Address—H. Brinkmann
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We have looked at the Kingdom of God and more specifically, the Kingdom of heaven.
And have found that it is a term only found in the book of Matthew in the Gospel of Matthew.
And.
We see that for those Jews to whom this gospel is addressed, it's very important that they have understanding about the Kingdom, because this is what all the Old Testament the prophets had spoken about. You know the prophecies in the Old Testament. We didn't mention that last Tuesday, only dropped to the Kingdom.
But in a New Testament, we find the prophecies going to the eternal state. We don't have that in the Old Testament, but the Jew was looking for the Kingdom.
But.
We find in chapter 12 verse 28.
That the Lord Jesus said, If I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God is come unto you. The Lajitas was here, and another verse we referred to is the Kingdom was in the midst of them by him being here the King.
But we find also that the Kingdom of heaven was at hand, but had not come yet.
That what's nearby. And then many times or quite a few times, the word Kingdom of heaven is used for the Millennium.
But.
The 10 parables of the Kingdom of heaven.
Show the Kingdom in its present aspect, and that is because.
Because the king is rejected and is in heaven, there is a sphere on earth where his authority is acknowledged and.
There is. It's a mystical form. The Kingdom has taken on a mystical form.
And there are those who belong to that sphere of profession, we might call it Christian profession or the sphere of discipleship, that are real, and those who are unreal, those who are only in it by profession and.
We have read the verses in the third chapter by John the Baptist saying the Kingdom of heaven was at hand. Then in the 4th chapter the Lord Jesus makes the same statement. But we also know from Chapter 11 That John the Baptist was the greatest of prophets but the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he, clearly showing that John the Baptist was not yet in the Kingdom of heaven.
The verse that I neglected to mention is in the 16th chapter.
We did refer to the 16th chapter, and I made a statement there that I believe needs clarification. I made the statement that the Church has taken the place of Israel. By this I do not mean to say.
As many covenant theologians or those Reformed churches teach that the church is introduced into Israel's blessings, what I meant to say by this is that.
What has taken place is that Israel is set aside. God was dealing with the nation of Israel and now?
His work is to gather a rightful Christ and forming the church, the Lord Jesus says in the 16th chapter upon this rock that is Peters confession. I will build the church and the gates of Hadith will not prevail against it. And so in this in this sense the church has replaced Israel also.
The administrative responsibility.
Is no longer vested in Israel and is now vested in the Church. That's what we learned from the 18th chapter. That's the main purpose of that teaching. It doesn't teach actually how the Church is to deal specifically in details with the evil, just that the authority for dealing with evil is in the Church. Other scriptures have to be turned through in order for us to know how specifically how detailed to deal with evil that arises in the Church.
But there is also in the 16th chapter this important statement.
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That to Peter were given the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.
I think.
This is another helpful scripture to show that the Kingdom of heaven had not yet begun.
But he has been given the keys to open the door.
To the Kingdom.
To allow entrance. And when does he use those things? Under their Pentecost. He opens the door and the Jews are let in, and then we find in.
X10 that the Gentiles are let him now some things that there were only two keys and others think there were three keys because the Samaritans are brought in in the 8th chapter.
But.
Some have questioned that because you do not find that Peter baptizes in the 8th chapter, but certainly by laying on the hand on those disciples there in Samaria.
The oneness was established between the church in Jerusalem and the Samaritan church so that it wouldn't be two distinct churches, but I think it's correct to say that water baptism.
Makes you enter the Kingdom.
The baptism of the Spirit is connected with the body of Christ. By 1 Spirit are we all baptized into one body.
And.
So.
By baptism.
We enter and Peter does that in Acts when the Jews are brought in, and then we find it again, it gives commandment that the Gentiles in the 10th chapter be baptized.
The sphere of the Kingdom is distinct from the Church in that we see that.
The good and the bad seed in the Kingdom are to be growing on together until.
The end of the age or the completion of the age.
