are born of God's Spirit. We are true believers. We trust the Lord Jesus Christ as our only righteousness, our only redemption, our only acceptance with God. If indeed that is the case, then we are God's children. We have been from everlasting to everlasting chosen of God in eternal election, adopted from eternity into the family of God, accepted in Jesus Christ the beloved before the world began, and claimed by God himself as his own. We are now redeemed, Jesus Christ the son of God, has fully expunged our sins from the record of heaven forever.

He put away our sins by the sacrifice of himself. He has robed us in his spotless garments of righteousness and salvation so that we stand before God. I keep preaching this and I keep trying my best to preach it so you can get a little bit of a handle on it. It's too good for us.

But we now stand before God. without sin, perfectly righteous, in Christ the Savior, just as he is, without sin, and perfectly righteous. What a statement. What grace. What a marvel of grace. Not only that, but we have been sanctified by God's Spirit, given a new nature, a holy nature. One of these days, we're going to drop this body of flesh. The old man's going back to the dust. He's going to die. But that new nature, that new man lives on forever in Christ Jesus the Lord.

We are heirs of God. Heirs of God are joint heirs with Christ so that all the glory of heaven, whatever it is, is our present possession held in reserve for us by Jesus Christ himself We are, the apostle Paul says, from Colossians chapter 1 verse 12, right now, not tomorrow, not after we die, but right now, we're right now, meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. Now having said that, this question comes to my mind. Are we still here? Why are we left on this earth? Why did God leave us for a time to dwell in this sin cursed earth, to dwell here in such sorrow and pain? Why has he not already taken us to glory?

For most folks, the answer is very simple. They say, well, God's not done with us yet. He's got some patch-up work to do. Actually, grace is just sort of a starting. If you stay in the world long enough, you'll make yourself more and more good and gooder and gooder and gooder and holier and holier and holier until at last you're just too holy to be any fit for this earth and God will take you home when you've done enough.

But that blasphemy, we don't believe. We are right now, meet of the inheritance of the saints in light. All that heavenly is, is ours right now. It's only God, Bobby. But why did he leave us here? Our text this evening gives us the answer to that question, at least in part. It's the Song of Solomon, chapter eight, verses eight through 14.

Now throughout this song of love, Christ and his church have confirmed their love for one another. Both have agreed that they love one another and that their love for one another is as strong as death. His love for us is eternal and immutable. And though our love for him is not in any way such as it ought to be and shall be, yet it is true. And if our love for him is true, it cannot be destroyed either. Because if our love for him, Merle, is true, it's his work in us, he calls us to love him. And it can no more be destroyed than his love for us can. This is his work, this is his work.

Now then, in these last verses of the Song of Solomon, we see Christ and his church, his beloved bride, like a loving husband and wife, consulting one another. Consulting one another about their affairs, considering what they are to do. Having made their hearts together, now they put their heads together. Making plans with regard to their relations and their property. Does that make sense to you? My wife and I don't have any names. We've got one child. We do that. We put our heads together. we could what our responsibilities are with regard to her future.

And this is what we have pictured for us here in the Song of Solomon in this last paragraph. In these last verses of the Song of Love, the conclusion of this song is given, showing us some special practical instruction about our responsibilities in this world in three directions. First, with regard to our sister, Secondly, with regard to our service, and thirdly, with regard to our Savior. First, in verses eight through 10, the Lord Jesus gives us instruction concerning our responsibility toward our sister.

Read it with me. We have a little sister, the bride speaks. She hath no breast. What shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for? And the Lord Jesus answers. And if she be a door, we will enclose her with boards of cedar. And here the bride speaks again. Oh yes, I remember. I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers. Then was I in his eyes as one that found faith. Now, the passage begins with a question of compassion and concern in verse eight.

The bride, the Church of Christ, raises a question about her young little sister. What shall we do for our sister? She's saying, how can I help my little sister? Well, who is this little sister? This is the first mission we've heard of her, Ariana Solomon. Who is this little sister about whom there's so much concern? I want you to look at three texts with me. Turn first to Isaiah 55. Isaiah 54, I'm sorry. Prophetically, the passage is speaking about the church of God. The Church of God scattered among the Gentiles, the heathen nations of the world.

Now, in the Old Testament, you know, the Gospel was revealed only to the nation of Israel under the types and shadows of the law in the Mosaic economy. It was revealed in types and shadows in prophecy under the Mosaic economy. It was not revealed in its clarity and fullness as it is today in the New Testament with the completion of Holy Scripture, but it was certainly revealed so that those men who walked with God in days gone by knew Him as we know Him, and walked with Him as we walk with Him, believing on the Lord Jesus Christ as we believe on Him. But the Gospel was hidden to the Gentile world.

