Here in Genesis 21, we get to
see a snapshot in these first eight verses. Just a highlight
reel. The important stuff. Of a believer's entire life. From before creation was until
we are in glory. In just eight short verses. That's
beautiful. Let's read together these first
eight verses. Genesis 21. And the Lord visited Sarah as he
had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah
conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time
of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of
his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son
Isaac, being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And
Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born unto
him. And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh so that all
that hear will laugh with me. And she said, who would have
said unto Abraham that Sarah should have given children suck?
For I have born him a son in his old age. And the child grew. Growth and grace Do you know
how important that is? Do you know how much honor we
ought to receive in our growth and grace? Here's your lifetime
of it. The child grew. Who made that happen? The Lord
did. The Lord makes you to grow, isn't it? And the child grew. That's her whole life. And was
weaned. And Abraham made a great feast
the same day that Isaac was weaned. This is a wonderful story about
how the Lord made an old barren woman to conceive a child. The Lord calls this woman, this
is what happened, to receive the seed of her husband. God
put life in her. And He grew that life in her. She brought forth a son. And
that son grew. And then he was weaned. And she
laughed. She rejoiced. This is the first
time she wasn't rejoicing. We'll look at that. But this
time she rejoiced. She's happy. The child was given
a name. He was circumcised the eighth
day. And he was weaned. And there was a great feast because
that boy was weaned. God is still doing things the
same way in our day, spiritually, as He did here. The Lord's not
out of business. And He changes not. He creates
spiritual life in a dead, barren, feeble person, the old man that
we walk around in. God puts life in it. He puts
Christ in them. And you know what happens when
a baby is born? The same thing that happens whenever
one of God's children is born. They cry. They cry. You have a child born, you listen
for crying, don't you? Well, hear a baby cry. Does it
hurt? No, it's fine. I just want to
hear her cry. That's good for it. It clears the lungs out. Someone that the Lord gives new
life in their heart, they cry unto the Lord for the first time
ever. That's what the Lord told Ann
and I. So he said, go down there and talk to Paul. And he said, I know this fella.
Lord, do you know where you're sending me? He was going out
to row on that ocean. He already saw the storm, didn't
he? Hold on now. And he said, Behold, he prayeth
for the first time. How many times had Paul prayed
before that? How many times has he put his, as Tim James would
love this, his perfunctory, perfractories. How many times he got all dolled
up and got his, la la la la la la la la, and said some prayer
over and just told God everything God told him, what's written
in His Word. How many times has Paul done that? Oh, this time's
different. This time was different. He wasn't
just saying some words, he wasn't saying a prayer and asking for
silly things that I don't even know what means. Honestly, the
stuff... What? I don't even... I want
to get off on that. He cried. He cried unto God. He prayed from a new heart that
had never cried before. What comes with crying? There
are going to be some tears. You're going to know what you
are. There's going to be tears of sadness to where it shuts
you up from sin and you quit walking and quit doing and you
stand still and you see the salvation that's of the Lord. And you're
shut up to sin in it. And you know what you are and
you don't want to get out of bed in the morning. You want breakfast? I don't want
to eat. I know what I am. And then knowing in that trouble
we just read, right? Rolling, fighting, toiling. And
then you see Him. He reveals Himself. Oh, tears
of joy. And laughing. And rejoicing. Yes! My Savior, when I see Him. The Lord does the same things
to us in this day. He puts Christ in and makes Him cry at birth.
Applies that blood to their hearts in circumcision. And then one
day at that appointed day, we're winged. And when we're winged,
there's a great feast because of it. Big dinner. I think you're
going to enjoy this. I think it's really going to
be a blessing to you. This is a picture of the life of a believer. Just
a highlight reel over our entire life from cradle to grave. Let's
look at it. Will you look at it with me? Good. Will you stay
with me? I hope you can. Verse 1, the Lord visited Sarah.
