In the 18th chapter of Matthew's
Gospel, Christ speaks of the kingdom of heaven. The disciples
come unto him and say, who is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him and set him in
the midst of them and said, verily I say unto you, except ye be
converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter
into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble
himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such
little child in my name receiveth me. But who shall offend one
of these little ones which believe in me? It were better for him
that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were
drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe unto the world because of
offences, for it must needs be that offences come. But woe to
that man by whom the offence cometh. Wherefore if thy hand
or thy foot offend thee, cut them off and cut them and cast
them from thee. It is better for thee to enter
into life halt or maimed rather than having two hands or two
feet to be cast into everlasting fire. and if thine eye offend
thee pluck it out and cast it from thee it is better for thee
to enter into life with one eye rather than having two eyes to
be cast into hell fire take heed that you despise not one of these
little ones For I say unto you that in heaven their angels do
always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of Man is come to
save that which was lost. How think ye? If a man have an
hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave
the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh
that which is gone astray? And if so be that he find it,
verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep than of the
ninety and nine which went not astray. Even so, it is not the
will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these
little ones should perish. The son of man is come to save
that which was lost. Now think ye, if a man have a
hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave
the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh
that which is gone astray? We read this parable that Christ
gives of how the man, the shepherd, when one of his sheep is lost,
will leave 99 and go into the mountains to find the one lost
sheep. And so he illustrates the will
of God, the love of God for his little ones, for his sheep, for
those who are lost, that God will seek them out. He will seek
them out. He as a shepherd will leave the
99 and go forth into the mountains to find the one lost sheep. What love God has shown for His
people, that He should send Christ His Son from on high, the Good
Shepherd of the sheep, to enter into this world of darkness and
sin. to seek out his own, to seek
out the lost sheep of Israel and that he should come into
this world of sinners and be rejected of men and rejected
of women, despised and spat upon because of his love for those
sheep and that he should journey through the wilderness of this
world with one destination in mind, the destination of the
cross outside of Jerusalem upon a mount where he would be taken
by wicked hands and nailed and crucified and slain in the sight
of men, because the people whom he came unto, the Israelites
unto whom he came because of his love for the lost sheep of
Israel, on his coming rejected him. And they said, we will not
have this man to reign over us. Crucify Him! Crucify Him! And they took the Son of God,
the Prince of Glory, and nailed Him to a cross and crucified
Him. Christ came, knowing that was
His end. Christ came knowing that would
happen. Christ came for that purpose
because He would take the sins of His people. He would take
the anger. He would take the hatred. He
would take the rejection. He would take the sin and bear
it and bear the judgment of God. and the wrath of God, as He suffered
upon the cross, in order to deliver that people of their sin, in
order to deliver them of their transgressions, in order to spare
them the judgment that they deserved, that He should deliver them,
save them, redeem them, ransom them, and find that which was
lost. He went to the cross because
he loved the one sheep which had gone astray and he came into
the world to find that sheep. And the way he must go to bring
that sheep back unto God was a way of suffering. A way of death. A way in which
he must go where that sheep deserved to go. To the cross. to the judgment, to be crucified,
to be slain because of his sin. That lost sheep was, as it were,
a black sheep, a wicked sheep, a sheep that had gone astray,
seeking its own wills, its own desire, its own glory. He'd gone
astray from the fold, he'd willingly gone astray, he'd run off. seeking
all he could gain from this world and despising God. Yet God loved
him and the shepherd loved him and the shepherd came seeking
him and the shepherd came and did that which was required to
restore him. He took the judgment that that
sheep deserved and he took it upon himself and he died in that
one lost sheep's dead. Such is the love of God. such
is the love of Christ for His own. If you were that one lost
sheep, Christ came for you. He came for you and He took your
sin, He took your hatred, He took your unbelief and He bore
it, that He should wash you clean, that He should make you to be
righteous, and that he should find you wherever you are and
bring you back to God, bring you back to the fold. And when
a sinner like this is found, when a lost sheep like that is
found and brought back unto God, the angels rejoice. I say unto
you that in heaven there angels do always behold the face of
my Father which is in heaven. What praise there is in heaven
when the shepherd finds his sheep. Are you one of those sheep? Is
the shepherd, is the Son of God looking for you? Has he come
for you? Does he go in search of you?
