Well, it's been five weeks since
I stood here to preach the gospel to you. I plan to preach to you
today, but the Lord prevented me having the opportunity to
make much preparation. And yesterday evening, I sat
down in the office and I believe God gave me something.
In these past five weeks, I've been on a physical mental, emotional,
spiritual rollercoaster of such depths and twists and turns as
I could never imagine. Someday when I can do so with
some composure, I'll try to tell you some of the things I've experienced. If it'll honor the Redeemer and
be of help to you. But all the time, there were
several portions of scripture that continually God was pleased
to bring to my mind and use to help me. And so for the next
few weeks, as I'm able to preach to you, I'm going to try to preach
to you from some of those portions of scripture. The 23rd Psalm,
of course, was just continually I would I'm trying to recite
it to myself, and here shall be quoting it with me. Romans, the eighth chapter. 2
Corinthians, the fifth chapter. And that passage Lindsay dealt
with just a little while ago. Psalm 121, let's read it again.
Before they ever came and took the tubes out, I was trying my
best to sing, and I could sing this almost as well as David
when I couldn't sing. And in my soul, continually,
this was my song. I will lift up mine eyes unto
the hills from whence cometh my help. And my help cometh from
the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy
foot to be moved. He that keepeth thee will not
slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper. The Lord
is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee
by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall possess thee from
all evil, or preserve thee from all evil. He shall preserve thy
soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going
out and thy coming in from this time forth and even forevermore. For the first time in my life,
I believe I understand something experimentally of the meaning
of those words of that poor soul in Mark 9 chapter 9 and verse
24 when he cried to the Lord Jesus, Lord, I believe, help
thou mine unbelief. As you know, I When I was coming
off of the medication, I was coming out of intensive care,
my liver and kidneys quit functioning and I had terrible, terrible
hallucinations. But in the midst of the hallucinations,
much that was very, very real. Let me tell you two things that
sweetly and powerfully sustained my soul. in the deepest and darkest
hours. They're two things that had been
pillars for my soul for over 40 years. And they are sweeter
and stronger today than ever. Here's the first turn to first
Corinthians chapter one. Oh, may God give you this. to
experience in your soul. The first sweet pillar of my
soul is the union of my soul with the Son of God. I am one with Christ my Savior
and always have been. Of Him, verse 30, 1 Corinthians
chapter 1, of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, in Him by the decree of
God, in Him by the sweet covenant of grace, in Him as my surety,
in Him as my substitute, in Him as my covenant head. in him as
the body is, or as the various members are in the body, one
with him, really and truly one with him. A union that cannot
be described or illustrated by anything under heaven, yet a
union more blessed than the union of a husband and wife, a union
more real than the union of this hand to this body and this body
to this head. A union that he describes as
being like his union with the Father. Really and truly one
with him. Of God are you in Christ. Who of God is made unto us wisdom. What on earth does that mean?
He says to his disciples, when men assault you and bring you
before the judges, don't even think about what you're going
to answer. I'll give you the words to speak. Well, that's
certainly included. Made of God and God's wisdom.
He speaks in Proverbs chapter 8 and describes himself as wisdom. The wisdom of God rejoicing in
us and rejoicing with us before ever the world was. Certainly
that's included. Wisdom. He is the revelation
of the wisdom of God. He is that one who is the word
of God. But particularly as it speaks
here of Christ being made to us wisdom, the Lord Jesus Christ
is that one who communicates God to us. He is that one who
makes it possible for man to know God, to speak with God and
to hear God speak to him. He is wisdom. I have, I don't
know how to illustrate what I'm trying to say, but I have a lot
of black friends and when I am around them, men particularly,
and we have a chance to talk in private, I ask them questions
that are pretty plain about racial things and strife between the
races and the attitude of black men toward white men and the
various things that cause such rough, hard feelings between
the races because I want to understand them. I want to understand what
it is that causes the difficulty. And you know what I've discovered?
I just can't. I just can't understand. It's
not possible for me to understand how a black man in our society
feels about various things. Whether his feelings are justified
or not justified, I can't understand. And there's a reason for that.
I ain't black. I can't walk in their shoes.
And I can't put myself in their shoes. I can't experience what
they've experienced. All I can do is ask them to help
me understand. And when they've done the best
they can, I still can't understand. So it is with God Almighty and
me, only by an infinite chasm until Christ steps in. He who volunteers to become a
man who is God Almighty and now God speaks to me. And he who is creator of heaven
and earth, he who is infinite, invisible, incomprehensible eternal
spirit God I know to be my father in heaven Christ then of God
of the father the son and the spirit Jesus Christ the mediator
the God-man is made unto us wisdom so that we can know God what
a privilege he is the word The Word by which God communicates
to us and we communicate to God. The Word by which God makes himself
known to us and by which we unburdened our souls to God Almighty. He's
made unto us wisdom and righteousness. What righteousness do you have?
