Transcript: Beware False Prophets and Lying Visions in Christianity

There is something. which is so significant and very precious for every true believer, and that is his or her personal perception and experience of the reality of the oneness, or said in another way, fellowship with Jesus Christ. And there is no other reason for the creation of mankind other than fellowship with their maker, their creator who is Jesus Christ and our heavenly father through the leading of precious Holy Spirit who is given to each of us as a gift from heaven. Jesus who was the word created all things for his pleasure. I said Jesus who was the word created all things for his pleasure. And we were created to bring pleasure to God and his son through our fellowship, through our communion with them on a very real, personal and intimate level. And to know someone intimately means that you have direct or close communion with them. It is like family to whom you're familiar with or close to, opposed to an acquaintance whom you know little of, but you do recognize them. And he, Jesus, who is the word of God, who spoke all things into existence for his purpose and his pleasure, He spoke it all into existence, everything, total everything. The purpose of God in the creation of mankind through his son, Jesus Christ, was to produce in man holiness and purity like that, kindred like that, of God himself. And he desires to communicate with men and women, children too, who love him for who he is. He desires our fellowship, our communication with him for who he is. Can you understand that God longs to, desires to talk with you? That God desires to communicate with you personally? Personally. Personally. God wants to position you into a place where you will hear his voice and do his will for his purposes and his good pleasure. It's desire. And he knows you will be only happy in this place. You'll be truly happy in this place. God Almighty wants you to know him on a very personal level and have a one-on-one conversation with him. This is God's heart. And when you learn that God of all creation desires to have me, me spend time with him, to talk with him, to commune with him personally, you begin to lay aside your time for him. And you begin to know that God Almighty delights himself in me. Me, a vessel of clay Clay is dirt The dust of the ground And he, God, desires to delight himself in me, a created being Me, who seems so very insignificant When there are so many other people in the world God wants me to communicate with himself And he desires to show me the secret things that he holds in store in his heart Just for me to know I put it on a me basis so you will grab that for yourself And it will be living for you Real for you look with me please in Ephesians 1.9 Ephesians 1.9 God desires to communicate with his beloved beloved vessels of clay Ephesians 1.9 making known to us the mystery, the secrets of his will, of his plan, of his purpose. And it is this, in accordance with his good pleasure, his merciful intention which he had previously purposed and set forth in him, he planned, verse 10, he planned for the maturity of the times and the climax of the ages to unify all things and head them up and consummate them in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth. Verse 11, and moreover, because of what Christ has done, we have become gifts to God that he delights in. For as part of God's sovereign plan, we were chosen from the beginning to be his. And all things happen just as he decided long ago. Verse 12, God's purpose in this was that we should praise God and give him glory for doing these mighty things for us who were the first to trust in Christ. Precious gifts of God. God calls us his precious gifts, his treasures in these vessels of clay. Our great God, the scripture shows, has chosen you from the very beginning, chosen me from the very beginning to be a part of his plan of salvation. And Philippians 2.12. Philippians 2.12. Appropriate this word for yourselves today. Appropriate it today. and open your hearts in a real way to receive the manna from heaven, God's word for your own. Philippians 2.12 Therefore, my dear ones, as you have always obeyed my suggestions, so now not only with this enthusiasm you would show in my presence, but more, much more, because I am absent, work out, cultivate, carry out the goal, and fully complete your own salvation with reverence and awe and trembling, self-distrust with serious caution, tenderness of conscience, watchfulness against temptation, timidly shrinking from whatever might offend God and discredit the name of Christ. Verse 13, not in your own strength, for it is God who is all the while effectively at work in you, energizing and creating in you the power and the desire, both the will and to work for his good pleasure and satisfaction and delight. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. God had a plan for you and for me and all others who would choose his son before the creation of all things. And he had a plan for you before Jesus went to the cross of Calvary to take your sin and my sin. And our sickness and wretchedness and our vileness and all of our self-righteousness. He took it upon himself and in his body. There was a plan for all who would choose life, which is Jesus Christ, and not eternal death, which comes through the rejection of Christ himself. We're given insight here in this word as a clue in the scripture that we've just read. Insight, I said. Apostle Paul is speaking to the people in his day and his words have long been echoing for generations since saying, as you have always obeyed. Look at it again. Ephesians 2.12. Therefore, my dear ones, as you've always obeyed. Philippians 2.12. Therefore, my dear ones, as you've always obeyed. So now not only with the enthusiasm that you would show in my presence, but much more because I'm absent. Work out. Cultivate. In other words, their overseer wasn't there. And so he's expecting just as they would show enthusiasm and zeal for the things of God and their own lives and the lives of those around them. He's saying, even in my absence, much more so show this enthusiasm when I am not present with you. Cultivate, carry out the goal, and fully complete your own salvation. How? With reverence and awe and trembling. That means self-distrust, not trusting in yourself and your own carnal assent. But with serious caution and tenderness of conscience as the Holy Spirit knocks upon the door of our hearts to be tender to the knock of the Spirit that says, Uh-uh, keep that door closed. No, don't go there. You can't do that anymore. He's speaking to our hearts. tenderness of conscience, watchfulness against temptation, timidly shrinking back from whatever might offend God and discredit the name of Christ. Thirteen, not in your own strength. Not in your own strength you will do these things, for it is God who is all the while effectively at work in you, energizing you creating in you power and desire both to will and to work for his good. In other words to will, to submit to his will, to desire to do his will, to submit your own will for his good his pleasure and satisfaction and delight. The clue or the key in this scripture is the first requirement in God's book. And it's always the same for his holy people and its obedience. Submitting our wills to his will, doing his will, delighting in his will, delighting him. Paul said, as you've always obeyed. So in order to know God intimately, this is God's first requirement. Obedience requires submission of our wills to his will. Let me say it again. Obedience requires submission of our will to God's will. Your submission to do God's will is not by your own efforts, your own strength, or your own power. Remember, verse 13 says, not in your own strength. For it is God who is all the while effectively at work in you, energizing and creating in you the power. God's giving you the power and the desire to do his will. To do his good pleasure. To delight him. And when you have the tender desire to submit your will to the will of our Lord, you will experience the greatness and the power of God working in you. You will, I said, experience the power and the greatness of God working in you. You see, to cooperate with him in an obedience which comes out of your heart because of your reverence of God and your holy fear and your love for him shows us here in Philippians 12. Let's read it so you catch it. Verse 12. Therefore, my dear ones, as you have always obeyed, as you've always submitted. Now do so not only with enthusiasm that you would show in my presence, but much more when I'm absent. Now work out, cultivate, carry out the goal, and fully complete your own salvation with reverence and awe and trembling. Holy fear Holy fear Will be your necklace And pride And rebellion The necklace which we all have worn Before we truly have submitted To our Lord Will be broken Rebellion Pride has been our necklace It's bound us and yoked us and we couldn't move forward. This means now that you truly understand is totally dependent. Your salvation is totally dependent upon the work of Jesus Christ in your life. And this daily fellowship is more important to you than anything else you could ever do or even think to do. This means you are experiencing the wisdom and the power of God working within your members, energizing you with his mighty power, bringing life within your body, soul, and your spirit. You see, to the world, this is foolish. What I speak to you right now, to the world, is foolish. You are considered weak and ignorant and base and gross in the world's eyes. And you bring offense to those who are perishing. You are an offense. You are a stumbling block to those who are perishing. 1 Corinthians 1.18. 1 Corinthians 1.18, please. For the story and the message of the cross is sheer absurdity and folly to those who are perishing and on their way to perdition. But to us who are being saved, it is the manifestation of the power of God. Verse 19. For it is written, I will baffle and render useless and destroy the learning of the learned and the philosophy of the philosophers and the cleverness of the clever and the discernment of the discerning. And I will frustrate and nullify them and bring them to nothing. I'll bring them to nothing. Verse 20. Where is the wise man? The philosopher Where is the scribe, the scholar Where is the investigator The debater The logic one Of this present time and age Has not God shown up the nonsense and the folly Of this world wisdom Verse 21 for when the world with all of its earthly wisdom failed to perceive and to recognize and know God by means of its own philosophy God in his wisdom was pleased through the foolishness of the preaching of salvation procured by Christ to be had through him to save those who believed, who clung to and trusted in and relied upon him. Verse 22, for while the Jews demandingly ask for signs and miracles, and the Greeks pursue philosophy and