I want to talk today, if I can
for a little while, about believers' goals, believers' objectives. You know, if a person doesn't
have a goal, they'll go through life, if they don't have goals
and objectives in life, they'll go through life, you know, kind
of shiftless, lifeless. You know, there's a lot of people
that have had a lot of goals. I know when I was young, I had
goals. I want to get my kids raised.
I didn't want a house payment anymore. One of those kind of
things. I want to get my kids an education
if they would. And some things it's just, there
are people that some goals can be as simple and yet as profound
as simply making it through a day. Just through a day. But here's an apostle. He has
some goals and objectives for himself. If an apostle had them, and these
are going to be spiritual things, I know if an apostle had them,
I believe we ought to have them also. I don't know that we ever
get past goals or objectives that we want
in this life. I don't know if we ever get past
that. You know, there's things that I still would like to do,
things that I would like to attain before I leave this world. You
know, I'd love to see my children converted, my grandsons. And you know, when I get an opportunity
to be around them and pray for them, I pray for their souls
right in front of them. Pray, God, open their hearts,
right? Please open their hearts. Make them know what they need.
Make them understand. And maybe he will. I may be gone
before that ever happens. But that'll be alright as long
as he does it. As long as he does it. But anyway, the Apostle
had some objectives here. Some goals for himself. And if
Apostle had them, don't you think we should have them also? There
were some things, you know, his conversion. Here's a man. who was a Pharisee. And you know
how the Pharisees hated Christ. They despised the Lord Jesus
Christ. It was the Pharisees that said
he had a devil. It was the Pharisees that called
him a drunk and a winebibber. It was the Pharisees that called
him a blasphemer. It was the Pharisees that got
together and sought to take the Lord Jesus Christ so many times,
so many times. It was the Pharisees. And Paul
said, I was a Pharisee. After the righteous of the law,
you looked at me and you said, that fellow right there, if anybody's
going to be saved, it's going to be him. If anybody's going
to heaven, it's going to be him. If anybody's going to have any
rewards, it's going to be him. And he was circumcised the eighth
day, just like it's supposed to be done in the law. He is
of the tribe of Benjamin. I mean, he was of the tribe of,
you know, Judah and Benjamin was the two tribes that stayed
true to God Almighty. And he was a full-blooded Jew.
He could trace his genealogy back all the way to Benjamin.
Trace his genealogy all the way back. He had a great, great zeal. He had such a zeal that if he
found people like you and I worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ, he would
persecute us. Persecute us, put us in jail.
Take us and even some of them he'd have killed. But that's
what he was. But he says this in verse 7,
but what thanks were gained to me made me look good in the flesh,
made me look like I was a successful religious person, made me think
that I was somebody and everybody else thought I was. I count them
loss, the loss, the zeros, zeros. And what did Calum lost for?
He took away from the glory of Christ. He took away from the
power of Christ. He took away from the death of
Christ. He took away from the righteousness of Christ. But
he goes on to say, and this is one thing that he wanted to do.
He said, I count all things but lost for it, and here's why I
want to know this. I want to know the excellency
of the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Of all the knowledge
a person can get in this world, to have the knowledge of the
Lord Jesus Christ is the most glorious, excellent knowledge
you can have in this world. And then he says, I want to win
Christ. He looked down there in verse
9. I want to be found in Him. I want to walk. I want to be
found in Him. Now we're going to be found in
one place or another. We're going to either be found
in Adam or be found in Christ. No middle ground. And when I'm
found in Christ, I don't want my righteousness. I don't want
to have any righteousness. I don't want nothing to commend
me to God but Christ. And I want to be found in him
and I want to have that righteousness which is God's given to me through
the Lord Jesus Christ. Then he said in verse 10, I want
to know him. I want to know him. Do you not
think he didn't know Christ? He knew the Lord Jesus Christ.
You know he knew Christ. Christ appeared to him, talked
with him, revealed himself to him. Christ himself taught him
the gospel. But he said, I want to know him.
I want to know him. Oh, I want to know everything
I can about him, but yet I want to know him. I want to have that
intimate knowledge of him, that intimate acquaintance with him.
