245, there's life for Luke at the crucified one. There's life at this moment for thee, then Luke's sinner. Luke, unto him and be saved. Unto him who was nailed on the tree. 245, we're standing as we sing. That's done. ♪ There is life and rest for all and for me ♪ ♪ When I go to see him, how to him I may say ♪ ♪ What to him will the strength of the tree be ♪ ♪ Where are you, where, where can I be ♪ ♪ There is life for all and the grace to find me ♪ where his life and his joy are for me. Oh, I once again was a man who had sinned, yet from Jesus my guilt was unbidden. Oh, I from the sin, through the sin, come to God, where his life and his joy are for me. ♪ Let earth receive her King ♪ ♪ Here is life for all, health and peace for all ♪ ♪ Let this life of peace now be over me ♪ We have talked of the dreams, of repentance and praise, of the blood that has gone to the sword, of faith and faith, ♪ And I'm living my own life ♪ ♪ Well, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, good, The green light shines, fills your life to the brim, and it gives your consciousness meaning. The rest of the day, it brings the evening to an end, but it fills the new day with a new meaning. of the free. There is life for all men, and the grace of my God. There is life and there's joy for me. The final process of us begun, there remaineth the work to be done. At once, at the end of the work which hath been, I complete the work being done. ♪ I will die for you, and with mercy my will ♪ ♪ I will die at this moment for you ♪ ♪ For a day of rejoicing from Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ The life everlasting begins ♪ We'll bow together in prayer. and wait upon the Lord. Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee that we have to but look by faith to Jesus Christ tonight and all the blessings of the gospel come to us like that occasion in the wilderness when a brazen serpent was lifted up in the midst of the camp and Israel, everyone bitten by those fiery serpents and death was within them. even among them. And there was life for a look at that brazen serpent. And even as Christ was lifted up, we are to look to Him by faith. And we thank Thee that that look will save the soul. It will bring us into the blessings of the gospel. Christ is our righteousness made. He has provided for us a righteousness tonight that can become ours, imputed to our account, It can be counted as our righteousness, even though we have not earned it or merited it in any way. Yet, Lord, Thou art willing to bestow such a righteousness upon all who look to Jesus Christ. And we thank Thee for each one who can indeed say that they have done so, and that in doing so they have passed from death to life, from the power of Satan unto God. And tonight we can testify there is life for a look, at the Crucified One. We bless Thee this evening for the One who hung upon that middle tree at Calvary, who was willing to be crucified. He could have overpowered those who were acting against Him. Lord, in the garden His power was shown when they went backwards and fell to the ground, and we know that He gave Himself up to the work of the cross. that He led His life down. It wasn't taken from Him, but He freely, voluntarily gave His life for sinners. And tonight we thank Thee for such a Savior. We rejoice that we are trusting in one this evening who delighted to save our souls, who did not do so reluctantly and somehow was coerced or forced to go to the cross, forced to remain on that cross and hang there in shame. He did it willingly. It was not the nails that kept Him on that cross. Rather, it was a love for the souls of sinners, a desire to save sinners, a willingness to accomplish that purpose that His Father had given Him to do. And we know that in that He was the perfect servant who had come to do His Father's will. and who did all that was required, and tonight we praise Thee that we have such a great Savior and such a great redemption. The question is asked, how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? And Lord, we acknowledge that salvation is indeed so great, beyond even words that could properly and adequately describe what it is we have in Jesus Christ. Lord, what a great gulf there is fixed between heaven and hell. We thank Thee that it's that salvation that is in Jesus Christ that delivers us from going down to hell, brings us the hope of glory to our soul, that one day we shall see Thee and be with Thee, we shall be like Thee. O Lord, what blessings this night there are in Jesus Christ. It is our prayer that others will come to know Him. O Lord, we make that our fervent prayer, that souls who are out of Christ even tonight will be drawn unto Thee. Lord, save amongst us, save in our family, save in our neighborhood. We pray that Thou will break through, O Lord, and draw people unto Thyself. As we were thinking this morning, Lord, it is Thy work to cause a people to cleave unto Thee. And we pray that there would be those who are cleaving to their sins tonight, who are cleaving to the world, cleaving to that which will take them down to a lost eternity, but that they would be made to forsake those things and cleave unto Christ, that they would flee from wrath to come and take hold of the Savior and make Him theirs, that they would plead for mercy, plead for salvation. O Father, we thank Thee that none are too far gone, even those who have heard Thy Word, and many on occasion who have spurned opportunity after opportunity. O Father, we thank Thee that there is mercy with the Lord, that Thou dost bear long with sinners. Thou dost not take their first reply. Lord, if that was the case, none of us would be saved, for we all rejected Thee. We all turned away, but we thank Thee that Thou didst speak and continue to do so and drew us to Thyself. Lord, Thou wert able to do that in the lives of others. Oh, there's some we may be tempted to give up on, think they're too far gone, they've heard Thy Word too often, and they're going on in their sins. Maybe years have gone by, and yet, Lord, there is hope. There is always hope because we believe in a God who is long-suffering and who spares the sinner who's willing who desires to show mercy, who takes no pleasure in their destruction. And we pray tonight that there would be those that would close in with Jesus Christ. Oh, so blessed, Lord. Undertake, use Thy Word as it goes forth in this meeting and the live stream. We pray thy blessing to be our portion. Remember the youth meeting afterwards as well. Remember thy servant Hannah as he will come to speak there to the young people. We pray you'll undertake for him and bless the young people as they gather. And may