Everlasting Arms

[0:00] Talking along the subject of certainty and security, isn't it the case that we're living in uncertain times?

[0:12] ! Uncertain times. It's a bit like a man who's just got elected. They're saying it's uncertain what he's going to do. There's an unknown quantity there, and we're not sure. There's uncertain times. We can't be certain what's going on.

[0:28] but we can have a sure certainty that the Bible assures us of. In faithless times we can have a faith that is real and we can be a faithful people.

[0:41] And when we live in a world with what they call fake news and fraudsters and politicians that you don't know what they're going to do next, that we can find real and everlasting truth.

[0:55] Fake news is the big story lately, isn't it? You don't know, is that another fake story or is that the real one? And yet this is not fake news. This is 100% truth.

[1:09] And so we have an infinite and eternal security that is strong and powerful. As strong and powerful as the one who made us, who saved us, and who holds us still and keeps us by his power.

[1:23] Now, Deuteronomy 33, 27, we read that promise of God. Deuteronomy 33, 27.

[1:33] The eternal God is thy refuge. And underneath are the everlasting arms. And he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee and shall say, Destroy them.

[1:46] The eternal God is thy refuge. And underneath are the everlasting arms. The arms of God are underneath us.

[2:05] How powerful those arms must be. How safe we can be in his arms. And that is a great comfort to each one.

[2:17] To know that our God is powerful. He's in control. And that he holds us. He holds us. We are sustained by God.

[2:28] This God is the eternal God. Eternal. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His faithfulness is everlasting.

[2:40] He is thy refuge, it says. The eternal God is thy refuge. That's very personal, isn't it?

[2:51] Thy personal, singular, individual. Thy refuge. Thy refuge. Thy refuge.

[3:03] And underneath are the everlasting arms. I can remember back at school days. It was a long time ago now. But I can still remember those old days when I was still at school.

[3:16] And I can remember playing cricket down there. Or trying to play cricket. I should say, really. Because I really don't like cricket. But I was trying to play cricket. And trying really hard.

[3:27] And, you know, people might remember this. And I don't know if it was the same in your school or in your school days. But when you tried to catch that ball.

[3:38] And you caught it. But you dropped it. And what would they call you? Butterfingers. Who's heard that before?

[3:50] Butterfingers. Butterfingers. The other kids would tease you, wouldn't they? Butterfingers. I probably did a bit of teasing myself. But God is not Butterfingers.

[4:01] Amen. He's not Butterfingers. When he holds us, he doesn't drop us. He holds us. And he keeps on holding us. And we are safe. Under his wings.

[4:13] As we see Psalm 91. Expands on this theme. Of the security. Of the believer. Psalm 91. We're going to just touch through. As we've read it earlier.

[4:24] And talk through. As we travel through Psalm 91 together. It says, Psalm 91 verse 1. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High. Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

[4:41] Abide. Stay there. Dwell there. In this place. In his shadow. Under his protection.

[4:53] In the secret place. There's a call here to dwell there. To remain there. To take up residence. To stay there. In his presence.

[5:05] And it's got this intimacy here. It's got this sense here of that closeness. Of that close abiding relationship that we can have with God. It tells us here of the secret place.

[5:16] It tells us here of the secret place. Of the Most High. This is the place where each one of us can go. Dwell there. In that secret place.

[5:28] That place of divine protection. And it tells us here. He overshadows us. He overshadows us. He watches over us. He is as a refuge.

[5:40] He is as a secret place. A dwelling place. And there's a shadow. An overshadowing. He is almighty. It says. Under the shadow of the almighty.

[5:53] He is all powerful. All powerful. This God that we serve. That we know. That we love. And who loves you and me. He is almighty. That is how powerful he is.

[6:05] That is how powerful his arms are underneath you. That is how powerful the shadow of his abiding protection is. And it tells us here. He is the Most High.

[6:18] The Most High. Yet this one who is the Most High. Is in reach of every one of us. Of every one. That will call on him.

[6:28] He is as close as a prayer away. And. If you're uncertain that you know him. The Bible says.

