Direction for Seekers

Q: What does the Bible say about seeking the Lord?

The Bible encourages believers to continuously seek the Lord, as exemplified in Psalm 4 and the life of David. The act of seeking the Lord is a central theme in the Bible, highlighted in Psalm 4. The psalmist, David, serves as a model for this pursuit, showing a personal and continuous desire to commune with God. In seeking the Lord, believers are encouraged to turn to Him for guidance, comfort, and direction. This seeking is not merely a one-time action but a lifelong journey, embodying a relationship that flourishes through prayer, reflection, and attentiveness to God's Word. As seekers, believers acknowledge their dependence on God and their need for His righteousness, which is essential for acceptance before Him.

Q: How do we know God's righteousness is essential for acceptance?

God's righteousness is essential for acceptance because, apart from Christ, no one is righteous enough to stand before Him. The concept of God's righteousness is crucial in understanding our acceptance before Him. Psalm 4:1 reveals that David addresses God as 'the God of my righteousness,' indicating that our righteousness comes solely from God. As humans, we fall short of God's perfect standard, but Christ, who is referred to as 'the Lord our righteousness' (Jeremiah 23:6), fulfills this requirement on our behalf. This means that our acceptance with God is entirely based on Christ's righteousness, which is imputed to those who believe. Without this divine righteousness, we cannot approach a holy God, as He cannot associate with unrighteousness. Therefore, believing in Christ as our righteousness is foundational for our relationship with God.

Q: Why is standing in awe of God important for Christians?

Standing in awe of God fosters humility and reverence, essential attitudes for a faithful Christian life. Standing in awe before God is a vital posture for Christians, as outlined in the exhortation found in Psalm 4:4. This reverence is interlinked with humility, as it reminds believers of God's grandeur and their own smallness. In an era marked by over-familiarity with God, the call to recognize His holiness is a gracious reminder to cease from pride and arrogance. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). Standing in awe cultivates a genuine approach to worship and prayer, moving believers to seek God's will and guidance with a heart attuned to His majesty. This awareness of God’s holiness encourages a deeper relationship marked by respect and submission to His authority.

Q: What are the sacrifices of righteousness mentioned in the Bible?

The sacrifices of righteousness refer to offerings that are pleasing to God, ultimately centered on Christ's sacrifice. In Psalm 4:5, the concept of 'sacrifices of righteousness' signifies offerings that are accepted by God and aligned with His holiness. Historically, this includes the sacrifices described in the Old Testament, particularly those that prefigure Christ. Charles Spurgeon emphasized that these sacrifices relate directly to Jesus, our ultimate sacrifice. Abel's offering, the Passover lamb, and sacrifices made by the prophets all point forward to Christ's redemptive work on the cross. For believers today, offering sacrifices of righteousness means relying on Christ’s atonement and presenting oneself before God with a heart of faith. This not only involves offering prayers and worship but also living a life reflective of righteousness, as empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Q: How can we trust God during difficult times?

We can trust God during difficult times by relying on His faithfulness and promises as revealed in Scripture. Trusting God in challenging circumstances is an essential aspect of the believer's life. In the face of trials, believers are called to remember God's past mercies and rely on His unchanging nature. Psalm 4 emphasizes the idea that God hears the cries of His people, supporting the assurance that He will respond in their times of need. Jesus’ disciples exemplify this trust when Peter proclaims, 'to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life' (John 6:68). This demonstrates an understanding that, despite present troubles, God's character and His promises remain steadfast. By anchoring our faith in God's steadfastness and His sovereign control, believers can rest assured that He will provide peace and guidance, just as He did for David.

