Looking for a City

if you'd like to open your Bibles
again to the book of Hebrews chapter 11 Hebrews 11 verse 8. There's three
verses here that I want to look at very carefully. in this message
for beginning with verse 8. Verse 8, 9, and 10. It says, By faith Abraham when
he was called. Now one of the things that's
quite clear to me in the scriptures, quite clear, is that our Lord
does sovereignly, divinely, effectually call men and women to saving
faith. I'm certain of that. Religion
is voluntary. Salvation is divine. God calls
men. If you're in Christ, God has
called you to Christ. Divinely, sovereignly, effectually. Don't turn to these verses, but
just listen as I run through the words and read some scriptures dealing
with this divine call of God. It says Abraham when he was called. Romans 1 says, Among whom are
ye also the called of Jesus Christ. You also are the called of Jesus
Christ. Beloved of God and called to
be saints. In Romans 9.23, that he might
make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy
which he afford prepared unto glory even us whom he hath called. He called you. Galatians 1.15, Paul describing
his own conversion says this, but when it pleased God who separated
me from my mother's womb and did what? And called me. He called
me by his grace. In 2 Thessalonians 2.14, he says
he called you by our gospel. He called you. In 2 Timothy 1.9,
he saved us and called us. He called us with a holy calling,
not according to our works, not according to our merit, but according
to his own purpose and grace which was given us in Jesus Christ
before the world began. These are just some of the verses. Called to be saints. Called by
the gospel. Called of God. He saved us and
called us. He called us with a holy calling.
Whom he predestinated them he called. Whom he called he justified. Whom he justified he glorified.
And our Lord said, My sheep hear my voice, and they follow me,
and I give them eternal life. I rejoice that salvation is not
by chance, but by divine choice and a divine call. Because had
not the Lord called me, I never would have called Him. If He
had not loved me, I never would have loved Him. And Abraham,
look here back at our text. Chapter 11, verse 8. By faith,
Abraham, when he was called. Do you know where God met Abraham?
You know, so much is said about Abraham and the Word of God.
We're all familiar with Abraham. We know some people, we know,
we're familiar with King David, we're familiar with Moses, we're
familiar with Paul, and we're familiar with Abraham as much
as anybody in the Bible. And yet God met Abraham in a
pagan land. Oh, he was religious, but it
was a false religion. God met Abraham when he was 75
years old, living in a pagan land, going about his worship
of idols, and God called him. God called him. God spoke to
him. God spoke to Abraham. He said, Abraham, Abraham. Get thee out of thy father's
house and from thy land to a land I'll show thee. God spoke to
Abraham. Somebody here might say this
morning, well God's never spoken to me. Well He's spoken to me. God has spoken to me. I've heard
God. You haven't heard God? God's
never spoken to you? God has spoken to me exactly
like He spoke to Abraham. How did He speak to Abraham?
He spoke to him in words. In words. But He's spoken to
me too. Turn to Hebrews 1. And listen
to this. Hebrews 1, verse 1 and 2. Hebrews 1, 1 and 2. Listen. God,
who at sundry times and in different manners spake, in time past unto
the fathers, but the prophets hath in these last days spoken
unto us. God hath spoken unto us by his
Son, whom he hath appointed heir of
all things. by whom he made the worlds, who
being the brightness of his glory, and the exact image of his person,
and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he by
himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the
majesty on high. Don't you believe that this is
the word of God? The scripture that I read to
you from Isaiah, and the scripture I read here from Hebrews 11,
that's God speaking, God's spoken to me. God speaks to me every
time I read his word. God doesn't speak to me when
I listen to the cliches of religion. God doesn't speak to me when
I hear the foolishness of present day preaching. Preaching what
they think and what they suppose and what their denominations
teach. But God speaks to me when I read this book. In fact, Peter called it a more
sure word of prophecy than a vision or an audible voice. Yes, he did in 2 Peter 1.19.
