The notices for the coming week
are God willing as follows. Pastor will preach here next
Lord's Day at 10.30 and 2 o'clock. There'll be no service here on
Thursday evening as it is Good Friday and there'll be a service
here at 10 o'clock on Good Friday morning. There'll be a prayer
meeting on Tuesday evening at 7 o'clock. Let us commence our
services today by singing together hymn number 247. The tune is
St. Stephen, 229. O Lord, I would delight in thee,
and on thy care depend, to thee in every trouble flee, my best,
my only friend. Hymn 247. to St Stephen, 229. O Lord my hope in thine keeping,
I once more can depend. Godly, my best, my only friend. When you created Ships of joy
are in the Mexican Sea. They ride with victory. ? That is right and glory in thy
name ? ? Why should the sober, drooping earth ? The countain here, The countain
here, Never long we hoped to see them, ? The loony creatures that we found
? ? God made me, Thou made me ? ? I must adore Him, and love
Him not ? ? And God be strong to me ? ? For that I have lost from
nothing to nothing ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? ? May the tides be kind and gentle
? ? May the air of heaven be kind
to you ? ? Our Christ is risen today ? ? What can I want inside? ? ? O Lord, I ask my care of
Thee, ? ? My child, have no fear ? ? Let
all thy dreams come true ? ? Till earth and heaven ring one ? Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in Paul's epistle to the Hebrews and chapter 13. The epistle to the Hebrews, chapter
13. Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers. for thereby some have entertained
angels unawares. Remember them that are in bonds
as bound with them, and them which suffer adversity as being
yourselves also in the body. Marriage is honorable in all,
and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. Let your conversation be without
covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have.
For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, the
Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto
me. Remember then that have the rule
over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith
follow, considering the end of their conversation, Jesus Christ,
the same yesterday, and today, and forever. Be not carried about
with divers and strange doctrines, for it is a good thing that the
heart be established with grace, not with meats, which have not
profited them that have been occupied therein. We have an
altar whereof they have no right to eat which serves the tabernacle.
For the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the
sanctuary by the high priest for sin are burned without the
camp. Wherefore Jesus also that he
might sanctify the people with his own blood suffered without
the gain. Let us go forth therefore unto
him without the camp bearing his reproach for here we have
no continuing city but we seek one to come. By him therefore
let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually that
is the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name but to do
good and to communicate, forget not, for with such sacrifices
God is well pleased. Obey them that have the rule
over you and submit yourselves, for they watch for your souls,
as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy
and not with grief, for that is unprofitable for you. pray
for us for we trust we have a good conscience in all things willing
to live honestly but i beseech you the rather to do this that
i may be restored to you the sooner now the god of peace that
brought again from the dead our lord jesus that great shepherd
of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make
you perfect in every good work, to do his will, working in you
that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ,
to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. And I beseech you,
brethren, suffer the word of exhortation, for I have written
a letter unto you in few words. Know ye that our brother Timothy
is set at liberty, with whom, if he comes shortly, I will see
you. Salute all them that have the
rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you. Grace
be with you all. Amen. May the Lord bless the
reading of his own precious word, and grant unto us a spirit of
real prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, we desire to bow before thy great
majesty. We desire to call upon thy great
and thy holy name. We desire to bow We think of
the words of the dear Apostle, for this cause I bow my knees
unto the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we pray,
Lord, that we may in spirit come before thee, bowing our knees,
humbling ourselves before thee. We seek and hope to find a portion
for our soul. We seek and interest in the Saviour's
blood, our pardon sealed and peace with God. We seek to be
clothed upon with that glorious everlasting robe of the righteousness
of Jesus Christ, that we may be complete in Him, that we may
be accepted in the Beloved, that we may lay hold of that hope
that is set before us in the Gospel, for through him we have
access by one spirit unto the Father. Oh, we do thank thee
for that door of hope that is open wide in Jesus' bleeding
hands and side. And we can truly echo in our
hearts the language of the hymn writer, nothing in my hand I
bring, simply to thy cross I cling. foul I to the fountain fly, wash
me, save your awe, I die. Oh, that the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ and the love of God our Father and the sacred
fellowship of the Holy Spirit may rest upon us today as we
gather around the word of God. May the word of the Lord have
free course May thy name be honoured and glorified. May the Lord Jesus
Christ be exalted as a Prince and as a Saviour, for to give
faith and repentance and remission of sins. May we feel the divine
power, the heavenly unction of the Holy Ghost as we gather around
the Word of God. For Lord, without thee we can
do nothing. Without thy heavenly power, O
Lord, no sweets the gospel can afford, no drops of heavenly
love will fall. And it is our desire, O Lord,
that the love of Christ may be shed abroad in our hearts by
the Holy Ghost. It is our desire that the Lord
Jesus would come and stand in our midst, that we may behold
his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth. O most gracious Lord, do bless
us then as a church and as a congregation and do work mightily, powerfully
and effectually among us. Remember our brethren, the deacons.
