you To the throne of God above, I
have a strong and perfect plea. A great life brings to whose
name is God. Whoever lives and eats for me. My name is graven on his hands. My name is written on his heart. I know that while in heaven he
stands, no tongue can bid me bend. And Satan tempts me to despair,
and tells me of the guilt within. How could I look and see him
there, who made an end of all my sin? Because a sinless Savior
died, my sinful soul is counted free. For God the just is satisfied
to look on Him and mourn on me. To look on Him and mourn on me. Righteousness. With Christ my Savior and my
God. One with himself I cannot die. My soul is purchased by his blood. My life is hid with Christ on
high. With Christ my Savior and my
God. With Christ my Savior and my
God. With Christ my Savior and my
Savior. Turn with me this morning in
the book of Genesis. Genesis 40, 9. I want to read verses 8 through 10. Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren
shall praise. Thy hand shall be in the neck
of thine enemies. Thy father's children shall bow
down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp. From the prey, my son, thou art
gone up. He stooped down, he couched as
a lion, and as an old lion, who shall rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart
from Judah. nor a lawgiver from between his
feet until Shiloh come. And unto him shall the gathering
of the people be." These words are a part of a prophecy. given by Jacob concerning his
sons and their lineage. The first verse says, And Jacob
called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that
I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days." And of Judah, he says that the lineage of Judah shall be a kingly lineage. And they shall be among the rulers until such a time, for a very
long time, but until a certain time. He says they will be such a people
until Shiloh come. Shiloh. The name shallow has several
meanings ascribed to it. Some say it means scent. Others say it means the sun and
various things. But I think that it's most generally
accepted interpretation is that it means peace, rest, or the one who brings the peace. Everybody says that they want
peace. But this is like so many things
that we read in the Bible, it is a reference, it is a talking
about the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. I'll give you a key to
understanding this book. Always read what you read, study
what you study, In the light of Jesus Christ,
he is the key. And all things are about him. All things speak of him and his
glorious person and his successful work. Shiloh. And it's amazing that at such
a time in what you might say his death chamber, a man like
Jacob, who is the sinner's sinner, you might say, should talk about
peace. He's about to die. He's about
to leave this world, and yet he speaks concerning one who
is shallow, the peace. It is said of the Lord Jesus
Christ that it is evident, in Hebrews, it is evident, he says,
that our Lord sprang from the tribe of Judah. It means praise. And when we read in the Revelation,
the one who is able to open the book, the one who prevails is
said to be this line that's referenced here, the line of the tribe of
Judah. He hath prevailed to open the
seals. And the Lord Jesus Christ himself
in Isaiah is referred to in all those great names about him as
the Prince of Peace. the prince of peace. But this has to do with peace
with God. You see, it doesn't matter how
many other kinds of peace you have or think you have. None of that matters if you don't
have peace with God. Jacob, like me, was a great sinner. How could he ever think about
having peace with God? It's through the one he looked
to come into this world, the one who he here calls shallow. And I realized that there are
many different individuals, especially false religions, that speak of
so many ways, that offer so many ways of peace. It was the same in Jeremiah's
day. He says, for the least of them,
Even unto the greatest of them, every one is given to covetousness. And the prophet, even unto the
priest, every one deals falsely. They have healed also the hurt
of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, peace, peace. when there is no peace. It was the same in Isaiah's day
when he penned these words, the way of peace they know not, and
there is no judgment in their goings. They have made them crooked
paths, whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace. always these false prophets and
false priests that they write about. He says they made crooked
ways that never lead to peace. Never lead to peace with God. Paul picked it up in Romans chapter
3. He says, and the way of peace
have they not known? Though none naturally know the
way of peace, and none find it seeking to make
peace with God, the Bible says that there are
some that have it. some that know about peace with
God, some that have peace with God. If you turn over in your
Bibles to Romans chapter 5, we read such a place as that. In Romans chapter 5 and verse
1, Paul writes, therefore being
justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ. I didn't write that. I didn't
dream that up. That is the word of God. And he is saying here that there
are some who do have this peace. In that first verse there, he
says, we. I want to be a part of that number. I want to be sure that I am a
part of that number. We have peace with God. Who's he talking about here?
