A Love Song

Q: What does the Bible say about the love of Christ for His church?

The Bible expresses Christ's profound love for His church, illustrating this through various metaphors, including that of a bridegroom to his bride as seen in Psalm 45. Psalm 45 is often referred to as the Love Psalm, describing the deep and eternal love Christ has for His church. The psalmist's heart is overflowing with love for the Messiah, and this emotion mirrors the relationship believers have with Christ. This love is not only significant but also transformative; it is meant to stir the hearts of believers, compelling them to respond in love and gratitude. When believers contemplate Christ's sacrifice and His unfailing love, they should be moved to an overflowing joy that is expressive in their lives, reflecting their status as His beloved.

Q: Why is the concept of Christ's merit important for Christians?

Christ's merit is central to the Christian faith, as it is through His righteousness that believers stand accepted before God. The notion of standing upon Christ's merit is foundational in Reformed theology. It emphasizes that salvation is based solely on what Christ has accomplished, not on human efforts or achievements. This meritorious work of Christ is our assurance of acceptance with God, whereby all spiritual blessings are found in Him. Understanding that believers do not bring their own merits, but rather rely completely on Christ's righteousness, fosters deep gratitude and worship. This perspective reinforces the importance of grace in the believer's relationship with God.

Q: How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah?

The New Testament affirms Jesus as the Messiah through prophecy fulfillment, miracles, and His sacrificial death and resurrection. The evidence for Jesus as the Messiah is robustly presented throughout the New Testament, which asserts His fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies regarding the coming of the Savior. His life was marked by miracles, teaching, and ultimate acts of love culminating in His sacrificial death and resurrection. The apostles confidently declared Him to be the Christ, based on their experiences and the transformative works they witnessed. When one contemplates the entirety of Scripture, alongside the works of Christ, a comprehensive case emerges affirming Him as the Messiah.

Q: Why is Christ's righteousness essential for salvation?

Christ's righteousness is essential for salvation because it is through His perfect obedience that believers are justified before God. In Reformed theology, the righteousness of Christ is central to the doctrine of justification. Believers are justified before God not on the basis of their own works, which are flawed, but through the perfect righteousness of Christ imputed to them. This means that Christ fulfilled every requirement of the law on behalf of believers, providing them a standing of righteousness before God. This is critical because God is just and must uphold righteousness. Therefore, Christ's righteousness serves as the foundation upon which believers stand accepted, ensuring their redemption and eternal security.

