Following the Lord in His precepts (Quality: Average)

[0:00] The prophecy of Isaiah chapter 28, reading verse 13. But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little, that they might go.

[0:30] And fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little, that they might go and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

[1:00] You will remember that our last three sermons have been taken from verses 9 and 10. Indeed, we have made no reference to the latter part of the 10th verse, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little.

[1:23] In the 13th verse, we have, as it were, a retrospective view. In the 10th verse, we read, for precept must be.

[1:39] In this verse, we read, but the word of the Lord was unto them, precept upon precept, and so on.

[1:49] In Christian experiences, there are always these two views of it. The pathway, as we feel it, as we go through it, and the necessity that it must preserve.

[2:06] And then, as we reflect upon the way that we have come, we compare our testament to the word of the Lord. Now, the word of the Lord to many is nothing more than just paper and print.

[2:23] It is something that is written in the scriptures, and maybe something that is recognized because it is in the scriptures. But here, we have the depth of experience.

[2:37] But the word of the Lord was unto them, precept upon precept. And we should bear this in mind, because it gives us a right understanding of those who build their house upon the rock.

[2:53] You see, we have the rock foundation of the doctrine of Christ, of those things that are most surely believed among us, of the justification, and the salvation of the church of God, through Jesus Christ, and by the power of the Spirit.

[3:23] But there is also the word of the Lord. And the word of the Lord was not just there, to believe in the doctrine, to speak about the experience, but to follow the precept.

[3:38] And to come into that place where, with a humble mind, we shall say, what will thou have me to do?

[3:49] There is no doubt that there is a glory in the doctrine of our Lord Jesus Christ. And to experience that doctrine, there is a wonderful experience indeed.

[4:02] But we have not seen the glory. And we have not had the experience. Except there is a following in the precept of the word of God.

[4:16] There are those of us that will be able to bear our witness that the word of the Lord was unto us, precept upon precept.

[4:27] It was such a word of such power, of such revelation, revealing to us the greatness and glory of the majesty of God.

[4:39] The greatness and glory of, as manifested in redemption through our Lord Jesus Christ in his life and death. That we have said, I could do no other.

[4:53] I could do no other. But follow the Lord Jesus in those things that he has laid down. Now that is the way that the precepts are properly kept.

[5:06] When the love of God is so shed abroad in your heart, for the love of Christ complaineth us, that you say, I could do no other. But do those things which the Lord Jesus has not only set before us, but has also walked in those ways himself.

[5:30] You will not find any other precepts, I'm sure, in the gospel, that the Lord Jesus himself has not walked in.

[5:43] I remember rightly, one of these was, Humble yourself therefore unto the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. And how clearly we have in the scripture, that this word of the Lord, became the joy of the Lord, to the Lord Jesus Christ.

[6:05] And he humbled himself, and made himself of no reputation. And the word, of the Lord, was unto him, precept upon priests, that true disciples of Jesus Christ, will necessarily walk in the same way.

[6:24] And they will be saying, every day, what will they have me to do? You see, it is a sad reflection, in modern Christianity, that the matter is put into reverse.

[6:39] And people say, God wants me to do it. And very often, what God wants them to do, is what they want to do. And it will never come, into the ken, of those people, to ever say, now God wants me, to humble myself under him.

[7:03] Under his mighty hand, to submit, in a time, of sadness, sorrow, trouble, distress, discomfort, lust, adversity, adversity of all kinds.

[7:20] What does God say? He says, to the whole church of God, with the witness, of the members of his body, the church throughout the ages, humble yourself, under the mighty hand of God.

[7:35] Now you see, whilst, we would speak, with all, care, and love, in our hearts, but we know, too well, don't we, that, the flesh, says, you must be, sorry for yourself, and you must, pity yourself, but God says, humble yourself, under, yourselves, under the mighty hand, of God.

[8:02] And, submission, is one of the sweetest, experiences, that has ever been known, by the church of God. To know, and to feel, this is, my father's will.

[8:18] To have that, thrice, comfortable hope, to calm, my troubled breast, my father's hand, prepares the cup, and what he wills, is best.

[8:34] Now then, it always seems to me, and I feel it, that whenever you can feel, that it is, your father's cup, that he has given it, in your hand, with that close, relationship, and that, wonderful love, that you will look upon, your pathway, whatever it is, but it must be, a trying pathway, for the most part.

