Entering Into God's Rest and Living There Always

I'd like to turn to Hebrews chapter 4 and verse 1. If you can turn in your Bibles, please follow with me. The book of Hebrews has got a number of warnings for God's people. One of them is an earlier chapter. It says in verse chapter 2 and verse 3. I'll read that first. Hebrews 2 verse 3. He's speaking to believers. How will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? The average desire for salvation for the vast majority of believers is that I don't want to go to hell. I want to go to heaven for eternity. And their whole attitude is, what is the bare minimum I have to do to get to heaven? It's almost like saying, well, I want to enjoy myself as much as possible here on this earth, but I don't want to miss heaven. So I'm willing to do the bare minimum to get there. Now, I just want to warn you, if any of you have that attitude, my fear is you will never get there. Because I don't think anyone's going to go into God's presence for eternity, whose attitude here on earth is, what is the bare minimum I have to do to please this God? It says here, how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? He's not talking about rejecting it. These Hebrew Christians are not rejected. And I don't think any of you have rejected the message of salvation. He's talking here about neglecting it. Neglecting. You know, you can have a child born in your home. You love that child. You don't reject that child. But you can neglect that child. Parents can neglect a child. Neglect not in the sense that you don't feed them or clothe them or educate them. But you don't bring them up in godly ways. That's neglecting them. And they grow up to be worldly. And then parents weep and say, oh Lord, what to do? My children have gone astray. Well, you neglected them all your life. So many children who we don't reject, we neglect. And in the same way, a salvation which we don't reject, which we glory in the fact we have accepted a salvation, we may be neglecting the greatness of that salvation. And part of it is what we read here in chapter 4 verse 1, let us fear. And here is one place where we can neglect this wonderful salvation that Jesus Christ at such a great price. If someone pays a tremendous amount of money to get us a very expensive gift, and they come along to visit us later and find that you've just neglected it and it's somewhere thrown away in the corner, ignored and full of dust, they wonder why in the world did I ever get this expensive gift for this person who doesn't seem to value it. And I feel it's like that sometimes, the way we have treated God's salvation. The salvation of Christ is so wide and so fantastic that I believe in our whole lifetime we will not plumb the depths of it. We will not be able to reach the extent of it. It's such a great salvation and we have to fear. It says here, lest God having given us a promise of entering into a very restful life, we come short of it. The theme in chapter 4 is of entering into God's rest, which was God's original purpose for Adam that's mentioned here in verse 4. It says in the seventh day God rested on the seventh day from all his works. You know I'm always amused by the way the writer writes something like this. Somewhere it is written and God rested on the seventh day from all his works. All of us know that's in Genesis chapter 1. But you know these writers of the scripture were not so particular about, you know, showing that they know where in the Old Testament this verse is found or that verse is found. It's a good thing to know it for our own benefit. But they were more interested in experiencing it, not quoting it. It's good to know Bible references and to know Bible verses. We use scripture memory verses. That is for our benefit. But if I only know a reference or I can memorize a verse, that hasn't fulfilled 1% of the purpose of that verse. I must experience it. And there is a Sabbath that God ordained for Adam which had a deep meaning. That's what it says here. And it says in the first verse, let us fear lest we don't enter into that rest. In Genesis chapter 1 we read that God made everything in the universe and after he had completed everything, the last thing he made was the animals, and then when everything was ready, he made man and woman in the last part of the sixth day, towards the end of the sixth day, towards the end of that 24-hour period, Adam and then Eve. So what I get from there is God has prepared everything. He could have made Adam and Eve on the first day and say, well just wait, let me make this beautiful world for you. No! He made everything and when everything was ready, then he made Adam and Eve and says, I want you to enjoy this beautiful world. It's like a father who has made everything available for his children and says, okay I've made everything, my sons and daughters, it's for you to enjoy. And before they went out to enjoy that in the Garden of Eden, the Lord said to them, but I want you to spend the first day of your creative existence with me and I don't want you to work. There's a lot of work to be done in the garden but that can wait. All the work I have planned for you can wait. You must first fellowship with me and I enjoy fellowship with you. I made you in my image, Adam and Eve, and I have a great longing. I didn't make any of these millions of angels in my image. I could not fellowship with them but you, you I can fellowship because you've got my nature. You've got my, I made you in my image and so I want you to fellowship with me and enter into this rest, which I call a Sabbath rest. Then you can go out and work for six days in the garden. Now in the law, which came much later after Adam had sinned, 