And then the angels feel with the bad sea as well as with the bad fish. But in the church we find put out from among yourself that wicked person. But there it is not a question of in a physical way dealing with the wicked, as it will be at the completion of this age.
You know that is simply to put out of the church fellowship those who are guilty.
Business and sin that needs to be dealt with by excommunication.
It's important for us to understand that.
We are both in the Church and in the Kingdom.
And the good seed, that which is real in the Kingdom of heaven, is the church, the true believers. But we also saw that the Kingdom of God is a general term, and with the coming of the Lord Jesus.
We find.
A new work of God. He's no longer testing, man.
He is preaching the gospel, sowing the seed, and then expecting fruit. That was not that way under the law. But it is that way now with the coming of the Lord Jesus. And this is still going on even now that he is in glory. So that first parable, while it is not a similitude of the Kingdom of heaven, it certainly.
Can be applied to what kind of result the stowing of the seed has an individual life.
And so.
But we do not find that dead parable. That first parable is the stability of the Kingdom of heaven.
The second, third, and 4th are the 5th, 6th, and 7th. You also have seen that there are two groups of three, and the one presents the result of the spreading of the gospel, the word of God under the responsibility of man in its ruin. In the last three we see God's sovereign work, and we have contrast that we have seen that there are contrasts in these two groups, the two kinds of seeds, the two kinds of fishes.
Are Speaking of the same thing, but with the fishes we find that the fishermen only gathered a good intervention and.
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Even there also, we find that finally the angels see you with the bad fish. The fishermen don't deal with the bad fish, but then we find with the tree and with the treasure a contrast again. The tree speaks of dominion and power, the treasure speaks of.
The hidden character that the followers of a rejected Christ should.
Show and act with consistent with that truth, and we are not seeking a place of political influence and power, and so many interests in them today do.
We are nobody. We just walk through it and fill in strangers. We're waiting for the day when the only one that has the answers to all the problems in this world will come and straighten out the myth that is in this world. It's not for us to do that now or trying to do it. We're not called to do that, but to preach the gospel well.
That hidden characters a tremendous truth to get ahold of.
And that can be true even if we consider such pictures as that we are the light of the world and that we are the salt of the earth. We are not a political force. We're not reigning. We do not try to control things. The only resource we have is prayer when it comes to power, that be and so on. And that is a tremendous resource that the believer has.
During the day of his rejection.
The most high rules, and gives the government to whomsoever he will, that is what Levitate never had to learn, and he gives it to the basis of men.
What people, if they would have known what character, you know, Hitler would show what they had elected a man like that. What they have allowed is mouths of tongue to get into power. Joseph Stalin. They have murdered millions.
But the Lord for some reason allow such men to get into power. There is no power except from God.
And the impact size comes and the B.
You know, the beast received the power from the dragon. That's the difference kind of a situation. But after this day, every government that ever came into power in the world received the power from God. People make themselves believe that they do that by electing somebody. But God is the one that puts into power and he puts down. But we did not compare now the last of the three and three, and that is.
The leaven and the.
Pearl And that is probably the more difficult of the contrast of these three contrasts, to see that they speak of the same thing. What does leaven speak of? Levin speaks of evil, that which corrupts, and it never is used for anything good. You know that people in the churches in Christendom that teach that the gospel is 11.
And that you preach the gospel until the whole is going to be.
Brought to Christ, You know if the gospel will bring man.
To submit to the Lord Jesus Christ, we have already in the Old Testament a verse in the prophet that says when his judgments are in the earth then the nations will learn righteousness not by the preaching of the gospel. The gospel has the purpose of gathering in the elections. You know we have that in Second Timothy 2, verse 10, Paul endured all things for the elect's sake in the preaching of the gospel.
That they also might obtain the salvation. So he knew that his preaching and his efforts would result in bringing in the elect. He didn't know who they were, so he preached to all.
But in Thessalonians, first Thessalonians, by the result that had been produced in the Thessalonians.
Paul could say, knowing thereby beloved of God, your election.