[9:07] It must be. We, read in the, chapter in the, Acts of the Apostles, confirming, that the souls, of the disciples, and giving them, this clear indication, that it is, through much tribulation, where they must, enter the kingdom, and the tribulation, that comes into, the lives, of God's people, is just this, where, they hang, upon Christ, and Christ only, and everything else, has to go.

[9:46] Jesus, is my hope, and stay, and everything else, has to go, because, we've been put through, such a very, close, sin, by the means, that God, has ordained, I say, that everything else, has to go, and when everything, else has to go, apart, from your, flying to Christ, looking to Christ, hoping in Christ, desiring, the love of Christ, may be in your soul, then it is, that you will say, but, the word of the Lord, was unto them, precept, upon precept, precept, upon precept, and we shall seek, to know, what the will of the Lord, is.

[10:39] You should remember this, that, as followers, and disciples, of Jesus Christ, then, the will of the Lord, is just this, that, we should not only, humble ourselves, under the mighty hand of God, but feel, the power, of the crucifixion, of the flesh, and that will be, hard for us to bear, because, we should need much grace, to bear it, but you may wonder, what the crucifixion, of the flesh is, do we ever ponder, as to what it is, the crucifixion, of the flesh, was it not seen, in our Lord, Jesus Christ, when he lay, when he hung, hanged upon the cross, at Calvary, we, we, think upon, the crucifixion, of the flesh, we think upon, him suffering there, we think upon, his agony, we think upon, his physical suffering, his mental sufferings, and even, his spiritual sufferings, but all these things, are consummating, and brought together, in that, just this, that he had to, be silent, before God, if there'll be, the Christ, come down, and we will believe, the flesh, had to be crucified, he saved others, himself, he cannot save, and the flesh, had to be crucified, we should walk, along a similar pathway, to this, when men, will try, to egg you on, so, that they will say, well now, what you profess, now you prove it, you do this, and you do that, remember beloved friends, that the Lord Jesus, on a, a, several occasions, answered not a word, now that's a crucifixion, of the flesh, we may indeed, say, that, the Lord Jesus Christ, was, uh, pure, in his flesh, but he felt, the force of temptation, equally so, his, uh, flesh was human, and what we feel, as human beings, he felt, and his temptations, were nonetheless, severe, he did not brush it, to one side, continually, was the Lord Jesus, tempted, by the devil, and people, and the devil, through people, and to do those things, which would be dishonoring, to God, this, then, is, a very, important part, of Christian experience, the crucifixion, of the flesh, not defending, ourselves, sometimes, but committing, ourselves, unto God, it may well, be weary, and for that reason, we have, the, words, in the Hebrews, 12th chapter, speaking to us, for consider him, that endured, such contradiction, of sinners, against himself, lest you be weary, and faint, in your minds, ye have not yet, resisted unto blood, striving, against sin, and ye have forgotten, the exhortation, which speaketh unto you, as unto children, my son, despise not thou, the chastening, of the Lord, nor faint, when thou art, rebuked of him, these kind of experiences, are experiences, of the soul, what you feel, the pain, that you feel, when your flesh, has to be crucified, the anguish, that you feel, when you have to be silent, instead of taking up, your own cudgels, of fighting your own battles, and going for, in what is nothing more, than your own strength, you have to be silent, but do you just stand there, no, a saint of God, in line with the, path, of their Lord and Master, must engage, in strong crying, and tears, and the strong crying, and tears, of our Lord Jesus Christ, were not those, were, seen to be a theatrical performance, in the, in the face of many people, and in the sight of many people, people, but, they were, in secret, before God, we, think sometimes, upon, the path, of our Lord Jesus, the mountains, and the midnight air, witness, the fervor, of his prayer, we don't see, the strong crying, and the tears, do we have to say, in our own souls, it's, ah, the tears,

[16:27] I have some strong crying, sometimes, but, ah, the tears, they seem to be missing, the sorrow of heart, and the Lord Jesus Christ, was a man of sorrows, and, acquainted with grief, and it is not surprising, that we should continue, to read, and we hid, as it were, our faces, from him, we could not bear the sight, the Lord Jesus Christ, in the garden of Gethsemane, he wept, he struggled, sweat poured from his brow, as it were, great drops of blood, falling to the ground, oh, can we imagine, ah, the anguish, of, his soul, in that respect, you may say, but of course, that was precarious, in the behalf of the church, as their sins were put away, but we must know something, about it ourselves, and you know, it's a path, that you'll have to walk alone, it is decreed, that most, must walk, the darkest paths alone, and the paths, of soul exercise, are paths, that are walked alone, especially, those paths, which are, paths of sorrow, paths of desertion, paths of distress, with no one, to turn to, but God, knowledge, and what shall we say, that the word of the Lord, was unto them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, and we may be ready, to say,

