Let us turn to God's Word, and
I want to read the 126th Psalm. Psalm 126, another of the Psalms
of Degrees. On Thursday, of course, we were
considering the parts of another of these Psalms, Psalm 130. Again, the Psalm of Degrees. And then we considered verses
5 and 6 of that Psalm and thought of what it means to be those
who would be waiters upon the Lord. Turning now to the 126th
Psalm. When the Lord turned again the
captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream. Then was our
mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing. Then
said they among the heathen, the Lord hath done great things
for them, the Lord hath done great things for us, whereof
we are glad. Turn again our captivity, O Lord,
as these streams in the south. They that sow in tears shall
reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth
bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
bringing his sheaves with him." Remember the significance of
the title that is given to these various Psalms from the 120th
through to the 134th. Songs of degrees or songs of
ascents and As I said on Thursday, they are
associated with the three great Jewish festivals that the men
were to observe every year. They were to make that journey
from wherever they were found in the Promised Land and to go
up to the place where God had established his worship. and
initially when they entered into that land of promise the tabernacle
was set up at Shiloh and so for the feast of Passover and of
weeks and of tabernacles the men were expected to make that
journey to Shiloh and there they would gather for the worship
of God and then subsequently when David was king and he overthrew
the Jebusites at Jerusalem and established that as his capital
and set up the the tabernacle there in Jerusalem and subsequently
his son Solomon is the one who builds the temple of the Lord
and so they would make the journey from every part of the land up
to Jerusalem and as they sang it he said that these were the
particular Psalms that they would be singing songs of degrees or
songs of ascents and ascending up to the place where God is
to be worshipped. But we remember how that tabernacle
and subsequently the temple, these are remarkable types of
the Lord Jesus Christ in Hebrews we read of that tabernacle
which the Lord pitched and not man that human nature of the
Lord Jesus and how that human nature is joined of course to
the eternal Son of God in Him dwelleth all the fullness of
the Godhead bodily. And so when we come to consider
these Psalms, we are to recognize surely that they ultimately direct
us to the Lord Jesus Christ. It was through Christ that those
spiritual Israelites would worship when they went up to the tabernacle
or the temple. And all our worship centers in
Christ and all our worship is presented in his name. it is
through his mediation that we come to God. And so this morning
as we look at this psalm, or in particular I want us to consider
the last two verses of the psalm and to see how even here in verses
five and six we're to think in terms principally of Christ. They that sow in tears shall
reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth
bearing precious seeds shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
bringing his sheaves with him." As we consider then these two
verses, five and six, I want to say something with regards
to Christ and His seed. That is the particular theme
that I want to seek to address for a short while this morning. Christ and His seat. And first of all to say something
with regards to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And out
here we see Him as that One who is truly the Eternal Son of God. You will observe out here in
verse 6 we have the singular pronoun, He. He that goeth forth,
it says. And isn't that one who has gone
forth from all eternity, the Lord Jesus Christ? Why, the prophet
Micah speaks of him in that sense. There in Micah 5.2, whose goings
forth have been from of old, from everlasting. And there is that sense in which
of course we are to think of his goings forth in terms of
the eternal generation of the Son of God. Remember how we see
him again there in the 8th chapter of the book of Proverbs, he said
before us in that chapter as one who is the wisdom of God. Just as in John 1 we see him
as the Word of God. And there in in Proverbs 8 we're
told when there were no fountains abounding with water was I brought
forth before the mountains were settled before the hills was
I brought forth he is that one whose goings forth then have
been from of old even from everlasting and it's interesting out there
In Proverbs 8 and verses 24 and 25 we have that statement repeated,
of Him being brought forth. I was brought forth. I was brought
forth. Before ever there was any work
of creation, before any creature had been made by God, He is that
One who was brought forth, the Eternal Son, the Only Begotten
Son of the Father. and so when he comes into this
world, how he declares at times that truth concerning his eternal
sonship, concerning his deity. He says in John 16, I came forth
from the Father and am coming to the world. Literally he says,
I came out of the Father and am coming to the world. All he
has that relationship with the Father. The Father is the one
who has begotten him and he is that one who is begotten of the
Son and yet even in that we recognize that there is no superiority
or inferiority, in no sense is he subordinate to the Father.
