turn again in your bibles please
to the 40th psalm which we read now reading psalm 40 a psalm
of david and i want to turn your attention to the ninth verse
verses 9 and 10 verse 9 which reads i have preached righteousness
in the great congregation though i have not refrained my lips
oh lord thou knowest i have not hid thy righteousness within
my heart i have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation
I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great
congregation. Verse 9 I have preached righteousness
in the great congregation. So we have a preacher with a message to a people and this preacher preaches righteousness
in the great congregation. But just who is the preacher?
And just what is his message exactly? Just who is he preaching
to? Well of course this is the psalm
of David. And David has written it and
as he writes he says, I have preached righteousness in the
great congregation. So we could certainly assume
that David could say of himself that he preached righteousness.
And I'm sure David, as one who knew the Lord, The one who knew
the Lord's dealings with him, the one who served the Lord,
will definitely preach righteousness to all with whom he came into
contact. But of course this psalm has
a much greater scope than just the words of David. David writes
here by the Spirit. David writes here as the Lord
Jesus Christ. These are the words of Christ
which he gave by his Spirit to David to write. And these are
really the words of Jesus Christ. saying I have preached righteousness
in the great congregation. This whole Psalm, Psalm 40, is
one which is well known to speak of the sufferings of our Saviour.
It begins, I have waited patiently for the Lord. He inclined unto
me and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of
a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a
rock, and established my goings. There's much here to speak of
the Lord's sufferings in his death. He says in verse six,
sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire, mine ears hast thou
opened. Burnt offering and sin offering
hast thou not required. Then said I, lo I come, in the
volume of the book it is written of me. I delight to do thy will,
O my God, yea thy law is within my heart. Now of course these
verses here are quoted in the book of Hebrews and quoted with
reference to the work of Christ. in taking away the first covenant
and bringing in the new covenant establishing the new covenant
in his death it says in verse 12 in the psalm as we consider
the work of christ in his death for innumerable evils have compassed
me about mine iniquities have taken hold upon me so that i
am not able to look up they are more than the hairs of mine head
therefore my heart failed so this psalm is a psalm of david
yes but that's definitely the words of our lord jesus christ
the psalm of christ that points to his death and in the midst
of this psalm in verse 9 we have read i have preached righteousness
in the great congregation so who we may ask is the preacher
david yes the lord jesus christ certainly it is christ who preaches
righteousness It is Christ who preaches righteousness in the
great congregation. He is the preacher. He is the
preacher we must hear. He is the preacher to his people.
No matter whom he sends to preach his gospel, no matter whom he
sends to preach his word, they are but men, but voice pieces. They are but his ambassadors.
If they bring but their word, it is of nothing worth. But if
it is Christ that speaks, if it is Him that sends the word,
if He sends His word forth by the Spirit and puts it upon the
lips of the speaker, He's the preacher and His word goes forth
in power. And it is Him who is the preacher
here. He says, I have preached righteousness in the great congregation. He's the preacher. He's the preacher
we must look for. He's the preacher we must hear.
if we are to know anything of his salvation has he spoken to
us has he come with this message this message of righteousness
you know this is his message this is his message i have preached
righteousness in the great congregation there are many things that he
will preach there are many aspects of to the truth of the gospel
there are many truths which he comes with It could say that
I have preached love in the great congregation. It could say I
have preached grace in the great congregation. It could say I
have preached mercy in the great congregation. The words here
begin with I have preached righteousness in the great congregation. And
it is righteousness which is his overwhelming central message. Righteousness is that which is
at the core of the gospel. When Christ brings his gospel
When he preaches his gospel, it is a message of righteousness. The gospel is founded upon righteousness. Righteousness is the essence
of the gospel. As Paul said in Romans, I am
ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also, for
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power
of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first
and also to the Greek. For therein in the gospel is
the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith, as it is
written, the just shall live by faith. Paul cites the gospel
of Christ as being the power of God unto salvation, but what
gives the gospel that power? What is central to the gospel?