[6:40] His arm. Is not shortened. That it cannot save. It says that his arm can reach. To the gutter most. To the uttermost. To the furthest. And darkest.

[6:51] And dirtiest. And foulest. And make them clean. And make them know him. And save them. And this one. This almighty. Almighty. He loves you and me.

[7:04] And he is in reach of us. And he will shelter us. And here is guaranteed for us. A place of rest. Of peace. Of safety. Now I overheard some people.

[7:16] Talking about afternoon sleeps today. And. I must say. I didn't get my afternoon sleep. Today or yesterday. But. But I'll be watching you guys. That talk. We're talking about that.

[7:27] But no. You can rest. You know. Sometimes it's quite a spiritual thing. To go to sleep in church. Because you can rest. Under the shadow. Of the almighty. Can't you? It can be very spiritual. And really the Bible says that.

[7:38] He give it. His beloved sleep. And so it's a very. You know. You're very loved by God. When you sleep. As such. In that sense of it.

[7:49] And so he is guaranteeing here for us. A place of rest. Of safety. Of peace. And so. Verse 2. We can confess this truth. It's.

[8:01] A good practice. I know. I heard someone say. Some message or other. I think it was one of the preachers. That covered for me. We can confess the word of God. Confess the word of God.

[8:12] And we know some. In some quarters. Go overboard with this. And. Take things out of context. And misapply them. And misconstrue them. But.

[8:22] The word. Is. Truth. That we can. Confess with our mouth. Confess with our mouth. We can confess this. Verse here. Verse 2. I will.

[8:34] Say. Of the Lord. He is. My refuge. And my fortress. My God. In him. Will I trust. Notice again.

[8:45] I will. Say. Of my. God. He is. My refuge. He is. My fortress. It's a personal relationship. With God. It's personal.

[8:56] And in a world. Where we don't know. Sometimes. Who to turn to. We can all say. With that absolute. Confidence. That we can trust in him.

[9:07] So make that confession. Of your faith. Now sometimes. When you're going through. Those valleys. Have verses like this. That you can confess. Have them written down.

[9:18] Or. Better still. Written down in here. In your heart. To know the word. To memorize it. To lay it in your heart. And keep it there. Treasure it. And then.

[9:29] Confess it. In those moments. Of desperation. I will say. Of the Lord. He is. My refuge. And my fortress. My God. In him. Will I trust.

[9:41] When we go through. The tough stuff. He is there. And friends. Run to the refuge. You know. Back in. Israel's day. In the old covenant times.

[9:53] There were cities. Of refuge. And. If you're in trouble. You would flee there. And find a safe. Place. To dwell. And you had to run. To the refuge.

[10:04] To find that. Safe place. And friends. He is. Our fortress. And stronghold. Verse 3.

[10:15] Surely. He shall deliver thee. Personal again. From the snare. Of the fowler. And from the noisome. Pestilence. Pestilence. The picture there.

[10:27] Of the fowler. The one trying to catch the fowl. In the. Little traps. To catch the birds. The bird catcher. Would set the trap. But.

[10:38] The picture here for us. Is that one. Who is out to trap. And trip us. And. Hurt us. And deceive us. He shall. Deliver thee from.

[10:49] The snare. That trap. Of the bird catcher. The snare of the fowler. And from the noisome pestilence. Which. Speaks of that destructive. Pestilence. That. That which is destructive.

[11:02] Our Lord. Will. Keep us. And you can know God's deliverance. That's the truth of this psalm. As through many other passages. We could. Mention.

[11:13] That. Our God has the power. To deliver us. Surely. He shall. Deliver thee. Surely. He shall. Deliver thee. Now there was a time.

[11:25] When I thought salvation was uncertain. That it was somehow about my doing. Or not doing. And. I would. Argue vehemently. That case.

[11:36] That. That. That. That's a. Theology. And. Yet. Our salvation.

[11:47] Is assured. It is assured. If it's his salvation. And we'll come to that. Verse 4. He shall cover thee with his feathers.

