It gives me great encouragement and strength to keep preaching the gospel because it shows me what Christ will do. It gives us all comfort for our loved ones that don't know the Lord because we see what Christ is able to do.

Now, my subject is the king and his city. the king and his city. You know from Revelation, let me just read this, Revelation 3.12, the Lord said, him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall go no more out and I will write upon him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, which is New Jerusalem. which cometh down out of heaven from my God, and I will write upon him my new name.

Now last time we were in this chapter, it's been a while, but we looked at those first five verses and we saw how David's now the king. And whereas before it was just Judah that had bowed to him as king, now the children of Israel have come to him. So he's the king. He's the king, and we're gonna see here how the Lord sends forth the gospel and calls his people and what he does in the hearts of his people.

We'll pick up here in verse six through 10, and this is the account of David conquering the Jebusites and taking control of Jerusalem. They were in Jerusalem and had it under their reign, their power, Now David's gonna take that rain from them, and he's gonna rain in Jerusalem.

Let's begin and read it again. Verse six, and the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, which spake unto David, saying, except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shall not come in hither, thinking David cannot come in hither. Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, The same is the city of David. And David said on that day, whosoever geteth up to the gutter and smiteth the Jebusites and the lame and the blind that are hated of David's soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, the blind and the lame shall not come into the house. So David dwelt in the fort and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Milo and inward. And David went on and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him.

Now, again, we know that God made the earthly city Jerusalem and earthly Mount Zion to picture heavenly Jerusalem, heavenly Mount Zion, his church, his church. That city is made up of those God the Father chose in Christ before time. They're those Christ came and laid down his life for and renewed and justified. That's who make up this city.

We know from Hebrews 12, verse 22 says, you come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You come to the general assembly and church of the firstborn. You've come to the spirits of just men made perfect. Everybody regenerated by the Lord and given faith in Christ. They're spiritual and they're just men made perfect. Right now where you sit being born of God, you're a spirit, a just man made perfect by Christ. And we've come to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of April.

But earthly Jerusalem, earthly Zion pictures also, it pictures false religion. It pictures carnal religion. Remember Paul said in Galatians 4.25, he said, Jerusalem which now is in the earth below is in bondage with her children. Earthly Jerusalem is likened to all unregenerate sinners, especially religious sinners. unregenerate sinners. That's who Jerusalem and the earth represents. They worship their will. When you hear men defending man's will, rather than bowing to God's word and confessing we're saved entirely by God's will, when you hear men defending their will, men worship their will. That's what they're called in scripture, will worshipers. They're worshiping the works of their hands. They're men who reject the truth that Christ is the righteousness and the sanctification of his people, salvations of the Lord, A to Z. He's the alpha and omega. He said, behold, I make all things new.

Every priest standeth daily, offering all for times the same sacrifices which can never take away sin. Men are still doing that today, not only in that political nation Israel, but in churches that call themselves Christ's church and are worshiping, offering sacrifices. But David here typifies Christ the king. He pictures the true king. That's who David was set up to typify is Christ our king. And the men with David picture the church. They picture you who he's regenerated and called to faith in him. who he's using to preach the gospel of Christ. That's whose picture. David and his men, his army, is a picture of Christ and the church, whose one weapon is the preaching of Christ and him crucified. And through this gospel, Christ conquers the hearts of his people, and he dwells in his people, and he keeps us from that day forward. We know then that we're kept by him, adorned in his righteousness, made holy by him dwelling in us, and he preserves us, and we shall partake of his glory in heavenly Jerusalem, in heavenly Mount Zion. So that's what we're seeing here in this picture.

Now let's get a few points from this. First of all, as we're born the first time, as we're born the first time, me, you, and everybody, as we come into this world the first time, a strong enemy inhabits us. Look here in verse six. And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, which spake unto David, saying, except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shall not come in hither, thinking David cannot come in hither. The Jebusites were Canaanites. They were Canaanites. They inhabited Jerusalem at this time. They occupied Zion. Whenever God delivered the children of Israel into Canaan, he told them to destroy the Canaanites. Don't unite with them. Don't take their sons and daughters for your sons and daughters. Eradicate them. That's what the Lord commanded. But the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin failed to drive them out. They failed to drive out the Jebusites. And so in time, the Jebusites multiplied, intermarried with them, multiplied, and in time, the Jebusites had full control of Jerusalem. They took over. They ruled the children of Israel that dwelt in Jerusalem.

