Let us commence our service this
evening by singing together hymn number 534. The tune is Henry,
470. Mercy speaks by Jesus' blood. Hear and sing, ye sons of God. Justice satisfied indeed, Christ
has full atonement made. Hymn 534 Tune Henry 470 Thus He speaks through Jesus'
blood, Hear and sing, ye sons of God. Justice satisfied in thee, Christ
has full atonement paid. Jesus' blood seeps out and sinks
Here, O dear, yet He can meet And without a jarring voice welcomes
Zion to rejoice. And o'er a plaintive road We'd
shoot fowl, we'd sing, we'd play O'er her debtor, God before,
Friends he was, now shelter free. Peace of conscience, peace with
God, we obtain through Jesus' blood. Jesus' bloodstains shall
be blest. We believe it, even we are blest. Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in Paul's epistle to the Hebrews in chapter 4. Hebrews, chapter 4. 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. 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. For we
which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, as I have
sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest. although
the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise,
and God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in
this place again, if they shall enter into my rest, seeing therefore,
it remaineth that some must enter therein. and they to whom it
was first preached entered not in because of unbelief. And again, he limiteth a certain
day, saying in David, Today, after so long a time, as it is
said, Today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus, that is Joshua,
had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken
of 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. Let us labour therefore to enter
into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of
unbelief. For the word of God is quick
and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing
even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the
joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of
the heart. Neither is there any creature
that is not manifest in his sight. But all things are naked and
open under the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Seeing then
that we have a great High Priest that is passed into the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For
we have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling
of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we
are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find
grace to help in time of need. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant unto us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come. We desire to bow before thy great
majesty, to call upon thy great and holy name. We desire, O Lord,
a spirit of true worship, and we 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 with us. O most gracious Lord, we pray
for that inward power, that divine teaching of the Holy Ghost. We desire it tonight, Lord, as
we gather round thy Word, that thy Word may be opened, for the
Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God,
and we pray that thou wouldst indeed search each one of our
hearts. As thou hast said in thy word,
I will search Jerusalem with candles. May it be so tonight,
Lord, as we gather in the Word, that the Word may, by the Spirit,
search our hearts. And we pray, most gracious Lord,
that we may be found laboring to enter into that rest. We've
read of those who entered not in because of unbelief. O gracious
God, we pray, to be delivered from that spirit of unbelief
which is in us by nature. We pray for the spirit of faith
to believe, to lay hold, that we may touch the hem of Jesus'
garment, that we may draw from that fullness that is in him,
that wonderful fullness of his precious blood, and that wonderful
fullness of his everlasting righteousness. May we lay hold of it by faith. May we be clothed in that glorious
everlasting robe of the righteousness of Christ, so that we may be
enabled to say, I'm blessed, I'm blessed, forever blessed.
My rags are gone and I am dressed in garments white as snow. May we be washed in the precious
blood of the Lamb to cleanse away all our sin and all our
iniquity. Oh, do hear us, O Lord, we pray
thee. We think of those wonderful words
of our Lord Jesus 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 souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden
is light. Oh, to find that glorious rest
of faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. in the glorious
person of Jesus the Son of God, who is able to save to the uttermost
all that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth. For we
pray that we may be led of the Spirit of God, led this night
in this service by the Spirit of God, led day by day, that
thy word may be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path,
that we might be found walking in that good and that right way,
following our Lord Jesus Christ, that we may be given grace to
lay aside every weight and the sin that doth so easily beset
us, and to run with patience the race that is set before us,
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, 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. Gracious God, do incline thine
ear, we do humbly pray thee, and do grant us a spirit of true
worship. May we be, O Lord, like that
dear woman that came to thee in her great need, in her helplessness,
and she worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. May there be one
and another that have come here tonight, and that is the very
breathing of their soul. Lord, help me. May it please thee, O Lord, to
guide and direct us in all the things of providence. Help us
to seek first the kingdom of heaven and thy righteousness,
and all these things shall be added unto you. Help us to do
that, Lord. Help us to put thee first. for
thy great name's sake, and to follow thee. And Lord, we do
pray that thou wouldst hear our prayers for thy divine guidance. Give us grace to wait upon the
Lord, for they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.
