WHO IS THIS MELCHISEDEC #13
Sovereignty #3 What should our attitude be?
August 20, 2000
Brian Kocourek
1 Chronicles 29:11 "Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and
the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the
heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art
exalted as head above all"
This morning I want to
continue in our study of "Who is This Melchisedec" . This will
be number 13 in our series and number 3 in our mini series on the sovereignty of God. Now, in this message
"Who is this Melchisedec" brother Branham is bringing to us a
In
understanding the True Godhood of God we must come to the conclusion that Sovereignty
characterizes the whole Being of God.
He is
sovereign in all his attributes. And last week we examined the Lord, Mercy and
Grace of God in light of His Sovereignty.
#1. He is
sovereign in the exercise of his power. His power is exercised as he wills,
when he wills, where he wills. This fact is evidenced on every page of
Scripture.
#2) God is
sovereign in the exercise of his mercy. And this of necessity must be so,
for mercy is directed by the will of him that shows mercy. Mercy is not a right
to which man is entitled. Mercy is that wonderful attribute of God by which he
pities and relieves the wretched. God bestows his mercies on whom he pleases
and withholds them as seems good unto himself.
#3) God is
sovereign in the exercise of his love. Ah! That's a hard saying, who then
can receive it? In John 3:27 we read, "A man
can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven". When we say that God is sovereign in the exercise
of his love, we mean that he loves whom he chooses. God does not love
everybody; if he did, he would love the Devil. Why doesn't God love the Devil?
Because there is nothing in him to love; because there is nothing in him to
attract the heart of God.
#4) God is
sovereign in the exercise of his grace. This of necessity, for grace is
favor shown to the undeserving: in fact, to the Hell deserving. Grace is the
antithesis of justice. Justice demands the impartial enforcement of law.
Justice requires that each shall receive his legitimate due, neither more nor
less. Justice bestows no favors and is no respecter of persons. Justice, as such,
shows no pity and knows no mercy. But after justice has been fully satisfied,
grace flows forth. Divine grace is not exercised at the expense of justice, but
"grace reigns through righteousness" Romans 5:21, and if grace
reigns, then is grace sovereign. Grace has been defined as the unmerited favor
of God; {d} and if unmerited, then none can claim it as their inalienable
right. If grace is unearned and undeserved, then none are entitled to it. If
grace is a gift, then none can demand it. Therefore, as salvation is by grace,
the free gift of God, then he bestows it on whom he pleases.
This morning I would like to
examine our attitude towards God's sovereignty and what ought to be our
attitude toward the sovereignty of God.
Matt. 11:26 "Even
so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight".
Every truth
that is revealed to us in God's Word is there not only for our information but
also for our inspiration. The Bible has been given to us not to gratify an idle
curiosity but to edify the souls of its readers. The sovereignty of God is
something more than an abstract principle which explains the rationale of the
divine government: it is designed as a motive for godly fear, it is made
known to us for the promotion of righteous living, it is revealed in
order to bring into subjection our rebellious hearts.
A true
recognition of God's sovereignty will humble us as nothing else could humble,
and brings our heart into simple submission before God, causing us to give up our
own self-will and makes us to delight in the awareness and performance of the
divine will.
When we speak
of the sovereignty of God we mean very much more than the exercise of God's
governmental power, though, of course, that is included in the expression. The
sovereignty of God means the Godhood of God. In its fullest and deepest meaning
the sovereignty of God signifies the Character and Being of the One whose
pleasure is performed and whose will is executed. To truly recognize the
sovereignty of God is, therefore, to gaze upon the Sovereign One Himself. It is
to come into the presence of the august "Majesty on High." It is to
have a sight of God Who is Holy in all his excellent glory. The effects of such
a view can be learned from the experiences of those Prophets of God who wrote
of their experiences in the Holy Scriptures,
which describe their experiences of
their view of the Lord God.
Notice the
experience of Job — the one of whom the Lord himself said, "There is none like
him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and
escheweth evil" Job 1:8. At the end of the book of Job, we are shown Job in the
divine presence, and how does he carry himself when brought face to face with
Jehovah? He says: "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine
eye seeth thee: Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes" Job 42:5,6. Thus, the
sight of God revealed in awesome majesty, caused Job to abhor himself, and not
only so, but to abase himself before the Almighty.
