♪ All creatures of our God and King ♪ ♪ May touch the horizon with a sing ♪ ♪ Alleluia, alleluia ♪ ♪ All I am now in God and King ♪ ♪ All tidings I would send to thee ♪ ♪ O praise Him, O praise Him ♪ you And many dolphins singing wails, And splashing fish that fill her sails. Go praise Him! Go praise Him! Alleluia! Alleluia! ♪ It's God from whom all blessings flow ♪ ♪ Praise him, all creatures, all we know ♪ ♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪ ♪ Praise, praise him, all ye speaking words of wisdom ♪ ♪ All ye speaking tongue, all adventures all we know ♪ ♪ Oh, praise him, oh, praise him ♪ Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Amen. That was good. You did well. Thank you, kids. All right, appreciate again their hard work and doing that ministry for us this morning. I was walking this morning and I heard the birds singing. It's nice to get to the springtime. You do hear creation begin to sing praise to God. We'll dismiss the little ones to go with Mr. Schor, the creche. The rest of us please take our Bibles. And what you could do, if you want, is just be ready in the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. to be able to open up to some of the scripture that will be today as we are going to go to all four Gospels at some point as we look at a certain person here in the Word of God. Watching the news this past week, one article that was kind of interesting, I saw that some investigative reporters in the United States that were still in high school, it took a CV of their principal And I think they were in Texas or something. And they began to examine that CV and to see if their principal was exactly who she claimed to be. The article that I read was in the Independent. It said the student journalists had begun researching Robertson, that's the principal, and quickly found some discrepancies in her education credentials. For one, when they researched Corlins University, the private university where Robertson said she got her master's and doctorate degrees years ago, the website didn't work. They found no evidence that it was accredited universities. And Balthasar, sounds like one of the three Hebrew children, one of the students, said there were some things that just didn't quite add up. The students began digging into a weeks-long investigation that would result in an article published on Friday questioning the legitimacy of the principal's degrees and of her work as an education consultant. And on Tuesday night, Robertson resigned. It's interesting. I mean, here's these kids and having no idea what they're going to find. I had an interview with the principal and began to examine the CV and found those things out. Investigative reporting would be an interesting career field. I think I could enjoy something like that, studying somebody's life and finding things out about their life. It doesn't always have to be bad stuff. I read another article recently about this man in the United States that He's a decorated soldier. And his mom found in a charity shop or something, she found a Purple Heart. And she bought it. She thought, my son would like this, maybe collect it or something. And they're actually kind of valuable. There's a value associated with them because they're so precious to the people that receive them. But as he got it, he just thought, I can't keep this. This belongs to somebody. And he began a process of searching for that individual and tracking them down and actually contacted them and said, I've got this. And at first, they were like, how did you get it? Thinking someone was stolen or got lost. And they suspected him. You know, but he took it to them in a special ceremony, presented it to them, and actually that's become something he does. He travels now and people send him Purple Hearts. He studies the history, finds the people, and goes in a special ceremony and awards them. I mean, I thought that was a great thing. So it doesn't always have to be bad things. If you investigate somebody, it could be good things. As we come to this passage, primarily if you want to turn to the Mark passage, chapter 15 and verses 43, as we come to this passage, what we want to do today is a bit of investigative study in the Word of God. And God's given us a synoptic gospels. The gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, a lot of times they'll have the same story or the same person or the same situation, but they'll cover things from a bit different perspective. And it just gives you a better overall view of who somebody is or what they've done. And so this man that we're going to look at this morning is the man God trusted with the dead body of his son. What a responsibility. I can say today there's nothing of more value that's ever been on this earth than the fleshly body of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this man, Joseph of Arimathea, that we're going to look at, had that responsibility of taking care of that body after the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. Of course, a body is just that. It's just a body. It's just a tent. When I'm witnessing to people, sometimes I'll bring that out to them. You are not your body. You could get a prosthetic limb, and guess what? You're the same. you could get a heart transplant. Guess what? You're still the same. Who we are is not physically our body. We have a soul that is in this body and a spirit that's in this body until the point of death. And we know when Jesus Christ died, he even referred to that separation of body and spirit as it says in Luke 23 verse 46. And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, father into thy hands, I commend my spirit. And having said thus, he gave up the ghost. So His soul, the ghost they speak about, separated from His body at that point. At that point, His body is just the vehicle. The life is not there. Christ is dead. Christ is departed. That body is just the earthly shell that God used to enrobe the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, as this takes place, Jesus dies, His disciples aren't there. There's one disciple at the crucifixion, it's John, and he's carrying with the women and things of that sort, but