Remember them, O Lord, in their responsibilities here and elsewhere. Be with our brother at Tunbridge
Wells this morning and grant thy gracious help to thy servant
there And we do pray, most gracious Lord, to remember each one of
our brethren and sisters in Christ Jesus. And we would especially
remember our dear brother and sister in Holland and lovingly
commend them to them. We do pray that we may love each
other, serve each other, bear each other's burdens, thereby
fulfilling the law of Christ. Lord, we do pray to be made more
spiritually minded. Our heart and our affection set
upon things above and not on things of the earth. For Lord,
by nature we're earthbound. And we prove, O Lord, that the
carnal mind is enmity to God, is not subject to the law of
God, neither indeed can be. And we solemnly prove the truth
of that. The heart of man is deceitful
above all things and desperately wicked. And Lord, we painfully
feel it. We would confess our sins and
our wanderings and our backsliding. Pray to be washed in that precious
Sinatoni blood. Lord, we pray that today, as
we gather around the word, the Lord Jesus may be made precious
unto our souls. We pray for the little ones and
the children. We thank thee for them. Pray
that they may be blessed with those rich spiritual blessings
in the Lord Jesus, that the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning
of wisdom, may be put into their hearts. Remember the young friends
in all their concerns. Bring them each to living, vital,
saving faith in Jesus Christ. Make them true followers of thee,
and of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Fulfill that gracious promise
upon us here, O Lord, and grant that instead of the fathers shall
be the children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. Oh, we pray, let thy work appear
unto thy servants and thy glory unto their children, we do humbly
beseech thee. cause the prodigals to return,
and thy mighty grace in this to be seen, and the mighty power
of thy holy arm. We do humbly pray thee, send
the glory, light, and power of gospel truth into this village,
and the surrounding villages and hamlets. Grant that many,
many precious souls may be gathered in, and grant that thou wouldst
bring our sons from far, and our daughters from the ends of
the earth. And thou hast said they shall come from the north
and from the south and from the east and from the west. O Lord
of hosts, O God of Israel, O thou that dwellest between the cherubim,
shine forth. We do humbly beseech in this
dark day and send out the light and truth of the gospel. We do
humbly beseech of thee. Remember, Lord, all in the path
of affliction and trouble and trial and perplexity, and be
gracious unto them. Prepare us each for all thy will,
for, Lord, we know not what a day may bring forth. We do pray that we may be made
ready for that great day. And now, my God, prepare my soul
for that great day, and wash me in thy precious blood, take
all my sins away. And gracious God, we do pray
that thou would remember parents and give them wisdom and grace
to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of
the Lord. And we pray that thou would remember the families as
they gather around the word of God. For all things are sanctified
by the word of God, and prayer and oh lord we do pray that thou
in thy precious mercy wouldst remember all in the midst of
the journey of life and thou knowest where they are and thou
knowest what everyone's needs are there is nothing hid from
thee lord we pray that thou wouldst Graciously remember those of
us that are now in the evening time of life's journey, and graciously
fill us with thy spirit, and with that love that casts out
fear. Grant that we may be made more
spiritually minded, and grant, O Lord, at the appointed time,
an abundant entrance into thy heavenly kingdom. Hear us, O
Lord, we pray. be gracious unto us. Remember
all thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the
walls of Zion today. Set them free, set them at liberty,
be gracious unto them. We do humbly pray thee for thy
great namesake and we pray thee the great Lord of the harvest
to send true labourers into the harvest and to build the walls
of Jerusalem And we pray, most gracious God, that thou wouldst remember thy
servant who shortly expects to go to the USA and to take up
the pastor at the Grand Rapids and to send a convoy of thy love
before him and make the crooked things straight and the rough
places plain. We do humbly beseech of thee. Lord, we pray that thou would
remember those of thy servants at labour in word and doctrine
among the nations of the earth. We think of thy servant at the
Mombasa mission and pray that thou would graciously bless them
there and grant good success to the ministry of the word.
