Turn with me back to Psalm 107. Psalm 107. Verse 1 says, O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy
endureth forever. We are in Psalm 107 this morning
because Last Wednesday night, we were notified of the fact
that a brother here who is suffering from an illness
requires a special treatment. And he has been without that
treatment now, and we all know his situation, but he's been
without that treatment now for Different reasons, just red tape,
insurance companies, whatever the reason may be. He's been
without that treatment now for roughly five months. He really
needs that treatment. And we knew that it was badly
affecting him, but we were notified that he'd taken a real turn for
the worse. So I asked the men who meet in my study, you know,
we get together, whoever would like to join us, we come into
my study before the service on Wednesday night. One man will read scripture for
us and have a word of prayer, and it's just a moment before
the message. But I told the men in my study before the service
to go to the Lord, go before the Lord for our brother in prayer. Let's remember him in prayer. And then after that was over,
we came to this service and I told all of you last Wednesday night
what was going on. And again, we went to our Lord
in prayer on his behalf. And we asked our sovereign almighty
Lord that if it was his will, everything is only by his will. And we asked him, Lord, if it
is your will, if you would be pleased, if you deem it to be
good and well and pleasing in your sight, would you please
help our brother? Would you help his body? Would you strengthen him? We acknowledged that the heart
of every person involved, every decision maker involved was in
his hands. It is all in his hands. And we
thanked our Lord for raising up skilled doctors. And we thanked our Lord for creating
helpful medicine and All of that, but we recognize that he's the
great physician. He is the great physician and
this was all in his hands. And if he would be pleased to
help our brother, we would give him all the glory for that. I
don't know if you remember that, but that's what we said. He'd
be pleased to help our brother. We'll give you all the glory
for that. Now that's what we said on Wednesday. Thursday they
got the call that after five months of him suffering and waiting
and just going around and around about this and getting nowhere
and like he's just up against a brick wall. Thursday morning, or whenever
it was on Thursday, they were notified that everybody's decided
to get on board. And we have a scheduled infusion
for you tomorrow morning. That's Friday morning. Five months,
you know, just please, please, just give me the infusion. We have one scheduled for you.
He got it. And he's scheduled for two more next week. All right? Now, some would take this opportunity
to say something like, Prayer works. Right? Some would take this opportunity
to say something like all it took was some prayer warriors. That's what people like to be
called these days. Prayer warriors. We're going to get our prayer
warriors together and we're going to get this done. The only problem with doing that
and the only problem with saying and thinking things like that
is it takes the focus away from our God. And it puts it on us. That's what it does. It actually when you think that
and say things like that, it actually gives man the credit
for what has happened. That's what it does. That insinuates that man was
the call five months, five months, and we all finally I made this
announcement, we all, you know. Finally, you know, man took the
action and man got it done. The problem with focusing on
our prayer. rather than the God that we're
praying to, is it steals all the glory away
from God and it gives it to us. And to that, God's people say,
God forbid, God forbid, not unto us, oh Lord, not unto us, but
unto thy name be all the glory. All the glory. Now, why in the
world am I telling you all this? That's not the kind of thing
I would open a message with normally. Why am I telling you all this?
The reason is because, and I feel, I felt very, very convicted to
do this. The reason is because last Wednesday
night, We all bowed our heads and I prayed openly. I prayed
out loud on all of our behalf. When a man is doing that, he's
praying on behalf of everyone there. And we said to the Lord,
if you will help our brother, we will give you all the glory. We will give you all the praise.
We will give you all the thanks. for what you have done. If you
will do this, it will all be unto you. And the Lord God did
it. He did it. You can call it what
you will. Well, the insurance company finally
got their paperwork in order. Call it what you will. The Lord
our God did it. And this morning, our text is
going to be Psalm 107, verse 1, which says, Oh, give thanks
unto the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth forever. Him, he, his. That's what this
is. Oh, give thanks unto the Lord. Don't you wish you did that all
the time? It's so sad to me that a lot
of times we have to go through something so traumatic. To really
turn our eyes and our hearts to him. Oh, give thanks unto
the Lord. Everything begins with him. Everything. Everything is of
him. He has the preeminence. That
means he's the first cause. He's the highest position. Everything is of him. Everything going all the way
back. To creation. Everything is of him. Turn with
me to John chapter one. John 1 verse 1 says, In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Who is that
talking about? Look at verse 14. And the Word was made flesh and
dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory. The glory as of the
only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. That's Jesus Christ. He is the
Word, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now look back up at verse one.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. Verse three says, all things
were made by Him. And without Him, was not anything
made that was made. In Him was life, and the life
was the light of men. All things were made by Him. He is the one who said, let there
be light, and there was light, the Lord Jesus Christ. He said,
let there be affirmament, And there was a firmament. He's the
one who said, let there be land and water and plants and animals
and man. He said, He said, He said, He said. Colossians 1 says, all things
were created by Him, Jesus Christ. All things that are in heaven
and in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers, all things were created by him
and for him. You know why there is a devil?
