O that thou wouldest bless me indeed (i) (Quality: Very good)

[0:00] I would now direct your attention to the first book of Chronicles the fourth chapter and the tenth verse the first book of Chronicles the fourth chapter and the tenth verse and Jabez called on the God of Israel saying oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed and enlarge my coast that thine hand might be with me and that thou wouldest keep me from evil that it may not grieve me and God granted him that which he requested and Jabez called on the God of Israel saying oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed and enlarge my coast that thine hand might be with me and that thou wouldest keep me from evil that it may not grieve me and God granted him that which he requested this character referred to in this verse appears to be without any genealogy though he is mentioned in the midst of the genealogy of the posterity of Judah and the children of Israel yet we do not seem to read anything about his brothers or sisters his mother or father except to say that his mother called his name Jabez saying because I bear him with sorrow and what we have recorded in this verse is not that which is natural here we have the real exercise of his soul we have the exercise not only of his soul but that which is found in the souls of of many of God's people yea of all of God's people so with the Lord's help we will look at a few points of the Lord's help we will look at a few points and may they come home to us to our encouragement to our instruction and Jabez called on the God of Israel not everybody calls on the God of Israel people may truly call upon God but they do not call upon the God of Israel children may call upon God but they may not call upon the God of Israel alternatively they may call upon the God of Israel the question with us this morning must be have we do we call upon the God of Israel what and who was the God of Israel often the Israelites were reminded of God that made the earth and the heavens several times in the Old Testament this reference is made and enforced upon their memories now

[4:00] in calling upon the God of Israel do we call upon the God that made the heaven and the earth now that brings before us calling upon an almighty God because who apart from the mighty God could speak and it was done who would command and it would stand fast why do people call upon the God of Israel and when why because they need none other but the almighty God he alone can save and deliver them he alone can set before them an open door he alone can deal with the heavy matters that are upon their soul and therefore the God of Israel is the only one to whom they may and can and will pray and when when the Lord hear thee in the day of trouble the name of the God of Jacob deliver thee the day of trouble

[5:23] Jacob Jacob's situation would indeed be a day of trouble when he called on the God of Israel but it was not a trouble that would be known to many it was a trouble which was peculiar not only to him but to those who are spirit taught he wanted to know more of God how many prayers are put up day by day I suppose we may say which was for ever so far short of wanting to know more of God certainly there are many things which require our attention they are beyond our dealing and we need the mighty

[6:31] God to appear we need the mighty God to deliver we need the mighty God to stretch forth his arm and this reminds us of another characteristic of the God of Israel not only did he make the heavens and the earth but also he was that great and mighty God that brought the children of Israel out of Egypt the enemy said I will pursue I will overtake I will divide the spoil my lust shall be satisfied upon them I will draw my sword my hand shall destroy them thou didst blow with thy wind the sea cover them they sank as lead in the mighty waters who is like unto thee O Lord among the gods who is like thee glorious in holiness fearful in praises doing wonders thou stretchest out thy right hand the earth swallowed them the God of Israel and is this the God of Israel to which we have prayed prayed this morning the one that is glorious in holiness fearful in praises doing wonders is it important to know the God of Israel to whom we draw near it is important because unless we are acquainted with him we shall not draw near to him in faith unless we are acquainted with him we shall not draw near unto him with holy reverence it is written that they shall be had that he will be had in reverence of all them that are about him but

[8:40] Jabez called on the God of Israel and his calling therefore was in faith and his calling was with the holy and deep reverence upon his spirit it is important for us to observe these two points when we come to pray and call upon God is there not that in your soul's experience which when you bow down before God you have a sense of a holy awe sometimes that you're approaching the mighty God of heaven the one that doeth wonders the one who is holy and wonderful in every respect then Jabez called on the God of Israel and

[9:43] God led them forth by the right way that they might go to a city of habitation it was proved before the 107th psalm was written the 107th psalm was written because of the things that had been proved and the manner of God's leading was known hence if you may at some time or other look at the verses in the 107th psalm and wonder in respect to the truth of them then the time passes off and you look back on the 107th psalm you become a witness to the truth of it he led them forth by the right way that they might go to a city of habitation and this is the God of Israel in our worship this morning in our approaches unto God in those on those times and at those and in those moments when

[10:48] I trust you have approached unto God in prayer have you felt that you are coming to the great God it is a sad experience when our unbelief so seems to get the upper hand that it says that we are only approaching to a God that cannot help one that is very limited in what he is able to accomplish it is a blessed experience of God's children when that grace is given to them in such measure that they can well understand the poet's words we are coming to a king large petitions with thee bring for his grace and power are such none can ever ask too much that it should be the pathway the prayer pathway the praise pathway the faith pathway of the people of God thou art coming to a king may we ever be favored to regard this great truth in our hearts now