Has he paved the way for your return? Has he paid the price
that you should pay? And has he come looking for you
wherever you've wandered? Does he come with his gospel? Does he come with the glad tidings? You think you're lost. You think
you're guilty. You think there's no way back
and yet he comes and says to the lost sheep when he finds
it, you're forgiven. You're no longer guilty. I've
paid the price you should pay. Come, come and return unto my
father. Like the prodigal son who went
astray and wasted all of his living upon wantonness and found
himself barren and empty and eventually when he came to himself
he goes back seeking his father. thinking maybe he'll accept me
but knowing he deserved it not and then when he returns the
father receives him so also Christ illustrates this in Luke chapter
15 where he records the same parable of the lost sheep he
also speaks of the prodigal son For here the sheep that's gone
astray is found and returned. The son who's gone astray is
returned to the father. And so we see God's love and
the Son of God's love for His sheep, that He will find them. He will seek them out and He'll
come unto them with the gospel. And though they think that all
is lost, though they think that there's no way back, They discover
when the good news of the Gospel comes, that in fact, the Son
of God has done everything for them in love, that He should
restore them. Will He not leave the ninety
and nine and goeth into the mountains and seeketh that which is gone
astray? Where does this man, this shepherd,
find the sheep? Where does he go to return? Where does he go to find that
sheep so that he may return him to the fold? He goeth into the
mountains, Matthew says. He goeth into the mountains and
seeketh that which is gone astray. Why the mountains? Why does Matthew
single out this place. Why does Matthew say that this
lost sheep has gone into the mountains? Luke also records
this parable of the lost sheep in his gospel and there's no
mention of mountains in Luke. In Luke 15 and verse 3 we read
that he spake this parable unto them, saying, What man of you,
having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave
the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost
until he find it? And when he hath found it, he
layeth it on his shoulders rejoicing, and when he cometh home, he calleth
together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with
me, for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you
that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth,
more than over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance. So we read a similar parable,
the same parable in Luke, but there's no mention of the mountains
there. Yet Matthew singles out the mountains. The man goes into the mountains
in search of his sheep. Now why? Why the mountains? Why mention mountains here? Well
it fits with the way in which Matthew presents the gospel. In Matthew we read of the kingdom
of heaven. This very chapter opened with
the disciples asking, who is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven? And Christ speaking of the little children entering
the kingdom of heaven. The theme is very much of the
Messiah coming into the world from heaven's glory and gathering
in his people into the kingdom of heaven. And in illustration
of this, Matthew's Gospel often speaks of the meeting place of
heaven and earth, the mountains. There are more references to
mountains in Matthew's Gospel than in any other. In fact, there
are 12 main references to mountains. Or mountains. with three extra
specific references to the Mount of Olives. Only one mountain
is named as such, and that's the Mount of Olives. There are
three references to Christ in the Mount of Olives, and 12 other
references to mountains. Christ went up into a mountain.
Christ prayed in a mountain. The disciples came unto him in
a mountain. Twelve references. Mountains
are predominant in Matthew's gospel because of their depiction
of the meeting place of heaven and earth. How do you enter into
the kingdom of heaven? You go up. So, in Matthew's gospel,
when Christ speaks of a sheep having gone astray, the shepherd
will know to look for that sheep in the mountains. Where will
he find the sheep? In the valley? No. This lost
sheep, this lost sheep will have gone into the mountains. Yes, there are 12 mountains mentioned
in Matthew's gospel and also three references to the Mount
of Olives in Matthew 21, 24, and 26. 15 references altogether, 12 unnamed
and three named. In this we see with the 12 mountains
an allusion to the 12 tribes of Israel, to the 12 disciples,
the 12 apostles, and in the three references on
the Mount of Olives where Christ went on the day of his betrayal. we see a witness to the unity
of the Godhead, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. And in these mountains
we see the completeness of Israel, the 12 tribes gathered unto their
God, who is one God in three persons. In chapter 5, from verse
1, we read that Christ, seeing the multitudes, went up into
a mountain. And when he was set, his disciples
came unto him. How often we see the disciples,
Israel, the Twelve, coming unto Christ in the mountains. Here the Twelve meet through
Christ the Godhead, the free. Here God in three persons meets
with his people. Yet the very first reference
to a mountain in Matthew's gospel comes in chapter four and verse
eight, where we read of the devil. Again, the devil taketh Jesus
up into an exceeding high mountain and showeth him all the kingdoms
of the world and the glory of them. The first reference to
a mountain in Matthew's gospel is of the devil taking Jesus
up into a very high mountain and showing him not the kingdom
of heaven, but all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of
them. And seeking to tempt Christ by
offering him all the world. as if he owned the world. Now the devil we know is the
prince of the power of the air, he's the prince of this world,
he's been given a reign of the men's hearts for a time, but
it's not ultimately his. God's given him a certain reign,
a certain freedom, but it's Christ's. It's Christ who rules over it.