If you pay someone a visit, you're with them. You spend some time
with them. And that's amazing that the Lord
visited Sarah. We could just camp out there
for two or three hours, couldn't we? But mankind is born in this world
thinking God owes them something. That ain't the case. Boy, this
is pressure. That's what David told us. He said, what is man
that thou art mindful of him? But you didn't even think about
us. What's a man? And the Son of Man, our children
and everybody like us, that thou visitest Him. That's a continual
visitation. He comes and sets up His abode
in them. Oh, what a visit that is. When
the Lord visits His children, there is life given and we see
Christ. That's when He's revealing. That's
because we have someone to cry out to. We have that wailing
wall over in Jerusalem. You're crying to a wall. All
that wall can do is fall on you. Think us through, boys and girls.
Let's go to school for a minute. You don't cry to something that's
stationary and has no life. You cry to a person. You cry
to a person, and you cry about that person. You remember whenever
John the Baptist was born, Zachariah, his dad, he couldn't talk the
whole time he was pregnant. She was pregnant with him. And then
whenever he wrote, what are you going to call him? And he wrote
on that tablet, John. Right then he could talk, couldn't he? And
he prophesied. He trained his child up in the way he ought
to preach when he got grown from the second he was born. He said,
here's what you say, son. Watch daddy. John was trained
up from his youth in the first minute. He said, blessed be the
God, Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited and redeemed
his people. Praise Christ and him crucified. And he hath raised up a horn
of salvation for us in the house of his servant David. Christ
is coming into the world. He's in the womb right now, in
about six months. What about your son Zechariah?
What about John the Baptist? He's something. He's something.
He says, ah, there's another one greater than this one. I
love my son. Looks just like me. But there's one he ain't
even worthy to tie his shoelaces. That's coming. That's the first
thing coming out of his mouth. He goes on to say, "...through the tender
mercy of our God, whereby the day spring from on high hath
visited us." Even after, to a true child of God, even after the
Lord visits us, we cry out, come Lord, come Lord. What if we heard a big thunder
roll? All them clouds over top of us out there started rolling
back. I think I'd stop and go run outside and look up, wouldn't
you? Come, Lord. We look for His return, don't
we? King David cried out, and he
said, Remember me, O Lord, in the favor that Thou bearest unto
Thy people. Lord, save me. Great King David.
If there's a table, he's probably closer to the head of it, isn't
he? This guy's something. He said, Lord, save me in the
favor that You bear to Your people. Save me just like You save all
Your people. Oh, visit me with Thy salvation. You visit me with
your salvation. Bring your Christ to me. Let
me see Christ today. There's three tenses of salvation
throughout the Scriptures. We have been saved. We were saved
before the foundation of the world when our names were written
in that Lamb's Book of Life. And saved in the past for us
at Calvary when Christ hung on the cross. It was done. It's
finished. The work was done right then, wasn't it? But then the
Holy Spirit comes to us and convicts us of sin, singular, That's all
we are. Convicts us of Christ's righteousness
and that all judgment, all that stuff that has been done is done,
for real. This ain't a theory. This is done for me. Plumb done.
And so we have always been saved in a sense. And then we are saved
when the Lord reveals Christ to us for the first time. When
he gives us that life and we cry out, Lord, save! Save, Lord! He is saving us. Every day. Them disciples in the boat, he
saved them. I was wanting to read there in Matthew 14. Peter
walked out on the water, and he started looking at the wind,
looking at the waves, started sinking, and he cried, Lord,
save me. Lord, save me. And immediately
stretched out his hand and saved him. We have been saved. We are
being saved. We need His mercies new every
day, and we shall be saved. Whenever this life's over, that's
when we're plumb saved. He's got a hold of us now. That's
when we get yanked out of this world. We get yanked out of this water,
we're on the boat, right? We're with Him. We're with Him. We
pray that the Lord visits our loved ones. We pray that the
Lord visits our children. We pray that He visits, I pray
He visits my friends. I care deeply for them. I want
the Lord to visit them. I mean, go there and set up a
dwelling inside of them. But we ought, we ought to cry,
Lord visit me. When was the last time he cried
that? I won't look, I'll close my eyes. When was the last time
he cried out, don't answer? He said, Lord, save me! Because I need
saved from something, from me. Well, that's a good day, isn't
it? That's a good thing. Genesis 21, verse 1 says, The
Lord visited Sarah and He said, as He had said, and the Lord
did unto Sarah as He had spoken. He came to her just as He says
He will come to her. And He did to her just what He
said He was going to do to her. He did it as He was spoken. Everything
that comes to pass is according to God's will and God's purpose.