[18:22] Lord, why is this, what will become of me, will there ever be any fruit, brought forth, this is the way, the way, in fruit is brought forth, in the pathway, of sorrow, and sadness, spiritual sorrow, spiritual distress, spiritual anguish, but you will bring forth, fruit unto righteousness, will bring us, into that frame of mind, where our deep concern, will be, to know, what the will of the Lord, is concerning us, a lack, of this kind of experience, is, the evident reason, why, Zion, is in the low state, it is today, and we've got, to examine ourselves, and answer before God, is our life, contained in, strong crying, and tears, in our, secret moments, before God, do we find, the energy of our souls, being directed, unto the most high, and then we come, to the house of God, with a real hunger, and thirst, after righteousness, well God, will work in us, those things, that will glorify, his name, so that we shall find, the word of the Lord, was unto them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, and so, you may come, to the house of God, and you may hear, this text preached from, and that text preached from, and, instead of, looking at, the text, as perhaps, being not suitable, or, not well dealt with, the word of the Lord, was unto them, precept upon precept,

[20:31] I believe, that there are many, including myself, who can tell you, that when we've been in trouble, it doesn't matter, how the ministers preach, there's always been, something we've gathered, because we've been in need, of help, and therefore, we've not been in that position, to be finicky, with the food provided, but, it was, as the Lord led us, in that way, that he had appointed, the precept of God, worked out in the souls, of God's children, will always be effective, now you see, we should certainly, be concerned, about, the sad situation, in the church of God today, but we should be more concerned, to have, the experience, of the true church, in our own souls, whatever, may be the situation, in other places, what concerns you and me, is what takes place here, and what takes place, in our hearts, are we a lively congregation, this is what we want to be, and may the Lord God, give us that, grace, to have a deep concern, if it amounts to strong, crying and tears, that we may, be a congregation, crying out, as of God most high, and believing, that he is able, to perform all things, for us, and therefore, if we should come, in the way, that has been expressed, in our opening hymn, and how much feeling, there is, in the words that we sung, then, surely, there is hope for Israel, because, there is the true, to confession, accompanied, with the true desire, of, to God, and Godliness, ah, what a blessing, if, we come into the house of God, confessing our barrenness, yet with our ears, attentive, to ask, and to see, what the Lord God, will, do, for us, even, as the day proceeds, what is the desire,

[22:56] I just refer, to the last two lines, of the hymn, that we sung, revive thy work, within my soul, and all my thoughts, and powers, control, now we are on a good road, and may that, truly, be in each, of our souls, wilt not thou, revive us again, that thy people, may rejoice in thee, oh then, may this be, the burden of our prayers, revive thy work, within my soul, and all my thoughts, and powers, control, the thoughts, that may be wandering, the powers, that may seem, to have dominion, over us, let these come, under thy power, let thee, let my thoughts, be overridden, by thy eternal thoughts, and that my thoughts, may be directed, unto thee, revive thy work, it is a good thing, when there is a real desire, in our soul, which has the stimulus, of the Holy Ghost, within, that we want,

[24:06] God's work, to be revived, within, now you see, there are many, in Christian circles, that will look at things, from a very different, point of view, they will want, the work of natural, religion revived, that the Christian, born of God, he wants, the spiritual, revival, and that is, walking, closer with Christ, and, this will, of itself, separate us, from the world, or it will, of itself, because, people will go away, from you, now don't be distressed, if people go away, from you, if, you have Christ, in your heart, because, if you have Christ, in your heart, then, you have, more friendship, than, the whole world, put together, could ever give you, because, you have, here, a friend, that sticketh closer, than a brother, here is one, that will not desert you, in a time, when you most need him, see, it has been observed, that, our true friends, are discovered, when, we come into the day, of adversity, there are plenty, of people, that, will, be ready, to be your friends, and will, will go out of their way, because, they want to shake hands, with you, just to say, that they've shaken, shaken hands, with you, when you're, on the, popular, uptrend, but when the day, of adversity comes, when the time, of persecution comes, when you, you, so to speak, are in that place, where you're ostracized, and cast out, then, you'll find, that, the poet, knew something about it, in saying, just this, when, foes, all unite, and friends, all depart, and if you should say, well, that will never happen, to me, it will do, at some time, or other, when you have to, stand alone, and cleave, to Christ, it did so, with the apostle, tells us, there was, an occasion, when, no man, stood with him, not even his friends, and yet, he says, but God, was with me,