I hope that I can pass along
to you the blessings that I received in studying this psalm today
and preparing this message. I'm going to call the message,
Directions. Directions for Seekers. Seekers,
and that's what we are. We never cease to be seekers,
to whom coming as unto a living stone, looking, looking unto
Jesus, coming to Christ, seeking the Lord. Never cease to seek. And I'll tell you, it's so good,
this is the first thing I thought of when I opened my Bible this
morning to the book of Psalms chapter 4, I thought how good
it is to get my directions and counsel from one who truly knows
the way. I believe among any and all of
the Old Testament prophets and writers and men of great fame,
if I could choose And I say this carefully because there's some
illustrious prophets in the Old Testament, Moses, Abraham, Isaac,
Isaiah. But I really believe if there's
among any and all of them, I would choose to sit if I could make
a choice at the feet of David. There's something about David
that especially appeals to me. His compassion, his gentleness,
his kindness, his devotion, his loyalty, his faithfulness, all
of these things to the Lord God. If you were going to travel over
the Ivory Coast next week, you'd like to be with whom, Mr. Weimer? And if you were going to travel
over the Yucatan next week, you'd like to be with whom? Mr. Gruber. If you were going to
travel over Shappos, you'd like to be with Mr. Howard. England? Mr. Clark. If you're looking
for a good place to eat, you can go with Jerry Eskridge and
Ronnie Lewis. They know all the places to eat. so with him, Martin. All the
difference. Well, when I selected this psalm
to study tonight, I did so with full confidence that the author,
David, could give us directions in seeking the Lord. He not only has been there, he
lives there at the feet of the Master. And David would never
lead us astray nor cause our feet to wander in a difficult
area. God called him. He said, he's
a man after my heart, a man after my heart. I like what, reading
this also today when, when Samuel went down to anoint the king
in the house of Jesse. And Jesse brought all of his
sons before Samuel, thinking that beginning at the eldest,
that one of these boys would certainly be anointed king of
Israel. And I suppose Samuel thought
so also. And they began at the oldest
boy and went all the way through all of them. Every time they'd
come to one of those young men, the Lord would say, uh, this
is not my anointed. Samuel said several times when
he saw one of these boys, he said, surely the Lord's anointed
it before. This fella impresses me. But
finally he got through all seven and he asked Jesse, he said,
is this, is this all of the sons. He said, no, there's one more.
He's out taking care of the sheep. And Samuel said, we won't eat
till he joins us. And the scripture says when he
came, he came into the door, stood in the door, ruddy of a
good countenance, that God said, This is He. That's what He said. Those were the words. This is
He. And that's who's writing tonight.
This is He. A man after God's own heart.
A man who knew God, loved God, walked with God. And that's who
we're reading, whose writings we're reading tonight. So let's
look at verse 1. Just begin with verse 1. Before
David speaks to men, he speaks to God. He says before he gives us directions,
he gets them. That's a good idea, isn't it?
That would be a good idea for all of us. He says, Hear me when
I call, O God. Hear me when I call, the man
who would speak to men for God. must often speak to God for me. The man who would speak for God
to me must often, man who would speak to me and for God must
often speak to God for me. Got to spend time before Him. And I'll tell you, the more often
we're before Him, the less we tremble when we're before them. The more often we're before him
in his awesome, awful presence, then it's sort of a come down
to stand before them. It's not nearly so difficult. And then he says, Hear me when
I call, O God of my righteousness. This is what Tom was talking
about Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness, the holy
righteous God is under no obligation to hear any man, even David. And certainly if he does hear
any man, it'll be a righteous man, what he said. But it'll
be a man righteous in his righteousness, God of my righteousness. author
of my righteousness. I have none, you have none. And
I'll tell you, the older we get and the longer we're around the
Word of God and people, and in this world, the less righteous
we feel in ourselves. But he's the author of our righteousness. He's the provider of our righteousness. He's the maintainer of our righteousness. For He is my righteousness. Hear me when I call, O God of
my righteousness. I want to show you a couple of
scriptures in Jeremiah. First of all, in chapter 23.
Jeremiah chapter 23. Christ is my holiness. Christ is my sanctification. Christ is my righteousness. God can never look upon me or
receive me in any capacity apart from Christ, out of Christ. In Jeremiah chapter 23 it says
