The Holy Spirit not only makes
the believer holy, he makes him happy and he makes him confident.
Now believers are supposed to be happy. Rejoice in the Lord
always, the Apostle said, and again I say rejoice. Believers are supposed to have
confidence, not cockiness, confidence, not presumption, confidence. Believers are supposed to have
assurance. David said, ìThe Lord is my shepherd.î
He said, ìThe Lord is my refuge.î The Lord is my strength. Whom
shall I fear? Job said, ìI know that my Redeemer
liveth, and though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I
am going to see the Lord.î whom I shall see for myself, not another,
I myself, I'm going to see the Lord." That's happiness, and
that's confidence. The Apostle Paul said, I know
whom I have believed. I'm persuaded he's able to keep
that which I've committed unto him against that day. John said,
Brethren, we know that we have perished from death unto life.
The Apostle Peter said, we know that we're not with corruptible
things such as silver and gold from our vain conversation received
by tradition from our fathers, but with the precious blood of
Christ as a lamb without spot or bling. So believers are happy. They have Christ, and when they
have Christ, they have everything. David said, Though my mother
and my father forsake me, the Lord will take me up. all on
one occasion said, All men have forsaken me, only Luke is with
me. But I rejoice in the Lord." He
wrote from prison and called it the palace of the Lord. He
said he was a servant, a slave, a prisoner of Jesus Christ. Not a prisoner of Nero. He said,
I'm a prisoner of Christ. Nero put him there. But it was
according to the Lord's will that Nero put him there. He said,
I've learned in whatsoever state I am to be content. Read verse 15, let's look at
it. For you have not received the spirit of bondage. You have
not received the spirit of bondage, again the fear. What is this
word spirit here talking about? Well it's not the Holy Spirit,
it's not the evil satanic spirit. This spirit he is talking about
in verse 15 is a frame of mind. A frame of mind. He said you
have not received the spirit or the frame of mind that leads
you to fear. The spirit of dislike and fear. This is the same spirit with
which the slave or the prisoner regards his taskmaster or his
guard. a spirit of bondage, he's in
bondage, a spirit of dislike, a spirit of fear. Now that's
not the spirit you have received, he said. That's not the frame
of mind that you have received. But you have received the spirit
of adoption. This is not the Holy Spirit he's
talking about here. This is a frame of mind. You
have not received the spirit or the frame of mind which is
one of dislike and fear and slavery, you have received the spirit
of adoption, that is, the frame of mind in which an affectionate
child regards his father. It is a spirit not of fear, but
of love. It is a spirit not of dislike,
but affection. It is a spirit of confidence,
and it produces peace of mind. It produces happy obedience. It produces submission. You are
not in the frame of mind as a slave or a prisoner, but you are in
the frame of mind as a happy, obedient, submissive child, whereby
we cry, Abba, Father. Now, as best I can learn, the
word Abba is a Chaldeic word, that is, the language which was
spoken by the Jews. Now, the New Testament was written
in Greek, and this word father here is the Greek word for father. The word Abba is a Chaldeic word. The Syric Chaldeic language was
spoken in the Jewish home. It was the language which was
spoken in Paul the Apostle's home when he was growing up.
He called his daddy, Abba. That's the Chaldean word for
father. He called his father, his dad,
Abba. And the word here, Abba, is father. It's an affectionate term. It
was never used by the servants in the household. It was never
used by anyone but the beloved child. and the child called his
male parent Abba. And so the Apostle Paul said,
We are not in the frame of mind of fear and dislike. We are in the frame of mind,
by the grace of God, of an affectionate child who cries, Father, in the
Chaldean word, and Father, in the Greek word, That is, the
Lord Jesus, or the Heavenly Father, is Father both to the Jew and
to the Greek. Paul was writing to both Jew
and Gentile, so he says we cry, Abba, Father, Father. Now verse 16. The Spirit itself,
and I like to read this, the Spirit himself. Now this is talking
about the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit himself beareth
witness with our spirit. The Holy Spirit beareth witness
with our hearts. The Holy Spirit beareth witness
with our minds that we are sons of God. We can cry, Father, Father. We can have that confidence.
