God is just! And a just God must punish sin! He cannot clear the guilty and allow the unrighteous to go free. Yet, we know that God is love! And a loving, merciful God must show mercy! Just as our holy God must punish sin, our merciful God must forgive sinners.
Then the question arises, “How can God be just and be the justifier of guilty sinner?” Where can mercy and truth meet together and both be satisfied? Where can holiness uncompromised and full forgiveness of sin meet without conflict and kiss each other? Where can a fallen man, laden with guilt and sin, meet a holy and just God and be received, accepted, and embraced as faultless, unblameable, and just?
The answer is, “At the cross.” God set forth his Son in the covenant, in the promise, in type and picture, and finally in person (made of woman) to be a propitiation, a substitute, a sin-offering, a mercy-seat, a sacrifice for all the sins of all believers. He took our sins and bore them in his body on the tree. All the sins of all believers of all ages were completely paid for in the death of the God-man!
Justice is satisfied; God’s law was honored in his life and God’s justice was fully satisfied in his death. Our God gives us assurance that Christ’s sacrifice was effectual when he raised him from the dead and exalted him to the right hand in glory. Only the gospel of our suffering substitute can answer the question, “How can God be just and justify sinners?”
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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