Turn once again in your Bibles
to Psalm 18. Psalm 18. Much of what we just read in
2 Samuel 22 is found here as a psalm or a
song here in this 18th psalm. And I'll go back and I'll read
just one verse. Verse 30, where the psalmist says, As for
God, His way is perfect. The Word of the Lord is tried. He is a buckler to all those
that trust in Him. And maybe I ought to go ahead
and read verse 32. It is God that girdeth me with
strength and maketh my way perfect." This man, David, had seen many of the imperfections of
man. He has been talking here about
God's deliverance of him from his enemies. And if you know anything about
him and about the things that God used him to write in the
Psalms, he also confessed his own imperfections. And he counted them as simply
nothing but sin against God. We like to refer to our sins
as mere imperfections, but they are really sins against God. And this world is full this morning
of disappointed, broken, and depressed people
who have spent their whole lives, as the song said, doing it their
way. As a matter of fact, not only
is that true, but hell will be full of people who simply did
it their way. Actually, the whole notion of
free will is simply man the sinner seeking to do it his way. But in great contrast to these
things He says, but the way of God is perfect. In this case, the way that God
had delivered him in all his afflictions and against all his
enemies, the way of God had been perfect in those things. He now realizes that. And this
is true of all of God's works and all of God's ways. His way is perfect in creation. His way is perfect in providence. His way is perfect in how He
orders all the affairs of this world. His way is good and perfect
and just and right because He is perfect. As a matter of fact,
Moses says this in Deuteronomy, He is the rock. His work is perfect. For all His ways are judgment,
a God of truth, and without iniquity, just and right is He. But what is being talked about
primarily in both of these portions, and given us that the Spirit
of God might reveal it to us, is that God's way is perfect
in salvation. His way is perfect in the salvation
of His people in His saving them from all their sins. And it is called a way because
all of our race went astray in our father Adam. We're described
as being lost, and even God's elect are described as these
sheep. He says, all we like sheep have
gone astray. And when our father Adam sinned
in the garden, and we all sinned in him, We read these words in
Genesis 3. It says that God drove out the
man, that being Adam and Eve, from that fellowship that once
was taking place because of sin. They were now separated from
God and all His race lost in sin, so he drove out the man,
and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubims
and a flaming sword which turned every way to keep the way of
the tree of life." There was a separation. There was no access
to God. And God's way is in every case
contrasted to man's way which always fails, and especially
in our seeking to come to God. Hold your place here and turn
over to the book of Proverbs, Proverbs chapter 14. Here in Proverbs chapter 14 and
verse 12, listen to the wise Solomon as he is directed by
the Spirit of God. Verse 12, Proverbs 14, there
is a way which seemeth right unto a man. It is logical. It is acceptable to his fallen
nature. It is reasonable to him in his
thinking, though his thoughts are not God's thoughts. But notice
how he follows that. He says, but the end thereof
are the ways of death. The end of that way. The way that seems right to men
and women naturally, the end of that way is death. And not only that, it may be
expressed in many ways. Did you catch that? The ways
thereof, some by religion, some by non-religion. Some by one
thing and some by another. But they are all a man-made way,
and the end thereof is the way of death. And just in case we
feel like that maybe that's an isolated instance, turn over
to chapter 16, Proverbs 16, and look down in verse 25 where he
says it again. There is a way that seemeth right
unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. They are man-invented ways, man-contrived
ways of pleasing God, of coming to God, of being accepted by
God, But he says, every one of them is the way of death, eternal
death. And if you turn over to Isaiah
chapter 28, listen to what God says concerning all of these
ways and inventions of man. He says in Isaiah 28, beginning in chapter, in verse
14 rather, Wherefore, hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful
men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. You see, what
happened to that earthly nation and how they were toward God
in all of their thinking and doing, it's just an illustration
of how we all are. He says, because you have said,
we have made a covenant with death. Somebody had a song and
it went something like this, me and God have got a good thing
going. That's exactly what he's talking
about. He says, because you have said,
We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at
agreement. When the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, it shall not come unto us, for we have
made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves."