[11:58] And under his wings shalt thou trust. His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. He shall cover thee with his feathers.

[12:08] Now. Jillian I've just bought some chooks. And. I've had occasion to pick them up. In my arms.

[12:18] And just to. Brush those soft feathers. And these are big birds. These. These little chooks. They're quite big chooks. And. What a picture it is. He shall cover thee.

[12:30] With his feathers. It almost sounds irreverent. To compare. The almighty God. To. A. Mother hen. But that is the picture here. That is the picture here. For us.

[12:40] Of that. Feathers. Of those wings. And under his wings. Thou. Shalt thou trust. God's protection is complete. As an overshadowing hand.

[12:52] Over the mothers. Over the chicks. That she mothers. And so too. Our Lord. Protects. Every believer. And he covers us with tenderness. As with feathers.

[13:04] Like a mother hen. Now those soft downy. Silky. Feathers. Spread over. The chicks.

[13:15] Keep them safe. You know the stories told. Of bushfires and what not. Of various fires. Sweeping through. And of. Sometimes finding a. A mother. A mother bird.

[13:26] And. Chicks nestling. Under the wings. Of that bird. The mother. Succumbing to the heat. And smoke. And flame. Yet. Underneath.

[13:37] Those little chicks. Just scurry out. They've been saved. They've been saved. Kept by the mother. The mother bird. And likewise too. Our Lord is such. That he covers us.

[13:48] He shall. He shall. Cover thee. With. His. Feathers. And. Under. His wings. Shout. Thou trust. There was a woman.

[13:59] Who was meditating. On verse 4. One day. About these feathers. About the Lord. And his wings. And apparently. She went out to work. One day. In that morning. As she was walking.

[14:10] To work. Suddenly. She was accosted. By this gang. Of fellows. Up to no good. She. They came up to this woman. And she feared the worst. They asked her for any money.

[14:22] That she had. And she was trying to desperately. Remember this verse. But she just couldn't remember it. All she could shout was.

[14:33] Feathers. Feathers. Feathers. Feathers. And they all ran away. Probably thinking she was mad. But. The woman grabbed hold.

[14:43] Of that truth. Of that truth. The feathers. She grabbed hold. Of the shelter. Of God's tenderness. And his protection.

[14:54] And his care. And his assurances. And his promises. And she believed it. Amen. He shall. Cover thee. With his feathers.

[15:04] You are safe. You are safe. Feathers speak. Of the tenderness. Of our Lord. As with the woman. Caught in adultery. What our Lord.

[15:16] Could have said. Yet he said. Neither do I condemn. Go and sin no more. She was released.

[15:30] Pardoned. Set on a new pathway. And God is faithful to us. And he treats us with tenderness. He could condemn. Yet.

[15:43] He forgives. God is faithful. And he preserves. And he keeps us. As we trust him. There is. Grace.

[15:55] Today. And it tells us here. His truth shall be. Thy shield. Thy shield. You can rest. You can rest. You can rest. On it. Every promise. Every line.

[16:06] Every word. Every letter. From. One cover to the other. You can believe the word of God. And the promises therein.

[16:18] Every promise. And. It's as the protection of a shield. For a soldier. The protection of a shield. For a soldier.

[16:29] It shall be. Thy. Shield. His truth. Shall be. Thy. Shield. And buckler. A buckler was. More. I'm told. Of more of a. A shield.

[16:39] That's surrounded. So there's. That protective. Shielding. That. That covering. That. Safety. As a soldier has behind a shield.

[16:51] And I was playing with the. The grandkids today. They got it. In the pool. And they were squirting me with water. But I had a shield. And. It was just no match for that shield. The.

[17:03] Paddle board. Just. Kept me safe. It's totally. Stupid analogy. I know. But. I'm just. There is a shield. A total shield. A total shield. That we can have. That we can know.

[17:14] And this is it. A shield. Thy truth shall be. Our shield. And buckle. And so we can know that.

