It's a joy to see each one of you with us again this evening. Shall we turn, please, to Psalm forty-five. Psalm forty-five, please. Verse one, my heart is indicting a good matter. I speak of the things which I have made touching the king. My tongue is the pen. of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children of men. Grace is poured into thy lips. Therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. Then thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness. Thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. And thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people fall under thee. Shall we look to the Lord briefly in prayer once more? Father, we thank and praise thee for the privilege of meeting in the simple way. We rejoice at thy word as one that findeth great spoil. We thank thee for the theme of the Word of God. We thank thee for the center, our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray then in these few moments together, our hearts will be centered upon him, and these hearts of ours indeed might respond with warmth and delight at the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. For this we pray in his worthy and precious name. Amen. I was just thinking while sitting here on the platform and singing those lovely hymns and then some of those lovely choruses and thinking of the theme of our time together this week. Because you recall that the title that we're dealing with, the subject we're dealing with is Ladies and Gentlemen. the king and we want to draw our thoughts out to himself and I was reminded of those lovely words you remember over in the book of Isaiah chapter six and you recall that Isaiah said in the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord high and lifted up and is trained to fill the temple and so on. There was another king, Uzziah. But we're told there that he died, in contrast to our king. And one of the emphasis in this particular psalm is that our king is an eternal king. His rule is going to be eternal. Even though Uzziah reigned for some fifty-two years, you'd recall he died of leprosy, a reminder of what sin does to the human heart. But you remember in that time when the king of the earth at that time, the king of Judah, Israel, was laid aside, he had his eyes on the king of kings. And you'd recall how it says, I saw. Later on he said, I said. And then later, farther down in the chapter, you'll recall it says, I heard. In other words, he had his eyes fixed upon the Lord. He said, I saw the Lord high and looked up. And I said, Woe is me. For I am undone. I'm a man of unclean lips. An occupation with the Lord of glory caused his heart to consider his position in the life of the glory of the Lord. And you remember what he went on to say in that lovely verse, For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Oh, beloved. I trust that again this evening our eyes might behold him, might see him. On Sunday we noticed the introduction to this lovely Psalm and then we looked at verse one on Sunday evening. It was my intention to get along a little bit farther but we didn't get the opportunity so we'll just go along as the Lord leads. And we suggested in verse one our consideration of the King. our consideration of the King. And you recall that we noticed three things there. There was a warm heart to begin with. There was a worthy subject to be occupied with, things touching the King. And then there was a willing tongue. My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. And there was such a desire to express the meditation of his heart. We're reminded on Sunday evening concerning the young lady and how she was taken up with the young man that she had just become engaged to and her heart was just bubbling over, just gushing out with all the wonderful things about him. And this ought to be the attitude of the child of God concerning the Lord Jesus. And I was reminded of that just a week yesterday. I was in the city of Peterborough in Ontario for the day, and in the afternoon I was invited to a home, and the lady of the home said something like this to me. She says, someone told me this morning that you have become once again a proud grandfather. Now, all grandparents know what it means when someone says that you have become a proud grandfather or grandmother. I said, yes, that is so. And I was rather hoping that she would give me an opportunity to start talking about my grandchildren. But what she was doing was just building up to tell me about her grandchildren. And I'd never had this experience quite before. You know, frequently when you speak to grandparents, you say, do you happen to have any picture? Oh, it just so happens. reach in and you pull out a pocket full of pictures but she said just a moment and she went into the bedroom or the spare room and she came out with a big hamburger loaded with pictures and she had a story for every picture and for the next two hours we went through that hamburger And her heart