All right, turn with me back
again to Genesis 24. I didn't know that, well, until
he told me that Brother Fred was going to read out of Genesis
24. This blessed book, a chapter that we've been considering,
and I'd like to continue in it. No chapter, I believe, in the
Bible more clearly sets forth the calling out of the bride
of the Lord Jesus Christ, in Genesis 24. I'd like to consider, starting
in verse 34 and go down to, oh, around 40, 41. I've entitled this message, The
One Calling of God's Servant. the one calling. Almighty God
calls his servants, and they have one calling. Now we've considered this blessed
subject, but I want us to just look for a few minutes at the
calling and the responsibility and the attitude of God's servant
concerning the preaching of the gospel. Now, there is no message more important than what we consider
when we hear the preaching of the gospel. This message alone is the message
that the Spirit of God is going to bless. I've said this before, you ask
anybody, ask somebody on the street, ask them anywhere, do
you believe the gospel? Oh yes, yes I do. Tell me what it is. You tell me what the gospel is.
If you believe it, you tell me what it is. And I'm telling you, man by nature
doesn't know the gospel. I'm going to make a statement
and I'm going to sum up the gospel. The gospel is the glorious declaration
of God's mercy and compassion in and through exclusively the
blood and the obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ charged to
the account of sinners. Sinners of God's mercy and compassion. The good news of how God can
be just in dealing with sin and justify a sinner. Isn't it amazing? The glorious message of grace
in Christ apart from any work on our part. We don't add anything
to it. Well, we believed, yeah, but
your belief didn't add anything to God's grace, I tell you that.
God Almighty has grace and compassion on whomsoever He will. And when
the Spirit of God calls out one of God's elect, the Spirit of
God tells that vessel of God's mercy, I had mercy on you, and
I gave you faith to believe. And it was not your faith that
saved you. It wasn't your choosing that
saved you. You chose me because I chose
you. You came to me because I came
to you first. You loved me because I loved
you first. And you know what the regenerated
sinner says? Everything that I ever believed
before I believe this is done. I was converted, they say, under
a free will doctrine. No, you weren't. No, you weren't. Until you believed the gospel
of God's grace, you were never converted. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of
the gospel. It is the power of God and salvation. Well, this morning, We want to
consider how the angel of the Lord has providentially led Abraham's
servant to the exact place where Rebecca was going to be. marvelous act of kindness and
willingness on her part to do what the servant of Abraham had
asked. But he asked, you know, under
the inspiration of God's Spirit. God's Spirit told him, this is
what you're going to ask. You will ask her to give you
a drink of water, then you're going to ask her to water your
camels. That's what the servant prayed
for. You say, well, don't you think
he can pray without... No, I don't. Without me, you
can do nothing. You can't pray. Even the thought,
the asking, which we, of ourselves, we don't know what to ask for.
So what happens? The Spirit of God helpeth us. Would you relate to my heart
what to ask for? I don't know what to say." So
he asked and this woman comes and he just asked her for a drink
of water and she said, I'll give you a drink of water and I'm
going to water your camels too. And he just wondered, watching this
woman do just exactly what the Lord said she was going to do.
And he had an earring, two bracelets, and he held on to them for a
while, and then after she did just exactly what the Lord had
said she was going to do, he gave them to her and she went
home and told her mama's family all of these things that had
taken place. And so now we're going to pick
up in verse 32. And here's what transpired, verse
32-33. And the man came into the house,
that is, Rebekah's kinsman, and he ungirded his camels, gave
straw and preventer for the camels and water to wash his feet and
the men's feet that were with him. And there was set meat before
him to eat, but he said, I will not eat until I have told my
Aaron And he said, speak on. Now it's an amazingly beautiful
thing to behold. The miracle and the evidence
of God's calling in the heart of God's people. Now, Rebecca's
family, this is what they'd done. They were very gracious. They
graciously and generously treated God's servant, Abraham's servant,
God's servant, you know, with kindness and all the necessities
of his flesh was met. He was thirsty, Rebecca gave
him something to eat, they got him something to eat, something
to drink, they've taken care of his animals and everything,
you know, but now they're going to sit down, they think. But
the servant, of Abraham. As the servants of God are to
be, he was taken up first and foremost with his master's business. Abraham had sent Eleazar to come
to this place, and now here, according to the mighty working
of God upon his heart, something was more important to him than
sitting down to eat. It wasn't that we're going to,
let's just go ahead and sit down and eat and then afterwards I'll
tell you the story of why I'm here. He said, no, no. He said,
I'm not, I will not eat until I've told my Aaron. And Rebecca's member of her family
said, sayon. He said, I'm not going to satisfy
even my own fleshly needs from your gracious hand. I'm not going to do that until
I tell you of my commission. What he was saying here, he said,
there's something that's more needful to be spoken of. And there's somebody that's more
important than me to be considered. It's not about us. I'm not my
own servant. I'm not here on my business. I've got something to tell you.
