Turn with me, if you would, to
Psalm 27, where our brother just read. This is not our text tonight. I just want to read one verse,
one verse out of it. Psalm 27, verse four. One thing have I desired of the
Lord. Now think about that. One thing
have I desired of the Lord. All right, one thing. We know what this one thing is.
He said, one thing have I desired of the Lord. I'm asking the Lord
for this. I want this. That that will I
seek after. that I may dwell in the house
of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of
the Lord and to inquire in his temple. I started writing this
message last Thursday as the reality was setting in about
our brother, Cody Groover. It shocked me. And that shock just didn't go
away. I don't think it has yet. But the reality started really
sinking into me that our brother has been taken up into glory. Selah. I mean our brother. has been
taken up no less miraculously than whenever God sent a chariot
of fire down to Elijah and picked him up and carried him up into
glory. Our God came down and he picked
up his beloved and took him back to where God was. I mean, he
is where God dwells. He's where God dwells. He was greeted when he got there
by angels. He was greeted by brethren. I
was thinking about names. Scott Richardson. Maurice Montgomery. Jack Shanks. Tommy Robbins. He was greeted by not just saints,
not just people who bow the knee to God. He was greeted by brethren. He was greeted by angels. Our
dear sweet brother, Hannah and I listened today to his second
message he just preached in our conference. He was just here
in September. And this afternoon we listened to his second message
and he quoted Job. He said, I know with these eyes
shall I see God. Our brother has seen the throne
of God. You know we talk about the throne
of God, that holy high throne of judgment, the place where
God rules, the place where we say we are now able to walk up
to it boldly and find grace and help in time
of need. Cody Groover has seen the throne
of God. There it is. He has seen the ascent by which
Christ has ascended it. He's watched Christ. I mean Christ ascend his throne
and sit down. He's seen God on the throne. Our brother has heard the seraphims. He has physically heard the seraphims. actually cry, holy, holy, holy,
as they surround that throne, is the Lord of Hosts. Holy, holy,
holy is the Lord of Hosts. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
of Hosts. Our brother has looked down.
I can imagine him as soon as he was taken, as soon as the
Lord translated him, for he was not. He looked down at his own
body and all the wrinkles, all the spots were gone. They were
all gone. He has the dew of youth on his
brow. Have you ever seen an old picture of somebody? You know,
if maybe Irene pulled out an old picture of Dwight and you
look at him and you say, that's Dwight? And you can see, yes
it is, that's Dwight. This was the day we got married,
you know. Yeah, that's Dwight. Sure enough, that's Dwight though? He has the dew of youth on his
brow. Our brother has the dew of youth on his brow. The Spirit
of God has flooded his soul with indescribable joy. I mean, indescribable joy. He's so happy. He is so happy. I can't describe how happy he
is. Our brother stepped into a choir
of saints that no man can number, and as he looked around and as
he saw the throne and heard the seraphims and saw himself, he
started shouting at the top of his lungs the song of the redeemed. We read it this morning. Thou
art worthy. Thou art worthy. Thou was slain
and has redeemed us to you by your own blood." Our brother, the one who was
just here, he just passed through the states for a month, has had
conversations with Jesus Christ. He's had conversations with Jesus
Christ. Our brother has looked on and
touched the actual scars that were pierced 2,000 years ago. I can imagine him on Thursday
when he saw them. I can imagine him just needing
a moment. Can you just give me a minute
right here? And I can imagine the Lord giving it to him. All
the time you need. You have all eternity. Our brother has seen the tapestry
from the other side. We talk about this world seeing
it from the backside and you have all these loose threads
and then one day it's gonna be flipped around and there it is.
He knows as he has been known. And as I was thinking about all
this, this is a thought that went through my mind. I want
that. Thursday, sorrow swept the churches. Sorrow, horror. Oh no. And as I stop and think about
it, I have to say, I want that. I actually want that. When all
my labors and trials are o'er, and I am safe on that beautiful
shore, just to be near the dear Lord I adore will through the
ages be glory for me. When by the gift of His infinite
grace I am accorded in heaven a place, just to be there and
to look on His face will through the ages be glory for me. Friends
will be there I have loved long ago. Joy like a river around
me will flow, yet just a smile from my Savior I know will through
the ages be absolute glory for me. I have to tell you, I know
this is strange. I know this is strange, but I
want that. I want that one thing have I
desired of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell
in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold
the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple. I want
that. I want to be a sinner saved by grace. That's what I want
to be. That was our brother's only plea. He was only a sinner saved by
grace. That was the gospel he preached.
