at 10.30 and 2 o'clock, also
on Thursday evening at 7 o'clock. There'll be a prayer meeting
here on Tuesday evening at 7 o'clock. The collections taken during
October and the online giving amounted to £2,420. Donations
to the book fund were £55. We sincerely thank you for your
continued support of this cause of truth. Let us commence our services
today by singing together hymn 362 to the tune Ascalon 567.
How pleased and blessed was I to hear the people cry, come let
us seek our God today, Yes, with a cheerful zeal, we
haste a Zion's hill, and there our vows and honours bay. Hymn 362, tune Ascalon 567. Help me, steadfast, for time,
To hear the people cry, Come, let us see the Lord today. Blessed with the gift of sin
Released to Zion's hymn And better crowns and honors today I am dry, sandy page Adorned
with my brother's rage And mortal strength enraged See how through
me ♪ We have tribes up here ♪ ♪ To
pray and praise and hear ♪ ♪ The sacred cross has joys on it's
side ♪ When pain betrayed the sun, As
this his final throne, He said, to raise the troubled man, If the saints be glad, He makes
their sin at rest, And humbles His children's voice with fear. ♪ May each sentence I give ♪ ♪ Have a joy within me made ♪ ♪
To bless the soul of every flesh ♪ Mother, what shapes I meet, and
which depths I embrace? A thousand blessings on him rest, I don't repeat the past. It still is sacred past. Nor can I vent my hatred now. And since my glorious birth Makes
thee its best lover, My soul shall Let us read together from the
holy word of God in the prophecy of Isaiah and chapter 43. Isaiah chapter 43. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear
not, for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers they shall
not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the
Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour. I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Sheba for thee. Since thou wast precious in my
sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee. Therefore
will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. Fear not,
for I am with thee, I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather
thee from the west. I will say to the north, give
up, and to the south, keep not back. Bring my sons from far,
and my daughters from the ends of the earth, even every one
that is called by my name. For I have created him for my
glory. I have formed him, yea, I have
made him. Bring forth the blind people
that have eyes and the deaf that have ears. Let all the nations
be gathered together and let the people be assembled who among
them can declare this and show us former things. Let them bring
forth their witnesses that they may be justified or let them
hear and say it is truth. Ye are my witnesses, saith the
Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen, that ye may know and
believe me, and understand that I am he. Before me there was
no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I am the Lord, and beside
me there is no Saviour. I have declared and saved, I
have showed, and I have showed when there was no strange God
among you. Therefore, ye are my witnesses,
saith the Lord, that I am God. Yea, before the day was, I am
he, and there is none that can deliver out of my hand. I will
work, and who shall let it? Thus saith the Lord, your Redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel, for your sake I have sent to Babylon and
have brought down all their nobles and the Chaldeans whose cry is
in the ships. I am the Lord, your Holy One,
the Creator of Israel, your King. Thus saith the Lord, which maketh
a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters, which bringeth
forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power. They
shall lie down together, they shall not rise, they are extinct,
they are quenched as toe. Remember ye not the former things,
neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new
thing, now it shall spring forth, shall ye not know it. I will
even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The
beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls,
because I will give waters in the wilderness and rivers in
the desert to give drink to my people, my chosen. This people have I formed for
myself, they shall show forth my praise. But thou hast not
called upon me, O Jacob, but thou hast been weary of me, O
Israel. Thou hast not brought me the
small cattle of thy burnt offerings, neither hast thou honoured me
with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to serve
with an offering, nor weary thee with incense. Thou hast brought
me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with
the fat of thy sacrifices, but thou hast made me to serve with
thy sins. Thou hast wearied me with thine
iniquities. I, even I, am he that blotteth
out thy transgressions for mine own sake. and will not remember
thy sins. Put me in remembrance. Let us
plead together. Declare thou that thou mayest
be justified. Thy first father hath sinned,
and thy teachers have transgressed against me. Therefore, I have
profaned the princes of the sanctuary, and have given Jacob to the curse,
and Israel to reproaches. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, we do desire to bow before thy
great majesty and to call upon thy great and holy name We do
desire 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 and abide upon us this day as we gather together around
thy word and as we gather together around thy table. May thy presence
be known and found. What is the house, O Lord, to
me unless the master I can see? Oh, we come in that wonderful
name of Jesus Christ. This is the name the Father loves
to hear his children plead. We come, Lord, plead in the precious
blood and righteousness of thine only begotten Son, our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. For all our hope is in him. No
help in self I find, yet oft have sought it well. The native
treasure of my mind is sin, and death, and hell. And Lord, we
have to so often cry out with the dear apostle, O wretched
man, that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death.
