If you'd like to follow along,
I'm gonna be in Deuteronomy chapter 32. And I'm just gonna read, well,
we'll go ahead and read four verses, beginning in verse nine
of Deuteronomy 32. Four, the Lord's portion is his
people. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land
and in the waste howling wilderness. He led him about, he instructed
him, he kept him as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirreth
up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her
wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings. So the Lord alone
did lead him, and there was no strange God with him. My title today, Paul and others,
is The Lord Does for His People. the Lord does for his people.
Before I get started, I do have another quote here from Spurgeon,
which I thought was real good. My faith rests not in what I
am, or shall be, or feel, or know, but in who Christ is. what he has done, and in what
he is now doing for me. I like that, I like that. And
that's kind of what we're gonna go into today. I was gonna share something else
with you. I was listening to Henry on the way up here last
week, and I thought, well, this is a great thing to hear, just
as you're coming up. He said, you know, do you know
what the scariest part of preaching is? The scariest part of being
a preacher and preaching, well, if you don't know, I'm going
to tell you anyway. Even if you do know, I'm going to tell you
anyway. It's the fact when you realize that people are listening
to you. That's scary. They're paying
attention to what you say. I remember Earl talking about
it one time. He was, Scott Richardson was
coming down and Earl was going up to preach and Scott Richardson
looked at him and said, now remember, you're speaking for God. And Earl said, that's a fine
thing to say when I'm going up there. And I thought to myself,
well, Scott knew how to cheer people up, you know. But anyway,
that is, actually is the scariest thing about preaching, when you
realize people are listening to you. Be that as it may. I hope we're
listening today. Today I've got four things here
in Deuteronomy 32 and verse 10 that the Lord does for his people. As he calls it, his portion.
What the Lord has done, the Lord is doing. What he's done for
one of his people, he does for all of his people. And that's
just the truth of it. As the psalmist said in Psalm
66 and verse 16, it says, come and hear. Come and hear all ye
that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my soul. For my soul. Well, it starts
in verse nine. For the Lord's portion is his
people and Jacob is a lot of his inheritance. Listen, the
children of God, his people, are important to God, to God. Now let's be clear, not in themselves,
not in ourselves, but they are important to God. But that's
because of who they belong to. His people, belong to the Lord,
and specifically, the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why we are important
to God. It's not anything of ourselves,
it's all in his son, it's all in the Lord Jesus Christ. And
the believers are the Lord's portion, his part. Oh, I like
that. Now here's the great thing about
this, if you think about it. We are and always have been his
possession. His possession. This is not a
new thing. Oh, it's not a new thing at all.
I know people talk about that old time religion. Well, usually
the people who talk about that nowadays have no idea what they're
talking about. Because The old time religion,
you could not get away from the gospel of God's complete and
utter sovereignty in salvation. And now it's, where'd you all
get that new doctrine? What are you talking about? I've
never heard that before. It used to be around. It used
to be around. It's not now. Not like it used
to be. But here, you know, an Arminian
used to be a strange thing. People who believed in free will
and believed they got saved by their free will. I'm going to
tell you something. That's not what the scripture says. And
that's what we're going to go into right here. We are and always
have been his possession. First in covenant love before
the world began. Chosen in Christ before the world
began. From the foundation. Oh. then in real purchase, redemption,
and then in time, in bringing many sons to glory. In verse 10, we are told the
four ways God brings in the sons and daughters of God, what God
does for us in salvation, his salvation, not man's salvation,
his salvation. First of all, He finds his people. He finds his people. Now for
us, this is where it starts. We don't know anything about
God, truly, until he finds us. We don't care anything about
God, truly, until he finds us. That's the truth of it. In the
beginning, before the foundation of the world, chosen in Christ,
you know, God knew all about that. It's written in here. He
told us. But we didn't know anything about
it, not in truth, not in reality, until he finds us. That's the
first thing. And this is where it starts for
us. This is where it starts for all
of us, the believers. We are told what the Lord has
done for his portion. I like that. Listen, in Luke 15, verses one
and two, says this. Then drew near unto him, unto
Jesus, all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And you know what? Religious
people didn't like that. And the Pharisees and scribes
murmured, saying, this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them. Amen. The only thing I got to
say about that is thank God, you know, because that's where
I am. That's what I am. Oh my. This man receiveth sinners. However, right after these men
said that, and Christ heard them. Christ knew what was in their
hearts when they said it. He didn't need anybody to tell
him what was in a man's heart. Oh no. But right after that,
after the Pharisees and scribes murmured, he spoke to them in
a three-part parable. The lost sheep, the lost coin,
and the lost son. I'm only gonna deal with the
first two, just for a minute. This is not gonna be long, it's
not gonna be deep theological thought or anything, the fact,
but here you go. The first two parts teach us
that he, the good shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, has to find
his people. That's what it shows us. What
man of you having a hundred sheep, this is verse four, if he lose
one of them, does not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness
and go after that which is lost? Until he find it. He find it. And when he hath
found it. Because I'm gonna tell you something,
when the Lord's looking for you, he's gonna find you. Matter of
fact, he knows where you are before he starts looking for
you. But there's a time, in the fullness of time. Oh my, and
when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and his
neighbors, saying unto them, rejoice with me. For I have found
my sheep. Oh, there's the whole point.
