Address—G.H. Hayhoe
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I'd like to turn tonight to Psalm 27.
Psalm 27.
The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though in host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear. Though war should rise against me. In this will I be confident.
One thing have I desired of the Lord.
That will I seek after, that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion. In the secret of His Tabernacle shall He hide me.
He shall set me up upon a rock, and now shall mine head be lifted up above mine, enemies round about me, Therefore will Ioffer in his Tabernacle sacrifices of joy. I will sing, yeah, I will sing praises unto the Lord. Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice. Have mercy also upon me, and answer me when thou saidst seek ye my face my.
Said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek. Hide not thy face far from me, Put not Thy servant away in anger. Thou hast been my help. Leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation. When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up. Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path because of mine enemies.
Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies.
For false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty. I have fainted unless I have believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord, Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord.
Following this little hymn that we've just been saying, it says with Christ our theme begins, the Lord of truth and love. We know that in the Psalms why we don't have the full revelation of the accomplished redemption and the blessed place into which the believer has been brought. Now we can say, as we often sing, Israel's God is ours. We find our resource in Him, even though we know him now in a much fuller way than they did in Israel.
And nevertheless, as we read the Psalms, how blessed to bring in the light of the New Testament and see in these Psalms that just as they in their, in their state found their satisfaction and their joy and all they needed in the Lord, so we can, as I say, in a much fuller way, because God has made himself known now in all the riches of his grace. The veil has been rent. The heart of God is fully told out, and you and I are.
To know and enjoy these precious things. And so I just like to look at this Psalm in a practical way and see how it brings before us some of those things that we can enjoy that we have in the Lord. Notice how it begins. The Lord is my light and my salvation. First of all, the Lord is my light, and that's the first thing that is necessary.
The Sinner must find out his true condition before God.
He must get into the light of God's presence. How many people there are, They've never been in the light of God's presence.
They're satisfied with themselves, as it tells us in Romans chapter 10. They, being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves under the righteousness of God. They don't know what God requires. They have never been in the light. I could have very dirty clothes on, and if I were in the dark, I wouldn't know it, and I wouldn't be conscious that other people knew it either because I was in the dark. But when I get into the light then.
Everything shows up. And that's what happened with Job. When he got into the Lord's presence, he had justified himself. He had said his heart wouldn't reproach him as long as he lived. But when he got into the presence of God, he said, I repent and abhor myself in dust and ashes. The same with the prophet Isaiah. He had pronounced judgment and woe upon many nations around Israel. But when he himself got into the presence of God.
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He said woe is me, for I am undone. And so the first experience that the soul has is to find his true condition before God.
That's why the Lord Jesus said there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one Sinner that repenteth. Notice it doesn't say over one Sinner that gets saved. And why does it say over one Sinner that repenteth? Because when a person sees themselves as God sees them, by then they realize their need. There's joy when the center is brought to realize his true condition because there's no refuge for his soul and.
From Christ. And so it is with us as believers too. We have been brought into the light first. John one and seven says, if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. That if in that verse is not the thought that some believers walk in the light and some don't. It's rather a contrast between the unbeliever and the believer.
We were sometimes darkness, but now we're light in the Lord. We're children of light. We've been brought into the light and that's where we've been brought and fitted for it through the blood. As another has said, all that the light makes manifest, the blood cleanses from. And so that's where the believer is. We may not always walk according to the light. So if we're exhorted to walk as children of light.
Someone asked Mr. Darby. But what if a Christian turns his back upon the light?
Well, Mr. Darby said the light will shine on his back. We're in the light, brethren. That's where we are. We're fitted for it through the blood, but we may not be in the enjoyment of it, we may not be walking according to it, but that's where we are, and we'll never be happy unless we're walking in the light of His countenance. Happy is that people who walk in the light of His countenance. And so this is the first thing brought before us, just as in the Epistle of John before it.
That God is love, it says. God is light. It must show us his character, because holiness becomes his house. And in heaven nothing that defiles will ever enter there. So we have light first. But isn't it lovely? And my salvation, the very one who tells us what our true condition is, the one who hides nothing from us of how guilty we were and how vile we were, is the very one.
