Okay, now for a few minutes,
we'll look at Psalm 71. I'm not going to do a verse by
verse as I usually do, but I want to pick up some of the thoughts
that I see here through Psalm 71. I'm entitling the message
from the theme of this psalm. which is, in essence, the theme
of the gospel, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. For in
the gospel, we see the righteousness of God revealed unto us through
the Lord Jesus Christ. As I pointed out in the reading, the Lord Jesus Christ is our
righteousness, and that's mentioned five times in this one Psalm. I'm reminded, and you will remember
this verse as I read it to you in Romans chapter 1, where Paul
said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. For it is the
power of God and the salvation to everyone that believe it,
to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein is the
righteousness of God revealed. The righteousness of God revealed
in that gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. as it is written, the
just shall live by faith. Faith, the faith of God's elect,
always looks unto the Lord Jesus Christ, and we see all of our
salvation accomplished completely in Him, by Him, and through Him. Now this righteousness that we
so desperately need as sinners is only found in the Lord Jesus
Christ. We're not going about to establish
a righteousness before God by our morality. Our morality will
never, will never produce righteousness before God. It might look good
before men, but God said away with it, nothing but filthy rags.
The righteousness that we so desperately need is only provided
in the Lord Jesus Christ. God made him to be sin for us
who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of
God in Christ. That's why Paul said, he counted
everything else, lost, dung and ruined it. He might win Christ
and be found in him who is all our righteousness before God.
I wouldn't have a pleasant thing to think upon the believer before
God who was holy has a righteousness that justifies us before God,
and that righteousness is Christ. The righteousness we have is
Christ. As old brother Scott Richardson used to say, it's
not something that's pasted on. Blessed is that man to whom God
imputeth righteousness without works. It's no surprise then
that the Lord Jesus Christ is called in the book of Jeremiah,
the Lord, our righteousness. It's no surprise that the bride
of Christ, his church, is also called what? She shall be called,
remember, the Lord, our righteousness. Jeremiah 23.6 said Christ is
our righteousness, and then Jeremiah 33.16, the bride of Christ, his
church, is called the Lord, our righteousness. You see, we wear
his name. We are one with him. We wear
his name, we're one with him, we're united to him because he
is righteous, we're righteous in him, right? What's true of
the head is true of the body. John says, as he is, so are we
in this world. As he is, right now, so are we
in this world. In him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily and in Christ we are complete. Completely justified, completely
redeemed, completely delivered. Now, it's a sad thing in our
day. that most of this religious world,
they are totally ignorant of the justifying righteousness
that's provided in the gospel. Therefore, they're always going
about to try to establish a righteousness of their own. Now hold your place
there on your bookmark. I want you to turn and read this
with me. Turn over here to Romans chapter 10 this time, Romans
chapter 10. If you would ask the average
religious person what the Bible teaches about the doctrine of
imputation or the doctrine of the righteous imputation revealed
in the gospel in Christ, they wouldn't know much about it.
But the scriptures teach it plain. Look at Romans 10, verse one.
Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that
they might be saved And that's what we need, lost people need
to be saved. For I bear them record, talking
about those old Jews, they have a zeal of God. The old Solotharsis
was zealous, wasn't he? But not according to knowledge,
they being ignorant of God's righteousness, ignorant of his
holy character, and therefore they're going about to establish
their own righteousness. and have not submitted themselves
unto the righteousness of God. Now what is that? That's Christ. That's Christ. Now look at verse
four, Romans 10 verse four. For Christ is the end of the
law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Blessed is that
man to whom the Lord imputeth righteousness without works.
We read a moment ago in Romans chapter four, Abraham believed
God and it was counted to him for righteousness. Abraham believed
God. Abraham rejoiced to see the day
of the Lord Jesus Christ and was glad. Abraham knew that he
wasn't made righteous by what he did, but rather what Christ
had done for him. Now, this is David's strong plea. Look at verse one, two, three,
and four again. In thee, O Lord, do I put my
trust. Now who else would you trust
for such a, the redemption of a soul is precious. Would you
trust your soul to someone else other than Almighty God, God
our Savior? In thee, O Lord, do I put my
trust. Believers trust Him at all times. all times. Notice verse 5, thou
art my hope, O Lord God, thou art my hope. We have a good hope
through grace. Thou art my trust from my youth. Now what a blessing it is to
be a young person and blessed with a saving knowledge of God
in Christ. Now back to verse 1. Let me never,
let me never be put to confusion. Those who find all their hope
of salvation and righteousness in Christ will never be confused,
will never be ashamed. Versus those who said to the
Lord, Lord, we preached in your name, we cast out demons in your
name, we've done many wonderful works. And he said to them, I
never knew you, you workers of iniquity. Well, they'll be put
to confusion, won't they? They'll be confounded. Now look
at verse two, deliver me. Now who else can? Now just shuck
right down to the cob, as the old country boy used to say.
