A Matter of the Heart

Q: What does the Bible say about the sovereignty of God?

The Bible teaches that God is sovereign over all creation, orchestrating everything according to His will. Scripture affirms God's sovereignty repeatedly, highlighting that He is in control of all things. In Psalm 115:3, it states, 'Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases.' This encompasses both the mundane and the extraordinary, indicating that nothing occurs outside of His divine orchestration. In Romans 8:28, we are reminded that God works all things together for good to those who love Him, reinforcing the idea that His sovereignty is both powerful and benevolent. Ultimately, this sovereign rule extends even over the hearts of men, as noted in Proverbs 21:1, 'The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases.'

Q: How do we know that Christ's sacrifice is sufficient for our salvation?

Christ's sacrifice is sufficient for our salvation because it fully atoned for our sins and secured our redemption. The sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice is grounded in the belief that His death and resurrection fully accomplished the work of salvation. In Hebrews 10:12, the author emphasizes that 'He offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins.' This affirms that no further sacrifice is necessary—Christ's one-time offering fully satisfied God's justice and wrath against sin. Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 5:21 poignantly expresses that Christ, who knew no sin, became sin for us, enabling us to become the righteousness of God. This transformative exchange assures believers of their standing before God, reinforcing that through faith in Jesus Christ, we are declared righteous and accepted by God.

Q: Why is the concept of grace important for Christians?

Grace is paramount for Christians as it is the foundation of our salvation and relationship with God. The concept of grace is central to the Christian faith, reflecting God's unmerited favor toward sinners. Ephesians 2:8-9 clearly states that we are saved by grace through faith, not by our own works. This means that our salvation is not earned but is a gift from God. It highlights the depth of God's love and mercy, as He chooses to redeem and save those who do not deserve it. Furthermore, grace equips believers for daily living, empowering us to grow in holiness and service. As stated in 2 Corinthians 12:9, God’s grace is sufficient for our weaknesses, reminding us that it is through our reliance on His grace that we find strength and endure in our faith journey.

Got any mountains over there? No sir. Welcome to the mountains. You at all have to welcome to the mountains. It's good to see you. Remember those who requested prayer? Malcolm's back. He had a stent put in last week. The doctor took a while to actually I'm not going to lie, it's been an idea out of heart. Nancy Berg is getting better.

Remember the others who requested prayer. Seek the Lord's help for them. As we get our worship service going, hymn number 125, Jesus Paid it All, All the Debt I Owe. I hear the Saviour's name, I scream in peaceful, child of weakness, watch and pray! Jesus paid it all, all the debt I owe. Sin hath left a red sunstain, He washed it white as snow. Lord, now in Thee I find, Jesus Jesus Jesus Jesus made it all Jesus died my soul to save. Jesus paid it all, all the debt I owed. Sin had been a great sin. He washed it white as snow. After Scripture, you'll travel to see Hymn 129. You have your Bible, show me the 45th Psalm. with the first eight verses. Generally, we believe in the psalm of David.

My heart is indicting a good man. I speak of things which I have made in touching the king. Touching the king. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children of men. Grace is poured into thy lips. Therefore, God has blessed thee forever. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O Most Mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. And in thy majesty, ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people fall under thee. Thy throne, O God, is forever, and the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter. Thou lovest righteousness and hatest wickedness.

Therefore, God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. that you have given us this wondrous record of who you are and what you have accomplished for your people. We thank you that it's a clear and honest account of what we are by nature and by grace. We are thankful that you have in your great wondrous purpose, chosen your people into salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief in the truth, whereunto you call them by your gospel to the obtaining of the glory of Jesus Christ. We are thankful that you did not leave us to ourselves, that you interrupted our careers and brought us to the feet of Jesus Christ. We thank you, Father, for your blessed gospel, which is the power of God and salvation. To everyone that believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek, for there is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith.

We pray for those who are sick, ask Lord your help for them, give them mercy and peace. Thank you that Malcolm's been taken care of in his heart situation. The others who requested prayer, those who are soon to have surgery, we ask the Lord to be with them and watch over them. We ask the Lord that your help this day, that you help these poor sinners saved by grace, bow our heads and worship you in spirit and in truth.

