The Lord's Eye Upon His Household

Bible's in turn with me, the book of Proverbs chapter 31. Proverbs 31. I've said this before, the closer we get to the end of this book, a book that The Lord God in heaven inspired to write through Solomon, a man that God had given tremendous wisdom. Solomon penned these words and I've asked the Lord, I said, Lord help me to not look at these words just merely with an eye of man that thinks he's learned something, but Lord, with the eye of faith, truly believing what has been penned. I'd like to look at verse 27, Proverbs 31, verse 27.

The scripture declares, she looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness." Now, continuing with these attributes, now these are the attributes of the bride of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I want us to realize as we truly come to this end, I keep thinking about how Truthful it is, as David was coming to the end of his life. And the closer you get to the realization, I know that the Lord could take any of us at any time, any stage of life. Life is in his hands. He's gonna take everyone according to his will and purpose.

But the older I get, It seems as though to me that these words become so much more precious than, and I say this to my shame, but I'm sorry, but these words just become more and more heartfully heard. And I look at what's being said here. And you know that the bride is the she that's being spoken of. When it says she looketh well to the ways of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness.

But as we look at these words, I want us to understand that these are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Lord who has by grace, mercy, good providence, made his people one with him. So whenever these words are spoken, when it says she, just stop right now and remember, the she is the bride, there's no doubt about that. But these words are the words of Christ as he speaks through his bride. What I'm telling you, I'm telling you what God has to say through the means of his church.

So when it says she, you understand something. Where did she get these words? The Lord gave her the words. So when it says, she looketh well, just understand it's the Lord that looketh well. It's a blessing to be able to understand that the people of God regenerated by his grace to know him.

We are the she. The bride is the she. But I want you to look here, when it says, she looketh well, to the ways of her household. Now, how amazing it is to realize that this she is actually one person. She is the bride. But here's an innumerable group of people. And we are the she. We are one in the Lord Jesus Christ. We're one. And here, we're many, but we're one in Him. One person. And we have one desire.

What is the desire of the bride? What is the desire of God's blessed bride? I'll tell you what it is. We want to glorify Him. I want to say what He says. I want to believe what He teaches. I want to love what He loves. This is what I want. I want, I want to know Him. I want to know the Lord.

And how deep, how deep is this oneness? Now, here again, it says she, I know that. She looketh, but every one found in him is the she. She looketh. And how deep does this oneness, this bond, this unity, how deep does it go? How deep is our oneness? Hold your place right there. Turn with me to John 15. John 15. How deep is our oneness?

It just, it thrills my heart to think, I'm looking at a group of people that by the grace of God, the Lord's given me a love for. I love being here with you. I just love being here with you. And I love when we're able to worship together and realize the oneness that we have in Christ. That makes it really special.

But how deep, that's my question, how deep is this oneness, this bond? John chapter 15, verse one to five. The Lord said, I am the true vine, and my father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away, and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth, that it may bring forth more fruit.

I read that this morning. And I thought to myself, it's so needful that the branch be pruned. We need it. We need it. Why? We just, I've told you before, we're just proud. We're just arrogant. We just, all the foolishness that goes through our heart. I need, I need, you need, we all need the Lord to purge us. We need that. Why? Because we're so prone to be lifted up and think we're something when we're nothing. Whom the Lord loveth.

Every branch, verse 2, every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. Every branch that beareth fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. It says, now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me. I am the vine, you're the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing.

Without Him, how deep does this oneness go? We're one in Christ. Now, I've just told you something that's so deep, I can't grasp it. I just don't know. But I believe it. I believe that Almighty God has made His people one in Him. One in love, one in heart, one in desire, one in affection. How deep does it go? I don't know. One day, by God's grace, we will.

Galatians 3.26 says, there's neither Jew nor Greek, there's neither bond nor free, neither male nor female, for ye are one in Christ Jesus.

Have you ever, when you go somewhere else, go to another church, Been there for the first time, maybe a few times, something like that. But you meet another believer, and you listen to that believer begin to speak. And when you hear them speak, what they're saying, you're listening to what they're saying. And it doesn't take but just a second. You listen, somebody start talking. And if you hear the sweet sound of submission unto the Lord, honor unto Him, No honor being given to the one speaking. And when you hear that sweet sound of submission unto Christ, your heart's just joined to Him. You know, you say, you know what? I'm with you on that. There's a bond. There's a unity. Being found in Him, found in Christ, there is that oneness.

And scripture says, right here, concerning this oneness, she, the bride, looketh well. She looketh well to the ways of her household. Now, she looketh well. I looked up that looketh well, and here's what it means, her walk. her proceedings, her manner of life. She looketh well to the ways of her household. Now here we behold the truth of the bride in the entire assembly of the congregation. You know what my desire is? She looketh well. A nobody that Almighty God's been pleased to call to preach the gospel. And you know what I want to do? When she looketh well, the scripture says, she looketh well to the ways of her household.