And I don't know if I'll make it through this meal here. I may not have many more heartbeats. I don't know how many breaths
I've got left. And if I don't make it through this meal, God
forbid that I could sit here and eat and laugh and have a
good time with you and not tell you why I'm here. Oh, the blessing
of being consumed with Christ and hearing one relate with anxiousness
The glorious message of Christ only. The thought of leaving
this place today and just wasting an hour of foolishness, frivolousness,
talking about silly things. Let me tell you, you don't know,
you don't know. You don't know, do you, Neil?
You don't know if you'll ever make it from your house here
to you. It's a serious business. And
he said, by the grace of God, I'm here. And I don't want to
be distracted with the things or the cares of this world. And
we desire to hear what does the Master have to say. I mean, you
know, I think about the seriousness of it. And I truly desire to
be serious and anxious in my attitude toward preaching of
the gospel only of the Lord Jesus Christ. I can't say this of myself. I desire to say this. I desire
to say what I'm about to read that he said. But he said, my
meat, my sustenance, That which I consume my meat is to do the
will of Him that sent me and to finish His work. Now you think
about that statement. The Lord has called me to preach
the gospel. The Lord has called you to whatever
capacity and every believer in this room, I'm telling you, is
a vital, vital part, lively stones in the building up of the glorious
church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every believer is a vital part. And to say, my meat is to do
the will of Him who sent me and to finish the work. Oh, but one
whose heart has been made to behold the message of the Spirit
of God, the message of the Gospel, that the Spirit is going to bless,
that is His attitude. What's more important than hearing
the Gospel? What's more important than preaching
the gospel? The Apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians
1, 22-24, For the Jews require a sign, the Greeks seek after
wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified unto the Jews, a stumbling
block unto the Greeks, foolishness, but unto them which are called,
called by the grace of God. Both Jews and Greeks, Christ,
the power of God and the wisdom of God. Paul said in 1 Corinthians
2.2, for I determined not to know anything among you, save
Jesus Christ and Him crucified. What are you going to talk about?
I'm going to talk about Him. Everything else is foolishness. God's people desire to hear God's
message. You tell me one more time how
God Almighty saves sinners. And Lord let me be is that song
we just sang, Lord if I've never believed before right now, help
me to begin right now. I've said before, what if you
haven't believed before today? What difference does it make?
You're not going to change it. What if you weren't saved when
you were 17 like you thought you were? This is the message that God's
going to bless. Who do we hear? We hear Him.
This is my beloved Son, the Father said, in whom I am well pleased.
Hear Him. And then in verses 34 and 35, He said, I've got
a message. I'm not going to eat until I
tell you. And then He said in verse 34, He said, I am Abraham's
servant. And the Lord has blessed my master
greatly. And he's become great. And he's
giving him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men's
servants, maid's servants, camels, asses. Oh, what a confession. I was thinking about that when
he said, I am Abraham's servant. I'm Abraham's servant. But remember,
now this is a picture, this is a type. of the relationship between
the Father, the Son, and the Bride, and God's servant calling
out that Bride. This is who I am. This is why
I'm here. I am Abraham's servant. But what a confession to hear
someone say, I am the servant of God. and have a heart to believe
it. I mean, not just a, you know,
I am the servant, I'm the bond slave. That's what the apostle
Paul said, Romans 1.1. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ,
called to be an apostle, separated under the gospel of God. Philippians
1.1. Paul and Timotheus, the servant
of Jesus Christ, and all the saints in Christ Jesus, which
are at Philippi, the bishops and deacons. Titus 1.1, Paul
a servant of God and a servant of Jesus Christ according to
the faith of God's elect and the acknowledging of the truth
which is after godliness. What difference does anything
else make that would steal my affection? What eternal difference
is it going to make? Well, I'm a so and so. I'm a
this or I'm a that. Let me tell you this. There's
one title that is a blessing to every regenerated sinner. I'm a bond slave. I'm a servant
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's not only an honest
expression and confession of humility, but it is the characteristic
of every minister of Christ. He'd been made and considers
himself to be an obedient. He desires to be. I want to be
obedient. I want to be obedient. I want
to be faithful to the calling of Christ. Abraham was Eleazar's
master and a beautiful fit type of God Almighty in the relationship
of his people to himself. I'm serving, Eliezer said, of
my master, Abraham. Behold, but consider him who
is the sovereign of heaven and earth, all the regenerated people
of his calling. He is their God. He's their master. He's their
master not only by creation. Let me tell you something. All that know not the Lord, I'm
going to tell you something. God's still your master. All
souls are mine. All souls are mine. God's made
us. And let me tell you what he's
going to do with everybody. Whatever he chooses. Whatever
he is pleased to do. If he chooses to take one out
of the same lump as the next and make him a vessel of mercy. Now this is in Romans 7 if you
want to just read it. What I'm telling you, I'm not
making up. If he chooses to take one lump of clay and make that vessel an eternal
object of his mercy and compassion, and he chooses to leave another
to himself, he's got the right to do it. He can do whatever
he wants to do. We are the Lords. He is the master by creation. But I'm going to tell you something.
