It ends chapter 6. In verse 11, the Apostle Paul says,
O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. Now he's speaking to the whole
church at Corinth here. He says, O ye Corinthians. And
he says, our mouth is open to you. He wasn't holding anything
back. He wasn't concealing anything.
He was speaking openly to them. We don't have anything to hide
in our Gospel. We encourage the believer and
all who hear to look up the Scripture, hear what we say. He was speaking
openly. He was speaking faithfully and
he was speaking plainly. He wasn't trying to talk over
anybody's head. He wanted them to get the message.
And he says our heart is enlarged. It means he was speaking to them
in love. His heart was overflowing with love for them. And he says
here in verse 12, You're not straightened in us, but you're
straightened in your own bowels. You're not straightened in us,
it means Paul's heart was not narrow for them. His heart was open wide to all
of his brethren at Corinth. But he says, but you're straightened
in your own bowels. That means in your own hearts
you're too narrow to receive us. The trouble the Corinthians
were having is that they were listening to outside influences. They were listening to the world
and they were listening to men who came in who were supposed
to be claiming they were preachers, sin of God, but they were speaking
lies and they caused the brethren to doubt Paul and they were beginning
to to doubt whether or not if he was really a true apostle.
And Paul also had rebuked them quite strongly in his first letter. And because of all of these things
together, they were having great difficulty hearing Paul. Now
Paul said, now I've spoken to you because I love you. And that's
why I'm here speaking to you. When I speak something to you,
it's because I want you to know what God says. I want you to
know what God would have you to know. I want you to... because
it's what's best for us. Now, sometimes God's Word rebukes. When it comes to you, it rebukes.
But brethren, whatever God's true preacher declares to you,
he's going to back it up with God's Word. You're going to see
it in God's Word. And when he does, and that word
rebukes you, don't let it make your fleshly heart narrow. So
that we're apt to say, oh that's just the preacher talking. They
were apt to say, that's just Paul talking right there. God's
not speaking that to us, that's just Paul talking. The Galatians
had that same problem. Paul said, where is then the
blessedness you speak of? When he first came, he said,
I bear witness that if it had been possible, you would have
plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. They were,
oh boy, they couldn't get enough of Paul's preaching. And he said,
am I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth?
Because I tell you the truth? Then they weren't talking about
the blessedness anymore. But never let your heart become
too narrow to receive the truth of God, because it's by the Word
of God that God will sanctify us. It's by the Word of God He'll
keep us sanctified from this ungodly world. So James said,
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear,
slow to speak, and slow to wrath. For the wrath of man worketh
not the righteousness of God. Wherefore, lay apart all filthiness,
all the extra naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted
word, which is able to save your soul. receive it. And he said,
don't just be hearers of it, but be doers of it. The man that's
just a hearer of it is like a man who looks in a mirror and he
sees himself and then he walks away and he straightway forgets
what he saw. But he said, but be doers of
the word. Doers of the word. The man that's
faithful is the man who looks into the word, hears what it
says, and then he continues in the law of liberty, in this gospel
of liberty that we have. Not being a forgetful hearer,
but a doer. Now look at verse 13. Now Paul
said, I had done all this for you because I love you, my heart's
open to you. And he says, now for a recompense
in the same, I speak as unto my children, be you also enlarged. He says, since I'm speaking to
you because my heart's open wide to you and I love you, now you
return to me the same recompense. He says, now you open up your
heart in love. And he says, and I'm speaking
to you like you're my own children. Have we been meeting together
long enough that you understand what I mean when I say, when
I'm looking for a message, I'm laboring to find a word to bring
here, I'm looking out for you like my own children, like I
do my own children. I listen to my children. I hear
what they're saying and I know what they need. And I teach them
what they need to be taught. And I do the same thing for you
as a pastor. And so that's what he's talking about here. Now,
whenever Brother Don was here, I was talking to him about the
