Psalms

[0:00] The Lord may help me this evening, I will direct your attention to Psalm 107, verses 27 and 28.

[0:14] Psalm 107, verses 27 and 28. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end.

[0:37] Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. Psalm 107, verses 27 and 29.

[1:17] There is a good deal of play-acting in religion generally.

[1:34] And I have sometimes thought how near the truth some have come when they have looked upon certain matters in the religious field, and have referred to them as acts of worship.

[2:04] And in so many, that's as far as it has gone, mere acting. But, if we should ever find our experience discovered to us in Psalm 107, or for that part, it might matter in any part of the Word of God, we shall be delivered from mere acts of worship.

[2:44] Because, what we have read before you as a text, will have a deep reality in it. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end.

[3:04] And therefore, when they cry unto the Lord, there will be a deep reality in that also. And when they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, there will be a deep reality in their trouble also.

[3:22] And then there will be a deep reality in God's deliverance.

[3:34] How good it is to have a religion that is real, that has in it some real experience.

[3:48] An experience of real doctrine, the worship of a real God, the exercise of real faith, the evidence of real hope, and the movement of real love.

[4:15] Now, this 107th Psalm, speaks to us, as it were, of various, stages in experience, or places into which the people of God come.

[4:42] And at the end, or near the end of each one, there are these words, O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works, to the children of men.

[4:58] And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing. Now, the beginning of that particular phase, which culminates in the words of our text, begins, they that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep.

[5:35] For he commandeth, for he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves thereof, they mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths, their soul is melted, because of trouble.

[5:53] Now, these are the preceding verses, which gradually work up, to and bring about, the condition of gracious experience, because it is gracious experience, that is referred to, in the verses that we have read, to you this evening.

[6:18] They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Have you ever known, what it is to, reel to and fro?

[6:44] There is such an experience, of reeling to and fro, motis, the illustration, and stagger like a drunken man.

[7:04] Now, a drunken man, under the powerful influence, of his drink, will reel to and fro. That is, he will not be able, to walk in a straight course.

[7:21] But there is one thing, that we must not overlook, or forget. And that is, that he has no power, to do otherwise. His senses are so dull, his legs are so affected, that he can, on no account, walk in a straight path, if, he was offered, a large sum of money, to do so.

[7:49] And I would emphasize, that point this evening, in order that, the spiritual experience, set before us, in these words, may also be emphasized.

[8:07] They reel to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man. and yet, this, we believe, to be all part, of, a Christian experience.

[8:26] is it not possible, for you to walk, and to continue, in a straight path? Are there not many, words of the scripture, which direct us, to, to such a case, to, into such a way?

[8:49] Indeed, there are. But, there's something else, that has to be learned. And that is, we have no control, of ourselves.

[9:08] Now, that may seem, to some people, to be a shocking, thing to say. What? No control, of yourself? Well, the people of God, in the text, they had no control, of themselves.

[9:24] And when you come, to know that, truth, you'll go along, with Paul, and not before, and say, by the grace of God, I am, what I am.

[9:42] Now, what was it, that made these people, real to and fro? Well, they were people, that, went down, to the sea, in ships, so, they did business, in great waters.

[10:03] Now, I would have you, observe this, that, the steps, of a good man, are ordered, by the Lord.

[10:15] Lord, and if, he has, caused us, to go down, to the sea, in ships, then, that, ship, whatever you, understand, by that, in your experience, will, have been, ordered, by the Lord.

[10:40] we, are reminded, of the case, of Jonah, he, was anxious, to get away, from God, what a dreadful thing, what, does it show, to us, have you, been anxious, to get away, from God, the, prodigal son, was anxious, to get away, from his, father's house, what, did it show, to the prodigal son, what, did it show, to Jonah, I have, no power, the snare, to shun, I ever, into ruin run, and so, there is, underlined, in our hearts, this deep knowledge, of our, sinful inability, and after Jonah, had taken his ticket, for Tarshish, he went down, to the seashore, and a boat, was there, ready, ready, ready, ready, ready, ready, ready,

