Numbers and chapter 14 and verse
24 for our text this morning. The book of Numbers chapter 14
and verse 24 where we read, But my servant Caleb, because he
had another spirit with him and has followed me fully, him will
I bring into the land whereunto he went, and his seed shall possess
it. in the chapter where the spies
were sent out. The children of Israel had been
in the wilderness. They'd left Egypt. And the spies
were sent out to spy out the land, to see what a good land
it was that the Lord was giving them. And you know that the report
came back very, very bad. Most of the spies gave a very
bad report that, yes, all right, it's got some good things, but
there are some terrifying people there. You don't want to go in
there because we definitely can't defeat them, but only Caleb and
Joshua. gave a good report, and put their
lives in great danger as a result, as we'll see. But here is the
promise, My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him,
and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land where
into he went, and his seed shall possess it. God is promising
something for Caleb there. I want to focus this morning
on the need for us to follow Christ fully. When you stand
up to preach, and you start preaching, you come out with a particular
message, and people will accuse you of imbalance from one way
or another. So, for example, you preach grace and mercy alone
in Christ, and people will accuse you of being an antinomian. Even
Martin Lloyd-Jones said that that was the case. If you preach
the true gospel of sovereign grace in the Lord Jesus Christ,
of particular redemption, that there's nothing that you do that
in one Iota adds anything to your salvation. People will accuse
you of being lawless, antedomian, and they do. And then to other
extremes, you preach the need for people to come to Christ,
and you're accused of, like I was a couple of weeks ago, somebody
wrote in about one of the messages, preaching like Billy Graham,
preaching free will works religion. You always get accused of one
thing or another, and I suspect this morning I'll be accused
again of preaching works religion. but I trust that isn't the case
if you listen carefully. You see, we must have scriptural
balance. It's what does the scripture
say is what we're seeking to find. Not one extreme or another. What does the scripture say?
We must balance one doctrine with another. Don't worry, the
word is not compromise that I'm suggesting here at all, but a
scriptural balance. You see, God gives gives, gives,
graciously gives His light by grace. By grace are you saved
through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of
God. God gives light by grace. But those who receive that light
must respond to that light. They must. Those who receive
the light of God's grace must respond to it. Nowhere does scripture
give warrant for passive fatalism. Jesus said, come unto me all
you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." He
didn't say, sit back fatalistically to wait and see if I'm going
to pick you up and bring you to me. He said, if you've heard
my voice and you're laboring, why are you laboring? Because
He's given you the gift of repentance. If you're laboring under that
burden of sin, He says, come. And with the power, with the
command to come, He gives the power to come. He quips with
His Spirit and gives that power to come. Nowhere does Scripture
give any warrant for passive fatalism and that's what I want
us to see this morning in preaching what we preach and believing
what we believe concerning the fact that there is not one thing
that we add in any way at all to our salvation you are complete
in Christ not you are ninety percent in Christ and the other
ten percent is what you have to make up so that you're a good
enough Christian to go to heaven not at all you are complete in
Christ but nevertheless we respond to the light that we've been
given And this was the testimony of Caleb. God's testimony of
him. He has followed me fully. Caleb had followed God fully. What a good example. We saw it
also in Joshua chapter 14, which is 45 years later. 45 years later,
they've come into the land. And Caleb is now saying, I come
in to possess my inheritance. He's coming to possess his inheritance. And in verse 14 of Joshua 14,
Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh,
the Kenazite, and to this day, because that he wholly followed
the Lord God of Israel." He followed him. You know, when Jesus gives
that command, to follow me, his sheep hear his voice, and they
follow him. Isn't this what it says in John's
Gospel, in chapter 10? Just turn over there. John chapter
10, and verses 4 and 5, When he putteth forth his own sheep,
He goeth before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know
his voice. And a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice of
strangers. And verse 27, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me. I've told you many times, but
it's worth telling you again. I grew up in the Lake District,
where they round up sheep with sheepdogs, snapping and barking
at the heels in the sheepdog trials. But I remember once in
Spain, driving along a motorway, seeing a continental shepherd
leading his sheep. And as he walked across a bridge,
the sheep willingly followed him. They heard his voice and
they willingly followed him. The sheep follow. And so it is
with Christ. He gives the command, follow me. When he called his
disciples, he went to them and he said, follow me. And what
did they do? To a man, they got up and they
followed him. There wasn't one of them that argued with him.
