Let us commence our service this
afternoon by singing together hymn number 231. The tune is
Blessedness 301. Tis by faith of joys to come,
we walk through deserts dark as night, till we arrive at heaven
our home. Faith is our guide and faith
our light. Hymn 231. tune Blessedness 301. ? Despite the pain ? ? Of joys
below ? ? We hope today ? ? That's not last night ? ? Till we have
wine ? ? That gave the world ? ? A better
life ? ? A better life ? ? The world saw sight ? she wells
her vines, she makes her bed, the aged appear. Far into distant realms she cried,
and lifted to an all-glorious hymn. Shepherd, we cry, O dearest one's
friend, While waiting spots the heavenly friend, The lions roar, and tempests
flurr, And mountains in dismay away. Shall Abraham in thy command,
And Israel to old withdraw, Whose broad stripes and bright
stars through the perilous fight, O'er the ramparts we watched,
were so gallantly streaming? Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the Gospel according to John, chapter 4. John's Gospel, chapter 4, and
we'll read the first 30 verses. When therefore the Lord knew
how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more
disciples than John, though Jesus himself baptized not, but his
disciples. He left Judea and departed again
into Galilee, and he must need to go through Samaria. Then cometh
he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the
parcel of ground Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well
was there. Jesus, therefore, being wearied
with his journey, sat thus on the well, and it was about the
sixth hour. And there cometh the woman of
Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, Give me
to drink. For his disciples were gone away,
into the city to buy meat. Then saith the woman of Samaria
unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of
me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings
with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto
her, If thou knewest the gift of God, And who it is that saith
to thee, Give me to drink? Thou wouldst have asked of him,
and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith
unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is
deep. From whence then hast thou that
living water? Art thou greater than our father
Jacob, which gave us the well? and drank thereof himself and
his children and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto
her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again, but
whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never
thirst. But the water that I shall give
him shall be in him a well of water, springing up into everlasting
life. The woman saith unto him, Sir,
give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said,
I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast
Well said, I have no husband. For thou hast had five husbands,
and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband. In that saidst
thou truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir,
I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this
mountain, and ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where
men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman,
believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this
mountain nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father. Ye worship
ye know not what. We know what we worship, for
salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now
is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit
and in truth, for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him
in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know
that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ. When he is come,
he will tell us all things Jesus saith unto her, I that speak
unto thee am he. And upon this came his disciples,
and marveled that he talked with the woman. Yet no man said, what
seekest thou, or why talkest thou with her? The woman then
left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and said to
the men, come. see a man which told me all things
that ever I did, is not this the Christ? Then they went out
of the city and came unto him. May the Lord bless the reading
of his precious word and grant unto us a spirit of real prayer. Lord Jesus, Son of God most high, the only begotten Son of the
Father, full of grace and truth. We desire to bow before Thee
and to come to Thee in all our need as poor sinners, as the
poor fallen sons and daughters of Adam, born in sin, shapen
in iniquity. And we desire, most gracious
Lord, that thou would pour upon us the spirit of grace and of
supplications with thanksgiving for all thy tender mercies. We thank thee for those wonderful
things that we've read together in thy word concerning thee,
the glorious son of the Father. We desire this afternoon to worship
thee. We desire to touch the hem of
thy garment, Lord Jesus. We desire access unto our Eternal
Father through thy precious blood and merits. For through him we
have access by one Spirit unto the Father. O do grant us that
access here this afternoon. In pulpit and in pew we do humbly
beseech thee. Do grant that that wonderful
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and that infinite love of our
Eternal Father and the sacred and divine presence and power,
communion and union of the Holy Ghost be known and felt in our
hearts as we gather round thy word here this afternoon. We
pray that thou wouldst come and open the word of truth to our
heart and to our understanding. May the power that brings salvation
be exerted in the word. We do humbly pray thee. Show
us thy ways, O Lord. Teach us thy paths. Teach us in the way that we should
go. May thy word be a lamp unto our
feet and a light unto our path. May thy word be spoken with power
into our hearts. May we experience what the dear
brethren at Thessalonica did. For our gospel came unto you,
not in word only, but in power, in the Holy Ghost, and with much
assurance. Lord, may it be so. We do humbly
beseech thee. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou wouldst answer the needs of thy people, and that
thou wouldst graciously come and seal thy word into our hearts. Grant that gracious liberty in
spiritual worship, for where the Spirit of the Lord is, there
is liberty. May we know that liberty this
afternoon, to worship Thee, to approach unto Thee, to call upon
Thee, and to look unto Thee. Even as Thou hast exhorted it
in Thy word, look unto me, O ye ends of the earth, and be ye
saved, for I am God, and there is none else. Lord, we come to
wait upon thee, and thou hast said in thy word, but they that
wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. May we prove
that this afternoon. They shall mount upon wings as
eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and
not faint. Lord, we pray that thou would
grant some divine cordials unto us to nourish us in the way. that there was break the bread
of life and give us to drink of the water of life. And even
those precious things that we've read together, that spring of
water springing up unto eternal life in our hearts, we do humbly
pray that we think of those wonderful words. He that hath begun a good
work in you shall perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ. Lord, grant that it may be so.
