Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.heritagesermons.org/sermons/14024/the-blessings-from-abiding-in-christ-quality-very-good/. Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions. Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt. [0:00] I just announced before I give out the first hymn that God willing we hope to have a six-monthly church meeting on the 13th of January. [0:12] The verse for the singing hymn number 11, the tune is Montgomery 375. [0:23] By mercy, my God is the theme of my song, the joy of my heart, the death, the host of my tongue. [0:36] My free grace alone from first to the last has won my affections and banned myself past. By mercy in Jesus exempts me from hell, which glories I'll sing and its wonders I'll tell. [0:53] It was Jesus my friend when he hung on the tree, who opened the channel of mercy for me. Number 11. [1:22] Number 11. Amen. Amen. [2:25] Amen. Amen. [3:25] Amen. Amen. [4:25] Amen. Amen. [5:25] Amen. Here comes you in mercy, O Jesus, may Championships. [6:10] Great Father of Deadly, I know God wishes by goodness I know. [6:24] Thank you, covenant, and hope, my crucified Son. [6:37] All praise to the Spirit, whose wisdom here I, still thirsty and rotten and preciousness of me. [7:07] We read this afternoon from the Gospel according to John, chapter 15. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husband, and every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. [7:27] And every branch that beareth fruit, he purge it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye have cleaned through the word which I have spoken unto you. [7:41] Abide in me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abides in the vine. No more can ye accept ye abide in me. [7:54] For in the vine ye are the branches. He that abides in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit. [8:05] For without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered. And men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. [8:20] If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit. [8:36] So shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love. [8:47] If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love. Even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. [8:57] These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be put. This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you. [9:14] For I have loved that no man is this, but the man lay down his life with his friends. You know, my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you, henceforth I call you not servants. [9:29] For the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth. For I have called you friends. For all things that I have heard, my Father, I have made known unto you. [9:42] You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit. That your fruit should remain. And whatsoever it is, you ask for the Father in my name. [9:57] He may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another. If the world hate you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. [10:10] If ye were of the world, the world would love its own. And because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you as of the world. Therefore the world hate you. [10:22] Therefore the world hate you. Remember the word that I said unto you. the servant is not greater than his Lord if they have persecuted me they will also persecute you if they have kept my saying they will keep yours also all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake because they know not him that sent me if I had not come and spoken unto them they had not had sin but now they have no clothes for their sin he that hated me hated my father also if I had not done among them the works which none other man did they had not had sin but now have they both seen and hated both me and my father this cometh to pass that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law they hated me that he calls but when the comforter is come and I will send unto you from the father even the spirit of truth which proceeded from the father you shall testify to me and you shall bear witness because you have been with me from the beginning may the Lord bless his word and help us now in prayer almighty and gracious merciful God we will pray that we might approach unto thee through the merits of thy dear son and the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit might and die through prayer in their souls that we might come wrestling [12:21] Lord with their doubts and fears and unbelief and press through these crowds with doubts and fears and unbelief and be favored Lord to grant a touch to touch thy garment to receive those healing blessings that thou alone Lord hence revealed to us we feel so unworthy thy notice of all those mercies we've been singing of but we do pray Lord that we are manifested to be sons and daughters of God by blessed adoption that thou hast chosen us and often times in the furnace of affliction to lift us out of Lord at our state by nature and be brought Lord to feel that union and communion with thee from often mercy soon we continually Lord need either instruct and teach us in the way or those to go we continually Lord need thee to keep alive our own soul and Lord increase our faith and our hope and our love that true love which is more than notion something known found in our soul something that we're persuaded of through the work of the blessed comforter encompass the troubled heart and say to be still we know that I am God [13:56] Lord do bow down on you Lord we are needy sinners and shall be for the end of our lives in our hopes and in thy mercy our hopes Lord through the merits of the Son of God who has laid down his life as friends and you are my friends if you take heed to my commands and that I am glad to be that will keep them Lord it is a dark day and I know it's all about us and all about this sin-stained world and that this sin-stained land Lord that we dwell in and pray Lord that there might yet be a change a hope Lord for the holy of life a blessed coming