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[0:00] If the Lord will enable me, I would draw your attention to the 111th Psalm, the second verse.

[0:17] Psalm 111, verse 2. The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.

[0:45] You notice that the word works is in the plural. And there are so many works of the Lord, they're far too numerous for me to mention or go into.

[1:01] But there is, if you look at our 88th hymn, it is put in beautiful language there. One strange work exceeds them all.

[1:16] And that is the work of redemption. If we looked at the work of creation, it is beautiful.

[1:27] And all the works since the creation, I mean concerning this world, they're wonderful and great.

[1:40] But they're all marred. Creation is marred. And everything under the sun is marred by sin.

[1:54] By fallen humanity in his lost, ruined state. In some way or other, everything is marred and spoiled.

[2:07] And it will be so. All creation groans through thee, pregnant cause of misery. Thou hast ruined, wretched man, ever since the world began.

[2:23] Thou hast God afflicted too. Nothing less than this would do. Well now, the great thing that concerns you and I are the works of God in an experimental way in your soul and mine.

[2:45] We're all passing through this time state to a never-ending eternity. Sooner or later, the place that knows us now will know us no more forever.

[2:58] And therefore, it is imperative, necessary. Oh, may the Holy Ghost make it so that we seek to know where we are on the way to.

[3:17] Whether we are on the way to a never-ending hell because of our sins, that is what we justly deserve. Or whether through the mercy and grace of a covenant God, we are on the way to a blissful heaven under his smile forever.

[3:41] Well now, let us look at these things personally as helped by the Holy Ghost. Oh, how we need him.

[3:53] The works of the Lord are great. This great work of the Lord. If you go back in your Bible to the creation, And when God created man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, And he became a living soul, He didn't do this with any other of the creation, only man.

[4:29] And man became a living soul. And that soul is separate from the body.

[4:40] It lives in it. It animates it. But it is everlasting. Immortal.

[4:52] It will never pass out of existence. And though by reason of sin, Our first parents forfeited forever in nature by their sin and disobedience of God's command in the Garden of Eden.

[5:13] And by that sin, they forever lost all communion with God. But the Lord didn't leave them there.

[5:27] No, no. Oh, what a wonderful mercy. He spoke to them the first promise regarding redemption from the fall.

[5:40] And oh, what a wonderful thing it is. That that redemption was all, as it were, fixed and sure in the mind of the eternal God, Even before Adam fell.

[5:58] Or before sin entered into the world, There was provision made in the eternal three, In a covenant of grace against the ruin of the fall for his own people.

[6:15] A people that he would choose out of Adam's lost, ruined race. Ah, he would bless them with his love, The love of the whole Trinity, The love of the Father, The love of the Son, The love of the Holy Ghost.

[6:33] It would ever be upon them. He wrote their names in his book. The Father gave them to his eternal Son, In that covenant.

[6:48] And the Holy Ghost was there. His love is upon them. Just the same as the Father's and the Son's.

[6:58] But oh, After sin entered into the world, We read, Death passed upon all men, For that all have sinned.

[7:13] And we all come short of the glory of God. And though these people's names are in heaven, And they are under the love of a covenant-keeping God, Yet, Yet, We come into this world, The scripture designates us as dead in trespasses and in sins.

[7:39] And all communion with that God was shut out by the sin of Adam. But God there promised redemption.

[7:53] He spoke to Satan, Who brought about their fall, The seed of the woman, This woman thou hast beguiled, Her shall bruise thy head, And thou shalt bruise his heel.

[8:08] And in due time it was brought to pass. The eternal song in this great work, Oh, what a great work was needed, To redeem this people from their sins.

[8:27] And this is the work that Hart refers to in his beautiful hymn, This one strange work that exceeds every other work, We may look upon the creation of God, We may look upon the earth and its fruitfulness, We may look upon the rolling sea, We may look at the stars and the moon at night, And the sun during the day, But they all sink into insignificance under this work, This great work of God in the redemption of his elect.

