I hope that all of you will be
as alert as possible this evening to the thoughts that I am going
to try to bring out. In the second epistle of John,
I want to read my text again, verses 9 through 11. I'm going
to put the emphasis where I think it should be placed. The title
of this message is The Doctrine of Christ. The Doctrine of Christ. Verse 9 says, whosoever transgresseth
and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine
of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any
unto you, and bring not this doctrine, this doctrine of Christ
he's talking about, receive him not into your house, neither
bid him Godspeed. For he that biddeth him Godspeed
is partaker of his evil deeds. Now this is a short epistle.
It's not too difficult to find the main topic. or the subject
that the elder John had in mind as he writes to this church.
It's the doctrine of Christ. In these few verses, he mentions
three times this doctrine of Christ. He said, whosoever abideth
not in the doctrine of Christ hath not the Father. He that
abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the
Son. And if any preacher, teacher
comes your way, and does not abide in this doctrine and brings
not this doctrine, don't receive him into the house of God or
into your house and don't bid him Godspeed. Now, beginning
with verse seven, let's look back here just a moment. He says
there are many deceivers in the world. John's not talking about
atheists. I don't believe he's talking
here about infidels and agnostics. There are plenty of those, but
that's not who he's talking about. These are men and women who wear
the Christian name. That's who he's talking about.
Men and women who wear the name of Christ. Men who pretend to
be ministers of Christ. Men who pretend to be ministers
of righteousness. Men who pretend to preach the
Word of God and preach the truth, and who pretend to have a love
for lost souls, but who lie in wait to deceive and handle the
Word of God deceitfully. There are many deceivers, many
false prophets. For many false prophets have
gone out into this world. Many deceivers coming in the
name of Christ, holding the Word of God, preaching in the churches,
teaching in classes and yet deceiving the hearts of men and women,
robbing God of His glory and robbing men of their hope. What
about these people? Well, look at the next line.
There are many of them now, many deceivers, many false prophets. They're gone out into the world
and they confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh.
What is their primary error? What is the chief error of the
false prophet? Well, it's not a denial of God,
because they do not deny God. They preach the love and mercy
of God. They preach salvation. They preach
redemption. They preach all forgiveness of
sin. They preach pardon of iniquity.
It's not a denial of God, nor of his love and mercy to sinners.
It's not a denial of righteousness. because they're ministers of
righteousness. Paul said in 2 Corinthians, they're
like their father, the devil, they're ministers of righteousness,
and he himself changes himself into an angel of light. Nor is
their error a denial of the resurrection. They preach a heaven to gain
and a hell to shun. What is their error? Now note
this carefully. Their error has to do with the
person Jesus Christ the doctrine of Christ now look back at 1st
John chapter 4 this is where their error lies there are many
deceivers in this world and he's not talking about atheists and
infidels and agnostics and skeptics he's talking about people who
wear the name of Christ he's talking about people who'd wear
the name of Christian He's talking about people who preach, and
their error is not a denial of God or a denial even of some
type of inspiration. Usually it's divine inspiration
rather than verbal inspiration, but they have some type of inspiration. And they do not deny salvation,
they do not deny heaven and hell, they do not deny righteousness,
morality, they do not deny the resurrection, but their error
has to do with a person, the person of Christ. 1 John 4, 1,
Beloved, believe not every spirit. You'd think when we got in the
church house that we could believe what we hear. You'd think if
you turned the radio on and listened to a man who says that God sent
him that you could receive what he said. You would think that
if a man came with a Bible in his hand preaching that you could
receive what he declared, but not so. Beloved, believe not
every spirit. But try the spirits, whether
they are of God, for many, because many false prophets are gone
out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of
God, every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in
the flesh. In other words, the way to determine
between true prophets and false prophets is what they have to
say about this man, Jesus Christ. Not what they have to say about
righteousness, not what they have to say about morality, not
what they have to say about heaven or hell, but what they have to
say about a person. It all centers, the error of
the false prophets comes down to the person of Jesus Christ.
That's where the error is, that's where the departure is, that's
where it begins, right there. Read on. And every spirit that
confesseth not that Jesus Christ, in verse two he said, hereby
know we the spirit of God. Every spirit that confesseth
that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. And every
spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh
is not of God. And this is the spirit of antichrist. Now what do we mean Jesus Christ
is coming to the flesh? Well, first of all, we mean this.
