Lorneville Conference: 1994
Table of Contents
John 15:1
John 15:8
John 15:15
Christ The Same
The Word of God and Prayer Our Resource
Address—G.H. Hayhoe
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Like to turn first of all to Second Chronicles chapter 28 and the 24th verse. Second Chronicles 28, verse 24. And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the House of God, and cut in peace the vessels of the House of God, and shut up the doors of the House of the Lord, And he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem.
In the 29th chapter in the first verse.
Hezekiah began to reign when he was five years, 5 and 20 years old, and he reigned 9 and 20 years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Ahijah, the daughter of Zechariah. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done.
He in the first year of his reign, and in the first month, opened the doors of the House of the Lord and repaired them.
And he brought in the priests and the Levites and gathered them together unto the Eastgate. Well, it was on my heart this afternoon just to speak a little bit about Hezekiah and some of the lessons that I believe God was teaching him. But I think it's always interesting to see the setting in which these circumstances are found. God doesn't only teach us the truth by laying down doctrine in his Word, which He does most clearly.
But he sets before us.
Real living people like ourselves, people who had feelings something like we have and who are faced with difficulties similar to those that we face, especially in this our day. And we think of what kind of a father this man, Hezekiah had. Just think of him closing up the doors of the House of the Lord, cutting in pieces that which belonged to the Lord. And so he was living in a very, very difficult day. That is Hezekiah living.
See all this going on? But there's something also that I believe is interesting and that the Spirit of God mentions the name of his mother. And this shows the influence that I have no doubt his mother had upon him. And I just like to say that to those who are sisters, you might feel that because you don't take apart publicly that you don't have the same influence, but you might even have a greater influence.
Because mothers are with their children a lot more.
And perhaps, in spite of all that was going on in his home, here was a mother who had the fear of God before her, and we see the blessing that resulted. Hezekiah is one of the brightest lights in the history of Judah, A man who really sought to act for the Lord. Not perfectly, as we'll learn a little of the lessons in his life, but nevertheless one that really had a desire to please the Lord.
And I like to say this too, don't blame your background.
Don't say I can't help but because things weren't just the way they should be in our home. You know, because you were an individual. You stand before God as an individual. Thank God if someone has helped you. But some of the brightest lights in the Scripture are people who didn't always have the help that they might have even in their home and certainly not in their generation. But nevertheless, if we look to the Lord, we have a perfect example.
Looking to man, we see oh is that, oh is that which faiths?
There's no perfect one, only the Lord himself. And so I would just like to encourage you, dear young people, to have your eyes upon the Lord. Look to him, because if you look at me or some others, you may be disappointed, King David said. I've seen an end of all perfection, but thy commandment is exceeding broad, and that is if you look at man, you will see an end of all perfection. No matter how much you think of anybody, you're going to be disciplined.
If you look at them too much, but if you have your eyes upon the Lord, you'll find in him a perfect object for your heart. And I think that expression, thy commandment is exceeding broad is just the thought that it covers every situation in our lives. The Bible doesn't just tell us how God would have us together. That's a precious thing, how?
We can be saved.
It doesn't just give, shall we say, the highlights, but God is interested in every detail of your life and mine. He knows your background, just as He has recorded us of the background of Hezekiah. You might say, well, it's difficult. It must have been difficult for Hezekiah, but we think of the courage of that man when he came to this possession. We see him.
Immediately it says he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord.
And I just like to encourage you, dear young people, to do that which is right in the eyes of the Lord. You may face criticism, criticism from those that you didn't expect it, but it's a great thing to live our lives before the Lord and make His word that which guides our footsteps. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
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When it says a lamp to my feet, it means that God may just give you light for one step.
But he'll also, in his word, give you light for the whole pathway.
Some of us who are a bit older realize that when we were young we needed certain things to encourage us and help us. But that doesn't mean we don't still need the direction of the Word of God as we get older. We need it for every step of the pathway, regardless of age. For I realize I'm speaking to older ones as well as those who are younger and how precious it is that the Word of God covers every stage of life and suited to.
Every civilization, every culture. The Word of God is unlike any other book. It's written for all times. Just imagine a book, the last page of it written will say 1900 years ago and perfectly suited to the day in which we live. More up to date than the daily newspaper, because it tells us not only conditions as we see them today.
But also, what's going to happen tomorrow?
That is the word of God looks on. And I just like to encourage you, dear young people to value the word of God. Value it, keep it. I always remember our dear old brother Big. He said every time I pick up my Bible, I say precious word of God, precious word of God. It's good for us too. Always think of it as that which gives us all things that pertain unto life and godly.
What I would like to just look at a few little things in Hezekiah's life. If you turn to Isaiah chapter 38, I think it is.
Right. First of all, in 37, I'd just like to read a little 37th of Isaiah, the first verse, and it came to pass when King Hezekiah heard it, that was a letter railing upon the God of Israel.
He read his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the House of the Lord. And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet.
The son of Amos. And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy. For the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. It may be that the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria, his master has sent to reproach the living God.
And will reprove the words which the Lord thy God hath heard.
Wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left. So the servants of the king of Hezekiah came to Isaiah, and Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say unto your master.
Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria hath blasphemy me. Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.
Well I I won't read the whole chapter but.
Read 3630 fifth verse.
For I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake. Then the Angel of the Lord went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians 104 score and 5000. And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
Well, we see this great threat that came in life of Hezekiah. When this army came up against him, he felt so helpless. And there may be somebody who's sitting here that you're just in such a position. You feel the odds are all against me. Everything seems to be lined up and going the wrong way. What hope is there? Isn't it nice to see the simple faith of Hezekiah? He turns to the Lord at this time.
And we see how marvelously the Lord came in.
He didn't even have to fight. In fact, the command that the king gave to the ones on the wall was answer him not. And so he just counted on the Lord, and the Lord sent the Angel, just one Angel, and slew 185,000.
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There is nothing too hard for the Lord. It doesn't matter how difficult and impossible a situation might be that you're facing, the Lord is able. The Lord can handle it better than any of us can do. And so we see how well the Lord took care of the situation and delivered His people.
But you know, there come times when God does work miraculously and everything seems to turn out well and we see the Lord working and maybe you can see things like this in your life. There may be some things are just working out nicely in your life and you're just so thankful and so happy, just as Hezekiah must have been at this time. But life is ups and downs. We don't always have things going just happily and so on.
And so God was testing.
Hezekiah here in a time when he was to learn dependence and how the Lord was able to come in now a very personal matter came into his life in the.
In the next chapter, in the 38th chapter, notice how it begins. In those days was Hezekiah sick unto his unto death?
And we see here how.
The Lord had come in so wonderfully in the case of delivering him from this great general and giving deliverance to his people, but now he takes sick and he doesn't understand why perhaps there's been a set back in your life too. You're very discouraged. You think why is the Lord ordered things this way? Why has this happened to me and this was now a test of another kind because this is this is a school of God brethren that we're.
And we never graduate. And God doesn't give any diplomas. No, we don't graduate because we're such sole learners and we have to learn the same lessons over and over again. And so Hezekiah is going to learn a different kind of a lesson. Maybe there's something very personal that's come into your life. Very disappointing, very upsetting, and you cry to the Lord.
And in this case, Hezekiah didn't ask what was the Lord's will.
He thought he knew what was best. Sometimes we think that we know what is best too, and if God would just work out things the way we would like them to work out, that would be the best for us. But it might not. It might not be the best.
We were older, can look back in our lives, and if things had turned out just the way we thought were best at certain times we see they wouldn't have been for good at all. They would have been entirely otherwise. And so isn't it good just to say, Lord, make me willing to accept thy will? I might just mention this. I've mentioned it before, but perhaps it bears repeating. I used to have a little difficulty. Perhaps others do in first Peter 5 and verse 7.
Where it says.
Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you.
And you have a care and it's really getting you down and you bring it to the Lord and you carry it away. Again, you say I wanted to leave it there, but I just can't seem to leave it there. But you know, if you notice the context there, it says in the verse before, which is part of the same sentence, Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God.
