Let us turn to the portion of
scripture we're reading in Proverbs in Proverbs chapter 8 and verses
30 and 31 Proverbs 8 verses 30 and 31 Then I was by him as one brought up with him And I was daily his delight,
rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the habitable part
of his earth, and my delights were with the sons of men. Then I was by him. You might ask, when was that? Well, we see the answer, of course,
in the previous verses. It was at the time of God's creation
of all things when He prepared the heavens. I was there when
He gave to the sea His decree. It was in the work of creation
that wisdom was there present with God. delighting in God as
God himself delighted in wisdom. And the theme that I want to
take up with the Lord's help tonight is that of delighting
in the wisdom of God. Delighting in the wisdom of God. Although wisdom is spoken of
here as feminine, She standeth in the top of high places, it
says in verse 2, speaking of the cry of wisdom, yet surely
the chapter speaks to us of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He
is the wisdom of God, of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, says
Paul, who of God is made unto us wisdom. and righteousness
and sanctification and redemption. And James speaks of the wisdom
that is from above that is first pure and then peaceable and gentle
and easy to be entreated and full of mercy and good fruits
and without partiality and without hypocrisy. If ever a person is
being described there by James it is surely the person of the
Lord Jesus Christ. He is the wisdom of God. He is the Word of God. We know
that because it is stated so plainly there in the opening
chapter of the Gospel according to John. In the beginning was
the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The
same was in the beginning with 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. The words is not only to be understood
in terms of the Book of Scripture, but the words is a person and
all of the Scripture bears its testimony to that person, the
Lord Jesus Christ, whereas The word is a person, so too wisdom
is a person. Certain personal properties are
being spoken of in this chapter. Wisdom is said to speak, does
not wisdom cry? And understanding put forth a
voice. And then how we read of that
that Wisdom hates. That's a personal property, hatred. And wisdom hates. As we see here in verse 13. Arrogancy and the evil way and
the froward mouth do I hate. But as wisdom hates, so wisdom
also loves. Verse 17, I love them that love
me, and those that seek me early shall find me. And then also we have that personal
property of joy being spoken of in the words of our text. The end of verse 30, the beginning
of verse 31, rejoicing. I was daily as delight rejoicing,
always before him rejoicing. in the habitable parts of his
earth. What we're reading of then here
in this chapter, this remarkable chapter, has to do with a person. And we ask just who that person
is. And I would say that the Lord
Jesus Christ is that key by which we are able to unlock this eighth
chapter of the book of Proverbs. Well, remember the testimony
of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. He is the one who says to the
Jews, search the scriptures. In them you think that you have
eternal life, and these are they that testify of me. And we see the Lord Jesus. How
the Lord Jesus is that one who speaks so graciously, the word
of the gospel. Verse 8. All the words of my
mouth are in righteousness. There is nothing frail or perverse
in them. They are plain to him that understandeth,
and right to them that find knowledge. Oh, how the Lord speaks! And
He speaks righteous works. Who did no sin, neither was guile
found in his mouth, says the apostle Peter. He is that one
then who speaks truth, who speaks righteousness, who speaks plain,
straightforward works, nothing of guile in his mouth. And now we see him again there
in the earlier part of the chapter at verse 2. Concerning wisdom
she standeth in the top of high places, by the way in the places
of the paths. She crieth at the gates, at the
entry of the city, at the coming in, at the doors. Unto you, O
men, I call. My voice is to the sons of man.
