The notice is for the coming
week. Our God willing as follows. Mr. Paul Tyler will preach here
next Lord's Day. at 10.30 and two o'clock. Pastor
will preach here on Thursday evening at seven o'clock. There'll
be a prayer meeting here on Tuesday evening at seven o'clock. Let us commence our services
today by singing together hymn number 366. The tune is Anne's
89. The Lord in Zion placed his name. His ark was settled there. To Zion the whole nation came
to worship thrice a year. Hymn 366. The Lord in Zion raised his name,
His Rock was settled there. To Zion the whole nation pay,
to worship Christ a new. O come, let us adore Him, O come,
let us adore Him, Christ the Lord. Arise, O King, O praise arise,
and entwine to thy breast The light that breaks with darkened
eyes Mastered the earth and heaven Enter with all thy glorious strength,
thy spirit and thy breath. O let thee appear once from day,
? To those such ways have gone
? ? Dear mighty God accept our songs
? ? In heaven thy praise be spread ? Place the foundation of thy
house, and fill thy floor with bread. And the sound of heaving rain,
Let God's anointed shine. Justice and truth is what they
claim, came down a lost infant, and
as his kingdom came, Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the prophecy of Isaiah and chapter 60. Isaiah chapter 60. Arise, shine, for thy light is
come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For behold,
the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the
people. But the Lord shall arise upon
thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles
shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy
rising. Lift up thine eyes round about,
and see, all they gather themselves together, they come to thee. Thy sons shall come from far,
and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt
see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear and be enlarged,
because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee.
The forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. The multitude
of camels shall cover thee. The dromedaries of Midian and
Ephah. All they from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and incense, and they shall show forth the
praises of the Lord. All the flocks of Kedar shall
be gathered together unto thee. The rams of Nebaioth shall minister
unto thee. they shall come up with acceptance
on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. Who are
these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?
Surely the isle shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish
first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold
with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy
One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. And the sons
of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their king shall minister
unto thee. For in my wrath I smote thee,
but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gate shall
be open continually, They shall not be shut day nor night, that
men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their
kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that
will not serve thee shall perish, yea, those nations shall be utterly
wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come
unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together,
to beautify the place of my sanctuary, and I will make the place of
my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted
thee shall come bending unto thee, and all they that despise
thee shall bow down themselves at the soles of thy feet, and
they shall call thee the city of the Lord, the Zion of the
Holy One of Israel, whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated,
so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency,
a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk
of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breasts of kings, and thou
shalt know that I, the Lord, am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer,
the Mighty One of Jacob. For brass I will bring gold,
and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones
iron. I will also make thy officers
peace, and thine exactors righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard
in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders. but thou
shalt call thy walls salvation, and thy gates praise. The sun
shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall
the moon give light unto thee, but the Lord shall be unto thee
an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall
no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself, For
the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning
shall be ended. Thy people also shall be all
righteous. They shall inherit the land forever,
the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may
be glorified. A little one shall become a thousand,
and a small one a strong nation, I, the Lord, will hasten it in
his time. May the Lord bless that portion
of his own precious word and grant unto us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, we desire to bow before Thee,
the only true God, and to worship Thee in Thy Son, Jesus Christ. For there is one God and one
mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, who gave
his life of ransom for all to be testified in due time. Gracious
God, come and testify here even today. of the wonderful grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Come and testify of that eternal
rock of ages in our Lord Jesus Christ. Come and testify of that
glorious refuge for sinners in our Lord Jesus Christ. Come and
speak to our hearts. Come and guide us into thy truth.
