Okay this evening we want to
take a journey and a good look at Psalm 84. Psalm 84. I'm taking the title or the message
from what is found in verse 11. Psalm 84 verse 11. The Lord THE LORD GOD IS A SUN AND A SHIELD. THE LORD WILL GIVE GRACE AND
GLORY. THOSE TWO WORDS, THE LORD WILL
GIVE GRACE AND GLORY. WE KNOW GRACE IS SOVEREIGN GRACE. WE KNOW MERCY IS SOVEREIGN MERCY. WE KNOW HIS LOVE IS SOVEREIGN
LOVE. JACOB HAVE I LOVED, ESAU HAVE
I HATED. THE LORD WILL GIVE GRACE AND
GLORY, AND HE WILL NOT WITHHOLD ANY GOOD THING. THE LORD IS GOOD. The Lord is
merciful. He must show mercy because that's
his character. The Lord will give grace and
glory. Truly it is so. The Lord God
Almighty gives grace now, daily grace. He said my grace is sufficient
for every trial. The Lord gives us sufficient
grace, covenant grace, redeeming grace, Saving grace, electing
grace, the Lord does give us grace. Of his fullness have we
all received grace. because of grace. That's the
only reason for grace. Grace certainly cannot be merited.
Talking about the sovereign pleasure of God to be gracious to whom
he will. In its sovereign grace, I will
have mercy, I will have grace upon whom I will. Grace and glory. Now, I found
this statement by a writer, a preacher years ago, and I thought it worthy
to repeat to you. Here's what he said, quote, grace
and glory are the same thing. Grace is glory in the seed. Glory is grace in full bloom. Glory begins in grace and grace
is completed in glory. Grace is glory begun and glory
is grace consummated. Grace is glory in the bud. Glory is grace in the full fruit,
full bloom. Grace is the lowest degree of
glory. Glory is the highest degree of
grace. Now, that's kind of a tongue twister for me to read, but there's
great truth there in what is said. Grace is the lowest degree
of glory, and glory is the highest degree of grace. When you find
one, you have the other. When you find grace, you have
glory. Noah found, first time that word
is ever used in the Bible, grace and it's used over 159 times
i found out today but the first time it's used you remember noah
found grace in the eyes of the lord GOD SAVED NOAH BY HIS GRACE,
AND GOD SAVES EVERY SINNER WHOM HE WISELY SAVES BY HIS GRACE. OF HIS FULLNESS, THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST, OF HIS FULLNESS WE ALL HAVE, ALL HIS PEOPLE HAVE GRACE
FOR GRACE. TWO GREAT MARVELOUS GIFTS WHICH
GOD BESTOWS UPON FALLEN SINFUL MEN. THINK ABOUT IT. GRACE AND
GLORY. GRACE AND GLORY. FIRST THING
HE GIVES IS GRACE AND THE LAST THING HE GIVES HIS PEOPLE IS
ETERNAL GLORY. GRACE AND GLORY BOTH ARE ONLY
REALIZED IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. FOR HE IS THE CAUSE, THE GIVER
OF GRACE, THE GIVER AND SUSTAINER, AND THE POWER OF GRACE AND GLORY
IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. NOW SOMEONE SAID THIS PSALM This
is one of the sweetest psalms to God's people. Psalm 23 is
the most well-known psalm. Psalm 51 is the most read psalm
when our hearts are convicted over sin. Psalm 103 is the most
joyful psalm. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and
all that is within me. Bless his holy name. This psalm
is the most sweet psalm of peace. FOR THIS PSALM IS THE EXPRESSION
AND DESIRE OF THE BELIEVER'S HEART BEFORE GOD THAT WE MAY
DWELL IN HIS PRESENCE ALL THE DAYS OF OUR LIFE. GRACE NOW AND
GLORY FOREVER. OUR DEAR FRIENDS WHO HAVE RECENTLY
PASSED AWAY, I'M THINKING ABOUT BROTHER MAYHAN You know, it's
almost been a year now since he passed away, almost May 29th,
last year. Where did that year go? Just
gone. And Brother Fortner just recently.