It's my sheep, it's my sheep, which was lost. And I say unto
you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that
repenteth and over the 99 just persons that needeth no repentance.
And then the next part of this parable is exactly the same,
only more so. And what woman having 10 pieces
of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle and sweep
the house and seek diligently till she find it. And when she's found it, she
rejoices. Oh, my. Likewise, I say unto you, verse
10, there is joy in the presence of angels, of God over one sinner
that repenteth. Oh, now. I don't know if you noticed in
those two parts of that parable, because this is just one parable,
but in those two parts of the one parable, repentance is inextricably
tied to him finding you. Repentance is not of man. Repentance
must be granted. That's what the scripture says.
Peradventure, that he should grant them repentance. That's
what it means. Grant them, give them. You understand, the lost coin is an inanimate
object. It couldn't find anything. It
had to be found by the owner. The owner, I like that, you know?
And the lost sheep is a dumb animal. I'm not being disrespectful
to sheep. I'm not being disrespectful to
you. That's what we are. We were so dumb, we didn't know
we were lost. We were so dumb, we didn't know
we were dead. And nothing with that changes
until he finds you. But when he finds you, it changes. You understand, that sheep rejoiced
to be back in the fold, to be in the fold, carried there. Why? I mean, he didn't tell the sheep,
go over there, you dumb thing. He picked it up. put it over
his shoulders and he carried it home. That is the picture
of what it means when he said he found Jacob. That's what he's talking about.
Not only that, he found him in a desert land. Now he's been in the wilderness,
in the waste howling wilderness. Excuse me That's the world folks. That's the world a waste howling
wilderness a desert Where does it say much Mephibosheth used
to be Lodabar what a place of no bread That's where you are
before Christ finds you That's where every single one of us
is because I'm gonna tell you something. There is no sheep
food in the world There's no food, there's plenty of goat
food. You understand? I'm not gonna go into that. There's a lot of sheep trying
to eat goat food right now. That's what I'm afraid of. But
you understand, that's the fault of the shepherd. But it's no
fault in our Lord Jesus Christ. When he goes out to find his
sheep, he brings it in. It is, and it is in. You understand,
the lost sheep cannot find the shepherd. The lost coin cannot
find the woman that owned it. They have to be found. And who
finds us? The Lord's portion is his people. What does it say? He found him. God's got to find his people.
God's got to find his people or they'll never be found. And
that's just the truth of it. And the opposite of found is
lost. That's just the way it is. I
mean, you know, the shepherd, God, God bless his word. The shepherd knows his sheep. He said, which one of you fellows
having a sheep? and it gets lost, won't go find
it. He says, I have found my sheep. That's what the good shepherd
says. I found my sheep. It was mine when it was lost,
and it's mine now that it's found. It always was my sheep, and I'm
gonna find my sheep. Oh, I like that. The shepherd
knows his lost sheep, and he goes looking for that sheep,
and I love how it says it, when he finds it. He's gonna find
it. He's going to find it. He is
going to find every one of his sheep. Oh, and thank God for
that too. Oh my. The sheep aren't seeking
the shepherd. They're too busy being sheep.