And I want to know the power of his resurrection. I want the
resurrection power of Christ in me. That power that raised
him from the dead. And I want to have the fellowship
of whatever sufferings he had in this world, he suffered in
this world, I don't mind to suffer with Christ in this world, is
what he's saying. And I pray that eventually it'll make me
conformable to the death of Christ, that I'll be like Christ, and
I'll say, not my world, but thine be done, if it cost me my life. And then he goes on to say, in
verse 12, Not as though I'd already attained. I ain't got there yet. I ain't got there yet. Either
already perfect. But look what he says. I'm following
after something. I'm going after something. I've
got a goal. I've got some objectives. I'm
following after some things. And this is what he wants to
know. That I may apprehend. That I may get it in my understanding.
Why Christ apprehended me. Why Christ saved me. of all the
people in this world that he can save, he saved me. And he
said in verse 13, brethren, I count not myself apprehended yet. I've
not got it yet. But here's what I'm talking about.
This one thing I do. This one thing I do. And I don't
quit because I haven't arrived yet. This one thing I do. forgetting those things which
are behind, reaching forth unto those things that are before.
I'm reaching out here. I'm going after something. Reaching by faith. Reaching in
love. Reaching in grace. Reaching forth
unto these things which are before, that are before me. Eternal life's
before me. Salvation's before me. The glory
of Christ is before me. Heaven's before me. Death is
before me. And he said, I'll tell you what,
I'll press toward the mark of the prize of the high calling
of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore be thus perfect,
being thus minded, if in anything else you be otherwise minded,
God will make you understand it. Now I'll tell you what, I
said I believe that all Christians, all Christians, have some goals. Go set out for us in God's holy
word. Let me give them to you if I
can and see if they're yours and see if they're mine. Let's
see if we're like the apostle in any way at all. And that's
why Paul said, if we're not this minded, if you're not got this
kind of a mind, he said, I pray that God will make you understand
and reveal it to you. And then here's the first thing
I believe. This ought to be our main number
one goal and objective in life. To glorify God himself. That ought to be our objective,
is to glorify God. People say, you know, they make
a big deal out of winning souls. Winning souls. Getting people,
winning people to Jesus. Winning souls. But that's not
the first purpose that God gave us the gospel. That's not the
first reason God gave us his word. The first reason God gave
us his word was to bring glory to himself in saving us. And
I'll tell you something, beloved, winning church and seeing the
church grow is not the very first thing. That's not the goal that
we have at all. I'd love to see people converted.
I'd love to see, I'd love to fill this baptistry up, and heat
it up, and baptize a half a dozen next week. But oh my, glorifying
God, that's got to be our first objective, our first goal, and
we live in this, you know, let me tell you something. This is
God's first objective. You know, God first and foremost
said, I will not, said it twice in Isaiah, I will not give my
glory to nobody else. I won't do it. He said, I will
not give my glory to another. This is God's chief objective
for himself, is to glorify himself. Keep this and look in Isaiah
48. Look in Isaiah 48. This is God's chief objective. You know he says that we're saved
to the praise of the glory of his grace. He works all things
according to the counsel of his own will. But look what he said
here in verse 11, Isaiah 48 verse 11. Now listen to this, for mine
own sake, even for mine own sake will I do it. For how shall my
name be polluted? And listen to this, and I will
not give my glory unto another. You know why Paul says it's not
many mighty, not many noble, not many wise are called? Why
he says that? That no flesh had glory in his
presence. No, listen, God won't give His
glory to nobody else. Look over here in Ephesians.
Go back to your left and look in Ephesians chapter one. Won't
you see this? You know, God says, whatsoever
ye eat, whatsoever ye drink, do all to the glory of God. And
what His objective is must also be ours. But look what He said
here in verse six. To the praise of the glory of
His grace, That's why He made us accepted in the Beloved, to
bring glory to Himself, the praise of the glory of His grace. Look
down in verse 12, that we should be to the praise of His glory,
who first trusted in Christ. Look down in verse 14, which
is the earnest of our inheritance unto the redemption of the precious
possession, unto the praise of His glory. God did everything
for His own glory. He saved us for His glory. So
we'll praise His grace, praise His glory. And I tell you, that's
exactly what He's doing. And what His objective is must
be ours. And I tell you, God intends to
glorify Himself And so that ought to be our objective too, ought
to be our goal. Well, how in the world can we
glorify Him? What's the best ways that we can glorify Him?
