It's good to see you this morning,
and it's good to be here. Let's take our Bibles, turn to
Revelation, chapter 20. Revelation, chapter 20. Verse 6, Blessed and holy is he that hath
part in the first resurrection, on such the second death hath
no power. But they shall be priests of
God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years. Our Father, how thankful we are
this morning for another time that we can call upon You in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And how wonderful it is to realize
that You have graciously blessed us with the privilege to be here. Lord, as Your Word is set forth,
we ask You to bless the hearing and bless the preaching and cause
us to enter in to the wonder of that which is glorifying to
the Lord Jesus Christ and magnifying to You. Help us, we pray. Help us to
worship. Help us to be thankful for Christ's
sake. Amen. The first revelation that has
been given, the last revelation that has been given, is concerning
the Lord Jesus Christ. God Almighty speaks concerning
Him who is the first and the last. We start with Him. We end with Him. And as Brother
Scott said, everything in the middle is concerning Him. Now there is something that is
spoken of in verse 5 And it's dealing with actually what is
referred to as the resurrection. And it is the first resurrection. Now this first resurrection,
every person that is here this morning that has been born again,
born from above, born of God, This is other than, apart from,
has nothing to do with our first physical birth into this world. Two people, a man and a woman,
can bring forth by their own power a child. Born, I understand, by God's
grace and God's power, but they can lay claim to, this is a product
of us. But not the new birth. No man, no woman, nobody has
the ability, the will, the desire, nothing. when it comes to the
second birth, the second resurrection. Nobody can claim any power or
glory or honor when it comes to the second resurrection. John said that the Lord Jesus
Christ in whom All His people are born. They lived and reigned
in verse 4. He said, I saw the souls of them
that were beheaded for the witness of Christ, and they lived and
reigned with Christ a thousand years. I saw something in that
thousand years that I've never seen. I preached through this
book once, and then I started over and I came through it again,
and I've spoken of the thousand years And I looked again, and
I don't know how many times a man has to look at something before
all of a sudden he sees it. The word a thousand years is
plural in the definition. Now, I understand you're looking
at it right there, and he says, well, it says a thousand years.
The word is thousands, and they reigned with him a thousand years,
a thousand You say, well, that doesn't seem to make sense to
me. I can drive from my house up
the road, and I wonder how many deer I'll see. Plural. It makes sense. This word's plural. They reigned
with Him a thousand years. But the Scripture says that those
that were born again, that second birth, that new birth, They lived and reigned with Christ
a thousand years. How many? I don't know. I can
tell you from the time of the fall until the second coming
of Christ is how long that thousand years is. A thousand years. A day with the Lord is a thousand
years. That's what the word is. A thousand
years is the day with the Lord. But the rest. Verse 5 of the
dead, live not until the thousands years were finished. That new
birth, that's the first resurrection. That quickening. Paul says in
Ephesians 2, 5 and 6, even when we were dead in sins, he hath
quickened us together with Christ by grace you're saved and hath
raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places
in Christ. I'm looking at some this morning
that have been resurrected in newness of life. Resurrected
by the power and grace of God Almighty. Resurrected in that
first resurrection. Dead in sins and trespasses and
raised. Walking around. Resurrected people.
First resurrection. Now, this first resurrection
reveals three things in this verse 6 that are indescribably
wonderful. Number one, here's what it is.
The rest, verse 5, of the dead lived not until the thousands
of years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Now, here is the blessing of those that have been raised in
that first resurrection, regenerated by the grace of God. If you have
been called out of darkness, Not by any ability that you have,
not by your free will, not by your works. Let me tell you where you stand
right now. And where you stand right now
is where you have always stood. Let me tell you how things have
always been for you. Number one, blessed. and holy. You're blessed and
holy. Blessed in the sense that God
Almighty has bestowed upon you His loving kindness, His grace,
compassion, and favor in the Lord Jesus Christ. I want you
to turn to Ephesians chapter 1, verse 3. Ephesians 1. Ephesians 1, 3. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. Now let me tell you
something about that verse right there. Blessed, the first part,
blessed Notice the word right there, B, is in italics. It was not there in the original. It says, blessed the God. Blessed the God. Actually, it
means to adore. That's what it means. Adore the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us. That's a different word than
the first one. It means He's spoken well. God
has spoken well of you. He has said something that is
indescribably wonderful. Let me tell you how blessed you
are, according as He has chosen us in Him before the foundation
of the world. I heard on television the other
day that someone, they seem to think now that the earth, is
probably over 200 million years old. 200 million. Can you imagine?
