May the Lord help us to commence
our worship today. I'm sorry, friends, I should
read the notices first. The notices for the week, if
the Lord will, pastor will preach next Lord's Day at 10.30 and
2 o'clock. Pastor will also preach on Thursday
evening at 7 o'clock. There will be a prayer meeting
on Tuesday evening at 7 o'clock. There will be a church meeting
on Tuesday, 7th March, at 7 o'clock, if the Lord will. Now may the
Lord help us to commence our worship this morning with hymn
number 920, the tune Philpot 682A. When to worship saints assemble,
let the song to Jesus flow. He forsook his ancient glory,
groaned and bled for worms below. Ransomed mortals joined to swell
the sacred song, hymn 920. This day's assembly lend a song
to Jesus' birth. He consumed this ancient glory,
? O Canada, home of the brave ?
? O Canada, home of the brave ? ? O Canada, home of the brave
? King, to find your self-sanity,
Hear your heart's message now say, He shall have on God in beauty Righteousness that's right
and free. Sister of God and I am the lost kingdom Tis with the words of God my
name, Let the winds now from my head howl, ? From his eye
for ever finding ? ? Children every name and size ? ? Heathen
and peasants ? It's time for Mr. Taylor. O'er the ramparts we watched
were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the
bombs bursting in air, ? Love is righteousness of Jesus
? ? Love shall guide his own ways on ? ? Tis the end I know
? May the Lord help us to read
from His infallible Word. We turn to the book of Proverbs,
chapter 31, and I also want to read the latter verses in chapter
30, beginning at verse 24. The 30th chapter in the Proverbs,
beginning at verse 24, together with chapter 31. There be four things which are
little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise. The ants are a people not strong,
yet they prepare their meat in the summer. The cone is our but
a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks. The locusts have no king, yet
go they forth all of them by bands. The spider taketh hold
with her hands and is in king's palaces. there be three things
which go well. Yea, four are comely in going,
a lion which is strongest among beasts, and turneth not away
for any, a grey hound, and he goat also, and a king, against
whom there is no rising up. If thou hast done foolishly in
lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine
hand upon thy mouth. Surely the churning of milk bringeth
forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood. So the foresin of wrath bringeth
forth strife. The words of King Demiurge. The prophecy that his mother
taught him. What, my son? And what, the son of my womb? And what, the son of my vows. Give not thy strength unto women,
nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings. It is not for kings, O
Lemuriel, it is not for kings to drink wine, nor for princes
strong drinks, lest they drink and forget the law, and pervert
the judgment of any of the afflicted. Give strong drink unto him that
is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts. Let him drink and forget his
poverty, and remember his misery no more. Open thy mouth for the
dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destruction. Open thy mouth, judge righteously,
and plead the cause of the poor and needy. Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth
safely trust in her. So that he shall have no need
of spoil. She will do him good and not
evil. all the days of her life. She
seeketh wool and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands. She is like the merchant ships,
she bringeth her food from afar. She riseth also while it is yet
night, and giveth meat to her household and a portion to her
maidens. She considereth a field and buyeth
it. With the fruit of her hand she
planteth a vineyard. She girdeth her loins with strength
and strengtheneth her arms. She perceiveth that her merchandise
is good, Her candle goeth not out by night. She layeth her hands to the spindle,
And her hands hold the disturb. She stretcheth out her hand to
the poor, Yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy She is
not afraid of the snow For her household For all her household
are clothed with scarlet She maketh herself coverings
of tapestry Her clothing is silk and purple Her husband is known in the gates,
when he sitteth among the elders of the land. She maketh fine linen and selleth
it, and delivereth girdles unto the merchant. Strength and honour are her clothing. And she shall rejoice in time
to come She openeth her mouth with wisdom
And in her tongue is the law of kindness She looketh well
