[Jim Lichtenstein] Usually I don’t give a title to a message, probably because I can’t think of one, but today I have a short title, and it simply is “Born to Rule”. Now it may not come immediately to mind where I’m going with this message, but I think, in time, it will. I’m going to begin by talking a bit about the present British royal family. So, buckle up, stay tuned, stay focused with me, and enjoy our ride through a bit of recent and current history of the British royals, starting with Queen Elizabeth II.

Now, Queen Elizabeth II was born April 21, 1926. She was crowned queen in Westminster Abby June 2, 1953. That followed the death of her father, King George VI. Now, unless something unexpected occurs, on September 9th, which is five days before the Feast of Trumpets this year, she will become the longest ever reigning sovereign in British history. She will do that by passing the record for longevity that was set by her great, great grandmother, Queen Victoria. Queen Victoria reigned for 23,266 days 16 hours and 23 minutes. I’m sorry, I can’t get it any closer than that, but that is close enough for government work, as they say.

Now, when Queen Elizabeth passes this milestone, if she makes it, and all indications are that she probably will, she’ll be 89 years old when that event takes place. Now, as an aside, however, she is not the longest current reigning monarch in the world. Somebody else holds that distinction, and I see this as a wonderful Jeopardy question: Who is the longest reigning monarch on Earth today? Show of hands. Ah, I know, and I’ll share it with you: King Bhumibol Adulyadej. In simple terms, we can just call him Rama IX, who is king of what country? Poland? Thailand? Did I hear Thailand? I heard a correct answer. He is the longest reigning monarch and he has sat on the thrown of Thailand since 1946. He has been the reigning monarch since 1946, so that’s a long, long time. His birthday, by the way, was December 5th, of course you all know about that birthday party… I don’t either…

Queen Elizabeth comes from a long, strong, long-lived female line. Her mother, the wife of George VI, was born August 6, 1900, and she died peacefully in her sleep March 20, 2002, at the age of 101. Based on the longevity of the female line of the British royal family, there’s every likelihood that Queen Elizabeth II will become the longest reigning British monarch ever in less than 8 months from now. So that’s something to keep track of as the months go by.

Now, you’re going to ask me, “What significance does that have?” Well, it does have a lot of significance for at least one person, if to no other in particular. That one person is her firstborn son, Prince Charles, who is a long waiting heir apparent to the British throne. So let’s talk a bit about Prince Charles. Charles, Prince of Wales, whose name is Charles Philip Arthur George, was born November 14, 1948, and he is Queen Elizabeth’s elder son. He is also known ultimately in Scotland as the Duke of Rothesay, and in Wales as the Duke of Cornwall, and he holds the distinction of being the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, having held that position since 1952. Since 1952, he has been in line for the British throne. He is also the oldest person to be next in line for the throne since 1714. Now, please don’t ask me who that is because I’m going to flunk on that one!

Charles was born in Buckingham Palace as the first grandchild of King George VI. He was educated at Cheam and Gordonstoun schools, which his father, Prince Philip, had attended. As a child, he also went to the Timbertop Campus of the Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. And after earning a bachelor’s degree from Trinity College, Cambridge, he served in the Royal Navy from 1971 – 1976. We all remember that he married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981. Some of us remember seeing the wedding on television. They had two sons: Prince William, who is the Duke of Cambridge, born 1982, and Prince Harry, born 1984. As time has gone on, we see a whole lot more press coverage being given to Prince Harry and Prince William than we do to Prince Charles. In 1996, Diana and Charles divorced following well-publicized marital affairs. And Diana, as we recall, died in a fiery automobile crash in France the following year. In the year 2005, Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles, who uses the title Duchess of Cornwall.

