Believers Most Valuable Lesson

Q: What does the Bible say about trusting God during trials?

The Bible teaches that we should wait on and trust God in all circumstances, as our expectation comes solely from Him. In Psalm 62:5, we are encouraged to wait on the Lord and hope in Him alone. This lesson is pivotal for believers as it establishes a foundation of faith that is unwavering, irrespective of the trials we face. Waiting silently before God signifies a deep trust, acknowledging that He alone is our rock and salvation (Psalm 62:2). Believers often struggle with divided confidence, trusting both God and man; however, true faith rests solely on God's promises, awaiting His deliverance and timing.

Q: Why is waiting on the Lord important for Christians?

Waiting on the Lord is crucial for Christians as it cultivates trust and assurance in God's sovereignty and timing. The act of waiting on the Lord illustrates a believer's faith and dependence on God rather than on their own plans or abilities. In Psalm 62, David emphasizes that our souls should wait quietly for God, recognizing that our salvation and defense come from Him alone. This waiting is not passivity; it is an active trust that God will act in His perfect timing. By learning to wait, believers experience peace and assurance, knowing that God is in control of their circumstances and will ultimately fulfill His promises.

Q: How do we know that God is our only salvation?

The Bible asserts that God alone is our rock and salvation, emphasizing that His grace and power provide our deliverance. David's declaration in Psalm 62 that 'He only is my rock and my salvation' highlights the exclusivity of God's role in our salvation. This underscores the belief that salvation is entirely of the Lord—rooted in His mercy and grace rather than in human effort. Throughout Scripture, it is clear that no one else, be it men or worldly things, can provide true deliverance. The believer finds security and hope solely in God, who has purposed our salvation from eternity past, ensuring that it is a complete and finalized work through Christ.

Q: What does it mean to pour out your heart to God?

Pouring out your heart to God means being honest and open about your emotions, desires, and struggles in prayer. In Psalm 62, believers are encouraged to pour out their hearts before God, symbolizing complete transparency and trust in His character. This act of pouring out is not just about vocalizing needs but involves laying bare one's innermost thoughts and feelings before the Lord, recognizing Him as a refuge. When we approach God honestly, we engage in true communion with Him, fostering deeper reliance on His mercy and grace. This practice reflects a heart that seeks to surrender all, trusting that God cares for us and knows our needs better than we do.

Q: How can we maintain hope in difficult times?

Maintaining hope in difficult times involves steadfastly trusting in God's faithfulness and waiting patiently for Him. Hope in times of difficulty is anchored in the assurance that God is in control and works all things for good. Psalm 27 encourages us to wait on the Lord and be of good courage, assuring us that He will strengthen our hearts. This hope is not based on current circumstances but on God's steadfast character and promises. By resting in His sovereignty and waiting for His deliverance, believers are reminded that their trials are temporary and God’s faithfulness is eternal. Cultivating this hope through prayer, Scripture, and community can sustain believers through even the darkest valleys.

