Let's turn tonight, if you will,
to Psalm 119. I thank the Lord for those of you
who are faithful in attending our services. Children resemble their parents. They take traits from their parents
and God, as our Father, is faithful. And one of the traits of His
children is faithfulness. And I certainly thank the Lord
for those of you who are faithful. Now tonight, if you will, let's
read one verse of Scripture in this very long song. Let's look at verse 49, David's
petition. Remember the word unto thy servant
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. I was reading last week
the scripture in 1 Kings that gives the account, a very interesting
account of the nation of Syria, the King Benadad coming against
Israel. And Israel defeated his armies
and so he went home And then he was convinced by his counselors
that the reason his army was defeated was because the God
of Israel is a God of the hills, God of the hills. And what we
need to do is to assemble another army just as large and let's
go back and let's fight this time on the plains. And we will surely defeat them,
because their God is the God of the hills and not a God of
the valleys. Well, the Lord sent a prophet
to the king of Israel, and this was a wicked king, King Ahab. And yet God in his mercy and
grace dealt with them, with that nation in mercy and grace. But the prophet came to Ahab,
and he said this, Thus saith the Lord, Because, because the
Syrians have said, The Lord God, or the Lord is God of the hills,
but he is not God of the valleys. Therefore will I deliver all
this great multitude into thy hand, and you shall know that
I am the Lord. The God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ is Lord. He is Lord at all times, and
He is Lord in all places, both in the hills and in the valleys. The child of God, as we go through
this world, as we make our pilgrimage through this world, We are sure
to experience things in this life that may be compared to
hills and things that certainly may be compared to valleys. Days,
high days and low days. We all experience days when we
feel that we are walking in the sunshine of God's love and God's
grace and then sometimes we have days when the days are cloudy. And we must always remember ourselves,
just like the natural world, when it is cloudy and we don't
see the sun, that doesn't mean the sun is not shining, because
it is. The sun is faithful and the sun
is permanent. So when we go through days of
sunshine or days of clouds, high days or low days, we know that
our God the Lord Jesus Christ. He is Lord always, both of the
hills, the high days, and of the valleys. Now this text appealed
to me because it seems to be a petition of David, the psalmist,
on a cloudy day. It appealed to me, it seems to
me like he would make this prayer, this petition, he would ask the
Lord this on a day that we would describe as a cloudy day. Remember,
remember the Lord, remember the word rather, unto thy servant
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. So there's three parts
to the message tonight. First of all, David prays, remember,
but has God forgotten? He prays, remember, but has God
forgotten? Has he forgotten his word? You
know, he's speaking about the word, the word that God had spoken
unto him upon which he had been caused to hope. In Psalm 138
in verse 2, we read, I will worship toward thy holy temple and praise
thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth, for thou hast
magnified thy word above thy name. The psalmist said that
God has magnified his word above his name. So we are confident,
we are sure that God has not forgotten his word. And yet David
prays, remember the word, the word, thy word. Remember the
word unto thy servant upon which thou hast caused me to hope. Do you ever, do you ever experience
the thought that maybe God has forgotten about you? Maybe some
promise, maybe some word that God has given you and now it
seems like he's forgotten that word. You know, you would not
be alone. We are not alone if we experience
these feelings because we see that David did likewise. I want you to look in Psalm 77. Keep your place here, but let's
look in Psalm 77. It's not unusual. It's not unusual
for God's children to feel deserted. It's not unusual for God's children
as we go through this world to fail to see the sunshine of God's
love. We have those times of times
we would refer to as in the valley as well as those times on the
hills. The problem is we live in such
an age that people are made to believe that if you truly are
a Christian, if you're walking with the Lord, that everything
will be rosy and you'll never experience any of these down
days. That's just not true. And you
can read the history of God's people down through the ages
and you will see that all of God's children have known their
ups and their downs. I was thinking this afternoon
of William Cooper, the one who wrote that hymn that we love
to sing, There's a Fountain Filled with Blood. And you know the
story, how that man suffered with depression and discouragement
and melancholy, as they called it back then. I'm sure you've
all heard the story when he hired a taxi one night. He lived in London and he hired
a taxi, which was a horse and buggy. And he told him to take
him to the London Bridge. And his intention was when they
arrived at the London Bridge, he was going to go over it and
destroy himself. And God's providence, The driver
drove, and it seemed like it was taking a long time to get
to the bridge from his house. He just knew that it shouldn't
take that long. But the driver drove on and drove
on, and finally came to a stop. And William Cooper got out of
his taxi, and lo and behold, he was at the very same place
