All right, so the reading there was Deuteronomy chapter 33.
If you caught it there, basically this is shortly before Moses would pass away,
and Moses gives a special proclamation of blessings upon each of the 12 tribes,
because obviously he's aware that we're all going to go into the promised land,
he's not going to be there with them, but he passes on this special blessing to each one of
them. And something that really stood out to me was the blessing that he gave to the tribe of
Joseph, which is Ephraim and Manasseh, the two tribes. And he says in verse number 13,
Deuteronomy chapter 33 verse number 13, and of Joseph he said, blessed of the Lord be his land,
for the precious things of heaven for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath.
I was thinking about the fact that, you know, Joseph was being blessed here,
and the Lord mentions the precious things of heaven, the dew, talking about the rain,
how the rains would come, you know, the land would flourish by the blessings that come from
heaven, the atmosphere as it were. And I was just thinking about this concept of things that are
precious, things that are precious. Brethren, what is precious to you? What is precious to you?
You know, as they were preparing to go into the land, they wanted the blessings of the land. We
understand this was what it was all about when they came out of Egypt, and the Lord would bless
them on that land, certainly he would. And, you know, one thing that I often do, I often,
you know, I'm not just thinking about the Bible 24-7, you know, I'm often trying to educate myself,
you know, there are different options and decisions that I need to think about in the future,
family related, financial related, just things of any nature. And I like to sort of learn and
hear what people have done, what people pursue, and what people do. And one thing that you
definitely find, especially those that, you know, seeking, you know, wealth, financial wealth,
they've got certain desires, certain things are precious to them, and they pursue those things
that are precious to them. I can't really relate to the things they find precious, you know, you
find it, you know, people say, oh, you know, I'm looking to invest, someone might be invested in
15 properties. And you sort of, what's your end goal? I mean, why do you need 15 properties,
right? And it's like, well, you know, I'm still aiming for the 30, I'm still aiming for the 100.
It's like, for what purpose? Like, you can't live in 100, you know, properties. And obviously,
we understand that there's capital growth, and there's income streams and all that. But then,
okay, let's say you get to a point where you're financially secure, you know, you're financially
independent. I mean, what are you going to do with all that wealth? And like, people don't know.
It's like, well, retire early. And, you know, I just live a simple life on the beach. And,
you know, people, you know, you know, sometimes they delay getting married, they delay having
children, because they're just trying to get themselves established financially. And for them,
those things are precious. Money is precious. And of course, we need wealth, we need finances,
and you know, the people of Israel, they're going into that land, they need that land to be
productive for them. I understand that to some extent, but I always find the earthly desires
very vain. Like, just as a believer, knowing how short my life is, and how much more is important
eternity to come, you know, I just don't understand, I can't really relate to what
people find precious. I don't even think it's precious. Like, what for? What's the point?
Like, I'd rather just have the one house with a big family. You know, I think my children,
I think of my family as precious. I think of my church as precious and all these things. And so
our goals and our motivations are very different to the world. Well, they ought to be different
from the world. But sometimes I listen to these things, because, you know, I've got to make certain
decisions. And, you know, I think about, you know, if I just, if I maybe manoeuvre my fantasies like
this, I maybe sell the house in Sydney, and this and that. And, you know, I think about what God
has given me and my family. And, you know, I've got, I'm a dual citizen, you know, I've got a
citizenship in Chile, and my wife has a dual citizenship in Portugal. And often,
I look at things, and I think, you know, my kids learn how to speak Portuguese, and I can speak
Spanish. And, you know, the Lord's given us these abilities that are kind of not being used here on
the Sunshine Coast very much, because everyone speaks English here, right? And then I look at
things and I go, you know, it'd be nice to, you know, look at it, you know, it's possible to
buy an apartment in Portugal, in Europe. So what for Pastor Kevin, right? You know, to travel and
see, and this and that? No, no, because, you know, they're a brethren in Portugal. Like,
they're a brethren in Europe that lack a church that I'm in contact with, that have wanted me to
go there, I was planning to go there a few years ago before COVID hit. And they want to go soul
winning, they want to learn, they want to learn the things of the Lord. And I just think, you know
how, you know, going soul winning and meeting brethren, encouraging brethren, and having times
of fellowship, to me, that is precious. Like the house in Portugal, the house in Europe,
it's just the means to an end, isn't it? It's not what I'm driving, oh man, well, you know,
it'd be great to have a property here or there. And, you know, and I think about Chile, and,
you know, I think, you know, in South America, Chile is, it's very Catholic. And, you know,
the independent Baptists have not really made a mark in either of those two countries.
And I'm not saying I'm about to pack up my bags and go over there. But I just think about what God
has given me. And, you know, I'm thankful for the resources and, you know, the finances that
God has given me. And, you know, if not for his finances and resources, I would never have been
able to come up here to start a church, never. It just wouldn't have happened. And like, you know,
how else, Lord, can you use me? What is precious in my sight? What is precious to your heart,
Lord? And how can I utilise what we have, you know, to further your work, to further your
kingdom? I am also someone looking for things that are precious, you know, because things that
are precious are rare. They're of high value. I'm not looking for the big bank account. But, Lord,
how can you utilise me, you know, on this earth? How can you utilise me in this generation? How can
you utilise my children? And how can you utilise our church, Lord? You know, when Christ gave the
great commission, he said, in Jerusalem, and unto Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
So, Lord, can you utilise me everywhere? Can you somehow open those doors? I want to pursue the
things that are precious to you. You're still there in Deuteronomy 33. So, the blessings
really stood out to me, especially when it came to Joseph, the tribe of Joseph, or the two tribes,
if you want to look at it that way. And again, I'll just read verse number 13. It says,
Joseph, he said, blessed of the Lord be his land for the precious things of heaven. We'll keep
going there. But the title for the sermon tonight, brethren, is the blessings of precious things.
