This evening by singing together
hymn number 1107, the tune is Binford 300. When sun-sweet promise warms
our heart and cheers us under every care, it is the Spirit's
gracious part to take that word and fix it there. Hymn 1107,
tune Binford 300. you you I say come, let's go to Heaven,
where children's sorrows can be met. It is the Spirit's gracious love
to take that word and lift it up. ? God's people turn their hearts
away ? ? Oh, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me ?
? Jesus, Lord, create thee in this
way ? ? And all the world announce thee nigh ? Tis here that brings us comfort
now, When we complain and know no save. ? And all these towns and every
land ? ? That shows us fair the Lord shall reign ? Great thy praise with all the
crown, present the heritage of his love. ? Oh, how our chapters ? ? Great
and long ? ? And words have gone ? ? Completely blue ? O praise the gentle light, And
the angels' preaching through the air. His hope prevailing, Sacrifice,
Perfumes and May, Did welcome them, Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in Paul's epistle to the Hebrews and chapter 7. Hebrews chapter 7. For this Melchizedek, king of
Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning
from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also
Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being by interpretation
king of righteousness, and after that also king of Salem, which
is king of peace, without father, without mother, without descent,
having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like
unto the Son of God, abided the priest continually. Now consider
how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham
gave the tenth of the spoils. And verily they that are of the
sons of Levi, who received the office of the priesthood, have
a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the
law, that is, of their brethren. though they come out of the loins
of Abraham. But he whose descent is not counted
from them received tithes of Abraham and blessed him that
had the promises. And without all contradiction,
the less is blessed of the better. And here men that die would receive
tithes, but there he receiveth them of whom it is witnessed
that he liveth. And as I may so say, Levi also,
who receiveth tithes, paid tithes in Abraham, for he was yet in
the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him. If therefore
perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, for under it the
people received the law, what further need was there of another
priest that another priest should rise after the order of Melchizedek
and not be called after the order of Aaron for the priest had been
changed there is made of necessity a change also of the law for
he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe of
which no man gave attendance at the altar For it is evident
that our Lord sprang out of Judah, of which tribe Moses spake nothing
concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident,
for that after the similitude of Melchizedek there ariseth
another priest, who is made not after the law of a carnal commandment,
but after the power of an endless life. For he testifieth that
thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. For
there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before,
for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. For the law made nothing
perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did, by the
which we draw nigh unto God. And inasmuch as not without an
oath he was made a priest, for those priests were made without
an oath, but this with an oath by him that said unto him, the
Lord swear, and will not repent, thou art a priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek. By so much was Jesus made a surety
of a better testament, for they truly were many priests because
they were not suffered to continue by reason of death, but this
man, because he continueth ever hath an unchangeable priesthood.
Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that
come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession
for them. For such an high priest became
us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made
higher than the heavens, who needeth not daily as those high
priests to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins and then
for the people's, for this he did once when he offered up himself. For the law maketh men high priests
which have infirmity, but the word of the oath which was since
the law maketh the son who is consecrated forevermore. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us the spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art to come, we bow before thy eternal majesty. We desire to worship We come
to Thee in the name of Jesus Christ, Thine only begotten Son,
our great High Priest, our only hope of salvation. We have to
confess, O Lord, no help in self I find, yet oft have sought it
well. The native treasure of my mind
is sin and death and hell. But O, we come in that precious
living name of the living Saviour, who has the power of an endless
life. For such an high priest have we who is passed into the
heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Oh, we come in his name and we
approach thee through him. For through him we have access
by one spirit unto the Father. May we feel that sweet access
tonight as we bow before thee in prayer. May we feel the sweet
influence and the divine power of the Holy Ghost in our hearts
as we pray. May we feel that prayer indicted
from within. God will surely answer. May we
be enabled to wrestle with them by prayer and by supplication,
with thanksgiving for all thy tender mercies and thy loving
kindnesses. What have we that we have not
received? Lord, everything comes from thee,
and that we do pray that thou wouldst graciously remember us
as a church and as a congregation, that thou wouldst draw us together
tonight as we meet around the word of God, that we may truly
worship thee. We think of that dear woman that
came to thee, If I might but touch the hem of his garment,
I shall be made whole. And another, O Lord, that came,
Lord, help me. Oh, we do pray that there may
be one and another that have come to the sanctuary tonight
with a deep need in their souls, a need for thee to answer prayer,
a need for thee to hear prayer. We thank thee, O Lord, for prayer,
that appointed means to approach thy great majesty. We thank thee
for the throne of grace and the great king that sits upon it.
