Let us commence our service this
afternoon by singing together hymn number 627, the tune is
Hope Street, 745. Poor sinner, dejected with fear,
unbosomed thy mind to the Lamb. No wrath on his brow he does
wear, nor will he poor mourners condemn. His arm of omnipotent
grace, is able and willing to say, a sweet and a permanent
peace he'll freely and faithfully give. Hymn 627, tune Hope Street
745. O say does he that worship the
Lord at the twilight's last gleaming, whose broad stripes and bright
stars through the perilous fight, Lord, in His people's goodness
content, His love of meekness and grace, His faithful and faithful
stay, A spate and a fathom of grace,
Filled with love and thankful again. ? Of justice thereup'n with thy
power be ? ? God of Israel ? ? We will not repent ? The fountain is o'er the sea, Where the fruits and the juices
are found, They'll take thee and once they come in, The gold he reveals in his blood. The child that Lord Jesus realized,
We'll never know him or his name. He'll be here, wait for me here. All the things that we cannot
see Lay down till our day is free Though our way be most stray,
fast and fast, When our hopes and desires find their way, Let us read together from the
holy word of God in the gospel according to Luke and chapter
11. Luke's Gospel chapter 11 and
we will read down to verse 28. And it came to pass that as he
was praying in a certain place when he ceased one of his disciples
said unto him Lord teach us to pray as John also taught his
disciples and he said unto them When ye pray, say, Our Father,
which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come,
thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day
our daily bread, and forgive us our sins. For we also forgive
everyone that is indebted to us, and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. And he said unto them, Which
of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight,
and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves? For a friend
of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to
set before him. And he from within shall answer
and say, Trouble me not, The door is now shut, and my children
are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give thee.
I say unto you, though he will not rise and give him, because
he is his friend, yet because of his impotunity, he will rise
and give him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you, ask and it
shall be given you. seek and you shall find, knock
and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh receiveth,
and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall
be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any
of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he
ask a fish, will he give for a fish a, give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will
he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more? Shall your heavenly Father give
the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? And he was casting out
a devil, and it was done. And it came to pass, when the
devil was gone out, the dumb spake, and the people wondered
but some of them said he casteth out devils through Beelzebub
the chief of the devils and others tempting him sought of him a
sign from heaven but he knowing their thoughts said unto them
every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation
and a house divided against a house falleth If Satan also be divided
against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? Because ye say
that I cast out devils through Beelzebub. And if I by Beelzebub
cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore
shall they be your judges. But if I by the finger of God
cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God come unto you. When a strong man, armed, keepeth
his palace, his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than
he shall come upon him and overcometh him, he taketh from him all his
armour, wherein he trusteth and divideth his spoils. He that
is not with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with
me scattereth. When the unclean spirit is gone
out of a man, He walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and
finding none. He saith, I will return unto
my house whence I came out. And when he cometh, he findeth
it swept and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh to
him seven other spirits more wicked than himself. And they
enter in, and dwell there. And the last state of that man
is worse than the first. And it came to pass, as he spake
these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her
voice and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and
the patch which thou hast sucked. But he said, Yea, rather, blessed
are they that hear the word of God and keep it. May the Lord bless the reading.
