Welcome to Fife's Pulpit to our midweek studies. My name is Pastor John and I hope that it's going to be of some help to you as we study the scriptures and the scriptural principles tonight. I want you to turn with me to Hebrews chapter 11 or I'll just read it to you. Verse 32. After all the great catalogue of the people of the Old Testament that had great faith and they're named, We come to read this from verse 32 to the end. And what more can I say? Time is too short for me to tell about Gideon, Baruch, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, and shut the mouths of lions, quenched the raging of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength in weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead, raised to life again. Other people were tortured, not accepting release so that they might gain a better resurrection. Others experienced mockings and scourgings, as well as the bonds and imprisonments. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they died by the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins, goatskins, destitute, afflicted and mistreated. The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in the deserts and on the mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. All these were approved through faith, but they did not receive what was promised. Since God had provided something better for us, that they would not be made perfect without us. But here we get, in this great chapter, a catalogue of people who are lived by faith. Remember, when we're studying faith, faith is in the Word of God. What God says, we believe and we act upon it, and that is faith. But the title of the subject tonight is the blessings of being a Christian in the world. Now in our text we read of believers from all backgrounds, some well known to us and others unnamed. They lived in this world and they served God and their lives are summed up by the statement in verse 38, that the world was not worthy of them. And they start with the well-known folks and come to ordinary people that are unnamed. And I would suggest that those ordinary people could also include us, that we are people who live by faith, unnamed, but we still live by faith. You see, today Christians are pushed aside as bigots, unloving, out of touch with the world. In many, many countries, we read every day that they are killed and thrown out of their jobs. I know that in my own country, Scotland, seems now determined to squash any Christian influence and is ruled by a secular spirit that pays no attention to its great historical past. But despite these things, the Christian is content. And despite these things, the Christian is the most happiest of all people. Yes, you see, there are great blessings in being a Christian. Though storms may come and go and governments change hands, laws come against us and sometimes for us, and the world bombards us with its propaganda and the blessings of being part of its great circus. Yet, there are many great blessings in being a Christian. In many ways, the Christians are revolutionaries and non-conformists, those unwilling to be taken back to the past where darkness rules. Many people today want to enact laws that will actually take us back when darkness ruled. Yes, there are many, many blessings to being a Christian. And that's what I want to speak to you today about. Many years ago, a Puritan called Thomas Brooks, you'll know if you know me that he's one of my favourite Puritans, he wrote about the blessings of being a Christian, of having glorious assurance and the sense of utter security. So what I want to do is to bring to you some of his thoughts and embellish them with my own, mingling with his, and just maybe help us all grasp the blessings that come from being a Christian. Of course, these blessings are not understood at all by the world, but only by the Christian. So what are the blessings that come from being a Christian, living in this sinful, beautiful world in which God has put us? Well, firstly, I want to say this. Being a Christian in the world brings heaven down to you whilst you remain on earth. Now, this is almost criminal, really, for the Christian, despised and rejected by this world, has the best of everything. They can enjoy the blessings of life, yeah, they can enjoy nature, they can enjoy the beauty and breathe the same air, but they can also look forward to seeing their Lord and the blessings of eternity. We're all like our Father Abraham, who were travelling to a city not built by human hands. We have God on earth but also God in heaven. And in a true sense we have heaven within us. For the centre of heaven is whom? Jesus Christ our Lord. And heaven's centre lives within our hearts. For as Paul says in Colossians 1.27, to whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of his glory and the mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We can and we do enjoy the beauty of life. Just as I was first writing this the other morning, a beautiful blue titbird landed nearby and its colours were amazing in blues and blacks and whites and bright yellows. And only this morning, I have to sleep with the window open because of my breathing difficulties, but I woke up early and heard what we term the dawn chorus. That's every little bird singing their own song against each other, it seems, and the whole earth seemed to erupt in sick bird singing. And I can look at the trees beginning to bloom, the amazing pink blossom. I can watch Frankie and Benny, my