2,500 years after Adam's sin, Moses gave a law saying six days you shall work and then you shall have a seventh day of rest. But God's plan for Adam in the beginning was one day you rest with me and then go out and work for six days. That's amazing. God wanted Adam to see what a loving father he was. I mean it's something like if you joined a very prestigious company for a job with a very high salary and they told you well we first want you to take a one-month vacation to start your work. One month vacation and then come back and you can work for us. You'd say wow what a good company this is. But that's how God was treating Adam. I wonder whether he realized it. I don't want you to go and work first. I want you to rest and have fellowship with me and enjoy that and then you'll have the strength to go out and work. That is the rest spoken of here and he says here in the first verse let us fear lest we get so busy doing things for God and going here and going there and trying to do something and we have not entered into that first day Sabbath rest. The Sabbath rest is not here the seventh day rest. It's the first day rest. The first day for Adam was rest. You know our dear Seventh-day Adventist friends think it is the seventh day. Some of them are born again but we love them but they're wrong. It was not Adam's seventh day that was a Sabbath. We go back to the beginning. Adam's first day was a Sabbath. That's why we don't care for Saturday. It's the first day of the week that Jesus rose from the dead. That is the day we come together. There's a significance of our coming together on Sunday. It's symbolizing that Adam's first day was a day of rest. That was a Sabbath and the meaning of that Sabbath more than the actual day of the week is the meaning of the Sabbath that is important for us. God wants us to enter into that rest and then serve him and if we try to serve him without entering into that rest, that's the cause of all the problems we have. All the murmuring, all the complaining, all the grumbling and more than that the questions we have about does God really love me? Is he always looking at me with a frown? Do some of you feel like that? That God is, because you're not perfect, God's looking at you with a frown all the time. I mean he doesn't have a face but there's a frown on his face looking at you. Well I'm not so happy with you. Most believers I think live like this. That God's looking at them with a frown which says really I'm not very happy with you. You're a terrible disappointment with me but I tolerate you. Okay I'll bless you in some way but to tell you honestly I'm pretty fed up with the way you're living. I'm not very happy with you. Now you know so many believers live with that type of attitude. They haven't entered into God's rest at all and they'll never get into God's rest and they'll never be able to do anything useful for God until we first get this matter settled. Looking into God's face, looking into Jesus face and to be sure that he's smiling at me. Now I'll tell you why I say that. For so many of my years of my Christian life I myself felt that God had looked at me with a frown but it all changed for me when I was baptized in the Holy Spirit. In the Holy Spirit being filled with the Holy Spirit not just once but being continually filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit it says comes inside and cries out dad. Romans 8 16 the word Abba in that verse the New Testament the English translation is dad. Have you ever now I can teach you dear brothers and sisters please look up and call God your father or be more intimate and call him dad and you say is that what I have to do okay dad. The whole thing is so artificial but can you imagine the joy in your heart when your little baby one day spontaneously looks at you and says dad. He's not being taught to do that. It's just a spontaneous expression of affection and love and confidence that you are his father or he says mama. Imagine the joy in the mother's heart when a little baby says that for the first time and every time he says that it's not artificial it's not forced it's not what somebody has taught him saying you must call him dad you must call him mama. No dear brothers and sisters that's what God wants from us and only the Holy Spirit can produce that in you. I wish the Holy Spirit would convince you today of God's eagerness to have that relationship with you. He waited 4,000 years after Adam's failure till he could accomplish it and even after 2,000 years after the day of Pentecost when he sent the Holy Spirit he still finds so many gloomy Christians who still don't rejoice in knowing that God's smiling at them and the excuse that so many Christians make is say well how come the world can God smile at me I'm such a sinner I've got so many things wrong in my life I'm not perfect well that's why he sent his son you know Jesus often used to tell people the Pharisees were the people who thought they were perfect and Jesus said I didn't come for you guys no because I have not come for the righteous I've not come for the perfect people I've come for the sinners have you read that verse I did not come for the righteous Jesus said but I've come to call sinners to turn around towards me repentance don't get scared of that word a lot of people make so much of that word repentance it's such a scary theological word we try to understand the depth of its meaning I'll tell you in very simple terms today and I hope you'll never forget it repent means you know there's a beautiful word in the Indian Tamil language it's the most accurate translation of repentance I've ever heard in Tamil the word for repentance is Manam Thirumbal. Manam means mind Thirumbal