They shall mount up on wings as eagles, they shall run and
not be weary. Oh, do grant that grace. We do
humbly pray to continually wait upon thee, Wait, I say, upon
the Lord. O Lord, we do pray that we may
be enabled to come to our great High Priest. As we've read in
thy word, for such an High Priest have we who is passed into the
heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find
grace to help in every time of need. Gracious God, we pray that
any that may be in darkness may be brought into light. Any that
may be in bondage may be brought into liberty. Any that may feel
afar off from Thee, we pray that they may be made nigh, made nigh
by the precious blood of Christ, and to feel that union and communion
with Him, and that we may be favoured, O Lord, to view by
faith our suffering Saviour, when He suffered and bled and
died for our sins on the cross of Calvary. Oh, to view that
glorious sacrifice and to feel the power of that precious blood
that He shed to cleanse us from all our sin. We thank Thee, O
Lord, for the incarnation of the Son of God. We thank Thee
that he was made of a woman made under the law, and that he has
fulfilled and honoured and magnified that holy righteous law, bringing
in everlasting righteousness for his people. We do thank thee,
most gracious Lord, that it is so. And we thank thee for that
precious and glorious robe of his righteousness. And we thank
thee that for those wonderful words of grace, when I see the
blood, I will pass over you. Oh, most gracious Lord, to feel
the power of these things in our hearts, we do humbly beseech
thee for thy great namesake. We pray to be made more spiritually
minded, that our heart and our affections may be set upon things
above and not on things of the earth. For Lord, we are by nature
earthbound, and we soon get taken up with earthly things, and they
soon become the most important thing in our lives, and they
fill all our thoughts. Oh, we pray that this night the
Lord Jesus may be made so precious that we may let all fruitless
searches go which perplex and tease us, but desiring not to
know, but to bleed in Jesus. Hear us, O Lord. we do humbly
beseech thee, and help us to lay aside every weight and the
sin that doth so easily beset us, and to run with patience
the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author
and finisher of our faith, 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. May we have
a view by faith of the glories of Christ in that session at
the right hand of the Father, where poor sinners are received
and forgiven and washed and cleansed and clothed. O most gracious
Lord, we pray that we may see no man Save Jesus only. Remember us as a church, as a
congregation. Remember our beloved brethren,
the deacons, and richly bless them. Undertake for them. And be gracious unto those that
are away, seeking rest and change. And bring them back in peace
and safety at the appointed time. We do humbly pray thee. And may
they be bettered by the rest and change and refreshed. We
do humbly pray thee. We pray, most gracious God, that
thou in thy precious mercy would graciously send out thy light
and thy truth and grant that we may be labourers together
to see the wonderful power of the gospel, the pulling down
of the strongholds of Satan, the setting up of the kingdom
of the Lord Jesus in the hearts of sinners. Let thy work appear
unto thy servants and thy glory unto their children. O Lord,
we do beseech of thee, send out thy light and thy truth into
this village and the surrounding villages and hamlets. Bless the
calendars and the Bibles that have been distributed. Grant
that it may be down to the great honour, glory and praise of thy
great and holy name. Bread cast upon the waters that
shall be seen after many days. Lord, we pray that as a church,
as a congregation, we may be greatly burdened for the building
of the walls of Zion, for the establishment of thy church in
this dark and solemn day in which we live. O Lord, we do pray,
bless the little ones and the children. O Lord, put thy holy
fear in their hearts in their young and tender years. an unctuous
light to all that's right, a bar to all that's wrong. Remember
the young friends. Bless them indeed. Guide them,
O thou great Jehovah. Bring them to living faith in