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Almighty, most merciful, most
gracious and eternal God, we do desire to bow before thy great
majesty. Thou art in heaven and we upon
earth, and the exhortation is therefore let thy words be few,
for in the multitude of words there wanteth not iniquity. And
Lord, we are solemnly aware that sin is mixed with all we do,
and that we would bow indeed and humble ourselves before thee,
and pray that thou wouldst have mercy upon us, that thou wouldst
wash us in the precious blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, to
cleanse us from all our sins, and that thou wouldst clothe
us with that glorious everlasting robe of the righteousness of
Jesus Christ, that we, our nakedness may be covered. Oh, we pray that
the wonderful grace of our Lord Jesus Christ may fill our hearts
this afternoon, that grace of love, of compassion, of kindness. Oh, we do pray that that Thou
wouldst manifest Thy compassion here upon us. We are a company
of poor sinners, Lord, who are unworthy of the least of Thy
mercies. We come to Thee on the ground
of Thy mercy alone, pleading the precious blood and merits
of Jesus Christ, and pray to be led and taught and guided
and directed by Thee. Oh, we pray 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 as we gather round thy word. For we do pray that there may
be some hungry souls here that are hungering and thirsting after
righteousness. There may be those, O Lord, that
are seeking thee, and as we've read in thy word, that they that
seek shall find, and they that knock, it shall be opened, and
we pray that it may be We thankful, O Lord, that the door of thy
mercy is open all day to the poor and the needy that knock
by the way. And Lord, we come as those poor
and needy souls. We have need of that wonderful
mercy that is in Christ Jesus. We have need of a humble, teachable
spirit. We have need of divine guidance. We pray that thy word may be
a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. and that thou
in thy precious mercy was grant those divine drawings of a heavenly
father, for none come except a father draw. May we have that
spirit of adoption whereby we may cry, Abba, Father, my God,
my Father, blissful name. Oh, may I call thee mine. We
do pray, most gracious God, that thou in thy great mercy was come
and draw us unto thy son. unto Jesus Christ our Lord, that
we may behold his glory, the glory as of the only begotten
of the Father. Thou hast said in thy word, I
will draw thee with the cords of a man, in the spirit of love,
even the man Christ Jesus, the eternal Son of the eternal Father
that was manifest in the flesh. And we read in thy word that
a man shall be in hiding place from the windy storm and tempest,
Oh, we pray that we may behold the Lamb of God that taketh away
the sin of the world. We pray for the divine power
and the heavenly unction of the Holy Ghost to be sweetly realized
in our hearts. We pray to be filled with a spirit
of thanksgiving and of praise because of the wonderful glory
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who himself said, I am the way, the
truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. We come, Lord, in all our need,
in all our helplessness. We come and seek and hope to
find a portion for our souls. Oh, that it may be so, and that
we may be favoured. Blessed Lord, we pray thee, our
brethren, the deacons, and give grace, wisdom, and help in all
their responsibilities. And, Lord, And bless us, Lord,
in this coming week, and thou knowest the things that we have
to do, and the way wherein we walk, and thou knowest all our
needs, and we desire that thou wouldst go before us in each
untrodden step. Bless us, Lord, as we hope to
gather with thy dear servant on the coming Friday, and may
it be a time of thanksgiving to remember all the way the Lord
our God has led us, to humble us and to prove Hear us, Lord,
we humbly beseech thee for thy great namesake, and graciously
bless us. We do humbly pray thee, bring
him up, Lord, in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel
of Jesus Christ, and grant that he may dip his foot in oil and
be made acceptable unto the brethren. Be with us, Lord, as we gather
on Tuesday for prayer, and grant that we may be given wrestling
prayer, that we may touch the hem of Jesus' garment and draw
from that sacred fullness that is in him. We do pray, most gracious
Lord, that Thou in Thy precious mercy would graciously bless
our church members, those in church fellowship. Bless them,
O Lord, with that rich grace that is in Christ Jesus. Bless
them with an increase of faith and love. For Lord, how we constantly
need thee to supply us with faith and love. Faith in the bleeding
lamb, ne'er lose his ought but draws. Ought to have faith in
the bleeding lamb. Faith in his precious blood and
righteousness. Faith in his glorious person.
Faith in his ability to save to the uttermost all that come
unto God by him. Lord, work that precious faith
in each one of our hearts. and grant that the Lord Jesus
Christ may be revealed unto us. We thank thee for that wonderful
and that profound truth of God manifest in the flesh, the eternal
word that built the earth and skies, became a babe and in a
manger lies. Oh, the wonder of wonders, and
his name shall be called wonderful. And what a wonderful thing, O
Lord, the Son of God became flesh and dwelt among us. And what
a wonderful thing that he was made of wool and made under the
law that he might redeem them that are under the law. And what
a wonderful thing it is that everlasting righteousness has
been brought in in his glorious person. And what a wonderful
thing it is that he has offered a perfect, holy, sinless, spotless
and is now ascended into glory, and has swallowed up death in
victory, and has put away sin by the offering of himself, and
he's now sitting at thy right hand, and that we indeed have
a great high priest. Fill our hearts with thanksgiving,
with gratitude for that glorious saviour sitting at thy right
