would the Psalm 112. Psalm 112. The name of the message is Fixed
and Trusting. Fixed and Trusting. Psalm 112. We'll read the whole Psalm here. Praise ye the Lord, Blessed is
the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his
commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon
earth, the generation of the upright shall be blessed, wealth
and riches shall be in his house, and his righteousness endureth
forever. Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness,
He is gracious and full of compassion and righteous. A good man showeth favor and
leadeth. He will guide his affairs with
discretion. Surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteous
shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil
tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. His heart is established. He
shall not be afraid until he sees his desire upon his enemies. He hath dispersed, he hath given
to the poor, his righteousness endureth forever. His horn shall
be exalted with honor. The wicked shall see it and be
grieved. He shall gnash with his teeth
and melt away the desire of the wicked. He shall perish. Now in this psalm, As we look
at the psalm tonight, we'll see the blessedness of God's children,
the blessedness of God's blood-bought saints, those who have been made
righteous by the righteousness of Christ. And studying this
psalm will cause the believer in Christ to rejoice, to rejoice
in their God, to rejoice in His goodness, to rejoice in His mercy,
And we know that all comes to us, to we who believe, in and
through the Lord Jesus Christ. Our main text will be found in
verse 7, but let's look at the whole psalm first before we consider
verse 7 by itself. Verse 1 says, Praise ye the Lord.
Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly
in his commandments. Now the psalmist exhorts us to
praise the Lord. You who fear the Lord. You who
fear the Lord. And we know that only those to
whom Christ has been revealed fear the Lord. And it's a reverent fear. It's
not a slavish fear. It's a reverent fear. Because
we know Proverbs says the fear of the Lord is what? The beginning
of knowledge. But fools despise wisdom and
instruction. So we who fear the Lord, we who
have been taught the fear of the Lord, we ought to praise
him. We ought to praise him. And we
ought to give him thanks. And may our hearts be swept away. And thanksgiving to our great
God and king for the mercy which has been given us for the grace
which has been bestowed upon us. And for the redemption of all
our sins by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the fact that the redeemed
are blood-bought saints, purchased with the precious blood of Christ.
Let us also fix our eyes upon the Savior here in this verse
here. It says, Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that
feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. So let us fix our eyes upon the
Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Because it can only be said of
him that he delighted to do the commandments of God. It can only
be said of him that he delighted to do the commandments of God.
It's written in the Psalms, I delight to do thy will, O my God, thy
law is written. For thy law is within my heart. And this speaks of Christ. He
delighted to do the will of the Father. He came here to do the
Father's will. And the Master's words, turn
if you would over to John chapter 4 verse 34, tie right in with the statement in Psalms
where he says, I delight to do thy will, O my God. Yea, thy
law is within my heart. And ties right in here with Blessed
is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his
commandments. Look at the master's words over in John chapter four,
verse 34. Jesus saith unto them, my meat
is to do what? The will of him that sent me.
To do the will of him that sent me. And to finish his work. John chapter four, verse 34,
Jesus saith unto them, my meat is to do the will of him that
sent me and to finish his work. Now note that word finish. What
did he cry upon the cross? It is finished. So if something's finished, what
does that mean for us? We who believe, that means the
work is done, is finished. Oh, what a joy salvation by grace
alone brings the sinner, because this is a completed work. We
are complete in him. Christ alone is holy. Christ
alone is undefiled. Christ alone is separate from
sinners and made higher than the heavens. And this was spoken
of Jesus in his human nature, which is united to the uncreated
word of God. God became flesh. God and man, the God-man, the
Lord Jesus Christ, in both the uncreated Word of God and Jesus
Christ, whose man formed one Christ, don't they? One Christ,
the Lord Jesus Christ, who came to do the Father's will and to
finish it. And why did He come here? to save His people from
their sins. That's good news for sinners.
That's wonderful news for sinners. The question is, are you a sinner?
