I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest.I said, “Oh that I had wings like a dove! Then I would fly away, and be at rest.And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! Then would I fly away, and be at rest.
4 sermons cite this verse
We have here, in the next place, a display of Divine Sovereignty . It is God's will that makes yon bird that looks the sun in the face into an eagle! And that other whom sits moodily on the ivy-mantled tower into an owl! It is He who makes one of His creatures into an archangel and another into an aphid crawling on a rose leaf. None may ask Him why He acts thus, for He has the right to do as He pleases and, as Elihu said to Job, "He gives no account of any of His matters." Or, as Paul put it to the Romans, "Has not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor?" It is quite certain that there are great differences among men. In the very size and shape of our bodies and in the natural conformation of our minds, we are not all alike. Let us say what we may, there are differences of capacity which are with us from our birth, even as God intended that there should be. He is in this matter, as in everything else, both Lord and King—so what folly and sin it is for us to quarrel with Him about our condition, or to attempt to arraign Him before our judgment seat! If God makes some other Brother to be like the fruitful tree that bears olives, shall I be jealous of him if my fruit is of another kind? Shall I not rather be thankful to resemble the tree that bears figs? And if we two see another Brother whose fruit is like the grapes of Eshcol, shall we envy him because we cannot bring forth such welcome clusters? Oh no! But let us all three bless the Lord for the sweetness of the figs, the fatness of the olives and the lusciousness of the grapes that He enables us severally to produce to His praise and glory! …
Therefore, they are only weary of the guilt of sin, the guilt that cleaves to their consciences is that great burden. God has put the sense of feeling into their consciences, that were before as seared flesh, and it is guilt that pains them. The filthiness of sin and its evil nature, as it is an offense to a holy, gracious, and glorious God, is not a burden to them. But it is the connection between sin and punishment, between sin and God’s wrath, that makes it a burden. Their consciences are heavy laden with guilt, which is an obligation to punishment; they see the threatening and curse of the law joined to their sins, and see that the justice of God and his vengeance are against them. They are burdened with their sins, not because there is any odiousness in them, but because there is hell in them. This is the sting of sin, whereby it stings the conscience, and distresses and wearies the soul. The guilt of such and such great sins is upon the soul, and the man sees no way to get rid of it, but he has wearisome days and wearisome nights; it makes him ready sometimes to say as the psalmist did, “O that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest. ” But when sinners come to Christ, he takes away that which was their burden, or their sin and guilt, that which was so heavy upon their hearts, that so distressed their minds. …
Let me also add that disappointments may be greatly sanctified. They are not always so, for sometimes they irritate and so cause sin—or they create a murmuring spirit against God and so make us worse than we were before. But sanctified disappointments are part of that rod of the Covenant which is so beneficial in the hands of a chastening God. Sometimes a grievous disappointment has changed the whole current of a person's life. A man was looking forward to what he hoped would be a happy marriage, but his intended bride suddenly died—and then he surrendered his heart to Jesus, who became the Bridegroom of his soul! A son had expected to inherit a large estate, but by some means the wealth came not into his possession—and when he found himself poor, he sought true riches in Christ! A strong man had hoped to build up a prosperous business, but he was unexpectedly struck with serious illness, his former prosperity departed from him—and then he fixed his hopes upon the ever-blessed Son of God and so he attained to bliss which no earthly success could ever have brought him! I remember meeting a man who told me that he could never see spiritually until he had lost his natural eyesight! And there have, doubtless, been many who were never rich until they became poor, and others who were never happy until their earthly happiness was blighted and blasted, and then they sought and found true happiness in Jesus. What a blessed disappointment it is that leads us to a Savior's love! …
But, Brothers and Sisters, you will not fail to notice that while the Word of the Lord is addressed to the afflicted, the hand of the Lord is engaged very particularly on their behalf. "I will lay your foundations with sapphire." Times of public calamity try our foundation and so do all times of private affliction. When the natural emotions are violently excited, all the beliefs and sentiments, all the hopes and aspirations to which men have clung in calmer days are put to the test. And if they are not well and truly based, they can easily be shifted. This, therefore, is one of the salutary effects of sanctified affliction—in the process of such discipline we get to have the foundation of our faith laid by a Divine hand. "I will lay your foundations." The Lord draws near to us and works in us after His own Sovereign good will, imparting to us the true faith and the ardent love which are consonant with the Truth of God. Then we have foundations hard as sapphire and as precious, as unbreakable, as Divine! We feel that now we have received the Truth, not in the mere abstract, but in its vital power, its moral influence and its spiritual beauty, as the foundation of our souls and as a foundation of our hope which can never be removed. What a lovely change, too, is made in our outlook! "Your windows of agate!" Before I was afflicted I looked through the lattices of carnal sense. I was well contented, though the things of this life and the objects near at hand bounded my view. But now I have been taught to look upwards and to long for the life to come and the land that is far off. Now my soul says, "Oh, that I had wings like a dove, that I might fly away and be at rest." And as I open the window towards the new Jerusalem, I sing— …