That one declares, O Lord, thou art coming to a king. Large petitions
with thee bring, for his grace and power as such, none can ever
ask too much. or that we can have a view by
faith of the omnipotence of Jesus Christ. All power is given unto
me in heaven and in earth. Lord, may we have that sacred
realization of it tonight as we bow before thy glorious majesty. We thank thee, O Lord, for the
incarnation of the Son of God. who loved me and gave himself
for me. We thank thee for the holy life
he lived, for the holy law he fulfilled, for the bringing in
of everlasting righteousness. What beauties, what glories dwell
in our Lord Jesus Christ, the law fulfilled and honoured and
magnified in his glorious person. May we tonight mark the perfect
man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace. And O Lord, we do thank thee
for Gethsemane, where the sin of the church was laid upon him.
We thank thee for Calvary, he took our sins and he nailed them
to his cross. We thank thee for that dear suffering
Saviour, for that glorious atonement for sin, and in that precious
atonement on the cross, that divine satisfaction he shall
see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. Oh, we
thank thee for that precious sin-atoning blood of our Lord
Jesus Christ that cleanses from all sin. The precious blood and
righteousness alone of Jesus we will sing. Lord, we do pray
that thou would remember us, make us more spiritually minded,
set our affections on things above, draw my soul to thee,
my Lord, let me love thy precious word. And oh Lord, we do pray that
thou would graciously remember our deacons, give wisdom, give
grace, give help in all their responsibilities, and undertake
for each one in their various pathways. Remember each one of
our brethren as sisters in Christ, in church fellowship. Remember
them with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people and visit
them with thy great salvation. And Lord, help us to love each
other, to serve each other, to bear each other's burdens, thereby
fulfilling the law of sin. Lord, the law of Christ. Oh,
that we might be true followers of thee, and of those who through
faith and patience inherit the promises. That thou would enable
us to lay aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily
beset us. That we might run with patience
the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author
and finisher of Athens, who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame thereof, and is now
set down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. O most gracious
Lord, we thank Thee, O Lord, that through our Lord Jesus Christ
we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and we thank Thee for
that precious gift of the divine person of the Spirit of dwell
therefore in our hearts, we do humbly pray thee, fill our hearts
with that rich grace that is in Christ Jesus. Truly convince
us of our sin and lead to Jesus' blood, to our wandering eyes
reveal the secret love of God. We thank thee for the love, the
eternal love, the almighty love of our eternal Father, We thank
thee, Lord, for those sweet drawings unto Jesus Christ. For none come
except the Father draw, or that tonight we could know those sweet
drawings of our heavenly Father, drawing us unto our Lord Jesus
Christ. Lord, we pray that thou would
remember the little ones and the children that gather with
us and grant thy rich blessing to rest upon them. and that thou
would remember the young friends in all their concerns and bless
them, we do humbly pray thee, bless them with living faith
in Jesus Christ, that they may become true followers of thee,
we do humbly pray thee, that we might see the fulfilling of
those wonderful words, instead of thy fathers shall be thy children,
who in thou mayest make princes in all the earth. wisdom and grace unto parents
to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of
the Lord. Bless and meet with the families in family worship.
