Okay. Thank you. Okay. The notices for the coming week
are God willing as follows. Pastor will preach here next
Lord's Day at 10.30 and 2 o'clock. As it is Christmas Day, there
will be a collection for the support of the Mombasso Mission.
Pastor will preach here on Thursday evening at 7 o'clock. And there
will be a prayer meeting on Tuesday evening at 7 o'clock. Let us commence our services
today by singing together hymn number 532 to the tune Millennium
551. The Ransomed of the Lord shall unto Zion come, The faithful loving God will
surely bring them home. He gave his life for ransom price,
and Zion shall in him rejoice, in 532. can and desire grow. But with
the loving God, what will surely bring them home? The promise of that road shall
stand forever. ♪ Heaven's triumph shall record
♪ ♪ The wonders of his love ♪ ♪ Redemption's glorious birth ♪ is ♪ For He sent us ♪ ♪ His help with
love and grace ♪ ♪ And shall come when we ask ♪ ♪ For Jesus' sake to save us ♪ ♪ Justly and saintly ♪ ♪ Christmas
Eve ♪ ♪ All through the years ♪ ♪ Sanctified me ♪ O come all ye faithful joyful
and triumphant O come ye, O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem Ave plena, meraventia, In his praise come love and cheer,
in earth and on high. Shepherds we have heard on high, O come all ye faithful joyful
and triumphant O say can you see, by the dawn's
early light, Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the Gospel according to Matthew and Chapter
3. Matthew's Gospel, Chapter 3. In those days came John the Baptist,
preaching in the wilderness of Judea. and saying, Repent ye,
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that
was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying, The voice of
one cried in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
and make his path straight. And the same John had his raiment
of camel's hair, and a leather girdle about his loins, and his
meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem,
and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were
baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many
of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said
unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from
Gerothagon. Bring forth therefore fruits
meet for repentance, and think not to say within yourselves,
we have Abraham to our father. For I say unto you that God is
able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid
unto the root of the trees, Therefore every tree which bringeth not
forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire. I indeed
baptize you with water unto repentance. For he that cometh after me is
mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. He shall
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. whose fan is in
his hand, and he will thoroughly perch his floor, and gather his
wheat into the garner, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable
fire. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee
to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him, but John forbade him,
saying, I have need to be baptised of thee, and comest thou to me. And Jesus answered and said unto
him, Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfil
all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus,
when he was baptised, went up straightway out of the water,
And lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit
of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo,
a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I
am well pleased. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word, and grant unto us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
which is and art and art to come, we do desire to bow before thy
great and eternal majesty, for thou art God over all, and thou
inhabitest eternity, from everlasting to everlasting thou art God.
So we come to pray to thee, the only true God, the Holy Father,
the Holy Son, and the Holy Spirit. We come to thee in that precious
name of Jesus Christ, thy only begotten Son. For through him
we have access by one spirit unto the Father. And we pray
to be led and taught and guided and directed by thee this day. Blessed and divine Spirit of
truth, will we pray for thy heavenly power. For without thy heavenly
power, O Lord, no squeeze of gospel can afford, no drops of
heavenly love will fall. We desire, O Lord, that we might
have the dew of heaven upon our branch, and the blessing of the
Lord that maketh rich and addeth no sorrow with it. We desire
that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God our Father,
and the sacred fellowship of the Holy Spirit may rest and
abide upon us, that we may be led and taught and guided and
directed by thee, and that the gathering of the people may be
unto thee. O most gracious Lord, we pray,
that thou wouldst so bless us this day. We come, Lord, as poor
guilty sinners, each one of us whether young or old, are the
guilty, sinful sons and daughters of Adam. Born in sin, shaken
in iniquity, in sin did our mothers consume us. Gracious God, we
solemnly acknowledge before thee our sinfulness and we desire
to confess our sins and our wanderings and our backslidings. Our ailments
in this wilderness journey Gracious God, we pray for thy forgiving
love in Jesus Christ. Thou hast said, O Lord, in thy
word, if ye confess your sins, he is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Gracious
God, may we know of thy forgiving love today. May we know of thy
reconciling grace in Jesus Christ today. May we know the sacred
power, the divine option of the precious blood of Christ applied
into our hearts. For the blood of Jesus Christ,
God's Son, cleanseth us from all sin. For this, O Lord, is
our only hope. And this is all our desire, that
I may know him, even our Lord Jesus Christ, in the power of
his resurrection, in the fellowship of his suffering, being made
conformable unto his death. We pray, most gracious Lord,
for that grace, that we may present our bodies, a living sacrifice,
holy and acceptable unto thee, which is our reasonable service,
and that we be not conformed to this world, but may we be
transformed by the renewal of our mind, that we might know
what that good and perfect and acceptable will of the Lord is,
We pray, most gracious Lord, that thy word may be a lamp unto
our feet and a light unto our path, that we may be guided and
directed by thee for thy great name's sake. Any among us, O
Lord, that as yet know thee not, as yet have not been quickened
by the Holy Ghost and brought to knowledge of themselves and
to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, But we pray that this
day may be the day when that work begins. The work begun is
carried on. Oh, that has said that we will
never leave nor forsake thy people. Oh, most gracious Lord, we hang
upon those precious promises of thy word. But when thou passest
through the waters, I will be with thee. And through the fire
it shall not hurt. O gracious God, we do pray that
thou wouldst give us grace, each one of us, to walk the pathway
that is ordained for us, to guide us and direct us in all matters.