thy hand be upon them this evening. Lord, look upon us. And all who need our prayers, there's many laid aside tonight. It is our desire that thou would be gracious to them, O Lord, and draw them back in amongst us. Raise them up, we pray. May they know that physical touch from Thyself. And we pray that Thou will encourage them and meet them this very night at the point of their need. So abide with us as we continue on before Thee, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Number 58. Number 58, we're going to sing in a moment. It'll be our offering hymn. As you're turning that up, we do bid you welcome each one in the Savior's name tonight. We're glad to see you. It is a communion Sabbath evening, so we do welcome you to the Lord's house. Those who are tuning in online, we welcome you also. Pray the Lord will indeed bless us. There is after this meeting, the youth meeting quarter to nine that is taking place and our brother Thomas Hanna will be along to speak. at that this evening. And then Tuesday night, 6.30 is the Bible Club. Wednesday at 8 PM is our midweek meeting. We were taking up that offering for the college on Wednesday night past. That's open today. So if you want to contribute to that, you still can do that. And then on Thursday, well, I omitted to say that in the afternoon, there are the meetings in the Ballyclare Nursing Homes. They commence at 1.30. But in the evening time, there is the monthly prayer meeting for the work among the children and the youth. That's at 8 p.m. on Thursday evening. And then next Lord's Day, we are planning to have our Sabbath school prize giving. It was postponed from this morning. So we do hope to have that next Lord's Day morning. Elizabeth McGill will be along to speak to the Sabbath school pupils. And there's morning and evening service. I'll be preaching at those, God willing. I did mention a little bit about the hymn books as well. There was one other person who said to me that they wanted a guilt edged one. So that's six orders for that. So that leaves a few of the normal new edition of the hymn book, just the word edition. They're eight pounds each. So if you're interested in having one of those, maybe you didn't even order it at the time, but you would like it now, there are a few copies there that you can avail off. The cleaning rota is on a weekly basis through December, so please remember that. And then just a few other meetings coming up. Not this incoming week, but the week after, the Christmas week, our midweek meeting is moved from the Wednesday night, the 24th, to the Tuesday night, the 23rd. So it's coming back one night. So just remember that. And then there is the joint watch night service in Carrick Fergus Church. This time they're hosting that. That's on Wednesday the 31st. It'll start at 9.30. That will be our midweek meeting that week as well. It normally is the case we tie that in with the watch night service. So we'll be over there. There'll be supper served. We'll put out a list maybe next week who's going and we need to cover ourselves for supper for that as well. There is that 2026 prayer card that is available and we certainly would encourage you to veil of that. And remember the missionary works. There's one missionary work every day of the month. There is also that CD that the Ballymena Church have produced. It's marking 50 years since the gospel mission in the town hall in 1975. Dr. Paisley was the evangelist. It was a mating mission when scores and scores came to know the Lord at that time. So they have produced that to mark that anniversary. So if you want that, I think it was £13, I think was the price that those are. That's all the announcements. They're all in the well of The Lord, okay, number 58 then, is going to be our offering hymn. Jesus, the name high over all, in hell or earth or sky, angels and men before it fall, and devils fear and fly. Jesus, the name to sinners dear, the name to sinners given, it scatters all their guilty fears, it turns their hell to heaven. Number 58, we're keeping our seats for the opening verses. Jesus, who made the earth move with him, earth, or sky, angels ♪ ♪ To see His way. ♪ ♪ Our ears, our breath, our souls, our speech, our life lifted high. ♪ Let's stop for verse three. His holy, righteous desertion, we sing in dreadful pain. His holy, innocent spirit, ♪ Behold the Lamb ♪ ♪ The beacon for the Easter ♪ ♪ The day of rest is near ♪ ♪ Reach into all and find Him ♪ ♪ Behold, behold the Lamb ♪ Isaiah chapter 48 is where we want to read this evening. Isaiah chapter 48, and then we'll turn back a few pages to chapter 42 and take up our studies there in Jehovah's Servant. But we'll read this 48th chapter of Isaiah through, beginning at the opening verse. Isaiah chapter 48 and verse 1. Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth nor in righteousness. For they call themselves of the holy city, and stay themselves upon the God of Israel. The Lord of hosts is his name. I have declared the former things from the beginning. And they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them. I did them suddenly, and they came to pass. Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass, I have even from the beginning declared it to thee. Before it came to pass, I showed it thee, lest thou shouldst say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image hath commanded them. Thou hast heard, see all this, and wilt ye not declare it? I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them. They are created now, and not from the beginning, even before the day when thou heardst them not, lest thou shouldst say, Behold, I knew them. Yea, thou heardst not, yea, thou knewest not, yea, from that time that thine ear was not open, for I knew that thou wouldst deal very treacherously, and was called a transgressor from the womb. For my name's sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain for thee, that I cut thee not off. Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver. I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it. For how should my name be polluted? And I will not give my glory unto another. Hearken unto me, O Jacob, and Israel my called. I am he, I am the first, I also am the last. Mine hand also hath led the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens. When I call unto them, they stand up together. All ye assemble yourselves and hear. which among them hath declared these things, the Lord hath loved him, he will do his pleasure on Babylon, and his arm shall be on the Chaldeans. I, even I, have spoken, yea, I have called him, I have brought him, and He shall make His way prosperous. Come ye near unto me, hear ye this, for I have not spoken in secret from the beginning. From the time that it was, there am I, and now the Lord God and His Spirit has sent me. Thus saith the Lord thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, I am the Lord thy God, which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go. O that thou hast hearkened to my commandments! Then hath thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea. Thy seed also hath been as the sand, and the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof. His name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me. Go ye forth of Babylon. Flee ye from the Chaldeans. With a voice of singing declare ye. Tell this. Utter it even to the end of the earth. Say ye, the Lord hath redeemed his servant Jacob. And they thirsted not when he led them through the deserts. He caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them. He cleaved the rock also, and the waters gushed out. There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked." And then if you go back to chapter 42, we're coming tonight to verse 6. It really stands in contrast to that chapter that we have just been reading, because it is a chapter reminding Israel of their failures. And now we come to consider Jehovah's perfect servant. And in chapter 42 of Isaiah, in verse 6, is the portion we're coming tonight to consider. I, the Lord, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people for a light to the Gentiles, to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. Amen. We know the Lord will add His blessing to the reading of His Word. We'll bow together in prayer for a moment, asking the Lord for His help as we come to His Word. Our Father, We come with thanksgiving that we have the Word of God. These things are revealed unto us. And we bless Thee that this book speaks to us of Thy dear servant, the one whom Thou didst send from heaven to be the Savior of sinners, to do all that was required, and he failed in no point. Lord, if he had failed in any way, there would not be a salvation tonight. And we thank Thee that salvation is an accomplished matter. that all that needs to be done has been done by Christ. He was raised from the dead in testimony that all that was needed to be done has been done. We know that to be so, and this night we rejoice in full and free redemption when we pray that we might rejoice in our Savior, therefore. He is to have all the glory. Lord, that glory that belongs to Him alone, He will not share with any other. We have read that tonight in our Bible reading. And we pray that Christ would have the preeminence even tonight amongst us as we gather here in this place, as we come around by word, as we come around this communion table in a little moment. We pray, Lord, that we might know the Lord's presence. And by speaking voice, abide with us. Now we humbly pray. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. So the words that we are thinking about here this evening, verses 6 and 7, fall into that category of what we can say and describe as the commissioning of Jehovah's Servant. We thought about the call to Jehovah's Servant, if you go back there to the beginning of the chapter, and how there was a need for Jehovah's Servant. And we spent a little time underscoring that point. And as I said, even the chapter that we have read there tonight, chapter 48, stands in contrast to what it is that we are thinking about this evening, because there it is a chapter of failure on the part of Israel, the things that they did not do. And the Lord then sent His perfect servant, one who would not fail. So there was a need or a call for Jehovah's Servant. We thought about the character of Jehovah's Servant as well. There's a fourfold description that is given to us there of Him. in verse 1 of this chapter that sets out how he was to be upheld, how he was elected, how he was delighted in, upon whom the Spirit of God was. So he certainly had the character that was needed to be Jehovah's servant and to outwork that which was going to be required of him. And then we thought about the conduct of Jehovah's Servant from the end of verse 1 through to the end of verse 4. There's those six statements, and we went through them one by one, how they describe the conduct of Jehovah's Servant and the work that He is appointed to do. So that brings us to where we are at present day in verses 5, 6, and 7 that cover the commissioning of Jehovah's servant. And last time we were thinking about verse 5, where he is commissioned by the highest authority. And the highest authority there in verse 5 is Creator God. one who has made the heavens and the earth. Or as it is put there in verse 5 of chapter 42, thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens and stretched them out, he that spread forth the earth and that which cometh out of it, he that giveth breath unto the people upon it and spirit to them that walk therein. So the greatest commissioning authority there is is Creator God. God Himself has commissioned His own dear Son, and we spend a little time dwelling upon that. And thinking about the importance of even creation, believing in creation, it's the first tenet of faith. We're not going to go back over that tonight, but we did look at Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 3. Belief in God as creator is the first tenant of biblical faith. That's where we start. For a simple reason, if there was no first Adam, how can there be a second Adam? And Jesus Christ is called the second Adam. the second Adam. In the sense, the second representative man. There was only two representative men in the world. Only two there ever will be. And both of them are in the past. Adam, the very first man, was representing all of humanity in the garden. And the Lord said, if you obey, you'll obey not just for yourself, but for all your posterity. And if you obey, you'll secure eternal life for them. Adam didn't obey. As we know, he sinned, and he brought death upon not only himself, but upon all his posterity. And then the Lord sent the second Adam, his own perfect servant. And he was a representative man. And Paul calls him such there in 1 Corinthians 15, where he's called the last man, the second man, the last Adam. And the thought is of a representative man. Because there were scores, thousands and thousands of men between the first Adam and Jesus Christ. And even since then, there's been thousands and thousands of men born into the world as well. But if we look upon those two men as representative men, Adam representing all of humanity, Jesus Christ representing his people at the cross, dying for them. So, if there's no first Adam, how can there