Great hymn. A reading tonight is taken from
Psalm 104. We're going to read from verse
24 right through to the end, verse 35.
Let's hear the Word of God. For those online, the words will
come on the screen. We welcome our online community
and we're delighted to have them and pray the Lord will bless
them. We thank you for the many that
have contacted us down through the years and in recent times
and those that need special prayer.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this time.
Let's hear God's Word, Psalm 104, verse 24.
O Lord, how manifold are thy works and wisdom?
Hast thou made them all? The earth is full of Thy riches.
So is this great and wide sea, for in are things creeping
innumerable, both small and great beasts.
There go the ships. There is that leviathan whom
thou has made to play therein. These wait all upon thee, that
thou mayest give them their meat.
In due season that thou give us them, they gather.
Thou openest thine hand, They are filled with good.
Thou hatest thy face. They are troubled.
They takest away their breath. They die and return to their
dust. They send us forth thy spirit.
They are created, and they renewest the face of the earth.
The glory of the Lord shall endure forever.
The Lord shall rejoice in His works.
He looketh on the earth and it trembleth.
He touches the hills, and they smoke.
I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
My meditation of hymn shall be sweet.
I will be glad in the Lord. Let the sinners be consumed out
of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.
Bless thy the Lord, O my soul, praise ye the Lord, Amen.
We know God will stamp with His own approval and blessing this
reading of His own precious and infallible word.
Amen. Now my text tonight is taken
from Psalm 104 and verse 26, and my theme this evening is simply
entitled There Go the Ships. Psalm 104 is a majestic Psalm.
It's a Psalm that proclaims and rejoices in the true and living
God as Creator and Maker, Sustainer and Provider and
Redeemer and judge. In these words we behold the
glory of our great Creator who has made all things for himself.
You see, Psalm 104 lifts our gears heavenward and by fee.
If we survey the heavens, and then we survey the earth with
all its majestic mountains, the hills, the valleys, we think
about the beasts of the forest, the birds of the field, and as
the psalmist torso, he is full of praise for the greatness and
the majesty of God. He he remembers the heavens
declare the glory of God, and the earth showeth forth his
handiwork. Remember what Paul says in
Romans chapter 1 and verse 20. For the invisible things of him
from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being
understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power
and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.
And if you notice that the psalmist says in verse 24, but
we have summary, O Lord, how manifold are thy works in wisdom
has thy made them all the earth is full of thy riches.
He adds this so is this green and wide sea.
We're in our great creeping, innumerable things, both small
and great base. Now he says this not to marvel
at the sea, or the ships in it, or the great leviathan, but at
the wisdom and power of God who governs and sustains them all.
You see, the Bible reminds us that the whole of creation is no
random spectacle of nature, but it is the ongoing theatre of
God's glory. Every wave of the sea, every
wind that blows, every sea craft that seals on the high seas,
every creature therein on sea and land, testifies to this
great truth. The great goodness, Providence,
and power of God. The Bible tells us in Psalm 95,
verse 5, the sea is His, and He made it.
Now notice that the psalmist adds something in regarding the
sea. Having said so is this great and
wide sea, wherein our things creeping innumerable, both small
and great peace. He adds this, There go the
ships. And what a powerful little
statement, a simple phrase, and yet one that is full of meaning.
I believe that he's observing these ships.
These ships are on a journey. They are bound for somewhere.
Oh yes, they are small against the vastness of the ocean.
Yes, they are frail and fragile against the fathoms of the deep.
And yet the psalmist, as he stood in the coastline looking
out onto the Mediterranean Sea, was able to say this.
There go the ships. Now there's three things that
come to mind, and I want to share them with you this
evening. First of all, I want you to
think of the voyage that is portrayed.
There go the ships. David is observing the ships
from the coastline leaving the Mediterranean coast goodnight
into the Mediterranean Sea and beyond.
And these ships are sailing in the great wide sea in verse 25.
They're not made to sit in the harbour, they're not tied up at
a quayside, they're not built to remain forever in a dry dock
somewhere. No.
They are made for a purpose, and that purpose is to be seen
active on the sea. They all ships, large or small,
have a place of origin, a place where they're built.
We'll call that place where they're built a berth dock.
Each ship has a berthing dock. And all ships, of course, are
registered somewhere. And all ships have a builder and
a maker and a designer and a an owner.
In other words, these ships are built for travel.
And the strangest thing is, so are human beings.
God has made us. He has made us as our creator.
He sustains and provides for us. He is our designer.
He is our owner, and He's the taker, even if we want, of our
lives. You see, life is not merely
random. Why are we here?
It's not a mere meaningless existence.