I love that portion there that
says, I stand upon His merit. His merit. I know no other stand. And this is what the believer
proclaims, isn't it? We stand in His merit. In Him, in Christ
our Lord. Well, we're going to take a little
break from the Song of Solomon study. We're going to do another
sermon in Christ in the Old Testament. Do a few of these here and there,
and then we'll get back and finish Song of Solomon. We only got
two chapters left, but I'm trying to put just a couple sermons
left to wrap it all up in two messages if I can. But I'd like
us to do another message in Christ in the Old Testament. Turn, if
you would, to Psalm 45. And tonight's message is called
the Love Psalm. So let's turn to Psalm 45 and
we'll look at this psalm verse by verse with an eye to the Lord
Jesus Christ, with an eye to Him. And the title of this psalm
is the first thing which demands our attention and some have thought
that the word Shoshanim means an instrument and as such is
addressed to the chief musicians of the temple service. Others
say though it's It's a song of love, speaking of the love of
Christ to his church. And they make the word Shoshanim
to mean roses or lilies. And the Hebrew word for Shoshanim
means lily and any lily like flower. To the chief musician
upon Shoshanim, for the sons of Korah. Now remember, here
we go, the sons of Korah are those who rebel. Korah, remember,
rebelled, but here's the sons of Korah. Mishel, a song of lots. My heart is indicting a good
matter. I speak of the things which I have made touching the
king. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. So remember in
our studies over in Song of Solomon, our Lord who who the bridegroom
pictures and proclaims, says, I am the rose of Sharon and the
lily of the valleys. So it's well known that flowers
were used at nuptial ceremonies among the Jews. And this song
of loves is a song or a poem. So let's again look at this song
with an eye to Christ. As we go through this psalm,
we'll see that it's all about the Messiah. It's all about the
Lord Jesus Christ. And we'll see that right from
the first verse. My heart is indicting a good
matter. I speak of the things which I have made touching the
King. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. Now note the
psalm writer's heart. is inditing a good matter. Now
the word inditing there in the Hebrew means this. It means to
keep moving, to stir, or to gush. His heart is gushing with love,
gushing with love for the Messiah, gushing for love for Christ.
And note the psalmist is gushing about, note who the psalmist
is gushing about, who the object of the psalmist's love is, it's
the king. Note the rest of the verse in
the subject of the psalm is the king. And here is a good matter. Here is the good matter that
the psalmist has moved to write about, and that the psalmist's
heart is bubbling over about, gushing over the love, the love
they have for the king. And is this not how the bride
feels? Is this not how we who are the bride of Christ feel
about our king? Is not our love overflowing and our heart bubbling
over? It should, shouldn't it? When
we consider the great love that Christ has for his people. It's amazing love. It's eternal
love. It's everlasting love. Now, some
folks think, well, you know, we don't want to be too emotional
about that. We don't want to show too much emotion. We ought
to gush over the Lord loving us. It ought to just carry us
away, beloved, like no other love, like no other love. This is how the bride feels about
Christ. When we contemplate Christ, when
we contemplate who He is, that He's God, that He's Almighty
God, And that he left heaven to what? To redeem us, to save us, to
purchase our souls with his own precious blood. We consider what he'd done. It's ought to make our hearts
just gush with love. Overflow with love. Bubble over
with love. for the great things which he
hath done for us. Look at the rest of this verse.
Speak of the things which I have made touching the king. My pen,
or my tongue, is the pen of a ready writer. We're ready to proclaim
the great things that the Lord has done for us. Our tongues
are like a pen ready to write the wondrous things that Christ
has done for us. And remember, out of the abundance
of the heart, what? Mouth speaketh. The mouth speaketh,
doesn't it? Oh, my heart is indicting a good
matter, and that good matter is Christ. I speak of the things
which I have made touch in the King, and the King is Christ,
Jesus our Lord. My tongue is a pen of a ready
writer. This song has the King, the Lord
Jesus Christ, for its only subject. This is a good matter to consider.
This is a good matter to consider no matter what we're going through.
Whether we're in times of ease, whether we're in times of trouble
and trials and tribulations, this is a good matter. A good
matter for us to think about and to speak about. Because God
is good. And God is good to His people.
And we who are the redeemed of the Lord have experienced this,
haven't we? And this psalm speaks of He who is the chief good,
the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the perfect, spotless Lamb
of God. And when we speak of Him, we
speak of a good matter. We speak of a good matter, beloved.
Because there's none good but God, is there? There is none
good but God, and the Lord Jesus Christ is God incarnate in the
flesh. Turn if you would to Luke chapter
2. Christ is the good matter spoken of here. And what is the gospel? The poor
needy sinners? Well, it's good news, isn't it?