Charles’ interests encompass a range of humanitarian and social issues: he founded the Prince’s Trust in 1976, sponsors the Prince’s Charities, and is patron of various and numerous other charitable and arts organizations. He has long championed organic farming – you may not have realized that. He has sought to raise world awareness of the dangers facing the natural environment, such as climate change. As an environmentalist, he has received numerous awards and recognition from environmental groups around the world. He has been outspoken in the world of architecture in society and the conservation of historic buildings. He is an author. He is the author of a number of books including: A Vision of Britain, A Personal View of Architecture, which was written in 1989. He also wrote in 1980, a book for children, The Old Man of Lochnagar. He has also promoted herbal and other alternative medical treatments.

When Charles was age 4, his mother’s accession to the British throne made him heir apparent to the throne of England. He of course attended his mother’s coronation, seated alongside his grandmother and aunt.

By now, you’re wondering, “Why is he talking about Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles? Where is he going with all this?” Good questions. Here’s where I’m going with all this: I bring this subject up, really, as a follow through to sermons I heard when I was a student at Ambassador College over 50 years ago. As a fresh, young student, as a young man in the early 1960s, I heard a number of sermons from the pulpit there in Pasadena Campus that spoke about the teenaged Prince Charles – at that time then he was a teenager, just a real young man – who was, in all aspects of his upbringing, being trained, tutored, groomed, prepared, and designated for his role – that at one time he was going to become the future King of England. That was guaranteed. There was hardly anything more certain – apart from, of course, some kind of premature death – that that would not fulfill a destiny for this young man – that he would become the king – and he was groomed for that role. He knew it. The world knew it. We all knew it. Barring his premature death, Charles was going to be King of England. That was going to happen.

Well, from that time to this day, he has been waiting for that time to come. Over 64 years, he has waited to be King of England – born to be a king – a near 100% eventuality – yet, it just might be that opportunity will pass him by. And Prince Charles may never become a king. Now I’m touching on some little soggy ground when I say that, because I have no inside information as to what is going to happen tomorrow as far as British monarchy is concerned. But I do know how it was impressed upon us at that time – when I was in college – that there was a role he was going to fulfill. He was prepared. He was trained for it.

There are a couple things to consider that maybe won’t happen: One, he does have a long lived mother who is a queen, and so far as I’m seeing, Queen Elizabeth hasn’t been anxious at all to want to give up the throne. She may like the idea of topping her great-great grandmother Queen Victoria, because that is only 8 months away. Also, standing against Charles is his divorce, and again remarriage to a divorced woman, Camilla Parker Bowles, plus his numerous extramarital affairs. Now there’s a precedent for him being denied the throne in England. His grandfather’s brother, Edward VIII, abdicated the throne in 1936 in order to marry an American, Wallis Warfield Simpson, who at the time had two living ex-husbands. So Edward VIII gave up the throne of England to marry Wallis Warfield Simpson. Now, Charles’ current marriage to a divorcee, Camilla Parker Bowles, does not bode well either – even less so since Camilla has learned that Charles had an affair with someone else while he was having an extramarital affair with her while he was married to Princess Diana. You can unravel that one pretty easily. Can this man be trusted?

Now, it’s known that Camilla wants to be queen. And that might be the reason why she hasn’t divorced him. So she has her eye on becoming queen. And there are rumors that she has acted in a way not to endear herself to the queen – kind of indicating that the queen may be getting a little bit out of touch with reality – and that does not go well with Queen Elizabeth. So perhaps, and this is just me speaking here, the reason Queen Elizabeth hasn’t stepped down, nor hasn’t indicated any plans of stepping down in favor of her son, may be in part due to Charles actions in his relationship to Diana, also his marriage to Camilla, and just plain Camilla, and their personal relationships. So what all these various cross currents boil down to is this - it may be the most certain event that has ever occurred in history – that Prince Charles would be King of England – may elude him forever – born to become a king, never to become a king.

