Well, it's always a great pleasure,
delight for me to come your way. I just don't really see too much
difference other than the distance between our congregation and
here as far as standing here and being at ease and being at
one with you all. I always look forward to seeing
you and when I converse with different ones of you on the
phone, I always ask about everybody, see how everybody's doing and
it's always a a blessing for me. I am grateful to you very
much for your support of our congregation and the work of
the ministry there. It's just really an extension
of what you're doing here. I was just looking at the clock. The radio broadcast is being
broadcast right now over KWKH, and we've already started getting
some response back from that. The fact that it's streamed on
the internet I also had some people write and said they picked
it up on the internet. So we live in a day where literally,
as Christ said, the field is the world. And yet we have the
world at our fingertips. And it behooves us to use every
means to put this gospel of God's grace and glory in Christ and
His righteousness imputed there to cross put it right out there
because there's just there's so many thorns and weeds and
poison that's being proclaimed and people they're sitting at
their computers they're downloading onto their little palm handhelds
and they're every once in a while they might come across. Like
you talked about a message on Christ the lamb slain it's just
right there. and click on it, download it,
who knows how the Lord would be pleased to bless. These are
exciting times. When I think of the 14 years
I spent as a missionary in Africa, and it's hard to believe that
at that time we didn't have the Internet and all these means.
I mean, there was a lot of days of travel going from place to
place trying to get the word out. when right now we can sit
at the ease of our computer or even in the context of a worship
service like this where it's being recorded and Jim go back
and put that up on the Internet within an hour and it's around
the world. That's a phenomenal thing. And
you think about this trip that I'm going to be taking to Malawi
to India and Lord willing in the Philippines, it's all come
through people browsing the Internet. coming in contact with a message,
wanting to know more, and how can we hear this? We have men
that need to be trained, and so come over and help us, kind
of like the Macedonian call. So I think that we have reason
to be greatly excited. I know when we meet many times
in small numbers, and we do, I was telling the men last night
that, you know, when you see a video or DVD of me preaching
in Shreveport, sometimes you have the idea that it's just
a whole huge congregation sitting out there. But I gave them a
clue. I said, when I stand up and say
it's good to see each of you today, there's probably one or
two out there. If I say it's good to see everyone,
all right, then there's probably a little bit more that came to
hear. But those things don't discourage us. I'm thankful for
the one or two that do come that the Lord has given an interest
in to come, because if they're the Lord's sheep, they're the
most valuable possessions that this world could know, because
they're the Lord's sheep, even if he gave you one of them to
feed. So let's be encouraged and continue
to look to him. All right, let's take our Bibles
and look in Genesis chapter 42. Genesis chapter 42. We all like
these Bible stories. And here's one that if you were
raised in a Sunday school, you probably know pretty well the
story of Joseph. And there are a lot of chapters
that are dedicated to his life here in God's Word. But I want
us to focus in here on this part of his life. You know, he was
hated because he was the beloved of his father. His father gave
him that coat of many colors and his brethren hated him for
it. And that you can see already a type of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He was hated because he said, I and the father are one. And
he was they turned thumbs down on he came onto his own, but
his own received him not. And through that, went through
trial and suffering, imprisonment, which is a type and picture of
Christ's sufferings and death, but through it, ascended to the
throne. And again, we see a type and
picture of Christ there, and that through his sufferings,
the Father honored him, and he ascended on high and sat down
at the right hand of the Majesty on high. that at the name of
Jesus, every knee should bow and every tongue confess that
he's Lord. And that's really where we pick up this story because
there was a famine in the land and his brethren had to go down
to Egypt of all things to look for food. And that's where we
read here in Genesis 42 in verse one. Now, when Jacob saw that
there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do you
look one upon another? And he said, Behold, I have heard
that there is corn in Egypt. Get you down feather and buy
for us from fence that we may live and not die. So it was a
vital issue of life and death, which is really whether men realize
it or not, this matter of salvation is a vital issue of life or death. But the Lord has to bring sinners
to that point. Otherwise, just like us, we'd
continue on in religion. We would continue on in all the
hoopla. Not, you know, talking about being saved and never having
been lost in our minds. That's the way we would have
been. But the Lord brought a famine. And I love to sit and talk to
different ones of you to find out exactly how that famine came
to pass. In the business world, they talk
about the threat of discontent. In other words, a person's not
going to change a job unless there's a threat of discontent
where they are. Then they go out looking. And if you're recruiting,
you're looking for that threat of discontent. How strong is
it? And you begin to talk to them about the opportunities
they would have over here if they leave here. But they have
to be brought to that point. A person's not going to leave
where they are as long as they're happy. And the Lord has to bring
us into spiritually some very difficult straits. And like the
prodigal son, let us run our course in religion until we find
ourselves one day just eating on corn husks and sitting in
the swine mess and coming to our senses. You know, it's the
Lord bringing us to our senses. But that's what we see here.
