to Ezekiel chapter, or Second Kings, well, the Second Kings chapter six. Second Kings chapter six. There's a passage in Ezekiel somewhat similar to this. I had that in mind when I referred to that book. However, we want to read in second Kings chapter six and verse one. And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now the place where we dwell with thee is too straight for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. One said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servant. And he said, or answered, I will go. So he went with them, and when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was falling a beam, the axe had fell into the water. And he cried and said, Alas, master, for it was borrowed. And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he showed him the plate. and he cut down the stick and cast it in thither, and the iron did swim. Therefore said he, take it up to thee, and he put out his hand and took it. A number of years ago, possibly six or seven years ago, we were speaking on this passage in the Gospel, showing how a person can be saved. Tonight I want to apply it to the Christian, and there's something very, very practical I would say it's devastating in one sense as to its practicability for the life of the Christian. I don't suppose there's any child of God that doesn't realize sometimes, likely more often than one would like to admit, that there's just something lacking in my life as a Christian. That I am not as happy as I used to be, that there's just something missing somehow. I don't have that inward peace. I don't have that inward joy. There's just something wrong. Something lacking in my life. I've seen better days. Many a child of God can say and use that language. I've been happier. I've been more joyful in the Lord. I've been more conscious of His presence. But somehow I'm passing through a desert or a wilderness. So the message tonight will be along that line. Something lacking. Now in this passage... In verses one and two, you have enlargement. The place where we dwell is too straight for us. In other words, they didn't have enough room. They wanted to expand. They wanted to enlarge. So they decided on building. Then you have the encouragement. The prophet was asked to go, go ye, and I will go with thee. like to have the consciousness of his presence when we are engaged in any work for him. So you have encouragement, go ye and I will go with thee. Nothing is more encouraging than having the Lord's presence. So then you have employment, selling trees and building the building. Then you have embarrassment. Alas, master it, for it was borrowed. One of these workmen lost the axe head. Then you have the empowerment. Finally the axe head was recovered and he was able to proceed in his building project. First of all, enlargement. This can be looked at in various ways. One is reminded of Jabez back in the Old Testament. What did he say? And James was called on the God of Israel saying, Oh, that thou wouldest bless me indeed and enlarge my coast and that thine hand might be with me and that thou wouldest keep me from evil. that it may not grieve me, and God granted him that which he requested. Here's a man he's praying for enlargement, that thou wouldst enlarge my coat. Every child of God ought to pray every day for enlargement. Lord, I want my knowledge, my knowledge and wisdom in the things of God to enlarge. I'm not satisfied with the status quo. I'm not satisfied with all that I know. Many a time I've heard preachers talk. I remember one preacher has gone home to heaven. He said he never got a new sermon after he was fifty years of age. In other words, he was going to rest on his oars and be content. And whenever he wanted a sermon, he had just turned the barrel upside down and take the first one that came up. But I think this, that everyone, I don't care if he lives to be ninety, should be always digging and trying to get something fresh for him and his soul out of his book. Now I'm going to admit to you I'm past fifty because I've got some of my best sermons since I was fifty. So I'm very glad that God doesn't cease giving sermons when a man reaches the age of half a century because after all fifty is the old age of youth and the youth of old age. And so it's not bad to be around fifty anyway. But one should always be praying for enlargement of knowledge and of understanding, never satisfied with what you know. The word of God is deep. It's broad. You can't exhaust it. I'm amazed and I'm just unhappy in one sense, although I don't want to live my life over again. Yet I'm unhappy in another sense that I'm as old as I am. I'd like to start, just start reading the word of God once again. Just start going through it and studying it all over again, holding what I've already learned. My how wonderful would be. And the longer one lives, and the more you study the Bible, the more you are amazed at its depth and its vast extent. And you feel as though you have only scratched the surface of the Word of God. So let us always pray every day, Lord, that you might enlarge my coast of understanding. I'm not content, I'm not satisfied with the little I know about your Word. And then enlarge my heart, Lord. Paul says, Our heart is enlarged. He's writing to the Corinthians. why it's nice to have your heart enlarged at the same time as your head enlarged. It's a sad thing when the head enlarged is like a balloon and your heart is shriveled up. God wants our heart to keep pace with our head. If your knowledge increases, your heart should enlarge