Works proceeding from the Law of Liberty (Quality: Very good)

[0:00] Just say that was one of the hymns I had considered asking our friend to give out for the last hymn this evening. I'll ask your prayerful attention to the general epistle of James chapter 1 and especially verse 25.

[0:22] James chapter 1 verse 25. But, in comparison with the man in the previous verse, two verses, but whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty and continueth therein, he, being not a forgetful healer, but a doer of the work.

[0:59] This man shall be blessed in his day. This verse dropped into my mind in the night.

[1:12] Like most elderly people, I have to get up several times a night and often spend an hour or two awake. And it came to my mind in the night.

[1:25] It seemed to remain upon my mind to bring before you this evening. It seemed confirmed also when I read the letter from Mr. Hayden inviting me to engage dates here next year when in his letter he spoke of how often he feels to be a captive.

[1:48] And Psalm 137, which is of course a psalm the captives spoke when they had been taken away from Jerusalem.

[2:02] How they hung their harps upon the willows. And how often we feel, often in a far off land. And why is this?

[2:15] Generally speaking, because of our backsliding and our sins. The rebellious dwell in a dry land. If we feel to be in a dry land, we don't need to look far for the reason.

[2:31] Well, before we come to consider that more later, this is a general epistle. Not written to a particular person such as Timothy or Titus, or to people in a particular place such as Corinth or Thessalonica.

[2:54] James, the brother of John, was put to death soon after the Lord's ascension. When Herod saw that it pleased the people, he proceeded to take Peter also.

[3:09] This James would appear to be James the son of Alphaeus. Another of the twelve, though some have thought it was of James the brother of the Lord.

[3:22] But be that as it may, it is a very searching epistle. I often tremble as I read this epistle.

[3:33] It searches me. Does it search you? We are told to search the scriptures, but do the scriptures search us?

[3:47] Now here, we read that we are to be doers of the word and not hearers only.

[4:04] In our denomination, we firmly believe that salvation is all of grace, not of works, lest any man should boast.

[4:19] But I fear that knowing that, hearing it so often preached from our pulpit, we tend to almost fall over backwards and neglect works.

[4:34] Neglect works. And as we read in the second chapter, faith without works is dead. James does not mince his words.

[4:46] He does not say it's dying. He doesn't show any sign of life. It is dead. Consider then firstly the one that is a hearer, but not a doer.

[5:03] if any be a hearer of the world, referring of course especially to the word of God and the preaching of the gospel, and not a doer.

[5:23] He is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass. he beholdeth himself.

[5:36] And it doesn't say he goes the Lord's way. He goeth his way. And straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

[5:50] The word of God, I often say, is a perfect mirror. Some mirrors distort our driving mirrors on the car, deliberately distort to give a wider perspective of the view behind us.

[6:09] But there's no distortion in this mirror. But do we see ourselves?

[6:21] Described of course by many of the people in the scripture, some the Lord's people, some who are clearly lost characters.

[6:34] Do we see ourselves? And especially in this context, do we see the Lord's people in their path of obedience when they were not hearers only, but also doers?

[6:53] I remind you of that which we read in an early chapter in John, when Mary said to those about the Lord Jesus, whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.

[7:16] Do it. Paul, or Saul of Tarsus as he was then, when he was fallen down to the earth and heard that voice speaking unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

[7:38] The Lord was in heaven, but he didn't say why persecutest thou my disciples? Why persecutest thou me? As we sing, he feels each tempted member's pains, for our afflictions is, and Saul said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?

[8:06] How often that has to be our prayer in providential and in spiritual things. Not what is the easiest path for us.

[8:17] Not what will please someone else, but what wilt thou have me to do? Lord, as Moses said, when he had come down from the Mount Sinai and saw the golden calf, and of course he ground it to powder, strewed it amongst them, and many of the Israelites were slain, and then he said, show me now thy way.

[8:47] Not my own way, not the way that would please Aaron or Miriam or someone else, but thy way. But this man that was a hearer and not a doer, went his way, and straight way, forgetteth what manner of man he was.

[9:12] How is it when we go out of the house of God? I often fear we lose what we have gathered on the doorstep, as it was in the parable of the sower.

[9:28] There was no fault with the seed. The seed that fell by the wayside among the thorns and on stony ground was just as good as the seed that fell into good ground.