You see, it doesn't matter how much you think something is right. It doesn't matter how much you
believe something is true, salvation and safety lies only in that
which is true, and especially true of God. You remember Naaman,
when he was told the way by which his leprosy would be cleansed,
he said, but I thought. No, it's not our thinking, it's
not our agreements or our decisions or any of these things. Salvation
is of the Lord. So God says to them, "'Therefore,
thus saith the Lord God, behold, I lay in Zion, For a foundation,
a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation,
he that believeth shall not make hay. This is what you said. This is your covenant, your agreement,
your decision, your hope, your salvation. He said, but I've
only made one way. I've only laid one foundation. I've only made one secure place,
a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation. And this is quoted
elsewhere in this way, and he that believes on him. will never be disappointed. And outside of him, everything
else is to be a disappointment. He says, judgment also will I
lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet, and the hails
shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow
the hiding place, and your covenant with death shall be disannulled,
and your agreement with hell shall not stand when the overflowing
scourge shall pass through, then shall ye be trodden down by it."
And not only that, from the time that it goeth forth it shall
take you For morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and
by night, and it shall be a vexation." Then it will only be a vexation
of your spirit only to understand the report. He had just given
the gospel. Behold, I lay in Zion. this sure, this tried and precious
foundation, Jesus Christ. And he said, you, not looking
to him, have your own agreement and your own covenant with death
and agreement with hell, and when judgment comes, It will
sweep you away from your refuge of lies and disannul your covenant,
and then it will only be a vexation for you to understand and know
the Gospel, the Report. That's what Isaiah calls it.
He says, Who hath believed our Report? And in Isaiah also, he
gives this description. He says, their feet run to evil,
and they make haste to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are thoughts
of iniquity. Wasting and destruction are in
their paths. The way of peace they have not
known. They don't know the way of peace.
They think they've made their peace with God. And this is the
exact same thing that Paul quotes in Romans 3. He says the same
thing. There is none that understand
it. There is none that seeketh after
God. They don't know the way of peace. And to make things worse, Their
leaders, especially religious leaders, religious leaders in
false religion, are like the Pharisees who are described as
the blind leading the blind. What happens? They both fall
in the ditch. And man is blind in himself spiritually,
thinking on the one hand that he never left God. And also,
at the same time, thinking that he can devise a way back to God. That's what Saul of Tartus, when
the Lord saved him and he became Paul, that's exactly what he
confesses. He says, I barely thought with
myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of
Jesus of Nazareth. I thought the way was the way
that I was in, and I thought what I should be doing was persecuting
Christ and those who were followers of Christ. I didn't know that
He was the way. Those Peter describes as being
those blind leaders of the blind, he said, and many shall follow
their pernicious ways. They have lots of ways. The ways
that they get gain, the ways that they get popularity, the
ways that they get for themselves glory, the ways that they get
to themselves a following, Many shall follow their pernicious
way by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of." Not only will they lead men and
women in a false way, their own pernicious way, but they will
also at the same time speak evil of the very way of truth." You see, God's way is perfect
because it is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn over to John's Gospel. John's Gospel and the fourteenth
chapter, you're probably familiar with this, but are we really
basing all our hope, can we really see that this is exactly the
all of God's way? Listen in John 14, beginning
in verse 1. He says, Let not your heart be
troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me. You see, the Jews claim to believe
in God. They claimed to believe in Jehovah
God, the one true and living God. But they denied God who
was manifest in the flesh. In my Father's house are many
mansions or dwelling places, if it were not so, I would have
told you. I go to prepare a place for you,
and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and
receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go you know, and
the way you know. But Thomas saith unto him, Lord,
we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way? And Jesus saith unto him, I am
the way. Do we believe that? I am the way. And not only that, but he expands
on it. He says, I am the way, the truth,
and the life. No man comes unto the Father
but by me. That's the only way. And men by nature would rather
be shut up to about anything other than one way. We like to have many faiths and
many ways and many opportunities and many choices, but to be shut up to this one
thing, one way. That's what Christ said. And
the way of God is perfect because it is in Jesus Christ. His way is perfect in that it
is the only way there is to God. That's it. Turn over back to
Matthew chapter 7. Matthew chapter 7 is a very sobering passage of Scripture,
words spoken by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Listen to him
in what he says in verse 13 of Matthew 7. He says virtually
the same thing that Solomon said. He says, enter ye in at the straight
gates. No. There's no plural there. The straight gate. For wide is the gate, and broad
is the way that leads to destruction, and many there be which go in
thereat. You know, one thing that religion
uses supposedly as The testimony that they are the real thing
is their numbers. They say things like this, how
is it that all these people believe this when this handful of people