Enable me to say right things concerning you. Don't leave me here by myself. uplift my arms, and cause me to set forth the gospel of peace. Help us now, we pray in Christ's name. Amen. Number 129. Alas, to keep my Savior deep, and keep my sovereign God!

Would He defer that Savior Him, for such a worm as I? And the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by which I received my sight. me. and the burden of my heart rolled away it was there by grace I received my sight and now I am happy all the day till by the sun in darkness In Christ the mighty never done, nor in the creatures sin. At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light And the burden of my heart rolled away It was there I pleased, I received my sight Undraw some grief and every pain, the debt of love I owe. Dear Lord, I give myself away, here's all that I can do. And the cross, and the cross where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there my grace, I received my sight, and now I am happy all the day.

Those who are our guests today will be passing off and playing, but don't feel compelled to give anything, put anything in it. This church is supported by the members here, and we're thankful that you're here to share the gospel with us and worship with us.

Let us pray. Father, we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our perfect and blessed son, the spotless lamb of God, who by his power, by his will, and by his sacrifice secured the salvation of your people, we thank you for that unspeakable gift that you have given to all your children, And with them, you have freely given them all things. Help us to be thankful for what we have, and let our giving reveal our appreciation of all that you've done for us. We pray in Christ's name. Amen. do do you you I'd like to invite your attention back to Psalm 45.

This is one of the several maskils in the psalms, which means they're a psalm of understanding. You'll notice in the beginning of this passage, you have an introduction to it. It says, to the chief musician, Shoshem, Shoshemayim, for the sons of Korah, a maskil, a psalm of love. It was a psalm that was to be rehearsed in public. It was a psalm to be sung in the assembly of the saints.

It is the evidence of one that's been given understanding of what God has taught men by His grace. And we know that if the Father has taught anyone, that person will come to the Lord Jesus Christ according to John chapter 6 verse 45 all who are taught of the Father and learned of the Father come to the Lord Jesus Christ you have the word in here shoshanam that means lilies or roses and both of these flowers denote the beauty and fragrance of the Lord Jesus Christ who is called the lily of the valley, and the rock rose, or the rose of Sharon. This is a wedding song, often sung at weddings. It's here described as a song of loves, and it speaks of the love the bride of Christ has for her husband, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Though the writer of this psalm is most probably David, his name is not mentioned in this psalm. And rightly so, for the psalm of every redeemed sinner is not about themselves, but about the Lord Jesus Christ. This is a psalm of David's contemplation of a particular subject.

You are privileged to know the Lord Jesus Christ by grace then you know that in this world of chaos and misery there is a moment many moments in your life when you can stop by God's grace and consider Christ and when you do it's what Spurgeon declared as a heavenly cordial that inebriates the mind and the soul, and for a short and glorious moment in time, you forget all your troubles. That's the language of scripture.

David often thought about that as he sat upon the mountainside looking at the stars in heaven, wondering at the universe. He said, when I consider the stars, I think, what is man that thou art mindful of him of the son of man that thou should consider him? And Paul wrote to the Philippian churches in Philippians chapter four. He wrote, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, Whatsoever things have a good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things.

And all those things will draw your mind to a singular person, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said this to the Hebrew children, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. who for the joy set before him endured the cross, disregarding or despising the shame, and is now set down on the right hand of the Father. He wrote to the Colossian church, set your affection, your love, on things above and not on things of the earth, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father.

In Christ, who is our life, shall appear. We shall appear with him also. This is a song about one who has been graced by God, a sinner plucked from the dumb heap, gathering for a moment to consider the beauty and the beauties of holiness. And that's where the capital H, I'm speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ. What grace has been given us that our hearts, as David did, could indict a good matter, an eternal matter.

The word indicting means overflowing, bubbling over to the point of silence concerning the matter is impossible. Whereas Elihu was in Job 32 and said, behold my belly is as wine that hath no vent, it is ready to burst like new bottles. I speak that I may be refreshed, I will open my lips and answer.

