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TOPIC: Torrey, R A - How To Work For Christ (Book 3) (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 07 - BOOK THREE CHAPTER FIVE (cont)
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# ETERNAL LIFE OR THE WRATH OF GOD --WHICH?
"He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." Joh_3:36.
INTRODUCTION. -- One of the most meaningful and glorious phrases that ever were uttered is that which was so often upon the lips of Jesus Christ -- "eternal life." One of the most awful and appalling phrases ever uttered is this other that Jesus uses in our text, "the wrath of God." It cannot be put into words, it cannot be conceived even in fancy, all the wealth of glory that is wrapped up in those two words, "eternal life." Neither can it be put into words, nor conceived by human imagination, the depth of horror, shame and woe that are wrapped up in that other phrase -- "the wrath of God." It is between these two that each of us is called to take his choice. {394}
The Things Contrasted.
1. "Eternal life" -- what is it?
(a) First of all, it is really life. 1Ti_6:19 RV.
(b) Eternal life is fullness of life. It is life abundant. Joh_10:10 RV. It is full of beauty, full of peace, full of satisfaction, full of joy, full of glory.
(c) Eternal life is a life of the highest knowledge. Joh_17:3. Eternal life is knowledge of the Infinite.
(d) Eternal life is the life of God. 1Jn_1:2. Eternal life is the life of the holy, blessed God, the infinite life imparted to us.
(e) Eternal life is endless life. Endlessness is not the most essential characteristic of eternal life. Its quality is more than its duration, but nevertheless it is endless.
2. "The wrath of God" -- what is that? It is just what the words express. It is the intense and settled displeasure of the infinitely Holy Being who created us and all things, and who has the absolute control of all the powers of the universe.
"The wrath of God," "the wrath of God" -- there is nothing more awful than that. To have yon Holy One, yon Holy Being before whom the seraphim veil their faces and cry, Holy, holy, holy; to have yon omnipotent and infinite Ruler of this universe, yon mighty One who holds the sun and moon and stars, all the stupendous worlds of light that stud the illimitable expanse of heaven, in the hollow of His hands, as well as shapes the whole history of this tiny ball that we call the earth, to have Him displeased with us, to incur His wrath, His intense, deep-seated, settled displeasure -- "eternal life" or "the wrath of God" -- which will you choose.
I. How Decide.
By what act do we determine whether eternal life or the wrath of God is to be our portion? Listen to God's own answer to this question. It is not the answer of all modern philosophers. It is not the answer of all modern theologians. It is {395} not the answer of all modern preachers, but it is God's answer, and it is sure. (Quote text).
The act by which we bring upon ourselves "the wrath of God": "He that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth upon him." It makes no difference who or what you are.
# HOW TO BECOME SONS OF GOD
"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." Joh_1:12.
INTRODUCTION. -- If I could tell how to become a son of a monarch or a millionaire I would get many eager listeners. To be a child of God involves much more: much more in the life that now is -- much more in the life which is to come.
I. What is Involved in being a Child of God?
1. Our absolute security in this present life.
2. The supply of every real need. Mat_6:8. Not every fancied need.
3. Joy. The child of God must be happy, for this is God's world.
4. Peace.
5. Likeness to God. The one who becomes a child of God must ultimately become like God. 1Jn_3:1-2.
6. Infinite joy hereafter. Rom_8:17.
II. How may We Become Sons of God?
But some one may say, "Are we not already sons of God?" We are not. We are all God's offspring (Act_17:28), i.e., we are His creative work, and man was originally made in God's image, but we are not all sons of God in any such full sense as involves the things just mentioned. Joh_1:12; Gal_3:26; Joh_8:44.
Any hopes built upon the supposition that all men are God's sons, are built upon the sinking sand, and they will fall some day and crush you.
How, then? Joh_1:12. Simply receiving Jesus makes us sons {396} of God. What is it to receive Jesus? We cannot afford to make any mistake here, too much depends upon it, too much in the life that now is -- too much in the life to come.
What is it--etc.? What is it to receive any man? It is to take him as that for which he offers himself. If a man offers himself as a physician, to receive or take him, is to take him as your physician, and to put the care of your health into his hands. If any man offers himself as a husband, to receive him or take him is to accept him as your husband. Any young man or young woman knows when a young man says to a young woman, "I want to be your husband, will you take me?" just what he means. Now, to receive Jesus is just to take Him as He offers Himself.
1. He offers Himself as our atoning Savior, as the one who bore our sins in His own body on the cross. Mat_20:28. Will you take Him as that?
2. He offers Himself as our deliverer from sin's power. Joh_8:36.
3. He offers Himself as our rest-giver. Mat_11:28. Will you take Him as that?
4. He offers Himself as our teacher. Joh_13:13; Mat_23:8. Will you take Him as that? Will you submit your mind to Him for Him to teach you what He will, accepting of His teaching as the truth of God?