message that I had just preached out of Isaiah 52. Depart ye,
depart ye. And we were talking about that
and I made this statement to him. I said, I'm not sure if
our young people, and I was talking about here, I said, I'm not sure
if our young people understand the dangers of being yoked together
with an unbeliever. And I said, maybe some of the
parents don't understand the dangers of it. And Don said to
me, he said, I'm quite sure that most everybody we preach to everywhere
doesn't understand the danger of it. And he says, it's just
not something people take into consideration. So I want to speak
to you on this important subject. Be not unequally yoked is my
title. Be not unequally yoked. Look
at verse 14. Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers. This is what had caused them
this problem that they were having with doubting Paul to even be
an apostle. It's because they were receiving unbelievers into
the church. But this metaphor here of a yoke, that's taken
from animals that are pulling side by side in a yoke. They're
going the same direction on a farm pulling a plow or a wagon or
something like that. And they need to be equal. These
animals need to be equal. Well, that's because if they're
not, it's going to put a big burden on one of them, the weaker
one. And they can't pull together. They just can't do it. Now, commonly
this passage is applied to believers not marrying unbelievers. And
that is an application to it. But what I want you to understand
tonight is that this text prohibits every kind of union in which
the character and interest of the believer loses our distinctiveness
and our integrity. It includes every kind of union
in which the character and interest of the believer is lost. Our
distinctiveness and our integrity is lost. Let me see if I can
give you an illustration that I'll say that in a little better
way to understand it. Where I grew up, there's a river
called the Ouachita River, and it's muddy, very muddy river.
And down below this particular landing, it's called Alabama
Landing. And down below this landing,
boat launch area, there's where a creek comes into the river.
And where this creek comes into the river, the water from that
creek is very, very clear. And where it joins in with the
Ouachita River, for a ways, you can see that clean water, and
you can see that muddy water. And you can see them flowing
side by side. But after you go a little bit
further, that clean water is just muddy water. And you can't
see any distinction between them. They've joined together. That's
the danger. That's the danger that the Lord
is warning us against, yoking with unbelievers. Now the first
thing I want to look at is what kinds of union does this apply
to? What kinds of union? Well, it
applies first of all to religious fellowship. That's the number
one. That's the chief thing Paul was speaking about because, as
I said, that was the problem that was causing Paul to be doubted
by these Corinthian brethren. He had on one occasion here spoken
to them against fellowshipping with idolaters. which they were
prone to do. That's the chief application.
The Church of God and believers in particular can have no union
with those that preach and promote salvation by man's will, salvation
by man's works. The true Church of God just can
have no union with them. If they preach law, if they preach
works, if they preach man contributing to his salvation, it's not the
gospel of God's free and sovereign grace and we have no union next
to Christ himself, a brother or sister in Christ is the greatest
gift that God's given to us behind Christ. That's the greatest gift
He's given to us. And so we have to be protective
of this union and this communion. We have to be protective that
the gospel is not is not interfered with by false preachers and false
brethren that come in that would disrupt the Word. Behold how
good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. And
secondly, our text applies to marriage. It does apply to marriage. For a believer, the first and
primary consideration for every believer, the first thing they
ought to consider is does this person believe the gospel? Do they know God? God the Father
who elected His people unto salvation in Christ Jesus before the foundation
of the world. Do they know Him? Do they know
God the Son who came to this earth and took human flesh because
His people were flesh? That One who by His doing represented
His people so that His doing was our doing under the law,
fulfilling all the law. And that went to the cross and
took our sin and laid down His life so that His dying was our
dying. We were justified. We paid the
wages of sin, which is death, in Him when He died. He paid
them for us. And now we're righteous. Do they
know God the Holy Spirit by whom a sinner must be regenerated?