The believer's tongue is as a pen of a ready writer, a scribe whose language is the language of heaven. And that language is Jesus Christ. No words often fail us. Thank God they did not fail this writer, who under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit sat down in understanding, for this was a masque of an understanding, the heart song, the love sonnet of every redeemed soul, a song of love, a love song of eternal joyous importance.

There's a blessed abruptness to the start of this song, as if the writer were about to speak to Christ to relate good matters of the king, when suddenly it seems that the king himself comes into sight and does not address matters touching the king, but rather than speaking of the king, he speaks to the king. He speaks to him. With wondrous abruptness, this report is changed to personal allocates spoken to the Lord Jesus Christ. I think this is often the case in worship.

The gospel is a report. It's a thing that has taken place, and people like me, whom God has sent to the pulpit, people who have nothing about them that's worthy of note, stand and declare something that has taken place and accomplished. And we rejoice in that fact to be able to do so.

We can't do anything about it. We can't make anything happen to you. We can't change your mind, no matter how many sad stories we might tell, or how we might play on your emotions, or how many verses of Just As I Am we sing. We can't do anything for you. But the gospel can. It's a wonder. I've never got over the fact of it. It's a wonder.

Peter said this, that we're not born of corruptible seed, but incorruptible seed. Even the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. All of us are just grass. We're like the fae or the fly of the field. We come and we go. But the Word of God endureth forever, and it is by the Gospel.

That's how the Word is preached. No, I've thought the other way. We don't preach the Gospel by the Word. We preach the Word by the Gospel. word which by the gospel is preached unto you, he said. This is the song, the song of the Redeemer. This is you and I in that glorious moment when we can in our hearts commune with our Lord Jesus Christ and speak to Him and tell Him what we think of Him.

That's what worship is after all, bowing down praising and thanking God for what He has done. Worship's not about you. I know some people say, well, I didn't get much out of that worship service. It wasn't for you. Worship is for God. We come here to praise Him, not to get our feelings pumped up. We come here to talk of Him, to glorify Him who sits at the right hand of the Father, having accomplished the salvation of His people. With wondrous and often the case in worship, we thank God.

The gospel, as I said, is a report of who Christ is and what He's done, the accomplishment that He made, and never descriptors anything He said to be an offer. Never is it said to be Him trying to do something. Never is it said He did His part, now you must do your part. Never says that about Him. When it talks about Him, it talks about an absolute, singular, and glorious success on the cross of Calvary. He didn't try to redeem people. He didn't try to save people. He didn't try to sacrifice His soul for people. He saved His people. He redeemed His people.

That's the language. That's why we call Him a Redeemer. Why do we call Him that? Why do we give Him that title, Redeemer? Is there somebody whom he sought to redeem that's not redeemed? Then how can he be a redeemer? He's a redeemer because he has redeemed. He's a savior because he's a saved. Can you imagine calling him a savior if he was a savior of unsaved people? No, that's foolish. He's the redeemer. He's the redeemer. And in those moments we are carried away to think of him in that capacity. We're carried away from this world to sit at the feet of the king in our hearts to speak words of love and adoration toward him.

No one can describe this wonderful thing called what God has given his people called faith. I ain't never figured that thing out yet. It's a wonder. One moment I was walking in this world an unbeliever, caring not for the things of God or the enemy of the cross. hating God with all my heart, soul, and mind, and not wanting Him to interfere into my business.

And some jack-leg stood up on his back legs and told the gospel out. And all of a sudden, in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, I was a believer. It wasn't a process. I didn't get it because I sat down and studied the scripture, took a course in theology. One second, I was an unbeliever. The next second, I was a believer. One second, you couldn't convince me that any of this stuff was worthwhile. The next second, you couldn't convince me that anything else but this stuff is worthwhile.

That's a miracle. It's called faith. It's called faith. It has no power in itself. It believes. It believes what God has said, not what it feels. not what it can opine upon, not what it thinks, but what God has said. This gift he has given to his people, and it's more than an agreement with doctrine, though it certainly is an agreement with doctrine. It is often amazingly a personal discourse with the king. My heart is indicting a good matter. I speak of things which I have made touching the king. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. This is enraptured language.

