Part 50
The logician may prove that the death of Christ did not mean
Substitution and Propitiation. A fig for his logic–"we have received
the Atonement," and know better. The Doctrines of Grace which I
have preached to you, have a hold upon the heart and intellect, like
that of certain colors when the wool is dyed ingrain. But when
these doctrines have not been sufficiently preached, people are
easily carried away with every wind of doctrine. Brethren, the old
evangelical doctrine of Luther and Calvin had about it power to
create enthusiasm. See how the Huguenots mustered to a sermon
when it was death to hear a reformed preacher!
Geneva sent forth men who could gather crowds in regions
crimsoned with the blood of their Brethren. Why did the multitudes
come together? Would any man jeopardize his life to hear a
"modern-thought" sermon? My Brethren, there is something in the
old Gospel worth hearing–there is an Election of Grace most
precious, a Redemption which really redeemed and a work of
Divine Grace within which assures Final Perseverance and eternal
Glory. The wish-wash of today's preaching would have gained the
preacher in "the desert" no congregation. But when untold
treasures are displayed, saints will come to hear of them.
That Truth of God, which is a matter of life and death to you, will
take hold of your heart and soul and you will never part with it. I
long to see a race of real men who will know the Truth and believe
it in real fashion–men who have received a kingdom which cannot
be moved–palaces of God whose foundations are in the rock.
Another privilege of personal nearness to God–such men enjoy
safety. Hear how Jacob puts it–"The archers have sorely grieved
him and shot at him and hated him." If you live near to God you
will be the target of the ungodly, and the hatred of the world will
cause you grief of heart. It cannot be avoided, for the seed of the
serpent will nibble at the heel of the seed of the woman. Even to
this day is Joseph sold into Egypt and separated from his Brethren–
"No slacker grows the fight,
No feebler is the foe."
Keep close to God and His Word and you will be counted a
Nazarene among your Brethren. But this shall not harm you. For it
is added, "His bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands
were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob."
Deriving his strength from God, Joseph lived above the rage of
men. He who keeps His people neither slumbers nor sleeps. Only
live upon God–let your expectations be from God only–and you
cannot be overcome of adversaries.
They that trust in princes will find them fickle. They that rely
upon the multitude will find them lighter than vanity. But they that
trust in the Lord shall not be ashamed, nor confounded, world
without end. Therefore, strike deep and draw your life from the
well. Besides that, Joseph received enrichment. Notice how Moses
puts it–he mentions quite a treasury of jewels. The best pearls come
out of deep seas. He mentions the precious things of Heaven, the
precious fruit brought forth by the sun, the precious things put forth
by the moon, the chief things of the ancient mountains, the precious
things of the earth–and the fullness thereof–and the goodwill of
him that dwelt in the bush.
All these blessings came upon the top of the head of him who was
a fruitful bough by a well. Many of you religious people know
nothing about precious things. Many professors live on the mere
skins and husks of Divine Truth. They have never tasted the sweet
kernels. A little religion is a mournful thing–they that drink deep
get down to the sweetness. Many people have religion enough to
make them wretched. If they had seven times as much, they would
be joyful. The restraints and duties and formalities of religion have
in them none of the fat things full of marrow, nor of the wines on
the lees well refined.
The best wines in God's House are in the cellar. Those who never
go downstairs have no idea of the secret sweetness. A deep
experience is a precious experience. The Lord fills certain of His
people with pain and grief, that they may know His choicer
consolations. We are too apt to let our roots run along just under the
surface and so we get no firm footage. But trouble comes and then
we grow downward, rooted in humility. Then we pierce the
treasures of darkness and know the deep things of God. If you want
a rich Christian, find a man who lives with God in secret and goes
deep into Divine Truth.
A shallow Believer is a poor and weak Believer. But the strong
Christian is the man who lives on God and will not be put off with
anything short of fellowship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This
benediction, with which we close our public service, should be the
perpetual benediction of every day. Dear Friends, I might add a
thousand things but I will not. I will only say this–do, I pray you,
dive into the depths. You that are beginning with holy things, begin
deep and take sure root. See how soon buildings fall if they have
insufficient foundations! Find your foundation in the Rock.
You that have long known the Lord, endeavor to know more and
more of Him. Send out more roots into yet deeper and richer
ground. Get more nearly to the very heart of God. In an evil time
like this, take firm hold. You cannot overcome the drift of an ill
current unless you let down your anchor. Yes, and at such a time
you may be unusually careful and let down four anchors from the
stern, as well as the one in the proper place. We need to be
anchored stem and stern in these days. We need to be held to Christ
by hooks of steel. Heart, and head, and hand, and every other
power had need take hold on the everlasting Truths of God.
For such are the winds that blow today, that we shall be carried
about by them like thistle upon the hills, if we have nothing but our
own strength to rely upon. God grant us to get closer to Him than
ever and to stay there. And may He grant us yet further to use all
our opportunities for usefulness, and all our life for fruitfulness to
His glory! Amen.
Ge 49:23 • Joseph Attacked by the Archers
ERMON 0017
Joseph Attacked By The Archers
"The archers have sorely grieved him, shot at him and hated him:
But his bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands were made
strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob (from thence is the
Shepherd, the Stone of Israel)."
Genesis 49:23, 24
It must have been a fine sight to see the hoary-headed Jacob
sitting up in his bed while he bestowed his parting benediction
upon his twelve sons. He had been noble in many instances during
his life–at the sleeping place of Bethel, the brook of Jabbok and the
halting of Peniel. He had been a glorious old man, one before
whom we might bow down with reverence and truly say, "There
were giants in those days." But his closing scene was the best. I
think if ever he stood out more illustrious than at any other time, if
his head were at any one season more than another, encircled with
a halo of glory, it was when he came to die.
Like the sun at setting, he seemed then to be the greater in
brilliance, tingeing the clouds of his weakness with the glory of
grace within. Like good wine which runs clear to the very bottom,
unalloyed by dregs, so did Jacob, till His dying hour, continue to
sing of love, of mercy and of goodness, past and future. Like the
swan, which (as old writers say) sings not all its life until it comes
to die, so the old Patriarch remained silent as a songster for many
years. But when he stretched himself on his last couch of rest, he
stayed himself up in his bed, turned his burning eye from one to
another and although with a hoarse and faltering voice, he sang a
sonnet upon each of his offspring such as earthly poets, uninspired,
cannot attempt to imitate.
Looking upon his son Reuben, a tear was in his eye, for he
recollected Reuben's sin. He passed over Simeon and Levi, giving
some slight rebuke. Upon the others he sung a verse of praise as his
eyes saw into the future history of the tribes. By-and-by his voice
failed him and the good old man, with long drawn breath, with eyes
pregnant with celestial fire and heart big with Heaven, lifted his
voice to God and said, "I have waited for Your salvation, O God."
