Supply The Word

Never Alone

Sometimes,oh Lord, when I cannot pray,

I sit very still with nothing to say.

But never-the-less, I know you are there;

I whisper your name 'cause I know you care.

You know that I'm troubled with things on my mind,

And you know I've been weak, so often unkind,

But your spirit is with me,

right here in this home;

And I know that I never am walking alone.

Helen Parker

Matthew Chapter 28:1-20

1: In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.

2: And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.

3: His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow:

4: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.

5: And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.

6: He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

7: And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.

8: And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word.

9: And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.

10: Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.

11: Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and shewed unto the chief priests all the things that were done.

12: And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers,

13: Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.

14: And if this come to the governor's ears, we will persuade him, and secure you.

15: So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.

16: Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.

17: And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.

18: And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

19: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Thanks and praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

POOR
Sermon 25 BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
MAT 5:3.

This word poor has more than one meaning. LUK 21:2 says, "And he saw
also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites." This is
dealing
with money. This word poor comes from the base word peno in the Greek.
It means: "Necessitous; to toil for daily subsistence; [a working man];
straightened by circumstances in private." This is not talking of a
public beggar. It is talking of someone in the lower, poor class. This
is someone living at the poverty level, but who had the necessities of
life.

MAT 5:3 says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the
kingdom
of heaven." This word poor comes from the base word ptosso in the
Greek.
This word means: "a beggar; as crying; pauper; strictly denoting
absolute or public begging." These are two completely different words.

We must understand that when we are speaking of spiritual poverty, we
are speaking of the beggar class. When the Lord undresses His people of
all their own righteousness, they learn to see their spiritual
nakedness. They can add nothing. They have nothing to offer. They are
public beggars. All their righteousness becomes filthy rags, and they
have absolutely nothing to offer from self. Spiritually, they are so
totally poverty stricken that they are public beggars.

Those who are declared as blessed in our text become beggars at the
throne of grace.

Jesus opened His mouth with kingly authority, "saying, Blessed are the
poor in spirit...." It is so blessed that He could say that with such
authority. He was saying that those who are empty in themselves are
blessed. Those who have been made to cry as the blind man, saying,
"Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me," LUK 18:38.

They have nothing to offer within themselves because they have been
brought to be public beggars. They have only one plea to make, and that
is the Publican's prayer, who "standing afar off, would not lift up so
much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be
merciful to me a sinner," LUK 18:13.

The Lord makes spiritual beggars out of His people by showing them
their
miserable condition outside of Christ. In JER 31:9-10 we read, "They
shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them...."
The Lord takes away all the dross. He takes away everything that we can
build in ourselves. This is showing the spiritual poverty. These people
have nothing to offer within themselves. "...I will cause them to walk
by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not
stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. Hear
the word of the LORD, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar
off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him,
as
a shepherd doth his flock."

This verse shows how the Lord will work in the heart of His people.
They
will come weeping over their sins, and He will lead them with
supplication begging for mercy.

Verse 11 says, "For the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from
the hand of him that was stronger than he." We are all under the
captivity and power of Satan. We are all under the captivity of sin and
our own hard heart. This verse means that the Lord has redeemed Jacob
with the price of His blood. The Lord brings them to spiritual poverty
to understand their need of redemption.

The Lord's people will weep over the bitterness of their sins against
such redeeming love! ZEC 12:10 says, "And I will pour upon the house of
David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and
of
supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and
they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall
be
in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn."
When the Lord does pour upon His people the Spirit of grace and
supplication, they see their spiritual poverty. Then they understand
that it was their sins that pierced their lovely Lord!

The Lord said, "...they shall look upon me whom they have pierced...."
If you understand your sins, then you never have hard feelings toward
the person who hung Christ on the cross. ISA 49:16 says, "Behold, I
have
graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually
before
me." Then we can see that our sins have engraven those scars in the
palms of His hands. We look upon Him whom we have pierced with our
sins.

Oh, beloved, a faith's view of our Saviour in His bloody sweat, of His
pierced hands and side to redeem us from our sin, works humility in our
hearts. In our spiritual poverty, we have nothing but praise and
thanksgiving to offer.

When we look on Him whom we have pierced, we shall mourn for Him. The
Lord said, "...they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only
son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness
for his firstborn." We see the bitterness of sin. We see that it was
our
sins that pierced Him and hung Him on the cross. When we see the
sinfulness of sin, we become true haters of all sin.

We can see that the only hope we have of standing righteous before our
Heavenly Father is in that blessed Atonement and perfect obedience of
Christ being imputed to us. Then we see we have nothing to offer within
ourselves.