We think of that great work being done by the Savannah Education
Trust in Ghana and we pray that thou would bless the word, that
thou would graciously increase thy church there in Ghana for
thy great namesake. And Lord, remember Ian Sadler
in those many labours among the nations of the earth, and graciously
supply each and every one of their needs. O Lord, we do beseech
of thee. Lord, remember our nation. We
live in very solemn days. iniquity abounds on every hand,
and we see the proposals that, O Lord, were brought forth by
our government in various ways, and we pray that thou wouldst
overturn and bring to naught those things that are so contrary
to thy holy word. We think of the terrible sins
of this nation, and we think of the tens of thousands of little
babes murdered in the womb, And we pray, O Lord, that thou wouldst
hear prayer, that thou wouldst send out thy light and thy truth,
that thou wouldst give wisdom to our leaders and guidance and
direction in these solemn days in which we live. Preserve us
from war and bloodshed. Bring to naught the counsels
of the ungodly. We think of the terrible bloodshed
in Ukraine, in Gaza, and we pray that thou wouldst bring a stop
to these conflicts if it could but please thee. O Lord, we pray. Lord, we pray that thou wouldst
bless our King and all the royal household with that rich grace
that is in Christ Jesus. We thank thee, O Lord, for all
thy tender mercies. We thank thee for our little
house of prayer. We thank thee for every mercy
of thy kind providence. We thank thee for the open Bible.
We thank Thee for the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We
thank Thee for the glory of His person and the fullness of His
grace and the wonders of redeeming love. We thank Thee for the incarnation
of the Son of God and the holy life He lived as a man and the
bringing in of everlasting righteousness in that perfect obedience of
Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And that we thank Thee for that
holy and sacred sacrifice on Calvary, where sin has been put
away, and divine justice has been satisfied, and God and sinners
are reconciled. O Lord, do hear us, we pray.
And we thank Thee for a risen Saviour. He has swallowed up
death in victory. We thank Thee for an ascended
Saviour. He has made a new and living
way into the holy place and those everlasting gates have lifted
their heads, and the King of glory has entered in. For such
an high priest have we, who is passed into the heavens, Jesus,
the Son of God. Lord, come and touch one's lips
with a live coal from off the heavenly altar. Come and speak
to our hearts, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number seven. The tune is Hensbury, 161. God shall alone the refuge be
and comfort of my mind, too wise to be mistaken he, too good to
be unkind. Hymn number seven. tune Hensbury
161. Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave ? Christ the King is born in Bethlehem
? ? To the world a new birth is come ? you. ? Till I see thee face to face
again, ? ? O God, to Thee am I, ? ? And heaven's great angel ? ?
Is watchful and holds my hand ? ? Till my turn he may see me
again ? O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? Rest o'er earth, nation, and
earthly flight, Eternal high and bright. O say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the
brave? ? The Lord Jesus sets the night
? ? Still bright to give His sleep ? ? And keep the world
in heavenly peace ? ? In the journey of life ? ? There
over the river ? ? May peace arise ? ? He rose to us in the morning
? ? To enter in our homes ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, direct your attention to the chapter that we read,
Paul's epistle to the Hebrews, chapter 13, and we'll read verse
8, 4, our text. Hebrews chapter 13 verse 8, Jesus
Christ the same yesterday and today and forever. This is one of the fundamental
and foundation truths of our most holy faith, Jesus Christ. The Apostle says, writing to
the Corinthians, other foundation can no man lay than that which
is laid, which is Christ Jesus. Behold, I lay in Zion a foundation,
Isaiah chapter 28. A foundation. that foundation my beloved friends
is the Lord Jesus Christ. This is one of those beautiful
texts that speaks of the glory of his person, the immutability
of his person. It says here in the epistle to
the Hebrews concerning the immutability of his person in chapter 6 and
it speaks there of the immutability of God. And it says in verse 17, wherein
God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise
the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath. And
that oath of course, he quotes it several times in the chapter
7. for he testifieth thou art a
priest forever after the order of Melchizedek that by two immutable
things in which it was impossible for God to lie we might have a strong consolation
