[0:00] I want us to look this evening at Psalm 19, the first passage that we read from this evening. And as we go through it, I'll be using as my text the authorised version of this particular psalm.
[0:17] Some of the words in it will be a wee bit different from the ESV, but the meaning will be basically the same. Again, the only thing that we know about the title of this psalm is that it tells us only it is to be designed to be sung in worship.
[0:32] Some of the titles of the psalms tell us a lot about what David was doing or where he was at the time. But the only thing the title tells us here that is designed to be sung in worship to the choir master or the chief musician, as it has it in the authorised version, a psalm of David.
[0:48] Nothing in the circumstances tells us about how or when it is written, but it's a perfectly plausible guess that David penned this psalm.
[1:00] At some point, some early morning one day, as perhaps waiting on the Lord or at prayer early in the morning, he beheld the sun rising and saw it gradually dawning over the rest of the lands.
[1:13] He watched its effects on the landscape. The heavens are in view. The sun described as emerging from its tent or its tabernacle where it has spent the night and now emerges resplendent as a bridegroom on his wedding day or as an athlete preparing to run the full course of the day's race.
[1:35] From the glory of creation working on down the psalm, David moves on to the even greater glory of God's revelation that is revealing of himself in his written word and how sweetly precious it is to David.
[1:52] Now remember that David would have had before him only a very slim portion of what we now call the Old Testament. He would have had only the books of the law, the books of Moses, plus perhaps Joshua.
[2:07] In other words, you'd have Genesis to Deuteronomy. Perhaps the book of Joshua. Perhaps Judges. There'd be no book of Ruth. There'd be no 1st and 2nd Samuel. No Kings.
[2:17] No Chronicles. Many of the prophets simply hadn't been born yet. So much of Israel's history hadn't even happened yet, let alone been written down.
[2:27] It was the law that David gloried in. These books of Moses, the law of the living God, what the Jews called the Torah, over which David now waxed lyrical as a perfect revealing, a revelation of God's goodness and blessedness.
[2:48] We can only speculate as to the terms in which David would actually have described the appearance of God the Son in the flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. If this is how he waxes lyrical about the first 5, 6, 7 books of the Old Testament.
[3:04] That's all he adds. And this is how wonderful they are to his sight and how sweet to his taste. But he begins first with creation.
[3:15] In the authorised version we have, The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Heavens in the plural, the collective term for the firmament that is above all its different levels.
[3:31] Some commentators seek to sort of tease out the different levels, which of course overlap with each other. And they identify the aerial heavens. That is the air or ether, complete with calms and storms and winds and weather fronts.
[3:47] All of this which is the air around us, the aerial heavens. All of which may have its effects or the storms or winds that take place at anything from ground level all the way up to several miles up into the sky.
[4:01] There is the watery heavens with all the variety of so many different types of clouds, which as we know are all composed entirely of water. There is the solar heavens with the glories of the sun and the daylight which proceed from it.
[4:16] The starry heavens which when the sun is gone and the moon and the stars come out at night to depict all the wonder and beauty of the night sky. Only the Lord and the redeemed in glory can fathom what the heaven of heavens must be like.
[4:34] But all of these collectively declare the glory of God. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth his handiwork. It is an ongoing declare, not declared once long ago, but rather it's the ongoing act.
[4:50] Our declaring is the sense of it. The glory of God's, of what the Lord has done. Just as when the monarch is in residence at Buckingham Palace or Balmoral Castle, you see the royal standard fluttering over the particular residence.
[5:05] That's how you know the monarch is there. And it continues to fly, continuously, as long as she's there. And when it's taken down, you know that she's gone. And so likewise we can almost sense the Lord stretching his starry banner over the night sky to demonstrate to us God is in his heaven.
[5:24] The king is in residence. He is there enthroned in heaven. We see only a fraction of what his hands and fingers have created. But the king is in residence.
[5:35] There is his flag. There is the statement of all that he has done and that he is there. To see the wonder of creation and to continue in unbelief.
[5:46] And remember, this is only creation we're talking about so far. A man must declare himself to be either a fool or a liar. To deny all that his eyes see.
[5:59] Who perhaps pretends himself to be a man of science and facts and rational thinking. Who deals only in cause and effect. But he sees the effect. And yet denies there can be a cause.
