May the Lord help us to worship
his great and holy name by turning to hymn 514, June Cedar, number
900. Oh, what matchless condescension
the eternal God displays, claiming our supreme attention to his
boundless works and ways, his own glory he reveals in gospel
days. Hymn 514, June Cedar, number
900. His eternal love displays. ? Make thee now supreme attention
? ? To His boundless worth and grace ? ? Eternal in His glory be ? He reveals in gospel praise. In the person of the Savior,
? All his majesty is seen ? ? Love
and justice shine forever ? ? And Mary had a little lamb in her womb ? God's love, God's love, God's
love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's
love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's
love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love,
God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love,
God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love,
God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love, God's love,
God's love, God's love, God's love, ? Who'd bring him his brightest
glory ? ? Here resides in Jesus' face ? ? Sing and tell the pleasing ? And with pleasure, and with pleasure,
? In God-building heaven-brace
? ? In His highest worth redemption give ? Sing his glory in the plains.
Long may angels at thy venture go down of God this day. Grace and justice,
grace and justice, be united in this day. Truth is sweet, and solemn of
pleasure, Continued with Christ the Lord. ? In his hands ? ? Has fought forever
? ? May the heights of his name record ? ? Praise and bless him ? From the sacred and holy word
of God, we shall read two passages this evening. First of all from
the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 11. The prophecy of Isaiah chapter
11. There shall come forth a rod
out of the stem of Jesse and a branch shall grow out of his
roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall
rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of
the fear of the Lord, and shall make him of quick understanding
in the fear of the Lord. And he shall not judge after
the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of
his ears. But with righteousness shall
he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the
earth. And he shall smite the earth
with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall
he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the
girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The
wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie
down with the kid. And the calf and the young lie
in the fattening together, and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall
feed their young one shall lie down together. The lion shall
eat straw like the ox, and the sucking child shall play on the
hold of the ass. And the weaned child shall put
his hand on the cocker of Christ's den. They shall not hurt nor
destroy all thy holy mountain. For the earth shall be full of
the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. And
in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for
an ensign of the people. To it shall the Gentiles seek,
and his rest shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in
that day that the Lord shall set his hand against the second
time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left
from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Kush,
and from Elam, and from Shina, and from Hamath, and from the
islands of the sea. He shall set up an ensign for
the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather
together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the
earth. The envious of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries
of Judah shall be cut off. Ephraim shall not vex Judah,
and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. They shall fly upon the shoulders
of the Philistines toward the west. They shall spoil them at
the east together. They shall lay their hand upon
Edom and Moab, and the children of Moab shall obey them. The Lord shall utterly destroy
the tongue of the Egyptian sea. With his mighty wind shall he
shake his hand over the river, and shall smite in the seven
streams, and make men go over dry shod. And there shall be
a highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left
from Assyria, like as it was to Israel in the day, that came
up out of the land of Egypt. We now turn to John chapter 15. John chapter 15 and we shall
read the first 17 verses. John 15. I am the true vine and my father
is the husband man. Every branch in me that beareth
not fruit he taketh away. In every branch that beareth
fruit he purgeth it, that he may bring forth more fruit. Now
ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit
of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except
ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I
in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit. For without me ye
can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he
is cast forth as a branch, is withered. And men gather them,
and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide
in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will,
and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified,
Should ye bear much fruit, so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me,
so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye
shall abide in my love. Even as I have kept my Father's
commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken
unto you, that my joy might remain in you. and that your joy might
be full. This is my commandment, that
ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater loveth no
man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do. Whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I'll call you not
servants, for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth. But
I have called you friends, for all things I have heard of my
Father I have made known unto you. You have not chosen me,
but I have chosen you and ordained you, that ye should go and bring
forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatsoever
ye should ask of my Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command you, that
ye love one Another, may God bless his holy word to us, may
he teach us and help us in prayer. Once more, most gracious God,
it is our privilege to gather around thy holy word for meditation,
prayer and praise and thanksgiving. For this further opportunity
we bless thy great and holy name, and pray thou sanctify it by
thy sacred presence, that the word of God may be made good
to us by the dear spirit whose word it is. Oh, dost it ascend
from heaven then, celestial dove, stoop down and take us on thy
wings. mount and bear us far above the
reach of all inferior things. Lord, there are many inferior
things that would occupy our minds. Many inferior things would
distract us from the one thing needful. But oh, do thou so keep
our heart and our mind this evening hour, that we may be single-minded. As the word of God says, let
thine eyes look right on. and thine eyelids straight before
thee. Ponder the path of thy feet,
and thy ways shall be established. Turn not to the right hand, nor
to the left. O Lord, may we hear a word behind
us this night saying, this is the way, walk ye in it. The way of salvation, the way
of faith, the way of obedience, the way of submission to thy
most holy mind and will. Do, Lord, then remember us this
night, blessing the means of Thy grace, Thy holy word we've
been reading, prayer and meditation. May it all flow together to the
good of our never-dying souls. Above all, for the honor and
glory of Thy dear name. Do make the place of Thy feet
glorious here tonight, and do cause Thy glorious voice to be
heard. Lord, do remove those hindrances. We have a carnal mind, a natural
man that is unspiritual, that neither desires nor can enter
into true worship. We have an enemy, Lord, of our
soul, ever waiting to hinder and to resist. We have a world
within, like the world without, that has no heart for Christ.