What does God Require of Don Fortner. Righteousness. Perfect righteousness. A righteous
record. Yes, sir. But a righteous record
ain't enough. A righteous nature. Flesh and
blood cannot enter into the kingdom of God. I must stand before God
almighty in righteousness. And that righteousness is Jesus
Christ himself. He, by his obedience to God as
a man, fully obeyed all the requirements of God for my soul. And that's
my righteousness by which I am justified. And he came by his
spirit and breathed life into my soul.
It made me partaker of his own nature, putting a new nature
in me, a nature fit for God. For it is his own. It's called
the new birth. He's made of God and to me righteousness
and sanctification. Sanctification, that's just another
word for righteousness, yes. It's a word for holiness, yes.
But it's something else. It is that perfection and completion
that is ours in Christ Jesus. You are complete in Him. He who is the fullness of God
is the fullness of sanctification in us and for us. He is that
holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. I'm going to tell you something.
I'm going to tell you something. When you come face to face with
the reality of meeting God Almighty, you better have something you
can present to him that you know God will accept. Now you bring him your best feelings. And I promise you, you'll die
with hell in your soul, and hell will be your portion. You bring
him your best deeds, and I promise you, you will leave this world
with hell in your soul, and hell will be your portion forever.
You bring him your church membership, your Bible reading, your prayers,
your devotion, your sacrifices, and I promise you, hell will
be in your soul as you leave this world, and hell will be
your portion forever. Well, how on this earth then
can I think about meeting God face-to-face in judgment? Christ. Christ is all. He's all I have and all I need,
and bless God, He's all I want. I have, for good reason, looked
over these past few weeks with considerable thought of meeting
God almighty face to face. And I had done so with peace
when I didn't have any feeling in my soul. that I could look at and point
to and say, there's something good. When I didn't trust God for anything. So didn't you believe him? Yeah.
And crying Lord helped my unbelief. Didn't you believe this was God's
providence? Yes. And I cried, Lord, help
my unbelief. Didn't you believe God did this?
Yes. And I cried, Lord, help my unbelief. Did you believe Christ died for
you? Yes. And I cried, Lord, help my unbelief. Again and again and again. And in the teeth of my emptiness,
in the teeth of the empty barrenness of my soul, in the teeth of the
darkness spreading over me. Christ is my righteousness and
sanctification and bless God, my redemption. Redemption. As the word is used
here, it's used in the broadest possible sense. Like we would
use the word salvation, it refers to deliverance, the complete
deliverance of our souls. Deliverance by blood, deliverance
by grace, and ultimately, deliverance by resurrection. He is our wisdom, our righteousness,
our sanctification, and our redemption. Why is it that way? So that he
that glorieth must glory in the Lord. Christ and Don Fortner are one. When he lived on this earth,
I lived unto God in perfect righteousness. When he died being made sin for
me, I died under the wrath of God. And the Lord God Almighty
shoved his sword of justice into my soul until his justice was
satisfied. And he said, fury is not in me. And he who sits in heaven today
on the right hand of the majesty on high is Don Fortner in the
person of Jesus Christ the Lord. That's the first blessed pillar
of my soul. So there's nothing between my
soul and my savior, though now his sweet face may not be seen.
Nothing preventing his mercy. and favor. Jesus is mine. There's nothing between. Turn
with me to Romans chapter eight. Here's the second pillar of my
soul. The will of God. Oh, how sweet. How blessed. How good to fall confidently
back upon the will of God. One day at my very lowest, Shelby,
I guess, must have sensed it. She asked me a question. Whether
she meant it that or not, I don't know. But it pierced my heart
like a barbed arrow. She said, sweetheart, You're
not mad at God, are you? You're not mad at God, are you?
She asked it because I was acting like a man mad at God. When that dear faithful lady
asked that question, my heart broke within me and I replied,
as best I remember, oh my God, I hope not. But I
think I've learned the meaning of those words. Lord, I believe. Helped by an unbelief. She said, you know this is God's
will, don't you? And I replied, oh, yes. This
is our Father's will. Gracious, wise, and good. And this is that which sustains
me. Romans 8, 28. You can quote it, but read it
instead. We know, we know, not a matter of supposition,
not a matter of speculation, not a matter of theory. We know
that all things work together. All things work together. Now, you who have been around
me when I try to help on something that involved anything mechanical,
much prefer that I just step out of the way and let you take
care of it. I don't understand anything about mechanics. But
in a great piece of machinery, there are many cogs and wheels
and pins, and they all move together. to make the machinery perform
its work. And that is a good picture of
God's providence. One day years ago, I was out
here mowing the yard and moving along as fast as I could. It
was getting late. It was on Saturday, and I didn't want to be bothered
with it, but I had to get the yard mowed. And I was just moving
along in a rapid clip, and I hit a stump. And when I hit that
stump, That mower was carrying me just as fast as it was beforehand. And it never stopped. And I was
going down the hill just as fast as I was beforehand. And I turned
around and started back up the hill and realized there wasn't
any grass cut. I went over it with the mower.