Shuck right down to the cob. Who else? Who else could deliver
you in a right manner. Deliver me in thy righteousness.
Deliver me through Christ. Save me through Christ. Deliver
me and then cause me. What's the cause of our salvation?
Christ. He's the first cause and the
last cause. He's the beginning and the end. He's the alpha,
the omega. Cause me to escape, incline thine ear. Incline thine
ear. Lord, have mercy on me, thee
sinner. God said that man went down to
his house justifying. Incline thine ear, Lord, save
me. Save me. That's a good prayer. Lord, have mercy on me, thee
sinner. Lord, save me. Who needs salvation? Lost people. Lost people. Look at verse three. Be thou my strong habitation,
or until I may continually resort that I may continually come. He is our hiding place. A man
should be a hiding place from the wind. Christ is our habitation. He's our dwelling place, whereunto
I may continually, continually, to whom coming, looking to the
Lord Jesus Christ, whereunto I may continually rest. I find my rest and my refuge
in Christ, in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. Now here's the
reason any sinner is saved. Thou hast given commandment to
save me. Salvation to the Lord. Paul wrote
to young Timothy from the prison cell, God. He reminded Timothy,
he said, don't be ashamed of me, nor the gospel. Well, the
gospel is the power of God. The power of God and salvation
is God who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according
to our work, but according to his own purpose and grace, given
us in Christ before the foundation of the world. Thou has given
commandment to save me. If any sinner is saved, it's
by the decree and will and purpose of God. It's not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but it's God that saves, that
shows mercy. Thou hast given commandment,
decree, to save me. The Father hath given him power
over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many
as the Father hath given to him. For thou art my rock, my rock. The Lord Jesus Christ, he said,
upon this rock I'll build my church and the gates of hell
shall not prevail against it. He's my rock and he's my fortified
place. He's my fortress. Verse four,
now deliver me. Deliver me. Oh my God. Deliver me out of the hand of
the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel, cruel
man, for thou art my hope. Thou art my hope. There used
to be an old brother that was here years ago. And when I would meet him at
the door at the end of the service, he would always say to me, I
have a good hope. I have a good hope. And the good
hope we have is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is called our hope.
Christ in you is a hope of glory. Thou art my hope. We have a good
hope through Christ. Thou art my trust. Thou art my
trust from my youth. By thee have I been holding from
the womb. He that took me out of my mother's
bowels, I shall praise thee continually. I'm a wonder unto many, but thou
art my strong refuge. This was David's only plea before
the Lord. Deliver me. in thy righteousness,
save me, for thou art my hope. I trust in him alone. And that's
every believer's hope. The Lord is my light in my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is
the strength of my life. Now Christ, Christ is all of
our righteousness. You got that point? Christ is
all of our righteousness before God. Now, in Adam, When Adam
sinned and rebelled against God, what did we lose? Righteousness. Righteousness. We lost in Adam. By one man's disobedience, many
shall be made. By one man's disobedience, many
were made sinners. When Adam sinned, we sinned in
him. When he died, we died in him.
God said, in the day you eat thereof, you'll die. His body
didn't die. His soul didn't die. But he died
spiritually. His spirit died. In the Lord
Jesus Christ, we have a justifying righteousness established. Established
by his doing. Established by his faithfulness
upon his doing and his dying. Established completely, eternally,
forever. For thou has done great things
for us. In the salvation of our soul,
we have righteousness freely, eternally, imputed unto us. If you read through Roman chapter
four, that word imputed, reckoned, and counted, imputed, reckoned,
and counted is repeated over and over and over again. Christ
has been imputed to us, given to us freely. He is our righteousness
before God. It's the only righteousness.