hand. I grant that we may have that
realization, tis he instead of me is seen. When I approach to
God, we pray that Thou wouldst graciously be with those of us
that are in the evening time of life's journey. Most gracious Lord, we do thank
Thee that there is a place of refuge, a door of hope, a way
that has been made through death into eternal life by our Lord
Jesus Christ. Many in trouble, triumph, perplexity,
sorrow, sadness or bereavement, do be gracious unto them, do
have mercy upon them. O Lord, we do beseech thee for
thy great name's sake. Those that feel to be far off,
make them nigh. Those that feel to be in darkness,
shine with the glorious light of our Lord Jesus Christ into
their souls. We do humbly beseech thee. Those
that are ensnared, by the temptations of the wicked one, we pray that
thou would deliver them from the snare of the fowler and from
the noisome pestilence. Deliver us chiefly from ourselves
and from the corruption of our hearts. We do humbly beseech
thee. Thou hast said in thy word, if
the sun shall make you free, then shall ye be free indeed. Oh, we do pray thy blessing upon
the little ones and the children, that they may be richly blessed
of thee, taught of thee, guided by thee. Oh, do hear us, Lord,
we humbly pray thee, and graciously bless the young and the rising
generation. Bless them with that rich grace
that is in Christ Jesus. Bless them with light and understanding
in thy word. Guide their hearts in the way
of peace, O Lord, we do beseech Thee for Thy great namesake. We think of those lovely words
of grace. Suffer little children to come
unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of
heaven. May such a word touch their hearts,
and encourage them to come, and encourage them to look unto Jesus
Christ, the Lord of life and glory. We do pray that there
may be a generation raised up that shall call thee the Redeemer
blessed, that instead of our fathers shall be our children,
whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. And we pray
that thou in thy precious mercy wouldst bless the young friends,
bless them with that rich and wonderful grace that is in Jesus
Christ, bless them with light and understanding in thy word,
Bless them in all the paths of providence, and guide and direct
them in all matters. And Lord, remember the prodigals
that have wandered away, and graciously cause them to return. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. And there is a period known to
God, when all thy sheep, redeemed by blood, shall leave the hateful
ways of sin, turn to the fold, and enter in. We do thank thee. most gracious God for that wonderful
glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, the way, the truth and the life. Remember all in the midst of
the journey of life and graciously undertake for each one, guide
and direct them O Lord we do, humbly beseech them. Bring them
to living faith in Jesus Christ, bring them to forsake all and
to follow the bring them to lay aside every weight and the sin
that does so easily beset us, and to run with patience the
race that is set before them. Bring them, O Lord, to forsake
the ways of sin and uncleanness and unrighteousness. We do humbly
beseech thee. Thou hast promised in thy holy
word that the Son of Man is come, that he is come and he has redeemed
his people. and he's come for to give faith
and repentance and remission of sins. May we see that wonderful
work of thy grace, of thy love and of thy mercy amongst us.
We do humbly beseech of thee. Lord, we do pray for parents
that wisdom, grace and help may be given to them, that they may
be able to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition
of the Lord. We do pray that the wonderful power and light
of gospel grace may shine into this village and the surrounding
villages of Hamlet, that we may see the fulfilling of the sacred
promises of thy word. I will bring thy sons from far
and thy daughters from the ends of the earth, and they shall
come from the north and from the south and from the east and
from the west. And thou hast said, O Lord, in
thy word unto us, For this will I yet be inquired of the house
of Israel to do this thing for them. I will lead them with men
like a flock. O gracious God, do hear us, we
pray thee, and do grant the outpouring of thy Holy Spirit upon our assemblies,
that it may be a living word, a powerful word, that shall reach
into the hearts of sinners. We pray that as the word of truth
goes out on the internet, that many precious souls may hear
the gospel of Jesus Christ and may be given believing views
of the glory of his person and feel in their hearts the fullness
of his grace and leave all to follow him. Hear us, O Lord,
we pray thee, as we ask these favours and blessings in that
wonderful, precious, sacred name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. Come and touch one's lips with
a live coal from off the heavenly altar. Come and fill our hearts
with gratitude for all the wonderful mercies of thy kind providence. Thy mercies to us are new every
morning. We thank thee for our little
house of prayer. We thank thee for supplying all
our many returning needs. But above all, we thank thee
for thine only begotten son, our Lord Jesus Christ. We ask
in his name and for his sake alone. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 723. The tune is Dismission 671. Come, ye sinners, poor and wretched,
weak and wounded, sick and sore. Jesus ready stands to save you,
full of pity, joined with power. He is able, he is willing, doubt
no more. Hymn 723, the tune is dismissal
671. ? Joy to the world ? ? Joy to the
world ? ? Joy to the world ? O come ye to Bethlehem, O come
ye to Bethlehem, O come ye to Bethlehem, O come ye to Bethlehem,
O come ye to Bethlehem. God watchers, thank you and thank
you God of angels, all praise him Christi Christi Christi Christi
Christi Christi ? The weary, weary, heavy-laden
? ? Lost her heav'n to the fire ? ? Hail, all hail, Sam ? ? Hail,
all hail, Sam ? ? Hail, all hail, Sam ? ? Hail, all hail, Sam ?