We do humbly beseech thee, and grant that we may lay hold of
that hope that is set before us in the gospel, that we may
have clear views by faith of the glorious person of Jesus,
the Son of God, that we may view that profound mystery of godliness
of God manifest in the flesh, and that we may Lord, be favoured
to feel union and communion with him. We think of those wonderful,
precious words. 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. We pray, Lord, that it may be
so, and that the rest of faith may be laid hold of and that
Christ may be made precious unto us, unto you that believe therefore
he is precious, and his precious sin-atoning blood that cleanses
from all sin. We thank thee for that precious
blood of the Lamb. We thank thee for that glorious
everlasting robe of his righteousness, that we may be comely in his
comeliness. Oh, dear Grant, Lord, that we
may be led of the Spirit into these wonderful truths at this
afternoon hour. We do humbly beseech thee. Open thou the crystal fountain,
let the healing waters flow. We do humbly beseech thee. We have no claim on thy mercy. We're poor, empty, ruined sinners. We come and plead that precious
blood that did for sin atone. Lord, we pray for those not able
to gather with us this afternoon, and that thou wouldst graciously
be with them where they are. And we pray for our dear aged
sister, Ina. We thank thee, Lord, that once
more she's been able to come out to the house of God, and
we pray that thou wouldst be gracious unto her, and bless
her indeed in her old age and its many infirmities. We pray,
O Lord, Blessing upon all those of us that are in the evening
time of life's journey, may we be graciously prepared for that
great day when heart and flesh shall fail, when we shall soar
through tracks unknown and see the on thy judgment throne. Lord,
help us to cleave to thee and to look to thee. Deliver us from
an evil heart of unbelief. Deliver us from the power and
dominion of sin. Deliver us from the temptations
of Satan, who goes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour,
who sometimes comes as an angel of light to deceive. We need
Thee, Lord, to defend us and to keep us from the enemy. Lord,
we thank Thee for that wonderful promise. When the enemy comes
in like a fly, the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard
against him. Lord, we do pray that thou, in
thy precious mercy, would remember the little ones, the children. Remember them with the favour
that thou bearest unto thy people. Visit them with thy great salvation. Even as thou hast said in thy
words, suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them
not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Lord, we pray that
they may be blessed indeed. that a generation may be raised
up that shall meet and worship in this house of prayer. And
we pray, most gracious Lord, that thou wouldst bless the young
friends. Remember them for good. Remember them in thy mercy. Quicken
their never-dying souls and bring them to living faith in Jesus
Christ, that they may follow thee. and serve thee in their
day and in their generation. Remember the prodigals, Lord,
that have wandered away. Lord, lead them back. It is thy
work, and thy work alone. And thou hast promised, I will
work, and who shall let it? Let us see thy work. Let us see
thy power. Let us see thy glory. as thou
usest to be in the sanctuary. O Lord of hosts, O God of Israel,
O thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth. We do humbly beseech thee, and
let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, the son of
man, whom thou madest strong for thyself. Turn us again, O
God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved. Deliver us from an evil heart
of unbelief, but grant us clear believing views of the glorious
eternal person of our Lord Jesus Christ, that we may truly worship
him, that we may behold his glory, the glory as of the only begotten
of the Father, full of grace and truth. Remember all in the
midst of the journey of life. Graciously bless each give wisdom and grace unto parents,
that they may bring up their children in the nurture and in
the admonition of the Lord. Lord, we do pray that thou would
graciously remember thy Zion, the churches of God up and down
the nation, indeed throughout the nations of the earth. We
think of those that worship in places where the name of Christ
is hated, and they are persecuted, imprisoned, even unto death. Lord, we pray that thou would
