How many times have you seen, or known, or possibly experienced some terribly painful, traumatic, almost devastating thing, and thought to yourself, what good can possibly come of this? How is this going to work for good? How will this benefit How is this going to glorify God? I have. I have. I've had those questions many, many times. When I see personal tragedies that people experience, I never say those words. I never blurt out things like that to people. But in my heart, in my mind, I think, God, why? Why?

Shortly after Shelby and I were married, I got a call one morning. I believe it was a Sunday morning, if I'm not mistaken. Her brother next to her had just been murdered. And we'd just been married a few months. I said, why? Why? I don't understand this. I don't understand. The incident with Brian's death, Brian Fletcher's death last week, when I heard it, I just shook my head. Why? Why? Why this family? Why this experience? Why this tragedy? This particular couple has been through so much heartache and difficulty. Why take their child? I remember leaving the hospital when we thought Brother Todd Maverick was about to leave this world.

As a man faithful to the cause of Christ, that work just getting started in Lexington. So much promise, so much hope, so much need. Lord, why? And then, just a few weeks ago, Brother Happy H, we spent the day over there in Lexington went in to see him.

Didn't really want to go in and see him. I suspected he'd look just like he did. He was laying there with all those tubes and all the swelling and all the ugliness of death creeping on the man. I walked out, God, why don't you just take him? Just take him. Relieve him and his family and his congregation of all this difficulty.

Why? Frequently, we ask such questions. We know that our Heavenly Father is too wise to err, too good to do wrong, and too strong to fail. Yet, when tragedies come, when they come close to home, we can't help asking, why did this happen? God, what are you doing? Why are you doing this? Why have you brought this to pass?

Now, those I hope they're not asking in rebellion. I hope they're not asking in unbelief. I hope they're not asking in any way of us being angry with God. But if God the Holy Spirit will enable me, I want to give you a message from our Lord himself that will help prepare you for the dark providences that we have faced and must yet face in this world.

Now if you live a little while longer, Bob, you're going to face some more trouble. That's just it. That's just reality. And we're going to face some dark, dark times that are going to cause us great perplexity and great heartache and pain. And so I want to try to prepare our hearts for that as best I can with the work and power of God the Holy Spirit speaking through me. The title of my message, if you want to take notes, His dark providences cleared in due time. Now that may seem like a strange title, but you will see it immediately when you read my text. John 13 and verse 7. John 13 and verse 7.

And Jesus answered and said unto him, Simon Peter, What I do thou knowest not now. but thou shalt know hereafter." When Jacob awoke from his dream, he said, surely God was in this place, and I knew it not. When Samson's strength departed from him, when the Spirit of the Lord left him, we read in the book of Judges that Samson wished not that the Lord had departed from him. Now what is said by Jacob and said concerning Samson with regard to God's presence and absence, with regard to God's coming and going not being known, the same may be said with regard to God's doings, his providence.

What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. I'm certainly aware that this passage of scripture is specifically talking about the act of washing the disciples' feet, which needed to be understood and would later be understood once it was finished. But it is a statement that is clearly applicable to God's providence. The fact is, the design or the intention of God's works of providence are often, if not usually, and I think usually, they are often, if not usually, hidden from his people, but they shall be revealed in his time. William Cowper, just the story of his life is enough to help you to understand how he could write those words.

God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the sea and rides upon the storm. deep, deep and unfathomable minds of never failing skill. God treasures up his bright designs and works his sovereign will. His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour.

The bud, it often has a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower. Ye fearful saints fresh courage take, the clouds you so much dread are big with mercy and shall break in blessing on your head. So judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust him for his grace, behind his frowning providence he hides his smiling face." Blind unbelief, blind unbelief. is sure to err and scan God's work in vain. God is his own interpreter and he will make it plain.

Now hold your Bibles open here to John 13 and let me show you five or six things that are clearly set before us in this passage of Holy Scripture. May God the Holy Spirit who calls John to record these things for us now be our teacher as we seek the lessons from it. First, look at verse one, if you will. Now, before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come, that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. Here's what we learn.