We come to thee, most gracious Lord, this morning of thy holy
day, and we pray for thy presence. In thy presence I am happy. In
thy presence I am secure, in thy presence I can easily all
things endure. Gracious God, be with us this
day, even as thou hast promised, I am with thee. And we do pray
that we may prove it to be so, that the Lord is in this place.
And we pray that the word of the Lord may have free course
and that thy name may be honoured and glorified, and precious souls
may be gathered unto Christ, and that the glory of the gospel
may shine into this village, and precious souls may be gathered
in, and the word of the Lord sealed into their hearts. From
this village and the surrounding villages and hamlets, we just
read together in thy word, that I will bring thy sons from far
and thy daughters from the ends of the earth. Lord, fulfil those
wonderful promises. We do humbly beseech thee for
thy great namesake. And O Lord, we do pray that thou
would remember us then as a church and as a congregation, and that
thou would bless our brethren, the deacons, and grant them wisdom
and grace and help in all their responsibilities. Remember each
one of our brethren and sisters in church fellowship, and those
present with us and those that, O Lord, cannot be with us. We
gather them all together. We commend them to Thee and to
the word of Thy grace, which is able to build them up and
to grant them an inheritance among them that are sanctified.
O Lord, do hear us, we pray, for thy great name's sake. And
that graciously pour upon us the spirit of real travail, for
as Susan Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. And
we long to see the bringing forth of spiritual children. We've
read together in thy word, I will work, and who shall let it? And
we pray that it may be so among us here. that thou wilt work,
that we may see thy work, and thy power, and thy glory, as
thou usest to be in the sanctuary. Arise, arise, O God of grace,
into thy rest descend, thou and the ark of thy strength, and
let thy priest be clothed with salvation, and thy saints shall
shout aloud for joy, Lord abundantly bless the provision of thy house,
and satisfy her poor with bread, We do humbly beseech them. Bless
the little ones and the children as they come into the sanctuary,
and grant the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom,
may be placed in their hearts. We do humbly beseech that they
may be found seeking thee and searching for thee. And, O Lord,
we do pray that thou would remember the young friends and richly
bless them. Bless them with faith in Jesus
Christ, that they may become followers of thee, and of those
who, through faith and patience, inherit the promises. We do humbly
beseech thee, thou hast promised in thy word, instead of thy fathers
shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the
earth. Lord, hear us, we humbly beseech
thee, and grant, Lord, that they may be granted partners in life's
journey. We often think, O Lord, of thy
wonderful works in Holy Scripture, in bringing a Ruth unto Boaz
and a Rebekah unto Isaac, and thou art able to do that with
our friends. Lord, hear us, we pray thee,
for thy great namesake. Remember all in the midst of
the journey of life and graciously undertake for each one. And remember
the prodigals that have wandered and that are wandering, and stretch
out thy almighty arm, and cause them to be in want, and cause
them to return. Lord, they are able to do abundantly
more than we can even ask or think. Hear us, we humbly beseech
thee, and work. Thou hast said, I will work,
and we pray that thou wouldst work. And O Lord, we do pray
that Thou wouldst remember the parents and give wisdom and grace
to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of
the Lord. Remember those that are troubled and burdened and
perplexed, sorrowful, help and undertake for each one and grant
a word in season. We do humbly beseech them. Remember
those of us that are now in the evening time of life journey.
Remember us with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people,
and visit us with thy great salvation, and grant that we may be made
ready for that great change that must come to each one of us.
