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Rowland Wheatley

The Gentle Gospel

Deuteronomy 32:2; Psalm 72
Rowland Wheatley • June, 28 2026 • Video & Audio
1,032 Sermons
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Rowland Wheatley
Rowland Wheatley • June, 28 2026
1,032 sermons
My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: (Deuteronomy 32:2)

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This service was taken at Milward House Pilgrim Home in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.
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*1/ My doctrine - The Gospel.
2/ How it shall come - drop as the rain and distil as the dew.
3/ Upon what it shall come - The tender herb and the grass.*

**Sermon Summary:**

The sermon explores the metaphor of divine doctrine falling like gentle rain and dew, drawing primarily from Deuteronomy 32:2 and Psalm 72. It emphasizes that the gospel comes not with loud fanfare but as a soft, penetrating influence from heaven, akin to the still small voice of God.

The preacher highlights the necessity for believers to be spiritually tender and attentive, like grass receiving moisture, rather than relying on worldly strength or wisdom. This approach ensures that the good news of Jesus Christ takes root deeply in the heart, bringing life and peace to the needy.

The message encourages a posture of quiet receptivity to allow the gospel to transform the soul effectively.

Sermon Transcript

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Our reading is on the second page, two readings, first Deuteronomy and then Psalm 72. Deuteronomy chapter 32, there's just the first four verses. Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak, and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall be still as the dune. as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass. Because I will publish the name of the Lord, ascribe ye greatness unto our God. 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. Psalm 72. A Psalm for Solomon. Give the King thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the King's Son.

He shall judge thy people with righteousness and thy poor with judgment. The mountains shall bring peace to the people and the little hills by righteousness. He shall judge the poor of the people, He shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor. They shall fear Thee as long as the sun and moon endure throughout all generations. He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass, as showers that water the earth. In his days shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river until the ends of the earth. They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him, and his enemies shall lick the dust.

The kings of Tarshish and of the Isles shall bring presents. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yea, all kings shall fall down before Him. All nations shall serve Him. For He shall deliver the needy when He crieth, the poor also and him that hath no helper. He shall spare the poor and needy and shall save the souls of the needy. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence, and precious shall their blood be in his sight.

And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba. Prayer also shall be made for him continually, and daily shall he be praised. There shall be a handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains. The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon, and they of the cities shall flourish like grass of the earth.

His name shall endure for ever. His name shall be continued as long as the sun, and men shall be blessed in Him. All nations shall call Him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be His glorious name forever, and let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen. The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended. Amen.

The word that I want to bring before you is in the second verse of Deuteronomy, also referred to in verse six in Psalm 72. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall be still as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass. Psalm 72, verse six, he shall come down like rain upon the mown grass and showers that water the earth. And before we look at this verse I do want to really emphasize that right through Psalm 72 it is speaking of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

It is a Messianic Psalm, it is prophetic of the Lord Jesus Christ. All that is spoken of there is pointing to him. So when it is he shall come down, the Lord shall come down. When it is speaking of he shall deliver the needy when he crieth, that is speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when it is said that prayer also shall be made for him continually, daily shall he be praised, that is the Lord Jesus Christ. His name shall endure forever. His name shall continue as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed in Him. All nations shall call Him blessed. This is the Lord Jesus Christ." It's beautiful to see these psalms that they point to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now what is in our text is the doctrine that is spoken of. It is the gospel. So I want to Look at that first, my doctrine or the gospel shall prop as the rain.

Gospel, good news of salvation, good news through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, good news for sinners, good news that speaks of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for His people. Remember the words upon the cross, it is finished. and we rejoice in a finished salvation, that which the Lord has paid the debt and then will convey in their lifetime to each one for whom he has died the blessings that he has purchased for them. He shall give life to them and keep their souls alive, redeem them from death, redeem them from evil, and prepare them to be with him. This people have I formed for myself, they shall show forth my praise. The church is the bride of Christ. The good news is the reconciling of sinners to God through Jesus Christ. A debt that is being paid that makes that way possible.

So all of the teaching, the doctrines of the gospel they are those that is spoken of here. And of course though we have Christ so clearly set forth in the Old Testament, yet in the New Testament we are told that it is a mystery that is now revealed, it is shown clearly, the light of the New Testament is so much more than the old.

In all the pre-incarnation appearances of our Lord in the Old Testament, never was his name given. They asked for his name, they said, why ask us after thy name, it is secret. Then when we come to Matthew 1, his name shall be called Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. When we come to Paul's epistle to the Philippians, he hath given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow. And our Lord is the one that is exalted and his name is now known and precious to the people of God.

