Turn in your Bibles, if you would,
to Lamentations, chapter 3. Lamentations, chapter 3. Another
message in the Christ is series we've been doing. And tonight
I'd like to look at Christ is our portion. Christ is our portion. Lamentations, chapter 3. Starting
in verse 21, and we'll read to verse 26. Our text will be found
in verse 24. Lamentations, chapter 3, verse
21 to 26, Christ is our portion. This, I recall to my mind, therefore,
have I hope. And this is something that we
should call the mind. It is not of it is it is of the
Lord's mercies that we are not consumed. because his compassions
fail not. They are new every morning. Great
is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith
my soul. Therefore. Will I hope in him? The Lord is good unto them that
wait for him. To the soul that seeketh him.
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for
the salvation of the Lord. Verse 24 is where the text for
our message will be. The Lord is my portion. Remember in verse 21, He said,
This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. This little portion
of Scripture can bring such hope to the believer. Such hope. Verse 24 says, The Lord is my
portion, saith my soul. Therefore will I hope in him.
Now, God's people, we have a sure hope. We don't have a false hope. The world has a false hope because
they're hoping in themselves. Religion has false hope. They
built a refuge of lies. It's all based upon what they
do. But believers in Christ, Oh,
what a hope we have, beloved. What a hope we have. We have
a sure hope. Why do we have a sure hope? Because
it's founded in God and it's founded in God alone. And sometimes
we get down, don't we? Sometimes in this life we get
down, either because of a circumstance or sometimes it's just life.
But let we who believe remember this. That is our soul. may be cast down that we ought
not to despair. We ought not to despair, beloved.
Because we have hope. Psalm 42, 11, when I was going
through a real rough time in my life after the Lord had saved
me. I put this verse to memory. And it ministered to my heart.
And it goes this way, why are thou cast down on my soul? And
why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God. For I shall yet praise him who
is the health of my countenance and my God. Hope thou in God. He is our hope, isn't he? Our
hope is in Christ and him alone. Our hope is in Christ, who is
God incarnate in the flesh, fully God and fully man. During all
times, he's our hope. He alone is our rest, because
as the scripture says, he's our portion. He's our portion. Scripture says in Psalm 116 verse
one, turn if you would to Psalm 116. We need to look a little
bit at this little portion, these first six verses, or seven verses. Psalm 116. Our hope and our rest is in Christ,
in him alone. And what a rest we have in him. And we can rest in Christ because
he's our portion. Look at Psalm 116 verses 1 to
7. I love the Lord because he has
heard my voice in my supplications. Because he has inclined his ear
unto me. Therefore, will I call upon him
what as long as I live? As long as we have breath, the
believer cries out to our God, don't we? The sorrows of death. from past me, and the pains of
hell got hold upon me. I found trouble and sorrow. Then I called upon the name of
the Lord. O Lord, I beseech Thee, deliver
my soul. Gracious is the Lord, and righteous. Yea, our God is merciful. The
Lord preserveth the simple. I was bought low and he helped
me. Return until I rest on my soul. But the Lord had dealt bountifully
with me. Every believer can say the same. Has the Lord not dealt bountifully
with us? Think about this. He has. Because He's our portion. Christ
Himself is the believer's portion. In what rest, what quiet and
tranquil state, after much distress. And this is what the psalmist
was going through. And think of this in our salvation. Men
strive. They strive to work out their
own righteousness. But it will only lead to their
doom. But the believer has been bought
out of religion. The believer who has been bought
out of religion knows, knows what this is like. They know
the toil of religion. Always striving to be better
and always failing. But this rest we have in Christ
is all based upon Him. All based upon him. The believer
has ceased from his labors. Ceased from his labors. I was
talking to Joe Terrell this week. And him and I were discussing
the thing that he told me. And I said, I still mention this.
