Walking in the Light of the Lord

Walking in the Light of the Lord

(No. 2713)

A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1901.

DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING, APRIL
4, 1880.

"O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the LORD."
Isaiah 2:5.

We may regard this invitation, first of all, as addressed to the Jews.
According to the preceding verses, the Gentiles are to be brought
in–"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of
the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and
shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
And many people shall go and say, Come, and let us go up to the
mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will
teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion
shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he
shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they
shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning
hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war any more." Then, after that, finding the Jews still
alienated from God, the Gentiles will turn to them and say, "O house of
Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord."

Now, in a measure, this prophecy has already been fulfilled and the
evidence of its fulfillment is before your very eyes at this moment!
Multitudes of us Gentiles, whom the Jews only regarded as dogs and
outcasts, have been converted to the faith of Christ and adopted into
the family of God. So now, my Brothers and Sisters, we ought to have
very great tenderness of heart towards the older branch of the
family–the seed of Abraham, the house of Jacob, the children of
Israel, who, for the most part, still reject our Lord Jesus Christ and
remain outside the pale of His Church. A Christian is the last person
who ought to ever speak disrespectfully or unkindly of the Jews. We
remember that our Lord belonged to that race and that His first
Apostles were also of that nation. And we regard that ancient people as
the very aristocracy of mankind, tracing back their pedigree to those
before whom the mightiest kings might well veil their faces, and bow in
lowliest homage, for I reckon that to be descended from Abraham, "the
friend of God," and, "the father of the faithful," is to have a lineage
higher than that of any of the princes of the earth!

Let us pray to God continually for the ingathering of the Jews. They
are the original branches of the good olive tree, although for a time
they have been cut off because of unbelief. And we, who were only wild
olive shoots, have been grafted into their places. Shall we boast and
exalt ourselves over them? No, for we also seem to be of the house of
Jacob–he was rightly called Jacob, that, is, a supplanter, for he
supplanted his brother Esau–and we have supplanted the Jews and have
thus become Jacobs to those who are Jacob's seed. Yet, they are to be
grafted again into the olive tree, and it is according to the mind of
Christ that we should pray and labor for their conversion, and long for
that happy time when they shall be brought in and, with the fullness of
the Gentiles, be gathered at the feet of the Messiah whom they have so
long rejected.

Having said this, which was necessary to explain the text–for we must
never forget the literal meaning of any passage of God's Word, even
when we are fully justified in spiritualizing it–I am now free to
speak of the spiritual seed of Israel, for to them, also, this message
comes, "O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the
Lord." Here is, first, an invitation upon which we will think for a
while. And then, when we have thought of it, let us accept it, and let
us endeavor now and throughout the rest of our lives, God helping us,
to "walk in the light of the Lord."

I. First, then, HERE IS AN INVITATION. When a man receives an
invitation, he naturally enquires from whom it comes. So we observe,
first, that this invitation comes to us from those to whom we have
ministered aforetime. The literal seed of Jacob had kept God's lamp
alight in the world, and other nations had seen that light–and it
afterwards turned out that those very nations which had been
enlightened by the Jews, said to them, "Oh house of Jacob, come and let
us walk in the light of the Lord." It should greatly encourage us, dear
Friends, whenever we hear any whose conversion we have been seeking,
say to us, "Come and let us walk in the light of the Lord." You who
have been blessed in turning sinners to Christ will bear witness with
me that there is scarcely any joy, out of Heaven, that equals the
delight of hearing a sinner express his willingness to come to Christ
and so to "walk in the light of the Lord."

I distinctly remember the first person who ever told me that I had been
the means of her conversion. I remember the little cottage in which she
dwelt, for she was a poor woman who resided in an obscure village. Her
testimony was to me the sweetest music I had ever heard, with the
exception of my Savior's voice when I, myself, was saved by His Grace.
I felt then that I must go on preaching, for this was a seal, set to my
commission, for which I blessed the Lord day and night. I can recall at
this moment the intense delight I had in listening to that good woman's
cheering words. I do not know that I have had so much joy over any
score of converts, since, as I had over that first one! That is a very
natural feeling, you know. What a fuss is generally made over the first
child in a family. So it is it with our first converts–we rejoice
exceedingly over them.