means turn turn your mind that is repentance that means you're facing in the wrong direction my son my daughter turn towards me is that a scary word if your dad is standing behind you and offering you something very precious and says my son my girl don't look at the other direction turn towards me I love you I've got something for you that's repentance I hope you'll never forget it Manam Thirumbal turn your mind around from looking in the wrong direction from being gloomy miserable complaining turn around and look at me I'm your father I gave my son to purchase you to make you my own forever turn towards me that's how we come to rest if I repent I can come to rest if I turn around the reason why we don't come to rest is because we are looking in the wrong direction that's why I want to speak about what repentance means first of all it's repentance and faith when I turn around and I look at God's face and you seem smiling at you faith becomes very easy see if you always look at God as a grumpy sour person it's almost impossible to have faith you do you remember the story of the person to whom the Lord gave some talents and told them to invest it and one man when he came back he had not invested it one of the people used that one Mina this is the story is in Luke 19 and verse 11 to 27 and one man they were each each of his 10 slaves were given one Mina each Mina was the coin of those days and one of those people invested that one Mina he didn't put it in a bank and get you know 2% interest or something he invested it and some type of stock exchange or something and that one became 10 and the master commended him and another chap invested him and made 5 Mina they were bold to take a risk to get something for their master but this the other fellow who had only one you read about in Luke 19 and verse 20 he did not he didn't even put it in the bank he wrapped it up in a handkerchief it says in Luke 19 and verse 20 and he buried it somewhere in one place it says he buried it under the earth and when he came back he gave the master you gave me one Mina right here it is this is the chap whose attitude is what is the bare minimum I have to do to go to heaven I know God is a very demanding type of person that's what he said in verse read verse 21 and 22 why was his life useless the person was given one Mina and produced nothing with it is it is an example of a believer who's done nothing with his life for God he received everything from God forgiveness of sins the fullness of the Holy Spirit a hundred and one earthly blessings and spiritual blessings and what is he given return nothing why why is that why is so many believers like that now tell you why the answer is here in verse 21 I was afraid of you Luke 19 21 I was afraid of you you're a very exacting man you know taking up what you did not lay down reaping what you did not sow boy what an impression about God this man had don't be surprised that is exactly the impression that many believers have about Almighty God their Heavenly Father probably some of you have and then your lives would be unfruitful the one life you have that's all you have to give to God with accomplished whatever you accomplished with it zero you went to a few church meetings okay and you sang the songs and you attended the Bible studies that's all when God wanted you to accomplish something fantastic through you nothing could be accomplished because you felt God is so demanding you felt he's always looking at you with a frown he's always sort of telling you you're imperfect you're imperfect you don't recognize that's the voice of the devil I'll tell you something many many years ago I'm very thankful about this that the Lord taught me years ago this is going back more than 40 years ago I was you know I had a dream very rarely God speaks to me in a dream but this is one of those dreams through which God spoke to me and in my dream I was coming back from a meeting you see I was traveling those days different places preaching the God's Word in different different places and in this dream I was coming back from a meeting where I had poured out my heart preaching God's Word and as I was walking back to the room I was staying in it was not in my hometown somewhere else as walking back to my room I heard a voice behind me saying that was not good enough you could have done better that was not good enough your preaching was not good enough you could have done better and you know I thought I'd poured my heart out done everything to share God's Word and here was I felt God saying to me it wasn't good enough and my head my face fell and I said Lord why is it when I when I talk to you face to face you always encourage me but when you speak from behind my back you always say that's not good enough and I felt the Lord saying to me in my dream turn around and look and in my dream I turned around and looked and it was a devil some black figure there that suddenly disappeared as soon as I came as soon as I looked around I learned a lesson there that I'll never forget God was trying to teach me sometimes God speaks through a dream and the lesson was I never will tell you that was not good enough that's the devil no I thought the devil will never say to me that was not good enough the devil will never challenge me to do better but there's a lot of difference between challenging someone to do better and keeping on telling him no matter what he does that that was not good enough so I learned something I mean you try telling your child who's worked hard and done something to make a gift for you and you say that was not good enough that's enough enough to crush his spirit you should never speak to a child like that no sensible father will ever