5. He offers Himself as our way of access to God, and as the incarnation of the truth, and as our life. Joh_14:6. Will you take Him as this?
6. He offers Himself as our King. Joh_1:12. Will you take Him as your King?
7. He offers Himself as our Lord and God. Joh_5:22-23. Will you accept Him for all that He has offered Himself, or may offer Himself, studying more and more to know all that He does offer Himself to be? Of course this is an act of faith, but it means that you will become sons of God.
III. Who may Become Sons of God in this Way?
Any one (read the text). How sweeping it is. It leaves no one out. You may be the ripest scholar, or you may be utterly without {397} education, but if you receive Jesus, instantly you become a child of God.
You may be a person of amiable, attractive and lovely character, or you may be the vilest sinner. I know a man who was deep in sin, utterly enslaved; he was deep in unbelief also, but one day he received Jesus -- took Him for all He wished to be to him, and he became a child of God. God gave him evidence of sonship by setting him free from the bondage of sin, sending His Spirit into his heart bearing witness, etc.
CONCLUSION. -- It is possible for any one to become a child of God this moment. Do you wish to? You must accept Jesus, that is all. Will you do it? Ah, some of you hesitate! How foolish! Can this world offer anything so good, so glorious, for time and eternity as becoming a child of God?
I know a man who once had this same opportunity put before him. At first he thought he would accept it, but then he thought again and said, "No, I better not, I am a lawyer, and it may interfere with my practice." He rejected the opportunity. He went right down and became an infidel, as so many become who resist God's Spirit and God's love. He sank lower yet. From a place of prominence he became despised for his low acts, and could get no clients. He became the laughing stock of the community. It was a life thrown away. Yes, and an eternity thrown away.
# GOD-GIVEN CONVICTION.
"They were pricked in their heart." Act_2:37.
INTRODUCTION. -- It is not a pleasant thing to be pricked in one's heart with a conviction of sin. Indeed it is a most distressing experience, but it is an experience which if rightly received leads to very great blessing. The very worst thing that can happen to you is to be able to sit here entirely unmoved by what you hear.
There are three things to consider about our text.
I. Why they were pricked in their heart.
II. How they were pricked in their heart.
III. The results of their being pricked in their heart. {398}
I. Why these Men were Pricked in their Heart.
They were pricked in heart because their conscience long asleep was at last awake, and they saw the appalling enormity of the sin they had committed in crucifying Jesus Christ. They were at last awakened to the fact that God had raised Jesus from the dead and exalted Him to His own right hand. They understood that Jesus whom they rejected was both Lord and Christ.
Every one in this audience who is rejecting Jesus Christ will some day awake to the fact of who Jesus is, the dignity, majesty and glory of His person, and then you will be pricked in your heart. It may be too late then, but it will not be too late now.
II. How they were Pricked in their Heart.
1. By the preaching of the Word of God. Peter's sermon did it and that sermon was pretty much all Bible.
2. By Peter's testimony to a risen and exalted Savior.
3. By the power of the Holy Spirit (cf. Joh_16:7, Joh_16:9).
III. The Results of their being Pricked in their Heart.
There are many who do not wish to be pricked in their heart because it is not a pleasant experience, but we will see that though it is a bitter medicine, the results are glorious.
1. The first result of their being pricked in their heart was that they turned from their awful sin.
2. The second result of their being pricked in their heart was that they publicly confessed their sin and their acceptance of Christ.
3. The third result was that they were saved. Act_2:47. To be pricked in heart now and to yield to it means that you will be saved from having your heart gnawed through all eternity by the worm that dieth not.
CONCLUSION. -- This is a great text, "they were pricked in their heart." Let us wait a few moments silently and prayerfully, and see if the Holy Spirit will not prick some here in their hearts. You have committed the same awful sin that those mentioned had committed. {399} You have crucified the Son of God. Think of that. Say to yourself, "I am guilty of the awful sin of crucifying Christ." Ask God to make you feel it. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to see your appalling guilt. Is something pricking your heart now? Then yield. Repent. Turn from sin, accept Christ, begin to confess Him. Who will?
# WHAT TO DO WITH JESUS
"What shall I do with Jesus, which is called Christ?" Mat_27:1-66; Mat_22:1-46.
INTRODUCTION. -- No man ever asked a more important question than Pilate asked here. A question that confronts us all. Pilate made a great mistake. He asked man what he should do with Jesus instead of asking God. But Pilate not only went to man with his question, he went to enemies of Jesus Christ and they cried out, "Crucify him!" And it is to the enemies of Christ that many of you are going.
I. This Question is a very Personal Question.
It is, "What shall _I_ do with Christ?" No one else can decide this for you. You will accept Christ for yourself or reject Christ for yourself. And you will go to heaven for yourself or go to hell for yourself.