Who has taken up the question of our sins and settled it? Oh, that's what gives us peace, brethren. Sometimes unbelievers are asked to confess their sins and come to God. I'd like to ask anyone here, could you remember all your sins? And if you could remember a good many of them, Are you sure that some of the things you might think were all right are really.
Sin in God's presence, and so if it was something that depended upon us.
Why? Surely we couldn't remember them all, nor would we fully realize the holiness of God, but it tells us that we're just to take our place like that publican. He didn't try to confess all his sins, but this he did say, God be merciful to me, a Sinner.
What, you know, before we are saved, we have never done anything to please God. Scripture says they that are in the flesh cannot please God. Such was our condition. So the confession of sins is for believers after we've been brought into the light, after we've been fitted for the light, then then anything and that is unbecoming to being consciously in His presence.
Why were to confess it not to get saved again?
Not to have those sins blotted out, they are blotted out, but to restore communion with the Lord. But how blessed this is. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Salvation is a person. As Simeon picked up that blessed babe in the second chapter of Luke, he said, Mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou has prepared before the face of all people, a light to light.
The Gentiles and the glory of thy people, Israel, He looked at that little babe and saw in that babe God's salvation. And every one of us here tonight who have Christ as our Savior have salvation because He is salvation. And so this is what the psalmist could say. As I say, he wasn't in the blessed enjoyment of it at that time, but that you and I can be in now. Because redemption wasn't yet accomplished, but it was the same.
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Person, the past look forward to the cross, we look back to it. Those in the past look forward because as soon as sin entered, God promised that there would be a Redeemer who would come, one who would bruise the serpent's head. They look forward to it. We look back, we can say that our sins are gone they were looking forward to the payment being made and it was made in full at Calvary, but.
Blessed brethren, let's never forget these wonderful words. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? So it tells us in Romans chapter 8. It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? Let everyone bring charges. We've been cleared in the highest court. No one can lay a charge against the one who has been cleansed in the precious blood of Christ.
And justified from all things.
Someone has said justified means just as if I'd never sinned. But you know, brethren, it goes further than that. Because if that is as far as it took us, why Adam hadn't yet sinned when he was placed in the garden, but he afterwards did sin and had to be driven out of the garden. But to be justified for us as believers is more than just being before God as though he had never sinned. It is to be before God.
In a life that never sinned and cannot sin. That's why it says in Romans justification of life. That's why it says in John's epistle, whosoever is born of God does not commit sin, and his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. And every believer is entitled to enjoy this blessed and wonderful truth.
That we are before God in a life that never sinned, and Canton cannot sin.
Because we are made the righteousness of God in Christ, that's where we stand before God.
He views his son, and there's a verse in First Epistle of John that says, as he is, so are we in this world. I remember talking when I was quite a young man to a dear old sister, and she was telling me about how she was saved.
And she had attended a meeting. She'd never been brought up under the sound of the word.
But she attended a meeting in which the speaker took up that verse. As he is, so are we in this world? She'd always thought she had to wait to find out until the day of Judgment to see how it was with her before God. And when she heard that while you're still here in this world, you can be as he is. That is, you're standing before God is in a rhythm glorified Christ.
And that's why it tells us here.
Whom shall I fear? Who is he that condemneth because God has justified?
But then we need something more, the same One who is my light and my salvation.
The psalmist could say the Lord is the strength of my life. By his grace I've been saved for a good many years, but I didn't have the strength for the Christian life in myself. The Lord Jesus said without me he can do nothing. And let's never forget this, because just as sure as we rely upon our own strength or lean upon some arm of flesh are going to prove that.
Only one that we can truly rely upon for strength is the Lord himself. Trust ye and the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. Oh, may we draw our resources from him. So I say, the one who is our light, the one who is our salvation is also our strength. And I think it's beautiful the way it's brought out in this Psalm to show us.
How that everything is in a person?
That's why I was enjoying that little hymn. With Christ, our theme begins. It's a person, and this person is everything to us. As it says in Colossians chapter 3, Christ is all and in all or is another translation renders that Christ is everything. He's everything in Christianity, and so he is the strength of my life.
Oh, let's rely upon his strength. We cannot go on. And as the days get darker and they are getting darker.
New problems, new difficulties are arising everywhere, not only in the world but also among us too, and we're going to find out more and more. I believe that the only source of strength is in the Lord. As we rely upon Him. Then we're going to be able to meet these situations that arise, but not in any other way. Just knowing truth is not enough because.
