We're going to turn to the book of Psalms this morning, and we're going to read the 11th Psalm, Psalm 11. It's a very short psalm, but it has a great message of encouragement in it for us. Psalm 11. In the Lord put I my trust. How say ye to my soul, flee as a bird to your mountain? For lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privately shoot at the upright in heart. If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in the heaven. His eyes behold, his eyelids try the children of man. The Lord triumphs the righteous. But the wicked in him that loveth violence is so hated. Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest. This shall be the portion of their cup. For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness, his countenance doth behold the upright.' God will bless this portion of his word to our hearts. Now this psalm, which we read together, is, I think, one of the most encouraging psalms in the whole of the book. Well, of course, all the psalms are very encouraging. But there's something very unique in this psalm that has always thrilled my heart. And as I thought of coming here this morning, this psalm came into my mind and I have been meditating upon it during the week. It deals, or perhaps you could title it as the unmovable man. The unmovable man. I wonder, are you a man like that? Or a woman like that? When I refer to man as mankind, of course, I'm referring to the brothers and sisters. Are you immovable or unmovable? Now here's an immovable man, a man who couldn't be moved. Some old preacher of the last century termed this psalm the song of the steadfast. So I hope you'll get this song in your heart this morning. And if you forget everything else that I have said, I hope you'll remember the first line of this psalm. Because this is the confidence that we have in him, in the world. Put I my trust. Isn't that tremendous? In the Lord, that's what Christianity is. That's what a Christian is. A man or a woman, a young person who has put their trust in God. Who has stepped out on the promises of the eternal God. That's what a Christian is. In the Lord, put I my trust. Now, when David came this time, he was under great persecution from Saul. Saul was a very formidable foe, and he had the limitless resources at his disposal. And he was after this young man, David. You see, the devil's always after the child of God. When a man gets saved, or a woman gets saved, or a young person gets saved, they're coming right into a battle. It's not a bed of roses. You've often heard that. Well, it's not, you know. It's a battle. And it's a stern conflict. And young David was up against it. Many a time he was threatened. Many a time the javelin was lifted to be hurled at him. And so David's friends come along to him and say, look David, flee to your mountain. Get away out of the road. Hide yourself. This was the advice of his timid friends. It was actually a temptation to disgust God. Were you ever tempted to doubt God? That's what the devil always seeks to do. When the devil can get a man to doubt God, he has got that man defeated. And you know, the devil is a very simple folk. He even came to Christ himself in the temptation. And he said, If thou be the Son of God, Did you ever doubt your sins? And so these timid friends come to David and say, look David, get away to the mountain and hide in a cave there. You'll be far better out of the roof. It's very dangerous for you. And David turns around and he said, in the Lord did I my trust. Why say ye to my soul, flee ye out of the bird to your mountain? What are you talking about? I'm trusting God. and there's no reason why I should flee no matter how strong the enemy is. You know Athos was a psalm writer like David and Asaph wrote twelve psalms. I'm sure as you read through the book of Psalms you'll discover that. Now Asaph was a great musician and David was a great poet. Some people think that David wrote all the psalms, but Asaph put them to music. However, many commentators believe that Asaph wrote twelve psalms. He wrote the 50th psalm, he wrote the 73rd, right through until the 83rd. Twelve psalms all together. Let me turn you to the 73rd psalm. And here's Asaph. And Asher was tempted, too, to doubt God. And in the 73rd Psalm, this is the 2nd Psalm of Asher. And then if you read right through to the 83rd, you'll find they're all Psalms of Asher. Surely God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart. But as for me, my feet were almost gone. Yes, he admitted that God was good, but that he was very prone to slip. Truly God is good, but as for me, my feet were almost gone, my steps were well and I slipped, for I was angry as at the foolish. And so here is the devil tempting us to doubt God. He looked around and he saw how the wicket were getting on. And how there didn't seem to be any problems as far as they were concerned. They had more than heart could wish, as you read down this psalm. Their eyes stand out with fatness, and so on. And then poor Asher got a bit envious, because he had to struggle through life. And he was tempted to run away. But David, strong in faith, spurns such a suggestion. And my dear Brothers and sisters, my dear young folk, and you know I'm always thrilled to see so many young folk in our congregation here. When the church was first formed, going back to 51, the newspapers used to write, the Free Presbyterian Church doesn't exist. And then they used to say, well, it's just a one generation church, you know. When old Paisley