two cats, play. And all these things I can enjoy and attribute to my Heavenly Father. Of course, the non-Christian can and does appreciate the beauty around them. We share those things in our common humanity. But of course, the Christian attributes and gives glory to God for these things. My point is this, as we observe the lilies of the field, as our Lord said, we give God the glory and his love for his love and kindness towards us. But we have a certain hope also, knowing that we are here on earth in all of its beauties surround us for a short time. And as Hebrews 9.27 says, just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment. But of course, the beauty is that we as Christians already had our sins judged and paid for at the cross so we can leave this world with a sure and certain hope of seeing Christ in heaven. I wonder how much we really think about these things. Most of us enjoy that which creation offers. We eat, we drink, we're merry with many of the things in life, with our friends and our families. Then all this then will fill out to a fullness beyond our imagination. We shall see him and gaze at him and gaze at all around him. And then we will wonder, why did he leave all of this, all of this beauty of heaven and tread the dusty roads of Galilee and was nailed to a cross, spat upon, when here in heaven he is adored? Sire will fall down in worship for his love in leaving the splendour of heaven for me. But what am I saying? I'm saying quite simply this. We have the best of this earth and enjoying God's bounty and goodness towards us. And yet we have the glories of heaven and seeing Christ waiting for us. The unconverted just have this earth. They cannot and do not look forward to anything in the future. We do. So we live on this earth, yet we're in heaven. Was it said of Richard Sibbes that heaven was in him before he was even in heaven? So that is my first point that we live here, but heaven is in us. The seed of heaven is there. Secondly, The joy of being a Christian in the world, and this is according to Brooks, Brooks' statement is, will exceedingly sweeten all the changes of this life. You see, life is full of changes. A text can change our lives. A phone call, a knock at the door can suddenly change our circumstances. 2 Corinthians 4, 16-18 says, so we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is prepared for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. And as we look to the things that are seen, We do not look to the things that are seen, but to the things that are unseen. For things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Says Brooks, while a man lives in a sense of unchangeable love, no outward changes can make any considerable change in his spirit. Let time change. Let men change. let powers change, let nations change. Yet a Christian will not change his countenance, nor change his master, nor change his work, nor change his hope. And Brooks is right when he says that. The world carries its children on every whim of doctrine, every fad, every fashion. But the Christian He's not fooled or she's not fooled by this. These changes of life mean nothing to us. The world just carries its children away. The Christian should be like the law of the Medes and the Persians, says Brooks. It never changes. And circumstances come and circumstances go as we walk upon this earth. Yet we remain solid and faithful. Habakkuk 3, 17 to 19. A well-known text. Though the fig tree shouldn't blossom, nor fruit beyond the vine and the produce of olive fail, the fields yield no food and the flock be cut off from the fold. and there be no herd in the stalls. Yet, yet will I rejoice in the Lord. I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God the Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like deers. He makes me tread on high places. So then another great advantage of living as a Christian is that we have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll. and it is fastened in the rock beyond the veil that cannot move. So not only do we have that measure of heaven in us while we walk here on earth, But we also see the changes of life as God's providence and we just have to get on with it. We have to adapt and we have to understand that our loving father is behind all of these things. Whereas the world panics, the world worries, we should not worry, for God has this. Thirdly, As a Christian living in the world, our heart is kept from any inordinate running after the world and its glory. That's a quotation from Brooks. The heart is kept from any inordinate running out after the world and its glory. Now this is a trap that even many church leaders sadly today have fallen into. We must be careful that the praise of men doesn't become something sought after. You see, I have long believed that human beings are not created to handle praise and adoration. Only God can handle that, because He is perfect and demands it. It is His perfect right. But human beings If we adore them and praise them, in the end, they just can't take it. And we should be careful of that. We should keep away from the world and its glory. Moses, according to Hebrews 11, turned his back upon riches and honour to lead God's people into the desert. Paul saw the world crucified unto him. He was dead to the world and dead to the world's praises. Of course, to be praised for something you might have achieved is not in itself sinful. We all need to be thanked for the work we have done and encouraged, not flattered. But