Didn't you enjoy it? He was just here in September.
Two messages he preached. We heard it so clearly. That
gospel that he preached to us is the only gospel there is.
It's the only gospel there is. It's that Christ Jesus came into
the world. And he shed his precious blood
to save sinners. Thank God, bless God, he shed
his precious blood to save us filthy, rotten sinners. Now, after I heard the news on
Thursday and throughout the day Thursday, so many scriptures
ran through my mind. I started immediately, I was
working, trying to work on something for Sunday and I was just flooded
by all these things and scriptures. I thought about what the Apostle
Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12. He said, I knew a man. It was
so glorious and so awful he couldn't even admit it was himself. He
said, I knew a man who was caught up to the third heaven. He was
caught up into paradise, Paul said. Isn't that what he said?
He said it was paradise. He said, I went to paradise.
You know, I thought about a couple decides they were going to go
on a vacation and they get a couple of tickets and they tell everybody,
they go tell somebody, we just bought tickets to an island in
the Caribbean. We're going to go to the Caribbean
for a week. We're going to go to the beautiful paradise down
there. And as soon as we hear it, we
all start going, Oh no, I'm so sorry. I'm so that's horrible. That's so terrible. Did you hear me right? I said
paradise. I said I'm going to paradise.
Paul said it was paradise. It was absolute paradise. He
said I heard unspeakable words which it is not possible for
a man's mouth to utter. We try to describe what we're
going to experience in the glorious presence of God. We try to enter
into it. We try to think about it. There
are things that this mouth cannot physically describe. Cannot be
described. How does a man describe the glory
by which Christ ascends his throne? How do you describe that? Can't
you envision all of heaven, this ocean of believers? watching
Christ ascend His throne, and as He walks up, they just think,
oh, there's no more spirit in us.
How do you describe that? He said, man's eye has never
seen, man's ear has never heard, neither has ever entered into
the imagination of any man. The things that God has prepared
for them that love him, the God, I mean the God that we looked
at this morning, this sovereign, holy, just, right God. Tell you another scripture I
thought about. The Apostle Paul said, press toward the mark. I thought about our brother being
gone, and I thought about the ministry, and I thought I want to tell our
people, I want to tell Kingsport Sovereign Great Church, dear
brethren, let's press toward the mark. Let's press toward
the mark. You know, you hear something
like this and you think, oh, the ministry has now taken a
step back. No, it hasn't. Our Lord said,
the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take
it by force. Let's press toward the mark. I don't know why our God purposed
from the foundation of the world to take our brother right now.
when it seems like he's so vital to the ministry in Mexico. To
me, it seems like he is the ministry in Mexico. I don't know why the
Lord purposed to take him, but I can tell you this, it's for
the good of God's sheep and it's for the thriving of the gospel. the absolute thriving of the
gospel. We look at this and we think,
how can the gospel thrive in this? Hasn't that always been
the question of scripture? Always. God says, I'm going to
make my gospel thrive. How? Here's how. I'm going to
persecute my church, I'm going to kill my prophets, and I'm
going to scatter my sheep. That's how. That's how. The end result of this is going
to be the salvation of souls. That's going to be the end result
of this. Everything that our God does, He does it for the
calling out of His sheep. Everything. It's for the furtherance
of the gospel. God's gospel is going to thrive
in this. It's going to thrive. This is
my prayer. This is my sincere, honest prayer. It's that our God will send a
wake-up call through His churches. I pray that our God will send
a wake-up call through the churches from the shock of him taking
our brother. This is shocking. I pray that
he will send a revival in the midst of our years. I pray he
will start the work in me. Revive us again. Fill each heart
with our love. May each soul be rekindled with
fire from above. This life is so short. It is
so, so short. Salvation is according to God's
sovereign purpose and will. Salvation is according to God's
sovereign purpose and will. God's sovereign purpose and will. But this is what he said. It
pleased him by the foolishness of preaching to save them that
believe. Isn't that what he said? Paul
said we must press toward that mark. We must press toward that
mark. We must press this gospel. It's time to start pressing this
gospel. If God is coming back tomorrow, is it over? If God is coming back tomorrow,
then let's not go home tonight. Let's not go home. Let's not
go home and sit and wait on him. Let's start pressing this gospel.
