Turn with me back to Ruth chapter
one. I want to show you. How my study
and went for our message tonight, I'm just going to. Recount the
whole experience for you. Whenever I start looking for
a text and a message. I usually start with prayer. I try to remember to start with
prayer. If we are going to have a message,
if it really is a message, then it's going to have to come from
God. If it really is a message, it has to come from God. True
messages are given by his spirit through his word to the heart
of his preacher for the souls of his people. So we begin with calling on him
and asking him to speak to us and give us his message for the
hour. That's what I want. That's what
we all need is his message for the hour. And we know that he is going
to give us that message through the word, not through commentaries. Or study guides. But through
the word, through his word. So searching for a message begins
with prayer and reading his word. That's how, that's how we begin. For me, where I go in the word
depends on what I'm feeling at that moment. It just depends on what I'm feeling
at that moment. There are 66 books in here. And the way that my Bible is
laid out, I have 1545 pages to choose from. So I tend to start looking based
on my own needs. I need the message to speak to
me first, or I won't feel that I have a message if it does not
If I feel like I'm trying to just force an outline through
and just try to come up with an outline, then I don't have
anything. It needs to be a message to me
so I can feel that I have a message for you. So that's how studying
goes for me. And I want to show you how studying
went for me for this message tonight. It started with me needing my
Lord Jesus Christ. I need my Lord. I need my Lord. I get in places, and I get in
moments, and I know everybody thinks that the preacher's just,
or I don't know, maybe you don't. I used to. I used to think the
preacher is the solid one, you know, and he's just in the word
all the time, and he's, and that's just not how it is. Elijah was
a man subject to like passions just like the rest of us, and
we're talking about Elijah. But I get in moments where I need
my Lord and my God, like Thomas said, my Lord and my God. And
that's how this message started. I needed my Lord Jesus Christ
and I needed his people. Now, I'm just going to be candid
with you tonight. I'm just going to talk to you
pretty candidly tonight, but I just want you all to know I
need you. I really need you. I don't just
want you to show up. I need you to show up because
I need you. I need to gather like this with
you. And it's because I know the reason
why I know that when we do this, I believe we're in the presence
of our Lord. And I believe this is why God's
people are so blessed and comforted. Don't you feel? I feel safe in
here. I feel safe in this room. Does
that make sense? I feel so restful. There's just, there can be so
much stuff going on out there where you just, but in here it's
different. And I firmly believe that this
is because based on the promise of our Lord, we are in his presence. I believe that he is gathered
with us and I want to be in the place where he is and I want
to be where his people are. And because I was feeling that
in the first place, I turned to Ruth chapter one. This is
the first place that I turned for this message. I've told you
before that I have moments where I'm just all over the scripture.
Well, not this time. First place, Ruth one. I knew why I was going to Ruth
chapter one, verse 16. It says, Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee
or to return from following after thee. Lord, please don't ever
leave me. And don't ever let me leave you.
Can you enter into that? Please don't ever leave me. And don't ever let me leave you.
Don't let me turn from following you. Don't let me veer off. I'm begging. Don't let me wander away. Don't let my heart grow cold
like it's so prone to do. Don't let me enter into that
lukewarm state. Do you know what a lukewarm state
is? It's when you don't care. You even know I'm not connected
with my Lord, I'm not this, I'm not that, and you don't care.
It's not hot or cold. If you're really, really hot,
you care. And if you're really, really
cold, you care. But when everything's lukewarm,
you're not even, you just don't even care. Lord, please don't let my heart
stop burning within me. While we pray for a revival out
there, I think about it, I mention it sometimes in my prayer here,
talking about a revival of your word. Lord, send a revival in
here. Send a revival right in here.
Verse 16, Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee or to return
from following after thee, for whither thou goest, I will go. Lord, wherever you go, that's
where I want to go. That's where I want to go. She said, wherever you lodge. That's where I want to lodge. Lord, wherever your house is,
I want to be in that house. Lord, wherever you have chosen
to put your name there and make your presence known there, that's
where I want to be. The end of verse 16 says, thy
people shall be my people and thy God my God. I want God's
people to be my people. I do, I want God's people to
be my people. We all have acquaintances in
the world with people who we know and we enjoy knowing. We have acquaintances in this
world with people who we very much enjoy knowing. But if they
do not truly know and believe and bow before Jesus Christ,
our God, there is a disconnect. There just is. Something is just not right.
It's just not right. You can care about each other. I mean, I'm telling you, there's
so many people I care about. I care about them. You can care
about each other, but you can't understand each other. You can do things together, but
you can't be in unity. There's a brick wall between
God's people in this world, and sometimes you cannot really put
your finger on why, but for some reason, you just cannot feel
comfortable around those who don't belong to Christ. You just
can't really let down and feel comfortable. But when God's people
get together with God's people, life is there. Life is there and God's people
know it. The life of Christ is there. Something real is there and God's
people know it. They walk together in agreement.
