Thou crownest the year with thy goodness (Quality: Very good)

[0:00] You will have appreciated that I have quite a cold on me at the moment. I ventured this morning in hope the Lord will maintain my voice and enable me to preach his word to you.

[0:15] I ask for your prayers in that regard. Now the portion of truth to which I will ask your attention this morning, you will find in the 11th verse in the 65th Psalm.

[0:32] The Psalm that we read together is our lesson and the 11th verse. Thou crownest the year with thy goodness and thy paths drop fatness.

[0:45] We pass on through life and we come to situations that essentially speak to us of change.

[1:02] We're about to change from the year 2007 into the year 2008 as the Lord shall continue to maintain this world.

[1:18] Well now, at times of change invariably are times of reflection and examination.

[1:29] I'm going to ask a question. 2007 opened what may now seem a considerable time in the past.

[1:45] Have you known anything of a spiritual nature taking place between God in heaven and your immortal soul that you can say he crowneth the year with his goodness.

[2:08] Spiritual things are the most valuable things. Things that are disregarded by people that are left in blindness and ignorance to pass on the way of time for them.

[2:24] My friends, whatever they may attain in the acquisition of property or wealth is of inferior value to one blessing of God to the soul.

[2:40] And it's a wonderful thing. If you and I can look back perhaps to more than one place in the year 2007 wherein we have felt the power and grace and love and mercy of the Most High God resting upon us.

[2:59] And it's really a very sad thing if that length of time how swiftly a year does pass beneath our feet. It's a very sad thing if we've got nothing to look back upon in the year 2007 wherein we felt the Lord the Most High God had to do with us had to do with us in our souls spiritually and had to do with us in the circumstances of our life in temporal or providential matters.

[3:35] My friends these times when change overtakes us sanctified will cause us to reflect to reflect on all the way the Lord has led us and what a good thing it is to have in remembrance some precious things which mean more to us than all else beside.

[4:03] Well now thou crownest the year with thy goodness. my goodness. Now this is true of each and every one of us in that respect that we've been maintained in life that the life the Lord gave to us no matter how many years ago how recent or how extensive the way of life has been by the mercy of God toward us my friends the Lord has maintained maintained our lot it is in him we live and move and have our being there's not such a thing as an independent existence the very breath that we draw is attributable to the goodness of God yes it's in him we all and all mankind live and move and have their being now in that sense the Lord has crowned the year with his goodness we haven't wanted for anything in a real necessity but what the Lord has brought it to pass we have not entered into experiences however dark and difficult they may seem to be initially but what a way has been made through the sea and through the mighty waters and the Lord has indeed crowned us with some precious evidence that his eye is upon us and his ear is open to our cry he crowneth the year with his goodness but let us look at spiritual things what a mercy it is to be an exercise soul in those things which concern our immortality we by nature live for the present we're concerned with the things of time we're in bondage to the success and failure of various things that develop in our life's experience but my friends what about the life beyond what about that when heart and flesh fail how many many folk entered into 2007 and had prospects locked up in their hearts and minds for the ongoing years 2008 and following but

[6:55] God in his sovereignty took away the life that he initially gave and sustained for how many years their life has continued and it has unexpectedly in many cases been brought to a final issue and the days of our lives are numbered by the sovereign hand of God you and I can't say when our lives will terminate we know that our very existence is dependent upon the goodness and mercy of God to us and my friends what a mercy if we can look back and say in in retrospect it hasn't all been of the earth it hasn't all been concerning the health of my body and of my mind it hasn't all been of a temporal nature there has been in the goodness of

[8:08] God through the year an exercise in godliness an exercise in my soul to be right with god to be blessed of god with those spiritual blessings and with those things that carry the hallmark of a saved sinner the hallmark of the work of god by his spirit within the very heart of a person thou crownest the year with thy goodness what a mercy what a mercy to be conscious that we're not our own that we're not going on through a pattern of years that is to some degree self appointed we've shown interest in this and that and the other and pursued certain ways in our lives that have suited our natural tastes and inclinations my friends but what a mercy if god has been ordering our ways god has been closing as well as opening doors for us in a way of providence and he's brought things to pass sometimes which looked devastating initially but ultimately have proved to be such advantage that we wouldn't have been without those incidents of divine providence in our experiences for anything well now thou crownest the year with thy goodness goodness and mercy follows us day by day hour by hour but there is as it were this distinct particular development accomplished in life's way that carries the hallmark of heaven that carries an interest in the heart of god toward us that he's loved us from all eternity and that love is everlasting love therefore he will maintain those things in time which are suitable to our good eternally and his praise forevermore thou crownest the year with thy goodness crowns now a crown associates with elevation and dignity we crown our kings and our queens in the earth recognizing that they are possessed of majesty they are possessed of dignity that is not common it is a feature that recognized by the world that those bearing crowns are exalted and uplifted to a degree of admiration and estimation that suits the office into which they have been brought thou crownest the year it's as if the lord comes out of his place above everything else and blesses us with those sovereign blessings of his grace and his goodness