Now, should things work out that way, there’s a biblical precedent for that kind of something to take place, and that is the plan that God had for ancient Israel – a plan that was never to be fulfilled. When God led Israel out of Egypt by the hand of Moses and brought them to Mt Saini, God had a plan. He had a plan in mind from the beginning. And that was a glorious inheritance and future for these people, if they were obedient to Him. Egypt was no picnic to live in – that’s where they were delivered. They were a slave people – as they were in slavery and in bondage, in ignorance – and God brought them out and offered them a very special relationship.

We read about that in Exodus 19 beginning in verse 3:

Exodus 19:3 – Now Moses went up to God –and this is after they arrived in Mt Saiani- and the Lord called to him from the mountain saying, “This you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the sons of Israel:

Exodus 19:4 – You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I brought you on eagles’ wings and how I brought you to Myself.

Exodus 19:5 – Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be my own possession among all the peoples; for all the earth is Mine.

So here then God is offering them a wonderful promise for them if they would obey Him, keep His covenant, be loyal to Him.

Exodus 19:6 – And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

So here they are gathered at Mt. Saini out in the middle of the desert. God spoke to Moses and then Moses went and spoke to the people. You can imagine there was a great deal of enthusiasm to the idea of lush lands, abundance of food, just freedom in being set up on high. You can just imagine the groundswell of enthusiasm.

Exodus 19:7 -  So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the Lord commanded him.

And I can be sure that for brevity sake, we don’t have absolutely everything that God told Moses, probably there is a lot more detail to this proposition that God was giving them.

Exodus 19:8 – Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord.

Then, we know the story, we’re familiar with what happened. History records the hasty agreement was a covenant that they were not willing to keep. It didn’t take very long that any kind of trial, any kind of problem came up, and Moses’ life was in jeopardy. They accused Moses. They accused God. They never really trusted, they never really believed in the promises that God was offering to them. They were unwilling to take the journey, which involved a little bit of difficulty along the way – water difficulty, lack of food. They rebelled all the way through for 40 years in the wilderness. And when God finally led them into the land of Canaan after 40 years, they still didn’t follow God’s ways. They never learned the lesson to trust, to be obedient. They never kept the terms of the covenant that God offered them. So, in time, those promises were removed. First of all, Israel went into captivity. Then the Jewish nation went into captivity – Judah. Israel never returned from captivity. Judah did return after their 70 years of Babylonian captivity. And that whole plan was unfulfilled – all those wonderful promises, and a future that was offered to these people – never came to fruition.

God had called them out of Egypt, which is simply a beautiful picture or complete picture of the world, the luxury, the degradation, the abundance, the poverty, whatever you want to picture – that very wealthy nation. So God brought them out of there to deliver them from slavery, but He took a people that never abandoned their idolatry and rebellion. God took the Israelites out of Egypt, but He could not take Egypt out of the Israelites. They never fulfilled their destiny.

Well, carrying forward in time, there is another people that God is working with in the New Testament – when our Savior Jesus Christ came – and that is the Church. So here is the crux of my message. Here’s where it’s been going. We all share a calling by God – to be a part of a spiritual nation – not of a physical one, because we certainly are not of one physical race. The Israelites were. We’re not. But the church is a diverse collection of people from all over the world – all different kinds of people from all different kinds of nations – and God has brought us together by His direct intervention in our lives to offer to us promises for the future – a promise far greater in scope than the one God even offered to Israel. That was a physical promise. He is offering us a spiritual promise. The question that we have is, “Are we going to fulfill the promise for which we have become born – for which we were born? Will we become a part of the coming Kingdom of God?”

We represent one congregation – one little part of the body of Jesus Christ here today. There are hundreds – I don’t know how many different groups of people observing this Sabbath today, collected together – others who may not be able for one reason or another to assemble – who all together comprise the church. It’s a church which you cannot join. It’s a church that God has to place you in. Being a part of the church is a calling. We find in scripture that God selects people that you might, in all likelihood, not consider that these are the people that God would call. Israel, remember when God called them out of their slavery, were slaves. God selected them while they were in slavery – according to His plan and not according to any type of appearance. They were a troubled little nation, but yet God wanted them.