They're just trying to eat. Wherever they are, that's what
sheep do. They're trying to eat. Oh my. And he brings it to the
fold. And here's the glorious part,
this is just amazing to me. He rejoices, he rejoices. And he wants others to rejoice. Calls his friends, family, says,
hey, I've got my sheep. Oh, what? For the Lord's portion
is his people, is his people. Oh, I like that. The Lord Jesus
Christ is finding his people and the Lord Jesus Christ is
happy when he finds his people. Deuteronomy 32, that's where
we're at. The Lord Jesus Christ is happy,
listen to this, the found child of God is happy. You might not even know your
loss, but I'm gonna tell you something, you're gonna be happy
when you're found. Ain't that a thing? You know? I was found of them that sought
me not. I know what that means. It means
he finds his people. That's what it means. I was found
of them that sought me not. Oh my, I like that, I do. Because
that gives me hope that he's gonna find me. He's gonna find
me. What did he say? For I have found
my sheep. My sheep. That was lost, but
it was my sheep. And I found it. Oh my. What did Jesus Christ say about
that? When he said I am the good shepherd in John 10, he says
other sheep I have, which are not of this fold. Wait a minute. Them also I must bring. So what's he gonna do? He gonna
bring in his other sheep in? There he is. Other sheep I have,
which are not of this fold. Them also I must bring, and they
shall hear my voice. And there shall be, no question
about this, one fold and one shepherd, and that's it. You can take your denominations
and throw them out the window. They don't mean a thing to God. They used to mean something as
far as doctrine went, they don't mean much of that anymore. I got tickled, I was listening
to Henry talk about Confessions of faith, you know the London
confession of faith the Philadelphia Baptist confession. So all these
confessions are great They're they're perfectly worded we could
use them right here except for maybe throughout that thing about
baptizing kids, you know babies But People don't believe them
They don't preach them and the people being preached don't want
to hear it And that's just the way it is. And here's the thing. True doctrine will follow being
found. Not the other way around. Doctrine
without being found is just dead and dry as everything else. But
after you're found, oh my, this doctrine starts to be music to
your ears. Oh, here's the thing. What Christ was telling those
Pharisees and scribes in Luke 15, You know, this man does receive
sinners. But that ain't all. This man
finds sinners. I like that. He finds his people. He finds his people. Secondly,
in verse 10 of Deuteronomy 32, he leads his people. The Lord
Jesus Christ leads his people and they follow him. Me, it's
what he said, they follow me. Psalms 37 and verse 23 says this,
the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. And, I like it, he delighteth
in his way. Oh, that's good. You understand,
the Lord leads us whether we see it whether we feel it, whether
even we know it. He leads his people. He leads
his people. He finds his people and he leads
his people. You understand, what is it? For as the body is one and hath
many members and all the members are of that one body, being many
are one body, so also is Christ. He's the head of his body. Guess what? His body is gonna
go exactly where the head says it's gonna go. Whether we know
it or not. He's the head of the body, he
leads his members, all of his members, and he puts his members
exactly where he wants them. That's in, First Corinthians
12 and verse 18. But now hath God set the members,
every one of them. I like that too. Every one of
them. Every one of them. Oh, in the
body as it has pleased him. So, now ye are of the body of
Christ and members in particular. 2 Corinthians, or 1 Corinthians
12 and verse 27. Members in particular. You know
that old question? Philosophers still ask, why am
I here? Well, here's your answer. If he's found you and he's leading
you, you're exactly where he wants you. You may not know why
you're here. You may not, I said it last week. I wasn't planning on being up
here preaching. That wasn't part of my, plan
such as it was, or such as it wasn't. But this is an easy question
for believers. I'm where God wants me. And that's
the truth. Sometimes you don't like your
circumstances, but you're right where God wants you. And I thank
God for every one of you. I'm glad you're here. I don't
know what circuitous route you had to take to be here or even
to stay here. Because most of us have been
together for a few decades. Well, everybody that's here I've
known for a few decades. And we're still here. And you
know why we're here? Because here's where we want
to be. He put us here. He put us here. Oh, my. What did he say? John 10 and
verse 27, my sheep hear my voice and I know them. I know them
and they follow me. Oh, I like that. Yes, by his
word and by his power, he leads his people. Now the third thing,
he instructs his people. He instructs his people. I got
to thinking about this and I thought about something that I'd heard.
I remember it was one of the first things that struck me when
I first started reading the gospel, 30 some years ago, whatever it
is, 35, 37. Anyhow, no, what is this? This is 2023, right? This is
41 years ago, wow. Anyhow. This phrase struck me. It's recorded
in the scripture eight times. Three times in Matthew, three
times in Mark, and two times in Luke. And the phrase is this. He that hath ears to hear, let
him hear. I like to say let him hear. Not
just let him hear, no, let him hear. Because the implication
from this statement is clear. Not everybody has hearing ears. You understand, Christ said he
spoke in parables so that some people wouldn't understand. Now I've heard the exact opposite
preached many times and some yahoo put it in a song in the
middle. Now the Lord spoke in parables so that all might understand. That's not what he said. He said,
I speak in parables so that some will not understand. And religious
people don't like that. But I do. I do. That's what he said. And you
know the reason he said it? It's because that's what he meant.