All right. And Joseph's ten brethren went
down to buy corn in Egypt. But Benjamin, Joseph's brother,
Jacob sent not with his brethren, for he said, Lest peradventure
mischief befall him. And the sons of Israel came to
buy corn among those that came, for the famine was in the land
of Canaan. And Joseph was the governor of
the land." So here again we see Joseph as a type of Christ, ruling,
reigning. even over the unconverted, if
you will, Egypt. And He, it was, that sold to
all the people of the land. It's like He prayed there in
the garden. He thanked His Father that the
Father had given Him authority over all flesh to give eternal
life unto as many as the Father had given Him. So you can see
the picture. Here He is over all flesh. But here come these
ten now. that are of particular interest
to him, which could be a type and picture of his elect, those
that God has purposed to deliver through his Son. Because here
it says, "...and Joseph's brethren came." Those that Christ has
saved, he calls brethren. "...Behold I and the children
whom thou hast given me. They came and bowed down themselves
before him with their faces to the earth. Now here's the two
verses that I want to focus on today. In verse 7, And Joseph knew his brethren,
but they knew him not. As I was reading that, that struck
my attention because if you're the Lord's and you know him today,
you will have to say that was exactly the way it was. He knew
me before I knew him. That's what the scripture says.
We love him now. Why? Because he first loved us. If you ever get that backward,
you've messed up the whole message of the gospel of salvation. So
let's just dwell on this thought, Christ's knowledge of his own.
And if you're the Lord's, you'll be able to enter into this. In
another case, you may be the Lord's and still not know it.
You think you know him. And yet he has not been pleased
to reveal himself in truth to you yet. And it may be that in
time you'll come to say this. I thought I knew him. Just like
these brethren. You know, you stop and think. They knew a Joseph that was growing
up. They knew that one that they'd
sold into slavery. But who's this man sitting on
this throne? It's like people in religion today. They know
a Jesus. little baby Jesus boy born in
a manger. They know a companion. Oh yeah,
we used to play, we used to walk together. But a Christ seated
on the throne, ruling and reigning, having all power and authority
over my destiny? Heaven or hell is not in my hands,
it's in His. And until He brings you to bow,
to see that and to bow, You'll be just as ignorant as his brethren
were. Alright, so I've written down
a few notes here for us to consider. Here's the first point that I'd
like to have you think about with me. And that is this, that
Joseph knew his brethren even before they knew him. That is just a fundamental, it's
like in teaching class, you start with the known and move to the
unknown. If you have not got this down,
you've got to go back and learn the ABCs, because in this matter
of salvation, it's not my having known him, but him having known
me. That's the way it is with Christ. I won't dwell too long on this,
but this is true in election. This is why the truth of election. is foundational to everything
that we know and understand about the gospel, because what it does,
it takes it out of our hands. You know, people get upset when
they hear this. They say, you mean this thing was determined
even before I had anything to say about it? Yes. And that's
the way it's always going to be. You can argue all you want
to. But the fact is, God knows those that he has purposed to
save. Look over in Romans chapter 11. You know, Paul testified to this. He was a Jew, and we know that
God sent a judicial blindness upon the Jewish people that I
believe still is in effect today. A majority of the Jews, I'm talking
about natural Israel today, you try to talk to a Jew about Christ
and the gospel, there's still that same vehement reaction against
who he is and what he accomplished. When they read Isaiah 53, they
don't see the sufferings of Christ. They see their own sufferings.