this, verse 5, Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I
raise unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign
and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. And in his days Judas shall be
saved, and Israel shall dwell safely, and this is his name,
whereby he shall be called the Lord our righteousness, the son
of David, the branch, the king, is the Lord our righteousness. Our holiness, our sanctification,
our acceptance with God is all in Christ. Now here's an interesting
thing in Jeremiah 33. Now in that passage there, the
Lord Jesus is called the Lord our righteousness. Now look at
Jeremiah 33. And those who are in him, redeemed
by him, washed in His blood, accepted in Him. That's their
name, too. In Jeremiah 33, verse 15, In
those days, and at that time will I cause the branch of righteousness
to grow up unto David, and he shall execute judgment and righteousness
in the land. And in those days shall Judah
be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely. And this is the
name wherewith she shall be called. Zion, the church, His people, the Lord our righteousness. That's what, that's our name
too. I know that's, go back to our
text in Psalm 4, I know that's just difficult for us to comprehend,
but if we could just realize that God being who He is and
what He is, He could not love us, nor be identified with us,
nor hear us, nor accept us, unless we're as holy as He is. He can't,
God can't come down. God can't go slumming like you
can, and be God. I can. One time in Chicago, I
went down to visit Skid Row. Some of you have been down that
street. I had to see what it was like.
Wouldn't want to go back, wouldn't want to live there, but I did
go. Well, God can't go where God where there's no holiness. He's got to be perfect. To be
accepted, it has to be perfect. And that's what you hear me when
I call, O God of my righteousness, my holiness. He is my holiness. All right, now watch this. And
this is what we're going to read in this next line. His plea,
His plea for mercies, present mercies is based on God's past
mercies. Now watch this. Thou hast enlarged
me when I was in distress. You took care of me when I was
in distress. You have freed me when I was
hemmed in. You had mercy upon me again and
again. You know, from the time that
they said David wrote this sometime in Absalom's Problem, or I don't
know when David wrote these psalms, I don't know a whole lot of people
that do. But what David is basing, he's basing his expectation for
present mercies on the Lord God's past mercies. That's what he's
saying here. You have enlarged me when I was
in distress. You know, if you trace the time
from that day when Samuel put that oil on David till he got
to be king, John, he went through some battles. I mean, he hid
in caves. He lived with the Philistines,
didn't he, for a while, with the enemies of God. He was hunted
from wilderness to wilderness. His life was threatened. He had to feign madness on one
occasion, and he said, Lord, you have enlarged me and blessed
me in the past. Now have mercy on me in the present
and hear my prayer. David bases his plea for present
mercies on the fact that God in past days has delivered He
has delivered him. He is delivering. He will deliver. You know, we studied Manoah's
wife. You know, when God, when the
angel of the Lord appeared to her, this was when Israel was
governed by judges. Judges. And God was going to
send one of the greatest judges of all, Samson. The country was
in bad shape. And God came to Manoah's wife
when she was out in the field. Told her that she'd have a son
It would be a great judge in Israel. She went home told her
husband and he said You go out there again. See if that angel
appear to you again, and I'm coming. I Want to hear what he's
got to say, so he went out there and the angel of the Lord appeared
again The angel of the Lord being the Lord And the angel of the Lord appeared
and repeated his promise that she would have a son, called
his name Samson. He'd deliver Israel. He'd be
the greatest judge of Israel. And his strength would be phenomenal.
All these promises. And then they were awed, you
know. They thought it was a messenger
from God. And so they asked the angel if
they could fix him something to eat. kill a lamb. He said no, offer a sacrifice
to the Lord. So Manoah and his wife built
an altar and kindled a fire and offered a kid. And when the smoke
went up to heaven from that sacrifice, the angel of the Lord got in
it and went up with the sacrifice.
And they knew that was God. That was the Lord. That was the
Lord. An angel of the Lord wouldn't
have fooled with that sacrifice. Just a regular angel wouldn't
have touched, he wouldn't have got, he wouldn't have, he would
have stood far off, but this angel of the Lord went in the
sacrifice and ascended to heaven. And the Noah said, we're going
to die. That's all there is to it, we're going to die. We've
seen the Lord, we're going to die. And that wise woman gave
three reasons why they weren't going to die. She based all of
it past performance. Listen to her. She said, we're
