Open with me to Matthew chapter
18. Matthew 18. We just looked at the ending
verses of this chapter on the subject of forgiveness for our
Bible study. That's what our Lord is dealing
with right here. But for our message, I want us
to focus on one verse in the middle of everything that he
said. And I pray the Lord will cause us to really see what this
truly means. It's verse 20, Matthew 18, verse
20 says, for where two or three are gathered
together in my name, There am I in the midst of them, where
two or three are gathered together in my name. And I pray that that's
the case this morning. Where two or three are gathered
together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. I want
us to look this morning at what it is to gather in his name. That's our subject, what it means
to gather in his name. But before we look at that, I
want to point out a couple of things. Number one, I want us
to realize the importance of gathering together for worship. I want us to maybe see this in
a way like we've never understood it before. I believe I see it
in a way like I've never understood it before. The importance of
gathering together for worship. Verse 20 says where two or three
are gathered together. In my name. There am I in the
midst of them. Our Lord has said that he would
never leave us. And never forsake us never. He said he is with us always. I love that story of brother
Maurice Montgomery was going off into the service, going off
into the military and his daddy was getting on a bus and his
dad said, son, don't ever forget, God goes everywhere. Lord will
be with you. He's with us always. But there
is a special blessing from the spirit of God. that feeds the
soul and makes worship a living, growing, profitable union with
God. And that special blessing is
an increase in faith. OK. Now, let me just repeat all
that. The Lord said he would never
leave us and never forsake us. He's with us always, but. There is a special blessing that
comes when we gather together and that special blessing is
an increase in faith. The faith that comes from God,
the faith that God gives when he is pleased to give it. It's
his to give. The apostles said, Lord, increase
our faith. What they were saying was it
is of you. It is yours to give. You give
it how you want to give it, when you want to give it, and in what
quantity you want to give it. So we're coming to you. We're
asking you and begging you to give it to us. And he will give
it to us. And he said this is how he would
give it to us. Turn with me, if you would, to
Romans chapter 10. Romans 10 verse 13 says, For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call
on him in whom they have not believed? This is faith, believing
God, believing Christ, believing on Christ. This is how faith
starts with the first grain of it. And this is how faith continues
until it gives way to sight. This is how it comes and this
is how it keeps on coming. Verse 13 says, whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall
they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall
they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall
they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sent? As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. But they have not all obeyed
the gospel. What is the command of the gospel?
Stop working and rest. It is finished and Christ is
the one that finished it. That is the command of the gospel. Verse 16 says, But they have
not all obeyed the gospel, for Isaiah said, Lord, who hath believed
our report? Watch verse 17. So then faith
cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Faith, true
faith in Christ, true faith in Christ. True believing on Christ, that
ability to truly trust that man. We have a lot of politicians
that I just don't trust. I just don't trust them. The ability to truly trust this
man. In whatever happens, in whatever
circumstance takes place to truly cast your all on this man, not
in theory, not in doctrine and not in religion, in reality,
I mean, cast your all on this man. That is what separates God's
children from the rest of this sinful world. That's what separates. Outside of faith in Christ, there's
no difference in the center that has been saved by grace and the
center that has been left to die in his or her sin. We all
come from the same lump. And we all look like the same
thing in the flesh. We all act like the same thing
and we all do the same thing. Paul said, are we better than
they know? No. But when the spirit of Christ
comes to a child of God, he brings faith. He brings faith. The Lord said, when my spirit
comes to you, he will convince you of some things. When the
spirit comes, some convincing takes place. And he does it every time he
comes. When the spirit meets with God's people, they walk
out with a little more faith. That's why we're constantly begging,
Lord, please meet with us. Please send your spirit to us.
Please help us. Every time he comes, he brings
faith and that faith, that convincing is what sets God's people apart
from the rest. We are sanctified through faith. We're set apart through faith.
And it's critical. It's critical. It is the good
work of God in his people that brings the good work of God out
of his people. And that good work is total faith
in Christ. That's the good work. Total faith
in Christ. Let me prove that to you. All
right. Turn with me over to John 6. Now here's the commandment of
the Lord. John 6, verse 27, he said, Labor not for the meat which
perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you. For him hath God
the Father sealed. He said, labor for it. Labor, work, work, do the work,
go to work, labor. Verse 28, Then said they unto
him, What shall we do that we might work the works of God?
Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God,
that you believe on him whom he had sent. He said, Here is
the good work of God. You believe totally on the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's what God the Father did.
He believed totally on the Lord. He rested on the Lord Jesus Christ.
He committed the work to Him and rested. Rest totally on His
work. Rest totally in His Word. He said labor for that. Don't
turn, but in Hebrews 4, it says labor to enter into that rest.