It's not a mere physical drift. No, life is a voyage.
Life is an adventure with God. There's a day we're born.
We call it our birthday. And as time progresses, there's
a process of development, childhood, boyhood, teens and
20s. And then soon teens grow up and
to be young men and young ladies grow up to be young women and
they progress from 20s into their 30s and 40s and 50s,
sixties, seventy 80s and if the will of God right up to 90.
And during that time, they're all on a journey, as it were, on
the sea of time. And they seal in that sea of
time in all seasons, in good weathers and bad, in rough
weather and smooth. Now the ships that are built for
travel are made to go somewhere. They're going to a port of
destination and I believe David was thinking about the voyage
that's portrayed here. There go the ships, they're
leaving the ports, the ports of Israel, maybe leaving Tyree, and
they're going out into the Mediterranean and they're
travelling somewhere. Let me just ask tonight, do you
see yourself on a journey? Do you see yourself as being one
who's been born in the port of time, one on a journey and
you're bound to the final port? And in between, from the day of
birth, sailing through time and the sea of time, sailing in this
great wide sea full of creatures beyond number great and small,
you're heading to your final destination, heading to the
final port. You see, the sea here, I
believe, represents the vastness of life, represents the
uncertainty of life, represents the depths of life.
I'm told that the deepest point in the ocean is 7 miles deep.
That's from here to Cumber. That's a very, very long way.
And many of you as you journey tonight, your sailing or you
feel your sailing, you are sailing in very rough seas.
What have you faced last year and and now into 2026?
Some of you are facing heartache, sickness,
difficulties, distresses, darkness.
We've we've all had to endure and face the death of precious
loved ones. And you see in this journey
that's being portrayed here, there go the ships.
David knows that at some point in that journey, storms will
come to engulf that ship and and even frighten the daylights of
the sailors in that ship. Remember in the Sea of Galilee,
the disciples asked the Lord Jesus asleep, Master, carest
thou not that we perish? They thought they were going to
die. And in between the port of birth
and the final port, the final destination.
That journey, I believe is a very short journey.
It's brief. Remember what Psalm 90 says
Psalm 90, the days of our years are three score years and 10 and
if by reason of strength the before score years yet as their
strength, labour and sorrow for the soon cut off and we flyeth
away. Verse 12 so teach just the
number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
And I just want to ask, tonight, as you seal through the journey
of time, do you know the one who governs the seas?
See, remember, you're not sealing independently of him.
Even those who don't know him are not sealing independently of
him, even those who have never tasted of His free sovereign
grace. Let's think of all that people
face in the journey. Storms, winds, current tage,
pirates and darkness. And yet for many who seal in
that sea of tame their life fails deep and difficult.
The challenges and the circumstances that they face at
times are overwhelming and and and and their, their, their life
is full of fear. And maybe they have a sense of
dread. We're not going to make it.
We're we're we're we're in what we're in a great way.
See 7 miles deep, as I've said, carried off to cumber.
And yet in the midst of that, do you know the Lord?
Have you a testimony that you're born again of the Spirit?
Was there a time in your life when you trusted Jesus Christ as
Lord and your Saviour? A time when you put your life
and soul into His hands for safekeeping, and you know
tonight that you're born of God? We who were formerly born in sin
and shapen in iniquity, born dead to sin, needed newness of
life and you have they quickened who were dead in trespasses and
sins and in Christ. We've come to him as Lord and
saver in Christ. We've come under his ownership
in Christ. We have his companionship.
Is that your experience tonight? You see all of that.
The voids that is portrayed is bound up on those words.
There go the ships. Notice the second thing that I
thought about and it's this. If you look again at the text,
there go the ships. Think of the vessel that is
presented. The ships well underline that.
You see in ancient time there was two types of ships.
There was the trading ship and there was the great warship and
they were vastly different. Now I believe the reference here
is to the trading ships, that they were the seafaring vessels
which were involved in commerce and trade.
I'm well aware there were huge warships, but I I'm not thinking
that David's thinking about them.
He wasn't observing them leaving his coast to go off into other
ports. The Phoenicians were great
shipbuilders, and the Phoenicians and Tyree and Sidon,
they were great for building these seafaring vessels.
There were certain size and a certain width and a certain
height. And what was their purpose?
Think of the purpose of the ships, not for pleasure, but for
produce. They were especially designed.
They they were built for a purpose, not merely decorative.
But they had a duty. They, they carried food and wood
and precious cargo like gold and silver, animal fur, supplies and
messages. In other words, they had an
assignment to fulfil. They they, they connected
countries and nations. Do you know that the Queen of
Sheba was said to have some 400 of these ships in her fleet?
