Amen. Well we're going to read Psalm 130. Psalm 130. Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice, let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning. I say more than they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the Lord. For with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. As we come to Psalm 130 this evening, we have a psalm which is a favourite of the people of God. Martin Luther considered it one of his favourites, and Psalm 130 was also very influential in the conversion of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. And it isn't hard for us to see why this psalm may be special, why this psalm may be of great encouragement for the people of God. It is because of that ground and that assurance that we have of our salvation. As we have gone through these psalms we have encountered the theme of afflictions that the pilgrim faces. and we may view many of these afflictions as being something which is external to us. Cast your mind back to Psalm 120, the first of these songs of degrees, and there the psalmist is lamenting the trouble that he is in, and in particular the lies and the falsehood of the world, the false accusation and the slandering that comes to the people of God. So there are many afflictions that come to God's people. Very many of them are from without. Last week we were looking at Psalm 129 and there the psalmist is looking back over his life and he could confirm and say how many a time have they, something external, afflicted me from my youth. Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth. As we look at those things that come from without, there is a battle in which the people of God are firmly in. There is harassment, there is persecutions, there is trouble, there is opposition, and this is the pilgrim's journey. However, Psalm 130 is still talking about some of the difficulties that we have in life, but it's now much more from an internal perspective. The troubles aren't from the outside, but they are from within. And in particular, the way in which we consider and view our own salvation before the Lord. So we're not thinking about the world, we're not thinking about the devil coming, although there may well be elements of that that are included, but in particular our own personal walk with the Lord and our own personal assurance of salvation. Verses one and two begin like a lot of the Psalms begin, with a directive to pray to God. We have here this cry of anguish. Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice. Let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. The psalmist begins here at rock bottom, so to speak, and he is calling to God, he is crying to God that the Lord would hear him and be attentive to the supplications that he has. He wants the plight that he is in to be heard of God. And as you progress through this psalm, you see where the psalmist is. And as he meditates and considers God, he is lifted up to behold the wonder of salvation. But it is interesting that we have here in Psalm 130, the way in which prayer is expressed in that term cry. When we think about the word cry or the emotional response that we would attach to that word, ideas are formed in our minds. This psalmist here isn't happy, he isn't knowing great enjoyment of life. If he is crying, and he is crying to the Lord, then there is something which is weighing very heavy upon his heart, and he is at an end of himself. He cannot remedy these situations himself, and so the only option for him is to cry to the Lord. When we encounter people who are distressed, people who are crying, it is quite a difficult thing to witness. Because as you ask the person what is the matter, they will find articulating what the problem is to be extremely difficult. They may not be able to use coherent words. They won't be able necessarily to accurately describe what is happening. They just have this anguish which is bubbling up in this cry. And so a cry indicates that the person is deeply affected by the thing that is troubling them. We don't cry unless we're troubled. A cry would suggest that the psalmist here sees no hope within and sees no remedy that he can muster himself. There is an exhaustion of the resource to cope. When we think about why we might cry, we may cry because of bereavement. There is nothing that can be done to bring back that loved one. All hope of recovery is gone, and now there is that ache of separation. We may cry because of life's circumstances weighing us down. We don't know which way to turn, we don't know which way to go. We don't see a way forward and we don't see a way out. we may cry because we have been hurt. And those wounds, perhaps from people that we love, have been very severe and very penetrating into our being. Another thing that crying shows is a tender spirit. The psalmist here, he's not a proud man at this point. He's not puffed up with how good he is and what he has accomplished and what he has achieved. He's not like the publican that we read about in Luke chapter 16, where he goes down to the temple to pray and he is puffed up in himself, looking at everybody else and seeing what a good chap he is. He's not proud. He's been brought low. and he cannot remedy his situation. Well, as we will find out later, it's not about external things that are troubling him, it is about his own sinfulness. He's weighed down by the law of God and that broken law of God, and he is weighed down by the condemnation that he is under. But this cry of the psalmist isn't an empty cry. It is a cry of faith. Though he is weighed down by his wretched condition, it is not a resigned or despairing cry whereby all hope is gone. If that were the case, then he wouldn't be praying to God or crying to God. His cry is directed to the Lord. It isn't a cry against God, it is a cry to God, and it's important that we notice that distinction. Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Well, the psalmist here is crying to God. And when we think about the one that he is coming to, it is such a perfect solution to his situation. It is the best option that he could have. There's no benefit in turning to fellow man because even with the best intentions and even with the best will, they will not be able to do what is needed for him. He doesn't need a sympathiser that will come and put an arm around him, because although that may be comforting, that won't change his situation. What he needs is to come to God who is able to remedy his problem. And the God that he comes before is not only all-wise, nor is he just all-powerful, he is patient. He is all of these things together. And so the psalmist is knowing that his God is the right one to come before, because not only does God know the way to take, Not only does God have the power to do what he wishes and determines, he's also patient and kind and long-suffering toward us. And whatever the situation we are thinking about, God knows the solution. He has the remedy. He knows the way forward and he knows the end from the beginning. So if it's some external problem, he knows how that situation is going to come to resolution. And likewise, for this situation that the psalmist is in, whereby he is weighed down by his sin, God has provided the rescue, the remedy, and the salvation. And the Lord is patient with us, that though we are so neglectful to understand, though we are so easily moved off track, he is patient with us. So looking in more detail at what it is that is weighing the psalmist down, we turn to verse three. And here we have the realization of sin. If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? We have a similar sentiment of the pilgrim that we found in Psalm 124. There the psalmist looked at the possibility of what would have happened if God had not intervened for them, if God had not helped them, if God had not been on their side. Psalm 124, if it had not been the Lord who was on our side, now may Israel say, if it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they had swallowed us up quick, when their wrath was kindled against us. Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul, then the proud waters had gone over our soul. There the psalmist is taken up with how he's been delivered from the troubles that are outside. And here we have a similar kind of question being asked. What would happen if the Lord marked iniquity? Well, as we think about that, there is on one hand the truth and the reality that God does mark iniquities. We read in the scriptures of God keeping records, not because he has the ability to forget, but to show us what happens in life is never ignored or missed, but is recorded and marked. and on that day of judgment all the books will be opened, will be brought before the judgment seat of Christ, and we will be judged for the things that we have done in this life. Well, God marks. In life, we are glad that not everything that we say or do or even think is recorded. Now, whilst we may feel like at times we're living in a big brother state and we are being watched, our moves, our activities are being monitored, we do know those secret times and those private times when nobody else is there, nobody else is seen. And we are pleased that nobody else is there and nobody else has seen. But God has, and God has recorded. But the sense in which the psalmist is asking this question is on the basis of what's going to come later on in the psalm. It is with the reality and the backdrop of the grace and forgiveness of God. Because if the Lord did mark our iniquities, then there would be nobody that would be able to stand at that day of reckoning. And as we ponder our sin, our sin is not some kind of little misdemeanor, it is not small or insignificant, it is not merely a tiny dereliction of duty, it is ultimately an offence against God. Even the dictionary would define iniquity as being this, the immoral conduct or practices harmful or offensive to society. And if we translate that toward God, how big and how enormous that weight of sin is. And so if our sins and our iniquities have been recorded, then there can be no escape on that condemnation that we deserve. We stand condemned. If the Lord recorded, there is no way out for us. If the Lord recorded all of these things, we would have no excuse and would be able to plead no kind of mitigation. We would stand condemned in his presence. And as we think about ourselves, it is right that as believers we do have a real sense of our sin, that we have a real understanding in our hearts as to what we were like, what we have done. Now for some Christians that is more difficult. that is more tricky for them. For some believers, on the other hand, they don't need to be reminded of how bad they are, because they continually feel the smarts of the broken law very acutely. They are very acquainted with their guilt and their grief of sin, but others, not so much. And their idea of sin is perhaps more minimal. It's not as what it should be. They don't see the danger of sin, but they have absolute assurance of salvation. The Psalmist though, he is very conscious of his position if it had not been for the Lord. He is very aware that if he stood at the courts of God's justice, he would be thrust out into outer darkness. If we are struggling to be sensitive towards sin, a good place to start is to pray that the Lord would show us ourselves and to show us what we are like as God sees us. Because as we begin to do that, then we will begin to see even more so how amazing the grace of God and the wonder of Christ and of his salvation truly is. One of the experiences of pilgrims in this world heading to Zion is that the closer we get to Zion, the more astounding grace should be. The closer we get to the light of Christ, The more we will see of our own inadequacies and the more we will view the wonder and the perfection of Christ and what he has