He was gone. She didn't have any resources upon which to rest. Let us beware, sisters, of trading upon the faith and strength of faith and piety of your husband. So that when he is gone, you have not exercised a faith and confidence of your own. And you realize that you have been trading all too long upon the piety of your spouse. And that's good advice also for husbands to be sure. Let us make sure that we have a confidence of our own, born of long personal, individual experience in the school of God, that when he or she who is more dear to us than life itself is taken away, we are not so bereft that we have nothing upon which to live. Be that as it may, she was in desperate plight. And the husband did. She destitute. Oh, but destitute. She seemed to have forgotten a pot of oil she had, probably behind the door. And her sons in danger, according to the law that obtained, are being sent into slavery at least for six years. to pay the debt which she could not pay. A bitter experience indeed for her. Now she came to the man of God and asked for hell. And he said to her, what have you got in the house? She said, my handmaid has not anything. And then she seemed to remember, well save a pot of oil. If there was a bitter experience, there was a blessed exception. She did have a pot of oil. And in the hands of the man of God, that was sufficient to meet her need. For he said to her, Go borrow thee vessels abroad. Vest, borrow not a few, and go in and shut the door. This is the chapter of the shut door. You'll find the door is shut three times in this chapter and upon a different thing in each case. We can learn from each of those, but we wouldn't have time tonight. And so she did so. And she sent her sons out to borrow vessels and they brought. There wasn't a word of the kind of vessels that they had to bring, whether gold or silver or earthenware or stone or whatever. They were just to borrow vessels, not a few. And she took them and shut the door and began to pour from the vessel of oil. And to her great amazement, she had a bountiful excess. A bountiful excess. For all the vessels were filled and the oil kept coming. She discovered she was only straightened in herself. And she said, bring some more vessels. The oil is still coming. And they said, there are no more. And the oil stopped. And then the man of God said, Go and pay your debt. But then he didn't stop there. And it's the words that follow I want to emphasize for us tonight. He says, Go sell the oil and pay thy debt. And live thou and thy children of the rest. That is to say, he not only removed the past debt, but he provided for the present and for the future. Go and live off the rest. Now in Romans chapter four we have our debt paid. Blessed is the man whose transgression is forgiven and whose sins are covered. And we're shown by which, the means by which our debt has been paid and the debt removed. But when we come to Romans chapter five, to which I'll ask you to turn now, please, we shall discover the bountiful excess which has taught us in Christ. In fact, the Spirit of God seems to say to us, go and live off the rest. I want just to speak briefly tonight. I shall try to make it brief. I'll try to leave a little time for my young brother, Peter Pell. After all, he's my brother. But on the other hand, it's not very often you have brother Fraser, right? Now, our debt is covered in chapter four. Now, in chapter five, I want you to know the such words as, all, sir, not only, sir, and much more. These are the key words of Romans chapter five, in case you haven't noticed that. And as we read now, the first ten verses, eleven verses at least, reflect. Let us notice the recurrence of the word also, not only so, and much more. Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God. through our Lord Jesus Christ. Some versions say let us have peace with God making it an exhortation. I think that is wrong. You haven't reached the exhortative portion of Romans when you come to chapter five. We are still in the realm of the objective values of justification. The objective values of the work of Christ, not the subjective responsibilities of it as yet. So I think the word stand as given here in our authorized version. Being justified by faith, we have peace with God. This is not the individual tranquility of your heart at this present moment. At this present moment, the tranquility of your heart might have been disturbed by the recent happenings. This has to do with the great objective fact of peace with God wrought by the work of Christ. When peace was declared in the war between the states, they tell me that the reaction of the soldiers was different in different places. Some soldiers threw their hats in the air for very joy and others sat down and wept for very relief. Now whether the news that peace had been declared resulted in smiles or tears made no difference, the fact remained that peace was declared. On the irrespective of the tranquility of your individual hearts at this moment, verse one draws attention to the fact that sin as a barrier and as a