O Lord, we do pray thee. And give us, Lord, that grace
to speak often one to another than they that feared the Lord
speak often one to another. And a book of remembrance was
written. O Lord, we do pray for that grace. to often speak to
one another on the precious things of the gospel. We do humbly beseech
them to speak to one another of the wonderful glories of Christ. Lord, we do pray that thou would
remember all in the midst of the journey of life and knowest
their concerns, their needs. Lord, we lovingly commend them
to thee. We pray that each one of us may
be delivered from the temptations of Satan, and that we may know
that clear view by faith of Christ, those promise that when the enemy
comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard
against him. That glorious standard of the
cross, of that sin atoning sacrifice, of his death and glorious resurrection,
his bodily ascension into heaven. These, Lord, are the things that
fill our hearts with gratitude and with thanksgiving. And, O
Lord, we do pray that thou wouldst remember the prodigals that have
wandered away, that thou wouldst stretch out thy almighty arm
and cause them to return, cause them to be in want. Lord, there's
nothing too hard for thee. Lord, we do pray that thou wouldst
hear us, that thou wouldst grant thy abundant blessing upon the
ministry of the Word, that the Word may be in power in the Holy
Ghost and with much assurance. Be with all in any trouble or
trial, affliction, bereavement, graciously draw near and undertake
for each one. O Lord, we do beseech thee, but
for thy great namesake. And O Lord, we do pray that thou,
in thy precious mercy, would remember those of us that are
in the evening time of life's journey, and graciously grant
that at evening time it may be light, and that at the appointed
time thou would grant us an abundant entrance into thy heavenly kingdom. Remember all thy servants as
they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls of Zion. Grant
that they may dip their foot in oil and be made acceptable
unto the brethren. And grant us that gracious determination
to know nothing among men save Jesus Christ and him crucified. We do humbly beseech thee. Oh,
do hear us in heaven, thy holy and thy blessed dwelling place.
And when thou hearest, O Lord, forgive. We do humbly beseech
you because we're sinners, Lord. We're corrupt in our very nature,
and we need that precious atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ. We
need that precious blood. We need the application of it
into ourselves. All we think of those precious
words, the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanseth us from
all sin. Oh, to feel its in our hearts
and uniting us unto Thee, the only true God. And O Lord, we
do pray that Thou, in Thy great mercy, would arise and send forth
Thy servants and grant the settlement of pastors among the churches.
We think of those that expect to start pastorates in this coming
month. We would commend them to Thee.
Pray that the crooked things may be made straight, and the
rough places made plain, that thou wouldst go before them,
O Lord, we pray thee, for thy great namesake. O Lord, we do
pray for those little struggling causes up and down the land,
sometimes meeting in twos and threes, sometimes in only just
a handful of people, We pray that thou wouldst arise. We pray
that thou wouldst send out thy light and thy truth, and that
thou wouldst turn back the tides of iniquity, for Lord, iniquity
runs down our streets, and our leaders seem bereft of wisdom.
Oh, we do pray that thou wouldst hear the cries of thy little
remnant. We think of the church in prayer,
the force of their united prayers, no power can long withstand.
O Lord, we have evidences in thy word of prayer heard and
prayer answered. We have evidences, O Lord, in
our own experience of prayer heard and prayer answered. Lord, thou art able to do abundantly
more than we can even ask or think. Lord, we pray that thou
wouldst be with us as we turn to thy holy word of truth, and
that thou wouldst come and touch one's lips with a live coal from
off the heavenly altar. We ask all for Jesus Christ's
sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 542, the tune is Rycroft Hall, 493. Jesus is my great high priest,
bears my name upon his breast, and that we may never part, I
am sealed upon his heart. Hymn 542, tune Raycroft Hall 493. ? Ever shining and glorious ? ?