We pray that, most gracious Lord, thou wouldst bless our deacons,
neither of whom is Lord with us this morning. We pray that
thou wouldst bless our dear brother and sister at home, And we pray
for our brother who have taken the services at Tunbridge Wells
today, that thou would graciously help them, grant restoration. We think of others also, Lord,
that are not here today. We pray for each one. Pray that
thou would be Jehovah Rophi. I am the Lord that healeth thee. I do grant thy healing power
and thy divine grace and blessing. We do humbly beseech of thee.
Help us to pray for each other, to bear each other's burdens,
thereby fulfilling the law of Christ. Help us to love each
other, serve each other. Lord, give us that grace that
we may be enabled so to do. Hast thou not said, by this shall
they know that ye are my disciples because ye have love one to another?
Lord, give us more faith and more love. We do humbly beseech
Take us the foxes, those little foxes, that do so spoil the vines,
for our vines have tender grains. Gracious God, preserve us from
the work and power of the enemy, even Satan, that old serpent,
the devil. Deliver us from his temptations.
Sometimes, Lord, he comes as a roaring lion to devour us,
and sometimes he comes as an angel of light to deceive us.
We pray to be delivered from his power and from his influence. And we pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou must fulfil that wonderful promise. When the enemy comes
in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard
against him. Bless the little ones and the
children as they're brought into the sanctuary. Bless them, O
Lord, with the fear of the Lord in their young and tender years.
that has said, and it encourages us to pray for each one of the
dear children, suffer little children to come unto me, and
forbid them not, for if such is the kingdom of heaven. Lord,
we do pray that thou wouldst work amongst us. We think of
that precious word, instead of thy fathers shall be thy children,
whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. Gracious God. We pray that Thou wouldst so
work among us here, that there may be a generation that shall
be raised up to call Thee the Redeemer, bless it. We pray for our families, O Lord,
wherever they may be, that Thou wouldst have mercy upon them,
that Thou wouldst bless them, teach them Thine ways and lead
them in Thy paths. Those that wander from wisdom's
way, we pray that Thou wouldst have mercy upon them, open their
eyes and their hearts to receive thy word in love, we do humbly
beseech of thee. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou wouldst fill our hearts with gratitude at this time,
especially at this time of the year, that we seek to remember
the birth of Jesus Christ, the incarnation of the Son of God,
the wonderful mystery of Godliness, God manifested the flesh, and
the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory,
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. We bless Thee for the glory of
His name, for the fullness of His grace, for the wondrous of
His redeeming love. We thank Thee in that holy life
He lived as a man here upon earth, He fulfilled and honoured and
magnified thy holy rule, bringing in everlasting righteousness.