No, when he declares his sonship we see how the Jews themselves
recognized what he was saying. Remember those words in John
chapter 5, how they sought to kill him, because he not only
had broken the Sabbath as they thought, because he had healed
a man on the Sabbath day, but it wasn't just a question of
their perverse understandings of what the Sabbath meant, No,
they sought to kill him, not only because he had broken the
Sabbath, but also because he said that God was his father,
making himself equal with God. Here is that one then that he's
spoken of, the one that goeth forth. He that goeth forth. And though we see him as that
one eternally begotten of God, when we think in terms of the
doctrine of God and the doctrine of the Trinity those three persons
Father, Son and Holy Spirit and that relationship between the
persons one God and yet the Father begetting the Son begotten and
the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and from the Son or
when we think of that eternal relationship that is in the doctrine
of the Trinity. Do we not see something of the
glories of the Lord Jesus Christ? The mystery of his great person
and one who is God's eternal Son and yet whom we see in the
fullness of the time coming into this world as the Son of Man. And here, can we not understand
this statement, he that goeth forth and weepeth, is a reference
to the outworking of that covenant. That covenant in which he so
willingly, though equal with the father as the son, in that
covenant he becomes the servant of God. And so in the fullness
of the time, He is sent forth into this world. When the fullness
of the time was come, we read how God sent forth His Son, made
of a woman, and made under the law. Oh, He comes to serve the
will of God. And we're familiar with the various
scriptures that are scattered throughout our Bibles concerning
that great mystery of godliness, the incarnation. Our God was
manifest in the flesh. Unto us, says Isaiah, a child
is born. Unto us a son is given. Oh, God does not withhold his
son. even His only begotten and His
eternal Son. The Son is given, but the child
is born. That child that is born we are
to understand surely in terms of that human nature. That that
was conceived by the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary,
that holy thing, that she would bring forth, who would be called
the Son of God, Emmanuel, God with us. He that goeth forth,
how He has come forth. Eternally begotten of the Father,
yes, with regards to His dietary, but also that one who is ultimately
to be manifest in the flesh. coming into this world to accomplish
that great work of redemption. And so here we also have mention
of all that that work cost him. When he comes forth into this
world he comes forth weeping. They that sow in tears, it says,
shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth. or does he not remind us of the
life that he must live and the sufferings that he must endure
how he is referred to as one who is a man of sorrows you know
the language of the prophet there in Isaiah 53 he is spoken of
clearly as a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief or when
we see him, when we read of him Why the Prophet says there's
nothing that we should desire then. Oh what a man is this! So humble, so humiliated during
the course of his earthly ministry. And we read of him time and again
enduring great sorrows in this world. It's interesting when
we read the Gospel we don't seem to have any records in the Gospels
of the Lord ever laughing. But we do read of Him weeping.
I'm not saying that the Lord never laughed. What I'm saying
is we have no record of that. This was a real humanity. but now we see him so much a
man acquainted with grief and sorrow and sadness as he has
to live in this world that is full of wickedness this world
that lies in the wicked one this world that is so much under the
influence of the power of the air Satan himself and so the
Lord is one that we see time and again crying bitter tears
or when he comes to Jerusalem at the end of his ministry what
do we read there at the end of Luke 19 when he was come near
he beheld the city and he wept over he wept over that city of
Jerusalem that city that had been so favoured. Why, as I've
said, it was to Jerusalem that the men went on those three great
occasions throughout the year singing these songs. How Jerusalem
was so favoured and blessed of God and yet we see the Lord looking
upon it and weeping over it. We're told in Matthew's accounts
when he wept over the city he also spoke and what does he say
concerning that city in that 23rd chapter of Matthew's Gospel,
the chapter of those terrible woes that we read of the Lord's
approach to Jerusalem there at the end, verse 37, O Jerusalem Jerusalem, thou that killest
the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how
often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a
hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not."
