Lookout mtn.conference 1973-04 Philippians

for things that he must face, and the desires that he has. You and I, on the pilgrim journey again and again, have also to face that which is claimed of us as a Christian. Finally, brethren, rejoice in the Lord.

To write the same thing to you, to me indeed, is not grievous, but for you it is safe. Beware of thugs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision, for we are the circumcision which worship God in spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Though I might also have confidence in the flesh, if any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might cast in the flesh, I more circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tithe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews, touching the law, a Pharisee, concerning Phil, persecuting the church, touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

That what things were gained to me, those things I counted last for Christ. Yea, I am doubtless, and I count all things that last for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count then but done that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is to the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith, that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his being made conformable unto his death, if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect, but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Jesus Christ.

Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended, but this one thing I do, getting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press towards the mark of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. May the Lord bless you with the reading of his own precious word. It seems to me when I turn to this third chapter of this very wonderful letter, that there are so many things the apostle is bringing before me.

As a pilgrim, he looks ahead, and looks around, and looks back. First of all, it seems to me that what he brings before us is that he tells us what he has learned about his enemy. Now, it's good for us to be told that.

It's good for us to be reminded that the Christian pathway is not a pathway of pleasant ease, but, again and again, that which is used as the simile of a saint is that of a soldier, a warrior, a fighter, and our enemy that we have to contend with. And, so, Paul starts off, it seems to me, by telling us what he has learned about his enemy. And then he continues to tell us how he lives by the Spirit.

And then he goes a further step, and having told us what he learned, and tells us how he lives, then he goes on and tells us how he leaves his past. Having told us what he has learned, and how he lives, and what he leaves, he goes on to tell us for the things he loves. And, of course, every one of you gather the word I'm going to use to close.

Looking forward to that blessed day when he shall change this folly of humiliation, the apostle says, surely, I want you to understand what I'm looking for. Firstly, then, he starts off by telling us what he's learned of his enemy. And he dares to say, finally, brethren, rejoice in the Lord.

What a wonderful statement to commence a talk concerning his enemy. He doesn't say fear, he doesn't say be afraid, he doesn't even say what in this particular point, but he says rejoice and rejoice in the Lord. Then he says, these are your enemies, beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

Now, I don't know how you feel about it, brethren and sisters, but it seems to me, when we think of these three things that are mentioned, that, first of all, we have brought before us the fact that our enemies are those who have an unclean character. He tells us about their unclean character, and he doesn't make matters, he doesn't try, because he thinks to make riches, to cover all over their character. He says they're dogs.

Now, there rises in the minds of most of you, as we take this word upon our lips, that which was written by Peter, that which was written by the wisest man, and yet the most foolish man in the Old Testament, the wisest fool that ever lived. And, you will remember that when Peter writes of dogs, he writes of those that he dares to call those that are false teachers. And, he quotes from the wisest words that were spoken by the wisest fool, and he dares to remind us that just as a dog is turned to his own vomit again, so, indeed, do false teachers turn to their horses.

Now, it's not necessary, really, for me to say of him that the dog returns to its vomit for one reason, and one reason only. The dog returns to its vomit because it's a dog, because it's a dog. It's its character, and it's an unclean character.

Whenever there are wises among God's people, or there are wises in an area, false teacher. Let's look at their character, and we'll soon see their false teacher. There have arisen in our day and generation a large company of men and women who dare to stand at almost every street corner, at almost every doorstop, and tell us that Jesus is not God.

They dare to say that he was nothing more than like all the archangels. They dare to deny every principle of holy rites. The Bible tells us, gentlemen, that they are false teachers, and their character is a dog character.

And, I apologize to no one for making that statement. When a person comes and attacks the personality of my savior, there are people who tell us that, really, that doctrine doesn't matter. What matters is duty, and I think I have spoken enough here for you to realize that I believe that duty and doctrine are linked together.

