We're going to look at a couple
verses, and then one verse in particular. Start in verse 29,
and go to 31. There be three things which go
well, yea, four are comely in going, a lion, which is strongest
among beasts and turns not away for any, a greyhound, a he-goat
also, and a king against whom there is no rising up." To rephrase this in the Hebrew,
there be three things that go fitly. are appropriate, are well in
their proof or in the truth of the matter. These things go fitly. And what the one that I want
to look at is verse, the latter part of verse 31. And a king
against whom there is no rising up. Now, I got this divided into
three sections. We're going to look at, not a
king, the king. Secondly, it is said, who cannot
be risen up against? And we know who that's speaking
about. And thirdly, to whom is this said to be comely? To whom
is this person said to be comely? First, There be three things which go
well. Four are appropriate. It just goes together in going. The king against whom there is
no rising up. Zechariah chapter 9. Zechariah. chapter 9. And verse 9, speaking about the
Lord Jesus Christ, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, Rejoice
greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, thy King cometh unto thee. He is just, and having
salvation, lowly and riding upon an ass, upon a colt, the foal
of an ass." Now that's in prophecy of what took place when Christ
came in and they were saying Hosanna. Isaiah chapter 32. And there's a bunch of these,
but we will just look at several. Isaiah chapter 32. And verse 1, Behold, a king shall
reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. This
again is a prophecy, this is speaking of none other than the
King, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jeremiah chapter 23. Jeremiah
chapter 23. And verse 5, Behold, the days come saith the Lord, that I will raise
unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign and prosper,
and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth." Micah
chapter 5 Micah chapter 5 Verse 2, But thou, Bethlehem,
Ephra, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah,
yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me, that is to be
ruler in Israel, whose going forth have been from old and
from everlasting, ruler, king. Now, this then, back to our text
in Proverbs, This is no earthly king, this one whom we are speaking
of. This king, the king, is no ordinary
king or ruler among men because we have history that tells us
that human kings have at one time or another been usurped,
risen up against, or overthrown. The Ottoman Empire, the Egyptian
Empires, the Ming Dynasty, all these different kings or rulers
have in history we know have always been overthrown, but not
this king. Not this man. Not this god man. Everything he has or is doing
or is done is being fulfilled, it's being accomplished, and
cannot be altered, adjusted, or risen up against. This then
is that thing which is comely to the believer. This then are
those three things that go well. Yea, four are coming and going. Everyone who has ever been called
from darkness to light understands this passage, this verse. They
understand that kingdoms come and kingdoms go. But His kingdom
is an everlasting kingdom. So, secondly, who this King that we've just
spoken of cannot be risen up against. Now this is what Bruce
and I were talking about at the end of his session. It's sure. How do you know your salvation
is sure? Because the Lord Jesus Christ reigns on the throne right
now. It says these things go well
together. Hey King, against whom there
is no rising up. This God who cannot fail, for
if He could, how do you and I know that it might not be regarding
our salvation or eternal life or perhaps our sins are not fully
paid for? But if this King cannot be risen
up against, if this King is sovereign totally from before time to after
time is no more, There's no variableness, neither shadow of turning with
Him. He's always been sovereign. He always will be sovereign.
Therefore, He always will be in control. Therefore, He accomplishes
what He set forth, and that was to seek and to save lost sinners.
