Isaiah

[0:00] 550 to 544. My soul rejoice and sing thy father's glorious praise, and let his precious love employ thee all my days.

[0:17] Proclaim the honor to his name, and thou his love can still be saved. 570, June 544.

[0:37] 570, June 544. 570, June 544. 570, June 544.

[1:07] 570, June 544. 570, June 544.

[1:23] 550, June 544. 550, June 6 развicioneRRM 660, June 644.

[1:35] 770, June 644. 660, June 646. 7 сох sind die emits, 560, Along Parks undім. 690, June 647.

[1:46] 7amm아nen Gä Veteran Let the Lord show him to tell us who hee It so Capitol traitors will begin Real Look Guide Fortress And I'll give you a great shot at times and aным town to in the strength andacies

[3:08] CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS

[4:10] CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS Thank you.

[5:06] Thank you.

[5:36] Thank you. We'll find in the prophecy of Isaiah chapter 35 and at verse 3.

[5:46] The 35th chapter of the book of the prophet Isaiah and at verse 3, particularly verse 3 though into part of verse 4.

[5:57] Strengthen ye the weak hands and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, fear not.

[6:11] The sad condition is revealed here. And if we add to it the words that follow in verses 5 and 6, we have the display and remember God is portraying this picture before us.

[6:35] And if here are those who have weak hands, feeble knees, fearful hearts, blind eyes, deaf ears, lameness.

[6:46] These are the people of God. And so what a sad condition to be in such a state as this.

[6:58] And when these things were laid upon my spirit and laid heavily upon my spirit, the first thought was, God knows it.

[7:08] You can't hide it, my dear friend. Here is the revelation of God and here is the exhortation to this prophet.

[7:19] Whether to Isaiah or any other prophet of the God's commissioning. Strengthen ye those that have the weak hand, feeble knees.

[7:34] What is the cause of this? I come directly to the words that are here before us for our consideration. What is the cause of this? Well, of course, there are many causes that might be enumerated.

[7:52] There is, of course, the aspect of sin and its consequences. That will bring us into weakness and feebleness.

[8:02] It's true. There is the conflict with the adversary. This will bring us into conditions such as are enumerated here.

[8:14] These things cannot be ruled out. And I believe there is something deeper than this. Weak hands is the first thing that is mentioned.

[8:30] I have said it on no doubt here before. To my mind, as trust taught a little of the spirit of the Lord, the order of scripture is important. Weak hands is first.

[8:42] And then feeble knees. It's gradually increasing upon the physical frame as the physical frame is used to illustrate this condition that the Lord is revealing that has to be dealt with amongst his people.

[9:01] I believe physically. Using this figure for a moment or two, as God uses it here, I believe these conditions will arise as a result either of partaking of the wrong food or of disregarding food altogether.

[9:26] The person that is starved, literally, will be found certainly with weak hands and feeble knees. And if they go on long enough, there will be the blindness of the eyes, there will be the fearfulness of the heart, and all these other things that follow here in their sequence.

[9:48] You've read this evening, in that 34th chapter of Ezekiel, and there were several other similar portions, that crowded into the mind of a like manner.

[10:02] And there are those who are being starved, even the shepherds. God is faithful, he'll reveal it, my dear friend.

[10:13] And there are the shepherds disregarding the needs of the flock entirely and in consequence. The flock, as it were, as he mentions there, the very things that were being trodden underfoot, the flock were seeking after.

[10:31] Yes. How typical, my dear friend. These things have got to be faced, my dear friend, and the Spirit of the Lord has laid this portion so solemnly upon my own spirit and searched my own heart.

[10:45] What are we feeding on, friend? What are we feeding on? A child, even in its earliest youth, a babe in arms.

[10:58] If it's not fed, it'll soon develop weak hands and feeble knees. It's born with them, of course, in the first instance, because we're born in sin and shape and in iniquity.

[11:10] But if this doesn't improve, there will be alarm on the parents' part. But what about spiritually, my dear friend? There is much, I fear, that is being presented to the flock of God that isn't what God would have been to be presented.

[11:31] But that one must face. It's no good hiding these things, friend. And there are many that are having presented to them that which will only bring about weak hands and feeble knees.

