We are in Psalm 18, and we have
looked at the first part of this psalm. We have gotten down to
about verse 31, and I want to begin reading there in verse
31. It says, For who is God, save
the Lord, or who is a rock, save our God. And of course, the word
save there, we would probably more likely say accept, for who
is God except the Lord, or who is a rock except our God? It is God that girdeth me with
strength and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds
feet and setteth me upon my high places. He teaches my hands to
war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms. Thou hast
also given me the shield of thy salvation, and thy right hand
hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great. Thou hast
enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip. I have
pursued mine enemies and overtaken them, neither did I turn again
till they were consumed. I have wounded them that they
were not able to rise, they are fallen under my feet. For thou
hast girded me with strength unto the battle. Thou hast subdued
unto me those that rose up against me. Thou hast also given me the
necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.' They
cried, but there was none to save them, even unto the Lord,
but He answered them not. Then did I beat them small as
the dust before the wind. I did cast them out as the dirt
in the streets. Thou hast delivered me from the
strivings of the people, and thou hast made me the head of
the heathen. A people whom I have not known
shall serve me. As soon as they hear of me, they
shall obey me. The strangers shall submit themselves
unto me. The strangers shall fade away
and be afraid out of their close places. The Lord liveth, and
blessed be my rock, and let the God of my salvation be exalted. It is God that avenges me, and
subdueth the people under me. He delivereth me from mine enemies. Yea, thou liftest me up above
those that rise up against me. Thou hast delivered me from the
violent man. Therefore will I give thanks
unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto
thy name. Great deliverance giveth he to
his king, and showeth mercy to his anointed. to David and to
his seed forevermore. Now, of course, this psalm, as
we know, written by David prophetically and speaking forth actually the
words of the Lord Jesus Christ, And of course, there is some
application of these things to David, but the exact application
of them is not to David, because there are many things that are
said in this psalm that David could not say in the strictest
sense of the word in the flesh. Now, we can say that we are upright. We can say that we are righteous.
We can say that we have never sinned as long as we speak of
that as we stand in Christ, as long as we see ourselves in Him
and not speaking of those things as something that would be a
measure of ourselves compared to the law of God or compared
to one another. Now most of the time, most men
like to look around them and see all the sins of the people
that are around. See those clearly. And they can
look at those things and say, you know, I'm not like that.
I mean, you remember the Pharisee, when he went down to the temple
to pray, he did that. He said, Lord, I thank you. He thanked the Lord. He said,
Lord, I thank you that I'm not like all these other men out
here, all these sinners, or even this publican that's sitting
over there. I'm not like him. But was he telling the truth?
He was telling the truth. He wasn't like the publican,
was he? Not at all. But his consideration of what
that meant was not what actually was. And so because a man looks
around himself and he thinks he's doing a pretty good job,
or he compares himself to others, it doesn't make any difference
at all. It doesn't mean anything. It's
useless. It's a useless consideration.
Because the only standard by which any man shall be judged
is that of perfection. And so if you don't measure up
to that standard, then you don't measure up. And the only one
who ever has measured up to that standard is the Lord Jesus Christ,
whose body and blood we remember today, because He is that One
who is the One who stands in the place of His people
as their perfect righteousness. And that is our hope, that He
is our righteousness. And we expect that there is none
other. We have no other expectation
of any righteousness. Some people like to have two
or three plans. You know, if plan A doesn't work,
they'll fall back on plan B. You know, just in case. Just
in case the righteousness of the Lord is not enough, we want
to do some good deeds and rely on them, so we got them in the
bank over here. Now there are some people in
the Scriptures that did that. The Lord said that many would
say to Him in that day, He said, not everyone, that calls upon Him or says His
name shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but him that doeth
the will of the Father which is in heaven." He said, there
will be many who will say in that day, Lord, have we not done
many wonderful works? I mean, what are you casting
us away for? I mean, we did all these things.
We even cast out devils. I mean, we did miraculous things.
We were standouts. in the religious world. And the
Lord shall say unto them, Depart from me, I never knew you. That is, I, you are not numbered
among those who are in my flock. Not that those who are in my
flock have any greater resume than you have, but they belong
to me, and I am their righteousness. So how foolish it is for a man
to trust in himself. And as we read here, his way is perfect. The Word
of the Lord is tried. And we spoke about it a little
bit last week about the fact that he is a buffer to all those
that trust him. That is, he is that one that
fends off the blows of the accusers. with that shield that is designed
to go on the arm, and it would be that which would parry the
blows of those that would come against the people of God. For
who is a God? Save the Lord. Who is a rock? Save our God, or accept our God. What good would it be to serve
a God who is not God? Now everybody believes their
God is God, But most people believe they are God's God according
to how they like for Him to be. Now, the Lord is the Lord, and
He is going to do His will in the army of heaven and among
the inhabitants of the earth, and nobody can stay His hand
or say unto Him, What doest thou? He shows mercy to whom He will
show mercy, and whom He will, He hardens. And what can a man
say about that? Nay, but, O man, who art thou
that replyest against God? Shall the thing formed say to
him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Is there any
accusation that a man can rightly bring before Almighty God? How
foolish! Why is that? Because our God
is God. David said that the heathen, they worship, you know, their
gods have no hands, they have no feet. But he said our God
is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever he hath
pleased." Now, dear brethren, that is what he is saying here.