You see, it's in association with these words that we see
the Lord, as it says in Luke 19, weeping, lamenting over Jerusalem. But how interesting this is,
because we have the third person and the second person together
in this verse he speaks of Jerusalem when he
says how often would I have gathered thy children together even as
a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings but then he speaks
in the second person and he says ye would not Now who is it that
the Lord is addressing? Well, here He is certainly addressing
the scribes and the Pharisees as we see previously. Look at the language that we
have in verses 13, 14 and 15. Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees,
Hypocrites! Woe unto you! Scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! This is the ye. Ye would not. They were those
who were responsible. They were shutting up the Kingdom
of God from men. Throughout the chapter, the Lord
pronounces His terrible woes upon them. They're religious
leaders. Oh, how the Lord weeps when he considers the sad state
of affairs there amongst God's ancient covenant people. Very
much a man of sorrows when he comes unto his own and his own
receiving Lord. Oh, under the influence of those
leaders, they are the very ones who cry out for his crucifixion. They are the very ones who want
rid of him. now the Lord then is seen time
and again to be a man of sorrows we read of him groaning groaning
in his spirit when we read there in John chapter 11 of the miracle
that he performs with regards to his friend Lazarus now the
Lord is grieved you see grieved at the consequences of man's
sin It is sin that has brought death
into this world, we know that. That is a record that we have
back at the beginning in Genesis chapter 3. It was because of
Adam and Eve's transgression, because they disobeyed the commandment
of God and partook of what God had forbidden, that death has
come. In the day that they eat us thereof,
God said, thou shalt surely die. Dying thou shalt die, is what
it literally says. Immediately there was that death
in their soul, they were dead in trespasses and in sins. The
condition in which we are all born as we come into this world,
as those who are the children of Adam and Eve, dying. They were spiritually dead, and they would ultimately
die physically. And there in John 11 we see that
sad scene with regards to Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha
grieving over their beloved brother and we are told how the Lord
groaned in spirit and was troubled and then it says Jesus wept and
these are all real human emotions that we see the Lord manifesting
He that goeth forth and weepeth all the Lord is that one who
weeps and yet he knew what he was about to do he would raise
Lazarus to life again he would not leave him there in the grave
he would utter those words Lazarus come forth and Lazarus came forth
bound hand and foot with his grave clothes and the Lord said
loose him and let him go but how we see Christ then, as he
is undertaking that great work that he has come to accomplish,
a man of sorrows, groaning in his spirit, weeping. Again, later, he says, now is
my soul troubled, as he's contemplating that that lies before him in
the following twelfth chapter of John. Now is my soul troubled,
and what shall I say? Father save me from this hour,
but for thy cause came I to this hour. Father glorify thy name. But he was troubled. Oh, he was
troubled, he was anxious, he was disturbed in his very soul. He knew what was to befall him.
He had made that last faithful journey up to Jerusalem. Now
he had set his face as a flint. determined to undertake and to
execute that work that the Father had given him to do and yet as
he faces these things so bravely so courageously with such determination
he's no stoic he's not a man free from human emotion so when
we see him there in the garden of Gethsemane We're told, being
in an agony, he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was like drops
of blood falling to the ground. Oh, how he prays, how he wrestles
with the Father in his prayers. He will accomplish this work,
but what a cost, what a great cost it is to him. He that goeth
forth, we read, and weepeth. This is the Lord Jesus Christ
that is being spoken of who in the days of his flesh when he
offered up prayer and supplication with strong crying and tears
unto him that was able to save him from death weeped and was
hurt in that he feared. Oh he had that fear of God in
his soul though he were a son yet learned the obedience by
the things that he suffered it is the Lord Jesus in that we
have this psalm like so many of the Psalms is truly
messianic we are to behold Christ we would see Christ and we would
see him in all the scriptures but then consider this seed that
he is bearing he that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious
seed it says what is the seed? well in a sense I suppose here
the imagery is to be recognized as being very much the same with
what we have concerning the parable that Christ tells of the of the
sower and his seed. It's the same figure that we
have here at the end of the psalm as we find there in that parable
in the gospels. And so there is that sense in
which we recognize that this seed, this precious seed is the
word of God. Remember when the Lord comes
to interpret his parable to the disciples he tells them quite
straightforwardly the seed is the word of God and when the
Lord comes into this world bearing precious seed he comes as that
one who is the great prophet of the Lord why what does he
say with regards to his ministry my doctrine is not mine he says
but is that sent me His doctrine, His teaching, the
thing that He says in the course of His ministry, it's not His,
it's the One who has sent Him. Remember how in the Old Testament
the words of the prophets time and again is, Thus saith the
Lord. They are the Lord's servants.
They're not speaking their own words. Those prophets are speaking
the Word of God. Those holy men of God, says Peter,
they spake as they were moved by the Spirit of God. And when
we think of the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, and
we think of Him as that one who is clearly the fulfillment of
the prophetic office, is He not like in some ways to those Old
Testament prophets? Like them, yet far greater than
them. Because the Father giveth not
the Spirit by measure unto Him. Oh, there is that clothing of
his ministry with all the authority of God the Holy Spirit when we
think of him as God-man. He is not speaking his own words.