? Hail, all hail, Sam ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I would again direct your attention to Psalm
9 and read in verse 10 for our text. Psalm 9, verse 10. And they that know thy name will
put their trust in thee, for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken
them that seek thee. We spoke this morning from the
context of the whole Psalm, noticing that, in particular, It sets
forth our Lord Jesus Christ as the judge of all the earth. And
it speaks very solemnly of the day of judgment, especially in
verse 17, the wicked shall be turned into hell and all nations
that forget God. But in our text, we have something
very precious. Those that know thy name. We noticed in Proverbs is that
the name of the Lord is a strong tower and the righteous runneth
into it and you know that is what makes them righteous. They
don't run into that tower because they are righteous, they run
into that tower because there they find righteousness, they
find it in the glorious person. power, love and grace of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And they that know thy name will
put their trust in thee. Now, notice the language, they
that know thy name. There's a knowledge that is given. With faith, with true faith,
with real faith, there is knowledge. And this is what it means when
it says, they that know thy name. There is a knowledge, there is
an understanding. We read in Ephesians chapter one, the eyes
of your understanding being enlightened. There's a knowledge. There's a knowledge of self. This is given by the indwelling
of the Holy Ghost, a knowledge of self. And what is that knowledge of
self that the Spirit of God gives when the Holy Ghost enters into
the heart? Well, it's very clearly spoken of by our Lord Jesus Christ. When He, the Spirit of Truth,
is come, He will reprove the world of sin. So there's the
knowledge of sin. We read again in the first epistle
of John that by the law is the knowledge of sin. That's what
the law does. It's God's righteous, holy, pure
law. And by it is the knowledge of
sin. It's through the holy law of
God when the Holy Spirit takes that law and makes it a solemn
reality to us. that you then know that you're
a lawbreaker. You come to the plumb line of
God's holy law and you realise just how crooked and warped you
are by nature. And that knowledge of sin and
that knowledge of your emptiness, that knowledge of your poverty,
that knowledge of your insufficiency gives you a need. You realise that you've sinned
against God. You've sinned against God and you would now seek. You seek for something out of
yourself. There may be within, and it often
is with every child of God that is born again of the Spirit,
that you begin to try to make yourself better. You begin to
try to fulfil God's holy law. You begin to try to do what is
right in the sight of God. You begin to read his word. And the more you read his word,
I remember years and years ago, there was an old deacon at Black
Boys Chapel. And somebody said to him, when I come to God's
word, it condemns me. And he said, well, it will because
you're a sinner. It will because you're a sinner. It makes you
realise that you're a sinner. It makes you realise your need
of salvation, of redemption. You see, there's a knowledge
that is given, and by the law is the knowledge of sin. There's
a realisation that you're a sinner. There's a realisation, this is
another knowledge that is given, there's a realisation that God
is holy. same verse we've already quoted
when when he the spirit of truth has come he will reprove the
margin says he will convince the world of sin of righteousness
and of judgment so when that holy spirit dwelling in the heart
quickens the soul because let us be clear it's when your soul
is quickened that you begin to feel that you're a sinner you
can't rest in the fact that you're a sinner you can't rest in the
fact that you're undone But you know you are. You know you are. Therefore you need salvation.
You need salvation. I felt particularly drawn to
the chapter that we read together, the 11th chapter of Luke's Gospel,
where the Lord Jesus teaches his disciples to pray. And why
do we pray? Because we have a need. We have
a need. We have a feeling in our heart,
a longing in our soul. And you pray. You know, and I
look back into my own spiritual experience and when this work
of the, this first work of the Spirit, which is sung in our
hymn about the need. He says, this he gives you, tis
the Spirit's rising beam. A knowledge of sin, a knowledge
of self. You may try then to make yourself
better when you're under that condemning sentence. You feel
to be unholy. You feel to be unrighteous. You
feel that God is holy. And this is a knowledge that
you have. God is holy. God is righteous. And like we
extensively spoke this morning on the day of judgment, and you
begin to realize that you've got to stand at the judgment
seat of Jesus Christ. There is that knowledge that
is given. The knowledge that is given. Faith always comes with knowledge. With an understanding. With a
realisation. And then the disciples asked
the Lord in that Luke chapter 11 that the Lord would teach
them how to pray. And notice how he teaches them
how to pray. Our Father. It's the knowledge. that is given,
our Father. The scripture says, it is He
that has made us and not we ourselves, our Father. Which art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come. This is the Lord teaching
his disciples how to pray. Thy will be done, that desire
That humility to realise that longing to see the will of the
Lord is done. The purposes of the Lord fulfilled.