There is no talk of beasts with ten horns, or the cruelty of societal evils, or the meaning of the seventy weeks, or the plurality of elders, or the latest business meeting of the church. There is only the sacrifice of the thankful, and that is the praise of our lips giving thanks unto God. This is a song of understanding.

He's a sight for sore eyes, sore from the confused mosaic of worldly troubles, sore from the glimpses of our own failures in human nature, sore from the sight of our weaknesses and our frailty. We look at Him and say, Thou art fairer than the children of men. Thou art the chiefest among 10,000. Thou art lovely. The world does not see him thusly, and even the believer does not always see himself. But once his visage was marred more than the sons of men. Once there was no beauty in him that men would desire him.

But now through the eyes washed with the tears of heaven-granted repentance and God-given faith, we see him as he is, altogether lovely. the beauty of holiness our comely bridegroom who comes forth from his chamber according to one Psalm 19 with the bride on his arm our king our king grace it says is poured into thy lips poured into his lips by the father so that the honey His words were written down upon us. Sweet lips, these so much so that the bride cries in song of Solomon, let me kiss him with the kisses of his mouth. For his love is better than wine. His cheeks are said to be in song of Solomon, fine a bed of spices. Sweet flowers, his lips like lilies dropping sweet-smelling myrrh.

Grace and nothing but grace pours from his lips. and of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace, and because of His graciousness and efficaciousness, God has blessed Him forever. Christ is our eternal King, and we say to Him, You are our eternal King, forever blessed with a singular voice, a singular source and supply of all blessings, But God has blessed us according to Ephesians 1 with all spiritual blessings.

If you're a child of God, you don't lack anything. You're complete in Him according to Scripture. You haven't needed nothing. You have Christ, you have it all. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Jesus Christ according as He's chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world. holy and blameless before him in love, having predestinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto himself, to the praise and the glory of his grace, whereby we are accepted in the beloved. We say, Our King, gird on the sword with the glory and majesty. You are our glorious, majestic champion, conquering now and still to conquer. Who can turn you back? Who can say unto you, what doest thou? You are of one mind, and who can turn you? What your soul desires, even that is what you do.

Our God is in the heavens, David said. He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased. You are the most mighty, the mighty God. My Lord and my God. Gerb thyself, put on the entire battle array. We thank thee, O God, that thou hast taken fire to thyself. and at a reign that says in Revelation, our great hero has won the battle. He has won the battle on the cross of Calvary. Satan bruised his heel and the Lord crushed his head. Men talk about sameness. If they have something they can do that can thwart him, you better leave him alone. He's been messing with folks like us 6,000 years and we ain't no trouble to him.

But you realize this, if he does something to you as a child of God, it's by ordination. For scripture says that all created angels are ministers unto those that are heirs of salvation. He may desire to sit you like wheat. You may be promoted and allowed by God to take everything you have like you did with Job, but it'll be for your good and for the glory of God.

We say to our King, right on in majesty. ride prosperously. That's the language used in Isaiah 52 when it talks, when it begins to talk about the death of the Lord Jesus Christ all the way through Isaiah 53. It says, your servant shall prosperously prosper. Isaiah 52 10, I think it is. Your servant shall prosperously prosper. Prosperously he shall prosper. The will of the Lord, the work of the Lord shall prosper in his hand, it says in Isaiah Prosperously, the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper.

There's no weakness in Jesus Christ. We say to him, you wait not for the whims and wills of your creatures, for the petty and puny and trite decisions of sinful worms of the dust. Thy people, according to this word, shall be willing in the day of your power. Psalm 110.

Overcome man's will? What a foolish thought. Overcome man's will, perish the thought. You don't need to overcome what you sovereignly control. Your will ain't nothing. You better pray God in his might and sovereignty jiggles your will real good and gives you a new heart and a new mind and you're going to remain exactly where you are. Barney used to say, you'll go to hell if you can. And you will if you can. What's going to stop you? Ain't but one thing going to stop you. And that's the grace of almighty God. That'll stop you, stop you in your tracks, halt you in your career.

O King, you need not wait for what you sovereignly manipulate. Ride on prosperously, for you speak and it shall be done. Your mighty sword is the sword of truth. piercing even to the joints and marrow, discerning the very thoughts and intents of the heart. Right on propitially because of truth it says, meekness and righteousness. Of truth because you are the embodiment of truth. You are truth. You are the truth. You are the truth.