wisdom. Verse 23, we preach Christ, the Messiah, crucified, preaching which to the Jews is a scandal and an offensive stumbling block that springs a snare or a trap. And to the Gentiles, it's absurd and utterly unphilosophical nonsense. Verse 24, but to those who are called, whether Greek, Jew, Gentile, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. Verse 25, this is because the foolish thing that has been its source in God is wiser than men. And the weak thing that springs from God is stronger than man. For simply consider your own call, brethren. Verse 26. Not many of you were considered to be wise according to human estimates and standards. And not many influential and powerful. And not many of high and noble birth. No, for God selected, deliberately chose what was in the world is foolish and put the wise to shame and what the world calls weak to put the strong to shame that are. And God also selected, deliberately chose what in the world is lowborn and insignificant and branded and treated with contempt. Even the things that are nothing he might depose and bring to nothing the things so that no mortal should have pretense for glorying and boasting in the presence of God. Verse 30, but it is from him that you have received life in Christ, whom God made our wisdom from God, revealed to us a knowledge of the divine plan of salvation previously hidden, manifesting itself as our righteousness, thus making us upright and putting us in right standing with God in our consecration, making us pure and holy, and our redemption providing our ransom from eternal penalty for sin. Verse 31, for then as it is written, let him who boasts and proudly rejoices and glories, boast and proudly rejoice in glory in the Lord. Verse 21, Paul says here again, to and trusted in and relied on him. That's throughout their whole walk. Not once, but throughout their whole walk. You see, Paul is showing that men had tried to know about God and about his wisdom. They only cared to know about, but not for the right reasons. and the right reasons is to truly know him personally for who he is, as wisdom himself, and to truly know his love and his presence, which is different than wanting to know about him. And because these people have a wrong motive to know about him, God sees to it every time that their plans and their reasons would fail. God sees to it. We read that. The very wisdom of God is revealed in the universe, in man, and in history. But Paul is saying in these scriptures that it is revealed, but it is hidden. Many a wise man or woman have endeavored to build a kingdom unto themselves Or a philosophy of the universe And construct a way to reach God But by somehow touching his wisdom As it's built on the foundation Or supported by a universal order of what they see In other words, their wisdom is based on what they see and what they know by that which surrounds them. They endeavor to master the laws of nature. And let's be honest, the scientists have been truly successful in their attempts to obtain knowledge of creation. But this doesn't mean that they know God. This is called science. Philosophy attempts to discover what lies behind and above all laws. It asks when and where the universe came from. And it's not satisfied with learning its present structure or history because philosophy attempts to reduce all things to unity. philosophy attempts to determine the relationship of man to all things around him to verify the certainty of the real value of human knowledge and to discover the truth about man's purpose or destiny generation after generation has produced many many many many books books of how to know the laws of the universe or how to touch and know the secrets of the universe or how to know God and his secret wisdoms. And these, as I said earlier, have always failed. God saw to it. They always, they continued to fail in their head knowledge of God and of his universe because he sees to it that they fail. because he, God, can only be reached one way. He can only be reached one way. And it's not on a how-to program with ten steps or a thesis built on laborical studies of Scripture interlaced with human knowledge. this one way only is through God's own Son, Jesus Christ who is the door, the way to the Father John 10, 7 John 10, 7 Jesus said it again and I assure you, most solemnly he said most solemnly He says, I tell you that I myself am the door for the sheep. Verse 8, and all others who came as such before me are thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to and obey them. Verse 9, I am the door. And anyone who enters in through me will be saved and live. And will come in and he will go out freely and find pasture. Jesus is the only way to the heart of the Father. And Jesus is the only way to know the secrets of what the Father has in store for those who love him. 1 Corinthians 2.9 1 Corinthians 2.9 But on the contrary as the scripture says what eye has not seen and ear has not heard and has not entered into the hearts of man all that God has prepared is made ready and keeps for those who love him who hold him in affectionate reverence prompting, promptly obeying him and gratefully recognizing the benefits that he has bestowed. Verse 10, and yet to us, God has unveiled and revealed them by and through his spirit. For the Holy Spirit searches diligently, exploring and examining everything, even sounding the profound and bottomless things of God, the divine counsels and the hidden things and beyond man's