But both those men talked about grace and glory, grace and glory. And they'd often make this statement,
you really don't believe anything till you experience it. Well,
they experienced grace. and they to some degree experience
glory, but not like now. Not like right now. At the grave site of both Brother
Mahan and Brother Fortner, this scripture was read from Psalm
17, verse 15. Let me just read it to you. As
for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness, and I shall
be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness. I will behold thy
face in righteousness. That's what happens when a believer
dies, in the presence of the Lord, beholding his glorious
face. Now evidently David, as he writes
this psalm, was compelled or forced to be away from a place
of public assembly and worship with the Lord's people. His heart
yearned and craved to be in the presence of the Lord and to publicly
worship the Lord. Now this is not a trick question,
but listen to me carefully. Which is more important? Now
think in your mind. Which is more important, private
worship or public worship? WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT? BOTH
ARE IMPORTANT. BOTH ARE IMPORTANT. BUT PUBLIC
WORSHIP IS MOST IMPORTANT. PRIVATE WORSHIP IS IMPORTANT.
BUT PUBLIC WORSHIP IS MORE IMPORTANT. WE READ IN SCRIPTURE, I'LL GIVE
YOU SEVERAL REASONS WHY. HEBREWS 10 WE READ, FORSAKING
NOT THE ASSEMBLING OF OURSELVES TOGETHER. IT'S GOD'S COMMAND.
AND WE WERE PUT OUT OF THIS BUILDING BASICALLY FOR TWO MONTHS. COULDN'T
ASSEMBLE TOGETHER PUBLICLY, WHAT THEY CALL IN-PERSON SERVICE. BUT I SORELY MISSED BEING IN
THE HOUSE OF THE LORD PREACHING THE GOSPEL AND WORSHIPING WITH
YOU ALL. SO WE'RE NOT TO FORSAKE THE ASSEMBLING OF OURSELVES TOGETHER.
OUR LORD PROMISED, HE SAID, WHERE TWO OR THREE ARE GATHERED TOGETHER
IN MY NAME, I'm in the midst. And then in Revelation chapter
two, the Lord walks in the midst of seven golden candlesticks,
his churches. He dwells among his people where
two or three are gathered together. He said, I am with you. The Lord
is here with us right now. AND THAT'S A BLESSING TO BE IN
THE HOUSE OF THE LORD. HE SAID, LO, I'M WITH YOU ALWAYS.
NOW, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT VERSE 1. HOW LOVELY, BEAUTIFUL, WONDERFUL
ARE THE TABERNACLES OF THE LORD. NOW, WHEN DAVID WRITES THIS,
THERE IS NO TEMPLE CONSTRUCTED IN JERUSALEM, FOR SOLOMON LATER
BUILT A TEMPLE, SO THEY WERE STILL WORSHIPING AROUND THE TABERNACLE. Now, you remember the tabernacle
in the wilderness, who established it? ALL THE DIFFERENT THINGS
THAT ARE INVOLVED IN THAT TABERNACLE, THE OUTER COURT DEFENSE, ALL
THOSE THINGS, WE WENT THROUGH THAT. ALL THOSE THINGS ARE TYPICAL
OF WHAT? WHAT DO THEY PICTURE? THE LORD
JESUS CHRIST, OUR TABERNACLE. IT SAYS IN JOHN CHAPTER 1 VERSE
14, THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH, AND THAT WORD SAYS DWELT AMONG
US. YOU KNOW WHAT THAT WORD IS? LOOK
IT UP. HE TABERNACLED AMONG US. THE TABERNACLE OF OLD IN THE
WILDERNESS AND IN JERUSALEM IS WHERE GOD MET MEN AND WHERE MEN
MET GOD. MET GOD. HOW LOVELY, BEAUTIFUL
ARE THE TABERNACLES, O LORD OF A PEOPLE. HE'S THE LORD OF HOSTS. HIS PEOPLE IS A PEOPLE CHOSEN
