Our Inheritance

Q: What does the Bible say about our inheritance through Christ?

The Bible teaches that God chooses our spiritual inheritance for us, which is found in Christ. Psalm 47:4 states, 'He shall choose our inheritance for us,' emphasizing that it is God who determines our spiritual blessings. This inheritance is an eternal promise rooted in Christ, assuring us of our redemption and eternal life. The apostle Paul reaffirms this in Romans 8:28-30, showing how our good is aligned with God’s sovereign purpose, and in Ephesians 1:10, we see that all things are gathered together in Christ for our inheritance. Therefore, our inheritance is not a matter of personal choice but a divine gift from God.

Q: How do we know our salvation is secure in Christ?

Our salvation is secure because it is based on God's unchanging choice and the completed work of Christ. The scripture assures us of our secure salvation through the doctrine of election and predestination, evident in Romans 8:29-30. God foreknows those whom He has chosen, and He has predestined them to be conformed to the image of His Son. Furthermore, Hebrews 9:15 illustrates that the New Testament inheritance was established through the death of Christ, confirming the solidity of our salvation as irrevocable. Our assurance lies not in our own efforts but in God's sovereign will and the work of Christ, who guarantees our place in heaven.

Q: Why is it important to understand God's choice in our inheritance?

Understanding God's choice highlights our reliance on His grace rather than our own merit. Recognizing that God chooses our inheritance prevents us from relying on our efforts or works for salvation. Psalm 47:4 expresses God's sovereignty over our spiritual gifts, and Ephesians 1:11 reiterates that believers are predestined according to His purpose. This understanding cultivates humility and gratitude, as we acknowledge that our hope is secured in God's choice and not fluctuating circumstances or personal righteousness. It reminds us to rest in the promises of God, as they're not contingent on our performance but on His faithful nature and covenant.

Q: How does imputation relate to our inheritance?

Imputation means we receive Christ’s righteousness as our inheritance rather than our sinful nature. Imputation refers to the transferring of Christ's righteousness to believers, as outlined in 2 Corinthians 5:21, where He who knew no sin became sin for us, so we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. This gift of righteousness is part of our inheritance in Christ, contrasting with the sinful inheritance we received from Adam. The faith we hold acts as the means through which we accept this imputed righteousness, thus affirming our status as joint heirs with Christ. Therefore, the concept of imputation is essential in understanding the transformative nature of our inheritance.

Q: What must we do to receive the inheritance God has chosen for us?

To receive the inheritance, we must have faith in Christ and be united with Him. Receiving God's chosen inheritance involves placing our faith in Christ as our Savior, believing that His righteousness is granted to us by grace. Ephesians 1:13-14 indicates that we receive the Holy Spirit as a guarantee of our inheritance when we trust in Christ. This indicates that the act of faith is not merely intellectual assent, but a heartfelt trust that aligns our lives with God's covenant promises. Our inclusion in this inheritance underscores the importance of being 'in Christ', which is the sole qualifier for partaking in the divine blessing designated for His people.