who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before
us that hope my beloved friends is Jesus Christ who is Jesus
Christ. He's the Eternal Son of the Eternal
Father. He is God, manifest in the flesh. He is immutable. Now, you might,
especially young friends, you might say, what does this big
word mean, immutable? Well, fundamentally, the meaning
of the word immutable, it can only belong to God, because it
means not only is He unchangeable. God doesn't change. He's eternally
the same. It says in the Psalms, doesn't
it? But thou remainest eternally
the same. But there's another aspect of
the word immutable. Yes, the principal meaning is
unchangeable, but the other, the essence of the meaning of
it, God cannot change. Not only is he unchangeable,
God cannot change. It's not in his nature to do
so. He is eternally the same. And that is the doctrine of immutability. It's an attribute of the eternal
God. He's unchangeable. and therefore
the Apostle he says here that by two immutable things in which
it was impossible for God to lie we might have strong consolation
who has fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before
us that is the glorious person of Jesus the son of God Jesus
the same yesterday and today and forever and he says there
in chapter 6 which hope we have an anchor of the soul. It's anchored
in Christ. It's anchored in the glory of
his person as the Son of God. And therefore he says, both sure
and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil, and
the veil he's speaking of there is his flesh. And it speaks of heaven also
because he says in the following verse, whether the forerunner
is for us entered, even Jesus entered into heaven. And the
faith of the Lord's people lays hold of Jesus Christ in heaven. Whether the forerunner is for
us entered, even Jesus made an high priest forever. What an
emphasis there. sees eternally the same made
a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. You see it's impossible for God
to lie. There was another word that seemed
to rest on my spirit regarding this beautiful text Jesus Christ
the same yesterday and today and forever and in the book of
numbers in chapter 23 and verse 19, a very beautiful word speaking
again of the immutability of God. God is not a man that he
should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent. In
other words, to repent is to change course, God doesn't. is
immutable, he remains the same, that he should repent. Hath he
said and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken and shall he
not make it good? This God who is immutable, who
is eternally the same, who remains the same. There's something in
God that we don't find in ourselves. By our very nature, our fallen
nature, we are very changeable. We're not stable. We move and
we shift with circumstances, with things that we're passing
through. We're unstable. But God is not
a man. No. He is God. Thou art God and there is none
else. He's the eternal God. Jesus Christ
the same yesterday and today and forever eternally the same. So this is the point of rest,
the rest of faith in the glorious person and I want to emphasize
that the rest of faith in the glorious person of Jesus the
Son of God, an anchor that is steadfast and sure, that cannot
move. Not in the greatest of storms,
this anchor or where it is anchored is sure and it is steadfast. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today. and forever. Notice the three
tenses, we've often actually quoted it to you and pointed
out to you in reference to the name Jehovah, that glorious eternal
incommunicable name of Jehovah and in the Old Testament Jehovah
is always translated LORD in capital letters and when you
see LORD in capital letters is because in the original Hebrew
it was Jehovah. And this is really a paraphrase.
Our text is really a paraphrase. What the Apostle is saying here
is Jesus is Jehovah. Jesus is Jehovah. Jesus Christ
the same yesterday, and today, and forever. a wonderful precious
truth. Again that same paraphrase is
used in the book of the Revelation when Jesus introduces himself
to his servant John, I am he which is and which was and which
is to come. Now where it says here yesterday
sometimes it is quite difficult to convey the meaning of something
especially these deep and profound truths of our most holy faith
but where it says here yesterday and even in the book of Job and
it's a common saying among us oh he's yesterday's man and there
have been some commentators over the years that have looked at
this as meaning oh he's yesterday's man which is almost blasphemous
to speak of that concerning our Lord Jesus Christ because the
meaning It is completely different to that. It is yesterday eternal. Yesterday eternal. From everlasting to everlasting. Thou art God. From everlasting to everlasting.