Jesus Christ. Make them true followers of thee
and of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Hear us, O Lord, we humbly beseech thee. Remember them in every
path of providence. whether it be in their education
or in any future employment, in whichever way it may please
thee to bless them, guide them, grant them a partner in life's
journey, one that fears thy great and holy name, that together
they may become true followers of thee and of those who, through
faith and patience, inherit the promises. So bless our dear young
friends. We do pray. Most gracious God,
that thou wouldst remember all in the midst of the journey of
life, especially, Lord, we would remember parents, that they may
be given wisdom and grace to bring up their children in the
nurture and admonition of the Lord. We do humbly pray thee. Come, Lord, and bless us. We
humbly beseech thee. Fulfil that wonderful promise,
instead of thy father shall be thy children. whom thou mayest
make princes in all the earth, O Lord of hosts, O God of Israel,
O Thou that dwellest between the cherubim, shine forth. Be
gracious unto all in the midst of the journey of life, but,
Lord, remember the prodigals that have wandered away, that
have no desire for Thy house or Thy ways or Thy truth. Stretch
out Thy almighty cause them to return. And yet, Lord, there
may be those that continually gather with us that have no desire
to thy name or to thy truth, but they come to the house of
God as the door upon its hinges, because that is the right thing
to do. O most gracious God, deliver
any from being deceived with an outward form of religion,
destitute of the power we do humbly beseech them. Remember,
O Lord, that those in trouble or triumph, affliction, perplexity,
bereavement, undertake for each one, O Lord, we do beseech them,
and be gracious for thy great namesake. O Lord, we do cry that
thou would prepare us each There are those of us that are now
in the evening time of life's journey. And Lord, we each, whether
young or old, need preparing. But Lord, we feel it greatly.
And we pray that as the outward man perishes, that the inward
man may be renewed day by day. We do humbly beseech thee for
thy great namesake. Oh Lord, we do pray. that Thou
in Thy great mercy would remember all Thy servants that labour
in word and doctrine upon the walls of Zion. Pray for those
that have taken pastorates that they may see good success and
signs to follow the preaching of the word. Hear us, O Lord,
we humbly pray for Thy great namesake. And, O Lord, we do
pray that Thou in Thy Precious mercy would yet raise up preachers
more, with voice to raise the dead. Oh, do hear us, O Lord,
we pray thee, and revive the churches, and renew the churches,
and replenish the churches, and grant, Lord, instead of a closing
of chapels, we may see the opening of chapels, the building of chapels,
the forming of churches. Have not our fathers told us
Have we not heard with our ears the wondrous things that thou
hast done in days gone by? O Lord, do hear us, we pray thee. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, the Son of Man, whom thou madest strong
for thyself. Lord, we do thank thee. Thank thee for every mercy of
thy kind providence. Thy mercies to us each are new
every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. We
do thank thee for our little house of prayer, maintained now
for over 200 years. O most gracious Lord, we do pray
that thou wouldst grant thy gospel good success. We thank thee for
the open Bible, for the word of God. This is the word by which
the gospel is preached unto you. We thank thee O Lord, for the
gathering together of the people, a little remnant. Oh, but revive
us and renew us and replenish us. And above all, we thank Thee
for the glories of Christ, the wonders of redeeming love, the
fullness of that salvation that He has procured to redeem and
deliver His people from eternal destruction. Oh, we do thank
Thee for his holy life, for that holy sacrifice, for that precious
blood that he shed, the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, that
cleanses from all sin. We do thank thee that he died
for our sins, and he rose again for our justification, and has
now bodily ascended into heaven and sitteth at thy right hand.