Well, first and foremost, in doctrine. In doctrine. You know,
in His Word. You know what doctrine means?
It just means teaching. It just means teaching. That's
all in the world it means. You know, the Scriptures tells
us in Acts, that the apostles, said those after the apostles
were preaching, this says, they continue steadfast in the apostles'
doctrine, breaking bread from house to house. And what does
that mean? You know, all scripture is given
by inspiration of God. And here's the first thing it
says, and it's probable, first thing it's probable for is doctrine. And what doctrine means is just
teaching. That's all in the world it means.
Look over in Deuteronomy. 32 look over here. This is a message all in itself
Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Bible Deuteronomy 32 And you know it's called the
doctrine of Christ doctrine of Christ And all doctrine people
say well just give me Jesus leave doctrine out of it you cannot
preach the gospel and preach the Word of God without preaching
doctrine and That's the whole purpose of the Bible, is to teach
us what doctrine is. And you get a theology, but go
out here and get an abstract of theology, and the first thing
they're going to do is teach you the existence of God. Second
thing they're going to teach you is the existence of man and
how sinful he is, and they're going to go right down the line.
They've got a system that they set out. And they get that stuff
from the Bible, and the manual of doctrine. But here's the thing
about it, that's what the whole reason that God gave us His Word,
and that's the whole reason God calls preacher, is to teach people
the doctrine of Christ! The doctrine of God! And how
many doctrines are there? Well, the first one is, is God!
Self-existent! Not some God who's waiting on
somebody to do something. God Almighty is sitting on His
throne. And He had to make a throne to
sit on. He had to make a heaven before
He could ever make it His throne. He had to make an earth before
He could ever make it His footstool. He was before there was a heaven
and an earth. That's doctrine. That's good
doctrine. That's sound doctrine. That's
blessed doctrine. And then we talk about how sinful
man is. How sinful is man? It's impossible
to describe how sinful man is. It's impossible to describe how
sinful man really is by himself. And the only people that have
any idea of how sinful they are is the people that's been taught
of God, taught God's doctrine. You didn't come to those conclusions
by yourself, but look here what it said in Deuteronomy 32. Give me your heavens, and I'll
speak. It's God now speaking. I want
you heavens to listen to what I've got to say, and believe
me, they can hear. And oh, here on earth, heaven and earth, listen
to what I've got to say that's coming out of my mouth. My doctrine,
my doctrine shall drop just like rain, oh my. And my speech shall distill just
like dew on a summer morning, as the small light rain upon
the tender herb, and as showers it makes the grass grow. And
my doctrine, you know what it'll do? It'll publish the name of
the Lord, and it'll ascribe greatness unto our God. And listen to this. This is the doctrine. He's our
rock. That's capitalized. He's our rock. He's our stability. His work is perfect for all His
ways are judgment. A God of truth and without iniquity,
just and right is He. That's doctrine. He said it comes
down as a due. You know, I'm going to show you
another verse of scripture. Look over with me in 2 John.
2 John. You need to see this because,
you know, these These false prophets, they call themselves Jehovah's
Witnesses or Seven Day Adventist or whatever you want to call
them. They go around trying to convert people. They try to convert people to
their lies. But look what it says right here.
We're talking about doctrine. Oh my, if we can glorify God
in His doctrine and the truth, that's what we're talking about.