to the ways of her household And eateth not the bread of idleness Her children arise up and call
her blessed, Her husband also, and he praiseth her. Many daughters have done virtuously,
But thou excellest them all. Favour is deceitful, and beauty
is thine. That a woman that feareth the
Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her
hands, and let her own works praise her in the guise. May the Lord own and bless the
reading from his own holy word of truth and help us now to pray. O Lord, Thou who art the sovereign
ruler of the skies, ever gracious, ever wise. All my times are in
thy hands, all events at thy command. We thank thee, O Lord,
for this, another God-given opportunity and privilege of meeting together
in the house of God, the place where thine honour dwelleth,
on this another Lord's Day. The labours and responsibilities
of the past week are over and gone. Now, Lord, we commence
a new week of time. and desire to give the day, Lord,
to thee in worship and meditation, in prayer and preaching, and
in waiting upon thee, praying that thou wilt be gracious to
us and remember us in all our great needs. and dependence upon
them. We may prove again today that
our sufficiency is of God. Lord, we're not equal to that
which is required of us in and of ourselves. We need thy grace, Lord Jesus. We need the strength of God. We need the divine power of thy
Holy Spirit. Then, Lord, being thus favoured
and blessed, we are enabled to worship thee in spirit and in
truth. and thy name will be glorified. And, Lord, thy dear people will
receive those spiritual blessings that flow to us through the person
of thy well-beloved Son, in whom thou art well-pleased. And so, Lord, we would bow before
Thee in reverence and in godly fear. For Thou art the eternal
God, who inhabiteth eternity. O Lord, and we are creatures,
Thy creatures, on earth. But, O Lord, As Adam sinned, so we all fell
in our federal head. But oh, may we be made alive
by the second Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ. In him was life
and the life was the light of men. Favour us, Lord, with spiritual
life to die. Grant us spiritual light and
liberty, so that there may be no hindrance or stumbling block to hinder us in our worship,
that may we know that sacred liberty that comes from the presence
of thy Holy Spirit. We do pray, Lord, that thou would
be gracious to us and remember us in our lowest state, for thy
mercy endearing forever. Oh, do favour us, Lord, to die. Thou knowest how we have each
come to thine earthly courts. Thou knowest how we have entered
the doors. Thou knowest the exercise of
our soul, the prayer that is risen from our hearts. the desire
to see no man but Jesus only, to receive a word from the Lord
to die, that we'll meet our case and come where we are, that there
we'll pour in the oil and wine of the gospel, so that we might
rejoice and be glad, Lord, in thee, and be like the eunuch
of old, who went on his way rejoicing. Oh, Lord, do favour us. We are
passing through this wilderness. And what a wilderness, Lord,
it is to thy dear people. But, oh, we do thank thee for
Elim. Oh, those three score and ten
palm trees. Those twelve wells of water favour
us, Lord, to encamp there to die. Oh, may we draw from the
wells of salvation, and may we partake of the sacred fruit of
those serpent trees. And so may the hungry and thirsty
of our souls be met, as God may be glorified in the midst of
Zion, and thy humble servants favoured and blessed. Bless the
provision of thy house and satisfy thy poor with bread. We pray, Lord, for each one in
this assembly, We thank thee, Lord, for the goodly number found
in this house of God. Oh, do remember them as they
gather from Sabbath to Sabbath and week by week. In their stated
leap, they're worshipping thee, Lord, in this honoured house
of God, under this vine and fig tree. and the ministry of their
beloved pastor. Oh, may they be built up in their
most holy faith and be established in the truth and be founded upon
that eternal rock, the rock Christ Jesus. And to be with their dear
pastor as he comes in and out amongst them continually. O may,
as it was with David of old, he was loved by the people, as
he came in and out amongst them continually. And so may there
be, as we believe there is, dear Lord, that love to their dear
pastor for the truth's sake, and that God-given ability that
vouchsafeth give him. to rightly divide the word of
truth, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed. Be with him,
Lord, in his labour here, his labour in secret, waiting upon
thee, and his labour in public, in the declaration of the eternal
truth of God, May thy word accomplish that which is pleasing, Lord,
