Let us commence our service this
evening by singing together hymn number 1105. The tune is Theodora,
423. Jesus engrave it on my heart,
that thou the one thing needful art. I could from all things
parted be, but never, never, Lord, from thee. Hymn 1105. tune seadora 423 ? The same image of my heart ?
? That held the one beneath her
heart ? ? I could trump all things thought
had been ? But never, never thought from faith. It's all about the sacred faith, Eternal power, O grace to give. Lead thou to guide me, lest I
stray. Lead thou to help me, Every day. He turned his eyes
to those precious flowers, Lead for this life, correct and wrong,
Lead for this life, in doubt and care, Nibble thy all-retaining
bread. Nibble thy presents, dearest
Lord, true peace and comfort to have fought. We fold thy promise still in
thought. Fresh life and vigour ? Through
my heart ? ? Needful of Thou ? ? My soul can
stay ? ? Through all my joy ? and so degrade. In death's outbridled slurred
speech of hate when I yield up my soul to Him. People of love, to raise my dust, ?
In shining glory ? ? With the trophs ? ? People went high ?
? In their apparel ? ? To crown Him true ? Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in Psalm 80. Psalm 80. Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
thou that leadest Joseph like a flock, thou that dwellest between
the cherubims, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh. Stir up thy strength and come
and save us. Turn us again, O God, and cause
thy face to shine, and we shall be saved. O Lord God of hosts,
how long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people? Thou
feedest them with the bread of tears, and givest them tears
to drink in great measure. Thou makest us a strife unto
our neighbours, and our enemies laugh among themselves. Turn
us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine, and
we shall be saved. Thou hast brought a vine out
of Egypt. Thou hast cast out the heathen
and planted it. Thou preparest room before it,
and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land.
The hills were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs
thereof were like the goodly cedars. She sent out her boughs
unto the sea, and her branches unto the river. Why hast thou
then broken down her hedges, So that all they which pass by
the way do pluck her? The boar out of the wood doth
waste it, And the wild beast of the field doth it devour it.
Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts, Look down from heaven,
and behold and visit this vine, And the vineyard which thy right
hand doth plant it, and the branch that thou madest strong for thyself,
it is burned with fire, it is cut down, they perish at the
rebuke of thy countenance. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou
madest strong for thyself, so will not we go back from thee. and we will call upon thy name.
Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts, cause thy face to shine,
and we shall be saved. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Almighty, most merciful, holy
and eternal God of heaven, the high and lofty one that inhabiteth
eternity, whose name is holy. We desire to bow before thee,
to come before thee, poor, sinful, wretched worms of the earth that
we are. Born in sin, shapen in iniquity,
in sin did my mother conceive me. O Lord God, we painfully
feel the fall. We feel the sinfulness of our
nature, the corruption of our heart. We prove continually the
truth of thy word. The heart of man is deceitful
above all things and desperately wicked. Who can tell? Gracious
God, we come to bow before thee in confession of our sins and
our sinfulness. We leave undone things that we
should do. We do things that we should not
do. We find a law within our members that when we would do
good, that evil is present with us. Gracious God, how deplorable
is our state and our condition by nature. How we find an echo
in our hearts of the words of the dear apostle, O wretched
man, that I am. who shall deliver me from the
body of this death. O Lord God, we do pray that thou
wouldst come and visit us with thy great salvation, that thou
wouldst come and open thy word of truth to our heart and to
our understanding. May the power that brings salvation
be exerted in the word. May there be the quickening operation
of the Holy Spirit in our midst, even tonight. quicken souls and
make them cry, give me Christ or else I die. But we read in
thy word of being quickened by the word, and so we pray that
tonight the word of truth may be a living word that shall reach
into the hearts of thy people. We pray that thou wouldst gird
on thy sword, O most mighty and right prosperous And let thine arrows be sharp
in the heart of the king's enemies, that the people may fall under
thee. Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto
their children, O Lord, we do humbly beseech thee. We read
of thee, Lord Jesus, in the word of God. And he went forth, conquering
and to conquer. We need thee to conquer in our
own hearts. We need thee to conquer in our
life. We need Thee to conquer in the ministry of the Word.
