FROM SLAVES TO SONS

This sermon was preached by George Müller on a Sunday morning on July 25, 1897, at Bethesda Chapel, Great George Street, Bristol, England.

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
    out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
    and gave me a firm place to stand.
He put a new song in my mouth,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
    and put their trust in him.

Blessed is the one
    who trusts in the Lord,
who does not look to the proud,
    to those who turn aside to false gods.
Many, Lord my God,
    are the wonders you have done,
    the things you planned for us.
None can compare with you;
    were I to speak and tell of your deeds,
    they would be too many to declare.

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire—
    but my ears you have opened—
    burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.
Then I said, “Here I am, I have come—
    it is written about me in the scroll.
I desire to do your will, my God;
    your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:1-8, NIV)

I want to show you how this psalm points us to Christ, showing us both His willing sacrifice and the patient trust He displayed in the Father. In these verses, we see not only His example, but also the assurance that God hears and answers those who wait on Him. These verses point us to our worthy Lord Jesus—His suffering, His resurrection, and especially His willing choice to come into the world as our Substitute. From the start, we read, “I waited patiently for the Lord.” Jesus Himself sets the example of patience for His Church, and here we see what patience brings: “He turned to me and heard my cry.” This is always true for God’s children—when we wait on the Lord, the answer will come in His timing, often in line with the desire we have brought before Him. We should particularly keep this in mind so that we may receive the blessing for which we have asked God. Impatience never gains us anything; it only dishonors God, and it cannot bring about His answer.

Verse 2 refers to the great and awful sufferings our Lord Jesus Christ experienced as our Substitute. When He passed through the hour of darkness, this was fulfilled. “A slimy pit”—the very image brings before us the awfulness of the hour through which our Lord had to pass. But this did not continue forever. He was brought out of it. And though we don’t have to suffer in the same way as He did for others, God in His providence sees fit for us to, in our little spheres, experience our own horrible pits of miry clay. But our trials will not last forever! We, too, shall have our feet firmly set upon the Rock. What a precious and shining hope this is—one that will be fully realized at the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ! Jesus Himself once for all passed through suffering and once for all had His feet set on a rock, His foundation firm. Since His resurrection, this work has continued to unfold, and it will keep advancing until the day of His return. From that moment on, throughout all eternity, both Christ and His Church will share in the harvest of His work—there will be nothing, nothing but sharing in the rivers of delight at God’s right hand (see Psalm 36:8).

Verse 3 says, “He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.” In this second part of the verse, we can see how this has been fulfilled:  countless many have believed and put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and countless more are still to come. What a glorious promise of eternity! For now, the number may seem small outwardly, but in the end, it will be revealed to be beyond counting.

Verse 4 says, “Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.” This blessing is found only in putting our trust in the Lord Jesus—for the salvation of our souls, to receive everything we need through this life amid trial and difficulty, and for our spiritual work and labor. The only true remedy is to trust the Lord. Only then are we genuinely blessed, only then can we be truly happy. The word “blessed” can also be translated as “happy,” reminding us that both meanings are included: “Happy, really happy is the one who trusts in the Lord.”

Continuing to verse 5: whenever we face trials, difficulties, or afflictions—whatever form they may take—and we’re tempted to think, “This will never end; I’ll never be happy again!” we should comfort ourselves with these words: “Many, Lord my God, are the wonders You have done.” By calling His works to mind, we not only remember His past faithfulness but also strengthen our faith in the present, allowing His wonderful deeds to lift us out of the troubles we face. Then we come to the remarkable phrase, as translated by another version: “Your thoughts toward us” (NKJV). Here we see the Lord Jesus joined in union with the Church, directed “toward us.” It is not just “to me,” or even only toward the Church as a whole, but “us-ward”—showing His intimate connection with His people, for we are members of the body of which Christ is the Head. This is a truth we should hold close and continually remember, never letting it slip from our sight.

What incredible joy it brings to know this! Though we are, by nature, poor, guilty sinners deserving nothing but judgment, God’s thoughts are still “toward us.” His mind is on us—He is thinking of us! How precious is that? He never loses sight of us, never forgets us. And how many are these thoughts? Verse 5 continues: “None can compare with You; were I to speak and tell of Your deeds, they would be too many to declare.” Imagine it—God thinks of us so often that His thoughts toward us cannot even be counted. Not a thousand, not ten thousand, not fifty thousand—no, far, far more; they are numberless.

And who is He thinking of? About poor sinners who deserve nothing but hell. Each of us can say personally, “He is thinking about me—me, a guilty sinner who deserves nothing but hell. Yet I am so dear to His heart, so precious in His sight, that He looks on me as He looks on His own beloved Son. I am united to Christ, a member of His body, with Him as my Head. Because of this union, God is continually mindful of me, always caring for me, always working to show His love and make His care known. So dear am I to Him, so loved in His sight.”

Verse 6 says, “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire—but my ears you have opened—burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.” At first, the sacrificial system was established according to God’s plan, given as a concession to human weakness; otherwise, Scripture would not have spoken this way. “But my ears You have opened.” When a servant was set free but chose to remain with his master, saying, “I love my master… and do not want to go free” (Exodus 21:5, NIV), he was brought to the doorpost, and his ear was pierced as a sign that he would remain a bondservant for life. In the same way, the Lord Jesus took the place of a servant before God—He would perfectly obey God at all times and under all circumstances, never, never doing anything contrary to the will of God. This is what the verse refers to. Through His unbroken obedience, Jesus established a righteousness that, by faith in His name, is credited to us so that we stand justified before God. And not only did He fulfill the law on our behalf, but He also bore the penalty of the law that we deserved because of our countless sins.

Now, my dear brothers and sisters, as we prepare to take communion, let us especially seek to apply this truth to our lives. Though we have each broken God’s law countless times, the Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled it in our place, and this righteousness is credited to us. Thus, we who trust in Jesus stand as justified ones before God. He also bore the punishment we rightly deserved, so that though our sins are countless, not one will bring us condemnation. This truth should always be on our minds—not just at communion, but every day, every hour. We should continually remember what Jesus did for us, suffering in our place, so that our peace and joy in the Holy Spirit may grow and overflow more and more.