God will only accept what he's provided. And he provided Christ
for all of our salvation. Being guilty sinners that we
are, we not only need our sin put away by the Lord Jesus Christ,
and he did that, right? He appeared once in the end of
the age to put away our sin by the sacrifice of himself. The
blood of Jesus Christ, God's son, cleanses us from all our
sin. We not only need sin put away,
but we need something else. We need righteousness imputed
unto us. Christ put away our sin and he
is our righteousness before God. All of it justified freely by
his grace through the redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's only accomplished in Jesus
Christ and him crucified who enable God to be just and the
justifier. to be a just God and Savior. That's why the Lord said, I am
the Lord, beside me there is no other. Look unto me and be
ye saved. All the ends of the earth, I
am God. Look unto me and be ye saved.
I am God and there is no other. He's the only just one and Savior. And what that causes us to do,
that causes us to praise Him, doesn't it? That causes us to
praise Him. Notice in this Psalm, Look what
it says in verse 8. In verse 8. Let my mouth be filled
with thy praise and thy honor all the day. God's given commandment
saved me. He delivered me. He made me righteous
in Christ. And the fruit of that is we give
thanks unto the Lord. We praise the Lord. Look again
at verse 14. But I will hope continually and
will yet praise thee more and more as we grow in grace and
in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, don't you find
in your heart? more thankfulness and readiness
to give God all the glory in your salvation. Again, look down
at verse 15. My mouth shall show forth thy
righteousness and thy salvation all the day for know not the
number thereof. I'll praise the Lord with my
whole heart. With my whole heart. Look down
to verse 22. I will also praise thee with
a with a instrument, a stringed instrument, a psaltery. Even
thy truth, O my God, unto thee will I sing with a harp, O thou
my holy one. My lips shall greatly rejoice
when I sing unto thee my soul, which thou hast redeemed. Unto
him who loved us and washed us from our sin and his own blood,
we sing that new song of redemption, don't we? being washed in the
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Believers love to tell about
the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel. And believers
love to praise the Lord for that righteousness that's freely given.
75 times in the book of Psalms, let's turn to a few of them. 75 times in the book of Psalms,
turn to Psalm 17. 75 times in the book of Psalms,
we'll read about the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Psalm 17, look at verse 15. As for me, I will behold thy
face in righteousness in Christ. And I'll be satisfied, I shall
be satisfied when I wake with thy likeness. Talking about our
resurrection glory, we're predestinated to be just like the Lord Jesus
Christ. Look at Psalm 22, verse 31. They shall come and shall declare
His righteousness unto a people that shall be born that He hath
done this. We love to talk about the righteousness
of God revealed in the gospel. Look at Psalm 31. Psalm 31 verse 1, In thee, O
Lord, do I put my trust. Let me never be ashamed. Deliver
me in Thy righteousness. You see that over and over and
over again? Look at Psalm 35. Psalm 35 verse
27. Psalm 35 verse 27. Let them shout for joy and be
glad that favor my righteous cause. Yea, let them say continually,
let the Lord be magnified which hath pleasure in the prosperity
of thy servant, and my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness
and of thy praise all the day long. We talk about him, we praise
him. Psalm 40, turn over there, Psalm
40. Look at verse nine. Psalm 40
verse 9, I preached righteousness in the great congregation. I
have not refrained my lips, O Lord, thou knowest. I have not hid
thy righteousness within my heart. I have declared thy faithfulness
and thy salvation. I have not concealed thy lovingkindness
and thy truth from the great congregation. So over and over
and over again, and you can look all 75 of those references up.
When it talks about David praising the Lord for that righteousness,
he's talking about Christ, our righteousness before God. In Isaiah 45, 24, just below
where he says, look unto me and be ye saved, he says, surely
shall one say in the Lord, I have righteousness and strength. Only
in the Lord. do we have righteousness and
strength. Now believers don't talk about
creature merit, do they? Creature merit or creature righteousness,
other than to discredit it, all of our righteousnesses are filthy
rags in God's eye. This human flesh cannot produce
righteousness before God. It's impossible. It's impossible.