Still, dear Friends, however many spiritual children God may have given
to us, all whom we have been the means of introducing into the Kingdom
of Christ are very precious to us. And when we hear them say, "Yes, we
will go with you, for we perceive that God is with you. We will walk in
the light in which you are walking," we feel very greatly encouraged
and we resolve that we will persevere in such blessed service. This is
the reward of our labor for the Lord! This is the harvest that the
farmer, who sows the seed for Christ, desires to reap! If you have
never had this joy, work on till you do have it. If you have had it, I
need not tell you to work on–I think you can never leave off such
blessed service! I remember well the story of a man who died some few
years ago, who had saved a young man from drowning and, after rescuing
that one from a watery grave, he seemed as if he was insatiable to do
the same thing again and again! I think it was eight persons he
rescued, one after another at Hull. He would stand by the dock, in a
dangerous place, watching that he might be at hand in case anyone fell
into the water. He died, at last, in the very act of saving another
person's life–he seemed to be carried away with that passion. In like
manner, I would have all the saint's of God encouraged as they bring
one and another to Christ, to consecrate their whole time and strength
to this glorious–this Divine pursuit of bringing men, women and
children to the Lord Jesus Christ–a work which might fill an angel's
heart and which didfill the Savior's hands!

So the invitation in our text may be looked upon as a great
encouragement, for it comes from those to whom we have ministered.

But if I read this invitation aright, it comes also from new converts,
for, according to the context, many Gentiles had just gone up to the
House of God, saying, "He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk
in His paths," and when they had said that to one another, they turned
to the Jews and said, "O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the
light of the Lord." I think it is a very pleasing thing when our new
converts begin to exhort us and invite us to join with them in special
acts of devotion. Yet, while it is very pleasing in some respects, it
sometimes brings to us a measure of rebuke. I remember how it was with
me when, in the earnestness of my young heart's affection for the Lord
Jesus Christ, I spoke to some of the older Christians around me and
they tried to snuff me out. A liberal supply of wet blankets was
generally kept in store, in certain quarters, and brought into use
whenever I went round that way. I survived that operation, however, and
now that I am, myself, getting old, when some enthusiastic young spirit
begins to wake me up, I hope I shall not quench his ardor by throwing a
wet blanket over him!

When we commence our Christian life, we are full of earnestness and
zeal and we think that we can drive the Church before us–and drag the
world after us, but, by-and-by, we settle down to a much quieter state
of things. I think it is a great blessing when the new converts come in
among us and stir us up from our sluggishness, and make us move with
something of the enthusiasm that we had in our younger days. I pray God
continually to send among us many earnest men and women who shall
lovingly reprove us if we are lukewarm! We constantly need the infusion
of new life and, so far from discouraging zeal, we will do all we can
to encourage it!

The other day I heard that a young man had said a very foolish thing
for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was said to be so foolish a
thing that everybody condemned it. I sent for the speaker to come to
see me, for, when a man boldly says, "I believe that such-and-such a
thing is true, and I am going to act upon it, although everybody else
says, 'You are a simpleton,'" that is the kind of man in whom my heart
delights, for I am sure that there is something in him if he is willing
to be counted singular because he believes he is following Christ Jesus
his Lord! May God send us many such simple-minded, true-hearted,
warm-blooded Christians to keep the Church from getting cold and
lethargic!

Once more, it seems to me that this invitation comes from those who
seek after mutual edification. Some had come into the House of God and
hadlearned His ways, so they turned round to others, and said, "Come,
and let us walk in the light of the Lord." They did not say, "Go"–they
said, "Come," we wish you to come with us. Let us walk together in the
light of the Lord." Dear friends, I beg you continually to practice
this holy work of mutual exhortation, stirring one another up to
greater devotion to our Savior and His service. We do not think it wise
to have public meetings of this kind because such gatherings are apt to
be like the Irish school, where they had not any schoolmaster, and
nobody knew anything–and they taught one another! That is the general
style of things where everybody speaks, or, when the meeting is more
profitable, it is because there are one or two present who really
arethe instructors of the rest, even though they may not nominally be
called so.