If a man is wrong concerning his doctrine, it will not be long before he's wrong concerning his duty. I do not wish to go and speak of this particular class of people more than to say this. When you see those who deny God, it is not long before their uncleanness will be seen, and I need not remind you that there are countless numbers of children who have died, and adults who have died, because these people have refused the very simplest of blessings unto us.

The unclean character springs from an unclean doctrine. And then he goes further, and he speaks not only of their unclean character, and he calls them dogs, but he speaks of their ungodly conduct, as he speaks of evil workers. Evil workers! I wonder if the church at Pelopi, as they heard him speak, or read that which he wrote, I wonder if the church at Pelopi remembered the time when he walked down to the main street of their town, and how that followed after him a girl crying even truth, but crying it in error.

I wonder if they remembered how he refused the evil spirit that was in the girl. You know, it's a remarkable fact, but you know this of course, it's a remarkable fact that the Apostle Paul was driven out of many cities, but he was only twice driven out by Gentiles. Every other occasion he was driven out by Jews, and both the occasions when he was driven out by Gentiles, it was because of money.

With due respect to Brother Harry, you know, we mostly would think that it's Jews that would drive us out because of money, but here were Gentiles, and these Gentiles swore that they had lost their worldly gain. They had this man cast into prison, and eventually driven out of the city. Evil workers! Brethren and sisters, I dare suggest to you that maybe, you know, he broke our heart, didn't he? He did mine.

But, ashockingly, I don't know how you stood up and told us this. But, in a Christian context, someone would break into someone's room. And, I want to have a little straight word to some of you young folks here tonight.

Now, maybe you won't like what I'm going to say, but I want to have a little straight word with you. As a Christian, not as an Englishman, but as a Christian, I've stood on that list on one or two occasions, and I've listened to some of the way you young people have talked to the girl who takes you up and down. I haven't heard one of you say, please, and I've only heard two or three of you say, thank you.

So, you say, why the young folk? Well, I'll tell you why, because I haven't heard an older person not say, please, or an older person not say, thank you. So, you young folks here, this is a Christian conference, and I'll tell you the first thing I found out when I was converted, and by if ever you saw a or me. The first thing I learned when Jesus saved me was that he expected me to be a gentleman.

I haven't always succeeded in God's forgiveness, but there are certain characteristics, and one of the characteristics of being a Christian is that we shall be godlike. The apostle starts off and says, these are the enemies of the church, those that come in, those that come in, and they have an unclean character, and they have an ungodly conduct. And listen, something more.

He says they have an unscriptural creed. Why hearken what he says! Beware of gods, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision. They have a creed that's unscriptural.

They have tried to bring, or they would try to bring, there into the church at Pillar High, that which was as opposed to the truth of the New Testament as anything could be. And it looks good as enemies, and in the day in which we live, brethren and sisters, is it not a fact that we ought to be looking at our enemies? We know how to deal with them, then, don't we? I don't know very much about anything. Maybe I don't know much about it now, but there was a time when I did know a little bit about fighting.

And I'll let you into a secret. Whenever I knew that I had to get up in front of another man, my brother who looked after me, he'd find out all he could about the other man. And many a time we'd try and see a past film of his fighting.

What a fool I'd have been! I'd have stood up in front of a man to try and fight him without knowing all I'd thought about him. In our Christian experience, in our local assembly, in our church, in our witness of God, let's have a look. Let's see our enemies, and let's remember they have an unclean character, and ungodly conduct, and an unscriptural creed.

Let's beware. Ah, but then, having told them of what he's learned about his enemies, now he tells them of how he lives by the Spirit. He dares to say that for us who love the Saviour, for you Christians of great yonger age than I, and for me, though I be in a prison in Rome, never let us forget that we have a new approach, for we worship God in the Spirit.

Oh, a new approach! It is not now a young list of priests, it is not now journeys by heart, certain formulas, but now from our spirit there rises to God, with the aid of His Spirit, a worship which is acceptable to heaven. Did not the Lord Jesus say to the woman at the well, the father, if he could touch, to worship him? And they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. If you and I come to know Jesus Christ as our Saviour, then the first thing we've got to do is to realize that we live by the Spirit, for we have a new approach to God.

