The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly, not through filthy lucre, but of a ready mind, neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensembles to the flock. And when the chief shepherds shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that feedeth not away. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder, yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility, for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour, whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. By Silvanus, our faithful brother unto you, as I suppose I have written briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand. The church that is at Babylon electeth together with you, saluteth you, and so doth Marcus my son. Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen and Amen. And we know the Lord will bless the public reading of His Word as He has given it before us today. Amen. Turn with me now to 1 Peter chapter 5. This morning we begin what will be a series of meetings and messages on God's covenant heritage. I have given the series that title because I believe that as we look at the Church of Christ congregation, that we are looking at something that God describes as being His own personal possession, described here in the words of Peter in verse 3 of 1 Peter 5, God's heritage. I want us to preface my remarks this morning first of all by saying that This has nothing to do with the meeting, but I feel it's good that God's people know that for those of you who were at the prayer meeting on Monday night, we were looking at the message or the subject of meditation and how that sermonic material that is preaching is a vital source of supply for the saints' meditation. You pray, you reflect, you consider, but you can only do that whenever you have material on which to meditate upon. It would be my intention to encourage you from time to time, not to think, I'm not saying you don't think, but to at least ask questions in your own mind in regards to what you hear from the pulpit by way of question Q&A. I would say to you if there's questions arise through the preaching put those in writing or email them or give them to some of the elders or come personally to me and we'll do our best to answer those questions. I want to see that develop. I would be encouraged if that would be the case because it would let me see that what I'm saying is being taken in and at least being used in your own heart. And I pray God, as I do, that the Lord will bless these messages to your heart. Bring your questions on Monday night. Needs be we will take some time at the prayer meeting. We will discuss those and hopefully by the Lord's help we will put those questions to rest. So I just make those few remarks before we come to the message this morning. We'll have a word of prayer before we read God's words. Let us pray. Heavenly Fathers, we come to thee. We do so in fear and in trembling. with the consciousness that, Lord, we are ministering to thy heritage, to a people whom thou didst view as thine own. Lord, I pray that today thou would give power to the Word of God. We pray that thou would be glorified in all things. Lord, how I pray that thy Word would be met with a fervent application to the hearts, to the minds of the fathers, the mothers, the children of all who gather before thee today. May thy word not be lost. We are conscious, as Peter reminds us here, that we must be sober, we must be vigilant, because our adversary the devil is going around like a roaring lion, seeking to steal away the good word, the good seed that would benefit and would bless the people of God. So Lord, we pray that today, in this time that is spent now before Thee, listening to the preaching of the Word, that we will be sober and vigilant, diligent in taking heed to what we hear. Bless us now, we pray, for Christ's sake. Amen and Amen. Let us read the words of Peter here to the elders, to the session, to the leadership of the church here to whom he writes. 1 Peter 5, verse 1, The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly, not for filthy liquor, but of a ready mind, neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensembles to the flock. In order to understand any passage of Scripture, no matter whether it's here in 1 Peter 5 or in any other passage which you as a believer will turn to, you need to understand, you need to interpret God's Word within a particular framework. The Scriptures, I believe personally, and it has been always the testimony of Reformed churches and those of the Reformed persuasion, that God's Word supports a system of interpretation that is often referred to as covenant theology. It sounds like a big term, and I know for maybe some of you it may well be a new term, but when preachers use that term covenant and apply it to their theology, how they understand, how we interpret the Scriptures, we're simply referring to How God deals with man. How God, right at the very beginning in creation, began to operate and work with man in regards to his salvation and in regards to the well-being of man. And how right until this point in time, and it will be until the end of time, that God continues to work and deal with man. And when you begin to study God's Word, you will find that it is always within a covenant framework and an agreement, because that's what the word covenant means. a covenant framework through which God works with man. Covenant theologians, and certainly we in the Free Presbyterian Church, we profess to be covenant in our theology, we maintain that God has revealed in Scripture at least two covenants. We believe they are two agreements. The term covenant, when used of God and man, or indeed used in any context or setting, It's referring to an agreement between two particular parties. If I entered into a covenant, and indeed I have entered into a covenant with my wife when I married her, it was a covenant arrangement, it