I want the best for you. I want the best for you. I want I want I want the Lord to teach you as he teaches me. I want the Lord to bless you. in whatever manner he's pleased to do. I want the Lord to do for us what only the Lord can do. I want to watch over you. She looketh well, she keeps a watch to her family. I find it the desire of my heart. I've told you before, I, uh, the best time for me is just early in the morning. I've always been like that.

I just like to get up early and quiet, you know, and just to have some time to just look in the scriptures and ask the Lord, Lord, would you teach me something? Would you? Because you're the only one that can teach me. But this morning when I was preparing to to come here, I was just asking the Lord.

Lord, help me to look well to the ways of your people. Help me to look well. And how, how, how can I look well? How can I look well to your walk? That's what it says. She looketh well to the ways, to the walk of her household. Now, what's the best thing I can do for you? What's the best thing I can do for you? Looking well to your walk. What's the best way for me to look well? You know what it is?

I can tell you what God has to say. I can preach the gospel to you. Again, I can tell you what the Lord has been pleased to do for a hell-deserving, unworthy group of people. That's all of us. I can tell you what the Lord has to say. And looking well, I'm not here to be a judge over you and have a little whip and whip you if I see you getting out of hand. I've done worse than you have. I've thought worse than you have, believe me. But what's the best thing that I can do for you is preach the gospel to you. And just ask the Lord, Lord, would you bless this to your people? Would you bless this to me? Would you give me a heart to understand?

The bride constantly looks well to the bride. You know what I want for Glenda? The best, whatever. What can I do for her? Be a faithful husband to her. Love her. Provide for her. That's what I can do. That's what I can do. Speak kindly to her. That's what the Lord is doing for his people. She looketh well to the ways of her household. The best thing that a husband can do for his wife is to provide for her according to the word of God. Oh, how wonderful it is to know. And what has the Lord done for you? Hold your place right there, but turn over. Jeremiah. Jeremiah 3. Jeremiah chapter 3. Jeremiah chapter 3. Verses 12, 15. Jeremiah 12.

I think about this, I'm looking at this, and when it says, she looketh well, I'm thinking, I know it's speaking in a feminine word there, but the only one that looks well to her household is the Lord, who is doing this through his church. This is the Lord speaking. This is the Lord speaking. You say, well, that's Marvin talking. No, that's not Marvin talking. I'm telling you what God has to say.

And here it is, the bride, as a member of the bride of Christ, called to be a pastor, the best thing I can do for you, looking well for you. I can tell you what the Lord has to say. Listen to, listen to Jeremiah three, Jeremiah three, 1215. Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say, return thou backsliding Israel saith the Lord and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you for I am Merciful saith the Lord and will not keep anger forever only acknowledge thine iniquity that thou has transgressed against the Lord thy God and has scattered thy ways to strangers and under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord, turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord, for I am married unto you, and I will take you, one of a city, two of a family, I'll bring you to Zion, and listen to this, this is the mercy of God, and I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which will feed you with knowledge and understanding. And I thought, what mercy that the Lord would send a pastor, that the Lord would call a pastor, not to rule over his people, but to love them by telling them the truth concerning the gospel of God's free grace. That's the best thing in the world that I could do for you. This is what God's pastors are called to. I'm going to send you pastors. I will send you pastors after mine heart."

It is so wonderful to know, according to the word of the Lord, that the Lord knows exactly the need of his people. He knows exactly what to say to his people, exactly how to lead them and guide them and direct them and keep them. Hearing the word of God through the ministers of his calling, God's people are taught, they're grounded, and they're secure. Let me ask you this.

How many times have you heard me or other pastors say, quoting the scriptures, I will never leave you. Boy, that rolls off my mouth so easily, I just, you know. But if the Lord gives me a heart to believe that, I will never leave you. I will never forsake you. I'll never do that. I'll never do that. And I think, Lord, I need to hear that again and again and again in times of trouble, in times of trial that he's graciously sent.

And he said, I'm not going to leave you. I'm not going to leave you. Again, I don't want to overstep my bounds, but it would be a comfort, I'm sure. My wife, your wives, your husbands, if they tell you, I'm not going to leave you. I'm not going to forsake you. I'm not.

But for the Lord to tell His people that. But for the Lord to tell His people, I will not leave you. I'm not going to leave you. I think Lord, you know, you know, you know, my frailties, you know, my inabilities, you know, my slow fullness, you know, all this and Lord for you to say to me, Marvin, I'm not going to leave you. If he's pleased to put me in a pulpit this morning or in the hospital this afternoon. For him to say to me, I'm not going to leave you.

I'm not going to forsake you. That's a comfort to me. The Apostle Paul was moved to write in Philippians 419 concerning us going through this world. And I, you know, it's a sad thing to have to watch TV. I like to watch the news and see what's going on. But boy, I tell you what, there's not a whole lot of good news on TV. You know, when you look at the situation, in this world, what's going on.

