Well a little while ago, I think
it was back in August, I preached from Hebrews 13 verses 15 and
16. I thought we would return this
evening to Hebrews 13. We shall look at verse 5. Hebrews 13 verse 5. Let your conversation be without
covetousness and be content with such things as you have. For
he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Let your conversation be without
covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have.
For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. We have in this verse two things,
Christian conversation and Christian consolation. We see Christian
conversation, that is Christian conduct, the Christian's life
or manner of living, the Christian's behaviour and attitude in the
first part of the verse. Let your conversation be without
covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have.
And we see Christian consolation or comfort in the second part
of the verse. For he hath said, I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee. But before we consider these
two things, we have to say that before there can be a true Christian
conversation, before there can be a true living of the Christian
life, and before there can be any real Christian consolation
or comfort, there must, first of all, be a true and a real
Christian conversion. This epistle was written to true
Christians. It was written to real believers.
See how the apostle addresses those to whom he writes in chapter
3 of this epistle. Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers
of the heavenly calling. Holy brethren, partakers of the
heavenly calling. This verse of Holy Scripture
then is for real Christians. It is for the true believer.
let your conversation be without covetousness and be content with
such things as you have for he hath said I will never leave
thee nor forsake thee but what is it to be converted? what is
conversion? well it's a turning to the Lord
a turning to the Lord but not just outwardly but inwardly it
is a turning of the heart to the Lord The word converted,
in Matthew 18 verse 3, except you be converted and become as
little children, the same Greek word there, which is translated
converted, is translated as turned in other places. So to be converted
means to be turned, to be turned around. is that that follows
immediately upon regeneration, the new birth. In regeneration
or the new birth, there is the acting of God upon the soul of
a man. In conversion, there is the turning
of the soul of man towards God. See, true conversion is of God
and to God. Beware, then, of the error of
the Arminians and the free willers. It is not in man to convert himself. And where there is the new birth
and true conversion, there will be the felt sense of our own
natural inability to turn ourselves or to convert ourselves. And then we shall pray. Then
we shall really call upon the name of the Lord that we might
be saved. And we shall pray as Ephraim prayed. Turn thou me,
and I shall be turned, for thou art the Lord my God. Turn thou
me, and I shall be turned. I can't turn myself. Turn thou
me, and I shall be turned, for thou art the Lord my God. The
voice of the church is heard in the Song of Songs, which is
Solomon's, where she cries after Christ, the heavenly bridegroom.
Draw me, we will run after thee. Being drawn by him, we run after
him. Being turned by him, we turn
to him. That's conversion. And who are
they who are converted? Are they good people? No, they're sinners. They're
sinners. As David prayed upon his own
repentance, remember how he committed adultery and murder? He repented
by God's grace. And he prayed upon his own repentance,
and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Sinners shall be converted
unto thee. That's who are converted. Those
are the ones who are converted. Those who are sinners. Those
sinners for whom Christ has died. They are sinners who through
the new birth have been made sensible of their sinnership
they know that they are sinners, they feel it and being made sensible
of their sinnership they are made to hunger and to thirst
after righteousness where can they find that righteousness
which they need? where can they find that righteousness
which they shall stand in need of? when they come to stand before
God in the judgment. Not in themselves, because they're
sinners. How then can they obtain the
forgiveness of their sins and the blotting out of their transgressions?
Well they are taught of God. As Jesus said, it is written
in the prophets. and they shall be all taught
of God. Every man that hath heard and
hath learned of the Father cometh unto me,' Jesus said. It is in and by the Lord Jesus
Christ that we obtain the forgiveness of our sins, through His blood,
in whom we have redemption, through His blood, even the forgiveness
of sins. This is the good news of the
gospel. It is in the Lord Jesus Christ that we find a perfect
righteousness, exactly suited to our need as sinners, that
we might be able to stand before a holy God in the day of judgment,
in the judgment to come, who of God is made unto us wisdom
and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. This is true Christian conversion. Conversion to Christ. To be brought
to feel our need of Him. And being brought to feel our
need of Him. To call upon Him that He might save us from our
sins. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved. That's the promise of the Gospel.
