Keep the Deposit

This message begins in 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse 2. And the things thou hast heard of me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, such as shall be competent to instruct others also. We'll turn to chapter 1, beginning with verse 12. Chapter 1, verse 12.

For which cause also I suffer these things, but I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and have persuaded that he is able to keep for that day the deposit I have entrusted to him. Have an outline of sound words, which words thou hast heard of me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Keep by the Holy Spirit which dwells in us the good deposit entrusted.

Thou knowest this, that all who are in Asia, of whom is Fidulus and Hemogenes, have turned away from me. The Lord grant mercy to the house of Onesiphorus, for he has often refreshed me and has not been ashamed of my change. But being in Rome sought me out very diligently and found me.

The Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord in that day, and how much service he rendered in Ephesus thou didst best. This time we hope we will fellowship together these evenings on 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy was the last letter that Paul wrote, and he wrote it to his beloved son Timothy, his son in the truth.

We may say that 2 Timothy is the last will and testament of Paul. He left behind him a heritage for his son Timothy, and not only for his son Timothy, but for us too. So I do believe that as we are living in the last days, as we are living in a very difficult time, it is very important for us to know this letter by heart and learn what Paul tries to leave behind him to Timothy, that we may be those who will be counted as faithful people, as those who are trustworthy.

Not only we may be able to carry on the testimony of the Lord Jesus in our generation, but by the grace of God we may be able to help others, to instruct others that they too may continue on with the testimony until the Lord returns. Last night we mentioned that in order to be able to stand and to continue on steadfastly with the testimony of Jesus, we need to remember the calling. Paul reminded Timothy of the holy calling which he was called.

You know, it is very easy when we are surrounded with problems, when we are under pressure, when we are deserted, when we feel ourselves as if we are alone fighting the battle. It is very easy for us to look around us. It is very easy for us to look within ourselves.

And if we look around us and see that everything is falling apart, all Asia has deserted Paul. If we look within us, we will find within ourselves there is really nothing that we can depend on. We tend to go under.

We tend to let go the testimony of Jesus. We tend to accept defeat. So it is important that when we are surrounded with problems, when we feel ourselves very weak, this is the time that we need to remember the calling.

Why? Because if we remember the calling that God has called us, immediately you will find we will look away from our surroundings. We will look away from ourselves, and we will be looked up to Him who has called us with a holy calling. We will see that He has called us even before time began.

We find that He has called us according to His eternal purpose. We find that He has called us not only according to His own purpose, but also according to His grace. And both the purpose and grace He has given us in Christ Jesus, even before the foundation of the world.

Dear brothers and sisters, what is today? What are the things that we see around us? What is ourselves? Actually, if we can be lifted out of time and out of space, if we can be lifted into eternity and into God, into His purpose and into His grace, dear brothers and sisters, no matter what happens around us, no matter how we feel within ourselves, if we are connected to the holy calling that God has called us, even before we were born, even before the foundation of the world, you will find we are raptured into eternity and raptured into God. And that is the way that we are able to stand and to be faithful to the very end. So it is of immense importance that we must be very clear of our calling.

Now, you'll find in 2 Timothy, Paul said, He has called us with a holy calling. Now, what is holy? You know, oftentimes we connect holy as in contrast in opposition with sin. We think that if it is sinful, it is not holy.

Now, of course, if it is sinful, it is not holy. But actually, you'll find the opposite of sin is not holy. The opposite of sin is righteous.

Righteousness is the opposite of sin. Now, what is the opposite of holy? It simply is common. Anything that is common is unholy.

Now, our God is a holy God. To put it in a simpler way, we can say that our God is an uncommon God. In other words, He is not common at all.

He is not like you and me. He is not like anybody else. He is altogether other than everything.

He is unique. He is special. He is alone.

That's what God is. He is holy. Now, brothers and sisters, we have been called with a holy calling.

In other words, that calling is nothing common. It is not something that eyes have seen, ears have heard, or human hearts have thought about. As we find in Ephesians, that it is something that eyes have never seen.

It is something that ears have never heard. It is something that no one has ever thought about. It is a calling that is most holy and most uncommon.

Why? Because we are called to be the body of Christ. Now, brothers and sisters, nobody will ever have thought of that. Nobody will ever have thought that we are called to be the body of Christ.

