldn't stand up to honoring my father and mother always.
00:25:13
Anyways, this man could, he could say I've kept all these from my youth up.
Amazing really, and in admirable character among men and these particular.
Commandments have to do with our relationship to our fellow man.
Buddy wants to know what he has to do and the Lord takes him up on that and he says OK.
Now that we've established that you've done that, you're missing one thing.
Go.
Sell all that you have and give to the poor.
And come.
Follow me.
The test was.
Would those things that he had keep him from following or responding to the words, come follow me?
This man wanted to add to what he had. He didn't say, Lord, what is it? I need to give up. He was content with what he had, accepting. He wanted eternal life in addition to it. And so he wanted to come to the Lord and see what he needed to do to add this additional possession to what he already had. He was very rich.
He had a lot.
Anybody also wanted to have eternal life?
The Lord said.
Select.
And give it away the results.
If the Lord Jesus.
This afternoon walked through those doors and walked up to you and said to you this afternoon, come follow me.
I suppose the original reaction of our hearts. Of course I would do it.
But there's a test in it.
You have anything?
In your life right now.
But you won't sell.
That is give up.
Anything.
Anything.
That's the difficulty this man had.
He was a lost man.
Really.
He was lost, he was living a lie. He didn't have life. He didn't have the Lord Jesus, so he didn't have life.
He didn't have a right relationship with God through the Lord Jesus, so his life was really a lie.
He was wandering.
The evidence of it is he wasn't satisfied with what he had. He wanted. He needed, he wanted something he didn't have. He wanted to add to what he had.
To find the satisfaction that his heart craved.
And he thought that would be eternal life.
But he wasn't going to give up.
What he hired to get it.
So we as far as we know, he went out to wander some more.
Spend his life a wanderer.
So close, you might say he only missed one thing. There was just one little hang up. Just one little thing that kept him.
From following those words come.
Follow me.
Is there one little thing in your life?
00:30:00
It's got control of you.
That is that object.
Be it a pleasure, be it of ambition, be it of desire for power or importance in some thing and for yourself that is controlling you.
That is your. What you're following there is something.
And the Lord Jesus was putting this man to the test.
You must 100%.
Make the choice. It's one or the other. You can't have both.
He went away sorrowful, very sorrowful.
Couldn't have both.
Probably none of us in the room qualify to be very rich like this man was and this world's goods that are used in this illustration.
The disciples, however, the followers of the Lord, they had a sense. Lord, this is difficult.
This is like impossible. We can't do it.
Now how can anybody do it?
But then Peter.
He says we left all and followed you.
And they had wonderful they were true disciples of the Lord.
But I believe morally the Lord gives one extra thing here that is difficult for us who aren't so rich.
What is it?
Lord says to them, Verily I say to you, There is no man that hath left.
House or parents?
Or brethren.
It's your family or wife or children.
The Kingdom of God's sake.
Very often, natural relationships hinder our willingness to wholeheartedly.
Come.
Follow me.
We won't have, we will give up lots of things.
But the Lord puts the test down to the root of what's difficult really for us in nature.
Because he's teaching them that nature.
What man is naturally speaking isn't sufficient to be a full follower of the Lord Jesus.
As hopefully we'll see.
A few minutes.
But so we put this test on, I mean, he says.
Willing to live father, mother, children, wife, whatever.
In other words, is something going to have a place that, if push comes to shove, is more important in your choices than me?
It's a pretty difficult.
It's pretty difficult if we deal with it honestly.
Well, for we fully answer that.
A little farther down in the chapter, we have another lost man.
He's a blind beggar.
Want to look at him for a moment or two?
He's a vine Baker. The Lord Jesus is passing by and he hears, he said. Who is it? He can't see. He's blind and they tell him.
They say Jesus Nazareth passeth by and he says.
Thou, Son of David, have mercy on me.
The seeker of the lost stops that those words.
And has them. He couldn't come to the Lord.
00:35:01
He couldn't see him.
You couldn't be a follower in that way because he was blind, but he comes.
They says bring them to me.
So they bring the man to him and he he doesn't say one thing. You lack do this. Come follow me now. He takes us all up individually. He takes this man up his his need was and.
He says to him.
In our words.
What can I do for you?
Which would you prefer?
Would you prefer to go to the Lord Jesus and say to him?
What must I do?
Or are you willing to come or be led to the Lord Jesus and have him say to you, What can I do for you?
This man got found.
The Lord of Glory says to him, What can I do for you?
And uh, he says, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
And he receives his sight.
But umm.
I like the way the new translation. I'll just read it. Uh.
Jesus said unto him, See.
That nice.
Just says C.
He got his need met. He saw.
What power? In the words of the Lord Jesus see and Esau, what's the result?
He followed him.
He followed him.
He didn't have to say leave aside your rags, leave aside your beggars, Sand.
No.
This man's heart was attracted to the Lord Jesus and he didn't need to be told come follow me, he just did it.
Just did it.
He followed him.
Turn with me to John 13.
Where we were this morning, but we're going to read farther down in the chapter.
Verse 33. John 1333.
Little children, yet a little while I am with you.
Ye shall seek me.
And as I said, under the Jews, whether I go, you cannot come.
So I say unto you.
A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another as I have loved you.
That she also loved one another, and this by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
Simon Peter said unto him.
He's not exactly all that interested in being at the moment. He has something else on his mind. Lord says you're not gonna be able to follow me now, but umm, I want you. I'm saying to you now, love each other.
And uh.
Peter ignores that bit, that little word. He's interested in what the Lord said. You're not going to be able to follow me now. And so he responds to that and he says, Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither thou goest, here's a man. I will come and follow you.
Whither thou goest another? Where are you going? Jesus answered him.
Whither I go, Thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me afterwards.
Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee now?
I will lay down my life for thy sake.
My life for thy sake.
Jesus answered him.
And here it it asks it as a question. I'm gonna read the new translation.
Thou wilt lay down thy life for me. Exclamation point.
00:40:06
I verily, verily, I say unto you, the **** shall not crow till thou hast denied me rice.
There is in this little conversation between the Lord and the disciples a truth, a principle that's very important about Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life.
The only way to follow the Lord Jesus.
As the way the truth and the life is through death.
Is through death.
The Lord Jesus is the way, the truth and the life cannot be followed.
In this lost world.
He can only be truly, properly followed.
According to the truth that we had yesterday in Romans 6, you're dead.
With Christ.
And the moment we take it up in the energy of that atom life, we will fail.
We will not be able to follow him. We will not give up those things that we count dear to ourselves, all of which have to do with.
The other side of the cross.
In the world that lives on the other side of the cross.
The only path today of following the one who is the Way is through death.
Peter thought he could do it.
That he could follow the Lord into death. But he couldn't. And the Lord said no, you're gonna deny me. And he did. He tried. He gave it his best effort. He was all sincerity. But he couldn't do it. Nobody can.
It's impossible.
But.
The Lord Jesus was presenting to his disciples. You can't do it now.
You can't follow me that way now.
But you will be able to follow me.
In the way that I ask.
After.
Death.
And resurrection turn with me to see this it's important to.
Umm, Second Corinthians.
Chapter 5.
2nd Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 14.
For the love of Christ constraineth us, because we thus judge that if one died for all, then we are all dead.
And that he died for all that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves.
But unto him which died for them, and rose again.
Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh? Yeah, though we have known Christ after the flesh.
Yet now henceforth know we him no more.
We judge that if one man died for all, then we're all dead, that is.
The very fact that Jesus Christ died for all was proof that all men were dead.
He was the only way. He was the life.
And without his death, there is no life for man.
He came into the world. I am the truth, but there's no capacity in man to live the truth unless he has the life.
There is no capacity in man to follow the instruction, no henceforth live for themselves, but unto him that died for them and rose again. That is, the way is open through death.
00:45:17
I am the way.
The truth.
And the life come.
Follow me.
That's I believe why, brethren, that in this, that's where it says the love of Christ.
Constraineth us.
Because we have life. We have a life that is constrained by that love.
The man of the world does not, and he is not constrained.
By that love.
In fact, the world, the lost world.
Hey, what it isn't?
It's a perfect man.
And.
The state of lost condition in which it was and is was. We don't want it.
There was no constraining love. Oh wonderful man, let's all follow him.
Yes, there was following him for what he could give in terms of food and.
Healing and so on, but not a following for what he was.
That the fruit was all right, but not the root.
And.
We want the lie, not this man, but Barabbas.
Not innocent.
Will take the guilty.
Let's get him out of sight and out of mind so that we can go on.
I'll say with our wandering, the world wouldn't put it that way.
But when we have life.
The life of Christ.
We have in us the love of God.
We are attracted to the Lord Jesus.
We do respond to His love.
It grips us.
It's put to a test, a really pretty serious, hard test, really.
What does the Lord say? How do we manifest that we have that life in US?
Because we love each other.
That's a big test sometimes.
But the.
The Lord's test of the activity of the life of Christ in US is love for each other.
Active expressions of that love.
Sometimes that's a very humbling test.
We'd like to make a few exceptions.
We love our brethren.
Accept.
Turn with me to.
First, John.
Chapter 3.
First John chapter 3 and verse one. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us.
That we should be called the sons of God.
Therefore the world knoweth us not because it knew him not.
Beloved now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be.
But we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him.
As he is, and every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
Come follow me.
There's three things that I'd like to give emphasis to to the followers here of the Lord Jesus.
00:50:03
Those three things repeated many times. We're just going to look at him right here, but you'll think of others if you care to think about it.
Faith, hope and love.
Those three things characterize an active follower of the Lord Jesus.
It takes faith to say yes, Lord.
And follow him.
Because you're going to follow what's unseen, in contrast to the world, which is the scene.
It takes the eye of faith to look at a world that cannot be seen.
With the natural eye.
I know whom I have believed.
I'm going to quote this the way Chuck Hendricks used to. I'll call it a paraphrase of the verse.
Very helpful to me many years ago. Galatians 2 and 20.
I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live.
Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.
I live by that faith.
Which has Christ as its object.
Who loved me and gave himself for me.
Follow me. He becomes the object.
And I walk in his steps.
My faith.
I don't have to know all the insurance and outs of life. There is a simplicity.
To a life of faith.
You know, one of the greatest men of faith was Abraham, and one of the greatest testimonies to simplicity as to living a life was Abraham, and one of the greatest examples of how life gets real complex real quick.
Is to leave the path of faith and go down into Egypt.
The world.
Your life will be ever more complicated in any measure in which you try to mix the world and your faith.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways, James says. What's he connected with?
Faith you go look it up in the first chapter. What makes a man unstable? Unbelief.
I live by the faith of the Son of God.
That is, which has him as the object.
The focus of life.
It says here.
Every man that hath this hope in himself.
Every man has his hopes.
The Wanderer even has his hopes.
The last man has his hopes. The one who lives the lie has his hopes.
But they have them in a different world.
The lost man's hopes never go outside the scope of this world.
And the poor man in Luke 18 wouldn't give up.
The world, its possessions, so that it can have something outside of it.
Eternal life.
If there's something I won't give up, I can guarantee you it has to do with this world.
It has to do with this world.
He that hath this hope.
That hope, What is it?
I'm gonna be like him. I'm a child of God.
When I get to heaven, you'll see me morally just like the Lord Jesus.
I won't be him. He's the Son of God. He's unique, He's special, He's perfect and his attributes. But I'll be perfect. At least say that.
That's my hope.
To be like him.
00:55:04
Faith, hope, love says in First Corinthians 13. Follow after love.
The greatest greater than faith and hope, It's the one that endures.
God wants to see that grow in us now.
Love your brother.
You want to grow.
When express your life, we like to see a life.
Grow. We like to see a child's life mature and grow.
Let's see your love for each other and me love me.
Row.
It's the expression.
Of the life as the Lord wants it to be seen in US.
Don't have time to follow it. It's characterized in first John by two things. Righteousness, because righteousness is the character that this world will have when Jesus comes to reign. And when it's truth connected with the Kingdom of God, it's just a little side truth connected with the Kingdom of God. It's always connected with righteousness.
And so that character of life should be seen in us so that it won't be this way. But if God were to give us part in the earthly Kingdom instead of the heavenly Kingdom, our lifestyle would remain the same if the Kingdom came in power and glory. And we would be seen in the same character of life of righteousness that will govern the world when he comes and reigns.
The lost man, the lying world doesn't know what righteousness can't live it.
Righteousness suffers today.
But here is just to wrap up. It says every man that.
We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
What a wonderful thought.
When God's done with us.
He looked at us and said, I'm satisfied. You're just like my son.
Pretty good end, isn't it?
The way.
That's the good way, the right way, the only way, really.
He that himself responds, Come follow me. Where is it in?
We like to know when we follow somebody. If someone came in the room and said to us, follow me, we probably stop and say where are you going? Where are we going?
What's the end of the story?
God's going to look at you and say.
He chose a good way.
Now you're just like my son.
I'm satisfied.
I can guarantee you we will be too.
So let's get on it.
Wholeheartedly.
John 13:6-17
Reading
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
267 A fullness resides in Jesus our head. A fullness abides to answer all need.
Whatever distress awaits us below, such plentiful grace the Lord will bestow.
267.
Nsnoise.
Joy again my life so well, why I got one of my eyes.
389.
Almighty Phillips save and no one could not be found.
To keep the continuity of our what we're taking up here, I'm going to suggest that we start at the sixth verse this afternoon. I know we made some comments here, but.
Read down how far? Just just until the end of the 17th I think.
John 13, verse 6.
Then cometh he to Simon Peter, and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet?
Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter.
Peter says unto him, I shall never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee knot, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith unto him, He that is washed needeth not saved to wash his feet, but is clean every width, and ye are clean. But not all three knew who should betray him. Therefore, said he, ye are not all clean.
So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them.
Know you what I've done to you. You call me master and Lord, and you, uh, say, well, for so I am. If I then your Lord and master have washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I've given you an example that you, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily I send you. The servant is not greater than his Lord, neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If you know these things, happy are ye if you do them before you sit down, Bruce, I'm going to get you to read a verse.