I had went to preach at his church and we were sitting in his living
room. Joe's been through a lot of things, suffered from a lot
of different things. Some anxiety issues, some depression
issues. And Joe said to me, and it stuck
with me, the hardest thing for us is to enter into the rest
of Christ. And I told him, I've just learned a little bit about
that, and I'm still learning. It's the hardest thing for the
believer to do, isn't it? The hardest thing for us just
to rest, just to rest, just to trust Christ. Oh, but the believer,
the believer. We have a rest, don't we? We
have a rest. We have a perfect peace. Sometimes
the Lord gives us a perfect peace amongst the storms of this life. And why? Think of it. Think of it when you have the
most tranquil times in your life of peace. It's usually when you're
looking to Christ. And Him alone. My. And so the believer, this
text says here, the Lord is my portion, saith my soul. Therefore
will I hope in Him. The believer stopped hoping in
himself. And our hope is Christ. Our hope
is Christ. So tonight let us first consider
the meaning of the word portion. Now the word portion is sometimes
taken for a piece or part of a thing. Be it a less part or be it a
bigger part. And sometimes it's used for part
And sometimes it's used to explain a whole. We'll be looking at how it's
a whole. Because the scripture declares
here, the Lord is my voice. Is he not everything to you? Is the Lord not everything to
you? He's everything to us. He's our
whole portion. And think of this. Know what
it says here. The Lord is my portion, saith
my soul. Therefore, will I hope in him
for every believer, every individual believer. This just struck me
as I was studying this. Every individual believer, he's
our whole portion. He's not part your portion, Brother
Dan, and part your portion, Brother John. For each of us, he's our
whole portion. For every believer. For every
believer. for every individual believer.
And it's our Heavenly Father who has made Christ every believer's
portion. It's our Heavenly Father. Christ
is not divided. So to every one of God's elect,
He's a full portion. He's a full portion. God the
Father has given Christ wholly and entirely to each believer. to each believer, so that each
one may say, Christ is all mine. He's all mine. Ask yourself this,
you who believe, is he not all your redemption? He's all my
redemption too. Is he not all your sanctification?
He's all mine too. He shed His blood for all your
sins. He shed His blood for all my sins too. And for everyone
who believed on Him. All that the Father gave Him
in eternity. Isn't it wonderful? That just
blesses our heart. He's the portion of His people. He's the portion of His people. David proclaimed that the Lord
was his portion. We saw... Turn, if you would,
to Psalm 16 again. Psalm 16. We were at 1-16, but
turn, if you would, to Psalm 16. Now, Jeremiah in our text
proclaimed the Lord is His portion, and it's so for every believer.
David proclaimed the same thing over in Psalm 16, verses 5 and
6. Look at this. And we can, every believer can
say this. Every believer can say this. And this is marvelous.
The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance. He's the portion
of my inheritance. And of my cup, thou maintainest
my lots. Lines are fallen unto me in pleasant
places, yea, I have a godly, or goodly, goodly heritage. That is the believer's portion.
Christ. Christ. Think of this, the Levites
as a tribe, they had no inheritance in the land of Canaan, did they?
No inheritance in the land of Canaan. But God was their portion. God was their portion. Oh, one
commentator of old said, and who shall dare to say that they
had not the best of it? The rest of Israel inherited
the land, right? But the Levites had no portion,
but God was their portion. God is the portion of his people.
The portion of his people. Think on this. If you could have your choice,
what would you choose, goods or God? Well, in our natural
state, we all choose goods, don't we? But when God, the Holy Spirit,
regenerates us, When we're born again by the Holy Spirit of God,
He gives us new desires, doesn't He? A heart that hungers and
thirsts after righteousness. And Christ is everything to us.
He's our portion. And let us remember this, that
the Lord is incomparable, and He is an unrivaled portion. He is an incomparable and unrivaled
portion. With Christ as our portion, the
lowliest and penniless are rich, far richer than the wealthiest
in the world. And that which pertains to the
soul, spiritual riches in Christ, far exceeds all the value of
all the things in this world. And the believer has what? All
spiritual blessings in who? Christ, who is our portion, who
is our portion. We are rich beyond belief, beyond
compare, beyond compare. And the believer says with David
and in Psalm 16, five, what we looked at the Lord is the portion
of mine inheritance and of my cup. Thou maintainest my lots. The believer in Christ is an
heir of God. And His testimonies are our heritage. Psalm 119,
111 says this, Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage forever,
forever. For they are the rejoicing of
my heart. Does not your heart burn within
you when you read the word or when you hear it preached? When
someone exalts Christ, lifting Christ up before you, that's
all we want to hear, right? Remember the Greeks who came?
Sir, we would see Jesus. That's all we want. That's all
we desire when a man gets up to preach the gospel. Sir, we
would see Jesus. Preach to us Christ. Tell us
about our Savior. Tell us about our portion. My. The promise from God to his people
in Hebrews 13, 5 is this. I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee. And those words are worth more to the believer than all
the things of this world. Our great King, our Lord says,
I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. What an inheritance we
have in Christ. What a portion the believer has
in Christ. Now let us consider what in Christ
is the believer's portion. Scripture declares, the Lord
is my portion, saith my soul, therefore will I hope in Him.