Verse 9, 2 John verse 9. Whosoever transgresseth and abideth
not in the doctrine of Christ, he don't even have God. He that
abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the
Son. And if there come any and bring
not this doctrine, the doctrine of Christ, and that's a whole
other subject, the doctrine of Christ. He has both the Father
and the Son. If any come unto you and bring
not this doctor, the doctor of Christ, don't let him in your
house. That's what it says. Do not let
him in your house. And when he leaves your house
and you don't let him in, you don't want to talk to him, when
he's walking away, don't say, God bless you. Don't do that. You know why? Because if you
do, you're a partaker of him, and that's what it says. He's
a partaker of him and his evil deeds. Oh my. I just, listen, I've seen, I
know preachers that just love to have a conversation with one
of these fellas that a Jehovah's Witness, but I'm not gonna talk
to him. I'm gonna save my breath to cool my coffee. I'm not gonna
talk to them people. I'm just not gonna do it. I got,
we got nothing in common. They're not gonna listen to me,
so why should I listen to them? And I'm not gonna argue with
them, I'm not gonna debate with them. They wanna believe a lie
and be damned, that's their business. I wanna believe the truth, I
wanna know the truth, and I wanna believe the truth. Don't you? Oh my. And that's why the scriptures
tells us, you know, and here's the thing about doctrine. When
you talk about doctrine, And when it talks about God, it's
always singular. The doctrine of Christ. The doctrine
of Christ. The doctrine of God. You'll know
whether or not doctrines of God or not. It's always in the singular. But whenever you find doctrines,
it's always talking about man and a false teaching. When it's
always plural, it's the doctrines of devils. It's the doctrines
of men. But when it's doctrine, it's
singular. God's truth. That's what he said, just one
thing. I just wanna know one thing, one thing. And I'll tell
you how else we can glorify God, not only in our doctrine. Oh,
bless his holy name. But in faith, we can glorify
God in our faith, in faith. You know what God said about
Abraham? Abraham believed God. There's nothing, I'm going to
tell you something. There is nothing, nothing that honors
God and glorifies Him more than believing Him. Nothing. That's why God said, without
faith it's impossible to please me. Without faith it's impossible
for me to be satisfied. And the scriptures tells us that
that faith is the substance of things hoped for. You know, faith
gives substance. Substance to eternity. Faith
gives substance to our sins being gone, though we don't, we still
feel it in our flesh. Faith gives substance to an invisible
God. Faith gives substance to an eternity
in glory. Faith gives substance to us being
made perfect one of these days and going to be with Christ.
Faith makes things that we can't understand. Faith makes the Trinity
understandable. Faith takes things and makes
things that you can't grasp, and things that you don't understand,
things that you can't see. I can't see faith in you, and you
can't see faith in me. How in the world we never got
faith? We believe God! Our faith is always outside ourselves. It never has nothing to do with
us. It has everything to do with Him, and everything to do with
what He did. That's why Paul said, you know,
he said, I know, listen to this now, I know whom I have believed. He didn't say I know what I believe. I was listening to a fellow yesterday,
I seen where he was talking about my gospel, God's gospel. And
I was looking at it and reading it and going on about it. He
said he wanted to preach the gospel that Spurgeon preached,
Whitfield preached, Calvin preached. So I decided I'd listen to this
fella. He didn't come close. Didn't come close. Huh? I don't want to preach what Spurgeon
preached. I want to preach what God says. It's not my Savior. I like Charles
Spurgeon. I got everything that he ever
wrote in there. I got 62 volumes of his books.
But he's not my Savior. I know whom I have believed. And you know what? When I believed
him, he said I was persuaded. Absolutely persuaded. Convinced
without a shadow of a doubt that what I've committed unto him,
he is able to keep it till the day he comes again. I'm convinced
of it, that's what Paul said. Oh my, he is able, he is able,
and we walk by faith. We walk by faith, we don't walk
by sight. If we walked by sight, if we walked by sight, most of
you wouldn't have been here today. If you only walked by sight,
or went by the way you feel, or walked by what's going on
in your body, what's going on in your mind, what's going on
in your home, what's going on in your life, you wouldn't hardly
have been here today. But you know why you're here?
Because you're walking by faith, not by what you see. Huh? We're not looking at the thing,
we're walking by faith. And I tell you, let me show you
Romans 4. Let's look at what Paul said here. He said over
here in Romans 4 in verse 20. Look what Abraham did. You know
the scripture says he's able to do what he promised. He's
even able to keep you from falling, present you faultless before
his glory. Look what it says here in Romans
4.20. Talking about Abraham now. He staggered not at the promise
of God through unbelief. Now why in the world did God
promise him? He said, look up, Abraham. And he looked up and
said, what do you see? He said, I see stars. He said, I'm going
to give you that many children. He said, look down, Abraham.