was a covenant agreement. Two parties come together, there is an agreement by one, there's an agreement by the other, and there's a covenant made. But with God and man, we first of all see the covenant of works, as it's often called in Genesis chapter If you turn to Genesis 2 for a moment, you will find that when God created Adam, He created him in a covenant arrangement, or He was created in that setting. In Genesis 2, in verse 14, we discover that God begins to reveal Himself to Adam, who has just been created. And we find that in verse 16, we are told, the Lord commanded the man. Those are very important words. God, first of all, commands this man whom He has just created, that is, Adam. But He presents an arrangement. He presents an agreement to him. And He says, Adam, the covenant is this. There is a tree. You are not to touch that tree. You are not to partake of the fruit of that tree. Because the arrangement is that if you obey Me, you will receive eternal life. If you disobey me, you will bring upon yourself and all mankind eternal death, spiritual death." That is the covenant arrangement. The covenant was, it included the promise of eternal life and the penalty of eternal death, depending on whether Adam agreed, or whether Adam upheld his part of the covenant, obeyed, or whether He disobeyed. The Lord God commanded the man. But we discover there that there is that covenant setting. Adam is in an agreement with God. If he keeps the covenant, he will live forever. If he breaks the covenant and transgresses it, which he did, he would die. He would die physically. He would die spiritually. And the covenant curse, the penalty would be effected upon Adam's The imposition of the penalty. Now, there is something very important that we need to remember. And I pray that as we, in a few moments you will discover why this is important that we understand this. That when Adam actually stood in the Garden of Eden, he stood not for himself, but he stood as a representative for all mankind. He did not stand there as one who was accountable for his own sin. When God entered into that agreement, He was not speaking to Adam alone. But He was referring, He was dealing with Adam as the covenant head of every man who would proceed forth from that union between Adam and Eve, the bowels of Adam. It is a covenant arrangement. But it was a covenant arrangement not only with Adam, but with all men. And that is especially seen in Romans chapter 5, verse 12, when we see the outcome of that covenant. When Adam transgressed and he sinned and he broke the law, we are told that by one man's sin, death came upon all men, for all have sinned. And of course, how are all men condemned as sinners? How are all men viewed as sinners? It is not because personally. Well, there is a personal element. But when we go right back to it, it is because of that covenant with Adam. Adam sinned, but his sin affected all mankind. Because Adam stood there as the representative and how he acted, how he acted towards that covenant in disobedience or obedience meant that man would either live or die. That is the covenant of works. Now, I cannot explain how Adam fell. People often ask the question, and they will say, well, you know, how could someone who is created in perfection, in the image of God and the likeness of God, without sin, how could Adam fall? How did he sin? That is a mystery. It is a mystery that preachers cannot explain. But the fact remains, men and women, that Adam sinned. He broke the covenant. Death came upon all men because of Adam's sin. And all men are sinners in the sight of God. All have sinned. All have come short of the glory of God. But that brings us right now to see that second covenant that I mentioned a few moments ago. The covenant of works and the covenant of grace. Though we cannot explain how Adam fell, but yet I know this, that there was a covenant arrangement that stood from all eternity that was revealed to Adam the moment Adam fell. Because whenever Adam fell, what should have taken place was that Adam should have been destroyed. But in grace, God reveals to him a covenant that was intended to effect his redemption, his salvation, and the salvation of all those who were represented in that covenant of grace. I am referring then a moment back to eternity, to the counsels of God, when God, who is omniscient, foresaw the fall of man. He knew Adam would fall. That's another mystery that men often pose to preachers. If God knew Adam would fall, why did He not step in? I don't know. But I know this, that for God's glory and for the redemption of Adam and for multitudes of men, God has, from all eternity, designed a covenant arrangement, an agreement between Christ, between the Father, that would design and bring about the salvation of many. How do I know that? I know that because God did not destroy Adam right away. But instead, God begins to reveal truth to Adam's mind regarding the coming of a Saviour. Genesis 3, verse 15. He speaks there of one who would come from the seed of Eve, who would bruise, who would crush and would destroy the head of the serpent and would remove that hostility that was in man towards God as a result of the fall. It is a covenant of grace. If I could draw your minds back, just to simplify all this. If I could take your minds back to eternity past, long before Adam was created, God the Father, God the Son, Jesus Christ is appointed as the Redeemer of a people who would fall. We know not the number of those people, but they are spoken of in the Scriptures as God's elect. They are said to be the many. They are said to be God's covenant people. They are said to be the redeemed of the Lord. They are said to be His children, to be His sons. We could give many, many titles that the Scriptures refer to them as. But we know this, that that covenant of grace in eternity past was designed by God in order to bring about the salvation of those who