[12:12] God, in the order, of his providence, had appointed, that boat, but, it may be thought, or was this, God's appointment, look at the trouble, it brought Jonah into, he was going, in a wrong course, indeed, he was, he was, disobeying the Lord, but you know, there is a great word, that has, rested upon my spirit, for the last fortnight, the word of Jethro's, the book of numbers, where after Moses, had told him, of the way, that God, had wonderfully, wrought for Israel, and brought them, out of Egypt, he said, now I know, that the Lord, is above all gods, for him, wherein, they dealt proudly, he was above them, now there is no question, that Jonah, dealt proudly, but the consoling, consideration, that God, was above him, oh yes,

[13:53] God was above him, can we find, some hope, even from looking, into the book of Jonah, sometimes, when the same spirit, has been in us, that has been in Jonah, and perhaps, we have gone down, to the sea, and in order, to get away, from God, everything has gone, smoothly, there has been the ship, but Jonah, was about to do business, in great waters, now, this business, was, under the control, of God, we may have, certain, certain, thoughts, in our own minds, relative, to the business, that we are going, to transact, how different, God, may turn it about, and so,

[14:54] God turned it about, in the case of Jonah, truly, we can look at this word, they that go down, to the sea, and ships, that do business, in great waters, how great, were those waters, that Jonah, had to, go into, but, the purposes, of the Lord, are, so very clearly, revealed, sometimes, prayer, is answered, in an unexpected, way, it may be, an anxiety, sometime, in our hearts, that,

[15:59] God, would, wonderfully, appear to us, in our nation, and, revive us, again, in the midst, of our bondage, or, that we may have, a deep concern, for, souls, that they might, be saved, now, this is surely, good, it is, instructive, sometimes, to observe, what the word, of God, declares, in the way, in which, he works, Jonah, was doing, business, in, deep waters, great waters, under, God's direction, yes, he had arisen, he departed, from, God's purpose, yet,

[17:04] God's purpose, was in no way, diverted, diverted, before, Jonah, got to Nineveh, there were others, to be saved, others, were to hear, the gospel preached, and so, we may notice, those, with Jonah, in the ship, and the sea, and above, the Lord, sent out, a great wind, into the sea, notice how, God was in it, and there was, a mighty tempest, in the sea, so the ship, was like, to be broken, and we have, a similar expression, here, these see, the works, of the Lord, and his wonders, in the deep, for he, commandeth, and raiseth, the stormy wind, which lifted up, the waves, thereof, they mount up, to heaven, they go down, again, to the depths, their soul, is melted, because of trouble, then the mariners, were afraid, and cried, every man, unto his God, and cast forth, the wares, that were in the ship, into the sea, to lighten it, of them, but Jonah, was gone down, into the sides, of the ship, and he lay, and was fast asleep, but then, they awoke, they awoke, await,

[18:54] Jonah, and, they said, tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause, this evil is upon us, what is thine occupation, and whence comest thou, what is thy country, and of what people, art thou, he said, I'm in Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea, and the dry land, then, were the men, exceedingly afraid, and then, Jonah, being condemned, in his own soul, he said unto them, take me up, and cast me, forth into the sea, so shall the sea, become unto you, for I know, that for my sake, this great tempest, is upon you, now, in the first place, these mariners, were exceedingly afraid, but there was that, about Jonah, and what he said to them, that, had an effect upon them indeed, and they cried unto the Lord, and said, we beseech thee,

[20:20] O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish, this man's life, and lay not upon us, innocent blood, for thou, O Lord, has done, as it hath pleased thee, then they took up Jonah, this prophet of the Lord, and he was proved, a prophet of the Lord, because as soon as, they cast him into the sea, that which he had said, would come to pass, did come to pass, and the sea ceased, from her raging, then, the men, feared the Lord, exceedingly, and I do want you to notice, the distinction, between that word, and exceedingly afraid, and offered a sacrifice, unto the Lord, and made vows, so there was a change, wrought in the hearts, of those men, as Jonah, had to go down, into, the sea in ships, and did business, in great waters, but God's business, and so we may have, certain thoughts, in our hearts, even as we go down, to the sea in ships, but, if we're the people of God, it will be God's business, that will be transacted, and then, no doubt, you will be familiar, with, the prayer, of Jonah, in the second chapter, and how, closely, does that, resemble, the words, of our text, they reel, to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, through, recollections, of past sins, cause us, to reel, to and fro, and stagger, stagger, stagger, so much pressure, upon our spirit, so much darkness, upon our mind, distress, indeed, what shall I do, where shall I go, all around, is dark, and black, and,

