The Kingdom of Heaven

Our Lord, in the 6th chapter
of Matthew, verse 24, condemns anxious care
about the material things of this world. Our Lord condemns
anxious care. unspiritual, unholy, anxious
care about what we're going to eat, what we're going to drink,
and what we're going to wear. He says in verse 24, no man can
serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and
love the other, or he will hold to the one and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and materialism. That's what that word is, riches,
materialism. You can't serve both. You cannot
have two masters. You cannot serve two masters.
This world and the materialism of this world, the fame, social
acceptance, luxuries of this world cannot have a grip on you
and Christ have a grip on you. You cannot serve both. He says,
therefore, verse 25, I say unto you, take no thought, or anxious
thought, unusual care for your life, what you shall eat, or
what you shall drink, nor yet for your body what you shall
put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than
raiment? Behold the fowls of the air,
they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather in barns, Yet
your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are you not much better
than they? Which of you, by taking thought,
can add one cubit unto his stature, or one day to his life? Why do
you take thought for clothing? Consider the lilies of the field,
how they grow. They toil not, neither do they
spin. And yet I say unto you that even Solomon, in all his
glory, was not arrayed like one of these lilies. Wherefore, if
God so clothe the grass of the field which today is and tomorrow
is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you,
O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying,
What shall we eat? What shall we drink? And wherewithal
shall we be clothed? It's needless. It's needless. If God clothes the lilies and
feeds the birds, will he not care for our needs, his children?
If ye being evil know how to give good things to your children,
how much more shall your Heavenly Father give good things to them
that ask him? It's not only needless, it's
useless. Can the farmer make it rain by worrying about it,
being anxious about it, concerned about it? Will our anxiety add
one day to our lives? It's not only useless and needless,
but it's heathenish. He says in verse 32, for after
all these things, food, clothing, shelter, riches, materialism,
physical well-being, luxury. These are the things that the
Gentiles seek, the heathen. That's who he's talking about,
the pagan. It's paganism. Your Heavenly Father knoweth
that you have need of these things. And then in the next verse, he
gives us a description of that which is worth your care and
your seeking, your anxiety. This is something worth being
concerned about. It's not worth being concerned
about tomorrow's food and clothing and shelter. This is something
that's worth anxiety and worth care and worth diligently seeking. Seek ye first before family comforts,
before wealth and jobs, security, future, all these. Seek ye first.
the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Blessed is the man whose King
and Lord is Jesus Christ. Blessed is the man who bows down,
not to the idols of materialism, but who bows down and worships
only the Lord of glory. Blessed is the man who is not
a slave to his job, his income, his family, his social position,
the defense even of his name. Blessed is that man who's a bond
slave of King Jesus, who can say with the Apostle Paul, I
am a bond slave of the Son of God. Blessed is that man who
is clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, to whom God
will not impute sin. Now our concern and our care,
our anxious care for the things of this world is heartedly and
sincerely and dogmatically condemned by our Lord. And it's so forcefully
condemned that he says, you can't serve two masters. You can't
be anxious about both the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this
world. You can't. There's no way that your allegiance
can be divided. You're going to love one, cling
to him, or else despise him and cling to the other. There's no
way to divide your affection. As Brother Barnard said, Jesus
Christ is going to be Lord of all, or he's not going to be
Lord at all. Blessed is that man whose King is the Lord, whose
immutable, indisputable King and Lord and Master is the Son
of God, who cares not what others think or what others do or what
others have, but who cares only for that vital living union and
relationship with his Lord. I had rather Cecil read tonight
be a doorkeeper or dwell on the threshold of the house of God
than to dwell in the tents of wickedness as an accepted party,
partner, and owner. I had rather sit on the doorstep
of God's house than to be a partner with the wicked in their dwelling
places. Give diligence. Here's something
to be concerned about, is your interest in the kingdom of God.
And then in Matthew 13, the scripture that I read a few moments ago,
our Lord illustrates what he's talking about. He illustrates
what he's talking about in Matthew 13, verse 44 through 50. He illustrates this seeking of
the kingdom of God. Now, the seeking of the kingdom
of God is more, I repeat, more than a nominal interest in religion.
