Oh, boy. Thank you for that message on
justification. Oh, good. Good, good. It's ringing them bells in my
soul. Philippians 2. Thank you all for allowing me
to be here and giving us such a wonderful place to stay and
feeding us good And I've had some wonderful time this weekend,
just absolutely wonderful. So grateful for it. Talking about seeing the Lord
Jesus face to face. So, Scott, years ago, brought
a message at our place. And they shall see His face.
And they were glad. And he says, you know what it'll
mean when I see His face? You see what I mean? I finally
made it. Finally made it. Oh, just to
be there with an unsinning heart, no flesh to contend with, no
more preaching to do. As sweet as life is here and
as enjoyable as it is here, we can't begin to imagine what it's
going to be. But we're gonna find out one
of these days. We're gonna find out one of these days. Not only
do I want you to look in Philippians 2, but I want you to also get
1 Corinthians 2 in verse 16 with me at the same time. I wanna
use these two verses to get to my message this evening. It said here in verse 16 of 1
Corinthians 2, For who hath known the mind of the Lord that he
may instruct him? Who's ever known what God's got
in his mind and his disposition that he may have to instruct
God? So you know, you need to change your mind about this.
You need to look at things a different way. But he went on to say, we
don't know the mind of the Lord that we may instruct him. But
he said, I'll tell you what we do have. He said, we do have
the mind of Christ. So whatever the mind of God is,
it's in Christ. He said, we do have the mind
of Christ. And Philippians 2, and let me
read a few verses till I get where I wanna go. If there be
therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love,
fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels of mercies, fulfill
you my joy that you be like minded, having the same love, being of
one accord, of one mind, Let nothing be done through strife
or vain glory, but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem other
better than himself. Look not every man on his own
things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this
mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in
the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God,
but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of
a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, and being found
in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto
death, even the death of the cross." There he said in 1 Corinthians
2 that we don't know the mind of the Lord that we can instruct
him, but we do have the mind of Christ. And here the apostle
says in verse 5, Let this mind, Philippians 2.5, let this mind
be in you, which also was in Christ Jesus. And I tell you,
that's a big, big order, a big thing to have to deal with and
face. You know, to fulfill, obey, and also a glorious goal for
us to strive after. Let this mind be in you, in you,
which also was in Christ Jesus. Mind here means disposition.
A person's disposition. The minding of one thing, having
the same disposition of our Lord Jesus Christ. And before a man
can do that, he has to be given a new mind. The old mind, the
natural mind, he can't get it. The natural mind, the natural
man receives not the things of the Spirit of God, neither can
he know them. He must be given a new mind. He has to be renewed
in the Spirit of his mind. His understanding that's so dark
and must be enlightened. He must be made a new creature
in Christ to have the mind of Christ. And he can't have that,
he got to be, has a new mind, a new disposition, a new nature
given to him by the Spirit of God. As he said, he arrests us
and brings us to where we confess and we're convinced beyond a
shadow of a doubt that everything God said about us is true. And
then everything he turns around and tells us about we have in
Christ, that's true too. And that's what's wonderful about
it. But still before us stands this statement, let this mind
be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Now to me, to my
heart, that's a tremendous task. Tremendous task a tall order
and yet I believe I speak forever believer in this building and
anybody I would ever have the privilege to preach to Yeah,
I think this is one of our greatest desires is to be like our master
and one of these days will be conformed Fully and completely
into his image But first there is a sense in which we can never
ever have the mind of Christ We cannot have the mind of Christ
God Now I'll tell you there's a sense we gonna never have his
mind. He has the mind of God He has as God and it's what I
said here in Philippians 2 in verse verse 6 who being in the
form of God We'll never have a mind of Christ like that as
God God and that's why he says who knows the mind of God that
he may instruct him We don't but I said we have the mind of
Christ But as being in the form of God as God he comprehended
all things and all things were comprehended in him and His mind
is omniscient. And I'll tell you this about
him as being God, there never was a time that he had to think,
that he had to plan, he had to do. Everything was in his mind
from as long as he has been, he's been the way he is. As long
as he has existed in the purpose of God, he's been like he is. And when he became a man, he
still was God and had the mind of God. And I tell you what,
and that's what the scriptures tells us, he knew everything. He told Simon Peter, you're gonna
deny me three times. Oh, no, no, no, I'm gonna go
to prison with you, I'll die with you. He told Philip, he said, Philip,
you know, can any good thing come out of Nazareth? He said,
Philip, I mean, Nathanael, before yous ever, Philip ever come to
you, I saw you over on that fig tree. I don't know what he was
doing on the fig tree, looking up at the figs, seeing if there's
right, I don't know what he was doing. But our Lord said, I saw
you under that fig tree. Oh, you're the Christ, you're
the master, you're the Messiah. And I tell you what, He knew
everything. He knew who would betray Him,
who would deny Him. He knew who would love Him. He
knew everything about everybody. And that's one of the most blessed
things that we experience as believers, that Christ knows
us. I mean, we're just as transparent
as glass to Him. And what a blessed thing to know.