[11:48] Just as you feed the child with the wrong food, my dear friend, it'll bring this about. No question about it. The figure as used by God is very potent here in its significance.

[12:00] And I say, what are we feeding upon the day in which we live? We hear it almost on every hand. We've said it ourselves doubtless or thought it, if we haven't said it.

[12:16] And you read the autobiographies of the blessed saints of God, the old divines as we term them. How different were the conditions then?

[12:27] As they fearlessly proclaimed the truth in all its solemnity, but in all its reality. And then the people were fed.

[12:39] It wasn't much then, my dear friend, in the way of weak hands and feeble knees. Oh, the Lord is saying, strengthen ye the weak hands, feed them with the finest of the wheat indeed.

[12:55] But the cry in so many quarters is, surely prophesy unto us smooth things, don't disturb us. And weakness has come, feebleness has developed, fearfulness of heart, yes, blindness and so on and so forth.

[13:13] Here is the word of the Lord. And the word solemnly as we've read it, thus saith the Lord, I will feed my flock and cause them to lie down.

[13:33] And if it were not for that, my dear friend, there wouldn't be much nourishment and there wouldn't be much strength. These things are not palatable to the flesh, I know. God knows we'd much rather dwell upon something comforting.

[13:47] Ah, yes, but isn't that the trend, my dear friend? So long as we breathe comfort, people can lie down and go to sleep, don't disturb us.

[14:00] But the Lord comes sometime, stirs up the nest, and reminds us, if we prayerfully consider and face the revelation of his word.

[14:11] That here he is speaking of his people who have come to a state of weakness, feebleness. I've referred already to the order here.

[14:26] Weak hands, feeble knees. Does it breathe anything? Do you and I, my dear friend? I know we don't adopt the posture, and posture isn't important.

[14:39] I know that in itself. But feeble knees surely has a revelation of prayer. Yes.

[14:50] Weak hands are those parts of the body wherein we engage in activity. But with weak hands, how can you bear the burdens?

[15:03] How can you carry the loads? How can you lift that which you're called upon to lift and strengthen? Carry. These sins, strangely, become absent.

[15:20] Strengthen ye the weak hands. The Lord looks down, and oh, my God has looked down upon my poor soul and revealed this.

[15:31] Weak hands, feeble knees. What part, beloved? And I've got to put it as the Spirit of the Lord has unfolded it to my own spirit and my own soul in the depths of it.

[15:45] What part has prayer in your love and mine? I'm not asking you to answer me, my dear friend. That doesn't matter. But what is the answer to this and to our God?

[15:59] What part has it in our life? Is it a few brief passing moments? And perhaps not even that because we're so absorbed in so much others.

[16:12] Feeble knees causing the very physical frame to totter cannot stand upright. Feebleness of knees, my dear friend, means that the whole structure begins to totter.

[16:30] Isn't this where Zion has got today? Zion is made up of individuals, my dear friend. How stands the case, my soul, with you and I?

[16:42] I say, are we feeding upon the right things? my dear friend. Somebody said to me only quite recently, but look at the numbers that we are gathering.

[16:54] I said, yes, my friend. Yes, my friend, but have you ever thought about the Roman Catholics? You're talking about numbers. They've got the greatest numbers. Oh, you've got the numbers there.

[17:05] What have you got there? Nothing but numbers. You can have all the numbers, my dear friend. They mean nothing. Not necessarily. God give us numbers.

[17:17] God fill the house to his glory with the numbers indeed as it was in days of old. But where is the blessedness I knew when first I saw the Lord?

[17:31] And so casually, my dear friend, is it not that we're here on so many hands that this is just passed by?

[17:42] Of course, we're living in the last days. And when we've said it, we just dismiss the matter from the mind. Weak hands, feeble knees, where is the stalwart in the things of God?

[17:59] We talk about the Apostle Paul as a man being highly favoured of God. He was, yes. But he stood. He stood boldly.

[18:12] No matter who he had to stand before, he was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. He was not ashamed to proclaim it in all its solemnity, even the pronouncement of judgment upon the ungodly.