This is what's prevalent today. men dabble with religion. They
give God a part of their income and a part of their time and
a part of their effort and a part of their interest. This is dabbling. This is a nominal interest in
religion. They divide their lives into
the social part, the entertainment part, the working part, and the
religious part. That's not what this is all about
at all. This is more than getting fixed up for heaven, making your
peace with God. This is more than being assured
if you die you'd go to heaven because you trusted the Lord.
This is a great deal more than a fear of death and a fear of
judgment and a fear of eternity. This seeking the kingdom of God
is a great deal more than mental agreement with a theological
system. As many men have gone to hell
from orthodoxy as from error, It is a great deal more than
just believing there's one God and that Jesus Christ died on
the cross. The devils believe and tremble.
Even the demons who possess the man in the tombs, they cried,
we know who he is. We know full well who he is.
He's the Holy One of Israel. He's the Son of God. Have you
come to torment us before our time? We are theologians too. This thing of seeking the kingdom
of God is more than a reformation of life. It's more than joining
a religious organization or a religious movement or being right on your
baptism. Look at the Master's outline.
He has three points. He says in verse 44, the kingdom
of God, the kingdom of heaven is likened to a treasure, a treasure
hid in a field. The witch, when a man hath found
it, He hideth it, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all
that he hath, and buys that deal. Now, if we can get a hold of
this, we'll have from the lips of our Master Himself. And He
winds this up by saying, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. Today's religionists
have itching ears. They hear what they want to hear.
They hear that which is in accord with their theology, or their
custom, or their tradition, or their orthodoxy. They never hear
God speak. They never hear the Holy Spirit
speak. They never hear Christ speak. They never hear from God.
They always hear from a man. Our Lord said, if you've got
ears, you better listen. You better listen. What is this treasure?
This treasure is not eternal life. This treasure is not the
benefits of grace. This treasure is not the peace
and rest that comes through faith. This treasure is the gospel of
Jesus Christ. That's what it is. The kingdom
of heaven is like unto a treasure hid in a field, a treasure. This
is the gospel. This is the glorious gospel,
the glorious good news of Christ Jesus. And what a treasure! What
a treasure that enables God to be just and justifier. What a
treasure that enables a holy God to honor His law and set
the prisoner free. What a treasure that lifts a
beggar from the dunghill, from the lowest place, from the filth
and guilt of human ruin, and sets him among princes and kings.
What a treasure that gives sight to blind eyes, Christ said, life
to dead sinners, causes the lame to walk, the dumb to speak, the
deaf to hear, and sets the prisoner free. What a treasure! What a
treasure! What a treasure that covers my
sins and blots them out and removes them even from the memory of
God. What a treasure! That's the treasure he's talking
about. You say, but this treasure is hid in a field. How is the
gospel hid in a field? Well, turn to Matthew 13, 17,
back just a few verses. Most men do not know the gospel. Many preachers don't know the
gospel. The gospel is a treasure that's hidden. It's found by
some, but not by all. Did not Paul say, if our gospel
be hid, it is hid to them who are lost? whom Satan hath blinded, whose
eyes have been blinded by the God of this world, lest the glorious
light of the gospel of Christ should shine unto them, and they
should be saved, it's here. And here it says in Matthew 13,
17, I say unto you, verily I say unto you, many prophets and righteous
men have desired to see those things which you see, and have
not seen them, and to hear those things which you hear, and have
not heard them. And does not he say in verse
35, listen, that it might be fulfilled, Matthew 13, 35, which
was spoken by the prophet, saying, I'll open my mouth in parables,
and I'll utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation
of this world. The gospel is a treasure. What
a treasure that enables God to be just and justified, that lifts
the beggar, cleanses the sinner, causes the blind to see and the
lame to walk and the prisoner to be free. Where is it hid?
Well, first of all, it's hid in the promises of God. When
Adam and Eve fell in the Garden of Eden, God came and said to
Satan, I'll put enmity between thee and the woman, thy seed
and her seed. It shall bruise thy head, thou
shalt bruise his heel. Ninety-nine percent of the people
in this world can read that and not see Christ, but those whose
eyes have been opened who have had their hearts enlightened
by the Holy Spirit can see the seed of woman is the virgin son,
can see the crushing of the serpent's head to be the crushing of Satan's
power, and the bruising of Christ healed to be the suffering of
his human nature. That was the promise of redemption.