He, Matthew 121, His name shall be called Jesus, for He shall,
not maybe, not might, not try to, He shall save His people
from the sins. Well, many have tried to rise
up against that. to no avail, because this one,
he reigns in righteousness. This is the ruler set up from
before the foundation of the world. No, no, a thousand times
no. This God cannot, this king cannot
be risen up against, and that gives us hope. I proffer to you
that Satan tried to rise up against our king, and what happened there? I saw, behold, Lucifer fall. What happens in Job, the narration
of Job? Satan has to go to God to try
Job. God gives Satan permission. So Satan is like a dog on a leash. He cannot go any further. He
can only do what is allowed. Satan tried to rise up against
the Lord and lo we saw Lucifer falling from heaven, but no avail. The kingdoms of earth tried to
reach heaven and bring God down. They tried to rise up against
him to their utter confusion. We see that in Babel and we see
this with Nebuchadnezzar. He walks out on his porch and
he looks around and he says, Is not this my kingdom that I
did, that I did all these things? And then before the last word
left his mouth, he was brought like an animal. Claws grew, his
fingernails grew, and he was eaten from the earth on all fours
like an animal. It doesn't sound like, it sounded
like he tried to rise up against God in his proud, stubborn self,
but to no avail. Our nature, the third of the
trinity of evil I call, our nature, our flesh, we said, we will not
have this man to reign over me. And I almost literally said those
words when I started to hear the truth. I said, no, that's
not the way it's going to be. And God just, He just, what did
Paul say? Or what did the Lord say to Paul
when he was wreaking havoc? He was usurping his authority.
He was trying to rise up against this gospel that had broken loose. And he says, knocked him off
his horse, and he said, it's hard for you to kick against
the pricks. That's the same thing with us.
We tried and we tried and we tried, and we tried religion.
Well, I don't want this kind of salvation. I want that kind
of salvation. And all I can say is thank our
Lord that there is a King that would not allow it so. Because
if He just left us to walk our own way, we would certainly walk
our way to perdition, to destruction, to hell and damnation. That's
our nature. We're born in sin. We're born
trying to rise up against Him. We're born trying to usurp authority
over Him. But thanks be to God, our King,
this King, Not only is he sovereign, he's merciful. He's merciful
indeed. So, I reread the text. This is comely in going. A king
against whom there is no rising up. None. There is, as it would
be, no resistance, no opposition to his claims and rights and
providence. There's no withstanding of all
his powerful grace and mercy to the sons of men. There is
no standing against. Even the gates of hell shall
not prevail. Turn to Psalms chapter 2. Psalms chapter 2 verses 1 through
4. Why do the heathen rage and the
people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth, there's
a difference right there, the kings of the earth set themselves
and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against
his anointed, saying, let us break their bands asunder and
cast away their cords from us. Let us break, excuse me, he that
sitteth in the heavens, laughs. The Lord shall have them in derision."
This is the king that Solomon said was so appropriate,
that was fitted so well together in the scheme of the gospel,
in the scheme of redemption, in the scheme of justification
of our souls. If we had a Redeemer, who couldn't
quite redeem, where would that leave us? But his sovereignty,
his authority, his reign, his ruling is all tied together with
his doing and his dying. And he has the power, the right,
the ability, and the cause to save us from our sins. And none
can say unto him, what are you doing? Because the kings In 2018,
the presidents, kings, rulers, and all the rulers, they said,
let us gather together and let's cut his cords from us. See, they
want their free will. And he just sits in the heavens
and laughs because he knows that he cannot be risen up against. Isaiah chapter 40. Isaiah chapter 40, verses 18, 21 through 25. Isaiah chapter 40, in verse 18,
God says, To whom then will ye liken God? Or what likeness will
ye compare unto Him? Verse 21, Have ye not known?
Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told you from
the beginning Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the
inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers, that stretches out the heavens
as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in, to
bring the princes to nothing. He maketh the judges of the earth
as vanity. Yea, they shall not be planted. Yea, they shall not be sown.