He tells us, for therein in the gospel is the righteousness of
God revealed from faith to faith. this is the essence of the gospel
is righteousness and the revelation of righteousness and this is
why david preached righteousness in the great congregation this
is why christ comes to the great congregation and preaches by
his spirit righteousness for the gospel is founded upon righteousness
righteousness is the essence of the gospel there's no gospel
without it If you preach a gospel which lacks the righteousness
of God, a gospel which does not center upon righteousness, it's
no gospel. It's no gospel. Many speak of
having a gospel in these days, but their gospel could be characterized
by being centered on anything but righteousness. They come
with a message of peace, a message of love, a message of joy, but
no righteousness. But David says, I've preached
righteousness in a great congregation. and the gospel reveals the righteousness
of God. This is Christ's message to his
church, righteousness. It was Noah's message. It was
Noah's message. It was the message in the book
of God from the beginning of the book of God to the end of
it. Right there in Genesis at the beginning, God's raised up
Noah. Noah found grace in the eyes
of the Lord. And what did Noah preach? Noah,
as 2 Peter 2.5 tells us, was a preacher of righteousness.
Noah's message was righteousness. If you read the account of Noah,
you really see very little record of what his words were. But he
was told to build an ark to the saving of his house. And God
sent a mighty flood upon the wicked and destroyed the wicked. But he saved eight people in
that ark. It was a picture of Christ. And
in that message, in that very message, in that very building
of the ark, in the very picture of what it typified. It was a
picture of righteousness. So Noah was a preacher of righteousness.
David, as we see, was a preacher of righteousness. This was his
message, righteousness. Paul, as we've seen in his epistle
to the Romans, throughout his epistles, what characterized
his message was righteousness, the justification, of God's people
in Christ, the judging of their sins in the Savior, righteousness,
and Christ too when he comes with his message of the gospel,
it's a message of righteousness. But what we may ask is righteousness? What is righteousness? It's easy
to say the word, we're familiar with the word, but what is righteousness? Well in the scriptures we read
of righteousness in a number of places, it's quoted in this
psalm, we began our meeting with psalm 36 which reads in verse
6, our righteousness is like the great mountains, throughout
the scripture we read of righteousness in various regards, we read in
Jeremiah that the Lord is our righteousness, We read of the
righteousness of the law. We read of the righteousness
of faith. Righteousness is central to the message of God throughout
the scriptures. But just what is it? It's evident
that there was the giving of the law in the Old Testament.
It's evident that that is a law of righteousness. There is a
righteousness under the law. And in the gospels, as we've
read in Romans, And in Romans 3 we can read that in the gospel,
in the revelation of the gospel, in the gospel is revealed the
righteousness of God, the righteousness of God without the law. So there
is righteousness under the law and there is righteousness without
the law or apart from the law. There is a righteousness under
the law and there is a righteousness in the gospel. There's one found
in the law and one found in the gospel. There's that which judges
and condemns the sin of mankind. and as that which justifies and
delivers him from the wrath which was his and brings him into peace,
delivers him from condemnation and brings him into reconciliation
and peace with God, as that which takes away his sin and makes
him righteous. But what is righteousness? What
is righteousness exactly? As I've said there is that righteousness
of God as revealed under the law and there is that righteousness
of God in the gospel. And what is righteousness? Well
firstly we can consider righteousness as an objective thing. Righteousness
can be considered objectively. Now that means that it is outside
of ourselves. It's not subjective within ourselves
but there is that righteousness which is seen as something outside
of ourselves and this is what is made known in the law of God.