He rested a moment on his pillow and then, again, sitting up,
recommenced the strain, passing briefly by the names of each. But
oh, when he came to Joseph, his youngest son but one–when he
looked on him–I picture that old man as the tears ran down his
cheeks.
There stood Joseph, with all his mother Rachel in his eyes–that
dearly loved wife of his–there he stood, the boy for whom that
mother had prayed with all the eagerness of an eastern wife. For a
long twenty years she had tarried a barren woman and kept no
house but then she was a joyful mother and she called her son
"increase." Oh, how she loved the boy! And for that mother's sake,
though she had been buried for some years and hidden under the
cold sod, old Jacob loved him, too. But more than that, he loved
him for his troubles. He was parted from him to be sold into Egypt.
His father recollected Joseph's trials in the round house and the
dungeon and remembered his royal dignity as prince of Egypt. And
now with a full burst of harmony–as if the music of Heaven had
united with his own, as when the widened river meets the sea and
the tide coming up does amalgamate with the stream that comes
down and swells into a broad expanse–so did the glory of Heaven
meet the rapture of his earthly feelings.
Giving vent to his soul, he sung, "Joseph is a fruitful bough even
a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall. The
archers have sorely grieved him, shot at him and hated him: But his
bow abode in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong
by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob (from thence is the
Shepherd, the Stone of Israel): Even by the God of your father, who
shall help you; and by the Almighty, who shall bless you with
blessings of Heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies under,
blessings of the breasts and of the womb: The blessings of your
father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto
the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head
of Joseph and on the crown of the head of him that was separate
from his Brethren" (Gen. 49:22-26).
What a splendid stanza with which to close! He has only one
more blessing to give. But surely this was the richest which he
conferred on Joseph.
Joseph is dead, but the Lord has His Josephs now. There are some
still who understand by experience–and that is the best kind of
understanding–the meaning of this passage, "The archers have
sorely grieved him, shot at him and hated him: But his bow abode
in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong by the
hands of the mighty God ofJacob."
There are four things for us to consider this morning–first of all,
the cruel attack–"the archers have sorelygrieved him, shot at him
and hated him." Secondly, the shielded warrior–hissecret strength–
the glorious parallel drawn between Joseph and Christ–"from
thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel."
First, then, we commence with THE CRUEL ATTACK. "The
archers have sorely grieved him." Joseph's enemies were archers.
The original has it, "masters of the arrows," that is, men who were
well skilled in the use of the arrow. Though all weapons are alike
approved by the warrior in his thirst for blood, there seems
something more cowardly in the attack of the archer than in that of
the swordsman. The swordsman plants himself near you, foot to
foot and lets you defend yourself and deal your blows against him.
But the archer stands at a distance, hides himself in ambush and,
without your knowing it, the arrow comes whizzing through the air
and perhaps penetrates your heart.
Just so are the enemies of God's people. They very seldom come
foot to foot with us. They will not show their faces before us. They
hate the light, they love darkness. They dare not come and openly
accuse us to our face, for then we could reply. But they shoot the
bow from a distance, so that we cannot answer them. Cowardly and
dastardly as they are, they forge their arrowheads and aim them,
winged with Hell-bird's feathers, at the hearts of God's people. The
archers sorely grieved poor Joseph.
Let us consider who are the archers who so cruelly shot at him.
First, there were the archers of envy. Secondly, thearchers of
temptationslander and calumny.
First, Joseph had to endure the archers of ENVY. When He was a
boy, his father loved him. The youth was fairand beautiful. In
person, he was to be admired. Moreover, he had a mind that was
gigantic and an intellect that was lofty. But, best of all in him dwelt
the Spirit of the living God. He was one who talked with God. A
youth of piety and prayerfulness. Beloved of God, even more than
he was of his earthly father. Oh, how his father loved him! In his
fond affection, he made him a princely coat of many colors and
treated him better than the others–a natural but foolish way of
showing his fondness.
Therefore, his brothers hated him. Full often did they jeer at the
youthful Joseph when retired to his prayers. When he was with
them at a distance from his father's house, he was their drudge,
their slave. The taunt, the jeer, did often wound his heart and the
young child endured much secret sorrow. On an ill day, as it
happened, he was with them at a distance from home and they
thought to slay him. But upon the entreaty of Reuben they put him
into a pit, until, as Providence would have it, the Ishmaelites did
pass that way. They then sold him for the price of a slave, stripped
him of his coat and sent him away naked.
They knew not and they cared not where, so long as he might be
out of their way and no longer provoke their envy and their anger.
Oh, the agonies he felt–parted from his father, losing his brothers.
Without a friend he was dragged away by cruel man-sellers,
chained upon a camel it may be, with fetters upon his hands. Those
who have borne the shackles and fetters, those who have felt that
they were not free men, that they had not liberty, might tell how
sorely the archers grieved him when they shot at him the arrows of
their envy. He became a slave, sold from his country, dragged from
all he loved. Farewell to home and all its pleasures–farewell to a
father's smiles and tender cares.
He must now be a slave and toil where the slaves' taskmaster
takes him. He must be exposed in the market, he must be stripped
in the streets. He must be beaten, he must be scourged, he must be
reduced from man to an animal, from the free man to the slave.
Truly the archers sorely shot at him. And, my Brethren, do you
hope, if you are the Lord's Josephs, that you shall escape envy? I
tell you, no–that green-eyed monster, envy, lives in London as well
as elsewhere and he creeps into God's Church. Oh, it is hardest of
all to be envied by one's Brethren. If the devil hates us, we can bear
it. If the foe's of God's Truth speak ill of us, we buckle up our
harness and say, "Away, away, to the conflict."
But when the Friends within the house slander us. When Brethren
who should uphold us turn into our foes–and when they try to tread
down their younger Brethren–then, Sirs, there is some meaning in
the passage, "The archers have sorely grieved him, shot at him and
hated him." But blessed be God's name, it is sweet to be informed
that, "His bow abode in strength." None of you can be the people
of God without provoking envy. And the better you are, the more
you will be hated.
The ripest fruit is most pecked by the birds and the blossoms that
have been longest on the tree are the most easily blown down by
the wind. But fear not. You have nothing to do with what man shall
say of you. If God loves you, man will hate you. If God honors
you, man will dishonor you. But recollect, could you wear chains
for Christ's sake, you should wear the chains of gold in Heaven.
Could you have rings of burning iron round your waists, you
should have your brow rimmed with gold in glory–for blessed are
you when men shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for
Christ's name sake. For so persecuted they the Prophets that were
before you. The first archers were the archers of envy.
