We'll turn back to Luke chapter
17 and I want to look at the second half from verse 20 and
I've called this message Signs of the Kingdom of God. Signs
of the Kingdom of God. You know, at the moment there's
a big debate going on in our society about whether we should
be in the European Union or not. And opinions are very strongly
divided. Some people say, oh, it's absolutely
essential that we're in, and others just as strongly say it's
absolutely essential that we come out of it. And one way or
another, politically, it will be resolved whether we stay in
or come out. But what will be the outcome?
Well, nobody really has much idea, because those that are
ardently in favour might discover it would have been better to
come out, and those that are ardently in favour of coming
out might discover it would have been better to stay in. It's
one of those things that's a very big question, but we don't know
what the outcome. But are you in the Kingdom of
God? Are you in the Kingdom of God? because the outcome of that
is very clear. You see, this isn't an in or
out referendum on the kingdom of God, it's plainly stated in
the scripture. If you are in the kingdom of
God, you have eternal life. You're a citizen of the household
of God, of the commonwealth of Israel, the people of God. You
have eternal life. You are destined for heaven.
you are destined for heaven. If you are in the kingdom of
God, you are destined for bliss, eternal bliss, without sin in
the presence of God. If you are out of the kingdom
of God, if you are out of it, then all that awaits you is death. And I don't just mean physical
death, I mean eternal death, what Christ calls the second
death in hell. It's a stark staggering as the
parable of the rich man and Lazarus that Jesus told in Luke chapter
16. There's an enormous chasm, there's an unbridgeable chasm
between those two states and once you're in one you cannot,
cannot, cannot go to the other one, you cannot, it's impossible. the Kingdom of God, in or out,
very, very clear. Christ preached. What did he
preach? It says in the Gospel accounts,
he went preaching the Kingdom of God. He went preaching the
Kingdom of God. The phrase the Kingdom of God
occurs 68 times in the New Testament, if my concordance is correct.
68 times. And most of them were used by
the Lord Jesus Christ in his ministry. The kingdom of God
is like unto, the kingdom of God is like this. And the Pharisees
have been watching all the way through, the Pharisees, the religious
folks, the religious rulers, those that like the status that
they have and the situation that they had. And they were filled
with scornful, hateful skepticism of everything that he said. And
so in verse 20 of chapter 17, when he was demanded of the Pharisees,
that's not a nice friendly question. When he was demanded of the Pharisees,
they came aggressively at him. Where is this kingdom of God
you keep going on about? Where is it? You see, what they
expected, what they expected was liberation in a Jewish kingdom
from Roman domination. Where is this kingdom of God
you keep going on about? It was not a nice question, it
was a very scornful, sceptical question. and Jesus gives them
his answer. You see, in the Lord's Prayer,
we know the thing that's called the Lord's Prayer, that is really
the disciples' prayer in the Sermon on the Mount, you know,
teach us to pray, Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed
be thy name, thy kingdom come. Thy kingdom come. What is it
for the kingdom to come? You know, they demanded, the
Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come? Thy kingdom,
what is it for the kingdom of God to come? it's for it to be
established it's for it to be manifest when something is manifest
when it's openly seen and known it's something that men have
a a job trying to find you know things you know you go and you
look and it's not manifest but my wife is very very good at
going and finding the thing that I've just spent an hour totally
unable to find and she can find it in about thirty seconds it's
manifest to her whereas it isn't manifest to me But this is the
question, when is this kingdom of God manifest? When will it
be apprehended? When will you know about it?
When will you be aware of it? And Jesus says this, it doesn't
come, it isn't manifested, you're not aware of it, you don't know
about it with physical observation. or what the margin says, you
know, if you have a Bible with a margin, that's really useful
because this is what the original translators put in when they
were debating what they should, the words, and they mostly agreed,
but where there was debate, they said, well, it could also mean,
and in the margin of my Bible, which is the one, the King James
Version, with outward show. When should it come? When will we see it? There'll
be outward show. We're looking for it. Outward
show. And Jesus says it's not like visible earthly kingdoms.
