[0:00] Well, if we could, this evening with the Lord's help and the Lord's enabling, if we could turn back to that passage that we read earlier in Psalm 88. Psalm 88, and I just want us to consider the last verse.
[0:15] Psalm 88, I'm going to read it from the New International Version, the NIV. Psalm 88 at verse 18, where the psalmist says, You have taken my companions and loved ones from me.
[0:30] And the darkness is my closest friend. You have taken my companions and loved ones from me. And the darkness is my closest friend.
[0:45] As we continue our study in the Pilgrim's Progress this evening, we will shortly be arriving at a place which many Christians have travelled. They have travelled to Doubting Castle.
[0:58] But as you know, Doubting Castle is a long way. It's a long, long way from the city of destruction. And it seems a long time since we fled with Christian from the city of destruction, doesn't it?
[1:10] But you know, in that time where we've travelled this long distance, we've walked with Christian. We've walked with Christian along the King's Highway. And our destination is the celestial city.
[1:22] That's where we're going. That's our longing. That's where we want to be. But in our Christian pilgrimage, you'll remember that we were delivered from the slough of Despond.
[1:34] And we crossed over then through the threshold of the Wicked Gate. And then we explored the Interpreter's House. We later stood at the cross.
[1:45] We persevered up the hill called Difficulty. We launched at the top in the Palace Beautiful. We fought with Apollyon in the Valley of Humiliation. We passed through the Valley of the Shadow of Death.
[1:57] We then walked with Christian and faithful as they enjoyed friendship and fellowship with one another. And then last week, we came to a place which every pilgrim must pass through.
[2:09] We came to the town of Vanity. And we had to pass through Vanity Fair. And you'll remember that Bunyan's plea to us as we passed through Vanity Fair was that we're not to waste our life in Vanity Fair.
[2:23] We're not to waste our life on the temporal vanities of this world. We're not to waste our life chasing and striving after the things that will never, ever satisfy.
[2:35] Instead, as Bunyan emphasized to us, we're to look at life. And we're to love life. And we're to live life with that eternal perspective. Because what's of the utmost importance and what's of eternal value to us is our relationship to God through Jesus Christ.
[2:54] Bunyan's plea to us was, Don't waste your life in Vanity Fair. But as we saw last week, Faithful lost his life in Vanity Fair.
[3:06] Faithful was condemned. He was put to death at the stake. Faithful whom Christian had enjoyed friendship and fellowship with.
[3:16] He was faithful unto death. And he was given the crown of life. But as we read, When Christian escaped prison in Vanity Fair, He went on his way.
[3:29] And he went on his way singing. He sang this song, Well faithful thou hast faithfully professed, And to thy Lord with whom thou shalt be blessed. When faithless ones with all their vain delights Are crying under their hellish plights.
[3:45] Sing, faithful sing, And let thy name survive. For though they kill thee, Thou art yet alive. And then Bunyan writes, Now I saw in my dream that Christian went forth, Not alone.
[4:01] For there was one whose name was hopeful. And you know, It was the early church father, Tertullian, Who said, The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.
[4:14] The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. And that was certainly true in the experience of the pilgrim's progress. Because through the martyrdom of faithful, Hopeful appeared.
[4:27] Through the martyrdom of faithful, Hopeful appeared. And now Hopeful will walk with Christian along the King's Highway. They will enjoy friendship and fellowship all the way to the celestial city.
[4:43] And it's another reminder to us of the importance of friendship and fellowship In our pilgrim's progress. But as we continue walking with Christian and Hopeful this evening, We're shortly going to be arriving at a place, as we said, The place which many Christians have travelled, To Doubting Castle.
[5:04] But along the King's Highway, Christian and Hopeful, They encounter three things. They encounter distractions, diversions, and despair. They encounter distractions, diversions, and despair.
[5:19] So first of all, we see that Christian and Hopeful encounter distractions. They encounter distractions. Banyan writes, he says, So I saw that quickly after they were got out of the fair, They overtook one that was going before them, Whose name was Mr. Byens.