send them help from the sanctuary and strengthen them out of Zion
and help them to be faithful unto death. Lord, we do pray
that thou in thy precious mercy would remember those war-stricken
places upon the earth We think of the Ukraine, and we think
of Israel, and we pray that thou would bring to naught the counsels
of the wicked, and graciously bring peace, if it could but
please thee, for thy great name's sake. When men's hearts fail
them for fear, we pray that thou would reveal thyself, in all
their fears and all their weakness, and open their eyes to behold
one far greater, we do humbly beseech thee, with heaven and
earth at thy command, that thou dost wait to answer prayer. Remember
those, O Lord, that labour, we think especially of those that
labour from among our churches, in the nations of the earth,
We think of those organizations, Lord, that we pray that they
may be well supplied. We think of the Mombasa mission
and pray that thy blessing may rest there. We think also, oh
Lord, of the Savannah Education Trust in Garma, and we think
of Ian Sadler as he travels through many nations distributing the
word of God. and expound in the Holy Scriptures. Help him to continue. Help all
thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls
of Zion today. Grant that they may dip their
foot in oil and be made acceptable unto the brethren. We pray thee,
the great Lord of the harvest, to send true labourers into the
harvest, to build the walls of Jerusalem, O Lord, send now prosperity. We do humbly beseech Thee. We
thank Thee for Thy holy day. We thank Thee for the liberties
that we have to meet together around Thy Word in the sanctuary. Lord, these are great privileges.
May we prize them highly. We thank Thee, most gracious
God, that Thou art God over all and blessed for evermore. And
we thank thee that thou dost always remember thy Zion and
thy people, and thou hast said, I will never leave thee nor forsake
thee. Gracious God, we thank thee above
all for Jesus Christ, for the law fulfilled and honoured in
his glorious person as he lived as a man here upon earth. We
thank thee for everlasting righteousness brought here for Thy people. We thank Thee for that sacred
atonement for sin on the cross of Calvary. We thank Thee for
the precious blood of the Lamb, as of a Lamb slain from before
the foundation of the world. We thank Thee for the love of
our Eternal Father, who laid upon Him the iniquity of us all. We thank Thee, most gracious
Lord, Father, Son and Holy for that wonderful grace that thou
dost bestow upon sinful man. Come and touch one's lips with
a live coal from off the heavenly altar. Come and open thy word,
we ask, with the forgiveness of all sin, for Jesus Christ's
sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 1091. The tune is Simeon 412. How welcome to the soul oppressed,
In sorrow's veil by raging thirst, Scorched by the sun's meridian
beam, is the sweet well of Bethlehem. Hymn 1091, tune Simeon 412. My soul and heart are blessed,
My soul and heart are blessed, O come, let us adore Him, O come,
let us adore Him, O'er the ramparts we watched
were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the
bombs bursting in air, All the silence of all the silence
of nature's heavenly paradise. O'er the ramparts we watched,
were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the
bombs bursting in air, O say can you see, by the dawn's early
light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's ? Thou who holdest the Spirit from
earth and heaven ? ? Which we have laid ? ? Which
we have laid ? ? Which wondrous birth ? ? Which wondrous birth
? My Savior, what joy it shall
have! To die in the waters, living,
from birth and death. O say can you see, by the dawn's
early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last
gleaming? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help I direct you to the book of Joshua, chapter 15,
and read in verse 19 for our text. Joshua, chapter 15, verse 19. Who answered, give me a blessing,
for thou hast given me a south land, give me also springs of
water." And he gave her the upper springs and the nether springs. This was Caleb. Caleb along with Joshua were
the only two men of majority age and by that in Israel the
majority age was 20 and of all those that that great company
that came out of Egypt and wandered through the wilderness of all
those that were 20 years old and over it was only Caleb and
Joshua that entered the promised land. And we are instructed in