There wasn't one of them that stayed in his seat or doing what
he was doing. They got up and they followed him. Just a word.
Follow me. And they followed him. So Caleb
then, he was one of the spies. The other spies had given a bad
report, but only Caleb and Joshua had given this good report. And
so God cursed them for that. And for 40 years, they wandered
aimlessly in the wilderness and were not able to go in and possess
the land. And God had said, Every one of you that's 20 years old
and upwards, because of you hearing the voice of these spies giving
this bad report, you will perish in this wilderness, except for
Caleb and Joshua. Caleb was 40 years old. I don't
know the age of Joshua, I presume about the same, when they went
to spy out the land. Only Caleb and Joshua went in
to actually possess the land of those who were 20 years old
and above. Those under 20 years old, they
grew up and they had their children and they went in. to the promised
land. But all the others perished.
All of them perished. What was different about Caleb?
His name, they tell me, means this. It means a faithful dog. Some of you, I know, have got
a dog. Some of you have got a dog. And dogs, you know, there are
cat people and there are dog people. Now, I'm not going to,
you know, tell you ones better than another. They're just different.
But myself, I've always been a dog type of person because
I just find dogs are just such faithful, faithful creatures.
If you're the master of a dog, then your dog is utterly committed
to being where you are and doing what you want to do, and especially
if you want to go for a walk. Oh boy, the excitement, you know,
the wagging of the tail and the jumping up and down and all that
stuff. Faithful dog. This is what Caleb means. He
was a faithful dog. Normally, dog was an insult,
but in this case, it's a tremendous compliment. He was a faithful
dog. He followed his master. You know that kind of, where
are we going? Well, it doesn't matter. So long as I'm with you,
it doesn't matter where we're going. That's the spirit of the
dog, isn't it? The faithful dog. Wherever we're going, so long
as I'm with you, that's what matters. That's what it is. Faithful
dog. And it also means big heart.
He was a big-hearted, faithful dog. He was one who had single-minded
commitment to the Lord his God. Why was that? Look in verse 24
of Numbers 14. My servant Caleb, because he
had another spirit with him. He had another spirit with him. What was that other spirit that
he had with him? Was it just because he was just a good sort?
A good sort of chap who, you know, writes sort of upbringing
and all that kind of thing? No, it was a new nature. He'd
been given a new nature. God had planted a new nature
within him. God's Spirit had come to him
and made him alive and given him a new nature. We read about
this in Ezekiel. Turn over to Ezekiel chapter
36. The prophet Ezekiel chapter 36. You read here. This is God
speaking through the prophet. This is what he does for his
people. Chapter 36 and verse 24. For I will take you from among the
heathen and gather you out of all countries and will bring
you into your own land. That land is the kingdom of God.