But, without meeting with this special objective and design, all
Christians should be constantly stirring one another up whenever the
opportunity of doing so occurs. The moment you get liberty in prayer,
call in a Brother to pray with you. When you feel very happy and full
of praise to God, tell some dear friend that you want to sing, and ask
him to come and sing with you. You go into a neighbor's house to ask
his help when you have a burden of care or sorrow resting upon
you–then go and ask for his sympathy when your heart is full of joy!
Tell him that you cannot sufficiently bless God by yourself and that
you need him, as your friend and Brother in Christ, to aid you in the
sweet labor of thanksgiving. O dear Brothers and Sisters, I beg you to
seek to know one another more and more, and mix with one another with
the view of helping each other's faith and love! You can scarcely
imagine how much you may get from one another by this kind of mutual
communion. The commerce of nations enriches and is to the advantage of
all who share in it. And the spiritual unity of Christians, making a
holy interchange of knowledge, feeling and sympathy, will tend to the
enrichment of all. In such a Church as ours, there ought to be no
difficulty in finding kindred spirits with whom you can have holy and
helpful fellowship. As soon as you do find them, say to them, "Come,
and let us walk in the light of the Lord."

II. Now I turn to the second head which is, LET US ACCEPT THE
INVITATION. I do not want to say much about it except to urge you at
once to accept it.

"Come, and let us walk in the light of the Lord." What does this
invitation mean? First, I think it means, let us make use of that
light. Writing under the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit, John tells us
that, "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." My Brother, in
his prayer just now, very sweetly prayed that God might be to each one
of us all that He is–and that is exactly what I want you all to
realize, so that, as God is light, He may be light to you, and that we,
who are His people, may practically, in our daily lives, walk in the
very Light of God and not have a religion locked up, like a diamond
bracelet, but may wear it as we wear our everyday garments. That we may
not have it like a choice lamp hidden away in a vault, but may have the
light of it shining on our every footstep!

Let us "walk in the light of the Lord" so as to have an absolute
certainty about the things which we believe. Have you ever tried to
walk in the light of anybody else? I have not. I never thought it worth
my while to do so. I hear sometimes of wonderful new lights that have
appeared, but I usually find that they only arise from some
crazy-brained individual who has no light to spare. Then I occasionally
hear of others who give out a sort of phosphorescent light through some
new discoveries of theirs, or the cogitations of their massive minds.
And every now and then someone says, "Have you heard that Dr. So-and-So
has discovered that the Book of Genesis is wrong? Have you heard that a
wonderful arithmetician has found out that there are mistakes in the
Book of Numbers?" "Oh, yes," I answer. "I have heard that the Bible is
all wrong from Genesis to Revelation! Or, if there is a verse in the
Scriptures that the learned infidels have not yet assailed, some fool
or other will attack it before long."

If I am asked, "Are you quite sure about the truth of this Book?" I
reply, "Yes, I am quite sure, for I believe entirely in the Inspiration
of the Bible, and I know that whatever is in that Book is certainly
true." Everybody believes in infallibility somewhere. A Romanist
believes in an infallible "Pope" and a great philosopher believes in
his infallible self–he

knows that he is right. I believe in this Infallible Book and in the
Infallible God. And I ask any of you who are troubled, and worried, and
tossed to and fro because of what some heretic or skeptic has said, to
"walk in the light of the Lord," and to be perfectly satisfied as to
the Revelation He has given us in His Word. This Book has been tested
and tried for many centuries, and it has never been found wanting. Its
light has never been quenched! It shines, if possible, even more
brightly, today, than it ever did. I mean that some of the mists and
clouds that hovered round it, have been scattered. This lamp is and
always must be the only one to guide men to Heaven, for this is the one
that God Himself lighted–and all the devils in Hell can never blow it
out. If all the Doctrines of the Bible are assailed, and all its
precepts are rejected, and all its records are attacked, and all its
promises are contradicted, it need not signify to us as much as the
turn of a hair! If we have accepted it as a Revelation from God, we may
be quite sure as to all that it contains, and therein our spirits may
find absolute rest! Come away from the shadow of the dark cloud of
unbelief and come out into the everlasting Light of God. Believe in the
Lord Jesus Christ, for "if you wi1l not believe, surely you shall not
be established."