the epistle to the Hebrews, they entered not in because of unbelief. And we're instructed in Deuteronomy
that the Lord, he made them wander in that wilderness until that
whole generation passed away with the exception of these two
men, two faithful, men, two servants of the Lord that were faithful
unto the Lord. They were sent into the promised
land by Moses and there was 12 of them sent. It was only these
two men that brought a good report. The others brought an ill report. See, there's a rim according
to the election of grace. And these two men, Joshua and
Caleb, were honored to cross over the river Jordan and to
enter into the promised land. And then under Joshua and subsequently
after that, the children of Israel, they cast out the Hivites and
the Jebusites and the Amalekites. They literally were commanded
by God to cast them out of that land. You see, it says here in the
context, verse 13, and unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh, he gave
a part among the children of Judah, according to the commandment
of the Lord to Joshua, even the city of Arba, the father of Anak,
which city is Hebron. And Caleb drove thence the three
sons of Anak, Sheshai, Ahimon, and Talmai, the children of Anak. And he went up thence to the
inhabitants of Dibur, and the name of Dibur before was Kerjaf
Sifah. And Caleb said, He that smiteth
Kerjaf Sifah, and taketh it to him, will I give Aksar my daughter
to wife. And Othniel the son of Kenaz,
the brother of Caleb, took it, and he gave him Aksar his daughter
to wife. And it came to pass, as she came
unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field.
And she lighted off her ass, and Caleb said unto her, What
wood is thou? Who answered, Give me a blessing,
for thou hast given me a south land. Give me also springs of
water. And he gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs. So we find this godly man settling. After subduing those that dwelt
in the land, he settled there in the land. And his daughter
here asked the question after he'd given her a south land.
For thou hast given me a south land. A south land, of course,
is the most fertile. It's where the sun shines most
of the day. Thou hast given me a south land,
facing south. A lot of people, when they look
for a house, they look for a house that faces south. And it's reckoned
to be good, because it has the sunlight. For thou hast given me a south
land. Now, what is so vital, especially, even more so in those
hot countries of the Middle East, is water. You could have a Southland
and have no water. And that would be terrible, because
you'd have the burning heat of the sun, your crops would all
wither away. So she asked for, give me also
springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs. The nether springs, you see,
she was on a south land, on a hill, and therefore she had the springs
that came out at the top and she had the springs that came
out at the bottom. But no doubt a very beautiful,
fertile place. What a wonderful blessing, but
there's something far deeper, friends, here. She, like that
woman by the well at St. Mary, she questioned Christ. She says here, give me a blessing.
Give me a blessing. What a mercy if the Lord has
given us that spiritual sight. that measure of spiritual understanding. To feel our own lost condition,
to feel our own neediness, to feel our need of God, to feel
our need of grace, to feel our need of the Lord's favour, of
the Lord's love. It's a great mercy, you know,
if you've been given The Lord Jesus himself says, blessed are
they that hunger and thirst after righteousness. They're blessed
people that hunger and thirst after righteousness. Now why
do they hunger and thirst after righteousness? Because they have
no righteousness of their own. Because the Holy Ghost has taught
them. They have no righteousness of their own. They have no inherent
goodness in themselves. And that is what the Holy Ghost
teaches, that we have no goodness in ourselves. The Bible declares, there is
none that doeth good, no not one. And when you're brought to feel
that, then you're brought to pray,
because you have a need. You have a need and therefore
you pray. Give me a blessing. You feel
the need of it. Give me a blessing for thou has
given me a Southland. Give me also springs of water. Springs of water, wonderful springs
of water. The Lord Jesus was weary. What
we read together in John chapter four, he was weary. He sat by the well and the woman
of Samaria came. He knew she was coming. Not only
that, he knew all about her. He knew everything about her.