[6:12] He sees all that has happened. And yet denies how it needs must have come about. There is no cause, he says. Nothing has brought this into being. It's just random. The orbits of the sun and the moon.
[6:27] The planets and solar systems. And the movement of the stars all cry out. That every act of succession and motion must have a beginning.
[6:39] They could not create themselves. Nor could they attain such order and precision. And sustain such continuous perfect balance.
[6:51] Simply through a random collision of atoms. That is an absurdity. It's not scientific. Fact and matter does not become more sophisticated and build on itself.
[7:03] It breaks down by nature. It decays. It becomes less ordered. More chaotic. That is the way of nature. That is the way of fact. Yet some would have us believe it.
[7:13] No, by itself. It just magically builds up layer upon layer of sophistication. And complication. And technology almost of itself. No, they must have a creator.
[7:26] They must have a designer. Whom he must of himself by definition be greater than that which he himself has created. He must be greater than what he himself has done.
[7:38] From the quality of the work we see the perfection of the creator. From the brightness of the heavens that he needs must be the light of the world. From the vastness of space we see the immensity of his greatness.
[7:53] From the effect of heavenly bodies upon this world. The magnetic pull of the moon and the tides. The effect of the sun and crops and growth and everything else.
[8:04] We see his dominion and sovereignty. And all, all declares his mighty power. Of all the Lord's creatures that he has made.
[8:16] Man has the least excuse for unbelief. For even in their very form of creation. Brute beasts are designed to look earthwards.
[8:26] To look down where their foot is. But at the very least to look at their prey. At ground level. To see maybe afar off. But they are by their very nature and design. Earthbound.
[8:37] Looking earthwards. Looking down. But man. Created in God's image. Standing erect and tall. Is designed to look upwards.
[8:48] To behold the heavens. To think on the Lord's creator. Designed and made in God's image. To look to where his spirit shall ascend.
[8:59] As Ecclesiastes tells us. Chapter 3 verse 21. Who knoweth the spirit of man. That goeth upward. And the spirit of the beast. That goeth downward to the earth.
[9:11] Man beholds around him. The covenant of God's providence. And its utter stability. And regularity. Is God's token of his own constancy.
[9:24] In the covenant of grace. Jeremiah 33 verse 20. Puts it thus. Thus saith the Lord. If he can break my covenant of the day. And my covenant of the night.
[9:35] And that there should not be day and night. In their season. Then may also my covenant be broken. With David. My servant. Creation itself.
[9:47] In its stability. And balance. And perfection. Reflects the stability and constancy. Of God's covenant. With his people.
[9:57] Providence. God showers in indiscriminate mercy. On all mankind. Grace. Grace is a privilege reserved.
[10:09] To the redeemed of the Lord. Yet every bit is certain. From verse 3 onwards. To verse 6. We see the ways in which.
[10:20] Some of these elements are described. Some translate. Perhaps accurately. That there's no speech or language. And their voice isn't heard. Rather than as the authorised version has it.
[10:31] There is no speech. No language. Where their voice is not heard. And either way. The declaration is. That with or without the sound of a voice. God is glorified.
[10:43] With or without the sound of a voice. They still make their message known. Yet all these elements of creation. Especially that of the sun in the sky.
[10:54] Pale by insignificance. Beside the glory of the son of righteousness. The Messiah himself. Still in David's day. Still yet to be revealed.
[11:05] But though the fullness may be some way off. In David's time. Yet the Lord has even then. Already begun. A more specific disclosure of himself.
[11:15] And his goodness. Creation may be wondrous. But revelation. Is more glorious still. What God reveals. By inspiring men.
[11:27] To write down. His very spoken word. Is more wondrous. Even. Than the work of creation. And from verse 7 on. To the end of the psalm.
[11:37] It is all about. The word of God. David. Glorying. In the word of God. And how the Lord. Makes himself known. Not only through creation.
[11:49] But here through his revealed. And written word. Here we have. In these verses. Six statements. Of descriptive grace. Each is under the ownership.
[12:01] Of the holy name. Of Jehovah. Which is often. Declared or translated. In our versions. As Lord. In capitals. It's the divine name. In Hebrew. Jehovah.
