Grant has asked that I say something about it. Gather tonight in the Gospel of John chapter twelve. John's Gospel chapter twelve and verse one. Then Jesus, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead. There they made him a supper. And Martha served, but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spite-nard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment. Then said one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, that you would betray him. Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence and given to the poor? not that he cared for the poor but because he was a thief and had the bag and where what was put her in then said jesus let her alone against the day of my burying has she kept this for the poor always ye have with you but me ye have not always much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was there, and they came not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might see you, Lazarus, also whom he had raised from the dead. I think we finished with this word on the last time we spoke to you, the raising of Lazarus from the dead. There was no time to say more than we did say, but you remember we read in our text when we were reading about Lazarus, Jesus said, our friend Lazarus sleepeth. Now Mary and Martha understood, at least Martha did, that the Lord was really maybe mistaken at this time, for she said, if it only sleep, but the Lord Jesus Christ, I love this. When he said, our friend Lazarus sleepeth, the disciples couldn't appreciate. I think the Lord's beautiful where he should run instead. Is that all right then? Oh yeah, we understand that all right instead. Isn't that nice as the Lord? Why? Why do I say that? Okay, listen, now I want to teach you a bread and whiskey as it were, up to a very high lofty mountain peak of appreciation that Lazarus is sleeping. Yes, sure. If you only sleep, oh that's wonderful. But yeah, but I'm going to wake him. We're not going to miss this. But no, if you think the Lord really is right here, it's tremendous when you think of him. Actually, we're saying he's making a mistake. Surely he's mistaken. And I like this, as I've said. If you will not rise to a higher plane that the Lord would like you to walk on in grace, he condescends to walk with you. I put it to the saints like this. The Lord Jesus cried once from your life and mine a whole loaf. Will you give it to him? No, I will not. I just could not. What about half a loaf? No, no, not a half a loaf. Would you suggest a slice? No, I wouldn't like to say it. I would give him a slice. Who would you give him a press? Well, now, well, we want a boast. Tell me, will you give him a crumb? Because if you won't give him a loaf, he'll take half a loaf. If you won't give him half a loaf, he'll take a slice. If you won't take a slice, he'll take a crumb. If you won't give him a crumb, he'll take a crumb, the condescending grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. And then he said to Stephen, but why did the Lord say that? For Lazarus was not sleeping. Lazarus was dead. And if he wasn't dead when he lay in the bed, he was dead by the time they had a mummified wrapping and wrapping and wrapping those clothes, but he couldn't have breathed. He was dead for sure by then, but the Lord Jesus Christ said he was dead, or he was sleeping. You know, Paul knew what the Lord meant. When he wrote his letter to the saints in Thessalonica, and he said, Then them also that sleep through Jesus Will God bring with him? When we're dealing with a sinner in the New Testament, in view of resurrection, it's the dead. But when we're dealing with the saints, it's those that sleep. Now, I've heard it expressed this way, all the air, body sleep. But I confess I don't understand that. I look at a body and I can see it as though the person was asleep. And I can see, well, now... you would think he was sleeping, wouldn't you? But if I saw that form a certain number of years later, according to the soil in which the casket is laid, I'm not going to see anything that looks like someone's sleeping. There's no body there. Oh, there may be a bone. There may be some liver indication that there was someone buried there. So what do I mean, and what does we mean when we talk about the saints are sleeping? Well, now, I've come to this conclusion, and I've never gotten it anywhere from anybody else. And I must tell you the truth, I don't know if everybody endorses it, but anyway, this is what I think simply what we can take from it when the Lord speaks of the saints are sleeping. When you have a dear one who goes to sleep, are you ever upset about it? No, of course not. Why? Because it's beneficial to the person who is sound asleep. Tell me, you don't get upset, no, why? Well, I know it's not only beneficial to my beloved one, but it is only temporary. He's not going to sleep on and on and on and on. I tell you, I say, I like it because not only is it beneficial, not only is it temporary, but when I want him or her to awaken, all I have to do is touch him on the arm, name his name, and