Gracious God, we do bless thee for Jesus Christ, We do thank
thee that a fullness resides in Jesus our head, and ever abides
to answer our needs. Be with us now, Lord, as we turn
to thy holy word. Come and open thy word to our
heart and to our understanding. Come and grant that we may delve
into that deep that couches beneath. We ask with the forgiveness of
all sin, for Jesus Christ's sake, Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 99. The tune is lovely, 477. Blessed
Jesus, thee we sing. Thou of life, the eternal spring,
Thou art worthy, Thou alone, Thou the rock and cornerstone. Hymn 99. Tune lovely 477. ? Whose broad stripes and bright
stars ? ? Through the perilous fight ? ? O'er the ramparts we
watched were so gallantly streaming? ? ? And corners shall rise ? ? Which
from great salvation pass ? It's a fractured chain that binds
Can the Christ God through all this be? When we teach it, God,
and see Counting the glory in thy sight,
On them may attention find. ? The truth and peace shall come
? ? In the ages of old and strong ? ? We shall be a lowly being ? ?
Great redemption, glorious being ? ? His joy for you and all the
world to see ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I direct your attention to Psalm 110. Psalm 110. We'll read the whole Psalm. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion. Rule
thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. In the beauties of holiness,
from the womb of the morning, thou hast the dew of thy youth. The Lord has sworn and will not
repent. Thou art a priest forever. after
the order of Melchizedek. The Lord at thy right hand shall
strike through kings in the day of his wrath. 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. This is one of those beautiful,
sacred, messianic psalms, probably one of the most prominent of
them. The first verse of this psalm
I think is quoted in the New Testament more than any other
verse in the book of Psalms. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. that Martin Luther said of Psalm
110, it's the crowning of all Psalms. Because it is full of
the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal son of the
eternal father that was manifest in the flesh. And others learned
people have said that this Psalm is David's creed, It's what he
believes, it's the fundamentals of what he believes in. The Lord,
you notice it's in capital letters. Jehovah said unto my Lord, that
is the Father said to the Son. So we have here one of the fundamental
doctrines of our most holy faith, the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Lord said unto my Lord, Father said unto the Son, Sit thou at
my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. And the purpose of reading Hebrews
chapter 4 is because there, so beautifully, it speaks of our
great high priest. He says there in Hebrews 4, for
such a high priest have we who is passed into the heavens, Jesus,
the Son of God. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Sitting at the right hand of
the King was a place of great honour, of great honour. In the Word of God, in the New
Testament, Christ is nearly always, Christ
in heaven that is, Christ that is returned to heaven, apart
from two times, he is always referred to as being sitting
at the right hand of the Father, in that place of honour, sitting,
resting, like we read in the Hebrews, he rests from his labours,
Just like God did in the seven days of creation and he hallowed
the seventh day and God did rest from all his labours that he
had done. And so now our Lord Jesus Christ,
and that was the point the apostle was making in Hebrews chapter
4, that he rests from his labours. The work of salvation has been
done. It's been accomplished, it's been fulfilled. in that
glorious Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, manifest
in the flesh, the Word that was made flesh and dwelt among us.
And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten
of the Father, full of grace and truth, now exalted at the
right hand of His Father. You know, that's very beautiful
what we read together in Hebrews chapter 4 and how beautifully
the apostle speaks of that exalted saviour and that where he is
and what he's doing. He says seeing then that we have
a great high priest that is passed into the heavens sitting at the
right hand of the father. You know in the Hebrews there's
a constant return into this theme that Christ is at the right hand
of God, that he's passed into the heavens. Jesus, the Son of
God. And because of this, the Apostle
exhorts them, let us hold fast our profession. Why? Because
Jesus is at the right hand of the Father. For we have not an
high priest, he's a real man. That's brought out so beautifully
by Joseph Hart, A man there is, a real man, with wounds still
gaping wide from which rich streams of blood once ran in hands and
feet and sight, a real man, the holy God-man. For we have not
an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our
infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without
sin. He knows what sore temptations
mean for he has felt the same. Now on this sacred doctrine of
truth that the the apostle is setting before us that because
we have the eternal son of the father at his right hand the
holy god man It was the holy God-man that ascended into heaven. It was the Son of God that came
down and assumed human nature. You know that union that was
made in the womb of the Virgin? It's an eternal union. Never
ever to be broken. No. Never ever to be broken. And the profound mystery, what
a deep there is, isn't there? Even in death, that union between
Christ and his human nature was never broken. There, in the grave,
in that corpse, in the grave was the Son of God. There was
never any dissolution. that union and that is what the
hymn writer means when he says the lord of life experienced
death he experienced death but because he's sitting at the
right hand of the father the apostle says let us therefore
come boldly unto the throne of grace why because jesus sits
there our glorious mediator Our great high priest who is touched
with the feeling of our infirmities and was in all points tempted
like as we are, let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of
grace that we may obtain mercy. You know, my beloved friends,
you will not obtain mercy anywhere else, but only in a precious
Christ. only in that glorious God-man
sitting at the right hand of the Father. Let us therefore
come boldly. This is not a fleshly boldness,
this is not a carnal boldness, this is the boldness of faith.