Come, Lord, we pray thee Visit us with thy great salvation,
and grant that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love
of God our Father, and the sacred fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
may rest and abide upon us. O most gracious Lord, we pray
to be taught of the Lord. As thou hast said in thy word,
all thy children shall be taught of the Lord. and great shall
be the peace of thy children. Gracious God, we pray that thou
wouldst condescend even this day so to do among us here. Come
and speak to our hearts. Come and open thy word. Come,
O Lord, and open our ears and our eyes and our hearts to receive
thy word. We do humbly beseech thee. For,
Lord, without thee we can do Lord, we're poor, needy sinners,
the fallen sons and daughters of Adam, born in sin and shapen
in iniquity, unclean and unrighteous altogether. Lord, what that deep
sink of sin and iniquity in our hearts, and we would come and
we'll bear our hearts before thee. Thy word declares unto
us, if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear
me, Oh, we do pray that thou wouldst deliver us from sin and
from its power and from its dominion. Oh, we do pray that as we gather
round the word today, the divine power, the heavenly unction,
the savour of the Holy Ghost may be present in our assembly,
that the word spoken may be in power in the Holy Ghost and with
much assurance. they may reach into our very
souls, and that we may be led by thee into thy truth and into
the hearts and the pathways of thine own people, and that thou
wouldst confirm the word with signs following. We do pray,
most gracious Lord, that thou wouldst bless us as a church
and as a congregation. We thank thee, O Lord, for Our
deacons, we pray that thou would bless them, help them, support
them, sustain them, strengthen them. They have many responsibilities,
O Lord, not only here but among the churches of God, and we pray
that they may be girded with all sufficient grace. We do humbly
beseech thee. But we pray for our brethren
and sisters in Christ Jesus in church fellowship. We seek thy
blessing, thy favour, We pray, most gracious Lord, for that
grace to truly love each other, serve each other, and bear each
other's burdens, thereby fulfilling the law of Christ. Oh, most gracious
Lord, we do pray that thou, in thy precious mercy, wouldst come
this day, wouldst come and open thy word and bless our brethren
and sisters in Christ, and that we may grow in grace and in the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Remember, O Lord,
the whole of our congregation. Remember us for good. Come and
visit us with thy great salvation. O be gracious unto us, O Lord,
we pray thee, that we bear up before thee the little ones and
the children as they're brought into the sanctuary, that the
blessing of the Lord may rest upon them, the fear of the Lord
that is the beginning of wisdom may be given unto them. We pray
for each one of the dear children and our young friends also, those
that stand on the threshold of life journey. We pray that thou
would be gracious unto them, that thou would bless them, that
thou would bore their ears to the doorposts of thy house, bring
them to a knowledge of thy truth, that they may know the truth
and the truth may set them free, free from sin and Satan's power,
we do humbly beseech thee. Oh, we pray that the fulfilling
of that precious promise, instead of thy fathers shall be thy children,
whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. Oh, gracious
God, grant that it may be so. And we pray that most gracious
Lord for the prodigals that have wandered away, Oh, that thou
wouldst work in their hearts, that thou wouldst cause them
to return. None are beyond thy power, the power of thy grace,
of thy love and of thy mercy. Oh, gracious God, we do humbly
beseech thee to cause them to return. We beseech thee, oh Lord,
that thou wouldst help parents and give wisdom and grace and
help in bringing up their families. and that we pray, most gracious
Lord, that the family altar may be raised, the word of God read
among the family, prayer made, for this has a sanctifying influence
in the family, Lord. Oh, do grant that it may be so.
We do humbly beseech of thee. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou wouldst undertake for all in the midst of the journey
of life Help them and enable them to look to Thee, to cleave
to Thee, to cast all their care upon Thee. Deliver us each from
the temptations of Satan. Whether he comes as a roaring
lion to devour, or whether he comes as an angel of light to
deceive, we pray to be delivered from his power. We plead that
precious promise. When the enemy comes in like
a flood, the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against
him. O Lord, grant that it may be so. We read in thy word of
the sons of God coming together and Satan meeting with them.
He came in among them. O Lord, we do pray to be delivered
then from the influence of Satan, from the power of sin. We do
humbly pray then. Let sin have no dominion, Lord,
but keep my conscience clear. We pray, most gracious God, that
thou, in thy precious mercy, would graciously remember each
of us in the evening time of life's journey. We pass the allotted
time of man upon the earth, and we pray that thou would be with
us and guide us safely, even unto death, even unto thy heavenly
kingdom. We do humbly beseech thee. May
we be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. And O Lord, we do pray that thou
wouldst graciously remember this village and the surrounding villages
and hamlets and send out thy light and thy truth. Gather in
precious souls, pull down the strongholds of Satan, set up
the kingdom of our Lord Jesus in the hearts of sinners. Lord,
thou art able to do abundantly more than we can even ask or
think. Oh, that thou wouldst hear our
entreaties, that thou wouldst send real prosperity, that there
may be an ingathering of precious souls, that the church may be
renewed and replenished and strengthened. Hearken, O Lord, we do humbly
beseech thee for thy great namesake. We pray, dear Lord, for all thy
servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls of
Zion today. Be with them in their journeys,
and be with them, Lord, in the ministry of the word. And grant
that the word may be in power, that it may reach into the hearts
of the hearers. Hearken, O Lord, we do humbly
beseech Thee, and we pray Thee, the great Lord of the harvest,
to send true labourers into the harvest, to build the walls of
Jerusalem. And we pray that Thy people may
be built up in their most holy faith and nourished in the truth,
and being able to drink of the sincere milk of the Word, that
they may grow thereby. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that Thou wouldst remember the churches up and down the land,
wherever Thy people gather, wherever Thy servants stand. O gracious
God, do grant that anointing of the Spirit, and where they
meet, perhaps without a minister, be with them, Lord, and bless
the worship services, we do humbly pray them. And where there's
a reading of a sermon, May they prove that he being dead yet
speaketh. Oh, we pray most gracious God
that thou in thy precious mercy would hear us in heaven, thy
holy dwelling place, and send real prosperity. We do not deserve
thy mercy, thy goodness. We have so many failings and
wanderings and carnality and worldliness. We pray to be delivered
from it. We pray that the Lord Jesus may
be exalted as a Prince and as a Saviour, for to give faith
and repentance and remission of sins. We pray, most gracious
God, for our nation. Remember our King and all the
royal household and grant thy rich blessing to rest there.
