Matthew

[0:00] As the Lord should be pleased to help me, I should call your attention to a subject you will find in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 17, the last sentence in the 17th verse.

[0:24] Bring him hither to me. Chapter 17, the Gospel of Matthew, and the last sentence in the 17th verse.

[0:44] This is a word which stands in connection with a miracle that Jesus Christ wrote when he was going about.

[1:02] And as he dwelt on earth, as Emmanuel, God with us, doing poor sinners good. And it is recorded not just as a piece of history and interesting to read, but that poor sinners in all ages might be helped to take courage in their varied cases and circumstances to wait on God regarding the same.

[1:42] It is a wonderful mercy that God is approachable. And it is a wonderful mercy to find in your heart that which wells up whereby you do approach unto God, seeking his divine aid.

[2:07] Prayer was appointed to convey the blessings God designs to give. And now in this beautiful record, it tells us, And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man kneeling down to him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is lunatic and sore vexed, for oft times he falleth into the fire and into the water.

[2:44] And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. Then Jesus answered and said, All faithless and perverse generation, How long shall I be with you?

[3:03] How long shall I suffer you? Bring him hither to me. And Jesus rebuked the devil, And he departed out of him.

[3:15] And the child was cured from that very hour. I want to look at the subject, As the Lord shall help me, From three or four viewpoints of it, And the setting of it, As I view it, Is striking, And it is also suggestive.

[3:38] And it seems, As you read, The gospels and the records therein, That especially when Jesus Christ was on earth, Doing love's redeeming work, That there were so many, Found in the land of promise, Who suffered through being possessed of a devil.

[4:06] Such things are hardly known, Nowadays, In the land in which you and I live in. Although it may be, Such things are known, In other lands, Where the heathen, Are in the ascendancy.

[4:25] And it might well be, That those who labor, In preaching the gospel, Among them, Come upon, Such like cases.

[4:38] But, This particular case, Is for, Our instruction, And our learning.

[4:51] And the great thing, To keep in mind, Is, That, That, The Lord Jesus, Whenever poor sinners, With incurable cases, Were brought to him, As a sinner's friend, He ever made them welcome, And, He refused none.

[5:15] It is a great, Declaration, And he healed all them, That had need of healing, And he healed them all, And he healed them all, The power of the Lord, Was present, To, Heal.

[5:31] And then there is another, View point of this subject, I just want to touch on, This poor man, With this great trouble, Said to, The Lord Jesus, I brought him, To thy disciples, And they could not, Cure him, And now, That is something, For disciples, Those whom God has ordained, To preach, As they were, To ponder in their hearts, Because God had given them, A commission to do it, But in this instance, They could not do it, You will find, In the commission, To preach, Which was given, To these, Disciples, Go rather, To the lost sheep, Of the house of Israel, And as ye go, Preach, Saying, The kingdom of heaven,

[6:32] Is at hand, Heal the sick, Cleanse the lepers, Raise the dead, Cast out devils, Freely ye have received, Freely, Give, But in this instance, They failed, Then came the disciples, To Jesus apart, And said, Why could not, We cast him out, And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief, They were not, In a right frame of mind, And they were not, In immediate contact, As it were, With Jesus Christ, With whom they had to do, That this power, Might be, Used, By them, And Jesus Christ said, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, As a grain of mustard seed, Ye shall say unto this mountain,

[7:35] Remove hence to yonder place, And it shall remove, This you will understand, This figurative language, To make plain, A wonderful truth, And nothing, Shall be impossible, Unto you, And now, Here is what, The disciples had to weigh up, And consider, How be it, This kind, Goeth not out, But by prayer, And fasting, So that some of you, Dear people, If you should have, Some special case, Some, Complicated, Circumstances, And, You are indeed, Waiting on God, Regarding your case, Your circumstances, Desiring to see, Crooked things made straight, Rough places, Plain, And yet, The answer,