That land is the kingdom of the gospel of His grace. That land
is the church of the redeemed. Then will I sprinkle clean water
upon you, and you shall be clean. From all your filthiness and
from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I
give you, and a new spirit will I put within you. And I will
take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give
you a heart of flesh and I will put my spirit within you and
cause you to walk in my statutes and you shall keep my judgments
and do them. That's the act of God's sovereign
grace to take his people and give them a new heart. Do you
want that new spirit? Do you want that new heart within
you? Well, I'll tell you what to do. Come to the cross. Come
to the foot of the cross. Come there. Look upon the one
who is bearing the sins of his people in the place of his people
there on the cross of Calvary. Look there and let that melt
your heart. As you see, what am I by nature? What am I as
a person by nature condemned under the law of God? And come
to the foot of the cross and see there the Messiah, the Christ,
the Son of the living God, bearing the sins of His people, that
He might establish justice, that He might be just and the justifier
of those who come to Him in faith. Zechariah 12 verse 10 says this,
I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants
of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplications and they shall
look upon me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for him
come to the foot of the cross and see there what Christ has
done for his people he'll give you his spirit see Christ bear
his people's sins and coming there look at Ephesians chapter
1 Ephesians chapter 1 you don't have to turn to it if you can't
get there quickly you know I fumble with my pages but I've got there
now Verse 13 of Ephesians chapter 1. Speaking of Christ, who first
trusted in Christ. Verse 12, that we should be to
the praise of His glory who first trusted in Christ. And remember,
the who first trusted in Christ doesn't mean us. Who was it who
first trusted in Christ? It was the Father who trusted
in Christ. God the Father trusted that Christ would save all His
people. Who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted. This is us. In whom ye also trusted. After that ye heard the word
of truth, for faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word
of God. And so we need a preacher to
come and preach the message of sovereign grace. After that ye
heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in
whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy
Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance, until
the redemption of the purchased possession. You see, coming there,
trusting Him, seeing Him, That word of truth in the gospel of
your salvation. God must give you His Spirit
if you are to follow Him. If you're to be like Caleb, God
must give you a Spirit to follow Him. But you can't have Christ's
Spirit unless you believe Him and follow Him. That's true.
You know, no man can come to me unless my Father draw him.
No man can. But I tell you, everyone who
comes, comes of their own free will. and they come believing
and choosing to come because He makes His people willing in
the day of His power. Look at Romans chapter 8. Romans
chapter 8. These are well-known words, I
know, but they bear on this very, very clearly. Romans chapter
8. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are
in Christ Jesus." No condemnation. In Christ Jesus, on that day
of judgment, there is no condemnation. We must all stand before the
judgment seat of Christ and give an account. And if you're in
Christ Jesus, that's the account you give. You're in Him. You're
hiding in Him. Hiding in Him. You're protected
from the judgment, the just judgment of God, for your sins have been
dealt with in Him. No condemnation to them which
are in Christ Jesus who walk. Those who are in Christ Jesus
walk, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit, for
the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me
free from the law of sin and death." And so he goes on, what
the law could not do. And the fact of the matter is
that being in Christ, you walk in Christ, you walk in the Spirit.
True faith, as the epistle of James says, true faith, what's
the mark of true faith? True faith works. Does it work
to earn its salvation? not in the slightest, but it
proves that it is true faith by the fact that it works. It
follows Christ. It walks in the Spirit and not
according to the flesh. And there is no condemnation
for those who are in Christ who walk. Those who are in Christ
don't just passively, fatalistically do nothing. They walk in the
Spirit. So Caleb believed God's Word. He had this new spirit within
him. He believed God's Word. He knew his true state. Do we? Do I know my true state before
this God to whom I must give an account? Do I know what I
am by nature, a sinner, deserving the justice of God, deserving
the condemnation of God? I know what I am by nature, but
I know this, I know whom I have believed, as Paul says, and that
He is able to keep that which I've committed unto Him against
that day. I know the One who is my Savior,
whom I have believed. I must stand before the judgment
seat of Christ, but I know Him. I know Christ who has stood there
for me, who has borne that wrath of God for me, who has drunk
that cup. He's drained every last drop
of the wrath of God against my sin in my place, for He made
Him who knew no sin to be made sin for us, that we might be
made the righteousness of God in Him. He knew whom He had believed. And also, because He knew His
God, as Daniel 11 And verse 32 says, because he knew his God,
the people that do know their God are strong to do exploits. Did you remember reading what
Caleb said? Eighty-five years old. And he
said, I'm as strong today as I was when I was forty years
old. And if the Lord is with me, nobody can stop me. I will
go in and possess this land and it will be mine and it will be
an inheritance for those who follow me. He was strong. He
did exploits for God. Those who know their God are
strong to do exploits. He loved others. He esteemed
others more highly than himself. You read the account of Caleb.