his eyes will open. So I believe the parallel between the same sleeping and his death is simply as this. The experience that they pass through now is a blessed one, very far better. The experience they pass through is only temporary. It's not going to last as now we know it. And when the morm of resurrection comes simply but heartily, Jesus will say, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. You know, the Lord Jesus had his feet anointed twice. Now, some of you may think of three times. No, I don't see it that way twice. His feet were anointed in Luke chapter seven and then in John chapter twelve. What we have in Matthew twenty-six and in Mark fourteen are versions of what we have in John's Gospel chapter twelve. The first anointing was in the beginning, the early days of his ministry. This anointing was at the end of his ministry. That anointing of Luke was in the city of Nain. This anointing is in the town of Bethany. That anointing was in the house of a man who was a Pharisee called Simon. This was in the house of a man called Simon, but he is mentioned as a leper. This woman that came to him in Luke chapter seven was a sinner. This woman is a saint. The complaint was in each case. They complained in chapter Luke. They complained in John. But the complainer in Luke seven was the host. The complainer in John twelve is a guest. And then the complaint was, how the Lord allowed the woman to give him honor. And John chapter twelve, the complaint is, oh, how costly an honor this is that she gives him. But however, some saints have been a little puzzled because in one gospel it says two days. And in another gospel like we've had it here, it says six days. And if you study it carefully, this is what you'll find. you will find the Lord came to Bethany six days before the Passover, four days later, meaning two days before the Passover, the supper was there. And I think that explains what seems to be a contradiction. And it wasn't in the home of Mary and Mother. It was in the home of Simon, who had been a leper. I think judging by the number who were present, for the disciples were there, I would suggest possibly Mount Mary and Markle's home was a humble little home, and Simon's home was a larger home, and it was used for the occasion. And I like to think that when the Lord Jesus Christ sat down at that table, he appreciated it. There they made him a supper. He had been in Bethany not long before. He stood by the grave of Nassau. He'd raised them to health and strife and life again, and I'm sure you'll allow me to say, David says, Martha says, longer says, we're never going to forget that. There they made him a supper. And may I suggest the making of that supper was the expression of their appreciation, the expression of their gratitude, the expression of their thankfulness for what the Lord Jesus Christ has done. What shall I render unto the Lord? For all is benefit unto me. That's what David cried. And David's loved it in the Bible. There's another man in the Bible. And his name was Hezekiah. Hezekiah took sick. And God said he was going to die. But he turned his face to the wall of the baby. He said, Oh, don't let me die. And God said to a servant, Isaiah, go and tell him, No. He won't die. I'll give him sixteen more years. And God raised him up. gave him sixteen more years, and this is what God's word says, he rendered not again for the benefit that God had given to him. Beloved friend in the meeting tonight, have you had a burden at one time? Maybe sickness, maybe unemployment, maybe a problem, and you took it to the Lord in prayer, and the Lord heard, and the Lord answered, may I ask you, did you ever express? Your appreciation to the Lord for what he has done in some tangible way. The Lord appreciates our appreciation. I want to remind you of the story of the lepers. Ten repens. And nine risk went on their way. One came back. He says, Lord, thank you. Thank you. And the Lord said as it were, and I thank you for thanking me for our appreciated. Oh, beloved friend, we're living in a day that the Scripture tells us is to be a day marked by unstyfulness. And may we as Christians learn from this little lesson tonight, remember to give God our appreciation in a tangible, marked way for blessings, for favors that he has done for us. Some of you have come to this conference this week and you have been enjoying the fellowship of God's people, you have been enjoying the sessions around this word, you have been enjoying every phase of the conference and by Sunday the Lord will your return again. Now when you go back, what will you do to mark your appreciation for the week of fellowship that you have enjoyed here at Coronas, but God has blessed you. O brethren and sisters, in some way, let us examine. Our gratitude is the God of all grace for the kindness that He has shown us. Having said that, I want you to think now for a few moments with me of what perhaps is not generally spoken on in the connection with this. The Lord allowed two women to cross the path of His Son before He went to the cross. One was Mary