Turn with me to Exodus chapter
six, if you would, please. Last time we saw that the people
of Israel, including Moses and Aaron were discouraged, extremely
discouraged. And this came about when they
experienced the delay of God's deliverance. It was overwhelming
to them. And God spoke to Moses in the
burning bush. God told him all the wonders
that he would do. In Exodus chapter four, Moses
and Aaron went to the elders of Israel as God had commanded
them. They gave Israel the words of
God. They did the signs that God gave
them to do. And the scriptures say the people
heard, the people rejoiced, the people believed, And the people
bowed their heads and worshiped. And Moses and Aaron, they were
encouraged by that. And they said, okay, now we're
heading to Pharaoh's house. God's sent us and we're on a
mission. God's sent us to go to Pharaoh
and tell him to let God's people go. And I can just see the elders
of Israel there. also so encouraged. I could see
them run along behind Moses and Aaron as they went. And I'm sure
they stood outside to watch and to wait. And I'm pretty confident
that they probably expected a quick deliverance. After all, this
was God who had sent them. This was God who was commanding
Pharaoh to let his people go. And I'm sure they expected Pharaoh
to say, okay, I believe you. You're free to go, but that's
not what happened. God hardened Pharaoh's heart,
and the whole group of them got discouraged. I mean discouraged. The people, Moses and Aaron,
they all got depressed. One small setback, only one,
and they're ready to give up the whole idea of deliverance.
You know, we talked about this, but it's so true. I've been thinking
about it so much. Unbelief makes us so fickle and
faithless. It makes a sinner dishonoring
to God. And what made this, that was
the fact that God had forewarned Moses that he would harden Pharaoh's
heart. He said, you go and you tell
Pharaoh to let my people go. He said, but I'm going to tell
you right up front, I'm going to harden his heart and he will
not let God's people go. And, uh, Pharaoh did exactly
what God said he would do. God told Moses these things before
he ever went to Egypt. But I suppose they got caught
up in the moment. I suppose they rejoiced that
God had heard their groaning, that they were ecstatic that
God had noticed their affliction. They believed that God would
deliver them from Pharaoh. But they assumed that God would
do it when they thought he would. But God never promised when he
would deliver them. We've got to listen closely to
what God said. We can't hear what we want to.
That's the problem. That's why there's denominations
on every corner now. People hear or read the word
of God and they read and they hear what they want to. Sadly,
a lot of them are hearing error because the preacher is preaching
what he wants to. So the question here is why would
God send his messenger to a people he determined to save and then
purposely delay his deliverance and make their condition worse
than before? That's what happened. Pharaoh
said, well, you got so much time on your hands, why don't you
make bricks now without straw? Oh, and that just, that really
tore him up. But why would God send his messenger to a people
whom he determined to save and then purposely, because God does
everything on purpose, and purposely delay his deliverance and make
things even worse for him. Well, I think you know the answer.
Salvation's of the Lord. God does what he wills, how he
wills, when he wills. It's not of him that willeth.
It's not of him that runneth. but of God that shall with mercy.
God is going to make his power known to the vessels of wrath
fitted for destruction. Pharaoh's gonna find out who
God is. Egypt is gonna find out who God
is. And people today that have no knowledge of God, no interest
in God, they're gonna one day soon find out who God is. God's gonna make his power known
to the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction. But I believe
the main reason God delayed deliverance here was that he might make known
the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy. I love to think
about that. Those that he had afore prepared
unto glory, because God's gonna do things his way, not the way
you and I think he should. God says, my thoughts are not
your thoughts. Why are we surprised when God
didn't do things the way we think he should? He said, neither are
your ways my ways. And most of the time, our assuming
is because we think that we're all together such a one as God.