And what
of Isaiah. 6:1-13. In the sixth
chapter a scene is brought before us which has few equals even in Scripture.
The prophet beholds the Lord upon the Throne, a Throne "high and lifted up." Above
this Throne stood the seraphim with veiled faces, crying, "Holy, holy,
holy, is the Lord of hosts." What is the effect of this sight upon this
prophet of God? We hear him say, "Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone;
because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of
unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" Isaiah 6: 5. A sight of
the Divine King humbled Isaiah into the dust, bringing him, as it did, to a
realization of his own nothingness.
Once more
let's look at the prophet Daniel.
Toward the close of his life this man of God beheld the Lord in theophanic
manifestation. He appeared to his servant in human form "clothed in linen" and
with loins "girded with fine gold" — symbolic of holiness and
divine glory. We read that, "His body also was like the beryl, and his
face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his
arms and his feet like in color to polished brass, and the voice of his words
like the voice of a multitude." Daniel then tells the effect
this vision had upon him and those who were with him — "And I Daniel alone
saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great
quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was
left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me:
for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.
Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words,
then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground" Dan. 10:6-9. Once more,
then, we are shown that to obtain a sight of the Sovereign God is for our
mortal strength to wither up, and results in man being humbled into the dust
before his Maker. What then ought to be our attitude toward the Supreme
Sovereign Lord? We reply,
1. One Of Godly
Fear
Why is it
that, today, the masses are so utterly unconcerned about spiritual and eternal
things, and that they are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God? Why is it
that even on the battlefields multitudes were so indifferent to their soul's
welfare? Why is it that defiance of heaven is becoming more open, more blatant,
more daring? The answer is, Because .There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom. 3:18). Again; why
is it that the authority of the Scriptures and of a vindicated prophet of god
has been lowered so sadly in recent years? Why is it that even among those who
profess to be the Lord's people there is so little real subjection to his Word,
and that its precepts are so lightly esteemed and so readily set aside? Why is
it that a man of god can condemn sin in the pews and yet the people walk out in
anger and not even have the decency to call and want to be right with God? Ah!
what needs to be stressed today is that God is a God to be feared.
"The fear of the
Lord is the beginning of wisdom" Pr 1:7. Happy is the soul that has been awed by a
view of God's majesty, that has had a vision of God's awful greatness, his
ineffable holiness, his perfect righteousness, his irresistible power, his
sovereign grace. Some people might
think, "But it is only the unsaved, those outside of Christ, who need
to fear God"? Then the sufficient answer is that the saved, those who
are in Christ, are admonished to work out their own salvation with "fear
and trembling." There used to be a time, when we reffered to a real
believer as a "God fearing man" — that this saying has become
nearly extinct only serves to show how far we have drifted. But the God Who
changes not, once said "Like as a father pitieth his children, so
the Lord pitieth them that fear him" Psa. 103:13
When we speak
of godly fear, of course, we do not mean a fear like a slave has for his
master, of which attitude prevails among the heathen in connection with their
gods. No; we mean that attitude which Jehovah is pledged to bless, that
attitude which the prophet referred when he said, "To this man will I
(the Lord) look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and
trembleth at my Word" Isa 66:2. It was this the apostle Peter had in his mind when he
wrote, "Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king" 1Pe 2:17. And nothing
will foster this godly fear like a recognition of the sovereign Majesty of God.
What ought to
be our attitude toward the Sovereignty of God? We answer again,
2. One Of Implicit
Obedience.
A real view of
God leads to the realization of our littleness and nothingness, and issues in a
sense of dependency and of casting ourselves upon God. A real view of The Supreme
Judge promotes the spirit of godly fear and this, in turn, begets an obedient
walk. Here then is the divine antidote for the inborn evil of our hearts.
