"Co-Heirs With Jesus - What Does It Mean?" - by J. Dan Gill

[Music] well I thought we'd talk about this morning what you signed up for in in the Lord unless just gets and there's so many things we won't cover them all but we're gonna focus this morning on some of the difficult things that we encounter sometimes so let's begin in Matthew 16:24 if you will JJ and we'll just launch from there what better way to begin than with the words of Jesus himself then jesus said to his disciples listen to this if anyone wishes to come after me he must deny himself not enlarge himself not get bigger but deny himself and take up his cross and follow me well let's follow over them - one of my favorite scriptures one of my favorite passages in Romans 8 and verse 17 Paul is talking to the Romans and he says we're children of God and then he says and if we're children then we are noticed this heirs heirs also heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him verse 18 for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us think about this for a minute hi we're we're we're signing up sometimes for hard times we're signing up for difficult times where we're signing up to get hated well I think that's because generally speaking the world loved darkness rather than light and if you come along with a light they're saying put that out it's really the light they hate if you just put the light away put the light out you be right at home you know that's okay but when you're carrying that torch of light Jesus says they hate that they despise it so Wow so there's there's grand things going on here are large-scale issues light and darkness God the love of God and the love of this world so yeah all this going on but let's think about this again let's go back and read verse 17 again if you will JJ your children Paul announces to those Christians at Rome your children and if your children then your heirs well who is an heir an heir is one who indeed inherits something Wow now I think that doesn't always turn out to be so great I think my hair's might to be disappointed someday I'm not have a whole lot of this world stuff but whatever I have I suppose it will go to my heirs as it were well God has something he's giving and it's an inheritance but it's interesting we don't earn this inheritance first we don't earn it in in a sense in ourselves it's a promise to that God has made to the Messiah and if you haven't read it for a while go back and refresh yourself in the second Psalm that's that's a messianic Psalm talking about the Messiah and talking about how God has favoured him and what did God say to him he the Messiah says in spirit that God had said to him you know ask of me and I'll give you the ends of the earth as your inheritance Wow I love that that's the inheritance of the Messiah we read that for yourself sometimes then reread it it's great the second Psalm it's one of the greatest cornerstone pieces of scripture in the entire entire Bible so what is the messiah's deal his inheritance would be the whole earth that's interesting his inheritance really is in heaven his inheritance of the earth that's the reason he's called the second atom the first atom in the name of humanity was also given purview rulership if you will over the earth kind of messed up there though and they've got everything out of whack but now there comes a second atom and guess what to him who is the one that God has anointed he is the Messiah God says to this Messiah to this one hey guess what I'm going to give you I'm gonna give you everything I intended for Adam I'm gonna give it to you and that'll be your inheritance Wow well we see then in Romans 8:17 and I just love this point and I like to mention it every once awhile but our inheritance is the inheritance of our Lord our inheritance is whatever he gets we're co-heirs with him joint heirs with Christ so his inheritance is ours too because of what relationship interesting being in Christ we talked about that not too long ago there are four Sundays back what does it really mean to be in Christ it's about relationship yeah and God counts that significant it's not that just Christ is over here on the side or something no our relationship with Christ is what brings us to peace with God 9 so here we are he has an inheritance God has determined that and then God has determined that his people will share with him in that inheritance that comes all the way down to me and you so he inherits Psalm 2 tells us the four corners of the earth ask of me and I'll give it to you and God does but that same is our so if you were children than were heirs heirs also heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ it's not like were the heirs of Christ he and us together are the heirs of God I love that if indeed oh my goodness look here he's getting oh my goodness if indeed we suffer with him hmm so that we may also be glorified with him so Wow what are we signing on for then what are we signing up for so to speak when we say I want to follow Christ well we don't sign up for necessarily a bed of roses as it were tiptoe through the tulips in life our lives also have difficulties and hardships and said well I don't want to serve God then well I have to tell you if you don't serve god you're still gonna have all them hardships life comes with him doesn't it I don't know what you'd do without him I don't know what I would do so fellow heirs with Christ but we suffer with him that was such a confusing thought to the folks of his day the Jewish folks in particular how is it that the Christ that comes to deliver us suffers and dies it just makes no sense actually it did make sense in the great eternal plans of God it made all kinds of sense so yeah he