Now what's the picture there? The devil rules the hearts of the unregenerate man. The devil rules the hearts of unregenerate man, and our sin, our sin nature makes it so that we're under the dominion of sin, Satan and sin, and no sinner is able to eradicate him. No sinner's able to cast out the devil, no sinner's able to cast out our sin. That's the picture. Judah and Benjamin could not cast out the Jebusite. We can't cast out the devil, and we can't put away our sin. Sin rules the unregenerate sinner, and so does the devil. Ephesians 2.2 says, in time past, you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. Jerusalem was elevated on Mount Zion. It was an elevated position. It had high walls all the way around it. And so the Jebusites thought it was impenetrable. They thought nobody could penetrate the walls of Jerusalem. And they had so much confidence in themselves and their strength and their power that nobody could penetrate the walls of this city.

that they set lame and blind folks on the wall to guard the wall in mockery, to mock anyone that approached, to mock David. And they said, except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither. And they never thought David would be able to. They put blind and lame on the walls, blind men and lame men on the wall.

And also, Those blind and lame men are a good illustration of their idol gods that they trusted, that they thought would protect them. Every sinner by nature has his idols that we've created in our corrupt minds. When we were dead in sin, we all had an idea of who God is that we created. That's where the idols created in the minds of men.

Now, Jebusites wouldn't call their idols lame and blind. But that's what the spirit of God calls them, lame and blind. And men attribute those same characteristics to their idol God, telling sinners they have no hands but your hands and no feet but your feet.

While in our unregenerate state, while we're dead in sin, all sinners are proud, just like they were. In our corrupt minds, we have our false idol God that we think will protect us like they had. All of our vain religion, when we're dead in sin, is a mockery of Christ our King. The same way they were mocking David, man who's trying to save himself by his works is crucifying the Lord of glory and putting him to an open shame all over again by attributing to their vain Jesus traits that our true Lord Jesus does not possess, making their false Jesus to be helpless. That's a mockery of the true Lord. Just like they held David in contempt, that's holding Christ in contempt.

But Christ declared he's the rock. He declared he's the rock, he's the foundation. They didn't think anybody could penetrate those walls. And men don't think anybody can penetrate their hard heart and enter into them unless they're willing for it to happen. They're the final say, and whether they're gonna be saved or not, it's by our will, men say. That's what we thought.

Well, Christ said he's the rock. And he said, on him, he's gonna found his church through the preaching of this gospel. And he said, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The gates of hell trying to keep the gospel out, trying to keep Christ out, is not gonna prevail. Christ will prevail because he shall not fail. He said, if I, with the finger of God, cast out devils, showing his great power so much greater than the devil. He said, if I, with the finger of God, cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God has come unto you.

And he said, when a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace. That's the devil. Just like the Jebusites had Jerusalem on lockdown, the devil had us on lockdown. And he was keeping us. But when a stronger than he shall come upon him and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armor wherein he trusted and divided his spoils. That's Christ. He's the stronger. That's the good news and that's what we're gonna see tonight. Christ Jesus the King is the stronger one who shall not fail to deliver each elect child who he redeemed. That's our second point. Christ shall not fail to penetrate the hearts of his one that he redeemed and call us to faith, verse seven. Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, the same as the city of David. That's all the information we're given about this battle. No more. Why? It pictures Christ who does it with the finger of God. Not a lot of details needed. He just succeeds. He just prevailed.

Our King is the Lord Jesus. He's both Lord and Christ. That means our King is our Savior. Our king is our Messiah. He made himself a servant for God's people, for God the Father and for his people. Our king, who's been the king from the beginning, came and made himself a servant to serve God the Father, to honor the law, to magnify the law, to declare God righteous, and to justify his people. What a king we have, brethren. What a king. The Lord Jesus Christ, our King, came down to save the elect that the Father trusted to Him.