By what was manifested in their life they were the elect because they proved it, the response that it had given to the gospel, and what the gospel had produced in their life.
But a woman hit this leaven under 3 measures of leave.
You know.
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The medium speaks of that which is good.
But a woman out of place, how many times you find them bringing in all kinds of trouble? In this I believe it has been true to quite an extent. In our recent trouble that we had, there were quite a few women involved that were very dominant and forceful in the waiting, carried on and contributed to this division, even forcing some of their husbands to go into a long path. But the 11Th is evil, but the meal speaks of death, which is good.
So what cools people many times is that even the worst evil doctrine in Christendom has some good connected with it. But.
The evil 11 working underneath, you know I mentioned in Cedar Rapids, you know Mr. Raven who?
Came up among brethren in England.
Taught some awful doctrines, including the doctrine denying the eternal sonship, but he never came out of it in the open with it. But when Mr. Taylor came out with it in the open after Raven's death.
He was asked where did you get that doctrine? He said. I got it from Mr. Raven, but you see what he was doing. He was working secretly like that leaven, covering it up with a lot of good things that Mister Raven had to say. But underneath were these awful doctrines.
And then finally that comes out. And you know when he looked at most of those so-called craving brethren. Now the practices and doctrines are just unbelievable, but we can see if evil unjust is going on. It will work till all is corrupt. One thing we learned from this 11 is that association with evilly files.
And but now in which way then is the Perl the contrast?
A Pearl is a valuable Pearl, and what makes the Pearl valuable is.
It's purity. You can see at once the difference. You know if there's a flaw in the Pearl that spoils the value of the Pearl, its purity makes the Pearl a valuable Pearl. That's what the followers of the Lord Jesus should be and are in the sight of God through the work of the Lord Jesus. And they should certainly in their life demonstrate it. Absence of sin, You know, if he would say that it is impossible for a believer to live without sin.
That would be a denial of Christianity, Mr. Darby said. But if he would say he lived without sinning, it's a denial of our state. But it is possible for a believer who walked in communion with the Lord to go through this world without falling into sin. As a matter of fact, Romans 6 teaches that we have died through sin. You know how? By us killing the evil that we see in ourselves. No, by the Lord Jesus dying for us, and by us reckoning ourselves that to sin.
That's the secret of Christian victory.
Well, we have to bring out a few more things as to the 6th parables. Now when you think for instance of the first parable, the Lord gives an interpretation of that parable to His disciples only, and He himself says that.
The field is the world.
And then we find that the.
That seed, you know, what is the difference between the good and the bad seed? You know, you look into the Bible dictionary, or you look into the footnotes of Mr. Darby. You will find that the two plants look very much alike, and that fools you. You know that first seed, that the one is empty. There's no fruit in it. Outwardly they look alike and it's just like with the 10 virgins. They all had a land, you know.
But the police didn't have any oil. So with these two plants that grow up there.
They look outwardly alike, but the one has proved the other has none. But you are not who the servants are, not to deal with the bad seed, lest they would pluck out the good seed.
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Well, isn't that what happened in prison? And it was not only done by the Catholic Church?
You know, when I went to church history as a young man, I was shocked to read that such illustrious reformer as Calvin burned somebody at this stage. Why did he do it?
That man denied the deity of Christ. He was a heterodox teacher, and he didn't understand that it was not the Church's duty to.
Weed out the bad tears.
And so you find that the Reformers thought that they had to take the sword and defend right? Because with the sword the Lord Jesus said he that takes the source shall carry by the sword swingly died on the battlefield. A man that had more light than most of the Reformers, like he knew that the Lord's Supper was not for the forgiveness of sin.
That it was a memorial truth. You know he had more life than Luther and others, but he sure didn't have any life on this important truth. That it's not our duty to take the sword and to defend the Lords cause or enforce the Lords truth.
So.
Outside that, this is what we have seen.
