me to Hebrews, Chapter 8. I've entitled this message, Is
God My God? Is God My God? Now, in this passage of Scripture,
the Lord gives four things that the New Testament does that the
Old Testament could not do. Let's read them together. Verse
10, For this is the covenant that I will make with the house
of Israel after those days, saith the LORD. And we considered this
last week. I will put my laws into their
mind and write them in their hearts. And here's the second
great blessing. I will be to them a God. And
they shall be to me a people. Here's the third blessing. And
they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his
brother, saying, Know the Lord, for all shall know me, from the
least to the greatest. And here's the fourth blessing.
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins
and their iniquities will I remember no more. Now, here's something
the Old Testament salvation by works could never do. Make God my God. And make me his people. The Old
Testament could never produce such a great blessing. You see, if salvation is by works
in any way, God is too holy and we're too sinful. But in this
glorious covenant, the covenant of grace, he says regarding all
his people, I will be to them a God. That means God's for you. And they'll be to me a people. That means you're for God. Only
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ can produce this. I'll be to them a God and they
shall be to me a people. What is the most often used slang
phrase in the year 2009? I bet most of you know. How many
times do you hear people say, oh my God? I mean, in slang,
in conversation, I hear it continually. That is the most often repeated
slang phrase I hear. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, when someone is continually using
that phrase, I fear they're giving evidence that he's not their
God or they wouldn't be using that phrase like that. Oh, my
God. Now, God is not everybody's God in
the sense that he's speaking of here. Now, he's everybody's
God in the sense that he's everybody's creator. And he's everybody's
judge, but he's not everybody's God in the sense that he's speaking
here because, you know, not everybody has his laws written in their
heart and in their mind. Not everybody has that, this
new nature, this holy nature that we considered last week.
Not everybody knows him. If that's so, a lot
of people don't know him. Not everybody has their sins
put away where he says I'll be perpetuous to their unrighteousness
and their sins and iniquities I'll remember no more. That can't
be said of every son of Adam. So not everybody is his people. He's not God to everybody. Now, our text is a quotation
from Jeremiah 31. Would you turn with me there?
As a matter of fact, I want to look at several scriptures in the Old Testament
where this concept is brought out. Old Testament salvation
by works could never make anything like this. Jeremiah 31, beginning in verse 31. Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, that I make a new covenant with the house of Israel and
with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that
I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the
hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, Which my covenant
they break, although I was an husband unto them, saith the
Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house
of Israel after those days, saith the Lord. I will put my law into
their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and will
be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall
teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying,
Know the Lord, for they shall all know. from the least of them
unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord, for I will forgive
their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." Look over
in Jeremiah 32, verse 38. God repeats this, and they shall
be my people, and I'll be their God, and I'll give them one heart. And one way that they may fear
me forever, for the good of them and of their children after them,
and I'll make an everlasting covenant with them, I will not
turn away from them to do them good. But I'll put my fear in
their hearts that they shall not depart from me. Yea, I'll
rejoice over them. to do them good, and I'll plant
them in this land assuredly with my whole heart, with my whole
soul. For thus saith the Lord, like as I brought all this great
evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good
that I promised." Look at Jeremiah 24. No, Jeremiah 31, I'm sorry. Jeremiah
31. Because he is in this covenant
relationship with me. I love this verse of Scripture. Verse 18, I surely heard he from
bemoaning himself thus, thou hast chastised me, and I was
chastised as a bullock, unaccustomed to the yoke. Turn thou me, and
I shall be turned forward. Thou art the Lord my God. You see, if God is your Lord,
if He's your God, that means He's going to turn you. Can you
pray that prayer? That is such a... Turn me! I can't turn myself
and I must be turned. Turn thou me! Look what he says
in verse 19, Surely after that I was turned, I repented, and
after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh, I was
ashamed, I even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my
youth. Look at Jeremiah 24 now. Verse 7, And I will give them an heart
to know me. that I am the Lord, and they
shall be my people, and I will be their God, for they shall
return unto me with their whole heart." Look over in Ezekiel
chapter 11. This is what happens when somebody
is turned by the Lord, they turn to Him with their whole heart. Ezekiel chapter 11, verse 19, And I will give one heart, and
I will put a new spirit within you, one that was not there before,
and I'll take the stony heart out of their flesh and will give
them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep
My ordinances and do them, and they shall be My people, and
I'll be their God." Look in Ezekiel 36. Verse 28, And you shall dwell in the land
that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and
I will be your God. And I'll save you from all your