He was a humble man. He was a meek man. He loved others
and esteemed them more highly than himself. He was zealous
for the cause of God. He was zealous for the kingdom
of God. He went and when the other spies said, this is just
too difficult, there are giants in the land. Caleb went and said,
if the Lord goes with us, who can be against us? What can possibly
stop us? If it's the Lord's purpose, nothing
can stand in our way. And he looked for glory. His
mind was set in a different place. This is what Colossians chapter
3 says. Colossians chapter 3 exhorts believers to set their minds
on things above where Christ is. If ye then be risen with
Christ, Seek those things which are above where Christ sits on
the right hand of God. Set your affections on things
above, not on the things of the earth. That's so hard, isn't
it? The things of the earth are so alluring. They're so easy to set your affections
on. But here is the exhortation. Set your affection on things
above, not on things on the earth, for you are dead and your life
is hid with Christ in God. This is where Caleb's affections
were. because God had given him a new
spirit. And so because God had given
him a new spirit, verse 24 of Numbers 14, he has followed me
fully. Because God gave him that new
spirit in his heart, he had followed me fully. He's followed him fully. People describe themselves. I'm
sure I used to put it on job application forms at various
times. People will describe themselves.
Christians will describe themselves as committed Christians, as if
there are Christians who are not committed. There are undecided
Christians. And you put down, I am a committed
Christian. Well, we know what you're trying to say, and we
know why you have to say that, because the world around has
absolutely no idea what we mean. But how committed is committed? What is it to be a committed
Christian? What is it to be a Christian?
Because to be a Christian is to be committed to the Lord Jesus
Christ. Well, here are four things. Firstly,
Committed in every aspect of life. Absolutely every aspect
of life. In what you believe, you're committed
to Him. Committed to His word. Committed
to what does His word say. To the law and to the testimony.
If they speak not according to this word, there is no light
in them. I'm not going to believe something for convenience, or
to go with the majority, or to fit into a social grouping. I'm
going to believe something because God's Word says it and His Spirit
has revealed it to me. I'm going to follow Him. I'm
going to be absolutely committed to my God in what He has said. And I'm going to follow Him.
In all aspects of worship, what am I going to do? I'm going to
go where I worship Christ in spirit and in truth, where I
can rejoice in Christ Jesus, where I have no confidence in
the flesh. Where the worship of God is not just in outward
form and ritual and location and all of those other things,
but is on the basis of Christ and Him alone. Where the preaching
is determined to know nothing other than Jesus Christ and Him
crucified. That's where I'm going to worship
God. I'm not going to go and waste time for the sake of social
convenience, listening to all sorts of other messages. I'm
going to seek out those who desire to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ
in absolutely everything. I'm going to be obedient to Christ.
When He tells me where I should be, when He tells me what I should
be doing, when He tells me how I should be thinking in my mind,
in my thoughts, in my heart, when He tells me about what I
should be doing with my resources, the things that He's given me,
the things that He's lent to me for this life, when He tells
me about how I should be conducting my family life, I'm going to
be a willing servant of Christ, like that dog, that faithful
dog. Wherever He leads me, That's
where I'm going to go. You know, I'll say it again.
The sheep in John 10, they follow willingly. How do they follow?
Not by law constraint. What is it that constrains the
believer? The love of Christ constrains the believer. What
is it in a true marriage, in a true marriage of a man and
a woman? What is it? It's mutual love.
