Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.heritagesermons.org/sermons/6309/hebrews-quality-average-quiet/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] Lord, may He please help me, and I do need His help. I shall endeavor to say a few things to you this morning connected to the subjects you'll find in the first chapter, the epistle to the Hebrews, the first and part of the second verse.

[0:24] The epistle to the Hebrews, the first chapter, the first verse, and part of the second.

[0:36] God, who at sunday times and in diverse manners, staking time fast unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son.

[0:59] This epistle, and therefore our subject this morning, commences with this sacred, holy, divine word, God.

[1:22] And we might well hesitate there a moment to consider the importance of this in relation to our standing as sinners in His sight, reminding ourselves, as it will please God to help us, that this holy name must not be taken in vain.

[1:56] A word straight away to my younger friend. Fulently, in the days in which we live, this holy name is lightly used and daily blasphemy.

[2:16] That commandment has never been rescinded, and I believe while earth remaineth, it never will be. He will not hold him guiltless, but traitors his name in vain.

[2:34] This causes some of us who hope we fear his name in a gracious sense, considerable exercise with trying, lest we should be left to do this unwittingly and unwillingly, and still be guilty of such a solemn act.

[2:55] The Lord preserve us and prevent us from lightly using His stated name, and may it remain in the minds of all of us, ever to use it with extreme reverence.

[3:12] God is a spirit. God is pure and holy. God is also almighty. God is greatly to be feared, we read in the word of God.

[3:25] And there will come a solemn death when the vast majority of humanity will suddenly realize as terrible as God, being without hope at the present time and without God in the world, a solemn condition to be in.

[3:46] How is it with us this morning as we look at this portion of God's truth? Does it immediately cause that feeling of reverence to rise up within us, coupled at times with a gracious sense of His mercy and a desire to bow at His footstool?

[4:12] I wonder sometimes as I go into the various causes of faith, how many really came into this house of God with a desire to worship Him.

[4:30] It has been laid upon my mind more heavily of late than ever before how guilty I myself have been in the past of neglect concerning this.

[4:44] Our prayers, when we bow our heads as we sit in the seats and come into the house of God, are usually, if you examine them carefully, for our own edification and blessing.

[4:57] How often do our prayers begin, put me this day into a worshiping frame that I may honor Thy great and holyness.

[5:14] Yet this is needful. You look at the Lord's prayers we so often call it. And how does it begin? Our Father, you are in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.

[5:28] Worship, adored, reverence. That is not enough of this. In our worship, I feel at times not enough concern that we should be found true worshippers.

[5:43] The Father we read in the word of God and they were the words of Jesus are these. The Father, Jesus, so to worship Him, that is to say, those who worship Him in spirit and in truth, in absolute sincerity and from the heart.

[6:05] The Lord grant in His rich mercy that among those present this day there may be some who worship Him, desire Him to worship, to serve Him to worship, for God has revealed in His word this.

[6:26] This, people, have I formed for myself. They shall go forth my praise. A little self-examination of our conduct during the week, whether it be on the Sabbath or on the weekday, their cause is to see a solemnly short report in this needful worship of God, yet hope that we are potatoes of grace and have received pardon and mercy.

[7:00] what poor disciples we feel to be, some of us, it's time that we review what the world of God tells us we should be and when we look within and see what we really are.

[7:15] how does this find you? But what does it do to you and me? Does it bring us more humbly, more sincerely to the throne of grace?

[7:28] Are our confessions the more real because our eyes are open to see our condition? Wonderful mercy that sees self-examination resulting, causing us to draw near us to the throne of grace and perhaps revenge or worship him above what we think we do, above what we should think is possible when we bow ourselves at his footstool and confess our shame and implore his mercy.

[8:03] God, God the Father, God the Creator, spoke to Theriot during the history of the world by the means he could do a variety of times and in very differing manners the word assures us.

[8:24] He spoke to some by night in a vision. Jacob and others too were favored to hear his voice in this way and received divine instruction and be the recipient of some very precious promises.

[8:45] In Jacob's case, the words he heard from God that God spoke to him with such a bulwark to him in his later times of trouble that he was able to plead it with God.

[9:00] Do you know anything about such a precious word? And I said, I will surely do thee good. They said, I will not leave here until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

[9:16] How this coincides with the word in the past? Remember the word unto thy servant upon which thou hast called me to hope.

[9:28] This has been my comfort in my affliction. we know that he spoke to Abraham and what if he should say to us such a word?

[9:42] Walk before me and be thou perfect. A distinct and very definite call to come out from among them and start on a journey of life of which I will be the guide and the leader and thou to follow me.

[10:01] you could hear this again. And how many were the words which he spake by Moses?