I think that is such an interesting way to say it. Talking about
rest, labor to enter, work at not working, work at resting,
work at it. How do we labor to enter into
that rest? Here's how we do it. We beg the
Holy Spirit of Christ to give faith to us. To enable us to
do that. And we bow to and we heed the
word of God on how he said he would give that faith to us.
He said, faith comes by hearing the word of God preached. He said in Hebrews 10, verse
24, let's provoke one another to good works, let's provoke
one another to good works. And what are those good works?
It goes on there to say, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves
together. as the manner of some is, but
exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the
day approaching." Wow, why is that so critical? It's because
our Lord said, where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them. And when the Spirit of Christ
is in the midst of us, faith comes. Our Lord said all manner
of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven, but the blasphemy against
the Holy Ghost. Not possessing the faith that
he gives that causes sinners to look to Christ. So believing on Christ, that's
what matters. That's all that matters. Believing on the Lord
Jesus Christ, that Pharisee and publican in the temple is proof
of that. That thief on the cross is proof of that. Believe on
Christ. Now, let me just say this. We enjoy our private time with
the Lord. I'm not putting that down in
any way, shape or form. We enjoy that one-on-one prayer
with him. We're commanded to get alone
in our closet and pour out our heart to him. And we enjoy the
reading of his word and we enjoy these moments where we're just
with him alone. But let's understand the importance
of gathering together. Let's understand the purpose
of it. And let's not substitute alone time for gathering together
time. Our Lord said, where two or three
are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Now, what does it mean to gather together in his name? We see
the importance of doing it. What does it mean? How do we
gather in his name? Let me first tell you what it
does not mean. It does not mean gathering in
the name of Jesus. I know that sounds like that's
what it means, but that is not what it means. There are people all over this
city, all over this country, all over this world gathering
in the name of Jesus. who are not gathering together
in his name. That name is everywhere. That
name is everywhere. But here's the problem. It's
a different Jesus. That's the problem. That name
is everywhere. But they are gathering around
a different Jesus. The Apostle Paul said there are
other Jesuses out there. That's another one. That's what
he said. The apostle John said, there are many antichrist out
there, not Christ against Christ and not Christ. And if we're
gathering around a different one, then we're not gathering
around this one. And if we're not gathering around this one,
then we're not gathering together in his name. So what is it to truly gather
together in his name? I'm going to give you three things.
And then I'm going to support those three things from the word.
OK, here's what it is. Number one, it's to gather in
his truth. Number two, it's to gather in
his salvation. And number three, it's to gather
in his glory. In John 14, six, he said, I am
the way. The truth. And the life. If we gather in the truth of
his word, gathering together in his salvation, he's the way. Acknowledging in unity and oneness
that it is his glory alone. Then we are gathering together
in his name, in his name. Now turn with me if you would
to Psalm 138. Psalm 138 verse two, I will worship toward thy holy
temple and praise thy name for thy loving kindness and for thy
truth. For thou hast magnified thy word
above all thy name. I'll praise you for the truth
of this word because you have magnified your word above all
your name. If we want to worship in his
name, we must worship in the truth of his word. This is his
name. This is his name. Revelation
19 says his name is called. The Word of God. In the beginning
was the Word. The Word was with God. The Word
was God. This is his name. This is his
character. These are his attributes. What
this means is this is who he is. Who am I? Gabe. That's who I am. This is who
he is. This declares who he is and all of his holiness, all
of his righteousness. Jeremiah 23 says his name shall
be called. The Lord, our righteousness. If he has magnified his word
above all his name, if his word is what declares his name. Then
that means this is his name. He said, I'm the way I am the
truth. Pilate asks, or one of them asks,
what is truth? He said, I am the truth. To gather in his name is to gather
in the truth that he has declared, the truth of who he is. This
is Emmanuel. This is Emmanuel. God with us. This is not God's ambassador
from heaven. I feel like I say that almost
every single message. And the reason I feel the need
to say that is because nobody else is. This is God Almighty come down. This is God manifest in the flesh. What should we call this Jesus?
This Lord Jesus Christ. What is his name? Holy and reverend
is his name. If we gather together in his
name, we are gathering in the name of the holy God. We are
gathering in the name of the judge of the earth, the judge
that must do right, the judge that must punish sin to gather
in his name. I'll tell you this, this is one
good way to say it together. If we're going to gather in his
name, here's what it means. We're not going to gather in
our own. We're not gathering in our own name, we slay our
own name like John the Baptist wouldn't even acknowledge his
own name. What's your name? Who cares? If we acknowledge anything about
ourselves, we acknowledge with David against thee and the only
have I sinned and done this evil in my sight. that thou mightest
be justified when thou speakest and be clear when thou judgest."