The next sense in which we are to "walk in the light of the Lord" is to
realize God's Presence and, in consequence, to feel our conscience
perfectly at ease. I mean this–here is a Christian man who has been
doing his best for God, yet somebody suspects his motives and
misrepresents his actions. Where he expected to receive approbation, he
receives condemnation. He is evidently misunderstood and, as far as his
fellows are concerned, he is under a cloud. What is that man to do?
Why, just say, "My God, You know everything. You know with what
singleness of heart I have served You, and with what purity of mind I
have walked before You. I appeal from the unjust verdict of man to the
Judge of all the earth, for I am sure that You will judge righteously."
It is wonderful what peace of mind is enjoyed by those who "walk in the
light of the Lord."

Perhaps somebody writes you a stinging letter. Possibly another brings
against you a lying accusation. One sneers and another laughs at you,
but what does it all matter if you are walking in the light of the
Lord? You can live above them all and say, "I am not a servant of men,
but a servant of God. I appear not before the judgment seat even of my
fellow Christians, but I stand to be judged by Him who shal1 judge the
quick and the dead! And since my heart condemns me not, I have
confidence that God, who is greater than my heart, will also justify
me." You will need this kind of feeling, especially if you are called
to lead the way and to serve God above others. God grant that you may
have it to the very largest extent that is possible!

Now think of another meaning in the text–that is this. It is a blessed
thing to "walk in the light of the Lord" and so to obtain instruction
for the Judgment. Light is constantly used in Scripture as the
figurative representation of knowledge, just as darkness is the emblem
of ignorance. My Brothers and Sisters who know the Lord, I pray you to
study God's Word very deeply. I speak specially to some of you who have
lately come in from the world and who confess that you know very little
of the Bible. You had not godly parents. You were not brought up in the
ways of religion and some of you, as lately as six months ago, did not
go to any place of worship at al1–but God, in the Sovereignty of His
Grace, has now brought you in among His children. So, be diligent
students of His Word. Meditate upon it day and night, for then shall
you be "like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth
his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither." Do not care
so much about all other books in the world as about the Word of God!
Drink continually at the Fountainhead!

You have heard, I daresay, of the Irishman who was converted to Christ,
and whose priest told him that he had better not read the Bible because
it had done so much mischief to unlearned readers, adding, "I will give
you the milk of the Word, and will bring it to you." "Well, Sir," said
Pat, "I will be very much obliged to you if you will do so, but, still,
I mean to keep a cow myself, and so I shall be sure to get pure milk."
That is the also right thing for you to do–keep a cow yourself! When
you come here, I will do my best to give you the unadulterated milk of
the Word. Still, I would advise you to also keep a cow yourselves.
Carry a lactometer with you and check whether the milk is genuine. I
like people who test and try everything we bring before them by the
Word of God! I want you to do it and I would rather that you had no
preacher at all than that you should neglect to search the Scriptures.
There is Divine Light in the Word of God, therefore, "walk in the light
of the Lord."

Do not think, dear Christian Friends, that you cannot understand what
is in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit has promised to teach us. There
are some Doctrines of the Bible that are very mysterious, some that we
call High Doctrines, but do not be afraid of them. Even babes in Grace
may understand the Truth of God if they will but give their hearts to

it–only be teachable and God, through His Word, and by the inward
teaching of His Spirit, and by your own experience–will yet make you
quite a great scholar, in the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. If you
are but willing to learn, and especially if you are willing to put into
practice the Truths that you are taught, you will find that what I say
is true. I pray you, endeavor to be intelligent Christians–seek to
learn what Christ is ready to teach. He is your Master–be you His
disciples. He is your Rabbi–be you His scholars. Sit at His feet and
learn of Him.

But there is another meaning in our text upon which I shall enlarge a
little. It is this. To "walk in the light of the Lord" means, to have
the joy of the Lord. It is a very unhappy fact that there are some
Christians–and we believe they are real Christians, too–who do not
walk much in the light. I believe that there are thousands who are true
believers in Christ, who yet live a great part of their days in the
dark. They trust under the shadow of God's wing and there they are
safe–but they do not often get out into the light of His Countenance.
Now that is a great pity. You know that if you were to go to Australia
in a good sound ship, you would get there even if you were always to
lie down in the hold among the luggage and the rats. But I should like
to go in a first-class cabin, and I do not see why you and I, if we are
going to Heaven, should not go first-class! You would not think of
taking a long railway journey in a luggage-van and I want you who are
favored to "be in Christ" not to be satisfied with mere safety, but to
look for joy and peace, also! We may begin, even here, the music which
we are to sing above! It is a pity that we should forego any of the
privileges which really belong to us, so, beloved Friends, if any of
you are in the dark, let me say to you, in the words of the text,
"Come, and let us walk in the light of the Lord."