It doesn't come with outward show. It doesn't come in a way
that you can say, oh there it is! Of course, I can feel it,
I can touch it, I can see it, I can hear it, I can sense it.
It doesn't come like that. It's not visible like earthly
kingdoms. For Jesus said, John 18, 36,
Jesus said, my kingdom is not of this world. My kingdom is
not of this world. If you want to know one vital
difference between the true kingdom of God and those so-called kingdoms
of false gods of false religions, their kingdoms are all of this
world. They seek worldly domination
of their God and its kingdom, don't they? Look at Islam, look
what Islam seeks to do. Worldly domination, worldly political
rule. Jesus said, My kingdom is not
of this world. The Pharisees were looking for
a worldly kingdom of God. They were looking for pomp. They
were looking for pageantry. You know, it's good in its place.
If you go down to Horse Guards Parade, or you go down to the
Mall on the day when the colour, the troops are parading in their
finery, and you hear those bands there, you will have tingling
down the back of your neck. It's impressive pomp and pageantry.
Oh, it comes with physical observation. You cannot miss it. It's manifest. It's there. You can see all the
marks of this united kingdom. But not so with the kingdom of
God. It doesn't come with physical
observation. You don't hear a band, you don't
see all the finery of robes and all this sort of thing. No. No
external physical signs. What do people look for when
they look for the Kingdom of God in their error? They look
for the observation of laws. Oh, look at the way they live.
Oh, isn't that the Kingdom of God manifested? They look for,
oh, look at the ceremonies. You'll see people who've got
no religion in them whatsoever, but they say, oh, when we were
on holiday, we went and we saw those tribes or those people
in that far out of the way place. dedication that they've got,
and the statues that they get out, and the parades that they
do, and oh how wonderful it is, and I'm thinking, the kingdom
of God doesn't come with observation. Whatever else it was that you
saw, it was not the kingdom of God. No. People value their traditions,
and all the accoutrements that go with it, the weird robes,
the headgear, the icons, the superstitions, the holy days,
you know what holy days are? Holidays That's where we get
the word from. Holy days. The days that they
make something special out of. All of the hierarchy, the political
structure, all the trappings of government. You know the Roman
Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Vatican, has secretaries
of state, and foreign ministers, and all of those things that
go with... They think the Kingdom of God
does come with physical observation. But it doesn't. It doesn't. all
that hierarchy, all of those trappings, how many have wrongly,
listen to me, how many have wrongly observed what they thought was
the kingdom of God in Mahatma Gandhi? Oh, Mahatma Gandhi! Oh, now there was a man! Oh,
wow, if there's anybody going to be in heaven, Mahatma Gandhi
will be there. He didn't know the Gospel. He rejected the Gospel. He had no knowledge of it. And
yet, people falsely observe what they think is the Kingdom of
God in Mahatma Gandhi, in Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Oh, what
a holy woman. If ever anybody was in the Kingdom
of God, it would be Mother Teresa. No, no, no. It doesn't come with
physical observation. Oh, how many millions in the
world now are looking for an Islamic caliphate? You know,
that's a kingdom, an earthly kingdom, ruled by Islamic rules.
They think there will be the manifestation of the kingdom
of Allah. No, it's not. It's wrong. The
kingdom of God, the true kingdom of God, does not come with physical
observation. They look at people who are totally
un-Christian. They say, I haven't got time
for any of it. Oh, but I do like to see the Salvation Army band
playing at Christmas. Oh, isn't that nice? Oh, look
at the dedication of them. I mean, don't tell me about what
they preach or anything like that, but I do like to see them
playing their band and in their uniform and all this kind of
People think the kingdom of God comes with observation, but it
doesn't. It doesn't at all. These are
all false, subjective assessments of what they think is a godly
life. Even people in true religion
look at things externally and they say, oh, that's godliness.
Oh, the kingdom of God's there. Oh, look at that church. Oh,
oh, the leaders of that church. I've heard this so often. Oh,
they're such godly men. They're such, meaning that there's
an external veneer of piety. There's an external physically
observed, what did Jesus say? It doesn't come with physical
observation. You don't see the kingdom of
God with physical eyes. Now let me give you some scriptures.