In the 12Th of Luke.
Luke chapter 12 and verse 37.
00:05:01
Move 1237 Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he cometh, shall find watching.
Barely. I send you that He shall gird himself and make them to sit down to meet, and will come forth and serve them at the end of the meeting. I'd like to make some concluding remarks by going back to this verse we've just read in the 12Th of Luke, but I suggested we begin at the sixth verse of our portion in John 13, because we ought not to miss the mentions of Peter that we have here.
We all have taken up and enjoyed the life of Peter. There are perhaps 3 disciples that are prominent in the circumstances surrounding the Upper Room ministry, the garden scene.
Later on, a couple, a couple of them prominent in connection with the foot of the cross and the empty tomb and so on. And those disciples are first of all, Judas, which we have commented on in the past reading.
And let's make it clear that Judas remained an unregenerate man to the end.
He went out after betraying the Lord with remorse but not repentance. He went out and he in remorse, and he hanged himself, and he went to his own place. He died an unregenerate man and entered into the darkness of a lost eternity forever. What a solemn lesson we learned as we had before us this morning from the life of Judas. Then we have John himself, who later on in this chapter refers to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved.
And five times you have in these concluding chapters of John S gospel John being referring to himself in that way. He leaned on Jesus bosom at supper.
He's the one that could speak to the Lord and ask who the betrayer was. He's the one that the Lord Jesus later committed the care of his mother to.
One leaning on Jesus boos him and enjoying his love is the one that's fit for service.
But then there's Peter as well, and we find that later on in this chapter, Peter does deny his Lord three times with oaths and curses.
And or it's brought before us. And so I think it's helpful to see. And as we trace the life of Peter, brethren, we often shake our heads at Peter and what he said and what he did. And sometimes he spoke and did things to put it in modern language, off the cuff. He did things, said things before he thought he did things, before he really considered the matter. But aren't we thankful that those things are recorded for us, for our learning?
To some degree, they're perhaps reflections of our own hearts and things we've done ourselves, and they're recorded for our learning. But what I've appreciated, and this is the point I want to make in connection with this portion, what I've appreciated in connection with Peter and the things that he said and did, was that Peter really did love the Lord.
John styled himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. Peter perhaps styled himself as the disciple who loved Jesus, and he had to learn his own heart. But he really did love the Lord.
And I think it was brother John mentioned this morning that really even in this incident.
You if you look beyond what he said and did, and see the motive of his heart.
Very interesting and instructive. You know when Peter saw the Lord Jesus down like this?
Washing the disciples feet, he didn't think that was any place for his Lord.
That that wasn't really what his Lord should be doing.
He didn't understand, but when he speaks up, he really didn't want to see the Lord down washing his feet. It's like when he said to the Lord, though I'll deny thee, yet will not I deny thee?
That wasn't just an idle boast. He really meant it. And when he rebuked the Lord in connection with going to the cross, he didn't want to see his Lord suffer. He didn't understand his heart or what he was saying.
But I think it's just so beautiful to see Peter's heart. Peter really didn't want the Lord down there washing his feet. But when he heard he had no part with him, if he didn't, then what does he say now? He still doesn't understand, but he says, Well then Lord, give it to me all now. He didn't understand when he said just not my feet only, but wash me all over my.
You say he should have kept quiet, but he said, Lord, if it means if washing my your feet means part with you, communion with you, then don't stop with my feet.
00:10:00
I want it all. And the other thing too is we learn then from the Lord's gracious and patient replies and responses to Peter. So I just suggest we perhaps can meditate and get some other comments on the things that Peter said here and the Lord's gracious responses to it.
In connection with Peter and his statements, I'm going to read the three statements.
Just the statements, but notice one important word that's left out of the middle statement.
First statement.
6 Lord, dost thou wash my seat feet?
Versailles.
Thou shalt never wash my feet.
Verse 9 Lord, not my feet only.
Pretty obvious, isn't it? He leaves the word Lord out.
And that's a very common thing with us. We may not use the word, but when we're not gonna agree with the Lord, it's pretty natural in us to leave that Lord out of what we have to say to Him. Because if He had in that second statement truly accepted the place the Lord had, he wouldn't have said it, because he was talking as an equal in that sense to the Lord, rather than re addressing one who.
He could say Lord. So it's a it's a little.
Listen to us, uh, let's keep the Lord in our hearts and when we address Him.
But he did not understand and.
Oh, how often that happens with us, too. We don't understand what the Lord's doing in our lives. And we try, we struggle to grapple with it, and we come to our own conclusions and we are generally mistaken. But I think it is.
Beautiful to see that he's true hearted and that.
In spite of his misunderstanding.
The Lord in His responses helps us to understand what was.
Being implied in these verses and.
When he saw him down there, like Jim said, he said, do you wash my feet?
He says, Thou shalt never wash my feet. He should be washing the feet, but not my Lord. But then he says, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. And that opens up to us, brethren, our need today. And the Lord says in verse.
Ten he that is washed, and the word there is.
A bath. A complete bath.
Needeth not saved to wash his feet but is clean every wet and you're clean but not all because Judas was not clean.
But it's in reference to, and I think this is John mentioned it this morning, that it's referring to the overall bath that the priests were given in their consecration in the Old Testament when they were brought before the Lord. There was an overall once for all bath given to him were cleansed.
All over from that time on. It was not necessary to repeat that bath, but they had the labor to wash their hands and feet when they went in. So that's what the Lord is referring to here. It's what relates to the washing of regeneration, which takes place once for all. We've been cleansed from the guilt of our sins by the blood of Christ, but we've been cleansed as well by the washing of regeneration.
And that's important to understand. We've been brought into a completely new position before God. We are new, new creation. We are part of new creation and that's what is referred to. And now as we pass through this world, we don't need that overall bath repeated again and again. What we need is that washing that is necessary of our feet.
And Christianity, it's not so much a matter of the hands, because the work has been done.
00:15:03
But it's a matter of our walk. And so it's not the hands and the feet here, but it's the feet. Whereas in the Old Testament it was the hands and the feet that had to be cleansed in the labor as they went into the Tabernacle to the service of God.
Because of course the he was a man that did not know his own heart and, uh.
The Lord had given him a warning that.
Umm, Satan was going to sift him the ward, said Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat, but I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not.
When thou art converted or restored, strengthen thy brethren. So the Lord gave him a solemn warning here that he would fall, but being self confident, he uh, didn't pay attention to it. And he had uh.
Uh, confidence in his, uh, in himself, uh, and his devotedness to the Lord and his love for the Lord, uh, which was genuine, but uh, he didn't realize the.
The weakness of his own heart and the flesh and so he learned what the flesh was by a fall and I'm afraid that's often the way in which we learn the the wretchedness and the evil of our own hearts is by a fall in our lives and the Lord prays for us as we have in our chapter 13 there it's the.
Priestly, all part of the priestly work of Christ to restore us when we have failed. But, uh, it's part of the government of God too, because, uh, we learn our own hearts by a bitter, uh, experience. We can learn our own hearts, uh, in communion with God. Uh, and the, the, the longer we walk the, uh, pathway of faith, the, the more, uh, the deeper knowledge we have of the wretchedness of our own hearts.
I am sure that all my brethren would agree with that. But Peter had confidence in himself, and probably that is the root of much of our failure. He did not fall down on the Lord's feet and say, Lord, keep me, or else I will fall. Preserve me, O God, for in Thee do I put my trust. There was no dependence there.
There was confidence in his own strength, in his own.
Devotedness and he failed miserably, as we have often done too. But the Lord graciously prayed for him. It was the Lord's Prayer.
That brought, that started the, the repentance in the, uh, in the heart of Peter that led him to bitter tears. It was the Lord's prayer for him. And so brethren, might be a help to some of the young people. Sometimes we fail and we, uh, get so discouraged that we, uh, we think, uh, there's no hope. Uh, but remember, the Lord is praying for us.
He is interceding for us in that prayer by the Spirit of God. And the word of God leads us to judge, uh, that, uh, that matter which separated us, that interrupted communion. And in this way, we have our feet washed and uh, we are restored, but it's the intercession, or we might more accurately call it the advocacy of Christ. Advocacy is, uh, is for failure.
The high priestly work of Christ is more to, uh, to give us strength in the time of temptation. It's uh, the advocacy of Christ is with the Father. The priesthood of Christ is with God.
And it's to keep us from falling. But how much? We need the intercession of the Lord, as we see in the life of Peter.
And, uh, his restoration and when he was at Pentecost, as we remember, uh, when 3000 souls were saved, he, uh, charged the Israelites with the very same, uh, uh, very same rejection that he had shown, uh, he had, uh, not confessed the Lord in, in his time of testing.
00:20:02
And yet he charges them with refusing their Messiah. But he had been, uh, wonderfully restored at that time, and the Lord used him in a mighty way.
Let us know our own hearts. Really do we, John?
As we go go on in the pathway of faith, I don't think we ever get to the depths of it. No, the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart. I try the reins to give every man according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings. Brethren, we need to walk in humbleness before the Lord at all times.
She sees what we don't see and think of Job, a man that was perfect in his ways. But there was a defect that the Lord saw. Nobody else sighed. Even when Job had the trial come into his life, his friends came and they thought they understood what it was. They were completely mistaken. It was the Lord that saw it, and we cannot. Job trusted that he was all right.
And that God hadn't treated him right. Brethren, the Lord sees those defects, those pockets of reserve in our hearts, those pockets of unbelief, and in the ways of God with us, He brings them out to the light so that they can be judged. But none of us can say we know our own hearts. But we should, as we learn, like you say, John.
How unworthy of trust we are. We should learn to trust him more.
And to learn more of what his heart is. We may learn more of what our hearts are as we go along, but to learn more of what his heart is, there'll be true blessing in the circumstances. And it's remarkable when you come over to Peter's epistle, he's the one that says, account, the long-suffering of God is salvation. And I've often thought in reading that statement, who better to make that statement than one who had experienced the long-suffering and patience.
Of the Lord Jesus with him in his pathway. In fact, Peter ends his ministry at the end of the second epistle by saying grow in grace.
Peter had grown in grace. He had come to understand the grace of God.
In a very real and practical way in his life. And rather than if through the failures and circumstances of life we learned that, I say there will be blessing. And I might just say to those who are younger and all of us really, maybe you have failed. We all have failed. We failed sometimes. Every day we feel some failure in our lives. But don't be discouraged by those failures. You said I was like Peter. I spoke up and I said the wrong thing. And then I wished I hadn't said that. And.
I did something and I just realized it with my own heart, getting a flesh getting in the way and.
I just wish I hadn't done that. Don't be discouraged. Learn from your mistakes, learn from those things, and learn from the Lord's gracious dealing with you. And maybe I can just say this too, not to depart from what we're Speaking of here, but to those of us who are a little further along in the path of faith and perhaps take a more active part in public things, we need to seek the Spirit of Christ in dealing.
With our brethren too, to learn from the way the Lord responded to Peter.
And to be exercised in our dealings with our brethren and perhaps those who are a little younger, who maybe don't enter into things or understand certain points of truth or doctrine. Let's be gracious, let's be patient and seek to teach in the way that the Lord Jesus did. He was the perfect teacher. His spirit and attitude as well as what he said was perfect. And we will never obtain attain to that perfection.
I realized, and whatever we do, there's, it's checkered and there it's faulty. But I think we can learn something. Those of us who are a little older in dealing with those that perhaps we feel well, they should know better and they, they should just keep quiet and listen if they don't understand. You know, I, I'm often thankful when a sincere question is raised in a reading meeting or in, in, in a setting like this and a question is raised and maybe somebody says, well, they, they should really understand or why don't they just be quiet and listen to what's being said? But sometimes those questions.
00:25:11
Our comments that maybe aren't quite what they should have been. Sometimes they can lead to the bringing out of truth.
Thus, the Spirit of God would have for us that would otherwise be missed or passed over.
Suppose Peter hadn't made these comments. Suppose he hadn't raised these issues well, perhaps there wouldn't have been things brought out. The Lord used those as opportunities to bring these things out. So I just say that let's not be discouraged by failure and things we say and do without thinking, but let's seek to learn from them, and let's be gracious with others.
And we should quit looking for any usefulness in ourselves. The only good I have is Christ in me.
Tahoma Floors.
Well, depths of the wickedness of the heart of man. We don't have to get into that. But as we go along, we have that confirmed to us time and again how very wicked our hearts are. But I think we come to the conclusion of I know that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. And we learn to turn from ourselves, turn to be occupied with that one who is completely perfect.
To look up into the glory of God and to see that man up there in the glory and say, that's my life. My life is not what you see down here, but it is that man in the glory. And the more you're occupied with him, the more you're going to be transformed into his image. That's a something that happens in each one of our lives and the measure that we're occupied with him. And I think the transformation, you're not going to see it very much. Perhaps it will be others that see it in you.
So I, I don't see that it's uh.
A contradiction that it is. It is something that complements those two statements that you mentioned, Mark.
From our chapter here, but in, uh, you'll remember in, uh, the case of the children of Israel when they crossed over the Jordan, a picture of death into the promised land they encamped in Gilgal. And Gilgal is a very important, uh, place in the, uh, history of Israel and, uh, in what it speaks to our souls of.
And you remember that, uh, before they.
Launched out in attacks upon the nations in the land of Canaan, which they were commanded to do that, uh, there at Gilgal where they encamped, they used sharp knives upon themselves. Uh, this is brought out very clearly in Joshua chapter 5. Uh, they learn they, uh, use sharp knives on themselves before they use sharp swords on the people of Canaan.
And that would bring before us.
Self judgment and how necessary that is in each one of our lives. We all, we all know how much there is in our lives that needs to be judged. And uh, even Mr. Darby, godly man as he was, he felt there was much in his life that needed to need self judgment. And I'm sure that all of us could say that, but the point is before they went out into.
Active warfare. They were soldiers. They needed to be prepared in their own souls, you might say by, uh, circumcision, which is a picture of keeping the flesh in the place of death. Now, the flesh is not said to be dead. We'll have it till the end of the story, but we are to keep it in the place of death. That's what I think is implied by that verse, always bearing about in the body.