Yet the devil takes Christ up into a high mountain and shows
him the kingdoms of the world. And how often he'll do that with
you, or me, or all men. He loves to take men up into
a mountain and say, look what you can have. Look at the glory
here below. Look at the world. Look at the
kingdoms. Look what's there to be had. Come and follow me and I will
give you all of this. And how deceptive and how alluring
his message is. How many gladly go up into that
high mountain with the devil and gladly hear his enticements. How your heart by nature desires
all that it sees here below it looks out as it were from a high
mountain and sees all the kingdoms of the world and all the glory
of them all the riches there are in them all the things to
be seen all the things to be done all the things to have all
the things to desire and all the status and praise and glory
there is to be had if you have some reign over them if you have
some wealth if you have some authority if you have some power
all the praise of men there is to be had How the devil loves
to show you the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them and
how easily we are taken in by him. Yes, that's the first mention
of a mountain. A mountain that the devil took
Christ up into but not to speak of the kingdom of heaven but
to speak of the kingdoms of the world. You can be in a mountain,
you can either look up or you can look down. You can either
go up in the mountain seeking to go up higher, or you can go
up to see what's down below. Where's your gaze? Where's your
desire? The last mention of a mountain
in Matthew's Gospel comes in chapter 28 and verse 16, where
we read of the 11 disciples, not 12, gathered in a mountain. Then the eleven disciples went
away into Galilee into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. Into a mountain where Jesus had
appointed them. The book opens, as it were, with
a mountain. But it's the devil taking Christ
there and pointing down at the kingdoms of the world. But the
very last words of Matthew's Gospel speak of the eleven disciples
in Galilee then taken into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them
and when they saw him they worshipped him and Jesus came and spake
unto them saying all power is given unto me in heaven and in
earth no more the devil in the mountain looking down upon the
kingdom of the world but the disciples gathered with their
saviour who has all power in heaven and in earth, a victorious
saviour, a conquering saviour, a saviour with those whom he
saved. But where in Matthew 28 is the
12th disciple? Why are there 11 and not 12? Well, as we know, earlier in
Matthew's Gospel, the 12th disciple, Judas, was deceived of the devil. He was tempted of the devil.
He, as it were, had gone up into that high mountain with the devil
and been shown the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them.
And he had betrayed Christ the Saviour for a few pieces of silver. So deceived was he, so full of
unbelief, that despite having walked and lived and talked with
Christ, as had the other disciples, he turned his back on him at
the final hour. And for a few pieces of silver,
he betrayed Christ into the hands of his enemies. Because he'd
heard the voice of another. and was deceived and followed. He never gave up this world in
order to follow Christ. He gave up Christ and the kingdom
of heaven in order to have the kingdoms of the world and the
glory of them. And yet all he received was the
wretchedness that this world brings in sin and depravity and
the consequences of sin, which is death. Having betrayed Christ
into the hands of his enemies, Judas went out sorrowful and
hung himself and died. So we see this first reference
of a mountain And this last reference of the mountain in chapter 28,
connected by the fact that one of the disciples, one of the
12, was not there. He was the one who followed the
devil and his deceptions. Now where are you? Are you with
Christ and the 11 in the mount, glorified? Or have you gone off
with Judas and the devil, deceived by all his enticements? Judas betrayed Christ just after
Christ had gone into the Mount of Olives, where the disciples
gather with him in the 24th chapter of Matthew. They all gathered
with him in the Mount of Olives. And just after that, in chapter
26, we read that then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot,
went unto the chief priests and said unto them, What will ye
give me? And I will deliver him unto you.