When the time came to select a king of Israel – after Saul failed in his mission, and the time came to select a new king – Samuel was instructed to go to the home of Jesse. From that family of sons, one would be selected king. You remember that Samuel came to Jesse, told Jesse to assemble his sons – one was going to be a king. They all came in – good looking young men, probably lots of hair, good muscle structure. They were prime candidates – and these were Jesse’s sons. Samuel looked at all of them, and as he did, God said, “No… no… no… no… no…” I’m sure this may have left Samuel a little confused, because he was told one of Jesse’s sons was going to become the king of Israel, replacing Saul. So he said to Jesse, “Is this all that you have?” He said, “Well there is one more. I’ve got this little kid.… He’s out there taking care of the sheep. Do you want him to come in?” So David was gathered. He was brought in. God says, “That’s the one. He’s the one I want.” He was the one God selected. The one no one would have ever selected was the one God chose to be king of Israel.

Now, you might stop and think a little bit when you think about what the church is. Would you have selected these people? Stop and think. Look at everybody. Are these the ones you would have selected? I can’t speak for you. I imagine you might have, as we Scots might say, “hae mah doobts” about one or two. I’m not really a Scot. My mother was from Scottish background. Ah hae mah doobts, in case you’re wondering, is ‘I have my doubts’. So you might wonder, that person? Or that person? That might kind of get in your mind. Satan might be able to get in your mind just a little bit to say, “Well, hey, these people came in on their own, because surely God would not have called this one.” Well, think about who He called to become king of Israel. He selected David – the one that no one thought would be it.

Each of us, brethren, we need to understand and believe, because it’s true, is here because God called you. God the Father made that selection. We don’t make it. Your friends don’t make it. Your mates don’t make it. God makes it. The body of the church is not comprised of people anyone would select for the highest calling in the universe – to be the children of God – but we are the ones that God has selected. It’s His will. And we should take the matter very seriously that it is His will. Don’t let Satan’s doubts get into your mind to say, “That really can’t be true.” Just look at the Bible – and we’re going to be doing a little bit of looking at that in a few minutes – and we need to live accordingly.

It’s not like Prince Charles – who I guess was selected by natural selection by birth – who has prepared his whole life to become a king who may never become a king. We have been selected by God the Father and His plans will take place.

Let’s take look at 1 Corinthians the first chapter. I think this is a verse we’ve looked at a number of times, and I think we’re all familiar with it. We’ll spend some time with it today though – 1 Corinthians, chapter 1. There are many different translations of the Bible. If you have the King James, or the New King James, 1 Corinthians 1:26 is going to begin:

1 Corinthians: 1:26 – For you see your calling, brethren.

I have a different translation. I have the New American Standard Bible – it’s what I’m using – and it begins a little differently. And I think it has enough that we can spend a little time on that. When we talk about the word see, that may not necessarily convey all that’s involved. I mean you see something. You all saw cars when you came to church – other cars on the road. You just saw them. When I was driving down to church in Rome, I saw signs that said Wendy’s, McDonalds, Burger King, Ace Hardware. As I passed by, I saw them. You see things, yet they don’t really have any real significance. You see a bird in the air. “Well, that’s a bird” – that’s fine. You see trees. You see these things, but you don’t really spend a lot of time thinking about them.

Sometimes there is the “Ah ha” moment, when you come to understand something. What happens to me is I’m watching something on television, and I don’t exactly hear what the person says, and I ask Shelby…I say, ‘What did they say?’ and then she tells me, and I say, “Ah, now I get it. Now I see.” So we have those kind of moments in life. We have the “Ah ha” moments – the sudden revelation of things we maybe didn’t quite grasp before.