[5:37] So Christian and Hopeful, they said to him, What country are you from, sir? And how do you intend to go this way? And Mr. Byens, he responded to them by explaining to Christian and Hopeful That he was from the town of Fair Speech.
[5:54] And he was going to the Celestial City. But what's interesting is that he didn't reveal his name to them. And this was because Mr. Byens was the kind of man Who didn't want to give away too much.
[6:08] In other words, he wasn't committed. Because if he knew things weren't going to work out in his favour, He would just drop back and maybe just drop off.
[6:20] And that's because Mr. Byens, he wanted a casual Christianity. He wanted a carefree Christianity. Mr. Byens wanted a consumerist Christianity.
[6:32] He wanted to get where he wanted, And yet live how he wanted. In other words, he wasn't sincere in his salvation. Mr. Byens wanted to get to the Celestial City Without having to experience or endure the pilgrim's progress.
[6:52] You know, my friend, Mr. Byens was a typical middle-class churchgoer. He wasn't a peasant. He wasn't from the working class like Bunyan was, As a tinker from Bedford.
[7:05] Mr. Byens was from the wealthy town of Vanity, Not Vanity Fair, but Fair Speech. He was from the town of Fair Speech, Where many well-to-do people lived.
[7:19] And as he described himself, It's interesting, he describes himself That he was a gentleman of good quality. And his wife, he says, Well, she is Lady Faining's daughter.
[7:30] She's a very virtuous and honourable woman. You know, my friend, Mr. Byens was, He was religious in Persian, But not in practice.
[7:43] Mr. Byens had this outward form of religion, But no inward reformation of the heart. Yes, he believed the Bible. And maybe even read the Bible on occasion.
[7:54] And for sure, he'd heard the gospel, And he knew the gospel, And he may even have said that Jesus was the saviour of sinners. And yes, Mr. Byens would have attended church, He would have paid the church, He would have thought highly of the church.
[8:09] And on a Sunday morning, Mr. Byens would have looked the part, And even sounded the part, Because he wore the right things, And he said the right things, And he acted in the right manner.
[8:20] That's because Mr. Byens was religious in Persian, But not in practice. Because he confesses to both Christian and hopeful.
[8:31] He confesses that he differs to those of the stricter sort. Because he never strives against the wind and tide. He's always zealous when religion is well dressed, And goes in his silver slippers.
[8:46] And he loves to walk in the street, If the sun shines, And the people praise him. In other words, As we said, Mr. Byens wants a casual Christianity.
[9:00] He wants a carefree Christianity. He wants a consumerist Christianity. He wants to be satisfied, Rather than sanctified.
[9:12] He wants to be flexible with God's word, Rather than focused upon God's word. He wants a Christianity that's just calm, And comfortable, And that doesn't cause him to strive against the wind, Or the tide.
[9:25] He wants a Christianity that's fashionable, And favorable with all people, As he can prance about in his silver slippers. He wants a Christianity that's agreeable, And approachable, And even applaudable, As he walks in continual sunshine.
[9:45] My friend, Mr. Byens, Wanted to worship the God of his imagination. Because he wants the best of both worlds. He wants a foot in both camps.
[9:58] He wants to remain uncommitted. He wants to be double-minded, Just like his ancestors before him. We're told that in the town of Fair Speech, There were many like Mr. Byens.
[10:11] There was Mr. Smoothman, Mr. Facing Both Ways, Mr. Anything, Mr. Two Tongues. And like Mr. Byens, They were all outwardly religious.
[10:23] They were all Pharisees. Because they worshipped God with their lips, But their heart was far from him. Of course, Mr. Byens, We're told he wanted to walk with Christian and hopeful, Along the King's Highway, To the Celestial City.
[10:39] But Christian insisted that Mr. Byens, Count the cost. He wanted Mr. Byens to count the cost of the pilgrim's progress.