Where is it hid? It's hid in Isaiah 7.14. Behold,
the Lord himself shall give you a sign, a virgin shall be with
child and bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name
Immanuel, God with us. That's the incarnation. Unto
us a child is born, unto us a son is given. The son wasn't born,
the child was born, the son was given. You can see their deity
in human nature, both. The government shall be on his
shoulders, his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor,
the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace. Isaiah 53, the Ethiopian
eunuch said, who's this man talking about, himself or some other
man? When he says, he was wounded for our transgressions and bruised
for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him, by his stripes we're healed. The world doesn't
see the gospel in those promises. The gospel's hidden not only
in the promises of God, but it's hidden in the types. Most preachers
can get up and preach on the Passover and never mention Christ,
our Passover. They talk about the rock which
Moses smote, and that rock is Christ. The serpent lifted up
is Christ. The blood on the door is Christ. The sacrifice of Isaac is Christ. the renting of the veil, all
of these things, the priest going into the Holy of Holies, the
blood on the mercy seat, Christ, sacrifice, atonement, substitution,
the world doesn't see that. The tabernacle, the priesthood,
that tabernacle is Christ, that tabernacle in the wilderness,
the outside of it looks so common, covered with the badger skin,
but you go inside and the magnificence, the beauty of it, That's the
human nature of Christ. He was despised and rejected
of men. There was no beauty about him
that we should desire him. But oh, to the enlightened eye,
they saw the glory of God. That tabernacle was where God
met men and where men met God. And Christ Jesus came down and
tabernacled on this earth among us. And it's in Christ that God
meets men and men meet God. Where is this gospel hid? It's
hid in the message of the apostles. Other foundation can no man lay.
None of the name given unto heaven whereby we must be saved. We're
not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver and gold.
The religious world goes blindly working their way to heaven and
ignoring the gospel preached by the apostles. Every means
of grace that God's ever given to men Men have taken those means
of grace and made an object of faith out of them. This Bible,
the churches that worship the book, they worship doctrine. They're so orthodox, though so
correct, they'll make a matter for splitting and dividing the
least little difference that they have with someone over a
point of doctrine. Mary. God gave Mary just as an
instrument to bring Christ into the world. People pray to her.
They made a god out of her. God gave the Lord's table that
we might remember Christ's death and men have made a savior out
of the bread and the wine. They put Christ's body and blood
right there in that bread and wine. Baptism. Nobody's ever
been washed from his sins in the waters of a baptismal pool,
but we make an effort at it. God gives his law to shut our
mouths and shut us up to Christ, but we bow before the shrine
of the law and try to make a savior out of it. The gospel's here.
It's here. But he says here, that kingdom
of heaven's like a treasure, a treasure, an unspeakable treasure
that's hid in a field. But praise God when a man finds
it. When his eyes are open and he
sees redemption by substitution, Redemption by the atonement. Redemption by representation.
As in Adam we died, in Christ we're made alive. By one man's
disobedience we were made sinners, by the obedience of one we were
made righteous. When his eyes are open and he
sees that, he sees beyond all the commotion of religion and
the traditions of religion and the ceremonies of religion, and
he sees Christ. When his ears are opened and
they're touched by the Holy Spirit and he hears God speaking through
his word, he quits hearing a preacher and he starts hearing the Spirit
of God when his heart is enlightened. Our Lord one day said to his
disciples, whom do men say that I am? Well, some say you're a
great healer. You can hear that every day.
Some say you're a great prophet. You can hear it every day. Some
say you're one of the prophets, some say you're John the Baptist,
some say you're Elijah. Christ said, Whom do you say
that I am? And Peter said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the
living God. And our Lord said, Peter, flesh
and blood didn't reveal that to you. It was revealed. It was
made manifest. But it was revealed to you by
my Father in heaven. Look at Matthew 13, 16. Our Lord,
speaking to the disciples, said, Blessed are your eyes, they see,
and blessed are your ears, for they hear. The gospel is a treasure,
the glorious gospel of grace, the gospel of redemption, the
gospel of substitution, the gospel of life, the gospel of forgiveness,
the gospel of peace. It's hid in all these things,
in the promises, in the prophecies, in the types, in the shadows,
in the examples, in the tabernacle, in the preaching. And God is
pleased sometimes to open men's eyes, and they see it, and their
ears, and they hear it, and their hearts, and they understand it.