Oh, that's a wonderful thing. So we're not gonna have the mind
of Christ as God. And we'll never have the mind
of Christ as in his perfect humanity. Look what he says there, you
know, who does this mind being you, who in the form of God,
and then he made himself of no reputation. You see, he was a
sinless man. He found in fashion as a man,
but all he is a perfect man. Our Lord Jesus Christ in his
humanity, he had a sinless mind. We don't, he, I mean, when we
talk about sinless, we just have to say what God says about it.
And our Lord Jesus Christ had us sin, he asked the Pharisees,
which of you convinces me of sin? And he said, here you know that
he was all points tempted like us yet without sin. The father,
he said, the father, father, I finished the work that you
gave me to do and now glorify me with the glory which I had
with you before the world ever was. And God the father himself
testified of the sinlessness of our blessed savior. He said,
this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. And man testified
of his sinlessness. Even Pilate said, I find no fault
in this man. Satan himself. Our Lord Jesus
says, the prince of this world comes and he has no part in me. And I tell you, when the devil
spoke to him, they called him the Holy One. And they saw, and
everybody that saw the Lord Jesus Christ, they had any clue who
he was. He was the same one that Isaiah saw, high and lifted up,
and his glory filled the temple. And I'll tell you the scriptures
witnessed to his sinful said he's holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners, higher than the heavens. So you and
I never gonna have the mind of Christ like that. He was a lamb
without spot, a lamb without blemish. And that's something
you or I can never do, ever will do, and ever will have is a sinless
mind until we get to glory. So we ain't gonna have that.
And I tell you, our Lord Jesus, Paul says us here about vain
glory and loneliness of mind and all of those things, and
our Lord Jesus Christ never had a vain thought. A moment of pride never went
across his breast. He never wasted one word. Every word he said had a purpose
and a meaning and a reasoning behind it. He never ever had
an idle moment or used his hand in an idle way. He was a man,
a perfect man, a sinless man, a holy man, and he's a man right
now in glory like he was here. He was still God, but he's man
right there right now. And when we get to glory, you
know the only God we're gonna see is the Lord Jesus Christ. But so how then can we have the
mind of Christ? How can we have it? How can we
have it? How can we have the mind of Christ,
the disposition of Christ? Well, let me see if I can find
a few things to say about this. Look what he said here in verse
eight of Philippians 2. And being found in fashion as
a man, he humbled himself. Do you reckon we could have the
mind of Christ as far as humility goes? Huh? Let the humility that
was seen in our Lord Jesus Christ be in you. Have that humility. He humbled himself. He that is
higher than the heavens and the heavens of heavens can't contain
him. And yet he humbled himself. And when it said here he humbled
himself, that mean he emptied himself. Do you reckon, do you
reckon we, as we are to have the mind of Christ, you reckon
we could empty ourselves of, like Paul said, of strife and
vainglory? Can we empty ourselves of self-seeking
and pride? Can we exalt others and abase
ourselves? Ain't that what he said? Let
nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness
of mind, let ye each esteem others better than himself. And it says
there he made himself of no reputation. John the Baptist made himself
of no reputation. Who are you? A voice. Come and want after me, I'm not
worthy to loose his shoes. And he said, you know what, when
he comes he must increase. He goes up, I go down. Joe Terrell