was just gushing over with all the stories concerning the grandchildren. Now, I thought it was delightful that she was so enthused along that line. But what went through my mind as I listened to her was sort of asking the Lord, Lord, is that the way I am when I have the opportunity to speak about the Lord Jesus Christ? If someone were to say to me or someone says, Well, what do you think of Christ or bring out something concerning Christ? Immediately, I say, just a minute. And then I begin to get excited and describe what Christ means to me. That's the way the psalmist was here, just so filled and taken up with His Lord the King. Now let's go, please, to verse two. As we consider the King in verse one, So we're going to look at the character of the king in verse two. The king's character. You know, this is rather interesting because the character of a king affects his kingdom. Certainly as we go through the Word of God, as we go through the Old Testament, we think of a man like David, King David. And he was a warrior at heart. And so his kingdom was noted for being a kingdom that was constantly at war. You remember Solomon. He was considered a peaceful king. And as a result, his kingdom was a peaceful kingdom. You remember Ahab, a wicked king. His kingdom was wicked. You recall that as you go through the king's The Book of Kings, you find little statements like, this king did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. This king did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord. And whatever the case was, whatever the epitaph was upon that king's name, that identified his kingdom. So the character of a king and the character of a president, if you will, affects the presidency and the character of the king affects the kingdom and all who are involved under his kingdom. And so it's very important to notice the character of our king. There are three things here suggested about his character. Delightful things to me, and I'm sure they are to you as well. I notice here There's the greatness of his character, first of all, brought before us because it says, Thou art fairer than the children of men. And then you have the graciousness of his character because it says, Grace is poured into thy lips. And then we have the glory of his character because it says, Therefore, God has blessed thee forever. So let's look at those three things for a few moments, shall we? Now notice how this verse begins, just so delightful. Have you noticed? We noticed how verse one began, My Heart. My Heart. That's where the meditation ought to be, in the heart. But notice how the second verse begins. The. You say, well, so what? What's so remarkable about that? Well, did you notice he doesn't mention his name. He does say, I'm meditating on the things touching the king. But now in verse two, he's about to describe the king. And he doesn't use his name. He just simply bursts forth and he says, Thou. Thou. His heart is so filled with the king. His heart is so occupied with the Lord. He expects everyone who hears him to know who he's talking about. He doesn't think it's necessary to describe, I'm talking about the king, I'm talking about the Lord of glory. Just his voice expresses thou. Turn over, if you will, to those familiar verses in Revelation chapter five. Revelation chapter five, please. We were singing that lovely chorus, Worthy, Worthy is the Lamb. And this, of course, deals with that here in verse chapter five of Revelation. But the point I want to stress here is how that in glory, when they sing to the Lamb, no one has to introduce and say, Now we're going to sing to the Lamb. Everyone knows it's going to be to the Lamb. At the beginning of the chapter, you find that there's a search for the worthy one. And the search leads us to the sight of the worthy one in verses five, six, and seven. And so we have in verse five, and one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not, behold, the line of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, have prevailed. Verse six, and I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne of the four beasts, in the midst of the elders to the land. Now that reminds me of what we have in verse one of Psalm forty-five. Because you see that's what he's doing in Psalm forty-five and one. He is occupying himself. He's beholding the king. He has a sight of the king. All in the glory are occupied with the land. So then When you come to verse eight, we have a song to the king, to the worthy one. When you take in the book the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the land, having every one of them harps and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of saints, they sung or they sing a new song. Now notice how it the song begins. Thou. Same way. Thou. No introduction. Every eye is fashioned upon the Lord. They're all singing to His glory. Thou art worthy. To take the book to open the seals are up, for thou was slain, and have redeemed us to God by thy