Tonight we're gonna be in the
book of Proverbs. We're gonna look at one verse
in Proverbs chapter four, if you would like to turn there. Proverbs chapter four. Tonight, Our subject is the Lord
Jesus Christ. That might sound strange to say,
shouldn't he be the subject every single time? Yes. Yes, he should. Most churches don't preach the
Lord Jesus Christ. They don't preach the Lord Jesus
Christ. They spend their time on self, on their service, on
their works, what they're doing, what they're not doing. They
don't preach the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm not going to tell you how
good you are. I'm not going to tell you to
do. I'm not going to tell you to
try harder. I'm not going to tell you to
do better. That's not preaching Christ. I'm going to tell you
the truth. There isn't a single one of us
in this building that are worth anything in and of ourself. Not
one thing. There's nothing good in any of
us. Not one good thing. Not that we're mostly bad. We are completely, utterly depraved. There's no way we could please
God. There's no way we could do anything spiritual to merit
anything. We need a substitute. We need
a substitute. There's not one good thing about
us. You know, we make everything
about ourself, don't we? You ever thought of that? When
our little ripple gets in our pond, we think it's a big ocean.
Our lives are not big oceans. We just have little ponds, each
of us. And most of the time, it's a muddy pond. You know what
I'm talking about. And a rock gets thrown in our little pond,
and boy, we just go off, we go off the rails, don't we? Little
ripple. And the Lord, we're acting like it's a big wave, a tsunami
that's just happened in our life. No, it's a little ripple. And
the Lord always brings us back to Him. He always focuses us
back to Him. That's what He does, but we always,
have the mentality that what I'm going through is harder than
what you're going through. This is our nature. This is our
nature. And it's a victim mentality. It's a narcissistic mentality.
That goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. Adam, what
did he do? Now think about this. God tells Adam, who told you
that you were naked, who told you that? And Adam says, The
woman that you gave me. He blames God. He blames God. That's how, that's how, that's
the victim mentality. That's the narcissist mentality
that we are by nature. We're all about self. And unless
the Lord, that's why we need to declare the Lord Jesus Christ.
Because it squashes the flesh. It abases the flesh. The flesh
gets no glory when you mention the Lord Jesus Christ. When he's
declared in truth, the flesh gets no glory. We're self-centered,
self-motivated. What's in it for me? Ever heard
anybody say that? What's in it for me? But the
worst characteristic that we have by nature is self-righteousness. Self-righteousness. That's the
worst characteristic that we have by nature. That's why I
denied our topic. Our subject is the Lord Jesus
Christ. Let's read this verse, Proverbs chapter four, verses,
just one verse. We're gonna read verse seven.
Wisdom is the principal thing. Therefore get wisdom, and with
all thy getting, get understanding. We know wisdom is the name of
the Lord. It's his name, wisdom. But we
also know In Proverbs, I haven't ever turned there before because
I guess I keep forgetting and I haven't wrote it down, so I
can't do it this time either. But the Lord says, understanding
is my name, understanding my name. So who is this talking
about? That's talking about the Lord Jesus Christ. That's our
topic. I've titled the message The Principle Thing. The Principle
Thing. Now principle has four definitions.
First definition is first. That's the definition of principle,
first. The second definition is beginning.
The third definition is best. And the fourth definition is
chief. Christ is our wisdom. Christ is our wisdom. And he
is first, he is the beginning, he is chief, and he is the best. He is the best. He is the principle
thing. He is the principle thing. First,
he is first. We'll look at each of these.
He says, I am Alpha. That's first. That's the first
letter of the Greek alphabet. I am Alpha. He said, I am the
Lord. I change not. Therefore, you
sons of Jacob are not consumed. I'm first. I'm first. We're not
first. You know that? I'm going to go
back to that. how we are by nature. We want everything to be about
ourself. Maybe Kineser built a 60 foot statue of himself and
said, everybody's going to fall down and worship it. And if you
don't, I'm going to kill you. And that's how people are by nature.
That's how we all are. That's what we have in us. Aren't
you glad that the Lord gives us a new nature? Aren't you glad
he takes out the heart of stone and puts in a heart of flesh,
one that sees him as being first and sees me as being not even
second last. That's what we see ourself as
now, isn't it? We're last. And what did he tell the disciples?
Those that are first will be last in glory, and those that
are last will be first. Why is that? Because the ones
that are in last have a need. That need is the Lord Jesus Christ.