For him. Everything is by him. Everything
is for him. Everything carries about his
bidding. Creation is of Him. David said, I am fearfully and
wonderfully made. By who, David? By Jesus Christ, my Lord, my Maker. Creation is
of Him. Salvation is of Him. Salvation is of Him. The same thing that is said about
creation must be said about salvation. Look with me at 2 Thessalonians
chapter 2. 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 13 says, But we are bound to give thanks
always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification
of the Spirit and belief of the truth. God hath from the beginning,
that's where everything started. God hath from the beginning chosen
you to salvation. We don't decide to be saved. We don't decide to be saved. You know, I think I want to be
saved. Well, that does not start right here. That's not of us. We don't make a choice for God. I heard a man say, I saw something
somewhere. I was listening to a man I shouldn't
have been listening to. But he said, God made all the
choices except for one. He left one up to you. And that's
not true. That's not true. Him saying your
choice of being saved, your choice, you know, choose him. Salvation is of Him. Salvation
is completely, totally, start to finish of the Lord. This is what Romans 8 says. Whom
He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of His Son. We did not choose Him. He chose us. He said that in
John 15. You did not choose me. I chose you. He chose to save us. Even when
we were dead in sins, he quickened us together with Christ. By grace,
his people are saved. He is the one who appeared to
put away the sin of his people by the sacrifice of himself.
He did it. He gave himself to us. We don't give ourselves to him. He gave himself to us. He gave
his body to us. He gave his blood to us. He gave
his righteousness to us. He gave his holiness to us. Oh, give thanks to the Lord.
Why? Because he, he, he. You think about that. When you
thank people for something, it's because they did it. I'm not going to do something
for you and then thank myself for doing it for you. He did
it. By the goodness of His grace,
by the goodness of His mercy, He saved us. Creation is of the
Lord. Salvation is of the Lord. And
the quickening call to life that is in Christ, in the Lord Jesus
Christ, that's of the Lord. Look with me at 2 Timothy chapter
1. 2nd Timothy 1 verse 8, it says, Be not thou therefore ashamed
of the testimony of our Lord. Who he is, what he did, who he
did it for, why he did it. Be not thou therefore ashamed
of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but be
thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the
power of God. Now here is the gospel according
to the power of God. Verse nine, who hath saved us
and called us. He's the one who saved us. He's
the one who called us. David said in Psalm 27, he said,
the only reason that my heart said, I'm going to seek the Lord
is because you said, seek me. He said, that's the only reason.
When you said, seek my face, that's when my heart cried, thy
face, Lord, will I seek? I'm going to seek the Lord. I didn't seek you. You sought me.
I didn't come to you, you drew me. You know, the scripture says
no man or woman can come to Christ. You know, people say come to
Christ, just come to Christ, you need to come to Christ. No man or woman can come to Christ
except the Father who sent Christ, draw that man or woman. The Apostle Paul told the Galatians,
when it pleased God, the same God who separated me from my
mother's womb in creation, when it pleased him, he called
me by his grace to reveal his son in me. He did it. You know, we are, we're born
into this world so lost, so lost in sin, so lost in religion.
Religion is one of the most lost places a person can be. And all of us need to have Christ
revealed. We all need to have Christ revealed.
And if that is going to happen, he's going to have to do it.
He's going to have to do it. You know, we like to say, I came
to Christ or I led somebody to Christ. I led them to Christ.
I led them to salvation. That's not true. I'm not going
to do anything. He's going to have to do it.
He's the cause of everything. He is the cause of everything. Verse 9 right here, 2 Timothy
1 verse 9 says, who hath saved us and called us with a holy
calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose
and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world
began. It was all of. You. It was all of you, we give you,
Lord, all the thanks, all the glory, all the praise, it was
all of you. It was all of your graciousness,
the Lord is gracious in Christ. It was all of your mercy, the
Lord is so merciful in Christ. In the Lord Jesus Christ. It
was all of your choosing in Christ. We were chosen in him. It was
all of your accomplishment in Christ. Oh, give thanks unto
the Lord. Give thanks unto the Lord because
I did nothing and he did it. Everything. I did nothing. He did it all. Creation is of
the Lord. Salvation is of the Lord. The
quickening call to spiritual life is of the Lord. And then, the watchful care. You know the
Lord, He takes care of His people. He does. The watchful care, the
safe keeping, the help. of all of God's people for the
rest of their appointed time on this earth is of the Lord. It's of the Lord. Go back to
Psalm 107. Verse 1 says, O give thanks unto the Lord For he is
good, for his mercy endureth forever. His goodness is what
sent Christ to us. And his mercy is what hung the
Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. His goodness and
his mercy is what took the sins that we regret so deeply away
from us and laid them all on Christ and punished them in Christ. and redeemed us in Christ. Verse
two says, let the redeemed of the Lord say so. He's good. His mercy endures forever. Let
the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from
the hand of the enemy and gathered them out of the lands from the
east and from the west, from the north and from the south.
