The title of my message tonight
is God's Messenger and His Message. Our text will be Ephesians chapter
1, verses 1, 2, and 3. God's Messenger and His Message. That's my title and that's the
two points of the message. When we open the book of Ephesians,
we immediately open a door that brings us into the indescribable
treasure house of God's grace. Everything in this short epistle
is delightfully, wonderfully sublime, and the things written
here are things that could never have been written but by divine
inspiration, and things that will never be understood except
he who wrote the book, God the Holy Spirit, be our teacher and
effectually teach these things to us. The fact that a gospel
church was established in Ephesus is itself a matter of astonishing
grace. Ephesus was a place of great
wealth, luxury, and learning. It was a city, however, altogether
given over to idolatry and the debauchery that follows idolatry. The Ephesians built an extravagant
temple of worship to their dunghill goddess, Diana. And yet among
these Ephesians were a people, a people loved and chosen of
God from eternity, redeemed by the precious blood of Christ,
who must be called by his grace. And at the appointed time of
love, God sent his servant, the apostle Paul to Ephesus, preaching
the gospel. Many, many were converted. Many
heard and believed the gospel. And God raised up a thriving
gospel church in this pagan city. This city of Ephesus was given
the privilege of having God establish his witness in her midst. Isn't that amazing? In the midst
of a society of wicked, vile, vile sinful men, pagan idolaters. God sent his servant, raised
up a gospel church, and established in their midst a thriving church
from which the gospel went forth into all the world for many,
many years. Now, this epistle was specifically
addressed to the saints of God at Ephesus. But don't make the
mistake of reading the scriptures and thinking to yourself, now,
these are the people to whom the epistle is addressed, and
these are the circumstances in which they live, and now this
is how we interpret the words of the epistle. Don't make that
mistake. Don't ever read the Word of God
as though it's talking to people who live in different times,
in different places, in different circumstances, confronting different
heresies and different conflicts than we do. Oh, no. This epistle
is addressed to God's saints. It is God's word to you, God's
word to me, God's word to his people in every age and in every
place and in every circumstance confronting every trouble his
people experience. Don't ever limit the Word of
God to just a specific time and place. If you do, you limit that
portion of the Word and make it speak not to you or to anyone
else. Oh no, the Word of God is God's
Word to us today, right here in Danville, Kentucky, where
we're sitting tonight. The primary thing set before
us in the opening verses of Ephesians and throughout the epistle are
God's eternal love for His elect, His absolute sovereignty in the
exercise of His grace, the election of His people in Christ, sovereign
predestination, full, free, complete redemption by Christ Jesus, and
the regenerating grace and saving power of His Spirit. The Apostle
Paul came to this city, as I said a moment ago, a city of more
than 225,000 people on his third missionary journey. He preached
there for three years, and God raised up this church. The church
thrived. It thrived for a long time. But then that local church, like
so many, had an experience. Something happened that destroyed
its witness. It was for many years a faithful
congregation until the Lord Jesus discovered a sad, sad fault in
the church at Ephesus. The pastor didn't see it. The
angel of the church wasn't aware of it. The people in the congregation
were not aware of this sad fault. But the Lord Jesus was aware
of it. And so he sent a letter to this
church to be read publicly in the assembly of the saints. And
this is what he said to them. I have somewhat against thee,
because thou hast left thy first love. He that hath an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. this strong, vibrant
church, known throughout the Christian world as a strong witness
for the gospel. The Lord Jesus said, you've left
your first love. And therefore, he took away their
candlestick. Took the candlestick out of its
place. took from them the light of the
gospel, took the light of the gospel from that place. Because
the Ephesian church left its first love, because they found
something more important to them than Christ, his gospel, his
glory, and his worship. He removed the candlestick out
of its place. Now, if that doesn't cause you
to turn your heart to God and ask him to shine in your heart
and revive your soul and revive in your soul that first devoted
love to Christ, I don't know what will. It causes me to tremble. These Ephesians found something
more important to them than Christ, his gospel, his church, his glory,
his will, and his worship. And therefore, God destroyed
the church. That great lighthouse became
a den of darkness and withered away. what a loud, thunderously
loud word of warning that ought to be to us. If God spared not
this church at Ephesus, let us take heed lest he find reason
to remove this candlestick from its place. The church of God
must and will stand until time shall be no more. That is not
a concern. but the candlestick is just a
piece of furniture in the great house. You can remove the candlestick,