BY HIS ELECTING LOVE AND ELECTING GREAT. AND HE IS LORD OF HIS
PEOPLE. HE IS LORD TO THE GLORY OF GOD
THE FATHER. VERSE 2, CHRIST THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
HE IS ALL TOGETHER LOVELY. LOOK AT VERSE 2, MY SOUL LONGETH,
YEA, EVEN FAINTH. I MEAN, HE WAS WEARY. HE DESIRED ABOVE FOOD AND DRINK. MY SOUL LONGETH, YEA, EVEN FAINTETH
FOR THE COURTS OF THE LORD, FOR THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD, TO
BE IN THE TABERNACLE OF THE LORD. MY HEART AND MY FLESH CRIETH
OUT FOR THE LIVING GOD." THAT REMINDED ME OF THIS VERSE, AND
YOU CAN TURN WITH ME. REMEMBER PSALM 42, PSALM 42,
AS THE HEART PANETH AFTER THE WATERBROOKS, VERSE 1, As the
heart, the deer, panteth after the waterbrook, so panteth my
soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, the
living God. when shall I come and appear
before God? That's the desire of the believer
to be in the presence of the Lord, in the house of the Lord
where the gospel is preached. God speaks to his people through
his word, through the preached word. Now this desire that we
have to be in the house of the Lord and to hear the gospel,
they've come by hearing and hearing by the word of the Lord. He said,
My soul and my heart and my flesh, they cry, the whole man, our
heart, our soul, our flesh cries out for the living God, the true
God. Now that's not a desire that
we have there naturally, is it? If you have a desire to worship
a true and living God, it's only because God put that desire in
your heart. Because a natural man drinks
iniquity like the water. The natural man loves darkness,
not light. If you have a desire to be in
the house of the Lord, where the gospel is preached, and to
worship a true and living God, it's only because God gave you
that in your heart. AND IN YOUR SOUL. YOU REMEMBER
IN PSALM 122, DAVID SAID, I WAS GLAD WHEN THEY SAID TO ME, LET
US GO TO THE HOUSE OF THE LORD. LET US GO INTO THE HOUSE OF THE
LORD. FOR A DAY IN THINE COURTS, VERSE
10, IS BETTER THAN A THOUSAND. I'D RATHER SIT, DAVID SAID, I'D
RATHER SIT IN THE DOORWAY, A DOOR KEEPER. AND ATTEND THE DOOR THAN
TO DWELL ANYWHERE ELSE." TO BE IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD WHERE
THE LORD IS, WHERE THE GOSPEL IS PREACHED, WHERE HIS PEOPLE
MEET TOGETHER? WHAT A PRIVILEGE WE HAVE AS BELIEVERS HERE TOGETHER. LOOK AT VERSE 3, DAVID WAS ENVIOUS
AND JEALOUS OF THE SPARROW AND THE SWALLOW OF THE BIRDS where she may lay her young,
they have a place, a house. TO ABIDE IN, TO ENJOY EVEN THINE
ALTARS, O LORD OF HOSTS, MY KING AND MY GOD. DAVID DESIRED LIKE
THAT BIRD. HE WAS JEALOUS OF THE BIRD WHO
WENT TO, THE BIRD WENT TO HIS HOUSE AND ENJOYED THE DWELLING
PLACE AND THE REFUGE AND THE FOOD AND THE WARMTH. DAVID HERE
IS OUT IN THE WILDERNESS AND HE DESIRES TO SEE AND TO BE WHERE
THE ALTARS OF THE LORD ARE. Now anytime you see that word
altars, what do you think of immediately? Christ is our altar. The altar sets the sacrifice
apart. Remember the Lord Jesus Christ
sacrificed his humanity on the altar, the altar of his deity. So we desire to see the gospel
WHERE THE GOSPEL IS PREACHED, CHRIST AND HIM CRUCIFIED, O LORD
OF HOSTS. HE'S MY KING. HE'S KING OF KINGS