We can have that happiness. We can have that assurance because
the Holy Spirit beareth witness with our spirit that we are sons
of God. Now, we're always ready to doubt
this for two reasons. There are two reasons for doubts.
There are two reasons why a true believer really sometimes doubts
his sonship. Do you ever doubt your sonship?
Do you ever doubt that you're a child of God? Do you ever suspect
maybe that you're not saved? There are two reasons for that.
One of them is the greatness of the blessing. A son of God. Think of it. A son of the living
God. I am a son of God. Now you think
about that. I claim to be a son of God. Think of all that's included
in that term. A child of the King. A son of
the King of Kings. A son of the Lord of Heaven.
I am a son of God. All my sins forgiven. eternal
life, a crown on my head. And the second reason for these
doubts is our own sinfulness and our own unworthiness. As
Mephibosheth said to David, who am I that you should show such
mercy to such a dead dog? Who am I that I should walk with
a king as his son? Who am I to claim what God didn't give to the fallen
angels? Who am I to claim what God didn't give to so many princes
and kings and world leaders? Who am I to claim what God did
not give to races and nations and whole generations? But the
Holy Spirit of God, in spite of the greatness of the blessing,
the Holy Spirit of God, in spite of my unworthiness, The Holy
Spirit of God bears witness with my spirit and tells me that I
am a child of God, that I am a recipient of His grace and
His mercy and the gift of His Son, and through the sacrifice
of Christ I am a son of God. That's what the Holy Spirit tells
me. Sometimes, I don't know whether you experience this or not, but
sometimes I feel so sinful. Sometimes I feel so far away
from God. That's my fallen nature. And
then there are times when I feel so close to the Heavenly Father
that I can almost hear Him speak. There are times when I feel so
close through the Word of God to God Almighty, to the Lord
Jesus Christ, to the Holy Spirit, that I feel like I can reach
out and touch Him. That's the Holy Spirit bearing
witness. Now, without the Holy Spirit
left to my nature, I would always feel a stranger to grace. But the Holy Spirit Himself beareth
witness with my spirit that I am, in spite of the greatness of
the blessing, in spite of the unworthiness of the object, I'm
a child of God. Beloved, now are we sons of God. It doth not yet appear what we
shall be, but we know when He shall appear we shall be like
Him, for we shall see Him as He is. Now look at verse 17. And if children then we're heirs,
heirs of God. Children, whether natural or
adopted, are heirs to their parents. Now, we are not children of God
by nature. By nature, the Scripture says,
we're children of wrath. But we're children of God by
adoption, by divine adoption. The scripture says that we are
born again, that we are born of God. Of his own will begat
he us through the word of truth, that we are in the family of
God by divine adoption. And if children, whether by adoption
or by nature, we're heirs of God. What does that mean? That
means we share in his love. Now this is important. That means
that we share in His grace, that means that we're recipients of
His mercy, that means of His wisdom, power, and truth. We
are the heirs. That means that we have all things,
the gospel, the atonement, forgiveness, ransom, redemption, pardon, all
things. the world and all things therein,
life, heaven, happiness, the riches of glory, eternal life. We are heirs of God. Everything
that the Father has is ours." And he goes on to say, "...and
we are joint heirs with Christ." Now you are familiar with songs
like, "...build me a cabin in the corner of glory, You're familiar
with songs like Build Me a Mansion, Next Door to Jesus. You're familiar
with those songs that really are born of an ignorance of God
and a false humility. Now think with me just a moment.
Let's look at this. It says here that the Spirit
of God tells me I'm a child of God. I'm a child of God. The Spirit of God, through the
word, by the sacrifice of Christ on orders from the Heavenly Father,
hath borne witness with my spirit that I am a child of God, and
I am God's child, that the King of glory is my Father. And I
don't have a frame of mind of fear and doubt, but happiness
and assurance, and I call Him Father. Then if I am a child
of God, I am an heir of God. And if I'm an heir of God, I'm
a joint heir, I'm an equal heir, I'm a joint partner with Jesus
Christ, God's beloved, only begotten Son. That means that all that
Christ has, I have. That means that all that Christ
is, thou hast loved them with the
same love. He said that you love me. And whatever Christ will be as
a result of my oneness with him, I'm going to be. There are two ideas conveyed
here. Now listen to it. The same blessings which Jesus
Christ enjoys from the Father shall be conferred upon all believers. So you see the ignorance of songs
like that, talking about cabins in the corner of the globe, where
Christ is, I am, enthroned. What Christ has, I have, perfect
standing before the Father. What Christ is, I am, a triumphant
son. The same blessings which Christ
enjoys shall be conferred upon all believers. You see the amazement
of it? You see the wonder of it? That
makes songs like Ronnie sings, the wonder of God's love. The wonder of it. That makes
songs like Amazing Grace. That's the amazing part of it.