The law of God was given as a rule of righteousness, an objective
rule of righteousness which governed the behavior of mankind. It set
forth a rule or a law or a standard of conduct by which those who
were under that law and those who were brought to be judged
by that law, by which their conduct should be governed. There's an
exterior rule or standard of conduct which God gave in the
given of the law by Moses, God gave in the ten commandments
given by Moses, this was an objective rule of righteousness. It governed
mankind's relationships to God, it governed mankind's relationship
to his fellow man, it governed his outward conduct, and it also
governed his inward thoughts and intentions. This rule set
forth a standard of righteousness, a standard of conduct by which
man would be brought to account. So it set forth an objective
rule of righteousness. It is outside of man and it is
that which governs his conduct. And the law of God which God
gave to mankind, he gave for one simple purpose. He gave it to show that all men
were guilty before God, that we all have gone astray, that
we all are sinners. It set forth a rule of righteousness
which frankly nobody could ever begin to attain to. The law was
given to show mankind that he is not righteous, that he is
anything but righteous. that he is guilty and wicked
and sinful through and through, that he has fallen in Adam. But
when God created mankind upon this earth in innocence, he gave
them but one command in the garden, one command by Adam. And Adam
and his wife rebelled against that one command, and they took
of the fruit which they were forbidden to take, and they turned
their fist against their maker, and they rebelled against him,
and he then said, And sin passed upon all men, and death by sin,
and condemnation came in by that. And man became a sinner. And
God gave a law to show unto man, he said. He gave a law of righteousness,
a rule of righteousness. And it was given to bring out
and to show unto man as the Spirit would apply that law to those
whom God would apply it to. It was given to demonstrate to
all mankind brought under that law and all those in the Spirit
would reveal the righteousness of that law to that they were
guilty. Guilty. This law is inexorable. It's
immutable. It governs everything we do.
We cannot escape it. We are brought to account to
it. It finds out our every deed. It doesn't just govern the outward
conduct, the outward rule, but it governs the inward conduct,
the inward thoughts, the inward intentions, that which is in
our heart. For sin isn't simply that which
we do. We can make a fairly good attempt,
if we try, to govern our outward conduct. We can go to the right
places, say the right things, we can try to avoid doing this
and avoid doing that. But the law goes deeper than
that. It governs the inward intention, the very thoughts and intentions
and motives of the heart and it finds us out. It finds us
out, as it found you out. When you go to that law, do you
think that you've got any hope of keeping it? Or do you look
on it as being a futile thing? Does it break you? Does it crush
you? Do you look upon it as a fearful thing? Has God brought that law
upon you and taught you out of it? Has the commandment come
to you? Has he shown you that you haven't a hope of keeping
it? Haven't a hope of even beginning to keep it? He gave a law and
it condemned man. The law of condemnation. Thus
Paul could say in Romans, now we know that what things however
the law saith it saith to them who are under the law that every
mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before
god therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh
be justified in his sight for by the law is the knowledge of
sin here there's that of righteousness which is objective it's outward
there's this exterior rule of conduct which God gave to man
to govern his righteousness and to demonstrate that he has none
but righteousness can be seen as the subjective thing too not
that which is outside of us which is demanded of us but that which
is in us that which describes either our conformity to an external
rule of righteousness or our lack of conformity we either
have righteousness or we have unrighteousness there is that
which is within us our subjective righteousness we're either righteous
or we're not righteous and that law was given to prove
to man that he had no conformity to such a law he might make some
attempt to conform to it with his outward conduct but the heart
was vile the heart is base the heart is base and the subjective
righteousness it regards our character, our integrity whether
we are upright or not and the fact is that none of us are all
of us by nature are sinners all of us are based from our wicked
hearts and we have no righteousness and those things which we think
are righteousness those deeds which we do which we think are
good Our righteousnesses, those things we do which we think are
good, in God's eyes they're filthy racks. Filthy racks, vile, base. We just sin through and through.
