We were in a meeting in Easton, Maryland, back, oh my, 15 years ago, and had a good week or a second week of meetings. In the very few churches you can do that anymore. Most folks won't come the first week, let alone two weeks. We ended up going three weeks that set of meetings with a famed Jordan. It was our last meeting with Brother Jordan. He died suddenly of a heart attack that October. Well, Julian got in the pulpit, he was trying to preach. He said, Brother Herbert, I said, I don't have any liberty. He said, I have no liberty. He said, you know, maybe just all go get ice cream or something. My pastor, Brother Herbert, jumped up. He said, let's take up an offering. We'll go to Dairy Queen. We raised about $95. The whole church went to Dairy Queen. Oh, I thought we were independent Baptists. I thought we could do what we wanted to do. That bothers people. That's not how you do it. Next night, Destiny Henry said God saved her. I'll tell you how dear that was to me. I remember what I ate. A little butterscotch blondie with the pecans. You got to get the salted pecans. I can still see it clear as a bell tonight. It brought such joy to my soul. It was short-lived, but it brought joy to my soul. Anyway, I would dismiss and go get ice cream, but we're in single house, so that's a long drive down to Dairy Queen. The Lord just does what he wants to do. We try to be obedient to him, try to mind the things of God. But at the same time, we have to do what God wants us to do and he can work and have his way. I know we lingered at length Monday night. There was no shame in folks that had to leave. We lingered here for quite a while. Some folks said they got some help from the Lord. We thank the Lord, but if you begin to just try to replicate that, you'll find out that it'll just be a form like everything else is a form. If we mimic last night, it'll just be a form. It'll become a pattern. God's not necessarily in, it's just what we do. And so we don't ever want to follow a form in something unusual. And I'm like Brother Theron, I'm very much for being different. But some of you were there, some of you were not. But Twinkie Night is one of those people talk about still. And we had Twinkie Night down in North Carolina. And I've had people appalled that we threw Twinkies out in the middle of service, appalled by that. But no man that testified after that would preach on the Psalms of Asaph. Well, we saw him tonight, Lord willing, in that Psalm, God saved him. People say, well, you shouldn't, well, you know, if we threw Twinkies out every night, it would just become a form. People would come for the Twinkies, not the word of God. And so I'm for the highly unusual, as long as God is in it, as long as you don't grieve God. And that's the way the service is. You don't want to grieve God. You want to be obedient to God in your heart, in your life, in your manner of worship, in your praise. Listen, I'm all for praise. I'll be the first one to praise him if need be. It won't bother me one bit. But I've been in a service where God silenced me. And you watch somebody up there making a big show of the flesh, praising, shouting, hoopla. And you're sitting and you're grieved in your spirit. You realize later, you're grieved in your spirit. Because it's not ordered at that time. It's out of order. You see, praise is always comely. Not when there's soberness, not when God's trying to deal with people. I've been in meetings down South and they're up running the aisles, shouting. I went to my pastor one time. There's probably 20 people running the aisles. I said, brother, am I missing something? He said, yeah, God. I said, oh, okay. I went outside in the back of the tabernacle and talked to my friend Travis Clayton for an hour about knives and case knives and hunting and fishing. And then they got done running the aisles, finally settled down. We had some preaching. What matters is that visitation from God more than anything else. When it pleases the Lord to visit with us, we need to sit and we need to take notice. And how do you notice a visitation from God? Well, if you're a sinner, you get very uncomfortable. If you're a saint, you get very comfortable. But God speaks to his children, does he not? His sheep hear his voice. They know the voice of the shepherd. Another they will not follow. That's how you know it's a visitation from God. I've been in services where that holiness came on the service and even children like my children just sitting perfectly still in the pew, not moving a muscle, just silent. The baby stopped crying. That holiness is made manifest. That's what we long for. It's what we look for. I'm going to preach out of Psalm 42 to begin with. I want to look at faith tonight, and I want to look at the faith that we'll look at here in the Psalms initially, look at several other places, and talk about that faith just a little bit. In Psalm 42, to the chief musician, Maskell, for the sons of Korah, as the heart panteth after the water brook, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? He says, my tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, where is thy God? And I sing about this chapter explicitly for this purpose. In verse one, he says, so panteth my soul. In verse two, And he says, my soul thirsteth for God. In verse three, when he speaks of his tears being his meat day and night. And then in verse four he says, I pour out my soul in me, for I had gone with the multitude. I went with them to the house of God with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holy day. You notice his soul is panting after the Lord. His soul is desirous of God. The Bible says, my soul thirsteth for Thee. Why? In verse five he says, why art thou cast down, O my soul? He's looking for relief. He's looking for comfort. The psalmist here is looking for help, why his soul has been cast down. Why art thou disquieted in me? There's no rest in his soul. Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance. That's when his face shines upon him. And then he says, oh my God, my soul is cast down within me. Therefore, while I remember thee from the land of Jordan and the Hermonites from the hill Mizar, deep calleth unto deep the noise of thy water spouts. All thy ways and thy billows are gone over me, yet the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me and my prayer unto the God of my life. I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? As with a sword in my bones, and that's interesting thought, by the way, mine enemies reproach me. While they say daily unto me, where is thy God? Why art thou cast down, O my soul? Why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God. And it stops, there's a new sentence with that colon. For I shall yet praise Him who is the health of my countenance. And notice these two little words, my God. It's personal. My God, my God, my God. Why has thou forsaken me? Why have I come so far from helping me? And from the words of my roaring, Psalm 22, 1, 2. He asked these questions as his soul pants and his soul thirsteth. And he asked questions like this, when shall I come and appear before God? That's not vague in the sense that he's not asking that question, wondering if he will. He said, when. It's an absolute. He believes he will appear before God. When he said, my tears have been my meat day and night while they continually say unto me, where is thy God? And so those around him are saying, where is thy God? His soul's been cast down, it's disquieted within him. And they ask him, where is thy God? Look at you now. Look at your predicament. Look where you are. You're away from God. Your soul's been cast down. Your soul is thirsty. You're panting like the heart at the water broke. Why? And they're saying this in the context, because God is nowhere near you. He said this, when I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me. In verse 5, why art thou cast down, O my soul? And notice that it asks this question, the response of faith. And why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the health of thy countenance. That's faith. That's unmoving faith. While my soul is cast out, while my soul is disquieted, I believe that God will shine his face upon me. I believe God will visit me in that dark hour. I believe that God will come to me when I'm thirsting after that water. And I believe that God will come to me. God will not only deliver me, but he said this. He said, I went with them to the house. Verse five, sorry, back four. Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise him. When is he going to praise him? When the joy of his countenance shines upon him one more time. Those of you that know me well, that's my wife and Peter. You know my, you say, how well, we have unwanted house guests frequently at our home. My wife is not the unwanted house guest. I want to be clear about that. I found that interesting. Timothy decides to get married, spends his last day and his last meal, if you will, with us, with Peter. So we took pictures of them playing in the sandbox, sitting watching the sunrise, cuddling on the floor, anyway. And then we, of course, sent it to Megan and her family and every other person we knew. They said their last day together. Don't get bitter about this, Megan, OK? It was their last day together, OK? You got him now? He's safe. He's secure. But they know this of me. When I read the Psalms, I'm looking probably differently than most people look. And I had to wrestle through this several years back and go through this. And I realized, of course, from the get-go, for me personally, I do see Jesus Christ. I see a soul being cast down. I see a soul is disquieted. I see the suffering savior. I see his men have forsaken him and God himself has turned from his son and my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? God himself has forsaken his son. But I see that cry as he cries out and I cry as he's disquieted. But even in that cry, you know what I see? I see faith. I shall. He goes on and he said this, oh my God, verse six, my soul is cast down within me, therefore will I remember. It's in his will to remember these things. And then verse seven, deep calleth unto deep, but the noise of thy water spouts in his darkness in the depth. all thy waves, thy billows have gone over me. And in that darkest hour, in that darkest night, he cries out to the father deep, call of thunder deep at the noise of thy water spouts. And his cry finally came before his father, even into his ear. And the Lord heard him from his Holy temple. The Bible said the earth shook and trembled. God read that veil from the top to the bottom, rather than twain that you and I might have access through His Son. But then notice verse 8. I want you to look at faith again. Yet the Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime. That's why he said earlier in the Psalms, he said that, I don't want to misquote the verse, but he said that weeping may endure for the night, but joy cometh in the morning. His loving kindness will come in the daytime. In the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life." And I want you to notice this. He's not only speaking of when God delivers him, but then he gives this absolute, I will say unto God my rock. Why hast thou forsaken or forgotten me? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? And then notice the word of God is with a sword in my bones. Mine enemies reproach me while they say daily to me, where is thy God? Why art thou cast down, O my soul? Why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God. And look at the faith, for I shall yet praise. Him. In His darkest hour, in the darkness of the night, in the night season, the torments, the sorrows, the hurt. He said, I will, I shall, I will, I shall. He believes the word of God. He believes that God will do exactly what he said he would do. And he promised his son, according to the Word of God, that he would deliver him. You see in the next chapter, just a couple of places, but I'm going to go to verse 5. We see two times again, he speaks of his soul being cast down, or one place cast off. But in verse 5 he says, why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me, hoping God? And again, for I shall yet praise Him who is the health of my countenance and my God." How could Jesus Christ go to the cross, endure the shame, despise the shame rather, endure the cross, He endures that suffering and He goes through that long night season under the cover of darkness. And then we know that God's turns Him over. And God turns His back on His Son. He forsakes His Son. And His soul's made an offering for sin. And we understand that according to the Scripture. But through all of that, without going into all the details, I will yet praise Him." He believes the Word of God. Let's go to Psalm 55, and we'll go through this as quick as I'm allowed. Psalm 55, the chief musician on Naganoth, Masculine Psalm of David. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me and hear me. I mourn in my complaint and make a noise because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked, for they cast iniquity upon me and in wrath they hate me. My heart is sore pained within me and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come over me, and notice this little word, and horror hath overwhelmed me. Two powerful statements in these two verses, two of the great verses of the sufferings of Christ. He says the terrors of death are fallen upon me. The Bible says none of the terrors of death, they are fallen upon him. But the Bible speaks of the sorrows of death that have encompassed him about. And then he says this strong King James Bible word, horror hath overwhelmed me. Again, in your darkest hour, in your darkest night, in the worst day of your life, there is no horror like Jesus Christ suffered. When terrors have come upon you, the terrors of death, the terrors of suffering, the terrors of eternal damnation. Then he said, horror hath overwhelmed me. You look at the word horror, of course, it's used flippantly today in association with Hollywood, but horror is an absolute. It cannot be worse. There's nothing worse than horror. It means it's absolutely no relief. There's absolutely no release. Horror is absolute picture of destruction. And he said, it's overwhelmed me. It's personal to Jesus Christ. The wicked have cast iniquity upon him. They've cursed him. They've mocked him. They despise him. They will not believe his law. They will not believe his words. Then God himself judges his son, terrors are upon him. Horror hath overwhelmed me. Let's go to Isaiah 53. We'll come back to the Psalms a little bit later. But Isaiah 53, in verse six. All we are like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way. And notice this. And the Lord hath laid on him, who Jesus Christ, the iniquity of us all. That refusal to give into law, that refusal to obey law, that twisting of the law to fit our needs and to comfort us in our wickedness. And the Lord took and laid that upon him. the wicked have cast iniquity upon him, and then the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." Every bit of disobedience, every bit of lust, every lie, every deceit. The Lord hath laid that on him, Jesus Christ. Then in Matthew chapter 8, We see not only does he have all of our iniquity laid upon him, but in Matthew chapter 8 verse 16 tells us in the Scriptures, when the evening was come they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils, and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick. And here's how he did it. that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, himself took our infirmities and bear our sicknesses. Where did he take our infirmities? In his own body. Where did he bear our sicknesses? In his own body. That is why he could heal. the sick. That is why a woman with the issue of blood can come and touch the hem of his garment and he not be defiled. Why? He has bored her iniquity in his body. It's why the leper could come and Jesus Christ not be defiled by a leper because he bears his sicknesses in his body. It's why he come to Jairus, his daughter, raise her up and not be defiled. Why? He's the son of God. He's Jesus Christ, the righteous. And he bears in his body, he bears our iniquity, he bears our sicknesses, he bears our afflictions, and he bears it in his body that Romans 8 too might be revealed to us in due time. In Romans chapter 8 and verse number 2, for the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, that's that law. And by the way, that law is simply called the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, has made me free from the law of sin and of death. Why? Because he bore them in his body. He bore all my sins and iniquities upon himself. He bare my sicknesses, even unto death, upon himself. He took all of my afflictions upon himself and bare them in his body. And I believe as much as I'm standing here tonight, I believe that's why his visage was marred more than any man. Sure, the crown of thorns pushed down upon his head. Sure, the blood ran down upon his face. Certainly, men buffered at him and smote him. Certainly, he was bruised. He was wounded. He was bleeding. He was striped. No doubt, he was absolutely mutilated by man in the hand of man. But his visage, the overall appearance of Jesus Christ, so marred. Why? Because our sickness is in his body, our inequity in his body, our affliction in his body. And his visage was marred more than any man has ever been marred. And that's when men walked by and saw him in that state. Every cancer you have had ravaged his body. Every virus you've ever had has ravaged his body. Except COVID, because it didn't exist until four years ago. Don't get upset with me. I'm being slightly humorous. Not really. Every sickness, every iniquity, every affliction of your flesh, He barren his body. And they walked by and they saw him in that weakened state. They saw a man sickly. They saw a man weak. They saw a man so frail, nailed to a cross with his hands and his feet nailed to the cross. And they wagged the head saying, if thou be the son of God, come down. And they spit upon him and they mocked him. Exodus 28. Just a few things I threw together. I hope it's a help. In verse 30, And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be upon Aaron's heart, Exodus 28, 30. And notice this, they shall be upon Aaron's heart. When he goeth in before the Lord, and Aaron shall bear the judgment, of the children of Israel upon his heart before the Lord continually." What does he have in that breastplate? Twelve stones, twelve tribes. Setting those hooches of gold upon that breastplate. That's why when they anointed the head of that high priest, it was that ointment that ran down upon his beard, even down upon his garments that covered that breastplate. so that he could bear the sins of Israel before the holy thing, and he would bear them upon his heart. You see, that's what Christ did for us. He'd bear upon his heart our sin. He'd bear upon his heart our iniquity. He'd bear upon his heart the sins of all the people in all the world. that they don't have to bear those sins. The Bible tells in Leviticus, if you turn back to Leviticus chapter 10, verse 17. We'll explain this more in just a moment, but let's start in verse 16. Moses diligently sought to go to the sin offering. Behold, it was burned. He was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron, which were left alive, saying, wherefore have ye not eaten the off sin offering in the holy place? Notice, the sin offering in the holy place, seen as most holy. And God hath given it to you to bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make an atonement, for them before the Lord. Where did they bear it? In their body. How did they do that? They ate the offering of the sin offering and they went in before the Lord and they bear the sin of the people before the Lord. That's why that priest had to be anointed. It's why that preach had to have that breastplate covering his