Lord, against all these things, the new man of grace has to engage
in a warfare. And, O Lord, as one said, He
sees me often overcome, and that is how true that is. But all
we do pray, Lord, tonight we may be overcome as by grace and
be raised above all the hindrances. Let my soul live in it shall
praise Thee, and let Thy judgments help me. Above all, we would
be led to the foot of the cross And they would gaze with believing
eyes upon that one on the centre cross, and like thy servant of
whom we read in that allegory, who, when he saw that one hanging
on the tree, his burden of guilt rolled off his back down a steep
slope into a sepulchre and was never seen again. And he cried,
Blessed cross, blessed sepulchre, blessed rather be the man that
suffered there and died for me. O Lord, what an evening it would
be if that were made over by Thy Spirit to one another here
tonight! O, would indeed be a day, Lord,
when the Son of Man was on the earth in that spiritual sense!
O, make it so, could it please Thee! Above all, do cast behind
Thy holy back our transgressions. Do, O Lord, remove far from us
all the is against us. And grant that the law may be
seen to be satisfied on our behalf by that precious Jesus, the law-giver
and the law-fulfiller. O Lord, what can we say to His
honour, how excellent He is? And we would be relying on that
excellence this night, for we know where else to look but that
precious Jesus. O Jesus, cast a look on me. May we know and feel that look
tonight, of love that even restored Peter out of Satan's sieve. That
look of love, O Lord, which thou didst give from the cross to
the dying thief. O Lord, it is that look we desire
tonight. O lift up the light of thy countenance
upon us. and grant us peace. Again, we
commend thy gracious hand, the dear pastor, deacons, members,
church and congregation, here thou hast planted. We thank thee
for thy many mercies toward them over the past year, for sustaining
and maintaining our dear friend. And now, Lord, we pray thou wilt
continue with him. And so open up thy word to him
and through him that many may say concerning This place, we've
heard that God is with you, we will go with you. Fill the empty
pews, we pray, with hungering and thirsting souls after righteousness. Build up the church in their
most holy faith, and may there be additions according to their
most holy mind and will. What we pray, Lord, for them,
we pray for every cause of truth represented here tonight. Each
of the dear friends who've turned in from various quarters may
where they reside spiritually be blessed with light blessings.
My dear servant turned in with us Lord and the sister cause
miss the many discouragements he lives with may he know that
he's yet where they would have him be and be with all who are
laboring on the walls of Zion tonight and all who are gathering
around thy word for prayer and for praise of the meditation.
O Lord, do rend the heavens and come down, and make the mountains
flow down at Thy beloved presence. Truly, Lord, Thou hast been our
help. Leave us not, neither forsake us, O God of our salvation. Look upon this gathered people
tonight, and the friends who would be here if they could,
lawfully detained. Do quicken His divine life, the
dead. Cause the living to to be enlivened,
Lord, for no man can keep alive his own soul. That union which
we have been reading needs to be maintained, and, Lord, only
Thou canst maintain it. We pray, Lord, likewise for Thy
rich favour and blessing to rest abundantly upon those who are
seeking Thee, if happily they might find Thee. Those who are
asking that question, saw ye Him whom my soul loveth. Who
may be with them, Lord, they went a little way from the watchman
and they found him, whom their soul loveth. May it be so even
tonight, one may go away from this house of prayer and find
him, him the hymn spoken of, as it were, within these walls,
but then find with their satisfaction in the coming days and hours.
Bless those who are burdened over loved ones, who long to
see that change that only grace can make. O Lord, we pray that
their prayers may be heard, their tears may be bottled up for that
day when they will say, this is the Lord's doing, it is marvelous
in our eyes. We pray, Lord, for more grace
in life's pathway, more patience, more humility, more discernment,
more sobriety, more endurance, more love, and those twin graces,
faith and repentance. Oh, Lord, we are greatly in need
of more grace. For thy word declares, but he
giveth more grace. Still thou art giving, Lord,
and in thy giving thou art not diminished. When we give, then
we have less after our giving than before. But with thee, Lord,
thy giving does not diminish in any way thy fullness. And,
Lord, that is a mercy. So the springs of which we would
Rejoice in our as full tonight as ever, so we may say with a
good psalmist, all my springs are in thee. And so they are,
and we thank thee for that. Bless a young and old before
thee tonight, as we're hasting to a never-ending eternity. Do
so direct our steps in providence and in grace. For we come to
the end of our journey, we may be able to say, O dear Simeon,
Lord, know that it is Thou Thy servant departing peace, for
mine eyes have seen Thy salvation. Does any of Thy dear saints on
the verge of Jordan bid their anxious fears subside? Death
of deaths and hell's destruction land them safe on Canaan's side. Songs of praises evermore to
give to Thee. O may we one day join that blessed
throng May one day we be found among that number, the spirits
of just men made perfect. Oh, Lord, we pray for that day.