speak to children like that I remember my boys when they were small 3-4 years old they would give me birthday cards on my birthday but because means what we couldn't afford expensive cards it was just a piece of paper on which they had written my dear daddy happy birthday and the spelling was wrong the D was written crooked and it doesn't make a difference it was precious to me so precious that I still have copies of some of them after so many years what did it matter to me that the spelling was wrong what did it matter that is not written in a straight line what do I call my son and say that card was not good enough is that what I'll tell him I hug him and say thank you so much my son for thinking of me and greeting me on my birthday I love you so much and I thought boy that's how God is when I present my imperfect effort to try and love him and serve him he's not looking to see whether it's all in a straight line whether the E is written the other way and the D is written crooked not at all he's a million times better father than me he will hug me and say I'm so thankful that you love me remember that my dear brothers and sisters and don't let the devil say to you that was not good enough I learned a lesson there that I'll never forget because you know I grew up I never had a spiritual father to talk to me like I'm talking to you now I wish I had but I never had one I don't know I looked around and the elders in my church were not godly men whom I could look up to they never spoke about victory over sin they never spoke about words that would encourage and lift me up they never taught me how to be filled with the Holy Spirit they just taught academically scripture from here and there and all their clever sermons it what could I do so I had to learn to seek God myself I was like a an orphan spiritually really I longed like Timothy for a spiritual father like Paul but God never chose to give me one and anyway in one way that was good because I had to seek God myself and I became more dependent directly on him sometimes we can become so dependent on a man that we lean more on him than on the Lord that is a danger if you are connected to a very godly man it's very easy to lean on him and not on the Lord and a truly godly man will never allow that he'll always push you on to the Lord and never allow you to lean on him but anyway because I didn't have a spiritually spiritual father for many many years I was not sure how God looked at me I was so discouraged and condemning myself most of the time so I'm very thankful that I discovered that God is not a demanding exacting man otherwise I lived all my life and wasted this one life God gave me I don't mean like this man and you know what this the Lord told this man see Luke 19 and verse 22 by your own words I will judge you you worthless slave worthless slave did he go and commit some sin did he go and commit adultery or kill somebody or steal money or what did he do why was he worthless because the one life God gave him he didn't do anything with it for the master he wasted his one life he wasted all the thousands of days God had given him on earth accomplishing nothing just kept it I'm going to heaven my sins are all forgiven I'm on my way to heaven I don't have to worry about anything I'm perfectly okay well and then he said okay that's what you said okay I'll judge you by your own words did you know that I'm an exacting man taking what I did not know and reaping what I did not okay I'll treat you exactly like you said at least you could have put my money in the bank he says and he says take them in a way and look at this he says give it away to the other person so I see there that this man had not come into this life of rest he didn't reject the salvation he neglected it turn back to Hebrews chapter 4 now Hebrews in chapter 4 we read here he speaks here about verse 9 Hebrews 4 9 there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God for the one who has entered his rest has himself rested from his works as God did from his Hebrews 4 10 and verse 11 therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest so that no one will fall or fail through following the same example of disobedience so it says here that there is a Sabbath rest for us today to enter in and we enter into this rest it says here earlier on in Hebrews yeah verse 10 the one who has entered rest has seized from his own works as God did from his he's using the example of God having finished all the work in six days and the seventh day there was nothing more to be done and the person who enters into rest is one who is convinced that as far as my acceptance please listen carefully as God rested from all his works on the seventh day having finished everything on the sixth day with nothing more to be done we are to enter into a rest in the same way absolutely convinced that as far as my acceptance before God is concerned there is nothing more to be done there are million things to be done in order to serve God that's another issue that's the work in the garden for the next 900 years Adam lived that long but as far as my acceptance before God is concerned he's completed it all so I'm resting from my works my works are not going to make me more acceptable to God no that's what I need to understand on the sixth day when Adam was created everything was finished Adam just had to enter into the seventh day without having done one single thing to earn it and that's the example pointed out as to here my dear brothers and sisters you cannot serve God in the garden or anywhere else you cannot go out and live a life for God or try to please him if you don't enter into this rest first that is what God wants first of all he wants you