I said, there's a problem in the church, Lord, in the evangelical church, we don't think you can move our heart, heart, we don't think you can move our unbelief, and God laughs in his heaven, he has a right to, hasn't he, my dear little boy, go back and tell them, yes, he's able to believe in God, in a revival, there is also the supernatural, he says something very wonderful, listen to this verse, when thou didst terrible things which we look not for, thou camest down on the mountains, flowed down at thy presence, let me just give you glimpses of the supernatural, because it does happen, I can think of many, and every time I talk on something like this, I just have to limit it, I just have to, because there are so many instances, let me read you one now, which is from, I don't know if it's, yes, it was a local revival, in Penmachno, North Wales, in 1818, but this is only an example of that which has been heard many times, in the 1904 revival, what I'm going to talk to you about now, was heard from Aberystwyth to Llanuria, to Trigaron, for three quarters of an hour, and the sight seen, unmistakable, listen to how this man put it, perhaps something should be said about that which is described as singing in the air, some have heard the singing, when there could be no possibility of anything else being heard, they say that you, they say that you have but to hear the singing, and it leaves a deep impression upon the hearer, the sound is above the melody of earth, it is like the sound of a thousand myriad of heavenly melodious voices, singing in a way unknown to men, honest men have claimed such things, and that they have stayed listening for some considerable time, a gentleman from Penmachno was returning from the monthly meeting at the spotty, they believed as they left that they heard singing come from the chapel, they thought that this for some time, eventually it came nearer, and above them, of the like they had never heard, and such glorious sounds, the reverend D. Davies from the same district believed for a time that a whole forest was taken up with song, oh this was in 1818, one man described the events in this way, at first, listen to this, at first it is melodious, faint and distant, until it fills the skies, like unto a great congregation, praising God, many asked if there was a meeting in the chapel at different times, when they had, when they heard that there had been none at that hour, because they had heard melodious voices singing in the air, my friend it is a wonderful thing, it fills the air, it is like singing of a multitude, who are taking up with an object of beauty beyond all description, as if they were unaware of us, but we are allowed to listen on the perimeter of it all, and you never forget it, it is beautiful, glorious, with celestial sound, beyond the imagination, the supernatural, he delights in the beautiful, he can do that as well, Helen Rosevear, a friend of many of us, staying in our house some time, and she shared with me a time that she was in a revival in Zaire, and she gave two, there are many instances, but there are two that I can recall very clearly, of the supernatural, here's one of them, she was traveling in a Land Rover, and with a driver, a friend, there they saw in the distance, what seemed like a forest fire, and it was right above their beloved village, a thing that they dreaded to have, they said, hurry we must get there, and help as many people as we can, and so they rushed as quickly as they could, in order to reach this place, but when they got to the village, the fire was above them, and below the fire, were the people, praising God, and worshipping God, another instance, when she was in a large plain building, barn -like structure, in one village, and there was a particular kind of wind, which they had the name for it, that when they heard it, they used to then take all the shutters down, rather than close them, so that they would not be ripped apart, and everyone would lie around the edges of the walls of the church, and keep a still and a subtle link together, that was the usual procedure, when this wind came, and when the service was on, somebody said, that certain wind was coming, and it became louder and louder, and in an orderly fashion, they all then arrayed themselves, around the perimeter, the circumference of the church, and then it arrived, with all its sound, without a breath, and men and women began to stand up, and to weep, and to confess, the son rejoiced immediately, because he had already expected, that there would be a time of blessing, and they had put their hearts right with God, so they quickly and joyfully went into blessing, others unprepared, yet Christian confessed their sin, yet it was not public, because they were an altitude of them, and that as they confessed, they were forgiven, and as they were forgiven, so they rejoiced, until the place was full of the rejoicing of God, and taking you on to enter into another world, the dimension of the supernatural, listen to verse four, for since the beginning of the world, men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither have the eyes seen, nor God beside thee, what he hath prepared for him, that waited for him, now I know that that verse is taken, and it can be a lovely picture of heaven, but here it's in this context, what is he saying, what have I got for my people, when I come down, in my presence, and in my glory, what have I got, I tell you this, Isaiah he's saying, you wouldn't be able to write down, because you have not heard, of the lovely things, Isaiah might say, I've heard wonderful things, I've heard glorious things, but you've not heard the things I've got, for this occasion, I'll fill your ears, and fill your mind, with the words of God, then he says, not only will you hear, but you will see, ah Lord, that I have seen, I could remember one day, when I was in the temple, and the presence of the Lord was there, and the place was as it was filled with smoke, and I said, woe is me, for I am an unclean man and so on, and I can remember the skirts of thy garment, Lord, I have seen, my dear child, he say, that is