blood, and so on. How delightful in the glory there will be one theme in the song. Thou, the Lord. But you see, back here in the Psalms, Psalm forty-five, that is the theme for today. That's the way it ought to be with us right now, beloved. Thou. You remember you have the same thought when you go to John's Gospel, chapter twenty. And you remember Mary, she comes to the tomb and she finds that the tomb is open and she doesn't recognize the Lord. She supposes him to be the gardener. And you recall that she doesn't say who she's talking about, but she's so... preoccupied with the Lord, that when she speaks, she just simply says, If you know where they have borne him, tell me where they have laid him, and I will go to him. She didn't say who the him was, but she thought everyone should know who he was. Her heart was just bubbling over with one person, the Lord. Again in John chapter twenty-one, you recall, The Lord is standing by the seashore, and he beckons the disciples to come in, and he says to them, Come and dine. And we're told there that the disciples, durst not say to one another, Who is it? For they knew it was the Lord. So no one had to say, If the Lord, they all knew it. He was the center of their thought. And so it is here in verse two of Psalm forty five. Thou, thou. Now he says, thou art fairer than the children of men. The word fairer is an interesting word and Hebrew scholars have gone into the word rather thoroughly and revealed to us the fact that This word has a sort of a double emphasis. It has been translated in different ways, such as some translate it, fairer, fairer. Apparently the Hebrew word has the thought of this double stress upon the word fair. Most translate it, beautiful. In fact, the word fairer is translated in one or two other places in the Old Testament, beautiful. And a number translated then, beautiful, beautiful, above the children of man. I think the New International Version puts it, thou art excellent above the sons of man. Beautiful, beautiful. Now you recall over in Isaiah chapter fifty-three, The world saw no beauty in him that they should desire him. But to the child of God, there is beauty in Christ. This is the greatness of his character. He's fairer far than the children of men. The idea here, beloved, is that you line up all the sons of men, and he stands head and shoulders above them all. There's no one who can compare with the Lord Jesus Christ. We take a hold of Enoch, that man who walked with God. But he can't compare with our Savior. There's Moses. There's Joshua. There's Joseph. And we go through the Old Testament and we see one man after another come on the scene. We have a man like Job, whom the Lord said, Have you considered him the most righteous man on the earth? But he does not compare with our Lord. Do you remember on the mount in Matthew chapter seventeen? Do you recall the Lord was there and transfigured before them in his face to shine as the sun, his raiment was as white as the light, and there appeared Moses and Elijah with him on the mountain? I rather sympathize with Peter in a way, I suppose, because I'm rather inclined to think that if I had been in that situation and suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared, I think I would have been occupied with them quite a little bit. And so naturally, Peter saw Moses and Elijah, those two great men of God from the Old Testament. Oh, he said, Lord, it's good for us to be here. This is terrific, Lord. Let's make three tabernacles, one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah. And you remember what happened? A bright cloud overshadowed them. and a voice out of the cloud that said, This, not these, not Christ and Moses and Elijah, this is my beloved son, not sons, in whom I am well pleased, hear ye him, not them. I wasn't always well pleased with Moses. I had to say to Moses, why did you strike that rock, Moses? I was angry with him. I wouldn't allow him to go into the Promised Land. But I'm sorry, Moses. I'm taking you home. You've been disobedient. And I wasn't always well pleased with Elijah. I had to speak to him one day and said to him, he's running away from Jezebel and some hundred miles later. I had to say to him, What do you do here, Elijah? What are you doing here? But he said, This is my beloved son. Oh, Christ is far from the children of man. He's just above everyone else. Which of you, the Lord said, which of you convince of me a sin? No one could. He was holy. harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, fair and the children of man. You see, the psalmist here is so preoccupied with the wonders and the glories and the greatness of His Lord. And how much more we should be today having the New Testament and having all the truths of the Word of God to meditate upon. It reminds me also of What we have over in the Song of Solomon, you remember. You remember in Song of Solomon, chapter five, as the bride was seeking her beloved, and she spoke to the daughters of