done for us. The psalmist in Psalm 139 said this, and know my heart, try me, and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Notice the two parts of those verses. There is that consciousness and that recognition of our sin, of our failure before God, but then the prayer and the hope and the confidence of being led in the way everlasting. The third thing to note is the amazing grace of God. Now having said that some believers fail to see enough of their own unworthiness, there are others who will habitually fail to progress beyond verse three. They are entirely stuck at the end of verse three. They cannot, they will not move on to verse number four and see all the blessings that we have in God. The psalm continues on a great and a glorious theme of hope and of wonderful prospects for the people of God. Now when we talk about hope, we perhaps have more of the idea of wishful thinking. We hope that there will be peace in the Middle East. We don't have anything necessarily concrete to rely upon, but we hope that the warring parties will come around the negotiating table and peace will be brokered. When children are waiting for their birthday, they have hopes as to what presents they might receive. They don't know, but they hope for the things that they have dropped large hints over. Well, that is perhaps what the world would view hope to be. But when the Bible speaks about hope, it is talking about something which is certain and something which is concrete. something which isn't vague, something which isn't unattainable, but something which is strong and certain. For example, we have the hope of eternal life, or we have the hope of the resurrection. Those things aren't fanciful, wishful thinking, hopefully they'll come to pass in the future, they are going to happen. There is the prospect of eternal life for the people of God. There is the reality of the resurrection. Now the reason why it may be called hope is that it hasn't yet happened, but the fact that it hasn't yet happened doesn't diminish the reality of it eventually being fulfilled. Now, when we think about some of our brothers and sisters in Christ, who perhaps have a little bit of a skewed idea as to what hope is all about, they may speak of hope being more of a wish. I hope I will get to heaven. I hope I am saved. There's nothing firm, there's nothing certain in that situation. And so the psalm is showing us why, as believers, we should have certainty about our salvation, why we should have confidence in our walk with the Lord. It is because of Christ, and it is because of what God has done and what God has provided for his people. Let me read the last few verses of this psalm. So the backdrop of the enormity of sin, the reality of sin, and the terribleness of sin, we read this, but there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. You have that word hope again. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning. I say more than they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption, and he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. In those four or five verses, you have some staggering statements of truth. You have some wonderful promises that are contained here. And the first is this, that there is forgiveness with God. If the Lord marked iniquity, who could stand? The answer is no one. However, there is forgiveness with God. Now, what do we mean by the word forgiveness? Well, one author puts it this way. When God forgives us, he no longer holds our sins against us. He no longer condemns us, but our fellowship with him is no longer disrupted. And this is because Jesus Christ has suffered sin's full penalty for all those who trust in him. The idea there is of God not holding that sin against us, treating us as if there had never been that sin. Now, it's hard for us to understand this. We find it very difficult, naturally speaking, to forgive and then to forget. But we read here how God forgives. With the Lord there is forgiveness. In other places, for example in Isaiah, we read about how God blots out our transgression, literally removes it, If you think back to school perhaps, you used an ink and dipped it in your blotting paper and you sucked up all the excess ink. Well, that's what God does with our sin. You spill something in the kitchen, you're going to get the tea towel or you're going to get the kitchen roll and it sucks up the liquid that has been spilled. When it comes to our transgressions, God in mercy, if we've turned to him, he removes it, he sucks it up, it is gone. Another place God refers to our sin being cast, behind his back. He's thrown it behind his back, it can't be found, it's not there. Another place we read about him remembering our sin no more. Now, that is different to forgetting. We don't need any excuse. We don't need any prompts or any thought to forget. That is a passive action. But we find here that God is determining to remember no more. Another place we read about him burying our sins or our iniquities in the depths of the sea. Back last year, you may remember the search mission for the missing submarine that was looking for the wreckage of the Titanic. And with all of the technology, along with all the data that they had regarding currents and the details of that particular submarine's movements, it took them a long time to find that wreckage. Why was that? Because it was in the depth of the sea. we find how our sins are described as being cast into the depths. And the idea there is that they'll never be found. In Daniel 9, verse 9, we are shown that God is a God of forgivenesses. There is that overflowing forgiveness. There isn't a limit, as it were, to his forgiveness. It is ongoing and continual. That's our God. No, if the Lord should mark iniquity, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. The second amazing statement is about waiting on the Lord. there is that sense of waiting, knowing that the Lord will be