The blessings of precious things. And as I go through this sermon, you're going to understand
that you have a lot of precious things already. God has, you're very rich in the eyes of the Lord.
And sometimes you don't, you forget that. We forget, you know, the precious things that God
has given us. Look at verse number 14. It says, and for the precious fruits brought forth by the Son,
and for the precious things put forth by the moon, and for the chief things of the ancient mountains,
and for the precious things of the lasting hills. You know, this blessing to Joseph,
look, you're going to be blessed with precious things. Verse number 16. And for the precious
things of the earth, and fullness thereof, and for the goodwill of him that dwelt in the bush,
let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was
separated from his brethren. So you see, obviously, Joseph, the tribes, his descendants have been
blessed for what happened to him. You know, his brethren sold him into slavery, into Egypt, and
he remained faithful to the Lord, and the Lord was able to use him mightily to save his brethren.
And now the full reward is coming upon his descendants. But I want you to know just how
many times word precious was brought up there. Okay. And of course, this is speaking of a land,
a precious land. And, you know, not every believer is able to say that they live in the best country
in the world. I look, I strongly believe Australia is the best country. Like, I've been to different
places and nothing compares to Australia. And not only that, the honor of being part of New
Life Baptist Church, I think the most beautiful place in the entire earth is the Sunshine Coast.
I mean it. Like, I'm not joking. Like, again, I've set my eyes on a lot of places and nothing
looked as beautiful to me as the Sunshine Coast. Like, when we think about the blessings that came
to Joseph on the land that, you know, that he inherited, you know, I mean, that's wonderful,
but, you know, you've been given that same privilege. I mean, it's a great place to live.
It's a great country to live in. You know, wherever you set your eyes from the hinterlands
to the coastal areas, the Sunshine Coast, it's just so beautiful, you know. But there are things
that are vastly more precious in our sights than where we live, okay. There are things that are
vastly more precious in the eyes of our Lord. If you can come with me to 1 Peter chapter 2,
come with me to 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse number 6. 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse number 6.
So, what I want to do, brethren, right now is
just set your eyes on what is precious in the sight of the Lord,
all right. And again, precious means rare, highly valued, highly sought for,
and brethren, you are very rich. We are very rich people, okay, when we start to look at the list of
the things that are precious. It says here in 1 Peter chapter 2 verse number 6, 1 Peter chapter
2 verse number 6, wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, behold, I lay in Zion a chief
cornerstone, elect, look at that, precious, for he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
So, we see that this chief cornerstone is someone that we are to believe on, of course,
that's referring to our Lord Jesus Christ. The first point that I have for you, brethren, is
Jesus is precious. Jesus is precious. Then it says in verse number 7, continues, unto you therefore,
which believe he is precious, but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders
disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner. Brethren, we, as children of God,
we are able to know Jesus. We are able to know his presence. We know his salvation, all right.
We know what he's done for us. We know the life that he lived on this earth. We know that he's
in heaven seated on the right hand of the Father. And that Saviour of yours is precious. You know
him. You've heard of him. Brethren, I mean, you think the whole world has heard of Jesus. Surely,
kind of, but they don't really know him the way you know him. They are not able to talk with him
the way that you can talk with him. They can't hear from him the way that you can hear from him.
And again, they've not been saved by him the way you've been saved.
You've received something amazing, something so precious. You know the most famous person
to ever live. Let's put it that way. You know Jesus Christ, and he is precious.
I mean, that's a good place to start. Jesus is, of course, his precious pastor. He's the Lord God.
You know, he came, the Lord God was manifest in the flesh, and he lived a perfect life,
and he saved us from our sins. You believed on him. You know that he's precious to you.
And what a wonderful thing to have the most powerful being on our side.
We can make God, we can make Jesus our very best friend, where we can share our concerns,
we can share our trials, we can share our sorrows to him, and he'll always listen,
and he'll always have the right answer for us. What a wonderful thing to have Jesus Christ who
is precious. Now, you can keep a finger there in 1 Peter, because there are a lot of terms,
references to the word precious in 1 Peter and 2 Peter, but come with me now to the book of Psalms.
Come with me to Psalm 49. Come with me to Psalm 49 and verse number 6.
Psalm 49 and verse number 6. I was kind of thinking to start the sermon with Psalm 49,
6, but then I thought I'll leave it a bit later, because I was talking to you about how,
you know, I do listen to, there's good knowledge, there's wisdom in some of these podcasts and
videos, but again, you kind of see people's desire to be wealthy, but for what end?
I can never really understand what that end is. I mean, if for some reason it makes sense to them,
but it doesn't make sense to me, right? And then it says here in Psalm 49 verse number 6,
they that trust in their wealth and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches,
none of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.