AND HE'S LORD OF LORDS. DO YOU REMEMBER THE SIGN OVER
HIS CROSS? THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. HE CAME AS KING. HE WAS BORN KING. DO YOU REMEMBER
THEY SAID, WHERE'S HE THAT'S BORN KING? HE LIVED AS KING. WHAT MANNER OF MAN IS THIS THAT
EVEN THE WIND AND THE SEAS OBEY HIM? AND HE DIED AS KING. BEHOLD YOUR KING. HE ASCENDED
TO GLORY AS THE KING, AND HE REIGNS RIGHT NOW AS THE KING,
AND HE'S COMING AGAIN AS THE KING. AND WE CAN SAY AS BELIEVERS,
HE'S MY KING. HE'S MY GOD. HE'S MY LORD, MY
LIFE, AND MY SALVATION. HE'S ALL MINE. I DON'T KNOW WHAT
HE IS TO EVERYBODY ELSE. THEY'VE BEEN SAYING, BUT HE'S
MINE. I CLAIM HIM. I OWN HIM. I SUBMIT TO HIM. I BOW TO HIM. I LOVE HIM. I BELIEVE
HIM. I TRUST HIM. HE'S MINE. NOW,
VERSE 4, HE SAID, BLESSED, BLESSED, BLESSED. HE SAYS THAT, HE USES
THAT WORD SO MANY TIMES IN THE PSALM, DOESN'T HE? BLESSED, BLESSED,
BLESSED. BLESSED ARE THEY THAT DWELL IN
THY HOUSE. Now, let's turn to a couple of
Psalms. I'm thinking of Psalm 27. Turn over there, Psalm 27. Blessed is a man that dwells
in thy house. They will continue praising the
Lord when they come to the house of the Lord. Blessed are they
that continue and dwell in the house of the Lord, praising him.
Psalm 27. FOR ONE THING HAVE I DESIRED
OF THE LORD, AND THAT WILL I SEEK AFTER, THAT I MAY DWELL IN THE
HOUSE OF THE LORD ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE, TO BEHOLD THE BEAUTY OF THE LORD,
AND TO INQUIRE IN HIS TEMPLE. FOR IN A TIME OF TROUBLE HE SHALL
HIDE ME IN HIS PAVILION, IN THE SECRET OF HIS TABERNACLE, THERE
THAT TABERNACLE SHALL HE HIDE ME. HE SHALL SET ME UPON A ROCK. And we know that rock is Christ. That's the blessed man, the blessed
man. Look at Psalm 32. Blessed are they that dwell in
thy house. They will continue praising the
Lord. Psalm 32 verse one, you got it? Blessed is he whose transgression
is forgiven, whose sin is covered. BLESSED IS THE MAN UNTO WHOM
THE LORD IMPUTETH NOT INIQUITY, IN WHOSE SPIRIT THERE IS NO GUILE.
THAT'S THE BLESSED, BLESSED MAN. TURN OVER TO PSALM 65. THERE'S
MANY OF THESE WE COULD READ. LOOK AT PSALM 65. WHO IS THE
BLESSED MAN? I TELL YOU, NOT THE RICH AND
HEALTHY AND WEALTHY. THE MAN THAT TRUSTETH THE LORD,
HE'S THE BLESSED MAN. PSALM 65, FOR BLESSED IS THE
MAN WHOM THOU CHOOSEST AND CAUSES TO APPROACH UNTO THEE, THAT HE
MAY DWELL IN THY COURTS. THERE'S THE COURTS AND TABERNACLE
AGAIN. WE SHALL BE SATISFIED WITH THE GOODNESS OF THY HOUSE,
EVEN THY HOLY TEMPLE." OH, BLESSED IS THAT MAN WHOM GOD CHOOSES
AND CAUSES TO APPROACH UNDER HIS HOUSE, HIS TABERNACLE, HIS
COURT, HIS PRESENCE. SEE WHAT HE'S SAYING? LOOK BACK
TO THE TEXT. PSALM 84, VERSE 5, BLESSED IS
A MAN WHOSE STRENGTH IS IN THEE, IN WHOSE HEART ARE THE WAYS OF
THE LORD, OF THEM. AND I THOUGHT OF THIS, THERE'S
SEVERAL, BUT TURN AND LOOK AT PSALM 46, PSALM 46. GOD IS OUR
REFUGE, VERSE 1, PSALM 46, VERSE 1. GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH. very present help in trouble
Psalm 37 Psalm 37 39 Psalm 37 39 but the salvation of the righteous
is of the Lord he is their strength what's the strength of faith
not faith is it THE STRENGTH OF FAITH IS THE OBJECT OF FAITH.