The amazing part. I don't know whether we realize,
whether we have just a faint inkling of what I'm talking about
here. If I'm a child of God, then I'm an heir of God. And
if I'm an heir of God, I'm a joint heir with Christ. And every blessing
which Christ enjoys shall be conferred upon me. And the second
thing These blessings shall be conferred upon me because of
my connection with and my relationship to Christ. I'm in Him. He's at the right hand, I'm at
the right hand. He's beloved and accepted of
the Father, and I'm accepted in Him. And He's loved with an
everlasting love, and I'm loved with an everlasting love. That's the reason you talk about
losing salvation and falling from grace and being saved today
and lost tomorrow. That shows a total, complete
ignorance of what we have in Christ, who he is, what he did,
and who we are. It shows a blank, total, black
ignorance of this book. That's right. And these little silly songs
about just barely making it into glory, and these awful, awful
blasphemous jokes about St. Peter at the gate and folks just
barely getting in and sending up supplies to build houses,
it's based on horrible, hellish ignorance of God's Word. The
thief on the cross who was saved in his dying hour is one with
Christ! He's an heir of God and a joint
heir with Christ! And everything that Christ has
and is, he has and he is. Oh, the wonder of it! A child
of God! And if a child, an heir of God,
an heir of God, like an only son, is an heir of everything
his father leaves. Like an only daughter is an heir
of everything that her parents leave. It's hers, all of it. all of it. Now look at the next
line. If so be that we suffer with
him, that we may be also glorified together. There are two things
taught here. Now, if I'm a child, the Holy
Spirit tells me I'm a child of God, not based upon what I've
done, but what Christ did. Not based upon my worthiness
or my merit, but based upon his worthiness and his merit. I'm
a child of God. And if I'm a child of God, nothing
can ever separate me from my family, from my Father. I'm always
his child. And I'm an heir of his, and I'm
a joint heir with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him.
Now, there are two things taught here. Number one, Christ and
his people. being one. And they're one like
the head and the body. They're one like the branch is
to the vine. They're one like the foundation
is to the building. Without a head, you can't have
a body. Without a vine, you can't have a branch. Without a foundation,
you can't have a building. Without Christ, we don't exist.
Spiritually, we don't exist. Without Christ, spiritually,
we have no being. But our being is Christ. When
Christ, who is our life, shall appear, He is our wisdom, He is our righteousness,
He is our sanctification, He is our redemption. Christ and
His people being one, then they suffer together. And it means
this, when He suffered and when He bore the sorrows and grief
of my sins, I suffered with and in him as my representative. When he suffered, I suffered.