John chapter 3. You know this chapter very well.
When Nicodemus came to Jesus by night and he came to ask him,
you know, The things you do, you must be someone come from
God. And Jesus answered, verse 3, and said unto him, Verily,
verily, truly, truly, this is the Son of God speak. Verily,
verily, I say unto you, except unless a man be born again, he
cannot see. Nicodemus, you're talking about
the kingdom of God. You can't see it. If you are
not born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. Verse 5,
Jesus answered, verily, verily, I say to you, except unless a
man be born of water and of the Spirit, the Spirit of God, he
cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Nicodemus, you're talking
about something, you're talking about this particular country,
let's say, and you've got no passport to get in there. You've
got no right of entry. You're totally disqualified.
This is the kingdom of God. You cannot see it. You cannot
know it. Verse 8. The wind, he's saying,
just like the wind, so is the Holy Spirit. The wind blows where
it listeth, where it wants. And you hear the sound of it,
and you cannot tell where it's come from or where it's going
to. So is everyone that is born of the Spirit of God, because
those that are born of the Spirit of God, they are born by the
will of God, and not by the will of the flesh. It's exactly what
Paul echoes in 1 Corinthians, and chapter 2, and verse 12.
Now, he says, we have received, not the Spirit of this world,
not the Spirit of this world, but the Spirit which is of God.
the Spirit which is of God, that we might know the things that
are freely given to us of God, which things also we speak, not
in the words which man's wisdom teacheth." Oh, isn't there a
lot of man's wisdom around? It's not the wisdom of God. but
which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with
spiritual. But, you know this verse, I've
quoted it once or twice, the natural man receiveth not the
things of the Spirit of God. It's just natural. their foolishness
to him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned, with that which only the Holy Spirit can give you.
But he that is spiritual judgeth, discerneth all things, yet he
himself is judged, meaning understood by, no one. If you know Christ
and you know the wisdom of God that is in him, people around
you will not understand you because they don't receive the things
of the Spirit of God. For who has known the mind of
the Lord that he may instruct him? But we, those who believe
Christ, those who have his Spirit, we have the mind of Christ, says
Paul. You Pharisees, says Jesus, you
religious folks, you don't see it because number one, it isn't
physical but spiritual. Number two, you haven't got spiritual
sight from God to see it. That's what he says to those
Pharisees. You know, in another place he said to them, my sheep
hear my voice and they follow me. They hear my voice, they
can hear it. My sheep hear my voice. But he
said, you don't believe because you, Pharisees, are not of my
sheep. Doesn't the religious world put
that the other way around? They think that your believing
makes you one of the sheep. What Jesus tells us is, God,
in eternity, making you in sovereign grace choice one of the sheep,
makes you in time believe him. That's it. And those Pharisees
weren't amongst his sheep. And he said, therefore, because
you're not one of my sheep, you don't believe me, but my sheep
hear my voice and follow me. Beware of false directions. Look
at verse 21. The kingdom of God doesn't come
with observation. Verse 21, neither shall they
say lo here or lo there, for behold, the kingdom of God is
within you. And he said to his disciples, the days come when
you shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man and
you shall not see it. And they shall say to you, see
here, look, it's over here or there. He says, don't go after
them or follow them. Beware of false directions. Test all the claims. Test all
the claims people make. that they have the kingdom of
God, or that they have Christ, or that they know where to find
him. this is the test John gives us the test in his first epistle
chapter four verse one try the spirits whether they be of God
and what's the test he gives them they that say Jesus Christ
is come in the flesh is of God now you say loads of people say
that most Christian religion says yes Jesus Christ is come
no that's not what it means this is what it means that the man
Jesus of Nazareth, born of Mary, that that man is the Christ of
the Old Testament, is the Messiah of the Old Testament, that everything
that the Old Testament said about him coming in his sovereign purposes
to redeem his people as the Lamb of God, that it's all fulfilled
in him, that everything it says everything it says about him,
in his sovereign purposes of particular redemption, all of
the... that's what it means, that's the test. Are these pointing
me in the right direction? Put them to the test. Do they
believe that this Jesus, Paul says, in his preaching, Acts
17 verse 3, he was opening and alleging that this Jesus, this
man from Nazareth, This Jesus who was crucified in Jerusalem,
this Jesus whom I preach to you is Christ, is the Messiah, is
the promised one of God, is the servant of God, come to do the
will of God in saving his people from their sins. So ignore all
false claims. When you look at the world around
and you're looking for the kingdom of God, you know, anybody listening
to me, you're looking for the kingdom of God, where can I go
to know that I'm connected with the kingdom of God? Here we are
in just a room in a house today and when we're not here we're
in a little humble village hall which has no trappings of religion
with it whatsoever. Is that where the kingdom of
God is? Is that the place? When you're looking Don't look
at the numbers of people that go, oh, they've got a good church,
look at the numbers, oh, the singing's wonderful, oh, and
the preacher, oh, he's such a star, he does entertain the people.
