Sully Conference: 1991
Table of Contents
Matthew 24
Address—R. Thonney
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Night is far spent.
Day is at hand.
No signs to be looked for. The stars sky Rejoice then he Saints, is your Lords own command.
Rejoice the coming of Jesus.
Rose 9 but a day that will be when the Savior appears. How welcome to those shared in this cross.
A crown incorruptible then will be theirs a rich compensation for suffering.
#168.
The mighty is far spent.
In the blood for the start of the sky.
Rejoice and keep faith in your heart won't come back.
Pray, enjoy your.
Jesus, come on.
What a day will that be when?
A singer appears.
Our welcome to.
I'm sharing his ground.
I'm proud of him and all that world wears.
Always gone. And of course.
Our freedom was.
In this world.
And comparative that day.
To the boring aspect.
Run and be revealed.
More kids nowhere desire my God, which was.
So bad before I go.
The first of my love and it's hard will heart.
Like to turn first of all to Romans chapter 13, just a couple of verses introductory to the subject I'd like to speak of this evening. But evidently these verses were what must have been before the writer of the hymn we just got through singing.
And they speak to me, and I think when we deal with the question of the Lord's coming, that you might like to.
Speak up this evening.
It necessarily has its moral implications in our lives. There's no way we can get away from this threat.
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And I suppose one of the greatest dangers in treating of any subject in Scripture is to treat of it in a fully correct fashion, all orthodoxly in place, but without having the heart affected you're reading. These are things that need to be practical. These are things that are real. The Lord is coming again.
And I really, truly believe that we are on the very edge of the time of awful judgment of this world. We are getting close to the moment when we're going to be taken out of this world and God's judgments are going to fall, you know, sometimes.
Speaking about it, the Lord's coming and everything, I have to kind of stop and pinch myself. Is it really real? Do I really believe this?
It's easy to say a yes or a no with the mouth.
But the real answer is in my life. Do I really believe it? You're going to see it in my life.
That's going to be the real answer. You cannot get away from the moral implications of the fact.
The Lord is coming and He's coming soon. Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonian believers, and he taught them to wait for the sun from heaven.
The Lord come in their time.
The Lord, Come on, the apostle starts. No.
Was that a mistake to teach them that to wait for the sun from heaven?
That was you would seem that way from argumenting human reason, human standpoint. But no, it wasn't a mistake. It is always the proper hope of the Christian to wait for the sun from heaven, and even though they passed on, they're not going to be disappointed.
And so let's read these verses here in the end of the 13th chapter of Romans.
Paul says in verse 11 That knowing the time.
That now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation near than when we believe the night is far spent, the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk honestly as.
In the day, not in writing and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying, that put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof. Here we have it, a real exhortation from the apostle Paul, touching our manner of life in view of the fact.
That it is time to wake out a snake.
Now, is our salvation nearer than when we believe? The Apostle Bob could write that way. We have a lot more reason to be able to say what he said. Now is our salvation near than when we believe? Dear brethren, I'm sure we're all aware of what's going on in the world and the Persian Gulf War, What's happened over there. It's been thrilling to me.
To think that things are taking their course. They're shaping up for the final showdown. Although a lot can happen in the world that we live in. You think if we were raptured out this evening to the glory, dear brother, why it would be perhaps 7 brief years and the Lord Jesus would be introduced into power and glory in this world. Tremendous to think of it.
But seven years is 1/2 a long time in today's world, the way things move.
And we are seeing things happen and I don't know exactly how to fit the pieces together over there, how they're working now, Iraq and Saddam Hussein. It is interesting that it is part of the old Assyrian Empire and that.
Main enemy, the king of the north is going to be not serious, but the Assyrian which comprehends parts of Iraq.
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Syria and Turkey.
It is the Assyrian Confederacy and.
So it's going to be interesting to see just what happens. There are several strong men over there right now. King Assad of Assyria of Syria is an enemy of Saddam Hussein. So one of those guys got to drop out of power so that there will be one figurehead. Who it will be, we don't really know, but that will happen right at the end of the tribulation period. But it's interesting to see things moving in that general direction.
But my desire this evening is to perhaps give a brief picture of prophecy so that, dear brother, we might like it says here, wake up, it's time to wake up. And I really and truly believe that God is allowing not only these things in modern, the modern world of politics, but he's allowing problems among God's people.
The pressures on every side are becoming so strong.
That I don't know anywhere that they don't have some pretty serious problems. Why is God allowing them? Jesse wants.
High time to wake out of sleep.
And so we need to be a waste, dear brother, as never before. We all know it's physical. Sleep is the person who's asleep is not alert. You can talk to him. He doesn't respond.
Never been sighed.
Talk about our business operations, Why we're all alert and talking. We talk about our family, we're all alert and talking. Talk about our cars, we're all alert and talking.
Conversation turns to the Lord Jesus.
Notice sometimes that there's not quite so much conversation.
Does that mean that we are sleep spiritual?
Things that we need to think about here, man.
We need to wake up. It's high time to wake as they much honestly, I'm not saying this to you rather than I'm not around here to know you all that well, but I'm saying it to my own heart. I really and truly believe that a vast majority of believers are asleep spiritually.
God is speaking to us.
Wake up the supreme woman of believing this world forever behind and going to encounter the man of Calvary Satan.
Need to be awake.
I would rather than may the Lord give us.
That moment to be awake. So he says the night is far spent. The night. This is the night for the believer. The day was at hand. We're going to see the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings, but we will not see it from down here. We're going to see it from there before the night is over.
The Morning Star is going to rise and we're going to be gone.
Gone to meet the Savior.
But tonight is far spent the days at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness. Let us put on the armor of light. The believer in the Lord Jesus occupies a position in the light.
Whether he likes it or not.
He's in the light, the believer in the Lord Jesus. That's the position you occupy. Someone asked one time, What if the believer turns us back on the light? Well, the light shines on his back was the answer that was given. And it's true. Everything you and I do, the light shows. And you cannot tie things in life. How important to live openly, dear brother, not hiding things.
Especially in view of the fact that the Lord is coming again.
I often think of that force American woman in the fourth of John, when she got into the presence of the Lord Jesus, she found out that she was annoying.
He had said to her, go call thy husband after she had asked for that water, that living water. She had said, go, call thy husband, come here. She says I don't have anything. She.
Kind of telling the half truth and the Lord Jesus said that's well said. I have no husband because thou hast had five husbands and heathen thou now hast is not thy husband. That's it's not true.
Immediately she realized that here was somebody that knew every detail of her life, and she went into the city and said to those men, Come see a man that told me all things that ever I did. Is not just the Christ the liberty of conscience, dear brethren, when we have everything out of the life.
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There's something in your conscience that is valid. I plead with you to get it out into the light. The Lord is coming soon, and it's just going to be for greater shame if we don't get it out into the light. That's the position that I try to hide something in the light. I only make myself that much more conspicuous.
I hold my hands behind my back up here this evening and you can hear I have there's a there's a bag here and I didn't want anybody to see it. And I notice you start looking at me. It make me more nervous. I would only make myself that much more conspicuous by trying to hide something in the light.
Only going to provide himself to do such a thing. And so we are to cast off the works of darkness and to put on the armor of the light. And honestly it says here as in the day, not in writing and drunkenness.
Not in chambering in wantonness, not in strife and envying drunkenness is spoken of here.
And I don't. I suppose it's not merely.
A physical drunkenness that is spoken of, but there is such a thing as spiritual drunkenness as well. A person who is drunk is under the influence of something he has taken in.
You know, there's influences in this world, not merely strong drink, but there are influences in this world that affect a person so greatly that he cannot walk rightly as a believer in the Lord Jesus. Not to walk, that is in the spiritual sense of we need to be careful. We need to not become under the influence of our outside circumstances to the point where we do not walk like a believer on the law.
The Lord keep us, dear brother, The Lord is coming again. I'd like to turn back now to Matthew 24. It's a chapter that the brethren in South America go over quite frequently in their conferences down there, and I must say, going over it with them a number of times, it is been very interesting. This is a chapter that is confused a lot in person at large today because they do not distinguish between Israel and the church.
They mix it all together and they see the church in Matthew 24.
But the church does not figure Matthew 24, nor does the rapture of the church we're going to see later on in the chapter. The rapture of the church was a mystery that was revealed to the apostle Paul, and he speaks that in First Thessalonians four. It was not revealed at this time when the Lord Jesus spoke these words, He knew about it, of course, but He did not. He had not revealed.
The truth of the rapture of the church. What we have in this chapter is Israel, and I'd like to take it up in a brief overall way this evening to give a brief outline of those seven years of the tribulation period. Some people ask why we get 7, but if you would go back and we're going to notice that the Lord Jesus refers to in this 24th chapter, Daniel the prophet.
In the 9th chapter Daniel, Daniel is given the prophecy.
That there were 70 weeks appointed to his people Israel, and those seventy weeks were divided into three parts, 7 weeks, 62 weeks and one final week.
Now, those were not weeks of days. There were weeks of years. There are other parts in the Old Testament where it is used in that way. They're weeks of years. So the seven weeks would be 49 years, the 62 weeks would be 434 years, and then there's one final week, which would be the seven years, and that's the final week that we're talking about, that tribulation period. That's where we get 7.
Now I want to say something here that I think is important.
To remember, it is not the rapture of the Church that signals the beginning of that last seven years.
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It is not the rapture of the Church. We believe that the rapture of the Church takes place before that final seven years, but it is not the rapture of the Church that signals that. What is it?
If you look carefully in Daniel, and I don't really have time to look at it this evening, but it is a pact that will be made between the Roman Prince and the people of Israel that will be signed for protection. When that pact is signed, the prophetic clock begins to tick and from that moment there will be seven years exactly till the Lord Jesus feet touch them.
On the Mount of Olives, outside of Jerusalem, to the east of Jerusalem.
That's what begins the the last seven years, That's what signals that path that will be signed between Western Europe, the beast and.
Israel. When that fact is signed, it will be 7 years. Now those seven years are divided in two parts.
And it is spoken of in Scripture sometimes as a time times, and half a times we take one 2 1/2, that's 3 1/2 years. Sometimes it's spoken of as 42 months, which is also 3 1/2 years. Sometimes it's spoken of 12160 days, which according to the Jewish way of calculation with 360 days to the year.
Is also 3 1/2 years, but every time it mentions that time frame it is in reference to the last 3 1/2 years, not the first. The last 3 1/2 years.
It is the time of Jacob's trouble. It is the time.
That we'll notice in verse 21 That is called great tribulation. Great tribulation really refers to the last half of the tribulation period. The first half I would like to say is perhaps we could put a name on it here in the.
Verse 8, the beginning of sorrows, the first half of the tribulation period, the first half of those last seven years is the beginning of stars. The last tap is great tribulation. And so I'd like to read this chapter now and then briefly go over it.
Let's begin at verse three of Matthew 24.
And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him, privately saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and at the end of the world?
When Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you, for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars. See that he be not troubled. For all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
Four Nations shall rise against nation, and Kingdom against Kingdom, and there shall be famines and pestilences, and earthquakes in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and you shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come.
When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel Abraham, stand in the holy place. Who Sorina, let him understand. Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains. Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house, neither left him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe to them that are with child, and to them which gives stuck in those days.
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But pray ye, that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day, for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time.
No, nor ever shall be, and except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved, but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, appears Christ, or there believe in not, for there shall arise false Christ, and the false prophets.
And shall show great signs and wonders in so much that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you for.
Wherefore if they shall send to you, behold, he is in the desert.
Go not forth, the only is in the secret chamber. Believe it not. Whereas the lightning cometh out of the east, and shine it even into the West, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For wheresoever the carcass is, there will be Eagles be gathered together. Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with this great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect.
In the four winds from one End of Heaven to the Other. Now learn a parable of the fig tree.
When its branch is yet tender, and put it forth leaves. Ye know that summer is 9. So likewise ye when you see, shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I send to you. This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour not no man.
No, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. And as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the sun man be. For as the days that were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and do not until the flood came and took them all the way, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.
Then shall two be in the field, the one shall be taken and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill, the one shall be taken and the other left.
Watch therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord does come, but know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch that he would come, he would have watched and would not have suffered his house to be broken out. But therefore be also ready for in such an hour as she think not the Son of Man coming. I'm just going to read that far for right now. Here we have them, and I'd just like to briefly point it out.
From the third verse to the 14th verse.
Basically is let's treats of the first half of the tribulation period from the 15th verse on is the last half of the tribulation period. If you keep that in mind it it helps a bit and we read down to verse 44 from verse 45 of this chapter through chapter 25 and verse 30 is a parenthesis in which the Lord gives practical teaching which applies in principle.
But verse 44 of the 24th chapter connects directly with the 31St verse of the 25th chapter. Just like to either notice it in the 44th verse of the 24th chapter says.
Yeah, the Son of Man, therefore be also ready for in such an hour as you think not, the Son of Man cometh. And the 31St verse of the 25th chapter says when the Son of Man shall come in his glory. It is really a parentheses between those two verses and they connect that. And we're going to see perhaps if we have time, that that is the judgment of the nation's, the judgment of the living, when the Lord Jesus comes back to set up his earthly Kingdom.
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Here in this world, some people say why should we study prophecy if it doesn't have to do with the church?
Dear brother, you know why? Because we are the bride of Christ and prophecy has to do with the revelation of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus. When I read these parts, it thrills my soul.
To this thing of that moment, perhaps within one decade. 1 decade isn't that long, brother.
Within one decade, you and I believers in the Lord Jesus. Within one decade, you and I, believers in the Lord Jesus, are going to personally witness the introduction of the Lord Jesus as He comes back from heaven with power and great glory, and He's going to smite through.
The powerful armies. We've just seen how the armament of this world is so tremendously advanced in technology, It's going to smite through army after army. In that coming day, we're going to see him reign.
You and I are destined to great things.
You see why we need to wake up. We really need to. We're living right on the edge of all these things that we're talking about.
Well, the disciples came to the Lord Jesus asking him about.
Sign of thy coming, it says in verse three. And at the end of the world, I think Mr. Garbage translation says at the end of the age, it's not the end of the world because the world will go on for another thousand years in the millennial day. It's going to be a purification, but it will be the same world that will go on throughout the millennial day, another thousand years. And it will be at the end of that millennial day that this present world will disappear, will melt.
Good for the peace will be gone.
Like it says in another place, the 1St heaven and the first earth are passed away and so it's the end of the age that he's speaking up here. Then the Lord Jesus gives them signs.
Many shall come in my name and say I am Christ. It's amazing how many people there are that are taking that position today. Somebody told me a while back in Los Angeles County alone how many there were. I was astounded.
That are actually saying they are Christ.
We are in Bolivia, still living in Bolivia. There is a man in Santa Cruz, Bolivia who took that position.
Incredible how people follow this. Totally correct. I just couldn't believe it. There's a man who was from Chile, evidently had lived in Argentina for a number of years and came as a missionary to Bolivia, and evidently was preaching fairly decent gospel at that time. But when he got into Bolivia, he started changing his tune and he finally declared himself to be Christ.
You know what he does? His name starts with J Julio Julius, and he translated into English. He takes the name of Jesus out of worship him and puts his own name in there, and he stands up in front of his congregation and they worship him.
Just awful to think of the awful blasphemy of men like that that take that position. But it's the Spirit that is working in the world today. It is at work in a far greater measure. And I think we realize there are people who say they are Christ.
When that man was operating, I think he still is in Bolivia, we used to have a evangelical bookstore there, so Bibles in the main class of Montero, where we used to live. And one day one of this man's followers came into the bookstore to talk, basically talk. I think that's all they wanted to do. And I said to him, look, fella, you need to be really careful because the Scripture says.
That there's going to be a lot of false Christs that are going to arise.
And the scripture says that when the Lord Jesus comes back to the earth, every eye shall see him. And I haven't seen this guy. You're back tonight.
And he listened to me and tried to reason with.
While and he shook his head.
And he said, just like the first time.
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You won't have.
But the more you speak against.
The more I adore.
Can you say it's a definite spirit of error that's working since?
When people do not read the scriptures, they are going to be carried away. Oh, they are brotherly important.
Keeping this book open in our daily lives. Is it something that we read each day? We need to keep it. The spirit of iniquity is already at work.
Two is to say that we're not going to be effective. A true believer can then be lost. But we can be affected. And I keep the light of this precious book open in our homes for our dear children.
For families. And so that was one of the.
Signs Lord gave wars, rumors of wars, nation rising against nation, Kingdom against Kingdom, Famines, pestilences, earthquakes and diverse places. These are all becoming.
Commonplace things in this world.
Now in the United States, we've really been prospered as perhaps no other nation in the history of the world really been prosperous, tremendously trusted.
And it really is amazing when you get out into other areas of the world to see the tremendous poverty.
Dear brother, we need to not fall under the influence of present things. Materialism doesn't have to affect us.
But I think we all admit that it does affect us.
We need to have our vision sharpened, not by material things, by putting them out of this off to one side. We need to have our vision sharpened by the precious light of Scripture, spiritual things, things that are real, things that are eternal, things that will never pass away.
Well, he goes on to say that there were going to be afflicted and killed and hated, and there would be many false prophets, and because iniquity abounded, the love of many shall wax bold. The principle of that is true today, brother.
And then it says in verse 13 something interesting, He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Now, I think it's important to remember when we read this chapter that he's speaking to these Jewish disciples.
And to remember their way of Jewish thinking. What does this mean? To endure into the end? And I think it simply means that those who would endure this tribulation period right to the end would be saved in the Jewish way of thinking. It would be to go into the millennial.
Day on the earth, That's what it meant to be saved. The same shall be saved.
It almost seems, and some people sometimes quote that for believers today, it really doesn't apply directly to believers today. It is really applicable to those who will be present, those that will believe in the tribulation period. If they go through that awful time of tribulation and reach the end without submitting to the beast and to his authority, why they're going to be saved to go into the millennial Kingdom.
Of the Lord Jesus on earth, and then he goes on to say in verse 14, this gospel is the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come.
So during the Tribulation period, during those seven years, there's going to be a gospel preached. Is not the gospel that we preach now. The gospel that we preach now is to say, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. And we tell folks when they get saved, you have a home in heaven. We have a heavenly hope.
But the Gospel of the Kingdom was a gospel somewhat light and I really believe it was what the apostles, excuse me, what was what John the Baptist preached? He basically said repent, the King is coming straight, not your ways. King is coming. The simple message and the brethren of the King, as it is told us in chapter 25, are the beginning of going to be the ones.
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Those Jewish brethren are going to be the ones that carry the message out through the world. They're going to repeat that brave message as they go through the world. And those that accept those that show they believe the message by showing kindness to those messengers of the Kingdom are going to be those who enter the millennial age in this earth.
And so that's the gospel of the Kingdom. Now we come to verse 25. And as I mentioned, this is the beginning of the is from the middle of the tribulation period till the end.
And he speaks of the abomination of desolations that is broken up by Daniel leprosy. You don't know. There's some divergent of a feeling as to just exactly what this is, rather than my own understanding is.
And I am subject to correction if anyone wants to say something, I'm open to listen your brother afterwards. But my understanding of this is that at the middle of that tribulation period, after 3 1/2 years have run their course, it says then he's going to break that covenant. He's going to break it in that he's not going to allow any longer the Jewish people to do their rituals in the temple to offer their animal sacrifices.
He's going to take away the sacrifice and he's going to put the abomination that makes desolate in the holy place. And what I understand, according to Second Thessalonians chapter 2, it is the Antichrist that will have his seat in Jerusalem who will himself see himself in the temple of God as God. That is what the Lord Jesus called the apostasy. Apostasy is turning away from God.
The apostasy is when men in this world turn away from even the outward form of a God in heaven. They abandoned him and they worship a man. This world. They're getting ready to do that now, but they're going to worship a man.
And that is what is called the apostasy. And when that happens, that is the signal. And from that moment on will be the most awful, awful judgments this world has ever known. For 3 1/2 years. God is going to pour out His fury.
An increased measure on this world for 3 1/2 years because of the apostasy. God is not going to hold back anymore.
Even says that there will be no time like it verse 21 it says such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time no nor ever shall be. People can think they saw bad times in the Second World War and they were bad times.
They have seen nothing in respect to what is coming and that we are close to right now.
Awful time of bloodshed that is coming on this way and is just ahead.
The Lord says here in verse 22, Except those days be shortened, there should no flesh be saved, but for the elects sake those days shall be short.
So God is going to shorten those days. God's strange work is judgment. And so when he begins to judge, he makes short work of it. He doesn't like that work. His delight is to say His delight is to show mercy. But when man refuses that mercy, there will be nothing left for him but judgment. Well, we've got to go on here. And he goes on to speak of the.
False Christ that will arise, and the false prophets and any says in verse 27 something that refers to His coming. As the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even into the West, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man. It will be something that will be rapid when he comes.
Then in verse 28 he says wheresoever the carcass is there will the Eagles be gathered again? He's just got through telling me, those Jewish believers, when you see the abomination of desolations in the holy place, then escape. Get out of Jerusalem as fast as you can. Don't go into your house even to take anything out. Those in the tribulation period who will read Matthew 24.
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Will be obedient to this instruction, and they will leave Jerusalem, and Jerusalem will be inhabited only by unbelievers.
And that is the carcass that is spoken of in verse 28. Wheresoever the carcasses, a lifeless body of Jewish people will be, all that remains in Jerusalem where that carcass is, the Eagles will be added together. The nations will begin to gather against Israel. And as what is spoken of in Zechariah, I will gather all nations to battle against Jews.