We thank thee that in that sacrifice of Calvary he has put away sin,
put away all the sin of thy people in that precious sacrifice, in
that precious sin-atoning blood. Oh, as far as the east is from
the west, so far have I removed thy sins from thee, O Israel,
Lord, we thank Thee for the wonderful glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank Thee that He died for
our sins and rose again for our justification and is now bodily
ascended into heaven and that we have a great High Priest who
is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Oh, we do bless
Thee then for the wonders and glories that dwell in our Lord
and Saviour Jesus Christ. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that Thou wilt bless the dear young friends as they stand on
the threshold of life's journey, that Thou wilt guide them and
direct them unto Jesus Christ as the only Saviour of sinners,
that Thou wilt bring them to living faith in Him, guide and
direct them in all the paths of providence, make a way where
there seems no way, and make the crooked things straight and
the rough places plain, and grant them a partner in life's journeys,
one that shall fear thy great and holy name. Oh, do hear us,
Lord. We humbly pray thee. Remember,
O Lord, we pray thee, parents, as they seek to bring up their
children, may they do so in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord. And graciously, Graciously guide and direct them in all
matters, that they may bring up their children in accordance
with thy word, and that we may not stumble our children, but
that we may walk honourably before them, that it may be an example
unto them. We do humbly pray thee, keep
the door of my lips, that it uttereth no perverseness. and
that we do pray to be made more spiritually minded, our heart
and our affections set upon things of life. We pray, most gracious
Lord, that thou in thy precious mercy would remember all in the
evening time of life journey. We would especially remember
our dear aged sister, that thou would remember her and that graciously
bless her. and grant that her last days
may be her best days. And Lord, we pray that thou in
thy precious mercy would send the glory and light of the gospel
into this village, into the surrounding villages and hamlets. Many precious
souls may yet be gathered in. The word of the Lord distributed
may be richly blessed of them, may be downed to the honour,
glory, and praise of thy great and holy name. We pray that thou
wouldst bless the text on the front of the chapel, that some
poor soul may look and live when they see the living word of the
living God. We do humbly beseech of thee.
And we pray that thou in thy great mercy would remember all
thy servants as they lay in word and doctrine upon the walls of
Zion today. Grant that they may dip their
foot in oil and be made acceptable unto the brethren. that grant
that those with long journeys may have a safe journey, that
thou wilt watch over and keep and reserve them. But above all
thou wilt grant signs to follow the preaching of the word, that
instead of a decline, we may see an increase. Instead of a
falling away, we may see a building up. Gracious God, thou art able
to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. Thou hast
promised in thy word, I will bring thy sons from far, and
thy daughters from the ends of the earth, and they shall come. O gracious God, let thy work
appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.
Return unto Jerusalem with mercies, and make bare thy holy arm in
the gospel. Arise, arise, O God of grace,
into thy rest descend, that thou in the ark of thy strength may
let thy priests be clothed with salvation. and thy saints shall
shout aloud for joy. O abundantly bless the provision
of thy house and satisfy her poor with bread. O Lord, we do
beseech of thee. We do pray. Most gracious and
most merciful Lord God, remember our own little group of churches,
which is but a part of thy Zion. Remember us for good. Remember
the editors of our magazines, the secretaries of our societies,
the committees as they gather. And arise again, O God of grace,
and revive thy work. We do humbly beseech of thee. We pray thee, the great Lord
of the harvest, that thou would send true labourers into the
harvest. Lord, we pray that thou in thy
great mercy would remember our nation. We pray for our king. and the royal household that
thy rich blessing, thy covenant blessings may be known there,
wisdom, guidance, and direction to be given to the ministers
of the crown. Gracious God, we live in such
dark days, when iniquity abounds on every hand, when the spirit
and power of Antichrist is so prevalent, when wickedness and
evil abounds everywhere. O most gracious Lord, it reminds
us of thy word in the days of Noah that the world was full
of lions. Pray God, hear prayer, bless
thy word, we do humbly pray thee. Lord, we pray that thou wouldst
remember those that labour in the various nations of the earth,
we would especially remember those that go forth from We pray
for Ian Sackler as he labours in India, Pakistan, Burma and
Africa. Lord, grant good success and
supply all his many returning needs. Remember, oh Lord, the
Savannah Education Trust in Ghana and that great work that they
are doing there. Gracious Lord, do richly bless
them. We humbly beseech them. Precious
souls may be gathered unto Christ through that ministry. Remember
the Mombasa mission in Kenya and graciously bless thy servant
there and graciously grant a godly increase. Lord, we pray that
thou wouldst now be with us as we turn to thy word. We would
not forget thee. the war-torn country of Ukraine,
we pray that thou wouldst deliver them from the power of the enemy.