[12:11] Some translations. Put it as Yahweh. A little less accurately. But we usually translate it. As Lord. In capitals. It's the divine name. Which describes. The ownership. Of all these.
[12:22] Attributes. Each. Helps. To demonstrate. What the law. Is designed. For. What use. We are to make of it. And how the grace.
[12:33] And love. Of God. Works in. And through. The revelation. Of himself. In his word. Firstly then. The law. Of the Lord. Is perfect. The authorised version.
[12:44] Has it. Converting. The soul. That is its purpose. It's perfect. It is free. From all corruption. Filled with all good.
[12:54] Perfectly suited. To the purpose. For which it is designed. The law. Of the Lord. Is perfect. And it will make. The man of God. Perfect. Second. Timothy.
[13:05] Chapter 2. Verses 16 and 17. We read. All scripture. Is given. By inspiration. Of God. And is profitable. For doctrine. For reproof. For correction. For instruction.
[13:16] In righteousness. That the man of God. May be perfect. Throughly furnished. Unto all good works. Now we need to understand. What we're saying here. Perfect. Does not mean.
[13:26] Sinless. Or flawless. In this context. It means. Rather. Ideally. And perfectly. Designed. And matched. For the purpose. Intended. Imagine yourself.
[13:37] Trying to do a wee bit of DIY. And you're working away. With a screwdriver. And you're doing fine. And the screws either going in. Or coming out. Whichever it's meant to do. Then you move on. To the next screw.
[13:48] And you find. This one's got a wee cross in it. And you need a Phillips screwdriver. For that one. And all you've got. Is an ordinary one. So you labour away. For a wee while. But you're not really getting anywhere. And then somebody brings.
[13:58] And hands you. A proper Phillips screwdriver. The right screwdriver. For the right screw. The tool. Perfectly matched. For the job. Now it may not be the best Phillips screwdriver. In the world.
[14:09] It may be all sorts of flaws. Or difficulties with it. But for the task. For which you have in hand. It is. Perfect. And that is the sense. That is meant here.
[14:20] Perfectly matched. For the purpose. For which it is designed. That the man of God. May be perfect. Throughly furnished. To all good works. In other words. He is equipped.
[14:31] Perfect. With everything he needs. For the task. The Lord wants him. To fulfill. Doesn't mean he's sinless. Doesn't mean. If you just obey the law. You'll be sinless. But rather.
[14:41] It means the law. Will equip you. For all that you need. To serve the Lord. It will give you. The tools. To do. The job. The law of the Lord.
[14:52] Is perfect. What is the law designed for? It says it is for the converting. Of the soul. To bring us. In other words. Back. Again. To ourselves.
[15:03] And our God. And our duty. To convert. Means to turn around. To turn. Again. To invert. Means to turn something. Upside down.
[15:15] To pervert. Means to twist. And distort it. In a negative way. To convert. Means to turn. Turn. Again. The law. Converts.
[15:25] In the sense of. Turning us again. It shows us. Our need. It is of course. Not flawless. Not complete. In the sense. We need Christ. To fulfill the law.
[15:36] Galatians tells us. The law is the schoolmaster. To bring us to Christ. But it is ideally. Suited for the purpose. For which it is designed. To show us. Our need. Of God.
[15:47] To show us. Our helplessness. Without God. To cause our soul. To be turned again. It is not a mere outward thing. You know. By the time of Jesus day.
[15:57] Some people had turned the law. Into a mere outward observance. It was never meant to be like that. It was never meant to be. Just a mechanical outward thing. The law of the Lord is perfect.
[16:08] Converting the soul. It is an affair of the soul. Of the spirit. Of the inner being. It is that which changes man. Inwardly by the grace of God.
[16:20] Man in his innermost being. By virtue of the law. Is exposed in his weakness. And helplessness. Is turned again. To the only source of help.
[16:31] His soul is drawn back. Turned again. To the Lord. The law of the Lord. Is perfect. Converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord.
[16:43] Is sure. Making wise. The simple. God's witness of himself. Is solid. Sure. He himself. Is the rock. His testimony.
[16:54] Is sure. And by it. The simple. Humble. Poor. Are made wise. And enabled to know. The Lord. Remember what it says. In Corinthians.