And nothing happens. Everything that happens, happens
on purpose. Nothing happens that He did not
intend to happen. What about that storm we just
looked at? Did that sneak up on Him? It did not. What about that blindness, that
beggar that was blind from birth? Did he do something wrong to
his mommy and daddy? The Lord intended that to manifest His
work in his heart, didn't He? That's what we just looked at.
Nothing can happen that He does not intend to happen. Nothing
will happen He doesn't intend and nothing can happen that He
doesn't intend. The Lord knows everything. He controls all things. And all these things that He
purposes He remembers them. That was just amazing to me this
week. That's what we read in Acts 15. Known unto God are all
his works from the beginning of the world. We ought to stand
in amazement at that. I can't remember what I ate for
lunch yesterday. What did you eat for lunch? Well,
hold on. That was Saturday. Think about it, don't I? God
knows all of His works, and He changes not. And every work that
it pleased Him to do, it's been ordained from before time, and
that's wonderful news. If you know what you are, that's
good news. Just like those in the boat.
They could not drown in that sea. Did you know that? They
could not die. The Lord had something for them
to do. It was impossible because the Lord was going to visit them
and visit others through them. We'll see that in a minute. Natural
man hates that. I love it. I wouldn't have it
any other way. I see the wisdom in that. I see
the power in that. I see my weakness and the need
of His power. That's perfect. That's perfect.
Here's when the Lord spoke. Genesis 17. He spoke to Abraham. Genesis 17, we'll be in verse
16. Genesis 17, 16. And I will bless
her and give thee a son also of her. Yea, I will bless her
and she shall be a mother of nations. Kings of people shall
be of her. Then Abraham fell upon his face
and laughed. Now we want the same kind of
laugh we're going to look at in a minute. This is rejoicing. And said in his
heart, shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years
old and shall Sarah that is ninety years old bear Abraham said unto
God, O that Ishmael might live before thee. And God said, Sarah
thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed, and thou shalt call his
name Isaac, and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting
covenant, and with his seed after him. Sarah was not there at that
time, but it's the same thing the Lord kept telling him over
and over, wasn't it? Message didn't change. Abraham's patience
did. He had learned to be patient.
But the message didn't change. I'm going to make a great nation
of you, Abraham. That's what's going to happen. Sarah was not
there at the time. Abraham, as we know, is a picture
of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Father spoke to the Son before
time. And He made this covenant with
Christ. And He said, you are the one I'm going to bless. You're
my firstborn. And all the people through you,
I'm going to bless them because of you. And you are going to
look at your seed, at your spiritual offspring, and you're going to
be satisfied. Because they're going to be just like you. That
was the covenant made. And He's going to do this through
His bride, through His church. Abraham is a picture of Christ
in this, and Sarah is a picture of the bride of Christ, the church
of God throughout time. And the Lord gave His orders,
the Father gave the orders concerning us to His Son, and then He came
to this earth, and He fulfilled everything. This is what I want
done. There in Genesis 18 verse 10,
One page over. And he said, I will certainly
return unto thee according to the time of life, and lo, Sarah
thy wife shall have a son. It's going to happen, Abraham.
Keeps telling the same thing over and over. Let me ask you
something. Did he? God kept saying this
for 30 years, 25 years. This is what's going to happen.
Did he do it? Look at our text. Genesis 21
verse 1. If Lord says he's going to do
something, as my dad used to say, you can take it to the bank.
If he says it, it's going to come to pass. The eagle try nothing. We try, he doesn't try, he does
whatever he wills and pleases him. Genesis 21, and the Lord
visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as
he had spoken, because, for Sarah conceived and came to fruition,
and bare Abraham a son in his old age at the set time of which
God had spoken to him. Who did what here? The Lord did. Who came to who? Did Sarah go
to Him? The Lord visited her, didn't
He? Who found who? Salvations of the Lord. Sarah
is a recipient. She's an object of God's grace
and of His mercy and she cannot glory in that. This picture here,
all Sarah did, she just received. To conceive means you receive
seed. That's all she did. The receiver
does not get any glory. The giver does. I used to say
that the glass receives water. If that glass is there, and I
take a picture and I pour water into it, that glass received water.