it is just a fleeting thing, as Juan Puritan says about flattery. Flattery is like perfume. You can smell it and you can enjoy it, but don't swallow it. Speaking of the Pharisees, Jesus referred to their love of the praise of men. In Matthew 6, he says, Thus when you give to the needy, say, I am no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. It is not wrong, of course, to thank and honour and praise someone for something that they have done and accomplished and that encourages them. In the old ancient games, when somebody won a race, they were put a laurel wreath on their head and it was their moment. But as Jesus says, it is their moment, that their reward of these Pharisees is over. They've had it. That is their reward of people just being reverence to them because it's fleeting. It's of little eternal consequences. So occasionally we may smell the perfume of worldly praise. but dear ones, don't depend upon it and certainly do not seek it. For as a Christian in this world, we must only want to hear our Lord say, well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of the Lord. So be careful of going after this world's goods and praise and this world's glory. Fourthly, Living as a Christian in this world will only serve to heighten your communion with God. Here is something wonderful about being a Christian living in this world. When you are separated from the one you love and are in an environment that keeps you apart, then the longing for your love intensifies. This is pictured for us in the Song of Solomon, where lovers are separated and long for each other. And this is a simple point. But although in heaven we shall love our Lord with a depth not experienced on earth, yet our longing will end for we shall see him face to face. But just now we need him. We do need him more than ever when we are assaulted by the world, by the flesh, by our own nature and by the enemy. We need him and it increases our desire, our communion, our fellowship with God. We need his assurance. We need his forgiveness moment by moment. We need constantly to run to the rock that is higher than I. We need to pray often, to walk with him, to lean on his power, to overcome all that would crush us in this world. We seek our refuge in him and there's no shame, dear ones, in doing that. At times we feel we need the wings of a dove to escape to the desert and find strength. Times we're like Elijah under the broom tree, even wanting to die, but we cry out to God. We learn to believe His word, to rest in His power, to trust in His providence. We remember continuously that we're in a foreign and hostile land, so we cling close to our Lord, our Captain. Just like Joshua, when he went into Canaan, we don't move unless we're under orders, unless we lose ground. We, like him, live by faith. and like him, are often astounded at the amazing deliverances God gives us as we walk with him. Understand that all this is due to us being Christians in this world. Remember, angels do not have this experience, for they live in a constant atmosphere of praise and love and purity. That's why they stand by us and do God's bidding to defend us as he wills. So living as a Christian in this world is unique and a privilege to serve God in a foreign land. This will also make us more aware of counterfeits as we cling close to Him, of false teachers, of false promises that go against what our Father has said in His Word. And we learn as we walk that the judge of the earth will do all things well. And we learn to judge all things by his word and by these great heavenly principles. So that's important, that it will increase as we walk in this world, our communion with God. We have to, we must cling close to him. Sometimes we seem to be hanging on, by our fingernails, but really he is holding us firm. Fifthly, I've only got eight points, so just relax. Fifthly, living as a Christian in this world makes us bold. After all, what do we have to fear? Paul says it. Nakedness, peril, sword, persecution. Death just takes us to heavenly bliss, just like the stones that hit the first Christian martyr Stephen. They simply knocked him nearer to Jesus. In truth, what do we have to fear? Jesus says in Matthew 10, 28, and do not fear those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul or touch the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. When Joshua was approaching Jericho, he met a man with a sword drawn. He wanted to know whose side he was on. The Lord said, no, it's not you, it's not your battle, Joshua, but you fight for me. I am the commander of the Lord's army. So we can be bold, says Brooks about the assured Christian in this world. I quote, more motion than notion, more work than word, more life than lip, more hand than tongue. He will put his hand to any work, his shoulder to any burden, his neck to any yoke for Christ. He never thinks he has done enough, but always thinks he has done too little. And when he hath done all he can, he sits down, sighing, I am but an unprofitable servant. End of quote. We should be bold in this world, therefore, in our sweetness, showing the world what a Christian really is, says Brooks again. Ah, Christian, if ever you would act as angels in this world, then you shall neither be dumb nor dull anymore, but active, lively, of those whose hopes and hearts are in heaven." End of quote. So we should be bold as we live as Christians in this world, bold in our lives, bold in our sweetness, bold in our living. In other