[17:05] About you know. Not many wise men. After the flesh. Not many. Bright. Clever. Academic. Intellectual. Rich. Powerful. Men. Are called. Because they are so. Full of themselves.
[17:15] There's so little room. For God. But the simple. Humble. Believing. Poor. Are shown. To be more wise. Than these great men. They are shown.
[17:27] To have more. Grey matter. Actually being employed. Than all these. Intellectual. Professors. Who pour scorn. On the authority. And accuracy. Of the word of God. They believe.
[17:38] Simply. The testimony. Of the Lord. Is sure. Certain. Makes the simple. Wise. Fear of the Lord. Is the beginning. Of wisdom. Turns them.
[17:49] To himself. Of Timothy. It was written. In 2nd Timothy. 3.15. That from a child. Thou hast known. The holy scriptures. Which are. And I quote.
[17:59] Able to make thee. Wise. Unto salvation. Through faith. Which is. In Jesus Christ. The testimony. The testimony. Of the Lord. Is sure. Making wise.
[18:11] The simple. The statutes. Of the Lord. Are right. Rejoicing. The heart. Notice. The spiritual. Progression. Here.
[18:21] As one goes. Deeper. Into the word. Of God. He who was. Converted. Turned again. Back to the Lord. Was thereafter. Made wise.
[18:33] A fear of the Lord. Being the beginning. Of wisdom. And is now. Made joyful. One who is wise. Enough to know. That his delight. Is in the law. Of the Lord. Becomes joyful.
[18:45] In it. Having been converted. Then having been made wise. He is now made joyful. There is a. Progression. There is an ongoing. Ripening. Of the soul.
[18:55] Here. Under the word. Of God. For all his. Fallenness. You see. Man still. Retains. An instinct. As to what. Is right. And wrong.
[19:07] We read. Earlier. In Romans. Chapter 2. And if we quote. A couple of verses. From there. Verses 14. And 15. For when the Gentiles. Which have not the law. Do by nature.
[19:17] The things contained. In the law. These having not the law. Or a law unto themselves. Which show the work. Of the law. Written in their hearts. Their conscience. Also bearing witness.
[19:29] And their thoughts. The meanwhile. Accusing. Or else. Excusing. One another. We have this. Instinctive. Recognition. Of rights.
[19:40] And wrong. And man. Who defies. The living God. Instinctively. Knows. That he is doing so. For some fools. That is part. Of the daring bravado.
[19:51] Of what they do. For others. It is just. Blind stupidity. But the one. Who rejoices. In the heart. In the statutes. Of the Lord. Rejoices.
[20:02] In the knowledge. That God's statutes. Are unquestionably right. And as it is. In Psalm 104. It talks about. Wine. That maketh glad. The heart of man. So likewise.
[20:13] The statutes. Of the Lord. Rejoice. The heart. But see. The progress. Continues. For he was first. Converted. And then made wise. And then made to rejoice.
[20:24] Now obtains. A discerning eye. And through the purity. Of the commandment. Of the Lord. So we read. The commandment. Of the Lord. Is pure. Enlightening the eyes.
[20:35] Now. If the eye. Is enlightened. Then it suggests. That prior to this. It was in darkness. Prior to this. It was dim. It could not see. Clearly. But now.
[20:46] It is enlightened. It is enlightened. By. The commandment. Of the Lord. In its purity. Thus. Now. Enlightened.
[20:56] He is able. To discern. What is true. From what is false. His eyes. Enlightened. He can see. More clearly. That. In which he rejoices. And the feet.
[21:08] Of the Lord. Meanwhile. The feet. Of the Lord. That holy. All. That reverence. And humbled. Loving. Obedience. Cleanses out. The love of sin.
[21:19] The feet. Of the Lord. Is clean. Enduring. Forever. It cleanses out. The love of sin. And the desire. For it. From the heart. And soul. Of everyone.
[21:30] That fears God. You see. We all. Have times. When. We know. We sin. And we repent. Of the sin. And we're sorry. For the sin. And we want.
[21:40] Not to do it again. But. We still retain. That secret love. Of the sin. Because we have a love. Hate relationship. With our sins. Or some of them. If they are. Besetting sins.
[21:51] Then we have that love. Hate relationship. With them. We love them. But we hate. The fact. We're under their power. The fear of the Lord. Is clean.