used an illustration one time about a seesaw. Everybody knows
what a seesaw is. I know you don't see kids on
seesaws anymore, but they used to have seesaws. You all know
what a seesaw is? You get on them seesaws and if
you was down here, the other fellow would be up there. And
when he was down there, he was up here. And he says, and we need to,
in life, we need to stay way, way down here. And Christ's way,
way up there. Don't never try to bring the
seesaw up, keep it down. Don't never try to, because if
it starts getting up, you'll get even, equal with them, and
then you know they'll start going down. No, no, stay way down here. Way, way down here, Christ way
up there. And oh my, to make ourselves of no reputation, to
make ourselves to be nobody and Christ to be everything, to have
that humility. And I think personally, and I
don't have it. I'm not saying I have it, I don't
have it. I'm telling you that we, how
can we have then the mind of Christ? This humility, could
we possibly have some humility? I find it very hard for me because
you know I like to talk about myself. I like to talk about
things alike. I'd like to, but the whole thing
is, is that to make it, make it, God help us to have humility,
you know, where we don't, we set somebody else up and we set
ourselves down. Hmm and then look what else if
we could have not only humility but an obedient mind Look what
he says down in in verse 8 again. He humbled himself and they became
obedient obedient oh my and Do be obedient have an obedient
mind is being subject to the will of another being subject
to the will of another owning the authority of somebody else
and And oh my, to have a mind and heart and will subject to
the will of Christ, subject to the purpose of Christ, subject
to the authority of Christ. And he took the place of a servant.
And oh, to take the place of a servant. That the folks at
Lent integration let me stay on their altar all these years
and love me and care for me. My and then could reckon we could
have the mind of love of had the mind of Christ having love
Look what he said in verse 1 and 2 here If there there be therefore
any consolation in Christ if any comfort of love any fellowship
of the spirit of any bowels of mercies Fulfill ye my joy that
you be like-minded listen to this having the same love as
being of one accord, of one mind. You know, our Lord Jesus said
in John 13, 34, he said, a new commandment I give unto you.
And that is that you love one another, even as I have loved
you. What did he mean it was a new commandment? Well, the
Jews always believe, love them that love you and hate them that
hate you. Treat people the way they treat you. And you know, and you certainly
didn't love Gentiles. They were dogs. You didn't love
a Gentile. You couldn't possibly love a
Gentile. But our Lord Jesus, what he did, he newly explained
this business of love. He purged it from all the false
teachings of the scribes and the Pharisees. And not only did
he newly explain it, but he newly exemplified it by his love for
us. His love for us. Oh, he loved
us, having loved his own, he loved them to the end. Having
loved his own, there never was a time that he didn't love us,
never be a time that he'll cease to love us. His love for us will
not get greater when we get in glory than it is right now. And
then it was newly enforced by the argument. And now John said
it this way, can a man know God and love God and not love his
brethren? And how can a man be a new creature
in Christ and not love like his master did? Do you reckon we
could have the mind of Christ in meekness? Our Lord Jesus says
this, take my yoke upon you. Take my yoke upon you. For my
yoke is easy. Have y'all ever seen oxen yoked
up or anything like that? With wood, I'm not talking about
just like they do mules and things. I'm talking about with wood.