block has been removed for the work of Christ and because of that we have all of us peace with God. How much could be said about that? But we pass on. By whom also is the first of those extra things. By whom also we have access by faith into a grace in which we stand. We have access. As to the past, we have peace with God. As to the present, we have access. into a grace in which we step. Esther the queen was not sure of the grace in which she stood. And when her uncle Mordecai, or what her older cousin, uncle Isaac, said to her, now you've got to go into the king's presence and intercede for your people, the Jews. She says, I don't know if I can go in. You know the law of the country. If anybody enters the king's presence, unasked, unless he holds out the golden scepter, he'll die. And the king hasn't asked me to come into his presence for a thirty days, which makes us think the king was tiring of his beautiful queen. I haven't been asked into his presence for thirty days. But she says, I'll go. And if I perish, I perish. She wasn't sure of the excess that she had into the king's presence of the grace in which she stood. But she said, I'll take a chance. And so she put on her beautiful rose and she stood in the doorway. I was glad what our brother had to say about wives being nicely dressed and the husbands come home. Never let your husband come home in the evening and find you in slacks. Amen. But that's a fact. Whenever you use them in the daytime, I'm not here to suggest to you. Be nice when he comes home. Amen. Anyway, she'd be on her bureau for a while. And she stood in the doorway. And the king looked up and saw his lovely wife. And his heart went out to her. And he held out the golden scepter. And timidly she came down. And she touched it. And he said, What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? just name it and it will be yours unto the half of my kingdom just name it and she was so startled and confused that she said well I'll tell you tomorrow she discovered really although she wasn't sure of the grace in which she stood that now she could approach the throne of grace and find the king pledged to meet her needs into the half of his kingdom. But you know when you and I come to Christ we have access by faith into a grace in which we stand. We have a perfect and eternal stand in grace before God so that we can come to him and by faith touch the golden sector of the promises of God and find our need met according to the half of Christ's kingdom? No. My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory, all his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. And you may come to him, my brother, and you may come to him, my sister, with the most unusual requests. And if you touch the golden scepter of his promises with the hand of faith, They are given to you. I was talking some brother in the interval about Fifth Park Avenue Methodist Church in Minneapolis. Years ago, that was a place standing for God as far as they knew. And it was a Dr. Valentine who was a preacher there. I heard him one time when I was in Minnesota, in Virginia. And he told us this story, not that what he had read in a book, but what had happened in his own family. He said his sister down in the southern part of the state, I think in Mancato, was going to have a dinner party one evening. And she had invited about a dozen guests. And she decided that for so many people she had better have baked ham. Fine, easy thing to have. So she ordered and begged him for the guests. But that afternoon the snow began to fall. And it fell and fell as only can in Minnesota, upon occasion. And she said to herself, now I know that a lot of my guests are not going to turn out. And she was right. And when she was cleaving off the table from the few that came, she said to herself, what am I going to do with all this hand? And she immediately thought of a woman who lived out the street, who lived alone, poor woman. She said, I'll give her some of that hand tomorrow. And the Lord seemed to say, no, no, give it to her tonight. She said, no, I can't give it tonight because I've got guests here. And the Lord seemed to say, no, you take it tonight. But she said, I can't take it tonight. Do you ever try to expostulate with God? She did. But she had no peace until she put a shawl in her head and ran all the way and dumped down at the woman's door some of the baked ham wrapped in tissue paper and pounded on the door and ran back to her guests. And the next day or the day after when the story had subsided, she went to visit the woman. She said, how are you? Oh, she said, I'm fine. How did you like that baked ham? Did you bring that baked ham? Oh, yes. Oh, she says, let me tell you about that. She says, no, I was sick in bed. I'd been sick for a couple of days. Couldn't eat. But then when I began to feel better, I began to go over the few things I had in the house to eat. And my stomach revolted against every woman. I lifted my voice to my heavenly father. And I said, Father, you know what? I could eat baked hands. And she says, I just lay