and Wiley and a few of the other old fellas die, there'll be no church left. But now I can see the second and third generation. And I praise God for it. I want to say to you young folk, never be tempted to doubt God. If you have put your faith in Him, accepted His mercy, then continue to lay hold upon Him, but never run away. David was strong on faith and he says, why should I run away? In the Lord put I my trust. Why say ye to my soul, flee as a bird to your mountain? I'm not going to flee, he said. He was confident in God that no matter what the circumstances were, God would never forsake him. And his reply is very encouraging, isn't it? And when you're tempted, young folk, and older folk too, because the devil still tempts me, you know. He has never left me for 51 years. And many a time he has given me a hard time. But God has kept me going on. Not through anything in John Wiley, but because I trust in God. Yes, this is a very encouraging reply. In the Lord put I my trust. And I want you to get that written in your heart this morning, brother and sister. I'm trusting in God. Who is this God you're trusting in? He's the God that made all things by the word of his power. He's the God who holds the universe in his hand. He's the God that reigns in the armies of heaven and controls the kingdoms of this world. That's the God I trust in. Isn't that wonderful? That's the God you trust in. And when you're tempted to doubt God, or tempted to sin, and doubting God is one of the greatest sins, but there are many other sins that the devil will tempt you to do. The world, the flesh, the devil is always after us. Your answer, which will bring you victory is this, in the Lord put I my trust. Why are you wanting me to sin? Why are you wanting me to doubt God? I never doubt God. That's it. That's the triumphant sin. That's the song of the unmovable man. I'm trusting in God. I trust in God, the hymn writer says, wherever I may be, on mountaintop or on the rolling sea. Isn't that wonderful? Oh friend, make sure that your faith is firmly fixed in Jehovah. I trust in God. While I was preparing this message, my thoughts went to the 27th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. And that's a very wonderful portion too. And in this 27th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, you'll find that Paul is travelling to Rome. and is on a ship that is going to destruction. It's going to be wrecked. They have thrown over the freight, the cargo. They have thrown out the anchors. They have done everything humanly possible and still the old ship is being driven by a fierce wind. And there's neither moon nor stars appearing. And they're going towards the rocks. And these experienced sea men are in jeopardy of their lives and they're crying out. And what do you find Paul doing? Paul is having a conversation with God. That's where the Christian triumphs. Why the world around is in jeopardy of their lives today. And why men and women are trembling and nations are trembling and head of states are trembling because of the fear of a nuclear warfare. And if it happened it would be absolutely devastating. They tell me that if one little bomb the size of your little finger exploded in Ireland, the whole of Ireland would evaporate in seconds. That's a dreadful thought. But we don't think of those things. The child of God believes in God. And believes that the destruction of this world is in God's hands. And believes that he is in God's hands. And nothing can shake his true repose. So don't be alarmed brother and sister. You're in God's hands. And so, here's his secret. heading for the rocks as fast as the wind could carry it, and they've done everything humanly possible, and here you have Paul. And he comes into this fearful crowd of sailors, and he says, Now I exhort you, be of good cheer, for there shall no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship For there stood by me the angel of God this night, who I am and who myself." Isn't that wonderful? Here's one little man amidst a whole crew of godless men. And then a sea that is tempestuous and beyond the control of man. And then a ship that's heading for absolute destruction. And here's one little man, and he stands up and he says, cheer up. There was nothing around him to encourage him to cheer up. He says, the angel of God stood before me tonight, the mighty God who's mine, and the God whom I serve, and cheer up. Isn't that wonderful? Listen. For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul." Isn't that great? In the midst of a world of uncertainty, God says, cheer up. There are three very wonderful portions of scripture. You find two of them in the Hebrews. And it says, we have an anchor. That means steady up. We have a great high priest. Live up! And in 1 John you have these words. We have an advocate with the father. So cheer up. Be of good cheer, for God stood by me, and he's the one that I love and serve. Isn't that wonderful? And then Paul again writing to the Romans in the book of Romans the 8th chapter. That's a wonderful chapter. You should study it and read it. It never gets stale. And Paul says in the 31st verse, what shall we say to these things? What shall we say to these things? To what things? To all the things that we're talking about. to trouble, distress, perplexity, temptation, to the devil himself, to the all deluding world, to the enticing flesh. What shall we say to these things? And it gives you the answer. If God be for us, he can be against us. In