That he may exalt you in due time.
Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant, because the adversary, your adversary, the devil, like a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
Why do I say the first part of that verse is so important? Well, perhaps I could tell you my own experience when I find it difficult to cast some matter on the Lord.
I just say to myself, and how Gordon, supposing the Lord came to you and said, Gordon, you're not happy the way I've ordered circumstances in your life, I'll change them and I'll make them just the way you'd like them. It's not my will for you, but I have power and I can change them and make them just the way you'd like.
What would I say? What I say, oh Lord, please do that. Or would I say, Lord, help me to accept this situation from thy hand. That's what it means. Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God. He's mighty. Yes, He could change it. He could make it just the way I'd like, just the way you'd like. But if he has ordered otherwise, would you want him to change it to be your will instead of his?
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I'm sorry to say in this instance.
Hezekiah wanted it his way.
He wanted to live on when God had told him that the time had come when he was going to take him home, if I could use that expression. But he wanted his own way. Brethren, isn't that a lot of our trouble? We want our own way, our own way, and it's not for our good.
We want the Lord's way. Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path because of mine enemies. So his way is best. And you'll find at least I, I think I could say I have found that when I take that position and say Lord, I accept it.
And I just want Grace to be able to meet at why you can leave the care there.
And Satan doesn't get a victory because it says if we don't, if we don't accept his will. And Satan gets a victory. Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion walketh the boat, seeking whom he may devour.
What does the devil do? Well, he always tells us our own way as best. Our own way is best. As someone has said, our natural hearts. There's nothing that we like better than to have our own way.
All we like sheep, have turned astray. We have turned astray. We've got everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Well, so we see Hezekiah desired, he says here in the second verse of this.
Well, I'll read right from the first verse in those days, Hezekiah sick unto death in Isaiah.
The prophet, the son of Amos, came unto him, and said unto him. Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die and not live in. Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, and said, Remember now, I beseech thee.
How I have walked before thee in truth, and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is right in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah, saying, Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father. I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears. Behold, I will add unto thy days.
15 years and I will deliver thee in this city.
The hand of the king of Syria and I will defend this city.
I believe that we learn in these verses here too a very important thing, that there is such a thing as the real will of God for us, and what perhaps could be called the permitted will of God, because the first message from the Lord to Hezekiah was to set his house in order that the Lord was going to take him home.
But when he pled and asked that the Lord would lengthen out his life, second message also from the Lord added 15 years to his life.
Brethren, do you and I want to live in the real will of God, or do we want to live in the permitted will of God? There is such a thing in our lives because God is over all the circumstances. Absolutely nothing happens by chance in your life and mine. God is over everything. And oh, may the Lord teach us, and I am talking to myself as well as to each one here, that no matter what that we will say, Lord teach me to do.
I will, there will be our desire that we might have His will.
Well, the Lord added the 15 years to Hezekiah's life and.
He delivered the city. He didn't allow the land of Judah to be overrun. In the life of Hezekiah, the Lord was exceedingly good.
And God is good.
Surely we can say like it says, He hath not rewarded us according to our sins. How good He has been to us if we look back on our lives. And surely we can thank Him that He was better to us than all our hopes. He was better to us really. We praise Him for His goodness in so many ways.
But Hezekiah now is raised up and he is restored to health. But there's something I want to notice.
In the 39th chapter.
Perhaps to read from the first verse, and at that time Merodach Baladan, son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he had heard that he had been sick and was recovered.
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And Hezekiah was glad of them and showed them.
The House of his precious things, the silver and the gold and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the House of his armor, and all that was found in his house, found in his treasures. There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah showed them not.
Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men, And from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, Here come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon. Then said he, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All just in my house have they seen. There is nothing among my treasures.
That I have not showed them.
Well, we see then that these men came from Babylon to hear about the wonder. Perhaps I should mention that the wonder that was done in the land was Hezekiah asked for a sign, and God gave him a sign, and the shadow and the sundial went back, and that was, of course, the most miraculous sign. They had never seen such a thing, nor could have ever seen it if God interfered in the whole universe to make the shadow on the.
Go back. And so they came to see what was done. And Hezekiah doesn't give one bit of credit to the Lord. He talks about it. It was just something that their land was a wonderful land and that he had a lot of treasures that he was protecting and so on. Brethren, what do you and I want to live for? We want to live for our treasures. Do we want to live just that we might have something here in this world? Have a nice smooth path, a nice easy home and things.
Required for us? Is that what we want to live for?
The Lord Jesus said to the early disciples, He said, In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. Paul said to the Philippians. Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe in his name, but also to suffer for his sake. And again we must through much tribulation enter into the Kingdom of God.
Are are you and I? I can ask myself and you can ask yourself, are we just living to make life easy and pleasurable for ourselves? It seemed that Hezekiah might have wanted to see his life lengthen. Perhaps you noticed the last verse, the eighth verse of this 39th.
Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the Lord which thou hast spoken, He said, Moreover, for there shall be peace and truth in my days.
Are we only thinking of our days?
This speaks to my heart, brethren. Are we only thinking of our days? I think all of us, some of us who are older, can ask this. Or are we preparing the generation to come we find?
The Apostle Paul, at the end of his life, what was he doing still in prison? He didn't have things very easy. All those in Asia had turned away from him. What was he concerned about? Always concerned that Timothy would hold the precious deposit of truth that had been committed to him.
Brethren, are we really anxious for this?
That the truth that God, in His wondrous grace and goodness, has given to us will continue with us, and that we will value it, and that we will walk in it.
Are we just thankful if everything goes well in our day? Is that all that really matters to us?
Perhaps now I'm talking to those of us who are a little older.
No, there's a saying about throwing the torch. And really that's what Paul was doing when we read in Second Timothy. He was, as it were throwing the torch. He was saying to Timothy, Timothy, it's not going to be easy. It's going to be difficult. But if I can help you and cause you to value the things of God and value the truth and walk in it, he said that's my desire for you. That's my desire as I get older. But Hezekiah.
I was only concerned if he could only keep things quiet in his day, in his day. But if the Lord doesn't come, some of the older ones may be taken on.
And that's why I think of you, dear young people. I look at you and I hope you'll value the truth that God has committed to us who are older, that you will value it and that you will walk in it, and that you will seek grace to go on in the path that God has marked out in his precious word. So we see then Hezekiah, as I say, he didn't have a good background because his father was an ungodly man.
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But apparently his mother was a woman of faith.
We see him beginning so nicely. I didn't mention everything, but he had a wonderful Passover in Jerusalem and there was a great revival that took place in his day. It was marvelous what God did. But then God allowed a sickness, something he couldn't understand why it should ever come when he had tried to live to please the Lord. Perhaps you have tried to live to please the Lord in some big disappointment has come. Maybe it's the Lord's will to leave you in the problem and help.
You help you to shine, help you to have a fresh valuation of the truth. And so Hezekiah, when he got well, he seemed to think more of the treasures of his house and more of peace in his own lifetime than the good of the generation to come. Well, may the Lord help us to learn some of these lessons, brethren.
I say these things were written for our learning, that we, through patience and comfort of the scriptures, might have hope.
Now this 40th chapter, I just like to read a little bit of it. Our brother read the last part of it this morning, Isaiah 40 verse one.
Comfort she comforts ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, and her iniquity is pardoned.
For she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins.
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain, And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. And the voice said, Cry, and he said, What shall?
They cry. All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field.
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, because the Spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it. Surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever.
Oh Zion, that bring us good tidings, Get thee up into the high mountain, O Jerusalem, that bringeth good tidings. Lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up. Be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah, behold your God.
Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand in his arm shall rule for him. Behold, his reward is with him and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with his arm and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out the heaven?
With a span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains and scales, and the hills in a balance. Who hath directed the spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor, hath taught him with whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding? Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket.
And are counted as a small dust of the balance. Behold, he taketh.
Up the aisles is a very little thing, and Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beast thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing, and they are counted to him less than nothing and vanity.
