Acts chapter fourteen and verse one, Acts fourteen and verse one. And it came to pass in Iconium that they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews and so spake that a great multitude both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed. but the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and made their minds evil affected against the brethren. You see how the devil works right after the Lord gets through blessing, as in verse one the Lord blesses, and then the devil begins to work in verse two. Long time, therefore, of old days speaking boldly in the Lord, which gave testimony under the word of his grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands. But the multitude of the city was divided and barred hell with the Jews and parked with the apostles. When there was an assault made both of the Gentiles and also of the Jews with their rulers to use them despitefully and to stone them, they were aware of it and fled unto Lystra and Derby. Cities of Laconia, and unto the region that lieth round about. There they preached the gospel, and there sat a certain man, a Lystra, here put it in his feet, being a cripple from his mother's womb, who never had walked. The same heard Paul speak, who steadfastly beholding him and perceiving that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, Stand upright on thy feet. and he leaped and walked. And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Laconia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men, and they called Barnabas Jupiter and Paul Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice to the people, or worship the apostles, which when the apostle Barnabas and Paul heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people crying out and saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities, this idolatry, unto the living God, which made heaven and earth and the sea and all things that are therein, who in time past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. And with these sayings scarce restrained they the people, that they had not done sacrifice unto them. And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch, an Iconium who persuaded the people, and having stone Paul drew him out to the city, supposing he had been dead. Howbeit as the disciples stood round about him he rose up and came into the city, and the next day he departed with bar and had taught many, they returned again to Lister and to Iconium and Antioch, confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must, through much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of God. When they had ordained them elders in every church and had prayed with fasting, they commanded them to the Lord on whom they believed. And after they had passed throughout Pasidia, they came to Phamphilia, and when they had preached the word in Berga, they went down into Atelia, and thence sailed to Antioch, from which they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled. When they were come and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed. all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles, there they abode long time with the disciples. We spoke on chapter thirteen this morning, in other words, we preached the gospel from that chapter, the forgiveness of sins, but we didn't touch on the rest of it, but I did that intentionally because we wanted to get through these studies on Acts, and chapter thirteen and fourteen are really one message. That is the first missionary journey of the Apostle Paul. You have ninety verses or rather eighty verses in these two chapters, and you could read this in about ten minutes. You could read these eighty verses, just sit down quietly, and read. these eighty verses, and you'd have the whole story of the first missionary journey of the Apostle Paul. And you'd find lots of interesting things in this portion of Scripture. It begins with Antioch in Syria, and he went out to Antioch in Basilia, and then he retraced his steps. And you have the whole journey in these two chapters. And if you would just quietly sit down and read it, which I oftentimes do, in portions like this, and underline the various places, the cities or the towns that he stopped at. And not only underline the places, but also record the results of his visit. What happened here when he preached the gospel? What was the reaction there? And if you go through the book like that, or these eighty verses, this first missionary journey, you'll glean a lot of precious thoughts. Just jotting down the places he stopped at, what he preached, and the reaction to that message, and the persecution he suffered, or the worship that they offered unto him. Here we find them idolized one limit. stone the next minute, and so you get the reaction of the various cities and towns to which he passed, and how on his outgoing journey he was converting people through the preaching of the gospel, on his returning journey, his homeward journey, he was confirming them. And we'll see more about that a little later on. It's very significant in dealing with these two characters in Acts. that is Peter and Paul, that sixty times in the first twelve chapters you have Peter referred to. He was the apostle to the Jews. But in the rest of the book of the Acts, from chapter thirteen to twenty-eight, one hundred times the apostle Paul is referred to and his name is given, showing how important it is to see the division of the Acts. How Peter went to the Jews and Paul to the Gentiles. He was the special and chosen vessel of God to the Gentiles. I think it's about AD, thirty-two that the Apostle Paul was saved. And