Look at all this ground. Look at all this. He said, I'm
going to give you that many children. As the stars in the heaven and
the sand on the sea. He said, I'm going to give you
that many children. Abraham standing there, he didn't
have a child. He was going on 100 years old. You know, and when God told him
that, he didn't go. That's impossible. There's no
way that can happen. There's no way in the world that
could possibly happen. I can't have that many kids. He staggered not at the promise
of God through unbelief, listen to this, but was strong in faith,
listen to it, giving glory unto God. And here's again, being
fully persuaded that what he had promised, he was able to
do it. And here we are. You know how
many children God's got on this earth? A fellow asked me the
other day a question, and I said, well I know this. I know this,
that God's going to have more people in glory than Satan's
going to have in hell. You reckon God's going to let
Satan outdo Him? In fact, you don't talk about
how, He just says, He always just talks about hell, but He
says in heaven there's a multitude that no man can number, 10,000
times 10,000 thousands. And every child, every child
that believes this will goes to be with Christ. Everybody who's trusted Christ
goes to be with Christ. Oh, I tell you, God's got a people.
Oh, He's got a people. Wouldn't you like to be one of
His people? God said, I'll be with God and you're going to
be my people. Lord, I want to be one of your people. I don't
even have to know my name. Just probably want to be one
of your people. Let me be one of yours. I want to be one of
yours. Let me be one of yours. Oh my. I don't care if I'm a star or
I'm a grain of sand. It don't make any difference
to me. Just as long as I'm one of yours. That's all I care about
Lord. I don't care. What if people
don't know your name? Who cares? God, that's what we
want. And let me give you another one.
Oh, to glorify God. That ought to be our main goal,
our main objective. In the doctrine of God. In the
faith, in our faith, in our faith, in faith that God gives us. And
then I want to tell you this. He said, this one thing I do,
and I'm not apprehended, I've not attained it yet. But we ought
to glorify God in our conversation. And what do I mean by conversation?
I mean in our manner of life. That's when you find the word
conversation in the Bible. And when you find it right over
here in verse, well, I'm back over, let me go back where I
was, over here in Philippians. You find that word conversation
down here in verse chapter one, verse 27. Only let your conversation be
as it becometh the gospel of Christ. Oh my. And conversation means
your lifestyle or your manner of life. And what it just boils
down to is practice what you preach. Live what you say you
believe. Live it. You believe in God's
sovereignty? But don't go around murmuring
and complaining all the time. You believe you're sinful from
the top of your head to the sole of your feet, then don't talk
about how good you are. Don't talk about what you've
accomplished. Oh my, practice what you preach. Practice your
doctrine. If you believe God's sovereignty,
live like God's sovereign. Live like he's running this world.
Live like he's got this world under control and under his will. That he sets up the kings and
sets them down. He raises up the presidents and
puts them down. He raises up this bunch of idiots
and puts them down. If he wants some idiots somewhere
running things, that's his idiot. Let him run them. And boy, these
days, we're going to a place where the king of kings will
be sitting on the throne, and then we won't care anything about
who run this world. And I'll tell you, God, listen,
God brings, He raises up some of the awfulest people in the
world just to make His people depend on Him and look to Him
and not to the world. That's what he does, that's what
he brings us to where we'll glorify him. Huh? Oh my, practice what you preach,
God's sovereignty in your sinfulness. Old Scott used to say all the
time, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk ain't nothing. Talk don't mean anything if your
walk doesn't go with your talk. And you know, Todd wrote an article
about this here recently, Practice What You Preach, and he says
if you believe that God's everything to you and Christ is everything
to you, then you make that to be your life, and then you know
it's not one thing to come to service every once in a while
and then expect your children to follow you. They're gonna,
whatever you live is what they're gonna live. And whatever you
believe, they're gonna believe it. They may not practice it,
but they're gonna believe it. Thought means nothing if walk
means nothing. And oh, listen, what the apostle,
you know, he says, don't glory in your shame. Look down here,
with me back over in Philippians 3. whose end is destruction, in
verse 19, talking about those who are enemies of the cross
of Christ, their end is they're gonna be destroyed. What's their
God? Their belly, their flesh, and
whose glory is in their shame, who mined earthly things. Things
that they glory in, it's a shame, it's a shame. What's your shame? What's your shame? That's why
testimony services are so blasphemous. Sinners trying to out sin one
another. Sinners trying to be worse than
other sinners. People trying to show how mean
they was before they got converted. Well, a hog is a hog is a hog
is a hog, no matter where he come from. And don't glory what's in your
shame. I don't have to go back. I don't have to go back in your
life, don't have to go back in my life and tell you what my
life was like. You know what it's like for I
know Christ. I know what your life was like for you know Christ.