II. The Question is furthermore, "What shall I do with JESUS?"
Not what shall I do with some creed, not what shall I do with the church, but, "What shall I do with Jesus Christ?"
III. The Question again is, "What shall I DO with Jesus?"
Not what shall I think about Him. God tells us very plainly in His Word what we ought to do with Jesus.
1. First of all we should listen to Jesus.
2. But it is not enough merely to listen to Jesus Christ. We should also accept Him (Joh_1:12) as our atoning Savior Who gave His life in our place, as our Deliverer from sin's power, as our Teacher to whom we shall surrender the control of our thoughts, and as our Lord to whom we shall surrender the control of our lives. {400}
IV. The next thing which God bids us do with Jesus is to be baptized in His name. Act_2:8.
V. Obey Him. Joh_14:21; Joh_14:23.
VI. Serve Him. Joh_12:26.
VII. Follow Jesus Christ. Joh_12:26.
VIII. Worship Him. Heb_1:6.
# FALSE CHRISTS AND FALSE PROPHETS
"False Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things." Mar_13:22-23.
INTRODUCTION. -- These words of the real Christ are very solemn. In them He tells us that false prophets are coming and warns us to be on our guard against them. The false prophets and the false Christs are here. There are many who take it for granted that if any man or woman makes great claims, those claims must be true, especially if they support those claims by reports of sickness healed and other wonders wrought. But Christ not only told us that false Christs and false prophets would appear, but He has told us that signs and wonders so remarkable would be wrought that they would mislead, if possible, the very elect.
I. How escape?
How can we escape from the snare of these false Christs and false prophets if they show such signs and wonders. This all-important question is answered in the Bible. There are five simple rules which if followed will save one from the snare of any or every false Christ and false prophet.
1. You will find the first rule in Joh_7:17. A will wholly surrendered to God gives clearness of vision to detect error.
2. The second rule is in 2Ti_3:13-17. When one has surrendered his will wholly to God the safeguard against deceivers and false prophets is the study of the Word of God. Act_20:29-30. Study the whole book. {401}
3. The third rule is found in Jam_1:5-7. Prayer to God for wisdom will save us from many a snare.
4. The fourth rule is found in Mat_23:8-10. Call no man master, acknowledge no man as authority, accept the authority of no one and nothing but Christ and the Bible in matters of faith and religion.
5. The fifth rule is found in Pro_29:25. If you wish to escape the snare of all false prophets and false Christs put away all fear of the devil and trust in God.
# MAN'S RIGHT ATTITUDE BEFORE GOD
"Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?" Rom_9:20.
INTRODUCTION. -- There can be no more important or fundamental question than that of our right attitude before God. If we are in right relations to God we are in the way to be in right relations to all God's creatures, to all men and all things. If we are in wrong relations to God we are bound to be in wrong relations to all men and all things, to the whole universe that God made and governs.
I. First of all we should have a sense of our comparative nothingness.
God is infinite, we are finite. Isa_40:15 hew:15 hew:15, Isa_40:17 hew:17 hew:17. This sense of our comparative nothingness should have three phases:
1. We should bear in mind God's infinite majesty and our utter insignificance.
2. We should bear in mind the infinite wisdom of God and our utter ignorance.
3. We should bear in mind the infinite holiness of God and our utter vileness in comparison with Him.
II. The second characteristic of our attitude toward God should be trust.
We should trust God perfectly, we should have absolute unquestioning confidence in Him. "Blessed is the man who {402} trusteth in Jehovah." Jehovah is infinitely great. An awful gulf yawns between us and Him, but Jehovah is infinitely good and is worthy of the absolute confidence of the smallest and the greatest of His creatures.
III. But there should be one more characteristic of our attitude toward God. Not only humility and trust, bet boldness.
Hebrews 10;20. He is infinite in majesty, infinite in wisdom, infinite in holiness; but the atoning blood of Jesus has put away our sins and made us sons of God, so that we no longer receive a spirit of bondage again unto fear, but a spirit of adoption, and look right up into the face of that infinite majesty, that infinite wisdom, that infinite holiness and call Him Father.
# INFAMOUS INGRATITUDE
"Even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction." 2Pe_2:1.
INTRODUCTION. -- There is no sin more heartily and universally despised among men than ingratitude. The basest of all ingratitude is the denial of Jesus Christ, who bought us, bought us at the cost of immeasurable agony and pain, bought us at the cost of His own blood. There is no one to whom we owe so much as to Jesus Christ. No one has ever brought so much to us. He brings us pardon for all our sins, if we will have it. He brings us peace that passeth all understanding. He brings us joy such as the world never dreamed of, joy unspeakable and full of glory. He brings us an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that fadeth not away, laid up in store for us in heaven. He makes us heirs of God and joint heirs with Himself. Not only has He brought to us infinitely more than any other ever brought, or all others put together even brought, He Has suffered more for us than any other ever suffered. Php_2:6-8.
