{"id":26422,"date":"2026-06-04T06:01:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T06:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/?p=26422"},"modified":"2025-11-26T09:43:37","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T09:43:37","slug":"the-unfailing-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/2026\/06\/the-unfailing-god\/","title":{"rendered":"The Unfailing God"},"content":{"rendered":"

[Posted by permission. Chippenham Old Baptist Chapel<\/a>.]<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sermon preached at Old Baptist Chapel, Chippenham by Mr. G. D. Buss<\/b> <\/b>on Lord\u2019s Day Morning, 19<\/b>th <\/b>July, 2020<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d\u2014Deuteronomy 31:8<\/i><\/i><\/p>\n

These words dropped with some sweet power into my soul a few days ago and have remained a source of meditation which we will bring before you for a few moments this morning.<\/p>\n

God\u2019s servant, Moses, was at the end of his long pilgrimage. Forty years he had spent in the court of Pharaoh, and all the luxury and education that he had received there was a notable part of his life. But, when he came to years, we are told that he \u201crefused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,\u201d even though godly scholars tell us he could have been the next Pharaoh. Moses refused all that, and rather chose to join himself to his dear brethren in the flesh, who at that time were under the lash and under the yoke. They were slaves. Moses was \u201cnot ashamed to call them brethren.\u201d<\/p>\n

And this was a very great stoop in Moses\u2019 life, compared with what he had been the forty years before. And dear friend, that is a mark of grace. It looks beyond what is seen and coveted by the natural eye, and by faith discerns things as God would have them. This was the same reason that Ruth left Moab and joined herself to Naomi at Naomi\u2019s worst time: a widow having lost two sons. A lower spot you could not have found a woman in, but that is when Ruth joined herself to her. Ruth had the same spirit as Moses had. We may say also concerning the dying thief in an even more blessed sense. Our Lord Jesus Christ, hanging between two thieves, nailed there, a crown of thorns upon His holy head, railed on by priests and scorned at by Roman soldiers was indeed an abject place to be. Yet the dying thief, by grace, put himself, as it were, in the company of the dear Saviour and said: \u201cLord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom.\u201d Real religion is not just for fair weather, dear friends. Yes, blessed be God, there is a wonderful prospect for a believer. \u201cIn My Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you.\u201d But, while we are here below, for the most part, the Church is in a low state. It is often in tribulation and in many trials. But, for all that, a true believer still says:<\/p>\n

\u201cWith them numbered may I be\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, and through eternity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well, Moses then leaves the luxury of Egypt. For forty years he is a shepherd. And that was a tremendous contrast. But I think, dear friends, he learned lessons in the wilderness that he could not learn in Pharaoh\u2019s court. He learned lessons in that lonely place that could not be learned anywhere else. And sometimes God puts His people in a wilderness place for that very reason: to learn lessons that cannot be learned anywhere else. God makes no mistake in the way He leads His people. Moses learned lessons in the wilderness that were a great help to him later in his life. Then came that divine commission at the burning bush, and the blessed promise that went with it: \u201cCertainly I will be with thee.\u201d For forty years this dear man led God\u2019s dear ancient people from Egypt, through the Red Sea, through the changing scenes of the wilderness journey, in sorrow and in joy, in low states and in high states. He clung to God\u2019s people and they to him, although there were a mixed multitude that caused him much trouble. And friend, it is the mixed multitude in your heart and mine that causes the most trouble in your soul. What you are by nature as a fallen sinner \u2013 that is the mixed multitude. It is continually militating against the work of grace that we trust God has put in many hearts here.<\/p>\n