words, to make others say like the daughters of Jerusalem in Solomon, when the woman was so adamant to find her lover, she ran about in the streets after the curfew looking for a lover. And they said to her, come on, now tell us, what is your beloved more than any other? and we should be willing to be bold and say, this is my Jesus, my Lord, my Master, and I commend him to you. Sixthly, living as a Christian in this world will enable us to appreciate the little things of life. Just a short point, this one. Because we are not really of this world, we see that even if there is not much in the cruise of oil, that there is always enough. And even if we don't feed on the best of the king's food, still, like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, we fare well on what we have done, what we have. Brooks says that a believer learns to live simply, sweetly, with a little burden on their back. Whereas the world lies heavy on the back of the unbeliever. They are full of fears, full of cares, for nothing pleases them. They're like the horse leeches that has two daughters that says, give, give. Nothing is sweet to them. They're after this, they get more and they want more. But a believer sees beauty and learns to see each day and take it as it comes, as a gift from God to be enjoyed. Just as in Exodus 15, Moses threw the tree into the bitter waters of Mara and made those waters sweet. So even the common, basic things of life sweeten our way along as we live on earth because they are given to us by our Father. So every day we wake and we praise Him for another day. When we close at night, we lie down and say, Lord, into Thy keeping I commend myself. We wake up again to the birds singing and those special little things of life. We learn to bless on this world, to bless God. Now, as I have come this far, I realise there is so much I could say about the blessings of being a Christian on earth. But I want to end with two very, very simple facts for you. Seventhly, It will prepare us. Don't be scared about this one now. It will prepare us for death. This goes without saying. Our faith will strengthen us as we come to the great river to cross. We do not, of course, relish any pain in dying. None of us relish that moment, that pain. As Woody Allen says, you don't often quote Woody Allen in sermons, But he said, Son, as you see the effect, I don't fear death. I just don't want to be there when it happens. But for the Christian living in the world, I could do no better than quote what the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15. Just listen to this. When the perishable have been clothed with imperishable, mortal with immortality, and the saying that is written will come true, Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is thy victory? Where, O death, is thy sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God. He has given us the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that our labour in the Lord is not in vain. So we walk upon this earth, we know our time is limited, we may be a one heartbeat away from eternity, yet we are not afraid, yet we relish the thought talking about relishing the thought that Thomas Vincent, again, one of my favourite Puritans who is so simple and direct, he wrote the little booklet on the unseen love for Christ. I want to quote what people wrote about him and what he said at the moments near his death. The night before his death, He, Vincent, broke out in the following language, expressive of his comfort, peace and joy. Farewell world, he said, the pleasures, the profits and honours of the world. Farewell sin, for I shall forever be with the Lord. Farewell my dear wife, farewell my dear children and farewell my spiritual children. And with the latter, he left the following advice. Be careful in your choice of a pastor. Choose one who in his doctrine and life and manners may adorn the gospel, and I shall be glad to meet you all in heaven." And the approach of the last enemy he hailed thusly, Hasten, hasten, O hasten death! Where is your bow? Where are your arrows? Come, come, come. Yet I am in the body. I am yet on earth, but it is heaven, heaven, heaven that I will gladly be at. I seek death, but I cannot find it. How long, how Lord, how long, holy and true Lord. And he could scarcely reconcile the thoughts of his recovery. And apparently he said to his physician, why do you keep coming to keep me out of heaven? His holy longing to be with Christ, he expressed thus, Dear Jesus, come and take me away. I have no business here. My work is done. My hourglass has run out. My strength has gone. Why shall I stay behind? Oh, come, come. Be as a row upon the mountains of spices. How long shall I wait and cry? How long shall I be absent from you? Oh, come and take me to yourself. Give me the possession of that happiness, which is above the vision of yourself, perfect likeness to yourself, full fruition of yourself without any interruption or end. Oh, come, dear Jesus, how long before you send your chariots? Oh, come down to me and take me up to you. And that was the man, Vincent. Can you say that? Can I say that? One of the Puritan prayers in the Valley of Vision says, Lord, if this be my last day, then may it be my best day. So for the Christian living in this world, it is temporary. And although it is a beautiful world, and its creation is so beautiful in itself, and there are so many pleasurable things we can enjoy upon this earth, something even more wonderful awaits us as we