You can look it up later, but Peter was talking about he and
James and John were on the Mount of Transfiguration when Christ
was glorified and his garments glistened. And he said, we heard
that voice from heaven. which said this is my beloved
son, hear ye him? But he said we have a more sure
word of prophecy than a voice. Where unto you do well to take
heed, you do well to take heed. For all scripture was given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction,
instruction, and righteousness. God speak. Go back to our text,
verse 8. By faith Abraham when he was
called, when he was called by God, when
he was called by the voice of God, when he was called by the
Spirit of God. Oh, preacher, if God would speak
to me today, if I could go home and sit down in a chair in a
quiet place and God would actually speak, I'd sit and listen, would
you? I don't believe it. You'd be
enamored by the miracles. You'd be enamored by the unusual happening. But I don't
believe it. In fact, that fellow in hell
said, Father Abraham, send Lazarus back from the grave. They'd hear
a man risen from the grave. He said, no they wouldn't. He
said they have the Word of God and they don't hear the Word
of God and they won't be persuaded though one rose from the dead.
And I say my generation has the Word of God, they don't believe
the Word of God, they don't read the Word of God, and they wouldn't
be persuaded by a voice from heaven. That's exactly right. Faith comes by hearing and hearing
by the Word of God. But Abraham heard God. And watch
this, when he was called to go out into a place, to go out into. He didn't accept Jesus and stay
where he was. He didn't get religion and stay
where he was. He went out. He had to go out. God told him to get out. Get
out, get out. He was called to go out. You
go out into. If any man be in Christ, he's
not the same man with the same pursuits and the same attitude
and the same spirit. He'd gone out into a place. Abraham couldn't stay where he
was and walk with God. What we do, if a man's in sports
and his Sundays are all spent hitting a golf ball or a baseball
or kicking a football and he accepts Jesus, he just forms
a fellowship of Christian athletics in Irving County and stays there. That's right. He doesn't go out
in two, he stays where he is. If a country music star, and
there's so many of them, the Caches and And the Carters and
the Partons and all the rest of them, they accept Jesus and
stay where they are and form a fellowship of singing Christians. They don't go out. They stay
right where they are. And it's an impossibility. Abraham
couldn't stay where he was and walk with God. Abraham couldn't
walk with God among idolaters and pagans. Abraham couldn't walk with pagans
and walk with God. He had to leave. Two cannot.
It's impossible for two to walk together except they'd be agreed.
Can't do it. There can be no unity and be
no harmony. The Word of God declares that. So Abraham, when he was
called, he went out. He went out. There was a change. He went out into a place. Into a place. which he should
after would receive an inheritance. He really entered into his inheritance,
though he were a child, though he were under tutors, but he
really left where he was and entered into where he would always
be. He left the company of pagans and entered into the company
of God. I never tell anybody who professed to be saved, professes
to be saved, to get out of their lodges and social clubs. I never
tell them that. Well, brother man, do you think
I ought to resign from the Masonic Lodge? I say no, no, not unless
you have to. Not unless you have to. But if you're saved, you'll have
to. That's just so. Ain't no way you can meet with
that bunch of pagans and walk with God. Ain't no way. I leave
it up to you. If you can stay in Ur of the
Chaldees, stay. A fella said one time, well,
surely if a man gets saved, he'd have to sell his tavern. Oh,
no. No. No, he could sell a dozen taverns and never be saved. You
say, well, if a man owned a barn, he'd have to sell that to get
saved. Oh, you got it wrong. No. Man's saved by Christ. He's not saved by selling taverns.
Where a man changes life and gets saved, no, not in a thousand
years. He'll be saved and then his life
will change. He'll come to Christ and then he'll sell his tavern,
that's different. But he can't come to Christ and stay where
he is. It's an impossibility. Because if any man's in Christ,
he's got a new attitude, new spirit, new direction, new family,
new God, he's under new management. I never tell a fellow to get
out of a church. People in these socialistic,
liberal churches that don't preach the gospel, I never tell them
to leave those churches. If you can stay, stay. Isn't
that right? If you can listen to garbage,
you never met Christ. Stay there. But if you ever meet
Christ, you'll get out. You can't listen to anyone insult
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. You can't stay there. I've had
people say to me, well, I believe the doctrines of grace and I
believe what you preach, but I've got a Sunday school class
to teach down here at the certain Baptist church and I feel like
I'm kind of serving the Lord there and I'm going to stay there.
You mean you can stay in a place where the gospel is not preached,
where the pastor does not declare Christ Jesus the sovereign redeemer,
you can stay there and be comfortable? It's impossible. You know what,
you know what Naaman, you remember Naaman the leper? When he came
down to Elijah and Elijah healed him. God healed him by the power
of Elijah or by the word of Elijah. When he was healed he came back
to Elijah and offered him money and Elijah wouldn't take it.