Now, I've entitled this message
tonight, The Believer's Most Valuable Lesson. The Believer's
Most Valuable Lesson. I promise you this, that I and
you will never be the same if we can learn this twofold lesson. Learn it not in our heads, but
in our hearts. Learn it not doctrinally, but
experimentally. You can never be the same. You
say that's a tall order. Not when you find out what it
is we're studying. It's the most important lesson
that any believer can learn. In it is the key to assurance,
the key to joy, the key to peace. I'm talking to believers now.
It's a two-fold lesson. You'll find it summed up in verse
5, Psalm 62. Two words, wait and hope. My soul, wait thou only upon
God, if I can learn to wait on the Lord. And secondly, for my
expectation is from Him, to hope, to trust only in the Lord. Those are the two lessons. You
say, I've learned those. Have you now really? Have we
learned to wait upon the Lord, to sincerely, silently wait on
God? And secondly, to trust only,
wait only on the Lord, trust only in the Lord. I haven't. And here's the reason. The heart
of man is so prone to divide its confidence and its expectations
between God and the creature. We divide. We have confidence
in the Lord. It's a divided confidence. We
have expectation and hope and trust. It's a divided hope, though. We divide it between God and
the creature, and this will never do. We must wait only on the
Lord. That's what David says. Wait
thou only upon the Lord. And we must trust and hope only
in the Lord. He must be our only rock. He must be our only salvation. Notice how many times the word
only is used. David just used it over and over
again. Actually, some of the old writers say that that the
word surely down here is the word only, the word truly is
the word only, and he says to you six times in this scripture,
I don't know, but here it is in verse two, he only is my rock
and my salvation. Verse five, my soul wait thou
only upon God. Verse six, he only is my rock,
only. We're tempted to look to the
arm of flesh and if that fails, Isn't this true? Then we look
to God. Huh? We're tempted to look first of
all to the arm of flesh, to see if we can do it, or someone can
do it for us, and if this fails, if we fail and they fail, then
we lean upon the Lord. This will not do. He must not
only be our first source, but our only source. of expectation,
of hope, of trust. Now let's look at these verses
and see if we can learn this weight and hope. Weight only
on the Lord, hope only in the Lord. First of all, in verse
1, David said, truly, sincerely, without wavering, without hypocrisy. Sincerely. I'm not a hypocrite,
he said. Sincerely, my soul waiteth upon God. This is true faith.
Spurgeon says that faith, which rests partly on God and partly
on the creature, is really not true faith. It is only true faith that can
say sincerely, truly, my soul waiteth upon God, from him cometh
my salvation." My soul waits for what? Waits for his good
pleasure, waits for his own time, to fulfill his promises, to answer
my prayer, to deliver me from trial, or to use me for his glory
in whatever way it pleases him. My soul waits on the Lord. Can
we truly say that? Truly, sincerely. Without hypocrisy
and without wavering, my soul waits on God. Now if you'll notice
there before the word waiteth, there's a little number in most
Bibles. Truly my soul waiteth. There's
a little number there that refers you to the center reference.
Do you have that little number on your Bible or a little A or
B or 2 or something? And in the center reference,
and usually this is pretty accurate, Here's what it's really saying,
and I look this up, and this is what the original, according
to some of the writers, I don't read in the original language,
but this is, you can find it if you want to. My soul waits
in silence upon the Lord. My soul waits silently before
the Lord. Now this is what he's saying.
You know, the natural mind is prone to reason. But the faith
doesn't reason with God, faith believes God. There's a difference. The natural mind is prone to
reason, but faith doesn't reason because faith realizes that God
doesn't always give a reason for what he does. Faith believes
God. For example, Paul, if God's going
to deliver all of the people on board that ship, why sink
the ship? Why sink the ship? That's the way the natural mind
would reason, but faith doesn't reason. Faith believes. Faith
is silent. The natural mind is prone to
talk it over, especially with other men. Talk it over with
other men. The faith prays to God. The natural
mind is prone to plan, to lay out some plans for my present
and for my future. Faith doesn't plan. Faith waits
silently. Truly my soul waits in silence
upon God. Silently subject to God, one
man said. Subject to God as a creature
to the Creator. Do with me what he will. Silently