be a second Adam? And therefore, it is important that we believe in creation. It is the first tenet of biblical faith, and anything else is completely contrary to the Scriptures. So it is important that we acknowledge that. And we do acknowledge our God as creator. We believe in literal six day creation. He is the creator. He's the one who stretched out the heavens and put man in it as verse five outlines. Now that brings us on then to these two verses. We're going to try and cover both of them tonight, six and seven. And secondly, when we come to think about the manner in which Jehovah's servant is commissioned, we can say that he was commissioned in perfect righteousness. Look at verse 6, "'I, the Lord, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people for a light to the Gentiles.'" So he's commissioned in perfect righteousness. "'I have called thee in righteousness.' So the father calls the son to the office of a mediator to step in and to act. as the mediator between sinners who have offended God and God Himself who has been offended by the sinner's conduct. And Jesus Christ is going to do that, and all that He does, all that the Father plans for Him to do is going to be done in perfect righteousness, consistent with all His perfections. All that God does, He does in a most righteous fashion. If you go over there to Isaiah chapter 45. It's a chapter that has to do with Cyrus, if you look at the beginning of that chapter. And here's the individual who's going to defeat and capture the city of Babylon. And there's an explanation here as to how he would go about and do it. And this is exactly how it came to pass, wonder of wonders. And Isaiah was writing years before it ever happened. years before it ever happened. It happened in the time of Daniel. And as we know, Isaiah prophesied long before Daniel was ever on the scene. And yet there at the beginning of Isaiah chapter 45, Isaiah is speaking about a man by the name of Cyrus, and how he's going to subdue nations before him. He's going to subdue the Babylonians among those nations, and even how he's going to take the city of Babylon. Because those references there to the loosing of the loins of the kings, and the opening of the two-leafed gate, and the gates that will not be shut tells a story about how Babylon was taken by the Medes and Persians that night. We have a little account of it in Daniel, for it is the night of the handwriting upon the walls. Remember when Daniel was called amidst all the revelry, and the hand appeared, meenie, meenie, teekle, you farson? And the king couldn't understand the meaning, and his mother told him, there's a man in this kingdom who can tell you exactly what it means, Daniel. Send for Daniel. And Daniel explained that the Babylonian kingdom was coming to an end that very night. And the Medes and Persians took the city, and they took it because there were gates that were left open. You can go and read history and see how indeed the city of Babylon was taken by the Medes and Persians, and it will agree exactly with what you read here in Isaiah 45. And the very individual, Cyrus, and then he became the individual who would let the children of Israel go back. You read about it in Ezra. how he was the individual who would ordain it to be so that Israel could go back to their land after captivity, after 70 years of captivity, and rebuild the city, reoccupy the land. go down to verse 13 of Isaiah 45, and notice what the Lord says here of all of His dealings with regards to this man Cyrus and all those events that I've quickly sketched out there for you by way of reminding you. In verse 13 it says, I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways. He shall build my city. He shall let go my captives, not for price nor reward, saith the Lord of hosts." And again, that was true. Nobody bribed him. Nobody greased his palm in order to let the people go back from the land of captivity. He just decided that he would do it. The Lord put it into his heart. But the Lord says there at the beginning of 13th verse, I have raised him up in righteousness. all that the Lord will do with Israel and through Israel with Cyrus, the Lord says, I have done it in righteousness. And now we come back here to Isaiah 42 and verse 6, and we find that a similar phrase is used here when the Lord is sending forth His own dear Son as the perfect servant, and Isaiah 42 and verse 6, it says, I have called Him, or I have called thee in righteousness. All that God has for His Son to do, His perfect Servant to do, will be done in perfect righteousness, perfect conformity to justice, to holiness, to all that God demands that ought to be done. There is nothing that is going to be overlooked. There is nothing that is going to be played down. There is nothing that is going to be a blind eye turned to it. The Lord is going to deal in perfect righteousness. with this matter. Remember, there is a need for a mediator, a need to reconcile sinners back onto God. How is that going to come to pass other than by a mediator who will take on that duty and that responsibility and carry out that work and act righteously in all that He will do in that matter? And when you think about Calvary, as we are coming tonight to remember the cross and see what God did to His own dear Son, And maybe there is a thought in someone's heart, well, why would God do that to His own son? Why would He deal with him thus? Why would He punish him for sins that were not His own? Why would He suffer to the extent that He did? The answer is, because He's going to do it in righteousness. All that God does, He does in righteousness. He's going to satisfy His justice to the zenith, to the very last degree. There is not going to be anywhere where somehow justice is unsatisfied by what God is doing in the sending of His Son and the working out of redemption. And to that end then, We read the rest of that verse in verse 6. I, the Lord, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people. As a result of working in righteousness, this is what God is going to do. Remember that verse that you have over in Romans chapter 3. where Paul is speaking about the cross work and the remission of sins that comes through the work of the cross. And in Romans 3, verse 26, it's the middle of a sentence, but we'll just take the clause out of the sentence. Paul says, So God satisfying his own justice, and yet showing mercy to a sinner and opening up a way to redeem that sinner and reconcile that sinner unto himself. Paul says there, God is doing that in righteousness. Has Paul this verse in mind? These statements here that we're thinking about tonight? where Jehovah says with regards