Satan went about blinding the nations of the world, the Gentiles, with all the pagan foolish nonsense that's so long pervaded in Gentile society, that same pagan foolish nonsense that's now being called New Age philosophy and New Age religion. You know, we got so smart we went back to being barbarians. But this same Gentile world is the world out of which you and I have been born. And it was always God's purpose not just to have a people for himself among the Israelites physically, but to save an Israel of God, a spiritual nation, a holy nation, out of all the nations of the world, both Jew and Gentile.

Let me show you this from the scriptures. Here in Isaiah 54 and verse 1. where a plain prophecy given concerning the barren and desolate Gentiles being united to Christ as a bride and telling us that the church of the Gentiles made up of Jews and Gentiles would be far more fruitful than the Jewish nation could ever have imagined.

Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear, break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not prevail with child. For more are the children of the desolate. The Gentile world at this time was desolate, having never heard or received the knowledge of God's grace. For more are the children of the desolate than of the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.

Now then, look at Hosea chapter 1. Hosea chapter 1. The number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. Now that's not talking about the people Hitler tried to kill. That's not talking about the physical seed of Abraham. Nothing in scripture will allow that kind of interpretation of scripture. Or it's not talking about the physical seed of Abraham.

Who on earth is talking about it? His spiritual seed. And that's so abundantly, plainly revealed in scripture. This is what it says. They shall be as the sand of the sea which cannot be measured nor numbered. 10,000 times 10,000 we see in Revelation.

And it shall come to pass that in that place where it was said to them, you are not my people. Where? over Africa, over England, down to Mexico, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Germany, America, all through the Gentile world where folks worship stumps and worship their own bellies. It shall be said where they were called, not my people, you're the people of the living God. Now pastor, how do you know that?

Because Paul said so in Romans chapter nine. I want you to turn there for just a moment. Romans chapter nine. Verse 25, the apostle Paul is now writing to the Roman Gentile believers, and he is assuring the Roman Gentile believers, that's you and me, that's Bobby Estes and Don Corwin.

He's saying now, this is you of whom God spoke to Hosea back in Hosea chapter one. This is you of whom God spoke in Isaiah 54. As he said also in Hosea, I will call them my people, which were not my people, and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall come to pass that in that place where it was said unto them, ye are not my people, there shall they be called the children of the living God. How come? Because God said, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.

And that's the basis of Paul's whole explanation of what took place with the Jews when God I want us to say to people here in our text described by the believing bride as my little sister who has not yet been called. Here the Church of God among the Gentiles is called my little sister for these reasons. First, because the Jewish believers and the Gentile believers are all children of the same family.

They are called little because they have not yet been honored with the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. The gospel has not yet been preached among the Gentiles. The Gentiles have no breast. Remember the scriptures were told to desire the sincere milk of the word. Because the scriptures are the breast by which the church of God feeds. These breasts of the old and new testament. The two breasts of holy scripture.

The Gentiles have no prophets. They have no word from God. They have no revelation from God. No one came and bought the Gentiles a word of God. As a matter of fact, when God commanded Moses to tell the children of Israel to slay the Paschal Lamb, He said, you whispered into the ears of the Israelites. Don't tell the Egyptians about this. They said, not for me. They call it in the Old Testament, the Gentiles have no covenant, no promise, no ordinance, no instruction. No destruction, no rest or consolation. No chosen of God. Their election was not yet manifest and revealed.

But now, Paul says in Ephesians chapter 2, God's taken down the middle wall of partition that separated us. He's taken that away which divided Jew and Gentile. He's taken that away which divides men socially and racially. He's taken that away which sets men apart from one another.

And he's brought us together in Jesus Christ and made us to draw together in peace in him. but taking the text in its wider range, and certainly we must, it is to be applied to all those who belong to Christ, all those who are numbered in what the scriptures describe as that remnant according to the election of grace, who have not yet been called to life and faith in Christ, who have not yet been given the gifts of God's grace. You see, All of God's elect belong to Christ already. They're already His. They don't know it yet, but they're already His. A lot of them maybe have never even been born yet, but they're already His.

Our Lord said other sheep I have, which are not of this fold, them also I must bring. You remember when Paul was And he headed back to Leetown, and the Lord God came to him, and he said, Paul, you stay right here. For I have much people in this city. Not I shall, it is I have them. They're mine already. I've chosen them, I've redeemed them, they're mine. And the time has come for me to call them.