He existed before he came in the flesh. Turn to Isaiah chapter
9. First of all, he existed before
he came in the flesh. It says Jesus Christ is come. the flesh. It doesn't say there
was a man called Jesus Christ who was born in the flesh, the
false prophet would accept that. But what he's saying here is
that Jesus Christ who already existed Come to this earth in
human flesh. He he was in the beginning with
God and was God what we're saying is this Jesus Christ is none
other he's not a messenger from God or representative from God
or even a son of God But he is himself God He is come in the
flesh Isaiah 9 verse 6 look at it unto us a child is born Unto
us a son is given You say, is Isaiah repeating the same thing
there? No, certainly not. Unto us a
child is born, that's Mary's son. That's the fleshly nature
and body of Jesus Christ. But a son is given, one who was
already the son, who was already, who preexisted, who has lived
in eternity, who is eternity. He has come in the flesh. A son
is given. A child is born, but a son was
not born. Christ was not born. He was made
of a woman, made under the law. Jesus Christ is not born. He
was the only begotten son of God. The child was born, the
son was given. All right? Jesus, the Messiah,
the Christ, is come in the flesh. He became what he was not before. He was not flesh before. He was
God, and He was made flesh. He became what He was not before.
He existed before He came. He is their God of their God,
and He came in human flesh, and He became what He was not before,
that is flesh, and He is God, and He is man. God of very God
and yet man the two natures in one and there's no compromise
here in any degree God was in Christ and this is the very heart
of what we believe this is the very heart of what we profess
this is the very heart of what we have and this is the very
heart of what we hope for turn to Matthew 22 Matthew 22 41 Now, my friends, the work of
Christ depends upon the person of Christ. These dear people
over there in Winston-Salem who are talking about particular
redemption. Well, your redemption that you preach or believe or
claim depends on who he is. If he is God, he cannot fail.
If he is God, he cannot fail. He will accomplish what he set
out to do. Because he doeth according to
his will in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of
the earth. And his will shall be done. So if the one on the
cross in that body of flesh is God himself, then what he came
to do was done. What he suffered was accomplished.
What he paid for was paid for. And the people he redeemed were
redeemed. But now if he's just an example
or a representative or a messenger from heaven, then perhaps he
didn't get done what he set out to do. Matthew chapter 22 verse
41, listen. While the Pharisees were gathered
together, Jesus asked them, saying, what think ye of the Christ? That's what he's saying there.
He's not saying here, what do you think of me? He's saying,
what is your opinion of the Christ, of the Messiah, when he comes?
They were all looking for a Messiah. They were looking for Christ.
Some people said, is not this the Christ? And one of the Pharisees
said, well, can Christ come out of Nazareth? Can any good thing
come out of Nazareth? You don't expect Christ to come
out of Nazareth. And so Christ asked them, what do you think
of the Christ? What's your opinion of the Christ,
the Messiah, when he comes? And they replied. They said unto
him, he is the son of David. In other words, they were talking
only of his humanity. You see what they're saying?