scrutiny. Sure, by his spirit, by his spirit. In verse 11, for what person perceives, knows and understands what passes through a man's thoughts except the man's own spirit within him, just so no one discerns, comes to to know and comprehends the thoughts of God except through the Spirit of God. Verse 12. Now we have not received the Spirit that belongs to the world, but the Holy Spirit who is from God, given to us, that we might realize and comprehend and appreciate the gifts, the divine favor and blessing so freely and lavishly bestowed on us by God. Paul declared that the great adventure of human wisdom had failed to touch God. He declared it in his wisdom and only remained unknown to those who purported to be wise in their own sight. He declared that the human wisdom had failed to touch God in his wisdom. But it only remained unknown for those, unknown for those who purported to know. See, in other words, human wisdom opposes God's wisdom. Human wisdom is offensive when it comes to trying to touch God with our carnal knowledge and make him into our image. People will only exhaust themselves in their attempts to know God in their human strength. And Paul makes it clear in 1 Corinthians 1.21 again. he makes it so clear in saying that for when the world with all of its earthly wisdom had failed to perceive and recognize and know God by means of its own philosophy God in his wisdom was pleased through the foolishness of preaching salvation procured by Christ to be had through him to save those who believed. who continued to hold on cleave to be united to him, to rely on him. So then again, I reiterate for emphasis that all human reasoning and philosophies which attempt to obtain knowledge of God's creation and his universe or know his ways for wrong reasons truly opposes the wisdom and the love of God. It truly opposes it. It violently opposes the wisdom of God because of reason. Because of reason. Our mental ascent will never, never, never, never touch the wisdom of God. And the only way to know the true wisdom, love, and presence of God will come only from our individual and personal humble submission to the will of God. And this is laid out clearly in the book of life called the Bible for us. It is wise for us to learn the obedience of submission early in our Christian walk. we have no true wisdom of ourselves apart from God. And this comes as a result of Christ's sacrifice on the cross with the spilling of his precious blood which now makes it possible for every true believer to have direct communication and fellowship with God our Heavenly Father through his precious spirit which he gives to us. Knowing God intimately Will result in our consecration That is our setting aside time To truly know the Lord intimately And here And only here Is where true wisdom is found Here Is where true wisdom is found and it is in this place where you will learn and you will be taught directly from the mouth of God himself. It is here where you learn of the true delight of the Lord in his creation that is you. It is here that you learn that the Lord truly delights in you. but I am sorry to say at this point that there are many many who are not interested in God at all or they're too busy or find this absurd and not possible for this day and this time when I say that God longs to hear you talk to him and when you talk to him he will certainly answer you You will hear his voice when he speaks to you. This is confirmed in his word as it is written, my sheep hear my voice. It is confirmed. My sheep hear my voice. And these people will scoff at the words that I have just spoken to you and the fact that God cares to delight in them and know them and spend time with them. They will scoff at those words. They will say, you can't possibly know this God, or come on, you really talk to God. That's crazy. See, they have it firmly fixed in their brain that God is miles and miles away, and he's not within reach for them or anyone else. But let's face it. We all who know differently today, we're probably in that same place at the beginning of our relationship with Christ too. Look with me in Proverbs 8, please. Proverbs 8, verse 1. Can't you hear the voice of wisdom? She's standing at the city gates and at every fork in the road and at the door of every house. Listen to what she says. Listen, men. She calls. How foolish and naive you are. Let me give you understanding, oh foolish ones, and let me show you common sense. Listen to me, for I have important information for you. Everything I say is right and true For I hate lies and every kind of deception Verse 8 My advice is wholesome and good And there is nothing evil in it Verse 9 My words are plain and clear to anyone with half a mind If it is only open My instruction is far more valuable than gold or silver Verse 11 for the value of wisdom is far above rubies and nothing can be compared with it Wisdom is good judgment and wisdom and good judgment live together For wisdom knows where to discover knowledge and understanding If anyone respects and fears God he will hate evil For wisdom hates pride, arrogance, corruption, and deceit of every kind. Fourteen, I, wisdom, give good advice and common sense because of my strength. Kings reign in power and rulers make just laws. And I love all who love me. And those who search for me shall surely find me. Unending riches, honor, justice and righteousness are mine to distribute. Verse 19. And my gifts are better than the purest gold or sterling