No wonder. No one.
That place is called the field of blood test.
That's what it is. It is. It's the very strangers. Strangers are going to come from all over the globe.
In that field plus.
Verse 29. Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken. This is speaking up.
Speaking of firstly, authority.
People look to a supreme authority in the nation.
To for direction, for health, for light.
Been pretty evident in this last conflict in the Middle East, how they've looked to President Bush and there's been life. People have been encouraged by what happened.
The president has given the light.
So the sun is a figure of a supreme authority. The moon had arrived, authority, stars, lesser authorities. All this system of government that has existed since Noah's time until now is going to fall to the earth. It's going to be replaced by the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. He says in the 7th trumpet in Revelation. The kingdoms of this world are become the Kingdom of our Lord in his Christ and shall reign forever.
Whatever, that's what it's speaking up here. There's going to be a change in the government of this world.
And then he says he shall send in verse 31.
Verse 30 It says, Then he shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then shall all tribes of the earth mourn. They shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Verse 31 He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Just wanted to stop here a minute to say that this is the verse that many people who do not distinguish Israel in the church mix up and they say that the.
Raptures at the end of the great tribulation. They used this verse to show that, and we need to distinguish your brother. This is not the rapture of the Church when he stands forth his angels with the sound of a great trumpet, It is the recalling.
Of the tribes of Israel who are not in the land, we know that the great tribulation period is basically for two tribes who were present and who were guilty when the Son of God came the first time. They were guilty of His rejection and crucifixion, and so those seven years of tribulation are to reduce them to the recognition of their guilt in the death of the Lord Jesus.
But at the end of those times, the sound of the great trumpet, the agents are going to be sent to gather in those lost tribes of Israel. Those other 10 tribes are going to be gathered in. And that's what is referred to here, says from the four winds, 4 is always a big number connected with this world, with creation. And so from the four winds, wherever they are scattered, says in Isaiah, he shall come from the land of Sinnam.
Which has been set as China.
But who knows exactly where they are? Where Larry Smith used to think that some of the Indians of South America were some of the last drives too. They have some customs that really make you think that that that could be true. But it's all conjecture. We don't know where they are. God knows where they are. And they're going to be called back again at that time as well.
00:50:08
And then he says in verse 32 learn a parable of the fake tree when his branches yet tenders put forth leaves. Ye know that summer is not your brethren with big tree has bloodied.
14 days 1948 Israel became a nation, something that was not true since.
Time of when Jerusalem was destroyed, approximately 40 years after the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus.
Israel exists as a nation now, 43 years almost.
It's hard to believe we're still here.
And then he says, this generation shall not pass away until all these things be fulfilled.
What generation does he have in mind?
I don't think he's speaking necessarily of a time period as some people apply it. It is a moral characteristic that he's Speaking of. He speaks in other areas of unbelieving, adulterous generation. That unbelieving generation that was present when the Lord came will be the same characteristic of the generation when the Lord comes again. That's what characterizes the majority of Jewish people in the land of Israel today.
Unbelieving adulterous generation.
Then he goes on to speak of Noah.
And that it was just like it was in the days of Noah. So it will happen in the days when the Son of Man comes again. Verse 40. Then shall two be in the field? The one shall be taken in the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill. The one shall be taken in the other left. This has been applied as well to the rapture of the Church. But it really is not that that is referred to. We need to.
Remember the Jewish way of thinking that we're going to understand which is the one that is taken, which is the one that is left. Like to refer you back to Proverbs for a verse. There's a number of verses in the Old Testament that show what the Jewish way of thinking was. But just to show one place, Proverbs chapter 2 and verse 21, the last two verses.
Of Proverbs 2.
The upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it, but the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.
That was the Jewish way of thinking. Those who obey God, those who have faith in the upright, would dwell in the land and remain there, and the wicked would be those who would be rooted out of the earth. Now we go back to Matthew 24 and we get the picture according to the Jewish way of thinking.
One shall be taken, the other left. The one that is taken is taken out in judgment, is cut off from the earth. This is when the Lord Jesus is establishing His Kingdom down here in this world in power and glory. And so the one that is taken is cut off from the earth. The one that is left is left to go into the millennial earth under the reign of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Then he goes on to say in verse.
42 Watch. Therefore we've already spoken about the need of watching, being alert in view of the Lorde coming breath. For ye know not what our your Lord that come. But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be also ready, for in such an hour as you think not the Son of Man coming.
He speaks of the.
Dear brethren, the Lord isn't coming for us as a thief.
No, he's coming out for us as a heavenly right. There's two things I haven't mentioned to the Latin believers that you can say about a thief. Number one, you don't want him to come to your house.
Number two, you don't expect them to come.
Do we want the Lord to come? Friends, I know every true believer once and again.
00:55:03
Do you expect him to come? Dear brother, your sister, I know you expect him to come, and he's not coming for you and me as a thief. It says in First Thessalonians chapter 5, Ye brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief. He's not coming for us as a thief. He's coming for this world as a thief. They don't want him to come. They are not expecting him to come, and for them he will come.
So then verse 45 begins that parenthesis, real instruction in those verses that lie in that parenthesis. But I'd like to flip over to the next chapter then before we close and just briefly mention what we have here because we have the introduction into the millennial Kingdom of the Lord Jesus. After the Lord Jesus has put down his enemies, He's going to set the throne of His glory in this world.
31 of Chapter 25 When the Son of Man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory, and before him shall be gathered all nations, and he shall separate them from one from another, as a shepherd divided his sheep from the ghost. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the king say unto them on his right hand.
Come, ye blessed of my father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was in 100 and gave me meat, I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. And he goes on down, numerating the different things that they did for him. And then they say, When did that we do that for the Lord? And he said, In as much as he has done it unto the one of these, the least of these, my brethren.
And so does this Jewish brethren, as they have gone out in the Tribulation period and given the God the message of the gospel of the Kingdom. Perhaps it was not much more than giving a glass of water to one of those poor persecuted people.
That's all it was done. But in that they manifest faith in the message and those are going to be set on the King's right hand. There are those that are the ghosts on the left hand that didn't respond to that message.
And they're going to go away, according to 46, into everlasting punishment. And in the end of verse 46, it says that the righteous into life eternally. And we got to take it in the Jewish sense of the word light. Eternal for those Jewish people was light forever in this world. It's not the Christian sense that we know it now, life and abundance that we know it. It is the Jewish sense of the word light.
Here in this world in earthly material prosperity. That was their way of thinking. So they will go into that millennial day under the reign of Christ to prosper in the earth. That's the sense it one of their detail I'd like to mention here that shows the exactness of Scripture. Your brethren in verse 34 says come ye blessed of my father.
Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Ephesians, one word speaks of the Church and those of us who have been saved and now form the body of Christ in this world. We were chosen before the foundation of the world. Why? Because really we have no connection with this world. The fact that we are here is a brief parentheses of time in the councils and purposes of God, and we're only here as pilgrims and strangers.
And then we're going to be at home forever or But these people who are going to go in their earthly blessing, it says, if their Kingdom was prepared from the foundation of the world, because their blessing is connected with this world.
So just a beautiful point to see how exact Scripture is. And so I just wanted to go over those scriptures, dear brethren, in a brief way. I hope I didn't confuse people. Some people when you get on the prophecy tend to kind of flip off the switch and and don't understand it too well. But it isn't that hard to understand, brother. And isn't it important if we're going to be intimately associated, if we are already intimately associated?
01:00:14
With the Lord Jesus, isn't it important that we understand the direction we're heading? We can, everybody.
It may be a gift of God to give out the scriptures, but it is not a gift to understand the scriptures. That's something that's open for every believer in the Lord Jesus. And if you and I truly desire to understand, I've been encouraged going around the country event and speaking a little bit about prophecy to see how many sisters are really alert. None of all about getting into prophecy and understanding what's going on too.
Dear brothers, let's not get enough feeling, let's understand it too. Let's be awakened. Dear brother, it is now high time to wake out of sleep. For now is our salvation here than anybody. That's great.
Blessed Hope
Address—E. Pilkington
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.
In hope we left our wishful longing eyes.
Waiting to see the morning star lights. How bright out last some of his advent be before the sunshine or the backstreet #208 cents.
How are you?
Staying up with her.
Soul free joy.
Oh dear. Not fair enough. Now, now.
Along the way.
For heroes.
One day, I'm glad.
Turn to 1St Corinthians chapter 13.
00:05:19
Versus the happy farming tonight are well on to one person, I'm sure.
Right. They never go old.
How good to we remain again?
And the hope that we've been singing about.
The First Corinthians 13 verse 12 we read.
For now.
Seen through a last document.
But then face to face.
Now I know in part.
But then till I know, you must also have known.
And how about us? They both charity these three, but the grace of these is charity, which is love.
And so there are many things in life today that we don't understand why the Lord allows certain things to happen.
And it's just like looking through a dark flash.
You just can't see left behind.
I sometimes tell the story of a little girl.
You're living through a store window at some toys.
And the gentleman will often buy knows how she was enjoying looking at these these toys on the window.
You know, get her clothes and her shoes.
He knows he came from a home where they didn't have those kind of toys.
There she was, looking through the window and enjoying them to the bull.
And so the time gentlemen went in.
Thought what those girls looking at?
And he brought about any given to her, and she humped it and said, Now there's no glass between, no glass between well, the Lord Jesus coming and be, no glass between them. We're going to see them face to face. And so today, perhaps, things may look darkly to us. We just don't see clearly why the Lord allow this to happen. And that can happen. But isn't it precious?
We're going to see him face to face. And so he says, Now I know in part. You get that repeated now and then. Now I see through glass, dark feet, then face to face. Now I know in part then, so I know he was also unknown. And we have a third now. And now I buy this faith, hope and love. These trees are great Jesus love.
Well, as we think of faith, faith sees the Lord Jesus and God's right hand down as our great High priest. What's he doing? He's there. God's right hand. He He's living in the sea for us. He knows all about our trials, our sorrows and difficulties, and there he's interested in the God for us, in that nice. And also he's touched with the feeling of Ryan furnitures he passed through this scene. He knew what sorrow was.
He knew what it was for his love to receive hatred.
And solo at the end of a perfect life.
Those of me love that nation that you took them.
Well, they see us about there now because I preach he's in the seat for us.
And then?
We have hope. Hope sings them as the one who is about to come.
And I think that was one of the last promises the Lord gave to his own before he went to the cross.
And then we have.
Chair your love, oh operation. To have his love in God in our hearts to encourage us. So I thought we speak on both.
No doubt.
Perhaps all are familiar with these verses they're going to read, but you know.
We had a lovely supper.
And I real good that I, you know, I've had those that kind of food that I had tonight, I don't know how many times last few weeks because asparagus coming up, you know just nice and fresh and enjoy it. And so these precious truths we made in our room perhaps and we've read it many times and it's still, you know we enjoy them.
And so how good it is to have an appetite for the word of God, like we do for our food, master.
00:10:06
So I will speak about.
Faith. Faith is against of God. I know the love without faith is impossible to please God, Hebrews 11 tells. And that we really believe that all things work together for good for those who love him, well, that's a test for faith.
But some are tested more than others.
But we just have to trust the Lord. But there's one thing we know. Faith believes in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, and he's up there. Faith believe that he's coming again.
Because he said so.
And how good it is to just rest on his hope, one of his promises that he is going to come.
Well, I like to speak about hope and what it does for us. We're still waiting. We still have the hope. It hasn't come yet.
We still have the comfort, the whole gift, and so return perhaps to a few scriptures. First of all, could be turned to the 15th chapter First Corinthians.
And.
1St.
If enough life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men, both visible. Yes, we would be if it was only for this life that was not only for this life, but it's for the next life for all eternity. And so we turned to 2nd Thessalonians.
Chapter 2.
Verse 16.
And our Lord Jesus Christ himself.
And God, even our Father, which hath loved us.
And has given us everlasting consolation and Good Hope through grace comfort your hearts and establish you with every good word and word. And you notice now the apostle speaks about the Lord Jesus. He says our Lord Jesus Christ. He gives him his full title in addressing the Lord. And I think that's a a perfect example for us.
When we address the Lord, he is.
Give this full time, our Lord Jesus Christ. You notice how often Paul does that in his right the address of kiss him, his full title.
Comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.
So the hope this coming does bring comfort, and it does establish this in the truth. Now if you turn to Titus Chapter 2.
This.
And read from verse 11.
For the grace of God.
That bringeth salvation hath appeared to or for all men teaching us.
That denying ungodliness and world illness.
We shall live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.
Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior.
Jesus Christ who gave himself for us.
That he might redeem us from all iniquity A purify unto himself.
A peculiar people sells with good works.
And so here we have the hope again, the grace of God that bring us some ovation does not love them.
Think of the grace of God.
That goes on with this world, king of the grace of God, when the Lord gives with fear and earth.
Oh, be healed the sick He raised the dead He cleanse the leopard. He opened the ears and the eyes. The ears of those were deaf, and the eyes of those were blind. He fed the multitude. He comfort those who were insulted. And so he could weep at the grave of Lazarus. He could enter into the full symptom of love.
00:15:29
For Meredith, Monster is a buried their brother, and then he could manifest his power and want to see where they had laid.
I know all the far manifested when he prayed and said Lazarus and forth either with dead came forth gone great hold the power of the Lord Jesus.
No man could take his life when he came to this world to give his life a ransom for us in order that we might have a hope to be with him forever.
Without his death for us, we could never enter His presence in the glory except to be judged for our sins. And so how gracious God is. And it's for all men too who do believe. That's why it says to all men, but it's for all we do believe. Unless you do this with a sinus verse. 12 again teaching us.
That denied ungodliness a worldly lest we should live soberly, righteously. And God in this present world you know they have the hope of the Lord's coming for us, We should do something for us all. His grace. And I believe when I say soberly, it has to do with ourselves, and it will cause us to judge ourselves if we have an actus already and in a way that speaks with the Lord and righteously.
Has to do with our fellow men. That's how we are to live down here. And the righteous way. That's what you characterize our whole life and our whole deals with our own man too righteously.
And then gladly is our responsibility to God. I just mentioned that connection at verse 12.
And we do have a responsibility to go on. And I believe the first responsibility after received the Lord as our Savior is to read His word and to find out what He wants us to do. And I also believe when we read His words and read more of His love, it should be a desire in our hearts to to please Him. And as I think of the Lord's request of His own before He went to the cross.
We hold our finger in this place and Titus and turn to Matthew 18.
There, he says.
Where tourists, we are gathered together in my name. First wedding. Jeremiah misses them.
And I like to think of that verse because for where is a divine place?
And two or three?
Not 2 or 300, two or three is divine testimony.
Our gathered is divine separation. We're called open this world to be separate from it together is to find oneness. And in my name is is the blind authority and thereby as His defined presence in the midst divine Sinner. And So what a privileged people we are to be able to gather together as you do here in this building and and we.
Where we live in our hometown.
We are privileged people. We have liberty to the rest of the Lord's desire and how we should never neglect that responsibility.
His last desire was Remember Me.
And then again he could say, if you love me, keep my words. And so he encourages us along the way, doesn't he? With the hope of his coming for us. And so if we go back to Titus.
It says.
Teaching us that denying ungodly less than worldly less, we should live soberly, rightly and godly in this present world looking for that blessing. Hope, so Paul calls it. I'm blessed hope. All is a blessing Hope we have.
And I don't know anything that brings joy and peace to others and soul.
00:20:03
Let the Lord give us, and to be reminded of the blessed morning.
Well, I visited sick people on the dying day.
Jail is a special joy. We just picked what the Lord Jesus.
And I'll be still coming. A special joy for those who are about to leave the world to know when they depart. They're going to be with Christ. Yes, we are curious people that have such a hope and being with the Lord forever and like him. So we're to look for him to come. He hasn't come yet.
And no one except the day or the hour when he's going to come, he hasn't told us, but the end of the revelation tells us, he says, behold, I come quickly when he comes, he's going to come quick and that's a real punish. So faith-based holes of that and it should have effect in our lives.
So we're looking for that blessed hope.
I once talked to a question.
Speaking about the Lord's coming and I said I think he's coming soon.
And they looked at me a little startled, and they said, oh, you don't think he's coming Sunday? And I said yes, I do.
Oh, he said. I hope he doesn't come soon, because there's some things I want to do first before he comes. Well, I say this.
You know, the day was set when I was married and I went to get my wife. No way that I want to put that way out another day. I don't know.
Yeah. Why do I love her? And you love the Lord Jesus? There's a He loves us, and we should. Should We want him to wait a little longer so that we can do something in this life just to satisfy our own fleshly body? Well, we can all search our hearts.
Answer to the Lord for that.
And so we do have our classical.
And I like a quick look at some verses that tell us what folk does, for, you know, when you have a hope it does something for you. And so we turn to first of all the Hebrews chapter 6.
And verse 18.
And by two immutable things.
In which was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation who have pledged for refuge.
To lay hold upon the hope set before us.
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul will sure and steadfast.
And which enters into that within the bill, within the forerunners for us entered. Even Jesus made a high priest forever after the order of antithetical, and so the whole beard looked at as an anchor for our souls. But who has to hope?
You notice verse 18, it's those who have pledged for records to lay hold upon the full, and I believe it means to lay hold of the hand of faith, receive the Lord Jesus for our life, and then to look for him to come. And so that's for those who affected for wreckage to him.
You know, I often tell the story of what a fisherman's wife is. I do and after a Gospel meeting in the way and the.
Gorgeous. He come up to me and he said.
Brother Barry has a 10th house summer. He used to have younger days and spent many a summer with him.
She said it's a Parkinson's. I'll tell you a story. I was not fishing with my husband.
And she said we were pushing the harbor.
And.
Sending them water stuff.
And she says we weren't concerned. Ahead of them lays the the rocks of black coastline and the wave just roaring there. And to land on those rocks, you'll be dashed to pieces.
But you said you weren't concerned. We had an anger in the boat.
And so we just picked up the anchor and shrewd overboard and down it went to the bottom of the ocean.
We're supposed to go?
But the boat kept on drifting.
And then they realized that the anchor wasn't attached to the boat. He was in the boat, but it wasn't attached to the boat. And so they're still drifting. And that's like many people today. They don't have an anchor for their soul. They've never laid full with the hand of faith who attracted each one here as and.
00:25:22
You know that dear woman was saved in the past.
And I least and pray and God asked her prayers before the world land on the rocks. Her husband was able to get the boats in just started, and they steered away from those rocks into the heart. Well, that's God's goodness, but I often think of that.
And anger is no good. And this is the past liberal the author board you're going to keep on driven and so how good to have an anchor for our souls all there are many that have professed the name of Christ. They're dressing, drifting, drifting further away from the Lord. Why are they drinking? Because they don't have an Acrobat. So. So how good you know we have a an aggravate and the hope the Lord's coming. Oh, it's a real anger. It's a strong anchor And so that's what the apostle calls us which hope we have with an anchor for the soul.
Well, sure and steadfast, but as Peter call the hope, let's turn to first Peter one.
And verse 3.
He says, verse three, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively or a living hope, while the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Guys.
Yes of the Lord Jesus have written from the dead. We wouldn't have a whole good way.
While he rose.
Day The first day of the week.
There's an abundant testimony during those 40 days while he's still on earth, before he went back to heaven. There's that abundant testimony that he rose all that went to the to the supplier. But he was nothing. He agreed and he appeared and too many people before he went back to heaven. And so he was seeing November 40 days. I kind of like to read what it says in Acts.
Chapter one is it.
Lord in the first chapter of Acts.
He learned about Jerusalem.
And it said.
He's telling verse eight, he shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost come upon you.
And ye shall be witness unto me both in Jerusalem, and all Judea and Samaria, under the uttermost part of the earth. In fact, one thief, verse 9 And when he has spoken these things while they beheld, he was taken up in a cloud, received by their sight. And while it looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, 2 men stood by them, when apparel was also said, You made a valley. Why stand you gaze up into heaven. This same Jesus was taken up from you into heaven shall so come, And like matter you see them go into heaven.
Isn't that nice? Yes, that same Jesus.
And we're going to let us see the marks that the Oprah.
They saw, and I believe we're going to see, those marks, the proof of this love for us in that coming days. Yes, the Lord is coming. And so we have a wonderful.
And perhaps we can turn now to.
Under the 19th song.
And I think that's the first time 46.
You know it's verse 116.
This is a prayer of David.
Because, you know, when David had his little baby die, he could say.
I'm going to. He's not going to come to me, but I'm going to death. Yes, he had a whole resurrection, didn't he? We just notice what it says. Here is 119, verse 160. I pulled me according unto thy word that I may live and let me not be ashamed of my hope.
00:30:10
I like that first light of my Bible. I think I saw a nice, a nice prayer for us all, he prayed. Uphold me.
With our words, according to thy word that I may live, And let me not be ashamed of my hope.
That night, are we ever ashamed of the Lord Jesus?
Oh, I remember the reason I thought of a farmer and this farmer worked hard.
And.
He saved enough money to put his son through university.
And so.
When they hear themselves.
One day he was in town.
And he saw his son coming down the street on the other side of the road, coming towards him. He was on one side and the sun was on the other side and all he just so glad.
Here's my son. And he looked for his son to come right over and talk to him. But the son turned his head the other way and kept on walking on the other side of the street past his father. He did not want his companions to know that that was his father. His father would press the old clothes, which is natural for a farmer because they get dirty and.
That father denied himself. Many luxuries were to put that son, and that son walked by the other side, ashamed to all that that man was his father. To wisdom happens.