But Moses now comes to the end of his journey. His work is done. He cannot do Joshua\u2019s work. Joshua\u2019s work was to lead the children of Israel through the Jordan and into the Promised Land. Moses could not do that work; that was not an appointed work for him. The mantle had to pass to Joshua from Moses. And, as it was with Elijah when he departed this scene and the mantle fell upon Elisha, so it was here. And the great point is, just as Elisha proved it, the God of Elijah still lived, although Elijah was gone. Although Moses was soon to go to his eternal rest, Moses\u2019 God would continue. The Lord said in the chapter we read: \u201cAs I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.\u201d An unchanging God; an unchangeable God.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn all the changing scenes of life\u201d And so it is. But now Moses is God\u2019s prophet at this point. He gives a word in season to his son in the faith, Joshua. The words before us are words of gracious promise and encouragement. We have Moses as a lawgiver, and we have Moses as a king, in one sense. But here we have him as God\u2019s mouthpiece: a prophet. He was a true prophet who was used of God to give to Joshua this word in season, particularly the words I have read before you this morning: \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d Moses had proved that God would not fail. He had proved that each time when many did not support him but turned away from him. Even Aaron and Miriam at one time were dismissive of him and envied his position. And God dealt with them for it. It was a lonely path. But:<\/p>\n

\u201cOur earthly friends may fail us\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And change with changing years,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This Friend is always worthy<\/p>\n

Of that dear Name He bears.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, Moses could say as a prophet to Joshua: \u2018This is God\u2019s word for you, Joshua \u2013 I have experienced the truth of it \u2013 \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d\u2019 It is very noticeable to record, as we read in the Book of Joshua, how the Lord said: \u201cI <\/i>will not fail thee.\u201d There the Lord came personally to Joshua and said, \u201cI <\/i>will not fail thee.\u201d He was graciously confirming what Moses had been saying in this chapter we have before us this morning. Friends, confirmations of the Word of God are very precious. They are seals. It was a sealing time for Joshua when the Lord came to him as we read in Joshua chapter 1 and said exactly the same words but with the \u201cI\u201d rather than the \u201cHe.\u201d \u201cI <\/i>will not fail thee.\u201d It came so personally and so near to Joshua. You have it in Psalm 23. It begins with a slight distance, as it were. \u201cThe Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down…\u201d Then you come to this verse: \u201cYea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I <\/i>will fear no evil: for Thou <\/i>art with me.\u201d That is much nearer, isn\u2019t it? Now the Lord is speaking. He is speaking with His sheep and the sheep are speaking with the Shepherd. They are in the same company; they have His presence.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen most we need His helping hand,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This Friend is always near.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Lord knew that Joshua needed such an encouragement, such strengthening and such sealing. When the Lord gives that to us, He knows we need it, otherwise He would not give it. \u201cHe <\/i>will not fail thee,\u201d says our text; \u201cI <\/i>will not fail thee,\u201d says the Lord in a personal word to Joshua.<\/p>\n

Then there is another reason why Moses could speak with such blessed confidence: he had proved Him. Moses, under God\u2019s divine inspiration recorded much \u2013 not all \u2013 but much of the pathway that he had walked. There were many places of which he could remind Joshua. Joshua had been a witness of many things. Joshua had been there the night of the Passover. Joshua had passed through the Red Sea. Moses would have reminded him of those times. Moses would have reminded him of Marah and how the Lord made the bitter waters sweet, and of Rephidim, where the rock opened, and the waters gushed out. He had been a witness to the manna falling every day. \u2018Joshua, I have seen these things. I have experienced them, and I have proved that God was as good as His word that He gave me at the burning bush.\u2019 \u201cCertainly\u201d \u2013 whatever troubles may come; whatever need may arise \u2013 \u201cI will be with thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Again. Moses could speak in this sense: Moses knew God was a covenant God. When God makes a covenant, dear friends, He always keeps His end of it. Sadly, you and I by nature are covenant breakers. In the covenant of works we come solemnly short. That is why the covenant of works could never save us. We cannot do what the covenant of works demands of us, because of our fallen state. There is nothing wrong with the covenant, it is what is wrong with you and with me in our fallen state! It is an inexcusable state. You should not say: \u2018Well, I was born like it and therefore I cannot help it.\u2019 Yes, you were born like it. Your nature is sin. But it is sin in God\u2019s sight and thus, dear friends, it is abhorrent to Him. And unless you know a covenant other than the covenant of works, the covenant of works will condemn you in that last day because of the debt you owe that you have not paid.<\/p>\n