If righteousness comes by what we can do, then Christ died in
vain. If righteousness is by the law, Paul said, we don't
need Christ. He died in vain if we can work
it out ourselves. But we know the scriptures teach
there's none righteous, no, not one. Let others talk about their righteousness,
Self-righteousness, if they're pleased to do so, let them talk
about it. It's only the talk of a fool
who doesn't know who God is. As we read earlier, they're ignorant
of the righteousness of God, and they're ignorant of the righteousness
revealed in Christ. I know to some extent the effect
of self-righteousness, how it brings, what it brings in the
life of an unbeliever. You know what it brings? No peace. No peace. No peace. No peace
with God. In Isaiah 32, 17, it says, the
work of righteousness, that is His righteousness, the work of
righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness,
Christ's righteousness, is quietness and assurance forever. Those
who are going about to establish a righteousness of their own,
they have no peace. They have no peace. They may
have a false religious peace, but they don't have peace with
God because they don't look to Christ alone. Christ is our peace. He made peace for us with his
own blood. I tell you what else the self-righteous
religious lost sinner does not have, he does not have any assurance. He had no assurance. They try
to find assurance in their works, But it only proves to be a lie. The Pharisee prayed that way
in the temple, didn't he? Lord, I thank you, I'm not like
other men. I pray, I fast, I give tithes, I give all these things.
The Lord said that man went down to his house condemned, condemned. The lost religious self-righteous,
they have no peace, they have no assurance, they have no refuge.
The refuge they have, Isaiah calls it a refuge of lies, right? They build a refuge of lies upon
their creature merit, and they hide in that refuge of lies. And God said, I'll lay the line
and the plummet, and I'll expose the refuge of lies. It'll be
exposed and destroyed in that day of judgment. The self-righteous
religious lost person has no peace, has no true refuge, to
have no righteousness of their own. Remember our Lord said to
those Pharisees, you are they that justify yourselves before
men, but God knows your heart. That which is highly esteemed
among men is an abomination in the sight of God. Abomination
in the sight of God. Now, look down to verse 16. I
will hope continually and will yet praise thee more and more.
Verse 15. My mouth shall show forth thy righteousness and thy
salvation all the day, for I know not the numbers thereof. I will
go in the strength of the Lord. I'll make mention of thy righteousness,
even thine only. O God, thou hast taught me from
my youth. Hitherto have I declared thy
wondrous works. His works are wonderful, aren't
they? Now also when I'm old and gray-headed, O God, forsake me
not, till I've showed thy strength unto this generation and thy
power to everyone that is come. Verse 19, thy righteousness,
O God, is very high. Who hath done great things, O
God? Who is like unto thee? There's
none like him. There's none like him. There
is a vital link. between righteousness and salvation. Righteousness and salvation.
You remember this scripture, where sin abounded, grace did
much more abound, that as sin hath reigned unto death, even
so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life
by Jesus Christ our Lord. You cannot expect salvation without
the holy law of God being honored. Who did that for us? The Lord
Jesus Christ said, I didn't come to destroy the law or the prophets.
I came to honor the law of God. And our God says of him in Isaiah
42, he's well pleased for his righteousness. He will magnify
the law. He will make it honorable. As
we go in the strength of the Lord, look at verse 17, O God,
thou hast taught me from my youth, hitherto have I declared thy
wondrous work. Verse 16, I will go in the strength
of the Lord. When you go in the strength of
the Lord, what do you talk about? I'll make mention of thy righteousness,
even thine only. As we go in the strength of the
Lord and preach the gospel, we preach about the righteousness
of God in Christ. I found this scripture, one of
my favorite, Isaiah 41 verse 10. Fear not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed. I am thy God. I will strengthen thee. I will
help thee. I will uphold thee with the right
hand of my righteousness. I want to be in his hand, don't
you? No one can pluck them out of
his hand. He gives his sheep eternal life
and they'll never perish. No man can pluck them out of
his hand. As we go in the strength of the
Lord and preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, whether
in our youth or in our old age, we do so because we've been taught
of God. Now I've been trying to preach
the gospel for over 40 years. I said I've been trying to preach
the gospel for over 40 years. Started out as a young man. Now
I'm old. Still preaching that same message. Salvation of the Lord. The Lord
Jesus Christ is all of our righteousness before God. Now I can think of
several reasons why we are to make mention only of that righteousness
of God revealed in the Lord Jesus Christ. I'll give you three valid
reasons. Number one, because it's true,
because it's true. Look what it says in verse 22,
Psalm 71. I will also praise thee with
a psaltery, a string instrument. I will sing unto thee with a
harp, even thy truth, O God. What is truth? Pilate said, what
is truth? Christ is that truth. Why do
we preach the gospel? Because it's true. Why do we
preach the gospel? Because God commanded us to do
so. David said in Psalm 116, and
Paul quotes it in 2 Corinthians 4, I believe, therefore have I spoken. I believe God is God, and therefore
that's what we preach. We preach the gospel because
it's true. It's what God has taught us in
his word. Look at verse 24. My tongue also
shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long. For they are
confounded, and they are brought unto shame that seek thy hurt. Why do we preach the gospel of
God, this righteousness revealed in Christ? Because it's true.