I turned that off a minute ago
and needed to turn it back on. Well, I spoke with your pastor
yesterday, and he's doing fine. I know that he needed this rest,
and it's good for him. He'll come back refreshed, I'm
sure, but his mind and heart is never far from you, no matter
where physically he is. And he said, since I had opportunity
to be sure and send you his love and tell you you're on his mind.
I want you to turn this morning to Psalm 47. I want to introduce this message
by being certain that everyone here understands what a last
will and testament is. In anticipation of the inevitable
event which awaits us all. And that is that we will someday
physically die, and that during this lifetime we may have accumulated
some things, some houses and lands or money and automobiles
or whatever it might be, jewelry and things. We ought to prepare
a last will and testament. And that simply means, young
people, to take a piece of paper and write down on it your own
name, and then to indicate to whom you would like all of these
things to go. These things make your inheritance.
If you own a house and a car and a bank account with some
money in it, and you die, that's your inheritance, those things.
And if you want to be certain that it is given to a certain
person, you write on this, This is my last will and testament,
and I bequeath, or so state, that all that I have goes to
my son or to my daughter. Or you just put what name you
want in there. And then that becomes your last
will and testament. And, of course, it's executed
after you die. Now, I was thinking that if everyone
in Rocky Mount were given the opportunity to choose, to choose
their own inheritance, to choose the one person, if they could
say, I'm going to name this person, and I get his inheritance. I
spent some time thinking about it, and I suspect that maybe
if you thought about it very long, there's one name that might
appear more than any other as the choice of everybody in Rocky
Mountain. I wonder if the name Ross Perot might leap to your
mind. See, folks believe that Ross
Perot has unimaginable wealth, billions of dollars, and unimaginable
power, and they would eagerly choose the inheritance of Ross
Perot, I think. But I can assure you of this,
that anybody or everyone who would be allowed to choose his
own inheritance, I know this about that, we would all choose
amiss. We'd all make a bad choice. We'd
choose something that ultimately wasn't good for us. And I'm going
to show you in a minute how I know that's so. But whatever we chose
wouldn't be for our good. Ultimately, it would be not for
our good. Now, of course, the notion that
we can choose our own inheritance is absurd anyway. You do realize
that it wouldn't work if one of Terry Kinsley's sons said,
Well, I think that I'd rather have Henry's inheritance. And
he couldn't go over and say, Henry, I choose your inheritance,
and I'm going to get it now. That's ridiculous, isn't it?
Henry's inheritance goes to his wife or to his children, not
to Terry's. So you can't choose your own
inheritance. That's just an absurd notion. I want to be clear about something. I'm not really talking about
our natural or physical or monetary inheritance. I don't care what
that is, whether it's great or small. There's coming a time
when nobody's going to care about all that. I'm talking about our spiritual
inheritance, our eternal inheritance. You know, I don't have to see
Henry's bank account. I don't have to see the deeds
and titles to lands. I don't have to know how many
automobiles or how much property he's got. to understand exactly
what his son's inheritance will be from him. And you don't have to see mine
to know what my son's inheritance is going to be from me. You don't
have to go down to the courthouse and check it out to find out
what Rick might leave his children. No. You're going to leave your
children, Rick, and you're going to leave your children, and I'm
going to leave my children the same spiritual inheritance that
we got from our father. And we can just trace that right
on back until we get to the Father of Fathers, until we get to Adam,
the first man. And from Adam by birth, we get
our spiritual inheritance. And do you know what it is? Adam, I don't know about you,
Henry, when your daddy died, did they read his will and then
say, Oh, by the way, here's some of Adam's will? Did you get any
property from that or anything? No real goods came from that,
did it? When my dad died, it didn't say anything in there
about Adam's will. If I read this book, I'll find
out what it was. Do you know what we get from
our father Adam? Enmity with God. We get separation
from God. We get hatred of God. And finally,
we're going to get physical death and eternal death from our father
Adam. That's our spiritual inheritance.
And you and I can't choose an inheritance. We get the inheritance