I'll read a little more after.
Perhaps you were a little puzzled. I think I was when I first read this. Comfort she, comfort she my people. Seth your God, speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, and her iniquity is pardoned, for she hath received the Lord's hand double for all her sins.
I just wondered why it came together that all that they had gone through double for all their sins. What comfort was there in that?
But I believe, brethren, that the comfort is this, that when we in some measure have learned what I believe the Spirit of God is teaching us here.
And that is what we have further on in the chapter. All flesh is grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. That's the great lesson that God is seeking to teach us, and it's so hard for us to learn it.
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Someone asked Mr. Darby.
How it was that he had such a great knowledge of the Word? How did he study the word of God?
And his answer was.
I'll just give you 4 words, he said. Study well these 4 words. The flesh profiteth nothing.
You know, that's the thing that we learned in the Bible. It's not like any other book. Any other book will perhaps make you feel good that you have attained, that you know, something that you really can handle, whatever your subject may be.
But the more we read of the Word of God, the more we realize that the flesh profits nothing. Nothing now that is. God is teaching us, and it takes us so long. We have to go through so much to learn this lesson. Not that we ever fully learn it, but the Lord passes us through. Thank God there's a day when we'll see that all this is the first man has come to an end.
And all that was of the second man and last Adam, all that was for the.
Of God's Son that's going to abide forever.
Not surely as we look upon this world, think of the history of the nations nations have come up, come to the.
High extent of glory. And then the nations have fallen again. Some other nation has come forward. We see it over and over again in the history of this world. Nations rise up and then nations come down. Oh, brethren, may we learn this lesson, it says.
All flashes as grass and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. I hope the result of these meetings will be that Christ will become more precious to us. If you have been disappointed in someone, someone that you expected something from and they disappointed you, remember God has allowed that it wasn't a very pleasant experience to be disappointed in someone, perhaps that you look to, but if that has caused you to turn to the Lord.
And see in him the altogether lovely one, the one who has all power, the one who's able for every situation. Then there's a comfort in that, because you won't be looking to man, you'll be looking to the one whom God delights to honor God delights to honor his beloved Son. And so it says in the third verse.
Make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough place is plain.
Yeah, we look forward to that time, but God is seeking to teach it to us in some measure now. Every valley shall be exalted. That is in that coming day when our lives pass into review. Maybe those valley experiences, those times when we are really cast down and cast upon the Lord.
Will be the most important times in our lives.
When we learned that the Lord was sufficient, that He is everything, and that He is going to have all the honor.
I've often said when I meet Shadrach and Meshach and Abednego up in the glory, I'd like to ask them, tell me what's the best experience you had when you were living down on this earth?
And I wouldn't be surprised to have them say, oh, it was when we're in the fiery furnace. I said that wasn't that terrifying thing to be tied up and thrown into a fiery furnace all over. They said the Lord walked with us. It was wonderful. We'll never forget it.
And you know, the Lord delights to draw near in those valley experiences. The mountain shall be, the valleys shall be exalted in the mountains where we thought we'd got somewhere and we were really important and we'd climb to the top. It'll be brought low. We'll just see that that.
Only build up our pride and hindered us.
Oh, brethren, there's a day when we're going to see things in the light of God's presence, and he wants us to learn that now. And so the glory of the Lord shall be revealed. The crooked is going to be made straight, the rough places will be made plain.
And all flesh shall see it together. And then the Prophet said, What shall I cry?
He said all flesh is grass and all the glory of man is the flower of grass. I think Isaiah must have expected a different message than that, but that was what he was told to cry.
And he said, The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, because the Spirit of the Lord shall bloweth upon it in the last part of the eighth verse, but the word of our God shall stand forever.
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May we continue, I say this again, the value, this precious book, may we measure everything in the light of this precious book.
His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness. There isn't a question that arises in our life. There isn't a situation that comes whether you're young or whether you're in middle life or whether you're old, that there's not a blessed answer. And what I enjoy is that God not only gives us direct instruction, but He gives us the lives of people, men of like passions with ourselves.
Have often said I sometimes do a little work on my car and I like 2 Things. I like to read the instructions, but I also like it when there's a picture and I can look at the picture and the picture and the instruction go together to me and they help me a great deal. If I just look at the picture, I might just do it right because I might just see all the points. Or if I read the instructions, don't look at the picture.
But God gives us not only instruction in his Word. But I don't.
Believe that there is a single truth in the Word of God, that there isn't a pattern of somebody who went through that kind of an experience and who God showing us, whether they acted wisely or unwisely, what was the result of their actions. Isn't it wonderful there's no book like the Bible?
All fleshes as grass.
The glory of man, and goodliness thereof, is the flower of the field. The grass withereth the flower.
The word of our God shall stand forever. Yes, it tells us forever. O Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven. And I just have this little thought. I don't know whether everyone has the same thought, but I expect to find a Bible in heaven, and I expect to understand every verse in the Bible that I didn't understand down here.
Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven, and I think God is going to show us what a purpose He had in His Word. Now we know in part, and we prophecy in part, but when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. If you're having a difficulty with a verse, you'll understand someday. Then shall we know, even as also we are known. And so if you have a difficulty, ask the Lord to show you. Maybe He'll show you now. Maybe He'll show you in six months.
But he'll show us if we're just willing to know his mind and to do his will.
And then we pass on.
The ninth verse O Zion, that bringeth good tidings, get thee up unto the high mountain. O Jerusalem, that bring us good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength, lift it up, be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God, behold the Lord God.
Will come with a strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him. Behold, his reward is with him and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with his arm and gather them with his bosom.
And gently lead those that are with young. Here we find, as it were, a note of triumph. Looking forward to the time when everything's going to be set right and the Lord will bring blessing to his people and brethren, isn't it a glorious day to look forward to that we're going to see not a company here, many of us not in the best of health and some of us having heavy burdens on our hearts, but to think that you and I are going to look over.
That vast company of the redeemed in company with our precious savior. And there won't be a person who has a care. There won't be a person that has anything that he doesn't fully enter into and understand what a marvelous scene is ahead of us.
That's what we're waiting for, and God is leading us in his school through these experiences and teaching us. And these two great lessons, I believe are set before us in the life of Hezekiah, set before us in this chapter.
That when we have seen the end of the flesh and then we've seen the power of God, we make plans and we're not always able to carry them out. But as we read in the rest of this chapter, why?
It's talking about the power of God, says the nations are about a drop in the bucket. He weighs the mountains and balances and the hills and scales. That's the great God that we have to deal with.
We think of the little problems that we have, and this is the great God that we have created the universe, who upholds all things by the word of his power. And as he looks down in this room, he calls each one of us by name.
00:40:09
And he knows everything that we're going through and he cares. And that's what it brings on the end of the chapter.
And says look, look at everything in the world. And then it says here in the 26th verse.
Lift up your eyes on high, and behold, who hath created these things.
That bringeth out their hosts by number, He calleth them all by names, by the greatness of his might. For that he is strong in power, not one, Faileth says. If you see wonderful things in this world, and he weighs the mountains and balances in the hills and the scales, then look up.
Greater telescopes that man make, the more they see the extent of God's vast universe.
And that's the one that cares for you.
Verse 27 verse Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, my way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God? He says, can you look at all this great display of God's power and then think that he doesn't know about you, doesn't know about those things that are perhaps troubling you at this very moment, those problems that you're facing?
He says, are you saying the Lord doesn't know about these things? All He does know, He does care. He's concerned, He's interested in us all, every detail of our lives. He puts our tears in his bottle. He sees us and is interested in everything in our lives.
And then it says.
In the 28th verse, Hast thou not known, Hast thou not heard that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?
Sometimes when we have big jobs to do well, we get tired. When is this going to be finished? I wish it was all over.
He doesn't faint, he doesn't get weary, there's no searching of his understanding. And then it says He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the used shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. In other words, it isn't the strength of youth, it isn't the strength of natural energy, it's the strength that he gives.
The strength that he gives and so.