We think we've got God figured out. What we're saying is, is
if I was God, this is what I'd do. And when we do, most of the
time, When we carry on this way, we'll get discouraged, overwhelmingly
discouraged, even depressed, because our discouragement is
really nothing more than unbelief. We talked about that in great
deal last time. It's very evident when you consider
their actions, Israel, Moses, and even Aaron, immediately following
Pharaoh's denial of their freedom, because Israel blamed Moses,
look in chapter five, verse 20. It says, and they met Moses and
Aaron who stood in the way and as they came forth from Pharaoh
and they said unto them, the Lord look upon you and judge
because you've made our savor to be abhorred in the eyes of
Pharaoh and the eyes of his servants to put a sword in their hand
to slay us. And then Moses turned right around
and blamed God. Look at verse 22. And Moses returned
and said unto the Lord, returned unto the Lord and said, Lord,
wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? Why is it that thou
hast sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to
speak in thy name, he done evil to this people and neither hast
thou delivered thy people of all. Unbelief will often cause
us to play the blame game. Adam blamed Eve. The woman thou
gavest me, she gave to me, and I did eat. Eve blamed the serpent. And they both ultimately blamed
God. The woman thou gavest me, she
gave me to eat. The serpent, you're allowed to
be in the garden. He beguiled me and I did eat. We've gotta blame someone instead
of ourselves. And we also talked about unbelief
entreats and charges God with evil, as we just read in verse
22. And unbelief questions God's
power, God's purpose, and God's providence. Moses asked, why
have you sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh,
since I came to do what you told me to do, since I came and said
what you told me to say. I've been obedient. I've done
exactly what you've told me. But ever since I came to him
and spoke in your name, he's done evil to this people. And
neither hast thou delivered thy people at all." What a horrible
accusation Moses makes against God. And yet God, boy, you talking
about a merciful and gracious God. And these horrible accusations
that Moses made, God in mercy, just graciously ignores him.
Aren't you glad that God ignores you sometime when you're in Christ? That's why he does. He ignores
Moses' foolish charges and unbelief. And then we read here in Exodus
chapter six, verse one, then the Lord said unto Moses, Now
shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong
hand shall he let them go. And with a strong hand shall
he drive them out of this land or his land. Now listen to what
God says. God says, you saw what you could
do with Pharaoh. I mean, this is what I pictured. You went to Pharaoh, you saw
what you could do. You couldn't do anything. Now you've seen
what Pharaoh can do with you. He can make things hard on you.
He can give you an impossible task. He can make you make bricks without
straw. He said, but now you shall see
what I will do. Sometimes God makes us wait to
teach us some things. And most of the time, it's to
teach us that we're in control of nothing and that He's in control
of everything. Salvation and deliverance will
ultimately, I can assure you, it'll ultimately, and in the
end, glorify God. God will get all the glory and
the honor for salvation and deliverance. Verse two, and God spake unto
Moses and he said unto him, I am the Lord, I am Jehovah. Now Jehovah
means God, my savior. And he said, I appeared unto
Abraham and Isaac and unto Jacob by the name of God Almighty,
but by my name Jehovah was I not known to them. God appeared to
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by the name of God Almighty. He says
they didn't know him as Jehovah. This means much more than the
fact that they didn't know God by the name of Jehovah. It means
that he had not yet revealed himself to them as Savior. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were
not nor had been in Egyptian bondage. That came about after
they were dead and gone. But now Israel is. And God had
promised that it would come to pass. God told Abraham many years
ago that it'd come to pass. And God said they would be in
bondage for 400 years. And now that time is up. And
God is gonna deliver his people, and he is gonna be himself to
Israel, their Savior. God, my Savior, I am Jehovah. He's gonna reveal himself as
God, their savior. Verse four, and I have also established
my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the
land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers. God had
made a covenant with Israel's fathers. He's gonna give them
the land of Canaan. God's gonna deliver them out
of Egypt. And then he's gonna carry them
into the land of promise. And that's what our covenant
does in Christ. It delivers us from our sin and
it promises us a place of eternal rest. And in verse five, God
reminds Moses and he says, and I have also heard the groaning
of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage. And I have remembered my covenant. So because of that, You say unto
the children of Israel. You know, I believe you could
say right there, you preach unto the children of Israel. That's
what he did. You tell them what God says. Isn't that what preaching
is? It's telling sinners what God said. God remembers his covenant
and he gives us here several promises in the following verses. Gospel promises. And it's here
that Moses brings to the people a message of a free and full
gospel. Let me give them to you as I
can here. And the first promise that's
made is deliverance. Look at verse six. They're all
found in just a few verses here. He said in verse six, wherefore
say unto the children of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring
you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. Deliverance. The promise of deliverance is
I will bring you out. Not I might, not I may, not I'm
gonna try, but I, God, will bring you out. Now this thing of deliverance
won't mean anything to a proud, arrogant, satisfied sinner whose
belly is full. Deliverance won't excite a sinner
that doesn't know that they're captive. What would a free man
need deliverance for or from? Deliverance is for captives.