And hasten that day of thy return, Lord Jesus, when from the graves
of thy dear people thou would raise immortal, incorruptible
bodies like thine own. Oh, what a change that will be,
freed from sin and freed from temptation. freed from this dying
world. Oh, what a day that will be,
made like Him, like Him we'll rise. Ours the cross, the grave,
the skies. Oh, these are great things we
ask, Lord, a great God. And Lord, nothing less than this
will do, if we're not to sink into eternal misery and perdition. So be with us, we thank Thee
for Thy many mercies, every answered prayer, every fulfilled promise. But all we do pray, thou wilt
go on to be gracious, Lord, as thou hast been, thou art, and
as thou art, thou wilt yet be. So, Lord, you go before us each
in the unknown way, making thy way plain before us, causing
our ears to hear behind us that word saying this is the way,
walking in it when you turn to the right hand or when you turn
to the left. So remember us now, grant prayer
in the pew, power in the pulpit. Lord, the effect of our prayers
does not rest on us, it rests on our great high priest and
the dear inward intercess of the Holy Ghost. Oh, do then,
Lord, accept our poor petitions. Do graciously appear for us this
night in the pulpit and in the pew. May we go away, Lord, refreshed
and revived restored and rebuilt and recovered and renewed. We
know what thou canst do. Awake, O north wind, and come
thou south, and blow upon my garden, that the spice thereof
may flow out. Let my beloved come into his
garden, and eat of his pleasant fruits. Remember us now, wash
our poor breathings, and accept us in the beloved. We ask for
his dear name's sake. Amen. We shall continue by turning
to hymn 939, June Tudor, 252. 939. Jesus, immutably the same, Thou true and living Vine, Around
thy all-supporting stem My feeble arms I twine. I can do nothing
without thee, My strength is wholly thine. Withered and barren
should I be, If severed from the vine. Hymn 939, Tune Tudor,
252. ? Christmastime, Christmastime
? ? Come true, come true, Christmastime ? I, where'er my own step would
descend, I'd be but out and dry. I can do nothing without Thee,
Thy strength is all in mine. River and barrow, sure are we,
Except the throng of thy. Where'er my feet now meander
I, Thy prow'r it shall bear fruit. I, I, I'm drawn, I should be
right, I think I'm wrong, I do. ? Peace, power, and glory ? ? Thine
I give ? ? Boundless with the divine ? ? Praise to thee eternal ? ? Life of heav'n ? Seeking the Lord's help and your
very prayerful attention, I would direct your thoughts this evening
to the prophecy of Ezekiel, chapter 34. the prophecy of Ezekiel chapter
34 and we will read a word you will find in verse 29 a plant
of renown the whole verse reads that I will raise up for them
a plant of renown and there shall be no more consumed with hunger
in the land Neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. A plant of renown. Of who could the prophet be speaking,
you may ask? Of himself or some other man? Friends, he's speaking to us
in prophecy of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I want this evening,
just for a few moments, to show to you, with God's help, that
he is a plant of renown. Just a word about the background. Ezekiel was a prophet ordained
to preach to the captives down in Babylon, around the years
of captivity there. And he himself had to sit where
they sat, partaking of the captivity. The Lord gave him many mysterious
prophecies to utter. In a sense, he was rather like
Jeremiah, because much of his prophecy is a negative nature,
rightly so, as Jeremiah's was largely. But not altogether. Just as Jeremiah's was not altogether,
there were some very precious Things in Jeremiah's prophecy
may even be mentioned later on, God willing, so in Ezekiel's
prophecy. And towards the end of this prophecy,
he's given a view of the future glory, not just of the returning
of Israel from captivity, but something far, far more glorious
than that. The Church of Christ gathered
from all quarters to this one of whom our text is speaking,
a plant of renowned. In this very chapter, the prophet
was rebuking the shepherds who had not fulfilled their office
and neglected the sheep whom they were commanded to observe
and watch. And the Lord said he would deal
sharply with them, and he did. But he hadn't forgotten his flock.
And in the latter verses, these are a encouragement to the flock
of Christ in difficult times. that the Lord hadn't forgotten
them. And here is a precious word of encouragement. I will raise up for them a plant
of renown. Now, of course, there are many
names given to our dear Saviour in prophecy. Emmanuel, being
interpreted God with us. Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord our
righteousness. the lion of the tribe of Judah,
and so we could go on. There are many names, rather
like a precious diamond. Whichever way the light, as it
were, falls on one of the facets, it shines a peculiar light to
that name. This name here is rarely mentioned,
and yet there's something very precious about it. A plant of
renown, something someone esteemed, Someone highly valued, someone
who stands out. Well, the Song of Solomon answers
that question, doesn't it? What is thy beloved more than
other beloved? That is so, charge us, they were
asking the church. And after a blessedly long description
of the glories of her bridegroom, her beloved, she says he's the
chiefest among 10,000. He's the altogether lovely one. Whichever name you take or is
brought to your attention of our Lord Jesus Christ, there's
something preeminent about it and something altogether lovely
concerning it. And here so tonight with this
name, a plant of renown. It tells us, first of all, two
things about the Lord Jesus Christ. just as a plant is planted in
the earth, so our Lord Jesus Christ, in the fullness of the
time of the Father, came into this sin-cursed earth and was
planted, as it were, in His holy humanity in this earth. Whereas the first Adam, though
he came forth from God's hand pure and upright, And he had
every blessing in that garden. We know how soon he fell away. And corruption followed and has
followed ever since on the face of this earth. But this dear
plant here, the Lord Jesus Christ, oh, how wonderfully pure his
humanity is. Holy, harmless, undefiled, separate
from sinners. There never was a man like him.