Good. Good. Well, I can tell you this,
before that, Almighty God spoke well of all that He chose in
His Son. He spoke well of them. Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has spoken
well of us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. According, He has chosen us in
Him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy
and without blame before Him in love, having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according
to the good pleasure of His will. To the praise of the glory of
His grace wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in
whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of
sins according to the riches of His grace." As I read that
this morning, I was just taken back with the thought of something
that said in verse 3, "...blessed adore the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed, spoken well of us with all. How many spiritual blessings
did he withhold? None. None of them. Everything that God Almighty
has to give, and there's the indescribable ability of Almighty
God, and He gave All, all of them chose us, predestinated
us, redeemed us. Oh, these people that have been
regenerated in the first resurrection, blessed people. But blessed also
in the sense that we know it. If you turn from Ephesians, that's
okay. Let me just read verse 9 to you. Having made known unto
us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure with it,
purposed in Himself. What a blessing that He would
do it, and then He would tell me. That He would reveal it to me. in the fact that God Almighty
would reveal unto His people who they are. Blessed. Happy. That's what the word means.
Blessed. 1 Peter 4.14, if ye be reproached
for the name of Christ, happy are ye. That's how the word is
interpreted in the Scripture. It means blessed. If you're reproached
for the name of Christ because of the of the love and the stand
and the steadfastness that you have for Him, you're a blessed
person. Blessed. This is who you are. John says you're blessed. Let me tell you what else you
are. Holy. Blessed and holy is He that hath
part in the first resurrection. Now, you know, boy, if I could,
if I had the ability, and I don't, Carl, I wish I could grab hold
of this. I wish I could grab hold of blessed
and holy. But that word, holy, That scripture that I just read
a minute ago, Ephesians 1 verse 4 says, As He has chosen us in
Him. That means the fixed state and
position. In Him. Who He is. I am. In Him. As God sees Him. And how does
He see Him? is my beloved Son, my holy Son. And as He is, we are, in this
world, right now, wholly pure. And what God Almighty calls pure,
that's His Word. No spot, no blemish, no wrinkle. Blessed and holy. And that is the eternal view
that God Almighty has had of His church because He doesn't
change. They've always been blessed.
They've always been holy. Though the Bride of Christ fell. in time, in Adam, and I know
she did. Her time state of pollution cannot
do away with the eternal view that God Almighty has of her
in Christ. It doesn't change. She fell in time and He was slain
before the foundation of the world. The substitute was there before
she actually physically fell. She never changed in her position. Never! You say, this is just more than
my mind can comprehend. I agree with you. I agree with
you. But no sin in Adam destroys the
holiness that God's people has in Christ. No. To say that it does is to say
that God would have to view me in a different way at one period
or another, and thereby I'd have to say if that was the case that
He changed, and He doesn't. Blessed and holy by Christ being
the surety of the sheep, her federal head, her obedience,
her righteousness, her substitute. She is pure and sacred and has always been. To realize that she has always
been viewed by the Father in Christ is holy and blessed. is a marvelous thought and that
God would reveal it to me in time and tell me this is how
I've always seen. I've always loved you. Why? Because I've always seen you
in Christ. You've always been holy in Him. You've always been without spot. In Him you've never had a wrinkle. He has always stood for you as
the Lamb, slain. The Father has always trusted
Christ. He has always, always looked
to Him. Remember this, how God sees those
in Christ. He has always looked to Christ
to answer for them. And you answer me and tell me
how he's always viewed his son. And I'll tell you how he's always
viewed those in his son. You see, sometimes we start looking
at ourselves and we start viewing God's view of us on what we see
ourselves doing. He's always seen me in a representative. And that'll settle some things
for you. Secondly, let me tell you the
second blessing concerning these that have been a partaker of
the first resurrection. The second death hath no power. The second death. What do you
mean the second death? Well, look at verse 14 in this
chapter right here. And death and hell were cast
in the lake of fire. This is the second death. The
second death, one that is other than what we think of, what we
know, what we realize. The second death is actually
eternal death. That is the second death. You know, we are born in this
world spiritually dead, unable We have no knowledge. We have
no knowledge of God. Not that God has no knowledge
of His people. We have no knowledge. We're spiritually dead. We're
going to die physically. But there's coming a time, there's
going to be an eternal death. Those that have been resurrected
in that first resurrection, in that new birth, the second death
has no power. The second death, that eternal
judgment of God, It's different in the sense that death, we understand,
ends suffering and pain and travail and stuff in this life. But people will die and they'll
say, well, they're just not suffering anymore. They hurt so much. They suffered
so much. But they're at peace now. Well,
I don't know if they are or not. But this death is a second death. It is other than. And that suffering
never stops on this one. Physical death terminates what