We've missed the mark. We've missed the mark. You see, righteousness springs
from this word in the Hebrew which is tzedek, righteousness. Now Sedeq comes from a term which
refers, as it were, to a lance or a spear, which is perfectly
straight. It's perfectly straight, and
when it's thrown, it goes in a perfectly straight line. There's
no deviation, there's no bend, there's no alteration from the
perfect straightness of this line. That's what Sedeq means. And Sin. Sin is a missing of
the mark. sin is anything that deviates
from that straight line and everything we do by nature is a deviation
from that line everything we do misses the mark we either
go to the left hand or the right hand we're utterly helpless to
keep on that mark to keep on that mark this word sedep for
righteousness is where we get the term the name in the old
testament for Melchizedek the king of righteousness we read
in the account of Abraham how he was met in Genesis by this
mysterious king who seemed to have no beginnings no ancestral
he just came from nowhere as it were an eternal king a king
of righteousness picture a type of the Lord Jesus Christ the
king of righteousness the one in whom is righteousness the
one whose message is righteousness the one who comes to the great
congregation preaching righteousness the one who is righteousness
so we see the righteousness is an objective thing and a subjective
thing in us but that's righteousness under the law that's God's righteous
dealings with man under the law gave man a law and he expected
expected man to keep that law but of course man could not keep
that law and given of the law really had one purpose and one
purpose only, to show man his sin, to prove to him that he
is a sinner in need of righteousness, that he is in filthy rags, that
he is filthy from head to toe. But in Romans in chapter 3, having
demonstrated that behind the deeds of the law there shall
no flesh be justified in his sight, having shown that the
law was given to bring the knowledge of sin. Paul brings this great
hope. He says, but now, but now in
the coming of Christ, in the bringing in of the gospel, in
the preaching of the gospel, now in the gospel, that's what
it was like under the law. That's what was true under the
law. We were brought in guilty, but now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested. the righteousness of God without
the law is manifested being witnessed by the law and the prophets even
the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ there
is this righteousness of God in the gospel David and Christ
preached to the great congregation of righteousness they preached
the law they preached that righteousness was demanded They demonstrated
by such preaching that man was a sinner and that he's guilty
and he has no righteousness of his own. They preach righteousness. That's where their gospel began.
That's where the gospel does begin. It brings in man guilty
before God. It doesn't come in with peace
and love. It doesn't come in with a Jesus
that just stands there for your acceptance. Oh, just accept this
Jesus and you'll be saved. It has a beginning. And it has
a beginning to show man what he is before a holy God. It brings
in the thunders and the lightnings and the threatenings of Sinai.
Is that where you began? Is that where your hearing of
the gospel began? Or did you try to bypass that?
Did you try to jump over the fence? Did you go past that narrow
gate and try to come in some other way? through an easy gate,
a broad gate on a broad way. Well the gospel doesn't begin
that way, the gospel begins with righteousness and it begins with
the preaching of the righteousness of God under the law and it begins
with a message that condemns man and brings him in guilty
and brings him to his knees and when the spirit takes that message
and brings it with power And when he brings that commandment
which you may have heard many times with the outward ear, and
brings it into the heart, and discovers your guilty heart,
and brings you in guilty before God, and lays you down low, and
brings you to your knees, then you begin to begin somewhere.
Then you've begun to take your first steps in the gospel. Then
you begin to discover that there's no strength in you to walk right.
then you begin to discover that having seen this objective rule
of righteousness outwardly and having looked on it with despair
for you cannot attain to it and having looked upon your own heart
at your own righteousness within you your subjective righteousness
you've looked and you've seen and you've seen that not only
does your righteousness not match up to it not only is your righteousness
filthy rags you look within for some righteousness something
to bring before God something to pay the price the debt which
you owe him and you look within and you see and you see nothing
you see nothing you look for a coin to pay a price and you
see nothing you see that you've got no righteousness you see
that you've got no righteousness you've got nothing with which
to pay and there's a is one that comes demanding the debt must
be paid and he says you must pay debtors must pay wherewith
will you pay and you will throw up your hands and say well i've
got nothing to pay i've got no righteousness i'm lost and i'm
undone and then this preacher of righteousness that's lady
low under the law this preacher of righteousness the lord jesus
comes and he comes unto guilty sinners he comes unto those whom
the spirit is convicted under his law and he comes and he says
yay i preach righteousness i've preached the law to you you could
not keep it but i've got good news for you in the gospel i've
got good news of another righteousness i've got news of that righteousness
yes but i've got news of righteousness in the gospel he says but now
The righteousness of God without the law is manifested. You couldn't
bring forth righteousness. You have no righteousness. But
I have righteousness for my people. I have everlasting righteousness
for my people. And this is my message in the
gospel. It is a message of righteousness.