You go wherever the other one is. You want whatever the other
one wants. You go together. because of that love and so it
is the love of Christ constrains this following of him in every
aspect of life and we look as Hebrews 12 says looking unto
Jesus the author and finisher of our faith just as those sheep
look to that shepherd who leads them knowing wherever it may
be he will lead them in green pasture and by the still waters
secondly to follow him fully is to follow with sincerity and
not with outward show. Oh, there's so much that is just
outward show. Look at Matthew chapter 15 where
our Lord is speaking to the crowd. Matthew chapter 15 and verse
8. This people... He's quoting Isaiah. This people draweth nigh unto
me with their mouth. Oh, they say all the right things.
they make a show with their speech they draw nigh unto me with their
mouth and honoreth me with their lips but their heart is far from
me but in vain they do worship me they think they're worshiping
but it's all vanity it's futility it's pointless and they teach
for doctrines the commandments of men not the word of God to
the law and to the testimony this is what we seek to teach
so many draw near because of the outward appearance and not
because of the inward sincerity that comes from the heart. You
know, sometimes it's in face of danger. It's in face of opposition. It's in face of apathetic ignoring
of you for the cause of God. All of these things, but do it
with sincerity. You know, when Caleb and Joshua
stood alone, if you read Numbers 14 and verses 6 to 10, look at
the account here when they came back. They gave this bad account,
and Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly
of the congregation of the children of Israel. And Joshua, the son
of Nun, and Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, which were of them
that searched the land, they were two of the spies, they tore
their clothes, they rent their clothes. And they spake unto
all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land which
we pass through to search it is an exceeding good land. If
the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land.
and give it us, a land which floweth with milk and honey.
Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people
of the land, for they are bred for us. Their defense is departed
from them, and the Lord is with us. Fear them not." You see the
different spirit. But all the congregation bade
stone them with stones. They all shouted them down. Joshua
and Caleb shouted them down. In the face of great opposition,
Joshua and Caleb remained faithful to God and fully followed the
Lord in the face of danger because you see there are times when
it's so convenient and easy to follow the Lord but this is at
all times and then thirdly he followed him fully with gladness
with gladness with a glad spirit do you remember when they came
out of Egypt and they came with lots of gold and silver that
the Egyptians gave them to go They gave them it. And those
things were used to furnish the tabernacle and to make all the
gold coverings and all of those things. That's where they got
their raw materials from. But they were told, the people were
told that in making the furnishings for the tabernacle, do you remember
what God said? He only wanted those offerings
that were given willingly. Not grudgingly. Not, oh I suppose
I've got to give my tenth of this so therefore I better do
it. But given willingly. from a cheerful heart you know
what it says in second Corinthians chapter 9 in verse 7 the Lord
loves a cheerful giver a cheerful giver and so that service which
is fully following the Lord is glad service and then fourthly
it's service which is to the end we saw in Joshua chapter
14 and verse 10 and now behold the Lord has kept me alive as
he said these forty and five years even since the Lord spake
this word unto Moses while the children of Israel wandered in
the wilderness. And now, lo, I am this day fourscore
and five years old." Here he is, 85 years old. He's still
strong. He's still strong in faith. He's
still following the Lord. He's still that faithful, big-hearted
dog. You see, many, many start out
with good intentions. Many do. But many also go back. We read about them in the parable
of the sower. the sower goes out to sow the seed of the word
of the gospel of God's grace and he sows it and it falls on
all sorts of people pictured by the different types of land
and some just falls by the wayside and before anything's happened
to it the birds of the air come and take it away and some falls
on stony ground and it starts to grow but its roots can't go
down deep because it's stony ground and so as soon as the
sun comes up it's scorched because it doesn't have any deep roots
and it can't get any water It appears as though it's growing,
but it doesn't grow. And other seems to grow very
well, but it's among thorns and thistles, and it ends up unfruitful,
because those thorns and thistles, which are the cares of this world,
and the convenience of this world, and the things I really want
to do to pursue my career, and to do all of these other legitimate
things at the expense of serving God, they all grow up and they
choke it, and nothing happens. It remains unfruitful. But some
falls on good ground. and He keeps His people, and
He makes them fruitful. There were other disciples who
came because Jesus gave them a good feed. In John chapter
6, He fed the 5,000, and they thought, this is fantastic. You
know, five loaves and two fishes, and so many people have been
fed. Wow, this is the answer to this world's food problems,
that we just need this man to keep coming and feeding us like
this. How wonderful. And they came and they thought
everything was fine, and then He started to talk to them about
sovereign grace. and about particular redemption.
