Oh that I knew where I might find him (Quality Average)

[0:00] In complete dependence upon the Lord, again for his help, I will direct your attention to the word that we had this morning, the 23rd chapter of the book of Job, and verses 3, 4, and 5.

[0:21] Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat, I would order my calls before him, and fill my mouth with arguments, I would know the words which he would answer me, and understand what he would say unto me.

[0:51] We spoke a little this morning from these words, and commented first of all upon the person who spoke, God's servant Job.

[1:09] How that, though a godly man, he was the subject of Satan working against him.

[1:23] And we said that whether Job or any child of God, from the commencement of time to the end of time, they would find that against their religion, against the hope that is in their heart, against then God's work, they would find opposition.

[1:49] And though I suppose it would be true to say that not many, if any, have had a pathway the same as Job to walk, yet in their measure, in your measure and in mine, if we are amongst the Lord's people, we shall come across opposition from Satan, and from his agents.

[2:12] And in fact, my friends, if it's a comfort to you, and sometimes I suppose it can be, if Satan opposes your religion, it's a religion that's begun of God.

[2:26] Because if Satan leaves you alone, there's not much to be said for your religion. If you follow the meek and lowly Jesus, he was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

[2:45] And I am sure that in your measure, if you follow him, you will understand in a measure the things that he found in his pathway.

[2:58] Oh, that I knew where I might find him. Job was mourning an absent God. He had many other things to mourn, as we said.

[3:08] The loss of his family, and lesser still, but perhaps of concern, was the loss of the things that God had gave him in his, what is known as, a very great household.

[3:27] Satan had been, was permitted, was allowed, to touch the things that was near and dear to Job's heart, and what concern his, what he owned in this life.

[3:41] But again I say, Job in this chapter, is mourning an absent God. Oh, that I knew where I might find him.

[3:51] And once, as I desire the Lord to be my helper, the pathway for you, and the pathway for me, if we are following Jesus Christ, will be through such things as these.

[4:09] I said this morning, I believe that sin often separates, sin always separates, between you and your God. and perhaps you might come into times of backsliding, be allowed to backslide, that you might come into times, when, because of this, that God withdraws his presence.

[4:32] Well, that's when you will feel, if you are a sensible sinner, the desire that Job had. Oh, that I knew where I might find him.

[4:44] And I said, too, concerning, perhaps, seeking souls, in the beginning of the work of grace, when God commences his work within a soul, and begins to teach them, that their sinnership, and their depravity by nature, you don't hear too much of that these days, you know.

[5:05] You hear a lot about coming to Jesus, but you don't hear much about sinners. But sensible sinners, sinners that are taught, first of all, their own depravity, their evil of their own heart, and are led to see, there's no foundation of a hope, within their heart, of eternal life, that there's no possibility, of ever being right, before a holy God.

[5:35] Such sinners are taught, gradually, and deeper, that they've no ground to stand on, no foundation to rest on, for their own soul.

[5:48] And as the Lord leads them, and teaches them, perhaps he will bring them into, pathways, of extreme need. Perhaps he might also, afflict them in their body.

[6:01] Perhaps also, he may lead them in, pathways in providence, where there's, great need before, before them. But in all this, as they go and come, the means of grace, their cry will be, as with Job, oh that I knew, where I might find him.

[6:21] I said this morning, and I would say it again, you won't find, Jesus Christ in the world. You won't find, Jesus Christ, in the things of the world.

[6:34] And according to my scripture, you won't find, Jesus Christ, neglecting, this great salvation. In, in Paul's epistle, to the Hebrews, there's two words there, that I would remind you of.

[6:48] And one is this, how shall we escape, if we neglect, so great salvation, which had first, began to be spoken, by the Lord, and was confirmed, unto us, by them that heard him.

[7:02] Now my friends, if you neglect, the means of grace, that's not the way, to find Jesus Christ. You won't find, the blessing, that you seek for, staying at home, when the house of God, is open.

[7:15] If you neglect, whether it be, a church, a service, or a prayer meeting, and you're after, Jesus Christ, the Lord will, chastise you for that.

[7:27] In, the 11th, in the 10th chapter, of the same epistle, you'll read this, not forsaking, the assembly, of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exulting one another, and so much the more, as you see the day approaching.

[7:46] Now I say again, if you're after Jesus Christ, if God has taught you, that you're a sinner, in his sight, and in your own sight, and there's very few, that are sinners, in their own sight, and you're after mercy, and you're after forgiveness, and you come and go, and you will come and go then, to the house of God, and you'll be in your seat, as often as you can be, and you will not neglect, the means of grace.

[8:19] Oh, that I knew, where I might find him. Now, the means of grace, too, is a place, where you will find him. You may come and go, like I used to, in those early days, and find nothing for my soul, but I kept going, because I believe the Lord, gave me, a seeking, and a searching spirit.