to thee, regarding thy cause and interest here. O Lord, do we pray thee continue
to own and bless thy word proclaimed here through His lips. that through the abundance of
the work of grace in his heart, his mouth may speak. So, Lord, be with him today where
he is and be with him, Lord, in his great loss that he has
sustained. A year has passed now. since his dear wife was buried. Do continue to uphold him in
the family also, in the great loss they have sustained. And be with all the assemblers
of those saints, dear Lord, today. We pray in the much affection
and love for the gospel standard denomination to which we are
affiliated and united and where our loyalty and affection is. We thank thee, Lord, for the
remembrance of godly ministers and godly friends that we remember
in former days. So many, Lord, have gone to their
eternal rest, but we thank them that there is still a little
remnant according to the election of Christ. And do preserve us
and protect us and defend us as causes of truth. And grant thy blessing, Lord,
to rest upon us. from above. Remember those who
hold office in the denomination, in responsibility, Lord, and
our two dear friends and brothers here, as they serve Thee, not
only in this cause of truth as deacons, but also in the denomination. Give that needed wisdom, Lord,
in matters, weighty matters, that have to be determined and
executed. May it all be done as we believe
it is. We know it is in the fear of
the Lord. Now, Lord, to remember thy afflicted
people. Oh, and number, Lord, labour,
labour under infirmity and weakness. And bear these things, Lord,
in much silence as before man, that, Lord, thou knowest. Oh,
do give that needful grace and strength and help suited to every
day, according to thy divine promise, that as thy days, so
shall thy strength be. And Lord, do we pray thee, sanctify
these dispensations. May there be those spiritual
blessings as a recompense for the sufferings and infirmities
and pain and weariness of the flesh. We pray for our aged sister,
Mrs. Ena Field. Unable, Lord, to present
her body now in the house of God as formerly. We thank thee
for the means that are available to those unable to meet in person. can be with us in spirit and
hear the services as they are conducted from the pulpit. Lord, do give to me today that
much-needed ministerial grace and God-given ability so that
thy word may go forth and Accomplish thy will, that I might be favoured
to dip my foot in oil, and be acceptable to the brethren and
sisters in the Lord Jesus. And so, Lord, be with us unitedly,
as the heart of one man. Be with us personally. in our own exercises before them,
and in the great concern. Lord, that greatest concern regarding
our approaching ends. One after another, Lord, have
been taken, even in this year thus far. Several, Lord, already. Oh, do then fit and prepare us,
for that great and solemn change. Remember, Lord, our nation, oh,
that it could please Thee to turn the hearts of those in authority
to the Lord, to Thy Word, and to conduct matters of state in
the fear of the Lord. We pray for those suffering calamity
in Turkey and Syria and the continuance of the warfare in Ukraine. Oh Lord, how sad and solemn these
things are. And men that fear not God, neither
regard man. continue to bring death and destruction
and misery and damage in that land. But Lord, we know that
thy judgment is reserved for the unjust man. And the day,
Lord, will come when thy solemn judgments will be executed upon
such. And so, Lord, do we pray thee,
undertake and help and support those who suffer at the hands
of ungodly, ungracious, and unreasonable men. Help us, Lord, to thank
Thee for the blessings that we have in this, our land, and for
the liberty of public worship. Now, Lord, do help us as we further
wait upon Thee, the singing of the sacred hymns, and may all
redound to the glory of God, and may we be spiritually edified
and further instructed in the things of God through the services,
not only of this day, but continually that they may be a means of grace
unto us each. Do make up in giving, dear Lord,
where I fail to ask. Do hear us in heaven, thy dwelling
place, so when thou hear it, Do mercifully forgive. As we desire to praise thy great
and holy name, for all thy mercies and for all thy truth's sake,
we would praise and honor the name and person of God the Father,
God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. God bless it for evermore. Amen. Hymn 961 Be still, my heart, These anxious cares to thee are
burdens, thorns and snares. They cast dishonor on thy Lord
and contradict his gracious word. Hymn 961. ? To Thee, our God, let all sorrows
and sins ? ? Make us disarmed from Thy hold ? ? And comes running ? ? His gracious