What happens then? Well, listen. He hides it. for joy thereof. He hides it. What does that mean?
He stores it up in his heart. He holds it strongly to himself
that he might not lose it. Oh, I have seen men and women
come after years of groping in religion, after years of dedicating
and re-dedicating and consecrating and re-consecrating and making,
signing pledges and signing vows and making resolutions and trying
to serve God and going to church and keeping the holy days and
all these things. I've seen them one day, the light
of God just opened their eyes and they say, this is it, this
is the gospel. Brand new! I see Christ died
for my sins. I see redemption in the blood.
I see God's forgiveness and mercy and pardon, not in what I am,
not in what I've done, not in what I give, but in what Christ
did. He paid my debt, all the debt
I owe. Sin left a crimson stain. He
washed it white as snow. I see it! I've seen people walk out the
door of this church Sunday after Sunday with a quizzical look,
with a disturbed look, with a cloud just covering their heads and
eyes. They don't understand what I'm talking about. And then one
day they come out and I see their eyes light up and a smile crease
their faces. I see it. Like that man 76 years
old who told me a few weeks ago before he died, who was brought
to knowledge of Christ while listening to the television program.
He said, I never knew why Jesus Christ came into this world.
I never knew. I never knew. He said, I knew
he did, I knew he died on a cross, I knew he buried, I believed
it, I knew it, but I didn't know why. I never had any peace until
this moment. And God has given peace to my
heart. Christ is my Lord. He died for my sins. Why did
the Lord take so long to reveal it to me? I said, I don't know.
I just know when He's pleased to reveal it, He will. And I
just know until He does, that eye hath not seen, ear hath not
heard, and it hath not entered the heart of man the things God
prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them, revealed
them unto us by His Spirit. And you try to do it, and you'll
make a mess out of it. You'll make you a religious Pharisee.
You'll make you an orthodox theologian. You'll make you a tar. You'll
make you a chap. You'll make you a child of two-fold
more the child of hell than you are. You try to do the work of
the Holy Spirit and bring men to a knowledge of Christ and
the gospel without the Holy Spirit, and you'll create a monster.
A religious monster. God creates sons. He begats sons. Of his own will begat he us.
And this man, when he discovers it, when he sees it and hears
it, he hides it in his heart. He holds it close to him that
he might not lose it. And he begins to make arrangements
to part with everything that gets in the way of that gospel.
That's what our Lord meant when he said, sit down and count the
cost. If you're going to build a house, can you finish it? If
you're going to fight a war, can you do it? Now, he sits down
as he sees this gospel, and he sees the things that come between
him and knowing this Lord. The man came to have two masters,
and he knows that. He knows Jesus Christ is King,
Lord, indisputable Lord. A sovereign dictator, compassionate
and merciful. But nevertheless, he has a yoke
he puts on his people. And this man sits down and takes
a look at his possessions. And he's got to decide, are they
going to be more important than Christ? He finds out that the
church he's affiliated with does not preach this gospel. He's
going to part with it. Long-standing affiliations. Lifelong friends. They're not
going to understand. They're going to have a lot to
say. You've lost your mind. You mean
we're lost and you're saved? He's got a lot of questions to
answer. Questions he really can't handle. He just knows he can't
sit and listen to his Lord insulted. He knows he cannot participate
in social religion. He knows that. He knows it's
got to go. He knows he's going to have problems with his family.
They're not going to understand. He knows that the social circle
in which he's been moving these years, the people who say they're
his friends and these things, some of them got to go. Two cannot
walk together, except they be agreed. They may meet on the
road, they may be kind to one another, and they will be. They
may be understanding of one another, but they can't walk together.
Child of darkness cannot walk with a child of light. Not very
long, one of them's got to go. One of them's got to compromise. And this man, he knows that!
And he hides in this gospel, and for the joy thereof, and
he goes! And he sells everything he's
got. Everything he possesses, and
all that he possesses, if it comes between him and his Lord. And then he comes and buys that
field. I'm ready. I'm ready, Lord. You know, Lord,
when somebody said to the Lord one time, Well, I'll follow you
wherever you go. He said, Now, wait a minute.