only the only the edge of my garment, sweeping past you, you haven't begun to see, the things that I can show you, the pulse of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke, how can this be, that's the picture, how can this be, the pursuit of righteousness, there's a little verse here, it is a mountain of a verse, verse five, thou meetest him that rejoices and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways, behold our wrath, for we have sinned in those discontinuance, and we shall be saved, I looked at that verse, and I gazed upon that verse over and over again, I know that the revival is a sovereign act of God, I know, and I know it is God that stirs the heart to think, I know, if I have a burden at all, I wouldn't have that burden, if God hadn't given me that burden, and if you have a burden, you wouldn't have that burden, unless God had given you that burden, all the glory goes to God, we know that, we know that, yet in our experience, we can say, we have come to a place where we see the need, and our hearts are cried out, and we have a burden, on what terms will he meet us, I'm not for one moment saying there are conditions, I'm saying here that he meets his people on his terms, who are the people that he meets, it's a special time, are there not times sometimes in a congregation when we worship, there is the presence of God in the air, it can sometimes be in the reading of the word of God, or the sermon, it can sometimes be, I used to describe them like this, because I used to be very worried about them, until Dr Lloyd -Jones helped me and said, there should be in preaching, that there sometimes would be a stillness in the congregation, until I felt everybody had stopped breathing, and our preaching seemed to be as if it was ripping the air and superfluous, and the way I described it to him was this, like chunks of eternity thrust into time, he said, it's a spirit, it can last a minute, it can last an hour, they are glimpses, but in revival, it is as if eternity were hovering over us, like that, it is an unforgettable thing, and it is in the air, in the air, many people are talking about these things, many people are despairing of the methods of rebuke, many people are beginning to talk about God and saying, only God can give the answer, most unusual people are telling me these things, people that I've never thought had any interest in God and say, only God can help us now, only God can save this situation, even they are saying that, what about the lost people, is there any hunger or desire that God might be amongst them, Abraham pleaded, Jacob argued in earnest, if we fail to see the need, we will not cry, if we do not cry, we will not know what a burden is, look at the man he meets, I believe this is a burdened man, and you know it's not complicated, he rejoices and worketh righteousness, the first one, he rejoices in righteousness, who is he, unmistakably a Christian, he has righteousness, not his own, his own unrighteousness is taken and nailed to the cross, and the penalty is paid, and the righteousness of Christ is imputed by day to him, and so he might say about this man, he rejoices in the righteousness of Christ, he is one of God's gifts to Christ, he rejoices and worketh righteousness, so that this man who's had such an experience as that, is a man not only who has imputed righteousness, but imparted righteousness, and his desire in his life is to live to the glory of God, and to delight in God, and to walk according to the precept of God, not to say, I think this would be a nice thing to do, I think this is the idea I would have, no, but to submit himself to the precepts of God, and to the way of God, and to light in the way of God's righteousness, he's that, and there's another little phrase, the one that remembers thee in thy way, that remembers thee in thy way, here he is, ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, the righteousness of Christ imputed to him, here he is, a righteous and a godly man, living by the grace of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit, and growing in grace, and he might say, here is a man who's living and walking in a plain path along the narrow way, he is a Christian man, and there is no contradiction in him, he's unmistakably Christian, not complicated, he is unmistakably Christian, but he knows something else, in this verse he's asked if he gave us a little secret, thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways, here is a man now that has not only been gripped by righteousness, and grips the righteousness of God, but he's taken up with the will of God, we are swayed by so many things, but listen to how John Calvin, I believe, puts it like this, I greet thee, whom I sure redeem at heart, my only trust and saviour of my heart, who pained it undergo for my poor sake, I pray thee from our hearts all cares to take, thou art the king of mercy and of grace, reigning omnipotent in every place, now here we are, so come oh king, and our whole being sway, is that wonderful, so come oh king, and our whole being sway, shine on us with the light of thy pure day, for remember thee in thy ways, and God says, I'll meet him, he'll meet him, do you think he'll meet us, I'm not saying there are conditions, I'm saying those are God's delights, that's the inheritance in which he delights, these are the father's gifts to the son, these are they, we are told that the prayer of a righteous man availeth much, are we able to speak to him, is there a ground where we can put our case to him, about the dearth that there is in the land, you remember the story of Esther, poor old Mordecai, and you remember the great plight of the Jews there, do you remember that account, living in an alien land, and she wanted to protect her fellow countrymen from a terrible end, and she knew that there was a way of approaching the king, you couldn't go to a king, though she was a queen, you couldn't go to the king and say, now look here now, I've got something to say to you, my people are having a rough time, and I'm not having it, no that wasn't on, and she would be dealt with very swiftly