I. Who are Denying the Lord?
1. First of all the infidels, agnostics, skeptics and Unitarians are denying the Lord.
2. There are many who believe in Jesus Christ, who believe {403} that He is the Son of God, who believe all the Bible says about His life and death, about His atonement and His salvation, but they have never confessed Him publicly before the world. You are denying the Lord that bought you.
3. Many church members deny the Lord that bought them. You deny Christ in your business, you deny Christ in your social life, you deny Christ in your politics, you deny Christ in many places. When religion is sneered at in the place where you work you haven't courage to stand up like a man and say quietly but firmly, "Men, I don't agree with you. I believe in this Bible and in this Christ you sneer at. I know Jesus Christ is a Divine Savior. He has saved me, He fills my life with joy, and He is my Lord.
4. Men who profess to be ministers of Christ, who set the authority of those whom they regard as scholars above the authority of Jesus Christ, and who care more for a reputation for originality and scholarship than they do for the honor of Jesus Christ their Lord. There are men in the pulpit who are itching for that applause and are denying their Lord to get it. They would rather be untrue to Jesus Christ than to be considered behind the times.
II. Why Men Deny Their Lord.
1. Many do it out of cowardice.
2. For gain.
3. From pride.
4. Love of man.
# A STRANGE HATRED
"They hated me without a cause." Joh_15:25.
INTRODUCTION. -- No other man has lived on this earth who has been so unanimously and so bitterly hated as Jesus Christ.
I. Hated by Men of His Own Day.
1. When He was here on earth He was hated by all classes of society.
2. The hatred of Jesus Christ was as bitter as it was universal. {407}
3. This hatred of Jesus Christ was without a cause; it was wholly gratuitous.
II. Hatred of Men Today.
As we read this history of the past it seems incredible that the men of Christ's day should have so hated Him; but He is just as bitterly hated today. The hatred of Jesus Christ today is not usually so outspoken as when He was here on earth, but it is no less real. There are many ways in which men show this hatred of Jesus Christ.
1. One of the commonest ways in which men show their hatred of Jesus Christ is by the delight they take in the fall of any man who bears the name of Christ or professes to be His disciple.
2. Hatred of Jesus Christ also shows itself in talking about and magnifying the inconsistencies of Christians.
3. Hatred of Jesus Christ shows itself in the persecution of those who believe in and confess Him.
4. Hatred of Jesus Christ is shown by attempts to disprove the truth of the record of Christ's life found in the four Gospels.
5. Hatred of Jesus Christ is shown by attempts to rob Him of the glory that is rightfully His. To Jesus Christ belongs divine honor, glory and adoration.
6. Men sometimes show their hatred of Jesus Christ by a simple refusal to have Him rule over them. Luk_19:1-48; Luk_14:1-35. This hatred of Christ is still without a cause. It is wholly gratuitous.
(a) It is true that Jesus Christ does condemn sin and demand that men should forsake it, and that is the reason many hate Him.
(b) It is true that Jesus Christ demands absolute surrender, and that is why many hate Him. There is no just cause for hating Christ. There is abundant cause why we should love Him.
(1) What He brings.
(2) What He has sacrificed. {405}
# SALVATION FOR EVERYBODY
"The gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." Rom_1:16.
INTRODUCTION. -- There are some people who think that God has provided salvation for just a chosen few. That is a great mistake. God has provided salvation for everybody. There are three great truths in our text:
I. There is something that has power to save anybody and everybody.
II. That something that has power to save anybody and everybody is the Gospel.
1. Some of you may ask how I know the Gospel of Christ has power to save anybody. (1) Because this book says so. (2) Because I have seen it save men and women of all classes.
2. What is it to "save"?
(a) To save, first of all, is to save from guilt.
(b) To save is to save from the power of sin.
(c) To save is to save from the eternal consequences of sin.
3. But whom can the Gospel of Christ thus save? Anybody and everybody.
(a) First of all it can save outcasts.
(b) The Gospel can save infidels, the most determined and bitter infidels.
(c) The Gospel can save scholars.
(d) The Gospel can save deluded people.
(e) The Gospel can save moralists.
4. Nothing but the Gospel has this power to save.
It takes the power of God to save, and the Gospel of Christ is the only thing that has the power of God in it.
5. What is the Gospel? Gospel means glad tidings or good news. What is the good news that saves? Turn to 1Co_15:1-4.
(a) The good news is, then, first, "That Christ died for our sins." Gal_3:13; 2Co_5:21. {406}
(b) The good news is, second, that Christ was buried. He was buried and my sin was buried with Him.
(c) Third, "He rose again."