[22:02] It cleanses out. That love. Of sin. It takes away. The desire. For it. The fear of the Lord. Is clean.
[22:13] It takes away. These things. And it cleanses. The heart. And soul. Of everyone. That fears God. The innermost. Being. Is sanctified. Cleansed. Through this work. Of God's spirit.
[22:23] Because it is only. The spirit of God. That can give. The fear of the Lord. As one said. Of an evangelist. Of old. He was asked. If he was walking. With God.
[22:34] And he said. Well I can tell you this. I fear God. And it is only. The spirit of God. That can give us. The fear. Of God. The fear of the Lord. Is clean. Just as only.
[22:46] The spirit of God. Can implant. The fear of God. This cleansing power. Endures forever. Filthiness corrupts. You see. If you've got a sandwich. That you leave too long.
[22:56] And it goes moldy. Then it begins. To become corrupted. And decay. If something is left. Too long. Then it begins. Simply to disintegrate. That is the way of nature.
[23:07] It is the fallen creation. In which we live. The fallen worlds. It decays. By nature. Filthiness corrupts. And decay. Sets in. Where filth abounds.
[23:17] And that which decays. Passes away to dust. But the fear of the Lord. Has the very opposite effect. It is clean. And it endures. Forever.
[23:29] The judgments. Of the Lord. Are true. And righteous. All together. All God's works. And judgments. Speak for themselves. Taken individually. Or taken together. The end result.
[23:40] Is the same. And how precious. To the soul. Who discerns. Their true value. Says more than gold. The judgments of the Lord. Are true and righteous. All together. More to be desired.
[23:51] Are they than gold. Yea. Than much fine gold. Sweeter also. Than honey. And the honeycomb. Here we have. Greater than gold. Greater than fine gold. Greater than much fine gold.
[24:02] You see how it's. Emphasizing. More and more. Each time. For love. And gain of gold. Men undergo. Huge hardships. They'll do without. Luxury. They'll do without.
[24:14] Necessities. They will dispense. With all ease. And all pleasure. For a time. They will cross. Oceans and continents. Think of the. The 49ers. And the California. Gold rush.
[24:25] Of that year. And all the. Arduous journeys. Men undertook. In comparative. Poverty. And trying to stake. Their claim. And dig away for gold. Or pan for it. Or whatever. They endured.
[24:35] Horrendous hardships. Many of them. Died in the. Process. All for the. Chasing of gold. Gold. Which at the. End of the day. Is but a metal. An element.
[24:47] Which passes away. Which corrupts. For the love. Of the truth. Of God's. Judgment. Should we be. Prepared. To do less. Than these men. Do for a mere.
[24:58] Base metal. Should we be. Prepared. To do less. To endure less. To undergo less. They're prepared. To cross. Oceans and continents. Just for gold. Gold. But the judgments.
[25:08] Of the Lord. Are true and righteous. Altogether. More to be desired. Are they than gold. Yea. Than much. Fine gold. And sweeter than honey. In the honeycomb. It's said by some.
[25:19] That in age. Men desire wealth. But in youth. They desire pleasure. Well here is the satisfaction. Of all our desires. Whatever age. We may be at. God's judgments.
[25:30] Are more desirable. Than gold. More precious. And they are sweeter than honey. From the home. From the comb. Pleasure. And sweetness. Wealth. And blessing.
[25:40] And prosperity. All in what God. Gives. Freely. Moreover. By them is thy servant. Warned. And in keeping of them. There is great reward.
[25:51] We are warned against disaster. We are prevented from idly. Wandering into hell. And there is reward. Not only from keeping. The statutes and judgments.
[26:02] Of the Lord. Not only after the event. Not only because we kept them. So we are rewarded. But rather there is reward. In keeping of them. It says. In keeping of them. There is great reward.
[26:13] I remember many years ago. Speaking to a gentleman. In my own former parish. Whose father was a devout Christian. And this guy wasn't yet himself converted. Still isn't as far as I know.
[26:25] And said to his father. When he was dying effectively. Supposing you had been wrong. Supposing there wasn't a heaven and a hell. Supposing God wasn't real. And you believed in something that was false.