Remember our leaders, O Lord, and give guidance and direction
in all matters. Lord, We do not deserve thy mercy. We think of the awful legislation
that is on our statute book and the murder of thousands and thousands
of little babes. O gracious God, we think of the
immorality that is legislated for. We pray, O Lord, that thou
wouldst hear the cries of thy little remnants and that thou
wouldst graciously shine with thy gospel We read in those wonderful
days of the great awakening, George Whitfield and others that
were sent forth of thee and their ministry greatly blessed to thousands. Oh, come and do it again, O Lord,
we do humbly beseech thee for thy great namesake. Our church leaders seem bereft
of wisdom, departing from thy word and from thy ways and from
thy truth. Oh, do raise up those, even in
our national church, that shall stand for right things. We pray,
Lord, for those that live in those nations of the earth where
thy people are hated, thy word is rejected, and thy people are
persecuted and imprisoned for the truth's sake. Oh, remember
them. Send them help from the sanctuary.
Strengthen the Mount of Zion, O Lord, we do beseech of thee.
Lord, we pray that thou would remember those that travel in
the nations of the earth. We think of Ian Sadler as he
labors in word and doctrine in Pakistan and India and Burma
and Africa. Lord, supply all his needs and
graciously grant an abundant harvest. Bless the Mombasa Mission
and the preaching of the word there. May it redound to the
glory of thy name. Remember the Savannah Education
Trust. And again, Lord, we pray in the
setting up of those Christian schools, that thy blessing, that
thy favour may rest upon it, that it may be to the great glory
of thy name and the gathering in of many precious souls. We
thank Thee, O Lord, for every mercy of Thy kind providence.
Truly, Lord, Thy mercies are new every morning and great is
Thy faithfulness. We thank Thee for the wonderful
and sacred and profound glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Son of God that was made flesh and dwelt among us. We thank
Thee, O Lord, for that wonderful glory that we see in Christ.
the glory of his everlasting righteousness, of his perfect
obedience, of his sinless life, the glory of his pure and holy
sacrifice on Calvary, and the glory of sin put away and divine
justice satisfied. Praise waiteth for thee, O God,
in Zion, and we will render thanksgiving unto thee. Thanks be unto God
for his unspeakable gift. We thank thee for the blood of
Jesus Christ, God's Son, that cleanseth us from all sin. We
thank Thee that He died for our sins and rose again for our justification
and has now bodily ascended into heaven and sitteth at Thy right
hand. Tis He instead of me is seen
when I approach to God. Oh, the wonders of redeeming
love and the fullness that there is in Christ Jesus. May we draw
from it today. May we know the love of our eternal
Father In the person of his Son, Jesus Christ, by the power and
grace of the Holy Spirit, hear us, Lord, and be with us now
as we turn to thy holy word. Come, Lord, and touch one's lips
with a live coal from off the heavenly altar. We ask, with
the forgiveness of all sin, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 805. The tune is Kensington 166. Of all the creatures God has
made, there is but man alone that stands
in need to be arrayed in coverings not his own. Hymn 805. ? Amazing grace ? ? How sweet the
sound ? ? That saved a wretch like me ? The firstborn Lord, most faithful
Father, Heaven and earth adore thy name. ? Amen, ye holy days ? ? God's
holy night ? ? The shame of sin and grave ? O say can you see, by the dawn's
early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's you No, no. ? Whose broad stripes and bright
stars ? ? Through the perilous fight ? ? How faithly dressed ? ? How faithfully
chained ? ? T'is true, O'er the land of the free ? ? And has my nature done ? ? In
first place divine ? ? Casting doubt in me ? Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave ? And cover it all in blood ? ?
