Turn back with me, if you would,
to Psalm 25. After you deliver a message. You know, you hope and pray that
the Lord will send his spirit, Lord, send your spirit. Send
your spirit, bless your word. And if he does and we see his
glory and we see his truth in his word, as soon as that's over,
I'm back at zero. I'm empty again. Empty. And my job and my calling
is to go searching. And that's all of our calling
as believers. We're seekers. Right. But you go searching through
this word and. What we look for and what we
need is not just a sermon. And not just any outline or message,
we need today's message. We need today's message. As I
was searching for this morning's message, not this evening's message. This morning's message. I ran
across this one verse of scripture and there are times where. We
search and we search and we search. And it's not until the Lord is
pleased to say. This then is the message. that
we receive the message. But as I was searching, I ran
across this one verse of scripture, searching, digging, pleading,
asking, begging. And then the Lord showed me this
one verse of scripture, and it was such a sigh of relief to
me. Sigh of relief. It was so simple. Sometimes we
dig into the deep things like we just read in first Corinthians,
the deep things of God. Sometimes what my soul needs
is something simple. What my heart needs is something
simple. And this was so simple. It was from the heart, it was
to the heart. And as soon as I read it, I thought
that right there is the fullness of my request and my hope. This is the fullness of my request. It's everything I request and
it's everything I hope. It's verse 20. Psalm 25 verse
20 says, Oh keep my soul and deliver me. Let me not be ashamed. for I
put my trust in thee." Isn't that it? That's it. That's a believer's request.
That's a believer's hope right there. Oh, keep my soul and deliver
me. Let me not be ashamed for I put
my trust in thee. While people everywhere in this
world are asking for health, Wealth and happiness. That's all everybody wants is
health, wealth, and happiness. While people everywhere are asking
for those three things, you know what the true request of a believer
to God is? Oh, keep my soul. Lord, I believe you saved me
from the foundation of the world. Lord, I believe you saved me
on that cross. And Lord, I believe you've opened
my eyes and you've saved my soul. But Lord, I'm asking today, I'm
asking right now, until you come back or until you bring me to
you, keep my soul. Keep my soul. We're going to
turn quite a bit this morning. And the first place is Genesis
2. Go with me over to Genesis chapter 2. Genesis 2 verse 7 says, And the
Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into
his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. Man became a living soul. I am a soul. That's who I am. I'm a soul. I am not a body. I'm not a body. I'm a soul who
lives in a body. That's what I am. A soul who
lives in a body. Cut off any part of this body
and I'm still me. Because I'm a soul. I'm not a
body. I asked my grandmother one time,
I was a kid, it was about 30 years ago. She's, I believe,
82, so she would have been about 52 years old. And I asked her,
Granny, everybody calls her Granny, what does it feel like to be
old? She was 52. What does it feel like to be old? She said, I feel exactly the
same as you. It feels exactly the same as
being young. I just can't do all the things
I used to could do. But the me that's inside here,
me, I'm the same. And I realize now I understand
that the problem is not her soul. The problem is her body. It's
her body. Peter said this, shortly I, he
said very soon I must put off this my tabernacle. I must put
off my, this is my tabernacle. Man became a living soul. That's
who we are, souls. Now go with me over to Ecclesiastes
chapter 12. Ecclesiastes chapter 12 verse
7 says, then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, that's
this body, and the spirit or the soul shall
return unto God who gave it. this soul right here that God
gave to this body 38 years ago. My soul and my body. God put
those two together 38 years ago. And this soul is going to very
soon go right back to the God who gave it. Right back. That's the case for
every soul on this earth. They're going right back to the
God who gave them. Now I want to show you something
in Matthew 13. Look over at Matthew 13 with me. Matthew 13 verse 47 says, Again, our Lord is saying, again,
the kingdom of heaven is like, and that's always struck me.