Banner of the free and the home of the brave ? ? I am still, and the world is
falling ? ? All I see is the lonely grave
? ? Give, O Lamb, give for us a time
? ? Give, give, O my head, this time ? ? Let us stand, let us stand ? My soul and heart. If I put my spirit down, what
shall happen? ? Then she went from door to door
? ? In the rain that's been dripped away ? O'er the land of the free
and the home of the brave? ? Lord, that's how we praise you
? ? We praise you, Lord ? ? Here with us ? ? Let us all rise
up to God ? ? Here in the Kingdom of His love ? Greatly feeling today the Lord's
gracious help of direct your attention to Psalm 110. and we'll read the first verse.
Psalm 110, verse one. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. This is probably one of the most
clear of the prophetical messianic psalms, speaking of the glorious
person of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. And in this psalm,
it's like a compendium of Christian doctrine. It speaks so beautifully
of our ascended Saviour, of our great High Priest, just as the
Apostle says in in Hebrews chapter 4, for such an high priest have
we, who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, the Lord,
you notice in capital letters, Jehovah, and it's referring very
particularly to the Father, and then said unto my Lord, and you'll
notice that that is in lowercase and that's our Lord Jesus Christ,
God manifest in the flesh. Adonai, it comes from that Lord. He is Lord of all. The Lord or
the Father said unto the Son, that's what is being said here,
sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. He is at the right hand of the
Father. I felt quite constrained to read
that seventh chapter of the Hebrews because there it speaks so beautifully
of our Lord Jesus Christ at the right hand of the Father and
it quotes on three occasions this verse four in our psalm
the Lord has sworn and will not repent thou art a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek and we read there in Hebrews
7 of Melchizedek and the interpretation of the name Melchizedek he says
there doesn't he for this Melchizedek king of
Salem that's interpretation of the name Melchizedek. King of
Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning
from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also
Abraham gave a tenth part of all. Now here's the interpretation
of the name Melchizedek, first being by interpretation King
of Righteousness and after that also King of Salem which is King
of Peace. And then as far as what he says
here that Melchizedek, the man Melchizedek, nobody knew anything
of his parents. Nobody knew when he died or where
he was buried. Without father, without mother,
without descent, having neither beginning of days nor end of
life, but made like unto the Son of God. It doesn't say he
was the Son of God, but made like unto the Son of God. Abideth
the priest continually. You think of the glorious person
of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to his human nature without father,
and according to his divine nature without mother. And that's why
the apostle says, but made like unto the Son of God, without
father, without mother, abideth a priest continually. Our great high priest. And it goes into quite some extensive
arguments there as to why it wasn't the Levitical priesthood.
It's because it was to be the finish of the Levitical priesthood.
And he says in verse 17, for he testifieth that thou art a
priest forever after the order of Melchizedek, for there is
verily a disannulling of the commandment, this is of the law,
going before, for the weakness and unprofitable thereof. For
the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better
hope did, by the which we draw nigh unto God. You see the clear
distinction between law and grace. And we find that in nearly all
the epistles, the clear distinction between law and grace. And he speaks of the law, the
apostle does, in the other epistles as the law of condemnation and
death. whereas he speaks of the gospel
as the law of life, the law of life. The term law means something
that is unchangeable, something that is sure and certain. But he says the first law, which
was of course a covenant of works, given to the children of Israel,
which they completely failed to keep, which Christ himself came to
keep, to fulfil, to honour, to magnify, who is made not after the law
of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless
life, our Lord Jesus Christ. You know this first verse in
Psalm 110, it speaks so beautifully of our Lord Jesus ascending into
heaven after he had finished the work
which the Father gave him to do. After being made of a woman,
made under the law, that he might redeem them that are under the
law. Our Lord Jesus Christ, having
fulfilled what the Father gave him to do, he said, didn't he, on the cross
of Calvary, it is finished. It is finished. Salvation's work
is done. The covenant is secure in and
through the precious sin-atoning blood of Jesus Christ. The blood
of Jesus Christ is called the blood of the everlasting covenant. And that blood of Jesus Christ
satisfied all the demands of divine justice against the church. It did. thereby it sealed the eternal
covenant ordered in all things and sure that precious blood
of Jesus Christ cleanses from all sin from all sin it's a precious thought isn't
it we thought of it on lord's day afternoon didn't we for as
much as you're not redeemed with corruptible things such as silver
and gold from the vain conversation received by tradition from your
fathers but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb
slain from before the foundation of the world in those eternal
councils of the Lord Jehovah before the world began. And these councils of the Lord
Jehovah, nothing can stop them. No. Nothing can stop them. They're divinely ordered. God
has all power. With God nothing shall be impossible.