the Bible says, Matthew 26, 56, that all the disciples forsook him and fled. Remember in the Garden of Gethsemane, they come and take the Lord, and the disciples flee. It's only Peter and John that have the courage to follow a little bit, and Peter doesn't really have the courage, does he? It's just, he goes on to deny the Lord Jesus Christ. And so when Jesus dies, he doesn't have his faithful men, as it were, surrounding the cross. And there's just two men that God's going to use. Interestingly, both men, kind of secret Christians. Nicodemus is one of them. We're not going to study Nicodemus today, but he's also there as part of this. He comes along later in the story to help with the burial of the Lord Jesus Christ. But this man, Joseph, of Arimathea, and I just want to look at it today as the man God chose. Can we not agree today that this task that Joseph did is a very significant task? I mean, it might be something God wants me to do today, but in comparison with taking the body of the Lord Jesus Christ off of the cross, that few things would compare to such a responsibility And that God therefore chose somebody to do that, that would bear that responsibility well and do that responsibility well. And so what I want us to consider this morning about this man God chose, is why did God choose him? Why did God choose him? And so, and no, we're glad you're here. Come on in. And we'll pray and ask God to bless his word to our hearts this morning. Let's pray. Father, we're thankful for the grace that you give. Thank you for the opportunity that we have to come to the Word of God. This morning, I pray that the Spirit of God would guide me this time. Lord, I pray that you please speak to our hearts about the responsibility that you entrusted to Joseph. And Father, I pray that we'd be challenged by it. I pray that we'd be encouraged by it. I pray that we'd be helped by it. And Father, that you please guide me as I preach. I pray that you give us ears to hear this morning, that this time would truly be profitable to the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's in his name that we pray. Amen. And so who did God choose? As we look at Joseph, and again, we're going to compare who Joseph is in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the Synoptic Gospels, to get a full picture of Joseph. But first of all, God chose a man of honor. God chose a man of honor. It says in Mark 15, 43, Joseph of Arimathea, it says, an honorable counselor. an honorable counselor. It says in Luke 23 that he was a good man and just. Now the word honorable, it's kind of easy to understand. It means somebody that is worthy of honor. That means they deserve high respect, great esteem. It is also the quality of knowing and doing what is right. That somebody of honor is a person of integrity, is a person that does that which is right in whatever situation they find themselves in. Katie and I were heartened this past week to see a story. You don't always see stories in the paper that are kind of encouraging. But there was kind of an uplifting story this past week, and it was about a Lothian bus driver, Jackie. Did you see that? And Jackie has been driving buses, I guess, for Lothian buses for something like 40 years. But what it was is a picture of him out of the bus. And he's bent over. And he's tying an older person's shoelaces for them. And there's an older man that was crossing the road, I guess. And they said that Jackie noticed that his shoes weren't tight. He was scared that he was going to trip on his shoelaces. So he stopped his bus, went back, tied the shoelaces for the man, got back in the bus, and made the news. And I thought, well, that's good. That's honorable, isn't it? I mean, that's just a small thing, but somebody that does small things like that probably does bigger things than that. And it's good for the world to stop, look at that and say, you know, that's worth honoring. That's worth honoring. I saw also recently, this past February, that there was a football match between Nottingham Forest and Sheffield. And there was a policeman that was there, P.C. Patterson. And somehow the word went out, I guess there's a river that runs along that stadium, and the word went out that a man had fallen into a very fast-flowing river. And PC Patterson stripped off his clothing, took a ring that was there by the side of the river, swam out to the sky, brought him back, and he and three other men rescued his life. Sergeant Julian Smedley said the rescue operation was an exemplary piece of work by all officers. He added, they all upheld the finest traditions of the British police service and had my wholehearted admiration. PC Patterson displayed true courage, selfless commitment, and determination as he entered the river to save that man's life. So we look at that again, we say, that's honorable. That's honorable. When somebody doesn't look at themselves, they just look at what needs to be done, and they say, I'm going to do something about that. I read another article. Here we go again. I'm not just going to keep repeating news articles this morning. I feel like I am. One more for you. I saw that some young people in New York City had gotten a sofa at a charity shop. They got it for, I think they paid 50 pounds for the sofa and something else. They noticed that the sides of the sofa were really lumpy. It's a charity shop sofa. They open them up and the first bag they pulled out had something like, I don't know, $4,000 in it. They decided that other lumps might be important. So they started tearing the thing apart. They found $40,000 in the sofa. A lady, an elderly lady, had been hiding cash in the sofa. She was away at hospital or something, and her family decided to sell that sofa. And so the $40,000 had passed out of the picture for her for good, it seemed, except that these young people looked at it and said, we can't spend it. It's not ours. They felt guilty. using it, praise God, and they returned it to that lady who needed it. You look at that and you go, that's honorable. As we look at Joseph, when it says that he was an honorable counselor, it means like this. It means that Joseph did what's right, that he was