to His servant, I have called thee in righteousness. And there Paul says God was acting in righteousness in how He dealt with His Son at the cross because He would remain just and yet the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus. Romans 3.26 is the verse. You see, God will be true to Himself in circumstances that seem to be contradictory, because how can God's mercy be reconciled with His holiness? How can God's desire to save a sinner be reconciled with His justice, His wrath? That is why Jesus Christ is called the wisdom of God, because God devised a plan. would satisfy His holiness and His justice and His wrath would be poured out, and yet a sinner would be saved and spared and not consumed by that wrath and be able to be reconciled unto God and brought into communion and fellowship with God again. Is it any wonder that Jesus Christ is called the wisdom of God? What a glorious plan there was devised and in all of God's doings in that work of redemption, and in all that He does, not just in redemption, but we're particularly thinking about redemption tonight, and all that God does, He's going to do it in absolute righteousness. If you have that 42nd chapter open there in Isaiah, go down to verse 21. You'll see this thought again is something that is emphasized. And here's a third time in Isaiah that we're going to notice. The Lord is well-pleased, Isaiah 42, 21. The Lord is well-pleased for His righteousness' sake. He will magnify the law and make it honorable. God honors His own law. The idea that God would judge sin and hold men accountable is something that's played down tonight, maybe even mocked at and laughed at by some, but certainly played down by many. God doesn't play down the fact that He's a holy God. He doesn't lessen that. No, it tells us there He's well-pleased for His righteousness' sake. And what His servant is going to do, who is His own dear Son, and what that perfect servant was going to do, God says, I'm well-pleased for my righteousness' sake. I will magnify the law and make it honorable." And you think of Calvary and the sorrows that came upon the Savior were for no other reason than the fact that you and I had broken that law, oh, many, many times. We were sinners, multiple sinners. God doesn't lessen that fact. He doesn't turn a blind eye to sin. Sin has to be dealt with. Justice has to be satisfied. That can only happen if God deals righteously. And here He is declaring that as He commissions His servant to go forth and be that perfect servant and do this work. He says, I have called thee in righteousness. Every dot on the eye will be done. Every T will be stroked in God's righteousness and God's holiness. But in doing this, He tells His servant here in verse 6 of Isaiah 42 that He will hold his hand. The Lord will be with him. Because there are going to be great sorrows that will come now. If God is going to satisfy His righteousness and His holiness and not play it down in any fashion, not lessen the demands, then there can only be one outcome. God's wrath is going to fall upon His own dear Son. It's going to have to fall some way. the thing for the sinner to consider tonight. God's wrath falls somewhere. It either falls upon the sinner or it falls upon Jesus Christ. It's going to fall somewhere. It's like what happened at Mount Carmel with Elijah and how Elijah made that sacrifice and doused it with water and then prayed and the fire fell. The fire could have fallen upon the people because they were sinners, they were guilty, and Elijah challenged them. He says, you're standing, halting between two opinions. You're for Baal one day, and you're for Jehovah the next day when it suits. They had sinned against Jehovah, and the fire could have and ought to have fallen upon them. But Elijah built the altar, put the sacrifice upon the altar, and he was going to show that his God was the living God, and dousing it in water, and then praying, and the fire fell. And it's interesting, if you go back there to that portion in Kings about what happened in Mount Carmel, it says the fire fell upon the sacrifice. Because the fire has to fall somewhere. It either falls on you and I as sinners, or it falls on Christ as the substitute. But it's going to fall somewhere. But the Father here says to His perfect servant, I will hold your hand. I will be with you. I will strengthen you. I will favor you. I will show my affection for you. I will be in constant communion with you as you're on earth. You know those times when there came that voice from heaven during the Savior's ministry that God was well pleased with His Son at His baptism, at His transfiguration. Then prior to just going to the cross in John chapter 12, there came that voice from heaven. God was well pleased. God was fulfilling what He said when He commissioned His servant, I will hold thy hand. I will keep thee," is also mentioned there in verse 6. Keep him as the apple of his eye. Keep him as somebody dear to him. He was always the Father's dear son. Think of those words that were spoken from heaven, this is my beloved son, my beloved son. Not just this is my son, this is my beloved son, he said. He was dear to him. What even makes a sacrifice of Christ and the gift of Him, all the more remarkable when you think about the Father's love for Him. But if we come there to that clause in that sixth verse, I will give thee for a covenant of the people. There's two ways of thinking about this. First of all, God the Father made a covenant with Christ. It's called, we call it the covenant of redemption. Sometimes it's broken down into the covenant of grace or the covenant of mercy, but it was made with Christ. It couldn't have been made with you and me. It wasn't made with sinners. That's something that I would most certainly want to underscore tonight. The covenant was not made with you and me. For the simple reason, men and women, you and I couldn't do anything. We couldn't keep a covenant. Adam couldn't even obey God when he was perfect. How would you and I obey God when we were sinful? It is impossible. So the covenant was not made with us. The covenant was made with Christ on our behalf. That's altogether different. Altogether different. That way the covenant can be fulfilled. The terms of it can be fulfilled because if it is made with you and I, you and I are not going to fulfill any terms of any covenant. We fail day and daily. We are sinful by nature. We do not have that ability to obey God perfectly. So why would God make a covenant with a people who couldn't keep it? The Lord knew that. He made it with the Savior. He would send His own Son to be their representative, and He would make the covenant