There’s another kind of idea to the “For now you see, brethren…” and that is what it says here in the New American Standard, which reads:

1 Corinthians 1:26 – For consider your calling.

Now, that means – God says through Paul – take some time. When you’re thinking about your calling, consider it. Don’t just see it – just glancing. Don’t just blink your eyes and go on. Consider your calling. And this word, which is emblepo in the Greek, has the idea to look at, be on guard, care, careful consideration. I think that is the meaning that is intended here – that we carefully look, or the idea of keep on seeing – taking heed, watching. In other words, really giving the matter earnest consideration as to what it means to be called. Really take it seriously.

And he tells us what we’re to consider seriously, brethren, as far as our calling – that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble. That doesn’t mean there may not be a few, because God does what He will do. And it will shock you. Some day you may find out that there are millionaires in the church. Maybe someday God will call a billionaire. I really do not know. It doesn’t say there aren’t going to be any, but there aren’t going to be many. The main body that comprises the church is described in verse 27:

1 Corinthians 1:27 – God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise...

That doesn’t mean people are clowns, but we’re people, for the most part, that no one would ever expect would be called to positions of leadership. That is the highest position that you could imagine is to be a member of the family of God, ruling over all the world. Some don’t have a high school education. Some barely made it through high school. Some have GEDs. Some may have college degrees. You may have a menial occupation. You might be a desk worker. You might be anything. There are all kinds of varieties. Definitely somebody who is in the upper echelon of society isn’t going to look and say, “Ah, this is the leadership group that’s going to rule the universe.” It’s not going to be apparent by people looking, but we understand it through revelation.

1 Corinthians 1:27 – …and God has chosen the week things of the world to shame the things which are strong,

1 Corinthians 1:28 – and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are,

1 Corinthians 1:29 – so that no man may boast before God.

So what God is doing is what He is doing. No one can say, “Hey, He needed me. I had the skills and the talents. That’s why this job got done.” No it’s not. At best, we’re only instruments. God is the one that has the skills and the talents.

1 Corinthians 1:30 – But by His doing, you are in Christ Jesus…

Do you see what it’s saying? It’s by God’s doing – the Father’s doing. That’s why you’re here – not by your doing – not by anybody else’s. It’s by His.

1 Corinthians 1:30 - … and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption,

1 Corinthians 1:31 – so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

If God is able to use you in any way, it’s not for us to take credit. It’s God’s gift. He initiates the process. We can’t come to Jesus Christ on our own.

In verse 26 is talks about your calling. In verse 27 it says, God has chosen. In verse 28 it says, God has chosen. We are chosen by God the Father for this calling. There is no other way to become one of Jesus’ followers. When Jesus said to Peter and the others, “Follow Me”, that wasn’t His decision. It was God the Father’s decision. Jesus simply was carrying out God’s plan.

Let’s turn to John 6:44, if you will. Taking a look at another scripture that I think we’re well familiar with. John 6:44. And here Jesus again is speaking, it says:

John 6:44 – No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.

So here, Jesus Himself makes it very plain. It’s the Father, who by His Spirit, extends the invitation for us to become members of the body – the church of the living Jesus Christ – and a part of this spiritual nation. We’re here to follow Jesus Christ because the Father called us to do so. That should humble and also encourage us – give you confidence and assurance that it is what He is doing – to be able to go forward, to trust, to know it’s the work of God that’s taking place – not anything of your making.

Let’s take a look at Ephesians the first chapter. There’s a lot of encouragement and expansive thought that Paul expresses here in the book of Ephesians. Something to take a little of time with, something to mull over each of these words and these thoughts, to consider, as He told us in 1 Corinthians 1:26, to consider these things that God is doing. To the Ephesians he writes in verse 1:

Ephesians 1:1 – Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

So again, he acknowledges it is God’s doing. He didn’t get a promotion because he was voted to become an apostle, or the others got together and said, “Yeah, Paul... Paul got 5 votes, somebody else got 4, so Paul wins.” No, it doesn’t work that way. It was by God’s will, God’s determination.