So God's delight belonged to him already, though they haven't been called by his grace. Oh, the thought just floods my heart. Maybe some of you here. shall tonight be brought to the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ because you're his and you'll be called down. But God's people are his from eternity.

They are our sisters according to the election of grace. They have no breast. And I'm not pulling this out of my head. This is exactly what the scriptures teach over in Ezekiel chapter 16. You don't need to turn to that, but you remember when our Lord describes how his grace came, we were naked and cast out. We had no breasts. And now he says, I have formed you. And he says, I have called you to multiply and bear and die. Thy hair is grown wherewith hast thou wast naked and bare.

Those who are not yet called, who have not yet been born of God's Spirit, have no breast of affection for Christ, no principle of grace within them. They haven't yet been spoken for. And our text here says, what shall I do for my sister in the day when she shall be spoken for? And the text is telling us the day will come when they shall be spoken for, when the children of sinners shall be called. And this is the thing for which we labor.

By the Spirit of God, through the preaching of the gospel, at God's appointed time, I mean precisely at God's appointed time, He's going to call every one of our little sisters to life and faith in Christ. He's going to do it, and he'll do it in the method he has ordained for the glory of his name by the preaching of the gospel.

We were talking back in the office, God's opened so many doors of opportunity for us around the world. This new electronic age, much as it's abused by many, and some will find it as an excuse to neglect their responsibilities, but God's open doors of utterance for the gospel around the world. I mean literally around the world. And folks are hearing the gospel, being converted by God's free grace. You see, it's no difficulty to God Almighty, no difficulty at all to God Almighty, to cause the chosen sinner, at the time of love and grace, to cross paths with the preacher That's no difficulty. My soul, we're talking about God almighty.

He will raise up nations to save a single sinner. Do you believe that? That's what I do. And he'll destroy nations to save a single sinner. You're done. That's his purpose. And he will save his children. His love and grace will at the appointed time of love prevail over their hearts. And thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power.

Now the question is raised here. Well, what shall I do for my little sister? The apostle Paul puts it this way. I endure all things What do you say? For the elect's sake. What for? That they might obtain the salvation that's in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. That's our business Bob. That's our business. We're on the trail of Christ's sheep. We're seeking the salvation of God's elect. We're seeking the building up of his kingdom.

I know, folks that don't know what I do, what you do. I just preach to the elect. I will too if you tell me to go. I just go by them and tell, you're my God. But since nobody knows who they are, we preach the gospel to everybody. But we preach it for the elect.

There's a huge difference. What are you doing? We're seeking the Lord's seed. We're seeking his elect. We're seeking our little sisters who shall be born in God's due time. What do we do for them? Why, we preach to them. And we pray for them. We persuade you. Oh, we persuade you.

Knowing the terror of the Lord to be reconciled to God. But then in verse 9, our Lord Jesus quietens the hearts of his troubled people. We all become a little uncomfortable. We all become a little uneasy when we don't see things happening the way we think they ought to, don't we? We get a little concerned for our children when they grow up.

And you preach to them, you pray for them. When they're little, they seem to be so tender and so impressionable. And the whole religious world says, now, you con those kids into making them a perfection of faith while they're little. And you assure them they're saved when they're lost as a goose in a snowstorm and everything be all right. It might make you feel better for a little while, but it won't do their souls any good.

Well, I still surely will do something. Yes, sir. Pray for them. Preach to them. Press on them their responsibilities and listen to what the Savior says. The Lord Jesus assures us of what he will do for his elect people. If she is a wall, we. Wait a minute, I thought it was him speaking. He is. He is the revelation of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. The embodiment of the fullness of the Godhead. We, my father, my spirit and I, we will build upon her a palace of silver. If she's a door, we will enclose her with boards of cedar.

Now this is what it says. We will gather the elect ones and we will save them. It is as though the Lord was saying, now you let me alone, I'll do everything. If you let me alone, I'll do everything necessary to be done for my own. Trust me, I'll build my church. I'll protect my people, and I will protect my people. Well, pastor, what are you saying? We must faithfully, faithfully labor for the salvation of God's elect. Labor for their salvation as if everything depended on us. But never compromise one hair's breadth, anything. Nothing. Never bend not one inch the glory of God and the truth of God. Never. Just wait on God. Believe Him, knowing that He alone builds His church. He alone does.

What do you do with your sons and daughters? What do we do with our children? We do the same thing, Mary Christ, with our children that we do with everybody else's children. We commit them to the all-wise, good, gracious hands of God Almighty, knowing that He will always do what's right. He will. He will. Whether He sends you to hell or saves you by His grace, God's gonna do what's right. He's gonna do what's right.