care ? ? Oh, say can you see ? ? By the dawn's early light
? ? Find us now, now, in praise to
Him ? ? Help us now, Lord, in need of help ? ? For it's thy way ? ? With whose
soul shall I die ? ? See the earth doth fall ? ? Yet
be still ? ? That He did use to create the
life-force ? ? And has begun His promised work ? ? And thou shalt know ? ? Thou
art God and Lord ? ? He who has helped me ? ? He who has saved
me ? ? Well have we all ? ? My child in prayer ? ? And in the
age ? ? Close at hand ? May the help of God, dear friends,
I would ask your prayerful and loving attention for words to
be found in the lesson. Chapter 31 in the Proverbs. And the verse upon my spirit
is verse 10. The 10th verse. Who can find a virtuous woman,
for her price is far above rubies. Well, dear friends, you may consider
this or think perhaps it's an unusual text to bring before
you. Nevertheless, the gracious ministry
of godly women as recorded in the Word of God has been upon
my spirit, and I feel very confirmed by the Lord in bringing this
Word before us at this time, because only yesterday in my
meditation, in this Word, in secret before the Lord. And then
later in the day, I went to the post box and there was a letter
there. And I took it indoors and read
it. When I opened it, there was an
invitation given to my dear wife and I to attend a wedding. later this year. Well, I'd been pondering this
virtuous woman and her good husband and then, within an hour or two,
there was an invitation received to be a guest at a wedding. The Proverbs then set before
us good and evil. You have good on the one hand
and evil on the left. And to understand more fully
the truth that the Lord brings before us, we see in the book
of Proverbs the total opposite. What is the opposite to our text? Well, it's spoken of by Solomon
in an earlier chapter. And he speaks of the evil woman,
the harlot, and her sneers. And you can read concern in that. And it's very sad and very solemn. Now in the light of that, you see the beauty, the wonder,
the grace of this virtuous woman. The men may say, well, where
do we come into this? Well, this virtuous woman has
a husband. But the Book of Proverbs, in
those two contrasts that I've just referred to, there is a
spiritual dimension as well, which I want to come to, God
willing, this afternoon, as the Lord may help me. But I want
to dwell more this morning on the literal part with regard
to this time state. We have to live in this world.
And God has created male and female. And we desire to live according
to that which the Lord has required. And those who have the grace
of God then are to be careful to maintain good work. The good works of this virtuous
woman do not merit her eternal salvation. But what constitutes the virtue
will constitute eternal glory. Well, this proverb then is It's
the words of King Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught
him. Of course, most of the Proverbs
are written by Solomon. But chapter 30 was written, the
words of Agar. And this is the last chapter,
the words of King Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught
him. He had a godly mother. She was a virtuous woman. She
gave him sound instruction. I'm sure, friends, that we can
testify the same, that we had a godly mother who gave us sound
instruction. Well, the question then is put,
The text is presented by way of question. Who can find a virtuous woman? And who did find this virtuous
woman? Who did find her? Were her husband found her friends?
That's the answer to the question. Her husband found her. And it's
the same today, friends, with the godly ladies. Who found you? Your husband? And he offered, desired your
hand in marriage because he saw the grace of God
in you. And how can two walk together
except they be agreed. There's no concord between Christ
and Belial. You must be of the same mind,
the same spirit. How can two walk together except
they be agreed? And this gracious agreement,
friends, constitutes constitutes a good marriage. How could you
have a virtuous woman living with an ungodly man? Friends, the virtuous woman needs
a godly husband. They can walk together in the
things of God. This is what the Lord has decreed. So she was found by her husband,
And we read then the wonder and the good that she did him. All
his days the heart of her husband doth safely trust in her so that
he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not
evil all the days of her life. Beautiful, isn't it? How true
it is. Now, what constituted the virtuous
woman? Well, we are told, a woman that
feareth the Lord, she shall be prized. This virtuous woman fears
the Lord. This is the secret, friends.