suffered and guess what he's called us to follow him take up our cross deny ourselves be hated in perhaps of the people of this age and yes to suffer with Christ Wow he takes that very person remember when Jesus appeared to Saul Paul on the road to Damascus Jesus says to Saul why are you persecuting me which I think was just dumbfounding to Saul because he's thinking and he does say it he says who are you sir curiosity is actually you know but anyway says who in the world are you what's going on and the Lord says I am Jesus whom you are persecuting Wow so Jesus then takes his relationship with his people to be absolute and immediate and real if you've done this unto one of the least of these you've done it unto me but on the other hand if you mistreated one of the least of these my disciples you've mistreated me he takes this very personally doesn't he this is this is him and his people and he doesn't make a distinction even when we see Paul's beautiful picture about the body of Christ remember Jesus is not outside the body of Christ he's part of the body he's the head wow that's the reason the scripture said he Jesus is therefore not ashamed to call us brethren whoa I love it he's not ashamed to call us brethren because he truly is one of us how mighty is that how powerful is that so so then we're going to suffer with him if indeed we do that's a conditional if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him remember Jesus said in Luke 24 26 to the two fellows on the road to Emmaus and they were dumbfounded Jesus says has died we don't know what's going on anyway but Jesus peer stood not seen he was held from them the glorified Christ withheld from them to understand who he was at that moment and he said well didn't you read didn't you realize that Christ must first suffer these things and then enter into his glory the glory that God had prepared for him from the Foundation's the earth Wow so that's the glory were participating in - so what are we signing on for not necessarily great times in the terms of the things of this world we signed on in this world to be at different from them to speak a different message than they would speak to think differently than they think and then possibly to be um you know they would be unhappy with us and mean toward us persecuting us even how awful is that so the people of this world hmm we signed on to that but here's the rest of the story when we signed on to suffer with Christ we also signed on to be inheritors with him and to be part of that glory that he will receive because the glory Jesus said in John 17 the glory you've given to me Oh father I've given to them Wow so in the resurrection this is mighty it's very powerful we also be glorified with him Wow verse 18 again if you will JJ he said I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not to be compared they're not were than even compared to the glory that is going to be revealed to us I like that King James says in us but to us I think is probably right he's gonna show it to us and then we it will be in us of course so but what is this hardship business Paul who got beat up a lot over this message Paul who got imprisoned over it Paul who really got hated by a lot of folks they had to sneak him out of town one time because of the people that hated him but Paul is saying he's putting it this way the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that stands before us can you say man now now we're seeing the whole picture here we're seeing yeah we may suffer some things it may not be a tiptoe through the tulips and all the rest of that and we may not always be healthy wealthy and wise in this age if we were then that would be the age to come and that's not here yet but we're still a part of this this scheme of things we're in the world but not of the world remember that Wow so we're still here that but in the time to come at the age to come we inherit with Christ and when he thinks of it that way oh my goodness well the things we're going through here that are unhappy things are not even worthy to be compared to what stands before us in terms of the glory that shall be revealed to us I like that a lot what do you think so now we're talking begin to see this what have we been what have we signed up for we've signed up for some tough times at times but we've also signed up for glory inheritance and who's is glory the glory of Christ that God gives him and whose inheritance the inheritance of Christ that God gives him and it spills over onto the rest of us who are his people it just doesn't get better than that other thing let's take another look at this for a moment and this difficulty business were signed up for but in Matthew 13 21 back to Jesus again this is this wonderful parable of the sower and the seed fantastic and oh my goodness we should study it over and over and over again and so there's so much wealth and riches in there and understanding but this is this amazing parable that Jesus said now he's talking about what we're not going to read the whole parable but he is talking about one kind of ground if you will who received the seed which is the Word of God but notice what it says here in this verse yet he that person that seed that ground has no firm root in himself but is only temporary and when affliction or persecution arises because of Hoops wait a minute because of the word immediately he falls away oh my goodness now isn't that interesting this is the words of Jesus I think this is very powerful but he's talking about one of the four types of grounds that he talks about in the parable but this one he says this is the one where that there's not depth of root and and so on and when affliction or persecution arises