This present day ? ? With Christ to feast ? ? I believe the rest
of my days ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I direct your attention to Isaiah chapter 60
and verse 21. The prophecy of Isaiah chapter
60, verse 21. Thy people also shall be all
righteous. They shall inherit the land forever,
the branch of my planting, the work of my hands that I may be
glorified. It was in particular the first
clause of this verse that has rested on my spirit to bring
before you this morning. Thy people also shall be all
righteous. What a precious truth and what
wonderful things are spoken here in this chapter of the City of
God, of Zion. We are very clearly told it is
Zion. In verse 14, the City of the
Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. And we're also told
in verse 16, and thou shalt know that I, the Lord, am thy Saviour,
and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. We noticed on Thursday evening
in John, we know, we know, and the Lord's people are taught
by the Holy Ghost, they know something, we know. They can
affirm that when the Holy Spirit has entered the heart, when his
quickening power has been known in the soul, when we're brought
from death into life. As the apostles say in the second
chapter of the Ephesians, you hath he quickened who were dead.
The word quickened is an old English word which means to make
a life. you hath he made alive that were
dead that is where we were by nature dead in trespasses and
in sins in sin did my mother conceive me it's just the opposite
to righteousness and that is where every one of us is found
by nature just the opposite to righteousness it's like we just
sung in the hymn how Joseph Hart puts it so succinctly that we're
naked, but man alone that needs another covering. The beasts
of the earth and the birds of the air, they have feathers and
they have fur and they keep warm, but man, he has to have clothing,
a covering not his own. What a mercy if you and I are
brought to realize this, the need of covering our nakedness. Covering our nakedness. But before
we come precisely to the text, let us just look at some of these
wonderful promises that are made to Zion, to the church of the
living God. Right in the first verse, arise. He's speaking to Zion, to the
church of God. Arise, shine, for thy light is
come. Jesus said, I am the light of
the world. And it's that glorious light
that shines on Zion's heavenly hill. It's Christ. It's Christ. When we read in holy scripture
of the new Jerusalem, of heaven, of eternal glory, that there
is no need of the sun, for the lamb is the light thereof. Those
beams will shine forth from the lamb of God. The disciples had a little glimpse
of it, didn't they, when they went into the Mount of Transfiguration. They beheld the glory of Christ. He became white and glistening. What a wonderful glory they beheld
in Christ, the glory of his holiness, his purity, his love, his mercy,
his grace. What a glorious light there is
that shines in Jesus Christ. That light is what shines. That's
why the apostle says, we preach Christ crucified. The preaching
of Christ, there is a light shining in darkness. The people that
sat in darkness have seen a great light. Arise, shine, for thy light is
come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For behold,
darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people,
but the Lord shall arise upon thee. Where? Upon the church
of God. The Lord shall arise upon thee,
and his glory shall be seen upon thee. There are those lovely
words in the prophet Malachi. Unto you that fear my name shall
the sun of righteousness arise. S-u-n the son of righteousness
a glorious light that shines in Jesus Christ That the psalmist
he says thou art my son and shield He will give grace and glory
that is in our Lord Jesus Christ That no darkness shall cover
the earth Zion is surrounded with darkness
But in Zion, there's a light that shines. And then it speaks here, and
the Gentiles shall come. Isaiah, obviously, preaching
in Israel, in the Old Testament, he's prophesying here that after
the coming of Christ, the Messiah, the Redeemer, then that light
would shine throughout all the nations of the earth. And the
Gentiles shall come to thy light. and kings to the brightness of
thy rising. You see, it says in the fourth
verse, thy son shall come from far and thy daughters shall be
nursed at thy side. You know, when we read wonderful
words of grace like this, wonderful words of promise like this, it
should excite our faith to greater exercise. that the Lord would
perform these things, that the Lord would do these things, and that we should remind him
in prayer, because the abundance of the sea shall be converted
unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee,
the wonderful prosperity of Zion. It says here, you see under the
Jewish dispensation, the priests of the Lord, the Levites, that
could minister in the sanctuary. But in verse 7 it says, all the
flocks of Kedar shall be gathered unto thee. The Rams of Nebaoth,
that means the Gentiles, shall minister unto thee. They shall
come up with acceptance on mine altar. Where is that acceptance? In Christ. In Christ. The Jews were taught to despise
everybody else. But in the Gospel days, The gospel
is to be preached unto every creature. You see, my beloved friends,
these wonderful promises. In verse 10, And the sons of
strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall
minister unto thee. For in my wrath I smote thee,
but in my favour have I had mercy upon thee. Now listen to what
it says. Therefore thy gates, that's the
gates of Zion, shall be open continually. They shall not be
shut day nor night, that men may bring unto thee the forces
of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. You see,
these are the wonderful promises of God to Zion, to the church