The love of Christ for his elect. is immutable and incessant. It is immutable and incessant. It never changes and it never ceases. It never diminishes and it never increases. His love is immutable and incessant. Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.

Now notice what the scripture says. When Jesus knew, he knew that his hour was now come. He knew the time had come for him to suffer and die. He knew that these disciples who were sitting before him would everyone soon forsake him. He knew that in their weakness and in their weakness of faith and weakness of mind and weakness of spirit, in their weakness of the flesh. He knew that every one of them in his time of greatest sorrow would forsake him. He knew that when he was forsaken, he would suffer for these very people and ascend back to the Father. And he knew. He knew these things concerning himself and his disciples.

And the scripture says, having loved his own, he loved them to the end. Now our Lord's love for us is from everlasting. Notice what it says, having loved. He loved them from eternity. He loved them long before they were born. He loved them in particular. It doesn't say having loved everyone, but having loved his own. These which were here in the world with him. The scripture says now he loved them to the end.

It is difficult to decide which is the greater measurement of God's amazing love. His love for us as sinners or his love for us as his people in this world. He loved us long before we believed. He loved us freely. He loved us unconditionally. He loved us with the intention and design of saving us. Oh, amazing grace and love that God should love sinners. But I find this just as amazing.

He still loves us. He still loves us. In spite of our coldness, in spite of our sin, in spite of our unbelief, in spite of our faults and failings, in spite of our many frustrations and disappointments and acts of just out and out rebellion against him, he still loves his old. And he continues to love to this day. Oh, the love of Christ.

No mortal can grasp it. There is nothing human that can be compared to it. There is nothing earthly that can picture it. The narrow scope of human thoughts, the self-centered human emotions, the self-centered human deeds are such things that no man can ever possibly comprehend this kind of love. He loved his own. We who are in this world have loved us.

Scriptures tell us plainly then, that our Lord Jesus, who loves us, delights to receive sinners. I wish I could communicate that to you who know not our Savior. I wish I could communicate to you that He delights in mercy. He delights to keep company with publicans and sinners. He came into the world to seek and to save that which was lost. The Lord Jesus delights to be gracious. He delights to be merciful.

But more than that, once he has received the sinner, once he has taken you into his arms, once he has taken you into his fellowship, once he's taken you into his love, he will never reject you, not for any reason. Having loved his own, he loved them unto the end. Now secondly, understand this, God helped you. to understand this. Even the most base, vile, and despicable acts of reprobate men and women, the most sinful deeds of fallen men, are under the absolute rule and absolute control of our God and Heavenly Father, so that nothing, nothing, nothing comes to pass without his decree. Listen to what it says in verse 2.

And the supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot Simon's son to betray him, Jesus knowing that the father had given all things into his hands and that he was come from God and went to God. Satan put it into the heart of Judas to betray the Son of God. Did somehow this escape God's purpose? Is now somehow something happening that God had not ordained and God had not decreed and God did not control? Oh no, no, no, not at all.

These things came to pass at this time because his hour was come. These things came to pass at this time because the hour ordained from eternity when God should redeem his people by the blood of his son had now come. And so it is written in the scriptures, surely the wrath of man shall praise thee. and the remainder of wrath without restraint. It is written in the scriptures, the Lord hath made all things for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of judgment. I read this statement from Ralph Erskine, a Scottish preacher from a couple hundred years ago, I think. He said, he employs the wicked themselves to carry on his work. and makes their wicked designs to contribute to the advancement of his holy and glorious design, as he did make the treason of Judas, and the sentence of Pilate, the malice of the Jews, all to contribute to our work of redemption. Oh, that's our God's total suffering.

Judas, with a malicious, vile heart, went out and betrayed the Son of God for 30 pieces of silver. And in doing so, he accomplished God's purpose. Pilate, with cowardice, the cowardice of a weak, mean politician, willing to please the people, willing to content the people, delivered Jesus unto their will for them to do what he would. And in doing so, he fulfilled the purpose of God for the accomplishment of our redemption. And the Jews with malice said, let him be crucified, let him be crucified. His blood be on us and on our children.