approximately fourteen years later, he starts his missionary journey. He had a lot of experience. in that fourteen years or during that period of time, as he was being equipped by God, in some occlusion down in Arabia, and also other experiences. He is God, and he's training his servants, he's equipping the Apostle Paul for that first journey, the second journey, and the third journey. And so you find all these things as you read. these verses for yourself. Just easy verses. See if you can do it when you go home. Sit down and read these two chapters, and you get all the story of Paul's first missionary journey. Scofield helps you on this chapter, the dividing up of chapter thirteen, because there are seven divisions there. The first one you have in this chapter is Paul's And part of us is called by the Holy Spirit. Called by the Holy Spirit. Through the local church, five capable men in the church at Antioch. There is in the church. But God says, you have got too many there. Clearly you can carry on. I want the other two to go out and to visit. all places wither I wish to send them, to work with the gospel, and the Spirit of God is the one who said, Separate me, Barnabas, and Paul, unto the work where too I have sent them. Here is Paul definitely called by the Holy Spirit. Not a conference. No convention. No vision. Nothing of that nature in reference to the apostle being called into the work. He didn't go to a convention wondering where will they send me and how long will I have that pastor. Sometimes it's two years. You might, if fortunate, stay there four years. But to think of men going to a convention and listening to a bishop and his group, tell them where they're to go and for how long and in many cases what you preach. There's no such machinery in the word of God. You can't find it. Here is God, the Holy Spirit, calling the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, to the work whereunto I have called, and afterwards how dutifully led them from place to place, and you'll notice the message he gave them to preach. and he was also commissioned by the Spirit in verse four, called by the Spirit in verses one and two, and commissioned by the Spirit in verse four. Yes, it's nice to notice those two things, and you'll find something else, the opposition that turns up in verses six to thirteen, and how stern and how firm the Spirit of God can be. You'll notice these three references to the Holy Spirit in chapter thirteen. You have, first of all, how he's calling the Apostle, then he's commissioning him, and then the opposition, and how the Spirit of God spoke to that opposition. How firm and how stern was his condemnation of this man, this apostate, but that's what he was. tells you about this man. He was a Jew. He had no light, but he had rejected. He undoubtedly was a Jew. Furthermore, he was a profane Jew because his name was for Jesus or the Son of Jesus is what the Syriac language gives. The Son of Jesus And the Spirit of God says you're a child of the devil. So he does. Oh yes, he was looked upon as men would see him as the Son of Jesus, a likeness to Jesus, a relationship with Jesus. But the Spirit of God rightly analyzes this man and says you're a child of the devil. He was an apostate, profane Jew. and the very mention of his name Elements, which means Magi, or wise. The same word used in reference to the three wise men, the Magi. He was a clever Jew, not only a Jew that knew a lot of the Old Testament scriptures. He was a profane Jew, accepting a name, licking him up with Jesus Christ here. Spirit of God says you're a child of the devil, but he was a clever Jew. He has wisdom. He was very clever. But he turned out to be a blind Jew. For the Spirit of God smoked him with blindness. Here is judicious blindness. He spoke last week about judicial darkness. Here's a definite case of a man being judicially blinded by God because he was an apostate. But his blinding meant the opening of the eyes of the Roman official. You'll notice that if you read those verses. Yes, the blinding of this Jew meant the opening of the eyes of the Roman official in verses eleven and twelve. So you have that section, opposition. Then in verses fourteen to forty-three... You have Paul's sermon. What a wonderful sermon that is. We spoke on it this morning. It reminds you much of Stephen's sermon. How Paul on this occasion goes back to Abraham, and he brings his audience up so beautifully to the person of Christ, and how he was crucified, raised again from the dead by the Father, and this is the man. through this risen man. This glorified man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins. There you have Paul's remarkable sermon to these people. Then again you have opposition from the Jews in verse forty-four and forty-five. That's the second opposition in that chapter. Then again you have in verses forty-six and forty-nine Paul and Barnabas turn to the Gentiles. the Jews' final rejection of Jesus Christ after that eloquent sermon by the Apostle about this man, they turned to us. You judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, whatever lasting life behold, we turn to the Gentiles, and there you see the turning. And what a dark day that was for Israel, when the scales began to come over their eyes, judicially blinded by God. as a nation. Then you find further opposition in verses fifty to fifty to the vote and honorable women and the chief citizens of Poland. Three cases of opposition in that one chapter. Opposition. The Spirit of God was working, and here you see the opposition in verses six to thirteen, this apostate opposed. Then you have opposition, as