We're so high-minded and proud, we think we can just pick and
choose whatever we get, right? And I had somebody tell me, they
said, well, a glass is an inanimate object, and we're humans. And
I said, OK, well, when I was a little child, I used to receive
a spanking. I didn't hold court when I was six-year-old and said,
now, Dad, you're going to wait a minute. I don't think I'm going to choose to
accept your correction today. You'd get double, wouldn't you?
There's no glory for the one that receives. That's kind of
a negative thing, isn't it? That sounds negative to us, but
this is a positive thing. When the Lord gives seed, it's
a positive thing. In the flesh, this miracle, a
90-year-old woman was having a child. That's impossible. That ain't gonna happen. You
understand that? She had to receive something. The Lord had to do
something. John the Baptist told us a man can receive nothing
except it be given to him from heaven. And so that's the same
spiritual thing that happens. We're all barren when we come
in to this world. We're born an old woman, old
John Prine wrote. I am an old woman. We can't give
ourselves life. God must do it. And this miracle,
this mysterious and as great as it is in Sarah's body that
took place, it happened by ordinary means. Same way everybody else
is born. That's how it happened. That
was the means used to bring this to pass. The only one born that
was not this way is our Lord. We'll get to that another day.
This is the same means that any other human being born of Adam
came into the world. Same actions took place. No human
being has ever been born of Adam without the seed of man going
into the woman. Being put into the woman and
the Lord giving physical life. And that's what happened here.
Sarah physically had a child. Natural man may think that's
just not that miraculous. People have babies. Now she's
old, but maybe they counted. They didn't have the right calendar
or something, but people just have babies. Oh, that's miraculous. God's creation is always miraculous. There's people that cannot have
children and they desperately want them. And they would say
to you, Every birth's miraculous. Every child given is God-given.
He has to give it. And he was not pleased to give
it to me or to them. We had a lot of children. I don't
know what it's like to not have them. People that don't have
them don't know what it's like to have them. But you know what? Both sides
of the fence, that's a blessing. How could it be? God did it.
That's how it could be. Both sides of the fence, what
are we going to have to do? Thank Him. What are we going to have to
do? Cry out for mercy to Him. Isn't that right? Whenever we're
in that boat and we're on top of the waves, we can see everything,
we're breathing, feeling pretty good, and real quick we're down
the trough of the wave. Both sides of that wave, thank you.
Praise to him. Call out to him. Natural birth of a child is amazing.
The means is so frequent and common that people rarely are
amazed and thank God for it and praise God for it. How did this
happen? We worked real hard and we saved up and it took 70. God
did it. Look what the Lord did. God gives
life and that child physically comes into this world crying,
right? Fully complete. Everything you
need to be 90 years old, you got. You don't get your large
intestines when you turn nine. Well, we've got to go down to
the store and get a doctor's appointment. We've got to get that liver put
in this week. No, you are exactly a human. Full-blown. Everything there is as needed.
What's more amazing, when God does this to a sinner, when he
calls his life to be where there was not life, and it's not humanly
possible, we're born spiritually unto him by his incorruptible
seed, and at that second, everything you need to enter his holy presence,
you got it. Right then, you're plum holy. People chop my head off saying
that, do you know that? You're completely sanctified, set apart
for his use. Lock, stock, and barrel, right
then. You've got some growing left if you stay on this earth
unless He weans you. You've got some growing left. Other than
that, you're just as right as you're going to get. You're going
to be fully like Christ. And that one day, it's inside
this old man, but that new man in you is absolutely perfect.
Absolutely perfect. What was the means that was used? As it is with Sarah, so it is
with us. When God is pleased, at the time He wills, He visits
us through the preaching of the gospel and He breathes life.
I don't do it, He does. And He speaks life into us. At
the very time we're old and unable and feeble and barren and laughing
at Him and mocking Him, at war with God, He saves His enemies,
rebels against God until He comes to Him. What's the means that's
physically used here? I'm going to say this word that
was used once in the Scriptures. Learn something from this. Heed
me. 1 Corinthians 7. It was benevolence. Benevolence
is what took place. We understand that, don't we?