and the other, I don't know her next. Oh, I know it. She was a widow. She had a little bit of money, and that little bit of money in our currency was possibly about a cent. We won't argue half a cent or three-quarters of a cent. Just let's call it a cent. This was all that you had. And the rich were thrown in near her silver and gold, and she dropped in her two little copper pieces. And the Lord saw it, and he said, She has given all, she has given all. Did God the Father not whisper in the ear of his blessed son, as he saw him give all, her give all, and that's what you're going to do. You're going to go to the cross, and you're going to give yourself a ransom for all. I believe the woman's humble act. was a little means in the hand of God of strengthening the Lord Jesus Christ. Then Mary, Mary, as our brother was and mentioned last night, you were in the tomb, Mary came beforehand, Mary came beforehand, and as Mary smeared those nets at meat with that perfume, that ointment, the Lord Jesus Christ knew it was in her heart, Mary is saying, Lord, we are going to die. But we are going to rise again. You're going to live, and although the word burial is used, it's in view of his resurrection. And so the Lord Jesus Christ is reminded in Mary's hand, you're going to die on the cross and be buried in the tomb. But beyond the tomb there's resurrection, glory and power. I believe they strengthen as the angel did. Oh, beloved sisters in the meeting tonight, what a word of comfort. What a word of cheer for an encouragement to you sisters in the meeting tonight. It was two women, two women, only women crossed the pathway of the Lord Jesus and he allowed them, God allowed them to do the angel's work. It reminded me the story of Jonathan and David. David's out in the cage standing forlorn, forsaken, rejected. Sometimes, baby, he put his hand up to his head, and that's the spot where Samuel poured the oil. But, oh, dear, living in a cave, and the oil of anointing from God in my head. God has not come out of me. He said, David, let me tell you something. My father's never going to get you. My father will never slay you, David, for this simple reason he'll never find you. Listen, David. My father is going to pass off the scene. You are anointed king. And as truly as God has anointed you, king, you're coming to the throne. Let me tell you that, David. I know it. You're going to sit on the throne. And one day you'll exchange this cake for the palace. He strengthened his hand in God. Oh, I think then it's wonderful to think that this lovely ministry was given to these two women. In John chapter twelve we have what I would call a tableau with Martha, with Lazarus, Mary. You remember the other night when I was speaking to you, I mentioned a tabernacle. Do you mind if I mentioned this again? When you entered the tabernacle into the holy place, there was a table, bread was on it, twelve loaves. And here is a golden altar and incense was on it. And here we have a lampstand of seven lamps burning. Over that table I'm going to write the name Lazarus. And over that lampstand I'm going to write the name Masha. And over that golden altar I'm going to write the name Mary. The table is communion, the table is fellowship. The altar is, the lampstand is witness, the lampstand is service. And the golden altar is worship. And so here we have Lazarus, the one who commutes, communion. Here we have Martha, the one in service, and here we have Mary, and she's in Russia. Now I think those three exercises cover the life of every true child. the life of every true child of God. Why did God save me? Over under the trees during this week, this is what we've been thinking at or trying to get around to. Young folks in the meeting tonight, why did God ever save you? Some of you older folks maybe need to be reminded by asking yourself the question, why did he ever save me? Why did he ever save me? And let me write those three words over the answers I'm going to give you. He saved you that there might be worship. And from your worship, beloved friend, there will be communion. And from your communion there will be expression of service. Service is the cup and its filling. Communion is the cup and its smooth. Worship is a cup and it's flowing over. And that's the reason why God saved us. And that's the reason why we create assemblies of God's people. In the first instance, we create an assembly of God's people so that God will have a worshiping people. What about us serving people? Wait a minute. Just leave that alone. He wants us to worship people. Oh, he just wants us to worship. Well, if that's all you do, you never learn worship. You learn what worship is, beloved Savior of God. Oh, all the others who come to know my God and know my Christ and know my Savior, there will be service and there will be communion. You notice that there are only three lines in the Bible to tell us about Lazarus and Martha. Three lines. It takes three stories to tell us a story of Mirai. Three stories, three accounts of what Mirai did. Only three lines in one account to tell us what Lazarus and Amantah are doing. When the Lord Jesus Christ called his disciples up into the mount and said he sent the poor to the commission, not first of all. They held them by the feet, crushing them. Now says the Lord, no, make disciples of all nations. It's a worshipping people, I said, Moses, sir. When the Lord called Moses up to the mouth called Tami'ai, he says, Moses, here are two stones, here is my law, and I'm going to write them in one word for you. Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Now, Judas has a suggestion to make, and shall we forget the story of Judas being asleep. Leave that out. The Lord never bothered looking at it. Take up Judas' base value. The other disciples concurred with Judas. He's the man who has the seed. I know the value of the Lord. My goodness. At that point that I've been sold, did you know we could have given the lots of the poor? And the Lord says to Judas, Judas, you forget the poor. Right now, you forget the poor. That's not like thee, Lord. That's not like thee. Porn in the manger, sleeping alone, and quarrel with Kenny. Oh, no, that's not like the Lord. That's not like. All you'll leave behind when you die, and the dearly speaking will be the clothes in your back. That's not like the Lord. That's not like the Lord. Yes, he says to Judas, don't you dare mention service for the poor at this point. What Mary is doing is rushing, and what you want to do is service. And that's what's wrong with Christendom today, even in the most evangelical churches. That's what's wrong today. The aspect of worship, the preeminence, the importance, and the first place that worship has is not recognized in Christendom today. And what you see on the billboard, eleven a.m. public worship, forget it. That never was breathed in heaven. It never fell from the lips of the Lord. No, the writers of the earth. Not like Russia. No such thing. What they might say is a public service. Come and hear a man preach. But filling fumes from stem to stern of our buildings. And hearing an elephant man in the platformer pulled back. That's not Russia. A hundred and forty years ago, a few brethren in British Guyana, in Dublin, in Ireland, In Plymouth, in England, saw for the first time after eighteen centuries what spiritual, scriptural worship is, and what is it? Gathering around the Lord Jesus Christ, and we're not there to hear sermons. We're not there for Bible readings. We're not there for prayer meetings. We're not there for gospel meetings. Why are we there? We're there to the members of Lord, and let me show you a number of parallels. Between what we have in the house of Bethany and what we call a breaking of bread-feeding. Here we have, first of all, we have a supper. The Lord's Supper. Here we have a woman giving. The Lord's Supper we give. That's the only meal. Why are you here tonight? There's ministry meeting. You're here to get... Why do you go to the prayer meeting? You're there to get. Why do you go to a gospel meeting? Well, we're there to get that we might give to the sinner. You name any service that we arrange. And all the services that we arrange are getting meetings, getting meetings, getting meetings, getting meetings. The breaking of that meeting is the giving meeting. We're going to give to the Lord. Notice there was giving. Notice there was a supper. Notice there was a death feast. A death spice. A spice related to death. We have a table. On that table there's a loose. And on that table there's bread. A death spice. The amblance of the body and blood of our Lord Jesus in death. We've got a death spice. But then something else denotes. We've got a perfume. We've got a fragrant. Where do you find that at the Lord's Supper? What do you think worship is? But giving. And what is give a love, son? So thank you for that light that he lived among men. So thank you for the traits of that beautiful character and the enlargence of that son. We ask thee to receive from all of us assembled at the tables of day our hearts felt appreciation of him in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why did we put that word into name? Over in the Old Testament, in Exodus chapter thirty, the greatest chapter in the Bible in verse, some of you may disagree, but tell me if you know that we're better than Exodus thirty. In Exodus thirty we've got the story of an altar, then we've got the story of a little piece of silver, then we've got the story of a labour, then we've got the story of an oil, and then we've got the story of a perfume. I think we've got an altar, We've got a perfume. What is the perfume? Is that perfume? It's perfume. Thy name, Lord, Lord. The perfumes and name are your Jesus Christ. We had an oil. What's the oil? The oil is gathered together to present with God that perfume. Would do it in the energy of the Holy Spirit. What is that labor? That labor is where we clean or cleanse before we do it. And what is the silver? We're a people bought by God, Christ's precious blood to do with. And what is the altar? The altar is Christ himself, through whom we approach to give