[0:00] Can we turn again to Luke's Gospel, chapter 13? Reading from verse 31.
[0:16] The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him, Get thee out and depart hence, for Herod will kill thee. And he said unto them, Go ye and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
[0:40] Nevertheless, I must walk today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. And we should like to think very especially of the last two stanzas.
[0:56] O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not.
[1:15] Behold, your house is left unto you desolate, and verily I say unto you, ye shall not see me until the time come. And ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
[1:30] For the Pharisees, the Pharisees had been telling the Lord Jesus to depart, that Herod was out to kill him.
[1:45] And the Lord Jesus said that he would carry on doing the work he was doing, and he could take that message to Herod.
[2:02] He said, I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. That doesn't mean to say that he would live today and the next day and die on the third day.
[2:22] It's just a Jewish expression to indicate that he would carry on with his work. That he would carry on with his work.
[2:32] That he would carry on with his work. That he would complete the work he was doing. He would carry on until it was complete.
[2:44] But how can the Lord be perfected? How can he be made perfect? He is perfect as a man, and he is perfect as God.
[3:01] But the time would come when he would be perfect as the Savior. When he would finish the work given him to do. And then in the eyes of the justice of God, he would have worked out a perfect salvation.
[3:18] A perfect righteousness. And then he goes on to say, for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.
[3:28] That doesn't mean to say that some prophets did not die outside Jerusalem. Just again a general expression that it was the rule.
[3:43] Rather than the exception for the prophets to be slain at Jerusalem. The most unnatural place for them to be slain.
[4:00] Because there you had the worship of God centralized. centralized. In the temple. And in the priesthood. It was the very last place where you might expect prophets to be slain.
[4:18] And yet that was the general place for them to die. So coming to our words. Which we have taken as a text.
[4:31] First of all we have the sovereignty of God. There are some who jib and kick against the doctrine of the sovereignty of God.
[4:47] But the God who began the process of time. Is the God who has ordered all things for his own glory. And he has only permitted sin.
[5:03] And he has only ordered that that be so. So that a greater display of his goodness.
[5:18] May be made at the latter end. That may seem difficult for us to understand. But we have a great sovereign God.
[5:29] We are only of yesterday. What can we understand? And the sovereignty of God is seen in this. That he chose this nation Israel.
[5:46] Indeed friends. He chose one man. Scripture tells us that he chose Abraham alone. Godliness died out in the world.
[5:59] All over. You had small pockets here and there. And they all seemed to die out. But God.
[6:10] Kept the faith alive. In Abraham and his descendants. So that all the faith in the world today.
[6:22] Is linearly descended. From Abraham. And all believers. Are called the children of Abraham.
[6:33] Not the children of Melchizedek. Gordon has died out there. But the children of Abraham. Abraham. And God in his sovereignty chose Abraham.
[6:50] We cannot tell why. He is the pot there. We are the clay. And he chose the nation that came from Abraham.
[7:05] And there he had his believers. While the rest of the world. Was in darkness. Full of paganism. Superstition.
[7:16] Devil worship. And pouring into hell. For generation after generation. And Satan. And Satan. Did his utmost.
[7:26] To wipe out Israel. Stirring up all the nations around. That they might no longer be known as a nation. That the God of Israel.
[7:37] Kept the faith alive. He gave them prophets. He gave them priests. He gave them the temple. He chose Jerusalem.
[7:49] As the only city in the world. Where he ever placed his name. Because there was his temple. The only city in the world.
[8:00] With the temple of God. And there the faith of God. Carried on. And the rest of the world. Were in darkness. And to this people.
[8:12] He gave the written word. He gave the written word. Instead now. Of the word being passed from mouth to mouth.
[8:23] Or by word of mouth. It was now. Since the days of Moses. Put into writing. And he gave them the infallible writing of scripture.
[8:36] God is a sovereign God. A sovereign God. He sent the gospel into our land.