They're saying that he is a Jew, that he'll be the son of David,
that he'll be of the house and lineage of David, that he'll
be a descendant of David, which is all true in his humanity,
his manhood. But what they're leaving out
there is he's God. This is the child born. But they're leaving out the son
given, God, in human flesh. But read on. And Christ said
unto them, then how does David in spirit, under the Holy Spirit's
inspiration, under the Holy Spirit's teaching, how does David then
call him Lord? If he's David's son, what's David
doing calling him Lord? He said in Psalm 110, the Lord
said unto my Lord. Sit thou on my right hand till
I make thine enemies thy footstool. Christ said, if David then calls
the Messiah Lord, if David calls the Messiah Lord, if David calls
the Christ Lord, how is he his son? And no man was able to answer
him a word. That hung him up. They couldn't
deal with that. This is what we're talking about
right here. Whoso confesseth that Jesus Christ, Jesus, is
not just the son of Mary, an earthly being, a human being,
a powerful man, a superman, a great representative, but this person
that was born in Bethlehem, that is God. That's God in human flesh. He's come in the flesh. He who
is from the beginning is come to this earth in the flesh. He
who is the ancient of days has become an infant of days. You see that? And that's the
very heart of all, and he says here in verse 7, the man who
confesseth not this is a deceiver, he's an antichrist, whatever
note he sounds, whatever he contends for, whatever good deed he does,
whatever good program he promotes, if he does not confess, that
the one who died on that cross, who lay in Mary's arms, who walked
the streets of Jerusalem, who walked the shores of Galilee,
he was buried and rose again, if that is not God in human flesh,
that man is a deceiver, he's an antichrist, whatever he does. That's what it hangs on, right
there. But brother man, There's some good men out there that
don't believe that. They are not good men. They're
deceivers and antichrists. This is where the whole error,
this is what the Bible says, it's what God's Word says. Hereby
we know the Spirit of God. I know there's some good organizations
and some orphanages and place for wayward girls, wayward boys,
and there's a place for unwed mothers, and all of these things,
and good works, and hospitals, and that's all fine, that's good. But brethren, that's not the
Spirit of God if they do not confess that Jesus of Nazareth
is God Almighty in human flesh. This is where the issue is, this
is where it all hangs. All right, look at verse 8. That's
very clear from verse 7. Now verse 8, look to yourselves. Look to yourself. John would
have these believers look about them and to themselves and beware
of these deceivers and beware of their doctrine. Be careful,
he says, that you lose not those things that we have wrought or
labored to teach you, but that we receive a full reward. Well, I believe I can handle
that full reward there. I believe I can. He's talking
about a full reward in the world to come. Now listen to me a minute.
There are certain rewards to religious works and duties. There are certain rewards, there
are certain earthly returns that come to self-righteousness, that
come to religion, that come to those who do good deeds, there's
a certain satisfaction. There's a certain, there's a
deliverance from alcohol and from drugs and from, from conflict. And there's a certain reward
that comes from praying and doing good deeds and certain rewards
that come to people who do not believe that Jesus is the Christ.
Example, Matthew chapter six, turn over there a minute. Matthew
chapter six. Matthew chapter 6. You say, well,
they're doing a good work. Yes, sir. There's some humanitarian
work going on that folks benefit from. The people who have it
done to them are benefited, and the people that do it are benefited. Watch this. I'll show you. In
Matthew 6, verse 1, take heed that you do not your arms before
men to be seen of them, otherwise you have no reward of your father
which is in heaven. Therefore, when you do your alms,
don't sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the
synagogue, in the streets, that they may have the glory of men.
Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. They do have a
reward. They're praised by men. They
have a certain peace or comfort of soul that comes from doing
good. They have a certain return that
comes to them from being nice to folks. Little children are
fed, and you sit and watch them fed. I paid for that. I furnished
that food. I did that work. Feels good.
You go over and help a neighbor, and his house burned down. You
help him build it back, and give him clothes, and gives you a
peace and a joy. And you can go through your worship.
You can burn candles. You can get on your knees, and
you can pray to a heathen god and get up feeling good. You
cannot give any credit to Jesus Christ at all being the Redeemer,
the Messiah. You can find comfort in your
own self-righteousness. Did you know that? You sure can.
That's what he's talking about right here. Read on. Verse 3,
but when you do alms, don't let your left hand know what your
right hand doeth. that thine arms may be in secret, and your
Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
And when you pray, don't be like the hypocrites. They love to
pray standing in the synagogues in the corner of the streets,
that they may be seen of men very outstanding you. They have
their reward. But it's not a full reward. It's
a temporary reward. It's an earthly reward. It's
a temporary return on their investment. He's saying here in verse 8 of
2 John, look to yourselves and don't lose the foundation, the
place of refuge, the true Redeemer, that you may have a full reward,
nothing temporary, nothing relating to time. Actually, you may have
distress and affliction and conflict, but that full reward is in the
world to come, a full reward of His presence, a full reward
of eternal glory, a full reward as a joint heir with Jesus Christ.
Who cares for anything here? Who cares for the opinion of
men? Who cares for the praise of men? If I please men, I'm
not the servant of Christ. Who cares for the comforts of
this Passing fashion of the world. We want a full reward and would
be satisfied with nothing less than a full reward all right
verse 9 and Here's where the conflict is whosoever transgressed
it and about it not in the doctrine of Christ This person this glorious
person I Now, what is the doctrine of Christ, all right? Why is
it called the doctrine of Christ? Well, I'll give you three reasons.
