Thyatira was the home of Lydia,
that woman whose heart the Lord opened under Paul's ministry. It was a city of great commerce,
a center of communication with many, many people passing through
it every day. In Thyatira, you would likely
find the trade guilds of the day well organized, the wool
workers union, the tailors union, the linen workers union. Leather
Craftsman Union, the Potter's Union, and so on. All were associated
in business with pagan idolatry. Each guild had its own guardian
god. The situation for the believers
in Thyatira was much like this. If you wanted to get ahead in
business, you had to belong to one of the If you belong to one
of the guilds, then your membership implied that you worshiped the
god of that guild. You would be expected to eat
the food that had been offered to these gods at their pagan
festivals, receiving that food as a gift of the gods. Now, that's
where the problem came in with this thing of eating meats that
had been offered to idols. In doing this, men and women
were saying publicly that they were receiving these meats as
meats that were given from the gods. And this is where the difficulty
arose. After the feast, of course, the
orgies would begin, which were common in Greek cultural religion. And you dare not insult your
friends, your peers, your business associates by walking out of
their religious festivities. What could a believer do in such
a situation? If he quits his union, he's going
to lose his business. If he remains in his union, attends
the immoral festivities, and joins in the idolatrous fornication
of pagan worship, he's going to be sinning against his own
conscience and denying his Lord. The believers at Thyatira had
to face this kind of difficulty every day. They had these kinds
of choices to make every day, either to serve Christ and obey
Christ or to join up with the pagan religious atmosphere in
which they lived and so deny Christ. But there was a prophetess
in the church of Thyatira named Jezebel, and she claimed that
she had the solution to this problem. She reasoned that if
you would conquer Satan, you got to know him. You will never
be able to influence the idolaters if you condemn them and refuse
to go along with their religion. Sound familiar? You can't possibly
do any good unless you give a little sugar, you know. You can't possibly
do any good as long as you stand out and by your actions or by
your words condemn the religion of others. You don't have to
deny Christ. But you cannot expect to get
along in the world if you do not accept the world's religion.
By her cunning and craftiness, this prophetess seduced many
in the church and persuaded them to commit fornication. This was
the condition of the church at Thyatira. Now, almost all of
the old commentaries suggest that this letter has reference
to the rise of papacy and to the heretical, immoral doctrines
and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. And if you care to read
a little bit of history, you will find that Romanism did indeed
promote gross immorality. And in societies that are not
quite so well advanced in civilization as ours are, even today, Roman
Catholicism promotes nothing but superstition and witchcraft
and immorality of every kind. I have no tolerance for papacy. You are aware of that. I am always
ready to denounce it as anti-Christ. It is anti-Christ religion. Patriarchy
is idolatry. It promotes immorality. Its doctrines
are nothing but heretical superstitions. And yet this letter to the church
at Thyatira is not to be so restricted in its interpretation. Like the
other six letters of our Lord, this letter is addressed to us. It warns us of certain dangers
which the church is sure to encounter in any age. That's the reason
our Lord repeats this seven times. He that hath an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. In this letter,
our Lord Jesus Christ is warning us of the subtle influences of
false religion. I'm going to speak to you plainly
this evening. I endeavor to speak plainly so
that you'll understand exactly what I'm saying. I trust that
God will enable you to hear readily and to hear soberly these five
things that I want to show you from this letter to Thyatira.
First of all, as our letter opens, the Lord Jesus makes an assuring
revelation. It is a revelation of himself
in verse 18. He who walks in the midst of
the churches and holds her pastors in his right hand is himself
the Son of God who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire and
his feet are like fine brass. Now, our Lord Jesus Christ tells
us in these times of danger, in these times of religious darkness,
superstition, and apostasy that he knows us and that he is present
with us. Nothing is more comforting to
the believer, nothing more comforting to the people of God than the
assurance that the Lord is at hand both to observe and to protect
his own. Christ addresses himself to the
angel of the church at Thyatira. The angel of the church is her
pastor. He is God's messenger to that
particular congregation. Now you will notice that there
is in each local church but one angel, one messenger from God. There cannot possibly be two.
There cannot possibly be two men who try to work cooperatively
in pastoring a church any more than a wife could have two husbands
or have two heads in one household. In the church of God, there's
one angel, one messenger from God, one man who stands to deliver
a message from God to his people. Our Lord addresses this letter
to the pastor of the church. It is his responsibility under
God to instruct the people of God and to protect them from
the many forms of false religion that arise. You remember that
in Acts chapter 20, the Apostle Paul admonished the Ephesian
elders to take heed to the Church of God, over which the Holy Ghost
had made them overseers, to feed the Church of God, which he had
purchased with his own blood. And the reason that Paul gives,
he says, for many false prophets shall arise and seduce many. They're going to come those even
out of your own midst who will draw away disciples after themselves. After my departing, grievous
wolves shall enter in. Turn to the book of Ephesians.
Ephesians 4. I want you to see this now. Ephesians chapter 4. I realize
that people, especially in this effeminate day in which we live,
people don't like to hear a pastor say anything at all about somebody
else's religion. People say, well, the two things
I don't discuss, and that's politics and religion. That's usually
because the fellow doesn't know anything about either one. In
Ephesians 4, the Apostle Paul tells us that one aspect of a
pastor's responsibility is to defend the Church of God against
heresy. to defend the people of God against
false religion. Look here in Ephesians chapter
4 and verse 11. Paul said Christ gave pastors
and teachers. Verse 12 it says, for the perfecting
of the saints, the maturing of the saints, for the work of the
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, the building
up of the church, till we all come in the unity of the faith,
and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that
we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro and carried
about with every wind of doctrine by the slight of men and the
cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive." Paul
says, now this is one reason why Christ gave pastors. He gave
you this man standing here now so that you might be established
in the truth and not be carried about with every slight of doctrine
and the cunning craftiness of Satan. The Lord Jesus Christ
here identifies Himself to these believers at Thyatira as the
Son of God. And in doing so, He is calling
for us both to trust Him and to obey Him. He who is the head
of the church, our Savior and Lord, is himself God. Notice what it says. These things
saith the Son of God. Over in chapter 1 in verse 13,
he described himself as the Son of Man. He called Himself the
Son of Man in order to assure us of His love and sympathy toward
us. He calls Himself the Son of God
in order to assure us of His sovereign, almighty power. Our
Savior is God Almighty, and He is a man touched with the feeling
of our infirmities. His eyes are like a flame of
fire. That's to indicate that He has
a piercing, penetrating, perfect knowledge and insight into all
things and of all people. He searches the hearts and He
knows the motives. He tries the reins and He knows
the principles by which men operate. His feet are like fine brass
that indicates strength, power, stability. As our Savior knows
and judges all things with perfect wisdom, He being God rules all
things and acts with absolute strength and perfect steadiness. His works of providence are deliberate
and irrepressible. He moves through this world with
feet of fine brass, absolute enduring stability. These two
things ought to encourage every faithful pastor to remain loyal
to Christ, ought to encourage every church to remain loyal
to the gospel of His grace. Christ knows all things and Christ
has all power. Whom then shall we fear? Why
should we be cast down? Why should we be tempted to compromise
or to hedge with regard to the declaration of gospel truth?