[8:47] In his own time. But many of our ancestors perished. They had witness to show them. That there was a creator.
[8:59] All around them proved that. They had a witness in their own conscience. To show them. That good and evil existed. They knew there was a God.
[9:14] But there was no savior. It is the word of God alone. Which reveals the savior. The word of God alone.
[9:25] Without the word of God. Nobody is going to believe in Christ as his savior. Men and women are left in darkness. God shines with his word.
[9:37] And blesses it. With the Holy Spirit. To the salvation of men and women. Do you understand that? In your own experience. And this great sovereign God.
[9:50] Gave us the gospel too. You know. If you were in Saudi Arabia. Tonight. And if you turned to Christ.
[10:01] As your savior. And they found that out. They would put you to death. God. But God. In his sovereignty. In his sovereign mercy.
[10:13] Has given us. The gospel. And yet. How few really. Desire that gospel. And it is the most wonderful thing.
[10:24] That ever came. Among. Creatures. The salvation of Jesus Christ. The second thing.
[10:35] We see here. Is that. The Lord Jesus. Was. A patriot. Other are those who say. He was. The son of man.
[10:47] Or the son of mankind. He had nothing to do with. Jews like that. He came to save. Men and women.
[10:59] All over the world. All that is true. But he came from the tribe of Judah. And Joseph. Belonged to Judah. Mary belonged to Judah.
[11:13] His common language. Was the language of the Jews. He was a carpenter. Among the Jews. His friends. His relatives.
[11:23] Were Jews. He knew Jerusalem so well. He loved Jerusalem. Jerusalem. Yes. No man in this world. Ever loved Jerusalem.
[11:36] As the Lord Jesus did. And you know. When the young Jewish soldiers. They took Jerusalem.
[11:47] Out of the hands of the Jordanians. And set it free. For themselves. And when they got to the Wailing Wall. There they wept.
[11:59] And there they praised God. In their own way. And they cleared away all the houses. Which were cluttering the Wailing Wall. So that all the Jews might now.
[12:12] Be able to come to that peace. Which represented. To them at least. The temple that used to be there. That none of these young weeping Jews.
[12:25] And no Jew that ever lived. Loved Jerusalem. As the Lord Jesus did. None of them ever loved the Mount of Olives.
[12:36] As the Lord Jesus did. Where he used to pass nights in prayer. None of them loved the Sea of Galilee. As the Lord Jesus did. None of them loved that country.
[12:49] As the Lord Jesus did. Going up and down throughout the country. For three years. Keeping within the confines of Judea. Preaching just to the Jews.
[13:02] Yes. He was a patriot. In the highest. And the truest sense of the word. He loved the Jews. And no man ever loved the Jews.
[13:15] As the Lord Jesus did. And no man ever will. And no we come to.
[13:28] Why he wept. He wept over Jerusalem. And he seems to have wept. In the presence of the Pharisees.
[13:41] In the presence of his enemies. And he wept before them. And they couldn't understand. What he was weeping about.
[13:51] When he wept over Jerusalem. But this was. The God man. He could see Jerusalem. Destroyed.
[14:04] In 40 years time. In 70 AD. 40 years. After. The death of Christ.
[14:16] It was utterly. And totally. Totally. Totally. Destroyed. And he could see that. He could see the walls coming down.
[14:28] He could see the temple burning. He could see the temple destroyed. Not one stone he had said. To Peter. When Peter called his attention.
[14:41] To the beautiful white. Limestone. Which covered the outside of the temple. It was all gleaming white. But the Lord said.
[14:51] The day will come. When not one stone shall be left upon another. Oh Jerusalem. Oh Jerusalem. And no man loved Jerusalem as he did.
[15:03] But here was one who could see. Men and women. Not only dying. But men and women. Going into eternity. No preacher ever loved souls.
[15:16] As the Lord Jesus loved souls. Nobody could love souls. As the Lord Jesus could. Nobody could weep. As the Lord Jesus could.