that's given to us by our Father. That's what we're going to get.
Now, I know somebody's thinking here. Now, let's see if I can
get in your mind a little bit. You're thinking, I can't choose
whose inheritance I'm going to get, but I can, by the law, refuse
to accept an inheritance. Now, that's true. Did you know
that? Did you know that Henry Mahan, my pastor, refused an
inheritance once? Some lady died. And my recollection
is it was a significant amount of money, I'm going to say over
$30,000. And she named three men. It embarrasses
Henry to hear who they were. I think one of them was Oral
Roberts, and one was some other fellow, and Henry Mahan. And
they were each to get a third of this, over $10,000 is my recollection. Well, the daughter of this woman
protested the last will and testament. And the other two fellows were
going to go to court and fight it. Henry said, no. He said, that's her inheritance.
And he signed a legal document, a piece of paper, he signed foregoing
all claim to this woman's inheritance. And it went to her daughter,
which is where it should have gone. So legally you can forego
an inheritance and you say, I don't like the inheritance I'm getting
from Adam, so I'm going to forego it. Throw it over. Legally you
can do that. But now let's follow that to
its logical conclusion. You want to throw over Adam's
inheritance? You're going to refuse your natural inheritance?
Then the only inheritance you're going to have is going to be
what you make out of yourself. Your inheritance is going to
be what you earn, what you get in this life. That is the law. And let me ask you, do you think
you're going to make something better of yourself? and what
Adam left you? Do you think you're going to
remove the hatred and enmity between you and God? Do you think
you're going to deliver yourself from eternal death? Do you think
you're going to do better than Adam's inheritance? You say,
Well, I couldn't do much worse, could I? Oh, yes, you could. I tell you, you read the scriptures,
it doesn't say anything about degrees of glory, but it does
have some things about degrees of condemnation. And if you want
it to be worse than what you've got coming from Adam already,
you just set about to earn your own salvation. You just set about
to try to tell God Almighty that the salvation he's ordained isn't
good enough, that you're going to pick your own inheritance.
It'll be worse. I tell you, you who would be
under the law, don't you hear the law? Those who would teach
your children that you can earn something better than what Adam
left by obeying the law, you'd be better off leaving alone.
preachers who preach that there is a way to earn your salvation
and get something better than what Adam left you, no, you just
make somebody else twofold the child of hell as you are. If you go to choose your own
inheritance, it will be worse off for you in the day of judgment. And we would all make a bad choice
anyway. But I have some good news for you. I have some good
news for you here. Look in Psalm 147. And look at verse 4. Here's the
good news for some folks. He, God Almighty, shall choose
our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob, whom he loved. It's
no wonder in verse 1 it says up here, O clap your hands, all
ye people, shout, shout unto God with a voice of triumph.
Why? chosen my inheritance for me!"
He didn't give me the choice. He chose it for me. Now, that's
something worth, I mean, you can clap about the touchdowns
at the Super Bowl if you want to. Isn't it a shame that applause
has become such a way of praising men that we can't even do it
in a spiritual sense without it looking foolish? We ought
to applaud, we ought to shout, our inheritance for us. Look
at verse 2 here. For the Lord Most High is terrible. He is a great king over all the
earth. You know, you couldn't choose
to have the inheritance of some rich man. But if one who is wealthy
chose you, that's another matter, isn't Yeah, and determined to
give you his inheritance. Now, that's only proper. You
see, it's legal and according to the law, and if he determines
to adopt you, no one can change that. His inheritance is yours
forever, and it can't be challenged. Can't be challenged. And who
would challenge? Who's to say it is the Lord Most
High? Who's going to challenge his
will? Who's going to challenge his inheritance? Who's going
to challenge his testament? Who's going to challenge his
word? To what higher authority would one appeal that says he's
the king of over all the earth? If he's made the choice and bequeathed
the inheritance, there's no change in this. Look at verse 3 here. He shall subdue the people under
us and the nations under our feet. Now, there's a way in which
you can take that just at face value. God Almighty was going
to subdue all the nations around Israel and put them under their