[9:08] Oh, what an infinite mercy it is to feel that, And to know it in your heart, By divine teaching. Well now, as we come into this world, The world is the greatest thing to us, And self, This self that we bring with us into the world, It's our God, We worship it, We serve it, With all the power that we have, Oh yes, And that we should do till our dying day, If grace does not stop us.

[9:48] Well now, Let us look at this great work, For the works of the Lord are great, And they are sought out, Of all them that are of pleasure therein, Has the Holy Ghost ever given you pleasure, In seeking out, This work of redemption, For yourself?

[10:15] You may know it in a general way, You may have been brought up to know it, You may believe it, In a general way, And it is good if you do, I would not condemn that for a moment, But if you never have anything more than that, It will never save you, No, no, Oh, it is a wonderful mercy, If the Holy Ghost has given you pleasure, In searching out, Seeking out, To know, If this greatest work of God, In the salvation of his people, If it was for you, Personally, It wasn't for everybody, You know, No, no, no, What a solemn thing, I will have mercy upon whom, I will have mercy,

[11:16] And it is so, Does he not say in his word, Figuratively, Jacob have I loved, But Esau have I hated, And in the world today, And has been, Ever since time began, Ever since the Lord in mercy created man, There has been a people, That have, By grace in their hearts, The indwelling of the Holy Ghost, Have sought out, Sought out, These great works of the Lord, It is an infinite favor, You know, To us, If this work of Christ, The eternal Son of God, In redeeming his people, If it is made to you and me, In our very soul's feelings,

[12:18] The greatest work, The most important work, To ourselves, We may, We may, As it were, Look at God's other works, And, We may value them, As we should, But, Has the Holy Ghost, Ever come into your heart, And mine, Has he ever convinced us, Of our need, Our deep need, Of this work, This great work, And that if we pass through this life, And we have never sought it out, And it has never sought us out, Oh, What a solemn ending we shall have, What a mercy it is, If the Holy Ghost, I repeat, Makes this thing, The most important thing, In your life and mine, To seek out this,

[13:19] Well, It is only the Holy Ghost, That can do this, By nature, We should never seek it out, We might seek out many works, And we might value them, And we might even bless, A God in creation for them, And the God of providence for them, But we should never search out, This work, This great work, For ourselves, Unless, And until, The Holy Ghost, Brings about within us, That new birth, Which Christ spoke of, To Nicodemus, Which he said, Was so essential, That without it, We cannot even see, The kingdom of God, But oh, What a mercy it is, To be blessed, With that new birth, That new creation, Within, And the Holy Ghost,

[14:21] Will bring this about, In all his people, Sooner or later, In their life, He is God, The Holy Ghost, It is his blessed work, To do this, In the hearts, Of his elect, But he is a sovereign, You know, In all his works, And ways, This is a great work, It is indeed, For it is a bringing, Of life, Into the dead soul, It is a quickening, Of that dead soul, And, As he does, This wonderful work, Work within, This will cause us, To seek out, Greater works, It will indeed, Personally, For yourself, Oh, What a mercy it is, To be wrought upon, By the Holy Ghost, And usually, His first work within,

[15:22] Is, To convince of sin, As Christ said, He would, When he, He didn't say, When it, It, He said, When he, That is the third, Glorious person, In the Trinity, God, The Holy Ghost, When he shall come, He shall convince, Of sin, Of righteousness, Of judgment, Oh, And he does, You know, And this, This, And only this, As he does it, In the hearts, Of his sinful people, Quickening their souls, Either, Bringing this about, In a gentle way, Or, In a more sudden, Shall we say, More forcible way, But in every case, In whatsoever way,

[16:23] He chooses, And whatever, Means he uses, Sometimes, Sometimes he uses, The preaching of the gospel, Sometimes, He uses, Private means, Sometimes, He does it, Without means, At all, He can come, Into the sinner's heart, And he can, Convince him, Of his sin, And he can, Bring about, This new birth, Within him, And what, But what a difference, It makes, Where he does this work, It is called in the Psalms, His strange work, And so it is, He mercifully, Enlightens the sinner, He gives him, To see and feel, That he is, A sinner, He makes him, To know something, Of the holiness, Of God, He gives him, Faith in his heart, It is in this new heart,