of the living God. Verse 13, the glory of Lebanon
shall come unto thee. The fir tree is now speaking
of individual believers. The fir tree, the pine tree,
and the box together. All those different sorts of
trees, they shall come unto thee to beautify the place of my sanctuary. And I will make the place of
my feet glorious. Heaven is my throne. The earth
is my footstool. And I will make the place of
my feet Glorious when in the preaching of the gospel in the
exhortation of jesus christ In the gathering of precious souls
into zion unto christ I will make the place of my feet glorious
When the word of the lord will have free course and the name
of christ will be lifted high The lord has given a banner to
them that fear him. What is that banner christ the
glorious person of christ the precious blood of Christ, the
glorious righteousness of Christ. The Lord has given a banner to
them that fear him. You see, it says here also, we've noted
it already in verse 16, thou shalt also suck the milk of kings,
of the Gentiles and shalt suck the breasts of kings and thou
shalt know, and thou shalt know. I, the Lord, am thy Saviour and
thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. My Saviour, my Redeemer. It's a personal thing, isn't
it? And to the true child of God,
their standing in Christ is a very personal thing. My Redeemer. Can you say, my
Redeemer? My Saviour? My deliverer. It's a wonderful thing, you know,
friends, when we can, in that personal way, say, I know that
my Redeemer lives. Just like Job did, I know that
my Redeemer lives. And you know, friends, it's a
precious thing to be able to say it. You know. It's like we noticed on Thursday,
we know. I know that my Redeemer lives. Job knew. And today, the Lord's
people, as taught and led and guided by the Spirit, they know.
We know. There's a very different ways
of assurance. And there are different depths
of assurance. But to be able to say that you
know, I know that my Redeemer lives. The Apostle, he said, that I
may know him in the power. And that's what you want, isn't
it? It's not just to hear about Jesus Christ, to read about Jesus
Christ, it's to know Jesus Christ personally. It's for the Holy
Spirit to work faith in your heart and unite you to Christ. And that's what the true believer
wants, that union with Christ. I love what the hymn writer says,
I think it's William Gatsby, isn't it? In union with the Lamb,
from condemnation free, the saints from everlasting were and shall
forever be. Safe and secure in that eternal
covenant. Christ is the eternal rock of
ages upon which that covenant is built. His precious blood
and righteousness is made so precious to his people. His sacrifice
on Calvary, his blood, we read in Leviticus, the blood is the
life thereof. He poured out his soul unto death. He suffered, he bled, and he
died for his people to redeem them. He lived a life that were
pure and perfect and spotless and righteous. But he did that
for his people. He did that for his people. You see, thy people also shall
be all righteous. They shall be all righteous.
The righteousness Christ is the righteousness of his people.
I always think there's a very clear
truth that is set before us by the hymn writer. Righteousness
within thee rooted may appear to take thy part but that righteousness
imputed be the breastplate of thine heart, the righteousness
of Christ. That's what we're sheltering
beneath, the righteousness of Christ. That is what covers our
nakedness, it does. That glorious everlasting robe
of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And this is what is set
before us this morning in our text, thy people, that is the
people of Zion, It says elsewhere, I think it's in Isaiah 54, all
thy people, it's promises to Zion. I've heard people, and
I'm not saying it's not possible that the Lord can do that, but
I've heard people take that word and apply it to their literal
families. All thy children shall be taught
of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children. You see, my beloved friends,
that 54th of Isaiah, that promises to Zion, to the Church of the
Living God, all thy children, all the Church of God, all thy
children, shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be
the peace of thy children, the children of Zion, the children
Zion are those that were chosen by the Father and redeemed by
the Son and sanctified by the Holy Ghost. Thy children, thy people also shall be all
righteous. When I transferred my membership
from Weston Inn to Black Boys just before I was married, And
my late pastor, he gave me the right hand of fellowship. And
when he gave me the word that is normally done, he said that
there was another word. He wanted to give me a word in
the book of Ruth, but he said, the Lord has taken it away. And
he's given me another word for you. And that is in Isaiah chapter
54. No weapon that is formed against
thee shall prosper, every tongue that shall rise against thee,
in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants
of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me." But you know, friends,
at that time, I didn't know the full assurance of faith. I had a sweet hope. That's how
I'd been baptized, a sweet hope in Christ. But I didn't have
the full assurance of faith The forgiveness of sins, not in that
assurance in my heart. I hoped I had. I had a wonderful
hope in Christ. Wonderful light that shone into
my heart in Christ. But I longed to have that. And you know, it may say strange
to you, but that promise was breathed. As my late pastor gave
that promise, it was breathed into my heart. literally by the
power of the Holy Ghost, it came with such power into my heart. I'd been exercised about the
ministry at that time for three years, but that was the first
time that the Lord had spoken to me concerning that matter.