not going to die. If God intended to destroy us,
he would not have accepted the sacrifice. He would not have accepted the
sacrifice. If God intended to destroy you, he wouldn't have
sent Christ to die for you, and he wouldn't have accepted his
sacrifice. She said, secondly, if God intended to destroy us,
he would not have shown himself to us twice. He did. He appeared twice to her. Repeated
the same promise both times. She said, thirdly, if God intended
to destroy us, he would not have told us such wonderful things. And I'll tell you this. It's
what David is saying, Lord, hear me. Hear me when I call, O God
of my righteousness. And you have blessed me in the
past. So I have every reason to expect you'll bless me now,
because God doesn't change. His promises, if He intended,
if He intended to destroy you, He would never have given you
the promise of life. He would never have taught you
this gospel. He would never have brought you
to rest in it. He would never have given you
the appearance He appeared on the earth to put away our sin,
he appears in the presence of God for us, and to them who look
for him will he appear again, the angel of the Lord. All right,
verse 2, listen to David here. David addresses the sons of men
now. Oh, you sons of men, how long
will you turn my glory into shame? He's not talking to us now, the
believers. He's not talking to the children
of God, he's talking to the world. How long are you going to turn
my glory into shame? Oh, you sons of men, I have three
things to ask you. Number one, how long will you
turn my glory into shame? How long will you ridicule and
make fun of that in which I glory? What was David's glory? Well,
I thought as I looked at that, David says that the common man,
the son of Adam, the sons of men, They ridicule, make fun
of that in which I glory. What? Some scripture that would
give me a clue to David, that which David called his glory.
I'll tell you what it is. I'll tell you where I'm going.
Turn to 2 Samuel. This is a scripture that I'm
selecting. 2 Samuel chapter 6. Chapter 6, 2 Samuel. beginning
with verse 15. David became king. One of the
first acts of David was to go down and get the ark, the mercy
seat, and restore worship to Israel. Restore the atonement
and the sacrifice, the priesthood and the ark of the covenant with
its mercy seat and Shekinah glory. He went down and got it. And
it says here in 2 Samuel 6 verse 15, So David and all the house
of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord, with shouting, with
a shout sound of the trumpet. And as the ark of the Lord came
into the city of David, Michael, Saul's daughter, now David was
married to her. She was his wife, first wife,
Saul's daughter. She was a rebel. And she saw David leaping and
dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart.
David, the king now. I wish there's some way we could
even imagine the glory of this man David when he was king of
Israel. He's king of Israel. He's the sovereign. He's the
king over all the nation, over all the people. He was held in
the highest esteem. David wasn't a figurehead like
Her Majesty Elizabeth. David was king, K-I-N-G, king. There was only one king higher
than David, and that's king of kings. And when he brought the ark into
Jerusalem, David, the king, took off his clothes and put a little
old linen epa somewhere over him. His crown was laid aside,
all of his recognition as king was laid aside, and he put on
that linen cloth and got out there and danced in front of
that ark. That would have been the place
of a slave, wouldn't it, to dance out there in front of the ark
as it came in? And here's the king, and when
his wife looked out the window of the palace and saw them in
that processional coming into the city, and Lord, I bet she
cleaned her glasses. The king! Half-naked is dancing in front
of their eyes. Like a slave. You know, I've seen a lot of
men become prominent, become wealthy, and you know who gets
proud and arrogant? His wife, not him. He goes around
dressed like some old codger, you know, and you can't even
speak to her, you know. She gets real hoity-toity, you
know. But here's David's wife, you know. Because he knew God
didn't mean she did. The Lord preached a good sermon
one time with three words, remember Lot's wife. She was the wife of a man who
knew God, she didn't know him. She was the wife of a man who
was called righteous, she wasn't righteous. She shared in his
Tidings when God sent the angel to him. He sent the angel to
her told to get out of Out of Sodom didn't she heard what he
heard and She started where he started, but she didn't make
it because her heart wasn't right with God It doesn't matter what
your husband is that doesn't make you the same thing by any
stretch of the imagination dear lady and vice versa So here this
woman was looking out the window, and she saw David in front of
the ark, and she despised him. All right. So verse 20 of 2 Samuel
6, so David returned to bless his household. And Michael, the
daughter of Saul, came out to meet David and said, oh, listen