because we can't believe otherwise. We have no life otherwise. We're
spiritually dead. Do they know Him who regenerates
and gives faith and gives all things that pertain to godliness
through the Spirit? All fruits are by the Spirit,
by Christ, by God the Father. Do they know Him? Even if you're
dating somebody, the first thing that you ought to be asking is
this question. We'll go out on that first date
and we'll sit down on that first date and we'll ask a thousand
questions that don't amount to a hill of beans. They really
don't. But this right here ought to
be the thing we're interested in. This ought to be the thing
that we're wanting to learn because it's better to sever ties right
out of the gate and be friends rather than to try to do it after
you've given your heart away because it's a lot harder to
do it then, much harder. And sadly though, most of the
time, most of the time this question is of least importance. This
question doesn't come up for a long time. Why would a believing brother,
a believing man, why would he go and ask a woman's, a girl's
father for his blessing on their marriage if he won't ask for
the heavenly father's? If he won't obey the heavenly
father's? This is what He says. This is God's Word here. If you
want a marriage that's made in heaven, seek it in one whom God
has everlastingly loved before the foundation of the world.
Seek to find one for whom Christ became surety before the world
was made. Seek to find one who He chose
and calls to approach unto Him, who delights that God gets all
the glory and salvation, who delights to hear that God is
really God. that he's in the heavens, that
he does whatsoever he will, that he calls his people affectionately
and saves them. Seek somebody like that. A husband
who seeks to give himself as Christ gave himself for us. That's
what you want. A bride who's in subjection even
as the church is in subjection to Christ. That's what you want.
And then our text applies to business partnerships as well.
If you're united in business with somebody, you've got to
have a lot in common because you're making some big decisions
together, and it'll be misery to be in a partnership with somebody
whose life's not governed by the same godly principles that
your life's governed by. It will be being yoked to the
devil. Now, those are the four things
here. Let me add one other thing. Friendships.
Friendships. It's not taking it too far. A
wise man chooses his friends carefully, very carefully, because
the power and the influence of friendships either for good or
for evil. Be not deceived, evil communications
corrupt good manners. We wouldn't trust our property
to a man we didn't know. We wouldn't send our child off
to a college that we hadn't checked out and made sure that that's
a good college for them to go to. Well, we ought not open up
your heart to a friend that you can't trust, to a friend that
doesn't know this gospel and understand where you're coming
from because they won't understand where you're coming from. Our
Christian spirit is greatly influenced by an unworthy friend. He may
be a scoffer. He may be somebody who sneers
at everything we love and everything we seek concerning the gospel.
He may be an indulgent pleasure seeker that wants you to indulge
with him and feeds your old fleshly man. But on the other hand, a
good friend, somebody who knows the gospel, That's invaluable. Somebody who can help scatter
your doubts because of his faithfulness. Somebody who's firm and can help
your steps not to falter. That's a great thing to have.
Now those are the applications. Religious union, marriage union,
business union, and a union of friendship. Alright, now let
me add a few things here before we get into this text. Our text
doesn't forbid all contact with unbelievers. We can't go out
of the world. We believe we're supposed to
have some dealings in this world. We have to work, we have to provide,
we have to have dealings in the world. And also God put us in
the world as salt and light. He put us here to bear witness
of Him. We can't do that unless we come into contact with men
of this world. But we are to do so graciously,
lovingly, but not to be in any kind of union with them, any
kind of contractual union with them. And it doesn't apply to
those who the Lord saved after you got married. There are some
who are in a marriage with an unbeliever because the Lord saved
them after they got married. It doesn't apply to that either.
The scripture tells the woman who's in such a relationship,
it says, you submit to your husband. And it says, and do so that he
may see what God's done for you by his grace. So that you might
win him to at least come and hear the gospel by what he's
done for you. If you have an unbelieving spouse,
don't you want them to know the gospel? Don't you want them to
believe? If not, something bad wrong in your own heart. We want
our unbelieving spouses to know the gospel. And our friends and
what have you, we want them to know the gospel. Alright, so
now we see who this applies to. Now secondly, why should a believer
not be yoked with an unbeliever? Alright, here's the number one
reason. It's forbidden by God. That's the number one thing.