[8:36] Seems to be, Delayed, There is something, For you to weigh up, Between God, And your own soul, How be it, This kind, Goeth not out, But by prayer, And fasting, And it, Suggests, That it is, Indeed, A waiting time, The time, He is set, To heal up, Thy woes, A season, Most fit, His love, To disclose, Until he is ready, To accomplish, His will, Be patient, And steady, And wait on him still, The Lord, Will appear, The vision, Is for an appointed time, Though it tarry, Wait for it, In the end, It shall speak, And not lie, It will surely come, It will not, Tarry, And now, That is just,

[9:37] A little outline, Of the, Setting, Of the, Subject, And, If any of you, Before God, At this time, Feel that you have, A case, A hard case, Hard to be understood, And you were tempted, And tried, Regarding it, And desire, That the Lord, Will appear, On your behalf, This is the word, Of the Lord, To you, Bring him, Hither, To me, And you, Poor sinner, Bring your case, And you shall learn, What is recorded, In Deuteronomy, The case that is too hard, For thee, Bring it unto me, I will hear it, I will hear it, The arm of the Lord, Is not shortened, That it cannot save, Neither is, His ear heavy,

[10:39] That it cannot hear, Then there is a great word, To help you, Wherefore, He is able to save, Unto the uttermost, Them that come unto God, By him, By him, What you need is this, Lord, Increase our faith, I will not let thee go, Until a blessing, Thou, Bestow, And now, Looking at this subject, And I would like it to be a word in season, Bring it, Unto me, You may not have a hymn to bring, It may be you have, I may touch on that, Later on, But, The great truth, In this record, And remember, Whatsoever things were written aforetime, Were written for our learning, That we through patience,

[11:40] And comfort in the scriptures, Might have hope, The great truth, And a blessed truth it is, The things which are unmanageable, By you, Do remember, God can manage, The things which are impossible with men, Are possible with God, That is a fundamental truth, Of our most holy faith, And keep this in your mind, It is too often, Overlooked, That, God, Is a God, Ready, To attend, To those things unmanageable, By you, Wherein you need, Is, Divine aid, One hymn writer, One hymn writer, Has stated, What is a very solemn truth,

[12:42] When prayer, Is a burden and task, No wonder, I little receive, O Lord, Make me, Willing to ask, Since thou art so, Ready, To give, And think too, As I want to encourage you, To hope in God, I say, Think too, Of that word in Job, Behold, God is almighty, He despiseth not any, Then now, If you are under, A time of temptation, Regarding whether God, Will have anything, Whatever to do with you, And that is how sometimes, Temptation, Comes to poor sinners, Especially those, Who are in life's mourning, And, As their guiltiness, Before God, Is made known to them, Which shall know, Every man,

[13:43] The plague of his own heart, The question arises, Depth of mercy, Can there be, Mercy for a wretch like me, And now, The gospel says, Yes, There is, God with whom you have to do, He delighteth in, Mercy, And you could not have, A bigger word, Search through the word of God, And see if you can find, Such a word, Behold, God is almighty, He despiseth not any, He will regard the prayer, Of the destitute, And not despise, Their prayer, So that you, Whatever your case is, Whatever the devil, May suggest to you, Regarding it, Do not credit, The devil's lies, And remember, What the word of God says,

[14:46] Neither give place, To the devil, But, Listen to this word, Drop from the lips, Of Jesus Christ, Verily man, Verily God, Bring him, Bring it, Whatever it is, Bring him, Hither, To me, In other words, The remedy lies before thee, Pray, Still pray, For God will all explain, Nor shalt thou see, His face, In vain, Bring him, Hither, To me, And now, Let us look at some of these things, That it is essential, Yea, Necessary, That you and I, Following on to know the Lord, Must bring before him, Day by day,

[15:48] That we may, Do what is in our hearts to do, Live the life of the righteous, And if you live that life of right, It will embrace, This line of things, Casting all your care upon him, For he careth for you, All your care, Whatever its nature, Like the woman in the gospel, Falling down at Jesus feet, She told him, All the truth, And you and I have got that privilege, Do prize it, Make use of it, Go and do likewise, In everything, By prayer and supplication, With thanksgiving, Let your request, Be made known, Unto, God,

