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[0:00] Psalm 72, verse 17. His name shall endure forever. His name shall be continued as long as the Son.

[0:13] And men shall be blessed in him. All nations shall call him blessed. Now in this messianic psalm, we have described for us in the psalm, the righteous reign.

[0:29] That the Messiah is going to exist. It says that he is going to judge the people with righteousness. And of course the reference there must really be to the Lord Jesus Christ.

[0:43] That he is going to judge the people with righteousness and the poor with judgment. And then the writer goes on to tell us of how it's going to be a perpetual reign it's not going to end.

[1:00] It's going to continue forever. He says here they shall fear thee. That is the people shall fear thee as long as the sun and the moon endure throughout all generations.

[1:13] That is how extensive the reign of the Messiah is going to be. He is going to rule forever. And his reign too is going to be universal.

[1:25] It's not just for one part of the universe but for the whole universe. He shall have it, says, Christ Jesus. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the river and to the ends of the earth.

[1:43] What a wonderful time it will be when Christ is acclaimed King of the universe. What a wonderful thing it will be when the Prince of Peace is exercising his reign of peace to the ends of the earth.

[1:59] And then not only that but the writer here describes this reign of Christ as a gracious reign a kindly reign.

[2:12] Listen to what he says about Christ. He shall deliver the needy when he cries. The poor also and him that hath no helper.

[2:24] There will be no unfairness at that time when Christ is reigning supreme. Then he won't be any poor people because of sinness there is poverty and he will regret it.

[2:39] And those who are afraid because they have no helper they will find in Christ all their help. And indeed the term writer goes on to describe horror how prosperous the reign of Christ is going to be.

[2:55] He puts it like this. He says, there shall be a handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountain. The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon and there the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.

[3:14] Now just think of that. Who would ever go to the top of the mountain with a handful of sheep? Would you dream of going to the top of Everest? And scattering a handful of sheep there and imagining that it's going to bring forth an abundance of fruit and food?

[3:33] Of course it's ridiculous. And yet this is how it's going to be like in the days of Christ. I'm not talking about this literally. But metaphorically speaking there will be such an abundance of supply that it will be like taking a handful of corn and placing it upon the most unlikely places of the earth.

[3:54] And suddenly there will be an abundance of food. Now some of you have said think that this is a prayer of David on behalf of his son Solomon.

[4:11] Because at the beginning of the psalm he says, give the king thy judgment O God and thy righteousness unto the king's son. But then when he goes on to describe the glorious reign of Solomon we begin to see that the psalm is speaking about a greater than Solomon.

[4:29] Because however glorious Solomon was and he was a glorious king there can be no doubt at all about that. He brought a degree of glory and prosperity to Israel as a nation that it has never known before.

[4:48] David was the one who ensured the borders of Israel. But Solomon his son was the one who really brought it to grandeur. It was Solomon who built the temple.

[5:02] It was Solomon who built the king's palaces. It was Solomon who brought the nation of Israel to a state of prosperity as he has said that it has never known since.

[5:16] But then you see Solomon passed away and all the glory that he had assimilated passed away with him. And so ultimately the psalm writer can't be referring to his son.

[5:32] There must be another reference and the reference must here be to Christ of whom it is said that he will have dominion from sea to sea and from him.

[5:46] People will fear him as long as the sun and the moon endure throughout all generations and that could never be said of Solomon. But let's just look at this how Christ's name is going to be remembered forever.

[6:02] you know names are important. Names identify different things for us. We only need to name the name of the village that we were born in and all of a sudden it conjures up in our minds the village, the people, the old folks.

[6:23] is it the town as soon as the town's name is mentioned we remember it. The landmarks, the distinguishing features, the characteristics of the people, they all come to our minds.

[6:41] And it's the same you see when we mention the name of a person we only need to mention that person's name and suddenly there are the person that he is. in our minds' eye we can see him or her as the case may be and everything that distinguishes that person is suddenly remembered.

[7:04] Well, when it speaks about the name of Christ his name shall endure forever. What does it conjure up? It conjures up immediately the person of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

[7:18] we're not thinking just of the name Jesus but we are thinking of who Jesus is and what Jesus did.

[7:33] And so the psalmist is telling us here that the Savior's name will outlive time. His name shall be continued as long as the sun and there is no end to the sun and rain.