The law came by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. Christ said I am the way, the truth, and the life. He said, you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free, and the Son shall make you free. You shall be free indeed. Why? Because the Son is the truth.

He's the Word of God. Prospering meekness. This seems to humanity an impossible thing. With Christ, meekness is strength. Strength of will to submit wholly to the will of the Father. To not please himself, but to please God. To meekly submit to the hands of men, to give your back to the smiters and the chiefs, to them that pull off the hair, not your hide your face from shame and from spitting, revealing the hatred of men for God. To meekly submit to the strictness of the law and fulfill it by dying under its penalty.

To say to the Lord when facing that death, Father, not by will, but thine, be done. He said, take my yoke upon you, for I'm meek and lowly, and you shall find rest for your soul. Ride on prosperly in righteousness, earning the rank Lord of the living and the dead by his death. For to this end he both died, rose, and revived, it says, that he might be the Lord of the living and of the dead.

Ride on prosperously for your people, so that you write on prosperously for them and they are accepted in your beloved, in the beloved. Write on prosperly, it says for the Lord will teach you to do terrible things with your right hand. What is the right hand? In scripture the right hand is symbolic of the power of Christ and the salvation of his people. You were made to sin.

Don't try to explain that. There ain't no explanation. It's a wonder. And here's the wonder of it. Some people in this world actually believe it. You were made to be sin for us, and you know no sin that we might be made the very righteousness of God in Him. In Him. You were defamed, lied about, called a whiner, a devil. What terrible things were wrought by your right hand. The Lord said, I gave people for you. I gave nations for you. God destroyed nations for his people. Destroyed them. Wipe them off the face of the earth.

They don't sound like the God we like. I don't care about the God you like. I'm talking about the God as he revealed himself in this book. Because that's the God you're going to have to deal with. That's the God you're going to meet one day. That very God. Your salvation, so prosperous. How prosperous? He said, I'll tell you how prosperous. He said this to men who didn't believe. He said, I know you don't believe on me, John chapter 6.

I know you don't believe on me, but all the Father giveth me shall come to me. And him that cometh to me, I would know I was cast out, for I came down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is my Father's will, which has sent me, that I've always given me. Of all He's given me, I should lose nothing but raise Him up in the last day."

Well, who was He giving? He was giving the sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life. No man is able to pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I am my Father alone. to pierce the heart of his enemies.

We say, good, God would let them people know you were born an enemy of God, and I was born an enemy of God. And his quiver is full of arrows of grace, each one a guided missile aimed at the heart of the king's enemy. These enemies were born in enmity with you, it says in Romans chapter 8, but not you with them. They were your enemies, but you weren't theirs. Your arrows were arrows of grace. It was just when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the blood and death of his dear son.

What followed in time was that all your people fall under you, under your power. under your conquering spirit. Rather, they bow down to you as loyal and righteous subjects, all smitten with the airs of grace, when they realize that the righteousness that you are is made unto us. For you are in Christ, of God, or in Christ.

Of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. If you have a righteousness, as you walk upon the face of this earth, if you have a righteousness, it's not yours. Christ is our righteousness. Anybody ask you, are you a righteous man?

Yeah. Show me. Look yonder. Sitting at the right hand of the Father, my King, you see. He's my righteousness. The name by which you shall be called is the Lord our Righteousness. Jeremiah 23, 5. Then go over to 33, 19. The name by which she shall be called is the Lord our Righteousness. Who is she? She's the church. She's his bride. She took his name when he married her. What's his name? Righteousness. That's your name too. That's your name too.

It says, from the battle of the holy war, you have returned to take your rightful place on the throne of glory, the throne of victory. So great is your victory, so completely have you routed the enemy, that the words of verse six and seven are not merely attributed to the believer, but as well attributed to God himself speaking to his son.