Thy kingdom come. That's the kingdom of our Lord
and Saviour Jesus Christ. It's the kingdom of salvation.
It's the kingdom of redemption. It's the kingdom of deliverance.
It is the kingdom that opens the way to eternal glory and
everlasting happiness. It is the kingdom of whom Jesus
is the King. He sits on no precarious throne,
nor borrows leave to be. He's the King of Glory. We're
given that question in Psalm 24. Who is this King of Glory? The Lord, strong and mighty.
Who is it? It's the Lord Christ. He's the
King of Glory. It hath pleased the Father that
in Him should all fullness dwell. There's a fullness of grace in
Jesus Christ. What is grace? What is grace? It's the free unmerited favor
of the eternal God. You can't merit it, you can't
earn it. It's unmerited. You and I can never earn it.
You may try your hardest to make yourself better. You may try
your hardest to stop sinning. You may try your hardest to turn
unto God. You may try your hardest to pray.
But you're brought all the time to see and to feel that you're
a poor, a needy, a wretched sinner. Now even if perhaps for a short
time You may, as it were, begin to think that you are a bit better
and you're not doing the things that you used to do and yet still
again you'll fall into sin. Still again you're brought into
condemnation because you're a sinner and that holy righteous law curses
you. But here in this prayer of our
Lord Jesus Christ when he teaches us says in verse 4 forgive us
our sins as a need they felt need as a knowledge you're a
sinner God is holy God is righteous forgive us our sins and the effect
when we are brought there to see that there's forgiveness
with him says the psalmist in psalm 130 but there is forgiveness
with the that thou mayest be feared. But the effect of that forgiveness
known and felt and experienced in the heart, for we also forgive
everyone that is indebted to us. Forgiveness is a Christian
grace. And if you and I know forgiveness, then we shall desire to be forgiven. to another that has perhaps offended
us. Forgive us our sins for we also forgive everyone
that is indebted to us. Lead us not into temptation but
deliver us from evil. You realize the proneness to
fall into temptation, the temptations of satan. Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil. Oh, my beloved friends, do you
pray? Prayer is the soul's sincere
desire, uttered or unexpressed, the motion of a hidden fire that
trembles in the breast. Do you pray? I'm not talking
now about formal prayers, but praying because you think it's
your duty to pray, I'm speaking now of prayers that come from
a hungry soul. Prayers that come from an empty
soul. The Lord Jesus says, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven. Poor in spirit. How many poor
sinners do we have here this afternoon? And you feel you're
a poor sinner and you know that you're a poor sinner. You see,
my beloved friends, what an encouragement the Lord gives us here about
this friend that he went to his friend at midnight. Friend, lend
me three loaves at midnight. But what this speaks of is impotunity. That is to press your case, not
to give up at the slightest hurdle. You know how many times I look
back into my own early experience and I was what we might call
under the law for two years before Christ was revealed and there
were many times during that two years when I constantly prayed
but then I could get no answers and I said Lord and then I said
well I'm not going to pray. It's hopeless me praying. I'm
not going to pray anymore. You see that? It's the motion
of a hidden fire that trembles in the breast. And then there's
that temptation. The devil always would try to
stop you praying. He will. He'll say it's useless
to pray, it's hopeless to pray. And you, you dear children, young
people, Just remember those words of our Lord Jesus, I often quote
them in prayer. Suffer, little children, to come
unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of
heaven. My beloved friends, we should
always encourage our children to pray. The Lord Jesus Christ
himself said, men are always to pray, not to faint, always
to pray. just sung that lovely hymn, come
ye sinners, poor and blessed, poor and wretched, come, where
to? To Jesus. Listen to those wonderful words
of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 11. Listen carefully,
come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will
give you rest, take my yoke upon you, That means to be united
to Christ, take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am
meek and lowly in heart and ye shall find rest for your souls. That's the rest of faith. Resting
in the finished work of Christ. Resting in the precious blood
of Christ. Resting, where? In Christ. You know, in the epistle to the
Hebrews, the dear apostle there, he speaks of the resting place. I think it's in chapter three,
if I remember correctly, or chapter four, where he speaks so beautifully
of our Lord Jesus Christ and of resting. And this is the work
of faith. You may say, well, I don't feel
I have any faith. Have you ever been brought to
rest your all? We read in Hebrews chapter four, and we read very solemnly that
those that entered not in because of unbelief, speaking of the
children of Israel in the wilderness. You know, friends, Of all the
children of Israel that came out of the land of Egypt, the
20 years old and above, all but two men perished in the
wilderness. And the apostolate speaks of
that here in the Hebrews. He says in the latter part, the
last verse of chapter 3 in the Hebrews, but with whom was he
grieved, or rather the last part, verse 17, but with whom was he
grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had
sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom
he swear he that they should not enter into his rest? But to them that believe not.