I want to encourage you who are young.
I'm sure that many of you are facing real problems in your life. You're having to make decisions that are going to affect all your life. And I just like to encourage you, dear young people, to commit your way unto the Lord.
Ask Him. Don't take one step alone. What you think may be best may not be the best for you. We were older, I say again. As we look back, we see that if the Lord hadn't stepped in and hindered some of our plans, there would have been a lot worse in our lives.
And He is working things out. And when your life is projected in a coming day, and you see it all in the Lord's presence, do you think you'll regret?
One single instance where you said, Lord, I want to do thy will, even if it's difficult, even if it costs me a few tears, even if I can't understand. Lord, just give me grace. Do you think you'll ever regret those decisions in a coming day? Oh, I plead with you, while you're still young, put the Lord. Put the Lord first in your life.
Seek to give him honor. Life is so short down here as compared with eternity.
There are three positions mentioned in the end of the chapter here.
Mounting up with wings as eagles running and walking. Sometimes I think of these three positions. Seems mounting up with the wings as eagles mean being able to rise up above them and look down on them and be entirely above them. Perhaps something like the thought of what we read in the Revelation being an overcomer. Because there's two ways to face problems, to go down under them or to rise above them. And I believe the overcomer is the one who rises above them. But here we see the three.
And you say, oh, I just can't mount up with a wing as an eagle. Then he says, well run and don't be weary.
Maybe you can't rise up above it, but you can still keep running. You say I can't even keep running. I just, it's really slowed me down. Says they shall walk and not faint.
What a God we have. What a one who is interested in US and cares for us. And then I just like to look at a few little thoughts on this next chapter too.
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We see in the first part of the chapter how there were those who worked together in idolatry, it says in the sixth verse.
They helped everyone, his neighbor and everyone said to his brother, be of good courage. So the Carpenter encouraged the Goldsmith and he smoothed with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying it is ready for the soldering, and he fastened it with nails that it should not be moved. Here's the people of the world working together for something that's of no avail at all.
And don't you find it? And just think how the nations are trying to get together, trying to work out a way that they can make peace in this world, but they're only building idols of their own wisdom and strength. But notice the next verse. But thou, Israel, art my servant, whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham by friend.
The 10th verse Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee, I will help thee, will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. What a contrast. People getting together to build idols of their own making, thinking that something that they can do by all working together is going to prosper, he said. But that isn't the way we as Christians are.
Are we as Christians, we turn to the Lord and says fear not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. How can you help your neighbor? How can you help your brother?
Encouraging them in the Lord, encourage him to look to the Lord sometimes when I've been down and some brother or sister said, oh, Gordon, the Lords in control. He's overall, he'll help you, he won't fail you. That was the person that really helped me. He turned me not to not to something that I could do getting all working together in human plan, but to put the Lord first, to follow his direction, to make him.
The one.
Who is the 1St and the last? And so we see in this chapter how God is working. And then I just want to before I close, I just want to notice the 42nd chapter.
Here's the one that we look to.
Behold my servant whom I uphold mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. I have put my spirit upon him.
He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor 'cause his voice to be heard in the street. A bruise that read shall he not break? In a smoking flax shall he not quench?
He shall bring forth judgment unto truth. He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have said judgment in the earth, and the Isles shall wait for his law.
Who is this person that is talking about? Well, I know we all know who it is. It's the Lord Jesus. Is he going to get discouraged? No. Is he going to bring about all the councils and purposes of God? You remember how the Lord Jesus, when he was here in his pathway, he quoted this.
Everything was wrong. The people were rejecting him. People were under the Roman yoke at the time. Everything was wrong. Did the Lord fail or be discouraged? No.
He committed everything into his Father's hand. He did his will and they rejected him. They put him to death. They crucified him. Is He going to set everything right? Yes, in his own time and in his own way.
Oh, brethren, what lessons for us. As I say, we learn it in the life of Hezekiah, and we see how, if I might say again, his background was difficult, but he had a purpose. He wanted to please the Lord.
We see how he turned to the Lord in a time of trouble, and the Lord came in so wondrously for him.
But then even after that, even after that, when he was sick, then what the devil couldn't accomplish by bringing up the army of Sennacherib against him, he accomplished just by sickness that took place in his life.
The enemy never gives up.
He never gives up, he's always right there. Take the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand.
You go away from these meetings. I have often thought of how the Lord brought the disciples up onto the Mount of Transfiguration and Peter said it's good to be here. They saw the Lord in his glory. They saw Moses and Elias, they saw a little preview of the Kingdom. But when they came down from the mount, there was a Father who came to them, and his child had an unclean spirit, and they couldn't cast him out.
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And maybe it's going to be so you say, well, I enjoyed the meeting so much, but as soon as I'm just afraid to go back, there's going to be somebody meet me with that problem too as soon as I get back.
And the Lord said, they said to the Lord, why couldn't we cast him out? He said this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. I trust that we enjoy these meetings. I'm sure all of us enjoy the portion the Lord brought before us here this morning occupying us with.
Lord Jesus.
We all have these situations to meet and you say, I just dread going back because there's problems I'm going to have to face. The Lord is able. The Lord cast out the evil spirit and delivered the boy back to his Father. There is nothing too hard for Jesus. There's nothing that he cannot do. But brethren, may we learn what I think is the great lesson in that 40th chapter of Isaiah.
God's all sufficient power and the nothingness of man.
God's all sufficient power and nothingness of man, and when we have learned that in some little measure, then our hearts are comforted.
As Mr. Darby, I believe, was said when we have learned that there's no disappointment and no deluded hope. No disappointment because we didn't expect anything from the first man. No deluded hopes because we expect everything from our blessed and wonderful Savior. He's able for all the situations that we meet in life. He's able for all the big things and the little things. Oh, dear young people.
I want to encourage make the Lord your object.
Seek to make him the one that you set before you.
I know life is full of difficulties and lessons. There's a lot of disappointments and we all have them. But remember Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today and forever.
Want to encourage you to value your Bible? Turn to the Lord in these problems. Even when others can't help you, the Lord can, and He will give you the grace and the wisdom and the strength that you need. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.
Lessons from King Hezekiah
Address—G.H. Hayhoe
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I'd like to turn first of all to three verses Jeremiah.
Chapter 10, Jeremiah chapter 10 and verse 23.
O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself. It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.
And then another verse in the 119 Psalm, Psalm 119 and verse 9.
Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way by taking heed thereto, according to thy word?
And then also in.
Proverbs.
Chapter 3.
Proverbs, chapter 3.
And verse five, trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge.
Him and he shall direct thy paths. Well, the reason I've read these scriptures is because I believe they bring before us the fact that we need these two things for our guidance through this world. We need the Word of God.
And God has given it to us in it all things that pertain unto life and godliness. And we also need dependence, which prayer is truly the expression of. It has been said that prayer is the expression of confidence and dependence upon God. And so I believe that we need those two things in our pathway here through this world, as it says there in Jeremiah.
Oh Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself. We can take the very.
The wisest man that we could ever meet, and he's not going to know how to go through this world in a proper and wise way. Apart from this blessed book. God has given us a pathway through this world, marked it out in His precious book.
And then too, there are situations that come in our lives where we need guidance. We don't have a definite Scripture. Perhaps, for instance, quite a few of us here came to the meetings in Lawrenceville, happy that we came. We didn't find direction in the word of God that we were to go to Lawrenceville this particular weekend. We prayed about it. We sought the Lord's guidance and He directed us, we trust, to come together in this way. So.
But we have those two things. We find them often brought together in the Gospel of Luke, because the Gospel of Luke presents to us the Lord Jesus as the perfect dependent man here in this world. And so we find him always doing according to his Father's will. And when he met Satan in the temptation, he answered every temptation by just simply saying.
It is written that decided what was the.
Mind of his Father, for him it is written and then in his pathway and choosing the disciples and we have he spent the whole night in prayer to God before he chose his disciples. There wasn't any scripture that would be found in the Old Testament to tell who those disciples would be. And now he goes to his father and he earnestly seeks the will of his father, he said.