That's just how they view it. Everything pertains to them,
and there's a blindness that we see even in the book of Acts,
where there came a point and God ordained it that the apostles
shook the dust off their feet and turned toward the Gentiles.
I'm thankful the Lord ordained it that way because that's who
I am. I'm a Gentile. I think everybody in here is
a There might be some in here that have a little Jewish blood
running through their veins way back there. But most of us, the
reason why we're here is because God purposed to save Gentiles. But again, you look at it and
say, well, has he cast off all the Jews? Here's Paul's argument
right here in Romans 11, because he's just made a pretty strong
statement. In verse 20 of chapter 10, Isaiah is very bold and says,
I was found of them that sought me not. You might have been seeking a
God. You may have been seeking a Jesus in religion. But if you know Christ in truth
today, you have to say, I was found of him even though I sought
him not. This Christ I'm preaching to
you today wasn't one I was seeking. But he sought me, you see, and
so that's the argument. I was made manifest unto them
that ask not after me. Do you see how contrary this
is to modern day evangelism? I grew up and even taught people
this way, that unless you say the sinner's prayer, you can't
be saved. I can't tell you how many people
I deceived just because I was deceived. That if it didn't actually
come out of their mouth, it didn't count. So you had to get them
to say the sinner's prayer, and repeat it, and mean it, and even
get people to witness that you meant it. All this stuff that,
so contrary, it says here, I was manifest unto them that ask not
after me. And even Paul here, in verse
1 of chapter 11, He anticipates an argument. He says, I say then,
have God cast away his people? Now, when he's talking about
his people, he's not just talking about the Jewish people, but
he's talking about his people, his elect among the Jews. Are
they or is the baby going to be thrown out with the bathwater
here? No. He said, God forbid, for I am also an Israelite of
the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God hath not cast
away his people which he foreknew. So there's that foreknowing,
knowing beforehand. I'm not talking about all the
Jews here. Like some people you'll hear
still referring to them as the people of God. Oh, we've got
to take care of them because they're the people of God. You know, we've got to
keep supporting them. We've got to help them. as if
they're favorite sons in the world. No, that's been done.
Christ came and fulfilled salvation. His church, His elect, His true
Israel is made up of sinners from every tribe, nation, and
tongue. You see? So God hath not cast away, He's
cast away many, but He hath not cast away His people which He
foreknew. What ye not what the Scripture
saith of Elias? How he maketh intercession to
God against Israel. Here was Elijah praying against
Israel, the whole lot. You remember him under that juniper
tree. I might as well just die. And the Lord said, wait a minute,
Elijah, that's not a scriptural prayer. We can't stand here and
pray that God condemn the world. He has his elect there. And that's why with regard to
Elijah, Elijah was complaining, Lord, Kill thy prophets and dig
down thine altars, and I am left alone, and they seek my life."
Do you ever reason that way with regard to religion? Or your family? You know, they're all lost. They're
all reprobates. No, they're not. Look at you.
You were once one of them. And the Lord brought you out
and delivered you. But what saith the answer of God unto him? See,
that's what we need. The answer of God. And here it
says, I have reserved to myself seven thousand men. You know,
that's the one thing I was talking about technology and Internet.
We're going to find out there's probably a whole lot more than
our little congregations meeting together that God has been pleased
to reserve unto himself. And we're just going to find
out about him. You know, that's that's why we go. That's why
we preach. It'll be manifest. It'll be manifest. And he says
here, even so, verse five, at this present time, I like the
way that's written, because every time you read it, it's still
this present time. At this present time, also, there is a remnant
according to the election of grace. In other words, a whole
multitude of people that God knows, that Christ knows. I know my sheep, and yet perhaps
they still do not know Him. But don't write them off. Don't
write them off. I'm talking about your family
members. I'm talking about people in congregations that come and
go, you know, and you kind of think, well, they've been coming
and going long enough now they ought to be settled down. They'll
only settle down when it's the Lord's time, if it's the Lord.