Secondly, our Lord displays and acknowledges regard for the faithfulness
of his people. Look at verse 19. I know thy
works. and charity, and service, and
faith, and thy patience, and thy works, and the last to be
more than the first." Now that reading seems to be a little
redundant. What he's saying is this, I know your works, and
then he describes the works for us. He promised to honor them
that honor him, and here he fulfills the promise. The Son of God publicly
commends the good works of faithful men and women in this passage
of scripture. This commendation was not given
by a stranger. It was not given by a mere casual
observer. It was given by one who was well
acquainted with them and with the principles by which they
acted. He says to these believers at Thyatira, now I have eyes
of a flame of fire and I know your works. I know your works.
And with that all-seeing eye, he commends the works that these
men and women performed. We must do nothing to promote
pride or to honor human flesh. And yet at the same time, we
ought never to neglect to commend and show appreciation and gratitude
for good things which men do for Christ, or even good things
which men do for us for Christ's sake. As our Lord here commends
the labors of men, we ought to take a hint from him and be careful
to commend men for that which is faithful and demonstrates
faithfulness on their part. We ought to commend men for any
good thing that's done for the cause Christ, any good thing
that's done for the welfare of God's people. Our Savior here
specifically names five works for which he commends his believing
people at Thyatira. First of all, he said, I know
your charity. They were men and women of charity. The word is love, love. Not only were they generous and
open-handed toward those who were needy, but these men and
women loved one another. This is a clear evidence of real
faith. Those who are born of God love Christ, and they love
one another. Our Lord said, By this shall
all men know that you're my disciples, if you have loved one for another.
God is love. He loved us, and we ought to
love one another. He that loves not his brother
whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
Now, if we're born of God, we love each other. We love God's
people. God creates love in the hearts
of all believers. You find me a man who's mean,
you find me a woman who's mean, who's just mean-spirited, critical,
sharp-tongued, I'll show you somebody who doesn't know Christ,
who doesn't know the gospel. Love is more than a mere phony,
candy-coated smile. I see these fools on TV. You can mark this down. Mark
it down. Nobody is honest who smiles all the time. You see
these fellas on TV. Everything's candy-coated, so
happy, so goody-goody, so effeminate, so sissy. We love you. We love you. We love you. Give,
give, give, give, give. No, that's not love. You can
write this down. I want you to jot it down. This
is a definition of love. Love is a thoughtful regard for. and an active pursuit of another
person's happiness and welfare. There it is. It may not have
a candy-coated smile. It may not always demonstrate
that which men look at and applaud. But love is a thoughtful regard
for and an active pursuit of another person's happiness and
welfare. Do you love the people of God?
Do I? These people at Thyatira were
commended by Christ for their love one toward another. And
then our Savior commends them for their service as well. He
said, I know thy service. These brethren at Thyatira were
men of service to the gospel. No doubt they served one another
in many ways for they loved one another. But the word here seems
to have reference to the ministry. particularly referenced to commitment
with regard to the gospel ministry. They were committed as a congregation. They were committed as an assembly
of believing men and women to the spread of the gospel. With
great diligence, they sacrificed their time, their money, and
their labor so that other people scattered around the world might
hear the gospel. Our Savior said, I know your
love, and here's the evidence of it. You serve the gospel.
You serve the souls of men. And then thirdly, God's saints
in this church at Thyatira demonstrated great faithfulness to Christ.
He said, I know your faith. The word is faithfulness. I know
your faithfulness. Faithfulness is the one thing
God requires of his servants. It's required of a steward that
he be found faithful. And faithfulness is the one thing
all of God's servants render to him. God's people are faithful. They're faithful. They're dependent. They're just dependable. I've
been trying for a long time to set forth what the scriptures
teach concerning this matter of faithfulness, and I can't
find a better word than dependability, commitment. These men and women
at Thyatira could be counted on. in good times and in bad,
in hard times and in prosperous times. They could be depended
on. They were faithful to the gospel, faithful to Christ, faithful
to the things of God, faithful to the people of God. They were
found faithful, faithful. They were the servants of God.
And then these men and women at Thyatira were people of great
patience too. Savior says, I know thy patience. You see, those men and women
who are most charitable to others, who are most diligent in the
cause of Christ, and who are most faithful to the things of
God are likely to be the most tried in their faith. But in
many trials, these people were patient. What is patience? What is it? Scripture speaks
of the patience of Job. Patience, simply put, is the
peaceful, believing resignation of the heart to the will of God."
That's patience. That's patience. It is the peaceful,
believing resignation of the heart to the will of God. And one comes along and they
say, well, did you hear what old so-and-so said or did? God said to Shemaika, stay there. He couldn't do it if God hadn't
sent him. So I just leave him alone. It's a peaceful, believing,
confident resignation to the will of God. Doctor comes in
and says, well, you've got cancer. It's a peaceful, believing, confident
resignation to the will of God. Do you see that? That's patience.
That's patience for the half-Yates. over in the hospital and he had
that heart attack. And the doctors were a little
perplexed. They came in, they said, they
said, Mr. Yates, do you understand just
how serious your condition is? And he said, well, yes, I understand. It's a peaceful, believing, confident
resignation to the will of God in the midst of hardship, in
the midst of trial, in the midst of difficulty. Our Savior, the
Son of God says, I know your patience. I know your patience. And then our Lord tells us that
these people at Thyatira steadily grew in their devotion to Christ.