to the sarcasm drip from this. How glorious was the king of
Israel today. who uncovered himself today in
the eyes of the handmaids of his servants." What did David
care what the handmaids thought of him? He was before the Lord. What on earth did he care? She
cared, but he didn't care. As one of the vain fellows shamelessly
uncovered himself, and David said unto Michael, it was before
the Lord. which chose me before your father,
and before all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people
of Israel. It was before God. Therefore
will I plead before the Lord, and I'll yet be more vile than
thus, and I'll be base in my own sight, in order to honor my God." I'm
coming down further than this, I'm coming down as far as I can
come, as low as I can go, for his glory. That's David's glory. The glory of his Lord, the honor
of his Lord, the praise of his Lord, the majesty of his Lord,
the exaltation of his Lord. And David knows he's got no part
in that. So he'll come way on down, Richard,
way on down, way on down. You can expect a whole lot more
of this, he said, instead of less. Because before the Lord,
I lay on my face in the dust. And of the maidservants which
thou hast spoken of, of them shall I be had in honor." They
got more sense than you have, he said. They'll honor me. They'll honor me. And from that
day, Michael had no child until the day of her death. That's David's glory. The glory
of his God. The glory of his God. That's
the reason one day he went and sat before the Lord. He just
went and sat down. When he thought of the mercies
of God, he just went and sat down and said, Lord, who am I? I mean, this was after all the
victories and after all of the trophies and after all that he'd
done in Israel Elevate that nation to its prominence and power and
he wasn't just sat before the Lord. He said who am I? And what
is my people that you should show mercy to us? I Tell you
don't ever let the amazing go out of grace Don't ever not tell asked me
if I expected to see John Wesley in heaven Let me tell you something
The most amazing thing in this universe, in heaven, will be
to find myself there. I ain't worried about John Wesley. And the very fact that he should
close a question like that, he's intimating that I'm confident
I'll be there. If I have any confidence of a
place in heaven, it's Christ, and not anything in me, of me,
or through me, or by me, it's Christ. And you too. I hope to see some of you there.
But let's don't get presumptuous. That's the most dangerous presumption
you can deal with. I never cease to be amazed at
God's mercy on this congregation and this preacher. Why should
He love me so? Why? Why should He bless? Look
around you. Why should He bless us? Why?
Why? Who am I? Who are you? Let's
come down. God, I tell you, we need to get
down there and stay, don't we? And find a little lower shelf,
a little lower place. All right, let's read on. I've
got to move on. He said, how long? How long are
you going to turn my glory into shame? And how long are you going
to love vanity? You sons of men, how long? The
sons of men not only despise and degrade the glory of God,
but they love the vanity of this world. The glory of God doesn't
appeal to them, but the vanity of this world does. That's what
shout King David said. Vanity! Vanity! Solomon said,
it's all vanity! And yet the world loves it. They
glory in it. Vanity and vexation of spirit. How long? Oh, John wrote, if
any man loves this world, the love of God is not in him. And
he says as he goes on, how long are you going to seek out the
leasing? The word leasing is lying. Oh my. John Fleming, I was talking the
other day about the kind of preaching going on today in the name of
religion. And the sad thing is not just
The lies that preachers are telling and the false religion they're
promoting, but the people like to have it so. That's what's
sounding. They turn away their ears from
the truth. They heap to themselves teachers
having itching ears. They love error. They love it. They love lying. That's what
he said. They seek after it. Seek after it. Seek after lies. Lying prophets and lying preachers,
and folks just follow them in droves and droves and droves. Folks love it. Our Lord Jesus Christ said, I
come in my Father's name and you won't receive me. He said,
let another come in his own name, and him you will receive. Isn't
that something? But listen, but know that the
Lord, you know this, that the Lord has set apart him that is
godly for himself. What's that saying? It's saying
this. The Lord has set apart, sanctified
a people for himself. In every age, in every generation,
in spite of all of the multitudes that follow after lies and leasing
and vanity, there's going to be those who follow after him.
Know that. He said, but know that. A people whom he hath loved from
all eternity. A people whom he hath chosen
in Christ from all eternity. a people whom he hath justified
in his Son, a people whom he hath called by his Spirit, a
people whom he hath accepted in the Beloved, a people whom