from which he had begun. How God had kept him, preserved
him, And he's the one who wrote that hymn of God's providence. What a wonderful hymn those words
are. But here in Psalm 77, David said,
I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice,
and he gave ear unto me. Sometimes people make light of
the scripture speaking of crying with our voice. How else would
you cry? Well, we cry without articulating,
right? We cry with groans and in our
spirits we cry. But David here is speaking about
crying aloud. I cried unto God with my voice,
even unto God with my voice, and he gave ear unto me. In the
day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My soul ran in the night
and ceased not. My soul refused to be comforted. I remembered God and was troubled. I complained and my spirit was
overwhelmed. We complain sometimes, don't
we? We complain about the weather. George Whitefield, one of the
greatest revivalist preachers that God has ever used in the
United States, I believe, the first great awakening. He was
riding horseback in Georgia to an appointment to preach. This
is back in the 1700s. And the weather was bad. It was raining. And he began
to complain and murmur. And all of a sudden, a man stepped
out from behind a tree with a pistol, pointed it right at him, and
fired it. But because of the rain, it did
not go off. He was preserved by the very
thing that he had been complaining about. What am I saying? I'm just reminding us again how
that all things, and we know that all things work together
for good to them who love God, to those who are the called according
to His purpose. We may not understand it, but
we know by faith. by the Word of God, just like
Paul did. Think of all the experiences
he had, being beaten, being left for dead, and yet he could still
pen those words. We know. How did he know that? By experience? No. No, by experience
it looked like he was suffering greatly, and he was. And yet
he was able from the word of God. I'm sure he knew the story
in Genesis there about Joseph and how he saw that everything
it looked like was working against Joseph. And yet everything was
working for his good and not just for his good, but for God's
glory and for God's chosen people, the nation of Israel. I remembered
God and was troubled. I complained, and my spirit was
overwhelmed. Thou holdest mine eyes waking. I am so troubled that I cannot
speak. I have considered the days of
old, the years of ancient times. I call to remembrance my song
in the night." You see, his circumstances had been altered. He could remember
when he was able to sing and worship God in the darkness.
I call to remembrance my song in the night. I commune with
mine own heart, and my spirit may diligent search. Now notice
these questions. Will the Lord cast off forever? Will He? Will He not hear me?
Will He not answer me? Will He not provide? Will the
Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? Is his mercy clean gone forever? Doth his promise fail forevermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Has he? Has he forgotten to be
gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his
tender mercies? Then you see that word selah,
stop, think. Think about what he has just
said. Hath he in anger shut up his
tender mercies? So in our text tonight, David
petitions the Lord, remember the word unto thy servant upon
which thou has caused me to hope. There must have been a particular
word He says, the word, singular. Remember, the word unto thy servant
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. There must have been
a particular word, a particular promise that God had given that
he refers to as the word. And upon it, David hoped. He hoped, but it seemed to him
now that the Lord had forgotten. Remember the word unto thy servant
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. One of the Proverbs
tells us that hope deferred, hope deferred maketh the heart
sick. Hope deferred maketh the heart
sick. Remember the word unto thy servant
upon which thou hast caused me to hope. But now this hopes has
been deferred. Hope deferred maketh the heart
sick. And I do not need to tell you
that all of God's children, we all experience what we call delays. Delays in His promised help. Delays in Him answering our prayers. Here are five things to remember
about delays. The delay is not caused by ignorance
on God's part. He's promised something to you.
You've petitioned Him. It doesn't happen. It doesn't
come. The delay, it's not caused by
ignorance on God's part. The Lord Jesus declared, the
very hairs of your head are all numbered. That's amazing, isn't
it? The very hairs of your head are
all numbered. And then he went on to say that
not one sparrow, and a sparrow was a bird at that time that
was of little worth as far as monetary worth. And yet the Lord
Jesus Christ said, not one sparrow falls to the ground without his
knowledge. We may be sure when we experience
delays, it's not because of ignorance on God's part. He knows all about
us. He knows each and every one of
His children at all times. And I say this, He knows us better
than we know ourselves. He knows all about us. You don't
know how many hairs you have on your head, do you? He does. He knows us better than we know
ourselves. And that's no difficulty for
Him because He knows all things. In Isaiah we read this, Therefore
will the Lord wait. Therefore will the Lord wait,
that he may be gracious unto you. And therefore will he be
exalted, that he may have mercy upon you. For the Lord is a God
of judgment. Blessed are all they that wait
for him. Number two, the delay is not
caused by changeableness on God's part. God is immutable. We know that. He doesn't change.