O Lord, we do pray that thou wouldst graciously remember all
thy servants today as they labour in word and doctrine, and grant,
O Lord, we do pray thee, that they may know that fresh
anointing of the Spirit, the Spirit of power, and signs to
follow the preaching of the Word. And oh, we pray thee, the great
Lord of the harvest, to send true labourers into the harvest
and to build the walls of Jerusalem. Make bare thy holy harm, O Lord,
we beseech thee. Remember any and any trouble
or trial. Those in darkness, bring them
into light. Those in bondage, bring them
into liberty. Those that are far off, make
them nigh. O Lord, we humbly pray thee. And O Lord, we do pray that thou
wouldst graciously remember the little causes of truth up and
down our land, wheresoever thy servants stand and thy people
gather. We pray that there may be an
outpouring of thy spirit and that thine arm may be made bare,
that we may see thy wonderful work appearing. Let thy work
appear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their children. Remember those, O Lord, that
labour in word and doctrine in the nations of the earth. We
think of thy servant, Ian Sadler, and pray that he may be divinely
supported and that thou would supply all his many returning
needs in the distribution of Holy Scripture, in the exposition
of thy word, in the running of the orphanages. Lord, gracious
God, help him. We do humbly beseech thee and
grant good success to his labours. Remember the Savannah Education
Trust and that great work that they're doing in the schools
in Ghana. Lord, we pray that thou would
richly bless the work going on there. It may be down to the
great honour, glory and praise of thee. And there may be a building
up of the church in Ghana. Through their endeavours, we
do humbly beseech thee. And oh Lord, remember the Mombasa
mission and thy servant that labours there, him and his dear
ones. We pray that thou wouldst graciously
gird them with all sufficient grace and grant thy richest blessing
to rest upon them. We do humbly beseech of thee.
And O Lord God, we do pray that thou wouldst remember our government
and give wisdom, give understanding, give guidance, give direction.
Remember our King, We read in thy word that king's heart is
in the hand of the Lord, and as rivers of water, he turneth
it with us to every will. So we commend our king and the
royal household unto thee, that thy richest blessing may rest
there, if it could please thee. And oh Lord, we do desire a heart
of gratitude, a thanksgiving, for all thy tender mercies, which
are new every morning. We thank Thee, O Lord, for the
incarnation of the Son of God, and the holy life He lived as
a man here upon earth, and thereby bringing in everlasting righteousness. We thank Thee, most gracious
Lord, for the cross of Calvary, where the Lamb was slain, where
sin was put away, where divine justice was satisfied. We thank
thee that he died for our sins and rose again for our justification,
and is now bodily sitting at the right hand of the Father. Tis he instead of me is seen
when I approach to God. What wonderful glories there
are in our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we know the love
of our eternal Father, and by him we receive the gift of the
Holy Ghost. So we desire to bow in adoration,
thanksgiving, and praise unto our God for all his tender mercies
and loving kindnesses that have passed before us in the way.
Lord, be with us as we turn to thy holy word. Come and touch
one's lips with a live coal from off the heavenly altar. We ask
for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 139. The tune is Crimmond, 851. My shepherd will supply my need. Jehovah is his name. In pastures
fresh he makes me feed. Beside the living stream. Hymn
139, tune Crimmond, I shall not forget, shall not
cry my name, till I am one with Jesus name. He found the truth in every life.
♪ In spirit's name ♪ ♪ We praise
thy God ♪ ♪ In spirit's name ♪ ♪ And thine own spirit's name
♪ ♪ And lead me not into temptation
♪ ♪ But lead me not into temptation ♪ ♪ My presence here I stay ♪ ♪ How
wonderful, how wonderful to my friend ♪ ♪ How wonderful, how
wonderful to my friend ♪ ♪ I thank thee, God, for all thy
works ♪ ♪ That still my tears may fall ♪ My God, with mercy
you have done it, I owe the Christ my debt. There's hope within, and love
on my heart. God help me to find my rest. O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? ♪ Alleluia, alleluia ♪ ♪ Alleluia,
alleluia ♪ Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I would direct your attention to the chapter
that we read the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 43, and we'll
read verses one and two for our text. Isaiah chapter 43, verses one
and two. But now, thus saith the Lord,
that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel,
fear not. For I have redeemed thee. I have
called thee by thy name. Thou art mine. When thou passest
through the waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers,
they shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned. Neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob. This doesn't mean the original
creation. It means the new creation. We
sing sometimes in that lovely hymn, Love Divine, carry on thy
new creation. So in the new creation, there
is a new birth. You must be born again. And that is called the new creation. But now, thus saith the Lord
that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel. Jacob, the deceiver, Jacob, the
supplanter. But Jacob, the child of God. Jacob that was called by divine
grace as far as we can see In holy scripture that the first
time that the Lord met with Jacob was when he came to Bethel And he had a stone for his pillar
that was that was the first time he'd left home He was all alone
And as he laid there the Lord appeared
to him in a vision, in a dream as he lay sleeping. There was
a ladder upon the earth, his foot upon the earth and his top
in heaven and ascending and descending on that ladder were angels, the
angels of God. This was a vision given to Jacob. And then we read this, and the
Lord stood above him. And Jacob felt the holiness and
the awful solemnity of that place. And he actually said, how awful
is this place? This is none other than the house
of God and the very gate of heaven. How awful is this place? Because
he felt his own sinfulness. That's why he said, how awful
is this place? And he felt God's greatness.