[12:14] I'll go on in a few minutes with the second part of the text which in some ways illustrates what the point I'm seeking to make but the lord alone can crown a year with goodness we are not going to leave it within the confines of the temporal the people that are rich upon the face of the earth are the people of God those that are sanctified by the indwelling of the spirit and being led forth by the right way that they may go to a city of habitation my friends the lord is their god indeed thou crownest the year with thy goodness and thy paths drop fatness now when we think of fatness we think of health don't we have a

[13:28] I'm not talking about the excesses that are warned against so much in modern times lest we should become a base and have as it were a condition that is threatening rather than an asset in living the lives appointed for us but thy paths drop fatness I want to look at this first of all from the spiritual point of view and then I want to just mention finally the temporal goodness of God thou crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness from a spiritual standpoint one of the wonders of God's goodness to his people is the path of prayer can you ever consider a praising soul in heaven that was not a praying soul on earth for this shall every one that is godly call unto thee at a time wherein thou mayest be found

[14:58] I believe every soul that praises God for salvation in glory has been praying soul on earth what a wonderful thing it is to walk in the path of prayer to be led by the spirit into situations and conditions which bring us as it were down to our knees calling for the interposition the help and deliverance of God in our varying situations it seems when we study scripture that for the most part the lives of godly people have been lives wherein prayer has been exercising their souls in the development of the situation in many ways we have the prayers of

[16:12] David recorded for us in the book of Psalms and what a wonderful thing it is to be able to realize the man of prayer mighty man of prayer was King David when he was brought through the experiences into which God led him and how absolutely dependent he became on the answer to his prayers to fulfill those responsibilities and conditions peculiar to his personal experience you may say well surely the dying thief was a man lacking spiritual concerns and interests he could say on confession from the very cross at the side of the saviour we have done that which is evil we have not walked in the ways of

[17:24] God and of godliness he says to his fellow we deserve to receive what we are now experiencing but he looks to Christ and I think this is a wonderful expression of the universal involvement in prayer he looks to the Lord and he says remember me O Lord when thou comest into thy kingdom have you ever prayed that prayer is that an exercise of your soul that the favour the Lord shows to every subject of his kingdom that shall be made your personal experience remember me with the favour that thou bear to thy people path oh he knew that if the Lord turned to him in mercy it was an undeserved favour that the

[18:28] Lord greatly blessed him with this communication of under divine authority and said today today shalt thou be with me in paradise now crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness the path of prayer has it dropped fatness have you ever fallen on your knees and thank God that he's attended to your cry that he's listened to the groaning of the prisoner that he's hearkened to that person that is beyond the help of man who's so downtrodden so depressed so helpless and hopeless to remedy the condition in and of himself looking around him and saying vain is the help of man but with a single eye and humble spirit looking to the

[19:49] Lord from the ends of the earth the children of God cry to the God of heaven and God hears those cries he appears in ways sometimes totally unexpected and makes a way where there appears to be no way thou crownest the year with thou crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness then answers to prayer and spiritually nourishing they strengthen our faith they give us as it were a humble confidence that the Lord that has thought upon us in a peaceable way of deliverance in answer to our cry will manifest his favour not just in one singular particular but will continue with us in the journey through life and in the ultimate end of this life when time shall be no more thou crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness now another path in which thy children of

[21:22] God are made to walk is the way of truth the way of scripture the way when the Lord uses his word and it as it were promotes the health of the spirit strengthens in the inner man to go on looking to and believing in the world amidst the hostility that is present in our generation against the ways of God and the way of truth my friends has the Lord's word ever dropped with fatness have you ever sat under the

[22:22] Lord's shadow with great delight and found his fruit sweet to your taste you know when the Lord gives it sends his word it's applicable to the situation prevailing it's suitable to the condition it may not promise immediate deliverance but there's a promise of deliverance that is exercising the soul in waiting for the Lord waiting on the Lord waiting for the Lord believing in his due time and his own way he will bring your exercise to fruition I remember in the concern to which I referred in prayer the concern that's previous to entering upon the preaching of the gospel

[23:23] I remember one particular experience there was a dear old minister who used to come to Coventry six times a year when we were lads Mr.