What is still going on in Ireland and different places you know in the name of 5,000,000 have been murdered. You know you still see it. People who take the place of Christian profession don't understand that since the Lord Jesus is rejected, we walk meekly and lowly and not use force in this world. When the Lord Jesus comes back in power and glory, you bet he will take force.
You reel in a very decided way, deal with the wicked. That will be the judgment that we read of in Revelation, and then also the judgment of the living. You know these preparatory judgments first, and then the judgment of the living across the talent and theologians. You're not surrounded by them here in this part of the country. You know the Dutch Reformed. They do not even believe that there are various judgments. They don't believe in true resurrection.
They think it's all going to be one thing all at the end. They don't believe in the thousand year reign, they don't believe in the rapture and so on. And by the way they're the ones that have started the NIV translation. And are you surprised when they distort the truth In John chapter 5 where it speaks of the resurrection unto life and the resurrection unto judgment? All they say is some will be raised to life and some will be raised to judgment.
Distorting the truth that there will be two distinct resurrections. And there are many other examples where they have willfully, knowingly introduced words into the translation to support their theology. Well, for that reason alone, one ought to avoid they have nothing to do with that corruption of the word of God. Give you one more example in Ephesians chapter 3 where you have the mystery.
That the Gentiles should be partakers with Christ. What they say they shall be partakers and they add 2 words with Israel. You see, they teach that all that the mysteries about is that the Gentiles are brought into Israel's blessing. Well, the mystery is not at all that the Christians or the church is brought into blessings with Israel. It's an entirely new thing and out of Jew.
Of Gentile and lute is formed. That's the truth of God. Paul was taken from the people and from the nations was sent to the nations. I'm quoting at 26 already on the 28th. Anyway that Paul we did, we first raised conversion. We had a law said he was taken out from among the people. That is, the Jews from the Gentiles sent to the Gentiles to bring them into the position from which he was taken. No.
To bring them into position where he was apart from Dru, apart from Gentiles. And now the Church of God is formed, you know, wonderful to see the truth of God, and by grace to have received understanding by the Spirit about these things. But I'm afraid among us so-called brethren, or those gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus, we have neglected some of the truth of Scripture.
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And I'm not saying that in a critical way. And if it is critical, it's constructive criticism. I believe we should be more familiar with the truth of the Kingdom.
And the prophetic scriptures in the word of God.
Well, we also find that these Tares are bundled.
And then burned. You know, I believe it's not impossible that what we see going on in Christendom like the Jehovah Witnesses, the Mormons, and the 7th Day Adventists and various other cults.
That there is a bundling of the tears taking place now.
But they all will be burned. But how wonderful the good seed.
Are gathered into the granary, and then the Lord, when he speaks of that in the interpretation of that parable, he says, Then shall the righteous shine as the sun and the Kingdom of the Father. So we know when we will be taken out of this saying, the rapture will be an eternal condition.
Nothing will change for us anymore.
But he also says in the interpretation that he will send his angels the Son of Man.
Will send his Angel, and notice it's the Son of Man that will send his angels and they will get out of his Kingdom. So it's the Kingdom of the Son of Man. Presently the Kingdom of God has taken the character of the Kingdom of heaven, but when the Lord Jesus comes back and heals with those with him, with the bad seed, and throughout the Millennium, I think he will deal with the wicked.
Wedding out the wicked out of his Kingdom. It's the Kingdom of the Son of Man. But the good seed is in the Kingdom of the Father. And there's that heavenly sign and an earthly sign going side by side until, according to First Corinthians 15, we see that the Kingdom is turned over to the Father. You know when it has run its course, so that you only have the Kingdom of the Father. It's the eternal state.
You know.
Wrote that beautiful hymn of bride and blessed scene where sin can never come that speaks of that eternal state. You know presently what is characteristic of our time is that grace reigns through righteousness. We have that enrollment. But when the Lord Jesus comes back in power and glory, righteousness will reign. He will be with every evil every morning. Isn't that wonderful?