But the point I wanted to make was this, and their righteousness
is of me, saith the Lord. I didn't really feel to enter
into that. The promise was made exceedingly
sweet, I knew it was concerning the ministry of the world, but
you know I longed to lay hold of that last clause, and their
righteousness is of me. And there came a time when I
did, when Christ was made exceedingly precious. I've told you so many
times of that lovely hymn that was made so sweet, I'm blessed,
I'm blessed, forever blessed. My rags are gone and I am dressed
in garments white as snow. And you know, friends, I looked
for my sins and my sins could not be found. Wonderful time
that was to be clothed upon with that glorious everlasting robe
of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Thy people also shall
be all Righteous now, you know friends being brought to faith
in Jesus Christ, which I was Some people would say well, yes,
but then if you're in Christ, you're righteous that in one
sense are absolutely right In actual fact the Lord's people
are righteous from all eternity They're in Christ They're redeemed
in Christ And as it says in several places in the New Testament,
before the foundation of the world, the gifts and calling
of God are without repentance. So if we're in Christ, we're
righteous in Christ. If we're in Christ, the blood
of Christ has taken away all our sin, all our guilt, all our
shame. As far as the East is from the
West so far, Have I removed thy sins from thee, O Israel? But
in the experience of the living family of God, they don't always
feel it. They are in Christ and they are
righteous in Christ, but they don't always feel it in the experience
of their soul. They mourn and they grieve because
they feel much of their sin and their iniquity and the corruption
of their heart. It's the very thing that the
Apostle Paul sets out so clearly in the Epistle to the Romans. That which I would, I do not.
That which I would not, I do. I find a law within my members
that when I would do good, evil is present with me. O wretched
man that I am! Do you struggle with that? Do you have that conflict? I
believe in a greater or lesser degree Every child of God has
that conflict, that sense of sin, that sense of unrighteousness that is within us. And in some
ways, that sense of sin and unrighteousness, there is a deeper sense of it. The more we know of the wonderful
glory of Christ by faith, the more we know of the preciousness
of the blood of Christ, of the righteousness of Christ, of a
crucified Saviour, of a Saviour that died for our sins and put
away all our iniquities, a Saviour that has made us righteous in
His holy life. He lived a life that was pure,
that was holy, that was righteous altogether. It's described in
the Word of God, He did no sin, Neither was guile found in his
mouth. Spotless, innocent and pure, our great Redeemer stood.
He did that for his people. That's why he was made a man,
that's why he was made of a woman, made under the law, that he might
live a life that was righteous on the behalf of his people.
What you can't do, I can't do, and no other man ever has done,
in living a life of perfect obedience to the holy law of God. But Jesus
has done it. And he's done it on our behalf.
And that pure, that holy life of Jesus is described in the
word of God as the righteousness of Jesus. Thy people also shall
be all righteous by faith. All righteous by faith. Doesn't
the Apostle Paul opens this particular aspect of the truth in the epistle
to the Romans. And there in the epistle to the
Romans he speaks to us of imputed righteousness. In the third chapter
of the Romans he says, verse 19, Now we know that what things
soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law,
that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become
guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the
law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. For by the law
is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested being witnessed by the law and
the prophets even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus
Christ Unto all and upon all them that believe For there is
no difference that what he means there is whether you're Jew or
whether you're Gentile. There's no difference The only
whether you're Jew or Gentile the only place of justification
by faith alone is in our Lord Jesus Christ There's no difference
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God being
justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is
in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be appropriations
through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for
the remission of sins that have passed through the forbearance
of God. And then he goes on here and
you look at the last verse of that chapter three, And he says,
do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid, yeah,
we establish the law. What does he mean? The law is
established in Christ, the law is fulfilled in Christ, the law
is honoured in Christ, the law is magnified in Christ, and is
pure, holy, spotless, undefiled life. And then he goes on and he speaks
in chapter 4 of this righteousness. What shall we say then? that
Abraham our father, as pertaineth to the flesh, hath found. For
if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory,
but not before God. But what saith the Scripture?