I've already mentioned, from the Jews in verses forty and four and forty five. Then opposition from devout and honorable women and senior citizens in chief citizens in that city. So there you have an outline of chapter thirteen. But now we come to these other places where Paul visited. In verses one and six of chapter fourteen, you find in that Arconium. And it says, some believe, and some were deceived. Some believe, some believe not. The ones who believe not were deceived. And you'll find in verse three, the city is divided. And here's the seventh persecution in the Acts, persecution against Paul and Barnabas and the Christians. Then you come to the work of Lister. And how this lame man got healed, verses seven to twenty. It reminds a lot of what you have in chapter three, the lame man at the gate. Very similar. He was lame from birth. This man was lame from birth. But the apostle Paul on this occasion gave him hope. You see the man hopeless in verse eight. And hope in verse nine. And blessed in verse ten. He leaped and he walked. And then you come to a very strange passage here. Verses eighteen, eleven to eighteen. They worship the apostles. My, this must have been a kind of a strange experience. Paul, Paul seemingly has known as persecution. And now they're going to worship. I guess Paul says, well, I've missed out somewhere. I've got off the track to receive this kind of drink. This is new. But they worship them. When he healed this lame man, let me tell you, kisses and kicks from the world are both dangerous. And beyond your guard against them, faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. Beyond your guard against those, and I remember one time I was introduced, in a church up near Sanford, Clarence Low. Of course, you don't know Clarence, but you know Jimmy Redley, who's in the Sanford. And this man, Mr. Benton, was a preacher. And he asked me, I'd go out and preach. In fact, the first church I preached in, when the preacher had given up, his pastorate when I came south, forty-one years ago. And he said, I can't do anything with those people. This was a Clayton, North Carolina. And he said, if you can do anything, fine. He said, iron fruit. Well, the Lord worked, and fifty-one professed to get saved during five weeks of meeting. That was my first campaign alone. Now, Mr. Benton was the preacher. So later on, I was out from Sanford, and he had another church there where he used to preach. And he asked me if I wouldn't come and preach one Sunday afternoon, and I said, yes. And I went out. And he got up, and he relented me unto the Apostle Paul by going around starting churches. So when I got up to preach, I said, you know, they say that soft soap is ninety percent lie. That was my reply to what he had to say about me. Soft soap is ninety percent lie. Watch out for those who just laid off. lay it off. They'll turn from you just as quick as they get the offer to you. Paul at one time, oh yes, he's getting all kinds of lavishments deep to Father. The next thing you see, they're going to stone him to death. Stone. Isn't that something? Here you have, first of all, Paul worshiped And then in verses nineteen and twenty, Paul's stone. Hosanna's today, the cross tomorrow. Oh, those who shouted Hosanna to the Lord Jesus. We're the ones who said, Crucify! Crucify only hours later. Oh, the fickleness of human affection who can kiss you today and kick you tomorrow. That's human nature. Ah, yes, but there's a friend who's closer than a brother, and you know who a true friend is. A true friend is one who knows all about you and loves you just the same. But a lot of people love a person as long as that person agrees with them, and their love is so superficial. It's just under the circumstances You do something to ire them, hurt them, displease them. Now they'll turn against you. Praise you today and stone you tomorrow. It's nice to know we've got one in heaven. He loves us every day. He knows all about us and loves us just to see. This is genuine love. This is the love of the Spirit. That other thing. not the love of the Spirit. There's an awful lot of human nature about that kind of love. The love of the Spirit is deeper. It's lasting. That's the kind of love. The Bible teaches we should have one for another, not this surface stuff, this gushy, slushy stuff. God wants something that's real and deep and genuine But you see all these experiences in Paul's earthly journeys. Verses nineteen and twenty, Paul is stoned, worshiped, then stoned, and then he's homeward bound in verses twenty-one to twenty-eight. He's going to revisit the churches. Going out, he's been preaching the gospel, and people have been saved now. He's coming back, retracing his steps. And what's he doing? He's confirming them, these young converts. And I want you to notice one thing. You find today some organizations, and they confirm children. They like to have their boy or girl confirmed. Well, I can't find any confirmation of babies or children in my life. I find the word three times in the Acts of the Apostles. And you know who gets confirmed? He confirms the disciples in chapter fourteen, twenty-two. He confirms the brethren in chapter fifteen and thirty-two. He confirms the churches in chapter fifteen and forty-one. There are no babies here. There are no children here. These are all adults, disciples, brethren, and churches. Now these are the ones the apostles confirmed. you get confirmed and that's all you're depending on to take you to heaven you're getting confirmed in your sins it's Christ you need not confirmation the Bible speaks plainly of confirmation here but it puts it in its proper