Wait a minute. Hold on here. Let's see. Foxes
have holes and birds of the air have nests. The Son of Man hath
not where to lay his head. The fellow said, Well, Lord,
I'll follow you, but let me go home first now and bury my father.
Let the dead bury the dead. You take up your cross and follow
me. Lord, I'll follow you, but first let me go bid them goodbye
at home. I don't want to sever these relationships
like this. I've got friends." He that putteth
his hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom
of heaven. He's going to buy that field,
that whole field. He's going to buy the types.
He's going to buy the promises. He's going to buy the prophecies.
He's going to buy the tabernacle. He's going to buy the priesthood.
He's going to buy Calvary. He's going to buy the cross.
He's going to buy the tomb. He's going to buy intercession.
He's going to embrace all that appertains to this gospel, not
a part of it. You can't have a crucified Christ
without a reigning king. You can't have a crucified Christ
without a surety. You can't have part of Christ.
This is what the world wants. Oh, let's not talk about doctrine,
preacher, let's just beat around Jesus. Which Jesus? Which Jesus? The one that's being preached
today or the one that's preached in here? Well, the one that's
preached in here is the Lamb slain from the foundation of
the world. The one preached in here is the one in the types.
The one preached in here is the God of election. The one that
preached in here is the effectual substitute. He died for his people.
He didn't try to do anything. He did what he came to do. The
one preached in here is the one who was crucified for sinners,
bared and rose again, and is at God's right hand, and he's
the Lord of all he surveys. That's the one preached here.
The Bible doesn't know anything about a doormat named Jesus.
Just the present-day preachers preach that. This Bible doesn't
preach that. The Bible doesn't know anything
about a fire escape named Jesus that you hide somewhere in the
closet, and when you come to die, you say, well, I believed
in you all along. The Christ of the Bible is prophet,
priest, and king. Let me be a secret disciple.
Nicodemus came by night afraid. Afraid. Secondly, the kingdom of heaven
a treasure. Secondly, the kingdom of heaven,
verse 45, is like a merchant man seeking goodly pearls. who,
when he found one pearl of great price, sold all he had, all he
had, and bought it. Now, somebody
says, I've heard them interpret this as being Christ seeking
his elect, but I don't believe it. The common application, rather,
is to make it just like the first one. Now, the treasure in the
fields of gospel, it's here. When a man finds it, when God
reveals it, He's willing to part. This is what he's been looking
for. This is the treasure of treasure. This is worth everything.
It's worth everything. And I'm going to have it, this
gospel. I'm going to embrace it. Now then, here's a man seeking
goodly pearls. The merchant man is the seeker.
whose mind and heart is aroused to seek the true way of life.
Oh, there's some people that seek religion. They seek orthodoxy. They seek theological accuracy. There are people who seek different
things. But this man was seeking goodly pearls. Goodly pearls. He knows his need. He knows what
he's looking for. He'll never be satisfied with
imitation, counterfeit. He knows what he's looking for,
and he finds that one pearl. Who is that? That's Christ. That's
Christ. That one pearl of great price.
He finds that one pearl of great price. To the artist, he's the
altogether lovely one. To the architect, he's the chief
cornerstone. To the baker, he's the living
bread. To the banker, he's the unsearchable riches. To the botanist,
he's the lily of the valley. To the builder, he's the sure
foundation. To the broad, he's the bright
groom. To the captive, he's the emancipator. To the doctor, he's
the great physician. To the farmer, he's the seed
sower and the lord of the harvest. To the juror, he's the faithful
witness. To the lawyer, he's the righteous judge. To the philosopher,
he's the wisdom of God. To the sinner, he's the redeemer.
To the soldier, he's the captain of my salvation. To the preacher,
he's the word of life. To the student, he's the truth.
He's everything. He finds that pearl. He finds
Christ. And what does he do? He sells
out. Preacher, what are you talking
about selling out? I'm talking about arranging your life in
such a way that absolutely no one or nothing comes between
you and the Son of God. That's what I'm talking about.