The need is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's first. Before there was
anything, there was God. Before there was anything, there
was God. He's always been. Never having a beginning, never
having an end. God has been the eternal I am,
always. He appeared unto Abraham as the
king of Salem, which is the king of peace, we know that, as Melchizedek,
and he was the high priest of the Lord. And what description
about our Lord was written In Genesis, he said he was at the
beginning of days and end of life, having no father or mother.
He's first. He's first. Nothing existed before
him. He's first. He's sovereign over heaven and
earth. He's supreme. He's the primary. He's the one
that's going to have to do something. If you and I are ever going to
be saved, he's going to have to do it. He's going to have
to do it. Another definition is of principle
and being first. He's the foremost in rank. I like that one. What does that
mean? Well, he's the king of kings
and the Lord of lords. He's the highest ranked. We're
not even ranked, are we, compared to his power. He's the highest
ranked in power, in authority, in position, and importance.
He is the principal thing. He is the principal thing. Isaiah
saw him seated. And it's important we see him
seated because if we don't see the Lord Jesus Christ is seated,
we haven't seen the Lord Jesus Christ. He's seated as the successful
redeemer of his people. He's seated right now at the
right hand of God making intercession for his people. Isaiah saw him
seated high and lifted up. And isn't that how he's revealed
all throughout scripture and how he's revealed to the Lord's
people. That's how he reveals himself as I am. as first, as alpha. Saw him high and lifted up, he
was seated and his train filled the temple. Now, I don't know
if I've told you this before, I think I have, but back during
those times, a king would go into battle with another king
and the victor would take the other man's cape, the gown that
they wore, the train, the train, and they would sew that train
onto their train. And so what's, picture whoever had the longest
train, that was the most powerful king. That's how it came to be.
When a king would come in the room, everybody would be like,
wow, he's a really powerful king. He has a really long train. Represented
his glory. And that's what Isaiah is saying,
is the Lord, there's no room for you to have any glory, because
the train takes up the whole room. The train takes up the
whole room. We don't get any glory. The beauty
of it is, is that's exactly where we are, is under that train,
covered. We're covered. Our king's train
is so long it takes up the whole room, the whole space, there's
nothing left. He is first, he is the principal
thing to his people, the principal thing. Second thing principal
means is the beginning. In the beginning, God. In the beginning was the word,
and the word was with God, and the word was God. He is the beginning.
Because he created all things for his glory, he's the beginning. Nothing was before him, ever.
Nothing existed before him. Without him, not anything made
that was made. In him was light, and that light was the life of
men. He is the beginning of life. Understand something, if God
didn't speak light into existence, it wouldn't exist. If he didn't
create the earth and the fullness thereof, this earth wouldn't
have ever existed. If you and I hadn't been purposed to be
born, we wouldn't exist. The Lord's the creator and sustainer
of all life. He's the beginning. By wisdom,
he founded the earth. He spoke it into existence. He
made something out of nothing. How can you do that? Well, you
have to be God. Can't make something out of nothing, but God did.
He spoke light. Out of darkness came light. Ain't
that incredible? That's our God. That's our God. He made this earth that we're
on spinning at 1,000 miles per hour. I did some research on
this. I was just floored because of the magnitude. My pea brain,
that's the problem. That's why it floored me so much.
But hopefully you understand this, and it'll encourage you
too. The earth is spinning at 1,000 miles per hour. And then
on top of that, the Earth is revolving around the sun at 67,000
miles per hour. On top of that, the Milky Way
is rotating 120 miles per second. And he did all that. He did all
that. Everything's spinning exactly
the way he created it to spin. By wisdom, he founded the Earth.
How fast did the Earth need to spin? If you and I were created,
how fast would it need to spin if that was up to us? We wouldn't
have a clue, would we? No, but God not only did that,
he's got everything, even the galaxy that we're living in spinning
at 120 miles per second. He alone possesses all wisdom
to do all these things. The most amazing part in all
of that wisdom is that he condescended to become the dust that we are,
to become a worm that we are to redeem his people. God, with
all this infinite wisdom that he has, creating everything that
he did, purposed to save his people from their sin. We look
and say, you mean the Lord loves me? If you look at his magnitude,
if the Lord allows us to see him high and lifted up, and you
see what the Lord had to do in order to redeem us, we say, oh,
have mercy on me, the sinner. The Lord loves me? Why does he
love me, grace? That's why he chose to, for his
own purpose and will. It pleased the Lord to Bruce
his son that you and I might be made the righteousness of
God in him. Imagine being the Lord, all-knowing,
all-powerful, and he robes himself in dust. Think about that. We hate dust. I know some of
you ladies and men too, we clean, you know, and that's kind of
the primary thing you're getting out of your house most of the
time is when you're cleaning is the dust, isn't it? It's not useful.