[7:50] The sun has been shining there in the heavens ever since the world began. It's shining today. It will shine tomorrow and all through the coming years of world history until history comes to its end.

[8:08] it will never diminish and in the same way with Christ's name it will never diminish. The name of Jesus will never be forgotten and why will it never be forgotten?

[8:26] It will never be forgotten because of who he is and because of his great work on the cross. it will never be forgotten because at Calvary the greatest victory that ever was was achieved there.

[8:48] You know there have been as we all know so very well great men in the past great women but their day has gone and not only has their day gone but their glory has passed away with them and it's only occasionally that we recall them in memory.

[9:16] Yes they were distinct personalities in their own day and they made a tremendous impact either upon the thought patterns of their day or upon the history of their time.

[9:27] If I were to mention for example to you the name Aristotle some of you would say I don't know who you're talking about others might say oh yes I remember Aristotle the great Greek philosopher yes I remember hearing about him and even being reminded of his philosophy when I was doing some studies at one time or another he came with the name Socrates the famous Greek celebrated names or for example coming to our own country Scotland if I were to mention David Kim yes I don't know very much about David Kim I don't even know the name but in this day David Kim was very very important perhaps he didn't really bring a degree of importance to Scotland that we would have liked because he was an atheist or perhaps more directly describe him as an agnostic but he had a tremendous impact upon this land of ours in the 17th century and to a large extent he affected the church so much so that there emerged through his philosophical speculations what were known as the moderate in the church of his day but then who remembers

[11:04] David Kim his name is just a blind word and you would never have thought about him unless I had spoken about him today to you this morning but it's different to see with Christ his name shall endure forever you know I've gone out and I suppose you've done this too I've gone out to Beulie and stood there in the square at Beulie and there is a great monument there you know I've never actually read it all but just occasionally I've looked at the inscriptions on the monument and it's all about battles battles long long before our time the names of the people who fought in these battles are inscribed on the stones and of course there's one down there at the station isn't there these names were important in their days but long since forgotten but now

[12:16] Christ's name is remembered you know on this occasion of remembrance and I know that people sometimes don't like it and there are people who will say remember Christ instead of these things of the past and yes I was just thinking last night when I was looking at the program on the festival of remembrance I was just thinking I said to my wife there's a lot to thank God for for the peace of these years and that as a nation although we've departed so far away from God we still come back to him and although it may be very very formal yet let's thank God that the name of God is thanks and remember for deliverance

[13:19] I suppose this congregation observes each minute of silence as we did earlier in the service simply because after the 1914-18 war there is recorded in the test session minutes of the female congregation with that the congregation gives thanks to God for the great deliverance and remember the 90 homes affected by death now just think of it 90 homes young men who went away never came back a congregation in itself isn't it there are congregations in the church of

[14:21] Scotland today they don't even number 90 and here were 90 young men in that prime and the glory of their manhood in all probability they would have met and married their girlfriends here and lived and brought up their family perhaps in this very congregation like that they're forgotten they don't know them they're not remembered you can understand the sentiment that were expressed by I think it was Leput Grieg one of the war poets of the first world war when he wrote this poem called The Soldier He says if I could die think only this of me that there is some corner of a foreign field that is forever

[15:23] England as an Englishman speaking I suppose a Scottish has said the same you can think of Will Friddle and the young poet who was with the group who seven days before the armistice in 1918 and I just say these matters because their name has been forgotten passed into the oblivion of history but here is Christ his name shall endure forever his name shall be continued as long as the son and men shall be blessed in him all nations shall call him blessed and so his name the name of Christ will outlive time isn't it in psalm 135 we read this about the name of our

[16:28] Lord thy name it says oh Lord endure forever forever and thy memorial oh Lord throughout all generations and not only will the name of Christ outlive time not like other names but the name of Christ also will be glorified through eternity you see when time ends when time ends time the minutes of passing away that's time I'm looking in front of me at the clock it's now five minutes to 12 that's time and the few minutes will be midday these five minutes will be gone forever passed into oblivion time too will come to an end but you see the name of Christ

[17:37] Jesus will never come to an end as it tells us here his name shall endure forever in his revelation and reading speaking from the book of Revelation and the least past Sabbath evening John tells us that he saw the final state of the redeemed and of that state he says this when the end comes he says John there shall be no more curse but the throne of God and of the land that will be in it his servant shall serve him and they shall see his face and his name that's the point you see his name shall be in their forehead and always when John is talking about the forehead he is meaning the mind the thinking capacity of the person and when he says that Christ's name will be in their forehead he really means this that Christ's name will always be there in their head they will be thinking of him that is to say the name of Christ will ever be before them and is it any wonder and many wonder that the name of Christ will be before his people in eternity when you think of all that