in those days, and so she would go to him, and invite him to a feast, and honour him as king, we have forgotten haven't we, how to honour him in our prayer, we forget you know, I remember in the theological college, there was a little phrase from one little book, it said, God can be your friend, but you can never be pally with the almighty, never forget he is God, always remember that, and so Esther came as a queen, so she was dressed in the right robes, like we can be dressed in the righteousness of Christ, yet we approach our God with reverence, our God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, how it be thy name, thou who dwellest in light, and holiness, and then come without petition, but he didn't allow her to give a petition, until there's a very lovely scene, after he noticed her, and her apparel, and her expression, and her words, he would extend his scepter, permission to speak, very lovely isn't it, permission to speak, and I believe there are times like that, I believe there are times like that, when we can come to God, and in our hearts we know, that he's giving us permission to ask, that he's brought us to that place at last, righteous in Christ, righteous by the grace of God, in our ways too, in as far as we are able by the help of God, but also honoring, and knowing, and remembering the way of God, he knows all that, then suddenly you find he's willing to meet me, and he says, my child, my scepter is extended, what do you want, from this little CIM publication again, called Effective Prayer, Satan dreads nothing but prayer, wrote Samuel Chadwick, his one concern is to keep the saints from praying, he fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion, he laughs at our toil, mocks our wisdom, but trembles when we pray, in the history of the China Inland Mission, now called the Overseas Missionary Fellowship, the tide in many a crisis has turned, when its workers have met a situation with prayer and fasting, many a stubborn city has opened, many an intransigent heart has yielded, many a financial need has been supplied, and many a delicate personnel difficulty has been resolved by this means of prayer, there is a time, there is a way to ask, what about this asking then to close, the place of repentance, we are dealing or being dealt with by God, and to me that's a wonderful thing, and it also terrifies me, let me give you a simple illustration like this, which again is topical in a way, consider the sun and its heat, and this is about as much as we probably can cope with, perhaps a little bit more, but imagine now, if the sun should come, or we to it, a little nearer, we would be destroyed, also if the sun withdrew, we would be devastated, but you see this is our God, He is the God of all creation, and the upholder of all things, and by Him all things consist, but He's the God of precision, He can put His finger on the need of my heart, in this solar system, in this planet earth, in this little land of Wales, in this little mortal frame, and He can put His finger on me, and He can put His finger on you, He can be as precise as that, this great God, so He knows how to deal with us, and He knows how to come without destroying us, Lord we're asking, the years have slipped by, 1904, oh thank you Lord, thank you Lord, 1964, oh come Lord, 1974, oh Lord have mercy, 1984, oh Lord we are desperate, and may it not be that we have to say, 94, 94, you see, we can look back to 74, it's almost like yesterday in a way, but it's a long time, but the thought of 94, our hearts would break, Lord, Lord, Lord, before then, surely there should be some awareness in our hearts of this great need, we know that we are completing Christ, yet at the same time we know so little of His way that is mentioned in verse 5, and that He meets those people, and isn't it something like this, a very unusual thing, a broken and a contrite heart, do you ever say the phrase, have you any thoughts about it, what it means to have a contrite heart, in this age where everybody says we must be H -A -P -P -Y, yes I am happy, I am joyous, but I am consumed with grief for my land, as well I rejoice in my Saviour with joy unspeakable and full of glory, and yet an aching and a rending heart that God might have mercy, that's why God then calls into the ministry, the love of God constrain us, the terror of the Lord as well, and then we look at ourselves, who's going to pray, let's look at those little children we had in 1859 in Dolgeshire, and they met and they were worried because their parents hadn't had the revival and everyone else had, so they met in this little room, you remember I said yesterday morning, and one of them said you pray, I can't pray, no you pray, in the end they started the Lord's Prayer, and I can imagine us saying well who, who can ask Him such a thing, who can come to such a place, and then we look at ourselves, and I look at me and you look at you, verse six, but we are all as an unclean thing, this is now not belittling our position in Christ, but we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags, and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities like the wind have taken us away, we are unclean Lord, oh Lord, I don't know how to ask, oh Lord, you will have to meet me, you'll have to lift my face and turn my face towards thee, and then we say, and there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee, for thou hast hid thy face from us, and has consumed us because of our iniquities, Lord, that's our position, we can't find a spokesman here, we can't find anybody to ask for us, oh Lord, and the greatest thing that we are worried about here, the greatest thing is this, that thou hast hidden thy face from us, and we want to see thy face, and then a terrible realization comes upon us, that we may go on living, and the decline will continue, and we'll go on living, and men will mock true religion, and we are satisfied with less, and if we are preachers, and whatever the sizes of our churches are, supposing you have a church that holds a hundred, and you go about and say, our church is full, we're all right, or a church that