[26:37] And the old gentleman replied. He would have done nothing differently. For earthly life was infinitely better with Christ. Than without him. Never mind the heavenly life.
[26:51] Through religion is health and honor. In this world. It makes our comfort sweeter. Our crosses bearable. Life truly valuable. And death itself desirable.
[27:03] You know Paul writes elsewhere. If in this life only we have hope in Christ. We are of all men most miserable. That may be true in terms of what we hope for. But it doesn't alter the fact. That God's judgments.
[27:14] Statutes. Laws. Commandments. Sweeten and bless. This life. Right here. Right now. Before ever we start thinking. About eternity.
[27:25] Who can understand. The errors they commit. We often wonder at the sins we commit. Who can understand his errors. Cleanse thou me from secret faults.
[27:37] Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins. With all the blessings we receive from God. Who would ever want to sin against such a God as this. But we all do it.
[27:48] We all do. Now we are asked here in this psalm to be cleansed from secret faults. Our inner unconscious sins. Known only to God. But less well known to us. We plead the more to be kept back from presumptuous sins.
[28:03] Because under the law. There is no atoning sacrifice. For presumptuous sin. We read in Numbers 15.
[28:14] Verses 27 and 28. If any soul sin through ignorance. Then he shall bring a she-goat of the first year for a sin offering. And the priest shall make an atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly.
[28:26] When he sinneth by ignorance before the Lord. To make an atonement for him. And it shall be forgiven him. In verse 30. But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously. Whether he be born in the land or a stranger.
[28:39] The same reproacheth the Lord. And that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Because he hath despised the word of the Lord. And hath broken his commandment. That soul shall be utterly cut off.
[28:52] His iniquity shall be upon him. In the law. There is no sacrifice. No atonement. That will cleanse you of presumptuous sin. And under the gospel too.
[29:05] If we persist. With presumption against the Lord. Against our Savior. And despise the only means of our salvation. There is no other hope for us.
[29:16] We read in Hebrews chapter 10. From verse 26. For if we sin willfully. After we have received the knowledge of the truth.
[29:26] There remaineth no more sacrifice for sins. But a certain fearful looking for of judgment. And fiery indignation. Which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law.
[29:38] Died without mercy under two or three witnesses. Of how much sore punishment suppose ye. Shall he be thought worthy. Who hath trodden under foot the Son of God. And hath counted the blood of the covenant.
[29:50] Wherewith he was sanctified. An unholy thing. And hath done despite. Unto the Spirit of grace. There is no inconsistency. Between the law.
[30:01] And the gospel. Presumption. Casts us out. From God's presence. Because we sin against the very means. Of our own salvation. Keep back thy servant.
[30:14] From presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then shall I be upright. And shall be innocent. From the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth.
[30:25] The meditation of my heart. Be acceptable. In thy sight. O Lord. My strength. And my redeemer. We are uprights. When we are prevented from sin.
[30:37] The great transgression. Has no hold of us. But this. Is as nothing. If we are not acceptable. To God. David's prayer. Is that he may be acceptable. To God. That the words of my mouth.
[30:49] The meditation of my heart. Be acceptable. In thy sight. O Lord. My strength. And my redeemer. David's prayer. Is our prayer. Our need. Is to be acceptable. To God.
[31:00] But we have. A fuller assurance. Of grace. Than he had. We have. A stronger claim. Than he had. Because we don't just. Have the books of Moses. We have the gospel.
[31:11] Of grace. We have the Lord. Jesus Christ. Who has taught. His disciples. That even if somebody. Sins against them. Seventy times seven. They must keep. Forgiving him. And even if the Lord.
[31:23] Were to do that. With us. And to keep a note. Of seventy times seven. Against us. We have long since. Used up our four hundred and ninety sins. Against the Lord. Thank God.
[31:34] It means. Times without number. And that he turns. And receives us. Again. And again. And again. For in him. We have a fuller assurance. Of grace. And satisfaction.
[31:44] For we have the Messiah. The fulfillment. Of all. The law. Of the Lord. Which is perfect. And the statutes. Of the Lord. And the commandments. Of the Lord. And the testimonies.
[31:55] Of the Lord. He fulfills it all. And he has made us. In him. Accepted. In the beloved. Acceptance. With God. This is what David prayed for.