Ephesians 1:1 – To the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus

Ephesians 1:2 – Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1:3 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ

These are the same kinds of people, only in a different city – Ephesus – that he wrote to in 1 Corinthians, and just said, “Hey, these are just the ordinary people of the world.” Here he’s saying to them what God is doing for His church – blessed us with spiritual blessings…

When you read that, do you get a little thought as to what in the world he’s talking about? I know that there were times in David’s life that he would look at the circumstances of the world around him, and he might be a little bit envious. In fact, he said in one place that he was – when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. Does that ever bother you? You drive by some homes and you look at them. I had a friend who would say that whenever he would drive by a nice home. He would say, “That person didn’t get that honestly.” Well, a lot of them did. Let’s face it. A lot of hard work created a lot of those nice homes on Signal Mountain, and Lookout Mountain, and a many other places. A lot of people work really hard to have what they have. There are billionaires on earth and they worked really hard.

Did you ever watch The Sharks on CNBC? Some people enjoy that program. I don’t particularly care for it. They work. No one just handed them the money. They didn’t win the lottery. They worked for it. They’re accomplished individuals. They have a lot of talent. But here you and I and all the members of the family of God have an opportunity that no billionaire on his own could ever have. That is, with all his money, he could never possess a personal relationship to God unless God has given it to him. It cannot be bought. Carlos Slim can’t buy it. Bill Gates can’t buy it. Warren Buffet can’t buy it. These folks can’t buy what God has given to you. It’s beyond their ability to have it, unless, of course, at some point, He decides to give it to them as well. Never count God out what He might do.

So here we have spiritual blessings, a place in the family of God. Every day we have the opportunity to talk to God directly as Father, through the office of Jesus Christ, as our older brother, our mediator, our heavenly high priest. Not only to talk to God, but to know our prayers don’t stop at the ceiling. Whether you verbalize them or they’re just in your mind, we have a direct channel to God our Father. He hears our petitions and He grants what is best for your life, that His purpose in your life be fulfilled. We have the opportunity to know the love and forgiveness of God. I know that sometimes doubts might come into your mind and you might think about the past or sins of the past or things that didn’t work our right and be troubled by it because Satan is there to trouble your mind, to cast doubts, to get you to think that it really isn’t the way that it is, that God specifies here.

We know God’s love. We know His forgiveness. We are in daily communication with Him in prayer. So we talk about spiritual blessings, I think each of us can make our own list of what all those spiritual blessings that have been given by God can encompass for us. He goes on with the same thought we’ve been discussing already,

Ephesians 1:4 – Just as He chose us in Him... -So who did the choosing? God chose us. That’s a very humbling thought, kind of adds a little bit of, “Really?” His eyes are on you. He knows you. He called you- before the foundation of the world. -Now, don’t ask me to explain that one. That’s kind of beyond my comprehension. Before even this world popped into existence, He says you were chosen. I don’t really understand all that mechanism, but I do trust that it’s telling the truth. These are inspired words. That’s the way that it was. -that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love

Ephesians 1:5 – He predestined us –so before even we were born that was the plan- to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, –He wants you as a son or as a daughter.He wants you in His family- according to the kind intention of His will,

All that we’re reading here in Ephesians casts an even brighter light on what we read in 1 Corinthians 1:26 what things we are to be considering, because there is more to this matter of election and calling by God than meets the eye. God the Father predestined us to the adoption as sons, to be members of His family, to become kings and priests in the kingdom of God because that’s the purpose of His plan. And in verse 6 it says:

Ephesians 1:6 – to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved

Jesus has paid the penalty for our sins. He has wiped our slate clean. He suffered in the flesh so that we could be free from sin’s penalty – from death. That is something that is freely given. You cannot earn it. You don’t deserve it. It’s given to us through the beloved, the love of God, the love of Jesus Christ. So nothing we have is earned or deserved. In verse 7 it says:

Ephesians 1:7 – In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace

Again and again in a very few words, a tremendous message is being given of just exactly what it is that it means to be a part of the family of God. There are things that we have been given an opportunity for here and now that others are going to have to wait to be able to receive in the world tomorrow. He wasn’t speaking to everyone. He was speaking to those that God had called to the church. Which, it says in verse 8:

Ephesians 1:8 – which He lavished on us. –think a little bit about what that word ‘lavished’ means. What does it mean to lavish? It’s not a word we use a lot, but I think we all know what it means. It means ‘over and above, to abound, abundance, excel, have more than enough, overflowed, overflowing, surpasses, surplus. That’s the way we’ve been treated, that’s what we have from God. He has lavished these things on us. In all wisdom and insight.

Ephesians 1:9 – He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him

So then brethren, we have a degree of understanding that others just simply do not have, to deeply comprehend what God the Father, your Father and mine, is offering to His people for all eternity. That doesn’t mean here and now, however. This is not where the reward is. You don’t punch the ticket right now, because right now, just as Israel went through a whole bunch of trials and tests before they came to Mount Saini and ultimately failed, we go through all kinds of trials and tests, too. There are many trials, there are tests of patience. There are tests of obedience and sometimes we fail. Sometimes we fall flat on our nose, maybe nobody here does, but I think we all do to one extent or another. We all have doubts, how are we doing, are we going to make it?

We need to realize who’s pulling the strings. Who’s in charge? God doesn’t give us any type of trial or test or temptation that we can’t do. When we go to Him, as Jesus said, when you pray you pray, ‘Our Father’. People say they have a hard time understanding that because their father was this that or the other thing. I can’t relate to your father. I can only relate to mine. He has been gone a long time. As time has gone on, I simply have missed him more. I don’t tend to dwell on some of the things, you know, my father’s shortfall got me mad when I was a little kid on one occasion. He would be on the phone, he owned his own business, he had a meat packing company, and he’d be on the phone to Chicago. We lived about 30 miles from Chicago. He’d be talking to the meat suppliers there, and as a little kid, I’d hear these phone conversations and the language was unbelievable, I mean for variety of color of words that should never be said. The profanity was rife, and I said, “I’m not going to talk like that when I grow up.” That’s the conclusion I made.

My dad would be arguing over one quarter cent per pound for meat. We weren’t talking pennies. We weren’t talking half pennies. They were fighting like cats and dogs for a quarter cent per pound. Of course they were dealing in large volumes, because we didn’t manufacture and they had to be delivered to Chicago. There were things that my dad did that weren’t the best, but there were so many wonderful things that I had a chance to learn and experience from my parents. If you want to, each of us can I’m sure come up with some of those good things.

When I was a little kid about four years old I knew I was going to be told no. I had a little red wagon, and we had recently had a painter come in and paint our garage floor, and I just liked looking at all these wonderful colors as he stirred the paint and I got the inspiration, I wanted to paint my little red wagon. I wasn’t 6 years old, I can tell you that. I was just a little kid, and I was convinced in my mind that I would be told no. So I went and asked my dad, “Daddy, can I paint my wagon?”, and he said “Yes.” It was really interesting what he did. They did not stand over me. They did not tell me how to hold the brush. They made available for me a brush and a can of paint, and I painted it. Did I mess it up! There were globs of paint in the bottom of my little wagon, but not a word was said that “you didn’t do a good job.” They gave me a chance to learn. They gave me a chance to do. They gave me a chance to grow.