what he spoke, what he did, how he conveyed himself. You remember
when the Pharisees sent officers to arrest him? And they came
back and said, why have you not brought him? Never man spake
like this man. Dear friends, have you found
that? And you come with the disciples on the Galilean Lake and he arises
and rebukes the winds and the waves. And there's a great calm,
and they say, what manner of man is this? Even the winds and
the waves obey him. So what manner of man is he? On the one hand, he is truly
human. He's the seed of David. He's
the rod we read of in Isaiah 11. Sprung out from that root,
the root of David. He is a direct descendant of
David as God promised to David it would be so So he was is a
real man. Make no mistake about it No one
take that precious truth out of your heart. May God keep it
there a man. There is a real man and Dear
friend. He's in glory this evening our
resplendent Glorified beyond measure, but he's seen as the
man Christ Jesus and we know that Because Peter, Paul tells
us in Timothy, there is no other mediator between God and man.
He's speaking of Christ, the man, Christ Jesus. So he's a renowned in his humanity. There never was a man like him,
never sinned, never was unkind, never unjust, never deceitful,
never hasty. He fulfilled his Holy Father's
law from first to his last breath. Never once did he lay down on
his pillow at the end of the day in regret, wishing he had
done this or not done that, how different are you and I. For
the pillow he lay on was always a perfect one, having done his
father's will. There was no guilty conscience
there, no. And yet, dear friends, he was
assailed in his holy humanity. Here's a wonderful condescension
here, this plant of renown. He, one of the reasons he took
his holy humanity into human's divine person, that he might
experience in that holy body and soul, the soul to the evil
one, that he might overcome the evil one on behalf of his dear
people. Bless God for that. Friends,
if he'd never come onto the battlefield, We would never become overcomers. He's defeated Satan. He has overcome
the world. This dear man, the man Christ
Jesus. But then secondly, of course,
he is truly God. Never forget that. He was truly
God before he came. He was truly God when he came. He's truly God now. at the right
hand of his father. The good John Newton tells us,
I durst not confide in his blood, lest I were sure he is God. So this plant of renown is renowned
not just for his holy humanity, but because within him still
dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Mary held him in her
arms as her own proper child miraculously given as we read
in Luke's Gospel. But dear friends, within that
finite capacity dwelled all, not part, all the fullness of
the Godhead. I know we sometimes sing, do
we not, His shoulders hold up heaven and earth when Mary held
up Him. I think that should be slightly
rephrased, you know. His shoulders held up heaven
and earth though Mary held up Him. She held up the little babe
God had given her. Her shoulders didn't hold him
up. It didn't hold up the heaven and earth. His shoulders do.
Bless God for that. And friends, as you've got many
burdens tonight, are you weighed down with guilt or weighed down
with some difficulty in the way? Remember whose shoulders there
are to carry them. The same one that bore the cross
to Golgotha, and not just the literal wood on his holy back.
But friends, he bore the guilt of a number that no man could
number, and suffered, bled, and died, verily God, as well as
verily man. The Godhead couldn't die, we
know, but through his holy humanity, well, Joseph Hart put it so beautifully
on. Almighty God sighed human breath. The Lord of Life experienced
death. How it was done, we can't discuss,
but this we know, says Joseph Hart, speaking for himself, and
can you go with him? This we know. It was done for
us. And friends, you'll never be
more esteemed in your soul than when you get that view. In my
place, condemned he stood. Oh, then it be a plan to renown
to you then. Then he made willing to go forth
unto without the camp, bearing his reproach. He will be the
chiefest among ten thousand to you then, and the altogether
lovely one. I, if I be lifted up, will draw
all men unto me. So, dear friend, this plant of
renown is on the one hand, yes, planted in this earth in that
sense, in that type, truly man. But, friend, he's the root as
well as the offspring of David. He is the bright, the morning
star. He is God as well as man. And so, for example, when he
break the bread, the loaves to feed the 5,000, it was his human
hands that took the bread and the fish into his dear hands.
Remember, they were inefficient in any other hand. Put your five
loaves and your two fish in his hand, dear friend. He can multiply
them. It was His divine hand that multiplied,
and multiplied, and multiplied, till it all ate and were filled. Friend, put your impossibility
in His dear hand tonight. Your resources may be so limited
you feel it, so contracted. And when the disciples were writing,
one said, what are these among so many? Yes, Andrew and Philip
and Peter and the rest, in your hands they are nothing like what
is needed. that put them in the hands of
the dear Saviour. Give ye them to me, he said.
That's what the law commands you to do, believer, tonight,
with your poor, finite resources you feel to have in the path
you're in. Give ye them to me. See what he can do. Verily God,
verily man, with God all things are possible. With him nothing
shall be called impossible. A little one shall become a thousand.
and a small city, a strong nation, I the Lord will hasten it in
His time." The plans of Renown. And now Scripture, and this is
the wonderful thing about Scripture, it unfolds the mystery of these
things in its sacred page in different ways. For example,
we go to the Song of Solomon, we read these beautiful words,
I sat down under His shadow with great delight And His fruit was
sweet to my taste. Who, which tree is this? The
tree of the plant of renown. Under its shadow, I told you
this afternoon, or tried to, what it was to be under the shadow
of the Almighty and His care. I sat down, the place of teaching.