God's greatness. How awful is this place? There
was a sense of trembling and trepidation in his heart that
this vision that was given him. But then there was a door of
hope. There were angels of God on a ladder. That ladder beautifully
symbolises our Lord Jesus Christ. I am the way, the truth and the
life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. That is what that ladder means
and that is what was revealed unto Jacob there. And the angels
of God which are sent to minister unto the heirs of salvation.
These things were revealed unto Jacob. And he called the name of that
place Bethel, the house of God. And it was many years later when
he was returning, 20 years later when he was returning
to that same place that the Lord met him. He had
his family, his wives, his cattle, his herds of sheep, the Lord
had greatly prospered him. And his brother Esau, whom he
had supplanted, whom he had deceived, he deceived his own father. You know, friends, if you really
check and look at Scripture closely, you will find that Esau was a
much nicer character than Jacob. It was. And yet the Lord says,
and it's what he says that counts, Jacob have I loved, Esau have
I hated. It's a very solemn word, isn't
it? Jacob have I loved, Esau have
I hated. So Jacob came to the Brook Jabbok
and he sent forth his droves his wives, his families, his
flocks, his herds. The flocks and herds were a present
unto Esau, his brother, to seek to portray him. He came with
400 armed men and he vowed to kill Jacob for taking his birthright. He verily hated him. And we read this, and Jacob was
left alone. was left alone. Fortis decreed
that most must walk the darkest paths alone and Jacob was left
alone. You think of Hezekiah, when Isaiah
came and said to him, you think of what they were surrounded
with. The Assyrian armies surrounded
and besieged Jerusalem. And in the midst of all that,
Hezekiah fell sick. And Isaiah the prophet came and
said to him, set thine house in order for thou shalt die and
not live. And we read this, and Hezekiah
turned his face to the wall. What does it mean? He turned
away from all human help. There was only one that could
help. And you know, friends, you find in those desperate circumstances,
you don't have great big long prayers. You have short, what
are called ejaculatory prayers. What did Hezekiah say? Oh Lord,
I am oppressed. Undertake for me. Undertake for me. And the Lord
heard his prayer. And he added unto his days 15
years. And here was Jacob with his brother
coming with 400 armed men. And he wrestled. We read that
the angel of the Lord, that is Christ. It's made very clear
in the prophet Hosea that the person that wrestled with Jacob
there was Jehovah. It was the Lord Jesus Christ
that wrestled with him. And let us mark this because
it's often spoken the other way around that Jacob wrestled with
the angel. Well, he did, but it doesn't
say that in scripture. It says the angel wrestled with
Jacob. Jacob had to be brought down.
The angel wrestled with Jacob. Jacob had to be emptied of all
his schemes and all what he tried to do, et cetera. He had to be
brought utterly to nothing. But Jacob, he said to the Lord,
I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. He brought to
that point, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And
what do we read? And he blessed him there. And
he changed his name to Israel for as a prince, and that's what
Israel means. for as a prince hast thou prevailed
with God. Wrestling prayer can wonders
do, bring relief in deepest straits. Prayer can force a passage through
iron bars and brazen gates. See, he surnamed him Israel. He changed his name. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not, for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name.