We worship Him, not just through the list, not just through our creed, not just through the fulfillment of certain requirements in the particular fellowship with which we gather, we worship Him in spirit. Having told us we have a new approach to God, then he tells us we have a new allegiance. Our allegiance is not now to our city, our allegiance is not just now even to our country or to our family, although with all my heart I believe in allegiance to one city and to one's country and to one's family.

I believe the thirtieth of Romans is still in the Bible. I was conducting a crusade some time ago in the city. The brethren had made it possible for me to visit the mayor, the Lord Mayor, down to the, what we would call the city hall.

I went in company with two or three of the elders, and the mayor's secretary informed me that at a certain time I would be uttered in to his service. Augustus Prince. Before he came, went in, I went.

The little man sat there with his gold chain around his neck, and he started to tell me what a hero I was, but before he started to tell me how good he was, you know. I mean, he was the mayor of the city of Swansea, and he was the president of the old church, and he was a member of the Baptist church, and he went to the pleasant Sunday afternoon, and the parishioners awakened. It should have been, but it's not.

And along he went, and he told me I had five minutes, he took, and they told me I only had fifteen minutes with him, and I got fed up with it. And after he carried on for five minutes, and I just butted in, I said, you will excuse me, Mr. Mayor, but I came here to read the scripture to you, sir. Would you mind just sitting there for a moment while I read the word of God? I took out my Bible, and I read the 13th of Romans.

You know, I can see him now, as he roams, and he's sweating his chest, and his gold chain, and I reminded him that the powers that be were obtained of God. Dare to tell him it wasn't just the electors that put him there, until he, beyond it all, was the hand of God. And after speaking to him for two or three minutes along this line, I said, Mr. Mayor, the chapter closes with these words, sir.

Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, for simply as I know how, I sought to present Jesus Christ. I believe the powers that be are obtained of God. I dare say that every one of you young men and young women who sometimes feel that you want to rise against establishment, you need to read again the 13th of Romans.

Then I want you to understand this, that our greatest allegiance is not to our king, or to our country, or to our city, or even to our family. Our greatest allegiance is to the one that we should put on, the Lord Jesus Christ. And here the apostle dares to say, we have a new approach, but we have a new allegiance, we rejoin in Jesus Christ.

I expect you good Americans to get a bit fed up with us English folks sometimes, don't you? Yes, I know. But of course you do. I mean, I know this, I can't help it.

You know, I've always got a bump in the back, and I'm an Englishman. So, I won't tell you what we think of you when you come to our country. I only know this, that isn't it wonderful for us to rejoice in Jesus Christ? Oh, that we're brethren in the Lord.

I think this is one of the loveliest things that we could ever, ever say, that we have a new approach, for we worship him in the Spirit, and we have a new allegiance, for we rejoice in Jesus Christ the Lord, and we have a new attitude, we have no confidence in the flesh. And I wonder, we have no confidence, a new attitude entirely. Why? We're living in a day when folks have so much confidence in the flesh, aren't they? Brethren, sisters, please, I work, as many of you know, quite a number of months in the gear among undergraduates in Cambridge, and I am not an academic.

I don't profess to be, but every time I stand in the university, and I'm the only non-academic that has preached a university sermon in Cambridge for 40 years, and I don't say that most of the time. Whenever I stand, I always start off by saying, I am here not because I have qualifications to be here, I am here because you have invited me to be here. The day you stop inviting me will be the day I stop coming, and yet I go every year.

And I want to say this, as I have said to them a score of times, I don't know why it is that we are living in a day that we imagine a man has the right to preach the gospel on our platform because he's got a PhD in some subject utterly unknown to him. I hope you're the finest engineer in the world, but that gives you no qualification to stand here and preach the gospel. I hope you have the greatest list of letters after your name that prove you to be a man of clear thinking and great ability, but it's not that that gives you the right to stand and tell men, women of Jesus Christ, it is this, that we have no confidence in the flesh, but our confidence in the Lord.