David said, you are God, you're my judge, and whatever you do
with me, you're just in it. That's gathering in his name. When we meet in the truth of
who he is, we are by deduction meeting in
the truth of who we are. To meet in his name and acknowledge
truly who he is is to Not meet in our own name is to truly acknowledge
what we are. We have nothing to gather in
of our own. We're empty centers who need
to be filled. We're naked centers who need
to be clothed. We are blind centers who need
sight. Deaf centers who need to hear.
Lame centers who cannot come. We have to be brought. In our
bodies dwell no good thing. In our hands, no price we bring. He is the holy God, judge of
this earth. We are wretched sinners at his
mercy, and to gather in his truth is to gather in his name, not
our own. Turn with me to Acts chapter
4. Acts chapter 4 verse 10 says, Be it known unto you all, and
to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ
of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead,
even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is
the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which has become
the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in
any other, for there is none other name under heaven given among
men, whereby we must be saved. To gather in his name is to gather
in his salvation. His salvation, no other, no other. Call His name Jesus for He shall
save His people from their sins. People say that they are meeting
in the name of Jesus. That has to be the most common
name on earth. It has to be the most commonly
spoken name on earth. People say they are meeting in
the name of Jesus. Listen, that very name means
Savior. It means Jehovah is salvation. That's what the name means. That
name Jesus means Jehovah is salvation. And men and women say that they're
meeting in his name, but then everything that comes out of
their mouth declares that you have to save yourself. They gather together in agreement
that if you get down to it, Jehovah is not our salvation. We're our
own salvation. That's meeting in another name.
They'll say, now he is salvation. Absolutely. Yes, he is salvation. Sure he is. But it's all up to
you. What? That's another name. That's not
his name. His name is truth. His name is salvation. Accomplished
salvation. Finished salvation. To declare
his name is to declare that mercy has been given. I wish the world
could hear this. It's not available. It's secured, it's accomplished,
mercy has already been given. Grace has already been granted,
blood has already been applied. Righteousness has already robed,
his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, because that's what
he has secured for his people. Peace, that's his name, peace,
peace with God, that's his name. Go with me to Psalm 96. Psalm 96 verse 7, it says, Give
unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the
Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory
due unto his name. And if you have the center reference
there, you'll see that do unto means of. It translates of the
glory of his name. Bring an offering and come into
his courts. To gather together in his name
is to gather together in his glory. Who gets the glory? That's
the question. Who gets the glory? That's what
it all comes down to. If man gets the glory, then we
are not meeting in his name. If man gets the glory, we're
not meeting in his name, we're meeting in our own name. God
the Father has highly exalted him and given him a name which
is above every name. And the way that we can tell
whether or not we are gathering together in that name, his name
is, at the hearing of his name, our knees, the knees of our hearts
will bow. And our tongues will confess
that He alone is Lord. He alone is Lord. That means He alone is worthy. He alone is sovereign. He alone
is able. He alone is glorious in power. He alone. Look at Psalm 115 with
me. Psalm 115 verse one says. Not unto us, O Lord, not unto
us. But unto thy name, give glory. For thy mercy. For thy salvation. And for that truth, say glory,
salvation and truth. That's gathering in His name. And if God has caused us to do
that today, I pray that, and I believe in my soul that two
or three or more, I pray all of us, are gathering together
in His name. If God has caused us to do that,
then His promise to us is He is right here in the midst of
us. He is right here. And that's a reality. Elisha, you remember that servant
that, and I'm done, my notes are done, I oughta just stop
and let you go, but I'm gonna keep talking. Just a second more. Elisha was the king of Syria,
was mad at him, and wanted to take him and send his army to
surround the city that Elisha was in. And his servant went
out, just scared to death, and he ran out saying, Master, what
are we gonna do? And Elisha said, Lord, open his eyes, and he might
see. Wouldn't you love, honestly, our Lord said where two or three
are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst. Wouldn't you
love to? Lord, we say respectfully. He's
here with us. He's right here with us right
now. We're looking so forward to seeing him. We look so forward
to going to glory to be with him. What's it going to be like
to see him? Well, he is right now in the
midst of us. I think all the time about with
a number no man can number, how am I going to get a seat at the
throne right there at his feet? Like if I'm in the back of a
crowd that no man, it's not like that. He's in the midst of every
assembly this morning that is gathered together in his name. Everyone gets an audience with
him. And if if Lord would just give us those spiritual eyes
like that servant to have to so we could see the reality of
what's going on right now, we would say he is right here in
the midst of us. I pray that's the case, I pray
the spirit of our Lord is with us and I pray that he has blessed
us with his truth, his salvation and his mercy. Amen.