But a worse trial than this was to overtake Him. The archers of
TEMPTATION shot at Him. Here I know nothow to express
myself. I would that someone more qualified to speak were here,
that he might tell you the tale of Joseph's trial and Joseph's
triumph. Sold to a master who soon discovered his value, Joseph
was made the bailiff of the house and the manager of the
household. His wanton mistress fixed her adulterous love on him
and he, being continually in her presence, was perpetually, day by
day, solicited by her to evil deeds. Constantly did he refuse still
enduring a martyrdom at the slow fire of her enticements.
On one eventful day she grasped him, seeking to compel him to
crime. But he, like a true hero, as he was, said to her, "How can I
do this great wickedness and sin against God?" Like a wise warrior,
he knew that in such a case fleeing was the better part of valor. He
heard a voice in his ears, "Fly, Joseph, fly. There remains no way of
victory but flight." And out he fled, leaving his garment with his
adulterous mistress. Oh, I say in all the annals of heroism there is
not one that shall surpass this. You know it is
opportunity that makes a man criminal and he had abundant
opportunity.
But importunity will drive most men astray. To be haunted day
after day by solicitations of the softest kind–to betempted hour by
hour–Oh, it needs a strength super angelic, a might more than
human, a strength which only God can grant for a young man thus
to cleanse his way and take heed thereto according to God's Word.
He might have reasoned within himself, "Should I submit and
yield, there lies before me a life of ease and pleasure. I shall be
exalted, I shall be rich. She shall prevail over her husband to cover
me with honors.
"But should I still adhere to my integrity, I shall be cast into
prison, I shall be thrown into the dungeon. There awaits me nothing
but shame and disgrace." Oh, there was a power indeed within that
heart of his. There was an inconceivable might, which made him
turn away with unutterable disgust, with fear and trembling, while
He said, "How can I? How can I–God's Joseph–how can I–other
men might, but how can I do this great wickedness and sin against
God?" Truly the archers sorely grieved him and shot at him. But his
bow abode in strength.
Then another host of archers assailed Him–these were the archers
of MALICIOUS CALUMNY. Seeing that hewould not yield to
temptation, his mistress falsely accused him to her husband and his
lord, believing the voice of his wife, cast him into prison. It was a
marvelous Providence that he did not put him to death, for
Potiphar, his master, was the chief of the executioners. He had only
to call in a soldier who would have cut him in pieces on the spot.
But he cast him into prison. There was poor Joseph. His character
ruined in the eyes of man and very likely looked upon with scorn
even in the prison.
Base criminals went away from him as if they thought him viler
than themselves, as if they were angels in comparison with him.
Oh, it is no easy thing to feel your character gone, to think that you
are slandered, that things are said of you that are untrue. Many a
man's heart has been broken by this, when nothing else could make
him yield. The archers sorely grieved him when he was so
maligned–so slandered. O child of God, do you expect to escape
these archers? Will you never be slandered? Shall you never be
calumniated? It is the lot of God's servants, in proportion to their
zeal, to be evilly spoken of.
Remember the noble Whitfield, how he stood and was the butt of
all the jeers and scoffs of half an age, while his only answer was a
blameless life?–
"And he who forged and he who threw the dart,
Had each a brother's interest in his heart."
They reviled him and imputed to him crimes that Sodom never
knew. So shall it be always with those who preach God's Truth–and
all the followers of Christ–they must all expect it. But blessed be
God, they have not said worse things of us than they said of our
Master. What have they laid to our charge? They may have said,
"He is drunken and a winebibber." But they have not said "He has
a devil." They have accused us of being mad–so was it said of Paul.
Oh, holy infatuation, heavenly furor, would that we could bite
others until they had the same madness.
We think if to go to Heaven is mad we will not choose to be wise.
We see no wisdom in preferring Hell. We can see no great prudence
in despising and hating God's Truth. If to serve God is vile, we
purpose to be viler still. Ah, Friends, some now present know this
verse by heart, "The archers have sorely grieved him, shot at him
and hated him." Expect it–do not think it a strange thing–all God's
people must have it. There are no royal roads to Heaven–they are
paths of trial and trouble–the archers will shoot at you as long as
you are on this side the flood.
II. We have seen these archers shoot their flights of arrows. We
will now go up the hill a little, behind a rock, to look at the
SHIELDED WARRIOR and see how his courage is while the
archers have sorely grieved him. What is he doing? "His bow
abides in strength." Let us picture God's favorite. The archers are
down below. There is a parapet of rock before him. Now and then
he looks over it to see what the archers are about, but generally he
keeps behind. In heavenly security he is set upon a rock, careless of
all below. Let us follow the track of the wild goat. And behold the
warrior in his fastness.
First, we notice that he has a bow himself, for we read that, " his
bow abode in strength." He could have retaliated ifhe pleased, but
he was very quiet and would not combat with them. Had he
pleased, he might have drawn his bow with all his strength and sent
his weapon to their hearts with far greater precision than they had
ever done to him. But mark the warrior's quietness. There he rests,
stretching his mighty limbs–his bow abode in strength. He seemed
to say, "Rage on, yes, let your arrows spend themselves, empty
your quivers on me, let your bow-strings be worn out and let the
wood be broken with its constant bending–here am I, stretching
myself in safe repose.
"My bow abides in strength. I have other work to do besides
shooting at you. My arrows are against yon foes of God, the
enemies of the Most High. I cannot waste an arrow on such pitiful
sparrows as you are. You are birds beneath my noble shot. I would
not waste an arrow on you." Thus he remains behind the rock and
despises them all. His bow abides in strength.
Mark well his quietness. His bow "abides." It is not rattling, it is
not always moving, but it abides, it is quite still.He takes no notice
of the attack. The archers sorely grieved Joseph but his bow was
not turned against them–it abode in strength. He turned not his bow
on them. He rested while they raged. Does the moon stay herself to
lecture every dog that bays her? Does the lion turn aside to rend
each cur that barks at him? Do the stars cease to shine because the
nightingales reprove them for their dimness?
Does the sun stop in its course because of the officious cloud
which veils it? Or does the river stay because the willow dips its
leaves into its waters? Ah, no. God's universe moves on and if men
will oppose it, it heeds them not. It is as God has made it. It is
working together for good and it shall not be stayed by the censure,
nor moved on by the praise of man. Let your bows, my Brethren,
abide. Do not be in a hurry to set yourselves right. God will take
care of you. Leave yourselves alone. Only be very valiant for the
Lord God of Israel–be steadfast in the Truth of Jesus and your bow
shall abide.