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Knowledge will never keep us, but a person will.
A person will, and that person is the one who went to Calvary and died for us.
Who lives for us and who is soon coming for us?
So he says, Of whom shall I be afraid? He doesn't minimize his foes. He says, When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. And we should never minimize the power of the enemy. There are two powers that are above man, the power of God and the power of Satan.
And you know.
We're not a match for Satan. He is far too strong for us. We can't beat him in an argument. He can bring up all kinds of arguments and get us very upset if we try to meet him by our own wit or wisdom. We don't have the strength to meet these things that come the power of Satan and all the attacks of the enemy. Not only.
In false doctrine, but in all kinds of other ways.
The enemy is busy, and so it says. When they came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.
Now that simply means, I believe, brethren, that the only path of safety is the path of dependence. You know, when Satan came to tempt Adam and Eve, his first attempt was to get them out of the path of dependence. God had said that they were not to eat that tree. Were they going to depend on God's Word? Was that enough, or did they have to try it to find out?
You hear the expression? Well, try anything once.
Well, he tried something once and they brought a lot of misery on themselves and into this world.
Didn't they? And if we rely upon God, if we have that confidence in him.
Then there is safety because He's marked out the path for us in His precious word.
It says in Psalm 17 By the word of thy lips.
Have I kept me from the paths of the destroyer? So Satan came to Eve.
And he first tried to put a doubt in her mind. He said, yay, half God said. He put a doubt in her mind about whether God had really spoken. And then when he saw that she picked up that doubt and said, lest she die, then he flatly contradicted God. And that's the way he always does. The first recorded words of Satan in the Old Testament are this.
Yeah, hath God said, and the first recorded words of Satan in the New Testament are.
If thou be the Son of God, he's always going to try to raise a question in your mind as to the truth of God's Word and as to the glory of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because once he has shaken that, then we're in a dangerous position because then he can lead us astray. When he when he tried this with the Lord Jesus, the Lord Jesus was the perfect dependent man.
And every time he brought a temptation.
The Lord answered by it is written, he couldn't get him from the path of dependence.
And so he was, he was powerless because the Lord Jesus met him as a perfect dependent man should. Oh, you say the Lord couldn't sin. Indeed, that's true, He couldn't sin. But he showed us how to meet the tempter. And if you and I are walking in the power of that new life, we actually possess the life of Christ. And so we have the power to meet the tempter in the path of dependence. But.
Path of our own wisdom, not in the path of our own strength. So it says here they stumbled and fell. And that's what happened when Satan tried it with the Lord. Now he's trying it with the family of God. He tried it with Adam and Eve and they fell. He tried it with the Lord, and he couldn't get the Lord from the path of dependence. But he hasn't given up on the family. And it says in John's epistle.
All that's in the world, the lust of the flesh.
Lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world. He still is trying it with the family of God.
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And we still have the old nature within us, but we have a new life. May we seek to meet these things by reckoning ourselves dead indeed unto sin, but alive under God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Well then, he goes on here, though unhosted in camp against me. My heart shall not fear the war should rise against me. In this will I be confident? That is, in what will he be confident? He will be confident that the Lord is his strength, that the Lord is able to give him the strength to meet the temptations that Satan presents Peter.
Thought that he could do it in his own strength. He thought he was a self confident person. When the Lord warned him and said that he would deny him three times by Peter answered, though all should deny thee, yet will not I? In other words, he really boasted to the Lord that he was the best disciple he had. He really was saying to the Lord Lord on the best disciple that you have.
The others might but not made and he had to learn that that was self-confidence, self-confidence. But here the psalmist says in this will I be confident we can be confident on the authority of God's word. We can be confident that when we meet situations by the word of God that there is the strength to meet them, but all how we tend just like Peter to be self confident to thank.
I've had a lot of experience As another has said, when difficulties arise, we often tend to lean on experience and say, well, I know I met a situation like that before and this person said, when these situations arise, it's God that we need. It's the Lord that we need. How often when we lean on experience, we're leaning on our own wisdom, on our own strength. We become self confident. But the.
Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.
We don't realize the wretchedness of our own hearts. We don't realize how deceitful they are, desperately wicked. So we need to have this kind of confidence. And you can be as confident as you like in the Lord. You can't be overconfident in Him, because in Him is everlasting strength. In Him is all that we need for the pathway as we walk in the light of His word.