[8:44] But, I would say this to you, to such tonight, if there's any here, that are found seeking, it's seeking their way to Zion, with their faces, they're the ward.

[8:56] And, as they come, to the house of God, and to the services, their eyes, will be up to God. The prayer of their heart, will be, that they would, that he would bless them indeed.

[9:09] Oh, that I knew, when I might find him, the Lord, in his mercy, uses the means of grace. It's often referred, casually, my friends, to the means of grace, but there are those here, I am sure, that could testify to you, that the house of God, and the services of his house, are a means of grace, and have been so.

[9:31] And, whilst us, be it here below, the Lord will use the services, and the preaching of the gospel, to be a means of grace, to such. Now, that's one place, you will find, him.

[9:45] Another place, you will find him, if God gives you, a spirit of prayer, because the Lord, will lead you, with all your sin, to his mercy seat.

[9:58] There is a hymn, I was looking at earlier on, that I'm sure, is very well known, it seems, it seems to fit, this, to the source, description.

[10:12] The more I strove against its power, I sinned and stumbled but the more.

[10:25] Till late I heard my Saviour say, Come hither soul, I am the way. Lo, glad I come, and thou blessed Lamb shall take me to thee as I am.

[10:37] Nothing but sin I thee can give, nothing but love shall I receive. My friends, if you're after this Jesus Christ, and you know the plague of your own heart, you'll go to God constantly in prayer about it.

[10:57] You'll walk the streets pleading for mercy. You'll come to God's house with one cry on your lips and in your heart unto him, that he would have mercy.

[11:11] And such is how you will go on. Oh that I knew where I might find him. You'll find him and you'll go after him in prayer and supplication.

[11:22] But I read those chapters in God's word this night for a specific purpose. The 53rd of Isaiah instructs us how we are by nature.

[11:39] First of all, how we are by nature. And you and I come into this description. For he shall, as Jesus Christ, he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground.

[11:55] He hath no form nor comeliness. And when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. Now that's where we are by nature. Job was a man taught of God, had God's grace in his soul.

[12:10] Now he knew what he was after. He was after communion with God. Oh that I knew where I might find him. As we go down these words, you will see that what he will do when he finds him.

[12:24] He would know the words which he would answer me. I would order my calls before him and fill my mouth with arguments. But my friends, till grace is implanted in your soul and mine, that's a description.

[12:38] There is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men and none of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from him.

[12:51] He was despised and we esteemed him not. Now that's how we stand by nature. That's how religious professors stand. It's only those who possess the grace of God that go after Jesus Christ for mercy.

[13:07] And we also read in that twelfth chapter of the Hebrews something else which will teach us a little of coming to Jesus or trying to find him.

[13:22] Oh that I knew when I might find him that I might come even to his seat. When you come to the Lord Jesus, when the Lord teaches you your sinnership, you'll come with nothing.

[13:35] And you'll have to come with nothing. You'll have to come empty. What you will bring to him is what we read in that hymn just now.

[13:47] What you'll have to bring. Nothing but sin I thee can give. Nothing but love shall I receive. And in that hymn the top lady wrote, you'll find his experience there.

[14:02] Nothing in my hand I bring. Simply to thy cross I cling. Naked come to thee for dress. Helpless look to thee for grace.

[14:16] Black eye to the fountain fly. Wash me, Savior, or I die. You won't have anything to bring to Christ, only your sin. You won't be able to plead.

[14:28] You're coming and going to the house of God. You won't be able to plead to him that you've been brought up under the sound of the truth. When God teaches a sinner that he is a sinner, he'll come naked.

[14:41] He'll come absolutely empty. And he'll come deserving nothing else but judgment. Why did the hymn writer write in another frame and another feeling, My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.

[14:59] I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on his dear name. Oh, that I knew when I might find him, that I might come even to his seat.

[15:12] But all I was coming to was this. In the chapter that we read, the 12th of Hebrews, the Apostle Paul, as he is taught by the Holy Spirit, will tell you where you're not coming and where you won't be able to come.

[15:34] And he says this, And these sensible sinners will know this. For he had not come unto the mount that might be touched and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, and so on.

[15:52] You won't be able to go to that mount. That was the mount where Moses stood before God and God gave him ten holy commandments.

[16:05] And you and I won't be able to go there. We've broken each one of them, every one of them, whether it be in thought, word or deed, but we've broken them.

[16:17] He that is guilty of one is guilty of all. You won't go there, my friends. The commandments are to such as can keep them, but you and I can't keep them.

[16:32] The commandments say, and God says through Moses, do this and live. And you can't do this and live because you're born into the world as a sinner. You've broken it.