You know, these people that I listen to, or you might listen to sometimes, they trust in
the riches. They boast of their achievements. I've got this much in the stocks, you know,
in the share market, I've got this much property, I've got, you know, this wealth, and I've got this
and that, but to what end? Like, I know my God does not care about that, and I know that's not
going to, it's not going to give you the ability to redeem anybody, your brother. Then it keeps
going to verse number 8, for the redemption of their soul is precious, and it sees her forever,
that he should still live forever and not see corruption. The redemption of their soul is
precious. They think the riches are precious. They think their wealth is precious,
but their soul is so much more precious, and they can't redeem their souls with their wealth.
So it's, I mean, again, as a believer, you listen to what they're saying and what they're trying
to achieve, and I go, but you're going to lose your soul. I mean, great, great work on the earth
you've done, but it means nothing in comparison to what you're losing. But the second point that
I have for you is the soul is precious. Your soul is precious. Your soul is so precious
that the father sent his son, sacrificed his son for your soul, and for those that have believed
on him already seen, you know, you have everlasting life. You're saved. I mean, how precious is your
soul with its eternal destination to heaven? You know what? Even the souls of the lost is precious.
They just don't realize it. They think their wealth is precious. They think chasing their
dream of an early retirement is precious. They think having the large bank account is precious.
They think having multiple houses is precious. They think having multiple cars is precious.
And sometimes we've got to be careful as God's people, it's easy to start coveting
the things that maybe people in this world seek after. Go, that'd be nice to have, you know,
Sunshine Coast is, yeah, is a nice place to live, but it'd be nice to have a boat out there.
I mean, you really live in the best place on the earth. I mean, are you really that unsatisfied
and you want more and you want, you know, what others have? But then you remind yourself, okay,
they might have a nice boat on the coast, but my soul is saved. My precious soul has the security
of everlasting life. How much better is that than a boat on the coast? How much greater is that?
And so, brethren, your Jesus is precious and your soul is precious. You know that
you're going to live forever, okay? And those that have trusted in their wealth,
they're going to die in their sins and spend eternity in hellfire.
I told you to keep a finger in 1 Peter, so come back with me to 1 Peter chapter 1
and verse number 18. 1 Peter chapter 1, verse number 18. These first few points,
they're just building off each other. They're all related to these first few points.
But if your Jesus is precious and your soul is precious, then what did our, once again,
what did our precious Jesus do for our souls? Well, it says there in 1 Peter chapter 1,
verse number 18. 1 Peter chapter 1, verse number 18. For as much as ye know that ye were not
redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold, for your vain conversation, sorry,
from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of
Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Once again, can you see, okay, we saw in
the Psalms the difference between the precious soul and those that trust in wealth. But once
again, we see what is precious here, the precious blood of Christ. The blood of Christ is precious.
That's, of course, referring to his sacrifice. You know, that he came to this earth and that
his body was broken for us. You know, his skin was ripped open and his blood flowed
for the cleansing of your sins. He took on the punishment. You know, he took on,
you know, the punishment dealt out by the unbelieving Jews, the punishment dealt out
by the Roman centurions and the Roman soldiers and the punishment
built out by his father. The wrath of God fallen upon him for the sins that we've committed
and that blood of the new covenant that saves us and cleanses us from all our sins.
The blood of Christ, his sacrifice is precious. His sacrifice is precious. But again, we see in
First Peter, some people are trying to redeem themselves with corruptible things with silver
and gold. It's so weird. How do you find, God put those metals, silver and gold in the earth
and you think you can save yourself by that wealth? It's so strange to me, isn't it? But
people do, people do think that God will accept them, that they will be received into heaven
because of what they've been able to attain on the earth. But Brethren, we had nothing to bring.
We said, Lord, we got nothing to bring to you. All I do is accept the precious blood of Christ
upon my life and I know that by that I am saved. And so it's precious. You know, we think about
salvation is free, isn't it? But salvation was not cheap. It was purchased by the blood of Christ,
which is very precious. The blood of God, very precious. And to think about that, that yes,
in my body flows the blood of man, but that spiritually the blood that flows in me is the
blood of Christ. And I've been born again of the spirit. And these things are precious. And
Brethren, look, we're just touching. These are the very fundamental. I know Jesus Christ is precious.
I know my soul is precious. I know the sacrifice of Christ is precious.
But again, think about what that word means. It's very highly sought after, highly valued,
very rare. And you've got it. You've got three of them. You that are saved, you that have believed
in Christ. You have all of that already. You are richer than the Bill Gates of this earth.
You're richer than the George Soros of this earth. You're richer than Donald Trump,
believe it or not. You've achieved more. You've already done more than all of these people
combined. So precious. The blessings of precious things. And again, when you're seeking that which
is precious, then your goals and your motivations and your decision making is going to be based on
what is precious to you. And so I just want to remind you tonight, what is precious to you?
Is the big bank account precious to you? You know, are your possessions precious to you?
Or is Jesus precious to you? Is his sacrifice precious to you? Are souls precious to you?
Come with me to second Peter now. Second Peter chapter one.
Second Peter chapter one, verse number one. Second Peter chapter one, verse number one.
The fact that Peter mentions the word precious so many times shows me how much he valued his
experience with Christ. Okay. I mean, we know the story of Peter. We laugh at Peter sometimes.
He reacts so rashly. You know, he acts before he thinks clearly. He says things before he's
really been able to process the information. But in all of that experience with Christ,
you know, as his matured and he writes first and second Peter, he just says, man,
how valuable, how wonderful my experience with Jesus Christ has been.