subject to God as a disciple is subject to his master as a
private to a general. Private so and so. You go over
here to the right flank. Station yourself over there in
that thicket of trees and you wait until I send for you Why? No, he doesn't either he does
it exactly as he stole silently subject to authority My soul
wait silently subject to God as a creature before the Creator
as a disciple before the master as clay in the hands of the Potter
God said Jeremiah go down to the potter's house and I'll show
you a lesson And he went down there and he said, the potter
took the clay and put it on the wheel and made it a vessel according
to his own will. And that's what David is saying
here. My soul, truly, sincerely, without wavering, without hypocrisy,
my soul is in the state of waiting on God. And my soul is waiting
on God for him to reveal his purpose and his pleasure and
to fulfill his promises and answer my prayer and use me and lift
my burden and deliver me from my trials and do with me what
he will. I wait silently subject to him
as a creature to the Creator, as clay to the potter and as
a disciple before his master. And while the natural mind sits
around and reasons, faith believes. And while the natural mind is
prone to talk to men, faith talks to God. And while the natural
mind sets out its own plans, faith just waits on the Lord. Turn to Psalm 27 and read this.
Psalm 27, verse 13 and 14. Psalm 27. unless I had believed to see
the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." Wait on
the Lord. Be of good courage. He shall
strengthen thine heart. I repeat, David said, wait, I
say, on the Lord. And do it how? Grumbling, murmuring,
finding fault, laying your plans, talking with me. Silently. Silently. I've got a book on
the Psalms, and in it, it has outlines for the village preacher. And on this one verse, I found
a beautiful outline, and it has four points. The elders and preachers
here tonight will appreciate this. It asks four questions. What did he do? He waited. On whom did he wait? On the Lord. How did he wait? with his mouth
shut. What came of it? His salvation. Isn't that beautiful? What did
he do? He waited. Not run ahead, not
reason and strive, he waited. And how did he wait? Silently,
sincerely, subject to God. On whom did he wait? He waited
on God. And what was the result? Salvation. All right, look at verse 2. And
here's the reason why we wait on God, because He only, and
you can't ring that bell too often, only, other foundation
can no man lay. He only is my rock. That's my foundation, my rock.
The place on which I have built my hope for eternity, my spiritual
house, is built on Christ. He's my only rock. He only is
my rock. Not Christ in the church, Christ
in the doctrine, Christ in the law, Christ in my confession. It's just Christ. He only and
no other foundation can know my name. My hope is built on
nothing less Jesus' blood and His righteousness. I dare not
trust the sweetest frame, I only lean on Jesus' name. And He has
made unto me wisdom, all that I need, righteousness, all that
I need, sanctification, all that I need, redemption, all that
I need. And He not only is my rock, but
He's my salvation. He's my salvation. That's what
Simeon saw when he saw the Lord Jesus. He saw the Lord's salvation.
And he's my defense against all charges. Who shall lay anything
to the charge of God's elect? He's my defense. Well, I've always
done my best and kept the faith and tried to serve God and all.
Who will lay anything to my charge? It's Christ that died. Yea, rather
is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who ever
liveth to make intercession for us. And I like what David says
now in the latter part of verse 2. Here's his humanity showing
the Holy Spirit led him to write it, but listen to this. Verse
2 says, He only is my rock and my salvation. He's my protection. He's my defense. I shall not
be greatly moved. And I looked at that for a long
time. And then I found it down here in verse 6. Look at verse
6. He only is my rock and my salvation. He's my defense. I
shall not be moved. But he leaves the word greatly
out. But up here in verse 2 he says,
I shall not be greatly moved. And I looked everywhere to find
some help on that. And I found two things that helped
me more than anything else. One man said this, notice, he
says, I shall not be greatly moved. Moved, yes, but not removed. And he went on to say that it's
like a ship. If you've ever been on a ship,
I've been on a ship, stayed on one a long time, one time, almost
two years, and we'd pull into a harbor and we'd drop the anchor. Huge anchor just huge and drop
it off the back of the winch on the back of the ship it go
down a long way after a while it hit the bottom and it grabbed
and Then we'd tighten up the the cable and the ship Would