[10:50] Because as we've discovered from Christian's experience, The pilgrim's progress isn't always fair weather and favourable paths. And that if Mr. Byens truly counts the cost of Christianity, He will see that it's not a casual, It's not a carefree, It's not a consumerist, It's not a calm or a comfortable Christianity.
[11:14] No, it's a cross-bearing Christianity. The pilgrim's progress, my friend, Is a cross-bearing Christianity. Because as Jesus said, Whosoever will come after me, Let him deny himself, Take up his cross, And follow me.
[11:35] For whosoever shall lose, Save his life, Shall lose it. But whosoever shall lose his life, For my sake and the Gospels, The same shall save it. What shall it profit a man, Says Jesus, If he were to gain the whole world, And lose his own soul?
[11:52] Or what shall a man give, In exchange for his own soul? Christian called Mr. Byens, To deny self, Take up his cross, And follow Jesus.
[12:05] But sadly, Mr. Byens, He was too proud, And too principled in his own mind, To deny self, To take up his cross, And to follow Jesus.
[12:18] Mr. Byens was too proud, And too principled, To come, Call, Commit, And confess Jesus Christ, As his Lord and Saviour.
[12:29] My friend, Mr. Byens wanted liberty with Jesus, But he didn't want Jesus, As Lord. And you know, Mr. Byens hasn't died.
[12:44] Mr. Byens hasn't died. He's still alive and well, And he's alive and well, On the Isle of Lewis.
[12:56] Because there are many people, Who are like Mr. Byens, Who have all the blessings, And all the benefits, Of the gospel. The same benefits and blessings, That he had.
[13:09] But when it comes to commitment, To Christ, They're either too proud, Or too principled, In their own mind, To deny self, Take up their cross, And follow Jesus.
[13:24] They're too proud, Or they're too principled, To call, Commit, Confess, And follow Jesus, As their Saviour. And you know, Pride, my friend, Pride is an awful sin, It's a subtle sin.
[13:40] It gets in so easily. And whether someone is, A Christian or not a Christian, The worst thing about pride, Is that it keeps us from Jesus.
[13:52] You know, Pride prevents us from humility. Pride prevents us from denying self. Pride prevents us from taking up our cross, And following Jesus. Pride prevents us, From entering the kingdom of God.
[14:07] Pride. And what we see in the narrative, Is that Christian and hopeful, They distance themselves, From Mr. Byens. And when they look back, They walk ahead a wee bit, But when they look back, They see that Mr.
[14:22] Byens, He has renewed acquaintance, With other like-minded friends. Mr. Money Love, Mr. Save All, And Mr.
[14:32] Whole the World. And Bunyan writes, He says, These four men, Mr. Byens, Mr. Money Love, Mr. Save All, And old Mr. Whole the World, They walked on together, While Christian and hopeful, Were far, In advance.
[14:49] And so along the king's highway, Christian and hopeful, They encountered, Distractions. But then secondly, They encountered, Diversions. So distractions, And diversions.
[15:02] Diversions. Bunyan writes, He says, Then Christian and hopeful, Went on till they came, To a delicate plain, Called Ease, Where they went, With much content.
[15:15] Then at the further side, Of that plain, Was a little hill, Called Lucar. And in that hill, A silver mine, Which some of them, That had formerly gone that way, Because of the rarity of it, Had turned aside to see.
[15:29] Then I saw in my dream, That a little off the road, Over against the silver mine, Stood Demas, Calling passing travellers, To come and see.
[15:41] Now as we read, The area to which Christian and hopeful, Were now entering, Was a plain called Lucar. And of course, Lucar is a word that's used, In the authorised version, To describe money, Which has been earned, Or acquired, Dishonestly, Either by stealing, Or gambling.
[16:02] And you know, It's interesting that, Paul and Peter, In their letters, They emphasise, That ministers, Elders, And deacons, Are not to be given, To filthy, Lucar.
[16:15] When Paul wrote, To Timothy, He said that, Church leaders, Must not be worthy of, They must be worthy of respect, But not double-tongued, Not drunk with wine, And not greedy of filthy, Lucar.