It's good news, the poor needy sinners. Christ is a good matter to speak
of, beloved. Look at Luke chapter 2, verses 10 and 11. And the angel
said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings,
good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto
you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ
the Lord. Note a Savior, only one. Only
one. Christ Jesus the Lord. This is
good news. He's a good matter. He's a good
matter to think about, isn't he? Turn, if you would, to Romans
10, 15. And I'll read Proverbs 20, 25, which says this. As cold water to a thirsty soul,
so is good news from a far country. Good news from a far country
is like water to a to a thirsty soul, and who's the good news
about spoken of there in Proverbs 20, 25? It's Christ Jesus our
Lord. Proverbs 25, 25. It's Christ
Jesus our Lord. His cold waters to a thirsty
soul, so is good news from a far country. Well, the preacher proclaims
good news from a far country. Salvation's only in and through
Christ Jesus our Lord. And look at Romans 10, 15. And
how shall they preach except they be sent? We looked at that
a little bit this morning. As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of what? Good things. Good things. Salvation through Christ alone.
Acceptance with God through Christ alone. Redemption by the precious
blood of Christ. The forgiveness of all our sins.
This is good news to sinners. Justification before God. A righteousness,
a perfect righteousness that's imputed to us. This is good news. Good news for sinners. Good news
in glad tidings. And what good news and glad tidings
are proclaimed in the gospel? In the gospel of salvation in
and through Christ alone. It's good news. And when the
believer in Christ thinks upon Christ, our hearts bubble over
with joy. It bubbles over with joy in contemplating
His wonderful works for us. Just think of that when you're
down or just when you're when you're at a quiet time, whether
you're working or at home, just contemplate the wondrous things
that Christ has done for you. And your heart will bubble over
if you're a believer. You'll be swept away in amazement.
It's incredible. Contemplate His wondrous work
for us. Contemplate that He's redeemed our souls. And contemplate
for the believer, make it personal. He redeemed my soul. He redeemed my soul. And His perfect robe of righteousness
is given to me. And it fills the believer with great
joy. And you know what else it gives the believer? Peace. Peace. The peace that passes all understanding. Fills your hearts and minds,
beloved. When you contemplate Christ and
what he's done. When we contemplate, contemplate
this too. His great love for us. His great
love. And it's a love. Now, some of
us have had good relationships with our Father, and some of
us had bad relationships with our Father, right? Some of us
have. Our Heavenly Father is nothing
like our earthly fathers. Nothing. Now, those who have
had good relationships with their earthly fathers, a loving, caring
father, can somewhat more grasp But not
quite, because no earthly father even compares to our heavenly
father. But some who have, I've been told before by people sometimes,
well, a person who's not had a good relationship with their
dad, they can't understand the love of the father. Yes, they
can, because it is nothing like the love that their earthly father
had for them. It's a love that's an amazing
love. It's a love that surpasses the
love that our earthly mom and dads have for us. It's a love
that nothing even compares to. It's a love beyond the love that
we who are married even have for our spouses. Nothing even
compares to it. So contemplate that. It'll fill
your heart with joy. Your heart will bubble over with
joy when you think that Christ loved me before I loved him. Christ loved me in eternity.
And we know what we are. My. It's wonderful. So contemplate this in the psalmist
heart overflows with a good theme, beloved, a good theme, which
is praised for the king of God's people. And does not God's blood
bought children's hearts overflow with praise for the King of God's
people? And that's the Lord Jesus Christ.
He's the King. He's the King of Kings. And He's
the Lord of Lords. And when the heart is full and
warm, the tongue will not be silent. Brother Scott Richardson
used to say, you can't keep a Christian quiet. That'll leak out. the great things that God has
done for us. It'll leak out. And when people ask us questions,
well, that's a wonderful open door for us to proclaim the great
things that Christ has done for us. Let's consider verse two
now. It says, Thou art fairer than
the children of men. Grace is poured into thy lips.
Therefore, God has blessed thee forever. Now, fair here in the
text is the same Hebrew word which we looked at in Song of
Solomon. It means beautiful. And remember, the psalmist here
is speaking of the king. And he proclaims that the king
is fairer than the children of men. Well, this we know is ascribed
to Christ and Christ alone. He's the fairest among 10,000
to our souls, isn't he? To every believer in the Messiah,
the King, the Lord Jesus Christ. is wonderfully fairer, wonderfully
more beautiful beyond all the sons of man. Just ask a believer. Just ask a believer. We'll tell
you, won't we? Ask a believer what Christ means
to them, how beautiful he is to them. They'll tell you. Oh, it's wonderful. He's fairer
than all men. Thou art fairer than the children
of men. Beautiful. Thou art more beautiful