to recognize that he's done everything on the cross for us and through the resurrection of Christ and having sent the Holy Spirit there's absolutely nothing you can do to find acceptance before God if you try to do something to find acceptance before God you're going the way of a heathen they do pilgrimages they burn candles they give tithes they give money to find acceptance before God even Christians there are Christians who are taught by some groups of people you give money and God will be pleased with you and he'll bless you a hundredfold they're always trying to do something to find acceptance before God can I give money can I go on a pilgrimage can I help the poor people Lord will you then accept me you'll never be happy that way I don't need to do anything to find acceptance before God he's done it all on the cross and through his resurrection and the gift of the Holy Spirit it's all over I have to find that must be the basis of my life I'm not talking about the building of the house I'm talking about the foundation now don't forget this is the foundation we have to build a house on it a lifetime of service I'm thankful that I was converted 61 years ago in this month July 1951 59 sorry to this month it is 61 years I laid my foundation then but it wasn't very shaky it was a very shaky foundation for about 16 years till I began to build on it so shaky because I thought I had to do something to please God I always need to do something but when I came to rest and say I can do nothing to lay the foundation God wants to work me me to build the house the foundation is already laid says in 1 Corinthians 3 you cannot lay any other foundation other than what Christ has laid don't try and add your righteousness which is like filthy rags to that foundation the foundation God has laid for your acceptance before him is complete in Christ let me repeat pictured in the way God completed everything before he created Adam he completed everything before he asked you to come and be his child so my service for God today and my love for him my sacrifice and anything I do is not defined acceptance it is because I have found acceptance because he's done everything for me and he's entered me in I've entered into his rest I'm sitting on his lap I can't do anything more to win his acceptance but I'll do everything to live for him like that little couplet says I cannot work my soul to save for that my Lord has done but I will work like any slave for love of God's dear son remember that I cannot work my soul to save for that my Lord has done but I will work like any slave for love of God's dear son we need to understand the difference between foundation and superstructure just like in our earthly foundation we don't put windows and doors into the foundation in the foundation we have only stones and rocks big boulders that's laid in the foundation and it's all hidden under the ground the foundation of a building but it's the strength of that foundation that keeps the house solid and this rest that is spoken of here is the foundation of our Christian life and that's what ensures that our house is not going to topple or shake in a wind or a storm so I'm telling you about the foundation here let us enter into this rest let us fear lest we remain always confusing the building with the foundation and thinking that we have to put in some doors and windows into the foundation no there's not one single thing you can do the foundation has been laid in Christ you have to come on to that like I said now I work like any slave for love of God's dear son if my service for God doesn't come out of love for him out of gratitude for what he's done for me I want to tell you it's worthless I mean if you if there's anything you do if you even go for a church service out of obligation for Sunday I have to go brother sister don't go sit at home one do something else don't play games or go for a walk it's no use going to church if you think Oh God wants me to come there I have obliged to go no sir you don't have to God doesn't want anything from you if I don't do something out of love for the for Jesus Christ it has no value before God you need to understand that you can't break put big mortars and I mean big boulders in a building that's all in the foundation you know buildings are built here they don't build the walls with big boulders so I'm not going to do work to find acceptance before God it's very very important and because in the church particularly in CFC churches we preach so much about pressing on to perfection and denying ourselves and taking up the cross and seeking to be filled with the Holy Spirit and being righteous in all matters righteous and money matters not wasting our time giving up bad habits and all these things we can unconsciously gradually begin to think that my acceptance before God is based on all this it isn't it's based on the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross and then people may say well you mean that means I can live as I like if you speak like that I would say you haven't even you have not even understood what salvation is no person who's understood salvation can ever speak like that Oh Christ has done everything then I can live as I like right the person who speaks like that has not repented he has not done this man in terrible he's not mind is not turned around he's still facing in the wrong direction he's facing in the wrong direction his back is towards God and he says oh you told me the Christ has done everything is it well I can live as I like I said brother you need to repent first Christ hasn't done everything for you like for you if you're not repentant you're facing the wrong direction you need to turn around and