heart. It's why every bit of his priesthood, we see in the picture of Christ to that miter upon his forehead, holding this to the Lord, because he was going to go in that most holy place and upon his heart, he was going to bear the iniquity of Israel in the sin offering. And he was going to do it before the Lord. Let's go to Leviticus 4. We'll look at it there in verse 11, 12. He said, in the skin of the Boloch and all his flesh with his head, with his legs and his inwards and his dung, even the whole Boloch shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place. Where the ashes are poured out and burn him on the wood with fire, where the ashes are poured out, shall he be burnt. Why does it tell us that? Because the body of that bullock had the inwards removed. They were cleaved asunder by the sword. And that body's taken outside the camp, laid in a clean place. And there, it's burned outside the camp. That body. Picture, type, I understand that. Rectify this. Christ's body was taken outside the camp. It was taken to a clean place, a tomb never man laid. It was there that it was laid. It's there that the enemies of that body came upon it and had to bow the knee. It did not see corruption. It was in that new tomb where never a man laid. Now, let's just start to summarize a little bit more on this. God had to separate the body from the soul. We know that according to the scriptures. Let's go back to Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53 in verse 10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. Who? Jesus Christ. He hath put him to grief where thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. What's in that sin offering? Our sin. Our iniquity. And Jesus Christ makes his soul an offering for sin. Bearing your sin and bearing my sin. For the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin. that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. So now the Lord has made his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. And then notice what verse 11 says, he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities." I hope you're in the many tonight, because he's already borne your iniquity. He's already offered his soul for sin. He's already given himself for you. And then he said, therefore, I divide him with portion with the great, and he should divide the spoil with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death. And he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bared the sin of many, the iniquity of many, the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Who are the transgressors? Those that violate the law of God. What is sin? It's a transgression of the law. And so now he's been made an offering for sin. He's bare your iniquity. He's bare your sins. He's offered your sins. And let me just present this to you tonight in the context of where we're going to go tonight. And he knew the whole time exactly what he was going to do. And he never faltered. He never wavered. He knew that horror was going to overwhelm him in the very pits of hell. He knew he'd be troubled on every hand. He knew great distress was going to come upon him. He knew his soul would be cast down and disquieted. He knew his soul would be offered for sin. And yet, he set his face like the flint. He set his face on the cross. When he left the garden that night, nevertheless, not my will, but thy will be done. He never wavered from seeing the cross. And yet the word of God spake these things. This is foreordained. He's known from the foundations of the world. This was all going to take place. He even knew you. And yet he still went to offer. He knew how you'd spit upon him, how you'd buffet him, curse him, mock his name. But he set his face to the cross. He never turned. He stretched out his arms and he died. And his soul was offered for sin. Verse two, for he shall grow up before him as a tender plant. And as a root of a dry ground, and notice this, here it is again, he hath no form nor comeliness. Why? All those diseases, all that sickness, all the abuse, visage marred more than any man. There's no form nor comeliness, and we shall see him. There is no beauty that we should desire him. So if there's no form or comeliness, There's no beauty that we should desire him. What is it about Jesus Christ that we should desire? What is it about him that I would find desirable? Well, I'll give you a couple of things. One, he'll give you relief from the burden of sin. He'll take that burden and roll it away. He'll make you free from the power of sin. He'll take the powers of hell and keep them at bay. and give you life in Jesus Christ and that's a beautiful thing that's a wonderful thing but you know more than that he told us concerning Enoch of course in the context he said but without faith is impossible to please him for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek You say, well, there's no beauty nor comeliness. Why would I seek Him? Because He is the reward. And when you find Him, you'll find everything. When you find Him, you'll find the giver of life. When you find Him, you'll find the one that'll make you free. Listen, He'll not only cleanse your sins, He'll cleanse your conscience. He'll give you a new life. He'll give you new thinking. I'll tell you how far it goes. He'll make all things new. I've heard people say, and I know there's people that scoff at it. They say the day they got saved, they went outside and the sky was bluer, the grass was greener, the water was sweeter. But you know, he makes all things become new. All those old things are passed away. The history of your life is behind you. The bitterness, the malice, the envy, the strife, the variance, the hatred, And he puts it all in the past and makes all things become new. God will give you a new life. God will give you a new marriage. God will give you relief. He'll give you the comfort of the Holy Ghost. And he'll give you a clean conscience. Put your head on your pillow at night. The work of righteousness shall be peace. Isaiah 32, 17. The effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. He is the reward. And so when you see him, it's not beauty we're looking for. It's beauty for ashes. And he'll give you beauty for ashes. Old Brother Donnie Harvey, one of the first times I ever heard him preach. And it was at his own meeting, so he did a lot of preaching. He'd preach 20 minutes here, 30 minutes there, an hour there. But he went over there to the Book of Job, and Brother Kenny Calloway was in the meeting with us, the only time I met Brother Kenny. And he had him sing that song. about sitting in the ashes, standing in the ashes, I guess it's called. After he got