than all the men that have ever walked this earth. My, think of this. It says, Thou
art fairer than the children of men. We are born, and He is
the only begotten Son, the Word, who became flesh, the Eternal
One. We are born sinners. He was born sinless, holy, perfect. We are children of the dust.
He, he is the Lord from heaven. We are darkness born dead and
trespasses and sins. He is the light of the world.
See how fair he is. See how more beautiful he is
above all men, beyond all the sons of men. We are unrighteous. We are sinners. His is a perfect
righteousness. And he fulfills all righteousness
for his people. And he is the perfect spotless
lamb of God. We are empty. bankrupt sinners. But in Him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily. And He is full of grace and truth.
Full of grace and truth. He is the Word of God made flesh. And He dwelt among us, full of
grace and truth. And this ties in with the next
portion of this verse. Look, our text continues. Grace
is poured into thy lips. Poured into thy lips. Grace is
treasured up in Christ, beloved. It's treasured up in Him. And
He alone is the fountain of all grace. He alone is the fountain
of all grace. Because we know what? Outside
of Christ is what? No grace at all. All grace is
treasured up in Christ, beloved. And that's why we read Ephesians
and Paul writes that all spiritual blessings are in Christ. Because
He is the one who is full of grace. He's the Word. God the Word, the second person
of the Trinity, made flesh and graces poured into His lips. For in Him dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily, and ye are complete in Him, which is
the head of all principality and power. Turn, if you would,
to John 7.46 and Luke 4. Grace is poured into Thy lips. Grace is poured into Christ.
Grace is treasured up in Christ, in Christ alone. Again, He is
the fountain of all grace. What did they say about our Savior? And does not grace pour forth
in the words of Christ? And they said this about our
Master. Look at John 7.46, within this verse it says, Never man
spake like this. No one's ever spoke like this
man because he's God incarnate in the flesh. He's full of grace
and truth. Full of grace and truth. And then look over in Luke chapter
4 verse 22. See, they just saw him as Joseph's
son. They didn't know who he was.
He had revealed himself to them. And all, look at Luke 4.22, and
all bear him witness. And wondered at the gracious
words, which what? Which proceeded out of his mouth.
And they said, is not this Joseph's son? But note the gracious words. The gracious words which proceeded
out of his mouth. Beloved, he is full of grace
and truth. Listen to these words of the
master. And as I read these words, think of the grace which proceeds
out of his mouth when he says these words. Come on to me all
ye that labor and are heavy laden. And I will give you rest. Take my yoke. upon you and learn
of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest
unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden
is light. What gracious words. And what
words of grace are spoken. When the almighty savior. God incarnate in the flesh. Oh, what words of grace are spoken
when He cries from the cross. It is finished. Oh, what words of grace, beloved.
They flow from His lips. He finishes the work which He
is sent to do. He gives up His life for the
sheep. And what mercy and grace are
found in these words. Grace is poured into thy lips,
beloved of God. Grace is poured forth from Christ's
lips as His instrument. The ignorant comforted the mourners. He silenced His adversaries.
He healed those who were with disease. He calmed the wind and
the waves. And He raised the dead. All by
His words, beloved. All by His almighty power. Turn, if you would, to Hebrews
chapter 1. Grace is poured into thy lips, speaking of Christ.
In Christ the Word of God opens His lips as our surety, beloved. He opens His lips as our surety.
He opens His lips as our prophet. He opens His lips as our priest.
He opens His lips as our king. And grace is poured into our
souls. Living, saving, abundant grace
at His command is given to His people. Look at Hebrews chapter
one verses one to four. God, who at sundry times and
in divers manners speak in time past unto the fathers by the
prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his son,
the one, the one who who graces poured into his lips. whom he
hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the world,
who being the brightness of his glory in the express image of
his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power,
when he had by himself purged our sins, he sat down at the
right hand of the majesty on high, being made so much better
than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent
name than they. Look at that, and upholding all
things by the word of His power. And remember, what we looked
at this morning, when one word from our Lord turned Saul of
Tarsus into an apostle. Words from our Savior. Saul,
Saul, why persecutest thou me? And note our text continues.
Therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Thou art fairer, more
beautiful. Thou art beautiful than the children
of men. Grace is poured into thy lips.
Therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Calvin brings this forth
because God hath blessed thee. It is true that God has blessed
our mediator as a reward for his love and labor He deserves
the recompense, but the great reason for His beauty, His grace,
