First sermon preached In England by Pastor Rowland Wheatley

Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. (Psalm 139:2)

Five introductory points:
1/ The knowledge of the Lord.
2/ The Psalmist being convinced of this truth by experience.
3/ The forming of the Lord's people.
4/ The separation brought by grace.
5/ The psalmist's desire to be searched.

Two main headings:
1/ Thou knowest,
2/ Thou understandest.

In God's providence, this sermon was the first time I preached in England - The morning of 2 April 1995 - and it was in what is now my pulpit at Cranbrook. It was the sermon used to start an exercise in the church to call me from Australia to be their Pastor. - I was 34 at the time.

Apologies for the poor quality recording .

Sermon Summary:

The sermon centers on the profound comfort and assurance found in God's intimate knowledge of every aspect of the believer's life—His presence in every place, His sovereign work in forming each person from the womb, and His ability to transform even the deepest sin and suffering into divine purpose.

Drawing from Psalm 139:2, the preacher underscores that this divine awareness is not a source of condemnation but a foundation for faith, as God's knowledge of our sin is the very reason for His mercy and the basis of the gospel's invitation to sinners.

The message calls for a heart that desires to be searched by God, embraces separation from worldly compromise, and trusts in the promise of resurrection and eternal life, where every tear and trial is met with divine redemption and the final triumph of grace.