look God face face to face look into his face and see what he's done for you and you'll never talk like that ever in your life oh I can live as I like now I'll tell you honestly I do not believe I can live as I like but that's not it because some force is frightening me saying you better live carefully I don't live in fear no my life is pure joy it's a delight to serve God I left my job in the Navy in May 1966 which is 54 years ago and I'll tell you I've seen other Christian workers are gloomy miserable grumpy but my life is exciting I like that translation in Proverbs 14 14 in the Living Bible it says the godly man's life is exciting and I'm not trying to sell anything I'm not a salesman I'll tell you honestly the Christian life is exciting for me totally it gets better and better as the days go by I'm never gloomy I can't think of a single day where I was gloomy in the last so many years how can I be when I have such a wonderful loving Heavenly Father smiling at me all the time imagine if you can see a wonderful loving Heavenly Father smiling at you all the time you don't be gloomy no it says in the song in the book of Psalms they looked unto him and their faces were lightened their faces became bright because they saw God smiling at them that's exactly how I feel oh yeah I'm tempted the devil tempts me sometimes you know we like to do our best we are pressing on to perfection and sometimes in our pursuit of perfection it may not be conscious sin but we've sought to overcome conscious sin but me oh I could have done more there I could have done that better I could have spoken a little kinder to that person we're always pressing on to perfection I'm not perfect yet so we're pressing on to perfection but that pressing on to perfection can sometimes make us discouraged but I say no that's a temptation I will not get discouraged I'm pressing on to perfection I know I've got a long way to go I've not reached the finishing line of this race but I'm pressing on and I'm not going to give up I want to encourage you today your father in heaven loves you immensely I've shared many times that in the years when I was wandering around without his earthly spiritual father I remember about 45 years ago God gave me this verse from John 17 I want to share with you please turn with me to John 17 this is the prayer of Jesus for his disciples it's not for everybody I might as well tell you that because he says very clearly here in John 17 he's praying to his heavenly father and John 17 the whole chapter is a prayer he's the longest recorded prayer of Jesus and he begins by saying father it's a prayer just before he went to the cross and one of the things he says here is in verse 9 I'm not praying for the world but I'm praying for these disciples so whatever he has said in this prayer is not for every Tom Dick and Harry out in the world is not for everybody who calls himself a Christian no I ask on their behalf these are the people who use when they believe you sent me I do not ask on behalf of the world I'm not praying for the world but for these whom you have given me they are yours and you gave them to me and if you are one of those whom the father has picked out and given to Jesus as a gift I like to think of that that out of all the world God set his eye on me and picked me out and gave me to Jesus I'm very privileged why because I believe God's Word it's true for you also you may not be enjoying it because you don't believe God's Word you have not because you don't have faith you if you pray without faith James chapter 1 says you'll get nothing can pray as much as you like but if you pray without faith that God loves you cares for you you'll get nothing you'll be miserable all your life and the only difference between you and the happy person is that guy's got faith and you doesn't you don't maybe you know maybe you feel you made such a mess of your past life and you say well others have not made such a mess of their life how can I ever accomplish God's will for my life I'll tell you what will happen please listen to me now before this happens at the judgment seat of Christ if you continue to live like that you will waste your life and when you stand at the judgment seat of Christ you'll say Lord I made such a mess of my life and I couldn't believe that you could do anything with me the Lord will say to you he'll call somebody else somebody from the crowd in the day of judgment and say this guy his life was much worse than yours I'll show you the video of his life the Lord will say and you'll see it was much worse than yours but he believed that I could do something with his life even though he made a mess of his life he trusted me and see what a glorious life he lived you could have lived that same life your life is not as bad as his you could have lived that same life if you had trusted me so you could not do anything for me not because your life was a failure in the past but because you would not trust me you would not believe that the blood of my son could wipe out your past that my Holy Spirit can fill you and make you accomplish something with your life dear brother sister enter into God's rest don't keep looking inside and saying all this this thing wrong with me that thing wrong with me well if you look inside if I look inside I'll get discouraged I don't I never look inside by the way what does it mean to judge yourself we often speak about judging ourselves I'll tell you how I judge myself I judge myself exactly like we read in Isaiah chapter 6 where Isaiah saw the glory of God and he saw his own need then not by looking inside no if I look inside I'll get discouraged Isaiah looked up and he saw the beauty of Jesus and in the light of the