O ye simple, understand wisdom. and ye fools be of an understanding
heart. Are not these some of the gracious
overtures of the gospel?" It's not only here, of course, in
this chapter that we have wisdom, but the whole book is part of
the wisdom literature. And wisdom is there at the very
beginning, in the opening chapter. And what remarkable words, in
a sense we can see quite clearly that what we have in chapter
1 is a prophetic words. Verse 20, Wisdom crieth without. She uttereth her voice in the
streets, she crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the opening
of the gates, in the city, she uttereth her words, saying, How
long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? And the scorners
delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge. Turn you
at my reproof, Behold, I will pour out of my Spirit unto you. I will make known my words unto
you." Here is wisdom in the chief places of concourse, the openings
of the gate, the place, that public place where people are
gathered together. And what does wisdom do? Why? She speaks of pouring out the
Spirit I will pour out of my Spirit unto you. This is a message
being proclaimed then at that chief place of concourse. Now,
when we come to the New Testament, we think of the ministry of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Where was the chief place of
concourse? Was he not there at the temple? And the Lord did
speak on the great day of tabernacles. and he speaks in John chapter
7 in terms very similar to those words that we've just read here
in Proverbs chapter 1. Look at the language that we
have there in John chapter 7 and at verse 37 following. The Lord Jesus is there in Jerusalem. It's the Feast of Tabernacles. There's a great concourse of
people gathered together And we're told verse 37, In the last
day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying,
If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth
on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall
flow rivers of living water. And then John adds this parenthesis,
But this spake he of the Spirit. We say the belief on him should
receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because of Jesus
was not yet glorified. Oh, it's a fulfillment, you see,
of those very words that we just read. I will pour out of my Spirit
unto you. I will make known my words unto
you. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who
is being spoken of throughout the book of Proverbs. And certainly
the Lord Jesus Christ said before us here in this 8th chapter as
the one who is the wisdom of God. Then I was by him, as one
brought up with him. I was daily his delight, rejoicing
always before him, rejoicing in the habitable part of his
earth and my delights. were with the sons of men. Well,
just to consider then what it is to delight in both the person
and also the work of wisdom, the son of God. Delighting in
the wisdom of God. First of all then, this delighting
in his person. Our wisdom is clearly seen to
be that one who is the eternal Son of God, that one who is eternally
begotten of God. He says in verse 22, "...the
Lord possessed me in the beginning of His ways. Before His works
of old I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning wherever the
world was." Here He is seen to be the Eternal One. Again, when we come to the New
Testament, there at the end, the revelation that is given
unto John at Patmos, I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and
the ending, saith the Lord, which was and which is and which is
to come, the Almighty. Oh, he is that one who is eternally
possessed of God the Father, eternally begotten by God the
Father. As he says here in verse 27,
when he prepared the heavens, I was there. When he set a compass
upon the face of the depth, when he established the clouds above,
when he strengthened the fountains of the deep, Oh, he is that one
who is ever always there at the very beginning, before ever there
was any creation. What does he say? Verse 25, before
the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth. While as yet he had not made
the earth, nor the fields, nor the dust, nor the highest part
of the dust of the earth. He is that one then who was always
being the eternal Son of the Eternal Father. And remember
how the prophet speaks of it. There in the book of Micah the
prophet, we have that prophecy concerning Bethlehem Judah, the
very place where the Lord Jesus Christ was born. What does he
say? Micah 5.2, Thou Bethlehem Ephratah,
Though thou be literal among the thousands of Judah, yet out
of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel,
whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."
Well, as the margin says, indicating that the literal Hebrew is from
the days of eternity. His goings forth. have been from
of old, from the days of eternity." Oh, He is that One who is eternally
begotten. When there were no depths, I
was brought forth. Before the hills, I was brought
forth. He is the Son of the Father,
in truth and in love. The Word, we're told, 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."
Now, here we are reminded of that relationship that He sustains
with the Father, and of course also with the Holy Ghost in the
great doctrine of the Godhead, the unity of the Godhead. Verse 30, Then I was by him,
he says, as one brought up with him. Oh, there is a unity here. I
and my Father are one, he says, in the course of his own earthly
ministry. There are three that bear record
in heaven, says John. the Father, the Word, and the
Holy Ghost, and these three are one. It is the person then of the
Lord Jesus Christ that is being spoken of here, and He is present. He is present there at the beginning,
in eternity, at the creation of all things. We've read the
words, as we see the context of our text tonight, verse 27,
when he prepared the heavens I was there, when he set the
compass upon the face of the depths, when he established the
clouds above, when he strengthened the fountains of the deep, when
he gave to the seas decree that the water should not pass his
commandment, when he appointed the foundations of the earth,
then I was by him, as one brought up with him. All we know is there
in creation when we think of Him as the Word of God. What
does the Psalmist say in Psalm 33? By the Word of the Lord. By the Word of the Lord were
the heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of
His mouth. He spoke and He was done. He
commanded, He stood fast. He is that One who is the Word
of God, as we've said already there in the opening words of
John's Gospel, in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with
God, the Word was God, the same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by Him. All things were made by Him.