The righteousness of God which is revealed in the gospel. That
righteousness which Paul said is the power of God. in the gospel. The gospel is
the power of God. Why? Because therein, in the
gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to
faith. The righteousness of God. We've
heard of the righteousness of man under the law. A black base,
a vial, an empty thing, tatters, filthy racks. But the gospel
brings in the righteousness of God. then what is the righteousness
of God? What is the righteousness of
God? Is it contrary to the righteousness
of the law? No it cannot be he's the same God and as Paul says
in Romans 3 the righteousness of God without the law is manifested
in the gospel being witnessed by the law and the prophets then
the law points to this righteousness in this revelation of righteousness
the law points to it It's not another righteousness. It's not
a righteousness which is contrary to law. It's not another righteousness
of different form of righteousness. But the gospel brings in a revelation
of righteousness which was hitherto concealed. It brings in the very
righteousness of God. God revealed his righteousness
unto man under the law. He revealed a measure of his
righteousness. But that righteousness revealed under the law regarded
man's conduct with respect to God and to his neighbor. It revealed
God's righteousness in his dealings with man. It revealed his righteousness
as it respected man in this world in human flesh as he lived in
this world and his duties unto God and his duties unto his neighbor.
That was righteousness of God under the law. But there's this
righteousness of God in the gospel, which transcends anything seen
under the law. There is this righteousness which
is all glorious. This complete revelation of his
righteousness in his son, in the person of Jesus Christ. It's
not another type of righteousness, it's the same. But it's an outshining
of righteousness hitherto concealed. Under the Old Testament, God
was veiled. was hidden in the Holy of Holies.
The people knew God as he had revealed himself to them under
the law and in the priesthood but he was a far off. Only the
priest could go into the Holy of Holies and he could only go
in to make atonement for the people by sprinkling blood upon
the mercy seat. but they only saw God afar off,
and they only saw God as being God in one person, they had no
sight, no full revelation of that God who would make himself
known fully in the gospel. That God who is known as three
persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. That God who would reveal
himself to mankind in his Son. And it is this revelation of
himself in the gospel, and this revelation of his righteousness
as he is in himself, This complete outshining of the light of God
as he really is in his own person, in his own deity, which is seen
in the gospel. The law in its 10 commandments,
as it were, shone the light through 10 windows. It revealed God in
various facets, as far as we could see him. But now, but now
in the gospel, the righteousness of God without the law is manifested.