We all got here some way. A bunch of us had kids. We know
where kids come from. Paul wrote, said, now concerning
the things wherever you wrote unto me, it's good for a man
not to touch a woman. He told them preachers, if you can be
like me, do what I do. He said, nevertheless, to avoid fornication,
let every man have his own wife and every woman have her own
husband. Let the husband render unto the
wife due benevolence and likewise also the wife unto the husband.
I told Kimberly one time, somebody wrote me a check and it said,
benevolent offering. And she knew what the word meant.
And so I was teasing and I said, that wasn't what happened. That
didn't happen. That's what happened. There was
a conjugal duty. You get it? Birds and the bees. Abraham and Sarah, they knew
each other biblically. It's how this child, Isaac, came
to pass. If I bring that up, Kevin, now
come on now, we've got to keep the PG or whatever, right? No,
we don't. We need to hear these things. There was a spark between
Abraham and Sarah that had not been there in a long time. She
and he were both made willing in the day of God's power. That's
the means that was used. What spiritual reverence does
that have at all? What did our Lord say in Revelation
2? Nevertheless, I have somewhat against you because you have
left thy first love. You've left your first love.
Sarah left her first love. She was with Abraham for a marriage
of 70 some years. They weren't benevolent anymore,
were they? And he said, Remember therefore from whence thou art
fallen and repent and do the first works. Be in love like
when you first were in love. Remember your first love. Do
the first works. Spirits are what happens to us,
just like them fellows in the boat. We forget our Lord. We stop praising Him. We stop
spending time with Him. We stop being concerned about
Him. We start worrying more about this world. We forgot our first
love. We need to do the first works. And quit worrying about
all the nonsense stuff that does not matter in this earth. And
say, God saved me. He did. I'm His child. I'm happy. I'm going to laugh. And I'm going
to go tell somebody. Are you sick? Find me a sinner. I've
got something to tell them. It's going to be great. I can't
wait. I have high expectations. The Lord is going to save somebody.
I know it. We keep doing this. Sooner or later, He's going to
save somebody. They're going to be baptized. They're going to take the Lord's
table. It's going to happen. How can someone without life
know the love of Christ from long ago, from before Adam fell,
before the foundation of the world? How can we know that first
love? We have to have that first love, don't we? How is that going
to happen? God's going to have to visit somebody, isn't He?
Why does He do it? The same way He's always done
it. After that and the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew
God. This world couldn't figure this
out. We can't come up with our own seed. We can't get a handle
on God. So it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching
to save them that believe. This is how it comes the first
time. Through the preaching, audible preaching you hear, of
the gospel. And that's just how it comes
every time. I looked something up the other
day. I didn't have my Bible with me. I was like, where's that at? Is that
in Joshua? So I Googled it. And it was like an online Bible.
And I couldn't read it. I kept having to close everything
out. I hate them things. And one of the pop-up ads was like,
are you having trouble finding a daily devotional? Download
our app and we'll help you You sort out all these different
people you've got to read all the time. And I was like, how
about you devote to Christ? Read His Word. And I'm thankful
for Brother Hawker and Gil and all them fellas, but you'll drown
yourself in that stuff. Stop doing that and read the
Word of God. It'll be good for you. Hear what
the preacher has for that moment in that field. Eat local. Remember
that one? Eat local. This is how it was
the first time. This is how it is every time.
And the means, me, He's standing there talking. Does not get the
glory. The preaching and the receiving
has turned into the doing of man in religion nowadays, isn't
it? Like it's something fancy. I learned. I figured it out.
I got a handle on God. I accepted God. Oh, he's a preacher. Or he's an elder. He's a deacon.
And she does this. She's a deaconess. Somebody taught
Sunday school one time 50 years ago. They must be good. The means
don't matter. It's the one that speaks. I just
broadcast this evening. I throw the water. That's all
I do. I wish I could go jam it down in some dirt. Make that
thing grow. And I can't! I know I can't. That's my job.
I throw the seed. And some lands on the wayside.
Some lands in the thorns. Some lands on the hard pathways.
And some lands on just freshly plowed soil. And I'm blind. I
don't know what the field looks like. I can't see a man's heart.