Look how He says, and thy works, and the last to be more than
the first. Their last works were better
and more numerous than their first works. Others had left
their first love and lost their first zeal. But as these men
and women grew old, they grew wise. As they matured in years,
they matured in grace. As they declined in physical
strength, they increased in spiritual strength. The Savior said, I
know thy works, your charity, and service, and faith, and patience,
and your works, the last to be more than the first. These are
matters of earnest, constant prayer to me. I hope they are
to you. I want from God love for my brethren,
such as he describes here. I want to be of service to the
cause of Christ in my generation. I want to be faithful to Christ
in all things. I want patience before God and
patience with men. And oh, that God will give me
grace that I may grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord
Jesus Christ as I progress in years upon this earth. Now in
verses 20 through 23, our Lord gives us an alarming reproof
to those who embrace or show tolerance for false religion. The reproof is not so much directed
at the church as it is at the wicked seducers within the church,
but the church itself was at fault. She was at fault because
she was tolerant of the false religion that these others promoted. Look at it with me in verse 20.
Notwithstanding, I have a few things against you, because you
suffer that woman, that is, you allow that woman Jezebel, which
calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants,
to commit fornication and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. There was within this church
at Thyatira a woman who claimed to be a prophetess. The woman
preacher was called by our Lord Jezebel. He compared her to Ahab's
wife, Jezebel, because she encouraged the patronage of false religion.
She encouraged God's people to show kindness to false prophets,
and she encouraged them to give at least an acceptance of idolatry. She seduced God's servants to
engage in the pagan festivities of idol worship, including fornication,
and she did it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. Well, she
speaks for Jesus. We can't say anything about her. Why? She uses the Bible just
like you do. She talks about the Lord just
like you do. Our Lord said she's Jezebel.
She's a deceiver. She's got a painted face. You
can't believe anything she says. She paints things to disguise
things and make them appealing. Pay her no attention. She pretended
all the while that she was promoting faith in Christ, promoting the
truth of Christ, and promoting the church of Christ, and doing
what she did out of sincerity for the souls of men. The church
at Thyatira was to be blamed in part for the spread of this
woman's heresy because they tolerated her and they afforded her opportunity
to preach her damning doctrine. They allowed this woman to preach,
not only to teach, but to preach, and that in direct opposition
to the plain statements of the Word of God. Paul says plainly
that we're not to suffer a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority,
that we're not even to allow a woman to speak in the Church
of God. These things are plain statements
of Scripture. Still I find people, they come
up all the time, well, what do you think? Do you think maybe
we oughtn't to be so straight-laced here? No, I think we ought to
be straighter-laced. We ought to do exactly what the
Scripture says. I have a high regard for women. I happen to be married to one
and have one for a child. I love them dearly. I was even
brought into this world, believe it or not, through a woman. And
I appreciate womanhood. But womanhood is to be, like
all other things, regulated in the Church of God by the Word
of God. And women are to have no place of authority over a
man. And certainly not to teach, nor
to speak, nor to usurp authority in the Church of the Living God,
because God arranged it that way. But preacher, that's not
up to the times. Who gives a flip about the times? I'm interested in the glory of
God. I'm interested in the glory of God. This church allowed this
woman to teach and to preach her pernicious doctrines. And
by allowing her to spread her doctrine, by embracing her as
a believer, they, holding her in the membership of the congregation,
became partakers with Jezebel in her sins. Turn over to the
book of 2 John. 2 John. Now listen to me. Listen to me. Let's suppose that Bob Concierge
gets up every morning at six o'clock to watch this fella down
in Baton Rouge and his study in the word. And Bob's beginning
to embrace Swaggart's doctrine. And Bob, let's make it good.
Let's say Bob's a very, very, well, Very well. And I know he's
sending a little cash down there to Jimmy. And I know that he
regards Jimmy as a servant of God. If I don't tell you differently,
Bob, I've partaken with Jimmy Swaggart and with you in those
evil deeds. Do you understand that? What
I have done by my silence is I have embraced his heresy. What I have done by my silence
is I have encouraged you to go on supporting the spread of lies.
Do you understand that? This is what happened in Thyatira.
This woman rose up in the congregation. Her daddy had been in the church
all his life and from the very beginning he had been there.
She grew up as a young lady in the church and didn't want to
go up in her. Why? Her daddy's been around
a long time. We can't offend her. Well, she does say it. Who doesn't? Who doesn't? That
old man in Rome, if he opens his mouth often enough, has got
to say a few good things. But he's a blasphemer. He's a
liar. He's a deceiver. He's a cheat
of men's souls. Dare we give any credibility
to him? No, we cannot. We must not. Look here what John says. John,
2 John verse 10. If there come any unto you, and
bring not this doctrine, the old, old story of Christ and
Him crucified, the blessed gospel of God's free and sovereign grace
in the substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ. If he brings not this
doctrine, he does not have God. If he brings not this doctrine,
receive him not into your house, neither bid him Godspeed. And you think I'm tough. He said,
Oscar, if he comes knocking on your door and says, I'm hungry,
don't you feed him. That's what John says. And when he starts
to leave and the thunderbolts are flashing in the skies and
the rain's pouring and the night looks terribly, terribly precarious,
don't even wish him well. He's God's enemy. That makes
him your enemy. If you're God's child. Look in
verse 11. If you do, he that biddeth him
Godspeed, he that wishes him well, he who gives him a little
gas money, he who feeds him and clothes him, is partaker of his
evil deeds. My friends, if we would be faithful
to the souls of men, false religion, false prophets, False doctrine
must be pointedly and plainly exposed. We preach a positive
gospel and we endeavor to avoid being negative, but we must not
allow any room for the acceptance of any doctrine that's contrary
to the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace. The popular,
accepted, mainstream religion of our day is a religion of works. It's heresy. It's heresy. Billy Graham, Jimmy Swaggart,
Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Jim Baker, and the Pope of Rome
all preach the same doctrine. Now listen to me. They all preach
the same doctrine. Essentially, they all preach
the same thing. They preach salvation by man. That's what they preach. Is that
correct, Lyndon? That's what they preach. Oh, I know one's
a Southern Baptist, and another one's a Papist, and another one's
a Pentecostal, another one's an assembly of God, another one's
a church. I know that. I know that. But
they all preach essentially the same doctrine. They tell men
that salvation is not of the Lord, but it's of you. It's of
you. It's in your hands, by your will,
by your works, in one measure or another. There are modern Jezebels deceiving
and seducing the souls of men. And there's no place of agreement
with me. I'm telling you, plainly as I
know how, Bobby, if Jimmy Swagger speaks for God, I don't. I don't. Now that's just plain. He's talking
about somebody else. He's talking about somebody I
don't know. He's talking about something I have not experienced.