at the same time. How sad and tragic when that's not the case. When one is big-headed and their heart hasn't been able to keep pace with their knowledge. It's only then knowledge which puffs, puffs, puffs, if the Bible speaks of it. Enlarge my heart, Lord. I want a bigger heart. A heart that will take in all God's people. A heart that's bursting for poor sinners who are lost and going to hell. Lord, enlarge my heart. Give me an enlarged heart. I don't want an enlarged heart physically. But I do want an enlarged heart spiritually. A big heart. And enlarge my sphere of service, Lord. I'm not satisfied with my sphere. I'd like to have it enlarged. I'd like to be able to reach more people. I'd like to be able to contact more people. Enlarged my fear of service. And in this connection, I'd like to drop in one word, visitation. You know, I think we're sadly lacking in that department. And I believe your fear of service could be greatly enlarged by visitation. Visiting. Enlarged my fear of service law. You'll notice the encouragement that they got. The master, the prophet, he was quite sympathetic with their desire to expand. And so is our divine Lord. He's very sympathetic when you have a desire to expand, a desire to grow in the things of God. He's very sympathetic because he wants you to grow. He wants you to expand. He wants you to enlarge. And on this occasion, the prophet was very sympathetic. And he said, go and I will go with thee. He was certainly in full accord and full-hearted sympathy with their desire to expand and their desire to enlarge. So you see the employment here. They started to work. Every man had been. It's nice to notice that. Every man had been. There wasn't one drone among them. All were workers. Now, you know, so many times when you see a job project or under construction, you've got about three bosses for everybody that's doing a job. You know when the things have dropped, everybody should be in it. Every man had been, it says. Every one of these young students, well, that's what it was. It was a college. Every one of these young students was grabbing a beam or grabbing an axe. Everyone was busy doing his little bit. Isn't it grand when every one of God's people in an assembly or church is busy? You say, what in the world can I do? Well, you can likely do more than you're doing. Everyone can pray. There's not a child of God that can't pray. And I don't know. when I've been more encouraged sometimes visiting old people who can't do much, but they say, I pray for you every day. And so we can always pray. You can come to meetings. That's a great blessing, especially to the preacher. No preacher likes to preach to a wood fire. He likes somebody sitting on the wood fire. And so come to the meeting. That's a big encouragement. Bring someone with you. That's better still. We can all do these little things and testify, witness for Christ, give out tracks. We've got lots of tracks in those racks at the back. Help yourself and give them out. So there are many ways in which you can help and do your little bit. Practical giving, teaching in the Sunday school, whatever you have a little talent for. See that the Lord is using your talent. Every man of theme, everyone was doing something. There wasn't a lazy one in the crowd. Isn't that wonderful? There was one wise man among them all, though one young student, he was wise than the rest. He did say this. He invited the master to go with us in verse three. And one said, I'm amazed that others didn't. And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servant. And he answered, I will go. Why isn't it nice when we feel our need of him? For without him we can do nothing. And so one of these young students, he asked the prophet to go with it. And how willing and ready he was to go with it. The Lord knows we can do nothing without it. They toil all night, then they caught nothing. How often we too toil all night and catch nothing. We do things in our own strength. And here is the Lord standing by, watching us laboring, watching us working. knowing we're getting nowhere simply because we haven't turned to him and looked to him and invited him to help us and work to us. Here was one wise young student. He asked the master to go with him and he went. There's not a thing you do for the Lord. The Lord doesn't want you to be with him and he with you in it. So without him you can do absolutely nothing. Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman wake up, but in vain we read in the Bible. What's the use for the watchman waking up and giving an alarm? Unless the Lord is going to help people protect the city. And they that build the house labor in vain, unless the Lord is with them, unless the Lord is on their side, they labor in vain that build it. How much what we do is all in vain because we have of the Lord's presence, we have of the Lord's health. with us in what we undertake to do. Life and labor is vain without him, for how anxious he is to go along with us and do most of the work. He says, take my yoke upon you, and that's in connection with our service. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, and I, and ye shall find rest unto your soul. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. Now when you think of a yoke, it's that which unites two oxen together. And remember this, he's on one side and you're on the other. He's bearing as much as you, if not more. In fact, he'll bear more than you. How nice would he yoke with him in service and realize that he's carrying his share, you're carrying your share. And you're yoke together with the Lord Jesus Christ. We're workers together with him. He loves to take the heaviest side of the load every time. If you'll notice the embarrassment here, there was one young fellow and he was working away. And there was something going on that he wasn't aware of. That was the axe head that was beginning to slip off. You'll notice it was while he was felling a tree. While he was working, this young fellow wasn't idle. He wasn't lazy. This young fellow was hard at work. He was really swinging that axe head. But there was something going on that he wasn't aware of. He wasn't conscious of until he lost it. There is that axe head that's gradually slipping off the handle. And finally he brings a blow, but it's only the handle that hits the trunk of the tree. He's lost that sharp keen-cutting instrument, the axe head. And no need proceeding. He's lost weight, and he knows it. He's lost authority, and he knows it. The axe handle has no authority. Only the axe head, that keen-cutting instrument, that has authority. No need just taking that empty axe handle and trying to... cut down a tree with it there'll be no chips flying with an axe handle and so he's lost the axe handle and you'll notice he was busy while he lost it you know something Christian this is going to come home to all our hearts today we're liable to have an overloaded schedule just too much to do and if you have so much to do that you haven't got time to pray And to watch and pray and watch and see if you're not slipping. You're too busy. If you're too busy to pray. If you're too busy to study your word, God's word, and if you're too busy to go into your closet and have a quiet time, you're just too busy. And God's people today are suffering with an overloaded schedule. So often I meet people and they say, I would like to come out to the chapel. Certainly like to come out and hear you. But you know, I'm at my church and they go over the nights and they're filled up about every night. Something every night. And those kind of people are generally suffering too from a lack of a quiet time of old. Go, go, go, go, go. An overloaded schedule is just about as dangerous as are more dangerous than no schedule at all. On the one hand, you have idleness which is a devil's workshop. On the other hand, you have go, go, go, go an overloaded schedule. busy, busy, busy doing things, and yet there's something lacking in your life, and you know it. You're lacking that quiet time. By going all the time, something is going on. The axe handle, the axe head is beginning to slip, and it's getting closer and closer toward the end of the handle. How well most of us know all about what I'm talking about. Something is slipping. I wonder what it could be. You know, we backslide by degrees. We don't backslide all of us, but as a rule, it's a thought. Then it's a deed. Then it's a habit. God said concerning Ephraim, gray hairs are here and there upon them, and he knoweth it not. Now, very seldom does a person see the first gray hair. Seems somehow they wake up some morning and they find about a dozen of them there, or more. Something kind of slips up on him. Gray hair is an indication of decline and decay. God said concerning his Ephraim, Gray hairs are here and there upon him, and here's the tragic thing. He knows it not. Here is age, here is decline, here is decay, and the thing is he doesn't know it. Nothing is so pathetic in the things of God for a person to be away from God and not know it. For a person to be slipping and not know it. That's the tragic thing. Like Samson, he went out and he shook himself, as at other times, wishing not that the Lord had departed from him. Samson wasn't aware that the Lord had departed from. He thought I'm going to do as I did before. He flexed his muscle. But he found out the Lord had departed from him, and he lost his eyes. And you know the tragic story of Samson. He just tried to go through the motions of God had left him. How saddened and how tragic it is. Gray hairs are here and there upon him, and he knows it is not. You know, backsliding is like almost the unforeseen process of freezing of ice upon the pond. You live in the north, first of all, if you were observant, when the weather got cold and the temperature began to drop below freezing, first of all, you see a tiny film on the lake. That film was so thin that it would yield to the wave. almost like a silken web on top of the ice. But then the weather continued to get colder and colder, and that film was thickened and thickened until finally it was the water underneath that had to yield to the ice. First, the ice yielded to the water, but now the water's got to yield to the ice. The ice has got to go thick. The water has to stay beneath the ice. The ice is stronger now than the water. That's just like skin, a distant light. It begins, and it's only small, it sees. Just a tiny little film. You say, well, I can handle it. It won't get the better of me. I know when to stop. You do. Just wait a little while, and at the temperature of your soul begins to fall, and you get colder and colder and hotter. Then you finally wake up some morning and find out that habit's got you and you've got to yield to it. Once you thought you were the master of it, now it's your master. Sin has got the upper hand and you've got to yield to it. That's backsliding by degrees of that subtle and prestige process of getting away from God. Just like the axe head was beginning to slip off. Slowing up on your reading, slowing up on your praying, slowing up on your witnesses, slowing