[17:25] He believes, Now that there is a God, You know, I tried for years, There to believe, There was no God, Oh, I say to my shame, I tried, My utmost, To be an atheist, In the world, But I never really succeeded, And I bless God, I didn't, But, Oh, When the Holy Ghost, In infinite mercy, Begins this work, In the heart, They are brought, To realize, That one day, They will stand, Before that Holy God, In judgment, And that they will, Receive of him, The things, Done in their body, Whether they be, Good or bad, And they are convinced, That all, That they have done, And can do, Is bad, That is in the sight, Of this holy, Holy God, Who cannot look,

[18:26] Upon sin, With the least degree, Of, Of, Allowance, Oh, He will make them know, That the very thought, Of foolishness, Is sin, In his sight, He may not, Bring his law, Verbally, Into your heart, He doesn't seem, To do so, In these days, But in every case, He makes the sinner, Know he is a sinner, And he brings him, Through that knowledge, To seek, For salvation, Oh, He wants a remedy, He wants a remedy, Against eternity, He, He, He, Is given to see, That he has, As we said, An immortal soul, That that soul, Will stand before God, In the judgment day,

[19:26] It will make him, Tremble sometimes, And, Oh, It will bring, Prayer out of his heart, Out of that new heart, The new covenant, Blessing is, I will take away, The stony heart, Out of their flesh, That heart, That we have, By nature, It can feel, Nothing, It is as hard, As a stone, Regarding eternal, Things, But, He gives a new heart, A heart of flesh, Which, Begins to feel, Eternal matters, And what a difference, This makes, Oh, Eternity, Eternity, Where shall I spend, Eternity, Becomes the feeling, Within, I am a sinner, And you will pray, The prayer of the public, And in the temple, God be merciful,

[20:27] To me, A sinner, It's not somebody else's, Sins and faults, It's your own, Your own, Before God, And this work, Is secret, In the heart, Ah, But it will cause, Many a sigh, And many a groan, Before God, Eh, You will want to know, Concerning eternity, You will want, Salvation, And the Holy Ghost, Goes on in this work, He teaches, Non-teachers like him, I repeat, He may use means, He may use the preaching, He may use, Your private reading, He may bless you, At a throne of grace, Seeking mercy, But in every case, He illuminates, Enlightens, Teachers as none can teach, And he shows,

[21:28] The soul in time, That Jesus, Is the way, The truth, And the life, That no man, Can come to the Father, A holy, Holy God, Except, Through Christ, Christ, But how, Can this be, Ah, This blessed eternal, Son of God, Eternal in, Eh, In an eternal generation, Not a son by office, Or any such thing as that, Nor just by his incarnation, God forbid, But the eternal, Son of God, From everlasting, With the Father, And in due time, Uh, According to the covenant, Of grace, He came into this, Sinful world, Uh, As I said, These people were given, To him, In the covenant,

[22:29] Of grace, To redeem, They were given to him, To be his spouse, Ultimately, His bride, In a glorious heaven, And, The Holy Ghost, Turns their mind, To this blessed person, Christ, He begins to make him, Their all in all, For salvation, He begins, Eh, To show them, Something of the beauty, The loveliness, The preciousness, Of this person, But it is all, In the want of him, The longing after him, And, Uh, Perhaps it may be, A long, Long time, That they are seeking him, Longing after him, Wanting him, But during this time, They will use, All the means, Available to them, Or they won't miss,

[23:31] Services in the chapel, If they can help it, And they won't miss, The prayer meeting, And they won't miss, Reading God's word, And they won't, Be found missing, Seeking him, In prayer, Oh, Eternity, So solemn to them, Oh, Eternity, And, The salvation, Of their soul, There are times, In their soul's feelings, Not all the time, But there are times, When this is so important, Oh, That they can't leave it alone, And prayer, And sighs, And groans, Will go up out, Of their heart, There'll often be, The upward glancing, Of an eye, When none but God is near, The falling of a tear, Sometimes, And sometimes, The Lord will bless them, With repentance,

[24:33] What a blessed, Sweet gift, Repentance is, And we are told, Without repentance, There's no salvation, Well, What is this repentance, Then?