[22:57] Jonah, speaks, of crying, out of the belly, of hell, they reel, to and fro, notice, that this word, is in the present tense, there's not a past experience, spoken of, neither is there a future experience, spoken of, but they reel, to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, and are, at their wit's end, now, what does that mean, are at their wit's end, it means, that they have come, to the end, of all their wisdom, now, have you contrived, to put things right, do you look back, upon a life, where you've done, so many things wrong, and the very consideration, of it now, causes you to, reel, to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, when God, shows us, our life, as it really is, it will be like this, somewhere, in the writings, of James Bourne, he says, that when, at one time, he looked at his life, it seemed to be, a clean sheet, but he had not, been looking long, before, he saw a blot, then another blot, and as God, opened his eyes, it was not, all that time, before, instead of a clean sheet, there was nothing else, but one big blot, and when God, shows us, that our whole life, is one big blot, it will make us, stagger, to and fro, reel, to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, and are, at their wits end, oh, where shall we get, to what, what shall we do, now the same, kind of thing, happened, in the, in the hearts, of those, people, that were wrought upon, on the day of Pentecost, they said, men and brethren, what must we do, in other words, they were, at their wits end, but I want us, to go along, with this a bit, you see, we can never, be benefited, at all, if we, are, in the abstract, case, if we, speak, only about,

[26:07] Jonah, about the children, of Israel, about those, that were wrought upon, by the Holy Ghost, in the, day of, the day of, Pentecost, and yet, we are never wrought upon, by the Holy Ghost, it is, a good reason, for a deep concern, because, though religion, is at a very low ebb, in the present day, alas, there is still, a good deal, a very large percentage, of deceit, in it, all then, may, we, we have, some consolation, even in the day, of our distresses, if, we know, anything, and this is a mind, experience, a soul, experience, we shall not, expect to see you, although,

[27:12] I believe, that pressures, can sometimes, pressures of the soul, can sometimes, be so great, that, a physical, reality, might be, in the description, here, they reel to and throw, and stagger, like a drunken man, and are, at their wit's end, as God, shown us, that we cannot, by the works, of the law, attain, unto heaven, when that comes, comes home to us, we shall stagger, not possible, at all, we need, to be reminded, of this, even though, we should be, saturated, in the doctrines, of grace, we may, give our assent, to them, we may be, ready to say, of course, by grace, you are saved, that, that of yourselves, it is the gift, of God, but how different, do such words, appear, when God, brings us, into the experience, of them, to prove us, to leave us, in no doubt, that it is, by grace, that we are saved, and what, does that mean, well, it means, that, there's nothing, in you, that can merit, esteem, or give your creator, delight, does that stagger you, it might, well, you know, because, there's a lot of, the Pharisee, in us still, there's a lot, of legality, and when, we are, as it were, cast out, to the loathing, of our person, then, we should begin, to wonder, but,

[29:31] God cannot, save me now, oh, we need, to be reminded, when instructed, though we are, in the things, of God, that, I came, not to call, the righteous, but sinners, to repentance, the vilest, sinner, out of hell, that lives, to feel his need, is welcome, to the throne, of grace, the saviour's, blood to plead, and are, at their wit's end, one of our hymns, speaks of, some of the, staggering things, which, are, staggering, when God, shows to us, some things,