00:30:14
The dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our.
Mortal flesh, but unless that flesh is kept in the place of death, it's going to assert itself, uh, like it did in Peter and, uh, like it has in every one of our experiences and bring, uh, and cut out a lot of sorry work for us. Uh, because not only will communion be interrupted, but we will come under the government of God too, unless we judge that, that, uh, that matter or that sin which has, uh.
Uh, broken communion with our blessed Lord. So I just mentioned that that, uh, self judgment is important in our lives and it's an exercise that we are called upon to do. It's our responsibility.
Uh, and the word of God, as we have in our chapter reproves us, it corrects us and it leads us to self judgment. And that is the secret of the communion with God. Uh, it's often been said, uh, we are as believers to keep short accounts with God. Umm, I think we probably have all heard that expression. What does it mean? Well, it means, uh, that when we sin, let us deal with it immediately when, uh.
It is laid upon our conscience by the Spirit of God, and it doesn't take much to, uh, to break communion. A sharp, angry word breaks communion with God.
And, uh, we have to judge those things or else it's going to lead to something more serious. So I think that, uh, we, we do have the wondrous, uh, uh, high priestly work of Christ, his advocacy, but we are called upon to, uh, keep that old nature, uh, in the place of death and allow the life of Christ to be manifested.
Good for us when we get to the point where we can say like Peter, Lord, thou knowest.
Uh, I just comment a little further on Peter. Some of the greatest experiences of his life he failed in, but they were still the greatest experiences of his life. On the Mount of Transfiguration. He got to see one of the greatest things that was ever seen by man while the Lord Jesus was on earth as far as his being able to see his millennial glory.
But it's the same place that Peter wanted to make the three Tabernacles and and had to learn a lesson. But the wonderful thing about Peter is he was a pretty good learner and he did learn his lessons. Sometimes we talk about lessons and so on, but.
Seems like we gotta keep repeating him for a lifetime. But we do see in Peter progress in his life because he was somebody that did respond to the rebukes and did learn the lessons. And when Peter writes his second epistle about that amount of transfiguration, he gives glory to God in it. And he had profited by the experience. And it's used later in his life in Matthew 16 when he.
Uh, the Lord says, well, whom do men say that I, the Son of man, AM, and so on. And then Peter says, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Uh, he gave glory to God in that experience. Immediately after that, what does the Lord do? He entrusts to him the keys of the Kingdom. A few sentences later, what happens? The Lord says to Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan. Thou sufferest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of man.
And so he fails again in that particular situation. But at the same time, the Lord, who was the heart, knowing God, entrusted something very important to Peter. We all know of his failure and his zeal and true heartedness to follow the Lord into death and not being able to do it. But what happens afterwards on the shore of the Sea of Galilee? The Lord says to Peter.
When he restores him publicly, he says he gives him tremendous responsibility.
Peter might have said, oh, there's nothing for me now. I've done one of the worst things that a Christian could do. He wasn't a Christian then, but he was a believer. And uh yeah, the Lord, who's the hard knowing God used those even failures in Peter's life as points of learning that Peter benefited from. And the Lord responded to it. And so he entrusts to him the care of the sheep and the lambs.
00:35:27
It was a tremendous responsibility that Peter carried out the rest of his life.
So brethren, we need to be thankful to the Lord that he, like Peter, we need to be able to say, Lord, thou knowest and not give up, but also not.
Uh, the greatest failure, in a sense, is not to learn from failure.
It's on a little bit already, but I think we need to perhaps make some comments on the Lord's response in the end of verse eight. If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. And then Peter says Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Now that before I comment on this, the Lord's response, Another thing that characterized Peter through all the failure and ups and downs of his pathway is he desired, I believe above all else, the company of the Lord Jesus.
I've enjoyed that in connection with the event in the 14th of Matthew when the Lord came to the disciples walking on the water during the storm one night, and when Peter saw the Lord out on the sea and realized who he was.
He said Lord, and he used the word again, If it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the sea.
Now we often read on, and we shake our head at Peter when he sank, and we say, oh poor Peter and so on. And I again I realized Peter failed and the Lord had to rebuke him, and so on.
But I covered Peter's response when he said, if that Lord, I speak reverently, if that's you out there, I don't want to be in the ship and you out there, I want to be where you are. I want to be closer to you. And how could Peter dare step down out of the ship? One word, brethren, come. Peter found out the Lord desired his company as well, and so he could step out of the ship on the water, not to go away from Jesus.
It says to go to Jesus. Jonah tried to flee from the presence of the Lord.
Peter wanted more of his company, and Jonah went under the waters. Peter rose above the waters and walked on the water to go to Jesus. But to get back to this little expression, I know our brother John mentioned it this morning.
But I think it's important to see how the Lord phrases this year because it's really the crux of the whole matter of feet washing. If at the end of verse eight, if I wash thee knot, thou hast no part, notice this next little word with me, not in me. It wasn't a question of Peter having part in him. Peter was a true believer and feet washing is not a question of you and I being in Christ.
But it is a question of having part with Him. It's a question, as we've been saying, of walking in the conscious sense of the Lord's presence with us and enjoying the fellowship and communion that he desires.
Because, as we've already said, there are those things that come in to dull our affections, to distract us, and to chill our souls so that we aren't enjoying the communion and fellowship that we ought to.
Like to use a little illustration that years ago an uncle of mine used in speaking about the difference between.
Our security in Christ and our fellowship with Him. My uncle was telling us that years ago.
When he was with the service, he was on a ship overseas that made several ports of call and it was the days before wireless communication. And he said when that ship would arrive at port, there were great ropes brought out of the side of that ship and that ship was secured to the to the Wharf and there it was secure. And that ship couldn't go anywhere until those ropes were undone. And the.
The ship was ready to continue its journey. It was secure. But he said very shortly after the ship was secured to the war, there would be a wire run from the communication cabin on that ship to some point on the land so that ship to shore communication could be established. And he said that perhaps several times during the days that that ship was in port.
00:40:19
The communication would be broken and it didn't take much sometimes to break that communication, that fine wire, because the ship lurched a little bit, maybe a bird, a seagull landed on that wire and it came undone at one end or the other, maybe some weather, whatever it was, often the communication would be broken and had to be re established. When the communication was broken, it didn't mean that the ship wasn't anchored safely to the shore.
But it did mean that communication was broken, and maybe that helps us in a little way to understand what the Lord was bringing before Peter.
Peter, you don't need to be washed all over like as we've had the priests at their consecration, there were two things applied, the blood and the water. And in that way it never had to be applied again. But they had to come again and again and again and wash their hands and their feet. And brethren, if we're going to have part with Christ, if we're going to enjoy that fellowship and communion, if the line of communication is going to be kept open on a daily, hourly basis.
We're going to have to come again and again to the word of God with a elderly brother. He's with the Lord now, but.
Within my home assembly for many years, and he used to tell us that in his working days when he came home at night from the office, he needed a good wash. And he wasn't talking about soap and water. He was talking about the washing of water by the Word. He felt that he had seen and heard and contacted things during the day that had perhaps dulled that communion or broken that fellowship, and he needed to get into the Word of God and have that restored by the cleansing effect of God's Word.
Peter could see a bowl.
He knew there was water put in it.
He saw the towel.
So in verse seven, what it says, what I do thou knowest not now.
I believe proves that.
The Lord is not teaching us to do something literally.
But there's something figuratively set forth, and it's marvelous when you think it's.
The last night.
The last word.
The Lord Jesus is giving them something.
To help them on through the pathway here below and to help them help one another.
What thoughtfulness of the Lord?
End.
The Lord's up to something right now. Am I up to it with Him?
Or is there something?
That's defiling in my life that would prevent me from being up with him.
And he, he wants us to have part with him.
Were saved by grace. Nobody in all of Christianity would disagree with that. But then they try to wash their own feet.
I am saved by grace and I live by grace.
Its all the work of Christ as soon as I try to live the Christian life for.
I live the Christian life not because of some moral power in me.
But the moral power of the one who lives in me?
Left to ourselves for one second, all we can do is sin, but the sovereign grace of our loving Father who continually washes our feet in this path. By grace alone, we can walk in the resurrection.
00:45:17
2nd Corinthians 5 and verse.
9 Wherefore we labor that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him, or the better translation is acceptable to him.
Now the that's not a question of, uh.
Paul's acceptance before God in the all. The value of the work of Christ is standing, but this is a question of his state.
We want our lives to be acceptable to the Lord, that they will meet His approval at the judgment seat of Christ. In fact, that's what the apostle brings before us in the next verse. He wanted to walk in such a way that.
When his life was reviewed at the judgment seat, that's not the great white throne, although the great white throne is all part of the judgment seat, we would say. But the judgment seat for believers is when our lives will be, uh, manifest. Not to condemn us, uh, not our persons being judged, but our walk in our ways that we're talking about, uh, are going to come under review everything that I have done in my life.
Uh.
Will come under review and be manifested. So we should be exercised that our walk is acceptable to the Lord. We are accepted in the Beloved, that is true, but God would have our lives to be fruitful and be.
According to his mind and something that will abide for eternity.
And here that were real, and one that wasn't. And the Lord knew who should betray him. I.
I say that because it's not a question ever of someone being real and then losing that. I I know there's a great deal of teaching sometimes that a person can be real, they can be saved, and then they can lose their salvation. But that was not the case with Judas, and Scripture never teaches that. And I know sometimes the children and young people go to school and they hear this kind of thing from their Christian friends.
But that is not the teaching of the Word of God. Judas was never real.
His heart remained hardened until the very end, and the Lord Jesus looked at this little company around him.
And as we pointed out this morning, he washed all their feet. But he could say ye are not all clean.
There was one who D never had the bath. There was one who D never been washed all over. And the Lord knew. And again, it's a serious thing. The Lord looks down at a company like this and he knows who's real and who isn't. Maybe there's a person here and you fooled your parents for a long time. Maybe if someone shook your hand at the end of a gospel meeting at the door and asked you if you were saved, you'd say yes. And maybe that the preacher would have no reason to doubt it from your life and conduct.
But is there reality in your soul? The Lord knows them that are His.
And the Lord looked at this company, and Judas, as we said this morning, had fooled the disciples, the other disciples, but he hadn't fooled the Lord Jesus. And you won't fool the Lord Jesus. And so he knew who should betray him. There was one who'd never been washed all over. It wasn't that he'd been washed. And then he defiled himself and lost what he had. No, he had never had that regeneration, and he never got it either.
Regeneration, Brother Jim, is helpful in the sense that the work of the cross had not been finished. In a certain sense. This washing doesn't really refer to having our sins washed away in the precious blood of Christ, but rather born of water and of the Spirit and, uh, really being a true child of God in that sense.
The other thing too is in in first John.
Chapter 2.
Just read the 1St 2 verses my little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.
00:50:06
And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
Uh, there's a difference between what we have in first John Two and what we have in our chapter.
And that there is sin and, uh, sin does break that communion. And if there's sin there and there's that which is on the conscience and it needs to be confessed, then the advocacy of Christ comes in and, uh.
His blood is answered for that sin, but in our chapter it really is more.
The thought of that we're going through a world which chills our affections and, uh, worries us and, uh, dulls our spiritual sensibilities. And we need that application of the water of the word that we might be refreshed and brought back in, in a, in a fresh way to the enjoyment of what God has to communicate to us rather than being positive, open.
Sin and I got a bad conscience because I went out and I I did something I I knew I shouldn't have done deliberately did it. So it just bring that out because sometimes perhaps in the way we take this up, we sort of drift into the thought of what we have in first John two umm away from what I think is more the subject of this chapter.
There are some things in our Christian life that we shy away from.
That we tend to avoid carrying out and this is one of them. And I, I just want to bring emphasis to that. By the way, the Lord Jesus now speaks to them in verse 13. He starts out he's going to end up telling him to do it.
But how does he introduce?
Telling him you are to do this, he says, you call me Lord and Master, and you say, well for so I am. Now he takes his right and reminds them of the right he has as Lord and as their teacher. And then he says to them, if I'm that your Lord and teacher.
And I have done this, I have washed your feet. Then he gets before them what he wants them to do in responsibility. Ye also ought to wash one another's feet. And uh, verily, I say unto you, the servant is not greater than his Lord. He again goes back. He tells them what he wants, but then he has to go back and said, Are you bigger than me?
Are you greater than I am?
Uh, are you, in other words, are you greater than your Lord? And says the servants not greater than his Lord neither he that is sent greater than he than sent him. And then he says, if you do these things, happy are you. And so I, I just, it's a exhortation or more than that. It's an instruction or command to them to wash one another's feet. But.
He introduces that in a pretty strong way because he recognized that in them and in us, this is something that we do not tend to do. We tend to shy away from it. And uh, you have your problems, I have mine. You go get warm and fed yourself and I'll go try to get warmed and fed myself and so on. And we focus on ourselves and our own need and so on and.
In that way, we don't love each other and fulfill the command of the Lord that we wash one another's feet. We need to.
Like the disciples, then, we need to let these words speak to us from the same Lord.
The Lord says to you and I this afternoon, Am I your Lord? Am I your teacher?
If I am do it.
Sometimes it's easier.
In a setting like we have this weekend to do that. Then when we go home and we're with our local brethren because.
00:55:07
After the break in, Brad, you might come up and you know, well, did you get the house sold or, you know, how's that new car running? Or there's all kinds of other subjects because we know each other and there ought to be a, an interest in one another and the fears of life and so on. But what gets neglected is to bring something out that would be for the spiritual refreshment of my brother or sister. But here we are like this and we're from far away and I don't know your circumstances. You don't know mine.
And it seems how somehow easier to bring out and enjoy together those things that will spiritually refresh us. But I've noticed at home it's a little harder. It's a little easier to slip into things that aren't going to, uh, wash my brother or sister's feet or vice versa. So we have to really work at a little harder when I think when we get back home.
That same line.
Steve, when we visit each other.