And if they're his, if he's bought them, they'll settle down. They'll
settle down. Just keep preaching. Keep praying
and looking to the Lord. All right. So that's Joseph knew
his brethren. Christ knows his own. That's
true in election. Looking in Redemption in Romans chapter
8 and verse 29. And this word that we're saying
here, for know whom he foreknew, it doesn't mean like many try
to interpret that he knew ahead of time what they would do. You can see even in Joseph's
situation, looking at these brethren, reasoning that way. If that was
the case, he knew ahead of time what they did. As long as he
hid himself from them, he could manipulate them and scare them
to death. And for a while, he did. He kept himself strange. Remember, we read that there
just a little while ago? Strange from them. Why was that
so? Was he playing cat and mouse
with them? No. In the end, he was going to show them that their
salvation depended entirely upon him knowing them and him showing
them grace and favor. even though He didn't have to.
If He had treated them as they had treated Him, He would have
cast them out of His presence. But He purposed grace. He purposed
favor. But in order to show them that,
He had to strip them of all pride and all arrogance in themselves. That's the foreknowing. If you
want a good definition of what it is for God to foreknow a sinner,
He knows ahead of time what he has purposed to do for them. That's the foreknowing, what
he has designed for them, what he has chosen to do for them
in grace and favor. All right. And I believe we see
that here in Romans 8 and verse 29, for whom he did foreknow,
he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his
son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." So you
can see, those that he knew beforehand what he had purposed for them,
he predestinated. He determined their end from
the beginning. That's very simple. It's not,
you know, if it's a matter of looking, God looking down to
seeing if there's any faith first, before he does anything. Imagine
Joseph sitting there waiting for these guys to have faith
in him. They never would have. There wasn't any faith there.
That's the importance of that statement. Joseph knew his brethren,
but they knew not him. That's foreknowledge. He knew
immediately what he had purposed for. And he worked everything
according to a plan. You might look at it as scheming,
but it wasn't. His whole plan was to bring every member of
that family to himself in his time. And he put his brothers
through some hardship. They had to go back there and
get Benjamin, that one that the dad said, I'm not going to give
up. He said, you go get him. He's one of mine. And it wasn't
the story wasn't over until everyone was brought to him. That's that's
sovereignty. And that's the way it is in salvation.
This thing is not going to be over until Christ has everyone
brought to himself that he purchased their Calvary. That's how precious
his blood is. And he's going to see to it.
All right. So that's what we see here in redemption. You know,
when it says he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image
of his son. I know in light of how we've
been taught in the past, some of us might be thinking, well,
that's that ongoing inner progressive sanctification whereby day by
day we're being conformed to the image of his son. Let me
just ask you to answer an honest question here. Are you any closer
in your experience right now with regard to being conformed
to Christ than you were yesterday? That's such a lie to even think
that somehow I'm getting more and more like Christ. In fact,
if that's your thought, you're getting less and less like Christ. Because there's none of us in
this flesh that could ever think a perfect thought or do anything
in this flesh that somehow is not in some way tainted with
self. On the other hand, everything
Christ did was for the glory of His Father. There was not
one evil thought that ever crossed His mind. There was no hesitation
in His mind at any point in time as a man of ever doing anything
that was contrary to the glory of God the Father. You see how
far removed that we are? How far short we fall? So you
say, well, then how can it be said here that He predestinated
us to be conformed to the image of His Son? There's only one
way that could have been done, and that's through the work of
Calvary at the cross, whereby my sin was discharged to Christ. and his righteous obedience charged
to my account." And I believe that that's exactly what the
rest of this whole passage is about, that he might be the firstborn
among many brethren. Joseph wasn't the firstborn as
far as lineage among his brethren. He was the last, or toward the
last, but he became as one who was the firstborn in authority.
And that's what it is here. Christ humbled himself that he
might be the firstborn. In cultures, not so much here
maybe, but in other cultures in the world, when you're the
firstborn, that gives you right to everything. If the father
passes away, that firstborn determines who gets everything else. That's
just the way it is. So it has a stronger meaning
in some of these cultures. But that's the honor and glory
that God purposed for His Son, that He be the firstborn and
that everything that they are be in Him. Not in themselves,
but in Him. We're heirs and joint heirs in
Christ. We're righteous, not by any righteousness
in ourself, but by His righteousness imputed. to our account. We're considered sons of God,
not by any merit in ourselves, but wholly by His merit. That's
the right of the firstborn to distribute all that belongs to
the Father to those that He represents. And then it says there in verse
30, "...moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called."