Without Him was not anything made that was made. We simply
want to labour that point that here we see who this person is. It is none other than the Eternal
Son of the Father who is being spoken of in this chapter, the
wisdom of God, the Eternal Wisdom, as He is the Eternal Word. And
surely it's blasphemy to suggest that before creation there was
a certain incompleteness and an isolation and a loneliness
in God. Or John tells us there twice
in the fourth chapter of that first general epistle that God
is love. And love is not just one of God's
attributes. Love is the very character of
God. God is love in himself. And where there is love there
must be an object. And what is the object? Why the
father loves the son. The Son loves the Father. The
Father and the Son love the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, He loves
the Father and the Son. And do we not see that here in
the words of the text? Then I was by Him, as one brought
up with Him. I was daily His delight, rejoicing
always before Him. Oh, how there is that inter-trinitarian
relationship of love, that mutual delight that each of the divine
persons have one in the other. Who is the person then that is
being spoken of as the wisdom of God? Oh, it is the same who
is the Word of God. No man has seen God at any time,
the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father. He
hath declared Him. Who is that one in the bosom
of the Father? By Him, as one brought up with
Him, it says. And how does God demonstrate
to us the wonder of His love, the greatness of the love of
God? Is He not seen in the gift of
the Lord Jesus Christ, that when the fullness of the time was
come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman made under the
law. Oh, He sends His Son, the Eternal
Son. Remember the language of Isaiah
9, unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. Yes, the child
is born. The human nature is conceived
by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary. That Holy
Thing, that human body, that human soul, which in the great
mystery of the Incarnation is joined to the Eternal Son of
God. That Holy Thing that shall be
born of thee shall be called the Son of God. The child is
born. But the Son is not born, the Son is given. He is before,
He is given. Here is the wonder of the love
of God. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but
have everlasting life. Well, the Father has such a love
for that people that He has made choice of. He chose them. He
chose them in the Lord Jesus Christ as He's made so abundantly
plain in Ephesians chapter 1. And how the Father loves them
and loves them to such a degree that He sends His only begotten
and His well-beloved Son. But then also we see that the
Son also loves those that the Father has given to Him. He says in verse 31, "...rejoicing
in the habitable part of his earth, and my delights were with
the sons of men." Or does the Father demonstrate the greatness
of His love? Well, so too the Son. He willingly undertakes their salvation. It
is because He bears such a great love towards them, having loved
His own, which were in the world. He loved them unto the end, we
read in the opening words of John chapter 11. And what is
the end? Or what is the end? What does
His life terminate in? It terminates in the death of
the cross. But the Lord He loves His people. He delights in His people. Here we see the
greatness, then, of the love of God, be it the Father, be
it the Son. How He takes not on Him the nature
of the angels, but He takes upon Him the seed of Abraham. Oh, the seed of Abraham. That
is the election of grace. He identifies with them. For
as much as the children were partakers of flesh and blood,
we're told, he likewise took part of the same. He becomes
a man. A real man without controversy.
Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. The wonder. The two natures. in that one glorious person the
God-man Jesus Christ, He is truly God and yet He is really a man
and He is a sinless man He is a sinless man and yet He comes
and identifies Himself with sinful men read of God sending His own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemning
sin in the flesh, the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. He
is the one then that is being spoken of in the words of the
text. The psalmist says, my meditation
of him shall be sweet. Or do we desire to think upon
these things? What do we think of the Lord
Jesus Christ? Do we think of him? Do we seek
to ponder these great mysteries? That He is God, He is the Eternal
Son of the Eternal Father, and yet He is also that One who is
truly the Son of Man, a real man. Then I was by Him as one brought
up with Him. I was daily His delight, rejoicing
always before Him, rejoicing in the habitable part of His
earth, and my delights were with the sons of men." But not simply
delighting in the person of him who is the wisdom of God, but
also delighting in his work. How he can say here concerning
the father, I was daily his delight. Think of the Covenant. We know that He is died in the
Father's delight when we think simply in terms of the doctrine
of God, the doctrine of the Godhead, the mutuality of that love between
the three persons as I've already said, but think also in terms
of the Covenant. In the Covenant, though He be
the Eternal Son and equal to the Father, in the Covenant He
becomes God's servant. he comes therefore as one who
is sent by the Father and he comes to accomplish a certain
work that the Father has appointed to him in the covenant and so
in that covenant he willingly becomes God's servant and God
says behold my servant in whom my soul delighteth, I
have put my Spirit upon him." Certainly there we see him as
the mediator of the covenant, the one who is anointed with
the Spirit, the one who is truly the Messiah. But what does the
Father say? Then the Father delighted in him.