subjection. But not for the purpose of collecting
taxes or making them slaves or whatever. See if this doesn't
turn a light on for you here. Do you know why God Almighty
allowed Israel to conquer all those nations around them in
David's time? It was for their good and his glory. You see,
putting people under us means he was going to, you know what
you're doing right now? you're sitting under the sound of the
gospel. It says, put the nations under
their feet. It didn't mean they were going
to walk around on, trample them under their feet. No, it was
going to cause them to say, you're sitting at my feet, listening
to the gospel. You see, this inheritance is
so vast, this inheritance is so good, this inheritance is
so marvelous, so wonderful, that those who get it They don't hoard
it up and grieve and go, You're not getting any of my inheritance.
No, it's sufficient that all who come may have a part. All who sit and listen to the
testament may partake of the inheritance. And that's what
that verse means, because it follows right on in the next
verse and says, He shall choose our inheritance for us. I'm going
to touch each word of that real quick, and we'll be through.
The first word is he. Aren't you glad this morning
that that one letter of that word didn't change, that it doesn't
say we? Read it that way. We shall choose
our inheritance for ourselves. Oh, I'm glad it doesn't say that.
I'm so glad it doesn't say that. Turn over to Romans 8 with me.
It says he. Who is this he? You find Romans
8 with me, and while you're turning there, let me give you this illustration. If you went down to buy a new
car, you went down to buy a new car, would you fathers let your
children pick the car? Would you? Well, the four-year-old
would walk over to that big old red shiny clunker and say, I
want that one, Daddy. I like that red car, and would
have no concern about how it ran. The seven-year-old, she
might look in one and say, Ooh, this one's got that pretty mauve
interior. I want this one. With no mind that it was worn
out. The twelve-year-old, she said,
Daddy, let's get that convertible. I can feel the wind blowing through
my hair. The sixteen-year-old boy says,
Dad, look at that two-seater sports car, buddy, with the stick
shift on the floor. He can see himself with his honey
going down the road. And the 19-year-old boy, he says,
Dad, let's get that rascal with the big tires and the four-wheel
drive truck. You see, when in fact what the
family needs, what they need is a mid-sized station wagon
that will haul them all around, and it's got good economy, and
it's reliable. And because that's what they
need, the father's going to make the decision, and the children
not only will abide by it, but in due time they'll be glad.
They'll be glad. It's good it doesn't say we choose
our inheritance for ourselves. It says he, he. Who is the he
here? Look at Romans chapter 8 with
me. He chooses our inheritance, and that's our only assurance
that all things work together for our good. You see Romans
8, 28? And we know, in due time we know. that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are called
according to his purpose." Boy, a lot of folks like that verse,
don't they? But now listen to the reason
why that's so. The only reason that verse is
true is follow right on with the next verse, and notice how
many times the word, he, is in this. That's so because verse
29, "...for whom he did foreknow." He also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn
among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate,
them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified,
and whom he justified, them he also glorified." I'm glad he
has chosen my inheritance for me." You don't like that? Look at
verse 31. What shall we say, then, to these
things? If he be for us, who can be against us? You think
somebody's going to take my inheritance away from me? You've got another
thing coming, because he chose it, he gave it to me, and he's
keeping Oh, I'm glad he chose my inheritance for me." That's
the anchor of verse 28 in verses 29 and 30. The second word is,
he, and there's two words, shall choose. I'm going to treat it
like one, because that just shall establishes the tense of the
verb. He shall choose. That's the verb here. Shall choose.
Notice it doesn't say he may choose, or he could choose, or
he might choose. doesn't even say that he's allowed
us to choose. It says, he shall. Shall. That means God's determined to
make the choice concerning our inheritance, and nothing can
change his mind or stay his hand. In fact, some interpret this
to translate, he hath chosen past tense. That means it's already
been done. It's an irrevocable choice. Turn
to Hebrews 9. And I'll show you what makes
this not only past tense and an unchangeable choice. The document
that identifies the recipient of an inheritance is called a