He's talking about something I don't find in the Word of God.
If he speaks for God, I don't. And if I speak for God, he doesn't. Is that plain enough? That's
just the way it is. And as for me, I'll be honest
with you now, I'd rather expose my daughter, the only child I
have, to any corruption in this world as to expose her to the
corruption of false religion. I don't intend to give any credibility
at all. When it comes along and says,
oh, well, preacher, I'm so glad my son's going to church. Oh,
where's he going? Going down here, there's a Baptist
church, there's a Christian church, there's a Catholic church, there's
more. It doesn't matter which church. It doesn't matter. What do they
preach down there? Oh, well, that fellow down there,
he doesn't preach anything. He doesn't know the gospel, but
it's better to have any religion than to have no religion. Oh,
no. No, no, no, a thousand times no. No false religion is damning
to the souls of men. damning to the souls of men. You mothers and dads will be
wise. You will be wise to keep your
kids away from it. I'm just telling you. These men and the religion of
our day and what I've said concerning those men who are the leaders
is true of every preacher I know in Danville, Kentucky except
this Now, if there's another one around, you let me know.
I'll look him up and go buy him dinner tomorrow. We'll get to
know one another. What I'm saying is true of every preacher in
this town, every one of them. They all deny pointedly the sovereignty
of God's grace. Every one of them. They all deny
pointedly the efficacy of Christ's blood. They tell us that there
are actually men in hell that Christ died to redeem. They all
deny the power of the Spirit's call. They would have us to believe
that the Spirit of God actually tries to save some folks who
aren't saved. They all deny the power of God
and that salvation is of the Lord. And they all leave salvation
in the hands of men. Everyone of them. What's so bad
about that? Anybody who believes them is
damned with them. That's what's so bad about it.
That's what's so bad about it. They must not be received. They
must not be heard. They must not be embraced. They
must not be supported by the people of God. With Paul, let
us stand firm and say, if any man preach any other gospel unto
you than this message of God's free grace in Christ, let that
man be damned. And if I get up Tuesday night
and preach any other message, don't you hear me? And don't
you bid me Godspeed, but rather say, let him be damned. And I
agree with you. I agree with you. Our Lord tells us here that God
will destroy every false prophet and all who follow them if they
do not repent and return to the truth as it is in Christ Jesus. He says in verse 21, I gave her
space to repent of her fornication and she repented not. Behold,
I will cast her into a bed. Good place for it. She's a whore
to start with. She's prostituted the gospel
of Christ. But he's talking about a bed
of affliction, a bed of sickness, a bed of destruction. I will
cast her into a bed. And then that commit adultery
with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
And I will kill her children with death. What is he saying? Is he saying I'm going to kill
her? I'm going to destroy her, I'm going to destroy all false
religion and all false prophets, and I'm going to destroy everybody
who is brought to embrace this false religion, all her children. I'm going to destroy them with
death. My friends, there is nothing
more damning to the souls of men than false religion. Those
who are deceived by it shall be destroyed with it. Turn to
2 Thessalonians chapter 2. 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. The apostle Paul told us that
this time of apostasy would come when men would depart from the
truth and the man of sin would be revealed. and the mystery
of iniquity would be made manifest. In verse 8 he says, Then shall
that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the
spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
his coming, even him whose coming is after the working of Satan,
with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness
of unrighteousness in them that perish. because they received
not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for
this cause, because they received not the love of the truth, God
himself shall send them a strong delusion that they should believe
a lie. And this is the end result, that
they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness. I don't know, I'm neither a prophet
nor the son of a prophet. But I suspect, Oscar, we're living
in that day when God has sent a strong delusion. And this world
has embraced it, swallowed it, hooked, lined, and sinkered without
the slightest thought. And unless God awakens them from
their darkness, they shall be damned through their religion.
damn through their religion. Beware, beware, beware of false
prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing,
but inwardly they are ravening, starving wolves who will devour
your souls. The design of Christ in destroying
these wicked seducers is that his elect may be both prudent
and instructive. He says in verse 23, I will kill
her children with death, and all the churches shall know that
I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts, and I will give to
every one of you according to your works." When heresies come,
God's elect are manifested by their adherence to the truth. I don't think Oscar will mind
this. It just comes to mind. If you mind, I'm sorry. When
I first came here, some folks were trying to seduce Oscar and
his wife with Pentecostal trash. Am I correct? And I spoke plainly to them. I spoke plainly to them. But
I just sat back and waited, waiting to see if they can get you. He never knew the truth. That's
what I'm saying. That's what I'm saying. The heresy
proves the truth. Do you see me? Do you see the
message? I'm saying that men who are seduced
from the truth never knew the truth. When the heresy comes,
those who know the truth stand firm by the truth. When false
prophets are destroyed in the judgment of God, God gives instruction
and reproof to all men. God's judgment upon the seducers
of men reveals his infallible knowledge of their hearts. He
knows the deceitful principles by which they operate. He knows
the hypocrisy of their religion. He knows the motives of their
actions, and he will judge them accordingly. He's going to give
every false prophet exactly what he has earned, exactly according
to his words. Now, it looks to me like any
of you who are hearing my voice, any man or woman here, I can
possibly understand. I can possibly understand Tanyan
Ditra being deceived by the religion of the stat, possibly understand
that. But I can't understand any man or woman sitting here
being deceived by the cunning craft of these TV evangelists
and the religion of the sages. It's so shallow. It's so fake. It's so phony. It's as phony
as a three dollar bill. It's as unreal, unsubstantial. It's as fake as it can be. And
anybody with good sense knows it. Anybody with good sense knows
it. But God knows it whether you do or not. And he's going
to expose it for what it is. I watch news broadcast on TV. Sometime back, I was watching
Ted Kennedy. And he was talking about how
he wanted to do what he could to help poor people, you know.