This is the Blessed Sacred. And the fear of the Lord is the
beginning of wisdom. The beginning of wisdom. There's
no wisdom apart from the fear of the Lord. So this virtuous
woman fears the Lord. What a wonderful favour. What a wonderful privilege. What
an honor to fear God, to be brought to fear Him, that filial fear, desiring to honor the Lord, and
to do that which is right in His sight. And so, dear friends,
this is brought before us, and all the things she does, she's
not idle, No, she's very active in doing good works that accompany
salvation. Her price is far above Ruby's. So Ruby, Ruby's are precious
stones. and they are of great value. David laid up these precious
stones before he died for the benefit of the building of the
house of God and the furnishing of the temple of God after his
deceit. He was not permitted to build
the temple. This was done by his son Solomon. But he prepared much for the
house of God. And he prepared stones to be
set, glistering stones and of diverse colors and all manner
of precious stones and marble stones in abundance. So rubies are precious stones. And these were to be used and
they were used in the building of the temple for the worship
of God. Now, we also know in the Proverbs
concerning Rubis, what do we read? Wisdom is more precious than
Rubis. Wisdom. Now this virtuous woman
is wise. She has wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the beginning
of wisdom. And her price is far above rubies. Far greater, far more precious
than these precious stones. This sets before us the value
of this godly woman. Now also, In the Proverbs we
have another word concerning these rubies. Wisdom is better
than rubies. So better and more precious. More precious than rubies. This is wisdom. This virtuous
woman is wise. She's been made wise. by God's
grace and wisdom and goodness. And her price is far above, far
above. Now this brings me to another
point. We oftentimes labor under the
fact, and rightly so, that we are poor, worthless sinners. Now, we are with regard to the
Adam fool and sin. But let us ponder, friends, what
we are by the grace of God. Because a sinner who is living
in sin and sinful practices, what is that person doing? The Word of God tells us, they
are selling themselves for naught. That's what they're doing. This
is one of the sad matters of sin. Actual sin is like selling
yourself for nothing. Think of it, and you dear young
friends, think of it. If Satan tempts you to some sin,
remember this, it's like selling yourself for naught. Now, you wouldn't sell anything,
you wouldn't sell anything you possess for nothing. You put
a value on it. If you possess something and
you dispose of it, You sell it. It's sold at the valued price. Don't sell it, don't give it
away. You don't cast it away, you sell it at the valued price. To give you just a little illustration.
Later on, if you had a car, you'd have to buy it. And you'd have
to pay the price, the valued price for it. Everything has
to be paid by money. You don't want to be a thief. Everything has to be paid for.
There's a value attached to everything you possess. But sinners, in
actual transgression, are selling themselves for nothing. Yet you
wouldn't give away anything or sell it for nothing that you
possess. Oh no! What's the price? You pay it
or you can't have it. And that's the fact the Bible
tells us. You have sold yourselves for
naught, but you shall be redeemed without
money. This redemption, what is it? It's to repurchase. And the Lord Jesus repurchases
his dear people who have sold themselves for naught, and He
redeems them by His own precious blood. Invaluable blood. Now, friends, that puts a value
on you. It puts a value on you. You're
not a worthless sinner. You're a redeemed child of God. And you've been redeemed not
with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ. And friends, that puts a great
value upon you, which is far above rubies. How much do you think you're
worth, dear friend? How much do you think you're
worth? You're worth more than the whole
earth, friends, and all what's contained in it. Your soul that's
been redeemed and washed in Jesus' precious blood is worth more
than all this world and everything within it. Do you believe it? Friends, your soul What will
a man give in exchange for his soul? If you own the world, what
value would that be compared to your soul? So a redeemed child
of God, one who possesses the grace of Jesus Christ. Grace, friends, is sovereign,
it's rich, and it's free. And it's so wonderful, it's so
precious, it's so sacred, it's far above all rubies. You can't
buy it with money. It's a gift given, a blessed
gift given. And it puts a value on a person
because you're the Lord's. And what value would you put
on Christ? What thing here of Christ is
the test? What do you consider the value
of Christ? That solemn character, Judas
Iscariot, valued Christ at 30 pieces of silver. That's all
he thought. And that's what he had in the
bag. He stole the money, the Lord's
money, to betray Christ. And when that dear godly woman,
who's been immortalized by Christ, Break that box, alabaster box
that contained that precious ointment and anointed Christ
with burial. Judas Iscariot was offended. Why was not this ointment sold
for 300 pence and given to the poor? Not that he cared for the
poor, but because he was a thief and had what was in the money
bag. But that dear woman, friends, she was a virtuous woman, Mary
of Bethany. She anointed Christ for his burial. And what did the Lord say? Wherever
this gospel is preached throughout the whole world, this that this
woman hath done shall be told for a memorial of her. That dear godly woman is The
whole world, if the Gospel is preached, it must be spoken of.