I sat down, the place of submission. I sat down, the place of love.
I sat down, the place of feeding. I sat down under his shadow with
great delight. And many, dear friends, have
sat under his shadow here in this house of prayer. As it were,
the fruit of the word of God has been dropped down into their
hearts, precious promises, sweet invitations. And when that took
place, dear friends, and some of you here know it, then this
plant of renown was highly esteemed in your heart. You lost sight
of the minister, You lost sight of all others. It was none but
Jesus. And oh, how highly esteemed he
was in your eyes as you partook of the fruit of his sufferings.
The fruit of the life he laid down, the death he endured, and
the resurrections attend to, and his ever prevalent intercession.
Sweet fruit, blessed fruit. Oh, no wonder Jeremiah said,
thy words were found and I did eat them. And they were to me,
note those two words, to me. To me, the joy and the rejoicing
of my heart. There was a time when it wasn't
to me. You know it, dear friend, some of you. May still be so
with some. Sit under the best of ministries.
Sat at the feet, outwardly, the best of teachers, perhaps. And
the Lord provides pastors and ministers. And yet, it's never
been to you. But some of you can say, yes,
it has been to me. The Lord has done it. Whenever
I read Isaiah 53, there are two verses that are right next to
each other which impress me. One is this, we esteemed him
not. The next verse, we did esteem
him. My dear friend, there is what
sovereign grace does. This plant of renown is not esteemed. by the man by nature. There's no heart for him. There's
no desire after him. There's no love to him. No, there's
no esteem for him. Good Murray McShane, that mighty
preacher of Scotland, said, though a friend spoke in rapture of
Christ on the tree, Jehovah said to Ken, you meant nothing to
me. And yet, dear friend, the next verse we did esteem him.
What happened? I tell you what's happened, dear
friend, you've been brought to need him. That's why you esteem
him. If none other can do your poor
aching soul good than this precious Jesus, and it's with his stripes
you are healed. Yes, then you esteem him. A plant
of renown. Yes, the great change that grace
makes. Has it made it in your life?
Has it made it in mine? Do we esteem above all other
things? Can we really say with him right?
For I could from all things parted be, but never, never, Lord, from
thee. That was Ruth's religion, wasn't
it? And Moses' religion as well. Yes, they esteem the reproach
of Christ. Greater riches than all the treasures
of Egypt or Moab. Yeah, they esteemed him above
it all. The plant of renown. Now come with me in the Old Testament
to the dear children of Israel. And there they were, wonderfully
delivered the night of the Passover. Oh, what a deliverance it was.
All the previous plagues had only hardened Pharaoh's heart.
But the shedding of the blood unlocked the gate. Friends, Satan
himself cannot withstand when God applies deliverance through
the power of His blood. It's a mercy, isn't it? All hell
must give way when the Lord uses precious blood like that. And
so it was in type in the night of the Passover, the night of
the shedding of blood, for it was then that Pharaoh's heart
was turned by God at last to do what God willed him to do,
let my people go. And now they went out with a
high hand, as the Lord had told, Abraham hundreds of years before,
exactly as he had said. They come to the Red Sea, we
know the wonderful deliverance that is given there. They've
seen the doxology on the other side of the Red Sea, I think
they thought their troubles were over. They'd only just begun,
hadn't they? They go three days into the wilderness
and the water they brought out from Egypt now is dried up, the
bottles are empty, the children are crying for a drink and so
are the cattle also. They were in a tight corner,
dear friends, easy for us to read the chapter. If you had
a little family, say, of six children or more, say, with you,
and they say, we want drink, you haven't got it, you're poor,
you'd be so distracted, would you not? How can you possibly
provide for them when it's not there? Eventually, they see an
oasis before them. The news of it, no doubt, filters
back through that large camp, and they hasten toward it, or
the seemingly Attractive waters. But they bow down to drink and
they are acrid. They are bitter. Just like we
said about Naomi this afternoon. Mara. That's why it was called
Mara. Bitterness. The children of Israel
must have wondered why they came in. Some thought some mistake
had been made. And as usual, poor Moses was the butt of their
reproach. What that man suffered, dear
friends, we've only the slightest hint. What did he suffer for
Christ's sake? That's in whose service he was.
They began to reproach him and rebuke him. What did the dear
man say? What you must do, dear friend,
when you're under reproach? He looked up. He looked up and
he told his God. And the Lord showed him a tree.
A tree. And there are three things about
that tree you should never forget. One, the Lord put it there, it
was planted by the Lord, as He does every tree in one sense.
But here was a tree specially ordained by Almighty God for
a purpose. Secondly, it had to be shown
to Moses. It had to be revealed to him.
He had to know which tree it was. The Lord showed him a tree.
And the third thing was it had to be cut down. It couldn't remain
where it was if the waters were to be made sweet. So Moses cut
the tree down, and into the waters went that branch he cut down.
The waters flowed over it, and they became sweet. Surely, friends,
you can see the plant of renown there, can you not? Our Lord
Jesus Christ, the one planted by the waters of Mara. And you
thank God He was, dear friends. In all your Maras, the Lord has
been there. Remember that. especially that
deep mara of your guilt, he's been there. There my God bore
all my guilt, says good Joseph Hart, speaking of Gethsemane.