And in doing so, they fulfilled the purpose of God with regard to our redemption. You see what I'm saying? Our Lord Jesus sovereignly overrules even the most base, vile acts of wicked, reprobate men and women for the accomplishment of his purpose, the saving of his people, and the glory of his name. Yes, our Heavenly Father wisely uses and sovereignly uses his enemies and our enemies, contrary to their wills, but yet he uses them to do that which will advance his cause.

You remember when the Philistines had taken the Ark of God? They took the Ark of God and they wanted the Ark of God, but when they got it, they wished they'd never seen it. And God forced them, contrary to their will, to make sacrifice to God on His altar and His ark, and send the ark back to Israel according to His purpose. Thirdly, learn this.

Nothing in all the world is more corrupt, more callous, more hard than the heart of a hypocrite. Nothing. Nothing. Here sits Judas. Here sits Judas. You can't believe this, but here sits. Now, if you compare the scriptures, you'll find out that Judas had already made his deal. He had already gone to the Pharisees. He had already gotten his 30 pieces of silver. He had already made all preparations for the betrayal of the Son of God.

Here he sits. Here he sits at the table with the Son of God and his disciples the night before the crucifixion as the Lord Jesus is keeping the last Passover with his disciples. He's sitting there just like Nothing wrong. He's sitting there just like he belonged there. He's sitting there just like, well, boys, I've got as much right to be here as anybody does. He's sitting there like, I've not done anything wrong. And yet this man is sitting there with 30 pieces of silver in his pocket, waiting for opportunity to betray the master.

Judah stands as a beacon to warn us of what deep, deep corruption may be found in the hearts of very, very religious people. No doubt Judas was outwardly a very moral man. No doubt Judas was outwardly one who was highly No doubt Judas was a man that folks would look at and say, now he's a sharp fella. He's a good businessman. He's a leader in the community. He's a man who's earned respect and he's respectable. But Judas had the heart of a devil. He was a hypocrite. He was a hypocrite at heart. It wasn't a matter of Judas somehow being deceived. He was deceived by his own heart. Judas was a hypocrite. He shows us just how far a man may go in religion and yet be rotten at heart.

Judas walked contrary to the Pharisees and the priests. It was as much for Judas to walk with the Lord Jesus as it is for you who believe the gospel of God's free grace to sit here and disassociate yourselves from all matter of free will, works, religion. It was totally contrary to the times, totally contrary to the religious age in which you live. But Judas lined up with the Son of God, contrary to his parents, contrary to his friends, contrary to his nation.

He said, I follow you. And his heart was rotten to the core. Judas shows us how much a person may know about Christ and the things of Christ. about God and the things of God and yet not know Christ and not know God. Judas, Judas could take you literally, he could take you to the place where the Savior was born and say right there's what happened. He could literally take you to the place where the Lord Jesus was baptized and say right there is where John did it. Judas could take you and show you plainly from the scriptures the lineage and the genealogy of Jesus Christ properly being priest and king, a priest upon the throne as he was born in this world according to the proper descent from the priesthood and from the kingly line of David.

And yet Judas didn't know God. He didn't know God. He knew facts. He knew doctrine. He knew experience. But he didn't know God. Judas shows us how high a person may rise in the eyes of men and in religious office and yet be unconverted. Do you know that in the Church, if we can call it that, at this time, and this little band of disciples, there was only one officer. There were no pastors, there were no elders, there were no deacons, there were no teachers, there's just one officer, just one.

That was Judas. He was treasurer. He held the baton. He was the man who, by the others, had been elevated to this prominent position because Judas was highly esteemed by all. And when the time came when the Lord said, one of you shall betray me, every one of the disciples suspected himself.