Yea, their stocks shall not take root in the earth. He shall also
blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall
take them away as stubble. To whom then will you liken me,
or shall I be equal? Saith the Holy One." God has no rival. on earth, in
heaven, or the universe. He is King, and there is none
that rises up against Him. Even in His state, you think
about this, even in Christ's state of humiliation, and earthly
condescension, He was able to subdue all things against Him
and to bring in life everlasting, because He is life. They couldn't quite extinguish
the light that was the life of men. They couldn't quite extinguish
it. And it says, even in His state
of humiliation, even in His earthly, His human form, what does John
say? full of grace and truth. He subdued all our enemies and
conquered death, having died the death due us and rose victorious
evermore. Then he spoiled Satan, overcame
the world, abolished death, and made us more than conquerors
through him that loved us. I say, all hail King Jesus. This is just against whom there's
no rising up. And not long now we will behold
our King descending from the clouds and victoriously engage
all antichrists, the beast, and every false prophet who have
questioned his right to rule in righteousness and completely
subdued him. Because no one can rise up against
the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, thirdly, who is he so comely
in going. It says, there's three things
which go well, yea, four are comely in going. To whom? You
read this verse, and I'm reading this the other day, and I'm reading
Proverbs 30, and I'm reading, I'm looking for a message, looking
for direction. I thought I had it a couple chapters
ago, and now it doesn't look right. And all of a sudden, this
one verse just, boom. And I thought, of course. Before
God revealed Himself to us through His Gospel, it wasn't comely. This wasn't
comely. We wouldn't even give a second thought about it. We
were too busy doing our own thing, our own religion, or had our
own ways. But then once He revealed Himself to us through the preaching
of the truth. So I say once more, to whom is He so comely? Why is this fit so well? I heard
a message 20-something years ago at Don Fortner's conference.
I think it was Gary Shepard. The harmony of the gospel. Like a circle. He said, everywhere
you go, you end up with Christ. The harmony of the gospel. Why
is the fact that He's our King, why is the fact that He's sovereign,
why is the fact that no one can rise up against Him, why is that
so beautiful to the believer? Because we understand what we
are We understand we couldn't save ourselves and everything
was against us and Christ satisfied everything. So to whom, I say
once more, to whom is he so comely going? To those whom God has
chosen from before the foundation of the world, Ephesians 1. To those whom Christ has died. Isaiah 53, and to those whom
the Spirit quickens and enlightens, it's His children and His children
only. For He doeth in the heavens and
among the inhabitants of the earth as He pleases, says Scripture,
and none can resist, rise up against, or challenge our merciful
and tender sovereign redeemers. Can't be done. If I could just
take this one verse, the King against whom there is no rising
up. Now that's a King that I can trust in. That's a King that
I can sleep at night and know He's got my best interest, come
what may. And everything's not a bed of
roses and cherry and everybody's happy all the time. No. There's
a lot of difficulty in a believer's life. But I know that our God
rules and reigns in heaven. And He's reigning for each and
every one of His people. So, let's close with perhaps
one of the favorite reading portions of Scripture that I love. Turn
to Revelation chapter 5. And let's look at this king as
he's working. Revelation chapter 5, verse 1. And I saw in the right hand of
him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside
sealed with seven seals. And I saw an angel proclaiming
with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book and to loose
the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in
earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither
to look therein. And I, John, wept much, because
no man was found worthy to open, to read the book, neither to
look thereon. And one of the elders said unto
me, Weep not. Behold the Lion of the tribe
of Judah, the root of David, hath prevailed to open the book
and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and lo,
in the midst of the throne, that's where a king would be, right?
And in the four beasts, in the midst of the elders, stood a
lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which
are the seven spirits of God, set forth into all the earth.
And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him
that sat upon the throne. And when he had taken the book,
the four beasts and four twenty elders fell down before the Lamb,
having every one of them harps and golden vials of odors, which
are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying,
Thou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof.
For thou was slain and has redeemed us to God by thy blood out of
every kindred and tongue and people and nation. and has made
us unto our God kings and priests and we shall reign on the earth.
And I beheld and I heard the voice of many angels round about
the throne and the beasts and the elders and the number of
them was 10,000 times 10,000 and thousands of thousands saying
with a loud voice, worthy is the lamb that was slain to receive
power and riches, and wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in
heaven, and in the earth, and under the earth, and such as
in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, blessing,
honor, glory, power, be unto him that sits upon the throne,
and unto the Lamb forever and ever. And the four beasts said,
Amen. And the four and twenty elders
fell down, and worshiped Him that liveth forever and ever,
knowing that no one has ever risen up against this King."
So I tell you and I tell me, brethren, think on these things. Think on the King. Think on There's
no one challenging his authority or his right to rule. No one
in heaven, in earth, or beneath the earth, in the seas, and all
that is in and of none can raise up against our king and be at
peace amongst yourselves. Let us just have one more hymn. And then, Nathan, you want to
close us in prayer?