He says in second Peter chapter one, verse number one, Simon Peter, a servant and an
apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith. We've asked
through the righteousness of God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. The next thing that we see there,
brethren, is our faith on Christ is precious. Our like, precious faith. The word faith means
believe, right? To believe what you are trusting in. Well, you know what? Our trust on Christ and
his finished work. Our faith on his blood. That's what it connects all of us. Like we might differ
on some secondary doctrines. We might differ on some tertiary doctrines, but the doctrine that we
believe that is exactly similar, no matter what, is the gospel message. Salvation by Christ alone.
And look, Peter says, this is precious. This is rare. Brethren, you know, you go to any other
church out there, even those that name them of Christ, and they're going to tell you salvation's
by works. You look at any other religion, whether it's Mormonism or whether it's Jehovah's Witnesses
or whether it's Islam or whether it's Buddhism. It's all about works.
How many people are able to say to you, you know what, going to heaven is not based on how good I
am or what I've achieved, but it's based on me simply trusting what Christ has done for me.
And that alone. I mean, it's so rare. Even in the Christian realm, it's so rare.
It's like precious faith. Our faith is rare. Do you think many are saved?
It's very few that are saved. And brethren, if you've heard the gospel, man, that's,
that's, and you've accepted the gospel, that's rare. That's precious. You know how rare it is.
You know how many doors you need to knock on in order to find a believer or let alone someone
that will actually believe the gospel. You know, it's rare. Most stores are going to say to you,
not interested, right? It's very rare when someone believes in Christ. And brethren,
you've come to that realization. You've been able to place your faith on the finished work
of Christ. That is precious. Peter says that's precious. We have something in common.
And this is why we can't allow our church to ever be corrupted on the gospel.
I mean, our church is never going to be just like perfect. Every time we make a decision,
it's always 100% right. And every single word that gets said behind the pulpit,
it's going to be 100% right all the time. Because we're limited. You know, we're not God. We're,
we're not infallible. You know, we've got the sin nature in us, right? We, we, we, these are,
these are battles that we're having. But one thing that, you know, we can remain steadfast
definitely on is our faith, faith on Christ. Simple faith on Christ alone. That is precious.
And be thankful when you find a church that actually has the gospel right.
Like, it's so, it's getting harder and harder and harder. It's hard in Australia.
It's even harder in Portugal. It's even harder in Chile. It's harder in some places in this earth.
Brother Michael, the hell hole. How hard is it to find like precious faith?
So when you found it, man, rejoice. Because it's rare. Because it's valuable.
Come with me to Psalm 133. Psalm 133, please. Psalm 133. What else is precious?
I started on the very basic things. Christ is precious. Our soul is precious.
His blood is precious. Our faith is precious. But now that you've locked all those things in,
those are the very fundamental, most basic things, the moment you've trusted on Christ,
you've locked all those full things in place. Like your bank account has already increased,
your spiritual bank account. You've got all these wonderful treasures at your disposal.
What's the next thing? Well, Psalm 133 verse number one.
It says, Psalm 133 verse one. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell
together in unity. Then it says in verse number two, it is like the precious ointment upon the
head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard, that went down to the skirts of his
garments. So what is like the precious ointment that came upon the head of Aaron?
It's dwelling together, brethren that dwell together in unity. Brethren, dwelling together
in unity is precious. New Life Baptist Church is precious. Open Door Bible Church is precious.
Brethren, dwelling together but in unity together. One purpose, one goal. Brethren,
dwelling together in conflict is not precious. In unity is what we're looking for.
And again, do you value your church? You know, set aside. Sometimes I say things and I think,
oh yeah, of course you're going to say that. I don't know. I'm thinking you guys are saying,
of course you're going to say that. Kevin, you're the pastor. But it's such a precious church.
Like I've always loved church. I've always wanted to be in a place where the believers
take God's word seriously because I've been in enough churches where they don't take God's
word seriously. You know, where the preachers try to dig in deep and try to bring forth
the wonderful treasures of God's word. That's what I look for in a church. I don't want to just
tick the box. I've been there. I want to be in unity with brethren.
And we all have different, we're all different ages, different families, right? We've all been
saved at different periods of time. But we can be together in unity with the purpose and the goal
of our church. If you say to me, pastor, I don't know what is the goal of New Life Baptist Church.
It's simple. It's the Great Commission. That's all it is. That's really the goal. Okay. And
whatever else that we do as a church, we cannot neglect the Great Commission that Christ has given
us. To preach the gospel to every creature, to baptize new converts, and to teach all things.
All things. Okay. Not to skip anything, not to preach what might not be popular,
but to preach all things, the whole counsel of God, to God's people. That's the Great
Commission. If we can be united on this Great Commission, then this gathering of believers
is precious. We might not be united in absolutely every little area of the church, every little
thing, but definitely the Great Commission. If we can stand united on that, brethren,
then this is a precious gathering. Brethren, dwelling together is precious. Do you appreciate
your church? I do. I appreciate you guys. I still can't believe that God will allow me to pastor
such a wonderful group of people on the most beautiful place on the earth.
I just, I don't understand. I don't understand how God could even allow me to do this.
It's so, to me, it's so rare. It's so beautiful. And I don't want to let you guys down.
You know, as your pastor, I don't want to fail you. You know, I don't want to mess things up
because I know how precious what we have is. Come with me to Proverbs chapter three, please.
Come with me to, actually, sorry, wrong passage. Come with me to Psalms. Well, you're not far
away anyway. Psalm 126. Psalm 126. So, brethren, Jesus is precious. Your soul is precious. The
blood of Christ is precious. Our faith is precious. Brethren, dwelling together in unity is precious.