He said I'm not interested in your money, go on back home,
rejoice in the Lord, in the cleansing God's given to you. And that
fellow stopped. This is Naaman, captain of the
host of Syria, man of valor and fame and influence, who had met
the living God, who had had a miracle performed on him. And he stopped
and he looked back at Elijah and he said, Sir, Sir, He said, my master, my king,
worships idols. He goes to the temple of Rimmon,
Rimmon, and he said, I'm his, I'm his general, I'm his aide. And he always leans on my arm.
And I used to take him there and I worshiped the same God.
But he said, I can't go there anymore. I can't be happy there
anymore. What am I going to do? What am
I going to do? Suppose he forces me to go to
that place that he might lean on my arm, he's my king. Will
God forgive me? Elijah said, God will forgive
you. But you know something, the man didn't want to go there. That's what happens when, if
people come to know Christ, know God, by faith Abraham when he
was called of God, he went out. He went out. By faith he obeyed
God and went out, not knowing, look at the next line there.
Into a place that he should receive for an inheritance he obeyed
and he went out not knowing where he was going. Not knowing where
he was going. I tell you that impressed me.
Back here in verse 1, look back at verse 1. Now faith, and what
I'm saying is this, faith doesn't require a guarantee. Faith acts
on promises. It doesn't require from God a
guarantee. It doesn't require a guarantee. Or if I could do
this, and do that, and I had some assurance, and over here
I could see my way clear. I hear people saying, if I can
see my way clear, you know what that means, don't you? That means
I wouldn't have to operate by faith, I could see it in hand. They say a bird in the hand is
worth two in the bush. That depends on whose bush it
is. If it's God's bush, I'd rather have two in the bush. Now faith is the foundation of
things hoped for, hoped for. And it's the proof of things
not seen. Faith does not require a guarantee. Abraham believed God and went
out not having any idea where he was going. not even knowing
where he was going. I noticed in reading this 11th
chapter of Hebrews, Noah built the ark before he saw the rain.
Isn't that right? He built the ark before he saw
the rain. Abraham went out before he saw
the land of promise. Moses left Egypt before he received the commission
to take the children out. Rahab put the scarlet lion in
the window before the forces of Israel showed up and the city
was destroyed. And that's faith. Faith acts
on the promise of God. That's right. It believes God.
Faith believes God. Alright, let's look at verse
9. Now this is very interesting here. There are three things
in verse 8. By faith Abraham, Abraham was called miraculously,
divinely, effectually, God called him. He was already in the tradition,
traditional religion. He was already in the religion
of his fathers, and God called him. God called him. God called him. And he went out. He went out without any guarantees
except God's Word. And that's enough. You're not
knowing where he went, but he went out believing God. Believing
God. And you remember this. In all
of this business of faith, Noah built the ark before he saw the
rain. And Abraham went out before he
ever saw that land. And Moses left Egypt and all
its riches and glamour and glory before he ever received any gifts
or commission to serve God. Yes, he did. Alright, verse 9. Now watch this.
By faith he sojourned. What's a sojourner? He's a pilgrim. A sojourner is a stranger. Now
stay with me. By faith he sojourned. Now watch
this. In the land of promise. In the
land of promise. Abraham actually entered the
land of promise, the land God promised him. He walked through
the land. He was in the land of promise.
But he sojourned there, watch this, as in a strange country. Abraham, note this carefully,
was in the very land and country which God had given to him and
his seed. He was right there in that land.
He left Ur of the Chaldees and he went into that land of promise
which God had promised him. But that land at the present
belonged to another. That land belonged to another.
It was his, God gave it to him by promise, but it belonged to
the heathen. And I say this to you, when a
person is redeemed, saved, he enters right then the land of
promise. This is my father's world. Did
you know that? This is my father's world. Everything
in this world is my father's. It's bought by Christ. He's the
king of the universe. This is my father's world, and
being my father's world, this is my world. But do you know
something? It belongs right now to another.
There's a heathen occupying my father's world. Turn to 1 Corinthians
3. I want to show you something
here that's very important. 1 Corinthians 3. Listen to this.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 3, verses 21 through 23. Now listen to
this. In 1 Corinthians 3, verse 21.
