And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. - John 5:40
It was not lack of evidence or witnesses that kept these Jews from coming to Christ, believing on him, and receiving him as Lord and Saviour. There was evidence enough in him and in his words and acts. “No man spake like this man.” “No man could do these miracles except God be with him.”
There were witnesses enough in John the Baptist, the Father himself, the works, and the prophets of old! It was not lack of evidence or witnesses but their fallen and perverse wills which kept them from seeing and believing! and it is so today!
The Lord Jesus is able and willing to receive and redeem all who come to him, but men by nature are unwilling to come to him that they might have life. Why is this?
1. It is because they are blind to the absolute holiness and justice of God. He will in no wise clear the guilty. Christ is the only way God can be just and Justifier (Rom. 3:19-26).
2. It is because they are blind to their sins and have no sense of their deep and desperate need of a mediator, a sin-offering, and an atonement. “No man cometh to the Father but by me,” for “by him we have now received the atonement” (Rom. 5:11).
3. It is because the carnal mind is enmity against God, and Jesus Christ is God! (Jn. 10:30).
About Henry Mahan
Henry T. Mahan was born in Birmingham, Alabama in August 1926. He joined the United States Navy in 1944 and served as a signalman on an L.S.T. in the Pacific during World War II. In 1946, he married his wife Doris, and the Lord blessed them with four children.
At the age of 21, he entered the pastoral ministry and gained broad experience as a pastor, teacher, conference speaker, and evangelist. In 1950, through the preaching of evangelist Rolfe Barnard, God was pleased to establish Henry in sovereign free grace teaching. At that time, he was serving as an assistant pastor at Pollard Baptist Church (off of Blackburn ave.) in Ashland, Kentucky.
In 1955, Thirteenth Street Baptist Church was formed in Ashland, Kentucky, and Henry was called to be its pastor. He faithfully served that congregation for more than 50 years, continuing in the same message throughout his ministry. His preaching was centered on the Lord Jesus Christ and Him crucified, in full accord with the Scriptures. He consistently proclaimed God’s sovereign purpose in salvation and the glory of Christ in redeeming sinners through His blood and righteousness.
Henry T. Mahan also traveled widely, preaching in conferences and churches across the United States and beyond. His ministry was marked by a clear and unwavering emphasis on Christ, not the preacher, but the One preached. Those who heard him recognized that his sermons honored the Savior and exalted the name of the Lord Jesus Christ above all.
Henry T. Mahan served as pastor and teacher of Thirteenth Street Baptist Church in Ashland, Kentucky for over half a century. His life and ministry were devoted to proclaiming the sovereign grace of God and directing sinners to the finished work of Christ. He entered into the presence of the Lord in 2019, leaving behind a lasting testimony to the gospel he faithfully preached.
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