he hath raised up and made them sit together with Christ. You know this. He has a people. The foundation of God standeth
sure, having this seal." What is the rest of that? The foundation
of God standeth sure, having this seal. What seal? The Lord knoweth them that are
His. That's what he says. You know
this. He set apart the righteous, the godly. He set them apart
for himself. They're peculiar people. They're
special people. They're a holy nation. They're
a royal priesthood. They're a chosen generation.
They're his sheep. He set them apart. Set them apart! Apart from the rest of this world.
Apart from this gang that loves lying, and loves vanity and vexation
of spirit, and turns his glory into shame, and ridicules that
which is precious to his people, he sent himself a people apart
from every one of them. That's right. And he says this, and the Lord
will hear when they call. He's going to hear them too.
He's going to hear them. He's going to hear them. They'll never call in vain. He's
going to hear them. Well, here comes those directions.
Would you be among those people whom he had set apart? Would
you and I be among those people whom he calls, justifies, would
you and I be among those people whom he said, I'll hear? Those who will sit down with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, would I? Well, he gives us five directions,
beginning verse four. Number one, stand in awe and
sin not. Stand in awe and sin not. What's
that mean? It means this. Stand in awe before
the awesome, sovereign, holy God. And cease from the sin of
pride and arrogance and haughtiness before God. Stand in awe and
sin not. And the sin there is the sin
of pride, which God hates above all things. Stand in awe. Would you be among
those whom he will hear? Stand in awe. And cease from that sin of pride. God resisteth the proud. He gives grace to the humble.
I'll show you a man after God's own heart. There he is, dancing
in front of the heart. There he is. Position means nothing to him,
where God's concerned. Human glory means nothing to
him, where God's concerned. Prominence and power mean nothing
to him, where God's concerned. There he is, no pride, no pride,
no standing in awe. God hates a proud look, pride
grows before destruction and a haughty spirit before the fall.
I tell you, the thing that is, and I hope
you can hear what I'm about to say, the thing that's most distressing
about our generation of religious people is this over-familiarity
with God. Isn't that it, gentlemen? You've
lived plenty of years and watched religion deteriorate, and the
most awful, the most awful characteristic of this generation
is this over-familiarity with God. When a man comes up to you and
says, God told me something, Shut your ears. God didn't tell him anything. Over familiar, I mean orthodox
and unorthodox people. Be still, oh my, we're going
to see that in a minute. Stand in awe and sin not. And then he says, secondly, commune
with your own heart upon your bed. Commune with your own heart
on your bed. Go to the quiet place. Do you
have a quiet place? I tell you, everybody ought to
have a quiet place. Now, we really ought. Ought to
have a quiet place. Get away from others. Get away
from the voices of men. Get away from your dearest friend.
Get away from your closest loved one. Get away from everybody.
Commune with your own heart on your bed. Open your heart to God. God said,
Come, let us reason together. Though your sins be a scarlet,
I'll make them as white as snow. Tell Him! Talk to Him. Open your heart to Him. You see, when you When we commune
with our own hearts upon our beds in our quiet place between
us and God, we're not quite so formal. We're not quite so organized. And we can get pretty plain.
Like Jonah, some of those others, Lord, why are you letting this
happen to me? I don't mean to be a rebellious
son, but I don't like what you're doing. Can you talk that way
to God? Elijah did. Some of the rest of them did. Just talk plain. Talk plain. But you gotta do it alone to
do that. You can't, you can't talk to God in front of very
many people and really talk to God. And then he said the third thing,
he said be still. Lord, we lie before thy feet. Look on all our deep distress.
Thy rich mercy may we meet. Close us with thy righteousness.
Stretch forth your mighty hand. Hold me up and help me stand."
That's the way we talk. And then third, he said, be still.
You know, these are strange words today in religion, be still.
I watched that television, Christian television, There ain't nobody
ever still. I mean, that's a, those are strange
words. Be still. Be quiet. Wait on the Lord. Mike sang last
Sunday, be still and know that I'm God. Be still and know. Be still and know. Let Moses say to them at the
Red Sea, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Let me show you another scripture
over here in 2 Chronicles that I read over again, and we ought
to read it over and over and over again, I reckon. 2 Chronicles
chapter 20. Be still. That's hard to do,
isn't it? Be still. Give me something to
do. I'll give you something to do,