would float around it turn all the way around It float all the
way around this way and according the way the wind was blowing
It would move. It'd move over here and move
over there. But never move out of that place. Never be removed. It'd be moved. And none of us
can say we're never moved. We're moved by doubts. We're
moved by fear. We're moved by circumstances.
We're moved by unhappiness. We're moved by sickness. We're
moved by death. We're moved by... But we're never
greatly moved. We're never moved away from the
anchor of our soul. Christ is our anchor. and we're
anchored within the veil and we can never be removed from
his hand, we can never be removed from his heart, we can never
be removed from that place where he has established us through
his love and his grace and his sacrifice. You see that? David
said, he only is my rock. He only is my salvation. He only
is my defense. And while I may be shaken, and
while I may be moved, And while I may be troubled, and while
I may be distressed, I'll never be greatly moved. I'll never
be removed from Christ. I'll never be taken from Christ.
That anchor will never slip. That anchor will never let me
go. My anchor holds. And my anchor is within the veil. He's my rock. All right, verse
3 and 4. Now this, verse 3 and 4, Some of you are going to get
a little blessing right here, a little help, because these
are things through which you may be going right now. Now notice
verse 3 and 4. And this is what we're talking
about. The believer is not without his enemies. Now this is one
of the shocking experiences that a new Christian encounters right
after he's converted or brought to knowledge of Christ. This
person may have been religious all his life and never really
encountered any real enmity, any real opposition, any real
trouble from the world outside or from the world in the church,
from the religious world or the outer world. But when that person
really came to trust Christ, when that person came to really
know the Savior, when that person came to recognize Christ as King
and Sovereign and Lord and Substitute and Redeemer, And his life was
vitally united with the Son of God in a living relationship. Troubles began, and real conflict
came, and real enemies lifted their heads, and enemies from
an unexpected source. And that soul is trouble. It'll
do well to remember this, and this is important here. It'll do well to remember this.
Our Lord said, a man's foe shall be there of his own household,
people he works with, people who were close personal friends,
or even he finds enemies in here, within and without. And life
begins to be a difficult thing. You know, somebody said one time,
if you get saved, your troubles are over. The Apostle Paul's
troubles didn't begin until he met the Lord. He never had any
real troubles until he came to know Christ. And that's when
his troubles began. But it'll be well to remember
this. It's always best to begin with God and then to confront
the enemy. It is always best to make sure
of a true relationship with heaven. before you take on the earth
and Satan and this world. And that's what David does here.
The first where he starts is his relationship with heaven.
Before he ever mentions enemies, before he ever confronts the
enemy, before he ever deals with the enemy, before he ever considers
the enemy, before he ever talks about the enmity of Satan and
the world, he first talks about his true hope, truly Truly, my
soul waiteth on God. That's so. That's a fact. My
relationship is with the King. From him cometh my salvation.
Let this be firmly established. He only is my rock and my salvation. He is my defense. And I'm not
going to be moved. And after he establishes that
relationship, that true relationship, when he first deals with heaven,
He comes down here and deals with his enemies, and he says
about them, how long will you imagine mischief against a man?
You shall be slain, all of you, as a leaning wall shall you be,
a wall that has no foundation, it's just about to fall. and
as a tottering or as a broken fence. These enemies within and
without, David says, are marked for destruction. I pity them. They're marked for destruction.
They're like a leaning wall and a broken fence. It's just a matter
of time. Their foot shall slide in due
time. They'll fill up the cup of God's wrath and indignation
and then his hand shall fall. Well, what is their goal? These enemies, what is their
goal? Here's their goal, verse 4. Their goal is to cast the
believer down from his excellency. Their goal, here it is, is to
pull the believer down to their level. That's their goal. To pull the believer down to
their level, away from his excellency or his exalted position in Christ. They don't like him up there.
They don't like what he believes, his excellency. What is it? It's