Nothing. Anything, we were talking about this in the study tonight,
anything, it may be the idols of pleasure, it may be the idols
of entertainment, it may be the idols of materialism, it may
be the idols of wealth, it may be the idols of social functions,
it may be your job, it may be anything, it may be your family,
it may be your wife or children, whatever it is, anything that
sidetracks you, and takes away your attention and your spirituality
and your union with Christ and your fellowship with the Son
of God, then that thing needs to be dealt with. That's what
Christ meant when he said, if your right hand offends you,
cut it off. It's better to go through life with one hand than
to go to hell with two. He didn't mean for you to mutilate
your body. If your eye offends you, pluck it out. It's better
to go through life with one eye than to go to hell with two.
He didn't mean for you, that would be a horrible sin for you
to poke your eyes out. He meant that thing that is so
dear and so precious and so important to you is not worth your soul.
That's what we're talking about here. The kingdom of God, if
a man comes and finds Christ, All the wealth in this world
is not worth Christ. What shall a man profit if he
gains the world and loses his soul? All the so-called popularity
and friends and acclaim and recognition of this world is not worth hearing
him say, I never knew you. If a man loves his mother, father,
brother, sister, husband, wife, yea, his own life more than he
loves Christ, he's not fit to be my disciple. He sells out. He sells out. And then what does he do? He
comes and buys that pearl. That's total commitment. The
Apostle Paul said, I know whom I have believed. I'm persuaded
he's able to keep that which I've committed to him. I've committed
to him. I'm taking all that I am and
all that I have. And I'm marrying Christ. I'm
committing it to Christ. I'm taking his name. I'm taking
his reproach. I'm taking his offense. That's
all right. Let them say what they will.
Let them do what they will. Let them think what they will.
But I'm walking with Christ. The Christ of the Bible. Not
the compromised Christ. Not the defeated Christ. Not
the frustrated Christ. The Christ of the Bible. The
King. I'm walking with the King. He reigns. He's king. It wasn't
popular for the thief on the cross to cry, Lord. Nobody else
did that. It wasn't popular for Bartimaeus
to cry out, thou son of David. It wasn't popular for the Apostle
Peter, James, and John to walk with this hated carpenter. But they had seen some things
that the world hadn't seen. And they had heard some things
that the world hadn't heard. And they had found out some things
in their heart. And they were willing to part
with everything. Oh, Paul said, I'm a Hebrew of
Hebrews, a Pharisee of the tribe of Benjamin, regarding the law
blameless, but I count these things but dumb. that I may win
Christ and be found in Him. Oh, that I may win Christ and
be found in Him. It'd be worth walking through
life as a pauper. It'd be worth walking through
life as a shame. It'd be worth walking through
life as a marked man. It'd be worth walking through
life with all the reproach and hatred of this world cast out
of the synagogue, despised and rejected. It'd be worth walking
through this world to walk with Him. to be identified with Him. That's what we're talking about.
All right, verse 47, "...and the kingdom of heaven is like
a net, like a net cast into the sea,
and gather of every kind." What is this net? It's preaching of
the gospel of Christ. The treasure is the gospel. The great pearl, the pearl of
great price is Christ. And the net is the preaching
of the gospel of Christ. Go ye, Christ said, into all
the world. We take the net, and we stand
there, and we cast it out. It's the gospel of Christ. And
we draw it in. And you get all kind of fish. That's what it says here. They
cast that net into the sea, and it fills up, and they draw it
to shore, and they sit down. Boy, some of them that long,
not that long. Some of them are not even edible.
Some of them are greasy and oily and just throw out the bad ones.
There's some good ones in there, though. And you keep the good
ones, and you throw out the bad ones. And that's the way it is
when we preach the gospel. It was that way when he was here
on the earth. Our Lord Jesus preached the gospel, and some
followed him. He said, You follow me because
of the miracles. They saw him heal that blind
man and heal that deaf man, make that lame man walk, cause Lazarus
out of the tomb, and they just ran along after him. They didn't receive him as master
and lord. They didn't bow to him with a
broken heart. They didn't look to him as substitute and redeemer.
They followed him hoping they'd get another miracle. Another
miracle. Another bunch followed him, and
he said, I know why you're following me, you aid of the loaves and
fishes. You aid of the loaves and fishes.