were included in that covenant of grace. Why do we call it the covenant of grace? Because God acted in grace. God should have destroyed Adam. He should have left every man in his sin But in grace He reveals Christ. He reveals mercy. He shows Himself to be a God who delights to be in His Word, in His love. He is a covenant-making God, but He is a covenant-keeping God, because today man is still saved as a result of the covenant of grace. Who is the mediator of that new covenant? Who is the Redeemer of God's elect? As the old catechism says, Jesus Christ. is the Redeemer, the only Redeemer, the only covenant-appointed Redeemer of God's elect, to bring about salvation for His people. Now, you can see when you think about that, the covenant of grace, as we look at ourselves today and we look at the Church of Christ, what is the Church of Christ? What is the people of God? And what are the people of God? The people of God, the Church of Christ, those who make up that company of believers, those who are saved and know Christ, we are the product of the covenant of grace. Because Christ has died. Christ has shed His blood. In that covenant, we are the product of the covenant of grace. That means when you read your Bible, men and women, you begin to discover terms as to how God speaks of you. My people, my peculiar treasure, my redeemed, my church, or 1 Peter 5, my flock, my sheep. Those are all terms that God uses to describe the relationship, the covenant relationship, between you as a child of God and Him, He as the Initiator, the sovereign originator of that covenant of grace. But when you discover that you are a child of God, and you are part of the flock of God, and you discover that I am the result of that covenant, and if there be no covenant, as we said at the Lord's Table last Lord's Day, no covenant, no Christ, no gospel, no spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, because all things are tied up in Him, But it all goes back to that one point, a gracious covenant arrangement. We are His people. That means we are His covenant people. We are His peculiar treasure. That means we are His covenant peculiar treasure. We are the redeemed of the Lord, but we are a covenanted people. Covenanted redeemed people. I must move on. I come here to verse 3 of 1 Peter 5. There is another term that is used to describe the Church of Christ, God's heritage. I know that the word heritage there, sorry, the word, the possessive noun, God, God's heritage, is not actually in the original text. It is italicized as there to give the sense of the passage. But I believe that even if that word were not there, From the context, we will discover that we are God's heritage. We belong to Him. We are His personal, prized, possessed heritage. We are God's heritage. It is a title, I believe, a wonderful title, that is given to the people of God, to the church of Christ. If you turn to Micah chapter 7 and to verse 14, you will discover there that we are referred to as the flock. of His heritage. It's very interesting there that Peter, he takes the same language in verse 2. He says to the elders, to the session, you are to feed the flock of God over which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers. God's heritage. We are His flock. We are His heritage. We are His possession. But we, in the context of the covenant of grace, are His covenant heritage. We are His heritage. We belong to Him. It's a wonderful term to think of yourselves, believer, as the heritage of God. Something that He has obtained. Something that is His possession. But is His, by result, the fruit of the covenant of grace. I wish I had time to develop that this morning. But my intention in bringing you to this series, and really this is an introductory message to what I want to say, The Lord has really laid in my heart to deal with a number of messages on the relationship between the pastor and his people. Between the shepherd and the sheep. And I pray that the view that you will have as this congregation will not be a dichotomy. Oh, it's him and us. The pastor and us. Or the session and us. Because as Peter uses the language here in 1 Peter 5, he is addressing the leadership of the church in the context of shepherding the sheep, the flock of God, God's heritage. He is speaking to the diaconate. He is speaking to, that is, the members of the committee. He is speaking here to the elders, the session, and he is speaking to those who are in a ministerial position. I also am an elder, though be it I am a teaching elder, But with this session, we are elders together over the flock of God, the heritage of God. And I pray that as we look at this message today, that this will set up the introduction, and as we move on through these messages, that the Lord will bless you as you will see yourself as part of God's covenant heritage. As you look first of all here, you will find that God has purchased this heritage. It is something that He owns. It is something that he has purchased for his own self. The word heritage there in verse 3 can actually be read inheritance. It can be understood that way. They are his inheritance. Deuteronomy 32 and the verse number 9. But if you turn with me to Ephesians chapter 1 and the verse 14. Ephesians chapter 1 and the verse 14. We have the word inheritance used here. Ephesians 1 and verse 14. It says, which is the earnest of our inheritance. Now, it's speaking there of the believer's inheritance, although it's the same word, inheritance. It's speaking of the believer's heritage. Something that we have that is ours. It's not God's, but it is ours. But it speaks there of the earnest of our inheritance, or the guarantee. That's what that word earnest means. And of course, what is the earnest of our inheritance? It is the Holy Ghost. It is the Holy Spirit revealed there in verse 13. The Holy Spirit of promise. You were sealed with that Holy Spirit. Which is the guarantee, or is the