And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver,
And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him. Now what do you want? What does
your heart desire? Would you betray Christ for 30
pieces of silver? Are you going up with the devil
into a high mountain and hearing his whispering lies? Or do you
know that it is Christ and Christ alone that has all power in heaven
and in earth? This world is not the devil's,
though he thinks it is. And this world is not yours,
though he may tell you it is. And you may go after the 30 pieces
of silver, but you will find that they lead you into ruin. Yes, mountains. What do these
mountains represent? Thirdly, firstly, we see that
the lost sheep is sought in the mountains. Secondly, we see that
in Matthew's gospel, there are these 12 mountains and the three
references to the Mount of Olives. And thirdly, what do these mountains
represent? As I've said, the meeting of
heaven and earth. And the meeting of heaven and
earth in a certain regard. In one of the Psalms we read
that the mountains, that the righteousness of God is as the
high mountains. We often see righteousness connected
with mountains because it's righteousness that causes heaven and earth
to meet. And it's a lack of righteousness
that causes heaven and earth to separate. Judas was never found in that
mount with the 11 at the end, because he'd gone up with the
devil into a mount and looked down. He may have had a righteousness
of his own, but he never had that righteousness that comes
from above. It is by righteousness that heaven
and earth meet. And if we're to enter into the
kingdom of heaven, we need the righteousness that comes from
heaven, not the righteousness that comes from here below. In Matthew 5, we saw the disciples
come to Christ in the mountains. Then he returns back to earth
in Matthew 8 and verse 1, he comes down from the mount. In
chapter 14 and verse 23, we read another reference to a mountain.
Christ goes up into a mountain alone to pray. To pray with God
in heaven. He goes up into the mountain.
He goes up, as it were, up from this world, up to the highest
point. And there he is, alone with his
Father. In heaven, as it were. Praying. In chapter 15 and verse 29 we
read that Christ ascends the mountain and sits down. And in sitting down we see a
picture of his rule from heaven above. He sits down, his work
complete. He sits as it were upon his throne
and looks out across his kingdom. All power in heaven and in earth
is His. In Matthew 17 we read another
account of a mountain. Here Christ took Peter, James
and John up into the mountain and there He was transfigured
before them. Transfigured, they saw His glory. And they saw Moses and Elijah
beside him, the law and the prophets, and they faded away. And all
they could see was Christ. They saw in the mountain the
Son of God and the Son of Man in one, glorified. They saw He who would bring them
out of the kingdoms of the world into the kingdom of heaven. by
bringing in righteousness for them. In verse 9 of Matthew chapter
17, following this vision that they've seen, Christ charged
the disciples to say nothing of this vision until He is risen
from the dead. Because this vision is a vision
of His glory, which would come in when His work was complete. this is what they would see,
this is what they would be a part of once he died and once he rose
again once he'd taken the judgment of sin away and once he'd brought
in righteousness for all his sheep this glory in heaven is
that of a risen Savior a Savior, a conquering Savior who's returned
to heaven from earth, redemption having been wrought, reconciliation
having been made, peace having been brought in, and the righteousness
of God by the faith of Jesus Christ having been manifested
at the cross in His glory. Sin having been taken away, the
darkness having come upon the world, When the wrath of God
came down in judgment, at the end Christ could cry out, it
is finished. And then the light returned.
And the righteousness of God had been wrought, brought in
for Christ's people, through faith, as he suffered on the
cross, bearing the judgment of God, forsaken of the Father,
but always trusting and believing that all for whom he died would
be saved. He was seeking the lost sheep
upon the mountains. Yes, these mountains are the
meeting place of heaven and earth. but a meeting place in which
righteousness must be brought in if you are to enter into heaven. You can go up a mountain. You
can go up with the devil. You can look down upon the kingdoms
of the world and the glory of there. You can seek to live righteously. But if all you've got is your
works, and your righteousness, and your glory, and everything
that you can gain here and below, you will never enter into the
kingdom of heaven. You must become as a little child,
with nothing, having nothing, hearing the voice of Jesus Christ,
following the shepherd as a sheep follows his shepherd, then you
will know what it is to be clothed in righteousness. Fourthly, consider the Mount
of Olives. As I said, there's 12 unnamed
references to mountains in Matthew's Gospel, in which we see the 12
tribes of Israel and Israel's meeting with God. But there are
three references to the Mount of Olives. A very special mount. A very special mount. Matthew 21 verse 1 we read, And
when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto
the Mount of Olives, then sent Jesus to disciples, saying unto
them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway
ye shall find an astide, and a colt with her. Loose them,
and bring them unto me. And so they did, and they brought
Christ into Jerusalem. And then, having come, He began
His journey to that hour and that day when He would suffer
in Jerusalem and be crucified. So they prepared the Passover.