Don't look at those things. Jesus says, don't go after them,
ignore them, don't follow them. Ignore the numbers. Ignore the
fellowship they see. Oh, they have such good fellowship.
Ignore. We've been in a church in the
past, 30 years ago, and we had great fellowship. And the children
enjoyed the company of the others. We had great fellowship. But
the kingdom of God wasn't there. The kingdom of God wasn't there.
And soon it became apparent. became clear. This is wrong. This is not right. The kingdom
of God is not here because why? Christ wasn't there. Christ crucified
wasn't there. Christ paying the sin debts of
his people, giving solid assurance of salvation, wasn't there. And
if he wasn't there, that wasn't the Kingdom of God. Ignore it.
Ignore the megachurches. Ignore the Pope. Ignore all his
trappings. Ignore the Archbishop of Canterbury,
and all of the glitter of the Anglican Church. Don't be under
any delusion. I like the architecture of the
Anglican Church, but it's a historical relic. There is not the Kingdom
of God there. I tell you absolutely confidently.
Oh, but it's somewhere, there are some... No, no, no, not a
solitary one of them. The Kingdom of God is not there. The Kingdom of God is not in
the Anglican Church, absolutely not. Ignore the tele-evangelists,
you know, if you ever do watch the God Channel, which I plead
with you not to do it, turn it off. Don't watch religious television,
it's rubbish. If you hear of anybody preaching
who patently is getting very rich by his preaching, be highly
suspicious. Don't go after them. Do not go
after them, because they're all Babylon. That's what the scriptures
call false adulterous religion. Adulterous in the respect of
walking out on that marriage with the true God. That's why
God uses that picture of adultery, unfaithfulness with his people.
Look at Revelation 17, I'll read it out to you. Verse 3. This is John speaking in his
vision. So he carried me away, the angel
carried him away in the spirit into the wilderness. And I saw
a woman sit upon a scarlet-coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy,
having seven heads and ten horns. These are pictures of knowledge
and wisdom and power. And the woman was arrayed in
purple. and scarlet color, and decked
with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup
in her hand, full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication.
And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the
Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth.
And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and
with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus." And this is what John
says, John the Apostle in his vision. This is what he says,
and when I saw her I wondered with great admiration. And the
angel said to me, what are you marveling for? I'll tell you
about this one. This is false religion. This
is the world of false religion. It's Babylon. All this stuff
that claims to be religion is that whore, Babylon. And even
the apostle John, when he saw, he marveled with great wonder.
Don't be deceived. The one with him, the angel with
him says, what are you marveling for? So many who claim to be
Christians are completely duped by this Babylonian falsehood
that's all around us. It's so easy in the flesh to
be enthralled. Worldly false religion all appeals
to natural senses. The kingdom of God is not seen
with observation. It's within you. It's within
his people. It's among you. It's already
here in your midst. The kingdom of God is the true
church. It isn't physically visible,
not even in acts of godliness on the outside, because that's
so often misinterpreted. No. it's within you, it's not
of this world. The servants of it don't take
up swords and fight, it's established in the hearts of God's elect.