But nobody suspected Judas, not even Judas. Not even Judas. Judas went out with the seven dead. When the Lord sent them out two by two, he made up one of the pairs who went out preaching the gospel, proclaiming repentance, performing miracles. But Judas didn't know God. And Judas shows us just how confident a person may be that he's saved, even when he's on the brink of hell.

God's people, believers, have every reason to be confident and have assurance of their everlasting security in Christ. But I frequently find that God's people so greatly fear presumption and so greatly fear for their souls and fear for being deceived that they often walk in darkness and hesitancy and I don't know. I just don't know. I hope that I know the Lord. I think I know the Lord. I believe I know the Lord. And sometimes they have a little measure of confidence.

But religious folks, oh, I've got a no soul salvation. I've got a no soul salvation. Everybody's got a no soul salvation who's got the kind that Judah said. Everybody. It's a salvation and an assurance and a confidence and a know-so based upon an experience, based upon a creed, based upon an act, not based upon a redeemer. But Judas was dead sure he was saved. In just a few hours he'd be in hell and he didn't know. Now we must not be surprised, overwhelmed, or overly disturbed when we find hypocrites among God's saints. They're going to be there, wherever God's saints have been.

Sometimes unbelievers look at the hypocrisy of professed believers and say, well, that's what Christianity is. I want no part of it. Let me tell you something. The only reason folks make counterfeit money is because there's some good currency out there somewhere.

And the fact that there are hypocrites scattered among the saints is pretty good evidence that there are some genuine believers, some folks who really know God out there somewhere. And I try to find them, find out who they are, and line myself up with them, fascia. God's saints walk in this world in sincerity and uprightness of heart and faith before Christ.

Not all who are washed in the waters of baptism have been washed in the blood of Christ. There's no question about that. Our Lord Jesus says concerning these very disciples, in verse 10, he that is washed needeth not say to wash his feet, but is clean everywhere and ye are clean, but not all. Not all of you, some of you. There's one among you who's not clean at all. Now make sure, make sure you're in the faith. Examine yourselves whether you be in the faith. Let me ask you one more time, who do you trust? Where is your hope? What is your confidence? What is your basis of acceptance with God?

Don't even imagine, oh God help you, don't even imagine anything but one word, Christ. That's all. That's all. Give diligence to make your calling and election sure. This is the way you do it. Break off every false hope. Look to Christ alone. Look to Christ alone. Thirdly, or fourthly rather, our text makes it plain that the only way we can be saved is by being washed in the blood of Christ. Look at verse 8.

Peter said unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. I'm so thankful for Brother Peter and his follow-ups. You realize if Peter hadn't made so many mistakes, we wouldn't have learned as much of what we've been taught in the scriptures. Peter said, you're not going to wash me.

No, no, don't you wash me. This same fellow who just a little while earlier had said, Lord, you're not going to go die. And the Lord said, get me behind me, Satan. Now he's overly humble and said, you're not going to wash me. And the Lord Jesus answered him, if I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. And here Peter speaks again. He seems to overstate things so many times, but here he changes his statement altogether.

Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only. If it means I don't have any part with you, don't just wash my feet, but wash my hands, wash my head, wash me all over. And Jesus saith unto him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every wit, and you are clean. What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus. What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus. If we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanseth us from all sin. Now, there's no other way for you and me to be accepted with God. No other way for us to be saved except to be washed in the sages blood. We cannot be saved unless Christ has washed us in his blood.

Now, there's two parts to that. First, there is the judicial aspect. We must be those people whom the Son of God has redeemed and judicially washed with his blood so that he washed away our sins. But there's also the experimental aspect of it. We must be washed in his blood in regeneration with the washing of the water by the word when the Holy Spirit comes and sprinkles your guilty conscience with the blood of Christ and declares your forgiveness. That's the blessed experience of being washed in the blood. I have experienced and I am experiencing.

Oh, how blessed, how blessed, how blessed it is for a sinner, guilty, oppressed, heavy laden with sin, a sinner whose heart condemns him, a sinner whose heart and conscience says, hell is your just deserts, to hear God speak from heaven through the word, through the blood and say, your sins are gone. Your sin, this blood, this blood has purged your sins away. They're gone. They're washed. This man, so dirty, so polluted, is washed and made white in the blood of Christ.