Now when we come to this fourth verse, we have these two little words.
So often found throughout the scripture, he says one thing.
Have I desired of the Lord that will I seek after that one, those two words, one thing we think of that rich young ruler who came to the Lord and the Lord had to say to that young man, one thing thou lackest, the most important thing was lacking in his life. He he was a very well brought up young man.
What we would call a a fine moral young man.
But he lacked the most important thing. He really didn't have in his heart any love for the Lord Jesus.
He was really confident in his own self righteousness. He lacked the important thing. And then we know the story about Martha and Mary. Martha was careful and troubled about many things, but the Lord said one thing is needful and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her.
Sometimes I thought that little story.
Is somewhat misunderstood. That is, as I gather from the context of the story.
I believe that those two girls were working together in the home because.
Martha's complaint was that Mary had left her to serve alone. And I believe what happened was that they were both busy. And when the Lord came, Mary said, oh, this is an opportunity we must not miss, and I'm going to sit down and listen to what the Lord has to say. But Martha thought the work had to go on.
And so, you know, we all have responsibilities. They're necessary, they have to be done. But I'm sure that there are people at this meeting tonight that knew that there was a lot of other things that you could have done, but you had to leave something to be here. In fact, I think it's usually so that to have time to sit at Jesus feet, you have to leave something that you perhaps wanted to do important in itself, but you had to leave it.
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Mary chose the good part. She left things because.
The Lord Jesus visited her home and she wanted to hear what he had to say. And let's never miss the opportunities that we have of sitting at the feet of the Lord Jesus. I know that there are necessary chores and things to be done. When later on the Lord was going to come to that home, it says they made him a supper. So Mary wasn't lazy. They made him a supper. But when the Lord came, we see Mary again at the feet of the Lord Jesus.
Oh, may the Lord grant that we will value these privileges. One thing is needful.
And then the apostle Paul could say this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth under those things which are before. He had a purpose in life, and his purpose was to have Christ as his object, and he pressed toward the mark. What was before him was the glorious time when he was going to see a Savior face to face, and everything else was measured in relation to that.
Other things dropped off as to their importance in relation to that wonderful thing that he had before his soul, that he was going to gaze into the face of his Savior, but he was going to be with the one who was his object, who was his righteousness, who was everything to his soul. And then this brings us to the one here. One thing have I desired of the Lord.
Most of us have things that we desire in life. When we kneel down to pray, we have.
A good many requests to make of the Lord, but the psalmist here had one.
Prime thing that he desired, and that one thing was that he wanted to live his whole life in the company of the Lord. And that's a wonderful desire to have. It's a very, very blessed thing because that's what's going to make heaven, heaven, to be in the presence of the Lord for all eternity, to be in the enjoyment of himself and of his love for all eternity. And I believe the psalmist is saying here.
That he wanted to enjoy this here in this life.
We all recall the verse at the end of the 23rd Psalm where it says, surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever. And we like to think about that blessed future before us of being in the Father's house forever. But is it our desire? Is it my desire to walk through this world?
In his company. Well, this was the one thing that he's talking about here.
Not at the end of the journey, but all the days of my life, all the days of my life. And I like to think too, brethren, that there are two different ways in which we can enjoy the Lord's presence. I believe they're brought before us in the 28th chapter of Matthew, and that is collectively and individually. We find that in the 28th of Matthew, the Lord appointed.
A special place where the disciples could go and.
He would meet them, it says, a mountain that Jesus appointed them, and so they had to put forth some energy.
To go to that particular spot where the Lord said that He would meet with them. And you know, I believe that if we're exercised before the Lord and seek to follow the guidance of His Word, He will show us how we can meet together according to His Word, where the Lord is in the midst.
That's a very blessed privilege. I don't think there's anything more sweet on earth than to be gathered around the Lord Jesus and know that we're gathered according to His word with Himself in the midst. And it says when they saw him, they worshipped him. But when the little gathering was over, they all had to leave that mountain place where the Lord had said he would meet with them. And the Lord said something wonderful to them.
When they left that he said, lo, I am with you always, even under the end of the world, as though he were saying, you have to leave this little gathering where we can be together collectively, the Lord in the midst out into a hostile world. Do we have to leave His company in an individual way? You can enjoy the company of the Lord in your home as you drive your car.