Sin, sin, sin and rebellion. I don't have to tell you the
sins that I've done. I know this, that my former life, sometimes
when I think about it, it makes me hurt in my heart and soul.
Ashamed. Ashamed. Absolutely ashamed. I'll tell you what's a shame.
Sin is a shame. Sin's a shame. You say, well
I can't help it. Sin is a shame. Sin's a shame. I'll tell you something else.
Bragging's a shame. Bragging's a shame. To brag? To boast? To gloat on yourself and to brag
on yourself and to brag on, bragging is a shame. The things, listen, I was telling
something about my son earlier, but listen, that's a burden to
me. The fact that he lives so well
is a burden. The more you got, the less you
need Christ. The harder you work in this world,
the less you need Christ. God's gotta make things so distasteful
to you that you want nothing but Christ. Sin's a shame. Bragging's a shame. A filthy conversation is a shame. A filthy life is a shame. design recognition, and to be
a brag on them, go off and swipe on them, people will brag on
them, look at you and say what a fine person they are. Letting you shine in
your light so everybody else can see it. God sees it when
he does that. The only light we've got in this
world is Christ. I'm telling you, I'm telling
you, listen, we was in darkness, who brought us out of it? Christ.
Christ who is our light. Oh my. Listen. Let your conversation, let your
manner of life be like, you believe the gospel of grace, be gracious. You believe the gospel of forgiveness,
forgive. You believe the gospel of mercy,
show mercy. You believe the gospel of love
and compassion, show love and compassion. You believe the gospel
that makes us nothing and zeros and nothing, well then don't
try to act like somebody. Is that too hard? I don't want
it to be hard, I don't mean for it to be hard. I'm just telling
you. Now listen, do you see that article
in the bulletin, Denying Self? Do you see that? My goodness. I come up with that
thing years and years ago and got a Bible in there with it
taped on the inside of it. And I read that when we was putting
it in the bulletin this week. I read that again and I just
groaned. I just groaned. Just groaned. I've just grown. You know why? I'm a million, million miles
from what that bulletin article says. But I'm going to be like
the apostle. Just because I ain't like that,
don't mean I'm not going to try to be like that. I'm going to
keep on laboring until I'm like that. Well, we glorify Him in
faith, in doctrine, in our conversation, our manner of life. And in the
gospel, oh my. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of
the gospel. Oh, blessed are the gospel. Brings good tidings of great
things. The gospel of good news. Don't ever be ashamed of the
gospel. There's no salvation for anyone apart from it. Oh, believe the gospel. Persevere
in believing the gospel. You know, look in Acts, keep
Philippians now, and look in Acts with me in chapter 13. Look with me in Acts 13. All believe the gospel. That's
why we preach the gospel. So interesting people here in
the gospel. When I was out there at the graveyard
the other day, my heart was so heavy and I was so earnest to
talk to people about these realities that we have to face in this
world. It brings tears to my eyes and tears to my heart that people don't believe the
gospel. That's the best news you'll ever hear in your life.
that Christ died for you, Christ bore your sins, Christ left them
in the grave, Christ ascended to glory, you're made complete
in Christ, you have no sin in Christ, you have the righteousness
of God in Christ. Oh my, oh that's just, that's
the most wonderful news I've ever heard. And it's still, just
still, Yes, after all these years. But look what it says down in
verse 13. Or excuse me, verse 43, I'm sorry. 13, 43. Now when the congregation was
broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed
Paul and Barnabas, who speaking to them, listen to this, persuaded
them to continue in the grace of God. We preach grace to you, keep
on believing it. Keep on believing it, continue
in grace. Don't bring nothing in with it,
just continue in grace. The gospel of grace, the gospel
of God's will, not man's free will. God says our will 14 times
in Genesis 17. Genesis 17. And then let me ask
you some questions and I'll close. You know, we can glorify Him
in our desires, in our desires. Paul said, I press toward the
mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
I want to be conformed to the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to
be conformed. Paul was taking account when
he says, what gains were gained to me is lost for Christ and
What lost for me is gained for Christ. He's taken a profit and
lost things. But let me ask you something.
Our desires, we all got desires, and I'm talking about spiritual
desires now, Christ-honored desires. Is the Lord Jesus Christ the
desire of your soul? Do you desire Him above everything
else? You desire Him. Got to have Him. Paul said, I want to win Him.