silver. And my paths are those of justice and right. Verse 21, those who love and follow me are indeed wealthy. I fill their treasuries. Verse 22, the Lord formed me in the beginning before I created anything. Verse 23, from ages past, I am. I existed before the earth began. I lived before the oceans were created, before the springs bubbled forth their waters into the earth, before the mountains and the hills were made. Yes, I was born before God made the earth and the fields and the first handfuls of soil. Verse 27. And I was there when he established the heavens and formed the great springs in the depths of the oceans. I was there when he set limits of the sea and gave them his instruction not to spread beyond their boundaries. I was there when he made the blueprint for the earth and the oceans. I was the craftsman at his side. I was his constant delight, rejoicing always in his presence. 31. Oh, how happy I was with what he created in his wide world and all of his family of mankind. And so, young men, listen to me, for how happy are those who follow my instructions. Verse 33. Listen to my counsel. Oh, don't refuse it and be wise. Happy is the man who is so anxious to be with me that he watches for me daily at my gates or waits for me outside my home. For whoever finds me finds life and wins approval from the Lord. But for the one who misses me has injured himself irreparably. Those who refuse me show that they love death. That was out of the Living Bible Translation. You see, there's nothing more important, dear church, to the true believer of Jesus Christ than this daily conversation and fellowship in the presence of God himself. Jesus is those who wait at the door for me. He will be there. He will be there. See, this is where you will truly learn that it is called reverence for the Lord. And this is wisdom at work in your life. This is wisdom to open your heart to conversation and fellowship. And the presence of God is the greatest wisdom you could ever hope to appropriate, to obtain or lay hold of. Verse 33 again. Listen to my counsel Oh don't refuse it And be wise Happy is the man Who is so anxious to be with me That he watches for me daily At my gates Or waits for me outside my home Whoever finds me Finds life and wins approval Or favor from the Lord It is in this place That our Lord teaches us in the wisdom of his ways. And we will learn to have true reverence and fear and awe of who he is in this place when we make time for him, when we answer the knock upon our doors. He literally sometimes knocks for us to come out of our sleep and to enter into divine fellowship. He's calling us. He wants to delight in us. Amen. He desires to delight himself in us. In Psalms 51.5. Psalms 51.5 says, Behold, I was brought forth in a state of iniquity. My mother was sinful who conceived me, and I too am sinful. Verse 6. Behold, you desire truth in the inner being. Make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart. He's saying in the very depth of my heart, make me to know wisdom. See the desire David the king has for his God. It's a deep desire. God desires in us as well. Oh God, purify me, verse 7, with hyssop so I shall be clean ceremonially. Wash me and I shall in reality be whiter than snow. See the divine touch called favor or grace of the Holy Spirit to know him Comes to desire to know his ways The touch of favor of grace In Psalms 111 verse 10 Psalms 111 verse 10 Reverence for the Lord Is the foundation of true wisdom Ah, I need to say it again. Reverence for the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom. The rewards of wisdom come to all who obey Him. Hallelujah. The rewards of wisdom come to all who obey Him. All who submit to Him. All who obey. The rewards of wisdom will come to them. Proverbs 2.8 Proverbs 2.8 My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom, applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding and if you look for it as silver and search for it as a hidden treasure then verse 5 says then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God for the Lord gives wisdom and from his mouth from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. And he holds victory in store for the upright. He is a shield to those whose walk is blameless. Verse 8, For he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. In this place, when you cry out for understanding and search for it. That means you're active participant daily at his door. Lord, I'm hungry. From his mouth, the scripture says in verse 6, the Lord gives wisdom and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. And he holds victory in store for the upright, those who are upright. And a shield, a protection divine protection that the darts of the enemy which come and fly by day by night that he will surround and he will protect to ensure that you will not be prevented from entering into that place with him from the very mouth of God he will teach you in this place of fellowship amidst his presence and he will show you those things which are not desirable to him and he will encourage you and help you to overcome these sins. He didn't say, be perfect, when he called you. He didn't call you because you were perfect. He knew that we were poor, wretched, and naked and we needed his presence to clothe us. and he begins to make your spirit very tender to his spirit and he begins to change your heart of stone to a heart of flesh. And this is called the pursuit of your creator, your savior, your king