Our sinless King, our holy, undefiled King, who is separate from sinners, willingly took a body made of a woman, and He willingly was made sin for us. This one who knew no sin, this one who would never sin, this one who never did sin, willingly presented himself to the Father, and the just one was made sin to save us unjust sinners. And having been made sin, he was made a curse for us. God poured out on our king all the wrath that holy justice demanded be poured out upon his people. Our Lord Jesus Christ was touched with every infirmity that our sin causes. forsaken of God, he was forsaken of men, he was forsaken of his brethren. He was on that cross all along suffering the wrath of God that all his people would have had to suffer. But our King did that for us.

And our King, by suffering on behalf of his people, he justified all his people. He honored the law, magnified the law, declared God just because everybody that he came to save died in Christ on that cross. In doing so, he justified all his people, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness. That's the purpose of the cross. That's the purpose of Christ's coming, to declare God's righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God. Is that important? It's important enough the Spirit of God made Paul repeat it. He said, to declare, I say at this time, his righteousness, that God might be just and the justifier of everyone that believes in the Lord Jesus. That was the purpose of the cross.

What a king. What a king we have. Can you imagine any king in any country, any president, any prime minister, whatever title they go by, can you imagine any of these men making themselves lowly servants and laying down their life for the people in their nation? I don't think I've ever heard of that in history. I don't think I've ever heard of an earthly king doing that. but I know one that did. Our king did. That's the king we have. He's a king and a savior.

Now thirdly, our Lord, our king conquers the city, but he does it in secret. He conquers the city in secret. He conquers the city in spirit. He does it through the preaching of the gospel of Christ. And when I say the city, I'm talking about individuals that he redeemed. Individuals that God chose and Christ redeemed, those he justified. See, a city is not just the buildings, a city is the people. And this new Jerusalem is his people. Mount Zion is his people. The spirit of just men is made perfect. The church of the firstborn, the God-man, Christ Jesus, is made up of his people. And he saves in spirit, he saves in secret.

Now look here in verse eight. And David said on that day, whosoever geteth up to the gutter and smiteth the Jebusites and the lame and the blind that are hated of David's soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, the blind and the lame shall not come into the house.

Now this gutter was an underground aqueduct It was an underground pipe, basically, through which water flowed. That's what it was. Joab was the first one. He's the one that made it in and smoked the Jebusites, and he went underground. Nobody saw him, and he went in and he smoked the Jebusites.

Now, the word, the gospel we preach, the word, is called water in the scripture. You see the parallel there, Jebusite, Joab goes through an aqueduct where water flows. Underground, unseen, unnoticed, that's how he penetrated the walls of Jerusalem. This word, this gospel of Christ in him crucified is called the water, the water of the word, and the Holy Spirit is often referred to as water. The preaching of Christ in him crucified is the one weapon that Christ uses. This is the sword that goes forth out of his mouth. He's on his stallion. The sword goes forth, conquering and to conquer. It's this gospel, this two-edged sword, the gospel. Why is it two-edged? It kills all our confidence in ourselves, and it makes alive. It's a two-edged sword. And our Lord Jesus uses that alone through the preaching of the gospel, using his people, and he enters into His child in spirit and creates a new heart and does an operation of grace within.

Turn with me to Luke 17, Luke 17. This is the critical thing about this message. I really want you to see this, Luke 17. Verse 20, when he was, they were, Pharisees are speaking to our Savior. When he was demanded of the Pharisees when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, the kingdom of God cometh not with observation. Neither shall they say lo here or lo there, for behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

Look at Matthew 12 again. Verse 28, I want you to see it now. Matthew 12, 28. Oh, I wrote that down wrong. I hate it when I do that. I want you to see it. Anyway, you know the verse, but he said, I cast out devils by the Spirit of God. I cast out devils by the Spirit of God. And when that happens, you know the kingdom of God has come unto you. They said, when's the kingdom of God coming? He said, it comes without observation. The kingdom of God's within you. And he said, I cast out devils by the spirit of God. Then the kingdom of God has come unto you when that happens.