throw it away, never think of it again, and it doesn't do any
damage to the house. In other words, this local church,
you and I, this preacher and this congregation, we are expendable. Grace Baptist Church of Danville,
Kentucky is expendable. God doesn't need us. God's church doesn't need us. God's kingdom doesn't need us. God's gospel doesn't need us. Oh, how we need God, his gospel,
his church, his kingdom, his interest. Our only purpose for
existence is that we might be a pillar and ground of the truth,
holding forth in this dark, dark, dark world, the light of the
glory of God in the gospel of Christ. If we cease to do that, this candlestick should and shall
be removed out of its place. I say all of that because I ask
you to pray. Pray for grace, continual outpourings
of grace, grace that we need, grace that your pastor needs,
grace that you need, grace that we all need, grace continually
being given us that we may be faithful to Christ. At God's
appointed time, My work here will be done. Our labor together
will come to an end, and God will take me home. When that
time comes, you'll have to seek another pastor. When you do,
I urge you, as I have so often in the past, seek and follow
the direction of other faithful pastors. Seek their help. I've had a lot of experience
in this regard, as you know. We've helped to establish several
churches in the time we've been together. God's used us, and
so thankful for that. I've helped a lot of congregations
find pastors. I'm involved in doing so right
now with other groups of people. And I sadly see some churches
that Their pastor dies, their pastor moves, they're without
a pastor, and they think they can handle it on their own. And
I'll tell you what I've observed. I'm not an expert. I don't pretend
to know everything there is to know about this stuff, but I'll
tell you what I've observed. I have never seen one yet make
a wise decision. I've never seen it happen. Not
seeking the help, the guidance, the direction of another faithful
pastor. Folks who think they can make
it on their own. We know as much as the preachers
out there do. You just don't. You just don't. These men coming
to preach to you Tuesday and next Sunday, Bill, I know them.
I know them real well. You know them just slightly.
You just know them slightly. And the fact is, if you want
to seek a pastor, if I should drop dead tonight and God has
you without a pastor, seek the help of men who know what they're
doing. Men who serve God with other
pastors in this day. Seek the will of God that he
might give you a pastor after his own heart. One who will feed
you with knowledge and understanding. All of the other things that
impress people, all of the other things, degrees, personality,
the way he dresses, what his wife looks like, all the other
things that impress people are totally irrelevant. Totally irrelevant. Seek a pastor after God's heart
who will feed you with knowledge, knowledge of God's word, knowledge
of God, a pastor addicted to the work of the ministry who
studies and gives himself to the work and feed you with understanding. understanding the times in which
we live, understanding the needs of men, understanding the work
of God, understanding the word of God, understanding you and
your experiences. Look for a man who faithfully
and boldly preaches the gospel, one who makes it his business
to preach Jesus Christ crucified in his saving grace and glory
all the time. Seek a man gifted to serve you.
One, you're anxious to hear. Seek a man to minister to your
souls day by day, you're anxious to hear. A man by whom you expect
God to speak to your heart. You have such a pastor as that. And he won't have to bribe you
to come to church. You're expecting God to speak
to you. And seek a man who's proved himself
faithful, one addicted to the work of the ministry. Now, let's
look at our text. Ephesians 1, verse 1. As was
his custom, the apostle Paul began this epistle with a very
gracious salutation. But don't ever read these salutations
as just being a proper way to address a letter, a proper courteous
way to begin a letter. These salutations were written
by divine inspiration, just as everything else in the book was
written by divine inspiration. So read this word from God to
you. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
Now, right over top of that word apostle somewhere, messenger.
That's the basic meaning of the word. Paul, a messenger of Jesus
Christ by the will of God to the saints which are in Ephesus
and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. First, let me talk to
you a little bit about God's messenger. Who is God's messenger? How do you identify God's messenger? Where do you find God's messenger? And who is not God's messenger? We have preachers everywhere. Preachers galore. Ralph Barnard
said in his day, and it should be said with a tenfold time,
a thousandfold time emphasis, you ought to put a 10 cent bounty
on them, every one of them. We've got preachers galore. Way
more preachers than anybody needs. Preachers on every corner. We
live, somebody asked me about the place where we live. I said,
you've heard of the Bible Belt? We live in the buckle. We've
got preachers in churches everywhere. Everywhere. On every street corner
you'll find a preacher. You turn on the television, 24
hours a day, you'll find preachers. Preachers everywhere. If you
go over here to the prison, on every cell block you'll find
a preacher. But you don't find God's messengers just everywhere.