Has God shown you that you're a sinner? I pray that He will. I pray, because that's what He
shows every single one of His blood-bought saints. Now, you who are beloved of God,
you who are a saved sinner, contemplate who your Savior is. God incarnate
in the flesh. Contemplate His holiness. He's the Word of God. Contemplate
His righteousness. He lived upon this earth a perfect
life. No sin in thought, no sin in
word, no sin in deed. Contemplate that He's our Redeemer.
That He purchased us. He purchased His people. He didn't
die for everyone, like religion tells you out there. He died,
though, for His sheep. We saw that on Sunday. My sheep
hear my voice, and they follow me. Those are the ones for whom
Christ died. Because later on in John chapter
10, He says, I give my life for the sheep. He died for His people. Praise God. The believing sinner,
the one who's been born again to God, says, praise God that
I was included. that He included me. Contemplate
Him as our surety. Contemplate Him as our Savior.
What does Savior mean? It means we need to be rescued.
We need to be rescued. Oh my! And this will cause you
to praise His name, beloved. Which, at the very first verse,
praise ye the Lord. This will cause, when you contemplate
these things, when you contemplate Christ, it'll cause you to praise
His name. Look at verses 2 and 3. His seed
shall be mighty upon the earth, the generation of the upright
shall be blessed, wealth and riches shall be in his house,
and his righteousness endureth forever. Now those who are redeemed
by the Lord may not have a lot of gold and silver while upon
this earth, but there's an inheritance that awaits us. There's an inheritance
that awaits us in glory. And we know we can take nothing
with us when we die, right? We know that. And one commentator said, possessions
on earth are an empty show. An empty show. Because you can't
take them with you. You die and someone else gets them. An empty
show. But for the believer, we are
rich beyond compare. Rich beyond compare. Beyond measure. I heard of a dear saint this
week, and somebody had said, well, by the time something gets
fixed, we're going to be broke. And this dear saint said, I'm
never going to be. I'm rich. She is speaking of her riches
in Christ. Isn't that wonderful? We're rich. Believers are rich
in Christ. Now ponder this, too. The world
may scorn the believer, and they do. They do. but they are kings and priests
unto God, and they have an inheritance in Christ, which neither moth
nor rust can destroy, and no robber can touch, and it can't
be spoiled. Now that's something to ponder,
because it's in Christ and Him alone. It's in the Eternal One. Our salvation is in Christ. Now
let us keep an eye to Christ in verse 2. Who are the seed
of this man? Turn if you would to Galatians
chapter 3. Galatians chapter 3. Galatians chapter 3. Y'all are
going to get there before me. And look at verse 27 to 29. With an eye to Christ, when it
says, She shall be mighty upon earth. Look at this. For as many
of you as have been baptized into Christ have been put on
Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither bond
nor free. There is neither male nor female.
For ye are all one in Christ Jesus, and if ye be Christ, then
you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." My
goodness. The elect of God are the seed
of Christ. It's incredible, beloved. We're
born again by Him, by the Holy Spirit of God. We who are redeemed
are spoken of in Galatians 3.29. If ye be Christ, then ye are
Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. Now rejoice,
rejoice, beloved, because you are accepted in the blood. You
are accepted in Christ. Now we can't be accepted on our
own, but we are accepted in Christ. We can stand before God in Christ. So let's continue in this psalm
and look at verses four to five. Unto the upright there arises
light in the darkness. He is gracious and full of compassion
and righteous. A good man showeth favor and
lendeth. He will guide his affairs with discretion. Now we see in
this text that the heirs of heaven are not exempt from days of gloom
and shadows because shadows come over us just like they do anyone
else. And bright rays may fade, but we need grace and strength,
don't we? Continuously. Continuously. We need to keep our eyes upon
Christ. In seasons of darkness, in trials,
we need to keep our eyes focused upon Christ. We have to. We who
believe. I know for me personally, I don't
know if it's so for you, but for me, if I get my eyes, I've
said it many times on the circumstance, I get in a world of trouble.
I have to constantly remind myself, Wayne, look to Christ. This did
not catch God by surprise. That's one of Vicki and I's favorite
thing. When things come up, well, it didn't catch God by surprise.