Paul is speaking here under the direct inspiration of the Spirit
of God and he says, verse 14, Be ye not unequally yoked together
with unbelievers. This is God who knows what's
best for His child. This is God who is speaking this
and for a believer, that's enough. God said it. That's enough. Whatever
God says in this book, we ought to heed it. I don't care if it's
in the Old Testament or the New Testament. It's God's Word and
we ought to heed what He said. And then secondly, God says,
verse 14, 4. That means because. Now our question
is, why should I not be yoked with an unbeliever? God says,
because what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? Believers are fellows in the
same ship. That's what we are. Fellowship.
We have fellowship, first of all, with Christ Jesus himself.
Look at 1 John chapter 1. John said, we saw Him, we handled
Him, we've seen Christ, we've seen the Word of God. And then
he says there in verse 6, if we say that we have fellowship
with Him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth.
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship
one with another. He's talking about with Christ.
We have fellowship, us with Christ. And the blood of Jesus Christ,
His Son cleanses us from all sin. And we have fellowship with
fellow believers because they're born of the same spirit. We have
fellowship. Now by his blood, by Christ's
blood, the believer has been made righteous. The believer
has been made the righteousness of God. How, you've heard it
said, you've heard me say it, how righteous do you have to
be to come into God's presence? As righteous as God. God will
by no means accept anybody who is not righteous. Now this has
to do with the law. God requires us to be perfectly
righteous never to have broken the law in thought, word or deed
ever to have any fellowship with Him. We have it. That's what
believers have. We've been justified by the Lord
Jesus Christ because He took the sin of His people and He
became that one that the law said He must die. And so he died
under the law for his people and all the sins of all those
for whom he died are put away. They're answered for. Justice
has been satisfied. The debt has been paid. And so
God would be unjust to charge them a second time with their
sin. It's gone. It's paid for. Justice has been
satisfied. The gospel has to do with righteousness. That's why He sent Christ into
the world that His righteousness might be manifest. That we might
see how holy and just and righteous and perfect our God is. That
He sent His only Son into the world. This matter of His justice
being upheld was so important. He sent His Son into the world
for His Son to take the sins of His people and put away the
sins of His people to satisfy His own justice so that He might
be just and a Savior. And be just to be a Savior. That
He might be be able to save in mercy, in perfect harmony with
His justice. And that's what Christ has done.
And so for you who believe, He's made you the righteousness of
God. But not only that, He's given us a hunger and a thirst
after righteousness, after that which is right. Don't you want
to do that which is right? Don't you delight in God's law?
Don't you see that everything that God says in His Word is
what's good for us and just and holy? God doesn't... He doesn't... How many times do you see where
He says, He doesn't take any kind of delight in the oppression
of poor people, in the oppression of those that are downcast in
any way. He's such a merciful and gracious
God. And everything He's teaching
us has to do with how He has saved us because we were the
oppressed one. His people were... We had nothing. We were the orphan cast out. We were the widow without a husband.
And He came and did all this for His people. And so we delight
in it, in righteousness. But unbelievers are unrighteous. Unbelievers are unrighteous.
Those that have not been called into living union with Christ
to lay all their hope in Him, they're unrighteous. The wrath
of God abides on them. That person is, he's not only
guilty before God, he is iniquity. And all he knows is iniquity
because he has not been given eyes to see and an understanding
to know what is equity. Because we learn true justice
and true equity by looking to the cross. And a man who hadn't
had eyes to see that don't see it. He just don't see it. The
believer, now look back there at the thing again, verse 14.
In what fellowship then hath righteousness with unrighteousness? That's the thing. This is why
God says don't do it. You're not going to have any
fellowship. You who are righteous and love righteousness, you're
not going to have fellowship with one who's unrighteous. Alright,
here's the second reason in verse 14. He says, In what communion
hath light with darkness? The believer, we were dead. We
were in darkness. The person, and it's sad really,
The people that come to hear the gospel and I was this way,
you were this way. We were in darkness. It was like
trying to read this book in the dark. Even though all the lights
were on, we had no spiritual discernment. Look at 1 Corinthians
chapter 2. 1 Corinthians chapter 2. Now we've been given light by
God. And Christ is that light. And
we're children of light. But unbelievers are in darkness
still. And they don't have any light.