Lay hold of it. Lay hold of that promise. If
you are a doubting soul, if you wonder, well, am I really converted?
Lay hold upon the promise. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved. It's the promise of God who cannot
lie. Well, this then is necessary
to a Christian conversation, a Christian life. There must
be life before there can be the living. And this is a prerequisite
to Christian consolation. What consolation can be given
to those who are yet in their sins, and who will not come to
Christ that they might have life? To those who will not call upon
him that they might be saved? He that believeth on him is not
condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already. because
he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."
Well, having laid this foundation, as it were, let us go on to consider
the first part of our text, which concerns Christian conversation. Let your conversation be without
covetousness, and be content with such things as you have.
or as it is in the original, which we can see if we take away
the italicized words, conversation without covetousness, content
with such things as you have. Conversation without covetousness,
content with such things as you have. I'll point out again that
the word conversation really means our manner of living, the
way we conduct ourselves, our behavior, and so on. Our conversation,
our manner of living, our behavior, our conduct, is of course dictated
or directed by what is in our hearts. For out of the heart
proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts,
false witness, blasphemies. And again in Matthew, for out
of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, A good man
out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things,
and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil
things. Yes, our speech as well as our behavior will be determined
by what is in our hearts. Do men gather grapes of thorns
or figs of thistles? Even so, every good tree bringeth
forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth
evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
And so we read in the Proverbs, keep thy heart with all diligence,
for out of it are the issues of life. What is in your heart
will determine how you live your life. And isn't that really what
the Apostle is directing us to do here, to keep our hearts with
all diligence? Whichever of these two opposing
principles is in our hearts, covetousness or contentment,
will determine our behavior in this present world. We see then
here a negative and a positive regarding our Christian conversation. Firstly, the negative. Let your
conversation be without covetousness. Without covetousness. In the Greek, it's all one word.
Afilagros. It's a compound word. A meaning
no or without. Phil comes from philo, to love. And agros, which means silver. Afilagoros, without the love
of silver, not loving silver, not having a love for money,
and so by extension, without an inordinate desire for worldly
things. Now think how dangerous covetousness
is to our souls. For the love of money is the
root of all evil, which, while some covet it after, they have
erred from the faith and pierced themselves through with many
sorrows. The Lord Jesus warned of this very thing in the parable
of the sower. In Mark's account of that parable,
we read, and these are they which are sown among thorns, such as
hear the word. Now mark this, they hear the
word. This is not speaking of people
who are outside. This is speaking of the professing
church, or those who are attending a place of worship. And these are they which are
sown among thorns, such as hear the word, and the cares of this
world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other
things, entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. Indeed, the Lord gives us a clear
warning against covetousness in Luke chapter 12, verse 15. And he said unto them, take heed. Again, this is strong language
the Lord is using here. Take heed. We must mark this
and beware of it. Take heed and beware of covetousness. For a man's life consisteth not
in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake
a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich
man brought forth plentifully. And he thought within himself,
saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow
my fruits? And he said, This will I do. I will pull down my
barns and build greater, and there will I bestow all my fruits
and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul,
thou hast much goods laid up for many years. Take thine ease,
eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool,
This night thy soul shall be required of thee. Then whose
shall those things be which thou hast provided? So is he that
layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Solemn words. The apostle warns
us in these words in Ephesians for this you know that no whoremonger
nor unclean person nor covetous man who is an idolater have any
inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God let no man deceive you with vain
words for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon
the children of disobedience yes not just whoremongers not
just adulterers, sodomites, the unclean? No, the covetousness,
covetous too shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Now we must
beware of covetousness we have a heart that is so prone to it
and we have an enemy that will tempt us to it and there is none
that is exempt from it the poor of this world are not immune
from this contagion of the soul And the rich of this world are
not immune from it. So whether we have much in this
world or little, we need to beware of covetousness. It has its origin
in the Garden of Eden, you know. When the woman was tempted by
that old serpent, the devil, and she desired that which she
had no right to. And when the woman saw that the
tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes,
and a tree to be desired, to make one wise, she took of the
fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with
her, and he did eat. And so Adam, not content with
paradise, took that which was forbidden him, and he brought
death into the world, he brought death upon himself, and he brought
death upon all his posterity. Covetousness is that fire in
the heart which never says it is enough. The horse-leech hath two daughters,
crying, Give, give! There are three things that are
never satisfied, yea, four things say not it is enough. The grave
and the barren womb, the earth that is not filled with water,
and the fire that saith not, it is enough. How that fire consumed King Ahab.