And it helps us to focus upon him, to focus upon him. So we
need to keep our eyes fixed upon the Lord. And let us also, with
an eye to Christ, remember that our Savior was a man of sorrows
acquainted with grief. When he went through this world,
he was a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. Let's look at verses
six to eight now. Surely he shall not be moved
forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed,
trusting in the Lord. His heart is established. He
shall not be afraid until he sees, until he see his desire
upon his enemies. Now the believer in Christ stands
immovable as a rock. But it's not in his own strength. It's not in his own strength.
Because our confidence is firmly settled in Christ. Not in ourselves. It's in Christ. Our confidence
is in God. We trust in the Lord. We don't
trust in ourselves. We trust in Him. and messengers
may come and announce calamities occurring all around us, and
we don't tremble about it. We may be concerned, which is
a good thing. We should be aware of what's
going on, but we don't get worked up about it. Because we know God's blood-bought
saints have been taught that all events are ordered and ordained
by their Heavenly Father. And therefore, think of this,
let's bring it right down to us, therefore, they work for
our good and for His glory. That's what Scripture says. We don't always understand, but
they do. Now, verse 7 is where we're going
to be keying tonight, so we'll look at that verse more in depth
later on. Let's now consider verse 9 and 10. He hath dispersed,
he hath given to the poor his righteousness, endureth forever. His horn shall be exalted with
honor. The wicked shall see it and be grieved. He shall gnash
with his teeth and melt away. The desire of the wicked shall
perish. Again, let us focus our eyes
upon Christ. In the fact that, look at verse
nine, look at this. His righteousness, what? Endureth
forever. Now we know that in our natural
state that our righteousness is like filthy rags, right? So
this is not talking about our righteousness. This is talking,
though, about the righteous man, the one who's been made righteous.
But whose righteousness are we clothed in? Christ's righteousness. And look at, marvel at this,
beloved. Look at this. His righteousness
endureth forever. Forever. So think of that. We stand in the presence of God,
clothed in the righteousness of Christ, forever. It endures
forever. It's a perfect, spotless righteousness. Oh, my. And let us remember this.
He wove that coat of righteousness when he lived on this earth. Because he was sinless, right?
He was sinless in his life, and we know he was sinless in his
death. And we know he wrote that the reason he rose from the grave
is because death didn't have a claim on him. So he was sinless
when he rose from the grave. He's perfect. That righteousness was for us,
that he was weaving that coat of righteousness for his people.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that
we might be made the righteousness of God in him. His righteousness is imputed
to the believer. Our sins are imputed to him.
His perfect, spotless righteousness is imputed to us. And look what
the text there says. His righteousness endureth forever. Oh my, that's wonderful. That's wonderful. So we will
stand in the presence of God and glory, clothed in the righteousness
of Christ, and that righteousness endureth forever. God is absolutely
satisfied. My goodness, what a salvation. What a salvation we have in Christ. And this gives the blood-bought
saints of God great cause to rejoice. Great cause to rejoice. So let us now consider verse
7. But let's read it in the context with verses 6 and 8. So we'll
read 6 to 8. Surely he shall not be moved
forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting
remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil
tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. His heart is established. He
shall not be afraid until he see his desire upon his enemies.
So I'd like us to consider verse 7 here tonight, which tells us
that the righteous man, and that righteous man is identified in
verse 6, right? He shall not be afraid of evil
tidings. His heart is fixed. Oh, sorry, verse 6. Surely he
shall not be moved forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting
remembrance. Let us consider verse 7 of this
psalm. which tells us the righteous
man, identified in verse six, that his heart is established
and fixed, trusting in the Lord, which we see now in verse seven.
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed,
trusting in the Lord. Now this confidence in the Lord,
this rest in the Lord, this trust in the Lord is a result of a
work of God. It's a result of the work of
God, which has been done in the sinner. They are born again by
the Holy Spirit of God. And they then fix their hearts
upon the Lord. Now, how do we know that? Think
back before the Lord saved you. Was your heart fixed on the Lord?
