I sometimes am asked what my
favorites are, and you've been asked the same. What are your
favorites? You find it asked sometimes in
social media and in other places. I want you to always bear this
in mind that what we say about our favorites says a lot about
us. And people learn a lot about
us by observing what our favorites are. That having been said, I'd
like to take this opportunity to speak to you regarding my
favorites. Jackson is passing out an outline
of it. Hopefully there'll be enough
to go around, but my favorites I've been asked a few times about
such things, and let's just take a look today concerning this
subject of our favorites. Here is a baker's dozen. First, my favorite friend. Who's your favorite friend? I
can tell you who my favorite friend is. He is Jesus Christ. I never had a better friend in
all the world than Jesus Christ. He is a friend who loves at all
times, Proverbs 17, 17, at all times. I've had some fair weather
friends. I've had some friends who loved
me better at one time than at another time. But here is a friend
who loves at all times, eternally. and immutably. My friend Jesus,
he's a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18 24. I was blessed with three brothers. There's four years difference
in our ages. We were constant companions growing
up. We stayed the closest of brothers
you could imagine and then We grew up and went our separate
ways. We're still the best of friends,
but well, you know, there's just distances between us now. We
get together maybe once a year. Here's a friend who sticks closer
than a brother. He never moves away. Here is
a friend who is always there in any time of trouble. He is
the foremost friend of sinners, and I'm glad of that because
I'm the chief, a friend of sinners. It's hard for sinners to find
friends. Well, I found one. His name is Jesus Christ, friend
of sinners. That's what his foes called him.
He took their term of derision and wore it as a badge of honor.
Yes, all my friends are sinners. Someone has sung, I've got friends
in low places. Well, Jesus's friends are in
the lowest places. And he calmed the sins to bring
them out. He calls me his friend. And then
he says, greater love has no man than this. than to lay down
his life for his friends. No greater love, the greatest
love there ever was, was manifested when Jesus Christ became my friend
and died in my place instead. Now that's my friend. That is
my favorite friend. I am blessed with many friends,
good friends, loyal friends, true friends. But this one is
my favorite, Jesus Christ. My favorite brother, well, I've
got three, or two, as I just told you. Two brothers, they're
both as dear to me as they can be. Who's your favorite brother,
Moose? Well, that would be Jesus Christ. He is the exemplification
of a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17, 17. A brother born
for adversity. Why was he born? Because I was
in trouble. Why was he incarnate? Why was
God manifested in the flesh? because God had to become my
brother in my adversity and do something for me that no one
else could to do. Although he is God, he had to
be made like his brethren, Hebrews 2.17. He had to be made like
his brethren. God became my brother. that he
might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining
to God to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Now there's
my favorite brother. He can be your favorite brother
too. Hope he is. My favorite hero. I had a hero
growing up. He was a baseball player. As
a young lad, I just adored that man. And then later I found out
he was just a drunk, and I was so disappointed. Well, I have
a hero who never disappointed me. His name is Jesus Christ. His name is mighty God, Isaiah
9 verse 6. The Hebrew name is El Gibur. and it means hero of a God. A great hero, that's what the
term means. His name is the mighty God. The remnant of Israel shall return
to the mighty God. He is Jehovah of hosts, the mighty
God, and he is the hero of his people. No one ever came to their
help like Jesus did for his people. When we face our Goliaths and
we need a hero, here he is. And God was manifested in the
flesh so he could become our hero. Your favorite book. What is your favorite book? Well,
here's mine. Here's mine. Holy Scriptures. The only book I read every day.
The only book I have read every day for many, many years. The
only book I have read through a number of times. I have read
a number of books and thought, well, I'm glad to have gotten
through that one. Well, this one I just keep going
through. It is a treasury of 66 books
in this library, and that's exactly what it is. It is a library,
66 books. Its contents from beginning to
end are all about Jesus Christ. He said, the scriptures testify
of me, John 539. They tell us all that he is to
his people. And here in this book, we learned
that Christ is all and in all. There is not a better book in
all the world than this one. It's my favorite, my favorite
author. My favorite author is the Holy
Spirit. He's the author of my favorite
book, All Scriptures Given by Inspiration of God. Holy men
wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit of God. We do not say Paul is the author
of any book in scripture, nor that Peter is the author of any
book in scripture. They were but sacred pen men.
The Holy Spirit is the author of this book. And there was never
a better author of any book than the Holy Spirit is of this one. My favorite author, the Holy
Spirit, my favorite singer, It is said of my favorite singer
in Zephaniah 317, that he shall rejoice over thee
with singing. He's talking about Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ will rejoice over thee with singing. Like a mother
sings a lullaby to her child. to comfort it and to ease it.
So does Jesus Christ. He rejoices over me with singing. The scripture says, and he said,
I will sing in the congregation. I want you to bear this in mind.
He's here this morning. Right now, he's here. He's walking in the midst of
the seven lampstands, walking up and down. He is seated in
the pew there right beside you. He says, where two or three are
gathered in my name, there I am. He's listening to you sing. And
he's singing with us. I will rejoice over thee with
singing. My favorite singing, my favorite
preacher. Well, it's Jesus Christ again.