His word, the psalmist tells us, God's word is settled forever
in heaven. His word's not going to change.
It's never going to be altered. No, as we read that verse just
a moment ago, for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. God doesn't change, neither does
His word change. So the delay The delay that we
experience is not caused by changeableness on God's part. Remember that
verse in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 6 where God said, I am
the Lord, I change not. All of his attributes are beautiful,
aren't they? But isn't it wonderful to know
that we worship God and our Father. He never changes. He cannot change. He is immutable. He has no need
to change. All change is either for the
better or for the worse. He cannot become better, and
he's sure not going to become worse. Number three, the delay
is not caused by weakness on God's part. Maybe he doesn't
have the power. Maybe I've asked something. Maybe
I've believed his word and I'm trusting for something that is
too great for him to accomplish. No, that's never the case. The delay is not caused by weakness
on God's part. The prophet Samuel, he made this
statement, the strength, the strength of Israel. which is
the God of Israel, the strength of Israel, will not repent, for
he is not a man that he should repent. And I remember the scripture
where God said, is anything too hard for the Lord? Is there? Is anything too hard for the
Lord? Well, you know the answer to that. Number four, the delay
is not caused by forgetfulness on God's part. There are times
when God's children are tempted to think that this is the case. We read that verse in Psalm 77,
hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his
tender mercies? Number five, the delay is not
without. Now listen to me. The delay is
not without a needs be on your part, on my part. When we experience delay, God
answering, God fulfilling a promise, The delay is not without a needs
be on our part. I want you to look with me to
1st Peter just a moment. 1st Peter chapter 1 and verse 3. 1 Peter 1, beginning with verse
3. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead. To an inheritance incorruptible
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven
for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto
salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time, wherein you
greatly rejoice. Now watch this. Though now for
a season, if need be, you are in heaviness through manifold
temptations. That, in order that the trial
of your faith being much more precious than of gold that perisheth,
though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and
honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. The delay is
not without a needs be on our part. God tries our faith. He tries our faith And these
delays exercise our faith. And not only that, but these
delays teach us patience. Romans 5 in verse 3, the apostle
said, We glory in tribulations also, knowing that tribulation
worketh patience. Have you ever prayed for patience? If you do, get ready for some
trials, because that's the way patience comes. It comes through
trials, through waiting, through delays. Remember, David said,
remember the word unto thy servant upon which thou hast caused me
to hope. Now secondly, what are some lessons
for us? Well, it's obvious, it's obvious
to me that David had some particular word. Some particular word. He said, remember the word upon which, the word unto thy
servant upon which thou hast caused me to hope. The word. As we read God's word,
and I know feel confident that all of us here tonight, we do
our best to read the Word of God every day. There may be times
when we are not able to, but I think for the most part, all
of us here tonight, we read God's Word daily. And we should. We
should. No doubt about that. But as we
read God's Word, we should store up these promises. These promises. These Word. The Word. The word,
David said. Remember, the word. Store up
these promises for future needs. There may be a promise that you
read today to meet your need, but you don't have that need
today. But that doesn't mean that you
will not have that need. And so when we store up these
promises and then the need comes, We have them at hand. I read
John Newton the other day. He made this comment, interesting
comment. He said that God's promises are
like the cities of refuge. You know, there were six cities
of refuge scattered out over the land of Israel. Now, most
people never needed them. Most people never had an avenger
of blood. coming to avenge blood of their
hands. Most people never needed one
of these cities. He said, now until the day, or call upon
me, he used this example, this promise, call upon me in the
day of trouble and I will deliver you. Now, until the day of trouble
comes, He said, such a promise is like a city of refuge to an
Israelite who not having slain a man was in no danger from the
avenger of blood. He had a privilege near him of
which he knew not the use and value because he was not in the
case for which it was provided. The promise called upon me in
the day of trouble and I will deliver you. When the day of
trouble comes, that's the time to have that promise. Call upon
me in the day of trouble. And I've pointed this out to
us before, but David, he wrote that also in the Psalm. Call
upon me in the day of trouble. He doesn't tell us what kind
of trouble, does he? Might be soul trouble, physical
trouble, spiritual trouble, whatever kind of trouble. And I believe
for that reason, he wasn't specific. Because whatever kind of trouble
we find ourselves in, we have this promise. Call upon me in
the day of trouble, and I will. He doesn't say I might. I'll
think about it. I'll give it my best shot. Call
upon me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you. We should have these promises
in our memories, to use them like the psalmist does in our
text. He had a particular word in his
memory, in his mind, that he asked God, remember the word. There was a particular word that
God had given unto him. And so now, In his prayer, he
reminds the Lord of that. We have an excellent example
of this in the book of Genesis. This is one of the best lessons
on prayer that you will ever find in the Word. The words of Jacob here, in Genesis
chapter 32. Beginning with verse 9. Now get
the picture here. Jacob is on one side of the brook
and his brother Esau is on the other side. And he's coming with
a number of armed men. And as far as Jacob knew, he's
coming to do me harm. That's the only reason he's coming.