They don't even have to say anything to each other. They just know
we're in agreement. They're in fellowship together.
They're in love together. And they very happily say to
each other, your God is my God. The Lord Jesus Christ said to
Mary Magdalene, after he arose from the grave, he said, you
go tell my brethren that my heavenly father is now their heavenly
father. My God is now your God. That transaction has been made.
Acceptance into our family has been secured. And that security
is all because of the fact that where I died, they died. You go tell my brethren that.
Where I was buried, they were buried. Where I arose, they arose. Because of that now, where I
live, They live. I need that. I need that. I sincerely need that. I need
to hear that. I need to know that. I need to
gather with men and women who need to hear that and need to
know that. I had just a precious, enjoyable
phone call yesterday. I got a phone call. A phone call
came to the church here and I didn't get it. I had to return the call.
But it was from a man and his wife in Fresno, California, which
if you look at a map is halfway between almost halfway between
Brother John Reeves in Sacramento rescue and Brother Kevin Thacker
down in San Diego. It's kind of right in the middle.
And I waited just a second before I called him back because I had
to prepare myself for the lashing that I thought was coming. And I called this man back and
he said, I called you because a couple of weeks ago you preached
in Grace Baptist Church in Danville, Kentucky and I was watching the
streaming. And he said, I was so blessed, I just wanted to
thank you for the message. And I said, I'm so glad to hear
that. And his precious wife is very, very greatly suffering
from cancer right now. This is its fourth time to return.
And they used to travel quite a bit to rescue, and they loved
Don and Henry. and the men before, and he said,
if it's at all possible, we're gonna try to come to that conference
in July, and love to meet you, and said, I pray the Lord will
give you strength, and give her strength to come. But I was on
speakerphone, and I had a chance to talk with her, and she thanked
me, and it just touched me, it just touched me so much. I could,
over the phone, I believe she teared up. And she said, I love
you. And I said, I love you too. It's all because of that man.
And that love is real. I love him. If they love him,
I love them. In Christ, there's unity. I mean,
there's unity in love. Lord, keep us, verse 16, Ruth
said, entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following
after thee. For whither thou goest, I will
go, and whither thou lodgest, I will lodge. Thy people shall
be my people, and thy God my God. Where thou diest, will I
die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more
also, if ought but death part thee and me. Lord, please let me say that
concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and his people the rest of my
days. Please let me say that. Lord,
if you take your hand off of me, I'll be Orpah. If you take your hand off of
me, I'll be Orpah. Verse 14 says, with the kiss
of death, Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, and that means she was saying
goodbye. And that's the kiss of death, just like Judas. Walked
right up and kissed the Lord. The kiss of death, Orpah turned
and went her way. If God keeps us like he kept
Ruth, that's only gonna be by the grace of God. I believe that
with all of my heart. If I'm kept, it's not going to
be because I'm a good person or I'm working hard to keep myself
or any other reason. It's going to be by the grace
of God. Lord, keep me, keep us, keep
us near you, keep us cleaving to you. Don't let us go. Keep us all the way to glory.
Keep us all the way to glory. Carry us all the way home for
Christ's sake. For the death, burial and resurrection
of Christ's sake. For the blood of Christ's sake,
the blood that's covered all of our sin. For the finished salvation of
Christ's sake, for this merciful substitution of Christ's sake. Keep us, carry us all the way
home, carry us all the way home. That's where my heart started
in studying for this message. In thinking about that, this
glorious unity with Christ and his people. and Him keeping us
and carrying us all the way, all the way home. In thinking
about that, I started getting excited about glory. All right,
I'm being candid. I'm letting you in on my study
here. I was in my study getting excited about glory. We can have unity with Christ
and His people right now in this wicked, wretched, evil flesh
that we live in. We can have it right now. But
in glory, we're going to have fellowship
with Christ and His people without sin. Without sin. The sin will finally be gone. The sin that has already been
dealt with. Already been judged in Christ,
but the sin that we have to live out for the rest of our days,
it will finally be gone. And the thought of that excites
me. It excites me so much. I'm so ready to be done with
sin. I think I'm ready at an earlier age than I thought I
would be ready. But I'm really ready to be done
with sin, and I thought I believe I can enter into some degree
to what the Apostle Paul said and felt in Philippians chapter
one. Turn with me over there to Philippians
chapter one. Philippians 1 verse 26, I'm sorry,
verse 21. He said, for me to live is Christ
and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this
is the fruit of my labor. Yet what I shall choose, I know
not. For I am in a strait betwixt
two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which
is far better. Nevertheless, to abide in the
flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I
know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance
and joy of faith. that your rejoicing may be more
abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again."
What he's saying is, I have a true desire in my heart to leave this
wicked, evil world and to go be with Christ and his people
in sinless, eternal glory. I have a sincere desire for that.