But, blessed be God, there is another covenant: the covenant of grace. And Moses knew something about that. He knew that God had promised to send His only begotten, dearly beloved Son in due time into this world. Moses was one who watched for Him, prayed for Him and waited for Him. He believed He would come, and He did come. He was a covenant God. And Moses knew that God would preserve the people that Joshua now had to lead for that very reason, that eventually, in the fulness of God\u2019s time, He would send \u201cforth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law.\u201d Friends, God is a covenant God. The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, in glorious unity together have united to work that great work of salvation. And this is the best covenant to be found in. It is the only covenant that will save a sinner: the covenant of grace. It is for <\/i>sinners. Bless God for that! It is a work wrought by God \u201cto save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.\u201d The dear Spirit brings to God through a precious Christ the work of salvation, performing that work that we read of in Philippians: \u201cHe which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.\u201d Moses believed these things. He was a patriarch. He lived long before our Lord came. But, like Abraham, He rejoiced to see Christ\u2019s day. \u201cHe saw it and was glad.\u201d Bless God for it! So, Moses could say these things as a prophet, he could say it by experience, and he could say it because of the covenant: \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

But we have one further reason; perhaps the most blessed of all reasons: \u2018Joshua, you are one loved of God.\u2019 Friends, perhaps that is the best reason of all why the Lord will not fail His dear people. You have it in John 13. \u201cHaving loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end.\u201d To be loved by <\/i>God and to be loved of <\/i>God is the greatest gift you and I could ever have. Yes, we have our natural affections for those who God has given us to love, and that is a great mercy. But, when all is said and done, the grave will swallow up all those relationships. They will not last beyond your dying breath. \u201cHenceforth know we no man after the flesh\u201d in that sense, once we have passed this time state. I remember reading the biography of the late Jesse Delves. He was a godly man. He was the pastor at Clapham many years ago. He had a very godly father. But, his father died, and Jesse felt it was very well concerning him. A few days after his father died, he had a vivid dream. He saw his father walking down the street and passing the gate. In his dream, Jesse ran out to speak to him. But his father just passed on. He said that he did not even recognize him. And Jesse woke up with those words: \u201cHenceforth know we no man after the flesh.\u201d He realised that the natural relationship he had with his father as a son had gone. But, dear friends, the relationship in Christ will never go. That is an everlasting bond. Those bound in that bundle of life have a union which can never, never, ever break.<\/p>\n

\u201cRest, doubting saint, assured of this,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For God has pledged His holiness.\u201d<\/p>\n

That is the one bond that will last through the valley of the shadow of death. It is the one bond that will hold the child of God fast till he sees a precious Christ face to face. Then, it should be your exercise this Sabbath morning to be asking that question that William Gadsby asked:<\/p>\n

\u201cHave I union To the Church\u2019s living Head?\u201d<\/p>\n

That is the only union that will take you safe to heaven. Remember that. Let us come back to our text. \u201cHe will not fail thee\u201d \u2013 for love\u2019s sake.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhom once He loves He never leaves,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But loves him to the end.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love,\u201d He said to Jeremiah, \u201ctherefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.\u201d \u201cHe will not fail thee\u201d<\/p>\n