and the lover of your soul. And now at this point in the message, I must give you keys of encouragement and exhortation in being watchful in order that at each level of your growth that you stay in this peaceful place of wisdom's gates, enjoying his presence, growing in his wisdom, in climbing the mountain of love, and overcoming your sins and shortcomings. I must tell you There is a great battle At this point And the battle The great battle Is founding God's word And it is called The battle of the little foxes The little foxes Yes Look please In Song of Songs 2-3 You see this means the great adversary will be at work in this place to discourage you all along the way. And if you're not aware of this, you will grow weary and lack understanding to keep going. And this key, as I said, is found in Song of Songs describing the great battle. And we'll start in verse 3 because I'd like to lead up To this picture. It's so vivid. Song. Two, three. Like an apple tree among the tree of the woods, so is my beloved. My beloved shepherd among the sons, cried the girl. And under his shadow I delight to sit. And his fruit was sweet to my taste. And he brought me to the banqueting table. And his banner over me was love, for love waved as a protecting and comforting banner over my head when I was near him. Verse 5, sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples, for I am sick with love. I can feel his left hand under my head and his right hand embraces me. Verse 7, he said, I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the hinds of the field, which are free to follow their own instincts, that you not try to stir up or awaken my love until it pleases. Verse 8, vividly she pictured it. The voice of my beloved shepherd. Behold, he comes leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young heart Behold, he stands behind the wall of our house And he looks in through the window And he glances through the lattice My beloved speaks and says to me Rise up, my love, my fair one Come away with me For behold, the winter is past And the rain is gone and over Verse 12 And the flowers appear on the earth The time of singing of the birds has come, and the voice of the turtle doves is heard in our land. Verse 13, And the fig tree puts forth and ripens her green figs, and the vines are in blossom and give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away with me. Verse 14, So I went with him, and when we were climbing the rocky steps up the hillside, My beloved shepherd said to me, oh, my dove, while you are here in the seclusion of the clefts in the solid rock, in the shelter of the secret place of the clefts, let me see your face. Let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely. Verse 15 Oh my heart was touched And I reverently sang back And fervently sang back to him my desire Take away Take for us the foxes The foxes that spoil the vineyards of our love For our vineyards are in blossom 16 She said distinctively My beloved is mine And I am his And he pastures his flocks among the lilies And longingly in addressing her absent shepherd in verse 17 She cried Until the day breaks And the shadows flee away Return hastily, oh my beloved And be like a gazelle or a young heart As you cover the mountains Which separate us You see, what we have just read is the true reality of what happens in the lives of those who desire truly, honestly, and sincerely to know God. The daughters of Jerusalem represent the majority of those who make up the church. and the lover who is Christ is pursuing those who will come out of their bi-weekly Sunday mentalities of duty and desire to know him in a deep and reverent way. And I am saying that we must, of course, gather together. I'm not negating that. I'm saying we must gather together and fellowship together. But it doesn't stop here. And this is what the scripture is showing us in Song of Songs that we have just read. The girl is pursuing her lover, who is Christ, in a very present, real, and active way. And as she pursues him, he draws her more and more unto himself. Look at verse 14. I went with him and when we were climbing the rocky steps up the hillside my beloved shepherd said to me oh my dove while you are here in the seclusion of the cliff of the solid rocks in the shelter of the secret place of the cliff let me see your face let me see your heart and let me hear your voice For your voice is sweet and your face is so lovely. And these are wonderful moments of the sweet fellowship with our Lord. Sweet moments of fellowship. They don't come by just sitting in a pew doing our duty. It is in this secret place of quiet solitude with him. The next point of this message Which I pray you catch By the help of precious Holy Spirit Is found in verse 15 My heart was touched And I fervently sang to him my desire Take for us the foxes The little foxes that spoil the vineyard Of our love And our vineyards that are in bloom You see, the girl who represents the bride of Christ in the making couldn't help herself in this place of solitude with the lover of her soul. And she sat in the midst of his presence, which is the glory of God, his manifested presence, which is the weight of his glory. How be it to whatever measure she couldn't help but start singing back to him the love that she was experiencing in the very depths of her souls in this time. And notice though right after she was experiencing this great love and singing to him her experience love for her Lord in this sweet