[16:32] And what Paul stressed to Timothy, Was that church leaders, Are not to be diverted, By dishonest, And deceitful, Gain. But it's also important, That we understand, Who this character, Demas was.
[16:47] Because Demas, He's someone who's mentioned, In the Bible. And he was an important, And influential, Church leader, In the early church, As it was being established.
[16:59] And Paul mentions Demas, He mentions him, First of all, Very warmly, In his letters, To the Colossians, And also in his letter, To Philemon. But in, Paul's last letter, Prior to his death, Paul sadly, Had to report to Timothy, That Demas, Had forsaken him.
[17:20] And Demas, Had forsaken Paul, Because he loved, The world. Demas, Was diverted, By dishonest, And deceitful, Gain.
[17:32] And we see that here, In the narrative, By the way in which, Demas tried, To divert, Christian and hopeful, By dishonest, And deceitful, Gain. Because, As Christian and hopeful, Walked along the king's highway, Demas called to them, He urged them, To divert their course, And come and see, What they might gain.
[17:53] Demas said, Here is a silver mine, And some are digging in it, For treasure. With a little effort, You may be richly, Rewarded. And with Demas' invitation, Young hopeful, Wanted to go over, And see the silver mine.
[18:08] But Christian, He counseled, And cautioned, Young hopeful, He said to him, I have heard of this place before, Many have been destroyed there, And besides that, Worldly treasure, Is a snare to those, Who seek it, For it hinders them, In their pilgrimage.
[18:28] You know, Christian, He counseled, And cautioned, Hopeful, And he did so, In the manner, Every Christian, Should be counseled, And cautioned. He used the words, Of scripture.
[18:41] Because, You know my friend, Our Bible, Counsels and cautions us, Doesn't it? And in relation, To filthy Luca, It says, Those who desire, To be rich, Fall into temptation, Into a snare, Into many foolish, And hurtful lusts, Which drown people, In destruction and ruin, For the love of money, It is the root, Of all evil, Which some have coveted, And through their craving, Have wandered away, From the faith, And pierced themselves, With many sorrows, Just like Demas had.
[19:16] And you're with us, Christian said to Hopeful, Let us not turn out of the way, But keep, On our path. Let us not turn out of the way, But keep, On our path.
[19:31] But Demas, He calls to Christian, And Hopeful again, Compelling them to, To reconsider their, Their decision, About diversion. But Christian, He firmly answers him, Saying, Demas, You are an enemy, To the right ways, Of the Lord, And you have already, Been condemned, For turning aside.
[19:51] I know you, Says Christian, Gehazi, Gehazi, Was your great grandfather, And Judas, Was your father, And you're treading in their steps. Gehazi, Was the corrupt servant, Of the prophet, Elisha.
[20:05] He was the one, Who went after Naaman, Looking for money, After Naaman, Had been healed, By Elisha. Judas, As you know, Was the treasurer, Of Jesus' disciples.
[20:16] He was the one, Who had the money bag, But he always wanted more, And he betrayed his Lord, For thirty pieces, Of silver. And as Christian said, To Demas, Your father was hanged, As a traitor, And you deserve, No better.
[20:35] Then Bunyan writes, He says, Thus they continued, On their way. By this time, By ends, Whom they had passed, And all his companions, Mr Money Love, And everybody else, They had all come within sight, And they, At the first beckoning, They went over to Demas.
[20:52] They went straight over, To see what gain, They could get. But then just on the other side, Of this plain, We're told that Christian and hopeful, They came to a place, Where an old monument stood.
[21:05] And it seemed, As if it had been, A woman, Transformed into the shape, Of a pillar, And they stood looking, For a while, Until hopeful, Noticed an inscription, Which read, Remember Lot's wife.
[21:20] Remember Lot's wife. This was the pillar of salt, We're told, Which Lot's wife, Had been turned into, For looking back, With a covetous heart, When she was fleeing Sodom, For safety.