Now, that is uncommon. That is most holy. And being the body of Christ, of course, as a holy thing, we must be holy because He is holy.

There can be nothing common with the body of Christ. There can be nothing earthly in the body of Christ. There can be nothing worldly in the body of Christ.

There can be nothing of the flesh in the body of Christ. There can be nothing of you or me in the body of Christ. You will find that the body of Christ is Christ all and in all.

That is the holiness of our calling. Brothers and sisters, we are called with a holy calling. We are called to be conformed to the image of God's Son.

And we mentioned last night that this is more than one person can fulfill. It has to be fulfilled by the many brethren, that he, Christ, may be the firstborn among many brethren, that every one of us will take some character of the Lord Jesus. And when you put all these brethren together, you see the firstborn.

And that is our calling. It is an on-high calling, and again, it is not according to our works. It is completely according to his own purpose and to his grace.

That purpose was purpose before the foundation of the world. That grace was given before the foundation of the world. And both the purpose and the grace were in Christ Jesus, but not until the Lord Jesus appeared upon this earth.

Then it is manifested. Then we begin to realize what God's purpose is behind the calling. And then we begin to experience the grace that is ever available for us.

And by the sufficient grace, we are able to fulfill our calling and enter into the fullness of God's purpose. Now, this evening, we would like to continue on with the second thing. And that is, keep the deposit.

Now, I know there is some difficulty here, because you have different translations. Now, in my version, it's used the word deposit. Now, in your translation, probably it will use that which has been committed.

Or in the New American version, you'll find the treasure. Now, whatever the English translation may be, the Greek word is the same. So, it doesn't matter what your translation is.

And according to the Greek word, it means a putting with a deposit. You'll find that in 2 Timothy 1, verse 12, For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep for that day the deposit I have entrusted in him. Now, in the Revised Version, you will find even though it says that which I have, or he has committed to me, but in the margin, it says my deposit.

And then again, you'll find in verse 14, He by the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us, the good deposit, entrusted. Or in some versions said, the good thing that has been entrusted. And then in 1 Timothy, chapter 6, verse 20.

1 Timothy, chapter 6, verse 20, O Timotheus, keep the entrusted deposit, avoiding profane, vain babblings and oppositions of falsely named knowledge, of which some, having made profession, have missed the faith, braised thee with thee. So here you'll find again this word, deposit. Or the trusted thing that has been committed to you.

So whatever your version may be, the idea, the thought is the same. It is a deposit. Now what is a deposit? A deposit, it is something that is committed.

That is a deposit. And you'll find in the Scripture, this deposit is a mutual thing. In other words, first of all, you'll find God will deposit something in you.

And then in the second place, you will deposit what He has deposited in you to God. So actually, that deposit is a mutual thing. He deposits something in you.

He has committed something to you, for you to keep. And in order that you may keep that which He has committed to you, the only way to keep it is deposited back to God. And by that action, it will be kept forever.

Now why is it this matter of deposit becomes very essential? Because in a time of this matter of deposit becomes a deciding factor in your life. Whether you are able to stand the trial and the testing, it really depends upon how good, how much is that which is deposited in you. If you find that your deposit is very little, you may find you are not able to stand the testing.

Now we know, brothers and sisters, we are already in the time of shaking. Now if you read Hebrews, you will find that one day God will not only shake the earth, but He will shake the earth and the heaven. Why? Because that kingdom which cannot be shaken is coming soon.

Now because of this, God is going to shake everything that can be shaken off, so that only that which cannot be shaken will remain. Dear brothers and sisters, do not think that the shaking is yet to come. I believe that we are already in a midst of shaking.

You will find that God is shaking everything upon this earth. God is not only shaking the world, now certainly the world is being shaken. God is shaking that which is heaven.

And to put it in a spiritual application, God is shaking His church. God is shaking His people. Not only the people of the world, but God is shaking His own people.

Why? Because He is preparing us for the kingdom that cannot be shaken. Anything that can be shaken cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Therefore He has to shake us to a certain extent that everything that can be shaken off will be shaken away.

Only that which cannot be shaken will remain and enter into God's kingdom. So dear brothers and sisters, in a very real sense, I do believe that we are already in a midst of great shaking. Not only the people of the world, they love themselves.

Even believers become lovers of self. You know, why did all Asia desert Paul? I do not think that they deserted Paul because they denied the faith. Probably they had not denied the faith, but they deserted Paul.