Now look at it, dear friends, in another light. Speaking of myself, what failures we are! The more we go on and look back at our lives \u2013 some of the things we have said and have not said; things we did and did not do; some of the mistakes we have made \u2013 what sin-blotted lives ours are, aren\u2019t they? What failure is stamped upon them! We must be honest. Yet here is One who never fails. No imperfection, nothing short here. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d It is very encouraging to me when feeling to be such a failure (I do as a pastor and in so many other ways), to go to One who never fails. There may be one here this morning who feels they have failed so much. You look back over your life and there are so many things you now realise (at the time you did not realise) but now you do realise that you were not in God\u2019s fear. Now you look back, and perhaps the devil is saying that you cannot possibly be saved with all that history behind you. Well, the devil is a liar. There is a faultless obedience for you to cling to. There is a perfect righteousness for you to hasten to. There is One who has lived a faultless, unfailing life here below \u2013 a precious Christ. He is the place, for those who feel such failures, to hasten toward. What a failure Peter must have felt when he denied his Lord with oaths and curses! You think about it. The very one who said: \u201cThough all men shall be offended because of Thee, yet will I never be offended.\u201d And he meant it. Yet my dear friends, he denied Him. He swore, he cursed and he lost his temper. We read: \u201cthe Lord turned, and looked upon Peter.\u201d And when Peter thought on these things, \u201che went out, and wept bitterly.\u201d His profession lay in ruins around him. Ruins! All his vows had gone. His resolutions had vanished. He was a poor, naked, exposed, guilty man. But friends, he had one thing to look to. The Lord Jesus Christ said: \u201cI have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not.\u201d \u2018Although you are such a failure in yourself, Peter, yet there is one place for you to flee: to Me; My prayers.\u201d And that is where he did flee. And that is where you and I should be fleeing this Sabbath morning with all our failings, faults and all that clings to us.<\/p>\n

\u201cFlee to Him, your only Saviour;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In His mighty name confide;<\/p>\n

That is a word for failing sinners, isn\u2019t it? Failures! And if God the Holy Ghost works in your heart, dear friend, He will make you realise that side of your life. He will expose all those things that you doubt in God\u2019s sight to be impure and wrong. Then He will lead you to the precious fountain, opened. What for? Sin, uncleanness, follies, faults, failures and shortcomings. The precious blood of Christ \u201ccleanseth from all <\/i>sin.\u201d Not some, not most, not nearly all \u2013 \u201call <\/i>sin.\u201d Blessed word!<\/p>\n

And that brings me to another word you will find in Isaiah 42. \u201cHe shall not fail nor be discouraged.\u201d Who? Christ. Let us meditate for a few moments on that blessed thought. Friends, He never failed, did He? Think of it. In the covenant of grace, it was given to Him by the Father to redeem the whole election of grace. All the sheep and lambs of His fold were put in His care. When something is put in your care, you are entrusted with it. The one who has put it in your care has some confidence that you will do as you have been asked. Often, we come so short, do we not? But when God the Father put the whole election of grace in the hand of His dear Son to redeem, He had every confidence that He would do it. \u201cHe shall not fail nor be discouraged.\u201d So, when He came into this sin-cursed earth the first thing we have to learn is that He did not fail in the keeping of the law. You and I fail every day. What is the law? \u201cThou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.\u201d There is no room for any love but the love of God, and no room for any other consideration but your neighbour as yourself. Yet, dear friends, how do we live? How has your week been this last week? Have you lived like that? How much selfish living there is! What self-serving there is! How we pander to what our flesh wants! We are continually coming short. But the Lord Jesus Christ loved the Lord His God in His holy humanity with all His heart \u2013 not part of it, not most of it \u2013 with all <\/i>His heart and all <\/i>His mind. All His thoughts were towards His Father with all His soul. He did not fail in working out a complete, perfect righteousness for His dear people. How thankful you and I should be for that! Perhaps there is one here this morning who has striven so hard to obey the law. You know it is right. You do not want it to be any less holy than it is. But you are continually failing. You are one of the failures I have been speaking about. \u2018What am I to do? Where am I to turn?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the way I long have sought,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And mourned because I found it not;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

My grief, my burden long has been,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Because I could not cease from sin.<\/p>\n

The more I strove against its power,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I sinned and stumbled but the more;<\/p>\n