He told them that before the beginning of time, the Father
had given to the Son a people and that Christ had come into
the world to save His people from their sins. He'd come into
the world to die in the place of His people. He hadn't come
into the world to make it possible for everybody to be saved. He'd
come to save a specific people. And that's a doctrine of particular
redemption. And the world, and particularly
the religious world, hates it. But it's the doctrine of this
book from start to finish. a doctrine of particular redemption,
of salvation completed for all, for that great multitude that
no man can number." And many of those disciples that had enjoyed
the food and had enjoyed all of the teaching then said, this
isn't hard say. This doctrine's tough. Who can
stand this? I don't like this. This is not
what I consider to be utopian religion. And they walked out
on him. And Jesus said to those that remained, what about you?
Are you going to leave me also? And Peter stood up as the spokesman,
as he so often did, and he said, you have the words of eternal
life. To who shall we go? We can't go anywhere else. This
is a hard saying, but you have the words of eternal life, and
shall not the judge of all the earth do right? Will he not do
right in the end and show that his truth is right? Many start
out well and appear to be doing well, like the Galatian church,
and false teachers come in. and they don't heed the warnings
about false shepherds who come as angels of light teaching adding
works to what Christ has done in order to make you more acceptable
with God and a lot of them drift away and so Paul writes his epistle
to the Galatians countering that you see those that go away were
never truly Christ's in the first place this is what 1 John chapter
2 verse 19 says they went out from us because they were not
of us had they been of us they would have stayed with us There
are others who appear to follow in time of need. The Scriptures
speak of them. You know, when do you pray most? I almost guarantee, and the reason
I guarantee it is because this is me. You pray most when you're
in most need, don't you? You know? We should pray always. Men should always pray. But we're
so prone to save our best and most fervent prayers for the
times of need. And so Psalm 78 verses 34 to
37 says this, when He slew them, when God made it difficult for
them, then they sought Him. And they returned and inquired
early after God. And they remembered that God
was their rock. Oh, in a hard time, you know,
in time of war, the Second World War, how it's said the testimony
of this nation was how people flocked to the churches to pray
to God because where else could they turn? Where else could they
turn? In that hour of need, where else could they go? They remembered
that God was their rock and the High God their Redeemer. nevertheless
nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth and they
lied unto him with their tongues for their heart was not right
with him and oh how it proved when that day of victory came
at the end of the war when things started to get back to normal
how their heart was not right with him neither were they steadfast
in his covenant we need to beware of worldly ease worldly ease
is such a a distraction from the things of God and from following
Him fully. Amos chapter 6 and verse 1 says
this, Woe to them who are at ease in Zion. You would have
thought it would say, Oh, how great it is for them who are
at ease in Zion because they've got things so nice and easy,
but no, it's through trials and tribulations and correction and
discipline that God brings His people to glory. We must beware
of neglecting God's Word. and God's worship the worship
of God you know what Hebrews chapter 10 says Hebrews chapter
10 says this Hebrews chapter 10 and verse
25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as is the
manner of some but exhorting one another and so much the more
as you see the day approaching for if we sin willfully after
we have received the knowledge of the truth There remaineth
no more sacrifice for sins. Neglecting God's Word and His
worship is one of the easiest ways to fall out of that pattern
of following the Lord Jesus Christ. But then you say, but hold on
a minute, doesn't the Scripture say that God keeps His people? Doesn't He keep His people? Well,
yes, He surely does. He says this. John chapter 10.