[9:40] There was no fault with the seed. It was the word of God we read in Mark. But the birds of the air came and caught it away and it brought forth no fruit.

[9:55] But whoso looketh at the law of liberty no looketh into it.

[10:09] What a difference in natural things there is between looking at something and looking into it. Remember an occasion when my children were small and we took them to the Tower of London to see the Crown Jewels.

[10:26] They were not where they are now in a purpose built place but just after the war they were in the Whitefield Tower. Stone Tower hundreds of years old covered with the grime and soot of sanctuaries at least it was that queuing up to enter how forbidding how uninteresting that Tower looked.

[10:51] But when we got inside what a difference the light shining upon the scepter the crowns the orb and the crown jewels.

[11:05] Just in passing as I stood back to the wall to let the children have a clearer view that hymn dropped into my mind jewels to thee are gaudy toys and gold is sordid dust.

[11:28] We willingly as it were give those crown jewels if they belong to us. To have that sweetness of that moment all over again. But you see the difference between looking at and looking into.

[11:46] The perfect law of liberty. Make no mistake. This is the gospel. There is no liberty under Moses law.

[12:01] But as we read in Romans where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty. Liberty. Liberty. And as in that hymn I think it has the text over the top of it, if the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

[12:33] By nature we are in bondage under the law. The law demands a mighty debt and not a single might will make.

[12:48] But gospel sings of Jesus' blood and says I make the promise God. And by no means can our deeds atone for past sins.

[13:12] For you younger friends consider it in an everyday figure. If I enter a built up area where the speed limit is 30 miles an hour and I drive for a distance at 40 miles an hour I'm breaking the speed limit.

[13:29] If caught I shall be punished. It would be no use my saying to the magistrate for the next 100,000 miles I kept to the speed limit.

[13:41] That would not make me free from punishment for having broken it in the past. one said could my zeal no respite no could my tears forever flow all for sin could not atone thou must save and thou alone.

[14:10] I am very fond of the 119th psalm. Consists of 176 verses longer than any other psalm or chapter.

[14:25] 22 sections each of eight verses with a Hebrew letter over each section. I do not of course know Hebrew but I understand in the original each section began with a Hebrew letter over that section of eight verses but with the exception of about three verses God's law is mentioned.

[14:53] Sometimes using the word law sometimes precepts sometimes testimonies sometimes commandments and so on. Think of it when you read it next.

[15:06] But the psalmist speaks of how I love thy law. I don't think he's referring to the law of Moses with its condemnation do you?

[15:18] I believe he's referring to this law of the gospel. It is not a law in the sense that giving commandments and the breaking of it results in punishments poorly.

[15:36] Though the Lord does chasten his people and if we know a little of our own backsliding hearts most of our trials come because they are chastening.

[15:53] Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. scourging was not a pat on the back of the hand the scourge had many thongs with pieces of metal fastened into them.

[16:12] He read of the furrows that it made upon the back of the poor person that was scourged. Looketh into the perfect Lord of liberty.

[16:26] Now it is the Son of God that makes his people free. By his sufferings death he redeemed them.

[16:42] Redemption speaks of the payment of a death and they are justified by his resurrection.

[16:54] Justification makes manifest that redemption has taken place. If we were in a court of law with a great debt we could not pay and one stood up and said I will pay that man's debt the payment of that debt redeems us from the consequences of our debt.

[17:22] But we are not free to go until the judge says because the debt is paid the law has now no hold upon you you are free to go.

[17:34] By Christ rising from the dead his people are justified he showed that he had conquered eternal death on their behalf.

[17:48] We cannot dwell upon that point but I remind you as we often hear at funeral services the 15th chapter of the first epistle to the Corinthians read if Christ be not risen our preaching is vain we are yet in our sins but now is Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that sin you read you read in Leviticus the gospel as it is in Leviticus as I often refer to it now the priest was to wave the first fruits of the harvest before the Lord and what day did he wave it not on the Sabbath day but on the morrow after the Sabbath the first day of the week in which Christ rose from the day look into the perfect