We need Thee to gather precious souls into Zion. We need Thee
to fulfill those wonderful promises found in 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. O Lord of hosts, O God of Israel,
O Thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth Let
thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, the son of man, who
in the maid is strong for thyself. So will not we turn back from
thee. Let us see thy goings in the
sanctuary. Let us see thy power and thy
glory as thou usest to be in the sanctuary. Let us see the
word of the Lord have in free course, and thy name honored
and glorified. Grant that the Lord Jesus Christ
may be exalted among us as a prince and as a saviour, for to give
faith and repentance and remission of sins. Lord, hear us in heaven,
thy holy and thy blessed dwelling place. And when thou hearest,
O Lord, forgive. Send answers of peace. Send a
day of real prosperity. Hear the prayer of our psalm
that we've read together. concerning thy house and thy
people, for thou art the shepherd of Israel. Oh, that thou wouldst
come, and that thou wouldst visit us, and that thou wouldst speak
to us. My sheep, they know my voice,
and they follow me, and a stranger will they not follow. Oh, that
they may be those of thy sheep that shall hear thy voice for
the first time tonight, and be drawn to Jesus Christ, And we
pray, most gracious Lord, that Thou wouldst have mercy upon
the prodigals, that Thou wouldst cause them to return. Lord, Thou
art able. There's nothing too hard for
Thee. Stretch out Thy almighty arm and cause them to be in one. Grant that period known to God
when all His sheep redeemed by blood shall leave the hateful
ways of sin, turn to the fold and enter in. Lord, we long to
see such a day. We long to see the building of
the walls of Jerusalem. We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ
may be lifted high on the gospel pole and that poor sinners may
look and live and lay hold of that hope that is set before
us in the gospel. We think of those wonderful words
of grace spoken by our beloved Redeemer. 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. Gracious God, do incline thy
near weak humbly beseech thee, and do send real prosperity to
thy Zion. Remember the little hills of
Zion throughout our nation, up and down the length and breadth
of it, and grant that thou wouldst visit them with thy great salvation,
that thou wouldst blow with the wind of thy Spirit, that thou
wouldst raise up thy servants to preach the everlasting gospel,
and with feet to to run the race and to go wherever thou dost
send them. Lord, we pray that thou in thy
great mercy would hear the cries of thy people, thy little remnant
that sigh and cry for the abominations done in the land. We truly live,
O Lord, in a very solemn day when the iniquity abounds on
every hand and the power of Antichrist is so prevalent in our land.
And that, Lord, we pray that Thou wouldst arise, that Thou
wouldst send out Thy light and Thy truth and return in Thy power
and in Thy glory as Thou usest to be in the sanctuary. O Lord
of hosts, O God of Israel, to hear us we humbly beseech Thee. Grant us, like Thou didst grant
to Thy servant Jacob, wrestling prayer. And there appeared a
man that wrestled with him, even the man Christ Jesus. And he
said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. O Lord,
we do pray that thou wouldst indeed bless us, and that thou
wouldst indeed remember thy Zion, and all the assemblers of thy
saints. We do humbly beseech of thee. Remember our own little group
of churches, but a part of Zion. but we pray that thou wouldst
blow with the sovereign wind of the Spirit, that thou wouldst
be with us as we gather tomorrow at Clifton, and grant that thy
Holy Spirit may be present in power to help thy servants, and
to guide and to direct the meeting, that thou wouldst be the master
of assemblies, and that the gathering of the people may be unto thee
for thy great namesake. Bless the charities to which
we affiliate. And gracious God, use them to
the glory of thy great name and the good of thy people for thy
great namesake. Give wisdom, understanding, guidance
and direction. Bless the editors of our magazines
and the secretaries of our societies. O gracious God, do incline thine
ear, we do humbly beseech thee. And we pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou would remember us here, that thou would remember the
little ones and the children. We love to see them and hear
them in the sanctuary. And we pray that thou would bless
them with the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom,
that thou would bless them with light and understanding in thy
word. And our dear young friends, as
they launch forth in life's journey, undertake for them Guide them,
O Thou Great Jehovah. We do pray that Thou wouldst
bring them to living, vital, saving faith in Jesus Christ,
that they may become true followers of Thee and of those who, through
faith and patience, inherit the promises. Lord, hear us, we pray
Thee, for Thy great namesake, and remember them for good. Remember
them in their education, remember them in any future employment,
and remember them regarding a partner in life's journey. Lord, we lovingly
commend them to thee, to the word of thy grace, which is able
to build them up and to grant them an inheritance among them
that are sanctified. We think of that wonderful word,
Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest
make princes in all the earth. O hear us, O Lord, we beseech
thee, and have mercy upon us for thy great name's sake. And
O Lord, remember all in the midst of the journey of life. Remember
them, O Lord, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people.