And I think I've explained this to you before, but if I haven't,
I'll make it plain here, because there's two different words used
for called in this portion of scripture. Up in verse 28, in
the original, it's one word, who are the called according
to his purpose. In other words, they're summoned,
they're called out according to his purpose. That's one word. But down here in verse 30, it's
an interesting word. It's a different word. When it
says, them he also called, It's like you've called your son,
Leon, Jordan, or you've called your daughter, Candace. All right? Now, you might call him and say,
Jordan, come here. You've called him, but you've
also called him Jordan. All right? So there's two senses
of that word called. Here in verse 30 is that second
sense. where it says, Thou shalt call
His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sin.
You could actually put in the word named, and you'd be right. Moreover, whom He did predestinate
them, He also named. Doesn't it make sense? If you've
got a legal document that involves heirs, like in a will, I've determined
that this is going to these people, and you name them, You've actually
called them. You haven't called them in the
sense of called them up and said, you know, you're in the will.
That comes later at the death of the testator. But the naming
takes place before the actual calling, where they find out
about it. So that's the word here. Them
he also named. That's talking about election.
Those that God has predestinated, he has named. And look at here. Whom he named, them he also justified. I believe that's so vital because
if people use this to say, well, you see, justification comes
after calling. And they use the argument that
the order is that first you're called in regeneration, then
you're justified. Well, that's not what this verse
is saying. It's talking about the order as far as election
is concerned. Yes, there's been a predestinating,
there's been a naming of those that God His purpose to conform
the image of the Son, and then there's a justifying. God has
to, He can't just forgive them. There had to be a work done in
order for God to justify, declare acquitted these sinners, because
they deserve condemnation. If the election doesn't get it
done, that's the naming, but there had to be a justify, a
work done. and whom he justified them he
also glorified." You say, well, what's that glorified? When Christ
rose from the grave, his father glorified him. He was given a
name above every name, and every sinner whose name was on his
breastplate as a high priest was glorified in him. That's
not talking about something future. He's talking about the work that
Christ came and accomplished to justify and to glorify those
sinners that God had named and predestinated to be conformed
to the image of his son. And when you read it that way,
all the rest fits, doesn't it? Because as you keep reading down,
it gets clearer and clearer. Verse 31. What shall we then
say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son. Where does the writer put all
the emphasis? On the death of Christ and what he accomplished
at the cross. But delivered him up for us all.
How shall he not? with him also freely give us
all things, redemption, justification, forgiveness of sins, adoption,
peace, pardon. And that's where I want you to
think in terms of even Joseph's history. How did he ascend to
that throne? How was he there to justify,
if you will, his brethren and to deliver them except that first
of all, he descended? He went through the trial. He
went through the suffering. The only reason why He was ever
in that prison was because He was betrayed by those brethren.
The only reason why Christ ever suffered the death that He did,
it wasn't for sin of His own. It was for the sin of His brethren.
You see, my sin nailed Him to that cross. And yet the result
is what? Grace, peace, satisfaction, justification. But He knew that even before
they did. He did. Christ did. Alright? You can read that. It says, Who
shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? Some might come
alongside Joseph as he's sitting on that throne at that point
saying, You're going to show favor to these brethren? Can't
you remember what they did to you? No, that's not what I'm
looking at. In fact, you read the last chapter
of Genesis, chapter 50. Keep your finger here in Romans
8, but in Genesis chapter 50, when this thing finally came
down and they finally realized who they were before, they started
to fear. They started to tremble. And verse 18, his brethren, Genesis
50 and verse 18, his brethren also went and fell down before
his face and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. How were
they coming? Out of legal fear. But Joseph
turned it all around. He said, No, no, you're not.