[12:04] Gabbas called on the God of Israel the God of Israel was king if we go to the book of Samuel we shall find there the occasion when the people asked for a king and the Lord said to Samuel who was greatly upset by this thinking that they rejected Samuel but the Lord said they haven't rejected you they rejected me the God of Israel was king over Israel but now they desired a king that they could see a fleshly king a king with limitations and how many people today desire a king that they can see one that though they are unaware of it has limitations now great wrath came upon the children of

[13:09] Israel because of their desire to have a fleshly king rather than a heavenly king now this may well bring us to an exercise in our own minds does darkness pervade us do we feel that the wrath of God is upon us do we feel that God is angry with us well now is it because we've asked of him a king but not him to be king this sometimes is traceable in our approaches to God do approach God as though he was nothing more than a fleshly being with limitations and also with simple respects as earthly kings may have or do you draw near unto the

[14:14] God of Israel as the king of Israel he who is not only able but also willing to bestow great blessings upon his own people and his church Jabez called on the God of Israel he called on the God of Israel by inspiration my meaning is this that the spirit moved him to call moved him I often think of those words in Timothy that holy men of God were moved by the Holy Ghost in respect to the scriptures being written all true religion is the result of our being moved by the

[15:15] Holy Ghost and we need to be moved by the Holy Ghost if we are to call on the God of Israel and we are able to believe that he is able to do great things that he is one that supersedes anything that we can ever think of we plan our days sometimes God brings those plans to destruction and complete of evil what for is it the God of Israel is it the King of Israel that has turned over the plans the plans that we have presented to him as one good man said Lord I have a plan if you work to it now that's not playing unto the

[16:20] God of Israel Lord I have a plan if you work to it and how rebellious a person can get because God doesn't work to their plan and how rebellious can a person get because they say well God never hears my prayers do you know why because you're praying unto a God that will not hear those kind of prayers you're not praying unto the God of Israel you're praying unto a God of your own imagination that will give you the things that will satisfy the carnality of your mind and the pride of your heart but Jabez called on the God of Israel the almighty king one that was able to do great things and holy is his name and

[17:23] Jabez could well have echoed as he drew near to God in precious faith what we sung in our opening hymn I'll speak the honors of my king his form divinely fair none of the sons of mortal race may with the Lord compare so are we such a character as we have here described under the name of Jabez who called on the God of Israel now what I have said is confirmed by the very tenor of the petition that he presented saying oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed this is a very different petition from

[18:26] Esau's cry unto his father bless me even me also oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed we have here the experience of a lively soul in spiritual things oh does that ever escape us does that ever move our move in our inmost soul when we say oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed this adverb indeed which is used here may sometimes present to us difficulty in understanding it but I believe we may understand it quite clearly in this connection if we spit the word indeed in other words oh that thou wouldest bless me by performing the things which are appointed for me if you remember the

[19:40] Lord said unto Mary there shall be a performance of those things that were spoken to her from the Lord and that may well be one of the meanings of what we have here oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed perform that which thou hast spoken to me of it seems clear that this was not the first petition of Jabez he had learned something about the God of Israel he had learned something about the king of Israel he would have been familiar with the line that I have mentioned thou art coming to a king because he came and asked for great things are you tempted this morning to think that you cannot ask for great things does timidity overtake you do your sins seem to be an impediment do remember beloved friends that that

[20:55] Jabez was born with sorrow sorrow every person that is born of the spirit is born with sorrow and this is what distinguishes the true from the false there are those that seem to have a religion and yet there's no sorrow they're not those people because if there's no sorrow then they will never be found praying with Jabez oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed Jabez was praying more than asking that he might know the doctrine doctrine is not good enough how many might know the doctrine be very strong in the

[22:00] Calvinistic persuasion who end up in everlasting burnings it is solemn to consider the point but it is necessary to consider the point you will not get to heaven because you're a Calvinist how many people are deceived thinking that they're Calvinistic and therefore they will get to heaven they are sadly deceived a deceived heart has turned him aside if this should be the result of an exercise in your soul it may indeed produce what we have here oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed that I may know not merely the doctrine of truth but I might know the experience of that doctrine that I might not only know that God is a great and glorious God but that I might experience that in my own soul that I may feel that he is the performing

[23:05] God that were a grief I could not bear didst thou not hear and answer prayer but a prayer hearing answering God supports me under every load now if we are in sorrow does sorrow breast thee down the sorrow of sin this is what so many people are seen to be unaware of the sorrow of sin but if we have the sorrow of sin then we shall not be content because it will be insufficient to make us content with the mere doctrine of truth which you want more than perspasion in Calvinistic doctrine which you want more than to say yes