Number one, he is the author of it. He is the author of it,
the gospel of redemption. Watch this now, the gospel of
redemption. The redemption of a sinner, the
justification of a sinner, the sanctification of a sinner, the
acceptance of a sinner by a holy, sovereign, immaculate God. That gospel of redemption did
not evolve out of the failure of other dispensations. There are a whole lot of folks,
and perhaps some of you have heard this all your life, that
God made Adam with the hope that Adam would continue in his innocence. They call that the dispensation
of innocence. Well, he didn't. So then God
put man under a dispensation of conscience. And that didn't
work out. Every man did that which was
right in his own eyes, but his eyes weren't very clear. And
then God put him under what we call a dispensation of judges. And the judges became corrupted.
And then God put him under a dispensation of law. He gave Moses, after
2,000 years, he called Moses up and said, all right, here's
a way for me to be saved by keeping the law. Well, that didn't work
either. So now, 4,000 years after Adam
fell, God decided to send Jesus Christ into the world. He searched
through heaven, the song says, to find a savior, and he sent
him down here. That's not so. It's just not
so. Turn to Revelation chapter 13. Revelation 13. My friends, The gospel of redemption did
not evolve out of the failure of other dispensations. There
was a savior before there was a sinner. Christ was the lamb slain before
Adam ever fell. Look at Revelation 13a. And all
that dwell upon the earth shall worship him whose names are not
written in the book of life of the lamb slain from the foundation
of the world. This is what the Jews, they didn't
believe on Christ. They said, we have Moses. Christ
said, Moses wrote of me. Well, they said, we have Abraham.
He said, Abraham saw my day and was glad. And Ephesians 1 says,
he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.
He chose us in Christ before we ever fell in Adam. Actually,
literally, Before the fall of Adam, before we were ever fallen
in Adam, we were chosen and loved and justified and sanctified
by the purpose and will of God in Christ Jesus. That's right. Though the doctrine of Christ
is called the doctrine of Christ, this glorious gospel of redemption
is called the doctrine of Christ because he's the author of it.
It all was purposed and planned before the world began. And then,
the gospel of redemption, secondly, it is called the doctrine of
Christ, and this is so important, because he's the sum and substance
of it. That's why it's called the doctrine
of Christ. If you could take the whole truth of the gospel,
let's go back yonder to the foundation of the world, go back to the
council halls of eternity and consider the doctrine of election.
We were chosen in Christ. The doctrine of election had
its very foundation in Christ. We were elected in Christ. We
were considered in Christ. Well, let's consider Christ as
representative, as federal head. It's all in Christ. You come
down to the tithes, the Old Testament promises and revelations, they
all were Christ. He went back here and showed
them in the writings of Moses and the Psalms and the prophets,
those things that were written about him. You come to the incarnation. You come to the atonement. You
come to our righteousness. That's Christ. You come to forgiveness
in whom we have forgiveness. You come to sanctification, reconciliation. You come to the judgment. God's
committed all judgment to the son. You come to heaven. Unto
him who loved us and gave himself for us that he might have the
preeminence eternal life you take everything that has to do
with the rediction of a sinner from eternity to eternity and
Compress it all together and bring out the very heart of it
the very essence of it the very sum of it and it'll be Jesus
Christ That's what it all is He's the sum and the substance
of all that God has for man, all that God does for man, all
that God has promised man. Paul called it in Titus, the
doctrine of God, our Savior. And again, he said, Christ in
you, that's the hope of glory. We're complete in him. Atrabeotl,
Christ be formed in you. So it's called the doctrine of
Christ because he's the sum and the substance of it. He's the
essence of it. Of God are you in Christ who's
made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.
That's the reason he said we preach Christ. And that brings
me to the third thing. It's called the doctrine of Christ
because he's the author of it, he is the sum and substance of
it, and he's the message of it. He's the message. We preach not
ourselves. We preach not ourselves or yourselves. Now a lot of preachers can't
say that because they are preaching ourselves and yourselves. You
stop and think a little bit about that statement Paul said right
there. We preach not ourselves, but Christ. Do we preach Christ?