Well, you've gathered this, haven't you? You've had, I gather, with a cup of your greatest faith. Oh, I love all those that love the Lord. Oh, God deliver me from ever doing less than you, but I'm glad I gathered at those levels.

I returned home to England some time ago after having spent a great amount of my time among men that were great academics, many of them wonderful theologians, some of them the books they have written on your book case ideas. I went down to a little meeting at the slopes of the Blackdown Hills in Somerset, a rare little place called the Lamb. It's just a little place.

There's a pub and the gospel hall at all. I presume it's the first after religion, but nevertheless, this Lord's Day morning, I sat there, just a handful of people, and the dear brother wrote, I was brought up in the school where we were holy priests before the breaking of bread and royal priests after the breaking of bread, where before the breaking of bread there was no ministry at all. We were there to offer our sacrifice of praise to God.

After the breaking of bread, royal priest, you had something for the faith. Now, I do not see that line of demarcation as clearly as my brethren did, but it was a mark that I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I'd ever taken part before the breaking of bread in ministry. But this Lord's Day morning, just a handful of us, I felt desperately constrained, almost as though the spirit was pushing me, and I rose to my feet and I opened my Bible into the 19th of John, and I read those tremendous words.

Do you remember how it brings before us the wonder that seven times over, his, his cross, his hand, his mouth, his tongue, his lips, and I just read them, and sought to direct the attention of God's folks to the Christ. We were there to remember, and I sat down, and when I sat down, the dear brother from the country rose to me. Oh, he dropped his eight kids and put them on the wrong place, and he was as bored a Napoleon as man could ever be.

He rose to his feet. Not one of you would have invited him to preach. He opened his Bible, and he said, I wonder if this could turn to the epistle of the Colossians.

I won't try and speak as he did, for you'll need an interpreter, but he read his will, his law, his purpose. A great love came upon me, and I listened to a man tell us what Jesus meant to him, and lift the blessed Christ to the Father as his wave offers. And I came out, and I walked down the road, arm in arm with my wife, and I couldn't help but say it.

I said, Mary, isn't it lovely, my dear? Isn't it lovely, my dear, that we gather with a company of Christians where that would help us, amen, where those that love the Savior could present him to the Father. And I want to say this, brethren, and I want to say it from the depth of my heart, I appreciate every man and woman that has reached the height in their particular academic studies. God forgive me that I waited so long before I ever turned my mind to those things.

I left school when I was a boy of thirteen and a half, and had to go back when I was a man. I only know this, that I have no confidence in the flesh when it comes to ministering to Christ, but I have every confidence in him. And I thank God I'm among a company of folks where those that have confidence on the Lord can minister.

I'm glad I had a chance of getting that in. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to get it in, but I wanted to get it in. Ah, I thought you did.

I thought you did. Ah, praise the Lord, it's good. And I'll tell you something more, brethren.

He not only tells us what he's learned of his enemies, and tells us how he lives by the Spirit, but then he tells us how he leads his past. Isn't that great? He speaks of his past, you know. Why, he says, as to ritual, I was circumcised.

Why, as to race, I was the stock of Israel. Why, he says, as to rank, I am of the world line of Benjamin, and I am a Pharisee. As to zeal, I persecuted the church.

But I'll tell you something, although my ritual and rank, although my race and my zeal, none could replace me for, yet these things I counted lost for Christ. I've been asked tomorrow evening to give my testimony. Do you know what we're going to do tomorrow afternoon? We're going to have a good old fashioned sing-song.

You know, none of these old pitchers. We're going to have a good old sing-song. We're going to gather around, and we're going to sing the praise of the Lord.

And I'd like to share with you how I came to know Jesus Christ, but I won't like it. I don't like giving my testimony. I've spent too many years of my life without Christ, and I don't like remembrance.