My servant, he says, in whom my soul delighteth. And here we have it again in
the text, you see. I was daily his delight. Or the
Father delights in him as the mediator, as the Messiah. The Father delights in all that
work that he comes to execute. Doesn't the Father speak from
heaven even when the Lord Jesus Christ is beginning His ministry? When He goes to John there at
the River Jordan to be baptized, He must fulfill all righteousness.
He must submit to John's baptism of repentance. And do you remember
what happens as He comes up out of the waters of baptism? The
heavens open, the Spirit descends upon him in the form of a dove,
and the Father speaks, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased. Oh, the Father delights in him
now. Why, he is beginning to execute
that work, that covenanted work, that he engaged to fulfill from
all eternity. And he's not only at his baptizing,
but then again, When he takes those favoured disciples, Peter,
James and John, into the mount, and is transfigured before them,
and they are privileged to see beyond the veil of his human
nature, they see something of the glories of his divine nature. And then again the Father speaks
those words from heaven, this is my beloved Son, in whom I
am well pleased, hear ye this, Hear ye Him. Oh, the Father loves
Him, the Father delights in Him. And the delight is mutual again. The Son, when He comes, delights
to do all the will of the Father. How does He speak? Again, in
the language of prophecy, the words of Psalm 40, We were looking at that psalm
recently on a Thursday evening. It's a messianic psalm. It's
quoted, remember, there by the apostle when he writes to the
Hebrews in the 10th chapter. He refers quite specifically
to the language of Christ speaking in that psalm. Verse 7 then,
said I, Lo, I come in the volume of the book it is written of
me to do thy will O God above when he said sacrifice and offering
and burnt offering and peace offering for sin thou wouldest
not neither hath pleasure therein which are offered by the law
then said he lo I come to do thy will O God he taketh away
the first that he may establish the second he takes away the
old covenant the covenant of works is no more It's the covenant
of grace that He comes to establish that new covenant. And how does
He establish that covenant? Oh, He delights to do the will
of His Father. My meat is to do the will of
Him that sent me, He says, and to finish His work. He has a
work to accomplish. He has a commandment that He
has received from the Father. As the Father delights in Him,
in the covenant, in the execution of all those covenantal engagements. So we see the Son as God incarnate,
delighting to do the Father's will, even to the bitter end.
Therefore doth my Father love me, He says, because I lay down
my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from
me, I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down.
I have power to take it again, this commandment." This commandment,
he says, have I received of my Father. Oh, there is this delight by
the Father and by the Son in the execution of that great work
of redemption, the outworking of the eternal covenant. He comes
to the end and what does he say in his great prayer? There in
John 17, I have glorified thee on the earth. I have glorified
thee on the earth. I have finished the work that
thou gavest me to do. And so he utters that great cry
from the cross at Calvary, it is finished. And he bows the
head and he yields up the ghost. He makes his soul an offering
for sin. All because he delights in the
Father, and delights in those that the Father has given to
him, rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth, and my delights
were with the sons of men. All the work of the Lord Jesus
to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make
reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness. How the Father delights in Him
then, even in that eternal covenant, in whom my soul delighteth, He
says. And now what has God done? He
has set Him. Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion
he reigns. Oh, he is that one who is exalted,
a prince and a saviour and he gives repentance to Israel and
the forgiveness of sins. Oh, this is the wisdom of God
and what wisdom we see in the in the outworking of that covenant.