Then in verse 10, the bride acknowledges his favor, his grace, and his faithfulness. She says, I'm a wall. My breasts are like towers. Then was I in his eyes as one that found favor. Now this is the summary of that. Let me just give it to you in a nutshell. Oh, I remember. I was just as you described. But you've been faithful and gracious to me. And I know that what you've done for me, you'll do for your own. You'll do for all your chosen.

Let us acknowledge then that salvation is altogether God's work. And let us trust God to save his people. His purpose cannot be defeated. Christ's blood was not shed in vain. God's grace will not be frustrated. His power cannot be resisted. His chosen can never perish. we'll come back to it in coming weeks, the Lord willing. The Lord tells us something here about our service for him.

Solomon had a vineyard in Baalhamin. He let out the vineyard unto keepers, every one for the fruit thereof, who was to bring a thousand pieces of silver. My vineyard which is mine is before me, thou, O Solomon, must have a thousand, and those that keep the fruit thereof two hundred. Now here the bride consults with Christ about their vineyard. The vineyard they had in the country.

Solomon had a vineyard in Bethlehem. Now Solomon, you know, was a type of our Lord Jesus Christ. And in Matthew 21, our Lord Jesus compares himself to a husbandman who has a vineyard that he's let out to his servants. Christ's church is his vineyard. The Lord has entrusted each of us with his vineyard as keepers of his vineyard.

And that's our responsibility. It is primarily, of course, the responsibility of gospel preachers. But it is equally the responsibility of Bob Sally Ponce in your place where he's put you. I write to preachers frequently and I give a subtle reminder, give my greetings to those immortal souls trusted to your hands. Here's this little band of folks here. been trusted to my hands as your pastor, as God's servant by God himself. I shudder, I shudder at the weight of responsibility.

But my friends, God has committed his kingdom to you as well. He's trusted his vineyard to your hands. What will you do for Christ? What will you do for the increase of his kingdom? What will you do for the furtherance of the gospel? You see, this business of Christianity is not a spectator sport. Rex, God's people, every one of them, are laborers in his vineyard. Every believer must endeavor then to serve Christ, being motivated only by love for him, and zeal for his glory. And thus we enrich our own souls. Look at this.

Those that keep the fruit thereof, two hundred. The Lord has vengeance for the fruit of it, but those who keep the vengeance, they get their reward too. But what is that talking about? Matthew Henry put it this way. He said, those who work for Christ are working for themselves and shall be unspeakable gainers by it. Not materially, no, no, no, but spiritually. And remember how Paul said, those that sow to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption, but those that sow to the spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting.

Now what's he saying? You take what God's put in your hands and you use it for pampering the flesh. You use it to indulge your flesh. You use it for your pleasure in this world. Now all you get is corruption. Just corruption. But you take what God's put in your hands. Everything He's put in your hands.

Your life, your family, your wealth, your prosperity, your lands, everything! And you sow to the Spirit. Use it as best you can for the glory of God. Spend a thousand bucks for the increase of His kingdom. and you stand and watch, and you will reap everlasting blessedness. Everlasting blessedness as you see the Lord gathering in his harvest in his kingdom.

And then our Lord tells us that we have a responsibility toward our Savior himself. Verse 13. Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice. Listen to this. Calls me to hear it. Calls me to hear it. Make haste, my beloved, and do thou like unto a world or to a young heart upon the mountains of spices.

The Lord Jesus and his bride are here pictured as the time when Christ must part. He must leave his church upon the earth. She must stay here below in the gardens on the earth to work for him. But he must ascend up to glory to intercede for her, to do all things for the good of his people.

And our Lord lets us know that he desires to hear from us, and to hear from us often. He says, Let me hear your voice, cause me to hear it. Other folks hear you talk, let me hear your voice. You can speak to other folks, speak to me. Not only does our Lord hear and answer prayer, he courts our prayers. He says, come now, come on, let me hear your voice.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. For her part, the bride, the church, the believing heart, longs for Christ's speedy return. Lord, it's good to be here, dwelling among the gardens of our Lord, laboring for his glory in his vineyard. But to depart and be with him is far better. Our Lord is coming again. It's our business to work and live in anticipation of his speedy return. And the comfort, satisfaction of communion with him that we presently enjoy inspires in our hearts a longing for that day when we shall have communion uninterrupted, when we shall rejoice in his presence in perfection. And so our hearts cry, and cry continually to him, make haste, O my beloved. The Lord Jesus says, surely I come quickly. And we hear him and we say, even so come Lord Jesus. Amen.