Let's get the book open, and even if it's not anything extensive, read a few verses. There's something so wholesome about getting the word open, and I don't think it necessarily has to apply to any particular corrective measure, but just get the word open.
Remember, brother in my, uh, years ago, he said, when you go to visit the brethren, don't forget to open the scriptures. I thought that was good. And we need to brother. And then I, let's say some time ago, maybe I've told this story before, but it impressed itself on me and I'd like to repeat it because.
It was an encouragement to me. The story was told of a young brother who in a certain meeting.
Saw that a certain brother wasn't coming to the meeting is any longer and no one seemed to feel.
An exercise to go visit that brother. And this young brother didn't feel like he was particularly the one to go visit. But since no one else was going to visit, he decided he was going to go and visit. And so he goes, and with his Bible sits down his brother's living room. Brother sat down with him and he had his Bible.
But he didn't know where in the world he was going to read in the Bible. So he says, let's read something, brother.
Where do you wanna read?
You didn't know what to say, so how about Genesis 11? In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Now what are you gonna say about that?
He didn't know what to say, so he just shut the Bible and prayed and.
The word of God, brother. And he went away next time he came again and he didn't have a clue what to read again the second time and.
Saw Genesis 1/2, the earth was without form and void. Darkness was on the face of the deep. How does that fly to the situation? You didn't have any clue so shut the Bible and praise again, but through that means that other brother was exercised to come back to the meetings rather than the word has power. I have been impressed with how sometimes the Lord uses the scriptures.
Maybe we have a particular idea in mind when we're reading the scriptures. I found that OFT times the way the Lord brings it home to somebody else sitting in the room. Totally different than what I thought.
Thy commandment is exceeding broad, and God uses His word sometimes in ways.
We least expect doesn't mean that we shouldn't. Like Jim brought out this morning, we shouldn't be helpful if we do understand it, to help explain it. But we need brethren to get the book open, to read it together. I found so often it seems like it's almost an imposition to suggest we open the Bible.
Is that the way it is, brethren? Are we getting to that point? Can't we open the books?
And read a few verses at least.
Oh, the wholesomeness of getting the Word of God open and reading it together. You young brothers and sisters, I have to say that in my youth there were young people in my life that were very influential and that turned me to the Scriptures and encouraged me in that direction. You young brothers and sisters, are you?
01:00:21
One that encourages in that direction, or do you encourage in another direction? The Lord help us to get this book open, to wash each other's feet, to create that refreshment and, if necessary, correction that we all need.
The problem is we don't follow the order that's here, and I think it's very significant rather than that, first of all, the Lord washed their feet. They had to allow first of all the Lord to wash their feet. And then after washing their feet as a result of that, he says wash one another's feet. Now why is it sometimes we get together with the people of God or we meet another believer and we come away and we say, well, there wasn't any scripture or anything of the Lord shared, or we didn't really refresh one another with the things of Christ. Why?
Because, brethren, I cannot wash another's feet unless my feet have first of all been washed only in the measure in which I have opened this book and let the water of the word wash my feet.
And let the Lord Jesus refresh my spirit. Only in that measure can I refresh.
Another and sometimes I don't have perhaps a lot to share of Christ or something to say to be helpful in a situation and encourage another on why.
Because I haven't had that refreshment myself. Now Speaking of order, I want to notice an order here as well. In the 13th and 14th verses that Don mentioned, God is very careful in the order in which things are listed. You notice verse 13, He says He called me Master or teacher and Lord. And in the 14th verse He reverses the order. Now you might say, why does He reverse it?
You know, I might say something and reverse an order and justice because I forgot her didn't didn't matter what order I put it in. But when God lists something or you the Lord Jesus or the words of the Lord Jesus or in a certain order, there's a reason. First of all, he says she called me teacher and Lord, you know, we need teaching. We need the teaching of the word of God and the disciples here were sitting under the teaching of the Lord Jesus, the greatest teacher of all.
And then he says, not only teacher, but Lord, you know, it's one thing to have good teaching, it's another thing to bow to it and recognize the teacher. And so we need to have good teaching as the basis, because I think there's a lot of people, a lot of real Christians and they'll, they own Jesus as Lord, but they're going about with things they ought not to because of a lack of good teaching or they've been misdirected through false teaching. And so there has to be teaching at the basis and then the recognition in our hearts.
Of the Lordship of Christ. But then he reverses it. If I then your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet because.
Conversely, we can have good teaching and not own Jesus as Lord. And I think sometimes we can sit in meetings like this and we can have the teaching of the word of God before our souls, and we can go out the same way we came and we're not really recognizing.
Who the teaching has come from the Lord Jesus as the perfect teacher through his word and there isn't that willingness to bow to the teaching and he says at the end of our portion, if you know these things, happy are ye if you do them.
You call me Lord, that's good. You call me teacher, that's good. But these things have to be in their proper order. There has to be good teaching, sound teaching, and then the recognition of the Lordship of Christ in our lives to bow to it.
MU asked about an example of.
Deep washing and I would like to suggest in the end of John, uh, brother Don was talking about it earlier.
The 21St chapter, when the Lord Jesus restores Peter, we have perhaps an example of of feet washing. But it's interesting the order there because they had just come off of the ship and they were had been toiling all night. There must have been tired and hungry too, because they hadn't caught anything until the Lord tells them where to throw the net.
01:05:15
And.
So he doesn't immediately start out, but he takes bread and fish and he lets them eat. To me, there's really significance in that he doesn't start right out until they are comfortable in his presence. And then the way he deals with Peter because he was going to restore him to a place of public usefulness for him. And he says this in front of everyone.
All the rest that were there, he says. He doesn't say, Peter, why did you deny me? He gets at the root of the thing and he says.
Simon, son of Jonas, his name according to the flesh. Lovest thou me more than these? He had said. Even if all the rest deny you, I won't deny you, Lord. So he addresses that. Peter denies the Lord three times.
And three times the Lord asked Peter, Peter, do you love me? And at the end of each of the questions he commits to them something that is very dear to his heart. Feed my lambs, feed my sheep, feed my sheep. And so Peter was restored to a place of public usefulness. And I think it is because of that that he could like brother John was saying.
In the day of Pentecost, or was it a little later, Peter denied the Lord, but he says to those Jewish people, you denied the Holy One and the just Peter. How can you say that when you did denied the Lord because his restoration was so complete that he could do that. And I think that's a beautiful example of applying the word in a way.
That was that brought Peter back into real usefulness for the Lord. Perhaps that's an example of feet washing in the scripture.
The spread of love.
That is woven through this chapter and the chapters that follow on into the chapter that Bob just referred to. The chapter starts with he loved them unto the end. And then it mentions, uh, in verse three, the Father had given all things into his hands.
The Lord Jesus had come into this world as sent by the Father.
And when he was here in this world, there were those that the Father gave to him.
As he says in his prayer in the 17th chapter and all. And that's part of the things that were given unto him, and He, he loves them.
And all the time that he was here, he ministers to their every need in love.
And cares for them. And now the Lord Jesus is right at that point where He knows He is going to be separated from them and not be with them in the same relationship, or of being physically present with them. And his heart is burdened.
His soul is taken up in his love with making provision for them when he's not there.
And so he, if you will, he looks at the need, He wasn't going to be present anymore to meet that need personally by his person in their present, in their midst. And so he makes preparation and provision out of love for them. And to me, it's a tremendous thing that one of the first provisions he makes is for them to be used for each other.
To be the ministers to one another of that which originated in his own heart of love. And in the next chapter he says, I know you're going to be sad when I'm not around, when I'm not present with you anymore. But I'm going to have the Father send the Spirit and the Spirit is going to take up, if you will, some of those things that I've been doing for you.
01:10:10
And it is another provision of his heart of love that.
He umm, tells them what is going to be done when he gets to his and there's a lot more of it. But when he gets to the 17th chapter, he says to the Father in his prayer.
Those that thou hast given me, I have kept.
And not one of them is lost, save the son of perdition. And we've had that's Judas before us. Then he says to the Father in the same prayer.
Keep.
Keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me. In other words, Father, if I'm not going to be here.
And I can't be separated from them and without there being provided for. And so it's not only the use of us for one another out of his heart of love, but the heart of love would send the Spirit of God to dwell within us to meet those needs. But even the Father is called upon and say, well keep that we might be perfectly kept. And so to me when we get on to this chapter of when Peter.
Is given these responsibilities that again the thread is the heart of himself for those that he loves, which were his lambs and his sheep. And he gives Peter this wonderful responsibility. He said, OK, Peter, let's talk about love. And Peter is reduced, as we know beyond these words, the different types of love that are involved here and so on.
But it gets down to the lowest level, as it were, of the character that love can show. And uh, Peter's humbled by it. But then the Lord in tremendous responsibility of love in his own heart, says, OK, Peter.
I love my lambs. You take care of them, Peter. My sheep are going to need shepherding. You shepherds them.
The feed by shape rather than It's the heart of the Lord Jesus, and it's the only heart that can properly wash feet.
It's the heart that has to be there. If the service of the heart of the Lord Jesus for His own can be ministered, Is that same spirit, that same love in operation in the soul of someone to for the Lord's sake, minister to one another in the washing of the feet?
Makes us a happy Christian company, isn't it? And that's really what the Lord is saying in conclusion of this matter. This 17th verse. We often quote and we quoted and apply it in a broad sense to the truth of God at large.
And certainly it has its application. If you know these things, happier ye if you do them, that has its application to every aspect of the truth. And we're exhorted in James to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. But I think we missed something. If we don't take this Scripture in its context. What the Lord Jesus is really saying to the disciples is, I've washed your feet, now you're to wash one another's feet. And if you carry this out the way I've instituted it, you're going to be a happy Christian company.
A happy company of believers in my absence. Why is it, brethren, there isn't always the happiness and joy?
In our interactions with one another, it's perhaps at least one reason because we haven't carried out this beautiful example and instructions of the Lord Jesus. We haven't first of all, had our feet washed and our spirits refreshed by the Word of God. And then we're not washing one another's feet. We're not encouraging and refreshing one another in the path of faith and service. And I thought of another example in connection with Tim's question this morning.
As well. And that is in the end of First Timothy chapter one, Paul says. And the household of Anessa Forest, for he OFT refreshed me. You know, there was a household that refreshed the apostle Paul.
A household where he could visit and find refreshment. And I don't want to go beyond what Scripture says, but I've often wondered if it wasn't a whole household that was exercised in the refreshment of the Saints of God. You know, it's wonderful to enter a household and the husband and the wife, the young people, the children, whoever dwells under that roof, they're all happy to see us a Saint of God, and they're happy to share the things of Christ and.
01:15:29
Make you comfortable in their home and you're refreshed in your spirit and from your journey because of that. Well, the household of Vanessa Forest gets that beautiful commendation in Scripture because they refresh the Apostle Paul during his ministry.
That, I think, is important as well, and that the Lord is given certain things to produce an interdependence.
One on the other, that makes for the need of that oneness of practice that we are brought into as part of one body. And so the Lord has given different members of his body different responsibilities and services and gifts to minister to him. And what it does when it's properly in action is.
To fulfill that which no one member can fulfill for himself or for others, he both needs and he both others need him in that the way in which the Lord has given it. And there is that sense in which we ourselves need to be washed by the water of the Word. But the exhortation here does not include that side of it, really.
It is to do it for one another and it is to show us the, the way the Lord has set it up that there would be with us that sense of interdependence and not self-sufficiency or self dependence as saying, well, I can do it myself, I don't need you. Uh, that's not the way it's given here. And it's important to see it in that way. It does not put aside the fact that the war we, we read the word of God for ourselves and we're refreshed in our own spirits and.
What's not in me can't be communicated to you. And so on. That all has its place. But the way it is here, it's it's to foster in us the recognition of the spirit of interdependence.
Reminds me of a a story brother Don and it kind of connects with what you had your little account brother Bob earlier.
Brother recently told me this and it was a count that was given to him by an older brother years ago. And, and uh, there was a brother in the meeting that seemed to be growing a little cold and he wanted to try and be a help. And he talked to another brother and said, is there some way we can encourage this brother and why don't we go visit him? And so they went and he said, uh, we got the word open. We read a few scriptures and he said there was just no response.
And we're sitting in three chairs and, and there was a fire burning in the hearth. And, uh, after we read and there was no response. We just sat there in this uncomfortable silence for some time, just staring at the fire. And he said, all of a sudden there was a pop and he said this little amber went flying out of that fire and it landed on the hearth. He said it burned brightly for just a few seconds and it just started fading right out.
Towards what it would be a little black coal.
And he said he reached down and he flicked it back in the fire.
He said the imagery was so powerful that we, all three of us, broke down in tears. And he said that brother was restored. No, we can't do it by ourselves. There is an interdependency that's needed. And that little ember needed to be flicked back in that fire, otherwise there's gonna be a little black hole.
Really gone, but I'd like to go back to the scripture we read at the beginning just to.
Conclude our remarks and encourage our souls as we end these reading meetings in Luke chapter 12 and verse 37. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when He cometh, shall find watching.
01:20:00
Verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meet.
And will come forth and serve them Now brethren, we've been talking about a service that the Lord Jesus.
Performed for the disciples in the Upper Room and a service that He is carrying on for us this very day.
The Lord Jesus there in the glory, is there in a capacity of service on behalf of His own.
But there's a service that he's going to carry on for all eternity. When we get to the Father's house, he gird himself with its linen towel. We read in John 13 Here he girds himself, makes us to sit down to meet. This is something yet future, and he's going to come forth in service forever. I find this one of the most tremendous verses in the whole word of God to think that there's a day coming when the Lord Jesus is going to serve you and me and the Father's house forever.
You say, what is the service that he's going to perform? You know, my wife tells me when I get home, don't expect the same service here that you get in the homes of the sisters that.
Entertain you when you're on the road and that's, that's OK.
But, brethren, someday I'm going to get home to the Father's house.