uncleanness, and I'll call for the quarry and will increase
it and lay no famine upon you. You see, when God is your God,
you know what? all your uncleanness, all your
sin. Look in Leviticus chapter 26. Now, these are things that
the old covenant of works could never do. Leviticus 26. First,
I'd like to read verse 12. He says, And I will walk among
you, and will be your God, and you shall be my people. And look in verse 6, And I will
give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall
make you afraid. I will rid evil beasts out of
the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. And you
shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by
the sword. And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred
of you shall put ten thousand to flight. And your enemies shall
fall before you by the sword, for I will have respect unto
you. Do you hear that? God says regarding every single
one of His people, I will have respect unto you. In the Lord Jesus Christ, I have
God's respect. I wouldn't say it if it wasn't
in there. He said, I will have respect to you. and make you
fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you,
and you shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because
of the new. And I'll set my tabernacle among you, and my soul shall
not abhor you." Now, how many times do you think of the Lord
abhorring you? He won't. He doesn't, because
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I will walk among you, and
will be your God, and you shall be my people." Now, here is the
promise. I will be to them a God. And that means God is for you. And they will be to me a people. That means you are for God. Now, here's the promise. I will. I'll be your God. And you shall. be my people. I love the I wills
and the you shalls of Holy Scripture. If God wills it, it's going to
happen. Only the New Covenant could produce
such blessedness. Now turn with me to Romans chapter
8 for a moment. Romans chapter 8. What this is
a reference to is God being for me. Look in verse 31. Romans 8.31, what shall we then
say to these things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? Now, remember who He is. God. The Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ. He's omnipotent. He's got the power to do whatever
He sets out to do. To have Him for me. He's omniscient. He's all-wise. He knows all things. He's omnipresent. He's always
there. He's sovereign. That means He
has a will. That means He has the power to
make His will come to pass. And He does, in fact, make His
will to come to pass. Our God is in the heavens. He
hath none whatsoever He hath pleased. He always makes His
will come to pass. He's the God of all grace. He's
the God of peace. He's the God of hope. He's a
just God and the Savior, the Father of mercies and the God
of all comfort, the one who has all power to bless. And, oh, this is what I want.
I want the blessing of the Lord. I want His spiritual blessings.
There's two kinds of blessings. There's the spiritual blessings
and there's everything else. I want both of them, don't you?
I want Him to bless me spiritually in the Lord Jesus Christ. I want
all He has to give. I want in the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's all enumerated in Ephesians chapter 1, His spiritual blessings.
I want those. I want everything else. I want
God to bless me in my life. I want God to bless me in my
home. I want God to bless me in all things. I want the Lord's
blessings. Whatever His blessings are, I
want them because of His power to bless. He does indeed bless. Now, to have this God for you, Look in verse 28 of Romans 8.
Very familiar passage of scripture. Bless God, it's more thrilling
to me now than it's ever been. It really is. And we know. They may not, but we do. We know.
You know this, don't you? You know this. Don't have to
prove it to you. You know it's so. And we know
that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are called according to His purpose. Now, first of
all, He's for you in purpose. I hate to hear religious people
say, God's got a wonderful plan for your life, but it's almost
like it won't work unless you do something to put that plan
into place. I can't stand that. Next time I hear somebody say
that, I say, God's got a wonderful plan for your life. Yes, I know
what He's planning for you. No, if God's for you in purpose,
His purpose must be accomplished. He said, I've purposed it, I
also will do it. He's for you in providence. Now
listen to me, all things, all things, don't care what it
is, all things work together. They don't work separately, they
work together for good. Because of that, and I know we
don't do it, but because of that, we can thank the Lord for everything
He brings our way. And all things give thanks, for
this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Whatever
it is, to have this God for you in purpose, to have this God
for you in His providence, where everything, it doesn't matter
what it is, you can bank on this, you can believe this. All things
work together for good to them that love God, to them who are
called according to his purpose. Verse 29. For whom he did foreknow. He's fore-in foreknowledge. Whom
he did foreknow. Now understand this about God's
foreknowledge. Notice what it says. It doesn't say what he
foreknew. It says whom he did foreknow. Foreknowledge has to do with
persons, not events. Persons. It's for love. That's whom He did foreknowledge. To have God for you in foreknowledge. He's always known me. I've always
had personality before the Lord God, and that just blows me away
to think about that. He's always known me. There's
never been a time when He didn't know me. And if He knew me, I
was. I don't know how to explain that.
I don't need to. It's just what the scripture
teaches. He's formed in foreknowledge. He's formed in predestination.
Whom He did foreknow, then He also predestinated to be conformed
to the image of His Son. Matt, you were singing that song?
One of these days, worshiping without sin, without guilt, without
unbelief. It's going to happen. It's sitting behind the sky.