My favorite preacher. He preaches the glorious gospel
of God's saving grace more simply and more effectually than any
other preacher ever did. Do you realize that when he preached,
the common people heard him gladly? They said, he speaks our language. He uses our terms. We understand
this man when he preaches and all the marvels that he spoke.
Jesus Christ, the greatest preacher. Oh, that I could preach like
him. He's my favorite preacher, my
mentor in the ministry. But we should bear this in mind.
He spoke in the language of the people. The common people heard
him gladly. Well, religious leaders did not
think much about him, but then again, he spoke with authority
and not as the scribes and Pharisees. What a preacher Jesus Christ
is. My favorite teacher, Jesus Christ. Nicodemus spoke truth when he
said, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can
do the things you have done except God be with him. Well, that's
what he was. In fact, that was probably the
term that he was called more than any other. When you read
in the scriptures, master, the term means teacher, rabbi, teacher. That's what people called him.
He's the teacher. And never was there a teacher
like this one, Jesus Christ. He is the only teacher who ever
spoke nothing but truth, unmixed with error. And he leads his
students from spiritual darkness and shame to everlasting glory. and bliss. This is the best teacher
the world has ever known. He's my favorite. My favorite
pastor, Jesus Christ. Actually, the word in scripture
for pastor actually means shepherd. And Jesus Christ is the best
pastor, the best shepherd there ever could be. He is Jesus Christ who is Jehovah,
my shepherd, Psalm 23. He is the shepherd of Israel,
Psalm 80, verse 1. He is the good or ideal shepherd,
John 10, verses 11 and 14. He is that great shepherd of
God's sheep, Hebrews 13, verse 20. He is the shepherd and overseer
of my soul, 1 Peter 2, verse 23. and he is the chief shepherd
over all his under-shepherds," 1 Peter 5, verse 4. Never has
there been a pastor like this one. Some years ago, I had a decision to make, and there's
a certain pastor that I very highly regard it, and if I mentioned
his name, you'd say, yeah, with good reason, you did, we do too.
But sometimes when I've had a decision to make, and I'm asking my wife
what I should do, she has said, what would, and she'd call his
name, what would he do? What would he do? That's good advice. Oh, if we
could find a pastor whose example we could follow and do what he
would do and do as he would teach us to do. A great shepherd. Well, the foremost is Jesus Christ. When we have decisions to make
in life, the good question is, what would Jesus do? What would
my pastor do? What would he who is the shepherd
of my soul do? Let us follow his example. Then,
my favorite tree. My favorite tree. That's Jesus
Christ again. He is my favorite tree. He is
the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of
God, Revelation 2, verse 7. Because in heaven and in the
new Jerusalem, there is a tree, a tree of life. Its leaves are
for the healing of the nations. And that tree is Jesus Christ. There has never been a better
tree than Jesus Christ. planted by the streams of water.
God planted him, planted by the streams of water, bearing fruit
in every season. Its leaves are for the healing
of the nations. My favorite tree. My favorite
place. My favorite place. I've had some
favorite places. And it was usually where I was
living. I have loved the places where
I lived. Well, my favorite place, above
all other places, is Jesus Christ. I have fled to him and I now
say, you are my hiding place. Oh, the world is looking for
a safe place, a safe place. I found the best one. He's Jesus
Christ. You are my hiding place. You shall preserve me from trouble. You shall surround me with songs
of deliverance. Psalm 32 verse seven. My safe place is Jesus Christ. My hiding place is Jesus Christ. My vacation place is Jesus Christ. My workplace is Jesus Christ. He is the place where I live
and the place I never leave and the place that always is there
for me. My favorite food. What is my
favorite food? What is your favorite food? I
would hope we could all say it is Jesus Christ. Ho ye that are
thirsty, come to the waters and drink. by milk and food and honey
without price. And it's all found in Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ, I have found the water that slakes
my spiritual thirst. And I have found the wine and
milk and bread that satisfies my spiritual appetite. and honey to go with it. Honey
out of the rock, and the rock is Jesus Christ. Oh, what food
is found in him. And how famished are those who
have never fed on him. Our favorite food. One more. My favorite day. My favorite
day. What is the favorite day of every
child of God? Should be Jesus Christ. In the prophecy of Isaiah 58,
verse 13 and 14, we read of a prophecy about a time when men will call
the Sabbath a delight. Now the Sabbath was not much
of a delight under the old covenant, There was this ritual to do.
You could not do this. You could not do that. You could
not cook. You could not travel more than
about three quarters of a mile. It was very rigid, not a very
enjoyable day. But here we read the prophecy.
You shall call the Sabbath a day of delight and the day most blessed. And according to Colossians chapter
two, Jesus Christ is that Sabbath. He's the day. He's the day. I want to impress upon you this
morning that Jesus Christ is everything to his people. He's
everything. He is Christ who is all and in
all, and above all other things in this world, he's our favorite. our favorite, our favorite friend,
favorite brother, favorite hero, favorite book, favorite author,
favorite singer, favorite preacher, favorite teacher, favorite pastor,
favorite tree, favorite place, favorite food, and favorite day,
and favorite every other thing. Hope that's true of you.