Let me say what a pleasure it
is to be here. When Gabe called me a few weeks
ago, I rejoiced in knowing that I was going to come to be with
our brothers and sisters in Christ. This is what true worship is,
is gathering together in the name of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ, and telling one another what God has done for
us. I want to look at three astonishing
statements found in God's Word. And as I prepared this, you open
the Word of God and everything in it astounds you. I mean, there's
no dulls, there's no lulls, there's no, well, that shouldn't be there,
we can do without that, no. From Genesis 1 in the beginning
to the last chapter of Revelation, This is an astounding book that
God has sent to us. But we're only going to look
at three. The first one is found in John chapter 17. What an astounding statement
that is made by our Lord Jesus Christ. John chapter 17 verse
23. If you read that whole chapter,
and we'll deal with a little bit of it here later, but if
you read that whole chapter, our Lord is telling the Father
what He's done for His people. Verse 23, I in them, and thou
in me, that they may be made perfect in one. And that the
world may know that thou hast sent me. Now look at this astounding
statement. And has loved them as thou hast
loved me. I just can't get over that. That God loves me. And if you're one of his, it
says thou has loved them and that's who he's talking about.
His individual sheep. his particular church, thou has
loved them as thou has loved me. This is astounding. This is astounding to the point
that if it were not spoken by the Lord himself, and if it were
not written in God's holy word, we would not declare it. We would
be as scared, afraid to even mention it. that God loved me
in the same room, the same stead, with the same love, that he loved
his only begotten Son. How's that possible? I in them, and thou in me, that
they may be perfect in one. This is the relationship that
we have in Christ Jesus. This is the relationship that
God gives us. We are sons of God. The scripture
says we are made kings and priests under our God. We are sons of
God. That's who we are. Oh, but let us understand that it
is not this thing that I decide for myself. I didn't put myself
in this family. Someone put me there. The Father loves me as the Father
loves His only begotten Son. Can we get a hold of that? Do
I know? Do I have any idea of how to
try to explain or describe the love of God? The only way that
I know The only way that I can is to use God's own words. I
can tell you or I can show you, oh look what beautiful mountains
that God has made. He did this because He loved
me. But does that describe His love?
No. We read in Matthew chapter 3 and verse 17, this is when
our Lord was being baptized. He came unto John, and John took
him into the water and baptized him, and Matthew recorded it
this way. It says, And lo, a voice from
heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And when he looks upon me, standing
in the Lord Jesus Christ, he says the same thing concerning
me. And he says the same thing concerning
you, if you're in Christ. The Father loved the Son from all eternity. You explain
that. I dare not try. The Father loved
the Son when He said, let us make man. Before the foundation
of the world, before anything was ever created, the Father
loved the Son. Well, he loved me in the sun
at the same time. He said, well, God loved me when
I decided to walk an aisle or when I decided to start living
for Jesus. Foolishness. That's what men
is telling other men and they're sending their souls to hell with
a false hope. Other men says, well, God loves
everybody and Christ died for everybody. Now it's up to you
to make it effectual. Find that in the Word of God.
Find it in His Holy Word. Find it anywhere that even has
any inclination that it's what He's talking about. God loves
Christ. And He loves all those that are
in Christ. How did they get there? He put
us there. He put us there. And in time
He came and revealed it unto us that we are in Him. And He
showed it unto us. And He sent forth His Spirit
crying unto us, Abba, Father. My father, my father. So this
is the love of God that he had for his son. Luke describes it
this way. The same time Luke is looking
at his baptism, Luke describes it this way. In Luke chapter
three and verse 22. It says, and the Holy Ghost descended
upon him in the bodily shape of a dove. And a voice came from
heaven. which said thou art my beloved
son in thee I am well pleased what pleases God or who pleases
God only the beloved only the very son of God I am pleasing
in him I am found pleasing unto God because of my relationship
with Christ Not what I do, not what I've not done, and not what
I will do. Simply, my relationship with Christ is the only way that
God can smile and look and find favor upon me. The father always loved the son.