But God plows the heart. This dirt. This atom. that I
am is red dirt. God plows it. I just throw seed
and it lands where he wants it. And then I just throw water and
he makes it rain. And he gives a lot and he makes
it grow as he sees fit. Now what I do? I'm a seed thrower. I'm a farm hand. That ain't high
up on the pecking order, is it? God saves by visiting his child
and putting the seed of Christ in them. And he uses the church
to produce that fruit. You hear me? We, you who believe,
are used to produce this fruit. Look here in verse 3, Genesis
21, 3. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born
unto him, whom Sarah bared unto him, Isaac. Every child's name
is written in the land's book of life, it's his. And every name's ever been ordained. Kimberly and I may have named
our children on what we thought was on purpose, that we wanted
to, but nothing's by chance, is it? Before I was born, I was
supposed to be Scott. Apparently the Lord decided to
call me Kevin because that's my name. That's what was given to
me. Abraham just named Isaac what the Lord told him to name
him, didn't he? We read that back in Genesis 17, 19. We also
read in Genesis 18, 19 that Abraham commanded his children in his
household that they shall keep the way of the Lord. He did what
God told him to. He said, name him Isaac. And
they said, what's his name? He said, Isaac. That wasn't complicated,
was it? That's called obeying God. The offspring of the church,
the fruit of the church, it's effectual. This was a token of
what God did in the heart. Abraham circumcised his son Isaac
being eight days old as God had commanded him. You know why it's
eight days? You know why they circumcised
that outward token of flesh, the work that God does in the
heart on the eighth day? Remember creation? How many days was that?
7. All the work's finished. He's seated at the right hand
of God. This is plumbed done. You can take it to the bank.
And once salvation's completely fully accomplished, then he comes
to us and circumcises our heart. Then the blood of Christ is applied
to us. You see that? That's comfort
in that. Verse 5. And Abraham was 100
years old when his son Isaac was born unto him. And Sarah
said, God hath made me to laugh. so that all that hear me will
laugh with me." First time she laughed in the tent door, she
mocked God. She made light of it. This time
she rejoiced. She was 90 years old. For 70
years she'd been married to Abraham. And for 30 years, 25 years, whatever,
a long time, she'd been married to God's prophet. She cooked
him three meals a day, slept right next to him, bore him a
son, and she laughed at his God. Well, now I wouldn't laugh and
I'll hush it. You're at war with God. Bow.
This time it's different. Same function, looks the same.
Oh, that's a different laugh. This is a rejoicing laugh. Have
you ever laughed at something wonderful that the Lord does?
You ever prayed for something and it, I mean, right then it's
done. Thank you, Lord. Look what he
did. And you're just happy, ain't you? Just rejoicing. Or you laugh
at the foolishness and inability of yourself in light of His wisdom
and power. A surrendering laugh. Like, what
was I thinking, man? I'm crazy. I was looking to me. Some still laugh. There's some
that still mock. Some that still make light of
the promises of God. And you that know them, wait
on them. I know them. I know them. And I'm going to
wait on them. Wait on them. Keep praying to the Lord that
He's pleased to visit them. Because He can turn an old woman
that's been married to God's prophet for 70 years, that hated
God and laughed at His word, that said, you know, I'm alive.
What in the world is he talking about? I don't need life put in me.
Look, I can move my arms. I breathe air. I'm alive. This
is craziness. Christ can make them laugh with
tears of joy and amazement. He can. Be patient, be faithful
to Him. Keep praying. Verse 7, and she
said, it's beautiful. She said, Who would have said
unto Abram that Sarah should have given children suck? For
I have born him a son in his old age. This bride gives suck
to its child. Who would believe that? Who would
believe this bride that's 90 years old gives milk to a baby?
Who would believe that? You, who believe? The Bride of
Christ in this generation. The Lord is using you. Well,
take it serious. He's using you to nourish the
new life He's created through you. Through us preaching the
gospel. That's what He's doing. Thomas
Carlyle, God's using you to sucker people. His children. That's not just comfort. That's
to nourish them. To comfort them. Would you have
thought that? He's talking to me, and Bob's
talking this morning. You think 30's old? I didn't
think I was going to make it to 30, the way I was going. You'd say there
ain't no way in the world. And then the people think, Kevin's
a preacher now? Do what? Kevin Thacker? This guy? Kentucky? Him? I gotta look,
people not used to preach to me, but it's shameful sometimes.