[23:41] Henry James down in Bedfordshire he was a humble man and the first introduction to a sermon was an explanation of how he had come to his text he always had a brief account of how he was brought to the word which he felt the Lord had given him to deliver on that occasion and we went into chapel in the morning and I was under the exercise that the Lord would cause him to make reference to the apostle Peter and his he gave out a text that was far removed but during the discourse he stopped suddenly and it seemed out of context altogether and he went on to speak about

[24:57] Peter being delivered from the prison the prayers of the Lord's people that were concerned with his deliverance and so on and oh my spirit responded with thankfulness to God as I sat and listened to the discourse of the dear old man as he went on and he seemed to be wandering a long way from the text that he had originally announced but nevertheless I felt I'd got an answer in my own heart that was the cause and reason for the digression anyway he went off at the end of the day and I blessed God for the ministry he'd been able to exercise and the comfort and help I'd received and you know my friends praying people have got a wonderful influence over preachers I put that in at this point people that come with cases to the house of

[26:04] God asking that the Lord will touch their case deal with their matter answer their problem or give them hope relative to their deep seated concerns I say it's a wonderful thing how a praying hearer can cause a minister to take a certain course and line in preaching well after six or eight weeks old Mr.

[26:42] James was due to preach again by which time I'd got into many temptations you know you get something from the Lord and the devil will say well that was only coincidence a preacher is bound to bring these sort of things forward and so on from the word of God and I got in terrible confusion of mind to know whether it really was of God and in the end in my extremity I said Lord decide the case and if that dear man came with thy word for me on his last visit cause that he may reiterate the situation again with regard to Peter and you know he gave out a text and I I listened attentively and he was not anywhere near Peter and I thought oh dear dear dear and we went on and went on through the service and we came to the amen and there was nothing and I went back to my lunch home

[27:48] I thought well I suppose I am deceived in all this it's all presumption it's not the will of God that I should ever be a preacher and I wanted to just forget it and go on the normal course in life went down to the evening service again waiting and the dear man got on to Peter and he so reiterated what he said on the previous occasion that the fatness that fell into my spirit and the reassurance that it wasn't presumptuous anticipation of future occupation it was the will of God made firm and sure in my heart in a way that well only

[28:49] God can do only God can accomplish you see the Lord uses his word certain things in the scripture may be made a blessing and you may want a preacher to preach from that or you may want a minister just to pay reference to it and in the feebleness of your desire you leave it with the Lord and this is a wonderful word and it came to pass and my friends if the Lord is in the in the original exercise and lays that in your spirit to ask for that I say it will come to pass in his own time and in his own way who would have thought that that old minister would be exercised in the same way on two visits almost within a few weeks of one another that was consistent with his attendance as a supplied preacher to

[29:58] Coventry Paul but I loved the man some people used to think he was a bit dry and uninteresting well he was never that to me in that sense that I knew he was a servant of God speaking the word of God by the guidance of the Holy Ghost well now thy paths drop fatness look the scriptures full of fatness the word of God our Bibles they're the bread of heaven in that sense that it's the Lord himself speaking to mankind and I've quoted already

[30:59] Jeremiah's word thy word was found thy words were found and I did eat them they were to the joy and rejoicing of my heart feeding upon the truth feeding upon the truth not just reading a chapter every day because that's consistent with Christian practice but desiring the Lord to direct you to the portion you should read seeking as it were divine guidance as to the part of the Bible you should turn to knowing that there is in some particular place in the scripture a word to suit the need and how wonderful it is when the Lord directs our reading to a portion that is just just what we need just meets the case just answers the question thy word was found and I did eat them my friends and what a strengthening it is thus to be blessed in the reading of the scripture and I'm going to just mention another personal experience you know

[32:24] I'd been favoured of God in 1948 and my heart was full to overflowing and with that blessing came upon my spirit a desire to do what the Lord commands to be done and I was not wanting to walk that way in at that particular time there was flesh warring against spirit and I was saying virtually not so Lord not so and yet the concern the exercise to baptism and joining the church recurred again and again to my spirit and I was wrestling against it really in my own heart one Sunday morning

[33:38] I shall never forget it it was our practice to have the apples of gold calendar in those days it was a calendar with a daily text on it one Sunday morning I was wrestling with this problem I went to the calendar and tore it off I set before thee this day a blessing or a curse a blessing if thou obey a blessing if thou obey the word of the Lord and a curse if thou dost not obey and the word I haven't quoted it quite my memory is so frail it's I today it was it riveted on the today today if thou wilt obey a blessing and if thou wilt disobey a curse oh a blessing or a curse oh