Thou art mine. Thou art mine. What a wonderful
thing to actually be brought to Realize that that thou art
mine You belong to the Lord He's purchased you You are the Lord's
purchased possession We read in in Malachi chapter
3 verses 16 and 17 A wonderfully encouraging word.
Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, and
the Lord hearkened and heard it. And a book of remembrance
was written before him for them that feared the Lord. Listen,
and that thought upon his name. How low the Holy Spirit comes
here. And them that thought upon his
name. How often do we speak on spiritual
things one with another? It says here, the know that fear
the Lord speak often. It's a means of grace, you know,
friends. How often one has found over the years in speaking on
spiritual things with a brother or sister in Christ and how it
sharpens the sword. and how it revives us spiritually. It's a means of grace that the
Lord has given us. And a book of remembrance was
written before him for them that feared the Lord and that thought
upon his name. Now, he says here, and they shall
be mine. And they shall be mine, saith
the Lord of hosts in that day. when I make up my jewels, and
I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him,
and I will spare them, and they shall be mine. Can you come in
there, them that fear the Lord, them that think upon his name, fear not for i have redeemed
thee i have called thee by thy name thou art mine thou art mine what a mercy what a favor i think
there's a hymn writer says doesn't he favor astonishing divine it's
astonishing The Lord has a people. A people that he has chosen.
A people that he has redeemed. A people that he has sanctified.
A people that he has called. I have called thee by thy name.
Thou art mine. And this people, they were chosen
before the foundation of the world. They were chosen by our
eternal Father. And they were given to his only
begotten son, our Lord Jesus Christ. They were given by deed
of gift unto the son, from the father to the son. They were
the chosen from the ruins of the Adam fall. God knows all
things. And it's not because of anything
you've done or I've done or can do. It's entirely the free the
sovereign favour of the eternal God. My mind it just goes to
the book of Deuteronomy and what we read there in the 7th chapter
and Deuteronomy chapter 7 verse 6 For thou art an holy people
unto the Lord thy God The Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be
a special people unto himself above all people that are upon
the face of the earth. The Lord did not set his love
upon you. These are humbling words, my
beloved friends. The Lord did not set his love
upon you nor choose you because you were more in number than
any people. For ye were the fewest of all
people, but because the Lord loved you. the only reason. Oh love divine how great thou
art but because the Lord loved you and because he would keep the
oath which he hath sworn unto your fathers hath the Lord brought
you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you out of the house
of bondmen from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord
thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and
mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to
a thousand generations. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not. He's a gracious Fear not to these
people whom the Lord has showed a favor, who think upon his name,
who have been called. You've been brought to know yourself
as a sinner. You've been brought to know that
God is holy and that you're unholy, that God is righteous and you're
unrighteous. You're brought to know that and
to feel it in your very hearts. And you've been brought to see
that Jesus is the way to God. And it's not just some abstract
thing, it's a faith that works by love and you love our Lord
Jesus Christ and you feel a love to him. If you love me, keep
my commandments. Keep my commandments. Fear not,
for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name. I've called thee. And Lord Jesus,
he sets this before us in the 10th chapter of John's gospel. And there in John chapter 10,
he speaks of his sheep. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth
up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he
that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
To him the porter openeth, and the sheep hear his voice, and
he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his
own sheep, He goeth before them. Won't go alone. You will not
go alone. He goeth before them. And the sheep follow him, for
they know his voice. And a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice strangers
to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. Fear not for I have redeemed
them. Now there are many fears as you
walk in this pathway. There are real fears and there
are imaginary fears. There are fears that arise from
the temptations of Satan. And there are fears that arise
because you feel the weakness and sinfulness of your own heart
and your own nature. And you feel that you'll make
shipwreck of fame and that you'll go wrong. But here, we have a gracious
promise from the eternal God. Fear not, for I have redeemed
thee. I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. Now this promise, what I'd like
to say first on this, when thou passest through the waters, it
doesn't say if you pass through the waters, it's when you pass
through the waters. Now these waters can mean many
different things. There's the waters of affliction, of trouble, of trial, of perplexity,
of sorrow, of sadness, of bereavement. You may have waters that have
come into your soul. That's what David says, that
the waters have come into my soul. And he felt that they would
drown him, they would overwhelm him. And in this path where the Lord
has placed you, And this path that the Lord has set before
you, you feel that you're going to be overwhelmed. And of course,
there's something else that arises in our hearts, and that is the
spirit of unbelief. The spirit of unbelief. And that
can be very overwhelming. And they dishonor Lord. The spirit of unbelief dishonours
the Lord. And you fear greatly. Sometimes
that spirit of unbelief blinds us to the love and power and
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. But we have here a promise in
this path that is set before you. that is immediately before
you, when thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee. What a promise, isn't it? I will be with thee. The Lord
will take your hand and he will hold your hand when thou passest
through the waters, I will be with thee. I will never leave
thee nor forsake thee, the Lord says. here in the prophecy of
Isaiah, in chapter 30. And we read there of the Lord's
dealings with his people. And we read from verse 18 in
the 30th of Isaiah, and therefore will the Lord wait that he may
be gracious unto And therefore will he be exalted, that he may
have mercy upon you. For the Lord is a God of judgment.