Naturally, man is filled with a sense of his own importance, with his greatness
and self-sufficiency; in other words, his pride and rebellion. But, the great
corrector of our attitudes, the great tweeker of our spirit, is to behold the
Mighty God, for this alone will really humble him. Man will glory either in
himself or in God. Man will live either to serve and please himself, or he will
seek to serve and please the Lord. None can serve two masters.
Irreverence begets
disobedience. It was the haughty pharaoh of Egypt who said, "Who is the Lord that
I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord; neither will I
let Israel go" Ex 5:2. But to this pharaoh, the God of the Hebrews was merely
a god, one among many, a powerless entity who needed not to be feared or
served. How sadly mistaken he was, and how bitterly he had to pay for his
mistake, which he soon discovered; but what we are here seeking to emphasize is
that, Pharaoh's defiant spirit was the fruit of irreverence, and this
irreverence was the consequence of his ignorance of the majesty and
authority of the Divine Being.
The old
proverb says, "Fools will walk where angels fear to tread." And how
true that is.
Now if
irreverence begets disobedience, then true reverence will produce and
promote obedience. To realize that the Holy Scriptures are a revelation from the
Most High, communicating to us his mind and defining for us his will, is the
first step toward practical godliness. To recognize that the Bible is God's
Word, and that its precepts are the precepts of the Almighty, will lead us to
see what an awful thing it is to despise and ignore them. To receive the Bible
as addressed to our own souls, given to us by the Creator himself, will cause
us to cry out as David did in Psalm 119:36,133, "Incline my heart
unto thy testimonies... Order my steps in thy Word" Once
the sovereignty of the Author of the Word is apprehended, it will no longer be
a matter of picking and choosing from the precepts and statutes of that Word,
selecting those which meet with our approval; but it will be seen that nothing
less than an unqualified and whole hearted submission becomes the individual.
What ought to
be our attitude toward the Sovereignty of God? We answer, once more,
3. One Of Entire
Acknowledgment and acceptance.
A true
recognition of God's Sovereignty will exclude all murmuring. This is
self-evident, yet the thought deserves to be dwelt upon. It is natural to
murmur against afflictions and losses. It is natural to complain when we are
deprived of those things that we had
our hearts set upon. We are apt to regard our possessions as ours
unconditionally. We feel that when we have carried out our plans with
carefulness and thoroughness that we are entitled to success; that when by hard
work we have developed a "competency", we deserve to keep and enjoy
it; that when we are surrounded by a happy family, no power may lawfully enter
the charmed circle and strike down a loved one; and if in any of these cases
disappointment, bankruptcy, death, actually comes, the perverted instinct of
the human heart is to cry out against God. But in the one who, by grace, has
recognized God's sovereignty, such murmuring is silenced, and instead, there is
a bowing to the divine will, and an acknowledgment that he has not afflicted us
as sorely as we deserve.
A true
recognition of God's sovereignty will avow God's perfect right to do with us as
he wills. The one who bows to the pleasure of the Almighty will acknowledge his
absolute right to do with us as seemeth him good. If he chooses to send
poverty, sickness, domestic bereavements, even while the heart is bleeding at
every pore, it will say, Shall not the Judge . of all the earth do right! Often there
will be a struggle, for the carnal mind remains in the believer to the end of
his earthly days. But though there may be a conflict within his mind,
nevertheless, the one who has really yielded himself to this blessed truth, the
voice of Jesus can be heard as when He said to the roaring sea, "Peace be still"; and
the storm that was raging within will be quieted and the subdued soul will lift
a tearful but confident eye to heaven and say, "thy will be done."
A striking
illustration of a soul bowing to the sovereign will of God is furnished by the
history of Eli the high priest of Israel. In 1 Sam. 3:1-21 we learn how
God revealed to the young child Samuel that he was about to slay Eli's two sons
for their wickedness, and on the morrow Samuel communicates this message to the
aged priest. It is difficult to conceive of more appalling intelligence for the
heart of a pious parent. The announcement that his child is going to be
stricken down by sudden death is, under any circumstances, a great trial to any
father, but to learn that his two sons — in the prime of their manhood, and
utterly unprepared to die — were to be cut off by a divine judgment, must have
been overwhelming. Yet, what was the effect upon Eli when he learned from
Samuel the tragic tidings? What reply did he make when he heard the awful news?