Although he lived in a palace, yet he was not satisfied, he
was not content with that. Read of him there in 1 Kings
21, and it came to pass after these things that Naboth the
Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel, hauled by the
palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying,
Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs,
because it is near unto my house. And I will give thee for it a
better vineyard than it, or if it seem good to thee, I will
give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth said to Ahab,
The Lord forbid it me that I should give the inheritance of my fathers
unto thee. And Ahab came into his house
heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the
Jezreelite had spoken to him. For he had said, I will not give
thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his
bed and turned away his face and would eat no bread. Remember Achan. how he brought
trouble upon himself and upon Israel by his covetousness. Joshua
7 verse 20. And Achan answered Joshua and
said, Indeed, I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus
and thus have I done when I saw among the spoils of goodly Babylonish
garments and two hundred shekels of silver and a wedge of gold
of fifty shekels weight then I coveted them and took them
and behold they I hid in the earth in the midst of my tent
and the silver under it. Oh the love of silver! The love
of silver it brought trouble upon Israel and it brought Achan
to destruction. Paul in Romans said that whatsoever
things were written aforetime were written for our learning
And in 1 Corinthians he says, Now all these things happen unto
them for ensamples, and they are written for our admonition,
upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that
thinketh he standeth take heed, lest he fall. Or may we then
learn from these things, may we be admonished by these things.
But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare,
and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction
and perdition. For the love of money is the
root of all evil, which while some coveted after, they have
erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many
sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things, and follow
after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness,
fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life." Lay
hold on eternal life, not this temporary life. they hold on
eternal life James Fisher in his catechism
asks the question what is covetousness? the answer he gives is this it
is an excessive and irregular desire after those worldly goods
which we have not and which God in his providence does not see
meet that we should have contentment then on the other
hand is being satisfied with that which God gives to us in
his providence. Contentment is directly opposite
to and opposed to covetousness and vice versa. There can be no contentment where
there is covetousness. Where there is covetousness,
where there is no covetousness, where there is no covetousness,
there will be contentment. And so secondly, under this heading,
we turn from the negative, without covetousness, to the positive,
and be content with such things as you have. It's quite remarkable
to compare Ahab in his palace, so miserable that he couldn't
eat because of his covetousness, and the apostle Paul in the prison,
contented. Philippians chapter four, He says there in verse 11, not
that I speak in respect of want, for I have learned in whatsoever
state I am therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased
and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things
I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound
and to suffer need. I like Jeremiah Burroughs' paraphrase
on that verse, Philippians 4.11, in his work, The Rare Jewel of
Christian Contentment. He says, I do not speak, he says,
in respect of want, for whether I have or have not, my heart
is fully satisfied. I have enough, I have learned
in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content. Or the Lord has promised, no
good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. If
there is anything that is withheld from us in providence, then it
is because it is one of those no good things. No good thing
will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. Perhaps there is some better
thing that we should have, such as the trial of our faith, or
a weaning from the things of this world. No good thing will
he withhold from them that walk uprightly. or how we need the
Spirit's teaching if we are to learn that lesson which the Apostle
learned. For I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith
to be content, whether we have much or little, whether we have
or have not, to be satisfied with that which God our Father
in heaven has given to us. but godliness with contentment
is great gain. For we brought nothing into this
world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out, and having
food and raiment, let us be therewith content. The poorest saint, the poorest
saint in this world is far better off than the richest worldling
But godliness with contentment is great gain, great gain. Well, having considered something
of Christian conversation, let your conversation be without
covetousness and be content with such things as you have. Let
us go on to consider in the second place something of Christian
consolation. For he had said, I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee. Now this is gain indeed, and
this is sweet consolation, for he hath said, I will never leave
thee, nor forsake thee. The worldling's portion is in
this life. The psalmist speaks of men of the world which have
their portion in this life. And what a miserable portion
that is! Why, their riches shall one day
leave them, and they must one day leave all their riches, all
their little store behind them. How fool! This night thy soul
shall be required of thee. Then whose shall those things
be which thou hast provided? Oh, what fools they are, who
are rich in this world's goods, but who are not rich to all God.