And I thought of something when he said it. And the fellow that
was sitting across from him raised the question, I thought. He said,
well, if you're so interested in poor folks, why don't you
give them some of your money? Yeah, if you're so interested in poor
folks, why don't you give them some of your money? I thought, boy, I'd like to have
said that. And folks are deceived by that.
Yeah, they're crazy. I mean, they really think he's
interested in poor folks. He's interested in poor folks'
vote. That's what he's interested in. And the same thing holds
folks who watch Jimmy Swaggart and Oral Roberts and Jim and
Tammy, all these folks, all of them. You watch them and they
say, oh, we're so interested in the souls of men. We've given
everything to the cause of this ministry. Given everything Man wearing
$10,000 watch Wearing $200 shoes and driving a driving a Rolls-Royce.
He's given everything to the cause of this ministry Either
he got a screw looser. I do Something's wrong with that
Anybody with good sense can see that Except folks who are blinded
by Satan with false religion anybody else God's justice is impartial. He
will give every false prophet the exact reward of his works.
In the day of judgment, they will not be able to hide behind
the name of Christ. They will not be able to hide
behind their popularity. They will have no sanctuary because
men approve of them. They will say, Lord, Lord, and
he'll say, depart! You curse it, I never will. In these dark days of apostate religion,
Our Lord forthly lays before us an assigned responsibility.
He says in verse 24, but unto you, I say, that is unto you, the
pastor, unto you, Don Fortner, unto you, I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira,
As many as have not received this doctrine, as many as have
not known the depths of Satan, as they speak, I will put upon
you none of the burden but that which ye have already, hold fast
till I come." These false prophets call their doctrines the depths
of theology. We're going to study the deep
things. We're going to study what happened
between Genesis 1-1 and 1-2. We're going to study deep things. Wonder who was there? What happened
between the time God created the earth and the time the earth
became without form and void? Oh, that's deep things. That's
deep things. It's a muddy thing to get your
mind away from Christ. Do you follow me? We're going to study deep things
tonight. We're going to talk about the
signs of the end times. We're going to get you excited
about what's going on over in Palestine. We're going to study
some deep things. The dark things get your mind
away from Christ. They love to dazzle men with
their deep mysteries and dazzle men with their deep insight into
the things of God, as they say. They love to talk about prophetic
mysteries. They love to discuss the nature
of angels. They love to talk about the work
of demons and anything else that will intrigue the imagination
of depraved men. Anything else. They call it the
depths of theology. Our Lord here calls it the depths
of Satan. He calls their doctrine the depths
of Satan. Apostle Paul said, I fear less
by any means as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety. So
your mind should be corrupted from the simplicity, from the
simplicity, the singleness that is in Christ Jesus. False prophets
will always draw your attention away from Christ, always. Did you ever notice in talking
to men how they want to talk about anything but Christ? Did
you ever notice that? Some of these Russellites come
knocking on your door, some of the Mormons come knocking on
your door, or some of the Baptists come knocking on your door. They
want to talk about anything except who Christ is, what He did, why
He did it, and where He is now. Anything but that! Oh yeah! Yeah, we can talk about prophecy.
I'm comfortable with that. Oh, you want to talk about the
gap theory? Yeah, we'll talk about it. Boy,
isn't it interesting to study demons? Talk about anything but
Christ. Anything but Christ. You see, their mysteries are
the mystery of iniquity. They're satanic delusions, diabolical
doctrines. The gospel sets forth one mystery. It's the mystery of godliness. How that God was in Christ, reconciling
the world to himself. Let us never be turned away. Our Lord tells us here that it
is our responsibility to hold fast the doctrine of Christ until
he comes. I'll give you no other burden
but this. Men and women of Grace Baptist Church, Jesus Christ
gives you no burden but this. What you have, hold it. Hold it. Hold fast that form
of sound words that you have received. Hold fast the faithful
word. Hold fast the doctrine of Christ. That form of sound words which
we must hold fast is simple and clear. Nothing profound or mysterious
about it. I can set it forth before you
in six brief sentences. Number one, God is absolutely
sovereign in all things. Why do you keep insisting on
that, Don? Because everybody else keeps denying it. That's
exactly why. God Almighty is absolutely sovereign
in all things, in creation, in providence, and in salvation.
Number two, all men since the fall of our father Adam are spiritually
dead and totally depraved. They are without any ability
before God. Number three, God has an elect
people in this world who must be saved by his almighty grace.
They must be saved because God said that they must, and they
must be saved because God purposed that they must, and God's purpose
and will cannot be overturned. Number four, the Lord Jesus Christ
died for and redeemed all of God's elect. He put away their
sin. They're redeemed, justified, and sanctified by the offering
of Jesus Christ once for them all. Number five, God the Holy
Spirit regenerates and calls all of the elect. All who are
chosen of God and redeemed by Christ, to life and faith in
Christ by sovereign, effectual, irresistible power and grace.
His people will be winning in the day of His power. When will men come to Christ?