Why? Because it became too dangerous to be associated with Paul. Paul was arrested as a ringleader. And if anyone was associated with Paul in any sense, he would be under suspicion and would be arrested.

And for loving themselves, they deserted. Brothers and sisters, we will see more of such things happen. You will find that for the love of ourselves, we are willing to desert our brothers and our sisters.

For the people of the world to love the world, that is but natural. You know, try to tell the people of the world not to love the world. That is impossible because that's all they have.

And we who are the Lord, we should not love the world. Love not the world. For if we love the world, the love of the Father is not enough.

But, brothers and sisters, we are living in a day that the world becomes more and more precious to believers. Why? Because things become more expensive, more scarce, it's harder to get, and because of that, it becomes more and more attractive to believers. Lovers of pleasures.

We love pleasure. We are not lovers of good because it becomes too costly. We are not lovers of God as we should.

Brothers and sisters, when you see these things happening, you know we are in a time of great shaking. How can you stand the test? When the great shaking comes, anything that is not a deposit, is not that which God has deposited, has committed in you, you find cannot stand the test. Nothing that is superficial, nothing that comes by hearsay, nothing that you gain by tradition, nothing that is just a mental thing to you.

Brothers and sisters, these things which you think you have, in the time of shaking, they will all be gone. Only that which God has really deposited in you, that will remain. And that will help you to go through testing and trial.

So, brothers and sisters, it is not only essential for us to know our calling. It is also important for us to examine ourselves before God whether we have a good deposit. The time has come.

You cannot live upon other Christians. By that I mean, when you are in good company, when you find a people who love the Lord, it is easy for you to love the Lord. It is easy for you to go on with the Lord.

But the time has come. It is and now is. Unless there is something that has been done in your very life, unless there is something deposited in you, God has committed to you, brothers and sisters, all the other things will fall apart.

Let me illustrate this. Take for instance, in the Old Testament, Abraham and Lot. You find both Abraham and Lot, they left the earth of Chaldea.

Both of them entered into the Promised Land. And yet you find there was a great difference. Why? Because Abraham had a good deposit in him, while Lot did not have.

The Lord of Glory appeared to Abraham in the earl of Chaldea. But Lot did not have that revelation. God told Abraham to leave his house, to leave his father's house, to leave his chastity and go to the place that God would give to him.

In other words, Abraham received God's promise. Lot didn't receive any promise of God. He just followed Abraham.

Now, when everything was calm and peaceful and smooth, you couldn't tell the difference. You would think that Lot was as good as Abraham. Now, of course, Lot was a righteous man.

But when the testing came, it made all the difference. You remember how the shepherds of Lot's cattle and the shepherds of Abraham's cattle began to quarrel with each other and quarrel before the Gentiles. And Abraham said, that is something that should never happen.

There is no testimony. So Abraham, he said, Lot, we have to part. Now you choose where you want to go.

In other words, Abraham, because he had the vision, because he had the promise, because he saw the Lord of Glory, therefore he could afford to be meek. He could afford to let his nephew Lot get the first choice. Now, Lot couldn't do this.

Why? Because he had no promise. So here you'll find immediately Lot raised his eyes and he saw that whole plain near Sodom and Gomorrah was good land, like the Garden of Eden. So he made the choice.

And he moved there. But dear brothers and sisters, you know the result. Lot, having no good depositing himself, he had to reach out his eyes and his hand to grasp what he could.

But he lost everything. Now Abraham, who had a good depositing hand, he was willing to let go the best and he got everything. Now that is the difference between having a good deposit and having it not.

Another illustration. David and Saul. You know, when you read the life of Saul, he began with a very good beginning.

He was not actually a bad person. Not only he was a head above others in physical stature, but you'll find that he was a rather obedient son, he was a diligent person, and he was also a humble man. Because when the Lot was cast and he was chosen to be the king of Israel, they couldn't find him.

He hid himself behind the baggage. They had to get him out. He had a good beginning.

Outwardly you'll find Saul was as good as David, if not better. But there was no good deposit in him. But David, on the contrary, you'll find that even he was neglected by his father, he was despised by his brother, yet when he was in the field watching the sheep, he knew God in such an intimate way.

God had deposited something in his life. He was not in a hurry to broadcast what God had done to him. Everything was hidden, and yet he could afford to have all these things hidden.