righteousness in Christ, not in the flesh. It's sanctification
in Christ, not in the flesh. It's wisdom in Christ, not in
the flesh. It's redemption in Christ, seated
with him in the heavenlies, positionally. And they want to pull him down
from that place. They consult to cast him down
from his excellency. And this they do because they
despise the work of grace in his soul. And they want to bring
him down to their level of fleshly works, and fleshly wisdom, and
fleshly sanctification, and fleshly redemption. And they'll never
be satisfied until they can do that. And that's the reason they
aim their arrows, and shoot their guns, and cast their literary
mark, is to bring you down. They don't understand that position,
they don't like that position, they haven't entered into that
position, and they don't want you there. It's glorifying to
Christ. It's too peaceful. There's too
much joy and rest and confidence in that place. They don't have
it. And they don't like for you to have it. And he says that's
what they set out to do. Now they'll be slain. They're
just like a tottering fence and just like a leaning wall. Their destruction is set. God
will deal with them. They'll all be put under his
condemnation. But while they're living, they're
going to get together. And they have one common enemy.
It's not you. It's your Lord. You're not their
enemy. They could care less about you.
It's your Lord. Satan hates Jesus Christ. He
doesn't hate you. He hates Christ. His enemy is
not you. Christ said, Peter, Satan had
desired to use you. Use you for what? Against me.
Against my name, against my glory, against my kingdom. Against me. They despise Christ. But they
can't get to Christ. And so they get to you. And they
want to pull you down. They want to get you down to
their level. And some, they succeed in pulling down. And when they
get him down, they cast him aside. They're not concerned with him
anymore, you know. And they tackle somebody else that's in that
position of exaltation and excellency in the Lord Jesus Christ. And
what are their weapons? What are their weapons? He says,
they consult to cast you down from your excellency and they
delight in lies. That's their weapon. Not the
truth. God uses truth. Our Lord Jesus said, you shall
know the truth and the truth shall elevate you. The truth
shall cut the fetters and the chains from off you and set you
free. But they use lies, lies like these. Peace, peace. When there is no peace, that's
a lie. God's angry with the wicked. He that believeth not on the
Son, the wrath of God abideth on him." We're all going to the
same place. We're all brethren. We're just
traveling different roads. Why stir up a fuss? That's a
lie. We're not going to the same place.
Do good and God will bless you. That's a lie. There's none good.
No, not one. They use these subtle lies. And
he says this is their method. Look at verse 4, the last line.
They bless with their mouths. while they curse in their hearts. Ah, he said they mask their wrath
with smiles, they mask their hatred with smiles and flattering
words to appeal to our flesh. They pretend to bless while they
would tear down your hope and tear out your soul and tear you
away from that exalted position in Christ Jesus. Now he says,
Selah, you pause and think about that. You pause and think about
that. He starts out this psalm, establishes
his relationship. My soul waiteth on God. My soul, from him cometh my salvation. Salvation is of the Lord. He
only is my rock, my salvation. When I think about salvation,
I think about more than just regeneration and conversion.
A salvation that doesn't take me from Egypt to Canaan is not
salvation. A salvation that does not take
me all the way from the dung hill to the throne is not salvation.
A salvation that only makes me savable is not salvation. A salvation
that only lifts me from this position and leaves the rest
to me is not salvation. Half a bridge across the river
is not a bridge. I want one all the way. And when
David says here that he only is my rock and he only is my
salvation, he means an eternal salvation from the time that
it is purposed to the time that it is pronounced finished. And
I stand in the likeness of his dear son. That's salvation. And
that's all of the Lord. All of the Lord. He's my defense
and I'll not be moved from that position. Now there will be plenty
who will try to move me. He says they're enemies. They
imagine mischief. They plan mischief against a
man. God will slay them. Their fall is imminent. They're
just like a leaning wall and a broken fence. And they want
to bring me down, he said, from this exalted excellency, this
position in Christ, this God-given righteousness. And they use their
lives to do it, lives to me and about me. and lies about God. And they smile with their mouths,