For who is God except the Lord? He is God. I mean, He really
is. Now, the worshipers of Baal had
a God, did they not? What did He turn out to be? He
could not do anything because He depended on men to do something. See, our God, God is in the heavens
and rules in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of
the earth. He does not depend on anybody. He does not wait
on anybody. He does not need anybody. He
does not need one thing that you can do, regardless of the
preachers that get on TV and radio and weep and tell you that
God is going out of business if you do not send your money
today. God does not need your money. He doesn't need a thing
you've got. You don't have anything that's
not corrupt in His sight. He's not waiting for you to do
something. He's not hoping you'll do anything. He's God and He
rules and He reigns. He is our rock. Now dear brethren,
I don't have any desire to worship a God who's not God. A lot of people get nervous when
you get talking about God that does all things according to
His will, because they get thinking, well, man, I might not be able
to get what I want, or things might not turn out like I want
it to, or God might hold me in judgment or something. Yes, He
might. God will hold all men in judgment. He may show mercy, but He will
judge men because He is God. It is God that girdeth me with
strength and maketh my way perfect. Now the Lord Jesus Christ, the
Scripture says that He was made perfect through sufferings. Now
that's an interesting passage of Scripture that speaks of Him
being made perfect. And of course, it doesn't mean
that He became sinless through sufferings. It means that He
was fitted to the task that He was given. And that's what it
means to be perfected. It means to be made what God
would have one to be. And the Lord Jesus Christ, He
became the Savior of sinners. Now, He was always the Savior
of sinners in the purpose of God, but the Scripture even speaks
of Him as slain from the foundation of the world. So His work was
accomplished before he accomplished it in one sense of the word,
but it was necessary for him to come into the world to accomplish
it. Now, on the one hand, when we
speak about things being predestined by the hand of God, that is an
absolute thing. Nothing can change that. But
keep this in mind, that because something is predestined to happen
does not mean it does not have to happen. Now, Judas Iscariot
was predestined to betray the Lord Jesus Christ, was he not?
But there came a time when what happened? He had to betray the
Lord Jesus Christ, did he not? Now, was he kicking and screaming
and saying, I don't want to betray Him? Oh, Lord, don't let me betray
Him. No, he wasn't. He said, I want
His money. I'm tired of this guy going around
here getting all his glory. and what not. He says, I'm tired
of it. I don't know all of Judas' motivations. I know what the moving force
was, and that was the purpose of God, as all things are. And so the Lord makes our way
perfect. He makes your way perfect. Now,
He perfects you in Christ if you belong to Him. Now, that's
a glorious thought. But whatever, you see, the Lord
is not going to be surprised by anything that transpires in
the earth. When the Lord made His creation,
what did He say? He said, It's good. He didn't
say, I hope it turns out good. He said, It's good. Why? Because
it was just exactly what He wanted it to be. And so he maketh my
way perfect. He maketh my feet like hind's
feet, and setteth me in my high places. Now this is, of course,
I believe speaking, Christ speaking here. He maketh my feet like
the feet of deer. He causes me to run. He setteth
me in high places. He puts me in a place of glory. He teacheth my hands to war,
so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms. See, he was a mighty
warrior. The Lord Jesus Christ came into
the world as a mighty warrior. And He left the world as a mighty
warrior, as a triumphant warrior. And He comes back, He said, to
regain that which is His. When I read this passage here,
these verses, And we come down here, he says,
I have pursued mine enemies, overtaken them, neither did I
turn again till they were consumed. I have wounded them that they
were not able to rise. They are fallen under my feet.
Thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle. Thou hast subdued
unto me those that rose up against me. Thou hast given me the decks
of mine enemies that I might destroy them that hate me. They
cried, but there was none. to save them, even unto the Lord. But he answered them not." Now, that ought to cause a person
to tremble before Almighty God, because the enemies of God, even
though He said they called upon His name, but He didn't listen
to them. He didn't hear them. The Lord Jesus Christ said, I
pray not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me.
Out of the world. It's in His hands, dear brethren.