So He met with them on the night before His death. In chapter
24 we read again, And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the
disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these
things be? And what shall be the sign of
thy coming and of the end of the world? And so Christ begins
his discourse of what will come, knowing what is about to come
upon him. And then at the end of the Last
Supper, when Christ knows that His hour is coming upon Him,
and He gives the disciples the bread and the wine, and He speaks
of that one, Judas, who will betray Him, we read that when
they had sung a hymn, they went out into the Mount of Olives,
Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because
of me this night, for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and
the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after
that I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. Here he comes with them into
the Mount of Olives, when the shepherd will be smitten and
the sheep will be scattered. And in his being smitten, once
he's smitten, once he's died, once he rises again in glory,
he comes with his gospel and he finds the sheep and he gathers
them into a mount at the end where they see him in his glory.
And he says unto them, victorious, all power is given unto me in
heaven and in earth. But here we have the three references
to the Mount of Olives and they are all in reference to Christ's
death. It's a special mount, a mount
where olives are grown. We note in this the importance
of the olive, both the tree and its fruit. If you read through
the scriptures, the olive tree and the olive fruit and the olive
branch are significant throughout the scriptures. The olive oil
that came from the fruit of the tree was used as an ointment
for the priests and for royal office. When the priests were
anointed, and the king was anointed, they were anointed with olive
oil. And so here we have Christ at
his, at the hour, as the hour approaches of his death, here
we have God's great high priest, Jesus Christ. And the king of
kings, the son of God, come down from heaven, and here he is in
the Mount of Olives. and God as it were is taking
of the olive oil and anointing this king and this priest with
this oil and then he goes forth as the priest to offer up a sacrifice
one sacrifice once for all for his people in order to save his
sheep what a place for him to be The Mount of Olives. This mount is the mount upon
which Christ was betrayed. He comes from here. And Judas,
having betrayed him, causes the chief priests to come upon him. And they take him. And they take
him away and try him. and crucified him. He's betrayed. As a consequence of that betrayal,
he's led unto death. And when he's led unto death,
he comes under the sword of God's justice and the righteousness
of God in judgment. This Mount of Olives is a mount,
as it were, where the Godhead, free in one, meets. Father, Son
and Holy Ghost gather and they gather to bring about the fulfilment
of that eternal covenant which they have made to save God's
people from their sins. And the fulfilment of that covenant
is wrought in the Father taking the Son As it were up a mount
like Abraham took Isaac and crucifying him, slaying him, putting him
to death. The Mount of Olives. But this
death was for a purpose. The death of Christ brought in
righteousness, it brought in salvation and it reconciled the
lost sheep of Israel unto God. It brought sinners back unto
God, it brought them unto peace with the God they had offended.
It reconciled them, it saved them, it delivered them. It redeemed
them, it set them free from the captivity of sin in which they
were bound. It brought peace. The priest, the king, anointed
with olive oil, as it were on the Mount of Olives, came and
through his offering, through his priestly sacrifice, he brought
in peace and reconciliation. And we see this prefigured in
Genesis, where Noah, on the ark, having passed through the judgment
of God upon the wickedness of this world, comes to rest in
the ark upon the mount, and he sends forth a dove, and eventually
the dove comes back In verse 11, in the evening and in her
mouth was an olive leaf plucked off. So Noah knew that the waters
were abated from off the earth. The dove returns with an olive
leaf. The judgment is over. The waters
are going down. And Noah and his family have
entered into a new world. because peace and reconciliation
have been brought in. Righteousness in the judgment
of God seen in that flood has been accomplished. Righteousness
has been satisfied and peace is brought in. It is finished. It is finished. or a place this Mount of Olives
is. Zechariah made a prophecy of it. In Zechariah 14 he says,
Behold the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided
in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations
against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken,
and the houses rifled, and the women ravished, and half of the
city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people
shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go
forth, and fight against those nations as when he fought in
the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that
day upon the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on
the east. And the Mount of Olives shall
cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west.