"And he said, It is the Lord: let him do what seemeth him good" 1 Sam. 3:18. And not
another word escaped his lips. What wonderful submission! What Sublime
resignation! What lovely exemplification of the power of divine grace to
control the strongest affections of the human heart and subdue the rebellious
will, bringing it into unashamed submission to the sovereign pleasure of
Jehovah.
Another
example, equally striking, is seen in the life of Job. As we all know, Job was one that feared
God and eschewed evil. If ever there was one who might reasonably expect
divine providence to smile upon him — we speak as a man — it was Job. Yet, how
well did it go with him? For a time, all seemed to go his way. The Lord filled
his quiver by giving him seven sons and three daughters. He prospered in his
business affairs until he owned great possessions. But all of a sudden, the sun
was hidden behind dark clouds. In a single day Job lost not only his flocks and
herds, but his sons and daughters as well. News arrived that his cattle had
been carried off by robbers, and his children slain by a cyclone. And how did
he receive this intelligence? Hearken to his sublime words: "The Lord gave, and
the Lord hath taken away." He bowed to the sovereign will of Jehovah. He
traced his afflictions back to their First Cause. He looked behind the Sabeans
who had stolen his cattle, and beyond the winds that had destroyed his
children, and saw the hand of God. But not only did Job recognize God's
sovereignty, he rejoiced in it, too. To the words, "The Lord
gave, and the Lord hath taken away", he added, "Blessed be the
name of the Lord" Job 1:21. Again we say, Sweet
submission! Sublime resignation!
A true
recognition of God's sovereignty causes us to hold our every plan in a holding
pattern waiting for God's will. In England when Queen Victoria had died , and
the date for the coronation of her eldest son, Edward, had been set for April
1902. In all the announcements which were sent out, two little letters were
omitted — D.V. — Deo Volente: God willing. Plans were made and all arrangements
completed for the most imposing celebrations that England had ever witnessed.
Kings and emperors from all parts of the earth had received invitations to
attend the royal ceremony. The Prince's proclamations were printed and
displayed, but the letters D.V. were not found on a single one of them. A most
imposing program had been arranged, and the late Queen's eldest son was to be
crowned Edward the Seventh at Westminster Abbey at a certain hour on a fixed
day. And then God intervened, and all man's plans were frustrated. A still small
voice was heard to say, "You have reckoned without me", and
Prince Edward was stricken down with appendicitis, and his coronation postponed
for months!
As remarked, a
true recognition of God's sovereignty causes us to hold our plans in waiting
for God's will. It makes us recognise that the divine potter has absolute power
over the clay and moulds it according to his own imperial pleasure. It causes
us to heed that admonition — now, alas! so generally disregarded — "Go to now, ye that
say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year,
and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the
morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that
ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that" Jas 4:13-15. Yes, it is
to the Lord's will we must bow. It is for him to say where I shall live —
whether in America or Africa. It is for him to determine under what
circumstances I shall live — whether amid wealth or poverty, whether in health
or sickness. It is for him to say how long I shall live — whether I shall be
cut down in youth like the flower of the field, or whether I shall continue for
three score and ten years. To really learn this lesson is, by grace, to attain
unto a high form in the school of God, and even when we think we have learnt
it, we discover, again and again, that we have to relearn it.
4. One Of Deep
Thankfulness And Joy.
The heart's
apprehension of this Truth of the sovereignty of God, produces something far
different than a sullen bowing to the inevitable. The philosophy of this
perishing world knows nothing better than to "make the best of a bad
job". But with the Christian it should be far other wise. Not only should
the recognition of God's supremacy produce within us godly fear, implicit
obedience, and entire resignation, but it should cause us to say as David
"Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy
name". Didn't Paul say "Giving thanks always for all things
unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" Eph 5:20?
It is at this point the state of our souls
is so often put to the test. Why? Because there is so much self-will in each of
us. When things go as we wish them, we appear to be very grateful to God; but
what of those occasions when things go contrary to our plans and desires?