on the bed, and I just said over and over again, Father, make it baked heaven. And I speak reverently, friends, and I speak reverently, I trust. But God looked down from heaven and said, well, who's got baked heaven anyway? That did me a lot of good. You know that? You and I can touch the golden sceptre of the promises of God. with the hand of faith and trust God to be sufficient for all things. And then you'll notice it says here, And rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Peace as to the past, access by faith as to the present, and glory, rejoice in hope of the glory of God. That may not draw attention so much to the rapture. the catching up of the church through heaven. Although thank God is part of it. But the words, the glory of God, seem usually to be connected with his manifestation to the earth. We have to think that the biggest thing on the horizon in the realm of eschatology is the rapture of the church. Probably isn't so. The rapture of the church is only incidental to God's great prophetic program. Of all that God has in the future for us. Here we rejoice in hope of the times where the knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. What a day. And then it says, And not only so, not only so, but the glory in tribulations. Oh, you see, I beg to stop. See, I couldn't follow you there. Glory in tribulation. See, I don't glory in tribulation. I'll notice what he says. Knowing glory in tribulation, knowing, you can only glory in tribulation as you know. What? Knowing that Tribulation workers' patience. Tribulation workers' patience. And to tell me that word patience means fortitude. Endurance are fortitude. Now, tribulation in itself is not a palatable thing any more than the individual ingredients of a loaf are palatable things. You never went to somebody's house for supper and the hostess says, while you're waiting, how do you like a spoonful of flour? Or how would you like a little piece of yeast cake? Only hell fiends eat yeast cakes. How would you like a spoonful of salt, are you? Or whatever else to put in good bread. But put all these things together. and will give you a palatable thing. Now, you'll never glory in tribulation until you see them working together for your good. Knowing the tribulation workers endure. It's when God goes in with you into the tribulation, into the valley, and shows himself strong there and teaches you things you couldn't otherwise learn and profit by. Then you welcome it when it comes. After all, steel at its lowest value may consist in horseshoes, which you pitch around in the dirt. But steel at its highest value may consist in what springs? Those springs that move delicate instruments. And how do they arrive at that value? When heating and hammering. and heating and hammering and heating and hammering again. And you and I are to welcome those things because of what they produce in us. They make life valuable for God. Our lives are not to be horseshoes pitched around in the dirt. They are to be watch springs used in the plan of God for His glory. You would believe that? I trust we do, dear friends. tribulation works that that thing and that fortitude experience here's a young fellow he's made up his mind to take out the sea as a calling this is his first voyage he's out there in the in the wild and there's a storm a terrific storm he's scared he says if I ever get off here you'll never see me back But he happens to look up at the bridge. And the captain is leaning on the bridge, talking to the mate, and he's smoking a pipe. He's not a Christian. I said that one place I was preaching years ago, and somebody said, didn't you know? I said, no, what? He says, two of the elder brethren smoke. I said, I'm sorry, I didn't know. just by the way but he looks up and sees that man he says my my how can he do it you see he had been through this dear friends it had worth endurance fortitude and experience but God doesn't want your life and mine to be free from heating and hammering because of the value that it produces enough and experience hope. And it's a hope we read here that maketh not a shame. It's not a vain thing. Why? Because we have the earnest or right. Because the love of God is shed abroad. That word shed abroad is a Greek word that means poured out like a torrent. Poured out like a torrent in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us. Let's go on for the sake of time down to verse nine. much more, much more. Then being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. It's not just a salvation from the past, it's a salvation from the future, from wrath through Him. From all the wrath that's in the future, including the great tribulation. For in the book of Revelation, the wrath is confined between chapter six and nineteen. I think I'm correct in saying. The wrath is confined between chapter six and nineteen in Revelation. The church is not seen on earth at all. It's in heaven in chapter five, and you don't see it again until you get to the end of the book. And the wrath are those judgments which fall upon the earth. And