So we see They could not enter in because of unbelief. What a solemn thought. They could
not enter into the promised land. Of course, the apostle is using
this in a gospel sense of the word. The promised land is Christ,
the glorious person of Christ. We've just spoken of, he said,
come unto me, all you that labour under heavy laden. The apostle,
he gives us a warning in chapter four, let us therefore fear lest
a promise being left us of entering into his rest. Any of you should
seem to come short of it. My dear beloved friends, you
must not rest short of Christ. Christ is the place of safety.
Christ is the place of salvation. Christ is where the door of hope
is open wide. It is the blood of Christ that
cleanses from all sin. It's the glorious robe of the
everlasting righteousness of Christ that covers our nakedness. Let us therefore fear, lest the
promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should
seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached
as well as unto them, but the word preached did not profit
them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. It must
be faith. In Hebrews it says, Without faith
it is impossible to please God, for he that cometh unto God must
believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek him. Oh, that the Lord would help
us to press our case, and to press forward. For we which have
believed do enter into rest, that rest is Christ. As he said,
that is the Lord, as I have sworn in my rock, if they shall enter
into my rest, although the works were finished from the foundation
of the world." You see, the place of rest. He says in verse 8,
in verse 7, again he limits it to a certain day and what he
means by that is a gospel day. We live in a gospel day. We live
in a day when the gospel is being preached in every nation, kindred,
tongue and tribe and people. Again he limits this to a certain
day saying in David's today after so long a time as it is said
today if you will hear his voice harden not your hearts what does
that mean we can harden our hearts we can harden our hearts in sin in unrighteousness in
uncleanness we harden our hearts If Jesus, as Joshua, had given
them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken another
day? There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his
rest, he also has ceased from his own works, as God did from
his. Have you been brought to that
place to cease from your own works? brought to that place
where you see that you can do nothing good and nothing right
and that everything you touch is stained and dyed with sin.
In other words, you're brought to the end of your own self,
the end of any merit that you can have before God. And then the apostle, he goes
on and says in verse 11, let us labour therefore to enter
into that rest. lest any man fall after the same
example of unbelief. What a solemn thing. They entered
not in because of unbelief. Let us labour therefore to enter
into that rest. That's the rest of Christ. Come
unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give
you rest. Take my yoke upon you. and learn
of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest
for your soul. Oh, my beloved friends, what
a wonderful thing it is if you and I have been brought to rest
on the finished work of Jesus Christ. We've been brought to
rest, and you say, if ever my poor soul be saved, his Christ
must be the one. Resting. Resting in his faithfulness. resting in his love. He rests
in his love, and the child of God rests in his love, that eternal
love that is in Jesus Christ. The love of the Father is known
in Jesus Christ. Yea, I have loved thee with an
everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn
thee, and they that know thy name will put their trust in
thee, for thou, Lord, has not forsaken them that seek thee,
and he never will forsake them that seek him. Oh, how many seeking
souls do we have here? You know, sometimes this term
is used relative to those who first begin to seek, and that's
right and proper to do that. But you know, the true child
of God, all their days are seeking souls. We have to prove that
we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency
of their power might be of God and not of us. So we become seeking
souls, seeking Christ, seeking to know him, seeking to hear
his voice, seeking to follow him, seeking to serve him. And
they that know thy name will put their trust in thee. And you know by the Spirit's
inward teaching you won't be able to put your trust in anything
else. The Spirit will not allow you to trust in anything else.
And please do not think that you can get to heaven by trusting
in anything else. Trust in Him at all times ye
people. Wait patiently for Him. You may Be sitting in your seat
now and you're saying, but I keep seeking. I keep looking. I keep watching. I keep waiting. But I find that I'm still empty. Well, you know, all your days
you'll be an empty, empty, wretched sinner. That is a sad fact. But just think of those words
that we've read together in Luke chapter 11. concerning importunity. Verse 9 he says and I say unto
you ask and it shall be given you. Are you asking? Do you have a need? When you
come to chapel today did you ask the Lord for something? When
you come and sat in your seat did you ask the Lord for something?