[15:27] Jeremiah couldn't weep. As Jesus could weep. And yet Jeremiah. Wrote his lamentation. After being 50 years in Jerusalem.
[15:38] As a prophet. And seeing his own Jerusalem destroyed. And the temple destroyed. In his own day. He wept. And he wrote the book of lamentation.
[15:51] Full of the sadness. Of a broken heart. Over what had happened. To Jerusalem. The place of the worship of God. But.
[16:02] The lamentation of Jeremiah. Was nothing. Compared to the lamentation. Of the God man. You could see.
[16:15] 60,000 Roman soldiers. And camping around Jerusalem. You could see. The three bands. Into which. They split.
[16:26] Inside the city. And they fought among themselves. You could see. Over a million. Put to death. And dying.
[16:39] You could see. As it were. The trees. Not being sufficient. For the Romans. To crucify. To crucify. The captured Jews.
[16:49] Outside the walls. Of Jerusalem. He could see. The great. Agony. And he told them. To pray. That this would not take place.
[17:03] In the winter. And he told them. He said to them. That it would be. A terrible time. For those. Who would be with child.
[17:13] A terrible time. A terrible time. Food would run out. And the people. Would become savages.
[17:25] And cannibalism. Would take place. And they would kill each other. And destroy each other. The Lord giving them over.
[17:37] Oh Jerusalem. Oh Jerusalem. Yes. Yes. And then. In Maistar.
[17:51] In Maistar. We read. That the plow. Was going to be. Thrown. Right. Through.
[18:02] Jerusalem. Maistar said. The heads. Thereof. Judge. For reward. And the priests. Thereof. Teach. For hire. And the prophets.
[18:13] Thereof. Divine. For money. Yet. Will they lean upon the Lord. And say. Is not the Lord. Among us. None evil. Can come upon us.
[18:25] Therefore. Shall Zion. For your sake. Be plowed. As a field. And Jerusalem. Shall become heaps. And the mountain.
[18:36] Of the house. As the high heaps. Of the forest. Oh Jerusalem. Oh Jerusalem. And he spoke too.
[18:52] To his. Dear people. At another time. Telling them. Of this destruction. Of Jerusalem. And he told them.
[19:02] When they should see. The city. Being surrounded. And when they should see. The abomination. Of desolation. Which Daniel.
[19:13] Had spoken of. Entering the city. To flee. Out of the city. The abomination. Of desolation.
[19:24] What is an abomination? To the Jews. To the Jews. An abomination. An abomination. Meant things. That could not be eaten. Unclean animals.
[19:37] Unclean fish. Unclean birds. But this was to be. The abomination. Of desolation. Soldiers. Were to be destroying.
[19:50] Their end sign. Was to be the eagle. The Roman eagles. Came pouring. Into Jerusalem. And around Jerusalem. And the Roman eagle.
[20:02] Entered. The precincts. Of the temple. Of the Lord. Where no such thing. Should ever enter. The Christian Jews. Fled.
[20:14] They left Jerusalem. History tells us. That they fled. To Pela. But the city. Was destroyed. And overwhelmed. And given over.
[20:27] That the Lord. Could see that. Standing. Forty. Years away. He could see it. Friends. It is at the Lord's mercy.
[20:39] That we cannot see. What will happen tomorrow. Tomorrow. It is at the Lord's mercy. That we cannot see. When our dear ones. Will die.
[20:51] All that is of the Lord's mercy. That this suffering man. The sin bearer. He was made to agonize. As nobody else.
[21:02] Could ever agonize. This was part of his agony. Seeing things. That nobody else. Could see. He could look into the human heart.
[21:14] And he agonized. When he saw the sin. In the human heart. He could look into the heart. Of a disciple. And agonize. When he saw the unbelief.
[21:25] In the heart of a Peter. Or a John. He could look into the heart. Of Judas. And see. That there was no saving grace. And he could agonize.