When a poor sinner comes in, in all humility, feeling and
knowing their emptiness, their poverty, their uselessness, their
hopelessness, their insufficiency, their unrighteousness, and they
come boldly unto the throne of grace by faith that we may obtain
mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Come boldly. What does our Lord
Jesus Christ, when that beautiful exhortation, that invitation
rather, that he speaks in the 11th chapter of the Gospel of
Matthew, 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, and ye shall find rest. That's the rest spoken of in
Hebrews chapter 4. And ye shall find rest for your
souls. For my yoke is easy. That being
yoked to Christ, that's the illustration. Just like two oxen are yoked
together to pull the plough. So a poor sinner is united and
yoked unto Christ. United unto Christ by faith.
For my yoke is easy. My burden You know, that oxen
pulling the plough would have great difficulty on its own,
but united to another oxen, they can pull it together through
the hard soil and break up the fallow ground. And a poor sinner,
united to Christ, they can go on, they can go forward, looking
unto Jesus, casting all your care upon Him, for he careth
for you. Come unto me, come unto me, all
ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
When the Lord Jesus was about to ascend into glory, He said
to his disciples in Matthew chapter 28, all power is given unto me in
heaven and in earth. All power. Come unto me. He has all power. Not some power,
he has all power. It has pleased the Father that
in him should all fullness dwell. In him dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily, and he is full of grace and truth. Oh, my beloved friends, may it
please the Lord to enable you to come in all your helplessness,
in all your sinfulness, in all your hopelessness, to come unto
Jesus Christ and look alone unto Jesus Christ and to cast all
your care upon him, the Lord. said unto my lord sit thou at
my right hand until i make thine enemies thy footstool as the
father speaking to the son the lord shall send the rod of thy
strength out as i am it's in these gospel days it's a prophecy
of what will happen after christ came and after christ and lived
that life of humiliation, despised and rejected of men, a man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief, and having been condemned by
the men of this world, by the leaders of the Jews and of the
Romans and crucified. You see, my beloved friends,
and having then been crucified and suffered and bled and died
for his people, shed his precious blood that takes away all their
sin, that satisfies all the demands of divine justice, and that holy
life, the bringing in of everlasting righteousness for his people.
Christ had no need of that everlasting righteousness. He was righteous,
eternally righteous. But in that holy, pure, and spotless
life, he lived as a man here below. He fulfilled the law.
He honored the law. He magnified the law. He did. For you, poor sinner, What you
can't do, He has done. What you find impossible to do,
He has done. He has fulfilled the law. Listen to the wonderful words
of our Lord Jesus Christ. I come not to destroy the law,
but to fulfill it. That, my beloved friends, is
what Jesus Christ has done for His people. That law that condemns
you, that law that curses you, The Son of God is satisfied.
The soul that sinneth it shall die. That's the curse of the
law. The wages of sin is death. The
gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Having
died and suffered and bled for the sins of his people, he entered
into death. I have power. This is the Son
of God. I have power. to lay my life
down. The life he's speaking of is
that holy human life that he took in the womb of the Virgin
Mary. I have power to lay my life down.