[26:54] God, was with me, and because, God is with us, then, we shall endure, we shall be sustained, we shall have comfort, which our enemies, and the people, that have gone away, from us, will not have, they may come, may, they may find, a fleshly comfort, in seeing us distressed, but they will not have, the comfort, of the Holy Ghost, which he gives, to his poor, dependent people, who cry unto them, unto him, day and night, and whom he will surely, revenge, but the word of the Lord, was unto me, unto them, precept upon precept, precept upon precept, but then, we also have, this assertion, that it was line upon line, line upon line, and it was, this part of the, earlier verse, that we did not, refer to, in our earlier sermons, line upon line, line upon line, now there is a reference, in this, same chapter, in the 17th verse, to a line, judgment also, will I lay, to the line, and righteousness, to the plummet, and the hail, shall sweep away, the refuge of lies, and the water, shall overflow, the hiding place, so then, it is judgment, that God, will lay to the line, and this is, that power, which God, brings about, and gives, to the disciples, in performing, the precepts, that are now laid, in their hearts, and we may say, so then, if the precepts, are set before us, what shall I do, and how shall I go, now here is the line, of God's judgment here, and as word of the psalmist, may be well, suitable to us, line upon line, the psalmist says,

[29:29] I will go, in the strength, of the Lord God, I will make mention, of his righteousness, and of his own land, now you see, God has done, a very effective work, if, he has, taken you away, from mentioning, anything, about your own righteousness, now whatever you must say, there is that, in our old nature, which likes to say, something, to the benefit, of ourselves, of us, but God, brings his people down, so, that in keeping, the precepts, they have to go, along this line, going in the strength, of the Lord God, and making mention, of his righteousness, and of his own land, how unsearchable, are his judgments, and his ways, past finding out, and one of the greatest, and most blessed, experiences, of God's children, is to see,

[30:45] God working things out, God controlling, your spirit, God moving, your life, and God bringing, to pass, that which you could not see, how he could, bring it to pass, the Lord, ordaining, for you, that way, whereby, you will go, in his strength, now in order to that, we need, we must have, our strength, weakened in the way, and that's when, you might be saying, I just can't go, I can't go forward, and God says, go in my strength, the children of Israel, by the Red Sea, they were hampered, all round, and, yet God said to them, command the people, not just ask them, whether they would consider it, but command the people, that they go forward, that the way is hedged up, the Red Sea is in front, the mountains are on either side, the enemy is behind, how can we go forward,

[32:02] God says, and let me repeat the word, command the people, now that is what will make, your religion lively, when God commands you, to go forward, and you will hear his voice, and that will be a powerful voice, and when you say, well how can I go forward, then, this is the line of judgment, I will go, in the strength, of the Lord God, but you see, when we should go forward, maybe in providence, yes, that is so, we need faith, to walk by faith, and not by sight, but then, there is this point, to go forward, to the throne of grace, now you find it, an easy thing, to go to the throne of grace, sometimes, when you are filled, with sin, and you are aware, of your filth, and you are acquainted, with your wretchedness, how can I go, forward, even to the throne of grace, there are two passages, in the scriptures, which are more or less the same, who is this, that has taken it, upon himself, to approach unto God, who is this, now how is this, to take place, a person that God sees, and does he see you, coming, and yet faltering, and what do we read here, in the latter part of this verse, that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken, now that's going to stop, your rushing in, isn't it, if you go forward, and then you fall backward, and then there is being broken, and then there is being snared, and then there is being taken, and all these processes, are so necessary, to bring your heart down, and with a trembling, venturing faith, the Lord looks at you, and he says, who is this, that has taken it upon himself, to approach unto, the Lord God, but are you alone, no, no, you're not alone, because you're coming, who is this, that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved, and you know, you'll be accepted, in the presence of God, and God is showing you, the line of his judgment, in keeping this precept, let us therefore, come boldly, unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help, in time of need, and so, what a sight, when the Father looks forth, and said, who is this, that has taken it upon himself, yes, but leaning upon the beloved, to come near to me, well surely, we shall not be turned aside, because, through Jesus Christ, and through the power, of that name, we must, have acceptance, with God, but then, the devil, will not let you come, so easily, and in consequence, there is much force, that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken, just as an example, of this, we can go, to the valley, of humiliation, in, the pilgrim's progress, and there, if you may remember, the situation, it was a very solemn time, for Christians, because, there were all sorts, of distracting, distracting, and distressing, things, on either side, all, resisting him, as you know, if you come, to the valley, of humiliation, then, you will have, everything, resisting you, and suddenly,