We do humbly beseech thee, and bring to law the counsels of
their God, and put a stop to war, as many thousands are being
slaughtered, entering from time into eternity. Gracious God,
hear prayer. We do humbly pray thee, and bring
a just and honourable peace. We pray that thou wouldst now
be with us as we turn to thy holy word, that thou wouldst
come and touch one's lips with a live coal from off the heavenly
altar, that the word preached may be in power, in the Holy
Ghost, and with much assurance. We ask for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 184. The tune is Laudate Dominum II,
911. fullness resides in Jesus our
Head, and ever abides to answer our need, the Father's good pleasure
has laid up in store a plentiful treasure to give to the poor. Hymn 184. Namo'valokiteshvaraya Namo'valokiteshvaraya God save Thee, and give us from
death this fleshly wealth here. Oh. Peace be to the world, and good
to all. The Lord is rest, the waves are
swillowed, shut by the breath of Jesus' wisdom. And they'll show some more colors
then we are for any feeling to need the most
gracious help of a greater attention to the prophecy of Isaiah chapter
40. And we'll read verses three,
four, and five for our text. Isaiah chapter 40, verses three,
four, and five. The voice of him that crieth
in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, and make
straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall
be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and
the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain, and
the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall
see it together. for the mouth of the Lord hath
spoken it." The voice of him that cried. Every one of the evangelists,
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John quote this text. They quote it
in relation to John the Baptist. And as we just read together
in Matthew chapter 3, Matthew himself quotes the exact words,
the voice of him that crieth in the wilderness. Of course,
pointing to John the Baptist, who himself pointed to our Lord
Jesus Christ. John the Baptist is called the
forerunner of Christ. And the Lord says, here in the
Old Testament, in the prophet Malachi. That, of course, is
the closing book of the Old Testament, leading us into the New Testament
of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it says in Malachi chapter
three, verse one, behold, I will send my messenger and he shall
prepare the way before me And the Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly
come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, that
of course is Christ, whom ye delight in. Behold, he shall
come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of
his coming? And who shall stand when he appeareth? Behold, I send my messenger,
It's very fitting, friends, that Christ should have a forerunner. Just a moment here in Malachi
chapter 4. Again, it speaks here in verse
5, Behold, I will send you Elijah. Elijah is often called in the
New Testament Elias. He is the most preeminent of
the Old Testament prophets, and John the Baptist was the last
of the Old Testament prophets. So here it's speaking of John
the Baptist. Behold, I will send you Elijah
the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day
of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of
the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to
their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth. with a curse. So John the Baptist being the
forerunner of our Lord Jesus Christ. I think it was very fitting. If the king goes to another country,
our ambassador that is in that country will make all the arrangements
necessary for that visit, so everything runs smoothly, sees
the right people, has audiences with those whom he desires to. And so that ambassador goes before
the monarch. That's one of the purposes of
his office. And how much more fitting that
when the eternal son of the eternal father comes to this earth, that
he should have a herald, one that goes before him. One that prepares the way that
is before him. And that was the office of John
the Baptist, the voice of him that crieth in the worldliness. You know, it says in the beginning
of this chapter of Isaiah, chapter 40, Come ye, comfort ye, comfort
ye, my people saith your God. You see, this is the, it's so
beautiful. The old Puritans used to call
it the Gospel according to Isaiah. Because Isaiah speaks so clearly
and so beautifully and such clear views of the coming of Christ,
of the coming of the Messiah, the Anointed One. And he preaches
Christ unto us. And that this was the, what was
to come when Christ was to come here upon earth, come for Confuci,
my people, saith your God. Christ brings comfort and consolation,
salvation and redemption unto his people. Hence, in him is
comfort. Of course, we read in the New
Testament that the glorious and divine person of the Holy Ghost
is called the Comforter. And Christ himself said, and
when the Comforter is come, when the Comforter is come, when the
Holy Spirit is come. That's after the sacred redeeming
work of Christ has been done. He said to the disciples, behold,
I send the promise of my Father upon you. And then Christ himself
said that he will comfort the Lord's people by revealing or
testifying of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ said he would
testify of me, of the wonderful person, work, grace and power,
love and glory of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. That is
what the Holy Ghost testifies unto. Of course, he also opens
up the word, as Christ himself said, the Holy, not a physician,
but then let us see. Christ is the heavenly physician.
Now, if we're not sick, we don't need a physician. We don't need
a doctor. We don't need to see or seek
medical advice. That's naturally speaking. But when the Holy Spirit enters
the heart, he convinces us of our sins. Christ himself said, didn't he,
when he the spirit of truth is come, he will reprove the world
of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. When he comes to
a sinner's heart, and marked by words, my beloved friends,
unless the Holy Spirit comes to your heart, unless the Holy
Spirit quickens your soul, you cannot know God. You cannot know
the way of salvation. You cannot go to heaven. It's
very clear in the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ, when Christ
in John chapter 3, that he speaks to Nicodemus, one of the elders,
one of the leaders of the Jews. And what did he say to Nicodemus?