Let's start pressing this gospel. When he returns, may he find
us watching, may he find us waiting, may he find us pressing toward
the mark. We must press this gospel. We
must press ourselves and our loved ones to this gospel. This is the means that he uses
to call out his sheep. This is His means. Because of
that, because this is His means, I want everyone, every one of
us here in this room, to hear the gospel through the words
of our precious Lord Himself tonight, okay? Go with me over
to John 17. John 17 verse 1. These words spake Jesus and lifted
up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour is come. Glorify thy son that thy son
also may glorify thee. What was he talking about? He
was talking about that beautiful death he should accomplish. The
death that secured our brother Cody Groover's redemption. The death that secured our redemption. Verse two, as thou hast given
him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to
as many as thou hast given him. There is no room for a sinner
to glory in his own salvation. None. I promise you, brother
Cody is not right now glorying in his own salvation. God the
Father chose him, didn't he? God the Father gave him to Christ
and that gift is called grace. He and every soul with him is
right now praising God, glorifying God for his grace. Verse 3 says,
and this is life eternal. that they might know thee the
only true God in Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. Salvation
is a person. The gospel is a person. Heaven
is a person. Heaven is a person. His name
is Jesus Christ. As brother Cody Groover would
say, Jesus Christ. Verse four says, I have glorified
thee on the earth. I have finished the work which
thou gavest me to do. We're just saying redeemed how
I love to proclaim it. Redeemed by the blood of the
lamb, redeemed through his infinite mercy, his child, and forever
I am. Verse five says, and now, oh
father, Glorify thou me with thine own self, with the glory
which I had with thee before the world was. I love how Psalm
24 says, lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lift up
ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in.
He's coming in all his glory. Verse 6 says, I have manifested
thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world. Thine
they were, and thou gavest them me, and they have kept thy word. That is the report that God the
Son brought back to God the Father concerning every child of his.
He said, Father, in me, every one of them has kept your word
perfectly. They've kept it perfectly. Verse
seven, now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast
given me are of thee, for I have given unto them the words which
thou gavest me, and they have received them, and have known
surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou
didst send me, I pray for them, I pray not for the world, but
for them which thou hast given me, for they are thine. And all
mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them. And now I am no more in the world,
but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father,
keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that
they may be one as we are. While I was with them in the
world, I kept them in thy name. Those that thou gavest me, I
have kept, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition
that the scripture might be fulfilled. Our Lord kept our brother Cody. He kept him all the way to the
last day on earth. Our Lord is going to keep us.
He is going to keep us. If we're in Christ, we are kept. We are kept. Every soul that
he prayed for, every soul that he made intercession for, every
soul that has believed on him, that God the Father sent him
to pay the ransom of their sinful soul. I believe God sent Christ
to die for me. cover me in his blood, pay my
debt. Verse 13 says, and now come I
to thee and these things I speak in the world that they might
have my joy fulfilled in themselves. He has spoken these things in
the world. Isn't that wonderful? Aren't
you so thankful he prayed this prayer to God so we could hear
it. He has spoken these things in the world and his word is
our absolute joy. Verse 14, I have given them thy
word and the world hath hated them because they are not of
the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou
shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest
keep them from the evil. He said, I pray for them. I'm not praying to just take
them all out of the world. The Lord takes us at his time. The
Lord takes us according to his purpose. The Lord takes us when
he's finished using us. But he said, while they're in
the world, I do pray, Father, that you'd keep them from the
evil. If that was his prayer, if that was the prayer of the
righteous man, that fervent, effectual prayer, do you think
God will answer it? Absolutely. Verse 16, they are not of the
world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through
thy truth. Thy word is truth. He said, father,
would you set them apart? I love that. Would you sanctify
them? Would you lay hold of them and set them apart through your
word? Would you cause your word to
be a reminder to them that I've put a difference? I have put
a difference. My blood cleansed them. I made
a difference. Verse 18, as thou has sent me
into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes, I sanctify
myself that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone,
but for them also which shall believe on me through their word. He said, I'm praying for those
who are gonna believe on me through their word. What a high calling
from God it is to declare how great things the Lord has done
for us. That is such a high honor and high calling. And I'm gonna
tell you, it's not just the preacher. The entire ministry, the entire
ministry of God's saints, not just Brother Cody down there
in Mexico, every brother and sister there in that congregation
in Merida, every brother and sister in every congregation
down there, every saint, every pastor that God has raised up,
He's given them the high honor of saying, even in this, He has
done all things well. What a high honor that is. Even
in this, he's done all things well. Verse 20, neither pray
I for these alone, but for them also, which shall believe on
me through their word, that they all may be one as thou father
art in me and I in thee, that they also may be one in us. that the world may believe that
thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest
me, I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one."