believes these things? How is it that all these people
believe that God is love and only love that Christ died for
all people in the world and not just some people, that the Holy
Spirit is seeking to save all people. How is it that everybody
for the most part believes this and only a few people believe
that God loved and chose a people in Christ? that the Lord Jesus
came and laid down His life just for the sheep and not the goats,
that the Spirit of God is come to effectually call and bring
this people that Christ died for, bring them to Christ in
faith. Listen to what he says. Straight. Straight is the gate, he says,
that leads to life. But wide is the gate, and broad
is the way, that leads to destruction. And many there be which go in
thereout, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way,
which leads unto life, and few there be that find it. Somebody said, well, if we say
too much about that, it'll just destroy evangelism. Let me just say this. Evangelism,
as it is widely accepted in our day, it ought to be destroyed. Because God saves His people
by the truth that is in Jesus Christ, and the truth in Jesus
Christ is set forth in the very things that were said by Jesus
Christ and those sent of God. He says, few there be that find
it. But look on down in verse 15. He says, beware of false prophets
which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are
ravening wolves. What they are on the inside is
not evident or obvious by what they appear on the outside. They are like sugar. They're
so sweet. They are like glass. They are
so smooth. They have all the credentials. But inwardly, they are ravening
wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Now, he's talking here about
preachers. Those who claim to speak for
God. He says, you shall know them
by their fruits. Well, what is the fruit of a
preacher? It's his doctrine. It's his gospel. He says, do men gather grapes
of thorns or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth
forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree brings forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth
evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not
forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire, wherefore
by their fruits ye shall know them." How do we know good fruit
from evil fruit? We know by virtue of the written
Word of God. He said, try the spirits to see
whether they be of God. In other words, if they speak
not according to this Word, He said, it is because there is
no light in them. If they're not telling the very
things that God says about Himself and about sinners and about His
salvation, especially about His Son. He said there is no light
in them. And look at verse 21. Not every
one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord. shall enter into the kingdom
of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father which is
in heaven. Many will say to me in that day,
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name
have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful They will be so confident that
they were in the way, that they knew the way, that standing before
Christ as the righteous judge, they'll say, Lord, Lord, did
we not preach in your name? Didn't we do many good and benevolent
works in your name? Did we not even cast out devils
in your name? And then will I profess unto
them, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work
iniquity." What is iniquity? Well, iniquity
is simply inequity. that which is not equal to and
therefore not acceptable by God." Their prophesy was iniquity. Every good work, even as it was
the plowing of the wicked, everything that they did, they did in order For it to be the way to God,
when God said, is just one way. Just one way. And Paul wrote
to the church at Corinth, and this is what he said to them.
He said, But I fear less by any means as the serpent beguiled
Eve through his subtlety. So your minds should be corrupted
from the simplicity that is in Christ." What does that mean? It means the singleness that
is in Christ. What did He say? I am the way. There is just one mediator between
God and men, the man Christ Jesus. And it is not Christ plus anything. It is not Christ plus our good
deeds. It is not Christ plus our obedience
to the law. It is not Christ plus anything
imaginable by men. There is one way to come to God,
and that is because of who He is and what we are. You see, Paul describes him to
Timothy in this way, as the one who only hath immortality, dwelling
in the light which no man can approach unto, whom no man hath
seen nor can see, to whom be honour and power everlasting." You see, there's no way that
absolute sinfulness can in itself approach infinite holiness. No way. You see, God's way in Christ
is called a way of righteousness. It is the only way in which He
as God can be just and yet declare us who are sinners as righteous. And that only by imputing to
us the righteousness of Christ and all our sins to Christ. How did Paul describe his own
people after the flesh? He said they are so zealous of
God. And that same attitude and all
would be as it is in our day They walk around saying, praise
the Lord and hallelujah and glory to God. How are you today? I'm
blessed and everything like that. But Paul described it in this
way. He said, they're not in this way of righteousness. They
have a zeal toward God, but it's not according to knowledge. How
do you know that, Paul? He said, because they are going
about. They're not in the way, but they're
going about to establish their own righteousness, and they have
not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. They're doing things to please
God. They're doing things to gain
a little higher standing with God. They're doing things to
make their mansion in heaven a little bigger than somebody
else's. They're going about to establish
their own righteousness, and they've not submitted themselves
to this one way of righteousness, which is Jesus Christ. You see, Christ and Him crucified
is the way of holiness. It's the only way that perfect
justice can be satisfied in the matter of our sin. It's the only
way that perfect holiness can be honored. It's the only way
that peace can be made, and that by the blood of Christ's cross.
