Purpose to be with Him

Turn with me, please, to the Gospel of John, Gospel of John chapter 17. Now, I don't mean at the end of the conference to insult your intelligence, but I hope that the word on my heart for a few weeks will ignite your heart. It'll tie up everything, most everything we've heard already today, and so I'm going to ask you five questions very simply to consider.

We're not going to look at them all, but very simply I want you to ask your heart today, why did God create you? Why did he create you? Then I want you to ask your heart, why did God save you? Why did he save me? Why did the Holy Spirit indwell us? Why did the Lord Jesus Christ pray for us? And why is the Lord Jesus coming for us? Those are just simple questions, and they all have a common answer. It's just this. God wants to be with us.

Imagine that. God created us that we might be with him. We live our life as though this is why God created us, but really life is just a short span.

We're going out into eternity. If you're saved, you're going to be with God. God created us to be with us.

The Lord Jesus Christ suffered that we might be with him. Indwell by the Spirit of God, the earnest of our salvation, the seal. God with us.

Now this is my question at the end of day one. We've heard about gathering outside the camp. Our brother Lavery brought before us the relationships of the Lord Jesus and John.

How much do you want to be with him? Searching, isn't it? We learned where we can find him. We can find him in the local assembly. We can find him in the quietness of prayer.

We can find him in service, John chapter 12. Do we really want to be with him, brothers and sisters? Let's be honest. When was the last time we prayed? Even so come Lord Jesus.

In John chapter 17, I want to look at the prayer of the Lord Jesus. Why did he pray for me? Our verses in verse 23 and 24. I in them and thou in me that they may be made perfect in one.

That the world may know that thou has sent me. Listen to this now. And has loved them.

As thou has loved me. I can't grasp that statement. The Lord Jesus says that we may know that thou has sent him and has loved them as thou has loved me.

To be loved with the same love that God has loved the son. Does he want to be with us? Verse 24. Father, I will that they also whom thou has given be with me where I am.

There it is. Father, I will. The will of the Lord Jesus Christ.

That they also whom thou has given me be with me where I am. That they may behold my glory. Which thou has given me.

To be with him. Are we not oftentimes taken up with the here and now and our everyday life? But the whole purpose of our existence. And if you're not saved today, let me just mention this on the way by.

It's God's desire that you be saved and know the forgiveness of sins that you could be with him. Because the Lord Jesus said, if you die in your sin where I am, you cannot come. It's very simple, very solemn.

But here his prayer is for us that we would be with him. That we might behold his glory. His glory.

Did you know you can get a little foretaste of glory here on earth? You can. Where do you find it? You find it where he is. You want to appreciate him and see a little bit of his glory.

You'll find it in the teaching, won't you? But you'll find it in the breaking of bread. The glories of the Lord Jesus. Just a little foretaste.

The appreciation of the brethren as they rise one by one to give thanks and praise. And we see his glory. His glory.

The Lord Jesus prayed for other things in this chapter. And I'm not capable to bring out the truths of all of them, but I want to notice a few things. He prayed for verse 15.

That would be kept from the evil. Obviously then there's evil to be kept from, isn't there? But it's God's will, the will of the Lord Jesus, that we be preserved from the evil of this world. I was appreciating that part this week.

Never really give much thought to it. But it brought before me my security in him. Do you really think if the Lord Jesus will is that we would be preserved from the evil? And he's praying to God the Father.

You think the evil is going to get us? As I understand that there's there's sin to watch out for. But in the big picture of things, we've been heard of our security. We're his.

We'll be with him. The evil isn't going to separate us from him. We're his.

We're victors already. He prayed for us that we'd be with him. He says, set them apart.

Verse 17, sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth. He's praying that would be set apart.

What's the difference in this world? Yes, it's light and it's darkness and it's those that are saved and those that are lost. But it's the truth that separates. And yet he prayed that we would be set apart through the truth.

Are you interested in the truth today? I mean, intensely interested in what is right. We'll find it in the Word of God. It's what separates us, isn't it? It's what brings us outside the camp.

It's the truth. And the Lord Jesus prayed that we would be set apart through the truth. Thy word is truth.

We come to verse 20. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also, which shall believe on them through their word. That takes us in.

It isn't just a message to the Jew. It takes us in. Unity.

That they all may be one. As a young brother, I look at God's assemblies today and you know what sticks out? The lack of unity. I haven't been saved very long, brethren.

But doesn't it seem like there's an underlying current that every man does what's right in their own eyes? Where did the unity go? Where did it go? Honest question. The Lord Jesus prayed that they all might be one. As thou, or just like Father, thou art in me and I in thee, that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

Food for thought. Could it be that our lack of unity is directly proportionate to the number of souls we see saved? That the world may believe that thou hast sent me. What are they looking at? They're looking at the unity of God's people.

And with the lack of the separation of the truth, and the lack of the unity that the Lord Jesus Christ has longed for, maybe it's no wonder we're weak. And the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them. Do they see that glory? It's been a very searching couple weeks for me.

This was a word that the Lord gave to me, and I don't like to share personal words. Can they see any glory of the Lord in me? And I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one. And that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and love them as thou hast loved me.

Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me. Maybe if you're a young person today, and you're wondering what the Lord's will is for your life, say you'd be with Him. Be with Him.

While we are walking the sands of time, to be with Him. When we pass through the River Jordan, the article of death, or if our Lord comes, to be with Him for all the endless ages of eternity. But do we really want to be there? With Him.

Do we really want to be gathered to His name? Is it priority? When there's something else that comes up, is it priority to be there on Lord's Day morning? How about the Gospel? Is the Lord there in the Gospel meeting? I'll tell you, brethren and sisters, He's there. Just as much as He is there in the morning. And how about Wednesday night, brethren and sisters? Do we dare go there? If I guessed, I bet the attendance in every assembly represented here would be a half or less on Wednesday evening and Sunday morning.

Do we really want to be with Him? He created us to be with Him. He saved us to be with Him. Why is He coming for us? You guessed it.

To be with Him. Struck me like this. The times that we all have that maybe we don't feel like going.

But what would it be like to have someone that you really loved and they didn't want to be with you? Put it in the natural realm. What would it be like? Would it break your heart? What about all the catching up to do? Haven't seen one someone for a long time. And this is what spoke to me.

Of all the wasted time and all the catching up to do when the Lord comes. And there are things that I should have known and that you should have known before you get to heaven. Or you could have known about Him.

But for some reason we didn't want to take the time to be with Him. Five questions. Why did He create me? Why did He suffer for me? Why did He pray for me? Why does His Spirit indwell me? Why is He coming for me? To be with me.

Do I really want to be with Him?