What a godly, virtuous woman. Her price is far above all rubies,
because Christ was all and in all to her. He was her all, he
was her salvation. And she manifested her love to
him by anointing at the most precious ointment that she could
buy, that she could possess, the best for Christ. Friends,
where do we come? Does Christ have the first claim
upon us? Does He? The best for Christ? Well, friends, this is the virtuous
woman. She anointed Christ. Her value,
friends, her price is far above rubies. And if you love the Lord, friends,
and you possess his grace, then he gives grace and he'll give
glory when you die. And you'll live a life that is
in keeping with his commandments. And you'll serve him and honour
him and love him. And because you possess His grace,
because you do that which is right in His sight, you see,
your life will be in keeping. You'll be careful to maintain
good works. Now some people don't want to
hear about good works. They think good works, that won't
bring salvation. Of course it won't. But a child
of God who possesses God's grace is careful to maintain good works
to the honor and glory of God. Why, the woman that feareth the
Lord, she shall be praised. That dear woman who anointed
the feet of Christ, anointed Christ with burial, she shall
be praised. She shall be preached. Spoken
of, as she honored Christ. What a virtuous woman. What a
godly woman. What a lovely character of grace. Friends, she's worth more than
rubles, far above rubles. She was loved with an everlasting
love. She was the Lord's, he laid claim
to her, and she laid claim to him, because the love of Christ
begat her love. So friends, how can I put it
before you in this way? Don't labour continually under
your felt unworthiness and guilt and sin. Think of what you are
by the grace of God. Think what the Lord has done
for you. Think of what the Lord has saved you from. Think of
the gifts he's given you that can never be bought with money.
the gift of God's free and sovereign grace, and the gift of God's
Holy Spirit. Friends, this puts a value upon
you that is far above rubies. God's grace is precious. It's not superfluous, never,
because it's too precious. It's too precious to be wasted. That dear woman didn't waste
that oil, that costly ointment. She didn't waste it. It was all
for Christ. All of it. God's grace is given
to his people daily because we need it. It's not wasted. It's too precious. But he gives
it to you day by day. Day by day, day by day, according
to promise. And you need it. You need it. And he gives it. But he doesn't
give you grace friends of tomorrow. No, you've got to wait until
tomorrow before grace is given for that day. And so you see
what God has done, puts the true value upon you. Who can find a virtuous woman? Well, they say, naturally speaking,
of course, your husband did. And spiritually, your husband,
the Lord Jesus Christ, he found you. He found that dear godly
woman who anointed him. He found dear Ruth, the Moabitess
damsel. Oh, friends, Boaz found her. Oh, there she was, down in Moab. You know, dear friends, we need
much wisdom in the speaking of these matters because one may
say, well, Naomi and her husband, Elimelech, should have never
gone down to Moab. But, you know, we need to be
careful. In the purposes of God, That was all permitted. And the
means we used to send them down there was a famine in Bethlehem,
Judah. And I do feel this. We need to
consider matters spiritually, in the light of truth, in their
entirety, in their completeness. Not just take apart and say,
well, they shouldn't have gone down to Moab. It was all wrong.
They should have stayed in Bethlehem, Judah. You've got to consider,
friends, the whole matter as it's completed by God. And God permitted that family. And God permitted Elimenek and
Naomi to go to Moab. There, You see, their two sons
married. Moabitish damsels. Now God used
that as a means to bring Ruth from Moab to Bethlehem, Judah. And I mention Ruth in particular
because we read concerning her, all the city of my people doth
know that thou art a virtuous woman. Ruth was a virtuous woman. She was in Moab. She was a child
of God. She was brought out of Moab and
brought back to Bethlehem Judah or brought to Bethlehem through
the means of Naomi. But you see, she was a virtuous
woman and she was failed. Who by? Her husband. When she came back and was gleaning
in the field, little did she know that Boaz had his eye upon
her. She didn't know that. She was
a poor woman, gleaning in the field, which was for the poor,
and yet she was a virtuous woman. And Boaz had his eye upon her. Go to glean in my field, Ruth.
