Acts 17:24,”God that-made the world and all things therein, seeing He is Lord of Heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands. Neither is worshipped with man’s hands, as though He needed anything, seeing He giveth to all life, breath and things.” It is about God the giver that I want to talk about this morning. The world is full of Getters, but God is a Giver. There are so many things that He has given to humanity. He gives us life and He gives us a healthy body and Eternal Life. The World can only give us life measured by years. Peter said, “We are not born of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.” This is the Word which by the Gospel was preached unto you. I am so thankful of this everlasting seed that was planted in our hearts and it has brought forth life. The seed never changes, but the soil is the old carnal nature, and many of those things in me, I know and despise: anger, selfishness and deceit; it is all in the human heart, but as the soil lends itself to the seed, something is produced that was not there before. This that God plants in my life and heart and mind, someday this physical body in which this Eternal Seed has been planted will be discarded, but the Eternal Life will be transplanted, and we will get a resurrected body. This is the gift of God. This life we have is only a physical thing measured by years, but we have been born again by the Word of God which is the incorruptible seed.
When He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts to man. The first gift God ever gave us in this physical life is the gift of the Ministry. The gift of two men or two women who came to your district and into your home. When I see these young men and women and the old men and old women so gladly give their lives to the cause of the Gospel, I am so thankful. Everyone was captive to their own desires and to all they could have had, but He won their hearts and He has given them to you and me. We would not be in this Meeting today except for this Ministry, “Impelled by love they go again to seek the lost and dying men etc.” If that flame ever goes out, they won’t remain in this Ministry. I am so thankful for the One who led us captive to give this Ministry to a dying and needy world.
The next gift is the gift of Faith. We don’t get it in college or in seminary, but from “looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:2) Jesus is the Author and He is also the Finisher. Faith is intangible. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Nothing I possess that is quite so precious as this faith. I am glad the author is Jesus. Two men came to my parents at the turn of the century, but they were not the authors. They were the carriers of this faith. It tells us of some – “unto them was the Gospel preached but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.” Two men I knew all my life; one of them no longer in fellowship, but his children is in the Faith. They heard the same message, but the one did not have faith. I hope we all understand that there is only one faith. There are many beliefs – the Methodist, Presbyterians, and Baptists and so on, but there is only one Faith. I cannot tell you what it has meant to me to come to South Africa and find the same faith exactly as it is at home. By, faith we are saved. “Receiving the end of your faith even the salvation.”
The next gift is Peace. It does not come through education or money. Jesus said, “My peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth it, give I it to you!” How do we get this peace? Something wonderful about peace. In the midst of a storm, we can have peace. There was a little girl on a ship, and the ship was caught in a fierce and violent storm, but she was not afraid. She said, “My Daddy, is the captain of this ship.” Let all hell break loose, we have a Captain of our souls. We read of the fruits of the spirit. If we have the spirit, we all have peace. The spirit is the symbol of a dove, which is easily frightened. Peace will come into our hearts even in the midst of a storm and peril.
The next one is the gift of Grace. There is something wonderful about gracious people. God resists the proud but giveth grace to the humble. There is something wonderful about ability, but ability without humility is about as obnoxious as anything. You are attracted to gracious and humble people. Grace is tangible! Barnabas was a gracious man for it says of him that when he had seen the grace of God, he glad. He did not see it on a canvas or read it in a book, but saw it in the lives of those people. It is wonderful if when people would look at your life and mine and they can see the grace of God. It will accomplish what nothing else will do. We read that the law came by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. There were two old Workers and one said, “We have certain unwritten laws.” The other one said, “Forget it; if you are going to have unwritten laws, you can change them at your disposal.” It is wonderful that in this Ministry, there are no laws written or unwritten. Let us stand fast in the liberty wherein Christ has made us free! Many things I am saved from because I am walking in this Way. Saved people will never walk in any other way. We are walking in this Way because we are saved. I am trying to refrain from using the word unsaved. This grace brought salvation and it is the gift of God. If we are a saved people, we will be a working people and our works will help us to grow in grace. Works are a result of salvation. We read, “Let your speech be always with grace.” Some peoples’ speech is a bit peppery and full of sarcasm. Humility is strength. How easy it is to take correction from gracious lips and a gracious heart. Hebrews 4, “Let us come boldly to the Throne of Grace, etc.” There is a boldness which is brazen and repulsive. But the boldness of God is going to help us and we will not let anybody, brother or family or friends, keep us from the Meetings. Grace is there to help us for the future, and we also have grace for the past.