Till late I heard my Saviour say,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCome hither, soul, I AM THE WAY.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dear friend, He is \u201cthe way, the truth, and the life.\u201d Blessed be His holy name; He has wrought out the obedience for just such as you. He did not do it for the righteous; they do not feel to need it. But the sinner convinced by the Holy Ghost knows he needs it. He cannot do without it, so he has to flee to this precious obedience of Christ; his only hope: the righteousness of another. As God said to His servant John Bunyan: \u2018Thy righteousness is in heaven.\u2019 He tried hard to work it out himself, but then he saw it was in a precious Christ; wrought for him. The Lord Jesus Christ did not fail in that.<\/p>\n

Secondly, He did not fail in resisting sin. Now, the Lord Jesus Christ had no sinful nature like you and I have. He was incorruptible and undefiled in that respect. But all the sins that you and I so readily fall into were hurled at him by the prince of lies, Satan himself, to try and entice Him, to tempt Him, to encourage Him and to draw Him into sin. His life was a continual battle against the arrows of the evil one. But He did not fail. The prince of this world found nothing in Him. He finds plenty in you and me, doesn\u2019t he? But Satan found nothing in the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing! And there is our salvation. He has overcome Satan. He has overcome sin. He has overcome temptation. He, the \u201choly, harmless, undefiled\u201d One was never once sullied by it, never once undefiled by it and never once overcome by it. Here is a blessing for you who feel so often overcome this Sabbath morning.<\/p>\n

He sees me often overcome,<\/p>\n

And pities my distress;<\/p>\n

And bids affliction drive me home,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To anchor on His grace.<\/p>\n

That one to whom I am preaching this morning \u2013 who it maybe I do not know, but the Lord knows \u2013 your failures and faults are all hanging around your neck like a great millstone. Look to this precious Christ who has not failed. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d \u201cHe shall not fail nor be discouraged.\u201d He has \u201cset judgment in the earth.\u201d He has wrought that obedience. He has overcome sin, Satan and the world. All that oppose His Church have been overcome. He did not fail. And that is the source of your overcoming, child of God: His victory. \u201cWe are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.\u201d You are trying to be a conqueror without Him, aren\u2019t you? You cannot do it, friend. You cannot do it. You need His <\/i>strength. You need His <\/i>grace. You need Him <\/i>to be with you.<\/p>\n

Again. Blessed be His holy name; He did not fail when the sins of His Church were laid on His holy shoulders to bear away. True \u2013 and I say this most reverently \u2013 the weight of those sins staggered Him. The accumulation of it! The cost of it! That mysterious conflict in the Garden of Gethsemane has depths in it that you and I cannot begin to measure. But, blessed be God, He did not fail. \u201cThe cup which My Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it?\u201d And the cup He puts into your hand to drink for His sake, He will make even that cup a blessing to you when it is sanctified to you. He drank His cup; He drained it and left a cup of blessing for His people in its place.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor though our cup seems filled with gall,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s something secret sweetens all.\u201d<\/p>\n

The point I want to make is that He did not fail. He took that immense load; that intolerable burden from the Garden to the Judgment Hall, and He remained completely silent until they challenged His Godhead. When they challenged His Godhead, His lovely mouth was opened to defend it, as was right. But, when it came to the point of if He was guilty, He was not guilty in God\u2019s sight nor in the sight of those who lovingly believed in Him. The world counted Him guilty. Yet, on behalf of the Church, in that federal state bearing their guilt, He stood as the guilty One. \u201cFor He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.\u201d Note what it did not say: He was not made a sinner. He never was a sinner, otherwise the offering He made would not have been a holy offering. It would not have succeeded in the work it was engaged in. It must be a holy offering. It must be holy sighs, tears and groans that fell from His holy Person to make the offering needed for the sins of His people. He was made sin; a sin offering: \u201cthat we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.\u201d And my dear friends, He did not fail. When He cried: \u201cIt is finished,\u201d the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. That tells us He did not fail. The work was done. The way into the holiest of all was made. And now, blessed be God\u2019s holy name, He sits as a Prince and a Saviour at the right hand of His heavenly Father. He has not failed; He does not fail.<\/p>\n