You can enjoy his company at work. And so I believe this is what the psalmist is talking about. I know he didn't enter into it in the way that we can now, but I do say that I believe there's something very beautiful in your home as you drive your car. You can enjoy his company at work and so I believe this is what the psalmist is talking about. I know he didn't enter into it in the way that we can now.
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But I do say that I believe there's something very beautiful in this, to that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.
Isn't this a nice thought to behold the beauty of the Lord?
That is when we come together to gather around the Lord Jesus. It's very easy for us at times to get occupied with one another.
But it tells us here that his desire was that he might dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of his life, to behold the beauty of the Lord. We find something of that thought in the 28th of Matthew. It says when they saw Him, they worshipped Him. And it's a great thing for us when we come to be gathered around the Lord, just to be occupied with Him, to behold the beauty of the Lord.
And then it says to inquire in His temple, that is in His presence. I believe He makes known to us, shall I say, precious thoughts concerning Himself. And even when we come in the prayer meeting, for the Lord is in the midst of the prayer meeting, we're invited to come boldly to the throne of grace, to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Well, this is the one thing of desire.
And now when we come to this fifth verse, we have a hiding place. For in the time of trouble, He shall hide me in his pavilion.
In the secret of his Tabernacle shall he hide me? He shall set me up upon a rock. God doesn't promise us as believers that we're going to escape all the troubles of this world. No, it says unto you, It is given on the behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for his sake. It also says in the world.
Ye shall have tribulation. We were just reading in this another Psalm this morning.
And it says many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth him out of the mall. God doesn't promise us that we're not going to have trouble, but we have a hiding place which the world doesn't have. Solomon said in the book of Ecclesiastes. He said, I beheld all the oppressions that are done under the sun, and behold the tears of those that are oppressed and on the side of their oppressors.
There was power and they had no comforter. Isn't that like the world? They have these kind of troubles, plenty of them, and they have no comforter. But we're not in that position. Before the Lord Jesus went away, he assured his disciples they were going to have trouble, they were going to have tribulation. But he said he said be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. And so we have.
A hiding place in him in the time of trouble. And so it says, he will hide me in his pavilion, in the secret of his Tabernacle shall he hide me. And he also said to the disciples that seeing he was going away to leave them, he said, I'll send you another comforter, that he may abide with you forever. So the Spirit of God.
Indwelling the believer is our comforter who helps us to rise above situations that are trying.
And he'll set us upon a rock. The Lord is our rock, says in Deuteronomy.
It says their rock is not our rock, even our enemies themselves being the judges. And this is what it means Here now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies. People of the world have all their arguments and philosophies and all that kind of thing, but when trouble comes, why they realize that those.
Arguments sweep away. They seem of little value when the difficulties come.
And they often end up in despair. But as Christians, how different for us. I believe it was DL Moody one time was asked to speak to a group of infidels and that was the verse that he took. He took that verse in Deuteronomy. I quoted. Their rock is not our rock, our enemies themselves being the judges. And he told about.
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Men of the world and how they were heroes and wonderful people.
But often when they came to the end and they lost their fame and perhaps lost their wealth, they had nothing. And then he told about believers and told about the end of their journey and how they had something. They had a rock. They had someone to lean upon. The Lord is our rock and our fortress. He's the one that we have. He's the rock of our salvation. And so it tells us here that.
He shall set me up upon a rock, and now shall mine head be lifted up.
Above mine enemies round about me. It's the way we meet these troubles, brethren, that is a testimony to the world. That's what it means in Peter when it says that they speak evil of us as of evil doers. They may buy your good works, which they shall behold. Glorify God in the day of visitation. They watch you. We may do some talking, but they watch us, and when they.
US in trouble and they see that we have something that sustains us in trouble. We have a rock, we have the Lord. Why then they they realize this and then in the day of visitation for them, when trouble comes into their lives, they know who to turn to. They knew like this the jail keeper, he was there and I suppose totally thoughtless about.
Paul and Silas because it says he thrust them into the inner prison, but when he heard these two men sing in the prison.
I think it made a tremendous impression on that jail keeper. But he didn't say anything at that point. Now he wasn't in any trouble himself and he didn't feel his need. But when the earthquake came and the prison doors flung open and he thought the next morning might lose his life.