communion she says in verse 15 Take for us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards of our love, for our vineyards are in bloom. She sang, Oh, my Lord, Oh, my Savior, Oh, lover of my soul, take these sins from me, which stand between us and spoil the consummation of completeness and oneness. Oh, Lord, these little foxes want to steal the fruit of this moment I'm experiencing with you and every future moment and every future moment and times I might share in this sweet way with you. Oh, Lord, take these impure thoughts, these thoughts that hit me in this time, and the wretched sins which surface up from the untamed land of my soul. You see, it's in this beautiful moment she cries this out, in this tender time. My heart was touched And I fervently sang to him my desire Oh, take these foxes She was in his presence She was growing in his presence Enjoying the moment of fellowship And the future fruit that was described in verse 15 Spoil the vineyards of our love for our vineyards are in bloom. And the fruit that was going to come out of this time, she's, take for us, she's saying, take for my soul and my spirit, she's saying, take for us, my spirit and my soul. All those things, those foxes, those sins which spoil the beautiful garden and the fruit of fellowship, I'm now experiencing. You see, it is our souls which need deliverance. Deliverance from our past lives and experiences. And it is by our spirit in which we communicate with God, since God is spirit. In verse 14, she says, So I went with him. And when we were climbing the rocky steps up the hillside, my beloved shepherd said to me, Oh, my dove, while you are here in the seclusion of the cliffs of the solid rock, in the sheltered and secret place of the cliff, let me see your face. Let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely. You see, the rocky steps are the levels and the tough times. And yet these things are the very ways in which we will be driven deeper and deeper into the arms of our lover, Jesus Christ. The young maiden who is the bride in the making is the one who pursues her Lord with an unyielding and undying love all the days of her life. And these, dear church, will be the ones who make up the bride of Christ. They have grown to love him for who he is. What he did for them upon the cross. And what he has also in store for them one day. Eye has not seen nor ear heard. What he has in store for them who love him. You see, a little thorn may cause us such suffering. An apostle Paul spoke in scripture that I was given a thorn in the side, and I cried out to the Lord three times and asked him to remove this thorn. But he spoke to me and he said, My grace is sufficient for thee. My grace upon you, my favor upon you is sufficient. and Paul said that he knew the Lord had shown him that that suffering that he would have to experience all the days of his life would certainly keep him very close to the Lord because God had shown him many and great things so the little fox has spoiled the vines and so do mischief or foolishness that we do spoil the sweet fruit that our Lord wishes to produce in our hearts. And these little sins have burrowed their ways into our souls and makes it so full of what is hateful to our Lord Jesus Christ that he won't linger or stay or hold any sweet fellowship or communion with us. You see, great and terrible sins can be forgiven. And they are forgiven when they have had true repentance. When there's been true repentance and there's fruit, producing fruit in keeping with that repentance. But dear church, I say that little sins can make us very, very miserable. And Jesus will not walk or abide or hold sweet fellowship with his people unless they drive out every known sin with the help of Holy Spirit given to them. And this is submission. This is submission. Submit to God. Resist the devil and he'll flee from you. In John 15, 7, Jesus said, If you abide in me and my words abide in you, they live in you, you will ask what you will and it will be done for you. Verse 8, Herein my Father is glorified that you bear much fruit, so shall you be my disciples. And as the fathers love me, so I have loved you. Continue in my love. And if you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you that my joy might remain in you and that your joy might be full. You see, some Christians seldom enjoy the Savior's sweet presence. I would say many Christians do not experience the sweet presence of the Lord. Oh, my dove, while you're here, the scripture in songs that we just read, says, oh, while you are here, in the seclusion of the cleft of the rocks, in the sheltered and the secret place of the cliffs. Let me see your face. Bear your heart to me. Let me see. I already know it there, but I want you to express to me. Let me hear your voice. Ah, for your voice is sweet and your face is lovely. I believe she reflects him. she's starting to shine for that which is in her. But why is it that some never experience this? They seldom enjoy the sweet presence of the Lord. Why is it? Well, it's called separation. And it's because we are separated from our Heavenly Father. It is because we have other preferences first and then out of duty we might give him a little time, throw him a little kiss and give him a little hand clap. But God will not be mocked. knowing him and his precious son through the power of the Holy Spirit will be very dry for those with this kind of Christian mentality. It will be like a desert. The heavens