The next gift is Mercy. No one needs mercy more than I do. Victory with pride is defeat, but defeat with humility is victory. We have to come boldly to the Throne of Grace to find mercy in time of need. Who does not need mercy even for the future? Sailors are never made in the calm seas, but in the storms. It is in the storm that we prove the Captain and He also proves us.
The next gift is the gift of Wisdom. A brother said years ago that any of us can obtain wisdom for it is given by God. When I am in touch with Christ-like men and women, I want to listen. One time, a young brother was discouraged because he thought he was often bypassed. A Sister told him the reason why and said, “We have watched you over the years; you would surround yourself with your own peers and be the centre of the gathering. If you really want to learn, sit in the company of older Brothers and Sisters and hear what they have to say.” Another young Brother said, “I have had 20 years’ experience!” He boasted about it, but he did not know he only had one year of experience in the 20 years! Knowledge swells the head, but wisdom teaches us how to use the knowledge aright. There is an awful danger of having knowledge without wisdom. I grew up in the home where God was served. Once I asked dad to go to a play we were having and he said, “I will not make a fool of myself and go and see my son making a fool of himself.” He did not keep me out of it, but he did not go. Don’t make your children live a Christian life before they are Christians! Don’t teach your children to resent the Workers, but don’t bring things in to appease, all you do is to feed their resentment. I hope all of us will be found repeatedly asking God for wisdom. Christ is of God, made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption! (I Corinthians 1-30) I hope we come often to the seat of wisdom, which is Jesus.
The next gift is the gift of Help. None of us can do it alone. I am so glad that the Lord sent us two and two. I cannot face the Work alone, but if I am not willing for that discipline, there is something wrong. We all need the help that comes from Brothers and Sisters. If we are so conceited that we don’t need the help of one another, then we are wrong and the experiences we have in life will not help us. That is why we go two and two. If we think we are so smart that we don’t need to pray and don’t need help, well, God cannot help us. I hope we all understand that if we cry for help, it will come. If Jesus sees us trying, He will not pass us by but if we feel we don’t need help, He will pass us by.
The next is the gift of Blessing. God said to Abraham. “In blessing, I will bless you!” Blessing comes as a result of obedience. Some people go out seeking blessing, but we don’t need to if we obey the voice of God; blessing will overtake us. We love God because He first loved us. I was never taught to love my parents, but I was a recipient of their love. God is love and His love was wrapped in the person of a young man, Jesus. I have not seen Him, but God wants to re-wrap that gift of love in us; not because of what we hear, but because of what we saw. Preaching has never done it, but love has; we see the evidence of love in others. A Sister said of her companion, “I don’t know what she is saying but I know I want to be like her!” Hate is a strong word; we are found negatively or positively as the case may be. “Riding along as you walked by and seeing you, then I wondered why I so longed to walk with you.” The love of God was seen in boots and not in books; not because of what was heard, but by what was seen! Health can be used as an excuse. I cannot do this and cannot do that. Health can be used as an excuse for doing what we don’t want to do!
Then we have the gift of Salvation. “By grace, ye are saved, etc.” Jesus said, “I will build My Church on this rock.” He did not say My churches, but My Church! There is only one Way in which we can walk and only on Church that Jesus referred to. Don’t confuse believing with understanding! There is an awful lot I don’t understand, but I do believe that His Blood shall take care of my faults. I believe in this Book and I believe in this Way. When I came to Christ believing, He made me His Son. Your children will still be your son or daughter 21 years later.
Truth Archive 