But we must not forget the next word. "His bow abode IN
STRENGTH." Though his bow was quiet, it was not because it was
broken. Joseph's bow was like that of William the Conqueror–no
man could bend it but Joseph himself. It abode "in strength." I see
the warrior bending his bow–how with his mighty arms he pulls it
down and draws the string to make it ready. His bow abode in
strength. It did not snap, it did not start aside. His chastity was his
bow and he did not lose that–his faith was his bow and that did not
yield, it did not break. His courage was his bow and that did not
fail him.
His character, his honesty was his bow. Nor did he cast it away.
Some men are so very particular about reputation. They think,
"surely, surely, surely they shall lose their characters." Well, well, if
we do not lose them through our own fault, we never need care
about anybody else. You know there is not a man that stands at all
prominent but what any fool in the world can set afloat some bad
tale against him. It is a great deal easier to set a story afloat than to
stop it. If you want truth to go round the world you must hire an
express train to pull it. But if you want a lie to go round the world,
it will fly. It is as light as a feather and a breath will carry it.
It is well said in the old proverb, "A lie will go round the world
while truth is pulling its boots on." Nevertheless, it does not injure
us. For if light as a feather it travels so fast, its effect is just about
as tremendous as the effect of down, when it is blown against the
walls of a castle–it produces no damage whatever, on account of its
lightness and littleness. Fear not, Christian! Let slander fly, let envy
send forth its forked tongue, let it hiss at you–your bow shall abide
in strength.
Oh, shielded warrior, remain quiet, fear no ill. But, like the eagle
in its lofty nest, look down upon the fowlers in the plain–turn your
bold eye upon them and say–"Shoot you may, but your shots will
not reach half way to the pinnacle where I stand. Waste your
powder upon me if you will. I am beyond your reach." Then clap
your wings, mount to Heaven and there laugh them to scorn, for
you have made your refuge God and shall find a most secure
abode.
III. The third thing in our text is the SECRET STRENGTH. "The
arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty
God of Jacob." First, notice concerning his strength, that it was real
strength. It says, "the arms of hishands," not his hands only. You
know some people can do a great deal with their hands, but then it
is often fictitious power–there is no might in the arm–there are no
muscles. But of Joseph it is said, "the arms of his hands were
madestrong." It was real potency, true muscle, real sinew, real
nerve. It was not simply slight of hand–the power of moving his
fingers very swiftly–but the
arms of his hands were made strong.
Now, that strength which God gives to His Josephs, is real
strength. It is not a boasted valor, a fiction, a thing of which men
talk, an airy dream, an insubstantial unreality, but it is real strength.
I should not like to have a combat with one of God's Josephs. I
should think their blows very heavy. I fear a Christian's strokes
more than any other man's, for he has bone and sinew and smites
hard. Let the foes of the Church expect a hard struggle if they
attack an heir of life. Mightier than giants are men of the race of
Heaven. Should they once arouse themselves to battle, they could
laugh at the spear and the coat of mail. But they are a patient
generation, enduring ills without resenting them, suffering scorn
without reviling the scoffer. Their triumph is to come when their
enemies shall receive the vengeance due. Then shall it be seen by
an assembled world that the "little flock" were men of high estate
and the "offscouring of all things" were verily men of real strength
and dignity.
Even though the world perceive it not, the favored Joseph has real
strength, not in his hands only, but in his arms–real might, real
power. O you foes of God, you think God's people are despicable
and powerless, but know that they have true strength from the
omnipotence of their Father, a might substantial and Divine. Your
own shall melt away and droop and die, like the snow upon the low
mountain's top, when the sun shines upon it, it melts into water.
But our vigor shall abide like the snow on the summit of the Alps,
undiminished for ages. It is real strength.
Then observe that the strength of God's Joseph is Divine strength.
His arms were made strong by God. Why does oneof God's
ministers preach the Gospel powerfully? Because God gives him
assistance. Why does Joseph stand against temptation? Because
God gives him aid. The strength of a Christian is Divine strength.
My Brethren, I am more and more persuaded every day that the
sinner has no power of himself, except that which is given him
from above. I know that if I were to stand with my foot upon the
golden threshold of Heaven's portal, if I could put this thumb upon
the latch–I could not open that door, after having gone so far
towards Heaven–unless I had still supernatural power
communicated to me in that moment.
If I had a stone to lift, to work my own salvation–without God's
help to do that, I must be lost–even though it were so little. There is
nothing that we can do without the power of God. All true strength
is Divine. As the light comes from the sun, as the shower from
Heaven, so does spiritual strength come from the Father of lights,
with whom there is neither variableness nor shadow of a turning.
Again–I would have you notice in the text in what a blessedly
familiar way God gives this strength to Joseph. Itsays, "the arms of
his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of
Jacob." Thus it represents God as putting His hands on Joseph's
hands–placing His arms on Joseph's arms. In old times, when every
boy had to be trained up to archery, if his father were worth so
many pounds a year, you might see the father putting his hands on
his boy's hands and pulling the bow for him, saying, "there, my
son, in this manner draw the bow."
So the text represents God as putting His hand on the hand of
Joseph and laying His broad arm along the arm of His chosen child
that he might be made strong. Like as a father teaches his children,
so the Lord teaches them that fear Him. He puts His arms upon
them. As Elijah laid with his mouth upon the child's mouth, with
his hand upon the child's hand, with his foot upon the child's foot,
so does God put His mouth to His children's mouth, His hand on
His minister's hand, His foot to His people's foot–and so He makes
us strong. Marvelous condescension! You stars of glory, have you
ever witnessed such stoops of love? God Almighty, Eternal,
Omnipotent, stoops from His Throne and lays His hand upon the
child's hand, stretching His arm upon the arm of Joseph, that he
may be made strong!
One more thought and I have done. This strength was Covenant
strength, for it is said, "The arms of his hands weremade strong by
the hands of the mighty God of Jacob," Now, wherever you read of
the God of Jacob in the Bible, youmay know that that respects
God's Covenant with Jacob. Ah, I love to talk about God's
Everlasting Covenant. Some of the Arminians cannot bear it but I
love a Covenant salvation–a Covenant not made with my fathers,
not between me and God–but between Christ and God. Christ made
the Covenant to pay a price and God made the Covenant that He
should have the people.
Christ has paid the price and ratified the Covenant and I am quite
sure that God will fulfill His part of it, by giving every elect vessel
of mercy into the hands of Jesus. But, Beloved, all the power, all
the grace, all the blessings, all the mercies, all the comforts, all the
things we have, we have through the Covenant. If there were no
Covenant–if we could tear the Everlasting Charter up–if the king of
Hell could cut it with his knife, as the king of Israel did the roll of
Baruch, then we should fail indeed–for we have no strength except
that which is promised in the Covenant. Covenant mercies,
Covenant grace, Covenant promises, Covenant blessings, Covenant
help, Covenant everything–the Christian must receive if he would
enter into Heaven.