[16:49] And now let us look, At some of these things, Unmanageable, As I said, And you find, In the, Word of God, What encouragement, There is, I was thinking, In pondering this subject, Of what you read, And when, They were gone, Over, They came into the land, Of Janessaret, And when the men, Of that place, Had knowledge of him, They sent out, Into all that country, Round about, And brought unto him, All that were diseased, And besought him, That they might, Only touch, The hem of his garment, And as many as touched, Were made perfectly whole, Dear friends, This is, Our God, This is, Jesus Christ, The sinner's friend, Who still,

[17:51] Delights to do, Poor sinners, Good, And if you have it, In your heart, Like that woman, In the gospel, If I may, But touch the hem, Of his garment, I shall be made whole, The Lord bless you, Wait on the Lord, Be of good courage, Whatever your case, Your circumstances, Be of good courage, And he shall strengthen thine heart, Wait, I say, On the Lord, And there is another word, Here, I want you, To remember, And great multitudes, Came unto him, Having with them, Those that were lame, Blind, Dumb, Maimed, And many others, And cast them down, At Jesus' feet, And he healed them, Insomuch, That the multitude wondered,

[18:52] When they saw, The dumb to speak, The maimed, To behold, The lame to walk, And the blind to see, And they glorified, The God of Israel, There is one, Sentence there, Which always pleases me, And many others, You see, Sometimes, Poor sinners, Feel that their case, Is indescribable, Or, Or they cannot put it, Into words, Words of their own, To lay their case, Before, The throne of grace, At Jesus' feet, As they would like to do, And many others, Some of you, May come in there, And yet, You are welcome, And you will find, It to be a blessed reality,

[19:53] And many others, And cast them down, At Jesus' feet, And he healed them, And now, Getting to the starting point, Who can tell, But what God, Will be gracious to you, This is the word of the Lord, Bring him, Hither, To me, And now, One thing you will find, Unmanageable, If you are a sinner born again, Then that is yourself, Once, A sinner is born again, And the knowledge begins to be, Imparted, As to how sad, Our state, By nature is, You will realize, As long as you live, That you need divine aid, To keep, What you are by nature,

[20:55] Under control, And there is help, To be had from God, That your soul's desire, May be granted, Very sad and solemn, It is to realize, More and more, As you grow older, How sad our state, By nature, Is, But then, One hymn writer says, And I like how he, Words it, Though the corruptions, Corruptions of thine heart, Daily, New cause of grief, Imparts, Still pray, That all thy lust be slain, Nor shalt thou seek, His face, In vain, What you are by nature, Yourself, You know what you are by nature, Some of you, And you have been afraid, Of what you are by nature, Afraid, Lest what you are by nature,

[21:55] Should break forth, And other folk, Should realize it, And they be, Wounded it may be, And mischief be made, Oh, It is good, To feel like Rutherford, When he said, All that I had not, A myself, Oh, There is that great eye in us, Arising from what one is by nature, And, If it should, Be predominant, It will not be good, For our soul's health, No, No, Good it will be, If you can say, But it does need, A great deal of saying, And to tell the truth, When you say it, Oh, Crucify this self, That I know more, In me, But thee may live, Bid all my vile affections,

[22:58] Dying, Or let one hateful, Lost survive, A wonderful prayer, You are welcome, To wait on God, Regarding him, Bring him, Hither, To, Me, Another thing you will find, Unmanageable, Among the many, As you journey on, Through life, And that is, Men, People with whom, You have to do, And, You look into, The word of God, Think of David, When he said, These sons of Zeruiah, Be too strong for me, And he had to wait, And he had to wait on God, And there might be men, Among whom you live and move, In your everyday life, In earning the bread,

[23:59] Which perisheth, You may have to labor, Amongst the ungodly, And, Endure, Their sneers, And scoffs, And their attempts, To ridicule you, And what you profess to be, In following on, To know, The Lord, And, It will not be any, Use whatever for you, To attempt, What you can do, To rebut, Their scoffs, No, This is the way, Bring him, Whoever he is, Bring him hither to me, God is greater than man, Yes, And greater is he, That is in you, Than he that is in the world, And sometimes, Things work, Well, When you find,

