All right, let's go to the Lord in prayer and ask for His favor. Father in heaven, we need your help. When it comes to your word, it tells us of things that are too high for us to understand and reveals things that are hard for us to accept. So we pray, Lord, that your spirit would enlighten us now as we read your word and as we reflect on it. We pray that it would do good work in us. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. Betrayals of the faith appear to be all too common these days. We hear of Christians who have some sort of notoriety, whether musical talent or book writing. We hear of them stepping away from the faith and recanting their orthodox positions. Pastors who led thousands into a belief of Christ and the Bible suddenly turn and say they never really believed these things themselves. Has this always been the case, or does this just feel like a new phenomenon because of the times in which we live? Are such betrayals actually quite rare, but they're only amplified because of the reach of social media and the incessant information cycle that must publish anything and everything it can? And do we comfort ourselves into thinking such betrayals only happen out there, or only in those kinds of churches? Well, tonight we will be considering a text that speaks of faithless servants, or as I will call them, false friends. And to do this, we will be looking at Psalm 41, and specifically verse 6. So feel free to open up to that if you would like to. Read along as we consider that text together. And I'll be reading from the bulk of the Psalm aloud, starting at verse 4 through to verse 10, just to get the context. And then we'll take another closer look at verse 6. So Psalm 41 verse four. As for me, I said, Oh Lord, be gracious to me. Heal me for I have sinned against you. My enemies say of me in malice, when will he die? And his name perish. And when one comes to see me, he utters empty words while his heart gathers iniquity. And when he goes out, he tells it abroad. All who hate me whisper together about me, and they imagine the worst for me. They say, a deadly thing has poured out on him. He will not rise again from where he lies. Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me. But you, O Lord, be gracious to me and raise me up that I may repay them. Our psalm is a psalm of King David, and he is the first person of the me and the I pronouns. And as more of the surrounding verses attest to, he appears to be bedridden and sick, and so much so that some are sure he's going to die of it. Although this is a wonderful psalm that speaks of God's steadfast love and his dependability for those who are his, we will be observing more closely those who interact with David while he is in his affliction. So from verse six, let us note and meditate on three realities about false friends. Firstly, let us mark the reality that there are those who would profess a false faith. Betrayals happen, and they have always happened. And they happen in places and against people you might not expect. I know it's a discouraging thing to say. My sympathies to you if you have experienced this firsthand. But our text shows that this is something we must gird ourselves up for. Even in the highest courts of the land, false friends can be found. We see this in the phrase, and when one comes to see me, the first thing we should realize is that this one, contextually, is an enemy, and also possibly a trusted friend. We see that in verses five and nine. Keep in mind that they are coming to see the king. The highest official of the land. Not anyone merely walks into the palace of a royal and receives an audience with the king. Nor should we presume that this is a once-off visitation, for the king is ill. I'm probably not admitting anyone, any kind of visitor to see him. So we're probably talking about a trusted advisor or a member of the household who has unhindered access to the palace and to the king. They are familiar with the scene and they have also undoubtedly enjoyed many of the privileges and the pleasures of the court. Fine food, fellowship, comfortable accommodations and hospitality. And we gather more insight when this false friend opens his mouth. One word from our text tells us much. It says he utters. Now this is one of those great English words that is almost self-describing just the way it's spelt and pronounced. Utter. It's like a mix of an uh with a stutter. Here we have someone of prominence, as we've just demonstrated, and eloquence, we would expect, entering the presence of the king who is ill, and from all outside appearances, even at the point of death, and the manner of his speech, his utterance. At his best, a half-hearted effort. There is no tone of real concern for the matter or the situation at hand, just a self-absorbed pretense. The falseness of the man is palpable, and we have yet to examine his words, which is that he utters empty words. Now our opening picture of the false friend is complete. We had little hope that anything good could come from him, or anything good that he could say. Scripture confirms that this is the man's counsel, and that it is empty, it is vacuous. The words seem to want to suck out what little hope there is in the room. A trusted friend comes to see his sick king and he can't even offer any genuine comfort, no uplifting encouragement, no hopeful edification for his soul, no solidarity, and ultimately no sincerity. And so we see that the high propriety of an assembly is not necessarily a protection from the hollow-hearted individuals to be found in it. Though I wish it would not be so, we do well to take this warning and apply it to the Church. Church, we should not be deceived into thinking that this is a place of only do-gooders and well-wishers. Though we might strive to practice regenerate church membership, we should acknowledge that false teachers seek to fulfill their greed and advance to the folds as wolves in disguise, and there will be young professions of repentance and belief whose flower will fade and wither in the sun of the world's pressure. There will be middle-life men and women who will tire of the facade of their faith as it hinders their pursuit of worldly gain. They all will walk away, some abruptly and some almost imperceptibly. And though we might watch on, crushed by what we see, we should not say that we thought it impossible that it would happen in our house. Second reality, let us note the deadly gains such a profession gains. What becomes of people who would avail themselves of high privilege with deceitfulness? Do they get away and live a satisfying life? Do they enjoy the fruits of their efforts? Well, maybe. It could be that they do benefit in some way from their underhandedness, at least at first. But as we look at our text, we see that they attain something else, something perhaps a little less visible to the naked eye. In fact, it turns out to be something quite hideous and deadly. For as our text continues in the next thought, it goes on to say that while his heart Ah, the truth of the matter. Initially we were invited to see visible happenings that proved empty, and now we see invisible happenings that prove true. And what is it that his heart is doing? It