How is it that he comes by that crown? How is it that He has
exalted the Prince and the Saviour? It is by the way of the Cross. It is by the way of the Cross. That second hymn that we sang, what is it, ten? what number is it? 1128 and I was struck because
it's a hymn that really centers in the persons of the Godhead
I know it bears the title prayer but it's prayer to each of the
three divine persons Father, Son and Holy Spirit and those
last two verses where prayer is addressed to the Holy Ghost.
O Holy Ghost, who dost reveal the secret things of grace, and
knowest well the Father's will, and His deep mind can trace,
disclose the heavenly mysteries, and bring the Gospel feast, give
gracious hearts and opened eyes that we may see and taste. What a prayer! What an acknowledgement! The word struck me so forcibly.
The Spirit knows well the Father's will. That's the will of God
in the eternal covenant. He can trace all the mind of
the Father. There is that mutual relationship
between the divine persons. Not only the Son delighting in
the Father, the Holy Ghost also delights in Him. But then the
prayer disclosed the heavenly mysteries and bring the gospel
feast. how we need the Spirit himself
to come and to be an interpreter to us that we might understand
the wonders of the wisdom of God in the outworking of that
covenant, the great work of the Lord Jesus Christ that he enters
into his kingdom by means of the crucifixion that's how he
comes to his crown by the way of the cross It's all mystery. It's all beyond
our human comprehension. The natural man doesn't receive
the things of the Spirit of God. Paul says they are foolishness
to him, neither can he know them, they are spiritually discerned.
Men have no concept of these things. We ourselves can have
no understanding of these things without that gracious ministry
of the Holy Spirit as He is pleased to come and make these things
known and make these things real to us. To show us the wonder
of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done. He's not only finished
the transgression, He's not only made an end of sin, He's not
only made reconciliation for iniquity, He has brought in everlasting
righteousness. Who was that one that died upon
the cross? It was that one who had fulfilled
all righteousness, who had lived such a life, that in it he had
honored and magnified God's law in every one of its commandments,
its precepts, its statutes. All his life, you see, was a
sinless life, holy, harmless, I think I remarked last week
that that word harmless literally means sinless, guiltless. He is free from every taint of
sin and yet that holy, righteous and just one is the one who dies
upon the cross. Now risen from the dead, ascended
on high, exalted at God's right hand, the Prince, the Saviour,
He is the one that we have to look to. He doesn't only give
repentance to Israel, oh, it's looking on to Jesus, the author
and finisher of our faith. For the joy that was set before
Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and He sat down at
the right hand of the throne of God. We have to look to Him
for faith. We have to look to Him for all that is necessary to the
salvation of our souls. The Father then delights in that
work that Christ so willingly undertook in the covenant and
the Son delights to accomplish all the Father's will. But here
we also see that the Son delights in men. It's not just his love
to the Father, it's also that love that he bears towards those
that the Father has given to him. That's what we see in verse
31, rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth, and my delights
were with the sons of men. How remarkable is the grace of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says, You know the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your
sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be
made rich. He's reminding those believers
in the church at Corinth of just what the Lord Jesus Christ did
to enrich them. He was rich, rich beyond measure.
The eternal Son of God He made Himself poor. That those sinners through His
poverty might be made rich. How He loves His own, He loves
them to the end. Paul can say of the Son of God
who loved Mary and gave Himself for me. Is it not that personal
salvation? It is personal. It is the Lord Jesus Christ and
the individual sinner. That's the love of God. Or there's
a place for corporate worship. The Lord, we know, sets the solitary
in families. He gathers his people in local
churches, local congregations. We're not to forsake the assembling
of ourselves together. The service of public worship,
as we engage in it tonight, it's a means of grace in and of itself,
to unite in prayers and in praises. But ultimately, it's the individual
sinner and the Lord, the Son of God who loved me, and gave
himself former. And how the Lord Jesus Christ
so delights in each of those individuals that the Father gave
to Him. He takes account of each and
every one of them. He knows His sheep. He says He
knows His sheep by nine. Isn't that an intimate knowledge?