With all the inequities and the injustices, and there are many reasons for complaint in the world, you know.
People deal with it in a decided way.
You know, these prejudice that exist in the world, what a shameful thing that is. And you find that even sometimes among believers, you know, they despise the black because they're black, you know?
There is no difference in the sight of God. Red and yellow, black and white, all are precious in his sight. You sing. And so it is. You know, we might look at people who are intelligent, educated, wealthy, and then despise the poor as we have it in James. Well, God doesn't look at men that way. Doesn't matter a bit in the sight of God, You know, As a matter of fact, the more schooling of men we have, the more difficult it is to be simple in the things of God.
It's amazing to see how a man like Mr. Darby, so highly trained and educated, was simple in the things of God.
You know, and the Lord can preserve his own. And I'm not despising learning and so on. But I do believe it's true that many times.
That lead people to think high of themselves and it makes them unfit for the simple reception of the truth of God. Let us the Lord Jesus say unless you become as little children, you cannot enter into the Kingdom. It doesn't mean to say you become childish, but childlike simplicity is required when it comes to the truth of God.
And none of us has to be highly educated to understand the word of God.
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It's written in such a way that we can understand that even if we do not have much of.
But the words used are very simple. Very simple. It's beautiful to see that well.
Now.
We add to the tree, you know that grew up into a big tree to see that through grew up into a big tree. I think what we should mention yet is that you really have what took place.
Under constantly for what is similar to the tree is what you have in Pergamus.
When you have the seven churches in Asia Minor.
We find that the church became worldly and the world became churchy. There was a marriage of world, Church and Constantine, making the Christian religion the religion of his empire and giving honorable positions to the bishops. Wicked men, ambitious, wicked men look for these positions. They want to forget these positions, to get into a position of power and influence and well.
You know, it's shameful when you read the history how these Princess of the church have this age, including the popes. You know they had children and then called their nephews, nieces and nephews and married them all to the royal houses in Europe. You know all to enlarge and influence and power well.
The birds of the air, the very birds that picked up the seed in the first parable, are now nichting in that tree. It's satans, agents.
Adair.
Jose and Hal said for Christians not even to understand the contrast of this, that we are nobody.
You know, I think I mentioned it probably Tuesday already. What did they put on? Mr. Darby's tombstone? Unknown, yet well known, you know. And why was it that he was not recognized? Why he was not?
Given credit for what the Lord did through him in the recovery of the truth because He was undermining their church system. It's additional church system in Kyrgyzstan.
You can't believe in the clerical system.
But how sad. Many of our brethren in Christ do not understand that this is not the time that we are reigning. Today is going to come when we will rain, but then.
This.
11Th You already developed it tonight.
With the evil spreading, are you surprised when they converted hundreds of hidden trees to Christian priests? That's what actually happened in the Church of history.
They made he decree into Christian priests without any conversion.
Are you surprised that they introduced false doctrine, false practices? Isn't it surprising, or it shouldn't be surprising to see that at that time Christmas was introduced into the Christian religion?
You know.
His customs that go under the name of Christmas are hidden idolatrous customs.
Which were in existence long before the birth of Christ, and when those fathers found out.
That these awkwardly.
Converted not real converted souls, but outwardly changed. People who were brought into this Christian profession wouldn't give up the practices of their hidden customs connected with the 25th of December.
They said it was better that they get drunk in honor to the birth of Christ than in honor to the even God. These are facts. You can read it in an encyclopedia.
Well, when we understand this, beloved brethren, what is our position going to be?
Are we going to go along with these heat and pasta?
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Is there anything more dishonoring to Christ than to take that which is more blessed, the truth of the incarnation and associated with that which is most hateful to God and to the Lord Jesus? I have no hesitation.
Say that I have no doubt that it is hateful in the eyes of God.
A shameful if we in any measure go along with it.
But it shows how far we have slept and might have slipped that we have lost our sensitivity as to these things.
We don't know anymore what breeds and what honors our Blessed Lord. We've lost our spiritual sensitivity to quite an extent at times.