Do we preach Christ? Is our message what? Now listen
to the average sermon. You folks ought to do this. Bless
God, you ought to be out winning souls. Bless God, you ought to
be trusting Jesus. Bless God, you ought to be giving
God your time and your talent and giving God your heart and
giving God his tithe and giving God, you ought to, bless God,
stay out of the places of the world and you ought to live for
God. Wait a minute now. We're preaching
ourselves. That's all we're preaching. Paul
said, we don't preach ourselves, we preach Christ. We preach Christ. Listen to the Advert Sermon,
and when you come to the end of it, did the man preach ourselves
or Christ? We preach Christ concerning His
person. Who is He? What did He do? Why did He do it? Where is He
now? What is He to you? Concerning His office, surety,
mediator, representative, federal head, prophet, priest, king. We preach Christ concerning His
work, incarnation, obedience, suffering, death, resurrection,
ascension, His return. We preach Christ concerning peace
and pardon. It's in Christ. There's no peace
outside of Christ. There's no pardon outside of
Christ. It's Christ we preach. What you do is because of what
He did. What you are is because of what
He is. What you'll become is because
of what he did. I wonder just how many messages
that when we finally preach them can be said, he preached Christ. He preached Christ. The doctrine of Christ, look
to yourself. Be careful you don't lose those
things which we've labored, which we've wrought. that you might
receive a full reward, or you can play church and feel good.
You can get self-righteous and feel a certain peace and calmness
of spirit, and you can find a reward. But that reward that you ought
to want is that full reward, and that's in Christ. For whosoever
transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ. Now
watch this. Boy, this is shocking here. Whoso transgresseth or
departeth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not
God. Hath not God. Brethren, what
a charge. This man who does not know who
Christ is, who he was, And I hate to use the word was because he
wouldn't use it. He wouldn't say I was. He said
I am. I am. I am. Christ is. But whoso knoweth not who Christ
is does not know the full implications of that incarnation. Does not
know the full value of God in human flesh. Does not know the
full value of his person and his work depends on his person.
That person, no matter how much doctrine he knows, how much morality
he preaches, or righteousness he produces, or work he does,
he hath not God. That's what it says. What do
you mean, he hath not God? Well, first of all, he has no
true knowledge of God, because Christ said, no man knoweth the
Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son revealeth. It is
impossible to know God except as he's revealed in your heart
in the person of Jesus Christ. Apart from Christ, no man has
a true knowledge of the living God. He may know a God, he may
know some God, but he does not know the living God. The only
way to know the living God in heart, we can't see him with
his eyes, we can't hear him with his ears, we can't touch him
with his hand. The only way to know the living
God, to have the right to have the right understanding of the
attributes of God, of the wisdom of God, and the mercy of God,
and the holiness of God, and the righteousness of God, is
as He's revealed to you in the person of His beloved Son, Jesus
Christ. No man knoweth the Father but
the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal it. Jesus Christ is not the Son,
then he didn't reveal God. All right, he says he hath not
God, he hath not the knowledge of God, and watch this, now he
has no communion with God. Christ said no man cometh to
the Father but by me. Christ said there's one mediator
between God and me, and that's the man Christ Jesus. There's
no other way. Having a high priest over the
house of God, let us come bold and let us come with full assurance
of faith, having our hearts sprinkled and our consciences purged. And
then this man has no hope of eternal life, for he that hath
not the Son hath not life. Look at 1 John 5, back one page. 1 John 5, 11. This is the record,
God has given us eternal life, this life is not in a son, it's
in his son. And he that hath the son hath
life, and he that hath not the son of God hath not life. This doctrine of Christ, this
person of Christ, the essence, the very image of God, God was
in Christ reconciling the world unto himself. God was in Christ. He knew no defeat. He knew no
sin. He knew no failure. He knows
none now. The pleasure of the Lord prospered
in his hand. He that abideth not in the doctrine
of Christ hath not God. He hath no knowledge of God.
He hath no fellowship with God. He has no way to God. He has
no way to God. I tell you, The man who crawls
on his knees over cobblestone, counting his beads and praying
to the Blessed Virgin, he may as well pray to that chandelier. He has no way to God. That's what it says in the Scripture.
No man cometh to the Father, but by me. Now watch the rest
of that verse 9. He that abideth in the doctrine
of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. There's a word here
you need to look at. It says, he that abideth in the
doctrine of Christ. This is not to hear this doctrine.