Beautifully and the reason I so often refer you to it is Proverbs
chapter 8 and there again beautifully we have set before us the eternity
of the Son of God of our Lord Jesus Christ and there's a whole
list of things it is actually the person of Christ that is
speaking in Proverbs 8 And it says in Proverbs 8 verse 14,
this is Christ himself speaking, counsel is mine and sound wisdom. And just look at the way this
is put, I am understanding. It doesn't say I have understanding,
I am understanding. It says in one of the Psalms,
his understanding is infinite. Infinite means without measure,
without parameters. I am understanding. I have strength. By me kings reign. This is the
glorious person of Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord
of lords. By me princes rule and nobles
even all the judges of the earth. I love them that love me. Yea, durable riches and Righteousness. Riches and honour are with me,
yea, durable riches and righteousness. That's in our Lord Jesus Christ.
My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold, and my revenue
than choice silver. I lead. What are we following? It says
here, I lead. The Lord Jesus leads his people. My sheep, they know my voice
and they follow me. What are you following and what
am I following? And this is a fundamental question
that I'm asking you. What are we following? Are we
following Jesus Christ? Jesus is the way to God. And
it goes without saying, if you're not following Jesus, you're not
in the way to God. Jesus is the way to bliss. I
lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of
judgment, that I may cause those that love me to inherit substance. Those that are following Jesus
inherit substance. What does Peter say in his epistle? To an inheritance incorruptible
and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven for you who are kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed
at the last day. An inheritance incorruptible.
What an inheritance that I may cause those that love me. Do
you love our Lord Jesus Christ? Can you echo in your heart the
language of the sweet psalmist of Israel? I love the Lord because
he has heard my voice, the voice of my supplications. Now really, what I want to draw
your attention to in Proverbs 8, and this is Christ speaking,
verse 22, the Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way,
before his works of old. And this is what was so blessed
to me in my early spiritual days. I was set up from everlasting,
from the beginning. Now this word yesterday in our
text, that is what it's referring to. I was set up from everlasting,
from the beginning, wherever the earth was. I won't read it
all, but it says, when there were no depths, I was brought
forth. When there were no foundations,
fountains abounded with water. Before the mountains were settled,
before the hills, was I brought forth. You see, it speaks of
the eternity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, the same,
yesterday. Yesterday and today. What a mercy
is the same today. The day in which we live. We
see great changes that take place in the world continually. The
hymn writer says, doesn't he change and decay and all around
I see, O thou who changest not, abide with me. Abide with me. Jesus Christ the same. yesterday
and today and today. We have that beautiful word in
the prophet Malachi, I the Lord change not, I Jehovah change
not. Therefore ye sons of Jacob, that's
the election of grace, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Why? Because I changed norm.
I've set my love upon you. I've loved you with an everlasting
love. It's a lovely word, isn't it,
in Jeremiah. There's a lovely emphasis there
too. Yay! Yes! It's what you might
say in affirmative world. Yay! I have loved thee with an
everlasting love. Yesterday and today. It may be that in the past you
felt the love of Christ. You felt the love of Christ shed
abroad in your heart. You felt the Lord Jesus Christ
very precious to your soul. You've been brought to see him
as the altogether lovely one, as the chiefest among 10,000. But maybe at this time, that
light, that life that you so felt and realized in your heart,
When you had clear views of Jesus Christ, now you feel darkness
and bondage, far off. Maybe you feel something of the
inward corruption of your heart, of your nature. Maybe you're
laboring under the temptations of Satan, and it's brought you
into terrible darkness. But what we have in our text,
my beloved friends, is that though that may be so in your feelings,
in your heart at this time, the Lord still loves you. I say the Lord still loves you.
He's Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and today, and forever. I the Lord changed not therefore
you know we may get into and Jacob certainly did we get into
places I mean the name Jacob means the deceiver he was full
of subtlety and you can see it in the way he schemed in his
own life can't you see yourself in Jacob But in spite of our sins, our
backslidings, our heart wanderings, our schemings, Jesus Christ is
saying, yesterday and today, and today. I the Lord change
not. Therefore, ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. You know, my beloved friends,
you cannot be in the covenant one day and out the next. Lord, He will never leave His
people. We have it here in this chapter
and it says in the last part of verse 5, For He hath said,
I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. That's His word. That's His person. His honour
and His love's at stake to save me from the burning lake. Once in Him, in Him forever,
thus the eternal covenant standard. If you were given to Christ before
the foundation of the world, which is what we read of in Holy
Scripture, that the children of God were given to Christ before
the foundation of the world, He won't change His mind. No. He won't forsake you. Fear not. I am with thee. Be not dismayed. I am thy God.
I will help thee. I will uphold thee with the right
hand of my righteousness. He will not forsake his people.