He didn't need to grasp anything for himself. When the time came, God will manifest Him, and even after God had manifested Him, and you'll find that Saul became very jealous of David, being anointed of the Lord. And twice God delivered Saul, his enemy, into his hands.

And his people said, You did not go out to find him. God delivered him to you. You don't need to do anything.

We will do it for you, and all your problems will be solved, and you will have the kingdom. But David will not lift up his feet. He was willing to wait.

He was able to wait. Now why? Because he had the deposit in him. He knew what will happen at the end.

He wouldn't do anything to get the kingdom for himself. He could afford to let God deliver the kingdom to him. But Saul couldn't do that.

And when his kingdom was threatened, he almost became a murderer. He tried to murder David in order to keep his kingdom. But he lost his kingdom.

Brothers and sisters, this shows you the difference between a pea person who had a good deposit and a person who does not have a good deposit. Well, in the New Testament you can see the same thing. Here was Paul.

There was a good deposit in that man. And because the deposit was so good in him, and he was kept by the Holy Spirit, the result was he was able to stand all the tests and be faithful to the very end. But look at his contemporaries.

You'll find he mentioned in 2 Timothy, he said, All Asia have turned away from me. And he mentioned especially two men, Figulus and Hermogenius. Now, we do not know who they were, except, of course, in 1 Timothy.

You'll find one name was mentioned in 1 Timothy. There was the name Amminus in 2, verse 17. And their word was spread as a gangrene, of whom is Amminus and Iletus, men who as to the truth have gone astray.

So here you'll find Paul mentioning four persons. Among all the people in Asia who have deserted him, he mentioned these four men. Now, evidently, if you connect 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy, especially with Hymenus, you'll find that Hymenus may shipwreck in faith.

Why? Because he had a bad conscience. Because of a bad conscience, his faith leaked out. And Hermenius, not only that, but with Finicus, you'll find they got away from the truth of God and into vain babblings, into impiety.

Even, say, resurrection had already passed and offended many people in the faith. So, in other words, you'll find here are these four men. As representing or probably they led the other brothers and sisters in Asia to turn away from Paul.

They didn't have a good deposit. They failed the test. But Paul was able to stand to the very end.

And that is the reason why Paul reminded Timothy, his son, Remember, you have a good deposit. And because you have a good deposit, you will be able to stand if you keep it in the Holy Spirit. If you commit it to God, who has committed it to you, and you will be able to be faithful to the very end.

That's the difference between having a good deposit and having not. Maybe I will use another example. Peter and Judas.

Judas betrayed the Lord. Peter denied the Lord three times. Now, which is the greater crime? I will say it's about the same.

But you see the difference. In Peter there was a good deposit. Even though for a moment he failed.

But you'll find he bounced back. Because there was something in him that cannot be taken away. Satan tried to sift him.

But what can be sifted are the things that can be sifted. And there is something in Peter that cannot be sifted. It is a good deposit.

And because there is that good deposit there, he bounced back. And when he bounced back, dear brothers and sisters, he rose higher than ever before. But Judas, after he betrayed the Lord, after he saw that it was real, he came under such remorse, his conscience moved him so much, he went out and hanged himself.

Why? Because there was nothing deposited within him. That was the end. Never in the gospel you'll find Judas addressed the Lord Jesus as Lord.

By himself. Never. So dear brothers and sisters, from these illustrations you can see how important it is that we have a good deposit.

Dear brothers and sisters, whatever is just attached on you will be detached and fall apart. Only that which is deposited within you, that will help you go through. Therefore, we need to ask ourselves before the Lord.

You know, not in a sense of self-analysis, but we need to go before the Lord and ask Him to shine upon us, that the light of His countenance may shine upon us and really reveal to us how much, how good is the deposit that is in us. Has the Lord committed Himself to you? How much has He committed to you? That will make all the difference. Now what is the good deposit? In chapter 1, verse 13, have an outline of sound words, which words thou hast heard of me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

Paul mentioned the deposit in verse 12. And he mentioned the deposit in verse 14. And here you'll find in between, he put in that sentence, have an outline of sound words, which words thou hast heard of me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

Now brothers and sisters, this verse tells us what the good deposit is. Have an outline of sound words. At first glance, you would think it is words, healthy words, sound words, words that were spoken by Paul to Timothy.