[30:34] Lord, when thy spirit, descends to show, the badness, of our hearts, astonished, at the amazing view, the soul, with horror starts, the dungeon, opening, foul as hell, its loathsome, stenchy mitts, and brooding, in each, secret cell, some hideous, monster sets, swarms, of ill thoughts, their bane, diffuse, proud, envious, false, unclean, and every, ransacked, corner, shows, some unsuspected, sin, but when God, begins to do this, to you, you all, there's no question, about it, that you will reel, to and fro, and you will stagger, like a drunken man, because you see, God will, pull open one door, and then another door, he will take you along, perhaps as he did, Ezekiel, and say, turn again, son of man, for thou shalt see, greater abominations, than these, and if you read, in that eighth chapter, of Ezekiel, the astonishing thing, is this, that the nearer, he got to the, to the altar, the greater, the abominations, were, what about, the abominations, that have taken place, in our heart, sometimes, even in the house of God, our staggering faith, gives way to doubt, our courage, yields to fear, shock to the sight, we straight cry out, who never gone, dwell here, and this is, the turning point, they were at their, wit's end, are we at their, wit's end, this evening, has God shown, to us today, some, fresh movement, of sin, within our members, that has made us, made our faith, stagger, caused us to feel,

[32:53] I didn't think, I was as bad as this, can Christ, save me, now that I know, that I'm as bad, as I am, amazed, says, one good man, who had a good experience, amazed, to see myself, so vile, Jesus, smiling, all the while, now this brings us, to this word, then, and, it is very, encouraging, if we can look back, over a year or two, or many years, as the case may be, and we can pick out, by, as God brings, to our remembrance, his work, this word, then, in the particular, words, and experience, are for our consideration, now, they, reel, and to, and to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end, now do you remember that, now if you do, then, can you remember that, can you remember, the turning point, can you remember, when, you turn to the Lord, when, as it says here, then they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, you know, this isn't automatic,

[34:32] John Newton, surely, puts before us, the most solemn truth, when he says, could the creature, help or ease us, seldom, should we think of prayer, how far have you, gone on, in your troubles, and you're staggering, to and fro, reading, to and fro, and yet, you still haven't, caught upon God, why, because, there's an appointed time, known to God, there is a purpose, and a time, to everything under heaven, and it is then, because God, has worked in you, to will and to do, of his good pleasure, it is then, that you will cry, as these cried, unto the Lord, in their trouble, have you ever, blessed God, have you ever, stood amazed, at the glory of God, in bringing you, to a spot, where you fell down, upon your knees, it's God's work, to bring us there, really and truly, so that we're not, going through the motions, we're not going, through some imaginary, article of faith, so to speak, about,

[35:47] God has brought us, to our knees, and as God, has brought us, to our knees, so like those, blind men, of whom we read, there will be, a crying, unto the Lord, they will say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy, upon me, then they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, now you see, friends, it's a real cry, because there's, real trouble, now we have, many troubles, but I will be, bold enough, to say this, there is no trouble, like soul trouble, we don't hear, a great deal, about soul trouble, today, I fear, perhaps there's, not much of it, but you know, friends, if there's, no soul trouble, there'll be, no deliverance, oh how desirable, it is, to be troubled, about our soul, eternity, tremendous sound, to malefactors, doomed to die, but do let us, rejoice, in this word, then, oh there's, an appointed time, the appointed time, rolls on a pace, not to propose, but called, by grace, to change the heart, renew the will, and turn the feet, to Zion's hill, and do you attribute, those words, merely to the beginning, of Christian experience, how many times, since, has God, had to turn, your heart, to himself, so, that you've, got to say, with the psalmist, in 115th Psalm, not unto us, not unto us, but unto thy name, give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake, what I am,

[37:42] I am, by the grace of God, then, they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, and what kind of cries, are presented to God, in their trouble, well, if the cause, of our ruling, to and fro, and our staggering, like a drunken man, is the revelation, of what we are, before God, then, we shall cry, for mercy, God, be merciful, to me, a sinner, or as we have it, in Jonah's prayer, I cried, by reason of mine, affliction, unto the Lord, and he heard me, after the valley of hell, cried I, and thou heardest, my voice,

[38:47] I went down, to the bottom, to the mountains, the earth, with her vases, about me, forever, yet, as thou brought up, my life, from corruption, O Lord, my God, when my soul, fainted within me, I remembered, the Lord, and my prayer, came in, unto thee, into thine holy temple, well, now, do we see, a new aspect, of these words, they reel to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, now, their wit's end, and now, do we faint, my soul, fainted, within me, when that happens, all the creature, of strength, is gone, all creature, wisdom, is departed, and we depend, entirely, upon the mercy, of God, on thy mercy,