THE OBJECT OF FAITH IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. THE STRENGTH OF
FAITH IS NOT IN FAITH. WHAT'S THE STRENGTH OF SALVATION?
SALVATION IS OF THE LORD. HE IS THEIR STRENGTH. HE IS THEIR STRENGTH. FROM ONE
DEGREE TO ANOTHER, HE IS THEIR STRENGTH. BLESSED IS THE MAN,
BACK TO THE TEXT. WHOSE STRENGTH IS IN THEE, IN
WHOSE HEART ARE THE WAYS OF GOD, THE WAYS OF GRACE. SALVATION IS A HEART WORK. GOD
GIVES US A NEW HEART. YOU HAT THEE QUICK UNTIL WE'RE
DEAD. LOOK AT VERSE 6, THE BLESSED MAN WHO SEEKS TO BE IN THE HOUSE
OF THE LORD, THE BLESSED MAN who's trusting the Lord, whose
heart is full of the way of grace. Verse six, even passing through
the valley of Baca. I don't know much about the valley
of Baca. I tried to read about it today,
but evidently the way of the valley of Baca is a wilderness. But he says here, those who trust
the Lord, whose strength is in thee, even when they're passing
through the valley of the shadow of death in the wilderness, the
Lord makes it a well of refreshing grace. The rain also filleth
the pools. The Lord Jesus Christ, he is
the wellspring of life. We need water. How desperately
do we need water? David buys my water for me and
puts it in my study, bottled water, and I drink, I keep bottled
water out here, in there, and on my desk. Water in my truck. Bottled water, I've got bottled
water everywhere. We have to have water. We can't
live without water. We can't live without Christ.
He is the water of life. Here's what he said, if any man
thirst, LET HIM COME UNTO ME AND DRINK. ALL YOU WHO ARE LABORING AND
HEAVY-LADEN, THE LORD SAID, COME UNTO ME AND REST. YOU SEE, IN
THIS VALLEY OF BACCHA, AND THAT'S WHERE WE LIVE. IN THIS LIFE,
OUR LORD SAID, THESE WORDS I'VE SPOKEN UNTO YOU THAT IN ME YOU
MIGHT HAVE PEACE. IN THIS WORLD, YOU'RE GOING TO
HAVE TRIBULATION. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TROUBLE. OVERCOME. HE MAKES HIMSELF A
WELLSPRING, REFRESHING LIFE. GRACE, MERCY IS LOVE. HIS MERCIES ARE NEW EVERY MORNING.
GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS. THY LOVE NEVER FAILS. IN THIS
VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH, CHRIST IS THE WATER OF LIFE.
AND WE FEED UPON HIM. LOOK AT VERSE 7, THEY GO FROM
STRENGTH TO STRENGTH. Because why we go from strength
to strength? Blessed is the man whose strength
is in thee. You see that? That's how we go
from strength to strength. That's how we, now I believe
what he's talking about here in verse seven is growing in
grace. We grow in grace and in the knowledge
of the Lord Jesus Christ. We grow in faith, we grow in
love, we grow in mercy, Every one of them in Zion appeareth
before God. We're accepted in the beloved.
Zion here is God's church. Every one of them in Christ,
Zion, that's the church. He's the head, we're the body.