Isn't that sad? Would that be true of anyone of us here? Are we ashamed of the Lord Jesus? Are we ashamed to confess His name to others? Oh, there's a He prays that you not be ashamed.
And he says in verse 117, Hold on me up, and I shall be safe, and I will have respect unto thy statues continually pulled on me up. And what does it mean to have respect on to the the Lord's status? What are the statues? Well, we have no brother in our house with our children growing up. And we had read this chapter. And he he said to my boys.
He says What are statues? Well, they didn't know what statues, so he told them what statues are. Decreed limitation. Well, they were worse off. That's a long word. Decreed limitations. But he didn't stop there. He illustrated what he pleased limitations were. And so he illustrated this way. Summertime there is a door open.
He says. You voice, you have liberty to go outside anywhere in the Ark. There's a fence around our big our yard that over that time and two gates.
And they had liberty to go anywhere inside the earth.
But they were not to go outside, yeah.
Liberty inside but not of.
And so there are those fears in the world today where we have, as children of God, liberty and gold. But there are other places where Satan is controlling things.
Or not to go.
There are those fears that will harm us if we venture into them. You know, we have an enemy. And Satan, he has fired us, fired us, and we go into that sphere where he is prevailing. And I don't need to tell you. You know where Satan is prevailing tonight. He's one of us, I'm sure. No where we should go, where we should be, whose country we should see.
And so I just mentioned that status.
Let me not be ashamed of my whole fold on behalf, and I shall be Steve, and I will have respect unto thy status. Continue.
And so I say this. We need to have respect to the word of God and to obey his statues too.
And that's very important, as I think the sum one it says, blessed is a man that walketh, not in the constant ungodly, must stand to West sinners for certain to see the scornful and so on. You know, if you don't walk with a person, you're not going to stand with it. If you don't stand with them, you're not going to sit with them. Let's say if you walk with an ungodly person and you stand with them, you sit with them, you're going to get money.
00:35:02
You won't enjoy and show it how important it is the Lord Texas. We have his decreed limitations how far we can go.
And so the Lord can keep anyone of us. But I think the hope of his coming brother is a secret. Is the key to being able to to obey what the Lord wants us to do, and to be happy and doing it knowing we have His approval.
Turn back now to Romans.
Chapter 5.
Often labeled these verses.
Therefore be justified by faith, we have peace with God.
By whom we all have excess, by faith into this grace where we stand and rejoice and hope of the glory of God.
And we're not rejoicing in this hope is something wrong? There's something that's come in between us and the Lord people. And then he goes on verse 5. And hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
Hope naked, not ship.
And how precious?
Full synthesized it down the 10th step.
Arizona.
All holy verses.
Although I stopped to memorize my little boy, everyone here has two.
But it says in verse nine, that if thou shalt invest with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God raised from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth on the righteousness, and with the most compression is made of the salvation. Or the scripture says, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Whosoever he is on him shall not be ashamed.
Another way I can find it.
Yes. And first, second Tennessee chapter one.
And if also speaking here.
He says.
Well, we from verse nine will save us and call us for the holy cons, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace which is given on the lesson Christ ease before the world began, but is now made manifest by the fearing of our Savior Jesus Christ who hath aboard death and brought life and immortality. Light through the gospel where I am appointed A preacher and Apostolic teacher is empty. Knows what he says when he writes in this series in prison.
For the Lord's sake for priests of this gospel.
Very strong for the witch 'cause I also suffered these things.
Nevertheless, I am not ashamed.
For I know whom I have believed an Amverse waited. That he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Isn't that precious? Oh, the apostle, wasn't she? Yes, he's in prison. He knew what it was to be beefed with stripe St. time.
3 * 39 times.
Because I'm the Jewish law.
If one was beaten 40 times, he couldn't be beaten again and so they stopped at 39.
So he would beat the stripes 3 * 3 months. The single. He knew what it was to have his practice. He knew what it was to have his feet and stuff.
He despised 135.
Now he's at prison before.
Well, if you want to know, the reason he was in prison was because of his hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why.
And ask them for ourselves.
Now we just go back to Romans again.
And the 13th chapter.
00:40:07
And.
We read from verse 11 and that knowing that time.
Now it is high time to awake out of sleep, where now as our salvation nearer than when we believe.
The night is far spent, the days ahead. Let us therefore cast off the work of darkness, and let us put on the armor of them. And so all of the love. How well the time as you look around in the world today, do we not see?
The confusion of this world, the evil, the corruption.
Immorality and everything else.
Sin Cause interview.
We live in a legal day. The apostle says no the time.
I kind of witnessed it.
You know when you're asleep, you don't know what's going on.
You're asleep. You're unconscious. You're asleep.
And the only way you're going to hear what's going on is be awakening up and be awakening.
High time the way that sleep.
To load their unconscious sense.
And to realize that the Lord is here, and so the night is Marshall.
So it is high time to wake. I'll stay for now as our salvation near the when we believe.
You know when I was a little boy, I had AI was walking home from a a Bible lesson with a a sister and.
She was going to go, fell and she was walking, going my way and take me back in last week and I'll never forget to look up And we saw the Northern Lights. I don't know where they've ever seen the Northern Lights down here or not, but if you have, it's a wonderful site. And as we looked up there, why are you tough A little bit. It was a wonderful site and the more the sisters were going to talk to me, I can just remember talking to you about the last time.
Still remembered many versions of Keep talking.
Let the Lord know.
But my memory falls those things. Never forget the Northern Lights. That time I looked up, she spoke about the work. Well, he is doing.
The naughtiest bar sketch and what do you see with the Knight of Sparks?
Well, if they're going to see it at all, the Morning Star is just before the break of day.
And the only time I've ever seen the morning star is just before the break of day looking in the east.
But as I will probably remind me, you won't always see amongst them. No, that Morning Star beat us who had traveled on a circuit around us.
And so that morning stars, the evening star understand that you see it now and it's all.
But there's only certain times you can see it all. The Lord is a morning star. When we see Him as the morning stars that speaks in revelations we're going to be with.
We're going to be with Let's turn to Revelation 22.
They have verse 17.
The spirit of rise they come.
And let him that hearsay come well, verse 16 what I wanted.
I, Jesus, have sent my nasal to testify you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of Davis and the bright and morning star and the spirit of rise they come will let him live here, say, come and let him the thirst come, and whosoever will have taken a lot of my freedom, isn't that nothing?
Oh Lord, he's the morning stone and he's left on. We're going to speak up in all his brilliant what a wonderful day that will be. And the closest gooseberry whales. Whosoever wants let him take on the water of life greatly, without money and without price.
I gotta close with the last few verses of this Revelation 22.
I returned it and it repeated the same things over and over again, but I think it's worth repeating.
00:45:00
In the first play you get the last promise in the Bible and the promises in verse 20. Surely I come quickly. Amen.
The last prayer is Amen. Even so come Lord Jesus.
And the last probation for us, brethren, while we wait is coming is the 21St verse. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all his Saints in the proper translation. And so is that lovely We still have to wait for the Lord holy. So gracious. Yes, he's still waiting for the last ones to be saved, but always so gracious the rest of our state, how many times we grieve him.
With all is he reject us.
Yeah, never really reject one will be done. You have received their thy grace.
Goes off. We like race. We can ask for as I sometimes tell the story.
It may be a purpose, but not repeat it.
In a certain assembly.
They had a cupboard in the meeting room and they kept the Bibles and handbooks in the cupboard and there was a table there and one brother, when he would come, he got there first. He put the levels and envelopes on the table.
On the bother, he come in while he put the mag in the cupboard.
And is all this. There's no reflection between them so.
It in Japan.
An unhappy state. The same young brother? No Japan.
And so there's another brother. Quietly, he went up to one of them.
**** brother. Why don't you forgive that, brother?
I don't have enough grace.
That's what says we plan well. How much do you want?
But James tells he give it more grace now he got in his basket, for he gives more how much he want. Just keep on asking. Well, the next time you saw those two brothers, they were shaking hands. The one that has to do. And so, brother, if you want to keep the Bibles in the covered, that's all right. Hello, brother. He says. The other one, you want the Bibles on the table, You just keep on the table. Well, you see what Grace does?
And how we all need grace. And so the Bible closes in Revelation in grace and our role of Jesus Christ be with all his Saints being down to transport.
We were saying 211.
Oh, Jesus Christ the Savior.
We only want to leave.
Is it thy love and favor our souls by liberty when Satan seeks to stiffness and shipwreck we might fear? Does this or all lift us that thou art ever here, #211?
Oh, Jesus Christ.
All day long.
00:50:53
All our tears.
Our hearts with roster.
Burning love and we shall.
Pray.
Where our souls are learning.
A great chance of.
I ready.
Five Aspects of Forgiveness
Address—E. Pilkington
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.
And spelling? Isn't it installment We have to act on discipline.
And put her in and run away from the assembly because that act is bumped attack.
Now what? What's going to happen if the person repents? Well, we should forgive.
And when assembly forgives the brother then is loosed in him, but you'll just turn to 2nd.
1St Corinthians 5 To get an example of one who was put away from an assembly.
Or on occasion.
I'll read a little Chapter 5. First Questions 5.
Is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication is not so much as named among the Gentiles. The one should have his father's wife, and you're puffed up, and have not rather mourn than he had done. This thing might be taken away from among you.
Daddy says in verse four, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ when you are gathered together, And my spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus Christ to deliver such a one under Satan for the destruction of the flesh, when the spirit may be saved the day of the Lord Jesus. And so it says.
And versatile Heaven. But now I have a son used not to keep company with a man that's called a brother. If any man be a caller, brother, it'd be a fornicator or a coach or a dog or a leader or a drunken or extortion. No, not easy.
What I wanted to do to judge them there without, do not use judge them that they're in, but then they're without God. Judges therefore put away among themselves, among yourself. So here we have influence at this time equal in the assembly. And there was one there that was guilty of fornication, and the assembly had not dealt with it. And so Paul has to write to this assembly, of course, to put that wicket man away. It's wicked.
And the assembly refuses to be put away. He will allow that. Well, God may just remove the testimony at 7:00.
That's God is righteous and holy.
So if we just turn over to the Second Corinthians chapter two, we find this man who was put away and repented and they have received them back. And so it calls for another letter, the 2nd Corinthians chapter 2.
And Paul writes there.
In verse six he says sufficient to such a man. Is this punishment?
Which was inflicted of many so that contrary why, she ought rather to forgive him and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up a little. Much sorrow. Wherefore, I beseech you would confirm your love toward him. Well, that's love and grace.
But you know, that just shows how assembly can really get cold and lose effects for someone that has had a phone.
Should never cease to love one another.
We don't cannot love sin as they commit sin. We can't have fellowship with any that do that. What if there is repentance? Then we should be ready to forget. And this is what the apostles bring them before the Corinthians and the commanders of. I've never watched a man saying in the connection with.
About another brother. He's out and he'll never get back as long as I'm here.
Well, that is not the Spirit of Christ.
Well, you know, I was upset when I heard that.
Because I felt that that man, his life, was not the way it should be.
And I prayed less about it.
And finally.
The brother had to put that thing away because the king to their ears at that man was far more guilty than the one they had put away.
So I'll carefully need to be assembly and make a judgment.
Get all of the facts. And if we're going to accept the test of one man, well, that's really not right here. The most of truancy witness that every word be established. And I might say I was upset and so I mentioned to my brother, I think you better go back to where that brother came from.
00:05:16
You better go back to where he came from and just find out what his testimony was back there.
Because I I knew it wasn't right.
And so they did.
Brother went up there investigating the combined.
Think that that man that these are the seven, that we are north of the downside and act that way.
And as they found out it was in this order, they had to put that.
Well, I just mentioned that in every act of discipline in assembly there needs to be that carefully. It knows what it says, two or three witnesses, so that you work the establishment.
And so now those repentance.
Man, I told you about.
So I don't know where you are.
So here in our chapter Second Corinthians 2.
As the apostles say.
We're seven. No, we're six sufficient to such a man as responsible for the picture of me. So that country was your right to forgive him and comfort him. That's perhaps such a one. Be swallowed up with over my sorrow. Wherefore I beseech you with infirm your love for him.
And he says to understand to whom he forgive anything. I forgive also the puzzle could not, would not forgive that man till the assembly had done that. And that's the way it is. Perhaps we might disagree with the assembly, but we we have to go about what assembly does and we have gone can clear up the matter. We just leave it with him and pray about it.
See what happens so many times.
So here in verse 10, to whom you forgive anything I forgive.
And so as individuals we can't forgive till the assembly for gifts. But the assembly has that responsibility. And a verse 11 Says, lest shades, you get advantage of us. We are not even of those devices.
And so I just mentioned that.
Administrative forgiveness is so important and we have that verse and you ought to forgive him. Well, the assembly court did forgive him.
Now we just turn over to.
Well, let's turn back to Ephesians 4 for one verse of Colossians.
The last verse before he declined one to another, tender hearted, forgiving to another, even as God for Christ sake and forgiven you.
I told you about that man, right on the birthday book.
When you find it hard to forgive others, just remember how much is being forgiven you.
Now I'd like to tell you.
Time. I had an address to serve assembly, and I told the Saints there what I had read in that birthday book, what this brother had written at it, and you find it hard to forgive others. Remember how much being forgiven you and.
Rather he come up to me after the meeting, he says. I know who you're talking about.
The reason he knew happened to be his own son well.
And so he said, he said, I can tell you he was wrong by the other brother, but he just accepted the wrong he was deprived of property.
He really belonged to him, but the other brother took it and he wouldn't go to law for court to get it back. He just took it as from the Lord and.
Didn't show any malice where thy brother is, to let them disconnect it with the Lord.
But there is a government of God as we minister, as a governor of God.
And as the time went on, these were getting older and their families were growing up.
No, I'm brother who took their loans. Lord blessed him, He didn't have any need.
Oh yes. He was very careful, had to watch this dollars and cents. He always had enough to eat. He always had the light of phase that it is taxes and bring up his family.
00:10:12
And that brother went to be of the Lord heaven.
Then after some time.
Brother who had run him, he realized that he was getting older and not feeling so well, and he realized that the Lord is going to take him soon.
And he he was disturbed. He was distressed.
He didn't want the Lord to take him with that matter, not just.
In one goal he saw the son of this man he had wrong and he says I'd like to talk to you, tell us something. That man went over. He sat down together.
And he says, many years ago I run your phone.
And he said, I know the Lord is going to Take Me Home, but I don't want to go to be with the Lord till I know that you forgive me.
Well, that's done. That brother. He forgets. And it was long after that that old brother went to beautiful woman. But he had confessed his wrong, his sin, and he received the forgiveness of his of that young young man, the son of the Lord he had lost and now he's happy to go. So I just mentioned there is a government of God, and how do I tell you all that that man went through?
And the sorrow he had in some of his family not going to tell you that.
There is a government of God and the elder brother.
And so, you know, as parents, if we act in a way that is not pleasing the Lord, then our children imitate us. Little ones imitate ovaries. So how careful we all ought to be, and their manner, behavior, not only their own jokes, but in front of other children and in front of our friends.
But let's never forget the eyes of Lord Run, two trolls. Not the Word. Behold the evil and the good. He knows everything. We can't cover up anything at all. Now if you turn to Colossians.
We have the same verse that we have a seasons of, only I'm going to read a little bit more.
Connection with it.
It's Chapter 3 of Colossians.
And I said was verse 12.
Put on therefore, as the elect of God, wholly and beloved, foul of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mine, meekness, long-suffering, We're burying one another and forgiving one another.
If any man have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
And above all these things.
The non share your love, which is the form of perfectness.
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts to the which you are called the one body of these. Thankful that the word of Christ dwell in your risky and all wisdom, teaching them and punishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your heart for the Lord and whatsoever you do in Word or thee to fall in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the founder of God.
Well, here we have it again, put on as the electrical mercies.
And kindness handles of my meekness and lawns are all right. Tell it and make an acquaintance here.
Remember the Lord Jesus, of course, of Lucas, that his enemies marveled at the grace of words that proceed on this. There was that meekness in that gentleness about the Lord Jesus, and now we are to follow him and imitate him. But this verse 13 says we're bearing one another.
When my wife and I were married that.
Bureau brother Harry Able. He give us a little word of expectation, you know, and he says always keep the two bears in your house. Well, two bears, one of the two bears bear and four bears.
00:15:02
And we need to for bear one with another, and forgive one another, And then if any man have a quarrel.
Against then even as Christ forgive you, so also do you. That's how we're to forgive one another, and Christ forgive us. But then those verse 14 and above all these sins, all these things.
Put on love, which is the bond of perfect. So whether love is a perfect bump.
Now, how would you score a perfect form?
Degrees More perfect.
I think we can, if we allow a little root of bitterness to come into our hearts against anyone.
Get the child done. It is going to.
Come in between us, and that bond of fellowship is not going to be the same, and a little by little it will open up and separate.
Anyone here that?
Thought of making furniture? The guy was years ago.
I did make my bedroom sweet and magnet week.
And.
I had some good number.
And my brother, a plaintiff only where he works.
Rather, the cost price too, if he was Superintendent.
And.
I work in that church.
You know, I wanted to have a big long table.
And also want to have at least three leaves to put on that table so it explodes and put in extra.
In case we have some of the Lord's people come and well, then we can just sit down at our table 10 to 12 People. This is what I want and that's how I made that table and so.
The lightest word may be a little that far, and so we'll have to join some of those force together.
And so we had to be very careful when we joined those wars. Before we joined, we claimed those joints to make sure that there was a perfect bond between those boys.
Well, if you're going to make a perfect bond, you're going to have to have a big long plane, of which which I have.
And so we got a perfect, perfect lawn.
You get a perfect bond. Let's kind of keep them together. Well, we know we keep two pieces of wood together. You have to put some glue in between. So we call that a little picture of love. And you know that that glue holds the two boys together, but you have to put the pressure on and to keep them together till that glue sets.
And so I just like to say this, if I allow a little for object to come in between those two boards, when I clamp it up, it might look like a perfect joint. But a bad little foreign object is in between those two bars and time is going to cause them to separate a little bit. So it'll be a little open.
Well, that just a little illustration. If we allow an idle word or any unkind thought to come in between the Saints may not be known. Assault sooner or later is going to be the cause of a little separation. And that's how terrible. That's why I leave the apostle needed to put on the bond of perfectness. And love is a perfect bond, and that's what we need, a perfect bond. And then when we do it says let the feast of God rule in their hearts to which they are called in one violent Be you thankful.
Well, how we need to be thankful men in verse 16 says, Let the word of Christ go out here richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another, in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, single with grace in your heart to the Lord.
And whatever you do and where to be to all the name of the Lord, He has given thanks to God and the Father by him. Have you ever thought rather than what this songs and spiritual hymns are? It says teaching mother and psalms and hymns and spiritual songs? Well, I just like to suggest.
And I got this stuff from reading the cups on the scripture. Psalms are herbothal Lord and.
Hymns are to the Lord, and spiritual songs express our thoughts and feelings for the Lord.
00:20:06
If anyone have any other thoughts on on the psalmist periods of songs, I'd like to be told, but that's what I've enjoyed and I think they're kind of really expresses what it solves in ancient spiritual sauce.
One fear is so important because you know, we can get in the danger of singing hymns.
But maybe they may not be spiritual happens, They really do not express the truth.
There are some hints in principle.
That are not spiritual hymns and I'm thankful. Yeah, in this little book, little flock. I don't know what him is not good for him. There's something there for everyone. It's a wonderful pimple. I just mentioned that in connection what it says here about the psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.
That same 380.
Oh, I'm not far. Still, people.
Loyal to thy peers inside, there's only there in safety and peace we can't abide.
With worlds and snares around us, and lust and fears within the grace of God and fathers alone and keep us good.
#318.
Oh.
And your.
Heart.
Guide me.
I'm resting there and warning.
We don't sing that hard and pray the light is in the heart and all right about wonders of God.
To have a joyful son.
The guilty sinners doomed to die, we partnership the world around and gladly shouted through the sky.
While love inspired me all our days, therefore the grace be proud, May truth and goodness, joy and grace and all abide, and all of our.
First of all, in Acts chapter 13.
And verse 38.
You know than you therefore name brother through this man.
You, the forgiveness of sins, inviting him all that believe, are justified from all things from which he could not be justified by the law of Moses.
I exercise tonight to speak on five aspects to forgiveness that we have in Scripture, and this is the first and this is what we would call judicial forgiveness.
Because there's only God that has the power and the right to forgive sins.
But to be righteous the only way he could forgive us our sin is to provide one who would die for our sins. And so Lord Jesus, he will begin with the world under the cross to die for our sins. And so Peter here and speaking why he makes it very plain he had known that you're there for a man and brand through this man is preached on Jesus, forgiveness our sins, and by him all I believe are justified from all things from which he could not be justified by the law among us.
There may be days still going back to love Moses to allow Moses to moan condemn us.
No oppression. We know that grace and truth came through our Jesus Christ and so on. Let's just do this. So forgiveness of forgiveness and it is only through faith in the Lord Jesus we have this forgiveness.
Then there are those, the day and Christmas Day. Well.
If you send your us, you got to be saved over again. Well, that's wrong too, that the Lord He is not going to die a second time. He came once in this world to put away Sam to the death of himself.
Man that said to me he had never said after he was saved.
And.
Going into the farmer and knowing a little bit about cattle, I sent him. You ever have on your cows? Kick the tail of milk over.
00:30:10
And he said, yes, I have.
And I said, What happened?