And how silly they are who envy them. As Job says, or rather
Eliphaz the Temanite, speaking in the book of Job, for wrath
killeth the foolish man and envy slayeth the silly one. It is
silly to envy the rich. It really is. They have nothing
compared with what the true Christian has. Not only are we passing out of
this world, but the world itself is passing away. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians,
for the fashion of this world passeth away. John says, and
the world passeth away and the lust thereof. And so Solomon
instructs us in the Proverbs with that wisdom which was given
to him by God. Labour not to be rich. Cease
from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon
that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves
wings. They fly away as an eagle toward
heaven. What then is the portion of the
Lord's people if it's not in this life or in this world? Well,
interestingly, it's recorded seven times in the Old Testament
Scriptures and you know that seven is the number of perfection.
It's recorded seven times in the Old Testament that the Lord
is the portion of His people. Four times in the Psalms and
three times by Jeremiah. Psalm 16 verse 5, The Lord is
the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup, thou maintainest
my lot. Psalm 73 verse 26, My flesh and
my heart faileth, but God is the strength of my heart and
my portion forever. Psalm 119 verse 57, Thou art
my portion, O Lord, I have said that I would keep thy words.
Psalm 142 verse 5, I cried unto thee, O Lord, I said, Thou art
my refuge and my portion in the land of the living. Jeremiah
10 verse 16, The portion of Jacob is not like them, for he is the
former of all things, and Israel is the rod of his inheritance.
The Lord of hosts is his name. And we have the same again in
Jeremiah 51 verse 19, The portion of Jacob is not like them, for
he is the former of all things, and Israel is the rod of his
inheritance, and the Lord of hosts is his name. And then in
the Lamentations, Lamentations chapter three and verse 24, the
Lord is my portion, saith my soul, therefore will I hope in
him. Have you been brought to that?
The Lord is the portion of my The Lord is my portion, saith
my soul, therefore will I hope in him. Oh, the Lord Jesus Christ,
it is he who is the portion of his people. My beloved is mine,
and I am his. The church says in the Song of
Solomon. And as his people's portion,
he will never leave them. even when their bodies grow old
and a time comes when they must leave this world and such things
as they have in this world he will never leave them nor forsake
them for he hath said I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee or he will be with them and they shall be with him forever
my flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength of my
heart and my portion forever see the excellency of Jesus Christ
here in the epistles of the Hebrews Paul shows that Christ has a
more excellent name than the angels that he is a more excellent
mediator than Moses that he has a more excellent priesthood than
Aaron that he has offered a more excellent sacrifice than ever
was offered under the law and now the apostle shows us under
the divine inspiration of the Holy Ghost that Christ is more
excellent than all the world and all that is in the world that the unsearchable riches
of Christ are far more excellent than all the riches that the
world has to offer for He hath said I will never leave thee,
nor forsake thee." Fading is the worldling's pleasure,
all his boasted pomp and show, solid joys and lasting treasure,
none but Zion's children know. Yes, he hath said, he hath said,
he who cannot lie hath said, I will never leave thee, nor
forsake thee. He has said it many times throughout
the Scriptures and you know the Scripture cannot be broken. He has said it to Jacob, Genesis
28, 15. And behold, I am with thee and
will keep thee in all places whither thou goest and will bring
thee again into this land for I will not leave thee until I
have done that which I have spoken to thee of. He hath said it to Moses and
to all the children of Israel in the wilderness. Deuteronomy
31 verse 6, Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor
be afraid of them, for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go
with thee, he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. And again in
that chapter, and the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee,
he will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake
thee. Fear not, neither be dismayed. And he hath said it to Joshua.