His purposes will ripen fast, unfold in every hour. And what was promised all those
years before, four thousand years before in the garden with Adam and Eve and their fall
into sin, And the promised seed, in thy seed, shall all the nations
of the earth be blessed, in thy seed. And notice it's there,
it's in all the nations of the earth, shall all the nations
of the earth be blessed. And when the Lord gives promise
to Abraham, when that seed is narrowed down to Abraham's seed,
And he gives that promise to Abraham. All the nations of the
earth. Not just Israel, but all the
nations of the earth. Gradually, that got changed during
the period of the Levitical dispensation so that the Jews looked upon
themselves as being the only true people of God, and they
totally despised any Gentile. even though there was much evidence
of Gentiles being brought in such as Rahab the harlot and
Ruth the Moabitess and many others also that the Lord gathered in
and made it abundantly clear that they were children of the
living God they were so when when our Lord Jesus Christ
shed his precious blood he redeemed the church he redeemed the church and having redeemed the church,
having shed his precious blood, he then entered into death. It
was in the shedding of his blood that he entered into death. The
blood is the life thereof. He poured out his soul unto death.
He was numbered among the transgressors, for he bare the sin of many. It is He bared the sin of many,
and he then rose from the dead. What a wonderful truth the resurrection
of Jesus Christ is. The apostle, he says, doesn't
he, that I might know him in the power of his resurrection. He hath destroyed death, powered
by the resurrection from the dead, He had destroyed death
and him that had the power of death, that is the devil. He
destroyed death and him that had the power of death. And then he led them out as far
as unto Bethany. He lifted up his hands and blessed
them. And he was bodily received up
into heaven and the disciples were witnesses to this glorious
truth of the Lord Jesus Christ ascending into heaven in a cloud.
And the angel that stood by and said, ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye gazing up into heaven, this same Jesus? Now, what was
being accomplished, my beloved friends, is this text that we
have. The Lord said unto my Lord, the Father said unto the Son,
sit thou at my right hand. But to sit at the right hand
of the sovereign in a special seat was a very special honour.
Solomon gave that honour to his mother Bathsheba. She sat at
the king's right hand, at the right hand of his throne. And
that was reckoned a place of great honour. And so when the
Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, and it says it again
and again in the word of God, he sits at the right hand. Now,
why does it say he sits? Because there's only two occasions
in the word of God after Christ entered heaven, there's just
two occasions where we read of him standing. Stephen, when he was martyred,
as they were stoning him, he said he could see Jesus standing
in heaven. In the book of the Revelation,
there was a lamb standing in the midst of the throne as it
had been slain, standing in the midst of the throne. But virtually all other occasions
he's sitting. Now, why is this emphasis he's
sitting? Because his work is finished.
The work of Jesus Christ to redeem and save his people is a finished
thing. When the Lord Jesus was on the
cross of Calvary, and not too long before he passed, it says
this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished,
he knew. He knew in himself that he had
redeemed the church, that he had suffered what his church
should have suffered in the confines of eternal damnation. He suffered
that punishment on the behalf, in the room, in the place, and
in the stead of his children. What a wonderful thing that is. What a solemn thing it is. And now he sits. His work is
done. His work is accomplished. His
work is finished. He has redeemed the church. It's
a glorious fact. It's a glorious truth. that today
the Church of God, the whole of the Church of God is completely
redeemed and completely delivered from sin and Satan's power. And
those wonderful words in Psalm 103, the mercy of the Lord is
from everlasting to everlasting upon all them that fear him.