When he died, I died. We partake of the efficacy of
his death because we actually, being one with him, died with
him. We, being one with him, suffered
with him. And we'll partake of the blessings
that come as a result of that suffering. And then the second
meaning is this, and this goes with the next verse. But because
of our oneness and identification with him, there will be sufferings
for us to bear also. Personal sufferings, personal
trials for us to bear. We shall bear them and suffer
them because of him. There was a division because
of him. He said, my brethren, they shall persecute you because
of me. They shall drive you out of their
houses and out of their cities because of me. And when we confess
Christ and love Christ and identified with Christ and his gospel, he
said, in this world you're going to have tribulation. You're going
to suffer with me and because of me. Christ wasn't popular
then. He's not popular now. And when
you're identified with the Christ of the gospel, and the Christ
of the Bible, and the Christ of mercy, and the Christ of the
offensive cross, you're going to suffer with him. But he said,
if you suffer with him, you'll be glorified with him. You see
those two points there? Now, number one, we did suffer
with him, in him, when he died on that cross. and also we suffer
with him and because of him, because of our oneness with him
and our identification with him for the sake of him and his gospel. Well, we're going to be glorified
together. Now, to be glorified with Christ is to be a partaker
of his glory, is to be made like him, is to be conformed to him
in soul and even in body. Our vile bodies, the scripture
says, will be fashioned like unto his glorious body. Now verse 18, I reckon that the
sufferings of this present time, now this is talking about just
what we just said, if we suffer with him, in this world you'll
have tribulation, but I reckon that the sufferings of this present
time which you're going to be called upon by God's sovereign
purpose to bear because of your identification with Christ, these
sufferings are not worthy to be compared with the glory which
shall be revealed in us. What's that talking about? The
glory which shall be revealed to us and in us and toward us
at the coming of our Lord. Oh, when he presents us a glorified
church, when we are conformed to his body and his soul, his
image, without spot or wrinkle, when we are given full possession
of that incorruptible, undefiled inheritance that fadeth not away,
when all of that is weighed in the balance with all of the afflictions
and the trials and the sufferings that may be necessary for us
and that God's purpose calls upon us to bear, when that glory
is weighed in the balance with these little sufferings, it will
make these trials less than nothing. It will make them look like so
much froth and vanity. I know these trials that we are
called upon to bear and this suffering that we are called
upon to endure in this life, it's not light, it's not easy. But when we behold his glory
and our glory when we share with him that glory of the Heavenly
Father, we are going to look back on these little trials and
inconveniences and tears as less than nothing. Vanity! Not even worthy, Paul said, to
be compared. Not even worthy. Not even worthy. Verse 19 through 22, and I want
to read this, verse 19 through 22. Now let's watch it carefully. For the earnest expectation of
the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of
God. The manifestation of the sons
of God is the day when we're going to be like Christ, when
our resurrected bodies are going to come out of the grave And
we stand perfectly conformed to his image as trophies of his
grace. David spoke of that day when
he said, I'll be satisfied when I awake with his likeness. After
we're dead, buried, risen again, the judgment is over, we're just
like Christ. That's the manifestation of the
sons of God. For the creature was made subject
to vanity, not willingly. but by reason of him who hath
subjected the same in hope, because the creature itself also shall
be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation
groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now." Now there
are four verses that I want to comment on right now. There has
been a lot of controversy about these verses. I read and studied
this afternoon Dr. John Gill. I disagree with him
completely. I read and studied John Brown. I can agree with him. I read
two or three translations of the Bible, and I found out this. I found out that the word creature
in verse 19, the word creature in verse 20, The word creature
in verse 21 and the word creation in verse 22 are all the same
word, creation. So every one of these words,
creature, should read creation. Now, the amplified translation,
which I think is one of the very best that you can get, the amplified
translation, listen, I want to read those four verses in this
amplified translation. Now, you listen carefully to
it. This is the only thing that makes sense to me at all for
this passage of Scripture. For even the whole creation,
this is verse 19, that is, all nature, waits expectantly and
longs earnestly for God's sons to be made known, waits for the
revealing, the disclosing of their sonship, the whole creation,
nature. For the creation, in other words,
the whole creature waited for the manifestation of the sons
of God. The creature here can't be us because we're the sons
of God. Something, something that is not the sons, can't be
the angels. Something is waiting for the
manifestation of believers. Something, whatever it is. And
it's the creation, what it is, the inanimate creation. Nature. That's all it can be. It can't
be the angels, can't be the devils. It can't be us, because we are
sons of God. It can't be the Jews, they're
sons of God. If they're believers, it can't
be the Gentiles, they're sons of God. It's got to be something
else. And it's creation, it's nature, it's the trees. and it's
the creeks and it's the plants and it's the universe. Verse
20 says, For the creation, that is nature, was subjected to frailty,
to futility, condemned to frustration, not because of some intentional
fault on its part. It wasn't nature that failed,
it was man that failed. The creation, what happened when
man fell? Well, man died spiritually, but
what happened to the world? Well, thorns and briars and disease,
just as death came upon the body of man, death came upon the body
of the tree. When sin came into the world
and the human body became stained and scarred and marked by sin,
so did the creation. You see moss and mold and mildew
and all of these things, they didn't exist in the garden. They
came as a result of sin. And the creation was subjected
to this by the will of Him, by God's will, who so subjected
it, yet with hope that creation itself will be set free from
this bondage. this bondage of decay and corruption. Creation itself shall gain an
entrance into the glorious freedom of God's children. God is going
to make this body over again, he is going to make this world
over again. He is going to deliver my body from the marks of sin,
he is going to deliver this world from the marks of sin. He is
going to deliver my body from death, he is going to deliver
that oak tree and that apple tree and that cherry tree from
death. He is going to deliver my body from any disease, any
faint taint of disease. He's going to deliver the world
from all disease. We know that the whole creation
of irrational creatures has been moaning together in
the pains of labor until that day. Now brethren, the earth,
the world in which we live, has become subject to decay, death,
and corruption because of Adam's sin. And that state is not going
to continue When God manifests his sons, he is going to make
a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness.