We take it for
granted when the real Christian takes a train journey that, upon reaching his
destination, he devoutly returns thanks unto God — which, of course, argues
that he controls everything; otherwise, we ought to thank the engine driver,
the stoker, the signalmen etc. Or, if in business, at the close of a good week,
gratitude is expressed unto the giver of every good (temporal) and of every
perfect (spiritual) gift — which again, argues that he directs all customers to
your shop. So far, so good. But imagine the opposites. Suppose my train was
delayed for hours, did I fret and fume; suppose another train ran into it, and
I am injured! Or, suppose I have had a poor week in business, or that lightning
struck my shop and set it on fire, or that burglars broke in and rifled it —
then what: do I see the hand of God in these things?
Take the case of
Job once more. When loss after loss came his way, what did he do? Bemoan his
"bad luck"? Curse the robbers? Murmur against God? No; he bowed
before him in worship. There is no real rest for your poor heart until you
learn to see the hand of God in everything. But for that, faith must be in
constant exercise. And what is faith? A blind gullibility? A giving in to fate?
No, far from it. Faith is a resting on the sure Word of the living God, and
therefore says, "We know that all things work together for good to them that
love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose" Rom. 8:28; and
therefore faith will give thanks always for all things. Operative faith will
"Rejoice in the Lord always" Philippians 4:4.
Notice how
this recognition of God's sovereignty is expressed in godly fear, implicit
obedience, entire resignation, and deep thankfulness and joy was supremely and
perfectly exemplified by the Lord Jesus Christ. In all things the Lord Jesus has left us an example that we
should follow his steps. But are the words "godly fear" ever linked
with his peerless name? Remembering that "godly fear" signifies not a
servile terror, but rather a filial subjection and reverence, and remembering
too that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom", would
it not rather be strange if no mention at all were made of "godly fear" in
connection with the one who was wisdom incarnate! What a wonderful and precious
word is that of Heb 5:7 — "Who in the days of his flesh, having
offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that
was able to save him from death, and having been heard for his godly fear" (R.V.).
What was it but "godly fear" which caused the Lord Jesus to
be "subject" unto Mary and Joseph in the days of his childhood?
Was it not "godly fear" — a filial subjection to and
reverence for God — that we see displayed, when we read, "And he came to
Nazareth where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the
synagogue on the Sabbath day" Luke 4:16? Was it not
"godly fear" which caused the incarnate Son to say, when
tempted by Satan to fall down and worship him, "It is written,
thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve"? Was it
not "godly fear" which moved him to say to the cleansed leper,
"Go thy way, show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that
Moses commanded" Mt 8:4? But why multiply
illustrations? {a}
How perfect
was the obedience that the Lord Jesus offered to God the Father! And in reflecting
upon this let us not lose sight of that wondrous grace which caused him, who
was in the very form of God, to stoop so low as to take upon him the form of a
servant, and thus be brought into the place where obedience was becoming. As
the perfect servant he yielded complete obedience to his Father. How absolute
and entire that obedience was we may learn from the words, he "became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross" Philippians 2:8. That this
was a conscious and intelligent obedience is clear from his own language. —
"Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I
might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I
have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment
have I received from my Father" John 10:17,18.
And what shall
we say of the absolute resignation of the Son to the Father's will — what, but,
between them there was entire oneness of accord. Jesus said, "For I came down
from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me" John 6:38, and how
fully he substantiated that claim all know who have attentively followed his
path as marked out in the Scriptures. Notice His behavior him in Gethsemane!
The bitter "cup", held in the Father's hand, is presented to his
mind. Notice his attitude. Learn of him who was meek and lowly in heart.
Remember that there in the Garden we see the Word become flesh — a perfect man.
His body is quivering at every nerve, in contemplation of the physical sufferings
which await him; his holy and sensitive nature is shrinking from the horrible
indignities which shall be heaped upon him; his heart is breaking at the awful
"reproach" which is before him; his spirit is greatly troubled as he
foresees the terrible conflict with the Power of Darkness; and above all, and
supremely, his soul is filled with horror at the thought of being separated
from God himself — thus and there he pours out his soul to the Father, and with
strong crying and tears he sheds, as it were, great drops of blood. And now
observe and listen. Still the beating of thy heart, and hearken to the words
which fall from his blessed lips — "Father, if thou be willing, remove this
cup from me: nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done" Luke
22:42. Here is submission personified. Here, is resignation to the pleasure
of a sovereign God matchlessly put on display. Jesus our brother e has left us
an example that we should follow his steps . He who was tempted in all points like as we are — sin
apart — to show us how to wear our mortal nature!