God this beautiful name. Maybe we'll develop the ointment. Well, we'll just go on with the development of it at this moment, and then get to saying something about the preservative of the spice. Thy name is this ointment for it, for it is ever to the Virgin's love thee. Song, Solomon, one three. While the king said it, I'll say, But my ointment, my virgin sendeth forth the smell of the past. A good name is rather to be chosen, and precious ointment, Ecclesiastes, seven and one. Dead life, for the ointment of the popular descent, both distinct, they refer to the little polyhymnous reputation for wisdom and honor. Ecclesiastes, ten and one. Leviticus chapter twenty-one, no flat nose, priest can officiate. Now I know that hope is focused to you right there, switching it, throwing it at you like that. But if I take a few minutes and try to be straight, good name, good name. There is a name, I love it. A good name. You know in our meeting last night, a week ago, that is my home assembly, an old brother got up and if ever you heard anybody blethering, In your life that's what he did. He's leathers. Lord, he said, it says in thy word, remember the guys that have gone before, who's shown unto you in the way. And we think of old brother Duncan, and we think of old brother Morland, and old brother White. Oh, I could have, if I had been sitting beside him, I would have grabbed him out of the coat of tail, said, said the child. We're not there to remember old brother Duncan, the old brother White, and the other old brother. We're there to remember our Lord Jesus, for I'd mention no maid in the same breath as his name, a good name. My name is, is the perfume, while the king said it had a stable to send that up, but then dead flies. Oh, here's a box of perfume. Let's pull the lid off. Oh, look at it. Look what... I don't know how it happened. Smell it. Oh, don't let me smell that. Throw it out. What happened? Somehow or other a fly got into that ointment. Just throw it out. Brother and sister, I love you and Christ and you love me. But we'll all have to say this, won't we? There's a dead fly somewhere in your name. There's a dead fly somewhere in my name. and mention the man in the Bible and the dead fly somewhere, but there's no dead fly in that name that we ought to be taught. The other scripture, I know it would be over your head, I'm sure most of you, a flat-nosed priest in the economy of Israel, he wasn't allowed to function, he wasn't allowed to function at the altar, the altar of incense. I don't think that's fair, speaking as a man after the flesh. After all, Lord, does it matter what the dear man's face looks like? He may not be a photographic beauty with a flat nose, but surely that wasn't that. And, Lord, that's hardly fair now. Is that going to stop him from going to the altar? Ah, you see, what was written aforetime, was written for our learning? What do you do with your nose? Well, if you do with your nose, what I do with my nose, you smell what it don't do. My, isn't that a beautiful perfume? Huh? My... I don't put it over here. I don't put it over here. I put it over here. I want the nose to tell me. My, what if a flat nose is suggesting it? No smell. Beloved brethren, I want to talk to you. I want to talk to you right now. I want to talk to your brethren and take part in the drink and the bread meeting. Although you're the bread and I want to talk to you. I wonder are any of us flat nose priests. You're going to lead the saints in worship on a Lord's day morning. God grant you not a flat-nosed priest. But if you have an appreciation of the glories and the beauties of the man of Calvary, and we're not an appreciation of those glories, have those beauties. You can't lead the saints in worship nor in praise a flat-nosed priest of the Lord. Having said that, beloved saints of God, something else to be said about a perfume. Now, I never used perfume in my life, but someday I'm tempted to use it just to get a little practical experiment, smash myself with some nice perfume some lady would recommend and pay for it. And then I'm going to come into meetings, I'm going to sit down, and everybody's going to say, my, doesn't he smell nice? You don't see me, you're smelling like a perfume. You've all said David Kerr. That's why he's wearing this. Isn't that? Isn't that? Do you see what I mean? Do you see what I mean? When we're David Kerr, when we present the Lord Jesus, that was God smelling. That was God smelling. He's not smelling you. He's not smelling me. And in all the appreciation of what he is. Now, you know, we will take a few minutes. I want to tell you, about the preserve of spice. You know that you're those spices and they imparted that body of the Lord Jesus. They imparted them, preserved them. Ye are the body of Christ. What's that? Ye are the body of Christ. Who is the body of Christ? Why, the church is the body of Christ? The universal, if you like, but particularly the local expression of the universal is called a body, right? And the figure of a body is used to express the unity of the body. What am I