I'm going to sit down my path of service and your path of service is going to be over. The path of service and burden, it's going to be over and we're going to sit down in the Father's house and the Lord Jesus is going to come forth and serve us. You know, when I enter the Saints homes, they come out and they try to serve you and make you feel as comfortable as possible in their home. And yet you're never as comfortable in somebody else's home as in your own home. But they do everything to make you comfortable.
And when we get home as the children of God.
The sun is gonna come for.
Brethren, He's going to make us comfortable in the Father's house for all eternity. It's just to me as if He says, now you're home, I'm going to minister to your every joy, to your every satisfaction for all eternity. But what I want to really notice is there's one marked difference between this and John 13. In John 13, they were going to be left in the path of faith and service, and they needed their feet washed time and time and time again, and they needed to wash one another's feet time and time and time again.
But in Luke, where we read there's nothing about feet washing. Here he simply girds himself and comes forth and serves us. Why?
Because the path of faith will be over, the path of service will be over, and we will be in a sphere of things, brethren, where there will be nothing to ever defile again.
Will there be nothing to distract us again? There will be nothing to chill our affections and dull our souls again.
Nothing, everything will be in perfection and so we won't need our feet washed in that way in that day. But I say he will minister to our every joy, to our every satisfaction.
To our every refreshment so that when we sit down in the Father's house we're going to be perfectly comfortable.
In the Father's house and with the Lord Jesus in the midst for all eternity. Well, brethren, as we think of what is ahead.
That ought to then motivate our souls now in love to himself and love to one another.
To wash one another's feet. That we might now be a happy company of believers. If you know these things, what things? Washing one another's feet. If you know these things, happier ye if you do them.
Even though it's going to take me a minute past 5:00.
What Jim has just said is connected with Exodus 21.
I love my Master, my wife, and my brethren.
And he remains the servant for eternity. The Lord Jesus remains a man in that humble place of manhood.
Forever, so that he may continue to minister the Father to us.
I love my Master and it is his heart's desire to stay a man, so that in that humble.
Manhood place, He can continue the service that he began when he came into this world to make the Father known to us and to bring us into relationship with the Father and in love for the Father, the Master. He remains a man for eternity and that's what the primary thing that he will minister to our joy and heart's content forever in heaven in the Father's house.
01:25:16
He then says, I love my wife. Having become a man, the Father gives him a bride, and he says I will remain forever a bride. I will remain a man that I might serve in love, my bride. And so for the Church's sake for us, he will remain a man that he might serve us.
And in my children it has to do with his earthly children of Israel and the children that God has given him that we have in Isaiah 8, and for their blessing and for their benefit to continue for eternity to minister to his earthly family, He says the children that God has given him, He says, for my children's sake, I'll remain a man and serve them, and our hearts will forever worship.
We trust that the Lord will give us.
Pounds of ointment of spikenard in heaven, that we may anoint his feet there in worship.
1/8.
Oh, 2000.
5000.
9.
19 and the appendix.
Last verse of 19 in the appendix.
The Lord Himself.
I'm grateful if I'm crying thus far.
01:30:07
It's glory and after you.
Already.
Urgency
Gospel—Jim Hyland
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 begin the Gospel Meeting this evening with Hymn #21 on the Gospel Hymn sheet.
Decide for Christ today and God's salvation. See yields, soul and body, heart and will to him who died for thee. Let's stand up to sing this hymn #21 and if someone will please start it.
Again.
I'm gone.
Nsnoise There is a temporary.
Nsnoise.
Right. It's a lot of power. I'm doing good.
Like to begin this evening by reading 2 verses of scripture, one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament. The first one is in the book of Jonah.
Jonah chapter 2.
Jonah chapter 2 and just the last five words.
A verse 9.
Salvation is of the Lord and then a verse in Romans Romans chapter one.
Romans chapter one and verse 16.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.
To everyone that believeth to the Jew 1St, and also to the Greek.
I have it on my heart this evening to turn to some scriptures in seeking to present the Gospel as clearly and simply as we can.
Some scriptures that have in it in them the word salvation.
Salvation is a wonderful word, and when we speak of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, we're Speaking of the salvation that God is offering to sinners tonight through that one who came.
00:05:01
Into this world and went to Calvary's cross, and there died and shed his precious blood.
But you know, there seems pressed on my soul at the beginning of this meeting, an urgency.
The hymn that we sang decide for Christ today or we could, for our purposes say decide for Christ tonight.
That hymn is usually a hymn that I give out at the end of a gospel meeting.
In fact, I've given it out many, many times at the end of Gospel Meetings.
But I don't remember ever giving it out at the beginning of a gospel like we just have have done. But I felt pressed in my soul tonight as I walked up to this platform to press upon us at the beginning of the meeting. The urgency.
Of the gospel message. Because I'm not going to promise you that as the clock ticks slowly by that we're going to make it to 8:00 and conclude this meeting. This meeting is scheduled from 8:00, from 7:00 to 8:00. But I'm not going to guarantee to you that this meeting is going to end at 8:00. It may end long before 8:00. It may end with the coming of the Lord Jesus.
An event that we expect at any moment. And the book of James tells us that the coming of the Lord draws nigh.
It's getting near and one thing is for sure, though I cannot tell you exactly the moment when it's going to take place.
One thing is certain, We have never been closer to the Lord's coming than we are.
Right now at the beginning of this gospel meeting. And I want to plead with you tonight, if you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior, if you are not in the possession and good of the salvation that we're going to speak of, if the Lord does not come, oh, I want to urge you tonight to reach out by faith and grasp that salvation. Tonight it's being offered to you. And here we find in the book of Jonah where we began.
Salvation.
Is of the Lord.
That's really the message I have on my heart tonight. Salvation is of the Lord, you know, if we were to read the book of Jonah, and I suppose most if not all here have had the book of Jonah, the story of Jonah read and recited to you from the very early days of your youth. And it's a very interesting and remarkable story. But we find that Jonah was in a desperate situation.
He had tried to run away from the Lord. And maybe there's someone here tonight. And you've tried to run away from God. You've tried to run away from the Lord. But you know, here you are tonight. I think that's marvelous. It's fantastic to think that you're here in this room tonight. Maybe you have been running, but God has made sure that you have come into this room tonight to have one more opportunity, one more invitation, one more chance to be saved.
Jonah tried to run away. It says he fled from the presence of the Lord.
But you know, he got into a desperate situation and eventually he was taken by Mariners in a ship where he had been asleep. And he was not only woken up by those Mariners, but he was eventually tossed into the raging sea, and he went down, down, down under the waters of that raging sea.
But God had his eye on him, and God had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah.
And that fish swallowed Jonah, and there Jonah was in the belly of that fish.
It tells us in the New Testament, as Jonah was in the fish's belly 3 days.
And three nights. A long time, wasn't it? He was in a desperate situation. He couldn't save himself.
And he never got deliverance from this situation until he realized that salvation was of the Lord.
And if you're hearing your sins tonight, I want to impress upon you.
That salvation is of the Lord, and you will never get deliverance from your sins.
Until you realize that it is a person that can save you.
It's Christ and Christ crucified. That's why when we present the gospel, we present a person.
We don't present reform. We don't present some creed or theology.
00:10:00
We don't present some system or steps of salvation.
We present Christ the Lord Jesus, Paul said. He presented to the Corinthians, Christ and Christ crucified.
Because salvation is of the Lord.
The story is told, and it is documented in historical books of a Marshall in the army of Napoleon the great conqueror. And this Marshall looked up to his leader, his general Napoleon to a point that he almost worshipped Napoleon.
But one day, that Marshall was wounded on the battlefield.
And that wound was of such a nature that this Marshall, being brought to his tent and laid on his cot, realized that his life was ebbing away.
And so he called for Napoleon to come because he thought that Napoleon.
Could save him from physical death.
Most of us, I suppose, shake our heads at a thought like that. But that's what this Marshall thought. He thought Napoleon was next to God, and because this man had conquered most of the known world at that time, he could even save a wounded soldier.
But Napoleon came, and he stood at that tent door.
And all Napoleon could do was shake his head. He could do many great things.
He conquered many lands. He had accomplished great feats, but he could not save a dying Marshall.
Who was reaching the brink of eternity? And they say that the sight was awful. The leader looking at his Marshall with a helpless look on his face, and the Marshall crying out with his last breath. Napoleon, save me, Napoleon, save me.
And into eternity.
Salvation is of the Lord. There is only one tonight who can save you. But not only can He save you, He desires to save you.
You know, there are many great people in the world today, people with a lot of power.
People with a lot of technology, people with a lot of knowledge. But you know those people, though they might be able to help you or me in a situation, they may not have the desire to do so. But not only is the Lord Jesus able to save tonight, but the Lord Jesus is willing to save. He desires to save. He wants to save you tonight. Such is his heart of love.
I am not ashamed of the gospel of God of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation.
You know what? There's no hesitation on my part to stand here tonight and to present to you the glorious gospel of God, the gospel of Christ, to present to you the the power of God in connection with eternal salvation.
You know, sometimes as believers, we might be a little hesitant in certain situations.
And I have to confess before you, I'm not a personal worker.
I'm thankful for those who have the spiritual courage and fortitude.
To give out gospel tracts and to speak to people personally about the Lord Jesus. But all those of us who know Christ, we ought not to be ashamed of this glorious gospel. We ought to buy up every opportunity to present Christ. And tonight there is no hesitation on our part to announce the Gospel Meeting for this room. There's no hesitation on our part to stand here and turn from one scripture to another.
And to quote other scriptures, and to seek in some measure at least, to preach the glorious gospel.
Of salvation.
Because, you know, there are so many in this world who are going on to a lost eternity, and maybe there's someone here in this room tonight and you're going on to a lost eternity.
00:15:06
The story is told many years ago, back in the horse and buggy days of a man who came in from the countryside from his farm to do a little business in town, and he came in with his team of horses and his wagon.
And he left the team of horses on the street while he went in to the general store in that small community.
And while he was in the store buying some goods, something spooked the horses.
Something scared that team of horses and that team of horses reared up and they took off like a shot and they started tearing down that road and they turned a corner and started off across a nearby field.
And that man, realizing what had happened, he tore out of that store. And in earnest, he started after that team of horses and that wagon that was being jostled behind that running scared team.
And he took off across that field and he tried to cut those horses off and with great effort he finally caught up to the team. He grabbed the bridle of that team and he tried to stop them. But they were good, strong horses and they kept on running.
The farmer wouldn't give up. He held on. He was dragged across.
A stream down a Rd.
His body began to get battered as he was bounced around, but he was determined to stop that team.
And finally, that team of horses out of sheer exhaustion.
Came to a standstill.
A crowd gathered immediately around this man and he was so battered and bleeding.
That he and the crowd realized that he probably was going to die.
And someone bent over him in his dying moments and they said Sir.
Why did you do it? Why didn't you just let them go?
And he looked up, and with almost his final breaths.
He said Look in the wagon.
He passed into eternity.
And they did indeed look in the wagon. And under the hay of that wagon they found that young man's young son.
Safe.
But rather frightened.
Why was he in earnest to stop that team of horses? Why did he not want that wagon to tip over? Because his young son, whom he loved, was in that wagon and he didn't want that young son to die.
That young Son who was so helpless to save himself. And why are we in earnest tonight to present the Lord Jesus as the Savior of sinners?
And why are missionaries going out around the world tonight and risking and even laying down their lives to propagate the gospel? Because there's a world that's dying. There are souls tonight rushing on to eternity over the precipice to hell.
To damnation, to eternal judgment, to a hopeless condition.
And we are in earnest. A young lady came into a gospel meeting something like this one time.
And at the door, she was asked by someone who had invited her what she thought of the message.
She said. Well, one thing I'll say, the preacher was passionate about what he spoke of.
And we are passionate tonight. We believe it's true. Two young people were talking at the back of a room like this just before a gospel meeting and they were overheard to say.
Well, it's just another gospel meeting. It'll probably be over in an hour or so.
It probably will be over in just an hour or so. But no, gospel meeting is just another Gospel meeting.
Every gospel meeting is an opportunity to present Christ in all his loveliness.
To present the work of Calvary, To present the heart of God, who so loved the world.
That he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish.
But have everlasting life. And remember this, there is no salvation apart from the Lord Jesus. There is none other name given among men whereby.
00:20:02
We must we must be saved. Are you saved tonight? Are you the recipient of God's salvation? Again, It thrills my soul to stand here and tell you that I am not ashamed of this gospel because the Lord Jesus is my precious, precious Savior.
He saved my soul.
Almost 50 years ago, and I rejoiced to tell the story over and over and over again.
But what about you tonight? Is it a thrill to your soul when we speak of God's salvation?
Or do you squirm a little bit and you look around and you watch the clock, which seems to go ever so slow?
And you're looking forward to this meeting being over and you go on your way. Oh, if you're squirming in your seat tonight, I beg you before God, I beg you tonight not to put off your soul's salvation.
Let's go on to another verse now in the book of Titus.
Titus, Chapter 2.
Titus chapter 2 and verse 11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation.
Hath appeared to all men.
Maybe there's someone here tonight and you say, well, I don't deserve it. You know, a man named the Apostle Paul said that when he was Saul of Tarsus, he was the chief of sinners. In other words, he said I was the worst Sinner that ever lived. And if the worst Sinner that ever lived is in heaven tonight, and he is, and I know it on the authority of God's word, then there's no excuse for you because it's all on the grounds of grace.
It's nothing that you can earn or attain to tonight. We don't earn salvation. We don't work for salvation. Not of my works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.
Because all our righteousnesses are ours. Filthy rags. What does that verse mean, you know?
I started meetings like this as a child and I heard gospel preachers quote that verse all our righteousnesses.
Are as filthy rags. What it simply means is the very best things we can do are to God a pile of filthy rags. You know tomorrow is Sunday.
And I suggest that there are going to be a lot of people right in the city of Saint Louis who get up tomorrow, and by the end of the day they've offered God a pile of filthy rags.
They may go to a place of worship. They may sing some hymns.
They may say or recite some prayers, they may do some good deeds, they may give something in an offering plate, they may perform some charitable function, and I'm not saying that those things are wrong in themselves.
But if they have done it.