But that Pearl.
How wonderful said Pearl is. And I like to mention yet there is a difference between a treasure and a Pearl. You know, Mr. Grant, Southwest Grant that they might be familiar to some of you who caused the risk amongst the brethren, thought that the treasure was Israel, the Pearl was the church, and the net was the gathering in of the Gentiles. I don't believe that's correct, if you understand that all these 10 parables concerning the Kingdom of Heaven speak of the present aspect of the Kingdom.
You can see that that is not correct and justice because the Old Testament refers.
In the Psalms to Israel as God's treasure. That doesn't mean that whenever the treasure is mentioned in the Word of God that is refers to Israel. But what we do see that the treasure is the church as well as the Pearl and the neck, bringing in those who are to be saved at the present time. But what's the difference? Well, the difference is that when you have a treasure, I believe you have many objects making up the treasure.
And although we come to the Lord Jesus and we become part of that one object.
The bride of Christ or the Pearl, we do not lose our individuality.
We are individually precious to the Lord Jesus and I believe.
We also see that the treasure is found.
In contrast to the Pearl, the one that comes to look for that Pearl comes for the purpose of finding the Pearl. So I believe it is correct to say that it looks at the church as we have it in John chapter one he came unto his own, His own received him not, but as many as received him. To them give you the power or the right or the authority to be the children of God. So in his rejection he finds.
The treasure that brings out the side that he comes for Israel, but is rejected, and that in his rejection he finds the treasure, and that treasure is hidden in the field. And that hidden character is never given up, at least not while the Kingdom of heaven runs its course. But in the Pearl we find that he comes for the purpose of finding that Pearl. So, as Mr. Darby has pointed out, we find the eternal councils and purposes of God.
Expressed in the Pearl, it was very interesting. It's not that the Kingdom of the Son of Man, when we find that in the 25th chapter and there's a good sheep are brought into the Kingdom, enter you into the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, you know, we find that the purpose is connected with the Kingdom and with Israel. Go.
As far as the foundation of the earth. But we know from Ephesians that the things connected with the Church go as far as the Eternal Council chosen in him before the world's foundation.
And isn't it wonderful for you and I to know that we belong to that treasure?
And, you know, if this would be Israel, don't you see how we would lose tremendous instruction as to what is consistent for the followers of a rejected prize? Israel Mr.
Brand, when he was teaching Israel, was not in existence as a nation. So he said, you see Israel doesn't exist as a nation, it's hidden. But now Israel is a nation for us. It should be much more easy to see that there was a mistake in interpretation. But I think especially we lose this tremendous.
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That our work is following a rejected price is to maintain that hidden character should not be in the position of prominence and power, and then even.
As to maintaining a pure character, you know this is what we are in the sign of fraud, and that's what we should be exercised about, that we would walk apart from sin, but then with the next even what a tremendous truth is conveyed to us in the fact that the fishermen have the responsibility to discriminate between the good and the bad fish. That applies to us now.
Well, you might say, how do we know what is a good fish and what is a bad fish?
Well, we know from Leviticus 11 and then also in Deuteronomy that in 22nd chapters, one of these chapters, the early 20s, we find the list of the clean and unclean animals. And the fish are mentioned there too. And what is a good fish, what's a clean fish, you know? And those fishermen are to be governed by the instructions in the Old Testament. What is a good fish? They had to have fins in scale.
You know, I remember as a.
Boy newly saved in Germany at different times. Interpretation of that was made to us, and I met a brother in Brazil last summer. His grandfather ministered on the clean and unclean animals, and I associate always the understanding of that passage with that ministry as well as Second Timothy two, I heard him minister on that and this man his grandson.
Came to see us at the conference in Brazil.
Exercised about his association, I could tell, and I learned to know Second Timothy 2 Through your father's grandfather's ministry.
But what is the meaning then? Well, the scales are like a protective armor which do not allow the element to which the fish moves to penetrate.