I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received
of my father. So he died for our sins and on
the third day he rose again. He destroyed death and him that
had the power of death, that is the devil. He brought life
and immortality to light through the gospel. He did. He ascended up on high. He led
captivity captive. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion. Zion is
the church of the living God. Rule thou in the midst of thine
enemies and that is what the Lord does. He has little churches
all over the world where the Spirit is working, where those
are brought to living faith in Jesus Christ and where he places
his servants to preach the everlasting gospel. Some of them are in the most
inhospitable places on this earth. They suffer persecution, imprisonment,
and even death for the name and witness of Jesus Christ. But the Lord still works. The
Lord still works. And there are still rebels being
made a child. The Lord shall send the rod of
thy strength. You know, one of the first things
that is recorded in the book of the Revelation, in Revelation
chapter six, and he went forth on a white horse as Christ, conquering
and to conquer. In the gospel, the weapons of
our warfare are not carnal, but spiritual. They're mighty through
God to the pulling down of strongholds. The Lord shall send the rod of
thy strength. The Holy Spirit who proceeded
forth from the Father and the Son and it's through the glorious
sacrifice, death and resurrection and ascension into glory that
the Holy Spirit is sent upon earth and poured forth on the
day of Pentecost and has been pouring forth ever since and
I believe will pour forth to the end of time. Just think of
those very instructive words of our Lord Jesus Christ in the
7th chapter of the Gospel according to John. How he speaks there
of the Holy Ghost and likens the Holy Ghost to living water. And we read in chapter 7 and
I believe it's in verse 37. In the last day, that great day
of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, if any man thirst,
let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me. As the
scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water. This he spake of the spirit,
which they that believe on him should receive. For the Holy
Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified. Now when Jesus was glorified,
as we have in our psalm, the Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou
at my right hand. The Holy Spirit was then poured
forth on the day of Pentecost. And in that first sermon that
Peter preached, three thousand souls were born again of the
Spirit and brought to living faith in Jesus Christ. And in
chapter four, when the apostles preached, there were 4,000 souls
that were wrought upon by the Spirit. You see, my beloved friends,
not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord
of hosts. By my Spirit. And it's when the
Spirit is poured out in His heavenly power, and it says here in verse
three, Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, 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. You think of this, there's twice
in Solomon's song. It speaks of bringing him into
my mother's house, into the chamber of her that bare me. That's the
church here on earth. And here, called the womb of
the morning, And in Psalm 87 it says, this and that man was
born in her. What a wonderful thing. Oh, that there might be an outpouring
of the Spirit. Precious souls may be converted
unto Christ. Wretched, wretched ruins, perhaps
notorious in the ways of unrighteousness. A rebel made a child. brought
to realise their wretched condition, their sinful condition by the
inward power and teaching of the Holy Ghost, and then in their
wretchedness and in their felt lost condition brought to faith
in Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of sinners, Thy people. As all that the Father giveth
me shall come to me, and him that cometh unto me I will in
no wise cast out, Thy people. They were chosen by the Father.
They were redeemed by the Son. They are sanctified by the Holy
Ghost. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of Thy power. Oh, my beloved friend, we read
in Isaiah, until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high.