Secondly, to convince men of their sin. The best deeds you
have, God said, is vanity before God. The best you have is your
best point, your best thought, your best moment. God set away
with it, his filthy rags, to convince men of their sin and
their need of Christ, who is the believer, righteousness before
God. You remember what Job said, I've
heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now my eyes see
it thee, wherefore I hate myself, I repent in dust and ashes. You'll
never savingly look to the Lord Jesus Christ till you're convinced
in your heart that you're guilty, that you have no hope in yourself.
The third reason to show the way of salvation is only in Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
only just one, the just suffered for the unjust, that he might
bring us unto God. God only saves sinners through
Christ and him crucified. Christ putting away our sin and
establishing for us Daniel called it, in Daniel 9, 24, that the
Lord Jesus Christ brought in an everlasting righteousness
for us. That's good news, isn't it? Why
do we preach that Christ is all of our righteousness, that He's
the Lord, our righteousness? To comfort the sheep, to comfort
the sheep, to comfort them, comfort them. Look at verse 20 and 21. Thou which has showed me great
and sore troubles, quicken me again. You have to be quickened
who were dead. And bring me up again from the
depths of the earth. Thou shall increase my greatness,
that is in Christ, and comfort me on every side. There's nothing more comforting
to a sinner who knows that he's guilty before God. that he sinned
against God than to know that the Lord Jesus Christ put away
all our sin and established for us that perfect, blessed righteousness
and freely, freely gives that unto us. Now, look at verse 19. Psalm 71 verse 19, and we'll
wind this up with this verse. Thy righteousness also, O God,
is very high. It's as high as God, because
the Lord Jesus Christ is God, who has done great things, great
things, great things he had done. O God, who is like unto thee? The righteousness of God provided
in the gospel is a very high thing, as high as God. For it
is from him and it lifts us up to glory, doesn't it? But God,
who is rich in mercy for His great love wherewith He loved
us even when we were dead in sin, hath quickened us together
with Christ and raised us up to cause us to sit together in
the heavenlies in the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at Psalm 85. Turn over there, Psalm 85. A
couple pages over, Psalm 85. I was thinking about this verse
here. Psalm 85, you remember verse
10? Psalm 85, verse 10. Mercy and
truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have
kissed each other. Truth shall spring out of the
earth. Righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yea, the Lord
shall give that which is good. And her land shall yield her
increase. Righteousness shall go before
him. and shall set us in the way of
his steps. That's good news, is it not?
Who hath done great things. He's done great things for us.
Wounded for our transgression, bruised for our iniquities, put
away our sin by the sacrifice of himself. He has done great
things for us, and he's done great things in us, in us. God, who had begun a good work
in you, Christ in you is the hope of glory. Who is like unto
thee? Well, there's none like him. There is none like him. There
is none like him. You remember when the children
of Israel were delivered through the Red Sea, the armies of Pharaoh
destroyed. And they came out on the other
side, safe and sound, and they said, Who is like unto thee,
O Lord, among the gods? Who is like unto thee, glorious
in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? He's a wonderful
God. His name is called Wonderful. And He does wondrous things,
does He not? He does wondrous, wondrous things
for us. Look at verse 17 again. O God,
thou hast taught me from my youth, hitherto have I declared thy
wondrous works. It is wonderful that God would
save such as we are. In Isaiah 51, 7, it says, hearken
unto me, you that know righteousness. the people in whose heart is
my word. My righteousness shall be forever
and my salvation from generation to generation. We love to talk
about it. We love to sing about it in our
youth or in our old age.