Have you been seeking perhaps you look over this past week
and you've been seeking for something and been praying for something?
been crying unto the Lord for something. Now this is a word
of promise, ask and it shall be given you. It doesn't say
it might be given you, it doesn't say when it will be given to
you, but it will be given to you. It will be given to you. My late dear wife, she was a
seeking soul, I felt right from when we were caught in together
that she was a seeking soul. And she was a seeking soul all
her days, and she never could obtain what she felt she needed.
We often used to speak, and she used to speak of her nothingness,
her emptiness, her poverty. When she was diagnosed as being
terminally ill, she said to me, I feel terrified. I do not know
the Lord. I do not know the truth. I haven't
found the truth, but you know friends, she did find it. One
of the hymn writers said he comes at evening light when men are
faint. She did find it, eventually,
by God's grace. She was brought to cast her all
on Jesus Christ, the King of Glory, and she died in hope of
eternal life. through Jesus Christ our Lord.
I just mention that to encourage you to continue to seek and to
remember these words of our Lord. All the words of God are true,
they are divinely certain and this is a wonderful promise.
Ask and it shall be given you. Keep seeking, keep asking. Seek and ye shall find. And it's
the positiveness of these words that seem to stand out to me. You shall. Ask and you shall. Seek and you shall. Knock and
it shall. This is God's promise. This is
God's promise. You keep seeking. You keep looking. You keep watching. You keep waiting. For everyone that asketh receiveth. And he that seeketh findeth.
And to him that knocketh it shall be opened. It shall be opened. That door, the door of thy mercy
is open all day to the poor and the needy that knock by the way.
It shall be opened. For everyone that asketh receiveth
and he that seeketh findeth and to him that knocketh it shall
be opened. Now, the Lord uses illustration
here. which he always did in his preaching.
If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will
he give him a stone? Of course he wouldn't. Or if he
ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he
ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, How much
more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them
that ask Him? What a promise, isn't it? How
much more? You may hear the Holy Spirit
spoken of, you may hear of the convicting and convincing work
of the Spirit of God, and you may know that, you may feel that. but there's a wonderful invitation
there that he will give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him. We often speak of the vital nature
and need of the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart. Do you feel
it in your own heart? Do you long to feel more of the
Spirit's power? More of your emptiness and your
poverty and then to be given faith? Because it's the Holy
Ghost that gives faith. Faith is a substance of things
hoped for yet not seen. Longing, Lord, give me real,
true, solid faith, more confidence in thee, that I might rest in
the finished work of Christ, that I might rest in his precious
blood and righteousness. Give me faith, Lord, for without
that faith I have nothing. Faith to believe, faith to lay
hold, faith to follow, faith to keep seeking, faith to keep
searching, and they that know thy name will
put their trust in thee. Put their trust in thee, for
thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. And he won't. He's not forsaken them that seek
thee. He never will. There may be times
when you feel so tried and so perplexed You wonder where the
scene will end and you think that all your religion is wrong
because the Lord never seems to answer your prayers. And it
greatly tries you, perplexes you. And the devil will tempt
you. There's a lovely word in Isaiah
chapter 30. And we read from verse 18. And
therefore will the Lord wait. Notice what he says. therefore
will the Lord wait that he may be gracious unto
you. You've all heard the illustration that has been given of a shepherd
that a little lamb had fallen down the cliff and it was on
a ledge of the cliff and he waited And somebody asked him why he
was waiting. He said, if I go down while that
little lamb is full of life, he said, it'll be so frightened
of me, it'll jump off the cliff and it will die. But he said,
if I go down when the lamb is so weak, so hungry, so, feel
everything so impossible, he said, then it will allow me to
pick it up. So he had to wait before he could go down. the
Lord waits therefore will the Lord wait that he may be gracious
unto you and therefore will he be exalted that he may have mercy
upon you for the Lord is a God of judgment what that means is
that just like that shepherd he knew in his judgment that
if he went down to that little lamb before it was so weak it
would jump off the cliff and he would lose it forever And where it says here, for the
Lord is a God of judgment, He knows when to come and when to
have mercy. Blessed are all they that wait
for Him. Faith is the substance of things
hopeful, the evidence of things not seen. And then he says, for
the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem. Thou shalt weep
no more. 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 maybe this is where you are, and though the Lord give you
the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet shall
not thy teachers be moved anymore into a corner anymore. But thine
eyes shall see thy teachers, and thine ears shall hear a word
behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when
ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. This is the way, walk ye in it. Jesus said, I am the way, the
truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father,
but by me. Jesus is the way to God. Seek
him. Pray to him. Call upon his name. Think of those wonderful words
that we have. Call upon me in the day of trouble.