Nope. I know the answer for every one
of us. Nope. But now it is. He'd given us
a heart that seeks him. Why? We're born again. And this new heart we have, we
cry out to Him in praise and glory, and we even sometimes
cry, Lord help my unbelief. Help my unbelief. Now the righteous
one, The one whose heart is fixed,
the one who's trusting in the Lord, the believer in Christ,
has been made righteous by the Lord Jesus Christ. And think
of this, marvel in this. They're just before God. They're
just before God. Sinners are made just. My goodness. And it's all because of the righteousness
of Christ, because Christ is our righteousness. And think
of this, too. This righteousness is perfect.
Because our savior is perfect. And this righteousness was not
for him because we know he's sinless. And so we know that
when he lived upon this earth again, he was fulfilling the
law of God for his people in their place. in their place. My goodness. It's a righteousness
of Christ, and it's been imputed to the believer. And that's why
you hear preachers say, look away from yourself and rest in
Christ. Rest in him. Lean on him, who is what scripture
declares for the believer, the Lord, our righteousness. That's what he is. He's the Lord,
our righteousness. Now note what is said of the
ones who are called righteous. Look at verse 7. He shall not
be afraid of evil tithings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. Now something I want us to realize
is that the righteous man, the believer in Christ, before we
look further, is kept by the power of God. Is kept by the
power of God. Left to ourselves, we would be
moved. Left to ourselves, we would not
be fixed. Left to ourselves, we would not be trusted in God.
We would not be trusted in the Lord. But we who are born again
are kept by the power of God. Kept by the power of God. We
have a new heart again, a new spirit within us. And that we
are now fixed upon Christ. Fixed upon Him. He is the object
of our faith and He is the foundation of our faith. And it is in Him
alone whom we trust. In Him alone. Our text proclaims,
he shall not be afraid of evil tidings. And the answer to why
the believer will not be afraid of evil tidings is also found
in our text, because his heart is fixed trusting the Lord. Trust
in the Lord. So the righteous do not tremble
and get worked up at wars or rumors of wars and different
things happening or thinking that some great calamity is going
to come upon us. No, we wait upon the Lord. We
wait upon the Lord, being aware that all that is going on around
us. And we are aware of the situations.
Knowing that all that is going on around us. Is in his power. And we trust
in the fact the fact now let this burn into our hearts, we
trust in the fact that he is in control. It's a fact. He is absolutely sovereign. And reflecting on that will help
us as believers to go, we are in his hands. We're in his hands. Think of this, where there is
fear, there's no peace. Where there is fear, there's
no peace. Where there is fear, there's
no being fixed. There's no being fixed. And where
there's no faith, there's no trusting. Now I can look back and go, yes,
that's true. And think of this. The believer's
faith is a gift from God. And that faith has one object. and Christ alone. And we are
fixed upon Him. We are fixed upon Him. And this faith in Christ is given
to us by God, who directs our hearts into the love of God,
and into patient waiting for Christ, whom our faith is fixed
upon. And He gives us the peace that
passes all understanding, doesn't He? I ask you who are redeemed,
examine your heart. Do you not have a peace that
you cannot explain? No matter what's going on. You
try to explain it to people and you can't really explain it.
But it's a peace that passes all understanding. And our hearts
and minds are kept upon Christ, fixed upon the Lord. And so let
we who are redeemed know that it is he, the Lord Jesus Christ,
the God-man, who is the guardian of our life. Now let us just
let that sink in. He's the guardian of our life. Because he's the shepherd of
our souls. And what are God's people called?
His sheep. And what does a good shepherd
do? He protects and watches and feeds and preserves the sheep. And we have the good shepherd
as our savior. He's the shepherd of our souls
and we are his sheep. Let us therefore remember that
no matter what comes, he watches over us and he keeps us beloved. Now you who are redeemed, we
who are the sheep of God, let us ponder these wonderful truths.
It's God who chose you. It's God who chose you. It is
Christ who redeemed you. It is God who sent the gospel
to you. It is the Holy Spirit who called you. And it is God who has preserved
you. And it's God who keeps you. And
it's God who keeps you fixed, trusting in the Lord. And it's God who will one day
call you home to glory. It's all Him. It's all Him. And when He calls us to glory,
we'll be with Him forever. So with that, let us consider
the latter part of this verse. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. Now the word fixed there in the
Hebrew is defined as to be firm, be stable, be established, be
fixed, to be firmly established, be secure, be enduring. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. Again, let us have an eye to
Christ here in our text. When we look at the life of our
Savior, we see that He was fixed upon doing the Father's will.