That's what he became. Understand that. That's what
he became to redeem, to redeem his elected dust. That's what
he did. He became a worm to redeem a
bunch of worms. He was made sin for his people,
yet he knew no sin. God's chosen elected people might
be made the righteousness of God in him. Now I told you we
were gonna look at Colossians one and I wanna go back there.
Colossians chapter one, we're gonna read that again. Look at
verse 14 again. in whom we have redemption through
his blood, even the forgiveness of sins, who is the image of
the invisible God and the firstborn of every creature." What does
he mean the firstborn of every creature? That means anything
that was created was created by him. He's the firstborn. For
by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are
in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers, all things were created by him
and for him. And he is before all things. And by him, all things
consist." Well, you can't get more clearer than that, can you?
He's before all things. And by him, all things consist.
This world spinning at 1,000 miles per hour. All things consist
because of him. All things. Even the crickets
outside, he's purposed. He's purposed all things. And
he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he might have
the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that
in him should all fullness dwell. And having made peace through
the blood of his cross by him to reconcile all things unto
himself by him, I say, whether they be things in earth or things
in heaven. I like how he repeats by him
a couple of times there, don't you? By him, he did it. By him,
not by us, not works of righteousness we have done, by him. And you
that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked
works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through
death to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable
in his sight." This is why he's the principal thing. This is
why he's the beginning. This is why he's first. He chose
to do this. He chose to be What did he say? I am alpha and omega. I'm the
beginning and the end. He's both, isn't he? Nothing
consists that the Lord Jesus Christ has not purposed to consist
or exist. He alone is the wisdom of God,
and he is his people's beginning. He is his people's beginning.
His light is our life. His light is our life. He is
the Lord of his people. John chapter five says this.
He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me
hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but
is passed from death unto life. Right now. Right now. If you
hear the word of God, and you believe on him that sent him,
if the Lord gives you faith to believe God. Now hearing's one
thing, and hearing's another thing. You have to hear it on
the inward man. If the Lord calls us to hear,
We'll see him as being first. We'll see him as being the beginning.
We'll see him as being holy. And we'll realize by grace, by
repentance and faith, that he is God and I am not. I am not. He said, verse 17, three, and
this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true
God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. He is he, the Lord
Jesus Christ is eternal life. The Lord Jesus Christ is eternal
life. He's the principle thing, the
one thing needful. He's the beginning and the end,
according to his will. Third thing principle means is
best. You ever had one of your children come up to you and say, I'll just give my example. I
don't know. I had a hat one time that said, best dad, world's
best dad. That's probably not true, but
it was a sweet gesture. No, the Lord's the best. The
Lord's the best, isn't he? We hear, we see things like that
where they come and give you They say, you're the best. No,
he's the best. He's the best. You can't get
any better than the best. Did you know that? You have the
best. What's above that? There's nothing above that. Christ
Jesus is the best. His blood is the best. The very
best. One thing we love about our God,
if we know that he's the best and we know that he changes not,
He's always going to be the best. He's always going to be the one
that the father looks to for our righteousness. He's never
going to take his eyes off of his son. He's never going to
take his eyes off of the blood. He's going to look at his son
and view us in Christ as perfectly righteous. That's what he did
on the cross of Calvary. He is most excellent. That was
another definition. Most excellent. I like that one.
The best, most excellent. Nebuchadnezzar, was, well, I
said narcissism a while ago. He was a narcissist, wasn't he?
Look at me, look at me. It's all about me. I need affirmation.
I need you to obey me. I need power. I need popularity.
I need this. He was walking in his garden and he said, is this
not great Babylon that I have created with my own two hands,
my blood, sweat, and tears? I did this. I did this. And the
Lord spoke from heaven and said, your kingdoms rent from you and
they will drive you out. And what he did was, he said,
I'm gonna show you who's God. You think you're God, you're
not God. And that's what he does to every one of his sheep. He
doesn't allow them to stay thinking that way about themselves. They
are made to think, they're made to loathe themselves by repentance,
and they're given faith to believe Christ, to just believe him. Nebuchadnezzar was driven out,
and for seven years, he ate like an ox, it said. His hair became
like eagle's feathers, his nail became claws. And then the Lord
snapped him out of it, I guess is the best way I can put it.