[17:25] We can know that. Protection. From. Every. Dark. Every. Fiery dark. That the enemy shoots at us. Verse 5. It goes on. And. You shall not be afraid.

[17:36] For the terror. By night. Nor for the arrow. That flyeth by day. We need not fear. We need not fear. No matter what. The terror.

[17:48] By night. The arrow. That flyeth. By day. It's saying here. By day. By night. He will be there for you. He will be there for you.

[18:01] It's saying. 24 by 7. That's what it's saying. Isn't it? Thou shalt not be afraid. For the terror. By night. Nor the arrow. That flyeth. By day. Saying.

[18:13] Thou shalt not. Be afraid. And we can easily get overwhelmed. And discouraged. And weighed down. And loaded up. And fearful.

[18:24] What does tomorrow bring? I've already had enough. Yesterday. Don't be afraid. Thou shalt not be afraid. Believe God. Trust him God.

[18:36] Trust him. Trust him for what you cannot see yet. Trust him for what. You might still be. Naturally inclined to be fearful of. Trust him still. Verse 6.

[18:47] Nor the pestilence. That walketh in darkness. Nor for the destruction. That wasteth at noonday. Again. Darkness. Noonday. All the time.

[18:58] It's saying here. God is for you. He is with you. All the time. Now we go on. Verse 7. To a military. Kind of analogy. It says. A thousand shall fall at thy side.

[19:09] And ten thousand. At thy right hand. But it shall not. Come nigh thee. Again. It's saying. You will be saved. You will be saved. Hold fast.

[19:22] Hold fast. Verse 8. Only with thine eyes. Shalt thou behold. And see the reward. Of the wicked. One day your eyes will see. The reward. Of the wicked. There will be a punishment.

[19:33] There will be judgment. There will be vengeance. It's his. Amen. He's going to do it. And he'll be just. And he'll deliver it. Justly. And so one day we shall behold.

[19:45] All those people who have wronged you. All those people. Will have to stand before God. As we all have to. And one day we shall see the reward.

[19:57] Of the wicked. So be assured of that. God will do right. And everyone will get the right. The just desserts. Verse 9. Because thou hast made the Lord. Which is my refuge.

[20:07] Even the most high. Thy habitation. It's saying here. Thou hast made the Lord. Which is my refuge. Even the most high. Thy habitation. Again it's telling us. God is with us.

[20:19] Emmanuel. God is with us. His presence is with us. He is indwelling us. And we are in him. John 15.

[20:30] Abide in me. I'll abide in you. There's that indwelling. That union with God. That refuge. Even the most high.

[20:42] We can know as our personal. Saviour. And Lord. Master and friend. And it's telling us here that. Which is my refuge. And you've made him.

[20:52] The most high. Thy habitation. It's telling us here. That you that believe. The most high. Is your habitation. You dwell. In him. He dwells in you.

[21:04] Our home. Is the father's house. You know. Don't get too attached to the. Real estate down here. Don't get too attached to.

[21:14] The bricks and mortar. You might really love your home. Whether it's a tent. Or a mansion. You might really. Get. Settled down there. But friends.

[21:26] We're moving on. We're moving on. To the. The father's house. And our Lord says. I go to prepare a place for you. That where I am. There you may be also. In my father's house.

[21:36] Are many. Mansions. There's a glorious. Home awaiting. And. Our home. Truly is. In the father's house. That's where we belong. We belong in heaven.

[21:47] Here is just. A passing journey. Verse 10. There shall no evil. Befall thee. Neither shall any plague. Come nigh. Thy dwelling. For. He shall give his angels.

[21:58] Charge over thee. To keep thee. In all thy ways. All thy ways. Now. Of course. We want our ways. To please God. As talking here.

[22:09] The path of the godly. Is the way of safety. As we walk in God's ways. Is the. The. I guess you could. Construe it here. As we. As our ways.

[22:19] Please him. We'll walk in his ways. That he shall. Guide us. And his angels. He shall give charge. Over thee. They shall come. And aid us. Now. Of course.