will or testament. That's what we said. And a will
is only executed with the death of the testator, the one who
made it out. Look here at Hebrews 9, verse 15. And for this cause,
oh, here's that word again. And for this cause, he. He. is
the mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death, for the
redemption of the transgressions that were under the First Testament,
they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there
must also of necessity be the death of the testator." You see,
a will is no less valid before death than after death. It's
still valid. It simply comes into force when
the person dies. Henry can write out all the wills
he wants, but it doesn't mean a thing until he dies. Then when
he dies, the will you wrote, the last will you wrote, the
last will in Testament, it comes into force, and it will be executed
at that time. But you meant it when you wrote
it, and you determined when you wrote it for it to happen. You
just had to die to make it happen. And that which was planned before
simply takes place in time. Do you know what happened when
the Lord Jesus Christ died? His last will and testament came
into force. It doesn't mean it didn't mean
anything beforehand. Oh, it was planned beforehand,
and he determined that it would come to pass. And it will come
to pass. Why? What's the proof of that?
He died. wouldn't have needed a will if
he hadn't determined to die. It doesn't mean that he's done
all he can do, and now it's up to you to choose your own inheritance.
That's not what it means. If Henry dies, does that mean
his sons get to go out and pick their inheritance? It's absurd,
isn't it? No, it means they get his inheritance.
When Christ died, it means those whom he chose are going to get
his inheritance. They shall, they shall get his
inheritance. And his testament cannot and
will not be changed. He hath chosen. You want a copy
of the Lord Jesus Christ's Last Will and Testament? Most of you
have got one right there in your lap. And don't get it wrong,
there's not an Old Testament and a second one, or a new one.
No. All this is, is that the Old
Testament was when the Last Will and Testament was first declared
by the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's written mostly in pictures
and forms. You understand? It's just like,
it's as if I, if Henry wrote a Last Will and Testament and
said, My son gets everything I've got. But then later he writes
and says, I want my son especially to be mindful of the picture
that I've got on the wall in this room. and of this pocket
knife I got in the drawer there. He got real specific and clear
about it, right? The New Testament is just declared
a little clearer for us, after the death of the testator. Do
you see that? And the Bible is the testament. I tell you what, if we had announced
in the newspaper that we were going to read a document this
morning, the last will and testament, that left $150 million, and there's
a good chance that anybody in Rocky Mountain might have a part
in it, they'd be backed up for miles coming in here, wouldn't
they? And don't misunderstand, I'd be in line, too, I'm sure.
But the point is, we've got an inheritance of unspeakable wealth
here, and you can't get anybody to even come read the will, can
we? Oh, bless our hearts, we're so
blind. But look at the third word here. This is a marvelous
word in our text, Psalm 47. He shall choose our, our. This chosen inheritance is actually
ours? Look back at Hebrews 11 with
me. This inheritance is actually ours? Well, it's not ours by
merit, and it's not because we've earned it, not because we deserve
it. It's given to us as a free gift
of the King, our Lord Jesus Christ. And ours means it's not loaned
to us. No, it's not temporary. You don't
temporarily leave something to somebody in a will. When you
leave it, it's left. You're gone. You're gone. It's a done deal. And it's not
Christ's inheritance that we sort of share with what we've
done to make up what we've got. The inheritance is all Christ.
Now listen, by birth, the inheritance, you know what we've got coming
by birth? The inheritance of Adam. It's
ours, by what's called imputation. That means, I wasn't there when
Adam died, were you? No. But by imputation, we get
his spiritual inheritance. We get it all. And before you
buck up and say, I don't like that, I don't want that inheritance,
well, let me ask you this. By grace there is another inheritance. Were you there when the Lord
Jesus Christ died? No, I wasn't there either. But wouldn't you like to have
his inheritance? The only way you can get it is by imputation.
You say, how do I know that I got what Adam left? I believe it,
because I act like it. I act like it all the time. I
don't need much convincing. But the truth is, that only proof
I've got is this book, God's Word that tells me that's what