Blessed are all they that wait for him. Waiting, watching. That's part, that's the spirit
of faith, isn't it? Waiting, watching. For the people shall dwell in
Zion, at Jerusalem. Thou shalt weep no more, for
he will be very gracious unto thee, at the voice of thy cry,
when he shall hear it, he will answer thee. And though the Lord
give you, and these are the things that are in our text, and though
the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction,
yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more,
but thine eyes shall see thy teachers, You know friends, the
meaning of those words, the things that you and I pass through,
the temptations, the trials, the perplexities, the sorrows,
the sadness, the difficult things that you come into, the perplexing
things that you come into, they are your teachers, your experience. what the Lord permits to come
in your life, what troubles he causes to come, what perplexities. The Lord Jesus said, it is through
much tribulation that you shall enter the kingdom. Though the Lord give you the
bread of adversity, and there will be, as it says in our text,
when thou passest through the waters. Not if you pass through,
but when you pass through. And though the Lord give you
the bread of adversity and the water of affliction,
yet shall not thy teachers be removed
into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers.
Those things, those perplexities, those things that are difficult,
Those things in your life which you can't unravel and which you
can't understand. They're your teachers. Those things that you try to
get out of and you try your hardest to get round. You think of Daniel in The Lion's
Den. You know friends, It wasn't a threat to the lion's
den. He actually went into the lion's
den. And it may be there's something
in your pathway. You've got to go into it. It's
in the lion's den that Daniel proved the faithfulness, the
covenant love, faithfulness and kindness of his God. He wouldn't
have experienced that if he hadn't gone into the lion's den. Then he saw the wonderful power
and wisdom of God, and that he could sit all night with those
lions. Oh, King, live forever. My God
has sent his angel. Let's shut the mouth of the lions. And the Lord released, the King
released him from that den of lions and he cast All those that
had opposed Daniel and that had brought these things upon him,
he casts them all into the den of lions and the lions had the
mastery of them before they even reached the bottom of the den.
You see, when thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee. That's what Daniel proved in
the lion's den. The Lord was and also Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego. These were their teachers. Those things that they passed
through. When Nebuchadnezzar took those three Hebrew children
and they cast them into the burning fiery furnace so that he heated
the furnace so hot that the men that heated it died from the
heat. And yet, We read that Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego, there wasn't a hair singed on their body,
they went right into the midst of that furnace. Of course it could have been
just the threat of the furnace but it wasn't. There seems to
be an emphasis here my beloved friends in that you have to go
into these things. Daniel had to go into the lion's
den to prove the faithfulness, loving-kindness of God. Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego had to go into the burning fiery furnace. Though the Lord give you the
bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet shall not
thy teachers be removed into a corner any more. But thine
eyes shall see thy teachers, and thine ears shall hear a word
behind thee, saying, This is the way walking in it when you
turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left. When thou passest through the
waters, I, Christ, Christ will be with his people. Christ will
be near you. When you come through the waters,
Christ will be there with you. When thou passest through, this
is a promise from the eternal unchanging God, when thou passest
through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers
they shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. Doesn't Peter say in his epistle,
Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try
you as though some strange thing happened unto you. It's not a
strange thing. It's not a strange thing. It's the way. This is the way. Your master. Look at the way
your master trod. Look at the path of Jesus. Look
at what he passed through. As the apostle says, consider
him which endured such contradiction of sins against himself, lest
ye be faint and wearied in your minds. Consider him. Consider what he passed through.