[39:54] I rely, give me Christ, or else, I die, then they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, will, now, there's only, one thing, that a person, in soul trouble, will, want to ask for, one thing, if I decide, of the Lord, that will I seek, after, that I may dwell, in the house, of the Lord, all the days, of my life, is there, one thing, in our life, notice in the case, of the apostle Paul, in writing, of the church, of Philippi, he says this, one thing, I press, toward one thing, the mark, that is set, before me, and that one thing, was that I may, know him, and the power, of his resurrection, having fellowship, with his sufferings, being made, conformable, unto his death, one thing, the Lord, said concerning Mary, but one thing, is needful, and Mary, hath chosen, that good part, which shall not, be taken away, from her, then they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, now what's the use, of crying, unto the Lord, in their trouble, rather than, to any other person, have you been, guilty sometimes, of pulling out, your woe, before another person, and have you, got cold shoulder, why did you, get cold shoulder, because they didn't, understand your case, they couldn't, understand, what was going on, inside, they couldn't, understand, how you were, reading to and fro, and staggering, like a drunken man, they couldn't, understand, the weight of sin, that was upon your heart, but here's our consolation, we read, concerning Jesus Christ, he knew, what was in man, oh how great, a God, who's our God, so you can look down, upon your soul, sunk as it is, in distress, he knows, all about your case, all about your size, and your groans, because there are size, and there are groans, coming forth, from the heart, of God's children, and, he bringeth them, out of their distresses, how, are we brought out, of these distresses, if our trouble, is in the soul, well there's only one remedy, and that is a revelation, of Jesus Christ, when in the book of numbers, those people were dying, in the wilderness, there was only one remedy, as Moses, lifted up the serpent, in the wilderness, so must the son of man, be lifted up, and I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men, unto me, and those poor people, serpent bitten, as they were, had to find, sins within thee, all about thee, but the remedies, without thee, see it, in his precious blood, now then, this will bring you, out of your distresses, concerning your sins, when you hear, these glorious words, spoken from heaven, into the soul, but, if any man sin, we have an advocate, with the father,

[43:56] Jesus Christ, the righteous, or again, the blood of Jesus Christ, is able to cleanse us, from all sin, we may have heard it, repeated a number of times, before, it may be a familiar, verse to us, but now, we're in the depth, of our trouble, now we're in deep distress, now we can't walk straight, and then, we, eventually, we fall down, in another part, of this word, we read, this chapter, we read, they fell down, there was none to help, who can help, a drunken man really, what can you do with him, he's helpless, yes, yes, but God, can do something, with a person, even in this extreme condition, that he can do something, with you, as he can do something, with me, and he bringeth them, out of their distresses, by revealing, sending forth his spirit, to take the things, of Jesus, and, to sow Jesus Christ,

[45:07] I saw one hanging, on a tree, in anger, and blood, who fixed his hand, languid, eyes on me, while near his cross, I stood, you see, there was the serpent, raised up in the wilderness, there was the bringing, to pass, what the Lord, has said, and I, if I be lifted up, have you seen, by an hanging, on a tree, does your hope, fix itself there, a second look, he gave, which said, I freely, all forgive, give, oh, what a word, is that, a second look, are you looking, towards the cross, of Jesus Christ, because, you know, Jesus Christ, is exalted, to give, repentance, to Israel, and remission, of sins, is it not, important, to everyone, of us here, this evening, that we should know, something about, this vital matter, as to whether, we are saved, or not, you know, friends, many people, will, will be like, ignorance, when they come, to the end, of their life, what did he, what did he do, when he came, to the Jordan, or as we understand it, the valley, of death, when he got there, he looked, for a boatman, and that boatman's, name was, vain confidence, confidence, and he rode him over, oh how many people, as the scripture, solemnly declares, like sheep, they are laid, in the grave, has vain confidence, rode them over, have they vainly said,

[47:11] I shall be all right, I'll be provided for, wondrously in life, I shall be all right, well you know, it's going to be, a bed too short, and a covering too narrow, well there's only one way, in which you and I, will get safely housed, in heaven, and that is, as we are, united to Jesus Christ, as we are in Jesus Christ, once in him, in him forever, thus the eternal covenant, stands, I have already, made this evening, some reference, to those, grace and glorious, words, which, bring the eighth, chapter of the Romans, to a conclusion, for I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able, to separate us, from the love of God, which is in Christ,