[24:07] I believe in the five points of Calvinism I believe in the depravity of man and so on if you feel the depravity of man then you will need to pray and you will begin your prayer with this heartfelt opening word oh that thou werest blessed me indeed I am depraved I am destitute I am overcome and where is the mighty God of Jacob that is able to save unto the uttermost where is that great and glorious king will he condescend to me will he look upon me who are a person of low estate oh that thou werest blessed me indeed and then again it is one thing for us to read of God in the scriptures very wonderful revelations we have of God in the scriptures wonderful revelations of Jesus

[25:09] Christ but what will it be to be blessed in thee perhaps we may take an example from the ninth chapter of John we read there about the man who was born blind and various arguments that were put by the Pharisees in order to bring the man to confusion ultimately he says this whether he be a sinner or no I know not one thing I know that whereas I was blind now I see he did not know the Lord and we may be obscure even after years of experience we may feel to be obscure we need the

[26:11] Lord to open our eyes more clearly but this is the point I am coming to after he was cast out of the synagogue and you know why he was cast out of the synagogue because he professed that there he had met a person that did something indeed he had performed a miracle he had opened his eyes and he saw as he had never seen before and after he had been cast out Jesus heard that they had cast him out and when he had found him he said unto him dost thou believe on the son of God now mark the difference between the dead and the living here dost thou believe on the son of God he answered and said who is he Lord that I might believe on him

[27:12] Jesus said unto him thou hast both seen him and it is he that talketh with thee and he said Lord I believe and he worshipped him God blessed him indeed in a special way yes but also in an effective way by doing that which the man could never have accomplished himself who by searching can find out God a man had been the subject of the Lord's remarkable power and healing but he could not say that he knew Jesus Christ he could not say that he knew God when the Pharisees entered into some argument he could clearly see that this man was from heaven but as to his being the son of God he knew nothing about that and yet have you heard about

[28:15] Jesus Christ have you heard about Jesus Christ and do you feel that you do not know him as you ought to know him as you feel you must know him and is this the cause of such a cry escaping your heart even if it doesn't escape your lips oh the bell is to bless me indeed a revelation of Jesus Christ surely must be the answer to the desire expressed in the heart of Javis in the highest sense what does this do if we have a revelation of Jesus Christ and of God it brings us to the point that we are blessed with eternal life and this is life eternal that they might know thee the only true God and

[29:16] Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent and if we have eternal life now we shall have eternal life eternally if we are blessed with eternal life this side of the grave then unquestionably we shall enjoy eternal life beyond the grave but if we have not eternal life this side of the grave it doesn't begin the other side of the grave eternal death does but eternal life begins this side of the grave and so in order that we might have a demonstration of this in our own spirit do we sometimes cry oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed the desire is here our religion is not all the time composed in that which is accomplished a great deal of our experience may be said to be in desire now

[30:33] I do not mean by that to give you the understanding that the desire goes on and on and on and on until in the end those desires are suddenly fulfilled I know that it is so in some cases but we could not possibly mark that out as the line always the people of God come into a variety of places they come into difficulties they come into pits into the Maori clay into situations where they seem to be surrounded and can in no way get out and there is a desire oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed here I am in desolation here I am destitute oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed with a view of the God of Israel described in

[31:41] Isaiah look unto me all the ends of the earth and be saved for I am God and there is none else is that the reason is that the reason why we are crying if we are crying now you know whether you can take up these words this morning you know whether they were in your heart before we read them as a text oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed but on the other hand there are some of God's children that may go on with long desire it reminds me of the story of the man the Scottish minister who was walking along the road and he saw a man breaking up the stones and he said man do you pray and he said yes and he said you get any answers to your prayer and he said no wonderful to be honest you know and so a little sometime after he saw the minister saw the man again asked him the same question got the same answer and the matter so to speak was forgotten yet the minister's mind until he had an urgent message to go to a hospital some distance away from his parish and when he arrived there because he didn't know the man's name when he arrived there he inquired for the man and when he got to his bedside he recognized the man had been breaking stones and he asked him for what purpose he had called him to his bedside and he said well you asked me whether

[33:43] I prayed and you asked me whether I had answers to my prayers and I had to say no and I want to tell you now that God has answered my prayers in one bundle all the prayers over the years the desires that have been in his soul over the years had now been answered God had blessed him indeed God had doubtless made over to him the performance of the desire of his soul as I may know him and the power of his resurrection having fellowship with his sufferings being made conformable unto his death and the man's prayers were answered in one bundle and maybe some of you might have been in that place saying yes I pray but I don't get any answers people will dislike you people will say I very much doubt there is any grace there why because you are stepping outside the orthodox people that pray will surely expect answers they surely ought to say that