Consider what he passed through to redeem you and to deliver
you from sin and Satan's power. Consider how he humbled himself
and he came from heaven and lived as a man here upon earth, a man
of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Consider my beloved friends that
touch with the sympathy within. He knows our feeble frame. He knows what sore temptations
mean, for he has felt the same. The Lord Jesus was tempted the
devil for 40 days and 40 nights. The Lord Jesus is the Son of
God manifest in the flesh, a glorious person, God and man in one. And in that temptation in the
wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights when he had nothing to
eat, you see, he was weakened. He was weakened. He weakened
my strength in the way. He shortened my days. He was
greatly weakened. We read of the Lord Jesus in
the temptation that there appeared an angel from heaven strengthened
him. You know, friends, consider him which endured. If Christ, to redeem you, through
overwhelming sorrows and grief and darkness and bondage and
pain and agonies to redeem you. See this, this is the way walking
in when thou passest through the waters I will be with thee
and through the rivers they shall not overflow thee when thou walkest
through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall
the flame kindle upon thee. These are wonderful promises. They are. You know, friends,
there is, of course, that last great enemy, which is death. That last great enemy, which
is death. When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside. The verge of Jordan, the Jordan
of death. When the children of Israel crossed
Jordan, it was overflowing its banks. Normally, Jordan is a
very small river, but in the time of harvest, it overflows
its banks. And that's what it'll be like
in the Jordan of death. It'll overflow its blanks. But you'll prove this true when
thou passest through those waters. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee. And through the rivers they shall
not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned. Neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. I, the Lord Jesus, I will be
with thee. Our eternal Father, I will be
with thee. The Holy Ghost, I will be with
thee. The Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghost, the Lord Jehovah, the one true God, I will be with
thee. You see this fear now? The thing
is, you have many fears, don't you? Of passing through those waters. But the Lord has promised that
he will be with you. We have to walk by faith and
not by sight. We'll be given dying grace in
a dying hour, not before, but when you come to die. And when
you, there's a path that has been set before you and that
you don't know how to take it and you have so many fears. And you can see every reason
why you shouldn't go in that path and why you're so fearful
to walk in that path. But you know, friends, he's promised
to be with you. He's promised to hold your hand. He's promised to put his arms
around you, to support you and to sustain you and to strengthen
you in this pathway. Fear not, for I have redeemed
thee. I have called thee by thy name.
Thou art mine. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee. through the rivers they shall
not overflow thee. That's what you fear isn't it?
There'll be an overwhelming flood that will sweep your way but
it won't be and this this promise tells you it won't be. I will
be with thee and through the rivers they shall not overflow
thee. When thou walkest through the fire thou shalt not be burned
neither show the flame, kindle upon them. This is the promise
of God. He will never leave, He will
never forsake. In the previous chapters, chapter
41, and we read in verse 10, fear thou not for I am with thee,
I've often said, my beloved friends, there's a multitude of promises
here in one verse. It's not just one promise, it's
promise and promise and promise and promise, one upon another. What more can he say than to
you he has said? Fear thou not, for I am with
thee. Be not dismayed. And maybe at
the thought of this pathway, you feel utterly dismayed. Be not dismayed, for I am thy
God. I will. These are the promises
of the Eternal God. I will strengthen thee, yea,
I will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand
of my righteousness. I will. It's what God has promised
to do. Here, my beloved friends, also
in the chapter 42, look at the beautiful revelation of Christ
that we have there in the beginning of chapter 42. Behold my servant,
that's Christ, whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. This is the eternal father speaking
of the eternal son. I have put my spirit upon him.
