Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. The Jews were quite content with
the religion of their fathers, which was handed down from one
generation to the other. They learned its precepts and
were able to perpetuate it for centuries. The Samaritan woman
was ready to defend the religion she grew up in and to see a marked
contrast between it and that which she thought was the religion
of the Lord Jesus. He told her quite plainly that
neither religion was of any real consequence, because the only
ones who could truly worship the Father were those who were
given the privilege of worshiping him in spirit and truth. This
true worship cannot be taught by the lips and actions of men,
nor can it be passed down from one generation to the other,
nor perpetuated by the establishment of rules of order and instilled
by any tradition, however replete with memories of past glories
and denominational successes. This is exactly what the Lord
meant when he moved John to write, Most all organized churches claim
to be able to trace their order, doctrine, and practice back to
some sort of connection with the apostles. Some place more
emphasis on themselves as being the one true church than others
do. But most all of them look upon
their religious heritage with some sort of a sense of satisfaction
and safety. They set about to perpetuate
their orders for following generations, securing the knowledge that as
long as their church exists, the world will not be without
truth. We're quite certain of the fact that the Lord does not
need anyone to help him out in order to assure that the church
which he established remains that against which the gates
of hell cannot prevail. He has always been and continues
to be the only moving force which preserves and populates that
assembly. He does it quite often in ways
which totally baffles those who think it impossible for a man
to believe without hearing them preach their particular brand
of truth. There is but one truth, whether
or not you or I have it. It is pleased God to give to
men various degrees of enlightenment and understanding of the scope
of his dealings with men. Some are privileged to see some
of the fullness of his grand and glorious design. Others are
only given a glimmer of light, which to some seems no light
at all. Yet all still only see through a glass darkly, and are
like those workers in the vineyard, who all receive the same compensation
at the end of the day. Knowing Christ is not a function
of study, nor is it connected with mental capacity, but rather
is the result of the direct operation of the Holy Ghost upon the hearts
of those whom he is pleased to conform to the image of Christ.
So we are sent into the world to proclaim the glorious truth
of the gospel, with the certain knowledge that he is quite able
and equipped to bestow faith upon whomsoever he desires. We
have often seen that he is pleased to bring his children along a
pathway that they or we knew not. Sometimes we are amazed
to discover that he has taught his people truth in the most
unlikely of places, so that we might learn neither to glory
in that knowledge we have been given, nor to be puffed up by
the same. A love of Jesus Christ is universal
among all those who have been born of the Spirit, as is a love
of the brethren and a desire to know His word. The Lord is
often pleased to teach His children the truth long before they ever
hear it articulated by some preacher He has sent for them to hear.
Then the message which he is pleased to deliver by the hands
of the messenger he has sent is to them a word of confirmation
and a glorious delight that they have heard for the first time,
even though they knew it for a while. How is it that men know
what they are hearing preached is true, unless the Spirit bears
witness with them that these things are so? Such is the gift
of faith which is bestowed by the Holy Ghost, who leads his
own into all truth. I can still remember when I first
came to a knowledge of the glorious doctrine of the unconditional
election of those whom the Lord loved with an everlasting love.
I had never heard such a thing preached in all my life, but
when I heard it, I knew that it was true. And then to hear
that Jesus Christ definitely atoned for the sins of His elect
and purchased their redemption was a further confirmation of
that which I knew had to be true. It is still a vivid memory to
me the first time that I heard preached that God was an absolute
and holy God. I somehow knew it to be true.
No man can come to me except the Father which has sent me
draw him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written
in the prophets, and they shall be all taught of God. Every man,
therefore, that hath heard and hath learned of the Father cometh
unto me. Have you heard his word today,
and do you come to him? If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at forthepoor at windstream.net.