And that was a mara. This by faith may be believed. Oh, how wonderful to think the
condescending love of the Father to plant his dear Savior right
by the water of mara of his dear people, their afflictions, their
bereavements, their sorrows, their temptations, even their
guilt, oh behold the Lamb of God, planted there, another metaphor
I know, but it had to be shown and it had to be cut down. And
so Moses did his bidding, prefiguring our Lord being cut down for his
dear people, cast into those bitter waters, and the waters
flowed over, just as we read in Psalm 42, and Dave was an
Amara there, All thy ways and thy billows are gone over me.
Yes, all of them. Prophetic concerning our dear
Saviour. All God's ways and billows of
wrath and justice rolled over him that our Mara may be made
sweet. And so it was. They bent down
to drink of those waters and they were sweet. What made them
sweet? This plant of Renown. You may
wonder why you come to your Mara, poor friend, tonight. Lord, why
is this? Why this disappointment? Why
this discouragement? Why this sharp thorn? Why has
that cloud got darker than it was before? Lord, why is it?
You may prove what this plant of renown can do. You wouldn't
be able to prove it, dear friend, unless the Lord brought you to
Mara. And they were not to move from Mara until they'd been made
sweet. And then when he made sweet,
they moved on, but not until. And friends, you pray the Lord
may make your Mara sweet. And you might not believe me,
dear friends, but it'll be true. You'll even thank God for your
Mara when he makes it sweet. You won't quarrel with him. Lord,
did it have to be that way? No, you'll say, Lord, it is the
Lord who's matched her skill, yes, gave me the grace for it. And there I proved him sympathetic,
understanding, ready to deal with my Mara, making the bitter
waters sweet. I raise up for them a plant of
renown. Oh, friends, are you not thankful
for that? Again, Jeremiah takes up a very
similar metaphor under God's hand as Isaiah does, speaking
about the branch. And he says, he gives a name
to the branch, the Lord Our Righteousness. What a wonderful name that is.
The Lord, Our Righteousness. And it tells us of the righteousness
that the Lord Jesus Christ wrought out here below in His holy humanity. In that holy work He did from
Bethlehem to Calvary, He wrought out a perfect righteousness,
a perfect robe And it was for others. He didn't need it for
himself. Good John Bunyan, in Pilgrim's Progress Part 2, tells
Christina, the Christiana, I should say, the wife of Christian, why
he didn't need it himself. As God, he did not need it. Nothing
could add to his holiness as God. He didn't need it as the
man because he was holy, pure, undefiled. Then who did need
it? Those for whom He came. Those
for whom He came. And friends, He had to take their
nature. That's why the doctrine of humanity of Christ is so important. Friends, if He didn't take our
nature, we've not got a righteousness to plead before God. No. Had He taken angelic nature,
He wouldn't have reached us. Wouldn't have come down to our
state. But no, He takes on in the form of a servant. Under
the law, His own law, He, the lawgiver, becomes the law-fulfiller. Why? That He might fulfill it
for this people who find Christ to be renowned and impute to
them His righteousness. In that mysterious word in the
Corinthians, He, that's God the Father, hath made Him, that's
God the Son, to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might
be made the righteousness of God in him. Jehovah said, can you dear friend,
the Lord, our righteousness. I like to think of it as the
bridegroom receiving his bride, in a Christian marriage of course,
she then takes his name. She comes into the service or
ceremony in her own name. She goes out in the name of her
husband. The name of the union is this, the Lord Our Righteousness.
That's why you have it later on in Jeremiah. This is the name where he shall
be called and this is the name where she shall be called. The
Lord Our Righteousness. Oh, what a robe in this plant
of renown. This blessed type, you see, was
the one who provided it for the Church of Christ. So what is
he renowned for? How does he stand out in your
affections tonight? First of all, there's no voice
like his, is there? Remember when Adam and Eve in
the Garden of Eden sinned, they dreaded to hear the voice of
their creator then. They were guilty and they had
no covering. There was no mediator at that
point between them and there offended God. Oh, it was a terror
to hear that voice. My dear friend, to hear the voice
of God, as it were, out of Christ is a terror. But when he speaks
through Emmanuel, when he speaks through his dear son, there's
no voice like it. Listen. Hark. The voice of love
and mercy. Sounds aloud from Calvary. What is it? It is finished. That's
the dear Saviour hanging on His cross, having finished the work
His Father gave Him to do, having wrought out the righteousness,
having satisfied divine justice, having shed His precious blood,
about to bow His lovely head in death, in complete submission,
all to give His dear people. That blessed Word, it is finished. And all the promises of God,
friends, flow from that. Every grace and every favor comes
to us through Jesus' precious blood. Oh, how wonderful when
he speaks. You think of Mary Magdalene. She was at the tomb. Angels have
spoken to her. But that didn't wipe away her
tears. No. She stands there weeping, broken
hearted. They've taken away my Lord and
I know not where they have laid him. And she behelds One who
thinks of a stranger. He asked her a question. Woman,
why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She hath taken
away my Lord, I know not where thou have laid him. Tell me where
thou hast taken him, thou hast taken him hence. And he just
said one word, Mary. And friends, that one word was
enough. the power of it, the application
of it, the suitability of it, the certainty of it, the love
in it, the mercy in it. The rest of that, dear woman,
this is my savior speaking. Now, friend, there are some here
tonight, and I trust I am one of them, by grace, who would
know if he spoke. There's no voice like it, friends. No voice
like it. It's the sweetest thing to hear
Jesus speak. over the tumult of our sins and
guilt, over all our troubles and trials. A word like this
it is I, be not afraid. Or a word like this, peace I
leave with you, my peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth,
give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid. Oh, he's a plant of renown then. Oh, the esteem in his voice.