[24:59] Opposition from the world, And it is on account of you, Possessing some religion, That you believe, God is the author of, And this is, How matters sometimes, Fall out, If on my face, For thy dear name, Shame and reproaches be, All hail reproach, And welcome shame, If thou, Remember me, There are thousands, Of religious folk, In the land, In which you and I live, And they just walk, Hand in hand, With the world, The world, Lin, Finds no fault, With their religion, Because, They have simply got, Religiosity, A name, To live, But when, It is, A poor sinner,

[26:01] Who desires, Not to be ashamed, Of Jesus, And to live, The life of the righteous, In everyday life, Watch by the world, With jealous eyes, That fain would see, Our sin and shame, Oh, You will have many searchings, Of heart, Many a cry, Many a sigh, Will go up, Before God, For grace to help, In your time of need, That you may, Not fail to show, Whose you are, And whom you serve, Let your life, And acts express, The holy gospel, You profess, So that as you, May have to deal with, Men, Ungodly men, Think of that, Lovely scripture, Which I sometimes, Quote, That ye be,

[27:03] Blameless and harmless, As the sons of God, Without rebuke, In the midst of a crooked, And perverse nation, Among whom, Ye shine, As lights, In the world, Bring him, Hither, To me, And now, Another thing, You will need to bring, To Jesus, For him alone, To, Overrule it, And that is, If he should lay, Some affliction upon you, And nowadays, It is so evident, As you go up and down, In their denominational life, How many there are, Afflicted, And with such afflictions, That the earthly physician, Can do nothing, Only just to alleviate, But he cannot bring about a cure, And now,

[28:05] In such a case, You are shut up to God, And that is what God, Designs, In the affliction, Which is, Laid upon you, There is, That word, I like to, Look at, In, Peter's, Epistle, And, He says, Wherefore, Let them, That suffer, According to the will of God, Commit the keeping of their souls unto him, In well doing, As unto a faithful creator, You see, This is the point, You are to be more concerned, About your soul's welfare, In the affliction laid on you, Than being released from it, What you need is this, Humble yourselves therefore, Under the mighty hand of God,

[29:07] That he may exalt you, In due time, Yes, Casting all your care upon him, For he careth for you, And now, Your care, As you bring your affliction, And wait on, God, Regarding it, Your care should be like it was, With David long ago, When he said, Let my soul live, And it shall praise thee, And let thy judgments, Help me, In other words, Lord, Oh let this affliction, Be for my soul's good, That I may be helped, To set up such a way mark, That I shall be assured, I am being led forth, By the right way, And I am indeed a pilgrim, To Canaan bound, And when, And when, You realize, A little of the divine aid,

[30:09] Communicated, You will say again with David, It is good for me, That I have been afflicted, That I might learn, Thy status, Afflictions, Though they seem severe, Are often mercy sent, Yes, They stopped the prodigal's career, And brought him to repent, Bring him hither, To me, But then it may not be, An affliction, You have got it, Maybe in your life, Some difficulty, Some crooked thing, And you are learning, Who can make that straight, Which God hath made crooked, And now, That shuts you up to God, The word of God says,

[31:13] Which God hath made crooked, That is to say, He has permitted, Some difficulty, To come into your life, It may be to do with you, Or yours, Your everyday life, Or your circumstances, But, This is what you are to learn in it, Trials make the promise sweet, Trials give new life to prayer, Trials bring us to Christ's feet, Lay us low, And keep us there, And there can be no difficulty, No mountain, But what God can overturn it, By the roots, But he does say this, I will be inquired of by you, O house of Israel, To do these things, Another thing, Which is unmanageable,

[32:15] You may often feel, I would but cannot pray, Oh how glad you would be, If you could pray, If you could feel, In drawing near to God, Your heart, Prompting you, From within, And not just words, Being put together, By your tongue, That bespeak worship, But to you, It is cold and formal, And you cannot feel, Out of the abundance, Of the heart, The mouth, Speaketh, And now, That is a thing, Unmanageable, By you, But, This is the word, Of the Lord, Regarding it, Whether it be, Your prayerless, State, Or whether it be, Your hard hearted, Ness, Or your praiselessness, Bring him, Hither to me,

