I don't think we have any announcements.
So let's begin. What? Oh, is that? Here comes Crow
and Sam. Crank mine up so I can hear a
little better. as you know worship service him
number one hundred and twenty five one twenty five he's just
made it up he Child of weakness, watch and
pray. Find in me thine all in all. Jesus paid it all, all the debt
I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed in white as snow Lord, now indeed I find Thy power and
Thine alone ? And change the leper's past ? And melt the heart
of stone ? Jesus paid it all ? All the debt I owe ? Sin had
left a crimson stain ? He washed it white as snow ? For nothing good have I ? Whereby
thy grace to claim ? I'll wash my garments white ? In the blood
of Calvary's Lamb ? Jesus paid it all ? All the debt I owe It had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. And when before the throne I
stand incomplete, Jesus died my soul to save. After scripture reading and prayer,
we'll sing hymn number 352. have your Bibles to me to the
very chapter 26 read the first 13 verses there's 26 you shall make you
know I'm graven image me the rear up a standing image neither
show you set up any images stone to bow down unto it, for I am
the Lord your God. Ye shall keep my sabbaths and
reverence my sanctuary. I am the Lord. If ye walk in
my statutes and keep my commandments and do them, then I will give
you rain in due season, and land shall yield her increase, and
the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. And your threshing
shall reach into the vintage, and the vintage shall reach into
the sowing time. And you shall eat your bread
of the full and dwell in your land safely. And I will give
peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make
you afraid. And I will rid evil beasts out
of your land, neither shall the sword go through your land. And
you shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you
by the sword. Five of you shall chase a hundred,
and a hundred shall chase ten thousand, or put ten thousand
to flight, and an enemy shall fall before you by the sword.
For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and
multiply you, and establish my covenant with you. You shall
eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new. I
will set my tabernacle among you, and my soul shall not abhor
you. and I will walk among you, and
I will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the Lord your
God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that
you should not be a bondman, and I have broken the bands of
your yoke and made you go upright. Let us pray. Our Father in heaven,
most gracious and merciful Lord, who is good, and kind and merciful, tender-hearted, and piteous of
your children. We thank you, Father, that you
know what we are and yet have loved us with an eternal, everlasting
love, not because of anything we do or can do or reciprocate
in any way, simply because you would. We bow before you, the
judge of all the earth that shall do right. Pray for those who
are sick, going through trials and tribulation, away from us
for whatever reason. Ask Lord your help for them.
Pray for our community and for the nearby communities who are
still suffering from Helene. Pray that you would fix it so
communities would come together and get these things done that
need to be done for these people. pray for ourselves this morning
as we gather here that you might be pleased to give us worship
as the gospel is preached. Enable me to declare the glory
of Jesus Christ and what he's done for us, what he's accomplished
for us in his death on Calvary's tree and his life upon this earth
as the perfect sacrifice. Help us this hour to worship
you. Fall down before you in thanksgiving and praise. knowing
that we are what we are by the grace of God and nothing else.
Help us now, we pray in Christ's name, in his glory. Amen. Jesus, lover of my soul. Jesus, lover of my soul, let
me to thy bosom fly, while the nearer waters roll, while the
tempest still is high. ? Hide me, O my Savior, hide
? ? Till the storm of life is past ? ? Safe into the haven
guide ? ? O receive my soul at last ? ? Other refuge have I
none ? ? Hangs my helpless soul on ? Leave, ah, leave me not alone. Still support and comfort me. All my trust on thee is stayed. All my help from thee I bring. Cover my defenseless head with
the shadow of ? Thou, O Christ, are all I want
? More than all in thee I find ? Raise the fallen, cheer the
faint ? Heal the sick and lead the blind ? Just and holy is
thy name ? I am all and righteous False and full of sin I am, Thou
art full of truth and grace. Plenteous grace with Thee is
found, Grace to cover all my sin. Let the healing streams
abound, Make and keep me pure, Thou of life the fountain art,
freely let me take of Thee. Spring Thou up within my heart,
rise to all eternity. Let's pray. Father, again we
approach in the name of Jesus Christ, our great Savior, from
whom we are gathered to honor and glorify this hour, knowing
full well that all we have, this side of perdition, is because
you have shown us grace and given us mercy, and have supplied us
with all our needs out of the abundance of your mercy and your
riches in Christ Jesus. As we return it to Thee, that
which You have bestowed on us freely, let us do so with joy
and thanksgiving in our hearts. We pray in Christ's name. Amen. You. you. I invite your attention back
to Leviticus chapter 26. Leviticus is a book of laws that
God has given to His people which we know were all fulfilled and
kept by the Lord Jesus Christ as He lived and died upon this
earth. That's the beauty of reading
and understanding the laws that are given is that they are fulfilled
in Jesus Christ. This chapter here toward the
end of Leviticus is gospel full, pressed down and running over.