And I want to say these things I count as useless. They mean nothing. But if I can tell you this, that Jesus Christ could take a person like me, and make him his own, then I'll be glad of that tomorrow night.

I'll be glad of that. But, oh brethren, here he tells us what he leaves. He says, I leave my path.

But then he tells us not only what he leaves, but what he longs for. And this is where I want to do. Oh, isn't this wonderful? There, from verses 8 to 19, he tells us what he longs for.

In verse 8 he says that I might win Christ. I see in verse 9 he says that I might be found in him. In verse 10 he says that I might know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his suffering.

And in verse 12 he says that I may apprehend that for which I also am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Here's a longing that's equal in his heart, isn't it? He longs that I might win Christ. Oh, I want satisfaction in my life, that I might win Christ.

I confess this to you, that for a long time this was a real puzzle. I realized that the man that had written this had known Jesus Christ for many long years. And I said to myself that I might win him Christ.

I thought he knew Christ. Had I not met him on the Damascus road? Had I not a voice come out of heaven? Had I not seen the light of God the righteousness of the noonday sun? Had I not received his commission? But I might win him. I only know this.

The testament story, don't you? He's got a lovely story. Do you remember the story of this man, the son of Caleb, Caleb's younger brother? Do you remember how Caleb, an old man, came to the last city, Kerjapshepper, that had to be overthrown in the promised land? He had stood at the foot of the hill and cried, give me this man, when it came to headland. But now Kerjapshepper is the lone city that remains inherited by the giants in the land.

He's an old man. And he says, I'll tell you what I'll do. Caleb, take up and smite, Caleb, smite up and take up Kerjapshepper.

I will give him my daughter, Aksher, to be his wife. Now I've got a strong feeling that Aksher must have been a very beautiful girl. She was a girl of his old age.

She really loved him. I think she was a beautiful girl. I can't think of any man who would risk his life for someone who wasn't.

Nevertheless, there he said, you can have my daughter to be your wife if you're comfortable with me. And there was found a young man off Neil. Now, he was already in the family.

He was her cousin. But he wasn't satisfied just being in the family. He said, I want her to be my wife.

I want that closer relationship than just being in the family. I say, are you in the family? Are you in the family? What sort of relationship do you want with Christ? A closer one? You know, it seems to me the story, and here's a little outline for some of you young fellows, that it's the story of love wanting. It's the story of love warring.

Hallelujah! It's the story of love willing. He wanted. Do we really want Christ? This is where it all begins.

A man wants the Lord Jesus, he can have him. The tragedy is that so many of us who say we love the Savior, we don't really want him because it's desperately uncomfortable to have him with us every moment of the day. But he says, I want him.

And if you want Christ, there's a mountain to climb, and there's a fight to go into. And I want to say this though. There's no mention of them.

No mention at all. But you won't forget that when this young man off Neil went to fight against Curragh Clever, other people went with him. They're not mentioned.

They never got answered to be their wife. They had no payment for what they did. And I've proved over the years, whenever you see a young man, a young woman, an older man, an older woman who wants to ridden Christ, the whole church will stand behind them.

And after he went, and he conquered the city, and back he came. Now I want to say something to you young lads that are contemplating marriage. Now I've been married for only four years, so you can tell by the way I look.

But let me say something. Let me say something to you young men. Blessed is the man who gets a beautiful girl for his wife.

That's right. Blessed is the man that gets a beautiful girl for his wife. Twice blessed is the man who gets crushed by the beauty of your character, or you who never had one.

That's good theology. Blessed is the man who has a beautiful wife. Twice blessed is the man who has brains as well as beauty.

And after Neil would give an answer, and I'll let you into a secret. If she wasn't a lady, and I must be courteous, I would say she was a bit crafty. Instead of that I'd say she was brainy.