[18:29] Even to the revealing to the people of God they're failing. Where there in the, to the Corinthian church, he had to remind them of their pride that had encompassed them because of their riches.

[18:46] He had to reveal to the church at Galatia their foolishness as they'd been bewitched and departed from the truth. Fearless.

[18:57] Yes, yes. There wasn't much feeble knees there, my dear friend. A weak hand. There wasn't much of a fearful heart there. No. Because he'd been taught of the Lord.

[19:09] He learned from his God the reality of these things. But he learned too something of the deceitfulness of his own heart. Strengthen ye the weak hands.

[19:22] I say again, God looks down and he sees it, friend. As a mother, we'd very quickly see it in her own child.

[19:34] If that child was born in weakness, as it always will be in the natural order, there won't be much strength. Put that babe on its feet and it can't stand, its feeble knees won't, are not strengthened sufficiently.

[19:49] There must be a building up and establishing. There must be a strengthening. There must be this blessedness of confirming in the feeble knees.

[20:01] And that will develop as that child is rightly fed. Again, referring to the apostle, he had to declare to those Corinthians, when I ought to be feeding you with meat, I can only feed you with milk.

[20:20] Invalides. My old pastor was rather fond of saying in relation to those who fed with milk, that's invalid. Yes. And the aged, but the invalid.

[20:32] Weak hands, feeble knees, and much, much that is being set forth under the semblance of the truth in the day in which we live, my dear friend, will only produce weak hands, feeble knees, fearful hearts, blindness, lameness.

[20:52] There will be a little running in the ways of his commandments because there will be no strength. So, the promise here, the declaration of the Lord in the sovereignty of his great mercy, condescending, favor.

[21:11] Behold, your God will come with vengeance. Even God with a recompense, he will come and save you. Then, then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

[21:29] Then shall the lame man leap. Oh, the blessedness of the transformation. This very lame man has had feeble knees so long and now he's going to leap, not only walk.

[21:43] The tongue of the dumb will not only speak, it will sing. Yes, the blessedness of the mercy of God. Oh, but you see, what is to be will be.

[21:57] And so, we just quietly sit down and wait because what is to be will be and the Lord will come in his time sooner or later and make these things known, will he?

[22:11] Will he? Ah, my dear friend, there is a need to be a seeking for these things will I be inquired of by the house of Israel to do them for them is the declaration of the Lord.

[22:30] Oh, that we might be fed a right, that we might have the discrimination, my dear friend, in relation to these things that we may not be ready to absorb so quickly anything and everything but examine as the Bereans did of old they didn't accept even what the servant of the Lord had to say and I say true, very true.

[22:59] No, they went home and searched the scriptures to see if these things were so or not. Not many Bereans about today. I know there is a Berean band how much they follow the Bereans of scripture, I don't know.

[23:14] I'm not very familiar with that band but they bear the name that there are not many Bereans about in the church today including ourselves, my dear friend.

[23:25] I'm not portraying other people. God has portrayed my own failings far too much since this word laid upon my spirit and searched me as he searches Jerusalem with candlesticks and there's weakness and there's feebleness and how easily can we charge God foolishly with these things.

[23:52] There is a weakness in Zion today, there's a feebleness, a lack of seeking those things that are above, a lack of heeding the exhortation seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

[24:11] No, says the poor half today, seek ye last the kingdom of God. The other things must come first, they're so essential. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

[24:29] My dear friend, I'll put it to you as I've had to put it to my own soul, does it trouble you? This weak hands, feeble knees, this lack of diligence.

[24:42] I've mentioned it, I know, in prayer, I've mentioned it a lot in prayer, private prayer, public prayer too of late. Do you find a lot of superficiality? A lot, my dear friend, that when you, upon your knees, begin to examine it in your own private meditation, have to be brought to realize that much that goes under the heading of worship and service is unacceptable to the Lord.

[25:16] Superficiality, self-contentedness, following a ritual, as people draw near to me with their lips and their hearts are far from me.

[25:29] the Lord knows it, the Lord knows it. Whether it be the audible voice of the lips or whether it be the heart, he knows it all. He put it here in his word that you and I may be warned against these things of how little heed is given, my dear friend, to the warning.