He always loved him. Oh, how he loved the son, even
when he was made sin. When he was made sin, the father
still loved him. when he was made sin in the room
instead of his people, when he came and took upon himself flesh
like unto ours, but yet without sin. Oh, how the Father loved
him and sent his only begotten Son. Although God's justice demanded,
it demanded, that he both slaughter him and forsake him. Explain
that. I dare not try. But God's justice,
the soul that sinneth, it must surely die. And when our sins
were laid upon him, and he to the point that he became sin,
or he was made sin, the Father looked upon him with an eye of
justice. Did he quit loving him? Oh no,
no. A father can't quit one thing
and start another. Known unto God are all his works
from the beginning. What God doeth, it is forever.
But as the justice of God demanded that the life of the Lord Jesus
Christ be taken for a ransom, that the shedding of his blood
must be paid for an atonement, he willingly, lovingly took his
sword of justice and smote the sun to the point that our Lord
cried out there on the cross, my God, my God, why has thou
forsaken me? Justice demanded it. But all
the time, there was a love. There was a love for the Lord
Jesus Christ that no man had ever known like him. And we have
that same love. We have that same love right
now while we're here yet in this old flesh. Is that not an astounding
statement? Thou has loved them as thou has
loved me. Most men don't understand anything
about the love of God. Brother Henry said, two greatest
lies that was ever told and born in hell. God loves you and Christ
died for you. God loves Christ. Christ died
for the sins of his people, whoever they are, wherever they are.
But this is not a universal thing. This is not a universal redemption.
This is not a universal love that he has. He says, Jacob have
I loved and Esau have I hated. So there is a difference that
God puts between his people and all other people. The difference
is, I have loved thee with an everlasting love. Depart from
me ye that work iniquity. There's a difference. But men,
In our neck of the woods, they say, oh, God's love is just like
mine. It's hot and cold. He loves me
today and he may turn me away tomorrow. That's not the God
of this book. That's not the God of this Bible. And that's
not the God of love. God's love is not like my love.
My love runs hot and cold. It don't take much for me to
stop loving somebody. or say I love them. In fact, my love is a selfish
love. It changes. It changes day to
day, hour to hour. If someone does me good, I show
affection. If not, what? We turn from them. But not so with God. This is
our love. He said, you think that I'm not
much more of a man, not much more than a man, but I'll reprove
you of it. My ways are not your ways. And your ways are not my
ways. For when the Lord spoke to Jeremiah,
there in Jeremiah chapter 3 and verse 13, he says, the Lord has
appeared of old unto me, saying, I have loved thee with an everlasting
love. And the effects of God's love
for his people is that I've drawn you unto myself. Do you see him
drawing everybody today in your neighborhood, your family, your
friends? Do you see him drawing them?
No. Most of them are running in the wrong direction. Most
of them is establishing their own righteousness. But there
is a people. There is a particular people
that God has set his affections upon. And he will have them. God loved me not merely as a
creature because he created me. As a man loves his dog. God don't
love me in the way that that, oh, I love you because you do
this. God's love is, there has no dependency upon me. He loves
me in spite of who I am. God loves me not merely as a
descendant of Adam, as a man loves his family. God loves me
in Christ and for the sake of Christ. as he loves his only
begotten son. No wonder the old hymn writer
said, how can it be, how can it be that God should love a
soul like me? Oh, how can it be? Well, here's
how. Look on up to John 17 verse 20. This is how that the Father loves
us. Our Lord said, Neither pray I
for these alone, but for them also, which shall believe on
me through their name, that they all may be made one. God's love
is singular. Singular. That they all may be
made one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in them, that they
also may be made one in us, that the world may know that thou
hast sent me, and the glory the glory, the grace, the mercy,
the power, the glory, which thou has given me, I've given them,
that they may be one, even as we are one. I in them, and thou
in me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the
world may know that thou has sent me, and has loved them,
as thou has loved me. What a statement. The second
statement, or the second astonishing statement, is found in Psalms
68 verse 19. I heard someone read this, and
I've read it before and read over top of it. Go on and forget it, forget what
it said. But what an astounding statement
this is. Psalms chapter 68. and verse
19. Blessed be the Lord who daily
loatheth us with benefits. Can you imagine? Can you imagine
the benefits that God daily loathes us with? Blessed and honored
and glory be unto God who daily, daily loatheth us with benefits. Now, I know the one great benefit
that we think of is Christ coming into flesh, taking our place,
taking our room, taking our responsibility, providing a righteousness for
us, establishing a righteousness for us, satisfying the justice
of God for us. That's a benefit. Oh, what a
great benefit that is, that I didn't have to do anything to accomplish
it. I didn't have to do anything
to be made heir of it. I simply received it by faith,
the gift of God. Our Lord said in John chapter
6 and verse 38, for I came down, I came on a purpose. I came on
a purpose. I came down from heaven not to
do my own will, but the will of Him that sent me. And this
is the Father's will which He has sent me. Of all which He
has given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise Him up again
to life's day. Is He going to lose one? No. No. He loadeth
us daily with benefits. Oh, what a benefit this promise
of eternal life is. I give unto them eternal life.