What about his dear face? His dear face? You know the custom
was in certainly in our Lord's time very often for the veil
to be over the woman's face so she wasn't seen. But her husband
could lift the veil and she would see his face and he would see
hers. Now my dear friends, the Lord Jesus Christ, it's wonderful
he lifts the veil, isn't it? Just for a few moments, got a
glimpse of his lovely face. That visage once marred more
than any man's. As he stood in the judgment hall,
spat upon, smitten by that rod that one of the soldiers held. Oh, what pain he must have endured. Even before he hung on the cross,
on his holy head, blood poured down, as the crown did its work
of thorns. His visage was so marred more
than any man's. And yet, my dear friends, when
you view that by faith, it makes him all the more renowned. Behold,
a scene of matchless grace, tis Jesus in the sinner's place. Heaven's brightest glory sunk
in shame that rebels might adore his name. But then, oh no, his
dear face, it shines with mercy, with glory. And sometimes he
uncovers it to his dear people and they get just a glimpse,
the enshining of his word, the enshining of those precious invitations,
the enshining of that precious presence of his. And you know,
and you see him, you behold him in your soul, loveth in the word,
in the letters of the gospel. You see what you haven't seen
before, at least so clearly perhaps. How lovely he is, that lovely
face of his. Thine eye shall see the king
in his beauty, and shall behold that land that is very far off. I think the dear dying thief
could see that, you know. Humanly speaking, all he could
see was a marred visage. And the man in agony and shame,
humanly speaking, But faith saw something else. Faith saw him
as the king of kings and lord of lords. Faith saw him as one
who is the savior of poor sinners. And on that ground, he ventured.
He ventured. What a venture it was. At the
very border of the pit, he ventured. And friends, without being fanciful,
we must not read between the lines. But we can almost see
the dear Savior turning and smiling on that poor suffering thief. When he said, verily I say unto
you today, thou shalt be with me in paradise. There's nothing like a smile
from him you know. There's everlasting love in it,
everlasting joy in it, everlasting mercy in it. There's nothing
to be compared with. All the false smiles of this
world are not once to be compared. with just a smile from the face
of my Saviour, a plant of renown in His smiles. Again, dear friends,
in His dealings, in His dealings. We don't always understand His
dealings. Oftentimes we do not. And yet you know when they work
out under His blessed hand, how we esteem them. As for God, His
way is perfect. always right in what he does,
too wise to err, too good to be unkind. And you look back,
look how it raises your esteem in him when you see how good
he's been, how wise he's been, how kind he's been, how forbearing
he's been, how patient he's been with you. And you have so often
distrusted him and wondered where the scene will end. And he comes
with that loving voice, Why are you so fearful? How is it you
have no faith? Perhaps that suits one of you
tonight. Why are you so fearful? Are those fears more than he
can manage? Are those doubts more than he
can resolve? Is that burden more than he can
carry? No. Oh dear friends, he's renowned
in this respect. His dealings are always right. As for God, His way is perfect. And usually, He brings us to
the end of our dealings first, our doings first, shuts us up
in a corner where we can do nothing, and then He appears, tears us
off till men are faint, and then He comes at evening late. And He waits, dear friends, so
that we may esteem Him the more. It was so with Martha and Mary
and Lazarus. We know that with a word he could
have healed Lazarus from afar. He didn't need even to come to
his bedside and heal him, had that been his will. But no, strangely
enough, he stays away until he knows Lazarus is dead. He doesn't
even arrive at Bethany until he's been buried four days. Where
is the love in that? You might say, I'm sure the enemy
was saying to Martha and Mary, does he love you? Did he love
Lazarus? How could this have happened?
from a loving Jesus. Friend, they had a double bereavement,
didn't they? Not just bereaved of their brother, but where was
their Lord? Are you doubly bereaved tonight? There's perhaps a crook in your
lot and it brings loss in your view, but it's double because
as yet you can't see the Saviour, can't see His steps, can't feel
His presence. You're doubly bereaved. My friends,
that's a low place to get to. Martha and Mary were there. But
why was it? They didn't hear what the Lord
said to the disciples. I was glad I was not there. What? Is that Jesus speaking? Glad
he was not there? I was glad I was not there. Why?