[25:50] oh, that the Lord would arise, yes, with healing in his wing, oh, that the Lord would revive us again, yes, how sadly do we need it, that there might be a holy diligence, seeking after God in his appointed ways, yes, and in private too.

[26:13] you know, it amazes my, as I've said and would repeat, I'm not sitting and judging upon any, but I have known more than one occasion when in the pastoral office, and it's been said quite complacently to me, when I've talked about spiritual things, well, of course, we leave all that to the pastor, that's his duty, is it?

[26:40] Is it? Perhaps that's why the church of God is so sadly lacking, because it's left. Ah, weak hands, feeble knees, we come out ostensibly, his head almost high in the air, if I dare put it that way, we go into the house of God, and we look upon the worldly man, sit now there, I'm holier than thou, is there anything of this, in our thoughts, if not in our words, in our attitude, yes, weak hands and feeble knees need to be strengthened, they're useless, weak hands, can do nothing, they cannot present a living sacrifice, from weak hands, they need to be strengthened with might by his spirit, that there might be that blessedness of strength, even in the hands as they present an evening sacrifice, as they present their poor petitions, the need to be strengthened within their knees that have become so weak and so feeble that they cannot stand to testify of him and to be true witnesses of him need strengthening and confirming, this is not the only occasion, you know, when this exhortation is given, if you turn to

[28:22] Hebrews 12, 12, you'll find there, lift up the hands that hang down and confirm the feeble knees, same phrase again, the reminder to God as he speaks it in the Old Testament and renews it in the new, reminding us that he is conscious as he looks down again that it's still there, and how needful is the exhortation, and so we need to be fed with the right food, friend.

[29:01] These expressions, dry doctrine, my dear friend, it's an awful expression, it's become current, dry doctrine, friend.

[29:16] My doctrine shall distill as the Jew, right, as any poor sinner, to call it dry, but this is where we got, and it's become so dry that we don't want it, hence the result, we become weak and feeble, we become lacking in sight and vision, we cannot see clearly, we become lame, we can't walk, all of these things and so much more.

[29:52] We're living in the midst of it today, my dear friend, a winner, and because of the complacency of Zion at last, the true Zion of God, I mean, come to the day when the enemies are busy tearing this book asunder, continually, for the last, what, 40 years, little more, it's been going on, where's the voice that is raised against it, oh, but you see, we're living in the last days, and it covers the multitude of it, we go on in our weakness, and in our feebleness, be strong and of a good courage, said the mighty God of Jacob to a Joshua, faced as he was, as the Lord knew it, and as the Lord came to him, as he always does, before ever he ended into it, as he did to Moses, so he did to Joshua, and before he started, he said, be strong and of a good courage, for the

[31:02] Lord thy God is with thee, that'll strengthen, and while a Joshua looks at the possibilities, and begins to number his foes, and the strength of his foes, he'll become weak, feeble, so will you and I, while you concentrate upon the great power of Satan, and you'll have to cry with one of old, lifting it out of its setting, there, it's true, but adopting the words, we know not what to do against this great company, yes, you've stopped, can you go on, but our eyes are up unto thee, that's the strong man, that is equal to the running of the race, he's not lame, can't put two feet in front of one in front of the other, he's a strong man to run a race, let us therefore run this race with patience, this is the exhortation through the apostle, weakness and feebleness, and strengthen with might from God, the omnipotent

[32:18] Jehovah, the blessed shepherd of the sheep, the good shepherd, he says, I know my sheep, I both search my sheep, we've read it, I both search my sheep, let's the Lord search your heart, for him, she laid it bare before you, you'll get this more in private, perhaps this of course, I don't know, I don't want to confine these, but perhaps this is because there is the lack of private meditation, perhaps I can speak a little on this matter, my searchings come not in the ministry, in the pulpit, my dear friend, my searchings come in the study, when the Lord lays such a word as this, and I've had several of late, that is searched to the very depths, it's there, my dear friend, be alone with God, but you'll learn the reality of his word, you'll learn that here is the word of the Lord, and it speaks, it doesn't speak unnecessarily, my dear friend, it will reveal the true picture, in all matters, even in relation to