[21:37] He could look into the heart. Of Mary his mother. And see her unbelief. At times. And agonize. He could look into the days. And the weeks. And the months. As he was led.
[21:48] In his human nature. By the Holy Spirit. And agonize. Agonize. He could look. At the Pharisees. And he could say.
[22:01] Ye are not of my sheep. Only his sheep. Would be saved. And he said. That he knew his sheep. And he looked upon somebody.
[22:12] Said. Ye are not my sheep. They couldn't understand that. They couldn't believe that. They couldn't accept that. But these things cause.
[22:23] Great agony. In the soul of the Lord Jesus. Oh Jerusalem. Jerusalem. Nobody ever said.
[22:35] Jerusalem. With such. Pathos. As the Lord Jesus Christ. Uttered it. And when David. Wept over the death of Absalom.
[22:47] Oh Absalom. Absalom. My son. My son. Absalom. Would God. That I had died for thee. Absalom.
[22:59] My son. Absalom. That was full of pathos. But the descendant of David. The Lord Jesus. Had an agony. And a pathos.
[23:09] In his heart. That David. Could never. Never plumb. And none of us. Could ever plumb. Nobody loved. Human beings. As the Lord Jesus did.
[23:21] Thou shalt love the Lord thy God. With all thy heart. With all thy soul. With all. Thy strength. With all thy mind. We are commanded. And thy neighbor.
[23:32] As thyself. Nobody ever loved his neighbor. As the Lord Jesus Christ. Loved his neighbor. His fellow man. And he loved his fellow Jews.
[23:45] As a man there. In Jerusalem. Who was also. God. Man. Nobody ever pitied men. Nobody ever wept over men.
[23:57] As the Lord Jesus did. And if he saw Jerusalem. Forty. Years later. Perishing.
[24:09] We don't know friends. But that the Holy Spirit. May have led. His human nature. To see. The destruction.
[24:21] Of generation. After generation. Oh what agony. To see souls. Going to hell. In our own area. And other areas.
[24:31] Of the world. Who can enter into these things. If we could. Even. Get a tiny glimpse. Of these things. We would go mad. We would go mad.
[24:42] But this was the sin bearer. And some people say. That he never suffered. Until he came to the cross. What are they talking about?
[24:54] Let them read the shorter catechism. Let them read the word of God. And he goes on.
[25:05] How often. Would I have gathered. Thy children together. As a hen doth gather her brood. Under her wings. And ye would not.
[25:17] How often. Would I. And ye would not. When he says. Would I. He means. I willed. It was my desire.
[25:28] But ye would not. Now here we have a mystery. We know. That everyone will not be saved. That everyone is not in the election.
[25:41] We know that. Scripture says it quite clearly. But at the same time. We accept. What scripture says. That the Lord Jesus desired.
[25:54] The salvation. Of all these people. In Jerusalem. That they would turn unto him. I will. He said. But ye will not.
[26:05] I would. But ye would not. I desired it. My heart went out to you. But ye had no desire for it.
[26:16] Oh. What a situation to be in. Well we don't have the Lord Jesus. Weeping. In this tonight. We don't have that.
[26:27] But we have Christian men and women. And we have them. Who have tears. In their souls. And hearts. And at times. Who have tears on their faces.
[26:38] When they wrestle. For the souls. Of their fellow. Men. For the souls. Of their children. Of their dear ones. Yes.
[26:49] There are people. Who weep in this. And in all our villages. And throughout this island. For the precious. Precious souls. Of men and women. And the Lord Jesus.
[27:03] Would have gathered them all. As a hen gathers her chickens. Under her wings. When? When was that? Ah friends.
[27:18] Remember it was the same Lord Jesus. Who took them out of the land of Egypt. And led them. In a pillar of fire and smoke. For 40 years.
[27:29] And they rebelled against him. In the wilderness. They would not have him. They rejected him. His own Israel. They rejected him.