His merit and His righteousness is the believers for justification.
His blood was shed for our reconciliation to God. His sufferings, His death
make an atonement for all our sins. What a portion we have
in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is God, and He has all wisdom
and all power, and He is the believer's portion. He works
out all things for our good and according to His purpose for
those who are in Christ. My, what a portion the believer
has in Christ. And He sends the Holy Spirit
to regenerate us and to grant us faith and repentance. My,
He seeks us out. He seeks us out, beloved. And
then He refreshes us when we go through sorrow or pain or
tribulation. He never leaves us, never forsakes
us. Distress of the heart, He's always
with us and He always will be. He always will be, beloved. My
when we consider when we stop and consider how much we've been
forgiven. You guys have heard me mention
this before, when we stop and consider how much we've been
forgiven, it makes us quick to forgive others. God has blotted out all my sins.
All of them. I don't deserve that. But He's bought and purchased
my eternal soul by the shedding of His precious blood. And He's
my portion, beloved. He's my portion. My. Psalm 18.2 says this, The Lord
is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my strength
and whom I will trust, my buckler and the horn of my salvation
and my high tower. That covers everything. My. His word guides us through
the darkness of this world. Pointing us to Christ. Holy is
the Holy Spirit reveals the scriptures, reveals Christ to us, the scriptures
come alive, don't they? And we always are shown Christ. And his presence is ours. His
presence is ours for our perseverance. He keeps us. He keeps us, beloved. And He protects us. Again, the
Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my
strength, and whom I will trust, my buckler, and the horn of my
salvation, and my high tower. Psalm 18, verse 2. And He's not just that for David. Is that for every individual
believer? These are written down to we
who believe. Oh, what comfort we can glean
from the Scriptures. Our text again proclaims this,
the Lord is my portion, saith my soul. Therefore, will I hope
in Him. Christ is the portion of my heart.
Christ is a portion of everything that I desire. It's all Him.
Is it so for you? Oh, if he's not your portion,
I pray that God, the Holy Spirit, would reveal Christ to you. Oh,
that he become your portion. And the Lord Jesus Christ is
a sufficient and satisfying portion, isn't he? He's a sufficient and
satisfying portion, both with God and with man. He satisfied all God's demands
for His people. And His people find in Christ
a soul-satisfying and all-sufficient Savior. Does not Christ satisfy your
soul, beloved? does He not fill your heart with
joy when you ponder and consider that who I am, an undeserving
sinner, and that's for all of us, right, who believe, have
received mercy, have all our sins forgiven, that God Himself
became a man and went to Calvary's cross and died upon that tree,
And the believer says, for me, undeserved, unmerited mercy. My goodness. And he becomes our
portion. He's everything. He's everything
to us. No wonder David with jubilance
and in triumph, exaltation exclaimed, the Lord is my portion. He's
the portion of my inheritance in my cup. No wonder in Psalm
16 he said that. No wonder he cried that out. He who made and redeemed the
soul can alone satisfy and supply it. He who alone, he who made
and redeemed the soul can alone satisfy and supply it. And because
of this, the apostle assures the believer by inspiration of
the Holy Spirit of God, all things are yours. All things are yours. And we
know that this is in Christ and him alone. And we glorify God. for His goodness and His mercy
towards sinners such as we. Romans 8.32, Scriptures proclaim
this. He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all. He spared not His Son, but delivered Him up for us all.
How shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? When we tie that in with tonight's
Scripture, we know that He's given us all things in Christ
Jesus our Lord. All things, beloved. And Christ is a sufficient portion
for the believer. He's the Lord our righteousness. We have access to God through
His merit and through His perfect redeeming work on Calvary's cross. Christ is El Shaddai. God Almighty,
He is all we need. Christ is a satisfying portion. All that a sinner needs is found
in Christ. It's all in Him. Pardon of all our sins, redemption
through His precious blood, justification with God through His perfect
righteousness, eternal life by His death, resurrection glory
because where He is, the body shall soon follow. He's everything. And He's a sweet
portion for the believer, exceedingly pleasant and delightful to the
believer. And He alone fills the believer
The believer's heart with joy unspeakable. Joy unspeakable. How sweet is the knowledge of
Christ and gospel mysteries to the understanding as he reveals
himself to the believer. Through the preaching of the
word or through the reading of his word, how how sweet he becomes
to us. How precious. Turn, if you would,
to Song of Solomon, Chapter 2. Song of Solomon, Chapter 2. And let us remember this. Christ
alone is a sure portion for the believer. He's the only suitable
portion for us to think or for us. Look at Song of Solomon, chapter
2. And this is the bride writing
about Christ. Writing about Christ, or proclaiming
Christ. Proclaiming about her beloved.