Now that's a glorious thing to consider Him as that One who
holds the world in His hands. He used to sing a song back when
I was a kid. He's got the whole world in His
hands. I didn't even know what that meant. And I would venture
to say that most people that sing that song don't really believe
it. You know, in the full strength of the Word, they think they
do. They think He controls the ocean, and you know, probably
a few of the storms that's out there, He's probably in control
of them and whatnot. But He holds the whole world
in His hands. This is His world. He made it. And who can say anything about
it? What could any man say? But when I read that passage,
I'm always reminded of Isaiah 63. And this is a favorite passage. I hate to say this is my favorite
passage because there are so many that are a blessing, but
it is one that always blesses me when I read it. It is chapter
63 of Isaiah, and it pretty much says everything that he says
right there. Who is this that cometh from
Edom? with dyed garments from Basra,
this that is glorious in his apparel, traveling in the greatness
of his strength. I that speak in righteousness,
mighty to save." Now Isaiah sees this one coming from Edom with
dyed garments from Basra, and he says, Who is that? And the
Lord says, It's me. I that speak in righteousness,
mighty to save. And then the prophet asked the
question, Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy
garments like him that treadeth in the wine press? And then the
Lord answers, I have trodden the wine press alone, and of
the people there was none with me. Nobody helped me. Nobody
came to my aid. Nobody assisted me in the midst
of my troubles. He said, of the people there
was none with me, for I will tread them in my anger, and trample
them in my fury, and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments,
and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in
my heart, and the year of My redeemed is come." Now, you see,
the Lord speaks here of destroying His enemies, but saving those
who are the redeemed, because we know as we look here and consider
the blood of Christ shed for us, that the blood that was on
His garments was the blood of His enemies, but it was His blood. that was shed. The year of his
redeemed has come because this is the day of salvation. This
is the acceptable time. The year of my redeemed has come.
And I looked and there was none to help. And I wondered that
there was none to uphold. Therefore, mine own arm brought
salvation unto me and my fury had upheld me. And I will tread
down the people in mine anger and make them drunk in my fury
and I will bring down their strength to the earth. I will mention
the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the praises of the Lord,
according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on us, and the
great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed
on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude
of his lovingkindnesses. For he said, Surely they are
my people, children that will not lie. So he was their Savior. In all their affliction He was
afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them. In His love
and in His pity He redeemed them, and He bared them and carried
them all the days of old." The Lord is the Savior of sinners,
and He is that One who has gained that title not simply by decree,
though He came into the world as a Savior by decree, yet He
demonstrated the salvation of His people. He has demonstrated
the salvation of His people to His whole creation. Now, a lot
of people think that the preaching of the gospel and the unfolding
of the purpose of God in the earth is for men. Well, men do
benefit by it, and men are able to see it. But you see, the demonstration
of God's grace in the earth to sinful men is a display of grace
that he might demonstrate that to his whole creation. To the
angels that desire to look into these things, but cannot because
you have to understand that the angels have never understood
the grace of God from the standpoint of the children of God who have
been redeemed by the blood of Christ. All they have known is
that the Lord casts some of their kind out of heaven. kept some unto Himself. And all they know is the justice
of God against those who sinned against Him. That's the only
thing they've seen. What a wonder it must be in the
courts of heaven as they look down and they see the demonstration
of the Lord Jesus Christ going to Calvary's cross, dying for
sinners, redeeming them. And then as they sit and hear
the gospel proclaimed, they don't have an understanding of it in
the essence of it as we do by the grace of God. They desire
to look into these things however. This is an interesting thing
to them. This is a curious thing to them. And the Lord would demonstrate
to His whole creation His redemption. And he says, Thou hast delivered
me from the strivings of the people, and Thou hast made me
the head of the heathen. The Lord in Psalm 2, as we read
a few weeks ago, He says to the son, He said, Ask of me, and
I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the
uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. And surely
He is that One who has asked for the heathen and He has been
given them. That is, the heathen are those who are not considered
by the Jewish world to be the children of God. But the Lord
has had His people from the beginning, Jew and Gentile alike, and they
belong to Him. He has made Him the head of the
heathen. A people whom I have not known
shall serve Me. As soon as they hear of me, they
shall obey me. The strangers shall submit themselves
unto me." Now, Paul, as Brother Al ably brought out this morning,
Paul was going down a road that he thought in his mind was the
right one. He was as sincere as a man has
ever been. Wouldn't you say that? I mean,
he was raised in the Jewish religion, he was a Pharisee, he believed
those things that he was taught, and he was walking in them insofar
as a man can walk in his religion, and he was as sincere as he could
possibly be. But he was sincerely wrong, was
he not? He was sincerely going against. the very God whom he thought
he was serving, until such time as the Lord in mercy met the
Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus. And then something suddenly happened.