He is a living Savior and has all power in heaven and on earth, and however weak I am when I have to fight the world, the flesh and the devil, I can look up to this living Almighty Savior and trust Him to give me victory.
III. The Way to Experience this saving power of the Gospel in our own lives is by simply believing the Gospel.
"To every one who believeth." Believes what? The Gospel.
# WHAT MUST I DO TO BE DAMNED?
"He that believeth not shall be damned." Mar_16:16.
INTRODUCTION. -- The word "damned" has largely fallen into disuse partly because it is used so much by profane people, partly because we live in an easy-going way that recoils from a vigorous statement of unpleasant truths. Damned means condemned, condemned of God, but damned is a much more vigorous word than condemned; it carries much more meaning to the average mind. It summons at once before our imagination all the awful consequences of being condemned of God. We will let the text stand there as it reads in the AV, "He that believeth not shall be damned." Any man who hears the Gospel and persistently refuses to believe it and receive it shall be damned. All any one needs to do to be saved, saved to the uttermost, is to believe on the Lord Jesus. All that any one needs to do to be damned, damned to the uttermost, is to refuse to believe on the Lord Jesus. It is not necessary in order to be damned that one be what the world calls a wicked person.
1. First of all the man who does not believe the Gospel and believe in Jesus Christ must be damned, because every man is a sinner and God is holy, and if a man does not find some way in which the sin that separates him, a sinner, from the Holy God can be obliterated, he must necessarily be separated from God forever, and separation from God is damnation; and the only way in which sin can be put {407} away from between us and God is by the atoning death of Jesus Christ, and the one condition upon which that atoning death avails for you and me is that we believe on Him who died; therefore if we will not believe on Him we must be damned.
2. Refusing to believe on Jesus Christ is in itself a damnable sin and reveals a damnable state of heart.
# GOD IS LOVE
"God is love." 1Jn_4:8
INTRODUCTION. -- The world would never have known that God is love had not God revealed it in His Word. We must go, then, to the Bible for the interpretation of it. How, according to the Bible, is the love of God manifested?
I. God's love manifests itself in His ministering to our needs and joy. Isa_48:14, Isa_48:20-21.
II. God's love manifests itself in His chastening us, in His sending us trial and pain and sorrow and bereavement. Heb_12:6-11.
III. God's love is manifested by His sympathizing with us in our afflictions. Isa_63:9.
IV. God's love is manifested again in His never forgetting those He loves. Isa_49:15-16.
V. God's love manifests itself in His forgiving our sins. Isa_38:17; Isa_55:7.
God will not pardon sin if we hold on to it. There is a fancy about God's love that because God is love He will pardon and save all men whether they repent and believe on Christ or not. It is wholly unscriptural. To believe it you must give up the Bible, but if you give up the Bible you must give up your belief that God is love, for it is from the Bible we learn it, and there is no other proof. One of the most illogical systems in the world is universalism. {408}
VI. God's love is manifested in His giving His own Son to die in our place. Joh_3:16; 1Jn_4:10.
This manifestation of God's love is stupendous; it is almost past believing, but it is true.
CONCLUSION. -- Such is the love of God. What are you going to do with that love?
# THE MOST WONDERFUL THING IN THE WORLD
"God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Joh_3:16.
INTRODUCTION. -- The most wonderful thing in the world is the love of God.
I. The Objects of God's Love. "The World."
1. Men of all races.
2. Men of all classes.
That God should love the good we can understand, but that God should love the vile, the outcast, the worthless, the vicious, the criminal, that is the thing that is hard of comprehension, but that is what the Bible tells us. That is what the Bible emphasizes. Rom_5:7-8.
II. The Character of God's Love.
1. It is a pardoning love. Isa_55:7; Psa_32:3-4.
2. It is a chastening love. Heb_12:6.
3. It is a sympathizing love. Isa_63:9.
4. It is a long-suffering love. 2Pe_3:9.
5. It is a self-sacrificing love. Joh_3:16.
III. Our Treatment of God's Love.
1. Accepting His love. The result of yielding to God's love is eternal life. Joh_3:16.
2. Rejecting His love. What is the result of rejecting His love?
(a) First of all, awful guilt.
(b) The loss of eternal life. Joh_5:40.
(c) Awful punishment. Heb_10:26-31. {409}
# GOD LOVES THE WHOLE WORLD
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Joh_3:16.
INTRODUCTION. -- This is perhaps the most remarkable statement the world ever heard. There are volumes packed into that little sentence. The verse tells us God's attitude toward the world, God's attitude toward sin, God's attitude toward His Son, God's attitude toward all who believe in Jesus Christ, and God's attitude toward all who do not believe on Jesus Christ.
I. God's Attitude toward the World.
Love.
II. God's Attitude toward Sin.
Our text shows us that God's attitude toward sin is hate.