Well, he's talking about true believers. He's talking about
God's elect. He's talking about the children
of God, the redeemed, those who truly know the living God. They have peace with God. Nobody has it but them, we. have peace with God. But if you notice here, it is
only one way. One way. He says, through our
Lord Jesus Christ. Not through anybody else. Not
through a preacher. Not through a prophet. Not through
Mary. not through a priest, not through
a king, not through anybody, but the Lord Jesus Christ. And when we read that verse,
we have to read it in the way I believe that it is really written,
lest we misunderstand the verse. I'll give you what I believe
is the actual rendering here in verse 1. One translation, Young's literal
translation gives it like this. He says, having been declared
righteous, then by faith, We have peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ. Now there's something that we
have need of understanding. And that is that peace with God
is both an accomplished thing and an experienced thing. And the truth is, it was accomplished
before we experienced it. Now I want you to open your Bibles
back to Isaiah 32. Isaiah chapter 32 and verse 17,
where we find that in one verse. We find that truth expressed
in one verse, and that is verse 17. Isaiah 32, 17, and the work of righteousness shall be peace. That's an accomplished thing. And the effect of righteousness,
quietness and assurance forever. That's an experienced peace. And when we look at the gospel,
we find out that first, peace is something that our Lord Jesus
Christ established and made with God on the behalf of his people
when he died on the cross. We will never have peace. We'll never have peace until
we get the right order of it, until we understand it as an
accomplished thing before it is an experienced thing. Turn over to Colossians chapter
1. Colossians chapter 1. Paul writes
in Colossians 1 these words. He says it in verse 20. Colossians 1 and verse 20. And having made peace through
the blood of his cross. Now did he or didn't he? God says, and Paul writes, by
inspiration of the Spirit, that he made it. He accomplished it. And having made peace, through
the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto
himself, by him, I say, whether they be things in earth or things
in heaven, and you that were sometime alienated and enemies
in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled. That means he made peace for
somebody. That's what reconciliation is,
the making of peace, the restoring of a breach. And he says, in
the body of his flesh through death to present you holy and
unblameable and unreprovable in his sight. Nobody will ever know anything
about peace. They will never be a part of
that peace made by God except through and by the cross death
and the blood shedding of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why? Because God in the offense. God being the offended one, the
wages of our sin is death. And so Christ made peace by the
blood of his cross. Hebrews 13. Now the God of peace
that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great
shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting
covenant. The God of peace. He's the one
who raised Christ. from the dead because such an
accomplishment of the things that were necessary for our peace
were accomplished according to the everlasting covenant. Ephesians chapter 2. But now,
in Christ Jesus, you who were sometimes afar off are made nigh
by the blood of Christ, for he is our peace, our shallow. Now this is not in any way what
men are usually talking about when they speak of peace. They're
talking about usually world peace. But the truth of the matter is
that there is not going to be such a peace as that until Christ
comes. I don't know why we think we
can accomplish it. I don't know why anybody thinks
it will ever be, why it is ever a goal or a thing so earnestly
sought after because it denies the one thing that is always
the problem, and that's the heart of man. There's not going to be any peace
among men because of the state of all men. And the opposite
is true. Christ said, think not that I
am come to send peace on earth. I came not to bring sin's peace,
but a sword, for I am come to set at variance a man with his
son, and a son with his father, and a daughter with a mother,
and a daughter-in-law against a mother-in-law. I came not to
send peace. But those things. And nowhere in the Bible, and
nowhere will you find that God tells us to make peace with God. Because the good news of the
gospel is that the prince of peace, this Shiloh, he made peace
with God for all his sheep when he laid down his life for them. As a matter of fact, it said
that he was reconciling. Turn over to Colossians, I mean
to Corinthians. 2 Corinthians, Paul is dealing
with this very thing. God was in Christ reconciling
his people unto himself, though they showed themselves as enemies
in their mind and acted as rebels. And Adam, look at what it says
in 2 Corinthians 18, 518 rather. And all things are of God. II Corinthians 5.18, And all