He says a lot. My temper and I kicked the cup, so you see there you can have themselves. We all have the old nature to come with and I know what it is to have a college paper deal before it wasn't fully done.
So we have judicial forgiveness.
Let's turn now to the next subject, Restorer forgiveness, because we can't send the first John chapter one.
1.
Mercy, this was a John chapter one.
University If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.
And the truth is not in us. We don't see others, we only receive ourselves. We say we haven't said.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.
And they cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So this is restorative forgiveness. But before we can have this, there has to be the confession, a failure. And when we confess our sins, right, The Lord, He's faithful just to forgive us our sins because he took the full penalty for our sins on the cross of Calgary. And so for us, salvation is free, and it's forever if we accept it.
So how nice it is to have our sins forgiven and to know. But you know, after we're saved, we can sit.
Because we have the old nature attacks.
And.
I remember when I was a boy after confessing the Lord.
I was rude to my father and you know, he punished me.
And you know, I felt bad about that.
That night when I went to bed, knelt down beside my bed to pray, I couldn't pray.
It's not a way I made my father cross an angry it bothered me and.
Good prey. So I got off my knees and went downstairs with my father. And I said, Dad, I'm sorry for the way I spoke to you at the supper table. Well, the hour of the hard time. Keep your tears back. But you know what? I was forgiven. Now I can go back upstairs to my bed and kneel down and pray and then go to sleep.
And also important, if we sin and they'll let's own it to the Lord. And this is respirator forgiveness, and it's only then that we can have peace as believers.
Now the next.
There's five aspects to forgiveness. I was going to look at that. We can turn to one more verse we might just mention in the next chapter. First, John, it says in verse 12 our land, your little children, because your sins aren't forgiven you for his name Satan. And so is that niceness for the sake of the one who took to punish the for our sins of that that we are together now if we turn to Matthew 6.
We have governmental.
Forgiveness.
Matthew 6 and.
We'll read from verse.
Working.
For if he forgive them their trespasses.
Your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if he forgive not men their trespasses, not only will your father forgive your trespass.
Have you just hold your finger on that page? Turn to James, Chapter 2.
And.
Verse 13.
For he shall have judgment without mercy that has showed no mercy.
And mercy rejoices against God. And so we have here what is going to happen if we refuse to forgive others. And that's why it says if we forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses.
00:35:16
There is a government of God.
And the Lord loves to see a beginning spirit. But if we hold a grudge and refuse to forgive someone who has owned their their failure, their wrong, then if we refuse to forgive them?
What's going to happen when we do something to grieve the Lord? Oh, you won't forgive us? No.
No, he's going to deal with it. There is a government that done but all you know, if we forgive others, then the Lord is gracious. To myself, we do the same thing.
So there is a government of God, and it might speak a little bit more.
At the end of our meeting and the next is brotherly forgiveness.
And you return to Matthew 18.
And.
Verse 22.
Valerie Verse 21.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, oh, shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive until seven times? Jesus said unto him, I say not unto thee until seven times, but until 70 * 7.
Well, 70 * 7 would make 490 times, and I don't think anyone of us can say that we've been sent against 490 times, can we?
And so that's how often we are to forgive. And that's real brotherly kindness. If someone sinned against us 490 times and we forgive them, that's real, real lovely forgiveness, isn't it? But you know, the Lord Jesus says, and John, he says that John 13 Then the new commandment I give unto you is you love one another as I love you. So that's the measure which we are to love as we have been loved.
And God has loved us within every lasting love.
So there is.
Readily forgiveness. How nice it is.
I remember years ago Franklin turned to Ephesians, four of the guests the 1St.
Really is diverse with.
Speak about.
How much we are to forgive?
It says in verse 13, well, verse 30 will be not the Holy Spirit of God where he are seals of the day of redemption. Let all there's some rap and anger and clamor, and he will speak me, put away from Alice, and be kind one to another, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ sake has forgiven you.
I remember years ago when I was a young man in my 20s.
I was asked by someone to sign her birthday book. Well, to do that, you have to sign on the date of your birthday. And so before I sign my name, I look to see what somebody else, if there's somebody else, have a go with you on that date. And sure enough, there was. There's no other than I knew.
A long way from us. But I knew him and I read what he wrote, and this is what he wrote when you find it hard to forgive others.
Just remember how much that we've forgiven you. Well, you know.
That's something sometimes it is hard to figure out if we just remember how much we may forgive. Makes it easier to and I I've never forgotten reason, that birthday book that's going back now well.
60 years ago.
Almost.
Be kind one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another even as not for pricing that forgiven you now if you turn to.
That is 16.
And we have the Lord Jesus? Asked Peter.
00:40:01
Who do men say that I am in verse 15?
Matthew 16, verse 15 and verse 16. Peter answered sign. Peter answered, said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blesseth thou sign, But you're not for flesh, and blind hath not revealed unto Leave but my Father, which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, And upon this wrought I will build my church, and the geese of hell shall not reveal against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the Kingdom of heaven, And once heard, thou shalt find on earth shall be bound in heaven.
And I serve, thou shalt loose on earth, shall be loose in heaven.
So we have this administrative authority given to Peter, But we notice what the Lord said to Peter. Who did men say that I am? Oh, right away Peter says, there are across the Son of the living God nice testimony. And the Lord blessed him for that. And he says to Peter, I say unto thee, in verse 18, Thou art fear, and upon this rock I build my church. Well, you know, Lord, those who who believe in Christendom, that.
That Peter is a rock and he's a foundation rock. That the church is still done but that is not slow. Peter is not a rock. He just it may means a stone. And he says to Peter upon this rock. I will build my church at the Rockies himself. And if you turn to 1St Corinthians 10 and verse 4 you will find that the apostle makes it clear that the Lord Jesus he's around.
The Church or Assembly of God is built on Christ.
And he goes back, referring to both the rock and the wilderness.
And it all break the same spirit to drink for the drink of that spiritual rock that followed that rock of Christ. And it's very fair and back to children visible in the wilderness when they were thirsty and they cried their Moses for water. And the Lord says, I will stand up on this rock, use my throne, and the water will come up. Well, Peter smoked that rock and the water gusted. Yes, that water followed. But to know there came another time later on when we read a Deuteronomy that you know, Moses.
When he got discouraged, and the people were complaining again, and they were thirsty, and the Moses the Lord said well.
He said, well, go to the rock and speak to the rock and the water will come out. That rock is still there. Speak to the rock, nice to the rock. Well, you know.
Peter said to those people, must I guess one or out of this Rock You rebels and ex anger he smoked the rock twice.
And in doing that he spoiled the type because the Lord Jesus only they be spent once on the cross. He was smitten. He's not going to die again. So speeder mozzarella he he lost his patience with the people of God and you know it's a solemn thing to call other Christian rebels.
We have no authority to call anybody a rebel and so how careful we need to see in our conversation.
Towards other believers. And so in Matthew, 16% the Lawrence of Ross and I want to stay low because Moses lost his temper, smoked a lot. He forfeited the privilege of leaving the people of God into the last Kingdom, and that's what he wanted to do, but he did not have any. That president was given to a younger man, Joshua.
And we know in the New Testament.
And the non translating wasted that received Moses now in the land of the Lord, and his cycles were there. Up in the mountain Transfiguration they saw the Lord transfigured. And there was Moses and their lives talking. So they were in the land, but they didn't, They didn't leave us the people in the land, and they only appeared there for the Lord's glory.
Well, now he says to Peter, I will give out any of the keys of the Kingdom of heaven, and once there thou shalt find on earth shall be found in heaven. And once there gossip is the nurse of the loosened them. Well, you know those keys Peter used on the day of Pentecost when he preached the Jews? And you know, when he brought before them their guilt? In Acts 4 they said, what shall we do? And Peter says, repent, repent, and be baptized in the neighborhood.
00:45:27
Of the Lord Jesus. And as they were guilty of this crucifixion on the cross, and there was no other way for the Jew to be saved other than publicly being baptized, professing that name. And then they were baptized and taken the name of Jesus upon him, and then they were saved. Why? Why? Why was that? We didn't have to be baptized, we stayed today. Why that? Oh, because the Jewish people said his blood be upon us and our children.
And so we know that has literally been fulfilled since that day especially.
You're at the great persecution that rose after the Lord went back to heaven.
So I just mentioned that.
Perhaps you might just notice when verse four returned to Acts again and Matthew 7.
Yeah, I remember saying I thought I was not really the one I wanted, but there's reversing 21, I said.
Not everyone has said unto me, Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven, but he that build the will of my Father in heaven. And so it's important to prove why our lives that we do love the Lord Jesus and that we belong to the Him.
But there is another verse which well refers to John.
In a John's Gospel captures.
The Lord gives his disciples the same authority.
Administrative authority in John 20.
Before the Lord went back to heaven, he appeared to his disciples.
And at verse 21 he says to them.
Pete and you, as my father said to you, so send I you. And when you said, I said, be thou himself received the Holy Ghost. And then he says, Whosoever sends you, you met dear admitted unto them, And whosoever sends you, retain the everything. And so this is no authority that all the disciples receive as well as Peter. And there in Matthew's Gospel I just mentioned that.
While we're in this chapter.
It might be just encouraging to notice a few verses apart from our subject.
In in John 20.
And verse 17 the Lord says, Touch me not, for I'm not going to send it to my father.
The new name to go to my brother and Sam, then my son to my father and your father. Now this is a new position for them. Then the same day that evening be the first day of the week.
It's it's a new day for for the recycles.
They're going out together, and then Jesus stood in the midst of them at the end of the verse. And so it's a new center that they have. So in verse 17 you have a new relationship. And the bridge 19, we have a new assembly.
And verse 19 also a new center.
There's money, A new job.
New York and then you should go down further line 21 There. It's a new message that they have.
Also do the mission.
And in verse, same same verse under authority to receive the Holy Ghost.
00:50:01
I just mentioned that in fashion.
So going back to this administrative authority that the Lord gave to Peter.
Return to Acts 5 and have Peter using that authority.
The number and knives, the fire.
Aramis in chapter 4 of Acts he had property and he sold it and to give it to the lone and it tells us there that partners with a good man. But in that in chapter five we have a bump. But a certain man named Anne Rice was so far his wife showed a possession and kept back part of it.
And his wife being Privy to it, and bought a certain partly of the apostles feet. But Peter said on the Ananias, Why St. Phil thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost to keep back part of the Christ? Well, as I remain, was it not thine own? And after was soul was it not thine own? Lysol conceived this thing in my heart.
That's not five of the land put on the dog. And Ananias, hearing these words, fell down to give up the ghost. So we see there Peter used that as authority that he had, and it certainly was necessary at the beginning because from then on, and his wife did the same thing. She wasn't there when her husband died, and when she came, she allowed those they were agreed what to do. They had put that money in their pocket, but they were pretending that they were given all the money.
At the Latin that sold for to the Lord.
And so Peter said to yourself, for so much. He said yes. He fell down there too, so that just spring before I saw him, it is to lie and act steeply. Christians should never do that. And if we do it, we have no nature to be good. If they do, nothing has to lay his hand funds in some way or other. Not necessarily taken away alive here but in the beginning. And the Church's first established how important it was, and we have truth and righteousness maintained.
That's getting away from my 70 and so a few years that authority in Acts 5.
Now we just.
Perhaps.
Trying to do empty chat.
Matthew.
We noticed that Peter had this authority given to him, but in the 18th chapter. Now this administrative authority has passed on down to the assembly.
And we'll just notice what it says. Let's begin at verse 15.
Thou may thy brothers are trespassing. Go against him, and tell him his fault between being him alone. If he shall hear thou skin thy brother, If he will not hear the thousand, then take what he wanted to do more in a month of truth he witnessed, every word may be established, and if he shall neglect to hear them, tell unto the church or assembly.
You read the church in the New Testament. It's referring to God's assembly and God's assemblies composed of every true believer in the Lord Jesus.
And if you neglect to hear the assembly.
But that's verse 16. If you're next, we will not hear thee take one or two more.
Well, the truth he witnessed everyone to be a selfless. So that's the importance that if there is something between us then we go to the one that trespass against us and if you want to listen then we take one or two more. So two or three is A is a testimony, 2 is testimony and three is abundant testimony.
And then if he neglects to hear the three, then it says tell to the assembly, and if he neglects to hear the assembly, then he is.
Put it back, classes the heathen man in the public.
So another verse of 18 This is Thorning was given to Peter, and that it is passed on now to the assembly. Fairly, I'll say to you, once there we shall bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven.
And whatsoever we shall lose on earth shall be loosed in him.
Well.
John 2
Address—R. Bauman
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.
179.
Came from Godhead's fullest glory down to Calvary's depth of wall. Now on high, we bow before thee streams of praises, ceaseless flow #179.
Brightness of the internal.
Glory.
Traveled by Great Thy Daughter's Life.
Well, look at John's Gospel.
Second chapter.
I'm going to begin with verse 11 more or less set the stage.
What's on my heart? This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee and manifested forth His glory, and His disciples believed on him.
They believed on him because of who he is.
Not the miracle.
Manifested His glory. If you look at the 14th verse of the first chapter and you'll see this, the Word was made or became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the as of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. This is His inherent glory, His intrinsic glory, as the eternal Son of God.
I had a glimpse. Well, we'll never, never enter into it fully. We'll never exhaust or see fully that wonderful glory that he always had before anything was. But he reveals it. We will see and share in a sense, his acquired glory as man. Son of Man will be one with him, and like him we'll enjoy that. But this glory he had before the world was.
His intrinsic glory is what he reveals.
And unless you see him as the eternal Son of God, the word of glory, you can't be saved. Miracles will never save anyone. And so it was because He manifested His glory that His disciples believed on him. But in the 11Th verse it says this Beginning Americans, you know, it's interesting to see this. We could almost say it's the first of miracles in a sense.
Actually, it's the beginning of the first of the miracles that can be listed, and if you look at the Bible dictionary, you'll see there's 35 of them listed and characterized, but they're teaching miracles.
These are teaching miracles. We have here a teaching miracle because God never does anything just for that reason to display His power.
It always has a deeper meaning and a fuller effect in its teaching, and those 35 miracles are for that purpose. But in the broader sense, everything Jesus did, becoming Incarnate man and going through this world as man always. Yet the eternal Son of God, everything was a miracle. What is a miracle? Well, you know, a miracle is described in the dictionary as a sign or a wonder.
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Or the power or mighty work of God in display before men. That's the thought of the little definition of a miracle. Well, when Jesus was here.
His very existence as God in man, as divinity in humanity is America. And everything he did was a miracle. You know, if we looked at John Two and let's look at it for a minute, John Two, I'm sorry, Luke 2, Let's go to Luke Two. We have here in the in the.
For the sixth verse.
And it came to pass that after three days they found him, Jesus in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were a zombies at his understanding and his answers.
These are the doctors of law, the ones that knew the scriptures. Here he was 12 years old. He was sitting in the midst of them and they were astonished and his answers when they asked him questions. And you know, if you go a little earlier in the second chapter of Luke, you'll find that in verse 25 on there was Simeon, who was a godly man and honorable devout man. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel.
The Holy Ghost was upon him verse 25 And he was told that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he took up in verse 28 the child Jesus in his arms, and blessed him, and when he did that, he had in his arms.
One who had in his power the control of all the heavenly bodies of this earth.
In him that faith even that child was still the ordinances of heaven, the governing bodies of heaven. He had all the power.
He never ceased being the eternal Son of God. And that's the thought I have when we speak of a miracle, because everything Jesus did was a miracle. I want to look at March 6th, just for a minute to get this across. March chapter 6 and then verse.
The very end mark 6 verse 54. At the end the last three words they knew it. This was Jesus.
And they ran through the whole region round about began to carry about in bed those that were sick, and where they heard he was, and Withers, whoever he entered in the villages or cities or country, they laid the sick in the streets. And the Saudi that they might touch, if it were what the border of his garment, and as many as touch if or if it should read, were made all woe.
It's an interesting portion. This is what I'm trying to get across.
As he went through the countryside, in the villages and towns and cities, when they heard he was coming, they put the sick in the streets. They laid the lane with the halt, and it was crowded before him as he and his disciples walked. And when they touched the hem of his garment in faith they were made old. And so it was like a magnificent St. sweeper. You look back, it's clean. And they were all thick of the story of each one of them.
As they touched him, as he walked through this world, miracles, miracles, everything he did, and I was thinking that the end of John's gospel. I want to read another verse because it's so important to get this in view. And John?
So 2020, fifth verse of the 21St chapter.
And there are also many other things which Jesus did the which if they should be written everyone. I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen. Everything he did was a miracle. His very being here in the flesh Incarnate man was a miracle. The power of God in all the heavens was here walking in this world. So when we say.
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The beginning of miracles, or the first miracle, let's remember, is a teaching. Miracle is designated that way for that purpose. So we're going to look at this chapter, and I've sort of feel this chapter divides itself into four divisions. Sort of Naturally, verse 1 to 11 brings out what I call the source or the basis of true joy, true joy versus the joy this world can provide, which is empty.
And not lasting and not real true joy. And you know, in verse 12 to 17 we have another division. It's religion. It's religion. Empty perfection. Christendom in a sense. And in verse 18 to 22 we have the church, His body, how beautiful. This is the whole purpose of his coming into this world, to redeem a heavenly bride, to have a bride for himself forever.
And in 29 or 23 to 28 to the end, it's reality, It's believers and also those who profess or pretension only.
You know, it says in the very last verse.
The Lord needed not that any testify of bad He knew what was in man. That's the beautiful thing. As it says in Nahum 1/3, the Lord is good stronghold his day of trouble. He knoweth well, He knoweth them and trusted him. So what's real now? We're going to look at this chapter a little bit in those in that sense of motivations. And I mentioned when you get a teaching miracle, when you get anything of the word of God.
It's inexhaustible. The reason? It's inexhaustible. Everything has purpose. Every word has meaning, numbers included. Every phrase is important. God doesn't write anything without purpose and meaning in such deep meetings. We can't fathom it, but we can grasp a lot of it. And so when you get a phrase, or when you get a name, or when you get a number, that's meaning. God can only write with purpose. You know, it says.
As I have thought, says the Lord, so shall it be. You can't even have an idle thought. Every thought will be, will happen. We can't even grasp that. But anyway, this is the reason. Now in the first verse, at the very first part, we have the whole setting and the whole basis, the whole purpose of what we're going to speak about. And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee.
The Lord speaks a lot in a little. You know, when we're thinking about marriage, we're thinking of obtaining a bride. And that's the thought here of marriage. The Lord came from heaven to lay down his life so he could have a heavenly pride. And of course the work of the cross also undertook for his earthly bride. But a heavenly bride is the purpose of the Spirit of God here today.
Still in this world.
This world of pride for Christ, so a marriage, and the third day gives us how he obtains the bride. That third day expression is so beautiful. If we look at Genesis 22, where you get the first time the expression comes in. And by the way, when you get a phrase like this, it seems to penetrate the word of God from beginning to end. In 22, where we have the cross in view, where we have a beautiful picture of God offering his Son, we have.
This thought.
At the middle of verse two, I don't want to take a lot of time. Get the end of the land of Moriah. That's Jerusalem. That's the place. And notice this. Abraham rose up early in the morning, now at the end of the verse, and went under the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off.
At the end of verse 12 Thou hast not withheld thy son thine only son from thee. The expression the third day speaks of what we have in our chapter here, the death and resurrection of Christ, Isaac in type. So beautifully Abraham received embark for the offered him up, he did so fully, but God didn't allow him to drop that knife. But it was the beautiful type of what we have so the third day.
Speaks of how Christ obtained his bride. I'd just like to mention, you know, in First Corinthians 15, three to three to four, it says.
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The gospel by which you were saved speaks Paul how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. He was buried and he rose against the third day according to the scriptures. So you have it brought out so beautifully there. And I'd like to just turn to Mark's gospel for one, because the Lord always spoke of this wonderful truth. The 10th chapter, the 10th chapter. Many times he mentioned this.
Verse 32 At the end he took again the 12 and began to tell them what things should happen unto him, saying the whole we walked in Jerusalem. The Son of man shall be delivered on the chief priest, and under the scribes They shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles. They shall mock him, shall scourge him, shall spit upon him, and shall kill him. And the third day he shall rise the gate.
Well, as you can tell, I could go throughout scripture. What about Jonah? 3 days and three nights in the Great Fishes Valley until he rose by the grace of God after he asked for salvation. A beautiful type. And notice if you remember Luke 24, the 2 door of the way to obey us. When the Lord himself walked with them, they told him fully why their hearts were so sad and why they were so discouraged. And they said, and today is the third day.
The third day Lord was walking with them, resurrected. This is the third day. So when we have the third day for a marriage, it tells us how he secured this pride in church, his body. And then it says in Cana of Galilee. And I just like to mention Cana means two things. It has two meanings, one is acquired and the other is zealous. And you know the Lord was zealous in acquiring his pride.
He set his face as a Flint as he went towards Jerusalem. He was zealous for this purpose and he were not be satisfied until we're with him either. This is the wonderful truth of of the body of Christ, the church. And I was just thinking, this is brought out so beautifully in the Old Testament. I'm going to use just one place, the sounds here to bring this thought out 19 Just go to 19.
And it's lovely to see it. In Psalm 19 we speak of the heavens declaring the glory of God. We speak of the firmament, His handiwork. We speak of all this that God created. And notice what He says in the end of verse four of Psalm 19 In them this marvelous creation of the heavens. Has he said, a Tabernacle for the Son? Now notice 5 which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber.