and His salvation is that He is blessed forever of the Father,
who put all things into His hands. The Father loveth the Son, and
hath given all things into His hands. John 3.35. All things
in heaven and in earth, visible and invisible, are in His hands.
in His hands forever. And all spiritual blessings are
in Him. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. And this is why we glory only
in the Lord Jesus Christ, because He alone is worthy. He alone
is worthy. And all blessings are in Him.
Outside of Christ is condemnation. In Christ, the believer has all
spiritual blessings. He alone is our wisdom. He alone
is our righteousness. He alone is our sanctification.
He alone is our redemption. Therefore, we glory in Him, don't
we? We glory in Him. We used to glory in ourselves
at one time or things we supposedly did that we thought was good
but was nothing in the eyes of the Lord. Now we glory in Him. We glory in the One who all our
merit is in. Christ. In Christ alone. He is the One spoken of here
that God has blessed forever. Examine your heart. For the believer
in Christ, everything turns on our views of Christ. What do
we think of Him? Is He above everyone to us? Does anyone compare to Him? No.
No one. Do we regard Him as fairer than
all the children of men? Do we regard Him as so beautiful? Is He the Chief of 10,000 to
your soul? Is He altogether lovely to you? And if you love Him, here be
all these things to you. And if He's not, I pray God the
Holy Spirit will grant you faith and repentance to believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ, to look to Christ for salvation alone. Now let's consider verses 3 and
4. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O Most Mighty, with thy glory
and thy majesty. In thy majesty ride prosperly,
because of truth and meekness and righteousness. In thy right
hand shall teach thee terrible things. Beloved, this book is his sword. This is our sword,
isn't it? The Word of God. It's the sword
of the Spirit. It's quick and powerful, the
scripture says. Sharper than any two-edged sword. Piercing even to the divide and
the sunder of soul and spirit. You see, a real sword can only
pierce your body. But this sword can pierce your
soul. And this pierced every believer's
soul, isn't it? pierced and even to the divide
and the sunder of soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow
and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, Hebrews
4.12. The worlds were created and are governed by the word
of God, beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ, and by his words, sinners
are slain and conquered. God conquers every one of his
people, doesn't he? Yeah, he conquers us all. He
does. And by His words His enemies
are defeated, O Most Mighty, with Thy glory and Thy majesty.
He alone is Almighty. He alone is able to make good
on all that He speaks. Remember, we've looked at that
in the past. Brother Matt brought that up
today in his Sunday school lesson. What he declares comes to pass.
It comes to pass. He's clothed with glory and majesty.
Oh most mighty, with thy glory and majesty. Look at verse three
there. Oh most mighty, with thy glory
and majesty. This is expressive of the glory
and majesty of Christ, beloved. He is the mighty God. And the
sword is an emblem of his authority. He is all authority. All authority
and majesty. It's an emblem of His authority
and majesty as King of kings and Lord of lords. And it shows
the glory of His gospel and the glory of His power. He's almighty. Oh my. Brother Henry Mahan comments
on verse 4 there. and in thy majesty ride prosperly
because of truth and meekness and righteousness, and thy right
hand shall teach thee terrible things." Brother Henry comments,
the holy war which he is engaged in is the cause of truth, meekness
and righteousness, and his gospel, his sword, will turn our error
to truth. Will turn our pride to meekness. will turn our sinfulness to his
righteousness. And he goes on to say, are these
not terrible or better were tremendous things, tremendous things. Let's consider verse five, nine
arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby
the people fall under the. Turn, if you would, to Colossians
chapter one. Our Lord uses sharp arrows, beloved. And His arrows always hit the
mark. They always hit the mark. His
word is always effectual for the believer. And His arrows
strike with success. And think of this in light of
our king's enemies spoken of here in verse 5. And do you know
that we were enemies with God? by wicked works. And we've been
bought, have we not been bought? Did his arrow not strike the
mark with us? We've been bought to his feet,
haven't we? By his word and by his power. And now we worship
in the Dorian. Look at Colossians chapter one,
verses 21 and 22. And you, Now, remember, Paul's
writing to believers here. This was our state. We looked
at this a little bit this morning. And you that were sometimes alienated
and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled. See, we were at enmity with God
in our minds. He he's loved us from eternity.
But but we were we were enemies in our minds. By wicked works,
yet now hath he what reconciled? That's a beautiful word, beloved.
Reconcile in the body of his flesh through death and present
you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight. Oh, his arrows are sharp, beloved.
They're sharp. They always hit the mark. And
when we are born again by the Holy Spirit of God, when that