beauty of Jesus he saw his own need then he said Oh God I'm a sinner and the blood of Jesus I mean symbolically the fire from the altar touched him and cleansed him and he was set on fire for God that's the best way to see our own corruption look at Jesus and run the race and he will show you as much as you're able to bear at each particular time you know God didn't show me all the wretchedness of my flesh right at the beginning of my Christian life I don't got so discouraged I said Lord I give up he showed me as much as I could bear you know just like a little child goes to school and they don't teach him everything in the kindergarten they just teach him a little bit in the kindergarten as much as he can bear the next year they teach him a little more in the first grade and a little more in the second grade he'd get overwhelmed if they thought taught him 10th grade stuff in the first grade he gets so discouraged he'll say dad I don't want to go to that school anymore God is also very gracious he shows us as much as we can bear I want to encourage you brothers sisters look up into the face of your loving father and see here he says in John 17 23 this is the verse I wanted to show you to those who are chosen by him I want the world to know the middle of verse 23 John 17 23 I want the world to know that you love these disciples of mine as much as you love me that's the worst that changed my life 45 years ago one simple truth that I was beloved of my heavenly father I always knew he was my heavenly father I never prayed Jehovah I prayed loving father but it was only a word only words but it became a reality when the Holy Spirit filled me and cried out for me dad you're my dad you love me just like you loved your son and I never got tired of preaching that truth and I don't mind preaching it every single time because I'm seeing that this is what brings people into rest what is it God loves me as much as he loved Jesus I'll show you that from another verse which doesn't look like that but if you read there are many things written within a verse if you look at it carefully done with me to Romans chapter 2 Romans chapter 2 Romans and chapter 2 verse 11 a very simple verse which we all believe there is no partiality with God meditate on that to help you meditate on that turn over to Romans chapter 8 he keep that in mind and go to Romans chapter 8 and verse 29 Romans 8 29 where it says God has predestined us he foreknew us he predestined us to become conformed to the image of his son Jesus so that Jesus might be the eldest among many brothers so God's purpose is the reason why Jesus became a man was so that he might be the eldest brother of many many brothers and sisters in the church in the family of God and I'm one of them so that's why I say call me brother Zach don't call me reverend Zach or pastor Zach or these lowdown titles I'm not such a lowdown person I'm a brother of Jesus Christ please call me brother Zach you know what that means sister so-and-so you're a sister of Jesus Christ why do people pick up these titles like reverend doctor right reverend what does that compare to brother of Jesus Christ that's the highest possible title you can ever get that Jesus might be the first among many brothers and down the line I'm also one of them brother Zach brother of Jesus Christ you're that too if you believe it now once you believe that that you're a younger brother or sister of Jesus Christ then go back to Romans to the verse we read there's no partiality with God and if you're a good father you will not be partial to any of your children I have four sons and everything that I did for my first son I was determined to do without any partiality for the other three I made no distinction within my ability those I mean I was not a wealthy person we had very little my wife and I but with whatever little we had we decided we're gonna treat all our sons equally everyone was equally precious everyone would be equally cared for everyone would be equally provided equally loved and if Jesus is the elder brother it means the father was a much better father than me will definitely treat me just like him like he treated him like he cared for Jesus on the earth he will care for me boy I can't explain to you how that changed my life now you're hearing this and yeah you've got it all in your head I pray to sink another one foot down into your heart then it'll make a world of difference in your life you can have it in your head for 25 years and still be worried and anxious and tense and always feel God is looking at you with a frown on his face it won't change one single thing but the day it sinks into your heart that despite all the mistakes you've made in your life and I'll tell you I've made lots of mistakes in my life I've disappointed God even after I was born again but he forgave me all he forgave me everything the blood of Jesus cleansed me from all sin and he not only says that he says in Hebrews 8 12 your sins and iniquities I remember no more I remembered that day very clearly about two years after I was born again I was still uncertain what about my past failures and how does God think about that I remember I was I was the Navy and I was standing on the deck of a ship late in the evening alone I was on duty that night on my ship and I was walking that deck of my ship and I this word came to my heart your sins and iniquities I will not remember anymore I said wow I'd already read that in Hebrews 8 and verse 12 but that day it came home to my heart I said Lord thank you it's not just that I'm forgiven but God I saw that God wasn't looking at me like yeah I've forgiven you but I'll never forget what you did I know you're the fellow who did that 10 years