a man of integrity, that he was a person that if you had something that you needed to entrust to his care, Joseph would get it done. I want to ask us this morning, are we people of integrity? If there's a responsibility, if there's a trust, and God's given us stewardship, so the Bible says it's required in stewards that a man be found faithful. We are stewards of what God's given to us. Are we good stewards of it? Are we faithful stewards? Are we doing what's right with it? When I was in grad school, I had a teacher that challenged us with a verse that he had us memorize, Ecclesiastes 10 verse 1. It says, dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saber." It's an interesting verse in the Bible. You know, here you got this physician making a mixture, but dead flies in it wreck it. And so, as dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saber, so doth the little folly, him that's in reputation for wisdom and honor. And so it could just be little things that can hurt that honor, that can hurt that integrity that God desires us to have so that He can use us. We've got to be careful as we think about, God, what do you want me to do with my life that I am very much guarding that integrity so that God can use me? So he looked at Joseph of Arimathea and he saw that he was a man of honor. Then God chose not just a man of honor, but God chose a man of wisdom. He was a man of wisdom in Mark 14 or 1543. It says he was a counselor. The word counselor there is means that he was a member of the Sanhedrin. There's 70 Jews there, the ruling body, it's kind of like the senators for the Jews. And so he's basically a Jewish senator. He's a wise man. And this man, we'll see, because of who he is, because of his honor, because of his integrity, sometimes we look at politicians and think, there's no such thing as a good politician. But this man was a good politician. He's a wise man, not just because he is a counselor, but he is a a counselor. As a counselor and a senator, when the Sanhedrin had tried Jesus at Caiaphas's house, remember Peter and John first, as they followed Jesus, they went to the house of Caiaphas and to that place where the soldiers were warming themselves by the fire, but that place is where the Sanhedrin was meeting in trial against the Lord Jesus Christ. But as he went to that, the Bible says in Luke 23 verse 50, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counselor, and he was a good man and a just, verse 51, the same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them. He was of Arimathea, city of the Jews, who also himself waited for the kingdom of God. See, Joseph was a good and a just man. He was a counselor. But when they said, send him off to Pilate, we're going to crucify him. When they're against the Lord, the Bible says about Joseph, he wasn't. Now it doesn't say at this point that he spoke out. He didn't consent to it. He didn't agree with it. It doesn't say necessarily that he dissented, but maybe he did. Maybe he spoke against it, but he did not agree with what they did to the Lord. Jesus Christ. You know, Joseph was a man who would do what's right when everyone else is doing what's wrong. It's hard to find, isn't it? Some of that was a person that say, you know what? It doesn't matter if you, you, you, you, you 69 times or 68 times. Hopefully there are maybe some others that dissented as well. But however many times somebody else said, I give my voice against him. I give my voice against him. I give my voice against him. Joseph was willing to do what's right rather than do what pleased the crowd. The Sanhedrin is going to be a key not just in the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, but also in the persecution of the church. Peter and John, when that lame man was healed at the temple and the crowd came together and thousands of people got saved, Peter and John, they were called before the Sanhedrin. They were threatened by the Sanhedrin. And they said to them, don't ever preach again in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Acts 4, 19-20, Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. Peter and John were like that too. The Sanhedrin was against not just the Lord Jesus Christ, But Peter and John just look at him and said, if it seems right in the sight of God to you, to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge you. But as for us, we're going to honor God. You know, as this takes place and the Sanhedrin takes such a stand against the church, do you think Joseph is going to remain with that group? Because I look at what takes place in the story as he takes the body of the Lord Jesus Christ of the cross There's a dividing line. There's a separation that's taking place. There's a no going back point. You know, as people identify with the Lord, it takes the wisdom of God to stand and say, you know what, it doesn't matter. If you think this is wrong, it doesn't matter if my family separates from me, it doesn't matter if religiously there's repercussions from the church that I grew up in. That might have been my church my whole life. Some people grow up in a religion that teaches against Christ or teaches a false gospel. And it'd be a very difficult thing for them to stand up and say, but I will stand for what is right. But that's wisdom. That's wisdom to do what's right when everybody else is doing what's wrong. And so, as we look at Joseph this morning, we find that he's an honorable man. He's a wise man. Just like the Bible says in Psalm 15, verse 1, it says, who shall abide in thy tabernacle, who shall dwell in thy holy hill. And then it says in verse four, he honoreth them that fear the Lord, he that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not. Like Eric Little that said, I'm not going to run on Sundays. That says, that's a line at one step over. I'm going to honor God. It doesn't matter if everybody's against me. He that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not. This morning, are you willing to say to God, God, even if it's tough on me, this community, have you noticed everybody knows each other? If they say something against me, it doesn't matter. If they oppose me, it doesn't matter. I