You know and.
That has its answer in the Divine nature, by which we have escaped the corruption that is in the world through love. Peter speaks of that fire and the fins, because the energy of the divine nature.
In other words, the followers of a rejected Christ should not be characterized that they allow themselves to be influenced.
By what is popular and acceptable in the world and drift along?
With the stream in this world, the energy of the divine nature and the Spirit of God dwelling within makes us.
Able to go against the current. We don't go along with all the fats that come up in the world, do we? But if we do be better, be careful because we might prove that we are not good fish.
The conclusion we have to draw, brethren, And if we accept Mr. Grant's interpretation, we loathe this tremendous instruction as to what is true and what is real in the followers of the Lord Jesus and the sovereign side brought out in those left 3 parables.
Well in chapter 18.
We have another parable that tells us what the Kingdom of heaven is like.
Well, I wanted to say that don't you see that the Brethren in the meeting have a responsibility to discern whether somebody's profession is real or not?
You know, maybe we will experience what even happened during the days of the apostles like we find in Jude. Men crept in unawares, you know, unreal material entering. But.
Mature chose the responsibility of the fishermen to discriminate between the good and the bad, and people say you cannot judge.
No, but we're food inspectors by Dash Proof ye shall know them. And we have in first John several tests given for profession. The one is obedience to the Word of God, the other is love of the breadth, you know. And so we have these texts in the word of God, and we must not be afraid to apply these tips.
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You know it is expected that the followers of the Lord Jesus walk for him, live for him.
And live for the world to come.
Well, now in chapter 18 we're slightly differ, is the Kingdom of heaven lightened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants, and when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him which owed him 10,000 talents.
But for as much as he had not begged to pay, the Lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and his children and children, and all he had entertainment to be made. The servant therefore fell down and worshipped him, Seeing Lord and patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the Lord of their servant must move with compassion and lose him, and forgive him the dead. But the same servant went out and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him 100 pints.
And he made hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest and his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all, and he would not.
But went and cast him into prison till he should pay the debt.
So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their Lord all that was done. Then his Lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that did, because thou desirest me? Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee? It is Lord was wroth.
Delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him, So likewise shall my heavenly Father to also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not everyone his brother, their trespass you. So what do we learn from this parable?
Forgiveness.
Ought to characterize the followers. The spirit of forgiveness, I should say, should characterize the followers of the Lord Jesus.
A series of a thing. It is, you know, we find that both men acknowledge their death and pleaded for mercy.
The one who was a 10,000 felons there received forgiveness, but he would not forgive the one that pulled him 110. What a shameful thing that it is. It is the Spirit.
Of his wicked servant would manifest itself among professing Christians.
You know the Lord will deal with such behavior.
Governmental where he will deal with that. But you know, we find the Blessed Lord on the cross praying for those who tormented Him. Father forgive them, for they know that what they do. We find that Stephen manifest the same Spirit when he prays for those who were stoning him, and we find the same with Paul in Second Timothy.
When he did not receive any ape or comfort from his fellow believers that he could rightly expect, he said that the Lord would not play that to their charge. That's the spirit of forgiveness that should characterize the believer.
Now the Lord can give us grace that he learned from the Lord Jesus.
Who perfectly demonstrated it in his own life.
Stephen and Paul certainly learned that from him.
Now in chapter 20.
You have another parable.
The Kingdom of heaven is like unto a man, that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire laborers into his windy yard. When he had agreed with the laborers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace. And he said unto them.
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Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right, I will give you. And he went their way again. He went out about the 6th and the 9th hour, and did likewise about the 11Th hour. He went out and found others standing idol, and said unto them, Why stand ye here all day idle? They say unto him, Because no man has hired us. He says unto them, Go ye also into the windy guard, and whatsoever is right.
That shall ye receive.
So when even was come, the Lord of the vineyard said unto his steward, Call the laborers, and give them the hire, beginning from the last unto the 1St. And when they came that were hired about the 11Th hour, they received every man a penny. But when they first came, they supposed that they should have received more, and they likewise received every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against a good man of the house.