He came to save His people from their sins, and He did it. He
was trusting God in His life and in His death. And it was
he who fulfilled all righteousness. He fulfilled all righteousness
and not we ourselves. And it was he who set his face
like a flint to Jerusalem. It was he who did that. It was he who had his face set
to the cross, knowing that that is the only way that his people
could be saved. I want to save you. And Jesus
the God man, God incarnate in the flesh fulfilled all righteousness
for his people. And again, it is his righteousness
that the elect of God, the members of the of his body are righteous. He being. Made of God to the
believer, wisdom. Righteousness, sanctification
and redemption. And that's why Song of Solomon
says his name is an ointment poured forth for the believer.
Oh, a sweet-smelling fragrance for us. Because of thy Savior,
of thy good ointments, thy name is an ointment poured forth.
That's why he's so sweet to the believer. Now let us bring this
home. We who are believers in Christ,
we are made righteous by the righteousness of Christ. And we are to be ready to meet
fears and things which occur around us with faith, trusting,
having our eyes fixed and focused upon our Savior, resting in our
Savior, trusting in our Lord. Now our faith will be attacked.
It will be. It will be. I think every one
of us in this room has probably experienced that who are believers. Sometimes it comes from family
members and sometimes it comes from friends and sometimes it
comes from places. You never expected it But it
will be attacked When it is Let us flee to the Savior. Let us
flee to our Savior. Let us trust in our Savior Let
us not trust in our own strength But let us trust in him in Christ
alone and let us pray that God may give us grace and strength
to trust him to trust him And let us pray that God will keep
us, and that we will not be moved, and that we will have our faith
fixed upon Him. And let us keep this in mind
too, that it is God and God alone who can keep us fixed upon the
Lord, who can keep us trusting in the Lord. Turn, if you would,
to Romans chapter 11. And let us remember this too,
it is God and God alone who has made us to differ. Now think
of that. Think of your family and your
friends. Who is it that's made you to differ from your family
and friends as a believer? Well, we know the answers in
1 Corinthians 4, 7, which says, For who maketh thee to differ
from another? And what is thou that thou didst
not receive? Now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory
as thou hadst not received it? Who made you to differ? That's
the only difference between me and my family and my friends
is Christ. And Christ is the only one who
made me give. And I can't boast in anything
because it's all His doing. My goodness. So let us consider
here how it is the Lord who keeps us and not ourselves. Romans
11, we're starting verse 11. We'll read to verse 24, I say
then, have they stumbled that they should fall, God forbid,
but rather through their salvation has come unto the Gentiles for
to provoke them to jealousy. Now if the fall of them be the
riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches
of the Gentiles, how much more their fullness? For I speak to
you Gentiles, and as much as I am the apostle of the Gentiles,
I magnify mine office. If by any means I may provoke
to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of
them. For if the casting away of them
be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them
be but life from the dead? For if the firstfruits be holy,
the lump is also holy, and if the root be holy, so are the
branches. And if some of the branches be
broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among
them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the
olive tree, boast not against the branches, but if thou boast,
thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wilt say
then, the branches were broken off, that I might be grafted
in. Well, because of unbelief. they
were broken off, that thou standest by faith. Be not high-minded,
but fear. Now there's a warning for every
believer. We are not to be high-minded at all. Oh, my. For if God spared
not the natural branches, take heed, lest he also spare not
thee. Behold, therefore, the goodness and severity of God
on them which fell. Severity, but toward thee goodness.