You know, you can't hide anything from God, from Christ. He knows all things. The woman,
he said to her, the man that thou hast now is not thine husband,
thou hast had seven husbands. You see, my beloved friends,
the wonderful grace of God to this woman. She was a, no doubt,
a child of God. And the time had now come for
her to be called by divine grace. What a precious thing that is. The Lord Jesus, we quoted it
this morning, this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them. This woman was a notorious sinner. She'd had seven husbands. But
look at the gracious way our Lord Jesus Christ deals with
her. And you see, she told those that she went
to see, come, see a man that told me, all things ever I did,
is not this the Christ? He told me all things that ever
I did. He revealed them to me. Is not this the Christ? Give
me a blessing. Every blessing, every favor freely
throws through Jesus' precious blood. Give me a blessing. Oh, Lord, give me those rich
spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Gatsby
says in one of his hymns, a vilest sinner out of hell that lives
to feel his need is welcome to the throne of grace, the Saviour's
blood to plead. Come just as thou art. Come just as thou art. You know,
we immediately tend to set about working. I'll do this, I'll do
that, I'll stop doing this, I'll stop doing that. I'll tell you
something, friend, you'll get nowhere because you're trusting
in your own strength. Come just as thou art to Christ, cast in all your care upon him. This man receive his sinners.
You say, but I'm so black, I'm so wretched, I'm so undone. That's
the very persons that He came to save. I come not to call the
righteous, but sinners, those that feel themselves to be sinners.
I come not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Sinners can say, and none but
they, how precious is the Saviour. Give me a blessing. For thou
hast given me a south land, give me also springs of water. Those living springs. You know, we've often pointed
out to you that the Holy Spirit, it is the springs of water that
are spoken of in Holy Scripture. Continually, the Holy Spirit
is likened unto a river, rivers of water. My mind, it just goes
to that lovely word in John chapter 7 and that 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 has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers
of living water. But this he spake of the Spirit.
See the rivers of living water, but this he spake of the Spirit.
That they, which they that believe on him should receive. For the
Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet
glorified. So it's that wonderful outpouring
of the Spirit. We read in Psalm 46, there is
a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God,
the dwelling places of the Most High. That living water, you
know, and again, I draw your attention to the first verse
of Revelation 22, and he showed me a pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and
of the Lamb. We have in that verse the glorious
three persons of the Trinity. This pure river of water of life
as clear as crystal is the Holy Ghost who proceeded forth from
the Father and the Son, proceeding out of the throne of God and
of the Lamb. It's the Holy Spirit that is poured forth on the day
of Pentecost. Many, many precious souls were
gathered unto Christ, thousands of them, by the divine, eternal
power of the Spirit of the living God. How vital, my beloved friends,
is the work of the Spirit. And when he says there in John
7, if any man thirsts, 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 waters. This he spake of the Spirit. And the Lord Jesus in that, where
he's speaking to the woman by the well, and he says there unto
her, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him,
shall never thirst. Why? Because it's the, he's speaking
of the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. He goes on to say, but
the water that I shall give him shall be in him, a well of water,
springing up into everlasting life again. I think we quoted
it this morning. He that hath begun a good work
in you shall perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ. Springing
up. into everlasting life. You think
of those words, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.
If the Holy Spirit has begun that good work in your heart,
if the Holy Spirit is dwelling in your heart, he will never
leave. He will never leave. We may grieve
him, and we do grieve him. and then he withdraws his sweet
influences in the soul from being spiritually minded and your things
and affections set upon things above you then become very earthly,
very carnal such a lack of spiritual mindedness because we grieve the spirit
he doesn't leave, he withdraws his sweet influences In John's gospel, Christ said,
and he will dwell with you forever. He will dwell with you forever.
What a wonderful thing. If the Lord has begun that good
work in our hearts, give me a blessing. For thou
has given me a Southland, Give me also springs of water. You
think of those wonderful and encouraging words of our Lord
Jesus Christ in Luke's Gospel in chapter 11. 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? Give me a blessing. And so, if
we look at this in the light of Holy Scripture, the spiritual
understanding of it, what she was seeking for was the blessing
of the Lord, those rich, eternal, spiritual blessings in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus. Give me a blessing for those
giving me a south land, give me also springs of water. and he gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs. The upper springs represent the rich, sacred, spiritual blessings
in Christ. Oh, they are the precious upper
springs that come through the blood and righteousness of Jesus
Christ. when the soul, led by the Spirit,
in the Spirit of faith, lays hold of Christ. When the Lord
discovers Himself to that soul as being the way, the truth and
the life. Jesus is the way to God. Jesus
is the way to bliss. In this way the saints have trod
down from Adam's day to this. Jesus, the way, the truth and
the life. No man cometh unto the Father,
but by me, our Lord Jesus Christ. The apostles, they set him forth,
didn't they? There is none other name given
under heaven whereby you must be saved, but the name of Jesus
Christ. His name shall be called Jesus,
for he shall save his people from their sins. Save his people
from their sins. These are the upper springs.