I want to be found in Him. I want to know Him. That's why
I'm pressing. I'm pressing toward the mark
for the prize of the hall calling God Jesus. Is Christ the desires
of your soul? And let me ask you this, are
your desires after Christ true spiritual desires? Really spiritual
desires? Are they real? Are they real? Do they burn? Or is it all dross
and dung? Is your desires after Christ? You count everything else dross
and dung compared to Him? Are your desires after Christ
single? Single? What do I mean by that?
That you want Him and Him alone. There were no mixture with. The
hypocrite has a divided heart. His heart's for Christ for a
while and for the world a while. Heart for Christ for a while
and for himself a while. And here's the third question.
Are they permanent desires? What do I mean by that? Do you
start desiring Christ for a while And then you stop desiring Him
for a while. Do you only desire Him when you're
in a service? Do you know, and this is sad,
there's people that come here for years, and for some reason,
they decide, I'm not gonna come anymore. I'm not gonna come anymore. It's
your desires after Christ. Well, I'll desire Him for three
months, Then I'm gonna stay away from the gospel for six or seven
months. Are your desires for Christ permanent? They always there? They always
with you? Oh, do they have any lasting
effect? Let me ask you this. Are you
afraid your desires after Christ won't last? Are you afraid you
don't long for Him like you should? When you feel like you don't
desire Him and long after Him like you should, you know what
you do? You long after Him even greater. You go after Him even
greater. Lord, oh, please don't let me lose my desire for You.
Please don't let me lose my longing for You. Please don't let me
do it. Christ dwells in the desires
of His people. And here's another question,
here's my fourth question. Do your desires, do your desires
find no satisfaction, no satisfaction, but only in Christ? Only in Christ. And enjoin him forever? Look
what he says over here in Philippians 1.23. Talking about desires. Talking about desires. Do your
desires find no satisfaction but only in the Lord Jesus Christ? For I am in a strait betwixt
two. Listen to this, having the desire, desire to part and be
with Christ. I desire to go be with Christ. I'll read you another one out
of Psalm 27. You may want to mark this in your Bible, Psalm
27 verse four. Oh, it's our desires. Our desires. Did you only find satisfaction
in Him? In Him alone? And you look forward to join
Him forever? Look what the psalmist said here. Here we go back to that one thing. One thing, if I desired, I desired
of the Lord. And that's what I'm gonna seek
after. That's what we're talking about, going after goals. This
is my goal, he said. I desired of the Lord that I
will seek after that. And this is what I'm seeking
after. I may dwell in the house of the Lord. Of the Lord all the days of my
life. And listen to this, when I get
to the end of it. To behold the beauty of the Lord. and inquire
in his temple. Alright, let me wind it up with
the last question. Do your desires for Christ come
from a deep sense of your need and want of Christ? Do you need
and want Christ to come from a sense of your need and want
of Christ? And everything that I said comes
back to one thing, to glorify God in all things, in all ways,
and we're just like Paul. You know, there's a mark, there's
a mark. And we're pressing toward that
mark. There's an end to this thing one of these days and we're
pressing toward that mark of the high calling. What a high
calling it is of God in Christ Jesus. And we're gonna keep on
going and keep on going and keep on pressing until we cross the
finish line. We'll cross it one of these days
and that'll be all right, won't it? Our Father, in the blessed name
of our Lord Jesus Christ, Lord, thank you for allowing us to
meet here together today. Thank you for the gospel. Thank
you for the truth. Thank you for your word. And
Lord, may it be our goal and our objectives, our desires in
this life to win Christ, to be found in Christ, to know Christ.
And if our mind ever goes in any other direction, Other than
this, please, oh God, reveal it to us. Don't let us go astray. Don't let us ever turn from Christ.
Don't let us ever desire anything else in this world more than
we do Him and our fellowship with Him, our communion with
Him, our need of Him. And Lord, we not only need you,
but we want you. Oh, we want you. We want you
in our hearts. We want you in our lives. We
want you in our congregation. We want you as our Lord. We want
you as our Savior. We want you as our King. We want
you as our Prophet. We want you as our Priest. We
want you as our Redeemer. We want you as our Savior. We
want you in your righteousness. We want you in everything that
goes with you, Lord. We want you. Bless the Word today
as only you can. We ask in Christ's name, amen.
318 in the hymn book.