When God calls them, that's when they'll come. And my friend,
when God calls, you'll come. You'll come with a willing heart,
but you'll come by the constraint of His irresistible, powerful
grace. And number six, all who believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ shall persevere in faith, being preserved
unto eternal glory by the grace of God. Now we must hold these
things till Christ comes. And when He comes, He will put
an end to all heresy and the truth I don't have any questions. You know how I've got the place
I answer, fellas? People want to debate, especially these preachers
I run across. They want to debate this issue
and that. If they've got some serious, sincere questions, I'm
glad to answer. If they simply want to debate
and argue, My answer to them is, I'll meet you at the judgment
and we'll see. I'll meet you at the judgment
and we'll see. We'll see. Christ is going to
put an end to this mess. His name is going to be glorified
despite the efforts of religion to make his name nothing. And
fifthly, if we persevere in the faith, and hold fast the doctrine
of Christ, our Savior, the Son of God, promises us an assured
reward. He says in verse 26, He that overcometh and keepeth
my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations. And he shall rule them with a
rod of iron, as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken
to shivers. even as i received of my father
and i will give him the morning star those who overcome are those
who hold christ and hold on to christ works to the end notice
what he said they hold fast my works not their works my works
They hold fast my works to the end. And if they do, they shall
rule and reign with Christ forever. We will soon rule with Christ
over all his enemies. Those who persevere in the faith
shall sit as kings with Christ upon his throne and shall rule
over all things with him forever. Our Lord tells us as well that
we who believe shall sit with Christ in judgment over all his
enemies, fallen angels, false prophets, every enemy, every
rebel to Christ's throne and Satan himself shall be judged
and condemned by our Lord and we shall sit with him on the
throne of judgment as witnesses saying amen to their eternal
ruin. Then our Lord tells us that Christ
will give us himself. all himself forever. He said, I'll give you the morning
star. I'll give you the morning star. We won't look at the references,
but if you compare 1 Peter 1.19 and Revelation 22.16, you'll
see he's talking about himself. You see, Christ is our eternal
morning star. He is the day star which shall
arise and introduce us into that glorious unending day of His
glory and the bliss of His presence. He says, I'll give you not only
my glory, but myself. I'll give you the most. He shall be our glory. He shall be our crown. He shall be our reward. He shall
be our heaven. Whom have I in heaven but they? There is none that I desire upon
the earth besides they. My heart and my flesh, faith,
but the Lord's the portion of my soul. Ask God to give you a heart of
diligence. so that like these believers
at Thyatira you may serve Christ faithfully. Ask God to give you
a heart of discernment so that you may know truth from error
and not be deceived with false religion. And ask God to give
you a heart of determination so that you may persevere by
the grace of God in the faith of the gospel. He that hath an
ear to hear Let him hear what the Spirit said unto the churches. Amen. Please come listen to him,
will you? My text this evening is in Acts
21 and verse 14. Acts chapter 21 and verse 14. Paul was on his way to Jerusalem. In his journey, he stopped off
at Caesarea to spend a few days with Philip, the evangelist.
Now if you think about it, this is a charming picture of God's
grace. Not too long before this, Philip
had been driven away from his home and forced to flee for his
life by the raging persecution of a man who despised the gospel
of God's grace, a man who despised the name of Christ and would
rid the world of the gospel. That persecutor was Saul of Tarsus,
the very same man who is now a guest in Philip's home. Perhaps
the reason Philip settled at Caesarea was because Saul of
Tarsus had driven him out of Jerusalem. But once Saul was
reconciled to God, all past offenses were forgotten. All past differences
were done away. Christ had received Paul into
his house, and so Philip received him into his house. He received
him as a brother and as a friend. Christ had forgotten the past,
So Philip forgot the past. Christ had forgiven all of Saul's
crimes, and so Philip forgave all of Saul's crimes. That's
what grace does for people. It makes them gracious, kind,
forgiving. It unites hearts that otherwise
have nothing in common. It unites hearts that otherwise
are opposed to one another. It makes men to dwell at peace
While Paul was in this man's home, a prophet by the name of
Agabus came down to Caesarea, and he spoke of Paul's afflictions
and bonds that he would meet with at Jerusalem. Symbolically,
he took Paul's girdle, and he bound his own hands and feet,
and he said, thus saith the Holy Ghost, so shall the Jews at Jerusalem
bind the man that owneth this girdle. and shall deliver him
into the hands of the Gentiles." Now Paul and all of those around
heard this prophecy, and Paul's companions, those disciples at
Caesarea, and Philip and his daughters tenderly urged Paul
not to go to Jerusalem. They pleaded with him, don't
go to Jerusalem. This is obvious. You've heard
it over and over again. You're going to meet with terrible
affliction at Jerusalem. But Paul knew what he had to
do. He knew that his life was in peril, and he knew what the
will of God was. And he was determined to obey
God's will, even if his obedience should cost him his life. He
had said to the Ephesians, Behold, I go bound in the Spirit unto
Jerusalem, not knowing what things shall befall me there. And now
he has been plainly told by the Spirit of God what things will
surely befall him. But he is still determined to
go. The will of God had not changed. And so he said to his friends
in verse 13, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart?
For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem
for the name of the Lord Jesus." And I like the next scene. When
these men and women at Caesarea realized that Paul could not
be persuaded to follow the course of safety. When they realized
that this man was determined according to the Spirit of God
and by the will of God to go to Jerusalem, they followed the
example of Thomas. Do you remember when the disciples
tried to get our Lord not to go up to Bethany into Judea? They said the Jews of late had
sought thee to kill thee. And Thomas, when the Lord was
determined to go, he said to the rest of the fellows, let's
go with him that we may die with him. Remember that? Now look
here in verse 15. After these people saw that they
could not dissuade Paul, after those days we took up our carriages
and went up to Jerusalem. They packed their bags and they
said, well, if you won't stay here, we'll go there. And they
followed him to Jerusalem. Now, the apostle Paul spoke to
them as he did, let them know what he was certain God would
have him to do. And then in verse 14, When he
would not be persuaded, we ceased. We stopped pleading with him.
We stopped reasoning with him. We realized that we were out
of order. Not that their concern was out of order. Not even that
their words were out of order, but they were pleading with Paul
not to go because of danger. They knew that God had said,
danger awaits. And they pleaded with him not
to go. Paul said, I've got to go. And so we ceased reasoning
with him and we said, The will of the Lord be done. The will of the Lord be done. Now that's my subject for this
evening. It is our responsibility and
it is in our own soul's best interest to submit all things
to the will of God. We should trust God absolutely
in all things. And in all things in our hearts,
not that we should necessarily go around saying with our mouths,
though perhaps we say it too little, but in our hearts we
must in all things give this acknowledgement and make this
confession, the will of the Lord be done. Let him do what he will
with me. I know that he is a good God
and he will do nothing but that which is good for me and best
for the cause of his own glory. It is an act of faith for us
to submit all things regarding our plans to the will of God
and say, as James told us, if the Lord will, we will live and
do this or that. That is, we make our plans. I'm
planning, Lord willing, to go to Beckley, West Virginia next
Monday afternoon. I'll be preaching there Monday
through Thursday. Now, that's my plan. I have made
agreement to go. But in making those plans, I
fully recognize If the Lord will, I'll live until then, and I will
travel there, and I will preach the gospel and return to you,
but it's all dependent upon God's will. Not only is it an act of
faith to submit our plans to the will of God, but it's an
act of patience to meekly endure the trials and afflictions of
life in submission to God's will, saying, as Eli of old, it is
the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. That is, once something has come
upon us, whether it's some trial of sickness or domestic trouble
or financial difficulty or whether it's persecution from men or
slander or reproach, whatever it is, we might say with Eli
in all things, it is the Lord. This is God's hand. Let him do
what seemeth him good. That's patience. That's an act
of faith as well. Whenever we study and seek the
will of God as it's revealed in the scriptures, we must recognize
that the word of God clearly describes and defines God's will
in three distinct ways. There is the secret will of God,
the revealed will of God, and the providential will of God.