Song of Solomon, chapter 2, verse 3 to 7. As the apple tree among
the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I
sat down under his shadow, with great delight, and his fruit
was sweet to my taste. He brought me into the banqueting
house, and his banner over me was love. Love. And this is the bride proclaiming
this about Christ. The bride proclaiming this. Stay
me with flagons, comfort me with apples, for I am sick of love. Look at this. His left hand is
under my head. And his right hand doth embrace
me. This is, again, the bride of
Christ saying this about our wonderful Redeemer. I charge
you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the rows and by the hinds
of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake, my love, till
you please. His left hand, the hand of everlasting,
is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me. Oh, the love that Christ has
for His bride, for His people. Oh, beloved, he's a sure portion
for us. Now, we cannot say concerning
any portion we have in this world that it's a sure portion in worldly
aspects. Many a child thought himself
or herself secure enough that the portion had been in their
hands and that in the process of time, maybe you receive a
portion or inheritance from a from a loved one, but soon it's gone.
Or when we die, it goes to someone else. But the Christian's portion,
which is Christ, is a sure portion, beloved. It's a sure portion. Turn, if you would, to Luke chapter
10. It's the best part. Do you know why? This portion
is the best portion anyone can have. Do you know why? Because
it can't be taken away. It can't be taken away. God gives
Christ to His people, and He is their portion. Now look at
this text. I found this studying for this
message. Look at this. Luke 10, verses
38 to 42. Now it came to pass, as they
went, that he entered into a certain village, and a certain woman
named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister
called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.
But Martha was comforted about much serving and came to Him
and said, Lord, dost Thou not care that my sister hath left
me to serve alone? Feed her therefore that she help
me. And Jesus answered and said unto
her, Martha, Martha, Thou art careful and troubled about many
things, but one thing is needful. And we know that that's Christ,
right? He's revealed that to us. It's
Christ. And Martha has chosen that good
part. She's been made well. But but but look at this. Look
at the last part of this verse. Which shall not be taken away. Now that made the believer's
heart sing. Sing with joy. Which shall not
be taken away from her. One thing's needful, that's Christ.
Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away
from her. Oh, how that ministers to my
soul, beloved. I hope and pray it does yours,
too. What a sweet word here for the believer in Christ. Oh. Christ, the truth. And this is
sure, think of this, too, I want us to I want us to think on this.
This is sure. You know why? Because the one
who is truth incarnate. Spoke this. He said that portion, that part
will never be taken from us. Oh, what salvation we have, beloved
in Christ Jesus, our Lord. The portion we have in Christ
that shall shall not be taken away while we live is the gift
and calling of God or without repentance, it is secured by
the promise and oath and power of God. It shall not be taken
away. May we let this precious truth
warm our hearts and our souls. No one can take it away from
us. No one can take Christ away from us. And we cannot lose this
wonderful portion that the believer has in Christ. Turn, if you would,
to John 10, verse 28. Now, in this world, right, people
can lose portions. They can lose inheritances because
someone gets bent out of shape and says, I'm going to write
you out of my will. It happens, unfortunately. Or
families can squabble about when the mother or father dies,
the family starts squabbling amongst themselves about what
portion am I going to get? What a portion we have in Christ. What a portion we have in Him.
The portion that comes from God can never be taken away. Look
what it says in John 10, 28. Again, it's our Master's words. And I give unto them eternal
life. And we're going to tie this in
with what He said to Mary. About Mary. Mary hath chosen
that good part which shall not be taken away from her, right?
John 10 28. And I give unto them eternal
life. And they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them
out of my hand. Oh, my. What we have in Christ. I am persuaded that neither death,
nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature
shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is
in Christ Jesus our Lord." Our dear brother Paul penned those
words. Nothing can separate us from
Christ, who is our portion. Because we saw this morning,
it's God who keeps us. It's Him who keeps us. Psalm 73, 26, Scripture declares
this, My flesh and my heart faileth, but God is the strength of my
heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73, 26. He's not just my
portion here. He's not just, you who believe,
He's not just your portion here. He's our portion forever. Forever. My, what a Savior we
have, beloved. What a Savior we have. And all
our portion is in Christ. And it's true for every single
individual believer. Every one of God's blood-bought
saints through all the ages that have been. And all the generations which have
gone before us. And if the Lord carries all the
generations after us, the people of God, we all have the same
portion, the same inheritance, and it's Christ and Him alone.