Oh, it's what he meant. Deuteronomy 29 and verse four. Yet the Lord, wondering who we're
talking about. Yet the Lord hath not given you
a heart to perceive, Eyes to see, and here we go, ears to
hear until this day. Where do you get ears to hear?
They have come from God. Stephen preached that and got
stoned. You uncircumcised in heart and ears, what happens
to those who are uncircumcised in heart and ears? What happens
to those who don't have ears to hear? You do always resist the Holy
Ghost just like your fathers. Just like the world. Just like
my relatives. Just like your relatives. That's what happens. But he instructs
his people. He that hath ears to hear, let
him hear. Let him hear. And he will. He will. Oh, without a heart
to perceive, without eyes to see and ears to hear, there is
no instruction. And he instructs his people. Oh, my. Because the opposite
of that is true. With a heart to perceive, eyes
to see, and ears to hear, there is instruction from the Lord. God who at sundry times and in
diverse manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the
prophets, and he did, hath in these last days spoken unto us
by his Son. And what's his son say? What
did the father say? This is my beloved son in whom
I'm well pleased. Hear ye him. Well, him said,
let he that hath ears to hear, let him hear. Oh. And he also said this. My sheep,
hear my voice. And a stranger they won't follow.
Because they don't know the voice of a stranger. What does he tell
us in Luke 24? He opened their understanding
of the Scripture, of the Scripture. We've got His Scripture right
here. And He'll open your understanding of the Scripture. He instructs
His people by His Holy Spirit. He's gonna take the things of
mine and what? Show them to you. Guess what? That's instruction, folks. That's
instruction. Oh my. I remember when there was one
in the epistles, Paul said, you
know there's princes and kings and whoever wanted to know some
of these things, but God's revealed them to us. He's instructed us. Titus two and verse 11 puts it
this way. For the grace of God that bringeth
salvation hath appeared unto all men. And a lot of people
want to stop right there and say, there it is. The gospel's
for everyone. Read the next verse. Teaching
us. Teaching us. that denying ungodliness
and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and
godly in this present world. I can tell you right now, the
world hasn't learned that. But now the grace of God that
bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. That's true, but
it only teaches us. Why? Because he instructs his
people. Oh my, believers, his portion. He instructs his people. Now the fourth thing, the last
thing. In verse 10 again, he kept him. He kept him. Oh my. We believers who have
to be found, okay, who need to be led and who need to be instructed
We also need to be kept. Because if it was up to us, we'd
fall away. And that could be falling away
into other religion, that could be falling away into the law. Oh. But God keeps his people. Oh,
I like that, the Lord Jesus Christ keeps his people. You know why?
Because they are his portion and his lot. They're his property. He purchased them with his own
blood. And not a drop of that blood's
gone to waste. He finds his people, he leads
his people, he instructs his people, and he keeps his people. Yes, we love and we trust him.
Nevertheless, that doesn't keep us. He keeps us. He keeps us. Oh, he keeps his
people. Christ said it himself. John
17 and verse 12, while I was with them in the world, I kept
them. That's what he said. I kept them. The 12 apostles couldn't keep
themselves. Matter of fact, one of them didn't. That's what he
says here. Those that thou, here you see,
I kept them in thy name. Those that thou gavest me, I
have kept. Just in case you weren't sure
the first time he said it. And none of them is lost but
the son of perdition that the scripture might be fulfilled. Those 11 disciples, those 11
apostles, they didn't keep themselves. He kept them. Oh, and if you
think you're better than them, keep right on thinking that,
because you're wrong. If you're silly enough to think that, I
ain't got nothing to tell you. I can't help you. Because Jesus
Christ keeps us in the name of the Father, who gave us to him. And even better, sometimes I
think, gave Christ to us. We are in him. Oh, that's what
it means when he brings in his sheep. When he finds his sheep,
throws it up on his shoulder, he takes it to his home. And
that home becomes the sheep's home. I talked about that last
week. A strong inhabitation. Oh, I like that. And here it
is. Well, let's see. Yeah, let me
look for just a second here, 1 Peter. There we go. 1 Peter, chapter 1, verse 2, elect according to the
foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the
Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.
Wow, that's being found and led and instructed all at one time.