of the Lord Jesus by the Spirit teach men that they are in need of someone higher than they to make them wise of salvation because Lord they'll know it's the end of the life and have that Lord and love to see them now in this earth that have turned their backs upon me that have managed their own affairs and their events without the help of your mighty God we all have some of us that have learned a painful lesson for you that without me we can do nothing and we will thank you Lord for a hope in our souls that we long for thy grace and long for thy precious promises that we might be a witness of the Spirit that we are truly chosen vessels because Lord it's only thou can choose the way for us and still lead on and bless the gospel of us that it might be a time for revival and building up of our churches in their most holy faith sinners made conscious of their sins and made to feel their need of Jesus and that sin of honey blood that cleanseth from all sin what a mercy of their almighty power and thy precious blood and to save their souls from death, destruction and despair we come to go this afternoon more dependent upon thee to be mad, mad and wisdom and their ears might are unstopped their deaf ears unstopped and develop that life saying seek down seek down seek down deep into that ears with the voice of the gusannacalai through his word which is left on record for our instruction and teaching in the vital that is a garden for who will do we pray meet our cases meet our needs and take us home [17:05] Lord in peace afterwards rejoicing in the day of the Lord and the day because of what we have have handled tasted and felt of the word of life in our soul be our garden our guide Lord dated in our lives we continually need him to watch over us preserve and keep us from harm and to supply every need and be better to us in all our fears and all our justice to earth O Lord have mercy upon us be with us with our effective dispensation help us to wait upon the Lord to strengthen our weak hands confirm our people needs and so to us with a fearful heart fear not my God will come and be in Jesus and Lord we feel there's a need we for thy vengeance to drive out the virus and the cellar from our hearts and Lord to lead and guide us into all truth and grant us that peace of God the past of all knowledge and understanding that peace that thou hast left on record in thy word that we cannot steal it will come up with a fear from the robber out another way but to be given patience to search thee through the scriptures to find rest for our souls from time to time as they will take the word and heal it and restore unto us the joy of salvation who remember that it's guilty of the nation who yet raise us up honest and and in integrity leaders that you acknowledge [18:51] Lord and thee as the God of heaven and earth too with anything too hard to do we also pray Lord in the individual cases amongst us those things Lord the journey is too grateful Lord who can't grant them a little liberty and hope but they'll know it's the way they take and they'll try and bring them forth with God his heart remember our Lord in mercy those in our family members we think Lord of their son-in-law with that anxiety of an operation on Monday Lord may his side be spared and may be sanctified in his heart no doubt it will in his wise heart Lord it is by these things men live and in these things is the life of our soul [19:55] Lord how dependent we are upon thee our God to govern our ways and our affairs and to order our footsteps by thy blood and to realise by these things men live in granting diligence by these things men live and in these things is the life of their spirit no Lord what wait before so many things will live before thee but thou knowest all things will knowest their own needs each one of us have our need but the needy shall not always be forgotten so though Lord we are patient wait for them Lord we do pray that thunder take for us each in our pathways and that we might from time to time look on and clearly see this is the Lord's duty and harvest in our lives so as we lay these matters before we do pray matters for thy blessing upon us and help us [21:02] Lord to once again exhort the precious Christ sin bitten sinners might take a little hope and encouragement that Jesus lives and reigns in his people's hearts and at the set time he will deliver them and make them wise under salvation through the gift of faith and grace in the merits of Jesus hear us in our poor breathing and forgive our sin Lord as we ask you for Christ's sake alone Amen Let us further sing hymn number 92 the tune is Hampstead 340 who is this fair one in distress that travels from the wilderness and pressed with sorrows and with sins on her beloved Lord she leaves this is the spouse of [22:03] Christ our God for what were the treasures of his love and her request and her complaint is but the voice of every saint who has home in name number 92 to. [23:01] . . . [23:31] . . [24:01] . . . . . [24:33] . . . . . [24:55] Amen. Amen. [25:55] Amen. Amen. [26:55] Amen. Amen. [27:55] Much food, for without me ye can do nothing. How vital then that we know that we are truly a branch that has been engrafted under Christ. [28:14] You see, it is to receive the engrafted word, the word of God, dear friends, that is so vital, so necessary for you and me to have applied to our souls. [28:33] That Jesus has taken us as a wild branch, as a worldly character and quickened our soul and made us cry, give me Christ, for else I die. [28:50] Our requests are often for something providential in the early days, rightly so. [29:01] But when the Lord brings us along, in life's journey a little, in these circumstances that confront us, we've been very careless, perhaps in our lives, that we've neglected the throne of race, for God's help. [29:26] And there's some hard lessons to learn for poor sinners, for the following in the footsteps of the flock of God. But blessed be the Lord, that they read the word of God. [29:43] They will know that they need to be quickened and made alive. They're not just