From everlasting to everlasting. They are justified. forever,
the Church is. Doesn't the Apostle Paul in the,
I think it's in the Epistle to the Romans, he speaks of this
glorious redeeming work of our Lord Jesus Christ and what he
has done and what he has fulfilled. I think it's in the third chapter
of Paul's Epistle to the Romans and he speaks of the law he says
to the right and here to the romans now we know that what
think verse 19 what things whoever the law say it says to them who
are under the law that every mouth may be stopped and all
the world may become guilty before god therefore by the deeds of
the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight for
by the law is the knowledge of sin that's all the law can do
but now But now, since the resurrection, since the ascension of Christ
into heaven, his session at the right hand of the Father as our
great High Priest, but now the righteousness of God without
the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the
prophets, even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus
Christ unto all and upon all them that believe for there is
no difference what he means no difference between Jew and Gentile
there's no difference all men are equal before God there's
no difference for all have sinned and come short of the glory of
God being justified freely by his grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus whom God has set forth to be appropriation
as a wrath-ending sacrifice through faith in his blood to declare
his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past through
the forbearance of God. See that precious blood of Christ
that cleanses from all sin, that satisfied all the demands of
divine justice. Why? Because on the one hand
it is infinite worth because it's the blood of Jesus, the
son of God. On the other hand it's holy blood,
it's pure blood, it's righteous blood and divine justice demanded
a righteous, holy sacrifice and that was provided by our Lord
Jesus Christ It was provided by a heavenly Father in sending
His Son, God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him should be saved. There's salvation
in none other. There is none other name given
under heaven whereby ye must be saved. Now the Lord said unto
my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies
My footstool. He rests from his labors. He
rests from his labors. His work is done. His work is
fulfilled. His work is complete. And he
now, as the Spirit goes forth and gathers precious souls out
of nature's darkness and brings them into the glorious light
of the people of God, Precious souls are quickened into life,
brought to saving faith in Jesus Christ. And the only reason this
world remains, you just think of the wickedness that abounds
on every hand in this world. The only reason it remains is
because there are yet precious souls to be gathered unto Christ. And when that last soul has been
quickened and gathered, then the archangels trump shall sound.
Not until then. God is not willing that any should
perish. What does it mean? He's not willing
that any of those in that eternal covenant, chosen by the Father,
redeemed by the Son, has been sanctified by the Holy Ghost.
And when that happens, that last precious song, then Christ will
come in power and in great glory, and the heavens shall be dissolved
with a fervent heat. All these things shall be dissolved.
Everything physical will be dissolved. This world shall pass away, but
not until these precious souls have been gathered unto Christ. It will remain. The Lord said
unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine
enemies thy footstool. It was our Lord Jesus Christ
that completely confounded the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and he quoted this text to them.
The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I
make thine enemies thy footstool. He confounded them completely.
He said to them, David said, the Lord said, undermine them.
He said, they're on my right hand. And we read that no man
dares to ask him any more questions after he put them to silence. It says here in verse two, that
the Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion. Now,
now Zion is the church of the living God. The rod of thy strength. We read in Psalm 45, the scepter
of thy kingdom is a right scepter. That's a rod. It's a symbol of
royal power and authority. And I believe this is what is
being referred to here. The Lord shall send the rod of
thy strength out of Zion. When the Lord pours his spirit
forth, on Zion, on the church of the living God, and the rod
of his strength, of his gospel, of his truth, by the power of
the Holy Ghost is sent forth. Precious souls are then gathered
unto Christ. The strongholds of Satan are
then pulled down. The kingdom of the Lord Jesus
is set up in the hearts of sinners. And it goes on to say, thy people
shall be willing in the day of thy power. It's notable that
in the previous verse, the rod of thy strength, the day of thy
power. Thy people shall be willing. They shall be turned around.