[10:14] We're told in one book in the scripture that God should say to Aaron and Miriam that he would speak to some prophet in a dream or by whatever means he could see but with his servant Moses it should not be so.

[10:34] He would speak to him mouth to mouth. In a similitude Moses could see him and hear his voice. even these days hear the voice of God though we do not see him in his humility.

[10:55] We hope we see him with signs by faith and we hear his voice and we prove it to be having some of you prove it to be just as powerful as it was in days of old.

[11:07] He thinks and it must be done. Oh but there are others in the history of the world who have heard various things in those far days there was one who said to Job for God speaketh once yea twice yet man perceives it not in a dream in a vision of the night when deep sleep falleth upon men in slumbering upon the bed then he openeth the ears of men and feeleth their instruction.

[11:53] How confirming is that word in Psalm 62. God has spoken once twice have I heard this that power belongeth unto God how we live to prove the truth of this word of God that without him all efforts are useless fruitless barren unavailing the power which alone taught him from him and through him let our minds go now to that army of prophets who were favoured to hear the words of God in various ways as our text declares at sundry times and in guidance manners they heard his voice and were given the grace and the courage against violent opposition of kinds to deliver the message to mention with thus death the Lord this lent divine authority to the word they spoke and even death so much of it fell upon hard hearts death ears and stubbornness objewit human beings by nature and death to every warning given as we sometimes seem man brave the patient power of heaven and justice and mercy mercant sway the rose and peace to die and raise

[13:45] I think I've misstated that however you probably are well aware of what it should be but just think for the time being of the wondrous way God sakes in the commandments he gave it was clearly shown to Moses and to the people of Israel that the word on those tablets was God's word he spake in no uncertain terms in those days of old and revealed his will concerning how his people should live and up and walk and move I come now to the present times the solemn times in which we live in relation to God's commandments and the awful way that they are broken constantly by us in a

[14:50] Christian so-called Christian land her column is the state to which we are fallen as a nation in our behavior morally the unclean things which are perpetrated in this land and the violence the blatant disregard of God's word today Sabbath day is broken idols were set up in a variety of ways in what is called a Christian land and I believe a lot of people do not realize that they worship idols yet it is the case that self that worship all idols is constantly worshiped on the Sabbath to the neglect of the worship of God which we've already alluded to which he denounced of his children very rightly very faithfully that the people generally speaking have turned their back upon this revealed word of

[16:00] God the word he spoke in time of old at first time first time remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy honor thy heart and mother it's a word to the children children that said in the new testament obey your faith in the Lord for this is right and those other very solemn ones would follow on concerning murder an unclean liver and covetousness God spake very pointedly in that way that he gave his command and his voice has constantly been heard reiterating and confirming his will in this matter throughout the ages and still man goes blindly on breaking the command my friend how is it with us how is it with us

[17:07] I believe that a number of his children today hear his voice in reproof this one particular commandment to which we all are so solemnly liable to break they shall not covet they shall not covet what solemn days we live in when you look around and find the general dissatisfaction and lack of contentment which is everywhere abroad at the present time you may say is this in accordance with the words is something which vitally confirms us all we need we need to pray for grace that we may live according to the professing remade of his name and hear his precious voice evening's commandment and seek grace to walk therein the word which is with me frequently lately i wish there were more evidence that it was true in my case and that more grace might be given to comply with the saying the world is good but it causes much examination to you are all the children of life you will sometimes darkness but may you light in the

[18:35] Lord walk as children of life this will mean in conformity to the word and will of God according to that which he has spoken i want to come more particularly for a few minutes if i am help to the way god spoke by his prophets concerning he he should come what wondrous revelation was made to them of old time do you ever consider how poor prophet the psalmist david was he has a firm claim to be lifted among the prophets you read the psalms carefully to find the Lord Jesus there clearly revealed that the body should suffer and the glory that should follow wondrous as God did God lead David into the truths of him that should follow and call

[19:38] David greatest psalm with the Lord Jesus Christ and its grace and discernment be given to us to read the psalms more diligently we shall find that God speak very powerfully through a number of them and it is pleased him to speak through the psalm in a way of guidance to that subject of worship you will find in the psalm every incentive to the three usual parts of worship whether they be private or public it is to say confession prayer praise the psalms are full of them and God has spoken to us and God speaks today by those psalms by their guidance into worship how often

[20:39] I would ask you with all affection how often have some of us joined with the psalmist of old in that most solemn confession of his psalm 51 and found a great need so frequently to please purge me with it and I to be clean wash me and I to be whiter than snow what a precious voice is heard there the holding out of cleansing wonderful mercy to be in the heart to seek for these messes of walking and to find that God's voice is in the psalms as he was written why the psalms so frequently lead us into just the very desires of our hearts and prove a very important thing that he who led his servant