Visit them with thy great salvation. Deliver us from the temptations
of Satan, whether he comes as a roaring lion to devour or as
an angel of light to deceive. We need thee to deliver us from
his power. We need to be made spiritually
minded. We need our heart and our affections
set upon things above and not upon things of the earth. Lord,
hear the prayer. of our opening hymn, for Lord
Jesus, thou art needful in everything. Lord, we pray that thou always
remember those of us in the evening time of life's journey, and knowest,
Lord, our needs, our concerns, and we need that great preparation
for that great change, which can come very suddenly, whether
we're young or old, and we pray to be prepared. And now, my God,
prepare my soul for that great day, and wash me in thy precious
blood, take all my sins away. We pray that thou wouldst make
up, O Lord, in the loss of our dear sister, Ina Field, that
thou wouldst gather others also, and that thou wouldst remember
our brother and sister in Canada, Holland and remember them with
those rich favours that thou alone canst give. Lord, remember
the family of Mrs Field, undertake for them, we pray for all in
affliction, trouble, trial, perplexity, sorrow, sadness or bereavement,
that thou wouldst undertake for each one and be gracious unto
each one. We thank thee for the opportunity
once more to gather around thy holy word. We thank thee for
thy holy word. This is the word by which the
gospel is preached unto us. We thank thee, Lord, that it
has been in our hearts a living word. May it be so tonight. We thank thee, most gracious
Lord, for our little house of prayer, thy tender mercies, thy
loving kindnesses that have passed before us in the way. And O Lord
God, we do pray that thou wouldst fill our hearts with gratitude
for the sacred glories of Jesus Christ, for the fullness of that
salvation that is in him. Thankful for the incarnation
of the Son of God. Thankful that he was made of
a woman made under the law, that he might redeem them that are
under the law. We're thankful that the law has
been fulfilled in his glorious person, and everlasting righteousness
has been brought in. We thank thee for Calvary, for
that holy sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus, the
Son of God, suffered, bled, and died for the sins of his people. We thank thee for the precious
blood of the Lamb that cleanses from all sins, and we thank thee
for the resurrection more, for he has swallowed up death in
victory and brought life and immortality to light through
the gospel. Oh, we do thank thee for the
wonderful glories of Christ, the fullness of that salvation
that he has procured for his people, the new and living way
that is made into the holy place. For such an high priest have
we who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Be with
us, Lord, as we turn to thy holy word. Come and open thy word
to our heart and to our understanding. 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 1140. The tune is Williams 436. Great shepherd of thine Israel,
who did between the cherubs dwell, and led the tribes thy chosen
sheep, say through the desert and the deep. Hymn 1140. tune williams 436. ? Lift each in the temple tower
? ? Then may the Christ ? ? The light of the new ? ? Shine through
the desert tower ? I pledge with faith the flesh
and blood to triumph over my and my God's throne. Turn now
to Thee, my love is strong, We shall be taken, silent, no
more. ? The star of God ? ? Stay in my
hands ? ? And I'll be by you ? ? Eternally ? ? Take no life
back ? ? Keep faith with love ? ? And let me hear them raise the
crown ? Walk on the hill, keep it in
vain, Why hast thou made the fence yet plain? Strangers and
birds, ? The gates are closed ? ? And
everything else around ? ? Open this path ? ? In faith and word
? Thou art its strength and glory, dear. Love that it may be, while
you're it may be, in the depth that thou for it may be. ? Out of the grave ? ? Come all
ye Jews ? ? Come make it stronger ? ? With faith and faith ? ?
It shall matter ? ? How kind and free ? and excerpt of James' poem of
memory. It is for you, child, that Peter's
chant ? And with thy strength have I thy hand ? ? Thy beautiful
star ? ? That o'er the ramparts ? ? We have watched were so gallantly
streaming ? ? Let it say the death of Christ
? ? Shine on thy churches ? ? Let it shine ? ? Let us live it ?