up on your attending meetings. This is the process. The first thing you know, you're away from God and you're quite a distance away. And there's no power in your life. That keen cutting instrument's not there. You're beating the air with an axe handle. There's something lacking. You know there's something lacking. Get up in the morning and say to the peace of God and the presence of God, you're irritable. You're aggravated about everything. You're sour. What's wrong? Something's lacking. Something's gone. Yes. The axe handle has blown off. Good way to literally put it like this has blown your shack. Something else blew off, too. Flew off the handle. Quite an expression, isn't it? They have it right here. The axe head blew off the handle. You know that something, that difference between success and failure, that difference between victory and defeat, that something is lacking. You can hardly describe it, but it's something, isn't it? You're out of the will of God. You're out of the way of God. It may be only the width of a boat as it was when the disciples were out fishing on that occasion. He says, drop the net on the right side and he shall find. What difference does seven or eight feet make in a big lake? Well, there's just a difference between the will of God and not the will of God. Sometimes there's not very much. The margin is very narrow between our being in the will of God and being out of the will of God. We think we're in it. We've come to find out we're out of it. And that's something, that sense of the presence of God is lacking. It's lacking. Oh, that suffering, that difference between faith and unbelief, that difference between confidence and courage, that difference between fruitfulness and barrenness, that difference between gladness and sadness. Oh, that difference, that difference. Yet the big difference, isn't it? The sad difference. Something is lacking. This fellow was painfully aware of that fact. The moment that panel came down and the head was gone, He knew there was no use continuing. He said, alas, master, get with pull. Alas, master, why proceed? I'm not going to accomplish anything stringing the axe handle. A Christian, you're not going to accomplish a thing being away from the Lord. Being out of fellowship, it just means beating the air, further effort is useless. How sad that is. Just making a noise. You know, hitting the trunk of a tree with an axe handle make more noise than the axe head? That keen piece of steel cutting into the wood? Why, that keen piece of steel cutting into the wood wouldn't make near as much noise as an axe handle hitting the trunk of the tree. And yet, when hitting the trunk of the tree with the axe handle, plenty of noise, but no chips are flying, no trees are falling. Ah, yes, plenty of noise, but no power. take one of these hot waters. Why, they make all kinds of noise with a muffler. But you see that old voice going along there. You can hardly hear the engine running, but it's got plenty of power. You know, it's possible for a person to make a lot of noise, but there's no power. Boy, noise meant power. I know some churches would really be a powerhouse. Plenty of noise. But that's not that. It's that deep settled tenth of God's presence with that still small voice that breaks the dead and bids the sleeper rise. It's not commotion on motion that comes. It's the presence of God. That voice that comes home to your heart. I know in my earlier days when I was like a windmill on the platform, you're shouting at the top of my lungs I've had many a person come up to me and said, Brother Wilson, when the storm's over and you drop your voice at the end of the meeting, that's when your message is most effective. It's not the noise. It's not the thunder that's killed. It's the lightning. And so we seem to minimize that still small voice of the Holy Spirit that works in the human heart. We know when it's working. It seems to soak right in. It seems to grip you. It takes a hold of you. That's what we need. So it's not noise. It's quiet working of the Holy Spirit. Remember the connection with Israel's experience in First Samuel about three or four? Why the Philistines became afraid? Because Israel gave a great shout! Why they thought now the Israelites are going to defeat us. They made a great shout, but Philistine challenged them, shouting all, and Israel was defeated. Their big shout meant nothing. Do you know why? The ark of God wasn't with them. God wasn't with them, and their big shout didn't mean a law of sin. And I don't care how much noise we make, but the spirit of God was not in what we do. Nothing's going to be accomplished. There's got to be the deep sense of the presence and power of God. in our lives and testimonies. Paul said it right into the Corinthians, is when I come unto your assembly, he said, you've got a lot of gifted speakers there, you come behind in no gifts. He said, I know not the word, but the power of you men. I'm not listening to your fluency. I'm not listening to your auditory. I'm going to feel the presence of God. That's what I'm going to expect. That's what I'm going to be on my watch for. Is there the presence of God, that keen-cutting instrument? What is it all noise? Not the word, he says, but the power. That's what it takes. Big difference between a babbling brook and the quiet flowing stream. That big river you can hardly hear it as it flows along. Not making near as much noise as that babbling brook over there. There's a whole lot more power in it. In other words, you know Christians, you know something