Then he knew who to turn to. It was those men that could sing in prison with their backs bleeding.
And if that, in that sense he glorified God in the day of visitation, when the visitation came and he realized that he might lose his life, then he turned to them. He didn't turn to the other prisoners. There were other prisoners there. But he comes to these men that he had heard singing and says, what must I do to be saved? What do you have that we don't have? Isn't this beautiful, what it says here?
Therefore will Ioffer in his Tabernacle sacrifices of joy.
I will sing, yeah, I will sing praises unto the Lord. That is, we can lift up our voices, as the little hymn says. And so amidst our sorrow, a joyful song we raise, and the Lord enables us to offer praise. And let's remember too about that. Those 10 lepers that were cleansed, every one of the ten were cleansed, but only one came back to.
Thanks. And the Lord said, were there not ten clans? But where are the 9? And do we glorify God when He has helped us in trouble? When He has proved His presence near, do we then return to him and thank Him?
Sometimes I think that we forget we're just so glad to get out of the trouble. We forget to give thanks. I'm afraid we're like the other nine very often. But it says here, I'll offer in his Tabernacle sacrifices of joy. I will sing, yeah, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
So he goes on here in this seventh verse. Here, Oh Lord, when I cry with my voice, have mercy also upon me, and answer me, When thou saidst seek ye, my face, my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
This verse, which is just about the middle of the Psalm, seems to me to raise a question here the Lord is saying, Seek ye my face. And if I can put it this way, he's waiting for our answer. And the psalmist could answer and say, My heart said unto thee, thy face, Lord, will I seek you know. The Lord knows what our hearts are saying. We can often say things.
With our lips. But the Lord knows what our hearts are saying and I believe right now.
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In his very meeting, brethren, the Lord is looking upon us, and he is saying.
Seek ye my face, he wants our company. When you love somebody you really find your pleasure in their company. I've often said even in married life the test of true love is you don't get tired of a persons company. You know if you really love a person why is fine satisfaction in being in their company? I've heard it said a friend is a person that you can be with for 15 minutes or half an hour.
Word. But you still get something from being in their company. And so there's a wonderful thing that you and I can enjoy, and that is just being in His company. And He wants it. The Lord Jesus didn't just die to save our souls from hell. That's a wonderful deliverance. But He died for more than that. He died because He wanted our company, and he's not going to be fully happy until He has us with Himself.
And it says.
Heal joy over thee with singing. He'll rest in his love. And doesn't this speak to your heart and mind? To think that he really wants to have our company? And what do our hearts say when you really want to have somebody'd company and they don't want yours? It's awfully frustrating, isn't it? That makes you feel badly. But when we think who it is that's saying seek ye my face, what does our heart say? It might.
Somebody that hasn't done very much for you and you might say I don't feel any obligation to them.
But how could we think for a few minutes even of what the Lord has done for us?
And not feel a response spring up in our hearts. And that response would say, thy face, Lord, will I seek. Well, this was the answer of the heart of the psalmist.
And in contrast with this, in the ninth verse he says, Hide not thy face far from me.
Put not Thy servant away in anger. Thou hast been my help. Leave me not, neither forsake me, O God, of my salvation.
This verse might be a little difficult to understand, but in the light of the New Testament, we know that the Lord will never leave us nor forsake us. But I believe, brethren, that it is quite possible for us to lose the enjoyment of His presence. And in the 24th chapter of Luke, there were two discouraged people that were going from Jerusalem down to Emmaus, and the Lord was right beside them, and they didn't know it.
As far as they were concerned, they didn't know what had happened to their, to their Messiah. He had been crucified and they had expected that he would redeem Israel. And they were totally frustrated and they didn't know that he was standing right beside them trying to draw out their hearts. And so hello, the Lord will never leave you nor forsake you. I remember a older brother saying to me when I was very young, he said, Gordon, I never asked the Lord to be with me.
But I do ask him to give me a sense of his presence because he said that he won't leave us. But are we enjoying his presence because he doesn't leave us? He wants us to be in communion with Him. But we let clouds come between. We let things, reasonings and doubts and all kinds of things, perhaps even carelessness in our walk.
Sins that we allow, they come between us and the Lord, but he's right there.