but be still. You ever tell one of your children,
be still! You know, you're trying to dress
them or trying to feed them or something. Like a boy on a dog's
nose, Barnard used to say, you know, he always wiggled, just
be still. He said in 2 Chronicles 20, listen
to this, verse 15. He said, Harken ye, all Judah,
and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat. Thus
saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid, nor dismayed by reason
of this great multitude. The battle is not yours, it's
God's. Not your battle. It's not your
battle. I wish I could get that through
my head. People upset me. It's not my
battle. It's His. It's His. Have we learned that? It's not
mine. Listen, go on. Tomorrow, go you
down against them. Behold, they come up by the cleft
of Zeus, and you shall find them at the end of the brook, before
the wilderness of Jerusalem. You will not need to fight in
this battle. You set yourselves and stand you still and see the
salvation of the Lord with you. O Judah, Jerusalem, fear not,
nor be dismayed. Tomorrow they'll go out against
them. He'll be with you. But you're going to have to learn
to be still. I am too. And I'm not preaching
down to you. You know better than that, don't
you? I'm talking to us. The reason I can get up All up
in there about this because I've already tried it on. I've already
preached this to me and I'm giving it to you, same way I got it.
Be still. Be still. Modern religion, that just goes
against everything that modern religion advocates. You don't
ever want people to be still and be quiet. But that's what
the Bible says over and over again. Let every mouth be stopped,
be still. The Lord's in his holy temple,
let all the earth keep silence. And then fourthly, here you are,
here's directions for seekers. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness. Charles Spurgeon said, the sacrifices
of righteousness can only be those sacrifices which set forth
the Lord our righteousness. Abel offered the sacrifice of
righteousness. Christ. The Passover, Moses and
them slew, put the blood on the door, sacrifice of righteousness. Abraham offered up there on the
mountain the sacrifice of righteousness. And when we come before our Lord,
that's our offering, the sacrifice of righteousness, the one he
made on Calvary's cross. We plead it, we rest in it, we
believe him, and from him comes all we need. That's the sacrifice of righteousness.
And then the last direction, put your trust in the Lord. Put
your trust in the Lord. I ask this question, where else
would you put it? Tom read, don't trust the sons
of men, princes and kings. Peter said, to whom shall we
go? Don't you know, all this big crowd was there, and our
Lord preached to them, and offended them, offended them, talking
about His sovereignty, and Him being the bread of life, and
all these things. And they began to walk off, thousands
of them began to walk off. Finally, there stood these fishermen,
and fellows He'd called from the different walks of life,
and they looked at Him, looked at all those people leaving,
They thought he was going to be a king. Even though they said
that on the road to Emmaus, they said, we thought he was the one
who would restore the glory of Israel. And they were excited
when that big crowd was there. Boy, he'd fed, there was 5,000,
I count the women and children. And they were pretty excited.
They said, we can take on hell right now. We got 5,000 right
here, you know. And then they stood there and
watched him leave. Watched them leave, and Christ
must have detected in them a disappointment. As they watched all those people
leave, and leave Him standing there, no one but them. And He
said, would you also go away? And Peter said, to whom shall
we go? We may not like what we're seeing, but there's nowhere else
to go. You have the words of life. We don't understand everything
you're saying. We can't delve into the mysteries
of your kingdom and your glory, but we do know this. You've got
the words of life. And when I don't understand,
I'll believe. So, you can trust him, though. You can trust his
promise. Hath he purpose, and shall he not do it? You can trust
his word. The Lord's not a man that he
should lie. You can trust his beloved son. You can trust him. What does he say? Put your trust
in him. The hymn writer said, let me
trust thee evermore, every moment on thee call. For new life, new
will, new power, let me trust thee, Lord, for all. Lord, increase,
increase my faith and make me faithful unto death. Verse 6, that's the five instructions. All right, verse 6. There many
would say, who will show us good? The word any is not in the text. Who will show us good? We'd rather
see it than believe it. Show it. Show me. Give me a sign. Show me good. Spurgeon said most men want good. They hate evil only because of
the results. They hate evil for evil's sake,
not for God's sake. They hate evil because of the
results of evil. Evil brings them pain. Evil brings
them shame. Evil brings them suffering. Evil
brings them death. That's why they hate evil. They