I'm waiting on this. I've been predestinated to be
perfectly conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. For
Him, He scores in predestination. I've purposed it. I'll also do
it. Somebody says, well, predestination is God knowing what will happen
before it happens. Well, He doesn't know what will happen before
it happens, but let me tell you why. Because He predestinated
it. That's why. He's in control of everything. To have God for you in predestination. Now, if God predestinated you
to be perfectly conformed to the image of Christ, is there
any way it's not going to happen? No! As a matter of fact, it already
is. You're already seated in heaven
in the Lord Jesus Christ. To have God for you in predestination. Look in verse 30. Moreover, whom
he did predestinate, them he also called. To have God for
you in calling. Lazarus, come forth. That's God's call. You know what
happened? He that was dead came forth. To have him for you in calling. You see, everybody God calls
responds. Everybody who God calls, they
call upon the name of the Lord. They believe on Christ. They
come to Him, every single one of them. This is an irresistible
call. This is an invincible call. Turn
with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Hold your finger there in
Romans 8. Turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 1. Paul says in verse 22, that the
Jews, the religious fellows, they require a sign. And the
Greeks, the intellectuals, they seek after wisdom, but we preach
Christ crucified. Unto the Jews, a stumbling block,
a scandal. Unto the Greeks, foolishness. You expect me to believe that?
But unto them which are what? Both Jews and Greeks, Christ,
the power of God, and Christ, the wisdom of God. Now, if he
calls me, here's what I see. I see Christ as the very power
of God. Christ as the power of God. And I see that so much in the
person of Christ. You think of the power of God
that made God become a man. the incarnation, what power there
is. You think of the power of God
in Him keeping the law, Him never sinning. You think of the power
of God in imputation. This is so important. God has
the right, Christ has the right to take my sin and place it on
Himself. Now, I don't have the right to
do that. I can't take my sin and place it on somebody. He
doesn't. And he's got the right because he's God. He's got the
right to take the perfect obedience of Christ and place it upon me
to where it really is mine. Now, that's power. That's absolute
authority. You think of the power of his
blood. The power of his blood is such that if he died for me
right now, I don't have any sin. Not a bit. I'm perfectly clean. in God's sight. Now, that power,
Christ, the power of God, Christ, the wisdom of God. Have it God
in His wisdom made a way to take somebody like me and save me
in a way where I deserve to be saved. But the very justice of
God demands my salvation. Deliver it. What wisdom. You see, this is what the called
do. The called see Christ as the power of God in Christ. as
the wisdom of God Almighty. Oh, if He's for you in calling. Romans 8, again. Moreover, whom He did predestinate,
then He also called, and whom He called, then He also justified. Look down in verse 33. Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. Now, if God justified me, you
know what? I'm justified. Case closed. God formed me in justification.
He made me not guilty before Him. Verse 30, Moreover, whom
he justified, then he also glorified. He's for us in glorification,
and I think it's so glorious that this is spoken of, has already
happened in the past. You see, the union of Christ
and the believer is so close, it's so real, it's so vital,
that if Jesus Christ is glorified, I'm glorified also. As He is. Is He glorified? As He is, 1
John 4, 17, so are we in this world right now. Now, God's for
you. He said, I'll be their God. If
God's for me, I've got it made. I mean, I've got it made. Things
couldn't get any better if God's for me. What shall we then say to these
things? If God be for us, who can be? against us. Now, salvation were by works,
none of this could ever be. You see that clearly, don't you? If salvation were dependent upon
me to do something, I could never be using language like this.
But this is the New Testament. This is the covenant of grace
that actually makes God for me. And go on reading in this chapter.
Verse 34, who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea,
rather than risen again, who is even at the right hand of
God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us
from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long.
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these
things we are more than conquerors. through him that loved us, for
I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height,
nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us
from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. God for me. What a wonderful thought. You
know, God's for me. And I'm not going to fear what
any man can do for me. If God's for me, who can be against
me? Now, he says, I'll be to them
a God, and then he said they shall be to me a people. You see, if God's for you, you're
for God. That's simple enough, isn't it? If God's for you, You are for
God. Truly, the people of God, as
distinguished from the people of this world, are God's people. And when God is my God, that
means I am for Him. You know what that means? That
means I'm on His side. He's on my side. And if He's
on my side, I'm on His side. I love what Moses said to the
children of Israel after the making of that golden calf. He
said, Who's on the Lord's side? Let him come to me. Who's on
the Lord's side? You see, not everybody's on the
Lord's side. The Lord has enemies. The Lord has people who hate
Him. You know, to not love is to hate. To ignore is to hate. To not
see as important is to hate. And there's a lot of folks who
are enemies of the Lord, who have no love for Him. They're
not on His side. But every believer is on the
Lord's side. I'm on His side. I love what somebody said to
Abraham Lincoln once. He said, Is God on our side? He said, I don't know, but I
sure hope we're on His side. Now, that's what I hope. I'm
on His side. If He's for me, I'm on His side.