To the intent you might believe. And my dear friends, his silence
of the moment is that very reason to the intent that when he comes,
you will esteem him more. You will. Friends, he wisely
left this matter to get altogether beyond human hell. And then he
came. Oh, if thou hast been here, said
Martha, our brother had not died, but faith began to rise. I know
that even now, whatsoever thou dost ask of God, God will give
it thee. Thy brother shall rise again. Yes, the last day, says
Martha, I am the resurrection of the life, that wonderful testimony
from our Lord's lips, and then Martha's acquiescence to it,
and then they come to the grave. And poor Martha's overcome again
by unbelief and what's seen with the natural eye. Lord, he stinks,
he's been dead four days. Martha. Martha, saidst I not
unto thee, If thou wouldest believe, thou shalt see the glory of God. Now, dear friend, though do you
think it's got beyond the Lord's help, stand still and see what
the Lord will do. Lazarus, come forth. And that penetrating voice from
this glorious person we're speaking of penetrates the grave, penetrates
that dead body of Lazarus, restores him as well as brings his soul
back into him and he comes forth bound hand and foot with grave
clothes. Oh friends, how esteemed he was
in the eyes of Martha, Mary and Lazarus when that trial was over. And that's what Job meant. He
knoweth the way that I take. And when he hath tried me, I
shall come forth as gold. And friends, that means not only
gold in that sense, Job refined, but there'll be a reflection
in Job, a reflection of his God. Apparently in the Bible days
the refiner sat by the molten metal, he kept scooping the impurities
off and he carried on to his own reflection in the molten
gold and then he knew it was the purity desire. And so, my
dear friend, the Lord keeps you and I in our fiery trials until
His reflection is seen in us. That's grace, and only grace
could do it. Then the fire has done its work.
And you'll know, dear, when it's done its work, when you can join
and say, yes, He's altogether lovely. He's altogether lovely. I never knew how precious He
could be. And the wonderful thing to me,
you say, is that he's lovely, not only in my view, but I believe
he loves me. What a wonderful thing to be
able to say. If Paul the Apostle was going to give his testimony
at Lamberhurst Chapel, it would be with one verse. I am crucified
with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth
in me. The life I now live in the flesh,
I live by the Son of God. who loved me and gave himself
for me. Friends, Paul could not speak
highly enough of the renowned one in our text, and I hope you
cannot either. Oh, friends, words fail us. The
bride eyes not her garment, but her dear bridegroom's face. I
will not gaze on glory, but on my king of grace, not on the
crown he giveth, But on his pierced hand, where the Lamb is all the
glory of Emmanuel's land. Oh, he's held in the highest
esteem there. May one day we join that blessed
number, and at our own feeble yet we trust true note. Yea,
he is altogether lovely. So he is. Would to God we loved
him more. Amen. The collection today is for the
dear pastor here. May the Lord bless you in your
giving. We shall sing a part of hymn 142. We shall sing the
first seven verses and the last two. The first seven verses and
the last two verses of hymn 142 to the tune Eshtiol 332. Go,
worship at Emmanuel's feet. See in His face what wonders
meet. The earth is too narrow to express
His worth, His glory or His grace. Is He a tree? The world receives
salvation from His healing leaves. That righteous branch, that fruitful
bough, is David's root and offspring too. In 142 verses 1 to 7 and
17 and 18. Worship at the angels' feet. Sing this praise, O heart of
me. The things we have yet to express
Is but this glory of His grace. ? Earth, all creation ? ? Heaven
and earth ? ? Earth, all creation ? ? Heaven and earth ? ? Last of ages ? ? Last of
ages ? ? Lost love, my love ? Nature to men is giv'n its word.
Thus speak the Godhead's Lord and Lord. ? Listen, O Friend, to my prayer
? ? Give to us love with lasting care ? ? That flesh can die in blood of
wine ? ? This dreadful night, this terrible night ? Christian free the world receives.
Salvation from this living race. and righteousness crowned, and
freedom from hell is given to you, and God's strength to you. ? Haste ye across the cherubim
hills ? ? Start praying and sing in all the hills ? ? For in the
hills of Bethlehem ? ? Be as you ? ? Have the witness
? ? The rich were few ? ? This day of mine ? ? His heavenly
praise ? ? Surprise, surprise ? ? With life and praise ? ?
I lift my voice to you ? ? My soul to Christ the new-born
King. ? ? Lift me up and place me on
the lift. ? ? And hearts of high to God
be giv'n ? ? The saints begun and saints above ? ? Join thy history with man this
time ? ? Permit me find that time again ? Rest, O tender love,
best ever bright. ? Where he displays his power to
rule ? ? And shines a great dimmer than the sun ? No earth, no seas, no sun, no
stars, No heav'n is full, this heav'nless rest, His beauty's grief can never
trace, Till we behold him face to face. And now, dear Lord, do cover
with a mantle of thy forgiving love all that thy pure and holy
eyes have seen amiss in our worship this day. Take us on our way
in peace and safety. Prepare us for the Sabbath that
draws near so quickly once more. And may the grace of our Lord
and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the love of God, the Holy Spirit's
favour. Rest and abide with us each,
both now and evermore. Amen. In thankfulness to the Lord,
Let us sing the usual doxology. It is the last verse of hymn
736. The tune is Celeste. Sorry, the
last verse of hymn 220. The tune is Celeste 736. This
God is the God we adore. our faithful, unchangeable friend,
whose love is as large as his power, and neither knows measure
nor end. Tis Jesus, the first and the
last, whose spirit shall guide us safe home. We'll praise him
for all that is past, and trust him for all that's to come. This God is the God we adore,
our faithful, unchangeable friend, whose love of justice, power, and neither
transgression nor death. Tis Jesus, the first and the
last, Her spirit shall guide us safer. We'll praise Him for
all that is past. And trust Him for all that's
to come.