Let me refresh your minds a little bit. First, the secret will of
God. The secret will of God is God's
eternal purpose and decree. Turn back to Isaiah chapter 46.
We'll just look at a few scriptures. Isaiah chapter 46. Everything
in this universe is ordered and arranged by God's eternal decree. Everything that comes to pass,
comes to pass exactly as God from eternity purposed that it
must. Nothing happens by chance. Nothing
happens by some stroke of luck. Nothing happens by blind fate. God is the first cause of all
things. Now listen to me. Some things
are permitted by God, and some things are directly caused by
God. But all things were decreed,
ordained, and predestined of God. Do you understand that?
God permits some things. That is, He does not force men
to do the things they do. They do them of their own free
will, but God permits them to do those things. Other things
are directly caused by God, but all things were predestined,
ordained, and decreed of God in eternity. Look here in Isaiah
46 and verse 9. Remember the former things of
old. For I am God, and there is none else. I am God, and there
is none like me. I am the only one, he says, who
declares the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things
that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I
will do all my pleasure. That is, my eternal decree, my
eternal purpose, my eternal will, my eternal pleasure shall be
done. Look at verse 13. I'm sorry,
verse 11. Calling a ravenous bird from
the east, the man that executed my counsel from a far country,
that is, God calls the raven to come and feed his prophet.
And God calls the pagan warrior to come and to deliver his people. Yea, I have spoken it, I will
also bring it to pass. I have purposed it, I will also
do it. In verse 13 he says, I bring
near my righteousness, it shall not be far off. My salvation
shall not tarry, and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel
my glory. Now what God is telling us is
just this, everything that comes to pass, is called in to be and
brought to pass because God from eternity said it must be. God
from eternity said it must be. I said that God permits some
things while he causes others but that all were decreed of
God. Let me illustrate it for you.
God did not cause Judas to betray his son. Judas betrayed the Son
of God because he loved money. He wanted that 30 pieces of silver.
Judas betrayed the Son of God because his heart was greedy,
because his free will was let run in its own course. He did
exactly what he wanted to do without any impulse, without
any compulsion exercised upon him by God. Satan entered into
Judas' heart and Judas did what he wanted to do. But he did exactly
what God in Psalm 69 said was going to be done. Exactly what
he said. Judas betrayed the Son of God. Our Savior said, the
Son of Man goeth as it is written of him or as it is decreed of
him. But woe unto the man by whom
the Son of Man is betrayed. Better for him if he had never
been born. Another example is the death of our Lord. God did
not call the Jews to crucify Christ. He in no way forced them
to do anything contrary to their will. He in no way placed any
compulsion upon them. But the Jews themselves, out
of their envy, malice, and self-righteous hatred of Christ, took the Son
of God and gave Him to the Romans, and they cried, Crucify Him!
Crucify Him! His blood be on us and on our
children. And they walked around the cross
and they did things. As you read the history of the
crucifixion, you could almost think that those Jews looked
at the Scripture and read where it said, well they plucked off
my hair so I went and grabbed a handful of beard and jerked
it off of his face. Or they mocked me and I become
the song of the drunkard. So the drunks got together and
they sang a mocking song of the Son of God. They did exactly
what was written in the scriptures. And the scripture tells us that
the Lord Jesus Christ was delivered into their hands and was crucified
and slain by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of
God. Now, I don't pretend to understand
all that I tell you, but I know it's taught in the Scriptures.
God does not force men to do evil things. God does not cause
men to do evil things. But nothing takes God by surprise.
God predestined, God ordained, God decreed all that ever comes
Everything that comes to pass in time was purposed by God in
eternity, for of him are all things. Then secondly, the revealed
will of God is that for which we are responsible to perform. Our responsibility is not determined
by the decree of God. Our responsibility is determined
by the revelation of God. God revealed to Paul that he
must go to Jerusalem. Therefore, it became his responsibility
to go to Jerusalem. God told Paul that he must be
his witness unto all men. Therefore, it became Paul's responsibility
to be an obedient messenger of the gospel. So that he said,
necessity is laid upon me, yea, woe is unto me if I preach not
the gospel. That man, you see, who knows
the will of God but refuses to obey it stands before God as
a rebel and he will perish as a rebel. We will either bow to
Christ and obey his will or we will be crushed with the rod
of his wrath. I'll give you a couple of illustrations.
We know from the revelation of God in Scripture That it is not
God's purpose. It is not God's decree to save
all men. It is not His decree to save
all men. He's going to save His elect.
But God commands all men everywhere to repent. Therefore, all men
are responsible to repent before God. And all who do repent, God
promises them life on the condition of their repentance. If they
refuse, they will perish. If men refuse to believe, they
will perish. I received a letter from a fellow
this week who got a hold of something I had written, and he wanted
to get me straightened out. I suppose he thought I hadn't
really studied what I wrote down before I wrote it, so he was
going to kindly instruct me and let me know that salvation comes
to men before they believe. I know that. I know. I'm not
a dummy. I know that a dead man can't
believe. I know men must be regenerate in order to have faith. But I
know that God never speaks of regeneration where He doesn't
speak of faith. The Word of God never speaks
of a regenerate unbeliever. Those who are born of God believe
and by that faith they receive God's salvation. And if they
do not believe, they shall perish in their sins. All believers
are responsible to be baptized because God commands us in his
word to follow Christ in baptism. Now that which he has revealed
becomes our responsibility. Somebody says, well, does a man
have to be saved to be baptized? No. Yes. Or does a man have to
be baptized if he's going to be saved? The answer is no. He's
not saved by his baptism, but yes, because he's not saved without
his baptism. You understand that? Does that
make sense, Lindsay? You gotta obey Christ. If you do not obey
Christ, He's not your Lord, and your faith is a phony. Your faith
is a farce. Your faith is a mockery. God's
people obey Him at the point of His revelation. We seek to know God's will, and
the way He reveals His will is in His Word, the Scriptures,
by the witness of His Spirit within, by our seeking Him in
prayer, and by the work of His good providence, so that all
of these things together make us to know what the will of God
is in various given circumstances. And whatsoever He saith unto
you, that is, whatever God reveals to you and to me with regard
to His will, do it. Whatever it is, do it. Do it.