And there shall be a very great valley, and half of the mountain
shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley
of the mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach
unto Azazel. Yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the
earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. And the Lord thy
God shall come and all the saints with thee. His feet shall stand
in that day upon the Mount of Olives. What did Christ do on
that day? He brought in salvation. Oh,
what a tree this olive tree is. What fruit it brings. What meaning
there is in its leaves and its branches. How wonderful is the
oil that anoints the king and the priest. What a tree of life
this is for God's people. how we read also of the olive
tree elsewhere in the scriptures, like in Romans, where the olive
tree speaks of Israel, God's people, and how the tree has
the Jews and the Gentiles grafted into it, and how there is one
tree, one olive tree, united unto God, as it were, one vine
with the branches, grafted in, as John's gospel speaks of in
chapter 15, how we'd see in this Mount of Olives and what Christ
wrought there, the unity of his people with the Godhead. Fifthly, we read elsewhere in
Matthew, in chapter 18 and 24, of those who, as it were, flee
to the mountains. In chapter 24, it is when Christ
is speaking from the Mount of Olives of the day of judgment,
of his return, and of how the people will flee. And this gospel
of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness
under all nations, and then shall the end come, when ye therefore
shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel
the prophet, stand in the holy place. Whoso readeth, let him
understand. Then let them which be in Judea
flee into the mountains. Flee to the mountains. And in
chapter 18, as we've read, the lost sheep is sought in the mountains. It's wandered off, it's fled
from the fold, it's fled from the other sheep, it's gone off
another way, and it's gone to the mountains. Gone to the mountains. Why to the mountains? Well, if
you know anything of the wrath of God, if you know anything
of your sin, If you know anything of the consequences of sin, you
will know that God's wrath will come down in judgment upon sinners. Flee from the wrath to come. Flee unto salvation. How will
you be saved if judgment comes down? By going down into a valley? by going up to the mountains.
When the rain started to come down upon this earth in the days
of Noah, those in the valley soon perished. But they'd have
climbed up to escape. And their only hope was if the
rain stopped before it came to the highest height. They needed
to go up. They needed to go up towards
heaven. And if you know anything of the
state you're in, if the alarm is sounded against your sin,
if you know that you're a sinner and the wrath of God will come
down upon your sin, where are you going to run to? It's no
good going down. It's no good listening to the
devil and looking down upon the kingdoms of this world and running
down to take of their glory and to take of their riches. You'll
perish with everyone else. But if you know anything of the
warning of God in the Gospel, the alarm, the sound of wisdom
that comes from on high, then you'll know you need to go up.
You know you'll need to go up unto God. You know you need to
look up unto God and cry unto God for salvation. Then flee
to the mountains. This lost sheep had wandered
off, but where had he wandered off to? Where did the shepherd
seek him? He sought him in the mountains. Why in the mountains? Why had the sheep gone to the
mountains? Why did the shepherd know he'd
find him in the mountains? Because though lost, this is
a sheep which is lost. And the sheep which is truly
lost knows it is lost and knows he must head to the mountains.
Others don't. The goat may not. Others may
go down into the valleys and perish. But a lost sheep who's
beginning to hear something of the wisdom of God in the gospel,
who knows something of the truth, who knows something of his state
by nature, who knows something of the sin within him, knows
he must go up. He knows he must seek heaven.
And sheep do seek heaven. and at first they may seek it
in their own strength they may be lost they may have wandered
off they may have gone to this place and that place but they're
trying to get up they may go off into religion and they may
seek to get unto heaven through this religion and that religion
they may seek to get unto heaven by turning to the law and by
turning to save themselves in their own strength. They may
make a decision in some church to follow a Jesus who they have
accepted. They may try to live before him
righteously. They may turn to the law and
try to reform themselves and think that because of their righteousness,
their self-righteousness, that God will be pleased with them.
and that maybe they will escape the wrath to come, and maybe
they will atone for their sins, and maybe through their zealousness
and their seeking after God, God will bless them. So they
go up in their own strength to a mountain. They try to climb
up. They're forever climbing up,
forever seeking heaven. It may be in their own strength,
but they're going up. They know they must go up. They
know they must ascend a mountain. They know they need it. They
know they need to be cleansed of their sin. They know they
need to be righteous before God. They know they must find God.