When our Lord says the kingdom of heaven is like, well, that's
time to start listening. But here's what he said right
here. The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast
into the sea and gathered of every kind. which when it was
full, they drew to shore and sat down and gathered the good
into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end
of the world. The angels shall come forth and
sever the wicked from among the just and shall cast them into
the furnace of fire. There shall be wailing and gnashing
of teeth. Jesus saith unto them, Have you
understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord. He said, Do you understand what
I'm telling you? You understand all these things? Do you see
this holy God? That's the question that needs
to be asked to every soul walking around in these bodies. Do you
see this holy God? Do you see him? Do you see his
power? Do you see his sovereignty? Do
you see that he does all things according to his own will and
purpose? Do you see that? He said, I will
work and who shall let it? I'm going to keep this one, I'm
going to cast this one away. All authority is in his hands. Do you say that it is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God? And that's
a fearful thing. Are you a believer of these things?
A believer of his word? We just read the word of Christ
himself. If you are, do you know what
your greatest request is? We have a lot of requests, but
you know what your greatest request is? Oh, keep my soul. I acknowledge you gave this soul
to this body. I acknowledge you can do with
it what you will. Lord, have mercy on me. Keep
my soul. Keep my soul. Whatever takes
place through the rest of this life, whatever comes, whatever
sickness comes, whatever. Sadness comes. Keep my soul,
Lord, keep my soul, keep the soul of my wife, keep the souls
of my children. Keep our souls, Lord, SOS, that
means save our souls, save our souls. Go with me back to Psalm
25. Psalm 25 verse 20 says, Oh, keep
my soul and deliver me. Deliver me. Oh, I need to be delivered. I
need you to deliver me, Lord, I can't deliver myself. Deliver
me from what? Go to Job 33, back one book to
Job 33. Job 33 verse 22 says, Yea, his
soul draweth near unto the grave. Can't men and women see this?
We are getting more wrinkles every year. We're getting more gray hair
every year. We're getting more spots every year. We're getting
more sickness and we're getting more frailty every year. Why? It's because our souls are drawing
near to the grave. Verse 22 says, Our life is drawing
near to the destroyers. God's destroyers. Fear God. Bow the knee to God Almighty. Our life draweth near to the
destroyers. But verse 23 says, if there be a messenger. From
God, if there be a messenger with him and interpreter one
among a thousand to show unto man his uprightness. His uprightness. If you want to, you can turn
with me here. If you don't, you can listen over in Habakkuk chapter
two. In my Bible, it's page 1161,
but Habakkuk chapter two says. The soul of a man is in verse
four Habakkuk two verse four says, behold, his soul. Which
is lifted up is not upright in him. It's not upright. We are not upright. In and of
ourselves, in this verse of scripture right here is where it says,
but the just shall live by faith. His soul is not upright, so how
is he going to live? By faith. Faith in who? The only one that is upright. If God ever sends a messenger
to a sinner and shows that sinner his uprightness. If God ever reveals Christ, if
he ever shows us Christ. If he ever shows a sinner what
Christ has done. I'd like to read the song again.
We just read it. Why? Why? If God ever puts love in the
heart of a sinner for Christ, you know that's what believers,
believers believe every word that proceeds out of the mouth
of God. And the reason is because they love Jesus Christ. They love him. We love him. And
if God ever puts that love in a sinner for Christ, you know,
there's a difference in knowing the gospel and loving the gospel. You know that. I believe I've
known the gospel physically my entire life. I never sat under
religion and I knew it. I was taught as a child. We had
those stories and that's Christ. Okay. And we had another story
and that's Christ. Got it. I knew all my life the
gospel, but do you know there came one point in my life where
God caused me to actually fall in love with it. I didn't just then know and love
the gospel, I knew and loved my gospel. It became my gospel. Christ became my Christ. His
blood became my blood. His work became my work. All
those good things He did for 33 and a half years, I did that. In Him, yes. And that makes a sinner fall
in love. Fall in love with His glory and His honor. And if a sinner has fallen, if
God sends a messenger and He interprets these things and He
opens a sinner's eyes, if you're still holding it, look back at
Job 33. Verse 24 says, then he is gracious unto him and says,
deliver him from going down to the pit. I have found a ransom. I found a ransom. Now look at
verse 25. His flesh shall be fresher than
a child's. He shall return to the days of
his youth. He shall pray unto God and he
will be favorable unto him. And he shall see his face with
joy, for he will render unto man his righteousness." He's
going to give that sinner his own righteousness. That's going
to make that sinner very happy, very joyful. Verse 27, he looketh
upon men, and if any say, I have sinned and perverted that which
was right, and it profited me not. That's what that publican
said in the temple, didn't he? That Pharisee and that publican.