It's not going to be by your reforming.
Not going to be by you going in somebody's water, or being
sprinkled by somebody's water, or walking by a certain code
of conduct, or belonging to a certain congregation. None of these things. There's only way a sinner can
be saved. And that's by the grace of God
in Jesus Christ. It's only by this way of reconciliation
that God was in Christ reconciling in this way of life and way of
holiness that Isaiah describes by the Spirit of God. He said, and a highway shall
be there. Well, you got to walk in the
way you got to. You ought to walk in such a way.
But on your best day, he says, you're altogether vanity. And a highway shall be there
and a way, and it shall be called the way of holiness. The unclean shall not pass over
it, but it shall be for those, the wayfaring men, the fools
shall not err therein." How can a fool, a wayfaring person,
spiritual vagabond, how can he ever or she ever be in such a
way of holiness? by the grace of God, and by God
putting them in Christ. You see, the way of righteousness
is set forth in the gospel. It's not in programs or plans
or steps or or rules or any of these things, the way of righteousness
is set forth in the clear preaching of the gospel. That's why we
need to preach the gospel. That's why we need to hear the
gospel. That's why we need to believe
the gospel. Paul said this of Jesus Christ
to the Colossians. He said, whom we preach. We're
not just sitting down on some body's confession or any of these
things. He said we're preaching Christ,
whom we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in
all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Jesus Christ. What a goal! Your goal, Paul,
in your preaching is to present some to Jesus Christ perfect. Well, my friends, He won't have
anybody that's any other way. You can hide amongst a bunch
of sinners like me and say, well, we're not perfect. God's people
are. They have to be. He showed that in every sacrifice
that was ever offered under the Mosaic economy. He described
the sacrifice, all the processes. He'd say this, it must be perfect
to be accepted. You see, Christ is the way of
wisdom. In Proverbs 8, wisdom speaks. He says, I lead in the way of
righteousness in the midst of the paths of judgment. Where
is the way of righteousness? It's in the paths of God's judgment. Why? How can it be there? That
doesn't look like it's a safe place for a sinner to be. It
is if he's in Christ. And that's exactly what takes
place in the dying of Jesus Christ on that cross. He is leading
His people in the way of righteousness. He's the wisdom of God. The way
their sins can be dealt with by God and put away and then
be made righteous in God's sight is through His cross death. They
were all in Him, chosen in Him. They were all in Him when He
went into to die on that cross. They were every one in Him. Paul
says in Romans 6, they were crucified with Him and in Him, and they
were raised again in Him. They went in that way of righteousness
which is in the midst of the path of God's judgment. God did
not pass over their sins and take them lightly. He dealt with
them. He punished their sins in His Son. You see, the way of God's righteousness
is the way of the cross. It's the way of a sinless substitute. It's the only way that God makes
men perfect. Did you know we have people conferring
sainthood on people? I'm afraid you can't do that.