MIC 6:8 says, "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth
the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to
walk humbly with thy God?" This humility is the fruit of Christ's
righteousness being imparted in us. Breaking down the power of
rebellion
and pride is the first step in the work of grace. Amen.

How blessed are they who truly see
Their emptiness and poverty;
Whose souls are humbled in the dust,
And who in Jesus only trust!

Glad they renounce their former pride,
And wholly in His name confide;
Only in Him they make their boast,
Who came to seek and save the lost.
Gadsby selection, 1838

Thanks and praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
During this time of celebration of Christs birth there are many that get depressed, anxious, worried, and in general just plain fanatics towards getting the right gift for everyone. Our society has turned a beautiful and glorious time into a time of worries and sorrows for some, just wanting another Christmas to be behind them.

Retailers are celebrating the profits that their stores are bringing in. Some of them do not care what the reason is as long as they make their money. This is very clear with the controversy over using the words Merry Christmas. For most retailers you could use any phrase you wanted as long as you continued to buy from them. This should tell you something about their reason for the season. Some retailers went to Happy Holidays last year only to go back to Merry Christmas this year. This is what you get when the corporate world steps in to make sure that no one is offended. I say if they are offended I am sorry but this is a Christian holiday recognized by our government. The ones that are offended need to take their frustrations out on someone other than the Christians because this is our holiday. But we do not just allow Christians to participate in it, anyone is welcome and invited to celebrate the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ.

Of course we all want the best for our families and especially our children during Christmas. But is the giving of presents gone to far. I think that it has. It is better to give than receive but to give in order to keep the standards set by our society is wrong. Christmas is a time of joy and peace. When giving a gift it should come from the heart and not always from the pocketbook. The price of a gift does not make it any better than a gift that does not have a price tag on it. Sometimes it is worse. There are some that do not appreciate a gift unless it comes from a particular store or has a specific name on it. I am sorrowed by this myself. Children expect presents on Christmas and that is not a bad thing but so many are just thinking about the presents and not thinking of the birth of our Saviour.

The really warm feeling you get inside is when you give to those less fortunate than yourselves. This comes from the charity and love from the heart that is given to us by Jesus Christ. This is the best feeling one could get by giving gifts. But it is not only specific to December 25th. There are those less fortunate that need our help all year long. Those that are hungry, sick, homeless, devastated by war, and many other circumstances that would require help and aid from some that are able, financially, to give to them. We should keep them in our prayers continually.

Most children, if given the opportunity, would love to give to those less fortunate. We as parents can give them the opportunity and get them involved in this process of giving to the less fortunate. There are many organizations that will take donations for specific items that a certain group may need. One of these was exciting for one of my children last year and he has already asked if we were going to do it again this year. It is in Samaritan's Purse Gift Catalog.
There is a place where you can give $10.00 to supply a poor family with baby chicks.

Samaritan's Purse Gift Catalog has many other things as well. Check them out.

There are many different organizations that do something similar to this. Here are just a few.

Feed The Children

The Voice of the Martyrs

Samaritan's Purse

Gospel For Asia

The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem

Max Missions

So as you can see there are many opportunities to get the whole family involved in giving to the needy or less fortunate. Let the love of Christ in your heart and give. Quit worrying about the small stuff and realize that there is a higher calling that we need to adhere to. Jesus Christ said that if you give to the least of them you also give to Him. Isn't that a great thing?

Make this Christmas very special and start a tradition of giving to others that need it, not only to those that do not.

Matthew 25:31-46
31: When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
32: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34: Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37: Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38: When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39: Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40: And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41: Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44: Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45: Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46: And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Thanks and praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
You know some days are just harder than others. We are to expect that. We are even told that in the Bible. But everyday is still a great day with our Lord and Saviour. Knowing that He is watching over us. We will still have our share of trials and tribulations. I think God is using them to bring us closer to Him. Romans 8:38: For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39: Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We here in America are very blessed. But there are still some in America that go hungry. During this Christmas please stand up and give to some organization that is helping with this problem. Not only in America but in other countries also. I have some suggestions:

Feed The Children

The Voice of the Martyrs

Samaritan's Purse

Gospel For Asia

It does not have to be but $5 or $10 dollars. But if you are blessed and able to do more, do more. Thats all. Let us all show our charity this year. For that Charity is above all. This being the love of Jesus Christ in our hearts willing to spread that love with unfettered observance to Gods almighty power. That is what Charity is refrering to. Charity is Love.

1 Corinthians 13:1-13
1: Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2: And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
3: And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
4: Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5: Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6: Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7: Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8: Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
9: For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
10: But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
11: When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
12: For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
13: And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.