THE ARMS OF GOD Mk. 10:13 And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. 16 And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them. Did you see the picture of the little boy from Aleppo, covered in dust and blood, sitting helplessly in an ambulance? There was no sign of a mother or father or anyone. The expression on His face was lifeless Just after Jesus had been confronted by a barrage of religious leaders with no other intention than to harangue Him (Mk. 10:1-12), the Saviour was lovingly drawn towards the little children. Jesus, Who never had children of His own, had the most beautiful and loving manner with them, - He, the Son of God, would have made the greatest father! If Jesus was on this earth today, how would He feel towards such children as the one I mentioned in Aleppo?. How would He feel about young children being abused in the way we hear about nowadays? And how would He feel about the children round about us today who are never taught about Him? Well, the Scriptures relate to us a very simple and beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus in the midst of the children, Mk. 10:16 he took them up in his arms. And the words that immediately come into my mind are the words of the hymn, Safe in the arms of Jesus. It was a hymn written by Fanny Crosby, the blind author. She put it in her diary as to how it came about, On April 30, 1868 [she was 48 years old], Dr. W. H. Doane came into my house and said, I have exactly forty minutes before my train leaves for Cincinnati. Here is a melody. Can you write words for it? I replied that I would see [!] what I could do. Then followed a space of twenty minutes during which I was wholly unconscious of all else except the work I was doing. At the end of that time I recited the words to him, Safe in the Arms of Jesus. Mr. Doane copied them, and had time to catch his train. Safe in the arms of Jesus, Safe on His gentle breast, There by His love o ershaded, sweetly my soul shall rest. In the final verse she wrote, Jesus, my heart s dear Refuge, Jesus has died for me; Firm on the Rock of Ages, ever my trust shall be. Here let me wait with patience, wait till the night is over; Wait till I see the morning break on the golden shore.
2 It doesn t matter what age you are it doesn t matter whether you have been expecting it or not life often brings hardships and difficulties that seem almost too heavy to bear. In such situations, on the authority of the Word of God, the only comfort to have is the saving and keeping knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Peter has written, I Peter 5:7 He careth for you. THE ARMS OF THE SAVIOUR When the disciples were telling Jesus it was more important to spend His time with the adults, He knelt down and lifted one of the children up in His arms and then another and then another. These were the children the parents wanted to meet Jesus (Mk. 16:13). The highest gift the family home is blessed with is the presence of the Saviour. When the mother and father know the Saviour, the greatest desire they have is for their children to know Him too. Everything else is secondary. Of course, we want them to do their very best, but everything else they will leave behind one day. When they know the Lord Jesus though, they will be taken up into the arms of the Saviour. Yes, He saves children. They don t have to become a certain age to qualify. He can save the youngest child who, - in the simplest manner, - recognises their need of Him. The arms of the Saviour. Another passage we can turn to is from the Song of Solomon, 2:6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me. Since the Song of Solomon is a romantic book, I feel justified in giving this verse the heading THE ARMS OF THE SWEETHEART I m sure some of you can remember away-way back to the very first time the one you loved placed their arms around you. You felt complete. You felt safe. You felt warm. Can you also remember the day, - the evening, - the Lord Jesus came into your heart? You can remember, - as the hymn writer put it, The peace, the joy I sought so long it became yours. You had peace with God. You had stopped defending your own righteousness and you had accepted Jesus as Saviour. Since that day, He has been yours, and you have been His. You love Him more than words can adequately describe. Wherever you go He is with you and you know of a certainty, He will never leave you nor forsake you. When there is nothing of this world to hold you up, - when it seems there is so much trying to pull and drag you down, - it is your testimony that His left
3 hand is under my head. Look for it, and trust in Him that He keeps His Word I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine (6:3) his right hand doth embrace me 2:4 his banner over me was love. The arms of the Sweetheart. THE ARM OF SALVATION Ps. 40:2 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay. When it was too filthy and so unattractive for anyone else to reach down, Phil. 2:7 [He] made himself of no reputation 8 And became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. When He reached down to pull me up out of the pit, He got Himself dirty for He took my sins and my sorrows, He made them His very own; He bore my burden to Calvary, And suffered and died alone. Only through Christ has the price God s justice demanded of me been paid. He paid it with His own precious blood. He didn t send an angel, neither did He provide an Old Testament prophet or a New Testament apostle He came Himself to wash my sins away. He Himself died on the cross, and He lifted me out of the pit with His strong arm of salvation. Ps. 77:15 Thou hast with thine arm redeemed thy people. THE ARM WITH THE SEAL The Bride requested of the Bridegroom, Songs 8:6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm. Especially in the forces, you often see the men with a tattoo of their girlfriend s name on their arm. It s supposed to speak of their promise to be faithful. When the Bride requested the seal to be placed on the arm of her Bridegroom, it was an indelible mark, - never to be erased. But it was more than a promise that was on her mind it was a covenant. It was for ever. Her name, - the name of the Bride, - was there for always. Wherever the Bridegroom would be, - be it now, or away in the future, - her name was written sealed upon His arm, Eph. 1:13 sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. In turn, He hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts II Cor. 1:22). Like the rings given at the wedding service, the Saviour and the sinner have exchanged seals, - I have His mark on me that says I am His, and He has my mark on Him that says He is mine. Set me as a seal upon thine arm. You wonder what my mark on Him is? Thomas can tell you for he well remembers Jesus saying to him, Jn. 20:27 Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side. Yes, marred more than any man (Is. 52:14), - those were my marks He took upon Himself.