What can be more spoken of the deity of Christ? What better matter might be indited to the heart than to hear God almighty worshiping God the son? That's what he said. Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter. Thou lovest righteousness and hatest wickedness. Therefore, God hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness, over in Hebrews who had come to be, by God's grace, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, but still, they were raised as Jews, as born and bred, they were born Jews, and that's all they ever knew, is that temple, and that priesthood, and those sacrifices, and all that, and they didn't know what it, to let go of what we were born with.

We're all, well, most of us are mountain folk. I was raised in the city, but I've been here long enough to call myself a mountain person. And there's certain things about those of you in Appalachia that's different from everybody else in the world. Nobody gets it until they live here for a while. Just a different place. And what you was raised with, Malcolm, you can't let go of that. That's you.

And those Jews raised with that. And Paul had the task under the Holy Spirit That high priest, once a day on the day of atonement, and tell them that high priest was just a picture of Jesus Christ, that great high priest. That temple was his body, the church of the living God. And in Hebrews chapter 1, he exalts the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and who he is. He says, God who at sundry times and at divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets. That's how he spoke. The fathers by the prophets. We're studying in the book of Jeremiah. That's one of the prophets.

Hath in these last days, and that began with the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ, and will end when he returns. Hath in these last days spoken to us by his Son, or in Son, and actually the word his is in italics so it can be erased from the context it was added by the translators, spoken to us by son. This is the language of God. He speaks to us in Christ.

It's that foreign language he spoke of and holding men in derision in Psalm 2. He said, I shall speak to them in derision. That means I'll speak to them in a foreign language. I'll speak to them in a language they don't understand. And what I'm saying to you right now, and you have the understanding that God has given you to understand what I'm saying, the world can never get It is a foreign language. What is it, his son? It's the promise of Zephaniah, I will turn them to one language.

One time he confused all the languages and then sent men all over the world to foreign communities with their own languages. And I said, I'm going to turn you to one language. I got a friend, several friends over in Africa. Some of them speak African dialects. I hear from people in Arabia, they speak a language I don't understand, but yet we speak the same language.

We have one language, that language is Jesus Christ. That's the language spoken to us by a Son whom He appointed heir of all things. What does that mean? You a thing? You a thing, ain't you? I'm a thing. This world's a thing. Them stars are things. The sun's a thing. It's His. Heir of all things. And here's the glory. According to Romans chapter 8, we're joint heirs with Him. He's the heir of all things. By whom He made the world. The world was made by Jesus Christ. It says that in John chapter 1. Nothing, anything made that He didn't make.

And listen how He's described. who is the brightness of His glory, the effulgence of God, the outshining of God. One of the Psalms says, out of Zion our God is shining. It's like looking into the sun, but much brighter, much brighter. However bright God is, whatever that spiritual light is that is beyond imagination, the brightness of his glory, the express image of his person.

He is the spirit made flesh, the one whom we can behold, and we'll behold one day when we're like him, because we'll see him as he is. But he's a man. And somehow, in that man, he's the express image of God. In fact, according to scripture, he is God. He's God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, and in Him dwelleth the fullness of the Godhead bodily.

Upholding all things by the word of His power. Why are we still existing in this world? Why does this world exist? We look at the news, we hear people talking, we hear this one side of the argument, the other side of the argument, people back and forth, Because he's holding this thing. You see, God has given him authority over all flesh that he might give eternal life to as many as God has given him according to John chapter 17.

Hold all things by the word of his power. And then it says the word of when. So something has happened. Something has taken place. Back there. And it's addressing this simple little word, this preposition, when. And we know that something's taken place. When? One apple.

When he had, past tense, purged, past tense, our sins. That happened 2,000 years ago on Calvary's tree. Our Lord Jesus Christ bore our sins in his body on the tree. And by this wondrous, perfect sacrifice unto God, he put our sins away. Cast our sins behind his backscript. He said, buries them at the bottom of the sea, separates them from us as far as the east is from the west.

What does that mean? Our sins are gone. Like that scapegoat in the Old Testament, the priest put his hands upon him, confessed the sins of the people, and a strong man led him out into the wilderness. And they said, where is he? He's gone. All our sins are gone. We don't worship a religion with two letters. Most people worship a religion with two letters. D-O-D. Ours got four letters. D-O-M-E. Done. It's done. The great transaction done.