things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ,
and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit, that
God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing
their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word
of reconciliation." He's given us this gospel, which
is called the gospel of peace. And it's not us going out and
speaking about men to be reconciled or to make peace with God. It's
about a peace that's made. God was in Christ reconciling
us unto himself. And it is those who understand
in some measure this and believe this as it is revealed in scripture
that they find applied to their conscience this rest. But it isn't our faith. It isn't
our faith that makes peace with God. Somehow, some people think
that it is our faith that makes peace with God, or that all these
things that we believe constitute the basis for which we can have
peace. No, when God gives us faith,
we rest in the peace that Christ made. You see, therefore being justified,
being declared righteous, being declared righteous on the basis
of Christ's blood and righteousness. By faith, we have peace with
God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We look to what He did. We look to His sufferings. We look to His death. in the
full satisfaction of the matter of our sin. We look to what he
did, and God said he was just in the doing of it, and all of
that work together, accomplished on our behalf, that gives us
the experience of peace. Old John Gill said, the first
fruit and effect of justification as a benefit perceived and enjoyed
by faith is peace with God through Christ. Because there's a certain order. There's a certain order that
we find stated for the order of the kingdom of God. And I don't believe it's a mistake
in any way for it to be stated like this. In Romans 14, Paul
says, for the kingdom of God. Romans 14 and verse 7, for the
kingdom of God is not meat and drink. All that means it is not
all these external things. But righteousness, first righteousness,
the righteousness of God in Christ, imputed to ourselves, And all
that is involved in that first righteousness and then peace. Peace as a result of that righteousness. And then what's the next thing?
And joy in the Holy Ghost. In other words, God's people
have joy. And the reason that they have
joy is because that they have peace. And the reason that they
have peace is because Christ has brought in an everlasting
righteousness for them and given to them as a gift. But most people today want the
joy. They want the peace. But they
want it on some other basis. They want it on some other basis.
You see, believing on Christ, who made peace with God, is the
experience of this peace. And the work of righteousness
shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and
assurance forever. Paul said it like this, now the
God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing. In believing. In believing what? in believing on Christ, in believing
that He accomplished what He says that He accomplished, in
believing the work of righteousness that God accepted on our behalf. It says in believing, we have peace. I like what Isaiah 26 says. Look at Isaiah 26. Now everybody is always talking
about not having peace, not having joy, such as that. Well, there's most likely a reason
for that. Isaiah 26, look at verse 3. Thou will keep
him in perfect peace. That's what I want, perfect peace. But look at this, whose mind
is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the Lord forever,
for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. You remember when Peter stepped out of the boat onto
the water to walk to the Lord Jesus Christ? As long as he was
looking at Christ, he was unable to walk, but he began to notice
the boisterous sea, and he began to think. That's the way we are. We get to looking at all the
troubles that we have. We get to looking at our own
sinfulness. We get to looking at all that's
going on in this world. We lose the experience of peace. Doesn't change Christ's work, but it changes our experience
of peace. But it says, thou wilt keep him
in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee. The psalmist says in Psalm 72,
in his days shall the righteous flourish in abundance of peace
so long as the moon endureth. We have an expression. We talk about peace of mind. We don't have peace of mind or
we do have peace of mind. How can we have any peace of
mind unless the mind be stayed and fixed upon the Lord Jesus
Christ? I can tell you from my own experience
that when I get to looking at all that is around me and
all that is within me, I'm really troubled. But when I fix my mind, upon the Lord Jesus Christ and
how he has accomplished all things pertaining to me and my salvation. All of those other things don't
really matter much at all because overall everything is okay. He made peace by the blood of
his cross. All these other things are going
to end. All of the troubles and trials
and afflictions of this life are going to end for God's people. And what will be left then? The