but notice this because of the word the word of God immediately he falls away that one falls oh isn't that interesting Wow so here's Jesus I've often said if he had just kept his mouth shut he could have lived a very long and happy life in Israel in those days if he had not spoken the Word of God then Jesus probably would have been welcome at any kind of group meeting that they wanted to have town halls whatever they wanted to do oh yeah bring him in and and he probably could have healed people and all the rest of those good things if he had just kept his mouth shut hmm and then but he could not but Speak the word that God had given him he had - and guess what it not only made a mad it made them very man it made them terribly angry and what else it made them so angry that they plotted against him how can we shut him up because the those that were in charge of the system of the day so to speak and some of the great ones of that time they were very offended because he was speaking the word and he was speaking with enough contrast that those who were on the wrong side of the word it was becoming obvious mm-hmm they weren't in the right lane as far as Jesus was concerned and that was embarrassing and frustrating and then angering well this anger goes so far because he was speaking the word it goes so far that they killed him so but the partner wanted us to get here is the word is the offense because the word of God is the light that the dark world doesn't like Jesus said they prefer darkness rather than light why because their deeds were evil exactly and if you bring light around there it's gonna be expose those people now mind you there's nobody left like this thankfully they all died out in the first century I don't know what we do with that but but here we are it's the Word of God that's light you know remember that David said it so well in psalm 119:105 everybody remembers if you don't remember you're gonna remember it from the Amy Grant song it was so popular but thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light to my path the Word of God is light so when Jesus said in John 8:12 I am the light of the world that wasn't because he was glowing real brightly or something it was because he was speaking the Word of God and that is light the truth is the light and then when he said to his disciples you'd be liked you are the light of the world you're like a city that's set on a hill it can't be hidden let your light so shine so that people of this world can see you and see the work of your father and you let your light shine but the light means words deeds indeed of course but we say that being a nice person alone doesn't get it we have to have the Word of God moving in us and speak that word because it's really the light and James flips that same equation and puts it this way it's not the person who hears the word that's justified but it's the one who does the word Wow I like all that so it's not enough to hear it it's not enough to say oh that's nice or I love it oh ok but we're gonna be tested about that along the way at times Wow so this is this is powerful but for the word of God's sake persecution and afflictions may arise hmm well if persecutions afflictions never come to us we might want to stop and wonder well are we holding forth to hurt or not I don't know maybe there's something about we're not we're not making the word clear enough that anybody would be uncomfortable with the word hmm okay it's not our business to make people uncomfortable no but it is the business of God to make people uncomfortable with his word he always has he's made me uncomfortable with his word so it comes to me then I have to be the one to modify myself to his thoughts the Word of God is that that's the thoughts of God that's his mind the word of Dale dougie is the thoughts of Dale tucky his thoughts his understanding his wisdom is and all these wonderful things that's him but we're talking about the Word of God we're talking about the thoughts of God how God sees things how God looks at these things so Wow God's showing us in his word he's showing us how he thinks how he looks at things imagine so we might receive affliction and persecution because of the word because of the word Wow Matthew 20 and 20 is a great verse everyone should know this one this is when Jesus is about to be taken up and these are the last words that Matthew records about him or of his sayings so these are the last words of Matthew's writing Jesus is saying to his disciples teaching them that is the nation's to observe all to observe all that I commanded you and lo I am with you always even to the end of the age he doesn't say I've come to be with you at the end of the age he says I'll be with you all the way to the end of the age interesting I think that's where the spear of God comes into play and and the work of the Messiah in spirit but whatever the case notice he is binding them if you will that they would teach people the nation's to observe the things that he has taught them he didn't say guys now y'all are a bunch of good guys and y'all are very wise go out and just have a good time tell people you know whatever you feel like this is good for them know Jesus did not speak his own words he says that in a variety of places he says the words that I speak they're not my own but the father the one who sent me these are his words and if anybody would do the will of God they'll realize this is not just me but it's the Word of God it's God's Word that I'm speaking so Jesus was very true to speaking the Word of God well if that was something he had to do he was very determined to do that in order to please God then for goodness sakes wouldn't that then come down to us if we're