Jerusalem, and she asked them if you find my beloved, tell him, because she says, because of love, I'm sick. And they were rather curious, and they said, well, what is thy beloved, more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? Why are you so involved with this person? Is he any better than anyone else? Oh, she's, I'm glad you asked me that question. I'm certainly glad that you, her heart was bubbling over with a good matter. She says, My beloved is white and ruddy. He's the chief of the among ten thousand. His head is bushy and black as a raven. and she knew every detail about her beloved and she described him from head to foot and when she got through describing him from head to foot she says why she said he's all together lovely all together there's not a flaw in him anywhere notice turn to song with Solomon just for a moment chapter one You remember we noticed in the title of Psalm forty-five that it was a song of the beloved. A song of the beloved. Now she delighted to speak at him as her beloved because she was so preoccupied with him. And notice in verse thirteen she says, A bundle of myrrh is my well beloved. Why she said, Do you want to know what my beloved is like? Do you want to know why I consider him fairer far than everyone else? Well, he's a bundle of myrrh to me. He shall lie all night betwixt my breath. That is, he's going to lie in my heart. He's got the place of preeminent in my heart. Now, the myrrh, as most of you are aware, and we don't want to get involved in this in detail, but the myrrh reminds us of suffering. It reminds us of the bitterness. And you recall that myrrh is identified with his burial and with his birth and so on. And when we think of the myrrh, we think of the sufferings of Christ. What makes Christ so precious to us? What sets him up above everyone else? Christ loved me and he gave himself for me. He's a bundle of myrrh. Not just a little myrrh. He's a bundle of myrrh. You remember in first Peter, seven times in First Peter, in every chapter it is mentioned, and it's mentioned seven times altogether, that Christ suffered for us. Christ suffered for us. That's what it says, seven times. Oh, he's just a bundle of murder. He has a place in my heart. He'll lie all night, all through this night season. I want him to have that place of preeminence. Do you? He's the one who suffered for us, beloved. He's the one that's redeemed us with his precious blood. Notice the next verse, verse fourteen, says, My beloved is unto me a cluster of campfire. A very fragrant... In fact, it's changed to a flower in the Revine's version. It's a very fragrant perfume. Not only did he suffer for me, but he is precious to me. You go farther down in verse sixteen, he says, My beloved is pleasant. Do you know what the word pleasant means? Sweet. He's sweet. My meditation of him is sweet. Occupation with him, there's sweetness about him. Notice what it says when she speaks about her beloved in chapter two. She says in verse three, my beloved is an apple tree among the trees of the woods. Watch as I go through the trees and I see this tree and that tree and there's no fruit, there's no life. Might be a little shade, but there's no life. Suddenly I come to this one special tree and there's fruit there. Oh, his fruit is sweet to my taste. In other words, what she says, my beloved satisfies. I come to him in my hunger and he feeds me. He's so special, you see. The greatness of our beloved. She goes on to say in verse eight, the voice of my beloved. He's the instructing one. He instructs us. She goes on to say in verse nine, my beloved is like a row of young heart. He's the one that is always near. That's the suggestion in that verse. As the row of the young heart leaps, rapidly to the place that they were going to. So the Savior is always there when I need him. That's what my beloved is like. Why said the bride here, this is my beloved. She went on to say, I am my beloved. I belong to him. And he is mine. Later on in the end of Song of Solomon, she says, I go forth leaning on my beloved. He's my strength. And all, you see how she's so thrilled. And so when they say in verse five, what is your beloved like? Why, immediately she just is overflowing with him. Now does Christ mean these things to us? Not simply a Savior, beloved, but is he that daily delight of our life? Grace. is poured into thy lips. Not only is he great, the greatness of his character, fairer far than anyone else, but the graciousness of his character. Now that's delightful. I have not met too many great people, has not been my lot, but I have on a few occasions met some people who have attained a measure of greatness in this life. and I'm sure you have too. Have you noticed that most who seem to attain a certain greatness are rather hard to approach. They seem to be aloof. They seem to be the type that you can engage in a conversation. They're not seemingly interested in the person down, as it were, below them. They seem to be up on a pedestal