It's personal. Now he says there in John 6,
This is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which
he hath given me I should lose nothing, but raise it up at the
last day. Each and every one of them he
will ensure their safekeeping from time to eternity. He's not
just saved them, but he ensures their eternal safety, their eternal
security. He so delights in the sinful
sons of men, rejoicing in the habitable parts of God's earth. That earth where God has created
man and made him out of the dust of the earth and breathed into
his nostrils a breath of life, made him a living soul, that
earth upon which men dwell, that earth which is the theatre of
this great work of redemption. Oh, the Lord rejoices in it all,
He delights with the sons of men. There's the father's delight. There's the son's delight. And
finally this evening, what of the sinner's delight? Finally, we have to look to ourselves.
What is it that we delight in? Look at what it says later in
the chapter, the end of the chapter, verse 34. Wisdom says, blessed
or blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates,
waiting at the post of my doors. For whosoever findeth, whoso
findeth me, findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord."
What is being spoken of here? The blessed man Heareth me watching,
it says, watching daily at my gates. Does he not remind us
of the ordinances of God's house? What are the ordinances? Well,
there's the preaching, there's the ministry of the Word. This
is what we have in this chapter. We're told concerning wisdom
there at verse 3. She crieth at the gates, at the
entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors, unto you, O
men, I call. And my voice is to the sons of
man, O ye simple, understand wisdom, and ye fools, be of an
understanding heart. Hear, for I will speak of excellent
things, and the opening of my lips shall be right things. Isn't it the Lord who comes and
addresses us by His Spirit, in His Word, when we come together
in this fashion? We've already referred to the
very opening words of the chapter. Verse 20 there, Wisdom crieth
without. She uttereth her voice in the
street, she crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the opening
of the gates, in the city, she uttereth her word saying, How
long ye simple ones will ye love simplicity and the scorners delight
in their scorning and fools hate knowledge turn you at my reproof
for the word of God it's profitable for doctrine for reproof for
correction for instruction in righteousness and are we those
who want that God should come and address us in his word even
should it be a word of reproof even should he come to rebuke
us and to chasten us by His word. But He comes, you see, in all
the grace of the Gospel. In the next chapter, look at
the language. Verse 5 of chapter 9, Come, He
says. This is wisdom again. Come, eat of My bread, and drink
of the wine which I have mingled. Oh, it's eating the flesh. It's
drinking the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Do we delight then
in the ordinances of God's house, the ministry of the Word? Yes,
we can read it. We must read it. As I've said,
the real religion is that personal. We want to read the Word of God
and think upon it and meditate in it. But we want to be where
God's Word is opened, and there's that preaching and that proclamation.
But there's not only watching here, there's also that waiting.
That blessed man that heareth me, it says, watching daily at
my gates, waiting at the post of my doors. Oh, there's that
waiting. What is the waiting? It's praying.
It's waiting in prayer. It's calling constantly upon
the name of the Lord, that seeking of His face. Again, look at the
language back in verse 17, I love them that love me, and those
that seek me early shall find me. Those that seek me early,
can we not, when we're awake in the small hours, be seeking
Him and crying to Him? Or do we not desire to seek Him
when first we rise out of our beds to acknowledge His goodness
in granting to us the blessings of sleep? He gives His beloved
sleep, it says. We need to thank Him for that,
to thank Him for the dawning of a new day. Or we need to be
those who would be seekers after Him. James says, if any of you
lack wisdom, let him ask of God. that giveth to all men liberally
and upbraideth not, but let him ask in faith. Nothing wavering
for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven of the
wind and tossed. Not wavering, but waiting and
seeking. Oh, we desire to know that wisdom,
that wisdom from above, first pure, then peaceable, gentle
and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without
partiality, without hypocrisy. It's the person, it's the work
of our Lord Jesus Christ. And here we see Him again in
the Old Testament. Isn't that a wonder to us? That
all the Bible is full of Christ. It's full of Christ. And here
we see Him, that Gracious One. Then I was by Him, as one brought
up with Him, and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always
before Him. rejoicing in the habitable part
of his earth, and my delights were with the sons of men." Oh
God grant that our response might be that we're those who would
delight all together in him. The Lord bless in his word.