He did not fail to overcome death. He lay in the tomb for three days and three nights. But on that glorious resurrection morn, the stone could not keep Him, the watch could not keep Him and death itself could not keep Him. The Father raised Him; He raised Himself; the Holy Ghost raised Him. It was a Triune work. He comes forth from the tomb.<\/p>\n

\u201cVain the stone, the watch, the seal;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Christ has burst the gates of hell.\u201d<\/p>\n

He comes forth. He did not fail.<\/p>\n

And now, dear friends, at the right hand of His heavenly Father He does not fail. \u201cHe ever liveth to make intercession for\u201d all \u201cthat come unto God by Him\u201d \u2013 blessed be His holy name. In a court of law, the advocate can sometimes fail. He might lose his case for some reason or another; the jury might take a different view to what the defendant\u2019s lawyer is saying and the case is lost. Friends, our Lord Jesus Christ has never yet lost a case, and nor will He. If you have a case this morning, the best place to take it is to a precious Christ. \u201cWe have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.\u201d Whether it be in providence or in grace \u2013 whatever aspect of your life it may be \u2013 He has never yet or ever will lose a case.<\/p>\n

\u201cGive Him, my soul, thy cause to plead,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nor doubt the Father\u2019s grace.\u201d<\/p>\n

At this very moment, dear friends, He is prevailing. The old preachers used to call it an \u2018all-prevailing name\u2019 \u2013 the name of Jesus. And so, it is; a most blessedly all-prevailing name. \u201cHe shall not fail nor be discouraged,\u201d because He has not failed, He does not fail, and He cannot fail.<\/p>\n

And now He says to His dear people here through Moses: \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d Five short words, and every word has a lesson for us this morning. \u201cHe.\u201d In other words, friend, He has your life in His hand. He has your tomorrows in His hand. He has your future in His hand. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d Whatever may be held in the future for you (and none of us know what a day or even an hour may bring forth), one thing is certain, this great God holds in His hand His dear people and all their times. We read: \u201cThe Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand.\u201d And that, believer, is where your times are this morning. They are not in your hands; they are in His hands. You say: \u2018But I think the devil has been pretty busy.\u2019 The devil is very active in the day we are living in, there is no doubt about that. But even there the Lord is in control. The devil can only go as far as the Lord permits. There is a rein on Him which the Lord will and does exercise. \u201cHitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed.\u201d \u201cHe <\/i>will not fail thee.\u201d God the Father; the Father of His children. \u201cYour Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.\u201d \u201cYour Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.\u201d \u201cFor He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust.\u201d And that is all we are: but dust. \u201cHe knoweth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Again. The dear Son \u2013 \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d \u201cHe shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied.\u201d I have often thought of this point as well: when the soul leaves this time state, launches into an unknown eternity and leaves this poor, frail body behind to go to corruption, He will not fail in keeping that soul.<\/p>\n

\u201cSafe in the arms of Jesus,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Safe on His gentle breast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Safe when you stand before the judgment seat. There will your Advocate stand with His obedience on your behalf; His precious blood to answer for your guilt. Oh, child of God, what safety there is here! Blessed safety! \u201cYour life is hid with Christ in God.\u201d \u201cSafety is of the Lord.\u201d Some of us are getting older, and we often think about these things. We must depart this earthly state.<\/p>\n

And so He does.<\/p>\n

\u201cApace the solemn hour draws nigh,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When I must bow my head and die;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But O what joy this witness gives,<\/p>\n