somewhere. But that's not like our Savior. He's the fairest of the fair. He's the chiefest of ten thousand. He's the king of kings. And yet he's so gracious. What a wonderful combination. Full of grace and truth. Grace is poured into thy lips. It wasn't that there was just a small dribble of grace from his lips. It was poured. Notice it says, grace is poured into thy lips. And as grace was poured in, so grace was poured out. It's the same word that we have over in Second Kings, where you find the widow woman was asked to gather all the jars, you remember, of all her neighbors abroad. And Elisha said, Elisha said, now, when you gather all the vessels, you will pour out. And so she sent her children out and they brought in the vessels and the Bible says, and she poured out. And she kept pouring out. And the more she poured out, the more there was. There was no end to what was being poured out. Every vessel was filled. She says, bring me yet another vessel. They said, there's not a vessel more. But all the while there were vessels, she poured out. Now there was in our Savior a constant supply of grace that just flowed from His lips. Grace poured into His lips. There was the leper. The Lord said, What would you that I do for you? Oh, Lord, He said, That I might be cleansed. And the gracious Savior reaches out the hand and touches the leper. I will be thou clean. Grace flowed from his lips. You remember Luke chapter four? Led of the Spirit into the synagogue. In Nazareth, he takes the book of Isaiah and says, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. And he goes on quoting from or reading from Isaiah. And you remember what they were, as they listened to him, they wondered. They wondered at the gracious word. that proceeded from his mouth. They'd never heard words like that before. That's our Lord. Great but gracious. There was a pulving man came to the Lord one day, born of four. When he saw their faith, grace flew from his lips, thy sins be forgiven thee. that ye may know that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins, rise up and walk. And out he got, and out he went. Grace was poured into his lips. You remember how they marveled? He spoke about, if you hunger, come to me. If you thirst, come to me. And they listened. This is in John chapter seven. They said, never a man speak like this man. Never a man spate like this. Grace was poured into his lips. Woman taken in adultery. As they accuse him, he writes on the ground, they go out one by one from the eldest to the youngest. He looks up and there's none left. Where are mine accusers? For they're gone. Well, neither do I condemn thee. Go in peace. Oh, grace. And oh, the marvel of his grace, beloved, as he's taken to the cross, and he's hung upon that terrible cross of shame. And as they mock him and cheer him, that blessed one, there's still grace pouring from his lips. He says, oh, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. What a wonderful Savior we have. Great, but so great. Grace poured into his lips. Peter, you're going to deny me Christ. You're the cockroach. Not so Lord. But he did. The Lord takes him aside and afterward and he said, now Peter, I told you. Why don't you listen to me? Now, this is the gracious Savior. This is this great, gracious Savior. Peter, do you love me? Feed my sheep. Oh, the grace of our Savior. When we drift, when we go cold and hot, he longs for us to come back and confess to know his forgiveness, to know his love. You see, the psalmist was so delighted with him. And I close by just noticing the last point here. There was the greatness of his character, and the graciousness of his character, and there was the glory of his character. Therefore, therefore, therefore, in view of his greatness, he came from glory, down, down to Calvary's depths of woe, his grace. So we're told in Philippians chapter two, Wherefore God hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name, that the name of Jesus every knee shall bow. Oh, his glory. His glory. Wherefore God hath blessed thee forever. Who is worthy? Weep not. The old, the line of the tribe of Judah, he's prevailed. to open the book. And I turned, hoping to see the lion, but he saw the lamb, as he had been slain, freshly slain. He saw the marks of the one who in grace had gone to Calvary's depths of woe. And now he beholds him in all his glory. God has blessed him forever. The wonder they say, thou art wortheth. For indeed he is. Indeed he is. Ladies and gentlemen, the King, shall we pray? Our Father, how we thank thee this evening for such a great, gracious and glorious Savior. May we desire and long to be like John the Apostle and lean upon his bosom, to hear his word, to be like Mary to sit at his feet, to listen to what he has to say, to be like Paul, Lord, what would I have me to do? May he indeed be the meditation of our hearts, the expression of our lips, the delight of our life. For this we pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.