The language of the entire chapter is a clear picture of the state
of the believer and the unbeliever in this world. What I read to
you in verses 1 through 13 teach the glorious truth of what Christ
has done for us if we see it in the light of the gospel. The
truth is set forth under the Old Covenant, however. Historically,
this was the law given to the Jewish people as they were to
live in the land of promise. So it's the truth of the Old
Covenant under the banner in which they resided. It was of
obedience to the laws of God as they applied to two areas
here as our Lord has set forth here, particularly there. many,
many laws set forth in Leviticus, but these two are set forth here.
The first is the law against idolatry, which we've seen in
our study in Jeremiah, and the other was about the law of keeping
the Lord's Sabbath. Now in verse, chapter 25 of this
book, several of those chapters are mentioned, or Sabbaths are
mentioned, there are eight of them all together. different
sabbaths or days of rest or designed rest to set forth that God rested
from the creation. Verses 14 through 39 if you read
them teach the horrible curse that attends the disobedience
to these two particular aspects of the law of God and in truth
the whole law applies because to offend the law in one point
is to be guilty of all. verses 40 through 46 address
the doctrine of repentance revealing the mercy of God upon the sinner
to whom God has granted repentance under the new covenant but under
the old covenant is those who have obeyed God unto repentance. It's important to remember that
as we read the Old Testament that though the laws point to
spiritual truths and they do as do all the Old Testament points
to spiritual truths that when it's being discussed in historically,
it's a temporal thing. A temporal thing in nature having
to do with favorable considerations and attendant life in the promised
land. Now in the temporal realm, and by that I mean the law written
on stone, visible, not bendable, only breakable,
ever watching and ever watchful over the nation of Israel, that
law addressed behavior and it was conditional. God said, don't
do this, and if you didn't do it, it was okay, and if you did
do it, you'd be cursed. The blessings spoken of in the
first 13 verses that I just read to you are temporal and have
to do with living on the land that's been provided by God and
conditioned on the obedience of the people. Now, if the people
here spoken to will not raise up a graven image and will keep
the Sabbath, then all the promises of the blessings are guaranteed
by God. under that temporal covenant. They will live a blessed and
fruitful life, being rewarded for their obedience. Their obedience
simply consists of doing what God has commanded concerning
worship, because both of these things have to do with worship,
idolatry and resting in the finished work of God, which is what each
Sabbath represents. their blessings will cease and
will be turned to curses the moment they fail in disobedience.