of the quietness of God's presence. You've known something of poking up the presence of God. There's power. There's something there that's infectious. The effectual, fervent, prayer of a righteous man a day with much. The Lord Jesus Christ wasn't a rabble-rouser. The Bible says his voice shall not be heard in the streets. Jesus Christ was that calm, quiet, that he was deeply pious. He was in fellowship with his God. He knew what it was to walk with his God, and his God was with him. Then he spake, he spake with his thought of him. And he said, peace be still with a great calm. Is there something lacking in your life and life? That deep, settled, unruffled, deep, deep in the soul, of nothing, of life undisturbed. This keen-cutting instrument is lacking. No need stringing the handle of formal prayer, not going to do. That this tree, the blue, is missing. That keen-cutting instrument, the streets of the peaceful presence and power of God in my life and in your life. No chips are going to fall, no trees are going to fall. No gifts are going to fly rather and no fees are going to fall. There's going to be no construction, no expansion, no testimony, no suit, no worship. All the time in various separations in the Lord in your life and mine. That is bringing a handle of elephants with gifts with experience, no use. But the Spirit of God is not there. Nothing left. You'll notice what the master said. He was very sympathetic. When this man cried out, the last master was borrowed. The master didn't approve this servant. That's fairly noticeable. He didn't rebuke him. He didn't upgrade this young student. When he cried out, the last master was borrowed. No, because he was exercised. The young fellow could have just shrugged his shoulders when the axe head blew off. shown the hand and laughed with the head and said, what do you? Donald was turned to me. He didn't belong to me anyway. He said it in indifference to us, didn't he? But when he was very much aware of what had happened and he was very much exercised and he cried out, the last master was followed. The master was pleased with his exercise and said, fair Donald. God has no rebuke for those who are exercised about their lukewarmness. God has no rebuke for a No chastening for those who are really concerned and exercised before them about their spiritual life. For those who are neglectful and indifferent and careless, say, well, what's the use anyway? They're the ones that are into the chastening and the whipping. This young fellow, he said, last master was followed. What did the master say? Where fell it? Where fell it? Where was the place? What was the occasion? The reason for it falling. And I'd ask us that question, where fell it? When did you lose that deep peace? When did you become aware that consciousness that something is lacking now? You don't have that joy that you had, that peace, that sweet sense of the Lord's presence. Where fell it? Where did you lose it? You recall the incident. What could it be? some secret, unjudged sin? Is it that you're neglecting your Bible, you're neglecting daily prayer? Could it be quarreling? Could it be bitterness? Could it be jealousy? Could it be withholding the Lord's portion? Could it be pride? Could it be worldliness? Could it be habits? Some habits crept in, could it be temper? Where are palaces? What caused you to lose your fellowship with the Lord? What caused you to lose a consciousness of his presence in your life. Where, Pellet? That's it. Where, Pellet? I believe every Christian put his finger on the incident, the time where he got out of Pellet. He did something. He said something. Right then, he plowed him over his soul a sense of deadness instead of lightness. Where, Pellet? How nice to tell the Master all about these days. He loves to know about it. We confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and defend from all unrighteousness. Yes, it needs this tarry in business to read about in Acts chapter one, they tarry. When I'm conscious of something lacking in my life, what am I going to do? Increase the situation, make it worse, by neglect. What am I going into God's presence and spend some time with him and do a little carrying? Lord, I want to know what brought this situation about. I want to know what caused me to hang my harp on the willow. I want to know what it is that caused me to get cold of heart and to lose my joy in the Lord and lose my grip and lose my power. Lord, I want to know what caused it. I want to get this thing adjusted. Yes, that's what the Lord loves. Confess our sins and forsake us. He that confesses and forsakeeth his sin shall have mercy. No, he confesses his sin knowing you're going to go right back and do it again. He that confesses his sin and forsake of it shall have mercy. Confessing, forsaking, humbling our hearts before us. I want you to get this. Realizing it was borrowed. He said, alas, master, it was borrowed. It was loaned to us. It was that subject. Paul was very careful, lest he abuse his power in the gospel. He didn't want to abuse that which had been loaned to him. He didn't want to abuse it by pride, by conceit, by self-glory. It was moral. You know, this church is my own heart. Whatever I've got, God has loaned to me. He loaned me a body. He loaned me a life. He loaned me talents. He loaned me opportunities. All that we are and have, we have loaned you back. You ever think of that? Supposing your neighbor comes and borrow something from you. They come and borrow something else. Everything they borrow, they abuse. When you get it back, it's