done singing that song, Adonai got up and he preached about Job. He said, Job's over there sitting in the ashes of his life, scraping himself with a potsherd. That place where he went to offer the sacrifices for his children, just in case they had sinned every day, he'd offer sacrifice to God on behalf of his children. And it's over there sitting in the ashes, scraping his sores, when God revealed Himself to him. The skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I shall see God. Oh, that my words were in an iron pen, the rock forever. God opened Job's lips in the place of the ashes of his defeat. It was in that place that God ministered and Job prophesied. It was there that he spake about God running upon his son like a giant, rending him in pieces, pouring out his gall upon the ground. He was there in the ash heap of his life, there in the destruction of his life. Seemingly Job lost everything in that place. And then God opened his lips to speak as a prophet of God. God opened his lips to speak of the glories of Jesus Christ. You know where Job met him? He met him in the ash heap. All things are passed away. His flock's gone. His family's gone. His herds are gone. His wealth is gone. His health is gone. And when he lost everything that he had, he said, the Lord giveth and he taketh away. But blessed be the name of the Lord. By the time you get to chapter 42, things too wonderful for me, things hard to understand. And then God restored everything Job had and more. God returned to Job and above and beyond, you know why old things have passed away. Behold, all things are become new. I tell you, it bothers me. That old handkerchief black woman ruined the name Jemima for everybody. Nobody named the child Jemima anymore because of her. But I tell you, Job got that blessing from God. It's simply what her name means according to Hebrews, according to Jews. It simply means a blessing from God, Jemima. Job called that firstborn, Jemima, his daughter, a blessing from God. God had restored to Job again what he had lost. God had made all things new in his life. When he thought everything was gone, God completely gave to him again, above and beyond what he could ever imagine. Why? Because he never lost faith with God. That's what salvation does to you. You say, I'll lose everything. No, you'll gain everything. And so much more. Well, I didn't mean to say all that. Let's go back to Psalm 63. Psalm of David, when he's in the wilderness of Judah, Oh God, thou art my God. We're going back now to Psalm 42 in the context. Early will I seek thee. My soul thirsteth for thee. My flesh longeth for thee. In a dry and thirsty land where no water is, to see thy power and thy glory. So as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. He's looking back to when he was with the father. And then here's his faith. Because thy loving kindness is better than life. My lips shall praise thee. Now I want you to listen real close. Jesus Christ is dead. Jesus Christ's soul has been offered for sin. You know what he says? Because thy loving kindness is better than life. I will praise thee. He suffered for me and he suffered for you. You know what he remembers? When he was with the father and he saw the loving kindness of his father. And even though he's suffering in terrors and the horrors and the awfulness of the sufferings of his life, in the very flames of hell, he remembers the father and he remembers the fellowship. And he said, thy loving kindness is better than life. Can you say that? No, I love my life. I love my life just how it is. But you know, the word of God said his loving kindness is better than your life. And because of that, I will praise thee. And he begins to praise Him and sing this song. Thus will I bless thee while I live. I will lift up my hands in thy name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness. And my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips. When I remember thee upon my bed and meditate on thee in the night watches, because thou has been my help, therefore, In the shadow of thy wings. Well, I rejoice. Now I don't want to try to spiritualize something goofy. We had some folks we knew on vacation. One I'm sitting here. I'm not going to point them out. It's a seagull on the beach, stretching out, drying out like this. Somebody took a picture of the seagull. Just sent it to me one day, just said, glory. I said, glory. Under the shadow of thy wings. As that cherubim stretched across that ark, that dwelling place of God. And he said, there under the shadow of thy wings will I abide. Glory be to God. God restored him. God brings his son, restores him, puts him back in his rightful place. He can abide under the shadow of those wings, those cherubims that fly through the heavens crying, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty. The faith of Jesus Christ. He knows that God's gonna restore him by faith. Psalm 69. To the chief musician upon Shoshanim, a Psalm of David. Save me, O God, for the waters are coming under my soul. I sink in deep mire where there's no standing. I'm coming to deep waters where the floods overflow me. I am weary of my crying. My throat is dried. Mine eyes fail while I wait for my God. Why is he waiting for God? Because he said, in my distress I cried, and the Lord heard me. He believes that God is going to deliver him. Did he not tell them on earth, destroy this temple in three days, I will raise it up again. And they did not discern he spoke of himself. They did not discern he spake of that body. They did not discern he spoke of the resurrection. And there he cries. He's weary of crying, his throat is dry. That man of sorrow is acquainted with grief, who in the days, by the way, speaks of, in his days with strong crying and tears, he offered a prayer and supplication unto God. Psalm 71, verse one. Actually, Psalm 71, verse 10. For mine enemies speak against me, and they that lay weight for my soul take counsel together, saying, God hath forsaken him. Persecute and take him, for there is none to deliver him. But look at his faith. O God, be not far from me. O God, make haste for my help. Verse 14, but I will hope continually. And yet, and will yet praise thee more and more. Psalm 77. Twinkie night. Psalms of Asaph. Psalm 77. Michael Asquith, son of John Asquith, lives in North Carolina. Sitting back in the church pew, looking hateful and bitter like he always did in church. His wife's looking less hateful and bitter that day. Michael's sitting there, I believe it's on a Tuesday night, on Twinkie night. And this is his testimony. Psalm 77, the chief musician, the judge, and the psalm of Asa. I cried unto God with my voice, and he gave ear unto me. That's when Michael said that night, He saw Jesus Christ for the first time. God opened his understanding, gloriously saved him, changed his life. And by the nose, he would tell you his life's been magically, miraculously. I was trying to combine two different words there, drastically and majestically. I said magically. Yeah, zing. That's good doctrine right there. It's a magical thing. The new birth is magic. That's what they say. But God gloriously, wonderfully saved Michael that night. You say on this passage? Don't ask me. But who cried unto God with his voice? Even to God with my voice and he gave ear unto me. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My sore ran and the night ceased not. My soul refused to be comforted. But notice this. I remembered God. There's this faith who was troubled. I complained and my spirit was overwhelmed." Selah. Here's he speaking of. Well, let's just look at this quickly. I won't be too long. But he said this, I cried unto God with my voice. Let's go back to Psalm 18. Keep your place. Let's go to Psalm 18. In verse four, The sorrows of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly mid made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about. The snares of death prevented me in my distress. I called upon the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his temple and my cry came before him even into his ears. We go back to Psalm 77. I cried unto God with what? My voice. Then we go to Psalm 116. And again, we see the cry. In verse three, the sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell got held upon me. I found trouble and sorrow, then called I upon the name of the Lord. Oh Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. Psalm 142. I cried unto the Lord with my voice. With my voice unto the Lord did I make my supplication. I poured out my complaint before him. I showed before him my trouble when my spirit was overwhelmed within me. Again, the cry of Jesus Christ, the cry of deliverance, the cry that came into the ear of the Father. The cry that he inclined his ear to hear his son, his suffering son. His son is bearing your iniquity and my iniquity. His son has offered our sins and poured out his soul into death. Psalm 88. A song or psalm for the sons of Korah, the chief musician upon Mahalath, Leonoth, Maskel of Heman, the Ezrahite, the great prophet of God. O Lord God of my salvation, I've cried day and night before thee. Let my prayer come before thee, incline thine ear unto my cry. For my soul is full of troubles and my life draws nigh unto the grave. I am counted with them that go down into the pit. I am as a man that hath no strength. There he is. He's a worm and no man. The Bible tells us that. His visage is so marred why he has your sicknesses. He has your affliction, your iniquity, your sin. It's all been laid upon him. Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more, and they are cut off from thy hand. Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, In darkness, in the deeps, thy wrath lieth hard upon me. And thou hast afflicted me with all thy ways, Selah. Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me. Thou hast made me an abomination unto them. I am shut up and I cannot come forth. Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction. Lord, I have called daily upon thee. I have stretched out my hands unto thee. Wilt thou show wonders to thy dead? Shall the dead arise and praise thee, Selah? Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave, or thy faithfulness in destruction? Shall thy wonders be known in the dark, and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But unto thee have I cried, O Lord, and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee. Lord, why castest off thy soul? Why hidest thou thy face from me? I am afflicted and ready to die for my youth up. While I suffer thy terrors, I am undistracted. Thy fierce wrath goeth over me. Thy terrors have cut me off. They came raining about me daily like water. They compassed me about together. Lover and friend, hast thou put far from me? And mine acquaintance in the darkness? I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever. a Psalm of Ezra. He said, I don't believe those two go hand in hand. I do. I believe when he was in absolute despair and he cried and he called out and he asked the Lord all of these questions. He said, I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever. With my mouth will I make known my faithfulness to all Generations. He said, why did you say all those things? Why do you summarize all that? Let's go to Galatians and we'll summarize there. Galatians chapter two in verse 16, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law. but by the faith of Jesus Christ. Kind of puts in perspective for us, doesn't it? What faith do I have compared to that? My measly, meager, weak faith compared to the faith who would take him to the cross, knowing the terrors of death, knowing the horrors of hell, knowing the suffering, knowing the pain, knowing the separation, knowing death. And yet knowing that he said, his eyes like a face, like a Flint saw the cross, saw me, saw you and still went to the cross and believing the whole time that God would resurrect him, that God would bring him out. that God would be faithful to deliver him. And while his soul panted like the heart, while his soul was panting by the water brooks, his thirst was for God. Is that your faith? Is that your faith? It's your thirst for God. And the wrath of judgment upon your sin is your thirst for God. And the sufferings that you're, the agonies of conviction is your thirst for God. He said, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ. and not by the works of the law. For by the works of the law shall no flesh to be justified. But if while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners. Is Christ therefore the minister of sin? God forbid. You and I found out every person that's ever sought God found out they were a sinner. Every person that sought justification by Jesus Christ found out they indeed were a sinner. And there was no keeping of the law that could ever deliver them. There was no righteousness that could ever bring them out. There was no cleanness of the hands that could ever come to him and be delivered. And so the Word of God told us this, but if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. For I, through the law, am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. In the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by what? The faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me, justified by the faith of Christ. I mentioned