Now we know that they did not obey. The book of Isaiah, the
book of Jeremiah that we're studying, the book of Amos, the book of
Ezekiel, all sets forth Israel in the latter days before Jerusalem
was destroyed by the Chaldeans and the Babylonians took Israel
and Judah captive before that happened. we know that the Lord
time and time again said don't be involved with idols and we
know that those nations were completely idolatrous we just
read in our last study on Jeremiah that there was an idol on every
street corner and on every street there were altars to idols so
you could walk down the street there was the temple of the Lord
within sight and in that temple were idols
like they'll be or an ashtaroth they were stay erected in the
temple of god but in clear view of that all these idols right
next to where the temple of god was make a walk down the street
narrow one corner was bail bill p or uh... molec uh... which that's ashtaroth all these
were there so i doubt it was people not the people didn't
put those things away god said i'll curse you I'll curse you. Their blessings would cease if
they turn to their idols. The reason this fact must be
reiterated is because most of what is called Christianity today
has incorporated this conditional covenant into the concept of
grace. It's grace plus. Grace plus. It's very difficult. I think
Jim Byrd wrote an article here. In nature it's impossible for
men to believe that they go to heaven based only on the merits
of Jesus Christ. They just got to believe they
have to have something to do with it. They just got to believe
that. That covenant, the old covenant,
is conditional. If you're going to go under that
covenant, you've got to do the whole law and do it perfectly
before God, for it shall not be accepted if it's not perfect. The reason this fact must be
reiterated is because most of what is across Christianity is
in that old covenant language. divided the singular law of God
and called one part of it the moral law, that's the Ten Commandments,
and the other part they call the ceremonial law, but the law
is not divided. The moral law, there's one law,
the Ten Commandments show us that we cannot do anything that
will please God, and the ceremonies all point to the blood sacrifice
of the Lord Jesus Christ that takes away our sin, all those
things, that's one law, it's not divided. By dividing the
law the way they do, They've destroyed the purpose of the
law and made the death of Christ of none effect. Now for a believer to try to
apply these commands to the natural realm, that is to say, to endeavor
to gain the spiritual blessing of God by doing something or
behaving in a certain manner, is not only forbidden by the
words of the Lord, but is impossible to accomplish. It's utter foolishness
to think you can. It shows you what fools a lot
of religionists are, and they believe they can. these two laws about idolatry
and the sabbath must be kept perfectly they simply must where it leaves the adherent
without hope in this world for Paul said to the Roman church
what the law saith saith to them that are under the law every
mouth might be stopped and the whole world become guilty before
God. This is the condition. If you want to keep the law,
if you want to think by something you do or don't do you merit
a righteousness before God, you're guilty before God, you're guilty,
guilty, guilty. And none shall stand before Him
guilty. Also, the laws of the eight Sabbaths
have to do with the sacrifice and offerings and the availability
of the high priest, the tabernacle, the temple, the holy, the most
holy place, the most holy place, the ark of the covenant, the
feast, and the holy days. All those are included in the Sabbath. And you must ask the question,
where are they now? Where's the temple? Where's the
priesthood? Where's the ark of the covenant?
Where's the mercy seat? They don't exist. Physically,
they don't exist. Where's the temple? Well, it
sits on a dome. What's sitting where the temple
was is the Mosque of Omar. It's an Islam temple. those who
believe that they are still under the covenant read these words
with a veil over their eyes. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 3,
they are unable to see or to stand the glory that is behind
the veil. But believers, believers of the gospel, the
good news of Jesus Christ and his accomplished work on Calvary
Street, they rejoice to read these words. They rejoice when
God says, He shall make you no idols. you should keep my Sabbath the
believer rejoicing these things because all the promises of God
are yea and amen in Jesus Christ alone the veil is lifted and
the law is fulfilled in the believer because he died in the person
of his substitute and Paul actually says in Romans chapter 8 that
the righteousness of the law be fulfilled in us we read these words not with
fear and dread but with peace and assurance We have obeyed
the law. Every believer has obeyed the
law because we have obeyed the gospel, which is to believe and
rest entirely in the merits of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
To believe the gospel is to obey the law. It's that simple. It's to honor the law because
the ultimate price was paid by the substitute under that law,
and we believe that is our salvation. Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to them that believe, Scripture says. And
when we look at these verses, verses 1 through 13, if we are
clothed in our right minds, we can see it with new eyes, we
can see it through Christ, Christ having fulfilled all of this
for us, all these 13 things that God requires of His people and
promises that He gives because they obey the gospels fulfilled
by the Lord Jesus Christ. The receiving of the blessings
of God are still conditioned upon keeping the law, but not
by us, by our substitute. They are conditioned upon Christ
having kept the law for us, dying in our room instead, and the
righteousness of that keeping is fulfilled in us. It's a crazy thing to think about,
a wondrous thing. No wonder people think we're
fools. But the veil is lifted, and we see the glory of these
things. In the first two verses, we see that in faith, because
of the work of Christ, we've kept these commandments. That
is the way that the believer must read these words. How do
we do that? By prefacing these verses with the words, In Christ. In Christ ye shall make no idols.