For those that he's everlastingly loved, he is their master not
only by creation, But He is their Master in electing, in regenerating
and submissive grace. He chose to show mercy. Christ
redeemed them and the Holy Spirit regenerated them and made them
willing in the day of God's power. And those regenerated by the
grace of God, this is what they say and they believe it. The
earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. They declare like Nebuchadnezzar,
all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. And he
doeth according his will in the army of heaven and among the
inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say
unto him, What doest thou? Don't you love that? I love that
God's in control. I love it. I love that he does
as he will. And whatever he does is right. Verse 36, Eleazar continues and
he says, and this is continuing with my message. And Sarah, my
master's wife, bare a son to my master when she was old. And
unto him hath he given all that he hath. Eliezer said, my master's got
a boy that possesses everything that my master has. Everything
that belongs to Abraham is Isaac's. All of Abraham's inheritance is Isaac's. And therefore, that made Isaac
to be Eleazar's master too. If Abraham is Eleazar's master
and everything that belongs to Abraham is Isaac's, then Isaac's
is master also. Isaac is all of Abraham's wealth
and power and purpose. Isaac was equal to Abraham. The Lord Jesus Christ said concerning
the Father, I and the Father are one. We're one. Who is the
Lord Jesus Christ? Let me tell you who He is. He's
God Almighty. He is God. When He came into
this earth, made flesh, let me tell you who He is. That was
God Almighty, made flesh. And He walked among us. And John
said, we beheld His glory. But all consider, as you consider
that Isaac being the heir and everything, consider the fulfillment
of Isaac's type. The Lord, the Father's Son, one
who is omnipotent, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, This is
how much power he has. Thou has given him power, all
power over all flesh. Why? That he should give eternal
life to as many as Thou has given me. I tell you what he does. He's got a people. and His people
are going to be saved. And He raises up this country,
because He's got all power over all flesh. He raises up this
country and He puts down this country, and He moves this one
and puts this one here, and He moves this one under the sound
of the gospel. I've said before, how did any
of us get here? The Lord put us here. Well, I
just decided I was going to show up for church, not according
to the Scriptures. No, He orders the steps. of all men. This is the one. Isaac was Abraham's
heir. And I'm telling you, concerning
the Lord Jesus Christ, He is the heir of all things, and His
people are joint heirs with Him. When I consider that thought,
we're joint heirs with Christ, we can readily admit everything
that the Father hath is the sons. And he's deserving of it. But his people being in him,
his people being chosen in him, his people made holy in him,
his people robed in his righteousness are deserving of it too. Or the
Father would have never given it to them. But the Father would
make us to be joint heirs with Christ Deserving of it. On our merit,
absolutely not. On his though, yes. Why? Because we're one with him.
And I wish I could understand that. I know it's so. But I tell
you this, under the sun. He said, Sarah, my master's wife,
bear my son. She was old, none to him. He'd
given all that he had. unto the Son, let me tell you,
all honor is going to be given unto the Son. Maybe not men,
they're not doing it right now, but let me tell you what's going
to happen. Every knee is going to bow. I'm telling you right
now that Almighty God has chosen a people, He's going to save.