[33:37] Satan and all his hosts, and Satan knows it full well, but God has made it faithfully set it, the wicked shall be cast into hell, God has declared it, it's all revealed, and to his children, because he loves, because he yearns over them, because he mourns as he sees their sad departures, as he sees their wanderings, failings, and follies, and the weak hands in consequence, and the feeble need, and he calls here through the medium, of the prophet of old, as he calls upon all whom he has sent forth in his holy name, strengthen the weak hands, and confirm the feeble need, say to them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, fear not, how is this strengthening to be accomplished, how is this confirming to be imparted, well as

[34:51] I have intimated already by eating the right food it's true, but what is the food my dear, let the psalmist answer the question, he says thy words were found and I did eat them, to become engrossed in the dear book, I don't mean by committing it to memory, that can become mechanical, and anything mechanical can become vain repetition, it's one thought I find as I learned in my youth with the establishment, church where I spent a few years, blessed words, I wouldn't find fault that some of the prayers there are far better than many of mine in the wording of them, but saying them over and over and over again becomes mechanical, it must be different, unless special grace is given, not committing this to memory, but meditating therein, prayerfully desiring the unfolding of and the impartation and application of it, yes the word of the hymn writer of course comes, it's when the words apply, which then it does be good, if I go back to the figure my dear friend, for the

[36:16] Lord keeps to the figure, well let's keep it the figure, you can stand with a hungry body, craving for food, almost facing starvation, it's no good putting it there for me to look at, won't do my body any good, when I partake of it, when I derive the nourishment and strength from it, then I shall know the benefit, and here's the book friend, and only as we partake of it, no other way, no other way, just as with the food, you can look at it, you can do what you like with it, you can deck it, and so on and so forth, but until you partake of it, that is the essence, I've referred to the old divines and the church of God, even in our youth, many of us, they lived upon the word, they weren't ashamed of the word, the apostles words were characteristic of them,

[37:23] I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, it is the power of God unto salvation, to everyone that believe it, I'm not ashamed of it, so much so, he declared again, I'm determined to know nothing among you, say, Jesus Christ and him crucified, and that's where the strength comes from, to be much at Calvary, not to bring him back to suffer there, but much there in meditation, to see the blessedness of the love of a triune God, feed on that first friend, and then when you've got into the depths and into the ocean of the fullness of that, then what about the mercy of God, that'll feed your poor soul, that'll put strength into the inner man, when you've dealt with all the aspects, I can't begin even to name them, a time forbids, but when you've got into each of those in their turn, friend, then come down to the consideration from them, if I put it in the language of the hymn writer, why was

[38:37] I made to hear his voice? That'll humble you of course, but that'll strengthen your poor heart, it will, the wonder, the wonder, as the apostle said, unto me, unto me, think of it, he would say, think of it, unto me, whom less than the least, I, a persecutor, I hailed them into prison, persecuted the church, did everything that was derogged to God himself, unto me, whom less than the least of all, is this grace given, and how he marred at it, I believe that was the essence of his strength, in the manifestation of it, and he became strong indeed, before his hearers, and faithful in his ministry and the name of his God as he sought, so far as human limitations permitted by the enabling of the

[39:42] Lord to set forth his truth, he was not ashamed of the gospel, God to God to him. He would have to be brought under that heading in the day in which we live.

[39:57] You see, we have to work with people, we have to mix with people, we have to live with people, you've got to be so careful, you mustn't offend them. We've got so much to that, it doesn't matter about the Lord, of course, it doesn't matter about the Lord, we can offend the Lord, but we mustn't offend our neighbours, and our workmates, we've got to live with them, we've got to work with them, let's be charitable, you know, so that's the trend, my dear, and that's the consequence, the weakness, oh, to get back, beloved, to get back, to the blessed things, of a blessed redeemer, who came to impart strength to the weak, to give confirmation to the feeble knees indeed to poor sinners, without God, without hope, without any prospect whatever, yes, there's weakness there, sin will bring that matter, but I believe, as I have said, this leads into that this is to the children of God, this is to the flock of his pasture, and it is, it is, as we have read, the duty, the duty of the shepherds, that's what they're appointed for, to feed the flock, and if there's a little lamb there, he's got into trouble, and his poor legs have become feeble, and weak, what does the shepherd do?

