Psalm 45

May we open our Bibles to Psalm 45, the 45th Psalm, and verse 1. My heart is indicting a good manner. I speak of the things which I have made touching the King. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

What a wonderful verse this is, and we pray that God may help us in our message today to bring the truth of God before you as well as the person of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. You'll notice the first two words of this psalm, me or my heart, my heart. Everything starts, beloved Christians, with the heart.

How often we read our Bibles, but our heart is not in it. I'm not speaking now about the human heart that beats within our breasts, but rather the place of affection, the heart. How often we kneel down to pray and the heart is not in it.

How often we meet other Christians and we speak to them, but what we say, there is no heart in it. And so God says to us who know him as our Savior, My Son, give me thine heart. So often our heads are full of nonsense, but God wants our hearts.

Maybe let's look at a few scriptures together in connection with the heart, beloved Christians. Let's first of all look at a verse in the twelfth chapter of the gospel by Matthew. Matthew chapter 12 and verse 34, and the latter part of the verse, For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

These are the very words of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in the first part of this verse said, O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. There is another verse in the book of Ezra that I'm sure will encourage us. Ezra chapter 7 and verse 10, For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.

This servant of the Lord had prepared his heart not only to seek the law of the Lord, which of course would be the word of God, but also to do it, and then to teach in Israel statutes and judgments. So I believe we have in this chapter, Ezra 7 and verse 10, a divine order in connection with ministry. First of all, the heart was prepared.

Secondly, Ezra sought the law of the Lord, the word of God. Thirdly, he wished to do it, and then he was in that state of soul whereby he could teach in Israel the statutes and judgments. I believe we have there, beloved Christians, a divine order for you and for me to take special note of.

It's similar to the words in Acts chapter 1, where we read that the Lord Jesus began to do and to teach. And so we read in the gospel that his word was with power, and he spake with authority. So you see, there is a divine order in connection with ministry and the teaching of the word of God by his people.

Now let us turn to the 112th Psalm, and verse 7. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings, his heart is fixed trusting in the Lord. Notice in these verses how the heart is mentioned. His heart is fixed trusting in the Lord.

Now in Daniel chapter 1, where again we find the heart mentioned, Daniel chapter 1 and verse 8, but Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank. Here this man of God, Daniel, had a purpose, as the hymn writer wrote years ago, dare to be a Daniel. So Daniel had a purpose, and that purpose was in his heart.

It began with the heart. Now we look back at another verse in 2 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles chapter 30, and verse 12. Also in Judah, the hand of God was to give them one heart to do the commandments of the king and of the princes by the word of the Lord.

Here again we find the heart in connection with the word of God, and it says one heart. That is to say, the people of Judah were to have one heart in connection with the word of God. In Acts 4 verse 32, I am trying to bring these verses to your attention before we look back at Psalm 45 to consider that wonderful verse.

Acts 4 verse 32, And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul. Neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things come. Here it was, just after the day of Pentecost, and we find the same as in Ezra, one heart.

The multitude of them that believed were of one heart. How different it is in the closing days of the Church's history on the earth, just before the Lord's coming, when there is so much confusion, so much false doctrine taught, that we must really be on our guard, beloved Christians, that we have one heart for the Lord and one heart in connection with the precious word of God. Now back in Luke chapter 24.

Luke's gospel chapter 24. Now, I know that some of you are sick, some of you are in wheelchairs, maybe in bed, a bed of sickness, a bed of weakness, where you cannot find these scriptures. I'm going to read them to you so you'll be able to hear them and, by the grace of God, enjoy them.

In this scripture, Luke 24, we have the Lord talking to the two disciples on the way to Emmaus. He reveals himself to them, verse 31, their eyes were opened, and they knew him, and he vanished out of their sight. Verse 32, And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? Now, there were two disciples, but a big share of our heart, not plural, but singular.

What do we learn from this, beloved? Why doesn't God say in his word, or why did not these two disciples say, Did not our heart, instead of our heart, one heart, they were just like the days of Ezra, the days of Pentecost, they had one heart for Christ. Is it true today, dear Christians, how we all got one heart for Christ? May not the speaker today ask his own soul this question, Have I got one heart with God's people for the Lord Jesus Christ who has done so much for us? Now, the heart is again mentioned in Romans chapter 10, well-known scriptures that we never tire of reading or quoting. Romans 10 and 9, If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Now, I trust that every one of my hearers today has confessed Jesus Christ as Lord. And I trust that every one of my listeners believes in his or her heart that God raised his beloved son, the Lord Jesus Christ, from the dead.

Now, I want to read the verse that I quoted before in Proverbs 23. Proverbs 23 and verse 26. I just trust that each one of you who will hear the message today will be able to search the scriptures yourselves and enjoy these precious words of God.

Proverbs 23 and verse 26. My son, give me thine heart. Now, this verse has been used by evangelists and gospel preachers.

But it really refers, I believe, not to the unbeliever. For God does not ask the unbeliever, give me thine heart. For the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.

So why would God want a heart like that? You see, beloved, God doesn't improve that old heart. He doesn't polish it up, I think, reverently. He doesn't clean it up.

But he gives to us a brand new life and a new heart. A new heart. And that's the heart that he wants us to give to him.