Paul begins this epistle by identifying himself as a messenger of Jesus
Christ. Paul, an apostle, a messenger
of Jesus Christ by the will of God. Now, there are no apostles
today. Those who pretend to be apostles
are ignorant. They don't know what they're
talking about or they're deceivers and don't know what they're talking
about. There are no apostles today. The last of the apostles
died when the last apostle died and there'll never be another
one. There are no men with apostolic gifts today. We don't need such
men. We have the Word of God in its
finality. But God's servants, all God's
servants are God's messengers. They are men who carry a message
from God to you. The Apostle Paul says, I am Paul,
a messenger, just one among many. Not the messenger, not even a
preeminent messenger, not a special messenger, just a messenger.
One who carries a message from God, our Savior, Jesus Christ,
to your soul. A messenger of Jesus Christ. Now this man Paul says he was
a messenger by the will of God. He was not a man who put himself
into the ministry. He didn't thrust himself into
the ministry. No man takes this honor upon
himself. He was a man sent by the will
of God to preach the gospel. He declared necessity is laid
upon me. Yea, woe is unto me if I preach
not the gospel. His labors, his sacrifices, his
sufferings were all patiently endured because of that necessity. He was a man who was a messenger
of Jesus Christ in his day by the will of God. And knowing
that to be the case, he gladly endured whatever difficulties
he had to endure for the sake of the gospel. He didn't enter
into this work to obtain a livelihood for himself or to secure an honorable
name for himself or to put himself in a preeminent position of leadership
and influence. but because God called him to
the work. And yet he who is called of God doesn't shrink from the work. No. I can't think of a more demanding
labor in the world. I know you who hear me, you can't
possibly enter into what I just said. Preacher, there's a lot
of things that are demanding. Everybody thinks that about his
job. I can't tell you how many times I've had folks say, well,
everybody thinks that. Well, think what you will. I
can't think of a more demanding labor in the world than the labor
of the ministry, laboring in the word of God for the souls
of eternity-bound sinners for the glory of God. I can't think
of a more demanding labor. I can't think of a labor that
will, by its very work, cause a man to endure more conflict,
more difficulty, or put his family in greater difficulty than the
work of the ministry. But that man who is called of
God to this work will not shrink from it. He won't do it. He just
won't do it. Necessity is laid upon him. Necessity in his heart. Necessity
in his soul. Necessity from which he cannot
be turned. The church today doesn't need
more preachers, but oh, how we ought to pray the Lord of the
harvest that he would send forth, listen to the word, laborers
into his vineyard. laborers in his name, preachers. Preachers sent with the message
from Jesus Christ by the will of God, constrained by the love
of Christ and not by the love of money. Men who labor not for
gain, but for God's glory. Men who don't fleece the sheep,
but feed them. Men who are sent into the field,
not men who seek the forefront. First understand this then about
God's messenger. That man who is called of God
to preach the gospel is a man called, gifted, and sent by God. He's a sent man. He's a sent
man. The man who puts himself into
the ministry, who labors from any motive other than the will
of God and the glory of God cannot preach the gospel. He may preach
doctrinal truth. He may preach things that sound
good to you and impress you. But he cannot preach the gospel
in the power of God to your soul. For the glory of Christ in your
soul's benefit, how can they preach except they be sent? I can't preach the gospel to
you, not today, not this hour, not any day, not any hour, not
to any people, except God on that occasion, at that time,
send me to you with His message. I've come to you tonight with
a message from God. A message from God found in Ephesians
chapter 1, verses 1, 2, and 3. A message that burns in my bones
and must be delivered to you. A message not in which I've come
to offer you an opinion about something. I don't offer opinions
when I preach. I don't give you something to
study and think about when I preach. The questions I have, I leave
back there in the study. When I'm not certain about something,
I leave it back here. I don't come out here and speculate.
I didn't come here to share with you something. I came, Bobby,
to declare to you what God says and demand that you hear it and
obey it. That's what God's messenger does, not by his authority, but
by God's authority. The man who bears God's message
to God's people, that man who bears God's message must be sent
of God. The prophets of old were men
sent of God. The apostles were men sent of
God. Pastors were men sent of God. And today God's preachers are
still sent of God, sent in the churches where God would have
them to set things in order in the churches continually. Secondly,
God's messenger is his servant. We can't do better when we look
for an example of a gospel preacher than to look to the Apostle Paul.