perspective these people have been saved and then Paul comes back to and he confirms them in the truth he establishes them in the truth That's what they mean, confirmation in the truth of God. And then there's a wonderful report of the missionary. And Barnabas and Paul finally land back in Antioch of Syria. And the closing verses of chapter forty are lovely. As you see how the apostle returns and tells the brethren of all the wonderful things that they have seen and done. in that missionary journey. Possibly took two or three years this missionary journey of the apostles. Now what did they preach? That's very interesting. What did they preach? Lord, to stir up all this opposition and persecution. Well, if they had gone around and preached something that didn't get on the people's skin. Why, they would have been all right if they'd have preached for what the people wanted them to hear. Had they preached to the Jews that Moses is the one, you've got to follow Moses. Had they preached to others? Well, there were many idolaters of systems of that day. If they'd have preached something suitable to each person, in other words, if they had known how to cut their flaw, to suit their congregation, they'd have got along all right. But wherever they went, they had one message to preach. And ten times, and I'll mention them, ten times it tells you what they preach. I think a number of years ago, the men had a Bible study back in the chapel. And I attended one night and pointed out these ten things then, and I haven't thought of them since, but I'm going to mention them here. And this was what they preached on that entire missionary journey. You'll notice verse five, they preach the word of God. Verse seven, the same thing, they preach the word of God. Verse thirty-two, what did they preach? Glad Titans. What did they preach in verse thirty-eight, forgiveness of sins? What did they preach in verse forty-nine, the word of the Lord? What did they preach in verse three of chapter fourteen, the word of his grace? What did they preach in verse seven? the gospel what did they preach turn from these vanities unto the living God in verse fifteen of chapter fourteen and in chapter fourteen verse twenty one they preached the gospel to that city and in verse twenty five of chapter fourteen almost at the end of their missionary journey and when they had preached the word In every case they preached the word, they preached the gospel, they preached the glad tidings, wherever they went, they had one message. And that was the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel. Friend, that's the only message that God's been blessing down the centuries. For nineteen hundred years now, God, the Holy Spirit is leading men and women to preach the gospel if they're submissive. And if they're tender in their conscience toward the guidance of the Spirit, that's what they'll all preach. They'll preach the gospel. Nothing but the gospel to the unseen. Who is the source of this message? Of course God is. It's the gospel of God. He's the source. And what authority has the word? Why is the word of a king? And the king denotes authority. Furthermore, what's the character of this gospel? It's the gospel of the Holy God. The character of this gospel is holy. And furthermore, the inspiration of this gospel. Well, you know, was it David? And also Job, I think, said that they had esteemed... God's word more than their necessary food. Oh, yes, they were getting nourishment for their body, but they wanted nourishment for their soul. The only place they could get it was from the inspired word of God, not the traditions of them. Then furthermore, the finality of God's word is the word of truth. God's truth! of the message. And the reality of it. And the reliability of it. It's His faithful word. You can depend upon. You can rely upon His faithful. And you also read these expressions in your Bible about God's word. It's the word of Thy righteousness. God's righteousness. It's the word of His promise. It's the word of His grace. It's the word of his reconciliation. It's the word of life. But I like this last one. It's the word of his patience in Revelation, three and ten. You know, if I had to have a Bible printed and wanted something to write on the cover of the front, I know it says Holy Bible among some of them. But I'd like to have these words put on the front cover. the words of his patience, how patient God has been. This Bible presents the patience of God. Why did God tolerate this? Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes. Yes. Yes. Why has he been so kind? So gracious. Why, any of us, I'd lived back in Ananias and Sapphira's day. I believe we'd have gone home to heaven pretty soon after we were saved. Why do we live like we do today and become so worldly? I can't understand it today how Christians could get by with so much. It's only the fact that God a lot of patience. I was in a home one night this past week, I think it was, or it might have been the week before. And this young couple had come out to the chapel once. I was two weeks ago tonight, so I went to visit them. And the subject of attire came up. And he thought it was all right for us to dress like the hippies or have hair like the hippies and dress like some of the ladies do. covered about as much as they were ever, and they were in diapers as babies. And I said, well, the Bible talks about a modest apparel. Oh, but he said, God doesn't look upon that. He looks upon the heart. God sees the inward man. He doesn't look upon the outward man. God looks upon the heart. Yes, I said, you know, the world is growing today so fast and going so