No. In spite of all their sins. He
suffered, he bled and he died for his people. That's why the
son of God became a man. That's why the Son of God lived
as a man here upon earth. Doesn't the apostle Paul, when
he writes to his son Timothy in the faith, 1 Timothy chapter
3 verse 16, and without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh,
justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever and forever. As I've said to you, this is
the essence of one aspect of the name Jehovah, the self-existent
God, who has all power. Jesus said, just as he was about
to ascend into glory, speaking to his disciples, commissioning
them to go forward and to preach, he said, all power. Notice what
he says, not some power, all power. It's given unto me. We read in Revelation, Alleluia,
for the Lord God, omnipotent reign. That word omnipotent,
it means all power. The word omni means universal
and complete. The word potent means power,
universal and complete power, all power. is given unto me in
heaven and in earth. I like what the hymn writer says
because you know the Lord Jesus Christ he sits now on the throne
of grace, he does. The Son of God when he was manifest
in the flesh, when he lived as a man here below, when he was
made of a woman made under the law that he might redeem them
that are under the law That was the purpose why he was made a
woman, made under the law, to redeem them that are under the
law. There are those that have denied
that Jesus Christ lived under the law. Of course that's an
utter nonsense. The Bible says the law was made
for man. So when the Son of God became
a man, that great mystery of godliness, When the Son of God
became a man, he came under the law. That's what the apostle
means there in Galatians 4, made of a woman, made under the law,
that he might redeem them that are under the law. So in that holy life he lived.
And here in the Hebrews we read, he did no sin, neither was guile
found in his mouth. That's the fulfilling of the
law. Sin is any transgression of the law of God. He did no
sin. So that righteousness of Jesus
Christ, what is prophesied in Jeremiah chapter 23, Jehovah
said, can you? The Lord, our righteousness,
that's Jesus Christ. He's the Lord, our righteousness. The poor, tempted, tried, sinful,
child of God, feels the corruption of their nature, feels the uncleanness
of their nature. It's a great trial, you know,
to the child of God. Especially, I find, as I get
older, my nature seems to get worse. I seem to feel more the corruption
and the sinfulness and the wretchedness of my old man. But then that
makes the righteousness of Christ exceedingly precious. And that
is the purpose of the Holy Spirit doing this. Making you feel the
corruption, not that we live in sin and nor would we ever
encourage anyone to live in sin, but the great trial of the child
of God. Sin lives in them. Sin lives
in them and they feel it and they're burdened under it. We read it in the book of Psalms
and David when he confesses his own sins. Against thee and thee
only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight. That thou
mightest be clear when thou judgest. There's no excuses there friends.
No excuses whatsoever. There's a clear, open, full confession
of sin. If He confessed your sins, He
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness. He is Jesus Christ, the same
yesterday and today and forever. I love that beautiful hymn. If
once the love of Christ I feel, impressed upon my breast, the
mark of that celestial seal can never be erased. Your security, child of God,
is not in yourself. No. All your security and safety
eternally is in Christ. Jesus Christ the same, yesterday
and today. and forever, which hope we have
as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, anchored
into that within the veil, within the Lord Jesus Christ. You know,
Joseph Hart puts it in a nutshell, and this is one of our problems. You might say, what problem?
Pour not on thyself too long. All you'll ever find in yourself
is sin. Sin, our sinful nature. We're born in sin, we're shaped
in iniquity. That's all you'll ever find in
yourself. I remember hearing a man many
years ago now, and he started off his sermon, well I'm going
to get down into some of your hearts and find some good things.