It was an outline of healthy words. Or in some versions say it is a model, the example, the pattern of sound words. Now what is it? I want to read you something.

Because I can find nothing better than what Bishop H. C. G. Moore says about this outline of sound words. You know, Bishop Moore was an Anglican bishop. He was a man of great learning.

But he was a man who was totally devoted to God. And he commented on this, and I thought it was such a good comment. I would like to read it to you.

It has been debated what is meant by the model of healthy words. To some the phrase has seemed to suggest that even at that early date there had arisen an authorized statement of fundamental Christian truth, a summary of the main facts and principles of the gospel, a veritable apostle's creed. But the phrase here does not seem to me to point in this direction, at least not so clearly as to preclude a simpler explanation, exposition.

And this, I think, is to be found in the view that by the model Saint Paul means here simply the gospel itself in its grand lines of truth. The message of Christ Jesus incarnate, sacrificed, risen, ascended, reigning, saving, coming. The revelation of Him whom knowingly we come.

Brothers and sisters, you know when we think of an outline or a model, you know the word in itself means to blow. In other words, you make an impression upon something and it leaves such an impression that it cannot be deviated from. So some people think that it means a pattern.

But remember, the pattern of healthy words is not a systematic summary or reduction of the truth of the gospel, what we consider as apostolic creed. It is not a creed. Rather, it is Christ Himself.

All that He is, that is revealed to us in the gospel. Now that is the outline or pattern of healthy words. To put it in another way, it is more than just words as we mentioned in the morning.

It is Christ as the whole counsel of God. All that Christ is and that He has done has been committed by the apostles to the church. Or you want to put it another way, it is the faith that has been once delivered to the saints.

Now that is the outline of healthy words. In contrast with this, you'll find in 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy, Paul mentioned many deviations from that outline, from that pattern. For instance, in 1 Timothy, you'll find that Paul told Timothy that they are people he was to enjoin some not to teach other doctrines, nor to turn their minds to fables and interminable genealogies which brings questionings rather than further God's dispensation which is in faith.

But the end of what is enjoined is love, our pure heart, and good conscience, and firm faith, which things some have missed, have turned aside to vain discourse, desiring to be law teachers, not understanding either what they say or concerning what they so strenuously affirm. So here you'll find some people have deviated from the pattern of healthy words. They deviated from the faith that has been one delivered to the saints.

They deviated from Christ and all that He is and He has done. Instead, they go off into other doctrines. They go off into genealogies.

They go off into questionings. They go off into teaching law instead of grace. And then in 2 Timothy you'll find Paul mentions all these vain babblings, profane words.

Brothers and sisters, we are living in a time when people's ears are very itching. They just love to hear things they want to hear. And when this is the case, it is a great temptation for those who minister God's Word try to please the itching ears of these people.

Try to say something that will be favorably accepted by them. And in order to do that, you'll find you are tempted to deviate from the pattern of healthy words. You will go off, tangent into other doctrines, other teachings, even vain babblings.

Paul called it babblings. There is nothing in it. Empty.

This is the sign of our time. And because of this, it is most important that we have the pattern of sound words. We have a good deposit.

In other words, we have Christ and all that He has done for us. The person and the work of Christ. And these will be deposited within us as a good deposit.

You know, we have a little deposit. We know the Lord Jesus as our Savior. That's a deposit.

But there is much more than that. If all we have that is depositing us is just a little bit, brothers and sisters, that is not enough. Deposit within us.

We need to see that God is able to commit Christ to us in all His fullness. And the richer the deposit is, the more able you are to stand the shaking. What is the deposit? To put it in one word.

Christ that has been revealed to us through sound words. But it is the living Christ that is depositing us. Brothers and sisters, the more Christ is depositing you, now how can we have a good deposit? Number one you'll find here, Paul says, have an outline of sound words which words thou hast heard of me.

In other words, this deposit comes by hearing. And hearing by the Word of God. We hear the Word.

And we know from whom do we hear. You know, that is very important. Why? Because a minister and his ministry are identical.

Therefore you'll find, if you know from whom you have heard, it is easier for you to discern what you have heard. But, what Timothy has heard from Paul, what Timothy has learned from Paul, is more than just teaching. Now you read chapter 3, verse 10.

But thou hast been thoroughly acquainted with my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings. Here Paul said, Timothy, you are thoroughly acquainted with my teaching, but more, with my conduct. Not only just teaching, but conduct.