? Let our prayers be heard ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I would direct your attention to the chapter
that we read, Psalm 80. And we will read verse 17 for
our text. Psalm 80 verse 17. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, the son of man, whom thou madest strong
for thyself. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand. The person in our text is the
Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, whom thou madest
strong for thyself. We read in Psalm 89, I have laid
help upon one that is mighty. And that mighty one is the Son
of God, who was manifest in the flesh, who was made of a woman,
made under the law, that he might redeem them that are under the
law. Asaph here, he mourns over the
low state of Zion. We don't really know exactly
when Asaph was leading as a psalmist in Israel,
but we know that he lived in a time when there was much opposition
Some of his psalms are on what you might say a very low note. He was envious of the wicked. Until I went into the sanctuary
of God, then understood I their end. The dear man of God was
surrounded, probably in some senses similar to what we are
today in the churches of God, greatly weakened, a great withholding
of the Spirit's power in our assemblies. And so he pleads with the Lord
here, Give ear, O Shepherd, written with a capital S. It's Christ. I am the Good Shepherd. I know
my sheep and am knoweth of them. Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
thou that leadest Joseph like a flock. You think of Joseph,
thou that dwellest between the cherubim, shine forth. Think
of Joseph in his great trial, when his brethren sold him. They
would have killed him, they would have murdered him, but they sold
him to the Midianite merchantmen, and he was sold as a slave into
Egypt. And the trials, the perplexities,
and yet we look through the life of Joseph, we see the life of
a very godly man. We see the life of a man who
knew much chastisement, much divine dealings with him, humbling
him. He was sold by his brethren and then he was falsely accused
by Potiphar's wife. He was cast into prison. You
know, from the time that Joseph was sold by his brethren to the
time that he became the Prime Minister of Egypt was 13 years. 13 years of trial, of perplexity. And yet we read constantly in
his life that the Lord was with him. And everything he touched
was possible. The Lord was with him. and literally
he was taken from the prison house and on the same day he
was made a ruin in all of Egypt and it's one wonderful thing
that pharaoh said can we not find a better man than this a
man in whom the spirit of god is it could be seen that joseph
had the spirit of god can it be seen that you have the spirit
of god that i have the spirit of god in our walk, in our conduct,
in the way that we behave ourselves. Joseph, though he had so many
troubles and trials, and before his elevation to be the Prime
Minister of Egypt and how he was to make a way for his brethren
to be preserved in the midst of that seven years of famine.
Indeed, all of Egypt and the known world at that time was
a terrible famine. See, thou that leadest Joseph
like a flock. And the wonderful thing is, not
only did Joseph prosper, and the Lord elevated
him and blessed him, he's a beautiful type of Christ. You see how our suffering Saviour
was, and how Joseph was, Christ came unto his own and his own
received him not. That's exactly what happened
to Joseph. They sold him for 20 shekels, I think it was. And Judas sold our Lord and Master
for 30 pieces of silver. You see the parallels that there
are in the life of Joseph. And in a moment, he was elevated. And so our Lord Jesus Christ
endured those terrible suffering, sorrows and agonies. on the cross
of calvary but then the beginning of his exaltation when he was
raised from the dead he swallowed up death in victory and he he
led them out as far as unto bethany lifted up his hands and blessed
them and he entered into eternal glory for such an high priest
have we who is passed into the heavens jesus the son of god
thou that leadest joseph like a flock Thou that dwellest between
the cherubims. You know, when the tabernacle
worship was set up, when Moses made the tabernacle according
to the way that the Lord had commanded him, and inside the
tabernacle, a tabernacle is a dwelling place, that there was the golden
mercy seat, there were the golden cherubims, and the the Lord dwelt
upon the golden mercy sea. And he said to Moses, there will
I meet with thee from between those two cherubims on each side
of the golden mercy sea and their faces looking down onto the golden
mercy sea. Thou that dwellest between the
cherubims, shine forth. This is what Asaph felt a need
in the day in which he lived. And is it not what we feel to
need in the day in which we live? For the Lord to shine forth,
for mighty signs and wonders to follow the preaching of the
word. Have not our fathers told us,
have we not heard with our ears the wondrous things that thou
hast done in days gone by? And you look at the decline of
the churches in our own lives. I was brought up in a chapel
full of people. And so were others here, brought
up in a chapel full of people. But now those chapels are so
depleted and many of them are closed. And it affects us. It does affect
us. Thou that dwellest between the
cherubim, shine forth. Now, not only was Joseph elevated
in Egypt, but in Israel. He had two sons. named in the
tribes of Israel. He had a double portion. There's
no tribe of Joseph, but we have the tribe of Ephraim and the
tribe of Manasseh, both the sons of Joseph in Egypt. You see the
wonderful grace of God in how he blessed his servant. Now in
the consideration of this, Asaph he says, turn us again O God
and cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved. See in the
first verse, shine forth and hear again, cause thy face to
shine and we shall be saved. Unto you that fear my name shall
the son of righteousness arise with healing in his wings. Oh
that we could know more power in the ministry of the word.