this first. Let's go to Psalm 18 again. You say this stuff a lot. You preach this stuff a lot. Well, yeah, but not enough. I don't believe that. In verse 16 of Psalm 18, his cry has come. In verse 6, he called on the Lord and cried unto my God. He heard my voice out of his temple. My cry came before him, even into his ears. And then we see down in verse 16, he sent me from above or sent from above. He took me. He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy and from them, which hated me, for they were too strong for me. And how shall a man go to a strong man's house and steal his goods, except he first bind the strong man. The first thing he had to do is God had to come down right upon the face of the wind, upon a cherub. He had to bind the strong man. that he could deliver his son. They prevented me in the day of my calamity. And notice this, but the Lord was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place. He delivered me because he delighted in me. And how many people believe that God saved them because of who they are? If there's anybody that's ever been born of God, which just in case you're wondering, I have been. It wasn't because God delighted in me. It's because God delighted in his dear son. If there's any sinner that ever seeks after God, it's not because they want to get saved. Long before you ever were, Long before you ever existed. Long before you were even a thought in the minds of man. Long before that, you were the thought in the mind of God who desired for you to be saved. Amen. You can say, well, I just wanted so bad to be saved. No. Long before you ever thought about God, He wanted you to be saved. Long before you ever heard his name. He desired you to be saved long before you ever even thought about the name of jesus christ It already had been put into motion that he would come down to this world And die the death of a sin that you and I might be made free by the blood of jesus christ You see people say it's works of righteous which I have done but it's not it's works of righteous which he hath done And god delivered him because he delighted in him And if God delivers you, it's because He's going to delight in His Son. If God brings you out, it's because He delights in His Son. If God saves you, it's because He delights in His Son. Don't ever think it's personal. Don't think it's just you. Don't ever think it's anything to do. It's because of His Son. And His Son died for this. Whosoever will, may come and drink of the water that I give freely. People say, well, God just saw me and delighted in me. I'm pretty sure God still loved the world. that he gave his only begotten son. I'm pretty sure about that. I'm pretty sure he tasted death for every man. I'm pretty sure he came into this world to save sinners. And I'm almost positive that he is a propitiation for our sins and not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And then he delivered his son because he delighted in him. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness. my righteousness. Well, that's what God did for me. If your righteousnesses are as filthy rags, how can God reward you according to that? Now listen, I was wrong for many years about that. I used to think it was that old menstrual cloth the Bible speaks of. That's pretty vile. I just think it's that time of a woman's time of separation. It's pretty vile. Bible speaks to that cloth. It's an ugly thing. It's an awful thing. I just think spiritually. But then I realized one day, I was in Leviticus chapter 15. I saw that leper and I saw that leprosy in the wool and the wolf. And I realized that leper has on a cloak of unrighteousness. That leper is clothed in filthiness. is that all of our righteousnesses are as filthy rags in the eyes of God. And then we come and offer God that filthy garment. We offer God that stained garment, so stained with sin, with leprosy. And we come and say, Lord, this is what I've done. This is what I've offered you. And it's filthy rags. But the word of God said this, The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness. He that knew no sin. And God did reward his son according to his righteousness. And that's why you and I can be justified by the faith of Jesus Christ, because God rewarded him. Hallelujah. I come and offer my filthy rags. He says, I can't take them. But then when his son comes and clothes me in his righteousness, robes me and puts that new robe upon my back, puts that ring upon my finger and I stand before God, he can accept me because of him. He rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands, hath he recompensed me. Never sin. Never vile. Never held anything wicked. Never was abominable. Never was unclean. Those beautiful hands, those precious hands. The only thing ever wrong with those hands was man took two nails. The Bible says nailed him to the cross. When man removed those nails and put that body in a grave, that holy one of God that did not see corruption, he came out of that grave, ascended to his father, came back and appeared in the midst. And what'd he say? Thomas, behold my hands. They're still clean. They're still clean. And God, Bible, but word of God said on this wise, now notice this, According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God." They came to the garden and betrayed him. He didn't part. They came and took him into Caiaphas Hall. He didn't depart. They took him before Pilate. Pilate scourged him. He didn't depart. He walked to the cross, bearing his cross, and goes and dies on the cross and hangs on the cross and suffers and bleeds. And it's there that he never departed from his God, never departed from the right way. Then his souls offered him the very depths of hell. His souls made an offering for sin, and he never departed from his God. So God delivered him. God rewarded him. God recompensed him. And now I'm going to bring my feeble little faith and say, Lord, would you accept this? And he'll say, no, but you can be justified by the faith of my son. You know what the Bible said in Galatians 2, but we have believed in Jesus. What does it mean to believe in him? Everything we read tonight, when you realize and believe in your heart, that's Jesus Christ, the son of God, and God has raised him from the dead. He said, thou shalt be saved. And when you believe in that sacrifice, And realize there's nothing good in me. There's nothing I can do to earn it. There's nothing I can do to obtain it. There's nothing good enough in me to have that faith. And I realize it's all in Him. His faith. And then the Apostle Paul told us, I believe, therefore have I spoken. Why? We have in the same spirit of faith. I had nothing to offer