[22:29] We know. In some quarters. They make much of angels. And probably go. Way over the top. But the fact is. As our word. Tells us here. The Lord is with us. And he has dispatched angels.

[22:41] To guard. And to keep us. And so. There's that sense here again. Of that constant. And comprehensive protection. Thy word. Is my shield.

[22:53] And buckler. We've got the angels. He's dispatched. To watch. And care. We've got. His very presence. As the refuge.

[23:04] We've got his feathers. His wings. His. Who he is. Our refuge. Our fortress. It's alike to. Walls around a city.

[23:15] There's a great protection. And. These are all. Pictures. And symbols. Of. Who our Lord is. The fortress. The refuge. As we think.

[23:28] I know. I've travelled in some places. Where. There is these massive walls. Around. Castles. And. Around. Cities. As we see in Jerusalem. Itself. These massive walls.

[23:39] Walls. As we know. It's not the. One that was then. But. It's. Alike to that. In some. Measure. I suppose. That the walls. Around the present. Jerusalem. Are.

[23:50] A picture of that. Protection. And you see. As this talk. Even. These days. Of people building walls. And. There's that sense of that. Of that. Protection.

[24:01] And these are all. Pictures. Of God's. Fortress. That he is for us. And. Of those angels. That. Are. Watching. Over us. That comprehensive.

[24:12] And constant. Protection. There's so many pictures here. Right through. The psalm. Verse 12. It tells us. All these angels. They shall. There thee up. In their hands. Lest thou. Dash thy foot. Against the stone.

[24:23] Verse 13. Thou shalt tread upon the lion. And adder. The young lion. And the dragon. Shall they trample. Under feet. Because he hath set. His love upon me. Therefore will. I deliver him.

[24:34] I will set him. On high. Because he hath known. My name. It tells us here. He shall set us on high. Because he has known. My name.

[24:44] He's fixed his love on us. Such. To such a degree. That we are the object. Of his supreme affection. And the name of our Lord. Is on our lips. It's as we call.

[24:57] As we know his name. As we call upon it. There is none other name. The Bible says. Now there's many names. That have floated around. Various religions. And various lords.

[25:07] So called. With a small l. But there is none other name. Than this name. Verse 12 of Acts 4. It says. Neither is there salvation. In any other.

[25:18] For there is none other name. Under heaven. Given among men. Whereby. We must be saved. There's no other name. That can save us. No other faith.

[25:29] No other religion. No other philosophy. No name. But his name. Only his name. And it says. This one. The most high. He has set us on high. Where has he set us?

[25:41] There's another scripture. That tells us. That he has. Taken us out. Of the. Miry. Clay. Now. Folk that have lived on farms. Know what clay is all about.

[25:52] And mud. And sticky. Oozy. Gooey. Can't get your feet out of it. Clay. He's taken us out of that miry. Mucky. Smelly clay.

[26:04] And he set us on. The rock. Christ Jesus. He set our feet on the rock. I don't have that reference here. But. We know there's that. Truth there. That. Contrast of.

[26:15] Miry. Clay. Sin. Our lost estate. And of that. Sure footing. Of that rock. That solid rock. Christ Jesus. As we see. He is referred to.

[26:26] The rock. Christ Jesus. So he set us on high. Which means he set us out of reach of our enemies. He's taken us. To that place that is on high. Where we are safe.

[26:37] Again. Picture of safety. Verse 15. Tells us. We can pray. We can pray. Don't forget to pray.

[26:48] You know. Sometimes. It's so easy to fret. And not to pray. It's so easy. To. Despair. And not to pray. Pray. Pray.

[26:59] Say. Pray and keep on praying. The privilege. Our privilege that we have. Of prayer. You know. I make the mistake. Sometimes. Of not asking God to help me.

[27:10] When things get hard. Verse 15. The privilege of prayer. He shall call upon me. And I will. Answer him.

[27:20] This is. Our Lord talking. He shall. Call upon me. And I shall. I will. Answer him. I will. Be. With him. In trouble.