I delight to do thy will.
My God. And so I say again, brethren, whether young or old, because it mentions in that 119 Psalm the ninth verse, wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? But by taking heed thereto, according to Thy word, because most of the important decisions of our lives are made in use. When you really look back, you think of how.
There are so many chains that you decide before you're perhaps, say, 25 years old.
Old you've decided what kind of work you're going to take up, you've probably decided where you're going to live. And I trust if if you're really saved that you have made a decision to receive the Lord Jesus.
You may have made a decision too, that you'd like to remember him and his death, and maybe you chose a partner for your life. All these things, great decisions, decisions that affect so much of our lives, and they're made usually by the time we're about 25 years old. So how important then, seeing we are going to make such important decisions that are going to affect our whole life and our destiny even that we should?
Should have direction for them. And God hasn't left us without direction. He's given us his word. Again I say the the way of man is not in himself.
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Solomon was the wisest man that ever lived and he acknowledged that all his wisdom didn't enable him to find God. God has to reveal himself and that he has done in his word. When Paul went to preach in Berea, it says that the Bereans were more noble than those in Thessalonica because they searched the scriptures.
Daily to see if those things were solved.
And I would be more than happy if someone here tonight said, well, I'd like to see what you have said from the Word of God because whatever I might say tonight is of no real value unless it's according to God's Word. But then, as I say, there are other decisions that you have to make. And if you are near the Lord and close to him. I was helped by the remark that Mister Darby made in connection with prayer. He said prayer is based on the privilege.
Having common interests with God, that was very precious to me. Common interests with God. God has interests in this world, and we have the privilege of entering into and enjoying and walking in his interests in this world. What a privilege that is. Well, as I say, this is really so important in our lives.
And I was just thinking of a case where I believe this is brought out in First Chronicles.
And I just like to look tonight, with the Lord's help at what is brought before us in First Chronicles chapter 12, just before I start, because sometimes I think it helps to know what is before us. I believe what is bringing before us here was the matter of bringing up the ark, and that ark that God and that God told Moses to make when he gave him instructions about making it, he said.
There I will meet with thee.
And there I will commune with thee according to all things that he would have his people to do. And so the ark was a figure of God meeting with his people. And then the second thing was, in the next chapter, with the Lord's help, we'll see.
How that? How that?
King David had a decision to make and he didn't have a definite scripture. So he turned to the Lord, and when a second decision came up again, he turned to the Lord and sought his mind. And so after he had sought the Lord's mind and the Lord had shown him his direction for his pathway, then he acted on that of the Lord undertook for him, and then.
We'll see how when he brought up the ark according to the revealed mind of God in his word, that God blessed him in it. And so as I say, I'd just like to look at a little bit of detail because.
God has not only set forth doctrine in His Word, but as I was mentioning the other night in the meeting or the other day rather, that God has not only given us direction, but He has given us that truth worked out practically in the lives of people. And that means a lot to me as I read the Bible. I like to see the action of the word of God on people because.
When Paul went to one of the cities where he preached.
He said we also are men of like passions with yourselves. And so as we read of these people in the Bible, they were people like ourselves. They needed direction. They found direction in the word of God. They found answer as they turned to God in prayer. And we see how that sometimes they acted on their own wisdom just like we do and it it didn't work out when they did it according to their own wisdom, but when they did it according to.
The directions that God has given in His Word, then God was free to bless them, because happiness and blessing is in the pathway of obedience. The way of man is not in himself. So God has given us this direction.
Wherewithal shall the young man cleanse his way by taking heed thereto, according to thy word? And again I wish to say, the Bible never is.
Outdated as our brother was bringing before us the word same God is is not different in 1994 than he was when the scripture was written. It's true he may be dealing with man in different ways, but God himself hasn't changed. He's light and he's love. Well, I just wanted to notice a few verses in First Corinthians 12 at first chronicles. Pardon me 12 just at the end of.
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The chapter. The 38th verse.
All these men of war that could keep rank came with a perfect heart to Hebron and make David king over all Israel. And all the rest also of Israel were of 1 heart to make David king. And there they were with David three days, eating and drinking, for their brethren had prepared for them. Moreover, they that were nigh them even unto Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali.
Brought bread on ***** and on camels and on mules.
And an oxen and meat meal, cakes and figs and bunches of raisins and wine and oil and oxen and sheep abundantly. And there was joy in Israel.
I've just read these few verses because I think that's been our experience for two days. As we came together, our brethren prepared for us. We came together and we were seeking to give the Lord his rightful place, just as David was God's rightful king. And then so they were come together and they were seeking to give David his rightful place. The desire was very, very good.
And they had one heart to give David his rightful place.
Which was all very commendable, but we see that in their desire they did not search the word of God. They went by the opinion of a great many, shall I say the majority, but they didn't go by the Word of God. And that's so important for us because our hearts may be right, just as David's heart was right in seeking to give the Lord his rightful place along with all these.
Years and yet he didn't search the word of God. How easy it is for us to really have a heart for the Lord and yet not seek the direction of His word. Let me quote the verse again. The way of man is not in himself, and it doesn't matter who you are or who I am. No matter how long we have known the Lord, if we take a step and we haven't sought the wisdom and direction of the word of God.
We're quite likely.
To go by the opinion of man instead of by the Word of God, that alone is our true source of direction in divine things. As I say, there are decisions that we have to make for which we don't have an actual verse of Scripture. But when the Word of God speaks, that's final. That's final. It's not a question then of my opinion.
Says casting down imaginations or reasonings. I believe the margin is.
And bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.
So here we find that this was a very beautiful setting.
A group of happy people together desiring to make David King. And now David has a plan and it says here I'm going to read this whole 13th chapter.
David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader. And David said unto all the congregation of Israel, If it seemed good unto you, and that it be of the Lord our God, let us under broad unto our brethren everywhere that are.
Left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the priests and Levites, which are in their cities and suburbs, that they may gather themselves unto us.
And let us bring again the ark of our God to us, for we inquired not at it in the days of Saul.
And all the congregation said that they would do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. So David gathered all Israel together from Shihor of Egypt, even unto the entering of Hemath, to bring the Ark of God from Kurtis Jerome. And David went up and all Israel to Belah, that is to Curtis Jerem, which belongs to Judah.
To bring up since the ark of God, the Lord that dwelleth between the cherubims, whose name is called on it.
And they carried the Ark of God in a new cart out of the House of Abinadab Anaza and Ahayah Dr. the cart.
And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with symbols, and with trumpets. And when they came under the threshing floor of Chidon, Hazard put forth his hand to hold the ark. For the oxen stumbled in. The anger of the Lord was kindled against us.
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And he smote him because he put his hand to the Ark, and there he died.
Before God.
David was displeased because the Lord had made a breach upon us. A wherefore that place is called Paras Azza to this day. And David was afraid of God that day, saying, How shall I bring the ark of God home to me?
So David brought not the ark home to himself, to the city of David, but carried it aside into the House of Obed Edom the Gittite.
And the ark of God remained with a family of Obed Edom in his house three months. And the Lord blessed the House of Obed Edom and all that he had.
Now, as we were saying, David here didn't search the Word of God. We're going to see in the 15th chapter that he did go to the Word of God, and then he got direction. But here, instead of going to the Word of God, he went and followed the opinion of a great many people. And you say, well, didn't these people really have a desire to give David his rightful place? They did.
There was a good desire.
But I'm sure all of us can say that there are times when maybe we have done something with a great deal of energy and really perhaps out of love for the Lord, but perhaps afterwards we have discovered that we didn't follow his word. We didn't follow his word. We were just doing it because we wanted the we were going by the opinions of the crowd.
And so it doesn't tell us about him searching the word of God. It's just.
That he went to the captains of thousands and hundreds, and it says the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.
Oh, how needful it was, brethren, that we go to the Word of God there alone. We get instruction. There's a common expression in Christendom. Go to the Church of your choice. But is it the Church of our choice? The Lord said in the chapter we had before us in the Bible reading, He have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. It isn't what we choose, it's what God chose. He chose us.