The mower was running. I was sitting on the mower. But
there wasn't any grass cut. And the mower was still running.
But the blades wouldn't turn. And the only thing that happened
was there was a little bitty pin. that got sheared in the
process. And as far as the mower was concerned,
the purpose for which it was made, cutting grass, it was as
useless as a bucket without a bottom because of one little pin. Just that one thing missing.
Now listen to me. There's no such thing as a sheer
pin in the machinery of God's providence. There's nothing that's
going to break. and nothing that's going to interfere. All things work together in perfect
harmony for good. Nothing but good. Nothing but good to them that
love God. And I'll tell you who those are. They are those who are loved
of God. They've tasted that the Lord is gracious. They've experienced
his love in their souls. They know what it is to know
him who loved them and gave himself for them. All things work together
for good to them that love God, to them who are thee called,
called the sons of God and made to be the sons of God. And this
happens, all of it, according to his Oh, sweet pillar for my soul. God's purpose. Why the pain? Why the darkness? Why the heartache? Why the emotional and mental
and physical and spiritual Roller coaster, why had my soul plunged
to such depths and endure such twists and turns? Why, Lord,
do you hide your face? Why won't you speak? Why won't you hear my cry? His purpose, his purpose, wise,
gracious, and good. wise, gracious, and good. All that transpired these past few weeks were ordained
by our Heavenly Father before the worlds were made, and they
had been brought to pass by His hand deliberately. Oh, how strong
that pillar is for my weak soul. Our Father, Our God in heaven
is the almighty, all-wise, infinitely gracious God. The psalmist said
it over and over and over again, the Lord is good. God teach me that fresh every
day. The Lord is good. In his grace
and in his providence, the Lord God has given me And he daily
gives me, oh, if only I had eyes to see it, he has given me, and
he daily gives me countless tokens of his love, his infinite love
for my soul. How many ways he has said to
me, I have loved thee with an everlasting love. His love is immutable. Never rises higher or sinks lower
than perfection. He never repents of it. He never
withdraws it. He never turns from it. And my
times, as David said, are in thy hands. In the hands of God who is good,
who rules all things and disposes of all things according to his
perfect infinite love for my worthless soul. My times are
in his hands. Where else would you want them?
How foolish of me to imagine this day could be better. How
foolish of me to imagine this experience is evil. How foolish of me to imagine
that this time of trouble is not a time of blessedness. Whatever
my affliction, pain, or trouble may be, yesterday, today, or
tomorrow, it is a part of God's original eternal plan and purpose. Everything ordered, Everything
numbered, everything weighed and measured by His mercy, His
love and His grace. Nothing is the result of chance
or accident or fortuitous combination of circumstances. All is the
accomplishment of God's providence designed to answer some wise
and gracious end for my soul's good, his glory, and his cause
in this world. In a word, turn to Matthew 10, verse 30.
Let me show you something. In a word, this is what our Savior
says. Matthew 10, verse 30. The very hairs of your head are
all numbered. Before the world was. Before
ever God flung the stars into the skies. He numbered the hairs
on your head. He ordained the hairs of your
head for every day you live in this world. And no hair shall
fall from your head except your father ordained it. But Brother
Dot, that sounds like intimate, minute, tender, detailed care. That's exactly right. A mother
takes that newborn baby, I can see Shelby doing this with faith
right now, and counts those fingers and toes and kisses them. That's the picture. Before the
world was, our souls begotten of God in eternity in covenant
grace. He takes the hairs of our heads, and numbered. With tender, minute, detailed
care, he orders our lives. Notice what that means. My trouble and yours, my brother,
my sister. No matter how dark, no matter
how heavy, no matter how difficult, will not continue one moment
longer than our father sees fit, or one moment longer than is
needed to accomplish his purpose for us, in us, and with us. Our light affliction, which is
but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal
weight of glory. He who brings us into the dark
valley has promised to be with us, to sustain us and to uphold
us with the right hand of his righteousness and bring us through
it with no harm. The river shall not overflow
you. The flame shall not kindle upon
you. You shall not be burned. You
shall not be injured. And so I ask, as our Savior asked,
the cup which my Father, my Heavenly Father, hath given me, shall
I not drink it? Yes, I will. I will drink it. and the strength he gives and
rejoice in him, even in tribulation. I commit myself and the pains
of my body, my heart, my mind, and my soul, pains of my family, pains of
my friends to him, my God, whose purpose cannot be thwarted. whose plan cannot be altered,
whose will cannot be overturned, who worketh all things after
the counsel of his own will, my God, who, as the psalmist
stated, performeth all things for me. He performeth all things for
me. He who loved me and gave himself
for me has promised and he's proved it again and again and
again. My grace is sufficient for thee. And let me tell you what I've
discovered again. His grace is sufficient for me. Oh, may He
make you to know it, for Christ's sake. Amen.