other words, I believe in God. In God I have put my trust. It matters not what happens. Isn't that wonderful? And this is the Christian's answer, to every suggestion to flee, to every suggestion to pull down the standards and to compromise with the enemy, whether that suggestion comes from friend or foe. And sometimes we have weak minded friends who would also tell us well now go a bit easier Wiley, go a bit easier brother, go a bit easier sister, don't be too hard on the enemy. In the Lord put I my trust and God is a God of righteousness and truth and the people who trust in him stand for righteousness and truth and they can never pull down The standard, oh, the standard of truth is being pulled down today. We find the churches today are compromising with potpourri. We find Thomas of Faye, as we call him, and he's brought into all their deliberations, even bound to darkly. And he was the one that came onto the radio, and it was his speech we heard, his words of sympathy. I don't believe in the sympathy of potpourri. For potpourri is just exactly the same as ever it was. And they're using their subtlety and their craftiness to deceive the Protestant population. And deceive the very elect if it were possible. Potpourri has never deceived me. Yes? Go easy. Don't raise the standard too high. After all you know these old priests are not too bad after all. Friends, I want to tell you that they're exactly the same cunning, crafty serpents of the devil. I talked to a couple of priests a week or, well, a month or two ago, sitting down on a bench in Port Stewart. And one was reading the daily paper, and another was reading what he told me was the Bible. It wasn't the Bible, it was the Roman Catholic Missal. But I said, is that the Bible you're reading? Oh, well, yes, it is, he said. Well, I said, what's the difference between you two fellows? One's reading a newspaper, another's reading the Bible. Is there any difference? Well, they both have their uses, they said. Oh, is that right? That was the younger man's reply. And I said, turn to the older fellow. And I said, well, what do you think? Oh, I believe with my friend here. They both have their uses. Then I said, there's not a bottom of difference between the Daily Telegraph and the Bible. Well, when you put it like that, of course, there is a difference. I said, there certainly is. And then I said, How could I get my name written in the Lamb's Book of Life? That's a very important question. I said, isn't there a wee verse of scripture like that? Well, he said, you get your name written in the Lamb's Book of Life by being baptized. I said, I'm going to tell you something. I said, if I was a Mormon and they baptized me, would I be alright? I'm going to tell you something. I said, if I was a Mormon and they baptized me, would I be alright? Well, yes, you possibly would be. They're not bad people. Well, why wouldn't I, I said. Then I said, it doesn't matter to who throws a drop of water on me, I'll get my name written in the Lamb's Book of Life. I said, I'm going to tell you something, church. Fifty-odd years ago, I came to Christ, and I was a churchgoer. And I never was in a pub. And I never was in a dance hall. And I never cursed and swore. And I never had a footer on a horse. And I kept the Sabbath day. But when I was a young fellow, in my teens, I came to Christ. And I got saved. And you know what he said to me? Oh, you can't depend on lights and visions. Well, I said, Paul had lights and visions, hadn't he? Well, he said, would you put yourself in the same standing as Paul? I said, I certainly would. I said Paul was a sinner, so was I. Paul needed a saviour, so did I. And I had fear! And I'm not depending on light and vision, I'm depending on the Bible! And the God of heaven, he wrote it! And this old fellow said, oh he says you can't just depend on it, there's so many different interpretations of the Bible. Well I said sir, give me the interpretation of this verse. Come unto me, all ye that live, and are heavy laden, and I give you rest. I said, what does that mean? Does it mean don't come to him? And if you do come to him, he'll not give you rest. So he couldn't answer me. And I said, here's another verse in John's Gospel. Him that cometh unto me, I will no else cast out. What does that mean? What's your interpretation? Oh, it's good to get these fellas with the old sword, isn't it? And he wiggled about in the seat, and he didn't answer me. I said, there you are, you've no answer. But I have the answer! And then he said, of course, Luther went back. I said, Luther never went back. And I said, Church, I'll pray that God will send another Luther into your church to bring you a bit of light. And then I bid them good day. Oh friend I want to tell you that there's no compromise for wings just the same. A drop of water and you're all right for heaven. You're only right for heaven when you come to Calvary. And put your trust in the God of heaven who sent his son to shed his blood that you might be made free from the law to your happy condition. Well that's the introduction to the message. And you know it's amazing how frequently David uses those words. If you look at Psalm Verse 1, he says the same thing. Now don't bother turning over because I'm going to give you a whole lot. And Psalm number 16 verse 1. And Psalm 31 verse 1. And Psalm 71 verse 1. And many other Psalms. Right through the Psalms. He reiterates this tremendous statement. In the Lord put I my trust. Oh brother and sister, isn't