And rejoices as a strong man to run a race, he was zealous in acquiring this prize. We haven't just brought out so beautifully throughout the scriptures, and this is the thought here I believe we have in Cana Cana of Galilee.
Galilee is a beautiful meaning to complete our picture. Galilee means circuit all around, and so the Lord is taking his pride from the whole world, Jew and Gentile alike. It's so beautiful to see The Spirit of God is here doing that now, completing the body of Christ the Bride. So in this first verse we have that lovely setting of what this is about in this chapter.
Brought out right away.
Now notice in verse 2, Jesus was called to the marriage. That word called is a little strong. I believe J&T has it invited.
And I believe that's the floor. You know, marriage is his institution, but it's an institution of marriage to manifest what we're talking about here. The wonderful truth of the bridegroom is the bride, Christ and his church.
And it's beautiful to see. It might be nice just to read a verse on that in Ephesians chapter 5. I'll just read 2 verses, Ephesians chapter 5, because this is a beautiful thing of the scripture. And in verse 31531. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife. They too shall be 1 pledge. This is a great mystery.
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But I speak concerning Christ into church. The mystery revealed now by Paul, the mystery in the purposes and thoughts of God before anything, was a mystery only because it wasn't revealed until now to us how beautiful that is. But it's the type of it is. The wonderful type is the man and the woman in the marriage relationship. As we're going to be that close to Christ in glory. So we have that here.
Jesus was invited to the marriage. How wonderful it is when a couple marry in the ward. It's a rather rare thing in criticism today, it's sad to say, of this world. But when they marry in the Lord, they're manifesting this beautiful truth of why Christ came. They're manifesting their wonderful truth and they can invite him to that marriage. How wonderful when the Lord is excluded and invited in the marriage today.
It's so precious. Well, they invited Jesus to the marriage. Now notice in verse 3.
They wanted why, you know why? Typically speaks up at the word of God, joy. That's why I say these first verses speak of the source of true joy, speaks of joy in the Old Testament earthly joy, because they were his earthly people. We would expect that, would we not in the New Testament heavenly joy. We're heavenly people. But that's typical of wine. That's what wine speaks of.
And it says they wanted wine. Actually, there's no joy.
Apart from Christ, there's no real joy. Apart from Christ. But when you have Christ, it's joy unspeakable. It's joy unspeakable. It's something you can't even tell others about it. They don't know him. It's something that's there in spite of circumstances. And circumstances have nothing to do with. And so they wanted wine. And the mother of Jesus saith unto him, they have no Why? It's like she's telling him to take care of this.
Now notice the answer in verse 4.
Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee by an hour is not yet come.
Sounds like a little harsh, doesn't it?
This is beautiful. My hour has not yet come.
The Lord at no time for earthly relationships, natural ties. He came now to do His Father's win. He was a perfect obedient son, the perfect example for Joseph and Mary, and for all others his brothers and sisters. But now He must be about his Father's business. And so he says, What have I to do with thee? This was not the time. It's beautiful to see that when they said to him.
Thy mother and thy brothers and sisters are knocking, asking for you, he said. Who is my mother?
Who is my brother and sister?
They that hear the God word of God and believe they are my mother and brother and sister, it's a whole new thing now. So that expression by Alpine hour has not yet come is so beautiful. If we look at John, just go back to go on to chapter 12 and we'll see this.
In chapter 12 and verse.
27.
Now is my soul trouble, And what shall I say, Father? Save me from this hour. But for this cause came I under this hour. This is what he's Speaking of by an hour, the whole purpose of his coming into this world. You notice what he said in verse 2023? Jesus answered. The hour is come, the hour is come, that the Son of Man should be glorified.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, except according to wheat falling to the ground, and die in a bite of the loan. But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
The hour is coming now. If you turn over to John 19, John 19.
And if we look at verse 25 now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother.
Verse 26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother and the disciples standing by, who beloved, he saith unto his mother. Woman, behold thy son something very beautiful about this. This is his hour. This is his hour. This is what he was speaking about in John 2.
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My daughter has not yet come. The cross is dying for his mother.
Is dying for all.
And he says to her, Behold thy son.
I believe he's saying this is the hour. How beautiful. She needed to save you. Mary needed a savior, just as you and I. And so the beautiful truth there of John 2 verse four. What have I to do with thee? My now is not yet come.
He at that time on the cross, provided for his mother too. He said John to John the Apostle.
Take care a whole thy mother. And from that time John took him, took her to his own home and cared for Jesus mother, oh, how lovely it is to see this, but at this point.
What have I to do with thee? And so in verse five his mother says to the servants Now whatsoever he sayeth unto you, do it.
You know what this is. This is Faith. This is.
Faith and the Lord Jesus always acts on faith. He kept act on faith.
Whatever he says, according to his word, you do it. Now he could act. And so we read in verse 6. And by the way, the sixth verse is really the key to this whole portion. Sometimes we have keys in Gospels or keys, and there's a key to the Old Testament, a key to the new. You probably know the keys, the key to the whole word of God. But I feel this sixth verse is a key to this portion right here, and I'm going to handle it that way.
I'll read and there were set there 6 water pots of stone after the manner of the purifying of the tubes containing two or three firkins apiece.
When his mother said, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it, This is the very next thing we have, and I like to see these wonderful expressions and words that are used.
Set, SET. There were set there, set there. That word is so beautiful. And I'm going to take you to 1St Corinthians 12 just to show you why I believe it's so important. First Corinthians 12.
And we'll look at verse some. This is the one body chapter really. The bride in manifestation and and the operation. And notice in verse 18 of First Corinthians 12. But now have God sent the members, every one of them in the body as it has pleased him. That word said is so beautiful. It means purposely placed. It means permanently placed.
It means something that's enduring. That's the thought of set. It's not just placed, but it's purposely done. And so we have first there were set 6 water pots of stone. Now that number six is very precious. Every number has meaning.
Number six has this meeting. It's the number of incompleteness 1 short of perfection, heavenly perfection and completeness One, children and you know.
There were six cities of refuge provided in Joshua and mentioned to Deuteronomy in the land 6 cities of refuge or anyone could go, having killed another unawares and be safe from the avenger of blood. But six is that #1 short of perfection. And we know where the 7th city of refuge comes into. We not it's a cross. Christ is a refuge for every Sinner. Isn't it wonderful to see it and remember in Ruth?
Boaz was a beautiful type of Christ. Boaz provided for Ruth 6 measures of fire. That's lovely because she said claim me, take me for thyself. Thou art my near kinsmen. Beautiful, isn't it? She wanted to belong to bonds like you want to belong to Christ. He gave her Six Nations. That's one short. 1 short. The 7th was Boaz himself.
The 7th was Boaz himself. Like, right. I think it's so beautiful. But she had Boaz. She was in the congregation.
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But she was a Moabite.
In the Moabites, like a Sinner, shall not come into the congregation of God forever.
Once she became the wife of Boaz, she's no longer called Ruth the Volvites. She's called Ruth the wife of Colette. And she's in the fact. Well, it's beautiful to see that seven. Now here's 6 because it means it's not complete. It's not complete. I think the 6th speak of each one of us in type, every believer in type. They were set because we've been set in the body as it please. The Lord must never forget this.
Every member in the body is a member, in particular in the same chapter of the 12Th of First November. In particular, I think it's so beautiful. Now notice 6 water pots.
Well, you know, of stone, it's vessels to hold water. Is that what we are? We're vessels to hold water. It's lovely. Water typically speaks of the word of God, and it's wonderful as an assembly, as individuals, as a family. We take in the word of God, we hold it. We're vessels for that. We hold it. We're vessels for that purpose. And then we display Christ. We're walking epistles of Christ.
Known in red of all men is because of the word of God that we have. So it speaks of water plots, but notice of stone water pots of stone.
We look. Let's turn to on this. Let's turn to first Peter, First Peter and chapter First Peter and chapter one. I'm sorry, it'd be chapter two, First Peter, Chapter 2, verse five. Ye also as lively stones.
Are built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood to OfferUp spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. That's the thought of stones. You notice the word lively. I know it's brought out several times in the first chapter and and here in this chapter and every time J&D has changed it in his translation to living. And we are living now because we have the life of Christ. But this is the one place.
I like to see it lightly. You see, the root word could go either way, lively or living. And I like it. As we're priests, holy priests, we should be lively, because lively is necessary living, but living is not necessarily lively. And I like it here. Lively. But the thought is stones. We are stones. We are stones in the temple of God. How beautiful. This is the body of Christ.
Living stones, lively stones as priests. And so it says they were set there. 6 water pots of stone. Oh, it brings us in so beautifully, brethren. And notice after the manner of purifying of the Jews.
Must be clean, must be pure. We must be holy. We have that life that our topic of practical things. We have a life, brethren, that can't sin it. We have the life of Christ that's holy. And you know the Lord said in first Peter 116, Be ye holy. If I am holy, This is the .0. How wonderful it is to be in that sense, separated from the things that defile in this world so that we can be usable by him.
So it speaks of sure of us here you must be holy, these water pots of stones containing two or three firkins of peace.
Does that expression two or three bring a note?
Matthew 1820 Where two or three are gathered together, other by name, thereby in the midst. This is the thought, I believe, of this verse. This verse brings it out so clearly. It's those that are gathered under His precious name. For he could be in the midst, and the Spirit have liberty, and the truth can go out. I think it's so beautiful. The expression two or three is so precious to me. It is right there in the midst or two or three.
Are gathered together under my name. There am I get the midst. Another expression is very precious. Is in the midst.
In the midst. I believe we have that thought himself. In the midst and the Spirit having liberty, I want to turn for that to John 19. I think it's worth looking at just a minute.
John 19 and verse 18.
Where they crucified him, they crucified him and two other with him on either side, one and Jesus in the midst. You know when God uses a phrase like this?
00:35:08
He starts at the beginning and he goes right to the end.
Did you ever notice that this precious expression that means so much to us, began in Genesis? Began in Genesis? Where was the tree of life, which is Christ in paradise? It was in the midst, in that beautiful in the midst. Second Chapter 10.
And if you go all the way to Revelations and go to the end of Revelations, where is the tree of life now? In the Holy City? In that wonderful place of glory? It's in the midst.
Find it. It's the same thought and you know in Revelations 55 where we often speak of the lamb. Where is that Lamb? It's in the midst of the four and 20 elders, Speaking of all the Saints in the midst, just as it is here. For two or three are gathered together under my name, thereby in the midst of them in this part here in 1918, Jesus had to be in the midst of sinners before he could be in the midst of Saints today.
But that expression is God's expression, and I think it's so beautiful. And you know, we have in Daniel.
Where we have Meshach, Shadrach, and Abundigo, those faithful brethren cast into the burning fiery furnace. Where do you find the 4th? Like the Son of God? In the midst, Beautiful in the midst. He's with us that way. In the midst has the sense of the predominant, predominant one, or the preeminent one. That's the 4th. None like it. He's in the bits. He's the featured one. And you know when Moses turned aside to see that burning Bush.
In Exodus chapter 3.
In the midst of that Bush came Jehovah's voice. Who is Jesus? It's lovely, isn't it, to see that. Well, I want to turn over to 21 just to show you this thought. In verse chapter 21 of John, I'm sorry, chapter 20 of John, verse 19/20/19. The same day and evening being the first day of the week when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst.
And saith of them, peace be unto you, Notice verse 26. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with him. Then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood his amidst. And said, peace be unto you. I believe we have that thought with the two or three. Here in John 2, verse six. It completes the picture. I believe we have that beautiful thought of those that are gathered under his name, the remnant testimony. God has always had one, always been faithful to have a random testimony.
And now or the Lord can be in the midst, and when he's in the midst, the truth can be enjoyed in fullness. Now notice verse 7. Jesus saith unto them, This is the word of God. This is important, Everything according to the word of God. And he saith unto them, Fill the water pots with water. You must have the word of God. And I believe, brethren, that's the wonderful truth of this little portion rundown.
The first part here of John Two, it's where the word can be enjoyed fully by the Spirit of God, making it good to our souls, where the Lord is in the midst.
I'll notice, he said. Fill the water pot with water.
And they filled them to the brim, and they're beautiful. You know, it's so wonderful to be where there's no limit. To be where the truth could be enjoyed in the fullness doesn't make anything of us. It humbles us that this is the fact. But we can, by the grace of God, enjoy the truth. In fullness. We can enjoy the fact that any moment we may be going home. We know what we're going to do when we get there. We know what we should do while we're here.
We have the beautiful truth in fullness.
He says to the bread they filled them to the bridge. The whole truth, it can only be found where Jesus is. I believe that's the truth of verse 6. And you know, in John 717 the Lord said, he that will do my will shall know of the Doctor. That's the point. To the Prince, to the Prince. In John 1010, the Lord said, I'm confident they might have life and they might have it more abundantly.
I believe that's the thought of to the prayer, that's his desire that we be where we can be fed fully. You know, in John 1039 we have Mary.
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Who, having sat down at the feet of Jesus, was listening to his word and wasn't very filled to the brim. Didn't she even know that he was going to die for her and he wouldn't be there? He'd rise the third day. The only one of the women that wasn't there, at the sepulchre early in the morning on the first day was Mary, who was filled with that truth to the brim. Isn't that beautiful? She wasn't there. She wasn't there. She had done it before because of his burial. She had done it before taken care of it in Matthew 26.
And he's so cherished it, but, you know, turn to Deuteronomy 33, Deuteronomy 33, I think this is so beautiful. And Deuteronomy 33, there's one verse there that brings that out for being 2 for us as an assembly.
In 33 verse three I think it is.
Deuteronomy 33 Three Yeah. He loved the people, all his Saints under thy hand, and they sat down at thy feet. Everyone shall receive of thy words as the thought fill the water pots with water, and they fill them to the bridge. Everyone shall receive a light word.
I think it's beautiful to see that we have a lovely principle in Matthew and Mark. Two. I think it's Matthew 13. Whosoever hath him more shall be given, and he shall have more abundance. But he that hath not, that which he has will be taken away. There's no standing still in the word of God for a believer or not.
We're going to go on and be filled to the brim or we're going backwards. That's it.
But if you have and you want to go on, you're going to have it upon this week. That's the thought of they were filled to the bridge. You know in Matthew 6, I like this too, where he fed the 20,000 fire men, 5000 men and all the others.
It says they could all eat and they were all fulfilled.
For Jesus is providing you're filled to the prison. Well, there's one other thought. I think it's in Luke 6. Good measure. It says press down and shaken together and running over. Sometimes that's wonderful, isn't it? It goes out to others. That's the only way you can go out to others in the fullness of the truth. So we have that thought there. And then he said, verse 8 draw out now and bear to the governor the feast and they bear it. I'm going to go down to verse 10.
For time now and.
Every man at the beginning does set forth good wine, said the governor. And when men have well drunk, then that which is worse. But thou has kept the good wine until now. This is the the wonderful truth. If you want to have that joy, it has to be based on the truth, the word of God. There's only one way to have that full truth. That good wine, that's to be where he is at the base, to be where he is. And the Spirit has liberty to fill us to the brim, the whole truth.
That's the source of true joy, lasting joy. He acknowledged it. But you know, there's something very well. That's the highest note, isn't it? It's the highest note in Romans 5. There's so many high notes in Romans 5. But the highest notes, verse 11, Not only so, we also joy in God.
Also, joy in God. That's just when you have the blessed truth and the knowledge of Him who's in the midst. Now notice the good wine was kept until now. That's the source of it. But you know the Lord did mention you can't put this new why in the old bodice?
The bottles break and the wine is lost and spoiled. You put the new light in new bottles. And so, as he told Nicodemus, you must be born again. That's the thought. You have to be the Lords to be even in this setting where there's the water pots of stone, holy because he's holy, and then have that privilege of being where he is in the midst. Well, now, that's the first part. Lovely to see it, isn't it?
This wonderful beginning of miracles.
Verse 11 This beginning of miracles. It's a teaching miracle. Did Jesus and Cana a Galilee and manifested forth his glory and his disciples believed on him. You know a miracle will never bring one into heaven, though they believe it never. We read later in John's gospel. I think it's the 12Th chapter. Probably verse 27, though he did so many miracles before them, yet they believe that of him.
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A miracle can't take you into heaven, but a miracle can teach us so much. And it's beautiful to see it, isn't it? Now look at the second part here, verse or 13 on down to 17. The Jews Passover was at hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves and the changes of money sitting. And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple.
And the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the chasers, the changers, money, and over to the table, and said unto them, that so dogs take these things, else take these things ends.
You know what this is? This is religion. This is man's way of thinking. He can approach God or getting credit from God. This is a terrible thing that's going on in full blooming kisses of the day. But here it is. When the Lord was here, he found them doing all these things in the temple and he had to cast them out. He had to say take these things hence. And we were reading some of these things. You know, it's interesting. When I was reading it in Mark, I think it's Chapter 11 if you look at it.
In the way he said it, Mark 11, I think it's quite interesting to see the difference. Verse 15 and 16, I believe Mark 11 and verse.
Yes, 15 And they come to Jerusalem, and Jesus went into the temple and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple and overthrew the tables of the money changers and the seats of them that sold dollars and would not suffer that any man could carry any vessel through the temple. You know that that emphasis here of selling dumps speaks values. You know the man that could afford a Bullock for a land.
Or Ram. He was all right, but the poor could bring 2 turtle dogs. The poor could bring dumps instead, but they were making the money off of the poor selling the doves. But the worst part is his first 16 and I first thought about this word vessel.
You know, there were the holy vessels in the temple, and I was mistaken. When I first read these things, I thought, what would be wrong with carrying the vessels. But in the other translation?
Whether Darby has it packages and I believe it gives it brings it out an awful this was and they desecrated the temple of God the holy place like that because it was at the center and when they went to the marketplace, the fish market and all the other markets.
They went the shortest route, right through the temple, tracking all things right through that holding place, carrying their packages. And you see how awful this would have been to the Lord and glory. And that's what we have here in our little portion. This was religion. I didn't even think think about him, it says in verse 13. The Jews passed over was in hand. When this was instigated, it was the Lord's Passover. When the feasts were instigated, it was the Lord's feast.
But now it's the Jews Passover and the Jews feasts. If we look at chapter 4 of John here and verse I think 23.
Chapter 4.
Not sure of the exact first.
Sorry about that, I know it mentions it here.
Well, I will look at chapter seven. I think it's also there Chapter 7 and verse two probably he has narrow the Jews. Feast of Tabernacles was a pain. You'll find this expression throughout the word of God because it no longer was the Lord's peace. A large Passover. It was a Jew celebration dates. And I want to show you why this is so important. It shows you what religion does. It turns things into manslaughter.
A man's weight. If we look at Luke, I'm sorry. If we look at Leviticus 23 when these things were instigated, instituted. Notice how it was Leviticus 23.
Verse two speak under the children of Israel, and say unto them concerning the feasts of the Lord, which he shall proclaim to. Behold a convocations, even my feet notice in verse four, These are the feast of the Lord.
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And whenever you know this down to verse five in the 14th day of the 1St planet even is the Lord Passover and I would just move over to verse 37.
These are the feasts of the Lord. Oh, I could read on verse 44 Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feast of the Lord. That's the way they originally That's what they were. These were the Lord's feats, the Lord's Passover. But now it has become the juice Passover and the juice beast. How solemn it is. This is what you have in religion. This is what they had at that time when the Lord was here. And what was it like?
The Nehemiah state turns back to Nehemiah. What was it like then, after the Lord in Bibleist grace restored A remnant testimony in nearby his time in Ezra and brought out of captivity a small group for a testimony of the truth that we've been enjoying? 13th chapter I believe of Nehemiah and after giving them the altar and the temple restore and the wall for separation so they could have this wonderful privilege again.
Nehemiah came back and this is what he found now about 430 years before Christ was born and noticed in verse verse 11 of chapter 13. Why is the House of God for Satan? Said DMI. Why is the House of God forsaken verse 15 in those days for I and Judah some treading wine presses on the Sabbath day, bringing in chiefs and laying ***** has also wine grapes and things.
In all matters of burden.
Which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, and I testified against them in the day when they sold the jewels, there dwelt men of tire also therein, which brought fish in all manner of where, and sold on the Sabbath under the children of Judah. And in Jerusalem. Notice verse 17 at the middle. What evil thing is it that you do and profane yourself? That's what the Lord had after all the grace of restoring a testimony.
Rather testimony to him. And then what about Malachi's day? After all the prophets were raised up of Isaiah and Jeremiah, the minor prophets, so they can be brought back to the Lord and have the blessed. Well, if we just look for a minute in Malachi the last prophet apostasy really had gone full bloom. And notice how sad it was in chapter one. Now we're 397 years before Christ and others the condition.
In chapter one and verse 7.
He offered polluted bread upon my altar. And you say wherein, if we pollute deep in that you say the table, the Lord is contemptible. If you offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And if you offer the lame and the sick, is it not evil? Offer it now unto thy governor, will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? Sail the Lord of hosts. Notice verse 10. Who is there even among you, that would shut the doors for God? Neither do you Kindle Fire my altar for not.
I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord. Neither will I accept an offering at your hand. Finally down in verse some.
14 My curse would be the deceiver which half in his flock of male and followed, and sacrifices under the Lord after. For I am a great king, says the Lord of hosts. My name is dreadful or awesome among the heathens. This is what the conditions were right at the end, after he restarted a faithful remedy, testimony for himself. And what was it like in the Lord's day? We read a few things about it, but notice in Matthew 23 you'll see what it like.
Was he changed in Matthew 23? Notice in verse 2.