And I sat in my seat and I thought, man, You'll never do that. All there is in our heart, in
our old nature, is sin. It is. Our hope is built on nothing
less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. Pour not on thyself too long,
else to sink thee lower. Look to Jesus. Look to Jesus,
firm and strong, mercy joined with power. Jesus Christ the
same, yesterday and today and forever and forever. He's eternally
the same. That David says, and when we
look at this glorious truth, this holy foundation that we
have here of our faith, he says, thou art my rock and my fortress,
my strong, and my high tower, and unto thee shall I continually
resort. And the child of God has to daily
come to Jesus. I love the way that hymn is written,
daily I would repent of sin, daily washing Jesus' You feel the need, because you
feel the corruption of your nature, the sinfulness of your nature,
you feel to need that precious blood of Jesus Christ. You feel to need a fresh application
of it, a fresh discovery of that wonderful mercy and grace of
God that is in the blood of Jesus Christ that cleanseth us from
all sin. It does. that rich atoning blood
which sprinkled round I see. Whose blood? The blood of Jesus
Christ God's Son. It is. The blood of Jesus Christ
God's Son. Oh that precious blood. That
precious blood of Jesus Christ. We cannot really speak. It is beyond our comprehension
isn't it the preciousness and the fullness of the blood of
Christ and when we speak of the blood of Christ we're speaking
of the the blood of Jesus the son of God. You know in the Acts
of the Apostles in the chapter 20 we read this when Paul was
speaking to the elders of the church at Ephesus. And he says in verse 28, take
heed therefore unto yourselves and to all the flock over which
the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers to feed the church
of God which he hath purchased with his own blood. His precious blood. I've often
tried to emphasize to you that the sacred holy human nature
that the Son of God assumed in the womb of the Virgin Mary was
his own personal human nature. It was. In that sacred mystery of godliness
of God manifest in the flesh, We see two natures in one person. The person is the Son of God,
who assumed a holy human nature in the womb of the Virgin Mary.
He became bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. It's a great mystery, but it's a fundamental doctrine
of our most holy faith. That human nature never ever
had any existence separate to the Son of God. As soon as the
Holy Ghost overshadowed the womb of the Virgin, the Son of God
immediately assumed that seed and he became a man and the Word
was made flesh and dwelt amongst and we beheld his glory glory
as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth
and the wonderful glory is my beloved friends that firstly
just let's mention this the human nature doesn't become divine and the divine nature doesn't
become human we see that divine nature and
the human nature in an indissoluble union. And the wonderful glory
is that that union never has been and never will be broken.
He's Jesus Christ the same, yesterday, and today, and forever. You know, and again, this other
mystery, there are many great mysteries in the Gospel. Even in death, There was never any separation
between the Son of God and his human nature. There, in the tomb, for three
days and three nights, was the Son of God. Well, the hymn writer,
I think, expresses it beautifully. The Lord of life experienced
death. Experienced death. What a profound
mystery, isn't it? He that is the living one, He
that has all power in heaven and in earth, He actually entered
into death. And on the third day, He rose
again from the dead. He swallowed up death in victory. He brought life and immortality
to life. In that holy sacrifice on the
cross of Calvary, He had put away sin. He has put away sin. Jesus Christ, the same. You know, here in Hebrews chapter
2, it speaks very beautifully of the incarnation of the Son
of God. It speaks of Jesus being made
a little lower than the angels. And then it tells us why. It
says in Hebrews 2 verse 9, but we see Jesus who was made a little
lower than the angels. In the previous verse, He quotes
from Psalm 8, and it's of man. Man was made a little lower than
the angels. When Adam was created, he's a
little lower than the angels. You see, there's God, God who
is that infinite, almighty and eternal spirit, from everlasting
to everlasting thou art God. And then there are created angels. who are spirits and then there
is man who is, has a human nature consists of body and soul. The soul is the spiritual part
of man and that is why it says he was made a little lower than
the angels. Man is a spiritual being but that soul rests in his body. It's our soul
that animates our body. The body without the spirit is
dead, being alone. And what we often speak of is
the Aaron article of death. And that is when the soul leaves
the body. Then we die. But we see Jesus,
who was made a little lower than the angels, That means taking
a human nature, but he was made a little leon of the angels for
the suffering of death. The son of God, in his divine
nature, couldn't die. He's God who cannot die. The son of God, in his divine
nature, cannot be tempted of evil. God cannot be tempted of
evil. But in that profound mystery
of godliness, of God manifest in the flesh,
the Son of God in that human nature could then suffer temptation,
sorrow, death, death itself. And it says here, He was made
little though in the angels for the suffering of death, crowned
with glory and honor. God cannot suffer, but God manifest
in the flesh can. that he by the grace of God should
taste death for every man. For it became him for whom are
all things and by whom are all things in bringing many sons
unto glory to make the captain of their salvation perfect through
sufferings. And it goes on, doesn't it? Verse
14, for as much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood,
this is he also who is the son of God. he also himself likewise
took part of the same, that through death he might destroy him that
had the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver them
who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to
bondage. You see, wherefore, in verse
17, wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto
his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high
priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for
the sins of the people. Jesus Christ the same, yesterday
and today and forever. That sacrifice of Christ, his
life was a holy life and the sacrifice was a holy sacrifice. The sacrifice of Christ was accepted
by the Eternal Father to redeem the sin of his church. Hence,
he says, ye are complete in him. We are accepted in the beloved. And because he is the son of
God, that precious blood is of infinite value. It cleanses from
all sin. And because he's the son of God,
that glorious everlasting robe of his righteousness is an everlasting
righteousness. All the dignity and all the worth
of the life of Christ is that he's the son of God and that
holy life. And all the dignity and the worth
of the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary, he's the son of God.