[41:34] Carries the lambs in his bosom, gently leads those that are with young, doesn't cast them aside, it's worthless, oh, the blessedness of the revelation of the mercy of God, but oh, my dear friend, the faithful revelation of our failing, and our shortcomings, how many they are, how grievous they are, as the Lord looks down upon his redeemed family, ever think about, I sometimes wonder, my dear friend, I sometimes wonder, what God must think, as he looks down upon his church, and about the world, about you and I, as God looks down, that's how I got this morning in my study, when God looks down upon me, as an individual, what are his thoughts,

[42:39] I know from his word, if I'm embraced in the purposes of his love, I know he has said, I know the thoughts I think toward you, thoughts of peace, not of evil, but what must his thoughts be in relation to my present condition, does it cause you anxiety, does it cause you concern, strengthen you, here it is, feed upon the promises of his grace, the condescending mercy, that bestrues the path, just as the shepherd will lead the flock to the green pastures and away, away from the hard barren ground, you know my dear friend, friend, I'm trying to keep away from this figure, I shall have to come a bit to it, the sheep literally is a very discriminating animal, you watch, some of you know more about sheep,

[43:44] I must be careful, but I have watched them a good deal, they're very discriminating, and you can have a lot of variety in one field, but they'll only eat what they know, God has given them, an instinct, if you like to put it that way, as an animal, God has given to his children a discrimination, are you careful what you eat from them, I've watched sheep, I was watching some not very long ago, a matter of a few weeks ago, just to watch and gather a few lessons from this creature of the Lord's gracious creating power, and to saw that animal go to a certain plant, whatever its name was, I don't know, it was out there in the field, he turned away from it, there they go, and I looked on one part of the field, and there were some weeds, or whatever they were, they were growing out quite tall, the grass was very low, it was almost even, discrimination, oh, but you mustn't talk about discrimination, you must be charitable, you must be kindly, well my dear friend,

[45:05] I'm sorry, I can only speak as the Lord leads, and I've been led into the solemnities of these things, of like, weakness, the feebleness, that one feels and has to realize, strengthen, bring us back, back to the precious things of his kingdom, the blessed things of his grace and of his word, the blessed things that emanate from the Calvary, and the triumphs that he wrought, and the sacrifice of himself, deliverance from bondage, and from satanic power, deliverance from eternal judgment, think on these things, is the exhortation through the apostles.

[45:54] Yes, if there be any virtue, if there be any price, think on these things, and as we think upon them, and as we partake on them, then we shall know that inner strength imparted, and we shall be enabled to stand, we shall become active, we shall become less fearful, the eyes will be opened, to see in truth, not as men as trees walking, but to see clearly ourselves, to see the mercy of God.

[46:34] I am quite short of this, my dear friend, we haven't exhausted the praise that is due to his dear name, and get down on the knees, my dear friend, and try, I know you can't render it all, you have limitations, but have you exhausted what you can, down on your knees before God, humbly trying to breathe out to him what you feel, if you can't, strengthen your poor heart, my dear friend, it will bring out weakness, it will, because you lay hold of the horns of the altar and wrestle, and I believe Jacob was brought there, he'd known weakness and feebleness, when his mind was centered upon Esau, his brother, and what brought him in that connection, he thought he saw it all, I believe there's another, Peter, Peter remembered the word of the Lord, he went out and wept bitter, when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren, here it is, strengthen the weak hands, and it comes that way as we're brought back again, as Peter was brought back to see his own folly, but to see the amazing mercy of

[47:55] God that never cut him off, as he justly deserved, as he looked back, and I believe Peter never forgot that judgment wall, he never forgot that day, any more than Paul ever forgot the Damascus road, you and I need to go back perhaps to our Damascus road, and call to remembrance the mercy of the Lord that has been with us, even until now, and born with us in long suffering and with patience, in spite of all our follies, I'm sure this is where the Lord would have us to be brought, strengthen ye the weak hands, enter they into that which is within the vile, whither our forerunner is for us ended, and there, seeking to comprehend that blessed truth that here is one who has been tempted in all points like as we are, lovely word again, it behold him, it behold him to be made like unto his brethren, it strengthened him, my dear friend, it will, he was tempted in all points like as we are, so that he might be able to succor, lovely word again, to succor, to walk the same path, strengthen ye the weak hands, we have an advocate with the Father,