God. And I was feeling low one day, just feeling sorry for myself because of my own ignorance and foolishness. I was single. I hadn't been married yet. It was on the home of Sassafras Springs, Florida preaching. And that morning they had testimonies. This old fella got up, a little gator hunter, had about two teeth in his head, big old scars all over his arms from, from literally trapped and snapping turtles and hunting gators. And he gets up in church that morning. He said, pray to your God and understand him. He's a pray so Southern and I'm, he was Southern buddy, but he said, praise you. I want to thank God for saving me. And he said, you know, preacher, he said, salvation was a free gift. He said it was in Jesus Christ. And he said, if salvation had to cost two dimes a day, I got saved. I'd still be lost on my way to hell because I didn't have two dimes to give him. But I found out that it was a free gift. And he said, I'm saved because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I wasn't depressed any longer. Pastor certainly wasn't depressed. Somewhere halfway around the building, me and him almost run into each other. He was a big boy. Amen. If I had two dimes, he said, I couldn't have got saved because I couldn't have afforded salvation. But thank God salvation is a free gift. It is to whosoever will. How about you tonight? Listen, I've been all over the place. I know that, but you listen, you intellectual folk, listen to me. I'm relying on the Holy ghost to put the words where it needs to be. It's not in man's wisdom. It's not in my thoughts or my wisdom. It's in the words of the Holy Ghost that he would speak to your heart and make manifest the son of God in your life. And that you would see you need his faith, not your faith. Two satellites in orbit, the faith of Jesus Christ in a straight line, never wavers, never moves. Our faith all over the place. We realize we need his. Make that beeline to him, we'll find him. He's not a far away God. You just gotta seek him. Pastor Sealy, I'm done. I just wanna thank the Lord for the cleanness of his hands. for the holiness of Jesus Christ, for the purity, for the beauty. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness. Do you know what it would look like if he rewarded you according to your righteousness? You saw it tonight when Jesus' soul was in hell. That's what it would look like if he rewarded you according to your righteousness. And just in case you think your thoughts are right on par, Jeremiah 619, here O'erth, behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts. because I have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it." It's evil. It's evil to reject the Word of God. In your mind, in your thoughts, if you're rejecting the Word of God, God calls that evil. If you're sitting in your own righteousness, Thinking you are something. Thinking you have something. Thinking you've got a little more insight than the Word of God. That's evil thinking. It's straight out of hell. It's going to send you there. Isaiah 53 10 said, or 11, he shall see the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied by his knowledge. Shall my righteous servant justify many? That made me think of Paul. Philippians 3, 8. Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. The lost sinner in here tonight, the reason you're lost is because you will not count all things but loss. Don't hold on to it. My thoughts. My way. My way. Not his. Mine. Paul goes on, he says, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung that I may win Christ. He's the prize. But you've got to count everything else. Loss. You've got nothing to bring. He has everything to offer. What more do you need? What more do you need? Peter, why don't you just testify the goodness of God? Well, I was wondering if I'd get a chance to share this, and I was just thinking about what you said, that name with the two dons. I was thinking today, while I was at work, And I praise God it's not by my works that I can be saved. Because if God had required me to do the simplest of tasks, if all salvation required me to do was just walk across this room, I would have not been saved. Because my pride would have not let me walk across this room. I wouldn't have been able to do it. But by the work of God, I was able to be brought to repentance. By the work of God, I was able to believe in Him. There's nothing I could do. Right. I told uh Mr. McVeigh on the phone today. They should infuriate me when people would say they just gotta believe. So, I was like, what does that entail? How does one believe? Yeah. I always used to try to figure these things out in my mind. What is this step-by-step process for salvation? Yup. It was just repent and believe. Yup. Two things I could not make myself do. Yup. but by the grace and mercy of God. Amen. Amen. He saved me. Amen. Salvation is of the Lord. The long suffering of God is salvation. And Twinkie week. How about that? Amen. Hallelujah. Now this is the work of God. that you believe on him whom he hath sent? If God, peradventure, will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, why you take so much on yourself? Is it not all on God? Did he not just say, come? Well, why won't you come? Because intellectually, that doesn't make sense. According to religion, that does not make sense. What about those ones in the wilderness who are being bitten by those fiery serpents? And Moses raises up this brazen serpent of all things, the very image of the thing that's killing them. He says, all that behold the serpent, they'll live if they're bitten. And in the meanwhile, the intellectual sits there, he's been bitten by a snake, and he sits there and he just thinks, now, how does this make sense? Just because I have poison running through my veins right now, my heart rate is slowing down, how would it even possibly work that just looking upon that serpent would... But God. You forget God. You've forgotten God in the whole thing. You forgot there's a God in heaven. You're so caught up with your helplessness and your hopelessness that you forgot that there's a God. He's made a way. And be found in Him. Not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ. The righteousness which is of God by faith. You know what the righteousness that Paul had that was of the law, do you know what that was? Filthy rags. That was his righteousness. All that law could do was tell him he was a leper. But God, when Jesus steps in, So why won't you believe? I didn't say, why can't you believe? I said, why won't you believe? Because it's in your stubborn will. And I think we're going to close with a song tonight. Do you got anything? OK, come on up.