But Philippians 419, Paul was moved to say, my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. He will call. The Lord will send those that have been given a heart to believe him. He's going to send them, move them, to hear his servants, to hear the preachers of the gospel. He's gonna keep his people. And I'll tell you the attitude.

She looketh well to the ways of her household. I think, Lord, you alone know what I need. But also I noticed this in that latter part of that verse. concerning the bride, and eateth not the bread of idleness. She doesn't eat, she doesn't feast upon, the bride of Christ does not feast upon this, the bread of idleness and slothfulness.

When the Lord called the apostle Paul, here was Paul, breathing out threatenings. He was going to take the Lord's people, going to take them bound to Jerusalem, throw them in prison. And the Lord stopped him on the road to Damascus. He called to him, he said, Saul, Saul. The Lord knew who he was.

Why persecutest thou me? Who art thou, Lord? I'm Jesus that you're persecuting. It's hard for you to kick against the pricks. I'll tell you what, when Almighty God's ready to stop a man or woman, the Lord's gonna stop him. He's gonna stop him. I love the thought that he never left anything up to me, that he never left anything for me to do or figure out. Lord, you lead me and I'll be led. You keep me and I'll be kept. But here was Saul of Tarsus, a Pharisee that thought he knew everything. Oh, he was religious. Oh, he could quote scripture. Whenever the Lord stopped him, and still in that passage of scripture, she eateth not the bread of idleness, What did the Apostle Paul say after the Lord stopped him, revealed himself to him?

He told him, he said, it's hard for you to kick against the priest, against the goads. Here's what he said, Lord, what would you have me to do? What would you have me to do? Lord, whatever you want, but you know that expression right there, what would you have me to do? It reminded me, as I was penning these notes again, of the oneness that we have as believers with the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's what the Lord said. Here's what the Lord said in John 9, 4. He said, I must work the works of him that sent me.

While it is day, night cometh when no man can work. In my heart, and I'm just telling you, admitting again, my frailty. But I've had people ask me lately, they say, when are you going to retire? I said, I guess when I can't preach anymore. I guess that's the only answer I can give you. The very thought of me just saying, well, I just don't want to do that. Now, I admit, OK, I get tired. I get it. I do. I get tired. I get frail. And there's times that I can't think like I guess I once did. I don't know. But I do. I get tired. But the thought of me not preaching anymore.

Lord, as long as you give me the strength to do, that's what I want to do. That's what I want to do. And if that time comes, The Lord's pleased to send a pastor, and I pray that he would. I want to be the best member that he's got. I want to tell him, say, look, I know how you feel, buddy. I know what you're going through.

But when the Lord said, I must work the works of him that sent me, while it's day, night cometh when no man can work, this is the heart. of the bride, this is the heart of those that the Lord has called. Lord, what would you have me to do? What do you want me to do? I want to be the most faithful member of Katy Baptist Church. In whatever capacity the Lord's called me to do, that's what I want to do.

Well, I'm just a, no, you're not just a. You're a member of Christ's body. Our precious Savior, Lord, He came to this world in obedience to the command of His Father, sent of the Father to be the precious, glorious substitute of His people. And He walked in perfect obedience to the Father. establishing righteousness as the God-man, the mediator for his people. And there was not one jot or one tittle of the law that he did not fulfill. And these precious words right now, now listen, you that know him, as I close, you that know him, Listen to these words again of our Lord from the cross.

And this is the hope of every child of God called out of spiritual darkness. This is the hope that we have. Believing Him. One with Him. One with Him. United with Him. Chosen in Him for the foundation of the world. That we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. This is the hope that we have. Listen to this. John 19, 30. Listen to these words. It is finished. It's finished.

When the bride says she looketh well to the ways of her household, Lord, you're the one that's looking well to your household. You are. Lord, the way that you've been pleased to do it, to look well to the ways of your household. You, Lord, have been pleased to call out people, men and women, in whatever capacity the Lord has called His people. That's where He's put them. And He's looking well to His household. He's looking well to it, and he's providing for it. And he raises up. And those that he's called in obedience and emulating in the best way we know how, she eateth not the bread of idleness.

I don't want to step into this pulpit half cocked, if I can say it like that. I don't even know if that's the right word, but you know what I'm talking about. I don't want to come into this pulpit saying, well, the Lord is going to give me a message, and I know that.

I know he does. I know he will. But I want to step into this pulpit feeling that I've done everything that I know to do, and every God-called pastor is going to do the same thing, and you that believe you're going to do the same thing. I want to be as prepared as I possibly can and trust the Lord. Don Fortner told me this. before he died. Don told me, he said, Marvin, he said, you do everything you know to do. According to these scriptures, you do everything that you know to do. According to God's revelation, do everything you can.

Study, pray, seek God's direction, do everything you can. and then don't put one ounce of confidence in what you've done, but you trust God, the lead and God direct. I pray that the Lord be pleased to bless these words to our hearts for Christ's sake. Amen.

The Lord's Eye Upon His Household

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The Lord's Eye Upon His Household

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About Marvin Stalnaker

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