So how is that doctrine then, how is that teaching to actually come to us? Well, you might say, well, it's to come through the word of God, and we do, we thank God for the inspired, infallible word that it comes to us. It comes to us through the preaching of the Word. We are commanded to preach the Word. But it needs more than that. It must actually come to us personally. We must receive of that Word in our own souls.

And so we are given a beautiful illustration here as to how it shall come. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the small rain. And so we have this picture of how the gospel actually comes. Well it comes from heaven, that's where the rain comes, it's sent down from heaven. But then it comes like that rain, and comes as like the dew, very soft, very gentle.

And the Lord, when He is speaking of the new birth, He says that the work of the Spirit is like the wind. Thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell from whence it cometh or whither it goeth. So is every one that is born of the Spirit. When Elijah went to Mount Horeb, and the Lord passed by, And there was a great wind, there was an earthquake, there was a fire, but the Lord was not in them. And then there was a still, small voice. And that is how the Lord spoke to Elijah. And that is how He speaks the Gospel, the Good News to sinners as a still, small voice. A gentle voice to His people. hear my voice and they follow me.

And it's like in here, like rain or distilling, not with great demonstration, great fanfare, but gently distilling. Very often when I'm seeking a text to bring before you or before the churches, and I'll go for a walk and I'll pray that the Lord would give me His word to preach. And as I'm walking along, I suddenly realize that I'm meditating upon a part of the Word of God. And I think, when did I start to meditate upon that? Was it a block back? Was it a house back? I can't remember. It just suddenly is there.

And so often that is the case. If I sit in my study and start thumbing through the pages of the Bible and trying hard to get a word, very often I don't get one. But if I just go and I pray that the Lord would drop his word in, then it does distill like this. And very often this is a very real description of how the Lord brings his word into hearts, actually enters into our heart.

Thy words have I hid in mine heart. That is the psalmist's testimony. Jeremiah, thy words were found and I did eat them. They were joy and rejoicing of my soul. You think of the children of Israel, they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.

And so this is how we are to expect the Word to come to us. And those of us who know the secret of the Lord, when you know it once, then you know the Lord's coming, and how softening it is, how gentle it is, and the effect that it has. Those two on the way to Emmaus did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us by the way. And so it's good for us to Look at this illustration, how the Lord has told his doctrine, his teaching, his gospel, shall come, that it shall come in that gentle, distilling way, that it is just, suddenly it is there. You haven't even seen it come, but it is there, the glistening, the dew, the water is there.

Well, the third thing to think about in this verse is upon what it shall come because it says here as the small rain upon the tender curb and as the showers upon the grass so it's speaking of what it comes upon and when we think of God's people they are made tender they are made to be as it were like the grass. We want that Word to settle upon us. Be still, says the Word, and know that I am God. Or the Lord saying to His people, to hearken unto Me. Or what the Lord said to Mary and Martha. Martha, she wasn't still. Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things. But one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her. What was she doing? Sitting at the feet of Jesus, and His Word was distilling upon her, resting upon her, as you listen to the Word.

How important it is to be still, and to listen to the Word of God. Sometimes we can be So busy, so much commotion, so many things doing, that we don't listen to that still, quiet voice. You know, if we have someone that we know and love, and they've got a very quiet, gentle voice, if we're going to hear what they're going to say, we need to be quiet. We need to be attentive to them.

And the picture here is not like in Christ's day, ascribes the Pharisees, those that were worldly, naturally strong, but as a tender, broken-hearted sinner, a poor sinner, the publican, God be merciful to me, a sinner. It speaks of the characters of God's people that His Word rests upon. So may we be like those characters and we may feel, well we're like that tender herb with so little strength, you've only got a touch and it bows down, and the grass is so weak you can't support anything with it at all. But this is what the Word comes to. It is not our strength, not our wisdom.

Our Lord rejoiced in spirit and he thanked his Father that thou hast hidden these things. from the wise and prudent, and revealed them unto babes. Even so, Lord, for so it seemeth good in thy sight. So may we be the characters described here, recognize the word coming in the way, distilling and like the rain, softening and from heaven, and it be the good news of the gospel, the good news of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and what he has done for our soul. Amen.
Rowland Wheatley
About Rowland Wheatley
Pastor Rowland Wheatley was called to the Gospel Ministry in Melbourne, Australia in 1993. He returned to his native England and has been Pastor of The Strict Baptist Chapel, St David’s Bridge Cranbrook, England since 1998. He and his wife Hilary are blessed with two children, Esther and Tom. Esther and her husband Jacob are members of the Berean Bible Church Queensland, Australia. Tom is an elder at Emmanuel Church Salisbury, England. He and his wife Pauline have 4 children, Savannah, Flynn, Willow and Gus.
Broadcaster:
St David's Bridge Strict Baptist Chapel
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Same Scripture

Sermons on Deuteronomy 32, Psalm 72

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