He is speaking the word of God, the one who has sent him, because
here in the covenant we have to recognize that he is very
much God's servant. That's the mystery. He's never
anything less than the eternal Son of the Father, equal to the
Father, and yet at the same time, in the outworking of the covenant,
He is serving the will of the Father, and He is speaking the
words of the Father. And with what authority He preached,
never man spake like this man, they said. When we read the Sermon on the
Mount there in Matthew, Matthew 5, 6 and 7 remember how at the
end the people are astonished because he speaks with authority
and not as the scribes and pharisees all that word that goeth forth
out of his mouth how it is clothed with authority when he utters
those words at the grave of Lazarus, Lazarus come forth he that was
dead came forth and when he speaks now with authority under the
ministry of his word our life is brought into the souls of
those who are dead in trespasses and sins or there is that effectual
court of Christ that still comes by the preaching of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Why? His sheep, they know His
voice and they follow Him. Why do they follow Him? Because
He makes them willing in the day of His power. He that goeth
forth and weepeth bearing precious seed. All that seed, we can understand
it truly in terms of the Word of God. the preaching of Christ
with that office of preaching that continues still because
that is God's own ordinance faith cometh by hearing and hearing
by the word of God you're familiar with those words in Romans chapter
10 but then also when we think here of the seed bearing precious
seed can we not at the same time understand this in terms of offspring,
and a progeny. The seed. Christ himself is the
seed, in a sense. We know that he is that one who
is the seed of the woman. Right back at the beginning when
sin comes into the world in Genesis chapter 3, That very same chapter gives
us the first gospel promise. When God speaks to the serpent,
the instrument of Satan, and says, I will put enmity between
thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed. It shall bruise thy head, thou
shalt bruise his heel. Who is the seed of the woman? The Lord Jesus. He is made of
a woman. He has no human father at all. That conception that takes place
in the womb of the Virgin Mary is by God the Holy Ghost. He is the seed of the woman. And He is not only the seed of
the woman but subsequently we see Him as the seed of Abraham. and not only as the seed of Abraham,
we see him also as that one who is the seed of David. Remember
Romans chapter 1 and how there in the opening verses
the Apostle is defining what the gospel is and it centers
in the personal work of the Lord Jesus and Paul speaks of him
who is made of the seed of David according to the flesh when he
speaks of the Lord Jesus. He is made of the seed of David
according to the flesh and declared to be the son of God with power
according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the
dead. He is David's seed but he is
also God's son. Again it's the great mystery.
It's God's manifest in the flesh, David's greatest son, but he
is the seed of Abram. Oh, that's the great thing. That's
why I wanted to read that chapter, that remarkable third chapter
of Galatians, because it's stated so plainly there. Now to Abram
and his seed were the promises made. He saith not to seeds as
of many, but as of one unto thy seed which is Christ." The seed of Abraham is the Lord
Jesus Christ. But then here we read of Christ who is the
seed of Abraham, previous to that the seed of the woman, subsequently
the seed of David, but we read of Christ himself bearing precious
seed, he that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seed. And how in that New Testament
passage, that Old Testament passage that we read in Isaiah 59, you may have observed at the
end of the reading what it says. Isaiah 59 verses 20 and 21, the
Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto
them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord. As
for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord, my spirit
that is upon thee, and my words that I have put in thy mouth."
Remember what we just said concerning Christ as that one who is the
true prophet, who has the Spirit without measure, who is speaking
the words of God. Here is God speaking As for me,
this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord, my spirit that
is upon thee, that is upon Christ, and my word which I have put
in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of
the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, saith
the Lord, from henceforth and for ever. All that That seed
then, it comes down to generations. The Gospel is to be proclaimed.
It's to come to men and women throughout the
generations. Throughout the generations it
will be those who are the true seed of the Lord Jesus Christ. And as He comes forth, He comes
forth for their salvation. He is bearing these precious
seeds. He is conscious of those whom
God has given unto him. For does he not say as much,
Behold I and the children which God hath given to men? If ye be Christ's, then are ye
Abraham's seed. and heirs according to the promise
why we read those words at the end of Galatians chapter 3 what
remarkable words if we are Christ's we are Abram's seed this is that
precious seed that is being spoken of here and why is it precious
seed? because why has the Lord come?
He has come to redeem this people or they were those who sinned,
sinned in Adam, sinned when Adam and Eve sinned. Abraham himself, of course, was
born into this world a sinner. David was born into this world
a sinner. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God,
but what has the Lord Jesus come for? He's come to redeem that
seed given to him. And how will He redeem them?
By the shedding of His blood, that precious blood. Redeemed
with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb, without blemish
and without spot. This is that great work then
that the Lord Jesus Christ has come to accomplish, even to save
His people. and to save them by the sacrifice
of himself. And so, finally, we read of the
sheaves. Oh, he shall doubtless come again,
it says, with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. What does it remind us of then?