And if we're going to know his mind and His will, why we have to go by His word? He has marked out a way. He has given us instruction.
So it's it says in the third verse and let us bring the ark of our God to us, for we inquired not at it. In the days of Saul, yes, there had been past failure in Israel and we look back on the churches history and we're all part of it. We say yes, there has been indeed a lot of failure and here was a revival.
That God was granting. It was wonderful that David had this desire.
But I say again, he didn't go to the word of God. He was going by what the others thought. And he said, let us bring it to us, bring it to us, but we have to go. Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the can. It doesn't bring it to us. It's going where He would have us to go. And so it tells us here all the congregation.
Said that they would do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. Yes, public opinion was with them.
And so they.
They made a new cart. Where did this idea come from? Had God-given any instruction about how the ark was to be carried? Where did they get this idea of a new cart? Well, the Philistines had the Ark of God down in their country. They didn't have any priests. They didn't have any Levites. They didn't know the word of God like the children of Israel.
God said to Israel, You only have I known.
Of all the families of the earth, therefore, will I punish you? They were particularly responsible. And I am particularly responsible because I was brought up in a home where the word of God was honored and revered. And I want to say to every young person and everyone who's been brought up in a Christian home, you are more responsible. I am more responsible because I have had such a privilege of having the word of God.
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Not that others are not responsible, but God does measure responsibility. He says to whom much is given of the same shall much be required. And David wasn't like the Philistines. Maybe the Philistines were doing and they were doing a right act in sending the ark back, but they didn't have instructions. So they made this new card on God graciously came in.
And the Ark.
It's very interesting to see what it says.
They weren't even sure whether they were doing the right thing, so they said, well, what we'll do, and they took Millstown.
Cows that were had just had their young and they tied up the young at home and they put these cattle on the cart pulling the ark and they said if this is of God, those animals will carry that ark back to God's land, even though they're.
They're tied up at home. In other words, he said they'll, they'll go against nature. Well, God did come in and those kind, they drew the cart back and drew it back to the land of Israel. God honored their efforts because, shall I say, they were walking up to the light they had. And so God honored their efforts. But Israel, they should have known there was instruction.
And so this new cart was.
The plan that they decided.
Instead of going by the word of God.
And there was much that was commendable. And David and all Israel played before God with all their might. Wasn't there all a great deal of energy put forth in this? Yes, there was a great deal of energy and it was very wonderful that they wanted to have the ark back there. But again, we see God wasn't pleased because they had the light of His word and they hadn't sought the light of His word.
And so the oxen stumbled.
I just have this little thought though, too, that as this ark was driven by Azza and Ahayah, why, there was a certain honor given to men, because this ark was a very important thing, as we were saying, it was that that God had commanded, it was to be made. And there I will meet with thee, because the blood was sprinkled there on the mercy seat, which was on top of the ark. It was a very.
Very precious thing for Israel that ark really meant a great deal.
And so.
They were giving honor to man. There were Azan Ahayah, and they were the ones that drove the ark. We're going to see as we go on in a couple of chapters further, that when they did it God's way. We're not told who carried the ark. There's a whole lot of names mentioned, but God doesn't give honor to man. He gives honor to His own blessed Son.
I've often said you can make a very simple test of any doctrine that is presented to you by asking one question. Does this line of teaching give honor to man, or does it give honor to Christ? You can make a simple test. All man's ideas, even of his religion, is something that gives a place to man. But God always gives full honor to His own beloved Son. He's the center.
It says in John chapter 16, When he, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth. He shall glorify me.
For he shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.
You know, for instance, let's take one doctrine that's quite prevalent, people who teach that a Christian can be saved and lost.
You may say, well, there's a lot of verses that they can bring forward that are a little difficult to answer. Yes, I acknowledge there are some verses that are a little bit difficult to answer.
But.
If I can be saved and lost, then I'm going to have some honor for myself when I get to heaven. The Lord saved me, but I'm going to be able to say he saved me. But I kept saved. Another man, John Smith, he got saved the same night as I did, but he didn't hold on. He let go. So I'm going to have some honor to myself.
But God says, no, all honor is going to my beloved Son. He says God will not give his honor to another. And so he saved me by His grace. He keeps me by His grace. And when I reach the end of the journey, I'm going to have to give him all the praise not only for saving me, but also for keeping me. The truth of God always gives all the honor to God's beloved Son.
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And it says.
The Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. Well, the oxen stumbled, and Aza put out his hand to steady the ark. That is, he put his hand to it as though the hand of man was necessary. And nothing that you or I can do is going to change the truth of God. There's a verse in in Corinthians that says.
We can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth, Everything that man says in all his arguments will never, never change the truth of God. It, it remains, it's like a rock. It's steadfast forever. O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. He didn't need to. I don't need to defend the Bible anymore. If I had a lion here, I wouldn't need to defend it. I wouldn't need to defend it. It's strong enough to look after itself.
And so we don't have to defend the Bible. We have to set forth its worth, but we don't have to defend it. God will, and that's a good thing. If you ever speaking to anybody, don't try and prove to them the Bible is true. Use it. Use it, and God by his Spirit will apply it to the conscience.
Always remember that the Word of God is living and operative, sharper than A2 edged sword. Remember one time in a place where I worked, there was a little discussion going on about spiritual things and I had the grace to quote a couple of scriptures and one of the men spake up. He said well just leave the Bible out of it. Let's talk about this, just leave the Bible out of it.
Another time brother was traveling in the train and pulled out his Bible and he was starting his reading the Bible and the man beside him says I don't, I don't believe that book.
And he said, but you'd feel a lot better if I put it in my pocket, wouldn't you? Why do people say those kind of things? Because the Word of God is living and operative. It speaks to the conscience. We don't have to depend it, use it, use it.
Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, for we will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Well, David was displeased. Oh brethren, are we displeased? Sometimes when the Lord doesn't like some of the plans that we have made, when he steps in and is not, not pleased with what we're doing, David was displeased. Sometimes we're just like that. We don't, we don't like it somehow when God shows his displeasure with some plan that we have made. David was displeased, but he asked a good question here it says.
How shall I bring the ark of God home to me? He didn't say, shall I bring it? That was a very good desire to bring the ark of God to the city of Zion. But how, how? And that was the important thing. And the Word of God had given full instructions about that. And so it's nice to see in the end of this chapter.
In the 13th verse. So David brought not the ark of God home to himself, to the city of David, but carried it aside into the House of Obed Edom the Gittite. And the ark of God remained with the family of Obed Edom in his house three months. And the Lord blessed the household at Edom and all that he had.
I just want to say, brethren, never allow any troubles that come in among the people of God to spoil your family, giving the Lord His rightful place.
I think this is very lovely. This family could have been very upset and said, oh, everything's gone to pieces, but I think this is so beautiful. Here was a family that was going to give the Lord his rightful place, even though things were wrong. And so we find that same thing in the third epistle of John. Things were wrong in the assembly that John wrote to. There was a man there that loved to have the preeminence called Diotrephes.
Was Gaius and.
Demetrius, were they going to allow the condition in the assembly to spoil their home life? Oh no.
They saw to it that their home was for the Lord and that he had his rightful place in their home, a home that should be for the Lord. Never, never allow anything that happens to spoil giving the Lord his rightful place in your home. They could have easily said, well, everything's gone wrong, the ark has, the oxen have stumbled and the Lord has dealt with Isaac, and they could have allowed their home to be ruined by that. But instead of that.
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As the Lord blessed the House of Obed Edom, so how lovely to see Holmes. I think of the home of of the appearance of the appearance of Moses, Aaron and Miriam. Things were in a very sad condition there. Israel were in captivity in the land of Egypt, but here was a home that stands out in all the darkness of what was going on.
And it says that the mother really had faith.
When the child was born, she put him in that arc of bulrushes down in the river because the Bible says she saw that that child was fair to God, Fair to God.