Hold your hands here and turn back to Romans chapter one. Romans
chapter one. Here we see another example of
the way Paul describes himself and thus describes all who truly
preach the gospel. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ. Not Pope Paul, Dr. Paul, Reverend
Paul, Father Paul, just Paul. A servant of Jesus Christ called
to be an apostle, called to be a messenger. Gospel preachers
are being called of God to this work. They're men who are given
a messianic mandate from God. Men who are called to the work
with a mandate from God to preach the gospel. If you ever run across
a man who has a mandate from God or even thinks he has a mandate
from God, you better either lock him up or get out of his way
or get on his side. One of the three. Because he
can't be bribed, he can't be bought, he can't be dissuaded,
not by bribery, not by pleasure, not by pain. He can't be turned
aside. He has a mandate from God. Nobody's
gonna control him except God. So either get out of his way,
get on his side, or lock him up. He's a man with a mandate
from God that will not be turned aside. You remember when Abraham
sent his servant Eliezer to find a bride for his son Isaac? Eliezer
came to Rebekah's family and they tried to get him to turn
aside from this thing or the other side thing. Do this first,
do that first. He said, I've come here for one
reason. Now let's get this one thing settled and then we'll
go by something else. God's servant is just like that
man seeking a bride for Isaac. Moses had a mandate from God. That meant when he had to go
to Pharaoh. Can you imagine? When I read
the scriptures, I try to put myself in the position of the
man who is sent of God to do something. Can you imagine what
it must have taken for Moses, who was raised in Pharaoh's house,
who was now a wanted man by Pharaoh's house, I mean, he was a wanted
man, wanted by the king, the ruler of the most powerful nation
the world had ever known. He walks into Pharaoh's palace
and says, Pharaoh, this is what God says you're going to do.
Can you imagine that? And Pharaoh said, who is God?
And Moses said, you're fixing to find out, boy. And he turned
around and walked out. What would it take to do that?
Scent of God. John the Baptist was a man sent
of God. Sent of God. Therefore, he didn't
hesitate when he stood face to face with Herod to say, Herod,
it's not lawful for you to have your brother's wife. It cost
him his head, but he wouldn't be controlled. He wouldn't be
turned aside. He had a mandate from God. I'll
tell you something else about that man who truly preaches the
gospel. He's a servant of Jesus Christ,
a divinely called messenger of Jesus Christ, separated under
the gospel. Separated by God's decree, separated
by God's call, separated by God's providence, and separated by
his own determination continually, separated to the gospel, refusing
to be turned aside from it. Long, long time ago. It's been
a long time ago. We hadn't been in this building
very long. The basement wasn't finished
yet. I had my office back here in the back. And a friend of
mine from high school came by one day. He had learned that
I was a preacher, found out I was in Danville, and he had gone
in business and making blue scootles of money. And he came by here
and offered me a business opportunity. And I said to him, Steve, I'm
just not interested. But look at the money you can
make. Steve, I'm just not interested. But you don't understand what
I'm offering you. I am just not interested. I have something more important
to do. Why would you do that? Because
I have something more important to do. Something that requires
all of me. all the time, every day. God's
servant is a man separated to the gospel by the will of God,
by his own increasing determination never to be turned aside. Look
in Romans 1 verse 9. God is my witness. That's some
statement to make. Paul didn't take that lightly.
God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel
of his son. That without ceasing, I make
mention of you always in my prayers, making requests. That is, this
is what I'm asking of God for you and for me. If by any means,
if by any means. Do you know how he finally got
there? He finally got there as a prisoner.
If by any means, now at length I might have a prosperous journey
by the will of God to come to you, for I long to see you for
this purpose, so that I can get some money to take me along the
way. No, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift to the
end that you may be established. That is, that I may be comforted
together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. Now,
I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed
to come to you. This has always been in my heart.