stand with God. Are you a wise person like Joseph? And so Joseph was honorable. Joseph was a man of wisdom. God chose a man of wisdom and honor. Then God chose a man of faith. God chose a man of faith. Mark 15 verse 43 says, which also waited for the kingdom of God. Luke 23, again, repeats that phrase, who also himself waited for the kingdom of God. Our Thursday night's Bible study, we've been studying the book of Revelation. And Revelation, basically, There's a few chapters to the Church as God rebukes the Church and challenges the Church to be what it ought to be. The rest of the book, majority of the book, is spent in the Tribulation period. Then on Thursday nights, we've just hit the point where the Millennium takes place, a thousand-year reign of the Lord Jesus Christ on Earth. And then we're just at the point of eternity, the new heaven and the new earth in Christ's kingdom being established. And I would say to us today, what Joseph waited for when it says he waited for the kingdom of God, that you and I also wait for the kingdom. If we're saved, we're still anticipating that day. And again, I go back to what I said. Aren't you grieved by the world? Don't you think as you walk down the street and there's immodesty and indecency and corruption and wicked music? I mean, I was down there with Benson this past week and a guy walks by and he's got his, he's carrying like a boombox, like, you know, this is like 1980s type thing, you know, and he's got his music blaring. And I'm just right. I mean, I can't wait till God's in control. I can't wait till the Bible speaks about that the knowledge of God shall cover the earth as the waters cover the earth. There's not going to be a need for me to knock on anybody's door in this community and say, do you know about Jesus? Do you know about God? Because the Bible says in that day, it's going to be a perfect day. What a day. I mean, Joseph is waiting for that day. He's longing for that day. And like a lot of people, of his day there, desiring what Jesus talked about. The Lord said, when you pray, say, our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done as in heaven, so on earth. Let me ask you, has that taken place? No. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done as your will is done in heaven. How's it done in heaven? Perfectly. Flawlessly. God's will is not violated in heaven. Where's God's will violated? On earth. See, people that believe that God's will is unavoidable or you can't go against it, think about what the Lord said when he said to Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered thee unto myself, but ye would not. You would not. See, the Lord said, my will is to draw you to myself. The Lord is not willing today that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But is this world saved? No. Is this world on its way to hell? Yes. And so, there's this, the kingdom of God has not come. In fact, the Bible says in Revelation 12 verse 10, I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, this is at the end of the tribulation, or towards the end, now has come salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of this Christ, for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, Satan, which accused them before our God day and night. Now has come salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God. Interestingly, I don't know if it's in my notes here. It's in my notes somewhere today. I think it might be tonight. But it is called the Lord's kingdom. But it is the what? The kingdom of God. We've talked about John, the book of John, over and over again, the deity of Christ, the deity of Christ, the deity of Christ, the fact that Jesus Christ is God. And so, again, we're looking forward to that day where the kingdom of our Lord comes. Now, Joseph, again, he's part of the Sanhedrin. You'd say, well, they're all Jews, and they're religious Jews, and surely they're also looking for the Messiah, and the answer is yes. But the Messiah that they're looking for is not the Messiah that Jesus Christ was. They weren't looking for somebody that served people. They weren't looking for somebody that was humble. They weren't looking for somebody that was born in a stable. They wanted somebody that would be kingly. Somebody that would set up his kingdom then. Somebody that would rule then. Somebody that would overthrow the Romans then. And because politically it didn't happen, and according to their thinking they thought it should happen, what did they do? They took the Lord Jesus Christ and they crucified Him. Why? Because what they thought intellectually didn't back up with what they should have believed biblically. And so they rebelled against it. See, but Joseph was a man of faith. Joseph was a man that looked at the Word of God and said, you know, the Messiah, is somebody that's going to heal people. The Messiah is somebody that's going to suffer for the sins of the people. The Messiah, if he had a proper understanding, is going to die. See, it's going to take place. And it might be a little bit like Thomas, I've got to see the nail prints, I've got to see the sword thrust. Maybe that's a little bit where this man was. He was seeking, but when he saw the crucifixion, then he goes, that's him. Maybe we're reading about his conversion, I don't know. But he was a man that was a man of faith. He's looking for the kingdom of God. Can I ask you this morning, are you a person of faith? We've talked about it already, but this book says things that cut across culture. This says things that are politically incorrect. This says things that would destroy, perhaps, Marriage if I could put it that way with somebody getting saved a spouse getting saved the other spouse not getting saved saying forget that I reject that I don't want anything to do with that, but the Bible says you'll be hated of all men Right there's times where this this book divides now praise God when both people get saved. We had a lady yesterday friend of Liliana's that came that she and her husband both got saved praise God That's the best way. That's the best way for it to happen. They both get saved, so they both agree with God. They both believe this book. That's the best way. But I mean, that's a tough choice, isn't it? Am I going to believe this book or believe what they say in schools? They say millions and millions of years. Am I going to believe this book or am I going to believe what they say about marriage when God says marriage is between a man and a woman? Am I going to believe what they say that this is just myths, legends, stories, good advice? Or am I going to believe that this is the very Word of God? So every single thing it says, I accept and I believe. Are you a man of faith? You know, God uses, God chose a man of faith, a man of wisdom, a man of honor. And then God chose a man of boldness. Mark 15, verse 43, it says about Joseph, he came and he went in boldly unto Pilate. He craved the body of Jesus. And Pilate marveled if he were already dead. And calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he'd been any while dead. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. Can I say this real quick about the crucifixion of the Lord, that they made sure he was dead? Those soldiers were trained to kill somebody, and so the soldiers come along, they see that he's dead already, they don't break his legs, they just put a spear up into his side. Can you live when your heart sac is punctured and the blood and the water come out that the Word of God so clearly speaks about? They look upon him whom they pierced. And then Pilate asks the centurion, he doesn't just go, oh, you know, Joseph's here, he's a disciple, I'm gonna let him have the body. Well, maybe the body's not dead. He's not gonna. He's not gonna do that so Joseph boldly comes to but you think about now Joseph coming to Pilate What's just taking place? the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ see Peter Look in contrast Peter's denial of our Lord and we've studied in depth in our study in the book of John that we've had and But Peter denied Christ before soldiers. He denied Christ before a barmaid, basically. But Joseph is gonna own Christ in front of the person that killed Christ. I mean, that would be a very fearful situation to walk into, but Joseph had the boldness to do it as he stood up for the Lord. There's many people that have done bold things for God. I love the stories in the Word of God that you read. I'm right now, in my Bible reading at night, I'm reading through the book of Daniel. And the decree went out last night when I was reading that everyone's going to be killed because he can't interpret the king's dream. And Daniel says, ask the king, give me some time. I'm gonna go to my friends. They prayed. And they said, God, God, reveal our secrets. Please don't let us die with these wise men. And then God gives him the dream, but he goes and tells it to the king, and the king sets him up in the highest place. He has the three Hebrew children come along. But you know what? In the future, he's gonna have to pray and go to the lion's den. In the future, the three Hebrew children are gonna have to face the fiery furnace. Can you imagine, for the Lord being put into a fire, say, hey, God can deliver us from that thing. King, don't think you have the power. King, that fire, we could walk through it if God wanted us to. But if not, we're not gonna bow to your idol. Esther, having to go before King Ahasuerus and plead for the Jews that he not kill the Jews because of this wicked Haman and the decree that was made, and her having to enter into that place and go up to that king is kind of similar to what we're seeing here. That takes boldness to do that. In the evenings, in our family devotions, we've been listening to some really good stories. If you want some good biographies, audio biographies, talk to me afterwards because I'm the audible app, you can get some great stories to listen to with your family or just yourself. I mean, I like listening to them. My wife likes listening. They're not primarily for kids. But we're listening to one right now about Rachel Saint. And you might recognize the last name Saint, but not know the name Rachel. Nate Saint was her brother. Those five men, Nate Saint, Jim Elliott, Ed McCauley, Peter Fleming, Roger Udarian, some of them, if not all of them, were married. but they were in Ecuador as missionaries. Rachel Saint was working on translating the language of the Waorani people, the Aka Indians. They were people that nobody had contact with. Anybody that got close to them, they killed. They were just a very fearful tribe. They would just kill to protect themselves, thinking that there was danger. If somebody got killed in the tribe, they would have to kill. I mean, there's killing going back and forth even within the tribe. She was working on the language. Her brother didn't tell her, but they attempted to make contact with the Indians on that beach. Operation Akka is what it was called. And it opened the eyes of the world to missions in the 1950s, I think it was. Am I right? 1950s? And all five of those men were killed. Spirit. They all died. I mean, it was an incredible rescue operation they put together, and how God allowed them to find all the bodies. It's a neat, neat story. But those guys, you know, I read, listened to that, and I just, I got choked up thinking, man, what have I done for God? Are you gonna tell me that if Roslyn had tribal people that killed people, that you'd take the gospel there? And by the way, the Auckland Indians, there's only a group of 400. Does God care for them? I mean, I also read a story that was challenging the cross and the switchblade. I don't agree with the Pentecostalism of that book. But I mean, you want to read a book that will challenge you. This guy got burdened for the gangs of New York City. He went into New York City and met with guys that, I mean, killed people. He stepped between rival gangs. and he built a rapport with them. He had two rival gangs come to a meeting where he preached. It's incredible. I mean, have I attempted anything for God? Again, I feel like a very poor servant of the Lord when I'm not bold to do what God desires me to do. The father of modern missions, William Carey said, expect great things from God, attempt great things for God. What have you done? I