Therefore let no man glory in men, for all things are yours. All things are yours. Whether
Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, this
world is yours. Or life, life is yours. Death, that's yours too. Things present, anything, things
to come, all are yours. Everything's yours. It's yours
in Christ. Christ is the heir, and I'm a
joint heir with Christ. You see the picture I'm painting
here? Abraham was divinely, supernaturally, miraculously called of God. God
called Abraham. He said, get out and go to a
land I give you. And Abraham left. He believed
God. He acted on the promise and word of God and he went into
this land. But all the time he was in that
land, though it was his, he was a stranger. He was unknown. But it was his. Yet it belonged
to another. It belonged to, and I'm saying
this to you, if we are children of God by faith in Christ Jesus,
this whole world, this whole universe, this whole land is
ours, though right now the God of this world controls it. He's
under judgment, he's been evicted, but he still lives here. So Abraham,
what'd he do? Let's go back to the text. So
what'd Abraham do? So he sojourned. He sojourned. He lived in tents, tabernacles. He lived in tents and tabernacles
how long? Listen now. When he left Ur of
the Chaldees, he didn't even have Isaac. He sojourned in tents
and tabernacles in that land with Isaac until he... Isaac
was 75 years old. Abraham was in this land, the
promise, his land. God said, I'll give you this
land. It's your land. And yet he never owned a foot
of it. He never had a mansion. He lived in tents and tabernacles
and wandered around with his son and with his son's son. Isaac was 75 years old and even
Jacob was 15. And Abraham was still wandering
around like a stranger and a pilgrim. Is that not true of us? I'll tell you another thing about
Abraham. He didn't try to change the land either. He didn't try
to bring in a new system of government. He just passed through with his
tent, with his sons, and with his grandson. Like a pilgrim,
like a sojourner. He just wandered about. And that's
the way we are in this land right now. And look at this. It says
in verse 9, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs
with him of the same promise. In other words, Abraham's companions
were those who were also with him, heirs of the promise. He
was glad to be with them, even in a tent. Even in a tent. Alright, here's the next verse,
look at it. For he looked for a city. Why didn't Abraham organize an
army and take over this country? It was his. Why didn't Abraham
run for president or king? It was his country. Why didn't
Abraham bring the people under his rule? God had given him this
country. I'll tell you why. Abraham was
looking for a city. Abraham's heart and mind wanted
something better than this earth. Something better. than this world,
something more permanent, something far more glorious. He was concerned
with, taken up with, desiring, looking for a city. Turn to 2
Peter chapter 3. 2 Peter chapter 3. Listen to the
Apostle Peter here. 2 Peter chapter 3. Verse 11. Seeing then that all these things
shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be? All
these things will be dissolved, all relationships, all holdings, All human influence and relations
and power, these things will all be dissolved. What manner
of persons ought you to be in all holy conversation and godliness
looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God
wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved and the
elements shall melt with fervent heat. Nevertheless, we according
to his promise look for, we look for a new heavens and a new earth.
wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that
you look for such things, be diligent that you may be found
of him in peace and blameless in account that the longsuffering
of our Lord is salvation, even as our beloved brother Paul,
also according to the wisdom given unto him, hath written
unto you." Abraham looked for a city. He looked for something
better, something more glorious. He was walking on land that belonged
to him. He was walking in a country that
was his. And yet he didn't become attached
to it. He was taken up with something
better, something more glorious. What's this next line? He's looking
for a city which had foundations. Foundations. I tell you, do you
know that the scripture says that God laid the foundations
of this earth on the floods? You know, sand is a bad foundation,
but water is even a worse foundation. And the foundations of this earth,
and of all the relationships, and of all the accomplishments,
everything considered in this life, Well, you know somebody
said one time, if a man has health he has everything. He doesn't
have anything. He really doesn't. If he only
has health he doesn't have anything because it's going to be gone
in a few years. The foundation of health is flesh. It's on the flood. What if a
man has children that he's proud of? He's got everything. No,
he doesn't have anything. They're going to be gone too. Well, I tell you, if a man's
got his place paid for, if he's got his place paid for and got
a little social security, a little money in the bank, he's got it
made. No, he hasn't either. No, he's going to wind up with
a hole in the ground. He hasn't got it made at all.