I mean, you keep ticking the boxes and you say, pastor, I've got all those things.
Do you see how rich you are?
Do you see how you can't relate to the world that is just chasing their money and their wealth and
their early retirement plans and whatever else? You say, I can't relate to that because you've
got something much better. Like, that's like insignificant compared to what you've got.
Psalm 126, verse number six. He that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seed shall doubtless
come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. Brethren, the seed of the gospel is
precious. The seed is precious, bearing precious seed. And look, I often say this. I know that
Psalm is primarily about them coming back from captivity and coming into the land and the land
being fruitful once again. They're getting back to farming and what have you. But yes, we can take
the application because we know the word of God is the seed, which we are to then sow. We are sowers
of the word. We are preaching the gospel to the lost. And, brethren, that seed is precious.
That seed can be planted. Someone can believe and be on their way to heaven because they've
trusted Christ. We've got this precious seed. You've got the gospel message. You've got the
word of God. Then what are we doing with what is precious? We just sow. We're gonna find fertile
ground. And sometimes you won't always sow on fertile ground, but that's the goal. We're trying
to find that fertile ground. We're trying to find the heart that would believe on Jesus Christ.
It's precious. I mean, you're already saved. So what advantage is it to hold all those precious
seeds to your heart and never sow that seed? There's no advantage. You're already saved.
You're not gonna get double saved or triple saved by holding all. No, no. You gotta go and
find other people and give them that precious seed. You know, I've always just seen the value
of soul winning churches. There's something about it. People take God's word seriously.
That's what I think. I think God's people take it seriously. God's people understand
the value of what they have. I'm not against missionaries. I think missionaries do great work.
But sometimes, I'm not in this church, but I've been in churches where people
give to all the mission work, and they feel like I've sowed the seed.
I've put the money in the plates. It's gonna go to missionary in Papua New Guinea or whatever
area, and the seed's gonna get sown. Look, I'm not against that. I'm not against that at all.
You know, as long as the gospel is going forth and you're able to support that work, praise God. But
they kind of think, well, I've done my part. We've got the precious seed. We've got to do the sowing.
We've got to find people that are without Christ. We've got to find that precious soul
that is ready to receive the precious Savior and His precious sacrifice.
But they'll only come to Christ if you sow the precious seed.
So Brevin, what are you doing with what is precious?
You know, I'll just quickly quote this passage to you. You guys know in Matthew 7-6,
Jesus Christ says, Give not that which is holy unto the dogs,
neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet,
and turn again and rend you. Brevin, don't cast your pearls before swine. Pearls are also
precious things, aren't they? Pearls are very valuable things. You know, when we're going out
preaching the gospel, that's very precious. You know, if you come across swine that just
want to trample you and trample your message, I'm not interested. They want to be combative.
Guys, just move on. Move on and find the one that actually values what you have.
But you've got the precious seed. Come with me to Proverbs chapter 3. Proverbs chapter 3,
verse number 13. Proverbs chapter 3, verse number 13.
So you got Christ. We're brethren dwelling in unity. The sowing is getting done. I mean,
how valuable. How rich are you? You know? But you know, as you do these things, and as you come to
church, and as you grow, and you mature, and you learn from God's Word, and you learn from
preaching, I want you to see what else is important here, what else is precious. Proverbs
chapter 3, verse number 13. Proverbs chapter 3, verse number 13. The Bible says, Happy is the man
that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. For the merchandise of it is better
than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof of then fine gold. She is more precious
than rubies, and all the things that thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.
Brethren, what else is precious? Verse number 15. She is more precious than rubies. What was the she
there? It was wisdom. Wisdom is precious. We see wisdom here is better than the merchandise of
silver, better than the merchandise of fine gold, more precious than rubies. It says,
and all the things that thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her. Again, you look at these
people in their investment portfolios, and they're chasing this, and they're chasing that. Nothing
can compare, brethren, to the wisdom that God wants to give you in His Word. That's why we come
to church. Yes, to be in unity, to enjoy each other's fellowship, but to get some wisdom,
some wisdom found in God's Word. And when you've learned something, and you've gained something,
and you can walk away, man, I've just seen something new. Look, you've got more than gold,
silver rubies. You've got more than anything can desire on this earth.
But do we think like that when we come to church? Again, it doesn't have to be this pastor,
this crazy pastor rambling. It can be any preacher. And you hear some great truth. You go,
man, that's so valuable. Boy, I'm walking away from church today a little richer than I was
before. Look, the wisdom found in God's Word cannot be compared. You're not going to learn
it in the universities. You're not going to learn it in higher educational areas. You're not going
to learn it by your self-help books that are out there. It's only found in God's Word with the work
of the Holy Spirit of God opening your eyes and enlightening you of these great truths.
The world doesn't have the wisdom of God, but you do, and this wisdom is precious.