a withered branch. But by the grace of God, there's been that life-giving sap. [30:00] Life-giving sap from Jesus only. Life-giving sap from Jesus. The word in our soul and mind and trust has infused that life of the Spirit, whereby we realise that beyond death, there is an eternity. [30:21] And eternity, tremendous sound, as the hymn writer says, to manufacture, the manufacturers doomed to die. [30:34] When we look around in the world today, all the killings and murders, the attitude of man to man and to woman, they think they're going to get away with it. [30:52] Because they can deceive the judges sometimes, with some plausible language, if they come to court. But they'll never deceive God. [31:05] And he said, be not deceived. And though I admire that it is that we're not left to be deceived, or to pretend to what we think we are, when all the while we are paving our way to outer darkness, where there's weeping and gnashing of teeth. [31:30] And these are things hard, perhaps, perhaps, a poor speaker, to bring before you, but it's in the word of God. And if we are true believers, we live according to his word. [31:42] And we realise that the Prince of this world is very powerful and subtle, and will undermine you and me. We are trying to behave and behave constantly. But, oh, how we do need, that blessed spirit of truth, and to abide in us. [32:03] That we might flourish and bear real fruit. We read in Solomon about the little foxes. but they upset the grapes don't they, little foxes and foxes you see dear friends are like the devil's agents aren't they they allure you and they might tempt you and sometimes we fall down before them dear friends and take heed of what the devil says and all the while we need the Lord to govern our ways and our affairs to abide in him to feel that life flowing into your soul and mine live that life of faith by prayer and wrestling prayer not to keep bringing providential matters but to realise there's things higher than this and that is the spirit of truth to come down and reveal the will of God and make to us salvation known this salvation will be all of his free and sovereign grace grace sufficient strength made perfect in weakness for our poor sinners that want to know something of the blessed comfort of the visit of the holy spirit to be my God you and me into all truth and to be clean you have to cry out often unclean but do create in me a clean heart of a renewal renew a right spirit within me what is grace the unmerited favour and love of God to the souls of his redeemed sheep these branches that he's taken up these branches that he purged it that he might bring forth as he tells us here more fruit for he says from me is your fruit there and so what a mercy to feel that union communion with him from off the mercy seat [34:23] Lord do come and commune with me do come and bless thine own word make the hymn book life light and liberty to myself but above that we want the scriptures to be applied with power to our souls clean through the word something real in that you see the word made flesh Jesus really formed in your heart and mind as the hope of glory nothing less than the blessed comforts and hopes of the promises that he applies to your soul and life to feel that union united to Christ the true and the living mind you cannot but receive living sap for your souls it's not an imagination as we said this morning but evidence is and your evidence is in mine to shine and we we hardly say the Lord didst thou not speak to me didst thou not give me an Emmaus road to visit and thou showed me the way of escape from the rock to come and so we bless the Lord we are the branches not one is it his chosen vessels according to his goodness and his mercy and his faithful and you know he will know you of me by that new name that he gives you but all fear my love there is no spot or wrinkle in thee and so we realise we are black but through mercy come me because the [36:18] Lord covers you and me with the mantle of his forgiving love blessed then branches that have been chosen before the world and made that they might feel united to Christ object of your soul's desire Jesus crucified for you and for me and so it is that union it is that contact it is that feeling sense that Jesus is visiting yourself you see he likes the tents of Jacob well but still in Zion loves to dwell blessed inhabitant of Zion washed in the dear redeemer's blood and have that union with the church's living head these branches oh sometimes we are so barren we wonder whether we shall be fruitful again we have hopes in the past we've been fruitful the Lord has made a way for us a crooked thing straight a rush way plain and darkness like the war but the time comes again when we desire that he would confirm ourselves with signs following we need him in this dark day to build up their churches if it be his will and ever this will be the desire of your soul to strengthen my weak hands [37:52] Lord to uphold and maintain me in the truth and increase my faith and my hope and my love toward me that I might have some real living evidences that I have been chosen and should be found a best month upon her well we need this united power of the spirit upon us that he might draw us the cause of man by the veins of his love and become boldly this is not in the fleshly boldness this is the liberty of the spirit he pours the spirit upon your soul and you cry Lord send out the spirit of truth to hold fast the form of same words that thou hast bestowed upon me because we might feel that he dwells in us that he is truly formed in our hearts the hope of glory that he becomes our refuge and our strength that he gives us power when we're ready to find when something opposes us in our daily lives [39:08] Lord how can I ever overcome this trial may I prove that this is the purging of the Lord to make us to bring forth more food yes trials make the promise sweet trials give you like a prayer trials bring us to his feet to lay us low and keep us there but all to be abundantly blessed with that life of the spirit by God's goodness and