mean, some of us are too timid to knock on somebody's door and say, hey, I'd just like to invite you to visit my church. We're too timid to say to a family member, hey, God's been working in my heart. He's really been teaching me things. And I just want to tell you that God can meet your needs, too, and I really care about you. We're too timid to put a piece of paper, a note with a gospel on it and send it to a friend and say, look, I just care enough about you that I want to tell you about the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, our hearts go out to Bernard and Violet. Tomorrow they bury their 51-year-old daughter. You know, we don't know the end of somebody's life. We live, it's funny, we live as if there's eternity here, and there's not. We have the gospel, we have the light, we have the truth, and there's so little that we do with it. God chose a man of boldness, a man that would act, a man that would do something for Him. He was a man of boldness, a man of faith, a man of wisdom, a man of honor. Then He was a man of worshipful surrender, worshipful surrender. Mark 15, verse 46, it says, and he bought, okay, he paid for it, fine linen. He didn't just get linen, he bought fine linen. He bought the expensive stuff, he bought the good stuff. And he took him down, Jesus, and wrapped him, Jesus, his body, in the linen, and laid him, Jesus, in a sepulcher, which is hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulcher. Matthew 27, Matthew tells us, When the evening was come, there came a rich man of Arimathea named Joseph. So he's wealthy. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and he laid it in his own new tomb. Again, when you read these terms, new tomb, rich man, fine linen, what you're reading about is great expense. There was great cost involved to what this man is going to seek to do for God. And you might say, well, he could do that because he's rich. No, can I say this? He could do that because he was surrendered. Okay, he had resources, praise God. He had resources, but he could not give, he could not do, he could not accomplish those things if he wasn't a surrendered person that would take the resources that God had entrusted them and use them for God. Can I say this about his riches? It was harder for him than for me to do something for God because he had riches. That's what Jesus taught. Jesus said about your riches, the richer you are, the harder it is to surrender them to God. He said that in Mark 10, 23, Jesus looked around about it. He said unto his disciples, how hardly that they, shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God. And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God? It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. They were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? And Jesus looking upon them saith with men, It is impossible, but not with God. For with God, all things are possible. Do you know what the word of God has just told us? That God did an incredible work in Joseph's life. To bring Joseph to salvation and faith in Christ, to bring Joseph to obedience to God, to bring Joseph to take of his wealth, just like that rich young man that came to Jesus and said, I want to please God, I want to obey God, what must I do to have eternal life? And he says, go sell everything that you have and come to follow me. Because riches are such a snare to serving God. And yet the Word of God says that about riches, that if you don't use the little things for God, riches, that you won't use the big things for God. Do you know if we don't use what we have for the Lord financially? Seriously, you might think, anytime a preacher preaches on finances, I mean, you just start, You almost feel like you have to make an excuse. That's sad that it's that way. But I'll tell you, this preacher's burden, one reason that I'm burdened about it, it's not because we need more money as a church. Praise God, we got a good bank account. We could do more for missions. I'm not ashamed to say we could do a lot more for missions. But when you think about finances, if God doesn't have finances, God doesn't have your heart. It doesn't. For where man's treasure is, there is his heart also. If my treasure is in earthly things, worldly things, spending on things that, and I'm not saying you gotta give all your money to God, but I am saying that if you don't honor God in the way God says in his word with what we have, God doesn't have our heart. And I would not be, by God's grace, in ministry where I'm at if I didn't say to God, God, you can have it. And that if we want to say to God, God use me, then we need to be praying and saying, God, what can I do with what I have for you? God, I want to be surrendered in this so that I can please you. And so he was a man of worshipful surrender. Look at C.T. Studd. C.T. Studd was heir to a great inheritance. In his own right, he probably did okay. He was a professional cricketer that had the world records like Babe Ruth in baseball in the United States. C.T. Studd was that way when it came to cricket. But C.T. Studd took his inheritance and he gave it away to the Lord, and then he served God. He did what the rich ruler did. He didn't take that along and say, I'm gonna hold on to that for a bad day. He gave that to God, then he went and served God. And again, that may not be what God has for us, but can I say this? Riches might be the reason you're not serving God. They might be the thing holding you back from being somebody that God can use, that you've not surrendered that, so there's other things in your life that are unsurrendered to God. This man was a man of worshipful surrender. God chose a man of surrender. He chose a man of boldness. He chose a man of faith, of wisdom and honor. And then God chose a man who was teachable. Matthew 27 says, who also himself was Jesus' disciple. Then it tells us he went to Pilate, begged the body and took it, put it in his own new tomb and departed. He was a disciple of the Lord. See, Again, you can look at Joseph and go, as far as religion goes, Joseph's way up here when it comes to religion. I mean, talk about somebody that went to church. I mean, I'm sure this