that we might see the mighty arm of the God of Jacob made
manifest in the day in which we live. Turn us again, O God,
and cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved. You see,
Asaph felt, he said, O Lord God of hosts, how long wilt thou
be angry against the prayer of thy people? That's how he felt.
Thou feedest them with the bread of tears and givest them tears
to drink in great measure, make us a strife unto our neighbours,
and our enemies laugh among themselves. Turn us again, O God of hosts,
and cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved. Notice what you might call the
graduation in the prayer. In verse 3 it says, turn us again,
O God, And in verse 7 he says, turn us again, O God of hosts. You see, he increases what he
pleads, pleading the various names, the Lord God of hosts,
the mighty God of Jacob. Now, he looks back. He sees what
the Lord has done. Thou hast brought a vine out
of Egypt. Thou hast cast out the heathen and planted it. This
is in the land of Canaan. How the Lord, with those ten
great plagues, brought the children of Israel out of Egypt with a
mighty arm. And how at the Red Sea, how he
destroyed the Egyptian armies. Israel passed over us on dry
land, but the Egyptian armies are saying to follow them, we're
all destroyed. terrible overflow that was for
Egypt. I think I've often said to you
there was probably approximately 2 million people that left Egypt
with Israel. The majority of them Hebrews,
but there were many others that followed as well. It was a vast
company into the wilderness where there's no water, where there's
no food, where naturally speaking they could not be sustained.
The Lord, He says in Isaiah that I will plant in the wilderness
the cedar tree, the box tree, the fir tree, the pine tree.
It's what He did with Israel, He took them into the wilderness. Thou hast brought a vine out
of Egypt and this is He cast out the seven nations of Canaan
from before the children of Israel Thou hast brought a vine out
of Egypt, Thou hast cast out the heathen and planted it. Thou
preparest room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root,
and it filled the land." How true! You look back in the
history of our own churches, and how the Lord, I don't mean
just back to Gatsby, I mean back to the time of the Reformation,
And then the Puritans and how the Lord, He caused it to take
deep root in the land. They'll prepare His room before
it. And the Lord will do that again.
He'll prepare room before it and He's caused it to take deep
root and it filled the land. The hills were covered with the
shadow of it and the boughs thereof like the goodly cedars. What a goodly heritage we have.
We should reflect on it. Why hast thou then broken down
her hedges, so that they, all they which pass by the way, do
pluck her? The boar out of the wood doth
waste it, and the wild beast of the field doth devour it.
Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts, look down from heaven
and behold and visit this vine and the vineyard which thy right
hand hath planted and the branch that thou made is strong for
thyself it is burned with fire it is cut down they perish at
the rebuke of thy countenance and then we have this wonderful
prayer let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand you know
if we just take a a brief look at Psalm 110 and the commencement
of Psalm 110 and we read of the exaltation of Christ. The Lord,
that is capital letters, Jehovah said unto my Lord, that's Christ,
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, roll
thou in the midst of thine enemies. Isn't that what we need the Lord
to do now in the day in which we live? 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, art a priest forever.