As men and women who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.
At the end of the day, they have simply offered to God a pile of filthy rags.
And that is an insult to God. What would you think of someone who came in on your birthday?
And gave you a present, a gift so nicely wrapped, maybe with a ribbon and bow and a nice card on it, and you opened it up and in that box was a pile of filthy rags. You'd be pretty insulted, wouldn't you? You'd say that person really doesn't care about me. That person's not my friend. That person doesn't really love me. And yet people will offer filthy rags to God and to the Lord Jesus.
By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.
It is the gift of God again, the apostle Paul said after he got saved by the grace of God. I am what I am. And you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
00:25:04
The grace of God that bringeth salvation there is our word salvation.
You need to be saved by grace. It's the grace of God that has brought salvation.
And it has appeared to all men I love that the Gospel tonight is not for some select group of people.
It's not for a certain race of people, it's not for a certain social class of people.
It's for all, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
But the gospel is for all tonight whosoever believeth.
Whosoever will may come.
You know what? Whosoever means, it very simply means this. You and me and everybody else, none excluded. The gospel is all inclusive tonight. It's for you.
Yes, it is.
Sometimes at the end of a gospel meeting, people say, well, that's the right kind of message for somebody else, but that's not the right kind of message for me. That stuff's not for me, but it is for you tonight. And God has allowed you to hear the glorious gospel.
I saw a statistic just last night. It was brought to my attention and I looked it up. A statistic that.
I wrote it down.
This statistic States and I I I don't always put a lot of stock in statistics, but even if this statistic is somewhat accurate, it's astounding. The statistics state that 33% of language groups in this world still do not have the word of God or any part of it in their own language, nor is there a translation plan.
To translate into that language or dialect.
That constitutes 2252 languages.
Or thir 3000 or 353 million people on this planet Earth.
Not solemn to think about. And yet tonight here we are with the word of God in our hands. Here we are speaking from the Word of God in our own language.
And what are you doing with it? You know, there are people in this world that would give anything.
To have the word of God or some part of it in their own language.
And I have seen people weep.
Yes, I have. I've seen people weep when a Bible in their own language was placed in their hand. Or a New Testament.
I've seen people hug it to their chest. They were so glad to get a Bible.
And yet we have Bibles here, stocks of them in this land, And yet people are turning away and refusing to read or to listen to the word of God.
I suppose one reason is we don't want to be different, do we?
Perhaps it's hard to believe, but I was a young person one time and I sat in meetings like this and I wanted to fit in with the crowd.
I wanted to fit in with the crowd. I wanted to be cool. Or, as we said in our day, groovy.
Yeah, I didn't want to be different. I didn't want to step out of the crowd. I wanted to be accepted. You know, it's not wrong to desire to be accepted, but whose acceptance do you really want tonight? Do you want God's acceptance? Do you want the Lord Jesus acceptance, or do you want to go along with the crowd?
If you were to Google the name Richard Armstrong, you would find that he's a very well known biochemist.
And he's written a book that's quite well known in those circles.
But he tells the story of an associate, a biologist.
Who came into the lab one day with some processional caterpillars?
Caterpillars that follow one another.
And he took a clay pot with a plant in that pot.
And he put took those processional caterpillars and he took them and placed them around the rim of that clay pot, head to tail, head to tail, right around the rim of that pot.
00:30:09
And Richard Armstrong watched as those caterpillars began their procession.
Around and around and around. Not going anywhere but following one another.
Around and around and around. Is that what you're doing tonight? Not going anywhere really, but following the crowd.
But you know those caterpillars, they went around and around for several days.
There was food in the middle of that pot.
And they walked around and around, following one another. Not one of them broke away from the ring, and eventually they all died. They all perished from exhaustion and hunger.
Not interesting to think about. We shake our heads at that. We say foolish caterpillars to follow one another till they were dead.
But what about intelligent God, conscious men and women and young people?
What are you doing tonight with God's salvation? Are you just going to follow the crowd?
Are you going to come and receive the Lord Jesus as your savior?
In that regard, let's go on to the book of Hebrews.
Hebrews Chapter 2.
Hebrews Chapter 2.
And verse one, therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard.
Lest at any time we should let them slip, for if the words spoken by angels was steadfast.
And every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward. How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation, which at first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him? And I want to read a verse further on in the book of Hebrews in the 10th chapter.
Chapter 10 and verse 29.
Of how much sore punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing.
And hath done despite unto the spirit of grace.
How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? It's a question that God raises. You know, often in the Bible God raises questions because questions make it personal. We perhaps in the last half hour, said many things, and perhaps you feel, well, that doesn't quite apply to me. Or you can shrug it off in one way or another.
But here's a question from God's Word, a question to you tonight.
How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? Notice it doesn't say.
How shall we escape if we reject so great salvation?
To reject God's salvation is very, very serious. I hope there's no one here who is an out and out rejector.
But to neglect this, perhaps just or is just as serious and perhaps even more dangerous, because the great lie of the enemy tonight, I believe, as he whispers in your ear, is put it off.
We can all think that, can't we? To things we neglected to do, things that we really intended to take up and to accomplish. But we put it off for one reason or another. As we say, we shoved it to the back burner, and we can all think of times when we regret it, neglecting or putting off something in this life.
But to neglect salvation and to pass out of this world into a lost eternity.
Is eternal loss. There's no recovery. I have often neglected to do many things. In fact, when I was a boy, one of the things I neglected many, many times was to do my homework.
You know, I usually had to stay in at recess or noon hour and get it done. Or there was a note sent home to my parents that the next night I better be kept in from playing baseball with my friends so that I get that homework caught up. It got done eventually, but all I say, there's no recovery to those who neglect so great salvation.
00:35:15
Stories told of a man who was walking the streets of Johannesburg, South Africa, one time.
And as he was walking the street, he noticed in the ditch a piece of paper with the words on it.
$5000 reward for the answer to this question.
The paper was folded and he couldn't see the question and you can imagine that his curiosity was sparked.
To see what the question was, and perhaps to collect a reward of $5000.
What's that paper really was with the gospel leaflet? And when he bent down and picked up that paper and unfolded it?
This is what it said $5000 reward. To the answer to the question How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? Needless to say, that reward has never been collected.
Some of you here tonight have Christian parents, Parents who have brought the gospel before you, from before you, the time you can remember.
Parents who have brought you to a meeting like this and parents who at this very point may be praying.
The the Lord will work in your soul and bring you to a knowledge of salvation.
But you know, there was a young girl, true story, young girl, and she was brought up in a Christian home.
And as she approached her teenage years, she got very, very sick as she said of hearing that she needed to be saved.
And one day she just blew up at her mother, she said. I don't want to hear that stuff anymore.
Don't tell me about the Lord Jesus. I've had enough.
The mother was desperate and after praying about it, she spoke to a Christian friend.
And this Christian friend agreed to see her daughter. This Christian friend had had some rapport with her daughter and.
Felt that perhaps she could bring Christ before her.
And so the Christian friend arranged to meet privately with this young girl.
And as they sat down together, she could This friend could see this girl stiffen. Now I'm going to get a lecture. Now all this stuff is going to be brought before me again, and I don't want to hear it.
But the Christian friend tried a little different approach.
She said to this girl, You're sick of hearing all this stuff about being saved, aren't you?
Girl said. Yeah, I sure am. Mom and Dad, they've just tried to ram this down me for all the days I can remember and I'm just sick of it.
The Christian friend said. Well, I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll go back and I'll talk to your parents, and I'll try to convince them not to talk to you about the need of salvation for a year.
Girl relaxed. She thought. This isn't so bad after all.
But then she thought about it for a moment.
She said a year might be too long.
Something might happen within a year, and a year might be too long.
Christian Friend said. OK, we'll make a deal. We'll cut it in half.
I'll ask your parents to stop talking about Christ and salvation for six months.
Didn't sound too bad until she really thought about it.
Six months seemed like a long time. Anything could happen in six months.
The friend said. How about three months?
Yeah, that was good, she said. You know, I I think that'll work you, you go back and talk to mom and dad and.
Ask them just not to mention things for three months.
She got up out of her seat to leave and.
She got to the door and the spirit of God was really working with her and she turned and said, how about we get down and pray right now?
She realized the seriousness of neglecting or putting off.
So great salvation, and she and the friend kneeled there.
In that room, and that young girl came to know the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:40:01
As her savior, oh, don't put it off. Don't get up out of these seats tonight. Don't wait another moment until you're saved. Because if you neglect so great salvation, you're gonna pass and you leave this world of the Lord Jesus comes, you're gonna pass out of this world into a lost eternity. And we read in the 10th chapter of those who trample under foot the blood of Christ.
And I want to stress for a few moments the importance of the blood of Christ, because there is no other remedy.
For sin tonight. If you trample under foot God's salvation in the blood of Christ, there's nothing left for you. God has no other way of salvation tonight.
You say I'm not going to trample under foot the blood of Christ. I wouldn't trample under foot the person of Christ.
But if you go out of this room tonight, neglecting God's salvation.
In effect, that's what you're doing. You're saying it's not good enough for me. I don't want it.
And it's an insult to God, who has provided a great salvation through that precious blood.
You say I want to do my own thing. I want to live for myself for a while.
You know, there was a young man right here in the United States.
And he sat in gospel meetings like that, like this. And that's exactly what he thought. I want to do my own thing. And he went out and he did his own thing, and he lived to excess.
And it's caused such great sorrow to his Christian mother.
That it broke her heart to such an extent that she went to an early grave.
And his father was broken hearted, not only because of his son's waywardness, but at the loss of his wife.
And this seemed to have very, very little effect on the sun. He continued his wayward ways.
And one night, as he was preparing to go out for a night of revelry.
A night on the town, his father pleaded with them and he said, son, your mother's dead. I'm all alone here. Can't you spend an evening with me? Oh, my son said I don't have time. I want to go out and live. I want to have my I have my friends waiting for me. Father pleaded with him, but to no avail.
Finally, his father said. Son, I can't stop you. You're stronger than I. I cannot physically stop you.
But he said if you go out tonight, you're going to have to trample over your father who loves you.
And that father.
I can hardly envision it, but that father he lay down.
At the threshold of the door of that home.
And that hard hearted son.
Stepped over his father and went out for another night.
Of partying on the town.
He trampled over his father and the love and pleading of that father.
Are you going to go out the door of this room tonight, trampling on the blood of Christ?
Rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ and that blood that is so precious to the heart of God tonight.
God says of those who have availed themselves of that blood that were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, you know that's God's estimation. That's God's value of the blood that was shed at Calvary's cross, because it is the blood of Jesus Christ his Son that cleanses our cleans from all sin.
Martin Luther told of a dream he had one time.
Where the devil came to him in that dream, and that devil had a scroll in his hand.
And the devil, with a great flourish, opened that scroll in front of Martin Luther.
And on that scroll were the many of the sins that Martin Luther had committed.
And Martin Luther scanned that scroll and he said to the devil in his dream. Is that it? Is that all? Oh, no. The devil said, there's more. And the devil brought another scroll, and he opened it. And there was another long, long list of sins that Martin Luther had committed. And Martin Luther couldn't deny it. He said. Is that all? No, he said, There's another scroll. And a third scroll was brought out, and it was opened up in the presence of Martin Luther.
00:45:25
And Martin Luther read that scroll, and then in triumph he cried right across it all. The blood of Jesus Christ his Son, cleanseth us from all sin.
I'm thankful that my sins are gone. They're blotted out like a thick cloud as far as the East is from the West, so far as he removed our transgressions from us. Thy sins and iniquities, I will remember no more. We have forgiveness through His blood.
The blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Is that blood real and precious to your soul tonight? Have you had that cleansing?
Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing power? Are you washed in the blood of the lamb?
What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Precious Precious Blood of Jesus Shed on Calvary.
Shed for rebels, shed for sinners, and, yes, thank God, shed for me. If we were to give that hymn out tonight, at this juncture in the meeting, would you be able to join heartily in the singing of that hymn?
All the blood of Jesus is available for you tonight, and there's a day coming.
When I am going to join a crowd, a vast throng in heaven, and I'm going to lift up my voice and sing of the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ for all eternity. But if you trample on the blood of Christ, if you reject God's great salvation.
You are going to end up in a lost eternity, and while many of us are singing the song of the Redeemed in the Father's house, you will be weeping and gnashing your teeth in the lake of fire.
That was prepared originally for the devil and his angels.
It's real. It's serious tonight. It's urgent tonight.
Don't neglect.
So great salvation.
You know, when you leave this world, there's no negotiations.
A businessman said to a friend of mine one time when this friend brought before him the need of salvation. He said. When I get to heaven, I'll negotiate myself in.
You might have to negotiate in the business world to survive today.
And they give courses. They say in the business world, you get don't get what you deserve, you get what you negotiate. But that's not true in connection with your soul.
You'll not negotiate your way in at the Gate of Heaven.
If you leave this world in your sins.
You will eventually stand before the Lord Jesus and your mouth will be stopped.
Yes, it will. It will be stopped. You will have nothing to say in the courtroom of God in that day.
People negotiating courtrooms today, they make bargains, they negotiate in the judges chambers and then they come out and there's plea bargains and they plead guilty or not guilty and this and that and the other thing. And if they can get a good lawyer and they're a fast talker, they can often get off or get the sentence reduced. But not so in that day when you stand before the great white throne. Like to read couple of verses in the book of Romans again.
This time in the 10th chapter.
Romans, chapter 10.
And verse nine, That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus.
And shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead. Thou shalt be saved.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. You know we often quote these verses in the gospel. Often we quote the 10th verse, and we stop there. But I believe the two verses go very well and very necessarily together. And you'll notice that the order is reversed in the in the 11Th ver, in the 10th verse. In the ninth verse, we find it speaks of confessing with the mouth first.
00:50:24
And then it speaks of the heart believing in the heart. I suggest that the confessing in this verse.
Is to confess to God or to the Lord Jesus. You know the thief on the cross did that, didn't he?
He turned to the Lord Jesus in his dying hour and he confessed. He called Jesus Lord.