far away from the truth of God. I don't expect it'll be long before I'll read in the newspaper they're having Bible study in a nudist column. The low levels of morality today, the exposure of a human body, and the lack of conscience about it, that's the sad thing. And I want to tell you something, you write it down. Light thoughts of sin mean light thoughts of the atonement. If you have light thoughts about sin, oh, well, this is a new day we're living in. Yes, people don't seem to have any conscience at all about moral. The standard of moral has sunk so low, and so has the thoughts about God's atonement as seen in Jesus Christ. As the thoughts of sin seem to sink, Man, don't man, doesn't look upon sin as one seated. Friend, light, thoughts about sin. Oh, what does God say about those things? I don't believe that kind of stuff. That's what this young man said. That only led me to believe this. This young man had very light thoughts of the atonement. He didn't know the depths or the hatred of God for sin when God gave his son to die upon the cross. Ah, when you look at Calvary, you see God's estimate of sin. You see God's hatred of sin. Why was he there as a bearer of sin if on Jesus my guilt was not laid? If you want to see what God thinks of sin, you see that Calvary. And I should see sin in the same light. And if you don't look at sin and its true character and life before God, you'll have light thoughts of the price, the act, and the price that God paid to put sin away. And so you find today, God is a God of patience. How he puts up with this, I just don't know. All I can say, God is patient. times coming when God's patience will run out, and then he'll deal with sin as he sees them. Well, what sustained them in their missionary journey? You have that, I think, in verse fifty-two of chapter thirteen. What does it say there? They were filled with joy and with the Holy Ghost. Here's the smile. that won't come off. Where did you get that? Well, from the box of food products. And on this box, there was a lot of smiling faces. Everybody was smiling. And they had that caption on there, the smile that won't come off. Quite an advertisement. In other words, what they were trying to get across, if you eat our product, you'll always be satisfied. that's the smile, he said, that won't come on. The smile of satisfaction. Well, I thought that's pretty good. Let me tell you, when a Christian is fully, completely, absolutely satisfied with Jesus Christ, he can wear a smile that won't come on. They were filled with joy and with the Holy Ghost and joy. How can a person express his joy, if it's not through his countenance. Oh, there's something about divine radiance. They looked unto him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed, we read in the Psalms. The word lightened there is radiant in your mind. They looked unto him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed. Here is the radiant face of a satisfied person. They were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. Do you mean to say all through those persecutions, yes, you can't go through the Acts without noticing how happy the Christians were. After every persecution, you find them rejoicing. Ah, yes, they were happy. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, joy. Now here's the real thing. smile that won't come off. A divine smile. A divine joy. You know, there are some smiles that come off when they come off in a hurry. What's that? The smile of the drunkard. He can smile when he's drunk, when he's intoxicated. He doesn't like smiling when he sobers up. What does the Bible say about this kind of smiling? It says, no drunkard, drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. And I believe this is a man who has given over the drink. It's not a drink here and there. No, no. This man is a habitual drunkard. And he continues in that way. But the drunkards, you go out to the anchors. I've been out there many times, another place like it. You don't see many of those men smiling. Oh, when they were intoxicated, they could cut up. You get them when they sobered up, and they're not very happy men. There's a smile that soon wears off. And what about the smile of a sensual person, sensual person? living for the flesh. The Bible says nothing that defilers shall enter into the kingdom of God. Here's those who indulge in the flesh. Passions of the flesh. Engaging in, bless the activity. They have a smile. Oh yes, they do. But it won't last. It won't last. nor will the smile of a dishonest person last. Oh, a man may laugh when he's making money in a dishonest way, but the time comes when that smile will be gone. The Bible says concerning it through the very unusual text, it is not, it is not, says the buyer, when he goes his way, he rejoices. Is that some comment on a Jew? He goes in to buy a suit. He wants to fight this suit. Oh, this suit's a hundred dollars. No, it is not worth that. It's not worth that. It's not worth that. And he reduces the man down when he's almost given the suit. When he gets outside, he laughs. It is not, it is not, says the merchant of the buyer. And when he goes his way, he rejoices. Yes, the dishonest person. who is gaining this world's riches and wealth in a dishonest way. He may smile when all is going well, but that smile will soon come off. And then the proud man, the self-satisfied man. Yes, he can smile too. But remember the times coming when that smile will wear off when he's face to face with this fact that except the man become like a little child. or except one like will through the camel's eye. He'll never enter into the kingdom of heaven. You've got