And as I said earlier, He's a whole portion for every single one
of us. Turn, if you would, to Ephesians
chapter 3. Do you know that Paul calls this wonderful portion
that the believer has in Christ? The unsearchable riches of Christ. The unsearchable riches of Christ. Ephesians chapter 3, we'll read
in context, verse 7 to 13. Where have I was made a minister
according to the gift of the grace of God, given unto me by
the effectual working of His power, God's preachers, we have
a gift to preach. It's all Him. But for every believer,
we've received the gift of grace, haven't we? Every believer. Unto me, who am less than the
least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach
among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ. and to make
all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the
beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things
by Jesus Christ, to the intent that now unto the principalities
and powers and heavenly places might be known by the church
the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which
He purposed, which He purposed, verse 11, in Christ Jesus our
Lord. in whom we have boldness and
access with confidence by the faith of him. Wherefore, I desire
that you faint not at my tribulations for you, which is my glory to
every single believer. Christ is our portion. Think
of this. He's a bottomless mine of merit. He's a bottomless mine of merit
for his people. Christ is a boundless ocean of
righteousness. A boundless ocean of righteousness. And He is the strength of His
people. In our weakness, what? He is
made strong. He is made strong. In Him are
hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And think of this,
we looked at the fullness of Christ today. He's a fountain
full, isn't He? He's a fountain full for grace
and for comfort for His people. That it may be said of Him that
can be said of no other. He's a storehouse that can never
be emptied. Never be emptied. Turn if you
will to the Song of Solomon, chapter 5. Now is it any wonder
why the bride proclaims in the Song of Solomon this about the
groom? In this picture is again Christ,
or the church proclaiming this truth about Christ. Look at this. Song of Solomon 5, verses 9 and
10. What is thy beloved more than
another? O thou fairest among women. What
is thy beloved more than another, beloved, that thou doest so charge
us? Verse 10. My beloved is white
and ruddy, the cheapest among 10,000. Is he not that to you,
beloved? Oh, he's the cheapest among 10,000. He's everything to us. So let us ponder this week the
rich portion that the believer has in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
All our merit with God is in him, is in him. The believer
cries, none but Christ to justify, none but Christ to sanctify,
none but Christ to rule me, and none but Christ to save me. None
but Christ to be my prophet, none but Christ to be my priest,
none but Christ to be my king. Oh, He's everything. He's everything
to us, beloved. And if we can say that, oh, how
truly blessed we are. How truly blessed we are. Our
text proclaims, the Lord is my portion. And the believer cries
out, thou, thou art my portion, Lord. It's all you. The Lord is my portion, saith
my soul. Therefore, will I hope in him. So our text closes with this.
Therefore, will I hope in him. Therefore, will I hope in him.
The believer relies upon him. The believer trusts him. The
believer tries to rest in Him. It's a struggle for us, isn't
it? But He is our rest, isn't it? He is our rest. He's our
repose. He's our portion. Scripture says,
therefore will I hope in Him. Therefore will I hope in Him.
He's our portion. He's our refuge. And think on this, beloved. When
we die, all other portions leave us. All the things we own in
this world, they all leave us, don't they? But if Christ is
our portion now, rejoice and hope in Christ, because Christ
is our eternal portion. He's our eternal portion. And what hope we have, what comfort
this brings the believer, what comfort as we travel through
this world of woe, and it is a world of woe. Oh, what a portion we have, beloved.
All glory, honor, and praise to our great King, the Lord Jesus
Christ. Gracious Heavenly Father, we
thank Thee for the time that we've had to gather together
tonight and to look into Thy Word. Oh, I pray. that You would
keep these things in remembrance for we who believe. Oh, that
we would remember this week. Oh, Lord, that You are our portion.
You are our strength. You are everything to us. And
therefore will I hope, hope in You, hope in You, Lord Jesus,
and hope in nothing else but Thee. Oh, Lord, we're fragile
and frail creatures. We make mistakes and we sin Oh
Lord, what a portion we have in thee. What a portion we have
in you. And for the believer, you have
forgiven us of all our sins, all our iniquities. Oh, what
a great salvation we have in thee. We pray that if it's your
will to use this message to draw one of your last lost sheep,
that we give you all the glory and honor and praise if you're
so pleased to do that. We seek that you'd be glorified
and magnified by the preaching of your word. And we love you.
because you first loved us, in Jesus' name, amen.