This is the glorious person of Christ. Thou art a priest for
ever after the order of Melchizedek. For such an high priest have
we who is passed into the heavens. He sits at the right hand of
the majesty on high. 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. shall he lift up the head. See
the wonderful glory of Christ. I think you'll find that the
first verses of Psalm 110 are the most quoted part of the Old
Testament in the New Testament. We read it's quoted by the Lord
Jesus Christ himself, it's quoted by the apostles when they wrote
their epistles etc. The Lord said unto my Lord, sit
thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand. Now, upon the son of man. There's a distinction we've made
here, friends. The son of man. I had a minister
actually said to me once, I mentioned that the term the son of man
is used 71 times in the word of God relative to Christ. and
he said to me well you've only got to look into the book of
Ezekiel and Ezekiel was called the son of man but you look carefully
he wasn't called the son of man the lord said son of man not
the son of man so when we read of the son of man we're reading
of the son of god manifest in the flesh that is the son of
man And that is what we're referring to when we say there are 71 occasions
in Holy Scripture when the Lord Jesus Christ is referring to.
And the principle one is this verse here, let thy hand. It's a prayer to our Eternal
Father. Do you pray to your Eternal Father? Do you call upon the name of
your Eternal Father? Do you approach unto the Eternal
Father in the name of Jesus Christ? Do you take heed of the word
of the Lord? Whatsoever ye ask in my name,
I will do it. I will do it. When we plead for
Jesus Christ's sake, that's the great thing. We plead for Jesus
Christ's sake. We are nothing. We have nothing. The amount of times, my beloved
friends, more often than not in the middle hymn, when I bow
my head in prayer, And I have to say to the Lord, Lord, I'm
nothing. Lord, I have nothing. Lord, if you leave me, there'll
be nothing for the people because I'm a poor, empty sinner. I'm
a poor, broken vessel. Do pour in that we may be enabled
to pour out. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, the son of man whom thou made is strong
for thyself, the son of man. Most of those references to the
Son of Man are actually spoken by Jesus Christ himself. You
think of one very prominent one. For the Son of Man is come to
seek and to save that which is lost. The Son of Man is come. And this term, the Son of Man,
refers very specifically to the human nature that the Son of
God assumed in the womb of the Virgin Mary. I often explain
to you, and it's a very important point of doctrine, that human
nature that Christ assumed never had any existence separate to
Him. It was His own personal human nature. When the Holy Ghost
overshadowed the womb of the Virgin, and He said, that holy
thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
That holy thing. son of man is a beautiful term
it relates particularly to the incarnation of the son of god
and the term the word john uses it several times in in both his
gospel and also in his epistles the word he's referring to the
divine nature of the son of god when he says the word and the
word 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 the desire here of Asa, this
was obviously open to Asa, this son of man, the man of thy right
hand, the dear man of God, It's something here that he could
lay hold of in prayer. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, upon the son of man. In Paul's epistle to
the Hebrews, right from the very beginning, right the first part,
he speaks of Christ being at the right hand of the Father.
He quotes again from Psalm 110. The Lord said, unto my Lord,
sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The Son of Man. He came to suffer,
to bleed, and to die for the sins of his people. To suffer,
to bleed, and die. And remember this, The Son of
Man. That is what he's always called.
There's only one of them, The Son of Man. The glorious divine
person of the Son of God assumed human nature and lived here as
a man upon the earth. Just as we often quote to you
Galatians chapter 4, you know these texts that we quote they're
like beacons in the Word of God and they point out made of woman,
made under the law that he might redeem them that are under the
law. So the law was made for man. So when the son of God became
a man, he was made under the law. He lived under the law as
a man. What was the purpose? What was
the object? That he might fulfill it as a man. The son of God fulfilled
as a man, the holy law of God. We read in prophecy in Isaiah,
he will magnify the law and make it honorable. So he did no sin. The son of man did no sin. neither
was guile found in his mouth. Spotless, innocent, and pure,
our great Redeemer stood, whilst Satan's fiery darts he bore,
and did resist the blood. The Son of Man. The Son of Man
is come. All that the Lord may, fill our
hearts. Hallelujah. The Son of Man is
come. He's come to seek and to save
that which was lost. He came to redeem his people.
He came to live a life. I could never quote it properly.