And this is what we need to pray for. And this is what we need
to wrestle for, that the Spirit may be poured upon us from on
high. that there may be mighty signs and wonders that shall
follow the preaching of the word, just as there was in the day
of Pentecost. Thy people shall be willing. Those that were opposing, those
that were fighting against him, made willing. Thy people shall
be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness. Beauties of holiness surely is
Christ. There's always been such a beauty
to me in the righteousness of Christ, in the holiness of Christ. There is such a beauty there,
such a loveliness there, and what he calls here the beauties
of holiness. And a poor, wretched, hell-deserving
sinner brought to feel their wretchedness, their lost condition,
and brought to living faith in Jesus Christ. They lay aside every way, and
the sin that does so easily beset us, and run with patience, the
race that is set before us, how? Looking unto Jesus, the author
and finisher of our faith, 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. Thy people
shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of
holiness, from the womb of the morning, thou hast the dew of
thy youth." The dew of thy youth, that wonderful first work of
the Spirit in the heart. that poor sinner brought to realize
their lost condition and brought to follow the Lord Jesus Christ
in love, in faith, and this is of course is spoken of in Deuteronomy
chapter 32 and we read in verse 2 and this is when the spirit
is poured upon us from on high my doctrine shall drop as the
rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the small rain
upon the tender herb, as the showers upon the grass, because
I will publish the name of the Lord and ascribe greatness unto
our God. He of the rock, his work is perfect,
for all his ways are judgment, a God of truth and without iniquity,
just and right. is he. My doctrine shall drop
as the rain, my steech shall distill as the dew, as the small
rain upon the tender herb, as the showers upon the grass, you
know, and when the farmer, the husbandman, he plants his seeds
and he ploughs his land and breaks up the fallow ground and then
sows the seed, then He has to wait for the rain. And of course
we translate that into the spiritual realm. And so we wait for the
rain. My doctrine shall distill as
the rain. My speech as the dew upon the
tender herb. You see, thy people shall be
willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from
the womb of the morning. Thou hast the dew of thy youth. That's the first work of the
Spirit and the realisation of our helplessness and the realisation
that Jesus is the way to God. Jesus is the way to bliss. When
the dew of heaven comes, when the spirit of faith is given,
when you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Now we have this
beautiful, well-known Verse four, the Lord has sworn and will not
repent. That means he will not change
his mind. The heart of priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek. A priest forever. What a wonderful,
precious truth. In the Hebrew chapter seven,
the apostate gives us what you might say the interpretation
of the name Melchizedek. Now nothing is known of the parentage
of Melchizedek in the days of Abraham and he is called the
priest of God. It says in Hebrews 7 For this
Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, whom Abraham
returned him 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, this is the name Melchizedek, king of
righteousness, and after that also king of Salem, which is
king of peace, without father, without mother, Without descent,
nothing was known of the parentage of the earthly Melchizedek. But,
he says here, but made like unto the Son of God. Now just look
at that for a moment. Our Lord Jesus Christ, He's the
King of righteousness. He is. It's His righteousness
that covers the nakedness of his church, his bride, his spouse. He's loved her with an everlasting
love. Therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee. He clothes
her with that glorious everlasting robe of his righteousness. King of righteousness. After
that also king of Salem which is king of peace. Peace by his
cross as Jesus made the church's ever-living head, without father. According to the human nature
of our Lord Jesus Christ, he was without father. The Holy
Ghost overshadowed the womb of the Virgin, and that holy thing
that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God, without
father. And then he says, without mother.
And according to the divine nature, Jesus the Son of God. He is without
mother. He's the Ancient of Days. From
everlasting to everlasting thou art God. Jesus Christ the same
yesterday and today and forever. Without mother according to his
divine nature. Without father, without mother,
without descent, having neither beginning of days nor end of
life. but made like unto the Son of
God, abideth a priest continually, as our Lord Jesus Christ, our
great Melchizedek. And the apostle, he goes on in
this chapter seven, and he speaks, and he quotes this verse, this
verse four. In verse 17, he says, for he
testifieth thou art a priest forever after the order Melchizedek. And then verse 21, for those
priests, that's the Levitical 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. So much was Jesus made a surety
of a better testament And they truly were many priests, because
they were not suffered to continue by reason of death. But this
man, this glorious holy God-man, the man Christ Jesus, 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, 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. You see, my beloved friends,
the Lord has sworn and will not repent, thou art a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek. Now he speaks of Christ at the
right hand of the Father in verse five, the Lord at thy right hand
shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath, the Lord