I am the Lord's and He is mine. When He had purged our sins, what did He do? He took the place of all for having accomplished the salvation. He was obedient even to the death of the cross, wherefore God is highly exalted. He was giving him a name above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that he's Lord to the glory of the Father. Things in heaven, things on earth, things under the earth. All will give glory to him as Lord over all. As Lord over all. He sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high.

Being made much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. For unto him which of the angels said at any time, or unto which of the angels of the Lord said at any time, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee. And again, I will be a father, and he shall be my son. He never said that to an angel.

And again, when he bringeth the first begotten into the world, he said, and let all the angels of God worship him, and of the angels he says who make of the angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire but unto the sun God says unto the sun he quotes Psalm 45 Thy throne O God is forever and the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom the scepter was used to allow people into the presence of the king A person was allowed into his presence, he put out his scepter, he allowed them to touch his scepter, and then he was accepted into the presence of the king. He didn't give you that scepter. What is his scepter?

The scepter of righteousness is the scepter of that kingdom. And everyone who is in Christ is righteous, and that scepter is out for them, and they're welcome to come hold it to the throne of grace. what more blessed words could be spoken than to hear the King overshadow a scepter of righteousness and welcomes His children to come and do His birth present.

He loved righteousness and hated iniquity and has been anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows. He, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, despised it with shame, and sat down on the right hand of the Father. He's been given a name that's above every name. There is no other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we Every knee shall bow to him and say that he's the Lord, to the glory of the Father, he's the Lord.

And it says, all your garments smell of myrrh and aloes and cashew. This is the fragrance of that preached word, the gospel of grace. It's the sweet-smelling savor of the God, both in them that are saved and in them that perish, according to 1 Corinthians 2. Paul said, we are always victorious. when we preach the gospel. To God, it smells sweet. It's a sweet-smelling savor, like this Old Testament sacrifice when the last part of the lamb was the fat was cast on the fire and the smoke arose. You know how they smoke. He smokes us a pig butt about every week. He's an ornery. Oh, well, open up that ball and smell that smoke.

It's a sweet-smelling savor. You know that's true. That's what God says. That sacrifice of sweet-smelling savor. I mean, he said, when we preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is setting forth the King of Glory, it smells good to God. There's smoke rising and sweet savor unto Him in everyone who is saved, of course, but also in them that perish. Oh, it smells the same to God.

You see, most people don't think much of the Word of God, don't think much of the Bible, don't think much of the Gospel. They don't have any use for that sort of thing. Well, let me tell you something about it, if you've ever heard it. If you've ever heard it, it's done one of two things. It's softened your heart and brought you to Christ. Or it's hardened your heart and driven you away from Him. It always does one of those two things.

I want to be as clear as I can when I preach the gospel. So when you leave this place, you'll know what I've said. Even if you don't believe it, you'll know what you don't believe. But you'll know this. You're not the same as you were when you got here.

We're talking about the Word of God. The Word of God. Allo, Kashia, Murr, sweet-smelling saint. of the bride, as well as she is clothed in the garments of salvation, according to Isaiah 61. The pristine robe of Christ's righteousness is standing before God in Romans and Revelation 19. Whether she is referred to as a daughter, or a sister, or a wife, or a bride of people, the elect, the church, the chosen, she is among the honorable. She's among the honorable. fire, among thy honorable women, and upon thy right hand would stand the queen in a gold oval fire.

That's verse 9, chapter 45. You, the church, are on the king's right hand. You are his queen. Great and royal attire. Though a former dunghill denizen, God has made you to sit in heavenly places in Jesus Christ. The believer's heart bubbles over with thoughts of the King. My heart has indeed indicted the good matter. The language of the church is a ready, a swift, and skilled writer. And her song is the song of love. Father, bless us to our understanding.

A Matter of the Heart

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What does the Bible say about the sovereignty of God?

How do we know that Christ's sacrifice is sufficient for our salvation?

Why is the concept of grace important for Christians?

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A Matter of the Heart

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about the sovereignty of God?

How do we know that Christ's sacrifice is sufficient for our salvation?

Why is the concept of grace important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Tim James

Comments

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