And no man shall take them out of my hand. None, I shall lose
nothing, but shall raise him up at the last day. We read,
but this verse reads, who daily loatheth us with benefits. The Lord loatheth us with mercy
and favors daily. Daily. Just as the children of
Israel, the Lord provided them food daily. This manna that fell
from heaven, it was there every morning fresh. Every morning. They went out and they just gave
it what they needed. The next day they went out and
there it was, fresh again. Daily. He daily fed them. And that's what we're talking
about. He daily provides for us. He gives us grace and mercy. He gives us truth and righteousness.
He gives us forgiveness and longsuffering. He loadeth us daily. He loadeth us to the point that
I just don't believe I can handle anymore. If I could, He'd give
it to me. If He blessed me any more than
He did, I would be uplifted in myself. And if He blessed me
any less than He did, I would be distraught. But He loadeth
me daily with benefits. Oh, in this flesh we may struggle,
We may even live from payday to payday in this flesh, but
not so in God, not so in spiritual things. Mr. Spurgeon said this,
he said, God's benefits are not few nor light, they are loads. Neither are they intermediate,
one here and one there, no. But they come daily, daily, daily. Brother Henry, years ago, He
said someone come to him and asked him, he said, do you think
I'll have dying grace when I die? And Henry said, well, are you
dying? He said, well, no. He said, well, why are you worried
about it? You don't need dying grace till you die. When you
die, you'll have it. What do we need now? We need daily loads of benefit. We need the smiles of God. We
need the happiness. We need the contentment. We need
the comfort, the supply, the word, the preaching of the gospel. These are daily benefits that
he loads us with. Turn with me to Ephesians. I believe it's Ephesians chapter
2. Let's read here the benefits
that God gives us. Ephesians chapter 2, we'll start
in verse 1. And you have dequickened. What
a benefit. What a benefit. Why dequicken
us? Who were dead in trespasses and
sins. And we can spend the rest of our time dealing with one
or two words here. But it says, if wherein in time
past you walked according to the course of this world, this
is telling us who we are. Who we are. in ourselves and
who we are in Christ. If you read this whole chapter,
that's what it's dealing with. Who you were and who you are
now. Who you were in yourself, who
you are in Christ. According to the prince of the
power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children
of disobedience, among whom we all had our conversations in
time past, in the lust of the flesh and of the mind, and were
by nature children of wrath, even as others. That's who we
were. but God what a benefit but God who is rich in mercy
there's another benefit the mercy of God for his great love were
with he loved us another benefit for even when we were dead in
sin he has quickened us together By grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of
works, lest any man should boast, for we are his workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus unto good works, that God had before ordained,
that we walk therein. That's who we are now. That's
who, that's where we're living at right now. Wherefore remember, that you
being aliens, you being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who
are called uncircumcision by that which is called circumcision,
that at that time, at that time, before faith coming to you, before
God worked the benefit of faith in you and showed you who you
are and who Christ is, that at that time you were without Christ
being aliens from the Commonwealth of India, strangers from the
covenant of promise, having no hope, and without God in the
world. But now, but now, ye but now in Christ Jesus, ye
who were sometimes far off or made nigh by the blood of Christ,
there's another benefit. The blood of Christ sprinkled
us, washed us, and made us clean and pure in God's sight. For
he is our peace. What a benefit to have peace
with God, who has made both one has it broken down the middle