with them. And therefore, all that Jesus Christ would do, He was doing on their behalf because they could not do anything. And remember, it is one thing to have our sins removed through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. That's one element of redemption. The other element is, it is by perfect obedience that heaven is earned. And you and I can't render that perfect obedience. So again, why would God make a covenant with you and me when we would never be able to attain the blessings? I don't know, because we could never keep it. Jesus Christ could perfectly obey. And there is stress laid in Scripture upon the fact He was sinless. He was without fault. Even His enemies, even those who wanted to find fault in Him and would have salved their conscience if they were able to have done so, couldn't find fault in Him. Pilate, if my memory serves me right, on seven occasions Pilate said, I find no fault in this man. He sent him to Herod. Herod, for a long time, wanted to speak with Jesus Christ. The Savior never answered him a word and annoyed Herod. His soldiers belittled the Savior, said of him not, but he still sent him back to Pilate and said, I find no fault in him. There's nothing worthy of death in this man. What about Judas Iscariot? man whose conscience was wrecked by what he did, and who came in and threw down the thirty pieces of silver on the floor of the temple and said, I have betrayed the innocent blood. Could he not have salved his conscience at least by some thought? Oh, at least I have betrayed a wicked man, a man who deserved to die. That's not what he said. He said to the chief priests, I have betrayed the innocent blood. I have betrayed the one who is guiltless. who is sinless. So there is great stress laid in Scripture upon the fact that Jesus Christ was sinless, because it is by a perfect obedience that the blessings of God are earned. That's exactly how it was with our first parents. When in the garden, the Lord said to Adam and to Eve, particularly to Adam as the representative of all of humanity, you obey and your obedience will bring blessing upon you and all your posterity. That was the terms that were given to Adam. You obey and your obedience will bring blessing upon you and all your posterity. That hasn't changed tonight. That's exactly how heaven is earned tonight. But you and I can't do that. It's not through your obedience or my obedience. It's not through your works or my works that we're going to gain heaven. It's going to be through the obedience of another, God's own dear servant whom He will send forth, who will do everything that is required righteously, perfectly, completely. He will obey. And that perfect obedience that He will render by His sinless life will secure all the blessings of redemption for you and me. God hasn't changed the terms upon which you enter into heaven and enjoy His blessing. It's still on the grounds of obedience. But you and I can't render that obedience. That's why we need another. That's why God sent His Son, the perfect servant, to do what you and I could not do. So here He is declaring this. He says, I'm commissioning you in righteousness. Everything will be done according to strict justice as it demands. I will hold your hand. I will keep you. I will give you as a covenant to the people. He is going to be a party to the covenant. covenant is going to be made with Him. But not only that is He going to be the party to the covenant, He's going to be the blessings of the covenant. The blessings are in Christ, in having Christ, in knowing Christ, in believing on Jesus Christ. He is the sum and the substance of all of these blessings. All the blessings, all the promises are in Him, and we are to receive Him and take Him as our Savior. be united to Him by faith, because the blessings are in Christ. They're not blessings that, in a sense, that He just dispenses. And in one sense, we can think about it that way. Yes, He bestows blessing, but it's more than that. He actually is the blessing. He is the blessing. It is Christ Himself we need. He brings blessing with Him. When we receive Him and accept Him, as our Savior, and He comes in and takes possession of our lives and takes up residence in our lives. What about those words in Revelation 3? We know them so well, they're virtually a memory verse, Revelation 3 in 20, "'Behold, I stand at the door and knock, and if any man hear my voice and open the door unto me, I will come in to him and sup with him and he with me.'" There's the thought of Christ coming in. He says, I'm going to come in. I'll sup with you. I'll sit down and commune with you. I'll fellowship with you. Christ has to be received in that way. It's not enough just to know about Him, to hear of Him. There's many have heard of the name Jesus Christ, but they've never known Him. They've never come to know Him. He's not to them the source of blessing. They have not the possessor of eternal life. in their own soul and being. So the Lord says here, I have commissioned Him in righteousness. Let's move on to verse 7 and finish this thought out. And here's the second part. Well, we're going to take the last clause of verse 6 as well and join this in to verse 7, because He's commissioned here for a supreme purpose. He's commissioned here for a supreme purpose. And that purpose is to be a light. to open blinded eyes. If we take the last clause of verse 6, a light of the Gentiles, and then read on into verse 7, to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and then the sit in darkness out of the prison house. So there's two thoughts there that are presented to us. First of all, the light to the Gentiles, and then also those that are prisoners. And if I jump to the conclusion maybe first and give an explanation here, then we can go back hopefully and pick this up and understand it a little bit more. There's a common thought among commentators that the first part here refers to the Gentiles, the light to the Gentiles, to open the blind eyes. That it's the Gentiles who are blind, who know not the gospel, who know not the Lord, And we'll take that up in a moment. But then it talks about the prisoners that are in the prison house. And there's an understanding there that that's referring to the Jews shut up under the law, taken up with the law, who are so taken up with that law that they think they can get a righteousness by the law. Paul was such. Paul tells us that he went about seeking to establish his own righteousness and that he had not submitted himself to the righteousness which is of God by faith. So there's two groups here. And as we know, salvation comes to Jew and Gentile. And they are two different