They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way. They found
no city to dwell in. That's what happened to the children
of Israel out in Egypt, but that's what happens to all of God's
people right now. We don't have here a continuing
city. Verse five says, hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted
in them. Then they cried unto the Lord
in their trouble and he delivered them out of their distresses.
And this is what he does for us all the days of our lives,
and we need to, and we want to acknowledge him for this. We acknowledge him for this.
We want to acknowledge his gracious and merciful hand to us in all
things. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Verse four, they wandered in
the wilderness in a solitary way. They found no city to dwell
in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul
fainted in them. Then they cried unto the Lord
in their trouble and he delivered them out of their distresses.
He led them forth by the right way that they might go to a city
of habitation. That right way is not the works
of the law. That right way is Jesus Christ.
I'm the way. That city of habitation is glory. Jesus Christ. He is heaven. Verse 8 says, Oh that men would
praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to
the children of men. Oh that I would praise the Lord
and thank the Lord more. Does that ever convict you how
often the Lord really does help you? And we ask and we beg and
we plead and then He helps us and we're fine and we just keep
going about our way. Oh, that Gabe Stoniker would
praise the Lord for his goodness, for his wonderful
works to the children of men. Verse nine, for he satisfies
the longing soul and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. You know, if the soul, if our
soul longs for forgiveness from sin, if it longs for the righteousness
of Christ, if it longs to be with Christ, He will satisfy
that soul with Christ. Verse 10, such as
sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction
and iron, that's me in my flesh. Verse 11, because they rebelled
against the words of God and condemned the counsel of the
Most High, that's me in my flesh. Therefore He brought down their
heart with labor. Oh, like the Apostle Paul, wretched
man that I am. I'm the chief of sinners. They
fell down, there was none to help. That's where the Lord is
going to bring His people, where there's nobody else to help.
Nobody can help me. I can't help me. One. One. That's when a sinner will cry.
Verse 13. Then they cried unto the Lord
in their trouble and he saved him out of their distress. He
brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and break
their bands and sunder. Oh, that men would praise the
Lord for his goodness. And for his wonderful works to
the children of men, for he hath broken the gates of brass and
cut the bars of iron and sunder. What does that mean? That means
he sets his people free. He sets us free, we're so bound
by sin and bound by the law and. Bound by our own minds and. He reveals the truth, which is
Christ and the truth sets him free. Verse 17, fools, who's
that? His name is Gabe Stoniker. Fools, because of their transgression,
because of their sins, and because of their iniquities, they're
afflicted. Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat. The Word of God. They draw near
unto the gates of death. That's what the flesh wants to
do. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble and he saves
them out of their distresses. I've always loved verse 20. This
is how he does it. He sent his word. And that's
Christ. And healed them. And delivered
them from their destruction. Oh, that men would praise the
Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children
of men. And let them sacrifice the sacrifices
of thanksgiving. That's what we're doing right
here, right now. That's all we have to give to Him. That's all
we have to offer Him. Thankfulness. Thankfulness. Verse 22, let them sacrifice
the sacrifices of thanksgiving. and declare his works with rejoicing. They that go down to the sea
in ships that do business in great waters. And that's where
we find ourselves sometimes real trouble. These see the works of the Lord
and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth and raiseth
the stormy wind. Where does this position that
we find ourselves in come from? That came from the devil. No
it didn't. That's His goodness and His mercy
to us that He would put us back in a position that would say,
wait a minute. Verse 25, He commandeth and raiseth the stormy wind which
lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven,
they go down again to the depths. Their soul is melted because
of trouble. They reel to and fro and stagger
like a drunken man. They're at their wits' end. Have
you ever been at your wits' end before? Ever been at your wits'
end? What's left to do when you're
at your wits' end? Verse 28. Then they cry unto
the Lord in their trouble, and he brings them out of their distresses.
This is the life of a child of God. He maketh the storm a calm so
that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they
be quiet. So he bringeth them unto their
desired haven. Oh, that men would praise the
Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children
of men. I was going to read the rest
of this and comment on it to you, but I'm going to stop because
I'm going to stop with praise. But the rest of this tells us
just because we ask him to deliver us doesn't mean that's his will
and purpose in that moment in time. He may make the watered
place a desert. It may be best for us to be brought
into that way, but if He does, it's only for the good of His
people. It's only to bring good again
in the end. Look at verse 40. It says, He
poureth contempt upon princes and causes them to wander in
the wilderness. Those who are high on their self and high on
their flesh and He brings them low. Verse 41, yet saith he the
poor on high from affliction and maketh him families like
a flock. Includes him into his family.
Verse 42, the righteous shall see it and rejoice and all iniquity
shall stop her mouth. Who so is wise and will observe
these things, even they shall understand the loving kindness
of the Lord. That's why we're looking at this
this morning. It's because he has caused us to observe the
loving kindness of the Lord. Not just in one life, but in
the life of all of God's people. All of the redeemed of the Lord
can say, oh, give thanks unto the Lord. For he is good, for
his mercy endureth forever. All praise, all honor, all glory,
all credit be unto him. Amen.