man was at synagogue. I'm sure this man was looked upon as a very religiously astute person, but he was humble enough to become a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ and to put himself in a place where he could listen and learn from the Son of God. You know, we've got, our church here has something called Sunday school. And it sounds like it's for kids, it's not. Right, we have adult Bible study, we've got Sunday school. We've got Thursday night Bible study. We've got Sunday night Bible study. In church in general, there's sometimes people that I meet and I maybe invite them to come to church, and I kind of feel like this, that they feel like they're above that. I don't need that. You know what I'm saying? It's kind of like coming down to have to come and sit, and to sit under the preaching of the Word of God, and to have the humility to acknowledge to God, God, I need that. God, I need that. I need the Spirit of God speaking in my heart. I need the Spirit of God challenging me. God, that's me. It's not that old song, you know. It's not my sister. It's not my brother. It's not them. It's me. It's me, O Lord, standing in need of prayer. Are you humble enough to put yourself in the school of Christ and say, I need this. I need this Bible study. I need this time in the Word of God. I need this preaching. I need to be challenged by the Word of God. Joseph, he was teachable. You know, you can't teach something to somebody that's not teachable. Until somebody becomes teachable, they can't get saved. They'll never accept Christ as their Savior because they think they know it all. They think they're fine. They think they're self-righteous. But can I say this? After somebody gets saved, we still need to be teachable. We still need to let the Word of God ply our hearts and challenge our hearts and help us to be the disciple of Christ. Are you a disciple today? See, I could say this as well. You can come to church. You can sit in church. You can look good. Be faithful as can be and still not be a disciple of Christ. No man can follow me except he will forsake all that he hath and come after and follow me. Then he shall be my disciple. No man, loving father or mother or child or anybody more than me is worthy of me. See, to be a disciple of Christ is to forsake and to follow it again. I would say there's probably people in this community that won't go to that church that meets at a community center because it's not a church building. That may not come because it's a Baptist church. I understand the history, and I praise God for the history of Scotland, but that's the history of a good evangelical church in Scotland. It's not the history of what is good evangelical church separated in Scotland again today. And that's a tough thing, to have to separate from that and say, you know, I'm willing to put myself in, again, what people would maybe look down upon and say, well, that's a Baptist church. And they don't even know maybe what that is, but it's not Church of Scotland. Or the stigma of, you know, that's an American preacher, and he's young, he's ugly. You know, I don't know. There might be things that you look at and say, to be a disciple of Christ, people are going to laugh at me. I mean, they're going to say, man, you're just holier than thou. If you're going to live holy and believe the Bible and obey God and please God and raise good kids. But are you teachable? Are you humble enough to let the Word of God beat your heart up a little bit and challenge you in your walk with the Lord? Paul himself was happy to be a fool for Christ. 1 Corinthians 4.10, again, we've been studying this book of 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians, and Paul's trying to correct the church. What he says, he says, we are fools for Christ's sake. but ye are wise in Christ. We are weak, but ye are strong. Ye are honorable, but we are despised. And there's a bit of sarcasm there. He's saying, you're despising me, you're looking down upon me, but I'll tell you what, church, he says, I am willing to be a fool for Christ. I'm willing to be dishonored for Christ. If you want to be hoity-toity, religious, and have the applause of the world, fine. Paul didn't care. Can I ask you today, are you willing to be a fool for Christ? Are you too proud to be a humble servant? Are you too proud to say, I am a disciple of Jesus? Job put it like this, no doubt you're the people and wisdom shall die with you. He's saying, you think you're so right. You know, it's a sad thing when somebody's like that. You know, God can't work in somebody's life like that. If somebody's proud, God's got to humble them before he can do anything significant in their life. And so are you teachable? Look at Joseph. He was a man God could teach. He was a man of surrender. He was a man of boldness. He was a man of faith. He was a man of wisdom. He was a man of honor. And then God chose a man who wasn't perfect. And I hope this is encouraging, all right? Talked about who he was. You might have looked at that and said, wow, you know, he's a man of honor. He's teachable. He's all these things. And I can never be like that. But can I say about Joseph, Joseph wasn't a perfect man. Joseph wasn't perfect. John 19.38 says, after this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus. He wasn't perfect. Why? He didn't stand up for Jesus when it counted. He's kind of like Peter. When it counted, he could have again cried out at the Sanhedrin and say, spare the man, he's innocent. We don't read that. We read, he consented not. He didn't agree, but it doesn't say again that he dissented. And perhaps Joseph had regret, and as he's looking at the cross, he sees the death of the Lord. He understands that's the Messiah. He says to himself, I haven't stood up for Jesus until this day, but by God's grace, I'm standing now. Isn't that what he did? He wasn't a perfect man. He hadn't succeeded to this point, but this is a point of victory for him. As he steps in, he boldly goes before Pilate. He craves the body of Jesus. Do you know, you might look at your life and say, but I'm not perfect. Listen, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I'm chief, Paul