[21:36] And looking at the pillar of salt, Christian, We're told, He said to Faith, To hopeful, My brother, This is a timely warning. It came providentially to us, After Demas' invitation, To come over to view the hill, Luca.
[21:52] For had we gone as he desired, And as you were first inclined to do, We ourselves would probably have been made, Like this woman. Hopeful says, I am sorry, That I was so foolish.
[22:05] Let God's grace be adored, And let me be ashamed, That such a thing, Should ever have been in my heart. This woman serves as both a warning, And an example to us.
[22:17] She is a warning, In that we should shun her sin, Or receive her judgment. This also gives us an occasion, To thank God, And to fear him, And always, To remember Lot's wife.
[22:32] Remember Lot's wife. Then Bunyan writes, That they went on their way, To a pleasant river, Which King David called, The river of God, But the Apostle John, Called the river of the water, Of life.
[22:47] And as we saw this morning, The river of God, Refers to Psalm 46, And the river of the water of life, Refers to Jesus' words, In John chapter 7.
[23:00] And both Christian and hopeful, Were told that they drank from the river, Which was pleasant to them, And enlivening to their weary spirits. But as they journeyed on, They saw that the path separated, The river was going along, But the path was separating, To the point that the path that they were on, Became rough, And difficult, And that they longed for an easier path, They wanted an easy going path.
[23:27] Then just ahead of Christian and faithful, On the left hand side of the road, Was a field named, By path meadow. And by path meadow, Was yet another diversion.
[23:41] Because there was a parallel path, On the other side of the fence, In by path meadow. And because Christian and hopeful, Had found the path, That they were on to be difficult, They decided to take an easier path, To the celestial city.
[23:58] And so the pilgrims, They climbed over a stile, Into by path meadow. But as you know my friend, The easier path, Isn't always the best path.
[24:09] Because the best path, Is the path which God has appointed. The best path, Is the path, Which stays close to God's will, And God's word.
[24:20] The best path, Says Jesus, Is the narrow path. Because the way may be hard, But it leads to life. The way may be hard, But it leads to life.
[24:34] And don't you find it interesting, That young hopeful, He was suspicious, Of taking an easier path, That might lead them astray. And it was actually, The more mature Christian, Who insisted, On crossing over the stile, Into by path meadow.
[24:52] And with that bunion, It's just reminding us, That even mature Christians, Who have been on the road, For a long time, Even they, Can get it wrong, Sometimes. And so Christian and hopeful, They followed the diversion, Onto by path meadow, And they want an easy going path.
[25:10] And they get an easy going path. And then looking ahead, Along this easy going path, And by path meadow, They saw a man named, Vain Confidence, Who was also on his way, To the celestial city.
[25:24] But as Christian and hopeful, As they followed, Vain Confidence, Along this easy going path, In by path meadow, We're told that the night, Began to draw in, And they grew, It grew very dark.
[25:38] To the point that Christian and hopeful, They lost sight, Of vain confidence. In fact we're told that, Vain Confidence lost his way, And he fell into a deep pit, And he was dashed to pieces.
[25:54] Then we're told a storm, Begins to gather. There was thunder and lightning. They're nearly drowned, By the rising rainwater. And by this point, Christian is pleading with hopeful, To forgive him, For leading him astray.
[26:10] But then at last, We're told that they, They find a shelter, A little shelter, And it's there that they lie down, And fall asleep. But what they don't realise, Is that they've strayed, Into the grounds, Of Doubting Castle.
[26:26] And, Into the home, Of giant despair. And so along the king's highway, Christian and hopeful, They encounter distractions, Diversions, And despair.
[26:42] Distractions, Diversions, And despair. So lastly, Despair. Do you know, When Christian and hopeful opened their eyes, The following morning, They not only saw sunshine, After the storm, They also saw a very unhappy giant, Standing over them.