He must be born again. There's no ifs or buts. He must. be born again. And when Nicodemus
questions him, can a man enter the second time into his mother's
womb? Christ said, except a man be
born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of
heaven. It's a solemn thought, isn't
it? He cannot enter the kingdom. What a soulful thought that is.
To live and die. You know, how many there are
that think they are Christians, that think they are going to
heaven, that think they are going to glory because they read their
Bibles, because they go to church, because they've been baptized,
or because of this, or because of that, or because of something
else, they believe they're going to heaven. Because they're a
member of a certain church, They think they're going to heaven.
May those words sink deep into each one of our hearts. He must
be born again. Except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. But there are certain scriptures
that stand out very vividly, and that is one of them. It's something that is absolute,
and it's divinely certain. Except a man be born of water
and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Doesn't the apostle Paul, he
speaks of it in the second chapter of the Ephesians, eu athi quicum,
that's an old-fashioned English word that means Give life, you
hath equippen, that means to give life, you hath equippen
who were dead. The dead don't know anything,
those that are dead spiritually. But when the Holy Spirit awakens
us to our lost condition, to our need of salvation, when he
shows us the darkness that we're in, and then reveals to us the
light that is in Jesus Christ, when he shows us that we are
sinful, and then reveals to us that Jesus Christ shall save
his people from their sins. When the angel was speaking unto
Joseph, when his wife was with child, Mary was with child of
the Holy Ghost, how clearly does he speak to Joseph? And thou
shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from
their sins. That's the meaning of the name
Jesus. He shall save his people from
their sins. And of course it's Jesus Christ. So what is meant by Christ? The
Anointed One. Or the Messiah. The Messiah means
the Anointed One. That's what Christ is. He's been
anointed of God, anointed by the Spirit. And as a man, here
upon earth, he was filled with the Holy Ghost. And it's through
him, my beloved friends, that the Holy Ghost brings comfort
to poor sinners. Through Jesus Christ. And in
this introduction to this chapter, comfort ye, comfort ye my people,
saith your God, speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem and cry unto her
that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned,
for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her
sins. You see the coming of Jesus Christ
and the accomplishment, what he's accomplished, crying to
her that her warfare is accomplished. It's accomplished in Christ. When the Son of God was made
flesh and dwelt among us, He lived, as the Apostle says, made
a woman, made under the law, that He might redeem them that
are under the law. When He lived as a man here upon
earth, He fulfilled and honoured and magnified the holy law of
God. That holy law that you have broken,
that I have broken. The Bible says clearly, we all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We have a fallen
nature and we're born with it. In sin did my mother conceive
me, said David. And it is true of everyone born
into this world. We're born in sin. were shapen
in iniquity. And the only person that can
deliver you from that state of spiritual darkness and death,
because that's what it is, you hath it quickened who were dead. Has the Holy Spirit quickened
your soul? Has he given you spiritual life? Has he opened your eyes? to save
your lost condition. Has the Holy Spirit raised you
up to a hope in the finished work of Jesus Christ? What Christ has done to save
his people from their sins, how warfare is accomplished. We're
in Christ. I love those words on the cross
when it is said of Christ, Jesus knowing that all things were
now accomplished. He knew that he had redeemed
his people. He paid the redemption price
in that precious holy sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. He knew
that all things were now accomplished. This is the meaning of Isaiah
here speaking comfortably to Jerusalem and crying out that
her warfare is accomplished. We're in Christ, in his finished
work, in his redeeming love, in his precious sacrifice, in
his holy life, it's accomplished. That her iniquity is pardoned,
for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her
sins. Now, John the Baptist came as
the forerunner of Christ. Now what did he preach? He preached
Christ. He preached Christ. As I was
meditating here in this chapter on Friday, Friday afternoon I
sat down considering this service, and as I was looking through
the life of John the Baptist, it was very sweet and very precious. how that he set forth Christ.