groups of people in that sense. So if we come back there and take the first one, which is referring to the Gentiles, he's a light to the Gentiles to open the blind eyes of the Gentiles. And we think about that and how the Lord brings light to the Gentiles. And light is equated with knowledge in the Bible. Darkness is equated with ignorance in the Bible. So if he's bringing light to the Gentiles, he's bringing knowledge to a people who know not the gospel, who know nothing of the truth of God, And it's interesting that that is what Paul is emphasizing in Romans chapter 1. In those opening chapters of Romans, Paul is first of all dealing with the Gentiles in chapter 1, and then he's dealing with the Jews in chapter 2, and on into the beginning of chapter 3. And when you get into the third chapter, Paul comes to the conclusion, and he says, the conclusion, whether you're Jew or Gentile, is we've all sinned. Because oftentimes we quote Romans 3, 23, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But there's a little clause that joins on to the front of that that's found in verse 22 of Romans 3. And it says, for there is no difference for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Because that's the purpose that Paul was setting out to argue. There's no difference. You can be a blind Gentile in the sense you know nothing of the truth of God. and you're under condemnation, you can be a privileged Jew. With the Scriptures, having been taught the things of God, knowing something of the Lord, being aware of His ways and His dealings with mankind, you can still have all of that and be a sinner. You can be an unknowledgeable sinner, and you can be a knowledgeable sinner, but you're still a sinner, Paul says. You still need a Savior. Righteousness will never come by keeping the law yourself. Whether it's the Gentile, he needs a Savior. Whether it's the Jew, they need the Savior. And it matters not what side of the broad road we're on tonight, if we bring it into New Testament language. It matters not what side of the broad road we're on tonight. We need a Savior. You can walk the dirty side of the broad road, and maybe it's easy then to say to an individual, oh, you need a Savior, all right. Your life is a mess. All the filth of the world is in your life. It's easy to say to somebody on the dirty side of the broad road, you need a Savior. Maybe it's obvious to everybody they need a Savior. Ah, but what about the person who's self-righteous? They are on the broad road too. They may walk the clean side of the broad road, but they're still on the broad road heading down for destruction. They need a Savior just as much as the individual on the other side of the road. That's the point that Paul is making in Romans 1 and 2. And he gets to that conclusion, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There's no difference. In the truest sense, there's no difference. And here we have two categories. We're thinking about the blind Gentile, and we're thinking here about the individual who doesn't know the Lord, doesn't know His Word, doesn't know His truth in any way, a complete stranger to His truth. They have no concept at all of the God of heaven, because they've never heard, they've never been taught a thing about the God of heaven. But the Lord says, I'm going to commission my dear servant, and He's going to bring light to these people. He's going to shine light. He's going to shine truth into the heart of blind Gentiles. That's you and me. That's you and me. That's why the story of the gospel coming to Europe and coming to the Gentiles is one that ought to interest us always. The light coming to blind Gentiles. You think about how that started off in the house of Cornelius down in Caesarea. Cornelius didn't know how to be saved. didn't know how to be right with God. He had a consciousness of God, but he had no sense of how to be right with God until the angel came and the angel said to Cornelius, go and get Peter and bring Peter up from Joppa and he'll tell you how you and your house can be saved. He'll tell you the truth. He'll tell you the way of salvation. That's how it is with Gentiles. They know not the truth of God. They have no knowledge of the truth of God. And that's how we were. That's how this land, this island, this nation of ours was at a time. We have had the gospel for a long time. And this island, we can go way back to the days of Patrick. the days of Patrick when he brought the gospel to this island. But what darkness there was and what periods of darkness there have been since then across this island. What darkness there is tonight across this island. But the light has come to darken Gentiles. that's a wonderful story in itself, but it's one that was promised here as part of the commissioning of Jehovah's Servant. The Lord was going to send His Servant to bring light to darkened Gentiles, to those who know not the gospel. And you think of our own conversion. Maybe we had the privilege, some of us had the privilege of being brought up in the things of God, but somewhere in our family line that didn't happen. And maybe there's others here tonight, and you can say, well, I didn't know. I didn't get brought up on the gospel. I heard it afterwards. Maybe as you grew up, you heard it. Or maybe when you were older, you heard it. The light has come to darken Gentiles. That's part of the commissioning here, to open the eyes of these blind Gentiles. Because it's one thing you see to have the light. It's another thing to open your eyes and be able to see the light. As we know that in the physical sense, the light could be brilliant around somebody, and yet they not have the sight to see it. And many times, and we've all done it, we've said to maybe after gospel meetings or gospel missions at some time, we have gone out and we have thought, how could a person not see their need of being saved after that? Maybe we have thought that. Maybe we have said that either to ourselves or to somebody else. How can they not see it? Well, the reason why they can't see it is they're blind. Wouldn't matter how bright the light's shining, they're blind. They can't see it. Can't see it until the Lord opens their eyes. And the Lord opened your eyes, the Lord opened my eyes. That's why we see these things tonight and understand them. It's because God opened our eyes, as He promised here to do. That's certainly what we need to pray that God would do for others. for family members, those who have been taught the things of God from their childhood. And maybe we say, why do they not see their need to be saved? Sure, they know this. Yes, they do. Well, the part that's missing is they haven't their