[36:44] Apollyon, strides across his path, and he says, there shall go, no further, here will I, spill my soul, and the conflict, was so great, that he was certainly, he, Christians certainly, fell backward, he was certainly, broken, and snared, and taken, now, you see, we need, carefully, to consider, Christian experience, especially, when it is suggested, ah, but, Satan will not, altogether, take you, now, Christians experience, was that he did, he got him down, and what's more, the sword, that Christian held, flew out of his hand, and without, that sword, that is the word, of the Lord, he was absolutely, helpless, but he wasn't alone,

[37:46] God was with him, we may well, remember Job's words, will he contend, with me, no, he will put, strength into me, and in Christians case, strength, was put into his arm, the arm of his faith, and he stretched forth, and he regained, his sword, the sword, of the spirit, and with one, half a lunch, he struck the devil, with these words, rejoice not against me, oh, mine enemy, for when I fall, I shall arise, and when I sit in darkness, the Lord, shall be a light unto me, and he was delivered, oh yes, he was delivered, now just picture that, sometimes, not always, but sometimes, when God is to try, your faith, and you need him, so much, because your sins, are so great, and your weaknesses, are so apparent, you cry, and draw near to God, with all these impediments, and you're down, and you seem to lose, the word of God, then it is, that God appears, puts that word, into your hands, and enables you, to speak, to the devil himself, and he flees, from you, and you are delivered, but it is in the valley, of humiliation, line upon line, of God's judgment, so we may look at this line, of God's judgment, as being that, appointed way, that he will bring you, so that your spirit is right, to walk, in the precept, and then again, we may speak, of this line, as being the line, that is laid down, in the word of God, you know, want to know, whether your, religion is right, whether you're walking, in a right path, and if you're, thinking about the, precepts, as to whether your spirit, is right, then, it will be, to the line, to the line, which is the word of God, in one of the earlier chapters, of Isaiah, we have these words, to the law, and to the testimony, if they speak, not according to this word, it is because, there is, no, light in them, and we also read, and many, among them, shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken, and what is the command, of God, at this stage, bind up the testimony, seal the law, among my disciples, and I will wait, upon the Lord, that hid his face, from the house, of Jacob, and I will look, for him, line, upon line,

[41:12] God's lines, are, joined together, they are, always related, to one another, the psalmist says, the lines, are fallen, under me, in, present places, present places, and we can look, at some of these lines, throughout our lives, and maybe, you can look, upon, your body, and you can see, a line on it, and it reminds you, of a certain circumstance, maybe, it was an accident, perhaps it was, an operation, or, some other situation, which brought, a line, on your body, and you say, this line, has fallen, onto me, in a pleasant place, because, God gave me, that inward witness, that I was his child, and I rejoice, when I look, on that line, inscribed, burnt in, to my own body, this revelation, of,

[42:26] God, in Christ, to my soul, line, upon line, and so, we may then, perhaps look around, our family, or we can see, there a line, that has fallen, to us, in present places, because, maybe, severe temptation, taking possession, of us, as the birth, of our child, approached, and the devil, made his own, suggestions, and brought, all our sin, before us, us, but when, the child, was born, there was that, which, instead of being, a monument, that would condemn us, was nothing more, than a monument, of God's mercy, we regard, that time, as a line, which fell, in pleasant places, and it showed, to us, the great doctrine, of the scripture,

[43:32] I will, have mercy, upon whom, I will have mercy, and it will be, a wonderful line, you'll be, dissolved, by his, by thy mercy, I sink, to the ground, and weep, to the praise, of the mercy, I found, line, upon line, but we must, leave the subject, for this morning, may the Lord, grant, us his, the tokens, of his love, that will show us, so clearly, that, we have, an inheritance, incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth, not away, reserved in heaven, for you, who are kept, by the power of God, through faith, unto salvation, and that he missed it, so clearly, that he is guaranteed, how the things, unto you, and of all you, have, to eliminate in him, by his basic words, and he is, but from as much force, so clearly, he is, and Bill and Edith, and he is, being英,wned, and he is, and for his boy, and that's his worth, his face histoire, and he real sorry, he would never say anything.

[44:46] his devorfize in his arm himself, so clearly, because of his engagement, and he has to learn that, because of his own hair.