400 seafaring trading vessels. The Bible speaks 8 times, for
example in Isaiah 2 and 16 of the ships of Tarshish.
And the ships of Tarshish sealed all over the world doing
business. Cedar from Lebanon, fine linen
from Egypt, gold and silver from Spain, 10 from Spain, ivory and
Peacocks from Africa even believe they're sealed to the
British Isles because the Bible speaks about the Isles.
It's widely believed they're sealed even as far as the
Caribbean Sea if you turn over the air for one reference, Just
to give you a little insight, it says in First Kings chapter 5
verse 7 to 12. I'll just read the portion First
Kings chapter 5 verse 7 to 12. Now think of these words.
And it came to pass when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that
he rejoiced greatly and said, blessed be the God this day,
which is given unto David, a wise son over this great people.
And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered the
thing which thou sentest to me for.
And I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar and
concerning timber of fur. My servants shall bring them
down from Lebanon unto the sea, and I will convey them by sea in
floats unto the pleas that thou shall appoint me, and I will
cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive
them, and thou shall accomplish my desire in giving food for my
household. So Hiram gave Solomon cedar
trees and fir trees according to all his desire.
And Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 measures of wheat for food to
his household, and 20 measures of pure oil thus gave Solomon to
Hiram year by year. Here's an Old Testament shipping
contract, an Old Testament shipping arrangement, no doubt
one of many. And it was between King Solomon
and King Hiram of Syria. You see, these ships, as have
said, had a purpose. Not to be tied up in the dock,
not built for nothing, not built to stay tied to the harbour and
never used. And like these ships, we too
have a purpose. Now, what's your purpose?
What's mine? Well, the Catechism tells us
man's defend us to glorify God and enjoy him forever.
We were built for God. We were built for God's glory.
We were built to enjoy God. Now how can we do that?
What are we actually doing for God?
What does God want of us? I said this to the young people
on Friday night. I give them the best advice that
I could, and this was the best advice that I give them, to know
God, to know him as Creator and Maker and as Redeemer and Judge.
I advised him to pursue holiness and he had sinned and say no to
it. I advised him to seek God for
wisdom. I had urged him to live for him,
to sacrifice all for him. I urge them, remember in the
words of Matthew 6 and verse 33, But seek ye first the Kingdom of
God and his righteousness, and all these other things shall be
added on to you. And remember what Paul says in
Romans chapter 12. He says this.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
and you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, with your readable service, and be not
conformed to this world, but be it transformed.
By the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that
good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
That's our purpose as we seek to glorify God and enjoy Him.
Those five bits of advice should form the core of all that we do.
And the last one was to fix their gaze in Christ as the
author and the finisher of our faith.
That's the purpose of the ships. Secondly, and very quickly, not
only the vessel that's presented in its purpose, but think of the
vessel presented in its properties.
We emphasise this to the children down at the school few
nights ago. 4 things every ship needs.
Every ship needs a captain. Do you know a ship can't seal
without a captain? Every ship that seals without an
appointed captain is a disaster waiting to happen.
And of course, we know that in the Bible, in Paul's day, there
was a captain that was warned not to set seal.
He ignored that advice. He took no heed.
And what did it lead to? It led the shipwreck.
You see, a ship must have a captain in charge.
There must be an authority on board to make decisions.
And of course in the book of Hebrews, in Hebrews chapter 2
and verse 10, we're taught that the Lord Jesus Christ is the
captain of our salvation. It says, for it became him for
whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many
sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation
perfect through suffering. Remember Joshua was told when he
asked the man that he saw, are you for us?
Are you for our enemies? And he said, neither, I'm the
captain of the Lord's hosts. We need Christ as our captain.
He's the one that can guide us. Psalm 32, verse eight.
I will teach the instructee in the way in which they shall go.
I will guide thee with mine eye. Another property of the ship is
ships are named, they're registered, they have an
identity there, there, there's an ownership.
They, they, they, they belong to someone.
Do you know what the Lord Jesus said to his disciples, Luke 10
and verse 20 to rejoice that their names are written in
heaven? Isn't it wonderful to know that
your name is written and recorded in heaven?
It's, it's in the Lamb's book of life.
Every one of us is a name Christian, a name to live or a
name to die. And we should rejoice in this
truth that our names are written in heaven and when the books are
opened, our name will be there. Every ship needs a crew.
No ship sails alone. Acts 27.
Paul was on a ship of 276 other people, soldiers and sailors and
prisoners. Paul was one of those prisoners.
You see, we sail with others in the journey there.