When I left him, the last word I had, he's going to kill you
when the days of mourning for your father have ended. And then
he'd been gone for a long time. But notice, and Jacob said, O
God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord
which said unto me, return unto thy country and to thy kindred
and I will deal well with thee. I'm not worthy of the least of
all the mercies and of all the truth which thou hast showed
unto thy servant. For with my staff I passed over
this Jordan, and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray
thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I
fear him, lest he will come and smite me and the mother with
the children. Now notice, and thou saidest,
I will surely do thee good. What is Jacob? He's reminding
God of what God had told him. He's repeating back to God, God's
own promise, God's own word. That's the reason I said this
is one of the best lessons on prayer that we find
in the word of God. We take God's Word, and we go
to Him in prayer, and we remind Him of His Word, His promise,
His oath, His covenant. Thou saidest, I will surely do
thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which
cannot be numbered for multitude. Now is God going to go back on
His Word? Jacob said, You told me. You
told me. I will surely do thee good. Now
here comes my brother, armed. I'm expecting trouble. But you
told me I will surely do thee good. And you know the sequel. You know what took place. Here
comes Esau. Even though Jacob had sent all
those flocks ahead of him. Broke up his family. put the
four mothers and their children, and they all bowed down and spoke
to Esau, his brother. And when Esau got there, he asked
him, what does all this mean? He kissed him. He had no animosity,
no hatred in his heart, no vengeance. God had changed his heart. Now,
Lord, you do what you said you would do, and God did, and he
always will. When we're tempted to doubts,
is there not a word of the Lord upon which he has caused us to
hope? When doubts come, is there not
some word, some word in the scripture, God's word upon which he has
caused us to hope? Is there not a text that the
Lord used When you first closed with Christ, when you first bowed
to Christ in submission, was there not some word, some scripture
that God used in your heart to give you peace and comfort? Well,
that word hasn't changed. It's still there. And God hasn't
changed. Maybe it was this word. All that
the Father giveth me shall come to be. and him that cometh to
me I will in no wise cast out. Maybe it was that word that God
gave you. Remember, remember thy word unto
thy servant upon which thou hast caused me to hope. When we're
tempted to sin, is there not a word of the Lord upon which
he has caused us to hope? Remember this word in first Corinthians,
There hath no temptation taken you, but such as is common to
man. We know this, and this verse
reminds us of this, that we always are prone to think no one has
ever experienced what I'm going through. Now, that's just never
true. It's just not so. There have
been others before you, and if the world continues, there will
be others after you. who will experience similar,
if not the same thing. There hath no temptation taken
you, but such as is common to man. But God is faithful. God is faithful, who will not
suffer you to be tempted above that you are able, but will with
the temptation also make a way to escape that you may be able
to bear it. And the third part of the message
is simply this. Isn't this, this truth, when
we take God's word, when we have God's word that he's given us,
upon which he has caused us to hope, and we pray, doesn't this
quicken us in prayer? Doesn't it help us to pray fervently? The scripture says, the effectual
fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. when we have
a promise to hang on and to repeat that promise to God. God, this
is your word. This is what you said. You, you
have caused me to hope on it. Now Lord, please remember it
to me. Surely that's the way to quicken
our prayers. Well, I pray tonight that this
study will be used of God and as a blessing to all of us here
this evening. All of us, I know, could stand
and give a testimony that we've experienced God's delays. But
remember this, in His time, As it's often been said, God is
always on time. Always. He's never early, and
He's never late. He's always on time. And it's
His time. His time. Let's sing a verse
or two of a hymn, David.