holds a thousand, our church is full and we're all right, nonsense, nonsense, it's nothing, it's nothing, and even then they examine our hearts, how far, how very far from God we can be, you know we can be drunk sometimes by so very little, with the activities of our own little hands, and the measure that God has given us, God, we want more than that, but we don't know how to come and ask thee, how shall we ask thou hast hid thy face from us, we have been satisfied with a lesser, do you remember the reading at the beginning, when Moses pleaded, when Moses pleaded with God, I can remember the verses now, now therefore I pray thee if I have found grace in thy sight, show me now thy way, verse 9, if you remember, talked about came to pass as Moses entered into the temple, the clouded pillar descended and stood at the door of the temple, and the Lord talked with Moses as a man face to face, now therefore I pray thee if I found grace in thy sight, show me now the way, thy way, there it is in verse 5 in Isaiah 64, show me thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight, and consider that this nation is thy people, and he said, my presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest, Moses you see was in earnest, look at his answer, and he said unto him, if thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence, it's hopeless, if thy presence is not with us, for wherein shall it be known here, that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight, is it not in that thou goest with us, we want thee to come down, he said, so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth, and the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou has spoken, for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name, and I said, beseech me, show me thy glory, daring is the thing, and he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee, who will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy, and he said, thou canst not see my face, for there shall no man see me and live, and the Lord said, behold there is a place by me, and I shall stand upon a rock, and it shall come to pass, while my glory passes by, that I'll put thee in the cleft of the rock, and I will cover thee with my hand, and I will pass by, and I will take away my hand, for thou shall see my back pass, but my face shall not be seen, yes I know that is true, we would not be able to look at the face of God and survive, I recognize and I realize that, but there is a sense, what I would say here this morning, as we sang earlier on, in the merits of Christ, show us thy face, we can say thus, it's said in scripture in Psalms in Decembers 8, when thou said seeking my face, my heart said unto thee, thy face Lord will I seek, hide not thy face far from me, put not away thy servant in anger, thou hast been my help, leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation, a little child, I'm a father of three, and I can remember looking back, you know, I'd be talking, always talking, you know, talking away to somebody, and children trying their best to get a little word in their dreams, and they'd come in, and I haven't seen them, I haven't noticed them, until in the end, a little hand would come on my chin and pull me like that, that, and then it was impossible to ignore, but let me give you an illustration, I have asked one of my sons for permission to give it, I have three children, an elder son, a daughter, and a younger son, when I came from Canderbury Brevie to Cardiff, I said, no bicycles, we now live in a busy city, with big cars, and so on, and so on, no bicycles, but I make you a promise, when you're 17, you can, you can go for your driving test, and I will let you drive the car, that seemed far enough away, and with my elder son, the anticipation of passing his test, satisfied him, and with my daughter, the anticipation of passing the test, satisfied her, but not my younger son, he started off like this, in June, he said, do you want to know what I want for Christmas, that, no, I want a bicycle, which I ignored, and then he'd come a little later, and he'd say, I don't know if you heard me, Dad, I was talking about bicycles, and he named a shop, and their names, and their qualities, and their times, and their gears, and so on, and he said, I really want one, now this went on for three months, every day, so in the end, I think that I, I do now record my patience, in the end, I said, if you say that word bicycle, once again, now I leave your imagination, half an hour later, he said, you know that thing, that I'm not supposed, you know that thing, I'm not supposed to talk about, they miss that on the recording, don't they, I made a sign of two wheels, at Christmas, I took him to a shop, a beautiful bicycle shop, and I bought him the nicest bicycle I could find, why, he was so persistent, he was so persistent, and I was determined, you see, and I'd say, the other two haven't, but they say, that's not me, and it certainly wasn't, now you can say like this, if I dare say it in the context of revival, you know, people might pray and say, and say, well, we prayed, and they might say, I'm not going to let him go, I'm going to name it in every way I can, as a presence of God, as a glory of God, as seeing the face of God, as multitudes be moved, as a conviction of God, as God sweeping people into the kingdom of God, and dealing with the saints of God, in every way I can, I will present it before him, and say, look down, and come down, and lift the sky, if thou must, and rend the mountains with thy blessing, do that, show me thy face, one chance and gleam of loveliness divine, and I shall never think or dream over the loves of thine, or lesser light will darken quite, or lower glory shine, or lesser light will darken quite, or lower glory shine, the beautiful of earth will seem, the beautiful of earth will scarce seem beautiful again, marvellous, show me thy face, my faith and love shall henceforth fixed be, and nothing here have power to move, my soul serenity, my life shall seem a chance, a dream, and all I feel and see, elusive, visionary, thou the one reality.