You see, once we know God's will, We must perform it regardless
of cost or consequence. Our obedience must not be determined
by the cost of that obedience or even by the likelihood of
our success in that obedience. Our obedience is determined by
one thing only. Has God said do it? Has God said
do it? If God says do it, do it. Do
it. That's how the believer walks
before God. But then there is also the providential will of
God. The providential will of God,
simply put, is whatever happens. Whatever happens. Whatever comes
to pass in time is the providential will of God. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything
give thanks. Everything. In everything. Now,
wait a minute. Paul, do you understand what
you're saying? Yes, he understands. In everything
give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning
you. Whatever it is you experience,
whatever the trial, whatever the difficulty, whatever the
heartache, whatever the pleasure, whatever the joy, whatever the
prosperity, whatever it is that you presently experience, this
is God's will concerning you. Right now it is. Whatever comes
to pass, be it good or evil, is brought to pass by the will
of God in providence. Providence is simply the rule
of God over all things for the accomplishment of His eternal
decree. It is God bringing to pass in
time what He purposed in eternity. And it's our responsibility to
willingly submit to God's providential will in all things with quietness,
contentment, patience, and hope, trusting Him. In these three
things, it is our responsibility to trust God's will of purpose. It is our responsibility to obey
God's will of revelation. And it is our responsibility
to submit to God's will of providence. Now I don't know what the future
holds for us. I don't know what's going to
come to pass. I don't have a crystal ball sitting
on my desk by which I can divine the future, nor do I have the
gift of prophecy by which I may know through revelation the future
which God has in store in his own purpose. I do not know what
God in providence may bring to pass for you or for me. for this
congregation or for the Church of God as a whole. But I do know
this. I do know this. I know that whatever
befalls us, be it good or ill, whatever befalls us, it is our
responsibility to submit to our God and to say as these disciples,
the will of the Lord be done. Whatever befalls It is our responsibility
to submit to the will of God and to say as these disciples,
the will of the Lord be done. Now tonight I want, if the Spirit
of God will enable me, to set before you four plain, simple
lessons, which I trust we will learn by the grace of God. Turn
first to that passage I quoted earlier in 1 Thessalonians 5. And I want you to learn this
lesson. It is a lesson which God taught
me in the earliest stages of my experience as a believer,
but I haven't learned it yet. You understand? I know it, I
know it, but I'm still learning it. I pray that God will make
me to learn it truly in my heart. Whatever comes to pass in time
is God's will for me. Whatever it is. Look here in
1 Thessalonians 5 and verse 18. In everything give thanks. For this is, this is the will
of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Whatever comes to pass is
God's will for you. And it is God's will that you
in all things give thanks to Him. Now this is the plain statement
of Scripture. All things are of God and all
things are yours because ye are Christ and Christ is God's. Do you believe that? If I am
a believer, if I am called of God, if I do by the grace of
God love the Lord Jesus Christ, All that comes to pass is brought
to pass by the hand of God's providence for my spiritual good. There is nothing so high or lofty
but that God does it. Now just imagine, the angels
of heaven and the events of the heaven. We're living in what
they call the nuclear space age. And the kids at school are studying
things we never dreamed about when we were kids. Whatever there
is in the heavens, whatever takes place in the heavens, there is
nothing so high but that God by his hand is performing it. Do you see that? Daniel said,
or Nebuchadnezzar said, he doeth according to his will in the
armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and
none can stay his hand, or saying to him, what doest thou? The
sun above does not shine, but as God by his hand leaves it
light. The rains of the heavens do not
descend but as God by his hand brings the rain upon the earth,
the early and the latter rain. There is nothing so small and
common that it escapes God's providential rule. Turn over
to Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10. There's nothing
so high and lofty but what the hand of God does it. And there's
nothing so low, so small and so common that it escapes God's
providential rule. Now if you don't understand what
I'm saying, that is a great God. I'm talking about God Almighty.
I'm talking about God who knows everything without learning anything. I'm talking about God who knows
everything and never forgets anything. I'm talking about God
who has all power and yet nothing strains Him. I'm talking about
God who is in infinite control of everything and directs everything
by the will of His own heart. Everything comes to pass by the
hand of His power. Everything. Watch those flowers. I saw a shadow. God did that. God did that. Preacher, you really
believe that? With all my heart I believe.
With all my heart. particles of dust in the atmosphere.
If there were one floating around outside God's control, I'd be
running for cover. My father rules this world. Look
here in Matthew 10 and verse 29. Are not two sparrows sold
for a penny? And one of them shall not fall
to the ground without your father. I used to be a right ornery fella.
When I was a boy, we had lots of English sparrows around the
city where I lived. And I got a sling shot first
and got pretty good with it. I don't know how many of them
I knocked out of trees. But I never knocked one out of a tree. But
what they garnered caused the sparrow to fly. Not one. I watched the sparrows
out here and these blackbirds and others out here in the parking
lot during the day sometimes. They'll be sitting on that wire.
They'll fall to the ground, get a little something to eat, lie
back up on that wire, directed by the hand of God's prophetess.
Now, does God care for sparrows? No, but he's telling you that
he who watches over the sparrow is your father. Look in verse
30. The very hairs of your head are
all numbered. For some of us, that's no great
feat. Shirley Gardner could probably
tell you how many hairs I've got on my head, especially toward
the top of the back. God, our Father, before the world
was, before the world was, calculated and ordained, He ordained from
eternity the very number of the hairs on your head and mine. And it didn't even strain his
mind to do it. Do you follow me? Nothing is so small that
it escapes the hand of God's providence. I pick up my hairbrush,
brush my hair, and out comes a handful of hair. It was ordained
with God. Everything. God takes notice
of and rules with infinite wisdom the most trivial, insignificant
things. And that's a mighty comfort to
the believing heart.