will be as brass over us and we will continue to experience separation from God. And if you claim to be a child of God how can you be satisfied to continue on in your own ways, your old dry ways, and go on without seeing his face and knowing what's on his heart? How can the bride of Christ be satisfied without her spouse's company and presence? How could she be satisfied? And what a sad state for us to deceive ourselves and think all there is in our relationship with our beloved spouse is just the simple duty of going to church and doing our duty maybe twice a week. It will be dry. Very, very dry. Why do we not experience the presence of God? And what was the lover in this verse of Song of Songs crying out? Oh, Lord, she cried, take the foxes, which represent sin. Take them far away from my spirit and my soul. Let nothing interfere with what I'm presently experiencing in this moment or any future moment with you. See, the foxes steal the fruit. The foxes love grapes. They love the fruit. And they come to steal. And God, our Father, called us all to be a part of his church and the bride for his son, which through his Holy Spirit, who is feverishly working on the earth today, feverishly working in the hearts of those who care to know Jesus in a very real and intimate way in their lifetime. You see, he will hide his face from the walls of our sin. And we read where he didn't come in, in the scripture, in Song of Songs, but he looked through the lattice, through the wall. And he didn't come in because he'll hide his face from the wall of our sin. And he will make our sins very apparent to us through the spirit which is at work in our members. And if you desire to live with Christ in this intimate and sweet fellowship and walk closely with him, Take heed, take notice, as it's made apparent to you these little sins or foxes which spoil the vine, which are to produce tender grapes. The vines are to produce tender grapes. And this fruit is representative of the fruit of his spirit. And Jesus is inviting you in your lifetime, that is right now, to walk closely with him. And to experience his wisdom, his love, and his sweet, sweet presence. He's calling you. He's calling me up higher. Higher on the mountain. Dear church, dear precious church. Jesus Christ has given you help. You have not been left helpless But you and I And all others Are required To submit our wills to God To resist the devil Who is the old fox himself And he will flee from us Jesus Will do for you As Samson did Against the enemy in his day Jesus will take the little foxes Which are sins in your lives And he'll drive them out And send them a running on their way Just like Samson did in the account Allow the spirit of the Lord To go hunting in the depths of your soul As you willingly work with him To drive out those little foxes Which steal the fruit that Jesus, the lover of your soul, desires to plant in your vineyard. This fruit is eternal and will grow more beautiful as it matures in love for him. We, who are mere vessels of clay, made in the very image and the likeness of God himself, for his own purposes and pleasure, have the very opportunity and the privilege of growing in love with the one whom he sent to die for us so we would learn to grow up in him as the branch clings to the vine, would produce good fruit, mature fruit, and to look like the one whom we're vitally connected to and act like the one that we are being clothed with in obedience to wisdom himself who is Jesus Christ. Jesus desires to drive out every fox which is sin and draw us closer to himself. And he desires every true Christian to obey every word of God and come into right and divine fellowship with his father. And he desires to lead those who will go beyond the duty of relationship mentality into an exciting adventure with himself, which is a lifelong sweet fellowship even though the times may be tough in the going. He desires to lead you upward and take your hand and show you himself which is his love and his heart and his intent in the purpose for your life. Take his word serious and live in his word and he will lead you as a part of the bride into the secret place of his dwelling, which is in the cleft of the rocks and to himself, and you will truly hear his voice and see his face and dwell in his presence. This will be your desire. This will be your life. You delight yourself in him as he delights himself in you. divine and personal communion and fellowship with the lover of your soul, who is Christ himself, who is wisdom himself. Songs 214. So I went with him, and when we were climbing the rocky steps up the hillside, My beloved shepherd said to me Oh my love Oh my dove While you are here In the seclusion of the clefts of the rock And the shelters of the secret place of the cliff Let me see your face Let me hear your voice For your voice is sweet And your face is lovely My heart was touched And I fervently sang to him my desire Take for us the foxes and the little foxes that spoiled the vineyard of our love. For our vineyards are in blossom. She said distinctly in verse 16, My beloved is mine and I am his. Let these words be your longing too all the days of your long life. Step into eternity. Step into the arms of love himself who desires to delight himself in you. Hearing these very words off your lips, My beloved is mine and I am his. Thank you, my beloved. Thank you, Jesus, for catching the little foxes in my life and driving them out. Thank you, my beloved. Thank you.