arrow shot at us has hit the mark, we fall at his feet, beloved. We fall at his feet and we acknowledge
that we are sinners. We fall at his feet and we beg
for mercy. We beg for mercy. We become mercy
beggars. That's what we become. We fall
at his feet and we submit to his righteousness, don't we?
We fall at His feet and we depend on Him alone for salvation. And
we love and adore Him. And we give Him all the glory
for our salvation because we're redeemed by His precious blood.
We're saved by His grace alone. And the arrows of His judicial
wrath are sharp, beloved. They're sharp. But the arrows
of subduing grace are the sharpest of all. Are the sharpest of all. Subduing grace. Think upon that.
Grace that subdued we who are sinners. Subdued us. Now let's go back to our text
in Psalm 45 and look at verse 6 and 7. And then put your finger in Hebrews
chapter 1. Psalm 45 verses 6 and 7 and then we'll go back to Hebrews
chapter 1. Psalm 45 Verses 6 and 7, it says,
Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of Thy
kingdom is a right scepter. Thou lovest righteousness and
hatest wickedness. Therefore, Thy God hath anointed
Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows. Now, the Lord
Jesus Christ is God. And this is the reason why His
throne is forever. Turn, if you would, to Hebrews
1. The reason His throne is forever is because He's God. And the
scepter of His kingdom is righteousness, His righteousness, and His justice
and truth, because He's God. And the Apostle Paul spoke these
words about our Savior. He's identified with our Savior
with these words. Hebrews 1, verses 8 and 9, But
unto the Son He said, Thy throne, O God, is forever. And ever,
a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou
hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Therefore God,
even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above
thy fellows. And we know that John proclaimed
that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. And then he proclaimed the Word
was made flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus Christ was God incarnate
in the flesh. Remember the scriptures declare
that God purchased the church. It says God purchased the church. How? With His own blood. With
His own blood. This is speaking to Christ. The
God-man who died upon Calvary's cross and redeemed His people
with His own blood and paid all that was demanded for them. Note
the Scriptures proclaim, Thou lovest righteousness. Thou lovest
righteousness. Look at verse 7. Thou lovest
righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, thy God, hath
anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. It says there, Thou lovest righteousness.
Was this not manifest when he cast Adam from the garden? It was manifested then. Was this not manifested in all
his dealings with Israel in the Old Testament? Was this not manifested that
he loves righteousness? Was this not manifested when
he worked out a perfect righteousness for us? A righteousness that
he'd only accept? A perfect righteousness, and
He did this for His people? And will this not be manifested
at the last day in His wrath? When He says, depart from me. To those who are not in Christ.
God loves righteousness. God loves righteousness. Let
us never forget that because of who Christ is and what He's
done, He's anointed above all. All His fellows, all Thy fellows,
He's anointed above everyone. He's the name above every name. One day, all will bow the knee to the Lord
Jesus Christ. Believers and non-believers. And they're proclaiming that
Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Why? Because He alone is anointed
above all. Above all. Let's look at verse 8 now. All
thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, and out
of the ivory places whereby they have made thee glad. The garments
spoken of here are Christ's offices, His honors, His righteousness.
And He alone is the one who is clothed with righteousness, honor,
and majesty. And His garments smell of sweet
perfume to His people. And they make His people glad.
They make His people glad. Bless the Lord, O my soul. O
Lord my God, Thou art very great. Thou art clothed with honor and
majesty. Psalm 104, verse 1. To those who perish the perfume
of His garments are an offense. Now thanks be unto God which
causes us to triumph in Christ and make it manifest the Savior
of His knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a
sweet savor. of Christ in them that are saved
and in them that perish. To the one we are a saver of
death unto death and to the other the saver of life unto life.
And who is sufficient for these things? 2 Corinthians chapter
2 verses 14 to 16. The ivory palaces spoken of in
verse 8 here is his heavenly abode where he is made glad in
the presence of the Father, and made glad by the faith of the
saints. Luke 15, 7, the scriptures declare
this, I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one
sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine
just persons which need no repentance. Let's look at verses 9 to 12
now. King's daughters were among thy honorable women. Upon thy
right hand did stand the queen in gold of ophir. Hearken, O
daughter, and consider and incline thine ear. Forget also thine
own people in thy father's house. So shall the king greatly desire
thy beauty, for he is thy lord, and worship thou him. And the
daughter's attire shall be there with a gift, even the rich among
the people. shall entreat thy favor. He sets
the church in a place of dignity upon thy right hand. He clothes