[24:48] It is another, Of the works of God, These experimental works, That he works, In a sinner's heart, Ah, There will be times, When he gives him, A soft heart, He melts, That obdurate, Hard heart, That they feel, And sometimes, He melts it, To tears, Before him, In confession, Of their sins, Of their sins, Of their sins, Oh, It's sweet work, Is that, You know, Do you know it, Have you ever felt it, When the Holy Ghost, Has softened, Your hard heart, And you have wept, And you have wept, Inwardly, If not outwardly, You have wept, As it were, Before God, Because of your wretched sins, And you have, And you have said, Oh, Lord, Show me thy mercy, Bless me with salvation, Oh,

[25:49] Come into my heart, Blessed Jesus, Reveal thy love to me, Oh, How I long for it, And he will be made precious to the soul, But in this repentance, Ah, What a blessed gift it is, And you will find, And prove, That you can't make it yourself, Or there will be times, When your heart feels as hard, High as iron, And you can't melt it, And you couldn't force a tear of repentance, If they'd offer you the world, No, Yet there are other times, When in the sovereignty of the Holy Ghost, He softens your heart, He gives you repentance, Oh, It is the gift of God, And you'll prove it is, But how sweet to know it,

[26:51] And we are taught in the Gospels, By Christ himself, That there's joy, Joy in the presence of the angels, Angels of God, Over one sinner that repenteth, What a mercy it is, If you and I, Have caused joy in heaven, If we have been blessed, With this gift of repentance, And we have confessed, I, If there's repentance, There's a pouring out, Oh, You don't hold any sin back then, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, You pour out, Openly, All your sins, All your guilt, You lay it open before him, And you say, Lord, I am a sinner, Oh, There's nothing good in me at all, And, You learn this more and more as you go along,

[27:54] But, In these early days I'm speaking of, Can you trace out anything of these things in your heart? Have you any evidence that you have had this repentance, And that the Lord has mercifully dealt with you in this life?

[28:12] That he's not left you altogether in your nature? He's not left you altogether to be dead in trespasses and in sins?

[28:23] That self is not altogether your God now? And the world is not altogether your home? It's a mercy if it is so.

[28:35] Oh, It is indeed. But, Let us go a bit further. What a blessed day it is, If the Holy Ghost reveals to you this great work of salvation in the revelation of the person of Christ to your soul.

[28:55] Ah, He will give you to see something of how he became incarnate, How he took into everlasting union with his divine person, the Son of God, Humanity.

[29:14] Why? So that in that humanity he could be born made of a woman, Made under the law.

[29:27] Have you ever realized that you were under the law? That you were born under the law? And being born under that law? Oh, Being born under it, You're liable to keep it.

[29:43] And if you do not keep it, Then condemnation is yours. But, In these natures that we inherited through the fall, We have no capability whatever, Of keeping that law.

[30:01] No, No, No, No, Not one command of it. That is to the satisfaction of a holy God? No. But, Oh, This blessed Christ, He didn't come into this world with a fallen nature like you and I have.

[30:21] No, No, The Holy Ghost, In overshadowing the Virgin, Brought forth this humanity. Pure, Holy, Holy, Oh, What a wonderful thing this is.

[30:39] What a great work this is. Have you ever sought it out? Ever looked into it? With a feeling of personal interest in it?

[30:50] Have you ever said, Oh, Didst thou come into this world of sin and iniquity, Taking into everlasting union with thy divine person, My nature, But no sin in it, To redeem me?

[31:09] And didst thou come and bear all that thou didst bear In that sacred holy humanity, As thou didst tread this sinful wilderness, With all the thorns and briars it had for thee, The opposition of men and devils against thee, The hatred, At last crucifixion, Didst thou come to suffer, bleed, and die, In this world, in that humanity?

[31:44] Didst thou come to fulfill Every precept, In that holy law, Which condemns me? Didst thou work out that perfect righteousness, To form a wedding robe for me?