I was, that's what I am, that's what I've got coming. You want
to know what the only proof, the only proof you're going to
get what Christ left in his inheritance? It's by faith, believing. You see here in Hebrews 11, look
at verse 8 with me. Hebrews 11, verse It says, By
faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which
he should after receive foreign inheritance, obeyed, and he went
out not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the
land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles
with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise."
Do you see, the inheritance is by promise. What makes Henry's
children think they're going to get anything when he dies?
Well, if he's promised them something, I suspect they believe it. God's
words promised us here. It's clear. Read the promises
of God Almighty, if we want to know what the inheritance is
and whether it's ours. You see, Christ took the inheritance
we deserve and gave us his inheritance, which we don't deserve. You like
imputation now? I sure do. I didn't earn what
Christ did, but I get it by imputation. How can I believe that? It's
my faith. We receive the inheritance by promise. Christ had not died
yet. Nonetheless, it was theirs. It was Abraham's and Isaac's
and Jacob's. It was theirs. The same as this
inheritance is ours. Ours. It's really ours. If we
enter into that, it's ours. It's ours. that if Henry had something special
and left it to his son, he might think it was his, but he'd believe
it when it was really his. He had it in his hand, wouldn't
he? In the meantime, he'd just have to rely on faith. You and
I are in the same circumstance. It's by faith. When you get that
faith, it's a gift of God. It's his gift also. Turn to Ephesians
1, and I'll move on to the fourth word here. He has he shall choose
our inheritance." Inheritance. Now, inheritance, notice it's
not plural, is it? Does it say inheritances? No,
it's singular. Each of us has only one eternal
inheritance. Now, there are two. We understand
there's two. There's the inheritance of Adam,
and there's the inheritance of Christ. But everybody, you're
not going to mix them up. You can't have some of this and
some of that. But one or the other, you only get one, but
you're going to get one or the other. That's the only choices
there are, not both. And let me, I had a marvelous
illustration occur with this. Before church recently, I went
back towards the nursery, and I love to go see the little kids
and give them candy and stuff. And there's a, Frank Tate has
a little girl before in a couple of weeks. And boy, as I came
around the corner, I heard this awful crying. And it wasn't one
of these screaming, kicking and yelling kind of thing. It was
a heartbroken cry. And I went in there and here's
little Holly. And she is just got her hand like this and she's
just sobbing. And everybody was trying to do
something about it. And I went over to and and she
knows I'm the candy man. And she she looked up and held
her little hand out and said, I broke my ring." And she had
a piece of blue glass, almost as big as your thumb, and a little
ring, and it was broken off. And she said, it just meant so
much to me. And she said, my daddy gave it
to me. And she just cried and cried. And I could see this was a hopeless
situation. And I said, honey, your daddy
will make it right. He'll make it right. And I got
out of there. But do you know if in that moment
I'd taken a little holly, and let's say I had another little
blue glass ring like that. Frank said he paid a dollar and
a half for the ring and the necklace and the bracelet and everything
that went with it. So we got a nickel's worth of blue glass
there, and I laid it on a table, and next to it I took a six-carat
diamond. and said, Holly, choose the one
you want. What do you suppose she'd pick?
She'd pick that worthless piece of glass every time. That's the
reason you and I aren't left to choose our own inheritance. Because given the choice, you
and I would take the worthless, damnable, inheritance of Adam,
and leave the precious jewel, God's inheritance, the Lord Jesus
Christ, we back away and leave him alone. That's the best illustration
I can give you about what the inheritance is, what it is. But look here in Ephesians 1,
and I want to show you that we could talk about the benefits
of the inheritance. the holiness, the righteousness,
the mercy, the goodness, the compassion, the love, the kindness,
the eternal life, all the benefits of the inheritance. We could
talk about that all day long, but this inheritance is singular,
singular. It's not two or three or many,
it's one. The benefits, you see, we receive
are incidental. There are many, but they're incidental
in light of the glory of the singular inheritance. That's
so because the inheritance is a person, a person. We could talk all day long about