gathers iniquity. From the surrounding verses we learn that the false friends are already holding in their hearts malice and hatred. The seeds of their faithlessness have already been planted within them. And as they whisper amongst themselves, wishing the king's death, those seeds are starting to bud. But it is when they dare to enter the presence of the king and offer empty words that this is when they reach full bloom and their hypocrisy results in additional iniquity. We're speaking more of just a this-for-that consequence of their deceitfulness. Yes, their deceit is condemnable, and it will be condemned, but what's more alarming is that their heart is actually gathering more iniquity. Sin has been heaped upon sin. And one wonders what it is that these false friends are talking about to the king. If his death appeared imminent, were they seeking to profit in some final way before their positions in the kingdom became uncertain? Or were they perhaps trying to ingratiate themselves deeper within the good graces of the court so as to secure their status after the passing of the king? As much as I would like to make the case that their motivations were based on selfish gain, I can't say for certain from the text. But what we can conclude is that for these people, It was not enough that they had the friendship of the king. And scripture tells us that there were some who learned of the kindness of Christ, but then showed that this was a gift insufficient for them. Demas betrayed Paul because of his love for the present world. In comparison to the riches of Christ, he would rather trample them underfoot as he ran back to empty promises. And Judas, who received the discipline of the Prince of Peace himself, betrayed the author of life to death. So let us all be wary of any temptation that says the cost of Christ is too much to continue on with. Even if we have been guilty of not counting the cost, when not counting it well when we first set out, we should not blunder similarly and miscount the terrible gain of walking away. Third and last reality. Let us see that their true position is finally revealed. So how are we to discern these false friends? The remainder of our text shows us that they will reveal themselves. The verse ends with, when he goes out, he tells it abroad. Interestingly, we have a positive eventuality in the word when. It's not an if. That they will eventually reveal their true colors is the normal run of the course for such people. It's also worth noting that this happens when he goes out. So after he removes himself from the presence of the king and the royal setting, he starts to speak the truth of his heart. Before he had no courage to speak so confidently in the presence of the king, but now he has no fear of speaking so openly. This is doubly confirmed because before he could only utter, as we previously observed, but now he tells it. And this telling is no longer just confined to the faithless few who previously would only whisper amongst themselves, but now they even go so far as to tell it abroad. A man speaks out of the abundance of his heart, and we need only wait until the time is ripe and it will show itself. So in a sense, this is a truth we could take some comfort in as a church. It removes from us the burden of thinking we need to be smarter than we can be by trying to discern false disciples from true disciples before they actually reveal themselves as such. We ourselves are weak in the flesh, and we ourselves do not always see as we should. We have blind spots and biases. No, we need only wait patiently and continue faithfully. And here lies our application from the text. Since we humbly admit we cannot always see definitively, we should rather be encouraging those who seem to be stumbling in the faith. When we see what looks like waywardness, let's assume instead that they have an overwhelmed soul, so we deal patiently with them, pointing them to the victory of Christ over all things. reminding them of his providential power to finish the work that was started in them. And if a situation calls for it, we carry them along with admonishments, but are always with love and a desire to see them bolt up in maturity, careful so not as to break the bent reed. Another application from this text is a diagnostic question which we can ask ourselves and one another. And that is, what do we say when we are not around each other? Just as our false friend spoke openly once he had gone out from the king, what do we say or think of Christ and his church when we are no longer amongst his people? Do we grumble about the service or the preaching? Do we vent a growing root of bitterness about someone or something about our fellowship? And we're not saying that differences of opinion don't exist. Of course they will. And that is why there's so much exaltation in the Bible to build and maintain unity. But what we can do is take a pulse on the frequency and the tone of our disagreement and so make a self-inquiry. Now this has been a gloomy verse. It's no fun to put our thoughts into these matters. They darken the day we've enjoyed together. They might even put unnecessary fear where there is no warrant for it. So in our final moments together, let's turn our eyes and fix them on Jesus. And let us remind ourselves of what a friend we have in Him. And what a friend we find indeed. A true friend. He is the exact opposite of all we spoke of this evening. His words are true, because he is truth. And when he speaks, he speaks as one who commands life to come out of death. And his words are life himself. And for sinners and the outcast, and the sin-sick souls, he came to gather our iniquity. And He carried them to the cross and endured their rightful penalty under the holy wrath of the Father, making the sacrifice once for all for the sins of you and me and all who would call upon His name. And now he draws near to those who call on him by faith and raises them up to new life. He is both the author and the perfecter of our faith, and he upholds those who are falling and preserves them until the end. So take courage, Christian. When you feel alone, he is near you. When you feel you are overwhelmed with your sin, He has already carried the load. Even if you fall to the darkest depths, His grace abounds all the more. And when you feel worthless and unlovable, He's already shown His love to you while you were still in your sin. And He is all the worth you'll ever need to stay blameless before the Father. So let us go out and tell it abroad of all that Christ has done for us. Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, thank you for your mercy and your kindness to us by giving us a friend like Jesus. Jesus, we are humbled by your grace and friendship to us. We know we are so undeserving of it. To keep us from despair or love of the world, let us be mindful always of the inheritance kept in heaven for those who are faithful to your calling. Keep our doctrine pure and our witness clear. Let this be a church that shepherds many along the narrow path to your kingdom's gates. We ask this all to the glory of your name, for you are the foundation of all the hopes and expectations of our prayers. Glorify yourself in us, we pray. Amen.