Would you be, if you would, believe on the Son of God and hear Him declare, by faith that may be whole. And even those who are cleansed, even those who are forgiven, they need a daily application of the blood of Christ for daily pardon. Sometimes folks debate and argue whether or not we ought to ask for forgiveness, whether or not we ought to confess our sins. Oh my, yes, yes.

One of the greatest blessings on this earth is the daily experience of forgiveness. One of the greatest blessings on this earth is the daily experience of cleansing from the blood of Christ. Now, we don't need to be redeemed again. We don't need to have pardon accomplished again, but we need to have pardon applied again. We need to have the cleansing and the pardon spoken fresh to our hearts so that we walk cleanly before our God with our conscience constantly purged.

Let me see if I can illustrate it for you. Down in the islands, You'd be driving alone and you'd see kind of strange things for North Americans to see. Because you'll see men and women, families sometimes, out in the ocean start naked bathing. They like to bathe in seawater. And they come out of the ocean, wrap a towel around them, or wrap a robe around them, and they walk up to the house right across the sand. And before they walk in the house, you know what the last thing they do? They wash their feet. They just got out of the bath, but they washed their feet because between the sea and the house, their feet got dirty again. And as we walk through this world, though we had been bathed in the blood of Jesus Christ, our feet polluted again, polluted in this world.

And so we experience daily this blessed thing called the forgiveness of our sins and this blessed thing called washing in the blood. Now, fifthly, in this passage of scripture, the Lord Jesus gives us a blessed example of genuine humility and genuine love. You can read the rest of the passage, verses 5 and 17. You're familiar with it.

Our Lord Jesus took a towel, the towel with which he girded himself, and he took a basin of water, and he went around to the disciples and began to wash their feet. And as he washed their feet, he'd take them one at a time and perform that duty of a servant that was a great, soulless, refreshing, comforting thing, and at the same time a necessary thing. Their feet were dirty and they needed cleansing, but oh, how refreshing to have them washed. How delightful to just have your feet washed. And the Son of God did that. What an act of humility. What an act of love. And he got done and he said, now what I've done, you do it. You do it. You follow my example. I've given you an example. You go do the same.

Now he wasn't telling us to have an ordinance called foot washing. I have friends and I wouldn't offend them for the world, but they practice foot washing when they have high communion and it's always announced well in advance that everybody washes their feet before they come to church. That's not what it's talking about here. That's not what it's talking about.

This is really washing somebody's feet. This is really washing them. And what it's talking about is serving one another with humility. You see, true humility does whatever is necessary. to meet the needs of the person loved, whatever is necessary. I hear women say, I wouldn't do that for my husband. If you loved him, you would. Sure you would. If you loved him and that's what was needed, that's what you'd do. Men say, I wouldn't do that for my wife. If you love her, you will. Sure you will. If you love her, you meet her needs. Children say, I wouldn't do that. Oh, if you love your parents, you will. If you love your children, you will. That's what the scriptures teach about genuine love and genuine humility.

It's not words. Oh, it's not words. It's deeds. It's deeds. True humility vows its will and vows its privileges and vows its rights to the needs of others and uses its will and privileges and rights to supply the needs of those whom it loves. That's what humility is.

The Son of God stooped to wash his disciples' feet, and he still does. to look into this yesterday and I thought, how is this going to apply to us right now? Does the Son of God still perform this marvelous work for us in any spiritual sense? Yes, he does. He washes his disciples' feet now when he shows us the foulness of our It makes us to see our sin.

None of us like to have our sin exposed, but we ought to learn to. Part of the job of preaching is to expose sin. That's what I'm here for. I'm to show you your sin. As the Spirit of God speaks by me to expose your sin, not so that you can be embarrassed by it, but so you can have your feet washed.