they bless with their mouths, but they're full of cursing in
their inward parts. They're real enemies. You pause
and think about this. And then amid all these trials
and conflicts and attacks from the enemies of his soul, he goes
back to his hope. It pays to go back. Just keep
on going back. And he repeats the same thing
again. He says, verse 5, My soul, wait on the Lord. While Satan
turns the cannons of heaven against you, wait on the Lord. You see,
the psalmist returns to Christ like the dove returned to the
ark. He was in the ark and he went out there and found no place
for his feet and he came back. And he came back. Don't let these
enemies shake you. He says, you wait on the Lord.
The battle is His. The battle is His. Just as you are not their real
enemy, Christ is their real enemy, they are not your enemies. God's
enemies. And you don't have to deal with
them. He will. He said, you wait on the Lord. Wait thou only. For my expectation is from him. He will exalt you in due time. He will deliver you in due time. He will use you in due time. He will honor you in due time. You wait on the Lord. And you
wait silently and in subjection. Your expectation is not from
men. It's from God. Our expectation here is not for
men. Men can't meet our needs. Men
can't add to our glory. It's from the Lord. And then
he goes on, he says, He only is my rock. My righteousness
is filthy rags. He's my rock. He's my salvation.
He's my defense. I lay no claim to personal merit.
He's my glory. I shall not be moved. In God
is my salvation and my glory. Turn to Jeremiah chapter 9. Here's
a verse of Scripture that I have firmly marked in my Bible, in
this Bible that I use, in Jeremiah chapter 9, verse 23. Jeremiah
9, verse 23. Listen to this. Thus saith the
Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom. Now, he doesn't
say there are no wise men. He says, let him not glory in
his wisdom. Neither let the mighty man glory
in his might. He doesn't say there are no mighty
men. He called even Saul and Jonathan mighty men. David said,
how are the mighty fallen? Let not the rich man glory in
his riches, but let him that gloryeth, and all men are going
to glory in something. That's the nature of men, to
glory in something. What is it to glory? It's to
find delight in it. It's to find joy in it. It's
to find some comfort in it. It's to worship that thing. It's
to single it out for attention. But let him that glory, glory
in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me. That's our subject
for glory. And God knows we're going to
glory. And so what he does is take away our vain glory and
give us something worthy of glory. You see what I'm saying? He knows
we're going to glory. Everybody's going to glory in
something. He's going to glory in His beauty or His strength
or His wisdom or His fame or His accomplishments or Her. Everybody's
going to glory. So what God does, He gives us
something worth glorying in. Let him glory in this, that he
understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord. That's something
worth glorying in. Which exercise lovingkindness,
judgment, and righteousness in the earth, in these things I
delight, saith the Lord. He's my glory. And then in verse
8, look at this. Trust in him at all times. Trust in Him at all times. That would be a good thing put
on the wall, wouldn't it? Trust in Him at all times. When are
the times that we need to trust Him? All times. What are some
of these times? Times of prosperity. Look down
at verse 10 a minute. The last line in verse 10. If
riches increase, Now there's nobody here tonight that can't
join right here in this verse because we are abundantly blessed. This church has been blessed
in every way. You have been blessed. Your homes
have been blessed. God has been good to us. We have
far, far, far, far more than we need. Most of us live in abundance,
don't we? God's blessed us physically and
materially. He's blessed us in every way.
Now, when these riches increase, don't set your heart on them.
Set your heart on him, because these things are still
temporary. They can be taken as quickly
as they were given. In fact, they're going to be.
These things are decaying material Vanity. That's all. They're just
dust. They're just soap bubbles. They're
just castles built on the sand. These are all temporary things.
And he says, don't trust in these things. Trust in Him. And trust
in Him in times of prosperity. And trust in Him in time of poverty.
My God will supply all your need. Turn to Luke 12. I like this
verse over here. Luke chapter 12, verse 15. Listen to this. Luke 12, 15. And he said to them, take heed,
take heed and beware of covetousness. A man's life consisteth not in
the abundance of the things which he possesses. I'm sorry to say that that is