Paul says in Romans 14 verse 17, for the kingdom of God is
not meat and drink, he means external physical things, this
is the kingdom of God, righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy
Ghost. in ones and twos, here and there. That's the kingdom of God. It's
within you, not with physical observation. Christ is its king. He governs by grace, and that
grace is to eternal life. It's not a mere outward show
of visible profession and piety. Don't be duped by it. Don't be
conned by it. Don't go after it. Don't say,
oh, they've got such a nice church building there, and the pastor's
all right, I can put up with it, but, you know, there's such
nice, warm fellowship. Babylon, Babylon, Babylon, Babylon. Is the true Christ of Scripture
portrayed there? Are the true saints of God there,
trusting Christ? Is the true circumcision there?
What do they do? They worship God in the Spirit.
They rejoice in Christ Jesus. They don't just sing hymns about
him. They rejoice in him. They rejoice in who he is. They
rejoice in what he's done. they're delighted that they know
that when it comes to the day of judgment and we all stand
before the judgment seat of Christ they know I will stand there
and he will say come thou blessed of my father enter into that
which he's prepared for you from the foundation of the world because
Christ has paid my debt to the law Christ has justified me before
the law of God that's it rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence
in the flesh oh well we don't Right, you go and meet where
you're not in your building. You go and meet where your vicar
doesn't put lots of robes on. You go and meet where you don't
have an altar in your church. You go and meet, oh, well, they're
not proper churches. Proper churches, who says? Does
the word of God say? No, the word of God does not
say. No, it does not. Absolutely not. You find somebody
that tells me that this is not a proper church. You find somebody
that tells me that, and I'll tell them from this book why
this is a proper church. This is where the kingdom of
God is. Here. So then, all this sounds good, doesn't it? For
believers. But Jesus warns us, even as believers, there will
be days of barrenness in this wilderness Christian experience
that we're in. Look at verse 22, he said to
the disciples the days will come when you shall desire to see
one of the days of the Son of Man and you shall not see it.
You'll look for that, there'll be days when you will long for
that fellowship and the tangible presence of Christ and the rich
ministry that you've had in different places and you'll be deprived
of it he says by persecution. Think of John Bunyan, shut up
in Bedford jail for 12 years in isolation on his own. You
may be deprived of it by sickness and failing health and old age
and acts of providence, things that just happen. This is a wilderness
experience for God's church. You know in Revelation 12 there's
the vision of the woman and Christ comes, the child comes and the
devil tries to eat up the child and devour the child and he's
snatched up to heaven. And the woman is taken into the
wilderness of this world to a place prepared by God for her. And what does God do with her
there? Feeds her there. It's a wilderness experience.
Jesus prayed in his prayer, John 17, I pray not that you will
take them out of the world, but that you will keep them. Keep
them from the evil one, protect them. We're in a wilderness experience,
but we're fed here in twos and threes. And Christ comes to his
people as he says, verse 24, like lightning. Nobody else can
see it. But to the child of God, it's as clear as a flash of lightning,
the truth of the gospel of his grace. Don't be duped by those
who would lead you astray. but many reject this message.
Remember I started out with, are you in God's kingdom or outside
of it? And how critical that is compared
with an EU referendum. Are you in God's kingdom or outside
of it? Verse 25. It's a kingdom established
and founded on redemption accomplished. Be clear what it is. Look at
it. First, the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected
of this generation. Its benefits The benefits of
the Kingdom of God, the blessings of the citizenship of the Kingdom
of God, are bought at such a price. Are they not? Bought at such
a price. We who believe, we count ourselves
citizens of the Kingdom of God. We have a passport into heavenly
bliss. But it doesn't come by parentage,
it doesn't come by the will of man, it doesn't come by blood,
but by the will of God. Not by nationality, not by culture,
but by grace purchased with blood. There is no God beside me, says
God in Isaiah 45. A just God and a saviour. How can he be both? when all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, only by virtue
of what Christ has done in satisfying justice. So he remains just,
and yet he saves his people from their sins. There is none beside
me, look unto me and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth. Without
distinction, not just Jews, without distinction, for I am God and
there is none else. Jesus said in Matthew 16, that
he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things of the elders and
the chiefs. Why? Because justice had to be
paid. The price of justice, the redemption
price of his people had to be paid. He must be killed and raised
again the third day for he would be, as Romans 4.25 says, delivered
up for the transgressions of his people. Yes, he was on the
cross, lifted up, delivered up for the transgressions of his
people and raised for their justification. Why raised for their justification?