[48:25] Jesus our Lord, no separation, condemnation, what goes before it, there is therefore now, no condemnation, to them that are in Christ, Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit, always will be a great day, in your experience, if you have been staggering, because of the condemnation, you have felt in your heart, and you have cried, have you fallen down, before God, and cried, unto the Lord, in your trouble, and he has delivered you, out of your distresses, by speaking powerfully, into your soul, there is therefore now, no condemnation, do you know, when God says, there is no condemnation, all men, and all devils, and whatever may proceed, from yourself, can say, but surely there must be, but God says no, and I can assure you, from my own experience, friends, that when God says no, no it is, and when we search, to find our sins, our sins, can never be found, it is absolutely true, then they cry, unto the Lord, in their troubles, trouble, and he bringeth them, out of their distresses, words, but we would now, just for a moment or two, like to take, another viewpoint, in respect to, these words, they reel to and fro, and stagger, like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end, we sometimes, we sometimes, sing the words, how strange, is the course, that a Christian, must steer, how perplexed, is the path, he must tread, the hope, of his happiness, rises from fear, and his life, he receives, from the dead, his fairest pretensions, must wholly be waived, his best resolutions, be grasped, nor can he expect, to be perfectly saved, till he finds himself, utterly lost, and, by God's appointment, we, are, brought, into pathways, of tribulation, the word of God, is very clear, that it is, through much tribulation, we must, enter the kingdom, now,

[51:16] I would, have you noticed this, the word, is tribulation, as distinct, from trouble, man, is born, to trouble, as the sparks, fly upward, but the people, of God, alone, know, what tribulation, is, well, what is the distinction, well, God, is that moving force, behind, tribulation, sin, is the moving force, behind trouble, oh, thou hideous, monster, sin, what accurses, thou brought in, all creation, grows through thee, pregnant cause, of misery, well, what does tribulation, do then, well, you know, in its root, tribulation, has reference, to a threshing machine, what does that do, well, you will know, of course, probably better, than I do, that it separates, the chaff, from the wheat,

[52:38] Jeremiah says, what is the chaff, to the wheat, what may we, may we understand, by chaff, and wheat, well, if God, begins, begins a good work, in our soul, his work, will be wheat, but we also have, a fleshly nature, and, we try to build, build around this, you know, there's a lot of, what we call, fleshly, religion, that is, sometimes, we're caught up, with a lot of, fanciful things, sometimes, perhaps, we, settle down, because, we can remember, so many scriptures, or we can remember, so many hymns, and, this is all, superficial, it's all, outside, it's all, airy, it's all, light, but,

[53:58] God's purpose is, to bring about, in your heart, what was brought about, in the apostle, when he says, we are, your epistle, known, and read, of all men, that is, there was something, written in, to the life, it was not just, superficial, it was written in, in other words, it was the, true work of God, now, God brings his people, into the times, of adversity, as he brought us, into the time, of adversity, causes us, to suffer losses, perhaps, brings afflictions, upon us, causes things, to go wrong, sometimes, he will bring to pass, that word, in, in Daniel, and he setteth, over them, the basis of men,

[55:05] I remember, one godly deacon, telling me, a year or two ago, how troubled he was, he couldn't understand it, because, his foreman, was such an, objectionable person, and made his life, a dreadful life, oh, it was a real, tribulation, it, it sorted him out, you know, he couldn't be, one of these, nice Christians, because, this man's temper, brought the old, scum to the top, and the poor man, had to cry for grace, again and again, that he might be preserved, and the man, couldn't understand it, at all, until he opened, on those very words, in Daniel, one day, he setteth, over men, the basis of men, and then he understood it, it was God's work, but, you see, there was a staggering, to and fro, is there anything, in your life, at the moment, that causes you, to stagger, to and fro, you see, matters are being crossed, you had your plans, all laid, and they've come to nothing, because of that, you stagger, to and fro, and you're, at your wit's end, you've tried everything, without success, oh, what a mercy friends, if this word, then, is soon going to come, into your experience, because then, you're going to cry, from the depth of your heart, in your trouble, and what are you going, to cry about, are you going to say, to God, appear for me, in this, bring about, certain things, in this, or are you going, to cry to God, and say,