[19:16] Christ has done for them how invested they are to him after all isn't it Christ who has redeemed them by the shedding of his own blood for them greater love for no man than this and many people use it in these days but here Christ use it of himself greater love he says does no man than this than that a man laid down his life for his friends and that is what Christ did he laid down his life for his people can he ever forget him his name will endure forever and just a word more this name of Jesus you know it's going to compare and it does at this particular moment upon those who are involved it compares inestimable blessings upon those who love

[20:20] Christ what does it compare what does Christ compare upon you what is Jesus' great legacy what is it that he has left behind and that you come into possession of if you are one of these well in the terms of the will that our Lord our blessed Lord drew up with his father in the terms of that will he left certain things that were to be given to those for whom they were intended upon his death and what are the things well of course isn't there salvation here is Christ and he draws up his will and in that will he writes down the names of his people maybe your name if you are one of his do you believe in Christ well if you say

[21:30] I do well remember this when I went back in that transaction that he did with his father he said put that name down there and compare upon that person my salvation neither is there salvation in any other for there is none other name given under heaven among men whereby we can be saved and doesn't it say that by calling upon the name of our Lord whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved and so that's the blessing that comes through that's the legacy that we have in Christ it's salvation salvation from sin from the damning consequences of sin from the curse of sin that's what salvation is but surely another thing too that is conferred upon me our Lord people through his name is this that in that legacy that he has left there is comfort and the name of

[22:55] Christ comfort listen to the prophet Isaiah speaking a way back long ago as he looked at the coming of Jesus and he says this and this is how he describes his coming he says a virgin shall conceive and this is the first time that a virgin was ever to do this sort of thing so unnatural a virgin shall conceive and bear a son but that's not the important thing what would you call that son and shall call his name Emmanuel and what is the meaning of the name Emmanuel it means God with us and when the Hebrew people gave a name it always conveyed a meaning and that is why

[23:58] Jesus was given the name that he has Saviour conveys the meaning of salvation Emmanuel it conveys the meaning that he is always with us in the song of Solomon this is what the bride says thy name she says is of ointment for force and what does ointment do it heal it heals and that's what the name of Christ does I think of John Newton the captain of the slave ship who had to spend many days of misery thinking back over his past life but he was converted and it's he who wrote that wonderful song that has become so popular in these days amazing grace as John

[25:07] Newton could only write that amazing grace it was amazing grace that saved a rat like him but he also wrote these words how sweet the name of Jesus stands in a believer's ears it kills his sorrow seals his wounds and drives away his seals it makes the wounded spiritual and calms the troubled breast his manner to the hungry soul and to the weary rest and in my work as a minister of the gospel I only need to mention the name Jesus but sometimes he maybe dies you know you know it dies it comforts it drives away the feeling and then see isn't it a name that strengthens you know when the

[26:23] Philistine had the name Samson mentioned it sent a terror to him Samson the champion of the Israelites if he was on the mark it couldn't do a thing against the Israelites just the main Samson was enough for him and so it is with the name of Christ it's enough it drives away the enemy you might find yourself in a situation of fear could be anything I remember for example one of my friends saying that he went to a spiritist meeting I don't know why he went there but he went there on one occasion it can be a weird sort of thing it can be eerie and he began to feel an eerie an unhappiness a sense that he was in the wrong place and he began to mention the name

[27:45] Jesus and as soon as that room was mentioned those who were holding the feet and had to come to a stop and go on even the devil believed and said what are we to do with these devils when Jesus came to heal the demoniac what are we to do with evil Jesus of Nazareth art thou come to torment before the time his name is a point and toward forth his name is as a strong cow to which the righteous see and are safe the name of Jesus his name can endure forever let us say our gracious God we thank thee for our

[28:45]  Lord and saviour Jesus Christ we thank thee for all that that name conjures up for us when we think of him as Jesus who was to save his people from their sins as Jesus who was to be with his people on throughout their existence though I am with you always even until the end and as we think of that dear name we bless thee O Lord for Christ to adorn to name be with us now take us to our homes and safety and blot out our sins in Christ name the ask it Amen