And she wasn't going to allow the conditions that existed in Egypt. They were throwing babies from Israelites into the river. But here was a family that had faith in God, didn't allow the condition of things to ruin their home. And we see three lovely children who stand out in the divine history brought up in the midst of all those conditions, Moses.
Aaron and Miriam.
And so I just wish to drop that little note. I think it's beautiful the way it's brought in in the end of this chapter to show that even though failure had come in, that it says the Lord blessed the House of Oved Edom and all that he had.
Well, now just going to this next chapter, the 14th chapter.
I'd like to look at this chapter more in connection with prayer in the other in the 1St chapter. We'll see that.
In the 14th chapter we see that he didn't.
The 13th chapter, he didn't go to the word of God, he just went by the opinion of people, people who really wanted to give the Lord his rightful place, but they didn't do it according to God's order. But now we see here says in the eighth verse of First Chronicles 14.
And when the Philistines heard that David was anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David, and David heard of it and went out against them.
And the Philistines came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And David inquired of God, saying, Shall I go up against the Philistines, and wilt thou deliver them into mine hand?
And the Lord said unto him, Go up, for I will deliver them into thine hand. So they came up to Baal praisein David smote them there.
And David's then David said, God hath broken in upon mine enemies by mine hand, like the breaking forth of waters. Therefore they call the name of that place Baal Perezin. And when they had left their gods there, David gave a commandment, and they were burned with fire.
And the Philistines yet again spread themselves abroad in the valley. Therefore David inquired again of God. And God said unto him, Go not up after them, Turn away from them, and come upon them over against the Mulberry trees. And it shall be when thou shalt hear the sound of going in the tops of the Mulberry trees. Then thou shalt go up to battle, for God has gone forth before thee to smite the host of the Philistines.
Therefore David therefore did as God commanded him, and they smote the host of the Philistines, and the from Gibeon even to Gazer. And the fame of David went out into all lands, and the Lord brought the fear of him upon all nations.
Well, here we find situation arises when they saw that David was made king over all Israel, Then it says the Philistines and the Philistines were people who dwelled in the land, but they had never crossed the Jordan.
They were not a redeemed people. They were people who, if I can use the expression, like to live in the benefits of being among the people of God, but really were their enemies. They were opposed to them. And so we see these Philistines, they were against David. They didn't like to see David made king, and they came up to fight against them and David inquired of God.
He didn't have some definite scripture how to handle a situation. And maybe there's something common to your life and you say, I don't know what to do. I, I can't find any verse in the Bible to direct me or pray. Ask the Lord to show you what to do. Ask the Lord to show you and he'll give you direction if you look to him humbly.
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And so when David inquired of the Lord, the Lord said, Go up against them, I have delivered them into thy.
Hand and so David got this answer to prayer and he went up and I'm sure that we have all felt these situations come in our lives and we look to the Lord and it's wonderful and beautiful how the Lord does come in and help us in a lot of these perplexing decisions that we have to make. Life is full of decisions. We're in the valley of decision.
And so David did, and the Lord granted the victory. Now the.
Next time the Philistines came, David might have easily said, I don't need to pray about it this time because I know the way to do it. Because last time the Lord gave me this answer and I went up and the Lord granted a victory.
But brethren, let's remember this. There are no two sets of circumstances that are exactly alike.
No2 situations in your life or in the assembly, they're never exactly alike, and we have to always be freshly cast upon the Lord for all the new situations that arise. And when we don't have divine direction, that is a scripture that we can act on. There's many, many things that come up in our lives that we just have to ask the Lord.
And the Lord directed him in this second occasion to go about it.
In a different way, it's true that he had to go against the Philistines, but the way he did it in one case was different from the other. And so the Lord says now you just have to wait, Wait for the sound and the Mulberry trees. Sometimes we're quick to jump and do something quickly. As the Lord said, no, you're going to have to wait. Just wait. And when you hear the sound of the wind in the Mulberry trees, then then go. I think there's a soul.
Instructive for us, and perhaps many of us can.
As I look at my own life, I can apply. Sometimes you might say, well, I know what to do because I did this last time and it worked. But that isn't the way. We need fresh direction each day.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, not in some of thy ways.
Sometimes we have a big decision to make in our lives and we are really diligent in prayer.
But we should be seeking the Lord's mind in all what we might call little things, because little things often have big results in our lives. And so tells us here that David waited on the Lord, waited for the sound of the Mulberry trees, and then God came in and under tipped for him in this occasion.
Perhaps I could say again, I believe in the first instance he neglected the word of God, but in this instance he learned the value of prayer and he turns to the Lord for direction in both these different occasions that arose in his life. Now I'd like to go on to the 15th chapter.
And at the first verse. And David made him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched a tent for it. Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites, For them hath the Lord chosen to gather to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him forever.
David gathered all Israel together to Jerusalem.
To bring up the ark of God unto his place, which he had prepared for it.
And in the.
11TH Verse And David called for Zadok and Abiath of the priests, and for the Levites, and for Uriel Assiah, and Joel Shemaiah, and Eliel Haminadab, and said unto them, He are the chief of the fathers of the Levites. Sanctify yourselves, both you ye and your brethren, that ye may carry up the ark of the Lord God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it.
For because he did it not at the first, the Lord our God wrought A breach upon us. For that we sought him not after the due order. So David, So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves.
To bring up the ark of the God of the Lord God of Israel.
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And then passing on.
25th verse.
So David and the elders of Israel and the captains over thousands went to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord out of the House of Obed Edom with joy. And it came to pass when God helped the Levites that bear the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, that they offered seven bullocks and seven Rams.
I'm sure you have noticed quite a difference here. In the 13th chapter he consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds and every leader. But here we don't read of him consulting with anybody. But what does the word of God say? Has God-given any instructions about how the ark was to be carried? Did he have to follow the idea of these Philistines or did he need to seek public opinion?
Isn't it beautiful?
Here he says, the word of God has said how this is to be done. He said that settles the whole thing. The word of God said that it was to be carried upon the shoulders of the priests. I like to think of it that way, that it was lifted high above their heads. If you had seen the procession going, you wouldn't have seen two prominent men driving a cart, sitting there getting quite a bit of public notice.
There's a whole lot of different names mentioned here and we're not told.
Who were the ones that carried the ark? And if you had seen the ark going, it would have been up above. You wouldn't have noticed the men, you would have seen the ark.
It's beautiful to see how that when the disciples were on the Mount of Transfiguration, they saw no man anymore save Jesus, only our brethren. The truth of God always gives honor to the Lord Jesus. And isn't this beautiful simplicity? If it's any of us that are puzzled about something in our pathway, isn't it good to turn to the Word of God? And if the Word of God gives us?
Instruction and direction, then that settles it for us, doesn't it?
It settles it for us. As I mentioned before, when Paul went and preached in Berea, they might have said, well, those men are great men. They know the Mosaic Law. They're I'll, I'll just go by what they say. No, it says they searched the Scriptures daily to see if those things were sold. And nothing would make me more happy than someone said, well, I want to find what the word of God says. I've listened to what you said, Brother Gordon, but I want to know.
The word of God says and ask the divine directive for us in the pathway, in all things, in all thy ways, acknowledge him. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? David was cleansing his way at this time. He was a comparatively young man, but he was cleansing his way. He could have been said, well, I don't want to admit that I was wrong in the first case, but here we see that he is quite willing to be directed.
By the word of God, moreover, there's another little point here that in 23rd verse it says and Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark. And again in the 24th verse, at the end of the verse, Obed, Edom and Jahiah were doorkeepers of the ark. What does it mention this doorkeepers? Well, Paul, David said in the I think it's the 70.
I've forgotten. I think it's a 73rd, but I'm not sure. It says I'd rather be a doorkeeper in the House of my God and to dwell in the tents of wickedness. No, it's not very easy to be a doorkeeper. But these people were sent in that position because the assembly is to be the pillar and ground of the truth. We're to stand for the whole truth of God. And when we do, that's that's important, that's pleasing to God because that's what the assembly is, the assembly.