to humble yourself. I'd like the camel had to get down on its knees to get through that hole in the wall that was called the needle's eye. He had to come down. He had to get on his knees to get through. And friend, a self-satisfied man. has got to come down. He may feel satisfied with himself for a little while. When he comes under the preaching of the gospel, I'll tell you that smile will wear off. He'll be convinced of the fact that his good life won't take him to heaven. He'll be convinced of the fact that what he's got doesn't really satisfy. And the smile will wear off. And, of course, there's the worldly person. They're enjoying things of this life, but it won't last. It won't last. These are smiles that will not last. During the First World War, I suppose some of you can think back that long. There was a man, and he wrote that, did he? Pack up your troubles in the old kitbag and smile, smile, smile. I remember when they were singing that. Do you know what that man did? After playing that at a big party one night, he went to his room and committed suicide. And yet there he was at the piano with a big smile. Pack up your troubles in an old kit bag and smile, smile, smile. He was trying to lift the morale of the people during that wartime and the troops, and especially. But his smile didn't last for long. He committed suicide. These are smiles that will come off. Some people smile perfectly content and satisfied with their chances for help. Oh, I'm a member of this church. I hold an office in this church. And I continue to my church. I do this and I do that. Yes, and they smile about perfectly content that's all right. The day is coming when that smile I'll vanish too. of Christ. What about the smile that God wants us to wear? They were full of joy and of the whole ego. The smile of salvation, like the jailer. My, he heard the Apostle Paul and Silas singing in the jail at midnight, singing praises unto God, I yet you can see the smile on their faces that they're suffering. And the jailer was so convicted, he got saved. Oh, how happy he was. Yes, the joy of salvation. When you've got peace, when you've got joy, when you've got salvation, eternal life, and know you'll never perish, then you can wear a smile. Many a time in my life when someone's come up and told me they've gotten saved and the tears running down their face, I said, well, what are you crying for? If you're saved, well, these are tears of joy. That's it. Tears of joy. Here's a smile that won't run off. For the more you get to know of God's wonderful salvation and the depth and reality of peace with God and everlasting life, you should never stop smiling because you'll be saved forever. Why shouldn't we smile? A little bit more. Then there is the smile. Also of being sanctified or set apart for God. Set apart that you might yield the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, weakness, goodness, temperance, and so on. If a person is filled with the Spirit of God, he's going to yield these things. He's got to be happy. He can't be otherwise. Then to think God the smile of service. Soul winning. Soul winning. How wonderful to see your blessings, your ministry, or your service crowned with the blessings of God and people getting saved. Oh, you smile. You're happy. You're rejoicing in the Lord. You've seen God work. then the joy of satisfaction. I'm satisfied. Satisfied with thee, Lord Jesus, I am blessed. Peace that passeth understanding fills my dress. Satisfaction, the smile of divine heavenly satisfaction. You know, Naphtali, when he was born, his mother, Rachel, called him Naphtali. What does Naphtali mean? Naphtali simply means this. She wrestled with God, and she says, satisfied with favor, full of the blessings of the Lord. She wrestled with God in prayer that she might have this son, and God gave her this son. She called them Naphtali, satisfied with favor, God's favor, and I'm full with the blessing of the Lord. Satisfied. Abraham. Yes, the Philippians, as Paul wrote to them, you read that little book of four chapters. You don't find sin mentioned once in those four chapters, but you do find joy or synonym about nineteen times. Joy, rejoice, rejoicing. They must have been a happy one. Yes, the joy of satisfaction. Christian, I wonder, we know something of the joy of this wonderful, wonderful salvation and sufficiency that we have in our Lord Jesus Christ. What does David say? He says, I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy lightness. Psalm seventeen, I think at first it. I shall behold thy face in righteousness. I shall be satisfied when I wait with thy likeness. Sometimes we wear frowns down here when we should be smiling. Often our expressions are a poor demonstration of our salvation that God has given us. But in that coming day we'll smile when we see his smile. will smile will be satisfied. We're all beyond the reach of temptation, of sin, of trials, of sorrows. We will like himself. Our smile will be for us because we'll be satisfied, whatever. Satisfied. Home at last. But here's the fuss of Paul. He's gone out. He's coming back home. Homeward bound to the base where he left. about three years before, and the missionary's return, he sends up his life, tells the brethren who had commended us, and they rejoice. I look upon this first journey as a picture of a person's life, my life. A man, when he's younger, he goes out, and he preaches more gospel. He sees people get saved, but as he gets older, And he's homeward bound. In later years, he does a little more teaching, a little more expounding. He's wanting to build up the converts and to strengthen. Homeward bound.