[27:41] They wanted a king. And time and time again. They rebelled against him. And all that time. He would have taken them all.
[27:53] Under his wings. Under the shadow of his wings. As David speaks about it. He would have taken them in. A hen is afraid of a hawk.
[28:05] And if a hawk comes swooping down. The hen will run for dear life. But when the hen has a brood.
[28:16] The hen will not run. There is something there. An instinct. An instinct of love as it were. For its brood. And the hen will stand.
[28:28] And the hen will fight. And other birds will do the same. And other animals will do the same. For their own young. God puts that into them.
[28:39] But friends. Here we have God man. Brought up in that land. As one who loved souls. As saviour. And he would have gathered them all.
[28:53] It's not just words. Verbiage. It's not that. It's the truth. He would have put his arms around them. He would have clasped them all to his heart.
[29:05] He would have sheltered them all. He would have kept them all. If they would have come. If they would have been willing. Ye would not.
[29:15] It's in the will. The will. When a man is willing to be saved. That man is saved. It's in the will. That is the central part.
[29:28] Of man's spiritual nature. The will. The will. And when the will turns to God. And makes choice of God.
[29:42] Then that man is saved. Sin keeps him back. His own sin. It has permeated him. It has entered every part of him.
[29:53] It is working openly and insidiously in him. And will destroy him completely. Create within me, said the psalmist.
[30:06] A new heart. A new heart. A heart that wants thyself. O Lord Jesus. Will you not pray to the Lord. To create such a heart within yourself.
[30:21] That he might take out the stony hard heart. And give you a heart of flesh. With his own law. Written in that heart.
[30:34] That you might be able to say. To do thy will. I take to life. O thou my God. That art. Many a time.
[30:47] In the Shekinah. The pillar of fire and smoke. He would have gathered them to himself. And in the land of Israel too. Many a time.
[30:57] He would have gathered them to himself. Many and many a time. There was never a parent. He would treat them as he would treat them. There was never anyone.
[31:09] But still. That is how it was. We remember Ruth. Who came from Moab. That young woman.
[31:20] Widowed as a young woman. And Naomi. Who said to herself. And Orpah. Who were both widowed.
[31:31] To go back to their people. And to go back to their gods. That she couldn't give them another husband. That she had heard.
[31:41] That there was bread in Bethlehem. And she was going back home. And they both kissed her. And Orpah went back to her people. And went back to her gods.
[31:54] But Ruth said. Entreat me not to leave thee. Please do not ask me to leave thee. Or thy people. Or my people. Thy God is my God.
[32:08] And Ruth claimed. To Naomi. She put her arms around Naomi. Not just kissing her. But she wouldn't let her go.
[32:20] She was putting her arms. The arms of her soul. Around the God of Naomi. Thy God. Will be my God.
[32:31] Where thou diest. I will die. She had heard something. Through Naomi. Oh friends. It was the Lord Jesus.
[32:43] Clasping. Wrote to himself. She had come to shelter. Under the wings of the Lord. That was what Boaz said to her. Under whose wings.
[32:54] Thou hast come to put thy trust. Have you come to put your trust. Under the wings of the Lord. I was reading there of a man.
[33:06] Who saw a moor hen. And the chickens had just come out. And he chased the moor hen away from the nest. And he stood by to see what would happen.
[33:20] And it began to cluck. And these tiny chickens. Perhaps a day old. Began to get out of the nest.
[33:33] That they had never left. And began to make their way through the heather. Towards the clucking of the mother. And you could barely say. That they knew her.
[33:44] Think of that in nature. But think of poor sinners. Coming to Christ. Hearing the clucking. Hearing the gospel.
[33:55] Hearing the Lord speaking. Sweetly to their souls. That's what he's doing in the gospel. That's what he's doing in this world. Speaking to precious souls.