mercy bestowed upon us and that that we might truly have love that will endeavour us and make us willing in the darmish power to keep his saints you see he said my sheep hear my voice you often hear me quoted my sheep hear my voice and this is our mercy and they follow me you know you might follow the goody things of the world but there are no profit in it your calm mind and mine can be entertained with things in the world but it's not salvation we do pray for grace that we might be purged with this we might be washed and be made whiter than whiter dear friends than we have been before to be made to feel that Jesus is that friend that sticketh closer than the brother well what a mercy this is to be weaned from the world to be made wise of the salvation through the love of [41:06] Christ should have brought in your heart by the holy grace and so we do need that grace to keep his saints we need him to sink down as he said deep in our ears into our very heart that Jesus Christ might be formed in our very heart as the hope of glory and to realise what a refuge this is a refuge for sinners the gospel makes love to stand in the merits of Jesus alone oh do we value the merits of Christ as the good shepherd of the sheep as the good vine dear friends and this sap that flows through the vine into your very newborn soul because that's what you will be as a branch you'll be a newborn soul you'll give him no rest until he establishes you and be a praise in the earth you feel united does that contact does that confirm the evidence that he draw you by the course of man by the band of his love he's stopped you in the back of the ear you began to be one and as you're brought into that pathway of the believer you looked ahead [42:28] Lord do grant that I might have fruit that I might bear real fruit that I might know something what it is to know something of this flourishing and bearing real fruit what are the fruits of the spirit neatness ornaments of neatness and the quiet spirit love neatness humility and grace to cover all the multitude dear friends of your needs my grace sufficient and this is sufficient but I we must have faith Lord Jesus draw me to me draw me by the cords of my by the bands of my love don't mean me to turn back I'm such a weak believer of times as a poor disciple but I do long to know more of thy presence and thy health send that thy nightmare cause me to hear thy voice cause me to seek to follow thee in that narrow way and that grace will give me that comfort and hope that I should yet get the victory of this body of sin and death through the merits of [43:51] Jesus all to know that the Lord is gone you may lose sight of it he may seem to leave you for a while but do remember this he comforts in death and hell for every man woman and child in this covenant the covenant is all things ordered dear friends and sure and your hope will be sure is your surety of getting the victory because he has gone before you he has comforts in death and hell for every chosen vessel and all you bless the Lord and so you've abided him he's your only hope of getting the victory over this body of sin and death he's your only hope in this evil day and all you have to pray Lord keep me unspotted in this present evil book make me willing in the dead [44:53] I'd help even to take up my cross and follow the persuasion persuasion in your soul that you love the Lord he has heard your voice and your suffocation dare you deny your heard his voice he has given you warnings he has given you pricks of conscience until that appointed time you'll fear you've been grieving the spirit and there the appointed time came when he called you by his grace you said his track I see a narrow way his track I see and I'll pursue a narrow way within my view it is a narrow way to get to heaven but you have to pray Lord don't leave me to turn into by park meadow I see the dangers there of Mr [45:56] Eamance Mr Wise Man but I need that heavenly wisdom to observe these things and understand a little of the loving kindness of the Lord to ourselves the exhortation is to abide in me we would just pass a statement like that from the word of God but they exercise their souls to know the word of God show me now thy way lead me to plain path or don't lead me to be a deserter we hear that of those in the services they get so tired about being in the army or whatever so forth that they deserve because they haven't got the courage to continue under that present system that they're under a believer in Christ you know will know what it is to have tribulation he or she might join a church they might be baptised in the name of the Lord [47:09] Jesus Christ and then they turn back why do they because the devil adores them and draws them aside as if there's any light in them they know where they've sinned and they'll be brought to their pen and pray to the Lord oh forgive my shortcomings and failings give me grace give me faith give me tokens of thy love and hold up my gains one of the greatest things I believe for a believer is to plead this hold up my gains in thy parts that my footsteps will not with anxious times anxious concerns with guilty of sinning day by day oh Lord that where my sins are banned that grace might much more ban we need grace to enable us to continue in the fiery dark pathway he said beloved think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange think have but rejoice in as much your part pages of [48:34] Christ's substance so true believers will know what it is to be tried tempted and tried sometimes so tempted they want to give it all up but if you're going to enter this blessed son of God in this vine you never can be broken up because the Lord is determined to save even when you were saved as blind slaves squirted with death he was determined to save you you've had to realise sins only thou can hold me up Lord only thou can bring me out of this dark and far only thee can save me from my sins through the merits merits of thy sin it only blood that blood that cleanses it from all sins oh we bless [49:37] God for that shame love but we