You're not servants, you're brethren. Look at here. Joseph said unto
them, Fear not, for am I in the place of God. But as for you,
ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good to bring
to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. See,
there's a purpose in it. That's that foreknowing. It all's
working out according to what what he All right, so there's
the foreknowing in election, there's a foreknowing in redemption,
and there's a foreknowing in regeneration. And this will be
my final point here. If you're hearing Romans 8 and
verse 28, we'll go back up one, I believe
that's what's being described here. This calling here. In verse 30, that naming, it's
a different word than the original, that's election. But here, in
verse 28, when it says, We know that all things work together
for good to them that love God, to them who are thee called according
to his purpose. There it's talking about the
calling out according to his purpose. How do we find out who
are God's elect? How do we find out those for
whom Christ died that he redeemed and justified there at the cross?
How do we find out? Through their calling. Their
calling out. But let's be careful, as I said, not to jump the gun
and assume we know. You know, you might look at some
that walk with you for a while and you think, boy, if anybody's
the Lord's, they are. And the next thing you know,
they're gone. And then there might be that one that you've
already written off in your mind. If anybody's a reprobate, that
one is. Well, who made you the judge? You know, it's like in
Matthew 13 when the disciples Said the enemy came and sowed
the tares. Should we go out there and tear
up the tares? The Lord said, no, let them grow
together. And this whole idea of having a pure church. Some
try to organize that way. We're going to start over. That's
why they keep starting over. You keep getting these divisions
because they're going to get a pure church. Well, if you want to
be pure, don't join it. You're just going to mess it
up. Regardless of what anybody else says, you're the problem.
You see that? These things grow together. I
have never, in all the years I've been preaching the gospel,
ever preached to anything but a mixed multitude. Most of us sitting here would
like to think, well, we're all the Lord's. Maybe not. There might be some
sitting here today, five years from now, that have gone back
into religion, free willism. It might be. There might be others
that you've invited here and they've come and they've sat
there just gritting their teeth the whole time thinking, I'm
just here because you want me to be here, but I'm not listening.
You know, la, la, la, la, la, la, la. And then suddenly the
Lord does a work in their heart and causes them to think and
reflect upon what they've heard draws their heart to Christ. We don't know. We just find out,
you know, we find out. But that's what that's about.
Even in regeneration, it's a matter of him knowing his own before
they knew him. The only way we know Christ in
truth is because he was pleased to reveal himself. Just like with those brethren
of Joseph, the only way they ever found out who he was was
when he was pleased to reveal himself to them. And that's,
coming back here to Genesis 50, that's exactly What took place
when it when it when it finally came down? You can see in verse 15, even
even up to this point, you know, Joseph. They kept thinking, well,
he's showing us favor because of his dad, because there was
that relationship wasn't there already, just like with Christ
and the father. And we can get caught up in this.
It's true. We're the Lord's because of that relationship that there
is between the son and the father. But you ever get wondering, does
he really love me? Does he really love me? How does
he see me? Well, he sees his own, just as
he does his father. There's no difference. Even as
he's loved the father, so he loves his own. And that's what
is described here in Genesis 15, verse 14. Joseph returned
unto Egypt, he and his brethren. And all that went up with him
to bury his father after he had buried his father. And when Joseph's
brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will
peradventure hate us. And will certainly requite us
all the evil which we did unto him. Satan will get you thinking
that way, too. Get your eyes off of Christ.
He'll get you thinking, you know, has this thing been accomplished
or hasn't it? Have my sin been put away or haven't it? Maybe
there's something else I need to do. In order to make sure
I've got his favor, that's what they were thinking. And you read
here, they sent a messenger unto Joseph saying, thy father did
command before he died, saying, so shall ye say unto Joseph,
forgive, I pray thee now the trespass of thy brethren and
their sin, for they did unto thee evil. And now we pray thee,
forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. Look
at Joseph's reaction. He wept. He wept when they spake
on him. Why was it? It wasn't them commanding
him that would cause him to forgive. He'd already forgiven them. See,
that's that conditional message. We're taught to say, well, OK,
if I just do this, if I just claim it, name it, claim it.
If I just get down on my knees right now and remind God of what
He said He would do, and then He'll forgive me. You see how
far afield that is? The fact is, if we're forgiven,
we've already been forgiven in the blood and righteousness of
the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's all that God sees,
is that blood and righteousness accomplished for sinners such
as we are. But that's where we have to be
brought, to see him for who he is. All right, let's have a word
of prayer and then we'll close.