And he reveals his grace and his truth and His mercy and His
righteousness in a way which was unknown in the Old Covenant,
which could be seen in measure, but which is now seen in its
full glory in Christ. We see this in the beginning
of John, in various places in the New Testament, these things
are set forth before us. This wonder in the gospel of
the righteousness of God in Christ. John 1 tells us, that Christ was the true light,
which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was
in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew
him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become
the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the will of man, but of God. And the word, Christ, was made
flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, The
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. John bare witness of him and
cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake. He that cometh
after me is preferred before me, for he was before me. And
of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the
law was given by Moses. but grace and truth came by Jesus
Christ. The law reveals so much, but
grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. He revealed the righteousness
of God, the light of God, as it really is. We see this in
Matthew's gospel, in the Sermon on the Mount, where Christ speaks
of the need for our righteousness to exceed that of the scribes
and the Pharisees. And he gives his teaching on
the Sermon on the Mount, where he speaks of law of Moses and
how it was written and he speaks of the commandments and he says
but I say unto you but I say unto you and many today speak
of this sermon on the mountain they say that here Christ was
given us the true teaching of the law which had been obscured
by the pharisees but the fact is that throughout that sermon
that Christ actually quotes the law as it was given he doesn't
quote the traditions of the pharisees he quotes the law and then he
says but now I say unto you and he gives this greater more glorious
revelation of the righteousness of God in the gospel, of evangelical
righteousness. He opens it up and he makes it
known as it really is in him. He brings this full glory. In
2 Corinthians 3 we see this opened up. 2 Corinthians 3 we read of
this contrast between the two ministrations. It says in 2 Corinthians
3 verse 6, who have made us able ministers of the new testament,
Not of the letter, of the law, but of the spirit. For the letter
killeth, but the spirit giveth life. For if the ministration
of death, written and engraven in stones, the Ten Commandments
was glorious, if that was glorious, and it was glorious, God gave
it, it was glorious, if that was glorious, so that the children
of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for
the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away,
how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? For if the ministration of condemnation,
that law which condemned us, which demanded righteousness
which we could not render and brought us in guilty before God,
if that ministration of condemnation was glory, much more doth the
ministration of righteousness exceeding glory. For even that
which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason
of the glory that exceleth. For if that which is done away
was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. Seeing then that we have such
hope, we use great plainness of speech. And not as Moses which
put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel should
not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. But
their minds were blinded, for until this day remain if the
same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament
which veil is done away in Christ and even unto this day when Moses
is read the veil is upon their heart nevertheless when it shall
turn to the Lord the veil shall be taken away and how it is today
there are many who read Moses they read the law and the veil
still upon their heart they can see righteousness in none other
place but under the old covenant and under the law under their
keeping of the law either to be justified as they speak of
it or as many will say they say we're not justified by the law
but we are sanctified it is our rule of life and they twist it
and they keep it and they keep looking to the law for righteousness
but Paul here tells us that the veil must be taken away for there
is a glory in the gospel there is a righteousness in the gospel
which exceeds anything which was seen in the in the law and
this is the righteousness of god made known in christ this
is christ the very righteousness of god as he is in himself is
made known in his son as prophesied by jeremiah in more than one
place where jeremiah could say in 23 6 and 33 16 he spoke of
the one who would come he spoke that of that of him who would
be called the lord our righteousness even Christ Jesus but he spoke
of him as the Lord capital L-O-R-D he speaks of his deity Christ
makes known the righteousness of God it's not him as a man
under the law yes he came as a man yes he fulfilled the law
because he was God but he didn't just make reveal the righteousness
of the law to us he revealed a transcendent righteousness
he kept the law he fulfilled the law because he was God and
as God he was righteous and as God he was in himself the righteousness
of God he is the Lord our righteousness he is our righteousness and he
came to bring us righteousness and to preach righteousness and
to make us righteousness as we are in him he brings in righteousness
as it's said in Jeremiah 51 10 the Lord have brought our righteousness
and let us declare in Zion the work of the Lord our God. And
so our preacher in Psalm 40 brings this message and he declares
to this company a message of righteousness. This is his message,
condemns under the law, but he says, but now in the gospel there
is a righteousness which the Lord has brought forth. And how
has he brought it forth? How is it made known? He says,
I will not hide, I have not hid this righteousness within my
heart, I have declared it unto the great congregation. And it's
declared in this psalm, it was declared by Noah of old as he
demonstrated by that picture of the flood, the righteousness
of God in judgement. And in this psalm we see, as
we see of the sufferings and travail of our Saviour at the
cross, here we see the righteousness of God demonstrated, not just
that it is the righteousness of God in the person of Christ,
this wonderful glory and light that is made known in him as
he reveals the very righteousness as it is in the person of God,
in his deity, in his sublime righteousness, but he makes it
known in judgment. How does he make this righteousness
known to his people? How does he make a people who
are base, who are vile, who are dead in trespasses and sins,
how does he make them righteous? How does he bring in righteousness
for them? How does he save a people who are lost in their sins? This
is his message in this psalm, he says, I've preached righteousness,
I've preached my righteousness, I've preached that I am thy righteousness,
that I will bring in for thee righteousness, that I will take
thy sins and take them away, and I will bring in righteousness.