Every one of them in Zion, in Christ, they appear before God. You see that? How do they appear? HOW DOES HE PRESENT US? FAULTLESS,
UNBLAMEABLE, UNREPROVABLE, HOLY IN HIS SIGHT. ALL THOSE IN ZION,
THOSE IN CHRIST, THEY APPEAR BEFORE GOD. HE PRESENTS US. IS
THAT GOOD NEWS? VERSE 8, VERSE 8, OH LORD GOD
OF HOSTS, THERE IT IS AGAIN. WHERE DO YOU GET THESE PEOPLE?
WHERE DO YOU GET THIS HOST OF PEOPLE? THOUSAND TIMES TEN, THOUSANDS
AND THOUSANDS, OUT OF EVERY KINDRED TRIBE, NATION, TONGUE, AND HEAVEN,
O LORD GOD OF HOSTS, WHERE DO YOU GET THESE PEOPLE? ALL THAT
THE FATHER HATH GIVEN TO ME, THEY'LL COME TO ME, AND THOSE
THAT COME TO ME, I WILL IN NO WISE CAST OUT. O LORD GOD OF
HOSTS, GOD OF THE PEOPLE, HEAR MY PRAYER. Give ear, O God of
Jacob." And then again, Selah. Think about that. He hears the
cry of his people. We're all sons of Jacob, spiritually
speaking. Believers are. O God of Jacob. Does he hear our prayer? Does
he hear the cry of our heart? Absolutely. Absolutely, he does. He knows our frame, he knows
that we're but dust, but he hears the cry. Look at verse nine,
behold, oh God, our God, he's our shield. Look upon the face of thine anointed.
DAVID WAS THE ANOINTED KING, BUT EVERY BELIEVER IN CHRIST,
WHAT'S HE MADE US INTO OUR GOD? KINGS AND PRIESTS. WE HAVE BEEN
ANOINTED OF GOD, ANOINTED OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. HE'S MADE US
NEW CREATURES IN CHRIST JESUS. BEHOLD, O GOD, OUR SHIELD. LOOK UPON THE FACE OF THINE ANOINTED.
HE USES THIS AGAIN DOWN IN VERSE 11. FOR THE LORD GOD IS SUN AND
SHIELD. He's our light and he's our defense. The Lord will give grace and
glory. No good thing will he withhold
from them that walk trusting the Lord. Behold, the Lord God
is our sun and our shield. Verse 10, a day in thy courts
is better than a thousand. I'd rather be a doorkeeper in
the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of the wicked. Christ
is our son, S-O-N and S-U-N. He's called in scripture the
son of righteousness with healing in his wings. Christ is our light
and he is our life. John 8, the Lord said, I'm the
light of the world. He that follows me shall not
walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. He said, I'm
come that they might have life and have it more abundantly. He is our abundant life. The
Lord Jesus Christ is not only our son, our light, he is our
shield, our shield, our shield. He's our defense. our hiding
place, our refuge from the storm. Where do we see this revealed?
In the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. God commanded the light
to shine in our hearts that we might see the glory of God shine
in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is our light and
life. Christ is our refuge. TRUST IN
HIM AT ALL TIMES, YOU PEOPLE. POUR OUT YOUR HEART BEFORE HIM.
REMEMBER PSALM 62? HE ONLY IS MY REFUGE. HE ONLY IS MY DEFENSE. THEREFORE, I... I... WHAT DOES THAT SAY? I SHALL NOT
BE MOVED. HE'S MY DEFENSE. THE LORD GOD
IS SUN AND SHIELD. NOW, HE WILL GIVE He will not
withhold from his people. He blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in the heavenlies in Christ, and they walk the walk
of faith, trusting him. The Lord will give grace. Grace is not merited. Grace is
given, given by the sovereign will of God. It is free grace,
eternal grace, and it's saving grace. GOD WHO SAVED US WITH HIS OWN
PURPOSE AND GRACE, GIVING US IN CHRIST JESUS BEFORE THE FOUNDATION
OF THE WORLD. AND PAUL WRITES IN ROMANS 11,
HE SAID, IF IT IS OF GRACE, NO MORE OF WORKS, RIGHT? CAN'T BE
BOTH. were justified freely by His
grace. Sovereign grace comes to us only
through and by the Lord Jesus Christ. We have grace only in
Him. You know the grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes
He became poor, that you through His poverty might be enriched
in His grace. THE LORD GIVES GRACE AND GLORY. YOU CANNOT HAVE GLORY WITHOUT
HIS SOVEREIGN GRACE. CAN YOU? THE TWO ARE INSEPARABLE. GOD HAS JOINED THEM TOGETHER.