What is the cause of your darkness? "Oh," says one, "I am in the dark
about my condition before God. I am a believer in Christ, but I fear
that God is angry with me." Now let me try to shed a little light upon
you. "He that believes on the Son has everlasting life." Our Lord
Himself said, "He that hears My word, and believes on Him that sent Me,
has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is
passed from death unto life." He who believes in Christ Jesus is
complete in Him. If you are, at this moment, resting alone in Christ,
your condition before God is that of one whose transgression is
forgiven and whose sin is covered. You are, in the sight of God,
clothed in the righteousness of Christ and, therefore, you are comely
and beautiful in His eyes despite all your spots and all your
imperfections! If you are a true Believer, there will be many a battle
within you, but that will not affect your standing before God. You are
His child, one of His elect upon whom His love has been set from all
eternity–and that love never changes nor diminishes. Now walk in that
light and rejoice–imperfect, yet perfectly forgiven–sinning, and yet
without spot before God–in yourself undone, but saved in Jesus Christ,
in whom your soul has fixed her confidence!

Is the darkness that surrounds you caused by the dispensations of God's
Providence? "I am very poor," says one. "I am out of work, I have
pressing claims that I cannot meet. I have a sick wife, I have a dying
child." Stop, dear Friend, you have a long story to tell, and a sad
one, too, but do you know that the Light of God reveals many of the
mysteries of His Providence? Turn on the bull's-eye of this lantern a
minute. Here is a ray of its light–"we know that all things work
together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called
according to His purpose." I want you to "walk in the light of the
Lord" so as to be able to say, "If it is the will of God, it must be
right. It could not be better, even though sometimes I have thought
that it could not be worse. It is a rough road, but it is the right
one, for it leads to the Celestial City of habitation. It is bitter
medicine, but its curing property is amazing–

"'Then come what may to me, It will, it must be blessed! Home in the
distance I can see; There I shall be at rest.'"

But what is this darkness of your mind? Is it caused by a fierce
struggle within you? Are you crying out, "I cannot understand how it
is, but ever since I have been a Christian, I have felt my sin rising
within me more than I ever did before! I am fighting from day to day to
keep a hold on goodness at all"? Listen, dear Friend, this is
frequently the experience of a true child of God that, as soon as the
new life is put into him, the old life begins to struggle against it! I
dare to say that there never was a real Christian who has not had, in
some measure at least, to cry out with Paul, 'O wretched man that I am!
Who shal1 deliver me from the body of this death!" They who say that
the Apostle was no Christian when he said that make me suspect whether
they are themselves Christians, or have had any experience of what
God's children have to undergo! The truth is that the more we seek
holiness, the more we learn that we are not as holy as we want to be.
And, the man who is as good as he wants to be is not good at all! He
who has climbed so high that he does not want to

get any higher had better begin at the bottom, for he is under a sad
delusion. So, be encouraged by the conflict in your heart and even take
comfort from it! Be of good cheer, knowing that, as Christ overcame the
world, and sin, and Satan, you also shall overcome them and be able to
sing, "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ."

Once more, probably you are in the dark because you are afraid to die.
Says one, "I tried myself, the other night, by asking, "Could you die
without fear?'" That is a kind of test you need never put to yourself!
Suppose Peter had been, for weeks, trying to see if he could walk on
water? He could not have done it! But the instant that Christ bade him
come to Him on the water, he could do it, but not previously. John
Bunyan, in his earlier days, imagined that being a child of God,
perhaps he could work miracles, so he thought he would say to one of
the puddles in the road, "Be dry." But he felt that he ought to pray
first and, as he could not find any promise that he should be able to
do that sort of thing, the miracle never came off. What is the good of
your having the Grace to die with if you are not going to die yet? When
you come to die, if you believe in Christ, you may die without the
slightest fear! You need to be a great deal more troubled about
livingthan about dying–that is the far more serious thing of the two.
Yet you need not be troubled about either living ordying when it is
written, "Fear you not; for I am with you: be not dismayed; for I am
your God: I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will
uphold you with the right hand of My righteousness." "I will never
leave you, nor forsake you." If I begin quoting the promises, I feel
inclined to keep on, but you can find them for yourselves in the Word
of God. You can feed upon them, live upon them, believe them and act
upon them! And in that way "walk in the light of the Lord" from day to
day, whatever happens to you.