we read in Thessalonians that Jesus not simply has delivered us from the wrath to come, but our deliverer, present tense, from the wrath to come. That's why I know and believe that the church will not go through the tribulation, for Jesus is our deliverer from the wrath to come. And God has not appointed us to wrath. But to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, that whether we watch or sleep, we shall live together with him. Thank God for that. And then notice what it says in verse ten. For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his life now his this is his life on the other side of his death we are reconciled by his death much more being reconciled by his death we shall be saved by his living by his life at the right hand of God of which we have heard quite a little already now I want you to think tonight of the fact that at this moment there is in heaven a man who is called in first John chapter two our advocate with the Father. Perhaps you'd like to keep your hand in the place and will you turn over to first John two and one. I find that if God's people see it in the Bible, it's even better than hearing it. In the Bible, first epistle of John, chapter two, verse one, my little children, these things right I am to you, that ye sin not. And if any men sin, it doesn't say, and when any of you sin, as if sin were a necessity as if sin were something that could not be avoided doesn't say that and if I'm writing to you that you don't sin but if you do remember we have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous two things you want to notice please about this It does not say if any man confess, and he's talking to little children in the family, Christians, it does not say if any man confess we have an advocate with the Father, but if any man sin we have an advocate with the Father. In other words, the advocacy of Christ does not begin when you confess your sin. The advocacy of Christ begins when you sin. It's not your confession that results in his advocacy. It's his advocacy that results in your confession. Amen? That's a wonderful thing to get ahold of. You see, our dear Pentecostal brethren, who love the Lord with all their hearts, and are continually thanking him for the precious blood of Christ. and who often make you ashamed with their consecration to him. We believe they're sadly lacking in a number of things, and they believe with all their hearts that you can be saved for many years. And if you sin as a believer, the advocacy of Christ only begins for you when you confess. And if you were to die between the time you sin and the time you confess, you'd be lost forever. you see but it doesn't say that the advocacy of Christ begins when you confess it says that any man sinned we have an advocate with the Father so let me repeat what I said I was almost going to ask you to repeat it it is not my sin that results it's not my confession that results in his advocacy It's his advocacy that results in my conviction. Amen. You're not so sure. But it's true. It's true. Now if you lost your salvation when you sinned as a believer, God wouldn't be your father anymore. He'd still be your God, but not your father. The relationship would be gone. But this verse says, if any man sinned, we have an advocate with a father. He's still the father. Amen? He's still the Father because we have a man there who saves us by his life. Aren't you glad? And now to close, please. Going back to Romans once more. And verse eleven. And not only so. Live off the rest. Not only so. But we also joy in God. That's the same word in Greek as rejoice in verse two. And glory in verse three. And joy in verse twelve. Verse eleven. Not only so, but we also joy in God. exalt through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the atonement the reconciliation the last thing I want you to notice then is what we joy in God we have peace with God we have access by faith into a grace in which we stand we rejoice in hope of the glory of God we glory in tribulation We are saved from wrath through him. We are saved by his life. And finally, we joy in God. Not in his blessings, but in God. We're not like the nine who stand in the road counting their blessings. We're like the one who turns back and falling at the feet of his benefactor. Gives him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. We get beyond the blessings to the blessed. And we joy in God. Do you ever joy in God? I mean, do you ever get along with God? And just joy in God. I think David did that in second Samuel chapter seven, was it? Or eight. You ever shout hallelujah out loud? You say, no, I never do. I don't. I'm very careful if you wait till I'm on the highway with all the windows shut. Joy in God. You ever sit in your car and just joy in God? I do sometimes. And tell God what you think about it. That's what David is. One of the things he said, Lord, I thank you for speaking about me for a long time to come. Your joy in God. Get beyond all the things He gives you and get to Himself. Brethren and sisters, let us live off the rest.