But I was led, I was hindered hitherto, that I might have some
fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. I'm a debtor. I'm a debtor. I'm a man head
over heels in debt, both to the Greeks and to the barbarians,
both to the wise and to the unwise. So as much as in me is, I'm ready
to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. That man who
preaches the gospel is determined to renounce the hidden things
of dishonesty, Not to walk in craftiness, not to handle the
word of God deceitfully, not to preach himself, from himself,
for himself, or by himself, but to preach Jesus Christ to you
continually. Now, go back to Ephesians 1. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
by the will of God to the saints, which are at Ephesus. Saints. These men who are God's people,
Paul calls God's saints. He addresses them as saints because
these men and women professed faith in God. And Paul took them
at their profession as believers in Jesus Christ and addresses
them as saints, holy people, holy people. Now, if you read
the epistle, you will see that they often behaved otherwise. They obviously were influenced
by their circumstances, by the times in which they lived, by
the things that went on with them day by day. I was talking
to Doug and Faith yesterday. The family surprised us, and
they came over and spent most of the day with us yesterday.
We weren't expecting them. And we were talking about things
come out of this movie, Sniper. They'd been to see it, and one
of them said, you don't want to go to the theater to see that. I
just thought a foul language. And I said to Doug, I said, I'm
not approved. And I spent my life, before God
saved me, working among people in factories and loading freight
and around truck drivers and union fellows. And I know how
folks talk. I said, bad as it was, I didn't
ever know anybody talked like that. I said, is that the way
people talk now? He said, yes. Pretty much the
way folks talk all the time. And we become accustomed to it.
And we let ourselves be influenced by the society in which we live
so that we look over things we ought not look over. And that's
just what happens with these Ephesians. That's what goes on
with you. I had the privilege, as I said
to you, that I spend my life back here studying this word,
reading the old writers, and I don't watch much television
when I do this old stuff. I don't hear or see the stuff
you hear and see, for the most part, and I cringe at what I
see. But you have to deal with it
every day. And little by little, it influences you. Little by
little, it makes you numb to it. And that's the case with
God's people everywhere. And God's people everywhere need
continual instruction about living in this world, but they're still
God's saints. Holy. Righteous because of Christ's
righteousness imputed to them. Righteous and holy because of
Christ's righteousness imparted to them. Righteous and holy before
God. Saints. Let us never, never,
never forget that when dealing with one another. God's people
are God's saints. God's saints. God's choice. God's treasure. God's delight. Let's be careful how we think
about them, let alone how we talk about them. Let's be careful
how we treat them. Esteem them very highly in love
because they are God's saints. These saints, Paul describes,
are faithful. Faithful. All who are born of
God, all who are made heirs of God, all who are one with Christ,
all who have faith in Christ are faithful. They're faithful. Faith makes folks faithful. Grace makes folks faithful. Faithful to God, faithful to
Christ, faithful to the cause of God, faithful to the gospel,
faithful to one another, faithful in the totality of their lives.
You read the book of God over and over and over again. He addresses
these folks as saints and faithful, saints and faithful, saints and
faithful. Wherever there is faith, You
find saints who are faithful. That's the way God's people are.
That's not how they ought to be. That's how they are. That's
not how we recommend they be. That's how they are. That's not
the way. That's not the ideal. That's
what they are. They are holy men and women who
live in faithfulness to God, living by faith in Jesus Christ. Look at verse one again. In Christ
Jesus. Ah, in Christ Jesus. All God's goodness and mercy
and grace is in Christ. And God's people live in union
with Jesus Christ. One with Him. One with Christ
forever. Look at verse two. Grace be unto
you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
This sentence is an inspired pronouncement of grace and peace
on every believing sinner for time and eternity. Grace is the
constant gift of God to you. Isn't that so? Grace is the constant
gift of God to you. And that grace is constantly
bringing peace. Peace in your heart through the
blood of Jesus Christ by which you're reconciled to God. Peace
of conscience because your sins are washed away. Peace in your
soul because you're confident of Christ your Savior. Confident
of His finished work and confident of His present work and confident
of His promised work. Confident of Him. Grace and peace
to you from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, let's look at the message
God's servants preach. We've seen the messenger. We'll
get to verse three, we see his message. That man who is called
and gifted of God to preach the gospel is sent to preach God's message. And they're all sent to preach
essentially the same message. It is always the same in its
doctrinal content. They see eye to eye with regard
to these things. God's servants are men with a
message from God to them for you. I never heard preaching
described more clearly or more properly than when I heard Brother
Scott Richardson say once, preaching, preaching is getting a message
from God's heart to my heart, to your heart. Getting a message from God's
heart to my heart, to your heart. And no man can do that. No man
can do that. That must be the continual work
of God's Spirit in His servants. Back in Isaiah chapter 40, if
you want to turn back there, do turn back there, Isaiah chapter
40. We have instruction given by
God to all preachers, to all his prophets. Isaiah 40 verse one. Comfort
ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably
to Jerusalem. Cry unto her that her warfare
is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, for she hath received
of the Lord's hand double for all her sins." I used to know
a preacher, a young man. He was then. Thank God he's not
a preacher anymore, but man, he could scald folks. I never heard him preach when
he didn't take a dull knife and cut just as deep as he could
and pour in the salt and rub real hard. I mean, he could just,
oh, he could scald folks. And I suggested to him one time
in conversation, I said, I would recommend that you have your
wife to make you a plaque. and put on the plaque Isaiah
40, 1 and 2, and hang it in front of your desk so you can't help
but to see it all the time you're studying and preparing. He said,
what's that say? I said, comfort ye, comfort ye,
my people, saith your God. He said, well, what good would
that do? That's what God says his servants are to do. Comfort,
comfort, comfort, comfort, comfort, comfort, my people. Speak to
the heart of my people. That's what the pastor must do.