The carnal mind is enmity against God. They hate God. That's what
Romans 8 says. But now, you who are light, if
you unite with an unbeliever who's in darkness, how are you
going to have a common union with him? How are you going to
have communion with him? How? God says it's impossible. 1 Corinthians 2.12. Now we have
received not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is
of God, that we might know the things that are freely given
to us of God. We didn't earn it, we didn't
do anything, they're freely given to us of God. Which things also
we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teaches, but which
the Holy Ghost teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual
things. We're looking at these scriptures because I want you
to see these things and compare these spiritual things with spiritual
things. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit
of God, because they are foolishness unto him. Neither can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned. At the end of a long,
hard day, when you come home at the end of the day, and you've
been beat around and bustled around, and you come home, one
of the most strengthening things, one of the most comforting things
is to have a spouse who can sit there and remind you of what
God's doing. Reminds you that He is in total
absolute control of everything. To remind you that because Christ
shed His blood for you, He's not going to let you go. Whatever
it is you're going through, it's exactly ordained of God. It's
exactly according to what you need to put you right where you
need to be so you can see Him. and to have a business partner
that you're in business with, that when you take a dive, that
could turn around to you and say things like that and encourage
you. See what I'm saying? Have a brother
in Christ that could tell you this. Without this union, how
can light and darkness... they can't have a union together.
Alright, look here, here's the third thing. And what concord
hath Christ with Belial? I believe that Christ dwells
in you and you dwell in Christ. Listen to John 15. The Lord said,
You're clean through the word which I've spoken unto you. Abide
in me and I in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except
it abide in the vine. No more can you except you abide
in me. You cut a branch off a vine, it's going to die. It can't live.
We can't live unless we're united to Christ. And we are. I'm the
vine, you're the branches. He that abideth in me and I in
him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me you
can do nothing. We're united to Christ. But the unbeliever
is under the dominion of the prince of the power of the air,
the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.
That's Ephesians 2 and verse 2. That's where we were. We walked
in time past. We were under the prince of the
power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children
of disobedience. Belial, Satan, has control over
the unbeliever. Are you sitting here this hour
and you're an unbeliever? You're sitting here this hour
and you don't believe anything you're hearing is true, that
anything I'm saying to you is true? It's because Satan has
dominion over you. That's the fact. That's the fact. Read it in Ephesians 2 verse
2. No unbeliever can free himself. No unbeliever can break those
chains of the strong man. He cannot do it. And believer,
you can't do it. You can be hopeful but you can't
do it. Especially by uniting with them. You know what happens
when we do that? That gives credibility to the man that's walking in
rebellion against God. That's what it does. Only Christ
can free such a one. But we'd be foolish to attempt
to have agreement with such a person when God says what concord, what
accordance, what agreement hath Christ with Belial. Is it really
that bad? Is it that bad? I'll tell you
what it's like. Attempting to unite a believer
with an unbeliever is like trying to unite Christ with Satan. That's how bad it is. That's
what the script, that's what the verse says right there. What
concord has Christ with Belial? None. Alright, here's the next
reason. Verse 15. What part hath he that believeth
with an infidel? An infidel is one who does not
believe and who avowedly rejects the testimony of divine revelation.
Some are deists. Some believe in the divine existence
and a future state of being, but they refuse the authority
of the Bible. They say, I don't believe that
word is true. Others are atheists. They deny
the divine existence and they proclaim the world was just formed
by chance or that the world is eternal or they say that man
evolved and they think death is just the end of everything.
Believer, will you say that you can have part, you can have portion,
you can have participation with such a one? God says, what part
hath the believer with an infidel? He that believeth with an infidel.