no graven image, neither rear up any standing image, neither
shall you set up any image of stone in your mind, or bow down
to it, for I am the Lord your God in Christ." You do those
things. You don't set up idols. Two thousand years ago our Lord
died on Calvary's tree and took care of all this. In Christ we've
made no idols. In Christ we've kept all the
Sabbaths of God. It is what it is to believe with
the heart. Man believes under righteousness,
and then, since out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks,
confession is made unto salvation, not to be saved, but that we
are saved on Calvary by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. In
verse 1, the language of God uses to describe idolatry is
very informative in defining what idolatry is. The first word
for idol is idle or graven images. means a useless, powerless, false
god. That's what it means. This is
a man-made image that can do nothing but wholly rely on its
maker, which is man, to be ambulant or to attribute to it an imaginary
divine power. That's what has to happen. If
you make your god out of stone or out of wood and fall down
to worship it, you've got to move it around where it needs
to go, and you have to give to it from your power. you have
to give it power to rule over you, which is just utterly stupid,
isn't it? But that's what's required. The power and the ability to
do anything is really the power of man who created the destitute
deity. It's conveniently attributed
to the stump because men, even in the violence of sin, must
at least pretend to worship something outside themselves and call it
God. is often said of such a God,
He wants to but can't unless you let Him. That's an idol God. If a man says that about God, he's worshipping an idol. If
a man says God's hands are tied, he's worshipping an idol. If
a man says God can't save you unless you let Him, he's worshipping
an idol. He's not worshipping the true and living God. Because
none of that language is ever applied to God Almighty. If a
man says, God, you must let God in your heart, that man's worshipping an idol.
If you must invite Jesus into your heart, that man's worshipping
an idol. First of all, why would you invite him into that dark,
vile thing called a heart? And not only that, Scripture
says he takes that heart away and gives you another one. So
if you invite him into your heart and he takes that heart away,
you ain't hurting him more anyway. people don't think about what they say second thing referred to as this
idol is called a standing image it refers to a memorial to one's
self complete with an altar to one's self this standing image
is a man's homage to his own works read Romans 1 21 through
23 when a man sets aside the glory of God and makes something
in his own image and that becomes decreasing from humanity down
to what wriggles and writhes upon the face of the earth, but
he worshipped something. The third form of idolatry is
called an image as stone has the root word into build. image
of stone, the root word is to build, and we know that that's
talking about man's personal righteousness. Well, that's what
it says in Romans 10. I bear them record they have
a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge, for they go about
to establish or to build their own righteousness, having not
submitted to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end
of the law for righteousness to them that believe. So idolatry is worshiping a useless
God by your works and your righteousness which you have built. The believer is left off from
former idolatry. That's what Paul says is a result
of your election in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1. One of the fruits
of your election is that you turn from idols to serve the
living God. The believer discounts, disowns,
and disavows anything before belief in the gospel as having
anything to do with the true God and the manner in which you
save sinners. Anything. Everything. What about my former
life? Nothing. What about my former
religion? What about my Bible study? What
about my giving? What about my attendance to the
church? Nothing. Nothing. Nothing prior to God
giving you faith can you attribute to yourself. and nothing after it that you
do. Paul said not only those things
he counted dumb was those stuff that we just passed as a Sanhedrin
and a Pharisee. He said what I'm doing now I
don't look to. I don't trust what I'm doing now. I don't trust
my prayers. I don't trust my faith. I don't
trust anything but Jesus Christ. That's what it is to be saved
by God. Verse 2, the believer keeps the Sabbaths of God by
resting wholly in Christ and His finished work. He denies
Himself, His work, His words, and His worth. He proclaims gladly
and boldly that He does not now nor has since God gave Him faith
lifted a finger to gain a blessing from God. I have done nothing
that would cause God to bless me. It would be a foolish thing
if I have all the spiritual blessings in Jesus Christ to think that
I can get blessed more. If you've got all blessings,
then you've got all blessings. The believer knows that the Lord
is God. He has made us and not we ourselves.