He hasn't got anything. The foundations of health and
relationships and the world and land and how it's... It's the
flood. It's no good. It's gone. It's just fading away. The fashion
of this world fades away. And Abraham knew that. He was
walking in this land and it wasn't just him camping here. It wasn't
just him digging his roots deep here. He was looking. He wandered
through this land content with food and rain, but looking for
a city which had foundations. What are the foundations? Well,
let's look at 2 Timothy 2, see if we can find a help. Just a
little help. What kind of foundations we're
talking about here? 2 Timothy 2, 19. Nevertheless,
the foundation of God standeth sure, steady, having this seal. The Lord knoweth them that are
his. There it is. This city has foundations. You know what they are? They're in God. And the chief cornerstone is
Christ. The foundation of the prophets
and apostles having this chief cornerstone, Christ, are watching.
What are these foundations of this city Abraham looked for?
The eternal love of God that never changes. I am the Lord,
I change not. The eternal love of God. Secondly,
the covenant of God's grace. The Lord knoweth them that are
His. I know my sheep. You with me? He said, my sheep,
hear my voice. They follow me, I know them.
He said to that bunch in Matthew 7, I never knew you. I never
knew you. I know them. The foundation of
God is the eternal love of God, the covenant of God, His elective
grace. Now don't be embarrassed about
it. Don't back up for your pagan religious friend. God elected
a people. The Lord knoweth them that are
His. And thirdly, that foundation
is the Lord Jesus Christ, His blood and His righteousness.
His blood that atones, His righteousness that sanctifies. That's the foundation. And the foundation, fourthly,
is His promise. Are you with me? This is very
important. Abraham, wandering around here
in religion, digging a hole and filling it up, digging a hole
and filling it up, doing nothing. God called him. God called him. And he went out. He just forsook
all that he had. And he went not knowing where
he was going, but he was acting on the Word of God, acting on
the promise of God. That's all you're going to have,
too, is the Word of God. That's all that faith needs. And he
went out into this land. But even when he entered into
this land, into this fellowship, into this land, into this state
right here. He still wandered around as a
stranger and a pilgrim, because even in this state right here,
in the land God promised, he's looking for something bigger
and better, because he knew this is going to fade away. I felt
as I sat right there, the Gospels preached here, the Word of God
is read here from this pulpit, from this place to these people.
And we let it stand just like it is. Read it just like it is.
Preach it just like it is. You know some day it won't be?
I guarantee you, if this building stands, the message from this
pulpit is going to change. It always has. It always has. Take Spurgeons, W.B. Reilly, George Whitefield, Lord
Jones, take any of the places where the gospel is preached.
It's not preached there now. And that's the reason old Abraham
didn't dig his roots down too deep, because he knew it was
all going to change, and he was looking for something bigger
and greater and better and more permanent. He was looking for
a city whose foundations were sure. Foundations were sure. What's
this? Whose builder and maker is God. Not you do your part and he does
his. It's God. I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place and we make no contributions,
and these little gifts we gave this morning, they're not going
to build the mansions. They're going to help the missionaries. We're not going to send the one
of them up there. Martha's going to put them in an envelope and
send them to Africa and Mexico, not to heaven. That's right,
you're making fun of today's religion. You don't send anything ahead.
He went over there and he's preparing it all. We're going to give him
all the glory. Builder and maker is God. Heaven
and the new earth are real places for real people. And this inheritance
follows death for the believer. A hymn writer said this, There is a land, there is a land
of pure delight where saints' immortal reign, eternal day excludes
the night and pleasures banish all pain. There in that land
everlasting spring abides, never withering flowers Death, like
a narrow sea, divides that heavenly land from ours. Oh, could we make all doubts
remove these gloomy fears that rise, and we could see that city
that we love with unbeclouded eyes. Could we but climb where
Moses stood and view that landscape o'er, not Jordan's stream nor
death's cold flood would fright us from that shore. I'm looking
for a city. And while I'm here, I'm going
to be content with what God gives me by His grace and dwell in
tents and tabernacles with the heirs together of the promise,
because all of us are pretty tired, and we're looking for
a city. No matter how young, isn't that
right? Still weary of it all, because nothing here is permanent. But now that is because it has
foundations, and those foundations are sure, and its builder and
maker is God.

Looking for a City

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Looking for a City

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