[34:07] That you never hear. The clucking of the hen. That you never hear. That you never hear him speaking to yourself. And then he goes on.
[34:22] O Jerusalem, Jerusalem. Which killest the prophets. And stonest them that are sent unto thee. How often would I have gathered thee.
[34:34] They stoned the prophets. They stoned the best messengers they ever had. Who came with something better than food and drink.
[34:44] They came with the word of salvation. And they were put to death with stones. And they were killed in other ways. And you remember. That.
[34:58] Stephen. Stephen. That young man. After the Lord Jesus had gone to heaven. Was in Jerusalem. Speaking to the council.
[35:11] And he preached Christ to them. And they rose up. And they dragged him. And they threw him out of the holy city. Because they wanted to kill him.
[35:24] And he wasn't worthy of dying in the holy city. As they called it. And they stoned him to death. Outside Jerusalem. Praying to Jesus. Praying to Jesus.
[35:36] For his very murderers. Not to lay the sin to their charge. Oh friends. That is the spirit.
[35:47] The throwing of the stone. The rejection of the gospel. Is that what we have tonight in our hearts? Are we with the Lord? Or against the Lord?
[35:59] Where are we going? Where are we going to finish up? How is it all going to end? Where will my precious soul be? Where will your precious soul be?
[36:15] Well whatever agony. You are causing to other people. When you are outside Christ. One day the Lord Jesus.
[36:27] Will wipe away all tears. From the eyes of his own. And they will know sorrow no more. The father and the mother will see their own bosom child.
[36:39] Going to eternal perdition. And they will know no sorrow. They will understand. As they cannot understand down here.
[36:50] They will see the glory of God in it all. The plan of God. And they will sing his praises. Even when they know.
[37:01] That those who were with them in the home. And slept with them in the bed. Are lost in eternal damnation. Oh my dear friends.
[37:13] These things are facts. And these things are solemn. Behold. Amen. Behold.
[37:25] Behold. Your house is left unto you desolate. Behold. Your house. Is left unto you desolate.
[37:37] What does he mean by your house? He means the temple. Why should you call it your house? Weren't we today.
[37:48] This morning. Speaking about the temple. Wasn't it built for God. For the worship of God. Wasn't it called the house of God? And didn't Christ himself speak about the house of God?
[38:04] My father's house. And he said. That it was written. My father's house. Shall be called. And house of. Prayer.
[38:16] For all people. Nobody to be excluded. And house of prayer. For all people.
[38:27] And didn't he go to the temple twice? And didn't he cleanse it twice? But now he says. Your house.
[38:39] Your house. Not my father's house. Any longer. Not my house. It has been taken over by the enemies of God.
[38:51] And we read a little about them in Maitha. The prophets and the priests. And the rulers. Thinking of nothing but self gain.
[39:06] Rejecting the Lord. The priests planned to put him to death. And they gave him over to Pilate. The priests who were the keepers.
[39:17] Of the house of God. In whose hands the worship was. The keepers. Of the truth of God. In their lips.
[39:28] The teachers of the people. They had turned their backs. Upon the Lord. And he said. Your house. Is left unto you.
[39:46] You can't keep it. It is yours. But it is left unto you. Desolate. Desolate. Desolation is a terrible thing.
[40:03] When you come upon a house. Which you remember. Maybe. Fifty years ago. As being full of people. A family.
[40:15] Of six or seven or eight. I used to do a family worship. Night and morning. Used to see the children. Playing around. You'd hear the shouting.
[40:26] And the laughing. And the running. But now. When you come to the house. There's nobody there. The door is coming off its hinges.
[40:37] The windows. The windows. Are knocked in. The top of the house. The roof is collapsing. And you go in.
[40:49] And you might weep. When you remember. Oh. When you remember. The years. Of old. Of old.
[41:00] Which are past forever. Voice is gone. Yes. Desolation. But what is not desolation. Compared to the desolation.