more the measuring the measure of a man's reputation
and so forth in this day than it ever has been before. What
he has, it's a shame. Our Lord said a
man's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he
possesses. A man's real life consists in
his relationship with Christ, in his knowledge of Christ. And
we trust in Him in times of prosperity, in times of poverty, in times
of desertion by friends. Turn back to Psalm 27. Listen
to David here. Psalm 27, verse 10. When my father
and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up. He'll take me up. desertion, in times of sickness,
He healeth our diseases. In times of death, Paul said,
the time of my departure is at hand. I've kept the faith, fought
a good fight, laid up for me a crown of righteousness. Trust
Him at all times, all times. No matter how dark the valley,
trust Him. No matter how bright the sunshine,
don't trust the sunshine. Trust Him. Because the sun's
going down. No matter how high the mountain,
or how low the valley, or how deep the water, or how rough
the waves, trust Him. You see why I said at the beginning
of this message, if we can learn this, this is it, wait on the
Lord silently in subjection, and trust Him. Trust Him at all
times. Don't get in a hurry. We're all
in a hurry. If God doesn't open a door, we'll
open it. If God doesn't make a pass, we'll make one. If God
doesn't do something, we'll do it. We have a hard time, don't
we? And then look at this next line.
Pour out your heart before everybody you meet. Now, sir, before the
Lord. Now, His heart's on you. Set
your heart on Him. Listen to this. I stole this.
Turn your vessel upside down and let your inmost thoughts,
desires, sorrows, sins, thoughts be poured out like water before
the Lord, poured out. Hide nothing from him because
you can't hide anything from him. We'll learn to pray and
we'll hear the answer. when we learn to deal openly
with the Lord. We're such secretive people.
We act that way in front of God. Isn't that right? How long has
it been since you talked with the Lord? Well, not long, but
how long has it been since you talked honestly with the Lord? Without all of the repetitious
phrases and the pretty eloquent words and all your faith and
trust and gratitude, how long has it been since you turned
your vessel upside down and let your inmost thoughts and desires
and sins and sorrows be poured out like water before the Lord,
hiding nothing? Pour out your heart like water,
not like milk. whose color remains, not like
wine, whose scent remains, not like honey, whose taste remains,
but like water, when it's poured out, nothing remains. Huh? Pour out, pour out, empty. Pour it out. Everything that's
in there, down to the very bottom, your heart, pour it out before
the Lord. Can't do it. Could if we really
knew who he is and the fact that the last line, God's a refuge
for us, he's not an enemy, he's the Father. He's a sovereign
Lord, he's the all-seeing, all-knowing God, he knows my heart. Why not
pour it out? Act a fool, act a fool before
God. Don't have to dress up in your pious religious rags and
go before God pretending to be what you're not. Just let him
know if you have an objection. Read the book of Psalms sometimes.
You have an objection, tell him so. He knows it's there anyhow. You have some rebellion, express
it. He knows it's there anyhow. Pour
out your hearts before God. He's a refuge. Now he says, pause
and think about this. And then verse 9, quickly. Surely,
truly, men of low degree are vanity. What are the men of social? This is what this is. This is
social standing. He's saying this. You can't have confidence
in the majority. We may not have confidence in
the democracy. A majority is certainly strength,
somebody says. The multitude of this world's
common people are a strength. No, they're not, God says. They're
vanity. They cry Hosanna today and crucify Him tomorrow. You
can't trust them. They're vanity. Well, how about
men of high degree? How about the intellectuals?
And how about the polite? And how about the politics? And
how about the educated? He said, they're a lie. They
promise what they can't produce. You can't trust them either.
You can't trust. You can't trust the democracy.
You can't trust the multitude. You can't trust the mass of common
men. You can't trust the ordinary
citizen. You can't trust the man of low
degree. He's vanity. And you can't trust the elite,
the educated, the intellectual. You can't trust him. He promises
what he can't produce. Who can you trust? Trust God. He says in verse 10,
trust not in oppression. Trust not in oppression nor in
robbery. In other words, if riches are
gotten in an unlawful manner, they're not to be trusted any
more than if they're gotten in a lawful manner. Trust not in
oppression and become not vain in robbery. If riches increase