[27:01] Giant despair, There had found Christian and hopeful, Asleep, In the grounds of Doubting Castle. And after waking them, He accused the pilgrims, Of trespassing, And then he throws them, We're told, In a very dark, Nasty, And stinking dungeon, In his castle.
[27:19] And we read that, Christian and hopeful, Were left there, Without one bit of bread, Or a drop of water, Or light, Or anyone, To help them.
[27:31] Then Bunyan writes, Now giant despair, Had a wife, Whose name was Dividence. When he had gone to bed, He told his wife, What he had done.
[27:43] And you know, Although this section, In the pilgrim's progress, It's very dark, And it's very, It's a difficult experience, For Christian, And hopeful. Even though, You know, This element of humour, Brought before us, In the conversations, Between these two giants, Despair and Dividence.
[28:02] Because, Don't you find it amusing, That even though, Giant despair, He had caught, And captured Christian, And hopeful, First thing in the morning. And yet, He didn't tell his wife, Dividence, What he had done, Until they were lying in bed, Together, That evening.
[28:20] In fact, When you read through, The narrative, You'll see that, All the conversations, Between despair, And diffidence, Between these two giants, All their conversations, Take place, While they're lying in bed, Together.
[28:34] Because you know, Like most married couples, All their discussions, About the day, And their plans, For the morrow, They're had, When they're lying in bed, Together. Of course, Also, Like most married couples, Who share their struggles, The wife advises, Or in this case, Instructs her husband, On how he should deal, With the current struggles, That he's facing.
[28:58] And so on their first night, In bed, With Christian and hopeful, In the dungeon of, Doubting Castle, Dividence, Advises her husband, Giant despair, To mercilessly beat, His new guests, In the morning.
[29:15] And that's what he did. Then the next night, While they're lying in bed, Dividence, Again advises despair, On how to deal, With Christian and hopeful.
[29:26] Only this time, She instructs her husband, To tell the pilgrims, To commit suicide. And that's what he did. Giant despair, Told Christian and hopeful.
[29:39] He said, Since you're never going, To get out of the dungeon, Of Doubting Castle, The best thing for you, Would be to kill yourself, Either with a knife, A noose, Or poison.
[29:52] And as you would expect, In the dungeon of Doubting Castle, Christian, Wasn't smiling. Christian was, Sorrowing. And we're told that Christian, Actually had double sorrow, Because he had led himself, And hopeful, Astray.
[30:10] Christian was experiencing, Deep darkness, In the dungeon of Doubting Castle, And he was experiencing, This deep darkness, Not only physically, But also spiritually.
[30:22] There was a darkness, Which had overcome, Christian, Which left him, In a state of discouragement, And doubt, And depression, And despair, And even death.
[30:34] Christian wanted, To end his life, By suicide. And you know, This section, In the pilgrim's progress, It's not only a very painful section, To read.
[30:47] In many ways, It's also a very pastoral section, To read. Because even though, It was the 17th century, When this was written, As a pastor, Bunyan was well aware, Of the issues, Of mental health, And depression, And loneliness, And isolation, And even suicide.
[31:04] And Bunyan knew, That sometimes people, Do reach that, Place of darkness, And double sorrow, Even Christians. Maybe Bunyan, Experienced it for himself, Because, While he was imprisoned, For 12 years, In the darkness, Of the Bedford prison, Bunyan, If you read, Grace Abounding, His autobiography, He experienced depression, He experienced loneliness, And isolation, Maybe he even experienced, Thoughts of suicide.
[31:38] And although we don't speak about it, As openly as we should, People, Do reach that place of darkness, And double sorrow, Even Christians do. And you know, Especially over the past year, With the coronavirus pandemic, And all that we've been through, As a nation, And all that we've seen, As a nation, You know, We just don't know, The effect, That that will have upon, People, In the future.
[32:06] But you know, What I love about the Bible, Is that there's even a psalm, Which expresses the agonies, Of darkness, Discouragement, Doubt, Depression, Despair, And death.