So look, and she said, listen, if I'm going to be your wife then I have a right to expect you to keep me at the standard I've been used to. Maybe it's the old grandfather coming at him, but I think that's about it. I believe that I have a right to expect you to keep me at the standard I've been used to.

Now I'll tell you what to do. You go and ask my father for a pass. Now she didn't go first.

Oh, brain. She sent him first, and off he went. And you remember that he was given a parcel of land.

He was given the pass. And when she'd sent him, then off she goes. And isn't it remarkable what he said? He said, thou hast given me.

He didn't, he gave it to her husband. Thou hast given me also springs of water. When he'd got the land, she went, because if he'd have gone the second time, father would have said, I've already given you the dowry.

But she knew she could twist him round her finger. And off she goes. Brethren, sisters, maybe it's foolish, but I want to tell you this.

I thank God I came to Jesus Christ. And because he loved me, he gave me salvation. And I praise God, because of the love of the Father for his love, he hath given me in Christ all things richly to enjoy.

He's given me not only the land, but he's given me the upper springs and the nether springs. He's given me that which I need to make my life profitable and worthwhile. That I might win Christ.

Do we want to win Christ? Oh, brethren, did Jesus mean to us today that he didn't mean last year? And then he says not only that I might win Christ, but that I might be found in him. Why? To win him tells us of satisfaction. To be found in him tells us of sanctification.

Not having my own righteousness, which is of the law. That righteousness which comes by faith. I'm glad it's the 30th verse of the verse of Corinthians, aren't you? Christ is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.

I'm glad I'm sanctified in Christ. This is my position. God grant I might know something of it in my position.

My position. Then he says not only that I might know Christ and that I might win Christ, that I'm sorry that I might win Christ, and that I might be found in Christ, but he says, oh, that I might know him. The power of his resurrection.

I say, this isn't satisfaction or sanctification, is it? The power of his resurrection. He is strength. Strength for the journey in the past.

That I might know him. I say, it's the loveliest story in the Bible. How many times have you been to talk about it? A legion of times, haven't you? I couldn't do it as good as you, I'm sure.

But you won't forget that he is the loveliest family text in the Bible. That I might know him. Martha knew him.

The power of his resurrection. Lazarus knew the power of his resurrection. And the fellowship of his suffering.

And Mary anointed him as we were hearing from our brother just the other morning. Why, she knew the fellowship of his suffering. That I might know him.

Do we know him? Martha knew him in the home, you know. I wonder why it is whenever you ask a brother to preach about Martha, he takes the text about Mary. And Mary hath chosen that letter part.

I don't want to hear about Mary, I want to hear about Martha. If you want a text about Martha, I'll tell you it. And Jesus loved Martha, Brother and Sister Mary.

Mary's the one who's popped in afterward. Jesus loved Martha. She knew him in the home.

Oh, I know she was comforted by his serving, but Brethren, Sisters, if that's the worst that could be said about us, wouldn't it be hallelujah? I mean, most of us are not comforted by it with service. Whenever the saints want something done in the meeting, they're going to be chasing around to find them. She knew him in the home, and it's lovely to know Jesus and us.

Brethren, Sisters, dare I say this very honestly? If my son, my daughter, if my grand, my grandchildren, and my son-in-law and daughter-in-law don't know that I'm a Christian, then I'm not one. I'm all there is to it, I'm not one. When our last little granddaughter was born, a quarter over, they had all our children, the daddies.

I took that little one in my hands, in our home. We called her Rebecca, a lovely name. All right.

Oh, the other one's around here. There we are. I took that little one in my hands.

I read the lovely story to my children, just the family, that's all, just the family, no one else. I read that lovely story to them. Sarah's gone, crying to her mother and saying, take this child and raise him for me and I will take him for you.

Oh, that was the first happy allowance that was ever paid to them. I say, oh, dearie me, and what a responsibility that we might know him in the home. Dear Sister, I dare say this, may I say it very lightly? Maybe in the church your position is a quiet position, but I tell you this, your position in the home and in the church is the most important one.