Who would have thought it? Who could believe I could give
the sin sewer milk of the word to somebody? I would have life
in me to do so. Isn't that amazing? How can that
be? How can we give suck? Give the
milk. Give the milk. Remind those that are new of
Christ. Remind those that just had a
work done in them. Remind them of Christ. Don't whip them. Don't
correct them. You don't correct a baby. It's
got to be at least six or seven months old before you make it
lay still, doesn't it? When it's changed into a diaper, the camera starts
early. Don't play that in our house. But a month old baby,
you can't correct. Leave it alone. It's fine. Leave
it alone. Just give it the milk. Just point
them to Christ. Point them to Christ. That's the milk that
makes spiritual children, the seed of Abraham, grow. That's
what makes them grow. I said this is the entire life
of a believer, didn't I? A snapshot of our whole life,
cradle to grave. Look here in verse 8. And the child grew.
It got milk. Not the meat of the doctrine.
Strong meat. I'll hush it. It got milk. People
say there ain't much in milk. You can take cow's milk and turn
a calf into a 1200 pound steer in about six months. I think
there's something in milk. I think the Lord knew what he was talking
about, didn't he? The child grew and was weaned. That's your whole
life. What happened? God gave me life. I grew. I was
weaned. He did it all. And Abraham made
a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. Weaned! Was
he weaned from this world to Christ as we grow in grace? Yes.
Yes, that's true. But the only time a believer
is weaned from the sincere milk of the Word. The only time a
believer is weaned from personal... Listen to me. The only time a
believer is weaned from personally gathering with the Bride of Christ
to get what he absolutely... You think you need to go to the
grocery store? You won't miss going to the grocery store, but you'll miss church,
won't you? By the time we leave the Bride of Christ and that
Sensor of Milk of the Word to assemble to hear Christ preached
is when we're weaned from this earth to sit at that marriage
supper of the Lamb, the feast that's been prepared for you.
Now that don't include much of me. I grew when I was weaned.
Well, that's all I want known to me. Don't talk about me. I don't want anything I did remembered
by nobody. Look to Him that grows me. Look to Him that gave me
life. Look to Him that weans us from this world. That's what
Peter said. We read from Revelation 19 about
that marriage supper of the Lamb. Peter said, As newborn babes
desire the sincere milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby,
if so be you have tasted it. The Lord be gracious. There and
there in Revelation 19, He said unto me, Blessed are they which
are called, which are weaned, unto the marriage supper of the
Lamb. And he saith unto me, these are the true sayings of God.
How can I say that's what it is? Because God said so. That's
what it is. Sins are the milk of the world.
Word. That's what we're given to have. And we have to have
it to live. What I can do without? You're
dead. I ain't going without eating. I ain't missing a meal. You can
look at me. You know better than that. I pray God would visit someone
today. Maybe someone old. Maybe someone thinks they've
been alive for a long time and put life in them. I have high expectations
that they would profess Him in believer's baptism, observe His
table, obey the Lord, love the brethren, love Him, and they
would grow by the sincere miracle of the Word. And at that appointed
hour, we can rejoice because they're weaned out of this world
and they're seated at the feast prepared for them. That's my prayer. And I'm telling
you that's what God's going to do. And guess what? He said he's
going to do all those things. Call on him to visit with us.
That's wise, isn't it? He said he's going to do it.
He come past for Sarah, didn't he? I think it's going to come
past in every other child of Sarah that's going to come out
of this world. Let's pray. Father, thank you for this hour.
Lord, we're children. We're young, and babes, protect
us and nurture us with the milk, the sincere milk of the word,
Lord. Keep us as you promised you will, protect us, and keep
us from ourselves until we're weaned out of this world and
made to sit at that table. What a thought, Lord, your son
serving us. What a feast. We'd be in his
presence. Lord, give us patience and wisdom
with those that are yours that you haven't been pleased to give
life in yet. Allow us to be long-suffered
with them. We don't know who they are. Allow
us to have patience and understanding and wisdom. Thank you for this
day and forgive us for what we are. It's in Christ's name that
we ask. Amen.