her with the best, the priceless, the most beautiful robe. His own perfect, spotless righteousness. Turn, if you would, to Luke chapter
15. Remember the prodigal son? He'd been out and he wasted his
inheritance, didn't he? and he comes back, and he just
wants to come and work, just be the lowest servant for
his dad, for his father. But there's something here in
Luke 15, verse 22. Look what the father says. But the father said to his servants,
Bring forth the what? Best robe. You know what that
best robe is, beloved? That's the righteousness of Christ.
Bring forth the best robe. There is no robe like the righteousness
of Christ. And the prodigal is clothed in
the best robe. and put a ring on his hand and
shoes on his feet. Rejoice, beloved of God. You
are clothed in the best robe. And the reason it's the best
robe is because it's Christ's righteousness. Because it's Christ. It's all Him. It's all Him. And remember, the righteousness
of Christ is our calmliness, which we've seen in our study
in Song of Solomon means beautiful. Turn if you would to Ezekiel
chapter 16. Ezekiel chapter 16. And remember, we have no beauty
on our own, do we? But God sees the believer clothed
in the righteousness of Christ. The bridegroom says we're beautiful
because we're clothed in his righteousness. Look at Ezekiel
chapter 16 verses 14 to 16. And thy renown went forth among
the heathen for thy beauty. Where does our beauty come from?
Christ. For it was perfect through my
calmliness. God's righteousness is perfect. Which I have put upon thee. Who
put it upon us? God did. Christ did. Saith the Lord God, O my, but thou didst trust in
thine own beauty, and played the harlot, because of thy renown,
and pourest out thy fornications on every one that passed by his
it was, and of thy garments thou didst take, and deckest thy high
places with divers colors, and played the harlot thereupon,
the things The like things shall not come, neither shall it be
so. But note in verse 14, in where
now went forth among the heathen for thy beauty, and for it was
perfect through my calmness, which I put upon thee, saith
the Lord God. God clothes his people in his
perfect spotless righteousness. Now let's go back to our text
in Psalm 45 and let us consider verses 13 to 15. The king's daughter is all glorious
within. Her clothing is wrought of gold. She shall be brought unto the
king in arraignment of needlework. The virgins, her companions that
follow her, shall be bought unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing
shall they be bought. They shall enter into the king's
palace." John Gill comments, This way on the king's daughter
mentioned here, the king's daughter is the same with the queen, the
church. The church. She's all glorious
within her clothing is rather gold. This speaks of the perfect
spotless righteousness of Christ. The king's daughter, the daughter
of the king of kings through adopting grace by marriage to
Christ, the king's son, and by regeneration or being born again
of God. Gil continues and says she is
all glorious within. End quote. Here are five points
to consider. The bride's new name is the king's
daughter because she's born again of God. She's born again of God. She's the bride of the Son of
God. Number two, the bride's character
is all glorious within because Christ dwells within her. The
bride's clothing and raiment is wrought of gold, which speaks
of the holiness of God, the holiness of Christ and of His perfect. The needlework speaks of His
perfect righteousness, His atoning death and perfect obedience as
our substitute, both in life and in death. And the bride's
companions are all the redeemed of all the ages, the blood-bought
elect of God. And the bride's home is to be
bought into the king's palace. She's bought into the king's
palace. And the bride's reception shall be with gladness and rejoicing. No secret entrance will occur,
but a triumphant and joyful acclaim. Now let us consider the last
two verses. Instead of thy father's shall
be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth.
I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations. Therefore
shall the people praise thee forever and ever. The name of
Christ is remembered in each generation, in each generation. Generation after generation have
passed and so many people have been forgotten. But the name
of Christ is remembered amongst his people, amongst those who
are chosen out of our generation. It's incredible. Christ is remembered. amongst his people. Thus fulfilling
the scripture in verse 17, I will make thy name to be remembered
in all generations. Therefore shall the people praise
thee forever and ever. And then we die and we praise
him forever and ever. Amen.

A Love Song

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about the love of Christ for His church?

Why is the concept of Christ's merit important for Christians?

How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah?

Why is Christ's righteousness essential for salvation?

Sermon Transcript

About Wayne Boyd

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A Love Song

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about the love of Christ for His church?

Why is the concept of Christ's merit important for Christians?

How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah?

Why is Christ's righteousness essential for salvation?

Sermon Transcript

About Wayne Boyd

Comments

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