righteousness. Oh, I'd like to have righteousness. and the glory of Jesus Christ,
to have that just a minute of holiness, absolute righteousness,
wouldn't you like that? That's one of the benefits of
the inheritance. But that's not the inheritance.
There's a difference. The inheritance is not the righteousness
of Christ. The inheritance is the Christ
who is righteous. You get righteousness in the
inheritance in Christ. And all of the benefits are that
way. But listen, don't get caught up in the benefits. No, concentrate
on the person. You see here in Ephesians 1,
verse 10, we read, Ephesians 1, Then 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, whom, whom also we have obtained an inheritance."
It's an inheritance singular, and it's in the whom, it's in
Christ. Being predestinated means chosen,
doesn't it? He shall choose our inheritance
for us. Chosen, chosen according to the
purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his
own, what? Will, his last will and testament. Do we see how this all ties together?
It's all in Christ. all in Christ. Let's look at 1 Peter 1 quickly,
and I want to show you that this inheritance, one other thing
about the inheritance, is that it is perfect, permanent and
protected. In 1 Peter 1, verse 3, we read Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a liably hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead." You want to know what the guarantee that
inheritance is in force now? Jesus Christ didn't stay dead.
He rose from the grave to be sure the inheritance is protected,
that it's still perfect, it's untainted by us, and that it
is permanent. And here's the proof of that,
verse 4, "...to an inheritance." You see that? To the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance, it's uncorruptible,
can't be messed with, it's undefiled, you and I can't add anything
to it, it's not tainted by sin, it will not fade away, and it's
reserved in heaven. Now look at these two words,
for you. You shouldn't reference how the
same thing mine does, it really says for us, for us. Now look
back at Psalm 47. for us, for us, he shall choose
our inheritance for us, for us." The word for there means instead
of, in the place of, and that's a good word. You see, Christ
died instead of you and me, and Christ was righteous. He lived
perfectly in the stead of you and me, for you, for me. Thank goodness it's not by anything
we have done, but by what Christ did for us. Then finally, the
word us. Turn to Colossians 1, the word
us. Who are the us? Does that interest
you? Your interest in the will in
the Testament hinges on this word, on us. In our text it does say, He shall
choose our inheritance for us, and then it tells us who the
us are, for the excellency of Jacob, whom he loved. That's
who the us are. And it doesn't mean the very
children, the offspring, the real children of Jacob by physical
birth. What it means is the spiritual
children of God here, the spiritual children of Jacob in the Old
Testament as the excellency, the elect, the chosen people
of God. You see here, and you say, well, what's that mean?
Well, he said, Jacob have I loved. You say, you're only quoting
half a verse there, Bob. Jacob have I loved, Esau have
I hated? Yeah, that's part of it, too.
You say, does that mean God dreamed up some devilish, diabolical
thing for inheritance for Esau and that group? No. God didn't
have to. You know what he did? He just
let him have Adam's. He just let Esau have Adam's
inheritance. Oh, but thank God he loved Jacob.
It wouldn't amaze me a bit if God Almighty turned me loose
and let me have what Adam deserved and what I had coming. But it
amazes me that he chose my inheritance for me as the excellency of Jacob,
whom he loved. Colossians 1, verse 12, giving
thanks unto the Father which hath chosen who? Us. And who are the us? Meet to be
partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. Meet
means qualified. How are we qualified? Am I qualified
by having been in church every day since I was a baby? Is it
qualified because I'm a good person? No. You know what qualifies
me? Being in Christ. It's the only thing that qualifies
me. And there's only one qualification. Being found in Christ. You don't
have to be found in Christ to do something else. Just be in
Christ. And quickly, turn to Psalm 16.
Almost finished here. Turn to Psalm 16. You see, Christ is the rightful,
lawful heir to the inheritance, and if we are in him, we are
joint heirs. We are meek, we are qualified
to be partakers of the inheritance. Look at Psalm 16, verse 3. But
to the saints who are in the earth, and to the excellent in
whom is all my delight, their sorrows shall be multiplied that
hasten after another God, their drink, offerings of blood will
I not offer, nor take up their names unto my lips. The Lord
is the portion of mine inheritance." You see, he shall choose an inheritance