Now, Christian, the archers have sorely grieved you. But your
bow abides in strengthand the arms of your hands are made strong.
But do you know, O Believer, that you are like your Master in this?
IV. That is our fourth point–A GLORIOUS PARALLEL. "From
thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel." Jesus Christ was
served just the same. The Shepherd, the Stone of Israel, passed
through similar trials. He was shot at by the archers. He was
grieved and wounded, but His bow abode in strength. His arms
were made strong by the God of Jacob and now every blessing
rests "upon the crown of the head of Him who was separate from
His Brethren." I shall not detain you long, but I have a few things
to tell you–first about Christ as the Shepherd and then about Christ
the Stone.
Christ came into the world as a Shepherd. As soon as He made
His appearance, the Scribes and Pharisees said, "Ah, we have been
the shepherds until this hour–now we shall be driven from our
honors, we shall lose all our dignity and our authority."
Consequently they always shot at Him. As for the people, they
were a fickle herd. I believe that many of them respected and
admired Christ, though, doubtless, the vast majority hated Him. But
wherever He went He was a popular Preacher, the multitude always
thronged Him and crowded round Him, crying, "Hosanna."
I think, if you had walked up to the top of that hill of Calvary and
asked one of those men who cried out, "Crucify Him, crucify
Him," "What do you say that for? Is He a bad man?" "No," he
would have said, "He went about doing good." "Then why do you
say crucify Him?" "Because Rabbi Simeon gave me a shekel to
help the clamor." So the multitude were much won by the money
and influence of the priests. But they were glad to hear Christ after
all. It was the shepherds that hated Him, because He took away
their traffic, because He turned the buyers and sellers out of the
temple, diminished their dignity and ignored their pretensions.
Therefore, they could not endure Him.
But the Shepherd of Israel mounted higher and higher. He
gathered His sheep, carried the lambs in His bosom. And He now
stands acknowledged as the great Shepherd of the sheep who shall
gather them into one flock and lead them to Heaven. Rowland Hill
tells a curious tale, in his "Village Dialogues," about a certain Mr.
Tiplash, a very fine intellectual preacher, who, in one of his flights
of oratory, said, "O Virtue, you are so fair and lovely, if you were to
come down upon earth, all men would love you." He went on with
a few more pretty, beautiful things.
Mr. Blunt, an honest preacher, who was in the neighborhood, was
asked to preach in the afternoon and he supplemented the worthy
gentleman's remarks, by saying, "O Virtue, You did come on earth,
in all Your purity and loveliness,but, instead of being beloved and
admired, the archers sorely shot at You and grieved You. They took
You, Virtue, and hung Your quivering limbs upon a Cross. When
You did hang there dying they hissed at You, they mocked You,
they scorned You. When You did ask for water they gave You
vinegar to drink, mingled with gall. Yes, when You died You had a
tomb from charity and that tomb, sealed by enmity and hatred."
The Shepherd of Israel was despised. Incarnate Virtue was hated
and abhorred. Therefore, fear not Christians, take courage, for if
Your Master passed through it, surely you must.
To conclude–the text calls Christ the Stone of Israel. I have heard
a story–I cannot tell whether it is true or not–out of some of the
Jewish rabbis. It is a tale, concerning the text, "The stone which the
builders refused, the same is become the headstone of the corner."
It is said that when Solomon's temple was being built, all the stones
were brought from the quarry ready cut and fashioned. And there
were marked on all the blocks the places where they were to be put.
Among the stones was a very curious one. It seemed of no
describable shape, it appeared unfit for any portion of the building.
They tried it at this wall, but it would not fit. They tried it in
another, but it could not be accommodated. So, vexed and angry,
they threw it away.
The temple was so many years building that this stone became
covered with moss and grass grew around it. Everybody passing by
laughed at the stone. They said Solomon was wise and doubtless all
the other stones were right. But as for that block, they might as well
send it back to the quarry, for they were quite sure it was meant for
nothing. Year after year rolled on and the poor stone was still
despised, the builders constantly refused it. The eventful day came
when the temple was to be finished and opened and the multitude
was as allowed to see the grand sight. The builders said, "where is
the topstone? Where is the pinnacle?"
They little thought where the crowning marble was, until
someone said, "Perhaps that stone which the builders refused is
meant to be the topstone." They then took it and hoisted it to the
top of the house. And as it reached the summit, they found it well
adapted to the place. Loud hosannas made the sky ring as the stone
which the builders refused thus became the headstone of the corner.
So is it with Christ Jesus. The builders cast Him away. He was a
plebeian. He was of poor extraction. He was a man acquainted with
sinners who walked in poverty and meanness–hence the worldly-
wise despised Him. But when God shall gather together, in one, all
things that are in Heaven and that are in earth, then Christ shall be
the glorious consummation of all things–
"Christ reigns in Heaven the topmost stone,
And well deserve the praise."
He shall be exalted. He shall be honored. His name shall endure
as long as the sun and all nations shall be blessed in Him. Yes, all
generations shall call Him blessed. Adapted from The C.H.
Spurgeon Collection, Version 1.0, Ages Software, 1.800.297.4307
PRAY THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL USE THIS SERMON
TO BRING MANY TO A SAVING KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS
CHRIST.
Ge 49:25 • A Boundless Benediction
ERMON 2531
A Boundless Benediction
"By the Almighty, who shall bless you with blessings of Heaven
above, blessings of the deep that lies under."
Genesis 49:25
You must have noticed, when reading Jacob's prophecies
concerning his sons, that the good old man, when he came to talk
about Joseph, suddenly seemed to be freer of speech than while he
was addressing any of the others. The dying flame of life within
him appeared to burn up more brightly at the sight of the son of his
old age, the darling of his heart. The blessing which Jacob
pronounced upon Joseph was infinite in extent–he seemed to
ransack Heaven and earth in order to express the desire of his soul–
and what he knew as a Prophet to be the purpose of God.
It is observable, here, and it is to be noted in a great many other
places, that God's richest blessing often falls upon those who have
been the most tried. This boundless benediction is to come upon
"the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brothers"
through their jealousy, ill-will and malice. All this blessing is for
the one whom the archers sorely grieved, at whom they shot and
whom they desperately wounded. So have you and I observed,
Beloved, that as our tribulations abound, so our consolations
abound by Christ Jesus. It seems as if it were necessary for a life
which is to win the highest blessing, that it should be greatly
checkered with affliction. You must go down if you are to rise up!
You must carry heavy ballast if you are safely to bear full sails. It
has been so, in the experiences of many of us, till we have come to
this conclusion–in days of joy we tremble for all the good which
the Lord has made to pass before us–but in days of trial we rejoice
because we are expectant of a greater weight of glory and of the
peaceable fruits of righteousness which will, by-and-by, be ours
through our troubles!