They shall be given real repentance. You know, often repentance is
a misunderstood doctrine. It has a literal meaning. And
that literal meaning is to turn a person round. The apostle calls
it repentance toward God. And a poor sinner is turned away
from this world to God. To God. And the literal meaning
of repentance is to turn right round. A lot of people, and it's true,
it's part of repentance, the fruit of it, that they think
that somebody that weeps has got repentance. It's not true. Repentance is to turn right round.
They mix up godly sorrow with the literal meaning of repentance.
It's to turn away from sin and the ways of sin. Thy people shall be willing when
the spirit of God quickens the soul. when the Spirit of God
gives repentance and accompanies it, godly sorrow for sin and
faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. True repentance is always accompanied
by true faith. True faith is always accompanied
by true repentance. You know, you get some people
and they say they're repentant sinners, et cetera, but they're
in the world and of the world and the ways of the world. There's
something missing. What? Repentance. They say, oh,
I love our Lord Jesus Christ, I have faith in our Lord Jesus
Christ, but then they carry on just as they've always carried
on. They live as they've always lived. There's no change in the
way that they live. Repentance and faith change completely. The true believer, to follow Christ, To love is
word. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness. That's
Christ. From the womb of the morning,
that's the church. Thou hast the dew of thy youth. The beauties of holiness. You
know, at this sanctification, separation, He's brought about
in the heart, soul and life of a poor sinner when they are brought
by faith to Jesus Christ. When they are brought to see
that Jesus is the way to God. Jesus is the way to bliss. And
they're brought to love him. They love him. They no longer love this world.
They love Christ. And as the Apostle says that
this is what happens. Let us lay aside every weight
and the sin that does so easily beset us and run with patience
the race that is set before us looking unto Jesus. And it's
union with Christ that produces this great change in our lives.
Thy people shall be willing in that I have thy power. It's the
power of grace. the power of the Holy Ghost in
the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning. Thou
hast the dew of thy youth. The womb of the morning is the
church. In Solomon's song he said I will bring him into my
mother's house, that's the church, my mother's house, into the chamber
of her that bear me. Hence this expression here the
womb of the morning. The church it It says here in
the Book of Psalms that this and that man was born there.
And it's the principal place where the children of God are
born again. They're born there. And then this wonderful, glorious
promise. The Lord has sworn and will not
repent. That means he will not change
his mind. Thou art a priest forever after. the order of Melchizedek. Christ at his right hand. The Lord at thy right hand shall
strike through kings in the day of his wrath. Christ at the right
hand of the Father. That's very beautiful isn't it?
I know I often draw your attention to it and I do so because it
is so beautiful, such beautiful clear doctrine of truth in psalm
24 and lift up your heads oh ye gates and be ye lift up the
everlasting doors and the king of glory shall come in who is this king of glory the
lord strong and mighty this is speaking of christ ascended into
heaven and when it says lift up your heads oh ye gates it's
like we see the portcullises in the castles that are we could
find them even in this area and it was a an iron gate that was
pulled up by ropes into a void above it and when an enemy came
it dropped down and this is the illustration here of heaven's
gates those gates that were shut when adam fell and that fiery
sword of divine justice kept the way of the tree of life It
did. But when the Lord from heaven
came, our Lord Jesus Christ, when he ascended up on high,
he opened those gates. The King of Glory, that's who
Christ is. He's the King of Glory. Who is
this King of Glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the
Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates,
even lift them up, ye everlasting doors. And the King of Glory,
shall come in who is this king of glory the lord of hosts he
is the king of glory see that's how our lord jesus christ who's
now entered into heaven that that that way was shut after
adam fell it was closed up but it is the second adam the lord
from heaven that has ascended bodily into heaven and and his
ascension Those gates opened, opened. He made a new and a living
way into the holy place. In the chapter before that we
read in the sixth chapter of the Hebrews, he says there, in the latter part of the sixth
chapter, wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto
the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it
by an oath, 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,
which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast,
which entereth into that within the veil, Whither the forerunner,
this is Christ, whither the forerunner is for us entered. Even Jesus
made an high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. The Lord at thy right hand shall
strike through kings. Never forget that word of our
Lord Jesus as he was about to ascend into heaven. All power
is given unto me in heaven. and in earth. And it says here, he shall judge
among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies,
he shall wound the heads over many countries, he shall drink
of the brook in the way, therefore shall he lift up the head. He
rules the king of kings and the lord of lords, he does. He rules
his church in love. He brings them together in love,
in union, in communion. That's our Lord Jesus Christ.