John chapter 10 and verse 28. He says this about his sheep
who follow him, I give them eternal life and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them
out of my hand. My father which gave them me
is greater than all and no man is able to pluck them out of
my father's hand. I and my father are one. Isn't
that a clear promise that God keeps his people? He does keep
his people. He will not let them go. No one
can pluck them out of his hand. That is absolutely true. But
what was Paul's response to this? How did Paul respond to it? Look
at Philippians chapter 3. Just turn over there to Philippians
chapter 3. How did Paul respond to the fact
that he knew for sure that God definitely keeps his sheep and
doesn't ever let them go? He says this, verse 14. He didn't
say, I sit down and do nothing. He runs, he says in another place,
he runs as if he's in a race. He runs the Christian life as
if he's aiming to be the one who wins, the first one at the
tape. Every one of God's people does that. They run as if they
aim to finish that race and finish it successfully. God keeps his
people, but the response to it isn't passive fatalism. It's
active. Did Peter believe in sovereign
election? Did Peter believe that salvation is of the Lord? He
most definitely did. Again and again. You read his
first epistle, chapter 1 and verse 2. He's writing to people
who he says are elect according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father through sanctification of the Spirit. He believes that
fervently. And he preaches and expounds
it. He believes in the sovereign grace and sovereign purposes
of God. Absolutely. But what does he
say in response to that? His response is 2 Peter 1 and
verse 10. He gives a list of things to
do. He says, give all diligence. Work at it. Add to your faith
virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance,
and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, and to
godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity.
And he says, wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make
your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you
shall never fall. You see what he's saying there?
The reaction. is not passive indifference.
It's following the Lord fully like that faithful dog. What's
the result of it? We read it with Caleb. He received
his reward. Caleb received his reward. Now, let me make it absolutely
clear. I do not believe for one moment that there are degrees
of reward for believers in heaven. God said to Abraham, I, Abraham,
and this was Christ speaking, I am your exceeding great reward.
The prize, the reward for all believers is exactly the same.
It's the parable of the wages, of the people hired for the vineyard,
the work in the vineyard. And at the end of the day, every
one of them got the same wages. This is it. The prize of glory
is Christ. I am your exceeding great reward. But in this life, Psalm 19 verse
11, speaking of the statutes of God, the law of God. I'm not
talking about the Ten Commandments. I'm talking about the whole counsel
of God. I'm talking about the whole counsel of Christ, of the
gospel of His grace, of following, obeying that gospel of His grace,
of walking in it. And Psalm 19 verse 11 says, In
keeping of them there is great reward. 1 Samuel chapter 2 verse
30 says, For them that honor me I will honor, and they that
despise me shall be lightly esteemed. So you see, You cannot afford
not to follow Christ fully. You young people, as you're starting
out in life, if your trust is in Christ, you must follow Him
fully. Don't be half-hearted about it.
Don't think that there's a life that I must grasp first of all.
Follow Him. Follow Him. Respond to the light
that you've been given. Walk in His ways. Respond to
that light. Caleb was preserved when all
the others of his generation around him perished, and he was
useful to the end of his life. and he possessed his prize as
the Lord had promised. I'm going to finish with this.
Look at Matthew's Gospel, chapter 19. Matthew's Gospel, chapter
19, and verse 27. You see, this is a question that
you might ask if you're a young believer, if you're starting
out on this Christian life. This is a question you might
ask, the question that Peter asked of Jesus. Peter said unto
him, Behold, we have forsaken all We've forsaken everything
that we were going to do and followed Thee. We're fully following
You. And what shall we have therefore?
And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, that ye which
have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man shall sit
in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon the twelve
thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one that
hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother,
or wife, or children, or lands, for my namesake shall receive
an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life." Everlasting
life. This is the reward. This is the
promise. Godliness with contentment is
great gain. Fully following Christ. What
about you? What about me? Are we determined
to be like Caleb and fully follow the Lord like that faithful dog? Well, we're going to sing for
our closing hymn, number 744. 744. Begone unbelief, my savior
is near, and for my relief will surely appear. 744.