I rejoice with that dear man that sued that church not long
ago. I read about it in the paper. He sued his church. Because he
came to church and the minister got up and preached the sermon
on tithing and he unconditionally Guaranteed the people that if
they tithe God had blessed them and that old boy started tithing
God didn't bless him He sued the church. He said that's false
representation And I if I'd been on the jury to give him every
dime I would have Because that's false representation. That's
a good deal That's a good deal. Give God 10 cents. He give you
90 and Give God a thousand dollars and he'll give you nine thousand?
Why, I'd do that any day, wouldn't you? I'll give you ten cents
of everything you give me. Ten percent. That's foolishness. They follow him because of the
loaves and fishes they want to eat. They want to be blessed.
They want the comforts of life. They want to be healed. They
follow Christ for these things. And some followed him for an
earthly kingdom. He rode into town. Hosanna! Hosanna! He's going to restore the glory
of David to the Jews. We Jews are going to sit on a
throne and judge the world. That's what a lot of people think
about a millennium, you know. They're going to sit on a bunch
of thrones. They're going to live in mansions. They're going to
drive big long cars. They're going to rule here on
the earth, you know. That's the reason they're following.
Watch this car, the Lord might come and I'll be raptured, you
know, and you'll be left running into the curb or something. Some
build on a foundation of works, a lot of reasons. Our Lord draws
that net in, the preacher draws it in, and he begins throwing
out these loaves and fishes followers and these miracle followers and
these earthly kingdom followers and all these others. He keeps
the believer. He's my Lord if he takes my life
tomorrow. He's my Lord if he blows my house
down tomorrow. He's the Lord of glory no matter
what he does. Though he slay me, Job said,
I'll trust him. Read on, verse 50. And he says,
verse 49, So shall it be at the coming, at the end of the world,
the angel shall come forth and sever the wicked. the Pharisee,
the hypocrite, the false believer, the people that have packed churches,
and the people that have followed social religion, and the people
that have followed Christ for what they could get out of him,
and the people that have a veneer of religion and an inward ignorance
of Christ. He said he's going to separate
them. We're going to separate them.
But those believers who've received the King, who've embraced the
Lord, who've committed themselves to Christ, sink or swim, I go
to Him. And I can't sink if I'm in Him.
I'll to the gracious King approach, whose scepter mercy gives. Perhaps
he will hear my plea, and then the sinner lives. I can but perish
if I go. I am resolved to try. If I stay
away, I know I'll forever die. What's Christ worth to you? What's
this gospel worth to you? Well, when the net's drawn in,
preaching the gospel at the end of the world, God said he'd find
out what it's worth to you. When that old ship, the Titanic,
you know they built that thing and they said it can't be sunk. There's a lot of tradition around
that thing that talked about saying even God couldn't sink
it. I don't know about that, but they said it couldn't be
sunk. Well, it left the shores. It
left the port. And it had all kind of people
on board. It had rich people and poor people. It had retired
people and working people. It had statesmen. It had movie
stars. It had soldiers. It had black
people, white people. It had all classes of people.
But when that thing went to the bottom and they came back to
the port from whence it sailed and tacked up the stowage, it
was on two classes of people, the saved and the lost. That's
all. They all fell into two classes,
saved and lost. And that's the way it's going
to be. That's the way it's going to be at the end of the world,
just the saved and the lost. Just those who know Christ and
those who never knew him. Oh, that's what Paul meant, that
I may win Christ and be found in him. That's what our Lord
meant here. Seek ye first the kingdom of God. These other things
are anxious care. It's not worth it. They're nothing. But you seek first the kingdom
of God. Give diligence to make your calling
and election sure. Do these things, you'll never
fail. Never be ashamed. Our Father, honor the word. Let
me hear thee speak through thy word. Let the people hear not
a man, but hear thee. Our Lord is worthy of our allegiance. He's worthy of worship. Our Lord
is King, Lord of Lords, and he's worthy of our total submission
and our commitment. And we understand, our Father,
no man can serve two masters, not when one is the Lord of Glory.
He's worthy of all praise and worship and adoration. He alone
is worthy, worthy as the Lamb. And, O Lord, create in our hearts
a love for Christ, a devotion to Christ, a separation to the
Lord Jesus Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.

The Kingdom of Heaven

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