[32:19] Because as we read earlier, From Psalm 88, Psalm 88, Is a psalm of darkness, And double sorrow. Psalm 88, Is a psalm of darkness, And double sorrow.
[32:34] Many of you will remember, That a few years ago, In the prayer meeting, We did a series called, My Favourite Psalm, Where we studied, Everyone's favourite psalm, And we learned, Why it was so precious, And so personal, To them.
[32:50] But you know, When it comes to Psalm 88, It's not a psalm, That you would readily describe, As my favourite psalm, Because, Because, There's no light in Psalm 88, It's a psalm of darkness, And double sorrow, And as we read, Psalm 88, It closes with, With the words, You have taken, You have taken my companions, And loved ones from me, And the darkness, Is my closest friend, The darkness, Is my closest friend, And you know, Even though it's a dark psalm, Psalm 88, Is one of those psalms, Where you're glad it's there, Because it expresses, As Calvin says, It expresses the anatomy, Of the soul, Especially when we're undergoing, The experience of darkness, Or discouragement, Or doubt, Depression, Despair, And even death, You know, That's the way Christian was feeling, In the pilgrim's progress, Because, He was tempted,
[33:52] To take his own life, And he said to hopeful, He said, Brother, What shall we do? The life that we now live, Is miserable, For my part, I do not know what is best, To live like this, Or to kill ourselves, The grave seems better to me, Than living in this dungeon, Only to be oppressed, By this giant, And hopeful, He responds by saying, Indeed, Our present condition, Is dreadful, And death would be, Far more welcome to me, Than to live like this forever, Yet, Let us be patient, And endure for a while, The time may come, In which we may be released, But let us not be, Our own murderers, And Bunyan tells us, That from Wednesday, Until Saturday, Christian and hopeful, Remained in the dark dungeon, Of doubting castle, And all the while, You read it again, And again, Hopeful repeatedly, Says to Christian, Let us be patient, Let us be patient,
[34:53] Let us be patient, Then at midnight, On Saturday, Christian and hopeful, Begin to pray, And they continue praying, Until the morning comes, Until the morning breaks, And you know, What Bunyan says here, Is so important for us, And we're not to miss it, Bunyan tells us, That Christian and hopeful, Are in darkness, And despair, In the dungeon, Of doubting castle, And they're there, From Wednesday, Until the early hours, Of the Lord's day, And Bunyan tells us this, Because that was the experience, Of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, You remember, In his last days, And living in the shadow of Calvary, Jesus experienced, And endured, All our darkness, All our discouragement, All our doubt, All our depression,
[35:55] All our despair, And all our death, And he experienced it, And endured it all, At Calvary, But on the first day of the week, On the first, Lord's day morning, Jesus rose triumphant, Over the grave, And he abolished death, We're told, He brought life, And immortality, To light, Through the gospel, And my friend, That's where our hope is, Our hope, My friend, In the face of darkness, Discouragement, Doubt, Depression, Despair, And even death, Our hope, Is in the light, Of the knowledge, Of the glory of God, Seen only in the face, Of Jesus Christ, Our hope, Is the anchor, Of our soul, And it's grounded, Firm and deep, In the Saviour's love, And you know, It was in the early hours, Of the Lord's day morning, That Christian and hopeful,
[36:56] They're sitting there, And Christian turns to hopeful, And says, What a fool I've been, To lie in this stinking dungeon, When I could have been free, I have a key, He says, I have a key called promise, In my bosom, Which will open any lock, In Doubting Castle, And my friend, You have that key, Called promise too, You have that key, In your bosom, You have that key, In your heart, Because like, Christian and hopeful, You're to call, Claim and confess, Every promise, In scripture, You are to call, Claim and confess, Every promise, In scripture, Because, Every promise in scripture, Will open for you, Any lock, In Doubting Castle, Any promise, In scripture, Will open for you, Any lock, In Doubting Castle, And you know, That's what happened, Christian used, The key of promise,