There's a sense of belonging. And when the Lord Jesus was in
the boat and it was out in the Sea of Galilee, we read there in
Matthew or Mark chapter 5 that they were with him also other
little ships. And I think we preached it not
in the past. There's a sense of belonging and
I want you to have a sense of belonging to carried off FPC,
not only belonging to a particular family, but belonging
to this church family, belonging to this church fellowship,
joining with other believers of like precious faith.
You see, we need fellowship with one another.
We need encouragement one with another.
We need activity with one another, but we also need
accountability. Another property for the ship is
the ship must have an anchor. Hebrews chapter 6 and verse 19
tells us those tremendous words about the anchor.
Hebrews 6 and 19, and this is what it says, which hope we have
as an anchor of the soul, be sure and steadfast, and which
entereth into that within the veil.
The word hope here, as I emphasised this morning,
assuring certain you think of an anchor, what does it do?
Well, it keeps the ship from drifting, drifting to
destruction. You see, without an anchor, the
storms will move the ship when they come and batter it.
The the current will control the ship.
Take it off course. No, we're not talking about
diesel engine ships. We're talking about ships that
were dependent on the seal by the wind, and of course without
an anchor, the rocks would destroy the ship.
We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while
the billows roll. And our anchor is actually God's
salvation that's found in Christ as the captain of our salvation.
So we come back to that truth about being savingly joined to
Christ. It's not about joining the
church. Some people with this notion,
you know, that all they have to do as a Christian, to be a
Christian is just to come to church and start attending.
And it's wonderful to attend to church.
It's wonderful to attend the Bible believing church.
And there's few Bible believing churches, let me tell you.
And I'm not boasting when I say that that is the reality, but to
come to a Bible, but even church is tremendous.
But it's not just coming to the church that saves us all.
It's it's Christ. Are you joined to Christ?
That's the anchor for your soul. Notice also very quickly here
the progress of the ship. There go the ship that really
struck me. They're not built to sit,
they're not built to drift, not there be the ships.
That would mean that we're tied up in the harbour, but there go
the ships. The word go speaks of progress
and movement and motion and purpose.
As I've said, we're built for purpose.
We're built for progress, we're built for mission.
We're not to sit in the dock of comfort.
No, we're destined for the duty of a challenge and the
challenges we were built to travel as ships of the high
seas. We're not safe to sit.
We're we're safe to serve. We're created in Christ Jesus on
the good works which God had before ordained.
We're under orders. We've got the Great Commission
from the the captain of our salvation go into all the world
and preach the gospel to every creature.
And that's my responsibility and yours as well along with me.
We have to go into our community and preach the gospel.
Even the people that don't want to hear, people that are in
spiritual darkness, people that are dead to God and blamed and
seized, we've got to bring to them the Word of God.
Tell them the mighty Jesus is able to save and save to the
uttermost. Think very quickly here of the
power of the ship. There go the ship.
How do these ships sail on the high seas?
What propel them? Think back now.
This is 1000 years before Christ, before diesel engines
ever came about. Well, you've already thought of
it. The power of the wind.
They sealed hoisting their seals with the power of the wind, and
the power of the wind LED them to the port of their
destination. Is that not a reference here to
John chapter 3? Remember what the Lord Jesus
said to Nicodemus? He said this in John 3, verse 8.
The wind blows where it lifts us, and now here's the sound
thereof. But canst it tale whence it
cometh? Whether it goes?
So is everyone that is born of the Spirit.
He had already said to him in verse 7, Marvel not that I say
unto thee, You must be born again.
We need the power of the Holy Spirit.
It's the Holy Spirit who regenerates us, brings about the
new birth, transforms and changes our lives.
He indwells us wonderful thing to be knowed.
You're indwelt by the Spirit. He leads us on the journey.
He He equips us with fruit and gifts, and He fills us.
Be not drunk with wine, we're in his excess, but be filled with
the Spirit. Ephesians 5 and 18 The Lord
Jesus said of you then being evil, know how to give good
gifts unto your children. How much more shall your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them?
Ask him. One of the biggest challenges
I've discovered from the Gospel of Micah, like I said, I'm full
of power by the Spirit of God, the power of the ships as we go.
It was the power of the wind and how much we need the power of
God's Spirit to come upon us. These ships have to be managed.
Even though they had the power of the wind, there had to be
navigation. They, they, they navigated the
coastline from a certain distance.
They had charts and maps. Later on they began to follow
the North Star. You know, some of these trading
ships could travel 50 and 75 miles per day if they had a good
captain and the, the, the wind was there filling the seals and
the navigational charts and the instruments and the coastline,
they could travel that distance. We've got the word of God.