He gives that love. We love him because he first
loved us. And that love is poured into
our hearts and we feel a union then, one with another in the
things of God. And if we're walking in the fear
of the Lord, We don't want to do anything that breaks that
union or that communion. We want to do everything that
preserves union and communion. Let us love one another, for
love is of God. He that loveth is born of God.
It's the very root of the gospel, this spirit of love. That's what
moved our Lord Jesus to come to this earth. That's what moved
the Father to send him. It's love, eternal, divine love. And he shall judge among the
heathen. That means he will send out his gospel throughout the
nations of the earth, among the heathen, pagan nations. And men
shall be turned unto Christ to serve the true and the living
God. But those enemies of his truth, then he will deal with
them. He shall judge among the heathen.
He shall fill the places with dead bodies. He shall woo the
heads over many countries. He shall drink of the brook in
the way. Therefore shall he lift up the
head, drinking of the brook. As in And I don't see any reason
to change the interpretation. As in the Word of God, the Holy
Ghost is likened to water, living water. And I believe here it's referring
to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ was anointed with the
Spirit without measure. He shall drink of the brook in
the way. Therefore shall he lift up the head. He did everything
by the power of the Holy Ghost. Our Lord Jesus was anointed with
the Holy Ghost without measure, and everything he did, he said,
if I by the finger of God, and he's referring there to the Holy
Ghost, if I by the finger of God cast out devils, which he
did continually when he was here in his earthly ministry. He cast
devils out of many, he freed them from Satan's bondage. He
did. And it was by the power of the
Holy Ghost. When he preached, it was by the
power of the Holy Ghost. When he healed the sick, it was
by the power of the Holy Ghost. When he made the blind to see,
the deaf to hear, the dumb to speak, it was by the power of
the Holy Ghost. And I believe that that's what
it's referring to here. He shall drink of the brook in
the way. Therefore, shall he lift up the
head. all the wonderful things that
our Lord Jesus has done and the wonderful things that he will
yet do. He's the same yesterday and today and forever. There is nothing beyond his power. All that the Lord will give it
to take home tonight just that this glorious truth the Lord
said unto my Lord the Father said to the Son sit thou at my
right hand. You know what a soul-establishing
thing it is when you and I get a view by faith of Jesus at the
right hand of the Father, all power is given unto me in heaven
and in earth. The Lord said unto my Lord sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 120. The tune is Evangelist 138. With joy we meditate the grace
of our high priest above. His heart is made of tenderness.
His bowels melt with love. Hymn 120. Tune Evangelist 138. O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? God shed His grace, and set us free. I will watch him from heaven
above. He knows how people cry. Enhance the soul, transcends
all fear, all fear. God's fullness in all self and
love, Amen. The saint and God regard thee
all, And give thee thanks to God. ? Sing in praise ? ? The name of
flesh ? ? For heaven is night and day ? ? Heaven is night and
day ? His head, the wheels of Christ,
was turned, Deliverance, the serving Christ,
O let His power apply. The birds that wing in ev'ry
flight ? In eternal love, the faith of
the cross is with thee. ? His triumph of faith, to Him
we praise, 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 both now and
forevermore. Amen.