[57:11] I'm a wretched sinner, sinner, I haven't committed, this matter to thee, in prayer, as I should, I'm a wretched sinner, oh, Lord, have mercy upon me, you see, God, brings his children, could I go as far, as to say this, to cry for mercy, every day, and sometimes, it's in a very, special way, order, to be blessed, with a prayer, in our hearts, to cry for the mercy, of God, but do notice, that which follows, he bringeth them, out of their distresses, how does he do it, on such an occasion, as this, well, I remember, how he brought me, out of my distresses, on one occasion, with such a bitter experience, oh, it was, something, which was, really going, through a threshing machine, you know, the chaff, and the wheat, were completely separated, and there seemed, to be so little wheat, and then God, spoke these words, to me,

[58:25] I will work, and who shall let it, we read in the revelation, I have set before thee, an open door, and no man can shut it, when I think about, those words, friends, I think about, the man inside, because, God's doors, that are opened, you know, they sometimes, receive, great opposition, from the man inside, or to be delivered, from the man inside, well, we shall be, when, we fall down, when my soul, fainteth within me, we crumble up, before God, we are humbled, before the mighty, God of Jacob, then, they cry, unto the Lord, in their trouble, and he, bringeth them, out of their distresses, is it not, worthwhile, is it not, worthwhile, having, a thought or so, upon these words, he bringeth them, out, well, there is only one meaning, really, to bringing out, that means, clean out, as an example, we will turn over, the pages to Exodus, to read, about, the deliverance, of,

[60:01] Israel, from Egypt, and God, brought them out, with a mighty, a strong arm, and a mighty hand, it was God's time, then, had come, in their experience, then, notice, how those, poor men, sweating, as it were, under the rigor, of the Egyptian, taskmasters, and the Jewish officers, and they said, is God taking, any notice, God was taking, a lot of notice, he's been speaking, to Moses, a long way off, saying, I know, their sorrows, and I'm, come down, to deliver them, and Moses,

[61:04] I'm going to send you, to do, to execute this, for me, God, was taking, notice, nothing, escaped his eye, perhaps, perhaps, you're under, under rigor, at the moment, but God, is taking notice, and if you're, his child, you'll know, he's taking notice, in due time, a deliverer, will come, God, appointed Moses, as a deliverer, to the children, of Israel, as his, appointed, instrument, but now, we set, before you, a greater deliverer, than Moses, in the book of Job, we read, I have found, a ransom, to deliver him, from going down, into the pit, and that ransom, was Jesus Christ, when we read, in the, in this same psalm, he led them forth, by the right way, that they might go, to a city, of habitation, who was this, but Jesus, the son of God, is it not Jesus, that's leading you, are you following him, you see, this is what he says, follow me, have you begun, to follow him,

[62:38] I do want to make, this point clear friends, there is a tendency, to associate, these words, follow me, with the ordinance, of believers baptism, now I'm going to say this, that if you only, begin to follow the Lord, then there's something wrong, that, following of the Lord, begins, before you, come to that ordinance, not at that ordinance, have you begin, have you begun, to follow the Lord, then, shall we know, if we follow on, to know the Lord, oh, that we may be, followers on, and, that the blessed, and appointed time, may come, when God, will say to us, follow me, in my despised, ordinances, follow me, but don't, let us be deluded, into thinking, this is the start, because it isn't, you see, here again, when we speak, of God's commandments, well, to hear some people, speak with only, two commandments, that God has ever mentioned, and that is, to be baptized, and to sit down, at the Lord's supper, they're very important, commandments friends, but what about, the other commandments, what about, loving God, now, that's where, we've got to start, loving God, and how do we love God, it's not something, you know, that's worked up, by the natural mind, we love God, when he brings us, through these kinds, of experiences, when all our flesh, is burned up, and there's still, something left, and that word, comes, the real thing, to fear, life, and comes back, and understanding, of God'sANK, and there's still, and that word comes, a real thing, when all our, the really, have not, from Christ, and there, to fear,

[65:32] Thank you.