Because his resurrection proves that the sacrifice he made and
the debt he paid in his precious blood shed paid for the sins
of his people. It accomplished that which it
set out to accomplish, and achieved its purpose. It's a kingdom whose
confidence is in this alone. As I've already said, have no
confidence in the flesh. If you're in the kingdom of God,
it's only because of grace. John 1.13, born, not of the will
of man, nor of the flesh, nor of blood, nor of tradition, but
of God. It's not of him that wills, nor
of him that runs, but of God that shows mercy. What's the
greatest glory of God? When Moses asked God in Exodus
33, show me your glory. like Elijah in the mouth of the
cave, earthquake, wind and fire, no God was not in the earthquake
and not in the wind and not in the fire, but where? In the still
small voice. What is that still small voice?
I will show you my glory, I will be gracious. to whom I will be
gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
And so this grace of God is a discriminating, electing grace. Look at verses
34 to 36. I tell you, says Jesus, In that night there shall be
two in one bed, and one shall be taken and the other shall
be left. Two shall be grinding, working
together, and one shall be taken and the other left. Two shall
be in the field, working in the field, and one shall be... It's
a discriminating grace of God. A kingdom of discriminating grace. If you're out of it, well, if
you're in it, what do you say? Why me? Oh, praise be the grace
of God. Which chose me. Which chose me. Why me? And if you're out of
it, you will only ever be able to blame yourself for your rejection
of Christ. Judgment is coming. Jesus says
this. judgment is coming verses 26
down to 32 judgment is coming as surely as it was in the days
of Noah and of Lot the accounts are in Genesis 6 and chapters
18 and 19 our day is just like theirs don't think that we're
more sophisticated oh we've got more technology but don't think
we're any cleverer they were sophisticated people They were
the creation of God, but, but, they were sinners, just like
today, exactly the same, going about their business, marrying,
giving in marriage, buying, selling, doing everything, until the day
when God had removed his elect from that situation. How did
he remove his elect in Noah's case? The eight souls were taken
into the ark. He'd removed them, and then the
judgment of God fell. And it fell on that ark, and
not on those eight souls that were in it. And the ark bore
all the judgment for those eight souls. Is that not Christ? And
in Sodom, in Sodom there, where for their vileness God, he saw
how bad their sin had become, and he removed his elect. and
as soon as he'd removed his elect, the judgment of God fell. Will
you save it for fifty, said Abraham to the Lord? Yes, for fifty.
Let's try again, how about for forty? Yes, I'll save it for
forty. And how about for ten? Yes, I'll save it even for ten.
But he just took out Lot and his two daughters. That's who
he took out. The angels took them out. They
also took Lot's wife out. But look, there's a lesson here.
Verse 32. Remember Lot's wife. Remember
Lot's wife. She left Sodom with Lot. Didn't she? She walked out of
Sodom with Lot. The angels took them out. But
Lot's wife left her heart in Sodom. So although she stood
outside Sodom with righteous Lot, we know he is because Peter
tells us, righteous Lot, it vexed his righteous soul. She stood
outside of Sodom with righteous Lot and the angels and she looked
back and she perished with the Sodomites. She perished with
those on whom the judgment of God fell. What about you? We were thinking recently about
not being able to serve God and mammon. You can't serve both,
either one or the other. Do you think you can stand with
God's elect, professing to be in his kingdom, expecting to
be taken to heaven, while your heart is in the world? Remember
Lot's wife. One of the shortest verses in
the Bible. Remember Lot's wife. She stood with the angels and
with Lot, righteous Lot, and yet her heart was still in Sodom
and she perished with the Sodomites. No, Jesus tells us It's going
to come. Judgment is coming. Why hasn't
it come? Peter tells us. The long-suffering of God waited
in the days of Noah, while the ark was a-preparing, wherein
few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water. The Lord is not
slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness, but
is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance. Today This is the message. If you don't know that you're
in the kingdom, listen today if you will hear his voice. Pardon
not your hearts. not as they did in the wilderness.