AND WHAT GOD HAS JOINED TOGETHER LET NOT MAN PUT ASUNDER. IF WE
HAVE GRACE, YOU EVER NOTICE HOW MUCH THE WORD GRACE SOUNDS LIKE
THE WORD CHRIST? IT DOES TO ME. If we have Christ,
we shall have glory forever. God will not give one without
the other. Grace is the bud, glory is the
flower. Grace is the fountain, glory
is the river. Grace is the first fruit, glory
is the full harvest. If we have grace, Christ, we
shall never perish, we shall have glory forever. Glory forever. Those who do not have Christ,
those who do not have grace, will never have glory hereafter. Think about that now. It's not
possible for any to be glorified who have not first been justified. You cannot reign with Christ
in glory if Christ does not reign in you by grace. Grace and glory
are inseparable gifts of God. The Lord will give grace and
glory. Grace reigns through righteousness
unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. That one friend of mine who preaches
in this neighborhood, he said, you can't show me sovereign grace
in the Bible. I said, wait a minute. That's
all the Bible talks about is sovereign grace. Grace reigns
through righteousness. That's sovereign grace. Grace
reigns. But grace reigns through Christ.
He justifies us by his grace. Lastly and closing, verse 12.
Oh, Lord of hosts. He keeps saying that over and
over and over again. All that the Father has given
to me. Lord of hosts. Oh, Lord of hosts. LORD OF THE
PEOPLE, BLESSED IS THE MAN THAT TRUSTETH IN THEE. BLESSED IS
THAT MAN THAT TRUSTETH IN THEE. TURN TO PROVERBS. RIGHT AFTER
THE PSALMS IS PROVERBS. THIS IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE BEST
KNOWN VERSES IN PROVERB CHAPTER 3. BLESSED IS THAT SINNER THAT'S
GIVEN FAITH TO TRUST THE LORD. NO WONDER FAITH IS CALLED PRECIOUS.
PROVERBS 3, VERSE 5 AND 6. YOU'VE GOT THAT MARKED IN YOUR
BIBLE? TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL THINE
HEART. I QUOTE THIS TO MYSELF ALL THE
TIME. TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL THINE HEART, LEAN NOT UNTO
THINE OWN UNDERSTANDING, IN ALL THY WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE HIM, AND
HE'LL DIRECT THY PATH. JUST TAKE THAT AND LIVE BY IT. LIVE BY IT. BLESSED IS THE MAN
THAT TRUSTETH IN THEE. NOW, THERE'S A FLIP SIDE TO THAT,
ISN'T IT? THERE'S A FLIP SIDE TO THAT.
DON'T TURN, BUT LET ME REMIND YOU OF WHAT THIS SAYS OVER HERE
IN JEREMIAH 17. VERSE 7 SAYS, BLESSED IS THE
MAN THAT TRUSTETH IN THE LORD, WHOSE HOPE THE LORD IS. That's
the blessed man. But there's always two sides
to this. Thus saith the Lord, cursed be
the man that trusteth in man, that maketh flesh his arm, whose
heart departeth from the Lord. Now, I don't want to trust my
flesh because he said that's cursed. That's cursed. We are the true Israel which
worship God in the spirit, that rejoice in Christ Jesus and have
no confidence in the flesh. Not mine, not yours, not any. We look to the Lord. Saving faith
is always looking, looking, looking, looking, looking to the Lord
Jesus Christ. Remember? To whom? Coming, looking
unto him, believing, trusting him at all times, ye people. Pour out your heart before Him.
God is a refuge for us.