He said, Lord, Remember Me when thou comest into thy Kingdom.
Have you ever turned to Jesus in that way? Have you ever confessed Jesus as Lord?
Have you ever then believed in your heart? The two things go hand in hand here, confessing him as Lord, and believing in the heart. But then you notice in the next verse the order is reversed. Here it there it says, For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation, if you have believed in your heart.
If there has been a real work of grace in your soul, I want to encourage you to confess to someone that you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior. The confession here is to someone else. Turn to someone. After this meeting, go to someone. I remember preaching the gospel in a setting very similar to this, and a young boy coming up afterwards and saying, Mr. Highland, I want to tell you that I know the Lord Jesus as my Savior.
You know when you do that, it's a real confirmation in your soul. It will give you a real piece of soul that you are truly saved. Yes, it is believing in your heart. Yes, it is confessing Jesus as Lord to Him first. But there's a confirmation in your soul by confessing it to others. And there is a thrill to the one to whom you confess. You think I wasn't thrilled that night when that boy, young boy came up to me and confessed.
That he knew the Lord Jesus as the savior? Of course I was. You think mom or Dad wouldn't thrill if you turned them to them tonight? And you said, you know I know the Lord as your as my savior. Maybe you've been saved for quite a while. Have you ever told mom or dad? Have you ever told a friend? Have you ever told someone else?
I remember getting up to preach the gospel.
Just after I had heard the news of a young boy.
Through a tragic accident being ushered into eternity.
And I mentioned this incident in the Gospel Meeting. And after the gospel was over, another young boy.
The age of this boy that had been killed came up to me.
And he said, Mr. Highland, I know where that boy is tonight.
I said, How do you know?
He said. Because the last time we were together.
He told me that he knew the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior.
You know, when I stood up a few days later to take that young boy's funeral, it gave me great confidence because that boy had confessed the Lord Jesus as his savior and young boy, young girl, if you went out tonight and were killed, or something tragic happened and you were ushered into eternity tonight.
Could your parents and friends and those who know you stand around and say, we know where that person is, They're with the Lord. They confess the Lord Jesus as their savior. Or would we have to say, well, I hope so. You know, they were brought up in a Christian home and they always were respectful when the Bible was read at the table. And they never opposed coming to the gospel meetings. I hope they're saved. Oh, I tell you, you want those you leave behind to have an assurance of your salvation.
Confessed him tonight. I'd like to, in closing, turn to one more scripture.
It's in Second Timothy chapter 3.
Second Timothy, chapter 3 and verse 15.
00:55:04
And that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation.
Through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
Perhaps there's someone here tonight and you haven't heard the Holy Scriptures or the Word of God, the Bible.
From the early days of your childhood, but many of us have.
And it's the Holy Scriptures that are able to make us wise unto salvation, In other words, for our purposes, at the end of this gospel meeting tonight, it's the Bible that shows us the way of salvation, and it shows us very clearly. Maybe you feel the gospel hasn't been made clear tonight.
If you feel that way, oh go to the word of God, read John's Gospel, read the New Testament. It's the Holy Scriptures that wake us, wise unto salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus.
You know, the preacher last night was telling us that he got in trouble because he had a GPS.
And it didn't quite give the right directions.
I get in trouble because I don't have AGPS and my wife and others who know me best will tell you.
I can get lost very easily. My wife professes that she can spin me in my backyard and I'm turned around and she's not far off.
But you know what? I hold AGPS in my hand tonight. I speak reverently. That'll never guide you. Wrong. This book shows us the way to heaven. It tells us, without a doubt, very clearly, how we can be saved, how we can get there. And it will never guide you. Wrong. It leads to God's happy home, the Father's house to be with the Lord Jesus Christ.
It shows, I say, very clearly.
God's way of salvation. But all the great question at the end of this meeting is.
Have you followed the directions of this blessed book? Are you saved? Do you know that wonderful salvation I want to close tonight by singing one verse of hymn #36 on the gospel hymn sheet? Oh, do not let the word depart and close thine eye against the light.
Poor Sinner, harden not thine heart thou wouldst be saved.
Why not tonight? Just verse one in the chorus of hymn #36 if someone will please start it.
Sudden Fear
Heavy Burdens
Children—Stephen Rule
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.
Who's got a number you'd like to start with? All right, Daniel.
I'll give you a chance to sit nice and loud.
44.
#44.
Somebody could start these. That'd be a real help to me and everybody else, I think.
Ending week on the last word of his pride, just as he enters the valley on time.
Constant it's under so happens that he and I am sure that he sent him for me. Tell it on him, tell it on him.
Salvation story. Repeat more and go.
Till none can pay off the children of men.
Nobody ever has told me before. Good. Who else has one you'd like to sing? OK, Say it nice and loud for everybody. 45. Thank you. All right.
Good. Somebody else, we'll think as many as we can in these first few minutes. OK, go ahead, 41. Thank you.
Glory. Glory because.
Shining from the spotless white, each one will be alright. Well, they give up my lasting life and joy that never painting boring glory.
I bring them to thy foil upon thy heavens of fright and unfair. We're all in peace and joy and love are form of children. They're singing glory.
00:05:18
Glory, glory.
Glory being to come on.
Good, another one.
OK, number one thing #1.
Good. You can choose anyone on here you'd like. So I'm glad that we could sing that one. That'll fit in a little bit with what we'll talk about later. So we have time for maybe two more now and we'll see at the end of the meeting. All right.
22 Thank you.
Then we'll continue.
00:10:26
Umm, very good. Umm and me ready rend your mind and you're running. You're in your mind and be riding for the bridegroom's night. Good. One last one for now and I'm not too likely. We'll get to more later.
43 Thank you.
#43 will be our last one.
Good. Let's talk to the Lord Jesus. Ask for his help. Ask that we'll all be able to hear what he has to say today.
I'd like to talk about the verse that's in the Sunday School paper this morning, and I'll give you a chance to quote that one or another one you may have learned in just a moment.
Let me say that verse first.
Come unto me. Does anyone know it so well you'd be able to say it for everybody first? Or would it help if I said it first? You wanna say it? OK, you can say it first. Then come on to me. I'll eat that labor. And I have you waiting. And I won't give you a rest. Matthew 1128. Good. Thank you. Who else would like to? OK, let me just go around the row. Anyone that like to say that or another one you've learned. Come on to me. I'll eat that labor and our heavyweight and And I'll give you a rest. Matthew 1128.
Thank you. Who else?
Coming to come into me all you that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you a rest. Matthew 1128 OK, come on to me, I'll eat that labor and our heavy laden and I will give you rest. Matthew 1128. Come on to me I'll eat that Lady and our heavy laden and I will give you rest. Matthew 1128. Very good. MMM, I don't know what it starts with.
Come on to me. Come on to me.
The Labour.
There have been maiden.
And I will give you rest, and I will give you rest.
11, 11/20.
Late and I will give you rest. Matthew 1128. Good. Thank you. All right.
Come on to me, all these are labor and are heavy laden and I'll give you rest. Matthew 1128.
Come on to me, I'll leave that labour in our heavy laden and I will give you rest. Matthew 1128. Good. Thank you. Anybody else over here I missed wants to say it, OK.
Come unto me only that labor, and our heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 1128.
All right, now we're going to talk about that first, and if you have your Bible and we've got time towards the end, we'll talk about another verse just past it. I think I could quote it, but I'm safe as reading. So if you have your Bible, it doesn't hurt to turn and look at it.
And I'll read to you Matthew 11/28/29 and 30.
Matthew 1128 you all quoted Come unto me.
All ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. For I am meek and lowly in heart. And ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Let's enjoy those verses together. But before we get to those last couple that I think are wonderful and enjoyable, want to talk about that first one, which is also wonderful, but it's got a serious part to it and I need a volunteer to help me out. It has to be somebody.
About middle sized would work best I think. OK if you want to come up you can be my helper.
And I've got some things here that I'll need to make use of, and all the rest of you are going to have to help us.
00:15:08
And we've got a bunch of stuff in that bag. You can probably guess what it is.
You carry that for me. You don't have to lift it up quite yet. You think you could put this on your back? Nothing in it. It's empty. So look bad. I'm pretty carryable. All right. Wanna put that on a little backpack? Just slide it on over your shoulder there. Right on the other side. Perfect. Thank you. Is that heavy? No. And you know, you think you could run all the way up? Which floor were you on for your room 6? You think you could run all the way up to the 6th floor without on your back? No problem. Easily. Good.
Thank you. I won't make you do it, but you know, sometimes we have done something that doesn't seem too bad. It doesn't weigh very heavy on it. How many of you have ever told a real quick lie and nobody noticed and your mom and dad weren't there and you forgot about it a minute or two later?
I must admit my hands up, not just to kind of encourage you on how to raise a hand, my hands up because I've done that. It's wrong. To God, it's a big thing, but to us it seems pretty small. And that's what I'd like to illustrate with this backpack. We're talking about some burdens in here, but maybe you did something else and a friend noticed it. This is a rock, and it's not too heavy. I don't think this will hurt your back at all. You can tell me if this gets a little too heavy for you.
We'll put that in there. Do you even notice the weight of that one? Can you feel it? No, not at all.
She's strong. It won't hurt her at all, will it? And sometimes that's what we feel. Maybe we're maybe our mom and dad sometimes. I know I'm certainly guilty of it. Sometimes in my house, something gets said and it's not very respectful, but it's not outright defiant. And it kind of slides on by. Or maybe somebody gets asked. You get asked at home to do something by your mom or dad, and you always do it the first time they ask, right? You, you and your mom or dad calling from the other room and call your name and they say come.
Give me a hand in the kitchen. And you always come running right away. You're playing with your friends, you're playing with your toys. You hear your mom or dad call. Come and oh, that's mom or dad. I want to do what they have to say. And you come running, right? How many of you always do that?
How many of you sometimes do that?
How many of you think hard can remember once when you did that? All right, Hopefully all of you. But when you think about, oh, you know, just some other little thing and and this is the way it seems to us. They're all big things to God. I want to illustrate the other part the way it seems to us. I remember something in our.
Memory. Something I remember happening with the child that in that house, that child wasn't allowed to drink a lot of pop.
How many of you like maybe sometimes it's good to have and it's kind of a sugary drink maybe. Oh, but this house, they weren't allowed to have it very often. It was pretty rare treat, but there was some in the pantry in this house and the child in that house discovered it in the pantry. You know, it's kind of dark in most pantries. So many of the pantry at your house, it's kind of dark.
Well, some of you do. Lots of you do. And how many of you have a mom or dad that spends a lot of time in there?
Well, I think maybe they run in and out, but hopefully they don't spend a lot of time in the pantry. Maybe they're in and out of it a lot. So this person, according to the story, discovered that there was some pop in there and it was a big, big bottle and it was full.
And after the first time, or maybe the second or the third time they discovered it, it wasn't quite so full anymore. It was a little bit.
What do you think was happening?
You have a guess.
What was happening?
Whoever it was was drinking some of that pop and nobody noticed.
Do you think that kind of do you think they were aware of it?
I think they were kind of aware of it. Can you feel that now?
How many of you would be aware that sneaking something that your mom or dad doesn't like is not a good thing? In fact, it's what God calls. What's God called that?
God calls him soon and you're kind of got it at the back of your mind. How many of you have done something and it was kind of at the back of your mind and you were open. Nobody would ever notice. Only children, apparently. Most, no, all of us have done that. It's just not obvious where. I'm asking anybody here because I think everybody has done something like that and you know it's wrong, but nobody noticed. Is that true?
00:20:22
No. Are you noticing now though?
The weight on your back, you feel that a little bit.
Well.
Once we've seen, then nobody caught us and we sinned again and nobody caught us. You know what? It gets a little easier the next time. And in this case, there was something else done that was.
Everybody would have recognized it to be a big deal.
You see that if you're looking forward to carrying that for me, you think you can want to try, you tell me if it's too heavy and I'll take it out.
But I guess that's the idea. This person did something. Oh.
It was pretty bad and this time they got caught. This time they got caught. Is that heavy?
Kind of I'll try to make this next part go quick because there's more in the bag, you know? OK, this time they got caught and it was kind of heavy. Are you ready for me to take that off your back?
Yeah, OK. I'll take it off your back.
But I'll add a little bit more to the story here. This person got caught. Thank you very much. I'll put it on my back and somebody else will have to help me out here in a minute. Thank you. Oh, you want to carry it? All right, we'll let you carry it. Thank you very much. That one got kind of heavy. I'm glad that that got heavy quickly, you know, for some people. Can you squeeze? There we go. Alright. That's not so bad, huh? Which floor were you on? 60? Good. So this person, they did something even worse. Didn't have anything to do with Pop.
Mom and Dad didn't know anything about that pop, but that's how it started.
Little things that mom and dad didn't notice, nobody knew, nobody caught on. It was kind of strange. That thing had a leak and there wasn't any sticky stuff on the floor. But maybe, maybe it did get used. Maybe we just forgot we never used the stuff. Maybe when we had some guests that got used, they thought, and so it kept on shrinking, but other things came up and then they got caught about this other big thing. And you know, what do you think they were already?
To admit to their parents what they've done.
Feelings. They were all ready, no?
What did that person probably do? Not that you would know anything about it, but can you help me guess what that person might have done? He lied. Now, that person lied about it not just once, but a bunch of times. And you know what? That kind of weighed on the contest. You ready for one of these? You think so? All right. I know it'll fit in there without it being on the back. I'm not sure.
OK. Is that nice and comfortable?
Ready to run up to the 6th floor for me? Come back and report how it feels. You're starting to feel the weight of that on your back.
You want to take it off.
You don't care. Yeah, but you're leaning forward to help balance the weight. So I will help you balance it by taking it off. Let me take that weight off. Thank you.
Thank you. You know what, I hope something this morning. If any of you don't know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, even the littlest thing that seems like a little Pebble and you can't even hardly feel it. Did you feel this backpack when I put it on your back just fairly, Not really. It's really pretty light. That's the nice thing about it. But that's what we think about sin. But I want you to remember that the Lord Jesus thinks about sin as a very serious thing, something that he says come unto who?