not like it was when you loaned it. Time's going to come when you're going to stop loathing. You're going to tell your neighbor, no. I'm not going to loan you anymore. You've abused everything I have but loaned you. And I'm not going to loan you anymore. You've borrowed enough. Let it be the time comes in a human life. God dealing with one of his children when he says, no, I loan you no more. You're my child. But I've loaned you things. Then you've only abused it. I've given you. I've loaned you opportunities. I've loaned you privileges. You've only abused. I gave you a body, and what are you doing with it? I've loaned you life. I've loaned you talent, ability. What have we that we have not received, and if we have received it, why do we glory therein? Anything I have got, God has loaned it to me. It belongs to him. Woe be unto me if I abuse it. God has loaned me these things. How am I reacting? Am I careful about how I use these things? Am I gentle? Because God is lonely then. Am I watching every day lest I do it harm? Am I grateful? Am I thankful for whatever he's entrusted to me? Or am I careless and indifferent? Or what's the difference? If I do abuse my life, is my life? Is it God lonely to you? Who does his worry anyway? And hurt an effect if I don't use my talent. It'll hurt a whole lot. It'll hurt you in the end. It'll neglect you to use what God has given to you. Those little abilities you're referring to in the beginning. Those little talents, they've seen insignificant, but they're great to him. You've loaned them to you. I don't want God to stop loaning you. pigilies are keeping his way. I go once after you hold his hand and stop giving me his precious truth. Whatever he gives to me is just borrowed, it's just on a loan basis. I can't say, it's mine. What touch thou that thou hast not received? And if thou hast received it, why do you glory in it? You've just had it loaned to you. Use it in that life. Not abuse. You notice how he regained that which he lost. Oh, you say, this is what I'm interested in. How can I regain that which I'm lost? You notice the empowerment. After the young man tried out a last, master was quarreled. The master said, where fell? You can almost see this young student right there, master. Right there is where the axe head went in. Can you put your finger on it? Can you put your finger on what caused me to lose fellowship with God? Can you point to it like this young student would point to it? There's where it went in right there. What did the master do? He cut down the limb of the tree and he threw it in right where the axe head fell. And you know a miracle was performed. The axe head came up. to where the branch was, the axe head would swim. That was contrary to nature. He broke the laws and barriers of gravity. Then an axe head was at the bottom of the river, came up to that branch. Put this, speak off. Ah, it's an amazing recovery. It's an amazing restoration. It shows us of the Lord. The Lord did this. No one else could do it. He restores my soul. When I'm out of fellowship, when I'm away from God, I'm helpless to do anything as to myself. I can make the adjustments. I can get on my face before God and confess my sin. But he's the one that's got to restore me. He restores my soul. And it was he who brought the axe head back up with a handle. With that stick, the shriek of the handle. It was the limb cut off that restored the axe head. To remind you of anything, this is the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ was cut off out of the land of the living, for the transgression of my people of Israel. Tel Aviv was where Jesus Christ was cut off. At the end of the sixty and ninth week, according to Daniel, Messiah shall be cut off. The end of the four hundred and eighty-three years. At the end of that prophetic time, Jesus Christ was cut off at the cross. The cutting off of the branch and the branch Jesus Christ has referred to in various places in your Bible as Jehovah's Branch. And here is the master, and he cuts off this branch from the tree, and he throws it in the river. And what was the name of the river? Yes. What does Jordan speak of? Death is the river of death. And the branch was cast into the river of death. The iron bit shrilly. That which was lost was recovered. And here you have Calvary. And what's going to bring me back with God, with the fellowship with God, if it's not the cross? Apply the cross. O God, reveal to me afresh your claims upon me as evidence that Calvary. When you purchased me with the blood of your son, when I was bought with the price of Calvary, yes, there's where the price was paid. when the precious blood of Christ was shed. That's where God purchased me. That's where I became his when Jesus was cut off. And I want to have revealed the flesh to my heart his claims upon me that I'm not my old. This ought to bring me back. You see the gospel at the sight. This is where I get my sins forgiven. those sins that have come between me and my God. We confess our sins, these faithful and justice, forgive us our sins and defend us from all unrighteousness. Here's where we see our death with Christ, dying crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ live within me. For the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Here's where I get back from the cross. It's this that delivers me from the world. God forbid that I should glory save on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by which the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world. It's the cross of Christ that impels me to serve