Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons Psalm 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: I. A SUPPOSITION STATED. When may it be said that iniquity is regarded in the heart? 1. When it is permitted to reign in the life. 2. When we offer apologies for its existence. 3. When we evince no solicitude for its destruction. 4. When we make provision for its desires. II. A CONSEQUENCE DEDUCED. "The Lord will not hear me" (vers. 19, 20). This supposes — 1. That prayer may be offered to God, even when iniquity is regarded in the heart.. Sinners pray when they are in trouble; Pharaoh confessed his sin (Exodus 9:27, 28); the Pharisee stood and prayed in the temple, but his language evinced the pride and haughtiness of his heart. 2. That where iniquity is regarded in the heart, the prayer is unacceptable to God. 3. That the man whose prayer God will not hear is in a most pitiable state.INFERENCES. 1. How utterly impossible it is to deceive God (2 Chronicles 16:9). 2. That there may be a fair show of religious profession, even where iniquity is regarded in the heart. 3. That the most effectual way to secure success in our prayers, is to hate iniquity and put away our sin, and beseech God to prove us, etc. 4. That if God has not answered our prayers, we should be solicitous to know the cause, and find out the hindrance. (Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons.) Parallel Verses KJV: If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:WEB: If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord wouldn't have listened. |
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