But they don't know how to find God. And they're led astray by
all the false shepherds around them. And one says, go up this
mountain. Another says, go up that mountain.
And they go to this church, and that church, and this religion,
and that religion. And they're forever climbing
up mountains. But they're never getting unto
God. Is that where you are? wandering
about as a lost sheep in a mountain you know you need to get up to
heaven but you can't get there well if that's where you are
and if you're a lost sheep then there's a man, a shepherd, who'll
come for you he knows where to find his sheep they'll be in
a mountain they'll be striving to get up into heaven they'll
be climbing up in their own strength maybe but they're trying, they're
looking and at some point like their prodigal son they'll come
to an end of themselves and they'll have nothing and they'll come
and they'll cry out for mercy they know they're lost they know
they can't get any higher but they know that that's the direction
they must go and that's where the gospel will find them and
if that's you, that's where the gospel will find you You may
have gone to this church and that church and followed this
and followed that. You may have listened to the
truth. You may be in the right church
and the right place under the right gospel and the right ministry. But so far all you've heard is
with the outward ear and all your efforts in religion are
in your own strength. But this is where the gospel
will find you. This is where the Saviour will
find you. This is where the Good Shepherd
will find you. He'll come with the Gospel and
He'll bring it in power and He'll speak it unto your soul inwardly. And He'll find you in your mountain
and cause you to hear. God has brought you to that place. He brings His sheep to these
mountains. He's drawn them there but then
He sends His Shepherd to find them with His Gospel. And the
sheep hear his voice. My sheep hear my voice, Christ
says in John 10. Note again in Zechariah 14 in
its prophecy regarding the Mount of Olives. The gospel set before
us in the mountain. God comes and delivers his people
on mount, on the mount on which Jerusalem's built Christ was
crucified in the mount Christ died and he gathered his people
under him and he washed them clean in his blood and he'll
find the lost sheep in the mountains wandering around seeking to get
up to heaven and there's a day that comes when they come and
they hear him, and he calls unto them by name, and he finds them
in his gospel, and he gathers them. Is that where you are? Sixthly,
we read, briefly, we read of mountains in a couple of other
places in Matthew's gospel. In Matthew chapter 17 and chapter
21, we read Christ speaking of faith. and how faith even a grain
of faith can look upon a mountain and say to a mountain be removed
be removed and it will be and faith can say to another mountain
in chapter 21 be removed and cast into the sea and it is what
is this? what is this that faith does
that it can look upon a mountain and tell it to move It's about
righteousness. It's about the righteousness
of faith looking and looking upon a mountain, a false mountain
that gets in the way. It's casting the righteousness
of men, the mountains that men build, the mountains that men
climb in their own strength and casting them aside, removing
them, casting them into the sea of sin. casting them into the
sea of judgment, casting them away. It's taking the mount upon
which the devil led Judas up and casting it aside and casting
him and his lies aside. It's looking upon the devil in
faith and saying, be away with you and taking him and his mountain
and casting it aside into judgment. So that with these mounts cast
aside. The child of God who walks by
faith can follow and climb up the mount with Christ and his
disciples. Oh, how many try to ascend mountains
and look upon the kingdoms below without God, thinking they have
some claim upon it. These mountains which must be
brought low. It's these mountains which must
be brought low. And faith takes them and casts
them aside and removes them. And faith in the end is led to
hear the voice of Christ the shepherd who comes unto the lost
sheep wondering. wandering about, wandering in
a mountain, and calls unto him, and calls him to follow, and
gathers him in with the eleven in that appointed mountain in
which Christ meets with his people, where he gathers and tells them
who he is and what he's done. Then the eleven disciples went
away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
And when they saw him, they worshipped him. But some doubted. And Jesus came and spake unto
them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all
nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always,
even unto the end of the world. Amen. Has Christ come? Has he found you? Has he brought
you into that mount? Does he not leave the ninety
and nine and goeth into the mountains and seeketh that which is gone
astray? Has he left the ninety and nine
and gone into the mountains and sought you out with his gospel
to seek that which is gone astray?