At mealtime come thou hither, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar.
Have I not charged the young man that they touch thee not?
Thou hast took care of him, his eye was upon him, but he was
a type of Christ. He was a mighty man of wealth. He had riches in abundance. This
is the Lord Jesus Christ spiritually considered. The Lord Jesus had
his eye upon him. They'd given her grace. She wanted
to be with the Lord's people. It was said to her, go back with
all, put her into Moab. No, I can't go back there. Why?
There was the virtue of grace in us all. There's nothing in
Moab for me now. It's idolatry. I don't want idolatry. I want Jesus Christ. So she came
to Bethlehem, Judah. Came back. And there was that
godly man, Boaz. He got his eye upon her. Who can find a virtuous woman,
Boaz did. You see, friends, and you view
that in its entirety, it's a beautiful case. And she came back. She married Boaz. She had a child. And she's in that line of genealogy
that leads up to the birth of Christ. What a miracle. What a wonder. What a blessing. It's a wonderful case. So we're
not to say, dear friends, Eliminate and they should have never gone.
They had to go to bring back Ruth. And friends, there may
be things in your life and they seem mysterious to you. But you've got to consider the
matter in its entirety and not just make some rash statement
and say this or that. You've got to wait until the
Lord works, because the Lord's work is perfect. God's work is
perfect. And that was a perfect work that
brought Ruth back to Bethlehem, Judea. It was God's perfection.
Perfect work, friends. And God's work is perfect. His
way is perfect. It's a way of salvation. That's
the perfect way. You can look at Dear Joseph.
If you just view the first part, when the patriarchs manifested
hatred to him and sold him, You may say, well, what a solemn
business it all was. And sadly, it was. But you've
got to view it in its entirety. What did Joseph say? As for you,
speaking to the patriarchs, as for you, ye thought evil against
me. But God, God meant it unto good. And there it is, friends. God
meant it unto good. And you've got to do the same,
friends, in your life. You've got to view things in
their entirety before you can give a judgment. And then you
will say, as for God, here's why he's perfect. But if you
just take a part of it without the whole, you will not conceive
the wonder of God's decrees and purposes. Because God's decrees
and purposes, friends, take years to accomplish sometimes. And maybe you get like Abraham
and Sarah, you get weary of waiting. So you put your hand to it yourself,
friends. And what happens then? Ishmael's
born. Well, what's the benefit of that?
What's the good of that? You've got to wait the Lord's
time. Wait my soul on the Lord at all
times. And friends, if you wait upon
the Lord, he'll be gracious to you in his appointed time and
wise. Ruth had to wait for this godly
husband. And she was found. She was found. That's Ruth. You see, friends,
it's very beautiful, isn't it? It takes us back to the very
beginning. in the book of Genesis and you
read where it came to pass when men began to multiply on the
face of the earth and daughters were born unto them that the
sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair and
they took them wives of all which they chose. So the sons of God
chose their wives. It was their choice. Their choice. And it's the same today. It's
your choice. But there's a much higher consideration. God's dear people are His sovereign
choice. And if you're one of these virtuous
characters, It was because God chose you. In the early days,
men had a choice who they were going to marry. God has a choice
of who he chose before time began to be his dear people. Who can find a virtuous woman
with all the good she did? We haven't hardly started this,
have we? She will do him good. Her heart of her husband is safely
trust in her. She's committed to her husband. She'll do him good. All the days
of her life. Oh friends, how wonderful then
in serving the husband as it is serving him. all her days, doing him good
and not evil. And then she's good to her children,
and the maidens, and she's very active in doing those things
for her family. And she's not idle. She layeth
her hands to the spindle, and her hands to hold the discharge,
this stuff. She can spin. and weave and make
clothes. The ability that God has given
her to do all these things. And she looks after the poor
and the needy. She doesn't forget that. This
is the virtue, friends, that this woman, this virtuous woman,
she's not afraid of the snow. A householder clothed with scarlet,
or, at the margin says, double garments, plenty to wear in the
snow. Her husband is known in the gates
when he sitteth among the elders of the land. She maketh fine
linen and selleth it. Strength and honour are her clothing,
and she shall rejoice in time to come. She openeth her mouth
with wisdom, because she is wise. The Lord has given her wisdom.