And purpose. And faith. And patience.

Patience is towards people. Love, endurance is towards things and events. Persecutions, sufferings.

How can you be acquainted with Paul's teaching, and conduct, and faith, and purpose, and sufferings, and all these things, just by receiving some word that you hear? It's impossible. It shows that the words here are more than just something you have heard with your ears. When you hear these words, in faith and in love.

In other words, it is something that you will respond, in faith and in love. It is not just objective truth about Christ. It is truth, but truth that becomes subjective in you.

It is Christ in you, the hope of Christ. And because it is Christ in you, it is more than just teaching. It involves conduct.

It involves faith. It involves purpose. It involves suffering.

It involves endurance. It involves love, and all these things. So, it is not just something objective.

It is subjective truth. Christ in you. Number two.

We receive a good deposit, not only by what we hear, and in hearing we absorb, even from the one who teaches us, his conduct, and so forth, everything that God has worked, that truth that has been wrought into that life. Now, we absorb all these within ourselves. This is the way that we have a good deposit.

Now, the problem is, oftentimes when we hear something, when we hear people, it is just a teaching. We just contact the words that he has spoken. We do not contact that man.

Out of whom the words? It is just teaching. It is not the conduct. The whole man.

And actually, you know, a true ministry is the giving of one's own life. And in giving one's own life, the life of Christ is being given. That is the way we should hear.

And that is the way we will absorb and have a good deposit. If it is just something we hear as a teaching, brothers and sisters, not only we will forget it, but it will not take us through trial and testing. And number two, you find, we have a good deposit by the Holy Scripture, by the sacred letters.

So here you find Paul, mentioned to Timothy, and said in chapter 3, verse 15, And that from a child thou hast known the sacred letters, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Every scripture is divinely inspired and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, fully fitted to every good work. Not only by what we hear, but by what we read.

In order to have a good deposit, we must be acquainted thoroughly with the Holy Scripture. Why? Because the Holy Scripture is God-breathed. And by having the Word of God dwell richly within us, you have a good deposit.

Number three, as we mentioned in the morning, not only by hearing and by reading, it must be through revelation. If there is no revelation, what you have read are mere letters, and letters kill, but the Spirit quickens. It is therefore important that we really need to seek the Lord for revelation.

Now, brothers and sisters, I cannot emphasize this more, because to many believers, revelation is a rare thing. In other words, you do not expect revelation. You think that revelation is a rare thing.

Well, it may happen once in a lifetime. It may happen occasionally. And for that reason you'll find that we live under a closed heaven.

But dear brothers and sisters, we are given an open heaven. And living under an open heaven, we should expect revelation from above. As we read the Word of God, as we hear people talk, at the same time, we should open our hearts to the Lord and say, Oh Lord, give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.

Turn what we hear and what we read into light from above. And only when we are seeking for revelation, you'll find, seek and you shall find. Again, I say by revelation it simply means not anything spectacular, anything big necessarily, but by revelation is you do see in your spirit Christ.

In the Word that you hear and in the Word that you read. You need a touch of Christ. And if Christ will touch you, you'll get a revelation.

And you cannot be the same. Number four, to have a good deposit, you need not only revelation, but you need the discipline of the Holy Spirit. By discipline of the Holy Spirit, it simply means that not only the Holy Spirit within you will reveal that which is God to you, but the Holy Spirit will so order your circumstances that He will use what you meet with daily.

He will use your circumstance to work into your very being. And of course, if you want to know more about that, you have to go to 2 Corinthians 4. Here you'll find 2 Corinthians 4 said, we have a treasure in the earthen vessel. That the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not of us.

So the Holy Spirit began to arrange our environment. We will be surrounded, but not frustrated. We will be brought to our wicked end, but not to our hoped end.

We will be persecuted, but not forsaken. We will be knocked down, but not knocked out. We will bear the dying of Jesus in our body, that the life of Jesus may be manifested in us and manifested in other people.

Now this is the discipline of the Holy Spirit. Dear brothers and sisters, unless we know the discipline of the Holy Spirit in our life, very little is real. Very little is a true deposit.

The problem today is we hear a lot, we do not read a lot, we think we have a lot, but because we refuse to accept the discipline of the Holy Spirit, what we have heard is not translated into. You know the work of the Holy Spirit is twofold. He works within and without.