Oh, Son of God, show us our sin. keep our sin ever before us that we may ever come to the fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's hands and there wash our feet. He washes our feet when he makes us. Oh, when he graciously makes us dip our feet into that fountain that's open for sin and for uncleanness. The Son of God washes our feet when he enables us with tears of repentance like that woman in Luke chapter 7. To wash is he and kiss is he and wipe is he in adoration and love and gratitude. Now this self-denying loving service is our responsibility to one another. Children of God wash each other's feet.

It's your business. That means, Bobby Estes, you look out for what Merle and Charlotte Hart need, whatever it is. It's a word of comfort, just a telephone call, a visit, and supply, whatever it costs. That means, Merle, you look out for what Mark and Carla need, and you supply it, whatever the cost. They've got everything. Oh, folks who've got everything need a lot of things. Folks who've got everything that money can buy frequently need a friend, need a visit, need a word of encouragement.

See that you wash one another's feet. And all who follow our Lord's example find happiness and satisfaction in doing so. Look at verse 17. If you know these things, now we know them. There's another question. James Lee, you know and I know we ought to serve each other, don't we? We know that. We ought to meet one another's needs. But listen, if you know these things, happy are ye if you do.

The happiness comes not in knowing but in doing. The satisfaction, the contentment comes not in knowing how you ought to love each other and how you ought to serve each other and talking about loving and serving each other. The satisfaction and contentment and happiness comes in doing it and following the example and the ordinance and command of our Savior. Nothing brings greater joy to devoted hearts than the privilege and grace of obeying Christ and being useful to his people.

Nothing else. Now one last thing, and this is what I want to send you home with. All the dark mysteries and painful experiences of God's providence will be cleared up for God's saints in God's time. Look at verse 7. Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. This truth is illustrated for us so many times in scriptures.

I'm quite certain Joseph had no idea what his dreams meant. I'm sure he didn't. But he went and told his dreams to his brothers. And his brothers hated him because of his dreams. Because Joseph, maybe he did, I don't know, kind of got the big head. After all, he had these dreams of his brothers bowing down before him. But later on, he understood the dreams.

When Jacob was bereaved of Joseph, and then the famine came, and he was afraid he was going to be bereaved of Benjamin, and Simeon was gone, he said, all these things are against me. And I can hear the Lord say, what I do now thou knowest not. Just hang on, you'll know in due time.

Moses, somehow he knew that he was not the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He knew that he was an Egyptian. But Moses, when he rose up to defend his brethren, found himself in exile from Egypt, back on the back side of the desert for 40 years hiding, lest Pharaoh should destroy him. And Moses, I'm sure, many times thought to himself, what am I doing out here? And what's God doing? Why this?

And God says, what I do now thou knowest not, but thou shalt know hereafter. When Mordecai walked by and saw that noose that Haman had built, And he saw his name on the Haman's noose. I see Mordecai kind of bracing himself, you know. And I hear God say, what I do now thou knowest not, but hang on, you'll see Mordecai, you'll see Haman hang on this noose.

When Paul went to Philippi and was imprisoned there, here's this man serving Christ, preaching the gospel. And he's thrown in prison, not because of any evil he did, but just because he preached the gospel. And there he is in prison. And I can almost hear him.

He would probably heapsight more man than I am, heapsight more gracious man than I am, but I can picture myself saying, Lord, what am I doing here? What's this for? And the Lord says, what I do now, just wait till the earth shakes. You'll find out what I'm doing. Thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter."

Did you catch those words we read in Psalm 77? Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary, thy way is in the seas, thy paths in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known. The psalmist said, thy righteousness is like the great mountains, thy judgments are a great deal. The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure in them.

Sometimes God's providence appears to contradict his promises. Sometimes it does. We read providence and we read the promise. And in our feeble flesh, we look and we say, now, wait a minute. they just don't fit. Oh, but they do fit. If you just wait, just wait.

You remember when Moses was sent by God to deliver Israel? God said, now you go back down there and you tell your brethren, I Am has sent me to deliver you. And you tell them I'm going to bring them out to a land that I'll show you. And Moses went back and he said, boys, God sent me to deliver you.