Come with me to Proverbs chapter 20. Proverbs chapter 20. Now, as you gain wisdom, as you grow
in the knowledge of God and the knowledge of His Word, you grow in understanding what God
wants in your life. When you grow and understand God's plan for you, what next? What's the next
thing that we should do as we gain knowledge, learn great doctrines? We're now to piece together
God's Word. We understand it better than we ever have. Well, the next thing is we need to then pass
that information on to others. We want to be able to teach other people, don't we? We should want
to. You know, parents should desire to teach their children, and children, you can teach your
friends the great things of God. And it says here in Proverbs chapter 20, verse 15, notice what it
says here. It says, there is gold and a multitude of rubies. God, that would be nice. But the lips
of knowledge are a precious jewel. The lips of knowledge are a precious jewel. The next point,
brethren, is lips of knowledge are precious. So as you gain the wisdom of God, you've learned great
truths of His Word. What does God want you to do with your lips now? He wants you to use your lips
to pass on knowledge. And when you're able to do that with your mouth to other people,
you can instruct them in the ways of the Lord. Hey, you're preaching the gospel, yes, but you
can teach them greater things, other believers, your family, you know, God's standard, God's
judgments. God says, man, those lips of yours are precious. We know a lot of rubbish comes out of
these lips as well. A lot of nonsense can come out of this mouth. But if we can get knowledge coming
out of this mouth, out of these lips, God says that's precious. Are your lips precious to God?
Do your lips tell lies? You know, do your lips speak of the world?
What do your lips speak of? It speaks of a lot of things. I thank God that sometimes God can use me,
my lips here, tonight anyway, for some knowledge. You know, it makes me happy to think that God
will say about me, as long as I stay true to His word, of course. As long as I stay true to
His knowledge and to His wisdom, where God can say to me, Pastor Kevin, that was precious to me.
I want that. I want to please my Lord. He made me. He made my mouth. He gave me my personality.
Okay, He, you know, He knows my weaknesses and my strengths. And I know I'm not some great orator.
I don't get messed up when I say certain words. I hate listening. I do listen back to my old,
my sermons, and I hate it. Because I'm like, oh, man, I started there. I said like this, like,
oh, wrong person. I meant to say that person instead. I'm just like.
But isn't it wonderful if God can use our weak flesh to just say some words of knowledge?
And you've all got lips. You don't have to be the pastor. You can all use your lips for knowledge.
And God says that's precious. That's valuable. That's highly sought after. Again, I think about
the rest of the world then. I guess what they say has no value, has little value in comparison to
how God sees my lips, as long as I'm using them for knowledge. So the lips of knowledge are
precious. Come with me back to First Peter chapter one, First Peter chapter one, verse number six.
First Peter chapter one, verse number six.
I'm trying to, when I looked at all these verses, I was just trying to pierce it together
in terms of, okay, from salvation onward, getting to church, learning his wisdom,
being able to use to teach great things, and kind of going through this process.
Because it is like this life is a process. You'll experience different things at different times.
But then this is the hard one. This is the, this is the one that we can preach about.
And people can say these things to you, and you can say it to them.
But when you're going through it, it doesn't feel precious at the time.
Right? Like, well, let's have a look at it. First Peter chapter one, verse number six.
First Peter chapter one, verse number six. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season,
if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. Have you ever been in heaviness?
Have you ever had manifold many, many temptations, many difficulties at once,
and you're just heavy, stressed, burdened.
You know, and when you're burdened, you got your brethren coming up to you, rejoice, brother.
And when you're going through trials, I'm like, rejoice, brother.
And just like punching that person in the face. No, you know, they mean well.
Because what they're saying to you is true. In verse number seven, it says
that the trial of your faith being much more precious than of gold that perisheth,
though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing
of Jesus Christ. Though it be tried with fire, it's like fire that burns. You know, this heaviness
is just too much, pastor. I can't handle it. It's burning me. It's hurting me, pastor.
And look, I'll weep with you. I've had to weep with you sometimes. And you've wept with me
sometimes. Thank you. It burns. It hurts. And the last thing you think about is, man, this is
precious. This is highly sought after. But that's what God's word says. The trying of your faith.
See, the temptations are there. The temptations that, you know, of themselves may not
appear precious. But the fact that God is allowing you to go through the fire, to refine you,
you know, to teach you, to guide you, to comfort you through this, you know, for these manifold
temptations, God says about it, you know, it's precious that you're going through this.
Rejoice. Just like if you, you know, you check your bank account tomorrow, and you've got a
million dollars in that bank account, all of a sudden you go, what? Where'd that come from?
You'd be like, woohoo, rejoice. Well, you know what? When you go through some manifold temptations,
when you're going through the fire, more, even better than the million dollars in your bank
account, you've got to be going, woohoo, Lord, yes, thank you. Thank you for the trial, Lord.
Thank you for allowing me to go through some difficulties. Because, Lord, if I come out through
this, and I come out rejoicing, I come out honoring you, Lord, then when Christ comes back and rewards
his servants, I'm going to be rewarded for how I went through that trial. There are great promises,
there are great rewards to be had when Jesus Christ returns. But again, it's not easy when
you're going through it. But if you're going through, maybe you are right now, maybe you are
going through a heavy trial, heaviness, burden. Do you ever get so burdened where you just don't
even want to get out of bed? That's how I feel sometimes. When something is just so stressful,
I'm like, man, I just need to lay down in bed. Because I just feel like the burden's so heavy,
and I just got to lay, I just got to bed. But rather, I should be rejoicing. Rather,
I should be jumping out of bed. Woohoo! Easier said than done. And again, maybe you're going
through great burdens right now, and you're wanting to punch me in the face. But rejoice.
Just find a way to say, Lord, you allowed me to go through this.