[16:44] Our first fathers broke God's holy law. And we've been, and we've come into this world as broken law sinners. But the apostle goes on to say, and describes that terrible place.

[17:00] And he goes on to leave that place behind and says this, but ye have come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, and the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an inubrable company of angels.

[17:17] And he goes on to say this, and to Jesus, that's the place where you'll come as a sinner. That's the only place you can come. I said this morning, when I tried to speak a few things on this word, that the place that God will, the Holy Spirit will bring you is a place called Calvary.

[17:39] That's where you'll find mercy. That's where you'll find forgiveness. That's where you'll find hope. Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat.

[17:53] That, my friend, is a blessing if you're a coming sinner. Now, you tell me, when you read in the word, where a coming sinner's ever turned away, there's a word that I would remind you in the 6th of John that says this, and it's a most blessed word.

[18:12] I thank the Lord that it's ever been written. Often and often, all that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

[18:27] These sinners, like Joe here, who's seeking for Jesus, who's trying to find the place where mercy is found, to come in and out of the house of God with the burden of sin on their conscience, these are described by Jesus Christ as given to him, all that the Father giveth me shall come.

[18:51] And there's a shall there. There's an eternal shall. That shall was put in Holy Scripture. That shall was put in the covenant of grace before this world was created.

[19:04] And they shall come. And they'll come from north, south, east, and west. And it matters how deep died, it matters not how deep died they are.

[19:15] If they're in this covenant, they'll come. And they'll never be turned away. All that the Father giveth me shall come. Have you ever been glad for the little words that join the Scriptures up?

[19:28] They shall come. And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. I don't know your soul. I know precious little about any of you.

[19:39] But if there's one here that fears to come because he's so great a sinner. If there's one taught of God who has the burden of sin so great upon his conscience and has been perhaps tempted of Satan that he'll turn him away.

[20:00] Come to God with this word. Remind Christ Jesus that he spoke this word. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me. And if you think you're too bad to come his precious blood has never lost its power never lose its power till all the ransomed church of God be saved to sin no more.

[20:21] All that the Father giveth me shall come to me. And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. All that I knew where I might find him.

[20:34] My friends, you will find him if you're seeking him. You may wait but you'll be one of those that wait and watch and the Lord will give you patience to do so.

[20:48] And you will find him to your own soul satisfaction that I might come even to his seat. We said this morning that that's the mercy seat. When Jesus died, crucified and died and rose again, he went back into heaven.

[21:09] and he took back into heaven evidence of his sufferings. There's a hymn that we sometimes sing at our chapel and you've often sung here, no doubt, concerning Jesus Christ as the mediator.

[21:27] And it's this, points to their names upon his breast and spreads his wounded hands. And, my friends, if you can believe such words as that, that that I might come even to his seat, he stands between and since my Saviour stands between in garments dyed in blood, tis he instead of me is seen when I approach to God.

[22:01] The hymn writer, Mr. Hart, says this, This wondrous man of whom we tell is true almighty God.

[22:11] He bought our souls from death and hell to price his own heart's blood. That human heart he still retains, though thrown in highest bliss and feels each tempted member's pains for our afflictions his.

[22:30] My friends, if you are safe in your way, he'll plead your calls in eternal bliss. I would order my calls before him and fill my mouth with arguments.

[22:46] What does it mean to fill your mouth with arguments? I'll tell you what it means. Well, I'll tell you what I believe it means. the Lord who watches over his people and gives them from time to time access at the mercy seat.

[23:05] He gives them how, he teaches them how to pray. In this, you can fill your mouth with arguments. But there's one argument that you'll be able to plead if you're one of his.

[23:17] And I'm thinking particularly now of those that have known the Lord and that have perhaps backslidden from his ways. I'm thinking perhaps now of those who seem so far off from God, so far off from the mercies that they've known.

[23:37] Perhaps they need to be reminded as Israel of old did as they come near to Jordan when Moses said to them, Thou shalt remember all the way the Lord thy God hath led thee these 40 years in the wilderness to humble thee and to prove thee.

[23:54] Well, perhaps they've come into places where they need reminding of what God has done. I will order my calls before him and fill my mouth with arguments.

[24:06] I'll tell you what you'll be able to tell the Lord. You'll be able to tell him his promises. And if there should be one who feels this night to be so far off from God they've lost sight of God and they feel the absence.

[24:24] They don't know his presence now and the preciousness that they have done. Remind him what he's done for you and remind him of the promises that he's laid in your heart and remind him this, there's a very gracious promise that God and a very exhorting and comforting word that Jesus Christ said to his disciples come unto me or ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.

[24:55] If the Lord ever says to you come that's a sign of sonship that's a sign that you're in the covenant of his grace that's a token for you that you're safe for all eternity.