That's what the preacher must do. Speak comfortable words to
them. What words? Tell them her warfare
is finished. It's accomplished. Her iniquity,
it's gone. It's put away. She's received
to the Lord's hand double for all her sin. declare this message
to their heart continually. Well, what is that? What shall
I cry that I may comfort God's people? God says, tell them all
flesh is grass. And tell them, behold your God.
Tell my people they're nothing and Christ is everything. Tell
my people their best deeds are just like the flower of the field
that withers with the rising sun and is blown away by the
wind. Tell them that everything is in God their Savior, the sovereign,
almighty, effectual Savior of His people. And looking to Him,
they will find peace, grace and peace continually. Now, Let's
look at the message as it's set before us here in Ephesians 1,
3, and I'll be done. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. First, this statement
sets before us the deity, the eternal Godhead of our blessed
Savior, Jesus Christ, our Savior, is Himself God. Isn't that wonderful? Jesus Christ,
our Savior, is Himself God. That means whatever he puts his
hand to, he accomplishes. That means whatever he wills,
he has. That means whatever he has determined
shall come to pass. That means whatever he seeks
at the throne of grace, he has by right as God, as well as the
God-man, our mediator. But why is God the father here
called the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ? Because
Jesus Christ is God, the eternally begotten son in his deity. And
because Jesus Christ is that holy thing conceived in the womb
of the virgin by the decree of God and the overshadowing power
of God, the Holy Spirit. Second, the apostle calls upon
us to bless God. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ. The word that is commonly translated
blessed means happy. This word means to highly praise,
to speak well of. It is the word from which we
get our word eulogy. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not
all his benefits. Paul is saying to us, speak well
of God and praise him highly. Speak well of God and praise
him highly. Always, when you speak of God,
speak well of God. Always when you speak of God,
praise Him highly. Make that your business. Make
that your determination. Always when you think of God,
esteem Him and think well of Him. Always when you think of
God, praise Him highly. Make that your business, your
determination. For all the greatness and goodness
of His being and for all the grace He bestows, And then Paul
says, the blessedness with which the Lord God has blessed us in
Christ Jesus is the reason for which we should speak well of
Him and praise Him highly. The God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ hath blessed us. He hath blessed us. I'll just
read it and come back to it another day. At one time in the past
in eternity, with all spiritual blessings, with all spiritual blessings,
all that God can or will give to sinners, he has from eternity
heaped upon us the objects of his love and of his eternal choice. All spiritual blessings in Christ,
in union with Christ from everlasting. The Lord God accepting us in
the beloved, heaps upon us from everlasting, all spiritual blessings
in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Everything is ours in
Christ. All our faith, All our gospel,
all our hope, all our life is Jesus Christ, the Lord. Without
Him, we are nothing, we have nothing, and we can do nothing. With Him, we are as He is. We have everything. and we can do anything He would
have us do. If that doesn't put some skip
in your step, I don't know what will. We are what He is. We have all that He has, and
we can do everything He would have us to do. Oh, what a blessing. Yonder in glory land, Christ
is worshiped and praised and he alone by everyone. Let it be ours while we live
in this world to worship and praise him alone and serve him
with every fiber of our beings for the glory of his name and
the benefit of his people. Amen. Amen.