The scribes and Pharisees who sit in Moses seat, that's those leaders who took the place of authority in things of God. That's the ones in those days. At the end of verse three they say and do not notice. Down in verse 723. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees hypocrites. You play tithes a bit, and Anna's and coming, and have omitted the way dear matters of the law of judgment, mercy and faith. No faith.
These ought to have done.
Not leave the other undone. Finally, in verse 27 woe unto you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites. Ye are light under white and sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead bands, bones, and all are cleaners Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous under man. Over there they are, full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Outward shall only that's what it was when he was here. So he said.
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Take these things.
And verse 16. Solemn, isn't it? What is it in Christmas today 19190 years, 18 now even though we have the same kind of conditions and brother, we have to bow our heads. We're part of Christian, but we have the same kind of conditions. Convenient worship because they wouldn't open the door of the temple without being paid. Even convenient times to worship man's time and not God's. And you notice as you travel around, I do in the bigger cities especially.
As you begin the summer season, you find these signs change and it says worship service on Thursday night or Wednesday night for convenience of the weekends. You know it's solid to think of this, isn't it? Not Lords Day. I notice they have the guitar mouse. I even saw a poker mask advertised man's religion, man's days, man's celebration and I thought moneychangers, Well, enough said, you've seen it.
Las Vegas Days at the church with the wheels and all to make money. Bingo and drawing from each field carnivals.
Take these things. Hence says the Lord. Make not my father's house a denim merchandise. So that's the second part of this precious chapter that tells us really what religion is and how that goes without Christ in the Spirit of God. But notice how the 30. By verse 18.
What answered the Jews? And said unto him, What signs show us Thou unto us see that thou hast thou doest these things? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple in three days. I will raise it up. Destroy this temple in three days I will raise it up. Then, said the Jews, 40 and six years was this temple, and building wealth thou rear it up in three days. Oh yes, He's faith of the temple of his body, and how beautiful that is.
It's the same truth we had in First Corinthians 12, the body of Christ, the church in three days. That church was then a reality. It is being completed. But he had his temple raised in three days. I want to just turn to Ephesians one. I know that we're right there now, Ephesians one, for this is so beautiful. They he said. I will raise it in three days and this is what is happening now. Notice in verse 20.
We are built, I'm sorry, chapter 2 of Ephesians verse 20. We are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the cornerstone in whom all the building fitly framed together, growing under a holy temple in the Lord, in whom ye are also also are building together for a habitation of God through the Spirit. This is what the Lord was Speaking of when he said I were raised up in three days.
In three days, and we'll just finish now with the last part that I see now. Verse 23. When he was in Jerusalem at the Passover in the Peace day, many believed in his name when they saw the miracles which he did. But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men and needed not that any should testify of man, for he knew what was in man. They may have believed, because of the miracles, that that's not the same as being saved seeing who he is.
See who he is. That makes all the difference. I will just end with a verse on that John 6 John chapter 6.
Verse 64 The Lord said. But there are some of you that believe not, for Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not. And then verse 66 From that time many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him.
Then said Jesus under the 12 Will ye also go away? And Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou has the words of eternal life, and we believe in our sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
Jesus needed not that any should testify of land. He knew what was in man. Oh how wonderful it is to realize the truth of this precious chapter forever.
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We can be filled to the bridge and overflowing because by His grace. By His grace, we've been gathered under His precious name, and we claim that promise. He's in the midst. He is in the midst. Let's sing #109 #109.
Jesus.
For us.
What the Holy Spirit Is For Us
Address—C. Buchanan
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.
Says by thee, Oh God invited.
To look under the sun.
Lord insulation and God's invitation. You want to look into the sun this afternoon.
By the old Lord in by.
God.
Man, we cry.
All right, let's scream.
A lot of our sins, all of our dear.
To start with.
A few verses in John 16.
Beginning with.
Verse 13.
I.
The Lord Jesus speaking here says how be it?
When he.
The spirit of truth is come.
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He will guide you into.
All truth.
For he shall not speak of himself.
But whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak.
And he will show you.
Things to come.
He shall glorify me, for He shall receive of mine.
And shall show it unto you.
All things.
That the Father has our money, therefore said I, that shall take of mine.
And show it unto you.
In this section in these few verses.
To find a wonderful depth.
What the Spirit of God is here?
In clarity.
To the followers.
Of the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 believers.
Earlier in the chapter there was the work.
That the spirit of truth, the comfort would.
Do for loss of sinners out of the world.
To convince, to bring the demonstration of sin, of righteousness and objection to come.
For us, that's all taken.
And God wants us to go on in the liberty of the Holy Spirit.
Unbraid and yet for our own good, everything we have read up here.
It can be.
The Spirit of God has come.
When the Spirit of God is and he is a God.
Just as much here as the day he didn't come to go into that.
But that's just a tremendous thought.
That Jesus would give up having finished his work.
Down the Spirit of God according to that.
But let's just think, the Spirit of God is come.
I quote to you.
From First John 520.
About Jesus.
We know.
That the Son of God.
Is.
And that he had given us an understanding that we may know him that is true.
And we are in him, that is true.
Even in his Son Jesus Christ, this is the true God, and he turned right. First of all, it was the Son who came. He is come, is present, going on in the tents that as Jesus came and became a man and he remains.
God manifest in flesh. What a tremendous thing that is. That's the beginning of all of our blessings revealed in the Senate. God is coming.
But the Son of God came.
And finished his work.
As to glorifying God, as to hold the sin question and laying a basis to redeem, to save sinners and bring them to glory. And he went up and from that place he sat down in the Holy Spirit. We're in the age of the Holy Spirit here on earth today. But here said, when he, the Spirit of God is God and he is his God, what was he going to do for you now?
He will guide you into.
All truth.
No injure, it's all.
It's all for us.
It's known. It's apprehended by the Teacher of the Holy Spirit.
To those who walk in that trip, like the children of Israel, were given the Promised land.
All the way from over there at the Euphrates River.
Or the battle raged Virgin Gulf area all the way back to the Mediterranean and all the way from Lebanon on the north to the Willis from South.
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But they didn't possess anything.
They only possessed what they walked. Now out of the truth, you and I only possessed what we walked. But he's here to give us all.
For he shall not.
Speak of himself means that he would not be independent of the Father and the Son.
Just like the sun.
When he came.
Just hold the 16th.
Turn back to.
Chapter 12 at the end.
To get.
What the Son said when he came and who he got his words from. Think of Jesus.
He is come as a man and he he walked the earth and talked and what did he teach and where did he get it? John 12.
Verse 49 Jesus his last words in his public ministry are these 1249 I have not spoken of myself. You see the same language that means he didn't speak independently.
He spoke in conjunction with the father.
And the Spirit of God will vote for me.
I have not spoken of myself, but the Father which sent me. He gave me a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting. So the Gospel sound, the way of the gospel, like everlasting, is made known by the person of the sun and his work. Than the last word were whatsoever I speak, says Jesus. Therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.
And the Spirit of God follows the same path.
He does not speak of himself. That means he doesn't speak independently.
He gets his message in conjunction with the Father and the Son, and he's the active one on Earth.
And so he teaches.
Verse 13.
But whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, that says the Spirit of God down here, where in the last part, John 1630.
Whatsoever he shall hear, that shall that shall he speak.
Tells us again that he fumble the Spirit of God here. Follows the same pattern that Jesus did when Jesus was here. Jesus got his message in conjunction with the Father. The Holy Spirit gets his in conjunction with the Father and the Son here, up there and he's down here teaching.
And who's he teach? He will show you things that come.
The first thing he's promised here to tell us is promising.
The future Are you interested in a course where we can't do anything about the past? It's gone.
They can't get back. They like to reminisce.
What's valuable?
The future Do you know, do I know what's going to take place?
There's no one with her that knows the future like the gathered Saints, the poor, according to the teaching of a Spirit Father.
Keeping the truth of the one Body, and allowing the liberty of the Holy Ghost to interpret, to teach from the Word which He has written.
And if you and I are going to know the future, we're going to be like Daniel, that young man in a captive land were in the world and I was supposed to us.
Are the captives in Christ package now? But Daniel was in the rough situation and he was doing two things.
For the witch, God opened up prophecy to that young man.
What was he was reading the book?
That he was reading in Jeremiah chapter 25 and he was praying.
And identifying himself with Jones people in the.
So the future and perhaps see the truth.
But what's next on the schedule? The Rapture?
The seven years of the tribulation.
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As a Millennium.
And the Great White Throne.
On the day of Eternity is known only to those who accept the Spirit of God's teaching in this book.
And we must be getting close to the very beginning of that, and that's the rapture. But we're not there yet. We're still down here. So we want to get these things that the Spirit of God is here to make known to us. Now, the next thing in verse 14 is very important.
He shall glorify you.
The Spirit of God is here to glorify Christ.
Not to glorify the Spirit of God.
And four men in the systems have messed in Illinois.
And they want to claim the power of the spirit of talking tongues, and even to perform miracles and gifts of healing.
For notoriety, for fame and for money.
That kind of thing is not.
The Holy Spirit.
He owns Lord Wise Christ, He never pays attention to himself, running in the flesh and making something noble to man.
Now that's one of the tests that we have to try, the spirits for the dear God.
So the Lord says he shall glorify me. That's a blanket first statement here in this verse.
For he shall receive a mine, and shall sow it unto you.
That's the worthless fear of God to make Christ know.
When he talks about things.
He doesn't just talk about some things, he talks about old things.
You find this.
In many places in the Bible.
Politically quoted.
All things look together for good to them to talk more to them who are the cold recorders perks and believe it.
And perhaps you'll enter the depth of what those old things are.
But when we get to the end of Revelation.
21 The reward to the overcomer says he that overcometh shall inherit all things. Do you enjoy your 4000 and 66140 acres in Highland? That's a little piece of ground, a nice home that's nice to have. And the Lord knows we have even some of these things down here to gain a lively cut.
I think of all the pictures.
He that overcometh shall inherit all things.
So the Lord talks about that here, All things that the Father hath.
What the Father has belongs to the Son.
And he shall show it unto you.
The whole thing, that the Father hath our mind. Therefore said I, that he shall take our mind, and shall show it unto you.
Then he says a little while there's sixteen, he shall not see me again. A little while and he shall see me because I go to the fall of it. So the Lord Jesus man up.
And let's go then to Acts chapter one to trace the.
Descent of the Holy Spirit down into this world, who is promised and who has come, and who is here in our favor, to teach us and to show us all things, and to open up prophecy for our enjoyment.
And get the actual happening in chapter one of Acts beginning with first one.
The former treatise Have I made opiates of all of Jesus began both to do and to teach. Luke is referring to his book of the Gospel, but this also follows Matthew, Mark and John where we have recorded many things that Jesus began to do and to teach until verse 2, the day in which he was taken up after he threw the Holy Ghost.
Have given the commandments under the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom also he showed himself alive after his passion. That's Jesus and resurrection by many infallible truths being seen of them. 40 days approving period that Jesus was losing, he showed himself.
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To the disciples, to the apostles.
Being seen of them 40 days and Speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God, that's in the future.
And the things concerning the Kingdom of God that we can understand from the book and being assembled verse 4 together with them.
Commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father.
The Father promised to send her a spirit. The Lord had promised to send the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit. We promised to count John 14 and 15 and 16, which said, He, ye have heard of me, is referring back to what he had written in the Gospels.
For John purely baptized with water, but he shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
Only 10 more days. Let's go down in 10 days, Chapter 2.
Now, this is 50 days after his resurrection. He was.
Jesus had finished his work and he showed himself alive by many infallible fruits for 40 days.
And we read all We found out where Jesus went after the night.
And 10 days later, chapter 2, when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven.
As of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting, and they appeared under them, pulling tongues like a sapphire, and sat upon each of them, and they were all field.
The holy person will stop there now.
Spirit God is God.
Down in.
Peru.
About 10 years ago.
I was going around with our brother, Pharrell Valderrama.
To visit.
Of his relatives.
And it rallies a wonderful evangelist.
When he got saved, he just thought he could convert everybody in Lehman. He found that he couldn't do it, but he got that kind of a heart, you know?
And he still goes after those he knows and seeks to bring the truth of the gospel to them if they like to get the blessing.
So he asked me to go around, but I was glad to visit several homes regarding a confused situation.
That was a burden to me.
Mona Raoul's relatives.
Have delved into Roman Catholic charismatic movement.
And we got into that place and.
I could count some feelings.
I was very, very uncomfortable.
And they were a group that was going to have some kind of a vision, some kind of a voice.
And it was supposed to come from this matriarch, this aged lady sitting in a rutting chair.
And there was they passed around some little.
Tablets with songs on them just.
Short thing, they just chanted that music.
And I sat there and prayed.
I think around it too.
And two or three young people came in, they were sitting close to the house, filled up.
And they tried to get a vision and they.
Because the Holy Spirit was there, and a few people.
And didn't let that other spirit get in there.
But what they were saying is, oh, Holy Ghost, come.
And after calm down, I said I'd like to speak a few words.
I said. You people remind me.
Budget school children, they're sitting in A room.
And on the table is a great big bowl of candy, available to anybody that wants it.
And all you have to do is take it and you say, oh, give me candy, give me candy, give me candy, give me candy, said the Holy Ghost is come. He is here. He came and he is here. We don't have to ask the Holy Ghost to come. Now, that's the ignorance that's in some of the systems that men have set up. They don't realize that the Holy Ghost is.
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He is here. He's here right now. He's here. He's there.
Greater see that is in you than he that is in the world.
Well, here it came.
And.
He's still here.
Now this was in the axe.
Where we noticed that he came and he followed. Through the book of the action, you'll have what is really the action of the Spirit of God.
In and through men. Let's go to the 13th chapter to have just one example.
Then we're going to get on into the epistles quickly.
So are Paul and Barnabas.
Get their missions.
To go forth and evangelize and teach. Chapter 13, verse one.
Now there were in the church that was at Antioch.
Certain prophets and teachers.
As this fiber, the carnivus and Simeon that is called Nagar AS2 Lucius of Irene, that's three and Manaan, which have been brought up with hair, the teacher and soul. Now he's fine.
They were in the church and Antioch. They weren't the church. They were just fine prophets and teachers in the church.
But they were doing something, verse two, as they ministered to the Lord. They serve the Lord in our Sunday school.
We noticed that in writing Titus.
Pole begins with saying.
Paul the Servant.
That's what he wants. That's what you and I service ministers.
May we carefully minister to the Lord from the book that he's given us as they minister to the Lord and fasted the Holy Ghost said separate the Barnabas and saw for the work for him to. I told them and when they had passed it and prayed, they laid their hands on sent them away so they being sent for it by the Holy Ghost. That's why I agree you see, the Holy Ghost took over. He selected those two they were called.
Both of them were called apostles.
Now, Chapter 15, the converse.
Going into the solution out of it, it's very interesting problems. I suppose you'd get a few. And so we get down on lunch, really, and each local assembly you get in Congress, and what are you going to do about it?
Well, we have a pattern of the problem, and we have the Holy Spirit to wield the sword of the Spirit, to enlighten us and to guide us in grace to go on for God. It was a horrible doctrine that tried to export from Jerusalem the first verse. Certain men came down from Judea and talked. The brethren said, except to be circumcised and keep the after the manner of Moses, you cannot be saved.
Right back.
Think of that. Tell the Gentiles out. You've got to be circumcised after the matter of Moses. He can't be saved with the Spirit of God. Let that stand in no way.
Gentiles were never put under the loan. Bad duck. It had to be cleared up.
And it had to be cleared up where it came from. So they had to go back up to Jerusalem, to Judea, and the apostles and elders were there and they got a kind of a beginning of an answer out of a brother's name that is out of meeting of the apostles and ailments.
And it was. They were all together and.
Peter began the.
Message and James clinched it, but they didn't say in the end, well, this is an assembly decision. Let's read the words they did use.
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To put to it down in.
Verse 28.
It seemed.
Good for the Holy Ghost.
And to us.
To lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things.
There is the way of grace.
We are not under law, we're under grace.
And grace and love and faithfulness.
And attention to the Word of God to get what seems good to the Holy Ghost and to us. That was the apostles and elders. They came to a decision rather contrary to the teaching.
The apostles who were Jews and.
You couldn't have gotten that kind of a decision out as Jews. They had to get it by the Holy Spirit. I want to go to John's first epistle now and touch on what John has to say for our own comfort in this age in which we live.
We.
As the Holy Spirit here.
And we confess our weakness, the Church which has begun there, and by the baptism the Holy Ghost, including the Gentiles. Max, 1011.
Was formed and remains. The Spirit of God is down here.
In that baptized body, and we as gathered Saints are only a dairy small current.
Of the baptized body. I speak of the baptism the Holy Spirit now, which is reality and you have the body. It's reality I believe and every believer those dear Roman Catholics are labor amongst in South America. You already saved or just much in the body as we are and any other denomination doesn't exclude from the body of Christ. When they're saved, genuinely saved and trusting in the Lord Jesus, they are baptized and they're in the morning.
He meant that we should the Lord pray that we Almighty 1.
But whatever is committed to man goes into the room.
And we confess we're just a part of the ruin. But there is a path to see. And the faithfulness to what is what is there is one life.
And there is a teaching by the Spirit of God.
To to guide us into all truth that we have. So in first John two, we want to get that from the apostle John by the Spirit of course, in verse 20.
First John 220 we read a few verses.
But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and you know all things. That's the anointing of the Spirit of God.
Verse 21 I have not written unto you because you know not the truth. She's talking about the same using the same language he's regarding into all truth.
I have not written any because you know not the truth, but because you never.
And that no lie is asked the truth. How cute was the word?
If I lie doesn't do away with the truth, the truth abides.
Check with you.
The truth abides.
If you look in your own private reading and.
2nd Corinthians, The last chapter you read we can do nothing against.
The truth, but for the truth, I like to use that verse with this one.
Supposing what I did online, that doesn't do away with the truth. It doesn't destroy the truth. The truth is over there. I'm not in it, but the truth of eyes. But you and I can do something. For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. And we're here to support the truth. That's what the Church was formed to be, the pillar and ground of the truth. We are supposed to go on in that way.
Verse 22 who is a liar but he that denies that Jesus is the Christ.
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He is Antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son.
Many of the so-called denominations deny this and the Jews deny that Jesus is the Christ. That's the Jewish apostasy.
Verse 23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father. The Unitarians have nothing.
They have nothing. They deny the son. They haven't got the property.
You have to have the whole of the print and the whole of the Godhead.
Verse 24.
Let that therefore abide in you which ye have heard from the beginning. He goes back to the teaching of Christ here on earth, and on into what the Spirit is going to talk. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, He also shall continue in the sun and in the Father.
And this is the promise that he had promised us eternal money.
We have it.
We know that Son of Gods come and that He giveth us understanding that we may know Him that is true, and we are in him that's true even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. We have eternal life.
Verse 26 these things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you a warning of the Antichrist that we're even coming. John's day and they're prevalent in the word of the day. You'll find it in the newspapers. I was improving. The man claimed to be the Christ. I was in the Dominican Republic when another man had himself crucified in the courtyard of the hotel. Some of our brothers.
Of course he didn't die and they said he had supports under his feet, but there he said under Christ he had himself crucified Antichrist. Antichrist there in the world today.
Now we want to get this 27th version.
But the annulment.
The ocean.
Which he had received of him. That's the Spirit of God.
That anoints us.
Abideth in you, and ye need not in any man teach you.
But as the same anointing teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, you shall abide in.
Berlin, I believe I have seen and even felt that in our weakness, in our small gatherings, when they get together frequently, we seem to have very little gift.
But in reading the Word of God, the Spirit of God teaches.
In my experience for 60 years.
Defined in low gatherings.
Seem newly saved to follow the order of the book and they don't have some of the great gifts.
Because they have enough, we have enough. Because we have the Holy Spirit.
And we give the liberty of the Spirit. I make a mistake in my teaching a brother, correct. And that's the way the truth is held. We can go on for God in faith and faithfulness. Now we want to turn to 1St Corinthians chapter 12 to get the.
Truth about what the Holy Spirit has done and is done for the sake of the body of Christ today.
The first one of First Corinthians 12.
Now, concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
We know that you were Gentiles, the Corinthians carried away with dumb idols even as you were led that land of hedonism.
The Spirit of God came over and Paul preaching verse 3. Wherefore I give you to understand that no man speaking by the Spirit of God called Jesus occurs now that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same spirit.
The same spirit.
And there are differences of administration look the same woman.
And their diversity operations, but is the same time which work at all we have the credit issue.
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The same Spirit, the same mind, the same God in this action.
To supply the needs of the church while she's down here.
And there are many gifts and you can't say and I can't say that I don't have that because everybody.
Yeah, and they're all necessary.
And they're all help.
And if you just look at your own body.
And compare it. If your right arm could say I'm not going to work anymore, you got to get along without me. How does your body function?
You just don't think somewhere else.
We need each member of the body, each one to function in his own place.
And.
Verse 8421 is given by this number seven, but the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to drop the holy Passover, that there's a manifestation of the Spirit of God in everyone so that all of us make profit together.
41 is given by the spirit of.
The Word of Wisdom.
To another, the word of acknowledged by the same spirit. To another faith by the same spirit, To another, the gifts of healing by the same Spirit. We notice that he always says the same spirit in this list. In First Corinthians 12, these gifts are reparted, given out by the Spirit of God.
Actually in Romans 12 where we have another list that seems to be called.
And in Ephesians 4, where Christ is the ascended on high, He gave.