Our Lord, now, I I love this. I love this. Our Lord has given us two great
commandments. He's given us so many commandments,
but he said these are the greatest. Number one, love the Lord our
God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Don't you
love that one? Commandment, love him. He said
the second one is this, love your brethren. Love your brethren. Not only, now here's what I love
about this. Not only does our loving our
brethren not diminish our love for God at all. You know, have
you ever felt guilty for wanting to see your brethren in glory?
You ever felt guilty? I'm supposed to be all eyes on
Christ. They will be. Oh, they will be. Not only does our loving our
brethren not diminish our love for Him, not only does our loving
our brethren not diminish the glory we give to Him at all,
but He delights in it and He commands it. We have to love
our brethren. We have to look forward to seeing
Brother Cody again. We have to. God said it's the
second great commandment. I want you to love the Lord your
God. I want you to love your brother. Love him. We have to. Based on this word of God, we
are going to see our dear brother again, and I look forward to
it. I look forward to it. Now, last September, here in
this conference, we worshiped God arm in arm, side by side
with our brother Covey, didn't we? Didn't that what we did? The way that God ordained it
to be right here inside this room is the way that God has
ordained it to be for all eternity one day when we're all one in
glory. Same way. Our brother is already
there. If we are in Christ, we're going
to meet him there. We're going to meet him there.
We're going to see him again. This mind can't wrap around that.
We're going to see him again. We're all going to worship God
together just like we did in this room two months ago. Exactly
like we did in this room two months ago. Well, that sounds
great. I wish it were true. It's true. It is true. We're going to see him again.
We're going to worship God together again, just like we did in this
room two months ago. Verse 22 says, The glory which
thou gavest me, I have 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 hast sent me, and hast loved them as thou hast loved me."
Right now, God the Father loves Cody Groover just as much as
he loves God the Son. But here's the glorious truth
of the matter. God the Father always loved Cody Gruber just
as much as he loved God the Son. God put him in Christ and everything
he felt for Christ, he felt for Cody in Christ. And if we are
in Christ, God the Father loves us just as much as he loves God
the Son. Just as much. Verse 23 says,
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 and hast loved
them as thou hast loved me. Father, I will that they also,
whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may
behold my glory, which thou hast given me, for thou lovest me
before the foundation of the world." Christ desires for us
to be with him. David said, one thing have I
desired. Christ said the same thing. He said, Father, I desire that
they be with me where I am. If that's what he desires, that's
what he's going to have. That's what he will have. If
he shed his blood for us, we are going to be with him where
he is. We're going to. Verse 25, O righteous father,
the world hath not known thee, but I have known thee. And these
have known that thou hast sent me, and I have declared unto
them thy name, and will declare it, that the love wherewith thou
hast loved me may be in them, and I in them." Everything that
takes place in this life is purposefully accomplishing that end. Everything that happens to us
is filtering us to that end right there. He said, I desire that
they be with me where I am. I'm going to be in them. They're
going to be in me. We're going to be in you. You're
going to be in us. We're going to be one. Everything
is bringing us to that end. We have such a good end. We have
such a good end. It's so good. I tell you how
good it is. It's actually the beginning. That's how good it
is. Our end, the thing that everybody's
so sorry for, so sad over, it's so good, it's actually the beginning. It's actually the start. Our
Lord said, whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Never. Our brother Cody is fine. He's fine. Boy, he's better than
fine. He is safe. He is healthy. He is happy. He is completely
content, completely content. He has woken. with his likeness,
and he's satisfied. David said, I won't be satisfied
until I awake with your likeness. Our brother Cody's satisfied,
completely satisfied. By God's grace, we're gonna see
real soon just how well he is, and we're gonna worship God together
with him again. Our Lord asked Martha, he said,
believest thou this? This is what he said to her.
He said, Martha, you're gonna see your brother again. You're
going to see your brother again. He said, do you believe this? Believe it. Believe it. God said it. We saw this morning
we got a sovereign God. If he said it, it's going to
be done so we can believe it. Stand together with.