God, be merciful to me, a sinner. If any man say I have sinned
and perverted that which was right and it profited me not,
he will deliver his soul from going into the pit and his life
shall see the light. Lo, all these things worketh
God oftentimes with man to bring back his soul from the pit to
be enlightened with the light of the living. That's wonderful,
isn't it? That's wonderful. Back over in
Psalm 25, verse 20 says, Oh, keep my soul and deliver me. Let me not be ashamed. Let me
not be ashamed. Now, every soul that God does
not keep, we just said that all the souls are going to go back
to God. And then he's going to keep some and cast the other
ones out. And every soul that he does not
keep, every soul that he does not deliver is going to be ashamed. Every one of them. Our Lord said
in Luke 9, whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words,
of him shall the son of man be ashamed. When he shall come in
his own glory and in his father's and of his holy angels, he's
going to be ashamed. Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words. And do you know what? That does
not give this center any personal comfort. You know that. Have I been ashamed? Absolutely. There is nothing in me but sin. OK, well, we are going to be
safe because we're all here right now. We're not ashamed of him
and his word. No, that's not true. If you dug down into the
heart of this center. I would be cast into the fire. Romans 9 says something I realize
that we're turning to a lot of places, but I want you to turn
to these go to Romans 9. Here's my hope. I have a request
and I have a hope. Romans 9 verse 33 says, as it is written,
behold, I lay in Zion, a stumbling stone and a rock of offense. And whosoever believeth on him
shall not be ashamed. There is a rock. And to them, it's a stumbling
stone, but to us, he's our rock. You know why? He was not ashamed of his father,
of his father's word. And if God has put me on this
rock, I am not ashamed of the father and of his word. He's
my only hope. He is the one who was not ashamed.
Chapter 10, verse 11 says, for the scripture saith, whosoever
believeth on him shall not be ashamed. And the reason is because Romans
5 says, hope maketh not a shame because the love of God is shed
abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which is given to us.
If God has put this love in our hearts for Jesus Christ, if I'm
hoping on Christ, if I read what is required and say, that's not
me, but it was Christ. And I'm just hoping in Christ,
if God has caused us to put all of our hope in him, Then we're
not going to be ashamed. We will not be ashamed. It's
his promise. To us, and he said over in Hebrews chapter 11. I
love this. Listen to this verse 16 says.
But now they desire a better country that is a heavenly wherefore
God is not ashamed to be called their God. He's not ashamed of
us. For he hath prepared for them
a city. He prepared something for him. Well, all who believe on him, all who
hope in him, they are experiencing an evidence of something. Faith
is an evidence. They are experiencing the evidence
of the fact that he is not ashamed to be called their God. That's
what they're experiencing. And that's a great mystery that
goes back to why? Why? This sinner, why? He's not
ashamed to be called my God, why? Verse 20 in Psalm 25, back
in our text, it says, Oh, keep my soul and deliver me. Let me not be ashamed for I put
my trust in thee. That's where it is. Some trust
in chariots and some in horses, but we will remember the name
of the Lord our God. Lord, we trust in thee. We are
trusting in thee. To whom else can we go? Thou
hast the words of eternal life. Psalm 125 says, they that put
their trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot
be removed, but abideth forever. We need our souls to be kept.
We need our souls to be delivered and to not be put to shame. That's
what we need for every soul who is putting all of his trust in
Jesus Christ. Our Lord said in John 17, I have
kept them. None of them is lost. I have put them in me. Father,
I am in you. You're in them. Absolutely safe
and secure. Peter said, we are kept by the
power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed
in the last time. What do we say in response to
that? The book of Jude verse 24 says, now unto him that is
able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless
before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy. To the only
wise God, our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power,
both now and ever. Amen. That's all we can say.
Not unto us, unto Him. Unto Him give all glory. O Lord,
keep my soul and deliver me. Let me not be ashamed, for all
my trust is in thee, every bit of it. All right, let's stand
together.