I need to remind myself when I'm going through trials, Lord, you know all things. Lord, you see
all things. I can't. I can't make sense of it, but you can. You know exactly what's going on,
and I'm just going to rest in you. You know what's happening. If anyone's going to get me
through this, it's you, Lord. So I'm just going to rejoice in who you are, because I can't do it
on my own. Our trials are precious. Can you remind yourself that next time you go through a major
trial, a major burden, a major heaviness, major fires in your life, can you say, you know what,
I remember that sermon. What I'm going through right now is precious. So I'm just going to
rejoice in the Lord. Not easy. Can you come with me to Ecclesiastes, chapter 7, Ecclesiastes,
chapter 7, and verse number 1. Ecclesiastes, chapter 7, verse number 1.
Ecclesiastes, chapter 7, verse number 1.
So as you serve the Lord, as you go through trials, you know glorifying the Lord and rejoicing
in your difficulties, as you grow in knowledge, as you gain wisdom, as you're able to pass on
knowledge to others, one thing that you're doing is building your reputation. You know,
building your reputation before others. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes, chapter 7, verse number 1,
a good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death than the day of one's birth.
A good name there speaks of your reputation, speaks of your testimony. Brethren, protect
your testimony. Protect your reputation. You know, it takes a lot of work to build a good
reputation in the Lord. And it just takes one major mistake in life to destroy it.
Well, a good name is more precious, sorry to say that, is better than precious ointment.
Brethren, a good reputation is precious. It's going to help you in life. People are going to
like you when you have a good reputation. You know, you're going to have easier access to
things, you know, in life, just in general life. The Lord loves a good reputation. The Lord loves
a good testimony. His face will shine upon you. You know, don't be a believer that just
rushes to conflicts. A believer that just rushes to mischief. You know,
a believer that just rushes to the wrong conclusions. You know, just protect your reputation.
And I don't have much more to say than this, but it just says there,
and the day of death than the day of one's birth. We normally rejoice when a child is born.
All right, I mean, many of you guys are asking, when's Christina due? When's she due?
Because it's exciting. We don't often rejoice when someone passes away, but the death has a
greater value because you get the opportunity to live an entire life and live and leave a good
name. Leave a good reputation. A child that's born in the world has no reputation. You have no idea.
That child could become the most wicked person on the planet. Hopefully not,
right? But you know, you can go to your grave, leave in a good testimony.
Again, something that I want, I want a good testimony. You know, I want not just to please
the Lord, but I want to be able to, you know, my children to say, you know, my dad loved us. My dad
loved the Lord. My dad tried his best. You know, I want my grandkids, Lord willing, if that day
comes, right, to say, you know what, we had a good grandfather. Our grandfather gave us great
wisdom. You know, our grandfather was a little bit maybe out of touch with our generation,
but he knew the will of God. He knew scriptures and he taught us some great truths. That's what
I want to leave. Do you want to leave that? Do you want to have a good reputation? It's precious.
Can we meet to Psalm 116. Psalm 116, verse number 15. Psalm 116, verse number 15.
Psalm 116, verse number 15.
You might say, pastor, I got saved later in life and I've not done a lot. I don't really have a
good reputation maybe, pastor. You know, really the only thing that is next on my life, my gender
is death, potentially. And, you know, we often value life and life is valuable. Amen. You know,
God has given us life and life is there to be lived. You know, an abundant life in Jesus Christ.
And, you know, like I said, you know, if we can leave a good reputation at death, that's precious.
But also, when it comes to death, our death can be precious. Our death is precious if you're in
Christ Jesus. Because it says there in Psalm 116, verse 15, precious in the sight of the Lord is the
death of his saints. Wow. You know, if one of you pass away, I'll be sad, but I'll be thinking,
how precious. You know, brother Tony has gone to be with the Lord. I mean, brother Tony right now
is having the best life he's ever lived. I mean, he hasn't really died, has he? I mean,
his body's here, his body's in the grave, but man, he's having the best time of his life right
now in heaven with all the believers singing out his Lord face to face. Precious. The Lord says
it's precious to him when we leave that corrupted sin-filled body and no longer a hindrance to our
walk and fellowship with God. And there we are, soul and spirit with him for all eternity. God
says that's precious. You know, I've only, in my time as a pastor, I'm just thinking six years
almost. I've done two funerals, you know, and one was of a lady that lived a long and generous life
and another was a baby that lived 24 hours. And as sad as those moments are, you know, when you're
a believer and you know where your loved one is, there's joy, isn't there? You say this is amazing,
this is precious. You know, we can rejoice in their life, but their life has not really ended.
They're with their Lord. They've gotten to the end line, like they got to the finish line.
Rejoice in the Lord. I'm never going to forget that first funeral that I did.
Baby, 24 hours old, passed away and been able to give the gospel at the funeral.
And I don't remember the numbers right now, but it might have been six or seven people
raised their hand saying they wanted to call upon the Lord for salvation. Even the funeral director,
some Greek Orthodox guy, funeral director right at the back, I didn't see him, someone said to me,
he put his hand up and he said later on, I've never seen a funeral like this. He's used to
sorrow and sadness and pain and of course all that was there, but he'd just never seen a group of
people so happy. A group of people that were just rejoicing in the Lord. To him, it stood out to
him. Because you know what, when it comes to being a believer, being a saint, precious is that death
and we're all going to go there one day. So I think, man, all these people trying to make
their wealth and they're chasing whatever dreams they have, they're going to die. The soul is going
to be lost in hell. For what? What do they gain? You can be the poorest of them all,
a believer of Christ and you die. The Lord says that's precious. That's valuable. There's great
riches in that process. What a wonderful thing to be a saint of the Lord. Come with me back to
second Peter. I should have told you to stay in Peter, but anyway, second Peter, second Peter,
second Peter, chapter one. I'm near the end now. Second Peter, chapter one, verse number four.