The Deliverer has come. They said, boys, we're going out here tomorrow. We're going out. And word got to Pharaoh. Moses went over and he said, the Lord sent me to bring Israel out. And Pharaoh said, you go make their work twice as hard as it was before. And they look up and say, Moses, what are you doing? What have you done to us? And I can see Moses. God, what are you doing? What have you done to me? What I do now, I don't know what.

Sometimes God's acts of mercy and grace and providence look and feel like acts of wrath and judgment. At first, when Job lost his health and lost his children and lost his position and lost his wealth as well as his health, And finally lost his wife, he said, why don't you cuss God and die? Job sinned not against the Lord, but it wasn't long. And Job said, oh, would to God I had perished from the womb. He said, pity me, the hand of God's touched me. Because he didn't understand what God had in store for him. Sometimes God appears to be favorable to the wicked and indifferent, at best indifferent to the righteous.

That's what David said in Psalm 73. He said, I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Here the wicked man sits, and his family, how prosperous! His sons all love him, they all sit at his table, they all come home every weekend and have dinner with him, and all the children and grandchildren are sitting there, and they're just delighting their daddy! And here I am, I speak to worship God alone! My heart is set toward God, and not one of my sons is sitting here with me!

David said it's foolish things, sir. actually didn't say it. He said it in his heart. He said, I would have said it, but it went into the house of God. And I saw their end. And I saw that God's fattening them up like oxen for the slaughter. And I said, oh God, forgive me. I was as a beast before you.

Many, many times, things in this world are confusing to God's people. Just confusing. And you'll call me up, or you'll come by and sit down and you'll say, God, what's going on? What's happening? What's the Lord doing? And I'll read the scriptures to you and we'll pray. I look at you honestly and say, I don't know. I don't know. I just don't know.

God called Abraham and said, I'm going to give you a son. Wonder why he couldn't have done it when he was 40 instead of when he was 90. Because Abraham was required to walk by faith. And after God gave Abraham a son and had commanded Abraham to take Ishmael and kiss him goodbye and send him on his merry way, God said to Abraham, you come sacrifice your son to me. When Moses brought Israel up to Canaan, he led them through the wilderness, brought them across the Red Sea, led them through the wilderness for 40 years, brought them right up to the borders of Canaan. God took him up in the mountain and showed him the land and said, now Moses, this is where you're going to die. You can't carry a man. When time came to build the temple, David, the man after God's own heart, wasn't allowed to build it. God killed him. He said, you can gather the material, but you can't build my house. Sometimes clearly revealed duty is said against clearly revealed duty. Sometimes it is.

I have, all of my adult life, had two conflicting duties. I had the duties of a father and a husband. But my duties as a father and a husband, while I cannot and will not, God helping me, neglect my family as far as their welfare is concerned, I have had to set my family secondary because they have a higher duty. It's a duty as pastor, preacher of the gospel, and that means family has got to fall in line behind the cause of Christ. Sometimes the same thing is true of you in various aspects of life.

You have duties as an employee or an employer, but you don't dare let those stand in the way of your duties and responsibilities to the kingdom of God. Sometimes In God's providence, prophets are set one against the other. And I don't know if anything causes God's servants more pain than difficulty. It's confusing to God's people. Why preachers can't get along? I don't understand it. I can't patent it. But somehow, in God's providence, he arranges it. You may remember a few weeks ago, Brother Bob Ponce read here 1 Kings chapter 13.

There was a prophet who came down, and God said, now you deliver the message, you go home. And there was an old prophet in town, and both of them were God's prophets. Both of them were God's prophets. It wasn't a matter of one being a prophet of Baal, one being another man's prophet. Both of them were God's prophets. But the old prophet sent his sons out and said, you go get me.