and in her tongue is the law of kindness. Kindness. Be ye kind one to another. She looketh well to the ways
of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her feet
remain in the house. She's active there. But as I
said at the beginning, the evil woman, the harlot, Her feet don't
abide in the house, she's out and about in the streets. But
this godly woman, you see, looketh well to her wives and engages
in those God-honouring activities for the good of her children
and her husband, her family. Her children rise up and call
her blessed. The husband also, and he praiseth
her. Many daughters have done virtuously,
but thou excellest them all. Favour is deceitful, beauty is
vile, but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. And she's commended. Give her
of the fruit of her hands, and let her own work Praise her in
the gates. What a gracious commendation. A virtuous woman. Who can find
one? Well, dear friends, we bless
God that this is on record and that we have virtuous women today. And what a strength they are
in the Church of God. What a blessing they are in Zion. I commend unto thee Phoebe, Paul
said. What a godly woman she was and
what a benefit she wrote for the apostle. I commend unto you,
Phoebe, our sister, which is a servant of the church, which
is at Centuria, that ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh
saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath
need of you, For she hath been a succorer of many, and of myself
also. She's been a help to many and
to myself. That's what it means to be a
sucker. It means to relieve and help
one in their need and distress. Well, this is what Phoebe did.
She's a servant of the Church, which is at Centuria. And friends, the Bible speaks
of many virtuous women. This is one. Anna's another,
a prophetess. What a godly woman she was. Fasting and prayers, night and
day. Just think of it, friends. When
we're asleep in bed, there she was. waiting upon the Lord in
prayer and fasting. Godly Hannah. Look at Godly Hannah. Oh, friends, what a path she
walked. But what a virtuous woman she
was. What a virtuous woman Hannah
was. The Lord rewarded her. She had her Samuel. And you can
go through the scriptures and see these other Gracious, godly
women. Friends, they put the apostles
to shame. That's what they did. When Christ
was apprehended, what did the apostles do? They all forsook
Christ and fled. Those godly women retained their
loyalty and stayed with Christ right to the crucifixion. Where
were the disciples, the apostles? Gone through fear, but those
godly women witnessed the crucifixion. Furthermore, who was at the sepulcher
when Christ rose early that Lord's Day morning? Those godly women. Where were the disciples? Nowhere
to be seen. They put the apostles to shame. Friends, perhaps you've never
seen these things before. They're in the Word of God. What
gems they are. The treasure house of God's Word.
Our friend prayed in the vestry for the service. The treasure
house brings forth things new and old. Some of these things we've never
seen before perhaps. But this is the purpose of the
ministry. to bring forth things new and old. These godly women,
friends, put those apostles to shame. And it's the same today. A virtuous woman can put some
of the men to shame for their grace and virtue and faith in
fearing the Lord. This is the secret, friends,
and the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him. Yes,
and he will show them his covenant. But a woman that feareth the
Lord, she shall be praised. Well, we must come to a close
this morning, dear friends. May the Lord add his blessing
to his own word. Amen. Hymn number 519, tune Swabia
71. When Ruth a-gleaning went, Jehovah was her guide, To Boaz Field he led her straight,
and she became his bride. By the force of God. To the world's guilty let us
pray, That she may gain his sight. Jesus, my help and ease, My strength
and portion too, His word of grace and passion still, May
I have peace in Thine. Where water can be filled, ?
The strength and power needed ? ? To reconnect with me ? Rejoicing, all ye souls, Ne'er
can but be strong. The field is ripe for harvest
now, ? And they shall be enthroned ? ? In Canaan's far land of Israel
? ? And Christ be glorious, all ?
? Be His your strength and portion still ? ? And you to Him to give
thanks ? The blessings He contains, He
cannot let you stop. And now may thy grace, Lord Jesus, the Father's love, the communion
of thy Holy Spirit, be with us all now and forevermore. Amen.