there a Christian God? Then why should you fear? Why should you want to tear down a column? Let's stand as an old valiant of the past is, against every error and against every sin, and watch yourselves, lest we were burnt to death. Carvite is a new name printed in the heart of the child of God. He will never be a slave. I fear no foe, saith the hymn writer, the dead hand to bless. Earth hath no wit, and tears no bitterness. Where is death's sting? O glorify victory! I triumph still, if God abide with me. In God put I my trust. How say ye to my soul, fleece? O stand fast! in the liberty for which Christ hath made you free, brothers and sisters. Now we'll come to verse 2 of this psalm. I'd better turn over to you. We come to David again and say, well look David, the wicked have bent their bow, they have made ready their arrow upon the string that they may privately shoot at the upright in heart. So when the devil doesn't get you in there, he'll come and get you. He says, if you don't leave here, I want to tell you that the enemy has already got their bull by it. And they have an arrow in it, and they have it stretched. And they're willing to let go of the arrow sometimes when they're not watching. Do what you'd be told to do. David, the enemy's watching. Now this verse shows us the constant readiness of the enemy. The evil intent of the enemy to shoot secretly, when we're not thinking, at the upright in heart. We'll never minimize the power of the devil. He's a past master at shooting at the upright in heart. He is ever this bull ready and the arrow in him, and he's with him. So this brings to our mind here, the readiness, the constant vigilance of the devil. And it should also cause us to be ever watchful. Eternal vigilance. is the model of the child of God. Yes, my faith is fixed in God. Therefore I watch and be sober. That's the evidence that you are a Christian. That you're constantly watching. Watch therefore with all perseverance. Let us not sleep as dwellers, but let us watch and be sober. Brethren and sisters, this is a day to watch. Watch your own heart. Watch your own thoughts. Watch your own behavior. Watch the devil's cunningness. Watch the enemy's civilities. And does Jesus have what I say? I say to you all, watch! That's the evidence that your faith is fixed in God. Tell me, brother and sister, do you pray constantly? Will you get into your watchtower and seek the Lord? Did you pray this morning? Are you watching? Oh, yes. It's very easy to say the word in the Lord put by my trust. But what effect is that on your life? Does it cause you to watch? Does it cause you to pray? Because the great God in whom we trust tells us to do that. You know, I'm not saying this boastingly. I say it very humbly. But the Lord has impressed on my mind about four hundred and thirty or forty names. I haven't even written them out in paper. But every morning when I go to pray, I remember every one of those names before the Lord. all our ministers, their wives, their families, many of you whom I know by name, and for over 400, these names. And sometimes I feel, my Lord, this might be vain repetition, and sometimes I would bundle them together and say, Lord, there's that group. And God rebukes me, so that I have to bring them one by one before the Lord. You see, that's how you watch. And you're not just watching for yourself. You're watching for the whole church of Christ. God has set you on the watchtower. And you're watching your brother. And you're praying for him. And you're seeking that continual fellowship and unity with his people. Watch because of the subtlety and craftiness and power of the enemy. And then verse 3 it says, If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? In David today, Saul had destroyed the great foundations of society, the basic principles of justice. And righteousness was thrown down in the streets. And is it not true, at such a time as this, that we do feel rather depressed when we see what's happening today around us. And the enemy seems to be getting it all the wrong way. And those who stand for truth seem to be getting it all opul, all opposition. Everything's against it. And they come to them and say, look if the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? What can the righteous do? You can't stand the tide of evil. You can do nothing in such a situation. You're sweeping all before them. Don't they all feel a bit like that sometimes? The foundations of society seem to be destroyed. Justice has fallen. Law and order has broken down. What can we do? Sometimes we cry in desperation. Sometimes we cry from the depths of our heart. Oh God, can you stand the tide of evil? What can we do? So understand, you say, well it's going to be the dead anyway. If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? There are quite a number of things we can do. We can pray. In God I put my trust, therefore I'll get before Him. And you know what, friends, this morning, I believe that if the Church of Christ, if you and I who believe in God, really got down before Him and prayed, and prayed earnestly, and prayed believingly, that God would change this situation in us. There are many things we can't do. We can't take the law into our own hands. We can't take out guns and shoot people. That would be absolutely against God's will. But we can lay hold on the God of heaven. And if God doesn't move, then no one will move. I can tell you that. But we have the privilege of knowing God. And the boasting of our