[27:31] So. If you're in trouble. Guess who's with you. Amen. If you are in trouble. He says. I will. Be. With him. In trouble. So you bring good company.

[27:43] You've got his. Very personal presence. And it says. I will. Will. Deliver. Him. And honor him. So this one. The one. Of Psalm 91. The one.

[27:53] Of which Psalm 91 speaks. Is the one. Who dwells in. Abides in. Stays in. Resides in. The secret. Place. Of the most high.

[28:04] And we're told. For this one. We can pray through. To the most high. You know. Sometimes. I know.

[28:14] Where we've moved lately. We've had some. Reception problems. Reception problems. With the internet. It's taken us two months. To get. To get it working. Properly. And.

[28:25] Had to get. Everything just so. To get it lined up. And to make sure. They had line of sight. And. To go. And was not too far. Distant. Now you might think.

[28:35] God is. Way. Way. Distant. The. Most high. You might think. I don't have line of sight. Don't worry. There's no transmission. There's no reception.

[28:45] Problems with him. Unless we. Hold sin in our heart. There is no. Transmission problem. There is no. Reception problem. It's a loud. And crystal clear. Reception. From heaven.

[28:56] To your soul. To your. Secret place. With the most high. And so you can pray through. And you will get through. And we see. That he says. I will answer him. I will answer him.

[29:06] I will be with him. In trouble. I will deliver him. As we see through the word. We see David delivered. We see Joseph delivered. We see Daniel delivered. What did they do?

[29:17] They prayed. They prayed. They prayed through. They prayed in their trouble. And they went to the secret place. Of the most high. Friends. God answers prayer. He is responsive to prayer.

[29:29] We are told. Pray. Pray. Pray. And keep on praying. Persevere in prayer. Always praying. Pray.

[29:41] And keep on praying. Now that's the sense. I'm told. As we know. The Sunday school chorus. Of ask. And keep on asking. Seek. And keep on seeking.

[29:52] Knock. And keep on knocking. As our Lord said. In Matthew. Matthew's gospel. Ask. Seek. Knock. Pray. And keep on praying. Don't stop.

[30:02] Praying. So let us not forget to pray. It says here. God says. I will rescue you. I will rescue you. He says. I will protect you. I will answer you.

[30:14] I will be with you. In trouble. In times of affliction. In distress. I will deliver you. Out of that. I will bring you. To safety.

[30:25] I will set you. In that safe place. I will honor you. I will make you strong. And he says. Furthermore. Verse 16. Our closing verse. I will satisfy you.

[30:37] I will save you. That's the sense here. I will save you. Verse 16. With long life. Will I satisfy him. And show him. My salvation.

[30:49] I will satisfy him. I will show him. My salvation. Some have commented on this verse.

[31:01] Of this word. Long life. For this one. Who dwells in the secret place. Of the most high. He is content with that life. That God gives.

[31:12] For by death. The shortness of this life. Is recompensed with immortality. Now. Long life. You do hear of some Christians. Who die prematurely. It can happen.

[31:23] We know. God helping us. We know many Christians. Do have a. A physically long life. But how long a life can you have. Than everlasting. Everlasting.

[31:36] Everlasting life. That's the kind of life. We have. Immortal. Life. Eternal. Everlasting life. Psalm 21. Verse 4. We won't turn there.

[31:46] But you can compare that. Where it refers to long life. And it uses the expression. Forever. Forever. And ever. The long life that we have.

[31:58] More than just the. Three score year and ten. Less or more than that. That we may. Be. Blessed with. But we have. Ever.

[32:08] Lasting. Life. That's the longest life. We can ever have. Because it is forever. And ever. Psalm 21. Verse 4. So we are kept. Safe. And secure.

[32:19] His arms will always be under you. And salvation. Is sure. Salvation. Is sure. Now some people. Well meaning. Ask this question.

[32:31] Preacher. Can I lose my salvation? Can I. Lose my. Salvation. And it's a fair question.

[32:42] It's a question. That people grapple with. And they struggle with. And there's much false teaching. On see. On this issue. But notice here what it says. Verse 16. With long life.