peace that the Lord Jesus Christ established. As a matter of fact,
there in Isaiah 26, it means when it says, keep your mind
stayed on the Lord, on Jehovah, on his person and work and all
these things, it's saying like a garrison that's guarded by
soldiers. A good man showeth favor and
length. He will guide his affairs with
discretion. Surely he shall not be moved
forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting
remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil
things. His heart is fixed trusting in
the Lord. His heart is established. He shall not be afraid until
he sees his desire upon his enemies. He's at peace. And the only way The only way that God will speak
peace to your heart is through this gospel. God will continue to speak peace,
peace to his people through the gospel and in all circumstances
and they shall possess the peace of God as they believe in him. I think this is a very important
verse. Now the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace in believing. You can just look for it all
you want to, everywhere you want to, in everything you want to. But the only real peace, both
the accomplished peace and the experienced peace, is what we find in the gospel. And that's why it's called the
gospel of peace. It's all about Shiloh. It's all about him who was to
come. It's all about what he accomplished
and he made peace by the blood of his cross. And it's all in
the gospel. Listen to this. And all thy children shall be
taught of the Lord." That's all God's children. His true people. And all of His true people shall
be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children. And that's why we preach the
gospel. We get accused oftentimes of
of disturbing. We get accused of preaching a
message that's hard and that's interrupting and disturbing and
things like that. But that's only to break men
and women away from the false peace that they might find true
peace. Here's what Paul said. He's talking about preaching,
and how shall they preach except they be sin? As it is written,
how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of
peace and bring glad tidings of good things. Part of that armor, he says,
that we're to put on is, he says, and have your feet shod with
the preparation of the gospel of peace. I remember one of the sons of
Jacob became a, they all became a tribe for the most part, the
descendants of Dan. It says they went out and they
conquered a people. They conquered a city. They went
to a man by the name of Micah and they stole his priest and
they stole his idols that he had made. They stole all that
together and they went over and established themselves a city
and everything was fine. Then you read these words. But
all the time, the house of God was at shallow. All the time. Do what you will. Worship what you will. Set up
idolatry, as you will. Feel good about yourselves. Make
accomplishments like they did. But all the time, the peace of
God, the worship of God, the things of God are in Shiloh. They're in the Lord Jesus Christ. And look back at what it says
in that 49th chapter and the 10th verse, latter part. And unto him, oh yes, I told
you it was a him. And unto him shall the gathering
of the people be. People misquote what I believe the meaning of
the verse of Scripture is when he says, where two or three are
gathered in my name, there I'll be in the midst also. The meaning there is where two
or three are gathered. Shall having been gathered together
in my name. All of God's people have to be
gathered. That's what the church is. A
called out assembly. So it says in the Dehem. unto Shiloh unto Christ shall
the gathering of God's people be." They'll all gather to Christ. They'll all gather to believe
on Christ. They'll all gather to worship
Christ. They'll all gather to be saved
by Christ and Him alone. So Paul says, let the peace of
God rule in your hearts, to which also you're called in
one body, and be ye thankful. That's not some abstract thing
or some feeling or some emotion. That's the truth as it is in
Christ. The psalmist wrote, mark the
perfect man and behold the upright. Surely nobody could say they're
that. Mark the perfect man and the upright. Yes. That's exactly what God's people
are. They're perfect and they're upright. They're righteous in Christ.
Next statement. For the end of that man shall
be peace. Shall be peace. Jacob's prophecy was fulfilled. Judas' line carried all the way
down until Christ was born as a part of it. He was shallow that could come
the peace. And to Him, all those who have
peace will be gathered. They'll find it all in Him. Shallow. Our father, we thank you this
morning for your blessed son. We only know what we know in
your word in light of him. Truly history is his story. We thank you for the gospel of
peace. The gospel of the Prince of Peace,
who made peace by the blood of his cross, who reconciled us
unto you through what he did. We give him glory. We thank you
this morning for our Shiloh. And we pray in his name. Amen. Thank you.