confidence in Him. And if we have such confidence in him, then we can lay hold upon him. Listen, here's what the devil says in verse 4. The Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord's throne is in the heavens. His eyes behold me. And God's waiting for us to lay hold upon him. There's times when now there's some Their stars appear, as in the case I cited of Paul on the sea. That time, I believe, has arisen in our province. There doesn't seem to be any way out. There's not a star of hope shining, humanly speaking. But, David says, the Lord is in this holy temple! And the Lord's eyes are watching! And I believe the Lord is waiting. for that cry from his people, O God, that thou not come down, that the mountains may float thy presence." Have you done that today? You know, we could cite many instances in the Word of God where people laid hold on God. On Nehemiah's day, the law and order was broken down, the temple was broken, The gates were burnt with fire. And one man, Nehemiah, went round that city, that destroyed city. And he poured out his heart to God in prayer. And God heard his prayer. And there were many enemies. Shambaroth, Sabaoth, and all the rest of them. And they mocked him. And then they asked him to come down and have a talk with them. Here's what he says. And I said, Should such a man as I flee? Isn't that good? Let's just do it all over again. Should such a man as I flee? A man whose faith is in the eternal God of heaven. Should I run away? And he went on and he built the temple. He put up the gates. And he re-established the worship. And thanks God we see him today and he's still in his temple. And his eyes are still upon us. Thank God for that. The eye of the Lord is upon the righteous, and his ear is open unto their crime. If you look at Old Elijah, oh, that's a familiar story. Here he was, on Mount Carmel. And humanly speaking, to use a good austerism, he hadn't a pox chance. He stood there himself, in the prophet of Baal, full hungered. And they mocked him. One little man, but one with God's majority. And that mighty man mocked the prophet of Goliath, and lifted his eyes and his heart to heaven. And he said, O God, come down. And God came down. And broke up the very school, and locked up the water. And made a mockery. of the prophet of beer. The prince goes to see him today, and I believe that. You take the three Hebrew children. They didn't worship a false god. And they said to the old king, Our God in whom we trust will deliver us. But if he doesn't deliver us, let me tell you the same. Let us tell you that we will not worship your God anyway. And if God seems fit to take me through the fire, I'll go through the fire. But I never go. For in God I put my trust. You take Daniel. And Daniel wasn't allowed to pray. But Daniel prayed. And that threw him into a den of lions. But God controls the lions. God's killing the fools, brothers and sisters. And I plead with you today to lay hold on this great God of heaven. And God will bring to our land, and I believe this. I don't know whether I live to see it or not. I don't know whether the Lord's going to allow me to live till I'm old or not. While I'm still young, I keep on warning people. Yes, these men wouldn't bow, and God answered their prayers. Now, this is the year of Luther. Now, I wouldn't have time to talk about Luther today. But Luther was a man who stood out, one little monk. Against the whole forces of people, all the evil and satanic One little man stood alone. He was ordered into the city of Worms to stand before all the hobnobs of potpourri and to preach as a king. And there he was, coming into this august assembly. And as he walked into the city with some of his friends, do you know what he said? He says that there's as many devils as there's many devils as they split to the hundred and still stand today! Imagine one wee man. I don't know whether he's any bigger than me or not. But he says that he went in to face the whole forces of the devil. He said, if there's as many devils as there's slips on the houses in the city of Wombs, I'll still take my stand for God. And he went before them with all in his hands. And he said, here I take my stand. I can be no mother, so help me God. And God did help him. The apostates for years and years have spoken and want us to compromise. This church came out in 1951 against apostasy and papery and sin. And they left it, but it's standing today stronger than ever. And it will only stand as it holds on to the great principles in real law. And my dear brother and sister, you'd only stand, and you'd only be victorious, and you'd only triumph in that great day of judgment, if you can say, In God I have put my trust, I never flee. Now, my time is up, and I've just got partly through my message, but maybe if George is stuck for a preacher sometime, I'll bring the rest of it. But I do pray that God will write this little verse on your heart. In the Lord, the God of heaven, the great creator of all things, in him I have put my trust, so help me God. And friends, I want to assure you from God's word that if you stand or move on failing promises and if you lay hold on the eternal God himself, You're bound to win, and this province will come through its trouble. For God's in the heaven, and his eyes behold. And he'll bring victory out of seeming defeat. If you like this, say from the depths of your heart of praise, Lord, in thee I put my trust, I'll never flee, I'll never come down. May God write this word upon your heart.