I think all of us who are wise would be willing to take the
blessing of Joseph. We might not like to be with him as he was
despised by his brothers. We might not care to be put into the pit
with him. We might not wish to be cast into prison with him. But
we may be well content to take the bitters with the sweets, for,
when Joseph came to the sweets, they were exceedingly sweet,
indeed!
Remember, too, that Joseph was not only a specimen of a tried
saint, but also of a separated saint. There are some of God's people
who are so surrounded by adversaries that they have to go to
Heaven very much alone. It is preferable to go with Mr. Great-
Heart, the women and children and old Father Honest and Mr.
Valiant-for-Truth–and all the good company who make up the
Church of God on pilgrimage. But sometimes there is a pilgrim
who has to pursue his journey all by himself. It is somewhat of a
loss for him, for he misses many of the blessings of Christian
communion–but God has a way of making up for all His people's
losses if they are but faithful to Him. So Joseph, though he had not
fellowship with his brothers, found better fellowship in his God and
he was greatly the gainer! Am I at this moment addressing a tried
child of God who is compelled to pursue his way very much in
solitude? Then, I pray you, ask the Lord to give you the blessings
of the text–the blessings that shall be over your head. "Blessings of
Heaven above." And the blessings that shall be under your
feet–"blessings of the deep that lies under."
Moreover, to complete the description of Joseph, I notice that he
was not only tried and separated, but he was very severely tempted.
I need not do more than just allude to his temptation in the house of
Potiphar. For so young a man, how well he behaved! How
gloriously he showed that he truly feared God! And I believe that
any of us who are exposed to unusual temptation, if we only have
Grace enough to resist it, are on the road to a far larger blessing
than the untempted can expect. The Lord tries us in different ways
and when we come forth out of the furnace as gold seven times
purified, then there is some honorable use to which that gold is to
be put! Are you tempted just now, dear Friend? Is it something very
pleasant to the flesh, but very deadly to the spirit? Escape for your
life and in that act of escape, you will have opened a window
through which the sunshine shall come upon you in an altogether
unexpected manner! Perhaps not at the moment, for Joseph had to
go to prison and to lie there for a long while, but, before long, you
shall see that fidelity to conscience and to the Truth of God will
certainly bring its own reward. These preliminary remarks are
suggested by the surroundings of our text which show that the
blessing came upon the tried, the separated and the tempted Joseph.
"I do not understand," says one, "how trials and blessings go
together." Perhaps you do not, but there are many old women here
who do–and there are many of us whom you would, perhaps, set
down as being very ignorant–who perfectly understand it. You see,
experience teaches. There are many who will criticize some of the
sentences of Ralph Erskine in his Believer's Riddle, and say that
these things are contradictory. Just so, but faith has to credit
contradictions.If you do not know that the spiritual life is a
profound paradox, you do not know anything at all. The way of a
serpent on the rock, or of a ship in the sea, is a mere trifle
compared with the way of spiritual life in the soul of man! To
understand yourself, you must understand the mystery of the two
natures and of the daily inward conflict between them–the carnal
mind that never can be reconciled to God and that heavenly mind
that cannot sin because it is born of God–both of which co-exist in
the Believer. They cause him often to be like Paul, in whom there
was the company of two armies, crying, one moment, "O wretched
man that I am!" and saying in the same breath, "I thank God
through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Please note, next, that God alone is the source of all blessing–"By
the Almighty, who shall bless you with blessings of Heaven above,
blessings of the deep that lies under." All these are blessings
distinctly from God and there is nothing which looks like a blessing
which will turn out to be a blessing unless God is recognized in it.
If God gives you your wealth, you shall be truly rich–otherwise
you shall be one of those poor rich people who enjoy nothing. If
God gives you your health and you are grateful for it, you shall
have true sanity, for your soul shall be in health even as your body
is. Restoration from sickness should always be ascribed to God.
Whatever part the physician may play–and he often plays a very
important part–yet to God, who gives the physician wisdom and
skill, must the gracious result be ascribed. Whatever may be said to
be due to nature–and there is no doubt that a good constitution
often works for itself more healing than does the doctor's
medicine–yet, since that constitution is the gift of God, He is still to
be praised! Every moment we owe the breath in our nostrils to the
Lord's kind forbearance. This dust would soon return to its brother
dust if God did not animate it by His breath. Therefore He is to be
praised for every moment of our life. But when, on certain
occasions, disease and pain set in and we are rendered extremely
weak–and life, then, more apparently than ever, seems to hang
upon a thread–if we are restored, our God deserves, then, a still
more special song of thanksgiving. Did not King Hezekiah sing
unto the Lord when he had been raised up from sore sickness and
his life had been preserved? He did not praise the lump of figs
which had been the instrument of relieving him, or sing to the
praise of the Prophet Isaiah who had prescribed for him–he praised
the God who had healed him and magnified His holy name!
Remember, Beloved, that whatever God gives you is a right-
handed blessing for which you are to thank Him, and by which you
are to serve Him. But also remember that, "Every good gift and
every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father
of Lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of
turning." What you get of the devil and what you get of yourself
will prove to be a curse to you–God alone can give you the
blessing!
Is it not sweet to think that the Lord is almighty as a blessing
God? Jacob says to Joseph, "The Almighty, who shall bless you,"
and he seems to imply that He will give an almighty blessing! Is it
not a glorious thought that God, being infinitely great, does not
give as if He were little and that the Infinite does not bless
according to the narrow limits of our finite minds? Well may we
join with Paul in saying, "Unto Him that is able to do exceeding
abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power
that works in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus
throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." Yes, God is
almighty to bless us. Oh, happy is that man who has the blessing of
the Lord resting upon him!
And, according to the verse in which our text is found, the Lord
delights especially to bless the children of His own servants–"Even
by the God of your father, who shall help you, and by the Almighty,
who shall bless you." Do you not feel that the son of your dearest
friend has some kind of claim upon you? If you have long loved the
father, you naturally take to the children for his sake. And though
Grace does not run in the blood, "For the promise is unto you and
to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the
Lord our God shall call," yet the God of Abraham does delight in
Isaac, and the God of Isaac delights in Jacob, and the God of Jacob
blesses Joseph, and the God of Joseph blesses Ephraim and
Manasseh! God likes to cleave to His old friends, even to a
thousand generations of them that love Him! He will never turn
aside from those who keep His Covenant. I count it a far greater
honor to be descended from the saints of God than to be descended
from the greatest princes who ever stirred the history of the world.