Deliverance is for those in bondage. Deliverance is for those who
have great burdens. Israel certainly had that. And
God says, I'll bring you out from under the burdens of the
Egyptians. The covenant God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob had promised, as I said a moment ago, at the
end of 400 years of affliction, that they'd be delivered from
their burdens. Boy, have you ever had a burden?
I mean a real burden. I know some of you have. I know
some of you do now. You remember how you felt when
God delivered you from that burden? That's true deliverance. Time had now come for God to
make good His promise, to make good His work. And God knows
how to do that. God can do that. He'll bring them out from under
the burdens that the Egyptians had caused them. And that's what
God does for each of His elect today. He brings them out from
the burdens of sin, the burdens of Egypt, picturing the world.
Now, so the first promise is deliverance. Do you have any
interest in being delivered? Oh, I do. Tell me how God in
Christ delivers sinners from their sin, from their nature,
from themselves. Oh. The second promise is the
promise of liberty. Notice here in the same verse,
he says, and I will rid you out of their bondage. This was something
far more than just relief from burdens. This would be a complete
severance from their previous condition. A slave may be sold
to a kind master and his burden be removed, but he still remains
a slave. God could have caused Israel's
burdens to have been removed, but they'd still remain captive
in Egypt. But that's not God's way. He
would rid, that word means remove, rescue, strip. He would strip
them out of the land of bondage. And instead of toiling in the
labor of Egypt, he'd take them to where they could rest. We
know what the promised land pictures. Pictures are heavenly rest in
Christ. That place where he goes to prepare
a place for us. That where he is, we may be also.
You know, when they did get to Canaan, there were no taskmasters
there. No more taskmasters. Why? They didn't need them. They weren't
in bondage. And this is still God's way.
The sinner who trusts in Christ alone is delivered from the bondage
of sin and the burden of sin. And those who had the blood of
that slain Passover lamb over their door was saved from the
wrath of God and they were delivered. I love the passage of scripture
that says that our Lord thought it not robbery, to be equal with
God. He made himself, though, of no
reputation. He took on the form of a servant.
God did. God Almighty took on the form
of a servant. He was made in the likeness of
men, but he was God. And he obeyed, Christ obeyed
the law of God from his birth until all the way to the cross.
Never a bad thought, never an evil deed, never a cross word,
all the way to the cross. He became obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross. And I love what Paul said when
he said, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. It's
finished with him. For the law of the spirit of
life in Christ hath made us free. The believer's free from condemnation
because they have a substitute that died in their place. And
that's the only reason. God doesn't just sweep sin under
a rug. We say that all the time. Sin's
gonna be dealt with. Death is the wages of sin. The
soul that sins, it shall die. We were not redeemed with corruptible
things such as silver and gold. Why people think that they can
purchase or earn or merit their way into glory with Christ is
beyond my understanding. It's only with the precious blood
of Christ. You see, that's what liberty
is, liberty. And then the third promise is
the promise of redemption. Look what he says here. He says,
will redeem you with a stretched out arm. You know what it means to redeem.
Simply put, to redeem means to purchase and set free. It's free
to the sinner. We say free grace, it's free
to the sinner. Salvation's free to the sinner,
but it wasn't to the Lord Jesus. The price was the shedding of
His atoning blood. We're not our own, friends. We're
bought with a price. Only God could deliver Israel,
and only God can deliver His people today. God's arm was stretched
out with great judgments, but not against Israel. God's arm is stretched out today
with great judgments, but not against His people. You know,
I was reading ahead today, and when the frogs were sleeping
with Pharaoh, they were climbing in Pharaoh's bed, and there wasn't
a sound of ribbit found in Goshen. No frogs there. When the locust
ate everything up in Egypt, not one crumb of the locust was found
in Goshen, because there wasn't any locust there. Deliverance
and liberty are gifts of grace. They're freely bestowed. Only
God can make the difference that he made between Egypt and Goshen. I don't know, I haven't looked
at it on a map, but you go from Hopkins County to the, to, let's
say, to Webster County, somewhere along there is the line and you
can be standing here in Hopkins County and take a step and be
in Webster County. You think about that between
Egypt and Goshen. God kept those frogs. God kept
those locusts on this side of that line. That's the kind of
God that we're dealing with. That's the kind of God that loves
his people and delivers them with a stretched out arm. What
an arm that is. What an arm that is. And this
is a gift of God. But this difference God makes
comes at a tremendous price. Christ died for our sins according
to the scriptures. All things are of God who hath
reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ. And the gospel shows
us how God was in Christ reconciling his people in the world unto
himself by not imputing their sins against them. He charged
all our crimes, all our sin, all our offenses, all our iniquities
to our great substitute. And God hath laid on him, Christ,
the iniquity of us all, and all being all the elect of God, not
all the world. Christ is our redemption. Redemption's
in a person. Redemption's in the Lord Jesus
Christ. Now the fourth promise of the
gospel that God gave Moses was acceptance. You know, people
say, won't you accept Jesus and let him into your heart? A person
that says that has no understanding at all of the gospel that's preached
from this book, none whatsoever. Salvation is not our acceptance
of God. Never has been, never will be.