[21:48] David to pen these precious psalms has opened our ears that were no longer deaf to his voice but are under the leading and instruction of the same gracious spirit that caused those to be pained out of the good and how many of you I wonder have come into this dance with this petition show me a spoken for good speak to me be not silent unto me lest so be silent I become like those who go down into the pit you wait to hear his voice down your ears open to hear his voice what a mercy Jesus said on one occasion to his disciples blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear and then in praise yes how we hear the voice of God leading us through the psalms in praise bless the Lord

[23:04] O my soul and all that is within me bless his holy name bless the Lord O my soul and forget not all his benefits then comes this sweet one and then I must pass on such a lovely word of praise and I believe the two of you will have joined me in it and would again O magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together why I sought the Lord and he heard me there's his there's his he heard his voice when he answered your prayer what did he say I must just repeat this his voice again and call upon me in the day of trouble I will deliver this and thou shalt glorify me who should be one in thy favor that he spoke by his servants to prophet to her father and clearly showed that there should be one to come a redeemer one who should be a sacrifice to don't know how many times he's read the fifty third of

[24:33] Isaiah but it's well worth reading again to read how the Lord spoke by his servant the prophet Isaiah clearly indicating what the son of God should pass through to save sinners he also revealed by that same prophet how he should be born and to another prophet where he should be born and it is said by those more wise than I that there are indications in the prophet when he should be born I can't go into that but we do know this he has come and now I wish it comes having very feebly referred to the way God spoke in time passed I want to look at the next part of her text passed indeed last day now we're told that this does not indicate any immediate end of the world and was never intended to it doesn't mean that the time is short even now who's to know when

[25:51] Jesus himself said did not the angels of heaven know that his father only but it does indicate and is intended to mean that there is no other dispensation to follow the present one there was what was called the patriarchal dispensation those of the fathers of old time followed by the merciless dispensation and that followed by the prophetic dispensation and that followed by the present dispensation the Christian era when Jesus came we are told of his kingdom there should be no end an everlasting kingdom there's no other era to follow no other dispensation to come when this dispensation closes the world will end but God's kingdom will not the

[26:52] Lord Jesus Christ's kingdom will not he will then gather together his dear people and reign over them forever and ever and may we be in that blessed kingdom hath in these last days spoken unto us by his star now Bruce reveals what God spoke in time past were words of warning words very solemn words of threatening yet they were words of comfort and words of promise words of blessing now let us look as we may be helped but the words spoken by himself quite noticeable that when Jesus began to preach as we read he could use just the same words as

[27:55] John Baptist repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand this then is among the words spoken by his son and Jesus also said this on another occasion except he was sent he will all likewise carry retention then is a most important word that we should hear if our eels be open to receive the same what is repentance well it's a thing my friends that accompanies the child of God throughout the whole of its children is after the call by grace daily to repent of sin is a proof of a very same conscience and the work of grace within isn't a remarkable thing that repentance is called joy in heaven joy in heaven over one sinner that repent more than over ninety and nine just persons who need no repentance fear to need none what a wonderful thing is repentance and when do we really repent

[29:17] I wouldn't set up any standard to be a plain tool because repentance is the gift of God and like all the gifts of God is sovereignly destroyed according to his willing pleasure and for his own honor and glory as well as the benefit of the sinner your sentence may be given and the first conviction it accompanies confession and confession by the repentance but when do men or rather I would not say men when does the child of God man or woman you also repent you see there are stages of repent some of it is so bitter some of it is so sorrowful some of it is so distressing it's repenting and good and good is God honoring because it's real and sincere and honest and relieves the sinner you ever praise this to confess and repent is to halve the burden at least to feel it so lighten to confess what a wonderful mercy repentance is in their heart but there's such a thing as joyful repentance sin him writer has it like this nor is it such a business as is by some their name sinner may repent and sing rejoice and be ashamed what needs an explanation you may say is so contradictory to now

[31:00] I believe I know by experience what it is to feel to loathe myself and yet to rejoice to think that God is so merciful you truly repent and joyfully repent when you receive the token of forgiveness of sin because you've lost the fear of punishment there's no more of that slavery's fear left for the time being liberty has been granted to you your pardon has been extended and the gates of heaven barely for time seem to be open for you yet you will repent and load yourself and grieve for grieving him and sorrow to think that you have been a cold unwittingly yet very certainly of his suffering and salvation too yes because it was for you God if that is your blessed condition to have received pure repentance he had spoken by his son this precious word and as