It was John the Baptist that said, behold the Lamb of God,
which taketh away the sin of the world. Behold the Lamb of
God. That's where salvation is. That's where all things are accomplished. The other words of Christ on
the cross of Calvary when it says, and Jesus cried with a
loud voice, just after it says, knowing that all things were
now accomplished, it says, and Jesus cried with a loud voice. Now, let's consider just how
weak and emancipated the glorious person of the Lord Jesus in that
sacred, holy human nature, he knew great weakness, he knew
extreme pain, he did indeed, and yet, and it's purposely recorded,
he cried with a loud voice. Normally, when a person is completely
emancipated and in great weakness, their voice is extremely weak. But Christ, as he comes to the
end of those sufferings on Calvary, he cried with a loud voice, it
is finished. Salvation's work is done. My people are redeemed. Divine
justice has been satisfied in that holy, perfect sacrifice
of Christ. What does the apostle say in
Hebrews? For by one offering, he has perfected
forever all them that are sanctified. speaking comfortably to Jerusalem
and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity
is pardoned. For she hath received at the
Lord's hand double for all her sins. You know, friends, that
this double for all her sins, the way it opens to me has been
very sweet to me for many years now, but what this means is double
for all her sins, I see in him the holy life of Christ. That he lived as a holy man. He did no sin. In other words,
he never broke God's holy law. The only man never to do that.
He lived a life that was perfectly in conformity in thought, word
and deed. to the holy law of God. Now that
perfect obedience of Christ is the righteousness of the believer.
It's the righteousness of the church. They are made righteous
in Christ. They are made righteous in Christ. Through that holy life. Through that perfect obedience
to the law. That's what Christ had to do.
He said himself, I come not to destroy the law, but to fulfill
it. And that's what Christ has done.
He's the only man ever to do it. Fulfilled and honored and
magnified, that righteous holy law that you and I have broken. We've broken God's holy law.
but Christ came to fulfill it on the behalf of his people.
And when a poor sinner is brought to believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, brought to save in faith in Jesus Christ, they receive
a righteousness that is perfect. One of the hymn writers speaking
of it, he says, righteousness within the root, or by that who
means self-righteousness, like the Pharisees, self-righteous. Righteousness within thee rooted
may appear to take thy part, but let righteousness imputed
be the breastplate of thy heart. That's the imputed righteousness
of Jesus Christ. And then it says here, double
for all have sinned, so with that glorious everlasting robe
of the righteousness of Christ. Secondly, it says double, secondly,
that holy sacrifice of Calvary. This holy God man did no sin,
neither was guile found in his name. And that sacrifice that
he offered on Calvary was pure, holy. acceptable to God. What Ganyu here has a whole booklet,
it's called the Acceptable Sacrifice. And this is the person of Christ.
For by one offering he hath perfected forever all them that are sanctified. What does it mean, all them that
are sanctified? The word sanctified means separated.
So he's perfect forever, all those that the Father gave to
him. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him
that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out. Now, she has
received of the Lord's hand done. She's received that glorious
everlasting robe of his righteousness to cover her nakedness. And she
has received. That precious sacrifice, that
precious blood of the Lamb that cleanses from all sin. A sin has been put away. A nakedness
is covered. Ye are complete in Him. And this is the meaning of the
words of the prophet. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem. Cry unto her that her warfare
is accomplished, that her iniquities pardoned. For she hath received
of the Lord's hand double. for all her sins. It makes me
think of those lovely words in song and song when the spouse
is speaking of the glorious person of her Redeemer, her Beloved.
My Beloved is white and ruddy. The chiefest among ten thousand.
White is the pure and holy righteousness of Jesus Christ. Ruddy is red. It's his precious sin-atoning
blood that cleanses from all sin, that
reconciles unto God, that brings peace into the conscience, salvation
into the soul. That's what we find in Jesus
Christ. That's what the believer receives in Jesus Christ. And hence, it speaks comfort
and consolation to the heart. There's salvation, there's redemption.
Her iniquity is pardoned. for she hath received of the
Lord's hand double for all her sins. The voice of him that crieth
in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord. Make straight
in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted. This is John the Baptist, this
is the word of commission to him, and he cries. Where does it say every valley
shall be exalted, every mountain and hill shall be made low? In
the person of Jesus Christ. Those great mountains that stop
your wine, those deep valleys that you're afraid you might
be lost in. Every valley shall be exalted,
we're in Christ. That's what John the Baptist
is pointing to. Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou
art with me. Who? Christ. In the valley of
the shadow of death. Thou art with me, thy rod and
thy staff, they comfort me. The voice of him that crieth
in the wilderness. Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God. A highway. speaks here in Isaiah of this
highway, this highway that the Lord has made in this wilderness
journey, in the wilderness of this world. It says in Isaiah
chapter 35 verse 8, and a highway shall be there, and a way, and
it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not
pass over it. But it shall be for those, the
wayfaring men, no fool shall I urler in, no lion shall be
there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon. It shall
not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. And it was
this last verse that led me to our first hymn. And the ransomed
of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting
joy upon their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. Oh, my beloved friends,
you'll find joy, gladness, peace, salvation, redemption in the
glorious person of Jesus, the Son of God. In that holy sacrifice
of Calvary, in that precious sin atoning blood of Jesus Christ,
you'll find salvation and redemption. What's the apostle say to the
Hebrews? looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our
faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross,
despising the shame thereof, has now set down at the right
hand of the majesty on high. Every valley shall be exalted.