And how is it done? It was done at the cross. And
it was done as God judged his people by his justice. And he
upheld his justice. He made known his mercy unto
them, but he made known his mercy and his love by upholding his
justice as he took his son. And he said, they will pay for
their sins. Their sins will be paid for.
Their sins will be atoned for. Their sins will be judged. and
i will judge them and i cannot judge them in them so i would
judge them in a substitute and he took his son and his son went
to calvary's cross and his son was nailed to a tree and his
son was lifted up above the earth and his son cried out upon that
cross in spirit he cried out in spirit he looked as god took
their sins and laid them upon him And as God poured out the
funders of his wrath against those sins, he was able to say
by spirit in his heart, for innumerable evils have compassed me about.
Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so I am not able to
look up. They are more than the hairs
of mine head, therefore my heart faileth me. Be pleased, O Lord,
to deliver me. O Lord, make haste to help me. This is what the Son did to make
known His righteousness. This is what the Son did to answer
that debt which we owed under the law. This is what the Son
did to not answer just the debt we owed to the law, but the debt
we owed to God in His very being, to His very righteousness in
His very being. The one whom we had offended,
the one from whom we were set afar off, the one from whom our
sins had cast us out at a great distance. He brought us to reconcile
us unto his father. He brought us unto peace by taking
our sins. And having taken our sins, he
was able to say innumerable evils encompass me about. Oh, the filth,
oh, the degradation, the darkness into which he entered, the darkness
into which he entered. This is the will which he came
to perform. This is of which he spoke in
Hebrews, which is quoted from this psalm, Lo, I come in the
volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will,
O my God. What was his will? Well yea,
he lived as a perfect man, but his will was to be that offering,
not those countless burnt offerings and sin offerings which were
offered under the law, but that one offering for sin forever.
He came to do his will, to be that one offering for sin forever,
to be judged under the judgment of God, under the wrath of God,
under the righteousness of God, to be judged and cast off, to
deliver his people. This is the whole message of
this psalm, the whole message of this psalm, that he cries
out at the end, the people will cry unto him and look at him
in this shame as he stands there as the sin offering for his people,
as the one who is compassed about with iniquities, They cry, ah-ha,
ah-ha, he's cast out. And he cries out, but I am poor
and needy. And yet, the Lord thinketh upon
me, thinketh upon me, and he is my help and my deliverer. And the Lord would tarry not,
for he would blot out those sins. He judged every one of them.
He poured out his vaults of anger against his son, and he took
them away. And he brought forth righteousness,
and he made his people clean. And he delivered them in his
Son, and he washed them by his blood. And having washed every
sin away, the Son rose. He rose victorious, having brought
him everlasting righteousness. And this is his message which
he preaches. This is his message which David preaches. This is
his message which he preaches today. He preaches righteousness
in the great congregation. in the great congregation, what
congregation is this? It is Christ who preaches, that's
his message of the gospel, that he brought in righteousness for
those who had none, for those who were guilty, he took away
their guilt, he swallowed it up, he took away the judgment,
he drank the cup of God's wrath against it to the dregs and he
brought in righteousness and he comes to that people, he comes
to the great congregation, He comes to this great congregation
in this world today, and he preaches righteousness. He comes to the
great congregation. This phrase, the great congregation,
it's an interesting phrase. In the English, it's used in
but a few places in scripture. We read it twice in this psalm.