Joshua chapter 1 verse 5. There shall not any man be able
to stand before thee all the days of thy life. As I was with
Moses, so I will be with thee. I will not fail thee, nor forsake
thee. And the Apostle, under the direct
and divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells us that this
promise is for all the Lord's people in every age. For he has
said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee, so that we
may boldly say, so that we may boldly say, the Lord is my Helper,
I will not fear what man shall do unto me. According to the commentators
in the original Greek, there are five negatives in these words.
I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Matthew Henry says,
here are no fewer than five negatives, heaped together to confirm the
promise. The true believer shall have the gracious presence of
God with him in life, at death, and forever. Yes, five negatives,
heaped together to make one glorious positive. It is expressed very
well in the words of the hymn. We shall sing it, I trust, in
a moment. How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid
for your faith in his excellent word. It's not clear who the
author of that hymn is. It's attributed to Kirkham with
a question mark in Gadsby's selection. But the last verse of that hymn
reads, The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose, I will
not, I will not desert to his foes. That soul, though all hell
should endeavor to shake, I'll never, no never, no never forsake. There, in the last line of that
last verse, you have the five negatives, I'll never, no never,
no never forsake thee. A good commentary, if there ever
was one, on the words of our text, for he had said, I will
never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Oh, what a strong consolation
this is for us, who by grace have fled for refuge, to lay
hold upon the hope set before us. which hope we have as an
anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast. This is the promise of the God
for whom it is impossible to lie. For he hath said, I will
never leave thee, nor forsake thee. The true Christian then,
though he may be poor in this world, yet having Christ, he
has all things. For all things are yours, Paul
or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present
or things to come all are yours and ye are Christ's and Christ
is God's yes because Christ is mine and I am his I need not
fear I need not fret I need not worry and I certainly ought not
to covet I can be content with small providential mercies or
large fully satisfied with the riches of His grace. My every need He richly will
supply, nor will His mercy ever let me die. In Him there dwells
a treasure all divine, and much this grace has made that treasure
mine. Let your conversation be without
covetousness, Be content with such things as ye have, for he
hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Well,
in conclusion, I would just remark that all the gracious promises
to the Lord's people are to be obtained by prayer. That includes
this promise. Prayer was appointed to convey
the blessings God designs to give. This is a principle which we
see throughout the Holy Scriptures. For example, in Ezekiel 36, in
verse 36 of that chapter, we have the promise. then the heathen
that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord built
the ruined places and plant that that was desolate I the Lord
have spoken it and will do it there's the promise and then
in the next verse we read thus saith the Lord God I will yet
for this be inquired of by the house of Israel to do it for
them you see there is the promise and there is the prayer for the
fulfilment of the promise Jacob was promised the blessing in
chapter 28 of Genesis and then in chapter 32 we read of him
wrestling with the angel for the blessing. I will not let
thee go except thou bless me. He had already been promised
the blessing at Bethel but he would wrestle with the angel
at Peniel for the fulfilment of that promise. The Lord had
promised the Jews through Jeremiah deliverance from Babylon after
70 years of captivity. Daniel, in chapter 9 of the book
of his prophecy, prays for the accomplishment of that promise.
Who are they who obtain the forgiveness of their sins? Why, they are
those who pray that their sins might be forgiven. Solomon was the wisest man on
earth. and he expressed this prayerful
desire as he blessed the people. The Lord our God be with us as
he was with our fathers. Let him not leave us nor forsake
us. It will be our wisdom to pray
for the gracious fulfilment of this promise too. May the Lord
bless his word to each of our souls. Let your conversation
be without covetousness, and be content with such things as
ye have. For he hath said, I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee. Amen.