[32:08] I hinted his last throughout the whole of the child of God's life daily I do you think of sin daily wash in Calvary's blood a blessed state to be in my things a very precious condition to be in daily to confess daily to wash daily to repent after these last days spoken to us by his son what did he say go ye and learn what that means I will have mercy and not sacrifice I came not to call the righteous but to me to repent how does that do you is that just what you want to hear is that the total sum as one says mercy good lord is all that seems to me at times isn't it it's the one thing you must lay hands on your hand of faith would grasp it even when you were to a lowest wouldn't it it's mercy ah but it's precious mercy that brings us in as a worshiper to put through it's mercy it's mercy which causes one as a good one of old to sit at the feet of jesus close and in his right mind wonderful mercy to be there but think of the words inside precious word answer

[33:38] I say not to call the righteous but sinners to repent this was said of it but very blessed because it was true this man was Jesus sinners and eateth with us have spoken unto us by his son what did he say let not your hearts be troubled you believe in God believe also in me in my father's house are many mansions that when I saw I would have told you I go to prepare a place if you have ever been spoken into your heart for you for you I believe it came to me once most unexpectedly

[34:41] I was visiting a servant of his in his advanced age obviously nearing his journey then and he sat talking together I quoted the word that I thought would be safe to him and it came to me I said here here your son I go to prepare a place for you and the word came to me oh that Marcus I heard his voice spoke to me he softened me he humiliated me he caused me to fall at his foot stool and worship and sing to the praise of mercy I found he said I go away but if I go away I will come again and receive you unto myself that where

[35:44] I am there you may be also what is your religion I ask the question very solemnly you exhibit a religion every time you come into this house what is it for you what does it contain hope of heaven through the marriage the suffering and the intercession of a dying risen glorified savior do you believe the scripture that says I go to prepare a place for you because I live you shall live also has this word ever engaged your attention and reached your ear and your heart father what a word is that father I will that thy whom thou hast given me be with me here I am spoken to us by his son how they hope of heaven how they have blessed interest in that which is to follow when times will be no more those precious words they are easy to say but what a blessed truth they are come up higher come up higher come in many

[37:41] And he says, I never knew you. I never knew you. Depart from me. Oh, darling.

[37:54] He used to sing a little hymn in the Sunday school. In fact, there were two lines which had come to me all of a sudden.

[38:06] And I had to pass them on. One was this. One was this. Careless in us. What will then become a verse?

[38:20] And the other is such a solemn question. Concerning those who attain to heaven and hear his voice in that blessed day saying, Come in, ye blessed of my Father.

[38:34] Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. What was that question? Oh, sir. Will you be there?

[38:47] What a word. The word is, Father, I will, that thy own love has given me. And then there's this, because I don't want to cut anybody off, God knows.

[38:59] I'd rather encourage any poor teacher. Here's the word. All that the Father gives me. Here come to me. Here come to me. Him that cometh to me.

[39:12] I will in no way pass I. Oh, my friend. My young friend. Middle-aged friend. Age friend. Have you. So come.

[39:23] In the way he is appointed. Because he said this also. And we haven't departed from the church. But spoken unto us by his son. He said, Come.

[39:34] And to me. For ye that labor. And the heavy laden. And I will give you rest. He said this too. And I must be filled and needed in the days in which we live.

[39:49] It was a petition to his father. I pray not that they should just take them out of the world. But that they should just keep them from the evil.

[40:02] Here is our question. Here is the protection of a child of God. However weak and helpless they may seem to be.

[40:12] Preserved. Preserved because kept. It is they who will attain to that inheritance mentioned by people.

[40:24] Which is undefiled and which passeth not away. Reserved in heaven for you who are kept. By the power of God. We've got back to that. Christ of all heard this.

[40:36] That power belongeth unto God. Kept by his mighty power. Son of us has called to thank him for this. Preserved in Jesus.

[40:48] When. My feet made haste of hell. And there should I have gone. But thou dost all things grow. His love was great.

[40:58] His mercy free. Which from the pit. Delivers me. Have you heard his voice? He says this in his word. My feet. Hear my voice.

[41:11] Then this word will sing up in your heart as you are standing in the things of God. The companions. Hearten to thy voice. Cause me to hear. Cause me to hear.

[41:23] I'll leave him up there with you. For your sort of meditation. And I do hope. And pray that. It may please him from time to time.

[41:33] To speak to you. By his tongue. In the gospel. In this. As of prayer. May he forgive. All that has been in this. Amen. Amen.

[42:13] Amen. Amen.

[43:13] Amen. Amen.

[44:13] Amen. Amen.

[45:13] Amen. Amen.