want to find a utopia of good. And it's not to be. Not on this
earth. They organized the League of
Nations in 1918 to put an end to war. They didn't do it. They
organized the United Nations in World War II to put an end
to war. They didn't. They keep organizing, keep...
The President keeps talking about peace in our time. That's a joke.
That's what these people are. Many of them say, show us good.
Show us good. Here is good right here. Lord,
lift up. Lift our up. the light of thy
countenance upon us. That's good. That's good. Look on us with favor. Lift up the light of your countenance
and your smile of acceptance and look on us. That's good. The world can't bring you any
good. world peace or socialism or security or health care. If we can get health care and
get social security and all these other things, we can just have
good, can't we? No, there'd be another problem.
But I'll tell you good. Lift up, lift thou up the light
of thy countenance on us. That's the good. Let me show
you a scripture. Psalm 80, I know I'm keeping
you too long, but turn over here to Psalm 80 a minute. This is
good. Lift up the light of your countenance
upon us. That's the good we seek. Psalm
80, verse 3. Turn us again, O God, and cause
thy face to shine, and we'll be saved. Verse 7. turn us again, O God of hosts,
and cause thy face to shine, and we'll be saved." Verse 19,
turn us again, O God of hosts, cause thy face to shine, and
we'll be saved. That's good. Lord, lift up the light of your
countenance on us. That's our good. And then verse 7, As a result
of that, two things. The Irish put gladness in my
heart. More than in the time that their
corn and their wine increased. Gladness in the heart is better
than corn in the barn. Gladness in the heart is better
than wine in the vat. Gladness in the heart is better
than all of the increase of so-called good and utopias in this world.
Lift up your countenance, the light of your face, and let it
shine on us. And that's all I need. That's all I need. And put, you
have put gladness in my heart more and better than corn in
the barn or wine in the bath. Therefore I will both lay me
down in peace and sleep, for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell
in safety." Who wrote this? Old Solomon slept with armed
guards around his bed. Did you know that? King Solomon slept with armed
guards with swords and spears and all these things around his
bed. His daddy slept out there in
a cave on the ground with the most powerful king in
the world hunting him down like an animal. And enemies, Philistines,
Amorites, Hittites, and all the rest of them all around him.
And he lay out there on the ground, slept like a baby. Why? Because God lifted up the light
of his countenance upon him. And said, I'll be with you, and
nobody will do you any harm. Never touch you. I'll protect
you. That's what he's talking about
here. People talk about, show us good. Never see it in this world. But
I'll tell you, if he lifts up the light of his countenance
upon you and me, then he'll put gladness in my heart better than
money in the bank and corn in the barn and wine in the vat.
And I can lie down at night, two things. My son, Paul, asked me a question. I don't mean to start a controversy. He asked me a question. He says,
for me to carry a pistol asleep with one under my pillow, is
that lack of faith? I said, yes, sir. Yes, sir. God reigns, and God rules. And you can sleep with an armed
guard around your bed, but David slept in a cave, because God
chased him about. That's right. Show me good. Okay, I'll show
it to you. For Him, lift up the light of
His countenance on you. That's your good. That's all
I need. Whatever happens, for His glory in my good. Isn't it? Alright, let's bow for prayer.
Father, bless Your Word tonight. Make it a special blessing to
all of us. We need a blessing. We need encouragement. We need instructions. We need
to be rebuked. We need, O Lord, for you to teach
us, correct us. Show us thy way and give us the
will and strength to walk therein. Help us to be still, to be quiet,
to know that Thou art God, to wait upon Thee, to lean not on
our own understanding, but to lean upon the strength of our
God, to find in Christ all I need, all I need. Now bless the Word. Use it for Your glory. For Christ's
sake I pray, Amen.

Direction for Seekers

What does the Bible say about seeking the Lord?

How do we know God's righteousness is essential for acceptance?

Why is standing in awe of God important for Christians?

What are the sacrifices of righteousness mentioned in the Bible?

How can we trust God during difficult times?

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Direction for Seekers

What does the Bible say about seeking the Lord?

How do we know God's righteousness is essential for acceptance?

Why is standing in awe of God important for Christians?

What are the sacrifices of righteousness mentioned in the Bible?

How can we trust God during difficult times?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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