going to be his disciples that we too would speak that same word be true to it if we can use the word pedigree I guess anyway there's a pedigree to the word moving to the word of God maybe there's a better way to express that but God word originates in the mind of God in the heart of God he shares it with be sure that in all the Old Testament with the prophets of old God spoke to the father's by the prophets in various ways in various times Hebrews 1 and 1 but now but now he's spoken to us by a son but it's the Word of God remember in Deuteronomy the eighteenth chapter when God is speaking to Moses and they're talking about it the times gonna come I'm gonna raise up a prophet like unto Moses unto you from among the Brethren Wow that's what it says go back and read Deuteronomy 18:15 through 18 or so but Mubeen one that I'm going to raise up and I will put my words in his mouth Wow and he will speak whatever it is I tell him to speak and then listen to this he says and when that time comes anybody who will not hear him they'll have to answer to me well guess what because it was God's Word that he was going to be speaking I will put my words in his mouth go back and and read them wow this is wonderful Neutron the 18th chapter but so if Jesus was true to the word that God gave him how important is it that we then be true to the Word of God that God gave him and he has given to us I think that's something really to think about and in order to be truly a light of the world we have to somehow speak that word in the world with all wisdom with love and sometimes we have to speak it with vitality and energy tell them all the things that I have commanded you and then I'm gonna be with you I'm not gonna be missing I'm not gonna be the missing Christ I'm gonna be with you always even to the very end of the age then we know he'll be with us out there on the other side of that so that's when the kingdom of God is truly established upon the earth that's wonderful let's read acts 20 and verse 32 JJ Paul is talking to let's see the elders from Ephesus interesting not the elder from Ephesus but the elders plural from Ephesus and he's called him down he's on the journey through and he calls him down to the seaport so to speak little town down there and he meets with them but as he reaches the end of his talk with him and what he had to say to those elders he says and now I commend you to God and notice the conjunction and to the word of His grace the word of His grace I commend you to that well these are teachers elders guides to the church and yet what is he saying to them he's saying I'm commending you to the Word of God to his the word of his work and mercy and grace in Christ Jesus which now notice this part which is able to build you up spiritually speaking and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified so think about this for a moment Paul is saying to the elders from Ephesus he called him to come down and they did they went down met with him you can read this 20th chapter and see other things that he was telling them and what happened on that occasion was wonderful but Paul is saying to these teachers to these elders he's saying I'm commending you to God into the world grace because that word is able to build you up and then by the grace of God they would in turn through that word build up those who heard them Paul said to Timothy you know I'm commending you so to speak to to God and and to the teaching by which you will save yourself and those who hear you Wow the Word of God is salvation the Word of God is hope the Word of God is about our inheritance and in way it's very intrinsically related to our inheritance I commend you to God and to the word of His grace which which is able to build you up and this word gives you will give you the inheritance among everybody who is sanctified set apart for the service of Christ Jesus Hey this became earlier in my life and I was going through a difficult time with some folks this scripture became such a great help to me it's like it just lit up and became a part of me and it has been to this day and I still look back in and I think wow should we not all live this way if we think we love God then love his word if we think we would honor God than honor his word if we think we don't like darkness then love the light of God's word and if we don't judge ourselves or measure ourselves by the Word of God then aren't we out there on our own so to speak because now we're saying I know God is happy with me because and then I make up my own why God's Mahaffey with me but if we go to the Word of God then the mind and heart of God is showing me what he wants of my life interestingly enough God is interested in and cares about the lives of us poor people those who are in Christ enough so that there's an inheritance that is ours I like that alone I like it ready to build you up you elders you teachers you need the Word of God by the grace and kindness of God have been teaching and thinking on his word for a long time I still AM I still learn Wow and I learned from all of you I had intend to make that my habit until I'm gone what do you think why not but I've been doing this for quite some time so I recommend to you if I'm doing and I'm still learning you make that your habit to the day you decide I've arrived I don't need anything else that's the day we quit growing but Peter said in the last words he spoke to those he was writing to he said and this is bright the first Peter 3:18 I believe 2nd Peter 3:18 and Peter is saying but grow grow grow in the Grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ wow he's not writing that to new people if you read his writings you realize these are people who knew the Lord