We read it in Psalm 22 and verse 25, and we read it in Psalm 35.
And this psalm is one of those psalms which is very much centred
upon the sufferings of Christ upon the cross. And it's very
interesting that the same phrase the great congregation is using,
Psalm 22, another psalm beginning with, my God, my God, why hast
thou forsaken me? Another psalm speaking of the
sufferings of Christ. And as he's spoken in that psalm
too of how he's afflicted and how he's crushed under the outpouring
of God's wrath. he can say in verse 25, my praise
shall be of thee in the great congregation, I will pay my vows
before them that fear him. Similar thoughts in that psalm,
a similar deliverance and a similar message to a great congregation.
Who is this great congregation? It is his church throughout all
the ages, throughout all time, all those for whom he died, He
brings the same message, the same message of grace, the same
message of salvation, the same message of righteousness, this
message, this message of deliverance. He preaches to the great congregation. He doesn't preach it to every
place, every congregation. There are many congregations
we see up and down the country, around this world. There are
many who gather, many who take the words of Jesus upon their
lips. We see them gathering in many places. I've seen them myself. I've been to these congregations,
been to a place recently, great congregation. I have many there
on a Sunday, hundreds gather in a great congregation that
takes the name of Jesus and they come with another gospel. their
message is anything but a message of righteousness and David has
such to say to people he has yes in psalm 58 he says to these
congregations he says to those whom he looks upon who take upon
upon their lips the lord's name vainly and take upon their lips
promises and things which have nothing to do with them and he
says under such he says do ye indeed speak righteousness oh
congregation Is it Christ who speaks in your midst? I think
not. You might have many preachers
and many men that say many things in your midst, but is their message
the same message of Christ? Is it righteousness? Is it that
gospel? You speak many things, but is it righteousness? Do ye
indeed speak righteousness? No. In their hearts they work
quickness. They weigh the violence of hands
and the earth. They have anything but this message of righteousness
in the gospel. But they're great congregations
and there's many. But that's not the great congregation
of which David speaks in Psalm 40. And that's not the congregation
which Christ preaches to here. But he comes with his message
to a great congregation throughout the ages. This congregation in
our day may be but a few here and a few there. They may not
feel like they are a great congregation. They might be cast out by the
many. They may be cast out by the world around them. They may
be cast out by the religion of their day. They may be looked
upon with stern looks. People may say, your messages
are too hard. Why don't you preach more about
love? But their message and their ears are tuned to that message
of Christ and that glorious message of deliverance in the gospel.
And they would rather gather with two or three in that great
congregation throughout all time the Church of the Living God.
They would rather go not to that mount which might not be touched,
of which we read in Hebrews 12, but they would rather be led
up unto Mount Zion, unto the city of the Living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem, an innumerable company of angels, to the General Assembly
and Church of the Firstborn, they'd rather be taken there
and hear Christ preach, Christ preach unto them, and preach
the message of righteousness for them in the great congregation
that's where they're brought that's where they're brought
and that's his message have you been brought there friends is
that the message you've heard is that the message you've heard
are you still seeking to bring about your own righteousness
or have you heard that you've got that now if you've been brought
to hear the righteousness of god in the gospel For as Paul
tells us in chapter 10 of Romans, with which we'll end, he tells
us that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to
everyone that believeth. The end of the law for Moses
described of the righteousness which is of the law, that the
man which doeth those things shall live by them. But the righteousness
which is of faith, speaketh on this wise. Say, not in thine
heart who shall ascend into heaven, that is, to bring Christ down
from above, or who shall descend into the deep, that is, to bring
up Christ again from the dead. But what say of it? The word
is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart. That is the
word of faith which we preach. That if thou shalt confess with
thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart
that God hath raised him from the dead, Thou shalt be saved,
for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with
the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Praise God. Amen.