If thou continue in his goodness, otherwise thou also shalt be
cut off. And they also, if they abide
still in unbelief, shall be grafted in, for God is able to graft
them in again. For if thou wert cut off of the
olive tree, which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary
to nature into a good olive tree, how much more shall these, which
be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? Now
this is speaking of natural Israel, the ones that are broken off,
the unbelieving Jews. The unbelieving Jews. And spiritual
Israel, the Gentiles, right, spiritual Israel being all the
elect, grafted in to the vine, to the vine. But I'd like us
to take note of something in verse 18, which I believe is
profitable for us. Look at verse 18. Boast not against
the branches, but if thou boast thou bearest not the root, but
the root thee. Now we ought to never forget
where we came from. We ought to never forget, the
scripture says, the rock that we were hewn from. But look what
it says, thou bearest not the root. We don't bear Christ, but
the root thee. See, there's a key word there.
But the root thee, the root bears us. Christ, he keeps us, beloved. We're the branches. And let us
never forget, we who are the branches are dependent upon the
vine. We spring out from the vine. We are dependent upon Christ
continuously, all the time. And we are kept by Christ. We are sustained by Christ. And
one day, praise his mighty name, we will be glorified by Christ.
And we need Christ. And those Those who are kept
by Christ are fixed upon him, trusting in him and resting in
him. Now, let's go back to our text, and here's a couple more
thoughts upon this text. He shall not be afraid of evil
tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. He shall not be afraid of evil
tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. Now, the one who is trusting
in God shall not be afraid to hear of public or national disasters,
or world disasters. Turn, if you would, to Psalm
107. Because we know, we know who controls the wind and the
waves. My God is sovereign. He controls
it all. He controls it all. Look at Psalm
107, verse 23 to 29. Look at this. This is this is
marvelous. They that go down to the sea
in ships that do that do business in great waters. Now, Brother
John, you were on the great oceans. We have and look at this. They
that go down to the sea in ships that do business in great waters.
These see the works of the Lord. And his wonders in the deep.
for he commandeth and raises the stormy wind which lifted
up the waves thereof. They mount up to heaven. They
go down again to the depths. Their soul is melted because
of trouble. They reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken
man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry unto the Lord in
their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses."
Now what a picture of salvation that is, eh? We cry out to God
in distress when he's showing us what we are, sinners by birth,
nature, and choice. We cry out to Christ. When we're
born again in the Holy Spirit of God, we cry out to him. And he bringeth them out of their
distress. And look at this, beloved. He maketh the storm a calm so
that the waves thereof are still. He rules. He rules over everything. The wind and the waves and everything. So through all these calamities,
the believer's heart is fixed and established upon the Lord,
trusting Him. Back to our text again. He shall
not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting
in the Lord. The believer, trusting in the
Lord, shall not be afraid of tidings of persecution for the
sake of Christ, knowing that the Church of old was persecuted. Turn, if you would, to Matthew
chapter 5. And what did the Lord do? He took them all through
that persecution. He took them all through that
persecution, preserving them and sustaining them, and we know
they're glorified now. They're glorified now. He kept
them. My goodness. Look at this in Matthew chapter
5, verses 10 to 12. Blessed are they which are persecuted
for righteousness' sakes. for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute
you and say all men are of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad
for great is your reward in heaven. For so persecuted they the prophets
which were before you. Now that doesn't mean there's
a bunch of crowns waiting for you on glory. Who's our reward? Christ. Christ is our exceeding
reward. He's wonderful. Oh my goodness. We have a great reward in heaven,
Christ. Christ and Christ alone, because
our faith is set upon Him. Upon Him. And through persecution
and distress, the believer's heart is fixed and established
upon the Lord, trusting in Him. Let's go back to our text again.