Upon a life I did not live. Upon a death I did not die. Hangs
my everlasting awe. Everything. Upon the Son of Man,
the glorious person of Jesus, the Son of God, that was manifest
in the flesh. Paul says to Timothy, great is
the mystery of godliness, God, was manifest in the flesh. Let
thy hand. Now this, Asaph realised that
it was the only place where true prosperity could come in Zion
was in and through Jesus Christ. Hence this prayer, let thy hand. Oh that the Lord may give this
prayer to us, to plead before him. Let thy hand be upon the
man of thy right hand. The Son of Man, whom thou madest
strong for thyself, is mighty to save. His name shall be called
Wonderful Counsel, the Everlasting Father, the Almighty, the Prince
of Peace. That's what His name is. That's
who He is. He's mighty to save. He's mighty to redeem. He's mighty to fulfil that holy
righteous law in every jot and in every tittle as the Son of
Man. This is the important thing.
He fulfilled the law as the son of man. He redeemed his people. Not only
did he fulfill the law and that perfect obedience of Christ is
the righteousness of the church, of the believer. Abraham believed
God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. A sinner receives
by faith in Jesus Christ an everlasting righteousness. Christ becomes to them Jehovah
Sidkenu, the Lord our righteousness. That's what Christ becomes to
his people, the Lord our righteousness. You see he had no need of A righteousness. He was perfectly pure and righteous
altogether. It was his church, his bride,
his beloved bride that needed this righteousness. That needed
to be clothed upon with this righteousness. She had no righteousness
of her own. She lost and ruined in the fall.
You know, if we look at Psalm 45. In Psalm 45, how beautifully
it speaks there. of the bride of Christ, and also
of the person of Christ. My heart is inditing a good matter. I speak of the things that I
have made, touching the King. My tongue is the pen of a ready
writer. Thou art fairer, this is David,
as he has such a sight, a revelation of Christ. Thou art fairer than
the children of men. Grace is poured into thy lips,
therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Now the desire of David
is similar to the desire of Asaph. Curd 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,
and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. And arrows
are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people
fall under them. You know Saul of Tarsus had to
fall under those bricks, didn't he? The Lord Jesus said to him,
it's hard for thee to kick against the bricks. Thine arrows are
sharp in the heart of the king's enemies whereby the people fall
under thee. Thy throne, O God, is forever
and ever. David has here a sight of what
he was promised. There shall not fail thee a king
to sit upon thy throne forever. Thy throne, O God, is forever
and ever. The scepter of thy kingdom is
a right scepter. But he goes on, he says in verse
9, king's daughters. This again is the bride of Christ. King's daughters were among thy
honourable women. Upon thy right hand is stand
the Queen in gold of Ophir, that gold of Ophir. She was clothed
in the righteousness of Christ. Also it says here, fine linen,
which means the righteousness of Christ. Hearken, O daughter,
and consider and incline thine ear, forget also thine own people
and thy father's house. So shall the King greatly desire
thy beauty, for he is thy Lord. What beauty! He says to his spouse,
to his bride, in Solomon's song, Thou art all fair, my love. There
is no spot in thee. You might say, but the church
is sinful. Ah, but in Christ. She's washed
in his precious blood. Her sins and her iniquities will
I remember no more. She's clothed in that glorious
everlasting robe of the righteousness of Christ. Thou art all fair,
my love. There is no spot in thee. So shall the king greatly desire
thy beauty, for he is thy lord, and worship thou him. The king's
daughter is all glorious within. Her clothing is of wrought gold.
She shall be brought unto the king in Raymond of Needleworth.
The virgins, her companions that follow her, shall be brought
unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought.
They shall enter into the king's palace. Our dear sister Ina has
entered into the king's palace. You know that word was very,
very special to her. And she often mentioned it to
me. Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also
in me. In my father's house are many
mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you, I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go to prepare
a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself,
that where I am, there ye may be also. They shall enter into
the king's palace." What a wonderful prospect, isn't it? To enter
into the king's palace. And it's the King himself that
prepares them. It's the King himself that lived
for them, that fulfilled the law for them, that clothed them
with that everlasting robe of his righteousness. Christ is
the end of the law for righteousness unto all them that believe that
glorious everlasting robe of the righteousness of Christ.
You see, I think it's bearish, isn't it? They all declare, I
nothing have. My all is bound up in the Lamb.