Harden not your hearts in unbelief, because you alone will be to
blame for your hardness of heart and your unbelief. Be single-minded
in your commitment. Remember Lot's wife. So then,
verse 37, so then, look, they answered the disciples and said
unto him, where, where is this kingdom? Where is this kingdom?
And he said unto them, wheresoever the body is, thither will the
eagles be gathered together. Now what on earth does that mean?
Where so ever the body is the eagles will be gathered. Where
is the kingdom of God? You know, this question we would
ask today, where is the kingdom of God? Most of the new translations
translate it as where the carcass is the dead animal the vultures
will circle around it and pick off its flesh And even somebody
as great an interpreter as John Gill speculated that it was probably
talking about the dead Jewish kingdom and the eagle of the
Roman Empire circling around to destroy them in A.D. 70. But
no, I think this is better. I think this is better. The body,
the body, one body, the eagles, many One body, many eagles. The word body there actually
means one who has been slain. Wheresoever the one who has been
slain is, thither will the eagles be gathered together. Who's the
one who has been slain? The Lord Jesus Christ. Wherever
the Lord Jesus Christ is, we preach Christ crucified. the one who has been slain. This
is what we preach. We gather together and we remember
him in bread and wine and the wine speaks of his precious blood
shed. Where the one who has been slain
is, there the eagles will gather. Eagles then, what about that?
Eagles. Many times in scripture, I haven't got time to tell you
all the references, but many times in scripture the people
of God believers are called eagles. Isaiah 41 verse, they that wait
upon the Lord shall mount up as wings of eagles. They that
wait upon the Lord shall mount, this is, what's he saying? Wherever
Christ crucified is preached, there will his true people gather.
Where is the kingdom of God? wherever believing saints gather
together around the sound of the gospel of grace of Christ
crucified for the redemption of his people. Where Christ crucified
for sin, why? To pay redemption's price, why? For justification, why? That
God might be just as well as a savior, that he might justify
the ungodly, wherever that is proclaimed, faithfully, And what
is the message of this book? There's no other message. There's
no other doctrine in it. We were reading Don Faulkner's
daily reading this morning and he's quite right. He said, I
know of no other doctrine in this book than this. It's the
redemption that Christ has accomplished for his people. Where that's
proclaimed, in this wilderness church time, God puts us in a
place where he feeds us, there his true eagles gather together
to feed. Here, just how many of us? One,
two, three, four, five, six, seven, and Timmy, and little
Isaac this morning. Such a small handful, but I know
there's many more going to join with us shortly. Before this
day's out, there'll probably be a hundred or more join with
us on the internet. Gathering together, the eagles
will gather together, because here, there's the body. Body,
the one who has been slain, the one who has shed his blood, here,
in this little group, the one at home, avoiding Babylon. Yes there's religion, yes there's
church, why don't you go to a church, oh can't you go to a church,
oh what a shame, it's Babylon, that's why you can't go there.
Oh but it's a reformed Baptist church, it's Babylon I'm telling
you, it's Babylon, test what they say, test what they say.
Some listening to this will be offended, well you have to give
offense at times to tell the truth, to tell the truth. It's
Babylon, it's Babylonian religion, So there are some at home on
their own, because it's Babylon all around them. They join with
us because they've got nowhere else to go. They join with us
because they're in one of those situations where they're yearning
for one of the days of the Son of Man, of great blessing, when
they gathered with several people and they had such blessed ministry. But they're on their own now,
because of sickness, because of persecution, because of whatever
reason it might be, nobody else to join with. But that is where
God's kingdom is. Our Lord tells us it plainly.
And religion? Religion all around us? It has
no idea. It doesn't discern it. Well,
there we are. Signs of the kingdom of God.