[32:55] Will I. Satisfy him. And show him. My. Salvation. Now you might say. Can I lose.

[33:06] My. Salvation. He says. Take. My. Salvation. My. Salvation.

[33:17] That's the kind of salvation. We need. Isn't it? God's salvation. His own salvation. And friends. If we can. Just grasp this truth. That it's his salvation.

[33:29] He is the saviour. He is the redeemer. He is the one who saves. He is the one who keeps. He is the one who says. I will. Never. Never. Ever. Leave thee.

[33:40] Nor forsake thee. I was reflecting on salvation. And really the truth that. Our. Only action. In the transaction. Is reception.

[33:52] I should copyright that. Because I thought of that one myself. I didn't borrow that from a book. Our only action. In the transaction. Is. Reception. Receive.

[34:04] Receive the gift. Of salvation. Receive the gift. Of salvation. It is given. By grace. In other words. We don't deserve it.

[34:15] Now there's some. Well meaning people. I've been. Corresponding with. I mentioned it. In passing. This morning. That they. They're grappling with this. And there's false teaching out there. That we've almost. We've got to kind of get.

[34:26] So. Perfectly. Holy. And godly. And sinless. So that. We will merit. Salvation. It's not. Any of that. Not of works.

[34:37] Lest any man should boast. Not according to our. Our righteousness. Has he saved us. It's grace.

[34:48] From A to Z. From beginning to end. From start to finish. Grace. Grace. Marvellous.

[34:59] Grace. That's what we need. And salvation is a gift. You didn't deserve it back then. When you got saved. You were just as foul.

[35:10] And lost a sinner. As the next man. Or woman. As was I. It is given. By grace. By grace.

[35:20] In other words. We don't. Deserve it. We never did. We never will deserve it. And we receive it. By faith. Now again.

[35:32] Somewhat of a. Lighthearted analogy. As I was there. Swimming with my grandkids. When we learn how to swim. We can lie back on the water.

[35:44] And let the buoyancy of the water carry us. And these little. Urchins were swimming. And just lying back on the water. With maybe. A little. A little.

[35:55] Tap. Now and again. Lying back on the buoyancy of the water. They were safe. And they were. Resting. The water carried them. How much more will our God carry us?

[36:09] How much more? You hear of stories how. When. There's a man overboard. And he can't swim. And he's scrambling. And. And screaming.

[36:21] And. And yelling. And waving. And frantically. Thrashing the water. Blah. Blah. Blah. And the lifeguard. The sailor dives in.

[36:36] To rescue this drowning man. But the drowning man. Has to just. Stop. Stop trying to save himself.

[36:48] And trust. The one who's dived in to save him. That's what we need to do. Brother. Sister. That's all we need to do. And I don't mean to make it such that, oh, that's too easy.

[37:04] That's too simple. Surely I've got to do something. No, it's nothing you can do. Don't even try.

[37:16] Don't be like that helpless man. Because he'll just, he's not going to help the situation. He's just got to almost get knocked out and taken to the boat.

[37:33] People of God, it's the same principle really, isn't it? Our rest is in God. It must be in God. We must rest in God. Now you might say, oh, well, what about people who do this or that?

[37:49] What does it take for you to lose your salvation? If it's about what we do or we don't do, it's a continuum, isn't it? One sin, the Bible says, if you offend in one point, you offend in all.

[38:03] You might be a perfect individual. One sin is all it takes. If that's how you lose your salvation, by somehow sinning or a lack of faith or whatever it be, don't put your trust in yourself.

[38:19] Otherwise, maybe you're not saved at all. That's another aspect. But our rest must be in God. We must come under, into those everlasting arms. That's where the safe place is.

[38:31] Unto the arm of God. The arm of flesh will fail you. But his arms will never fail you. They're never failing.

[38:43] Everlasting. Our rest is in God. Our trust is not in man. Certainly not in ourselves. Don't trust me. I can't trust myself.