My son, give me thine heart. In other words, we may be a born-again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. We may know something about him and his finished work.

We may know something about his love and his grace and his goodness. And yet, we may not really have given our heart to him. And so we may be half-hearted or quarter-hearted and not be full-hearted for the one who loved us and gave himself for us.

And so in our message today, we would stress and stress again and again the word, my heart. Give me thine heart. Have you and have I given our heart, this new heart that God has given to us first, have we given it back to him? My son, my daughter, my child, redeemed by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, born again, saved, cleansed, bought with his precious blood, a child of God for eternity, and looking forward to spending eternity in the glory of God.

Have you, have I given our heart to him? My son, give me thine heart. Now back to the 45th Psalm. Notice that the psalmist says, my heart.

He's talking about himself. My heart. And at the beginning of the psalm, the greatest of the headings, at the end of the heading says, a song of love, a song of love.

And notice in the margin of the Bible, my heart is indicting a good matter. And if you look in the margin of your Bible, you'll see these words, boiling or boileth or bubbleth up. Isn't that nice? My heart is bubbling up.

My heart is boiling over. Now at this point, I'd like you to look back at the 44th Psalm, and you'll notice how in verse 10, the psalmist is speaking about the Lord. Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy.

Verse 11, again, he's speaking about the Lord. Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat. Verse 12, thou sellest thy people for naught.

Verse 13, thou makest us to reproach to our neighbors. Verse 14, thou makest us a byword among the heathen. And then, notice the 21st verse.

Shall not God search this out? For he knoweth the secrets of the heart. Isn't that a wonderful expression? He, God, he knoweth the secrets of the heart. He knoweth every secret of your heart.

And he knoweth every secret of my heart. How awful it would be if we had a secret in our heart, and we could honestly say, nobody knoweth this secret, even the Lord doesn't know it. Wouldn't that be terrible? How nice it is if the Lord knoweth the secrets of our heart.

He looks right into our heart, and every secret thing, every secret word, every secret thought and act and deed is known by the Lord. Those unkind thoughts we have against our brothers and sisters. That jealousy that we so cleverly cover up and think that my brother and my sister don't know anything about my bitterness against them or my jealousy.

But the Lord knoweth the secrets of the heart. Not just the secret, but these secrets, plural, of the heart. Then it tells us in the 22nd verse of Psalm 44, Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long.

We are counted as sheep for the slaughter. If the Lord knoweth the secrets of the heart, is he not in this psalm exposing the very secrets of the hearts of his people? Are they not complaining and murmuring against the Lord? Notice the 23rd verse. Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? Arise, cast this knot off forever.

In the 22nd verse they're talking about being counted as sheep for the slaughter. In the 23rd verse they're accusing the Lord of being asleep. Does it not remind us of the fourth chapter of Mark's gospel where the disciples were in the ship with the Lord Jesus and he was sleeping in the hinder part of the ship on a pillow and a great storm came up and they went to him and said, Master, carest thou not that we perish? Are they not the same as these words? Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? Arise, cast this knot off forever.

In that fourth chapter of Mark, the Lord Jesus awakened out of his sleep by their cruel words, arose up and said, Peace be still, and there was a great calm. And then he gently rebuked them for their unbelief, not knowing who he was, that the mighty creator of the seas and the oceans and the lakes and the rivers was in the ship with them. Could the water drown that mighty one? No, indeed, beloved.

He had said to them, let us go over onto the other side. The devil couldn't keep them back. How could the devil sink a ship in which the master of the seas was, even though he was sleeping at the time? Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? Arise, cast this knot off forever.

Wherefore hidest thou thy face and forgetest our affliction and our oppression? It wasn't the Lord that was forgetting, it was Israel that was forgetting the Lord. It was Israel that had turned away from the Lord. It was Israel that was forgetting their maker and their God.

For our soul is bowed down to the dust, our belly cleaveth unto the earth. Arise for our health and redeem us for thy mercy's sake. They cried to the Lord.

Now, what a chapter that 44th Psalm is. Complaint, murmuring, grumbling against the Lord. But how different in the 45th Psalm.

Why? Why the difference? Well, it begins with my heart. My heart. If my heart is finding fault, if my heart is not thankful unto the Lord for his temporal and spiritual blessings, if my heart is watching my brethren and complaining that they have so much of this world's goods and I am so poor, I haven't got the same kind of clothes, the same kind of money, the same kind of a home, the same kind of a car, then I'll just be like those in the 44th Psalm and I'll say, Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? But if I'm in the 45th Psalm and my heart is bubbling up in connection with this good matter, what is this good matter, beloved? It's Christ himself for us in the New Testament days.

It was the Lord, or Jehovah, in the Psalm, but today it's a risen and a glorified Christ. And is your heart and my heart bubbling up today? Well, I can see that my tape is running out, so we must continue this message on the other side of this tape. I trust that every one of you will enjoy this, and you and I will both search our hearts as to whether we really can say, by the grace of God, my heart is bubbling up, my heart is boiling over, because I am considering this good matter, this grand subject, Christ and Christ alone, Christ himself, the one who never slumbers or never sleeps, the one who never changes, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday and today and forever.

Well, if you're not saved, I trust that you today will consider the question of your soul, for you have to live for eternity with Christ or without Christ. May God bless his work.