You know what repentance is? Taking sides with God against
yourself. You're on His side. And whatever he says, you take
sides with God against yourself. When you repent, you leave man's
side and you get on the Lord's side. You know, all the objections
people have to the gospel, I can summarize it like this. You're
not on the Lord's side. People object to the gospel.
How could it be fair for God to save some and not save everybody?
Well, you're on man's side. You're not on the Lord's side.
You really believe this is somebody that's on the Lord's side. They
really believe, even though they might not understand it, they
really believe that whatever he does is right. Shall not the
judge of the earth do right? I believe that whatever he does
is right. You know, men object, for instance,
to election. How can it be fair for God to
choose some and pass by others? That's being on man's side, not
on the Lord's side. If you're on the Lord's side, you can see
why God sent everybody to hell, including you. Somebody objects,
well, how can it be fair for Christ to die only for the elect
and not for all men? That's being on man's side. That's
all. All these objections to the gospel
are being on man's side. How can two people walk together
except they be agreed? They can't. You know, I agree
with everything the Lord says. I really do. I'm not just saying
that. I agree with everything he says. I better. I won't be
saved if I don't. But I do. I agree with everything
he says. I agree with everything he does.
I love him. I love him as he is. Whatever
he does is right. Now, when somebody is on the
Lord's side, and therefore the Lord, there's a family likeness. You see, 2 Peter 1 verse 4 says,
regarding every believer, we're partakers of the divine nature. Now, what all does that mean? Well, it's seen or evidenced
by certain things. If I have the divine nature,
now that's a mystery. That's miraculous that I could
actually have the nature of God in me, Christ in you, the hope
of glory. Miraculous. How's it seen? What do I have? I have the Lord's
nature. The new birth, born of the Spirit,
I'll tell you the first way it's seen. God the Father loves Christ better
than anything else. So do I. God's people adore His Son. He adores His Son. God's people
are at agreement. is of the Lord. God knows that,
and I know it too. God believes that. He knows it.
I believe that too. Salvation is of the Lord. You
know, the Father and every single believer, they believe the same
thing. His people believe His Word over
all things. Listen to me. Anybody who really believes the
Bible is the Word of God. And the only evidence that you
really believe that is you bow to what it says. And you receive
what it says. Anybody who believes the Bible
is the Word of God, they really believe that. I know a lot of
people will say they believe it and don't pay attention to
what it says. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about that person
who really believes the Bible is the Word of God and they bow
to what it says. They agree with God, whatever
He says. That person's born of God. That person's a Christian. They bow to all God says in his
word. Bear with me for a moment to
Ephesians chapter 1. I love this passage of scripture. Now, I
know this can be looked at in two ways, and both ways don't
do violence to the text, but look at Ephesians chapter 1. Verse 11, "...in whom also we
have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel
of his own will, that we should be to the praise of his glory
who first trusted in Christ." in whom you also trusted, after
that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation."
Now, is Paul saying, we're the first ones to trust in Christ?
I know somebody who trusted in Christ before I did. I know somebody
who trusted in Christ before Abel did, or Adam did, or anybody
else did. You know who first trusted Christ?
God the Father. He trusted His Son completely. And He entrusted the salvation
of His people to the Lord Jesus Christ. And He trusted the Lord
Jesus Christ to take care of it. You reckon He doubted His
ability? You reckon there was anything
about Him that... No, He knew He could trust Him
completely. He's the One. who first trusted
Christ, that we should be to the praise of his glory who first
trusted in Christ, in whom you also trusted. God trusted? I do too. In whom you also trusted after
that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. If I'm for God, where I'm His
people, that means the glory of His Son is more important
to me than anything else. That's real. Now, the Old Testament
could never make people like this. Could it? Works, it couldn't
do it. This is a miraculous, mysterious,
powerful work of God's grace. He is my God. He's for me. I can't get over that. Having
God for me? If I really believe that, I can deal with anything.
And I want you to be for me, too. But if everybody rises up
against me, that's OK if the Lord's for me. That's what the
Scripture says. If He's for me, everything's
OK. And if He's for me, He causes me to be for Him. Salvation by
works could not produce this. Only the miraculous gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ could do this, where He is my God and
we are His people. Isn't that a blessing to be the
people of God? I want to throw my lot in with the people of
God. That's who I want to be identified with. Those people
that God's for. Those people who love the Lord
Jesus Christ and believe His gospel, that's the group I want
to be in. His people. I'll be to them a
God, and they shall be to me a people. Let's pray together.