him. The love of Christ can strain at me. The cross is the answer to everything. Bring the coffee. Bring the coffee. That's where the branch was cast. That's where the iron returned to the circle again. What a minute. Where am I going to regain my joy in the Lord, my peace, my power? Because it's not at the cost. And the place, too, where I lost it. Bringing the two together. Lord, I know the deed I did. I know the act. I know the word. I know the attitude. I know exactly what it was that caused me to lose that sense of your presence. Thy confesses. Lord, I bring it to the cross. I want it judged. I'm confessing it. I want that peace and joy back again. I've lost my power. I've lost that Christ-likeness. I've lost that mutual quiet spirit that's denied by the great saints. I've lost that humility. Lord, I want to have the fruit of the Spirit seen in my light. I want it. I want it now. You know what the master said? Put out your hand and take it. Now the master did so much. The master threw in the branch. And the axe head came up. But this fervent had to do something. The student had to do something. Now just look at it. He had to do something. He had to act. He said, reach out your hand and take it. Reach out your hand and take it. What I'm saying tonight is not just be spread out before you to be looked at and to listen to and at this. God wants us to do something about it. What I've been saying tonight is true. We've all got God's people with something lacking. A little thing has trapped in. We are not the Christian we should be. Here is the remedy. God says we've talked about it. Don't let another day pass. Reach out your hand and take it. Lay hold upon us. say this is for me and I'm going to apply it to myself and I'm going to make the necessary itself reach out your hand and take it and it is he took it he took it and he's going to take it am I going to take it or am I going to pass it on to someone else oh it's so easy point behind us and say, I hope so-and-so sitting back there, she needs this tonight. I hope he's sitting back here tonight, he needs that. No, none of us need it. Am I going to be talking about my hand and take it? Am I going to apply this to my chest? I need it. That's the point. He reached out his hand and said, what we lost in Adam and what we lose by our sin? It's all regained and reclaimed in Jesus Christ what he did for us on the cross. Here's the memory. For you who are not Christians tonight, there's a lesson here for you. That act headed just like your soul. You're lost. You're in death, the river Jordan. And it's dark down there. And the longer you stay, the worse your condition begins. become. You can't lift yourself up no more than that iron could swim. It's absolutely impossible for that iron, with all its struggling and all its efforts, it's impossible for it to get up to the top of that river and out on the bank. If it's going to get out of that river, there's got to be divine power exercise. If you're ever going to get out of your sin and your lost condition, God's got to do it. Salvation is the law. But once again, you have the magnetism of the cross here. When he threw the branch in, it threw the iron up. And if you're ever going to be saved, it's going to be by the magnetism of hell there. Christ said, And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. You're helpless. You're hopeless. You're in your sins. You're in death. Dead in trespasses and in sins. And there you are. You can't do a thing to save yourself except acknowledge your condition and your willingness and your readiness to be saved tonight and let God save you. And if you do that, he will save you. you'll apply the cross and Calvary will reach your heart. What he wants you to do is reach up your hand and take it as a pure sinner. He's offering it to you as a gift, a free gift, the gift of God's eternal right through Jesus Christ our Lord. I put it out in front of you. There it is. God says reach up your hand and take it. And again, applying it now to you who are lost, this man, reach out his hand, he says. When you reach out to your hand, when you take Christ, when you take him right now as your Savior, we will. It will be a miracle performed in your heart, your life, and with the home and new creature in Christ, having had given to you salvation, in addition to that gift, you'll have things loaned to you. We want you to use this glory for the good. Shall we pray? Our Father in heaven, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, into thy presence. We ask thy blessing upon thy precious word, how cherishing it is, how devastating. Then thou dost begin to apply the fruit of God to our hearts. There is not a different remedy. How melancholy would our necks be, if he thank you, Father, there is a different remedy. Thou dost not only show us our sin, now to show us our saviors. that not only show us our backs and condition, but others show us the bright side of restoration that we trust with you tonight. Those of us who are saved and know what it is, we get back at what we have lost. We have lost ground spiritually, maybe together, by coming back with a trance of the past and the thought and state. If you think of any unsaved ones in an audience, search them out. May they come as true aloft sinners who have saved you. He knows the miraculous power, the vision of gospel, the deliverance of sin, and of Satan, and of death. He has to do with our Savior's precious name. Amen. Now we sing that hymn, I am blind, O Lord, I have heard thy voice. You know the number by a cloud of earth.