I will hear thee. I will answer thee. For thou,
Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thy face. And he never
will. You think of those wonderful
promises that are given in God's Word. Promises that my mind particularly
goes to what I suspect is probably the most well-known promise in
Holy Scripture. In Isaiah chapter 41 and verse
10. In actual fact, friends, there
are five promises there. It's almost as if the Lord puts
all those promises together to encourage you. He says, fear
thou not, for I am with thee. That's one promise. Be not dismayed,
for I am thy God. That's two promises. I will strengthen
thee. That's another promise. Yea,
I will help thee. That's another promise. Yea,
I will uphold thee. with the right hand of my righteousness. Fear thou not. Maybe you come
here this afternoon and you feel at the end of everything. And
you fear that the Lord will never hear your prayers. He will never
answer your cries. But he says there in those wonderful
promises, and further on in verse 13, he says, for I the Lord thy
God will hold thy right hand saying unto thee, fear thou not,
I will help thee, fear not thou worm, Jacob, and ye men of Israel,
I will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One
of Israel. He said, I will help them. He says in Hebrews chapter 13,
I will never leave thee, I will never leave thee, nor forsake
thee. again in Isaiah, shall I bring
to birth and not bring forth? The Lord will eventually bring
you forth. The Lord eventually will turn
your darkness into day. He will shine with the light
of the gospel of his grace into your heart. You may be filled to be so bound
down so that you can't get through, but the Lord has promised to
set his people free. And where is that freedom and
that liberty? It's in Christ. If the Son, that's Jesus Christ,
shall make you free, then shall you be free indeed, freed from
servile fear, freed from sin and from its power, brought into
the glorious liberty of the children of God. What a wonderful thing,
my beloved friends, when that is the case. They that know thy
name put their trust in thee. For thou, Lord, hast not forsaken
them that seek thee. You seek on. You keep looking. You keep watching. You keep waiting. Again, you know, in the prophecy
of Isaiah, and it speaks there in chapter 55 of the exhortations unto those that
are seeking the Lord and the exhortation to call upon Him.
Ho, everyone that thirsteth. That's these hungry souls, these
thirsty souls. Ho, everyone that thirsteth,
come ye to the waters. He that hath no money. That means
you're bankrupt. Is that how you feel, to be bankrupt?
He that hath no money, come ye. Buy and eat, ye come by wine
and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do you spend
money for that which is not bread, that is striving by your own
works to please God, and your labor for that which satisfies
not. Hearken diligently unto me and
eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself
in fatness. Incline your ear and come unto
me. These are the words of God, my
beloved friends. incline your ear and come unto
me here and your soul shall live and i will make an everlasting
covenant with you even the sure mercies of david goes on in in
verse six and is seek you the lord while he may be found call
you upon him while he is near let the wicked forsake his way
and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the lord
and he will have mercy upon him and to our god for he will abundantly
pardon. He will abundantly pardon. Oh,
my beloved friends, may the blessed Spirit make these things a living
reality into each one of our hearts. And they that know thy
name will put their trust in thee, for thou, Lord, hast not
forsaken them that seek thee. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 56 to the tune Tottenham 249. Let every open ear attend and broken
heart rejoice. The trumpet of the gospel sounds
with an inviting voice. Hymn 56, tune Tottenham 249. You. O come, O come, let us adore
Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore
Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come,
O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come,
O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come,
O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come,
let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come,
let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore
Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore
Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore
Him O come, let us adore Him O come, O come, let us adore Him O come, let us adore
Him The hungry lamb enshrouds the
King upon the wings. And pain is like wind, That made good to them a plenty
more. Eternal wisdom that created ? In peace ? ? And in your longing
? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your
longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your
longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And
in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing
? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your
longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your longing ? ? And in your
longing ? ? Burning a handful in its streams,
and I never can tell. Here lay fragile, weary shipwrecks,
Which the sails have never dragged. Rivers of love, Singing, Hail, all hail, Delta! Salvation He hath proposed, Like
the tall hill-capped vine, Lift that worship and make it
known, the God with one deep name. ? To be a Godhead of your own ?
? And renounce thy joyful sin ? ? God only cares ? ? In the darkness ? ? Old faith
rose ? ? In the darkness ? ? Broke by the neck ? ? And all of Israel
? ? And life in His own blood ? ? Take all the treasures of the
world ? God's divine. He has forgiveness,
with His grace on them who pass have sinned. Ever creates all, Thou still
creates them all, From point to point. 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 for evermore. Amen.