by lawful means, don't trust them then either. Don't trust
the man of low degree, don't trust the man of high degree,
don't trust riches gotten unlawfully, don't trust riches gotten lawfully,
don't trust any of these things. Many of the evils connected with
material gain. Do you know what some of them
are? Actually, do you know that a place, a position of wealth
is much more dangerous than a position of poverty? There are so many
evils connected with this day of plenty. Rich and increased
with goods, have need of nothing, we forget God. Idolatry, covetousness, neglect of prayer,
too busy to study. Oh, there are a lot of dangers,
aren't there? Don't trust them. Don't set your
heart on these things. All right, verse 11 and 12. God
has spoken once. God is so immutable that God
only needs to speak once. You and I talk all the time.
I talk too much. I was thinking this afternoon,
I've got to preach six sermons in the next six days. That's
too much preaching. We speak too often and say nothing.
God speaks once. And what He says is eternal,
unchangeable, immutable truth. God speaks once. That's all he
needs to speak. God has spoken once, but he says
twice have I heard it. What does he mean? He means this,
I heard it with my ear and I heard it with my heart. I heard it
in the letter and I heard it in the spirit. I heard it in
the doctrine and I heard it in my soul. I heard it twice. You heard it twice? Oh, I have
to confess most of this I've heard once. Because when I hear
it twice, I'm never the same. I go to sleep on my master's
breast when I hear it twice. I don't just believe a doctrine,
I rest in a person. I quit quarreling and murmuring
and complaining and plotting and planning and reasoning and
grumbling, and I rest when I heard it twice. God spoke. It's so
whether I believe it or not. It's so whether I hear it once
or twice. It's so! He spoke and what? Thank God, David said, I heard
it twice. I heard it with the ear and I
heard it with the heart. I heard it in the letter. I heard
it in the spirit. I heard it in the doctrine, it's
so. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word will never
pass away, it's so. Come hell or high water, Barnard,
you say it's so. But thank God I heard it by experience
in my soul. What did you hear? That power
belongeth unto the Lord, strength and deliverance. from the curse
of the law, from the covenant of works, from the penalty of
sin, from the power of Satan, from the interference of my enemies,
it belongs to God. Also unto thee, Lord, and I thank
God for this, also unto thee belongeth mercy. It's in his
hands too. Just as much as the power to
deliver the love and grace to save, that belongs to God too. If anybody goes to hell, it'll
be his own fault. If anybody goes to heaven, it'll
be God's fault, because mercy is in the hands of the Lord.
And he's going to render to every man according to his works. What
are your works? Well, I preached and cast out
devils and did many wonderful works. Never knew you. Judge
you on the basis of those works. They're works of iniquity. They're
filthy rags. What are your works, believers?
What are your works? In Christ I obeyed the law. In
Christ I satisfied thy justice. In Christ, I fulfill every requirement. Oh, those are perfect works.
You didn't do them, though. No, sir, but Christ did. And
He's my Lord and my Savior. He's my hope and my salvation. And my hope is in Him, my expectations
from Him. But God will judge you on the
basis of those works that you present. Just present either
one you want to. It doesn't matter. You can present
those you've done or those Christ has done. And God will weigh
both of them. And these won't work. They're
filthy rags. But these over here are perfect.
God said, I'm pleased with thee. Enter ye into the joys. Our Father,
thank thee for the word. May we hear this twice. May we
truly say with David, God has spoken once. I'm not fool enough
to doubt it. But I've heard it twice. I heard
him speak to my ear and to my heart. And Lord, I've learned
to wait.

Believers Most Valuable Lesson

What does the Bible say about trusting God during trials?

Why is waiting on the Lord important for Christians?

How do we know that God is our only salvation?

What does it mean to pour out your heart to God?

How can we maintain hope in difficult times?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

Believers Most Valuable Lesson

What does the Bible say about trusting God during trials?

Why is waiting on the Lord important for Christians?

How do we know that God is our only salvation?

What does it mean to pour out your heart to God?

How can we maintain hope in difficult times?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Henry Mahan

Books by Henry Mahan

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book