The believer rests. That's what the Sabbath means.
Shabbat, rest. Why do we rest? Because we're
tired? No. Why do we rest? Because there's nothing left
to do. You see, God has finished the work of creation. He's finished
the work of new creation in Jesus Christ, and there's nothing left
to do. You are complete in Him. There's nothing left to do. That's
why you rest. They sing, we'll work till Jesus
comes. The believer says, I'll rest till He does. I'll rest
in what He has accomplished for me. Verse 3 applies the same
principle, that Christ fulfilled the law for the believer and
imputed righteousness unto him. It says, If ye walk in my statutes,
and keep my commandments, and do them. You do that. The believer does that. Christ
did it for us. and imputed that righteousness
to us. We can read the word if and since in this passage. What follows then are the manifold
blessings of liberally given to us in Jesus Christ who has
given us all spiritual blessings in Christ. Verse 4, the blessing
of rain and due season. rain plays an important part
in scripture for it sets forth the word of God, the doctrine
of the gospel. My doctrine shall be still as the dew, Moses said
in Deuteronomy 32, 2 of the Lord. In Isaiah chapter 55 he said
it will be like the gentle rain upon the herb. It brings forth
flower and brings forth seed and will accomplish where I send
it to and do all my pleasure. That's the Word of God. Joel
is talking about the former and the latter rain. If you look
at the marginal reading in Joel, it's righteousness is the former
rain and the teacher of righteousness is the latter rain, and that's
both Jesus Christ. Rain and dew season. In due season,
I was reading today that there's a drought up in New England.
I didn't know that. There was some serious drought going on
up around Maine and New Hampshire, a place like that, not getting
any rain at all. One fellow said they need, in this next month,
they need over 10 inches of rain just to come back to zero. Never a drought for a child of
God. Says he gets his rain and I will
give you rain in due season. When you need it, when you need
it. and the land shall yield her
increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Verse 5 is the blessing of a
consummate and continual care and supply by our glorious God. And your threshing shall reach
into the vintage, and the vintage shall reach into the sowing time.
Ye shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land safely.
That means you'll never go hungry. David said, I've never seen God's
children begging bread. you've never seen it God shall
supply all your needs by his riches Jesus Christ says in Philippians
verse 6 is the blessing of peace and rest and safety I will give
you peace in the land and ye shall lie down and none shall
make you afraid and I will rid evil beasts out of the land neither
shall the sword go through your land you'll lay down what does
that mean? well it sounds like resting to
me you'll not be afraid. Oh, how
many times our Lord says to his people, fear not. Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid. A believer has
peace with God. By the blood of Jesus Christ,
he's reconciled unto God. He has peace of God, God living
in him, peace that passes knowledge and understanding because there's
a whole lot in this world we can't understand. lot goes on
we just absolutely can't get. We look at what the world's condition
is today, craziness, kingdoms falling, kingdoms rising, we
look at I don't understand that. But you know what? I'm at peace. And so are you. You're at peace. Peace that passes understanding,
that passes knowledge. rest ye shall lie down from your
labors and toils in the accomplished work of Christ no fear will assail
you the evil beast satan his imps and his ministers will do
you no harm for scripture declares that no weapon formed against
you shall prosper verse seven and eight that God's children
have the blessing of heavenly authority verse eight it says
this and five of you shall chase a hundred and a hundred you shall
put ten thousand to flight and your enemies shall fall before
you 5 of you. 5 of you should chase 100. What's that saying? There's more
of you than there are of them, but it doesn't appear that way.