It's not just to give mental assent to this doctrine. It's
to abide in it. He that abided in the doctrine
of Christ, who is not removed from the doctrine of Christ by
false teachers, he's not removed from the doctrine of Christ by
trials of life, He's not removed from the doctrine of Christ by
persecution and mocking of men. He's not removed from the doctrine
of Christ by prosperity or the allurements of this world. He's
not removed from the doctrine of Christ by the temptation of
modern religion. He's not removed from the doctrine
of Christ by the indifference of old age, but he dies in the
faith. There's no hope for anybody else.
Scripture says these all died in the faith Paul came to the
end of his journey, and he said I've kept the faith Therefore
there's laid up for me a crown of righteousness All right last of all and I close
what's to be our attitude toward those who preach not this doctrine
of Christ and when I say the doctrine of Christ I mean the
person the work, depending on the person, who he is, what he
did, why he did it, where he is now, the living Lord of glory. If any come to you as a preacher,
teacher, as a religious leader, and bring not this doctrine of
Christ, don't receive him into italics, your word, house into
house, Don't receive him into the house of God. Do not let
him preach or teach. Now listen to me. These churches
are religious groups that are nothing in the world but places
for the expression of opinions. That's dangerous. The worship
service of the Lord Jesus Christ, the pulpit is not the place for
expressing opinions. It's the place to preach Christ.
And nobody's got any business preaching or teaching who doesn't
preach and teach Christ. And the elders of this church
and the pastor of this church have a sacred responsibility
toward this pulpit and toward this assembly. And if any man
preach not this doctrine, he's not to be. He's not to be. Be at God's speed, he's to be
rebuked, Charlie. Lovingly, but rebuked. And don't
entertain him in your home and don't wish him well. Don't say
the Lord be with you. God's not gonna be with him because
he's an enemy of Christ. He's an antichrist, he's a deceiver.
Do not tell him the Lord bless you. Do not tell him all health
and happiness to you. Do not make a contribution to
him. He says, if you do, verse 11, you're partaker of his sins. If we support the enemies of
Christ, we're partakers of their evil deeds. That's what the Scripture
says. Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. Brethren, that does
not simply mean that a person called Jesus lived over yonder
in what they call the Holy Land. Everybody knows that. But he
is come. Not is born, he is come. To come to some place, you gotta
come from some place. When I was born in 1926 in Fairfield,
Alabama, I didn't come from anywhere. That's my first appearance. But
when Jesus Christ came in Bethlehem's manger, He, the Lord of Glory,
the Sovereign King, the Ancient of Days, is come in the flesh. God's here! God's here. My Lord and my God, Thomas said. My Lord and my God. Sovereign
God. All authority. He said to his
disciples when they left to preach, he said, you go into all the
world and preach. You go because all authority is given unto me
in heaven and earth. He's king, always has been, always
will be. We're not in a vacuum. Jesus
Christ used to be king and someday will be king. He's not king now.
Yes, he is. He never has relinquished his
reign. He never has stepped off his throne. He's the same yesterday,
today, and forever. Whatever he was, he is and always
will be. He was king on that cross. He
was king over the waves. He was king over diseases. He's
king over Satan. He's king over sin. He's a sovereign
king. It's not sweet little Jesus.
Boy, listen to That program last night, that fella sang Sweet
Little Jesus. Boy, they wouldn't let you be
born in a hotel. They made you be born in a manger.
He came there because he wanted to. Everything he did, he did
because he wanted to do. Because it was purpose. Even
his death on the cross. They with wicked hands crucified
him, but that was the way God ordained him to die in my place
instead. He's king. He said, if I needed
anything, I wouldn't ask you. That's what he said. The cattle
on a thousand hills is mine. Our Father in heaven, reveal
Christ to our hearts. Christ our Lord. He is our substitute
and our savior. He is a man. He was clothed in
human flesh. He did bear our sins. He was
tempted in all points. He did thirst and weep. But He's
Almighty God. God was in Christ. We know that.
Teach it to our hearts. Establish us on the fact of it,
the truth of it, the comfort of it, the joy of it, the blessings
of it. We're not looking to satisfy
this world's curiosity or to get along with this religious
stream of life. But, oh Lord, we want to know
Christ and the power of His resurrection. We want to win Christ and be
found in Him. Establish this congregation,
this pulpit, all who are here tonight, on the rock Christ Jesus. For in him we are and have all
things. In his beloved name we pray and
for his sake. Amen.