III. God's Attitude toward His Son.
"HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON." God's attitude toward His Son is love. But God gave that Son He so infinitely loved, that Son who from all eternity has been the object of His delight. God gave that only begotten Son for the world, for you and for me.
IV. God's Attitude toward Believers and Unbelievers.
1. God's attitude toward believers is to give them eternal life.
2. God's attitude toward those who will not believe. With great grief and reluctance God withdraws from them the infinite gift He has purchased at such cost and which they will not have. He leaves them to "perish."
# A "GOOD MAN" LOST AND A BAD MAN SAVED
Luk_18:9-14.
INTRODUCTION. -- Some of you may think I have this subject twisted, and that it ought to read: A good man saved and a bad man lost. But it is right just as it is. Jesus Christ Himself has given us the picture of the good man and the bad man, and Jesus Himself {410} is responsible for the statement that the good man was lost and the bad man saved.
I. The Good Man Who was Lost.
1. We notice first of all that he was a moral man in his personal habits.
2. Square in his business relations.
3. Highly respected member of society.
4. The Pharisee saw no flaw in himself. He was the best man --in his own estimation-- that he knew. (RV)
5. This Pharisee was a religious man.
6. This Pharisee was a generous man. He could tell God that he gave a tenth of all he made. But he was lost. Why? For precisely the same reason that many here tonight are lost.
(a) He trusted in himself, Luk_18:9.
(b) He despised others.
(c) He did not acknowledge himself a sinner.
(d) He did not cry to God for mercy.
II. The Bad Man Who was Saved.
1. First note he had been an immoral man.
2. He had been irreligious.
3. He was looked down upon by his fellow men.
4. He saw many faults in himself.
III. Why was this Man Saved?
1. He saw himself a lost sinner.
2. He saw he could do nothing to save himself.
3. He saw that there was a God of mercy.
4. He just cried to this God to have mercy upon him.
5. He was in earnest.
# FOUND OUT
"Be sure your sin will find you out." Num_32:23.
INTRODUCTION. -- No man can escape his own sins. No man ever committed a single sin that he did not pay for it in some way. {411} No man ever committed a single sin by which he was not a loser. There never has been a sin committed on this earth that paid.
I. How Men's Sins Find Them Out.
1. Men's sins find them out by the execution of human laws.
2. Men's sins find them out in their own bodies.
3. Sin finds us out in our characters. For every sin you commit you will suffer its character. Every sin breeds a moral ulcer.
4. Again your sin will find you out in your own conscience.
5. In your feelings.
6. In your children. That is one of the most awful things about sin; its curse falls not only upon us but upon our children also.
7. Your sin will find you out in eternity. This present life is not all. There is a future life, and our acts and their consequences will follow us into it.
CONCLUSION. -- Is there a man here tonight contemplating sin? Don't do it. But many of us have sinned already and our sins are finding us out already. What shall we do? Fly to Christ. Gal_3:13.
# NO PEACE
"There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked." Isa_57:21.
INTRODUCTION. -- It is better to have peace in one's heart and deep poverty than to have overflowing plenty and no peace. To have no peace means to be in hell.
I. Who are the Wicked?
All men and women who refuse to bow to the rightful authority of Almighty God and obey Him whatever He may command are wicked. God's first and fundamental demand on men is that they believe on His Son Jesus Christ and accept Him as Savior and Lord. 1Jn_3:23; Joh_6:29. Every one therefore who does not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and accept Him as his Savior and Lord is a rebel against God and belongs to that class whom God designated as "the wicked." {412}
II. No Peace for the Wicked.
1. First of all there is no peace with God.
2. In the next place there is no peace in their own souls. There are several things that rob the wicked man of peace:
(a) Conscience.
(b) The fear of calamity.
(c) The fear of man.
(d) The fear of death.
(e) The fear of eternity.
3. There is no peace for the wicked in the life to come.
# NO HOPE
"Having no hope." Eph_2:12.
"Others which have no hope." 2 Thessalonians_4:13.
INTRODUCTION. -- There are no words in the language more dreadful than those two: "No hope."
I. Who have no Hope.
There are three classes who have no hope:
1. The man who denies or doubts the existence of a personal God, a wise, mighty, and loving ruler of this universe, has no hope. He may cherish fond wishes about the future, but wishes are not hope. Hope is a well-founded expectation.
2. The man who denies the truth of the Bible has no hope. He has no expectation for the future that has a solid and certain foundation underneath it.
3. The man who believes in the Bible but does not accept and confess the Christ it presents as his own personal Savior and Master has no hope.
The Bible holds out absolutely no hope to any except those who accept the Savior whom it is man's purpose to reveal. Joh_3:36; Heb_10:26-30.
II. In what Sense have these three Classes no Hope?
1. They have no hope, no well-founded and sure expectation of blessedness for the life that now is. {413}
(a) In the first place they have no guarantee of continued prosperity.