He's of infinite worth and value. And the church is accepted in
Christ, in his precious blood, in his glorious righteousness.
And having entered into death itself, he then break the bands
of death and rose from the dead. And that's the declaration that
the sin of the church has been put away. He rose again for our
justification that we should be declared to be without sin. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. You know, the verse is each side
of here. I believe this verse actually
stands on its own. and the glorious truth that is
found in it. But in the verse 7, there is, I believe, a connection
to verse 8. Remember them which have the
rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose
faith follow, considering the end of their conversation, Jesus
Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever. We preach
Christ crucified. to the Jews a stumbling block,
to the Greeks foolishness, but unto them that are called the
wisdom of God, the power of God. And then the following verse,
again, I believe there's a connection in verse nine to verse eight. Be not carried about with divers,
that's diverse, and strange doctrines, for it is a good thing that the
heart be established with grace. What grace? The grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ. The unchanging love, power, and
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Not with strange doctrines. All
the doctrines of grace, my beloved, center in the glorious person
of Jesus, the Son of God. Everyone leads to Christ. The
doctrine of election It's centred in Christ, chosen in him. It's in Christ. All our security
is in Christ. All that we could have clearer,
fuller views of the glorious person of our Lord Jesus Christ,
of his wisdom, his love, his power, his grace, his unchanging
faithfulness, the fullness, The Apostle says when writing to
the Colossians, in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead
bodily. And then in John chapter one,
we read, he is full of grace and truth. Who is Jesus Christ? The eternal son of the father
that was manifest in the flesh. He's now in heaven. Says here
in the Hebrews, for such an high priest have we who is passed
into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. And it's He, my beloved
friends, that sits on the throne of grace. Thou art coming to
a king. Large petitions with thee bring,
for his grace and power are such. None can ever ask too much. None. There's nothing too small
that you take to the Lord in prayer, and there's nothing too
great that you take to the Lord in prayer. Take it to the Lord
in prayer. Call upon me in the day of trouble,
and I will answer them. What an invitation, isn't it?
I will answer them. And Jesus said, didn't he, whatsoever
you ask in my name, I will do it. He can do anything. With God, there is nothing impossible. Nothing. What is that thing that so troubles
you today? What is it that so burdens you
today? Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Call upon his great and holy name. Like the apostle exhorts
us here in the Hebrews, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher
of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, oh,
to have faith in Jesus Christ, faith as a poor sinner, faith
as a poor helpless sinner, faith as a poor hopeless sinner, faith
in him that liveth forever, faith in him that is eternally the
same, faith in his precious blood that cleanses from all sin, faith
in the glorious everlasting robe of his righteousness. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 420, The tune is Southport, 69. O bless the Lord my soul, let
all within me join, and aid my tongue to bless his name, whose
favours are divine. Hymn 420, tune Southport, 69.
? I will follow my soul forevermore
? God in my soul, to practice faith,
you did allow. ? Worthiness the Lord thy Son ?
? Know that his mercy's power ? ? O God's the giver of gratefulness
? ? And with amazement I go ? ? Tis
he who keeps my steps ? ? Tis he that lives by faith ?
? Tis he that heals thy sickest pain ? ? And makes thee whole
again ? ? He is bound by my bread alone
? ? Then canst thou from the grave depart ? We can redeem thy soul from them,
That's the great path to take. He helps the poor with food. He gives the sufferers rest.
? Word of best judgment of the
proud ? ? And justice for the oppressed too ? ? Resurrect and cleanse ? ? Living
by Moses' blood ? ? Absent the world ? ? Its truth and grace
? Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each. Amen.