They take that big old wooden piece and they put it under them
and they got big old pins that go down here and that wood gets
down on their neck and comes up under their here, you know,
and they hook together and they got this big ridge across it
and they can't get out. They got to pull together. And
that yoke is hard. Hard. I put a yoke on an old
calf one time because he kept getting out and I put a yoke
on him where he couldn't go through a fence, no way, shape, form
or fashion. I yoked him up. And I, Lord Jesus, I made it
hard on him. I made it hard, he couldn't get it off. But our
Lord says, take my yoke upon you. For my yoke is easy and
my burden, oh, my burden is so light. And he says, and take
my yoke upon you and you know what? Learn of me. Learn of me. Learn about me. Learn my character. Learn my
nature. Learn my love. Learn my will. Learn my purpose. Learn that I'm the Lord. Learn that I'm the King. Learn
that I'm the Redeemer. Learn that I'm your all and end
all. Learn. And Paul uses this as
a motive for believers. Look over in 2 Corinthians 10
with me for just a moment. Look what he's, he uses meekness
as a motive for believers. And I'll tell you one thing,
when we are yoked to Christ, I tell you one of the first things
we learn is, is that we find rest when that yoke is put on
us. We find rest. We find rest from every, you
know, we find, that's what he said. I said, I'll give you rest
and you'll find rest. Paul said here in 2 Corinthians
10, one, now I, Paul, myself, beseech you by the meekness and
gentleness of Christ, who in presence and base among you,
but being absent and bold towards you. He says, now I beseech you
by the meekness and gentleness of Christ. Meekness, if I understand
it right, is that temper of spirit in which whatever the Lord puts
upon us in His dealings with us, we do not dispute, we do
not argue, we do not resist, if I understand it right. And
another thing, having the mind of Christ, a mind of sympathy,
a mind of compassion. You know, our Lord Jesus Christ
You know how many times He wept? Can you imagine our Savior standing,
sinless, holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, higher
than the heavens? Can you imagine out of His holy eyes, out of
those eyes that can pierce to the depths of your soul, that
can peer into heaven? He's in heaven and earth at the
same time. He could lift up his eyes and look west square into
heaven and see every angel, see everything that was taking place,
every spirit of every just man that was perfect. He could see
you there. But can you imagine that holy eye and a big tear
come into it and start running down his cheeks? He did that twice. Mary was standing
weeping. Outside Lazarus too. Oh, she
wept and wept and wept And our Lord Jesus Christ stood there
and wept with her You know, that's why Romans 15 says rejoice with
them that rejoice weep with them that weep And we do that. We really truly do that and then
one day a Little before he left this world through the cross.
He stood up on a hill and he looked down at Jerusalem And
the scripture said, and he began to weep. Began to weep. He didn't just tears flow. He
began to weep. You ever heard anybody really
weep until they absolutely, it bothers you to hear them weep.
They weep so hard. And they groan, and they weep,
and their body shakes. And you can see that they're
weeping. They have such an emotion that
they stand in there And they're weeping, and you see people weeping.
And our Lord stood there and wept over Jerusalem. And he said, oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem,
if you would have known your peace, but now you don't. And oh, he had sympathy. He actually
wept with those that wept. And one time he looked at a big
crowd and he says, they're like sheep without a shepherd. And
he was moved with compassion. And then, oh, to have a mind
of devotion. Don mentioned this last night.
To have a mind of devotion. Our Lord Jesus, he was talking
to the woman at the well, and they came to him, brought him
something to eat, and he didn't want it. He said, I have meat
to eat that you know nothing of. And he said, what is it?