[41:12] Of the temple. It was God's house. It was a place of joy. And praise. And to that place.
[41:24] The tribes went up. The tribes of God. They sang. These special. Psalms. When they went up. The Psalms of.
[41:37] Degrees. Or of steps. As they made their way up. And the streams came. From all over. People from all parts of the land.
[41:48] Gathering on the feast day. Perhaps a million people. Gathered together. Around the temple. But your house is left. Unto you. Desolate.
[41:59] Desolate. Desolate. In 40 years. The Roman torch. Would be inside it.
[42:11] It wouldn't take that. In a short while. When Christ was on the cross. The curtain. Before the Holy of Holies.
[42:22] When Christ died. Would be torn. From the top. To the bottom. It must have been. At least 20 feet. Some said was. More.
[42:33] Some go as far as 60. But nobody could reach the top of it. When Christ died. It tore. It was heavy material. No human hands could tear it.
[42:47] It was too heavy. But the priest ministering there. Saw it tearing from the top. Right down to the bottom.
[42:57] Him. From heaven. From the God. Man on the cross. He tore it.
[43:09] It was all over. The ceremonial worship was finished forever. The temple was over and done with. From now on.
[43:21] Wherever they gathered. And heard the gospel. That would be the worship of the Lord. But when the 40 years passed. The Romans entered.
[43:34] And they hated the Jews. And the Jews hated the Romans. And God allowed that. The Jews called all the outsiders. Dogs.
[43:46] Dogs. Unclean. And the Romans were the dogs of the dogs. The conquerors. But they stamped Jewry out.
[43:58] They wiped out the whole land. They went right through the whole land. Wiping out. All the pockets of resistance. And gathering them all. And glutting the slave markets of Europe.
[44:12] And they changed the name of Jerusalem. And they plowed over the place where the temple used to be. Trying to destroy it all. They couldn't destroy the foundation stone in the ground.
[44:29] But the plough slipped over that stone. And it's there. That was the stone where the temple was first built.
[44:42] A Rona's threshing place. Desolate. Desolate. If you go to the book of Ezekiel.
[44:53] You'll read there about the first temple. That the same thing happened to it. And Ezekiel speaks of the Shekinah leaving the temple. Because the Jews did not worship properly.
[45:06] And they even closed the doors. And they went into Babylon. To captivity. And they had their second captivity.
[45:17] Forty years after Christ. Have they come back? Have they come back? Have they returned? Well listen to this.
[45:30] Verse 1st. Verse 1st. Verse 2. Verily I say unto you, you shall not see me until the time come when you shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
[45:43] Psalm 111. Just before he died, days before he died, he entered Jerusalem and there children were singing.
[45:59] They were called babes. Young children had been taught the special psalms for the time of the feast. They were there and they sang at his approach.
[46:12] And they sang, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. And the enemies of the Lord Jesus said, Do you hear what these children are saying and singing?
[46:24] Do you hear it? Yes, he said, it's the word of God come to pass. Praise perfected in the mouths of children and babes.
[46:37] And now he says, You will not see me, Jerusalem. You will all be destroyed.
[46:50] So he is speaking to the Jews at large. You will not see me until that day when you say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
[47:01] And when will that be? I do not know. I do not know.
[47:13] But I know from Scripture that we have writings dealing with these things. Zechariah chapter 12 from verse 10.
[47:28] And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and of supplications.
[47:39] And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced. That's what Christ says away back in Zechariah. They shall look upon me whom they have pierced.
[47:52] They pierced him. And they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son and shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
[48:09] In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. The mourning of Hadadrimmon was for Josiah, good king Josiah, a king who belonged to God, killed by Pharaoh Necho.
[48:30] And they mourned when they brought his body back. That was the greatest mourning made for a man in Jerusalem. But this mourning will go beyond that.
[48:41] When in Jerusalem the Jews will weep, will weep in repentance because they rejected the Messiah who came these many years ago.