[33:16] And that is what you must do, With your, Hard heartedness, Your prayerlessness, Your praiselessness, And you begin like this, Oh for a glance of heavenly day, To take this stubborn stone away, And go back to what I have already quoted, He will regard the prayer of the destitute, And not despise their prayer, And when you tell him all the truth, That you are just destitute of prayer, Destitute of praise, And you long, For a broken heart, A contrite spirit, And that you desire, To give unto God the glory that is due, Unto his holy name, In all that he has been unto you, Along life's way, Hither to, What a word that is,

[34:20] You know how often I quote it, If ye being evil, Know how to give good things unto your children, How much more shall your Father in heaven, Give the Holy Spirit, To them that ask him, Lord teach us to pray, Bring him hither, To me, Another thing you will find, Unmanageable, And yet what a mercy it is, That you have got this word to encourage you still, Bring him, Bring it, Hither to me, Are you not concerned, Many of you, When you weigh matters up before God, Regarding your unfruitfulness, In your profession, Have you not found it to be, The long suffering of God,

[35:23] That has, Not yet, Commanded the man to come along with the axe, Cut it down, And why cumbereth it the ground, Oh to think of, Our unfruitfulness, In our profession of the name of Jesus, The great contrast there is, Between what you are, And what you ought to be, And now, Nothing can be done about that, From the outside, What I mean is this, No resolutions, You can make, To be better and do better, Will avail, You need help from inside, And this question, Of being, Unfruitful, And that, When it comes to,

[36:25] Your profession of Jesus, Name being viewed aright, You must say with Ezra, Oh my God, I am ashamed, I blush to lift up my face unto thee, There you are, A poor sinner, For years and years, I've had a name on a church roll, Other folks may look at you, And esteem you, As one, Who is indeed a real Christian, And you are, But, According to how you feel, When you were brought before God, How little do you feel, Like being a real Christian, You have to lament, I would do good, But evil is present with me, And that is unmanageable, I dare not promise future good to bring, My heart deceitful is, Indeed, And now says Jesus,

[37:26] Bring it hither to me, And what will you learn then, From me, Is thy fruit found, You see, Dear friends, It is a lesson, That is hard to learn, That grace, Is really, When understood right, Once it's communicated, It is an empty in principle, I thought in the early days, Of the dealings of God with me, When I was a late teenager, That as I, Followed on, To know the Lord, That I should get, Help by the way, And tokens for good, And, Intimations of his favor, And, Treasure these things up, And hoard them up, And that, As I went on, I should so grow in grace, And get, Strong in the Lord, And in the power of his might,

[38:27] But then it does not, Fall out like that, As you follow on, To know the Lord, No, I say, Grace is an emptying principle, And this is what you learn, Daily to feel thyself undone, Will make thee haste to kiss the sun, And on thy knees for pardon soon, And praise and bless, And love him too, You see, Every day, Bring him, Hither to me, And when you bring yourself, Before God, Every day you will be, Praying along the same line of thought, God be merciful to me, A sinner, And that is just, What it is, To be taught of God, And to be led into, The truth, A right, Not that you can look back,

[39:28] Over a well spent life, Wherein, You have a hundred percent, Been serving the Lord, In this way, Or that, And you, Rest upon it, No, No, No, It is to be made, More and more aware, How sad, Our state by nature is, Turn again, Son of man, Thou shalt see, Greater iniquities, Than, These, And you will come at length, To where, The apostle Paul, Came to, Christ Jesus, Came into the world, To save sinners, Of whom, I, Am she, Whatever Paul may feel about it, You leave that, Between Paul and God, But between, Yourself and God, You tell him, All the truth, No sinner needed mercy, More, Than ever sought thy face, And glad you are,

[40:29] That this man, Receiveth, Sinners, To thee I come, A sinner great, And well thou knowest, All my state, Yet full forgiveness, Is with thee, O God, Be merciful, To me, Bring him hither to me, Then there is another thought, You might be in a backsliding state, It may not be observed without, But the word of God speaks like this, About backsliding, The backslider in heart, Shall be filled, With his own ways, And your conscience, Will tell you, What your heart is like, Before God, With whom you have to do, Whether the things of God, Are uppermost, As they have been, In bygone experiences, Or whether you are, At a very low level, And,