(b) They have no guarantee of continued capacity to enjoy prosperity even if it continues.
(c) They have no guarantee of continued life.
2. But infinitely worse than this is the fact that they have no hope for the life that is to come.
(a) The man out of Christ has no hope of blessedness after death.
(b) No hope of glad reunion with friends who have gone or may go.
(c) No hope of pardon.
(d) No hope of escape from the wrath of God against sin and unbelief. Rom_6:23.
III. The Believer in Christ has Hope.
1. He has hope for the life that now is. Rom_8:28; Php_4:6-7, Php_4:19; Romans 8;32.
2. Hope for the life to come. Tit_1:2.
CONCLUSION. -- Which do you prefer tonight, the no-hope of men out of Christ, or the glorious hope of Christians? You have your choice. Which will you take?
# FALSE HOPES
"Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name have done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Mat_7:22-23.
INTRODUCTION. -- We see clearly from this text that there are many who expect to enter the kingdom of heaven who will not succeed, many who expect to spend eternity in heaven who will spend eternity in hell.
I. What are some of the False Hopes Men Entertain?
1. The hope that "God is too good to damn any one."
(a) A very sad confession for any man to make who is living a life of sin is that he believes in the goodness of {414} God. What shall we say, then, of the man who is living in sin, who tramples God's holy will under foot, who breaks God's laws, and makes God's goodness an excuse for doing it?
(b) What proof is there in the Bible or history or experience that God is too good to punish the wicked? 2Pe_3:9.
(c) But not only is the hope that God is too good to punish men for sin and the rejection of Christ contrary to Scripture, it is also contrary to the teachings of history and experience.
2. The hope of being saved by our own goodness. Rom_3:20; Gal_3:10.
3. The hope that a man can be saved by a mere religious profession. This is the false hope of the text quoted.
4. The hope that a man can be saved by a faith that does not lead a man to quit sin. Jam_2:14 RV; 1Jn_5:4-5.
5. The hope that a man can be saved without being born again. Joh_3:3.
# SPEECHLESS BEFORE GOD
"And he was speechless." Mat_22:14.
I. What is the wedding garment? Rev_19:1-21; Rev_7:1-17; Rev_8:1-13; Eph_4:24; Rev_13:14.
The wedding garment is righteousness and true holiness of character. It is Christ Himself. If we are to appear at that supper and keep our places, then we must be clothed with righteousness of heart and life, we must be clothed with true holiness, we must put on Christ Himself so that the beauty of Christ is seen in our lives.
II. Why the one not having on a wedding garment is cast out.
1. First because he is not fit for heavenly society. Heaven is a prepared place for prepared people, a holy place for holy people.
2. Because it is his own fault that he has not on a wedding garment. {415}
CONCLUSION. -- Have you on the wedding garment? The time for the wedding supper is fast drawing nigh.
# PATHS TO PERDITION
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat." Mat_7:13.
I. The shortest path to perdition, the straightest and quickest way, is suicide.
II. The second path to perdition is impurity.
1. First of all impurity breeds unbelief in God and Christ and the Bible.
2. Impurity entangles people in relations that it is hard to get out of, and that one cannot remain in and be saved. Hell will be crowded with adulterers and adulteresses.
3. The next path to perdition is the love of money. 1Ti_6:9.
(a) It leads to dishonest methods of acquiring money.
(b) The consuming love for money blinds many men to the fact that there is anything but money worth striving for, so they leave their souls and their eternal interests utterly neglected.
(c) Many who love money, when they are awakened to the fact that they have a soul and that it is lost, won't come to Christ for fear they will have to give this money up if they do.
4. Love of pleasure is another path to perdition.
5. Infidelity. 2Th_1:7-9; Mar_16:15 Rev_6:1-17. Reliance upon a mere profession of religion. Mat_7:21-23.
7. Putting off your conversion. Pro_27:1; Pro_29:1.
# THE FAILURE OF JESUS CHRIST
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathered her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" Mat_23:37-38.
INTRODUCTION. -- These are among the most tender, pathetic, painful and passionate words that ever fell from the lips of Him {416} who spake as never man spake. It is the utterance of a heart that was aching for a love and trust that were denied it, and well-nigh breaking with a sense of disappointment at the utter failure of cherished desires.
I. The First Lesson is that All Christ's Efforts sometimes Fail.
II. The Second Thought of the Text is Why Jesus Christ Fails.
It is put in the text in three words, "ye would not." "I would; ye would not."
III. The Results of failure.
"Behold your house is left unto you desolate." The result of the failure of Jesus Christ is utter desolation for the one in whom He fails.
# AN IDIOTIC BARGAIN
"What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" Mark 8;36.