[48:54] They will mourn as for an only son. The repentance will be deep. It will be agonizing. It will be agonizing.
[49:06] Yes, they weep at the wailing wall. And they nod their heads when you watch them. They keep on nodding their heads. They keep on weeping. They keep on repeating the lamentation of Jeremiah and reading it out of the Bible.
[49:23] But there will be nothing compared to this. When they will see the Lord with the eye of faith. When the Holy Spirit will visit them. Yes, they have Jerusalem once more.
[49:34] They have it. God gave them Jerusalem a few years ago. But they haven't come back. The Lord Jesus hasn't returned yet. But he will as their brother.
[49:46] The elder brother. And listen again. Zechariah chapter 13. I will bring the third path through the fire.
[49:58] I will refine them. You'll try them as gold is tried. They shall call on my name. And I will hear them. I will say.
[50:09] It is my people. And they shall say. The Lord is my God. And among them of course. Will be individuals.
[50:23] All brought alive. individuals saying. The Lord is my God. Christ is my God. Will you have that experience?
[50:38] Will you be able to say. To the Lord. That he has returned. Return. O Lord. You have it in scripture. Time and time again.
[50:49] Return. O Lord. Unto thy people. Will you know. What it is. For the Lord Jesus. To turn to your soul. And you to weep.
[51:00] Before the Lord. And to say. Lord. I will. I will. It is my heart's desire. To know thee. To follow thee.
[51:11] To love thee. To be with thee. To be with thee. Forever more. And to be with thy people. Romans. I shan't we did.
[51:23] Chapter 11. Tells us. About the Jews. Being broken. Like a branch. Being broken. From an olive tree. And thrown away.
[51:36] Because they rejected the gospel. They rejected Christ. And so the gospel. Went into Europe. God gave Europe the gospel. But God said that one day.
[51:48] That branch. Which was broken off. Will be grafted. Into the stem again. The Jews will be brought back. And that. That branch.
[52:01] That despised branch. Will take hold of the stem. And the stem will take hold of the branch. And it will bear fruit. And the gospel will be preached again.
[52:13] In Hebrew. And the Jews will preach it. And they will leave their country. As they left their country. In the days of Peter. And John. And James. And Paul.
[52:24] And went to the Gentiles with it. It is coming again. God will do these things. But the thing friend is. For us tonight. Do we know Jesus?
[52:35] Can we say. Blessed is he that cometh. In the name of the Lord. He is the Lord. So he can come.
[52:47] In the full name of the Lord. Blessed is he that cometh. Blessed is he that cometh. When he comes among us tonight.
[52:58] In gospel worship. Do we say. Blessed is he that cometh. When he speaks to us in his word. Do we say. Blessed is he that cometh. When we pray to him.
[53:09] To the Lord on our knees. Are we earnest. Do we say. Blessed is he that cometh. Can we weep before the Lord. And say. Blessed is he. Oh blessed is he.
[53:21] Can we call him. Blessed. Blessed. Blessed. Blessed. Ah blessed. Be the Lord Jesus Christ. Yes.
[53:35] Blessed be God. And the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who has blessed us with all heavenly blessings. In Christ Jesus.
[53:47] In heavenly places. Blessed. Blessed. Blessed are those. The joyful sound that know. And Christ preached the sermon on the mount.
[53:58] Blessed. Blessed. Blessed. What can you call Christ blessed? Is that the song of your heart? Do you praise him?
[54:10] Do you glorify him? If you haven't learned that song in your heart. Lord. I pity you. I pity you.
[54:22] I would weep over you. Oh soul. Seek the Lord. Let us pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Bless us. We pray thee and help us.
[54:34] Go before us in everything we beseech thee. Give us to know thee as our own blessed one. And give us to be within thine own blessing.
[54:45] Dismiss us with thy blessing. Be with us in all things tonight. All spiritual activities Take away your sins For Jesus' sake, Amen