for us, the excellency of Jacob, whom he loved. Who are they?
They're his saints, they're his people, and he's chosen Turn
to Numbers 18, and I'll close here. Are we among the us, those for
whom an inheritance has been chosen? What is our heart's desire? Are we satisfied with, delighted
by what Christ's testament says? Is that our joy? Is it? Numbers, verse 18 and verse 20. And the Lord spake unto Aaron,
Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt
thou have any part among them. He told Aaron he wasn't going
to get anything. They were going into this promised
land that looked It was just flogged with milk
and honey, and he told Aaron, You've got no inheritance, Aaron,
in the land. None. You want to know what God's
people's inheritance is in this world? We don't have any. Don't let it bother you. that
you don't have a job making $150,000 a year. Don't bother to play
the lottery. If you want a billion dollars,
it wouldn't do you any good. You have no inheritance here.
If you want that inheritance, go get it. Go get it. That's
our hearts. God will let us have that inheritance
if that's what we're determined to have. He'll leave us alone. I don't want any inheritance
in this land. Now look what else he said, "'I am thy part and thine inheritance
among the children of Israel.'" God Almighty told him, "'I am
thine inheritance.'" How did God know he was Aaron's inheritance?
Because the scripture says, "'He hath chosen our inheritance for
us.'" Since Aaron was one of his, he'd already chosen Aaron's
inheritance, and he knew what it was. It was the Lord Jesus
Christ. And if you want to know if you're
one of the us, let me ask you, what consumes us? What's our
heart's desire? Are we content with him? Are we delighted in him? Is he
all our delight and joy? Our inheritance? Is it Christ?
Is that sufficient? Do we rejoice in that? Do we
clap our hands and go, Thank God! He's my inheritance! Or do we just stay wrapped up
in pursuing the things of this world? Can we just not forget
about those things? And don't misunderstand me, I
know it's not easy. Boy, the old world pulls on us, doesn't
it? Tugs at us. But I love this, and I'll close
with this. There I don't know much about translations and all
that Greek and Hebrew. I just don't know much about
it, but I do know how to read, but some of the old timers wrote
down and John Gill wrote this. There's another version of this
phrase in what's called the Arabic, whatever that means. And let
me give you that. There'd be another message and
I don't have time and I didn't prepare it, but I want you to
go home thinking about this. Some interpret this phrase, he
hath chosen or he shall choose for us an inheritance for us. They interpret it this way. Listen.
He hath chosen us an inheritance for himself. I like that, don't
you? He hath chosen us an inheritance
for himself. That'd be another whole message,
wouldn't it? But it's true, nonetheless. I couldn't bring both messages,
so I just brought you the one. Maybe another time for the other.
But I hope it's a blessing to you. I so rejoice to know this
is not a decision he's left up to me. It's not a decision. Do
we see that? These guys are lying, telling
folks to come down and make a decision for Christ. That's a lie. He
made the decision a long time ago. Oh, we're in trouble. We're in trouble. May the Lord
bless his word. Let's take our hymn books and
turn to 125, Jesus Paid It All. Please stand and let's sing the
first and the fourth stanza. First and the fourth stanza,
Jesus Paid It All, 125. I hear the Savior say, Thy strength
indeed is small. Child of faith, just watch and
pray. I am in Thee, Thine all in all. Jesus made it all, all to Thee. He walked in white as snow, and
waved before the throne. And my soul will say, my dear,
it shall still repeat, Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Then when at the crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow. Thank you, and you're dismissed. you

Our Inheritance

What does the Bible say about our inheritance through Christ?

How do we know our salvation is secure in Christ?

Why is it important to understand God's choice in our inheritance?

How does imputation relate to our inheritance?

What must we do to receive the inheritance God has chosen for us?

Sermon Transcript

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Articles

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Our Inheritance

What does the Bible say about our inheritance through Christ?

How do we know our salvation is secure in Christ?

Why is it important to understand God's choice in our inheritance?

How does imputation relate to our inheritance?

What must we do to receive the inheritance God has chosen for us?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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