Now come to this Communion Table in "the light of the Lord." Come that
you may remember your Savior's death. Come saying, "He loved me and
gave Himself for me. I am my Beloved's. His desire is toward me. I am
coming to Him who has brought me into His banqueting house, and His
banner over me is love." He says to each believing soul, "I have loved
you with an everlasting love, therefore, with loving kindness have I
drawn you." Come to the Table in the right spirit and this blessed
ordinance will indeed prove to be a festival of love to your souls! God
grant it, for Christ's sake. Amen.

EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: ISAIAH26

Verse 1. In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah: We
have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.
God is the great source of song. He "gives songs in the night." He can
make the saddest heart to break forth into praise. One part of the
prophecy concerning Christ's coming was, "Then shall the lame man leap
as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing." The Lord might have caused
us to utter nothing but groans if He had pleased. But, instead of doing
so, He delights to fill our mouths with joyous songs! Let us from our
heart sing this ancient song– "We have a strong city." The Church of
God is a city which has a heavenly citizenship and other unique
privileges–and it is wondrously protected, for the promise in this
passage is now fulfilled–"salvation will God appoint for walls and
bulwarks."

2. Open you the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps the truth
may enter in. The city is not closed against the righteous and if we
know and love the truth, and especially if we know and love Him who is
the Truth, the gates are always open to us and we may enter the city,
enjoy its privileges, and share its protection.

3. You will keep him in perfect peace–"Peace, peace"–that is the form
of the Hebrew, and it means a double peace, the perfection of peace–a
great depth of peace, the reality of peace, peace upon peace belongs to
the man who trusts in the Lord. Are you vexed, worried and perplexed,
dear Friend? Are you tossed to and fro as upon a stormy sea? This verse
shows you the way in which you may obtain perfect peace–"You will keep
him in perfect peace,"–

3. 4. Whose mind is stayed on You: because he trusts in You. Trust you
in the LORD forever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength
Nothing can be too hard for Him, for He has "everlasting strength."
Nothing can ever happen in the future to overthrow Him, for His is not
decaying strength, but "everlasting strength." Hold on to that
strength, you children of God! You may even suck honey out of this
"Rock of Ages" (see margin) for there is indescrib-

able sweetness in it! "Trust you in the Lord forever"–not only
sometimes, but always–"forever," because there is strength in God
forever.

5, 6. For He brings down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, He
lays it low; He lays it low, even to the ground; He brings it even to
the dust The foot shall tread it down, even the feet of the poor, and
the steps of the needy. You see, there is one city which God builds and
another city which He pulls down. Observe this solemn Truth of
God–"For He brings down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, He
lays it low–that city which is perched on the hill of
self-righteousness and lifted, as it were, almost to Heaven by the
pride of man–God will pull it down! It is part of God's Glory to lift
up that which is down, and to cast down that which is up–for when men
exalt themselves, they shall be abused–and when they humble
themselves, they shall be exalted. "He brings it even to the dust. The
foot shall tread it down." Oh, if there is anyone here who is trusting
in himself, depending upon his own good works and reckoning that he
will be saved by his own merits, you will have to come down from that
high place, my Friend! That fine castle of yours will be left without
one stone upon another, and the poorest child of God in all the world
shall set his foot upon the loftiest pinnacle of your grand palace! God
will bring it down so that "the feet of the poor, and the steps of the
needy," shall tread on it.

7. The way of the just is uprightness. Or, as it might be better
rendered, "The way of the just is an even path." The righteous shall
steadily and safely stand in it while others find themselves sometimes
up and sometimes down, and their path shall be slippery and perilous.

7, You, most upright, do weigh the path of the just. God judges us by
weight, not by appearance. Not by what we seem to be, but by what we
are in the balances of the sanctuary.