Salvation is God's acceptance of us. Verse seven, and I'll
take you to me for a people. And I will be to you a God. I will take you to me for a people. It pleased the Lord to make you
his people. Isn't that amazing? It pleased
the Lord to be to you a God. For Israel, this meant that as
a nation, Israel would occupy a very unique relationship with
God. They would be his peculiar treasure. They would be the objects of
his special care and favor. What marvelous love that the
great Jehovah should own as his own a downtrodden nation of slaves. But he did. And for what reason? Acceptance. Accepted in the beloved. Accepted only in Christ. God's acceptance of us is in
Christ and Christ alone. He has redeemed us unto himself.
And we too belong to God as a peculiar people, as a peculiar treasure. Though we're totally unfit, totally
unworthy in and of ourselves, we are precious in the sight
of God for one reason only, for Christ's sake. That's it, for
Christ's sake. We are accepted in Him, accepted
in the beloved. You know, the doctrine of election
won't have much of an impact on someone. apart from the experience of
God's grace. I think Gomer probably knew. You remember Gomer? Hosea took
unto a whore. We're all adults. God told him to take unto him
Harlot as a wife. And you remember that story.
She chased after her lovers. She lay with her lovers. And
I'm almost sure that she knew that Hosea was a gracious man,
why he brought her gifts and stuff as she lay with her lovers. But when she came to the end
of herself, when she lost her youth, when she lost her beauty,
when her suitors no more came calling, She couldn't pay her
debt, so she became a slave in bondage. You remember what that
feels like? And as she was being sold on
the auction block, it was then that the grace of Hosea became
a reality to her. It was then that she experienced
his love. His mercy and His grace when
He redeemed her to Himself. And I've pictured it so many
times. After He bought her, He goes up to that auction block
and holds out His hand and she takes Him by the hand and they
walk off together. And He's a proud man. This is my bride. This is my
bride. That's pretty amazing when you
think that that's what we are to Christ. My, my. I love the thought of God accepting
me. I just do. Who am I that he would
accept me? Just a slave at the slave market. A man in bondage to my sin and
to my nature. He's nothing less than a merciful,
gracious, loving, forgiving God who delights to show mercy. Another one of the promises of
the gospel is knowledge. Again, verse seven, and you shall
know that I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from
under the burdens of the Egyptians. I think again of John 17, three,
the scripture that we have the front of our bulletin, and this
is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God
and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. Salvation has something
to do with revealed knowledge, a great deal to do with it. Do
you remember what Paul said? He said, I know whom I have believed,
I know. He didn't say I know what I believed. He said, I know whom I have believed. He said, I am persuaded that
he, I'm not persuaded that I can do anything or that I have done
anything, but I am persuaded that he is able, that Christ
is able, able to keep that which I've committed to him, able to
keep my soul, which I've been trusted with him for eternity. I know who. I know who it is. I know who it is that saves me. I know who it is that keeps me. Knowing God is eternal life.