Abraham believed God. That's the exercise of faith.
Abraham believed God, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the
reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that
worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
his faith is counted for righteousness." That wonderful faith of believing
in Jesus Christ. He goes on to speak of David,
even as David also, he quoted here from the Psalms, "...describeth
the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness
without work, saying, Blessed are They whose iniquities are
forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin. He will not impute sin. Now it goes on towards the end
of that fourth chapter of Abraham believing God. Verse 18, who
against hope believed in hope that he might become the father
of many nations. That was his seed, that was Isaac. Being not weak in faith, he considered
not his own body now dead, when he was about 100 years old, neither
yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered not at the promise
of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory
to God. Being fully persuaded, It's a
wonderful thing, my beloved friends, when the Lord gives us a persuasion,
and we're fully persuaded of that matter, that He had promised,
what He had promised, He was able also to perform. Therefore,
it was imputed to Him for righteousness. He became righteous by faith. Whether we lived in the Old Testament,
or whether we live in the New Testament, There's only one way
of being made righteous and that is in Jesus Christ. That is in
the finished work of Christ. That is in the holy life of Christ. In the sufferings and death of
Christ. In the resurrection of Christ
from the dead. That is where salvation is. That
is where redemption is. And that is where the believer
is made righteous. Now, it goes on here in Romans
4 and on into chapter 5, and it was not written for his sake
alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also to whom
it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead, who was delivered for our offenses and raised again
for our justification, therefore being justified by faith. We
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom also
We have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand and
rejoice in hope of the glory of God. We are made righteous
by faith. By faith in Christ. By faith in what He has done.
What the Son of God has done. And the righteousness of Christ,
it speaks of it in several places, is an everlasting righteousness.
I think it's twice in Psalm 119. Thy righteousness is an everlasting
righteousness. That glorious, perfect obedience
of Christ to the law. He being the Son of God. Having
fulfilled and honored and magnified that holy righteous law. He lived
a holy life to make us righteous. He did what you can't do, what
I can't do. Christ has done it in living
a life that was perfect, that was holy, and thereby magnifying
and honoring the holy, righteous law of God. This is an integral
part of the glory of Christ, his perfect obedience as a man. the Son of God as a man to the
law, perfectly obedient to Him, that becomes the believer's righteousness. It does. We're made righteous
by faith. Thy people also shall be all
righteous. All righteous. What a beautiful
word, isn't it? All righteous. The Lord Jesus, he gives us an
illustration, as he does in that, by way of parables in the Gospels,
and he speaks of one that came in not having on a wedding garment. I think the context is the marriage
supper of the Lamb. And the Lord Jesus, he gives
an illustration of a man that came into that place not having
on a wedding garment and it's in Matthew chapter 22 and in
verse 11 he says and when the king came in to see the guests
he saw there was a man which had not on a wedding garment
and he said unto him friend how came is thou in hither not having
a wedding garment and he was speechless. Then said the king
to the servants, bind him hand and foot and take him away and
cast him into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing
of teeth for many a cause, but few are chosen. Cast him into
outer darkness. He didn't have a wedding garment.
That wedding garment is the righteousness of Christ. that the Lord's people
are made righteous in Christ. Surely in that passage in the
seventh chapter of the book of the Revelation, again, we have
an illustration given to us by the vision that was given unto
John concerning those that were clothed in white raiment. Verse
13 in Revelation 7. And one of the elders answers
saying unto me, what are these which are arrayed in white robes
and whence came they? And I said unto him, sir, thou
knowest. And he said unto me, these are they which came out
of great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, are they before the
throne of God? They had a wedding garment. Therefore,
are they before the throne of God? illustration of course it
comes from the ancient traditions and customs that I understand
in some places still prevail is that when you were asked to
a wedding a wedding garment was sent with the invitation and
so immediately anybody coming into that wedding you could see
they've been invited because they had on a wedding garment
and that was an ancient tradition and practice. And that is what
Christ is using here as an illustration to us. The vital need of having
on a wedding garment. The vital need of being clothed
in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. In the next chapter,
chapter 61, and in verse 10, I will greatly rejoice in the
Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my
God. For he hath clothed me with the
garments of salvation. He hath covered me with the robe
of righteousness. As a bridegroom decketh himself
with ornaments, as a bride adorneth herself with jewels. You see, he hath clothed me.