[37:56] To unlock the door, Of the dungeon, On that Lord, And on that Lord's day morning, Christian and hopeful, Were told that they escaped, Doubting Castle, The giant despair, Tried to catch them, But, He failed, They escaped, Doubting Castle, And they made their way back, To the king's highway, But in conclusion, Bunyan writes, Now when they had got over the style, They began to discuss, What they should do, To prevent others, Who would come after them, From falling into the hands, Of giant despair, So they agreed, To erect a pillar there, And to engrave this warning upon it, Over this style, Is the way to Doubting Castle, Which is kept by giant despair, Who despises the king, Of the celestial country, And seeks to destroy, His holy pilgrims, And we're told that, Many therefore, Who later came to that place, Read the warning, And escaped, The danger,
[38:58] And so in this section, We see that along the king's highway, Christian and hopeful, They encountered distractions, Diversions, And despair, And God willing, We'll see what else they encounter, As we continue walking with them, Next week, In the pilgrims, Progress, Well may the Lord bless, These thoughts to us, And let us pray together, O Lord, Our gracious God, We give thanks to thee, That even these things, Remind us, Of what we face, In our Christian journey, And Lord, We know, That we often face distractions, And there are diversions, And even times of despair, But we give thanks to thee, This evening, That we have hope, We have a hope, That is sure and steadfast, We have a hope, Founded in our Saviour, And that we are able to cling, To his great and precious promises, Promises that are, Sure and steadfast,
[39:59] Promises Lord, That are founded, Upon the word of God, That they are unchanging promises, That they are promises, That are yea and amen in Christ, Help us Lord, We pray, To claim them, To cling to them, And even confess them, And to know that they are ours, In and through our Saviour, Oh Lord, Keep us we pray, Keep us and encourage us, Even Lord, Those tonight, Who may be going through difficulties, Of discouragement, Or even despair, Or depression, Or even facing death itself, Lord, We ask that, Thou wouldst minister to such, That they would know, Thine hand upon them, That they would know, Thy grace to be sufficient, That they would know, Thy help, And thy strength, Oh do us, Good Lord, We pray, Go before us, And cleanse us, For Jesus' sake, Amen.
[40:53] Well we're going to bring our service, To a conclusion, This evening, By singing the words, Of Psalm 107, Psalm 107, In the Sing Psalms version, We're singing from, Verse 10, And we're singing, On through the Psalm, To verse 16, Psalm 107, It's in the Sing Psalms version, And we're singing these words, These words, Psalm 107, It's a psalm, Where there are many testimonies, Of the Lord's people, They're testifying, To the Lord's goodness, And the psalmist, Calls the Lord's people, To praise God, Because he is good, Because he redeems his people, And in these verses, We're reminded, About the experience, Of one Christian, And it's very similar, To what Christian and hopeful, Experienced, In Doubting Castle, We're told in verse 10, Some sat in darkness, And in gloom, In chains of iron held, They scorned the ways, Of God most high,
[41:54] Against his words rebelled, And so he made them, Labour hard, In bitterness and shame, They stumbled, And they could not rise, To help them, No one came, Then to the Lord, They cried for help, He saved them, From their doom, He broke away, Their cruel chains, And brought them, Out of gloom, Just the experience, Of Christian, And hopeful, We'll sing these verses, To God's praise, Of Christian, Come to Jesus, In covenant, From liar and good We'll sing this verse, From dónde are hid the rest, The thunder historic���, Of peace and holy habilidades, High on hell, they stormed the waves of God's high.
[42:49] Against His words rebelled. And so He made them with a heart, in bitterness and shame.
[43:14] They tumbled and they could not rise.
[43:26] To help that no one came. Then to the Lord they cried for help.
[43:45] He changed them from their doom. He broke away their cruel chains.
[44:03] And brought them out of doom. So let them fight him for his love.
[44:21] Then He lived with me at ease. Because He breaks the gates of cross.
[44:39] And Thou art in peace. He had all 1970 by Response joka was animated.
[44:59] He couldn't fight it. Which He turned to be out of him in Phdoms.