[38:55] Certainly not in our works. We don't get any merit from our works as far as our salvation goes.

[39:07] It's all of grace. All of God. The arm of flesh will fail you, but underneath are the everlasting arms. In some ways, you've almost got to stop trying to save yourself.

[39:20] Some people are like that, aren't they? I've seen some frantic cultists and they've got to knock on so many doors. They've got to do, do, do, do. Forgetting it's done.

[39:33] Done. Done. Once for all. Finished. Completed. Finito. At that hill of Calvary's cross.

[39:44] It was done there. Something. I've got to try, try, try. Climb the ladder of good works. Try, try to be saved. I'm trying to be a Christian.

[39:55] I'm trying to be good. I'm trying to get to heaven. As if there's some ladder there. It's not about trying. It's about trusting. Trusting. Trusting.

[40:05] Trusting. Trust him. So people of God. I will satisfy him. He's held you.

[40:16] And I will show him my salvation. His salvation is 100% guaranteed. That's the salvation we need.

[40:27] You might say, oh, can I lose my salvation? Well, if it's your salvation, maybe it's not really the salvation. You need his salvation. You need his salvation.

[40:38] You need his saving power. You need to have that absolute watertight guaranteed. I'm saved because I've trusted him. Like it says. I've called on his name.

[40:49] I've received by faith. By his gracious gift. That blood shed for me at the cross is all I need to trust.

[41:01] And not anything of myself. To save or to keep me. It's all of grace. All of God. Now you might say, well, that just sounds too simple.

[41:11] It sounds too easy. It is. It is easy. It is simple. It's so simple. Even a child can understand it.

[41:23] Except you become, as it were, as little children. You cannot be converted. You've just got to take it as read and believe it. Believe him. And look, this is not to discount the next step.

[41:40] After you're saved. After you're saved. There's a change. There's an inward change.

[41:51] There's a heart change. There's a direction change. A destination change. There's a change of your affections and love. It's a whole new world.

[42:04] You're a whole new creation. A whole new creature. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things are become new. And it's a journey. It's a discipleship journey.

[42:14] As you grow. As you strengthen. As you deepen your faith. You will draw closer to God. And he will draw closer to you.

[42:25] And you might be at a different stage on that journey from your neighbour here. They may be far ahead of you. You might think, oh, I'm just a no good kind of Christian.

[42:37] I mess up day by day. I just feel like I'm a lousy. I've got a lousy testimony. I've lost my cool.

[42:48] I've done bad things as a Christian. And I'm just no good. Well, sometimes it's God convicting us as his children. It's God prompting us.

[43:02] It's God chastening us as his children. Drawing us. It's a witness in effect that, you know, that he bears witness with our spirit.

[43:16] There's that sense where we're drawn and we can't linger in the sin. We can't stay there anymore. It doesn't feel right anymore. We don't feel like we can hang around that way of living anymore.

[43:29] Because we don't feel we belong there anymore. There's that sense that we're drawn to that deeper life with God. And, of course, we know there's examples of some.

[43:40] You just wonder, where are they now? They're not fellowshipping. They've not got fruit. You wonder, were they saved? Are they saved?

[43:54] God knows. God knows. And we know if one is saved and failing, God's grace makes up for it.

[44:08] That if one is truly saved, that his salvation is paid for in full.

[44:20] But if someone has made to some glib profession, as that is the case sometimes, they just made some token prayer without really believing in their heart and confessing with their mouth the Lord, that we know for some, it's all a sham.

[44:39] It's fake. And they've got nothing of God's salvation because it's a sham. It's a substitute for the real thing.

[44:51] So we must know his salvation. And Psalm 91 tells us that we can. We can know that. So I trust, I've encouraged you tonight just to grab hold of the promises of Psalm 91.

[45:08] Grab hold of the promises of Deuteronomy 33, that underneath are the everlasting arms, that he's going to cover you, he's going to be your refuge, your fortress, you can trust him, and you can be assured of his salvation.

[45:22] you're going to be assured of his love that he sets upon you. Let us pray. Thank you.