I just told you that. I'm telling you right now, according
to Scriptures, everyone that the Father has chosen before
the foundation of the world, the Spirit of God is going to
save them. I'm telling you right now that every person, every
sheep, every one of God's elect, Christ Jesus died only for them. John 10, 15. Now you say, well
now I don't know if I can go along with that. You will. We
all will. We're all going to go along with
that. Because I'm telling you, every knee is going to bow, and
every tongue is going to confess that He's Lord, to the glory
of God. Everyone is going to believe
this. It may be too late for some,
but I'm telling you, everybody's going to believe it. Verse 37-38,
And my Master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a
wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land
I dwell, but Thou shalt go unto my father's house and to my kindred
and take a wife unto my son." Abraham, obviously directed by
the Spirit of God, told Eleazar that Isaac's wife was not going
to be found among the ranks of the rejected, that is, the daughters
of Abraham. A wife for Isaac was going to
be sought among Abraham's kindred and family. That's where you're
going to go. You're going to go and you're
going to search them among my family. You're going to find
them in my country. But let me ask you this. Is not
the bride of Christ found among the chosen family of God? Isn't she? Those chosen for the
foundation of the world that they should be holy and without
blame before God in love, those that have been predestinated,
Ephesians 1, 5, under the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
Himself according to the good pleasure of His will, Eleazar
went where Abraham told him to go. You go down to my country,
and you find the bride of my family." But here was the problem
with Eliezer. He was unaware of exactly who
the bride for Isaac was. I'm going to find a bride, but
Abraham told him, he said, the angel of the Lord will direct
you. You go where I told you to go. And you look for the bride
that I'm telling you to look for. And Azar said, okay, okay. He prayed and he sought, but
we're unaware of exactly who the bride is, but every God-called
preacher seeks the bride among those who are the eternally chosen
of God, the family of God. I'm looking for the bride of
Christ in the way that the Lord has told me to look. Eleazar,
you go this way. Yes, sir. God calls his preacher
and he says, you go look among my country, among my kinsmen,
my family. And we seek God's sheep exactly
that way. I'll tell you where I'm seeking.
I'm seeking in the exact place of God's commission. Where is
that? Mark 16, 15. He said unto them,
go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
I thought you said you were going
to to the Lord's country. This is the Lord's country. The
world. All blotty. Well, I thought you
said you was looking for God's sheep among his family. I am.
He got a family. He's chosen them. I don't know
who they are, but I'm looking in his family. The one He chose
to show mercy. There's a people that are chosen,
and God's going to show mercy. And they're scattered out through
all the world. And this bride's going to be found within every
kindred and tongue and people and nation. I know she is. I'm
looking just like Eliezer. And you are too. No, you are. In verse 39 to 41, and we'll
wrap up with this. He said, and I said unto my Master,
peradventure the woman will not follow me. And he said unto me,
The Lord before whom I walk will send his angel with thee and
prosper thy way and thou shalt take a wife from my son of my
kindred of my father's house. Then shalt thou be clear from
this my oath when thou comest to my kindred And if they give
not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath." This was the question
of Eleazar to Abraham, and it's the question of every God-called
preacher concerning his calling. Lord, who hath believed our report?
Lord, who's going to be willing? You know, let me ask you this
if it's not this way with you. I can remember years ago coming
up in false free will religion. We had, oh we just have, you
know, little bragging, bragging posters, you know. We had so
many professions of faith last month. We had so many rededications,
rededications, you know. We had so many of this and so
many of that. And we had, you know, 500 saved
last year. And with a believer, if one person,
if the Lord pleased to call that one person this year, you think,
What a miracle of God's grace. Somebody shows up and comes here
for the first time. And let me tell you, I'm just
going to confess my foolishness right here. I think, Lord, I
pray that that's one of Your own. But I've seen it so many
times, Lord, that they're not. They just come and they're gone. And I'm so doubtful, so doubtful. That's what he said, Lord, Abraham,
Lord, Master, what if she won't come? What if she won't follow
me? Oh, that the wisdom of God's
Spirit to put this word, the Lord will send his angel with
thee, and listen to this, and prosper thy way. And thou shalt take a wife for
my son of my kindred and of my father's house. This is the only
message that I can truthfully say from the scriptures. I guarantee
this is going to prosper. I know this message. If it's
left up to you or me to make a decision, that may not fly. Nobody may decide to exercise
their so-called free will. But I can tell you this, all that the Father giveth me,
the Lord said, shall come to me. And him that cometh to me,
I will in no wise cast out. Well, what if they're not willing?
Well, if the Spirit of God leaves them alone, they won't be. But
thy people, Psalm 110.3, thy people shall be willing in the
day of thy power. The responsibility of calling
God's people to believe, the responsibility of, you know,
I used to, we used to, here again, I'll just, a little bragging,
little bragging. You know, I led so many, I led so and so to the
Lord. You know, I walked them through
the Roman road, and I led them to the Lord. Preach the gospel to them, and
the Spirit of God is going to call out God's sheep. The Spirit
of God is going to prosper the way. Satan's lied to men, telling
him that they've got a free will and they can do this, that, and
the other, but I declare unto you the gospel. This gospel that
Paul said was not after man. He said, I wasn't taught it by
man. God taught me. Eleazar was looking for the bride
of Isaac. And that's what we're doing right
here. God's raised up an assembly,
and we collectively, What are we doing? We're seeking after
the Lord's honor in the calling out of His sheep. And I pray
that God bless the message today. I pray Almighty God, call out
His own, comfort His own, establish His own, and do it for the sake
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because it's in His name that
we pray these things. Amen.