What a mercy. If you and I have an interest
in the upper springs, have an interest in the finished work
of Christ, it's a great mercy, friends, if you do. It's a wonderful,
precious thing. And he gave her the upper springs.
These are the things that were given to that poor woman by the
well, the upper springs. She was a woman of Samaria. The
disciples said, whatever is he doing speaking to a Samaritan? And the woman, when Christ spoke
to her, she said, the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. We have it in the parable of
the Good Samaritan, how that poor man taken among thieves,
half dead, the Levite walks by, The priest walks by. You see,
my beloved friends, they wouldn't have any dealings. Their religion
was, come not near unto me, for I am holier than thou. The good
Samaritan, who is Christ, he came right where he was. He
bound up his wounds. He took him to an inn. He paid
everything that needed to be paid and said that when I return
I will settle the bill. He came right where he was and
he bound him up. What a beautiful picture of our
Lord Jesus Christ. When he finds a poor sinner,
he binds up the wounds. He heals their wounds. Heal us,
Emmanuel, here we are. Waiting to feel thy touch. Deep
wounded souls to thee repair. And Saviour, we are such. Christ is made precious. Has
Christ been made precious to you? Is there something in Jesus
Christ that you see you stand in need of? You long to lay hold of You find
an echo in your heart in that hymn, the last line of that hymn,
right the way through on each verse, give me Christ or else
I die. How many of us here in this chapel
this afternoon have that desire, give me Christ or else I die? Great mercy, you know, friends,
if that is the case, that is the longing of your heart. Give
me Christ or else I die. You have need of Christ. You
have need of the precious blood of Christ. You have need of the
glorious righteousness of Christ. You can see that in Him is that
there's everything that you stand in need of for time and for eternity. And you long that these rich
blessings may be yours. And he gave her the upper springs,
the upper springs, those rich, sacred, spiritual blessings in
Christ Jesus, the precious blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ. That's what these upper springs
are, spiritually looked at. But then it says, and the nether
springs, Now these are those rich providential blessings that
the Lord has promised to each one of his people. The purposes
of God's grace are fulfilled in providence. In the prophecy
of Ezekiel, in that first chapter, it speaks in the vision that
Ezekiel saw a wheel within a wheel. Great outer wheel, And then there
was an inner wheel at right angles to it. A smaller inner wheel
inside the greater wheel. And as they turned, they went. You know that outer wheel? It
is the eternal covenant ordered in all things ensured. The divine
certainty of the salvation of all of the Lord's people is in
that covenant. And the blood of Christ is called
the blood of the everlasting covenant. That's what that outer wheel
represents. Those rich, sacred, spiritual
blessings in Christ Jesus. The inner wheel, the smaller
wheel, at right angles to it, but inside it, and they turn
together, that represents the wheel of divine providence. bearing out what we have said.
The Lord fulfills the purposes of grace in providence. Think of what the hymn writer
says, sovereign ruler of the skies, ever gracious, ever wise,
all my times are in thy hand, all events at thy command. His
decree that formed the earth fixed my first and second birth. And so the hymn goes on. Parents,
native, place and time, or appointed were by Him. And as one says,
that it was decreed by sovereign grace, the place where the Lord
would call you by divine grace, and those circumstances that
you were found in at that time that brought you into great need.
And it's often that the Lord begins that work of grace when
we're in some providential trial. And we're brought to feel our
great need and we begin to pray unto God. Now that didn't happen
by chance. No. It was divinely ordered. And that providential trial that
you came into, that was the purpose of God. And you see those wheels,
they turn together. Again, we have the same illustration
in the Song of Solomon. His left hand is under my head.