There are so many examples of that in my life. I tried with my children that, whenever possible, I would say “Yes.” Sometimes you have to say, “No,” but if I could, I would say, “Yes.” That’s what my parents did for me. Even when I got spanked and didn’t deserve it – at least I didn’t think I did – my dad never apologized for that one really bad spanking I got. But the next day he took me to the show, and I figured out that he was sorry he did what he did. He went a little further than was called for. A lot of times our parents, imperfect as they are, we can learn from them because we can sense in most cases maybe even in all cases if you just got your own anger out of the way, in spite of their shortcomings, their heart was on you and the best for you. More than any human parent could possibly be, that’s where God’s heart is set for us. Because He gave Jesus Christ so that our sins could be covered so He could say, “Come on. I want you in My family.” So He’s reached out to us. He’s put us there. He says here: He lavished upon us all kinds of good things. In verse 9 of Ephesians 1:

Ephesians 1:9 – He made known to us the mystery of His will, -and it is a mystery, no one will ever figure out what He’s doing- according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him. The Father has purposed it in Jesus Christ.

Let’s skip down to verse 18. The whole passage of course is valuable, but in verse 18 it says:

Ephesians 1:18 – I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened – and that’s really where it is a lot of times. It isn’t just up here. It’s your heart. It’s how you feel. It’s how you sense things. Sometimes I have a really stoney, adamant heart. That’s what God had to encounter with the Israelites of old. They just never let their hearts be softened. The eyes of the heart were never opened. We need to have humility and appreciation to know the love of God in a very real way. Then everything changes. There’s light so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

And that’s for all the saints, and that includes the saints that he was writing to and that includes the saints of today.

So the Israelites of old didn’t know that hope. The natural man doesn’t have that hope, but brethren, we do. Let’s finish this passage in verse 19:

Ephesians 1:19 – and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. –Again, you can just think of each of those words and magnify them, what a wonderful message this is that we’re being given- These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might –the very greatest power in the entire universe, the one who brought it all into being.

Ephesians 1:20 – which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,

That means that that plan has been activated. The switch is on. It’s going to happen. Satan has been overcome. It’s all speed ahead.

Ephesians 1:21 – far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

Ephesians 1:22 – And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,

Ephesians 1:23 – which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

I’d like you to turn to 2 Peter, the final passage for the day. 2 Peter, the first chapter, because we need to make a response. We need to show God that we really appreciate what He’s doing – to take it seriously, to set aside all the pettiness that is so natural in man – all the hurts. “Well, I was hurt,” or “I was offended.” Oh, so what! Really, when you think about it, get over it.

2 Peter 1:5 – Now, for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge

Just keep on building, preparing, doing the things that in a spiritual sense are going to be enduring for all eternity.

2 Peter 1:6 – and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,

2 Peter 1:7 – and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.

So it just keeps on swelling, just keeps on growing.

2 Peter 1:8 – For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Chist

2 Peter 1:9 – For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins.

I sometimes think back about how joyful I was when I was baptized. I felt like I could just walk on air to appreciate the fact that my sins were covered. My savior took them and just buried them. He had given me purpose and a calling in life. I think we all in our own way have found that kind of expression, a relief. Of course, the world begins to come back in. Human nature isn’t all together gone. Satan is there to try to dig at you. I didn’t mean that was just the euphoria that has lasted all the way through life because it hasn’t. But yet, He’s always there. The Father is always there to encourage, and to help, to lead and to guide, as long as we’re willing to follow the direction that He has to take us.

2 Peter 1:10 – Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;

2 Peter 1:11 – for in the way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.

So that’s God’s promise to us. The time is soon coming when God the Father will promote into His kingdom a number of kings and priests to rule with Him and His family forever – for eternity. You have been called to participate in that kingdom. Don’t despise that calling as, some of the Israelites did, and miss out on the blessings that God is offering to us. Rather, appreciate that, by God’s spirit working within you every day of your life, as Peter admonished here in 2 Peter, make your calling – an election into the kingdom of God – sure.

Prince Charles, born to be a king, may never become one. You and I were born to become kings and priests – children of God the Father – in the kingdom of God, younger brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, joined with the saints of all ages from Abraham on, who saw at least in part the future plan of God. Don’t allow Satan, this world, or any other person or anything this world has to offer keep you from fulfilling your eternal destiny with God the Father, Jesus Christ and the whole family of God.