That's pretty good. Grace be unto you and peace be
multiplied. Verse three, blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his
abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively, a living
hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Two. You
understand? You're begotten to something.
You're found to something. What? To an inheritance, incorruptible
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven
for you, where they're rejoicing when he found you, who are kept by the power of
God. through faith unto salvation
ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice. You understand? People God saves
are happy that God saved them. Oh, they know they can't save
themselves. Oh my. Where you greatly rejoice,
though now for a season of need be, you are in heaviness through
manifold temptations. Christianity, true Christianity,
true belief in Christ, true faith in Christ, is not all sunshine
and rainbows. There are valleys we have to
walk through this world. In this world, you will suffer
tribulation. And that's just the truth. and
yet we can rejoice in him. We can rejoice in him, why? Because
he keeps his people. We are begotten to an inheritance,
an inheritance that's incorrupted, an inheritance that's undefiled,
an inheritance that is not of man. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. So verse nine says, an inheritance
that will never fade away because he keeps his people. He keeps
his people. So, the Lord's portion is his
people. They are his inheritance. His inheritance. Believers are
heirs of God. and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Oh, I like that. Now I understand
he says Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He said this very
carefully. You understand, because here's
what he didn't say. He didn't say Israel is the lot
of his inheritance. He said Jacob is the lot of his
inheritance. Jacob the usurper, oh my. Jacob, the one who ran away,
scared of his brother. Jacob, who on his way back, was
scared to face his brother. That's the lot of the Lord's
inheritance. Oh, I like that. You understand,
Jacob is not a, how do you put this? Jacob is not the picture
of the victorious Christian life. Jacob was not a very pleasant
person, I don't think, at times. I can identify more with Jacob
than I can with Israel. Prince with God. I know more
about being a usurper and scared than I know about being a prince
with God, because that's where we are. That's where we are. But I do know this, believers
are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Chosen in
Him, the Lord's portion is His people and His people are in
His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Chosen in Him, found by Him,
led by Him, instructed by Him, and kept by him. Oh, I like that. I can fit in
there. I can fit in there. Oh, I like
that. I read it last week. But I am
poor and needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me. Thou art my
help and my deliverer, make no tarrying, oh my God. I like that, I do. You understand,
this the Lord Jesus Christ of the scriptures It is his salvation
that we have been given Yes, I can say it's my salvation.
Oh thou God of my salvation My Redeemer from all sin moved by
thy divine compassion you have died what my soul to win Yes,
that's true, but you see it. It's his salvation. He gives
it to his portion, his chosen lot. You know why? Because he's sovereign. He's sovereign in salvation,
in the purchase of it, and in the application of it. It's not
what you do, it's what he does. Now, you will do some things
because of what he has done. There's a walk. There is, but
he keeps you. He keeps you, otherwise you wouldn't
walk. Oh, I like that. He'll instruct
you and you'll walk. But you understand, it's all
from him Not from you. Look at this. This is verse four,
Deuteronomy 32. Look at this. He is the rock. His work is perfect. Oh, I like that. For all his
ways are judgment, a God of truth, and without iniquity, just and
right is he. Amen. Thank God. That's good stuff. You understand?
His work is perfect. What work does he tell us about
a little later on in that chapter? He finds us, he leads us, he
instructs us, and he keeps us. And you know what? His work is
perfect. That's his work. Oh, I like that,
I like that, I like that. You understand, his people are
perfect. Not in themselves, in him, in
Christ. Oh. In Christ, the Father can look
at you and not want to strike you dead. Because that's all
we deserve other than outside of Christ, without Christ. Oh
my. But his work for his people,
his work in his people, is perfect. Everything about his people are
perfect, except themselves. In my flesh still dwells no good
thing, but his work is perfect. In my mind, then I find a law,
and my members, with a spirit warring against the flesh, but
his work is perfect. Who shall deliver me from the
body of this death? His work is perfect. Oh, I like
that, I do. Oh, the Lord does for his people.
The Lord does everything for his people, needful for their
eternal salvation that he gives them. What do we say about that? Well, the Lord is the rock. The Lord is my rock. Oh. Just and right is He. Amen. Our Heavenly Father, we're
thankful for this. Your salvation, the gift you've
given to us in your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, purchased
with His own blood our redemption, our sanctification, our justification. Oh, he is everything unto us. Thank you, Lord, because we needed
everything from you. And we ask that you would bless
Paul as he comes to speak to us and Walter where he is. Lord,
give him the words we need to hear today to preach your gospel. In Christ's name we pray, amen.