What part? Here's the fifth reason. This
is what God says, now verse 16. And what agreement hath the temple
of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the
living God. As God had said, I will dwell
in them and walk in them and I'll be their God and they shall
be my people. Oh, let that sink in. Just let
that sink in. You are the temple of the living
God. Believer, you're the temple of
the living God. God has said, I will dwell in
them. He said, I'll walk in them. He said, I'll be their God and
they shall be my people. In whom, in Christ, you build
it together for a habitation of God through the Spirit. He
that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me and I
in him. This is the great mystery of
godliness, brethren. Are you in agreement with the
person who holds to the idolatrous lies that God chose us because
he foresaw some merit in us? Are you in agreement with those
that say that Christ died for all men without exception so
they can say now it's up to you to make His blood effectual so
that really and truly the Savior when it comes down to it is you
rather than God? That's idolatry. That's man worship
is what that is. That's idolatry. Are you in agreement
with the man that says the Spirit of God can't quicken whom He
will? That He only works in a joint effort with a sinner? Or that
the sinner by His will has to make himself be born again? That's
idolatry. We can't be in agreement with
idolatry. A believer can't. It's just impossible. If you
really think you can live in agreement with such an idolater,
whether it be in the church, in marriage, in business, or
even in friendship, you're saying you have agreement with them.
That's what you're saying. I agree with them. See, the issue
here is what God's done for us. That's the issue. God separated
the believer from unbelievers. He's done it. We didn't separate
ourselves. Before the foundation of the
world by divine election, God separated people for Himself. He that sanctifieth and those
who are sanctified are all of one. What Christ did, we did.
And Christ has perfected forever them that are sanctified by His
one offering. And God the Holy Spirit has separated
us by rebirthing us anew and giving us a heart. There ain't
nobody that believes what we believe. Nobody believes this. A remnant, that's what God said,
a remnant believes this. This whole world don't believe
this. Men who walking around talking about God and Jesus and
we got a good thing going, they don't know this God. That's not
being anything but truthful. That's all it's being. Don't
get tangled up with them. Don't have anything to do with
them. They'll lead you down the wrong path. The issue here is
communion. It's oneness. Look at there. He says no fellowship between
righteousness and unrighteousness. No communion between light and
darkness. No concord between Christ and
Belial. No part for a believer with an
infidel. No agreement between the temple
of God and the temple of idols. You may think you can convert
the unbeliever. But I'll tell you what will happen. By joining
in with them, they generally are going to turn you, because
you've lost your power by denying God, by rebelling against God
and doing it. Listen to this now, Joshua 23
verse 12. God said, He told them, don't
join with them. When I'm bringing you into this
land, He said, don't join with them. He says, else if you do,
and any wise, go back and cleave unto the remnant of these nations,
even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages
with them, and go in unto them, and they to you, know for a certainty. that the Lord your God will no
more drive out any of these nations from before you, but they shall
be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and
thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land
which the Lord your God hath given you." That's God's Word. The daughters will go whoring
after their gods and make thy sons go whoring after their gods.
That's what He said. Can you imagine trying to raise
children? Can you imagine trying to teach your children the gospel
if you come in and teach them one thing and somebody comes
right behind you and teaches them just the opposite? Can you
imagine? Alright, here's the third thing.
Now for our third point, I want to look at why we should not
unite with unbelievers by looking at the positive side of it. Those
were the negative things. Here's the positive side. Now,
when you have this resolve to not be unequally yoked. Sometimes,
most of the time, it's going to involve some pretty large
sacrifice. There will be some heartbreak
involved. But we're never the loser for obeying God, ever. If we imagine that we've lost,
whatever it is we imagine that we've lost, just remember, this
is what we gain. This is what we gain. Here are
the promises of God. First of all, God says He'll
receive you. Look here, verse 17. Wherefore
come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord,
and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you. The believers in Corinth, they
weren't to leave that city. That's not what he's saying.
They were to preserve their callings in that city, right where they
were, by diligently avoiding contamination of idolatry and
unbelievers by being contractually yoked with them. That's what
they were to do. So, we should continue in the world, but not
be conformed to it. That's what he's saying. We should
continue where God's put us, but we're to be separate. To
separate ourselves from all that's unjust, from all that's unholy.