Snapped him out, and that's us. We're crawling around when we're
born with no hope of understanding who God is. We're just a beast.
Even if we're in our right mind, we're just a beast. We can't
understand the things of God. It takes God to say, let there
be light, or let Lazarus come forth, or live. If he doesn't
say that, we're gonna remain in that situation, that circumstance.
What did the Lord tell him? Lord restored the kingdom back
to him. And listen to what Nebuchadnezzar says. The Lord's dominion is
an everlasting dominion. And his kingdom is from generation
to generation and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing.
And he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven and
amongst the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand
or say unto him, what doest thou? Nebuchadnezzar realized God's
God and I'm not. I'm not. He is the best. I'm not the best. He is the best. He is the best. He is the highest. But what makes him the best?
Because he's God, first of all. I mean, that's simple. What makes
him the best? He's God. But to the believers,
what makes him the best is that he would become a man and lay
down his life in order to redeem his people, that we see him as
high and lifted up. We understand somewhat, maybe
we don't understand anything, but we know it's true, he condescended
and became a man. And the magnitude of that condescension,
we could never wrap our brain around that. To go as high as
he is, and holy, and with the Father, and becoming a man of
dust. to redeem us. That's why he's the best to his
people. He chose to suffer because of our sin. He chose to bear
my iniquity and the iniquity of his people. That was his purpose.
He chose to take our sin, nailing it to his
cross. He chose to do that. That's why
he's the best. That's why he's the best. He's the best because
he took my place. He took my guilt, He took my
shame, He took the hell that I deserved, and He made His people
the righteousness of God in Him. He took your guilt, your shame,
your iniquity, and He gave you perfect righteousness. Not because
you did anything to deserve it, not because I did anything to
deserve it, because He chose before time in the covenant of grace
to redeem His people. And then in time he came and
that's why the angel said, here's his name, this is what it means,
call his name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sin. He chose to become his people
on the cross that we might be made as he is before the throne
of God. What manner of love the father
hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of
God. Brethren, now are we the sons of God. It doth not yet
appear what we shall be, but we know when we see him, when
he shall appear, we'll be made like him, for we shall see him
as he is. He's the best because he would
take, he would determine and decide to take this ugly, stony,
deceitful heart and give me a heart and give you a heart that looks
unto him, a heart of flesh. That's why he's the best. That's why he's the principal
thing. That's why he's the principal thing. Lastly, the word principal
means chief. And this is most important. If I don't have him, I don't
have anything. If I don't have him as my righteousness,
I don't have righteousness. If I don't have him as my justification,
I have no justification. If I don't have him as my sanctification,
I have no sanctification. I don't have him, I don't have
anything, but he is the chief. He is the chief. If I am in him,
if I am my beloved's and he is mine, I have everything, lacking
nothing. Lacking nothing. We have everything because he's
the successful, seated redeemer of his chosen people. He's our
chief. He's our captain. He's our shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall
not want. It means I won't be in want of anything. Won't need
anything. Why? Because I have Christ. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me.
I like the wording that David used. It doesn't say he invites
me to green pastures. He makes me. He causes me. He
leads me. Comforts me. Prepares for me.
See, he's done it all. He's done it all. If I have him,
we have everything. He's our chief, he's our king, and he's
our teacher. He's our teacher. We didn't learn
this from men. Somebody said, well, you have
to hear preaching. I know that, but if the Lord doesn't give us ears to
hear through faith, you'll never hear it. We'll never hear it. He is our teacher. He's left
nothing undone, nothing undone. His people have been made the
righteousness of God in him right now, right now. What does the Lord teach his
people? I'll say this and we'll close. What does the Lord teach
his people? that Christ is all our wisdom, we don't have any
wisdom. Christ is all of our righteousness, we don't have
any righteousness. Christ is all of our sanctification. Christ
is all of our redemption. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
principle thing that Solomon's talking about right here. If
I have him, I have everything. If I don't have him, I have nothing.
Thank God he reveals that he is the principle thing to his
people. Let's pray. Father, we love your word. Thank
you for being the principal thing for your people. Lord, we love
you being the beginning. We love you being first. We love
you being the best. Lord, we love you being chief.
Cause us to believe and help our unbelief. In Christ's name,
amen.