[35:00] God has answered my prayer but now this man couldn't and if you're like that you see still press on and be encouraged by this poor man's experience that God answered him in the end we must regard these words then oh that thou would express me indeed as a petition that may be quickly answered but on the other hand you may go in a long time before it is answered but in the end be assured if God has inspired your prayer that God will answer and what's more he will answer it according to the words in Isaiah 55 my thoughts are not your thoughts neither are my ways your ways saith the Lord for as my as the heavens are high above the earth so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts and what's more when God blesses any soul with this blessing it is just at the right time you may say people have said that surely God should have come before it just reminds me of a good man that was baptized a few years ago now and he had been waiting a long long time he was quite a fair age when he was baptized and his mother said to him after the baptism she said you should have been baptized years ago he said mother it wasn't the time this is the time now we may say in respect to this word oh that thou would bless me indeed you may wait a long time but when the time comes you will say this is the time and therefore it is well waiting for if we wait days and days and days if days of darkness encompass us if our burdened spirit groans out oh that thou would bless me indeed oh that thou would show me that thou art my savior and my redeemer be assured in God's own time he will come and you will say this is the only time

[37:34] I wanted to be blessed and the time of waiting has been well worth it for now God has answered all my lengthy petitions long strewn out petitions in a moment and has granted me an answer in a bundle for now I see him in the glory of his person perhaps we could use the words of John Newton when he says if asked what of Jesus I think though still my best thoughts are but poor I say he's my meat and my drink my life and my strength and my store my shepherd my husband my friend my savior from sin and from fall my hope from beginning to end my portion my lord and my all now is not that worth waiting for oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed as we mentioned earlier in calling on the

[38:45] God of Israel is a calling in faith now a calling in faith will produce a willingness to wait God's time the lord had to gently rebuke his disciples your time is always but my time is not yet but look what happened when God's time came so faith will keep us pressing on why because it is accompanied with hope and hope long will wait and wait again and ne'er can give it up and is that why you're continuing today oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed I have many blessings I am my path is strewn with blessings rich and rare proceeding from thy special love and care and yet there is in this in my soul this oh oh there is something more that I want to know my

[39:56] Jesus crucified by far excels all things beside all earthly gain I count but loss and triumph in my saviour's cross brings us then to fervently cry out oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed and faith will fix its sight upon this word thou there is only one that can bless me indeed to satisfy the longings of my soul in the several psalms that we read there were expressions of longing desires of the soul and those longing desires of the soul were accompanied with faith were accompanied with hope and expectation and so we read in one of the psalms a clear reference to this expectation my soul waits thou only upon

[41:02] God for my expectation is from him and listen to what David said as he called upon God he only is my rock and my salvation he is my defense I shall not be moved in God is my salvation and my glory the rock of my strength and my refuge is in God he was therefore praying in faith to thou the mighty God of Jacob the God of Israel the king of Israel one that was able to accomplish one that was able to bless in a practical way in a powerful way in a positive way in a prevailing way oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed how does this word appeal to us and apply to our hearts desires this morning you know revelations of Christ in a way of speaking are desired in respect to his offices more or less according to our need of those offices therefore if we should consider and feel and deeply feel the greatness of our sin the exceeding sinfulness of sin then what would it be to be blessed indeed but to know that we have a high priest one that is able to deal with our case and that successfully and that positively now we're aware shall be aware of the exceeding sinfulness of sin not outwardly so much as inwardly the good that I would I do not and the evil that

[43:20] I would not that I do so if you've got sin that's uncontrollable if you've got sin that you cannot manage and that sin sometimes seems to burst forth even through the veins so to speak what you have in your heart sometimes comes out of your in through your lips you'll need a high priest one that is able to appear for you in the presence of God now there is much written in the epistle to the Hebrews concerning the high priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ and amongst other things we have this beautiful word in the eighth chapter now of the things which we have spoken this is the son we have such an high priest who is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the

[44:36] Lord pitched and not man for every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices wherefore it is of necessity that this man may have somewhat also to offer and he was able to offer both gifts and sacrifices all contained in himself by one sacrifice this man put away sins he was able to offer it satisfyingly to his father in the interest of his people gift yes there was the gift of himself he was able to offer himself who was a gift from God so many things in the scriptures they go in a full circle or a full cycle God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son and here is his only begotten son being offered as an acceptable gift to the father once more as the

[45:52] Lord Jesus brings himself the gift of his father to his church he brings this gift unto the father to offer himself unto God without spot without wrinkle or any such thing oh that thou would bless me indeed with a practical feeling as well as a revelation that Jesus Christ is my high priest dealing with the exceeding sinfulness of sin in me and that he is offering a sacrifice and also a gift as well both of which are acceptable with God and Jabez called on the God of Israel saying oh that thou wouldst bless me indeed we shall leave it for this morning