He works within by revelation. He works without by discipline. And we need both.

Sometimes it begins with discipline and ends with revelation. Sometimes it begins with revelation. Now remember, if you have a revelation, discipline will follow.

Revelation is not cheap at all. Paul, fourteen years ago, before he wrote 2 Corinthians, he was taken up to the third heaven. He was taken into paradise and he heard things that man could never utter.

What revelation, what vision? But immediately you find that thorn in the flesh. Now do not think that thorn is just a small thorn. The word originally is a stake.

It is a stake that is thrust into his flesh, making him so miserable, unbearable, that he had to cry out to the Lord to remove it. And the Lord said, I leave it there, but my grace is sufficient for you. Now that is the discipline of the Holy Spirit.

Dear brothers and sisters, it is through these come into a good deposit. Now, what God has deposited in us, we must keep in the Holy Spirit. You know, God has deposited something in your life.

But if it is not kept in the Holy Spirit, you lose it. I'll read one verse to you to show how it is possible. You know the church in Philadelphia.

No church is more commendable than the church in Philadelphia. Why? Because you find it is all praises and no reproach. And yet you find what the Lord said here.

Verse 11 of chapter 3 of Revelation. I come quickly, hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown. In other words, they have a good deposit, and on the basis of that good deposit, they deserve the crown.

But they have to hold fast what they have. Otherwise, their crown will be taken away from them. Now, brothers and sisters, if God has put a good deposit in you, that is to say, if God has put a good measure of Christ in your life, it has to be kept in the Holy Spirit.

If it is not kept in the Holy Spirit, it loses its freshness. It loses its power. It becomes old.

We cannot live on something that is old and stale. We have to live daily on something that is fresh and living. So no matter what God has already deposited in you, you have to keep it in the Holy Spirit.

If it is out in tune with the Holy Spirit, you'll find that deposit has lost its freshness and its power. And that is the reason why. Even if you have received Revelation, even if you know Christ in a very living way, and yet, if you are not living in the Holy Spirit, the result will be you cannot live by your past.

It has to be kept in the power of the Holy Spirit. That is the reason why we have to be constantly filled with the Holy Spirit. We have to be ruled daily by the Holy Spirit.

Because only in the Holy Spirit, Christ is living and fresh and operative and powerful. But at the same time, not only we keep the deposit in the Holy Spirit, but we commit our deposit. Let God keep it for us.

You know, that is the perseverance of the saints. How can we persevere? If it depends on us, we may fall. But the perseverance of the saints is not in us, it is in God.

Because we have committed that which He has committed to us back to God. So we are fully persuaded that He is able to keep the deposit which we have entrusted to Him until that day. And that day is the day when the Lord shall return and we shall see Him face to face.

Dear brothers and sisters, on the one hand, we need to seek to have a good deposit. On the other hand, we need to keep that deposit in the power of the Holy Spirit and also committed to the keeping of God. So finally, I will just read you Jude, verse 24.

But to Him that is able to keep you without stumbling and to set you with exaltation, blameless before His glory, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, might and authority from before the whole age and now and to all the ages. Amen. But to Him that is able to keep you.

Paul said, I know whom I have believed and I am fully persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him until that day. Dear brothers and sisters, this is our assurance. This is our confidence in the time of shaking, in the time of trouble.

May the Lord help us. Shall we pray? Our Heavenly Father, we do praise and thank Thee that Thou has not only called us with a holy calling, Thou has rooted us in Christ Jesus even before the foundation of the world. Oh, how we praise and thank Thee for Thy calling.

We praise and thank Thee that Thou has not only called us, but Thou has deposited in us Christ, who is to be our all and in all. Oh, how we praise and thank Thee that He is that which is unshakable. And we do ask that Thou will deposit more of Him in every one of us to seek revelation from Thee, enable us to yield ourselves to the discipline of the Holy Spirit.

And Lord, if Thou has given us anything, Lord, may it be kept in the power of the Holy Spirit, that it will always be living and fresh. And Lord, we know whom we have believed, and we are fully persuaded that Thou art able to keep the deposit which we have entrusted to Thee until that day. So we commit ourselves, and that which Thou has given to us, back to Thy keeping.

We thank Thee Thou art able to keep us until that day. In the name of our Lord Jesus, Amen.