Will not you, Beloved, pray for your children as your fathers
prayed for you? And will not this verse encourage you to expect a
great blessing for your Joseph from the God who has dealt so
graciously with you? O young man, may the blessing of the God of
your father come upon you, even the blessing of "the Almighty,
who shall bless you with blessings of Heaven above, blessings of
the deep that lies under!"
Notice, once more, before we get into the very heart of the text,
that when God is about to bless His people, He can make the
causes of disquietude to become the sources of benediction. Men
are, by nature, afraid of the heavens–the superstitious dread the
signs in the sky and even the bravest spirit is, sometimes, made to
tremble when the heavens are ablaze with lightning. And when the
pealing thunder seems to make the vast concave of Heaven to
shake and to reverberate, who but God can give us the blessings of
the upper sky? As for "the deep that lies under," why, in the
imagination of some men, it is the world of darkness and the Valley
of the Shadow of Death! And when earthquakes happen, as they do
much more often in the East than here, then are men sorely afraid.
They know not what lies in the deep caverns beneath them and they
tremble, and are dismayed, but God can give us the "blessings of
the deep that lies under." He can, in fact, encompass us with
blessings so that we shall go forth with joy and be led forth with
peace. The mountains and the hills shall break forth before us into
singing–and in yon dark forests , the very trees shall clap their
hands! Has He not promised that the beasts of the field shall be at
peace with us and that the stones of the field shall be in league with
us? The stars in their courses fight for the people of God! And the
earth below is still moved to its inmost depth by the power of Him
that keeps Israel, who does neither slumber nor sleep.
Thus, dear Friends, have I brought you up to the text which I
think readily divides itself into two parts and so furnishes us with
our themes for meditation–first, the blessings of Heaven above. the
blessings of the deepbeneath.
First, there were given to Joseph THE BLESSINGS OF
HEAVEN ABOVE. And I believe that they are also given to all
God's people who are in trouble, who bear themselves well in
temptation and who are sustained by Divine Grace as Joseph was.
You and I, as God's people, shall have the blessings of Heaven
above.
Joseph had them, first, literally, that is to say, upon his country.
There was the blessing of the sun which, in its season, shone to
help vegetation to develop itself, to produce the fruits and to ripen
the harvest. There were the blessings of the moon, for, in the
darkness of the night men were cheered by it–and the moon has
various subtle influences upon plants and people of which we know
but little. But, whatever those blessings were, Joseph's land had the
blessings of the moon and of the stars. There fell upon his
mountains the blessings of the dew which comes at nightfall very
heavily in the East–and makes up for the lack of rain. Joseph had
the dew and, in due season, Joseph had the rain, too–the early and
the latter rains–and the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh
rejoiced in possessing a fertile country, a land for which the Lord
their God cared very specially. Thus they had, literally, the
blessings of Heaven above. And you and I, Beloved, shall have all
the blessings of Heaven above, literally, as far as they would be
real blessings to us according to that ancient promise, "The sun
shall not smite you by day, nor the moon by night…The Lord shall
preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth,
and even for evermore."
But, just now I am going to show that God's people shall have
these blessings metaphorically. That is to say, theyshall have that
which is represented by the sun–the sunlight of Divine favor. You
shall have fulfilled to you, tried childof God, the benediction of the
High Priest, "The Lord bless you, and keep you: the Lord make His
face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you: the Lord lift up His
Countenance upon you, and give you peace." You shall have as
much of the light of God's Countenance as you can bear and, if you
will walk with Him, as Joseph did, in all carefulness and
uprightness, then you shall have that sunlight continually with you,
making glad your heart and ripening within you the fruits of Grace
to the glory of God!
Then, when the night comes, you shall have the Word of God
shining in your soul, like the moon and, oftentimes, the borrowed
and reflected light of the Gospel ministry shall be a blessing to you
when, otherwise, you would have been in darkness of spirit. You
shall have a blessing by night as well as by day–a blessing on your
sleep and on your rest, as well as on your labor! God will never
cease to bless out of Heaven those whom He has eternally chosen
as His own.
Nor shall you, who are the Lord's people, lack the reviving and
refreshing dew. If you live near to God, you shall be able to say
with Job, "The dew lay all night upon my branch." Oftentimes,
when the threshing floor shall be dry, your fleece shall be wet, for
the Lord shall send to you a perpetual watering by the dew of
Heaven. Has He not said of His vineyard, "I, the Lord, do keep it; I
will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and
day"? O my Brothers and Sisters, it is, indeed, a great blessing
when your soul is full of the heavenly dew–the unction of the Holy
One–the bedewing of the Holy Spirit! This blessing is also
intended for all the people of God.
And you shall have the rain, too, in its own season, for the value
of the blessings of Heaven is very much dependent upon the season
in which they come. Sometimes it is good for us to be surrounded
with a damp atmosphere and dark clouds, but there are times when
the plants must have sunlight. And there are seasons when the soul
must have delight in its God. You shall have the dampness when
you need it and you shall have the brightness when you can bear it.
The Lord will give you, just as He gives a land when He means to
bless it, the early rain in its season and the latter rain in its season–
the dew in its night and the sunlight in its day. Oh, be glad, dear
Friend, that all that the high peaks of Bashan and the hills of
Ephraim ever possessed shall be yours spiritually and you shall
bring forth abundant fruit to the glory ofGod!
Now, for a minute or two, let me show you that this blessing of
Heaven above may be looked at as being similar to the
blessing The blessings of Heaven, both naturally and spiritually,
come to men sovereignly. If we summoned a Parliament, they
might talk as much folly as they usually do, but they could not
produce a shower of rain by all their talk! If we had all the kings
and queens in the world gathered together, they could not give the
farmer one sunshiny day when God willed to cover the sky with
clouds! He gives dew, or rain, or sunlight according as He wills it.
Well, so is it with the Grace of God in all its various forms! It is the
Sovereign gift of Heaven and the Lord holds in His own hand the
prerogative to give it or to withhold it–
"When He shuts up in fell despair,
Who can remove the iron bar?"
And when He gives light and liberty, who is there that can darken
the child of God, or thrust him into the dungeon? It is God who
gives the rain, the dew and the sunlight–and it is He, also, who
alone can give Divine Grace.
But these blessings of Heaven are effectual as well as Sovereign.
When God makes it rain in the East, it rains and nobody has to go
outside to see whether it is raining or not. And when the sun shines
in the East, it is hot and nobody has to question whether the sun is
shining or not. It so shines that you need to get under the shadow of
a great rock in a weary land and, in like manner, I know that when
God blesses His people, they are blessed! If His Grace descends,
He gives a plentiful shower whereby He does refresh His
inheritance when it is weary! When His dews fall, they saturate our
fleece till we could wring out the water as Gideon did! The Lord
never fails to complete all the processes He intends at the various
seasons! Who can stand before His cold, or before His heat? So is it
with His Grace–it is effectual in accomplishing the purposes of the
Most High.