This is eternal life that they may know Thee, the only true
God, just one true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent. And
verse seven says, and you shall know that I am the Lord your
God. Not just know that he's God,
but that he's your God. He's your God, now listen, he's
your God whether you know him or not. He's the one with whom you have
to do. You can bow to him now or you
can bow to him later, but you're gonna bow. but he's your God in a special
way. If you know and trust his beloved
son. Look at Exodus chapter seven,
verse five. It says, and the Egyptians shall
know that I am the Lord. The Egyptians, yep. Those that
don't know God, they're gonna know that I am the Lord. They
didn't know God, they didn't trust God, but God made them
to know that he was God. When he got through with them,
they knew he was God. They even knew that he was a
sovereign God. God said, they will know that
I am the Lord. And then he says, when I stretch
forth mine hand upon Egypt and bring out the children of Israel
from among them, they're gonna know that he's sovereign, that
he's in control, that he's omnipotent, that he does what he wills. He's
in the heavens, he's done whatsoever he's pleased. They're gonna know
that. They knew it. When God got done with them,
they knew it. Look down at, Verse 17, here
in Exodus 7. Thus saith the Lord, in this
thou shalt know that I am the Lord. Behold, I will smite with
the rod that is in my hand upon the waters which are in the river.
and they shall be turned to blood." Friends, God is a God of justice. He's a sovereign God and he's
a God of justice. With God, it's an eye for an
eye. God won't excuse sin, men are gonna reap what they sow,
outside of Christ. The wages of sin is death. If
Pharaoh won't allow Israel to drink from the living waters
of Christ, God not gonna let Egypt drink from the rivers of
the Nile, which was actually their God. They worship the river
Nile. And then look at Exodus chapter
eight, talking about they'll know. Exodus eight, verse eight. Then Pharaoh called for Moses
and Aaron and said, entreat the Lord that he may take away the
frogs from me and from my people. And I will let the people go
that they may do sacrifice unto the Lord. And then verse nine,
he asked them to destroy the frogs. He said, make them remain
in the river only. I don't mind a frog as long as
the frog's where he's supposed to be, but I don't want the frog
in my bed with me. And you know what, I don't either.
But they were, they were in Pharaoh's bed. And then Pharaoh said, tomorrow. I thought that was pretty interesting.
Many of the commentators say that Egypt, Pharaoh and his magicians
were, at this time, busy with some kind of a religious ceremony
in Egypt. They said what it was. I didn't
have time to research it further, but it was a time of the year
where they did some kind of an Egyptian religion and worship. And so Pharaoh said, We can deal with it tomorrow. Men say they want deliverance,
but not at the expense of forsaking their false religion and worship.
I thought that was a pretty good point. So Moses said, okay, be
it according to thy word. Now watch, look at verse 10.
That thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our
God. There's no God like our God. There's no God but our God. He wasn't Pharaoh's God. Remember
what Pharaoh said? Who is the Lord? Pharaoh said,
I know not the Lord, and I'm not gonna do what he says. Now
look at verse 21 here in chapter eight. I may have wrote that down wrong. Well, in verse 20, God said,
through Moses, let... I'm sorry? Verse 22. That don't look right either. Pharaoh called
for Moses and Aaron and treat the Lord that he may take away
the frogs from me. No, I'm sorry. Folks, I am sorry. I'm really struggling tonight.
My head's like in a vice. Verse 21, else if thou will not
let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee
and upon thy servants and upon thy people. and unto thy houses,
and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies,
and also the ground whereon they are. And I will sever in that
day the land of Goshen in which my people dwell, that no swarms
of flies shall be there. To the end," you're right, Larry,
verse 22, thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the midst of
the earth. I immediately thought about that
passage that says, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness
thereof. The Lord owns the whole shooting
match. It all belongs to him. And our God, he's not a far away
God. There was a song out years ago,
God's watching us from a distance. No, he's not. No, he's not. Our God is not an uninvolved
God. Some people say that God is one
who is Left things to be worked out by chance. Couldn't be further
from the truth. Our God is not one who does his
part and leaves the rest up for sinners to do. No, sir. No, sir. He's the Lord in the midst of
the earth. He does what he wills in the
armies of heaven and where? Among the inhabitants of the
earth and none can stay his hand. Okay, look at chapter nine, verse
27. And Pharaoh sent and called for
Moses and Aaron. You notice it's, when they first
went to him, now he's calling for them a lot. And Pharaoh sent
and called for Moses and Aaron. And he said unto them, I have
sinned this time. The Lord is righteous and I and
my people are wicked. That just almost seemed sarcastic
to me. He said, entreat the Lord for
it is enough. that there be no more mighty
thunderings in hell and I'll let you go and you shall stay
no longer. And Moses said unto him, as soon
as I am gone out of the city, I'll spread abroad my hands unto
the Lord and the thunder shall cease and neither shall there
be any more hell that thou mayest know that the earth is the Lord's,
it all belongs to him. And then lastly, as far as, knowing
or knowledge goes, Exodus chapter 14, verse four. When Israel was up against the
Red Sea, God said, look at this, verse four, and I will harden
Pharaoh's heart that he shall follow after them. And I will
be honored upon Pharaoh. Isn't that what Paul said? I'm
gonna raise thee up to show my power in thee. He said, I'll
be honored upon Pharaoh and upon all his host that the Egyptians
may know that I am the Lord. And they did so. You know, the
gospel reveals some things. There's some things that the
child of God is made to know. I know that God is God. There
was a time I didn't know that. I, like most everybody else in
religion, thought that God was someone who needed my help. He
needed my cooperation, my collaboration, especially in the salvation of
my soul. But I know now through the preaching
of the gospel, the true gospel, that God is God. He's God. He's my God and He's your God. He's the God of believers. He's
the God of unbelievers. He's the God of saved sinners.