Always ready to restore. And so this verse is very practical. That is what should we fear more than anything in our lives. We say I I'm really afraid that I might lose my health or I might lose my job. The worst thing that can happen to a Christian is to get out of fellowship with the Lord. That's the very worst thing that can happen. And so I believe that's the import of this verse. Hide not thy face far from me.
And that is to lose. The enjoyment of his presence is the most serious loss that a Christian can have.
So he goes on. My father and mother might forsake me because they're the perhaps the dearest ties here upon earth parents who have done a great deal for us. And then sometimes they do give us up. Sometimes they do forsake us. Young people who have been saved, and older ones too, have sometimes been forsaken by their parents. Their parents have given them up because they accepted Christ.
But he says.
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When they do, the Lord will take me up. He'll never leave you nor forsake you. And He comes to us, especially at times like that man in the 9th chapter of John, when they put him out of the synagogue, it says Jesus found him. Jesus found him. And you know, when we are cast off by those that we love, then that's the time the Lord makes himself very real and precious to our hearts.
And now we come to the 11Th verse, because in this Psalm, as I say, we have the wonderful resource that we have in the Lord for any and every situation of life, says in the 11Th verse, Teach me thy way, O Lord.
We need him to teach us. We can't find the way ourselves, says in the 53rd of Isaiah. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. I heard a brother say one time that if we're honest with ourselves, but we like most of all, is our own way.
It's a sad compliment about us, isn't it? That we are like that we're naturally self willed.
But the heart that has been brought into the presence of the Lord and knows his love says, teach me thy way. And I think this is something we can ask the Lord every day of our lives because He has not only told us the way of salvation, He's not only told us the way to gather. But isn't it true that we start out on a day and we'll never have a day exactly the same again as today?
Tomorrow is going to be different if the Lord leaves us here. There's no two days alike. And we need the Lord to teach us the way we need in His Word, the instruction that He gives. But there's so many decisions and things that we have to meet in everyday life. I think it's a very good prayer for every one of us over and over again as we start the new day to say teach me.
Thy way. Of course, it is most important that we read his word.
Because He has shown us in His Word much that we need for our pathway all things that pertain unto life and godliness. That is, He has given us principles to guide our footsteps and things that we should shun and all this. But then they're also a great many decisions that we have to make that we don't have a definite verse of Scripture. We have principles, but we do have the privilege of.
To the Lord about where we should go and where we should work, and all kinds of things that we can find. We can't find a direct Scripture, but we come to the Lord and ask him, and it says, In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct thy paths. But then it goes a little farther in this verse.
And lead me in a plain path because of mine enemies.
He not only teaches us, but it says in the 10th chapter of John, when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them. Sometimes I do a lot of traveling about, and sometimes people will give me directions about how to get to a certain place. And then after they've explained it all to me, they'll say that there's one point there that's very, very difficult. You're liable to miss it when you come.
But it's quite complicated, so I'll just jump in my car and take you that far, and then I'll let you go on from there. But I don't want you to miss that. That's a very important spot. Isn't it wonderful that this is just what the Lord says? He not only teaches us, but He says. He said the psalmist asked him to lead, and the Lord says that He will lead. When he putteth forth his own sheep, He goeth before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know His voice.
And then there's another nice verse in the book of Ecclesiastes, the book of Isaiah, that says, thou shalt hear a voice behind thee saying.
The the thou shalt hear a voice behind these saying this is the way walking in it. When you turn to the right hand or to the left, notice the chains there. The Lord says he goes before. But we do run ahead of the Lord sometimes, don't we?
We run ahead of him and then he's he's behind and he's saying you took the wrong path here. You took the wrong path. He saw us turn to the right hand or to the left. He doesn't forsake us even when we make these bad steps in life. That voice behind says this is the way. Let's ever be ready to listen to his voice. He teaches us. He goes before and then when we.
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Are willful or something? And then behind us he's still interested in our pathway.
This is the way walking in it when you turn to the right hand or to the left.
And the 12Th verse says, Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies, for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty.
All these things, as we have been noticing, are all found in the Lord. They're not found in any wisdom of our own. It's a person that's brought before us. He's everything to us, and He's our deliverer. And I think every one of us in this room have had an experience at some time or other when somebody has said something unkind and untrue about us, something that was hard to bear.
