Welcome, friends, to another
broadcast of Morsels for Zion's Poor. The man who balks at the
preaching of sovereign grace has never understood the desperate
position that man is in as a rebellious sinner before a holy God. Apart
from his determination to show mercy to whom he will show mercy,
we would all justly perish in our sins, and none could bring
any accusation against him, nor even question his doing, should
we all be destroyed. It is with this in mind that
we rejoice as we read of the faithfulness of the Lord to deliver
and preserve that unworthy rabble of those whom he chose in Christ
from before the foundation of the world. We marvel as we read
that this remnant was as worthy of that destruction as those
he has ordained unto this very end. And you hath he quickened
who were dead in trespasses and sins, wherein in time past he
walked according to the course of this world, according to the
prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in
the children of disobedience, among whom also we had our conversation
in times past, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children
of wrath even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy,
for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were
dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace
ye are saved, and hath raised us up together and made us sit
together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages
to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness
toward us through Christ Jesus. The psalmist describes the faithfulness
of the Lord to those whom he calls his children by using the
illustration of the mountains which surround the city of Jerusalem.
This Jerusalem of which he speaks in his illustration is that which
is located in the Mideast. Yet that Jerusalem which is surrounded
by the mountains of his mercy cannot be found on any map drawn
by men. Rather it is that holy city which
is one and the same with that which John saw coming down out
of heaven. These mountains cannot be moved and stand as a testimony
of enduring strength and power, of the one who neither slumbers
nor sleeps, but ever watches over the city in which he delights.
Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
This is his vineyard of red wine, which he will keep. I, the Lord,
do keep it. I will water it every moment,
lest any hurt it. I will keep it night and day.
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. The prophet Isaiah declared,
And it shall come to pass in the last days that the mountain
of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the
mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations
shall flow into it. Those last days have now come,
as John testified. It is the last time. The writer
of Hebrews sets forth that which has now come to pass. God, who
at sundry times and in divers manner spake in time past unto
the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken
unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things,
by whom also he made the worlds. This is the day of salvation.
He who was prophesied from the beginning has now come to redeem
his bride, and is presently calling her out of every tribe and tongue
upon the earth. Surely all nations shall flow
unto it. This house which the Lord built,
and not man, is fitted exactly for those whom he would save.
There is a high mountain surrounding Jerusalem where the Lord took
Peter, James, and John, and was transfigured before them. The
Father spoke to them, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom
I am well pleased. Hear ye Him. The glory of the
law, that is Moses, and the prophets, that is Elijah, faded in the
presence of Him who is all in all. Another mountain which surrounds
Jerusalem is the Mount of Olives. It was here that the Lord Jesus
poured out His soul unto death, as He sweat great drops of blood
because of the anguish which overwhelmed Him, as He became
a sin offering for His people. It was here that He was betrayed
by Judas. It was here that He submitted Himself into the custody
of those who were ordained by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge
of God to crucify Him. Yet there is another mountain
which ever stands as a silent testimony to the wickedness of
men and the justice of a holy God. We speak of Mount Calvary,
where our Lord was crucified between two thieves. No mercy
was found there that day, as the spotless Lamb of God was
put to death for sin. The just died for the unjust.
Three days later, not far from where he bled, mercy blossomed
at an empty tomb, as he arose from that death in triumph over
the sin which put him there. O glorious mountain of the Lord's
house.