And it's just exactly what he said, as soon as they hear of
me, they shall obey me. Isn't that what happened to the
Apostle Paul? He heard. He heard something he'd never
heard before. He says in one place that those that were around
him saw a great light, but they did not hear what he heard. They
said it thundered. They did not hear what he heard.
But you see, Paul, of all those that were on the road to Damascus
going to carry out the very slaughter of the children of God, there
was one man among them who heard the Word of God. He had to hear
it because the Lord gave him ears to hear it. And he found
out that the very one whom he was persecuting was the one who
was the Lord. As soon as they hear of me, they
shall obey me. The strangers shall submit themselves
unto me. Now that's the glorious power
and purpose of the Word of God sent forth in the Gospel. When
a man by the grace of God is given ears to hear, he will rejoice
in the salvation which is in Jesus Christ. We read, you know,
in Acts 13, verse 48, it says, And when the Gentiles heard this,
they received the word with gladness, and as many as were ordained
to eternal life believed. Now, I've heard men try to change
that verse around all kinds of ways. They were ordained to eternal
life because they believed. No, that's not what it says.
It says that many were ordained to eternal life, believed. They
believed because they were ordained to eternal life. Because in the
mercy of God, He loved them and He called them by His grace.
And when they heard Him, they were glad. You see, that's what
sets the people of God apart from the people of the world. is that they gladly hear the
Word of God. They gladly bow before Him. They gladly worship Christ. They
gladly exalt Him. They want Him to be honored above
all else. As soon as they hear of me, they
shall obey me. They shall submit themselves
unto me. The strangers shall fade away
and be afraid out of their close places, that is, those places
where they have hidden. Religion is a great hiding place
for men. You know, you can live in religion
all your life and hide from God, because that is just a good hiding
place that the majority, I would venture to say, the majority
of religious people find. It is a place to hide from God. Because just like we sang that
song a moment ago, there is a place in our heart where we do not
want to go. But the Lord sometimes takes
men there. He took the Apostle Paul there.
And he said, when the law came, sin revived and I died. He said,
when my eyes were opened and I saw what the law really was,
I was condemned in my heart. And I said, Oh God, have mercy
on me. They shall fade away to strangers
and be afraid out of their hideouts, because there is no help there.
The Lord liveth and blessed be my rock, and let the God of my
salvation be exalted." Now, we've sung that chorus before, have
we not? The Lord liveth and blessed be my rock, and let the God of
my salvation be exalted. Oh, may His name be magnified
in the earth! It is God that avenges me, and
so doeth the people under me. He delivereth me from mine enemies. Yea, thou liftest me up above
those that rise up against me. Thou hast delivered me from the
violent man." Because the Lord did suffer at the hands of violent
men, but they could not destroy Him. And therefore, will I give
thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises
unto thy name. Oh, what a blessing it is to
be able to sing praises unto the name of the Lord. You know,
some people think about singing as though it's kind of a secondary
type thing for the people of God to do. I mean, most meetings,
I guess, that people go to, they think that Man, the preaching,
that's what we're coming for. We're going to come down here
and hear somebody preach. That's the greatest thing. But
dear brethren, I don't want to place any dispersions or minimize
in any way the grandness and the glory of the preaching of
the gospel from the Word of God as someone would expound a text. The Word of God is preached in
the singing of praises unto the Lord as well. I mean, this is
a manner in which all the saints can minister one to the other,
is it not? As we gather our voices together
and praise unto the Lord, and it's a glorious thing to magnify
His name. But you see, one of the things
about singing is this. Too much of the singing that
people do is designed just to appeal to their emotion. You see, the singing that we
do, it should be as much about the truth as it is about the
singing. It should be more about the truth
than it is about the singing, but the singing of praise unto
the Lord must be in spirit and in truth. It must be that which
is sound truth according to the Word of God, and not just because
we like it, but because it is that which is magnifying to the
name of Christ. Great deliverance giveth he to
his King, and showeth mercy to his anointed, to David, and to
his seed forevermore. He shows mercy to those whom
he has anointed. He speaks of David. David speaks
of himself. He says, the Lord has blessed
me. He has brought this to me. And then he says, to his seed
forevermore. That is, to the Lord's seed.
The Lord has a seed. They belong to Him. And He will
cause them to sprout in His own time. He sows them in the earth
and He causes them to sprout up in His own time. May the Lord
give us grace. that we might rejoice in this
One who is our God, the God, not a God, not some God, not
any God, but the only God. Oh, that we might bow down and
worship Him. Oh, that we might be found faithful
before Him.