earnest of our inheritance? What is Paul teaching there? He is saying that as God's heritage, as God's people, you have been brought into a place of great blessing. You stand to inherit A great heritage. But Paul tells you in Romans chapter 8 that you are to wait for that inheritance. You are to wait for that heritage. You are to wait for that redemption when it will be given to God's people in its fullest capacity. Look at verse 14 with me there. The Holy Spirit has been given to God's people. We have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. But because we have the Holy Spirit within us, Paul is saying that is the guarantee, that is the seal that you as my people, as the Lord's heritage, one day will enter into the fullness of all the benefits of redemption. But look at verse 14. When will this take place? When will we as God's people enter into that full possession of our inheritance? Not until the redemption. of the purchased possession. The complete redemption of the purchased possession. Who is the purchased possession? That is the church. The church of Christ is the purchased possession. And of course, Jesus Christ is continually purchasing His possession. Through the blood of Christ, souls are still being brought to Christ. The Lord has not returned for that fact. Which means the church of Christ is not complete. The final redemption of the purchased possession. But certainly Paul there is speaking there of the purchased possession. He says that they are purchased. His heritage, his inheritance, his church, his people. And men and women today, I would desire that you would really understand that. that you as a member of the body of Christ are a purchased possession. You have been bought by the blood of Christ. The church of Jesus Christ, His heritage, is a purchased possession. Turn to Acts 20 and verse 28. In Acts chapter 20 and verse 28, Paul tells us here, speaking to the church in Ephesus, the church of whom we were speaking there, the Ephesian church. He says in verse 28 of Acts chapter 20, and please note this, that he is speaking to the leadership. He is speaking to the elders of the church. He is speaking here to those in authority over the flock of God. Take ye therefore unto yourselves and to all the flock. Oh, notice how Peter speaks in that kind of language. Notice how Paul speaks in that kind of language. in regards to the Lord's heritage. And here he says in verse 28, God has purchased the church of Christ with His own blood. Referring there to the incarnate Christ, God is Spirit. So it is not speaking of the blood of deity, as some heretics would teach. He is speaking here of the blood of the incarnate God-man. Jesus Christ has shed His blood for the church. He has purchased it. He has bought it. Turn back to 1 Peter chapter 1 and to verse 18 and 19. For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed or purchased with corruptible things as silver and gold from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers. But ye have been redeemed with the precious blood of Christ." Precious blood. The blood of God. Purchased possession. You can see that as we are looking at this, God's heritage is something that He personally possesses. Something personally that He has shed His own blood for. And as members of this body in Mount Marian, as elders and as the pastor and as deacons, we must never forget that. That God has purchased the church of Christ with His own blood. Precious blood. You've been bought with a price. Dare we forget that. That, you will find, will be the impetus of these messages. As we begin to apply certain principles and duties to the members of the congregation, to the elders, to the members of the committee, to my own heart, we will find that as we do so, it is always within that covenant context that we are looking at something that God has purchased with His own blood. That is why Peter says there, you dare not lord over the Lord's heritage. You dare not treat them as something that has been the product of nothing less than my blood, the blood of God, precious blood. Sometimes the view of the church of Christ is something that, well, certainly this is the world's view, It's only a few old people and thuddy-duddies and old-fashioned people who want to get together on the Lord's Day. Dear member of Mount Marian, I say to you this morning out of love, as you sit here in this congregation, you are a member of God's covenant heritage, purchased by the blood of Christ and possessed by God. His possession. It is a covenant purchase. If you turn to Zechariah 9, verse 11. Zechariah 9, verse 11. It speaks there of the blood of the covenant. When Christ shed His blood, and when He, in a covenant arrangement, agreed to be the one who would give His life for the sheep, and lay His life down and give His blood, He sought His blood as being the blood of the covenant. My blood is covenant blood for a covenant people, for a covenant heritage. Look at verse 11. By the blood of the covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit. What is that language saying? It is saying that the power of the blood of Christ has the efficacy, has the power to deliver the souls of those sent to the grave, sent to the pit by the transgression of Adam, but by the obedience of Christ and by the death of Christ, the blood of the covenant has the power to raise men out of that pit and bring them to salvation in Christ. It is a wonderful verse. By the blood of the covenant, I have sent forth the prisoners, released them and let them go. Turn to Hebrews 13, verse 20. Hebrews 13, verse 20. What does Paul again say there in Hebrews 13, verse 20? Speaking there of the blood of the everlasting covenant. Hebrews 13, verse 20. Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great Shepherd of the sheep. Who are the sheep? The flock of God, God's heritage, through the blood of the everlasting covenant. I said to you there that when Adam stood in Eden, he stood as a representative. He stood representing all mankind. But in that covenant of grace, God the Father, God the Son, Jesus Christ stood as one who represented all His people, His heritage, His redeemed, His elect, and He shed His blood for them. Paul here tells us in Hebrews 20, Hebrews 13, that the God of peace had brought again from the dead, our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep. He is speaking there of Christ as the representative of the covenant of grace. He stood there and He gave His consent in that covenant. Father, I will be the mediator. I will shed my blood. I will die. I will perfect that which Adam transgressed. And I will raise them up from the grave, the pit, through the blood of the everlasting covenant. And that is what has been taught there in verse 20. Jesus Christ was brought from the dead. But He was not brought from the dead alone. Because when Christ died, His people died in Him. And when Christ rose again from the dead, brought from the dead by the blood of the covenant, we were brought with Him, represented in Christ, all through the blood of the everlasting covenant. There is a wonderful application there to use an unsaved man this morning. We are discovering here that Jesus Christ, or should I say, no man becomes part of the covenant heritage of God except through the blood of the covenant. No man. Again, Paul in Hebrews 9 and verse 12 teaches us that not through the blood of calves or goats, but by his own blood. He entered into the holy place and obtained eternal redemption for us. It was not through the blood of the Old Testament sacrifice. It was not through the blood of some man. But it is through the blood of the mediator of the covenant of grace, justified by faith in His blood, Paul tells us in Romans 5 that men are converted and brought to faith in Christ. It is through faith in His blood that men are converted. Members of Mount Marian here today who are saved and know the Lord, you are part, you have been purchased, you have been bought by the blood of Christ. But as members of that body, And I speak now to the unsaved. You may be a member here. That is, by way of affiliation. But you know not Christ. You are not part of God's heritage. And yet you meet each Lord's Day with them. And here we are. We worship as God's heritage. His covenant possession. And yet you are outside of that covenant. You are not a member. It is not through faith in His blood. that you are saved outside of Christ and without Him. Time has gone and I will not even try to go through those next two points. I'll maybe leave those to another time. But I trust it's been beneficial for you this morning to see at least the value of that first point. That we are a purchased covenant possession. And when you look there at 1 Peter chapter 5, you will find that pastorally, there's a great application to certainly the member of the congregation, but very much so upon myself as a pastor. As I prepare my heart in this study, as I give myself as I ought to to prayer, and the ministry of the Word, I ought always to be conscious that I am coming to minister to feed the flock of God. God's heritage. He has charged me. He has charged the elders that we are not to lord over the heritage of God. Because He has purchased them. They are mine. They are not mine. They do not belong to us. But they are His through the blood of the everlasting covenant. A covenant people redeemed by the blood of Christ. The most amazing thing to me is God has placed into the hands of men that charge to feed, to nourish, to pray, to pastor His covenant people. To me, that's the most amazing thing, men and women. The God who has purchased you by His own blood should ordain pastors, should ordain elders, and in the organization of the church, give deacons for the running of the church. What trust does God put into the hands of men? That means you need to pray for your elders. It means you need to pray for your pastor. Pray for the committee. And pray that as we pray for you, in order that you might be shepherded in your heart, and you might be fed, and you might be led as God's covenant people, that together the Lord might bless that. What a foundation. What prayer material there is for you to come on a Monday night to pray over? Pray for, as I said, and to not repeat myself, but to pray for the teaching elder of the Church and for those in authority and leadership over us, that the Lord might bless them and give them wisdom and give them grace and give them a prayer life in that context that we are dealing with the purchased heritage of God. I pray the Lord will give you some consideration of those thoughts, and may the Lord bless them through you. Certainly, we'll return to this message at another time, but may the Lord bless this word this morning to your heart. In His name, let us pray. Heavenly Father, we come to Thee. We thank Thee that Thou art God and beside Thee there is none other. We thank Thee, Lord, that as Thy people we are Thine heritage. the product of the covenant of grace, the product of something that we had no input into whatsoever. We thank thee, Lord, for thy sovereign initiation and thy wisdom that was displayed in eternity past. When thou didst say, when thou didst enter into that covenant arrangement with the Son, with the Holy Spirit, Lord, today we stand here as the recipients of that grace, the product of that covenant. And today we can come to Thee and say, Lord, thank Thee. Thank Thee, Lord, for saving our souls. Thank Thee, Lord, for arranging that covenant of grace. So we often sing, Oh, what matchless condescension the eternal God displays in His display of redemption and grace to man. We bless Thee for this, and we pray that Thou would be with us now. May Thy Spirit go with us. Pour out Thy Spirit upon us, we pray, as we go our separate ways. For we pray these things in Christ's name, and for His glory. Amen.