Because that would be imperfection conferring perfection on imperfection. But rather, all of God's people
are described as saints or separated ones unto God, holy ones in God's
sight. What is it that the bridegroom
says of the bride in the Song of Solomon? He says, thou art
all fair. Thou art all fair. There is no fault in thee. How could that ever be said about
you? By God. By beholding us in Jesus
Christ. In Him. is no sin. And all of His people, loved
of God, chosen of God before the world began, redeemed by
Jesus Christ who bore their sins in His own body on the tree,
called by the Spirit of God through the gospel that makes known to
them this very truth. They're perfect. If you look back in both places, the psalmist is talking about
the reason that God had blessed him, he said, because of my righteousness. Who's your righteousness? Jesus
Christ. That's my righteousness. He says
of his people in another place, He says, and their righteousness
is of Me. When a believer talks about his
righteousness, he's not talking about what he's done or what
he is or anything like that. He's talking about Christ. He's
the Lord, our righteousness. And so, the psalmist, in speaking
these very things, he's not talking about a self-righteousness. Not
a righteousness that he had merited because of his obedience. No,
he's talking about the righteousness of God in Christ. He said, as for God, His way
is perfect. And then he says, it is God that
girdeth me with strength and maketh my way perfect. Every one of God's people, not
only are they perfect in Christ, their whole way is perfect. We know that all things He works
together for good to them that love God, to them that are called
according to His purpose. Everything that happens to them,
everything about them, David is confessing that. They are
every one perfect in Christ. Noah was. You say, I remember
Noah. Wasn't he the fellow that planted
a vineyard and made some wine and got drunk? The very same. Genesis 6, he says, these are
the generations of Noah. Noah was a just man and perfect
in his generations, and Noah walked with God. Abraham. Wasn't he the fellow
that lied to a king and told the king that Sarah, his wife,
was really his sister to save his hide? That's the one. And when Abram was ninety years
old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram and said unto him, I
am the Almighty God, walk before me and be thou perfect. Job had a lot of bad things happen
to him. There was a man in the land of
us whose name was Job, and that man was perfect and upright. Perfect. And just in case we miss how
Job was viewed perfect, But when the Lord God was talking to Satan,
it says, And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my
servant Job? There is none like him in the
earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that fears God, that sheweth
evil. What is it to fear God? is to
fear God in this sense, to fear to approach unto Him in any other
way but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. What is it to eschew
evil? It's to count as evil any other
way. Whenever you read in Psalm 119,
I believe it is, The psalmist says, Lord, I count all thy precepts,
all your word, to be true. And I hate every false way. Every false way. And the most miserable people
in this world And most especially in the world
to come are those who depart from this way. Peter said, it
would have been better for them not to have known the way of
righteousness than after they have known it to turn from the
holy commandment delivered unto them. Which is what? To believe
it. To believe on Christ. To trust
in Christ. The psalmist in the very first
psalm says this, for the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous. That actually means the Lord
loves the way of the righteous. Why? Because the way of the righteous
is in Christ the way, his only begotten and well-beloved Son. But the way of the ungodly shall
perish. Who are they? Every person without
Christ. every person trusting in their
own goodness, everyone who rests in how they've lived, or what
they've done, or what they've felt, or what they've experienced,
rather than in that person outside of themselves and what he has
done. He's the way of life, and every other way. These are
the ways of death. But believing on Christ, casting
off all other hope, and I mean all other hope, you can rest. You can have assurance. You see, the more we are found
trusting in ourselves The less we're found trusting in Him,
the more we're found trusting Him, the more assurance we have,
the less assurance. But count on this, the way of God. is perfect. He'll always accept
perfection because He's perfect and because He gives this perfection
through Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He makes all His people
perfect by putting all their sins away in Christ who paid
the full debt of them, and by clothing them in that imputed
righteousness of Jesus Christ, so that as He is, so are they
in this world. God help you to look to Him,
to rest in that finished work that He spoke of when He hung
on the cross and forsake all others. Father, this day we give You
thanks and praise and glory for the gracious gift of that salvation
which is in Christ. which is in His blood, His very
death for sins, the sins of His people, in the satisfaction of
your holy justice, this is the very righteousness of God. Your
right to save every sinner that He died for, that is brought
by your Spirit, to look to Him and to Him alone. To you be praise
and glory. And cause us to rest in the fact
that your way not only is the only way, but it is perfect,
absolutely perfect. And you will always accept the
perfect man. And it can be said of him, that
it shall be well with him. Young, old, whoever, wherever,
who looks to Christ and finds all their perfection in Him,
you will accept because you've already accepted them in the
Beloved. We thank you and we pray in Christ's
name. Amen.