Thank you both so much. I enjoyed
that. Turn with me, if you would, back
to Psalm 133. Oh, I pray the Lord will let us enter
into this precious psalm. Psalm 133, verse 1 says, Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. It is like the precious
ointment upon the head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's
beard that went down to the skirts of his garments. as the dew of
Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion, For
there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore. I have something tonight that
I pray will be good and pleasant to us. Very good and pleasant. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. in a world that is
so full of separation right now. Just so full of separation. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. When you look up the
word brethren, one of the definitions is those who are of the same
father, our father. Brethren are all those who share
the same father. Behold how good it is for brethren,
those who are born into the same family, born into the same name,
Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together
in unity. The word unity means one. One. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in one. What is our one? What is our
oneness? What is our unity? It's a person. It's a person. Behold how good
and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ. The word
dwell means live. That's what it means. Live, behold
how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to live together
in Christ. You can ask a true believing,
looking, trusting child of God. You can ask, where do you live? and his or her answer can be,
it truthfully can be in Christ. If you really think about that,
honestly, his or her answer can be in Christ. Well, I thought you lived in
Kingsport. Nope, I reside in Kingsport. I live in Christ. I live and move and have my being
in my Lord Jesus Christ, in the Lord Jesus Christ. Because of the world that we
currently reside in, we may end up being separated from some
things. We may end up being separated
from some things, certain habits and traditions that we've had
all of our lives, certain freedoms that we've had so far all of
our lives, certain places, certain people, but we will never be
separated from the Lord Jesus Christ. Never. Nothing can separate us from
Christ. Nothing can separate us from
each other in Christ. It doesn't matter whether we're
here, there, or anywhere. Doesn't matter where we are.
It honestly doesn't. All of God's people dwell safely,
and that's an important word to me. All of God's people dwell
safely together in the Lord Jesus Christ. We truly do honestly
do live in the Lord Jesus Christ. It's where we dwell and it's
good. and it's pleasant. So good and
so pleasant. Turn with me, if you would, to
Romans 8. Romans 8, verse 35, it says, Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or even
sword? As it is written, for thy sake
we are killed all the day long. We are accounted as sheep for
the slaughter. He said, it appears we're just
sitting ducks. That's what it looks like. It appears as though we're just
an easy target. Cause we're not gonna do anything.
We can't do anything. It looks like we're sheep lined
up for the slaughter. But in verse 37, he said, we're
not. The slaughter has already taken
place. The lamb has already been slain. Verse 37 says, nay, in
all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that
loved us. How did he love us? How did he
show his love to us? How did he prove his love to
us? He laid down his life for us. For that reason, God's apostle
said in verse 38, I am persuaded that neither death nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature
shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is
in Christ Jesus, our Lord." Nothing is able to separate us from the
life that we live together. And I'm talking about the eternal
life. The spiritual life, the true
life that has been given to us and secured for us in the person
of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is our one. Nothing can separate us from
him. He is our unity. Look with me
at Ephesians one. Ephesians chapter 1, verse 1 says, Paul, an apostle
of Jesus Christ, by the will of God, to the saints which are
at Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. He said, I'm speaking to every
soul who has been placed by God the Father into the good and
pleasant unity of Christ our Lord. That's who I'm talking
to. Verse two, he said, grace be to you and peace from God,
our father, and from the Lord, Jesus Christ. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, who is our
unity. I was reading this earlier today,
and one of the things that stands out to me about Ephesians 1,
and I believe it's one of the reasons why we love it so much,
is because it says His name so many times. It says in Him so
many times. Verse 4 says, "...according as
He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
Himself according to the good pleasure of His will, to the
praise of the glory of His grace wherein He hath made us accepted
in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption through His blood,
the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace, wherein
he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having
made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his
good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself, that in
the dispensation of the fullness of times, he might gather together
in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and
which are on earth, even in Him, in whom also we have obtained
an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him
who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will,
that we should be to the praise of His glory who first trusted
in Christ. in whom you also trusted after
that you heard the word of truth the gospel of your salvation
in whom also after that you believed you were sealed with that holy
spirit of promise which is the earnest of our inheritance until
the redemption of the purchased possession unto the praise of
His glory. Wherefore, I also, after I heard
of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints,
cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in
my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being
enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling,
And what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the
saints? And what is the exceeding greatness
of His power to usward who believe according to the working of His
mighty power, which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him
from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly
places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion
and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also
in that which is to come, and hath put all things under His
feet and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church,
which is His body. the fullness of him that filleth
all in all." What he said was, it's all in him. All of it. He is our one. He is our oneness. He is our
unity. He is our life. He's our life. He's everything that is good
and pleasant to us. All of it is in Him, and we are
in Him together in one. Turn with me to Ephesians 4. Ephesians 4, verse 1, Paul said,
I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you that you walk
worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called. With all lowliness
and meekness with long suffering for bearing one another in love,
endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of
peace. There is one body. We may be separated into different
congregations all over the world. And within the congregations,
we may be separated into different households, but there's only
one body. One body of God's believing people. It's the body of Christ Himself. He's the head and we're the body. Verse 4 says, and one spirit. We may have different flesh,
we may have different thoughts in the flesh, we may have different
feelings in the flesh, but among God's true people, there's only
one spirit. It's the spirit of Christ Himself.