disposed in favour to the pilgrim. They are anticipating the blessing to come, they are waiting confidently because of the sure words of the Lord. When God spoke, it happened, and the words that God has issued will never be empty. And so the psalmist here knows full well that God is the God of forgiveness, and he is depending upon that word. When we think about some of the difficulties that we have in life, some of the temptations that come our way, some of those times when we're filled with unbelief, what are we to do? We're to rest upon and trust the promises of God. Why? Because they are yea and amen in Christ. So the psalmist knows full well that God forgives and he is depending upon that word. The third amazing statement is to do with his mercy. So the pilgrim is to wait on the Lord, to hope in the Lord. Why? Because he knows his God is merciful. He's a God that is full of loving-kindness. He is a God who doesn't give us what we deserve. If we think about our lives, if God were to administer his goodness toward us in terms of what we deserve, we wouldn't have anything. We wouldn't deserve a single thing. We wouldn't deserve the least of his blessings. And yet God is merciful. God is full of loving kindness. There is mercy with him. That mercy is enormous, it extends to the heavens and it reaches down into the depths. The psalmist can't get any lower than where he began. He says, out of the depths. Have I cried unto thee, O Lord? Was he outside of the reach of that mercy? No, not at all. The mercy reaches down to him where he is. Think about Jonah. He'd gone away. He'd sinned spectacularly. He's there in the depths of the ocean, quite literally, and mercy met him there. The fourth amazing statement is this, there is plenteous redemption. Let my soul waits for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning. I say more than they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. Sometimes we will hear of special offers. If you are one of the first 500 customers to go through a new store that has opened up, then you may be given a discount voucher. And you have the idea that the offer is limited, it is restricted. But the language of Psalm 130, when thinking about the redemption of God, the salvation that comes to us, that purchasing of us by the blood of Christ, it is viewed in terms of being plenteous. Plenteous. There is ample. There is enough. And that brings us to consider ourselves. We look at our sin. and we see what we have done, what we said, what we thought, what we failed to do that we should have done, and we see the mountain of that sin rising up before us, and well, the Lord marks iniquities who can stand, but there is plenteous redemption. We don't come to Christ and he gives us a set quota. There you are, there's a portion to your debt, and now it's up to you to go and sort out the rest, do your good works, deal with the rest of your sin yourself. No, we come to him and he gives us plenteous redemption. The apostle Paul spoke, where sin abounds, grace did much more abound. It's enough to save. Now, there can be times when we're tempted to feel, and I use that word deliberately, that we are too sinful for salvation. Now, our feelings can be very easily manipulated, and they can very easily fluctuate. They can change very quickly. It doesn't take much for us to be up here and then suddenly to be down in the depths. Now if we are resting upon our feelings, how we feel on any given day, if we are trusting in whether we feel our salvation is near to us or not, whether we are forgiven or not, then we can be easily knocked off course and sink into despair. However, this is where we must rest and trust and wait on the Lord and rely upon him, because he is the one that is our sure and certain redemption. He is the one that is plenteous. Our confidence is not in our feelings, but it is in Christ and what he has done. and we must continually keep looking away from self, stop looking within, and start looking to Christ. What will you find if you look within? I'll tell you what you'll find. You'll see all of your failures. You'll see all of your mistakes. You'll see all of your sin. You'll see everything that you have done. But when you look to Christ, what do you see? Oh, I see my Saviour, who gives me plenteous redemption. And that brings us on to our fifth and final statement of amazement. It's found in verse eight. And he, I was talking about God, he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. So often the Lord came to his people and said, if you turn to me, if you repent, if you come away from what you're doing and come and serve me with all of your heart, then I will turn to you. In Isaiah chapter one, though your sins are a scarlet, though your sins be like crimson, they shall be as white as snow, they shall be like the wool. If they turn, they will be redeemed. Well, for the child of God, looking at the amazing promise, he will redeem you from all your iniquities. As you face eternity, as you draw near to Zion, the child of God doesn't need to fear that some of their iniquities are still lingering, still unatoned for. The Lord has dealt with them. He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. The Lord provides the remedy, not just for every sin, but for every class of sinner. And the Lord Jesus Christ, with his own precious blood, provides that redemption. He redeems us from all our iniquities. In this psalm, we have both the true realization of our sin and the amazing grace of our God. And we need both aspects of that as we pilgrimage in this world. We need to have a proper understanding of where we've come from, of what we've done, what we are like by nature. But it doesn't stop there, because if we're trusting in Christ, then we can delight in his mercy, we can rejoice in his redemption, and we can trust him for all that is to come, knowing that we are safe and secure in his hands. Amen. May God bless these words to