But he said, I'm torn between two feelings. Because he said, I still have
a true, sincere desire to stay right here to be with you. I believe I sincerely understand
what he's saying. As great as my desire is to be
done with this evil, wicked world, evenly great is my desire to
stay right here and be with my wife because I love her. I desire to stay right here and
be with my children because I love them. I desire to stay right here and
to be with you because I love you. Love is a strong bond, true
love, the love of Christ. Love for Christ, love in Christ,
it is the greatest bond God's people will ever know. Nothing
will separate us from the love of Christ. The love of God, which
is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. When the time comes for God to
call one of you home. If he calls you home before he
calls me home. When the time comes for God to call one of
you home, I'm going to miss you. I mean it. And I'm going to cry
for you. And I'm going to sorrow over
you. I know that it will be better for you. I know it will. But I won't be able to help it.
In Christ, God has put love in my heart for you. Love for the true and living
God that you bow to and worship and serve and love for you. Love
for you because you bow to worship and serve the true and living
God. Love because your God is my God. And where he is and where his
people are, that's where all of God's people want to be. So that led me to this thought. Before I started writing anything
on paper, I think I only turned to three scriptures. I turned to Ruth chapter one,
I turned to Philippians one, and I turned to Revelation 21.
Turn with me over there to Revelation 21. Thinking about the desire of
all of God's people to be with Christ and to be with his people
in his heavenly kingdom. And thinking about the fact that
one by one, he takes all of us home. It'd be fine with me if
he would just come back and scoop all of us up together and take
us home. But until all of his elect are
born into this world, that's not gonna happen. And if He has
more souls to save, amen. He's going to lovingly come and
get us one by one, and He's going to carry us home. And when we
all get there together, when we all finally lodge where He
lodges, and His home is our home, this is what it will be. This
is what our blessed union with Him and His people in His place
of glory that He has prepared for us will be. Revelation 21
verse 3. And I heard a great voice out
of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,
and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people,
and God Himself shall be with them and be their God. And God
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. Now listen to this.
And there shall be no more death. There shall be no more death.
Christ's death on the cross was the end of all death for his
people. In glory with Him, not one soul
will ever die again. Not one animal will ever die
again. Not one flower or blade of grass will ever die
again. There shall be no more Verse 4 says, neither sorrow. We will never have one depressing
thought ever again. Our Lord uses these things that
happen to us to draw us to Him. You know why I needed my Lord
and I needed His people? It's because we get into these
places of sorrow and depression, and that's what drives us to
Him. And it's good. If that's what it's doing, it's
good. But in that day when we are there, one with Him physically,
not just spiritually, but physically, we will never have one depressing
thought ever again. We will never know the feeling
of sadness ever again, never again. Verse four says, there'll
be no more crying, neither shall there be any more pain. No inner
pain, no outer pain. There'll never be thorns for
pricking ever again. Thorns on a rose stem came from
sin. No more pain. Nothing that could
bring the feeling of pain to God's people. A dog won't even
bark at them. Nothing. Nothing. No biting. No attacking of any kind from
anything. Peace on all four sides. He will
demand peace. The end of verse four says it's
because the former things are passed away, the things of the
curse, the things that the curse of sin brought to God's people.
Look at verse 22. It says, Revelation 21 verse
22, it says, and I saw no temple therein for the Lord God almighty
and the lamb are the temple of it. We will worship in him. And the city had no need of the
sun, neither of the moon to shine in it for the glory of God did
lighten it and the lamb is the light thereof. We will see in
him. And the nations of them which
are saved shall walk in the light of it and the kings of the earth
do bring their glory and honor into it. Who are the kings of
the earth? All of God's people. Thou hast made us to be kings
and priests to our God. Verse 25, I just love this. The
gates of it shall not be shut at all by day. There shall be
no night there. That means everything's conquered. They shall bring the glory and
honor of the nations into it, and there shall in no wise enter
into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination
or maketh a lie, but they which are written in the Lamb's book
of life." Glory and honor. That's what existence with Christ
will be. That's all that existence with
Christ will be. Look with me quickly at chapter
22 verse 3. It says there shall be no more
curse. But the throne of God and of
the Lamb shall be in it and his servants shall serve him. And they shall see his face. And his name shall be in their
foreheads, they will think on him continually. They shall see
his face. His name shall be in their foreheads.
There shall be no night there. They need no candle, neither
light of the sun, for the Lord God giveth them light and they
shall reign forever and ever. I need that. I need to be joined to that.
Lord, please just let us be with you. Just let us be joined to you. Entreat us not to leave you. Keep us, speak peace to us through
the blood of your mercy and grace. And don't let us go. Don't let
us go. Is that our cry to Him? If so, here is His answer to
us. Chapter 22, verse 20 says, He which testifies these things
saith, Surely, I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
be with you all. Amen. Let's all stand together.