who had walked with the Lord it's amazing he's writing it to people who who are in Christ but what is he saying grow grow in the grace that is the active interventions of God for you and for his people grow in that enlarge in his active interventions his favor grow in the Grace and knowledge notice the word knowledge knowledge nowadays takes a hard hit even in the Christian world it's almost like it's nearly a bad word or something knowledge who needs knowledge who well apparently we all do because that was all Peters last words that we have that he wrote and he's saying you people grow in the Grace and the knowledge to knowledge now minded knowledge for knowledge sake is not all that grand but the knowledge of Jesus Christ is more precious than any of that and if we should care about the knowledge of these other things we should care about this even more so we've actually withdrawn so to speak from knowledge and growing I hear that actually being spoken about Christian thanks very thoughtless very unfortunate oh we don't need more knowledge oh yeah you do too that's just not true and what we're doing then by saying knowledge is not critical it's not important then we're telling everybody don't worry about knowledge the knowledge of Christ the knowledge of the truth of God the knowledge of the truth of God's Word say but I can't have it then why did God's put it in there and why did Peter say get it I think it is alive the enemy to say you can't have the knowledge of Christ you can't have the knowledge of God you can't have it well if you're told you can't have it then you won't see it and if you're told it's not important just love everybody well I wouldn't even know that God wanted everybody to love you know everybody if his word hadn't said that it does so the knowledge of Christ and of God is extolled many times over now if we use our knowledge to puff ourselves up Paul talks about that to the Corinthians and that's awful that's contrary and the person is going to puff themselves up with knowledge even spiritual knowledge they're missing the ballgame they're missing the whole point but without knowledge we don't know how can we do what we don't know to do how can we under grasp what we don't know is true and right so Wow we have signed up for a lot of things we're only touching some of those today we signed up for a lot of good things and we've signed up believe it or not that sometimes things won't go well sometimes it's just life just take a look around and you see the people of this life that don't even serve God but you see them and they you know they have tough times and hard times and so on well God's people aren't immune from that either well not while we're in this world now while we're in this age also then we are going to find that hardships come to us because we're serving God because we love Jesus Christ they come because we love the Word of God and God forbid that we would speak it oh well god forbid we would not speak it so I said before when you see folks sometimes take a good look and understand what is the problem with people and sometimes the problem is the Word of God is the offense please don't speak it please don't say it you want people to get it by osmosis so you don't have to tell anybody because then that might cost you something hmm you might be it fall into that category the people that they would start being persecuted because of the word and yet that's what Jesus said so we can do our own version of Christianity or we can do the version of Christianity of Christ but if we're going to do the version of Christianity of Christ then we've got to take a good sound look at what the words of Christ say to us so perhaps today we're not going through great hardships or difficulties because of the Word of God or because of our faith we live in a great land at its worst this nation is a wonderful place to be with great opportunities and freedoms at this point so we've got it light we've gotten easy and we got a guy who got beat up all the time and went to prison and jail and had all kinds of trials saying oh but all this stuff isn't worthy to be compared to the glory that's going to come well then I think about Paul sometimes if I'm gonna start moaning and say oh I've got hard well okay well in the kingdom of God when I see the Apostle Paul I don't know I don't think I'm gonna be able to explain to him Paul you just don't know how hard I had it oh my goodness it was tough I'll tell you right now well but it is good isn't it let's pray father we love you so much we love you because of your word because of your great kindness because of that grace in which we can grow we thank you for granting to us light and understanding and truth and let us indeed be lights of the world let us indeed be a city that is set upon a hill that can't be hidden let us to speak the words of our Lord Jesus as he spoke your words O God let us be true to your word honor your word and honor you and bless people through these things o God we thank you for all these good things and for all this good people have come together today thank you for bringing us together and for giving us this opportunity to look to your word and to look to you in to worship you we pray now be with us for the rest of our day we ask all of these things in the name of your dear son our wonderful Lord Jesus

Channel: 21st Century Reformation

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Keywords: Who is J. Dan Gill?, What does Psalm 2 mean?, What does Romans 8 mean?, Who is Dan Gill?, What is the kingdom of God?, What do Biblical Unitarians Believe?, What do Biblical Monotarians believe?

Id: f4-PicCgcaA

Length: 39min 31sec (2371 seconds)

Published: Fri Nov 15 2019