He was anointed with the spirit without measure. He shall bring
forth judgment as Gentiles. He shall not cry nor lift up
nor cause his voice to be heard in the street. Now listen to
this, a bruised reed. Maybe that's how you feel, a
bruised reed. You know, a reed, when it bruises,
it bows right down to the water. Reeds grow in water and it bows
its head right down. And maybe that's how you feel,
like a bruised reed, you're bowed down and you can't lift yourself
up. A bruised reed, shall he not
break? And the smoke and flax. And maybe,
my beloved friends, that in your spiritual experience at this
time, you feel it's just smouldering. There's not that fire burning,
as you have known in the past. But now it's just smouldering.
It all seems to be damped down. Now, listen to what he says to
you. The smoking flax, shall he not quench? He shall bring
forth judgment unto truth, the Lord Jesus one. He will be completely
victorious in you and on your behalf. He will go before you. He will go before you. We just
read that in John 10, how the Lord goes before his people.
Now listen to what it says here about our Lord Jesus Christ.
He shall not fail. He shall not fail. You fail,
I fail, we all fail, but he will never fail. I will never leave
thee, nor forsake thee. He shall not fail, nor be discouraged. Till he hath set judgment in
the earth, the hour shall wait for his law. No, he shall not
fail nor be discouraged. You think of our Lord Jesus Christ
in that tremendous work of redemption. When he came to deliver his people
from sin and Satan's power, he shall not fail. He didn't fail. He set his face as a flint. His
visage was so marred more than any man's, more than the sons
of men. But he determined to say, even
when Peter took the sword and cut off the ear of the high priest's
servant, put thy sword up in its seat, the cup that my father
has given me, shall I not drink it? He shall not fail. No, nor be discouraged till he
has set judgment in the earth. Christ has done the work of redemption. Christ has passed through those
terrible troubles and trials and perplexities and sorrows
on the behalf of his people. Christ has fulfilled the law
and honored it on the behalf of his people and thereby brought
in everlasting righteousness for his people. Christ has offered
a sin atoning sacrifice on Calvary's tree. He shall not fail nor be
discouraged. and in the path that you're walking
in. He will not fail you. No. Look to Jesus. Look to Jesus. I love what Joseph
Hart says, pour not on thyself too long. And that's what we
do. We pour on all our weaknesses, our failings, our insufficiencies,
and we pour upon them. Pour not on thyself too long.
else to async thee lower. Look to Jesus, firm and strong,
mercy joined with power. But now thus saith the Lord that
created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, fear
not, for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by thy name,
thou art mine. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee. and through the rivers they shall
not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. And he goes on in verse five. Fear not, for I am with thee. He repeats his words. I will
bring thy seed from the east. This is his promises to Zion.
I will bring thy seed from the east and gather thee from the
west. I will say to the north, give up, and to the south, keep
not back. Bring my sons from far and my
daughters from the ends of the earth, even everyone that is
called by my name. For I have created him for my
glory. I have formed him. Yea, I have
made him. And then we read in the last
clause of verse 13, I will work. and who shall let him. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 329. The tune is Promise 832. Our firmer foundation, ye saints
of the Lord, is laid for your faith in his excellent Word.
What more can he say than to you he has said? You who unto
Jesus for refuge have fled. Hymn 329, tune Promise, 832. Within these external terms.
What for can we say that to you we have sinned? ever untidies all reckoning of men. In every in secrecy crowned. He taught that his fellow have
no need in wealth, and the Lord As thy days shall be, Thou shalt
I take with me. In all I am with Thee, O being
of this day, Thy eye and Thy God and Prince still remain. But tenderly, help me, have mercy
to stand, After my rinders of incontentment. came through the deep water's
eye, holy to God. The rebirth of love shall not
be forgotten. Though I may be with thee, thy
counsels request, and certify to thee thy defense. Whence were thy retrials mine,
but they shall fly. Thy grace, O salvation, shall
be thine, shall fly. The flame shall not burn thee,
Thy work is done. Thy daughter owns you, And thy
God, their King. In them take away, to my creed
you shall prove. My soul, great eternal, I'll
change now, O God. ♪ And where glory is true ♪ ♪ Where
terror's at door ♪ ♪ Like clouds they shall still ♪ ♪ May my bosom
hold ♪ I will not, I will not desert
you, creatures. Lord Solomon, all hail to thee.
Hail, hail, all hail to thee. All hail to thee. All hail to
thee. All hail to thee. 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.