8, 9. Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O LORD, have we waited for
You; the desire of our soul is to Your name, and to the remembrance of
You. With my soul have I desired You in the night Some poor darkened
spirit will, I trust, be able to join in this utterance of the Prophet.
It is nighttime with you now. You are not enjoying the Light of God's
Countenance, but be very thankful that you can say, "With my soul have
I desired You in the night." If you are not a child of God, you will be
able to do without God. But the fact that some of you cannot be happy
unless you are living in the Light of God's love proves that you belong
to Him. A child can be content without a stranger's smile, but if the
one who is looking at him is his father, just because he is his
father's child he must have the assurance of that father's love, or
else he cannot be happy.

9, 10. Yes, with my spirit within me will I seek You early: for when
Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will
learn righteousness. Let favor be shown to the wicked, yet will he not
learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly,
and will not behold the majesty of the LORD. There are none so blind as
those who will not see–and there are plenty of such people about. They
say that they cannot see this, and they cannot see that, but the truth
is that they willfully shut their eyes and disregard the everlasting
Light of God.

11. LORD, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see: but they
shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at the people; yes, the fire
of Your enemies shall devour them. You know what our Lord Jesus said
concerning the rich man, "In Hell he lifted up his eyes, being in
torments, and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom." He would
not look at Lazarus while he was lying at his gates, but now he is
obliged to look at Lazarus lying in Abraham's bosom! He would not
relieve him, nor give him even a crumb from his table, but now he begs
that Lazarus may be sent to dip the tip of his finger in water, to cool
his parched tongue. "They will not see" now. No, "but they shall see,
and be ashamed for their envy towards the people of the Lord."

12. LORD, You will ordain peace for us. We may be attacked and assailed
for a little while. We may be tossed to and fro, but, "You will ordain
peace for us."

12. For You also have worked all our works in us. We have no works in
which we can glory, for even if we have an abundance of good works,
they are all God's work in us–and we give Him all the praise for them.
And because He has thus worked in us, we expect that He will give us
peace.

13-15. O LORD our God, other lords beside You have had dominion over
us: but by You only will we make mention of Your name. They are dead,
they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore
have You visited and destroyed them, andmade all their memory toperish.
You have increased the nation, O LORD, You have increased the nation:
You are glorified: You had removed it far unto all the ends of the
earth The Jews were scattered and dimin-

ished. When they sinned against God, they were exiled, but when the
Lord returned to them in favor, He multiplied them and brought them
home again.

16. Lord, in trouble have they visited You, they poured out a prayer
when Your chastening was upon them. And it was well for them that they
did so. God's true child does not get angry against his Father when He
whips him! But, being chastened, he begins to pray and blessed is that
chastening that drives us to our knees! "They poured out a prayer when
Your chastening was upon them."

17, 18. Like as a woman with child, that draws near the time of her
delivery, is in pain, and cries out in her pangs; so have we been in
Your sight, O LORD. We have been with child, we have been in pain, we
have, as it were, brought forth wind. We have not worked any
deliverance in the earth. Neither have the inhabitants of the world
fallen. Here is the poor Church of God in sore trouble. She says she
has been disappointed, her bitterest pangs have not brought her what
she expected. What shall happen, then? God will interpose!

19. Your dead men shall live. We shall rise with all that belong to
Christ at the first and blessed resurrection, and all our dead hopes
and our dead expectations shall rise, too!

19. Together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, you
that dwell in dust: for your dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth
shall cast out the dead. As the soft showers cause the buried bulbs to
spring up, so will God's gentle Grace fall on men's hearts, and they
shall arise, though they seemed to be dead before. And at the Last
Great Day, the sound of the archangel's trumpet shall be like a soft
vernal shower which brings up the flowers of the earth and–

"From beds of dust, and silent clay, To realms of everlasting day"

–the bodies of the saints shall rise! O blessed hope! Let us look for
its fulfillment! Let us make this a part of our song. There is a city
that has foundations, and there is a resurrection which will enable us
to enter into that city, to dwell there forever! Oh, come let us sing
of the New Jerusalem and of the white-robed multitudes that shall dwell
therein for–

20. Come, my people, enter into your chambers, and shut your doors
behind you. Enter into the secret Chambers of communion with your Lord
where you shall be shut out from the world. Enter into the chambers of
defense, where God will guard you. Enter into the chambers of devotion,
where God shall meet with you.

20, 21. Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment until the
indignation is over. For, behold, the LORD comes out of His place to
punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also
shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.