I. Note First the Things Which are Contrasted.
1. The things which are contrasted are not the present and the future.
It is true that the man who loses his soul does lose the future --the eternal future-- but he does not gain the present. The one whose soul is saved does not lose the present to gain the future. He does indeed gain the future, the eternal future. He does not lose the present to gain it.
2. The things which are contrasted are the world and the soul. The world, the seen, tangible world, the world of sense and all it can give, money, pleasure, honor, "the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eye and the pride of life" (1Jn_2:16). That is the one thing. The other is the soul, or the life. The man himself, the unseen, inner, real man. To lose our soul or life, is to lose ourselves, to lose true manhood, to fail of what God created us and intended us to be, to have the image of God rubbed out and the image of the devil stamped in its place, to lose all that is divinest and grandest about us, and with it to lose true peace, true joy, {417} true and abiding glory and renown, the esteem of God, co-heirship with Christ, the "inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away which is laid up for us in heaven."
3. Many are trading their souls for far less than the whole world.
II. Is there any Danger of Losing our Souls?
Yes. How do men lose their souls?
1. By persistence in sin.
2. The rejection of Christ.
CONCLUSION. -- Every one out of Christ is losing his soul. Every year the ruin becomes more complete. And it will go on until the last spark of true manhood is extinguished, until the last trace of the divine image is obliterated, until the last breath of peace is vanished, until the last note of joy is silenced, until the last glimmer of glory is gone out, until the last whisper of approval has died away, until the last phantom of hope has disappeared, until this glorious and undying soul which God made in His own image and which Christ died to save, in hopeless discord with itself, contorted into the very image of Satanic evil, tempest tossed with vile and insatiable passions, scorned by its fellow victims and itself, agonizing over its fathomless woe, nursing to its bosom its inconsolable despair, passes out "into the outer darkness where there is the weeping and the gnashing of teeth." Is the whole world worth such a sacrifice?
# A BRILLIANT AND BITTER INFIDEL CONVERTED
"And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord." Act_9:1-43; Act_1:1-26.
"What shall I do, Lord?" Act_22:10.
INTRODUCTION. -- The texts set before us two scenes in the life of Saul of Tarsus. In the one we see Saul of Tarsus filled with hate of Jesus Christ, breathing threatening and slaughter against His disciples; in the other we see the same Saul of Tarsus on his face before Jesus Christ, acknowledging Him as Lord and surrendering the whole control of his life into Jesus' hands, Saul of Tarsus was the most brilliant and most bitter disbeliever in Jesus {418} Christ the world ever saw; he became the most devoted believer in and servant of Jesus Christ of whom history informs us. We are to study the thrilling conversion of this remarkable man.
I. Why He Was Converted.
1. First of all he was converted because he was sincere.
2. Saul of Tarsus was converted because he studied the Scriptures. Many a skeptic and infidel is not converted because he won't study the Scriptures.
3. In the third place, Saul of Tarsus was converted because he yielded to the light when it came.
II. How the Bitter and Brilliant Infidel Was Converted.
1. First of all the life, character and testimony of Stephen led to his conversion.
2. The second thing that led to the conversion of Saul was prayer. Stephen prayed for him.
3. The third thing that led to Saul's conversion was that Jesus Christ met him. That was the decisive thing.
4. He cried and cried honestly, "What shall I do, Lord?"
III. The Results of the Conversion of the Brilliant and Bitter Infidel.
1. Saul of Tarsus became a completely transformed man, a gloriously transformed man.
2. Became a mighty power for good.
3. He obtained priceless possessions for himself.
CONCLUSION. -- Such were the results of his conversion, such will also be the results of your conversion. Will you not then be converted now?
# A HARD ROAD
"The way of the transgressors is hard." Pro_13:15.
I. In the Life that now Isa_1:1-31. Sin makes an uneasy conscience.
2. Sin will inevitably be followed by exposure.
3. Wherever there is sin there will also be penalty. {419}
(a) One of the penalties of sin is the loss of the confidence of our fellow man, and the consequent loss of opportunity.
(b) A second penalty of sin is the physical penalty. There is the most intimate connection between our bodies and our characters.
(c) A third penalty of sin is a loss of grip. It is a well-known fact that when sin gets into the lives of business men they oftentimes lose their grip on business, and hurry on to financial ruin; when it enters the lives of artists they often lose their genius and skill; when it enters into the lives of authors their minds become clouded.
(d) A fourth penalty of sin is bondage.
(e) Blindness. Sin robs the sinner of the vision that is most priceless, -- moral and spiritual vision.
II. In the Life to Come.
The penalties of sin do not end with the life that now is. Sin and suffering forever go hand in hand. If we die sinners we shall go into the next world sinners, and being sinners we shall be sufferers. In this life we may get the first fruits of our sin, but there we get the full harvest.
CONCLUSION. -- What, then, shall the sinner do? Isa_55:7.
# HOPELESS CASES
"Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you." Mat_7:6.