Second Peter, chapter one, verse number four. Now you know what, when we die and we go to heaven,
like if I were to die today, I'd go to heaven, but that's still not the end of the journey.
There's more going on. Like there's a plan into eternity.
Because even though the body is in the grave, decaying, you know, in corruption,
we know that God has a plan for that body. We know the Lord has a plan for a very physical future
to come. And it says there in second Peter, chapter one, verse number four,
second Peter, chapter one, verse number four, it says, whereby are given unto us exceeding great,
look at this, and precious promises. Reverend, there is a precious promise that you have. What
is that? That by these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption
that is in the world through lust. Reverend, we've got a great and precious promise
that we're going to be partakers of the divine nature. Doesn't that blow you away?
The divine, you think that's godly, you know, or godlike, you know, or of God, of God. You know,
we're not going to be gods, don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to say anything like that. We're
not Mormons here. But it's going to give us a great promise directly of Him. Now we already
have partaken of that divine nature. Because if you've been born of the Spirit, you've been born
of God, the new man within you is of God, isn't it? But we know there's a promise here still to
come. And even though we pass away to be with the Lord, one day He's going to raise that incorruptible
body into incorruption. Okay, that dead body, the Lord's going to raise it up in His power.
And it's going to be without sin. It's going to be without sicknesses. It's going to be immortal.
It's never going to perish. As it says in 1 John 3, 2, Beloved, now we the sons of God,
and it doth not yet appear what we shall be. But we know that when He shall appear,
we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. We shall be like Him. We're going to be like
our Savior. We're going to be like Jesus. That divine nature. Wow. Doesn't that blow you away?
That's precious. How many people are trying to freeze, I don't know what it is, freeze their
bodies, freeze their brains, hoping that one day they can live forever, or their personality and
thoughts can be downloaded onto a computer and plugged into a machine one day, and they can
walk like an android with eternal life, their style. There are people on this earth, those
that have great riches. And think about those that have the greatest riches and the greatest power
on this earth. You know what the next thing they want? They're never satisfied.
They want to live forever. And they're not going to get the chance. But you are. We're going to
live forever. We're going to have new resurrected bodies. Right? Like unto Christ. Bodies that will
never perish. Bodies that will never sin. And brethren, so we have this precious promise.
The promise of the divine nature. Partaking of this divine nature that God has for us.
I mean, how many of those boxes of sulfur can you tick? This is precious, this is precious,
this is precious. I have it, I have it, I have it, I have it, I have it. Man, I'm rich. Man,
I'm wealthy. I have something that so little people have. And I've got this great promise.
It doesn't end. It doesn't end when I go to the grave. One day the Lord's going to take me out
of the grave with greater bodies to come. It's awesome. One more passage. Revelation 21.
Revelation 21, verse number 9. Revelation 21, verse number 9. He goes, is that the end of it,
Pastor? The new bodies and that's it? Is there anything more precious to come? Of course there
is. Revelation 21, verse number 9. This is of course after Christ finishes reigning for a
thousand years on the earth. God creates a new heaven, a new earth. And in Revelation 21, verse
number 9. Revelation 21, verse number 9, it says, And there came unto me one of the seven angels
which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked to me, saying, Come hither,
I will show thee the bride, the lamb's wife. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and
high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from
God. Look at this. Having the glory of God, and her light was like unto a stone most precious,
even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. The next thing that I have for you, the light
of new Jerusalem is precious. The light of new Jerusalem is precious. It says, Having the glory
of God, this city that God will bring down from heaven unto the earth, that you're going to
partake of, that you're going to live in, we're all going to live in, we're all going to partake
of that great city. The light is a light most precious. And brethren, this just takes us into
eternity. I mean, what do you, you are, you are wealthy. You are rich. I mean, thank God for
Australia. Great. Thank God for the Sunshine Coast. Great. But none of that compares to what
you have within you. None of that compares to the one that you know, the one that has saved you,
the blood that has washed you from all your sins. Okay. None of that compares to a church
that dwells together in unity. You know, a church that bears that precious seed to this lost and
dying world. To the death that will come, it's precious. To the new bodies that will come,
it's precious. To live in a new Jerusalem and the glory of God for all eternity, it's precious.
It doesn't end. Precious after precious after, it just gets better.
So where is your heart today? What do you think is precious? What is beautiful to you?
You know, what are you driving toward? What are your goals? What are your ambitions in life?
I think it's good to have goals. I think it's good to be, to have goals set and
think of the future. Not at the expense of the present, of course.
But it's hard as a believer if you're looking at what the rest of the world does.
Look, what they seek for is incomparable to what you already have and what you're still yet to
have. So set your sights on these things that are precious. Think about it. Meditate upon it.
Be thankful for everything that God has given you. We can get downcast in life.
We can go for trials and then you remind yourself that these trials are precious.
Man, the good and the bad. I can find something precious in this. Even in life,
even in death, I can find something precious. Brethren, we are wealthy. You know, be content.
Rejoice in everything that God has given you. Precious. The blessings of precious things.
I know I'm blessed. Are you blessed, brethren? Man, if you are blessed, just thank the Lord
for giving you everything that He's given you. Okay, and once again,
set your heart on the things that God finds precious. Let's pray.