Every mountain and hill shall be made low. If you think of
the holy law of God that stands between your soul and the holy
God, Cursed is every man that doeth not all things that is
written in the book of the Lord to do them. The hymn writer says,
cursed be the man, forever cursed, that does one willful sin commit. Sin is any transgression of the
law of God. But here is a way of deliverance,
of salvation. In the person of God's Son, our
Lord Jesus Christ, in his precious sin-atoning blood, Because in him, the law has been
forfeited. And that great mountain of the
law, it says here, every mountain and hill shall be made low, and
the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. Where?
In Christ. The high one shall be there.
Jesus said himself, didn't he? I am the way, the truth, and
the life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. The apostle Paul, he takes up
that very same point in Ephesians chapter 2 verse 18, for through
him, who? Jesus Christ. Through his holy
night, through his glorious sacrifice, through his precious sin and
holy blood, through his death and resurrection. It's a new
and living word. It's ascension into glory. You
think of Psalm 24 when it speaks of Christ entering into glory.
And the everlasting gates of heaven open. When Christ ascended
up into glory, we read, he led them out as far as unto Bethany,
lifted up his hands and blessed them, and they were received
up into heaven in a cloud. And prophetically, in Psalm 24,
it speaks of Christ ascending into heaven. Lift up your heads,
O ye gates. Those gates were shut when Adam
fell. The sword of divine justice kept
the way of life, but Christ has opened those gates. He hath made
a new and living way into the holy place. Lift up your heads,
O ye gates, for ye lifted up the everlasting doors, and the
King of glory, who is it? It's Christ. The King of glory
shall come in. Who is this King of glory? He's
the Lord of hosts. He's the mighty God. He's the
everlasting Father. He's the law fulfiller. He's
the redeemer of his people. He's made this new and living
way. He's opened heaven. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place
for you, I will come again. What does he say there in John
14? Let not your heart be troubled.
You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are
many mansions. If it were not so, I would have
told you. I go to prepare a place for you,
and if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and
receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. You think of the valley of the
shadow of death, Christ has gone through for his people. He ended in the death itself,
and on the third day, he rose again. And as the Word of God
clearly says, he rose again for our justification. Again, I love what dear old Mr
Wood used to say, justification. It's a big word, isn't it? Just as if I had not sinned. Why? Because Jesus took all our
sins and he nailed them to his cross. as if I had not seen them. Their sins and their iniquities
will I remember no more. Every valley shall be exalted,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked
shall be made straight, and the rough places plain, and the glory
of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." This is the message
of John the Baptist. when he went before Christ. His
message was, behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the
sin of the world. Behold the Lamb of God. We saw
in that chapter that we read together in the third chapter
of Matthew, in those days came John the Baptist preaching in
the wilderness of Judea, saying, repent ye, for the kingdom of
heaven is at hand. baptism of repentance, John came
baptizing. It was called the baptism of
repentance, repentance toward God. For this is he that was spoken
of by the prophet Isaiah saying, the voice of one crying in the
wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. The same John had his raiment
of Hamel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins, and his
meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem
and all Judea, and all the regions round about Jordan were baptized
of him. You see, he went before Christ,
and he preached Christ. He said that there is one among
us whose shoes latch it, I am not worthy to undo. You see,
that this is the ministry of John the Baptist, the glorious
person of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus said of John the
Baptist, there was not a greater man born of women than John the
Baptist, the herald of Christ, the messenger sent from heaven
to point out the place where grace abounds, to point out what
was going to be done, what was going to be accomplished. And
yet, you know friends, how strange and mysterious God's plans are. The Son of God, as He walked
here upon earth, He was despised and rejected there. A man of
sorrows and acquainted with grief. Don't expect a different pathway
to Christ. We profess to be his followers.