He's the God of lost sinners because He's God. I know that
God is a sovereign God. There's no other type God. We
say sovereign God because most people don't know that God is
sovereign. We have to distinguish Him as
such. But God is a sovereign God. He
does what He's pleased to do. God is a God of justice. He will
by no means clear the guilty. There's only one God. There's
no God but God. He's the God of providence. Paul
said, all things work together to them that love the Lord, who
are thee called according to his purpose. And the reason that's
so is because God works together all things. He's the God of providence. All blessings and all cursings
come from him. All of those plagues, Every single
one of them came from him. God sent him. He's the one who
does the delivering. And he was behind them being
in bondage those years shortly after Joseph died. The believer
is made to know that. We know it now, God reveals it
to us in this life. But in the end, every tongue
is gonna confess it. And the last promise in Moses
gospel is found back in Exodus six, verse eight, if you turn
back there with me and I'll wrap this up. All God's people are made an
heir in Christ. He says in verse eight, and I'll
bring, I will bring you in into the land concerning the which
I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, and I'll
give it you for an heritage. I am the Lord. Now that word
heritage means inheritance. Child of God, Hear me when I
say, and believe me when I say, that all that is God's is yours
in Christ. Paul said, and if children, then
heirs, heirs of God, and join heirs with Christ. If so be that
we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together, Romans
8, 17. And this was all done in order
that Israel might enjoy that which God had promised to their
fathers. God says, I'll give it you for
an inheritance. Never forget that this inheritance
is a gift. It's not by works, it's not by
merit, but solely by sovereign grace. And again, we say sovereign
grace, It's the only kind of grace there is. Is this inheritance about earthly
riches? Well, I know the Lord owns the
cattle on a thousand hills. Is that what this heritage is?
No, I can assure you that when a believer leaves this life,
leaves this world, leaves this realm of time, there'll be no
desire for earthly things. There won't be any concern about
how much property they have or how much money they have in the
bank, no. There shouldn't be now, but sadly
there is. But our inheritance is Christ. Our inheritance is eternal life.
Our inheritance is perfect holiness. Our inheritance is a perfect
righteousness. Our inheritance is to be just
like Christ. You know what God said? You'll
be conformed to the image of God's dear son. Oh, I pray that
God may enable us to rejoice in his gospel. I do, don't you?
I love to hear the gospel preached. I really do. May God help us
to rejoice in our deliverance. I love to think about God delivering
me. God delivering me out of the
bondage and the burden of my sin. And what I love about it
so much, Sonia, is that I don't have anything to do with it.
I just simply believe and trust Christ. May God help us to rejoice
in our liberty. We've got freedom in Christ.
Not as an excuse to sin, shall we continue in sin, the grace
may abound, God forbid. But I'm not bound by the law,
do this and do that. I told a fellow one time that
believers live like they want to and he looked at me like I
had slapped him. And I said, God changes a believer's
want to. He makes them want to be honoring
unto God who loved them and gave himself for them. You see what
I mean? Liberty, liberty, freedom. May God enable us to rejoice
in our salvation. Rejoice in our heritage. Paul
said, for ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God. I'm so thankful for that. When
Christ, who is your life, shall appear. And he's going to, he's
going to. When Christ, who is your life,
shall appear, then you shall also appear with him. You put
these two words, in glory. In glory. to be with Christ in
glory. What an inheritance that is.
Okay, I'll stop there. And again, I apologize. I hope
that in spite of all this, that that was some kind of encouragement
and blessing to you. The plan is now for us to leave
in the morning. When I left tonight, Teresa was