getting at? Well, I'll tell you, dear Saints of God, what I'm telling, what I'm going to say right away is, you know, as a body of saints, breaking bread, Lord's Day by Lord's Day, we've been preserved. We've been preserved. What do you mean? I'll tell you what I mean. Eighteen, twenty-six, hundred and forty-four years ago, that's the movement was reborn, meeting and resumed. You know something, states, from that day till now, I never heard of an assembly that closed its doors because modernism came in and one has preserved us. What has preserved us? Now look, if there are any Christians in the meeting tonight, meeting apart from some of us meet week by week as what we call what professes to be in New Testament assembly, we think you're just as good as we are. Individually, I believe I could shake hands with many Christians who hang their hats in other places in our assembly, all in chapel, and they're just as fine and finer than many of our Christians. But what has preserved us? As an entity, as an assembly, as a people for God, what has preserved us? Now, I know that if I dare to come to the platform and contradict what John Walden has said, I wouldn't be friends with you, wouldn't kick me out. You wouldn't bear her hand to come to the platform and contradict what John Wallen has taught this week, that deity and the humanity so beautifully blended in the baby, in the boy, in the man, we call Jesus. This is the core, the core beloved friend of modernism. We've been preserved. Why have we been preserved? And do you know, saints, it's my own suggestion. I study this again and again. Why have we been preserved? And I think it's the Lord's Supper. This do in remembrance of me and in spirit we're under the shadow of the cross. And under the shadow of the cross you'll never imply a wrong thought concerning the person of Christ. Preserved. Oh, beloved Saints of God, I don't know what awaits us, but I pray that God will raise up brethren who will stand firmly on the New Testament ground in simplicity of gatherings and maintain that precious Lord's Supper week by week. Some years ago there came to Canada a boy from England. He had been in the Salvation Army orphanage, one of them in England. Mother's mother died and the boy was taken to the Salvation Army and kept there until finally they made arrangements and the boy was brought to Canada. He went to work for a farmer and as he was working for this farmer, the farmers had absolute satisfaction in him, alone he saw he was a lonely boy and didn't seek human companionship. He liked to be alone in the field. working faithfully, but now and again he used to stop his work and turn over the lapel of his jacket like this and rub his fingers here and look at something and then put it back again and go on with his work. And the farmer testified wondering what was below that lapel of his jacket. One day he got close to him and as the boy was putting down the lapel of he, I'm going to look, let me see. What is it? Just a bit of cloth. What are you doing with a bit of cloth? So then there. Take some my mother's dress. Your mother's dress. What do you mean? He said, before they took me away, I cut a piece of a dress, and the Lord wrote, and I celebrated. I had a good mother. I miss her. I like to think about her. As I remember my mother in a foreign country, it helps me. It helps me. Yes. We had a blessed Savior. We had a blessed Savior. Lord's Day by Lord's Day. It helps us to remember. Mary, how did you put that ointment on? She said, I put it on with my hair. But Mary, your hair is your glory. I know. I know. I know. My glory. My glory. If there had been that hymn of Isaac what? Was it he who wrote it at three twenty two in the believer's hymn? That's her day. One just thought. If that hymn had been written and sung in the first century, I know indebtedness, Lazarus would have given that house out again and again. Was there ever such an exemplification? Where the whole realm appeared, your mind, that were an offering, God was small, love so amazing, so divine, demands my heart, my life, my all, all, sweet and sweet and sweet. sorrow and love will mingle down. That ere such love and sorrow meet her, Lord, for those rich and I forbid it, Lord, that I should both save in the course of Christ now. All that be well that charms me most, Mary says, I sacrifice them to his blood. She puts her hair in the ointment I don't know where Mary went that day. I'm sure she went home. And as Mary would walk along the street, people would stop. Did you? Wasn't that? They would smell that perfume that rubbed off on Mary, that rubbed off on Mary's hands, that rubbed off on Mary's hair, and that we subordinate our glory and bow at the feet of the man of Calvary, something of that glory. They stay with us. Shall we see him again? May the Lord bless us with us. Shall we pray? O God, our Father, we close the meeting in the name of the Lord Jesus. What time be for another privilege of trying a new... Lord of Glory, we adore thee. Praise to God. Ascendant High, number three, seventeen. Start closing him.