It doesn't appear that way. Just watch as God raises up a
little group of believers in a place and soon every false
church in the area will begin to warn people about them. Don't
go there. Don't go there. 46 years ago before I came to
Cherokee, I'd just come to preach a couple of times and then I
was preaching more often and finally in October they called
me to be pastor of this church. We had 12 members I think then,
mostly two families and their kids. Before I ever got here, there
was a girl who used to attend, a Taylor girl, and she told me
that the principal chief had talked to her about me and about
this church. I hadn't got here yet. I wasn't a pastor. But the principal chief told
Miss Taylor, don't go up there and preach that old predestination
stuff. Cause five shall chase a hundred. A fool fleeth when no man pursueth. The church that preaches the gospel
will be slandered, there's no doubt about that. They'll lie
about that. They'll be called antinomians. they say well they
believe babies go to hell don't believe in praying they'll take
anybody they cause people to flee no man pursuer what are these mega monstrosities
afraid of? what are men in religion really
afraid of? and they know what they're afraid of don't be mistaken
they're not ignorant of these things they're afraid of the
truth because the truth will thin out
that mob. A man standing in one of those megachurches with 12,000
members and telling the truth about Jesus Christ, he'd probably
be killed before he got out the door. But if he didn't, there
just may be one or two of the elect in there and they'll get
out of that hellhole. They'll do it. God says you'll
chase them. Chase them away. Verse 9 speaks of unspeakable
blessing. I read these words and it's just utter amazement
to me. I will have respect unto you. I will have respect, and we know
God's not a respecter of persons. He says, I respect you. How about that? It means that
God regards you and turns to you, towards you. Why? Because God has made an
everlasting, eternal covenant of grace concerning you and with
you by Jesus Christ. Verse 10 is a blessing of all
our needs being met, not only abundantly, but excessively. He says, And ye shall eat old
store, and bring forth old because of the new. Was it that you ever
worked in a grocery store? You ever heard of rotating a
stock? That's what they're talking about.
Says you bring forth the old because behind it's all the new.
You always have something. God will always provide your
every need. Exceedingly abundantly what we
could think or ask. The intimation here is that all
you'll do is keep rotating the stock. You'll always have something. Verses 11 and 12 are the blessing
of continual presence. I'll be with you, he said, and
I will set my tabernacle among you. That means I'll dwell in
your midst. My soul shall not hate you. And I'll walk among you, and
I will be your God, and you shall be my people, if you keep these
commandments, for Christ kept them for us. So this is true.
God walks among us, and He's our God, and we're His people. We're His people. Christ Jesus
said, I am with you all the way, even unto the end of the world.
I will never leave you. I will never forsake you. We
cannot say that about people. Would that we could. But we can't
say that about people. I read today, some of the things
I'm reading are just utterly amazing. I read a young girl
said that because a person didn't vote like she voted in her election,
a 14-year friendship ended. 14 years they'd been best friends. Wives left their husbands. People
get on TV and say, don't go to Thanksgiving dinner with your
family if they voted certain way. They're saying that on live
TV? See, that's just absolute craziness. People will desert you. Husbands
will desert wives, wives will desert children, children will
desert their parents. Best friends will leave each other. But your
best friend, your very best friend, will never leave you. I'll never
leave you. And I will never forsake you.
And finally, verse 13 is a blessing of the knowledge of how all this
came to be. How did this come to be? How did such a wondrous
thing, that all this stuff that Christ accomplished for us, and
all these blessings that God has promised to His people, and
they will have and they do have, how did that come to pass? Because
God made it so. I am the LORD your God, which
brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should
not be their bondmen. And I have broken the bands of
your yoke, and made you go upright. You see, God did it all. He reminds us of that fact. All
these blessings are ours because we were in slavery to sin in
Egypt. The yoke was heavy upon our neck.
The shackles upon our feet. And the Lord said, I delivered
you out of that. And I broke off that yoke and
I tore loose those shackles and I set you free and made you walk
upright. Make you walk in righteousness. because you walk in Jesus Christ
who is made to be unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
and redemption. All that's yours because God
is your God and you are His people. Father, bless us to understand
and pray in Christ's name. Amen.