ago I know what you did 25 years ago I haven't forgotten that he does not look at me like that and he doesn't look at you like that whatever blunders you have made in your past life I want to tell you God doesn't look at you like that when he says your sins and iniquities I will not remember anymore he means it and he hasn't changed his mind about you rejoice in his acceptance dear brother sister enter into his rest all the rest that has come into my life I can't explain it he's blessed my life is supremely happy I count myself of all men more blessed I sometimes I once said to my church folk in India I said if you can meet a man who's happier than me in India I'd like to meet him please bring him to me I'd like to see him my life is so supremely happy every day it's not that I don't have problems I mean I faced all types of problems from people who are antagonistic to Christianity and other Christian believers who are angry with me for preaching perfection and angry with me for showing their love of money and preaching that Jesus never took any money and Paul never took any money in exposing their covetousness the people a lot of people are angry with me and they even took me to court it's okay I love them all it doesn't disturb my heart I'm a blessed man extremely blessed man I'm very happy and you're just the same the only difference between you and me is I believe and you don't I wish you I wish you did it make a tremendous difference in your life and even in the expression on your face I'll tell you that it will and your life would be very different from this day it's not some course you have to graduate after five years you can enter into this life today I love that word which says today now is the turn to that verse look at that in closing 2nd Corinthians and chapter 6 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 when is the day of salvation some people will say today wrong 2nd Corinthians 6 verse 2 when is the day of salvation read it now not today not after one hour now now is the day of salvation right now say Lord I believe it it doesn't depend on me given what you've done and I'll tell you this if you're sincere you're not going to take advantage of God's goodness when I understood this did it make me more careless in my life they didn't make me say oh but God's accepted me as I can I can do as I like you know what I said now God's accepted me I cannot live as I like not I can live as I like I cannot live as I like anymore I have to live to please the father but it's no longer a burden it was not a burden for Jesus to please his father and it's not a burden for me I'm nearly 81 years old now but I say Lord I'm not in a hurry to stop serving you if you give me another 20 years or 40 years I'm ready to pour out my life to serve you I want to build your church on this earth I want to show my gratitude to you I I remember some years ago it was in 1993 how long goes that 27 years ago I was riding my moped in India and I crashed into a railway gate which somebody lowered without warning he was some new man operating they operated by hand in India and I crashed into it and I fell down unconscious and I had a crack in my skull and my shoulder was dislocated and somebody picked me up and I didn't die and anyway God healed me and when I went home after that that same day you know what I said to the Lord I said Lord I am NOT finished saying thank you to you for dying for me on the cross give me a few more years to say thank you to you I don't want any reward I'm not looking for crowns and mansions in heaven no no no let other people get all that I just want to show my gratitude and say thank you Lord for dying for me give me a few more years to do that and God's answered my prayer and given me 27 more years since that day but even today I say Lord I'm still writing thank you I think I've reached up to DHA I still haven't finished Lord I've got to finish the whole word thank you for dying for me give me time I wish you the same happy life that I'm enjoying I'm not because of what I do or what I am but because of who my father is and he's your father too I want to introduce him to you today enter into his rest that's what Adam what did Adam have to do on that first day of his life the Sabbath day looked at his father said God you love me so much he couldn't call him father I can call him father you could say God you love me so much it's a real pity that he went out the next day and disobeyed God Lord I learned a lesson from that I don't want to do that but I don't blame him he didn't have the Holy Spirit I've got the Holy Spirit so there's a lot of difference I don't compare myself with Adam dear brothers and sisters may God bless you may you rejoice in God's goodness and may that overflow in a life of love for the Lord and for others that will lead to build RLCF there or whichever church you're in as a strong expression of the body of Christ and of the love of God for the human race God bless you all let's pray Heavenly Father I don't believe I can ever put in words the wonderful truth of the gospel it's so much beyond our human ability to do justice to it we do our best when we still we feel we've come short I pray the Holy Spirit will make up for my human limitations and take a message home to every heart who heard me today and convince them of your love father that they'll be delivered from the deceptions of Satan and from the condemnation that the devil always seeks to bring upon your people have them to welcome the glorious liberty of the sons of God rejoicing in you so that they can love one another more fervently and forgive each other freely yes Lord help us all we pray we are needy people thank you in Jesus name Amen