[32:02] Ah, These are things that will, You'll search out, You'll search out, It will be in your heart, By the Holy Ghost, Their blessed things, And at times they'll come up in your heart, Didst thou do all this for me, A poor, Wretched, Sinful being like me, A worm of the earth, Not deserving the least of thy favour?

[32:31] Oh, Wonderful grace, Wonderful love and mercy, If thou didst. And sometimes you feel, Oh, If thou wilt make that manifest to me, I should be the happiest person, Under the sun, And so you will, If he does, While it's there, Some of us have been blessed with it, I hope over 60 years ago now, In my early twenties, After being brought down, As a poor, Wretched, Lost sin out of the world, And its pleasures and vanities, The Lord in his infinite mercy favoured me, I looked for hell, But he gave me heaven, When he revealed himself to my soul, After much seeking, Ah, In that blessed vision of Christ,

[33:32] That I saw, I shall never forget it, What a mark it made in my life, And I can't forget it, No, No, And he spoke to me and said, Where I am, There shall my servant be, And my, Oh, My heart was filled, With a peace that I could never understand, Never describe, That evening I looked, I looked, Tried to look back, To the awful feelings I'd had before, But I couldn't bring them back, Heaven was in my soul, Oh, That blessed Christ, How precious he was, The chiefest among ten thousand, The altogether lovely one, I worshipped him in the beauty of holiness, And that peace in my case lasted months and months,

[34:33] Oh, Oh, How blessed, I'm not ashamed to speak of these things, In, I find in the Acts, The apostle often referred, To what the Lord had done in his soul, And a man, In a pulpit, If he can't tell you, What the Lord has done for his own soul, Well, He's no right in a pulpit, He should be able to tell you, Something of what the Lord has done for him, The husband man must be first partaker, Of the fruits of the gospel, Well now, If he brings you to a day like that, Oh, What a great day, What a great work, To you, It will seem the greatest work, That ever was, When he comes into your soul, And as it were, Says,

[35:33] I am thy salvation, Heaven will be yours at last, Through my sufferings, Through my righteousness, And, Through my death, Through my resurrection, Through my ascension into heaven, Through my work, Even in heaven, Where he ever lives, To make intercession for his people, Where he is their great high priest, Where he, Having passed through, All the troubles and trials, He did in this world, He is in heaven, In that holy humanity, Oh, Blessed, Faithful, Merciful, Compassionate, Loving, High priest, For his people, And sometimes, The Holy Ghost, Gives them faith, To believe it,

[36:35] Feel it, And draws them to him, In their troubles and trials, Here, But oh, What a mercy, The works of the Lord are great, Great, Sought out, Of all them that have pleasure therein, Have we any pleasure in these things?

[36:58] Do they really, Can you honestly say, Before God, That they give you the greatest, Pleasure, That you'll have a greater pleasure in these, Than in anything in this world, And you know we value the things of this world, We've got a covetous heart, That's as vile as anybody's, But oh, We know this, That there have been times, In our souls experience, When they could have laid, The wealth of the universe, At our feet, And said, Which will you have this, Or Christ, And we would have said, Without hesitation, Give me Christ, Give me Christ, All this will pass away, It will go, And you will go, From this earth, Ah, But if you have this great work, And you have been,

[38:00] By the Holy Ghost, Have found pleasure in it, Sort it out, Ah, What a mercy, That will never pass away, No, No, No, The works of nature, Will all pass away, Oh, They're passing away, The using of them, Aren't they, But, This will never pass away, No, Oh, What a mercy, Christ is formed in your heart, The hope of glory, And mine too, It will never, Never be obliterated, No, No, All the storms, All the tribulations, All the temptations, And you'll have some, It is a path of tribulation, For God's people, In this world, It is to loosen them, From this world, In one sense,

[39:02] But, Ah, It is to make them, Sick of self, Sick of this world, But, More fond of Christ, Oh, Sometimes, To see a beauty, And a loveliness, In him, That is so attractive, And oh, How one longs, To feel that sweet, Peace, That rest, Rest, That he alone, Can give, And you know, If you're one of these characters, As I've been trying, To set forth feebly, Oh, You'll need rest, Rest, The devil, Will be at you, At times, He'll harass you, And perplex you, And you can't always tell, Whether it's him, Or whether it's yourself, And you'll find, You'll have a heart, Full of iniquity, And sin, As we sung in that, Beautiful hymn, You'll find, Your heart, Is a sink of sin,