look to a city not made by human hands and as we look to seeing Him who gave Himself for us on the cross. So the Christian, although walking in the land of the living, is not afraid of finally dying and going to be with his Lord. I understood this when a dear friend of mine dropped dead one morning. He was a pastor, a fellow elder of mine in Brighton. A lovely, lovely man. I loved him so much. And I wanted to go and say my farewells to him. I went to the funeral parlour and he lay there in his coffin and I spent just a few minutes with him. But when I saw him there in his lifeless body, I knew with all of my heart that he was not there. I knew that he was in heaven. There was just something as if God put his hand upon my shoulder. I said, John, this is is with me and I knew it. And that is the glory of living on this earth. We know where we're going. Finally, brethren, and this is the most important, all the sins we commit here on earth, all of our failures whilst living here, we shall never, ever have to pay for. Of course, that doesn't mean we can sin as much as we want. As the Apostle Paul says, God forbid that we should think that way. But it does mean that as we serve Him and so often fail, He has dealt with all of our sins. Obviously it will not be until we see Him face to face that we will know the full extent of what He has done for us and just how dangerous our situation was when we remained in our sin, a heartbeat away from hell. for we shall see the true perfection as Isaiah did when he saw the Lord high and lifted up. But what, right now, we walk on earth, tainted, attacked by the world, our own flesh, the devil, our old man wars against the new man. But what makes us different is, to put it simply, we know Christ. He is our saviour. He is our sin-bearer. We walk among men in a fallen world, surrounded by sin, yet we know we are forgiven. Oh, we're not perfect, but we are forgiven. We do not live as blind people, but now walk in the light. The non-believer thinks that they are good. We know we are not, but our only goodness is found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Every morning we wake up in this world and we know the comforted presence of the Spirit of God and the friendship of our Saviour and the love of our Father. There is one of those Victorian hymns and some of them are really very good. But there is one sometimes you sing in mission halls that says this, blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine, heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his spirit, washed in his blood. This is my story. This is my song, praising my Saviour all the day long. This is my story. This is my song, praising my Saviour all the day long. Sin's forgiven. Sin's forgotten. Battles still to be fought, but war is already won. This world is not worthy of the children of God. Kings may come and go. Presidents come and go. Dictators come and go. Viruses happen. Masks are discarded or worn. Wokes appear. Laws and persecution. Opposition. Terrorists. Secularisation. Conspiracy theories. They all come and they all go. But the people of God will live through these things. And they take whatever providence is handed to them. They do not rebel, but point to Christ as the world's greatest need. Hebrews 11 says, others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with a sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated, of whom the world was not worthy. Wandering about in deserts and mountains and in caves of the earth. But we are forgiven. We know where we're going, we know our Saviour, and we are going to see Him one day. Yes, we live as aliens in this world, but let me remind you what we've learned. We have heaven in us and we will accept every change in life as from our Lord. We do not seek this earth's fading glory, but this world drives us to a deeper, deeper relationship with our Lord because we cling to him. It will make us bold in our living. And we praise him even for the smallest blessings we receive. We not only know how to live, but we know how to die. And we, although in the world, walk with God in the forgiveness of our sins and the assurance that we will never pay for them ourselves. Once we were blind, but now we see. What do we see? But Christ on the cross, loving, dying, saving our very souls forever. And what will we see one day? But a lamb upon the throne and cast our crowns before him, lost in wonder, love and praise. And that's who we are. And in that sense, the world is not worthy of us. For we are children of God, however weak, however pathetic we may feel. We are the elect children of the loving God living upon this earth. So cheer up, dear ones. We are marching to Zion. Some of us are limping, some of us are staggering, but we're getting there towards Zion. So I hope this has been some help to you. If it has, just let us know to encourage our hearts. We need that encouragement too. Just a word of prayer now. Father, would you please look after all your children Would you watch over them in this wicked world? A world that is so beautifully made and so intricate in its colours and beauty, yet polluted by man and wickedness. Would you keep each one of those that are listening to this sermon? Would you watch over them, protect and keep them? Would you turn your face towards them and be very, very gracious towards them? And may the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit rest and abide upon each one of his own, both now and forevermore. Amen.