This is what our Lord meant when he's told Nicodemus, verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water, Gospel of God's grace the water Gospel of Christ and crucified and the Holy Spirit Except he's born of water and the Holy Spirit. He cannot see the kingdom of God

Kingdom of God's within you the kingdom of God comes without observation it comes in spirit Christ comes and enters into his child He said if except you're born of water and the spirit you can't enter the kingdom of God and

See, carnal religion is making false converts using means and methods that the carnal eye can see. Our Lord said, do not pray to be seen of men. And that's what they market. They market their prayer meetings. Our Lord said, do not do your alms to be seen of men. and they market all their great grand humanitarian missions. Our Lord said, preach the gospel of Christ and him crucified. And they preach carnal commandments. He said, preach the gospel, declare that the Lord has won the victory, declare that our warfare is accomplished, declare that the Lord has rewarded his people double for all their sins. but instead men preach carnal commandments.

Why do they do this? Why do men do these things? Because carnal men only see and understand and respond to carnal things they can see. Why is your service so simple? You just preach Christ. You sing songs that glorify Christ. You read the scriptures that glorify Christ. You preach the gospel that glorifies Christ. And you don't have all these other means and methods that the world is using. Why do you do that? Because the Lord, the whole purpose of 1 Corinthians 1 is the Lord is not using anything attractive to man. He's not using anything that would attract a man naturally.

Paul said, I was with you in fear and trembling. He said, I was just a weak, Nobody, nothing, without any ability, when I was preaching to you, that your faith might stand in the Spirit of God, not in the wisdom of men. Listen, Romans 8, let's look here real quick, Romans 8. Whenever Paul was answering those folks that said, do you make void? They said, do you just sin that grace may abound? He said no. But the whole point of Romans 7 and 8 is, it's only by the Spirit of the Lord, through the preaching of the gospel, that our flesh is mortified.

But look at what he says about carnal man. Verse five, they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh. They mind, they respond to carnal things they can see and touch and feel. Because a carnal man doesn't have the Spirit of God. But they that are after the Spirit the things of the spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. A carnal mind hates God and can't submit to God's word.

But you that are born of him, not in the spirit. He sends his army, he sends his church. We have no weapon that appeals to carnal man, nothing. We have one weapon, the preaching of Christ to him crucified. and his foolishness to this world. But as the gospel goes forth, Christ enters his child in spirit, just like Joab went through that tunnel underground where the water was. Unseen, the spirit enters into Christ's child, and he binds the devil, and he casts him out. And it's all by Christ our King in spirit through the truth of the gospel of Christ.

This was the word to Zerubbabel. Not by might nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Our king said, it's the spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing. The words I speak unto you are spirit and life. Right now, if you hear this gospel, and your heart is moved for Christ, and you believe Him, and you repent from anything of yourself, and you're looking only to Christ, truly bowed in your heart and worshiping Him, it's only because Christ is speaking in your heart through the gospel. This is how He saves, from the moment He calls you, to the moment He calls you home. This is how He saves. It's in spirit.

Believer, by the grace of God, look here now, this is the last thing I want you to see. From the day Christ enters the city in spirit, he enters you in spirit, he dwells in you and he reigns in you. Look at the next word in verse nine. So David dwelt in the fort and called it the city of David. Believer, listen to this. You that have been born of him in whom Christ dwells right now, you are the city of Christ our king. You're the city of the king. Christ dwells in his people, just like David dwelt in Jerusalem, and he called it by his name. That's what I read to you at the beginning from Revelation. The Lord said, I'm gonna call it by a new name, new Jerusalem. I'm gonna call it by my name, the Lord said. That's what he did. You're the city of our Lord Jesus.

But Christ operates opposite to the way David operated here. Verse nine, second part says, and David built round about from Milo and inward. But our Savior's work is regenerating, sanctifying operation in His saints. It is a spiritual work, and He works from inward out. He gives you a new heart, a new spirit. He gives you faith. He makes your new man holy by His presence dwelling in you. And from then on, it affects you outward. You start walking by faith. You start worshiping by faith. You start being led of the Spirit of Christ. You keep looking to Christ, minding things of the Spirit from then on. That's the point of Romans 7 and 8, brethren.