His right hand doth embrace me. His left hand represents those blessings in providence. It's
under my head, supporting, sustaining, strengthening, everything in
providence. Not a single shaft can hit till
the God of love sees fit. Now, his right hand represents
those sacred covenant blessings in Christ. His right hand does
embrace me. I love thee well, my child. Thou
art all fair, my love. There is no spot in thee. His
right hand does embrace me. All those wonderful, sacred blessings
in our Lord Jesus Christ. when He makes known those blessings
to us, the upper springs, but all fulfilled. See, my life's
minutest circumstance is subject to thine eye. The providence
of grace are linked together, inseparably so, because God fulfills
the purposes of His grace in Providence. He does. And there's another illustration
that we have in the Book of Psalms. And it speaks of the hill Mizer and the Mount Hermon. It's the
same teaching. It speaks of the hill Mizer,
which means a little hill. And that little hill represents
providential blessings. The Mount Hermon represents the
rich spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. The wonderful thing it
is, and having been to Mount Hermon myself, and it snow-capped
all the year round, And those waters from that snow-capped
mountain, they come straight down the side of the mountain,
and at the bottom of the mountain is a big pool, and pouring into
it is those melting snow waters. And that is the source of the
River Jordan. The River Jordan is the main
source of water in Israel. Runs right the way down into
the Sea of Galilee, and through the Sea of Galilee, it carries
on down to the Dead Sea. Now, you look at that spiritually,
see on the Mount Hermon, and the outpouring of the Spirit,
and the waters that run down into the church. There is a river,
the streams are of shall make glad the City of God, the dwelling
places of the Most High. Yet, we mustn't forget the Mount,
the Hill Mizer, those providential blessings. Is it Rutherford said,
I'll bless the hand that guided, my web of time he wove. Everything was woven by God and
purposed and decreed by God. It was. And he gave her the upper
springs and the nether springs. Now, just consider how our Lord
Jesus Christ puts it. Seek ye first the kingdom of
heaven. We need to get our providential
and spiritual blessings, but he says, seek ye first the kingdom
of heaven and my righteousness. And all these things, that's
providential things, all these things, shall be added unto you. And he gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs. You know, whatever happens in
the life of the true believer is all ordered by God. Everything. And he fulfills his
purposes. God moves in a mysterious way.
his wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the
sea and rides upon the storm. Deep in unfathomable minds of
never failing skill, he treasures up his bright designs and works
his sovereign will. See, his providence unfolds a
book and makes his counsel shine. Each opening leaf, you see, It's
all ordered by God. But we must get our priorities
right. The great and the vital and the
important thing is to seek first the kingdom of God and my righteousness. And if we get that out of kilter,
then we shall stray and go wrong. You have to be careful, my beloved
friends. I've met people that They can
talk a lot about providential blessings, but nothing about
spiritual blessings. What a solemn place to be. Just
providential blessings. No spiritual blessings. It's
vital. Man shall not live by bread only,
but by, that is natural bread, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God shall man live. Unless that word, that
living word of the living God enters your heart, quickens your
soul, you have no spiritual life. You may have many providential
blessings, but if you haven't got these rich spiritual blessings
in Christ Jesus, that's a deeply solemn place to be, it is. that the Lord would exercise
our hearts, give me a blessing. For thou hast given me a south
land, give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper
springs and the nether springs. Oh, friends, we need both of
those things. And we need ever to remember
And the Lord will exercise your heart in this matter to seek
first the kingdom of heaven and my righteousness and all these
things, all providential things shall be added unto you. If you get it the other way around,
you'll go astray. If you get it so that The most
important thing in your life is these providential blessings
and you pray to the Lord, it's true, but it's all in providence. We need to get the priorities
right. Seeking first the kingdom of
heaven and my righteousness and all these things shall be added
unto you. give me a blessing. For thou
hast given me a southland, give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 1044. The tune is Bethlehem 447. Water from salvation's wells. Thirsty sinner, come and draw.
Grace in Jesus fullness dwells, more than men or angels know. hymn 1044, tune Bethlehem 447.
? O come all ye faithful joyful
and triumphant ? ? O come all ye faithful joyful and triumphant
? Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave Causing all the founts to ring. Till the day that Adam fell. Then the birds of Eden stream
Watery and garden-bred ? Far and wide the ? ? Lansing
flowers ? ? O'er the sinkers ? ? Garden ground ? ? Reached
in peace ? ? By Jesus' blood ? ? This whole town ? ? Should
ever know ? ? Thousands now ? ? Around the
throne ? ? Water from this fountain through ? ? Felt their grief
and sorrows come ? If it rains then why not you? Bring the money right for all
of us Now good deeds of pleasing grace, Thus He hath again become, 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.