[40:03] Every evil, Ah, It is, If you look at the literal figure, You pour down, You'll sink everything, That's evil, And abominable, Out of your sight, You don't want it, But what about, Your own heart, Have you ever found it, To be a sink of sin, That's plugged, And you can't get rid of the things, You want to, How solemn, Ah, But sometimes, They're subdued, Sweetly subdued, And grace comes into exercise, Christ is made precious, You'll begin to search out, Enough pleasure, In his work, His work of redemption, In your own heart, And what he is doing there, What a mercy, What a wonderful mercy,

[41:05] Well it is a favour, Oh it is a favour, To know something, Of these things, In your heart, I've only dwelt, With regard to the soul's, Salvation, In this matter, Because it is the most important, It's the first work, Oh it is the greatest work, Under the sun, The, The life, And the death of Christ, Emmanuel, Oh it was the greatest, Greatest work, Of a great God, We say it reverently, And the, The great work, Of God the Holy Ghost, Is to seek out, These people, He knows, Whose names, Are in the book, Of life, He knows, For whom, Christ suffered, Bled and died, Ah, He knows, All these people,

[42:09] You know, He is God, Equal with the Father, And the eternal son, So I think, In this day, He is so slight, And so little, Is really said of him, How solemn it is, Is it any wonder, That we are in, The state that we are in, That the Holy Ghost, Is withdrawing from us, In his power, Oh, How, Look at your empty pews, Here, Does it concern you, Ah, You know, There were days, When this place, Was full, And other places, Were too, And godly men, Preached the truth, With power, And sinners, Were convinced, Saints, Were blessed, In their soul, Christ, Was revealed, And, They made, Blessed ends, And went, Into heaven, Where are we now,

[43:12] Little if any power, Is with the truth, Preached, However soundly, The Holy Ghost, Is grieved, Well he might be, There you know, Sometimes we hear him, Just mentioned, And he just, Just seems as though, He's but a, Some sort of an influence, From the father, Or the son, He is God, Equal with the father, And the eternal son, In, In, The great Godhead, He is to be worshipped, As God, My dear friends, We have nothing, Nothing at all, In salvation, But by the Holy Ghost, Revelation within, Him, Oh what a mercy, I remember, And perhaps you will, If you read,

[44:13] John Kershaw's, Autobiography, You will find there, That in those, Days of old, Mr. Gadsby, Was persecuted, And hated, Because he wrote, Hymns, To the Holy Ghost, Worshipping him, And because he preached, Him, As a person, In the Trinity, And that we have, Nothing without his teaching, Many, Even, Even good ministers, Mistakenly, Opposed him, But in the end, They found he was right, And they never altered him, No, No, And I feel, In this sad day, He has been so slighted, And set at naught, Heard that, He is wounded, He is grieved, We read, Don't we grieve, Not the Holy Ghost, And he is grieved,

[45:16] We have the result of it, It's plain, Before our eyes, Not only here, But all over the country, Where our denomination exists, Oh, What a sad day it is, Oh, What a mercy it will be, If the, If the Lord, In his wonderful mercy, Would pour upon us, The spirit of grace, And supplication, To pray for the return, Of the Holy Ghost to us, In mercy, In power, In building up, His church on earth, Well, The works of the Lord are great, They are sought out, Of all them that have pleasure therein, And this work, Will be sought out by you, The work of the spirit, And that where you can't see it, And where you can't feel it, Ah,

[46:17] Oh, If it works right, It will cause you to seek it, To seek it, And what a mercy it is, If we have pleasure therein, And we're enabled to seek it, Until we find it, Well, Here I must close, The time is gone, If the Lord will enable me, I'll continue with the subject, This evening, May the Lord bless, His word to us, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen,

[47:36]  Amen, Amen, Amen, Here you see the Father's grace Beating in the Savior's face As the pain of heaven on you move Praise the Lord