Lord, I know him. The power of his resurrection. Lazarus knew that, didn't he? Lazarus knew the power of his resurrection, do we know it? The Bible speaks of resurrection in three ways, does it not? Three very practical ways.

The Bible dares to say this, that Christ is risen. That's the past. And it dares to say, if reading be written with Christ, that's the present.

And then it goes further and it says, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, and that's the future. I know the power of his resurrection, that Jesus lives, and that day by day his risen life can be lived out through me, and I live it out until that day when hallelujah, I shall see him and be like him. And I better come to the close.

Something in his name, cannibals and Solomonites. Don't say, ah, men of knowledge, that. But dare I say this, brethren, that it's Mary, if Martha knew him, and Lazarus knew the power of his resurrection, Mary knew Lazarus.

She took her alabaster box and she anointed the Lord, didn't she? Do you remember what old Judas said? And as we were reminded, the other disciples, for what purpose is this waste? They didn't know much about God, did they? Brethren, I haven't got time to drag it home, but I want to tell you this, I've got a wasteful God. And if you meet a man who's in touch with a wasteful God, he'll be wasteful too. And you may come and say, oh, what purpose is this waste? And I'll tell you what purpose it is.

It is because here was one who had a heart of love towards the person they poured the ointment on. You ever thought of our God as a wasteful God? He's tremendous, really, isn't he? Oh, what a wasteful God. You see, in nature, he's wasteful, isn't he? I was talking to a good brother who's a landscape gardener here.

Where is he? He's about here somewhere. Anyhow, there he is. What do you have to say, brother? I hope you're a good one.

But you have a little word with this man about trees afterwards, and he'll tell you this, that we've got the most wasteful God in the world. You think of a sycamore tree. I mean, all you need to propagate sycamore is just one seed.

They propagate so quickly, don't they? If you've got one, you'll find them springing up all around you. The God puts on a sycamore tree, he puts over 10,000 seeds a year on a full-grown tree. You only need one to propagate its species, but he's a wasteful God.

He gives you a thousand and a thousand. I tell you, if you ever see this... Oh, Miss... Oh, by the way, I hope all you ladies are going to be there to hear Jean Orton tomorrow. Whatever you do, you go and listen to her tomorrow.

She tells you the word of God in Morocco. But she comes from Scotland. We won't hold that against her, but she comes from Scotland.

And if you go away and see the lovely mountains of Scotland covered with a heather, do you know something? All you need to do is to take a square yard of heather, and you've got enough seeds in a square yard of heather to repeat all the mountains in Scotland. Oh, I mean, God only needs to put just two or three, doesn't he? He's a wasteful God. I'd better not go any further, if that keeps you here all night.

But if he's wasteful in nature, he's wasteful in beauty, isn't he? In the pollinate sunsets in the world, you see in the Antarctic, where no one lives to see them. Well, that is right. I never tried that.

He's a wasteful God. He's completely wrong. Today, when it comes to Providence's matter, you know the part of a man came home, and he said, oh, make me one of my hired servants.

And the father said, a hired servant? Hey, he's a pretty tall man, he could be merry. He put a ring on his finger, and shoes on his feet, and a garment on his back, and they began to make merry. Hallelujah, it never says they stopped.

Hey, they just began. He's a God, he gives us more than we expect to deserve. I'd better not say anything about Jacob, had I. Oh, Jacob would have been satisfied with so little.

Do you remember what the Lord said, what's your name? What's your name? He went to God when his father had asked him what his name was, he said, my name's Jacob. He said to his father, he said, my name's Esau. God brought him right back to the point of his sin, as God will always bring us back to the point of our sin.

He said, what's your name? He shook his head. He said, my name's Jacob. God said, all right, I'll lay it upon you, and he called in his hand.

Brethren in salvation, oh, I want to say this to you, I believe there's enough in Jesus Christ to meet the need of any miserable wretch this side of hell. But it isn't everyone that's saved. But I believe there's enough in his death, death to meet their need.