And the creation shall be delivered from their bondage of corruption
when God's sons are delivered from their bondage of corruption.
Now listen to this paragraph from Dr. John Brown. The earth
that now is, is materially the same as the earth before the
fall. And the earth that shall be after
the restoration shall be materially the same as the earth now. Its
reformation is a deliverance from the bondage of corruption
as ours is a deliverance from the bondage of corruption. Let's
look at some scripture. Turn to Psalms 19, if you will. Psalms 19. Listen to this. In Psalms 19, verse 1, the heavens
declare the glory of God. Nothing wrong with the heavens.
When that awful cloud comes over, that's because of sin. When the
lightning flashes and the rains fall that floods destroy the
people of this world, that's because of sin. Nothing wrong
with those stars. They declare the glory of God.
The firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech.
Night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech or language
where their voice, that is, God's glory and God's handiwork, is
not heard. There is no speech or language.
Now turn again. Follow this scripture, Psalm
96. Let's look over here a minute. I won't keep you much longer.
Psalm 96, listen to this. Let the heavens rejoice, let
the earth be glad, let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof. Let the field be joyful, and
all that is therein. Then shall all the trees of the
wood rejoice before the Lord, for he cometh." Oh, you're not
the only one that's going to rejoice when he comes. He says
the trees are going to rejoice. That's what it says. The field
will be joyful because he's coming. That's what it says. He's coming. Here's another one. Turn to Psalm
98. Psalm 98. Let everything that hath breath
praise the Lord. Let everything praise the Lord
even it doesn't have breath. Everything he made shows his
glory. Look at Psalm 98, verse 7. Listen to this. Let the sea roar,
and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein.
Let the floods clap their hands, let the hills be joyful together
before the Lord, for he cometh to judge the earth with righteousness. The Lord Jesus said, if you don't
praise me, these rocks will. These rocks will. Now verse 23, quickly. And not
only they, Romans 8, 23, and not only they, and this should
read, not only does the whole creation groan and prevail, waiting
for his coming. But even we ourselves who have
received the firstfruits of the Spirit, while waiting for the
adoption, the redemption of our bodies, we groan too. Now the
firstfruits here, what does that mean? It says, and not only does
the creation groan and prevail waiting for the adoption, the
redemption of our bodies, but we who have received the firstfruits
of the Spirit. Now, the firstfruits goes back
to the Old Testament, and it denotes a portion of the best
of the first ripe grain that was solemnly devoted to God.
Out there in the field, when the first ripe grain. Then the first fruits were taken
from the first ripe grain, the best fruits, and solemnly devoted
to God. Now, Christ turned to 1 Corinthians
15. Watch this. This will give us
a clue. In 1 Corinthians 15, verse 20, Now is Christ risen from the
dead and become the firstfruits of them that slept." Meaning,
the idea is that he was the first to rise from the dead, the first
to die no more. He's the first to rise to die
no more. In Romans 16, there's a young
man, I believe it's a man, in Romans 16, verse 5, It says,
"'Greet the church that is in their house,' talking about Priscilla
and Aquila, "'Salute my well-beloved Eponidas, who is the firstfruits
of Achaia unto Christ.'" He's the firstfruits of Achaia, that
is, he was the first convert in Achaia, this man Eponidas. So verse 23 of Romans 8 says, which have the firstfruits of
the Spirit. That is, we Christians, we believers,
in the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, we enjoy the firstfruits
of the holy happiness we expect to enjoy in heaven. We've already
received the firstfruits of what we're going to receive all of
in glory. We've already received a taste
of heaven. The fellowship that we shall
enjoy there, we enjoy here. The love which we have for Christ
there, oh, not in completion, not in fullness, we have it here.