Everything I stand in need of, my righteousness, my salvation,
His precious blood that cleanses from all sin. Let Thy hand be upon the man
of Thy right hand, upon the Son of Man, whom Thou madest strong
for Thyself. He's mighty to save. He's mighty
to redeem. He's mighty to deliver. I think it's in the prophecy of Zephaniah where it
speaks of the mighty power of our Lord Jesus Christ and how
that he's able to say, Zephaniah chapter 3, seeing O daughter
of Zion, Shout, O Israel, be glad and rejoice with all the
heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. The Lord hath taken away thy
judgments. Those judgments that were against
thee. The Lord hath taken away thy judgments. He hath cast out
thine enemy. The King of Israel, even the
Lord, is in the midst of thee. Thou shalt not see evil any more. In that day it shall be said
to Jerusalem, fear thou not, and to Zion, let not thine hands
be slack. The Lord thy God in the midst
of thee is mighty. He will save, he will rejoice
over thee with joy, he will rest in his love. He will joy over
thee with singing. The Lord thy God in the midst
of thee is mighty. You know here in the book of
Psalms, in Psalm 46, that Psalm 46 has been such a sacred help
to the Lord's living family as they walk through this wilderness
world. God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though
the earth be removed. You think of what he's describing
here. Though the earth be removed,
though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, though
the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains
shake with the swelling thereof. There is a river. The river of
the everlasting love of God proceeding from the Father and the Son,
the Holy Ghost poured into the church. The everlasting love
of God in Christ. There is a river, the streams
thereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the
tabernacles of the Most High. God is in the midst of her. She
shall not be moved. God shall help her. And that
right early, the heathen raged. The kingdoms were moved. He uttered
his voice. The earth melted. The Lord of
hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge
sealer. Come behold the works of the
Lord, what desolation is made in the earth. He maketh wars
to cease unto the end of the earth. He breaketh the bow and
cutteth the spear in sundry, burns the chariot in the fire.
Be still. You see, sometimes when we get
into these troublous things, these perplexing things, and
we feel the weight of our own sinfulness, our own worthlessness,
our own helplessness, we need a word like For the Spirit of
God to breathe into our hearts, be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen. I will be exalted in the earth.
The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge,
Selah. His name shall be called Emmanuel,
which by interpretation is God with us. Let thy hand be upon
the man of thy right hand, upon the Son of Man, whom thou madest
strong for thyself. He was made strong. I have laid
help upon one that is mighty. There's none mightier than Jesus,
the Son of God. When he was about to ascend into
glory, he said to his disciples, all power is given unto me. in heaven and in earth, all power. It doesn't matter how small your
troubles are, it doesn't matter how great your troubles are,
there is one that is able to save, there is one that is able
to deliver. Call upon me in the day of trouble,
I will hear them and thou shalt glorify me. What is it that burdens
you, that troubles you, that perplexes you? The Lord is able
Whatever it is, he's able to do abundantly more than we can
even ask or think. With heaven and earth at his
command, he waits to answer prayer. You see, the hymn writer says
to him that prayer is a weapon for the feeble. It is weakest
souls that wield it best. You see, the apostle, he proved
what the Lord has said. He said, when I am weak, then
am I strong. The Apostle Paul was greatly
weakened by that thorn in the flesh and the messenger of Satan
to buffet him. And he thought he could well
do without it. That seemed to so trouble him and so burden
him wherever he went. But what did the Lord say when
he besought him to deliver him from it? My grace. He was to
prove in those fiery furnaces, my grace is sufficient for thee. My strength is made perfect in
weakness. In your weakness, in your helplessness,
that is where the strength of Christ is mostly known. Let thy hand be upon the man
of thy right hand, upon the Son of Man, whom thou madest strong
for thyself. So will not we go back from thee? Quicken us, and we will call
upon thy name. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 23. The tune is Strasbourg, 244.
May we be able to sing it with a feeling heart. 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 side. Hymn number 23, tune Strasbourg,
244. I wish to be a godly person in
heaven always. Oh, we wish we could swim in
water In a dark winter's sky The same demon in him now reigns, Yusuf,
the Torah's slave. This wondrous man of whom we
turn is true almighty God. He brought us out from death
and hell, The price his own heart loved. That human heart he still retains,
Though thrown in highest place. and fills each tempted member's
veins for our addiction's peace. Come, then, repentant sinner,
Come, approach with humble faith. Her water will the turtle shun,
is cancelled by his death. His blood can cleanse a black-haired
soul and wash her guilt away. He will present us sound and
whole in that tremendous place. Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each, both now
and forevermore. Amen.