THE ARM OF STRENGTH Ps. 89:13 Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. As the children of Israel entered the Promised Land they heard all the stories of how the idols defended the people. For example, there was the occasion when the Philistines had shackled Samson to the pillar. They mocked not only him, but his God, Judges 16:23 Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. 24 And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, which slew many of us. The world mocks God. Our Saviour was mocked on the cross. Today His Name is the object of scorn, sarcasm and scoffing but there is coming a day when, He says, Is. 45:23 I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. When the Lord spoke to Job, - after all his companions had finished, - the Lord said to him, Hast thou an arm like God? (Job 40:9). Have you the strength God has?! He put the stars and the planets in their place. He lifted the rocks and moulded them into mountains. None has the arm of strength that belongs to our wonderful God! THE ARM THAT SUSTAINS The remnant of Israel cried, Is. 33:2 O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble. The strength of Israel was in the arm of God that sustained them. He held them up in the midst of their suffering. He lifted them out when they were down in Egypt. He kept them in the wilderness of Sinai and in the captivity of Babylon. He sustained them with the manna and the quail. He made the water to flow out of the rock. He gave them hope when all their hope was gone. He carried them when they were tired. He destroyed their enemies and brought them into the Promised Land. He is the arm that sustains. With the psalmist we say, 61:2 when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I. 3 For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. His was the sustaining power that upheld Job when He cried out in all His agony and sorrow, 19:25 I know that my redeemer liveth 26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God. It was Paul s testimony 4
5 too, II Cor. 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong II Tim. 1:12 I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.. The arm that sustains. THE ARM THAT SHELTERS In the prophecy of Isaiah where we are told about the wonderful day when the Lord returns, we read, Is. 40:11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm. Some of the sheep became lost. They had wandered, Is. 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. When the wind and the storms were beating and we were coming near to the end of being able to keep going on, it was then, In my need Jesus found me. Put His strong arms around me. Brought me safe home into the Shelter of the fold. Just like the parable illustrates, the Good Shepherd went out and found His lost sheep. When the devil keeps coming at us and we find ourselves hopelessly powerless to defend ourselves that is when the Lord steps in, Zech. 2:5 For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her. He is the arm that shelters. THE ARM OF THE SHEPHERD Yes, we have used some verses already that speak about the shepherd relationship we have with the Lord, but think again of the picture of the one sheep in a hundred that went astray. Rather than leaving it and being satisfied with the ninety-nine He went out to find it. He never quit until He discovered that sheep and when He brought it home, - notice He didn t bring it back to the sheepfold, He brought it into His home, - and He brought it into His home rejoicing (Lk. 15:7). Yes, it is a privilege to be carried in the arm of the shepherd. Isaiah considered it a great privilege too 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? And the LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people But because the LORD loved you (Dt. 7:7,8) Jer. 31:3 Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love. Safe in the arms of Jesus. The arms of the Saviour, The arms of the Sweetheart, The arm of salvation, The arm with the seal, the arm of strength, the arm that shelters, the arm of the Shepherd
6 THE ARMS OF OUR SOVEREIGN LORD When Moses was on his deathbed he blessed the children of Israel. He reminded them about their privileged relationship with the Lord, Dt. 33:3 Yea, he loved the people; all his saints are in thy hand. As he came to the conclusion, he spoke of their great privilege, v.29 Happy art thou, O Israel: who is like unto thee, O people saved by the Lord. Then, in almost his last words, he told them, v.27 The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Everlasting arms! His arms are steadfast and sure. They are always there. They never grow weary. They never grow tired of holding us. Leaning on the everlasting arms; What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, Leaning on the everlasting arms. In the uncertainty of life, to where else can you turn? As a Christian, leaning on the everlasting arms is our privilege. Doctors only know some of the answers. The people you look up to can only help you so far, but no further. Some people turn to alcohol, or drugs, or to some other fallible source that brings no relief But believer, we are safe in the arms of the Sovereign Lord. We are safe from corroding care, Safe from the world s temptations, sin cannot harm me there. Free from the blight of sorrow, free from my doubts and fears; Only a few more trials, only a few more tears! CONCLUSION Our study hasn t been particularly deep this evening, and yet I trust the Word of God has touched gently into your soul. We have again considered something afresh of this wonderful salvation we have in Christ, - it is so good for every aspect of life. Believer, you are held in the arms of this One about Whom we have been speaking Another hymn says, Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Here is the promise, In His arms He ll take and shield thee; thou will find a solace there. I know a number of you are passing through difficult times, and it is our prayer here you will feel the Lord coming ever-closer and that He will give you beauty for ashes, and pour upon you the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness that he might be glorified (Is. 61:3). Amen.