He clothes all his children. He fits them to stand in the
presence of Almighty God. They are made perfectly righteous
in Christ. They are clothed and their nakedness
is covered. Their sin is put away through
that glorious sacrifice of Calvary, where the sin of the church was
laid on Christ. What a profound exchange, isn't
it? Our sin was laid on Christ. He laid upon Him the iniquity
of us all. Our sin was laid on Christ. That
is why He suffered. He Himself did no sin. He Himself
was pure and righteous altogether. So death had no claim on Jesus
Christ. But our Heavenly Father laid
upon Him the iniquity of us all. He laid upon Him the iniquity
of us all. He imputed it. He laid it on His Son. And therefore
it says because of that imputation of our sin to Him, that's why
He suffered and that's why He bled and that's why He died.
It was a voluntary act of the Son of God for that sin to be
laid on Him. It was a voluntary act of the
Son of God to suffer, bleed and die on Calvary for the sins of
His people. All those tremendous sufferings
of Christ on the behalf of His people. It was a voluntary act
of the Son of God to pour out His soul unto death, to shed
every drop of His precious blood, and the blood of Jesus Christ,
God's Son, cleanseth us from all sin. There's that beautiful
well-known word in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and the last verse.
For He, that's our Eternal Father, for He hath made Him, that's
Christ, to be sin for us. Who knew no sin. Christ knew
no sin. Christ did no sin. Christ was
absolutely righteous. He really was. Who knew no sin. that we might be made the righteousness
of God in him. His pure obedience, his sinless
life. You know, friends, there's something
exceedingly beautiful and sacred in that pure and that holy life
of Jesus Christ. He's called the Holy One of Israel.
and he wrought out a righteousness that would cover the whole of
his church. As it says here, thy people also
shall be all righteous. And as we looked into revelation
concerning those in white robes and washed in the blood of the
Lamb, what did it go on to say? Therefore. Why? Because they're
clothed in the righteousness of Christ, because they're washed
in the blood of Christ, therefore. Are they before the throne of
God? Because of the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ,
the spouse in Solomon's Song, chapter 5. And the first thing,
she speaks of her beloved. My beloved is white and ruddy. White because he's pure, because
he's holy, because he's righteous altogether. Ruddy because he
shed his precious blood, to redeem his people, the precious blood
of Christ. For as much as ye are not redeemed
with corruptible things such as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of
the lamb, as of a lamb slain from before the foundation of
the world. Oh, the precious blood of our
Lord Jesus Christ that cleanses from all sin and that glorious
everlasting robe of the righteousness of Jesus Christ that covers the
sin of his people, thy people also shall be all righteous. Everyone. Everyone will have
a wedding garment. Everyone will enter into that
marriage supper of the Lamb. Everyone is safe. in Christ. Everyone is righteous in Christ. Everyone is perfect in Christ
Jesus. It says, doesn't it, in the Ephesians
and the Colossians, for ye are complete in him. And that's the only place you'll
ever be complete. The more we know of the gospel
of Jesus Christ, we shall equally know much of our own sinfulness,
our own corruption. And the reason that the Holy
Spirit constantly does that, convicting of sin, is to keep
us in our right place, to realize that all is of grace, nothing
is of works, nothing is in what we can do or what we can accomplish,
but everything is what Christ has done and what Christ has
accomplished on the behalf of his people. And His people are
righteous because He made them righteous. And they are eternally
righteous. Thy people also shall be all
righteous. May the Lord add His blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 103, The tune is Justification 360. Jesus, thy blood and righteousness,
my beauty are, my glorious dress, amidst flaming worlds in these
arrayed, with joy shall I lift up my head. Hymn 103. In the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. When from the palace of Gethsemane Dare take my passion in the skies,
If then shall the eternal I flee. Jesus has lifted mine for me. Jesus has lifted mine for me. Lo, shall I stand in that great
day, Lo, the true light of day, Unto the God I'm sold I am, For
sin's remainder's death and shame. ? From sin's deep redness ? ? Chosen
shame ? ? Last day ever ? ? Friend of mine ? ? All the earth is filled with
love. ? ? The sacred of sinners leaves
her way. ? ? The sacred of sinners leaves
her way. ? Sinners of heaven, see my power. This moment's gladder, gladder,
same appears. Remembering them, jealous seems
it is. ? The great and the victorious
King ? ? The robe of Christ is ever new ? ? The Word of Christ is ever new. ? ? I will confess that with
my voice, ? Make the blind man which must rejoice, Have beauty,
peace, and glorious rest. Jesus, the Lord, the righteousness. Jesus, the Lord, the righteousness. 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. Amen. Thank you.