[49:32] Jesus Christ the righteous, when you get there, my dear friend, on your knees before God and have a consciousness that there's one who stands between in garments dyed in blood, it will break you down, my dear friend, your poor heart, but it will put strength into your poor hands and knees and your poor heart will cease to tremble, these are the ways that the Lord has appointed for his people, to be brought into his presence, as he assured a Moses of old, my presence shall go with thee, answered all the questions, you're going to have difficulties Moses, you're going to meet with adversaries, but my presence shall go with thee, I will give thee rest, and continually that presence was granted as it was granted to a Joshua and as it was granted to all his people down the ages, but trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not to your own understanding, that's a folly for me, the arm of flesh will never support, but it will fail us, put not your confidence in man, put not your confidence in princes, put not your confidence in anything upon earth, but submit, commit, rest in the

[51:10] Lord, that will strengthen, as he becomes our strength in our weakness, our all, our all, when we need all, he will be strong, when our poor fearful hearts are trembling, wondering where the scene will end, yes, so these words are set before us here by way of exhortation, a call of cost, to the servant of God, to set it forth, but a call of God, of God again to the individual, the very chapter here is designated the blessings of the gospel, and these are the blessings of the gospel, my dear friend, but Paul had to complain, my dear friend, and again here is the revelation, and he says, I hear some of you saying,

[52:11] I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, are you not carnal, and I hear people saying today, changing the name, well, so and so is preaching, oh, I must go and hear him, are you not carnal, or am I getting too close, I can't help it, I'm accountable to God for my stewardship, it comes very close, I can well understand, and I mean this, not idle words, I'm speaking before God, I can well understand friends saying, he's preaching, I shall go and hear him, I can understand that, but all in there are running after the man, I love many, I've loved dearly, even now many, of the servants of God, and God forbid that I should say one word against them, they've been so deeply used to my own soul, but my dear friend, they're not my God, they're not my God, and with that word, that word before, when they are saying,

[53:20] I am of Paul, and I am of Apollos, they were godly men, are ye not carnal, are ye not carnal, the word of God penetrates, my dear friend, to the very depths, and it stirs, stirs up, all that sediment that's lying down there at the bottom of the heart, and it stirs it all up, and we find how much carnality there is really and truly, in our holy things, I've had to try and set this word before you in faithfulness, my dear friend, but if it searches the heart, or if the Lord searches the heart, be it as he may, that all will bring us closer to him, that Christ may be all and in all, not partially, the Lord will never have divided affections, of that I am quite sure, and the people of old, as recorded in his word, when they went away, he said, let them go, let them go, and he'll let them go, but it's thus far, oh I know that applies to the enemies,

[54:38] I know all about that, it applies to his people, it's applied to me, my dear friend, more than once, let him go, but there's a coming back, there's a coming back, prodigal son went out with a high head and a high hand, and with plenty of all that carnality he could wish, but he'd got to come back, he'd got to come back, and I believe, my dear friend, that the day is coming, I know we're going to be at a very low ebb, but when he cometh, shall he find the faith on the earth at all, it's a very low ebb, but I believe, I believe the Lord will visit Zion, he has a controversy with us, we've got to face it, we can't pass it on one side, my dear friend, but I must leave it with you, friend, may the Lord use his word as it pleases him, but all may so use it as to bring us nearer to him, closer to his dear feet, committing all to him, ascribing all to him, that he may become to us the all and in all, indeed, strengthen ye the weak hands, confirm the feeble knees, say to them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, be strong, fear not, the Lord grant his own blessing, for his name's sake,

[56:16] Amen. Amen. Lord will, ask him a preacher on Monday next week.

[56:30] Let's close with hymn number 768, June 515, Tide. Jesus, shepherd of the sheep, there thy flock thus feed in fear, sweetest pastures thus prepare, watchest them with tender care.

[56:48] Adam men he who are more overweight than glo index sc said CHOIR SINGS CHOIR SINGS

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