If you and I truly follow Christ, and truly forsake everything
else, and truly live a life unto Christ, you will be despised
and rejected at then. That's the path the true Christian
walks. What Christ himself said, them
that live godly In Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, for
Christ's sake. And if we hold fast to our integrity,
then the world will despise and hate us, same as they did John
the Baptist, and same as they did the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the way of salvation. So, we read together here in
Matthew, and we see the separating ministry of John the Baptist. It says in verse 7, but when
he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come into his baptism,
he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you
to flee from the Rotterdam? Bring forth therefore fruits,
meat for repentance, It's no good just being baptised. There
must be fruits in her life. A change of heart, which will
bring a change of life. Comes back to the words of the
Lord Jesus, you must be born again. A change of heart will
bring a change of life. Bring forth therefore fruits,
meet for repentance. The truth is no different today.
If you and I have a change of heart, there will be a change
of life, a change in the way that we live. We will seek to
live according to God's word. Never forget that the reason
that John the Baptist lost his head was because he preached
against King Herod, who took his own brother's wife to be
his wife. And John the Baptist, he said, that is sinful, that
is wrong. And that is why he lost his head.
He was faithful to the truth of God. You see, my beloved friends,
it's always been true, these truths. It says here, and now
also, verse 10 of Matthew 3, and now also the axe is laid
unto the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which bringeth
not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.
I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. But he that
cometh after me is mightier than I. See how he exalts Christ."
Think of those words in Isaiah chapter 9, those words speaking
of Christ. His name shall be called Wonderful,
Counselor, the Prince of Peace, the name of Christ. And that's
what John came to preach. But he that cometh after me is
mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. He shall
baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire, whose fan is in
his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor and gather his
wheat into the garden, but he will burn up the char. with unquenchable
fire. You see, my beloved friends,
how these things, so solemn, so separate, it speaks to the
chaff and the wheat. You know, the chaff was necessary
for the wheat when it was growing. But once it was harvested, then
the chaff has to be separated from the wheat. Makes me think
of the parable of Christ what you spoke concerning the tares
of the field. Let them both grow together until
the harvest. You know the tares, while just
in the blade, they look just the same as the wheat. You can't
differentiate between them. It's when the fruit comes, you
can then clearly see the fruit of the tares and the fruit of
the wheat. Let them both grow together till
the harvest. and then he will gather the wheat
into his barn and the tares he will burn with unquenchable fire
very separating words on that so we notice here also what we
read together in the baptism of Christ John he felt himself
to be so small and nothing, compared
with Christ. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee
to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him. But John forbade him,
saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me. We can understand the dear man's
feelings coming. This is the Son of God. He knew
it was the Son of God. And Jesus answered and said unto
him, Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill
all righteousness. Then he suffered him. What do
we see in this baptism as a righteous thing for the believer? We believe
and teach believers baptism. The only persons that should
be baptized are those that are believers. And then they are
brought into the visible church of Christ. Let us be clear, there's
nothing saving in baptism. It's an act of faith. And those that truly enter rightly
into this act of faith, it's a righteous thing, then he suffers. And Jesus, when he was baptized,
went up straightway out of the water, and though the heavens
were open unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending
like a dove and lighting upon him, and though a voice from
heaven saying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Surely, we cannot avoid the point
that divine approbation of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost was
on this act of baptism. is the Son of God in human nature
that is baptised in Jordan, the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove
lights upon him, the Eternal Father speaks from heaven, this
is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Well, you know,
friends, may these things sink deeply into each one of our hearts,
the voice of Him that cryeth in the wilderness, Prevay ye
the way of the Lord, and make straight in the desert a highway
for our God. Every valley shall be exalted,
this of course is all in Christ's, and every mountain and hill shall
be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the
rough places plain, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed.
And all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord hath
spoken it. The glory of the Lord. What does John say in John chapter
1, in the Gospel of John chapter 1? And the Word, that's the Son
of God, and the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and
we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father, full of grace and truth. May the Lord have His praise. Let us now sing together hymn
number 658. The tune is Bühler, 446. Mighty King, thy power display, Give us grace to watch and pray,
strengthened by thy spirit's might, may we in thy ways delight. In 658. For us, Jesus was baptized. In tremendous glories, Mighty
winds, like a cloud, Through the perilous fight, ♪ How great Thou didst make our
debut ♪ ♪ What the hope that's on the hill ♪ ♪ Where the mighty
old cross goes ♪ ♪ How great Thee are, how great
Thee are ♪ I am. See your soul, and say, Ne'er
rise, Ne'er fall, 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.