[41:30] The world, Has got within, Or, There have been matters, Which your conscience, Will tell you the truth about, So that it can be said, Your iniquities, Your sins, Have separated between you, And God, And now you are, At the ends of the earth, And, There you are, Helpless, Eh, But, You need not be hopeless, No, Look unto me, And be ye saved, All the ends of the earth, For I am God, And there is none else, And there is this great word, If, Any man say, I have sinned, I have done that, Which is not right, And it profiteth me not, Then he is gracious unto him, And saith, Deliver him from going down,

[42:31] Into the pit, For I have found a ransom, Bring him, Hither to me, And you will find that, In the word of God, Jesus Christ, Was wonderfully kind, To poor sinners, In a backsliding state, And he is still the same, Jesus Christ, The same, Yesterday, And today, And, Forever, And he says, Return unto me, And I will return unto you, Bring him hither to me, But I will soon come to the Amen, How much there is, That is unmanageable, Your pride, The great eye swelling within you, Is unmanageable, Another thing, Oft times your worldliness, The things of everyday life, Take up your time, And your thoughts, And you give to them,

[43:32] Much concentration of mind, And you are brought very low, In your soul's experience then, Another thought is, And I wonder if you have ever brought this, To Jesus Christ, As the sinner's friend, Bring your ignorance, Your ignorance of God, How little that you know of God, And godliness, Oh, you say, Lead me in thy truth, And teach me, Bring him hither to me, You look at a word, I have looked at it, Many times, And they shall be all taught of God, And sometimes, You find this is unmanageable, You cannot discern, To your soul's satisfaction,

[44:34] That what you know of the truth, In the letter, And that which you hope, God has wrought in your soul, By the blessed spirit, For some of us, Who have lived our lives as students, And have delighted in it, We do know the letter, Of the truth, In a goodly measure, Aye, But the hymn writer says, Something must be known and felt, And when you think of a word like this, That which we have tasted, Handled and felt, Of the good word of life, Declare we unto you, You have many searchings of heart, And you want the Lord, To manage matters, And sort things out, In your soul's experience, Remembering, That which is born of the flesh is flesh, That which is born of the spirit, Is spirit,

[45:34] And you do want something, That is spirit, Lead me in thy truth, And teach me, Will ascend from your heart then, Bring it, Your ignorance, How much you feel to come short, In all that you would be and do, Bring it hither to me, Yes, And you might, Have many fears and fountains, As to what you are, And where you are in things divine, But whatever your fears may be, Christ has blessings to impart, Grace to save thee from thy fears, And oh the love that fills his heart, Sinner, Wipe away, Thy tears, Bring him hither to me, And the word of God tells us, That he is a saviour of quick understanding,

[46:39] And when you say with Ezekiah, O Lord, I am oppressed, Undertake for me, He has got heaven and earth at his command, To undertake for you, And he will not fail, To appear on your behalf, He is approachable, And he says, Bring him, Hither, To me, And that is, Bring him, Bring it, Whatever it is, Whatever, The thing is that is unmanageable, Bring it, To God incarnate, Whereby God and you, Can meet together, On friendly terms, Bring it to, On, Nipotence, To him, Who is able to deliver, Able, To save, And one thought struck me, As I was looking at this subject,

[47:39] And Jesus rebuked the devil, And he departed out of him, And the child was cured, From that very hour, The word of God does not tell us, How old that child was, But one thing, Impressed my mind, And that was, That when this child was cured, And he knew who it was, That had wrought the cure, Do you think that child, Ever forgot the sight, Of Jesus Christ, When he wrote that miracle, On his behalf, I am sure the child, Never forgot it, As long as he lived, Bring him, Hither, To me, And let us sum it up like this, For the wonders, As God has wrought,

[48:40] Let us each our praises give, And by sweet experience taught, Call upon him, While we live, Amen.