Doesn't teach, The assembly is taught. The assembly has the word of God as our instruction. And what we are to do is to keep the deposit of truth. As Paul said to Timothy, old Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust.
God has revealed something in his word, then we're to keep that. And so there were doorkeepers for the ark and the oxen didn't stumble. There were no oxen. And did they say, well, those men that carried the ark, they did a good job. No, isn't that nice? What it says in the 26th verse? And it came to pass when God helped the Levites that bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord that they offered.
7 bullocks and seven Rams. In other words, they didn't say, well we did a good job of carrying it up. It just simply says that they gave the Lord all the glory. Those sacrifices were acknowledging that it was God who helped them. And brethren, if you and I haven't any measure tried to stand for the truth of God, I don't think there's anybody who would say, well I did. No, we just say the Lord help me, haven't we faced?
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So many situations in our personal lives and our assembly life and all we can say is the Lord help me. The Lord help me because we we have no strength of our own. The Lord Jesus said without me he can do nothing. Well what a blessed thing when we make the word of God our God. I think this chapter is so lovient. I I enjoy reading all those names because I don't know who carried the ark. We all have a place.
God has sat in the body has a death, please.
A sister as well as a brother can be very faithful in holding fast to the precious truth that has been committed to us. And how often somebody that we'll say doesn't occupy so great a place of prominence can just say a little word that can be such a help to you. I've often thought about Jonathan when he went out in the battle against the Philistines.
It says.
That there was a sharp rock as they went to climb up to the Philistine Garrison. And I think when they when Jonathan saw those sharp rocks on either side, I think he turned around and said, oh this is too much for me. And it says his armor bearer said.
His armor, Red said. I'm with thee. Go ahead. And I'm not. Isn't that lovely? It may be somebody.
That maybe it doesn't occupy any kind of a position of prominence. It just gives you that little word. There are ones who are encouraged, encouraging. I don't know who the name of that armor Rivero is. I'm going to find out in heaven who it was. But that turned the whole course. And perhaps some of us can look back in our lives and say it was some brother or sister that made a little remark to me that turned the whole course of my life.
Oh, how lovely. How different God's order of things from man.
Man would give man glory.
But God's plan is always as it says, that in all things He might have the preeminence.
Well, and it says in the end of the chapter, the 29th verse, and it came to pass as the Ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the city of David, that Michael, the daughter of Saul, looking out at a window, saw King David dancing and playing and she despised him in her heart. The only person who didn't seal team to enter into this was this daughter of King Saul.
I don't believe she was a true believer at all.
And as the world looks on, they say, why are you fussing about doctrine? And that brethren, it is important to give the Lord Jesus His rightful place. She couldn't see anything in it. A lot of people don't see anything in trying to give the Lord His rightful place. But God is going to see to it that His blessed Son has the place that in that coming day that all heaven and all earth are going to.
Gathered together with Him in the preeminence, it says that in the dispensation of the fullness of times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth. Even in Him there's a day coming when every knee is going to bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Are we giving Him His rightful place? Now I say again, and I speak to myself as well as to you.
Are we making His word our God?
Many questions.
Are we in decisions that we have to make, saying, Lord, what will thou have me to do? He's willing to guide us. Every situation is different. As I say, sometimes we have to wait, sometimes we have to go forward. God said in when they were going to cross the Red Sea, He said, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.
But then a verse or two down, it says, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward. There are times to stand still, there are times to go forward. We have to wait upon the Lord, but never go contrary to His word. Now we see the happy sequel to this. I'd just like to read this 3 verses in the 16th chapter.
So they brought the ark of God and said it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it. And they offered burned offering, burnt sacrifices, and peace offerings before God. And when David had made an end of offering, the burnt offering and the peace offering, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord, and he dealt to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone.
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A loaf of bread, a good piece of flesh.
And a flagon of wine.
Perhaps these three things bring before us.
Says a good loaf of bread for the Lord Jesus is the bread of life. Says he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. We need to feed upon him.
Then it says a piece of flesh.
It says a good piece of flesh. Well, you know the Bible says strong meat belongs to them that are of full age. Even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
It's a nice thing to see babes in the family of God. It's a nice thing to see young men. But God delights just as we do. We're, many of us are parents. We love to have our children just when they're babies, but we wouldn't like them to be babies forever. We're glad to see them grow up. And I think this is so lovely here. When they followed the word of God, there was something we might say for the babes. There was something for those.
Who are strong, Strong meat belongs to them. Who are full aged. And then there was joy for all, a flagon of wine. That because wine is a figure in the Bible of joy.
I just like to also mention just one thing.
Burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God? No brethren, I think it's nice for us to.
Understand a little bit about the offerings. I don't intend to go into it in detail tonight, but perhaps you know that there were five different offerings There was the.
The burnt offering was the first one, and then there was the meat offering, there was the peace offering, and there was the sin offering and the trespass offering. And every one of them bring before us a different aspect of the work of Christ.
The burnt offering brings before us, it's the first one in the instruction in Leviticus 1, and it brings before us the value of the work of Christ to the heart of God.
The peace offering could be called a communion offering. So we see these two offerings, the burnt offering and trespass offering and and the peace offering rather, and maybe I'll just mention this because.
I can remember as a young person hearing some of the brothers say we worship in the burnt offering character and I didn't know what they meant and it didn't mean anything to me.
But.
I'd like to use a little illustration so that perhaps you could have a little better appreciation of the burnt offering. At least it meant much to me understand it in this way.
Supposedly I have a great depth and I'm not able to pay it.
And a friend comes along and says, Gordon, give me your bills and I'll pay. I'll pay them for you. He goes to my creditor. He pays the bills, and he comes back and he puts the receipt in my hand. I say, oh, I'm so thankful to be out of debt that was such a burden over my hand. Well, that's good, isn't it? But I haven't learned to know anything about my creditor. All I know is that he got a satisfactory payment. Does he like me or does he not? I don't know.
All I know is he got a satisfactory payment.
But God wants us to know what's in His heart.
God wants us to know what's in his heart. I owed my great debt to him. Let us suppose another thing. I have this great debt and my creditor sees this great debt on his books and he says to his son, see this great debt on our books here. I love Gordon Hayhoe. Would you be willing to sell your house so that we can raise the money? And if you do.
I'll write this off our books and I'll send a receipt to Gordon Hayward and I'll mark on it paid in full.
Through the kindness of my son.
That one day here I am worrying about the debt, and I not only get a receipt, but when I read what's written on it, paid in full to the kindness of my son. Oh, I said, what a wonderful creditor I've got. What a son he must have. And perhaps you can understand, you will never truly appreciate the work of Christ until you see that it was the very God that we had sinned against who said to his Son.
Who will go for us? And he said that, he said.
Send me. And he came in love. He paid the debt in full, and God wants us to know that it was His Son that paid the debt.
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What a wonderful thing you could be. Understand then why we have the burnt offering and the peace offering. God wants us to know the love that's in His heart toward us. He wants us to know that it was his Son that came in love and obedience and paid the debt. And he wants us to enjoy fellowship or common thoughts with him as the peace offering. Many Christians rejoice that at Calvary their debt was paid. But God says, oh, I want you to know the love that's in my heart. I can't tell you how much.
I can't tell you what a wonderful son I have who came and said I'd delight to do thy will, Oh my God. And he was going to welcome us to the Father's house where we're going to enjoy for eternity not only the fact that our debt is paid, but knowing the God who sent His Son to pay it for all eternity, it'll fill our hearts with praise. And this is what they entered into on this occasion. And so you can see what a happy sequel there was.
To this little story that God has been pleased to record in His word, well, may the Lord make it good to each one of our hearts, that we may appreciate more what the Lord has done for us, that we may value His Word. And we might also know, brethren, that He's interested in all those decisions that come in life. Life is the valley of decision for constantly having to make them. But we have one who has all the answers and who cares, who loves us.
Wants to be our guide. Oh Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself. It's not in man that walketh to direct his steps.