Go over there with me one more time. Go back one more time. Paul is answering that question. We're called antinomians, you know. People say, well, you just preach Christ and you're anti-law and you're just telling sinners to sin that grace may abound. God forbid. But Paul is answering that question, but the Spirit of the Lord is saying, but it's all of Christ, it's all of the Spirit, it is not of our flesh. Romans 9, he said, Romans 8, 9, but you're not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he's none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin. but the spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you.

Christ is the way your flesh is gonna be mortified by him dwelling in you. Therefore brethren, we're debtors not to the flesh to live after the flesh. He doesn't just mean staying in the honky-tonk and running after wild women. That ain't what he's talking about. You're not a debtor to the flesh to live after the flesh, to live after touch not, taste not, handle not, to put your confidence in your religious works, to try to be holier than others and exalt yourself over others. That's what it is to live after the flesh, in the context. For if you live after the flesh, you shall die, but if you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they're the sons of God.

Paul knew that these men who call us, accuse us of preaching a licentious doctrine, of preaching a gospel that tells sinners they can just sin, that grace may abound. Paul knew that those types of preachers would use the law unlawfully and terrify sinners. And he reminds you of me this right here. You have not received the spirit of God, the spirit of bondage again to fear. You have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry, Abba, Father. When we're in need, When we're in trouble, when we need help, we call our Father. And it's all by the Spirit.

And then here, the last thing, we see a picture of how we're grown in Spirit. Verse 10, and David went on and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him. Christ grows us in the grace and knowledge of Christ. And as He grows you, Here's how it happens. Christ becomes greater and greater and greater to you. You see him greater and greater and greater, and as you do, you become lesser and lesser and lesser. He must increase, I must decrease. And he's the Lord God of hosts. He's with us, he reigns in his holy city, his spiritual Jerusalem, in each of his saints, in the midst of his church, and so he's gonna keep us, and we shall reign with him, as kings in this earth, and we're gonna enter glory with him, and he's not gonna lose one of us.

Let's end by reading Revelation 21. I just want you to see this declared plainly right here by the angel of the Lord. Revelation 21 to... Let's just begin here. I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Christ did all the preparation. Our righteousness, our holiness, it's all of him.

Look at verse 10. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. And her light was like unto a stone most precious. You know who that light is? You know who that stone most precious is? That's Christ. Like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

Look at verse 22. He had said there's foundations, the apostles, and their foundation and ours is Christ, the one foundation, verse 22. And I saw no temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it. and the kings of the earth, made kings by Christ, do bring their glory and honor into it. He just said our glory is Christ. That's the glory and honor we're bringing into it. Glory and praise, honor to him.

And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day, for there shall be no night there, and they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it, and there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie, no lame and no blind, but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

Now, you want an application? Go to Revelation 22. Here's the application right here. If you've heard this tonight, and I mean really heard it, if Christ has entered in in spirit without observation, He's speaking to your heart. Hear what he says. Verse 16, I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David. I'm David's God and I came through David. I'm the root and offspring of David and the bride and morning star and the spirit and the bride say, come. And let him that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst, come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely. And I'll tell you this, if Christ enters in and conquered you his city, that's exactly what you'll do. That's exactly what you'll do. You'll bring your glory and your honor into the city. You'll come giving him all the honor and all the glory.

Father, we thank you for your word. Thank you, Lord, for what a great, marvelous king you have provided us and a great savior. Thank you that salvation, beginning to end, is entirely by our Lord Jesus. Lord, we pray that you would enter in in secret tonight in some sinner's heart, give them life and faith, prepare them, adorn them in your righteousness, make them meet for heaven by your holiness. And Lord, those that you have called, give us strength and grace and wisdom to just simply declare you to people, declare what you've done and trust you to work. Lord, help us to be faithful to do that. And we pray, giving you all the honor and the glory Forgive us our sin and our unbelief. In Christ's name we ask it, amen.

All right, brethren, you're dismissed.