[25:10] Why do I say that? Because to the wicked he'll say depart but to his people he'll say come. come unto me and fill my mouth with arguments.

[25:22] You'll have to go to God you know in simplicity and in all honesty and you'll have to remind him of the precious promises that he's laid on record not only within scripture for poor seeking sinners but what you believe he's done for you and your soul.

[25:40] You'll have to go like that. I would know the words which he would answer me and understand what he would say unto me. There's only one thing my friend that a seeking soul needs and wants cries for night and day and as fresh sin is felt on the conscience and as at times like Job of old you seem to be oppressed by Satan and brought into these times of separation there's one thing that you will cry for and one word you will cry for.

[26:25] You know there's an account in the Gospels of two men. Two men went up into the temple to pray. The one Pharisee and the other Republican and you'll have to go like the publican.

[26:43] God be merciful to me a sinner. The other man hadn't got anything to ask for. He spent his time telling God how good he was.

[26:55] He even spent his time telling him he wasn't as bad as the other person. But if you're in this position and place as a seeking soul before God though you fill your mouth with arguments as the scripture says here that will be for one thing only and that will be for mercy.

[27:19] Oh that I knew where I might find him that I might come even to his seat. How important then it was to Job in all his trial. We read these chapters this 23rd and those previous but that's the pathway that this dear man walked and though we perhaps take but few moments to read from chapter 1 to chapter 23 that man lived out this trial day by day as he woke in the morning and went to bed at night that trial was still with him.

[27:56] That dreadful trial that Satan had brought into his pathway but as I said the greatest trial then was that he was after his God he was trying as we would put it to get back to God.

[28:11] He was seeking communion once more with one who had done so much for him who was absent.

[28:22] Oh that I knew where I might find him that I might come even to his seat. I wish I could draw out of this word what I feel is there that insistence of Job.

[28:37] That wrestling spirit of prayer. That one thing which is important. You know in the 11th chapter the 10th chapter of Luke you will find this and perhaps you may feel like this at times.

[28:59] That occasion when Jesus went to the home of Martha and Mary and Martha was careful and troubled about many things.

[29:11] Jesus said this but one thing is needful and Mary hath chosen a good part which shall not be taken away. Jesus Christ loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus it is we are told in the gospel of John.

[29:31] But at this time Mary was concerned with one thing. she sat at Jesus feet and heard his word. Job was concerned with one thing no matter what else happened in his life or what had gone before even the blessings that I read to you this morning from that 20th whatever chapter it was doesn't matter but even the blessings that he had gone through and had realized and had known and the foretaste that he had of the resurrection and that he would be there in his redeemed body those things had passed into time and at this time and in this place he was after one thing communion with God all that I knew when I might find him the apostle Paul you know the eminent apostle as we would call him because he's used of God in his journey here below and since by his epistles how many thousands of the Lord's people have been blessed under the word that the spirit of God taught Paul the apostle to write we shall never know but even that Ammon apostle said this that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable unto his death he began that third chapter of the Philippians with this his account what he was by nature what he was by a pharisee and he said this for what things were going to me those I counted lost for

[31:27] Christ yea doubtless and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but done that I may win Christ and be found in him to the apostle Paul Jesus Christ was everything when he preached to the church of Corinth he said this for I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified the sum and substance of his preaching was Jesus Christ the desire of his soul as he drew near to the end of his days was to know Jesus Christ and though he would have suffered as he said in this chapter tremendous privations and he speaks of all the things that occurred to him in his life because he preached the gospel of

[32:28] Jesus Christ yet I'm sure the apostle Paul would testify like Joe oh that I knew I might find him that I might come even to his seat now then my friends as the time has come into a close Job one Job's one desire well is it your desire is it mine oh I believe sometimes it is I often have to need and the Lord's servants need a token that they're in the right place and I often have to plead before I stand up what the friends are singing that second hymn I often have to plead that the Lord will prove tonight or prove this morning whatever day it is or part of the day it is that I'm his servant and I have to ask God over and over again that I might find him I know that I knew I might find him that I might come even to his seat as we read as we didn't read this 23rd but as we went down it this morning for a few moments

[33:40] Job was able to speak of God as one who performeth the thing that is appointed for him and he says this but he knoweth the way that I take God had allowed Satan to come into his pathway to touch those things that were close to him near and dear to him in ties of nature but he was able to say that he knoweth the way that I take and when he hath tried me I shall come forth as gold to those then who may know this pathway in measure who are suffering the heat and the vehement of the furnace well may you know the blessings that Job knew may the Lord teach you in these gracious and solemn ways that without him you can do nothing oh that I knew when I might find him that I might come even to his seat

[34:52] I would order my cause before him and fill my mouth with arguments I would know the words which he would answer me and understand what he would say unto me may the Lord forgive what has been amiss may he bless his own words Amen