Saddle the ash, and I'm going to go meet this fella. And he went and met him, and he said, now God told you to come home with me. God appeared to me and God killed him. God killed him. The prophet was set against the prophet. What I do thou knowest not now. God often lifts up with one hand and cast down with the other. He heals with one, wounds with the other. You remember when that man brought his demon-possessed son to the Savior and said, Lord, have mercy on me. My son is grievously vexed with the devil. As the Savior reached to heal him, the devil threw him down in terror.

The ruler of the synagogue came and said, Lord, my daughter is sick at home. If you'll come go with me, I'll take you back there and you can heal her. And while the Lord Jesus was on his way to the ruler of the synagogue's house, a messenger came and met him. said, don't bother the master, she's dead. She's dead. Martha and Mary sent a message to the Savior and said, he whom thou lovest is sick. And the Lord Jesus waited for three days till he died.

Now, when we think of our Lord doing nothing, Remember, he's working for us. And he will not give us an explanation of what he's doing. When we think he's forsaken us, and often he hides his face from us and withdraws himself from us. But if you read the Song of Solomon and read closely the book of God, you'll find out that there's only one reason for it. He does it, Benzie, to cause us to see. when we think everything is against us.

We get to feeling the right story for ourselves. Get to thinking, well, I deserve better than this. Looks to me like God would have done me better than this. Try to remember, everything you think is against you, child of God, is loaded with blessings. And you may never see them here, but they're loaded with blessings for you.

I talked to my good friend, Brother Harry Graham, yesterday. I try to call him every few months. Try to encourage him a little bit. So stalwart, so strong, mentally, physically, all the time I've known him. Until about three years ago, God touched him. God touched him.

And his mind doesn't function like it used to. And his body doesn't function like it used to. And his heart doesn't function like it used to. But somehow, somehow, even this is loaded with benefits. Loaded. What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter.

Our Lord will not, he simply will not let us walk by sight here. Not if we're here. He won't let us do it. He demands and he deserves that we walk by faith. God help us to do it. What I do thou knowest not now. Oh, but thank God thou shalt know hereafter. In due time, in his time, he'll inform us what he's been doing. I want to be content. I started to say I am, but I have to be honest, I'm not always. But I want to be content to wait. Sometimes he'll let us know what he's doing real soon afterwards.

Shortly after I began Cobalt treatments for cancer, Several years ago, I'd had the surgery and going to North Carolina every day, driving down every week, go back and forth to Duke Hospital every day, taking treatments. Had to neglect so many responsibilities for so long. And your heart gets a little downcast.

One night I was asked to preach for Brother Dan Park's father, who was also my pastor when I was in Winston-Salem. I wouldn't have been asked to preach if I hadn't been there, because I was sick. But he asked me to preach. I had enough strength, I went and preached.

And Moose and Sandy just came by. They just came by. Listened to the message of God's grace. And God was pleased to grant Sandy faith in Christ. Well, he let me know what I was doing. What he was doing, in little measure. In little measure. But sometimes, He doesn't let us know right away what he's doing. Sometimes we have to wait until the trouble is over. Sometimes it's a long, long time after, a long time after. Just a few weeks ago, Shelby and I were sitting in Brother David Edmondson's house down in Madisonville. About 12 or 15 years ago, somewhere in there, long time ago, I was preaching in a meeting and the message I preached, God gave me, I have no question about that, but it caused a little ruckus among some fellas, a lot of stirring, the cavilling, you know, just the trash folks talk. And you go and you wonder why. Why was I in this mess? Why'd I get here? What's the purpose? I was sitting at the house and Shelby just asked David and Teresa, said, How did you folks learn the gospel? And David referred to that night and that place and that message.

And God has a way of letting you know in his time what he's been doing. But sometimes, sometimes he never informs you here. There's some things, some questions, some pains, some heartaches, We're going to carry to the grave with us. He's going to carry them to the grave. And the Lord says what I do, thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter.

And in that day, oh, what a day it will be in that eternal day. When our God graciously takes the scales off our eyes, pulls back the veil of time and says, now Bill, this is what I've been doing. This is what I've been doing. And with that, this is what I say.

Oh, the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding out. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his counselor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall not be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him are all things. To whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.