want to know more the reality of it real things in our experience of this union with Christ a branch that will not be left to be cast on it also realised makes me to realise that if you abide on anything it's cast forth there's no room dear friends for those that have not been chosen in the furnace of affliction and so your afflictive dispensations wear you down sometimes and you wonder where will the scene end oh do not forget grace do not forget the unmerited mercy of Jesus here bring you dear friends through this wilderness world and yeah you'll be more than a conquer through him that has loved you and washed you from your sins in his precious blood what a saviour this without money without [50:51] Christ oh everyone that thirst it come into the waters the living waters flowing out of the scriptures and you draw water from the wells of salvation that this branch might flourish that it might bring forth real fruit seed diamond harvest for your soul and mine through gospel days and no you cannot get what you truly want but your hope is built upon nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness there I trust the sweetest frame that holy lean on Jesus he's faithful to promise if you are hungry if great enough you will give him no rest until he establishes me a praise in the earth and it's that the Father might be glorified through the [51:53] Son of God bless him and so he gives you grace to continue in those evidences that you have received of his love for having loved his own that were in the world he loves them to the end and he never leave them might come in the beginning of the week again you feel way dark how lonely I fell where is the blessedness I once saw when Jesus revealed himself to me well if he's revealed himself to you ever you come down we need to grow in grace and knowledge of Christ that I might know him the power of his generation the fellowship of his suffering that he may conform to his death crucified of the world yes you be involved in things of the world but you'll pray for grace to hold them with a loose hand you see you don't have refuge in your soul but in the merits of [53:12] Christ and in this vine Jesus is the vine and you're a branch and he would have told you so and will tell you again and again that you're one of these chosen branches didn't pass by and leave you there did he the priest their friends and that the good Samaritan came right right where it was Jesus comes right where you are the most needful spot and place in your life when Jesus himself grew near he looked upon you as a branch and he saw your sad state of nature he reached for his heart he picked you up and he granted you and me into the name of Christ for your treasure is in him naturally his place will make that treasure yours and mine and we bless [54:19] God for his treasure this treasure in the earthen vessel is the love of Christ treasure in the earthen vessel that the excellence of power may be of God and not of us you can't cause yourself to be born of Christ but you'll be born of the water of the spirit Jesus having loved his own that were in the world he loves them to the end so he chimes that and he takes care of you and will take care of you once in him and in forever thus the eternal covenant stands blessed be the Lord and so we realize the opposite if we abide not in him he is cast forth but he picks you up dear friends he picks you up and gathers you into his cause he gathers you into his house and he gathers you and me together to gather round his word and he said thy words were found and [55:32] I had eaten and they were joy rejoicing in my heart this is how he gathers his branches that seem to be perhaps an irresponsible state but they haven't dear friends before he died and he revives them and brings them into his bag and he's united to Christ and that's when you give that life to himself because he saw you in the stranger wandering from the body to save your soul from danger and to pose his precious love or to feel more of this love of Christ which is rich and free fixed on his own eternal and so advise me I am the God the other branches he that advised him me and [56:33] I him the same bring forth much fruit you say well I don't seem to be brought much sufficient unto the die dear friends is the evil they are and he subdues the evil dear friends and causes you to prove mercy to come just in that set time the fiver that he bears his people and visits you for his salvation don't revive him you flourish and bear food you go on your way rejoicing this is the day the Lord hath made we will rejoice and be glad in it I am the God ye are the branches either divide him be on him the same bring forth much food for without me and that's the religion of the making of your name he does you work and hope and that in making your soul to have revealed to you that he has redeemed you from the curse of the [57:49] Lord and Christ becomes your all and inner none of refuge but Jesus Christ and him crucified and you say he's tracked by sin and and he's tracked by sin and I believe and follow in the footstep of the prophet because I'm not ashamed to own him as my Lord and Saviour because he's reached forth and touched my heart and made me to walk in the field of Lord yet sometimes all the days of to realise that Jesus is coming and Jesus is the object of my soul and desire Jesus who should I commit but we receive it therefore may the Lord bless our few remarks give the heart and all the glory and have mercy and forgiveness all of us we ask you for [58:50] Christ's sake alone Amen Let us conclude with hymn 921 the Tunis Cambridge 16 In union with the land of condemnation free the saints of everlasting were and shall forever be in covenant from our of old the sons of gold they were the feeblest man in Jesus fold was blessed in Jesus there one but a man [59:56] From God he neverjoined me anf afin to live a cross his world and shall fall dearrol Amen. [60:53] Amen. Amen. [61:53] Amen. Amen. [62:53] Amen. Amen. Amen. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit rest in the pride of the sea, Amen.