What shall we
say of Christ's absolute resignation to the Father's will"? — our answer
is that here, as everywhere, he was unique, peerless. In all things he has the
preeminence." In the Lord Jesus there was no rebellious will to be broken.
In his heart there was nothing to be subdued. Was not this one reason why, in
the language of prophecy, he said, "I am a worm, and no man" Psa. 22:6 — a worm has
no power of resistance! It was because in him there was no resistance that he
could say, "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me" John 4:34. It was
because he was in perfect accord with the Father in all things that he said,
"I delight to do thy will, O God; yea, thy law is within my heart" Psa. 40:8. God has to
put his laws into our minds, and write them in our hearts Heb 8:10, but his law
was already in Christ's heart!
What a
beautiful and striking illustration of Christ's thankfulness and joy we find in
Matt.
11:1-30. There we behold, first, the failure in the faith of his
forerunner, John Matt. 11:22,23. Next, we learn of the discontent of
the people: satisfied neither with Christ's joyous message, nor with John's
solemn one Matt. 11:16-20. Third, we have the non-repentance of those favored
cities in which our Lord's mightiest works were done Matt. 11:21-24. And then we
read, "At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the
wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes" Matt. 11:25! Note the
parallel passage in Luke 11:1-54 opens by saying, "In that hour Jesus
rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee" etc. Ah, here was
submission in its purest form. Here was one by which the worlds were made, yet,
in the days of his humiliation, and in the face of his rejection, thankfully
and joyously bowing to the will of the "Lord of heaven and earth".
Notice how Old Testament prophecy also
declared that "the Spirit of the Lord" should "rest upon him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the
spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord" Isaiah 11:1,2.
What ought to
be our attitude towards God's sovereignty? Finally,
5. One Of Adoring
Worship.
It has been
well said that "true worship is based upon recognized GREATNESS, and
greatness is superlatively seen in Sovereignty, and at no other footstool will
men really worship" (J.B. Moody). In the presence of the divine King
upon his throne even the seraphim "veil their faces."
Divine
sovereignty is not the sovereignty of a tyrannical despot, but the exercised
pleasure of one who is infinitely wise and good! Because God is infinitely wise
he cannot err, and because he is infinitely righteous he will not do wrong.
Here then is the preciousness of this truth. The mere fact itself that God's
will is irresistible and irreversible fills me with fear, but once I realize
that God wills only that which is good, my heart is made to rejoice.
Here then is
the final answer to the question — What ought to be our attitude toward the
sovereignty of God? The becoming attitude for us to take is that of godly
fear, implicit obedience, and unreserved resignation and submission. But
not only so: the recognition of the sovereignty of God, and the realization
that the Sovereign himself is my Father, ought to overwhelm the heart and cause
me to bow before him in adoring worship. At all times I must say, "Even so, Father,
for so it seems good in thy sight."
Some two
hundred years ago the saintly Madam Guyon, after ten years spent in a dungeon
lying far below the surface of the ground, lit only by a candle at meal times,
wrote these words,
"A little bird I
am, Shut from the fields of air; Yet in my cage I sit and sing To him who
placed me there; Well pleased a prisoner to be, Because, my God, it
pleases thee.
Nought have I else
to do I sing the whole day long; And he whom most I love to please, Doth listen
to my song; He caught and bound my wandering wing But still he bends to hear me
sing.
My cage confines
me round; Abroad I cannot fly; But though my wing is closely bound,
My heart's at
liberty. My prison walls cannot control The flight, the freedom of the soul.
Ah! it is good to soar
These bolts and bars above To him whose purpose I adore, Whose Providence I
love; And in thy mighty will to find
The joy, the freedom of the mind."