said. See, the Lord didn't come for perfect people. He came to perfect people. by His grace. It's not something we can do. We talked about in Sunday school, if anybody thinks, you know, I can be kind, I can be sweet, I can be holy, I can be right, I can be pure, I can serve God, and it's not in complete dependence upon God saying, God, it's all you, it's not me. That can't be done. And so today, you might look at your heart and say, you know what, I wanna be somebody God could use. I really do. I want God to use me. And to this point, I'm not done much for God. To be honest, I've not really stepped out for God. And you look at this man, Joseph, and that's the way he was. He was afraid, he was a fearful person, but he said, today's the day I'm gonna be counted for God. And God can use you, and God can use me. May God here today, as we look at this man, challenge our hearts. Here's a man, he's not a perfect man, but he's a man that God's gonna allow to take the body of the Lord Jesus Christ off the cross. See, Joseph right now is in heaven, in paradise. You know what he's looking at? He's looking at the Lord. What do you think Joseph sees? Joseph sees a body that he took off the cross. Jesus looked the same after He rose from the dead. He's coming back the same. We've been talking about it on Thursday nights. He's going to look the same. Identical. The same Jesus which is taken from you. He's coming again. He looks the same. Joseph looks at that body and says, I remember that body. I've held that body in my hands. I took that body from the cross. What a privilege Joseph had. But why did God choose him for such a precious thing? Well, he was a man that was teachable. Are you teachable this morning, listening to the Word of God? How's your heart? You could judge your heart right now, saying, am I resisting that? Am I standing opposed to that? Am I against that? Or am I accepting it? Am I receiving it? Am I saying, oh God, please, that's what I need. I need to be a disciple of Christ. I want you to teach me. I want you to instruct me. Are you surrendered? Not just financially, but financially included. Are you surrendered to God? Say, God, whatever it is in my life, and whether that means me, for the case of maybe somebody in here that God would call into missions or something like that, even if it means leaving my country to go to another country for the Lord. or if it means standing up to my family and saying, I'm identifying with Christ, that I'm surrendering to God, that there's nothing in my life that I'm holding back from you. Are you boldly serving Him? Got any plans for serving God? Got any ideas about what you can do for the Lord? Are you a person of faith that you take this book and say, you know, I'm looking for that kingdom, the kingdom, thy kingdom come, man, I can't wait. I'm ready for the millennium. I'm ready for the eternal heaven, new heaven and new earth. and the Lord being in perfect control. Are you wise enough to do what's right, even though everyone else is doing what's wrong? It takes wisdom. It takes wisdom to say, let God be true, but every man a liar, that I'm going to identify with Christ, I'm not going to count the cost. Are you a person of honor and integrity? Can God entrust something to you, and will you do it for him? It might be today that he's entrusting his son, saying, you know what, my son died for you, he paid the price on the cross for you, If you accept him today, I'll save you. I'll give you the gift of everlasting life. And he's holding it out saying, will you take that today? Are you a person of integrity that would take that sacred charge from the Lord and accept his son and the gift that he gave when he died for you? As a believer, the Spirit of God might be speaking to you about witnessing to somebody. It might be speaking to you about more faithfulness to the house of God. It might be speaking to you about taking a stand for God. Maybe you've never been biblically baptized by immersion, put under the water and up again, as the Word of God speaks about. It might be just committing to the cause of Christ. Whatever it is, are you somebody that can take that charge from the Lord and say, God, I'll do this for you, as Joseph did as he took the body of Christ. Let's pray. Father, take the Word of God and work deeply in our hearts. That's what we desire. Lord, we don't want to be our own people today. We don't want to do our own thing. We mess it up. And Father, it might be today that you're speaking to somebody's heart about salvation. They know today that if they died, they'd go to hell because the wages of sin is death. But they've come to understand today, Jesus said, you die on the cross for their sin, that you paid the complete price and that by faith, In Him, just simply trusting and asking and receiving, they could take God's gift of everlasting life. If you're speaking to their heart in that way, God, don't stop. Lord, don't stop until they receive. I pray today, if they need to talk to us after the service, speak to us and say, I need that salvation, we'd love to take them and show them from the Bible how they can accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. But Father, if they leave this place unsaved, I pray, may it be tonight in their own room that they bow the head and bow the knee and ask Jesus Christ to come into their heart and save them. Father, those of us who are saved, surely the Spirit of God has spoken to us. Father, help us to be people of honor. Help us to be wise enough to do what's right and everyone else doing what's wrong. Father, help us to take our riches and surrender them. Father, help us to just be faithful to what you've called us to do. And take that step. It might be somebody who's never stepped out for the Lord. They need to step out and be saved. They need to step out and be baptized. They need to say to God, God, I've never to this day served God in my life, but today's the day. And Father, please, just give them grace in their heart right now to say that to you, that they make that definite decision of surrender. And God, just use your word as only you can today. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen.