If you'd like to follow along, I'm gonna be in 1 Corinthians chapter three. And I wanna begin reading in verse 18 of 1 Corinthians chapter three. Now this is a hard statement just to begin with. Let no man deceive himself. I'm sorry folks, we're really too good at that. But that's where he starts. Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, he that taketh the wise in their own craftiness. Again, the Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise that they are vain Therefore let no man glory in men for all things are yours whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come all are yours and This is why all things are yours Ye are Christ.

And ye are Christ. And Christ is God's. I like that. I like that. That's my title, Paul. You are Christ. You are Christ. Now, you all know here, I love the singular things in the scripture. The singular things of God in the scripture. where he talks about the one olive tree. Walter's talked about it. The law, singular, the law. The one and only good shepherd. The parable of the lost sheep, one sheep, the lost coin, one coin, and the lost son, one son.

And I also love the love of God the Savior toward us. That love is singular also. Oh, I like that. The singular things of the scripture make my heart rejoice. But let me be clear, singular does not mean simple. It means singular. Because the singular things in the scripture are profound and true in a way that the world does not comprehend. One thing in particular is the one true gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. There's only one. There's only one. We have one message.

And Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4 and 3, he said, but if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost. Them that are lost. But here's the thing, all believers were lost at one time. At one time, the gospel was hid from you. Not through the gospel's fault, but because of our fault. Blind in your mind. Oh my. But I love this quote where Paul quoted Isaiah in Romans 10 and 20. But Isaiah says very bold and saith, I was found of them that sought me not. I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. I'm gonna tell you something, folks.

The world thinks that's a crazy statement. How did somebody find them that wasn't looking for them? What's that mean? What it means is someone has to find you first. I love that. And it's the one someone that's gonna find you first. Oh, I like that. Oh my. And Jesus Christ told us that when he said, other sheep I have, which are not of this fold, them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice. Mm, I like that. And there shall be what?

One fold and one shepherd. That song we just sang, I was a wandering sheep. I was already a sheep. And this is the thing, Christ said, I was his sheep, other sheep I have. Oh, I like that. He, the one true good shepherd, must bring. Oh, and there he is, one fold and one shepherd. That's good news to me, that's good news. All right, but what does that mean?

Well it means this, and ye are Christ, and Christ is God's. Paul's greetings in his epistles are wonderful things. The greeting here in the first epistle says this, in verse two, under the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus called to be saints. but not only that, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. That's us, folks. That's us. That's believers.

If you call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, truly call upon him, believe him, trust him, love him, this letter's written to you. And ye are Christ's and Christ is God's. Oh, Paul is telling us these are Christ's, the church at Corinth and them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus called saints, called saints. With all that in every place, call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. All of these are Christ's. Even now, even now. Oh, I like that. You are Christ's. And these epistles were written to us as well as to them.

2,000 years ago, these were written, thereabouts, give or take 70 years. I heard somebody talking on TV the other day, it was on YouTube, Deb was watching something, and I don't know why this came up. He says, I have a problem with this, he says, because nobody ever wrote anything down that was there. And I thought, have you ever looked at the scripture?

Well, he was talking about the time of Jesus Christ. It's like, I think Matthew was there, and John was there, and Paul was running around with Luke in the book of Acts. Or Luke was running around with him. They were together. No, no, no. They will not have the scripture as any kind of authority. when this book is all we have. And the thing is, from beginning to end, it agrees. It agrees. Oh, my. These epistles were written to us. Now, if we believe, and here's the thing I talked about a few weeks ago.

The Father chose us in Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world. The Father gave us to Christ, but predestinated unto the adoption of sons. You are Christ. You are Christ. And Christ is God's. In John 17, nine, Jesus Christ prayed, I pray for them, I pray not for the world. but for them which thou hast given me, for they are thine. Verse 10, and all mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them. Listen, folks, there's one fold and one shepherd, and ye are Christ, ye are Christ.

Then he goes on, and now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee, Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be what? One. What? As we are one. Ye are Christ's. and Christ is God's. Oh, I like that. We have been given to Christ Jesus by the Father, and Christ Jesus has been given to us by the Father. Oh, oh. And all mine are thine, and all thine are mine. Believers belong to both the Father and the Son, chosen in the Son and given to Him by the Father.

And in Him, what? Your Christ, in Him, we are accepted. Is that it? In the Beloved. But we're accepted by God. Now, we're still sinners. and he accepts us in the Son, and only in the Son, ye are Christ. Oh, I like that, I like the feeling of that. Accepted by the Father, by God, in the Son, kept by God, for what purpose? It says it here. That they may be as one, as we are one. Oh. That's the adoption of sons. That's the adoption of sons. They may be one in Christ, in God. You are Christ. You are members of the family, the family of God and Christ. And believers are Christ. And believers in Christ are one, are one.

Oh, I like that. He's the Lord of hosts. His name is the Holy One of Israel. His name is the Redeemer. And Christ is God's. This is my beloved son. Hear ye him. Hear ye him. What'd he say? All thine are mine and mine are thine. I like that. Oh, hear him. But the world won't hear him. Stephen preached that and got stoned. He says, you're all of uncircumcised heart and what? Ears. You do always resist the Holy Ghost. And we did. We did always resist the Holy Ghost. Now, sometimes we may resist the Holy Ghost, but now, then, always.

If there was a wrong way, I'd find it. If there's an easy way, I'd have tried it. I didn't care nothing about the truth. And I'm gonna tell you something, folks, that's exactly the way the world is today. They don't care anything about the truth of God. But here's the truth.

His people belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. And Christ is God's. And in Him, in Christ, we are God's. We belong to God. How's that happen? Well it says the hearing ear and the seeing eye The Lord has made even both of them. Believers are circumcised in heart and ears. Hear him, believe him, trust him, love him.

He's our Lord. They don't understand A sovereign God, a God who controls salvation, life, faith, is what fallen man needs, is who fallen man needs. Understand, we have nothing without our Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing of any spiritual value. You can have riches untold and not know Christ, not know God.

Mm, my. The scriptures talk plainly being in Christ, in Christ, in Christ. And here's what that means, folks. It means that you are Christ. You are Christ. You are Christ. You are Christ by election, Christ by adoption, Christ by acceptance, Christ by redemption, regeneration, and conversion. Here's... You are Christ by purpose and plan and covenant and power and by his life and his faith. Oh my. Because it's all of him. He's our substitute. He's our substitute.

His blood was shed for his sheep, for his people. He said, I laid down my life for the sheep. Why? That the sheep will live. The sheep will live. My sheep, other sheep I have, them I must bring, and there's gonna be one foal and one shepherd. And he did lay down his life for the sheep, but here's the thing, folks, he took it up again for his sheep. We are risen with him, buried with him in baptism and risen with him. We live in him. We live, we move, and we have our being.

Mm. Like I said, I like the ones in the scripture. Look at Ephesians four. Let's see. What do I got here? Ephesians four and verse one. I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called. with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling, one Lord one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace.

Oh, I love that. According to the measure of the gift of Christ. You're not giving grace according to your measure. It's according to his measure. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. Ye are Christ's. Ye are Christ's. And Christ is God's. Oh my. Believers are one family, one flock with one shepherd, one body. Here's something else, folks. Believers have, okay? One life, one hope, one everlasting covenant, even the sure mercies of David. Believers have one glorious head of the body, one bridegroom, one God and father of us all, one high priest. Believers have one salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ. And believers have a just God and a savior.

Oh my. We have one grace. His. Believers have one redemption. His. Believers have one faith. His. He's the author and the finisher of it. Of faith. He's the giver of faith. The giver of life. Oh my. You are Christ. Rejoice. You are Christ. Glorify God. Sing his praise. Praise his holy name and proclaim his gospel. He is the just God and the Savior.

I was coming up the road listening to Henry talk about the lamb, the Passover lamb back in Exodus. He said, when I see the blood, I'll pass over you. The blood was on the outside of the house. They were on the inside of the house. Oh my. It didn't call for you to see the blood. It didn't call for you to believe the blood. It called for God to see the blood. And when I see that blood, I'm passing over you. I'm gonna tell you something. When God sees the blood of Christ, he will pass over his people. You are Christ and Christ is God's. I know it's a hard thing.

Sometimes people have a problem and I have two at times Thinking about the Father the Son and the Spirit What's it tell us for there are three that bear record in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost and these three are one one one But now when Christ came down to earth He took upon the form of a servant He came in the likeness, now be very clear, the likeness of sinful flesh. He did not come in sinful flesh. But he, it says it in there, he humbled himself. He submitted himself to the Father's will. And yet there one.

I believe it, I really can't explain it. and the Spirit comes and gives what? Christ's life to us. Because of the life, the Holy Spirit. These three are one. And ye are Christ's, and Christ is God's. Oh, I like that. Because the Lord our God is one Lord. The family of God has one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. And Jesus Christ is Lord. Sovereign Lord. With all power over heaven and earth and hell and everything in between, he's in charge. By him do all things consist. And thank God that includes us. Ye are Christ, ye are Christ, oh. He's the author and finisher of faith. We're buried with him by baptism into his death and risen with him to walk in newness, newness of life. His life. Oh, you're Christ. And Christ is God's.

We have been given such, we don't even, Understand. That's it. That's it, Tom. We don't understand. We cannot comprehend. Deb and I were talking about this the other day. You understand, we don't know how really bad we were. But here's the other thing. We still don't know how really bad we are in ourselves.

He is faithful. He's faithful. Even if we don't believe, I was looking at that, thinking about that last night. Was it Timothy, I believe? I can find it. Well, I don't know where it is. But the thing is, he is faithful when we are not faithful. And it's not because of us being so good. It's because he, and this is the beautiful thing, he cannot deny himself. You're Christ. He can't deny himself. And Christ is God's. And God will never, ever deny his son. This is my well-beloved son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear him. Ye are Christ's and Christ is God's.

Heavenly Father, we thank you again for this day and this place. Lord, help us, help us to understand just a little bit of what you've done for us and to us and in us and around us. Your hand is the one that upholds everything. We don't understand what goes on in this world. Lord, sometimes we don't understand what's going on in ourselves, but you do, you do. And we pray, try to pray every time, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Thy will be done in my life, in this world, and everywhere else. In Christ's name we pray, amen.