Some people got the idea that when they go to heaven that they
don't care much for worshiping now, but when they go to heaven
they will. Uh-uh. I beg your pardon. I beg your
pardon. You're not going to raise oats
down here and corn up there. You have the firstfruits here.
If you've got a corn crop here, that's what you'll have up there.
If you're raising cotton up there, you've got a little cotton down
here, you've got a little patch down here with the firstfruits. Some people have got the idea,
I don't care too much about singing praises to God here, but I will
there, I beg your pardon. I don't have much love for the
word of God here, but I certainly have a great love for God's word
there. I beg your pardon. You're wrong. I hate to tell
you that, but you are. We have the first fruits right
here. Right here. The first fruits
of the Spirit. Brethren, we are saved. but not
completely saved. We don't have the full glory
yet, we have a part of it. We don't have the full image
of Christ yet, we have a part of it. Now we see through a glass
darkly. We see, but we see dimly. There we are going to see face
to face. We know, we know in part, but there we shall know
as we are known. What we are, what we have, what
we know here, will be so vastly enlarged then. But the start
is here. We already have a taste of what
heaven's going to be like. Therefore we groan within ourselves. Look here, look at verse 23 again.
It says, we groan, we ourselves groan within ourselves. That
is, our longing is different from nature in that ours is an
intelligent desire. Now listen to me. Blessed are they that hunger
and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Ours is an intelligent desire. We long to be with Christ, which
is far better. We long for the day when we shall
be completely free of sin. We long for the day when we shall
be just like our Lord. We earnestly desire that day,
the redemption of our bodies. The adoption, the redemption
of our bodies. Look at verse 24, and I'm going
to close in about three minutes. But hope that is seen is not
hope. For what a man seeth, why doth
he yet hope for? What does that mean? It means
this. We are saved to the full extent
of that word. Now, you think what that word
includes, save, the whole word. I don't mean just delivered from
the penalty of sin. I don't mean just delivered from
the prospects of hell. I mean the full extent of that
word, S-A-V-E-D. We are saved to the full extent
of that word, not immediately, but prospectively. So that we
cannot really justly say, we're saved. I can't just stand here
before you justly tonight and say, I'm saved. In a sense I
am. But in the full extent of that
word, I am not saved. Not yet. I hope to be saved. We're saved
by hope. I hope to be saved. The full
salvation, now listen to me, don't fall out with me, the full
salvation in Christ is something I'm expecting, something I'm
longing for, something that will be mine someday. Not yet. Not yet. If it were completed now, I wouldn't
be groaning. If it was completed now, I wouldn't
be crying, Lord, I'm dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, teach me something.
I'd know. If I were fully, completely saved
to the full extent of the Word, I wouldn't be praying, Lord,
don't leave me to myself. I would be perfectly safe with
myself. I'm saved by hope. I hope to
be saved. Hope that is realized is not
hope. When we completely realize our
inheritance, hope will become reality. Right? There's no such
thing as hope in heaven. Hope gives way to reality. There's
no such thing as faith in heaven. Faith gives way to sight. Faith
is a philosophy, not a philosophy, but a state that we are in on
this earth. There's no faith in heaven. It's sight there. We shall see
him. Hope is a condition of the earth. There's no hope in heaven. What
I have, then why do I hope? I'm in hope right now. It's a
firm hope, it's a sure hope, it's a certain hope, it's a hope
that is as real as Christ, but it's still a hope! It's still
a hope. I'm saved by hope. Verse 26,
likewise, the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities. Now, I want
to give you this before I quit. The Spirit, the word likewise
here, seems to be not only does hope