We've got the law of the Lord, and the Word of God covers every
area of her life, and that word is light, and that word is a
lamp unto our fate. And of course, through the Word
of God, we're focusing in on Him who is the the captain of our
salvation. Remember the psalmist, the godly
man blessed is the man that walketh not in the country of
the ungodly. They're standing in the way of
sinners. They're sitteth in the seat of
the scornful. But his delight is in the law of
the Lord and in his Lordoth he meditate day and night.
Oh, that the Church could come back to the book.
Only the Scriptures. What saith the scriptures?
See, that was the Reformation cry in the 15th century, the
16th century. The Great Awakening in England
was rooted in that. What saith the Scriptures?
We've got away from the Scriptures because we've got
away from the Scriptures. Then apostasy and apathy and
indifference and coldness and everything else is set into the
life of the Church. Leaders do that which is right
in their own eyes. Echo bods on the door.
Very quickly here. Think about the peril of the
ship already touched in this. The ship's going to be tested.
It'll face storms. The storms will test the ship as
the ship's sound. Will the anchor hold?
Does the crew really trust the captain in the storm?
You see, every captain would have fear of mutiny.
Many ships sank in the storm. There was the loss of life.
Some ships survived. And as I've said, you and I, as
we seal the high seas of life from the day of our birth to the
final port of destination, you and I will face many storms.
We'll have to trust our captain. He says, trust me, you'll face
sickness and disease and tragedy and death.
But if you see your vessel has been managed by him and he's
your captain, and you bear His name because your name's
registered in heaven, and you've got the anchor of salvation, and
you're with a crew of God's people, and you're under him.
His eye is upon you, his his hand is upon you, and all that
overwhelms you and frightens you, just remember, he's in
control. He's governing it all.
He is sovereign. He'll not cause a needless tear.
The vessel that is presented. And one final thing, the view
that is pictured. If you think of David standing,
observing in the coastline and saying thus there go the ships,
the voids that's portrayed. That's what he's thinking about.
And the vessel that is presented in his mind, the ships, plural,
all of these various things that I've mentioned.
Think of one final thing, the view that is pictured their
destination. If you turn over there to I
think it's Second Chronicles Chapter 9, Second Chronicles
Chapter 9 and verse 21. And we read this, for the King's
ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Hiram every three
years. Once came the ships of Tarshish,
bringing gold and silver, ivory and apes and Peacocks.
And King Solomon passed all the kings of the earth in riches and
wisdom. Now I want you to notice
something in that verse of Scripture.
Second Corinthians, Second Chronicles 9 and 21.
Three years, three years. They were on the high seas.
Would you like to be in the high seas for three full years?
That was David's observation. There go the ships.
They're leaving the coast now and they're going out, and then
they'll come back and, and, and they're the ships of Tarsus and
he's observing them, but he sees them as an opportunity.
There go and they're gone. They're over the horizon.
And what does that teach us? It teaches us this, that our
life is brief. For a moment it's seen and then
it's gone. James asks.
What is your life? It is even a vapour that appears
for a little time and then vanished away.
He sees the ships and he thinks about his own life.
He thinks about it's past, he thinks about the present, he
thinks about the future. And I want you to think about
the future now as we finish the view that is pictured.
These ships are headed for a final destination.
Where are you headed? Are you buying for the port
called heaven? Are you buying for the port
called hell? The Bible tells us this as we
wrap things up this evening over there in the Book of Revelation,
in Revelation chapter 21 and 27, it tells us this marvellous
truth, and there shall in no ways enter into it anything that
defineth neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a
lie, but they that are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Is that the port that you're bound for because your name is
written in that book of life? I remember having the
opportunity to go and see the tall ships that came into
Belfast. We came from Portrush.
It was a very, very wet day. We got soaked, difficulty
getting parked and we had to walk.
But it was lovely to see the tall ships and it was lovely to
watch because it was the very last day and then they were
setting sail down Belfast Lock. I remember thinking of these
words. There go the ships the last time
I was going to see them. Do you see yourself as a ship?
Make sure that you're buying for the port called Heaven, not for
the port called hell. Imagine spending eternity having
lived a life 60708090 a hundred years and ended up in the place
where the worm dieth not the fires not quenched for all
eternity. May the Lord give grace and
wisdom for His Word. This evening I'm going to sing
in closing, just a couple of verses, a couple of verses of
316, 316. You've been very patient.
A trusted God will bless His word to your heart.
It's not by accident that the Lord has put this word in my
heart for you. This evening.
We're going to sing verses 1/3 and five of three 1/6 as we
finish this evening.