And there was no use trying to explain because.
People didn't understand when we did try to explain and so all we could do was just look up to the Lord and say.
Deliver me the Lord always has the story down properly and it's a good thing to have that quiet confidence in the Lord. And I say to you, when you get into a situation like that and someone has said something untrue about you, you'll usually find that when you try to defend yourself, it only makes matters worse. But when you look up to the Lord and say.
Lord, deliver me, because You have sought to act before Him and He knows the whole truth of the situation.
Then he gives you that peace, and that's the only thing. Poor job. When his friends started to say things about him that were hurtful, he tried to defend himself and he got annoyed with them. And what did he gain? He didn't really gain anything by all his arguments, did he? Because the Lord was trying to teach him something. And it's a good thing, brethren. It's a thing for us to remember.
My father many years ago.
Told me about an experience that he had and he was a comparatively young man and someone had said something that was rather hurtful. And he went to an older brother and said to him, he said, what do you do when your brethren say things that are unkind and untrue? And I thought the brother gave him very wise advice. He said brother.
Walk with the Lord and they'll change your their opinion about you.
Just leave things with the Lord. And in time, Paul, Paul had to go through this. All those in Asia turned away from him. And he said the Lord is the righteous judge. And so it's a blessed thing to maintain a good conscience before God. And we have to learn in life, brethren, over and over again, just have to leave things with the Lord and count upon him.
And so he says, I had fainted unless. I had fainted unless.
I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. I don't believe that this world is really.
The land of the living. For the believer, it's the land of the dying, the land of the living.
Is ahead for us the time when we're going to be in his presence, where there's fullness of joy and this is what sustains us, that at the end of life journey we're going to be in his presence. And brethren, if we are not confident in his grace and his strength and his health for the pathway, we're going to faint. We're going to get discouraged over and over again we find faithful servants.
Like poor Jeremiah, he became so discouraged.
He said, he said that he had tried to speak faithfully and he said everyone hated him and he got very discouraged. John the Baptist, when the Lord allowed him to be shut up in prison, he actually got so discouraged he sent to the Lord saying, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? It's easy to get discouraged if we get our eyes off the Lord. I had fainted. Unless and we'll faint, we'll get discouraged. We'll never be able to stand all.
Ups and downs of Christian life unless we have an eye to the.
Future and Paul said the things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are not seen are eternal. And so he closes this little Psalm by saying, wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart. You notice that's the opposite to fainting, to be of good courage. And I enjoy thinking about this little expression. Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and he shall.
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Strengthen 9 heart weight I say on the Lord.
Sometimes when someone comes along and wants to press you to make a decision.
But you have a dear friend that you want to talk the matter over with, and they keep on pressing you. You say, no, I don't intend to make a decision today. I want to talk it over with my wife or my husband or some friend. And you won't let them push you into making a decision because you have confidence in that loved one or that friend. And you won't do it without talking it over with them. Well, you know, this is very important for us.
It's when we don't take the time to talk matters over with the Lord, when we don't seek His help, we don't seek his grace. We think we know the right thing to do and we don't wait and say even even in situations that come up suddenly we find dear Nehemiah when he was in the court of the king and the king asked him a question and he was puzzled, I expect, about just how to answer that question because it was very important that.
Answered it the right way, and it says so I prayed unto the God of heaven.
And I said unto the king. He didn't answer the king until a swift little prayer went up to the Lord, because he wanted wisdom from above. Sometimes you have the time to go to your room, or perhaps a couple of days to consider a matter. Sometimes things have to be done suddenly.
But you can pray to the Lord quickly too. You can look up to him. He's always there. As I've sometimes said, there's 24 hour service day or night. He's always there ready to help us. And so I say again, as this little Psalm brings before us, we have everything in him, brethren, all that we need. The psalmist who wrote this little Psalm didn't know the blessings that you and I know in Christianity, but the same one that he found his.
Source of strength and help in is the one that we have only he's made himself known in our time in a much fuller way. Let's enjoy his presence, his guidance and look to him in every situation. I say again, I believe things are going to become more difficult. I don't think we can expect that things are going to get easier in the world or even for us as Christians or even as gathered to the Lord's name. But I do say.
The Lord is sufficient, and he says, My grace is sufficient for thee.
For my strength is made perfect in weakness.