He said, my meat is to do the will of him And his mother and
father left him, and they'd been gone for three days, and they
turned around and found he wasn't with them, and they run back
and found him. He was 12 years old, sitting
down, reasoning with the wisest, smartest men of his day, confounding
them. And his mother said, what have
you done to our soul, being like this and this? Wish you not,
told his mother when he was 12, wish you not that I be about
my father's business. Oh, to have a devotion, The older
I get, the more desperate I get about this. I don't know, I suppose
you fellas do too. We ain't got a lot of time left. If God gives me another 10 years,
you know, that'd be a great blessing. But oh, to have a devoted, to
be devoted to God's will, God's work, God's word, God's word,
God's gospel, oh my, to be devoted to this gospel of grace, this
gospel of free justification that he preached on. This justification
that was done before Christ came, done when Christ came, done in
our hearts when the Holy Ghost applied it, and will always be
in the sight of God. No better now, no better then
than we are right now. No more justified there, no more
righteous there than we are right here. Oh, what a gospel. A gospel
that says God did it all. All to him I owe. Sin left the
crimson stain. He's the one that worked it white
as snow. To take the gospel and make it
to be alive. And know God's church, be devoted
to God's church, wherever they may be. If it's in Sylacauga,
if it's in California, if it's in Danville, Kentucky, if it's
in Podunk, Arkansas. You know, to be devoted to God's
people, be devoted to God's people. and be able to come down to our
life and every day say, Lord, not my will, oh God, not my will,
but thy will be done. Thy will be done. Lord, this
is your day. I get up in the morning, this
is your day. It's not my day, it's your day. It belongs to you. And you do
what you want to this day with me, my home, my family, my people,
you do what you want to today. All right, let me finish this
thing up. Back over here in 1 Corinthians 2.16. You know, I miss this. But you know, like John Newton
said, just because I can't practice everything I preach, don't mean
I'm over-preaching. You know, I say these things,
and I mean these things, and I want the same thing. All these things are real and
vital to me. And though I never may attain
these things to any degree in this world, I'm gonna keep pressing
on toward the mark for the prize of the high calling in Christ
Jesus. Ain't we, Donald? Ain't we gonna
do that? And then he says this, for who
hath known, verse 16 of 1 Corinthians, who hath known the mind of the
Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. In what sense right now, right
now, not what we're gonna have right now, do we have the mind
of Christ? Well, I tell you what, we have the mind of Christ. We've
been taught the truth as it is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Ain't
that what it says back up there in verse 10, 1 Corinthians 2. We've been taught the truth that
it is in Christ Jesus. But God hath revealed them unto
us by Spirit, for the Spirit searcheth all things, the deep
things of God. He takes the things of God and
makes them known to us. He has the deep things he's preaching.
Don got into, these are things that, like you said, religion
don't know nothing about. And I tell you what, we know
the mind of the Lord concerning the gospel. We know the mind
of Christ concerning the gospel. We know the mind of Christ concerning
His will of salvation. We know the mind of Christ and
His purpose of glory, of the salvation of His leg by His Son,
that He does it to the praise of the glory of His own Son and
His own grace. And we have the mind of Christ
concerning the will and purpose, the mystery of the gospel that
was hid in Christ and hid in God now revealed in our Lord
Jesus Christ. And that's what he says here
in verse seven of first Corinthians two. Look what it says here. This is the mind of Christ. And
he said, we have the mind of Christ. We speak the wisdom of
God in a mystery. even the hidden wisdom of God.
God, where was it hid at? Hid in the scriptures, hid in
Christ, hid in the Old Testament. And God ordained this mystery
and this wisdom before the world ever, ordained before the world,
listen to this, under our glory. So, see, with that mystery that's
been hid, it's now revealed to us. And we preach that. We preach
the mind of Christ You did it tonight. You did it last night.
You preached the mind of Christ. You know what the mind of Christ
is? The salvations of the Lord. That my blood cleanses from all
sin. That I have power in heaven and
earth. That I finish the work. Said it is finished. If any man's
gonna be justified, he's gonna have to come to Christ. If any
man's gonna be cleansed from sin, he's gonna come to Christ.
If there's any hope for any man to be accepted of God, he's got
to come to Christ. And if he ever comes to Christ,
it'll be because God purposed to bring him to Christ long before
he ever existed in this world. And that's what we're talking
about. Thank you all very much. Appreciate you letting me be
here.