If in the man is Christ given to death, but here in particular it's the action of the Spirit of God here on earth to recart the gifts for the whole of the body, and we need these gifts.
To another verse.
To another verse 9 faith by the same spirit, this is a special kind of faith. Evidently it's a special gift, even as the special gift of wisdom and knowledge was before that.
In those days to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit. You see, the Spirit of God acted in a powerful and miraculous way to attract to Christ at that time before the book was written.
And it did attract.
And then after the Bible was completed and the work was.
I mean, the word of God is available.
Some of these gifts were withdrawn in a public sense, and we.
Can't take much time to go into that, but we know that that's the fact.
Going on.
Verse 10 to another working miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits. What a wonderful necessary gift that is. I think they can have that if we look into the word and see how we can test the spirits of John himself tells us in his first epistle. Very necessary in the time in which we live, when there are so many winds of doctrine to another divers kinds of tongues. Now when I went to South America, I didn't learn to talk Spanish. All of a sudden I didn't get that checked.
Had to work at it for years to be able to talk to Spanish.
So it just was a demonstration to me that the signed gifts weren't given to me. At least in this way it wasn't necessary. They were interpreted and they were did brethren down there. That could benefit your interpretation as well and other reasons.
To another the interpretation of the tongues, verse 11. But all these work at that one in the self same spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
And this 12Th verse as the body is more.
Here's an absolute fact.
Is what we were saying.
Everyone that is born of the Spirit is genuinely say the child is gone, is in one body. Christ has not two bodies.
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The first chapter of this epistle, that tremendous question is shaped here when you hear it is Christ. That might absolutely impossible.
Based on that there is.
I'll say what some objective insistence of these.
There can only be one testimony.
Truth that there is one body because two is division.
I firmly believe that there's only one trivia.
To the true fact that there is one body, may I seek that place and seek to go on there. There is one Bible.
For as the body is one and have many members, and all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also Christ is the way it should read.
Hold this place and they'll go to Genesis 5 and read the second verse because very early.
In the Bible we have a type that fits this exactly.
When you read verses one and two.
Genesis 5.
This is the book of the generations of Adam.
In the day that God created, man in the likeness of God made.
He him male and female created he them.
And bless them and call their name Adam.
And the day that they were created, he didn't call their name Adam and Eve.
They were.
And when you and I are baptized in the body of Christ, the name of Christ is critical. That's what we have here this 12 years.
All the members of that modern body, being many, are one body. So also Christ, or you could say the Christ, the head and the body is Christ. Oh how near that we are linked up by the Spirit of God, united to Christ our head in glory now practically.
It's very simple to see.
The wisdom of this.
So even as I stand here.
Or you sit there.
You have to get all the commands and directions as to how to check somebody'd hand, how to stand up and pull.
Or any action of the body coming from the head.
And the body that functioned well always does that.
Now we'll use a case of a person who's coldly *******.
You've seen them, you know that they have an affliction.
And their affliction interferes with the command from their heads, their hips, actually, all right.
Nerve commands don't get through and they can't handle their whole body properly.
That's a picture.
I'm afraid of crystal.
Who gets their commands?
And confuses them. He mixes them all up and doesn't pay any attention really to what their head dance to say. And they get into all kinds of dissension and argument.
Men's rooms and creeks and darkness and wicked duck because they're not holding their head.
You and I must.
Hole in your head and listen to what the head has to say.
Now the next verse 13 tells us.
And what took place when the Spirit of God came down, and I believe it includes.
Acts 2 That we read, and Acts 10:00 and 11:00 to bring the Gentiles in.
For the 10th chapter of this book, it mentions three groups that God recognizes on the earth, the Jews, the Gentiles, and the Church of God. So once the Spirit of God did, when he came down, he baptized into one body what is called the church from the Jews and from the Gentiles. So that's what we have at verse 13. For by 1 Spirit are we all baptized.
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Into one body.
This is a vital action of the Spirit of God.
We actually had nothing to do with it.
God.
Therefore, it's a perfect life.
You know, I had eternal life. We're in union with Christ by the Holy Spirit and Jesus sent down from that country.
By 1 spirit.
Are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one spirit?
Now we have that spirit and in order to function in the body.
There's much truth given. You could go on if we had time and the rest of this chapter and in the love chapter comes in between and the actual operation of the function of the church in chapter 14.
These things we know and these things we need.
We need one another.
And two other little admonitions that I need.
I don't know what you do, but I should probably do. We'll look them up and read them in Ephesians chapter 5.
You want to ask somebody to help me find that this works with greed, not that Holy Spirit provides your seal for the day of redemption. Sure, it's right here somewhere, but I can't put it up.
Patience 45 is.
443430 OK, Thank you. I was looking the wrong question on the page. Thank you. That's at 4:30 and.
Agree. Not that Holy Spirit, not for by your seal until the day of redemption.
You see what happened when I act in the flesh or you act in the flesh? It hinders the positive action that we read about in John 16/13/14 and 10.
And the Spirit of God, if I act in the flesh, you can't keep me. All the truth as to the person of Christ and his glories and the prophetic things, but he has to make me think about my seat.
And to correct that first and bring me back into communion in it forward with the book that the Spirit of God wrote. So every time I grieve the spirit and it's the allowance of pleasure grieve the spirit I'm hindered in growth in the soul. So that's we want to grow Peterson last word growing grace and in truth and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So we understand that greed, not the Spirit and we go to.
First Thessalonians chapter 5 to find the 2nd.
Little simple statement that I'm sure we need.
2nd The 1St Thessalonians, Chapter 5.
A little list of short versions here which are so helpful, beginning with verse 16.
The positive is so much more blessed than the negative. Rejoice evermore.
The shortest verse in the Bible, except for one.
It has 2 verses, 2 words and this has 2 words. These words are little longer. Rejoice and.
Next thing is pray with empathy, be in that attitude to ask from God as a dependent preacher. That's what we are.
Pray in everything, give thanks.
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But says in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. And here's the other short affiliation.
French, not the spirit. Now this speaks to me. I'm sure it speaks to you.
What this is, is the hindering.
Of the action of the Spirit of God.
In another and it could be in myself.
I am not to quench that spirit of joy. He has given out the gifts. We had them there in chapter 12. You have yours, I have mine.
The body needs your help, they need my help. We all have a service to performing the body like your fingers and your feet.
And every part of your body and the unseen parts of the heart. And ever, perhaps the most important.
In fact, he says so in that chapter.
We need one another.
And the Spirit of God is the one to direct us from the head, who is Christ and glory, the lines of communication open by the Spirit of God and the liberty of the Spirit to teach us. And that's the reason I said I have observed in reading meaning amongst the gathered Saints where there wasn't much gift that they just drew and couldn't. I can think of a deer, a man in his way who are pretty much isolated. I never saw anybody. It holds much truth as he other brothers go along with me.
Taking on the breaking of bread over there in Indiana for some 40 years.
As a real live demonstration to me of what Job says who teacheth like Him, you have an option of the Holy One, and you know all things. Read through it and wait on the floor, and you get your teacher and you'll get the wizard, and you'll get the premise and the love to go with it. But don't quench the Spirit if He asks you to, dear brother, to give out him or to pray and clearly do it.
Don't punch the spirit.
And don't say anything that requests the spirit in your brother.
So this is.
Craft will pinching up the Spirit despise, not prophesying. I've listened to Indian brothers.
In port clothing and learn truth from.
The source is from.
And an humble Indian brother can say the truth in just a precious way. We're not to despite it because he's just a poor brother. Never.
Prove all things.
Despite our prop sign prove all the things tested by the word of God. Hope that's that which is good. We're going to the last chapter in the book.
And find out the Spirit of God's last words.
And we're just ready for it.
The Spirit of God is here. We are here. We're not going to stay here. The Spirit of God is not going to stay here. When we leave, he leaves.
Divine accreditation. Most perhaps all of the great events in the Bible.
And here we find.
The Spirit of God in his place down here.
And verse 17, well, I'll start with verse 16 because they have Jesus, alright? Jesus have sent my Angel to testify into you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David and the bright and Morning Star.
We're looking for the orange carpet, right?
Now here's the language of the Spirit and the God.
And the Spirit and the Bride say.
The same spirit is here in the church.
And in this last chapter in the Bible, he's inviting Jesus.
Well, Jesus is much, but he waits till he gets the command from his Father to rise up and come and get. And when we go, the Spirit of the car goes to Let's sing a hymn closing number.
131, which mentions the Trinity.
Praise, which is the Father give praise. We see the first born bring praises for the Holy Ghost sent from heaven, Pentecost.
Some brother raised the 10 and just singing the last stance verse 4.
Plus our portion.
01:00:06
Of.
The.
For us.
I.
We Have This Ministry
Address—C. Hendricks
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.
2nd Corinthians.
Chapter 4.
2nd Corinthians 4 verse one.
Therefore, seeing we have this ministry.
As we have received mercy, we think that but have renounced.
The hidden things of dishonesty.
Not rocking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God secretly, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost.
In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them, which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord.
And ourselves, your servants, for Jesus sake.
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness that shined in our hearts.
To give the lights of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the Excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
We are troubled at every side, if not distressed. We are perplexed but not in despair, persecuted but not forsaken, cast down but not destroyed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
Or we which live are always delivered unto death, for Jesus sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us. But life in you we having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken, we also believe, and therefore speak.
Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.
For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the Thanksgiving of many read down to the glory of God.
For which 'cause we faint not, but though our outward man perish yet the inward man as we knew day by day.
For our light affliction, which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight glory, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. But the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
He talks in this first verse.
About the ministry that.
We have see, therefore seeing we have this ministry. But what's he referring to? Well, if we go back for a moment to the third chapter.
To see that he's contrasting the ministry of the the New order with the the old order of things that existed in Judaism.
He says in verse 6.
Of chapter 3.
Who also have made us, that is, God hath made us able ministers of the New Testament or the New Covenant.
The article isn't there and it's really new covenant ministers. That is, the character of the ministry that was committed to Paul was grace. The New covenant speaks of grace. The old covenant speaks of law. This doom thou should live the principle of works. The old covenant is the principle of works of doing something. And then we would get the blessing based upon our our obedience. But the new covenant is blessing held out to us.
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And secured infallibly for us by grace.
And so Paul was a a new covenant minister.
He says in verse 6 not of the letter.
But of the Spirit.
For the letter killer, but the spirit giveth life. The letter of the word doesn't have life in it. The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. Now He tells us what the spirit of of the word is. In verse 17 there's a parenthesis and it goes. It goes on to the end of verse 16 now. And at the end of the parenthesis he continues his thought.
Says the spirit giveth life. Now the Lord is that spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
We were mentioning in the Sunday school this morning.
Saul of Tarsus knew the letter of the word.
He knew the letter, but the letter killeth the Spirit gives his life, and the Spirit of the old order, or the Spirit of the word of God is the Lord. The Lord is that spirit. And Salvatarsis did not know the Lord. He knew the old, the old writings. He knew them. He knew the letter of them. But he didn't have the spirit of them. They all speak of Christ.
And today, a Jew with a veil upon his heart, he can read the law and read all of the ordinances and the instructions and and all that. But if he doesn't see Christ there, he doesn't see that it all speaks of Christ. Christ the Lord is the Spirit of the Word of God. If you don't see that, then this book is really a closed book to you.
The Lord is the Spirit, while Saul of Tarsus, when those scales fell off his eyes, as it were, and he he was transformed into Paul, and he got saved. Then he had he had to come to the realization of what the Spirit of the word is. Not the letter, only the letter Killeth, But the spirit giveth life.
Now verse seven of chapter 3, what if the ministration the ministry that is of death, written and engraved in stones, He's talking about the 10 commandments.
And he calls it the administration or the Ministry of Death.
Why did he call it that? Because the 10 commandments gave to man God's requirement for man if he was going to gain acceptance with God on the basis of his doings.
Keeping the law here was the law, but it's called the Ministry of Death because it said it held out blessing for the obedience and it held out death and judgment for the disobedience. So he calls it the Ministry of Death. That's really what Moses ministered, the ministry of death. Moses was the the one that gave the law, was given to him and he gave it to the children of Israel. But it's called here a ministry of death.
Written and engraved in stones was glorious. Or it began with glory, that is, there was a glory attached to the giving of the law.
It began with glory, but that glory was to pay. It wasn't permanent. It was it was a glory that shone from God, who was giving to man if he wanted it. And man was really asking for it. You tell me what I'm to do, and I'll do it. You give me a perfect moral code and I'll keep it. That's what man was saying to God. And so God gave it to him. And there was a certain glory connected with the giving of that.
Moral law, the 10 Commandments. It began with glory. That's really what that means. It says it was glorious, or it began with glorious. Mr. Garvey renders it so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his face, his countenance, which glory was to be done away. That glory was to fade Moses when he was on the mount and receiving the 10 commandments from the Lord.
And he came down and presented them to them. The first time you remember who came down, the children of Israel had already broken the 1St 3 commandments. The first commandment, Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Second commandment, thou shalt not make a graven image, bow down to it, anything in heaven or on earth. The third commandment was thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. They've broken all three. They had made a golden calf.
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And denied the true God, they invented another God. They made an image. They learned that in Egypt, that's what the Egyptians worshipped, the calf. That's what the Indians over in India, that's what they worship today too, in the Hindu religion. And they had made a feast to Jehovah. They said tomorrow's a feast to Jehovah. They put the name of the true God on a heathen, idolatrous feast.
And that's taking the name of the Lord in vain. It wasn't the feast of Jehovah at all. He was an idolatrous thing. And so they brought in the 1St 3 commandments. And Moses came down and heard the music and dancing, and he saw what they were doing and he broke the the tables of stone at the foot of the mountain. He didn't bring it into the camp. Had he done so, they would have all been destroyed because this was a ministry of death.
And it would have been sure, and certain death and judgments upon those that broke it that was pure law. There was no grace mixed with that pure law, with what it was given the first time.
Then Moses went up under the mouth, and he received it a second time. But this time there were provisions.
That God gave in the event of Savior on the part of the children of Israel. It was a sort of a mixture of law and grace.
But it was still strict. Law is a Ministry of death.
And no one has ever kept it outside of the Lord Jesus himself.
So Moses face shone, and when they saw his face, this was in connection with his going up. The second time when he came down and spoke to the people, they could see his face shining, and he had to put a veil over his face so that they should not look upon the end of that which was to be done away. Because the shining of Moses face was a reflection of the glory of God in connection with giving the law that was to fade, that was to fade, and so they were not allowed to see the fading of that.
They're passing away of that, but was never God stopped. A man should get the lead justified before him by the principle of law.
Man being a Sinner, so it's a ministry of death. And then in verse eight he says, How shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? So you have the the new now the Newman. The new ministry is called Administration of the Spirit. If the ministry of death began with glory, he says, how shall not the ministry of the Spirit be rather glorious? Or as Mr. Doherty renders it to giving the real force of its subsist in glory?
Continue in glory. It does not fade, It will not pass away. But here it's called the ministry of the Spirit. The spirit of God has been given. That is what characterizes Christianity.
A new life energized by the spirit of life in Christ Jesus. New life and a new power within the believer, and a new object outside of the believer would come to that object a little bit later in chapter 3, which is Christ and glory.
We're going through these verses to to see what Paul means when he says having therefore seeing, we have this ministry. This ministry, it's called here the ministry of the spirit, in contrast with the the ministry of the 10 commandments which is a ministry of death.
Now in verse nine he goes back and gives another term to describe the ministry of the 10 commandments that Moses gave them. Or if the administration of condemnation be glory, much more does the administration of righteousness exceed in glory.
And so he called in verse seven. He called the the law, the ministry of death, and now he calls it the Ministry or the ministration of condemnation.
Because though the law held out the promise of blessing to the obedient, it condemns the disobedient. And so it's really a kind of a ministry of condemnation, because there isn't one that obeys or has obeyed the law outside of the Lord Jesus. So it's a ministry of death, the ministry of condemnation.
The law says cursed is everyone that continueth, that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law. To do them pulls out the promise of blessing and life forevermore on earth to the obedient soul, but doesn't give the power to carry it out. And so on that ground man is dead and condemned.
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But the contrast is much more depth. Verse 9, Much more depth. Administration of righteousness, exceeding glory. The administration of condemnation said to the righteous soul, the one who righteously kept the law, that he would be blessed.
Obedient soul that would be his own righteousness. Let's turn back to Deuteronomy chapter. I think it's chapter 6.
Yes, Chapter 6, verse 24.
And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God for our good always, that he might preserve us alive as it is at this day. And it shall be our righteousness if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God as He has commanded us.
It shall be our righteousness.
Now let's turn to Philippians 3 for a verse.
A contrasting verse, so we get the real force of that.
Philippians 3 verse 9. Paul desire was to be found in him, that is, in Christ not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, which is of the law principle. If they have kept the law, it shall be our righteousness. If you keep the law, it's your own righteousness. You have worked it out, you have kept it, you have earned it, you deserve it. And so the blessing was yours because you have worked out in obedience to the law.
A righteousness which was a human righteousness of obeying the law. That's a legal righteousness. And Paul says here to be found in him not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, he had said earlier in the chapter.
Of verse 6, middle of the verse touching the righteousness which is in the law of language, that is, he was a Pharisee. Of the Pharisees and all that the law required as far as the letter of it is concerned, he said he was blameless. He attempted.
Now we know that.
He hadn't kept it perfectly. No one ever has the last commandment says. Thou shalt not covet or lust or desire with someone else has that you don't have, and every one of us is guilty of that. So he owned that in Romans 7HE quotes that one commandment, by the way, to show how that that condemns every one of us. But as far as the letter of the law is concerned, he felt that he was blameless, but he had learned.
Another righteousness.
Now God had brought him into a ministry of righteousness, not a righteousness which we gain by obedience, not a righteousness which is our righteousness because we have kept the law, but the righteousness which is of God by faith, the righteousness which God himself supplies and covers us with, as it were Christ being our righteousness he had learned.
To say I want to be found in him not having my own righteousness, not something that I can boast in, not something that I have earned. That's the way his thinking was when he was a Pharisee of the Pharisees when he was Saul of Tarsus. That was his thinking. But now that he's a Christian, he says I don't want that kind of righteousness. No, he says I want the righteousness which is of God by faith, and that is of course Christ is our righteousness. Now going back to 2nd Corinthians 3.
He says in verse 9 again, for this administration of condemnation, the glory or begin with glory, that's really the thought and that's the law. Much more about the administration of righteousness, Exceed in glory or subsist in glory.
Administration of righteousness is not something that we earn by our obedience, but it's something which God Himself bestows upon us and ministers to us simply by grace. Christ is now our life and He is our righteousness.
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And that's the difference between law and grace. Under law, it's the ministry of death and condemnation. Under grace it's the ministry of the Spirit and the ministry of righteousness. God now has a righteousness for man which he can't earn, which he can do nothing to get. It's given to us by grace. It's a gift. It's the gift of righteousness. God bestows it upon those that believe. We get it on the principle of faith, not on the principle of works, the righteousness which we earn by our own efforts.
And by our own obedience to the law is our righteousness pulses. I don't want that.
He says, I want the righteousness which is of God by faith, that which he confers upon those that receive and believe in his beloved Son.
So this is the ministry that Paul is talking about in chapter 4. Seeing therefore we have this ministry, not the ministry of condemnation and death, which was the what Moses gave them, but the ministry of the spirit and righteousness, not a righteousness we work for, but which he bestows upon us by sovereign grace.
Let's go out in verse in chapter 3 a little bit, verse 10. For even that which was made glorious, or that which began with glory, that was the glory associated with the giving of the law, had no glory in this respect by reason of the glory. That excelleth good illustration in nature is you go out in the evening and you see the moon and it's shining and it's very glorious. But when the sun comes out, that glory of the moon has no glory.
In comparison with the glory that excels in the sun, the moon is simply a reflection of the sun. And when the sun comes up, that that glory of the moon dims into nothingness in comparison with the glory of the sun. And that's what he's saying here. He says That which was made glorious, or began with glory or glory connected with the giving of the law had no glory, has no glory in this respect. By reason of the glory that excel, there's a glory associated with.
The ministry of the Spirit and the ministry of righteousness which we now have in Christ.
That so excels anything that the glory that was connected with the law, that the glory connected with the law is, is reduced to relative nothingness.
Verse 11 For the fact which is done away, which is the old covenant, the old order was glorious or began with glory. Much more.
That which remaineth his glorious, it subsists in glory. That which remaineth is the ministry of the Spirit and the ministry of righteousness, which is bestowed upon us by faith. Verse 12 Seeing them that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech.
And that is Moses which put available his face that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look for the end of that which is abolished. Because the glory that was shining in Moses space was a glory that that was that that first glory of the giving of the law, and that was going to be dimmed and so transcended by the glory that excels the glory of the spirit and the righteousness that it would give to nothingness. And they didn't have so Moses face was covered so that they couldn't see that that glory connected with the giving of the Law fade.
And faith to nothing.
Not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. That which is abolished is the law that's done away. Now, that's not the principle upon which the people of God get righteousness. It's not like keeping the law. But their minds were blinded for until this day, and remain at the same veil, untaken away in the reading of the Old Covenant, the Old Testament, which Leo has done away in Christ.
So the Jew today is still their minds are blinded and they read the letter of the law, the letter of the Old Testament. They don't see Christ there. Their minds are blinding. Because if you don't see Christ in the scriptures, the scriptures is a closed book to you because it all speaks of him.