The very Spirit of Christ Himself. Verse four says, even as you
are called in one hope of your calling, God's people may be
all over the place in this world, but they all are looking to one
end. One expected anticipation, Christ
Himself. The mark, the prize, the finish
line. None of God's people are looking
to a place. When you think of heaven, are
you thinking of a place? None of God's people are looking
to a thing. All of God's people are looking
to the only hope they have, Christ himself, unity with him, oneness
with him, him in us, us in him. That's the hope of glory for
all of God's people. Verse 5 says, there is one Lord,
Christ Himself. God's people will never separate
over that. All of them in blessed unity will cry, this same Jesus
of Nazareth, whom we crucified with our own sins. God the Father
hath raised Him up and highly exalted Him and made Him to be
both Lord and Christ. There is one Lord God of heaven
and earth and His name is Jesus Christ. So good to dwell in unity over
that. Verse five says, there is one faith, the faith of Christ. That's the only faith that there
is. All of God's people will live
together in unity, precious unity, crying, it's not our faith, it's
His. I didn't author it, He did. I
didn't give it, He did. I didn't perform it, He did. So good for God's people to say
in blessed unity, there's only one faith, only one faith. It's the faith of Christ alone. Verse five says there's one baptism,
one immersion. It's the immersion of the Holy
spirit, taking a center and plunging that center into the person and
the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Immersion into His life. That's
what God's Holy Spirit does for us. He takes us and plunges us
into the person, into the life, and into the death, and into
the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Water baptism is not the true
baptism. There's only one true baptism
and it's the work of God's Spirit putting all of His people, immersing
all of His people into the Lord Jesus Christ. Water baptism is
just a confession of the true baptism of the Spirit. That's
all it is. It's just an outward announcement
of what the Spirit inwardly has done. Water baptism doesn't wash
away sins. Sin can only be washed away in
the blood. Our Lord didn't say, when I see the water, I'll pass
over you. He said, when I see the blood. So there's one baptism and it's
the baptism of Christ himself. And verse six says, there is
one God and father of all who is above all and through all
and in you all. And all of God's people in pleasant
unity cry, amen. Amen, they don't cry, we won't
have that man reign over us. All of them say, amen. All of
them say, that's my life. That's where I live. Where do
you live? Right there. That's where I dwell. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in the only thing that matters,
the unity of being in Christ, being found in Him, being found
in His will. All of God's people are so glad
that it's not their will, it's His. All of God's people are
so glad. Do you know how things would
go for us if it was left up to our will? Horribly wrong. Horribly wrong. All so glad to
be found in His choice. Aren't you so thankful the choice
is not yours? Aren't you so glad the message
is not, if you'll choose Him, you can have Him? You know what
this sinful flesh would do? Tis not that I would choose thee.
I could never be. All of God's people are in unity
in his body and his blood and his sacrifice and everything
that he gave to us, all of his acceptance, everything we read
in Ephesians one. So go back to Psalm 133. Psalm 133 verse one says, behold
how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together
in unity. It is like the precious ointment
upon the head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard
that went down to the skirts of his garment. He said the work
of Christ the blood of Christ, the mercy of Christ, the grace
of Christ. He said, it's like the oil that
was poured on the high priest's head who made intercession for
the people. Aaron was the priest and they
anointed his head with oil. All of that blessing, what was
poured on his head, it ran all the way down to the skirts of
his garment. and what God the Father poured on Christ our head. He's our head and we're his body. And everything that God the Father
poured on Christ our head, our high priest who made all that
intercession for us, all the blessing of God the Father on
him. Ephesians 1, we just read that
all spiritual blessings are in one place. All of the love that
God, the father poured on him. We read in Romans eight, that
nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in
one place. All of the goodness that God,
the father poured on him, everything that was poured on his head,
it ran all the way down to his body. float all the way down
to His people, those united people in Him. All of the blessing that
He received, they received. Verse three says, it's just like
the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains
of Zion, just like the snow-capped mountains, that dew, that rain,
all that moisture comes down and it collects on those mountains.
And then it melts into rivers of living water that flows down
to the people. That's the good and pleasant
blessing of the Lord that flows down to every soul that's in
Him. All the goodness of God comes
to all the people of God through Christ our Lord. The end of verse
three, he said, for there in him, in Christ, the Lord commanded
the blessing, even life forevermore. Behold how good and how pleasant
it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. Thank God for it. Thank God for it. Let's not forget
to thank God for it. This is heaven on earth, the
unity of God's people that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And we need to thank God for it. We need to dwell together.
We need to guard it. We need to love it, we need to
live it. May God unite us in Him for Christ's sake, for the
Lord Jesus Christ's sake. All right, Brother Eddie, you
come and lead us in a closing hymn.