Jesus, my Sanctuary, lives!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d And nor will the Holy Spirit, either. We must never forget that. \u201cHe which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.\u201d \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d He has never failed yet to bring to Christ one for whom Christ died. He has never failed yet to bring a convinced sinner to the foot of the cross in due season, there to find hope in a precious Christ. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d And, as Joshua looked on, he needed all these three glorious Persons. He needed a heavenly Father to watch over him. He needed a Redeemer in blessed anticipation because he was a sinner needing mercy. He needed the Holy Spirit to guide him. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then it says: \u201cHe will <\/i>not fail thee.\u201d That takes in your future. There may be one here this morning and perhaps your future seems so uncertain. There are so many \u2018ifs,\u2019 \u2018buts,\u2019 \u2018how\u2019s,\u2019 \u2018whys\u2019 and \u2018wherefores\u2019 about it. Friends, here is divine certainty. And this negative certainty is as strong as the positive one. \u201cHe will not <\/i>forsake thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cForget thee I will not, I cannot, thy name Engraved on My heart does for ever remain. The palms of My hands while I look on I see The wounds I received when suffering for thee.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d It takes in all your future. There is an unconditional stamp upon it. Whatever may be in your tomorrows \u2013 whatever affliction, whatever disappointments, whatever bereavements, whatever troubles or trials may arise \u2013 \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d And whatever joys may come \u2013 \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d Remember, you will need God in your joys as well as your sorrows; unsanctified joy is no blessing and unsanctified happiness is a curse.<\/p>\n

So called happiness without Christ is not true happiness. But there is nothing more sacred than a happiness that has Christ in it. \u201cHappiness, thou lovely name, Where\u2019s thy seat, O tell me, where? Learning, pleasure, wealth, and fame, All cry out, \u201cIt is not here. \u201cObject of my first desire, Jesus, crucified for me; All to happiness aspire, Only to be found in Thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Where are you seeking your happiness this Sabbath morning? Is it in this word: \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d? Friends, if you have this word, you have everything. All that you need is there. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d You say: \u2018But I have failed Him!\u2019 Well, there is no doubt about that, is there? But still He says: \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

That little word: \u2018fail.\u2019 When someone does fail us or we fail them, there is disappointment, there is hurt, there is discouragement and there is sometimes resentment \u2013 all sorts of things creep in when we fail, or others fail us. We are poor sinners, aren\u2019t we? How bearing and forbearing we need to be! But, friends, He fails not. \u201cHe hath done all things well.\u201d \u201cAll things.\u201d Not just some things: \u201call <\/i>things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was too wise to err, and O,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Too good to be unkind.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Elijah was at the brook Cherith and that brook began to dry up, unbelief, and perhaps even Satan himself would have said: \u2018Look, Elijah, things are failing. Things are going to go from bad to worse now. You are going to starve at Cherith!\u2019 Of course, we know Elijah did not starve. And although the brook seemed to dry up (and it did), Zarephath was waiting for him. The God of Zarephath is just the same God as the God of Cherith. And the God of your tomorrows is the same as the God of today. Do remember that. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d You have it in 1 Kings 17: \u201cThe barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth.\u201d \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