Come on to me and I will give you.
Rest. Does it feel better to have that backpack off? Yeah, it feels better, doesn't it? That's a little bit heavy. We don't always like to admit it, but it's a little bit heavy. I wanna tell you a story that I hope will illustrate this pretty well. I wasn't going to tell you this story. It wasn't in my mind. But when Mr. Jim Island was speaking last night, I thought, you know what? Maybe we should spend a little bit more time on this first verse. Come unto me and I.
We'll give you rest.
00:25:01
You ready? How many of you know what a mine is?
How many of you know what a mine is?
Can you tell me real quick for the few that don't know, can you tell us what a mine is?
Unexplained that No. Anybody else want to explain it? All right, you explain to us what I'm mine is a mine is a place where they get stuff like coal and other minerals and, umm, valuable stones out of the ground. OK, great. Thank you. This was one of those that was a coal mine in Illinois and it was 200 feet under the ground. There was a great big vein of coal, a great big area where they can mine coal. And 300 more feet down there was another even bigger one.
And this happened 101 years ago this month. 101 years ago sounds like a long time, but there's mines today. And, you know, a lot of bad things can happen in those mines. So there were 200. Anybody know how 200 feet is a long way, right? How many of you were on the 11Th floor? Everybody here on the 11Th floor?
Anybody ran all the way up the stairs to the 11Th floor? Oh good.
I thought maybe some people would walk but not run 11 floors, I don't know exactly. In this hotel, I think of a floor, it's about 10 feet. This first floor, if you notice when you did the stairs, it's a little taller.
You can look at the ceiling. It's a little taller, but we'll say each one. Can you imagine going all the way up 12 floors in this hotel, right? How many more floors would we need to go up to be the height of that first part of the mine?
Eight more Good. Can you imagine going up 20 floors? I'll skip a lot of this, all the details in the story so we can get to other parts, but I want you to think about this. Can you imagine being 20 floors under, 20 floors down?
Would you like to go that far down into a hole in the ground? I don't like squeeze in spaces. Anybody else here that doesn't like squeeze in spaces? I don't like them. I don't like to look around and be hardly able to move. But this was 20 floors down into the ground. And you know what? They had big wood Timbers over to keep the roof from caving in, and they had lots of electric lights and so on, but they weren't working. So they had some kerosene lamps down there temporarily.
They had lots of nice engines, train engines at the top. Up upstairs they had automobiles and so on. But they down inside the mine, they had some mules. You know what a mule is, right? We'll pretend they're sort of like a horse. So they had a mules and they fed them hay and one of those carts of hay got parked right underneath a kerosene lamp and it was dripping, dripping, drip, drip. You know what, kerosene is kind of like gas. Do you think it's a good thing to have gas dripping on hay in the middle of a little shaft of coal?
Not a good idea.
And it caught fire. And then the beams that supported the walls of that coal mine, they caught fire.
And it was no big deal because they would get the fire out pretty quickly. And some mine workers were on their way out of the mine and they just went up and they walked by and, oh, hopefully somebody puts that out soon. And others went by. But before long, that whole part of the mine was on fire.
How would you like to be down in the mine that day?
All those beams were hissing and cracking and there was a pop as some of the beams gave way and some of the coal in the roof fell in and there were miners. Now, do you think they wanted to get out of the mine that day?
They sure did. Is anybody here complained about having to walk up to your room? Anyone in the front rows kind of complain your mom or dad wanted to walk up and OK, got a few. All right, There was a stairway all the way up to the top, and it was made out of wood.
And that stairway went up 200 feet. Do you think there were any miners that complained about running up those stairs?
With the fire behind them in the mine, No, not a single one complained. You know, Mr. Jim talked to us last night and he was talking about a lot of things along the lines of salvation and fleeing from the wrath to come. They were running out of that mine. But somebody upstairs, they were really smart, they thought. They thought, oh, we'll get the smoke out of the mine to help people. So they turn on a great big fan and it sucked all the smoke up out of the mine. You know what came up with the smoke?
All the flames came right up and burned out that stairway. It was gone.
And there were hundreds of people trapped down below there in the mine. So there were 13 men.
And those 13 men said, we're not going to leave our fellow miners trapped in that mine. We're going to go get them. And so they did. They climbed on something they called a cage. How many of you, instead of the stairs, used an elevator?
00:30:06
Well, lots more hands on that one.
All right, lots of people use that elevator, and this one had bars in it, so they called it a cage, but it was an elevator and there was somebody up at the top with a lever, and he raised and lowered it. And those people went down into the mine, and already some of the mine, they went down the first time. There are a bunch of people ready to get on. They wanted to get out of there. And so they got on to that cage and they started to go up to the top and they came out to the top. They're gasping for breath, but they were safe, those 13 people.
They went down a second time into the mine.
This time it was harder. This time they started to go. And it was like here, how many of you, probably some of you heard a hallway back in here, Every once in a while a squeaky cart goes squeak, squeak, squeak down the hallway there. And there were lots of hallways like that. So they would come down the elevator and then they would go into a hallway and they would call out if there was anybody there. And there might be somebody in one of the side passages in the mine where they were mining coal and they were calling out.
Something that Peter said.
They were calling it out. Does anybody remember what Peter said when he got into trouble?
Did he say help?
I mean it was a time when he did, but all I remember was him saying Lord.
Go ahead, say it nice and loud. Save me. They were calling out, save me if they could. And they could be heard and these people would rush to them and they picked them up and they put them on their backs and they get them to the cage. And the flames kept getting closer and closer and they went down a third time and a fourth time. And by the 5th time, you know what happened? Some of the wives people gathered. Smoke was billowing up out of that mine into the sky and people were gathering around from the whole little town, the whole town. And all they did was mine or help people that were miners.
There's nothing else in the town of Cherry, IL And they went there and they said their wives came along and they grabbed some of those rescuers and they said don't go into that mine. They could see the smoke billowing out. The people that were coming out were now coming out burned alive, but burned.
And they were holding onto the leg or holding onto the arm of their husband and they said don't go into that mine. And they broke 33 and they went in a fifth time and they came out again.
Do they think that God everybody.
They didn't. So they went down a sixth time. Remember I told you there were two levels to that mine. One was 500 feet down. They couldn't leave their friends 500 feet down. So they went into the mine again and they went down, down, down. But there was a law in Illinois, there's still, I don't know. I don't know if there still is or not. There was a law in Illinois that you could not, if you're down in a mine, the person operating that elevator, that cage, he could not bring up the people up from down below unless there was a signal from down below.
Some signal and the person that went down, the boss, his name was Alex Norberg and he said don't bring it up unless you hear two rings and then bring it up quickly. If you hear three rings on your bell, bring it up slowly. And then he had other signals for letting it down further and they let it down into the mine 1/6 time.
That sixth time it went down into the mine. There was all kinds of jangling. And the person operating the elevator, he didn't know that they wanted to go down. Did they want it to go up? Did they want it to go up slowly? He didn't know what to do. What would you do?
I don't know what I would do, but as I thought about that and I thought about all those flames in the mine and the signal coming out of it, I thought of this first, and I want to read it to you. It's in the same chapter of Matthew. I'm sorry, same book of Matthew. If you'll turn over to Matthew, I thought of another flaming pit, and I thought of another signal coming from that pit, and I want to read it to you. You don't have to turn to it, but it's in Matthew chapter 27.
Now verse 45. Now from the 6th hour.
There was darkness over all the land until the 9th hour and about the 9th hour Jesus cried with a loud voice saying Eli, Eli, Lama, Sabachthani, that is to say, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Did he say Get Me Out of here?
00:35:00
No, he didn't. Did he say pull me up out of this pit? No, he didn't. What was going on at that time? I think, you know, the Lord Jesus was suffering for sin from a holy God. You know, when I borrowed these rocks earlier, I did borrow them. I planned to return them. They're from the landscaping down by the lake over there. And when I borrowed them, I went and found the hotel employee and asked them if it was OK to borrow them for a while. There were two of them there.
You know what? They answered. They're both looking at me. They didn't look at each other. They both got a big grin on their face, and they both did something at the same time. Both of them. They both went like this.
What do you think they were telling me?
We didn't see it. And you know what? That's what people like to do when there's something that, yeah, well, we'll just pretend it didn't happen.
Is that what God did about sin? God didn't do that with sin. God took my sin and he put it on the Lord Jesus Christ. Can you say that about yourself?
Eventually people convinced this cageery was called the elevator operator to pull those men up, and I'll spare you the details, but one of them was just barely alive.
You know what He said at 4 words, at 4 words to say when he came up out of that pit, He said the flames got us and he died. He died right then and there. They had to lean forward and they could just barely hear him whispering, just barely hear him whisper the flames got us. I want to read to you 2 words that the Lord Jesus said when he came up out of that pit. First of all, right here in our chapter, it says he cried again with a loud voice.
Notice that and then turn to John John's Gospel.
Chapter 19.
Well, 3 words, I'm sorry.
3 words in English anyway.
Verse 30.
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said it is.
Finished.
And he bowed his head and gave up the ghost. He said it is finished. That means he took care of the judgment, totally took care of it. And I thought of the story. I thought of those words that one man had to whisper. The flames got us.
But the Lord Jesus could have shouted, I got the flames. He consumed the judgment that was against your sin. You know, you can go to Cherry, Illinois. We did one year ago on November 13th, the 100th anniversary of the event. And we stood in a graveyard and there's 265 little white crosses representing the 265 miners that lost their lives in that mine. 13 of them are for the rescuers that were brought up and taken to that cemetery.
Tiberi, do you know I thought about it in this verse. Come unto me, all ye that labor. There were 265 people that couldn't be saved in that mine. There are none that don't and can't be saved today. He says, Come unto me, all ye that labor, and I will give you rest. Let me show you one other thing I said. I didn't plan to tell that story yesterday, but I think maybe it was more important to talk about that part.
I wanna talk about what 5-6 minutes left. Something for those of you who know the Lord Jesus as your Savior.
And at that other part of the verse, or that other part of the passage, we read.
I need 2 volunteers that are about the same height.
OK, I'll take you and somebody about your eye. OK, we'll take the two of you. I've hidden in this room. Which one of these looks like the thing that would give you rest? This or?
Whoops, get out of here fit. Which one looks more restful? Yeah, I agree. If you're gonna take a nap, I'd much rather have the blanket than the board.
But we're going to illustrate how you get rest from something like a board. All right. Does that look the best I could do? And real quickly on a yolk. Sorry, I'm not a Craftsman. Didn't have a whole lot of time to do it either. Thank you. Would you put one hand on the board? I'm concerned after a little test that I'm not strangling anybody. Be nice. Put one hand on the board you want to hand. OK, You guys have got one minute. I've hidden in this room 3 Super Bowls and three balloons. You can have anything you can find. I'll give you more later. I'll be fair. So go ahead.
You got one minute to find any Super Bowls or balloons you can find.
OK, there is a bag under there. You're gonna find a whole lot more than three.
00:40:07
We'll see about sharing later.
OK, you found the bag. Why don't you leave the bag there and you've got another 40 seconds to find any that are hidden around the room. I didn't think of that as hidden, but it's it qualifies.
N.
Well, they're hidden in the room. I won't tell you where you got 20 more seconds.
10 more seconds.
All right, three more seconds on you. Come on, I'm back to the front.
Is that comfortable?
Pardon.
If you move it off off your head, I try to tie it really loose there for you. Thank you, you guys did a very good job.
Is it easy to move in that thing?
Not really. Not super easy. At one point over here, one person was trying to go one way, one was trying to go the other. That was a little uncomfortable, wasn't it? And the rest of the time, you guys did a very good job of working together. I'm going to show you something else and put it on here.
And after some discussion, my son volunteered to help me out with the other part. All right, so you put that on, lift you up. OK, You hang on to it with your hand There. That's your job. All right, now I'm gonna find the rest of them. Oh, there's one right in here. And, uh, I think there's one over here.
There's one. OK, there's one. There's a nice balloon right over here. Thank you. We'll get the balloon and umm.
We'll come right around over to here.
And I think right under the edge here, there's another one.
There's a balloon right here on the edge. Well, I can't feel it at the moment. And we'll get one more. There it is.
And.
There's another one right here and I think that'll do. Thank you. Set it out. Take it off your head first. All right? Oops, That's all right.
With a little bit of imagination on that second part, you can see the second part of the verse or the second, the next verse. The Lord Jesus says I'll have to flip back to it to get it accurately here as we finish and Matthew Chapter 11.
And verse 29.
I'll reemphasize something in verse 28. Verse 28, it says come.
And I will give.
There are 265 tombstones in that cemetery. But the Lord Jesus, it says if he came right back up out of that pit, kept right on going to heaven, and he can call from heaven to you. And he says I will give right now because he lives. But the next part says take my yoke and learn.
Now.
I don't think we're going to summarize the 1St 11 Chapters of Matthew's Gospel here at the end of his Sunday School for all of you children. But let's give just this one little piece the Lord. How many of you have ever been rejected by somebody else or felt rejected? At least they didn't want to play with you.
All right, whatever it is, the Lord Jesus had been rejected. Do you sometimes feel kind of sad about that? Sometimes there's all kinds of stresses and difficulties. But you know what he always did?
He always obeyed God his Father. He always obeyed God his Father.
Always. And you know what? That was a very Restful thing. How much work did Paul do when we were looking for the?
Super Boss.
I hung on to the board right, so you have to run around. How much directing did he do? How much did he tell me where to go? I actually noticed a couple things and pointed them out, didn't he?
But who was going around deciding where we were going to go?
I did right? Who knew where everything was? I did, except I forgot the bag under the table.
00:45:01
But I did know when we were going around to pick things up where everything was hidden. And you know what if you just simply. And that's why it takes learning because how simple it is.
It takes a lot of learning, but when you learn to just do what the Lord Jesus wants you to do, then it's restful. The yoke is a lot more Restful than the blank.
John 12:1-19
John 13:1-6