Touch not the unclean means all that is unholy and out of harmony
with the purity of God. Now, God's not our Father because
we separate ourselves. We don't make Him our Father
by doing that. He is our Father by grace. By grace. I read it
to you in Romans 9. By adoption. By His own will
in Christ Jesus. And if we do separate ourselves,
it will be to the praise of His glory and not anything wherein
we have to boast. But if we do, He says, I will
receive. I will receive. He says He will
receive you. Christ said, All that the Father
giveth to me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will
in no wise cast out. And He'll care for us as a Father. That's the second thing. Look
here. Verse 18, And I'll be a father unto you, and you shall be my
sons and my daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Child of God,
listen to me. Your heavenly Father knows exactly
what you have need of. Cheryl, when you were raising
all this house full of young'uns, didn't you know what they needed?
Archie knew exactly what they needed. And you gave them what
they needed. You didn't give them what they
didn't need. You gave them what they needed. That's what our
Father knows. Our Heavenly Father knows what
we need. He can give you what no ungodly mate, no ungodly business
partner, no ungodly, no false brethren can give you. What you
need. That's what He can give. Lose
the creature, he says, but gain the Creator. He says, while others
are ungracious and they're throwing it back in your teeth for what
you're doing, God said, I'll be gracious to you. All the stream
is going to fail, it's going to fail, but the fountain won't
ever fail. That's what He's saying to us now. And look here, therefore
seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these
things will be added to you. Turn over to Philippians 3. I
want to end with this. Hold your place there in 2 Corinthians
6. I want you to read this one more thing. Let's go to Philippians
3. When the Lord saved me by His
grace, this gospel cost me the love of somebody that I didn't
think I could ever live without. I didn't think I could ever live
without this one. And it hurt. I won't say it didn't.
It hurt bad. Real bad. But you know, God has
given me one that so far surpasses anything I could have ever imagined.
He's given me one who loves Christ even more than she loves me.
She puts Him before me. I wouldn't have it any other
way. I'm so thankful for that because that makes her a faithful
bride. That makes her a faithful mother.
That makes her a faithful pastor's wife. Faithful to you. And I
wouldn't have it any other way. And now, what I thought before
was loss, I realize was no loss at all. I didn't lose anything.
I didn't lose anything at all. It was all gain to me. Everything. Because God showed me and He
gave me something far better. Far better. Look here. Whatever
you think is lost, whatever you think... If you think in... If
God gives you grace to do this and you think you've lost something,
I guarantee you, in time, it may take a while, God's going
to show you, you haven't lost anything, you've gained something.
You've gained something. Nothing in this world is more
valuable than the union of believers. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Name it. Nothing. Philippians
3.7, and if He gives it to you, you'll see you didn't lose anything.
Paul said, verse 7, What things were gained of me? Those I counted
lost for Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all
things but lost for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord, for whom I've suffered the loss of all things, and do
count them but dumb, that I might win Christ. He said I hadn't
lost anything. I hadn't lost a thing. All of
it was just dung anyway. That I might win Christ and be
found in Him, not having mine own righteousness which is of
the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness
which is of God by faith. That I might know Him and the
power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being made conformable unto His death, if by any means I might
attain to the resurrection of the dead. This is what is important. This is what's vitally important.
Now, what are we going to do? Look back at our text. What are
we going to do? Having heard all this, what are
we going to do? Look at 2 Corinthians 7 verse
1. Having therefore these promises, Dearly beloved, let us cleanse
ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting
holiness in the fear of God. That's what the believer is going
to do. You mean I can perfect holiness?
It means when you come out, you're out. That's what it means. When
you come out, you're not in anymore. When you come out, you've washed
your hands of it, you're done with it. And you say, that's
what he said over there in Isaiah 52. He said, depart, make a clean
break. Because you're not going out
by yourself. He said, I'm going before you and I'll be your reward. I'll gather you up. from the
rear. Amen.