But the blessings of Heaven are also exceedingly pure. What can
there be whiter than snow that drops from the sky? What can there
be purer than the mountain spring? It is almost too pure for man's
sinful palate, but everything that God sends from Heaven is, like
Himself, pure and clean. So is His Grace. When it comes into the
heart, it is a lovely thing, a thing of good repute and it makes us,
also, to be of good repute when we yield to its power.
And what a sublime thing is that which comes from Heaven! You
know how God said to Job, "Has the rain a father? Or who has
begotten the drops of dew?" He seemed to ask where else they
could come from but from Him–and certainly He it is who bestows
His Grace, whatever shape it may take! Every drop of Grace that
comes into the soul of a man glorifies the God who sent it, so that
the gifts of God's Grace are included in the blessings of Heaven
above.
The blessings of Heaven above are also continuous, for, if it does
not always rain, then the sunlight takes up its work, or the moon
operates upon the earth. But there is always some blessing coming
from the sky towards man. The world is never cut asunder from its
moorings amid the stars–they all have their ordained influences
upon us and, in like manner–no child of God is ever beyond the
reach of the sweet influences of the Pleiades of the promises! And
God, the great Father of Lights, is always affecting for good the
hearts of all His people. Continuous are the blessings which come
from Heaven!
So, you see, there is a similarity between the benedictions of
Grace and the blessings of Nature.
And, dear Friends, I think that there is a specialty about some
blessings which proves that they have come fromabove more
distinctly than any others. For instance, that first Grace which
works in the heart–is not that just like the rain which comes when
nobody is looking for it? The man has never prayed for Grace or,
even if he has prayed for it, there is no true prayer ever offered
until first of all Grace has come to produce that prayer. The sinner
is never beforehand with God. If you begin to pray at this moment,
it is because God's Grace has begun to work upon your heart so
that you can pray. He is always first! That is one of the blessings of
Heaven, then–that first movement of the EternalSpirit upon the
dead, chaotic heart–producing light and order. That is surely from
Heaven and God has given it to His people.
And do you not see how clearly Grace comes from Heaven
because it keeps on coming even when it is not fed by us? Though
we often flag in our spiritual experience, the great God never flags.
"If we believe not, yet He abides faithful: He cannot deny
Himself." Often, when our heart's fire would go out, His flaming
love burns so continually that the fire within us is kept alive.
Because He perseveres in love, we persevere in Grace. If God
changed in His thoughts toward us, we would be utterly cast away,
but He does not change and, therefore, we are not consumed. This
is another proof that the gift of His Grace is purely and clearly out
of Heaven–Heaven's own benison, the blessing of Heaven above.
I can look back upon many mercies which I have received which
do not appear to have come to me by any channel except through
the blessed Mediator, the Lord Jesus Christ. I mean not by any
human channel. Oftentimes, when we are alone, sweet thoughts
refresh us and comforts come flying into our spirit–singing like the
birds which are all alive at springtime. We know not how those
sweet songsters came, but we hear them singing! Those are, indeed,
blessings from Heaven above that never touch the earth, but come
directly from God to your heart. Perhaps you will have more of
them soon, in times of greater trouble and direr sickness and, as
you get nearer to the Hill Country, when there is only the narrow
river between you and the golden shore, then shall you have more
and more of the blessings of Heaven above. They are all yours, but
they shall come to you in their season.
Finally, under this head, I may say that we actually and certainly
have the blessings of Heaven above. Why, Beloved,all that there is
in Heaven is given to us! There is God the Father in Heaven, and
He is our Father. "The blessings of Heaven above" must include
the blessing of Him who has begotten us, again, unto a lively hope
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead! Our dear Father's
own benediction comes to us warm out of His infinite heart–the
heart that gave us Jesus and now can deny us nothing. Oh, what a
blessing we have in that love of our Father in Heaven! But Jesus is
there, too–
"He who on earth as Man was known,
And bore our sins and pains,
Now seated on the eternal Throne,
The God of Glory reigns"
and all the blessing there is in Him comes streaming down to His
people!
There is not one of the children of God who has any idea of a
thousandth part of the blessing that he is continually receiving from
the Lord Jesus Christ. "It pleased the Father that in Him should all
fullness dwell" and of His fullness we are daily receiving, Grace
for Grace. There, also, in Heaven is the blessed Spirit, the
Comforter, and He blesses us, for He is here as well as there. He is
in us and with us, and abides with us henceforth and forever, to
illuminate, to comfort, to direct, to refresh, to sanctify, to make
perfect. Every form of His blessing is ours. Then, as you look again
up to Heaven, you may rest assured that there is not an angel there
but is bound to bless you. When the triune God becomes your God,
then for certain all the courtiers of the King's palace are your
ministers, "sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of
salvation."
Beloved in Christ, what is there in Heaven that is not assured to
you by your Covenant-keeping God who is eternal, immutable, full
of benediction, infinite, almighty in the love that He has to His
children? All this blessedness is yours, whether the sun and the
moon shine, or are beclouded! All these blessings are yours even as
the dew falls and the rain and the snow come down from Heaven,
and return not there. At all seasons the windows of Heaven are
open and you have not may have–yes, and shall have–if you have
but Grace to open wide your mouth to ask largely–and to receive
largelyfrom Him who gives without stint and without upbraiding.
Blessed men, blessed women are you who have believed in Christ
and have the blessings of Heaven above! I pity any who have not
so believed, for the curse–not the blessing–istheirs.
II. Now we must spend a few minutes in considering the second
part of our subject, namely, THE BLESSINGS OF THE DEEP
BENEATH. These are the blessings which come from God's
works–from Nature–from Providence: "blessings of the deep that
lies under." Moses called it, "the deep that couches beneath."
This promise may be taken, first, literally, as an allusion to wells
and springs. Underneath the earth there are greatreservoirs of water
which are constantly being tapped in these days by men who make
artesian wells, but, in that country, where they did not know
anything about boring artesian wells, they did know that springs
often bubble up from the bowels of the earth in very strange places,
sometimes on the very tops of hills! It is a remarkable thing that on
the Island of St. Helena, a mere pile of rock which stands up out of
the water hundreds of feet above the level of the sea–there are
found numerous fountains of water, more than sufficient to supply
all the needs of that place. And in all sorts of strange places, where
you would not expect to find them, even in deserts, springs come
up and create an oasis of green in the midst of the barren sand. So
the tribes of Joseph were to have the blessing of springs that bubble
up among the valleys, or come leaping down the hills, to make glad
the pastures and the fields.
The analogy of that is just this–that all God's people are to have
the blessing of the inward design of creation.What is it? Those