eyes opened yet. And may the Lord open their eyes as He's promised to do. But then there's this second part here, and that sets out those who are prisoners sitting in the prison house. The Lord is going to open the prison. bring them out. And as I say, there are some commentators who set this out and say, here's Gentiles and here are Jews. The Gentiles are those who are in darkness needing their eyes opened. The Jew is the individual who's in the prison house. He's shut up under the law. You see, the law is to be our schoolmaster, to bring us to Christ. That's the purpose of the law, as Paul explains in Romans. It's to be our schoolmaster. It's to teach us our need of Christ. But sadly, in the lives of many, many Jews, that's not the case. They think it's a means of salvation on its own. And that's the religion of Judaism tonight. They repudiate salvation by faith. That most basic fundamental belief of biblical Christianity, justification by faith, they repudiate that tonight. They believe that they will be saved by keeping the law. And if you read, or if you ever have the privilege of speaking to a Jew and talking to them about the things of God, they will list all those commands that are given in the Scriptures, and they will say, look, there's all the things God tells me to do, and if I do them, I'll have eternal life. They fail to see. that the law is their schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. The law is to teach us our failures, that we cannot reach this standard. But they think they can. And they're depending on a religion of works tonight. They're shut up under the law. They do not see it. They could not understand. Even the disciples struggled with it at the beginning. They could not see why their Messiah should suffer. To this day, many of these Jews, many of religious Jews do not accept that. All of those suffering passages in the Old Testament, particularly like Isaiah 53, they will say that applies to the nation. Here's the redemptive sufferings of the nation of Israel. They will not ever let it be applied to a Messiah. They cannot understand that. Why would their Messiah have to die? They're looking for a Messiah who will come in power and glory. That's why they missed Christ the first time. Because how He came and what He came to do was not what they were expecting, not what they were looking for. And the Savior had to teach His disciples, remember, that He was going up to Jerusalem, and that He first of all had to die, and then He would rise from the dead. And He had to teach that truth over and over again to them, until it finally registered with them, as Peter tells us, that first had to come the sufferings of Christ, and then the glory that would follow. But there are those tonight who are shut up under the law. But it's not only Jews. There's self-righteous individuals who profess to be Christians. might claim to follow Christ, who might go to a place of worship today, and they're just every bit as bad because they couldn't be told that you needed to be saved, that you're a sinner bound for hell and you need salvation. Don't tell me that. Don't tell me that. And there are people who are convinced of that. They don't need to be saved. That's for sinful people. That's for the ungodly people in the world. I'm a self-righteous, respectable, church-going, outwardly moral individual. I don't need to be saved. Yes, you do. That's what the Lord says. Yes, you do. You're the individual the Lord is in mind here when He says about bringing the prisoners out of the prison. You're shut up under the law thinking righteousness comes by keeping it. And you need to learn there's a need of a Savior. So God here commissions His servant by the highest authority, verse 5, by righteousness in verse 6, and then by a supreme purpose in what He is going to do among Jews and Gentiles. And may our eyes be opened. May the light and truth have entered in will bring us to this table tonight in earnestness and sincerity that we're coming to trust or coming to rejoice in a Savior whom we have trusted in. And if we haven't come to Him, we'll come tonight, come tonight and be saved. Seek the Lord. Let's bow together in prayer. Our Father, we thank Thee for Thy dear servant sent forth into the world O Lord, we rejoice tonight in that perfect Servant, and as we come to remember Him and what He did, rejoice our hearts. Lord, melt away the coldness and apathy, and we pray, Lord, that we would have a fresh comprehension of what it meant for Thee, the Holy One, to bear away our sins. Lord, take us a little further. Even tonight, Lord, let it be so. As we come around this communion table, it is our prayer that others will come to know Him. We thank Thee for opening our blind eyes. Lord, we were no better. It is not that somehow we were more deserving or more interested or more inclined to believe. Lord, we were blind, just as Thy Word has described tonight. Maybe we were shut up under the law with a self-righteous spirit, thinking that we never needed to be saved. And Lord, we praise Thee for what Thou hast done in our hearts, and it is our prayer what Thou hast done for us, do for others. Lord, that's all we need to pray, because Thou hast done a wondrous work in our lives, and do the same in others, that others would be saved and come to Christ. So, bless my word this night. Tarry with us these moments, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. 652. We're going to sing as we close this part of our service and come to communion time. We're not going to sing all of these verses. 652. Here, O my Lord, I see thee face to face. Here would I touch and handle things unseen. Here grasp with firmer hand the eternal grace and all my weariness upon the lean. We're going to sing the first and the third verses, the verse that I particularly in mind when thinking about this hymn. Mine is the sin, but thine the righteousness. Mine is the guilt, but thine the cleansing blood. Here is my robe, my refuge, and my peace. Thy blood, thy righteousness, O Lord, my God. We're going to sing verse 1, 3, and 6 of this hymn as we stand and sing. 652. Seems familiar. Here, O my Lord, I see thee face to face. Here would I go to die, but the flames of sin Here is my home, my refuge and my peace, my love, my righteousness, I know you, Lord, safe and true in the Lord. In Israel, my glory you will be. Our Father, we acknowledge that we need no one else. It is enough to lean on Christ. That is all sufficient. We pray that Thou will bless us now. Those who take their leave of us, go with them. Those who tarry around this communion table, grant us Thy blessing and Thy presence. We pray for Christ's sake, amen.