[34:55] I don't I want the blessing I want the blessing today you must heed the word and venture I shall never forget going down to Rehoboth Coventry Chapel under the burden that very day and I felt if the day closed and I hadn't committed myself I should be under the curse and the curse was the last thing on earth I ever wanted I ventured I ventured the Lord used his word on a text calendar and whatever people may say about the superficiality of communication it was the word of God conveyed his truth and his will to my soul and I was compelled in choosing the blessing because it was the blessing that was so precious to me and the want of it my friends don't despise the means

[36:04] God may use but it's his word that as it were brings the experience thou crownest a year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness thy paths drop fatness sometimes when we're young we think we'll never forget but memory's not it's not infallible it's it's fallible and we have to do our best to make the sense clear well no thou crownest the year with thy goodness that brings me to another point doesn't it the path of obedience thy paths drop fatness the Lord blesses his people as they walk in his ways the Lord doesn't smile on disobedience the Lord smiles on the gracious humble obedience of his people as they seek to please him and his paths drop fatness his my friends how many times have we been thankful to be among those he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved you think of the fatness that's in that word he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved that's the word of

[38:05] God whatever fear unbelieving fears and temptations of the devil and all the consciousness of our shortcomings but the word of the Lord abideth forever forever it's a strong meat isn't it to nourish and strengthen our souls against all the fears and temptations which beset us and what a wonderful thing it is not only the path of obedience in passing in the footsteps of the saviour through the waters but also in the recurring privilege of being received at the table of the Lord do this in remembrance of me do this in remembrance of me

[39:07] I'm not going to suggest that every ordinance service is a feast of fat things oh no sometimes we enter with a heavy heart and we leave the table with a heavy heart and it seems as though the Lord has not heard our cries but no the less there have been times there have been times when we've found the feast at the Lord's table when this is my body that is broken for you this cup is the new testament in my blood as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup ye do show the Lord's death till he come his paths drop fatness those that are the other side of the fence as it were have not the privileges and opportunities of receiving the blessings that

[40:24] God associates with those that seek to serve him to please him and to walk in his ways and now I'm drawn to a close thou crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness let us consider the application of preceptive truth preceptive truth to have as it were the influence of practical living according to the word of God his paths drop fatness the Lord blesses the upright the

[41:24] Lord honors those that honor him with careful walk and careful talk there's an abundance of revelation in scripture as to the way we should conduct ourselves in the circumstances of life the Lord starts off with children children obey your parents for this is right fathers provoke not your children to wrath we're not to so use our parental authority as to make life unbearable they're to be chastened they're to be corrected they're to be instructed but my friends there are excesses which are damaging and so promote antagonism to all that's good that is not a good guidance for future life his ways the

[42:42] Lord crowneth the year with his goodness and his paths drop fatness what a wonderful thing it is to have I was going to say a conscience sanctified by the truth of God's holy word that we have to say sometimes so did not I oh everybody else was doing it but so did not I because of the fear of the Lord that distinction which identifies the grace of God in the soul the fear of the Lord which is the beginning of wisdom that which will precipitate the smile of the most high for many many scriptures flow out of uprightness tenderness the fear of the

[43:44] Lord it's an anxious light to all that's right it's a bar to all that's wrong what a wonderful thing going on in life is to have an exercise in these ways of the Lord these things of God these things which concern the spirit and well being of those spirits which indwell us by God's grace just to close thou crownest the year with thy goodness thy paths drop fatness we live in a day of plenty if ever a generation nation and particularly the nation of which we form a part should be full of praise to God for the standard of living that we have inherited my friends you know in temporal things we're wealthy aren't we we're wealthy we're

[45:25] I think sometimes of my grandparents and my parents too they hadn't the facilities that we take mostly for granted we haven't got anxiety as to when where the next meal will come from we've got freezers full in store as well as the fridges that are waiting to be plundered you see you go into the stores you think of these massive stores and just think of the quantity of goods waiting to be purchased we're wealthy in temporal things and God has made things to prosper to bring this situation to pass and surely the pressures that were on our grandparents and in lesser degree upon our parents are not present with us are they we've got our pressures in other directions maybe man is born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward but nevertheless we live in a wealthy temporal situation don't we are you are you really thankful the way of the path of gratitude the path of gratitude oh my friends if the church is not thankful to

[47:15] God for providence who is if the people of God do not return praise for the wonderful way God is working for our peace and quietness lack of anxiety as to the nourishment of self and the family and friends it's a wonderful situation what a wonderful thing if consequent praises rise from our hearts to the God of all goodness goodness and mercy hath followed me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever oh that might be your experience and that it might be my experience that we shan't just meet together under the goodness of God in Jaira Chapel Attleboro but that we shall meet together around that throne in glory enjoying the peace of God forever and forever

[48:25] Amen