at thy right hand. You know, David, he speaks of
our Lord Jesus Christ in Psalm 45. And of course, he's speaking
of what we have here, the Lord at thy right hand. And so we read in Psalm 45 concerning
David's meditation, concerning the King. He says, my heart is
indited in good matter. I speak of the things which I
have made, touching the King, that's Christ. My tongue is the
pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children
of men. Grace is poured into thy lips,
therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Now, look at what he
prays. Unto Christ, gird thy sword. We read of Christ in the Revelation,
and there is a sword that goes forth out of his mouth, that
sword is the word of God. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh,
O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty, and in thy majesty
ride prosperously, because of truth and meekness and righteousness
in thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. Thine arrows
are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people
fall under them. Now he speaks of the wonderful
glory of his divinity. Thy throne, O God, is forever
and ever. The scepter, it says here in
Psalm 110, the rod, and I believe that's what it's referring to,
the scepter of his kingdom, his rod. The scepter of thy kingdom
is a right scepter. In other words, he's divinely
anointed by the Father. Thou lovest righteousness and
hatest wickedness, therefore God thy God hath anointed thee
with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. It says here in
Psalm 110 that rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. In Psalm
2 there's another messianic psalm and beautifully speaks of our
Lord Jesus Christ. But look, think of the day in
which we live. of the spirit of Antichrist that
is so prevalent in the day in which we live. Antichristian
doctrine etc. Why do the heathen rage? And
the people imagine a vain thing, the kings of the earth set themselves
and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and that's exactly
what we see in the day in which we live and against his anointed
that's Christ. saying, let us break their bands
asunder and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the
heavens shall laugh. You see, our God is in the heavens.
He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh, and the Lord shall
have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them
in his wrath and vex them in his sordid pleasure. Then we
have this glorious truth, yet have I set my king upon my holy
hill of Zion. That's our Lord Jesus Christ.
I will declare the decree. The Lord has said unto me, thou
art my son, this day have I begotten thee. See these wonderful gospel
blessings. Then in that last verse of Psalm
2, kiss the son, lest he be angry with thee, and you perish from
the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all
they that put their trust in him. The Lord at thy right hand
shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. He shall
judge among the heathen. Look at that graphic description
we're given by our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 25. When he comes to judge the world
in righteousness, He separates the whole world into sheep and
goats. The sheep are his chosen people
that he has redeemed, and he sets them at his right hand.
The goats are all those that know not our Lord Jesus Christ,
nor follow him, and that they shall be on the left hand. He
says to those on his right hand, come ye blessed of my Father,
again that Beautiful word come, come ye blessed of my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of
the world. Then he shall say to those on
his left hand, depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire
prepared for the devil and his angels. 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. I believe that what that verse 7, the brook in the way,
is that the sacred person of Christ manifest in the flesh
was divinely anointed by the Holy Ghost without measure. He
shall drink of the brook by the way. and all the preaching of
Christ was applied by the power of the Holy Ghost and all the
miracles of Christ were performed by the Holy Ghost. He says in
one place doesn't he, if I by the finger of God cast out devils
and by the finger of God he means the Holy Ghost and this drinking
of the brook in the way and you know in some little measure each
one of the Lord's living family They drink of this brook, of
the divine power and work of the Holy Ghost in their heart.
He shall drink of the brook in the way, therefore shall he lift
up the head. Oh, if we have the blessed Spirit
dwelling in our hearts. Your religion may be very small,
it may be very insignificant, but the Bible says the little
that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many
wicked. great thing is not the depth or the breadth of what
your experience is, but do you have the Holy Ghost? Has he shown
you that you're a poor needy sinner? Is he still showing you
that you're a poor needy sinner? And is he still leading you to
show you that Jesus is the way to God? Jesus is the way to bless. 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. He reigneth, he reigneth, on
earth and in heaven. ? For this is the moment that we
know ? ? And in the shame that we will bring ? He knows that
people pray He knows what sore temptations be For He has dealt
the slay God's love let's hear. Sing and
learn the great Redeemer's song. of Satan's power in us before,
and did resist to find. In the days of the old land,
all doubt, disquiet, and fears can be the treasure built afresh
for every tempered heart. He'll never break the stronger
bonds that bridge it to heaven. The birds have reaped in ever
great North's cold, South's greenest plains ? In the church of God ? ? O give
her rest ? ? His mercy and his power ? 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.