Saying, These lads have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden, and heed of the day. But he answered once to them, and said, Friend by duty, no wrong, it's not thou agree with me for a penny. Take that thine is, and go thy way. I will give unto this lad, even as unto thee.
That is not lawful for me to do. What is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine, all than I evil, because I am good. So the last shall be first, and the first last for many be called, but you are chosen.
Well, here we have another parable and it has to do with the vineyard now, I personally believe.
That when it is a question of the vineyard, it is not so much a question of gospel work.
As it is show up and applies. I believe the vineyard speaks of death which our servers gives to God, that which brings joy to the heart of God. You know we know that mind in the Bible speaks of that which brings joy to the heart of God and man.
And I believe many times when it comes to the word of God, we are always thinking of our own blessing and of the blessing.
Of man. But we do not often enough think of what we do, what it does to the heart of God and the joy that it brings to him. That's why in Christendom you oftentimes hear that service is the big thing. You know, go out and gathering the law, you know, people that are hardly saved are thrown out on the street and they're supposed to preach to God, but they don't even know yet what they have come in to, you know.
They can't even give intelligent answers to the people that they are confronting, you know, Brother Irving, Clawson explained. You probably heard him say that there is such a tremendous instruction in the fact that.
The one that got married or the one that built a house was not to go to war for a whole year.
Why he had to come into the enjoyment of what his possession was for him, the enjoyment of his wife before he was to defend it. You know, he is to come to understand, to buy an house for ourselves that and come to enjoy that which we have and then intelligently can go out and fight a good fight.
Well, the vineyard to me is such a.
A challenging thing. How much joy do I? How much joy do you bring to the heart of God?
You know.
The Lord is looking for that, you know.
And he is looking for appreciation in our hearts and lives for what we have been brought into, and that we diligently search out these things I sometimes have said. You know, when a Jew was poor, he could bring a pigeon if that is all that he could afford. And a pigeon spoke to God of what a Bullock spoke to him of the Lord Jesus.
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Well, wooden Israel desire to become wealthy.
You know, so that he could bring more than just a pigeon. Would we not desire to become wealthy, spiritually speaking, come into the enjoyment of the Lord Jesus his work, and enter into it more fully, so that we have more to bring? After all, what we bring to God is that which we have found in His Son and the work that he has accomplished.
It takes diligence, you know. It takes diligence to church these things alone. You know, I would encourage every young believer to study the offsprings in the Old Testament because it certainly will help you to be more intelligent on Thursday morning when you come to remember the Lord Jesus. But.
We're busy for him. It's expected to us to be busy to him so that we could for him, that we could bring that, which gives him joy.
And how wonderful. There are those that are higher, You know, they agree to wages, but then there are those who go and the master says, I'll give what's right, you know, and I believe this is the kind of a way that we would desire to serve him, especially in our position.
Labor, you know he is generous, and he has the right to reward. As he, in his graciousness and in his kindness and his generosity, wants to reward, you know there is.
That connected with the Kingdom. That has to do with reward. You know we do not find that in connection with our position before God in Christ. That is all based on the finished work of the Lord Jesus. There is not going to be any difference.
It's not going to be that the one is greater and more glorious than His presence than the other. Because he has been more faithful. No, because we are all there.
Not because of our faithfulness, we're there because of the work of the Lord Jesus, but in connection with the Kingdom. There are going to be reports that are given out, and it's the right of the Lord Jesus of our Lord to reward everyone according to his goodness and his kindness. Well, we have to stop here. We still have to go into two more.
Of these parables of the Kingdom, you know the marriage fees. And then we have.
The 10 virgins, but what I'm hoping to be able to look into also is.
Something about the Sermon of the Mount, because what we find in the Sermon of the Mount is we find the principle of the Kingdom, and they are very helpful instructions for us in that passage of the Word of God. Well shall we say?
God and Father.