we realize as life. Not in the second death. The
worm never dies. The wrath never stops. The suffering
never ceases. Second death. All found in Christ,
He suffered once. Putting away the guilt of all
that we owed to the law of God. And I'm telling you, we owed
everything because of breaking it. But this man, after he had
offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right
hand of God. You that have a part in this
first resurrection, you are blessed, blessed by God in that God has
spoken well of you. You are holy. Holy. has no privilege, no mastery,
no control over, no claim upon you. Boy, that's a good thought. And here's the third and last
blessing. But they shall be priests of
God and of Christ and shall reign with Him a thousand years. Turn to 1 Peter 2. This is what the Scripture says concerning
those that have part in that first resurrection. But ye are
a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
peculiar people, that ye should show forth the praises of Him
who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. You
are a chosen generation. Chosen in Christ to be represented
by. Oh, what a thought that He answers. He answered for what I am. He answers for what I am. Eternally
in God's purpose and will, slain from the foundation of the world,
and actually answered for it in time at Calvary. He answers. And right now, he answers as
my great high priest. Whoever liveth to make intercession
for me, and God forgives me for the transgressions that I actually
are committing right now. I'm standing here right now as I'm preaching the unsearchable
riches of the glory of God in Christ. And in myself, in the frailty
of my flesh, because of my inability, because of the presence of sin,
to actually believe God as I wish I could, I being a frail creature, Because
I am not able in myself, though what I say is so, in myself there
dwells no good thing. And I'm failing right now, and
you are too. Because you're not hearing me
as you ought. And I'm not hearing me as I ought
either. I wish I could. I would desire to enter into
what I'm saying right here with such faith, to grasp hold, or
that I could believe Him. If I had the ability, Lord, I
believe. Help mine unbelief. Lord, the
disciples said, teach us to pray. I wish I knew how to talk to
Him aright. But I know I don't. I know I
fail. I know I don't. But I'm telling you that right
now, while I'm failing, even though what I'm preaching is
absolutely so, it's His Word, there is one who intercedes for
me, one who was made like I am in the likeness of sinful flesh. I am sinful flesh. He was made
in that likeness, and He knows my feelings. He knows my inability. He was tempted as I am, yet for
Him, yet without sin, me, I did succumb to it. And right now, He prays for me
and intercedes for me His own merit. And God Almighty, for
Christ's sake, forgives me. a chosen generation, chosen in
Him and chosen for Him. Who are those that have been
made partakers of that first resurrection? I'll tell you who
they are. They're His bride. They're His companion, His people,
His diadem of honor. You're a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, priests, kings unto God and His Father, anointed, ordained by the Spirit
of God and the Father of all mercy in regenerating grace to
offer up sacrifices of praise. Those priests would come in there
and they would take that bullock And they would take that bull
and that blood and they would offer up sacrifices. We offer
up sacrifices right now. As priests unto God in Christ,
the sacrifice of our lips, we are. Hebrews, let me read
Hebrews 13, 15 for you. Hebrews 13, 15. By Him, therefore,
let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually. That
is the fruit of our lips giving thanks, confessing, giving thanks
to His name. Peter says that you are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, totally upon the
merit of the imputed righteousness of Christ. He is our righteousness. is made of God unto us to be
sanctification set apart wholly. How much holiness do I have? All holiness. You're a holy nation in Christ. A peculiar people, that is, purchased
people, bought and paid for by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why? That you should show forth the
praises, the virtues of Him, who hath called you out of darkness
into His marvelous light." You're kings and priests right now.
But let me tell you this, back in closing, in Revelation 20,
verse 6, it says, "...they shall be priests of God Christ, and
shall reign with Him a thousand years." I looked that up, and what that
says right there, when it says, "...shall be," it does mean future.
That's what the word means. It means future. You are now
and you shall be. Revelation 5, verse 8, And when he had taken the book,
the four beasts and the four and twenty elders fell down before
the Lamb, having every one of them harps and golden vials full
of odors. which are the prayers of saints,
and they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book,
and to open the seals thereof, for Thou wast slain, and hast
redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue,
and people, and nation, and hast made us unto our God kings and
priests, and we shall reign on the earth. And I beheld, and
I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne, and the
beast, and the elders, and the number of them was ten thousand,
and thousands, and thousands, saying with a loud voice, Worthy
is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and
wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. And
every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, under the earth,
And such are in the sea, and all that are in them heard I
say, Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto him that sitteth
upon the throne and unto the Lamb forever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen.
And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him
that liveth forever and ever." Amen. We'll take about a five minute
break.