Doubtless he is to come again. that work that he has undertaken
will not be fruitless, will not be in vain. When the farmer sows his seed,
he expects to see a harvest, he expects to see a great crop.
There will be sheaves. And so the Lord Jesus, you see,
that seed of wheat that has fallen into the ground, it will bear
fruit. He shall see of the travail of
his soul and shall be satisfied. He has not shed that precious
blood in vain. Look at what it says here concerning
this one that goeth forth weeping, bearing precious seed, He shall
doubtless come again. He shall doubtless. There's a
certainty here with regards to the fruit that is to be born. Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious
blood shall never lose its power till all the ransomed Church
of God be saved to sin no more. Oh, it's that precious doctrine
of Christ's limited atonement. How that work of redemption is
for a people, a particular people. Even the children that God gave
to him, that's it. It's that precious truth then,
of the certainty, the sureness, of the work of the Lord Jesus
Christ. He has not just made salvation
a possibility. You know, there are those who
really seem to have that view of Christ's atoning death. He
has made salvation a possibility. They say, well, He has died for
all. They say that, the Arminians say that, He has died for all.
But you say, well, wait a minute, all are not same. Well, He didn't die to save all,
really, He died to make salvation a possibility for all. That's
the logic of their position. But we say that God's Word teaches
that He died not just to make salvation possible, but to make
salvation certain. He shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing. How can He rejoice if there are
any of those for whom He has died who never come to experience
the blessings of salvation. No, he sees of the travail of
his soul and he is satisfied. All those that he died for, we
know them not, he knows them. All the Lord knoweth them that
are his. He knew them from all eternity in terms of that covenant
that he entered into so willingly with the Father when he became
the servant of the Father in the outworking of that covenant
those were those given to him and he has accomplished all that
is necessary for their salvation he shall doubtless come again
with rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him but then ultimately
here do we not see the promise of his coming again Oh, there
is the promise here of His second coming. He comes the first time,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. They that sow in
tears, He sows in tears. He that goeth forth and weepeth,
bearing precious seed, He comes as that weeping Saviour. But
He is to reap in joy, and He shall come again with rejoicing. Is that not the second coming
of the Lord Jesus? And we do read of it in Scripture.
He is to come again in power and glory. Look at the language that we
have at the end of 1 Thessalonians 4. Paul writes to these Thessalonians,
I would not have you to be ignorant brethren concerning them which
are asleep that is those who have died that ye sorrow not
even as others which have no hope for if we believe that Jesus
died and rose again even so them also which sleep in Jesus will
God bring with him he is to come again you see and he will bring
his children with him even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will God bring with him For this we say unto you, by the word
of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming
of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep, prevent
the old-fashioned meaning, shall not go before those who are died. For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and
with the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
For they shall be raised from the dead they shall meet the
Lord in the air then we which are alive and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord
in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord who doubtless he shall come again
with rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him and Paul says wherefore
comfort one another with these words oh there is comfort in
this message this is the great promise of God that the Lord
Jesus Christ is to come again there will be that general resurrection
of the dead for the Lord will appear in heaven
those who are alive at his coming they'll be caught up with him
in the air it seems but observe what we have here
in our text this morning we read of him the singular pronoun there
in verse 6 he that goeth forth and weepeth and then in verse
5 we have that plural they they that sow in tears shall reap
in joy as he was a man of sorrow so too his people will know something
of sorrow they'll be those who know what it is to sorrow over
their sins they'll feel sin to be such a grievous burden to
them all their days wrestling with their old nature always
having to learn what it is to cast all their cares upon the
Lord Jesus Christ as He was in the world so are they in the
world in the world He says you shall have tribulation be of
good cheer I have overcome the world who are with those who
bear that mark of those who are Christ know what it is to feel
sorrow know what it is to come before him with that brokenness
of spirit the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit the broken
and the contrite heart of God thou will not despise says the
Psalmist Or are we those who know what it is to have real
communion with Christ? It has been said that there can
be no real communion between the broken-hearted Saviour and
the whole-hearted sinner. Are we those who know what it
is then to bring that acceptable sacrifice, the broken, the contrite
heart, grieving over our sins, constantly looking to the Lord
Jesus Christ and longing for the day of His appearing, when
we will see the ultimate fulfillment of the words of this text. They
that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and
weepeth bearing precious seed shall doubtless come again with
rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. Oh, the Lord bless
His word to us today. to spread their fame abroad,
to glory in their work and might, but
such are not of God.