[18:50] Lord of Liberty to look into it we need light had we gone into that Wakefield tower and there were no lights we would have not seen the beauty of the jewels that were there and until we have spiritual light in our souls we shall not see the beauty of Christ redemption for his people and continueth therein how many as it were seem to start the race the pilgrimage race with far exceeding those who can as it were only proceed on their knees but they do not continue they turn aside he that endureth to the end shall be saved he being not a forgetful hearer and I remind you in that power of the sower all four types were hearers of the word of God all four types were hearers but a doer of the word now it may puzzle or try some of you younger friends what we read concerning

[20:33] Abraham was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar yet we read in Romans 4 I think it is Abraham was not justified by works but by faith but there is no contradiction in the word of God James is writing of the justification of a person's profession if Abraham professing to be a believer a servant of God had been disobedient and not offered up Isaac his son upon the altar his profession of believing in

[21:36] God would not have been justified by his works they could point to him and say you said you believe God and you've not obeyed his command you're a hearer but not a doer but Abraham's soul was justified not by words but by faith in Jesus Christ when he offered up Isaac upon the altar him we know as we read in Hebrews that he thought God would raise Isaac from the dead but it was not the Lord's will that Isaac should be slain but the ram caught in a thicket by his horns was offered up in

[22:36] Isaac's place the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Jesus in the sinner's place I hope that makes it clear concerning that so then you see how that by works a man's profession of believing in God his profession before his fellow man is justified by his works and not by faith only if any be I hearer but he being not a forgetful hearer but I doer of the work now we read in

[23:36] Luke chapter 7 concerning those two houses and the Lord was speaking to those about him and he said why call ye me Lord Lord one with authority and power over you why call ye me Lord Lord and do and do not the things which I see whosoever cometh to me and heareth my sayings and doeth them I will show you to whom he is like like a man which built a house and in this account not in the other records in Luke Matthew and Mark but here we have and dig dig and laid the foundation on a rock here we have his doings the rock was hidden as Christ is hidden as it were from the wise and prudent but revealed unto base and he had to dig deep to find this rock how many things we have to dig deep in our profession in our religion dig as it were through all our works man's opinions man's theories he dug deep and laid the foundation on a rock if figuratively he dug a mild deep but still be built upon sand or soil his house would not have stuck for as we read when the flood arose the stream beat vehemently upon that house and could not shake it let alone demolish it because he dug deep no for it was founded upon a rock the doing was needful to find the rock but the house stood not because of the doing but because it was founded upon a rock so as the other case but he that heareth and doeth not is like a man that without a foundation built a house upon the earth against which the stream did beat vehemently and immediately it fell and the ruin of that house was great what are you building your hope for eternity upon one in confidence was able to say on

[26:59] Christ the solid rock I stand all other ground is sinking sand not I hearer but I doer of the work this man shall be blessed how important the small print as it were in his deed not this man shall be blessed for his deed we never merit God's blessing if we do that which is right we do but that which it is our duty to do but he will be blessed in his day how many are still in religion asking that foolish question that was asked of the Lord by more than one man on different occasions what must

[27:59] I do to inherit eternal life was there ever such a foolish question if I was the wisest wealthiest man in the country I wouldn't become king of England when the queen dies what does prince charles have to do if the monarchy continues nothing it comes to him through sonship and heaven is not wages for good works it is an inheritance so often we read it come ye blessed of my father inherit the kingdom prepared for you from before the foundation of the world and in I might say scores of other scriptures that is set from but this man shall be blessed in his day in keeping of his commandments there is great delight many of us when exercised in some cases for years many years myself concerning the ordinances of his house we feared to

[29:18] Brazil we feared to take some wrong step we feared to bring a reproach upon the Lord's people by some fall but when constrained by love we followed in that commandment and that ordinance there was a blessing in it not for our keeping but a blessing in it the answer of a good conscience yes but more than that the Lord's approbation how in the family a child perhaps doing something looks to see looks to his father's face to see whether his father is pleased or displeased with what he has done and so if constrained by love we are we are a doer a healer and a doer we shall be blessed in our day

[30:28] God is never in anyone's day he will not as the apostle said forget your labour of love well we leave these things there but whose son looketh into the perfect Lord of liberty and continueth there he being not a forgetful healer but a doer of the world this man shall be blessed in his name the barren branch that bears no fruit brings no great glory to the root when on the branch which fruit we see tis then we cry a goodly tree well may the Lord bless his truth and forgive anything amiss

[31:32] Amen