He shall not be afraid of evil tithings. His heart is fixed,
trusting in the Lord. Now, the one who is trusting
in the Lord shall not be afraid of tidings of personal worldly
losses and afflictions, knowing that their inheritance is in
heaven. Turn, if you would, the first Peter, chapter one, first
Peter, chapter one. They can lose everything in the
world, but know that their inheritance in heaven cannot be moved or
defiled or taken away because it's in Christ. It's in Christ. Look at first Peter chapter one
verses three to five. Blessed be the God and father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy,
all my have begotten us again into a lively hope by the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance. Now, now,
now we have an inheritance and it's in Christ, isn't it? It's
in Christ. Look at this to an inheritance
incorruptible. and undefiled, and that fadeth
not away, reserved for you in heaven." Now, when you make a
reservation at a restaurant, right, they set a table aside,
don't they? And no one else sits there, except
the people that that table's reserved for. That's set apart
for them. Oh, my. The believer in Christ
has an inheritance reserved for you in heaven. Look at this,
though. Who are kept by what? Now, religion
says, well, you're kept by your doing, don't they? That's not
what the Scripture says. Who are kept by the power of
God. Who are kept by the power of God. Oh my, through faith,
we believe, we trust, we rest, our hearts are fixed upon Christ
unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. So the believer
may lose all worldly possessions and their heart will remain fixed.
And how do we know that? How do we know that? Well, Job.
Job said this. Remember, Job lost all his children,
he lost his wealth, and he proclaimed this, naked came I out of my
mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither. The Lord gave,
the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord. Now
only God gave him grace and strength to do that. He is trusting in
the Lord, trusting and resting in him. And the reason God often makes
His people to hear evil tithings and to go through trials and
tribulation is to try our faith. To try our faith and to try our
trust in Him. But always remember that the
Lord is ever with you. He'll never leave you. He'll
never leave you nor forsake you. That's His promise to His people,
even in the midst of whatever situations come up. Let's go
back to our text again. And then also put your finger,
turn off your word over to Isaiah 54. But we'll read this here.
The verse again says he shall not be afraid of evil tidings.
His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. So the one who is
trusting the Lord shall not be afraid of tidings of wrath and
condemnation of the law. They will not be the one who
is trusting the Lord, the one who is redeemed by the Lord will
not be will not be troubled. Not be afraid of Tidings of wrath
and condemnation from the law of God, because Christ has satisfied
the justice and the law of God in the place of the believer. My, how? By His substitutionary
death upon the cross. Shed His precious blood, redeeming
His people, purchasing His people, purchasing their eternal souls.
Look at Isaiah chapter 54. Verses 13 to 17. And all thy children shall be
taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children.
In righteousness shalt thou be established. Thou shalt be far
from oppression, for thou shalt not fear, and from terror, for
it shall not come near thee. Behold, they shall surely gather
together, but not by me, whoever shall gather together against
thee shall fall for thy sake. Behold, I have created the smith
that bloweth the coals and the fire, and that bringeth forth
an instrument for his work, and I have created the waster to
destroy." That sounds like a God who's in full control. Look at
this, no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper, and
every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou
shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants
of the Lord and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. Look
at that last verse, verse 17. And know this. That the believer
is clothed in the perfect, spotless righteousness of Christ and note
in verse note, first of all, in verse 14, in righteousness,
shall thou be established. And then note verse 17, and their
righteousness is of what? Of me, saith the Lord. The Lord
our righteousness. My goodness. This is he whom
the believer's heart is fixed upon, the Lord Jesus Christ. And their righteousness is of
me. This points right to Christ. Right to Christ, saith the Lord. And we know that That's Jehovah. That's Jehovah. This is the one
who the believer's heart is fixed upon. This is the one who established
our righteousness. The Lord Jesus Christ. Our righteousness
comes from Him. And we trust Him. We live a life
of trusting Him, looking to Him, being fixed upon Him as our Savior,
our Redeemer, our King. What a Savior. What a God, and
to think that the Lord Jesus Christ became a man, that I might
be clothed in His perfect spotless righteousness, and that so for
you if you're a believer in Christ. It's wonderful. What a Savior. What a Redeemer is Jesus Christ,
our Lord. Heavenly Father, We come before the humbled by
the scripture tonight, knowing that our righteousness, the righteousness
that the believer is clothed in is thy righteousness, Lord
Jesus. Which you brought out for us
in your life and in your death. And, oh, Lord, we we marvel. We marvel that you left heaven
to redeem your people. from their sins, knowing that
we could never redeem ourselves from one sin, and yet you purchased
our eternal souls, having paid for all our sins, and we are
complete in thee. May we leave here rejoicing in
thee, and praise in your mighty name. In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.