Either way, folks, that's not the word, is it? If you come in contact with my God, I'll let you into a seat. You'll give and give and give and give, because he gives. We love him, because he's perfect.

Love? Oh, I haven't got time to finish with the last point, but the person gets the notion of what I was going to say. Can I just thank you, sir, you are a gentleman, sir. Do you know the ministry's going overhead? Well, this is the last point I was going to raise in this third chapter.

What a lovely point. Not only does he tell us how he longs for the Lord, but he tells us how he looks for the Lord. He tells us how he looks for the Lord, and there from verse 20 right to the end of verse 21, he tells us, first of all, our association is in heaven.

He says our conversation is in heaven. You know this word, conversation, is an interesting word. If you have a little word out, Mr. Willie, he'll open his Greek text to us, and he'll tell you that the word here, conversation, is the same word that we use for politics.

Our politics is in heaven. Our politics are in heaven. I'm too loud of that.

I don't know anything about your politics, but I wouldn't like to vote for anyone in our country. But I cast my vote 35 years ago, hallelujah, as a young fellow at 23, and it cut me. Now let's get to a secret.

My politics are in heaven. There's my association. And do you know something more? Do you ever feel like this, my older friend? Do you feel like this? Do you feel sometimes when you sit down by your fireside, you say to yourself, I don't know, I've got more folks in heaven, friends in heaven, than I've got on earth.

I've got a lot of friends on earth, you know, but I've got more friends in heaven when I think of the ones that have gone on. It makes heaven a bit better, doesn't it? Just a little nearer. Then he says our association, oh, it's in heaven.

Our expectation is from heaven. So he says, for whom? I'm sorry, let's make sure I've got it right. From whence also we look for the saviour is our expectation.

We're looking for him. I'm not looking for this whole world of ours to get much better. I trust if there's a need, I will do my best to meet that need.

I trust I will not stand aside for man's needs. But I'm not looking for this whole world to get better. I tell her what I'm looking for.

I'm looking for the same. Do you remember the silly little story I told you here was here the last time? When Billy Graham came to our country years ago, you know, they were having some all-night prayer meetings. You remember, don't you, sir? You told us.

Yeah, praise God. You know, they were having some all-night prayer meetings. And I had a letter from a dear friend of mine who was in this all-night prayer meeting.

Where was I, Alex? You were in there. Well, it was your nephew, sir. My marriage, the man told me you married him, and I don't know where you are.

This was the story. Early in the morning, about six in the morning, an old brother from the country rose to his feet and started to pray. He said, Lord, you know what Eccles wants.

Make us like Charles Cornflakes. My friend handed his letter to me, but I opened my eyes and I looked. Well, you know, about six in the morning, early morning in practice.

Make us like Charles Cornflakes. And he repeated it twice. And my friend said, sir, and I said, amen.

But I didn't know what I was saying amen about. But as soon as the prayer meeting was over and my friend, Lord, came home to his feet, he walked across to the old brother and he said, brother, what did you mean? Make us like Charles Cornflakes. And the old brother said, you know what I meant.

I said, I don't. Ready to serve. You know something? There are some of us a little bit like Scott Porridge.

We need warming up before we're ready to serve. Isn't it good to be ready to serve even when we're cold? And we'll be ready to serve when our association is heaven. Our expectation is from heaven and our transformation is to heaven.

Who shall change this body of humiliation? I like that, don't you? Not exchange it, change it. It's going to be this body. Change this body of compassionate life unto its own glory.

Oh, the wonder of it all that you and I are going to be like him and with him. Brethren, God grant that we may sit where Saul falls at and that we might review our pilgrim journey, that we might learn about our enemies, live by the spirit and leave our past and long for the Lord and look for the Savior. Oh, Father, we'll go by thy spirit.

Please be our teacher. Blot from our minds and eyes anything that may have been said that would have been better, but grasp at each one and grasp at each one.