[32:06] That the words of my mouth. And the meditation. Of my heart. Be acceptable. In thy sight. Oh Lord. My strength. And my redeemer. In Christ Jesus. We have. Acceptance.
[32:18] With God. That is what he died. To procure for us. And this. We can never earn. This is pure. Grace. A great offer. But how long.
[32:29] Will the offer last. To which all creation. And all the revealed word of God. Down all the years. Has borne witness. Well I'll tell you now. It will last a lifetime. Whose lifetime?
[32:39] Your lifetime. And mine. How long is that lifetime? You don't know that. I don't know that. But we do know. It is for all of your life. Else there is life.
[32:50] There is hope. But you don't know. When that life. Is going to be cut off. You don't know. How many years. You may have. And it is worse than a fool. To presume in the days. Of our youth. Well I'll think about that.
[33:01] When I'm old. I'll think about it. When I'm 60. Because sure as anything. By the time we get to 60. We still don't feel very old. So we'll put it off. A little bit longer. And we put it off.
[33:11] And we put it off. And even if we did turn to the Lord. In the last few. What months. Or years of our lives. What are we giving him then? But the leftovers.
[33:23] The dregs of our lives. Now that's not to say. If one is genuinely converted. At that stage in life. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. That if we feel the call. And the sense of God.
[33:34] And the sense of God. Calling us. And drawing us to himself. Then we are obligated. To give him. All that we have. And all that we can. And all the years of our life.
[33:45] And all our youth. And strength. And health. And ability. And wealth. And all that he has given us. Is his at the first anyway. How long should we put it off? You shouldn't put it off at all.
[33:56] This will last a lifetime. But you have no guarantee. Of how long that lifetime will be. Paul writes to the Corinthians. We then as workers together with him. Beseech you also.
[34:07] That you receive not the grace of God. In vain. It is a free gift. But a gift that is given to be used. To be received. For he saith. I have heard thee in a time accepted.
[34:19] And in the day of salvation. Have I succored thee. Behold. Now is the accepted time. Behold. Now is the day of salvation. The heavens declare it.
[34:32] The scripture reveals it. And all that the savior has done. Procures it. The believer receives it.
[34:43] And whether you accept it. Or not. Whether you are a believer. Or not. Just as the heaven declares it. Just as the scripture reveals it.
[34:54] Just as the savior procures it. Just as the believer receives it. You in your heart of hearts. Whoever you are. You. You. Know it.
[35:06] Don't let it pass. Don't let it pass from your grasp. God is making it clear to us. God is revealing to us. In all that he does.
[35:17] In all that he writes. Now is the accepted time. Now. Now. Is the day of salvation. Let us pray. We stand to pray. Amen.
[35:28] Amen. Amen. Amen. Gracious and beloved Lord. Thou knowest, O Lord, our weakness. Thou knowest our inclination towards sin.
[35:39] Do thou cleanse us from it. We beseech thee. Grant us, O Lord, the feet of the Lord. Which is clean and which endures forever. That with the feet of the Lord.
[35:50] There would also be the love of the Lord. And just as perfect love casts out fear. So let us recognize. That the love wherewith thou hast loved us. Is perfect.
[36:02] That when we are brought. Ultimately we pray. Into thy presence. To behold thee face to face. There should be no more fear. Just as there be no more need for faith.
[36:16] No more need for hope. But love alone that shall endure for all eternity in thy presence. So, Lord, help us to recognize. The brevity of time.
[36:27] The vastness of eternity. That all things here, wondrous and beautiful as thou hast made them. Shall pass away. And the elements shall melt with fervent heat. For thou, Lord, hast created.
[36:41] An inheritance for them that love thee. That it may last forever and ever. So do thou draw us now unto thee. Through thy revealed word. Through the wonder and beauty of creation.
[36:54] Through thy voice speaking unto our heart and spirit. Through the testimony of the Savior and his sacrifice on the cross. Through the witness of all who have accepted and received.
[37:05] And believed his mercy down all the years. So do thou enable us. Not to allow this grace and this gift to pass through our fingers. But to lay hold upon life now.
[37:18] For behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. Bless thy word to us. For we ask it in Jesus' name whose word it is. Amen.
[37:29] We close.