And then it says: \u2018thee\u2019 \u2013 personal; particular. Your path is particular to you. In 1 Peter 2 we have that expression describing God\u2019s people. They are called \u201ca peculiar people.\u201d One of the original meanings of it is a \u2018particular people.\u2019 This tells us that God\u2019s people have a peculiar path for them to walk. God knows the peculiar, particular needs you have in that path. And the Lord knew all that lay before Joshua. He knew the difficulties that would arise. He knew the opposition he would have. He knew the trials he would have to face. He knew it all. And He says: \u2018Joshua, I know the way you are taking.\u2019 Just as dear Job found comfort: \u201cBut He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.\u201d \u201cI shall\u201d \u2013 not might \u2013 \u201cI shall<\/i>.\u201d \u201cBut He is in one mind, and who can turn Him? and what His soul desireth, even that He doeth. For He performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with Him.\u201d Yes, \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Joshua got to the end of his life, just like Moses he looked back, and he could say: \u201cNot one thing hath failed.\u201d The Lord Jesus Christ once asked His disciples: \u201cLacked ye any thing?\u201d And they said, \u201cNothing.\u201d Now, child of God, be honest. Despite all your failures and follies (they are many), have you lacked anything that you have truly needed? Has God disappointed you? When Pliable set out with Christian from the City of Destruction, Pliable made quick progress. He has not got a burden on his back. He berated poor Christian for going so slowly. But, when they came to the Slough of Despond and both fell into it by an unwary step, Pliable got out the same side as he went in. Pliable said: \u2018If this is your religion, Christian, you keep it. I do not want it.\u2019 But the burden on Christian\u2019s back was so great, and his soul exercise so acute he dare not go back! He could not go back! And Christian got out the right side of the Slough of Despond. Now, you get out the right side of your Slough of Despond, poor tried, troubled one this Sabbath morning. There is another side to it. He will bring you out on the right side of it. He will, because \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd when we are wounded by sin,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And scarcely a prayer can repeat,<\/p>\n

The mercy that heals us again,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Is mercy transportingly sweet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d With what emphasis does dear Moses say it! I think with holy joy in his heart he could say: \u2018Listen, Joshua. You know what I have been through. You know my trials. You have been a companion in my tribulation. Now, the God who has helped me will help you. He is the same yesterday. He is the same today. He is the same forever.\u2019 \u201cAnd the Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, when Moses died, that, of course, was a great loss to Joshua. He was his father in the faith. They had walked so closely together, and now he was going to be taken from him. David said: \u201cWhen my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.\u201d Sometimes the Lord is pleased to remove props; this one and that one. It is not, dear friend, that He is going to forsake us. It is the very reverse. It is that we may prove Him to be the One who says: \u201cI will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.\u201d The very first person I baptised (many years ago now; in 1978 I believe it was), was a godly man. He was a very fearful, trembling man. Some years later, his wife suddenly died, and I went to preach at Blackheath. He said, \u2018The Lord has taken from me the strongest prop I thought I had. I greatly miss her. But He has given me a better one: Himself.\u2019 And three weeks later, he died. I thought it was a wonderful way for the dear man to come to his end. All earthly props were removed. \u201cFor the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.\u201d Friends, this <\/i>is the prop to lean on. This <\/i>is the arm to lean on. \u201cHe will not fail thee.\u201d \u201cAnd the Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.\u201d<\/p>\n

And the last point this morning is this. We get so burdened over if the Lord will fail us, don\u2019t we? But really the question should be: will we fail Him? That should be your exercise every day. \u2018O Lord, help me to walk worthy of Thee. Help me not to bring disgrace on Thy holy name. Let me not cause Thy precious name to be blasphemed by my unholy walk, conversation or companionship. Let not the name of Christ be demeaned through a walk that is not honouring to Thee. Lord, let me not fail Thee.\u2019 But how can that be? We are such continual failures, as I have told you. \u201cMy grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness.\u201d<\/p>\n

May God add His blessing.<\/p>\n

Amen.<\/i><\/i><\/p>\n

<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

These words dropped with some sweet power into my soul a few days ago and have remained a source of meditation which we will bring before you for a few moments this morning.<\/p>\n

God\u2019s servant, Moses, was at the end of his long pilgrimage. Forty years he had spent in the court of Pharaoh, and all the luxury and education that he had received there was a notable part of his life. But, when he came to years, we are told that he \u201crefused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,\u201d even though godly scholars tell us he could have been the next Pharaoh. Moses refused all that, and rather chose to join himself to his dear brethren in the flesh, who at that time were under the lash and under the yoke. They were slaves. Moses was \u201cnot ashamed to call them brethren.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":480,"featured_media":22558,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1728],"tags":[1239],"class_list":["post-26422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gerald-buss","tag-sovereign-grace"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26422"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26422\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26424,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26422\/revisions\/26424"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baptists.net\/history\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}