wall partition between us having abolished in his flesh the enmity
even the law of commands contained in ordinance for to make in himself
of twain one new man so making peace what a benefit to have
peace with God and that he might reconcile both
unto God reconciliation what a benefit what a benefit in one
body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby, and came
and preached peace. What a benefit for the gospel
ministers to preach peace unto his people, to you which are
far off and them that are nigh. For through him, what a benefit,
for through him we both have access by one spirit unto the
Father. Through Him, through the Lord
Jesus Christ, we have access unto the Father. What a benefit. Now, therefore, you are no more
strangers, no foreigners, but fellow citizens. What a benefit
to be a citizen. We talked about it last night,
about the citizenship of the United States. Men count that
a great honor, and we should. But, oh, to be a fellow citizen.
with the faith and the household of God. What a benefit. What
a benefit. This is who we are in Christ. With our daily loads upon us, we only have a time to mention
just a few others. What a benefit of God's long-suffering.
Why did he not kill me when I was born, knowing who I was going
to be? but his long suffering, the scripture says, to usward,
to usward. Leading us and guiding us and
directing us to come unto him, come unto him. Sending forth
his spirit into our hearts, crying, come unto him, come unto me.
The goodness of God that leadeth us to repentance. Men take, oh,
if you preach hell and damnation, it'll cause men to repent. It
never did before. It never did before. The goodness
of God leadeth us to repentance. The love of God. Oh, the love
of God. The peace of God. These are just
a few. Just a few of the benefits that
we are loaded with daily. Blessed be the Lord who daily
loadeth us with benefits. Look at our last one. This is
another astounding statement. Psalm 149 and verse 4. Why does God do these things
for us? Well, He said, because He loves me. Why does He love
me? Psalm 149 and verse 4. The Lord
taketh pleasure in His people. What a statement! What a statement! The Lord, the Holy One of Israel,
the God of Heaven and Earth. What was it? It said, Thou shalt
call His name Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, the Everlasting Father,
the Prince of Peace. He takes pleasure in me. What
an astounding statement! How can that be? It can only
be in Christ. For the Lord takes pleasure in
His people. How in the world is this possible? That God would love a soul like
me. Is this not an astounding statement?
In me, I can see no reason No reason why God should take pleasure
in me. I can see every reason in the
world for him to condemn me and send me to hell in a drop of
a hat. But yet he loved me. And not
only loved me, he sent his only begotten son to take my place.
This proved his love for me. This proves that His love for
me was genuine and affectionate, pure, true, and sure. He sent
His only begotten Son. Why'd He do this? Because the
Lord taketh pleasure in His people. I know little about what it is
to please the Lord. I know very little about it.
I know very little about it. But I know this. If I stand in
Christ, if I stand there robed with the helmet of salvation,
the breastplate of righteousness, my feet shed with the preparation
of the gospel, then he looks upon me and he finds favor in
me. Let me read you a song. The only
one, well I've heard this song sung by two people, and I only know one of them that
sings it in the right way. In the beloved, excepted am I,
risen, ascended, and seated on high, saved from all sin through
his infinite grace, with the redeemed ones accorded a place. In the beloved, God's marvelous
grace, calls me to dwell in this wonderful place. God sees my
Savior, then he sees me in the beloved, accepted, and free. Brother Rupert Roddenberry. I
call it Rupert's Song, but I don't know who wrote it, but Rupert
sings it. Thank you for your attention.
Give our best to Brother Gabe when he comes back, and thank
him for allowing us to be here.