It all testifies in him. Remember, in Luke 24 the Lord opened their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures, that they could see that it all spoke of him, and he showed them himself. And all of the Scriptures must have been a most wonderful unfolding of truth that the Lord gave to them. Now we have even beyond that we have the Spirit of God indwelling us, the ministry of the Spirit to unfold these precious things to our souls so that we can enter into them and enjoy them.
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We are standing in a righteousness before God which is as perfect as himself because it's his own righteousness that He bestows upon us. Christ is his, his, his our righteousness. Christ is the one that he has given out to become our righteousness. First Corinthians one verse 30 says that for of him are thee in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
And according as it is written either glory and glory of the Lord, so Christ has become our righteousness and that's why I call said to be found in him not having my own righteousness which is in the law and that which is through the faith of Christ, even the righteousness which is of God by faith.
But these poor, unbelieving Jews, their minds were blinded, and they still are. But until this day we made at the same veil, and taken away in the reading of the Old Covenant. The Old Testament, which is done away which they are, is done away in Christ as soon as they their eyes are open like solid touches, and saw who Jesus really is, that He is the true Messiah, and He is the one of whom all these types speak.
And here's the one that is hidden, you might say everywhere in the Scriptures. It's all about him. Then that's the key. And then the eyes are opened, the veil is removed from the heart, Verse 15 says, For even unto this day when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. They don't see Christ there, and therefore they're blind. Nevertheless, when it's when the heart, when the Jewish heart, when the heart of the Jews turn to the Lord.
Turn to the Lord. The veil should be taken away.
And then that next verse that we've already read. Now the Lord is that spirit. He is the Spirit of the Old Testament. He is the spirit of the Scriptures. He's the key, He's the secret. And until one sees that, he is unable to understand the Scriptures. The Lord is that spirit. And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
What characterizes Christianity is liberty, the Spirit of God indwelling us, we standing in a perfect, accomplished, subsisting righteousness before God, Christ being our righteousness and in liberty not in ******* but characterized. The law was *******. They were under ******* and they were always afraid that if they broke it they would they would come under condemnation, and they had to bring their sin off them or their trespass off.
And there were these provisions made for failure. But there was no real liberty ever enjoyed by one under law. There's many Christians that are under that ******* still today. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there His liberty. Now notice the last verse of Chapter 3. But we all with open face or with unveiled face. There's no veil upon our face. There's no veil upon Christ's face. We look directly into His face.
He's in glory. We're on earth with unveiled face beholding.
The glory of the Lord, as in a glass, implies that there's there's something between that hinders a good view of him. And I don't think that's the thought here. It's not in the new translation. We'll leave it out. Beholding the glory of the Lord. His face is unveiled, Our faces unveiled. We behold the glory of the Lord. Mercy. He's in heaven, He's in glory. And what happens when we are occupied with Christ in glory by the Spirit?
What? What happens?
Marvelous transformation takes place. It's called metamorphosis. It's the process when the the the little insect in the cocoon breaks out of that and becomes a butterfly and flies away. That's called that, that transformation.
Is called the Metamorphosis, and that's the word was translated changed. Here as we behold the glory of the Lord, We are changed, we are transformed.
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Into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. So in that verse we have the secret from Scripture, and there are other passages that speak of it the secret of a victorious Christian life. We are occupied with unveiled face. We look into the into the face of the Lord Jesus. My veil there, and we by the Spirit were occupied with Christ where he is.
And a marvelous thing takes place. It's not by any home which is the principle of law that's full of works that's due and thou should live, but simply by gazing upon that glorified man. You know, there's an expression I've heard a number of times. I don't like it a bit. The the men of Galilee is in Acts one. When the Lord was taken up into heaven, the Angel said he men of gravity, wise, stanchy, gazing up into heaven. This St. Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manners. You see them go, and I think it's taken from that but.
One of the comments that has been leveled against.
The Saints gathered to the Lord's name is that they're so heavenly minded they're no earthly good.
That's totally unscriptural. If you're really heavenly minded and you're really occupied, If you're really occupied with the Lord and glory, then this is what this is what takes place, we all.
With open or undale face, beholding the glory of the Lord.
Are changed are transformed into the same image.
From glory to glory.
And what's the power of the president? Evil is by the spirit of the world. So it's the ministry of the Spirit that occupies us with a glorified Christ who is not here, who's been cast out of this scene, and he becomes the center of our occupation, and that changes us.
It's it's a it's a process that you cannot explain. You can't explain the process of metamorphosis where that little grubby insect just gets out of the cocoon and flies away as a as a butterfly. You can't reliable there. You can't really explain that how it happens. What is the power that does it. It's the power of God that does it and it's the power of God that will enable us. Who if we're really occupied with the glorified heavenly man.
By the power of the Spirit.
To be transformed according to the same image, the image of the one that we're occupied with. This is the sure cure for depression.
You don't have to go to a psychologist. You don't have to go to a psychiatrist if you really have fits of depression, unless there's something wrong physically with you and something in your body, or the lack of certain hormones or something like this. But the real cure for depression is being occupied itself, not with miserable self, Christ the spirit of God. When we're doing, we really do that. I think this is an unfailing thing.
It never falls when they're really occupied with Christ. When we get down, it's when we've taken our eyes off the Lord and glory and we start getting it. Looking around, we see our brethren, we see their failures, We see our own failures, and we see all the evil that's come into the church and we start wringing our hands and say, Oh dear, what's going to become of US1. Brother said that to Mr. Darby once, And he said, I know of no future for the Christian, the glory. That was his answer today. What's going to be coming? What's going to become of us? We're all going to end up in glory. We're all going to end up in the Father's house.
And if we keep that before us, and we keep him before us, then they'll they'll there'll be a deliverance. That's what gives practical deliverance from the things that plague us now and cast us down and get us occupied with, with failure and a host of things. Down here in this world, we behold the glory of the Lord with unveiled face, and we are transformed according to the same image.
From glory to glory, from 1° of glory to another.
By the Spirit of the Lord.
Now that's the ministry that he's talking about.
Seeing therefore, therefore, seeing, we have this ministry, Ministry of Christ, ministry of Christ and glory, the ministry by the Spirit, the ministry of righteousness. We don't. We're not working to get righteousness, but we are serving him because we are righteous in Christ. He has bestowed upon us. It's all His grace that has brought us into this blessing, and we're sure of ourselves.
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Therefore, see, we have this ministry. As we have received mercy, we think not.
That's the sure thing to keep us from thinking as we're occupied with the man and the glory. We won't get discouraged. And we do get discouraged. Why? Because we take our eyes off of Christ. We get occupied with the wrong object, and then we get discouraged. I do believe you probably know what that means too. But I also know that when I am that way, it's because I'm not easy.
I'm not occupied with him as he is now, as he was when he was here below. Pretty hard to get discouraged when you're feeding on the Lord Jesus effects. Morally impossible to get discouraged when you're really feeding on Christ.
He says. We think not, but we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty.
Not walking in craftiness or handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth. Commanding ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God, everyone who's under law.
Everyone who's under law has to handle the word of God deceitfully in one way or another, because he knows that if he's honest.
The law condemns him.
It curses him.
It slays him because he doesn't keep it. Everyone that really knows that really is honest.
Do I have to admit that?
But what do people do to put themselves under law? I've talked to many because are you going to get to heaven? Well, keep the 10 commandments. I said, you keep it. Well, I failed. But I'm trying. But that's not what That's not the way the law reads. The law holds out blessing to the obedient, but we're not obedient. And so they say they're trying and then they they they bring in a host of other things. And oftentimes they they fail to call sin, sin.
When they're in under the law.
But here, Paul says, we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty. We don't have to be dishonest anymore. We don't have to pretend to to being better than we really are. Race enables one to to own before God and everyone else that we are rotten, guilty sinners before God.
That doesn't shake our confidence in the Lord. By nature, that's what we are. Could it be worse than we are? But that doesn't shake our confidence and our assurance. And our standing in Christ and that he has made us to be righteous in Christ doesn't shake that at all, because that's all by grace. That doesn't depend upon my doing anything. Depends all upon what Christ has done. And we own that our true condition before God.
We've renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness or deceit. You don't have to deceive someone. We don't have to pretend to to being better than we really are.
Grace enables one to be completely honest with one another and with oneself. With oneself is important. We're not honest with ourselves, and that's why we are We get discouraged. We're not even honest with ourselves. But Grace enables one to be thoroughly honest with himself. I like when one brother was speaking to another, pointing out this first one, this failures, and so on, going over the list that he had.
And when he said that, he threw.
Second brother said the 1St is yes.
Says you haven't. You haven't even told me half of it, and far worse than you think I have.
And grace enables us to do that. Grace enables us not to pretend to be better than we are. Because he's picked this up when we couldn't have been worse than we were. Saved us promising to bless him, giving us a new life now. And now we can live in the power of that. We don't have to pretend to anything.
Our hand in the Word of God deceitfully.
Handle it deceitfully would be to just take those those verses that we seem to.
Fit all right. And I remember talking to many, many a man on Skid Row and he would say to me, well, I he's a dunker. He's got a real problem with alcohol. Because I don't. I don't.
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Feed my children and don't mistreat my wife and I do this and I do that. He was naming the the virtues that he thought that he had.
But I said what? You drink and.
You don't really know what you're doing when you're drunk. Do you want to talk about that? Well, one year under grace, there's nothing you have to hide. It's all, it's all, it's all disposed. It's all been dealt with by God and knows it perfectly.
So it enables us to be honest with ourselves, honest with others, honest with the word of God.
Not having the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God, he was living in the power of the new life that he had in the risen Christ by the Spirit, and it produced fruit that was for God's glory, and it manifested the truth, commanding ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
And then he says, But if our gospel be hid, it is hidden to them that are lost.
And whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not?
Lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ is the image of God should shine unto them.
And if our gospel is hidden, is hidden to them that are lost, and whom the God of this world had blinded the minds of them which believe them. Now why does it say that? Why does it put it that way?
What is brought before us when it speaks to him as the God of this world, and Satan that he's talking about, doesn't speak of him as the Prince of the power of the air. That's another expression of Satan, and he's called the Prince of this world, He's the ruler of this world, and his man is under his power.
But as the God of this world, he's the one that is the head of all the false religions of this world.
And that's how he blinds people's minds to receiving the true gospel. He gives them a false religion.
And especially he puts men under law, he puts men and women under law. And in that way they're blinded to to the to the truth of the of the grace of God.
They're still trying on their own efforts to become acceptable to God. They're still trying to do something man does not like to own, that he is incorrigibly bad and that he has no righteousness that avails before God.
It's lost. It says it's our gospel is hid. It is hidden to them that are lost. They are lost and they don't know they're lost because the God of this world has set religion before them. Some form, some system of works by which they can work their way out of the mess they're in and their lost condition and up to heaven.
It's the God of this world that's blind in their minds so that they can't understand what else.
The Gospel.
We talk about pure grace. They don't know what grace is. They don't understand that concept because it's the opposite to works, and they're under the principle of works.
Grace. There's nothing so humbling as grace because grace doesn't give me any part to do. I can't even contribute to my salvation if I'm saved by grace. It's all of God. It's not grace and works. It's not a mixture. Now it's all grace, and since man doesn't like that principle, he wants to be able to to pat himself on the back, to some extent at any rate. But when he gets to heaven, he can say, well, I did something towards my salvation.
But grace, if we're saved by grace, the one that finally comes to that has to own. I did nothing for myself.
He has done it all, he has done everything and I've come in as a lost, guilty, condemned Sinner.
Have received what the God of all grace, has offered to me simply out of the goodness of his own heart, and not because there was anything good in me. There was nothing good in me.
The God of this world by providing all these false religions in their legion. There's hundreds of them and they're all a system of works, one way or another. That's the whole principle of all false religions is a system of works.
Even Judaism, which was not a false religion. It was a religion that God gave to man when he was testing him in the flesh to see if there was anything on that principle of law, that man in the flesh. But he gained righteousness and acceptance before God on that principle.
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The law was given to show man that on that principle, he's lost.
Never give them to men to save them, because man can't be saved on that principle. He can't be made righteous on that principle.
What the law says to a Sinner is thou shalt not be a Sinner. Or more correctly, thou shalt not act like a Sinner. Well, how can a Sinner fail to act like a Sinner? He said. That's the only way I can act because that's what I am. But the law says you shall not do the things that a Sinner does and.
So it is a ministry of death and condemnation.
Grace says I know how bad you are. I know where you are. I know you're condemned. I know you're dead in trespasses and sins. I know you're lost and we're safe.
And I want to bless you, and you won't have anything to plant yourself on the back about in this. Because it's all my grace, It's all mercy. It's all grace. It's all the goodness of my heart.
And how does Satan oppose that?
How does he oppose it? I remember talking to a professor when I was in college. He was a Roman Catholic and I sat before him grace, some saved by Grace and just the very things I've just said here. And he looked at me and he said I don't want it. If I can't contribute in some way by my own works to my salvation, I don't want it.
He had a religion given to him by the God of this world that was a religion of works, and he wanted to feel that he contributed to his acceptance before God. So I didn't want grace.
It's just like you go up to a man who's who's really in trouble, but he doesn't realize it and he's about to drown. He doesn't realize it to throw the life preserver and he throws it back with contempt. I can make it to shore by myself.
Until finally he realizes he can't.
And then he's willing to accept the help that you've offered to him. But that's man, he wants to do it in his own efforts.
The God of this world is the one who has blinded the minds of them, which believe not. He does it by religion. He does it by religion. He's the God of this world. He's the one that is the author of all false religion in this scene.
And he uses the principles that give man a place.
Give man a position of importance, of some kind, so that when he arrives at his destination, hopefully heaven, he says. I've got there by my own efforts.
No one will ever get you that way. The God of this world is blinded in man's minds.
Doesn't see the truth about himself. He doesn't see the truth about God. Doesn't really know that God is a God of love. Grace wants to say that.
If our gospel be hid, it is hidden that are lost in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe that.
Lest the light, I'm going to read that as it is in the new translation, unless the radiancy of the gospel of the glory of Christ.
Lest the radiancy of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
But we preach, not ourselves.
Christ, Jesus the Lord. Now how many today are preaching themselves and not preaching Christ? And he says ourselves your service for Jesus sake.
We're just servants.
We're nothing. Who then, is Paul, who's a policy ministering servants through whom he believed?
Palace planet, power planet, polished water, but God gave the increase in talking to my brother here today.
Has pointed out sometimes he did. He did everything right, everything right, but the crop failed. God didn't give the increase and he thought he spoke to me about another year when he did everything wrong. But he had a good cry, just got through the interest.
And I'm sure that you, who are in farming, know better, much better about these things than I do.
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God has to give an increase, and if he doesn't, nothing cuts you, no matter how much you do.
We preach that ourselves but Christ Jesus the Lord and ourselves your servants. For Jesus sake, for God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness. That's what we were. We were moral darkness. We were totally depraved. We had nothing, no light, no life. As he did. He shined out of darkness. Refers back to Genesis one verse 2. The earth was wasted, empty and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And God said let there be light and there was light.
God caused the light to shine out of that darkness, that chaos, that physical chaos, and with us it was a moral chaos.
God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, that shined in our hearts to give the light, or for the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, isn't that wonderful? He shined into my sin darkened heart into your sin darkened heart, that the light that he shined in with should shine out now to others.
He doesn't commit the preaching of the gospel to angels who have never sinned. He commits it to us who were darkness. Then He shines into our hearts that glorious light of the truth, and now it's to shine out from you and from me to those roundabouts. And he uses saved sinners to proclaim the gospel, not unfallen elect holy angels. He uses sinners saved by grace to proclaim the gospel. So he shine into our hearts.
For the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, very fragile, these vessels we can get sick. These bodies of ours, We're subject to sickness. We're subject to infirmity. You're subject to death.
Yes, earth and vessels.
That the Excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The angels excel in strength and in might, and their messengers of his executing his will. But he doesn't use the angels to proclaim the gospel. He uses you and me in these earthen vessels, these fragile creatures, as we are these vessels of play. He uses us that the light might shine out, that the Excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. Now then, in order for that light to shine out, that light is the life of Christ within every one of us.
Everyone of us has Christ as our life in US, and the Spirit too. And he shined in, and in order for it to shine out, the vessel has to be broken, just like Gideons 300. And they had the light in the vessel, And then at his word they broke the vessel in the light Shaman. And God wrote a great victory. That's the picture that we have here. We have this treasure in earthen vessels. The light is the treasure. The light is the light that the Excellency of the power may be of God and none of us. We have trouble on every side now we have the breaking of the vessel.
Trouble at every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed but not in despair. Persecuted but not forsaken. Cast down but not destroyed. Always bearing about in the body. The dying of the Lord Jesus. The putting to death of the Lord Jesus. That's the breaking of the vessel. That's the accepting by the vessel of the the lot of death here. Always burning about in the body. That dying in the Lord Jesus. They're putting to death of the Lord Jesus. That's not a pleasant thing for us to accept. Death is our portion here.
That's the way the life shines out.
Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the light also of Jesus, which is within that vessel, once the vessel is broken, now, might be made manifest in our body.
Everyone of us has that life in our city. Where he is and the way it shines out is when he breaks the vessel. Sometimes he breaks the vessel by putting us on a sick bed. Sometimes he takes away loved ones. Sometimes he puts us through the severest trials. And some of us, many of us probably here, know what I'm talking about personally, what he puts us through greatness. But the life.
Apostle of Jesus might manifest in our body and our moral flesh in our body, verse 11 Says, For we which live are all we delivered unto death. Now this is something further. We are delivered to death. We are Paul had death before him every day, every day he was. Now we're not in fear while we're in this meeting. Then all of a sudden those doors are going to burst open and the Gestapo is going to come in with submachine guns and order us all to prison and take us away. We're not afraid of that.
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There are some Christians in countries where they meet, they meet like we're meeting here and they're in that kind of danger.
We're not, thankfully, we're not in this country.
Power works. Power works. He never knew when the Jews would catch up with him, they hunted him down. You know, they tried to get him and we got to get rid of that man. He's the greatest threat to to us now that he's turned trigger to Judaism and embrace that false religion, Christianity. That's the way they thought, you know. And he says we got to get rid of him. So Paul says we which live are always delivered unto death for Jesus sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. Pretty hard to to hurt a man like that. You can't, you can't stop him from preaching by threatening him with death when he's already committed to death anyway.
You can't hold death as as the supreme threat to man which it is to most men. But to one who is always bearing the bottom of the body of the dying of the Lord Jesus, if you threaten him with death, to him that's just the door of entrance into the presence of the Lord. He's not terrified by that. Death is ours. Life and death things present things to come. All are ours. We are Christ. Christ is God likes everything is ours again.
So then death worketh in us the life of you. The result of him accepting death is his portion working him in him and him being exposed to death at any time he could. His life could be snuffed out down here was that life might work in the Saints, and that they might be brought to blessing.
He was willing to lay his life down and literally lay it down to the brother. Death working in him of life might work in the Saints, they might be blessed.
We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believe, and therefore have I spoken, we also believe and therefore speak.
Knowing this, that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus or with Jesus, and shall present us with you. What a hope, what a certainty. They can threaten me with death. They can take my life away. The Lord is going to amaze me and I'm going to be with him. They can't stop that. No matter what the enemy can do is worse than me. He can't stop that. I'm going to be raised with him. I'm going to be rude, Jesus.
And when we're living so in that world, as Paul was threatening, extinction from this world doesn't terrify.
Doesn't terrify what we're looking for. This world, then, if someone threatens to take your life from this world, that tariffs.
Paul says in Philippians in nothing terrified by your adversaries.
You don't have to be afraid. The worst that they can do to us is kill us. And if they kill us, they just send us into the presence of the Lord with the certainty that at the resurrection day for that partner.
That's our that's our absolute certain knowledge that gives such boldness and such confidence.
For all things are for your sakes, he says that the abundant grace, right through the Thanksgiving of many redounds, to the glory of God.
All the things that, for your sakes, the abundant grace which was given to Paul so he could go through all the suffering and all the torture that he was subjected to. He was stoned, he was beaten with rods. He spent a night in the day in the deep he was, he suffered the loss of all things he says. I don't think there's anyone any of the apostles that suffered like Paul. The Lord said, I'll show you how great things you must suffer for my sake.
And he accepted it. He was committed to death. He'd always bore his body for the dying of the Lord Jesus.
And so he could do that. All things are for your sakes.
Give the spare himself.
For which 'cause we think not, But though our outward men perish, yet the inward man is renewed they. By the way, I said this once.
How that?
And his dear sister and her husband has.
Mentally lost things. He just lies there. He just doesn't seem to recognize anyone, doesn't know what's going on around him.
Sort of like a vegetable.
And I just brought this truth out. The awkward man perishes, and that's what you see if you look at them. You see the outward man is a parachute.
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There's no apparent recognition of your being there, but still, given the word, read the word to him. Pray with him.
The inward man is renewed with the 898. The spirit never dies, The Spirit never deteriorates.
Spirit, the inward man, the Newman is revealed daily. And so we can speak to one in that condition, thinking maybe they don't understand the word we're saying, but having confidence that the spirit of God can apply that word to them and bless them in their soul. I remember the story of a little idiot boy in Scotland that had never spoken a rational word in his life. It's in a book called Last Words of Famous People that the last story of the book. It's got last words. Mr. Darby and Mr. Kelly and various ones and and kings and Princess and atheists and agnostics. And the last story in the book is the most thrilling to me.
I was dying back, this little boy. This was a little bit of the time. He was a man then, but.
Never spoken.